Date A Re:Live

S1 Chapter 17: Kurumi Fallacy, Part 4

By : Tohka_Yatogami

...

Summary

Even a similar story can take it's own path. Shido and Mana are amnesiac siblings living with their friend Kotori, however the past catches up to Shido when he nearly runs into a space quake, and his world changes as one girl asks... "Are you here to kill me?" (Stronger Ratatoskr, weaker DEM, games & movie are canon to story) [Shido/Tohka/Harem]

Alright, time for the DEM's first major attack of this arc, but definitely not the last one. Now you probably remember me mentioning Shido would be getting something new in last chapter's end notes, right? Well... that "new" thing just happens to be a new ability, and you'll just have to wait and see just what that ability is. Though how he gets it? I think that'll be the bigger twist overall *giggles* ^^

Oh, and to the one Guest reviewer. While Mio is indeed the First Spirit in canon, I stated back in Chapter 1 that this fanfic's idea was made before Volume 16 had even come out, so that isn't the case in this fanfic. The only thing this fanfic has that has any relation to Mio in the slightest is both Tohka and the mysterious being that talks through Shido using the name using it to be identity during the periods they forgot their names.

Now, since I've been bringing up Material A quite often as of the recent arcs, and just introduced Material B, I think I should clarify something here since I actually answered who Material A isn't all the way back in Tohka's arc, specifically Chapter 2 where Marina indirectly confirms this, but back then it wasn't as significant. Since Chapter 2 did reveal it, it's not a spoiler for me to reveal it here.

Back in Chapter 2, Marina stated that Artemisia and Jessica's reasons for being absent and unable to aid in capturing Tohka was because each of them were coming back from a failed assignment, to capture Kurumi and Nia respectively. In canon, Material A is none other than Nia, but as you can see by what Marina said that she isn't in the DEM's clutches. So unlike canon, Nia was never captured, and Material A is someone else entirely :3

Also, while Mana's still in her recovery period, we will see her again in this chapter. Let's just say that a certain someone wants to talk to her about what she should do the moment she fully recovers and gets discharged. Though the question is this, am I talking about this arc, events leading to Date A Re:Strike... or somehow both of them? Well...

You'll have to read and find out ^^

Now here's Inverse Origami's data sheet before we begin today's chapter.

-Inverse Origami, Code Name: [Devil]-

Demon King: Satan, the "Demon King of Salvation" - Metatron's Demon King counterpart, Satan takes the form of a crown that looks more like a spiky black halo and having black feathery pillars with a sharp appearance than Metatron's golden pillars. Similar to Nahemah with Sandalphon, Satan is not that different from Metatron, but does have a single addition in comparison.

- Alternate Form: Gilgul, The Moon - This formation is the Inverse counterpart of " Shemesh, The Sun" . The formation acts identical to its normal counterpart, but there's now two circles made from the pillars floating around Origami, creating less openings to slip through.

- Alternate Form: Moloch, Demonic Wings - This formation is the Inverse counterpart of " Mal'akh, Heavenly Wings ". The formation acts identical to its normal counterpart, but the wings can now slice through anything it flies through, and they can actually fire their light beams.

- Alternate Form: Tanahk, Blades of Darkness - This formation is the Inverse counterpart of " Kadour, Sword of Light ". The formation acts identical to its normal counterpart, but now the pillars don't need Origami to guide them herself, she can just have them follow a pattern or act of their own free will, and they move much more erratically too.

- Alternate Form: Nusach, Regalia Blaster - This formation is the Inverse counterpart of " Artelif, Crown Cannon ". The formation acts identical to its normal counterpart, but the beam has piercing qualities and the pillars thrust forward like a drill after firing at their target for a second blow.

- Alternate Form: Merkavah, Shadow Prison - This formation is the Inverse counterpart of " Zohar, Holy Gate ". The formation acts identical to its normal counterpart, but combine both the shield and barrier positions for a double layer of effectiveness and protection against attacks. They can even possibly reflect some attacks if they have the right properties.

- Alternate Form: Chassidei, the Lunar Slashers - By detaching a section from two of the pillars, they can attach to Origami's hands and become a pair of swords she can use for limited close combat. They're not very strong, but are good for situations where Origami can't or shouldn't use long ranged attacks against an opponent.

- Powers: While in her Inverse Form, the normal limitation Origami has with a lack of photons vanished because her light attribute gains a darker color and therefore does not require pure photons. Her teleportation technique is almost much faster in reaction time, and in distance, while it is still possible to trick Satan into being struck like Metatron, it is much more difficult because Satan and predict three attacks in a row before it can be truly caught off guard.

Risk Factors: SS

Spacequake: AAA

Spirit's Astral Dress: AA

Demon King Rank: AAA

Strength: 198

Consistency: 202

Spiritual Power: 242

Agility: 188

Intelligence: 230

The being inside the pod gasped as she heard the unseen female only known as Phantom, who had just told her real name, and then continued by explaining why she was here and what she had done when had freed her. Needless to say, she was horrified... yet eternally thankful for Phantom.

"I... would have been a slave... and never realized it?" The being asked, her hands shaking as she looked at them.

"(That's right, this whole project was something that was meant to expand on a mind control device that I think was used to secure the loyalty of one of their top fighters. This whole organization is run by a sick madman.) Phantom explained, soon rubbing the female being's head.

"(Not to worry though, I've completely rewritten the whole system. Not only have I guaranteed you free will, but there's never going to a Material C or above. I didn't just destroy their data, I've made them whole network refuse to accept any information related to the concept of stealing free will or unwilling control. Your life is yours now.)

"...Thank you, I'll be forever thankful to you-" The female being was about to say Phantom's real name, but Phantom waved her hands to warn her no. "Oh, I'm sorry. I guess you have a reason to hide your real name for now Phantom... but wait, this pod says I'm Material B, who's Material A?"

Phantom looked down.

"(...I don't know, the only thing I could get from this terminal was it was extended of the original idea which manipulated someone to a degree they're being controlled without even realizing it. That person thinks they have free will, but that's because they're unaware of the lie hidden within.)"

"Oh my..." The female being said. "...Phantom, I don't have any memory or identity to call my own. I'm artificial according to what you told me. So... if it's alright, I want to properly repay you and aid you."

Phantom gasped.

"(...Are you sure? The last two times I had people say they wanted to help me, I wasn't there when they needed me most. One died, and the other has become murderous and nothing like the sweet girl I gave powers to.)" Phantom answered honestly, she wanted this girl to know what path she'd get stuck to if she followed.

"I am, no... I want to! You gave me a purpose! You gave me the right to choose, and I chose this!" The female being answered, and Phantom's unseen eyes widen.

"I found my purpose with Humanity, so for that reason I've chosen to make my path in life to protect them. For the remaining flowers left of their kind, I will nurture them with all I can do. That is my dream, that is the purpose I've given myself."

"(I wonder, was this fate? Those words ring so familiarly to me it's crazy. Alright then, but first...)" Phantom smiled, soon looking at part of the room and revealing some shards. compressing them together, she made a disfigured gem like a Sephira Crystal.

"(I don't have any more Sephira Crystals since I gave the last one to Tohka, so I hope you don't mind this attempt at an artificial one.)" Phantom said, scratching her cheek a bit in embarrassment.

"It's alright, its more than enough." The female being said, touching it and soon feeling herself transform as it embedded itself in her.

"(Welcome to the Spirit family, glad to have you... oh my god, you don't even have a name. Let's fix that then. The question is, what should I name you?)" Phantom wondered, soon looking around until seeing something that gave her an idea. "(I know! How about the name...)"

Meanwhile at school, everyone heard the Spacequake Alarm as it went off. By the time everyone had evacuated, the Ratatoskr members minus Origami had all gathered in Tamae's classroom.

"Maria, what's happening? Please don't tell me another Spirit just showed up." Shido asked worriedly, Kurumi was already problematic enough that having another Spirit appear would just make things impossible in saving either of them.

"Well, I think it's-" Maria began, however Mio interjected.

[No, this isn't a new Spirit. It feels more like it was set it off intentionally, just like Tohka did to keep the civilians safe back when the DEM tried capturing her in April.]

"But why would they need to do that? If there's no new Spirit then it's pretty much useless, not to mention that the DEM knows by now that trying to capture a Spirit in Tenguu City is gonna backfire on them with us here." Kotori wondered, it didn't make any sense to her.

At that moment, Origami came back from her little meeting with Kurumi and soon panted, getting the group's attention.

"Hey Origami, you took a while to get back. Is something wrong?" Tohka asked.

"L-Look outside! There's a giant robot coming towards the city!" Origami screamed in a panic, making everyone gasp.

Maria soon shifted Shido's phone to see through an emergency observation device and the sight of a giant version of a Jabberwocky with a more bipedal posture in comparison to them. It was seen being flown towards the city by a few Bandersnatch that carried it, and it was getting closer by the second.

"Holy shit!" Shido shouted.

"That thing's gotta be at least ten times bigger than the Nidhoggr was! I don't even know about the Hydra that you faced!" Katie panicked, sweating bullets after seeing it. "Why's it even here, is this just for capturing Kurumi?"

Tamae bit her nails a bit.

"I hate to say it, but it may very well be made especially for the purpose of catching Kurumi. It might destroy the entire city just to capture her!" Tamae panicked, making everyone pale at her reaction. Worse is she could be right, especially after they saw that video.

Tohka made a determined face.

"Then we've gotta stop it! Come on!" Tohka declared, soon summoning her Astral Dress and jumping out the window, flying towards the scene.

"...I hope that doesn't come out of my paycheck." Tamae said, sweat dropping a bit.

"She's right, we can't just sit her, let's go guys!" Shido replied, and everyone nodded. The AST members all summoned their CR-Units while Kotori and Origami summoned their Astral Dresses, all of the follow Tohka immediately after this.

"Shido, I'll give you a ride over." Yoshino mentioned, offering her hand.

"Thanks Yoshino." Shido replied, holding out his hand in return

Yoshino formed her Astral Dress, and soon she took Shido's hand jumping out the broken window and landing on Zadkiel as the Angel formed below them, soon flying after the others.

"Hang on Shido!" Yoshino exclaimed, Shido shakily nodding as the wind of their flight blows against them. Meanwhile from the shadows of the building wall, Kurumi formed and watched them head on over.

"It seems I need to find a good seat to watch from." Kurumi giggled before falling back into the wall to head somewhere else.

Artemisia suddenly noticed the Goliath heading towards the city, and soon tried to contact Westcott.

"This is Adeptus 2, please pick up!" Artemisia requested, soon getting through to Marina who sighed as she was interrupted from her usual work.

"What is it Artemisia, father's got me busy with work on Material A?" Marina asked.

"Are you aware that someone or something brought the Goliath to the city? That machine's not meant to be used in a place like Tenguu City!" Artemisia yelled in a panic, and Marina showed surprise... or rather acted out the script her father had set. She was smirking on the inside.

'Phase one complete.' Marina thought, keeping her poker face. "It is? Oh no, I guess Edgar didn't just have Minerva in his little rebellion. Unfortunately, we don't have anyone who can come aid you on time. Sorry sweetie, you'll have to destroy it without our aid. I'll at least see if I can shut it down from here."

Marina hangs up, making Artemisia panic.

"Crap, well... guess I don't have a choice then." Artemisia replied, summoning her Shiva CR-Unit and taking into the sky to where the Goliath was about to be dropped, accelerating as fast she possibly could.

The Goliath soon reached its drop off zone, and the gigantic machine suddenly had its eye flash before it gave a mechanical roar, smashing the Bandersnatch that were carrying it and soon crashing on the ground. It dropped the Bandersnatch' scrap onto the ground.

"DESTROY!" Goliath said, claiming its sole motion before swing its arm and smashing apart a portion of the city as it swept through the buildings like it simply cutting paper with a pair of scissors. It roared again before it suddenly noticed that it was being hit by a sword.

"Take this!" Tohka exclaimed, swinging down Sandalphon on the giant mechanical nightmare. The Goliath turned to face her and charged a laser blast from its eye. Tohka gasped before flying out of the way, soon seeing a whole block of the neighborhood blow up in smoke.

"Oh no... this is bad!"

The Goliath prepared to clap crush her, making Tohka's eyes widen before intentionally making herself fall and stomping the ground, making her throne appear before kicking it, shifting it into a vehicle form.

"Chrysaor!" Tohka declared, soon sheathing Sandalphon inside and causing Chrysaor to rocket forward at the monstrous machine. Tohka made it spin and a few slash waves hit it before slamming the front and boosting forward. "Now pierce it!"

Tohka soon crashed into it, but to her shock she was flung up high as the Chrysaor broke and Sandalphon got sent flying far away from her. Tohka could only stare as the Goliath turned towards her. Kurumi appeared on a nearby building top and began watching.

"Hmm... so this is the one they call Tohka Yatogami? Interesting, but it seems she's not as powerful as I heard she was." Kurumi sighed, not impressed with Tohka's tactics against the Goliath

Tohka saw the Goliath charge another beam at her, her eyes shaking as it fired when...

"Zohar - Holy Gate!" Origami shouted.

Suddenly Metatron's pillars fly out and each has their ends touch at a focal center point, shining light as the beam struck it but failed to break through the shield. Origami soon flew by Tohka and grabbed her to move her to safety.

"Sorry for the delay, go find Sandalphon while we distract it." Origami smiled, making Tohka nod before she jumped down to grab her sword. Goliath prepared another attack when a wave of fire suddenly struck it. The Goliath soon saw Kotori and the AST members before the latter all initiated fire from their blasters.

"DESTROY!" Goliath roared, suddenly beginning a run towards the group. The AST all scatter and form territories for it to crash into, but it simply smashed through them like they were just pieces of breakable glass.

"I've got this!" Kotori shouted, rushing ahead. Goliath swung its arms at her, and she dodged before reach the eye of the beast. "Time to smash you apart!"

Kotori screams loudly as she swings Camael across the Goliath's eye, causing the optical unit to shake a bit as she did. Soon she begins spinning around, each rotation smashing the Goliath's eye strongly before it suddenly began to glow and charge again. Kotori gasped before she's blasted.

"AH!" Kotori cried out, soon catching herself in midair as her flames begin to heal her. At that moment, Tohka finds Sandalphon and grabs it. "Tohka! We need to hit hard, let's give it a taste of a Megiddo and Halvanhelev combo!"

"Right! Tohka replied, giving a toothy grin.

Tohka swung Sandalphon, gathering the broken shards of her throne that resulted from Chrysaor's crash and gathered them to form the Halvanhelev. At the same time, Camael shifted into its cannon form, Tohka rushed towards Kotori as the Goliath charged at the two.

"DESTROY!" Goliath roared as it charged its eye beam again, and the two got into position. Tohka shouted as she swung Halvanhelev back and then swung it down on the machine, crashing into its optical as it fired and slashing the eye laser while holding the Goliath in place and holding it.

"Oh?" Kurumi wondered, suddenly more interested in Tohka now as she slightly pushed the giant machine back. "It seems I may have been a little too hasty in my judgment. Perhaps I picked too strong a machine to base my standards on."

"Burn it all to ash, do it Camael!" Kotori declared, blasting Megiddo at the tip of Halvanhelev, the sword and beam collide and make the Goliath shake from the force that was smashing into it. Soon the Halvanhelev began to glow red as it overloaded. "Just a bit more Tohka!"

"Right! If I release the overload into the machine that should do it, keep it coming Kotori!" Tohka replied.

Soon the Halvanhelev sparked and Tohka ripped Sandalphon out from the rest of the blade as it got stuck in a small dent she forced into the optical. Kotori screamed and forced the biggest burst of the Megiddo blast to shoot out, Camael soon reverted to normal as the rest of the fire beam melded with Halvanhelev and everyone saw an explosion at the same moment Yoshino and Shido arrived.

"Whoa! No way, did you guys already take care of it?" Shido asked in awe, Tohka and Kotori flashed him a peace sign.

"DESTROY!"

Everyone suddenly turned in shock as the saw the Goliath run out of the smoke undamaged, only the small dent to the Goliath's eye was a sign of any mark left on it.

"This thing's almost invincible!" Origami sweated, soon motioning her hand forward. "Kadour - Sword of Light"

Origami's pillars all shot forward and stabbed into the Goliath, throwing it off balance as it fell to the ground. As it did, Shido soon stood up and closed his eyes.

"I call to a second power sleeping deep within my darkness, now break the dimensional limits before me... and form a new power beyond the horizon!" Shido shouted, within his body both Tohka and Kotori's spirit power lined up with his mana core, leaving only some of his body untouched by spirit mana. "Sandalphon, Camael... unite!"

Shido's hair and eyes took on Tohka and Kotori's colors as copies of both angels appeared in his hands. Kurumi gasped at the sight, she had no idea Shido had such an ability.

"He can use the power of the Spirits? Not just that, but multiple Spirits at once?" Kurumi blinked, soon smiling a bit. "Hmm... and yet his body still looks like it hasn't fully been touched by it either. I wonder..."

Kurumi looked at Zafkiel and smirked, the small clock gems on the sides of each gun shifting to the 'X' spot.

"Yoshino, I'm depending on you to get me close to that thing. Alright?" Shido requested, making Yoshino nod. Yoshino soon bopped Yoshinon on her head... but nothing.

"Huh?" Yoshino gasped worriedly, trying a few more times.

"What's going on? We can't swap to our Inverse Form, this is bad!" Yoshinon said, seating a bit as the Goliath swung at Zadkiel. "Incoming!"

Suddenly the Goliath hit the Angel, making it shatter. Yoshino screams as she fell to the ground.

"Yoshino!" Shido called out, forcing himself to dive at them before catching them, and landing roughly but still mostly intact. Shido looked at Yoshino who weakly looked back. "Are you alright?"

"Shido, I... I..." Yoshino cried, tears flooding down her face. As that was happening, the SSS trio flew into the area after their slight delay. Cecile looked at the DEM weapon and slightly gasped.

"That thing's massive, we'll need to focus our attacks at a specific armor point without erring to damage that thing." Cecile told the other two, both nodded as they flew near the other AST members. "Attention troops, is there any damage we've made so far?"

"We have one spot, while it didn't do much, Tohka got a small dent in the optical that acts as its eye." Mikie answered, pointing to it. Leonora focuses on it and nods.

"Alright, everyone gather around while we do a combination strike." Leonora replied, soon looking at the Spirits. "Can you three distract this mammoth machine for us while we get ready?"

"Yeah, we'll cover you." Origami nodded, flying off as Tohka and Kotori zoom around the Goliath.

"DESTROY!" Goliath roared, firing its optical while trying to swat them with its arms and hands as they swiped at the trio of Spirits. Soon the sight of Ashley using her CR-Unit's mana to write up a plan was seen.

"Everyone understand it?" Ashley asked, they all nodded.

"Ma'am, yes ma'am!"

Cecile smiles and soon flies at the machine.

"Alright, here we go! Territory jamming activate!" Cecile shouted, creating the disruption field as she neared the Goliath, its movement slowed a bit as it felt the effects and soon tried to kill Cecile with a hand clap. Cecile smirked and her CR-Unit had its shoulder weapons stretch out and strike, parrying its hands and sending it off balance.

"Mikie, take the right leg! Everyone else focus on your joints!" Ashley ordered, everyone nodded as she went to the left leg and Mikie the right. Blades shot out from Ashley's wrist guards as she grabbed her double-edged swords and the Asura blades on her back opened up.

"Right!" Mikie replied, forming her dagger claws as the two rushed at the legs and stabbed into the stabilizer areas, making the tipping Goliath sway as it began to lose balances. The other AST members either struck with their weapons or fired their blasters at the other join spots on the Goliath. "Katie!"

"OK, we got the green light." Katie stated, making Leonora nod as she readied her blasters while Katie used her scope to focus her sniper rifle. She got the information on the wind, coordinates and her range. "Coordinates locked synchronizing shoots when ready."

Leonora nodded and moved her arms over Katie's shoulders, electric signals linking their weapons as Katie waits for her scope to give her the confirmation. Soon it does.

"Fire!" Katie exclaimed, making her and Leonora fires at the dent in the Goliath's eye, causing it to shatter a bit and fall over. Everyone in the AST alongside all the spirits gathered around and soon charged their best attacks.

"Here we go!" Tohka shouted.

Everyone either blasted, struck or thrust at the dented area of the Goliath and soon hit it hard, the machine looked like it had finally stopped moving to everyone's cheer. However, it soon got up and shook.

"DESTROY!" Goliath roared again, managing to kick itself back upright and then force everyone to scatter before it tried another beam. At that moment however, a unique territory suddenly defended against the shots as Artemisia flew into view.

"Artemisia!" Ashley called out, seeing her fly at the machine.

"I won't let your malfunctioning hardware doom this town, DEM's orders!" Artemisia shouted, soon rushing forward and smashing into the Goliath's chest area.

In moments, Artemisia drew the Masamune and fired a beam from it, smashing its optical sensor while slashing the blade, cutting slightly into the Goliath's arm. She flies ever faster and cuts into ever more areas, and soon went for the eye again.

"Game, set and..."

Artemisia was suddenly cut off as the Goliath covered its own eye and blasted a laser, the flash it made blinding her before she was suddenly swatted away a bit. She saw the Goliath had soon repaired its optical to a non-damaged state from the heat.

"No, it... it can't be! You didn't have that function!" Artemisia breathed, unaware that the Goliath's programming had an alternate routine for her. As Artemisia prepared her territory, the Goliath jumped up into the air, shocking her before it slammed down, pressuring her territory before the machine grabbed her, slowly breaking it apart as it began to crack.

"Ah! Y-you won't stop me, I'm Adeptus 2 of the DEM, I..."

Artemisia felt the burning in her head continue, and the Goliath squeezed harder. Cecile, Ashley and Leonora all flew at it to help her.

"ARTEMISIA!" They all shouted.

"DESTROY!" The Goliath roared, soon squeezing so hard that Artemisia's territory shattered. The moment she felt the Goliath's fingers clutch onto her, she suddenly screamed loudly as the burning reached its peak.

'Ashley? Leonora? Cecile? Is... is that...' Artemisia thought before her eyes widened, a burning electricity running through her head.

Inside her head, a realizer smoked before it dissolved apart, but soon passed through a certain area of the brain and made her eyes lose their light before it dropped her, Cecile dived at her and tumbled after the catch.

"Artemisia, wake up! Please wake up!" Cecile begged, but Artemisia didn't respond as she seemed almost... comatose, or vegetative. "ARTEMISIA!"

The Goliath began its charge again as it rushed towards the group, everyone looking at it worriedly considering that they were facing off against what had seemed to become an indestructible machine. As this happened, Phantom and her new partner began floating in midair.

"Shouldn't we help them?" The female being asked, but Phantom shook her head. "Why not? That thing might destroy them."

"(Its simple, because I believe in Shido. When the odds face him he always finds away. He can do this because...)" Phantom answers, showing an unseen smile. "(...she believes in him too.)"

The female being stared, wondering who 'she' was, but decided to trust Phantom. Meanwhile back with Shido, he was still with a crying Yoshinon.

"...I'm so useless. I can't Inverse and switch places with Yoshinon, I'm too scared to truly fight fully or hurt someone. I can't even lend you my strength with the Spirit Ascension." Yoshinon cried, Yoshinon worriedly looking at her. "I'm nothing compared to the others, I'm just weak and pathetic."

"...You're anything but that Yoshino!" Shido yelled out, getting her attention.

"Don't you remember back then? When we first met, you made the choice to talk to me as yourself before you let me seal your powers. You were the one who chose to follow us to go and save Kotori, and you chose to fight the Nidhoggr and Hydra. Not to mention earlier today you stood up for me without even needing to fight back when my classmates became jealous. You don't need to Inverse to be strong, maybe you're not strong physically... but your heart is where your power comes from!"

Yoshino gasped, tearing up more.

"Shido... thank you. Thank you so much!" Yoshino sniffled, hugging him. Suddenly Shido feels a huge surge between him and Yoshino.

"Whoa! I feel all tingly, what's going on?" Yoshino asked confused, not realizing what it was.

[S-Shido! It's amazing, in just one moment... I think your bond with Yoshino's just finally hit 50%! This is incredible!]

"Are you serious Mio!?" Shido, Yoshino and Yoshinon asked surprised. Seeing this opportunity, Kurumi smirked as she decided to start up the idea she wanted to see. She aimed Zafkiel at Shido from a blind spot.

"I guess this is a good chance." Kurumi smiled, giggling as she prepared to fire.

"YUD!"

Suddenly the bullet fired off and hit Shido, hitting him on the back. At that moment, he and Mio suddenly feel something weird, but the one who saw something was Mio. A bunch of memories flashed too fast for her to properly register, but what it did show was some glow within Shido... and then the two gasped.

[Shido, did you feel that?]

"I did, I don't know why but... I think the fact that all the Spirits I've sealed have bonded enough with me has revealed a new power!" Shido gasped, soon making a determined face. "Mio, I'm going to try it... I'm going to see if I can do a Triple Spirit Ascension!"

Mio gasped.

[Shido! Do you know how worried I was when you tried a Double, trying a Triple right now might just fail, regardless of the result it may be too much for you! Don't take the risk-]

"Do you trust me?" Shido asked, making Mio go silent. He closed his eyes, and Mio felt his determination and despite she wanted to say otherwise... something else told her to believe in him.

[...I trust you, do what you believe you need to do!]

"Thank you, Mio." Shido smiled, soon looking at Yoshino and Yoshinon. "Can you two wait here? This shouldn't take much longer."

Yoshino nods, and Shido smiled and nodded back. Soon leaving Yoshino to watch him walk towards the Goliath. Kurumi curious to see if what she tried had done anything to help him see what she was looking for.

- (*insert Asterisk War - Brand New World*) -

Soon enough the Goliath noticed Shido, and as its readings saw him as the bigger threat, it quickly turned around and began rushing at Shido at full speed. As it prepared to crush him, everyone else stared as Shido.

"SHIDO!" They all cried out in worry.

Shido soon recalled Sandalphon and Camael, soon hold them together as he channeled more power. He soon felt his eyes widen and his body pulse, feeling the stress of what he was about to do pressurizing into his body like crazy.

"Damn it, my whole body feels like it's being compressed... but I know I can do this! Tohka, Origami, Yoshino and Kotori! This is the power we formed together, so I won't let it fall to a mechanical machination like this one!" Shido shouted loudly, holding his arms up high.

"I call to the power savage force rampaging inside my will, now break the dimensional boundaries before me... and create a new potential in this reality!"

Yoshino's power surged through his body, and everywhere else inside of it where Tohka and Kotori's power hadn't encompassed its presence was filled before it also linked up to his mana core. Yelling in pain again, Shido soon gained a focused look as he glowed brightly.

"SANDALPHON, CAMAEL, ZADKIEL... BREAK THE BOUNDARIES TOGETHER!"

"Wait, he just called out three Angels!? Then this is a..." Kotori began, realizing what he was achieving.

"...Triple Spirit Ascension!?" Tohka and Origami finish together in shock.

Suddenly the power surged out and the Goliath which was right at Shido was suddenly forced away and shot into a whole group of buildings, crashing into it and struggling to get back up afterwards.

"D-DESTROY!" Goliath shakily roared, getting back up.

A warning signal soon appearing in its analyzer as it noticed Shido's readings. Everyone looked to see Shido now with red, purple and blue hair while sharing the three Spirits' eye colors. His whole body was shaking as he rode on Zadkiel with both Sandalphon and Camael in hand.

"Amazing, he really did it!" Tohka smiled, raising a fist into the air as she gave a cheer sound.

[You... you actually did it! I can even tell the force your body's handling this time and your still OK! I think this form's side effects may be still be cause for concern. Shido, you need to finish this ASAP!]

"I intend to! This is not a machine I'll hold back again, let's go!" Shido exclaimed, Zadkiel roared as it rushed forward on Shido's command. The Goliath rushed back at Shido again and went for a ramming smash, charging its optical laser again. "Now Zadkiel!"

Zadkiel kicked its hind legs and then smashed hard into Goliath, throwing it off as it spun and its optical laser fires into the air, missing everything before it faded. Soon Shido jumped up high and slashed with Sandalphon, denting a slashed into Goliath, and then using Camael to make a second and making said dent an 'X' shape.

"D-D-DES...TROY!" Goliath shakily replied, starting to be overwhelmed. Shido screamed loudly as he slashed down on Zadkiel, soon breaking it apart and makings its pieces fly as Camael changed to its Megiddo form.

"Angel... Fusion... OVERDRIVE!" Shido shouted, soon placing Sandalphon inside and having Zadkiel's pieces fall into Megiddo's cannon. In response, the Megiddo cannon shifted back and the three Angels became a new red and white version of the Halvanhelev that was emitting rings of fire and ice.

"Time for you to go back to the scrap where you beyond, now go... HAIL FIRE SLASHER!"

Shido slammed the sword down, and the minute he did, the tip of the blade caused a rapid succession of fiery and icy explosions, it was almost like watching miniature bursts of a reactor core fluctuate as soon enough the Goliath's body began to crack where the 'X' shaped cut was made!

"He's breaking through the armor!" Origami shouted, soon gasping. "That's it! The rapidly hot and cold bursts of spirit power, they're literally eating away at the armor, chipping its strength and turning the hard metal completely brittle!"

Meanwhile Kurumi stared before she suddenly began laughing in a loud and slightly unhinged, but happy sounding manner. What she was seeing right now? This... beautiful display of force that Shido was showing, it made her smile.

"This is it Shido, any doubts I had before now are gone! You are the real deal! The one who has the power I'm seeking! This is the power you gained from [Princess], [Angel], [Hermit] and [Efreet]! You are the one I definitely need to eat!" Kurumi declared.

The Goliath tried in vain to reach out and crush Shido, but Shido just poured more power and the machine began to spark.

"GO!" Shido shouted, soon unleashing one final burst. The Goliath was hit by the entire attack and soon consumed as Shido soon was forced out of his Spirit Ascension. Landing on his knees as the two forces soon consumed the Goliath as it exploded. Everyone watching cheered.

- (insert song end) -

"He did it, the Goliath is destroyed!" Mikie cheered, but soon the celebration was cut off as she noticed Ashley and the others of the SSS trio by Artemisia. "Ash?"

Everyone soon saw the same sight of the three all in tears over Artemisia's current state, and suddenly the victory cheer was cut short.

"Artemisia! Please, please wake up! I beg of you!" Leonora cried, shaking Artemisia in vain as she only gave weak unconscious groans. Leonora soon began to break down crying loudly. Katie contacted Ratatoskr.

"We need a medical chopper now! Artemisia B. Ashcroft is in an unknown medical state!" Katie reasoned.

"Understood, a chopper's being deployed as we speak." Reine replied, soon sighing. "Katie, can you tell me Shido's condition? His stress levels went up like crazy."

"Don't worry Commander, he just used a new level of Spirit Ascension. He's fine now if just tired." Katie replied.

Reine smiled and sighed in relief.

"That's good, I wouldn't forgive..." Reine began, soon catching herself. However, Kotori who was nearby Katie however turned as she heard that sudden cut off and suddenly raised an eyebrow. "I mean its good Shido didn't suffer any serious damage. Commander Reine out."

Meanwhile back at the DEM, Marina in her android body watched from a couch as the Goliath signal finally vanished and the available data it took to take the machine out. Smirking at the results they got.

"Just as planned, you did well in helping us get the data we needed Artemisia..." Marina smirked, soon moving a finger at the screen to show Kurumi as she saw the recording of her leaving the scene. "As did you Nightmare, now all that's left is to finish our true weapon."

Marina got up and walked to a part on Arubi Island where an even more massive attack machine was nearing its completion.

"Just a while longer before you can finally begin, and Father's dream will take the first big step he's been waiting for." Marina chuckled darkly, smirking as she made a contact. "It's me Minerva, head back to Arubi Island. Your new CR-Unit has been finished... Adeptus 2."

Soon at the hospital, Reine was with the SSS trio as they saw the bedridden Artemisia, her lifeless eyes having failed to close as she was hooked up to a few life support machines due to her unresponsive state. Reine sighed and turned to them as her examinations finished.

"Well, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that physically there's not a thing wrong with her. Her health, vitals, not a single part of her is in lethal harm, she could live a long life easily." The SSS trio looked happily, but Reine cleared her throat reminding them that was only the good news.

"The bad news? Well... I realized exactly why she's like this, and it turns out Artemisia never betrayed us."

The trio gasped.

"It seems that when she went missing... the DEM did something to her. My analysis showed traces of a realizers that acted as a memory suppressant. Every time she tried to remember something the realizer registered as a trigger, it would respond to keep her from fully recalling it."

"Wait, so you're saying... of course, that's why she seemed to start recognizing us but then suddenly was sure she didn't!" Cecile gasped, and Reine nodded.

"That's where the news gets bad, that Goliath had a sub-routine to overload that device by defeating her and when it did... the device dissolved away, but in the process, it took away Artemisia's memories." Reine continued, soon sighing as the three gave frightened stares.

"Right now, due to that, she's in a mixture of a coma and vegetative state, but also neither of those at the same time. I'm sorry to say this to you three, but if we can't somehow recover Artemisia's memories..."

The three all stared as Reine said the dreaded line.

"...She will never wake up again."

"No... no, no, no!" Ashley cried, soon grabbing Artemisia's hand. "Artemisia! We finally got you back, you can't go away for good... you can't!"

Soon Ashley cried over Artemisia's body, Cecile and Leonora got close to her, putting hands on their back as they did the same. Reine closed her eyes and looked away, knowing the three needed to grieve over this together.

She soon walked out as she took a tablet and began preparing for some method to find and recover Artemisia's memories. She was a fellow ally of Ratatoskr and a fellow friend, she would not let the DEM get away with this act. As she did this, Kotori looked at her leave and entered Mana's room, Mana looking out the window.

"Hmm?" Mana suddenly blinked, turning to see Kotori come in. "Oh hey Kotori, you came to see me?"

"Yeah, how close you getting there trooper." Kotori joked, making Mana giggle a bit.

"My temperature's still a bit high, but I'm doing a bit better. My mind still feels hazy for any long thoughts though." Mana answered, and Kotori smiled before giving a serious face to Mana's surprise. "What is it?"

Kotori sighed.

"Mana, what was the last thing you did before you passed out?" Kotori asked.

"Uh... I think I grabbed Reine's teddy. She left it here to watch me as a get well gift." Mana answered, and Kotori looked at it. The younger sister of the Takamiya siblings tilted her head in confusion. "Kotori?"

"Mana... Reine's hiding something from us, more specifically you and Shido. I just know it. I heard her say something odd earlier to Shido... and now a teddy bear of hers causes you to end up recovering here?" Kotori explained, making Mana's eyes widen slightly as Kotori writes a note.

"Exactly, it isn't a coincidence. When you can be discharged... we will make her talk. I know just where to have her meet us and do that. Don't tell anyone about this. I've even written a note so you have a reminder while your thinking's still all scrambled."

Mana nodded, and Kotori walked out of the room as Mana looked at the note before her. She gulped a bit as she looked back outside and a strange feeling felt it had crept into the room from the revelation.

With the rest of the group who fought the Goliath, they went back to school as despite classes had been cancelled for the rest of the day due to the attack, they still needed to gather their stuff since the school was luckily not in the vicinity of the 'Spacequake'. As the group walked, Shido and the others minus Kotori were all talking.

"I hope that Artemisia girl will be alright, she seemed like she had something serious." Tohka mentioned sadly, Shido rubbing her back. He could tell she felt really sad about it since she wasn't touching the snack he had given her.

"Ratatoskr's doctors are gonna make sure she recovers. I think she'll be OK." Origami assured, even though she was doubting her own words. "What I'm more shocked about is how the Goliath didn't even seem to ever spot Kurumi. Why was it here if that was the case?"

The group all thought hard on that, feeling stumped.

"Whatever it is, we need to know what we're gonna do in regard to with our little black Spirit." Yoshino stated, getting to the main point. Shido nodded.

"You're right Yoshinon, that's why I've decided what I need to do with her next." Shido replied, getting everyone's attention. Origami held her neck at that... looking at Shido worriedly.

"Shido, are you sure? I mean..."

"I understand why your worried Origami, especially after what you told me. Yet she hasn't done it despite having every chance... I wanna believe that somehow she isn't just here for that." Shido answered, putting a hand on her shoulder. Origami was worried... but simply nodded.

"For that very reason, it's why I've decided I'm going to ask her on a date for tomorrow."

Take that DEM pile of scrap, Shido just sent you to the junkyard! There you have it, Kurumi indirectly helped Shido and Mio unlock the Triple Spirit Ascension! It is much more powerful than his Double, but one of the most taxing and the burnout it faces is pretty crazy. The crazy thing about it though? Well... this is even the final limit of the Spirit Ascension! There's still one more even more dangerous level, and all I can say about it is that it's not a "Quadruple Spirit Ascension".

At the same time... Yoshino's finally hit 50%, so now Shido can use the Spirit Ascension with all the spirits he's managed to seal for. Though it seems that before bumping it to 50, strengthening their bond has done something to Yoshino and Yoshinon's free use of their Inversion, and now she can't use it anymore. Is there something happening between the two we don't know, or is what powered the transformation simply no longer there for them?

Dang it Westcott, that was cruel what you did to Artemisia too! Well from here on out, Artemisia's out of action for the rest of this season and most of Date AST Re:Strike, and the only consolation prize is that Phantom stole Material B from him. Unfortunately, the heroes don't know who she or even Material A actually are, so... they really don't know of this victory.

Well here comes the big guns everyone, Shido is about to ask Kurumi on a date. Hopefully Shido can keep it from being a date to die for. *plays a rimshot* Hah! I actually managed to make myself feel a pun actually worked for once, nice!

See you next time when Shido and Kurumi's date begins, so stay awesome everyone! ^^

Also, since the Triple Spirit Ascension has now been revealed, it's time to give you the update to Shido's stats when he's using it, so time for his third fact sheet.

-Shido Takamiya, Triple/Maximum Spirit Ascension State-

Angel: None

- New Powers: Shido has the same benefits and drawbacks as his Double Spirit Ascension, but the sheer amount of stress and strain from using three Spirits' powers all at once taxes Shido's body to the point if he uses the technique too long, his whole body is left sore and leaves him in that state for an hour, while he can Spirit Ascend again during this time, he will not be able to fight at full power and will reset his soreness timer if pushed too far again. Like the previous two forms of this technique, Tohka also named this one for the same reasons she named the first upgrade as the Double Spirit Ascension.

- Angel Fusion Overdrive: By linking the three Angels together, Shido can combine them into a super powerful attack. The downside compared to the Double Spirit Ascension's Angel Fusion attack is that in doing so, Shido will force the Spirit Ascension to cancel itself, and he won't be able to use it again in any form for a 5-minute period, though it may allow him to avoid the soreness from using it too long. Reine describes the power of these attacks as the equivalent of hand grenade sized Fusion Bombs.

Risk Factors: SS

Spacequake: None

Spirit's Astral Dress: None

Angel Rank: Varies on the stronger of the two Angels

Strength: 150

Consistency: 210

Spiritual Power: 255

Agility: 141

Intelligence: 190

-Spirit Bond Levels-

Tohka - 77%

Origami - 60%

Yoshino - 50%

Kotori - 69%