Sympho-Saber: Song of Swords
G: EP04 – The Place They Call Home
The entirety of the communications team in Section 2's submarine base was in partial shock once they heard what Dr. Ver had said via listening into communications. Maria Cadenzavna Eve was the reincarnation of Finé. Needless to say, they weren't expecting the return of Finé herself this soon after the Lunar Attack.
"So they didn't just take on Finé's name because they use heretical technology," Aoi said.
"The reincarnated Finé herself is leading the organization," Sakuya added.
"So the ghost from ancient civilization once again stands in the way of we who live in the present?" Sophia asked.
"Interesting…" Daishinji mused as he crossed his arms, "I suppose I was right in staying behind."
"Slash?" Sophia asked as she looked over in surprise.
"I'll be heading out to support Tsubasa, make sure the others handle everything on their end," Daishinji said before turning and walking off.
Buster stared out towards the ocean, "Must we fight each other once again, Ryoko?"
"Commander…" Kenzan trailed before shifting his head, using it to point at the current situation.
"Right," Buster gripped his fist tightly before turning back towards the battles happening on land.
"That can't be…" Hibiki trailed as she stared out towards the ocean, "Ryoko said…"
'Believe in the song of your heart.'
"Reincarnation," Ver stated.
"Finé is able to awaken her consciousness within any who carry her genetic sequence," Chris remembered, "Existing within an eternal moment while continually being reborn throughout history."
"This soon though…?" Saber asked before looking back towards Espada, "Kento… is it true?"
"It is," Espada answered.
"Then why are you working with them?" Blades questioned, clearly confused given what they knew about Calibur.
"I have my reasons," Espada replied.
"But then… what happened to the singer known as Maria?" Hibiki asked.
"I guess…" Ver started, "That's something we'd all like to know. However…"
"Now that she's here it's time I pick up the slack," Espada sheathed his sword.
"You can't beat us," Blades answered in a harsher tone of voice. "Both Touma and I outmatch you in both numbers and power."
"That's where you're wrong," Espada drew out the Tri Cerberus Wonder Ride Book before opening it up.
[TRI CERBERUS!]
[There was once a terrifying three-headed guard dog at the entrance to the underworld…]
Espada then placed it in his God Beast slot before drawing out his sword, flourishing it with a few spins before holding the flat of it forward with both hands. A bright yellow electrically charged Cerberus landed behind him before circling around as he reeled his right arm back. The Cerberus jumped and spun, landing on his right arm and forming the Cerberus armor.
[IKAZUCHI BATTOU! MITTSUMATA LAMP DO CERBERUS!]
A yellow sleeve was now over his arm and right side of his body, the yellow portions having white chains running through them. He also had dull gold armor on his chest, a spiked shoulder plate with a yellow cape draping downwards, it having the white chain patterning as well. His right forearm now held a gauntlet, it resembling a Cerberus as it was three dog heads lined up together.
[IKAZUCHI NISATSU!]
[The electric shock of hell, woven by the genie and the guard dog, blooms crazy!]
Espada took a deep breath rushing towards the two Riders, Saber and Blades both giving yells and rushing towards him as a result.
"Let us go, quack!" Left Wing Ahiru called out before rushing towards Hibiki, performing a spin kick towards her.
Hibiki gave a yelp as she raised her arms, blocking the attack and staggering back, "Jeez… still not fully recovered yet."
"Now that leaves me with you," Right Wing Ahiru called out as it began to walk towards Chris, "Quack."
"Crap…" Chris gave a wince as she stood up shakily, still feeling the backfire from her reckless use of her Gear.
Blades closed in on Espada, lashing out with Peter Fantasista's chain hook to try and keep Espada from advancing any further. It seemed to have worked, Espada quickly raising his sword and bracing against the whip attacks.
"Thanks Rintaro!" Saber called out as he rushed forward, "You're going to give me my answers, Kento!"
"You shouldn't let your emotions easily sway you!" Espada chided as he used his free hand and tapped his Wonder Ride Book.
[TRI CERBERUS!]
Espada held up his free hand as three electrical orbs gathered in them before he launched the orbs outwards.
Saber gave a gasp as one was sent towards him, the orb morphing into a dog head that bit down on him, "Gah!"
"Touma!" Blades rushed forward only for the two remaining orbs to turn into dog heads, biting down and shocking him. Sparks flew as he was sent staggering back.
Saber gave a gasp as he fell to the ground, holding his chest before he caught something out of the corner of his eye, "Crap, Rintaro go help Chris she still hasn't recovered!"
"Eh?" Blades turned before giving a gasp, watching as Chris battled against the Right Winged Ahiru, he looked back towards his ally, "But what about you?"
"I'll think of something!" Saber shouted as he stood up, closing his books before loading in Needle Hedgheog. He'd have to fight thunder with thunder, literally. He sheathed his sword before drawing it out.
[REKKA BATTOU! KISEKI NO SAIYUU DRAGON! ZOSATSU! HEDGEHOG!]
Needles cycled around him before slamming into his chest and legs, forming the armor for Needle Hedgehog between his Dragon and Saiyuu armaments. He knew it was too risky to go all out with his Wonder Combo, plus he needed the elemental advantage.
"Very well," Blades gave a nod before picking himself up and turning towards the fights going on behind them.
"You never once questioned why I call to you like I do," Saber said as he looked over towards Espada, "I have a feeling but…"
"I know that you're the current Saber, Touma," Espada replied, wanting to get the information out in the open, "Calibur told me once he found out."
"I see…" Saber couldn't help but give a sad chuckle before straightening up, "You know I didn't want to meet again like this."
"I could say the same," Espada replied, "But I have my own convictions that I must follow, so I won't hold back."
"I see," Saber gave a nod as the two Riders stared each other down.
Meanwhile Maria was hovering over the sea thanks to Gungnir's spear, trying to go through the situation in her head, 'I managed to keep the Nephilim safe, a good start. But what should be my next move?'
Her answer was simple as Tsubasa suddenly launched out of the ocean towards her in an attempt to attack.
Tsubasa hovered along the sea before charging straight for Maria, aiming a slash towards the black Gungnir wielder.
Maria tilted her head and body out of the way, easily dodging it.
"Don't underestimate me!" Tsubasa shouted as she was now in the air, turning as her sword expanded into its buster state, slashing downwards to unleash a blue burst of energy.
{Blue Flash}
Maria surrounded herself in her cape, blocking the slash. Her face grew serious, "I would never underestimate you."
Tsubasa used her boosters to launch downwards and slash at Maria, only for the black garbed Wielder to dodge again. Tsubasa soon gave a gasp as she was smacked away thanks to Maria's cape, being thrown towards the submarine. She just barely tilted her body and managed to land against it, scraping against the surface as she came to a stop, her sword returning to normal.
Maria threw the cage holding the Nephilim up into the air, it suddenly vanishing from view before she leapt off of her spear. She landed on the submarine before calling her weapon towards her, gripping it tightly and holding it towards the side, "That's why I'm fighting you with everything I've got!"
Tsubasa readied her sword as Maria leapt upwards and came swinging down, blocking two slashes from Maria but being forced back regardless. She charged forward regardless of Maria's showboating, dodging a strike from the cape before closing in and slashing.
Maria used her cape to block against Tsubasa's first slash before countering with a swing from her spear, knocking Tsubasa backwards. She then swirled her cape around her rapidly, it becoming a tornado that forced Tsubasa to defend and move backwards. She kept it up, giving a smirk when she saw Tsubasa leap upwards to try and stab her through the eye of the tornado. She loosened up her cape a bit to reveal herself before stabbing upwards with her spear.
Tsubasa was knocked backwards as a result, performing a hand stand and spinning around before landing in a crouched position. She was then forced to dodge out of the way a few more times, Maria's cape lashing outwards and causing visible damage to the deck of the submarine.
"Tsubasa," Sophia called out on the comms, "Try and force her off the deck and onto land!"
"Easier said than done," Tsubasa muttered as she gritted her teeth. It was going to be hard to force Maria to move so she'd have to end this in one shot. Putting away her sword she fell forward onto a handstand, spinning and kicking outwards as her blades began to extend out to slash outwards. The attacks managed to force Maria to block against them, "Victory is mine!"
"Dream on!" Maria used her cape to block the last strike.
Tsubasa winced as she was forced to leap backwards, landing in a crouched state before a sharp pain shot up from her ankle. She winced further before staying where she was as a result.
Maria rushed forward, "Got you!"
"As you said, dream on."
Suddenly several blue bullets were launched outwards, Maria being forced to brace and block with the flat of her spear. Tsubasa looked back in surprise to see Daishinji who had just emerged from a hatch on the submarine, the swordsmith having Suzune out in its gun formation.
"Daishinji…" Tsubasa trailed.
"Tsubasa, tag out and rest," Daishinji said as he fully emerged from the submarine, "I'll take the lead for now."
"Be careful," Tsubasa warned.
"Of course," Daishinji said as he switched Suzune to its sword formation, walking calmly towards Maria, "You know this is a funny twist of fate. To think I'd actually be facing you down, Finé."
"Oh?" Maria raised an eyebrow.
"I'm a bit hurt that you didn't recognize me when we first fought however," Daishinji replied as he drew out Hanselnuts to Gretel and activated it, "Either way, I'll ascertain what I need to know through our clash."
"How interesting…" Maria smirked as she prepared herself for the coming fight, "You were so anxious about wanting to see my Armed Gear, I do hope you won't get stage fright now that it's out."
"Oh I don't plan to," Daishinji loaded his book into his blade before pressing the trigger, giving a few twirls he stabbed forward, "Henshin!"
[JUUKEN GEKIDAN! JUU DE GO! GO! INA! KEN DO IKUZO! ONJUUKEN SUZUNE!]
In a flurry of pink sound waves and candy, the swordsman of sound, Slash, now stood before Maria. Slash took a few steps forward as held his blade up, "Come at me."
"Confident are we?" Maria smirked before taking a few steps forward.
Buster and Kenzan had finally made it towards the edge of where the battles were taking place, the two drawing their Seiken and approaching. Well that was until the two saw projectiles out of the corners of their eyes.
Buzzsaws were launched out towards them, Buster tilting his body to dodge a few while raising his armored forearms to block the rest. Kenzan meanwhile batted a few away while flipping and dodging the rest.
"Surprise its Igalima!" Kirika soon jumped into view and swung at Kenzan, the ninja Rider flipping away from the scythe blade stabbing into the ground.
Kenzan quickly switched his dual wielding blades to their shuriken mode, using that to block against any strikes from Igalima while flipping out of the way. Despite this he was at a disadvantage since Kirika was especially good at using her polearm's range to keep him from getting too close to her.
Shirabe meanwhile was focusing on Buster, launching a flurry of buzzsaws out from her armor to try and overwhelm him. To her surprise Buster had managed to use his arms to block against the projectiles in a rapid fashion, punching and batting them away. A few had struck his shoulder and chest armor but only caused minor sparks to fly.
Buster could only watch as Shirabe extended her twin tail and leg armor, creating a giant circular saw around her like a wheel before riding it straight towards him.
{Extreme Sigma Style: Forbidden Full Moon}
Buster gave a yell as he brought out Gekido, facing the flat of it forward and bracing it with his forearm as Shirabe's saw wheel clashed against it.
"What remarkable power," Buster called out in surprise as he just barely began to slide backwards.
"I could say the same considering you aren't getting cut in two," Shirabe remarked, pushing further and increasing the wheels rotation.
Buster gritted his teeth before throwing himself to the side, Shirabe's attack crashing into a nearby wall as he slid away. Kenzan quickly leapt back to join Buster, landing crouched near him.
"They're pretty formidable foes," Kenzan admitted.
"I suppose that might be because their capabilities are still relatively unknown to us," Buster mentioned, "Not to mention us still getting used to these forms."
"And here I thought you had mastered it," Kenzan chuckled.
"As if," Buster gave a light laugh, "I'm still getting the hang of things."
The two however realized there was a gap in the attacks, noticing the black Symphogear users approaching Dr. Ver who was off to the side watching the other battles.
"To think they had reinforcements in reserve," Buster said before placing a hand to his helmet, "Are there any other enemies in the area?"
"We've been on it, but…" Sakuya started.
"All signals, including Aufwachen waveforms, were jammed until the moment they appeared!" Aoi finished.
"It must be heretical technology beyond what we posses," Buster muttered with a click of his tongue.
"You're just in time," Ver said as he watched Shirabe approach, "You saved us. I would have liked it if you'd left some of the fun for me, though."
"We didn't come here to help you," Shirabe answered coldly.
"Oh my, that is rather harsh," Ver admitted before looking back at the fights before him.
"Yeah if there's anyone we're here to support its Kento, dess," Kirika shot a glare towards Ver.
"Goddamn it!" Chris called out as she stumbled back, aiming her crossbow and firing off arrows, "My sync rate's dropped so low I can barely do shit!"
"Quack, quack!" The Right Wing Ahiru called out as it spun out of the way of the arrows before leaping towards Chris.
"Not so fast!" Blades wrapped his chain around the Ahiru's legs before slamming it into the ground, "Chris, are you alright?!"
"Fine enough!" Chris called out as she aimed her crossbow with both hands and fired off a set of arrows to strike at the Right Wing Ahiru, "Keep it still!"
"Ouch!" The Right Wing Ahiru yelled out as it was struck by the bolts.
"Do not worry, I'll end this quick," Blades sheathed his sword and initiated his finisher before holding his palm out. He launched a stream of water that smacked into the Right Wing Ahiru and caught it in a water bubble, "Leo Cascade!"
[HISSATSU DOKUHA! LION! PETER FAN! NISATSU GEKI! W-W-WATER!]
Blades rushed forward before kicking out, kicking through the bubble and sliding against the ground, "By my pride as a swordsman, I will safeguard this world's balance!"
"Quack…" The Right Wing Ahiru raised a hand upwards before exploding into a burst of water.
Hibiki was managing to recover decently well since her use of her Symphogear was fundamentally different from the others in all regards. As a result she had experienced backfire the least and was currently going toe to toe with the Left Wing Ahiru, the two exchanging punches and dodging whenever necessary.
"My, my, you're good, quack!" The Left Wing Ahiru called out as it used its wing to hover, performing a spinning kick, "But you're too weak!"
"Not so fast!" Hibiki ducked underneath the kick and nailed the Megid in the gut with her fist, sending it stumbling to the ground, "I can still take you on!"
Saber and Espada meanwhile were both exchanging sword slashes as they tried to overpower each other, the two backing away before tapping their Story Books.
[SAIYUU JOURNEY!]
[LAMP DO ALANGINA!]
The two leapt upwards, landing on a red cloud and yellow carpet respectively, both using their new transports to rush at each other in the air. The two slashed past each other as they tried to knock the other off of their mounts. The two were ready to clash at each other once again only for a scream to suddenly erupt.
"Help me! Help me!"
Saber gave a light gasp, soon looking down and seeing the situation that was slowly approaching the other fights. He immediately spotted Falchion, the Rider attacking what appeared to be a young man who was barely dodging and screaming for dear life.
"A civilian…?" Saber asked before launching downwards on his cloud towards the incident, "Don't worry I'm coming!"
Espada meanwhile narrowed his eyes, recognizing the man as Storious, "Why are you…?"
"Back off from him!" Saber gave a yell as he leapt off his cloud, kicking out at Falchion and forcing her away as a result. Once he landed, Saber rushed over to the cowering man, not knowing the man's real identity, "Hey, hey are you alright?"
Falchion gave a grunt and rolled to a stop, getting on one knee and raising her sword up.
"Huh?" Chris had heard the commotion before her eyes widened at what she saw as she also recognized the man from her brief time with Finé, "Hey idiot! Get away from him now!"
"What?" Saber glanced back.
"It won't do to fall so easily for bait... what would happen if it was poisoned?" Storious asked as a flash of black occurred. He had taken his Megid form, a demonic and thorn filled druid-like creature with a white humanoid head holding a creepy grin.
"What?" Saber gasped out, "A Megid?!"
Storious simply opened up the black book he was holding, a purple cloud of energy latching onto Saber before it turned red, being sucked into the book as Saber was forced out of his transformation.
Touma gave a confused yelp before getting punched in the gut, gasping out as he was soon backhanded away. The resulting attacks had dislodged Needle Hedgehog and Saiyuu Journey from his Swordriver and sent them clattering against the ground.
"What wonderful spoils," Storious chuckled as he bent down and picked up the two Wonder Ride Books.
"No you don't!" Touma called out as he grabbed Rekka to draw it out from the Swordriver only for it to not budge in the slightest, "Why can't I draw out the sword!?"
Blades, Hibiki and Chris all turned in surprise, both Buster and Kenzan rushing over as well when they heard the exclamation.
"You might need a tremendous, long lost power to draw your sword once again~" Storious remarked in a melodic tone, chuckling ever so slightly. He turned before vanishing away from the area.
"What?" Touma asked as he continually tried to draw his sword only for it to keep being held in the Driver, "Come on… draw!"
"Touma!" Hibiki called out in concern.
"He's up to something…" Espada trailed as he went to land nearby Ver, Kirika and Shirabe.
Falchion looked at where Storious had fled before surveying the situation. Her gaze settled on Touma and kept on him for a while, something that everyone noticed. She slammed her fist against the ground before rising up, sheathing Kyomu and initiating her Bladriver's finisher.
[HISSATSU MOKUDOKU!]
"No, wait!" Hibiki quickly ignored the Left Wing Ahiru and ran towards where Touma was, assuming what Falchion was planning on doing and not liking the outcome.
[FUSHICHO MUSOU GEKI!]
Falchion had immediately turned away from Touma before leaping upwards. She kicked out and flew past Hibiki as a result of her change in direction. Fiery wings erupted from her back as she kicked against the Left Wing Ahiru, her wings coming forward and closing against the Megid, smothering it and causing an explosion which she launched out of.
"What the hell?" Chris asked, confused by the way Falchion had focused on Touma only to completely do something else, "Just what is your damn deal?"
Falchion stood up before glancing at Chris, she then turned away before launching upwards into the air. Fire sprouted from her back as she became a fiery phoenix that soared out into the distance.
Tsubasa looked up as she watched Falchion fly off into the distance, wondering just what was going on with her allies. Despite this she turned back towards the fight at hand, watching the duel between Maria and Slash. While training with the swordsmith was one thing, it was another to see him engrossed in a fight.
Maria had attempted to confuse Slash, swinging her spear like a sword a few times against him. It had seemingly worked, or he allowed it to as he used Suzune to block against the spears strikes. She then stepped back before thrusting out at Slash.
Slash however spun and held the flat of his blade out, the spear tip being blocked by Suzune, "Interesting."
"I must admit, you're very good," Maria gave a grin, while she had targeted Tsubasa she couldn't help but admit it was interesting fighting Slash, "However!"
Slash gave a light yelp as Maria pushed further, forcing him to stagger back just slightly. He then gasped as he saw Maria launching the ends of her cape at him. Realizing there was too much damage to the submarine already he couldn't dodge, raising his arm and blade and bracing against the smacks of her cape, staggering back slightly.
"You won't be winning this one!" Maria gathered energy within the spear she held before thrusting forward and letting go, launching the spear towards Slash.
{PAINS†THRUST}
"Not bad!" Slash stabbed forward, unleashing strings of multicolored music notes outwards to form a circular shield. The shield of music had ended up blocking the spear as a result, holding it back. Swinging his arms in a conductor like motion he spun around as he gathered more musical energy into his blade. He then flipped back with a spin, turning and swinging outwards to unleash the energy.
Maria gave a gasp as she watched the musical energy clash against her spear, turning it around and launching it back towards her. She quickly leapt upwards to avoid her own weapon hitting her before holding out her hand. Thankfully she managed to regain control of it, the spear flying towards her. She grasped it with both hands before slashing downwards.
Slash meanwhile stayed where he was, readying himself before raising his sword at the last second with great force, holding the blade with his free hand. This defensive maneuver had managed to work, musical notes being released from the clash as he blocked Maria's swing.
"Interesting…" Slash mused before watching as Maria didn't keep pushing for the clash, landing before backing off.
"I see, as a swordsman he's quite outstanding," Tsubasa muttered as she put a hand to her chin briefly, observing her ally's skills. She then went to flex her right hand, 'And my Gear's power is slowly returning to normal. If I assist now…'
'To think this particular Rider is giving me trouble. I suppose all of them, even in their most basic form can be dangerous,' Maria thought as she surveyed the situation before she hunched over and began to breathe heavily, 'And now my Gear grows heavy…'
"Your sync rate is dropping," Nastassja's voice came through on Maria's headset, "We have already recovered the Nephilim. Return at once."
"So that's as far as I can go?" Maria asked in disbelief.
"Is that why…?" Slash muttered as he heard this.
"Don't tell me you use the LiNKER drug like Kanade…" Tsubasa trailed as she picked up on Maria's words' meaning near immediately.
Both Slash and Tsubasa winced as sudden heavy winds bombarded the area they were in, a rope with a foothold being brought down for Maria as she grabbed on, being pulled up towards an air carrier that suddenly revealed itself.
Everyone couldn't help but stare in surprise at the air carrier that suddenly appeared, it hovering over towards them in order to pick up the others.
"Let's go," Espada said before tapping his Wonder Ride Book, summoning a larger version of his magic carpet before stepping on it. Both Shirabe and Kirika hopped on while Ver simply stared at it for a bit before shrugging, stepping onto it as well.
"Wait a minute!" Hibiki called out, "What are you trying to do?!"
"We protect what justice cannot," Shirabe answered.
It wasn't long before the air carrier began to hover in closer, the winds becoming harsher thanks to its propellers. Espada simply looked up before lifting the magic carpet up with his passengers towards the open hatch. Once inside the hatch began to close before the air carrier began to take off.
Chris gave a glare, wincing as she ran forward a bit while lifting up her weapon.
"Hey, don't push yourself!" Buster called out.
"Shut it!" Chris called out as she transformed her crossbow into a sniper rifle with a stand, setting it down as the front of her headgear lowered itself and formed a targeting visor over her eyes. The sides of her helmet extended and opened up to reveal cameras as she tried to lock onto the aircraft, "We need to get back Solomon's Cane!"
{RED HOT BLAZE}
Chris took aim as her cameras and targeting equipment worked on locking onto the aircraft, but as soon as she got a lock the aircraft had ended up disappearing. She could only look in surprise as she watched the words 'Target Lost' appear on her visor.
"What?" Blades asked.
"We've lost them," Sakuya called out in defeat over the comms.
"Complete cloaking capabilities…" Buster trailed as he gripped his fists, "Is this, too, the product of heretical technology?"
Nastassja was currently at the controls for the airship, steering it as it flew in its stealth mode. She looked over towards the Relic Pendant that was hooked up to the main console.
'I acquired stealth technology while analyzing the capabilities of the Shenshoujing, even if our advantage is great, it is also a fleeting, fragile thing.'
It wasn't long before she began to cough, covering her mouth with her hand and seeing blood, "I must hurry. Our advantage is not the only thing which is fleeting and fragile."
"Nastassja," Calibur spoke as he was also in the cockpit with her, "Do you need me to take over?"
"I'll be fine Calibur," Nastassja replied, "You needn't worry about me, I can fly just fine."
"At least allow me to co-pilot then," Calibur insisted as he set Kurayami off to the side before sitting down in the seat next to her, "You could use something to relieve the stress."
"How kind of you," Nastassja said though her tone was more neutral than thankful.
"Regardless, the one we should be worrying about is the good doctor," Calibur admitted with a bit of a chuckle, already figuring the reactions from the rest of their team.
Ver gave a grunt as he was thrown against a wall in one room of the air carrier, sliding down the wall.
"This is your damn fault, dess!" Kirika said, grabbing him by the collar, "If they take control of the base, where are we supposed to hide until we execute our plan?!"
"Stop it," Maria sighed, "Berating him now won't change anything."
"It still deserves to be said," Kento crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, "Even if I was there, it was too reckless."
"Worthless creep," Kirika said as she let go.
"You surprised me. Don't I even get a chance to apologize?" Ver asked with a sheepish smile.
"The issue is even if you apologize I doubt they'll let you off the hook," Kento replied.
"Fortunately, we were able to protect our treasure," Nastassja said as she appeared on one of the monitors in the room, "However, now that they've taken control of our base, we have nothing to feed the Nephilim. This is a huge problem."
"It's calm now, but who knows when it'll get hungry again and run wild," Shirabe said.
"We may no longer have a food source, but we haven't lost all our options yet," Ver said as he stood up to fix his coat before heading out of the room, the monitor also turning off, "I'll give you all some time to clear your heads before I give my next proposal."
"I swear," Kento sighed as he shook his head, "If I knew that he'd do something like this I would have tried to stop him. I even tried to force him to just pack up and run but he still wanted to pick a fight."
"Its fine Kento," Maria reassured, "Though speaking of fighting, how are you?"
"Huh?" Kento asked, "What do you mean?"
"Weren't you fighting that friend you mentioned, dess?" Kirika asked.
"I had fought him before, back at the concert remember?" Kento pointed out, "Its fine, he has his reasons to fight and I have my reasons. It's sad that it came to this, but well, this is the path I chose two years ago."
"But still…!" Kirika called out.
"Kento," Shirabe spoke up, curious to learn more about Touma since she did face him briefly. Especially with his outburst at the concert, "Is he the same as before, when you two were friends?"
"Even though we just barely talked I could still feel it," Kento couldn't help but give a fond smile, "He's grown but stayed true to himself. He's honestly a genuine guy, even if that does get him in trouble sometimes."
'I won't say your pain is lesser than any others.'
'You shouldn't dare judge others you barely know anything about. Especially her… don't talk to her like she doesn't know pain.'
"I see," Shirabe went silent, deciding to mull on Touma's words to her given Kento's reassurance that Touma didn't seem like the kind of person to lie. But even then she couldn't help but be confused, wondering why he'd go so far to defend Hibiki like that. She was so sure that Hibiki didn't carry any burden, so was she wrong? Was there something she had overlooked?
"And you'll still be willing to fight him?" Maria asked.
"To be honest, even if he wanted to I'm not sure if he'll still be even able to fight after this," Kento admitted before rubbing the back of his neck.
"What do you mean by that?" Maria asked.
It wasn't long before everyone regrouped outside of the submarine on the deck of the external hull. They had all dismissed their transformations and was currently recovering before they chose to head inside.
"Everyone," Sophia called out as she opened up the hatch, "Are you all right?"
"Somewhat," Rintaro admitted as he glanced at Touma who was currently staring at his Swordriver in concern alongside Daishinji.
"Teacher…" Hibiki looked over towards Genjuro, "When we fought Ryoko, I felt that, even though we didn't agree on many things, we still managed to reach a level of understanding. But now…"
"If they don't understand, just keep beating on them until they do!" Genjuro called out firmly, "You of all people must know that there are things stronger than words!"
"There are things stronger than words…" Rintaro trailed, wondering if he'd have to fight his hardest against Kento to figure out why he betrayed them. He'd have to especially with Touma now seemingly disabled.
"I didn't understand a word of that," Hibiki admitted, "But I'll give it a shot!"
"Speaking of things stronger than words," Tsubasa said before glancing at Daishinji, "Did you find what you were looking for?"
"Somewhat," Daishinji admitted as he placed a hand on his holstered blade.
"What do you mean by that?" Ogawa asked.
"I could hear it, the Gungnir she wields is as real as can be," Daishinji nodded as he closed his eyes, "However even with her great power… I could feel conflict…"
"Conflict…?" Sophia asked.
"Yes," Daishinji gave a nod, "Conflict over what I'm not sure, but Gungnir isn't reverberating as strongly as it should."
After a while everyone went back inside, Rintaro, Touma and the Symphogear Wielders going with Daishinji to examine Kaenken Rekka. Meanwhile Genjuro, Sophia, and Ogawa were having a meeting with the Vice-President of Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Masahito Shibata. While he and Sophia had spoken once before during the concert incident, this time he had some information for Section 2. The Vice-President himself was slurping down some noodles while doing this, of course.
"So the terrorist organization who calls themselves Finé was reorganized from a company of scientists formerly with the US Army?" Genjuro asked.
"The Federal Institute of Sacrists, to be exact," Shibata clarified, "They're scientists who defied their superiors and took the organization rogue."
"And the man who disappeared with Solomon's Cane and the Book of Ruin before turning up again later, Dr. Ver, was also a member of the FIS," Sophia said.
"You see, according to some, the FIS has existed since before Japan made their relic research public," Shibata added between bites.
"So this facility was founded by Finé herself when she conspired with the Americans?" Ogawa asked.
"That's how it started," Shibata replied, "They probably have a good reason for taking on Finé's name. Not to mention how buddy, buddy you mentioned they are with Calibur and the Megid. No doubt that was where your rogue Espada was hiding."
"It's unfortunately the best we have to go on for now," Sophia frowned.
"This level of skill and precision isn't what you'd expect from a terrorist organization," Shibata added after slurping down another set of noodles, "They likely had planned all this from the start."
The three senior members could only look at each other with a frown. They knew that Shibata had a point, but there was still something on their minds. What even was the FIS's plan at this point, and how soon would they strike again now that their main base was gone?
The day of the school festival had finally arrived, stands and booths all set up as everyone enjoyed themselves and took part in it. Hibiki and Miku were currently hard at work, the two working on sorting and organizing books into boxes inside the book drive booth run by Touma.
Tsubasa was at the front, giving a modest smile as she helped run the front of the booth.
"Thank you," Tsubasa said as she received a stack of books from a young man before turning and handing them over to Miku, "Kohinata."
"Thank you Tsubasa," Miku smiled as she went to go sort them out before handing them to Hibiki.
"I think this is going pretty well!" Hibiki said as she began packaging the books again, "I can't believe so many people are coming over. Right, Touma?" she paused when she didn't hear an answer, "Touma?"
Touma meanwhile was towards the front but off to the side, holding onto his Wonder Story book as he stared at the cover. While he had been in a real peppy mood for the start, he had slowly but surely gone silent.
"Kamiyama…?" Tsubasa asked.
Touma himself was currently deep in thought as he was reminded of what Daishinji had said after they had gotten settled after the fight the other day, "Avalon…"
"It's no use," Daishinji spoke up, hovering near a screen in his lab, it was connected to a table that held various slots like Wonder Ride Books and a few other scanning devices. Nearby the screen was a table that had a bright light underneath it, the Kaenken Rekka still stuck in the Swordriver on said table.
"What's going on?" Hibiki asked.
"Yeah, don't keep us in suspense!" Chris called out.
"It's been sealed," Daishinji gave a grimace as he looked at the data on the screen, moving slightly to reveal that black chains were wrapped around Rekka in the scan.
"So that is why the sword can't be drawn out?" Tsubasa asked.
"What's worse is we lost two Wonder Ride Books," Touma said as he looked down, "Even if I could transform I can't use my Wonder Combo… and now Kento has his…"
"Hey don't worry about it," Chris said before raising a fist and giving a grin, "We'll just beat him up and take them back!"
"That still doesn't solve the issue of Touma being unable to transform," Rintaro pointed out.
"Not even all my skills could undo this," Daishinji said grimly before crossing his arms, "We might have to go to Avalon in order to unlock the seal."
"Avalon…?" Touma asked, recalling Calibur's words.
"Wait, I think I recall reading something about that with Touma," Hibiki admitted as she gave a thoughtful look.
"Seriously…?" Chris asked, "Just how many stories do you know?"
Hibiki could only sheepishly rub the back of her head, "A lot thanks to Touma."
"Its location has been long forgotten," Daishinji replied, "But the grand power that's said to rest there might be help…"
"Just what kind of place is this Avalon anyway?" Touma asked, he had somewhat of an idea, recalling the many, many, stories of knights and kings. But he knew that fiction was only a supplement to what really happened in this world.
"Long ago, there was a tremendous power no one managed to control and handle," Daishinji recited, "That power was sealed there."
"And this power can unseal Kaenken Rekka?" Tsubasa asked.
"It's only a guess but if anything can it's the grand power within Avalon," Daishinji gave a nod.
"Where is it?" Touma asked as he got closer towards Daishinji, wondering if the swordsmith knew.
Daishinji quickly raised a hand over his face as he backed away, "No one knows. It's a place that no swordsman has been able to reach."
"But…" Touma trailed.
"Come on Daishinji!" Hibiki called out, "If anyone can find out you can, can't you?"
"I'll try," Daishinji said before looking over at the shelf of books in his room, reminded of how it grew bigger after his immediate family had chosen to give him more tomes to restock his new lab after the loss of their first base. He glanced at Touma and held up his hand to block the view of his eyes due to how close the Swordsman of Flames still was, "Touma, rest up a bit and leave the researching to me. You of all people could use it."
"I suppose I do have a lot of work for the festival…" Touma admitted as he turned away and put a hand on his chin,
"Daishinji is an important ally in Section 2," Tsubasa reminded, "Allow him to handle the heavy lifting for now."
"Fine, fine," Touma replied, "I'll try and do my best to worry just about the festival then!"
"That's the spirit!" Hibiki called out.
"Touma!"
Touma gave a light gasp as Rintaro was hovering dangerously over the booth, one unfortunate push and he'd likely fall directly into it.
"Rintaro what are you doing?" Touma asked before a piece of takoyaki on a toothpick was hovering near him, "Huh?"
"Have you tried the Takoyaki here yet?" Rintaro smiled, "It's divine!"
"Oh, thanks Rintaro," Touma gave a smile as he took it and bit into it, "Mmm! That is real good!"
"You should probably back away Shindo, lest someone bumps into you and you fall over," Tsubasa suggested.
"Oh, r-right, sorry about that," Rintaro said as he backed up a bit.
"Kamiyama, while I did say I'd help you run this booth I am a bit annoyed that you've just been sitting there," Tsubasa mentioned as she crossed her arms.
"S-Sorry…" Touma apologized as he gave a quick bow forward, "It's just a lot's on my mind."
"I understand," Tsubasa sighed, "But still, today's probably the one day you can forget about all those things."
"I suppose you're right," Touma realized.
Miku soon looked at her phone which was buzzing, "Oh, Itaba and the others are starting their performance soon. They're wondering if we'll make it."
"Huh? Is it almost time for it?" Hibiki asked.
"What's this about a performance?" Rintaro asked as he stepped to the side, allowing Touma and Tsubasa to interact with a few people donating books.
"Oh, well basically there's a singing competition going on," Miku explained, "The winners get a request granted by the student council, so long as it's reasonable."
"Ooh, sounds interesting," Rintaro said.
"You're welcome to join us if you want Rintaro," Hibiki offered.
"That sounds like a fun time admittedly," Rintaro said, "But what about the booth?"
"We'll be fine," Touma waved it off, "Plus we can always close up for a lunch break anyway."
"You all enjoy yourselves," Tsubasa said.
"Thanks Tsubasa," Hibiki smiled before looking at her friends, "Alright, let's go!"
It wouldn't be long before the three took off towards the auditorium, everyone unaware they were being watched by three individuals. Two of them though were more obvious than the third in their stealth based actions.
"I'm honestly surprised the school didn't try and get you to perform," Touma mentioned as he watched their friends head off.
"It was under consideration but given everything going on even before the incidents I had to politely decline," Tsubasa replied, "So I figured I'd simply help out as a student."
"Fair," Touma replied, "Thanks for that by the way."
"I feel it's only right to repay both you and the school for everything you've done for me," Tsubasa admitted as she thought back to Kamikawa, she gave a bit of a fond smile, "Plus it's rather relaxing compared to other things I could be doing."
"That's good to hear," Touma said, "While I'm unsure if all the books can be used, they'll still be going somewhere good in the end regardless."
"Though as I did say you should be enjoying yourself Kamiyama, why not take a quick break while I hold down the fort?" Tsubasa asked.
"Are you sure?" Touma asked before remembering how well Tsubasa was at organizing and paling slightly, "Like, super sure?"
"I'm pretty sure, why do you ask?" Tsubasa asked, oblivious to her friends concern.
"Well if you need to close up for whatever reason don't hesitate to do so," Touma suggested, deciding to avoid the subject entirely as he went to exit the booth.
"I wonder what he was so nervous about." Tsubasa raised an eyebrow, she sighed before deciding to get back to work. Though admittedly given the amount of books they had gathered alongside it slowing down for a bit she decided to take Touma up on his offer. She put up a lunch break sign with a clock saying when they'd be back before leaving the stand.
Touma was currently walking through the fair to try and relax a bit, "Maybe I should get some Takoyaki…"
"This is so much fun, dess! Everything here is so yummy!"
"Eh?" Touma looked around as he heard a familiar voice. He then saw both Kirika and Shirabe partaking in the festival off in the distance. Though he noticed both had color coded rimmed glasses for some reason, "Wait, what? Why are they-"
"Touma!"
Touma froze at hearing his name being called, slowly turning and seeing Kento off to the side.
"K-Kento…?" Touma asked as he went to carefully approach.
"It's been a while Touma," Kento said before realizing what he said, "Well um, not really since we met the other day and a week before that but I mean it being sort of casual, like this. Anyway I was wondering if we could talk somewhere else."
"Sure," Touma couldn't help but chuckle at his friend fumbling his words before giving a nod. Even if Kento was the enemy he still wanted to give his old childhood friend a chance, "You know I always liked that about you, you and your rambling."
"I suppose even after all these years I haven't changed," Kento gave a light laugh, "Do you know somewhere good we can go without being disturbed?"
"I believe so yeah," Touma gave a nod before looking around and finding a pathway that led away from the festival before heading down that way. He was still suspicious about Kirika and Shirabe's presence but given the FIS's prior actions, he wasn't sure if they'd actually want to cause a scene in a big public place like this. He decided to focus on Kento however and where he was heading, "It's just over this way."
"Thanks for this," Kento smiled, though inwardly he sighed in relief as he managed to distract Touma. He didn't need the future novelist getting in the way of Kirika and Shirabe's mission. This was especially the case if either of them wanted to instigate a fight when confronted since that went against why they were all doing this to begin with.
"Our base was taken over, and with it we lost the food necessary for the growth of the Nephilim," Ver stated as Calibur stood beside him, the two talking to the Wielders of the FIS alongside Kento in one of the lounge rooms of the aircraft, "The relic fragments that would serve as its sustenance have fallen into the hands of the second branch. However, we only had a few remaining fragments we reclaimed from our former facility. In other words, we would have had to refill our stock before long either way."
"The important part is that despite losing the fragments we still have Solomon's Cane and the Book of Ruin," Calibur stated as he looked at the black book that was on the table nearby, "Especially given that Falchion intervened, no doubt after that book still."
"It's a good thing it was able to fit within my coat," Ver gave a soft chuckle.
"The book isn't the more pressing issue though," Kento reminded.
"I'm sure you've also considered how to solve our food problem," Maria said.
"Problem…? I've never really thought of it as such," Ver admitted, "We have relic fragments all over the place these days, after all."
Shirabe immediately picked up on Ver's wording, "You don't mean to feed it our pendants?"
"No, of course not," Ver raised his hands, "Your Gears are too essential to our forces to give them up just like that."
"Unfortunately Storious has still yet to budge in regards to the Alter Ride Books," Calibur said, "The Wonder Ride Books themselves are too valuable so that leaves only one option."
Maria knew what they were suggesting, "Then I'll go and take their Symphogea-"
"No! I won't let you, dess!" Kirika spoke up.
"Not a chance," Shirabe added firmly while standing, "Whenever you use your power, Finé's soul grows stronger. That means yours fades out more and more! I won't let that happen."
Kento and Calibur stayed silent, the two exchanging a glance since all eyes were on Kirika and Shirabe now.
"Girls…" Maria trailed, touched by their conviction.
"Then what do we do?" Ver asked.
"We'll do it, dess!" Kirika called out as she stood, "Protecting Maria is the reason we fight!"
"Kento you're to go with them," Calibur announced.
"You want a third person on this mission?" Kento asked.
"I was going to have you accompany them regardless of who chose to go," Calibur said as he walked over to the swordsman, "It would be best to split our forces evenly. One Rider each will do us some good."
"If that's what you want," Kento said before crossing his arms, "Then I'll do it."
"There's also something I need you to do," Calibur said as he drew out a piece of paper before lowering his voice, "The next step depends on this."
"Very well," Kento said as he took the paper.
Touma and Kento were now sitting at the base of a tree in a quieter part of Lydian's school grounds. Despite both being on opposing sides of the same conflict, the two couldn't help but let those walls simply melt away as they managed to start talking up a storm.
"Still, to think that your family would eventually open up a bookstore that you'd be running," Kento smiled, "And you want to be a novelist too. Your love of books never ceases to amaze me."
"What can I say, I like to stay true to myself," Touma smiled before it turned into a slyer smirk, "Still I can't believe a pipsqueak like you hit quite the growth spurt."
"You say that but I'm pretty sure I was taller than you back then," Kento gave a laugh before noticing what Touma was holding finally, "Hey, that book…"
"Yeah," Touma gave a nod before showing it, "It's the same book that Luna had given me."
"You kept it all these years?" Kento asked in near shock.
"I kept it as a reminder of our friendship," Touma smiled, "And also in the hopes that we'd all see each other again one day."
"I was about to ask about Luna," Kento admitted, "But from your tone…"
"She vanished around the same time you did," Touma admitted as he opened up the book to the first popup page showcasing a wondrous and mystical land with a tree at the center, "I can only hope she's still around but with how things have been with the Noise, well…"
"Come on Touma don't think like that," Kento gave his friend a light shove, "We'll see her again."
"But will we both be on the same side when that happens?" Touma asked.
Kento gave a sigh at that, "Getting straight to the point are you?"
"I just want to know, after hearing Calibur's motivation when we confronted Finé and then hearing the truth about Maria…" Touma trailed off before he figured he'd also get straight to the point, "Are you two trying to stop Finé once more? Is that why you're here now? If you are then why not abandon the Megid and work with us to stop Finé?"
Kento gritted his teeth, hating that Touma had mostly figured out what was going on but he gave a sigh, "Finé or not, Maria and the others genuinely want to help the world, but this is the only way they can. Even if I disagree with their methods, they're necessary for us to have a future."
"Eh?" Touma was a bit surprised by this, "So you two are legitimately helping them, and they want to help the world? How exactly? And how do the Megid factor into this?"
"I hate to sound like him, but there's a lot more to the truth than you realize," Kento admitted, "After finding out what I did a while ago, I knew that I had to stick with Maria and the others. To make sure their mission was seen through to the end. The Megid are just a means to an end but I fear Calibur's overestimating them…"
"You aren't a bad guy, Kento," Touma said as he leaned back and flipped to another page, this one showcasing a monstrous dark creature fighting a set of knights, "So I'll trust your judgment, but I wish we didn't have to fight like this."
"I do too," Kento admitted with a sad smile before taking out the paper that Calibur gave him, "I should probably get going though. I'd rather a misunderstanding not happen."
"That's sad to hear, but I understand," Touma sighed before still managing to smile, "Still, it was fun talking with you again."
"Likewise, but I do have a parting gift," Kento said as he handed Touma the paper.
"What's this?" Touma asked.
"Something that will help with your current situation," Kento said before taking off.
Touma gave a groan at his friend's refusal to say anything other than being vague. Though he couldn't help but chuckle and realize that was Kento trying to be as dramatic as possible. He looked over the paper before noticing it was just a bunch of numbers scribbled. Putting it away he got up and closed his book before shifting his hat.
"Maybe I should check out that show the others are watching…" Touma said before heading off.
After separating from Touma, Kento was trying to search for Kirika and Shirabe again when he ran into them sneaking around.
"Any luck?" Kento asked.
"I think we hit the jackpot, dess!" Kirika called out.
"Kiri, your voice," Shirabe said in a whisper.
"Oops," Kirika put her hands over her mouth.
"So what exactly is your jackpot?" Kento raised an eyebrow with a chuckle.
It had taken a while and he had run by the booth to notice that Tsubasa had closed it up, but Touma eventually made it to the auditorium between contestants taking the stage.
"Touma, I didn't think you'd show up," Hibiki waved as Touma went over to sit by her and the others.
"It's been a rather unique showing so far," Rintaro admitted.
"But so far no one's really managed to impress the crowd," Miku added.
"Ah, not even your friends?" Touma asked to which Hibiki could only give a laugh while shaking her head, he gave a light laugh, "Jeez, sounds like the judges are tough."
"And now, it's time for the next challenger to make her appearance!" The MC announced before pointing offstage.
It wasn't long before the four received a big shock as a familiar white-haired girl was pushed onto the stage.
"Isn't that…?" Miku started.
Hibiki stared in disbelief, "No way!"
"Hold up, how?!" Touma asked in surprise.
"Oh my, I wasn't expecting her to take the stage," Rintaro admitted, "Though I suppose that's where she's been all day."
"More like she was running from the stage all day," Tsubasa said as she joined the group, sitting down next to them, "Your eyes aren't deceiving the rest of you though. It's Yukine, junior at the Lydian Private Music Academy, Chris Yukine."
As the group watched though, thanks to the spotlight they could tell she was nervous as the crowd began to murmur when she didn't start immediately singing.
"Oh dear," Rintaro whispered, "Stage fright?"
"Chris…" Hibiki muttered.
"Come on, you can do this…" Touma twiddled his thumbs as he leaned forward.
(Insert 'Kyoshitsu Monochrome' by Ayahi Takagaki)
Chris's eyes glanced offstage at her other classmates who were encouraging her as best they could. She looked around at the crowd as the music began to play, soon spotting her friends.
Touma noticed this and quickly held up two thumbs up with a smile, while Rintaro saw this and repeated but with one thumbs up and an encouraging nod.
As Chris started to sing, the tone and general vocalizations caught her friends off guard. But what caught them so much more off guard was Chris immediately putting her all into the song.
Touma couldn't help but smile and cross his arms as he heard the song.
Rintaro clasped his hands over his mouth, "Incredible…"
"This is so different from Chris's usual songs," Hibiki admitted.
"It's so beautiful…" Miku added.
"Yeah," Touma agreed, reminded of one particular song that Chris sung back when they had first worked as a team right before the Lunar Attack, "She's got quite the range."
In the crowd and off to the side were Kirika, Shirabe and Kento who were listening as the song continued. Both girls were enraptured by the singing while Kento could only stare in disbelief. From what little he saw of Chris, this kind of song was something he wasn't expecting in the slightest.
Once the song finished, the crowd erupted into loud cheers and applause. Rintaro and Miku had to wipe away a few tears while Tsubasa, Hibiki and Touma were clapping their hardest.
"Just incredible…" Rintaro admitted as he put a hand to his chest, truly moved by Chris' words.
"She truly loves to sing," Tsubasa said, having felt the heart within those lyrics and song.
Meanwhile Chris couldn't help but smile, despite being nervous she had enjoyed herself a lot, 'This is so fun. I never knew I could enjoy singing this much! I'm sure this is… the place… I can call home.' She couldn't help but look around, soon seeing her friends again as her smile grew.
As the cheering began to calm down, the MC took the stage to speak once more, "A new Queen of the Stage has been crowned! Now, who'll be our next challenger? Feel free to jump in from the audience as well!"
"I seriously doubt anyone can compete with that," Touma gave a scoff, "Well, maybe one of you all but…"
"We'll do it, dess!"
"Kirika why…?" A second voice muttered.
The spotlight shined down on the crowd to reveal very familiar faces, Kirika and Shirabe, with Kento just barely visible due to being next to them though he currently was digging his face in his hands.
Chris gave a gasp, "Those girls?!"
"The Champion…" Shirabe started.
"…we'll challenge her, dess! Kirika finished.
To Be Continued…
Author's Note: I figured it was time for Touma and Kento to interact off the battlefield to give Touma at least some sense of ease about his friend. And of course, we've finally hit the Avalon plotline as Touma's lost access to his transformation.
Of course my favorite bit to write here was the brief fight between Maria and Slash. Daishinji is one of my favorite Rider's in Saber so I try my best to let him stand out in this story. Not much else to say though other than thanks for reading and see you next update.