Hazy Thoughts and Cloudy Judgment
[Insert: KICKASS - TRiDENT]
The front section of the black wings opened, the nozzle from the blasters all firing upon the idol duo and the Blades of Zababa. Tsubasa was the first to counterattack, the wings on her ankles positioning themselves as she weaved between the heavy fire. She brought her katana back, ready to strike at the first opportunity she got, but once the smoke cleared from one of the blasts, Laya was already in front of her, anticipating that one of them was going to escape first.
Her reared back fist connected with Tsubasa's jaw, sending her flying before Laya hopped right after her. She was about to land another blow, but Tsubasa was quick to retaliate, the boosters on her legs activating and spinning her around to dodge Laya's kick. The moment she was caught off-guard, the azure girl used the momentum of her spin to deliver a painful kick of her own to the chest, one that shattered the ground below them and left the brunette to try and regain her bearings.
Laya was able to get back to her feet after a flip, but the Blades of Zababa were hot on her trail, the sound of a spinning saw and the clink of three scythe blades being enough for Laya to call back two of her wings.
(Kill Juliet)
(Gamma Style: Friction Blades)
The duo that had snuck behind her swung their Armed Gears forward, but they were blocked and deflected by the barriers generated by each wing. The tail on her back swiped at the ground, shattering the earth as it caused the two attackers to lose their balance for only a moment. With that, the wings were pushed outward, the blades of Igalima and Shul Shagana now being forced to create distance between the parties.
Kirika's scythe and Shirabe's saws came up to block the wings, but how fast they were incoming, they couldn't help but be pushed back. Laya wanted to think that this was all she had to deal with, but she knew that she wasn't out of the woods yet, a set of silver blades coming right after her. She flipped backwards, dodging each of the blades masterfully as she anticipated the last fighter to insert themselves into the fight at any opening they could.
(INFINITE†CRIME)
She thought she was in the clear if she dodged, but the moment she put her hands down on the ground, she was frozen in place. Was it because the fight was taking its toll on her after fighting four different people? No, that wasn't the case. If anything, her stamina was much better than her sister's, and she could handle all of S.O.N.G.'s Adapters at once. It also didn't feel like it was exhaustion, more so that she was being held in place by some invisible force.
She couldn't move her body at all, but she couldn't find the reason for it, all before looking down and seeing a smaller blade that looked different from the rest. While Airgetlám's blades all had that rounded edge on the blade, this one looked more akin to a different Relic, a blue line traveling down the side of the blade that dug into her shadow.
(Shadow Weaving)
The rest of the Airgetlám blades came at her, but even though her body was stuck, her tail and free wings seemed to be fully operational. The tail swiped and deflected some of the swords, just enough for the wing that was attacking Tsubasa previously to slam itself into the ground. The cracks from the earth sprouted outward, eventually reaching Laya and freeing the blade that trapped her. The instant the dagger tilted over, she felt that invisible force lift completely from her, rebounding back to her feet before another incident like that happened again.
Once she got her body to move again, rather than trying to avoid the blades, she flew straight to the source, a cloud of smoke holding the other half of the idol duo. Getting within range, she swung her leg down for an axe kick, but the moment the smoke cleared, she saw Tsubasa ready to intercept the attack. Her heel hit Ame no Habakiri, the sword holding firm while Laya snuck her tail around Maria's leg. With this hold, she tossed Maria up into the air, using the wing that attacked her for another big blow as it began to charge an attack. However, before it could fire, a wave of buzzsaws struck from below, tilting the wing down and diverting the blast.
(Alpha Style: 100 Samsara)
With that freedom, Maria's sword disconnected, swinging the whip sword down at the brunette. While Laya was able to use the tail to put her at a farther distance, Maria was able to bridge that gap with her Armed Gear, the smaller sections now coming after her as they bounced off the buzzsaws that came from below.
(EMPRESS†REBELLION)
Laya jumped back, now forced to create distance between herself and Tsubasa to avoid the blades connected by wire. The wings were all recalled to her as the tail brought Maria to the ground with a crash. The Blades of Zababa tried once again to get a sneak attack in, but Laya assumed this would have been the case. Instinctually, her body weaved under Shirabe's buzzsaw and above Kirika's scythe, planting her hands on the two's shoulders once she got behind them. She gave them a push, straight into Maria's retracting web of blades, but not before bringing the mobile wings in front of her. The blasters all opened, the phonic gain of all four wings releasing and rapidly approaching the two.
(ARMABLAZER)
The attack connected, though it wasn't with the Gear users, but instead, with an energy shield created by Airgetlám. Maria's sword reconnected itself, the Receptor Children and Tsubasa all trying to find a weak point in their opponent as they regrouped.
"Now that we're fighting her, did she...?"
Kirika was the first to speak up about this, which Tsubasa confirmed, "Yeah, she got stronger." Based on their previous fight with her, Tsubasa and Maria, albeit still needing to fight together, deducted the girl's weaknesses, even if the multiple mobile units on her were a problem by themselves.
While their main plan was to immobilize her, the fact that she could maneuver the wings and tail without the need for independent actions meant that they still needed to deal with drones afterwards. However, on the plus side, she didn't have a close-range weapon outside of the tail, leading to her just punching and kicking regularly. Obviously, it was still a problem due to how strong she was physically, but it was better than having to deal with a sword or scythe.
"How did you guys deal with her last time?"
Shirabe questioned the idol duo on their last victory, but when the duo looked back on it, it wasn't much of a "victory" on their end. Even if they kept Laya on the edge, they didn't outright defeat her, despite it practically being a certainty in that encounter. Instead, Laya escaped after forcing them back with an attack that neither of them were prepared for.
"Last time, it was Unison, but..."
Maria bit her bottom lip, her eyes keeping track of the girl who merely looked down at her hand. Laya's expression was a bit hard to pin down. She looked upset, but at the same time, she had a face of surprise. She didn't know what the capabilities of her Gear were, so it was no wonder. However, those sorrowful thoughts from minutes ago still lingered in the back of her mind.
"Are you sure you want to be fighting like this?"
The black dragon spoke to its wearer, the brunette's mind being an open book to the Relic. "You said that you weren't going to stop me, right," Laya confirmed. She understood the concern it had, but she didn't want to think about it. In fact, she didn't want to think about anything. She could just let her body release all the stress out in this fight, even if it wouldn't make her satisfied in the long-term. "A short-term fix is better than a long one," she thought to herself. The dragon was silent, knowing exactly where this thought came from, so it waited for Laya's eventual follow-up.
"Just... let me be in my thoughts for a bit, alright?"
Even if she couldn't see it, she could imagine the dragon giving a reaffirming nod as it replied, "As you wish." She hated to put Nidhogg in a situation like this, especially since she's doing the exact same thing as Leia, simply using Nidhogg as a tool to fight. Sure, it was a bit different with the circumstances, but the result was still the same. She swore in her mind, wondering if she really should have called the voice back or not, but she was interrupted by someone else calling out to her.
"Is this really the path you want to go down?"
Tsubasa aimed her katana to point at Laya, that conviction in her eyes contrasting the anxious turmoil that rested in Laya's. It was a call to see if she wanted help, but...
"What choice do I have?"
Laya could respond in the only way she knew that she could, sighing as she diverted her eyes up to the gray skies. Clouds encroached on the sunlight, indicating the potential of a storm ripping through the battlefield. She never minded the rain, but this time, she couldn't feel more nostalgic about those clouds.
"I feel like you're easier to speak to than the other girl, so..."
Maria tried to lean towards that sympathetic side of Laya, since she could tell that this girl wasn't as mean-spirited as the other one. She didn't go out of her way to attack them without an order, so she wasn't completely inimical towards them. They nearly got her to come with them last time, so it wasn't impossible to think that they could reason with her. However, Laya's mindset was practically set in stone.
"If this is what she's saying to do, then I can't really decline."
The two duos raised their eyebrows, wondering what she meant by that. "Even if you don't want to," Kirika asked, causing Laya to reply with more enthusiasm than she had the entire fight.
"Obviously! Do you guys have sisters?"
That question struck a chord in the Receptor Children. While Tsubasa couldn't express that sentiment of siblings, Kirika and Shirabe were practically inseparable and grew up together. Meanwhile, Maria had a late sister, but she knew exactly where this train of thought was going. Pulling that card meant something to that found family that grew up with one another, all of them practically being sisters. "You're supposed to be supportive, until the very end."
The Adapters wanted to disagree, but the logic wasn't flawed. At least, not the overarching narrative of that logic.
"That's..."
Maria wanted to say something about where that logic would be allowed to be swayed, because blind loyalty hurts everyone involved. If the other sibling is doing something wrong, Laya shouldn't be encouraging it. If anything, she should be trying to set her on the correct path. However, Laya wasn't going to say anything about her sister's actions, the previous years proving that no matter what decisions Laya made, her sister was always right about whatever she came up with. Even if she thought something was the objectively correct thing to do, Leia would have a retort to shut it down every time, all with good reason.
"She knows better than me, so if she says that this is how it has to be, then I'll..."
No matter how badly she didn't want to fight them, the fact that she knew Leia thought of everything was a driving factor in her battle. S.O.N.G. realized this, so they figured that now was a time more than ever to make sure they achieve victory here. If not for their friends, then to take that look off Laya's face. "You guys," Tsubasa motioned to the Blades of Zababa, both clutching their Armed Gears. With a closed fist, Maria followed suit, their Gears all starting to glow a bright golden color.
"Right!"
[Insert: Senritsu Sorority – Yoko Hisaka, Yoshino Nanjo & Ai Kayano]
In a burst of energy, the four Symphogears transformed, the Armed Gears they were using now disappearing in exchange for a golden barrier that encompassed them. Their suits transformed as well, now resembling that of Inner Gears, the main difference being the large flower-like jewel on their chests. The four Gears raised their hands, a myriad of golden flower petals spiraling and rising into the air as Laya braced herself for the surge of energy.
"That's..."
The cacophony of energy died down, the group now in full view as they revealed their new Armed Gears: a sword, a shield, a scythe and a dragon arm, all adorned in gold plating. She had seen this once before, being on that playback when Leia fought against the Gears before their last encounter.
"It's the same as Red Singing Hood..."
Maria let the assault, the dragon on her arm snaking its way towards Laya as a charge of lightning was shot at her. She managed to get out of the way, avoiding the bolt of lightning as it scorched the ground where she stood. Another bolt was fired, so Laya figured to fight fire with fire.
"Nidhogg."
On her request, the black haze on her sleeve manifested itself in a dragon head, one that clashed with the dragon held by Maria. After her first time using it, she had managed to get a handle on the dragon's haze, even if she couldn't control it that well. She trained to make sure she could use it again, regardless of any consequences that may have come about from it. It took a lot of energy to do it before, but with a slight bit of help from the Relic itself, the amount of energy to use it was drastically reduced. However, it didn't make it any less cumbersome to work with.
While she was preoccupied with the clashing of dragons, the Blades of Zababa took their chance, starting with Shirabe throwing the shield on her arm. Laya thought that her attack was much too linear, bringing up her wings to deflect the shield. As expected, the shield bounced right off, but once it did, sections of the shield became disconnected, opening and shifting until it transformed into a mechanical figure, one quite reminiscent of its user. Upon its transformation, the robot's leg opened, revealing a giant buzzsaw as it dove straight into the wing's barrier. With a wave of her other hand, Laya sent a second wing for another barrier, but even with the defensive power nearly doubled by the wings, the defense couldn't stop the robot from breaking through.
The defense was shattered, the buzzsaw grazing Laya's leg as she evaded. She bolted out of the way, the robot following her every move as it continued its attack. Each body part of the robot seemed to have the same ability, each limb revealing another saw that swiped at the girl to strike her. She wasn't giving up yet, bringing those two wings that were defending up to attack the mech.
However, the moment the blasters on one of the wings opened, Kirika leapt onto the floating wing, jumping off and diverting a blast intended for her partner's Armed Gear. The second wing was slammed to the floor by the massive scythe Kirika wielded, the second laser of phonic gain doing nothing more than releasing a soft hum as the blaster was closed.
With the crisis of the blasters avoided for the moment, the golden scythe swiped the air, the multiple sections of the scythe dislodging and firing towards the direction Laya was running towards. It was quite easy to see that she was being overwhelmed here, the power granted by Amalgam being something that Laya underestimated. The more she kept trying to defend or evade, the harder it was for her to keep up. Two people were feasible, but three was taking its toll. If there was a fourth one, then...
Wait, where was the fourth one...?
"This is..."
"...the finisher, dess!"
Kirika and Shirabe's attacks closed in, finally connecting with Laya's body before she was sent back. She crashed into the ground, but as Kirika raised her scythe for a final attack, Laya's tail rushed to intercept, fending off the scythe and mech. The width of the tail wrapped around Igalima, the scythe carrying Kirika as she refused to let go of the Armed Gear. While the choice was correct, it was better for Laya, allowing her to throw her into Shul Shagana's shield before using that opportunity to retaliate.
After freeing herself up, the tail's blade dove straight towards Shirabe, taking advantage of the defenseless maiden. She was fighting from long-range, but without her mech, she was a sitting duck. However, when its blade closed the distance between Laya and Shirabe, the tail was blocked, a reminiscent blue flame shielding the girl from the attack. With a wave of the golden sword, a spiral of blue flames came down to strike, but Laya was running low on options. "Nidhogg!"
The black apparition connected to her arm vanished from the fight with Maria, freeing one fighter just to reappear in front of another, shooting itself from Laya's sleeve to intercept the flames.
(ARMAGEDDON REVISER)
Its maw opened, swallowing some of the fire coming its way. However, unlike the last time Tsubasa dealt with this Gear, the dragon couldn't overpower them, the destruction from the fire searing the earth below as Kirika and Shul Shagana's Armed Gear evaded. "Leia may have been able to deal with Amalgam, but this girl..."
Nidhogg couldn't help but speak aloud, previously quiet about the events that were unfolding and only listening to orders. However, with now badly the damage being dealt to Laya was, it could tell that Laya was doing everything in her power to stay alive, rather than winning. Within the dust cloud, Laya sat up, strained and bruised. She was able to stop a good bit of the attack with Nidhogg and the wings, but even when using all four, there was still part of it that managed to get through. "Khh... man, that hurt..."
"The power of the Philosopher's Stone really is something."
This time, Laya chuckled at Nidhogg's response. Perhaps it was the adrenaline in her veins, but she wasn't as sad as she was before. Now, she was more fired up than ever after seeing such a big attack like that. She wore a serious look on her face, even if the blood falling from her bottom lip and dirt on her face were making her look much more haphazard. Nidhogg began speaking again, no longer fearing the girl's responses of denying its input. It could tell in her mind that she wasn't in turmoil about her sister or Yggdrasil, it was all on the fight at hand. She had to have gotten this from somewhere, but where...?
"You don't say... it's like cheating."
As she said that, the information and energy stored by Nidhogg was starting to get back to her mind. Like how Leia's Faust Robe retained information for her when Nidhogg devoured something, the information trailing into Laya's psyche was being fed to her down to the last molecule. However, unlike Leia, Laya got no advantage from this. At least, no advantage aside from gawking at it. "If only I had something like that..." Laya admired the transformations the group underwent, but there were obviously downsides to them.
Firstly, none of them looked like they retained their abilities to fly. Even if their power increased tens of hundreds of times, they had very few ways of reaching her if she just stayed floating in the air. They could fire attacks at her or try to reach her with Shirabe's robot or Maria's dragon, but all of them would be too easy to dodge or intercept. However, if she did that, her attack and patterns would be easy to read and react to.
Secondly, their defense also seemed to be lacking. Unlike the Gears before, where their power was distributed evenly, the information she got from Nidhogg showed that all the energy went straight into their weapons. Likewise, they can convert all that energy into a barrier like when they first transformed, but it looks like they could only use one or the other.
If there was a way to force them back into the defensive state, she might have had a chance, but since there were so many allies, they could afford to skimp on the defense when they could help each other out. It was a lose-lose situation. But with that thought, Nidhogg provided a crucial piece of information.
"I didn't want to tell you, but..."
Laya raised an eyebrow, her curiosity peaking after hearing Nidhogg begin to mention something. "What, can I transform or something like that," she questioned. She didn't have a Philosopher's Stone, at least, to her knowledge. Even if she did, she wouldn't know the first thing about activating the form, since the concept of the Gears was still quite a mystery for her. The most she had about information for the Gears was whatever her sister told her and the information she got from Nidhogg, so her knowledge was lacking quite a lot. However, Nidhogg was always around Leia, so if there was something that the Gear could do, the dragon would know what that function would be.
"It's not with absolute certainty, but there was a reason your sister took your pendant."
Nidhogg's vague statement wasn't any help to Laya initially, but Leia was one to add things without advising her of it. A transformation like Amalgam was a thought, but with how long it took Leia to make a condensed version of the Philosopher's Stone, she didn't think she'd have another one on hand. Instead, she just chalked the "maintenance" of the Gear up to their argument, even if she was actually doing something to improve it.
"Probably to put another tracker on it or something," she scoffed, trying to come up with a plan before the group mounted their next attack.
"Not that, but if it'll make you happier, just know that there's multiple functions to the Symphogear system."
She already knew about these "other functions" as told by the alchemist, but she didn't think anything of anything she told her. Those other functions were things that she was told about so she didn't use them, Leia using these as a fear tactic rather than a way of helping in a fight.
"Yeah, yeah, she already told me about Superb Songs, but I don't think that'll be enough..."
She brought the explanation of the Gear's functions to the forefront of her mind, getting the primary simplifications out of the way: an Armed Gear is a primary weapon, singing powered up the Gear through phonic gain and a Superb Song was strictly off-limits. From what she gathered, a Superb Song had the ability to amplify her strength tremendously, but it was at the cost of the user's body and health. While she thought it might have been a good idea at first, the description given by Leia of not being able to move was not appealing. It didn't matter if she won, but if she couldn't win, she'd be defenseless. Nidhogg understood this sentiment, so it gave her another comment.
"You won't know unless you try."
"Nids, you're overestimating..."
"Just press the sides of your pendant and sing."
Once it gave her that hint of advice, she remembered when she first activated the Gear. Before, she grabbed the pendant and took it off, thinking she broke it. However, she noticed that the powers that the other Gears had came directly from their converters. The glistening light from the Philosopher's Stone resonated with their Relics, so maybe that was a sign. However, they didn't take their pendants off, they simply held their fists up and the golden flowers blossomed. Nidhogg's words didn't seem like they amounted to anything, but she had another thought in her mind. The dragon wasn't planning on stopping her, in anything, it was trying to push her forward.
Taking her pendant in hand, she pressed the sides with a click. The pendant dislodged from its holster, a glimmer shining from it as she held it up to the sky. Even with the shrouded skies that dulled the color around them, holding the pendant up somehow gave her a small sense of hope. That hope was only made brighter when the pendant started to leak out a cloud of black smoke, littered with sparking light. She thought that Nidhogg's words were simply bait, but after this, she couldn't help but think otherwise. After this display, she decided to do what Nidhogg told her to.
After all, if Leia added something, there was no way it wasn't going to be beneficial, right?
"Gatrandis babel ziggurat edenal..."
"Emustolronzen Finé el balal zizzl..."
"Gatrandis babel ziggurat edenal..."
"Emustolronzen Finé el zizzl..."
A girl with wavering resolve forced to fight against those who want nothing more to help her... isn't that fun? Four-on-ones never look winnable, do they? Unlike the other fights, these last couple of fights will be split into multiple chapters, but you're used to how I write the actual fights if you made it this far! Anyways, there isn't really that much to go over, so... see you next week!