For the love of everything out there, I really hope that I'll be able to update more quickly on a regular basis like I wanted to. IRL stuff happening and taking up time I can forgive, but it's getting annoying when I'm sure I'll be able to finish a chapter only for writer's block to say hi and stay for a while.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Megami Tensei franchise or Symphogear

Makoto leaned against the wall, silently watching as Genjuro stood at Section Two's terminal, contacting Hibiki, Kanade, and Tsubasa through a video call. "Listen up, girls," the man announced, "We have a lead." Pausing for a moment, he turned to Aoi and inquired, "Where's Ryoko?"

"She hasn't reported in," answered the woman, "In fact, we haven't heard from her since this morning."

As Genjuro furrowed his brows, Hibiki piped up and exclaimed, "I'm sure she'll be fine! If anything happens, she can just go bang and woosh like when she protected me when we were transporting Durandal!"

"The hell are you talking about?" asked Kanade.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Hibiki frowned in confusion.

Shaking her head in denial, Tsubasa explained, "Doctor Sakurai doesn't have any form of combat training other than the basics of how to use a pistol."

Surprised, Hibiki exclaimed, "So she doesn't have cool superpowers like the commander does?"

Suddenly, Ryoko joined the call, though she did so through a regular call instead of joining the video call. "I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed, "I overslept, and my communicator was on the fritz too!"

Makoto's and Genjuro's eyes narrowed in suspicion. Not only was it afternoon, the timing of Ryoko joining the call was far too convenient, not to mention that it was the second time she showed up late due to her communicator having problems.

While Genjuro spoke to Ryoko, Makoto focused inwards. 'Chris mentioned Kadingir. What do you know?' he asked, keeping an ear on the conversation in case anything came up.

'Kadingir is what the Sumerians called Babylon,' responded Kingu, 'but I doubt that is the case here.'

'A tower that reaches the heavens, though…' wondered Michael as he pondered Ryoko's explanation. 'All that comes to mind is the-'

"The Tower of Babel," finished Makoto, eyes widening as he figured it out.

"The what?" asked Genjuro, having closed the call.

"The Tower of Babel," read Aoi as her fingers flew across the keyboard. "According to myth, it was a tower that was built in the ancient city of Babylon, known as Kadingir by the Sumerians..." She trailed off, furrowing her eyebrows. Coughing lightly, she continued, "It was supposedly so tall it reached the heavens, and as a result, God destroyed the tower and scattered the remnants of humanity around the world while stripping away their ability to understand each other, thus dividing humanity." Eyes widening, she gasped, "Is the mastermind planning to divide humanity aga-"

"There are three dreadnought-class flying Noise in the city!" shouted Sakuya. He burst into sweat when a fourth ping on the radar appeared. "No, there's four! They're only flying around and not attacking anyone, but there's no telling when they'll act!"

"I'll update the girls," said Genjuro. Looking to Makoto, he continued, "Go assist them! I can handle things here."

Taking the elevator and leaving Section Two, he looked peeked out of the alley and watched as civilians panicked and made their way to the closest shelters. Looking around to make sure nobody was looking, he activated his armor and turned on the radio just in time to hear Genjuro assign Hibiki and Tsubasa to Tokyo Sky Tower. "Kanade and I will take care of the Noise in the city," he said. "We'll keep them busy so you can focus on your task."

"You take the left, and I take the right?" asked Kanade. "Or should we stick together and take them out faster that way?"

"Let's meet up first," responded Makoto. "Clear out the area near Tokyo Sky Tower then maintain a border." He instinctively ducked under a Noise before drawing his Sol Blade and cutting it down. Stepping over the disintegrating remains of the Noise, he weaved his way through the monsters as they dropped from above. Without breaking his pace, he pulled the trigger of his Evoker and called out, "Persona!"

Archangel shot forth, cleaving through the Noise as he flew about. "Feel heaven's judgement!" he roared as he fired a barrage of Holy Arrows that struck true, eliminating the Noise faster than they could populate the alley. As the air cleared, he grabbed Makoto and flew into the air, heading towards Tokyo Sky Tower.

Down below, Kanade waved to Makoto before returning to swinging Laevateinn around, keeping the Noise at bay as she held on to Hell Biker, who was driving through the city and leaving a fiery trail in his wake. "Come on, Hibiki and Tsubasa are almost there!" she shouted over the radio. "Let's get rid of the Noise on the ground and take away their landing cushions!"

Suddenly, a cloud of dust kicked up as one of the giant flying Noise crumbled away. Leaping out of the crater and throwing herself at the closest Noise, Hibiki exclaimed, "I heard that, Kanade-san! I'll beat you this time for sure!"

"Now is not the time for a competition!" shouted Tsubasa as she unleashed One Thousand Tears, mowing down a swarm of Noise that one of the behemoths was spawning. "By not having the high ground, we are at a disadvantage!"

"But what about the helicopters?" asked Hibiki, "Can't we use them to attack from abo-"

Eyes widening, Makoto quickly summoned Throne and sent him up to the sky, where the angelic Persona quickly grabbed the pilots and placed them on the wheel's spokes before descending to the ground as flying Noise decimated the helicopters. Looking to the stumbling agents, he ordered, "Get to safety. We'll handle it from here." As if on cue, Throne spun quickly, becoming a flaming wheel that tore through the swarm of Noise that was already converging around the group.

Meanwhile, Kanade swung Laevateinn around wildly, using its blades to shred any Noise within her vicinity. "Come on, let's clear out some space!" she yelled. Pulling out her Evoker and summoning Hell Biker, she created a wall of flames that kept the Noise at bay.

"We cannot allow ourselves to falter here!" grunted Tsubasa as she leapt out of the way of a flying Noise and sliced it in half. "If a sentinel falls and fails to defend the border, enemies shall breach and endanger all those who reside within!" As if on cue, a massive swarm of flying Noise sped towards the fighters, aiming to overwhelm them with mobility and numbers.

(Play Makyu Ichaival)

Suddenly, a hail of bullets tore through the Noise, shredding everything in its path. Chris approached the group, having donned Ichaival before her entrance. Holding up her communicator, she spat, "I'm only here because this stupid thing wouldn't stop making noise." Glaring at them, she quickly added, "And don't get the wrong idea. I'm not here to help you!"

Over her communicator, which was still active, Genjuro announced, "She might a bit late, but she is here to help." As Chris blushed in response to Hibiki's joyful smile and Kanade's smirk of amusement, he continued, "She's the wielder of the second relic Ichaival, Chris Yukine."

Unable to hold back her excitement, Hibiki launched herself forwards and hugged Chris. "Thank you, Chris-chan! I knew we could understand each other!"

Trying to pry the girl off, Chris shouted, "Let go of me, you idiot! Did you even listen to a thing I said?"

Casually pulling Hibiki away, Kanade suggested, "How about we take care of the Noise together for now?" Propping her weapon on her shoulder, she continued, "It'll be faster and beats doing it alone."

Running ahead, Chris snapped, "I can handle this myself! Just stay out of my way!" Materializing two crossbows, she fired an array of energy arrows that blasted the Noise, creating multiple explosions mid-air.

Without hesitation, Tsubasa returned to fighting, but as she leapt back, she bumped into Chris. Chris shouted, "Hey, watch it! Get out of the way. Can't you see I'm fighting here?"

"Come to your senses!" responded Tsubasa. "Do you think you can fight the Noise all by yourself? Do you truly believe you can do so?"

"I've always been alone!" shouted the white-haired girl. "And when the hell did we become friends? Just because we don't have a reason to fight each other, it doesn't mean we don't have to not fight each other either! For all I know, you're going to just go back to seeing me as an enemy and attack again! People don't just cha-"

"People can change!" insisted Hibiki, grasping Chris's hand. Reaching out with her other hand, she gently grasped Tsubasa's hand as well. "I used to wonder why my Symphogear doesn't have an Armed Gear. I hated that it didn't feel complete and I couldn't fight as much, but I don't feel that way anymore. Since I'm not holding anything in my hands, I can hold both of yours! I can be friends with you both!"

'Well, that's one way to put it,' giggled Titania. 'It's cute how she's conveying her message.'

"Tachibana…" Tsubasa faintly gasped. After a moment, she put down her sword and held out her free hand to Chris, looking at the girl intensely.

Chris hesitated before accepting the hand, before suddenly pulling away with a furious blush on her face. "Gah, is your idiocy contagious or something?"

Smiling faintly, Tsubasa replied, "It seems that both of us have been infected."

Laughing, Kanade patted Chris on the back. "Come on, lighten up!" she chuckled. "We're in this together, so get used to people looking out for you."

Makoto walked up to Chris, looking at her silently. "It's nice to meet you again, Chris."

Eyes widening in recognition, Chris gasped, "Wait a minute, I knew you looked familiar! You're the guy from that night!" Stomping up to him and jabbing his chest with a finger, she interrogated, "Aren't you going to apologize for the fight at the factory? When you and the red chick grabbed my legs, you left a cut on my thigh! And I don't know how the hell you did that, since the Nehustan Armor should have stopped it from happening!"

Blinking, Makoto bemusedly said, "... Sorry?"

Sighing in irritation, Chris groaned, "You better damn well be sorry! I-"

One of the remaining two giant Noise flew over the group, its shadow interrupting their conversation. "As long as the two behemoth-class Noise remain well, there will be no end to how many Noise they spawn," said Tsubasa. "If we are to truly cull their numbers in this battle, we must strike them down."

Makoto was about to summon one of his stronger Personas when Chris stepped up. "I'll handle them," she stated. "Ichaival's specialty is long range artillery with a wide area of effect. I can take them out, but it'll take time to charge."

Gasping, Hibiki exclaimed, "Chris-chan, don't tell me you're going to use your Swan Song!"

"Do I look stupid to you?" snarked Chris. "I'd never throw away my life over something as simple as this. I'm going to just overload the charge then fire right before it goes critical."

Eyes widening, Tsubasa protested, "But you'll be defenseless while charging. You'll be open to attacks!"

Hibiki answered, "Then that means we'll just have to protect her!"

Smiling faintly when Chris's eyes widened, Makoto said "I told you before, nobody should have to go through everything alone. This is what I meant."

Smirking as she twirled Laevateinn in anticipation, Kanade added, "Yeah, we're here now. They're not making it past us. We got your back."

"Come on, everyone! Let's protect Chris-chan!" cheered Hibiki as she leapt into battle, punching through a group of Noise instantly.

(Play Tsunaida Te Dake ga Tsumugu Mono)

Chris prepared Ichaival, feeling the hum of energy as it began charging up for her attack. Looking around, she watched as Hibiki, Tsubasa, Makoto, and Kanade fought the Noise, taking them down left and right with ease. 'Why are they doing this?' she thought, 'Why are they insisting on helping me? It doesn't make sense!' Shaking her head, she narrowed her eyes. 'Forget it, I'll take care of this first!' The attack continued charging, filling the air with a humming sound that reverberated deeply. As the buildup reached its peak, Chris shouted, "Take this!"

The Mega Deth Quartet shot into the sky, its four massive missiles accompanied by a Billion Maiden and a Mega Deth Party as they bombarded the Noise. As explosions erupted throughout the air, the group took a collective sigh of relief as the Noise were finally wiped out.

Running up to Chris and giving her a big hug, Hibiki cheered, "Thank you so much for helping us out, Chris-chan! Without your help, we would have been in a lot of trouble!"

Trying to pull herself out of the younger girl's surprisingly strong embrace, Chris shouted, "Hey, knock it off! Let go of me!" She finally managed to free herself and deactivated Ichaival, prompting the others to undo their transformations as well. Quickly dodging another attempt to hug by Hibiki, she sighed and explained, "Look, I'm not here to make friends or anything, alright?" Running a hand through her hair, she grumbled, "I'm only doing this to get even with Finé and make my new dream happen."

Quickly taking Chris by surprise with another hug, Hibiki eagerly asked, "What is it? What's your new dream?" She looked up at the girl, eyes shining with excitement. "Come on, tell us!" Suddenly, she received a call and released Chris to pull her communicator out, saving the white-haired girl from having to free herself yet again. Answering it, she said, "Hello? Miku? Is something wrong?"

"Hibiki, help!" shouted Miku over the communicator. "Lydian is in trouble! Ther-" Her voice went silent, replaced by monotonous beeping as the call was cut off. But the message was clear: the school was under attack.

"Oh no, our school's being invaded by Noise!" shouted Hibiki. "We need to go help!" She quickly sang her incantation, prompting the others to transform as well. "Come on, let's g-"

"Look out!" shouted Kanade as she yanked Hibiki back, pulling her out of the way of an icicle that was aimed at her head. She looked in the direction it came from and was shocked to see the source. "What the hell is that?!"

Makoto's eyes widened. "Impossible..." he whispered. "They shouldn't be here!"

"Yuki-san, you know these creatures?" Tsubasa asked, looking at the monsters that suddenly appeared around them out of nowhere.

There was a wide variety of appearances, all of them being the same in that they looked as though they had come out of some nightmare. Piles of black sludge that stretched out their inky arms and bore various masks, gloved hands that ran about on their fingertips and had heads sprouting out from the wrist, floating heads of women wearing ball masks and tiaras or crowns that bore books within the arch where the cap should have been, massive rhinoceros beetles that had masked human heads on the tips of their horns, and many more.

"Those are the Shadows I talked about," answered Makoto, frowning. "Be quick, they need to be stopped." Without hesitation, he leapt forward and pulled out his Legendary Cleaver, cutting down a Muttering Tiara in a grotesque spray of blood that quickly evaporated into a dark mist.

"So these are the monsters you and your friends fought, huh?" Kanade observed as she leapt into the fray. "Let's see how they fare compared to the Noise!" Swinging Laevateinn around, she impaled three Magic Hands, popping her weapon's blades out to destroy them.

Hibiki, Tsubasa, and Chris copied the duo's example, the Section Two agents grimacing at the blood, while the latter grit her teeth at the all too familiar sight she had seen many times throughout her childhood.

...

Earlier at Lydian, Miku helped the students evacuate into shelters, doing her best to ignore the sound of soldiers firing at the Noise outside. "Everyone, please stay calm and head inside the shelter," she announced. "It'll be safe inside."

Yumi and Shiori ran up to Miku, pulling Kuriyo by her arms as she followed them languidly. "What's going on?" asked Yumi. "Why are the Noise targeting our school? This is real life, not an anime!"

"It doesn't matter. You need to evacuate too!" responded Miku. "You three go on ahead. I'll go see if anyone else needs help." She ran off, heading deeper into the school.

"Miku, wait!" shouted Shiori. "It's too dange-"

"You three, hurry and get into the shelter!" Two soldiers ran towards them, keeping an eye on their surroundings. The first soldier continued, "The Noise have breached the defense line and are in the school!"

"Please help," begged Yumi. "We can't do it alone. Kuriyo's been weird after that attack a few days ago." The aforementioned girl looked completely different from how she usually did. Her normally tanned skin was deathly pale, and dark bags were under her empty eyes. Her usual lively expression was replaced by a blank visage, lacking even the slightest bit of peacefulness or calm.

The second soldier took a good look at Kuriyo, who stared back listlessly. "I recognize her," he said, "She's one of the people who were found in a near-catatonic state after reports of shadowy monsters causing destruction in a mall. All of them showed the same symptoms after waking up."

"It's because of that monster!" snapped Yumi, eyes tearing up. "We were there to buy things for a school project when it attacked us! Kuriyo got split up from us, and we didn't learn until later that the monster caught her!"

Suddenly, a cracking sound came from above the girls. "Look out!" The first soldier leapt forward and shoved them back, crumbling into carbon dust as a Noise broke through the ceiling and impaled him right where the girls were standing previously.

Seeing Yumi and Shiori paralyzed in horror, the second soldier ordered, "Run! Head to the shelter!" He pulled them to their feet, but before he could escort them, a massive punch nailed him, sending him into a wall, where he crumpled to the ground groaning in pain.

A Steel Gigas held out its arm, its hand still clenched into a fist. It turned towards the girls, cocking its head as it stared at Yumi and Shiori in recognition. Likewise, Yumi and Shiori locked onto the splotch of bright green paint streaking across its mask. It was at this moment that they realized it was the same monster that had attacked them before.

Flashback

Yumi, Kuriyo, and Shiori ran through the aisles of an arts and crafts store, throwing glances behind them as they tried to escape the dark creatures that chased them. "Hurry, they're catching up!" shouted Yumi as she grabbed a nearby stand and tipped it, hoping to stall their pursuers from catching up to them and other shoppers trying to flee.

"Girls, look out!" yelped Shiori as she noticed a patch of wet floor in their path. While she and Yumi were able to jump over it, Kuriyo was too slow and slipped, falling to the ground.

"Kuriyo, get up!" cried Yumi, seeing her friend fall. She grabbed a paint can from a nearby shelf and heaved it at the closest monster, which resembled a massive wrestler with black skin wearing a blue mask and metal briefs. However, it was unfazed as the can burst open and splattered green paint all over its mask.

Mustering her strength, Kuriyo scrambled to her feet and grabbed a paint roller, bashing the metal pole against the monster's leg to get its attention. "Go!" she shouted, "I'll catch up later!" She took off in another direction, the monsters chasing after her.

By the time the monsters disappeared, Kuriyo would be among the civilians who were found unconscious but surprisingly unharmed. It would not be until after they woke up that people would realize that something was very wrong.

End flashback

Yumi saw red. Noticing the fallen rifle at her feet, she grabbed it and pointed it towards the Steel Gigas, hastily running her fingers across the sides as she used her otaku knowledge to flip the safety. "You..." Hands trembling, she tried to steady her aim as her fingers slipped onto the trigger. "It's all your fault Kuriyo's like that!"

Pulling himself up, the soldier ordered, "Stop, don't even try to fight it! Just get out of here. Your lives are more important!" He tried to approach Yumi, only to collapse against the wall for support as he coughed in pain, waving off Shiori's attempt to help him.

However, Yumi ignored the soldier. Squeezing the trigger, she screamed in rage and grief as she tried to keep the rifle pointed at the monster, bullets peppering its chest. As the magazine ran out seconds later, the Steel Gigas fell back, collapsing to the ground. Without a moment's hesitation, Yumi ran up to it and swung the gun by its barrel, using it as a club. "You'll! Pay! For! Hurting! My! Friend! You! Damn! Monster!" she shrieked, punctuating each word with a strike. Even when the Steel Gigas's head was reduced to a bloody paste, its body dissolving, the girl kept swinging.

Running up to the girl, Shiori hugged her from behind. "That's enough!" she shouted, pulling her away. "It's over." Turning her friend around, she wiped away Yumi's tears. "Come on, we need to g-"

Kuriyo groaned, sitting up from her position on the floor. "What happened?" she moaned, rubbing at her eyes. Though she was still pale and had deep bags on her face, her eyes were no longer empty, instead looking as though she had woken up from a deep slumber. "Why am I at Lydian? The last thing I remember is the..." Her eyes widened. "The monster!" She hurriedly got to her feet, only to stumble in surprise at how weak she felt.

Running over to catch the girl, Yumi and Shiori embraced her. "Kuriyo!" Yumi cried, "You're back! I was so scared when you-" She trailed off into incomprehensible babbles, tears streaking down her cheeks. Confused, Kuriyo gently patted Yumi on the head, still not understanding what was happening.

Taking back his rifle and using it as a crutch, the soldier grabbed his radio. "Command, this is Second Lieutenant Tomochika. During a sweep, I was about to escort civilians to safety when I encountered the dark monsters responsible for the apathy outbreak. They can be killed, and victims recover from their apathetic state. Repeat, they can be killed to turn the victims back to normal!"

As the group made their way to the closest shelter, little did they know that their encounter would create massive waves throughout the world.

Yes, Yumi being the reason why they learned regular people can kill Shadows in the Symphogear world is because of some stuff on the Symphogear side of things. And yes, just like her alternate self in XDU, she's going to achieve one of her dreams.

Please tell me what you think, review, constructive criticism appreciated, and NO flames. Keep your insults to yourself. They contribute nothing to the story (unless you're insulting characters that honestly deserve the burns).