Queens
Tsubasa was still. Her breathing was almost nonexistent. Her hand rested on the handle of her sword.
With a slash she drew her blade from its sheath, slashing through the flame in the candle in front of her. The flame flickered out, the candle completely intact.
Tsubasa let out a breath before sheathing her sword and returning to a standing position. Just a little bit more and her training for the day would be done. Even in times of relative peace like they were currently experiencing, it was important to keep her edge sharp. As a Sentinel that was her solemn duty, one that she gladly fulfilled, especially after finally learning the truth of her Father’s last words.
Plus it was a good distraction. It kept her mind from wondering about the Alca-Noise attack. Who could be behind it, what the objective of the attack was.
The fact it also distracted her from thoughts of a certain pink haired singer in her life was an added bonus.
Just as Tsubasa was about to move on to the next portion of her training, there was a knock on the small room’s door. Tsubasa frowned. That was odd… she hadn’t been expecting anyone today.
“Tsubasa?”
Oh. Tsubasa knew that voice. One of the people from whom she didn’t mind an unexpected visit.
“You can come in.”
The door slid open and Maria walked in, a smile on her face as their eyes met. Tsubasa could feel her cheeks flush a bit, but she kept her composure.
“Maria, to what do I owe this unexpected visit?”
Maria cocked her head. “What, I can’t just pop in to visit you?”
“W-well… I mean…”
Maria laughed. “I’m just teasing you Tsubasa. While I would like to visit, unfortunately I’m here on business. The commander wants us to assemble at HQ.”
Tsubasa blinked. “He does? Then why not just contact me directly? He knows I always have my communicator on hand.”
Maria shrugged. “I was in the area and he didn’t seem to be in a big hurry, so I told him that I'd swing around and grab you.”
That made sense.
“Alright. Just give me a few moments to change.”
Maria nodded, stepping back outside and sliding the door shut. Tsubasa set her blade in its holder, quickly stripping down and changing into her SONG uniform. Once she was changed she stepped outside.
“Alright, let’s get going. We don’t want to keep them waiting.”
Maria, who had been leaning against the wall next to the door, nodded. “Shall we take your bike?”
“That would likely be our best bet.”
The two made small talk as they made their way down to the garage, Tsubasa flicking on the light as they entered. The familiar smell of oil and grease greeted Tsubasa’s nose, a smell she had long come to accept. Admittedly a small part of her was calmed by the smell, reminding her of the simple days where she just got to tinker all day. It took quite a bit of work getting her bikes able to operate in tandem with her Gear, and even more work to keep them in top condition. Still, it was something Tsubasa had come to take a measure of solace in.
She walked over to the nearby coat rack, grabbing a coat and throwing it on. “Would you like a coat, Maria?”
“Yes, please.”
Tsubasa tossed her one of her spare coats, zipping up her own as she stepped towards her bike. She picked up the spare helmet sitting on a rack next to it, handing it to Maria (she ignored the slight brushing of their fingers) before grabbing her own. Sliding it on, she climbed onto her bike. She turned the key, the engine humming to life as the bike entered an idle state. Maria slid on behind Tsubasa, gently yet firmly wrapping her arms around the Sentinel’s stomach.
Tsubasa was glad for the helmet, if only for the fact it hid the blush that flashed across her face.
Once she was sure Maria was on and secure, Tsubasa gently pulled out of the garage before taking off down the street.
—-
Tsubasa and Maria entered the bridge of HQ. “I apologize for our lateness.”
The other Adapters were already there, the two sword users the last to arrive.
“I’m sorry as well. It’s amazing how many red lights you can hit in a row…”
Genjuuro, his arms crossed as usual, shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. This is more of a debrief than anything.”
“Oh, is it about the Alca-Noise attack the other day?” Hibiki inquired.
“Yes. At least, I’d like to say so… Unfortunately we still don’t have many leads.”
“Then what was the point of calling us out here?” Chris asked, arms crossed and a look of annoyance on her face.
“Fujitaka was going over some data and discovered something. Fujitaka, put it on screen.”
“Already done.” Fujitaka responded, fingers clicking away at the screen in front of him.
The adapters turned their attention to the screen, where a digital newspaper article was being displayed.
The room was silent as they read over the article.
“Two pages of an ancient manuscript, whose origins were still being researched, were stolen from the facility they were being kept at?” Shirabe read out loud.
Kirika cocked her head. “What does that have to do with anything dess?”
Genjuuro nodded. “Nothing at first glance. Take a look at the date it happened.”
Maria gasped. “Two days ago! The same day…”
“Of the Alca-Noise attack.” Tsubasa concluded. “Commander, are you implying that the attack was merely a distraction for the theft of these pages?”
“That’s our current working theory. It’s the only option we have right now that makes sense.”
Chris frowned. “But why go through all that trouble just for a couple old pieces of paper?”
“That’s what we’re still trying to figure out. We’re sniffing out every lead we can, but progress is slow.” Genjuuro sighed, shaking his head. “Regardless we’re going to keep at it, and we’ll notify you of any developments. Aside from that… the other reason I called you actually is closely related to Miku-kun.”
Miku cocked her head. “Me?”
“Yes. I think I’ll let Elfnein take over from here.”
“Thank you commander.” Elfnein continued where Genjuuro left off. “First, I’d like you to take a look at this.”
Elfnein pressed a few keys on the panel in front of her. On the main screen the image of a pendant appeared, though there were a few noticeable differences to any of the Symphogear user’s pendants. It was a darker red for one, and had a more mechanical exterior.
Miku blinked. “Isn’t that… the Shenshoujing?”
“It is. After we recovered it after the battle against Shem-Ha, we’ve been hard at work studying it. It’s strange… It's definitely a Faust Robe, but it seems that it was built with the Symphogear as a base. It’s not like a fusion of the two, like your Gears are, but it’s something else entirely.”
Hibiki cocked her head. “What do you mean?”
“Well, our tests have shown that it doesn’t actually have a dedicated power source. Normally Faust Robes operate purely off the power of their Relic, like the Dur da bla or the Philosopher’s Stone. However, this Faust Robe was made using only fragments of the Shenshoujing, therefore it theoretically shouldn’t be able to function at all.”
Maria frowned. “But if that’s the case, how was Shem-Ha able to use it?”
Elfnein nodded. “That’s something else I’ve been looking into. My current hypothesis is that the Divine Power Shem-Ha possessed was enough to power the Shenshoujin on its own. That would be why she didn’t need to sing. However, when Miku-san donned the Shenshoujing to assist the rest of you in destroying Yggdrasil, she had to use Phonic Gain to activate it.”
Elfnein turned around. “So, in essence, this Faust Robe is functionally a Symphogear. My calculations also show that it should theoretically be capable of achieving X-Drive, though there’s no way to actually test that.”
“Does that mean Kohinata would be able to fight alongside us if she so desired?”
Elfnein nodded. “Yes, I believe so. The Shenshoujing itself is a touch weaker than all your relics in terms of power, but the fact that it can destroy other relics with ease would make it a powerful tool.”
Hibiki beamed, giving Miku a side hug.
Before anyone could start cheering Genjuuro raised a hand. “That would be the ideal situation.”
“Why do I feel a but coming dess…”
“But, unfortunately, our superiors don’t quite see it that way.”
“I knew it dess…”
Maria groaned. “So I guess the UN isn’t very happy that we now possess the ultimate relic killer?”
“That’s part of it. You have to remember, it was Shem-Ha who was wearing that relic when they saw it. They’re scared… though I’m sure they’re just using that as a front. I’m all but certain they don’t want us amassing any more power than we already do. We had to fight tooth and nail just to get them to approve your Amalgam, so the Faust Robe that the being who almost enslaved humanity used? And the fact that it’s the ultimate counter to Relics? It’s going to take a while longer before we can even think about getting permission to deploy the Shenshoujing. And that’s not even touching the fact that the thing is technically American property, since the shards of the Shenshoujing were stolen from an American research facility.” Genjuuro sighed. “It’s one big political mess.”
Hibiki sighed. “Ah man… I was really hoping I’d get to see Miku wear that again…”
“That is, of course, assuming Miku-kun would want to join us officially as an Adapter. I’d understand completely if you didn’t want to fight.”
Miku shook her head. “I made a promise. I want to see the world from beside Hibiki, not from behind her. If that means using the Shenshoujin to help fight, then I’ll gladly do it.”
Genjuuro smiled. “Well said. In that case, I can’t officially bring you onto SONG yet as an active combatant yet, but from this point forward consider yourself a provisional member. Though, that’s all just for the official reports. I’m sure everyone here has thought of you as part of the team for some time now.”
Miku smiled, bowing her head. “Thank you… Commander.”
“Alright, now that that’s all out of the way… I don’t have anything else to say except keep your Gears close. We don’t know when our unknown foes will strike again, so we need to be ready at any moment.”
“Roger!”
“Alright, you’re all dismissed. Oh, before I forget… Maria-kun, Tsubasa, Ogawa was looking for you. I think he wants to go over the finer details of your announcement tomorrow one more time.”
The two singers nodded.
“Oh yeah, forgot about that. What’s that all about anyway, Senpai?” Chris turned to look at the two. “What’s this big announcement thing you two got goin on?”
Tsubasa allowed a small smile to grace her lips. “I suppose you’ll just have to wait until tomorrow to see Yukine.”
Chris groaned. “Figures. Anyway, I’m gonna go hit the training room for a bit before I head out. Anyone feel like coming?”
Kirika and Shirabe quickly raised their hands. “We will dess! We got a new move we wanna try out!”
Shirabe nodded. “Yes. I believe it will be very cool.”
Hibiki shook her head. “Me and Miku need to go do some shopping.”
Chris grinned. “Let me guess, a certain dummy has been eating all the food?”
Miku giggled. “Something like that.”
Hibiki pouted. “It’s not like I ate more than two portions last night…”
After saying their goodbyes the two groups left, leaving Tsubasa and Maria the last remaining Adapters on the bridge.
“We should get going. We don’t want to keep Ogawa-san waiting.”
Maria nodded in agreement, and the two headed back out the door.
Genjuuro turned back to the front of the room. “Alright, those girls are doing their part, now let’s do our part!”
“Roger!”
—-
As Tsubasa watched the city roll by, she couldn’t help but get butterflies in her stomach.
It was finally the day. A day she had been both anticipating and dreading for weeks now, ever since she decided to go through with it. How would people react? How would her fans react? How would this change her career going forward? She had no doubts that this was what she wanted to do, of course, but even still…
“Feeling nervous?”
Ogawa’s words snapped Tsubasa out of her trance, turning her gaze to the driver. “Something like that…”
Ogawa just gave his usual calm and kind smile. “Remember, your songs have touched so many people. I’m sure they’ll respond in kind.”
“Yes… I’d like to think so too.” Tsubasa looked back out the window. “...Do you think Kanade would be happy?”
There was silence for a moment before Ogawa spoke. “I think she would be happy as long as you were happy.”
“Yeah… that does sound like her… sorry for asking such an awkward question.”
“It’s perfectly fine. It’s only natural to be feeling nostalgic at a time like this.”
“I suppose you’re right.”
A comfortable silence fell on the two as they started driving on an elevated highway. Tsubasa turned her gaze back out the window. Kanade… she hadn’t thought of her in a long time. Though, she supposed, getting to her spirit when they were singing in the Earth’s core has got her thinking about her old partner again. This was, undoubtedly, a massive step for her career as a singer. A tiny part of her could only hope that Kanade would approve.
The silence was broken by screams, followed by an explosion.
Tsubasa instantly turned to Ogawa. “Ogawa-san!”
“Right!”
Ogawa quickly pulled over to the side of the road. Tsubasa jumped out, running over to the edge of the highway and looking down.
It was chaos. Alca-Noise were attacking indiscriminately, both people and buildings alike. The people were screaming and running, though a handful weren’t fast enough. Tsubasa could only watch as they were turned to dust by the Noise.
Tsubasa grit her teeth. “Ogawa-san, contact the commander and let him know what’s happening. I’ll do what I can until the others get here.”
Ogawa nodded. “Alright. Be careful.”
Tsubasa nodded in response, gripping the edge and jumping over. As she descended towards the ground, the words came to her mind.
~Imyuteus Ame no Habakiri Tron~
Tsubasa became enveloped in a sphere of light.
A ring of energy came up from the ground, adorning Tsubasa in a blue body suit as it passed. A pillar of flame shot up in front of her, a sword materializing in the flame. Tsubasa grabbed hold of the blade, drawing it from the ground and dispelling the flame. A wall rose in front of Tsubasa, which she immediately cut through. The now bisected wall exploded into blue flowers, which began to float around Tsubasa. More walls appeared, Tsubasa cutting through each one as they appeared. With each wall cut through more petals began to conglomerate around the sentinel. After one last slash Tsbuasa threw her sword spinning into the air. All at once the petals began swirling around Tsubasa before attaching to her and becoming armor. On her arm, a display read ‘SG-r01 Amenohabakiri’ before being covered by more armor. Twin blades extended from Tsubasa’s legs. Tsubasa caught the sword, giving it a couple more swings before striking a pose.
As Tsubasa fell to the ground she brought her blade to bear, slashing through a pair of airborne Noise before landing.
Quietly, I close my eyes, and drop my breathing deeply
Reaching a level of “rapid movement” of an elevation higher
Than a single instant
Tsubasa began slashing through the Noise with her blade, dodging their own strikes before countering with her own. She slashed through another before jumping, twirling in the air and landing on the other side of a group of Noise. She slashed through them as well, jumping out of the way to avoid an attack from a larger Noise. Unfurling the thrusters under the back of the blades on her feet she shot towards a building, using the thrust to go upwards.
And yet, I am one step slower than my reflection in the mirror
In every aspect, with enlightenment far away
Every day, I am imprisoned in “myself”
Tsubasa swerved, dodging attacks from artillery type Noise before jumping off, twirling back around to face the Noise. She enlarged her blade, raising it up before slashing forward, sending a wave of energy at the Artillery types.
[ Blue Flash ]
The Noise were destroyed by the attack, a small explosion left behind with their death. Spotting another group of Noise charging at her, she raised her sword to the sky. In a flash a rain of blades descended from the sky, skewering the incoming Noise before they could reach her.
[ One Thousand Tears ]
Suddenly, I see it in the sky, the light that creates this Earth
I knew then that I’m not alone, and that there isn’t
The slightest single thing I’m lacking
A roar drew her attention down the street, where a larger Artillery type lumbered into view. It fired off a volley of shots at Tsubasa, but she stood her ground. Just before the attack hit her a triangular energy shield appeared in front of Tsubasa, shielding her from the attack.
Tsubasa smiled as Maria, already clad in her Symphogear, landed beside her. “I was starting to wonder if you were delayed.”
Maria grinned. “It did take me a moment to get here, but I’m not about to let you take to the stage yourself.”
Tsbuasa nodded in return, the pair readying their blades as an aerial type dropped more Noise in.
“We have to deal with the flier, or there’ll be no end to this.”
“Clear me a path, and I’ll blow that overgrown eyesore out of the sky.”
Tsubasa nodded.
“... I feel like I saw it”
The pair ran forward, cleaving through any Noise that got in their way with their blades. The artillery type roared, firing off another barrage of blasts at the two wielders. The girls jumped to either side, avoiding the attack with ease. Maria extended her blade, splitting it apart into its whip form. She swung the blade, the whip shooting out and tearing through all the Noise that had gathered around her.
[ EMPRESS†REBELLION ]
With a heart that is unusually refreshed, I feel the wind
And the inseparable union of “life” that exists in all things
Tsubasa dashed forward, cutting through Noise after Noise. Maria joined her, the two girls working in perfect sync as they cut their way through the horde of Noise. Soon enough they had gotten through the main crowd, the artillery type and the flying type in plain view. One glance between the two was all it took for them to make their plan.
My weakness prepared an eye for an eye and a blade for a blade
Tsubasa jumped high into the air, throwing her blade forward. It enlarged, becoming a massive blade. Tsubasa rolled in the air before thrusting her foot in front of her, the boosters on her leg blades launching her forward. Her foot slotted into the large blade, the whole thing now shooting forward with extra propulsion from Tsubasa. Maria, meanwhile, inserted her sword in the gauntlet on her left arm. Then the armor on her shoulder opened, attaching to the tail end of the sword as the front of the gauntlet opened up. Energy began building up inside the now combined cannon. Taking aim, Maria fired the energy upwards toward the flying Noise.
[ Heaven’s Wrath ]
[ HORIZON†CANNON ]
Believing in “what lies beyond speed”
Tsubasa’s large blade made contact with the artillery type at the same time Maria’s blast hit the flying type.
I head there with my friends as fast as lightning
The two Noise roared as the attacks pierced them, Tsubasa jumping down and landing next to Maria as the two large Noise exploded.
—
It was a simple matter to clean up the remaining Noise. Once the last one had been reduced to dust the two girls regrouped, changing back into their civilian clothes. Tsubasa couldn’t help but worry. Was this attack random? Or was it planned? Why so soon after the previous attack? Tsubasa sighed, shaking her head. There were still far too many questions and not near enough answers.
“Well, that takes care of that. Luckily we got here when we did, or there probably would have been more casualties…”
Tsubasa nodded. It was indeed fortuitous that she had been passing by when the attack happened. She immediately frowned. It was almost… too convenient.
Maria sighed. “I know that look. You’re overthinking things again, aren’t you Tsubasa?”
“I… suppose I might be.”
“There’s nothing supposed about it. It’s a bad habit of yours.”
“Girls!”
Tsubasa and Maria turned, Ogawa running up to them. “I know you would probably like to stick around, but we have to get going. If we don’t we’ll be late for the interview.”
Tsubasa blinked. In all the excitement she had completely forgotten about that. “Right. Ogawa-san, do you mind if Maria comes with us? It would be faster than sending her back to her own transport.”
Ogawa nodded. “I was about to suggest that. Now let’s get going! If we hurry we might still be able to make it a little ahead of schedule.”
The two girls nodded, following Ogawa back to the car. None of them noticed the cloaked figure watching them from a nearby rooftop.
The figure put a hand up to their ear. “This is Zwei. Two of the girls took the bait. How are things on your end?”
“Just peachy! Me and Ein are leaving with the page now, so you’re good to fall back.”
“Roger. I’ll see the two of you back at base.”
With that Zwei cut off communications, looking back at the car that held Tsubasa and Maria as they drove off.
“Kazanari Tsubasa… soon enough we’ll be meeting face to face. And when we do… we’ll see how strong your blade really is.”
With that Zwei crushed a crystal in her hand, disappearing from the area.
—
Tsubasa stood before the exit onto the stage, wringing her hands together. She hadn’t been this nervous since the first time Kanade and her had taken to the stage for the first time. Realistically she knew there was nothing to be worried about. All she had to do was follow the script they had prepared and everything would be fine.
So why did it feel like she wanted to vomit?
“Nervous?”
Tsubasa turned, finding Maria had come up to join her. She passed Tsubasa a bottle of water, which the sentinel gratefully accepted, before cracking open a bottle herself.
“A little bit, I’ll admit. This is a big step forward.”
Maria’s face softened. “Are you absolutely sure you want to do this? We can always put it off, say one of us suddenly fell sick.”
Tsubasa shook her head. “That would be like betraying both of our fans. No… I’ll face them. Even if the thought of doing so makes me want to freeze in place.” She couldn’t help but chuckle. “It’s funny… I face down Noise without a hint of fear or nervousness, but the instant something like this happens I freeze up.”
Maria hummed, taking another drink. “You know that it’s okay, right? Nerves get the best of all of us from time to time.”
Tsubasa smiled. “Yes. Kanade used to tease me about that all the time, actually. You know-”
Tsubasa was interrupted by one of the stage hands giving them the signal that they would be on soon. The sentinel nodded back, taking one more drink before setting her bottle of water aside. Maria did the same, though Tsubasa noticed… something flash across Maria’s face. Nerves, perhaps? She was about to ask about it when a voice from the main stage called out.
“And now the moment you’ve all been waiting for! Please give a warm welcome to Kazanari Tsubasa!”
Tsubasa took a breath before stepping out onto stage. The cries that she received were almost deafening as she put on her best smile and waved to the audience. It was quite the crowd tonight, and she wasn’t even singing. It was a variety talk show, though the suspected crowd had made them rent out a small stadium instead of the usual theatre. And it seemed like that had been the smart idea, since the place was packed to the brim. And, to Tsubasa’s delight, she could see Hibiki and the rest of their friend group sitting front row and center. When Hibiki noticed Tsubasa’s gaze she gave an excited wave, one which Tsubasa returned.
Tsubasa greeted the MC with a smile, taking a seat in a chair across from her. There was one more empty chair, though Tsubasa knew full well who would be sitting there. It just wasn’t time yet.
“Well Tsubasa-san, it’s a pleasure to have you!”
“It’s my pleasure to be here.” Tsubasa replied.
“Now if you’ll forgive me, I’ve heard some rumours through the grapevine that you won’t be our only guest tonight. Is that true?”
This earned a few murmurs of surprise from the crowd. Of course it would, since this had been marketed as a solo act.
“That’s correct. May I?”
“Go right ahead!”
“Thank you.” Tsubasa cleared her throat, turning to face the crowd. “I apologize for deceiving you all, but there was one key part of information we kept all of you in the dark about. I sincerely ask for your forgiveness.”
The applause she got was a good enough response for her.
“Now, as you might have already guessed, this secret involves one other guest we’ll be having tonight. It’s with great pleasure that I'd like to introduce my partner for the evening: Maria Cadenzava Eve!”
If the applause Tsubasa had received had been deafening, when Maria stepped on the stage the crowd turned thunderous, Tsubasa barely able to hear herself think over the excitement of the crowd. Maria smiled, waving to them as she made her way over and took a seat next to Tsubasa. The pairs matching dresses, blue and pink respectively, made quite the nice contrast to the dark red chairs they were sat in.
The MC started talking again when the crowd had quieted down. “Maria-san, it’s a pleasure to have you! Though I think I might need some hearing aids after the response from the crowd.”
Maria laughed. “I apologize. However, I do believe that’s their way of forgiving us for our deception.”
“You might be right! Now, I have to ask…”
The MC began asking questions, Tsubasa and Maria answering them as they came. So far, everything was going according to plan. The MC would ask questions and make small talk, all while Tsubasa and Maria would answer them… sometimes to their embarrassment. The crowd was eating it up though, laughing and clapping and just having a good time in general. Soon enough though, things came around to the main event.
“Now, Tsubasa-san, am I right in remembering that you had a big announcement for everyone tonight?”
Tsubasa nodded. “That is correct. And I do not exaggerate when I say that this will change everything moving forward.”
“You’re not going to tell us you’re retiring, are you?”
The crowd let out a despair filled cry at the suggestion, though Tsubasa just laughed and shook her head. “No. There are still many people I want to reach with my song, so I won’t be retiring just yet.”
The crowd let out a relieved sigh at the news.
Tsubasa’s smile turned melancholic as she turned to face the crowd. “As I’m sure you’re all aware, I was not always a solo performer. For years I operated as part of Zwei Wing with my dear partner, Amou Kanade.”
A sombre mood overtook the crowd as they were reminded of Tsubasa’s former partner. Though some couldn’t help but wonder: why bring Kanade up now?
“I remind you of this because it is closely related to what I’d like to announce to you all today. Firstly though, I’d like to thank everyone who has taken the time to listen to my music. The thought that my music is able to connect us fills me with a joy I cannot begin to describe. So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.”
The crowd roared in response.
“However, I recently came to a conclusion. Alone, there is only so many people I can reach, only so far my songs can go. That’s why I’d like to announce to you all that, as of now, I will be forming a new Duo unit.”
The crowd was stunned into silence. Tsubasa was forming a duo unit? But with who?
“Now, I know you’re all wondering who I could possibly be choosing to be my partner on the stage. However, for me, it was an easy decision. There is only one person I trust enough to take to the stage with me… and that someone is none other than the girl who stands next to me right now: Maria Cadenzavna Eve!”
Maria stood up, bowing to the crowd. Their fans were silent for a moment, and for a moment the singers feared the worst. Were they displeased? Were they angry?
All their doubts were blown away when they were met with thunderous applause and cheers.
All at once a great weight was lifted from Tsubasa’s heart. She had been afraid, in the very back of her mind, that her fans wouldn’t accept this. But luckily it seems those fears were completely unfounded.
As the cheers slowly quieted down Maria began to speak. “I’d like to express my thanks to both Tsubasa, and to all of you. I’m confident that, together, our music will reach even more people. That it will reach even greater heights.”
Tsubasa smiled. “I agree. Together, we will achieve what neither of us could do alone.”
Maria grinned back at her, and the two of them shook hands. The crowd roared in applause again as the pair sat back down, returning to talking to the MC.
As the night went on, Tsubasa’s hope only grew.
Yes. Together, her and Maria would change the world with their music.
Together… as Queens of Music.