September 8 heralded the end of summer break. It was a sunny afternoon, still trapped in the summer heat, and a strange mood hung over the Raizen High School gym.
"Exactly one year ago today...we learned a great many lessons," his classmate at the podium, Yamabuki Ai, said into the mic, fists clenched.
Her best friends, Hazakura Mai and Fujibakama Mii, stood "at ease" to either side, like royal sentries or bodyguards. School flags hung next to them toward the edge of the stage. When taken together with Ai's weirdly intense tone and posture, the whole affair had the air of a country's leader about to declare war.
"The bitter humiliation of our loss... The icy chill as we crawled across the barren earth," Ai snarled, her hands trembling, and yanked her head up. "Ladies and gentlemen. Pitiful vanquished soldiers, I ask you this: Must we continue in torment? Are we worms? Will we forever be trapped in the despair of defeat?!"
Bam! Ai slammed her fist down on the lectern. Feedback from the mic squealed through the hall.
"No! We will not! They have made a fatal error! They gave us the time to sharpen our fangs! And now the appointed hour has arrived! Rise, Raizen! Onward to glory! We shall surge forward with all our combined might and tear out their throats!!"
"Yaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Ai thrust a fist into the air, and the students crammed into the gymnasium cheered as one. The windows shook, and the lingering echoes of this powerful shout almost made his ears hurt.
"Ha-ha! She's really getting into it." Itsuka Shidou grinned as he watched his classmate onstage giving this address. And it wasn't like he didn't understand her passion. After all...
"Shidou, what is Ai talking about? Are we going to war?" came a dubious voice from his right.
He looked over to see Yatogami Tohka standing next to him.
Waist-length hair the color of night. Eyes like sparkling crystals. She was so beautiful, it was hard to believe she was real. But the expression on her face was one of deep confusion.
And of course it was. Anyone who didn't understand the situation would undoubtedly be confused by this speech. Ai sounded like the triumphant hero in some war for independence or the leader of a self-help seminar.
"It's the month of the Tenou Festival."
A familiar voice came from the crowd behind them. It was way too crowded, and even looking back was difficult enough for the two. There didn't seem to be anyone there, and it might probably just be someone else chatting.
But that wasn't the case at all. Just as Shidou had first thought, he did indeed recognize that person. He felt a gentle touch on his left shoulder and reflexively turned that direction. Naturally, Tohka did as well.
"Yo."
"Lucas?"
Lucas, top student of raizen highschool who was deemed to be a master at everything and every skill there possibly is.
"The Tenou Festival?" Tohka frowned. "What's that?"
"Put simply, it's a super-huge school festival."
"School festival?" Tohka's eyes glimmered. "Ooh, I've seen that on TV. That's the one where your school sets up all the food stalls, right? It's like a magical dream come true!"
"Not quite. Tenou Festival's different from other festivals," Lucas explained. "It's a joint festival for ten high schools in Tenguu City."
"Joint...? Ten schools?" Her eyes grew wide.
"Mm-hmm." Lucas nodded. "Basically, they came up with this plan to celebrate all together since there weren't very many schools or students. And it just kept being held, even now when a lot more people live here."
Tenguu, the city where they lived, was a region stretching from south of Tokyo into northern Kanagawa Prefecture. It had been redeveloped after the devastation of the Great Southern Kanto Spacequake thirty years earlier and now had a sizable population befitting a test city equipped with the latest technology. However, at the start of redevelopment, the area had been gripped by extreme instability and had very few residents compared with the size of the area or the abundance of facilities, perhaps partially due to the threat of spacequakes that still hung over the region. That was what initially inspired a joint school festival known as the Tenou Festival.
What had once been a modest affair put together by the few high schools in a desolate region was now a major three-day event that completely took over the Tenguu Square halls.
The festival couldn't be done away with after it had grown into such a huge spectacle, and the city had apparently given the event their seal of approval. Regardless, considering the TV stations that came every year to cover it and the number of tourists who visited from outside the city, more than a few junior high students decided on their preferred high school after seeing the Tenou Festival. The fact was the event generated such economic activity, it no longer fit neatly into the category of high school festival.
But as more and more people took part in the festivities, this event that had started with the ideal of the different schools joining hands to celebrate had taken on a new meaning.
"This is the year! This year, we Raizenites will seize the crown and rule as kings!" Ai shouted from the stage, and the crowd roared in response.
They were hearing correctly. The top school was selected at the Tenou Festival by popular vote in the booth, exhibit, and performance categories, and the grand-prize winner ruled as king for the following year.
They could dress the event up in whatever pretty ideals they wanted, but as long as there was this element of competition, it was only natural that the student bodies' normally dormant fighting spirit and school pride would be roused. It was kind of like how people who usually didn't care at all about soccer transformed into fans who fervently waved the flag whenever the World Cup rolled around.
Lucas explained all this in a simple way for Tohka to understand, and then he heard two familiar voices from behind.
"Keh-keh... I see. I fully comprehend the reason why Ai and the others tremble with such emotion."
"Understood. If that is the case, we must not lose."
He looked back to find two identical girls had come to stand there at some point.
"Kaguya. Yuzuru. What are you doing here?"
These were the Spirits whose power Lucas had locked away two months ago: the sisters Yamai Kaguya and Yamai Yuzuru. They had transferred into the Year 2, Class 3 at the start of the new term, the same classroom as Lucas. There wasn't really a need to transfer them into the same class as Lucas since their mentality was stable as long as they were together, unlike Tohka who absolutely had to be with Shidou at all times. But they still did it, probably because it's just for the better... And because Lucas doesn't really have friends in his class.
"Keh. That said, however, so long as the Yamai sisters stand with you, Raizen's victory is assured."
"Agreement. Yuzuru and Kaguya are the most powerful duo. Invincible against any enemy."
"Keh-keh, yes, exactly. Yuzuru here is master of all the arts, whatever they might be."
"Affirmation. Not to mention that the perfect Kaguya stands here. Her loss is outside the realm of reason."
"Oh, you! Hee-hee! How embarrassing, Yuzuru. Poke, poke!"
"Smile. You too, Kaguya. Poke, poke."
They poked at each other's arms, grinning happily. The sisters were so affectionate with each other now, like a new honeymoon couple. Who would believe they had been fighting so violently two months ago that they dragged everything around them into their conflict?
Lucas shifted his eyes from the Yamai sisters and their own private world back over to Tohka.
"I get it," she said, nodding thoughtfully. "So then that means there'll be lots of places selling food?"
"Well. Yeah. Mm. I guess," he said with a smile.
"There will? Mm-hmm. I see." Tohka stroked her chin, snorting eagerly. "Hee-hee! It's so exciting, isn't that right, Shidou?!"
"Uh.. well yeah." Shidou couldn't really keep up with the conversation at all. He initially wanted to explain it to Tohka himself but Lucas stole his role. Not only that, didn't classes get divided into groups? So then.. why are Lucas and the Yamai twins here? And also...How come he knows so much about Tenou Festival?
"Lucas, What kind of stores will there be?!" Tohka's excitement busted out.
"Let's see... Eibu Nishi High has gotten top results every year with their booths. I guess their home ec department's powerful. The cooking club's on another level. Their döner-kebab booth last year was so good, it was hard to believe it was made by students for a school festival."
"Oh yeah." Shidou nodded. "Now that you mention it, that was a thing. Wait, how do you even know about that?" Shidou suddenly raised his voice.
"Do you really think I would sit around for more than two decades and not know the Tenou Festival in and out? Sorry, but I don't stay in my office or room all the time."
"Now that you mention it..." Indeed, after living in Tenguu for 25 years, it would only be natural to know the city and it's culture.
"Ah, Sorry Tohka. Where have a I left off..." Lucas put his hand on his chin and quickly scrambled through his mind before saying anything again. "This year's star is 'Meat War Between North and South! Fried-Meat Special'. Rare treats that require no sauce, using Japanese Black beef from Hokkaido and Berkshire pork from Kagoshima."
"Wh-what...?" Tohka said, hands shaking. Her eyes shone, and drool dripped from the corner of her mouth.
"And... Well, I guess there's Senjo. They're affiliated with a university, so they don't have to deal with entrance exams, which means they don't drop out of the festival as twelfth graders."
"Hmm," Shidou said. "Guess they'll be the favorite, then."
"And that's where you are wrong, Itsuka!" Another person interrupted the chat.
"Tonomachi. Where'd you come from?"
"That matters not. What matters is how you've forgotten about the king, Rindoji Girls' Academy!"
"Ohhh..." Shidou scratched his cheek. Last year's champion. He had actually completely forgotten.
"They're bringing some stiff competition again this year, man," Tonomachi informed him. "They're plain unfair. They know they're the hottest girls in the entire city. Plus, their food's top-of-the-line, seriously delicious. But where they really snatch up the votes is with their incredible customer service. I mean, last year's booth was like an idol-group event. They served every single meal like it was an event, looking right into your eyes. I can't even remember how many times I lined up for that."
"Hm.. I don't know about last year. I was busy at that time." Lucas said. It was due to his academic training as a Realizer mechanic. Although he quickly learned everything and even surpassed Tatsuo and Haruko in no time, he still had to finish his piled up work from Ratatoskr. There was no over choice. Things just had to be done.
"W-well, anyway, they are fearsome young ladies. And there's one more rumor about Rindoji this year."
"Rumor?" Shidou arched an eyebrow.
"Yeah," Tonomachi replied. "You know. It was on the news at the beginning of April? That new transfer student they got."
"April?" He furrowed his brow, digging through his memory...but he couldn't find anything. His mind had been preoccupied with the whole Tohka thing in April, though, and he hadn't had the space to think about anything else.
"For real?" Tonomachi said, surprised. "You don't remember? Miku, man. Miku."
""Who's that?"" Lucas and Shidou said in sync. They both hadn't heard anything about a girl named "Miku" before.
But apparently, this was just impossible for Tonomachi to believe. His face stiffened into a look of stark shock.
"Wait," Shidou said. "What's that look all about?"
"I could ask you both the same thing! You're not actually telling me you two don't know the mysterious idol Izayoi Miku?! Aah? Is that it? You're all 'I don't care about this idol everyone's screaming about'? You pretending to be some kinda hipster or something?"
"I'm sure loads of people don't know-" Lucas tried to argue, but Tonomachi cut him off.
"No! There! Is! No! One! Else! You! Two! Are the only idiots who doesn't know super national idol Miku!!"
"Oh, you wanna bet?!" Lucas shouted. "I'll bet you 150 Million Yen that there will be a person aside the two of us that there is someone who doesn't know about that Miku person or whatever!"
"Ha! I'd bow at your feet while eating spaghetti with my ass!"
"Oh yeah?!"
"Damn right!"
"Hey, Tohka, do you know Miku Izayoi?" Shidou asked as Lucas and Tonomachi shouted at each other, and Tonomachi grabbed his shoulders.
"You coward, Itsuka! You bastard!"
But Tohka wasn't even listening to them.
"Mm..." Absentmindedly, she pantomimed holding something. She opened her mouth wide, chomped at the air, and then moved her jaw in a chewing motion with an ecstatic look on her face.
An impossible air menchikatsu. Her movements was so convincing that even Lucas, Shidou and Tonomachi could see the shadow of a delicious cutlet.
"Ooooi, Tohka?" Shidou said, poking her shoulder.
She shuddered and gasped, and then she wiped away the drool. "Mm. What's wrong, Shidou?"
"Oh, uh..."
When she looked at him with those carefree eyes, he couldn't really bring himself to drag her into their argument. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Tonomachi heaving a sigh of relief.
"But... Oh yeah, that'll be great. Hey, Shidou, let's go get one on the big day!" Tohka eagerly raised the little finger of her right hand, a grin spreading across her face.
"Hmm?" He looked at her curiously.
"Reine taught me!" she said. "I guess it's called a pinkie promise!"
"Oh...right." Shidou scratched his head before raising his pinkie as well. He felt the eyes of Tonomachi and several boys in the area stab into him. Lucas sighed and brushed it off.
"Great! So then!" Tohka brought her hand toward Shidou's.
A shadow suddenly rose from the ground and wove her pinkie gently around Shido's, while at the same time grabbing Tohka's finger and pulling it back as far as it would go.
"Ngah!" Tohka jumped up and yanked her hand back.
"O-Origami?!" Shidou's eyes grew wide upon learning the identity of the intruder who had appeared between him and Tohka.
Silken hair reaching to her shoulders, a face like a doll's, and an expression on it that was just as unreadable. There was no doubt; this was Shido's classmate and Tohka's mortal enemy, Tobiichi Origami.
"Now that we've hooked our pinkies together, you have to take sleeping pills in my apartment if you lie to meeee." she said, her voice completely monotone, and shook their two hands, which were connected by their little fingers.
"Why sleeping pills instead of the usual thousand needles?" he cried. "What's your plan? What are you thinking?!"
"I'm thinking Takahashi would be a good name for a boy," Origami replied immediately. "If it's a girl, Chiyogami."
"Seriously, what's your game?!" he shouted.
"Y-you!" Tohka glared at Origami with sharp eyes. "What are you doing?!"
"It's none of your business. Shidou and I have made a promise to go walk around together at the Tenou Festival."
"Wh-what?!" Tohka shouted. "This is no joke! That was my promise!"
Origami snorted triumphantly as she jerked her chin at the fusion of her little finger with Shido's. Her finger was holding his with viselike force, and he wasn't going to be able to pull free so easily.
"Ngh! L-let go!" Scowling, Tohka grabbed their wrists to try and pull their hands apart.
"Separating these fingers now is the 'cutting of the pinkies,'" Origami told her. "In other words, it indicates the completion of the promise."
"Wha-?!" Tohka gasped. "D-don't let go! You can't let go!"
"Oh," Origami said, her face void of expression, and nodded slightly. "If you say so, then I have no choice. I will never let go."
"M-mm. That way, the promise won't be complete. Now." Tohka let out a sigh of relief and then quickly furrowed her brow again. "Wait just a minute! That means Shidou will never be able to get away from you, doesn't it?!"
"Act of God. Can't be helped."
"Y-you planned this from the very beginning?!" Tohka spat, looking stunned.
"Hold on, you two..." Shidou's face stiffened as he felt his little finger and his wrist gradually lose all sensation.
Then a faint change appeared in the enthusiasm that enveloped the gym.
"Remain calm, my friends. We have heard your will. Now we have one request," Ai said and then took the mic in hand before continuing, "Beloved brethren, Student Council President Kirisaki and his confederates have fallen before our moment of ultimate victory. Thus, we seek to invite like-minded souls to take up the banner of our lost comrades. If you are such a soul, step forward and name yourself!"
"Umm." Ai scratched her head and dropped the exaggeratedly theatrical tone. "Well, basically, the prez and the others keeled over from all the stress and the extra work, so we need people to fill in for them. Anyone wanna be on the Tenou Festival planning committee?"
The loud roar that had filled the gymnasium dropped away into complete silence.
No doubt thinking this was not a good sign, Ai kept going, gesturing the whole time.
"Oh, but, like, the work's basically all done, okay? For real. Totally. The only thing you gotta do is show up at the meetings! We're a super-chill committee, no lie! You'll even gain a new skill set!"
That last part sounded more like something that normally came from a recruiter for a company that wasn't entirely on the up-and-up.
The previously fiery passion of the students was rapidly cooling. They all looked away to keep from meeting the gazes of Ai and her friends onstage.
But Shidou was too busy to worry about the shifting mood in the gym.
"Oh, I know!" Tohka opened her eyes wide in sudden realization and twisted her little finger around the one on Shido's left hand, opposite Origami. "How d'you like that?! Now it's a tie!"
"Carrying out a pinkie promise with the left hand means the end of the relationship and indicates that you will never be involved with that person again," Origami said in a monotone voice.
"Wh-what?!" Tohka gasped, fear in her voice. She looked to Shido, then to their entwined fingers, then back to his face. Her own face said she was about to burst into tears. "Sh-Shidou! Th-that's not what I intended!"
"Um, I've never actually heard of anything like that," he said, and her eyes grew round as saucers.
"Y-you swindler! Not once, but twice!" she shouted and yanked hard on Shidou's little finger.
Not to be outdone, Origami tugged on Shidou using his pinkie as a fulcrum.
"Owwwwwww!" he yelped. "St-stop it!"
If this were one of the squabbles from that TV show Ooka Echizen, his cry would have made at least one of those hands let go, but reality was not so kind. Both girls pulled even harder.
"Hey, sto-" Lucas tried to step between them and end this non-sense, but he was quickly stopped by two hands grabbing his uniform.
"Uhm.. Lucas, would Megami be a good name for a girl..?"
"Question. Is Murakami a good name for a boy?"
Kaguya and Yuzuru asked, rubbing their tummy and blushing a little.
"-?!"
Asking for a name, whole also rubbing your tummy... it could only be one thing. But that shouldn't be happening. No...they didn't use protection, right?! Don't tell me....they are---
"W-wait! I-" He felt hundreds, thousands of glares coming from all dimensions. "D-don't make this weird, you two!" Lucas deliberately shouted, gently bumping their hands with a karate chop.
"O-ow.."
"Hurt. Ow.."
Glaring hatefully at Shidou and Lucas, Tonomachi suddenly whirled around and held his hand up high. "Chairperson!" he shouted.
"Yes, Tonomachi?"
"I nominate Itsuka Shidou and Kunshu Lucas for the Tenou Festival committee!"
"Wha-?!" Shidou's eyes flew open at this sudden betrayal from his best friend. "T-Tonomachi! What are you-? Owwwwww!"
His protest was interrupted by the powerful winches on his left and right.
The other boys called out in support of Tonomachi's nomination one after another.
"Seconded! You two have to do this!"
"Thirded! They're the only people we can trust with our noble cause!"
"Fourthed! Work yourself to the bone and get hospitalized, you goddamn playboys!"
"Hey! Whoever said that last part, I'll pulverize your entire existence!" Lucas shouted, angrily.
There was no end to the boys shouting their support. And then the girls jumped on board and began shouting for Itsuka, too.
"Quiet!" Ai called from the stage.
For a fleeting moment, he thought she would talk them all down. But of course, he was being far too optimistic.
"We have heard your petition! By popular endorsement and universal agreement, Year Two, Class Four's Itsuka Shidou, and Year Two, Class Three's Kunshu Lucas, are hereby appointed to the Tenou Festival planning committee!"
""Hey!!""
"""Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"""
Both their shouts were drowned by the cheer that rocked the gymnasium.
◇
Sitting perfectly composed on the sofa in a suite on the top floor of the Imperial Hotel East Tengu, Isaac Westcott let out a short sigh. He lifted his chin, setting the ends of his dark ash-blond hair in motion, and narrowed his eyes, sharp like whetted knives, even further.
His keen gaze was focused on a bundle of papers held together with a binder clip. The edges of his mouth curled up as he shifted his gaze to the left.
"I see. A boy who handles the Spirit power of the AAA-rank Spirit Princess. It is indeed very interesting that both of them attend the same school. Additionally, he's good friends with S-rank Spirit Nightmare and the Magician, who is in a league of his own."
"Yes." Waiting patiently before him was the very girl who had prepared the documents, Ellen M. Mathers. Humanity's most powerful wizard, the pride of DEM Industries.
"And there is also the fact that Ratatoskr's airship was on the scene."
Ratatoskr. This name was very meaningful to both Westcott and Ellen.
This was the organization that held the nonsense ideal that they could control the occurrence of spacequakes through peaceful means and try to shelter the Spirits who were the cause of these celestial tremors. It was the sort of rubbish only drunkards would dare claim openly.
Unable to hide his grin, Westcott held a hand over his mouth.
"Heh-heh, oh, is it? I'm a bit delighted. To think that youngster would get the jump on me."
"Is that so? I only feel unease, personally," Ellen replied right away.
Westcott found this funny as well and covered his face with the hand hiding his mouth as he chuckled. Although her expression didn't change, he could tell that Ellen was annoyed with his reaction.
He waved his hand almost apologetically and continued, "And how is that going?"
"All is proceeding apace. Adeptus Three and nine others have been assigned to the active squad as of today."
"Good." He nodded, satisfied. Several bribes had been necessary to push this deployment through, but well, that detail wasn't important.
Setting up entirely new systems and structures would definitely have been more effective in mobilizing the wizards who were extensions of his own limbs. But that would have required an enormous amount of time and resources. Using the official military apparatus within Japan was the fastest and most certain way to get this done.
"Itsuka. Shidou." Westcott dropped his gaze to the documents once more and read aloud the name written there, and then he gave an exaggerated shrug. "However, there is no photo. Important. Quite unlike you."
Yes. Several photos taken from afar were attached to the princess Yatogami Tohka documents, but there were none of the boy. But she did take several pictures of Lucas however, which didn't so much catch his interest as Shidou.
"I never imagined that documentation on anything other than Spirits and The Magician would be necessary," Ellen responded. "I will arrange for those immediately."
"No, it's fine," he said. "I'd rather meet the boy right away."
She let out a short sigh. "Understood. It will be arranged."
"I'm counting on it," Westcott said and stood up from the sofa, leaving the documents on the table.
"Oh yes. One more thing."
He walked slowly over to Ellen and set a hand on her shoulder.
"If Ratatoskr is involved with them...don't you think we should give them a grand welcome?"
"A welcome?"
"Yes, exactly. An unparalleled greeting that'll surely knock some sense into those arrogant pacifists." Westcott chuckled.
◇
The sun had descended. Seven thirty PM. Shidou trudged along the dark road.
"I-I'm so tired..."
In the end, he'd been unable to fight back against the violence and was formally appointed a member of the Tenou Festival committee. He'd essentially been railroaded into taking the job and forced to get to work right away. Same with Lucas as well.
Too much had been jammed into his head all at once- booth placement, budget allocation, communication devices, to name a few- and so the mental exhaustion was much deeper than any physical weariness. He got it now. With his brain trying to digest this mountain of information, it was no wonder his stomach hurt from all the stress. He couldn't believe Ai-Mai-Mii were so full of energy after all this. Lucas didn't seem too energetic but also wasn't tired like Shidou. Maybe it wasn't any work as demanding as Lucas' usual amount.
He plodded onward, schoolbag in one hand and a grocery bag in the other.
He had done the shopping today not at the supermarket, but on a shopping street nearby. One reason he hadn't wanted to deal with the grocery store was because he was so tired, but the real reason was...
"It's almost Tenou Festival season. We're counting on you this year! Go ahead and take these green peppers."
"Too many grams of ground meat? Ha-ha! We need you to eat a lot and build up your strength."
"Here! Take this. No, no, take it. Just give it to that girl you always come with."
The people he knew there would give him far too many extras.
People came from all over for the Tenou Festival, not just within the city, so the shops in town spared no effort during the event. In fact, this was the time of year when they made the most money, outside the New Year holiday season.
He smiled quietly as he looked at the colorful Tenou Festival posters pasted to the wall alongside the road. With this week's specials alone, the Tenou Festival was making a serious contribution to the Itsuka household budget.
"Hmm?" He stopped in his tracks.
On the road ahead, he could see a small shadow illuminated by streetlights.
It was a tiny girl wearing a wide-brimmed straw hat and a light-colored dress. Her beautiful blue eyes and the rabbit puppet that adorned her left hand were particularly striking. She was apparently looking at a poster on the wall. She opened her wide eyes even wider, deeply fascinated.
"Yoshino?" he called.
"...!" The girl- Yoshino- jumped and turned her gaze toward Shidou. "Oh...Shidou-san."
"Oh! Found! Youuu!" came the high-pitched shout from the puppet on her left hand, Yoshinon.
"What's up? What are you doing here? It's dark."
"Uh, um...I. Went to. Your house. But...you were late. Going home, and Kotori...was worried...so..."
It seemed that she had come to check on him. Shidou scratched the back of his head.
"Oh, yeah? But it's already dark out. You shouldn't be wandering by yourselves."
Yoshino's shoulders slumped apologetically. "O-ohhh..."
"Don't be mad at her. Yoshino didn't mean to cause any trouble. She's just worried about you!"
"I know. Thanks, Yoshino."
"S-sure!" She bobbed her head up and down. Because of the large straw hat, her face disappeared and reappeared in Shidou's view.
"You haven't had supper yet, I bet?" he said. "It'll be a bit late, but stay and eat before you go home."
"Okay...thank you very much. And, um, I wanted to ask you something..." She slowly pointed at the poster she'd been looking at. "What...is this...?"
"Hmm? It's the Tenou Festival." Shidou explained the event in the same simple terms Lucas had with Tohka.
Yoshino looked fascinated. "So you have...that kind of thing..."
"Whoa, sounds like fun."
"Yeah, it's a lot of fun," he said. "You guys should come, too."
Yoshino's eyes grew wide as dinner plates. "A-are...you sure...?"
"Of course. My school's going to be doing a bunch of stuff. Come, hang out."
"Oh, wow! That's great, isn't it, Yoshino?"
"Y-yeah...!" Yoshinon poked at Yoshino's cheek, and she nodded happily.
He was pretty thrilled to see her so pleased. More or less cheered up, he headed in the direction of his house with her.
"I'm home!" he called out down the hallway after getting Yoshino to open the door for him since his hands were full.
He set his bags down in the entryway and took off his shoes, when the living room door flew open with a bang, and a girl with her long hair tied up with black ribbons leaped out.
"You're laaaaaaate!" she shouted and launched a magnificent drop kick at his solar plexus.
"Hgah?!"
The sudden attack easily knocked him to the ground. Rubbing his aching stomach, he got back to his feet and found his little sister standing there in a daunting pose, looking very displeased.
"Hmph... 'Hgah,' he says. Go and do karaoke or something."
"Wh-what was that for...?"
"I could ask you the same thing. Why are you so late, I wonder? And without a single phone call."
Shidou scratched his cheek. True, he was late, but it was still not even eight o'clock.
"Sorry. I suddenly got put on the festival committee."
"Festival committee..." Kotori let out a sigh for some reason. "So it wasn't that you got sick or anything like that?"
"Huh?"
"...Never mind. Anyway, what's the big idea asking Yoshino to go meet you? The sun's already set here."
"No, I didn't-" He began answering her earlier question and then stopped himself. "Mm, right. Sorry. I'll be more careful."
"Oh... Uh, um. Kotori, Shidou-san didn't..." Yoshino tried to defend him.
But Shidou stopped her. "It's fine."
For some reason, Kotori twisted up her face in further dissatisfaction. She snorted indignantly and walked toward the living room.
Once she was out of sight, Yoshino bowed her head apologetically. "I'm sorry... This is my fault..."
"Don't worry about it," he said. Today might have been an extreme example, but now that he was thinking about it, he felt like Kotori had been weird ever since he got back from his school trip last month.
Nothing in particular had changed, but if Shidou looked the least bit tired, she got strangely restless for some reason.
He stood rooted to the spot, scratching his head before picking up the bags and walking toward the living room. Yoshino trailed after him.
And then he noticed that the living room door was slightly ajar. Through that gap, an eye was peeking, or rather, staring intently... It was Kotori.
"Wh-what? Is there something else?" he asked and heard the adorable rumbling of a stomach coming from the other side of the door.
"..." Kotori's cheeks reddened.
Shidou put his bags down and let out a sigh of relief, his expression softening. "Do you have any requests for dinner?"
"...Hamburg steak."
"Now?" This was a pretty time-intensive dish. Shidou checked the clock on his phone and saw that he had missed several calls from Kotori. She had apparently been quite worried.
"..."
He tucked his phone away and walked toward the living room, rolling his shoulders. "It'll take a while. Is that okay?"
"...Mm-hmm." Kotori ran away with a sullen look on her face and dived into the sofa.
He looked over and saw that there was someone other than Kotori in the living room. After going to the apartment building next door to change her clothes, Tohka had come over to sit in front of the TV, clutching a video game controller.
She said she would wait until Shidou's committee meeting was over, but he'd had a hunch the meeting would run long. So he'd ignored her request and sent her home ahead of him.
"Oh, Shidou! You're back! Kotori! Hurry and come help me!" Tohka shouted, bobbing and weaving with the action on-screen. But Kotori kept her face buried in a cushion. "Hmm. Yoshino, take it," she said.
"H-huh...?" Abruptly assigned a new role, Yoshino raced over to Tohka's side in a panic. "Uh, um... What...should I...?"
"When they run up just go wham and do the whole whup, then you gotta pow! There!"
"Uh, um...I..."
"Well, you basically need to just dive in. Don't bother trying to figure it out. I'll take the left, you get the right, Yoshino."
"O-okay..." Yoshino and Yoshinon grabbed the controller and joined the game.
"Ha-ha!" After watching this, Shidou went to wash his hands and then reached out for the apron hanging over the back of a chair.
Around the time he started peeling the onion, Kotori abruptly lifted her head from her facedown position on the sofa.
"Hey, Shidou. You're sure nothing's wrong, right?"
"Hmm?" He arched an eyebrow. "What? You worried about me?"
"N-no! Oh. Um. Tohka. Tohka! It'd be terrible if something happened to you and Tohka's mental state deteriorated! That's why I'm saying you gotta take proper care of yourself!"
"Yeah, yeah," Shidou said, smiling.
Kotori sat up and stared at him with a frown.
"What?" Tohka called out upon hearing her name. But a boss character appeared a second later, and she quickly turned her focus back to the game.
Kotori exhaled, leaned back against the sofa, and continued speaking, her voice just quiet enough to keep from being heard by Tohka and Yoshino. "Seriously, though, be careful. Lot of annoying stuff going down these days."
"Like?" he asked.
"That company."
"You mean...DEM?" Shidou asked, and he could see Kotori nod.
That was a more recent event. Shidou'd gone to a certain island for his school trip, where he and Lucas encountered a duo of Spirits, Kaguya and Yuzuru Yamai. And then Shidou'd been attacked by the wizard Ellen Mathers, mechanical dolls equipped with CR units, and, on top of that, an enormous airship.
Behind it all was DEM- Deus Ex Machina Industries.
The company had made advances into a number of fields, but their roots were in the munitions industry, which allowed their rapid growth. The general public was not aware of this face, but this very DEM was the manufacturer of the Realizers for the Self-Defense Force's AST.
"But...it doesn't feel real somehow," he said. "The idea that DEM would do a thing like that."
"Open your eyes," Kotori snapped. "If they had any morals whatsoever, that whole thing with Mana-"
"Huh?" Shidou's eyebrow arched up. "Mana? What happened to Mana?"
Mana was the girl who'd come to them and said she was his biological little sister. But she'd been seriously injured in a fight with a certain someone and was currently hospitalized, receiving treatment.
Kotori's face made it clear that she had let too much slip, and she pursed her lips together as she averted her eyes.
"H-hey! What do you mean? What's going on with Mana?" He definitely couldn't let this go. He set the onion down on the cutting board and took a detour around the dining table into the living room, wiping his hands on his apron.
But just when he came to stand before Kotori...
Vwnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnmmmmm.
"...! Wha-?"
...the spacequake alarm began to sound, making the large living room window shake.
Kotori leaped to her feet, skirt swinging, and slipped past Shidou.
"Ah! H-hey!" he protested. "We're still-"
"Talk later," Kotori cut him off. "You get ready, too, Shidou. Time to get to work."
She pulled a Chupa Chups from the candy holster fashioned onto her skirt, peeled the wrapper off, and popped the lollipop into her mouth.
Earlier at the SDF Tengu Garrison, Ryouko marched into the room and slammed the stack of documents in her hand down on her supervisor's desk.
"What is the meaning of this?!"
"Wh-what in the...?" Major Tsukamoto was overwhelmed by Ryouko's menacing attitude and leaned back, unable to rebuke her for her lack of etiquette.
"What's wrong?" Origami asked, and Ryouko finally noticed her there.
"Oh... Origami," she said. "Right. You're back today. Perfect timing. What do you think of this?"
She brought over the documents she had just slammed down onto the desk. Origami looked down at the papers.
"What...?" Her eyebrows came together slightly at the incredible details written on them.
"This deployment is simply ridiculous! Ten foreign members... And on top of that, you give this independent squad special discretionary powers in times of emergency? What on earth are the brass even thinking?!"
Ryouko slammed her hand down on the desk again, and Major Tsukamoto jumped.
Detailed in that document was information on supplementary personnel for the AST. That wasn't a real issue in itself.
But there were ten of these additions, and all of them were on loan from DEM Industries. Not to mention the fact that the entire group was made of foreigners, which changed the situation slightly. Moreover, they had the right to step out from under the umbrella of Ryouko's leadership as needed. This was the same as buying up every single share to take over a company.
"The AST is not a baseball team! It can't actually be possible for people from outside the country to enlist! And then to give them this kind of sweeping authority, I can only assume something is very wrong here!"
"Th-that's...," Tsukamoto muttered.
Ryouko scratched her head impatiently and was about to turn on her heel as if to say there was no talking to Tsukamoto.
But once again, the door opened, slowly this time. And ten foreigners filed into the room one after the other.
"Well, what do we have here?"
The red-headed woman in the lead twisted her lips up at the sight of Ryouko and Origami. She was maybe the same age as Ryouko. And she was somehow reminiscent of a fox, perhaps because of her almond eyes.
"So you've seen the papers, then. AST captain and...yes, Tobiichi Origami, is it?" she said with an accent, her smile deepening as she spoke.
"And who might you be?" Ryouko asked.
The woman nodded exaggeratedly as she extended a hand. "Jessica Bailey, joining the AST as of today. Looking forward to working together!"
"Hmph." Ryouko screwed her face up unhappily, thrust her hand out as if to push the other hand back, and shook it. "I don't know what exactly you all came here to do, but I won't let you have the run of the place here. As long as you're in the AST, you'll follow my orders."
Jessica's eyes grew round in surprise, and she glanced at her subordinates behind her before shrugging. "Will we be able to defeat a Spirit if we follow your orders, I wonder?"
"...What did you say?" Ryouko hissed.
"I've heard all kinds of things about your team. You're the anti-Spirit squad in a region with the most spacequakes in the world, the play-pretend team that hasn't yet caught a single Spirit."
"Wha...?" Ryouko scowled.
"But you're no good. Not worth talking about. You went and tried to fight the magician, but in the end, you couldn't even give him a hard time, hmm? Hee-hee, how unsightly," she said, grinning, and the team behind her started to giggle. "Captain, you just have to feel sorry for her."
"You can't measure these wretches in the Far East against our standards, I'm telling you."
"That's right. I mean, it's not like she's weak because she wants to be."
A girl with freckles, a girl with large lips, and a girl with small eyes spoke one after the other, scornfully.
Origami gritted her teeth, the look on her face unchanging.
"Oh dear, did I make you mad?" Jessica laughed. "Ha-ha-ha! What's being angry going to do? You all can't even take down a Spirit, and you think you have a chance against us, the DEM Adeptus Numbers?"
"Hey, you're basically-," Ryouko started.
A shrill alarm rang out.
"...! Origami, get ready to mobilize!" she snapped. "Your skills are still sharp, yeah?!"
"Of course," Origami replied and was about to run out of the room when Jessica and her team began to smirk again.
"If you can't kill a Spirit, does it really matter whether they're sharp or not?" Jessica asked.
"..." Origami glared at Jessica.
Ryouko stepped in front of her. "Stop it, Origami. Now's not the time for that." She turned to the new squad. "We're moving out. Whatever you say, we have to protect this town. And what exactly are you going to do?"
"Oh, us? Right. Okay, this is good timing. We'll go on the attack, too. We'll teach you how it's done. But..." Jessica held up a finger. "We've been entrusted with a special mission. That takes priority over everything else."
"Special...mission?" Origami said, brows furrowing. For some reason, she sensed something ominous in those words.
◇
"Ngh..." Shidou frowned as a sudden buoyancy enveloped him, like he'd jumped into a high-speed elevator, and his field of view changed from the gloomy interior of the airship to the road at night.
He'd been transported in an almost instantaneous shift with the transporter on Fraxinus. He pressed a hand to his forehead to stabilize himself, but he felt like he had been drugged, and he dug his heels into the ground.
Once the haze disappeared, he took stock of his surroundings.
"Everything alright, Shidou?"
There was one more person with him. He was clad in a normal outfit, which was anything but normal. His face was covered in a weird white mask with a red thunder striking through his left eye. This was the Magician, or Lucas for the few people who know.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine. Let's get going."
They'd come down to stand in the plaza in front of Tatsunami Station on the west side of Tengu.
Because it was the closest station to the multipurpose Tenguu Arena, the area was crowded with people on days when there were concerts or other events. Shidou'd actually been surprised before at the number of people around when he'd passed through the area, not knowing that a popular band was holding a concert.
But there wasn't a soul in sight in that plaza now. And that was as it should have been. Before their eyes was something like a crater, the majority of the plaza gouged out like a bowl. Only part of the fence remained.
"Looks like you've arrived safely on the scene," Shidou heard Kotori say through the small earpiece in his right ear. "The Spirit signal is moving south from ground zero. Hurry up."
"Roger!" Shidou and Lucas started running.
"Whoops!"
"Careful."
Shidou continued to run, nearly losing his footing and collapsing in the process. Naturally, Lucas didn't have any problem. The illuminated streets were scattered with colorful pamphlets and hand fans with pictures plastered on them. For a moment, he thought the spectators had been some rude customers, but with the sudden ringing of the spacequake alarm, they would have been forced to drop whatever they held in their hands and flee.
"Kotori, where's the Spirit signal?" Lucas asked as they continued to run in a fixed direction.
"Hang on. Getting a precise-"
His eyebrows jumped. Ahead- from the direction of Tengu Arena, he could hear something.
"...Singing?"
Yes. Blocked by the walls, he could only hear the sound faintly, but there was no mistaking the musicality of it.
Was there actually a singer continuing alone onstage even though the spacequake alarm was ringing and all the spectators had evacuated? The image briefly popped up in his head, and he quickly shook it off.
"Can you hear that, Shidou?"
"Yeah.." It was definitely not his imagination tricking him. He definitely heard a singing from the Arena.
Lucas pushed open the large door half in a daze and they stepped inside the arena. They walked forward until they had a view of the stage.
Instantly, they felt like they'd been pinned in place by a sharp gaze.
The center of the arena. The performers and staff had no doubt left the stage as it was when they evacuated, and in the middle of the dark venue, the stage rose up like a tower, illuminated by several spotlights from below.
A girl stood in the center, dressed in a dazzling outfit that looked almost woven out of particles of light, her voice echoing throughout the venue. A quiet tune like a lullaby composed of words he'd never heard before reached his ears.
"Ah..." Shidou let slip a cry of admiration.
"Shidou..?" Lucas felt something was off with Shidou.
She wasn't accompanied by any instrumentation. Or using a mic or any other device to amplify her voice. Her song was completely unadorned.
But the power of it was so overwhelming that it nearly caused Shidou to hallucinate- like it was passing through his ears and penetrating his brain stem.
"That can't be...Diva?!"
"...!"
Kotori's sudden shout in his right ear brought him back to his senses. Shidou lowered his eyes and shook his head. He clenched his jaw slightly and refocused.
Right. This was no time to be engrossed in a song. He had an extremely difficult and important job to do.
"Diva... Is that her code name?"
"Yes. A Spirit confirmed just once, about six months ago. She was registered in the database at any rate, but we have basically zero detailed information on her, including her personality and temperament. Not to mention her abilities or her Angel. Be extra careful when you make contact."
"..."
"G-got it." Shidou gulped and turned his face toward the girl once more as he stepped forward.
Klak. A dry sound rang out.
"Ah..." He froze with one foot forward.
He had apparently kicked an empty can on the floor.
Hearing this, the girl abruptly stopped singing.
"Oh deaaar?" she said, drawing out the vowel. Her voice sounded different from her singing voice.
"What are you doing?"
"Sorry... It's dark, and I can't see my feet-"
But Shidou didn't get to finish excusing himself. Because the girl kept speaking as she swiveled her head, looking out at the arena.
"So there is someone in the audieeeeence? I thought I was alone."
Her voice was gentle and relaxed. The audience seating was too dark for her to see either Shidou or Lucas, it seemed.
"Where are yoooou? I was just getting booored all by myself. If you don't mind, maybe we could talk a bit?"
"Lucas-"
"Doesn't look like she's the sort of Spirit to attack without warning, so how about moving up to a place where we can speak with her more easily?"
"Right. I'm going in," Shidou assented, clenching his fists, and climbed the stairs to the stage.
"Good luck. I got your back when things get messy."
But just as Shidou was about to take that last stair, he heard Kotori's voice in his right ear, checking him.
"Hold it. We've got some options. Let's see... Looks like we're going the full-confidence route."
"All hands! Make your choice!"
The crew assembled on the bridge began to tap at the consoles before them.
On the main monitor, a window was displayed with three options on it.
1. I WAS JUST CAPTIVATED BY YOUR BEAUTY.
2. YOUR SINGING IS INCREDIBLY LOVELY.
3. THE VIEW FROM BELOW IS AMAZING.
Kotori licked her lips, and her crew's responses were thrown up on her small display. The largest number of votes was for option two.
"I see... Not too shabby," she said.
The crew spoke up from the lower level.
"One is also good, but well, it's a bit too on the nose, so two is better here."
"She is just standing and singing, after all. She probably wouldn't be offended by a compliment."
They were exactly right.
"I suppose." Kotori nodded. "What do you think, Reine?"
The woman seated to her left turned towarda her, eyes adorned with dark circles.
"...Mm, right. Seems reasonable. At any rate, we have very little information on Diva. It wouldn't be a bad idea to look for clues on where we go next based on her reaction to this question."
"Makes sense," Kotori agreed. "All right, we'll go with two. By the way, Kannazuki."
Before she gave the instruction to Shidou, she glanced at the screen. Among the majority of votes for two and the others for one, there was just one member of her crew who had selected three.
A tall man with a face like a mannequin stood rigidly immobile behind her. This was the ship's vice-commander, Kotori's second-in-command, Kannazuki Kyouhei.
"Yes, sir!"
"Which do you prefer, the mountains or the beach?"
"Hmm? Are we discussing a trip with you, Commander? In that case, the beach with the greater exposure-"
"Good. Then I will give you the Sleep with the Fishies Regimen."
Kotori snapped her fingers, and two brawny men appeared from a door behind her and seized Kannazuki's arms.
"I-I've been framed!" he cried. "Framed like a damn photo! I selected two!"
"What did you say?" Kotori tapped at her console to display a breakdown of the choices. And she learned that indeed, Kannazuki's vote had been for two. "So then who on earth...?"
She looked doubtfully at the vote for three and saw the name Nakatsugawa written there.
"So it was you, Nakatsugawa!" she barked.
"Hyah?!" Dimension Breaker Nakatsugawa jumped in his seat. "Er... Wh-what is it, Commander...?"
"Don't 'what is it' me. Now, I'm not telling you not to pick three. I do want a variety of opinions. But you will at least explain to me the reason for this choice."
"What? Three? ...Er?" Nakatsugawa twisted his head around like he didn't understand the words being said to him before dropping his eyes to his personal display and letting out a surprised cry. "I-I'm so sorry! I pushed the button without looking at the options at all!"
Kotori frowned. "Nakatsugawa, do you realize what you're doing here? Your decision could very well put Shido in danger, you know?"
"F-forgive me! I'm prepared to accept whatever punishment you see fit! B-but..."
"But what?" she demanded.
Nakatsugawa glanced at the main monitor before continuing. "This Spirit-Diva-I feel like I've heard her voice somewhere before."
"...What? What do you mean?" Kotori furrowed her brow dubiously, just as Shidou's voice came to them over the speakers.
"H-hey! Where's that choice?"
"Oh, sorry. It's two. Compliment her singing voice," Kotori said, and on-screen, she could see Shidou nodding before he climbed the last stair up onto the stage.
Kotori took a deep breath to collect herself and sat back down in her captain's chair. "Well, fine. The attack right now takes priority. I'll hear what you have to say later, Nakatsugawa."
"U-understood, sir!" He snapped a salute at her and then turned back to his console.
At the same time, she heard a weak voice from behind. It was Kannazuki, his arms still held by the muscular men.
"Haaah... I'm relieved that this misunderstanding has been cleared up."
"Sorry about that," she said. "It's just because your usual behavior is so incredibly awful."
"No, no, everyone makes mistakes," he said. "The important thing is to reflect on these mistakes thoroughly. Let's see... I know. How about we settle it with your freshly removed socks, Commander?"
Kotori snapped her fingers, and the men dragged Kannazuki off the bridge.
"Commander! I-I understand! Your insoles! The insoles from your shoes would be fine!"
The door closed with an electronic whrr, and his voice could no longer be heard.
"Sounds pretty lively up there. Did something happen?"
"It's nothing. You just focus on the Spirit in front of you," Kotori said, sounding very much like there really was nothing going on.
"What the heck are you guys doing...?" Lucas sighed, clearly indicating that he heard Kannazuki shriek in the background.
Shidou scratched his cheek, sweat beading on his forehead.
He took a deep breath and then raced up the stairs to come out on the stage.
Illuminated by too many spotlights, the stage was as dazzlingly bright and hot as a summer's day. But he couldn't afford to close his eyes. He made sure to open them wide and direct his gaze at the girl standing onstage.
She slowly looked over her shoulder, having heard him come up. "Oh, you went to the trouble of coming all the way up heeere? Good evening. I'm-"
The Spirit whirled around, a bright smile on her face until she caught sight of Shido and froze.
"Huh?"
"Shidou. What are you doing?"
He was baffled for a second, but he had to say something. He cleared his throat and opened his mouth.
"Oh, hi there. I didn't mean to eavesdrop. You have a beautiful-"
A shrill alarm began to ring on the other end of his earpiece.
"Th-this is... Likability, mood, mental state-all her parameters are plummeting! What is going on?! Shidou, you're not flashing her or anything, are you?!"
"Wha-? No! I'm not!" he said, glancing down just to make sure. Nothing was pulled down, and there wasn't anything scandalous exposed. But then why on earth...?!
"We'll just have to try a different option. One! Compliment her looks!"
Bzzt! Bzzt!
"Likability's dropped even further!"
"It's reached the point where she's actually feeling hatred for Shidou!"
"Wh-what did you say?!"
He heard the emergency alarm followed by the panicked voices of the crew and Kotori.
"O-okay, final option! Lucas, get up there!"
"Roger." Lucas jumped up from the ground, landing softly on the stage right next to Shidou.
Bzzt! Bzzzzzzt!
"I-I've never seen numbers this low!"
"This likability is lower than a cockroach's!"
"Lucas didn't even say anything!"
The cries of the crew pounded in his right ear.
While all this was going on, a sudden change came over the frozen girl before him.
Kree, kree... She turned her neck like a rusted machine, threw her head back, and took a deep breath.
"Uh. Um...," Shidou said, but the girl ignored him. The shrill alarm was still going off in his ear.
And then the girl finished breathing in and glared at him.
"Ah!!" She cried out at an incredible volume.
"Hngah?!"
"....!"
A shock wave slammed into their chest, stomach, limbs, and face. The invisible pressure could only be described as a wall of sound. It knocked the air out of Shidou, and he was sent flying through the air, coughing up what felt like blood.
"Shidou!"
Lucas had reacted fast enough to block an attack, but... there was simply nothing to block. It felt like it just came through his little barrier he quickly created. Like it was not even there.
Lucas shouted Shidou's name as he flew back from that attack just now.
"...!"
As if spurred into action by Lucas' voice, he grabbed onto the edge of the stage just as he was about to fall right off it. He managed to somehow withstand the wall of sound as it passed by, making his entire body sting and shake, and keep his upper body at least onstage.
"E-eeeek!" He glanced down and discovered that the stage was surprisingly high up. He would definitely break a bone or two if he fell from this height. And while he had a regenerative ability, pain was still pain.
He desperately kicked and flailed to try and pull himself back up onto the stage.
Diva approached at a leisurely pace. She stopped in front of Lucas and smiled peacefully, like a goddess.
However.
"Hmm? Why would you hang oooon? Why didn't you faaall? Why didn't you diiiie? Please leave this stage in this world in this stochastic spacetime as eeeeexpeditiously as possible."
"Huh...?" His eyes grew wide at the difference between the look on her face and the words coming from her mouth. "What was that?"
"What are you taaaalking about? Please stop. It's creeeepy. Please don't speak. Please don't let your spittle fly out of your mouth. Please don't breeeathe. Don't you understand that you simply existing here is contaminating the air? You don't, do youuu?"
"..."
How much better it would have been if this were a silent film. The incredibly bizarre behavior of the girl made Shidou mind ponder such idiotic things despite the obvious danger he was in. But this opportunity gave him enough time to get back up onto the stage.
"Uhhh. Y-you're..."
"You just don't liiiisten, do you? Why did you get back up? Won't you just immediately disappear? Your existence is unpleasant. Do you know why I don't kick you both and force you off this stage? Because I would rather not touch you at all, not even with the sole of my shoooe."
The gorgeous face. Beautiful voice. Lilting speech. The only sharp edge to her lay in her words.
"...!"
The roof of the arena twisted unnaturally and then exploded with a tremendous roar. The massive spotlights hanging from the ceiling crashed to the ground in pieces.
"Watch out, Shidou!" Lucas called out, and Shidou reflexively jumped a meter to the side, just barely avoiding a huge rock that fell from above.
"Wh-whoa?!" The world around Shidou trembled, and he clung to the ground the stage to keep from being shaken off.
"Oh deaaar?"
"Wh-what the...?" He looked up. There was nothing left that could be called a ceiling anymore.
In its place, the night sky showed its face, colored with the light of the moon and drifting clouds.
Wait. That wasn't all. He could see several human shapes in mechanical armor moving in the darkness.
"The AST!" he cried, a tremor in his voice. His time was up, it seemed.
The AST members danced nimbly through the sky as they entered the arena. He'd been told that CR units were fundamentally unsuited to indoor fighting, but in a place this large, that clearly wasn't an issue. Several wizards quickly spread out to surround the stage, weapons at the ready.
But Shidou and Lucas noticed something wasn't quite right. Yes, this was the same old AST they'd come to know. But for whatever reason, there were a number of unfamiliar Western faces in their ranks.
"Shidou! Lucas! We've done enough. Pull out for now!" Kotori shouted through his earpiece.
"R-right..." Lucas and Shidou nodded to eachother and then frowned. The alarm that had been ringing in his ear all this time had stopped. "Huh?" He glanced over at Diva.
"Well, well!" She looked completely different. Her hands were clasped together, and her eyes shone. "Isn't this niiiice? Isn't this wonderful? Yes, this is the audience I want! Yes, deeeefinitely. Especially..."
With an earsplitting shriek, Diva vanished from the spot.
In the next instant, she appeared without a sound behind one of the AST members- Origami. She set a familiar hand on her shoulder and brought her mouth to her ear like an intimate partner.
"Aah! Good, gooood. Say, would you like to hear me sing?"
"...!" Origami jumped and swung her laser blade.
"Aah! Now, nooow!" Diva said in a sweet voice as she dodged Origami's blow.
Origami appeared to be excessively hurt by this reaction. She sliced and slashed at Diva over and over. But just when these follow-up attacks were in striking range of Diva, they were blocked by something like an invisible wall.
"You're getting nowhere. Out of the way-," said a redheaded girl, floating on the opposite side of the stage, but she cut herself off when she caught sight of Shidou and Lucas. "That's..."
She gestured like she was talking with her comrades over her communication device and then, for some reason, fired her thrusters not in the direction of the Spirit but towards Shidou. Specifically Shidou, not Lucas, who was standing a few meters to his side.
"Huh?" Shidou cried out, stunned. For a moment, he thought maybe she was trying to protect a civilian who had wandered onto the battlefield, but somehow, Shidou could tell that wasn't what was on her mind.
She pulled an enormous stun baton off her hip and turned it toward him. Almost like she was planning to knock him unconscious and take him...
"...!"
Origami appeared in front of Shidou abruptly, before the red-haired girl could lay a hand on him. Her laser blade slammed against the girl's weapon, sending up a shower of sparks.
"Um, hello?" the red-haired girl said. "What are you doing?"
"I would ask you the same thing," Origami replied. "He is not a Spirit. What were you going to do to him?"
"You don't have the clearance to know. Orders from upstairs. Step aside."
"I cannot accept that. Explain it to me."
"You just don't get it." The girl brandished her weapon once more.
Origami readied her laser blade to meet the attack.
A powerful shock wave rippled through the area.
"Wh-whoa?!" In the next instant, Shidou's field of view went dark. When he came to, he was back inside the dim ship.
"You okay, Shidou?"
"Lucas.. who was that?"
"I don't know, but she doesn't seem like your average AST member.
◇