"Ara, ara, Tohka-chan, don't you miss me?" As soon as she arrived at school the next day, Tohka saw Kurumi Tokisaki smiling sweetly as she came up to her. But what made Tohka uneasy was that at this moment Kurumi was giving her a dangerous feeling. During their date yesterday she hadn't sensed this, so Tohka instinctively stood up.
"Aiyaa, little Tohka, you seem very afraid of me." Smiling as she glanced at Tohka, Kurumi was also a bit surprised by how sensitive she was. After all, she hadn't even made a move yet, which meant Tohka's combat experience was extremely rich. That she could sense her aura already was a little unexpected. Well, perhaps she was overthinking it...
"What exactly are you planning? Why do you give off that kind of aura the moment we meet?" At this point, Tohka focused all her strength, staring at Kurumi. Who knew what this woman would suddenly do, so Tohka didn't dare let her guard down. She knew that although yesterday's date had certainly increased Kurumi's favorability toward her, it would absolutely never make her give up her purpose. And this was no mere clone standing before her, but her true body, which was why Tohka was being so cautious. To be honest, by her estimate, if they fought, she wasn't sure she could win.
"Ara, ara, it seems you really are sensitive, Tohka." Kurumi ignored the strange looks from those around them and directly backed Tohka into the corner, lightly touching her cheek. "Honestly, yesterday I almost lost myself in it... But today, come fight me. For the wish I've always carried, come battle me. Show me whether you can truly persuade me."
"Wa!" Seeing the two of them like this, the entire class was shocked. The legendary yuri scene was happening before their very eyes, and the two were both top-class beauties. Some people were already wailing in their hearts—this was such a waste of resources.
"Tsk." Tohka drew in a sharp breath. The others hadn't heard what Kurumi said, but she had caught every word, and that was exactly what worried her most. She could already foresee what was about to happen.
"City of Devouring Time." Kurumi didn't care about anyone's reactions. She directly released her domain, and in an instant the purple-black field spread from under her feet, quickly enveloping the entire school. In the same moment, nearly everyone in the classroom collapsed, though a few people managed to stay conscious. For example, a certain boy who carried the power of three Spirits sealed inside him, who now looked around in confusion.
"Ahahaha. Little Tohka, you'd better hurry and come find me." Ignoring everyone's reactions, Kurumi slowly disappeared into the shadows.
"Ugh. Damn it." Though Tohka was affected a bit, half-kneeling on the floor, she quickly released her power. In the next moment, her armor appeared on her body. As she donned her equipment, she returned to normal and stood back up.
"Hey, Tohka, are you alright? And what the heck is going on here?" Shido ran over, because in his eyes only Tohka was still unharmed while everyone else had collapsed. Of course, Origami wasn't in the classroom right now, or she'd have been fine too.
"Damn it, this woman wants a fight after all." Tohka didn't answer him right away. She looked around the classroom, noting how strange the light had become, and she felt an oppressive weight pressing down. "You'd better leave, this is Kurumi Tokisaki's City of Devouring Time. The reason you can still move is because you have my and Yoshino's...and... If we start fighting here, the whole school will be dragged in."
With that, she didn't pay Shido any more attention and dashed outside. Kurumi hadn't said it, but Tohka could sense she was waiting on the roof. The spirit energy up there was just too thick.
"Hey, damn it, I..." Watching Tohka charge off, Shido spun around anxiously. He really couldn't do anything in this situation. After all, he barely knew Kurumi.
"Shido, leave immediately. Find a place and we'll teleport you onto the ship. Don't worry about the rest," Kotori's voice came into his ear, sounding unusually serious. "Tohka's right. For now, you have to get out of there. If they start fighting, you'll be in danger."
"Then what about these students? They can't get to the shelters now," Shido said worriedly, looking at all his unconscious classmates. He knew it wasn't just his class—every class would be the same. There were too many people here. He gave up on the idea of trying to carry anyone out. He'd never manage it.
"We can only leave that to Tohka. It looks like Kurumi is deliberately using this to threaten her." Kotori gave a bitter laugh. There was nothing else to be done. But she still felt uneasy and turned to Reine: "I'll leave command to you for now. I'm going out."
"Alright." Reine more or less guessed what she intended to do, but didn't object. She took over command, while Kotori gave a brief instruction and left quietly.
"Little Shido..."
After she left, Tohka couldn't hear any of that. She was already on the roof, where she found the true cause of this mess—Kurumi Tokisaki.
"Ara, ara, Tohka, you're fast as always." Kurumi no longer bothered to conceal anything. She showed her sinister smile directly. As her school uniform disappeared, her gothic astral dress took its place. The eye hidden behind her bangs was now visible, its clock hand spinning rapidly.
"Tch. This is bad. She's serious this time." Frowning, Tohka glanced across the school grounds covered by the City of Devouring Time. There lay countless students. Over the past days they'd been seeing each other all the time. No matter what, she couldn't let them get caught up in this fight.
"Aiyaa, little Tohka, you can't say things like that. Even though your power seems greatly diminished, you're still slippery. If you tried to run, I couldn't be sure I'd catch you." Kurumi smiled as she watched her, then after meeting Tohka's resolute gaze, she stepped back a little: "Alright, alright. For you, I'll cancel my domain. But don't you dare run away. These people won't be waking up any time soon."
"I know. Fine—if it's a fight, then let's fight. Who's afraid?" Seeing the sky return to normal, Tohka didn't waste words. She drew her longsword and pointed it at Kurumi.
"Ah, yes—that's the spirit. Come—show me your true power, little Tohka. Zafkiel." Kurumi wasn't holding back at all. The golden clock appeared behind her, and she drew her two guns.
"Damn it—I can't let her activate it." Knowing Kurumi's strength, Tohka had no intention of letting her finish. She charged, slashing straight at her. She knew that if Kurumi managed to unleash her power, she might not be able to withstand it.
"Ara, ara, you really do know me well. But you're still too slow—when I summon my angel, I'm already prepared." Kurumi looked slightly surprised but reacted even faster.
"Aleph." In an instant, Zafkiel finished charging its bullet. Kurumi aimed the gun—at herself.
Bang.
Suddenly, Tohka's vision blurred. Kurumi vanished from before her eyes—and then she felt Kurumi's aura behind her. Instinctively, she twisted her body in midair and raised her blade. The next moment, a tremendous force struck her and sent her flying backward.
"Damn it—she's fast." She spun through the air a few times and landed on the roof. She could only barely keep up with Kurumi's movements; otherwise, she'd be overwhelmed like Mana in the original.
"Ara, ara, you're just too slow, little Tohka." Kurumi's voice came from behind again. This time, Tohka couldn't react in time. All she could do was throw herself to the side.
"Zayin." Kurumi's voice echoed again—this bullet could freeze time itself for the target. Tohka knew if it hit her, she'd be finished. In the original, Kurumi had used this to defeat Mana and even forced Kotori to use her healing power.
"Full power—activate!" Tohka commanded her armor, and the last of her spirit energy surged wildly. Her Raiden Queen armor erupted with a blinding purple light. In that instant, she pushed her speed to the absolute limit. Kurumi's bullet fired, but with a motion worthy of The Matrix, Tohka barely dodged it.
"Huff...huff..." Watching the bullet fly past, Tohka gasped for breath. Thank goodness she'd reacted in time—otherwise she'd have been hit by Kurumi's whole combo. In the original, Kurumi had never truly killed anyone, but she still didn't dare take it head-on. Otherwise, Mana and Origami would never have lasted until Kotori arrived.
"Ara, ara, your reflexes are impressive. To dodge my finishing blow like that..." Kurumi's surprised voice rang out. She clearly hadn't expected Tohka to have this capability.
"Heh—well, of course." Tohka wasn't about to admit she'd started dodging the moment Kurumi began chanting. Otherwise, she'd have ended up just like Mana and Kotori in the original story.
"But next..." Kurumi aimed her long gun at Tohka again—but just then, a blast of energy struck and shattered her arm.
"Huff—looks like I'm not too late." Mana, with her lake-blue hair, landed from above. Clearly, she was the one who had fired that attack. Anyone else in AST couldn't have broken Kurumi's astral dress so easily.
"You'd better leave—this is no clone you're facing." Tohka, swaying from exhaustion, still stood firm. Seeing Mana in front of her, she didn't relax—she was worried. Though they didn't get along, Mana was here to help, after all.
"Hmph. You just stay there and rest—watch me defeat this, Spirit." Mana didn't care about her warning at all. She fixed her gaze on Kurumi and charged again.
"This girl..." Tohka wanted to say more, but Mana was already gone. All she could do was sigh. "Fine. I'll recover a little. Hopefully she buys me enough time. If not, I'll have to reclaim my power—or call out the other me."