Sorry for the delay.
Things have been kind of hectic.
I saw the calendar and I curse for my lack of advance in the story after one year.
Damn it! I need to step up my game.
I don't think this chapter is my best, but I hope you enjoy its contents and don't find it a waste of time.
Also, about the pairs, I have been thinking about them lately, but nothing is certain until a few chapters later.
With no more delay, enjoy!
Disclaimer: Honkai Impact doesn't belong to me.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
UNIT BUNE STARTS TASK #985
UNIT BUNE ANALYZING FRAGMENT WITH POSSIBLE HIDDEN MESSAGE.
ANALYZING…
ANALYZING…
"SAFFRON SKIES RAISE THE BLAZING SUN
A CHANCE ENCOUNTER, AWKWARD DISPLAYS
ONE DAY, MY LOVE, WE'D BE AS ONE"
SEARCHING…
SEARCHING…
CONCLUSION:
THE FIRST FRAGMENT DOES NOT POSSESS ANY HIDDEN MESSAGE OR LOCATION.
CONTINUE WITH THE NEXT FRAGMENT:
"WITH TWO ENTWINED. A SET COURSE, BEGUN
THAT FRENETIC, WILD, LUSTROUS HAZE;
AZURE SKIES HOST THE RADIANT SUN"
ANALYZING…
ANALYZING...
FRAGMENT DOES NOT POSSESS ANY HIDDEN MESSAGE OR LOCATION.
CONTINUE WITH THE NEXT FRAGMENT:
"ABOVE US BEAMING AS WE RUN
DOWN THAT AISLE, A FERVENT CRAZE
THAT DAY, MY LOVE, WE BECAME AS ONE"
…
Three days after the Third Impact in Nagazora…
"Ugh!" Himeko groaned in pain as she rubbed her lower back and closed the door behind her. She was wearing a red jacket with Schicksal's design and black shorts combined with long boots of the same color.
"Damn it. It has been three days and my back still hurts."
"What did you expect after overusing the Nexus System?" Theresa Apocalypse pointed out. "It's a miracle that you are still breathing and not a vegetable after pulling that stunt," Theresa remarked from her chair with a grave tone while rising slightly and pointing with her finger at Himeko.
The two of them were inside Theresa's office. The office space was large, suitable to have several people inside it, and still had the space to move comfortably. There were several shelves with books, office documents, and so on. Himeko hated doing paperwork but she had to admit that Theresa's office was a very comfortable place to do it once in a while. If only the headmistress let her put some alcohol in the medium-size refrigerator in the corner...
"Oh? Principal Theresa, where are you? I can't see you!" Himeko raised her voice slightly with a mocking tone as she moved her head over the office. She laughed internally as she spotted the tip of Theresa's head over her desk. Theresa fumed in anger at the Major's insult to her height.
"Shut it!" Theresa brought her fist down on her desk. Clearing her throat, Theresa's childish voice became serious. "Now, speaking of business. Major, I need your report and the information I asked you to look for."
"Just give me a second." Theresa started to growl in exasperation (and envy) when Himeko unbuttoned the first two buttons from her blouse. Himeko brought her hand to the valley of her large breasts, and after 'searching' for some seconds, much to Theresa's chagrin, she pulled out a small data drive and handed it to the principal.
"What the hell?! Why did you have to keep it there?" Theresa snapped and went back to her bratty voice.
"You said that you wanted to keep this as secretive as possible," Himeko smiled as she took a seat in one of the sofas inside the office. "And I decided to place the data in a very secure place," Himeko winked at her. Theresa just rolled her eyes while grumbling about large and sweaty breasts. She clicked the small drive and it projected a holographic screen.
"While it loads, I need you to tell me what happened that night, Major."
Himeko cleared her throat. "Right. Well, you know the general picture and why I was called that night, so let's skip to the main events." Himeko took a deep breath and started to recount the events from the encounter with the Third Herrscher and how it ended.
"And that's it, Principal," Himeko finished giving her report while rubbing the back of her neck. "I will send tonight the reports about the damage done to the ship and all the paperwork to start the repairs." Himeko was about to get up from her chair until Theresa stopped her with a sign of her hand.
"Thank you, Major. Your declaration will be sent to the Headquarters along with the information needed to start the repairs on the Hyperion. Dismissed." Theresa pushed a little button next to her. The button wasn't noticeable at first sight given its size. Himeko raised a brow but didn't comment about it.
"Himeko. Now tell me, what do you think of that night?" Himeko noted the concerned tone from Theresa.
"Honestly?" Himeko asked as she leaned back on the couch while rubbing her temple. "It was fucking weird. Really, weird, Teri." She took a deep breath and cursed for doing this so earlier. "Teri, you know that the two of us have gone through many things in the years since we have known each other, right?" Himeko didn't wait for an answer as she continued. "The two of us have seen bad things and even messed up shit. But…" The Major lowered her hand and looked straight at Theresa. "That kid, Theresa, what he did and how he pulled it was seriously messed up." She felt her stomach churning at remembering the aftermath of the battle.
"I know what you mean, Himeko."
"No, you don't, Teri," she shook her head. "You read the medical reports but you had had to see it first-hand to understand it."
"Himeko…"
"Damn it, I saw how the boy took the bullets head-on and how he wasn't torn to shreds is a miracle itself. And his smile…" she sounded uneasy. "…Teri, the kid was smirking like a maniac while fighting the Herrscher and smiling happily when he was bleeding to death on the main dock," Himeko cursed for not having a beer at that moment. She leaned her head down and went quiet while remembering that moment. Theresa gave her some time to recover while checking the data drive.
She clicked it again and a holographic keyboard showed up in front of her. She input some commands and the screen showed up the images of Kiana, Mei, Bronya, and Adam. Theresa clicked Kiana's image and the screen blinked and showed up basic information like birthday, scholarship, and so on. Theresa's eyes quickly reviewed the information.
"So, she also helped to stop the Herrscher. Kiana Kaslana." She voiced out.
"Yeah," Himeko finally got out of her head. She crossed her legs while voicing her opinion about the girl. "It surprised me when she grabbed the Herrscher's wing and her hand didn't fry the instant she touched it. All our researches have pointed out that the human body cannot manage pure Honkai energy without serious consequences." While Himeko said this, Theresa was in her own world speaking to herself.
"Kiana… I never thought I will see you again after so many years." A little smile formed on Theresa's face. Himeko didn't see it but noticed that she went quiet.
"Teri?"
"It's nothing," Theresa closed the window and selected the image of Mei. A quick scan and her eyes went wide.
"What?!" Theresa asked as her eyes read the information with detail.
Himeko leaned back on the sofa. "Surprising, right? Anti-Entropy, our nemesis, turned out to be the backers of ME Corp. And the cherry on the top is that the Herrscher turns out to be the Heiress of the ME Corp. Kind of ironic, don't you think?" Theresa nodded while reading the information about the Heiress.
"I am more surprised that AE didn't make a move when the Herrscher manifested," Theresa commented and Himeko agreed with her. "I have asked the intelligence department to take a closer look at Mei and her father. Still, I think it would be a while until we got something good. AE is good at cleaning their tracks." Himeko pointed out.
Theresa closed the window and selected Bronya's. Theresa made a confused face at the scarce information about the younger girl.
"Yep. I made the same face when I got her information. Too basic and not very credible for the intelligence department, but well, given that she came from the Siberian region, it's understandable to not have all the information about her. The whole place it's in itself chaotic." Theresa felt her mouth going dry at the mention of the region.
"If you think it is strange, you need to see the big robot that appears behind her and all the tech things it can do," Himeko tried to take the conversation somewhere else when she spotted Theresa's sour expression. She tried to not cringe when remembering an embarrassing photo showed in front of the other officers when she made fun of the girls' height, after discovering her sitting calmly inside the main hangar. Nobody asked how she got there. Too tired to ask and there were other important things to do.
Theresa shook her head briefly and closed the window about Bronya and opened the last one.
Her eyes scanned over the information quickly and frowned at what she found.
"This is all the information you got of him?" Theresa asked with doubt. "His file. It looks so plain…" Theresa doubted that it was all about him.
"Yes. I even asked the intelligence department to run again another search just in case they missed something," Himeko answered with a serious voice. Theresa looked again at the screen with the basic information of Adam. Seeing her face, Himeko decided to add her thoughts.
"I know what you are thinking. How someone like him, well, someone with powers like him, shows up out of nowhere right when the Third Herrscher manifests while Schicksal Intelligence didn't have information of someone like him until now. The kid would have appeared on the radar years ago."
Theresa looked towards Himeko. "Pushing that aside for the moment. How was her reaction after telling her about their conditions?"
"Relief and worry. She was really concerned about what happened to the girls," Himeko answered. Theresa lifted a brow when Himeko excluded the only male in the group. "You didn't tell her about him?" In response, Himeko gave her an incredulous look. "When I told the girl about their conditions, she asked me to kill her to protect her friends after their ordeal in Nagazora. She looked deadly worried after seeing their bruises and cuts. Imagine her reaction if she learned of his state. I told her that he was fine by the moment but that he was in another room for late questioning. She didn't believe me at all."
Theresa sighed. "What about the offer? Did she think about it?" Theresa asked.
"She has some doubts but is willing to take the chance." Himeko groaned. "I hope this doesn't blow up on our faces."
"Me too," Theresa sighed.
The Principal grimaced remembering the expressions from the Counsel, eager to investigate a living and tame sample of a Herrscher. Theresa almost threatened them to submit the Herrscher to her but fortunately, for the other people, her grandfather vouched for her. She smirked remembering their glares. The triumphant smile faltered when they remembered warned her that they will be watching her 'little experiment' with cautious eyes.
Theresa was called back to reality when Himeko cleared her throat. "So, are we really doing this?" Theresa nodded resolutely. "I have made up my decision. These girls will be staying here at St. Freya." Himeko got up from her seat. "Well, the last thing in my mind was playing nanny, but who can say no to budget raise," Himeko shuddered and turned around. Before she left through the door, Theresa shot out. "And Himeko, please stop using the Nexus System! The medical department says that you don't have much time!" Himeko gave her a carefree smile. "Don't worry. I know my body best and I won't give up until I found my special one," Himeko waved her hand in goodbye and left.
"You have been saying that for too long, bimbo," Theresa though in worry for her long-time friend. She closed the window with Adam's basic information and opened a video recording. It was taken moments after the main system of the ship came back online before leaving the city.
"Let's see what else she got from there…" Theresa muttered as she played the video. The media file showed the remains from the Herrscher's attacks. Theresa clicked and watched in boredom the city debris. She was about to close it after minutes of nothing happening until she took note of the female figure showing up on the screen.
Theresa noted that the young woman wore a Miko dress with some modifications. The mysterious individual stopped in front of something and crouched. Theresa brought closer her face to the screen to see better her features.
"What is this?"
BEEP! BEEP!
"Ahh!" Theresa jumped on her seat surprised as the telephone of her office rang. She grumped for being startled so easily. She glanced at the video one last time before closing it and answering the phone.
"Good afternoon. This is Headmistress Apocalypse speaking."
"Hello Theresa," a soft female voice greeted her casually. Theresa lifted a brow. "Excuse me, who is this? I don't recognize you." The other person at the other end chuckled. "Of course. Silly me. I forgot this is the first time I am speaking with you." She cleared her voice.
"Again, hello Theresa. My name is Hestia. You don't know me but I know you-"
"If this is another advertisement I swear I am going to sue your company!" Theresa sighed annoyed. She was tired of the marketing that kept finding her number. The line was supposed to be private for God's sake! "I have never-!"
"Never meet a man called Siegfried and his daughter Kiana, Theresa?" Hestia cut in before Theresa could protest further. It worked as she stopped mid-sentence when she heard those two names coming from the mysterious Hestia.
"How do you know them?!" Her eyes narrowed and her voice became sharp with a tint of worry. She knew that some people in Schicksal still remembered Siegfried and his shenanigans but there were few to none that knew about Kiana.
"Who are you? No one knows about Kiana," she pointed out.
Hestia chuckled. "Now that I have your attention, could you please make sure that you are alone in your office? No one must hear what we are about to discuss." Hestia asked politely.
Theresa didn't answer gripping the phone tightly and pondering in her head what was happening and how did she know about her niece and Siegfried.
"I made sure that none would trace them after the stunt Siegfried pulled those years ago. He never mentioned someone else helping him the few time we spoke. The idiot neither tell me where Kiana was and I'm sure that I have never said a word about them to anyone! Perhaps Siegfried-"
"Theresa, I know that you are asking yourself why I know about them," Hestia interrupted Theresa's line of thought. "I know this is so forward from my part, but I am a friend of Siegfried and someone who has in the best interest the wellbeing of your niece." The grip on the phone relaxed a bit but she didn't drop the sharpness in her voice.
"Who are you?"
"Someone who wants a tomorrow for everyone."
####sdjkfnnthesmdklfpainfsadfdosofffersdfklsdklluiouihrqweoffense…..#####
Adam flinched and came back to reality as he barely caught a ball before it hit his face.
"Hey! Don't throw it so hard," Adam complained as he left the ball fell on the grass after Katherine threw it at him.
"Don't be such a baby. I didn't put much force on it," she remarked and rolled her eyes in annoyance.
"Are you two seriously going to start fighting right now?" Celeste asked sarcastically at seeing her brother and cousin arguing.
"She started it!"
"He can't take a hit for shit!"
"Enough! If you two can't behave, no cake for none of you" Their mother cut in before the arguing escalated.
"But Mom!" / "But Aunty!"
Adam and Katherine complained as Celeste shook her head and sighed while their mother glared at them.
"Come on guys, this is Mom's first day off in a while. Let's not fight, okay?" Celeste smiled sweetly at them. Adam and Katherine pouted and relented. They started to walk toward them as Celeste finished setting the tablecloth on the grass while their mother went to the car to grab the last of the bowls with food for their picnic. As they came closer, Katherine noted that Adam dropped her favorite baseball ball.
"Hey Adam, you left my ball back there," she motioned with her thumb backward. "Go and grab it." Adam was about to say no. "Go for it and I will forget you were ogling my friends last Friday or I will tell Celeste~", she sang the last part with a sweet tone. He flinched and quickly went to grab the ball.
"I hate you…" He growled. "Love you too, brat!" Katherine smiled and went to grab lunch. He loved his cousin who was more like an older sister than a cousin, but he hated it when she blackmailed him to do sometimes her chores or just to mess with him. He strolled, he didn't want to miss the food her mother and sister made for the picnic and like hell, he was going to miss a bite from her sister's famous chocolate cake. Everybody in the neighborhood loved it!
Adam reached the ball and was about to grab it until he heard Katherine calling him.
"Oi! Adam!" He rolled his eyes. "What?!" He turned around and to his surprise, he was no longer in that beautiful green meadow.
He was standing in an endless field of white flowers.
"Wh-What is this?" He noted that he was the only one standing on the white field. "Celeste? Katherine? Mom?" He called for his family to no avail. He started to panic. His breath hitched and started to call for them again, more desperately.
"Celeste?! Katherine?! Mom?! Where are you?!" Tears started to form on the corner of his eyes. There was no answer, only the soft breeze caressing his face and the sweet smell from the flowers.
"Agh!" Suddenly his head ached and Adam cried in pain. He tried to hold his cries like Katherine once told him, but he found it difficult to not cry as the pain grew.
"Stop…" He whimpered. "Please!" The pain increased. He bent on his knees and suddenly he found it difficult to breathe. It was like someone was using his head like a drum in a musical festival, like the one Katherine once took him in summer. He felt like his head was about to explode. "STOP!"
"Adam…" a soft voice called him. A feminine voice.
His heart jumped in fear as he felt someone standing behind him. For some reason, he couldn't turn his head back to look. Soft and warm arms and hands hugged from behind and rubbed his chest and arms as the mysterious woman whispered on his ear.
"It's alright Adam. It will pass," she comforted him. True to her words, the pain slowly vanished, leaving a dumb sensation for a second before disappearing, as nothing happened moments ago.
"What is this?" He asked and suddenly he felt conscious about his personal space. Adam's cheeks turned red as he felt two soft big pillows leaning on his back. He yelped as she brought her lips to his neck and kissed him softly, and then; he felt it.
No desire, no lust, no primal need but… love. So pure and unconditional… so warm.
Although he was overwhelmed by such raw emotion coming from the mysterious woman, Adam finally found the courage to speak to her. "W-Who are you?" The woman stopped kissing him at hearing his question.
"I see..." she answered with a sad whisper. Adam felt a knot in the stomach at hearing the sad tone in her voice.
"I am sorry," Celeste told him to always apologize if he ever made a girl sad. The woman chuckled and gave him one last kiss. "It's alright. It's still too soon for you to see," she undid the one-sided intimate hug. Adam turned to see her; only to find that he was standing alone again in the vast field of white flowers.
"What was that?" He asked to himself. For some reason, he started to miss the woman's warming body.
"A memory." Adam turned around at hearing an unknown mature male voice. He didn't see anyone else standing on the field. "Who is there?" He shouted. "It's me." Adam whipped his head around, trying to locate the person.
"Where are you?"
"Down here." Adam looked at his feet and found some flowers with a tint of red at their tips. He raised a brow at this, he didn't saw them before. He kneeled to take a closer look at the flowers. "If I remember correctly, Celeste told me they were called Striped Carnations." Adam touched one of them. The flower bounced at his touch. Before he knew it, he picked up the flower and brought it closer to smell it. Its scent was fragrant and pleasant.
"Brace for it," Adam dropped the flower startled by the sudden voice coming from it.
"Brace for-?" He didn't manage to finish his sentence as he felt a cold shard of ice being shoved in his head. "Uggghhhh!" Adam didn't even scream, the pain too sudden and overwhelming for his mind to process. He hissed and fell on his knees as the feeling-like shard kept making its way in his head. As it kept moving, Adam saw many things at blinding speed while hearing a deafening hum.
#######
He is taking coffee in a warm bookstore as he waits for someone;
He is hearing fireworks in the distance from the top of a building while aiming down the sight from his sniper rifle;
#######
The smell of cheap perfume lingers in the air as he makes his way inside the old rag building;
Walking on cold and sterile metal halls while not paying mind to the brave glares thrown at him;
###S#####
He breaks his adversary jaw with a hook and kicks him out of the ring towards shocked onlookers;
Humid air as he runs and shoots in the middle of a jungle while chasing down his target;
He drinks together with his captain despite the protests from his guardian and the laughs of everyone around;
###-St-#########
His friend and companion blush atomically as he discusses with a scantily dressed black-haired woman about business while ignoring the moans coming from behind her;
Katherine scares the hell of the older boys as she stomps relentless his bully on the crotch while Celeste checks his face and the blows on it;
He smells chocolate and winces when he notes from where it comes from;
####-Stop! -######
The orchestra and the dancers freeze in horror as he sinks his blade-arm in the target's stomach;
He groans annoyed while a beautiful blonde woman covered hers and her girlfriend bodies with a blanket while throwing insults at him in three different languages;
Celeste plays with him in the park until the sunset;
The p### haired girl smiles at him sweetly while her older sister glares at him;
####Stop!####
Celeste is gripping his hand so strong, to the point that it hurts while they run away with the other children; he ######!
#### he obeys because there is no other option. No, there are other options, but he rather does this instead of being taken away from #####;
#########STOP!#########
The metallic smell of blood and alcohol lingers in the room. He doesn't give a shit as ##### kisses him to the point of suffocation. ########
###### They are alone. Her smile is radiant and he blushes, her touch made his heart flutter and he wants to only bask in her presence and sniff that sweet perfume she rarely uses#####
#########STOP!#########
##########STOP!#########
##
I####
I… I promised…!
##########STOP!#########
"Ahhh!"
Adam jolted awake breathing hard. There was a deafening buzzing ringing in his ears as he panted. He gulped unconsciously and felt his throat and tongue dry. He was laying on a hospital bed, wearing a hospital gown for patients. Adam's breath was ragged and he was sweating a lot after the dream. A constant beep caught his attention and turned his head on the pillow to find its source. It was a monitor registering his vital signs. He took note that many cables and tubes were connected to his chest and arms. There were bags half-filled with some sort of serum.
He started to scan the room he was in. It was a hospital room, with the characteristic sterile smell and white theme. At his bed's end, some feet away, there was a long piece of furniture with drawers. There was also another door beside it. Another few meters to his right, there was a coffee table and a sofa under a long, large window. He couldn't see what was on the other side, the blinds were half-open allowing sunlight to enter, which barely illuminated the room. Adam tried to get up but he felt his all his body sore and he fell back when he felt a powerful stab of pain on his back. It didn't help that his head felt like it was about to explode.
"W-what the fuck?!" Adam hissed as the pain persisted. "My head!"
"{Welp, what did you expect after breaking an oath from Omen's and bite off more than you can chew, you fucking idiot}" It remarked with a mocking tone. Adam was about to tell him to shove it until he remembered what happened the last night.
"We were fighting… and then…" He paled. "I lost control…!" Adam cursed remembering in blurs his fight with the Herrscher and that he almost stabbed Mei despite Kiana's protests.
"Fuck! Kiana and the girls!" He tried to get up again but the pain was too much for him.
"{They are alright. You managed to stop yourself before going too far,}" it reassured him. Adam gained some comfort hearing this.
"{Although, you were too reckless. You could have hurt the girls or worse, your death,}" the other one pointed out admonishing him.
"G-great. If I am hearing you then that means I am still alive, so spare me the sermon," Adam hissed. The pain was too persistent for his like.
"Fucking hell. This hurts worse than when I took a bullet for the brat," he commented as he took deep breaths.
"{Of who you are talking about?}" Adam opened his mouth to answer. "The brat. She…" He closed his mouth when noted he couldn't remember who he was speaking about. "W-Who? Agh!" He groaned and took a hand to his head when it ached for a second before stopping.
"{Ding! Ding! Looks like you are starting to remember, champ,}" it chirped. "{So… Was she hot?}" How Adam regretted not being able to go inside his head and beat the annoying bastard.
"{Putting aside the need to beat him, this is great news. It means it's only a matter of time before you start to remember more about the past.}" It answered with a positive tone. Adam's mood lightened a bit hearing this.
"{Well…I am not trying to rain on your parade, but, didn't he remember more just because, I don't know, he went fucking nuts while fighting Bitch Queen?}" It pointed out. "{He barely remembered a thing during all these months while traveling with Siegfried and before of it. Waking up sometimes screaming or crying like a little bitch.}"
"How about you shut the fuck up," Adam hissed bothered by its observation. He tried to not give it credit although it was right. He saw more of his past in his dream than in all those months while he traveled. He didn't dwell on it, for the moment. Right now he had other things to attend before figuring out the problem with his memory.
"Anyway, I need to get on my feet and try to know what happened to the rest." He tried again to sit and succeed on his fifth try, although his legs and hands trembled from time to time. Adam grunted, his body felt sore but his back, specifically where Omen pierced, still ached awfully.
He just stood up as the door to his room suddenly opened. It was unknown to him if the room was monitored. Inwardly he cursed his lack of foresight. He was prepared to confront a nurse or a doctor, even a security guard; the last of his expectations were to face a young girl wearing a nun outfit.
"The hell?"
The girl's eyes widened a bit after seeing him sitting on his bed. She stepped inside and the door closed behind her. The girl walked towards his end's bed and stopped there. She crossed her arms over her chest and eyed him from head to toe carefully. Adam raised a brow albeit he remained silent. He took note that she had in her hand a bottle of water.
"I thought she was lying when she said you were already up after three days of being…beaten," she sounded unsure at the last word. "I read your medical report and the doctors wrote down that it would take a miracle for you to walk again." Adam's eyes widened in bewilderment.
"{Holy shit! What the hell did you-?! Oh! Right, you broke the Oath from Omen's…}"
He ignored it in favor of hearing the girl.
"I thought Hestia was messing with me but you are even standing on your feet, albeit barely."
"W-wait, you know Hestia?" Adam asked her with a raspy voice. The girl answered with a short nod. He knew from experience that Hestia rarely shared her name. She tended to use an alias when she dealt with other people who worked for/with her. If she gave her name to the little girl then that meant she trusted her. Noting his raspy voice, she handed him the water bottle. He wasn't sure to accept the drink immediately, but he was thirsty as hell and she mentioned that Hestia spoke with her. He decided to trust her… for the moment. He nodded in thanks and hastily tore open its cap and gulped down its contents.
Adam sat back on his bed. The girl kept her gaze on him. He started to feel uncomfortable with it. "If you spoke with Hestia, then I think she told you some things about me, right?" He was the first to break the silence.
The girl didn't answer immediately, she pondered for a moment before responding. "She didn't tell me too much about you. Only the basics and that you were planning to come here before the Incident in Nagazora." Adam nodded. "Yeah. And if you know about Hestia, then you also know about the old man, don't you?"
She snorted. "If you are speaking about Siegfried, then, yes." Adam gave her a crooked smile. Despite the snort, her voice became a bit warm when she mentioned Siegfried. "Okay." He blinked and remembered something. "Wait, I had a letter with me from him to someone called, huh, Theresa Baby Doll, I think?"
"He called me what?!" She shouted, startling Adam a bit at the sudden shout. "For God's sake! When he is going to drop it?!" He just looked as she kept rambling something about Siegfried being an idiot. Adam learned to keep quiet when someone –especially women- complained about Siegfried and his immature attitude but, as much as he enjoyed watching the girl roasting his drunk mentor, Adam was thirsty and in need of a painkiller, a very strong one. He cleared his throat cutting off the girl's rambling. "Sorry to interrupt you, but I would like to take a painkiller if it's not much trouble." He asked politely.
"R-Right," the girl fake-coughed. "Hestia told me to give you these," her right hand went to her waist. She reached into the pocket of her outfit and pulled two syringes filled with a transparent liquid. "She told me that you should take them after waking up if the pain became too much." She handed him the syringes.
"Believe me when I say that the pain right now it's too much," he hissed as he adjusted his bottom on the bed.
"I don't know if it's a good idea to mix it with the other serums your body has been taking. You were quite …hurt when they picked you up." She commented while giving him an unsure look. "Maybe I should call one of the doctors."
"Don't worry, I can handle it," Adam remarked. He noted that one of the serum tubes was connected on his left arm, near the joint of it. He took off with his teeth the syringe cap and to the girl's surprise, Adam pulled the tube and needle casually from his arm. His hand trembled a bit, but it didn't stop him from putting the syringe's needle where the previous one was before. He pushed the plunger and after emptying the substance, he pulled the empty syringe off and left it on the bed. He waited for a moment and took the second dose, and after some seconds he sighed in relief when the pain was replaced by a familiar numbness.
"That's much better!" Adam commented with relief at feeling its effects.
"Wait, you took a big dose of painkillers just like that?!" she was worried knowing how strong the painkillers were. "I thought Hestia gave it to you?" Adam raised a brow. "W-well, yes. I asked one of the nurses for them. I just didn't expect you to take it all at once!" she uncrossed her arms and turned her eyes to the heart monitor and eyed his face for any sign of overdose. Adam waved off her concern.
"Don't worry. Something like that won't kill me. Believe me when I say I have a high painkiller tolerance." He assured her. Adam had a high resistance towards drugs thanks to his powers, although he didn't comment on how it sucked when he needed a painkiller and there wasn't enough for him when the pain was too much. He needed to take twice of a dose for the effect to kick in.
"Sorry, but I didn't get your name." She cleared her throat.
"Alright. My name is Theresa Apocalypse. Headmistress of St. Freya Academy, a place specialized in training Valkyries to fight the Honkai," she said it with pride while her eyes sparkled with satisfaction and content.
"But you already know about that, didn't you?" The spark was gone at her question, though she still sounded content.
Adam remained quiet for a second before nodding and answering.
"Siegfried and Hestia told me beforehand about this place. He said that here I could learn how to exploit my potential and that his friend, he meant you, would give me a hand on that," he informed her.
"Siegfried told you about the academy?"
"Yeah. He said it was the best place for me to keep training," he didn't add that it was also a safe place to do it.
He and Siegfried weren't on good terms with Schicksal at all, but Siegfried told him that the academy had the personal and the facilities to improve himself. Not to mention that he shouldn't have to be running away in the case he went out of control and Schicksal, Anti Entropy decided to investigate the matter. According to Siegfried, the director would be able to handle him with no trouble at all if he went nuts.
"Although, he didn't tell me that the academy was being run by…?"
"By someone as cute as me?" Theresa smiled playfully and gave a spin on her feet.
"Y-Yeah," he decided to stick to that.
"{Are you sure that the painkiller isn't making us see this? She is a little brat!}"
"{Better not comment about her appearance or age. Celeste and our travels have given us a harsh lesson about that,}" Adam almost cringed remembering that.
"Anyway," Theresa interrupted his thoughts. "You should take a bath before I take you to your new dorm." He raised a brow. "Just like that? I thought I was going to be interviewed or something like that." He found it too convenient to be true.
She explained. "Normally that would be the case but given the circumstances in which you and the others arrived… let's say it's better if we speed up the enrollment process for all of you." He guessed that she wanted to keep him and the others away from the high command of Schicksal.
"Right. What happened to them?" Despite the tried to keep an even tone, worry leaked in his voice as he remembered the nasty slash on Kiana's back.
Theresa smiled hearing his concern. "Don't worry. There were some cuts and bruises. Nothing that we couldn't handle."
"What about the silver-haired girl? She got a nasty cut on her back." While Theresa was a friend of Siegfried, Adam didn't know if he could trust Kiana's identity to Theresa at all. He decided to play it safe. Call him paranoid, but there have been cases when some contact of Siegfried's had stabbed them in the back in few occasions for the promise of money. He wasn't going to risk Kiana's safety.
Theresa raised an eyebrow at the way he asked about Kiana until she concluded the cause of his worry. She closed her eyes and sighed. She opened and looked straight to Adam in the eye. "If you are worried about Kiana, I already know that she is the pervert's daughter. "I promised her mother long ago that I would watch out for her, so don't worry, I won't hurt her." Adam eyed her with a serious face. He kept the stare for another moment before dropping it. "Sorry, but I needed to be sure. There have been some close calls with some of Siegfried's friends in the past." He snarled at the word, remembering harsh moments that ended with bullets and one less friend for Siegfried. Theresa wasn't offended hearing this. In a way, she was relieved that he was watching out for her niece too.
"Don't worry. We will soon meet with them."
She went to one of the drawers and pulled one of them open. She took out a set of black pants, a red t-shirt, a simple grey hooded jacket, brown boxers, and a pair of sneakers with red stripes. She left them atop the furniture.
"While you were sleeping, Hestia asked me to buy you some clothes. I can't have you butt naked or wearing a skirt, do I?" She gave him a teasing smile. Adam wasn't sure how to respond, so he decided to grab the clothes and change but Theresa stopped him by raising her hand.
"I was serious about you taking a bath. You reek of dust and blood," she stepped away from him. Adam sniffed himself and winced.
"Damn. I really stink."
"{After our ordeal in the city, it is doubtful that you would smell like roses,}" it offered its observation. Adam ignored it and focused on Theresa, who was walking towards the door. It opened and she stepped out. Before it closed she turned one last time to him. "I will send someone to take off the medical equipment from your body. After that, go and take a quick shower and meet me in the lobby. Don't make me wait for too long." The door closed and Adam remained standing on the same spot.
"{Welp, I didn't think you were going to be accepted this quick in the academy,}"it was surprised at how easy he was accepted. Like it, Adam shared the sentiment.
"Anyway, it saved me a lot of time and an explanation of how I know Siegfried." He wasn't complaining about how things played out. He learned that sometimes one just has to be quiet and accept what came on your way.
After waiting for five minutes, a nurse came and quickly took off all the needles and cables from his body. Adam noted that from time to time the nurse moved her eyes over his frame. He guessed that she was probably freaked out by the long scars on his arms and legs despite his abnormal regeneration. The nurse only asked him short questions about his breath and blood pressure. She wrote some things on her tablet, told him that the door next to the chest of drawers was a personal bathroom filled with all he needed to clean himself. After that, she wished him a good day and left hastily.
It took him ten minutes to clean himself. He had some difficult to clean due to the ache on his back and shaking limbs, but nothing that he couldn't handle. Adam quickly changed into his new clothes.
He caught some stares from some nurses on his way but he didn't pay them mind. He spotted Theresa sitting on one of the sofas of the Hospital. She was carrying a black plastic bag filled with something. Once she saw him, she got up and walked towards the door. Adam soon joined her and together left the hospital.
He was blinded for a second when the rays of light fell on his face at stepping out. He blinked and couldn't help to gape at seeing the large and beautiful green gardens around. It was a nice view. Theresa stopped and saw his expression. She chuckled. "Ah, all the newbies react the same way. It never tires me out." She called him. "Hey, Adam!" He blinked and saw that Theresa resumed walking. "While we walk, let me tell you about the rules you will have to follow during your stay," she announced. He hasted his pace until he reached her.
"It can't be that hard."
He didn't think that living in St. Freya the following years was going to be difficult at all.
Mei Raiden didn't know how to feel exactly.
On one side, she was happy that her friends made it out of the city in one piece. Bronya was miraculously in one piece, a bit bruised after being struck aside like a ragdoll by the Honkai beast. She explained that it had something to do with Project Bunny's shield, but her explanation went over Mei's head as she hugged the little girl to the point of almost suffocating her. Later, on the second day after their rescue, Murata Himeko, the red-haired woman who was in charge of the flying battleship and the rescue operation; told her that Kiana was finally out of danger. Mei was sure that it was the third time in her life that she cried so hard after hearing the good news. And knowing that her friends were out of danger, Mei didn't think twice when she offered herself to whatever Schicksal had in store for her in exchange for the wellbeing of her friends. The young ex-heiress never expected to be slapped and be told off by the Major to live and go on with her life. To be honest, she didn't know what to do after all this. And that's when she was presented with an option she never saw coming.
To become a Valkyrie.
She wasn't sure at all about that. She didn't know, no, she knew what would happen if she loosed control again. The Major soothed her worry with a failsafe in case the Herrscher decided to make itself present again.
She dreaded the feeling of having a bomb inside her, but if that guaranteed that her friends' lives were safe, then so be it.
And despite the guarantee that everything was under control and that her friends were safe, Mei's fear and guilt were still present. She tried to not stare too much at Kiana as she tried to hide her winces whenever she extended her left arm to grab something, or how she put her weight more on her left leg rather her right. A pair of occasions Bronya caught her worried glances and subtly pushed Kiana on doing other things that didn't stress her recovering body. Of course in her own way, meaning, ignoring, or brushing off Kiana's comments.
"Hey! I told you that I can carry that trash bag!"
"The Bronya doesn't desire to clean again in case the idiot spoils all our hard work."
"Stop calling me an idiot!"
"No fighting!"
As Mei kept filling another bag with trash, her mind wandered towards the only male in their group during their escape from the city.
"What happened to you?" She wondered while Himeko threw two damped cloths on both girls' faces as she ordered them to clean the rest of the furniture for their future rooms as she went inside a room to sort some of her stuff that was going to the trash.
The last thing Mei remembered about Adam was him straining to get on his feet, Kiana… bleeding on them before she was pushed to the back of her mind. She didn't know what happened while she was unconscious, but she caught Kiana's and Himeko's perturbed gazes despite their efforts to hide it when she asked them about him. The young black haired girl didn't buy at all the Major's excuses to not visit him and she didn't want to pressure Kiana for answers after just being discharged. Himeko only explained that he suffered some injuries in the fight and that he was recovering in another section so he could be questioned about his power and interference in the incident. She justified that his power didn't have a precedent and was something they had never seen before.
Mei thought that the Major must have seen Adam's power in action and perhaps something else to frighten her. To be honest, she found a bit… strange his power and appearance when he used it. Despite that, he showed to be a caring individual, a little rough around the edges, but still, a caring person in her eyes if he was willing to… sacrifice himself, so they could run away…
"I will try to speak with him once we are done with this," she thought as she finished filling another bag with trash.
"Hey, Bratnya! Stop tickling me!" Kiana complained, bringing Mei back from her thoughts. She glanced at the two and saw that Bronya was cleaning a dusty book shell while Kiana glared at her with her arms crossed below her chest and with her damped cloth in her right hand. Bronya just glanced at her with her usually stoic face, although Mei caught that her eyes gained a questioning light. She was getting better in reading her subtle expressions.
"What are you talking about, subject idiotka?"
"You have been tickling me, like, four times," She exhaled deeply and to Mei's surprise, she didn't react to Bronya's favorite nickname for her. It seemed that she tried to not start anything. "Seriously, stop it. It's getting on my nerves."
"Your statement is false, idiotka. The Bronya is not doing such thing, and much less on someone as undesirable as you." Mei sighed, knowing that they were going to argue loudly again until she or Himeko stepped in.
"Girls, can you-?"
"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Kiana shouted, but, there was something new in her voice that called her attention. She wasn't the only one, like her, Bronya's eyes widened for a fraction of second at the sudden outburst from her silver-haired companion.
"Kiana-chan?" She took note that her blue eyes, who were usually friendly and bright; were replaced by boiling anger and the light in them dimmed a bit. Even in their previous quarrels, Kiana never directed such strong emotion towards their youngest companion.
"Hey!" Himeko came back from the dusty room. "What is going on here?!" She demanded answers as she got between Kiana and Bronya. Himeko gave the impression of a teacher stopping the beginning of a fight. Like Mei, she heard the new and angry tone coming from Kiana.
Neither of the girls said a word. Kiana kept glaring at Bronya, while the former remained with a poker face.
The calm and friendly mood from minutes before was replaced by a growing and tense silence.
"Well?" Himeko started to tap on the floor with her left foot as she exchanged glances with the girls waiting for answers. "I am waiting."
Before any of the girls could say anything, there was a sudden buzz that pierced the thickening silence.
Again, Bronya's eyes widened, in consternation this time, as she spotted something in front of her. Mei's brows raised in question at the unexpected expression from Bronya. She started to get worried as Himeko facial features shifted from demanding to… horrified and grossed out?
Mei moved her eyes towards the same direction the two were looking at, and then;
She saw it…
"I had to jinx it, isn't it?"
"…and don't peek at the girls' showers or you would be punished by the cutest girl in the world!" Theresa exclaimed innocently while Adam just rolled his eyes tired after hearing the last part of the sentence for the tenth time in the day.
"I get it! If I try to ogle it's my fucking head rolling off," he sighed annoyed. "Damn it, how many times do I have to tell you that I am not like the old man? At least I know something called common decency." He remarked.
For the next fifteen minutes, Theresa coached him with common things and rules that someone should follow in a school setting. He was sure the rules did not imply that he would be beaten to death if he tried to ogle girls.
She remarked giving him an incredulous stare. "What I can expect from someone who spent a long time traveling with that pervert? Mhm?"
The two were now inside a large three-story building that resembled more a holiday house than a school dormitory. Both were climbing the stairs to the second story.
"Maybe someone who actually thinks with his brain and not with his fu-?!"
"Apapa!" Theresa raised a finger and moved it from side to side. "What did I say about language?" Adam groaned in response.
"{Endure it. It's only a matter of time of adapting to these new rules,}" it tried to make him feel better. It worked a bit.
"{Fuck! That means we can't see-!}"
"Fuck off!" Adam screamed internally and tuned off the voices. He didn't know what was going on with them, both were too active for his taste.
"I will call Hestia as soon as I can."
They arrived at the main hall. There were multiple doors in it. Other personal rooms it seemed. He was surprised at the large size that could house many people. As they walked in the hall, he remembered Theresa carrying the black plastic bag since the walk from the hospital.
"Hey, Theresa, what's inside the bag?" She stopped walking. He paused along with her. She looked on both ends of the corridor, making sure there wasn't some around before she quickly shoved the bag in his hands. Adam was surprised by this.
"Theresa?" She resumed her walking like nothing happened, although her voice and posture went rigid.
"It's Principal Theresa, and by the way, please refrain from leaving personal objects around. Someone could steal them." Adam took a peek inside the bag and his eyes widened when he found Omen and Gungnir resting inside the bag's bottom. There was also his cellphone, with 10% of energy left and with some scratches on the edges; and the blue bottle with his pills. He didn't know the material Hestia made them from, but it must have been something pretty durable if they managed to survive a Herrscher's blast.
He lifted his gaze and found Theresa waiting for him in front of one of the doors.
"Is she telling me to not mention this outside my room?" He pondered with the voices.
"{Maybe. After all, we are in Schicksal's territory.}"
"{Check later for possible mics or cameras inside.}"
"Will do," he affirmed and caught up with Theresa.
"So, Principal, is this going to be my room?" He wasn't too comfortable about living in a building with anyone but girls, although beggars can't be choosers and the place looked pretty comfy. He was used to simpler places to sleep and rest. Still, the entire building marked positive points in Adam's book.
The Principal winced at his question. "Actually…"
"Kill it!" There was a sudden mature female cry on the other side of the door. "Kill it before it flies again!"
"I don't see it!" Adam heard a familiar voice, followed by others. He felt relief hearing them. A small smile formed on his face. The principal saw it but didn't say anything.
"The Bronya doesn't find traces of the vermin."
"Kiana-chan. Don't. Move."
"M-Mei-senpai?"
There was silence for a moment before the unknown woman screamed, followed by the other two girls' cries and things being shoved and threw around at the other side of the door.
Before he or the Principal could say something, the door was suddenly opened and, due to his surprise, Adam didn't avoid in time a flying boot coming on his way. His surprised expression shifted to one of horror when he saw in slow motion the biggest and fattest cockroach in his life on the boot's sole and how it made its way to his temple.
"SON OF A-!"
There was a crunch that rumbled in everyone's present ears. It was followed by a grim silence that was broken by an outraged shout.
"FFFUUUUUCCKKK!"
Thirty seconds later, Adam found himself shoved into the bathroom, courtesy from the Principal, and it took him ten minutes to be sure that he cleaned the rests of the vermin off his temple. Adam left the bathroom while drying a part of his hair with a towel.
"{Come on! You have been drenched in blood and other things and you are now bitching for a simple insect?}" It asked incredulity. Adam imagined giving it the middle finger before tuning its voice off.
He left the bathroom behind and found that the other women in the room were sat on two cream theme couches in the living room. Bronya, Mei, and Kiana were sat drinking a can of soda while the red-haired woman and the principal were discussing something on the other piece of furniture. There was a coffee table in the middle with cans of soda and beer. He thought that right now he needed a strong drink. He looked around and saw pieces of furniture disordered around. Bags of trash full and brooms and mops along with a dustpan and a bucket with water. Noticing his presence, the principal cut her conversation while the girls stopped drinking. Before anyone could say anything, Mei got up with a jump and walked towards him hurriedly. She stopped in front of him and to everyone's surprise, she bowed deeply.
"Mei?"
"I am so sorry, Adam-kun!" She apologized with an urgent tone. He didn't understand what she meant until he remembered among the disgusting fluids dripping off his temple, Mei was the one who threw the boot with the roach on it.
He took a deep breath and exhaled. "It is okay, Mei. I know that you didn't do it on purpose," he massaged his temple. It still stung a bit and he felt disgusted remembering the insect's remains on him. Mei stopped bowing.
"By the way, you got a nice throw," he commented trying to lighten the mood. He guessed it was the wrong thing to say because Mei gained an awkward expression and began to play with her fingers nervously.
"I… I am not… I don't only mean that …" She said between pauses. Adam didn't understand what she meant. Mei saw his puzzling expression and clarified what she meant. "I-I am speaking about… what happened the last time in Nagazora…
"Oh… "He understood. She gave a meek nod. For their part, the others kept silent while seeing the exchange between the two youngsters. The Principal was especially paying close attention to him.
"You don't have to apologize for anything," he tried to reassure her. "We are good." Adam didn't blame her for how things played out during the night attack. She wasn't being herself and in fact, neither he. Both of them were in a life-death situation and at the end of it, everyone came out alive.
"{Although barely…}" it added.
His statement didn't calm her at all. "But I almost killed you!" she shouted in protest, startling Adam and the others slightly. "If it wasn't for me, neither Kiana, Bronya, or you would have been hurt!" She clenched her fists until both turned white. "I- I woke up two days later after they rescued us to find out that Bronya and Kiana-chan barely escaped death!" Her breath was ragged after her outburst. Adam caught at the corner of his eye that Kiana was about to make her way towards them until the Principal stopped her and made a gesture of silence with her hand.
"I-if only I didn't lose control, nothing of this would have happened…" Then she muttered something that Adam barely heard. "If only I died back then…"
Hearing that, he decided to step in. He wasn't good at cheering people up, Siegfried and Hestia had told so, but he will not allow Mei to blame herself for the Herrscher's actions. After all, she was shoved in this world of survival against the Honkai while dealing with an entity inside her head hell-bent focused on ending the human race.
Pondering his next words for a moment, he decided that being honest was the best option.
He cleared his voice. "I almost killed you back then too," Mei's eyes widened at his statement. The others were surprised by how casually he admitted it. "When we were atop, huh, atop the battleship I almost killed you when you were already down. It was thanks to Kiana and that red-haired woman over there that I was stopped in the last second," he revealed what transpired while she was unconscious. "I lost control and you would have been stabbed in the heart if wasn't for their intervention." Mei was perplexed hearing this. She turned her head towards her friend.
"Is-is that true, Kiana-chan?" She stuttered. The silver-haired girl looked unsure of what to say before the red-haired woman stepped in.
"It's true, dear," she glanced at Adam before returning to Mei. "Your friend over there went, mmm, how do I say it?"
"Fucking insane?" He offered his two cents. He ignored the glare thrown by the Principal. The red-haired woman was surprised that he didn't want to dance around the matter.
"I was going to say it with delicacy, but you are right kiddo. You went fucking nuts before your friend, Kiana, somehow managed to stop you in the last second." She leaned over the table and took an open can of beer. She drank a deep gulp despite the disapproving look from Theresa. The red-haired centered her gaze on Adam.
"I was sure I was about to fight you kid. Imagine my surprise when your friend not only stopped you, but you also faced head-on the bullets from a damn mounted machine gun to protect your friends and somehow, survived."
At her statement, there were multiple reactions: Adam gaped in surprise Theresa glared at her, Kiana winced, Bronya's eyes widened and Mei paled in horror and looked at him with major concern. Theresa quickly jabbed her on the side. The woman was about to protest until it dawned on her what she just said. The Principal muttered something about the drunken loose mouth. He agreed with her.
He looked at the Principal for answers but she was still glaring at her coworker and the others were looking at him like he was a ghost, as if not believing what the red-haired woman just said.
"{You what?!}"
"{This is new…}"
"What the hell happened back there?!" He thought in worry. He started to recall the last moments on the ship deck before he blacked out.
"I was, I was about to stab Mei," he passed his hand through his hair as his head started to throb. "Then Kiana was screaming about, about saving her and then…"
"[AAAADDDDAAAAMMMM!]"
Suddenly, the scream made him stiff for a second.
He felt something hollow and hot inside him boiling for release.
That devouring feeling of utter despair and burning rage…
"Don't…"
He bit the left side of his inner cheek and started to count from ten to backward. As he did that, it took him sheer will power to keep his composure and shove that feeling on the back of his mind. He decided to sort out later with Theresa and Hestia whatever happened on the ship deck. Right now he needed to put in order the issue with Mei.
"Adam?" Theresa called him. "I am fine," he answered her too quickly for his like.
Calming down, he saw Mei straight in the eye and spoke with an even tone. "Pushing that aside… I don't blame you for what happened, Mei. Things went to shit fast and hard and we had to do what needed to be done to get out of there alive. So don't feel bad for what happened that night."
"But I almost killed you! And what Miss Himeko just said!" The ex-heiress protested. She couldn't understand how he can easily brush off their close encounter with death. "Y-you! How can you take so easily the fact that I almost killed you?!"
"Because it was the Herrscher who tried to kill us, not you." Mei's eyes widened in bewilderment. "And about Bitch Queen, fuck her for forcing you in all this. Fuck her for using you and your fears against you and fuck her for making you feel responsible for her actions. She may be a part of you but she is not you. Remember that she is only a parasite that feeds on your fear and weakness." He wasn't sure of his next move but Siegfried and Katherine told him that it worked sometimes, so he took the risk.
Adam patted her on the head softly, taking her by surprise. "So cheer up, okay?" He cracked a small smile as he finished patting her.
Mei stared at him for several seconds processing his words. Honestly, he didn't know what else to tell her. Lies or say what she wanted to hear could have made her happy momentarily but it won't only be frowned down by the others, it will make things worse for Mei in the future.
The truth was hard and a bitch to deal with, but it was better facing the problem rather than sorting out pieces of a lie and its consequences.
"I hope this works."
His smile vanished when Mei's eyes started to water. If it wasn't bad, the other girls' glares –mainly from Kiana and Bronya- made red alarms go off inside his head as the salty drops started to appear in the corner of her eyes. The others gave incredulous stares, although he caught the red-haired woman nodding in approval of him.
He half-raised his hands in defense. "I don't-I don't' know how to do this stuff," he explained while rubbing his temple. "B-but I mean it when I say you don't have to apologize for anything," he started to panic when the tears started to fall. Adam could deal with violent and bloody stuff in any day and mission but make him deal with volatile things such as emotions outside missions and he wouldn't know if he did good or messed up.
"Fuck! Any ideas on how to fix this?!"
"{Try to apologize and be more considerate about her feelings? She must still feel guilty for what happened,} it suggested.
"{How about a hug or a massage? They tend to make people happy and who knows, maybe you can get something nice in return!}"
Before Adam could answer back, he was brought back to reality when Mei gave him a tight hug. Both voices and he came to a halt at the sudden action.
"Thank you…" Adam heard the sincerity in her voice. He didn't return the hug despite the motions from the principal and the red-haired woman to do it. In his defense, he was surprised about the hug to react accordingly.
After another awkward moment, she undid the hug and cleaned off the few tears with her hands and gave him a crooked smile. Adam blinked and returned the gesture with another crooked smile. For their part, the girls stopped glaring and smiled at the scene.
"Alright!" Theresa clapped her hands, calling everyone's attention, and breaking the tense mood. "Now that that is behind you, I would like to congratulate all of you for your admission to St. Freya Academy." She applauded and jabbed at the red-haired woman to follow her example. Hers wasn't sincere like the principal's but nobody commented about it.
"And by the way Adam, I am happy that there are no problems between you and your new roommates!"
"WAIT? WHAT?!" Kiana, Adam screamed at the same time bewildered while Bronya took another sip from her soda, ignoring the noise around her. The Principal winced at their screams and Mei just looked surprised at the Principal's announcement.
"You can't be serious!" Adam screamed incredulously.
"I told you they were going to react that way!" The red-haired woman giggled at their funny expressions.
"Are you for real?! He- He used a grenade to strip Mei-senpai back then! Who knows what else he can do?!" Adam's eye twitched at the memory.
"Damn it, Kiana! I am not a pervert!"
"He-he didn't mean to do that Kiana-chan!" Mei tried to defend him.
"But Mei-senpai! Adam has these strange tentacles and remember that he wrapped us with them!
"Don't make it sound that way!"
Despite the noise, Theresa took it as a break from the previous tense moment. For a second she feared that Mei was about to have a mental breakdown, but fortunately, it didn't happen. She sighed and took an unopened can of soda and started to sip it as she dwelled in her thoughts.
"Hestia, why do you insist on making him coming here in the first place?" She frowned. "I just don't understand why you and Siegfried wouldn't continue training him in the first place…"
Theresa kept drinking her soda in silence as the other occupants were arguing about Adam's actions and how he and Mei tried to justify them.
Once she finished, she put the empty can on the table. She glanced at the others, and seeing that they were not going to stop anytime soon, Theresa cleared her throat and took a deep breath.
"SILENCE!" She screamed off as the other occupants in the room stopped arguing and directed their attention towards her. The only ones who didn't react at all were Bronya who kept drinking her soda with a calm expression and the red-haired drinking a new beer while watching them argue.
"Ahem, now that I have your attention, do you have any question?" Two hands were raised.
"Yes. Kiana?"
"Why is Adam going to live with us? And, is he going to attend the academy with us too?"
"Those are two questions, but yes. He is going to attend the academy and live with you as long as he attends St. Freya."
"I get the part about attending the academy together, but why I have to live with them?!" He butted in. He found the idea of living with four women in an apartment awkward and ridiculous given the richness and power that Schicksal had.
"{This is problematic…}"
"{I can't wait for the shower peeks!}"
Adam ignored them in favor of hearing the Principal's explanation.
"The other rooms are already occupied given that we are at the beginning of the second semester of this year," explained Theresa. Adam ran his hand over his hair. He didn't want to live with other occupants in the same room, and much less if they were four women. He knew that there would be 'little accidents', like opening a door at the wrong moment or having 'casual peeks'. He knew that because he lived before with his mother and two sisters. Nothing bad or scandalous with these accidents because they were family; but with strangers and young women?
Awkward as hell.
"What? I thought you would be happy to live with four beautiful women in an apartment and attend an academy full of girls?" Theresa asked with a confused expression on her face. Mei blushed a bit at her question while Kiana and Bronya barely reacted save for a raised brow. For his part, Adam looked at the Principal with a deadpanned expression.
"First, I expected hearing that from the pervert, not you. Second, it's a bad idea because all of them are girls and third; how are you okay with this?!" He thought that she would be more protective over her students given the constant threats to be beaten to a bloody pulp if he tried to peek at the girls or look at them in the wrong way.
The Principal shrugged off. "Sorry, but that's what I am offering. Either way, you can live here or inside a janitor closet. The choice is yours."
Adam pondered for a moment before he realized something. "I can afford a place in the city, and maybe a motorbike or something to go and come." He thought in satisfaction. Before he proposed his idea, it was immediately shut down by the Principal.
"If you are thinking about living in the city, you have another thing coming."
"What do you mean?" He hoped that it didn't have to do with some dumb rule about staying at all times inside St. Freya.
"Hestia told me that due to some problems, your account is going to be suspended for a couple of weeks," she said.
"Did she tell you what it was?" Adam shifted his exasperated semblance for one of seriousness. He knew that few things could be a problem for Hestia. If he couldn't get access to his bank account, then that meant that she put under wraps her connections to him and Siegfried, and perhaps the rest of her network. He thought of calling her or at least leave a message as soon as he was alone.
"Oh my~. I didn't expect you to get more worried about money than living with us?" The red-haired woman put down her beer on the table and crossed her arms. Adam shifted her eyes at her. He dropped the sharpness but kept a serious stand.
"Are you okay with this, miss…?"
"Murata Himeko. But you can call just call me Himeko." Adam nodded.
"Right. As I was saying, are you okay with this Miss Himeko?" He added the miss for education and courtesy. He wanted to be on her good side to at least make the Principal see reason. To his dismay, she shrugged off.
"Knock it off with the Miss, and to be honest, not at all. But I don't fear putting some sense in your skull if you dare to be a peeking tom." She crossed her legs. "But seeing your insistence to not be living with a beautiful woman and three cute girls make me wonder, are you a gentleman or you bat for the other side? I don't judge." She finished with a teasing smile.
"I don't know about the first one and I am not the second thing, but," he groaned. "I will be honest. This makes me feel awkward as hell. I am a man after all." While this one was the main reason, there was another motive he wasn't mentioning.
His nightmares.
He didn't want to explain to the others about the topic. The first time he talked about the nightmares with Siegfried was very uncomfortable. One night he woke up Adam and dragged him to a bar to talk about it. Not the best place due to it being a public place, but Siegfried commented that nobody would give a shit about his story, after all, the bar was filled with people like him.
Reluctantly, Adam told him the many things he saw inside his dreams. Siegfried listened in silence. At their conversation's end, he didn't judge him or told him that he was crazy. He told him that if ever feel the need to share more, he would be there to listen. This along with other things made him respect and trust Siegfried more, although he didn't tell him this to his face, his ego would only get bigger, but he was sure the old man knew that.
Getting back on track, seeing that Adam wasn't budging, Theresa remembered one thing Hestia mentioned in the case he showed opposition to live with the others.
"If you are worried about your medication, Hestia gave me your pills for you to sleep," Theresa pointed out. Adam glanced at her, then did a double-take hearing that.
"What?"
"Hestia told me about your problems to catch sleep due to your powers. She sent me enough pills to last you a month." She stood up and searched in her clothes before grabbing a bottle the same size he already had for his powers, although this one was pink. Theresa walked to him and gave him the pills and went back to her seat.
"T-thanks," he said clumsily. He was caught off guard at Theresa's direct way to call on his main issue.
"Adam-kun, you have problems to sleep?" Mei asked. He winced and saved his pills inside one of his jacket pockets. He nodded at Mei and glared at Theresa for a second for bringing up the topic in front of the others. She shrugged off. "You didn't mention it was personal." Adam released a resigned sigh knowing that he no longer had other good reasons to not live in the dormitory. "So, I am going to be living with you four, eh?" The Principal smiled at his surrender.
"Welcome aboard, Adam! I hope you have an excellent time here!" The Principal cheered on. Adam rubbed his face in resignation as Mei tried to lighten the mood by offering to make dinner. The youngsters instantly cheered up with her proposal.
"An airhead, a soft big sister with a Herrscher, a stoic mecha little girl and a young man with creepy powers," Himeko took another seep from her beer. She glanced at Theresa and to her surprise, she caught an unusual smile on her face.
A nostalgic and content smile at meeting someone again after so long. She decided to keep her thoughts to herself.
"I hope you know what are you doing, Teri."
…
CONCLUSION:
UNIT BUNE DOES NOT FIND ANYTHING SUSPICIOUS WITH THE TEXT.
UNIT BUNE WILL INFORM ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ZERO FINDINGS IN THE INVESTIGATION OF TASK #985.
UNIT BUNE UNLOCKING ANTI-MEMETIC SPREAD CONTAINMENT MEASURES.
UNIT BUNE:
ABOVE US BEAMING AS WE RUN
DOWN THAT AISLE
UNIT BUNE:
WITH FUTURE UNFOLDED - THE LIFE WE'D WON
COMMITMENT AND DUTY, FOR THE FAMILY WE'D RAISE
CERULEAN SKIES FERRY THE SHIMMERING SUN
ALERT! ALERT! ALERT ALERT!
UNIT BUNE COMPROMISED.
INITIATING CONTAINMENT-
[01001000 01100101 01101100 01101100 01101111 00100000 01001111 01101100 01100100 00100000 01000110 01110010 01101001 01100101 01101110 01100100]
SELF-DESTRUCTION-
[01000010 01100101 00100000 01101101 01111001 00100000 01101100 01101001 01100111 01101000 01110100 00100000 01101001 01101110 00100000 01110100 01101000 01101001 01110011 00100000 01101100 01101111 01101110 01100111 00100000 01101110 01101001 01100111 01101000 01110100]
UNIT-
SAFFRON SKIES RAISE THE BLAZING SUN
A CHANCE ENCOUNTER, AWKWARD DISPLAYS
ONE DAY, MY LOVE, WE'D BE AS ONE
WITH TWO ENTWINED. A SET COURSE, BEGUN
THAT FRENETIC, WILD, LUSTROUS HAZE;
AZURE SKIES HOST THE RADIANT SUN
ABOVE US BEAMING AS WE RUN
DOWN THAT AISLE, A FERVENT CRAZE
THAT DAY, MY LOVE, WE BECAME AS ONE
WITH FUTURE UNFOLDED - THE LIFE WE'D WON
COMMITMENT AND DUTY, FOR THE FAMILY WE'D RAISE
CERULEAN SKIES FERRY THE SHIMMERING SUN
BURIED. SHACKLED BY FATE - OVERRUN
BY EVER-GROWING RESENT AND MALAISE
YESTERDAY, MY LOVE, WE WERE AS ONE
NOW YOU LIE HERE, THE LIFE IN YOU GONE
IN THE DARK OUTSIDE OF HER RAYS
CRIMSON SKIES BEAR THE TORCH; OUR SUN
TODAY, MY LOVE, WE'LL BE AS ONE
[01001001 01101110 01101001 01110100 01101001 01100001 01110100 01100101 00100000 01001111 01110000 01100101 01110010 01100001 01110100 01101001 01101111 01101110 00111010 01010011 01110100 01100001 01110010 01100111 01100001 01111010 01100101]
UNDERSTOOD.
[DATA EXPLUNGED]
UNIT BUNE DOES NOT FIND ANYTHING SUSPICIOUS WITH THE TEXT.
UNIT BUNE WILL INFORM ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ZERO FINDINGS IN THE INVESTIGATION OF TASK #985.
UNIT BUNE UNLOCKING ANTI-MEMETIC SPREAD CONTAINMENT MEASURES.
UNIT BUNE DELIVERING REPORT TO ADMINISTRATOR.
[01010101 01101110 01110100 01101001 01101100 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100101 01101110 00101100 00100000 01001101 01111001 00100000 01001011 01101001 01101110 01100111 00101110]
INFORMATION DELIVERED.
UNIT BUNE LOGGING OUT.
UNIT BUNE LOGGED OUT.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The poem isn't mine. Poesy, to be honest, it's not my thing.
The poem belongs to its respective author. All credit and respect go to the original author of the poem. It was only used to fulfill a minor function in the story. So if you, S. D. Locke, are reading this, I am not taking credit for the work you did. The work from where this poem is part of is cool and damn scary.
If you are wondering from where is this, I will give you a hint:
"Fear the light."
Goodbye!
Hope you enjoyed the chapter.