Tatiana gripped her sons' hand tightly. Since the moment the bus had come crashing to halt the two had been on the run. Emergency sirens blared. Lights flashed. Screams. The smell of blood. Sweat. People's panicked cries. The city was a roaring chorus of senses that threatened to overwhelm. The two, bruised and battered from the crash, just ran. Tatiana knew they had to reach the docks. The north and west were blocked by creatures. Things. Honkai. She had seen them in the news. The Honkai Eruption. It had caused so much harm. Coral was remote. They had been relatively safe. Now the Honkai were here and everything was falling apart. Security mechs tried to fight back. Sometimes they succeeded. Sometimes the great mechanical constructs were torn to shreds by the alien entities.
Tatiana gripped Miles' hand tightly. The pair did nothing but run. Other people were targeted. The street awash with screams of horror, the sounds of gunfire and Honkai. A car crashed into a bollard. The occupants pulled themselves slowly free, pallid skin lit by scarlet burns, hungry yellow eyes scanning the area for the living. A pregnant woman tried to run. Her husband put himself in harm's way, desperate to buy her several seconds. Both fell beneath the hungry undead tide. Tatiana did her best to ignore the shrieks. She could do nothing to smother her sons hearing. He was hopefully young enough that such memories would fade with time.
The pair turned down a side-street. Tatiana knew this part Coral's first level well enough. There were a few shortcuts she could use to their advantage. Other people ran along behind her. Likely locals that knew that area well. Were aware of the stairwell that circled a main stock elevator. A quick way for the public to move from the first storey to ground floor. Tatiana turned down a side-alley. For her the goal was not to go down, but up. Her husband and daughter were on the second level. He had been showing their daughter his workplace. Tatiana would meet with him and go from there. He was safe at his. The Schicksal branch offices were built to endure events such as this. The Valkyrja would go into the city and fight back against the Honkai. That was what they did. Protect Humanity from the dangers of the Honkai.
"Mama!" Miles cried out.
Tatiana looked over her shoulder. Nearly a dozen other people were following her. The zombies, the Honkai, were all drawn to large gatherings of humans. They needed to split up. Another quick turn. A T-junction was just ahead. Tatiana would turn right. It would take them longer but split them away from the panicked crowd behind. Tatiana shuddered and tried to keep her limbs going. She should have been soaked in sweat, a combination of the heat of the day and physical exertion. Instead, the air robbed her limbs of warmth and scoured her lungs every time she inhaled.
Lighting was beginning to fail. Sections of the power grid faltered as gross structural damage and ambient Honkai energy rendered the system inoperative. Streetlights flickered and fell dim. Yellow eyes lit up in the gloom. On the other side of the T-junction multiple Evolved Zombies strode forward. The hair of the women was bleached white, their bodies now protected by black carapace and cloak of unknown material. Some carried scythes, others hammer, sickle or even bows. One at the front crawled on all fours, its hands surrounded by a shimmering field of solid light, giving the appearance of vorpal claws.
Tatiana knew that it was already too late. She refused to give in. Tatiana ran in the defiant hope that she could turn the corner and get away. They was going to seek shelter with her husband and daughter. She would make sure her son was safe.
Curious. It was curious. Destruction surrounded the woman. A cacophony of death. Light, sound, smell, even taste. Roads torn up by great lumbering Honkai. Vehicles broken and left to smoke. Parks and gardens burning as people fled on foot from zombified friends and relatives. Evolved Zombies vanguard using tactics and strategy to slaughter hundreds. The air did not heat up with all the fires. It turned frigid. Curious. Through all that, Tatiana could still pick out two sets of faint footsteps. She reached the T-junction at the same time as the Evolved Undead. The two pairs of footsteps arrived. A tall woman holding a blade over her shoulder like one would a javelin. Another with briefcase in one hand, pistol in the other. The tall one hurled the blade at Tatiana. The woman ducked. The blade struck the wall, the air around it turning glassy. The hunched zombie roared and leapt forward. It collided with the glassy wall. Glowing Honkai claws rasped against empty air. The tall woman wasted no time. She was upon the beast. Her movements were quick and brutal. Knife-hand blows to shatter bone. Raking hands to savage muscle. Quick jabs to disable limbs and crush torso. She reserved her kicks for moving an undead creature out the way once it was no longer moving. The ally was no less effective. The undead horde as it rushed down the street was raked with scorching fire. Archers at the back burned to ash as ranging shots ignited the area. At close range the pistol was charged up before disgorging a gout of flame.
An Evolved Undead with a scythe took a swipe at the woman from behind. Tatiana wanted to call out. She knew it was important to help this person. But fear kept her standing there passively. All she could do was grip her sons' hand tightly. Her passiveness mattered not. The woman anticipated the strike and stepped into it, elbow smashing the creature back into a wall, tight grip stealing the weapon. Now armed the woman was unstoppable. Like threshing wheat, she cut through the remaining Evolved Undead. Her ally mopped up the survivors with a few well-timed shots.
The warrior woman stalked over to where her blade was buried in the concrete wall and yanked it out casually. She looked Tatiana up and down once.
"The south docks are still safe. Get out before everything freezes over."
Tatiana stood their rigid. She couldn't find any words.
"Go!"
The cry shook Tatiana free of her reverie.
"But my husband and daughter are—"
"—already dead. Wherever they are, they are dead. Run with you son and escape. Anything to the north or above this level is gone."
"But Schicksal—"
"—failed to do their job. Again. Run."
The woman and her companion began running. Tatiana had a choice. Turn right and find her husband and daughter. Turn left and follow the woman who had torn apart the Undead.
Tatiana gripped her surviving child's hand tightly. She turned left.
"You do realise she is following us?"
"Her choice."
"We're likely to encounter further resistance. That puts her in harm's way."
"I'll not protect her."
"And me?"
"At your discretion."
"I appreciate that, dear customer."
Both had synchronised their optical contacts to their phones. The AR interface displayed multiple paths to their escape routes. Real-time tactical overlay delivered via the drones Mei had distributed throughout the city. Subverted communications bands with up-to-the-second emergency response updates. The pair needed to know as much as they could about Coral's fall so as to avoid the worst. They reached the stairwell their AR had guided them toward. Mei reached for the emergency door.
"Not that one!" came a shout.
Mei glanced over her shoulder. The woman and her son were still trailing them.
"What?" Mei asked in a flat voice.
"Don't use that one. You want to use the emergency stairwell two streets down. It's longer in distance but has less access doors. Less chance of the undead or Honkai."
Amarant glanced at Mei and smirked.
"I'd say we owe her for that information."
A bellow carried down the alley. Mei stood a little taller. A small band of people were trying to fend off a Cavalier level Honkai beast. The rider and its alien mount charged through the group. Several were crushed underfoot. The beast spun and readied for another charge. Mei shrugged and turned her attention back to the woman.
"Your name?"
"Tatiana. This is Miles."
Amarant held a palm upward and conjured a hologram.
"We want to get here."
Tatiana watched the small line flow from their current position to the southern docks on ground level. The woman touched a few key points.
"These would normally be faster. But in emergency situations there are checkpoint lockdowns. Physical and Honkai energy barriers. It's meant to funnel people away from chokepoints as well as contain any terrorist threats."
"And you know this…"
"My husband works as a technical support officer for Schicksal in Coral City. He would talk about this all the time."
"So where do we go then?"
Tatiana looked at the map intently. Another human scream echoed. She shuddered.
"Can't you do something?"
Tatiana looked at Mei with pleading eyes.
"No. I'm not Schicksal. They can go around saving people. I'm here to do something and then leave."
"You saved me."
"Because you were right in front of me. Many more people are going to die before this all ends. I'm not Kiana."
Mei looked away. It wasn't guilt that stayed her tongue from going any further. Just a realisation of the fundamental gulf between the two. Kiana would do everything to save everyone. That was just who she was.
"Show us the most effective route you can think of," Mei asked.
Tatiana retraced the path, making small changes here or there.
"This will get us to the south docks."
Mei nodded.
"Your payment is safe passage. You can leave with us on the escape boat and aircraft. After we land safely you decide your own future."
Mei unsheathed Raikiri and handed the scabbard to Tatiana. She sent a small flicker of power into the weapon, activating the Honkai powered electromagnetic blade ward and centring it tightly about the pair.
"You hold the two most important things in your life. Don't let go of either."
Tatiana bobbed her head once. Miles swallowed and looked the stranger in the eye. Mei picked him for 10 at most. For all that he had gone through, the boy maintained his calm, face clear of tears.
'I like him.'
"Shall we get going, Mei?"
Mei gestured to Amarant to lead the way.
Owl's eyes flicked. His attention was split between several holographic windows. Hands danced as he played with the security of Coral City. Doors opened and closed. Bulwarks were activated or failed their defenders at critical locations. Thousands died as the World Serpent agent followed his own plan. He needed everything in place. A script with many options for revision. The agents sent by the Sovereign would arrive soon. He pulled up the communication from Jackal. Instructions for the use of the Sceptres of UWAS. Not that he didn't know already. Requests for Honkai beast samples. On-field weapon testing for future reference and updating. The 3rd Key was being deployed for field action. Information on the Schicksal forces assisting on their operation. That had elicited a whistle from Owl. He'd had to walk away from the screens and digest that information. A thick icy mist settled upon the second floor. In the height of summer the world was freezing.
'Not long Ana. I'll save you.'
Far below the building he stood atop the fires raged. Clouds of Honkai beasts swept through the air. Beasts as small as cats and others several stories tall raged about. Those humans not already dead had either turned to zombies or fled.
Owl returned to his planning. He would take into account the involvement of Otto and Rita. They were meant to remain on interdiction duty. His assessment said that would not last. At last the data on the hunting squad arrived. Raven wasn't a surprise. She was back after ensuring her pet orphans were safe and sound. Magpie gave Owl pause. He quickly looked up her file. Then a server-side hack was activated. Owl wasn't interested in the sanitised information. He needed Jackal's personal notes. The woman was certified insane. But that came with scientific brilliance. She dealt in facts. Twisted facts. But cold, hard, logical, twisted facts. Owl double checked the information.
A beep interrupted the careful reading. A security sensor had picked up unusual activity. An absolute drop in ambient Honkai radiation readings. The glitch had lasted only a few seconds. But it was something interesting. 1600 HW to 0 HW was curious. Owl brought up nearby cameras. There was nothing in the stairwell. The intuition of the Information Warfare Specialist said dig deeper. Owl rewound the footage. 1 minute ago a woman, a child's hand clutched tightly, a scabbard held against her chest, ran by. The camera wound back further. Two woman led the group. A blue haired woman Owl didn't recognise. And someone he immediately recognised. Her hair was longer and her clothes different. But it was without doubt Raiden Mei.
Fate or the [Honkai God] was looking out for Owl. His position would be abandoned soon to meet the agents on the ground level. But one last thing remain. He drew up the information on Raven and Magpie. It was too perfect. The two groups needed to meet. It would suit Owl. Hands danced across keyboards. Owl had the final impetus he needed to bring about his future.
"Estimated time until arrival, Alvitr?"
"10 minutes, Vice-Captain Rita."
"And Durandal-sama?"
"She has been making good time from North Africa. Using tracking satellite I estimate approximately 15 minutes."
"Have squads ready to air-drop as we circle Coral City. Initial reconnaissance. The rest will work on containment once we reclaim the southern air-strips for further battleship landings. Then we push north along the arterial freeway."
"Understood, Vice-Captain Rita."