Hello everyone, Null-Void is back once more with a new chapter. I honestly tried to post this one a little sooner compared to how long I took to pos the first. Anyways I have received a bit of positive feedback from most of my readers and will try and attend to all questions by the end of the chapter.
I hope that you enjoy the story and feel free to offer up your own ideas for the current plotline and if I like it I will definitely add it somewhere around the plot I already have in mind.
There were some comments regarding the fact that I might kill Kasumi, I can neither confirm nor deny that. However please do have an open mind for both outcomes.
As always pleas do leave a comment or question at the end of the chapter to tell me what you thought. I will do my best to answer all questions in the following Chapter
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Characters in HI3, However let it be known that the OC are indeed my own.
Chapter 2: Shifts in life
Kiana dashed across the city rooftops as fast as she could, her destination being the eastern gates of Chita which were no longer visible due to the large amount of smoke and flames within the area that was within the area. How could she have allowed this to happen while she was here, she had sensed the increase in honkai energy much earlier than before but had only brushed it off as Phil tempering with the honkai cores she had dropped off at his place.
She had only become aware of the situation when the Sirens began to ring throughout the city, with being the one to tell her about the evacuation procedures that occurred in the event there was an attack on the city. About an hour later while the adults of the orphanage kept the children calm as they stood in a long line of people waiting to get in the Bunker of the Cathedral, a loud explosion rang throughout the city and laminated the sky for a bit. And Kiana was able to see the pink glow of Honkai energy rapidly approaching the city.
Once making sure that everyone she cared about was fine, Kiana left the group and headed for the source of the honkai energy she felt. Kasumi and had showed their concerns and voiced them to the Kaslana, but she reassured them that she would be fine. These Honkai beasts had just ruined her birthday party and she was going to give them all a piece of her mind.
She could already sense nearly fifteen honkai beasts spreading throughout the city as they entered through the east gates, however what also peaked her interest was the fact that some other beasts she sensed would die out after being confronted by another source of honkai energy that she was not familiar with. They were three f them in total, all fighting the beasts as they reached the city walls. The best thought she could come up with for now was that they were valkyrie, which only served to make her more eager to lend a helping hand.
It didn't take the Kaslana long to make it to the scene of battle, having followed the sounds of explosions, concentrated honkai radiation, as well as fie fire and flames she could see from the area. Standing atop the roof of a building, the Kaslana looked down at the street below, which had now turned into a war zone, and there her suspicions were confirmed when she saw three girls, which she assumed were valkyrie, fighting against the now twelve remaining beasts. Of the twelve beasts, three of them were templar, two chariots, a cavalier and five cassiel, aside from those there was also a large horde of zombies, which Kiana assumed were the recently turned citizens' o Chita, attacking the girls whenever the opportunity presented itself.
The Kaslana decided to remain on the rooftop and observe the battle before deciding to take any action. She would intervene when she was needed, rather than ruin the element of surprise. While the valkyrie seemed to be handling themselves quite well against their adversaries, the Kaslana was able to see how the numbers were beginning to wear them down a bit. What made it worse was that they were also being separated from one another and were working within the confined environment of the street they were in.
To the right side of the street, Kiana cold see a girl about her age dressed in a blue cheongsam and jeans. Around her hands she wore white gauntlets of sorts that went all the way up to her elbows with yellow spikes coming out at the ed. What surprised Kiana about the girl was the fact that she was engaging the honkai beasts' in direct combat with her fists. Her blows packing enough force to instantly kill a cassiel level beast and crack the carapace of a chariot beast. Her style and movement in combat was well formed and precise, not a blow or energy going to waste as she kept track of all her surroundings. She was currently engaged with a templar, two chariots – now reduced to one, and three cassiel – also reduced to one. Aside from those there was a small group of zombies that would prove to be a thorn in her side.
The next battle was happening right below the Kaslana a little to the left. A young girl, no older than twelve or thirteen at most, was engaging a templar, and a large horde of zombies that seemed endless. She wore what seemed like a yellow armor. What truly caught Kiana's attention about this girl was the giant robot that seemed to be hovering above her head. It resembled the upper half of the human body with its left arm wielding a shield that went all the way to it elbows and it right arm sporting a spear. The robot would be the one to engage the enemies in direct combat, but it was most likely under the control of the girl as it always stayed within arm's reach of her.
The last girl was one with dark navy blue hair, she seemed to be around the same age as Kiana as and wore crimson armor that seemed to be designed in a samurai like function. Like the girl before her she didn't seem to carry the same level of experience as the first valkyrie. She was having an easier time cutting through zombies and was doing well against the templar, however the problem came with cavalier that would always try to blindside her whilst she was distracted with her other opponent. What's worse it seemed the her sword style was more suited for dealing with enemies directly in front of you, which would normally work well in a one on one battle, but here the numbers were against her, putting her at a major disadvantage. So it wasn't a surprise to the Kaslana when the cavalier finally managed to catch her unaware whilst she was engaging the templar and prepared to strike her down.
It was then the Kaslana entered the battle….
**With the valkyrie squad – five minutes earlier:**
Fu Hua had no idea how things had gone so terribly wrong so fast…..actually scratch that she knew exactly what happened. She and Mei were supposed to meet up with Bronya but the city gates and hopefully prevent as many beasts as possible from entering the city. However, the honkai radiation had spread much faster than they had anticipated, as a result numerous civilians were zombified and attacked them on sight, slowing them down. By the time he rendezvoused with Bronya the beasts had already broken through the city gates, however Bronya had managed to reduce the number of beasts once more before they managed to enter the city.
Bronya and Mei seemed to be handling themselves quite well despite only having a year's worth of training, however they were being overwhelmed, and if the class monitor was being honest so was she to a degree. After all, it wasn't easy to engage a templar with nothing but your bare hands. It was only matter of time before the other two began to tire , they weren't as strong and experience as she was.
"Are you two alright?!" Fu Hua asked, but she didn't dare take he eyes of her opponents, a rookie mistake that was often made.
"Project Bunny's 19C is still on cool down. The Bronya has been forced to engage in close combat." Bronya reported, the cannon that once existed on Bunny's right and replaced by the pointy arrow of a spear. A templar charged towards Bronya and thrust its lance forward, intent on skewering the girl, but Bunny came between the two and parried the incoming attack with its own spear. This gave Bronya more than enough time to move out of the way. Once she was out of harms way, Bunny retracted it resistance and moved to the left, the sudden lack of resistance caused the beast to jerk forward an opportunity that Bronya wasn't going to let go to waste.
At the silver haired girls' mental command, Bunny dashed forwards and struck the templar beast in its back side before it could recover and retaliate, sending the beast back a few feet. However Bronya didn't get to rest for a second as the loud cry of a chariot beast came from behind her, alerting her to the other dangers around. Seeing the pink lines glow on the beasts face, Bronya instinctively moved to the left side, and not as second too soon. Cause the beast shot a concentrated laser beam in the position she stood not a second ago, the chariot continued to shoot the laser beam as I followed the silver haired girl. However before the beam could strike its target, Bunny appeared before the girl once more and raised its shield. The beam was deflected in several directions, Bronya using it to her advantage aimed the reflected rays at other enemies attacking her and her two companions. She was able to take out a dozen or two attacking her and Mei, and also managed to strike an unexpecting templar that was engaged with Fu Hua, the class monitor gave the silvered haired girl a nod of gratitude before turning to her own chariot beast opponent. The Beast eventually stopped shooting its laser and Bunny took advantage of this and charged forward as it was still recovering. Before the beast was even aware of what happened, Bunny thrust its spear directly into the skull of the beast, smashing the core I the process.
On the far end of the street, Mei hadn't even bothered to answer Fu Hua's question as she was too engaged with her opponents. She had managed to deal with the three cassiel that had been on her, along with numerous zombies, but the templar and cavalier were proving to be far more trouble than she had originally thought they would be. As it currently stood she was being pushed on the defensive by the templar. The beast was relentless in its attacks thrusting ad swiping its lance at the girl, giving her no room to breathe as she was being continuously pushed back, with her only options to parry, block or to evade. Needing to create a gap between the beast and herself Mei leapt back a couple of feet. Taking a deep breath and the templar charged at her once more, Mei held her breath as she focused her energy into her blade.
This technique was far from complete as she had only started learning it about a month ago, but she was sure that she would be able to deal sufficient damage to the templar despite its defensive capabilities. The blade began to glow pink with honkai energy as the beast got closer, once she was positive the beast would not be able to dodge give the speed it was moving at and the distance between them, Mei swung her blade and released a large wave of honkai energy.
"Amaterasu!" The raven haired girl shouted as the sharp and crescent shaped wave of honkai energy struck the templar that had been unable to raise its shield in time. The beast was struck head on and was carried several feet back as the attack continued to dig into its carapace. The wave of zombies that had been behind the beast also got struck by the wide area effect of the attack, and were immediately severed in two, killing them.
The attack eventually seized as the templar crashed into the concrete wall of a nearby building. Upon the clearing of dust Mei noticed that the templar was very much alive, but was in no condition to fight. Its shield had been severed from the rest of its body and the rest of its body filled with numerous cracks that emitted a pink glow from the honkai energy within it. All in all, it looked ready to collapse on itself.
Mei herself was in need of a small break, using Amaterasu had been far more taxing on her than she had realized, perhaps using an incomplete technique in the midst of a life or death situation had not been the best of ideas. She slowly stood up straight and began to make her way over to the templar, intent on finishing it of before it could recover.
"Mei look out!" Fu Hua suddenly shouted in an unnatural tone. As soon as the class monitor did that a shadow suddenly loomed over the swordswoman and she was swiftly turned around. Behind her the cavalier had its blade raised her and already begun its descent towards her.
Mei's body was still too strained to move as the blade came down on her, intent on slicing her into two. However before the blade could strike its target, the raven haired girl noticed a white blur shoot from above and come crashing down on the beast, causing the beast to fall to its side, and the blade that had been coming down to Miss Mei by mere inches. A cloud of dust kicked up at the impact of the crash. From within, two gun shots were heard and the cry of the cavalier beast, before all went silent.
Fu Hua and Bronya, who had finished dealing with their adversaries, were looking towards the dust cloud with anticipation. Slowly but sure the cloud settled, and standing on top of the now dead, Cavalier beast was a snow haired girl with blue eyes. She held two pistols I her arms and had a black and red two handed sword strapped to her back. The girl turned to Mei, who was the closest to the beast and shot the rave haired woman aside.
"Hey, are you okay? You were almost a goner for a second there!" The girl shouted as she leapt down from the corpse of the beast and landed right I front of Mei, she then reached out her right hand to help her get back up.
"U-Uh y-yes, I'm fine thank you." Mei said as she took the girls hand as she slowly got back up on her still wobbly feet. It was then that Fu Hua and Bronya approached the two of them, glancing towards the silver haired girl with suspicion and caution, she was after all an unknown factor to all of them.
"Who are you?" Fu Hua asked, she wasn't going to beat around the bush, there were more beasts rampaging throughout the city, and they didn't know if there would be more beasts approaching or not.
"Rude, I thought common courtesy was to introduce yourself first." The girl said with a minor pout as she folded her arms, the action caused Bronya and Fu Hua to sweatdropp slightly. Fu Hua relented, they had not time for this.
"My name is Fu Hua, A-rank valkyrie of the far east branch of Schicksal." Fu Hua introduced herself, normally she wouldn't give out information so casually to a possible threat, but again, time was not on their side.
"So you are with Schicksal, perfect! Anyway, my name is Kiana Kaslana, local citizen of Chita." Kiana introduced herself, though to be honest it sounded a lot cooler in her head.
'A Kaslana?' All three valkyrie thought at the same time. What was a member of one of the founding houses of Schicksal doing all the way out here, and judging by her introduction she didn't seem to be affiliated with Schicksal. Fu Hua could only speculate that she may either be affiliated with another organization.
"A Kaslana? What's a Kaslana doing all the way out here? Did Schicksal send you?" Mei decided to ask, she knew about the Kaslana's, and thus had a hard to believing that Schicksal would send valkyrie of such caliber to deal with a minor eruption in a remote city located near the wasteland once known as Siberia.
"Nope, I'm not a valkyrie of Schicksal. Granted I did spend a lot of time looking for the organization, but I had no way of finding you so I settled in Chita, and would often train in Ulan-Ude." Kiana said as she scratched the back of her head, she honestly didn't know if she was making a good impression or not, the three of them seemed to be a bit tense around her and weren't dropping their guard even though they looked relaxed, it's as if they were expecting her to jump on them or something. The last part of her statement caught Fu Hua's attention.
"You said you would train in Ulan-Ude?" The class monitor asked directly, pushing up her glasses with her index finger, Kiana felt the need to tell her how much she looked like a nerd when she did that but decided to hold her comment and answer the question.
"Yep."
"You are aware that Ulan-Ude is a honkai infected city from top to bottom." Fu Hua said, no matter who you were, staying within a honkai infested city was a death wish.
"I know, that's what made it perfect for training, killing honkai beasts and zombies for a living, all while improving myself. Isn't that great!" Kiana said excitedly, the squad of valkyrie could only sweatdropp at the girls' enthusiasm, before Fu Hua cleared her throat to get the girls attention.
"Yes, great. However, the beasts that are currently attacking the city were tracked all the way from Ulan-Ude. Would you happen to know if something drew them towards this city in particular?" Fu Hua asked, though Kiana was able to pick up on the accusatory tone behind the question, but didn't comment, only because she had already been suspecting this from the beginning.
The honkai energy radiated by the beasts had been far too familiar, and thus she deducted that they came from Ulan-Ude. As for the reason they came all the way here, well she could only ink of two probable reasons. The first was a personal vendetta against her, the beasts had probably followed her all the way from Ulan-Ude just so they could kill her, however she doubted that honkai beasts had a high enough IQ to grasp the concept of hatred and revenge. The second and most likely theory was the fact that she had carried a lot of bags with cores of honkai beasts, enough to draw their attention and have them follow her all the way here. Either way, the current disaster was as a result of her mistake and all these people were now paying for it, even , Kasumi and everyone from the orphanage.
"Maybe, over the past four years I had a friend of mine who was willing to pay a handsome some of money for the cores of honkai beasts that I killed while in Ulan-Ude. I usually stayed there for three month periods before staying here for a month, repeating the cycle over and over again. I'm guessing that this time I had too many, and the energy radiating of the cores was enough to catch the attention of the beasts from the city." Kiana explained, her voiced laced heavily with guilt, she hadn't wanted any of this to happen.
The other three valkyrie remained silent. But there was one thought going through their mines, just how many honkai cores does one need to attract a horde of this magnitude. Nevertheless, it seemed she had been unaware of the consequences of gathering too much honkai energy in one place. Besides, what's done is done, they had to deal with the situation at hand.
"Does subject Kiana's friend still have the cores within the city?" Bronya asked, her monotone and neutral facial expression spooking Kiana out for a second. That wasn't the kind of tone or expression that you would expect to see on a kid.
"I doubt it, he's probably had them shipped off to his contacts, he wasn't the type to keep merchandise on him for too long." Kiana responded, Fu Hua sighed, they were getting nowhere right now. The beasts and zombies in the city had been cleared for now but there was no telling.
"This is getting us nowhere, there may still more honkai beasts making their way here. Its better we clear all the ones within the city before we have more on our hands than we can handle." Mei said, to which Mei and Bronya nodded. The class Monitor then turned to Kiana before speaking, "So, will you be helping us?" F u Hua asked, Kiana simply shrugged her shoulders.
"Sure, why not. As for the beasts in the city, you don't need to worry about those, I took care of those on the way here. Worst case scenario there are still a few groups of zombies, but I don't feel anything, on the other hand there are five honkai beasts approaching the city." Kiana told the valkyrie squad. Fu Hua wanted to question the girl on how she could be sure, and what she meant by 'don't feel anything' , but the deafening roar of a chariot beast caught her attention.
Without a word, the four warriors dashed towards the city entrance to engage the upcoming beasts in battle.
Meanwhile – A few miles from Chita
The ground had been reduced to nothing but a war zone, the bodies of numerous honkai beasts littered the round left and right, and the great battle that had been taking place here finally came to an end. At the centre of it all, Theresa and Himeko stood, more like leaned against their respective weapons.
Himeko sported a large number of bruises and was beyond exhausted, but that's to be expected when fighting against nearly thirty honkai beasts of Various kinds. Two of which were emperor class beasts. Sure Theresa had been there to offer assist, but the S-rank valkyrie had her own hands full with the two enormous judgment class beasts. The redhead valkyrie was currently leaning against her large blade, using it to support her tired and weak body.
As for Theresa herself, the tiny principle had taken a lot more damage given the dangerous adversaries she had been facing. Fortunately, her regenerative abilities were already coming into play and her wounds were already healing. If anyone had told her that things were going to be this tough, she would have just settled for blowing the entire herd with the Hyperion cannon. Theresa was seated on ground as she allowed her boy to heal, back leaning against her golden cross. The cross was known as Oath of Judah, a relic from the previous era, and 11th divine key.
"Man, my body hurts all over…." Himeko whined, due to her poor honkai resistance, the redhead had a low level of stamina, and excessive battle not only tired her but also reduced the amount of time she had left due to the honkai corruption slowly taking place within her body.
"Yeah, I honestly didn't think things would blow this far out of proportion. If I'd known I'd have settled for blowing the horde before it even got this far." Theresa said with a slight chuckle. A moment of silence settled over the two of them, taking the opportunity to recuperate as much as possible within the few minutes that they had.
"Do you think the girls are doing alright, they were quite a number of beasts that got past us?" Himeko asked in concern s she gazed up at the starry night. As much as she wanted to help right now, she was in no physical condition to continue fighting.
"Don't worry about them too much, Mei and Bronya may only have joined a year ago, but they are both equally talented girls', and adding Fu Hua to the mix there shouldn't be much to worry about." Theresa said, but even she was a bit worried. She knew the girls were more than ready, but they didn't have the life or death experiences that came with time. Fu Hua was the only one to have such an advantage among all three of them, thus he A-rank status.
"Alright, if you say so, I still think we should hurry though, I don't like the thought of leaving everything to them while we laze around." Himeko admitted, five more minutes would be more than enough for her to get some of her energy back.
"You would be right about that major." A new voice suddenly spoke out, startling the two valkyrie as they swiftly got up to face the new guest, their guards heavily lifted. The newcomer was man in his late twenties to early thirties, has brown hair and the eyes to match. The man simply wore a black tux with a red bow tie.
"Who the hell are you?" Himeko asked, she was wondering how neither she nor Theresa heard this guy coming. The fact that he was able to sneak up on them like that was more than enough for them to consider him dangerous.
"Me, I guess you can call me Phil. But that's not the reason I am here Principle Theresa, Major Himeko. I thought you would be interested to know that Cecilia's legacy lives on and is in Chita as we speak." Phil said, Himeko's brow rose in confusion, but the shock on Theresa's face let he now that she knew what this 'Phil' guy was talking about.
"How do you know about her?!" Theresa asked in alarm, no one was supposed to know about Kiana. The few times that Theresa had spoken to Siegfried, he hadn't mentioned anything about their whereabouts or having contacts.
"Through our mutual friend, Siegfried Kaslana. I understand your reluctance to trust me, but I have been watching over Kiana for the past four years now. She's currently within Chita, helping you valkyrie fend off the honkai. Though I don't doubt her skill and strength, I would rather not take any risks when it comes to her, after all she's someone important to me." Phil said.
"How do I know I trust anything you just said. As far as I'm concerned, Kiana's whereabouts are unknown, even to the Overseer." Theresa questioned, Himeko really felt like the third wheel of this conversation, but she knew that this had nothing to do with her for now, Theresa would have to explain to her later though.
"Feel free to contact your squad of valkyrie within the city, they will confirm, or you could go and check for yourself. Other than that, the only other proof I have on me would be this." Phil said as he pressed a button on his watch , causing a holographic image to appear. It was a picture of Kiana, and Kasumi standing in front of the orphanage. The teen stood side by side with wide grins on their faces, and behind them with that gentle and motherly manner.
'Kiana…' Even if Theresa had wanted to deny it, she couldn't. The resemblance that the girl had to both Cecilia and Siegfried was more than enough evidence that she was their daughter. 'To think that she has already grown this much….you turned sixteen today if I am correct'Theresa's thoughts continued until the image disappeared just as quickly as it appeared, bringing her back to reality.
"I hope that was more than enough evidence." Phil said as he pulled the sleeves of his tux.
"Who were the other two women that were with her?" Theresa asked, she was curious as to where Siegfried was, the man before her had only mentioned him in passing, but nothing to indicate that he had been around.
"The Lady behind her was Ren Ryuuki, she is the owner of the local orphanage of the city, she was the main reason Kiana stopped travelling much. They met about five years ago and Kiana grew attached over time, the one next to her is her daughter Kasumi Ryuuki, they hit it off rather well. The three of them grew close enough for Kiana to even consider them as family, Kasumi as her sister, and as the closest thing she had to a mother figure." Phil explained, this caused Theresa to sigh.
"Where was her stupid old man during all of this?" Theresa asked, part of her could already feel that she wouldn't like the answer.
"I'm not sure to be honest. According to Kiana, Siegfried parted with the girl just before she turned eleven. Leaving a message that told her to go to the Far East. A while she followed said message, until she decided to settle in Chita, of course she still wants to b a valkyrie so she would spend most of her time I Ulan-Ude to train." Phil said casually, that bit of info shocked both Theresa and Himeko.
"Wait, Ulan-Ude is…..or was a city crawling with honkai beasts and zombies, there's no way she could have survived there on her own. Hell all these beasts are coming from that city!" Himeko shouted out, there was no way some brat could make training out of a suicide task like that.
"I thought so too at first, but she did it. She would spend a total of nine months each year within the walls of Ulan-Ude, killing honkai beasts and zombies, while training herself. She's strong that girl, surviving I that environment with nothing but to normal 9mm pistols and a baseball bat, yet by the end of the three months she would have hundreds of honkai beasts under her belt. I'm willing to bet that she may be on par with your A-rank valkyrie." Phil said which surprised both Theresa and Himeko.
"Well ladies, while this chat has been nice and all, I'm afraid I must leave. We both have places to be after all." Phil said as her turned and began to walk away from the two valkyrie.
"Wait!" Himeko called out, causing Phil to stop and look back at them with an eye brow raised, "Are you part of Anti-Entropy?" The redhead asked. It was a valid question. While the man had stated a lot, he had not told them anything about the organization he worked for.
"Who knows, maybe next time you might find out." Phil said before he resumed walking away, disappearing into the horizon.
Theresa and Himeko took a moment to process everything they had just heard and learned. It was even more overwhelming on Himeko's end since there were still a lot of gaps that were in her head. Such as what Theresa's relationship was with this Kiana girl, and what she had to do with both Siegfried Kaslana, one of Schicksal most wanted, and Cecilia Schariac, the former #1 valkyrie.
"Go." Himeko said, Theresa's attention turned to the redhead. While Himeko had many questions, those could wait for now. "I'm in no condition to fight but I can take care of myself. This is important to you, so just go and find that girl." Himeko said as she turned to the tiny principle with one of her trade mark grins, Theresa returned it with a grateful smile on her face.
"Thanks Himeko, I promise I'll answer all your question back at ." Theresa said as she laid the Oath of Judah down horizontally, the golden cross then began to hover a meter or two above the ground.
"You better, because I have a lot of questions." Himeko said, even if she had been in condition to fight, she doubted she could have made it to Chita in time. Theresa, with her hovering cross could make it in an hour tops if she really pushed it. The principal stepped onto the cross and turned to Himeko one last time.
"Thanks Himeko, I owe you one!" Theresa shouted as she began to accelerate towards Chita.
She was not worried about Kiana in all honesty, if what Phil said had any form of truth in it then the girl was capable of taking care of herself in battle. But her desire to see her niece again after all this time was at an all time high. From what she had seen she seemed to have taken the best of both Siegfried and Cecilia, She had grown so much from when she last her fourteen years ago. Did she even remember her anymore? How much had she changed personality wise? There was still s much that Theresa wanted to know about Kiana, but the only way she would get those answers was by reconnecting with her again.
'Don't worry Cecilia, this time I'll do it right, and protect her with everything I have.'
Within Chita – With Kiana and Mei:
The once group of four valkyrie had been split into groups of two. Another group of six honkai beasts had managed t get past them somehow, it was only thanks to Kiana's sensory abilities that they had been able to detect them. The beasts having equally split apart forced the valkyrie to do the same in order to prevent as much damage as possible from taking place. Kiana immediately too for the group of beasts moving North, fearing for her friends and surrogate family, with Mei following close behind. Meanwhile Bronya and Fu Hua had taken the group heading to the East side of the city.
Mei followed the Kaslana from close behind, somehow the girl in front of her was able to detect all of the honkai beasts within the area, making it easier to find and deal with them. Kiana had proved her strength and abilities to all three valkyrie, and while Mei could tell she didn't have much formal training, she more than made up for it with strength, speed and experience. She was without a doubt on par with the likes of Fu Hua when it came to physical ability, maybe even stronger, but her movements were predictable to anyone with decent intelligence.
"Hey Mei." Kiana called out, having eventually learned the names of the other two valkyrie after they introduced themselves. It was then that Mei noticed that the snow haired girl had stopped moving forward, her expression grim as concern and fear could be seen in her eyes.
"Is something wrong?" Mei asked, she didn't think they were any beasts within area, or at least something that would warrant the expression on her face.
"Yeah something personal just came up, I have to make a detour. Do you think you can make it to the Cathedral without me. That's the location of the Northern bunkers where most of the civilians are." Kiana said, there was obviously something weighing heavily on her mind.
"I don't think it's a good idea to split apart in this type of situation. So I'll come with you, we might resolve things faster that way." Mei suggested even though she had no idea what it was they were going to be doing.
"Alright fine, I just sensed someone close to me not too far from here, I left her off by the bunkers before I joined you." Kiana said as the two of them changed direction to the right, leaping from rooftop to rooftop.
"Is she a family member of yours." Mei asked, she was really curious about the Kaslana's sensing ability, but figured there would be time for those kinds of questions later.
"In a sense yes, she is the closest thing I have to a sister." Kiana said, as she sped up, eager to reach her destination. 'Kasumi….' Her thoughts wondered with worry, and slight anger at the girls' reckless actions.
Unlike her, Kasumi and almost everyone within the orphanage had a low level of honkai resistance, something she was able to tell due to her sensory abilities, if she came too close to a honkai beast or was exposed to the radiation of honkai energy for too long her body would give in and turn to a living corpse, something that the Kaslana was very adamant on preventing anything on happening to those she cared about.
Going down two blocks, the two arrived turned to the right on a nearby street. Kiana slowed down as she walked forward looking around frantically.
"Kasumi!" Kiana called out, but not too loud as to draw the attention of honkai beasts or zombies within the area. The door to a store o the opposite side of the road suddenly opened up, and from it the black haired girl slowly peeked her head out, before her eyes finally met Kiana's.
"Kiana!" Kasumi called out happily as she swung the door open and ran towards the Kaslana. The two embraced each tightly (not very tight in Kiana's case) out of relief.
"What are you doing here?! You're supposed to be within the bunkers under the cathedral by now!" Kiana shouted, both out of worry and frustration. She knew that Kasumi had a bit of a rebel streak to her, but the girl was not stupid by any means. If she wasn't in the bunkers with everyone else, then something must have happened, and the very though left a very sour taste within the Kaslana's mouth.
"The roof collapsed before I could make it make it inside…Mom managed to push me aside before I got hurt and I was forced to run out as the walls kept crumbling down. Once I got out there were so many of these beasts that were killing people left and right…..I just….ran away, and was lucky enough to get away." Kasumi finished her tale while still holding onto Kiana as if her life depended on it, which to a certain extent it did.
"So we're too late then." Mei spoke out, she had remained silent throughout the two's reunion, but if the girl was telling the truth then they were too late to save those people.
"No, everyone within the bunkers is still alive, we just have to hurry up, they literally have death on top their heads." Kiana spoke out with determination as she pulled away from Kasumi, she turned to her surrogate sister. "Can you walk, or even run?" Kiana asked, she couldn't bring herself to look Kasumi eye right now.
Part of her was still blaming herself for the events that were occurring tonight. Ever since Fu Hua told her that the beasts had originated from Ulan-Ude, Kiana knew that to an extent she was to blame for this, but for the most part she had chosen to bury that feeling for the sake of fighting to undo what she had done. But coming face to face with Kasumi now, made all that guilt return tenfold.
Pushing that aside for now, Kiana decided to focus on the task at hand. The three individuals then began to run towards the city centre, where the cathedral was located. Where only more trials and tribulations would await them.
Next time on Kaslana's Oath:
"Fu Hua, I heard that you came across a girl by the name of Kiana Kaslana, is she still with you." Theresa asked the class monitor.
"Kasumi…" Kiana muttered, frozen in shock as she felt her heart grow heavier and heavier by the second.
"I'm sorry…I should've told you sooner…but I didn't want to trouble you with my injury." Kasumi said, as her breath began to slow down
Kiana stood before the beast in front of her. Her body outline with a pink glow, an aura of sorts, her face was expressionless and her eyes covered by the bangs of her own hair. If one looked well enough, they could see the two tattoos that glowed on her body, one on her upper back and the other on her left shoulder.
Authors Notes:
Well that just about wraps up this chapter. I originally planned to turn this in within two weeks after the previous post, but somehow two weeks turned into three.
That being said I decided to compensate with a few snippets into the next chapter, not much to go but I didn't want to ruin too much.
That being said any comments, suggestion and constructive criticism are always welcome. Any and all questions asked in this chapter will be answered within the next so do not hesitate to ask questions about the story. Though I will let you know if you're questions are spoilers.
Questions and Answers:
Author: Unfortunately they were no questions or comments this time around, so until next time
