Cecilia's eyes kept stealing glances from Wendy. The girl sat comfortably in the arms of Project Bunny while Bronya floated next to her. It had been some time since they left the drop off point. She wondered what her life must have been like inside of the compound after participating in the experiment.
"Cecilia, you've been looking at me repeatedly for the past 10 minutes. Is there something wrong?" Wendy asked.
"No, just… I was wondering what it was like."
Wendy raised an eyebrow.
"What life for you must have been like. It must have been horrible. Going through all those experiments every day and then losing your ability to walk," Cecilia said.
Wendy smiled sadly and looked down at her legs. "I'm not going to lie and tell you that the only bad part about life in the lab was losing my legs. It wasn't a pretty life."
Wendy rolled up her sleeves and Cecilia's eyes widened. There were multiple red dots on her arm where she had been injected or had blood drawn from her. Seeing her reaction, Wendy slowly covered her arms once more. "But now… at least I can go outside again and breathe fresh air. Even if it is for a short period of time," Wendy said.
"The Bronya calculates that we are 4 minutes from the Hyperion. As expected, Wendy didn't slow us down in the slightest," Bronya chimed in.
"Already?" Cecilia asked.
"Da," Bronya replied.
"I'm sorry, Cecilia, Bronya, Mei. I must have been such a burden to carry around," Wendy said.
"Don't talk like that, Wendy. You're not a burden to anyone," Mei said kindly.
Her kind and gentle demeanor carefully hid the rage that was boiling beneath her skin. Several unpleasant memories surfaced to the forefront of her mind. All of them revolved around Anti-Entropy and her infusion with the Gem of Conquest. Mei touched her chest unconsciously. Unlike her, if Wendy had ever lost control, there was no failsafe to stop her.
"Yeah, Wendy. You're one of us. Once we get back to St. Freya. You can start living your life again. I'm sure since you were cooped up in that lab for three years, you might have missed out on some of today's trends. I can show you all the latest memes, the most popular shows, and the best games to play!" Cecilia said.
Wendy giggled, feeling the warmth of Cecilia's enthusiasm around her. She could get used to living like this. But…
Is this really okay? Wendy thought.
She felt the Gem of Desire pulsating within her leg.
Wendy threw up her mask when she heard them.
The voices.
The whispers.
All of them were telling her to rip these three apart limb from limb.
To use its power to lay waste to the entire country and everything around it.
Wendy fought to suppress the whispers, listening to Cecilia's cheerful voice and Mei's light scolding.
"Wendy. The Bronya is outfitted with an exoskeleton around her legs. The Bronya also went through an experiment when she was younger and it left her bound to a wheelchair. When we get back to St. Freyja, we can remove the Gem of Desire from Wendy's leg and give Wendy the ability to walk again," Bronya said.
"Wow, Bronya. You're being really kind today," Mei said in slight surprise.
"It's the end of the world. Bronya's systems have been infected with the kindness virus," Cecilia said.
"Nyet. Wendy just… reminds the Bronya of the Bronya's past," she answered.
Cecilia's mouth snapped shut.
That's right. All of them had things they didn't want to remember.
It'll be alright, Baby Doll. No matter what happens. Daddy will always be there. Daddy will never leave you.
"Cecilia…"
"CECILIA!"
Cecilia blinked, seeing the others looking at her with some worry in their eyes.
"What? I'm sorry… I must have zoned out for a bit," Cecilia said.
"Are you okay?" Mei asked.
"Yeah, just thinking about what to eat when we get back on the ship," Cecilia said.
"As expected of Cecilia-idiotka," Bronya said.
"H- Hey! I'm just really hungry you know!" Cecilia said, waving her hand angrily at Bronya.
Kiana shrank in her spot as she received a tongue-lashing from her aunt.
"Activating the Judgement of Shamash on board the ship! Are you insane!? We thought that a Herrscher had breached our defenses!" Theresa yelled.
"I'm sorry! I was just… having a moment," Kiana said, too afraid to look her aunt in the eyes.
"Having a moment does not mean you can activate a Divine Key on board! Jeez… I expected this kind of behavior from Cecilia but not you," the smaller but older woman said. She sighed into her hand.
"Okay! Okay, I won't activate it. Jeez, just stop yelling," Kiana said.
Himeko watched this exchange with an amused look on her face. Kiana's personality might have been different from that of her sister's but she could where the two were similar. According to the Vice Principal, the two girls inherited their blockheadedness from their father and their airheadedness from their mother. Though, Himeko only had words to go off of. She was someone who had never personally interacted with Siegfried Kaslana or Cecilia Schariac, much less both of them.
"By the way, have they phoned in yet?" Kiana asked, glancing at her friend.
Himeko blinked and went to check the comms channel.
"We got a request from Bronya," Himeko said. "That's odd. That girl never puts in requests."
"Maybe it's a request for backup?" Kiana asked. Her hands immediately flew to her holsters where Shamash lay.
"You trigger-happy nincompoop. At least let Himeko read the message first!" Theresa scolded.
"Fine fine. Come on, alcoholic. Read the message," Kiana said.
"Rude. But okay… let's see…" Himeko said as she read the message. Her eyes widened slightly before turning to the others.
"She wants us to remove the Gem of Desire from Wendy's calf," she said.
"Eh? She knows that's not possible right?" Theresa asked.
"Hmm…"
"Himeko, you can't possibly be entertaining this idea. The Gem of Desire possesses enough Honkai Energy to vaporize several cities the size of New York in one go. We cannot allow the Gem to destabilize," Theresa said.
"I know that. I'm just thinking of how to break it to them," Himeko said.
"If you want, I can break it to them. I'm very good at breaking bad news," Kiana said.
"You mean that one time you told me that our minifridge was out of Budweiser?" Himeko said, shooting her a dry look.
"Yup!"
"You drank all of it," Himeko said dryly.
"You have no proof that I drank it. For all you know, it could have been Cecilia… or maybe even Fu Hua, Bronya, or Mei!" Kiana retorted.
"You and I know that's not true! Theresa said that you inherited your father's alcoholic tendencies!" Himeko fired back.
"Hey, you two idiots."
Theresa's voice snapped them out of their argument.
"You have an incoming transmission from Cecilia and the others. I think they're at the extraction point with Wendy," Theresa said.
"Already?" Kiana asked.
"I think they wanted to finish this mission as fast as they could. Let's see what they want," Himeko said, answering the call.
Cecilia stood with her arms crossed next to Mei. Mei had her hands on Wendy's wheelchair while Bronya floated in front of them with a comms screen projected from Project Bunny. Himeko's face appeared on the screen.
"Major. We're here at the Extraction Point," Bronya said.
"I see. Good to hear that you two made good time coming over here. By the way, Bronya. You're not one to submit personal requests. What exactly is it that you're requesting?" Himeko asked, wanting to know the girl's reasons for wanting the Gem of Desire removed.
"Major Himeko, the Bronya requests that St. Freyja labs works to remove the Gem of Desire from Wendy," Bronya asked.
"It's removal will restore her ambulatory abilities."
Kiana shoved her way onto the screen to face Bronya
"Watch it!" Himeko said.
Kiana ignored her. "Cecilia. Are you alright?" she asked.
Cecilia sputtered and raised her fist at her older sister. "Kiana! I'm fine! How many times do I have to say it!" she said.
"Oh good. You're okay. But to answer your question, Bronya, we can't. We need Wendy to keep the core stable," Kiana said.
"Indeed, we can't keep the gem if we take it out," Himeko said.
"Are you two crazy!? Just throw the rock away! That rock means nothing to this girl's happiness!" Cecilia argued, stepping forward.
Kiana sighed. "Ceci, that's not the point. The Gem of Desire contains enough Honkai Energy to vaporize several cities the size of New York if it grows unstable. Wendy's the only thing keeping it from becoming a global catastrophe."
Cecilia clenched her fists at hearing her older sister's answer. "But… Kiana. Is there nothing we can do for her?" she asked.
"Ceci…"
"It's okay, Cecilia," Wendy spoke up.
Cecilia turned to see a sad, resigned smile on Wendy's face. The girl looked completely at peace with what her older sister just said. "Wendy… but…"
"It's okay. I've accepted this as my fate from the very beginning," Wendy said.
"Valkyries must sacrifice themselves for the greater good. Therefore bearing this Gem inside me is… my duty," she said.
Cecilia closed her eyes for a few seconds before turning to face Himeko and Kiana.
"When you get here to St. Freyja, Wendy, you have our word that nothing will happen to you. Neither Schicksal nor Anti-Entropy can touch you while you're here," Himeko said.
"Thank you, Major Himeko," Wendy said.
"Fine… by the way, Aunt Himeko! Kiana! Is the Hyperion ready yet?" Cecilia asked.
"Pfft. Aunt Himeko. Ahahaha!" Kiana laughed.
"Shut up! And you! Stop calling me that. Jeez, kids these days," Himeko said.
"At least we tried, Bronya," Mei said.
"Wendy, the Bronya apologizes for not being able to help you more," Bronya said.
"No, it's fine. You did nothing wrong, Bronya," Wendy said.
She was going to be like this forever. Stuck to her chair because of a choice she made. No, she made the right choice. It was St. Freyja and Schicksal that betrayed her. It was Theresa's fault she was in this situation. Humans couldn't be trusted.
Her mind came to a realization.
Humans can't be trusted. Humans do nothing but hurt and destroy others. People like us can never fit in…
No… they're not.. Wendy thought.
How long will it take for them to betray you again? You'll end up in another lab. Subjected to more experiments just so they can pursue more power.
That's… right. I can't trust anyone, Wendy thought.
[Honkai Energy readings detected.]
"Mmm? We're getting readings. Is the Gem of Desire reacting inside of Wendy?" Himeko asked.
K̵̼̓̑̈́ͅì̵̬ͅl̸͇̗̈́l̸̢̧̜̔.̷̜̠̭̎̇̈ ̷̹̮́D̴̻̪̎̑͂ḙ̸̙̠̈́s̴̮͚̓̚͜t̷̺͚̮̾̇r̷̗̉̄ͅo̸̼̪͌̀y̵͓̥̓.̵̯̠̿͝ ̶̲͋M̶̢͕͊̕͜a̸̯̔͛s̸͇͐̈́ș̶͍̋͜ą̷̰͈́͒c̴̝͙̕r̴̡̦͔̈́̋͘ȅ̵̤̩̕.̸̦͔͊̆͒ ̵̩̌S̸̬͂̋̚ͅl̶̞̣͈͝a̵̬͈̤̿̐u̸̪͑̅̊͜͜g̸̩̰̀͆͒h̸̹̄t̷͉̾̎̏ͅẻ̷̡̩̅r̴̯̙͔͒̈́.̴̟̖̇̈ ̴̛̙̦̊̀K̷͔̤̉̓͠Ị̴͖̗͂̓̑L̸̠̻͚̎̈́̈́L̷̺̆̃͑ ̵̳̒T̸̨̠̗̄̑͝H̷͕̪̊Ȩ̴̢̈́M̸̭̣͗ ̶̨͔͑͝A̴͇̍͑̽L̸̼̽L̴̥̟̻̓͋̌!̶̖̉̃͜
A steady stream of green light began flowing out of Wendy's body.
Mei and Bronya took a step back from the chair.
Cecilia's hands flew to her guns as she watched the light around Wendy grow brighter. Clouds began to form in the sky and gusts of wind that grew stronger with each second blew over them.
"Ceci! Mei! Bronya! Get out of there! The Honkai readings are off the charts! 1500 HW… 2000 HW… Damn it! Stay there! I'm going to drop do-!" Kiana said.
The call between Cecilia and Kiana suddenly cut off. The growing storm was interfering with their signal.
"2000 HW huh? With this much power, I won't even need two shots to destroy the Hyperion," Wendy said. She began to chuckle.
"W- Wendy, what are you…?" Mei asked.
Her aura warped her surroundings and the surrounding area became rapidly overtaken by plant life. Camelias broke through the ground and sprouted everywhere as a field overtook the urban area they were in.
The winds reached a point where Cecilia, Mei, and Bronya were nearly knocked off their feet. Cecilia fought to stay close to the others but the winds were too powerful for her to push through.
"Neko Charm!" Cecilia yelled over the howling winds. The thrusters on the back of her suit activated to push back against the now hurricane-force winds.
"You hypocrites…" Wendy said.
She began levitating off her chair as the winds swirled around her. Thunder and lightning split the heavens open. Twisters began to touch down across the entire island and the ocean began battering the shore.
Her clothing transformed and was replaced by a sleeveless uniform-like outfit that exposed her shoulders and collarbone. Her sleeves wrapped around her arms and a pair of green gloves covered her hands. On her skirt was a small windmill that spun as the winds grew stronger. A pair of green energy wings sprouted from her back.
"I hate you… I hate all of you…" Wendy said, generating a powerful gust of wind that knocked them off their feet.
"I can't wait to slaughter all of you! Hahaha… AHAHAHAHA!" Wendy laughed.
"Kiana! Where are you going?" Himeko ran after her friend.
The Judgement of Shamash had already been drawn and transformed into a blade. The sheer heat warped the floor underneath Kiana with each step she took.
"Can't you see I'm going to save my sister!?" Kiana barked.
"We need to inform HQ. The S-Rank Valkyrie that was sent here as a reserve is being deployed as we speak! She'll get here in a few minutes!"
As she said that, the entirety of the Hyperion shook from the increased turbulence caused by Wendy's storm.
"We don't have time! I need to go now!" Kiana said.
"Kia-"
Kiana pointed her blade at Himeko. The older woman's eyes widened at the actions of her junior.
"Please don't get in my way, Himeko. Just please… get the Hyperion ready for us when we get back," Kiana said.
Despite knowing that Kiana would never strike her with Shamash, Himeko couldn't help but feel a tinge of fear. The fearsome, all-consuming omnipotent blade of the Kaslana Family was pointed at her face.
Himeko sighed. There was no way for her to convince Kiana not to go. "Fine. But once the S-Rank gets here, I need you to retreat with the others."
Kiana pulled Shamash back and hefted it on her shoulder. "I got it. I'll be back, Himeko."
Himeko nodded and watched as her friend ran out onto the deck and towards the Herrscher.
Cecilia tried to suppress the fear she was feeling. Fighting a Herrscher was not new to her but… the amount of power this girl had was quickly rising. The HUD of her White Comet Battlesuit came with a meter for Honkai Energy.
Almost 4000 HW. That's greater than the amount of Honkai Energy Mei-senpai had in Nagazora… Cecilia thought.
She spun her pistols in her hands and began to make her way towards the Herrscher.
Wendy hovered in the air and looked down at Cecilia.
"Fufufu… you're going to fight me alone, Cecilia?" Wendy asked.
"I've kicked a Herrscher's ass before. Don't think I won't beat yours!" Cecilia blustered. She pointed her guns at Wendy and began firing.
But bullets were useless against her. A barrier of wind appeared around Wendy and blew the bullets away.
She grinned maniacally and raised her hand above her head. Honkai energy swirled in the palm of her hand, distorting the air and compressing the wind into the shape of a shuriken.
"Ahahaha!" Wendy cackled as she threw the shuriken at Cecilia.
The sound of wind swirling in a high-pitched screech grew louder as the shuriken neared Cecilia.
It's too fast! Cecilia thought.
A blue light spread across the entire battlefield, slowing time down.
The shuriken slowed considerably and was sliced apart by several high-speed slashes.
"M- Mei-senpai!" Cecilia gasped.
"Get up, Ceci. We have to suppress the Herrscher!" Mei said, brandishing her blade.
"Y- You!" Wendy ground her teeth together. She fired compressed blasts of air that tore through the air, ripping the earth apart.
"Bronya!" Mei yelled.
The wind was warped as a gravity well crushed it into oblivion.
"Project Bunny, all systems. Fire." Bronya raised her hand and fired a beam of energy at Wendy.
"Tch!" Wendy spread her arms apart, dispersing the beam of energy with solid wind.
"Just die already!" she yelled.
She threw her arms forward, sending forward a blast of compressed wind.
Mei and Cecilia moved out of the way and the wind blast slammed into a building, obliterating it completely.
Wendy flew into the air and raised her hand above her head. Honkai energy accumulated in the palm of her hand.
"I'll blow you all away!"
She fired a beam of green Honkai energy at Bronya.
"Bronya!" Cecilia jumped in front of Bronya and threw her hand forward. Two pairs of cat paws slammed into the energy beam, holding it back briefly before the limbs crumbled to nothing.
In that span of time, Mei dashed forward, grabbing Cecilia and Bronya and avoiding the beam.
"Mei-senpai, Bronya, we need to find an opening. I'll go in and draw her fire, you two need to go in and attack her when you get the chance," Cecilia said.
"Eh? But Ceci-"
"There's no time. If Wendy gets out of here, who knows what she'll do to everyone outside of New Zealand," Cecilia said.
"Mei, Subject Cecilia is right. The Bronya will assist you. Mei, you need to land the decisive blow," Bronya said.
"You got my back right," Cecilia asked.
"The Bronya should be the one asking you that question," she replied.
Cecilia smirked. The propulsors on her battlesuit activated and she dashed forward, surprising Wendy.
Wendy flattened her hand and created a wind blade around her arm. She slashed Cecilia, but Cecilia managed to see her attack and dodge in time.
Project Bunny manifested behind Wendy, swinging its powerful mechanical arm down and knocked Wendy to the ground.
"Khhh! Ahhh!" Wendy swiped her arm at Bronya, sending a massive tornado toward her.
"Project Bunny, defensive protocols activate," Bronya threw her hands forward and erected a forcefield of Honkai energy around her body.
The tornado collided with her barrier, grinding against it.
"Hey! Pay attention!" Cecilia yelled.
She kicked Wendy in the stomach, knocking the air out of the girl.
"Take this!" she performed a dropkick, summoning a giant cat's paw to squash her.
Wendy clenched her jaw and threw her hands up. A barrier of wind formed around her, holding the cat's paw back. She lowered her other hand and balled it into a fist.
The air currents near Cecilia reversed and created a vacuum.
The winds pulled her towards the vacuum.
S- Shit!
"Let them go!"
Wendy turned her head to see Mei's blade filling her vision. She moved back quickly enough to avoid a fatal blow but screamed in pain when a deep cut manifested on her cheek.
"Haah!" Mei rushed past Wendy with her sword drawn. A multitude of cuts appeared on Wendy's body, sending blood spraying everywhere.
"Raaagghh!" Wendy screamed in pain. Honkai Energy built up within her.
"Get away from me!" she yelled.
The energy exploded from her body and tore the ground around her. Mei was knocked away by the blast as was Bronya and Cecilia. The winds grew stronger and uprooted all the trees around them, ripped the flowers off the ground, and ripped apart the buildings in their general vicinity.
Wendy panted as she hovered in the middle of a large crater.
I need to run. If I stay any longer then… Wendy didn't want to know what would happen if the rest of the Hyperion got there. A long-drawn-out battle was not what she wanted. She wanted to run.
With a mighty beat of her wings, Wendy took to the sky and flew away, leaving several sonic booms in her wake.
"Tch! Damnit," Cecilia said, limping out of the crater.
The sound of static filled her ears as her battlesuit stabilized itself and re-established communications with the Hyperion. Cecilia pressed a button on her headband.
"Go for Cecilia," she said.
"What happened?" Himeko asked.
"Wendy… she flew away," Cecilia said, walking over to Mei and Bronya.
"Got it. I'll report this to HQ. The S-Rank Valkyrie being sent as our backup will be dispatched upon receiving orders," Himeko said.
"And your sister just left the ship. She should be at your location in T minus 7," she added.
"Shit," Cecilia cursed.
"The Bronya does not believe that Wendy will hurt anyone," Bronya said, joining in on the call.
"We can't afford to take that risk. The girl is exhibiting Herrscher Grade Powers. The S-Rank Valkyrie will be dispatched to assist Kiana in subduing her," Himeko said. "The girl's mind and ego might have already been corrupted by the Honkai."
"I trust Wendy too! Back at Nagazora, Mei-senpai was also controlled by the Honkai but she resist it and fight back!" Cecilia protested.
"Ceci is right. If we can get to Wendy, we can restore her. Just give us the time we need to bring her back," Mei added.
"I'll report this to HQ. The S-Rank Valkyrie is currently outside of New Zealand. She'll arrive in less than 15 minutes. And Kiana will be on top of you in less than 5. You hear me? I have 5 minutes left to live and you have 5 minutes to get away from Kiana's line of sight and do what needs to be done," Himeko said.
"Thank you, Major Himeko," Bronya replied.
"I'll make sure Kiana doesn't kill you, Aunt Himeko," Cecilia said.
"Good luck with that, Ceci." Himeko sighed before cutting the call.
Kiana jumped from building to building, using Shamash to propel herself at high speeds. Her visor was on, tracking the last known location of Cecilia and the others. As she was about to jump, she received a notification on her HUD.
Himeko?
She stopped for a second and answered the call.
"Go for Kiana," she said.
"You're gonna kill me for this," Himeko said.
"Huh? What's going on?" Kiana asked.
"The S-Rank has been dispatched. She'll be here in about 15 minutes and it's confirmed to be Kriemhilde Kaslana," she said.
"And?" Kiana raised an eyebrow.
"I gave your sister the go-ahead to go after the 4th Herrscher-"
"You did what!?" Kiana yelled.
"Kiana~! Calm down. They'll be fine," Theresa said, connecting to the call.
"You two blockheads! This is the 4th Herrscher we're talking about! My sister is doing a suicide run! Why the hell did you give her the green light!?" Kiana demanded.
"Cecilia and the others were very adamant that they could turn Wendy back like they did Mei at Nagazora," Himeko said.
Kiana pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "Ceci and I remember Nagazora very differently. Mei blew up most of the city in one attack trying to take down the Hyperion and now…" she looked to the rumbling clouds and crackling lightning. The feeling to the powerful gales that blew over her reminded her of the growing power of this Herrscher.
"This Herrscher is going to sink this entire island and she decides to go after it?" Kiana said mostly to herself.
"Look, the best you can do is believe that she can do it-"
"No. No, no, no. NO. Do not say that to me. Cecilia is fresh off her B-Rank status. I am not going to risk her life just to entertain some fantasy that she's going to magically turn Wendy back. If she hates me for getting in the way, then I don't care. I'd rather have a living sister that hates me than a dead sister," she said.
"Well, unfortunately for you, Kiana. They're already making a beeline for Wendy's location and so is the S-Rank. And~! We've detected 5 bogeys heading their way too!" Theresa said.
"What? Bogeys?" Kiana asked.
"Our satellites have tagged them as Anti-Entropy vessels," Himeko said.
"Damn it. It's just one problem after another. First, the S-Rank and now AE," Kiana said, clenching her fist.
"You have two choices to make here. Go after Ceci and the others or let them do what they need to do and keep Schicksal and Anti-Entropy off them," Himeko said.
"I'm in no place to say this but I believe in those girls' abilities to suppress the 4th Herrscher. The question is… do you?" she asked.
"That's a dumb question. But fine, I'll keep HQ and AE off them. When I get back, I have some words to say to the both of you," Kiana said, flashing her blue eyes angrily at Himeko and Theresa.
Cecilia and the others ran through the city, cutting down hordes of zombies and Honkai beasts in their wake.
Mei rushed past Bronya and Cecilia and cut down the massive Templar in front of them.
"How are we doing on time?" Cecilia asked, wiping some sweat off her brow.
"With any luck, The Bronya believes that we have put some distance between us and Kiana," she answered.
"Still, I don't like the idea of going behind your older sister's back," Mei said.
"Let me worry about Kiana. I'll keep her off everyone's backs once we get back. Besides, we're doing this for Wendy," Cecilia said, catching her breath.
"Still…"
Mei stopped. All of them looked had received a joint call from the person they were just talking about.
"Go for Cecilia," Cecilia said, answering the call.
"You insufferable idiot! Not only did you string Himeko and Aunt Theresa along but also Mei and Bronya too!? You and I are going to have a long talk when we get back to St. Freyja," Kiana said.
"Yeah yeah but for now, spare me the lecture, Kiana. This is the life of a girl we're talking about! Aren't you the one who always told me to help people when they need it?" Cecilia spat.
"Don't you take that tone with me, young lady. And this and that are different situations-"
"In what way?" Cecilia challenged.
"..."
"Look, this isn't the reason I called. Himeko, just tell them. I know you and Aunt Theresa are on this line," Kiana said.
"Er… right. Um, Schicksal satellites picked up five bogeys. Their exact location is unknown but their predicted trajectory is the 4th Herrscher," Himeko said.
"Bogeys? Could it be…?" Mei asked.
"Who else would it be? Anti-Entropy's deployed forces to your location," Himeko said. "That being said, I want you girls to give up your search if you run into them."
"Give up? You hear her, Ceci. I don't want you getting any bright ideas," Kiana added.
"Yeah, yeah," Cecilia grumbled.
"Did you hear that, Cecilia? I don't want to lose any of you as much as Kiana doesn't want to lose you," Himeko said.
"Fine. But we're still going through with this. We'll find Wendy before they do," Cecilia said.
"Not to mention that the S-Rank from the Europe HQ is almost on top of you. You might know her, Cecilia. Her name is Kriemhilde Kaslana. She's clad in black and wields a massive sword like your sister. Word around the grapevine is that she's currently our strongest S-Rank Valkyrie," Himeko said.
"Yeah but… you won't have to worry about her any longer," Theresa said.
"?" Himeko and Kiana both went silent at her words.
"Worry not, my adorable niece! You'll find out soon enough," Theresa said as she disconnected the call.
"Ceci, good luck," Kiana said, disconnecting.
Himeko felt the need to say nothing more and disconnected as well.
"Well?" Mei asked.
"Kiana might as well have given me the green light. Let's keep going," Cecilia said.
"Aunt Theresa, what was all that about?" Kiana asked.
"I got in touch with Kriemhilde and got her coordinates," Theresa said.
"She just gave them up like that?" Himeko asked.
"Well, I did bribe her with you and Cecilia so…"
Kiana slapped her forehead. "So what now?"
"I want you to intercept her and keep her off Cecilia and the others. I'll also broadcast her coordinates to Anti-Entropy through a proxy on a public channel," Theresa said.
"Wait, I'll be there too!" Kiana protested.
"What's a few mechs to an S-Class and the Ace of the Far East Branch?" Theresa chided.
"Fine. I'll go. Just keep Cecilia and the others safe," Kiana said.
"Oh, you're going along?" Theresa asked.
"I don't have a choice. My younger sister is on a crusade to save a Herrscher and my aunt and best friend are helping her. I kind of have no options," Kiana said.
"Don't be like that. Trust in Cecilia," Theresa said.
"..." Kiana bit her cheek and sighed. "I do… but I'll try to give her the space she needs for this mission. After this, you, Himeko, and Ceci are in for it."
"Yeah, yeah. Here. This is Kriemhilde's coordinates. She's moving fast so if you can intercept her, then all the better right?" Theresa said.
Kiana nodded. "I'll be back, Aunt Teri." Kiana cut the call and began making a beeline.
Her target.
Kriemhilde Kaslana.
So if you haven't noticed, Wendy basically terraformed an entire city and now is the cause of a hurricane that will sink the entirety of New Zealand into the Pacific. Let's move on to S-Ranks. I'm sure you all have a question as to who is where in the pecking order of Schicksal's S-Ranks. Obviously, Kriemhilde is the strongest S-Rank being a Kaslana and Siegfried's younger sister no less. That's followed by Li Sushang, then Rita, then Ana, and finally Nerfed Fu Hua. So yes. that's the S-Rank ranking.
Next chapter, I plan for Kiana to awaken her family Stigma through Kriemhilde. It'll introduce a non-canon concept I've been brewing for a while and it explains how WoS (Will of Stigmata) was able to awaken Ziggy's during the Second Eruption after just watching a recording of Kebin from the Previous Era. That's pretty much it right now. Ah! Right. Announcement! I have a plan to write a Honkai-Genshin fic sometime in the future which won't be until the 4th Arc of this fic.
So I hope you all look forward to that. It's... something I've been thinking of for a bit now.
Right, I've dragged this on for too long. See you all in the next chapter and don't forget to follow and/or leave a review!
