A.N. School is a pain. Also...challenge time. Review if I make you cry, or if you want.
"I'm gonna kill you. I swear I'm gonna get out of this and I'm gonna kill you with my own hands," Void screamed as she tried to break free of the restraints. She could feel them digging into her skin, cutting against her flesh as she tried to escape. Her neck, her arms, and her legs were all oozing with blood. The more she bled though, the more blood was replaced…by it.
Void felt it pulsing through her body, the Honkai. It was something she'd grown accustomed to. She had forgotten how much it had hurt her before. Like liquid metal, clogging her arteries and veins. She forgot how sick it made her feel, before 'God' took those feelings away. However, there was one thing she remembered though, she remembered the hatred and the rage she had.
She tried to resist, but her body was not strong enough to keep up with her. She was still too weak to do anything. Eventually, the combined blood loss and Honkai infusions wore her down. Void's world faded to black.
Her vision soon shifted to the inside of a cell. She was now lying on a bed with her arms and legs now bandaged. Her injuries may have been treated but the pain wasn't gone. It was still there. Every movement she made, every muscle twitch, every breath she took felt agonizing.
A damp towel rested on her forehead. The Herrscher's eyes widened as she looked to who had rested it. It was a girl, one who she recognized despite never meeting, along with several others. "This should help, Sirin," The girl said. It didn't help physically, but the Herrscher could only barely let out a sad smile as the kindness of another soothed it.
"Thank you….Bella," Void told the girl. She wasn't the mighty dragon Void recognized. She was just a regular girl who had been kidnapped along with many others.
"What are friends for," Bella answered.
Void sat up. She turned to look at Bella who was still standing before her. She lifted up her arms to hug the other girl, but they were suddenly pulled back. The Herrscher glanced up noticing her arms were now restrained once more. When she turned to face Bella, she noticed something off.
All the girls were now starting to sway side to side. They were all coughing uncontrollably and then they started to fall, one, then two, then three. In the end, Bella remained the sole standing girl. Void called out to her and to her relief, Bella did notice her. The other girl started to walk to the Herrscher.
Void was pulled against her restraints with all her might. She managed to free one of her hands and stretched them out to Bella. The girl in question stretched her own to meet Void halfway. "That's right, we can make it out of this together," Void voiced. Bella's arm was right within her grasp before she fell. Her hand only gently touched Void's, their fingers barely grazing each other, before Bella fell flat on the ground.
"BELLA!" Void screamed. Her rage finally broke the other restraint. She rushed to Bella's side, cradling the other girl in her lap. "Bella, speak to me," Void called out as looked at the girl. "Bella please…don't leave me," Void cried, her voice breaking. Her tears streamed down her cheeks, a few drippings onto Bella's body. There was no response. The only sound to be made in the room was the weak sobs of Void echoing in the room.
"Don't you remember, all the rage, the anger, the hatred, the desire for revenge…for justice," A voice whispered. Void looked up from where she was to see a figure of pure white, sitting above her. The figure looked like a pure white version of Sirin except it lacked Sirin's eyes.
The next thing Void knew she was on a ship looking at scared Thunder…no…Mei. She could feel the rage escaping her body, leaking out of her. Portals appeared in the sky above as countless Honkai Beasts emerged to lay waste.
A swelling joy filled her chest as she witnessed the destruction be laid before her. Countless humans and their tin stood against her. They launched a barrage of attacks against, a futile resistance. With the snap of her fingers, she tears countless rifts in space, absorbing the attack. An orb appeared in her hands, the collection of the humans' trifle efforts against her. She crushed the orb and the energy spawned within several rifts; the human's attacks turned against them.
Void walked up into the air, ascending like a goddess before them. She witnessed the destruction she returned to the humans who had taken everything from her Sirin. It felt so right. The triumphant roar of her servant behind her echoed their victory.
"You loved it," The voice echoed. "You savored it," The mirage repeated to her. It was true, all the carnage that she had created, Void was proud of it. She was proud that she avenged her Sirin's friends. Even the mighty stead behind her, the dragon of destruction that served her, had been named in remembrance of one such friend. The fear she inspired. She reveled in it.
"Sirin," A voice called. Void blinked once more, and the world faded again. She was back by a snow-covered land. It was only Void and another woman with snowy white hair. It was her mother, Cecilia. "Stop this at once," Cecilia had ordered, her weapon ready.
"No, you don't understand," Void reasoned, as she held up her hands. "They need to pay," She told her mother Cecilia. "You have to let me do this," She begged.
"I won't ask again, herrscher." her mother Cecilia told her. Without warning, Cecilia charged forward.
"Do you really think, she would accept you after all that you did?" The voice whispered. "You may have taken Sirin's rage and hatred, but do you think you had anything…worth saving to Cecilia," The voice echoed. "A being made of pure hatred and anger, responsible for killing millions, what woman would take such a being as a daughter, especially when Sirin still lives, with all her kindness still intact," It whispered. "Tell me…do you even remember Sirin's life before the lab?"
"I…I don't," Void admitted. "I am only Sirin's anger and hatred." She broke as she slumped down. She tried picturing Sirin's mother in her head. All that came to the Herrscher was Cecilia. She had nothing of worth to the woman.
"Anger by itself is not wrong. To be controlled by it is," A calm voice whispered.
"So, she told you," Thunder mused as she served lunch to everyone. The ward had devolved more into a lounge area honestly with how things had gone. Everyone was relaxing, having returned from processing their thoughts. "How much did she say?" She questioned.
"She told us about her being a clone and the time travel, but not much else," Teri noted. "She did mention that you were both Valks at St. Freya," The world's number one cutie added.
"Void technically wasn't, but I was," Thunder corrected. "Void's human side was there,"
"You always speak about her as if she's two different people," Cecilia noted. "You always refer to her as Void and Void's human's side." It was a distinction that she had noticed.
"That's because there is. The Herrscher and her human side are different people as far as I'm concerned. Nothing more, nothing less," Thunder told them darkly. "Now is there anything else you all want to talk about?" She questioned, her tone shifting back instantly.
"How did you time travel?" Tesla questioned. Void's nature had shocked them, but now they had time to process it, they had a bigger and more important question. That question how the hell did they do it, a time machine, or some weird Herrscher power.
"Okay, that's easy." Thunder said. "We used Istaroth," She told them.
"What?" Tesla questioned. Istaroth? What was that? Who was that?
"Paimon," Thunder told them.
"Excuse me,"
"Emergency food," Thunder laughed. She noticed the vein forming on Tesla's head. "Sorry, I needed that." She told the redhead. "But as for the how, we can't tell you that, because if we do. Well…those are consequences I rather not face." Thunder lamented. The little fairy had made it clear she would annoy them for all eternity and then some if they mentioned her without her consent and with her powers…she could definitely follow through with it.
"So, what can you tell us?" Tesla grumbled.
"How about…my name?" Thunder noted. "The title Thunder while cool and imposing, isn't really my style. Void lives for the drama and theatrics but not me." She informed.
"You're not a clone too, right?" Teri wondered.
"No," Thunder answered before looking up wistfully. "Not that I know off anyway." Her family's company and AE were more into machines. What were the chances that Raiden Mei would have been some kind of puppet or machine made by them? She buried the thought; Void had turned her insides out way more times than she liked, but at least she knew she was human.
"Either way, I think I should formally introduce myself," Thunder told them. She walked in front of them, her Herrscher dissolving completely. "I am Raiden Mei, former B rank of St. Freya Academy." She told them as she stood at attention. "Pleasure to properly meet you all." She told them with a bow.
"Pleasure to meet you as well, Mei," Cecilia said.
"Raiden Mei? You're Raiden Ryouma's daughter." Einstein realized.
"What?" Tesla realized. She then looked at Mei once more. She summoned a holographic image she had of Ryoma with his family. She held the image close to Thunder zooming in on the little girl.
"Had to believe right?" Mei noted. "That innocent little girl there became a Herrscher slayer," She whispered pointing to the happy child in the photo and then herself.
"A Herrscher slayer?" Siegfied questioned. He had recalled his wife having a similar title. Her holy blood and her training make the best counter for a Herrscher.
"I've fought and beaten, at least five Herrschers, and killed at least three of those," Mei told them.
Mei felt a little bashful as she saw the dumbstruck look of the others. She figured it must have sounded impressive. Though considering the one Herrscher she wanted to kill was still alive, she wasn't satisfied.
"Five Herrschers?" Cecilia questioned. They barely made it out against one and if Mei was old as she looked, then there was at least seven more Herrschers awakening in the next twenty years. She thought it was over, but, it had only just begun.
"The Herrschers I've beaten are Wind, Ice, Earth, Sentience, and Void." Mei elaborated.
"What about the ones you've killed?" Teri noted. It was an impressive repertoire, she wondered though if it was all solo or with a team. When they faced Sirin, Welt had done the brunt of the fighting, but still needed help.
"The ones I killed were the Herrschers of Ice, Earth, and Sentience," Mei answered. She summoned several glowing cores around her. "As you can see, these are the proof of my ability, the…spoils of war so to speak." She told them.
"Please tell me the world isn't totally destroyed in your time," Siegfied deadpanned. He had realized the implications as well and wondered just how bad things had gotten.
"Surprisingly it isn't," Mei explained. "If I recall the most destructive Herrscher to date had been Sirin with the Second Eruption," Mei told them. "No one else has matched her."
"Well, that's a relief," Tesla said. "That means we've technically had the worst of it for now."
"Still…four cores," Einstein noted as she observed the cores orbiting the Herrscher. Bella who had been quiet also noticed them, especially the core of Thunder. She recalled how it had once been the gem she had been gifted from her Master, now it was the core of her Master's greatest rival.
"A lot of the technology's improved as have the fighters," Mei noted. "Humanity hasn't given up the fight yet," She smiled. "The Herrscher of the wind had barely been around for a day or so before Anti Entropy had put her down and even then she barely did anything of note," Mei told them. Wendy was admittedly a victim in the situation, but there was no denying that her powers had paled in comparison to the ones that came later. Especially when Void used the core of wind to a far more brutal efficiency than the Wind Herrscher herself.
"The Herrschers of Ice and Earth had awakened within six hours of each other. They didn't even make it six days before they were beaten. Once again not much happened." She added.
"So, I take it we're winning then," Teri noted. "That's good."
"But at what cost?" Thunder mused. "For every victory forward, many have been lost." She noted. Wendy, Ana, Owl, Himeko, Kiana, and to an extent even Bella though she was wary of including the latter, had been lost in the fight. It was almost ironic how most of the Herrschers, were members or involved in different Anti Honkai groups, the sole exceptions being Sirin, the First Welt, and Domination. People who had dedicated themselves to ending the Honkai had been its heralds. Fate truly was a cruel mistress.
When Void opened her eyes again she was no longer out in the cold. The Herrscher was now in a bed, within a small cottage. Glancing out the window she saw nothing but snow and trees as far as the eye could see. "Huh," She wondered as she got up. "Am I…really…" She gasped as she recognized the room.
It was her Kiana's room. Void glanced to a nearby calendar and took note of the date. Today was her Kiana's birthday. Not wasting another second, Void hurried to get dressed and ran downstairs. When she arrived, she found a mountain of gifts waiting for her.
She walked past the gifts, not paying them any thought. "Hello," She called as she walked around the house. "Dad?" She wondered as she searched the living room. There was no response. She kept searching around the house but still could find him.
"Where is he?" Void wondered aloud. Surely he wouldn't just leave her alone today. Tired and hungry from all the searching, Void went back into the kitchen to eat before she continued her mission. As she was trying to make a sandwich, she noticed something in the fridge. It was a birthday cake, with no name on it.
She knew it was hers. Besides the cake, there was a note left by her father. He had gone out for the day…but he wished her a happy birthday. She stared at the cake for a moment before closing the door, crumpling the note, and throwing it into the trash. She made herself a sandwich for lunch and then sat down in the living room with nothing else to do.
She opened her gifts. There were plenty of toys and so many clothes, all for her and her alone. She tried playing with toys, but she grew bored not too long after. The clothes while pretty didn't really feel all that comfortable, even if they fit perfectly. In the end, she found herself waiting by the front door, occasionally glancing at the clock as the seconds ticked by. She waited and waited. Eventually, she passed out from boredom.
A few hours later, she was awoken by the door opening. She glanced up at the figure of her father, staggering but still standing. Delighted, she ran quickly to the kitchen, taking out the cake, along with the candles and the matches. It took her a while to find everything, but she got them.
Void cautiously walked back outside, taking care not to drop the cake. "I wanted to make sure you were…" Her voice trailed off as she looked around for her father. "here…" She lamented.
Void soon heard a few footsteps upstairs. She hurried upstairs taking care not to drop the cake. When she reached the second floor she could make out her father's figure, swaying to the side as he struggled to walk. She called to him as he entered the room but right as she was in front of the room, the shut-in front of her.
"I'm sure he's just…going to change." She told herself. "I'll just light the candles and wait," She continued. She sat opposite his door and lit the candles on the cake and waited. Any second now he was going to come out.
He never did. It was nearly midnight and the candles were starting to flicker. She was running out of time. She went to knock on his door, before stopping as she heard sobbing coming from the other side. Gently turning the knob, she peeked inside.
Void looked inside the room cautiously. She saw her father lying on the foot of his bed. Several bottles littered the floor, some spilling some awful smelling liquid. She could make it out some of the sounds in between his sobs. He was apologizing non-stop. He kept muttering the same words over and over again. "I am sorry, I am sorry, I am sorry." A picture frame clutched to his chest. On the picture frame, she could make out a woman and a girl, a mother, and child, both with white hair and blue eyes, her father's wife…and his daughter.
Void gently closed the door, leaving her father alone. The clock had almost struck midnight and her birthday was over at its end. She turned to where she left the cake, only to find a whited-out version of herself Kiana as a child sitting down with it. The copy was grinning at her, the candle illuminating their teeth.
"Aren't you going to make a wish?" It asked as it held the cake up in front of her. The words weren't sincere. They were mocking her. Void felt the tears forming in her eyes. It was just another average birthday for her, she thought. It had been so last year and the year before that. Why couldn't it have been like all the other kids' own…why was her birthday like this?
"Oh, don't cry…come on make a wish," The copy jeered as it placed the cake in her hand. She stared at the candle and then back at her daddy's door.
"I wish…" She whimpered, her voice cracked. "I wish Daddy loved me," She cried as she blew out the candle. She watched the smoke rise, her chest feeling a little lighter after making the wish. She was about to take a piece of cake.
"Oopsy," The figure said as they knocked her cake to the floor. "You weren't supposed to say it, now it won't come true," They cackled.
"My cake," Void cried as she kneeled to clean it up.
"Don't be sad," The figure told them. "That wasn't your cake…today isn't even your birthday." It told them.
"Yes, it is," Void countered.
"No, it isn't," It retorted. "Today…is Kiana's birthday, not yours. You don't have one," It chuckled in her face.
"I do too," She demanded. "Daddy said so,"
"Your daddy…or Kiana's daddy," It spat. "After all…you're a clone. You aren't the real daughter, you're a fake pretending to be his daughter."
"No, I'm not. I'm real." Void answered. "I'm real," She cried.
"You say that…but you are deep down you aren't." It continued.
The world shifted once more. Void found herself submerged completely in a vat of water, various cords, and tubes keeping her alive while she floated inside the container. She could hear sounds coming from outside. As she glanced up she saw other containers higher up, some were empty, and some had girls identical to herself.
"Daddy, look," A voice called. Void looked in front of her noticing another girl, identical to herself. "She looks just like me," The girl told the man, Void's her father. She saw look down, at the tube, muttering the words K423. The next thing she knew the glass broke and she was grabbed by the man.
"Come on Kiana, we got to move," The man told the girl. Kiana and the man hurried out of the building, the man carrying Void in his arms. They eventually bored a plane to escape as others came after them. However, after that, something went wrong. The plane was no longer in the air. It was on the ground, broken and the man was calling for Kiana but no one answered. Void was still in his arms.
"See, you do remember," The malicious voice returned. "The real one didn't return with him. You did. And you tried so hard, pretending she never existed, suppressing your own memories." It mocked. "I bet you thought if you tried hard enough…everyone would forget as well. That they would accept you as being the real one and act as if nothing happened."
"But…they didn't." It noted. Void said nothing. "No one forgets the original, especially not…for some cheap.. throw away… copy."
"You're wrong." Void muttered as tears streamed. "I'm as real as her. He loves me just as much as he loved her." She struggled to say.
"Then why…. did he give you… her name…Kiana," The figure said.
Void froze as she heard it. That name was the one that was always there. The one that always followed her. Even after she had put herself back together. It still haunted her. Kiana's friends still came after her, hoping to bring the girl back, regardless of if it meant killing Void or not.
"He never saw you as anything more than a replacement." It told her. "And when he realized you couldn't do it," The world changed to show a young girl with white hair all alone. "He left you."
"Just like everyone else,"
Void felt herself sinking in the snow. The world becoming colder around her. She was alone just like always. The figure was right. No one wanted her. It was just better for her to disappear.
"Yes…just disappear, once and for all," The figure said. As Void sank deeper, the figure grew, changing in shape till it was a whited version of adult Void. Its grin never shifted "Suffer no more…and give me your power." The world soon started to become dark.
"Will you shut up already, you little insect," A familiar voice called. Void glanced up to see the figure get shot twice, causing them to stagger. Then two giant pillars appear in the sky before both extend and crushed the white figure. Once the pillars parted, a giant cat's paw materialize in the air before swatting the figure into the air, a white lance following them.
"Surely you weren't actually believing those lies." Another voice, similar to Void's own, chided. The Herrscher felt two pairs of hands grabbing onto her before they pulled her out of the snow. She looked to her rescuers once they had released her, stumbling back in the process.
"It can't be," She muttered in disbelief. Two girls stood the Herrscher. One with golden eyes and purple hair, the other with blue eyes and white hair. Void knew these girls well. How could she not, they were Kiana and Sirin, the two girls she had been made from.