Lore change: The Immortal Blades' appearance
Their uniform consists of a tailor-made ensemble of monochrome colors highlighted with teal and gold. All wield scythes with the exception of their leader as per the custom. They mostly travel in groups on horseback and wear a long cloak and a bird beak mask making them have a close resemblance to plague doctors.
°• Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor; for if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up!
—Ecclesiastes 4:9-10— •°
Under their long cloaks they blended with the monochrome of the night and full moon. Under the Earth's lone star they became as the non-existent shadows of a candlelight.
They were called scythes, spirits, valkyrjas and plague doctors.
They were the Immortal Blades, servants of Schicksal.
Ragna Lodbrok was their leader and only she was allowed to wield another weapon other than a scythe. She kept a greatsword, which she nicknamed "King Cobra", strapped to her back during missions. Despite her countless praises and her great sense of loyalty and leadership, the Overseer of Schicksal, Otto Apocalypse, trusted her as far as he could fling a horse by the tail. His very philosophy revolved around skepticism and he was extremely selective of the people he kept close to him. Ragna was a woman raised on praise and glory on the battlefields. She had attained the pinnacle of her fame and was a well-respected Valkyrie even among the citizens. And so, she was more loyal to her comrades than she was to the Overseer. Otto Apocalypse did not like her for her heart also held kindness and truthfulness. Rather than Ragna, he chose someone who worked close to her...
Her name was Rita Rossweisse.
Rita was a member of the Immortal Blades, an A-rank Valkyrie and also Ragna's maid. She was a spy serving as the eyes and ears of the Overseer. Even among the Overseer's tight inner circle, very few knew about her. She was never seen alone with him, and if they had ever interacted in public before then it would have been in the presence of Ragna. The maid made sure to fulfill her duties all while being a double agent.
Ragna's fine morning began with dozens of folders piled on top of one another towering higher than herself. The moment Rita knocked at the door, the mountain of folders and papers toppled over and made their final destination onto Ragna's head. The loud crash made the maid hurriedly open the door without waiting for her mistress' permission first. It was a common sight for her now — Ragna, praised leader of the Immortal Blades, was on the floor, literally defeated by the piles of work she had.
"A wonderful morning to you, miss Lodbrok," Rita said in a cheerful tone. She placed aside the cup of tea she was holding for Ragna and bent down to pick up her superior.
"What a great timing you have."
Ragna went back to her documents and rummaged through them while ruminating to herself. Procrastination was nowhere found in her dictionary, but when Schicksal had important events, which were becoming too frequent now, even she could not handle all of her tasks. For the sake of efficiency, delegation was used.
"Rita, I have an important task for you."
"It is my utmost pleasure to be of your assistance, miss Lodbrok. What can I do for you?"
.
.
.
Rita's new task was not as simple as she had thought it to be. She had to mentor a certain 10-year-old named Bianka Ataegina. Usually, new Valkyries were trained at Schicksal's school, St Freya Academy, but the Overseer had specifically mentioned in his letter that a member of the Immortal Blades would also have to guide the new girl. The thought of becoming a mentor was not exactly thrilling for Rita, especially when the trainee was a child. But why an Immortal Blade in first place? What was Otto planning now? Rita was not the type to ask questions.
Other than the girl's picture, name, age and date of birth, nothing was known about her family or hometown. The girl came from an orphanage in Sochi, which made Rita suspect that her hometown had been hit by the Honkai. Children were mostly immune to it until a certain age and males were most prone to the infection. The girl must have then been rescued by the orphanage after having lost her family. Oddly enough, her bate of birth was set on the 1st of January 2000 which Rita suspected to be fake since it was the default date of birth set on the identification forms. Maybe the girl was not actually ten.
Bianka Ataegina had recently left the orphanage to enroll at St Freya Academy to become a Valkyrie. That morning a crowd of students arrived at the premises of the school and Bianka was expected to be among them. Rita left in those early hours to search for the 10-year-old she had been tasked to mentor. It did not take her long to find Bianka.
"Miss, are you lost?"
The young Bianka turned around and saw the one speaking to her. She shot furtive glances around her to confirm that the speaker was talking to her and not to someone else.
"Young lady, are you lost?" the woman asked her again.
The maid appeared young herself, so Bianka wondered why she was referring to her as a "young lady". The girl had a sudden thought: maybe maids were old when it came to their age number but appeared young and beautiful due to their good genetics. For some reasons, Bianka could not stop herself from asking the woman that question.
"Are you old?" These words escaped her mouth before she could think twice about it. She mentally strangled herself for it.
"Does a 15-year-old look old to you? Or do you mean I look more mature for my age? In that case, I will refrain myself from wearing this maid outfit. I shall dress more decently in your eyes from now on." Rita made a slight bow to Bianka. All this time Rita was wearing a gentle expression on her face even when the little girl had asked her such a bold question.
Bianka felt her eyes being blessed by elegance and radiance when Rita bowed to her. She felt worse afterwards for asking her such a question. The maid was clearly a dignified lady with refined words and who behaved like a noble from high society. Even her breathing looked enthralling to the young Bianka.
"So... do you know where you are going, miss?"
"Err... I want to go to Schicksal's HQ," Bianka said in a small voice.
"You are inside our headquarters. But we do not teach girls to become Valkyries here. Do you want me to show you where St Freya Academy is?"
The girl shook her head. "No, I don't want to go there. I want to meet all the elite S-rank Valkyries first." Her eyes beamed with eagerness to meet her idols.
"Most of them are on the training grounds right now. They are on your right. You should keep walking in that direction until you spot them. That's all."
"Alright then, ma'am– err... miss!" Bianka did an awkward Valkyrie salute using the wrong hand and proceeded towards the wrong direction.
Rita sighed. "Miss, I said it is on your right not your left."
Embarrassed, Bianka turned around and laughed it off. "Oh... yeah, yeah, I was just... stretching my legs a bit. Of course, I know which is left and which is right."
If it were not for her politeness, Rita would have facepalmed. It was the first time that a new trainee with absolutely no experience asked to meet the elite S-rank Valkyries. Not that it was not allowed, but usually junior students felt shy in front of their seniors.
"Huh?" Bianka noticed that the maid was following her.
"I am going to the training grounds too so I thought of accompanying you," Rita said. She had been tasked to guide the short girl and keeping her out of trouble was also included.
"Yes, I would love some company. By the way, I am Bianka Ataegina, D-rank Valkyrie. And I will do my best to become a future S-rank Valkyrie." Bianka said the last sentence louder and with much enthusiasm.
"Nice to meet you, miss Ataegina. I am Rita Rossweisse, an A-rank Valkyrie and Ragna Lodbrok's adjutant and personal maid."
"Woahhhh! Ragna Lodbrok? The actual Ragna Lodbrok? The leader of the Immortal Blades?" Bianka's eyes twinkled while she beamed at her. "Can we become friends, Rita?"
"We sure can... Bianka."
Rita spent the rest of the day following Bianka who fangirled over anything and everything. First, they met the S-rank Valkyries sparring and reducing mecha equipments to smoke. Bianka watched them in silence, absorbed by the various skills and techniques the soldiers displayed. Second, they visited the dormitory of the elites where a few Valkyries found the little girl amusing. Third, they went into Schicksal's laboratory run by the top scientist, Nagamitsu.
On the admission day the girls were subjected to many physical and mental tests. Weaker candidates who failed in any of these would be immediately dismissed. One of the physical exams consisted of simulating the Honkai disease inside the candidate without actually injecting her with the disease. Normally these tests were performed inside St Freya Academy, but since Bianka insisted to stay in the headquarters, Nagamitsu offered to test her instead. Though she could not understand half of the scientist's words, Rita stayed behind to watch the Honkai simulation on Bianka's body. She saw the weird thermal images on the computer screen and the even weirder smile that Nagamitsu was making throughout the process.
"Impressive!" Nagamitsu exclaimed. "Her body has the ability to mitigate the infection from one part of her body to another. Even on maximum intensity an S-rank Valkyrie would feel uncomfortable without a proper battlesuit, but this girl feels nothing."
Rita looked back into the screen and saw the girl picking her nose. The poor girl had no idea that she was being watched.
"She must be the one the Overseer brought."
"Yes, she is," Rita replied, looking quite surprised herself. Nagamitsu, who was part of the Overseer's circle, had already been informed about Bianka.
"Otto clearly chose well. Give him my compliments when you meet him, Rita. This girl is a wonder."
The scientist gave her commands on the intercom and the simulation deactivated. Bianka received a lot more questions which she answered with ease. The last question, however, troubled Rita a lot.
"Lastly, which affiliation do you think you'll fall in as a Valkyrie?"
"The Immortal Blades!" answered Bianka without a hint of hesitation in her voice.
"Why are you choosing them?"
"They save lives by risking their own and lead investigations about how people have died in certain places. During the second Honkai eruption, they were the ones sent to find the corrupting source causing death. Whether it is an accident, a murder or disappearance, the Immortal Blades solve everything like detective soldiers. I like solving mysteries too!"
"I see..." Nagamitsu wrote something in her notes. "So your default weapon will be a scythe."
It had always been like this — only the leader was allowed to wield another weapon other than a scythe. The Immortal Blades were mostly scythe-wielders.
But Bianka shook her head in disapproval. "No, I will choose a lance."
Rita could have rolled her eyes. Surely, she thought, this new girl was getting too ahead of herself. She was not sure why the Overseer had noticed Bianka and why she had to babysit the new girl. It was indeed a feat to be extremely Honkai-resistant, but it was not enough to become the leader of a squad. Ragna Lodbrok was an experienced fighter who had shed blood, sweat and tears. How could a normal girl from an orphanage who was still at D-rank challenge an S-ranker like Ragna? Nagamitsu would surely decline this bold request. Then the unexpected happened...
Nagamitsu gave her her approval.
Rita widened her eyes, unable to utter a word against it. She had no authority or power to object so she kept her mouth shut. She glanced into the coffee mug of the scientist to confirm if it was coffee or alcohol she had been drinking.
It was coffee.
And so, Rita Rossweisse concluded that Nagamitsu, the bright scientist, had finally lost her mind.
