Groaning. Screeching. Teeth aching resonance. It slowly faded. Three women in a cocoon of impregnable steel waited patiently. A ball of purple plasma winked into existence, hovering above the Herrscher of Lightning obediently. Mei brushed past Durandal and offered a hand to Kurikara. The woman accepted. She grizzled as her battered body was hauled off the concrete.
"I'm sorry," Mei whispered.
"You saved me, My Lady. There is no wrong you could do. I should have acted and stopped Owl sooner."
"Desperation. Of all people I should have anticipated that. Still…. Ana. That was beyond expectation."
"She is powerful, My Lady. Be mindful."
Durandal stood and checked over status reports from her Godslayer armour. Some components were compromised. Others needed time for automatic repairs. The brief reprieve would prove useful.
"What now, Raiden?" Durandal inquired.
"Thinking."
Mei paced around their tiny circular prison. Their situation demanded she show her hand a little. She tapped her communicator through the small soulium rod hidden in a garter on her thigh. Activated the Quantum communication function. Seconds ticked by before Amarant appeared as a holographic projection.
"What the hell just happened?" Amarant exclaimed. "I lost most of my comms links to Coral."
"I need your mind," Mei explained.
The guide required no further prompting. She threw out a hand. A transparent blue holographic projection of Coral Island filled the space between Mei and Durandal. Amarant tapped more commands into a projected haptic interface. A constellation of small red dots flashed into being. Many of them then disappeared. Those that remained emitted red pulses. Each wave melted away the original blue images, replacing them with stark red imagery reflecting the devastation of the city-state.
"Surprised that any surveillance drones survived," Amarant admitted.
"Worth my time seeding them throughout the city," Mei replied. "To answer your earlier question, a gravity pulse was responsible."
"Looks like the ground layer is an icy tomb. Second has been crushed under the gravitation impact of third floor shards blasted downward. First isn't fairing much better. The gravity pulse was the nail in the coffin. City structural integrity has passed tipping point. Just a matter of time before it all falls apart."
"ETA?"
"Hard to guess. It'll hold together a few days. I think. Eventually the Galaxy Elevator anchor will give out. That'll bring the whole structure down upon what remains. Won't be pretty."
"Can you map me a route through to the Elevator? Coral City be damned. I need to kill that Herrscher quickly."
"Which one?"
"There's only one. Ana killed Owl and took his core."
"The fuck!?"
"Wasting time."
"Apologies."
The surveillance drones pulsed, ripples of magenta emanating outward. A faint ping responded from somewhere up the Galaxy Elevator.
"I guess I was right," Mei muttered.
Durandal hefted her lance.
"We cannot waste any more time. I will fly up and kill the Herrscher."
Mei's snort of derision echoed about the room. Durandal shifted her lance ever so slightly. It was enough for Kurikara to move in front of Mei defensively.
"It is fine," Mei said as she rested a hand on her servant's shoulder. "If Durandal wishes to die then we should let her go. It would make my life easier in the long term. I'd rather she died by the Herrscher's hands than my own when I tear her apart in front of Otto."
"You are baiting me," Durandal noted.
"I'm waving a planet sized red flag in front of a brainless bull," Mei replied with a smirk.
Amarant meanwhile continued typing in various commands, trying to find a route through the devastation that would get them back to the Space Elevator.
"Do you mind sharing with the audience?" Amarant asked aloud.
"We know that Ana can now use the Herrscher powers of Ice and Gravity. She doesn't need to face us directly. Flying directly toward her will only announced our presence. And it appears her control is an order of magnitude greater than what Owl commanded. With her gravity powers she could scoop up a 50-metre radius orb of ocean water and pin us within it using a focussed point of gravity. We couldn't escape from the intense gravity and if we try to boil or burn the water she need merely draw more up from the ocean."
Mei gestured toward Durandal.
"You no doubt could hold your breath for several minutes. But unless you have supreme confidence in breaking free of the gravity well, eventually you will be forced to take a breath. We are all subject to basic biological needs," a brief glance flicked to Amarant, "and that is a weakness that Ana can exploit. I don't want to drown so I'm going to find another way to sneak up on her. Other options using her gravity powers at range include turning the atmosphere into a nuclear fusion dawn. Ice or Fire? What's your kink? High up the Space Elevator her access to water will be limited and she need be wary with her gravity power lest she suffer backlash."
"That is a pretty twisted way of thinking," Durandal mused.
"It's a Herrschers way of thinking. Foremost in our minds is the goal of destroying humanity by the most effective means."
A thunderous boom and resulting reverberation rocked the shattered room. Durandal and Mei kept their footing, looking towards the source of the disturbance. Kurikara growled and glared at exactly where Ana was at that moment.
"What in the [Honkai God's] name was that?" Mei cursed.
Amarant activated a live feed from a surviving surveillance drone.
Ana hovered in the ruins of the observation level. Cold wind whipped through her long silver hair. She held up a hand and wove a ball of ice, made from intricate layers of interweaving components and spun, twisted and bobbed past each other. The complexity bordered on fractal. Enough to help Ana focus her power. Power pulsed through the twin cores sandwiching her heart. With a flicker Ana caught every atom hovering in the around her and launched it at hypersonic speeds. The steel floor pocked under the invisible missiles. Again, Ana conjured up another fractal sphere of ice. This time she compressed it and observed the shifting components as they operated under pressure. This gave her inspiration. The air heaved, a spinning top toy of grey metal forged under intense gravitational pressure, the compacted sphere forming its core. Ana gestured across the barren ground, sending the lantern scuttling off into the distance. It only took a moment for her to perfect control. Once she could move it without conscious observation Ana immediately detonated the tool. Temperatures close to absolute zero bathed the area.
The Herrscher glided over to the edge of the observation platform. She had mastered the finite. Now it was time to master the colossal. The Pacific Ocean rippled far below. Ana had no need to gesture. She already knew what was needed and reality would bow to her will. Gravity drew a sphere of water 100 metres across from the ocean. Ice froze the sphere solid. With gravity Ana flung the sphere a modest 250 metres into the air. The projectile did not gain much kinetic energy before it struck the ocean and sent tidal waves radiating outward. Coastal projections and beachfront areas of Coral were pounded beneath the mighty rush of water.
Ana… that name was already losing all meaning. The Herrscher's face morphed into an icy smile. She knew what needed to be done. She had known for a long time. Resisted against it. Even in agony when the Herrscher of Thunder had struck she clung to the last fragments of humanity. In the end that was not enough. Being saved by the man that had damned the last years of her life. Ana… the woman… the entity… the Herrscher, did not want to be saved by the likes of him. Guilt had consumed her. Held her back. The rising star of Schicksal now barely bobbing on the surface.
The Herrscher felt the twinned powers within herself. She was a gestalt awareness now. Some fragment of Owl lingered. An understanding of how to use his power. The Herrscher of Ice. She who wielded the frozen rime in the darkness between stars. The Herrscher of Gravity. He who wielded the power that shaped stars.
The Rimestar Herrscher opened her icy blue eyes and looked down upon the world that the Honkai would soon scour of humanity.
With a wave Amarant ended the live feed. Mei hissed and pressed fingertips against her temples.
'Just what is this Herrscher up to? Facing one is a dangerous enough gambit. Somehow it has inherited the power of the Herrscher of Gravity too. Oto-sama's records said this also occurred during the Second Impact. Is the Honkai adapting in our Era to new challenges?
I'm becoming distracted. My goal is to discern Ana's actions and act appropriately. So why has she not left the city? Does she mean to experiment with her powers and learn to better control them before attacking any nearby cities? Will Coral City become a protracted siege? Amarant said the city will collapse under its own weight? Does she know this?'
Mei drew a breath, centred herself and exhaled. She looked at the city and wondered what would happen next. What was—
"Amarant. I need a live satellite feed above Coral City. Oh, and don't use one from Schicksal. I wouldn't want to be rude to our guest."
"On it. I'll borrow one from the Americans."
Tense seconds passed.
"Glad I left that backdoor in place," Amarant muttered.
The hologram of Coral City flickered out of existence. In its place was a highly detailed perspective of Pacific Ocean about the equator.
"Give me a 100 km radius perspective with Coral City at the centre."
Amarant obliged. The image pixelated and was replaced by one centred upon Coral City. Mei walked into the hologram and loomed over Coral City.
"Please let me be wrong," she whispered.
The Rimestar Herrscher watched another ball of frozen water fly past her and in a wide parabola. It sailed many kilometres into the air before slowly falling back into the ocean. The tsunami would possibly wipe away much of Hawaii. The Herrscher's smile broadened.
Mei swore under the breath. In several languages. Fluently. Enough to make Amarant wince. Even elicit a raised eyebrow from Durandal.
"Amarant, I need that route to the Galaxy Elevator. Now. Kurikara, dig me a way out of this steel and concrete tomb. Bianca, you and I are going to assault the Space Elevator and kill Ana as soon as possible."
A miniature hologram of Coral City appeared before Amarant as she scoured the city via the surveillance drones. Kurikara punched a hole in the metal cocoon surrounding the trio. Once past the woman began tearing through the debris outside at rapid pace.
"What is on your mind, Raiden?" Durandal demanded.
"The girl has already out-thought us. She doesn't need to leave the city. It's safest here. With the elevator intact Ana can see anyone attacking from the sky. All it takes is a little flex of her gravity power and an aircraft or missile falls into the ocean." Mei hissed as she watched the satellite feed. "The ocean. Ana is surrounded by all the weaponry she needs."
Mei pointed toward the plume of white. Another one, much larger than the previous one, appeared south of the island. Then another appeared, father and larger than before.
"Ana is freezing chunks of seawater and throwing them as far as she can manage. In the last five minutes she's gone from a boulder 500 metres north of the island to an iceberg twenty kilometres away. Imagine what she can achieve in an hour or two. We kill her now or humanity is doomed anyway."
Mei took haptic control of the hologram. She typed in several commands and wiped the satellite image of the ocean. A detailed globe of the Earth hovered before Mei. Another window was opened to Wikipedia, Mei cross-referencing meteoric impact events.
"Don't think like a human," Mei warned Durandal. "The 1908 Tungusaka event was simply an air-burst of a rock maybe 100 metres across. Imagine what would happen if a chunk of ice a kilometre wide fell upon the planet from low orbit. As the Herrscher of Ice, Ana can create artificial comets from seawater. As the Herrscher of Gravity, Ana can throw the comet into low orbit and let the planet's own gravity pull it back down. Schicksal and AE don't have nearly enough missiles to stop all the projectiles she can forge in mere seconds. Hell, even Kevin can't zip around the world fast enough to intercept everything. It doesn't matter where they land. With each impact more particulate matter will be hurled into the atmosphere. Soon enough the sky will be blotted out and the Earth will fall into a new Ice Age."
"Gravity and Ice," Durandal mused. "A Herrschers way of thinking."
"Got it!"
Amarant triumphantly gestured over the small hologram and blew it up to full size, filling most of the shelter.
"It's going to be tight. I took Durandal's idea of flight and picked a path that will take you over as much debris as possible. Ana shouldn't be able to pick you up so far below. Once you reach the Space Elevator it's a swift climb upwards. Ana's probably somewhere in the devastation she inflicted upon the Galaxy Ladder. From there, well it's up to you two Herrscher killers to do your thing."
"Kurikara?"
"Forgive me, my Lady," A low voice carried down from a hole that had been torn into the chunk of superstructure the blocked their way out, "This is taking longer than your wished. I shall clear a way shortly."
A draconic roar reverberated throughout the room. The area shuddered for several seconds before stilling.
"Our way free is clear, my Lady."
Amarant looked sideways to Mei and raised an eyebrow. Try as she might, Mei could not supress the faint smile on her lips.
'This one surprises me constantly.'
"Well I'm bowing out at this point. Good hunting, dear Customer. Oh, and Durandal, try not to die. Raiden won't admit it but you're important later."
Amarant touched a final key. The flight path was uploaded to Mei and Durandal's AR interface, visual lines tracing the arc they should follow to their final foe. Amarant and all the holographic projections disappeared.
"Your arm?" Mei asked as she looked to Durandal.
"Broken. Not an impediment. Your eye?"
Mei lifted a hand to her face. She hadn't even noticed it. The Herrscher's senses were so acute that any injuries didn't impede her senses. The left side of her face was covered in blood. Her eye was swollen and as she breathed in her face ached.
"Probably a skull fracture," Mei surmised.
What remained of the city was a fog clad blur of riven steel, concrete fragments and glass shards. Kurikara kept low to the ground, great wings flapping and carrying the Herrscher of Thunder at tremendous speed. Durandal matched pace, light wings streaming out behind her Godslayer battlesuit. The trio made it to the Galaxy Ladder in record time. Kurikara performed a circular bank before arcing upwards, Honkai augmented wings boosting her ascent to supersonic speeds. The crackle of Durandal closing in indicated she was wasting no time either. Two blurs, one black and red, the other silver and blue, race up the sides of the ladder, negotiating their way between gaps between the Floors and bursting out into the cold light of noon. Grey clouds circled ominously above, spiralling around the Galaxy Ladder in likely obeyance with the Rimestar Herrscher where it lurked within.
The devastated observation level of the Ladder was easy to see. Kurikara spiralled around the building before banking outward in a clockwise motion, adjusting inertia from vertical to horizontal. Wings shifting to bleed off speed, the dragon carried its Lady through the hundred-metre-high gap between the section of the Galaxy Ladder below and above.
Floating at the rim of the floor on the opposing edge was Ana Schariac. The newly ascendent Rimestar Herrscher looked over her shoulder dismissively. Great boulders of ice coalesced into existence in the air between the two Herrscher. Gravity launched the projectiles at supersonic speed. Kurikara reacted in kind, reptilian mouth agape, coruscating crimson lightning raking over the projectiles as they approached. More icy weapons appeared, sleek ice lances pointed at their foe. Perfect in her balance, Mei stood on Kurikara's spinal ridge and drew the Domain of Sanction. As each lance spiralled forward Mei swung the blade, a crescent of lightning following the slash, obliterating the projectile.
Ablative layers of gravity compacted nitrogen covered the Rimestar Herrscher's back. Durandal's sneak attack faulted as this protection suddenly appeared, lance unable to penetrate the final few nitrogen layers. Light wings sparkled as she hovered and readied her next attack. The fragments of compressed nitrogen halted mid-air, monomolecular edges reorientating and launching in a great wave toward the Valkyrja. Queen appeared, projecting a 360-degree kinetic shield. Two small suns flanked Durandal, nuclear fusion temporarily generated via intense gravity. A second later the power of a star fell apart, the nuclear explosion washing over the far rim of the platform.
Mei projected an electromagnetic field to filter out the intense light and various forms of radiation that would have emanated from the explosion. Her inhuman reaction speed let her track the Rimestar Herrscher where she flew out of the smoke. The woman threw hands wide. A layer of ice a metre thick formed on the floor and ceiling. Mei didn't need to speak. Her mind was in sync with Kurikara. The dragon banked as the first icy stalagmites and stalactites formed, raining from above and below at supersonic speeds. Those that Kurikara could not dodge Mei cut apart with lightning slashes. The Herrscher of Thunder leapt and pulled herself upward with electromagnetic force, reversing her blade and landing on the ice of the ceiling on steady feet, blade piercing the ice with a thunderclap. A second later the metre thick ice was riven apart, lightning washing out in an angry wave from the Herrscher, vaporising the impediment. Mei ran across the ceiling, her movements so fast she appeared to flicker and shift metres between each stride.
Durandal burst from the smoke unharmed, twin Phantom hovering aggressively behind. King launched forward, swinging it's greatsword in broad sweeping motions. The Rimestar Herrscher flitted between blows, gravity compressed ice barriers or layers of rime shielding over flesh protecting itself. The S-rank Valkyrja suddenly flew upward, hefting her lance and taking aim before hurling it towards the Herrscher. The Rimestar Herrscher chose to fly upward. Where Hler landed the ground buckled and heaved under the impact, the kinetic force of the blow sending out a sonic pulse. Mei flickered directly above the Herrscher. Bracing herself against the ceiling, she launched herself downward, katana flashing as it struck the Rimestar Herrscher before she could better protect herself. The Herrscher shrieked as the weapon bit deep, scouring a crimson line down it's back. Mei flew toward the buckled floor. In spiteful riposte, a gravity well collapsed beneath Mei, the beginnings of a nuclear fusion reaction flickering into being. The Herrscher of Thunder was tired of this repetitive dance. She projected her will, electromagnetic power obeying her orders, the flickers of a fusion reaction torn apart like a tokamak failing. Mei landed in the crackling aftermath and lifted her head to look mockingly at the Rimestar Herrscher above. In a test of wills between Herrscher, the power of Gravity had failed when compared with that of Thunder.
Gravity stripped nearly all atmosphere from the platform. Mei manifested an electromagnetic bubble to protect herself and retain air. Kurikara where she flew overhead did the same. Similar defensive measures activated within the Bright Knight: Excelsis battlesuit.
'Clever. Electricity needs particles to be effective. No atmosphere limits my abilities. But without an atmosphere her fusion abilities are similarly limited. So, what is her plan now?'
The bloody back wound had already frozen over. The Rimestar Herrscher flew backward, keeping a close eye on either foe. Queen manifested behind her, holding kite shield aloft in an attempt to box the Herrscher in. The Rimestar Herrscher didn't bother looking back. Gravity warped and twisted around the Phantom. The cohesion of the projection flickered and failed, Phantom collapsing into a twisting whirl of Honkai energy particles. But the distraction had been enough. Durandal had retrieved her lance, repositioned and hurled Hler upward. This time the lance clipped the Herrscher's side, icy globules of blood flying from the wound.
Twin injuries driving the Herrscher to frustration, the woman bent her head back and shrieked. Mei paid little attention, directing Kurikara unconsciously and getting into position herself. The dragon ascended to the ceiling, performed a tight wing over and plunged toward the Herrscher. Multiple ice lances assailed the beast. It's thick Honkai beast hide shrugged off the blows. The dragon caught the small Herrscher into its claws and drove the woman into the floor. Steel warped under the impact. Kurikara was merciless, unleashing a torrent of crimson lightning breath upon the Herrscher pinned beneath as point-blank range.
Complex lotus flowers of black and blue ice, veined with white, manifested around Kurikara. Glittering in the cold sun, they shifted orientation to face Kurikara and fired polar rays at the Honkai beast. With a bellow of pain the dragon kicked into the air and withdrew. From within the cold mist and crackling dust, Honkai and Herrscher energy radiated. It pulsed quickly then fell into a low, bass hum. The Herrscher of Thunder felt a resonance with this power. It congealed and crackled. Supersaturated water that expressed beautiful crystals. The bitter winds of the arctic north. Dense anger and wrath given physical form.
Lances of black metal with glacial blue medieval accents a mockery of Schicksal iconography flew out of the gathering fog. Mei parried the first one, 4 yugake gloves manifesting to knock away the rest with Keys of Castigation. Durandal paid no mind, King swept its broadsword in a wide horizontal arc, lances clanging with a metallic thrum before flying back into the mist. A great white lily grew out of the mist, the lances flying up and arranging themselves in a half-halo behind the flower. The floor iced over, great waves of roiling rime pulsing outward. Mei kicked off the ground, hovering in mid-air and cautiously assessing the new development. From the top of the white lily a woman stretched out. She wore a pristine white dress, contrasting her blue-black skin and white hair that tumbled far down her back. A black lattice-like halo ringed in white and connected to the figure by several white strands appeared overhead.
'The Honkai adapting yet again. Is she powered by Spiral Energy now?'
Black lanterns, similar to toy spinning tops but crafted from dark metal with a white rimefire core, burst out of the mist. Mei slashed the first three away, only to be slammed to the ground when a black lance struck unseen. Were it not for the katana wielding yugake gloves, Mei would have been impaled moments later. The hovering guardians smashed away the projectiles. Those precious seconds were what Mei needed. Lightning haloed her body before pulsing outward, melting ice and shearing the already buckled metal floor into hulking chunks. Exerting her authority as the Herrscher of Thunder, Mei gripped the chunks with Honkai energy and flew upward. As she flew the chunks would slide in front of her one by one, left arm outstretched and crackling with lightning. As the chunk lined she wove an electromagnetic field around before launching it as a hypersonic railgun projectile. Hunks of metal the size of cars flew at 3000 m/s. The Rime and gravity barriers about the Rimestar Herrscher weathered the assault, though the Herrscher was clearly expending an inordinate amount of Honkai energy to protect its vast form.
Kurikara swept down and picked her Lady up. Herrscher and Dragon flew through the air, circling the twisted monstrosity the Rimestar Herrscher had become. Durandal was fairing better, the defensive capabilities of her Godslayer battlesuit on full display. Both autonomous Phantoms kept her personal space clear as she looked down and assessed the situation. Mei wasted no time and subverted Durandal's communications system.
[Always full of surprises, the Honkai]
[I will ask later how you broke this encrypted frequency, Raiden]
[Didn't. I just took direct control of your systems. Enjoy the feeling of being vulnerable. My elation at your displeasure aside, are you open to a little co-operation?]
[I trust you have a plan]
[There's an almost hostile tone in what you asked]
[Experience has taught me that you always have a plan]
[Fools and the unimaginative die young. Of course, you are a statistical outlier. In many regards.]
[Is now the appropriate time for such barbs?]
Mei stroked her back where she had been struck. In Arc City she had been Durandal's punching bag. Only her Herrscher electromagnetic reinforcement ability had allowed her to remained relatively intact. Here in Coral City her powers eclipsed what she was previously capable. And still she had cracked ribs from the blow.
'We waste any more time and this Tetsuo wannabe is going to bring on a new ice-age faster than I predicted.'
[The Herrscher possess two cores. However, it is young and can only there draw a fixed amount of Herrscher and Honkai energy from the Imaginary Tree every second. I've done much to drain its reserves. But it needs to be weaker still.
After our earlier CQC demonstrations the Herrscher will be wary of permitting anybody to approach. Those blue and black lances are controlled independently and move with incredible force. The lanterns appear to be remote manifestation points for Herrscher of Ice powers. Keep the various components distracted and busy. Kurikara will assist you. I'll do the rest."
As Mei finished speaking a rime lantern zipped toward the two women, a halo of ice lances forming around it before being launched forward. The two split in opposite directions. Durandal battered the assault away with her lance, light wings carrying her in rapid orbit around the Rimestar Herrscher. She took aim and hurled her lance, the weapon intercepted by multiple black lances. Durandal held her hand out, exerted a fraction of her quantum power and recalled the weapon to hand. Queen hefted her shield and rebuked multiple attacks from ice lances and rime needle showers. Great pillar of ice grew explosively from the floor. King was quick to cleave the projections apart.
Kurikara banked around the Rimestar Herrscher and launched a barrage of ball lightning breaths. A rime lantern appeared beside the Dragon and detonated, the arctic pulse dropping the temperature a hundred degrees. The Honkai beast howled in pain and turned away sharply. When she righted herself, Mei no longer stood atop the beast's spine ridge.
Black lances formed a lethal sphere about Mei. In turn the Herrscher of Thunder sheathed her weapon, closed her eyes and stilled her senses. Four katana gripped by samurai gloves manifested around her, two above her hands, two below. The six armed Ashura readied to strike down the evil beneath her. Lightning arced between the Herrscher and her weapons. Battle was a dance that one could feel. Your enemy did not need to draw their weapon for you to know where they were already going to strike. Mei's eyes flicked wide open, crimson irises dancing with motes of white.
"Koi!"
As once the lances attacked. The Herrscher of Thunder swept katana from scabbard, ragged lightning following in its wake, cutting through ice and cold metal. The four Key of Castigation intercepted and deflected the rear attacks. As more lances appeared the Honaki reserves of the Rimestar Herrscher drained more and more.
Time dilated, Mei moving and reacting at speeds not humanly possible. A second dragged into long eternity. She broke out of the halo. Rather than flying she leapt between black lances where they hovered in mid-air, gripping them briefly before kicking off and toward the next one. A rime lantern chased her, nearly keeping up speed. A Key of Castigation appeared, spearing the lantern and sending metal fragments flying. An explosion of bitter cold followed in its destruction. Mei bounced between black lances, ice lances and rime lanterns. In less than a second, she clung to the roof above the Rimestar Herrscher. A second later three black lances struck the location, punching into the ceiling with incredible force.
'That's right. I'm predictable.'
Kurikara flew in and raked the Herrscher with gouts of crimson lightning breath. Great hovering icebergs coalesced and struck at the dragon. With no other option the dragon retreated. Only to be replaced by Durandal. The Valkyrja flew directly at Herrscher, lance thrust forward, all force put into the singular blow. The twin Phantoms battered away any obstructions. As Durandal closed the final few metres, layer after layer thick ice barrier appeared, attempting to ablate the power and speed of the piercing attack. Durandal powered forward. Black lances attempted to skewer her. King's broad strokes swept them away. Rime lanterns zipped forward and detonated. The Scutum Divinitas automated Honkai barrier activated and took the polar blows. Still Durandal accelerated. It was only as the last ice shield was shattered that the Valkyrja made a sudden 90 degree turn upward.
Less than a metre behind her was Mei. The perfect shadow. The perfect silhouette hidden in the wake of the S-rank Valkyrja. She had been predictable in moving to the ceiling where she had struck before. She had been unpredictable in working with and relying upon Durandal to execute their attack. A thunderclap followed Mei as she flew by, the Rimestar Herrscher not even having time to turn head over shoulder and follow her attacker.
The Herrscher of Thunder hovered back-to-back with the Herrscher of the Rimestar. The Herrscher of Thunder recalled what it had experienced upon the Throne of Fudo-myo, what it had manifested in the training room, what it felt within the Raikiri blade. Herrscher energy twisted through the Domain of Sanction. Back-to-back, the Herrscher of Thunder shifted a little to the left and ran its katana through the Rimestar Herrscher's back, beneath the rib cage. Herrscher energy coalesced and arced outward. The katana was drawn upward, running just parallel to the spine, cutting through the ribcage before stopping at the clavicle. Herrscher energy reached its zenith. Two cores, one of Ice, one of Gravity, pulsed within the already failing body. The technique gripped the two cores, sensed the ethereal connection between the cores and the Imaginary Tree. The Herrscher of Thunder flared their power, twisting and warping the connection, turning it in knots and preventing it from being neatly severed. A brief fragment of awareness brushed the Herrscher of Thunder's mind. Something that tried to take hold and give direction. The Herrscher cared not. Nothing could subvert its will now. Nothing was nearly strong enough. Now all that remained was retrieval. The Herrscher of Thunder spun in the air and jammed their hand into the chest wound. Gloved fingers curled around the two cores. Bloody hands withdrew the prize.
The Rimestar Herrscher faltered, black lances, ice projectiles and rime lanterns all beginning to fall apart. From the bottom upwards the white lily, as brief in bloom as morning frost, melted and fell apart. The body of the Herrscher started fragmenting, fractals of magenta Honkai energy bleeding into the air. In moments the woman who had once been Ana Schariac was no more.
Durandal flew up beside Mei.
"A success—"
Kurikara flew by. When Durandal blinked she realised that the Herrscher was gone, now riding atop the Dragon.
Raven was sore. It hadn't been an easy day. Magpie had gotten it worse. But neither had anything good to show. In fact, with Owl turned traitor the pair were certainly in the negative. The Sire was never given to anger or anything similarly foolish. But her fellow agents wouldn't be so kind. For now, all Raven could do was sit in the Schicksal medical tent with Magpie and ponder how to explain everything that had happened in a logical and reasonable manner. At least Magpie would have a moment to sleep.
A thunderclap broke her concentration. That was followed by muffled shouts. Then a few grunts. Someone flew through the fabric door, rolling across the floor several times before stopping at Raven's feet in an unconscious heap. Mei pulled the fabric door aside. Outside Raven could see multiple unconscious Valkyrja.
"They wouldn't listen to reason," Mai deadpanned.
Mei let the tent flap fall behind her. She slowly walked toward Raven, stepping on the unconscious Valkyrja as she negotiated the tent. Raven didn't like the expression Mei wore. Curious still was what she was doing with her left hand. Rather dextrously, Mei juggled two smallish crimson-tinged rocks in one hand. As she approached Raven realised two things. Firstly, they were not rocks but in fact gems, one an earthy amber brown, the other a glacial blue. Secondly, from the smell as it washed over her, the crimson tinge was in fact blood. As Mei juggled the gems one handed small spots of blood were being scattered about the tent.
"Think quick," Mei announced.
The two gems were tossed past Raven. Magpie, now keenly awake and on edge, caught the gems with one hand.
"I have no need for Herrscher Cores. They are yours. Consider them a modest gift to World Serpent. All neatly packaged and sealed. I don't need your Sceptres of UWAS to gift wrap."
Raven stood up and watched the Herrscher carefully. Her instincts told her something was not right. The tent flap was sliced open by a scythe. A woman in a bob cut with rose coloured eyes would have stepped in. Except for the fact that a hovering red and black samurai glove held a katana against her throat. Another was pressed against the back of her neck.
"I didn't invite any guests," Mei warned. "You're not a Rossweissickle because I point out where you were to Durandal. Don't make me regret that decision."
"You assaulted my Valkyrja."
"I thought your Valkyrja could do with some actual field combat experience. They were meant to be in Coral City fighting a Herrscher. I gave them a chance to fight a real Herrscher." Mei tipped her head disapprovingly to one side. "You may want to change up your training regime."
Mei lifted fingers and clicked them. The katanas disappeared. Raven remained tense. Mei strolled in an almost sinuous fashion to Raven. There was something in those faintly glittering eyes. It reminded her of unpleasant memories. Of a woman she had run from. With pale green eyes and serpentine pupils. It was inhuman. Driven. A fervour she never wanted to get on the wrong side of.
"I need you to pass a few messages on to Kevin. Firstly, tell him that if he gets involved in a mess such as Coral City and fucks up as badly again, I will personally burn every last serpent's nest to the ground. As an example of my resolve, your Jakarta operation has been dealt with by my forces. You may want to send someone to clean up. With a sponge. The resources you were transporting have been liberated and are receiving medical aid. My final message is simple. If World Serpent wants to demonstrate their competence, I'm as always willing to work with them."
Mei leant in a little closer, voice a composed whisper in her ear.
"And as for you. I have a favour to ask. Next time you see Sora, don't chastise her too much. She has been meaning to tell you about the upstairs bathroom window she broke when outside playing. But she is a little embarrassed and is trying to think of how to pay for the repairs. Bless her."
Nothing in Coral City had been as cold as Raven's blood.
Mei booped Raven on the nose once and gave a teasing, feminine wink. She made to leave, before stopping beside Rita and putting a bloodied hand on her shoulder.
"The same warning is extended to Schicksal. If you engender another clusterfuck, like say the 2nd Herrscher, then the Honkai Eruption and now the 5th slash 9th, I will release every last bit of blackmail material and dirt on Schicksal that I possess. I won't be able to tear down your organisation, the cancerous tumour is too big to be excised with a few surgical cuts. But I can use chemotherapy and shrink you via public and political opinion. When the entire world learns of every last gory sin from the past 20 years alone, nobody will want to work with you, Schicksal reputation or not."
"That would not be a wise decision, Ms Raiden. The world needs Schicksal to fight the Honkai. We are the only military force capable of doing so. Discrediting us, even if you somehow manage to, would only lead to civil unrest and unnecessary civilian deaths."
The air smelt of ozone. Followed by a mocking, derisive laugh. A crackle carried down Mei's head to her feet before crawling outward. The smile on the face of the Herrscher of Thunder could have cut glass. Her movement was too fast for Raven to follow. She had cupped Rita's chin with bloody thumb and index finger.
"What the world needs is people who are actually fighting the Honkai. My organisation will work with anyone and everyone who gets the job done. Schicksal, Anti-Entropy, World Serpent and whoever else. Thus far, you've all received a failing grade. But you have my contact details. Let me know when you are willing to take the fight to the Honkai. Without agenda. Without ulterior motive. I want an actual all-out war with a viable endgame."
"Your organisation?"
Mei gave a mischievous shrug and left the tent. A thunderclap followed a draconic roar overhead. Now Raven began to breath properly. World Serpent needed to be made aware of what was happening. The Sire needed to know immediately. She started planning in her head where the nearest communications point was.
The sleek VTOL aircraft awaited just near the island as earlier planned. Kurikara with Mei riding atop arrived in very good time. Once Mei was off the Honkai beast's back it transformed back into a human in a halo of crimson lightning. Mei's Herrscher form crackled and disappeared, to be replaced with her rather battered clothing from the start of the day. Gravity stairs floated from the side of the craft, Mei ascending, her servant a pace behind. Once inside the luxury aircraft it quickly ascended before flying in a roughly north-east direction. Stealth systems activated, metamaterials built into the aircraft masking it from visual, thermal and electromagnetic detection. The engine was a self-contained Honkai reactor model so no emissions could be traced either.
"This is very much the sort of luxury craft my father would invest in," Mei admitted as she walked into the main cabin. Amarant, in fresh clothes, sat in one of the plush couches, hands skipping between multiple holographic keyboards, fingers twitching and eyes dancing.
"Did we find something good?"
"El Dorado. This is big. All the way to the top. Cocolia was one nasty mother spider in the middle of her web. Give me a day. Two at most. I'll have enough to swing all of South-East Asia to you. Are you sure you only want that? With this server data and all its dirty goods you could have ME Corp in the palm of your hand."
"I cannot afford to be too big. I don't have the personnel that I trust to fill the requisite positions nor the military capability to enforce and protect my resources."
"Point made."
"How's the shower?"
"Piping hot."
"Good."
Mei walked into the bathroom, but kept the door open, and began to undress.
"No peeking," she called out.
"Dear customer, my eyes lay upon other, more bounteous fruit, than your own."
"You are skirting very close to being slapped."
"Ah, but you would have to step out of the bathroom in a towel and that would make such pain worth the price."
A snort of laughter carried out from the room. The hiss of streaming water followed by a very sensual groan of satisfaction followed.
"Today has been too long and my hands too bloody," Mei grizzled.
Amarant remained patiently silent, hands resting at her sides.
"I appreciate that you are imagining me in lather," Mei teased, "We do however have more pressing matters. I need an information update."
"Of course, dear Customer. Firstly, I'm resigning as your full-time secretary. I was hired as information broker, not to organise your diary."
"I take it that means you've found Hanakawa."
"Singapore. We're heading there now."
"Good. She is one of the few I can trust with our full plans. What else?"
"Jakarata was executed cleanly."
"I have you to thank for making contact with the right mercenaries. Those that were kidnapped?"
"STIGMA of varying degrees. World Serpent are playing all sorts of angles. Oh, and those mercenaries have made a counter-offer. They want to join as a permanent detachment."
"Their price?"
"Your blood, of course. The 60 surviving subjects understand the situation very well. You represent their one chance for survival. The pariahs from Schicksal and Anti-Entropy have joined in this offer."
"Opinion?"
"I'll send you the information."
"You're transmitting a hologram to my shower?"
"I haven't hacked the security camera."
"Yet"
Another silence settled on the cabin. Amarant glanced up at Kurikara where she waited. It was a little odd. Unmoving.
"I can work with this," Mei called out. "All are professional enough. I trust your background checks…"
Amarant knew where Mei's eyes had stopped.
"A damned World Serpent traitor?"
"Aranea. I'm uncertain. If you want her dead I can arrange it."
"No. No. If someone is crazy enough to try betray World Serpent then I want to see what they can do. Besides… if this intel is accurate, she hates them more than I do. That being said, her ability to command Honkai beasts is something I didn't consider possible outside of Herrscher."
"Signets. If her interrogation is to be believed. More to research."
"Atropis never mentioned this," Mei said in a mutter barely over the hiss of the shower.
"My sister plays her own game."
Mei went silent. Likely digesting the last of the report on their new armed forces. Amarant looked up at Kurikara where she stood patiently.
"You can sit, you know."
"I will wait for my Lady."
"Of course, you will."
The two waited in silence. Finally, the hissing hot water ceased. Mei walked out a minute later, wearing only a towel and towelling her hair. She sat down in a plush chair opposite Amarant. Kurikara immediately moved to hover protectively over her Lady. Amarant's distressed reaction had Mei chuckling.
"A little flesh too much for you?"
"Your face looks like a very thirsty top spear tackled you."
"The bruising on my back is worse. Cracked ribs at the very least."
"Is there any point to me telling you to see a doctor when we land?"
"Herrschers mend quickly. What else do you have?"
"I'll leave organising the meeting and shakedown of ME Corp to Hanakawa. Managed to locate some former members of Project-MEI. I should have them in the palm of your hand within a week. We need brains trust to convert the more esoteric technical and weapons plans into workable field-tested technology. They're the ones most familiar with it."
Mei nodded in agreement.
"If we can outfit my new forces with this technology that should give us a significant edge. Oh, and inspiration finally found me. I'm dubbing the organisation Yurei. My armed forces will be designated as Kijo, single and plural term."
Amarant took a moment to digest the announcement. Schicksal had their Valkyrja, Anti-Entropy their Enforcers and World Serpent their Agents. Then she realised what the Japanese translation was.
"You have a very wicked mind, dear Customer."
"I'm not trying to pretend for a moment that we are the good-guys."
"Point made. Oh, the Hyperion was observed entering China."
"And your informant within?"
"Won't be in contact with us for a while. For obvious reasons the Hyperion are on high alert regarding communications on and off ship. Not every day you have a Herrscher onboard and Schicksal chomping at your ankles."
Mei stopped towelling her hair and rested hands on her lap. The blood was gone. But deep down she wondered if Lady Macbeth was right. Sometimes you could never wash it out.
"Th…"
The word died in Mei's throat. She hadn't been able to utter it for several months now. Even now her throat went dry and her heart ached when she considered the unspoken word. Kiana hadn't been able to say it either when they had been briefly together. The unspoken question. The unspoken and likely bitter answer. Mei leaned forward, rested elbows on knees and started at the carpeted floor, at her bare damp feet and went out of focus. In this moment Raiden Mei was small. Weak. Vulnerable.
She switched to Japanese to try find the courage.
"Sho…"
"Take your time," Amarant gentled responded in Japanese.
Mei shook her head. She found the courage.
"Shocho?"
The information broker maintained a well-manicured neutral expression.
"Sorry, Mei. I haven't found anything on Theresa."
The bitter dryness did not leave. Mei found the words to continue.
"Shosa?"
"She awoke from her coma shortly after you arrived in Arc City with Tesla. Full recovery. Elected captain of the Hyperion uncontested and unanimously."
"Himeko is in command of the Hyperion and St Freya defectors." Mei permitted herself a small, happy smile. "If anybody can keep Kiana's self-destructive inclinations in check, it's the Major."
The past Mei, the one pinned down by memories of guilt, failure and confusion, would have bowed under all the pressure along with the distressing news. But that was the old Mei. Even as bubbles of memory rose up from the mire of her mind, Mei was finding her strength once again. In the past she would have masked over that pain. Or pretended it didn't exist. Put on a brave face. Now Mei embraced what she felt and made it her strength. She would not make decisions based on fear, loss or regret. Mei wouldn't run. The coward was gone. This Mei chose her own destiny. Forged her own path with no regrets. That strength crackled in Mei's veins. She would win this war.
'I won't let the failures of the other's hold me back. I am better than them.'
Mei nodded and stood up. She padded down the main corridor of the aircraft and into her personal quarters, again leaving the door open.
"I predict," Mei called out, "considering our luck over the last few hours, that we can expect to run into trouble in Singapore. Be ready for a fight. I kicked a golden hornet and a red vipers nest today. Along with other vested interests."
"Could you try to play nice once in a while, dear Customer?"
Mei walked back into the room, wearing jeans, a loose blouse and leather jacket, her long hair in a loose ponytail. She sat in one of the plush chairs and pulled on a pair of leather boots. Mei looked up and fixed her companion with purple eyes.
"We still have far too much to do and not nearly enough time. And there is a serious problem to consider."
"Oh?"
"Herrscher appear in numerical sequence. Unless there is an active core already in existence, they should manifest one after the other. The 5th appeared. Ana Schariac. The 6th and 7th didn't because their gems are already in existence. The 6th inside Kiana-chan and the 7th… is lost. So surely Owl would have become the 8th. The Herrscher of the Mind according to PE records. Instead, the 9th, the Herrscher of Gravity, appeared."
Mei's intense gaze didn't leave Amarant's face. The woman's poker face was impeccable. Kurikara read the mood from her mistress and readied to attack at command.
"Point made, dear Customer. Unless we are experiencing a repeat of the 2nd Eruption, whose circumstances are rather unique, then there is a glaring problem we are facing. We have ourselves a Herrscher that nobody has noticed yet."
Mei smirked at the comment. The mood relaxed. Kurikara obeyed with silent direction, fetching a glass from a cabinet and then a bottle of chilled white wine. She poured a flute and offered it to Mei, who sipped at it thoughtfully.
"Not hungry?" Amarant asked, changing tac.
"As Herrscher we don't actually need to eat or drink. I just do so out of pleasant habit. Today has been something of a day of revelations. I trust you aren't looking forward to getting any sleep in the next few days."
"As long as you pay me, I'll tolerate whatever work conditions you throw at me. Oh, one final question, Mei. You were insistent on giving World Serpent the Herrscher Cores. I couldn't convince you otherwise."
"Simple. World Serpent want them. I don't have the resources to keep them and their leashed pet Schicksal at bay. Therefore, I gave them what they wanted. Now I know where the Cores are for when we need them. They can expend time and resources protecting them from the Honkai and whatever else in the meantime."
Mei knocked back half a flute of wine and sighed, twisting the stem between thumb and finger.
"The Throne will work," she whispered.