- Two weeks after Coral City and the infiltration of Schicksal Headquaters -
The aircraft hanger was cavernous. Built to house multiple intercontinental aircraft at any one time. Now it was full of milling people, divided into smaller groups and clades. Maryanne watched the press of people with curious eyes. She had already deployed several dragonfly bots to hide in the rafters and survey the crowd. It was likely most others hand portable spy bots lurking high above. An EM pules would have sent a rain of metal insects down upon the gathered crowd.
'What the hell have you gotten us into, Tarragon?'
Those present were a melting pot of ethnicities, cultures, clothing and vocation. The noise was impressive. You didn't have to shout over the crowd. But it was nonetheless loud. The buzz one might have associated with a convention. A susurrus of various languages and accents. Even a few variants of sign-language mixed into the pot.
There were enough to fill the hanger, which impressed Maryanne. Everyone had only been given a weeks' notice of the meeting. People had no doubt trickled in from across the globe, each making their own secretive way here. Though Maryanne wondered if the information had been staggered in delivery. If suddenly innumerable ground craft and flights started making for a location, it wouldn't take an information specialist long to determine something was happening. Then again, the people present here had it in their own best interests to not be noticed. That meant each person present had policed their own secrecy and done their utmost not to be detected.
Anybody who couldn't do that much was dead already.
[So what do you make of all this?]
[Someone was very specific in their search parameters] Thea replied. [I've struck up conversation with a few other people. Everyone is cagey. Obviously. But they're all survivors like us. People who were screwed over or cast aside. Usually betrayed. Found a few more rogue Valkyrie and even some ex Anti-Entropy. Go figure]
[Some are just victims of the Honkai looking for a way to strike back] Faranaq added. [The genuine and motivated. But never given a chance to prove themselves]
Maryanne made a face.
[People who have a beef with Honkai and the world, but don't have any actual power]
[It's not that simple. These are people that do not trust the great powers. Schicksal. Anti-Entropy. World Serpent. None are reliable. This could be interesting. If this isn't a hoax. Or a trap. They've gone out of their way. That speaks volumes]
Maryanne tapped a few more commands into her tablet. In her AR an incomplete shimmering ring started orbiting her right wrist.
[You're all wearing my sync bracelets. One somatic gesture and we teleport out of here]
The three soldiers along with the remnants of the Seraph Bay support staff had voted on whether or not to accept the offer. Maryanne had only agreed due to it being delivered via a mutual friend. One she trusted implicitly.
'Speaking of mutual friend.'
The short woman scanned the crowd with organic and synthetic eyes. Finally, she picked out the apparent instigator and organiser of this surprise meeting. A woman with striking blue hair stood near a collection of crates hastily organised into a platform to stand on. She leant against the crates and laughed easily with another group of men and woman.
'So that's our information broker. Amarant. I can see the similarity. She has a good reputation according to my sources. Disappeared a few weeks back. Then reappeared and started moving fast. Organised this meeting of cast-outs and flotsam in record time. Well, this better be worth it.'
[Other people are spreading out and asking questions] Faranaq chimed in.
A tall Asian woman in a pencil skirt, cream blouse, dark stockings and heels somehow managed to weave her way through the press of people. She pulled up beside Maryanne where she milled at the permitter of the gathering and sighed. The woman pressed a pair of frameless glasses up the bridge of her nose and then ran fingers through her long hair.
"There are more people here than I anticipated," the woman said to nobody in particular.
Maryanne gave a sidelong glance. Tucked under the woman's arm was the latest ME Corp tablet model. It looked fresh out the packaging. The woman lifted the tablet and typed into it with practiced fingers.
"Would you mind if I asked why you are here?" the woman asked as she typed, eyes fixed on her work.
"You first."
"I need someone to fight."
Maryanne couldn't help but shift her gaze and properly stare at the woman. Then she snorted.
"What?" the woman replied indignantly. "What's so funny?"
"The way you answered so honestly. I'm assuming you mean you want people to fight on your behalf rather than you fighting them. Your talent isn't combat?" she teased.
The woman shrugged and raised her tablet to indicate her interest.
"Logistics. There's more than I thought to it all. Steep learning curve. But enough about me." The woman looked up and gave Maryanne a cheeky smile. "Not fair that I'm the only one answering the questions. You owe me for that laugh. Why are you here?"
Maryanne let her tablet hang by her sides. She gazed up at the ceiling and thought about what that question really meant.
"I'm a traitor of a traitor. Anti-Entropy don't want me. Schicksal want me dead. World Serpent are fucking nuts so pass. I want… no. I need to fight the Honkai. But everything is stacked against me. Heh. Maybe Bloodborne was better that Dark Souls. You can only dodge so much. After a while you have to get in, get your hands bloody and hit back when they hit you."
The woman lowered her tablet too and gave Maryanne and surprised expression.
"I wasn't expecting anything so honest either. Maybe just a general 'I want to kill Honkai but don't have the chance'. But you. A little grim. I like it."
The woman laughed. It was rich. Vibrant. Deep. Maryanne liked that laugh. Not the naïve laugh of a child. Not the pseudo-cynical laugh of a teenager. Not the oblivious or downtrodden laugh of an adult. This was the vivacious laugh of someone who had been through real suffering and now knew that when you laughed, you meant it and you put your all into it.
"Let's be honest," Maryanne continued. "This world is going to hell. Fast. That incident in Coral City. There was a Herrscher involved."
Maryanne gauged the woman's reaction. Herrscher wasn't a commonly known term. Perhaps 5% of people in the hanger might recognise the term. A tenth of that would understand in depth what it really meant. The woman raised an eyebrow.
"Proof?"
'Logistics. Is she another information broker? Data analysis. Researcher. Technical aide. I don't think she's bluffing about knowing what a Herrscher is.'
"Schicksal are smart. Too smart. The way they were covering Coral City. I didn't trust a lick of what they were saying. Being ex Anti-Entropy I have old connections to US military. There was an untouched backdoor I used to access a military satellite. A Honkai Outbreak is one thing. Giant hunks of seawater turned to ice and launched tens of kilometres away is another. That isn't something the Honkai does. The Honkai doesn't think or act like that. So that means Herrscher.
When the first survivors of Coral City started arriving in Australia, they were thoroughly cleaned and processed. Stripped of all possessions and put through chemical showers multiple times. Honkai energy clings to everything. The particles get into everything. Think of it as like nuclear contamination but more nightmarish. Herrscher energy, what's left in the wake of a Herrscher, is much more diffuse. Really faint traces so you need specialist equipment at very close proximity for accurate reading.
Security was REALLY secure around those processing centres. No way I could get close enough to get some readings. But there's always a weak point in the chain. Everybody has to use the toilet. They had portable toilets at all the processing stations, once everyone is cleaned up, given recovery drugs and new clothes. Logistically, you need toilets everywhere or disease and sanitation become a serious issue. The toilets immediately around the processing centres are heavily monitored for Honkai energy reasons. But the next set, in temporary accommodation dorms, not nearly as much. As I said, Herrscher energy is much more diffuse. But it leaves distinct trails and it lasts. Let the energy build up enough in one location and it can be detected."
What Maryanne was talking about finally clicked into place with the woman. She started chuckling.
"Oh. I like you. You, what, snuck a little dragonfly bot into the collective shit of the survivors and looked for hints of Herrscher energy?"
Maryanne winked.
[Quantum teleported] Faranaq clarified as she listened into the feed.
"It worked. Herrscher energy. Distinct. And not a little. Whatever happened in the city, it isn't a surprise 2 S-rank Valkyrja were sent."
The woman clapped her hands with clear respect.
"That's ingenious and a little twisted. Two of my favourite things. I'll give this one for free. You were right on the money. Three Herrscher in the city. Schicksal made a mess of it. If you would believe me, World Serpent were in on the action too."
Maryanne whistled.
"Sneaking around?"
"Nope. Best buddies"
The woman tapped her chin. Eyes narrowed a fraction.
[I've shared as much as we agreed upon] Maryanne shared across the net. [Should I end this or keep fishing?]
[Go a little further] Thea replied.
[Agreed] Faranaq added. [Right now, there isn't any harm in sharing impersonal information. Just keep details of our group out of it]
[Understood[
"Okay, next question and I'll share first. I'm here to find people willing to fight the Honkai. For a while it was myself. And someone I trust just enough not to worry about getting my throat slit when I sleep. That isn't enough. Like you said, Coral City was big. I need other people to fight as well. I've spent most of the meeting wandering around and randomly speaking to people. Getting their opinions and sometimes their stories. There's a common refrain." The woman gestured wide over the crowd. "What do you want to get out of all this?"
"A contact who I very much trust let me know about a meeting that Amarant, the woman with blue hair towards the front, was organising. We were told that we would be provided with resources, information, research, support and an organisational structure. Someone to work for that isn't playing games. I've been doing background checks on random facial samples from the group. One and all, they're people that have been betrayed, screwed or fucked over. Soldiers left for dead in battles against the Honkai. Valkyrja gone rogue after they realised the real corruption. Anti-Entropy Enforcers that couldn't stomach the human experimentation. Or were frustrated by their impotence. Members of the clueless public caught up in the Honkai Eruption or victimised by the greater powers. Check that one out."
Maryanne pointed towards a girl standing apart from all the crowd. She wore short-sleeved grey robes, belted at the waist, that split at either hip, baggy crimson silk trousers and sandals worn beneath. Her long black hair hung down her back in a long spiral, streaks of magenta spun through it.
"That one is a rogue World Serpent Agent. Don't see many of them. Usually last a week at most before they're killed. Messily. World Serpent might be a psychopathic, genocidal religion, but they take offence to traitors. Hypocrisy at its finest."
The woman's previously laughter crinkled eyes shifted a touch. Now those lilac eyes held something equally amused, but decidedly more dangerous.
"What I want," Maryanne ended, "Is a chance to fight for humanity because nobody will give me the chance. I'd say that's the same for everyone here. We probably don't agree on much. But everyone here has fought."
The woman nodded in agreement. She stood a little taller. There was something about her that drew Maryanne in. A presence. A verve. The impression of someone absolutely confident in her abilities.
"I failed and lost everything."
Maryanne hadn't expected that sort of frankness. It put her off balance. But the woman didn't look dejected. Her smile was ruthless.
"I failed multiple times. People died. Now I don't want to fail anymore. I want to fight for humanity because everyone is too busy pushing their own agenda. They aren't protecting the species. They don't care about that. So, someone else has to. Someone that's neutral and new. That doesn't have baggage. And staffed by people that know what loss really feels like and never want to experience that again."
The woman gestured to Maryanne"
"You failed."
"Huh?"
The woman gestured at Maryanne.
"You failed. You failed and lost something important to you. It cost you your job, your profession, permanent injury or even your sanity. Maybe someone you cared about paid the price. Their body. Their mind. Their life. Perhaps, if you believe in such things, their soul. But you failed and there were repercussions. Isn't that why you are here? You failed and now you want to fight back."
The atmosphere between the two went cool. Maryanne smoothly walked up to the woman, glared up at her and kept her right hand free.
"Who do you think you are?"
"Just like you."
Maryanne sighed. The woman was needling her. That was obvious. She was also right. Maryanne had a preference for manual typing. But she could use her AR where necessary. Quick commands were entered. The technical soldier wanted to know who the other woman was. Trouble began to pile up. None of her dragonfly bots could get a clear shot. Strange artefacting surrounded the woman. A sensor sweep from her tablet indicated unusual electromagnetic interference being projected about the woman. The corner of the woman's mouth quirked into a knowing smirk. Her eyes darted between several points. Maryanne didn't need to extrapolate the visual trajectory lines. She knew exactly where the woman had looked. Right at her dragonfly bots.
"Your friends are lurking in the wings. They can step forward if the three of you want to speak directly to me."
Maryanne contemplated quantum teleporting everybody out at that moment.
[I want to hear what she has to say] Thea finally responded. [She'd laid her cards on the table in announcing her awareness of us. But we've kept our capabilities mostly in the dark. Take a gamble]
Faranaq oozed out of the crowd and glided smoothly over. Thea was less subtle, making a path with her mechanical right arm and tromping up to where her friends were gathered.
"Introductions are in order," the mysterious woman declared in a low voice. "I am Raiden Mei. Former Heiress and now director of the South East Asia division of ME Corp. Valkyrja turned traitor to Schicksal. I failed to protect my friend and she awoke as the 2nd Herrscher, bringing about the Honkai Eruption. I am responsible for the destruction of Nagazora in 2012 and the death of millions."
The very faintest crackle of crimson lightning danced over Mei for a heartbeat. Maryanne's AR vision displayed warning signs. A brief flare of Herrscher energy. Distinct. Unmistakeable.
"I am the Third Herrscher, the Herrscher of Thunder. I have brought you all together, as I told your friend here, because I'm a failure. You're all failures too. Those that have spoken to me today have admitted as much once pressed. We failed, lost things that matter to us and we won't accept that again. I'm tired of failure. I'm tired of loss. I'm tired of pointless sacrifice. I will end it. With my own hands if necessary. Preferably with some help."
Mei was not speaking any louder than before. She certainly wasn't attemping to draw attention. Still, those immediately around the four were starting to listen in. As more were made aware a hush gently radiated outward.
"Regarding Coral City. Bianca and Rita, the two so called S-rank Valkyrja, did not kill the two Herrschers that awoke. I did. I shoved my hands into the Herrscher of Rimestar's chest and pulled the two bloody Herrscher Core's out. I can kill the Lawbringers of the Honkai's will. But I can't be everywhere at once. I can't do everything. I'm certainly not the smartest person in the room. Not by any stretch. What I need is your knowledge, your fighting skills, your expertise and resolve. I pay very well. I have technology, weaponry and resources that rival if not exceed the three great powers. I have no alternate agenda. My only goal is to stop the Honkai once and for all. However I'm not going to wade through seas of blood like Schicksal, Anti-Entropy and World Serpent."
Mei ran a hand through her hair. By now the buzz of the crowd had faded away. It wasn't as though the hanger was dead silent. People were speaking in low voices, making small observations and careful comments.
"What I can give you is the ability to end this war with true finality. If you agree to my terms, which will be distributed to you in much finer detail, then we can begin. I expect not all of you will agree. Don't fear for your life. I am giving you a choice. I won't kill you for refusing. Truthfully, I expect some of you are planning to leave and immediately go to one of the three powers. Barter knowledge of this event and myself for whatever you want. Do it. I encourage you. I want the three afraid. I want them looking over their shoulder."
Mei's smile returned. Maryanne felt the air shift around her. It wasn't a physical thing. Nothing to do with Herrscher powers or Honkai energy manipulation. She could just feel that presence radiating from the woman. A smile that could cut glass.
"To those of you who intend to agree to my terms, infiltrate and then spy on me for secrets, good luck."
Nobody in the room mistook the implicit meaning. Maryanne surveyed the scene through her dragonfly bots. The only one enjoying the event was the World Serpent Agent. She looked almost excited. Mei pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose from where they had fallen. Nothing more was said. She made her way through the crowd, people parting enough to give her passage to the wide doors of the hanger and the exit.
Once the Herrscher had left Maryanne exhaled. She hadn't realised she was holding her breath. The presence of the woman was intimidating. And infectious. A passionate, almost insane verve and confidence.
"What do you think?" Faranaq asked of the other two.
Maryanne nodded slowly. Thea chuckled and punched her mechanical hand into organic one.
"She's crazy. Count me in."