This chapter has a big change from the original.
Other than that, enjoy this chapter :)
A week had passed after the events at the docks, and what had followed after that night was a whirlwind of activity.
Firstly the statement from Anti-Entropy on what exactly had occurred at the docks for the public, who were dying for answers. To wake up to the sounds of explosions and smoke coming off the docks was something that not everyone looked forward to.
A public conference was held the following morning and the statement that was given was that a terrorist organization had set up operations in Nagazora and through the quick and decisive actions of Anti-Entropy that cell had been thoroughly destroyed and any survivors would be interrogated and sentenced to life in prison.
Praise was quickly given to the organization by every Nagazora citizen for their swift defense of their home. The Honkai fighting organization that were once looked with apprehension and worry were now looked upon as heroes.
It seems that the public image of Anti-Entropy has gone up quite a lot.
As for me, Kiana, and Midori?
Well for starters any information regarding our involvement in the mess was kept under heavily classified information. While we were still interrogated for any information that we had regarding what happened, it was decided to keep our involvement from the public knowledge.
Which was fine by me, I wanted to put this far behind me.
While I simply had to swear and sign a form to not mention the events of that night to anyone, Kiana drew the short end of the stick when it came to consequences. Even Midori, who was a Valkyrie and meant to be the nemesis of Anti-Entropy, was just given a stern lecture by the Anti-Entropy higher-ups.
Kiana not only had to go through a series of medical tests to ensure that there were no more harmful harmful toxins were affecting her body, she also had to wear a miniature ankle monitor for a week so that Anti-Entropy knew where the girl was at all times. A precaution that they said was necessary should the World Serpent try anything in the near future.
Though I felt that they went a bit over the top when she was also not allowed to leave the apartment complex for that same week...which also happened to be guarded 24/7 by undercover AE agents.
And though it might not feel any different for observers, living there for almost a year now has made me pretty knowledgeable on who would be there at any given time of the day. We were quite a distance away from the more popular areas of Nagazora so I pretty much knew every tenant by name now.
So to say it was quite awkward when you instantly knew who was a secret agent and how they seemed to congregate on our floor specifically with the excuse that they were visiting friends.
And as for Kiana? Well lets just say her being in a foul mood because of this predicament would be an understatement.
That didn't mean I tried my best to keep her happy. On her first day of home imprisonment I brought as many snacks as I could to cheer her up. Usually that tactic would work as she would go from sad to happy pretty quickly.
Though I found out soon enough that I too would be dragged into her predicament.
"Kiana," I muttered from my position on the ground. The TV was playing in the background with some sort of anime that I've never heard before while the sounds of noon traffic could be heard over the speakers.
"Yes Haru-senpai?" Kiana asked me innocently.
"Can you, y'know, let me go?" I deadpanned from where I was.
"...No," The white haired girl denied as she tightened her hold over me, sealing my fate for the rest of that day.
"Okay...," I sighed tiredly after half an hour of trying to get the Kaslana off of me with no success. "I didn't have anything important to do anyway today."
Kuro held a very smug look on her face as she watched my predicament play out from atop of the couch. The black cat even had the nerve to meow loudly when she stretched, flaunting the fact that she was not currently being held down.
And before I could curse her out, she simply got off the couch, walked out of the room and back to mine.
Cheeky little feline she was.
But I suppose that I was to blame for how Kiana was acting. I couldn't imagine how horrifying it was to see someone you cared about to die before your eyes, even worse that died trying to save you.
Almost dying for a second time in what felt like the span of a year was definitely a terrifying occurrence. I wasn't sure if the encounter with Stalker Carbon could be considered a near death experience but at the time it most certainly had felt like one.
I suppose I should be lucky that ordeal was nowhere near as terrifying as fighting off Iudex. Just thinking about that hulking Soulium Knight got a terrified shiver from my body.
...Huh what do you know, maybe that therapist wasn't a waste of time after all.
Alongside having to sign that waiver of agreeing not to mention anything about the events at the dock, I also had to attend a weekly session with one of their provided therapists. It was apparently something that did with all of their soldiers after they either had a close experience with death...or killed their first person.
And seeing how I checked both of those boxes in under one night, in their eyes I really needed some therapy.
The therapist that I got assigned to was nothing but kind and patient with me. Years of consoling countless soldiers had given her more than experience with how to approach me. Slow and steady was what she told me.
She didn't even bat an eyelash when I acted normal whenever she brought up anything regarding my second death. She simply said that she would be waiting for the time that I would wish to talk about that situation and she would be there to help me move on.
I simply nodded and thanked her for her patience, not mentioning how technically I've already 'died'.
The therapist did warn me that I might develop some sort of PTSD regarding the ordeal and that I should avoid conversations that revolve around it, specifically those regarding Iudex. I knew that was going to be an ordeal considering it was all anyone was going to talk about for like the next few weeks.
And since I needed to keep a tight lip on my involvement in it all I really needed to prepare myself for that.
I really hoped that my acting skills would be up to par.
Though I suppose only time would tell.
I was broken out of my stupor when my phone buzzed with a notification. During my time of self contemplation Kiana had finally gotten off of me and took her spot at the couch, flipping through the channels of the television to try and alleviate her boredom.
Though I could feel her watching me from the corner of her eye. If I tried to attempt to leave her apartment I could almost guarantee that I would be getting football tacked into the ground before I could leave.
Resigning myself to my fate as Kiana's prisoner for the day, I pulled out my phone to see why my phone buzzed for a notification.
[From: Midori Aki]
How are you and Kiana? I hope that you guys are recovering without problems.
It was right before we left the Anti-Entropy garrison to go back to our respective homes that me and the undercover Valkyrie exchanged numbers. We promised to check up on each other throughout the recovery process.
I quickly typed in my response and hit the send button.
[From: Haruto Nakamura]
Doing as well as you can for being trapped in your apartment for an entire week. Kiana has all but forced me to share her predicament lol.
It did not take me long for Midori to answer back.
[From: Midori Aki]
That's something that I expected from the Kaslana to be honest. I'm glad that you're both doing fine. The doctors said that I should be able to take the bandages covering my head by the end of the week.
Being the one that had done the most work in freeing Kiana, one might expect her to be the one with the most injuries but in fact it was the complete opposite as she was the one to come out the least scathed.
Aside from minor cuts and bruises, her only biggest injury was the nasty blow to her head that was solved with just some stitches and a lot of rest.
Though it was not to say that I was not appreciative of the fact that she came out without major injuries. One simply had to laugh at the irony of how the three of us came out of this ordeal.
Speaking of said ordeal...
"Durandal," A memory of what I had experienced in that period of my near death experience played out in my head. What had followed after that was a bit of a blur to me but I knew enough that I had done something that I definitely was not supposed to.
Though it was a bit hard to remember what I saw when the juggernaut's blade had been brought down on me, I did not forget the fact I learned that the girl who was a regular character in my strange dreams was who I knew to be the S-Rank Valkyrie Durandal. Just thinking about the legendary Valkyrie brought me a pain that I didn't know how to feel about. It didn't feel like the pain of losing a limb or breaking a bone.
But the pain of losing a loved one.
I was unsure of what to think about this sudden revelation and the feelings that came with it. I did not want to jump to conclusions about what this bond meant with her but at the same time I desperately wanted answers.
My phone buzzed again with another message from Midori, a most welcome distraction from my current dilemma.
[From Midori Aki]
I've gotten a heads up from my superior, she'll be due to make a report about the situation at the docks to her superiors by the end of the day.
I mentally cringed at that update, an unwanted consequence from the night at the docks. I would never hate Midori for helping me save Kiana, if it wasn't for her I was sure that I wouldn't be able to reach Kiana in time.
But at the same time, I had to hate the fact that my classmate was a Valkyrie of Schicksal.
I wanted desperately to know who her partner Valkyrie was but I knew the answer that I would receive if I tried asking would be that it was classified information. For all I know it could be some random Valkyrie who could've been assigned to Nagazora.
But there was a chance, a small one at that, it could be someone instrumental to the plot. For all I know it could be Rita again that assisted in the docks and that spelled a disaster waiting to happen.
For if Rita knew what I had done at the docks, she would most certainly report it back to Otto.
And if he knew, I could kiss this life goodbye.
But there was nothing that I could do about that, so the only thing I could do yet again was wait.
Gosh there was a lot of waiting to do after these kinds of events weren't there?
[From: Midori Aki]
Did you know that Ishigami-sensei had those kinds of abilities in the first place? From what my superior told me he's someone on the level of A-Rank Valkyries. If that's the case, what's he doing as a teacher at Chiba Academy?
And the other revelation that my chess teacher was someone who possessed abilities similar, if not exactly, to the Sovereign of Anti-Entropy. A small part of me was not surprised by this revelation as I knew there was something more than meets the eyes with the teacher.
But it had been nothing more than a hunch without real evidence. When I had that radio in my hand after getting attacked in Kiana's apartment, I knew that it had been time to take a risk.
[From: Haruto Nakamura]
I had an idea that he was something special, but I'm not sure of his whole story.
I texted back before I pocketed my phone and joined Kiana at the couch. There were questions I had for my teacher but unlike my dilemma with Durandal, I knew that my patience would not go unrewarded for long.
Because I was sure that my teacher also had questions for me as well.
Nothing much of note had happened later that day. My grandmother had been in a protective streak ever since she had heard that Kiana and I had been admitted to the hospital. Of course I couldn't tell her that we had been involved in the raid of the World Serpent Operation at the docks but thankfully Ishigami was more than willing to help me out.
An attempted case of armed robbery was the reason why had been in the hospital, which technically was correct. The reason had worked as my grandmother was more focused on 'beefing' up the apartment's security so I suppose that was a plus.
After another droll afternoon of just watching TV with Kiana I found myself on my bed ready to just pass out. With the hectic last few days I was utterly drained and the moment I had closed my eyes my mind had already went under. I was expecting to have a nice dream…
Yet when I woke up in a familiar dark room with hanging multicolored quartz once again I knew the night was not over for me just yet.
"Black Swan," I greeted the familiar looking shawl wearing woman who was reading yet another book on the opposite end of the table.
"Ah Haruto Nakamura," She greeted me back as she closed her book and gave me her full undivided attention. "It seems we meet again, dear guest."
"I have questions." I said, immediately cutting to the chase. "Will you answer them for me?"
Black Swan merely raised an eyebrow at my blunt, and probably rude, approach but instead of being offended she merely smirked before she motioned to me to start. "You must merely ask my dear guest."
"What saved me at the docks?" I said, getting right into the heart of things. I couldn't recall much from the final moments of the raid of the docks. All I remembered was Iudex's massive sword being brought down on me before everything had gone black and being subjected to a strange dream that I didn't remember much of. The next thing I could clearly remember was being woken up in the Anti-Entropy infirmary, completely disorientated on how I had arrived there
"You ask the wrong question dear guest." She corrected me as she pulled out a deck of cards. "Not what saved you, but rather who saved you."
"Who?" I asked.
"Yes, who." She confirmed as she started to masterfully begin shuffling the cards in her hands. "I suppose now is the proper time to introduce you to them, after all it is not everyday one is saved by an Aeon."
"Aeon?" I repeated the word with confusion, having never heard that term before.
"Aeons," She corrected before she began to elaborate on what she had said. "You may think of them as beings who represent the ultimate manifestations of a concept. They watch over the universe, upholding the concepts to which they ascended as."
With a graceful stroke she spread her hand over the table, leaving seven cards on the table. Each card was different from the other as each one represented what I presumed to be a concept.
"These are but a few who preside over the universe." Her hand moved to the rightmost card, which had an image of a crumbling tower surrounded by fire.
"The final gift left by the Destruction."
She moved her hand to the next card that had an image of a skull of an antler with arrows intersecting in the middle.
"The spoils of the Hunt."
Then to a card with an image of a pile of scrolls with a glowing eye in the middle,
"The never ending search for Erudition."
Then to a card with an image of two stalks of wheat.
"The bounty of the Abundance."
Then to a card with an image of a shield of amber.
"The will of the Preservation"
Then to a card with an image of a black hole that was sucking the life surrounding it.
"The liberation of the Nihility."
And finally her hand motioned to the card on the leftmost side, which had the image of a strange but rather harmonious triangular symbol that comprised different shapes.
"The embrace of the Harmony."
"These are but a few of the Aeons that preside over the universe." Black Swan finished as she retracted her hand. "They watch over the entirety of creation, choosing to act in the manner they believe the universe should be governed. Entire civilizations have been built in worship for these beings and in turn are blessed by them."
"I…see," Was all I could say as I processed what I had just learned. The previous revelation that there were other planets in this universe that had civilizations of their own wasn't a big shock for me, but learning that there were multiple god-like entities out there was a very harrowing revelation. "And so one of these…Aeons saved me?"
The purple haired woman nodded with my assumption. "The very one who also saved you during your ordeal with that maid and her mechanical canine."
I had a feeling that was the case. "Do you know which one?" I asked, my tone imploring for answers.
"I do." She confirmed as she raised one of her hands up, a card stuck between two of her fingers. Unfortunately there was no image on the card so I had no idea if she was just doing a card trick or the card held the answer.
"It is rare for this Aeon in particular to meddle in the affairs of the universe, even when it involves their fellow Aeons. A very reclusive sort. So imagine to my surprise that they have decided to bless you with their powers for a mere instant. Maybe blessed you in ways that I have not foreseen as well."
A part of me grew hopeful for answers but was quickly brought low when the shawl wearing woman shook her head, the card in her fingers disappearing as well.
"But alas I shall not tell you the Aeon's name." She denied as she rested her hands on the table. "If they have chosen not to reveal themselves to you then it is for a reason that I shall not intrude on. After all, how could we mortals discern the decisions of a godly being?"
"I…suppose that makes sense." There wasn't really any way I could refute her reasoning now was there? No matter how frustrating that it was being denied a clear cut answer.
"But do not be dismayed, dear guest." She smiled assuredly. "Perhaps all that you must do is to continue your journey the way you have, after all you are now beginning to realize that your journey has not necessarily started with your birth in this world."
"You mean that younger version of me?" I asked, thinking of the child that looked like me that kept appearing to me in visions.
"Indeed." She nodded her head in confirmation. "I believe you have an inkling of an idea of what I am referring to."
"But how would that…" I trailed off before I thought more about the visions of this younger version of myself. Sure they were odd and very unusual at first glance but how the hell did that relate to godlike beings who controlled the universe? The only other person present in those visions was…
Durandal!
It seems that I had made some sort of face of realization as Black Swan lightly clapped approvingly. "Indeed. I have no need to tell you anything for I know your journey shall lead you to the one named after the blade and with it the information that you so desire."
I opened my mouth to ask her some more questions about what she knew but before I could, a pang of fatigue hit me.
The fatigue must've been obvious as I saw Black Swan shake her head. "I suppose that our time is now up dear guest." She said as darkness began to encroach on the corners of my vision. "Rest Haruto Nakamura, gather your strength and prepare your resolve..."
I could not hold on any more before the darkness took me under, taking me from this mystical room once again. Yet if I had been able to stay conscious for a few more seconds I would've been able to hear Black Swan finish her sentence.
"After all, the winds of fate have begun to stir."
"It is a relief to see you in one piece my old friend," A smile was on the Overseer's face from the screen that he was in. "I feared the worst when your glasses' communicator stopped sending its signal back to us."
Fu Hua returned with a small smile of her own but on the inside she could feel repulsion beginning to rise as she thought back to the vision of her death by his hands. "Forgive me," She pushed that memory away as she focused on the present. "The World Serpent had jamming devices all around the docks, preventing any communications being sent out."
Otto was oblivious to her inner dilemma as he nodded. "I suspected as much and seeing Anti-Entropy's statement all but confirmed it. I trust that there were no complications?"
Fu Hua shook her head as she began to give her report. "They were in possession of a fearsome Soulium Knight, Iudex was its name. The Knight eliminated four squadrons of mechs before it was destroyed."
"I see...and what of the remains?"
"In Anti-Entropy's care."
Otto cupped his chin with his hand. "...It is a shame that we could not salvage what remained, I'm sure that it was quite the creation. But the safety of K-423 is more than a reward, speaking of her I trust that nothing permanent has been inflicted on her?"
"You just want to know cause you plan on turning her into a Herrscher you bastard!" The voice in her head, Hua as she had liked to call herself now, shouted furiously.
"Under Anti-Entropy's care, I was last told that she is expected to make a full recovery by the end of this week. Fu Hua ignored the speaker's proclamation. It was quite a learning experience in having a voice now living inside her head and something that she quickly had to get used to when they kept shouting all the time.
"I heard that!"
...Definitely something that she needed to get used to.
"What of Midori Aki?" Inquired the Overseer as on his end of the call, the blonde man was looking at the portfolio of the undercover Valkyrie. "I understand that you called upon her to help rescue K-423, and it was the B-Rank Valkyrie to be the one to ultimately free her."
The thought of the Apocalypse head taking an interest in her junior Valkyrie made Fu Hua clench her hand in anger. The way the video call was set up made such an action unnoticeable as she kept her face in its usual passive mask. "She performed admirably, so much so that she was able to distract Iudex for a while before I was able to finish the job."
He would not be getting his claws on Midori, not on her watch.
"A hidden gem that Valkyrie is, I originally planned to have her transferred into another squadron but at this rate I think that Durandal would more than be happy in having her in the Immortal Blades. Who knows, perhaps there will be a new addition to the S-Ranks in the future."
"I agree, she certainly has the drive to do so." She replied truthfully. Seeing that fire lit in Midori's green eyes the immortal Valkyrie knew the girl would go far.
"And while all of that is good," The glint that the Overseer's eyes gained was setting off alarms in Fu Hua's head. It was never a good sign when the blonde man's green eyes gained that sort of look. "I've heard some rather strange reports…"
"That Haruto Nakamura participated in the operation."
Fu Hua readied herself for what she was about to say next. "Yes, the redhead highschooler unknowingly participated in the attack after a soldier tried to kill him in Kiana's apartment. After disposing of his attacker, the highschooler followed the soldier's GPS to the docks and tried to save Kiana."
"And judging from the reports, he was more than a match for the soldiers present."
"It was due to a prototype Schicksal armor that he happened upon that gave him the edge. While his training with Mei Raiden has made him proficient with the blade, it was the gauntlet's abilities that ultimately gave him the edge."
"Ah yes," Otto pulled up the image of the white and gold gauntlet before it had been turned to a blackened scrap of steel. "Asplund's invention, I was sure that the eccentric scientist would never find a person able to use his lauded creation."
"I imagine that he will be quite furious when he finds the state of the gauntlet." Fu Hua knew of the scientist that Otto was talking about, how could she forget such an eccentric man like him during her time in St. Freya Academy. She knew that he would not be pleased when he got the remains of his prototype.
He treated it like it was his firstborn child after all.
"Oh I would not be so sure of that. For all his little...quirks, that man is one of the brightest minds of Schicksal. If anyone could find a silver lining in such a hopeless situation it's that man." The blond Overseer chuckled before he leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table.
"But back on the topic of Haruto Nakamura, what is your opinion on him?"
"...He certainly has potential, but I do not think that he will be someone to watch out for." She lied, not even mentioning the power that she had seen him use to decimate Iudex. "At the very least he would make a great Knight to fight in the war against the Honkai."
A small part of her was worried that the Overseer knew about Haruto's powers. Ishigami had assured her that the soldiers who had been there to witness the miracle swore to secrecy but you could never be 100% sure about a man like Otto.
He was as predictable as the weather, one moment it could be all sunshine and the next it would be a raging storm.
Otto was silent for a while and Fu Hua feared that he would see his bluff. "I see, perhaps my reservations about him were slightly misplaced." The Valkyrie let out a silent breath of relief that she had not been caught.
"You have completed your mission in Nagazora, I will call upon you when I am in need of your services again old friend." With one last smile, Otto ended the call and left the Valkyrie alone in her room with only her thoughts.
And Hua.
"Why do we have to follow his orders again?!" Hua complained. "We should kill him now and rid ourselves of him and the problems that he creates!"
"It's not as simple as you believe it to be," Fu Hua calmly retorted as the Valkyrie stood up from her position and approached the closet in the bedroom. "He has countless clones at his disposal, it would be meaningless to kill him if he will be back in less than an hour."
"Ugh why does it have to be so complicated! I miss those days when you would punch a hole into somebody and they would stay dead." Hua whined as Fu Hua ignored her other self's complaints as she brought out a suitcase from the closet.
As she pulled out the suitcase her mind could not help but reminisce on what had occurred after the use of the Fenghuang Down on Haruto Nakamura. She had apparently collapsed during her encounter, having woken up to a frantic nurse that was fretting over her sudden collapse. She had assured them that she was just more exhausted than she thought originally and that all she needed was some more sleep, that everything would be fine the next day.
That was most certainly not true as the next day she awoke with a pounding headache, confined to her bed as her mind was bombarded with centuries worth of memories that had been locked away. It was only thanks to the Fenghuang Down that she was able to not be overburdened by all the memories.
Even with the worst having passed memories were still trickling into her mind. So many memories that she had forgotten, so many people whose names that she had forgotten…
So many friends and loved ones that she had forgotten to mourn for.
"Hey old timer where are we going?" Hua's voice broke whatever train of thought she was going through.
"We are no longer required in Nagazora," She explained as began to pack the clothes that she had brought with her for this mission. "Staying any longer will arouse suspicion from Otto and that is what we wish to avoid."
"But the real reason why I wish to leave is to know more about the figure we met in Haruto's mindscape."
She thought back to the mysterious hooded figure that they had encountered. How despite her showing aggression towards them they showed no fear for their safety, either in expectation that violence would not be displayed or they were confident that they were
Yet those two reasons alone were not the guiding force for this, no it was something else that was nagging on her mind.
"How? We have little to no idea who they are." Hua pointed out. "How are we going to find any evidence of who or what they are supposed to be if we have no idea where to look."
"That may be true but their words gave me a clue." Her mind flashbacked to the words they had spoken, specifically before they had shown her a vision of her future. "He mentioned someone known as 'the Seeker', someone who had told them who the Flamechasers were."
That narrowed the search considerably. They were only a few select individuals in the Previous Era that knew of all Flamechasers, even fewer that could
And Fu Hua had a hunch of who she might be looking for. There was only one person that could fit the description of a 'Seeker'.
But she needed confirmation that her suspicions were correct.
"I plan on infiltrating a World Serpent Base for the information we need," She revealed as she began to pack her Valkyrie armor and weapons in another suitcase. "If there are any places in the world that have information relating to my time then it will be with them."
"That means we have to be stealthy about it then, ugh that's so boring!" Hua complained for the umpteenth time in her mind. It was strange to think about it but Hua was the complete opposite of her. Something that Fu Hua would pride herself on, Hua despised.
Yet for some odd reason...she did not mind Hua's commentary.
"But if you happen to across some kind of big baddie that you can't avoid…" Fu Hua could not stop the smile on her face as she knew what Hua was trying to say.
"I'll be sure to give them a good beatdown for you then." She assured to Hua's joy.
"Yatta!"
The immortal Flamechaser could not fight the smile off her face as she finished packing and left her apartment. As strange and uncertain the future she was walking down, she strangely did not fear what was to come.
Yet as she walked down the night covered streets of Nagazora she could not help but feel apprehensive. As if…
As if she was missing a piece of herself.
Sight.
Sound.
Smell.
Taste.
Touch.
All of these foreign senses were assaulting a woman as she stumbled her way through a decrepit alleyway. Her current appearance was that of a beggar, dirty rags clothing her body as she struggled to put one foot in front of the other.
She knew not of why she was here, only having small snippets that she could not comprehend. Of a bluish gray haired woman whose life story she seemingly possessed, to a journey of a boy and girl that spanned what seemed to span entire universes.
The memories she saw seemed to be ripped right out of a fairy tail that would've inspired a sense of wonder or hope to all who read it.
Yet those memories did not invoke such feelings from her.
Instead all she had felt were disgust.
So much so that in her disgust that she did not notice that she had mindlessly walked into an alleyway filled with decrepit homeless people. The horrid stench was almost enough to break her out of her thoughts but the attention her arrival had garnered.
Through the raggedy hood that her cloak possessed she saw the men turn to her, their eyes roaming her body. Without realizing it a disgusted expression had appeared on her face when smiles had begun to appear on their faces.
"Hey, you're looking fine young lady." A man grinned with rotten teeth as he came closer to her, his eyes leering at her body as his hand reached out to grab her. "Why don't you come over here and-!"
Pink eyes snapped to the approaching appendage and the woman felt disgust overcome her entire being. Even with everything being a blur to her she knew in her mind and body that the hand approaching her belonged to a…
"Insect." She spat hatefully as she slapped the insect's hand away from her as she looked at the disgusting sack of flesh in front of her with revulsion in her pink eyes.
The man's friendly dememoner instantly changed as his smile turned into a sneer as he cradled his hands from her slap. "What the hell did you just call me you-!"
"Kneel." She commanded, an enraged expression on her face.
"Who the hell do you think you are to command me you bitch!" The man furiously spat out as he marched up to her. "I'll teach some respect and then some you-!?"
Before he could finish making whatever promise of vengeance he was making the decrepit man suddenly kneeled in front of the woman. All around them the other homeless people gave off shouts of shock before they all stood up, collectively banding together in anger. Yet whilst they were voicing their anger they were oblivious to the now kneeling man's wide eyes, who
"Hey what the hell did you do to my man you bitch?!" One man furiously shouted as he approached her, unaware of the woman's eyes glowing a menacing pink after she said those words. "I'll gut you like the-!
"You there," She snapped her head to the person closest to her in the alleyway. "Slap him till he dies."
"Huh who the hell do you think you-!" The man's angry rebuttal died in his throat when another man walked up to the approaching man and slapped him in the face.
The first man gave a surprised yell of pain before he turned to face the man for his action, terror completely written on his face. "W-What the fuck man! Why are you-!" He was interrupted by another slap to the face.
The other man became similarly distraught as despite his best efforts his hand was already setting up for another slap. "I don't know man! I'm not in control of my body! I swear to you I'm not lying!" And to confirm his words the sound of another slap resounded in the alleyway.
The rag covered woman focused her attention on the rest of the homeless people that called this alleyway home, whose anger swiftly turned to terror as they flinched at the sight of the woman's glowing pink eyes. It did not take them long for them to realize that they were about to be the next victims of whatever this witch's power was.
Unfortunately for them they realized this too late as before even one of them could make a run for it the woman began to speak.
"Do push ups until your arms break."
"Sing till your throat bleeds."
"Do a handstand for me until all the blood rushes to your brain."
"Dance for me till the end of time."
"Choke him until he breathes no longer."
"Stab yourself until you die."
"Kill him."
As the numerous men that called the alleyway home were subjected to heinous acts against their will, all begging for mercy, the women responsible for their suffering did the only thing that felt natural to her at that moment.
Laughter.
Throwing her head back she laughed her joy to the heavens themselves, her raggdy hood falling back to reveal hair that had a beautiful hue of pink. The earlier apprehension she felt had all but vanished as she reveled in the moment.
Oh these glorious emotions she was feeling, it felt so splendid. All of these joys were hers and hers alone. No one could deny her that. This carthic joy that came with watching these insects squirm on the ground and suffer, was there anything better in this world that she had been thrusted into?
Yes that was her purpose, to cleanse this world of this filth that called it home.
And as she laughed to her heart's enjoyment at the revelation she could not help but thank God for what they had done.
For they have gifted her the most beautiful of gifts…
Sentience.
In one of the many rooms of a Schicksal Base, Rita Rossweisse was calmly sipping a cup of tea. That in of itself would not be a strange sight to see as the Maid of Schicksal often took tea breaks whenever she wasn't tidying up the base or leading the Immortal Blades.
Setting the cup down, Rita had a calm smile on her face when the base suddenly shook. The vibrations that were sent through the base felt almost akin to an earthquake, a strong one at that.
Another tremor shook the base, shaking the tea cup and the rich herbal blend within. Yet while this would send others into a panic, Rita simply maintained her patience as she calmly looked at a calendar hanging on one of the walls. Her dark pink eyes focused on what the date of that day was as another tremor shook the base.
"I see…" She muttered in realization before she stood up from her seat and walked over to the fridge. Opening the fridge up revealed the sole item that the refrigerator held.
A perfectly made chocolate fudge parfait.
"So today's the day," Reaching inside, Rita grabbed the chocolate parfait and delicately pulled it out. Even as another tremor went through the base her hold on the frosted glass did not waiver.
Looking towards the clock, the maid raised an eyebrow with how early it was. "Durandal-sama must be in a very bad mood if I am resorting to this so early."
Yes because this day marked a very special occasion for the blond S-Rank Valkyrie. More specifically, it was the day that changed everything Rita knew about her friend Durandal, or rather Bianka.
Oh how a single day could change a person completely.
The door to the room suddenly slammed open as a gray haired Immortal Blade, Alvitr if she remembered it correctly, had a panicked expression on her face. "Rita-sama! We're under attack. The Immortal Blades are preparing for-,"
"There is no attack on the base Alvitr-san," Rita quickly calmed the panicking Valkyrie. "Everything is under control."
"But-," Another tremor, this one much more powerful than the rest, shook the base. The gray haired Valkyrie looked at her as if she was crazy for thinking that this wasn't something to be concerned about.
"It's simply Durandal-sama letting out some steam," Holding the parfait glass with both hands Rita walked over to Alvitr who looked at her as if she wasn't expecting that kind of answer from her. "Do not worry about anything, this is completely normal."
"Is everything...okay with Durandal-sama?" Alvitr asked worryingly, and for good reason. Durandal was a beacon of hope and inspiration for every Valkyrie. She was what they all aspired to be, she was their role model.
So hearing of her being in such a mood that could shake the entire base made them understandably worried.
"Yes, she's just a bit hungry." The maid teased as she held up the parfait in her hands. "You know how it is, you're not you when you're hungry."
Alvitr wanted to say more but simply decided to go along with it as she nodded her head. "I'll be sure to notify the rest of the Immortal Blades then," The Valkyrie saluted and began to head back to wherever she had come rushing from.
"...Oh Alvitr-san?" Rita called out, stopping the girl in her tracks and prompting her to turn around and look at the Vice-Captain of the Immortal Blades. "Take the Immortal Blades for some training exercises, perhaps some mock battles will do?"
"But do take the whole day, I shall attend to Durandal-sama's needs in the meantime."
"Of course Rita-sama!" Alvitr saluted one last time before she ran towards the barracks with the intent on relaying these new orders to the rest of the Immortal Blades.
With that out of the way Rita made her way, parfait in hand, to the only place Durandal would be at on this special day.
The training room.
As she made her way to the training room, the tremors were getting louder and louder with each step she took. The maid's mind couldn't help but drift down memory lane to the events that had happened on this fateful day all that time ago.
Back then it was to be their first mission together, their first time being entrusted to complete an assignment alone. While they certainly were powerful back when they were younger, that youthful age had others wary if they should even be at the ranks that they were in.
One might say that this mission was what started their journeys in becoming S-Rank Valkyries.
'Lonely Panthalassa' was what their mission was called, a top secret assignment personally tasked by the Overseer himself. The reason why it was so top secret that only a handful of individuals knew that involved delving into a realm that defied all current human knowledge of the universe that they lived in.
That their world was just a drop in a massive sea brimming with countless numbers of universes.
Trying to enter a bubble universe from the outside was practically impossible. Unless one originated from that bubble or knew the manner to be able to pierce the different dimensional barriers that made up the bubble, all one could do was try and observe it from the outside.
However there were special areas that could be found in between different bubble universes, Ether Anchor Points as they were called. They were topological formations but nobody knew if they were natural or man made.
Now these Anchor Points, while very interesting, were not important alone to justify pouring in precious resources to try and explore these places. Why waste the effort and time when it could be put into solving their world's much more pressing problems.
Until it was discovered that the coordinates of the Solar System almost aligned with the coordinates of an Ether Anchor Point.
The ramifications of this were groundbreaking. That if an Anchor Point existed almost on the same coordinates of their Solar System, theoretically it would be possible to observe a clone of their world.
Which opened up a whole realm of new possibilities.
So Schicksal had begun developing a device that would allow one to travel from this world into the Anchor Point. A Gnius Device it was called.
However the drawback of it was that it could only be used in extremely rare space time windows. So rare that you had a better chance of being able to watch the passing orbit of Venus, which only occurred four times every 243 years.
And it just so happened that on this day all those years ago that the space time window to that Anchor Point would be opened, allowing them to travel through the Sea of Quanta.
It was highly risky, there were too many unknowns about the nature of the Sea of Quanta that could change the mission and jeopardize their lives. The Gnius Device itself had its own share of technical problems that a trip to the Anchor Point was not guaranteed.
But as a Valkyrie you were never guaranteed to see the next day.
Even so…
"Bianka-sama?" A young Rita asked as a young Bianka turned to face her. "I do hope you aren't having any second thoughts?"
"Please, am I ever scared? I'm just wondering why this is taking so long!" She complained as Rita simply smiled in response. Yes the legendary S-Rank Valkyrie was what people might consider a brat when she was young. Always acting high and mighty to others, ever so impatient to finish whatever she was doing so that she could move on to the next thing.
It was why very few people wanted to interact with her.
But Rita saw past that, past what other people saw. For what lied beneath all of that bravado was a Valkyrie who truly cared about people, about those that she fought for and alongside with.
You just needed to get to know her better to see it.
"Ah my two favorite Valkyries," Otto greeted as he walked up to the two of them. If you were to compare the Overseer in that time and the present you would find very little difference in their appearances. "I hope that you are ready for your special mission."
Bianka proudly placed her hands on her hips. "Of course! This mission will be a breeze!" She proclaimed confidently while Rita simply nodded her head.
"I see, I see," Otto laughed from the girl's attitude before he looked at his watch. "Well our window of opportunity is merely upon us, in less than a minute you'll be the first ever to travel into this Ether Anchor Point."
"And we are ready to step up to the occasion Otto-sama," Rita placed a hand on her chest in affirmation.
The Overseer simply smiled as he turned away and walked over to the group of scientists that were making the jump possible. Though it was more as a precaution than anything as they had run through the calculations required several times already.
All that was left to do was to wait for the time of reckoning.
And not too soon the lead scientist was calling out everyone's attention. "Alright everybody, the time is upon us! I hope you girls are ready as I'll be counting down when the window's opening." He looked towards the monitor in front of him and began counting down.
"Three,"
"Two…"
Rita closed her eyes, ready for the jump.
"One!" He called out as the maid was ready to feel her entire body get transported through the Sea of Quanta.
However it soon became apparent that something went wrong when she could hear the frantic shouting of the scientists while the Overseer was trying to find out what the problem was whilst trying to maintain order.
Oh well, while a small part of her was disappointed she wouldn't be able to travel to another dimension but you couldn't win all of them.
Turning to face Bianka, the maid was ready to hear the complaints of her partner for yet another complication. Opening her dark pink eyes however…
Revealed that the blond girl was nowhere to be seen, the only indication that she had even been next to her was the slight press in the grass where the girl had once stamped her feet impatiently as they waited for the window of opportunity.
Their Gnius devices had obviously malfunctioned, however it became quite clear that their malfunctions were drastically different.
Rita's Gnius Device had simply not allowed the Valkyrie to go anywhere at all, the best case scenario to happen should the device malfunction.
However it seems that fate was playing a cruel joke on them as while she ended up lucky, Bianka drew the short end of the stick with her malfunctioning Gnius.
Instead of simply not allowing the girl to travel through the Sea of Quanta, it had slingshotted her towards the very ends of the known Sea of Quanta. It was quite ironic that a realm meant to hold an infinite number of universes would have an end but in reality it was more like the known area of the Sea of Quanta was the only known area that could support someone's existence.
In short Bianka had been theoretically flung into a void that would instantly rip her body into atoms, before they were scattered into nothingness.
Rita could barely feel the day pass by as the scientists work day and night in trying to pull Bianka from wherever she had ended up in. The Overseer himself worked alongside the scientists in trying every conceivable method that they had available to them to rescue Bianka.
All the while Rita prayed to a God that she had never prayed to before for Bianka's safe return.
Yet as the day rolled by, so too had everyone's hope in ever seeing the Valkyrie again.
It was late into the night when it became clear that Bianka would not be coming back. "Rita-san," One of the scientists delicately touched the towel that was over her shoulders. "...It's time to go."
The light brown haired Valkyrie took a second to register what she said before she slowly nodded her head. The realization that Bianka was no longer with them, it broke something within her. First it had been Ragna...now it was Bianka.
Yet when all hope seemed to be lost, it appeared her prayer had finally been answered when the fields that they were in was enveloped by a bright light.
Everyone present shielded their eyes from the sudden explosion of light and by the time that the light died down…
It revealed Bianka, who looked the same as she had before she had disappeared.
Rita could barely hear the shouts of surprise from the other scientists as she rushed towards Bianka. Reaching her she threw her arms around the Valkyrie, uncaring if she was about to get pushed away. Bianka was very against public displays of affection and openly avoided situations that involved them.
Yet the maid would be surprised when Bianka did not try and push her away, but rather brought up her own arms and hugged the girl back, and quite ferociously might she add.
As if she could disappear at any moment.
Rita did not know what to make of this sudden development as the moment that Bianka had done this, the small sounds of sobbing had begun to escape the blond Valkyrie. The maid could feel the stains of tears on her shoulder where Bianka's head was being covered by.
"Rita...thank you for being there for me."
It was a day that had changed the life of Bianka as she began to call herself Durandal, and with it the personality that Rita knew the Valkyrie for began to follow alongside as what followed was an almost exponential growth in Durandal's prowess.
A bubble universe that had once been the Ether Anchor Point now resided within her, granting her immeasurable strength.
Yet it was on this day for every year that Durandal would hide herself away from her duties as a Valkyrie. She would spend these days in recluse, not wishing to be bothered by others. Sometimes she would spend them training or very rarely take a trip to some undisclosed place that not even she knew of.
An outsider might think of this as her way of relaxing but for Rita she knew it was something more. Whatever had happened to her during that failed jump had changed her permanently. And while she was tight-lipped about the details...
She knew those eyes that Durandal would have during this day.
Sorrow.
Anguish.
"And today…" Rita was pulled out of memory lane when she stopped in front of the door that led into the training room, the sounds of shaking the most intense it had ever been. Only one thing was running through the maid's mind as she calmly held the chocolate parfait.
"She must be very angry."
Durandal slammed her fist into a training machine, a scowl on her face as her strength completely obliterated the machine as the ruined machinery sailed into the wall. The wall rumbled from the impact before the metal scrap joined the pile of scrap that had once been state of the art training equipment.
A training robot swung its weapon at the Valkyrie's seemingly unsuspected back. While these weapons would not be able to kill, they would most certainly hurt if you weren't paying attention
But there was no worry as Durandal easily turned around and caught the swung weapon with her bare hand. The training robot tried to move its arm free but the grip in the S-Rank Valkyries arm wasn't letting it go anywhere any time soon.
The robot's singular red eye looked up for a fraction of second before Durandal's other hand came soaring for its head, completely smashing into it and turning into scrap.
A flurry of emotions was running through the S-Rank Valkyrie's mind as she dropped the broken remains of the machine in her hands. She was so out of it that she wasn't even aware that another training robot had moved to take its fallen comrades' place or that her body was already moving to obliterate it.
It was on this day that the dauntless persona that she was renowned for fell down, the only time that the mask she used to hide what had happened on this day was casted away. It was on this day that the pain she felt all those years ago would come back as fresh as the moment that she had gotten them.
Yet despite that, she always held hope that the promise made would not be forgotten.
"If you're ever in trouble, call my name and I will come to your aid. No matter what walls I must break or enemies I will face, I will come to your aid."
And yesterday night, in the midst of a dreamless rest, she heard the words that she had waited to hear for so long.
"Durandal,"
She had woken up instantly, a hand unconsciously outstretched as if she was reaching for the person who spoke it. It took her mind a second to catch up with what had just happened before she immediately rushed out of the bed. Within minutes she had donned her Bright Knight Excelesis and was already flying through the crisp cool night.
She had no idea where she was flying towards but a part of her, in some way, was guiding her to somewhere. A part within her was worried about what predicament her friend had gotten into…
But such worry was overshadowed as in that moment her entire heart was soaring just like she was in that moment. How many years had it been since she had last seen them? To be able to meet them again after so long, to be able to show them how far she had grown.
All because of them, because of the journey that they went through.
Yet just how fast her elation came, it dropped just as fast when that unknown feeling that was guiding her suddenly dissipated.
Which soon left her alone in the cover of the midnight sky, distraught slowly growing within her when she realized what it had meant. Durandal tried to invoke that unknown feeling once more but to no avail.
The promise that she made to him all those years ago, a promise that they would see each other again, a promise that she made to him, a promise that she had intended to fulfill.
And she couldn't even fulfill it.
She was in so much shock that she didn't register the fact that it had been morning by the time she had returned back to the base and subconsciously entered the training room. When she looked up and saw the equipment that she trained with on a day to day basis to get stronger.
Distraught swiftly turned to anger.
Her mind was a whirlwind of emotions that destroyed any forms of rational thought as she destroyed whatever was in front of her. So much so that she showed no hesitation when she crushed the head of a training robot that had been trapped in her hand.
All that time training, all those dangerous missions that she partook in, all
those hours that she sacrificed so she could be the strongest Valkyrie that was out there…
ONLY FOR NONE OF IT TO MATTER WHEN IT MATTERED THE MOST!
She was in such a trance that she did not hear the sounds of the door opening, nor did she hear the footsteps that approached her as she continued destroying the training equipment without thought.
"Durandal-sama."
Without even bothering to try and recognize who the speaker was, Durandal's body was already moving as she mindlessly threw a punch in the direction of whoever who said that. It was only through a brief second of rationality that her fist stopped just inches away from Rita's face.
"R-Rita?!" She cried out in shock as she immediately lowered her hand away from her Vice Captain's face.
"Ara, ara," Rita's face showed no fear despite the fact that she had been seconds away from getting punched in the face by Durandal. The only visible change that you could see was her hair had slightly moved as a result of how much power was behind that punch. "If I didn't know any better I would've believed that you were a raging Honkai beast just now."
Durandal looked at her in confusion before she looked around and winced at just how much destruction she had unleashed on the training grounds, her mind finally catching up with her actions.
You couldn't even see the once blue and white painting that made the room up, all that was left was torn up concrete. State of the art Schicksal training machinery littered the floor as you could hear the faint sounds of machinery coming off the numerous piles of scrap.
"I…" Durandal tried to come up with some reasonable explanation for this but lowered her head in shame when she could not explain her behavior.
Rita's eyes softened as that simple action was all that she needed to know. The S-Rank Valkyrie had never been the best with words after all. "It has to do with 'them', doesn't it?"
Durandal's head shot back up from her gloomy state as blue eyes looked at the maid in shock. "How did you-"
Rita simply chuckled before she pushed the chocolate parfait into the blond Valkyrie's hands. "I've been your friend for so long, do you think that I wouldn't piece together something? Especially when you act so differently on this specific day every year?"
Durandal had a sheepish smile on her face as she thought back to how she had acted and had to admit it was fairly obvious of her change in behavior on this day. And here she thought that she was being secretive on how she was feeling.
"Yes you were quite obvious about it." The maid giggled, glad to see that Durandal was coming back to her usual self. "Even some of the Immortal Blades were coming up with theories about what this day means to you."
"Huh?" Durandal eyes widened in shock. "Wait, what do you mean by theories?"
"It's nothing to concern yourself Durandal-sama," Rita dismissively waved, mentally reminding herself to not accidentally mention the gossip mill of the Immortal Blades in Durandal's presence again. "It's nothing more than gossip, nothing to worry about."
A bell rang through the entire base, an indication that it had hit noon. The maid bowed as that was her cue to leave. "I won't force you to tell me what had happened on this day but I do hope that one day you can tell me," The maid turned on her heel and made her way to leave. As Rita approached the exit with each step, Durandal's eyes never left the chocolate parfait in her hands.
"I've got your back, always!"
"It happened right after the Genius devices malfunctioned," The S-Rank Valkyrie suddenly spoke up, stopping the maid in her tracks. "I blacked out instantly and was put in what felt like a deep sleep."
"That was until I was woken up...by him."
Rita turned back around and listened with full attentiveness as the strongest Valkyrie finally told her the story of what happened to her during the failed mission.
"He happened to come across my sleeping form and woke me up, asking me what I was doing on the edge of the Sea of Quanta." The blond Valkyrie remembered waking up on that fateful vibrant green field all that long ago like it had just happened yesterday.
"You know there are better places to sleep, you know?" Was the first thing that he had said to her under that tree.
"If it wasn't for that bubble universe there for me to land on, I would have experienced a very painful death of getting ripped apart by the Sea of Quanta."
"And I trust that your first encounter with him was anything but spectacular?" Rita asked knowing full well how the old Bianka introduced herself to others, especially on missions.
Durandal had a nostalgic smile on her face as she nodded her head. "More so than you believe as for what felt like an entire month I gave him the cold shoulder. I would go to great lengths to try and leave the bubble universe and whenever those attempts ended up in failure he was always there with a reassuring smile on his face."
"He must be a very kind person to put up with you for that long."
"Yes he was," Durandal looked up to the ceiling in fondness. "Always trying to get closer to me even when I pushed him away. He kept asking me why I wanted to leave the bubble and when I finally decided to share with him the details of the mission, I was surprised when he vowed to help me accomplish it."
It had made no sense to her younger self when the offer of help was given. Here was a complete stranger that had come into his bubble universe without explanation and he was still offering his assistance. Had the thought that she could be an enemy ever crossed his mind?
Then again, there were many things about him that perplexed her.
"Lord Otto says that it is impossible to traverse through bubble universes but he did it with ease. Doors that allowed us to traverse through the bubbles would seemingly appear before him and no one else." She remembered the first time he had opened one of these doors. The outburst she had accidentally sputtered out were words someone her age at the time should not be saying.
Rita noted that little tidbit of information down for reference later as Durandal continued telling her story. For an individual able to easily transverse the Sea of Quanta? That would be invaluable to the cause of Schicksal.
But there was no harm in keeping this information to herself. Durandal had trusted her enough to tell her this story, she would not betray it by telling another soul lest it was of important cause.
"I'm not sure how he did it, and neither did he. It was just something that he said he could do when he woke up in that bubble universe." The doors that he would open up would lead them to strange bubble universes that varied greatly. Some were as normal as the world that they were in right now and others seemed to defy imagination.
The bubble universe that was most notable to her was a vast desert filled with red sand.
"We traveled through countless bubbles before finally arriving at the Ether Anchor Point. When we arrived we helped the people to overthrow a tyrannical king. It was there that I also came into possession of the bubble universe that now rests within me." Durandal had a smile as she recalled the memories of her time at the Ether Anchor Point, memories that she would treasure till the end of time.
"When we completed our mission in the Ether Anchor Point, it was time for us to say our goodbyes to the friends that the two of us made in that realm. Partaking in another, but smaller, journey we made it to the bubble universe that held the door that would've made it possible for me to get back here."
"And the rest is history." Durandal finished.
Rita held a small smile on her face as the story reached its conclusion. After hearing such a story, it was no wonder how much Durandal had changed. "You must've cared a lot about him, I can only imagine the bond you forged with him throughout your journey."
Durandal placed a hand on her chest. "They mean a lot to me, they were there when I did not wish them to be, there when I confronted demons I never dreamed of meeting. The person that I am today would not be possible without them."
She thought about the bright smile that never seemed to leave his face, no matter the situation that they were in. "No matter the situation he was always optimistic, even when all seemed lost he was there to assure everyone that it wasn't over."
"It was as if he was hope itself."
Rita knew that this kind praise was hard to earn from Durandal, and for her to be speaking so highly meant this person was quite something. "He must've been a very remarkable person."
Durandal felt at ease sharing this with her closest confidant, a huge weight that she had never known to exist was finally lifted. "My hope is that one day, somehow, I will be able to see him again. I wish to tell him all that has happened since our last meeting, and have him meet you and all of the Immortal Blades."
"I will hold you to that Durandal-sama," A sudden thought flashed through Rita's mind and her lips curled up at the thought of it. The blonde Valkyrie felt dread as she knew what that look meant.
"Though I must ask...when will the marriage letters be sent out?"
"R-R-Rita?!" The S-Rank Valkyrie's face went beet red.
"I jest, Durandal-sama." Rita lied as she wondered what kind of man had affected her friend in such a way. A small part of her was envious that someone had gotten this out of Bianka and not herself but she cared not for how it was done. They were able to bring out the true side of Bianka out, that was all she could ask for.
Now she could only hope that their meeting was not too long in the making. After all…
It was quite fun seeing this side of Bianka.
How's everyone doing!? I hope that each and everyone is doing super well!
What did you guys think about this chapter? Nothing groundbreaking like the last two chapters were but I think that we got some good stuff here for the world building of this story.
For starters what I've done with Hua and Herrscher of Sentience. You guys really liked her sudden introduction and while some of you did raise concerns that her appearance was not canon, that's sort of true in my opinion.
Out of all the Herrscher personalities I felt that Hua was the most unique as she didn't immediately start going off on a rampage destroying the world even if she totally could. So her awakening without the Honkai's help and due to meeting an Aeon made sense to me, but I can totally see where some of you are coming from. Just can't turn back from having the Yatta introduced.
And it didn't sit well with me if I just had Hua as a really weak Herrscher of Sentience. I felt that it would get resolved in like four chapters and that it would totally make Fu Hua lose her value in the story.
But if I made the Herrscher of Sentience a different entity all together...I could do some really really interesting things with them. And if you think that it'll be another Fu Hua clone…
Just wait and see who they look like, it'll be worth it.
Next is the Aeons, oh boy that was a big one. I'm not sure what you'll guys think about it but I hope you guys are receptive to the idea.
The Fate references aren't done yet I can tell you that.
And finally the Durandal section. Too be honest I have not read the Visual Novel, only like the first part of it, but from what I've seen it's practically a very long story that's unrelated to the Honkai-verse. Only important things are Durandal's and Rita's character development and how Bianka becomes Durandal.
Well the first part is no longer true seeing 'Haruto' has taken over Rita's spot in the canon verse :)
Welp that's all for this chapter. If you enjoyed it, drop a fav/follow/kudos as they really help me out with creating great chapters. Reviews are deeply appreciated and if you have a question or a really interesting theory I am more than happy to reply. Please be patient if I don't respond to you super fast. Even if I don't respond to your comment for whatever reason, know that I read each and every one of them!
Peace!