This chapter has a big change from the original.
I hope you really enjoyed this chapter!
"For your journey to end."
"...What are you saying?" I narrowed my eyes in response to what Black Swan said. I pushed back the eeriness and fear I had felt on seeing her eyes change color but I wasn't about to be backing down. Not when Mei and everyone else was still in trouble.
"Indeed dear guest it is as you have heard." She confirmed as she rested her hands on her lap, her eyes never breaking contact with mine. "The
"I heard you the first time," I bit back with a bit of irritation bleeding into my tone. "But why is my question? Aren't you supposed to be an observer? What happened to not involving yourself?"
This was all coming out of nowhere. Despite not having many conversations with her I got a pretty good sense of what kind of character that the shawl wearing woman had. That she was a woman that took her oaths seriously.
Which now no longer seemed to be the case.
"Such oaths can be broken should the situation require it." She casually dismissed the oath that she had upheld so solemnly. "As an Observer of the Garden Of Recollection I may intervene should I deem it necessary."
"And what better opportunity than to fix a story that has been led astray off its path?"
I cocked an eyebrow at her. "Astray?"
Black Swan gave me a disappointing shake of her head while giving me a 'tut tut' sound. "You remember our previous conversations, did you not my dear guest?" She reminded me as my mind thought back to our very first conversation during my first week in Nagazora. "Your involvement in the story of this world has derailed it, so much so that I must now rectify it."
"That doesn't justify anything!" I hotly argued.
"Can you still say that after how much has changed?" Black Swan calmly retorted back, unfazed by my tone. "Not only have certain characters been involved but certain events have been triggered earlier than they were supposed to. Take the awakening of the Herrscher of Sentience after Fu Hua's involvement in the rescue of K-423."
"What?!" I exclaimed, completely thrown off guard by the revelation. "You're telling me that Fu Hua was the one at the docks?!"
At the back of my mind I was more panicked by the revelation that the Herrscher of Sentience had somehow already awoken but I pushed that to the side to be dealt with later. If I asked any questions regarding them I knew I would be inadvertently supporting Black Swan's side and right now I needed to do everything in my power to change her mind.
Because right now she had all the cards in her hands.
"Indeed but that is of no concern right now." The shawl wearing woman dismissed my concern. "Focus on the conversation on hand."
Despite the groundbreaking revelation that she had dropped one me I continued to stubbornly stand my ground. "I refuse to believe your words."
"Oh?" She cocked her head to the side before raising a hand up. "Perhaps more proof is required to bring down your false resolve."
In her hand three cards magically appeared. With a simple flick of her wrist the three cards in the woman's hand floated upward, enlarging before I was clearly able to make out the different pictures that each card possessed.
"Familiar?" The shawl wearing women asked as she motioned to the cards floating above us, much to my shock as I could now make out the images on them. "These three have played an important role in your journey so far…"
"And all three of them were never meant to have lived this far."
Kuro.
Ishigami.
Midori.
"Kuro, otherwise known as Styx to her colleagues." The first card displaying the black feline began to change as we watched the black cat crossing a street on a rainy dark night. Unbeknownst to the black feline, the headlights of a car were coming closer and closer.
"Look out!" I yelled in a vain attempt to warn the cat of her incoming doom. My words however went unheeded as the cat continued crossing the street. It was only at the final moments that Kuro noticed the incoming car, turning her head to see the front bumper of the car.
I jerked my head away to spare myself from having to see the cat…meet a gruesome end.
Thankfully Black Swan had dismissed the cat's screen before that could play out. "Kuro was never meant Jackal, an unknowing car driver ending her before their fateful meeting, forever meant to live the life of a normal street feline."
But it seems that she was not done just yet as she motioned for Ishigami's card. There the image of my teacher shifted to show a room where the lights were cut off and people were being crammed within. Seeing the numerous identical faces of the people within I knew what was going to happen next.
"Akira Ishigami, otherwise known as W-916." I watched as a green noxious gas began to fill the enclosed room, slowly giving every clone an excruciatingly slow and painful death. One by one they fell and the one I presumed to be Ishigami was the last one to fall.
However instead of getting up he remained lifeless on the floor, his eyes dull as he breathed his last breath.
"He was meant to die in my universe, never activating his powers as a clone of the Sovereign of Anti-Entropy. Yet he plays an instrumental role in this story now." The card of Ishigami disappeared, leaving Midori's the last to be discussed.
The image of the black haired Valkyrie shifted to show her in her Valkyrie outfit, slumped against a tree as blood flowed freely from an injury on her side. Nearby were the fallen bodies of other Valkyries as a honkai beast stood in the center of the devastation.
"Midori Aki, the Valkyrie sent to spy on Mei and the one that helped you free Kiana from the World Serpent. She was meant to die alongside her squad in a training mission gone wrong yet survived and is now one of Mei Raiden's closest confidants." The image of Midori Aki disappeared, leaving behind a tense mood as Black Swan and I stared at each, both us unrelenting in this battle of wills.
"And let us not forget the Herrscher of Sentience," Outstretching her hand a card appeared on it, showcasing a hooded figure whose only uncovered feature was a maniac grin. "I do not think I need to tell you what damage that Herrscher will wrought at this point of time. Your current state is a testament to the repercussions."
"But I have been presented with an opportunity." Her glowing eyes looked towards my shoulder, where the honkai infection had gotten much worse as dark purple veins could be now seen peeking out of my jacket's sleeve. "Your previous actions of informing Anti-Entropy of the Eruption and supporting Mei have mitigated the worst of things. Should you fall here Kiana Kaslana will be able to calm Mei Raiden, and the story may begin to repair itself in order to reach its original conclusion."
"This isn't like you Black Swan," I stated as I thought back to the woman's behavior throughout the entirety of this conversation. Something felt…off but I wasn't sure what it was. "What are you so afraid of?"
A flicker of emotion passed through the woman's glowing eyes, though before I could try and discern what it was it was already gone. "Your presence has brought so much change, so much so that I now fear for the ending of this story. For the ending of this story has repercussions that shall ripple across the universe, ripples that place the whole of creation in danger."
"Your world is yet ignorant of the horrors that lie beyond their universe," The Observer stated seriously as the atmosphere began to get choked. "I have seen what lies at the end of the story we call this universe, of the trial that shall take place. This world must survive its battle against Finality, the alternative too horrifying to consider."
"So Haruto Nakamura you must fall, for the sake of creation itself."
With a scowl Ishigami threw a barrage of dark red energy missiles at his younger doppelganger. Grinning, the younger clone responded with his own barrage of dark blue energy missiles, meeting each of his head on and creating a big explosion.
But that was not the end of it as a hail of bullets broke right through the cloud of smoke. Acting quickly the teacher brought up his hand and created a wall of energy that disintegrated the bullets the moment they made contact.
The soldiers weren't all that threatening, none of them possessed any sort of unique weapons or any special armaments that were a threat to him.
They were however very annoying to deal with while he had to contend with his clone, who had seized the opportunity of his distracted state and fired a few energy missiles at him.
Stuck in a very difficult spot, Ishigami faced a hand towards the wall behind him and destroyed it. Using the new opening, the teacher gave himself a few seconds of reprieve as he moved himself into an empty classroom.
The hallway that he had just been fighting Cocolia's soldiers in looked nothing like it once had. The tiles on the floor had all but been ripped up, the lockers on the wall having been reduced to scrap, even nearby classrooms had not been spared from the battle.
While it was concerning that the younger clone was able to call upon the powers of the Sovereign, it had quickly become obvious that he didn't have as much control over them as the teacher had.
Despite the young man's boasting, Ishigami was confident that he would be able to defeat both his clone and the soldiers.
However…
Stopping in the new untouched classroom, the lab coat wearing teacher began to start coughing harshly. Bringing a hand up to his mouth he grimaced when he saw blood on his hand.
For as great as his advantage was, it was almost perfectly balanced out by his disadvantage.
It was true that he had better control over the powers of the Sovereign, however that came at a horrible price. He had been part of the first wave of clones, the first attempt at fully replicating the powers of the leader of Anti-Entropy.
And while it had been a truly miraculous moment when he had managed to use the power of the 1st Herrscher…
That did not mean his body was perfectly adapted, or even created, to handle its full power.
The more he used his powers, the more it weakened his body. He hadn't had to worry about such a problem in a long time, laying low from Anti-Entropy and being a teacher meant that he rarely used them.
But the past year had him using his powers more than he had previously done for, even pushing the limits of how much energy his body could handle at a single moment.
"Does the old man need a cane now?" Mocked his younger clone as he stepped into the classroom, the soldiers close behind him. "We wouldn't want you to fall over now do we?"
"Give me the cane so I can come over there and beat your arrogant ass," Ishigami shot back, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. Ignoring the pain his body was feeling at the moment, he conjured another dark red orb of energy.
The younger clone seemed actually delighted by his unwillingness to back down, the feral grin that blossomed on his face being a clear indication of that. "You know I've heard our little plan to apprehend the heiress ended in failure, who would've thought that she was a Herrscher this entire time?"
So that was the reason behind the massive explosion that had happened a few minutes ago. Though as worrying as that revelation was, the fact that they had not been hit by a giant surge of honkai energy could only mean that the Rasputin towers had done their purpose.
He would have to thank Tesla and Einstein the next time he saw them.
Though the problem was now how Mei was supposed to come back from her transformation as a Herrscher. He wasn't going to say it was impossible, you need only to look at the 1st Herrscher siding with humanity for proof of this.
But he could only hope that Haruto could come through with his promise.
"If you're gonna do something soon kid, please do it now." Ishigami mumbled before he recommenced his battle with his younger clone.
"Because I have no idea how much longer I can keep this up for."
When Mei Raiden opened her eyes, it felt like every part of her body was swimming in pain. It hurt to even try and move even her arm in the slightest way. Yet she didn't need to worry about moving anytime soon.
Since she was apparently already moving.
"H-Huh?" She groggily said as she opened her eyes to find herself in a very peculiar position.
For she was on the back of none other than Kiana Kaslana.
"Mei-senpai!" Kiana shouted joyously as she turned her head around to greet the now awake girl. "You're finally awake!"
"W-Where are we?" The dark purple haired girl asked weakly as she looked around, trying to pinpoint where exactly they were.
"We are making our way to an evacuation site." The sound of Bronya's voice had her turning to see the petite gray haired girl walking right alongside Kiana. "Nagazora is experiencing a radiation outbreak."
She was confused by what Bronya meant by that. "W-What do you mean by that? Has something happened?"
"Terrorists attacked Nagazora, setting off a bomb." She simply explained. "Anti-Entropy is trying to contain the radiation but they've ordered everyone to evacuate the city."
As Mei listened to Bronya explaining the situation, something felt…off about it. The dark purple haired girl did not know how she knew that but a part of her knew that wasn't the entire truth. She just didn't know what part of what she had just heard was not true.
Before she could voice her suspicions, she's interrupted by Kiana who asks a very important question. "Mei-senpai, where's Haru-senpai?" The white haired girl questioned.
"H-Haruto?" She looked to Kiana who had tilted her head so that her blue eyes made eye contact with hers. "Why are you asking me about him?"
"He was with you before this happened, saying the two of you were getting groceries." Kiana said, much to Mei's confusement as she tried to remember that. Did she and Haruto really go out to get groceries?
If that was the case, then why couldn't she recall anything about that?
"I-I can't remember," Was all she could say. Unbeknownst to the heiress, who was busy trying to remember, Bronya stiffened at the mention of the red headed teenager. She was able to cover up her reaction, and thankfully neither the heiress nor Kaslana noticed it.
She couldn't bring herself to tell them the truth of what had happened.
"I'm sure he'll turn up! This is Haru-senpai we're talking about!" Kiana reassured the two, hiding the fact that she too was afraid for the fate of her friend. She was sure that they would see Haru-senpai soon but a small part of her whispered that was not the case, that her fears would be proven right.
That she would have to relive another traumatic memory of seeing him in so much pain.
No more words were exchanged after that, as they were all engrossed in their respective silent dilemmas regarding a certain redheaded teenager. Despite this they continued making their way towards an evacuation site.
Walking through the silent streets of Nagazora almost felt suffocating, the eerie silence was getting on everyone's nerves. Coupled that with the fact that you could hear the sounds of conflict seemingly occuring all throughout the city.
It was safe to say that they were very jumpy.
Kiana attempted to make light banter to break up the mood, telling jokes or making some sort of funny remark about a building or the street they were walking in. And for a while it worked, Mei would giggle at some jokes while Bronya merely cracked a small smile at them.
But all that did was place a temporary bandage over the situation that they were in. The further they progressed into the city, the more apparent it became that they couldn't try to beat around the bush.
Mei didn't know how long she was on the back of Kiana, her sense of time still messed up. The young woman had told her carrier that she was fine to walk multiple times but all that she would get in return was a no and after being refused everytime she just allowed Kiana to continue to carry her.
She could've been more stubborn about it but her mind was more focused on trying to remember what had happened before all this happened. She knew something important had happened but for the life of her she could not recall it.
However as they continued to cross streets, devoid of all life, Mei had a feeling she would not be remembering any time soon.
The young woman did not know how much time had passed since she had woken up but it felt as if an eternity had passed.
"Kiana-chan?" She broke the silence, prompting the white haired girl to turn her head to face her. "Do you know what time it is-!"
"Mei nee-sama! Kiana!" Bronya's frantic shout interrupted her as the petite gray haired girl suddenly placed herself in front of the two, a hand outstretched in order to protect them. "Watch out!"
The sound of a bullet being fired right after those words left the Russian girl's lips had Mei shouting in fear. Kiana swiftly moved herself to a defender's stance but in doing so she forgot about the fact that she had been supporting Mei's weight on her back.
Resulting in the young woman falling to the ground.
Suppressing a pained yelp, Mei quickly picked herself off her spot on the floor and tried to see what had just happened. In front of her was Kiana with her fists at the ready, and in front of Kiana was Bronya…
And in front of Bronya was a giant humanoid like mech, where had that come from!?
"Project Bunny 19C," Bronya's voice was emotionless as the mech lowered its arms, no doubt being the shield that had protected them from that gunshot. "Eliminate the-,"
"You don't gotta worry about that kid, I'll be dead soon anyway." The unfamiliar voice had Mei moving her head to see who their attacker was.
A few feet away from Bronya's guardian mech was a soldier, a soldier that seemed familiar to the young woman but could not exactly discern why that was. The state of the soldier was not a good one, his armor having been damaged heavily and blood could be seen trailing down from a wound near his stomach.
Not to mention the strange purple lines that seemed to be spreading throughout his skin with each passing moment.
The pistol that he used to shoot at them appeared to run out of ammo to fire with, evident by the clicking sound that would occur every time he pulled the trigger. Realizing that he had indeed run out of ammo, the soldier threw the now useless pistol away before he slumped to the floor and rested his back on the side of a ruined car.
"Looks like Lady Luck wasn't on my side after all, could've fooled me though. It's not everyday you somehow miraculously survive an eruption point blank." The soldier chuckled at his misfortune, though that didn't last long when he made eye contact with the heiress.
"If it wasn't for you everyone would be still alive," He pointed towards her, and with his words something began to start coming back to the heiress. Faint recollections of her being surrounded by others dressed similarly like the soldier in front of her.
"But I suppose it doesn't matter anymore as I'll be joining them soon." Reaching up the soldier tore off his helmet, revealing more of the purple lines crawling up his neck as he did a large inhale of air.
"Thankfully you took your redheaded boyfriend to the grave as well," He smiled sinisterly at Mei, who could feel her heart drop at the mention of his words." I'll be sure to greet him in Hell when I get there."
…
…what?
Apparently her shock showed on her face as the dying soldier was more than happy to continue with his explanation. "You didn't know? Well, allow me to enlighten you, you killed him."
I…did?
An image of Haruto came to the forefront of her mind. There the redheaded teenager was, smiling at her with a smile that never failed to brighten her day. She didn't even know the specific reason why he was smiling at her but that didn't matter in the slightest right now.
That image however quickly changed to a haunting sight. His smiling face quickly transformed into a pained expression as he laid on the floor, a pool of blood beginning to rapidly form around his body.
No…this isn't…
It…can't be…true.
"You lie." She said lowly, unaware that the air around them was becoming choked in a tense atmosphere. Sparks of purple lightning began to flicker all around them, growing with intensity with each passing second. Sounds of concern from both Kiana and Bronya went ignored as the heiress's focus zeroed in on the slumped soldier.
"Am I?" The man taunted her, not at all deterred by the impending danger. If anything he seemed to be welcoming it. "If I'm busy here slowly dying, what do you think the condition of your friend is, who was busy bleeding out on the street?"
Haruto…can't…be…
"Take that back!" Kiana yelled at him, doing her best to try and cover up the terror that she felt from the man's words. Haru-senpai couldn't be dead, he just couldn't!
Her panicking thoughts were swiftly interrupted when Bronya grabbed her arm and began to tug it with force. "We need to go, now!" The petite girl pressingly urged as she took a look at Mei. Following her gaze Kiana saw that tendrils of purple lightning were now beginning to arc around the heiress.
The white haired girl wasn't given any time to try and argue to Bronya that Mei-senpai needed them when three purple wings manifested themselves on the dark purple haired girl, slowly lifting her off the ground.
"...Alright," She bitterly replied as the two ran to find cover.
And not a few seconds later did the air crackle, followed by a loud pained scream. Mei's eyes turned from its dark blue hue to a sinister pink red, the memories of what had truly happened came back to her.
The chaos that had befallen the street…
To the unmoving body of Haruto Nakamura.
"Any last words insect?" The Herrscher of Thunder spoke as she took over the distraught girl, fully in control as she glared at the soldier slumped in front of her. All the soldier did was flip a particular finger in response before a second later his entire world became engulfed in a purple light.
Yet everyone that had been present for that confrontation were completely unaware of the massive battleship that was now flying directly above them…
And neither were they aware of the battleship's weapons slowly turning to face the Herrscher of Thunder.
In the bridge of the Hyperion, the main monitor on the bridge was currently displaying the reason on why the battleship's crew was currently flying over Nagazora.
And the one responsible for directing this crew of valiant heroes was currently in disbelief as she stared at what their supposed target was.
"Huh?! That's the Herrscher?!" Himeko Murata exclaimed in disbelief. "A girl? Really?"
"And what did you expect them to be?" Her vice captain spoke up beside her.
"I don't know, something much scarier than a highschool girl." The red headed woman responded. "I was expecting demonic wings, death rays, a deranged slimy tentacle monster with a bunch of eyes because why not!"
"…Major you have some sick fantasies about the Honkai,"
"Well it's only because I was stuck with this job in the first place!" She exclaimed with a scowl on her face. "I swear that pudding scientist knew this was going to happen! I'm going to give him a piece of my mind the next time I see him!"
Everyone present on the bridge all made a silent prayer for the infamous white haired scientist. It was no secret that he infuriated the major and more often than not you could catch him on the receiving end of the Murata's ire if you were a regular at St. Freya.
"But I suppose Lady Luck finally decided to bless us with this jackpot." Joked Himeko as an excited grin took shape on her face. "The poor sucker isn't even aware of our presence yet." And the captain had every intention of using that advantage.
"Hyperion!" She commanded, throwing her arm out as she issued the order. "Full broadside! Hit the Herrscher with every cannon that's on the ship! Light her up like a Christmas Tree!"
At her words the underbelly of the Hyperion opened up, revealing cannons that were coming out of their compartments to aim themselves at the Herrscher. The firepower that this ship possessed was enough to level entire city blocks with only one bombardment.
Yet as the Herrscher was made aware of the Hyperion's target, evident by the loud sounds of the transforming mechanisms and the fact that they were all turning to face her, what she was feeling wasn't fear…
But rather of irritation.
"No one is allowed to be above me, the Queen!" She sneered as energy began to build up near her. The air seemingly shook in her presence as the light around them darkened and it did not take a genius to figure out what was about to happen.
"Full power to the shields!" Himeko shouted to the bridge. "Brace for-!"
"Fall." Was all the Herrscher of Thunder said as the entire world was seemingly engulfed in darkness for a brief second…
Before all the light and color came rushing back…
And the Hyperion shuddered as it felt the full power of the attack.
"Warning External Armor Plating Compromised," The Hyperion's robotic warning system blared out as the entire bridge was thrown into darkness, the only sources of light were the windows of the bridge, the beeping red lights, and the light coming from the operators' terminals.
And the frantic shouts of the operators weren't helping the situation.
"Our power is down by 40%!
"Fires detected in the upper decks!"
"We've lost control over the cannons on the west side!"
"Our main reactor is losing output!"
"Major," Yet throughout the chaos the vice captain appeared to be as calm as ever, a blessing in disguise as Himeko needed as much calm as possible. "We can't survive another hit like that," She warned as she pushed her glasses up.
The redheaded major crossed her arms as a scowl appeared on her face. "This little girl doesn't know how much this boat costs to build, Theresa is gonna be on me for the repair costs when we get back…"
Granted if they could even get out of this situation alive.
Steeling herself Himeko slammed her foot down onto the floor of the bridge, the loud sound silencing the frantic shouts of the operators as they all turned to look at the stern-faced captain. She needed to stop this before it spiraled down any further.
"Activate our reserve Nuclear Reactors!" She commanded. "Maintain our current energy output and switch over to our reserves! Once that's accomplished bring the Hyperion down to the Herrscher's altitude, we have to fight up close and personal now…"
"So get the Nexus Battlesuit System online and running!"
Her last words garnered shock expressions from everyone that had heard. Surely they hadn't heard her just say that they were already resorting to their last resort? Surely the situation they were in wasn't as hopeless as she was making it to be.
However, before anyone could question the captain on her decision she and her vice captain had already left the bridge to head to the armory. It quickly became clear that she had been serious. Once that had been made clear the operators scrambled to fulfill their given orders.
Meanwhile Himeko and the vice-captain were making their way to the armory at a brisk and urgent pace. "Major, are you sure that this is the wisest choice to make?" The glasses wearing Valkyrie questioned. "You know the consequences of putting that suit on, not to mention that our orders from the council were to capture the Herrscher, not kill."
"Don't you think I remember that?" After all it was Theresa who had relayed to her the Schicksal Far East Branch Council's order for the Hyperion to make a beeline straight to Nagazora and capture what they believed to be the next Herrscher.
Fourteen years had passed by since the last Herrscher, and the Murata woman was damned if she was going to let it run free and allow it wreak havoc on the world.
"But we can't afford to be gentle with the Herrscher, it's either her or us." She spoke as they came to the door that contained the Nexus System.
"And I perfectly know what I'm getting into." The door opened and Himeko walked into the room alone, the vice captain not moving as she remained on the other side of the door. "Fact of the matter is, that suit is the only thing beside this battleship that can match the Herrscher without getting obliterated. We can't afford to play around with our enemy, it's all or nothing now."
"Besides, didn't Asplund make some modifications to it?" The pudding scientist, as loathe as she was to admit it, was useful when it came to building honkai killing inventions. "I'm sure I can live with putting that suit on."
The vice captain was silent as she processed Himeko's words. "Very well then Major." After a period of silence the valkyrie saluted her. "Good luck." Was all she said before she began to run back to the bridge, no doubt to oversee the bridge in her absence.
Once the doors of the armory closed the Murata woman smirked as she began to walk to the Nexus Battlesuit, unclothing herself in the process. "Heh you know it's serious when I have to resort to taking off my clothes in the middle of a battle."
"I'm expecting a damn raise once all of this is over," She muttered under her breath as she took off her last piece of clothing before she stepped into the battlesuit's suiting station, the mechanical arms beginning to attach the parts of the Nexus Battlesuit on her body.
"Ah this power," The Herrscher of Thunder rejoiced as she watched the battleship that dared to think it was higher than her, now burning as she asserted her superiority over it. "The sorrow of losing a loved one, how it powers me so."
And there was barely a whisper from the other girl, no doubt unable to muster up a fight after that groundbreaking revelation.
No matter, she would free them from these chains of despair that cursed their existence. This cruel world would finally disappear and finally they would be able to rest in peace.
"Oi!" A shout broke the harbinger of destruction out of her musings. Her attention shifted to the opening doors of the battleship, where a red headed woman clad in an equally vibrant armor was being lifted onto the deck. Her entire body was covered in a red ruby armor with her eyes covered by a visor that glowed blue. On her back was a massive cable that trailed all the way to the platform that had brought her up, connecting her to something.
"You'll be fighting me now!" She pointed the sword right at the Herrscher, a bold proclamation.
"Is that so?" The Herrscher smiled sinisterly at this foolish human. If she wanted a death wish then who was she to refuse it? "Then die insect!"
Bringing up her hand, the Herrscher of Thunder charged up an attack guaranteed to vaporize this foolish human. "Be reduced to ashes!" She shouted as she fired the attack.
Yet instead of showing fear at that incoming attack, Himeko's face shifted to that grim determination. "Sorry but I ain't dying in a place like this, especially not before I find myself a nice guy!"
Bringing up her sword, the visor that was covering her eyes glowed a bright red. The cord that was currently attached to the back of the battlesuit also began to blow a bright red.
"Nexus System ACTIVATE!" She yelled as she swung her sword right as the beam of energy struck her. The glowing sword cleaved the beam attack in two before the entire world surrounding them was enveloped by an all encompassing light.
"Make sure that we don't overload the reactors!" Back in the bridge the vice captain was watching the state of the reactors that the Nexus Battlesuit was currently hooked up to. A battlesuit that was powered by nuclear energy, making whoever was wearing it a force of destruction.
Though that came at the cost of severe backlash that the wearer had to endure.
"If we lose the fusion reactors then we're all dead!"
After what had felt like an eternity being bathed in light, Himeko could finally open her eyes without fear of being permanently blinded. "Fuck that hurt," Panted the red haired woman as she lowered her sword. If the armor didn't feel heavy before it must definitely did now. Even as we speak she could feel her body screaming in exhaustion.
If this was how the armor felt after Asplund had made modifications to it she didn't want to know what it would've felt to use the armor before.
"Oh?" But she wasn't afforded a moment's rest as she lifted her head to see the Herrscher looking down on her with an impressed grin on her face. "You survived my blast?" While she was here struggling to catch her breath…
The Herrscher of Thunder barely looked as if she had broken a sweat.
"Very admirable of you but that only puts you slightly above these insects." The Herrscher complimented and the major was so very tempted to make some kind of sarcastic comeback. Unfortunately all she was focusing on was making sure she didn't black out from the armor's toll on her body.
Though she found very soon that was going to be the least of her worries, especially when a smile broke out on the Herrscher's face.
"However I believe that such strength should be rewarded," The Herrscher of Thunder cryptically said as the air around them became charged with more energy than before and the clouds suddenly started to rumble as they began to darken.
Bringing her hands to her chest, a purple light was beginning to shine from it…
Then without warning the Herrscher plunged her hand into it, as if she was pulling something out from her chest. If the redheaded woman wasn't in a life or death situation, she would've commented on how lewd the action looked like.
But it was clear that this wasn't all fun and games when the Herrscher brought her hand back out of her chest, this time however with a purple glowing katana now firmly held in her fingers. Even from where she was, the major could feel the raw power emanating from it.
She was going to be in a whole world of pain, wasn't she?
"Do keep up," The Herrscher taunted as she held the katana up in the air, the sky roaring with thunder in the wake of such an action.
"It would be so disappointing if I didn't get a chance to use this."
Back in the halls of Chiba Academy it looked as if a tornado had gone off. There was no sense of normalcy no matter where you looked, every inch of the academy had not been spared from this force of destruction.
And at the center of this devastation, in the space that had once been his office, now in ruins…
Was Akira Ishigami on the floor, blood trailing down his mouth.
"Dammit!" He cursed to himself as he tried to push himself back up. However his body refused to even comply with the most basic twitches of movement. It felt as if gravity itself had turned against him. "Of all the times to hit my limit it would have to be now!?"
"I'll admit old man you surprised me," His younger clone grinned as he walked up to the teacher. "Not only were you able to hold off far longer than I thought you would've been able to, you were able to kill off my lackeys at the same time."
"However…" He grinned sadistically as he placed a foot on the older clone's chest, causing him to cough roughly from the action. "This was going to end in only one way, with me being victorious!"
"Don't think this is over brat," The teacher hissed as he tried to conjure an attack. A red orb of dark energy began to manifest on the palm of one of his hands but at the last second it fizzled out.
"You can't even conjure an attack now," His attempt to counterattack had been noticed by his arrogant opponent and it only added more salt to the wound called defeat as the younger clone gloated at his attempts to fight back.
"To think that I would be losing to such an arrogant version of myself," Ishigami thought bitterly as his mind tried to find a way to turn the situation around.
However the slightest flash of movement from the corner of his eye had the teacher turning his head just in time to see his desk collapse onto the floor, spilling the contents that were on top of it everywhere.
From the papers that he was supposed to have graded to the computer that was now just a molten piece of scrap. Even his beloved chess board was not spared, the table's collapse sending the numerous chess pieces scattering throughout the room.
Yet what had caught his attention was a single chess piece that began to roll on the floor. There were thirty one other pieces that he could have focused on but what had stolen his attention was the fact that this piece was seemingly rolled towards him, only to stop rolling a few inches away from his face.
It was just a simple white pawn piece, it held no significant sentimental value to him aside from the fact that it belonged to his chess set.
Yet despite that just one look at the chess piece had an epiphany suddenly come to him, a revelation that came to him in such an anticlimactic way that he could not help but break outloud in laughter.
"Oi, why are you laughing?" His younger clone looked at him in perplexion for this sudden action. "What the hell is so funny?"
"Out of all things to make me remember, a damn chess piece is the thing that makes me remember." Ishigami ignored his words as he laughed despite the fact his entire body was screaming in pain, even more now as his lungs were protesting such an action.
Yet all that pain could do nothing to him as his mind went down memory lane, more specifically to a little thing he had forgotten about. Before this fiasco all started he had been wondering about the two emails he had 'seemingly' written up.
And now he remembered that one of them was addressed to none other than Welt Yang, the Sovereign of Anti-Entropy…
The person he was the clone of.
At the thought of who he was made to resemble, the teacher could not help but think far back, back when he was beginning to learn of the world that existed outside of the laboratory that he was made in.
Back when he had no idea why he was created.
He remembered watching as Welt Yang sat across from him, Tesla and Einstein close behind him.
It was a few days after he had been freed from his prison. After Siegfried had killed the scientist and soldiers that wanted to capture him, he had called in the two scientists on his discovery and it prompted a fast response.
They had come in and shut down the experiment. Any who had collaborated with the project were brought to justice and any records of how to clone the Sovereign were either purged or kept under the tightest of security.
Throughout this W-916 simply watched this all play out, unsure of how to make sense of everything that was happening. His entire life had just been the same grueling tests and trials, forced to repeat them every single day.
But with them gone he was lost, an unknown tomorrow now awaited him.
"Leave us for a while," Welt told the two scientists. They nodded and gave the Sovereign and him one last look before they left the room, leaving the two of them alone in a tense silence.
Now that they were alone the clone got a better look at the person he was meant to embody. Every detail, down to the crease in his brows or the pigment of his eyes were practically identical to his.
Yet the more he looked at Welt Yang, the more it became apparent that there was something that made them different. It was a big difference but no matter how much he pondered on it he could not come up with an answer to what it was.
Why did he seem so content?
What was the cause of the light in his eyes?
What made them, two people practically identical yet so different at the same time?
It was a question that he struggled to find the answer, even after he was allowed to go on into the world and discover all it had to offer.
And he eventually did find the answer…in the form of the recipient of the second email he had written up.
Ever since Haruto Nakamura had shown up in his life a storm, similar to the one Siegfried had once made, that disrupted the normalcy of his life for a second time. He had made a vow that he would not be involving himself with anything related to Anti-Entropy yet he was able to make up with the two people he thought he would've never reconciled with.
And despite all that had changed, for worse or for the better, one thing stood out to him.
It was that he had finally found the reason for what had separated himself and the Sovereign.
Welt Yang had a purpose, a reason to keep on moving forward. A reason to keep moving towards tomorrow, even when all seemed lost. Even when it seemed life no longer seemed worth living, that reason still pushed him onward.
And now…
He had found his purpose too.
"Haruto," Akira Ishigami peacefully closed his eyes as he readied himself for one final act. "You were the greatest student I've ever had the pleasure of teaching. If I know anyone who would be able to change the future for the better, it would be you."
Reaching deep down inside of the confines of his soul, the teacher went to where he knew the Star of Eden was being stored in. This power had been the sole reason for his continued existence, it had marked a new chapter in a story he believed would've ended on that fateful night.
And now he would use it to write the final chapter of the story.
"Old friend," He thought as he began to unravel the chains that he had created to contain the voracious power one by one. "Help me, help me for one last act."
"What the hell are you doing!?" His younger clone could feel the buildup of energy coming from within the teacher. "Stop right this-!"
"Star of Eden…" The teacher ignored him as he held the final chain that held back the Star of Eden…
"Shatter the stars themselves."
And released it, allowing it to be released at full power.
His opponent could say nothing before a sudden flash of light enveloped the entire room…
And half of Chiba Academy suddenly disappeared.
The destruction was so fast that no reasonable explanation existed of how such devastation was possible.
Yet in the middle of the crater that now occupied Chiba Academy was a lone pair of glasses that had fallen from its wearer in the midst of his final fight. The fact that it was somehow spared from the destruction was a miracle in of itself.
Haruto, I leave the rest up to you.
"So Haruto Nakamura you must fall, for the sake of creation itself."
All was silent at the words of Black Swan. With the sudden change of character and the revelations that she had just dropped it was only natural that a tense silence would follow. To hear that your entire existence had changed so many crucial events, it was something you needed time to process.
But time was not something I had to spare.
I could feel the hairs on my arm stand up from the purple haired woman's stare, her glowing eyes watching me in anticipation as she awaited how I would react to this all. Unfortunately for her my mind was still trying to make sense of it all that I didn't think I would be able to give a response.
Yet despite that I found myself closing my eyes, an unknown force pushing me forward to speak.
"After hearing all that…I can…agree with some of what you're saying." I said without thinking, my mouth having a mind of its own.
"You probably know more about what's happening in this universe than I do, despite the knowledge I possess." It was almost uncanny with how much Black Swan knew. For a so-called 'Observer' she acted more like an Oracle than anything else. "After talking to you so many times, if you said a dark calamity was approaching I would have believed you."
If there were bigger implications for the ending of the Honkai Impact 3rd then what I currently knew then wouldn't it be better to allow Black Swan to carry out the execution? To ensure that the future where we won would come to pass? Sure maybe I might've been able to change something but at the risk of deviating from the original path, to risk having a small event change everything?
I would probably not take such risks.
Especially if her warning of the fate of all creation hanging in the balance was true.
"If you had told me about all of this…back when I had just arrived in Nagazora…I probably would have accepted your judgment without much of a fight." I remembered how in those first few days when I didn't know of the universe that I was in, I was completely unaware of the hectic future that awaited me.
I remembered how when it was revealed to me that I was indeed in the Honkai Impact universe, I had initially seen everyone as not as a person but just a fictional character made by some video game company.
"But that's in the past," I thought back to how I learned more about everyone, learned that they were more than just a couple of pixels on a screen. I learned first hand that they were real living people with their own aspirations and quirks.
Like how Kiana will refuse to eat pickles, no matter what could be offered to her in exchange. You could give her the keys of the world and she would still refuse to eat a single pickle slice.
Or maybe how Sora had an eye for fashion design. During the time when I was beginning to bond with the light pink haired child she showed me her sketchbook, filled with various designs for dresses that she had made up.
The game would've never shown such a side of her.
And Mei, who would've thought that the caring and friendly heiress would love to dance? On her birthday she danced with practically everyone on the rooftop after our dance together. No matter who her dance partner was you could always see a dazzling smile on her face.
A smile I never believed I would see on her face.
"And this may be selfish of me…" I brought my hands closer to my chest, feeling just how fast it was beating. "But I made a promise to them,"
The memory where we were in the garden of the Raiden Estate played out in my mind as me, Kiana, and Mei stood in front of a shrine dedicated to Mei's mother. There, a promise was made in a field of purple flowers…
"I promise to stand with her no matter what comes her way."
…
My hand clenched into a fist as I opened my eyes and stared at the shawl wearing woman, my eyes steeling themselves with conviction.
"A promise I intend on keeping," I said as I stood my ground. Screw the fact that her eyes were glowing and we are currently seated in a galaxy of all places. She could have the very avatar of Death behind her and I would not change my mind.
"And I'll be damned if I break that promise."
All was silent in the universal plane that I and Black Swan were in. For the longest seconds of my life everything was tense. It felt as if the stars themselves had silenced themselves in anticipation for how the shawl wearing woman would do. Would she smite me with divine thunder? Summon a black hole to summon me? Simply snap me out of existence?
There were many ways I expected her to react…
Laughing was not one of them.
I stared in barely concealed shock as she lightly laughed out loud, using one of her hands to cover her mouth.
I remained watching in shock as her laughter died down. "So that's that," Was all she said as she lowered her hand from her mouth, revealing a small but strangely proud smile on her face as her glowing multicolored eyes returned back to their original brown color. "It seems that you've passed the test."
"Wait," I said as I processed what she had just said. "Was that all just a test?!"
Because if that was the case then this was one hell of a test to undergo.
"You must forgive me for the theatrics of it all," She apologized as the serious expression she had on faded away in favor of her normal mysterious, aloof, expression. "Tis all done to create the right atmosphere to test you and I must say you have performed quite admirably."
There was so much I wanted to say to her right now, most of them being along the lines of why the hell was I subjected to one of the most stressful moments in my life but all that I could get out was a simple question.
"Why?"
"Because it was necessary to see if you had the resolve to continue your journey." She revealed, her tone dipping back to a serious one. "Your journey will not get any easier from here on out. That much is certain, dear guest."
"I sort of knew that already," Getting into numerous life and death situations had already told me that a life of peace and quiet would not come to me that easily. "But I have a feeling that it's much worse than I think it is."
The tired sigh that escaped Black Swan's lips told me all I needed to know. I was tempted to ask what it exactly was but in my heart I knew whatever it was right now was not the right time. Her words of knowing the right thing at the wrong time echoed in my head and
"You are right, my dear guest" Black Swan confirmed. "A game of chess has been ongoing for as long as creation has existed. Each move either guides us to the future or our damnation as checkmate approaches. But your arrival in this universe has thrown the game into disarray, leaving an uncertain future."
"Hurray," I deadpanned.
"Knowing your place in this game will have you gather the attention of those who play this game, endangering your world as they are not ready to meet what lies beyond their universe." She warned.
"However I suppose some information will help you in the long run…" She moved one of her hands forward.
"And for that we shall start in the beginning, when a soul from another world fell through his universe and ended up in this one."
Snapping her fingers a projection of a tree manifested in the space where the table would have normally been in. She motioned to the projected tree as numerous branches and leaves began to sprout out of it. Then a small red light began to float near the tree and I knew without any explanations that she was referring to me.
"The Imaginary Tree can be seen as a command terminal of the universe. Through it the entire universe functions. Without it to keep everything in check everything would break down by the seams and creation itself would be ruined." She explained and I nodded along, knowing a bit of what she was talking about.
I knew however that I was in for some major revelations so I decided to just stay silent and do my best to follow along with what she was about to say.
"In order to do so it keeps a 'record', or so to speak, of everything that exists. From the most insignificant of organisms to even the mightiest of Aeons, all are recorded by the Imaginary Tree for it to keep everything in order."
Numerous veins within the projected tree's branches were connected to the leaves lit up, pulsating as I saw light begin to travel towards the trunk of the tree.
"Yet when your soul was placed in our universe the Tree for the first time in its near infinite existence was…stumped." Numerous branches of the tree began to surround the small red orb, attempting to embrace it but failing to do so as it appeared that an invisible barrier was preventing it from doing so.
"It did not know what this foreign entity was, could not comprehend its existence in the massive universe it governed. How could it when this entity came from a completely different realm of existence? One that possessed its own set of fundamental rules that did not exist in this universe."
The branches that had tried to embrace the red orb began to glow. "The tree understood that something had to be done immediately lest something in the universe fail from the influences of this unknown entity. After all, all it takes is one push in the wrong direction for the strongest of foundations to crumble."
I watched as the red orb began to try and change the colors but ultimately fail. Yet it seems that was the purpose as the red hue of the orb began to get lighter. I watched as the orb glowed brightly, bright enough that I had to avert my eyes lest I go blind. When I looked back I saw that the red orb was now no longer alone as a lighter red orb now hovered near it.
"So it created a copy of this foreign entity, unknowing of the changes it would wrought."
"The other self that I keep seeing." I breathed out in realization.
"Indeed your other self," The branches absorbed both orbs, the two traveling towards the base of the tree. Yet I saw the two orbs go in different directions once they reached the 'trunk' of the tree. "An entity identical in all but one aspect, your soul."
I watched the two orbs go their separate directions before ultimately disappearing, with the projected image of the Imaginary Tree following suit. "But what does it all mean?"
"Everything dear guest." I gave Black Swan a pointed look, hearing the 'mysterious' tone that she liked to use for answers that didn't really answer the question. In return all she did was just smile cryptically, knowing that I knew she couldn't divulge the answer. "You can see yourself and your other self as two halves of the same person in this universe, two halves of a key. A key that will unlock futures unheard of."
"...Well that's good and all but…" Throughout the entire conversation I had been keeping track of the honkai infection that was slowly progressing through my body. Holding up my hand up high I grimaced at the sight of the eerie purple veins already infecting most of the entire arm. "I don't think you were lying about my body dying."
"Yes I was not and I do not possess the means to save you." She said and I almost wanted to despair. After everything that I had just gone through, everything that I had overcome, and in the end it wouldn't matter at all.
Fortunately the shawl wearing woman was not yet finished. "But I do know who can." She added before motioning to something behind me.
Turning around I saw a feet steps away was a rather simple, but majestic, sight.
A simple stone with a blade embedded in it.
Such a simple sight to see, but one that would resonate with anyone who saw it.
Standing up, the memories of the dock and the power that I had somehow used began rushing back. Of how an Aeon had been the one to save me from certain death. "Is that-!" I turned around for Black Swan's confirmation on my hunch, only to discover that she had disappeared.
"See if you can properly gain his gaze now Haruto." Black Swan's voice echoed all around me. "You have steeled your conviction to continue moving forward."
"Now you must arm yourself with the power to do so." Was her final words before I felt her presence disappear, leaving me alone in this universal plane with this mysterious sword stuck in stone.
Without being able to do anything else I slowly approached the embedded sword, my heart pounding in my chest.
My hand stopped just mere inches away from the handle of the sheathed blade, a sudden heaviness dragging my body and soul down.
Could I do this?
The smile of Mei flashed inside of my mind.
And without hesitation my hand closed the distance and grabbed the hilt of the blade and pulled.
I was expecting for my efforts to be met with resistance, that I would have to channel my entire body's strength to free the blade from its stony sheath.
Yet instead of that happening the blade slipped out of the stone as if it wasn't even stuck in it in the first place.
The moment the blade was freed from its stony sheath a bright flash suddenly illuminated the entire space, bathing me in its brilliance
In the light a single image came to me.
The visor of a knight's helmet, half of it covered by a massive sword.
Etched into the blade of this massive sword was a single image.
The image in question was a roundtable filled with twelve different knights, at the center of the table was a single knight who had a golden crown adorning their head. One hand had a golden sword raised high, an exact replica of the blade to which this scene was inscribed upon.
The knight's visor glowed brightly before everything faded away for me.
And before I lost consciousness I heard it…
"The Aeon of Hope."
"Excalibur."
Somewhere in the Nagazora, in one of the many random streets that occupied the city…
In an alley of a ravaged street, where not a living soul could be seen…
Slumped against the side of a building…
Was a person.
Their features were indiscernible, their skin already a pale white as purple lines had all but covered every inch of their body. There would be no coming back from such a fate.
Until the impossible happened.
Suddenly a bright light began to emanate from their shoulder, where you could see the remains of what was a fatal bullet shot wound.
Inhaling a big breath, a miracle was at the works as the body's pale skin began to get reversed. The corrupting honkai lines also began to recede, traveling to where the light was being emitted from.
It did not take long for Haruto Nakamura to breathe once more, his prior injuries were almost non-existent as this miracle healed him.
As the miracle continued doing its work, the light emanating from his shoulder was slowly fading as the last of the honkai lines were slowly cleansed by it. When the last of the corruption was gone the light receded, back to wherever it had come from.
But before it had left…
A symbol began to be etched into the skin of his shoulder. Golden in color, the symbol soon completed itself…
In the symbol of a sword.
At last! This chapter is finally completed!
Yes I just made Haruto get a Stigma via Excalibur. Gosh writing about that took so much out of me.
Sorry for the long update, this chapter took me a really long time to think/write about. Seeing how this chapter had us killing two characters I wanted to spend as much time as possible writing this. I knew you guys wanted me to take my time with these so this is it.
And not gonna lie, writing Black Swan's part was really hard for me. Most of it was the fact that I had to tie in everything whilst also making it stay in her character.
I hope that this entire chapter flowed well. I tried to make sure it was understandable as much as possible for you guys so apologies if a certain section might be confusing. If you got any questions don't hesitate to PM me and I will try to answer it to the best of my abilities.
What did you guys think about Ishigami's death? I hoped that some of you guys would have seen the death flags I had put in previous chapters but I hope this isn't too much of a shock for you guys. Curious to see what you guys think about it.
We have one final chapter for this Nagazora Saga, and I'm pretty sure I can get it done by next week as it's not really a big chapter as this one was as it's just resolving everything.
I wonder if you noticed a missing person not mentioned at all...don't worry about them as all will be explained in the next chapter.
Is there anything else that I need to talk about…
OH YEAH WE HIT 1K FOLLOWS! OMG I NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD BE HITTING SUCH AN ACHIEVEMENT, ESPECIALLY WITH THIS FANFICTION, BUT HERE WE ARE. I'D LIKE TO THANK EVERYONE WHO HAS BEEN ON THIS JOURNEY WITH ME AND FOR WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS FOR THIS STORY.
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!