SU didn't know how to properly describe the state he was in right now.
He was dead and, at the same time, alive.
He was barely feeling anything and yet he felt like he was sweating bullets.
It reminded him of the time where he had recently graduated from his medical school.
Many in his batch would agree that he was smartest among all of them and many of his teaching doctors would gladly take him as their intern or, better yet, protege if he wanted to.
And yet, he settled for the one who reached out to him first. His senior.
To him, she was his guiding light. His beacon. She would comfort him whenever he lost a patient. She would motivate him whenever he has broken a child's promise of meeting up together again. It was understandable that he was young and inexperienced back then. What was only surprising is how drastic his improvements were.
Normally, a doctor would lose 15-25 patients in a year due to incurable illness like cancer. Twice that amount if it was sporadic and unpredictable.
Not SU.
In his medical career. He only lost 2 patients as those were the only mistakes he could ever afford to make. Not because he was concerned for his license being revoked. It was because he held that failure deep to his heart.
After all, Having a pair of twins die in his arms during labor would instill trauma to a doctor who recently graduated.
No one was at fault though. Due to the mother's frail body, unhygienic living conditions and her addictions to certain drugs, it was agreed upon that it will take a miracle to save the three. Saving them was a test of fate with huge risks involved.
Yet...
SU was still determined to challenge it.
After that traumatic incident, he kept studying for ways to avoid another disastrous encounter. He analyzed the patterns of said occurrences. He held his moral values so close to his heart that it burned. He had an image of a torch fueled by an endless number of falling leaves in his mind. And that is how he was able to save them in his time as a doctor.
He never went to parties even if it was just for the sake of formality. He would always decline his former classmates' invitations and say that he needs to focus on his studies despite that he was already smart enough to outclass his seniors and his teaching doctors.
And his will was evident on his study desk.
It was filled with dossiers of old cases and newer ones.
Every day, he would irritate the dean just to acquire recent medical cases and analyze them. The latter wouldn't even argue with his determination as SU was one of the main outstanding doctors that made his hospital the best in MU continent. So giving those to SU would benefit both of them. He just wished that SU would at least take a break once in a while.
"I WILL SAVE THEM." A promise to himself. A constant reminder of his own failures.
These words were his fire. And he doesn't mind getting burned as long as it saves them.
The only thing that was out of ordinary on his study table was the picture of Kevin, his silver-haired friend in his basketball outing, smiling.
SU was grateful for his high school friend as the latter enabled and believed in him. And him believing in SU was more than enough to motivate him to save those patients. He still can't deny his curiosity of the whereabouts of his best friend.
Last he heard, Kevin was about to confess to MEI, the smartest girl in CHIBA ACADEMY during his days as a meek high school student. Not even SU can deny her genius-level intellect.
He just wished that Kevin would, at least, reach out to him and have him talk about the result of his confession. And he had a bottle of wine stored at his home for the occasion. The same wine that the idol, which they both adored, love drinking as she mentioned it in her interviews. The only thing he hated about the wine was the cost.
The cost of that alcohol was so high it felt like a highway robbery. But the store he bought it from was the only place that sells it in all of MU continent.
Sometimes he just wonders how a diva like Eden would afford a single bottle, let alone a whole basement of it.
But all of that was worth it for his best friend.
If MEI accepted Kevin's confession, it would be a celebration and he would happily invite her just for a drink. If she didn't, he would happily let his best friend drink the whole bottle until he passes out due to heavy alcohol intake.
And Kevin was the only exception to his 'no-socializing' rule. Beyond that, the patient's lives were his only priority.
But when HONKAI came in the form of two patients... One was from a dying child. And the other was from his senior who gave her life just to save him. It felt like failure was right around the corner, taking lives wherever it goes. Still holding on to those failures, He chose to join the organization that was fit to fight against HONKAI, the MOTHs.
Joining the MOTHs turned him from a medical pacifist into an unrelenting soldier.
It jaded his heart, killing every zombified person and Honkai beasts. They may have been affected by HONKAI but they used to be alive as both humans and animals.
Was the upside of joining MOTHs the camaraderie presented within it? Both higher-ups and staff could honestly care less for people like him as long as they got the job done.
No...
The upside of joining them was how it founded the 13 flamechasers, being led by his best friend since high school.
KEVIN
ELYSIA
APONIA
EDEN
VILL V
KALPAS
HIMSELF
SAKURA
KOSMA
MOBIUS
GRISEO
HUA
PARDOFELIS
He can't deny how much of an oddball they are and there are others that kept his guard up. Especially towards to Aponia, Kalpas and Mobius. Though Mobius might be the worst among the three. But Elysia trusts them. And since Kevin trusts her, SU can trust Elysia as well.
The idea of Flamechasers may have been short lived and it has not lasted long after 11th Honkai eruption. But they have saved people.
In his journey of pursuing that undying torch, he has finally let go of that no-casualty obsession.
The sensation hurt more but he finally let that go.
The burns were present. He could argue that this felt more painful than Kalpas' rage and flames. But people like Kevin, MEI (now a doctor) and Elysia made it hurt less.
The only odd thing for him was...
"How is it that Elysia, who knew him less than Kevin and DR. MEI, managed to say the right encouraging words? Shouldn't it have been Kevin since he was his long-time best friend? Or from DR. MEI, the leader of the MOTHs rather?"
This wandering thought made a small prickling feeling in his heart. He does, however, enjoy MEI's company.
She was like a little sister he never had.
Rational. Cold. Calculating. Frail. But still a sister.
His opinion towards Elysia was that she is very welcomed to his inner circle. But much like how everyone sees her, she can be a bit too much.
Sometimes he just wonders how Kevin managed to keep up with her antics. And that is saying something considering Vill-V, Kalpas and Mobius are on the team.
Still, he doesn't harbor any feelings except trust, respect and gratitude towards the first founding member of the Flamechasers. He found it odd that Elysia just wanted to switch ranks with Kevin one day and he just agreed to it.
He liked the outcome as many respected Kevin and saw him the hero of humanity. Some rumored that he was the strongest due to his ranking. He just hopes that the actual reason for that will not come to light.
The only regret he has with the flamechasers is how he failed to attend Elysia's banquet.
Her saying that she is the 13th herscherr out of nowhere was something he could neither comprehend nor accept. He believed in Elysia after all.
To him, Elysia was one of the heroes that is to be held in high regard.
So to SU, Elysia was with her usual antics again.
Finding a reason to aggravate people much like how she does it with Kevin and Mobius.
But when he checked in on her the next day, she was gone.
He has explained his reasons towards the people who actually attended her banquet. Aponia, Eden and Vill-V understood his reasons and they bore no ill-intent as they knew SU believed in Elysia.
When he asked Kevin what happened to her, his only response, albeit cold, was...
"She gave us a chance."
He has seen Kevin smile, laugh and cry. Despite that he looked stern and angry, he was still the same as he was back in their high school days.
Seeing him this broken was something he never wished to see in his old friend.
So he did not wish to discuss the topic of Elysia's death any further than he had to. He has to figure it out on his own.
But that didn't matter as Herscherr of the End eradicated the rest of what Herscherr of Corruption couldn't manage to finish. They had to resort to Project Sanctuary for their immortality, Project EMBER for the future era and pray to anyone who is up there that they don't resort to Project Stigma.
That was the first and the last time he tried to be religious.
Dr. MEI already had plans if Kevin ever resorted to project Stigma and she entrusted those plans to SU.
Unfortunately for SU, Kevin started to prepare for Project Stigma. He can't really blame him as Dr. MEI, the woman that Kevin has a crush on, died and left him a baby to take care of.
Kevin, at least, gave Project Valuka and Project Ember another chance much to SU's relief.
Sadly opposing Ideals are inevitable to clash someday.
It left his best friend trapped in the Sea of Quanta and SU forever stuck in the seed of Sumeru, a bubble universe that he himself created to stop Kevin from pursuing Project Stigma as written in Project Regulator.
Now? After entrusting everything to Durandal, He was now facing an unknown being. Prompting him to play how the universe ends like checkers.
His previous medical experiences didn't help him here.
His experiences with the MOTHs didn't help him here.
His life with the Flamechasers wasn't worth anything for this situation.
He could split hairs and say that Project Valuka helps but that was just a miniscule difference from the three.
He couldn't be religious anymore because he was now facing the one who is playing all the cards.
His smarts could accomplish so little here.
He was honestly stalling for time and the deity is getting tired bit by bit.
SU was playing a life-or-death checkers and his opponent was getting bored.
What broke SU's concentration was the chuckle from his opponent.
"I am bored. Let's make this interesting, shall we?" He couldn't honestly argue with the deity who brought him here.
His only hope was to find a way for humanity to win.
The deity moved his piece and such a move surprised SU. Seeing his reaction, the deity laughed.
"I did say something interesting, didn't I? So what is your next move?" SU nodded and moved his piece.
There was no reasoning. No logic. No planning.
It was a test of faith against fate and I hoped that it wasn't misplaced.
All he needed to do was to have faith in HIM.
"CAPTAIN!"
"A huge spike of Honkai energy has been detected in the South East."
"Will there be a possibility of another Honkai Eruption, Amber?"
"Insufficient Data. Captain."
"Tsk... Alright. Have you identified what class was found?"
"Insufficient Data. Captain."
"What the... All right... Is there a huge portal that could lead to certain space and time? Dr. Einstein and Dr. Tesla already have them installed. I am not having us repeat that incident." The red-haired captain held his temple as he remembered how time and space was altered due to Otto's actions.
"My... Oh my... Captain. You never seemed to relax. Master Amber did note that no event occurred after that energy spike." Rita Rossweisse offered a plate of brownies and a cup of tea just for her captain to relax.
"You seemed so carefree, Rita." As the captain accepted Rita's snacks.
"'Cause I am confident in the Hyperion's captain's tactical strategy and judgment. And a maid such as myself should bear no negativity towards the man who has kept the world safe." Rita smiled at him.
"Technically, I am just a handler. And valkyries such as yourself keep the world safe. So don't start downplaying your achievements especially when all of you earned it. You are a capable and multi-functional maid, Rita. I trust you." Rita pouted as this response wasn't something she was expecting.
"Captain sure is a spoilsport. I was hoping that the captain would keep showering me with compliments." He raised an eyebrow then smirked as he knew what she was going on about.
"Yeah well... Better luck next time, Rita. Because my cousin has beated you to the punch for that. She would endlessly trick me by making mistakes from friendly flattery to straight-up pick-up lines.
"And her being drunk doesn't help as she would often see me as someone else and tried to sleep with me under the influence of alcohol." He sighed with a small smile. "I swear Himeko just knows how to push my buttons."
"Did Aunt Himeko teach you a lot before joining the Hyperion, Captain?" Kiana, who was interested in the conversation, leaned in.
"Sort of...I indirectly learned chivalry from her and I just looked up the rest on my own. Besides, I am a captain who houses an army of superpowered women in a flying battleship. Pretty sure chivalry is part of the job requirement." As he drank his afternoon tea.
"..." As he sensed Kiana's sadness on his left.
"Hey..." Kiana felt a hand on top of her head, making her look up to the captain. "I don't blame you. My cousin did her best to save you and she did so with a huge smile. She will happily pay the price for her little pixie." He chuckled as he saw Kiana pouted at the nickname .
"And look at you, You have grown so much. You can control your herscherr powers now. If she was here, she would have been so proud of you." He patted her head.
"Now... Cheer up and continue on carrying her legacy, champ." He turned to Amber. "All right. Is there any data recorded that we can use to, at least, determine what is going on?"
"As you can see, captain." Amber displayed a holographic map, showing him locations where the honkai energy level spikes are observed.
"Huh... So there is no consistency on how they are pinned on the globe. The condensation is present but unlike a normal honkai wave, it is slow. Very slow.
"Archangel-class honkai beasts would spawn a lot faster than this and they usually do it in packs or waves. This honestly looks a lot more like we are fishing up something big." Rita nodded to this conclusion. Kiana, however, was confused at the analogy.
"Ever played a loud game of Catch-a-Homu blindfolded? It is kinda like that." Kiana gasped in realization and nodded.
"All right. At least it isn't like Herscherr of Domination where they are all over the place. Wouldn't want to piss off the two doctors and the former herscherr of reason for failing to protect another one of their bases from getting destroyed again." He pressed a button on his holotab.
"Dr. Einstein? Dr. Tesla? It's me."
"Captain Hajime M. Stellar. It is nice to see you again." He smiled at the person he didn't expect to see.
"Mr. Welt. I thought I told you. There is no need for formalities. Captain is just fine." He rubbed the back of his head while looking at the man with his amber eyes.
"Apologies. What do I owe the pleasure for the captain if he needs both of my top leading scientists?" He chuckled.
"Yeah... Well... Take a look at this." He sent the data towards the man with a scarf.
"I see. We'll have them analyzed and send the results to you as soon as possible." The Captain nodded.
"Thanks. Welt. You are a peach as always." Welt chuckled at the captain's sense of humor before shutting off the communications.
"Well... That's finally settled." He turned to the pilots of the ship. "CREW! AI-CHAN!" All of their attention was on him including the AI of the ship. "Change of course! Target destination? St. Freya! And make it snappy. The girls need to go to their dorms and have their Schicksal licenses renewed." Both Rita and Kiana looked at him with a confused look.
"Overseer didn't tell you? Due to Schicksal reformation, things would be changing from here on out. And due to Theresa becoming an overseer, the data on you girls might need an update. And since there is nothing major going on, I figured that now is the best time."
After announcing his reason to the girls, he received a call.
Seeing the caller's name 'Cute Teri-Teri' on the screen, it didn't take him long to figure out who it was.
"How may I help the Cute Teri-Teri san?" The white haired girl on the screen pouted at the playful banter.
"You are lucky that I am in a good mood today."
"Yeah... Well... If you put your name like that on the holocall, I couldn't resist. Anyways, Is something wrong?" Rita and Kiana giggled at his joke while Theresa was left blushing on the other side of the screen.
"Have you already told them the Registration renewal?" The captain nodded. "Oh... Good. This makes it easier then. Due to the Kolosten incident. Schicksal reformation is needed and I don't want our valkyries to be put in a bad light since Otto was the previous Overseer of Schicksal." Hajime nodded while crossing his arms.
"And having our valkyries' name dragged through the mud loses morale. We have done our best, cleaning up the mess from previous Great Honkai Eruptions and almost everyone sees girls like Kiana as a hero. But that was the best of our abilities.
"Another backlash like that and I am not really sure how to save the world from Honkai if It is too afraid of people who are fighting it. And that will make our job a lot more difficult.
"And as much as I hate to admit it, being covert about it doesn't help. We are trying to reform. So the best we can do is step by step. And the first step is Schicksal renewal registration." Kiana pouted as the captain explained why.
"Yeah. I know. It is a PR stunt and stupid one at that. But we kinda need people not to see us in a bad light or all hell breaks loose." Kiana sighed and Rita frowned as the red-haired captain tried to cheer them up. He turned to Theresa. "Have you informed the other valkyries about this, Overseer?" Theresa nodded.
"They are heading to St. Freya right now." Captain nodded and almost pressed the dismiss button if it weren't for Theresa. "Oh yeah. I need you in my office when you land Hyperion. Captain Stellar." He raised his eyebrow but nodded as he pressed the red button.
"Don't look at me. I don't know why either... Guess I am going to find out when I get there. FULL SPEED AHEAD!" As he sensed the two girls' confusion without even looking.
I wonder what those weird huge Honkai readings are all about.
...
Guess I will find out soon.
Author's Note:
Yo...
I am not exactly fan of crossposting my works because I rather focus on progressing the story than posting it everywhere.
Don't get me wrong,
It is not because i dont want to.
It just that my lazy ass's stopping me.
Anyways, To those who knew me in AO3, good to see you again, guys.
To those who dont, Name's Axl and I am just posting my works in FF.
I am just crossposting my work as of now and see on how would that turn out.
I will post a few of my works so you guys could get a feel on what is happening to the story.
As of the moment right now, I am in a bit of writer's block and this is me hoping that crossposting would spark some ideas.
I will try to post few of my works here and see what happens.
If you guys like it, Let me know.
If you guys dont like it, That is all right.
This is me trying something new because I am stuck in that Writer's block for a while and it ain't fun.
Why did it take me so long to do this?
Honestly? I have no clue why.
It was a spur-of-the-moment, I guess?
Anyways,
As I said, Emphasis on try.
I cannot guarantee if I could post my works on both sites.