9:30 am, 3 meters East away from the battle sites

Phillip shrugged his coat back on with a huff, leveling a light-hearted glare at Kiana. "Now that we're done messing around, we should try moving forward." He looked towards Mei, who stepped forward at his glance. "Do you recognize anything here?"

The answer should be obvious, considering they wasted a lot of time in basically the same place. Only a few buildings have changed during the chase and shouldn't give the heiress any more idea than before. Still, Phillip had this bizarre feeling that Mei would know something this time.

Mei studied the buildings that surrounded them, an intense but confused look on her face. "No, I don't think…." Her words caught in her throat as she spotted a corner building, recognition in her eyes. "That. It was a bakery that Father and I went to after we visited the shrine."

"Is it nearby?"

Mei shook her head at the question. "It's still several kilometers east from here. I doubt we'll get close to there by walking."

Phillip nodded and summoned three clones to carry the girls. However, before the order could be given, they all released the jutsu and popped into clouds of smoke.

Phillip released a sigh of annoyance. "Seems that we're still on foot for now. Let's hope we don't wander into any more enemies along the way."

"We'll be fine," Kiana said laxly, hands behind her head as she walked past Phillip with exaggerated steps. "I'll handle everything else that heads our way."

"Don't get cocky," Phillip warned flatly. "We have no idea what's going to come next, so keep your wits about you."

"Ah, come on," Kiana replied without breaking her stride. "What's the worst that could happen?"

Phillip groaned at this, seeing where this was going. Once more, he called forth some clones that immediately blurred away in every direction to protect the group from anything that could come out of nowhere.

Phillip looked back at the other two girls, Mei with a palm to her face and Bronya with an even flatter expression. "I trust you two to be more careful from this point forward." The two nodded. "Good. Let's get going."

"What?" Kiana asked, oblivious to her previous words, with an inquisitive expression. No one answered her, simply passing her by at a brisk pace. "Wait, what just happened?!"

5:30 am,

"From now on, don't say those words."

Phillip scolded Kiana, looking down at the street with a guilty pout, while Mei finished the final few zombies.

Ever since the group had taken off, they had been attacked almost constantly despite the clones Phillip put out to try to prevent it. The most recent one was a sudden ambush of zombies that seemed to literally come from nowhere. The three were able to handle it rather effectively, but Phillip finally told Kiana, considering it had been their tenth encounter.

"Sorry," Kiana mumbled in a way that would suggest genuine regret. However, how her eyes shifted between the ground and Phillip's own dispelled the illusion too quickly.

Phillip rubbed his brow in exasperation. "Just… beware those words or anything that could be summarized into them." Dropping his hand, Phillip looked over to Mei, who plunged her blade down on a slow-crawling zombie's head. "Are we clear, Mei?"

"Y-yes," Mei called back, heavily panting from the experience. "The… the last of the zombies have been dealt with."

Phillip nodded and looked to the side, glancing at the buildings there to gauge the time. The orange tint against the gray concrete reminded him that they had spent far too much dealing with the hordes and Honkai beasts, and running about with no clear instruction than achieving their objective.

"Alright, let's find someplace to stay for the night. We're not going to get much farther in the dark of night."

The girls gathered around him, each showing some sighs of relief at his statement. Kiana was the most vibrant, stretching out and letting out a loud "finally!". Mei let out an ungraceful sigh of relief as she slumped over. Bronya was the only one that didn't show anything excessive, but her eyes showed some exhaustion despite this.

"Bronya cannot determine suitable infrastructure of lodging. Request for returned use of Project Bunny."

"Denied," Phillip summoned a group of clones that jumped up to the rooftops. "My clones will look for lodging. We'll wait here."

Bronya seemed to want to pout at this but stopped the action with a nod. She walked over to Mei, and once the older girl pulled herself up from her slumped position, the two began conversing.

Kiana made a pouty face at the two before rounding to Phillip with the same expression. "Why won't the clones take us places but still do other things, huh?"

"Because you're here," Phillip replied, causing Kiana to pout deeper. "They won't follow any order they deem unreasonable, which currently involves carrying you around."

"What did I do?" Kiana asked, causing Phillip to send her a flat glare. After exchanging looks, Phillip shook his head and looked up to the rooftops to see if the clones were back. Finding one on the far end, Phillip quickly gathered the group to him, and they walked to what the clone found.

8:30 pm,

"Why can't we find apartments to sleep in?"

Kiana grumbled at their current situation: seated against the concrete walls of a parking building on the 2nd floor.

"I'll tell them to look for more luxurious areas for rest," Phillip responded sarcastically, stretching out a bit before leaning back into the pillar positioned to the group's right. "For now, try to get some sleep."

Kiana gave a huff and turned her head left to Mei, who pressed her back lightly against the low wall behind her. "Mei, don't you think we should find someplace better? Ya know, like a love hotel or something?"

Mei grew crimson at the suggestion but still tried to calm the girl. "I-I'm certain we'll find something better for next time. For now, let's rest up for tomorrow."

Kiana groaned but submitted to her fate, curling up into a ball and laying down on her side. After a moment, light snores soon sounded from her, and Phillip summoned the blue blanket to place over her. Kiana instinctively grabbed onto the blanket and snuggled into it.

Mei giggled lightly at the scene and looked at Phillip. "Why don't you go to sleep now? I'm not feeling too tired at the moment."

Phillip shook his head at this. "Not happening. You need your sleep while I could last the week with one night of sleep." When Mei opened her mouth to object, Phillip unsealed the other blanket and tossed it at her.

Mei gave him a stern glare at this, half her face covered by the sheet, but still felt the need to ask a different question. "Why didn't you bring yourself a cover? Don't tell me you're acting a martyr."

"I didn't. She," Phillip pointed to the sleeping Kaslana as he said this, "forgot one, so I'm giving it to her for the time being." He completely missed the look of disappointment but expectant look on Mei's face as he twisted his form to face the final person of their group.

Bronya decided to situate herself away from the group, towards the middle of the building. She sat there, clutching her yellow HOMU doll as she laid her head into it. In that instance, she looked like an innocent girl, but Phillip still kept a critical eye on her.

A fluttering sound came from Phillip's side, and he almost stood up in alarm. However, he paused as the purple blanket covered his body, and Mei sat on his left side with the same stern look as before.

"You're not allowed to continue doing this," Mei stated in a firm tone. "So, you're sleeping next to me from now on."

"Mei, that's not-" Phillip's words were caught in his throat as Mei leaned her head into his shoulder and pulled him into a hug. With his heart now thumping like a hammer in his throat, Phillip tried to distract himself by keeping his eyes on Bronya. As time passed, Mei finally fell asleep, her light breaths tickling Phillip's neck and muddling his focus with embarrassment. However, the warmth and steady rhythm of Mei's heartbeat managed to lure him to sleep moments later.

POV switch: Bronya

Bronya's eyes jumped open once Phillip's fully closed, and she climbed to her feet quietly. Her metallic shoes made no sound as she grew closer to the three and stared down at the sleeping meta-human.

Bronya knew the secondary plan by heart. If she happened to be captured or unable to restrain the Herrscher, Bronya was to play as an ally and get the Herrscher to lower her guard. After that, she would then transfer the Herrscher to a designated point for Cocolia to extract the two.

However, this plan deviated immediately when Project Bunny was taken away and placed into the tattoo-like seal on Subject Phillip's forearm. Furthermore, Subject Mei seemed far less volatile than anticipated and displayed a protective nature toward those that harmed her prior. It was… confusing, to say the least.

Bronya couldn't determine if they had found out about the secondary plan and were trying to utilize a similar method on her or not. All she could say was that it had been relatively effective. So effective, in fact, that as she stared down at Subject Phillip and Subject Mei as they curled up into a bundle of tangled limbs, Bronya couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealousy towards the male of the group.

Bronya shook her head at this false thought process. Her emotive circuits had been damaged significantly by the X-10 project. Jealousy was an impossibility at this point. Pondering such capacity was not aiding her during her current objective.

Returning to her original position, Bronya pressed her face into her HOMU plushie and closed her eyes. Perhaps some rest will clear her head of such irrational ideas.

December 14th, 7:30 am, POV normalized

"We're still heading for that shrine, right?"

Kiana asked this as the group paced through the city, her own steps heavily exaggerated as she walked.

Rather than continuing on with the line strategy from yesterday, the group unanimously decided to keep together instead. Bronya and Phillip took to each side while Kiana and Mei stayed in the middle. As Mei tried talking with the younger girl next to her ( something Kiana shot looks of envy at), Kiana decided to distract herself by talking with Phillip instead.

Phillip knew this instantly but still humored the girl anyway. "For now. Mei knows its location, so we can use it as a landmark in case things go wrong."

Kiana let out a hum in response, followed by a heavy groan. " This sucks. Why can't you summon clones and carry us there? Do they normally have grudges?"

Phillip raised a brow at her. "They are me in a way, so the real question is if I can hold grudges. The answer is 'yes.'"

Kiana gave him a confused expression at this, obviously not understanding. "How does that work?"

"The clones express bits and pieces of my own personality," Phillip explained as the four reached a parting from the concrete jungle and reached an in-city park. "The only difference is that the bits are exaggerated due to lacking other traits. So, if something from the clones seems different from my own actions, it's probably because I've learned to suppress those traits."

Kiana gave him a calculating gaze, concerning him for several moments. When she opened her mouth, he realized his concern was for a good reason.

"So, that time your clone grabbed my-"

"Mei," Phillip called, preventing Kiana from continuing. "Is this where the shrine is located?"

Mei looked up from Bronya, who seemed slightly peeved at the loss of attention, and analyzed the trees that now surrounded them. "Hmm… I believe so. It should be in the middle of the park, though."

Phillip said nothing in return, simply increasing his pace to get in front of the others. Kiana grumbled at the sudden change in subject and loss of target, resigning to watching and pouting as Mei returned to get the previous conversation. Not long after, however, did they finally reach their destination.

The shrine wasn't much to look at; a wooden offering box, an ema shrine placed around a large tree, and several lanterns to guide those on darker days and nights. A dirt path came from the other side of the tree with several torii gates along it, suggesting the correct path was on the other side of the park. There was only one incredible piece of interest about the shrine: the tree.

The tree the shrine was built around was a massive sakura tree, standing well beyond the others that surrounded it. As the petals floated slowly down, Kiana and Bronya looked on with awe and wonderment. Mei held a simple, sad smile at the scene while Phillip simply remained stoic at it.

"I'm going to leave you to it," Phillip said to Mei before he bent his knees to show his intentions. "I'm going to the top to have a look around."

Without waiting for any objections, Phillip leaped to the top of the massive sakura tree with one jump. Resting on the top point of the tree with his right foot and pressing the other against his leg, Phillip quickly scanned the surroundings and immediately spotted something next to the intended path.

A hole, longer than wide, was seen a few feet from the path and two yards from the sakura tree. It wasn't dug out, though; it looked like something was forced out of the ground instead. Also, it was obviously not an intended grave, as it lacked a casket and was extremely distorted.

Phillip narrowed his eyes at this, feeling his paranoia jump extremely. He looked down, intending to alert the girls and then vacate the area. However, the scene below stalled him.

The girls were standing closer to the tree, praying in different manners. Mei was ordinary, eyes closed and her hands clasped together in front of her face, while Kiana's was similar, but she kept sending "discrete" glances at Mei every other second. Bronya held her hands correctly but kept her eyes wide open in confusion, something Phillip found oddly amusing.

After a moment, Phillip looked back up and continued his analysis of the park.

We'll deal with that later.

Schicksal HQ, one hour prior

Yae Sakura felt somewhat uneasy in her new environment. Even since she "awoken," this strange new world terrified her.

When she woke up, Sakura was forced to remove the Earth around to find the once prominent Yae Village was long gone and replaced with something… disturbing. She couldn't place it, but the newer place unnerved her, even before she had learned of the destruction caused to it by that girl.

From there, Sakura had traveled through the city and fought to kill the demon that destroyed the extremely tall and wide village, only to be repelled by a disillusioned boy. After that, she was quickly swarmed by other hostile humans, if their brandished weapons suggested anything. Thus, Sakura fought once more with her tormentor at her side to defend herself, only to be knocked unconscious when one of the remaining fighters landed a dishonorable attack, striking from behind.

Now, Sakura stared at the metallic ceiling, restrained against what seemed to be a mobile futon without sheets, as she was transported away by four of those who had attacked her prior.

Sakura had no idea where she was now. She believed they first took her into that odd flying boat they came upon and took her to where they were based. She could very well be here to be tortured and interrogated, but, considering how the group behaved, she had some doubts about that conclusion.

Granted, it was also because there was an irritating voice in the back of her head suggesting these situations, and, Kami above, she wasn't interested in agreeing with it.

"Deny it all you wish, Sakura. These people wish nothing more than to tear you apart and torture you, and you'll beg me to destroy them sooner or later."

Begone, foul demon, Yae Sakura growled inwardly, growing increasingly tired of the voice within. Remain silent until demanded. I will use my own power and reasoning to protect myself here.

"Fine, then. I'll enjoy watching you get tortured and then come crawling back to me."

Finally, the voice subsided just in time for her travels to come to a sudden stop. From what her limited vision could provide, Sakura was still within the halls. So, she zoned in on the conversation before her with one of the four and an unseen addition.

"Miss Amber, why have you come here?"

"Lord Otto would like to see your recovery as soon as possible."

"Yes, well, we just transporting her to the medical bay and-"

"That won't be necessary. Release her into my custody and be on your way."

A moment of silence befell them before the group decided to follow the demands, albeit unwillingly. Once all the straps were removed, the group silently walked back down the hall whence they came, and Sakura sat up to meet her new guide.

Nothing, not even the gods, could have prepared her for who awaited her.

"K-Kallen?"

The woman, called Amber by the women that retreated, shook her head. "No. While I have her appearance, I'm not the one you know as Kallen."

Sakura deflated hard, the sudden burst of hope in her heart quickly abandoned her and was swiftly replaced with the icy grasp of despair. She simply wanted to curl herself in a ball and cry out her anguish but decided against that course of action in front of the woman.

Swallowing down the emotions, Sakura looked at Amber while trying to calm down the scowl on her face. "What do you need of me?"

Amber turned to her side, revealing the extended hallway past her. "Please, follow me. My lord would like to speak with me."

Seeing few options, Sakura obliged and dropped from the odd carriage onto her feet. As the two began their travels anew, Sakura glanced over her guide.

The nun outfit was an exact replica of Kallen's: jet black in color with a white collar and cross in the front that ended at two flaps that covered her modesty and rear. It was combined with a black headdress and thigh-high boots with belts between the remaining seen skin and the main outfit. The only difference between Kallen and Amber was that Amber had a golden visor that hid her eyes.

To Sakura, this woman held too strong a resemblance to Kallen to be a coincidence. She was needed for a plan, and they decided to use Kallen's image against her.

Sakura gripped her sword tightly, infuriated at the premise. Whoever had done this intolerable act with feel her wrath swiftly. No one shall desecrate the face of her loved one and live to speak the tale. She would slowly and methodically remove each limb from the wriggling worm and-

Sakura pulled herself from the violent thoughts and quickly began calming herself. She was almost pulled back under the demon's control and would have been forced to kill more innocents. For now, she needed to believe everything was non-threatening, for everyone's sake.

The two turned multiple corners and traveled down many corridors that were similar to the last until they reached their destination. A great pair of wooden doors, quite the standout in the metal housing, now stood before Sakura while Amber took steps back to leave Sakura alone.

"Please enter this room. My lord will be here shortly."

Sakura turned to thank the Kallen impersonator, but the woman had already fled farther down the hallway. With a sigh of resignation, Sakura faced the doors and opened them to see what awaited her inside.

The room within was a relatively simple traditional Japanese room, holding a short wooden table on top of a blue rug with sky blue cushions for seats. The tatami flooring was light brown in color that matched the surrounding walls, paired with darker wood for the ceiling. Sakura peered out of the room's lone window to her left to see a vibrant green lawn with a single tree that matched her name closed off by a large white wall.

Sakura placed her attention on the other side of the room, where a white-screen slide door was seen. She caught some movements behind it, motions that suggested someone changing clothes, but nothing to discern her potential visitor. Thus, she removed her sandals, moved to the closest cushion to her, and sat down before the table, her ankles between her and the pillow, waiting for her supposed host.

A few minutes later, the door on the other end opened, and out stepped a man. His blonde hair managed a paradoxical appearance of being both unkept and well-kept, tied into a small ponytail that went over his left shoulder. Those emerald green eyes held analytical mischief, but his broad smile felt carefree. The outfit of choice was a dark blue kimono, matched with a jet black haori and sash, white socks, and wooden zori sandals.

"Apologies, Yae-san," the man said with that bright smile. " I wished to give you a familiar sight to ease your nerves, but the kimono was rather complicated to piece together."

Sakura opened her mouth to reply but was forced to push it down as her demon materialized beside her in that fox form. It lunged for the man, maw wide open to clasp down on his throat as Sakura reached for her blade.

However, it was a moot point as golden chains sprung from the man and wrapped around the shadowy fox to muzzle and subdue the beast. As the beast hit the ground with enraged shaking, the room shimmered with the same ethereal golden glow before stabilizing. The man looked down at the fox, the smile gone and eyes filled with a more dangerous glint.

"I see you've managed to crawl back to me, but I have no use of your power right now." The man waved his right hand to the wall and sent the fox crashing into it. "Stay there until Sakura's and my talk is finished."

The man returned his attention to her, a smile back on his face, but Sakura did not ease her stance. The man quickly disposed of the demon, too easily for any mere man. She knew now that, whatever this talk entailed, she needed to be extremely cautious.

Because the man before her was dangerous.

"Be at ease, Yae-san. I wish for our first talk to be peaceful, not of hostilities." The man reached under the table and brought out a brown ceramic kyusu and two matching cups. "Here. Maybe some tea would calm your nerves."

Sakura watched sternly as the man poured the tea into the two cups and passed one to her. She stared at the green liquid and smelled the steam as it rose, trying to find any hints of poisons or additives. Nothing was sensed, but Sakura refused to lower her guard on the man before her.

The man sighed and brought his left hand to his chin, cupped between the index finger and thumb. "I was afraid something like this might occur." Silence befell the two as the man pondered for several minutes before he snapped those fingers as if he reached a solution.

"Some introductions, perhaps." The man cleared his throat lightly and placed a hand at the center of his chest. "My name is Otto Apocalypse, a friend of one Kallen Kaslana."

Hearing that name was enough for Sakura's stance to falter but not completely disperse. "A friend? Then where were you when she fled her homeland? Where you were when she was wounded and washed up in a river?"

The man's smile dropped into a somber frown instead. "Ah, yes. Because of our squabble, she had left and found herself in your village. I haven't forgotten the shame I've felt that day."

Sakura's hand finally fell away from her sword as she felt her own guilt fester. "I… I know that feeling well. She promised me protection, but I returned that promise with betrayal."

"Dear Yae-san, you're not at fault for your actions then," Otto reassured, his smile returning as he did. "On the opposite end, my actions could only be attributed to my weak will and naivete."

Sakura nodded at this, though she didn't truly understand what he meant. There was, however, one thing she wanted to know from him.

"What happened to her? I suspect her death, but was it a peaceful death, at least?"

His expression turned grim as he stared down at his teacup. "Ah, yes, the old sordid tale. Well, the best way to summarize the events is that my ignorance went too far."

Sakura leaned forward, fingers laced together in interest. "Please, tell me exactly what happened then."

Some time later,

Sakura stared down at Otto with a neutral face. Honestly, she wanted to feel contempt for him, for it was his actions that led to Kallen's death, but there was a feeling of familiarity to it.

In truth, Sakura couldn't blame the man when the two of them held similar issues. Both of them were quashed by their fathers, though Sakura felt that Otto held the worse hand as his entire family participated in such abuse while she had Rin for some time. They had both been freed by this by the same woman, Kallen Kaslana, but they drove her away by their own acts (Otto's attempts at political gambling and Sakura's acceptance of the demon's power). Otto was the only one of the two to be given a second chance due to Sakura's seal, and he failed to prevent Kallen's death.

Despite how much Sakura wished to believe that she would have done better, she could see herself making those same mistakes in thinking she could have saved Kallen.

"It was my fault that she died," Otto concluded, as his eyes gained a look of intense determination. "But I plan to rectify that mistake."

"How?" Sakura asked, obviously confused at such a statement. "We can't return to the past, nor can we bring one back from Kami's gates."

Otto grew a smirk, seemingly amused by Sakura's confusion. "There's plenty you don't know about our world, Yae Sakura. Many things are done today that was deemed impossible 500 years ago."

Sakura rose a brow at this. She knew that time had obviously passed since her sealing, but for it to have been 500 years felt like an exaggeration, though her trance-like state may have blurred her sense of time.

A new question formed on her lips as she stared back at Otto. "How did you-"

"-Live for that long?" Otto finished, his smirk still giving that amusement while his eyes darkened into forlorn remembrance. "Well… let's just say a powerful goal will keep you moving for much longer than reality will allow."

Sakura knew he was hiding something with that answer, something that he didn't want her to know. However, when she opened to continue the questioning, Otto raised his hand to prevent further discussion.

"Before we lose ourselves in the bygone past, allow me to explain why I have brought you here and my meeting with you."

This… wasn't something Sakura had on her mind. Just having something, someone, where that came from her era, brought her an odd sense of minute comfort. Still, that wasn't to say she held no curiosity on the matter when it was brought up. Hence, Sakura straightened herself up and gestured to allow Otto to continue.

"I have a proposition that will help you, as you are lost in this new world," Otto explained. " All I request of you in return is that you aid me in my goal."

Chills rolled down Sakura's spine at the last word. Somehow, she had a bad feeling about what his goal actually was but, regardless, she pressed on. "What would that entail?"

"Trust me, dear Sakura, that this proposal has more benefits for you than I," Otto stated, stopped to take the first sip of tea, and then continued. "You're a lost lamb in a new world, a world that no longer adheres to the past's logic. I can provide shelter, time, and the information to start anew."

Sakura saw the benefits of what she would gain from this promise but didn't believe she would get the better deal. After all, everything comes with a price.

"And what do you need me for?"

The smile from before came back, and Sakura felt slightly more at ease. She let out the breath she had unconsciously held back and hoped that nothing dangerous was coming her way.

"I simply wish for you to be my personal guard."

Thanks for the patient wait.

I don't believe I gave the conversation between Otto and Sakura its due diligence, but I believe that's how it would go (though, with much more eloquence). Otto utilizes their pasts, their connection to Kallen, and a do-over to Sakura to drag her to his side. To me, it makes sense.

To the other group, I hope you'll be okay with what's available. The next chapter will implement one of the more... forgotten mangas of Honkai. So, hope you all will be anticipating that.

I'll see you all at the next one.