"So you were here the whole time, Brother."

He turned around and saw her. His twin sister used to be such a cute kid. Now, she had that annoying, cocky look in her blue eyes. Her white hair, which normally cascaded down to her upper back, was tied in a ponytail. She was wearing her uniform like always. Her uniform was similar to his. A black and white suit underneath a black and white suit. However, rather than wearing black combat pants as he did, she wore black shorts with one boot going up to her thigh on her right leg and a black combat shoe on her left.

He sighed and looked out over the balcony.

People were mingling about, celebrating another victory. But he was wondering when he would get to break away from the festivities and see her again.

She seemed to notice this and a sly smile crept onto her face.

It had been a while since she teased her older brother. Not that she had any success doing so but she could dream.

"Lighten up will you. Do you think she would want you to be sad? Look at this. We just won against the Honkai. What's the point of moping around?" she said, patting his back.

He sighed. His blue eyes drifted over to her hair.

"Did you cut your hair?" he asked.

"Yeah, I did. █ █ said that it looked good on me…" a blush crept onto her face. "But… what do you think, Big Brother? Do I look good?"

"Eh, it could look better," he said.

She puffed her cheeks and punched him in the shoulder extremely hard.

He winced and rubbed his bicep, laughing at his younger sister's puffing face.

"You're too old to be pouting like that, Squirt."

"S- Shut up! I'm as old as you! And don't call me Squirt just because you're taller than me, Stupid Big Brother!" she yelled. "Hmph!" she looked away.

But she was glad.

She hadn't heard her brother react like that in a very long time.

It was nice to see a smile on his face every so often. The world had been battering him endlessly. The deaths of so many people that they loved in this neverending fight against the Honkai were beginning to weigh down on him.

"Hey, █ █ █ █ █, how are you doing? said that you've been feeling a little down ever since… you know…"

She tried to avoid the subject. She didn't even know if Hua hated him because of what happened.

" █ █ █ █ █…" she pressed.

"No, it's fine. I've been thinking a lot about what happened. Could… could we have saved her? She was…. Hua was right. She was still there. She was talking to me but in the end, in the end… I…" tears began to flow down from his face. But they froze as fast as the morning dew the moment they streaked across his cheeks.

She watched sadly as her brother broke down right in front of her.

"It was… I… I don't… Hahaha…" he just started laughing.

His laugh did not coincide with the emotions she was seeing flicker across her brother's eyes.

"Tell me, █ █ █ █ █. If… If I had actually listened to her, could I have saved Captain █ █ █ █ █ █?

"I…"

"Could we have saved her if I tried to save her like I tried with the Sixth? Please… just tell me I did the right thing, Kiana."

"Kiana…"

"KIANA!"

Kiana's eyes shot open and she sat up. In the next instant, she regretted her decision. Pain shot through her entire torso, causing her to crumple and grip her gut as if her life depended on it.

"FUCK!" she cursed.

"Jeezus, don't do that!"

"Wha… who the… Himeko?" Kiana blinked, looking through weary, pained eyes.

"How are you?" Himeko said, calming her heart rate.

"I feel like shit…" Kiana opened and close her hands as memories of the battle came back to her.

"I can tell. You two leveled half of the city in your fight," Himeko said, glancing outside.

A large portion of the urban and downtown area in which they fought had been completely obliterated. There was a smoldering crater where Kiana had crashed down like an asteroid and several fissures carved across the ground. There were layers of frost and small crystals of ice scattered everywhere. The feeling of static from the Balmung still persisted as did the ambient heat of Shamash's all-consuming flames.

Kiana shakily got to her feet, supporting herself with Shamash's blade.

"Woah… woah! Stay still! You just got your ass kicked… which is surprising by the way. I don't think I've ever met anyone outside of the Principal who could kick your ass so hard," Himeko said.

"Bite me." Kiana took a step forward and stumbled a little. "I… I need to get to Ceci and the others."

"In that condition?" Himeko raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "You can barely walk!"

"I… I'm not letting Kriemhilde lay her grubby claws on my sister!" Kiana said through gritted teeth.

"She's not going to. Her target is the Herrscher of the Wind. This is out of our hands now, Kiana. Don't make me pull rank on you," Himeko said.

Kiana froze. Her grip around Shamash tightened. Her fingernails dug into her palms, causing them to bleed slightly. Leaving her younger sister out there was incomprehensible to her. But the more rational part of her mind was saying to trust Himeko. Kriemhilde would not harm her younger sister, she knew that. But…

"I…"

"Are you going to make me pull rank, Captain Kaslana?" Himeko said, crossing her arms.

"Kh!" Kiana scoffed.

"Look, if Cecilia is in danger and Kriemhilde can't handle the Fourth Herrscher, then you can go out there and assist them. But! For now, get some rest," Himeko said, clapping her shoulder.

"Fine. I get it," she replied.

"You damn Kaslanas and your hero complexes-"

"It's not a hero complex!" Kiana protested.

"My bad. Sister complex."

"Shut up." Kiana crossed her arms and looked off into the distance. Green lightning crackled in the skies where the clouds funneled and converged.

"Wendy's kicking it up," Himeko said.

"Yeah…"

"Let's head back to the Hyperion and get you fixed up. If anything pops up, you can take one of the VTOLs aboard and fly out to Ceci in a flash," she said.

Kiana nodded.

"Hey, let's go." Himeko placed a hand on her shoulder, snapping her out of her reverie.

"Right."

Himeko watched as Kiana began to limp back in the direction of the Hyperion. Despite having been in a battle that nearly leveled the city, Kiana looked no worse for wear than when she arrived. If it weren't for the torn pieces of clothing on her, they would have never known that Kiana had been in a fight at all. And Himeko knew for sure that Kiana had been injured. Her slightly limping gait and the pain she felt upon awakening. Something about Kiana had changed in that fight. She could feel it within her and felt it when she touched her.

At first, Himeko attributed it to the growing storm and rain but now that Kiana was walking with Shamash in hand, she was sure.

"Her skin is cold…," Himeko muttered.

"Bronya, how much further?" Cecilia said, glancing over to the floating girl.

"The Bronya estimates that she's approximately a couple of hundred meters in front of us but… the storm is making it difficult to get a proper reading-"

Cecilia pushed Bronya out of the way, saving her from a wayward bolt of lightning.

"You're welcome," Cecilia said.

The heavens overhead were embroiled in chaos. Green lightning crackled erratically across the sky. The clouds roiled and rumbled, unleashing torrential downpours. Winds of high speed and intensity were blowing across the land, uprooting small plants. In the distance, the occasional twister touched down, destroying everything within the vortex's path before disappearing just as quickly. It had taken everything the girls had to remain on the land. Bronya had taken the initiative to provide a barrier around them with Project Bunny.

"We need to get over to her before this storm completely sinks New Zealand," Cecilia said.

"The Bronya is aware. But the storm is interfering with the sensors," Bronya hissed.

"Calm down you two!" Mei yelled uncharacteristically.

Bronya and Cecilia quieted down.

Mei sighed.

"Let's keep going," Mei said.

Cecilia and Bronya nodded.

The three forged on, despite heavy rain and storms. Bronya periodically glanced overhead and noticed that the clouds were all swirling upon a single point.

"We're getting close," she said.

"How do you know that?" Cecilia asked.

"Clouds. The clouds are all converging upon a single vortex and we're almost to the edge. It shouldn't be that far now-"

Khhh!

"Mmm? It's Aunt Theresa." Cecilia said, seeing the notification appear on her HUD. "Go for Cecilia."

"Ceci, you and your squad are pressed for time. Kriemhilde is heading in your direction at extreme speeds. Get to the Fourth-"

"Wait? What? What happened to Kiana!?" Cecilia yelled.

Theresa frowned and sighed. Her expression made Cecilia's blood turn cold. Without saying anything, Cecilia turned on her heel and began walking back in the direction from whence she came.

"Wait! Ceci! Where are you going?" Mei asked, running after her.

"Kiana's down. Our aunt took her out!" Cecilia said, reloading her guns.

"And what? You're just going to go over and confront Kriemhilde?" Theresa asked incredulously.

"Of course. I'm going to kick that hag's ass for hurting my big sister! What else is there to say?" Cecilia said.

"Cecilia, if you take one more step, I'm demoting you."

She froze and balled her fists tightly. "You're going to bump me down for trying to save Kiana!?"

"Kiana is fine. I already sent Himeko to take care of her. If you really wanted to help your older sister, you would turn around and finish what you came here to do or else Kiana's stalling would have been for nothing. If my grandfather or God forbid, Anti-Entropy, get their hands on the Gem of Desire, nothing good will come out of it," Theresa said. "To you, me, or your sister."

Cecilia bit her cheek before sighing.

"Fine. But…"

"I promise you that Kiana is fine. If you want, I can send you her latest status and location."

Cecilia blinked when she saw a notification appear on her HUD.

Kiana Kaslana

Status: Alive

Current Location: Hyperion

A breath of relief escaped Cecilia's mouth and her knees almost gave way underneath all the stress she had been feeling at that exact moment.

"So what's it going to be, Cecilia? Let your aunt pass you and retrieve the Herrscher Core or…"

"Fine, fine! I get it!" Cecilia said. "We'll be back with the core. Cecilia out."

She cut the call and sighed.

Was her aunt really going to strip her of her A-Rank just because she refused to obey an order? It wasn't like Cecilia was particularly bothered by it. Kiana was more important to her than any silly rank. The only thing keeping her from going to the Hyperion was confirmation that her older sister was alive. And… Theresa was right. If she left it as it was now, then the Gem of Desire would be used for nefarious purposes that could end with her losing her older sister for good.

"Ceci?" Mei placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Let's go. Bronya said we were close. Besides, there's more than just the island at stake in this," Cecilia said, walking past Mei. "Right, Mei-senpai? A girl over there needs our help."

Mei said nothing and watched Cecilia's back as it moved further away from her. She sighed and walked after her, returning to the shield Bronya had erected to protect them from the storm.

Himeko walked into the bridge with Kiana in tow.

"You two are back." Theresa's video feed was still connected.

Their satellites might have been incapable of providing proper video feed on Cecilia, Mei, and Bronya but it still allowed them to contact the Headmaster.

Kiana looked up at Theresa for a few seconds before looking away.

"Kriemhilde defeated you, didn't she?" Theresa said knowingly.

"I think that much is obvious. How about Cecilia and the others? Have they made it to Wendy?" Kiana asked. She walked to the railing and observed the GPS marker of her younger sister.

"She's nearing the eye of the storm. Our best guess is that the eye is where Wendy is. She's the center of this increasingly growing storm. By our estimates, this storm will become a super typhoon and wipe out both Australia and New Zealand in a matter of hours," Theresa said.

"Well, that's great. My sister is at the center of that storm too," Kiana replied.

"Have faith. They were able to beat back the Fourth Herrscher in their initial encounter. They should be able to wear down the Herrscher enough to defeat her. If need be, we can release the restraints on Mei for a few seconds and allow her to access the power of the Third Herrscher-"

"Principal, I have a lot of questions regarding that idea to pit a Herrscher against another Herrscher." Himeko bit her lip at the suggestion.

"I don't like it either but at the way things are going, that might be our only option," Theresa said.

"Send me out there-"

"Absolutely not. You're still recovering from your injuries from your battle with Kriemhilde Kaslana. Let Cecilia and the others handle this for now. Wendy is still an immature Herrscher, it will take her to gather the necessary juice needed to cause a global catastrophe. At this stage, I think Cecilia and the others can handle her," Theresa said.

"And if they can't?" Kiana asked.

"Well, then you can go in," her aunt replied.

"We're finally out of the rain," Cecilia said.

"Not really. There is some light sprinkling here," Bronya replied.

"You knew what I meant," she replied. "But still… there she is. And look at what she did to this place."

Wendy hovered slightly above the ground. Her wings were spread and her eyes were closed. Streams of green energy swirled and converged upon Wendy's body, bathing her in an otherworldly luminescence. Lightning occasionally crackled from her body, ionizing the sky and causing thunder and lightning to rumble across the heavens. Her mere presence and the weight of the Honkai energy her body radiated had altered the local landscape, taking the shape of the vortex that raged high above them.

"The Honkai radiation levels are rising slowly. She's preparing to wipe out the island in one go," Mei said, reading the energy levels on her HUD.

"Let's go," Cecilia said.

"Wait, shouldn't we think of a plan?" Mei asked.

"I have a plan. Attack." Cecilia slid down the crag, followed by Mei and Bronya.

Having sensed their presence by the shift in air pressure around her, Wendy opened her eyes and gazed upon the trio. Her emerald green eyes began to glow and the Heavens above responded to the flux in her emotions. Thunder rumbled loudly and the clouds began to spin in an even faster manner.

"You three just don't know when to give up. I guess I'll have to teach you all a lesson," Wendy said.

A gust of wind exploded outward from her body, sending the three sliding back slightly.

"You… Stop stealing my lines!" Cecilia raised her fist towards Wendy.

As the two began glaring at one another, Mei stepped forward.

"Wendy! Please! Let us help you! You're not yourself! The Honkai is corrupting your mind! It's leading you to do all of these things!" Mei asked.

Wendy stared at her silently. Mei's words had no effect on her. The winds did not cease nor did they weaken. If anything, Wendy ignored them altogether. Instead, Mei's sincere words were absorbed and devoured by the misanthropic abyss of Wendy's eyes.

Mei clenched her fist, attempting to see if there was any trace of humanity left within Wendy's eyes.

"Mei-senpai, it's not working. We need to-"

"Wait, Subject Cecilia. Sister Mei. The Bronya wishes to try something," Bronya said, floating forward.

Cecilia relaxed her body slightly, taking her fingers off the triggers of her pistols.

"What are you…?" Cecilia asked.

"The Bronya wishes to speak to Subject Wendy," she replied.

"Talk? We have nothing to talk about. You're doing nothing but wasting your breath, Bronya," Wendy said.

"Subject Wendy… you remind the Bronya of her younger sister. The younger sister she had back at the orphanage. Her name was Seele and she was strong and kind. Just like you, Subject Wendy," Bronya began.

"In the past, Seele was corrupted by the Honkai but she worked hard to overcome and fight off its influence. Eventually, she was able to regain her sense of self and became her again. The Bronya also endured a lot of pain because of the modifications and still suffers from them to this day…" she looked with what appeared to be forlorn and melancholy in her eyes at her prosthetic legs.

"But there is hope. The Bronya understands Subject Wendy's pain." she closed her eyes before looking Wendy straight in the eye. "But the Bronya knows that Wendy can overcome this pain. Do not give up. Do not let the Honkai twist Subject Wendy into something else. The Bronya believes that you are capable of overpowering the Honkai," Bronya said.

Had Bronya's limbic system been intact, there would have been inflection in her usual monotone speech yet the emotions that she could no longer feel were clearly conveyed to the recently born Fourth Herrscher before her.

And because of that, Wendy felt a sense of security after hearing Bronya's speech. Her emerald eyes gazed upon Cecilia and Mei, who merely offered her smiles in return.

The green light around Wendy swirled and dispersed and she transformed back into her normal civilian clothing. She fell onto the grass, landing with a slight thud. The rain stopped and the storm overhead began to slowly dissipate.

"Alright… I'll trust you, Bronya." Wendy smiled at her.

Bronya sighed in relief, seeing the Honkai Energy dropping dramatically on her HUD.

"Oh… thank fuck for that!" Cecilia said, falling on the grass shortly after.

"Oh? You were the one who always said they wanted to fight a Herrscher," Mei said, squatting next to her.

"I fought you didn't I?" Cecilia grinned cheekily. "Oh and… you're wearing black today, huh?"

Mei blinked for a few seconds before understanding the implication of Cecilia's words. She raised her hand and slammed her fist into the back of Cecilia's skull.

"Ceci! We're on a mission!" Mei said, blushing profusely.

"Welp. All's well that ends well. We avoided a global calamity. Let's head back to the Hyperion. I'll phone in and have them get everything ready." Cecilia got up and pressed a small button on the star on her headband.

"Besides, Wendy, we're all kick-ass valkyries. If you ever get controlled by the Honkai, I'll bring you back down," Cecilia said, grinning at her.

Wendy smiled, feeling the infectiousness of Cecilia's grin.

"Don't worry about anything else, Subject Wendy. The Bronya will take you home now. There's no need to worry anymore," Bronya said, placing a hand on Wendy's shoulder.

"Only if you let me sit on your robot," Wendy said, closing her eyes.

Bronya felt the phantom sensation of a smile trying to force its way onto her face.

"No problem. Project Bunny. Activate," she ordered.

The floating mech manifested behind her and gently scooped Wendy into its arms.

Bronya watched as Wendy smiled and laughed, patting Project Bunny's helm

As she was about to speak, her entire body froze. The sound of static filled her head and a burning sensation at the base of her neck began to grow and intensify with each passing second.

"Bronya."

Her eyes widened when she heard a sickly, sweet voice that she wanted to purge from her mind. It brought back memories of her days in the orphanage and memories of… Seele. The warmth and the cold of that horrid place.

"It has truly been a long time, Bronya."

M- Matushka… Cocolia

"Bronya, this is an order from your Matushka. Begin retrieval of the Fourth Herrscher."

"Nyet…" Bronya raised both her hands and gripped the sides of her head. She began to tremble as she felt a familiar feeling that she thought she had been robbed of. But fear was a response written within the genes of all creatures, even Herrschers themselves. And now, Bronya felt that forgotten feeling once more.

"The Fourth Herrscher is an important test subject. We must not allow Schicksal to retrieve her once more. If we cannot retrieve this asset, then you must destroy her, Bronya."

"Nyet… NYET!" Bronya said loudly, catching everyone's attention.

"Eh, Bronya? What's wrong?" Cecilia asked, breaking her conversation with Mei.

"Subject Cecilia. Take Wendy-"

"What are you talking about?" Cecilia asked.

"You insolent brat!" Cocolia said.

"Hurry, take her!" Bronya ordered, motioning for Project Bunny to hand Wendy over to Cecilia.

The mech responded to her will and began to hand the confused Wendy to Cecilia.

"Tch. This is of no concern. You can't fight this. By the highest level of authority: Delay the Fourth Herrscher if you cannot defeat it. Our forces are well on their way," Cocolia ordered.

Bronya's eyes widened before her head lowered slightly. Her grey eyes dulled and whatever spark of individuality Bronya had no longer existed. Bronya's grey eyes bled red and a red line appeared on her left cheek.

"By the highest level of authority…" Bronya began in a tone that was even more mechanical and emotionless than her usual tone. "Project Bunny. Switch into Assault Mode. Target: The Fourth Herrscher."

Upon hearing her words, everyone's eyes widened considerably. Wendy looked at the one person she trusted in utter shock.

Before she could tighten her grip around Wendy, Cecilia activated the Time Fracture module of her battlesuit and grabbed Wendy.

Time resumed normally.

"Bronya! What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Cecilia yelled.

Mei drew her sword and pointed it at Bronya.

"There… There's no one I can trust…"

"Cecilia. She's," Mei said, running towards the two.

"Everything I was just told is a lie, wasn't it? I… I can't trust anyone. Everyone is out to-"

Wendy's face snapped to the side, knocking her out of her shocked state. She gripped her face and looked at the glaring Cecilia, who had just slapped her.

"Get a grip! Bronya is out of control and she's out to get you! I need to know if you can move!" Cecilia barked.

Cecilia's sudden action had left her in a stupor. Wendy blinked when she felt Cecilia's grip tighten around her shoulders.

"Mei-senpai. Take Wendy and run. I'll knock some sense into Bronya," Cecilia said.

"Eh? Ceci! What are you-"

Cecilia moved fast, pushing Wendy into her while simultaneously kicking Bronya with enough force to send her flying back.

She twirled her pistols and aimed them at her classmate.

"I'll hold her off. Get back to the Hyperion and get help! This is the same thing that happened back on the Selene," she said.

"Eh? But Ceci-!"

"GO! We don't have time!" Cecilia said.

She flipped, dodging the mechanical arm of Project Bunny.

"Neko Charm!"

The Burst Feature of her battlesuit activated. Honkai energy flowed through her body as she landed on the ground.

Mei clenched her jaw and nodded.

"Wendy. I'm going to get you out of here. Just hang on!" Mei said.

"Huh? R- Right…" Wendy said dumbly as Mei picked her up and began to run.

"Damn it! The Third Herrscher as well?" Cocolia yelled. "Bronya! Pursue the Third and Fourth Herrschers!"

Bronya nodded and began flying in their direction. Or, that was her intended course. A massive cat's paw slammed into her side, knocking her out of the air and sending her skidding across the ground.

"Get a grip, Cutting Board!" Cecilia said.

Bronya shakily got to her hands and knees and locked eyes with Cecilia.

She raised her hand.

Project Bunny - Drone Weapon Armaments. Invisible Mode Off. Targeting: Cecilia Kaslana.

"Oh… fuck me." Cecilia began to run as a barrage of gun and missile fire raced towards her. She made a sharp curve, running straight towards Bronya.

Bronya controlled Project Bunny, raising its cannon arm. A swirl of heat and light converged upon the cannon's barrel before firing.

Cecilia slid underneath the energy beam, feeling its heat as it ripped through the air and impacted the wall behind her.

A loud explosion could be heard as she continued to make a beeline for Bronya.

"Don't let whatever is controlling you get the better of you!" Cecilia sent a massive cat's paw towards Bronya, intent on slamming her down into the ground.

Bronya raised her hands, causing Project Bunny to block the attack. The force of the blow displaced the air around them and cracked the ground beneath Bronya slightly.

She pushed back against the cat's paw just in time to see Cecilia in front of her.

Bronya reacted quickly, floating away from Cecilia's kick. Project Bunny raised its arm and swatted the valkyrie away, sending her flying across the field.

Cecilia flipped, hit the ground hard and rolled to a stop.

"Ow… jeez… you're not really holding your punches. Good because that means I won't have to either!" she hopped to her feet and took off, dashing towards Bronya at even greater speeds.

The Honkai Energy that channeled through her body empowered her, granting her the ability to become a mere blur.

"We can finally have a proper match like you wanted!"

She dodged a missile heading her way.

"You're actually trying to kill me!" Cecilia said, firing several rounds at Bronya.

Project Bunny blocked the shots with its arm before firing another beam of energy.

"I want to fight the real Bronya! Not this predictable husk of a person so give her back!" Cecilia jumped into the air and brought her foot down, summoning another feline appendage on top of Bronya.

Bronya blocked the paw with Project Bunny and pushed back.

However, Cecilia used this moment to her advantage, slipping in between Bronya's defenses and delivering a devastating kick to her midsection.

Bronya gasped and flew back.

Cecilia fired several shots at her unprotected body. The bullets grazed Bronya in some areas, cutting into her skin while a few hit home.

Bronya gasped and gripped her leg and side.

"Ready for some more!" Cecilia said, fired more shots at her.

Bronya recalled Project Bunny and erected a Honkai Shield to block her attacks.

"Tch!" she popped out her magazines and pushed in another clip.

At this rate, I'm going to run out of ammo and Bronya is going to go after Mei-senpai and Wendy. I have to make sure they get to the Hyperion before Kriemhilde and Anti-Entropy do, she thought.

"Haah!" she kicked off the ground and ran towards Bronya, firing shots as she did.

Bronya kept Project Bunny's arm raised. Project Bunny's other arm raised into the air, summoning several weapon drones. The drones all unleashed a deluge of firepower upon Cecilia.

Cecilia weaved her way through the hail of bullets and missiles as best she could. Some of them hit home, cutting across her flesh and gouging holes in her body. Yet, the adrenaline coursing through her body fueled her to continue onward. She felt warm blood rushing down her arm and several cuts made by the bullets that grazed her torso and legs.

"Tch! Are you really going to just let whatever it is controlling you have an easy time!? Fight back, Bronya!"

Cecilia homed in on her, nearly emptying her clips into Project Bunny's chassis.

She swiped her hand, creating a cat's paw that slashed Project Bunny, leaving deep gashes in its arm.

"So get a grip and wake the hell up!" she jumped and delivered a devastating kick to Project Bunny, using enough force to stagger it and Bronya.

She twisted her body and pistol-whipped Bronya across the head, sending the girl into the ground.

"Now… wake up!" Cecilia panted.

As she reached out to grab Bronya, a heavy metal fist slammed into her and sent her flying at high speed across the field where she crashed into the cliffside brutally.

Cecilia slid down, gripping her ribs. Her pain shot through her chest with each inspiration and blood forced its way out of her throat.

"It was a really bad idea to split up. The Third Herrscher… her combat capabilities have diminished greatly since I last saw her at Nagazora. If I remember correctly, she was capable of nearly leveling the entire city in a single attack." A voice came from a mecha unit that materialized out of thin air.

Around it, a series of other mechs manifested themselves.

"Khh! Who… are…?" Cecilia said, attempting to get up despite the pain. Her blue eyes gazed upon the two unconscious figures in the hands of the other mechs.

"Wendy! Mei-senpai!" she yelled.

Fury burned within her sapphire gaze when she saw the bruises on Mei and Wendy.

"What did you do with them!?" she demanded.

"The Third and Fourth Herrschers have been apprehended. Bronya, proceed to eliminate the target in front of you," Cocolia said.

"Understood, Matushka," Bronya said emotionlessly. She raised her hand and prepared Project Bunny to fire a lethal attack.

[Warning! Warning! Schicksal Forces are detected moving at high speeds. ETA: 5 minutes. Satellite imagery confirms that the incoming unit is Kriemhilde Kaslana.]

"Tch. Kriemhilde. Damn, you got lucky this time. All units retreat." Cocolia ordered.

Bronya lowered Project Bunny's cannon arm and looked at Cecilia as the mechs around her disappeared one by one.

"B- Bronya… Mei… Wendy…" she weakly reached her hand out towards Bronya.

Before Bronya vanished along with the mechs, Cecilia saw a brief flicker of helplessness flash across the petite girl's eyes. She opened her mouth, mouthing one word towards Cecilia before vanishing.

"No… I have to…" she tried to get up but fell back down, screaming in pain as her injured ribs hit the dirt.

"I have to save them… Mei… Bronya… give them back!" her vision began to swim and fade into darkness as the pain became too much for her to bear.

As her mind began to slip, Cecilia made out a black-clad figure landing in front of her. Her snow-white hair stirred up feelings within her.

The figure turned around and knelt before her, yelling desperately for her to do something yet her ears couldn't make out the words. Her visual acuity had long since faded and she could barely make out the facial features of the person who arrived. However, the white hair only brought one name to mind.

"Kiana… they took them…" Cecilia rasped before she promptly passed out.

We've finally made it to the first deviation of the story! Wendy's survival! What? The Wotan you say? How am I supposed to power the Wotan without the Gem of Desire? Oh and Kevin? How is Kevin supposed to escape the SoQ without the Gem of Desire? Well, I have plans for that. Don't worry. Wendy is a severely underused character in Honkai anyway so her surviving can tip the balance of things at... well, later down the road. So, I have a question for you all:

As you are aware, I have made some plans to write an Everlasting Flames sequel to this story buuuuuuut... how about if I just write a full blown sequel to this story? Or are you all fine with me just continuing this story on with this fanfic post chapter 9? Because there will be a tone shift after this fanfic hits chapter 9 of canon so I want to know your thoughts before I make any decisions.

And anyway, review, like, subscribe. You know the drill.