The entire data cabin shook violently under the force of their blows. Vibrations traveled through the thick metallic structure, causing the data space to glitch violently. Each blow caused static to appear where it occurred.
Theresa couldn't help but watch in awe. Her niece was standing against a Godsbane Battlesuit on even ground. She would have been even more amazed had it not been for the fact that her niece was currently going on a rampage.
"Judah-"
Theresa jumped back as a wave of violet energy ripped across the cabin, tearing a massive rift within the structure. "The data space is beginning to lose its form. At this point, those two are going to bring the entire school down on top of us. I have to stop them."
A golden sheen coalesced into the shape of a massive cross. Theresa gripped it before running headlong into the frey, intent on stopping the two from killing them all. Or rather…
I can't let Fu Hua hurt her!
Fu Hua dodged calmly, calculating the trajectory of Cecilia's attacks with the expertise and precision of someone possessing thousands of years of combat experience. Bullets flew, piercing the ground, and furious swipes ripped the air and surroundings apart.
She had to admit one thing. Cecilia had grown much more dangerous. This form was leaking massive amounts of Honkai energy. It would only be a matter of time before the metal supporting the data cabin would give way.
"!?"
[Directing energy to propulsors]
Fu Hua jumped, and the ground beneath her ruptured. Blue flames erupted from the ground, freezing instantly into spires of ice. The spires grew until it punctured the ceiling of the data cabin.
The entire space shook violently as the structures strained to support the weight of the ground above them.
"Give my parents back to me!" Cecilia screamed, expelling Honkai energy from her body. Space and Time bent around her, forming fractal shapes resembling shards of glass. Her eyes glowed brightly and she aimed her guns at Fu Hua.
One by one, she fired, unleashing a hail of bullets and shards at Hua.
Fu Hua cocked her fist back, gathering Honkai energy into her arm. She took a deep breath before throwing a powerful punch forward. A wave of orange kinetic energy exploded outward, vaporizing the bullets from the sheer heat and blocking the onslaught of shards.
She wasted no time, jetting toward Cecilia.
She needed to finish this.
She knew that.
There was a time limit to how much she could entertain the thought of fighting a Herrscher. Fu Hua had to prevent the Herrscher within Cecilia from reawakening at all costs.
The ground exploded, knocking Cecilia back. The girl landed on her feet and moved out of the way, narrowly avoiding Fu Hua's powerful fist.
A trickle of blood slid down her cheek.
"Rggghhhaaa!" Ceci let out a guttural roar and swung her arm, landing a clean hit on Fu Hua's side.
The girl's eyes widened as she was sent flying with incredible force. She flipped and landed, gripping the ground until she slid to a stop.
What incredible strength? Is this the Herrscher…? Am I too late? Or is this…?
Fu Hua had considered it. The power of the MANTIS flowing through her was mixing with the power of a Herrscher. Fu Hua shuddered at the thought. How much more powerful would this girl grow if the Herrscher's powers mixed with that of the MANTIS? She doubted there would be anyone who could stop her.
She clenched her fists and focused.
Cecilia stumbled forward, eyes filled with lunatic rage. Her wings spread outward. A jet of icy mist was expelled from Cecilia's mouth.
"All of you… why won't you leave us alone?" Cecilia said.
Fu Hua lowered her guard slightly.
"You took my Mom away from me…"
Each step she took caused the air to grow colder.
"You killed Dad…"
As she got closer, the world began to destabilize as if it were a program losing signal with the station.
"And now… now that Kiana and I can finally be happy, you want to take it all away again? I won't allow that…"
Cecilia held her hand out. Violet and black streams of energy gathered and twisted, forming a massive cat's paw.
"Are you going to murder my sister next, Class Rep?"
Fu Hua narrowed her eyes, heart clenching in pain at her accusation. In Cecilia's eyes, she had become nothing more than another monster who wanted to destroy her family.
Her eyes glowed; the black sclera made her yellow eyes even more intense.
"I won't allow that. I won't allow you to take our happiness- my happiness. I'll protect her. I'll get Mom and Dad back. I'll blow everything that wants to rip apart our happiness. Even if it is you, Class Rep, I will never forgive you."
Her cold tone sent shivers down Fu Hua's spine.
"Ceci, I-"
"Shut up."
A flash of violet light engulfed the entire data cabin as soon as Cecilia swiped her energy-coated arm.
"Mei!"
Mei turned around, seeing Himeko run up to her. Himeko was carrying her greatsword with her. It was right of her to get prepared. There was a gnawing thought in the depths of her mind ever since she had seen Fu Hua. Something was wrong. She could feel it.
"Major! I've notified all the students to keep an eye out on Cecilia and sent a message to any Valkyrie doing patrol like you said," Mei said, keeping a white-knuckle grip on her katana.
"Good. But I have some bad news," Himeko said.
Mei's heart nearly burst out of her chest in anxiety and worry.
"I can't reach the Headmaster. We need to inform her of the situation. And no one's checked out on the flight log since this afternoon," Himeko said.
"What do we do?" Mei asked, feeling an overwhelming sense of helplessness fill her.
"We need to find the Headmaster. She'll know what to do. Other than Kiana, she's the only one who knows Ceci's habits the be-"
Himeko never finished her sentence.
The ground had shook violently, as if an earthquake had hit the entirety of St. Freyja. A loud explosion caught both their attention. Himeko raised her greatsword, shielding both herself and Mei from the rain of debris that crashed into the courtyard.
"W- What was…?" Mei asked.
"That was the Headmaster's office-" Himeko's words died in her mouth. A massive twisted, spiky spire of ice had burst from the Headmster's tower and towered slightly into the sky above. That ice. It felt wrong. It almost felt like-
The ground shook once more, this time, sending a fissure that split the courtyard in half.
Mei almost stumbled and looked into the fissure. There were flecks of frost forming in between the gap.
"Major! I think that-"
"I think so too," Himeko said, staring at the ominous tower of ice that had pierced Theresa's office. Her grip on her sword tightened and a slight gust of frigid wind washed over the entirety of St. Freyja.
"Mei."
Mei glanced at her teacher.
"What is it?" she asked.
"We need to get to the Headmaster's office. On me, now!" Himeko began to run toward the Administrative Building.
Mei nodded and ran with her, keeping pace with her teacher. The soul-crushing anxiety she was feeling. She needed to stifle it for Ceci's sake.
"This is Major Himeko. Shut down all points of exit from the school, now! Airway, docks, the bridge. I want Valkyries at every exit point and I want the Hyperion and the Helios deployed alongside surveillance drones. I want every inch of this place under surveillance, now! We have an unknown intruder in the school!" she ordered.
"Copy, Major."
Ceci… Mei clenched her fist and looked once more at the ice spire. She bit her cheek and followed Himeko toward the Administrative Building, heart filled with trepidation at what they would find.
Shock was the one emotion that was etched across their faces. Fu Hua and Theresa had been taken aback by the sheer utter devastation Cecilia had been able to wreak with a single strike. For Theresa, it had been a mix of shock and fear.
The last time she had seen someone devastate something to this scale was the Second Eruption and when Siegfried laid waste to Schicksal to retrieve his children.
She clenched her jaw and grabbed Judas, running toward the two.
Cecilia stood in the middle of the devastated data cabin. Her eyes were nearly completely feral, having focused completely on defeating Fu Hua. She would not allow her to take her family from her. She would not back down.
"Class President, I won't allow you to take anything else from me. You… and the other Valkyries of Schicksal," Ceci said, glaring fiercely at her.
"Ich liebe dich…"
The two resumed their fighting.
Fu Hua only had a limited amount of time to complete this mission. She ducked underneath one of Cecilia's attacks.
A wave of frost flew from her arm, instantly freezing the ground around them.
I have to subdue her before they send Ana or worse… Kriehimlde, she thought.
Fu Hua jumped back, avoiding an overhead slam from her opponent. She backflipped several times before jumping into the air. She clasped her hands together and gathered honkai energy in between the palms of her hand. Orange energy swirled and clumped together into a sphere.
She threw her hands forward, launching a highly compressed orb of kinetic energy toward her opponent.
Ceci's eyes glowed. She reared her arm back, ice clumping and forming together into a blade on her right arm. Black and violet energy swirled and coated the blade. With one swing, Cecilia's arm sliced through the world.
Rather, that was how Theresa and Fu Hua perceived it.
A black line was drawn across the entire world, splitting it in half diagonally.
And then, the sound of a massive vacuum nearly shattered their eardrums.
Fu Hua's energy sphere had detonated violently, sliced in half alongside with the rest of the world.
The shockwave had almost thrown them both back. Theresa used Judah as a shield, blocking the effects of the attack. The ground shook violently and pieces of debris fell from the ceiling. This place can't withstand more attacks of this caliber.
Fu Hua hovered in the air, using her wings to maintain her balance. She narrowed her eyes as Cecilia stood on the ground.
She's not consciously manipulating the abilities of the MANTIS or the Herrscher. Rather, the power of the Herrscher is capitalizing upon her slowly worsening mental state. But still, to develop her ability to the point where she can synchronize her MANTIS abilities in order to channel her Herrscher power and slice open space-time…
The rapid development of such an ability was terrifying. The implications of how powerful she would become if she were allowed to continue.
Fu Hua clenched her fists tightly.
Before she could move, a swarm of golden chains wrapped around her body. Her eyes widened in shock at the sudden development. Her movements. They were being restricted.
"P- Principal!?" Fu Hua looked over her shoulder.
"I can't… let you take her!" Theresa said, holding her hand out.
"You… She's not in control of herself! We have to-"
Fu Hua's eyes widened when Cecilia turned her sights on Theresa. The girl lunged at her aunt with surprising speed.
Theresa, on the other hand, had somewhat anticipated this. She swung Judah forward, bashing her niece in the side with its extreme weight.
Cecilia gasped in shock, thrown into the ruined steel wall of the data cabin with extreme speeds. She slammed into it, forming a foot-deep crater in the thick steel wall.
The breath was knocked completely out of her lungs. Her vision swam from the sheer intense pain coursing through her body.
She landed on the ground, falling to her hands and knees. Her flaming wings flickered repeatedly and her left eye slowly began to turn blue.
"What are you doing…?"
"D- Dad?" Ceci asked.
"They're all out to destroy our family, sweetie. Are you going to let them take us from you again?"
This time, her mother's voice rang in her head. Her parents. She knew it. They were still alive.
"That girl, your class president, is trying to keep us from you."
Those sweet words. That warm voice.
"Baby doll, you can't lose here. If they beat you, who's going to protect your big sis? After they finish with you, they'll go after her next."
Ceci's eyes widened in horror. Her body shook as the visions assaulted her mind. Was that what she was dreaming of that day on the Valkyrie Finals?
Was it a warning that Kiana was in danger?
"Ceci…"
Big… Sis?
"You have to stop them."
"That's right…"
"Ever since that day, this world has always been against us…"
"The world wanted to break us. They took everything from us…" The once-flickering flaming wings on her back returned with full force, growing even larger than before. Ice crystals began to form rapidly around her. Small flecks of flames broke off from her wings, twisting and forming into spears that levitated alongside her.
"So… Ceci… my dear sister…"
"Baby doll…"
"My little Moon…"
"Take it all back."
An overwhelming amount of Honkai energy burst from Cecilia's body, causing intense winds to batter the entire area.
This… is the power of a Herrscher! It's starting to leak through and overwhelm her psyche, Fu Hua thought. She struggled against the golden chains binding her. She needed to break free.
Theresa narrowed her eyes at the sudden increase in the Honkai energy surrounding Cecilia. She's tapping into that power. It's just like back then… when… a sudden splitting headache flashed through her head.
What was…?
"!?"
She quickly turned her head and saw the chains, binding Fu Hua had slightly weakened. The girl capitalized on this moment of weakness and broke free. The chains shattered.
"I'm sorry, Principal. But I can't let you interfere." A series of feathers surrounded Fu Hua.
T- This is… a Divine Key!? Theresa hastily raised Judah, preparing to block Fu Hua's impending strike. However, she never had the chance. Her world began to swim and warp. Her mind was spinning at dizzying speeds.
She stumbled, using Judah as support. Her mind was beginning to grow heavy. It felt as if the weight of the entire ocean was pressing down on her. Theresa dropped to her knees, trying her hardest to maintain her grip on Judah.
Her eyes tracked over to Fu Hua, who had turned to face the slowly worsening Cecilia.
"Judah… s- stop them…"
Golden chains erupted from the ground, snaking their way toward the two.
Fu Hua sensed the oncoming attack and dodged the chains, while Ceci lunged from her spot toward the airborne Fu Hua.
"Raagh!"
Fu Hua dodged the attack barely. Her cheek was sliced open, causing blood to flow down the side of her face.
She twisted her body and kicked Ceci in the side, sending her into the ground.
Ceci hit the ground violently but recovered quickly. She jumped into the air, her flaming wings beating powerfully and moving at intense speeds. A white shell began to coat her arms, extending into blades. Her pistols had been all but forgotten and she had been now fighting on a berserk rage.
Yet even in that rage, her movements remained as fluent as ever.
Fu Hua chalked it up to the influence of the Herrscher, allowing her to maintain some semblance of sanity amidst the raging power of the Stigmata.
Cecilia appeared in front of her and performed a diagonal spinning slash.
[Deploying Asura's True Diamond Barrier]
A large orange triangular shield appeared in front of Fu Hua, blocking the attack. The force, however, sent her sliding back a little.
Ceci's strength had been growing by the minute ever since her two innate abilities synchronized together.
She pushed back, knocking the girl off her balance slightly. Fu Hua pressed her split-second advantage by delivering a devastating palm strike to Ceci's midsection.
A shockwave blasted through the entire room, shaking the foundation of the academy to its very core.
Cecilia managed to hold on and grabbed Fu Hua by the shoulders. She rammed her head into Fu Hua's skull, momentarily catching the girl off-guard. Fu Hua stumbled back, feeling a sudden intense, throbbing pain in her skull.
Cecilia rushed forward, throwing a relentless barrage of attacks.
Fu Hua blocked each one of them, feeling the raw desperation and rage within her blows. This girl truly believed she had seen her parents. She truly believed that she was here to kill Kiana. Fu Hua saw her as a dear friend but she had a mission to complete.
And for that, Fu Hua needed to subdue her. However, it was not like she was doing this out of sheer spite for the girl.
She parried the attack and drove her fist into the girl's jaw, knocking her to the side.
Fu Hua did not give her time to recover. Rather, Fu Hua followed up with another attack, a kick to the girl's midsection.
Cecilia felt the air being knocked out of lungs. Clarity returned to her momentarily as she saw Fu Hua lunge toward her with a ferocity she never saw, not even in the Valkyrie Exams.
She felt another blow strike her, this time in her side. She screamed in pain as she felt her ribs gave way to the force of the blow.
Before she could do anything to defend herself, Fu Hua drove her knee into her midsection once more, striking her liver.
Darkness nearly overtook Cecilia's vision as the pain began to compound on one another, threatening to knock her out completely.
N- No! I can't…
"I'm sorry, Cecilia, however, this is the end," she said.
A series of orange feathers appeared all around Cecilia. She gripped her head, feeling an intense psychic agony that threatened to split her skull open. Ceci reached out to grab Fu Hua, but her hands froze when she saw Kiana standing in front of her. Blood trickled down her mouth.
Her eyes widened in surprise. Cecilia looked down and saw her hand holding a white and orange twisted lance. The lance was embedded into her older sister's torso. Blood poured profusely from the wound, staining the lance and the ground below.
Horror set into her, gripping the entirety of her being.
"K- Kiana…? N- No! No! No-!"
Ceci's words were cut off as Fu Hua appeared behind her and delivered a swift strike to the back of her neck. Ceci's eyes rolled into her head as darkness overtook her entire being. The wings of flame faded and the darkness coating her arms vanished.
Cecilia fell from the air, plummeting toward the ground. However, before she could hit the ground, Fu Hua caught her.
Fu Hua looked down at her friend with mixed emotions in her eyes. No, do I even have the right to call her that anymore? she thought.
"Y- You… think I'll let you get away with this?" Theresa said, shakily getting to her feet. The effects of the Divine Key were still lingering on her.
The Kaslana resilience burns brightly in her. Fu Hua prepared to knock Theresa unconscious. However, she was stopped by the sound of her comms going off.
"Hua, the entire school has mobilized and is converging on your position. What's your ETA?" a voice said.
Ana.
"I'll be there. Just give me a way out," Fu Hua said. She turned around and began to walk away.
"Stop."
Golden barbed chains burst from the ground. Theresa was going to stop her, even if it meant crippling the girl completely. She was not going to fail them. Not a second time.
The chains approached at breakneck speeds, homing in on Fu Hua's back. However, before she could skewer her, a flash of green light erupted from the ground. A wall of wood appeared between Fu Hua and the chains.
"W- What?" Theresa's eyes widened.
A girl with ashen blonde hair landed in front of the massive wooden wall. She wore a white battlesuit that resembled a white dress that parted at the middle, revealing a black skirt that stopped slightly above her knees. She wore a black choker around her neck with a blue shoulder cape that covered her right arm.
"Abyss Flower…," Theresa said.
Her eyes drifted to the massive intricate white lance in her hands. Its main body was composed of two lances. An outer white lance and a black inner lance. The two spiraled into each other, forming a simplistic perfect union of Creation and Destruction.
"Ana," Fu Hua said as the wooden barrier crumbled.
"Let's go," Ana said.
Theresa snapped out of her shock and got to her feet. She dashed toward them with surprising speed, raising Judah above her head.
Fu Hua summoned a plume of feathers, obscuring Theresa's vision momentarily. Judah swung through the feathers, dispersing them only to strike nothing but air. Judah's massive weight slammed into the ground, shattering it.
"No, CECI!" Theresa looked around, desperately searching for any sign of them. "Damn it!" she stomped her foot on the ground, sending spiderweb cracks across the ground.
Theresa ran a hand through her hair, pacing angrily around the empty, destroyed data cabin. She swiped her hand across the air, activating her comms.
"This is St. Freyja's Central Command-"
"Tell Himeko to prepare for battle immediately!" Theresa began making her way to the exit.
"H- Headmaster!?" a valkyrie on the other side said.
"Don't question me. Tell her to gather every combat-ready Valkyrie she can find and gather at the battleship Hyperion. Our target is the Schicksal Headquarters," Theresa said, arriving at the elevator. She clicked the button.
Theresa waited for a few minutes before punching the panel. It was broken. Of course, it was. "Before you relay those orders, transfer Bronya and Wendy to the battleship alongside with our most skilled medical staff. Tell them to prepare for surgery."
"Y- Yes, headmaster! Anything else?"
"Get me a lift out of this place. I'm sure you can all see where I am. Just look for the massive ice spire in the middle of the goddamn school!" Theresa barked. Her fury was beginning to bleed through into her voice.
"Y- Yes, Ma'am, right away, Ma'am!"
The communications link cut off.
"Kiana… I'm sorry. She got taken," Theresa clenched her fists, drawing blood from how tightly she had balled her hands. She took a deep breath and calmed herself. "Ceci, don't worry, Auntie is coming for you."
Theresa began to walk back into the data cradle, making her way to the ice spire. She opened her comms link once more, scrolling through her contacts.
She stopped above one name, hesitating to click on it for a few seconds.
Theresa shook the worries out of her head and pressed the contact.
[Contacting Kriemhilde Kaslana]
A lone, sleek black aircraft zipped through the night, traveling at hypersonic speeds. The sky blurred past it, making it seem as if they were traveling through a pitch-black tunnel. Ana sat in the front, sitting next to Rita. The older woman was silently piloting the ship.
She was like this as always, even on joint operations. However, this mysterious air, coupled with her alluring red eyes, made Rita very popular among the Schicksal staff and the Valkyries. At some point, prior to her S-Rank Promotion, even Ana admitted that she admired her talent and grace. Everyone did.
"Lady Ana, we're out of St. Freyja's jamming capabilities. Should we contact Lord Overseer?" Rita asked.
"Yeah. Just place the ship on auto and keep an eye on our charge in the back," Ana said.
Rita nodded and set the ship on autopilot before moving to the back of the carrier. Ana pressed a few buttons on the dashboard.
[Establishing comms]
[Ana.]
A video screen appeared in front of her. Otto looked at her expectantly, waiting for her news.
"Lord Overseer, Fu Hua was successful in capturing the target and we successfully subdued Theresa," Ana reported.
[Ah. So I take it the mission was a success? That's wonderful news. Though, I am sorry I had to pull you away from celebrating with the Snow Lotus Squad after your mission. You were the only other S-Rank operative we had on such short notice.]
Ana nodded. It was rather strange that Otto had pulled her away right as she returned from Coral City for another 2 hour flight to St. Freyja. However, orders were orders. Though, this one made her feel slightly uneasy. If anything, remembering her brief standoff with the Theresa Apocalypse made her even more so.
"Lord Overseer, if I may," Ana began.
[What is it?]
"Why did we just leave Lady Theresa there? Wouldn't it be better for us to capture her too?" Ana asked.
[Hmph, no. My granddaughter is much too cute to be punished. Just leave her be. For now, bring the girl to me.]
Confusion was now etched all over her face. "But Lord Overseer, the chances of Theresa coming after us are-"
[Are you questioning my orders, Saint? Just leave her be.]
Ana clammed up, noticing the authority behind Otto's otherwise relaxed tone.
[Though to clarify, I do anticipate on Theresa coming after us. No, I know she will come after the girl. It's simply in her nature after all.] Otto added.
"What…? I'm confused Lord Overseer. What exactly is the plan here regarding this girl? Are we not capturing her because she's a Herrscher?" Ana asked.
His words confused her. Of course, she knew that Herrschers were important targets of interest. As calamitous beings born with the power to bring ruin to the entire planet, their awakenings were carefully monitored by Schicksal. However, that made Ana question why they avoided bringing her in for so long. Despite being the Saint, there was a lot she didn't know.
[All in due time, Ana. All in due time. For now, return to base. We need to prepare for some guests who are going to show up soon. Don't worry. I've informed your mother and Angelica of your absence.]
Ana nodded. "Understood, Lord Overseer."
[Oh, and don't forget. We'll have also have a very special guest coming to visit us. Due to a little shift in priorities by some of our senior employees, I feel as if I need to start interviewing potential candidates for a position that will be opening soon.] Otto said cryptically.
Ana nodded.
Otto cut the link, severing communications between them. Ana sat in the cockpit, staring out into the open sky. They were going to arrive at Schicksal's headquarters before the sun broke the horizon. She briefly glanced over her shoulder at the unconscious Cecilia.
I know she's a Herrscher but what exactly does Lord Otto want with her? she wondered.
The more she did, the more blanks she drew. Ana sighed and banished the thoughts from her head. However, she could not shake the feeling of uneasiness she felt as they drew closer to Schicksal's headquarters. There was more that the Overseer wasn't telling her. And she knew it.
Theresa stood in front of Kiana's room in the ICU. Her hand was pressed lightly against the glass as to not crack it underneath her bubbling rage and frustration. Not soon after Cecilia had been taken, Kiana had woken up. She felt like a failure. She failed to keep her promise to her niece and her two closest friends.
She let out a sigh and fought to calm her rapidly beating heart.
"Theresa!"
She looked over her shoulder and saw Kriemhilde rushing toward her.
"I turned my flight around as soon as you called," she said, slowing to a stop. Kriemhilde looked inside the room and saw a nurse removing an IV from Kiana.
"I failed her," Theresa said.
"You didn't. There was no way you could have anticipated any of that," Kriemhilde said.
She placed a hand on Theresa's shoulder. "Have you told her?"
"No. I don't even know what to say," Theresa admitted.
"You have to tell her. We can't keep her in the dark forever."
Theresa looked to her for support. Kriemhilde smiled and nodded.
She took a few deep breaths before sliding the door open. Theresa motioned for the nurse to leave them alone.
The nurse nodded and hastily left the room.
"Eh? Aunt Theresa? And… you?" Kiana said, surprised to see Kriemhilde.
"Kiana, we need you to come with us on another joint operation," Theresa said.
"Wha…? We just finished one. Can't I get some rest? I'm still feeling the aftereffects of using Shamash's full power," she said.
Theresa was sending her on another field trip already? Kiana needed to make sure to file for a leave of absence after this. She was lucky to have survived something that took her father out. At least, now, after this, she can focus completely on making sure Cecilia was prepared to go on missions by herself as an A-Rank and hopefully, even a future S-Ranked.
Kriemhilde began to grow frustrated by Theresa's beating around the bush. She stepped forward with a serious expression.
"Kiana, we have something to tell you," Kriemhilde said.
"E- Eh? What's going on?" Kiana asked.
"It's about Cecilia," Theresa said.
"Cecilia, what are…?" Kiana then noticed that Cecilia wasn't there. She hadn't seen any sign of her since she had woken up. Cecilia would have been the first person to come and see her. Kiana knew there would be nothing stopping her from coming here.
A pit in her stomach began to grow when she saw the look in Theresa's eyes. On Kriemhilde's eyes. Dread began to bubble up in her heart.
"Where… is my sister?" Kiana asked.
"They took her. Valkyries from HQ came and took her," Theresa answered.
Theresa's response was met with silence. A heavy silence had fallen upon the whole room. The air was so busy that Theresa felt as if she were inhaling water.
But for Kiana, the silence was the loudest noise she had ever heard. Because for her, the only thing she could hear was the sound of her entire world falling apart.
This is it! The actual final chapter of this arc. After this, we are approaching the end of this fic. The final arc: Moonfall.
So, I had several issues. Not to underestimate Fu Hua or anything but Theresa is an extremely powerful Valkyrie with a Divine Key and for her to just get tossed aside like that kinda confused me. So I hope you all liked Theresa intervening every now and then. I also hope you all liked my warped MANTIS-Herrscher proto combo instead of using Knight Moonbeam. It's a prototype appearance for the actual one which will appear later down the line. *wink wink* There is one position I will explain in the next arc called Saint because Ana plays a bigger role in the final arc.
That being said, everything else will proceed as planned. Kiana's awake. Ceci got kidnapped. Theresa put up an actual fight against Fu Hua rather than just lt herself get tossed around like a ragdoll. Bronya and Wendy are being moved to the Hyperion for medical treatment.
PS: I'll go on a short break with this story to properly plan out the entire final arc and which moments to serve depresso espresso.