Kiana was baffled. So, this boy had been involved into a minor Honkai Eruption. Not exactly surprising, but he somehow got out of the ordeal without losing his memories, which was surprising. The memory wipe thing was supposed to be pretty thorough so yeah. This wasn't such a good thing however, since he ended up being the only one with his memories intact. Kiana cringed a bit at that revelation : in her travels, she had seen people getting memory wiped and then going on with their lives as if nothing happened. So much emotion, gone just like that. She knew the reasoning behind this procedure and thought it was necessary, but still. It was disturbing enough when she didn't get to know about the people that forgot, so Ki must have suffered and felt lonely when the people that forgot were his classmates. Which explained his outburst : the tension, doubts and stress must have overwhelmed him.
But it was odd. He claimed to know only a little : Kiana saw things differently. How did he know about Herrschers then ? That was more than just "only a little".
"I...don't really know how to be honest." His answer made no sense.
Her years of travelling across the world taught Kiana quite a bit on how to distinguish lies. She could tell his confusion was genuine, but that he also didn't tell everything. It was almost as if he heard all of this for the first time but knew almost everything she told him.
But that's impossible...
...,right ?
...
...
Ki plopped down on his bed, ruminating on the info he got earlier. After thanking Kiana for her help, he came back home immediately to digest what he heard.
On the bright side of things, he now understood the logic of the memory wipe. Since Honkai grew along with civilization, there was a risk that it would gain strength if too many people knew about it. The aftermath was still nasty, but he preferred that over blind ignorance. Now that he calmed down, he painfully realized how rash and immature his actions had been. Despite him believing that keeping his memories was the good choice, he clearly hadn't been able to properly deal with the consequences of that decision. But even that had passed over the long walk to get back home. While the gears in his brain were still working with enthusiasm, Ki felt mostly calm. Yes, he felt calm.
Which is exactly the problem here.
How could he be so calm ? How come he wasn't lost in disbelief, denial or shaking in fear ? He had accepted almost everything she told him without much surprise or doubt : that was abnormal. The Honkai was too alien a concept for a random dude like him to properly understand and...well, not freak out. At least, it should.
I knew this already, didn't I ?
But he never heard of all of this. The word Herrscher seemed to be vaguely familiar : he hazily remembered hearing that word when he was younger. Maybe his parents spoke about it ? But he had no idea of where and when precisely. And even so, it didn't explain how he didn't question her sanity.
She didn't completely believe me.
Couldn't blame her. Even he didn't trust himself right now. Shit. Since that damn incident, everything was-No, wait. The behavior of his parents had started to slightly show hints of foreboding and gloom before moving to Nagazora and a month after moving in the city. What did this mean ?
They know about something that I don't. Could it be...Were we moved here because of something else other than academic reasons ?
"It makes sense that you would be so concerned. However, I can guarantee you that nothing went wrong in providing you with the generosity you mention. I just think that you'll be able to give me a surprise."
Ki felt like an arrow was shot through his chest. He brutally got up, a spark of inspiration in his brain guiding him to the answer. Raiden Ryoma knows something. Maybe he was involved with the memory wipe ?
'But no events like this one seem to have happened in the past. I mean, trusting my memories at this point is kind of a risky move, but...Wait, the incident eight years ago ! Now that I think about it, I almost remember nothing ! And he was there too ! Did something like this happen ? Was it another Honkai Eruption ?'
It would certainly explain a lot. His parents would have met him then and learned about this other side of the world they lived in that way. He was probably under some sort of surveillance since then. Which was creepy really, but somehow fascinating too.
'No, I feel like I'm missing something.' His face scrunched up. It was inexplicable, but he could feel that he had missed a lot somewhere. That unfounded, mysterious intuition reflected what he felt when Kiana talked to him. He could tell this was similar but different. How frustrating. To have enough to get that you're missing something, but not enough to deduce what you're missing anyway.
Ugh, despite getting a lot of answers, he still had a lot of questions. But it would have to wait. Ki was seriously tired and his stomach was grumbling. He had enough answers for now.
...
Tatsumi and Yukina were relieved. It would seem their son was back to normal.
When he was eating with them this evening, his behavior had exhibited the calm satisfaction they were used to, without the additional and worrying changes to his personality.
Einstein had warned them that a memory wipe couldn't always erase all traces : some lingering effects of the accident could persist. Fortunately, it looked like those damn traces were all gone ! Such a relief.
...Ignorance truly is bliss.
...
...
Cocolia sat in her office, ready to contact the various members of her faction. Just before that however, her fingers stopped, hovering above the computer.
What she was attempting to do was horrible. Insane. Many would die from this. And even worse was waiting for the ones who would survive...But she had no choice. Seele, her precious daughter, had to be rescued. No matter what. Arming her resolve, she typed the results of her meeting with the Gray Serpent to her trusted accomplices.
"Matushka, The Bronya is back." A small gray-haired girl with eyes of the same color opened the door without knocking and dropped down on one of the seats. Normally, Cocolia would have thrown a wry smile at her for how casually she entered, but not this time. She had more pressing matters to discuss.
"Welcome back, Bronya. I will now explain the details of this operation to you." Bronya nodded as Cocolia pressed a switch on her desk, making multiple holograms appear. They presented her with precious intel collected over months of hard work.
"As you know, current technology cannot bring Seele back. And since she is trapped in the Quantum State, she cannot make it back on her own." Cocolia stated once more. At the name of the endearing girl, Bronya expression seemed to give away the deep fluctuations of her emotions.
"As such, we have to rely on another, superior power : Herrschers. The 1st is out of the question, and the 2nd is already dead. This only leaves us with the option of creating a new one. And in this case, we already have a promising candidate : Raiden Mei."
The hologram in front of Cocolia switched to one with the information about a young purple-haired girl. Bronya took all of this in and asked the important question. "Why is she a promising candidate ?"
"Because she already has a Core inside of her : The Gem of Conquest."
"Did he experiment on his daughter ?" Sope people would have called Bronya heartless to have so easily disregarded the shock of this revelation, but her Matushka knew her better than to do that, so she didn't point it out.
"Not at all. In fact, he saved her life." Cocolia marked a small pause before continuing. "You see, her mother didn't die of cancer. The Raiden bloodline has a peculiar but sad trait : its members are all defective Stigma Awakener. They awaken a Stigma at birth but it is a self-destructive one. Due to this failure, they are fated to live short lives. Having tried everything else to save her mother in vain, Ryoma turned to his last hope for his daughter's survival, a Herrscher Core." Cocolia was hit with a faint sympathy for him. At the end of the day, what they were trying to do was similar. But there was no other path for them to grant their wish, just like him. Bronya felt the same way, despite her diluted emotions.
The silence went on for a few seconds before Cocolia took a deep breath and opened her mouth. She had no leeway to care for others right now. This was what she had decided on. "He hoped a Herrscher Core would heal his daughter and allow her to keep living. Fortunately, that's exactly what happened. The Gem of Conquest acted and completely cleared the early damages of her Stigma, preventing other symptoms from appearing. She is currently perfectly healthy. That indicates she has adapted to the Core very well."
"So, she is going to become the next Herrscher ? How ? Dropping a Honkai reactor there wouldn't be possible, with the security Raiden Ryoma has placed. And kidnapping her is even less probable." Bronya pointed out. She looked at her Matushka in the eyes, asking for the answer.
Well, she had to answer her cute daughter, right ?
Repressing a smile, Cocolia revealed the last part of the plan. "We're not going to do any of that. The Gem will provoke an Eruption on its own because we will push it to do so."
The hologram switched again, this time displaying various administrative documents. "These documents are counterfeits that prove that ME Corp has been embezzling money. This false accusation is probably not going to last very long, but hopefully long enough for the Raiden girl's despair and resentment to be enough to cause an Eruption and turn into a Herrscher. At that time, I'll send you to capture her. A newly awakened Herrscher should be relatively easy to neutralize. You'll have helpers, so don't worry."
Both of them were aware that this plan was monstruous. This was basically selling someone to the devil, a young girl at that, and dooming millions to a grim fate. Closing her eyes, Cocolia cast aside all hesitation as she ended the projection. Unnoticed by her, a flicker of subtle emotion seemed to shine in Bronya's eyes as she watched Mei's face vanish.
...
Next morning
"They said it wouldn't rain today, damn it." grumbled Ki as he rushed through the streets, eager to get to his house to escape the problematic weather. The forecast had clearly told that there would be no rain, so it didn't bring an umbrella. And now, he was drenched to the bone. 'Great. I need to go back home ASAP, warm up and change into dry clothes before I get ill. Thank God I took my sweatshirt with me.' Unfortunately, the rain seemed determined to be a pain in his ass. It was unusually strong, as if the sky itself was weeping, which led Ki to run back home across the almost entirely empty streets of the town.
Deciding to take a breather, Ki took cover under a small shop at a deserted commercial street not far from his house. He still had 10-15 minutes of walking but the hardest was behind him, and he could use a small break.
'Mom is still a worrywart, nothing surprising there.' wryly thought as he checked his phone and saw the messages from his mother. He quickly answered her, telling her that he was not that far, that he was on his way. Pocketing his phone, he was about to end his break when...
"So, Cocolia-sama has put the plan into place ? Won't the folks from the other faction notice ?" An adult, male voice came from inside the shop. Ki stopped in his tracks. Curious, he slightly leaned towards the wall of the shop.
"Nah, it's okay. Nagazora is our territory, as long as they don't snoop around too much, we'll be alright. Anyway, Cocolia-sama sure isn't holding back this time. I feel bad for what's gonna happen to this poor town." Another male voice, probably belonging to some middle-aged man answered the first one.
'What the hell are they talking about ? A plan about Nagazora ? From these voices it looks like 2 middle-aged men talking to each other. And what's that about Nagazora being their territory ? Those guys don't feel like random thugs. What's their deal ? Why do they feel bad for this town ?' Throwing caution to the wind, Ki pressed his ear on the wall. His breath quickened as his heart hammered in his chest.
"Ha ! If you want to feel bad for something, feel bad for that heiress kid. The Raiden girl is sure gonna have a bad time. Anyway, you paid attention at the debriefing, right ? Gotta watch out for Shicksal if they come to reap the benefits from us." The first voice continued.
'Wait... I... heard this before...Shicksal...whe-'
...
"Hey you. Yes, I'm talking to you. Here, why don't you take this ? Just a little gift."
A gold and black lance brimming with power was offered to him. The object was unfamiliar but the power it gave off certainly was not. It comfortably went to rest in his hand. He looked up ,seeing a pleased smile.
"Hey, I've got an idea. Why don't you come with us ? You sure don't look very happy here at Shicksal, don't you ?"
He grabbed the outstretched hand, feeling alive for the first time in ages.
...
Ki blinked as the commercial street appeared in front of him. 'No, it's me that zoned out. What just happened ? A flashback ? From where and when ?'
"Be sure to be prepared anytime, we don't have an exact date for when we'll be needed."
"Copy that, man. I'll w-...hey, wait..."
"Huh ? What's up ?"
Ki frowned as he pressed his body onto the wall. Why couldn't he hear them anymore ? 'No wait, I can hear something. It sounds like they're whispering. But why wou-'
His heart skipped a beat. The answer was obvious.
They wouldn't whisper if they believed themselves alone, would they ?
Ki bolted from the cover of the shop back into the rain. Not even five seconds later, the door of the shop brutally opened.
"Hey, you ! Freeze !"
"Stop !"
Yeah, sure. Like hell he was going to do that.
'Don't take me for some off the mill bookworm. I did more than just reading novels in my free time !' thought Ki as he ran through the town. There was no one in sight. No help for him then. He had to lose them someh-!
*BANG !*
Ki saw from the corner of his eye something flash by, barely missing his shoulder. 'Not something ! A bullet ! They are shooting at me !' Fear and adrenaline pumped through his veins even more. 'Shit ! If they catch me, I'm done for ! Does this mean what they were saying is true ? No, that's not important right now !'
The two pursuers were also chasing him with all their might. Due to the rain, they couldn't recognize him. What if he was a spy from the other faction ? They had blabbed about a lot of information already. Not key intel, but more than enough to put them in serious trouble, so they must catch him at all costs. But it wasn't easy : Ki kept taking turns, passing through small roads and the visibility inside the rain wasn't ideal too. But they didn't panic too much, for they still had a big advantage over him : stamina.
Ki was running away from 2 trained soldiers. It was late, so nothing was open. The weather was muffling all sounds of the pursuit, so calling for help wouldn't work. Using his phone was out of the question too : he had to muster all of his attention to not stumble due to the speed he was forced to run at and the water on the ground. The boost given by the adrenaline and fear wouldn't last forever too. Things were looking rather bleak. Downright hopeless.
As soon as the boy's mind reached that conclusion, something switched inside of him. A familiar warmth and strength manifested in his chest. He couldn't look at it, but he was pretty sure the tree had reappeared. 'If it's the same thing as last time, then I could escape from these guys easily ! Wait, something's different.' Disappointment soon followed the excitement. The feeling of power was far weaker than last time. He was sure he couldn't summon that root again. That thought was not based upon logic, but intuition and familiarity.
'Last time, it was not my head that moved my body. Some sort of...subconscious instinct lead my whole being. At least, that's what it felt like. I don't understand what's happening to me, or why, so trying to act rationally is the most stupid choice here. I need to do like back then and just...let go.' Ki's mind relaxed as he basked in the peculiar power he felt coursing in his limbs. His hesitation and fear vanished, just like last time, causing him to smile a little. 'I could get used to this.'
One of the two behind him tried to take another shot but missed. They were gaining ground. It was now or never.
Moving the power to his legs, Ki jumped towards a balcony 5 meters up. A small voice inside his head told him that a jump like wasn't possible. Normally, Ki would have wholeheartedly agreed. But a certainty, coming from far deeper inside of him, declared that there was nothing to fear. This small distance was not a problem. He wouldn't even feel pain, or any strain. It pushed him forward and gently reaffirmed his resolve to do the impossible.
Ki landed on the balcony, unharmed. He then set his sights on the roof of the building, a jump of four meters, with a light heart. On the ground, the men tried to shoot him, but with the poor visibility from the rain and the speed of his movements, their bullets had no chance of reaching him. Pulling himself onto the roof with one hand full of power, Ki then landed on the other side of the street in one jump, not feeling the slightest bit sore or tired. The smile still present on his face, he promptly vanished into the rain.
As for the two guys left behind, they knew that the chase was over : it would take them too much time to get on the other side of the street. And taking the same path as him was out of the question. However, they were quick to see the positive side of this whole situation : the only ones that knew of the blunder were them and the one that gave them the slip. No one else knew they were here tonight since they came across each other coincidentally. As such, with a rapid look at each other's eyes, they both decided on hiding the truth. Reporting such a blunder was, well, not a good idea for either of them, considering who was their boss. And neither side had been able to identify the other anyway, so no risk of them giving out their identity.
Humans were indeed quick to adapt.
...
Ki lied down on his bed, eyes dropping. When he got back, his chest had long stopped acting up, and he felt back to normal. Which meant he was tired, drenched and feeling beyond done with today. Emphasis on him being drenched. 'I would have probably felt better had I been thrown into a river.' he sourly thought as he made his way in. All in all, this could have been worse : he got chewed out a bit about how late he came back, but that didn't go on for too long. He did feel bad that they waited for him for dinner, though, but didn't tell them anything about what he heard and the ensuing chase. Partly because he had nothing to support his suspicions, but also because he knew they were hiding a lot from him too. That certainly helped with his guilt.
'Ugh. None of this is making me feel any better. Whatever, I need... to...*yawn* sleep... right now. This can... wait for tomorrow...' His eyes slowly drooped down as his breathing and body relaxed.
...
...
...
"Hey, hurry up Ki ! It's about to launch !"
"Yes, yes, I'm coming."
I made my way to my seat, dragged by Carla. She had been waiting for this day since a lot of time, so I understood her excitement. My heart was beating fast too, but I'm pretty sure the silver-haired girl in front of me had her part in that.
We took our seats barely a minute away from the countdown. Carla was beside herself with excitement, and I wasn't any better. Seeing her so lively made me realize once again how pretty the girl was. I shook my head before she noticed my gaze as the countdown started. I would have time for this later. I had waited for too long to see this to miss it.
10
The late spectators got on their seat.
9
No one talked or moved anymore.
8
The silence was deafening.
7
Mom and Dad were a few seats away.
6
They looked tense and eager, like everybody else, to witness this historical moment.
5
It was going to go. Beyond the sky, up in the stars.
4
And we were seeing this from a front row seat.
3
Do the people inside feel the same as us ?
2
But that's not something important right now. Maybe later I would have the chance to know.
1
I stopped breathing.
0.
The rocket took off. Roaring its determination against the terrestrial pull, it carried the astronauts to the sea of stars outside of Earth, with only one direction : Mars. The first Mars expedition, launched and directed by the World Union, had begun in front of our very eyes. Years of careful preparation and wait, for this. Cheers erupted as the space vessel went out of our sight, towards its destination. People got up from their seats, shouting, jumping and laughing. Me and Carla did pretty much the same thing. In fact, I can't remember what I did clearly, overwhelmed by that frenzy. But this was one of the best moments of my life for sure.
...
Once we all calmed down,(I thought Carla would never cool down, it was a miracle she did after that) we went to the party. There, we were informed that the mission was carrying on without a single problem : we welcomed that with another round of cheers. And the party began. Well, mostly for the adults : us young adults decided to have a small party in a nearby room. The children of astronauts and various important personalities were here, but almost everyone there knew each other quite well, so we had a really fun time.
I leaned on the wall, as I drank my fruit juice. This day had been just so great. I had simply never felt so happy in my life.
I took a deep breath to steady my nerves and gulped down the rest of the glass. It was now or never. There would be no better occasion. My eyes found Carla in the crowd moving towards me. I discreetly motioned to the outside and I began walking towards the exit. Carla soon joined me.
We got on a narrow road among the various buildings of the site. The noise and light of the party vanished, replaced by the quiet of the night and the light of the stars and the moon. None of us were talking. Not even Carla, which was really out of character for her. But I needed to speak. I had important words to convey to her. Right here, right now.
"Hey, remember the first time we met ?"
"Huh ? Yeah, why ?" She made a funny face as she remembered that particular event, no doubt basking in the 'glory' .She pouted as she saw my grin. "You sure enjoy reminding me of that, do you ?"
Our first meeting was indeed quite the memorable thing. She fell from a window when she was 11 trying to catch papers stolen by the wind, right on top of me. Had she been slightly heavier, my spine would have been in pieces, and I would be forced to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair. Not exactly the best start for anything, really.
"I was pretty mad at first, you know. Even if I was told that all the necessary care would be given, that I would walk like normal soon, I was about to yell my head off at you. But then I saw your face when you entered my hospital room, and I thought something."
"...What was it ?"
My heart beat as if it was trying to explode. I couldn't breathe. But I forced my lips open.
"I thought that I just wanted to know your name. I had even forgotten about why you looked so apologetic when you came in."
We both stopped walking. My eyes met her inky black eyes and we stayed stuck in place. "I didn't think like this just because you are pretty, you know."
A shiver went through her body. Or was it only me ? I had my eyes locked onto her, yet I felt like nothing but our voices existed.
"Does this mean...you..." Her trembling voice left her pristine lips.
"Yes...I..."My head was void. My throat was a desert. But I forced myself to whisper to her.
"Ich liebe dich."
I felt relieved and more stressed than ever at the same time. Her mouth was slightly open in shock as she gazed at me. I awaited her answer without moving or breaking eye contact.
Finally, she gave me a tearful smile. "You're unbelievable. I was just about to say it first, you know ? Ich liebe dich, Ki."
After that, I barely remember. It's so hazy. I pulled her into my arms and we shared a kiss as I felt euphoria burst into my chest. She rested her head on my chest as I wrapped my arms around her.
"Hey, don't push me !"
Wait a minute.
"You recorded everything, right ?"
"Oh, I'm so happy for these two !"
"About damn time, really."
Turns out we weren't alone. Our friends and families were hiding nearby and had witnessed everything. Talk about ruining the moment ! We couldn't complain much, embarrassed as we were : our faces were red as they congratulated us.
"So, after all that talk about inner beauty, you go for the most beautiful girl you've met, huh ?"
"Shut it."
Plus, some unneeded teasing. I would get my revenge on all of these traitors later.
Our little group made it back to the parking lot. We then prepared to split up (with some additional teasing from everyone about leaving us alone for a moment). This was the happiest day of my life. It would without a doubt become a treasured memory we would fondly look back at for a long time.
(It should have been. Why did things turn out this way ? Why ? Why !? WHY !?)
I barely stepped towards my car when it happened. A shiver of danger and fear like never before assaulted me. I instantly turned towards Carla. Our eyes met. She was still smiling.
Ah.
I knew. This was the last thing I would see. Not a bad sight to bring with me though.
Goodbye.
The world froze around me. And then they came. White hands stretched out towards me, coming from everywhere at once. I couldn't run, move or do anything. And they got closer. And closer. They reached out inside of me.
I love you.
My flesh.
I love you.
My bones.
I love you.
My heart.
I love you.
My brain.
I love you.
My soul.
I love you.
So that's how it is.
There was no animosity. Not the slightest negative feeling was to be found in that embrace. But this wasn't a feeling I could understand either. The hands nestled deeply inside and gave out a light. An abundant flow of it that utterly.
Ripped.
Me.
To.
Shreds.
And in that instant, Ki died.
When the world restarted, the light burst out of me. It spread far and wide, sure to destroy so much. But I didn't care anymore. Not even for the girl who picked herself off the ground and desperately called my name.
I rose from the ground and held my arms out in direction of the buildings where I knew humans resided. Roots coursed on my arms, forming some sort of round end in my palms. These extensions lit up, and spew light towards the buildings.
The screams soon followed.
...
I screamed as I woke up in the middle of the night. I was trembling, frozen despite being under my couch. I feared I might cry out in my sleep, so I put the couch over my head to muffle it. I wept then and there, the emotions from too vivid to dismiss them as unimportant.
What did this mean ? Was I going mad ? These...memories simply couldn't exist. There has never been a Mars expedition in history ! But there was no way this was all just a dream !
I had no answer to these questions. But that didn't matter. I wanted this to end. I had enough. Throwing myself out of my bed, I was about to rush out to my mother and father to tell them that my memories hadn't been erased, that I wanted them gone...I didn't know what else I could do. The urge to run away was so strong.
'But asking them that wouldn't really resolve anything. Amnesia won't stop these dreams.' A small voice inside reported the truth.
'Shut up.' I didn't want to accept it.
'You know this is the truth.'
'Shut up !'
Taken by a sudden rage, I went to the bathroom of my bedroom, threw out my top and began scratching at my chest. There was nothing there, but I didn't care.
'Go away ! Vanish ! Give me back my normal life you damn mark !'
But nothing happened. I hurt myself for nothing. Never before had I felt so powerless. So weak. So helpless.
I collapsed in the bathroom.
Author's note :
I'M FINALLY BACK ! Exams were such a pain. Anyway, here you go, a 5K chapter in which not much happens :). On a more serious note, I've given a few hints at our dear Ki's true identity here. If some of you readers are able to pick them up, congrats, you're geniuses. If not, just wait for the chapters to come out.
So, who's Carla ? Some competition for Fiana ? Well, yes and no. Sorry for the cliche, but it's complicated. And yeah, Ki suffers, though I'm clearly not done with him so don't worry :).
I sure hope I staged the confession well. To tell the truth, this chapter was the longest to make since it contains important elements from the core of the story, but also because it's my first time writing those kinds of things. Feedback very much needed. But I'm not gonna spoil anything, so don't worry. As always, thanks for reading, leave a like/comment if you've enjoyed, and I'll see you later !