Chapter 12: Right Away Torn Apart

When the Architects designed and built Belobog many centuries ago, one fundamental idea was put above all and considered as the foundation of the fortress city; all must be fair up and below to accommodate not just the souls but also the bodies. In other word, what stretched above was also true to the underground.

Belobog was massive. It had in and around it facilities to support a civilization for generations to come. A self-sufficient city that could persist both time and dangers, a shelter to protect the last cradle of humanity in a planet ravaged by a never ending winter. Power plants, administrative districts, farmlands, agriculture centers and military fortresses were ones amongst many more that were too much to mention. The city was built in a wall as it was the wish of the Architects, to preserve and protect lives against the inevitable destruction of the universe.

However, while time itself was preservation's greatest ally, it was also its greatest enemy. Throughout the years, many portions of the city had either fallen to the never ending cycles of moon and sun due to the lack of care, or the blades and unholy screeches of its enemy. Many of the once mighty castle-city districts had fallen to ruin in the generations after Alisa Rand up to the reign of the latest Supreme Guardian Cocolia Rand, this was even more true to the Underworld.

Neglected for a decade, plenty of the Underworld had been left vacant by its settlers, either willingly or not. Not just once they must retreat back after a monster attack, more often they were forced to abandon the lost ground due to the lack of resources to rebuild even if they reclaimed them somehow, which was far and between, because if they were lacking in material, they lacked more in terms of manpower.

Rivet Town was one of the many abandoned districts. The once bustling Underworld town that in its glory rivalled even Boulder Town was now nothing but a ghost town. Its atmosphere felt thick and heavy with coldness and decay, a whisper of past splendor lingering like dried blood in white cloth. Trash heaps sat on the sides of the roads, remnants from residents once living in the buildings and shops all around them. In the cold, decomposition happened slowly so trash from years ago were still present without someone to feed them into the incinerators.

Once Seele gained the permission to enter Rivet Town from the Wildfires guarding the blockade they immediately set foot and began their search for the kids. The town was significantly colder with the heaters long ran out of Geomarrow to fuel them and dark with street lamps being the only source of lighting for the group.

Seele told them that the Wildfire often expedited into the abandoned districts to maintain the lights, replacing the busted ones with new bulbs to keep the roads lit. So, although the buildings around them were dark, the streets were not. One of the reasons was so they wouldn't live surrounded by darkness where the monsters creep, the other to ensure that those lost might still find a way home, no matter how unlikely was the latter.

Still, trickery of the mind preyed on them no less. The dark houses and shops were haunting with the silence permeating in the air like a blanket of pure dread. The light coming from the lamp posts illuminated the dusty windows, not only once giving an illusion of faces staring back towards the strangers so daring to walk in lands where many died horribly.

Already, the group could see where battles once were fought and the subsequent sight of dried blood and other fluids. Being in the Underworld meant there was no rain and no rain meant nothing to wash the black stain that had seeped into the materials. An eternal reminder of what befallen the town.

The houses themselves were in so terrible state calling them inadequate for living would have been a gross understatement, dangerous would be the best word to describe them. Wood and steel collapsed under their own weight, be it from the elements or the previous fights. Although rain couldn't reach the Underworld naturally, the air itself was incredibly dank it was guaranteed any metal based structure would crumble without proper maintenance for so long.

Whatever houses left standing, they looked worse for wear often with missing doors and window panes, most likely salvaged by whoever daring enough to brave the monster infested town.

March jumped to cling at Dan Heng's side with every noise produced not by the group, looking around her with visible fear and apprehension while Dan Heng quietly allowed the pinkette an easier access to his arm for the pinkette to hold. She hated ghosts and Dan Heng knew it.

Stelle fared much better than her friend as she walked right beside Kiana. She noticed that the white haired woman had her hands on each of her sides instead of pockets while her blue eyes would constantly look around them, occasionally lingering at one spot Stelle couldn't see for it was always beyond an obstacle before they flicked to somewhere else. Kiana had a pair of handguns holstered on her outer thighs, weapons of intricate designs she had never seen before that emitted warmth which Stelle could feel perfectly from near Kiana.

The mood was quiet ever since they stepped foot onto the town and Stelle could understand that. Still, she decided to ask Kiana about the guns, partially to break the silence but mostly because she was curious.

"Hey," she began quietly, nudging on Kiana with her shoulder to gain the woman's attention. "What are they?"

Kiana blinked, a grin Stelle had come to associate with Kiana blossoming on her face. "Family heirlooms," Kiana said simply, her mirth didn't go unnoticed by Stelle. "They're the chosen weapon of us Kaslana."

"Are they Divine Key?"

"Yup! These pistols are actually one weapon! The true form of the Judgment of Shamash is a sword!"

"No way! Can I see?!"

Kiana smirked as she unholstered the guns. "Okay, so when you put them together like this and press these buttons over here they will—agh?!"

Bronya, their Bronya, who had been watching the interaction stepped to Kiana's side and unceremoniously smacked Kiana in the back of her head, scowling. "Must I remind you that we're still in the Underground?"

Kiana glared at her. "But you told me that I can use Shamash!"

"In its pistol form," Bronya elaborated, pronouncing each word slowly as if explaining the nature of rocket science to a monkey. "Shamash's sword form has surface temperature of thousands of degree Celsius, you lit that up you quite literally be carrying a small sun."

"So?"

"So don't," Bronya said, more than just a little annoyed at Kiana's stupidity. "We don't want to suffocate everyone by burning the oxygen, not to mention the Geomarrow."

"You're such a party popper, you know that?"

Her best friend leveled her an exasperated glare Kiana returned. "I'd rather pop your party than us popping the entire Underworld up and dooming the entirety of Belobog and Jarilo-VI, by extension."

With that, Bronya moved ahead to talk with Mei. The purple haired woman glanced back at Kiana and Stelle before she shook her head with a fond smile.

Kiana threw her hands up in the air after she put her weapons back, interlocking her fingers behind her head and pouting. "Man, what a bummer."

Stelle hummed. "Sorry, I didn't know."

"Nah, it's fine. You didn't know. I'd show you later, alright?" And in a more conspiratory voice she whispered to Stelle "Bronya said that, but the idea of pistol-sword is actually something she adapted to her own weapon! Though, it's a little different but still."

Stelle's mouth dropped down as she stared at Bronya's back. "Really? She got the idea from Shamash?"

"Well, not really. Many Divine Keys have secondary forms or more," Kiana began, voice returning to normal volume and Stelle nodded. She remembered Welt who told them about it earlier and Bronya who also gave a little demonstration afterwards. "Shamash have three power levels, actually, two of which are in its sword form. Mei's Seven Thunders have plenty of forms, too. So much in fact it is known to shift about depending on its users, sometimes unintentionally."

"Unintentionally?" Stelle asked inquisitively, raising an eyebrow at the choice of word Kiana used.

"It can change to whatever it wants without the user's order which caused troubles in the past. Remember the tidbits about how Divine Keys were made of dead Herrscher Cores? The Herrscher of Thunder was the only one who could make it submit because it was basically the same element it was made of. Mei is the only one who can use the weapon effectively."

Stelle's eyes found the sword strapped on Mei's hip. It was of elaborate design, which she supposed was something common for Divine Keys, and extremely powerful. She had no doubt about the later. When they escaped from the Silvermane Guards a few days ago, Mei was this close from taking it out and using it but she hadn't. Yet, the sheer suppressive electricity emanating from the weapon at the slightest of tug was overwhelming, as if the the storm itself was demanding its conquest and dominion of the world's thunder. Welt's weapon was powerful, and supposedly it was wielded in a power not even half of it. Mei's? The user herself was a full fledged Herrscher equal in footing with her Finality. Just thinking about the destruction it could cause made Stelle shudder.

"How many Divine Keys do you have with you?" Stelle found herself asking Kiana who shrugged nonchalantly.

"I have two with me. Mei has one so it's only three if you exclude the Star of Eden." She paused as if thinking of something before she turned towards Stelle fully. "Do you happen to know a blond man who came with Welt?"

Stelle blinked, confused. Blond man? There was never a blond man at the Express. Then again, she was a new resident so she didn't know much. "I'm rather new. You should ask March or Dan Heng about that."

Kiana nodded, the frown she had lingering for a few more seconds before it disappeared. "Alright, then."

Feeling that the subject had turned somewhat foreign, Stelle decided to change it. "So, you and Bronya are quite close, huh? I mean, you guys throw insults at each other on daily basis like sisters would."

Kiana smiled. She didn't deny any of what Stelle said because it was true. "Bronya is my best friend," she said with genuine softness, blue eyes transfixed on the silver hair that was Bronya's. "She and I along with Mei have gone through so much. We didn't start on good term. In fact, when we first met she was hellbent on killing me and Mei."

"Wait, what?"

But Kiana waved it off with a chuckle. "Don't worry about it. Bronya was very different back then," she simply told her as if it would explain everything. Still feeling confused, Kiana must have seen it because she offered Stelle a reassuring smile. "I'll tell you more later. It's a long story."

Stelle nodded her head slowly, accepting the words as were. Kiana continued after that.

"She and I... Well, we've always had this strange relationship. She is always the smart one between us three while I'm not really that big of a thinker. I suppose, I was just jealous of her," she finished with a sheepish chuckle.

Stelle smiled. "She is so much like Welt in that."

Kiana hummed in agreement. "She is. They're not simply mentor and pupil but more to father and daughter. Bronya respects Welt greatly and Welt values her just as much."

"What about you?"

"Me?"

"Yeah. You often speak about this teacher of yours but you never really elaborate."

For a moment, all Kiana did was to stare at Stelle before she grinned a full grin. Perplexed, Stelle couldn't help the confusion that followed.

"She was the most amazing person I've ever met," Kiana began proudly. "She taught us how to fight, to survive but the most valuable of lessons is to never give up. That is the most important bit, I think. Plenty of times, we felt like giving up but she was always there to help us on our feet that even when she was gone, we've known how to stand and carry on forward. To me, she's the kind of person I want to be."

"How did she die, if you don't mind me asking?" Stelle asked gingerly, voice low. Kiana's smile turned solemn at that.

"She burned her soul to save her student. She sacrificed herself to lit up the darkness surrounding me."

A pair of golden eyes widened as Stelle gasped, rendered speechless as she stared at Kiana. A mixture of shock and confusion etched on her feature. "How— I mean, what happened?"

Kiana put a hand onto her chest, soothing the ache that wasn't hers. Sirin remembered what happened just as much as Kiana did, after all they both were the same person, but unlike Kiana she hadn't gotten over the guilt that came with Himeko's death.

"It's okay," Kiana mentally comfort Sirin, "be proud of her."

"I know..."

Clearing her throat, Kiana continued, this time to Stelle. "A lingering hatred from my other half took over myself. My powerlessness allowed her to ravage the world and caused countless to suffer. My family tried to bring me back and they and their love succeeded, though at a price of her life."

It was unbelievable and borderline unimaginable. Kiana, the woman who always looked so cheerful and sure to herself, could have such a terrible past. Not once did she show any indication of her troubles, always smiling and happy it almost like she was content with her life. Pride was one thing she allowed to show, a surety in each of her step as she carried herself ahead, yet there was no condescension in it. Instead of feeling of superiority, Kiana's kind of pride was one fueled by the knowledge that she had succeeded in carrying everyone's hope on her back.

"But enough of me," Kiana said, pulling Stelle out of her musing. "Let's talk about you! We haven't exactly talked about who you are and why are you on the Express."

Stelle shook her head, smiling apologetically. "Sorry, I'm afraid I don't have anything worthwhile that I can tell you."

"Huh, why?"

"My memories escape me since I woke up in Herta Space Station. I only have a vague recollection of them, a name if you would."

"Who?"

"Kafka. That's all I remember."

The dark orphanage loomed over the horizon, its position on the hill, higher than the rest of the town, gave an impression of a castle long abandoned by its master. Light coming from the artificial lights in the ceiling casted a shadow below it, giving it a shade darker than the rest.

The group traversed the rocky stairways with utmost caution, keeping their steps feather light and silent. Oddly enough, or rather more than enough, there was no monster attacking them so far which caused the group to tense even more. For some reason, any monsters they did encounter on the way would go to the opposite direction as far away from them. They noticed this, but particularly Kiana who had the power of Void in her.

She caught Stelle staring at her in wonder multiple times whenever her gaze lingered to something behind a building or rocks, something no one could see but herself. Her authority allowed Kiana to feel the space around her and that included the monsters roaming about the place even without visual contact whatsoever.

Still, none of the monsters approached them, always keeping a distance as if afraid to attack. This little detail didn't escape Kiana who pondered if the monsters somehow had some degree of intelligence to know they were no match as proven by their fight in the mine.

The Silvermane Bronya was currently taking point with Seele close behind her while the trio teenagers found themselves boxed in in between Kiana, her Bronya and Mei. Kiana herself was in the rear, keeping close eyes to everything around her as they ascended the hill.

"This is weird," Seele said, saying everyone's thought out loud, "we should've been attacked by now."

"The monsters seem afraid," Kiana told her and they glanced back towards her in the rear. "Well, not seem but I can feel them skulking around in the dark."

Stelle stared her oddly at that but Kiana waved her off with a shake of her head.

"I guess you guys beat them good in the mine, then," Seele continued with a shrug.

"They know?"

"Uh-huh. You see the Corrosion in our way? The more there is, the more developed the monsters are. They form this network that allowed them to communicate to each other, strategizing and all that. Fat chance they're gonna attack us if we let out guards down."

Kiana blinked. "Huh. Well, I have an idea," she said, drawing Shamash and gripping them up. "I'll go hunt them down so they won't cause us trouble later."

"Alone? You sure?"

A shrug. "It's fine, I'm fluent in 8 million forms of ass kicking!" Kiana smirked cheekily with a wink to the group who now had stopped to stare at her worriedly.

"I'm coming with you," Mei offered but Kiana shook her head.

"You stay with them, Mei. I'll go with Stelle."

"Huh, me? I don't think I can be a great help?"

"Nonsense. Come on, we Kaslanas never shy away from action!"

Kiana walked away before she could protest. Looking back to the group, Stelle offered them a sigh and reassuring smile. "I'll be back," she told them curtly before she jogged to catch up to Kiana.

"Where are we going?" Stelle found herself asking Kiana as she fell a step behind her.

"I sense something," Kiana began in all seriousness, "it's this way."

She led her through a series of abandoned alleyways and main roads, for a moment Stelle feared they would get lost but Kiana didn't seem to mind it as she marched forth. Summoning her bat, she kept a close proximity with the woman, her white hair fluttering behind her with each step Kiana took.

They stopped in front of a building, its door still intact as Kiana gestured for her to stand behind her. A little confused, she only had a split second to think about it before Kiana kicked said door open, making Stelle jump in surprise at the noise.

"Let's go," Kiana whispered, a useless notion considering the loud crash of the door but Stelle nodded anyway. Still following behind Kiana, there was a sudden oppressive feeling as they entered, darkness threatening to pressure them as it surrounded them, robbing them of their eyes.

Suddenly, a small ball of fire came to existence in the air right beside Kiana, its warmth banishing both darkness and coldness around them. Stelle stared in awe as it circled around Kiana before moving ahead of them, illuminating the hallway and the stairway at the end of it.

"What's that?" Stelle whispered to Kiana and for a moment she swore she could see Kiana's eyes glowing blue in the dark when she glanced back to her.

"Something to help you see."

Kiana had no need for it. She could see perfectly in the dark thanks to her nature as a Herrscher. Stelle, however, couldn't, and Kiana didn't want the girl to stumble on something and hurt herself in the dark house.

They walked past doors and rooms alike, each in a state of disarray with clothes and furnitures thrashed and scattered on the cold floor. The ball of fire had ascended the stairway out of their sight but the light it emitted still illuminated the stairs, flickering as the fire danced and burned over literal nothing but pure Honkai energy.

Once they arrived on the second floor, Kiana immediately went to the nearest window with Stelle close on toe, the fire flickered and died behind them, once again shrouding the duo in darkness and Stelle immediately found herself missing the warmth.

Kiana pushed the tattered curtains aside slowly and the light from the lamp posts outside filtered in the room, reflecting in Stelle's golden eyes as she peered out along with Kiana.

"What are we looking for?" Stelle whispered right beside Kiana's ear. This close she could feel how warm Kiana was or how nice she smelled. A combination of smokey firewood and cosmic dust common in Herta Space Station. Oddly enough, it made her smell homely to Stelle.

She shook her head.

Kiana, oblivious as she was to Stelle's thought, pointed to somewhere in the dark corner. "There, near that garbage can," Kiana informed her just as quietly.

Stelle squinted her eyes and focused her attention to the particular spot. At first, finding nothing but a flickering street lamp before she caught something moving in the shadow. Her first thought was a monster, but once the figure step under the light she couldn't help the sharp, surprised inhale she took.

"Is that a person?"

Said figure was specifically feminine, cladded in a thick winter jacket with flowing cape which had blue inner finish that kind of remind Stelle of Bronya's ceremonial dress. She paused at the thought, remembering that the Silvermane Guards would also use some blue clothes to identify themselves as the Supreme Guardian's escorts and the reinforcers of her wills.

Stelle was about to point this out when Kiana shook her head. "Look at its face," she told her and Stelle complied, eyes widening at what she saw. "It has the same energy with Fragmentum Monster, albeit more condensed."

She could barely register the information as her eyes were still glued to the being's face. Where one would usually find eyes was a mask of golden color, protruding seemingly from its forehead to cover them. Its skin was also unnaturally white, smooth and pale as corpse, while its mouth was set in a frozen line that showed no emotions. It was also floating, feet hanging semi uselessly over the ground.

"What the hell is that?" Stelle whispered urgently to Kiana. It looked like a twisted version of a human being, a mocking resemblance to God's image, yet for everything it seemed it was unholy as the devil itself. At least, the Antimatter Legions she fought back in Herta Space Station did not have a human's face and the delicate appearance that came with it.

"I don't know, but I want to find out."

A group of monsters approached the thing and they watched with fascination as it moved its hand and mouth, this far all they could hear was some rumbling from the monsters as they responded to the orders but Stelle was sure there was some actual words spoken by the abomination. "It commands the monsters. Maybe it's their boss or something?"

"Do you think we can talk with it?"

Stelle blinked and stared at Kiana incredulously. "Are we going to capture it? We don't even know what it is!"

"More reason to find out." Kiana pulled her phone, opened the camera and snapped a quick picture of the strange hell spawn. Stelle saw her sending the image to Mei before she pocketed it back. "Don't worry, if it's proven too much of a trouble we'll just have to kill it. Blow its head off or something."

"And if it doesn't work? Fighting an enemy that has no head is significantly more terrifying, you know."

"Then we'll beat it to a bloody pulp until nothing is left. You know how the saying goes; when in doubt, blow shit up. Now, come."

The floor creaked under her weight and March flinched at the sound. Looking down to her feet, she was met with a sight of termite infested wood. If that was all, she would've been fine but then one particularly big cockroach slipped out from between the gaps and approached her feet. March immediately lose it.

She opened her mouth, ready to shriek in disgust, when a hand suddenly clamped over it and stopped her. March's eyes widened and her breath came in a shallow blow, feeling the cockroach now crawling on her right foot.

"Keep it low," muttered the Herrscher Bronya and March whimpered in terror. "I'm going to release you but you'll have to keep quiet, is that okay?"

She nodded frantically, now more than desperate when the little bugger crept further up to her thigh. Bronya released her and plucked the cockroach right before it could slip under her skirt, unceremoniously flicking it to somewhere in the hallway without an ounce of contempt.

"T—thanks..." March muttered, shuddering at the ghostly sensation of those little legs on her skin.

Bronya nodded and walked ahead.

March sighed, her bow hanging almost uselessly in one hand while her other hand held her phone flashlight up. Shortly after they made their entry to the orphanage, they agreed to split to cover more ground. The Silvermane Bronya was with Seele in the first floor while Dan Heng and Mei checked on the outskirts of the orphanage itself, meanwhile she and this Bronya were tasked to clear the second floor of the building.

It wasn't even that hard of a job. They just had to check the rooms and look for any signs or clues they could use to find the kids but March had been getting difficulties all about. Her fear for the darkness getting the better of her.

She didn't understand why. Her mind forgot but her body seemed to remember something. Something utterly unpleasant about such an oppressive darkness. Maybe it was because she spent many of her days floating in the dark space encased in ice despite her unconscious state, or maybe it had something to do with her forgotten past. Either way, March abhorred it.

Bronya thankfully didn't comment on any of it. If March didn't know any better, it would seem like Bronya was not aware of her turmoils. But she did know better and thus knew that Bronya was aware. She just refused to bring the topic up, most likely waiting for March to initiate it herself.

She couldn't. Mostly because she didn't understand it herself.

"March, over here." Bronya motioned for her to follow and March obliged, banishing her thoughts for later when they reared their ugly heads again. "I believe these are Natasha's."

Crates of various sizes were stacked in a corner of a particular room, March shone her phone to beside the door where a sign was, on it the word 'storage' was visible with the other half gone in tatter.

"They're empty," Bronya began, drawing her attention back to the woman. "Someone's got them."

"Maybe the kids?" March offered and Bronya shrugged.

"Perhaps. Let's go downstairs, there's nothing left up here."

March nodded, more than happy to leave and join the rest of the group below. She followed Bronya as they backtracked, quicker this time so since they wouldn't have to check every room on the way.

Descending the decrepit stairways was just as nerve-wracking as ascending it, though. It was a miracle they hadn't collapsed under their combined weights. March was not ready to count her lucky stars, however.

Below, Seele and the Silvermane Bronya had been waiting for them, standing close as they talked in a hushed whispers. There was something about their body languages that made March raise her eyebrows quizzically.

"Hey, guys," March greeted them, noticing something in Bronya's hand. "What's that?"

The Silvermane Commandant didn't answer right away, her eyes forlorn as she stared at the small doll resting on her palm. Worn and dirtied, the miniature teddy bear had certainly seen better days yet Bronya looked at it no less fondly. When she looked up, March was surprised to see tears in her silver eyes.

"I remember this place."

Her words caused March thought to grind to halt. "What do you mean you remember this place?"

"She's one of us," Seele said plainly, crossing her arms over her chest and grimacing. "Natasha must have had her at one point. I can't believe that the Overworld princess is actually an Underworlder"

"Wait, does that mean...?" The pinkette trailed off, shocked, as she stared at Bronya with wide eyes.

"I've always known I was adopted, but never from where," Bronya whispered. Her voice sounded like she was holding back the tears. "To think I was actually from down here..."

Seele scoffed. "Disappointed?"

"No. Not at all. I'm just surprised, that's all."

"Seele said she's from here, right? Do you not remember her?"

Seele shook her head. "No. I mean, maybe? It's been so long. I might or might not have been here when Bronya was around."

"My mother— Madam Supreme Guardian— adopted me when I was six. That was twenty years ago."

"Well, that confirmed it. Two years later and we might've been friends."

A sudden stillness filled the air after that. The implication of what Seele said didn't lose on them. Two years. In two years they might've met and become friends. Two people who represented the status quo of the Overworld and Underworld, an exact opposite to one another. Wherein one was a graceful princess of formal etiquettes, the other was a brash enforcer of the people's peace and stability and unheeding to the means, just the results.

March almost forgot about the other Bronya standing behind her who chuckled. "Well, isn't that fascinating," she mused out loud.

"... you said you were in an orphanage, too. That's where you met me, right?"

Confused, March looked at Seele inquisitively but the purple haired woman had her gaze set on the Herrscher. It seemed she wasn't the only one who lost judging from the way the Silvermane Bronya was frowning. "What are you talking about?"

"I have a Seele too," said her Bronya with a smile, "she and I were in the same orphanage ran by Cocolia in my world."

March surprised face was eclipsed by the shocked Silvermane. "Mother? She had an orphanage? What happened to it?"

"It's gone. It's a long story. Simply put, she wasn't a person with good life records. Matushka caused me, my friends and family great sufferings, be it inadvertently or not, and she was jailed for life for crime against humanity." It was a little too much for March. One time she was surprised, then intrigued and then horrified. The barrage of emotions almost swallowed her whole. "Madam Rand, the Cocolia I know would sacrifice the world so she could protect her family, but to us who fight to protect the world her selfish desire served as nothing but hindrance. Although I don't know your mother, I know mine and from what I understand they both share that one similarity."

"... what about Seele? Your Seele? Did she cause her pain, too?" Her counterpart asked, drawing a surprised look from Seele.

"Not intentionally, no." Bronya answered. "Matushka once experimented on children, myself included, but one day during a particularly risky experiment Seele took my place to protect me. She's always been a kind girl, so sweet and brave. Braver than me. Yet it costed her her body. Seele's consciousness disappeared in the Sea of Quanta after the experiment failed."

A deep, shaky breath. The Silvermane Commandant closed her eyes and inhaled slowly. "I'm sorry, Seele. It seemed that, regardless where, my mother always causes you and many others pain."

"Why are you apologizing, you idiot? It's not like you've done something wrong to me," said Seele with a hiss. "Continue the story, that's not all to it."

Bronya hummed. "I tried to get Seele back and got crippled as the result. Seele didn't hate Matushka, though, and she made a promise to me before she was gone that when we reunite for good, we would have everyone to the sea." Bronya paused and March watched in wonder as she put two fingers over her smiling lips. "That was my first kiss, too."

"See? It's all fine." Seele huffed before her gaze flew back towards the Herrscher. "Wait, kiss? What the fuck? You didn't tell me any of that!"

"I didn't think it was relevant."

"Relevant my ass! You telling me that I kissed you?!"

"Well, technically it wasn't you..."

March made a face. "Why are you so against the idea of kissing?"

"Because I didn't even know her," she pointed at the Herrscher and then the Silvermane, "or her enough!"

"Oh, wow. I didn't know you're such a maiden at heart."

"I knew she has that soft spot in her."

Seele's brow twitched in annoyance, glaring at March and Bronya exasperatedly. The fact that the Silvermane Bronya also silently giggled at her didn't help at all. "Do you want to get your ass kicked? Because that's how you get your ass kicked."

"I'm sure they did not mean any harm. It's actually kind of cute."

"Princess, if I hear you call me cute again I will shove my boot up your ass so hard your tongue is going to be my new sole," Seele growled, "and don't think I'm joking either."

They bursted out laughing at that.

Dan Heng met them on their way out, giving them a silent nod of greeting and raising an eyebrow at the lingering blush on Seele's face. Seele gave him a warning glare to not ask and Dan Heng wisely decided to oblige.

"Mei and I found the kids, they're fine." He told them. "This way."

A relieved sigh escaped March's chest, the pressure that had been suffocating her easing until nothing was left. Seele and both Bronya's also visibly relaxed, though hers seemed more subtle.

He led them to the back of the orphanage, down a small passageway that ended in a small external storage area of the orphanage. The rocky terrain provided a natural shelter in a form of small cave and it seemed Natasha put it into good use in the past.

Mei was there, checking on the kids for any injury. She was talking to them in her gentle, motherly voice, a small smile on her face as she too looked relieved. However, one kid in particular caught their attention as she stood a little taller and behind the other children.

"Mei, how are—"

Bronya was cut off when Seele quite literally disappeared in a sea of fluttering butterflies, too fast for the Herrscher to really see, only to reappear right in front of the kids. She grabbed one of them by the ears and pulled hard.

"Hook! You little runt! What in the world were you thinking going to this place with your troublemaking friends?!"

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Let go of me you brute of a woman!"

"What the hell did you just call me?!"

"Ah! Sorry, Miss Seele! Please, they're going to come off!"

Seele huffed, releasing her hold. "Good, you still can feel your ears. I hope that means you can still listen, too."

She turned her attention to the rest of the kids who now had pretty much hidden themselves behind Mei's towering form. Glaring and earning a few terrified squeaks from them, she looked at the last kid who was still standing alone.

"Clara."

"... hi, Miss Seele."

"What are you doing here?"

The girl, Clara, was significantly older than the rest of the kids. If Mei guessed right, she was probably in her early teenage years.

"I was looking for medicines when I came across them," said the girl. Though her voice was soft, there's a hint of surety in it. A certain degree of maturity. "I thought I'd keep them safe until someone came. Rivet Town is a dangerous place."

"Are you alone?"

"No, I'm with Perkins. He's back there. I told him to wait."

"He's a robot," Mei chimed in softly, "an excitable little thing, I must say."

"I'm sorry about that, big sis." Clara told Mei, clutching her hands together to her chest and bowing to Mei. "He's not a bad robot. It's just that he's ordered to protect me at all cost and we did not expect to meet people in Rivet Town."

Mei hummed warmly. "It's okay. You stopped him before it could escalate further."

"Were you the one who took all the medicines in the orphanage?"

Clara nodded at Bronya. "Yes, people in Robot Settlement need it after what happened in the mine. I want to help them so I went here."

"That's very noble of you," said the Herrscher as she gave Clara one of her rare smile. "Do you have all you need?"

"Yes, everything should be enough. With these, everyone will get better."

"How is she getting praised while we get scolded?" Hook grumbled, pouting an adorable pout that melted Mei's heart. "We're here looking for medicines to help everyone, too."

"You need them too?" Clara asked, surprised, as she looked at all of them. "I can share some of them with you."

"It's okay," Bronya assured the girl, "we've had it resolved. You go and give everyone the medicines."

Clara nodded and turned to leave, giving all of them a smile. Mei called her before she could take a step, though.

"Wait, where's your shoes?"

"I don't have shoes."

Mei moved to kneel in front of Clara so she was on eye level with the girl, looking her up and down worriedly. "You're going to get frostbite running around without shoes. I'm going to get you a pair, okay?"

"It's okay, big sis. The snow, the cold has never bothered me. Mister Svarog told me I was special that way, though I don't understand."

"Mister Svarog?"

Clara hummed, sweet and short as she nodded. "Yes. He's very kind and knows a lot of stuff. He's teaching me a lot of things so I want to help him taking care of everyone in Robot Settlement."

"He sounds like a nice person. Are you sure you don't want to wear shoes?"

"Yes, but thank you for the offer."

Mei smiled and Clara smiled back at her. Strange girl, but no less kind. Mei always had a place for children in her heart.

They watched Clara go after that before deciding to return themselves. Pulling her phone, Mei dialed Natasha to report their situation.

"Mei, how is everything going?"

"We've found the kids. We're coming back now. Do you need something else from the orphanage?"

"No, I've got everything I need here with me. Thanks for the sentiment but no."

"Okay, I'll see you in a bit."

"Of course. Good job, Mei."

Mei nodded although Natasha couldn't see it. Ending the call, she then sent Kiana a message asking for her whereabouts.

Kiana: wait holdon lemme see for something.

Kiana: ah ye theres this stire called from dusk till dawn. Me and stelles r close next to it.

Kiana: y'all found them kids?

Mei: We've found them. They're okay. What about you, though? Is everything okay on your end?

Kiana: maybe? idk we blew something's head off and poked on it rn still not sure what though.

Mei: We'll be right over there.

Kiana: see you soon babe.

Mei cleared her throat after pocketing her phone. Turning towards Seele, she asked "Do you happen to know a store called From Dusk Till Dawn?"

Seele nodded. "Yeah, why?"

"Kiana and Stelle are over there. They said they found something and is examining what it is."

"Kiana examining something?" Bronya sounded genuinely shocked at the prospect of her best friend actually thinking for once. "I think the underground air messed with her head, Mei. Although, it's messed up already but still."

"I'm actually worried, too. Let's quickly go find them."

"You think it's still alive?"

"No."

"How can you be so sure? What pertained such conclusions from you?"

"Kiana, its head is gone."

"So?"

"So, generally speaking, if a living being that is meant to have head suddenly has its head removed by whatever means is more than likely to die."

"I'm still not convinced."

"Kiana, head equals live, no head equals die." Stelle paused. "Well, only this head in particular, though."

"Dude, this is not the time to make sex joke."

"You did it all the time. I don't see how I couldn't."

"There's appropriate times for that and now's not it. You must not be headless to the circumstances."

"Did you just make a pun? Because I swear to God it was awful."

"Whatever, man. How about you poke it again just to be sure? Your bat is useful for that"

"We've been poking it for the past ten minutes! And my bat is not toothpick for me to pick leftovers with!"

"Look, just entertain me this last time, okay? Just to be sure."

"You can easily kill this thing a hundred times over, why are you so cautious?"

"There's no harm in being cautious. It's actually better to be cautious, in fact."

"Sure, whatever. It'd still be dead anyway. Ready?"

"Yep."

"Okay, on three. One...

"Two..."

"Three!"

"What the hell are you both doing?!"

Kiana and Stelle shrieked in surprise, jumping back from the source of the voice only to trip on one of the monster's sprawled legs and fall onto the ground on their butts. The former immediately scrambled up to her feet, pulling a dazed Stelle with her to face the newcomer.

Or rather, newcomers.

The group stared at them both. Mei was amused, Seele was in disbelief, Bronya seemed vaguely concerned while her best friend shook her head disapprovingly.

"You really are stupid, aren't you?" Said Bronya and Kiana proceeded to flip her the bird.

"Hey, fu—" Kiana stopped herself when she saw a bunch of children shuffling to look at her. Eyes widening, Kiana immediately summoned a chest level subspace barrier to cover the kids from the grotesque view. "—n time we're having, yeah?" She continued, fingers morphing into thumbs up instead.

Bronya smirked in an unconcealed amusement and Kiana suddenly wanted to wipe the floor with her face.

Seele vaulted over the wall, having caught sight of the thing on the ground. She frowned as she kicked its broken leg courtesy of Stelle. "You guys did this?"

"Yeah, not my proudest work." Kiana answered for both Stelle and herself, the former nodding along.

"I bet, its head is gone."

Both Bronya's and March stepped forward, though Dan Heng held March by her collar to keep her on place. The pinkette looked back to protest but Dan Heng shook his head. "You're going to have nightmares if you see."

Mei also stayed back, holding the kids and distracting them from the apparent horror lying on the stone floor. Chewing her lip, March gave Dan Heng a nod of concession. She trusted Dan Heng. He always had his own ways in caring for others. Much like Bronya, apparently.

"Any idea what it is?"

The Silvermane Commandant nodded. "I've seen monsters of similar nature in various fallen Belobog districts, usually places with heavy Fragmentum Corrosion level," she told them. "We call them Guardian Shadow."

"It looks awfully lot like human," Stelle muttered, loud enough for them to hear.

"They're a mockery of human, of us Silvermane Guards and everything Belobog is. We call it such because it is often heard muttering words of the previous Supreme Guardians."

"How in the hell?" Seele asked but Bronya shook her head.

"We have no idea. It could be the monster's attempt to mimick us but they're in no way related to us."

Kiana sent her Bronya a subtle look, her best friend acknowledging the message with a slight dip of her head. She had a feeling this had a bigger implication, a prospect her Bronya shared.

The last time a monster spoke in the words of other's, it was the Herrscher of Domination. A terrible foe that would've defeated her had her conviction been a little bit smaller, a little bit weaker, yet she persevered thanks to the light her teacher left behind. If this was anything like that...

"Can you get any information out of it? Have you attempted interrogating it?" Bronya asked flatly to the two native women as she squatted down, searching for any sort of connection the corpse might have to any higher being but all she could feel was lingering energy similar to Fragmentum Corrosion.

"They're not speaking, they're mirroring. An echo of the past. There's nothing useful we could gleam from them," said her Silvermane counterpart.

"I see."

Bronya examined the dead body for a few more minutes, noticing that the clothes were actually a part of its body, and its blood was colored in sickly black instead of red. It was also thick, almost like a tar as it slowly oozed from where its head should've been, and smelled rotten.

"I think we should go," Mei proposed and they turned towards her. "We're vulnerable out here in the open like this."

"Right. Let's return to Boulder Town and drop the kids, after that we'll go to Robot Settlement."

"Huh? Robot Settlement? Why?" Stelle asked curiously with a tilt of her head.

"We need to talk to someone."

"What about you, princess?" Seele asked the Silvermane Bronya. "You sure you're heading back up now?"

"Yes, this matter cannot wait any longer, I'm afraid." She smiled at Seele. "Thank you for your hospitality."

"Don't worry about it, my door is always open for you."

"Yes, of course. I'll come to visit again in the future."

After returning the kids to their respective parents and guardians and watching the scolding of the century unfolding before their eyes, the crew decided to report to Natasha while Seele accompanied Bronya to the exit of the Underworld. The doctor was relieved and grateful, something they saw often from her, despite the clear exhaustion in her eyes. The wounded drained her pretty much of everything, be it physical or mental, yet the moment she stepped out of her office Natasha had to don her mask of professionalism that betrayed no emotion for her patients' sake.

It was admirable, if not endearing, the length a doctor would go through to save people.

"You okay?" Bronya heard Kiana ask her and she glanced to the Kaslana standing beside her. Kiana was talking in that voice, soft and laden with concern genuine to her friend. Bronya gave a nod, knowing this was Kiana being serious.

"Yes. I was just thinking."

"About those two?"

Bronya's lips curled into a subtle smile. Kiana, the always perceptive Kiana. Bronya nodded affirmatively. "I need a favor, Kiana."

Kiana blinked and straightened up. "Anything. Anything you need."

"I need you to deliver me to the Overworld," Bronya told Kiana who blinked in surprise. Silver met blue, the displeasure in Bronya's eyes was everything Kiana needed to know. "I need to talk to someone."

TBC.

Regarding Paths... While it's important to the lore, I want to keep it strictly as that. Bear in mind that the combat in this story is normal fight and Paths are mostly to translate certain play styles for the turn-based formula in HSR. If there's a Path the HI3rd trio follow now, it would be the Trailblaze since they're a part of the Express now. Anything else I believe is solely for gameplay purposes so I don't really see a point in giving them different Paths and all that. Of course, since they're a part of the lore there will still be acknowledgement to them in the future.

Either way, it's a good suggestion. I just can't see a reasonable cause to put them as a part of the characters as a whole.