Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Honkai Star Rail


Traveling through space was something that never lost its novelty on me. Could you blame me? An old life where space travel could only be something dreamed of and experienced through some form of fictional media.

So to now live in a universe where space travel was as normal as taking a taxi, that feeling of awe would never get old.

And that feeling of wonderment was reignited in my chest as the Express finished its warp travel. From my seat in the Parlor Car I saw the planet that was to be the next destination of the Astral Express.

A very frozen planet.

I admired the foreign sight, mentally comparing what I was seeing to some sci-fi movies that I had watched in this life and the old one.

So this was what a Trailblazer would see on a common occurrence.

"After all those millenia…is this what Jarilo-VI has become?" Himeko said as she looked at the planet in equal amounts of wonderment and surprise.

"Huh? So that snowy planet is our destination this time?" March 7th asked as she looked at the planet in confusion

"Yes…" Himeko answered before looking back at the frozen planet, her expression adopting a small frown. "Though it looks like this trailblazing expedition won't be easy."

"Spatial readout anomaly! Star rail stability down to 12%" Pom-Pom spoke up, drawing all of our attention to him as he waddled up to us. "Schedule alteration: Seven-day stopover time extended indefinitely!"

"Anomaly?" Stelle spoke up in confusion and I shared her confusion. While a frozen planet was definitely far from the norm, it wasn't as crazy to see considering we were in a sci-fi universe where Aeons were a thing.

Our confusion must've shown as Himeko turned to us to explain what the Conductor meant. "The complex locality of this world has been…affected somehow. The star rail has been blocked off by something."

"I'm assuming it's not the fact that the entire planet is covered in ice that's the problem?" I asked her.

The red haired woman nodded before she began to elaborate. "The ice could be considered a symptom of the main reason our path is blocked. Take an ordinary train as an example. It's like the tracks up ahead have suddenly snapped, and the way forward leads straight into a collapsing abyss…"

"The only sensible thing to do would be to brake hard, right?"

"If we try to force our way ahead, there could be a hefty price to pay!" Pom-Pom added.

"So we can interpret the ice as some sort of…sign that the tracks ahead are snapped," I said, prompting Himeko to nod.

"This again…Don't tell me, it's gotta be…" March trailed off knowingly as she looked to the Navigator and Conductor for confirmation.
"The results of the preliminary analysis are here - the anomaly stems from a Stellaron, as always." Welt confirmed as he walked up to us.

"Like the one in me." Stelle asked as she placed a hand on her chest, no doubt touching the spot where the Stellaron in her body was.

Seeing her place her hand on her chest the older brown haired man nodded. "Yes, Stelle - just like the one that's been placed into your body."

"Don't worry. It's not the first time our route has been obstructed by a Stellaron, or more specifically the spatial disruptions they create." Himeko assured before she began to explain to Stelle what they knew about Stellarons and their effects on the Astral Express.

As Himeko and Wely continued talking to Stelle I couldn't help but tune them out as I continued to observe Jarilo-VI. Seeing how prevalent the color of white was on the planet's surface, I couldn't help but think what life would be like.

Would it be a constant struggle to survive? Or had the people, despite the circumstances, found a way to live and thrive?

Knowing that there was a Stellaron present on Jarilo-VI I couldn't help but feel a newfound sense of terror at how destructive one could be. The planet had probably been full of life before it had come along, no doubt responsible for turning the entire planet into the frozen wasteland of today.

And Stelle had one inside of her. Traveling with her was basically inviting calamity to just happen whenever…

But…the same could be said for me, couldn't it?

One of my hands unconsciously went to my chest, specifically the area where the whole reason I was on this train had entered my body.

Initially I was no believer in fate, but in a universe where Aeons and the supernatural was common it was kind of hard not to think that such a thing could exist.

And if I was meant to be on the Astral Express, what answers on Jarilo-VI could I-!

"Michael? Michael, are you listening?" March's sudden voice brought me out of my thoughts.

"Ah sorry," I came back to reality and turned my head to see I had the entire Express crew, barring Dan Heng, looking at me expectantly. "I was caught up in my thoughts for a moment. Could you repeat what you said again?"

March 7th pouted, clearly not happy I was not paying attention, before repeating the question. "I was asking if you wanted to join Stelle, Dan Heng, and I as we explore Jarilo-VI and find the Stellaron blocking our path".

"Oh," Was all I said lamely before I gave an answer. "I appreciate the offer March but I think I'll stay up in the Express where it's, you know, warm and cozy. Adventuring in a frozen-like tundra isn't exactly my forte."

"But Trailblazing isn't some boring adventure." March argued. "If you joined us then-,"

"March there's plenty of other planets we'll be visiting that Michael can join an expedition on." Himeko lightly chided the younger girl.

"And there is also the matter of his…volatile condition." Welt added, somberly reminding the crew that I was not exactly in the best of conditions. "Placing Michael in an unfamiliar and potentially dangerous environment may prove detrimental."

The reminder of my…condition had March's pink eyes widen before looking back at me with a sheepish, guilty look. "Sorry…I forgot about that."

Seeing that her joyous mood was quickly souring I swiftly waved off her apology with a smile. "There's nothing to be sorry about March," I reassured her with a small smile, though that did little to assuage how bitter the reminder of my condition was.

"Even if I wasn't in this situation I think I would've sat out this expedition anyway. Got to acclimate and everything before I can run off." I added. After all it would be poor etiquette as this train's Quartermaster to galavant about without doing his job.

"There is also the matter of who we might meet down on the surface of Jarilo-VI that could put Michael in danger." Dan Heng spoke up as he walked into the Parlor Car, joining the conversation.

"Did you find something about the planet?" Himeko asked the black haired teenager.

"Yes." He nodded before explaining to the rest of the crew of his discovery. "After locating the area most likely to contain human life I did some research into the archives regarding Jarilo-VI. What I found was that Jarilo-VI was led by a group known as the Architects. These Architects were fervent followers of Qlipoth and most likely any form of civilization we encounter will still be led by them."

"And given that the Amber Lord of Preservation played a pivotal role in the sealing of Tazzyronth, it would be safe to say that Michael's connection to the Propagation could become a source of conflict."

And it went without saying that potential conflict would hamper the Express' goal of finding the Stellaron and dealing with it.

"Of course it would." I said, not even bothering to hide my dejection. Of course the strange affliction I had to be stuck with was to be related with the one Aeon that nearly every organization or faction in this vast universe had a massive problem with.

"Worry not Michael." Welt smiled reassuringly at me, noticing my dejection. "While your condition is peculiar, I'm sure that we will find a solution to your woes soon enough."

"If you say so," I replied with a tone of skepticism, not fully believing his confidence in finding a solution.

"Don't worry about a thing Michael!" March spoke up as she looked at me with renewed enthusiasm. "We'll solve this Stellaron crisis quickly so we can get you to a different planet so that you can go on your first adventure with us!"

"It'll probably be better than ours anyway." Stelle said. "Can't imagine walking through all that snow to be fun."

"I would prefer to be in your spot," Dan Heng added. "The cold…doesn't agree with me, even with the blessing of the Express."

I shook my head at the Express' words with a small smile on my face. Hearing such optimism had me feel a bit better about my own situation. Looking up I saw the rest of the Astral Express looking at me with looks of reassurance.

Who knows, maybe things were looking for me.

"You make it sound as if staying on the Express is like the worst thing to happen to me." I joked back.

"I mean what's the worst that can happen to me up here? Paperwork?"


.

.

.

Finally…

We weren't alone.

Our voices filled the once empty lands of our home

Our beautiful song sung once more.

Our planet was whole once again.

We were…

No…

The Swarm was complete.

But wait…

What was that?

We turned our gaze skyward and saw metal shapes descending on our lands.

Visitors from beyond the skies again?

What purpose would they have for our planet this time?

We remembered the last time outsiders came to our lands…

The destruction that they brought.

The death of our kin they were responsible for…

The loneliness that they made us suffer through.

They are not visitors-

They were invaders.

Come to disrupt our peaceful life once more.

To scorch our bountiful lands.

To take our kin away from us.

To make us alone once more.

Not again…

Not again…

NOT AGAIN!

A feeling resonates through The Swarm.

One of rage.

We take flight as one.

We meet our invaders as one.

We descend on these…insects tearing them apart piece by piece as one.

We will be defenceless no longer…

They try to fight back, but it is of no use.

For every one of us that they kill, five more take their place.

Soon they are dealth with.

In the fire and smoking remains of these metal shapes, something was on their knees before us.

They were begging for their life.

We will be defenceless no longer…

We reached out to one of these invaders, claws at the ready to rend flesh.

WE WILL NOT BE ALONE AGAIN!

I woke up with a startled gasp in my bed, my hand outstretched outward to the ceiling with my fingers curled inward…

Like claws about to shred something apart.

I groaned as let my outstretched hand fall unceremoniously onto my chest, mind racing as I my mind processed what I had just gone through…

Again.

I contemplated just trying to sleep again, to try and put that visi- no nightmare behind me. However the moment I closed my eyes I-!

WE WILL NOT BE ALONE!

My hands immediately went to my face as that vision violently flashed through my mind. It was just as vivid and terrifying as the one that I had experienced when Herta had shoved me into the Simulated Universe.

I had thought that would the only time I would be subjected to such a vision, that I would never have to experience it ever again.

My first night on the Express had proved otherwise.

After my mind stopped trying to discrete my mind with that violent reminder of what I went through, I slowly opened my eyes back up to stare at the ceiling of my new room. A common occurrence for me now.

Three nights I had spent on the Express and in those three nights I had experienced a different vision regarding the Swarm.

And having been…subjected to these visions I was pretty sure that they were actually the 'memories' of Tayzzyronth themself.

These…memories did not outright tell me this but having experienced these every night since having joined the Express it was the only viable conclusion that I could piece together other than the fact that they were terrifying to watch.

As for said cause of these visions I had hit a dead end. They started the night that March, Stelle, and Dan Heng had descended on the frozen plains of Jarilo-VI to locate the Stellaron hindering our path.

Three whole days of being on the Express waiting for them to solve the Stellaron blocking our path, getting acquainted with the other members of the Express, acclimating as the new Quartermaster…

And figuring what the hell was wrong with me.

Being the Express Quartermaster was both what I had expected and not at the same time. My task as the Quartermaster was to ensure that all the supplies we needed to keep the Express running properly were accounted for and we weren't going to suddenly run out of something.

Similar to my old job back at Herta's Space Station.

Fuel was something I learned was apparently not a concern of my job. On my first day as Quartermaster Pom-Pom had explained to me that the Astral Express ran on the energy generated by the "Trailblaze" and that was how the locomotive moved.

How that was even possible I had no idea but I just simply chalked it up as more Aeon magic.

That didn't mean that everything else ran on this 'mystical' energy as that required regular energy to power. An onboard generator that Himeko had built was responsible for powering all of the other appliances on the Express and thankfully that was something I knew how to manage.

Then there were the other essentials like food and water, all of which were easy to keep track of. Even with the addition of the other Trailblazer's items it was all simple to manage as a Quartermaster.

I wasn't sure why I had expected being the Quartermaster of the Astral Express would entail in doing more, if anything I had more tasks to do in Herta's Space Station then here. It made me wonder if the Express even needed a Quartermaster in the first place.

So you could imagine with how little I had to do, how much free time I now had on my hands.

In my newfound freetime I quickly learned how the other Express members managed their free time.

Himeko would spend her free time in the engine room of the Express, making modifications to the Express or tinkering with her gadgets. I surprisingly learned that she was a very experienced she invited me for some tea.

Welt was in the same boat as the red haired Trailblazer as he would either tinker with some machines or hole up in his room and read some books he owned. Sometimes I would catch him watching some shows from his world, which oddly looked familiar to me but I couldn't see why.

Pom-Pom would busy himself tidying up the Express and overall ensure everything was running normally. I actually didn't know what he did in his free time but seeing how happy he was cleaning the Express I didn't think he was unhappy with his tasks.

As for me I had initially planned on using my newfound free time to tidy up my new room, to settle in. Having just moved in, all of my belongings were still stored in boxes that were pushed to one side of the room.

After a night of good rest would I fix my room was what I had promised to myself. Give my body time to acclimate to my new surroundings before settling in.

Yet after three consecutive restless nights of experiencing these memories, I knew that promise would never be fulfilled at this rate.

Deciding that staying in bed and waiting for something to happen would get me nowhere, I dragged myself out of my bed. Putting on a new set of clothes, I lightly freshened up before leaving my room.

Walking down the halls of the Astral Express I came into the Dining Cabin, where Himeko and Welt were already enjoying a meal.

"Morning…I think?" I greeted the two other Trailblazers. It was always hard to gauge whether it was night or day in the middle of space.

"Ah Michael, morning to you as well." Himeko greeted back as she lowered her mug and gestured to the empty chair between her and Welt. "Would you like to join us for breakfast? I'm trying a new coffee recipe."

"Sure," I said as I took a seat with the two older Trailblazers. The table was set with some typical breakfast pastries and some pots of coffee and tea. I took some of the scones and poured myself a cup of coffee that was near Himeko.

"Ah Michael don't-" Welt tried to warn me as I raised the mug of coffee to my mouth and took a sip of it.

Coffee was a staple in both this life and old. My career would not be what it would be today if it wasn't for this glorious drink getting me through the laborious nights.

It would be fair to say that I had drunk about every iteration of coffee that could've existed…

So whatever the hell Himeko had brewed was most definitely not coffee.

I was so very, very lucky that I was so tired as every taste bud in my mouth wanted to spit out the foul drink. Instead I merely gulped what I had drunk and coughed after doing so.

"That was…interesting." I said, trying to avoid voicing what I really thought about the coffee. Himeko beamed at me before she went for another sip of her mug, clearly enjoying what she had brewed.

Welt looked at me with a look of pity, closing his eyes as he made a silent prayer for my body as I gulped the red haired woman's coffee. He discretely moved a shaker of sugar to which I discreetly nodded my thanks for.

"You don't look well, staying up again?" Himeko asked as she set down her mug, completely unperturbed by whatever…concoction she had just drank.

"The Express' inventory has to be updated." Was the answer I gave as I added a bunch of sugar to my cup of 'coffee'. Taking it another sip of it the taste was still unpleasant but at least manageable.

I began to ramble on. "Dan Heng and Welt did a good job but if we want to spend less time being stuck in customs for our next refill it's imperative they are updated. There's also the-,"

"That's not what Himeko meant Michael." Welt interrupted.

"We know you've not been sleeping well." The red haired woman added, her tone full of concern.

Stopping my rambling I looked up to see the concerned looks the two Trailblazers were giving me. As the two looked at me I sighed tiredly, not bothering to try and hide it.

They could read me like an open book and I haven't even stayed a full week on the Express yet.

"It's…so hard to sleep." I admitted to them as I stared into my reflection on the surface of my coffee. I could see the bags under my eyes, a testament to how hard the restless nights had been affecting me.

It was as if these…memories were just waiting for me to close my eyes, to assault my mind with the terrifying remembrance of the Swarm. I was honestly surprised that I hadn't screamed during such a nightmare, though I had a feeling that might change soon.

There were slight reprieves in small naps, enough to get me some energy back, but at this rate exhaustion would be the end of me.

"You wouldn't have any nice tea that could put me to sleep would you?" I asked Welt with a bit of hope in my voice.

"I do but I doubt that will give you what you are looking for." The older man responded as he cut a pastry in half with his knife and ate it.

"Hmm perhaps a change of scenario might be what's best for you." Himeko thought out loud as she set down her coffee mug on the table. I looked at her, confused on what she meant by a change of setting when I was already in the Astral Express and not at Herta's Space Station.

"...The expedition hasn't reported back for the day," Welt said, seemingly understanding Himeko as he shared a look with her. The two then engaged in what looked like a silent conversation and I merely watched as after a period of time the two nodded before looking back at me.

"You said that going without an update is normal," I pointed out, some trepidation filling me as I had an idea what they were planning.

"It would be but we've lost contact with them after they established the Space Anchor in Belobog." Himeko explained and I knew where this was going. "And this was after they reported that everything was going okay for them."

"You think something went wrong?" I asked, slightly worried about the fate of March and the others.

"Well it's hard to say, it could be just signal interference or they've entered a place where a signal is hard to transmit." Welt answered, dispelling some of my worries.

"You know I'm exactly not a…you know fighter." I reminded them. I wasn't like Stelle, March, or Dan Heng who could toe to toe with the denizens of the Anti-Matter Legion. Just a regular human who knew how to fire a gun.

"You do have experience in firing a gun." The brown haired older man reminded me. "We're not expecting you to fight the Anti-Matter Legion."

"And what we have planned for you shouldn't be placed in harm's way." Himeko assured me.

"We would like you to use the Space Anchor in Belobog to find out what happened." Welt revealed.

"We won't ask you to do anything that would put you in danger," The red haired Trailblazer added quickly, noticing how I was prepared to decline. "Just teleport in and try to figure out what happened to the others. If the situation seems perilous then teleport back here."

"And the fresh air might prove to be a useful balm for your night terrors." The brown haired man added.

"I…" I deflated as I saw the hopeful looks the two Trailblazers were giving me. Going down into potentially hostile territory alone was not what I was planning to do so soon after joining the Astral Express. Even with the new gun that Asta and Arlan had gifted me I doubt a singular pistol was not going to help against a potentially hostile city.

…But the alternative option would be to remain here in the Express, to endure another sleepless night of The Propagation haunting my mind.

"...I'll do it then." I said, cementing my decision as I looked back at the two Trailblazers.


Teleporting onto the surface of Jarilo-VI, where the trio had set up the space anchor in the city, I didn't know what to expect to see. Hearing how only this pocket of land on the frozen planet, called Belobog, was the only area able to support human life I expected to find a very rough city where everyone was struggling to survive.

What I was not expecting was to find myself in a very, surprisingly nice, European looking city.

Standing on the nicely bricked foundation beneath me it felt like I was back in Germany. From the architecture to the beige colors of every building, it really felt like I was back on Earth.

And there was also the warm atmosphere that perpetuated the city, one I was not expecting in a planet that was frozen over.

But I wasn't here to sight-see, that could be for later.

Right now I have a job to do.

Find the missing Trailblazer trio, figure out what had happened, then return back to the Express before anything bad happens.

"Nothing more," I reminded myself as I looked down at my attire. I had chosen my most basic clothing with a thick winter jacket, to help give me a chance in blending in with the crowds. Though concealed I could feel the weight of my holstered Shrieker pistol, a last resort should something go wrong.

"...Alright let's do this," I said as I ran a hand through my ash blonde hair before I left the alleyway and set off to do my task.

Walking through the streets of Belobog, my very normal looking appearance didn't draw any unwanted attention to myself. Thankfully most of the people were minding their own business and those that looked my way didn't spare me a second glance as I navigated the streets of the city.

If anything I would have to do something stupid to draw attention to myself, which was very good.

I made my way to Hotel Goethe, the place that March and the others reported to have spent the last night before we stopped receiving their reports.

The plan was that I would start to look for them at the hotel, most likely asking the staff where they had gone after that night, and then go from there.

However when I found Hotel Goethe I saw what I could only assume to be the authorities of Belobog swarming the place. Officers garbed in blue clothes and silver armor were setting up what I could only presume to be a perimeter with yellow tape, allowing no one to enter or leave the hotel.

Something had definitely happened at the hotel and I had a feeling that it was related to March and the others.

Blending in the crowd of people that had gathered to watch the authorities work I debated whether or not I should ask what had happened. It certainly would give more information on how I was going to proceed.

Yet I decided against asking one of the authorities. I wasn't sure of the whole picture and I could potentially reveal that I was a part of the crew and land myself in the same spot as them.

So I decided to leave the crowd, this time taking some of the alleyways to get back to where the Space Anchor was located. It was the only place safe enough that I could think of what to do next.

I navigated back to the Space Anchor, taking care to avoid any of the authorities that were making patrols around the streets by using the alleyways.

I was only a block away from making it back to the anchor when something caught my eye. I had planned on ignoring it initially, only when my mind did a split take on what I had seen did I stop and see what had taken my attention.

"...I do not if I want to smack my forehead or laugh right now," I muttered to myself as I stood in an alleyway, facing an array of papers that had been plastered on one of the walls.

An array of papers that were actually a collection of wanted posters…

Wanted posters of the Trailblazers I was looking for.

The wanted posters themselves were um…very artistic.

It was very clear that whoever had drawn the posters was most definitely not an artist, the…questionable quality of each one being a very clear indicator as I only knew I was looking at the crew due to how each one stood out appearance wise.

Yet even if they couldn't capture how they looked for some reason the person who had made these was somehow able to capture each of their personalities.

It was definitely some teasing material that I would show the crew once I took a picture of these.

But even with how comical they were it did not detract from the cold truth that these wanted posters confirmed for me.

Somehow, for whatever reason, the three Trailblazers had gotten in trouble with the authorities of Belobog and were now on the run.

"Why do I have a feeling March you're the reason for why you guys are wanted by the authorities." I muttered to myself. Not to speak bad about the pink haired trailblazer but I couldn't help but shake off the feeling that she attracted trouble wherever she went.

This wasn't exactly the best situation but at least they weren't dead or imprisoned. First things first was I had to notify Himeko and Welt about this, then from there I would probably try to find some more information about what had really happened.

From there I could try and-!

"Hey I don't think I've seen you around before," A female voice called out to me, making me freeze in place as my thoughts stopped to a screeching halt.

Fuck.

Slowly I turned my gaze to the entrance of the alleyway to see a blonde woman with a singular streak of blue hair looking at me with an analytical gleam in her blue eyes. Her arms were crossed as she awaited an answer from me.

"Im uh….new around here?" I told the blonde haired woman with my best confident and non-suspicious smile.

Judging by the bland and completely unimpressed look she was sending my way it totally did not work.

"Uh-huh, sure." She said unconvincingly before motioning to the crudely drawn posters of Stelle, March 7th, and Dan Heng. "So you know them?"

Damm this woman did not beat around the bush!
"I…" I readied myself to lie, to make up some sort of believable excuse of why I was even in this alleyway in the first place.

Only when I opened my mouth did I see her raise a brow at me, as if already expecting me to lie.

What the hell was happening to me right now?!

I could risk it, go for the lie anyway, but that had more cons than it did pros.

Could I really keep up this facade, especially if she was already suspicious of me? Also what was stopping her from reporting me for aiding fugitives? Especially considering I was not even from this planet.

That would quickly place me in the same boat as the rest of the crew.

God why didn't I just stay at the station.

…So I decided to go with the stupidest option and told her the truth.

"Yeah I do. I'm…a part of their crew." I replied, bracing for her to start calling the authorities to arrest me.

But instead of that or suspicion I was surprised when she actually broke out into a smile. "Actually? I didn't think there were others like March and the others. Guess they weren't actually lying about being from beyond Belobog." The blond woman said as she walked up to me, her blue eyes lighting up as if she had found something priceless.

"There's actually more of us but that's a whole story to tell for another time," I said swiftly, grasping onto the fact that she actually did not want to send me to jail. Was this a stroke of good luck?

Whatever it was, I was not going to take this gift horse for granted.

"Sorry where are my manners, my name's Michael," I said cordially as I offered my hand out for a handshake to the woman. Oh please tell me that the handshake was still used as a greeting on this.

To my utter relief the blonde woman smiled as she took my hand and shook it. "And my name's Serval," She greeted back.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Michael."


Meanwhile, in an isolated corner of the vast universe, far from Jarilo-VI was a lone space station. It was small, out of the way from any civilization…

And in this isolation allowed a certain scientist to make progress on her experiments.

"Experiment Log #702, Subject has displayed better resilience than previous iteration, though lacks the inherent power. Perhaps splicing the more stable genetic donors in favor of the subject's original genetics will prove to be a better result." A black haired woman with some blue highlights spoke to herself as she analyzed the data displayed on the tablet in her hands.

Blue eyes then glanced over to the large incubation tank in front of her. Slumbering within the tank was the familiar form of a large blue carapace bug.

"The next log wi-" The scientist was stopped in her tracks when an alert pinged from her tablet. A small miniscule frown appeared on her face as she opened the alert, her eyes slightly narrowing as she saw the cause of it.

Someone was visiting her space station…unannounced.

"Hmm interesting." She muttered to herself as she set her tablet down and exited the room containing the specimen. Making her way through the empty hallways of her facility the black haired woman entered the main room of her space station, where she spent most of her time embroiled in her research.

It was also where her visitor was already making herself comfortable, looking through her belongings as if she owned them.

"Oh?" Ruan Mei said out loud, prompting her visitor to look up from the tablet that she had taken from her desk.

"And why do you look so shocked to see me Ruan Mei?" A familiar witch hat wearing woman asked, a smirk on her face.

"Normally if you were to visit me you would send me a message ahead of time," Ruan Mei answered back unperturbed, approaching the other woman and taking the tablet off of her visitor's hands.

"If the matter is important enough you would send one of your puppets to deliver the news to me." The black haired scientist continued as she placed the tablet back on the desk.

"I believe I can count on a single hand the number of news so important that you yourself would show up unannounced Herta." Ruan Mei finished as she looked back at her fellow Genius Society Member.

The real Genius Society Member Herta, not one of the puppets she had to work on her many projects. The witch hearing woman was the real deal, possessing an intellect that few minds could rival and a work ethic that made other geniuses pale in comparison.

Was it no wonder that she was able to gain the gaze of Nous, Aeon of Erudition.

The WisdomWalker?

Or as Herta referred to them, Droidhead.

So for her to be dropping in without so much as an invitation or a message from her was most unusual.

"So tell me Herta," The black haired scientist asked. "Why have you come? I do believe our normal meeting was not planned for another month."

The real Herta shrugged her shoulders before bluntly answering. "Your little experiment that I allowed you to conduct in my station. It broke free."

"Ah," So it seems that the Skaracabaz that she had incubated in her space station had really broken free. She had been alerted when she had lost contact with her experiment, drawing it up to signal failures. "My apologies. I did not account for an Anti-Matter Legion attack on the station to free it from its containment."

The Legion had never shown interest in small targets, preferring to attack civilizations. Of course the captive Stellaron that Herta was in possession of had been accounted for but even then the probability of the Legion diverting its attention was low.

An oversight, considering what had really happened.

"When I gave you permission to use my base as one of your testing sites I did not think that you would willingly place my employees and research in jeopardy." The genius witch quipped as she crossed her legs and 'glared' at her fellow genius.

"You were fine with it if I am not mistaken." Ruan Mei countered back with a calm disposition. "I do believe my systems caught you taking samples of my experiment to use for the Simulated Universe. I know you plan on digitally recreating the Swarm Disaster sometime in the near future"

In turn Herta smirked as she fixed her witch hat, not an ounce of shame of being caught. "Touche."

"Since you are here I assume that the subject in question is no longer alive." The black haired scientist inquired, though she already knew the answer to the question.

"Indeed," Her colleague confirmed anyway. "Not even a full minute before it collapsed in on itself."

"I see," She replied with faux sadness. She had known that this particular iteration of the Swarm King was unstable. She had been a bit too…eager to complete her goal and had rushed into the incubation of Skaracabaz.

Thus resulting in the unstable specimen that could not live long before its genetic makeup would end itself. She had stored away in the lowest level of Herta's Space Station until the opportunity would arise where she would need it once more.

Which no longer seemed to be the case.

…Regardless, that clone's main purpose was to serve as a prototype and foundations for further iterations. Iterations including the one she had incubating inside of this space station.

"A shame but a momentary setback nonetheless." Was all she had to say.

"I assume the project you're working on here is related?" Hera asked with a knowing look.

"Indeed." Ruan Mei answered, not even bothering to try and hide it. Before she could say anything further she was pinged by a critical alert regarding said project.

"Ah forgive me but I must get back to it, the genetic makeup of this new copy is very sensitive and will implode on itself if I don't intervene." She turned on her heel and was about to make her way back to her specimen.

"Before you go, I think you would like to see this first." Herta interrupted, stopping her in her tracks. The Emnanator snapped her fingers which resulted in a tablet appearing in her hands.

"I think the results will speak for itself." She said before she handed her the tablet.

Ruan Mei highly doubted whatever information her colleague had deigned to bring herself would prove to be of any value for her project. After all she had researched intensively on anything relating to the Swarm.

So to humor her fellow Genius, she took the datapad and began to read through the information on it…

And for the first time in a long time, her blue eyes widened as her mind processed what she was reading.

"Impossible." Was all she could say before she combed through the data with rare zeal, eager for more.

"Yet it is." Herta countered back with a smug smile but Ruan Mei quickly forgot her presence as her entire focus was on the data presented to her.

Data pertaining to how a human male was able to absorb the entirety of Skaracabaz's essence and remain seemingly healthy by all tests of vitality. Even the Simulated Universe had responded to the human male, showing a hidden memory of the early days of the Path of Propagation.

Which was a complete impossibility.

How could a normal human, seemingly non augmented in any shape or form, be able to handle the Swarm King's power when countless months of research and tons of resources was barely able to produce a clone that could use a tenth of the original's power without collapsing in on itself.

It defied all logic and reasoning.

Yet in the face of this impossibility she could not help but smile at how this signified a major breakthrough in her research…

Of how it brought her closer to lifelong goal.

Of-!

"As of this moment I am cleaning my hands of this data." Herta said, making a show of dusting her hands clean. "You hold the last copy of that data. Don't lose it."

Momentarily diverting her eyes from the tablet, she gave her thanks for the… splendid gift that she had just been given. "I thank you then Herta for this."

The witch hat wearing Emanator merely chuckled before beginning to walk away. "You can thank me by not using my station as your testing grounds again." The witch answered back before disappearing in a shower of pink motes of light.

Not even a minute after her colleague's departure did Ruan Mei begin to make her way back to the room containing the subject she had been incubating with great care and attention. Yet the moment the doors closed behind her she hardly spared a glance to the growing subject as all of her attention was directed to the tablet Herta had given her.

"Michael," The genius whispered to herself as she took in the features of the man who had taken the entirety of her attention. "Background is…normal. No special upbringing or any events that could suggest a significant change, perhaps he was exposed to something during his time in Herta's space station?"

As she absorbed the information on the datapad, theorising over countless different hypotheses, the room she was in was suddenly bathed in a dark baneful red light as alarms began to blare loudly.

"Warning, subject stability reaching critical levels. Intervention required." An artificial voice rang out as the main terminal connected to the incubation tube was showing countless warnings.

This clone of the Swarm King had taken months of careful genetic manipulation, countless resources, and research. If she did not act quickly then all of that work and effort she put into this clone would be for naught.

A clone…that had just lost any form of value to Ruan Mei.

"Or mayhaps an external character is responsible? Many notable figures visited the station when he was hired. Perhaps they influenced his body in some way?" The scientist continued rambling to herself, despite the blaring warnings.

"Warning, subject stability reaching critical levels-"

"Maybe a variable in Skarabaz that I did not account for?"

"Warning-!"

"Or maybe an unknown effect of the Propagation? But that would not make any sense as human DNA showed no notable reaction with the Swarm King or any of the Stings."

"War-!"

With a loud and sudden pop, the incubating Swarm King imploded within its tank. The once pristine tank was now completely coated in the residue of the cloned Emanator. Months of research and countless resources were lost in a single instant.

And Ruan Mei barely batted an eye at it all.

Why would she when she found the next step in her lifelong goal.

"The only logical choice would be to examine the subject in question personally," She said to herself as she began to scroll through the information that Herta had provided for her as the room she was in returned back to its normal lighting.

Her eyes saw that after absorbing the Swarm King's essence Michael had joined the Astral Express as both a way to find answers and to distance himself from potentially harming his acquaintances in the space station.

A strange choice, did he not think that Herta would've intervened should he lose control? The witch hat wearing genius knew how important such a development would be for her. Was this some way of getting back at her…

Or perhaps there was another reason that she had allowed him to go with the Express, one that she could not see at the moment?

The reasoning was ultimately irrelevant as she needed more information.

Information that she could only get in person.

Which means that she had a train to catch, and as for the Express' next destination…

"Jarilo-VI?" She questioned as she read the Express' manifest, her blue eyes gleaming in the darkness of the room as her mind raced on what she had to do next.

There was only one logical path forward.

"I suppose a trip must be planned then."


Here we have Chapter 3 and the butterflies are starting to appear.

Jarilo-VI isn't really the greatest planet to write huge changes into, it really hasn't been giving a huge relevance in the overall plot of HSR but I think what I have planned for the planet will make it interesting to read.

It took a long time for me to get this written, I lost power for some time during the fires of Los Angeles which I used to write an extensive roadmap for the fic. I'm hoping that with this roadmap I can get chapters out faster but with no promises. Also there's the fact that the early middle of this chapter was really tough to write and even now I'm not fully satisfied with it.

But who knows I could just be nitpicking, what did you guys think of the chapter?

I'm motivated by reviews so if you enjoyed this and want more make sure to leave a nice review for me.

Welp that's all for this chapter. If you enjoyed it, drop a fav/follow/kudos as they really help me out with creating great chapters. Reviews are deeply appreciated, they're the biggest motivation to keep writing, and if you have a question or a really interesting theory I am more than happy to reply. Please be patient if I don't respond to you super fast. Even if I don't respond to your comment for whatever reason, know that I read each and every one of them! PMing me is the best way for me to respond to your questions.

Peace!