Chapter Text
A sharp intake of breath echoed throughout the space. She was still rather new to pushing her consciousness from the proper world directly into higher dimensions and it still left her a little disoriented for a few seconds. The area was dim, like a shade had been drawn over a lamp. But what she didn’t expect was the feeling of… freedom . Her senses felt… open . Loose. Like finally stretching a tight muscle, opening herself up to this world filled her with relief. Back on Earth she had to focus intensely when altering time in order to avoid any catastrophic consequences from slinging the flow of time around like it was a yo-yo. Here though… She barely even had to think about it. In fact, now that she had a look around she realized the darkness was not due to a sunset or being under a canopy. She, in fact, was in the middle of a sandstorm. She had simply… instinctively stopped time the moment the Cocoon registered a danger in her new location. Kiana tapped playfully at the frozen grains of sand, watching them float to a stop like moving a bubble that had escaped the laws of momentum. With barely a thought that same sand began flowing backwards. Everything around her moved backwards, including the very ground she stood on. Kiana was forced to hover above the sand as the grains beneath her boots seemed to roil and writhe like a glittering dry wave. The sand flowed away, tumbling over itself back into the air until the storm had receded to the horizon. Just as quickly a ripple overtook Kiana’s vision and she was back where she had started. A disbelieving chuckle burst from her chest.
“Alright, I’ve wasted enough time.” She murmured to herself. She strode purposefully through the frozen storm, her senses stretching out to impossibly far distances in search for that fleeting warmth she had felt leaking through that crack in what remained of Mei’s stigma space. With them, she didn’t even really need to bother keeping the sandstorm away as her human senses were nearly unneeded. Though it turned out she may have been casting too wide a net. The Herrscher yelped as her foot caught against something firmer than simple sand and nearly sent her tumbling to the floor. By her foot was a sandy shape partially hidden by the dim light within the sandstorm. Luckily for Kiana, her vision was far beyond a normal human’s. A sand-caked hand jutted from the ground like a macabre statue. Nearby, the tips of another set of fingers just barely peeked out of the sand. Kiana’s attention now refocused on the shifting grains frozen in time, her senses were immediately availed of the horror beneath the sands. Every few meters was another body, frozen in a futile struggle against the ever shifting sand. Each body seemed to have fallen into a cylindrical hole, and if her hypothesis was correct, the sand piling on top of them slowly buried them alive as they attempted to pull themselves to safety. Kiana floated back into the air and took a moment reversing and forwarding time just to check if her hypothesis was correct. The writhing surface of this place seemed to make the answer clear. However the holes seemed too cleanly made to simply be a result of the shifting sand. But this strange phenomenon did not interest the Herrscher. The only thing that concerned her… was about two kilometers away, further into the sandstorm according to the Cocoon. Kiana immediately locked onto that faint wisp of familiarity whispering in the back of her mind and called upon the Authority of the Void to instantly teleport herself next to its source.
Her heart froze as the only thing that greeted her was another patch of sand. However this one was caved in and bore no sign of a body frozen in horror like the others. Kiana quickly released the breath she had been holding and refocused her enhanced senses on that faint trail that had led her here. Mei must have been here, the partially filled hole was saturated with the warm sensation of Raiden Mei. As Kiana focused she felt something open up within her. The newfound freedom of her senses felt like a flower blooming in her chest. A warm, comfortable, natural sensation as her mind worked at impossible speeds. The Cocoon wailed its whale-like call of interest as it recognized and helped Kiana adjust to her expanding senses. Her eyes shone like gleaming gems as her mind quickly adjusted to comprehend all the new information flowing through her myriad of supernatural senses. She could examine just how long Mei's presence had graced this dimension with just a little focus on the energy left behind. Only a few seconds. But those few seconds were enough for an outsider to leave a lingering trace. Though really, Kiana shouldn't be surprised. With how closely she operated with time it was easy to see how time in this dimension differed. As far as this dimension was concerned, it had barely been any time at all since Mei left.
All this ran through her mind in nearly an instant. And in the next she had disappeared into another void portal. The barrier between worlds couldn't even be considered an obstacle to one with the Authority of Finality, and Kiana easily slipped through as she raced after the fleeting caress Mei had left on the energy of these worlds. Kiana found she was easily able to trace a path struck through the fabric of dimensions. Unlike how she could sense her own path- something smooth and elegant as her powers allowed her to easily travel between dimensions and spaces with little disruption- this one was ragged, rough, and felt more like something had been violently dragged through the fabric of reality itself. Which also meant it was easy to follow.
Another portal tore open the space before the Herrscher. This time instead of instant teleportation, it instead functioned more as a doorway to allow her to step beyond. Back into the swirling and writhing chaos of Imaginary Space. From the moment she’d obtained her Void powers, slipping between spaces had come naturally to the girl. Though that had originally been between her own world and Imaginary spaces she created and controlled, it had become rather simple for her to use the powers of Finality to adapt it to slipping through the walls of dimensions entirely. Even ones that were entirely alien to her such as this. Chasing after that ragged trail torn through the imaginary energy saturating every inch of this void between dimensions, she hardly spared a glance to the worlds and other places that whipped past her in a flurry of images, fleeting feelings, and strange sensations she could not explain in human tongues. Maybe someday in the future she would travel these places Humans could not even dream of treading, but at present they were nothing but obstacles in between her and Mei. Her portal opened and the light of a red star bathed her sight in a warm crimson glow. The sudden sense of danger shot through her like a spark of lightning and her body halted mid-air a meter above the grassy plain she had appeared over.
The air was hot, burning, like trying to breathe in the scorching air from the inside of a furnace. Of course, Kiana’s body found it simple to adapt. She had created similarly intense heat as the Herrscher of Flamescion, breathing in an atmosphere hot enough to incinerate a regular person’s lungs was nothing to her. In fact, it brought a familiar comfort to her. Studying her surroundings, she let her own warm flames sweep and across her body, the tongues of flame embracing her like an old friend. Keeping her senses tuned on the trail Mei had left behind, she turned herself downwards and plucked a blade of grass from the ocean of strange sea-green flora. Something about it felt… off. The Herrscher slid the edge of the blade of grass across the pad of her finger and immediately winced and sucked in a pained breath as it bit into her skin like a sharpened blade. While the wound stung, it healed in a few seconds, the flesh stitching itself back together. A cold twisting dread dropped into her stomach as she stared at the spot where Mei had seemingly been thrown into this space. Darting her gaze around the field she found herself in, Kiana swallowed down the panic that instinctively rose in her throat. The trail continued on, and with it, Kiana’s belief that she would find Mei safe and sound. Relatively, at least. Suddenly feeling quite uncomfortable, Kiana took one last glance at the patch of grass covered with the lingering touch of Raiden Mei and collapsed herself into a void portal.
It was then, as she was carving a path between dimensions, that she felt it. A slight twinge at the edge of her senses. Like a musician gently plucking at the strings of a violin. It was noticeable, but it did not force its presence to be known. It was more like… someone calling for her, their voice echoing down a dark tunnel obscuring them from her vision. The moment her attention was split for even the smallest moment, the feeling surged exponentially in intensity. It felt almost… urgent. It was less hearing something and more like feeling disconnected emotions flitting through her mind. This strangely foreign sense of urgency pressed up against her own and as she opened herself up to it, Kiana found its influence sinking into her gut and bubbling back up in a panic that attempted to fill her ferociously defended mind with the overwhelming need to hurry . It morphed as quickly as a dream, turning from urgency to an insistent beckoning. Who- or what - would have the ability to weave through her mental defenses to communicate with her in such a way? Did she want to find out?
Wordlessly Kiana halted her advance. The energy of Imaginary space still swirled around her like giant waves crashing against a rocky shore, but even the infinite chaos between dimensions could not drown out this call. A small flare of Honkai energy and her senses rippled across the barrier of this other space. However instead of the expected warm tingle of life, her senses simply returned… nothing. A frown marring her face, Kiana pressed against the barrier between dimensions once more. The Herrscher slipped through with all the ease of one gently sinking underwater. On the other side the reason her abilities had failed her became evident. The environment around her appeared as another star-dotted void stretching off to infinity in every direction, not unlike the galaxy of her home dimension. Honkai energy continued to radiate out from her body as she stretched her senses far afield. Then, as suddenly as it had appeared before, the pull on her mind returned tenfold. Her expression instinctively scrunched into a grimace. Not in pain, but simply at the strange and uncomfortable feeling that came with this sensation crawling across her senses like little prickling fingers tugging at her mind. However this time along with the draw beckoning her onwards, the stars twisted and distorted around her. Her powers of the Void leaped from her core to resist the spatial anomaly bearing down around her. The Herrscher's instinct to destroy a perceived threat screamed in her heart, but the white-haired woman squashed it flat with a focused forcefulness. Though it went against every instinct, the Herrscher relaxed the mental muscle holding this defense in place. The next instant Kiana found herself billions of kilometers closer to two of the bright stars she had observed from a distance too great for most human minds to truly fathom. She had never had reason to attempt traveling such a distance before and so the near instantaneous jump made even the Herrscher of Finality blink in mild surprise. If whatever had been beckoning her was capable of such feats, one could only wonder what else it was capable of. The thought made the Cocoon coo softly in curiosity. The Herrscher of Finality was capable of bending space just as easily, traversing dimensional rifts as easily as breathing, and stop time at a whim. And that wasn't even scratching the surface of her abilities. If nothing else, the show of psychic ability and spatial control stoked the Herrscher's curiosity. Was she in danger? The thought never truly crossed her mind. Even if this existence was powerful enough to pose a threat to the Herrscher of Finality, the only being's safety that mattered at this moment was named Raiden Mei.
Turning her attention to the massive spheres of light and energy before her, a curious gaze studied the celestial bodies hanging in the void. The massive star in front of her began to slowly dim as a crescent shaped shadow washed across it before reversing direction and releasing its light once more. The realization came to her after a moment of contemplation.
A blink.
Kiana stared back at the blindingly bright gaze of the… being in front of her. That pull at her mind growing less insistent, and more the gentle beckoning of something that knew its target had become aware. The pulsing of Mei’s former presence was lit like a beacon in her senses, but its location remained many lightyears away. Despite this, Kiana’s visage remained impassive. Though impatience burned through her veins it would not do to simply ignore the presence before her. She gazed back unflinchingly at the twin stars with her similarly inhuman eyes. Their brightness burned with their own celestial fire, but she was not a simple human that would lose her eyesight upon gazing at the heavens. Tentatively, she stretched her mind out towards that feeling prodding at her. Her head tilted curiously, her searching finding no real body for the being before her. The Cocoon trilled in the back of her mind, egging her on with its own curiosity like a child pressing their face against the glass of an aquarium. Anticipation coiled around her body like a snake ready to strike at a moment’s notice.
And then her awareness properly brushed against her strange, stellar companion.
A strange, but vaguely familiar, giddy rush of happiness rippled across the void. Kiana’s head spun from the sensations washing over her mind in waves, the Herrscher gritting her teeth against the flow. They were similar enough to emotions she could experience that she could recognize them for what they were, but alien enough that they disoriented her and left a strange taste in her mouth as her mind attempted to process what it was experiencing. Her head gently throbbed with pain. A hand instinctively pressed itself to the side of her head, the small headache slowly subsiding as the concepts and emotions rushing into her mind gradually coalesced into a form she could better understand. Another trill from the Cocoon filled her mind with a slow crescendo. A comforting understanding rushed through her and the disorientation slowly receded as the Cocoon’s power flowed through her like the cool and refreshing rush of a river filling up a dry riverbed.
With a deep, steadying breath, Kiana reached further. The thing in front of her seemed to tilt its head in a mimicry of her, the stars of its eyes shifting position much too fast for something so large. She felt that same rush of glee wash over her the instant her mind brushed against the other’s again. An eagerness that definitely did not match her prior image of this strange, massive being. It was… not quite speaking. Feelings, faint images, concepts, simply knowing what it was trying to say. Kiana tilted her head the other direction and allowed a small smile to shine in the darkness of space.
“Huh… I understand you like I understand the Cocoon.” Kiana said to herself. “Cool. So you’re…” She put a finger to her chin in thought and let the being push more of its feelings across her awareness. “Happy to meet someone else that can understand you?” As she spoke she pushed that same understanding back to the being before her. The two stars that seemed to act like its eyes bobbed up and down in a nod. Kiana chuckled softly as the movement ruffled her hair with Solar wind from the disturbed stars. Maybe she could come back to visit them sometime? It couldn’t hurt to know what else was out there. But for now…
Kiana pushed more thoughts towards the being. The reason why she was here. Images of her travels through dimensions. Her goal. She got an answer almost immediately.
Another tiny thing like her. But this one was in pain. Could not understand. When it tried to touch their mind it attempted to flee in terror. Its knowledge popped into her mind one thought after another like bursting bubbles. However, the memory it showed her at the same moment cemented her certainty. The human shape struggling and flailing that flashed through her mind remained clear to her, even in the strange and difficult to comprehend memory of the being. It was more than aware that both her and Mei were merely projections of consciousness and its curiosity shimmered beneath every touch of its mind. Simple visitors to its musings, but different to any it was used to. The twin stars moved as the being turned its gaze from the Herrscher. A deep sadness spiraled through their connection and twisted her gut in despair. The regret one could only feel from feeling they hadn’t done enough. A surprisingly human reaction. From Kiana’s point of view, at least. Its focus dropped away from her for a moment with a groan of starlit fire. A tightly woven ball of energy seemed to materialize in the void before her, inching forwards and revealing itself from the darkness like a ship breaching a wall of fog. A foreign feeling of… relief… arced through her body. Of one rescued from danger, sheltered, protected, saved . It beckoned at her mind once more, as if offering it to her. The swirling mass of energy resisted her every attempt to penetrate deeper, however she could sense the tight control the being exercised over its energy. Whatever it wanted, she would take her chances.
Kiana let her thanks ripple across the void. Her wings gently ignited, the usual deep thrum of their honkai energy completely muted by the void surrounding them. The thrust steadily pushed her towards the woven energy. The moment she approached to within a few meters the sphere began to unravel. As if an invisible hand had untied a knot holding together the many threads of energy it began to writhe, ribbons of energy untangling themselves like the world’s strangest flower blooming before her.
And once the shell broke… Kiana knew if she had been standing her knees would have shook with the effort to remain standing. A wave of new sensations crashed over her; The smell of home cooked food, the warmth of arms wrapping around her shoulders and a body pressing against her own, soft purple hair trailing through her fingers, an intense and nearly overwhelming sense of love and devotion. The being watched on, unaffected by the myriad of emotions that suddenly rushed across the space between it and the small white figure before it. Elation, concern, an overwhelming happiness, dropping into a deep sadness, it all poured outwards in a tsunami of conflicting emotion.
From the bright, blooming energy… those lovely strands of purple emerged. Slowly, but surely, the rest became visible as the projection of Mei’s consciousness floated out from the receding mass of energy. Her form wavered slightly once it was no longer restrained by the strange being’s energy. Acting quickly, Kiana let her momentum carry her forward until she could gently take Mei’s form into her arms. She wrapped her own Honkai energy around them, stabilizing Mei’s consciousness from dissipating against dimensional energies a human simply wasn’t designed to withstand.
“You saved her?” Kiana whispered.
She returned her gaze to the being for a moment. A trill from the Cocoon rang out through their connection. Kiana was about to form her own response when a deep bassy rumble responded and nearly startled her into dropping Mei. But after steadying herself, she found a smile growing on her face. Whether a strange new friend or simply something that saved a seemingly insignificant being out of curiosity, it mattered not to Kiana in this moment.
With one last push of thanks, Kiana pulled her senses back. Pink-starred eyes dropped their gaze down to the figure in her arms, the body representing her loved one glowing with a soft outline of pink from her Honkai energy. Her smile easily grew into a beam of happiness.
“Lets go home… Mei.”
The Herrscher of Finality gave one last look to the strange being that had helped her. With one last smile, a void portal swallowed the two earthlings. And again nothing was left but the still void of space stretching on undisturbed once more.
The deep thrum of a void portal ripping open reality echoed through the familiarly empty white space. The disruptions to the mind space had subsided thanks to the intervention of the Raiden Will of Stigma, but the empty space still made a sense of unease settle in the pit of her stomach. The portal disappeared, its use complete, and Kiana gently laid the still form of Raiden Mei on the blank ground. The Herrscher’s chest heaved with a deep breath, her knees meeting the floor as she slowly released it. Her armored right hand approached the pale skin of her wife’s forehead. Hesitation marred her progress, but after another steadying breath, she bit her lip and pressed her hand against her beloved’s skin. With the Authority of Sentience it was a simple matter for her to connect herself as a medium between Mei’s consciousness and the woman’s body. A serene smile subconsciously spread across her lips. The warm caress of Raiden Mei’s mind against her own brought with it memories of… home. The gentle touch of a calloused hand rubbing her arm, slowly working the tension coiled in her muscles undone. The fleeting caress of lips against her cheek brushed against her like a soft breeze, a caring but firm hand on her shoulder keeping her grounded. Kiana’s heartbeat slowed as her mind was immersed in everything that Raiden Mei was and is. A flash of golden light flared from her palm against Mei’s forehead. Kiana’s breath stilled in her lungs. The mighty Moon Goddess dare not move. Even time itself seemed to pause for a beat. Pausing to give reverence to the Herrscher of Finality’s anticipation.
Until the stillness was shattered by a scream tearing itself from Raiden Mei’s throat. The former Herrscher’s eyes snapped wide and her limbs came to life with frantic flailing as she scrambled to push herself from the only presence she could sense near her.
“Mei!” Kiana reached out, worry bleeding into her voice without restraint. “Mei it’s me! You’re okay! You’re safe! It’s me! Kiana! Hey!”
It took another terrifying moment, but after another second Kiana’s voice seemed to strike a chord in the horrified woman. Her screams continued for a moment, losing their intensity one after the other and focus fought to return to her frantically darting eyes. Emotions warred across Kiana’s face as she watched her wife’s chest heave as she struggled to gain control of her breathing.
“Mei?” Kiana asked softly.
“K-Kiana?”
Kiana’s heart broke at the shaky, unsure shudder to Mei’s voice. The dissonance between the strong, fearless, kind woman she knew as Raiden Mei and the shaken, terrified, small woman in front of her was almost too much to bear. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Kiana used her powers to slowly levitate closer to her beloved.
She shot the woman her best comforting smile. “Yes, it’s me, Mei!” She settled back down next to her. Mei instinctively leaned into her presence, unaware of the way Kiana tensed when their arms brushed together.
“What-” A shuddering breath shook her body, “What happened?”
“Uhhh…” Kiana grimaced. “Weird dimensional shit?”
Mei shot her wife a flat look. “That… doesn’t really help.” Her voice was weak. Exhausted.
Kiana could only hope her smile didn’t look too strained as she rubbed at the back of her head sheepishly. “Uh… what do you remember?”
“I remember… I was worried about you… You wouldn’t respond and were standing in one place for so long... So I tried to shake you awake and then…” Mei flinched, crying out in pain and pressing a hand to the side of her head like she’d been struck.
“Okay! Okay! Bad idea, maybe!” Kiana frantically touched around Mei’s head and shoulders as if hoping there was a physical wound she could heal. “You uh.. Well we’re in your mind space, which…” Kiana took a moment to look around. “Hey hold on, what’s the big idea?” Now that her attention was not focused solely on Mei, the Herrscher finally took note that the white space she had entered was no more. Instead they were in… their old dorms at St. Freya? The two women rested on the floor just behind the worn couch. Kiana could easily see down the hall just to the edge of the door to Mei’s old room around the corner. And through the shelving in front of them she could see that old kitchen that held so many memories for the two. Even the breaths she took seemed to hit her with nostalgia. “Well this is better than blank white, if you ask me.” She turned back with an easy smile.
“This place holds many memories of happiness and comfort for me… that must be it.” Mei commented softly.
Kiana floated to her feet, reaching back towards Mei with a grin lighting up her face. “Well, the floor is a bit uncomfortable, so shall we sit on the couch?”
Mei gratefully accepted, the couple settling into the soft cushions.
“Ahhh just how I remember it.” Kiana commented, letting her body sink against the back of the couch. The duo was silent for a moment. The heavy air of things yet unsaid hung in the stillness between them. After a few minutes, Mei was disturbed from her thoughts by her wife sucking in a deep breath. “I-” Kiana hesitated. The sudden drop in her mood quickly drew Mei’s concerned gaze. Kiana leaned forward and rested her elbows on her knees with her hands clasped and pressed against her chin. The girl looked up at her partner, pain shimmering in her multicolored eyes.“I’m sorry, Mei.”
Mei tilted her head. “For what?”
“This is my fault. I was projecting myself into higher dimensions when you touched me and… apparently that contact connected you to what I was doing which- from what I can tell- shot your consciousness through several of them…” Kiana stated it matter of factly even as her voice wavered. “If I was more aware of what my powers were fully capable of, this wouldn’t have happened. I could have shielded you.”
“Kiana…”
“I know what you’re going to say.” Kiana sighed. “Bianka and Aunt Theresa told me the same thing. And I know you’re all right.” She turned back, emphatically gesturing with her hands. “But I almost killed you, Mei! I almost…” Her voice cracked, a sniff and small wince preceding the water moistening her eyes. “I don’t know how I could live with myself if I’d never found your consciousness.”
“Well there’s no use dwelling on it because that didn’t happen.” Kiana fought back a flinch as calloused hands gently cupped her cheeks and turned her head back towards her companion. Mei’s worry and displeasure made itself known through the frown that fell on her lips. “Kiana you’ve saved me more times than I can count. I can always trust you to do your absolute best for me. This was purely the result of lacking knowledge about Finality. But when it comes to something so eldritch so… strange, how could anyone blame you for still having things to figure out?” Her thumb gently wiped at the small trails of tears burning against Kiana’s cheeks. “I’m still here and it’s all thanks to you. Don’t dwell on what could have happened. Celebrate your success.”
Kiana huffed softly in amusement. “You always know just what to say.”
Mei returned the laugh with a sad smile. “Well not always. I have let my fists talk instead when words would have served us much better.”
This time a bright laugh shook Kiana’s chest. “But now you get to tell people you’ve beaten up the Moon Goddess for being an idiot.”
Mei gave her wife an unamused glare. “That was a serious event, Kiana Kaslana. I would never use it to brag about my abilities.”
Kiana nodded solemnly. “Of course.” A moment later her face lit up with a shit eating grin. “I would never talk about your really hot Herrscher of Thunder transformation. Nuh-uh, nope, definitely not something I would have or have ever done.”
“Kiana Kaslana.”
Though the smile remained, this time Kiana fully flinched. She was in real trouble now. “You know,” she began, definitely not desperate to change the subject. “The others are waiting for us back in the waking world. Should probably alleviate their worries soon.”
“We should.” Mei agreed. Kiana began to rise but the weight of a body leaning against her side knocked her back down against the couch. “But not yet. I want to just… stay like this for a while.” Mei’s soft voice pulled at Kiana’s heart. The Herrscher quickly surrendered to her wife’s desire to cuddle and cautiously wrapped her arms around her.
“Alright. We’ll stay like this as long as you want.”
With that the couple closed their eyes and finally escaped into a peaceful, if temporary, rest.
Back in the proper world, the group had originally taken to keeping watch in shifts as Kiana’s explorations into Mei’s mind had stretched out first to hours, and then to days. Senti was the most consistent sentry as the only one that didn’t require food or sleep. It was a strange thing, to keep watch over a woman standing at a bedside for days on end. No movement, no breaks for food or sleep, barely breathing, Kiana was practically a statue besides a time a few days in that her hand had moved from the bed and onto Mei’s forehead, severely startling Senti in the process (She’d never admit it but, unfortunately for the Herrscher, Fu Hua had seen the whole thing). The building and nearby areas had eventually been evacuated by Theresa except for necessary and prepared personnel due to Kiana’s steadily increasing output of Honkai energy. The hospital’s Honkai shielding had needed to be replaced more times in the last week than they had been in the last decade. The output of the Herrscher of Finality was not to be trifled with for certain. While all those present in the room all had extreme Honkai Adaptability (aside from Senti who had no problems as a Herrscher), they still kept what Anti-Honkai serums they had on hand just in case.
It was during the afternoon of the fifth day that the group received an urgent call from Bianka to gather in Mei’s hospital room.
Not thirty minutes later and those already gathered all turned as the door burst open and the diminutive Shicksal Overseer burst into the room. It didn’t take her long to spot what was going on. A warm glow fought to light the room against the cold fluorescents in the ceiling, its valiant shine casting faded shadows along the tiles. Bronya quickly beckoned her over.
“It would seem Kiana is indeed still doing something in there, Overseer.” Bianka commented. She moved to the side as Theresa approached the bedside and spotted the source of the glow. From under Kiana’s hand upon Mei’s forehead shone the bright light, the warm glow washing over the two women. If anything, it reminded Theresa of the unsettling golden glow of Imaginary constructs, however from Kiana it simply filled her with the satisfaction of knowing her niece was still alive and kicking wherever she was.
“Do we have any idea what this light could mean?” Bronya shot a curious look at Senti.
Senti shrugged. “I can’t tell you unless I dive in there myself and that sounds more like suicide than anything else after last time. It’s possible she’s found whatever is wrong with Mei and is attempting to heal her mind.”
“So she might be gone for a while yet…” Theresa sighed.
“We must believe Kiana will pull through.” Bianka declared. “If anyone can, it’s Kiana.” She offered her friends a small, confident smile.
“You’re right.” Theresa nodded. “When it comes to things like this, Kiana has never let us down.” As if she’d spoken a spell, Kiana’s light suddenly flared painfully bright before disappearing completely just as quickly. And then…
Nothing.
Those gathered shared confused glances. Despite the continued stillness of the two objects of their attention, a hopeful anticipation slowly built in the room. It was quiet. Too quiet. A tension that nearly made Theresa sweat. She felt as though she could ask Senti to cut it with her sword and even the Herrscher would struggle to do so.
“What the hell was that?! Anyone wanna tell me what the hell is happening?!” Senti spread her arms wide in annoyance as she yelled.
The other occupants of the room merely stared at her. “If even the Herrscher of Sentience didn’t know what was going on with a sentient mind, how could they?” their eyes seemed to ask.
Senti threw her arms up in frustration. “Alright, fuck me, then.”
So consumed by their own anticipation were they that nearly everyone in the room startled when a rustle of cloth grated against their ears in the silent room.
The pale hand that had not moved from its position for nearly twenty-four hours fell away from where it rested. Kiana slowly raised that same hand, clenching and unclenching it like a stranger testing her own body.
“Kiana?” Bianka reached out but hesitated to touch her sister again.
However, she needed not fear. When the Kaslana finally turned to face her friends it was with the bright smile of the Kiana Kaslana they all knew and loved. “Hey sis!” She didn’t move from the bedside, but opened her arm to her sister. Bianka took the offer immediately, stepping in to embrace her. Feeling Kiana’s squeeze of affection was a balm for the greatly concerned valkyrie. Pulling away after a moment, her eyes were drawn to Kiana’s other arm. To no one's surprise, her hand was tucked safely in Mei’s own. The wonderful sight of the bedridden woman’s violet eyes gazing back nearly brought tears to Theresa’s eyes.
“Welcome back, Miss Raiden.” Bianka greeted softly.
Mei took a moment to meet the eyes of each of her friends. Fu Hua kneeled and took her unoccupied hand in her own, Senti merely nodded in acknowledgement though the Herrscher couldn’t hide the upward twitch of her lips, Theresa was beaming almost as brightly as Kiana, Bianka gave her sister's shoulder a comforting squeeze, and Bronya even had a small smile of her own.
“Hi-” Mei began before a dry cough interrupted her. After clearing her throat she smiled apologetically. “Could- ahem Could I get some water?”
“Oh right! Of course!” Kiana’s willingness to jump at the chance to assist the woman was halted nearly immediately by a gauntleted hand landing firmly on her shoulder.
Bianka shook her head. “Leave it to me, Kiana. Stay with her.” With that, Bianka grabbed her lance from where it was leaned against the wall and swiftly exited.
Kiana looked away sheepishly. “R-right, that would be better, huh?” She looked down as Mei gave her hand a comforting squeeze. Once Bianka had left, Kiana gave her quick thanks to the others before returning her attention to her wife. “If nothing else, I’m happiest that I can finally say… Welcome back, Mei.”
“It’s good to be back.” Mei choked out around her need to cough. Though nothing in the room had changed, a strange look suddenly crossed Kiana’s face. “What’s wrong, dearest?”
Kiana snapped her gaze up to Fu Hua and The Herrscher of Sentience. “So uh… how long have I been releasing so much Honkai energy?” She grimaced. Before either woman could answer she spun to her aunt. “Wait, why did Dudu take her lance? Why did she bring her lance to a hospital anyways?!”
Theresa dragged a hand down her exhausted face. “Well… for the past two days or so St. Freya has been fighting off Honkai beasts that have been manifesting around this building… does that answer your question?” Kiana maintained a flat expression as she stared at her aunt unblinkingly for several seconds. When the words eventually sank in, the Herrscher pursed her lips and nodded casually at the rather unfortunate news.
“Ah…” She put her free hand on her hip and shot a worried glance towards Mei. Her gaze swept downwards, lingering on the floor before trailing back up to Theresa. “Well fuck.”