Chapter Text
Golden fire was boiling through her veins. Every turn of the clock hands in the sky prompted a similar response from the golden one imprinted beneath her and triggered another ripple of Imaginary energy around her. At the same time a bout of searing pain would shoot through her body and the golden cracks would stretch just a little further.
“KIANA!”
“Mei, wait!”
“Fu Hua, let me go!”
She heard the voices. She could almost understand what they were saying. But they sound so… so far away. Muffled, like hearing an argument from behind a closed door. The world beyond the border set by the cog beneath her was blurred, shifting rapidly through the waterfall of imaginary energy pressing down on her. Even the frantic wailing of the Cocoon was being drowned out by the sheer strength of the energy bearing down on her.
DONG!
Another ring of the bell and the weight upon her increased exponentially. As did the intensity of the imaginary energy in the air around her. The pain racing through her body intensified along with the cracks breaking her body apart even more.
Another pained scream ripped through her gritted teeth. Her arms shook with the strain of keeping her up against the incredible pressure. So great was the force, the only thought occupying her mind was a desperate instinct to fight for all she was worth.
She instinctively drew upon her powers. Her strength. Only for… nothing. Kiana’s eyes widened. The imaginary singularity allowing her and the Cocoon to draw on the power of imaginary space and convert it into Honkai energy refused to respond. Or rather, the imaginary energy rushing through it refused to bend to her will. Every time she tried it felt like trying to stop a rapidly moving rope with her bare hands. It hurt . And even if it didn’t hurt, if she gripped for long enough it felt like something would then bat her hands away.
DONG!
The fabric of reality was beginning to strain under the immense power assaulting Kiana Kaslana. Cracks appeared in the sky, more golden light leaking into the world. A roaring wail shook the earth. Something was pressing against the barrier between dimensions.The greater the cracks in reality grew, the more the golden cracks along her body burned. The more… she felt something getting closer. A searing gaze that seemed to cast judgment with an almost unconcerned, disappointed glance, a glance that held an incalculable coldness that shivered through the Herrscher's bones. The Cocoon’s wails of fear grew in pitch, its attempts to cut off this flow of imaginary energy through its and Kiana’s singularity failing miserably. An all consuming sense of wrongness settled into her body like a shivering icy chill. The vague sense of dread had clung to her like a cloud when she had first returned to her body- and was now multiplied tenfold into an overbearing certainty- settled over her shoulders like a shroud, as if in confirmation that she was right.
She could only hope the others were being spared.
DONG!
Kiana’s screams grated against her raw throat like sandpaper, her voice cracking just like her body as the pieces of her arms cracked apart by the golden light finally shattered apart. They floated in the air close to their original position between her hands and upper arms, held there and orbiting like satellites around where her bone should be. Instead ethereal purple Honkai energy swirled between and around the fractured mess that used to be her forearm. Where she expected to see a gorey mess of blood, bones, and sinew, she saw only pure energy. The swirling purple honkai energy of her body was met with pure, golden imaginary energy arcing from piece to piece like lightning. Her voice completely failed her, so terrible was the sight.
The vague realization that her arms were somehow still supporting her weight paled in comparison to the pressure building in the sky. Her body was beginning to succumb to the massive forces arrayed against her as each bell tolled with a frightening anticipation. Her muscles burned and what remained of her limbs shook from the strain of keeping her body up. The low rumbling of its arrival slowly faded away as an intense high-pitched ringing overtook her hearing. The Herrscher fought against the creeping darkness of unconsciousness as the energy around her pressed harder and harder. Her eyes defiantly focused on an otherwise insignificant spot on the ground. Her head spun wildly and Kiana was certain that if she let her focus waver she would get swept away by this torrent of imaginary energy. As she fought to hold herself up despite the crushing pressure, a small, coin sized drop of red splashed into the ground right below the spot she had decided to focus on. And then another drop. And then another.
Kiana struggled to raise her head enough to get the cracks in the sky into the edge of her vision again, grunting and panting from the titanic effort it required. The taste of iron dripped across her lips as she finally got it into her sight. A pained grin shakily spread across her face.
She tried to speak, but all she could get out was a breathy, single note laugh as she forced the air out of her lungs. She could feel the drops from her bloody nose staining her teeth now as she tried to maintain that defiant smile. She kept her eyes locked onto the cracks in the sky as they grew in the air like an infection.
Until with a final ear splitting cry, the sky shattered.
Kiana was immediately forced to drop to her elbows- or what was left of them. Her head fell forwards, eyes scrunched shut and teeth grit against a sudden piercing pain that shot right through her skull. It wasn't the crushing pain of the energy around her, nor the sharpness she felt when Mei was injured. This was like fingers jabbing into her head, little pinpricks rifling around her mind and yanking out pieces only to put them back after a moment like papers being filed. And every bit of it sent a corresponding ripple of intense pain that would have had her writhing on the ground in agony if her muscles hadn't locked up in defiance of the crushing weight bearing down upon her.
Her attempts to bring to bear all the training she had undergone with Senti and Fu Hua to defend her mind were swatted away with barely a thought. Against this foe, the power of the Herrscher of Finality was naught. She was nothing but an insect feebly smashing against something so much more than she could possibly understand. She refused to give this thing the satisfaction of screaming. The taste of iron filled her mouth, another pained cry held back.
She understood, of course, that on some level something the previous era and Otto could not figure out properly, something that the Cocoon actively avoided, likely came with consequences far greater than an ordinary mortal could bear to pay.
And so she understood, just as she had ever since she took up the mantle as Earth's protector and Queen of the Honkai, that it was something she had to do regardless. If only because her loved ones put so much faith in her ability to succeed. She had to be the one to shoulder the burden, because no one else could.
Would Mei scold her? Her arms gripping her tightly and hot, stinging tears burning against Kiana's bare shoulder as she rightfully admonished Kiana for falling back into her old Kaslana habits?
Would Bianka give her that look of disappointment? The one that always fell away into a loving smile as she silently aided her sister, instead of berating her for not taking care of herself?
Would Fu Hua still give her that knowing, sympathetic look? The one that carried with it such kindness but a deep melancholy as well, the same one the celestial gave her in Arc city?
Her papa's comforting arm on her shoulder as he laughed and gave her advice that would probably send Theresa into a fit of rage?
Theresa… Kiana's clenched eyes tensed harder at the thought of her Aunt. She'd been the one to ask if this was possible. If Kiana could help where no others could. “Please don't blame yourself for whatever's about to happen to me.” The desperate wish echoed into her mind. Shouting, laden with the hope that her dear Aunt would somehow hear.
A single drop of wetness slid from beneath her eyelids before quickly being torn apart by the torrent of imaginary energy pouring around her. Were her efforts to aid her fellow humans always destined to end in heartbreak and pain?
Whatever her thoughts on the matter were, they were scattered to the wind as unseen claws grated across her very mind and finally pulled a horrible scream of inhuman pain from the Herrscher's lungs. Something was rifling through her entire being like it was paper. Searching, learning, judging . She could not stand against it. Could not stop this assault on her mind. She could do naught but struggle to hold herself up as her body was beaten and broken by a holy, golden light. It burned her eyes, even through her clenched eyelids. She’d only ever seen this light in one place, and its appearance here and now made the icy claw of terror dig deep into the Herrscher of Finality.
The glow of the Imaginary Tree had been a glorious thing, beheld by a Goddess that could comprehend the myriad of energies and worlds cradled by its branches and fed by its roots. Whole galaxies had swirled before her like fruits she could have simply reached out and plucked from their branches to cradle in her Honkai stained hands. The wonder that reflected in her eyes was held in stark contrast to the harsh beams that now bore down upon her pained form. Her body was numb, yet somehow still holding itself up. The thought flitted by and disappeared, quickly brushed away by the pain continuing to wrack her mind.
It felt like eternity had passed by the time her focus began to waver. Her forehead met the cracked and shattered ground beneath her, fragments of stone digging into her skin until the imaginary energy pressing against her made them draw blood. Darkness was edging into her vision no matter how she fought against it. The overwhelming pressure from both out and within was still slowly breaking her apart like ceramic clenched in an iron fist. The golden spider webbing of cracks inched their way up her body, crawling up her neck like a corruption seeping into her veins. Without warning a force seized her body, wrenching her upright and forcing her arms to swing outwards. Spread apart at 90 degrees, she was not even afforded the dignity of attempting to shield herself with her shattered limbs. Her body was pulled backwards until she was held up on her knees, her torso angled like somebody had caught her as she fell backwards. The bright gold bathing the area around her burned her eyes with all the glory of a star. Kiana kept her teeth grit against the pain and stared into the light pouring through dimensions in defiance, though unbelievable pain still wracked her mind and her body. A little more pain was nothing. Not compared to everything she went through to get here.
Flashes of memory darted across her mind. Some flew past too quickly for her to get more than a vague feeling. But others… Nagazora. St. Freya. Bronya. Mei. Himeko. Arc City. Fu Hua. The memories of Sirin still buried safely inside the void core that was now complete, a part of the Cocoon of Finality just as much as the Cocoon was a part of her. Just as Sirin was a part of her. And then there was Mount Taixuan. The Theatre of Domination. The Moon. All these things were a part of her. Part of what made the human named Kiana Kaslana. And yet they were nothing. For what are memories without the emotion and growth that results from those same memories? It was not some cold data that could be studied like a file on a computer. Not if one was to understand the bearer of said memories. Not if one was to understand Kiana Kaslana. All of this was laid bare before a cold golden light in the shape of a mighty tree. It took shape in the light of the shattered wall between dimensions as if to meet her glare of defiance. The fingers prying into her mind hesitated for just a moment. Within seconds they began rifling through her mind with newfound purpose. Pinpoints of blinding pain dug into her skull much more focused than before. A vague idea began to take shape through the pain.
Who was she?
“I am…” Kiana struggled to force the words from her throat. She gasped in pain and barely managed to continue pushing, “Kiana… Kaslana…” She hissed as another flare of pain caused her vision to go black for a brief moment, the woman fighting valiantly to keep her vision in focus. “I-” Another pause as the Herrscher struggled to fill her lungs with enough air to speak, “I am-” She hesitated. The golden light before her seemed to flicker expectantly. What was she? To her people? To a being such as the one before her? The title of “Goddess” was thrown aside in frustration just as quickly as it crawled from the recesses of her mind. A protector? Defender? Protecting humanity had only been possible due to the myriad of people that had worked alongside her towards this goal. She was nothing without them. To claim such a responsibility as being singularly hers seemed- in her opinion- to be disgusting, unwarranted arrogance. She was Kiana Kaslana, the one her allies said would lead them forward into a better tomorrow. But a lone star she was not. Even now, they all helped her pave the path forward.
“I am… one who guides humanity.” She grunted out. Her declaration was not nearly as smooth as she would have liked, nor as dramatic as declaring herself should be. Yet one had to make due with the situation they found themselves in. The Imaginary Tree seemed to pulse. An incredible wave of imaginary energy rammed into her, and with it another sharp pain behind her eyes. Images, feelings, concepts, so many things rushed through her mind. So many things she failed to grasp in that moment. So many things the Imaginary Tree… needed her to understand. It was too much. Too much information. Too much pain. It seemed as if this stream of information was eroding her very psyche.
Too much too much too muchtoomuchtoomuchtoomuch- the resulting scream echoed through the earth with the pained whale song of Finality.
Her world went black.
And yet the golden light still shone in her vision. In her mind. Like a watchful eye ever trained on her form. A warning. It seemed to flicker as if speaking. Like a candle flame held before murmuring lips. And yet she could not hear it.
And in the next moment, it too blinked out. And blissful oblivion finally took her.
When the light and imaginary constructs finally blinked out of existence, Kiana had collapsed like one of the Legion Herrscher's puppets without its string. They had been scared to approach her form long after the terrifying light tearing her apart had winked out of existence. If Kiana's near inhuman screams mere seconds before weren't discouraging enough, the hole torn in reality had yet to fully heal, the imaginary energy leaking through serving as a barrier to ward off anyone that would dare attempt to retrieve Kiana. Bianka had tried, and was quickly forced to retreat and inject neutralizing serum as her Battlesuit's attempts to adapt began overloading her body with Honkai Energy. And so there she lay. They could only observe in horror as, now that the shimmering of Imaginary energy no longer scrambled the sight of her, they could finally see and record some of the damage done to Kiana's body. The sound of Mei’s sobs when she saw the pictures of her beloved's mysteriously shattered forearms would haunt those near for weeks.
For hours the valkyries of St. Freya debated and schemed how best to rescue the Moon Goddess from where she lay shrouded in invisible golden energy. For a full hour, Fu Hua and Bianka had to hold Raiden Mei back from attempting to break through to her beloved despite the dangers.
That was until, as if deciding they had been forced to wait long enough, the fabric of reality rapidly healed over the course of a few seconds and the shroud of vicious energy surrounding Kiana disappeared like so much smoke.
The instant they had confirmed their instruments’ readings were accurate, there was no stopping Mei. The Valkyrie nearly stumbled on the circle of shattered stone surrounding Kiana as she ran to her side, so complete was the stone's destruction. The woman dropped to her knees and gingerly held her wife's shoulders, the unconscious Kiana's face still twisted in a shadow of unbelievable torment. She whispered comforts to her lover, promises to keep her safe, that she was here now. Fu Hua and Bianka helped Mei and a medical team cautiously pick Kiana up and get her onto a stretcher for transport into the nearby hospital. The healed Valkyries could only watch helplessly as their savior was rushed inside.
Mei rushed away with them, determined to not leave Kiana’s side.
The Overseer’s office was quiet except for the sound of pen against paper. Theresa’s jaw ached with dull pain from hours of anxious tensing, the woman demanding every relevant scientist they had available go over the readings picked up by various instruments around St. Freya and explain to her exactly what had just happened to her niece. And even those that weren’t. Nagamitsu, Tesla, Einstein, all were pulled back to St. Freya to analyze the remnants of the force that had so thoroughly assaulted Kiana. Dark circles had made their home under her eyes despite the Valkyries that had witnessed the event doing everything in their power to ease her burdens. Every valkyrie had to be checked for any abnormalities from exposure to the force that had barraged Kiana. The very Earth itself had to be checked and double checked and then triple checked for anything that would render the area inhospitable to human life. It would take weeks, perhaps even months, to accomplish this as well as repair the damage caused by the honkai beast attack.
Theresa sighed and set aside yet another stack of paperwork regarding the instrumental readings recorded for “The Breach”, as the valkyrie squads that had witnessed the event had taken to calling it. It had been a full day since the Breach and a few hours since Kiana had been properly moved to the main medical wing, the hospital building Mei had been treated in and Kiana had originally been taken to now under repairs. Theresa desperately needed rest, but sleep would not hold her in its velvety embrace.
Theresa sighed, placing the paperwork to the side as she stood, staring for a moment at her empty office. Well, empty besides one other, “Amber, I’m going to see how Kiana’s doing. Please contact me if anything else insane happens while I’m gone.” The diminutive woman hopped off her chair and quickly moved to the door.
Amber bowed, “Of course, Theresa.”
Theresa stopped at the door, her hand hesitating on the handle, “You know, if you'd like,” she began gently, “You can come visit too.”
Amber almost seemed taken aback by the offer, though the visor she always wore obscured a generous portion of her face. “I… Thank you for the offer, Theresa, but I… I will stay here and keep an eye on things.”
Theresa nodded, acquiescing to the woman's wishes, “If you decide differently later, I'm sure the others will welcome you. Take care, Amber.”
The woman smiled at her counterpart and left the room in steps laden with exhaustion. She couldn't help the smile that remained on her face far longer than usual. It had taken her several years to get Amber to use just her name instead of constant titles while it was just the two of them, and now she treasured every instance it happened. While the modified clone of Kallen her grandfather had used as a servant had come far under Theresa's more… caring guidance, she was still quite hesitant to accept Theresa's offers to join non-work activities . Oh well. One day. Theresa shook her head, her full smile fading to more of a closed lipped grin as her mind began moving to other things.
It took a good ten minutes to travel from her office to the medical wing where the best doctors at Shicksal’s disposal were attempting to treat Kiana’s injuries. Though, if the reports she’d been seeing were anything to go by, they were having trouble even identifying what said injuries had done to her in the first place, even with Tesla and Einstein's help. The moment Theresa stepped into the wing proper a doctor was already upon her, tablet in hand. Her nose wrinkled in distaste as the expected sanitized smell of the place hit her senses.
“Overseer! We were not expecting you so soon!”
Theresa waved him off, “I’m not here on official business. I’m just here to visit my niece.” She kept walking, fighting to keep the annoyance off her face when the doctor fell in step beside her.
“But did you read our reports? Your niece is the biggest official business since the end of the Honkai War!”
Theresa let out a sharp exhale of annoyance. “I skimmed them, but deeper reading will take more time than I have right now with everything else that is also demanding my attention. I know enough to know she’s stable and apparently safe. Why, did something happen?”
“Well… Not really, it’s just-”
“Not really?” Theresa growled.
The man grimaced, “We’ve been running every test we know of to try and figure out what those waves of imaginary energy might have done with her, but they’re all turning up nothing! Her body is no longer falling apart- in fact it’s healing faster than anything we’ve ever seen, her brain activity is completely normal according to previous data on the Herrscher of Finality, no honkai infection from an energy overload despite the levels in her body being so large our instruments can’t properly measure it! However she’s still unconscious and we haven’t been able to wake her.”
“As long as she's still stable.” The pair stopped in front of Kiana's room. “Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to visit her alone . If you simply must drag me back to work, do it after I come out and not a moment sooner. Got it?”
“Y-yes Overseer,” the man stammered. He gave a small bow and scurried away.
Theresa took a deep breath, releasing a weary sigh. She puffed up, bracing herself with a determined frown before pushing open the door. She allowed it to click shut, taking no small solace in the door blocking out much of the noise from the busy corridor. Now there was only the sound of quiet conversation and the beeps of the monitoring machines. Even having just entered, it was obvious Kiana was still not awake. Theresa’s eyes darted to the woman’s exposed arms. Some time after she had been brought into the Honkai treatment ward her forearms had pieced themselves back together, leaving softly glowing golden scars snaking up to just under her elbows like broken glass. The rest of her body was covered in similar scars, though the rest appeared as regular discolored scar tissue instead of retaining their own inner light. Theresa bit her lip, gaze hardening as her eyes traced the spider webbing of scars that crawled all the way up to the crook of her neck.
Tesla, Einstein, and their supporting staff watched from a separate observation room separated from where Kiana lay by reinforced glass bordered with honkai absorbent panels where they could be protected from abnormalities but still monitor their unconscious patient. Less concerned about possible honkai anomalies were the people sitting at a small table set next to Kiana’s bed. There were five crowded around the table, with another leaning against the wall nearby. Theresa nodded a greeting to Bianka, the valkyrie standing with crossed arms. While the woman seemed to be relaxing, leaning against the wall as she was, those that knew her could see her crossed arms and tensed muscles were anything but. At the table sat Mei (of course) nibbling at a sandwich along with Bronya and a few old friends.
Theresa smiled softly at the new faces, “Hello Seele. And Seele.” The blue and red women smiled and nodded sharply respectively. Theresa shifted to the final occupant of the table, her voice immediately taking on a more displeased tone, “Oh. Hello Seigfried.”
Kiana’s father chuckled, “Come now, Theresa! Is that any way to greet an old friend?”
“I’m just surprised you were sober enough for someone to contact you about your daughter.” Theresa deadpanned.
Siegfried grimaced, “Come on, Teri, I’ve been doing better!”
Theresa slumped, another weary sigh overtaking her, “Yeah… at least you’re here now. Sorry.”
“Damn,that bad, huh?” The sound of the plastic chair grinding against the tile floor grated against her ears as Seigfried stood. Theresa barely had time to react as the much taller man suddenly bent down, wrapped his arms under hers and around her and lifted her clear off the floor. “Looks like someone needs a hug!”
Theresa yelped as her feet left the ground, her flailing arms quickly swinging to pound against any part of Seigfried they could reach. “Seigfried! Put me down this instant you buffoon!” Theresa’s struggles only grew as Seigfried’s laughter was joined by the giggles of Bianka and Seele. Resorting to the most powerful defense at her disposal, Theresa grabbed ahold of the man’s ponytail and started pulling.
“Ow ow ow ow! Not the hair! Teri- gah! Bianka, help!” It took only a moment for Seigfried’s grip on her to release, the diminutive woman letting go of his hair and dropping back to her feet with a huff.
Bianka only raised an amused eyebrow, “Papa, you were kind of asking for it, bear hugging Theresa like that.”
Siegfried groaned, biting back a grimace as he fixed his ponytail, “Anyways…” He eyed Theresa before shrugging towards Kiana, “You’re dropping by to check on her, right?”
Theresa nodded and watched out of the corner of her eye as Bronya whispered something to Mei and stood to join them. The monotonous beeping of the machines monitoring Kiana marked out a tempo like a metronome counting the seconds as they stood by Kiana’s bedside.
“I read the reports they’ve been sending about what they could find about Kiana’s condition,” Theresa began.
“And that they can’t find anything explicitly wrong with her besides the healed external damage?” Bronya finished.
Theresa nodded, “It’s almost like when Mei was unconscious, except for those scars and that the ones on her arms are still glowing. And the fact that the honkai levels in her body are even more off the charts than they already were as the Herrscher of Finality.”
“She must still be there somewhere if she’s keeping any of it from leaking out.”
“Did Senti try to find anything?”
Bronya sighed, “She’s refusing to enter her consciousness after what happened with Mei.”
“Understandable, I suppose…”
A soft, exhausted voice met their ears, causing the group to turn to the speaker, “All we can do right now is wait, and believe in her.” Mei added quietly.
Theresa’s lips flattened into a grim line. As much as she hated it, Mei was right. As it stood, they were powerless. The diminutive woman tenderly brushed some messy bangs out of the unconscious woman’s face. “Come back to us, Kiana.”