Chapter Text
Violet eyes snapped open and Mei shot into a sitting position with straining lungs and a pounding heart. In her near panicked state as the jumble of memories from the last few hours tumbled through her mind, she tore the sheets from her body and raked her eyes and hands over every bare patch of skin she could see, even brushing up the sleeves and pulling at the hem of her hospital gown just to be sure. As the memory of pink veins forming blocky patterns up her arms faded, failing to match the sight before her now, she was finally able to force herself to take deeper, more calming breaths.
It was then that a slight whispering movement in the corner of eye set her nerves alight. In an instant she had pulled her katana from under her pillow (the knowledge that she had never kept her weapon there briefly flashed through her mind), jumped from the bed, and drawn the blade. The feeling of her heart pounding in her chest became quite the embarrassing sensation when the origin of the movement seemed clear. Before her sprouted a sakura tree, the blossoms of which rained down like a constant, gentle waterfall. Mei took in a deep breath and sighed softly. The sun hung low in the sky and despite only having a scattering of clouds it smelled… like rain, ozone. A thunderstorm. The hair on her arms tingled from an electrifying charge that seemed to saturate the air beyond what any natural occurrence would produce and her mind came alight in a primal paranoia that she was being watched.
The priestess cast an alert gaze around this strange scene she found herself in. Her head ran through the hazy recollection of her recent memories. She remembered being overwhelmed by Honkai energy, the corruption running along her skin, the pure sensations overwhelming her so completely and so unlike anything Kiana and Bronya had prepared her for, Kiana’s arms around her… She couldn’t help the way her heart fluttered remembering such close contact, but studiously kept her focus in line on the memory of being rushed through bright halls and injected with something that stole consciousness from her.
Was she dreaming?
Her gaze drifted around her surroundings once more. The Sakura tree seemed to be positioned in a decently large garden, the craftsmanship of the stone pathway circling the tree and leading off into other sections bordered with hedges was masterful. The trimming of the hedges and dispersal of the various plants occupying every other bit of space was perfect and aesthetically pleasing. While the path split in four cardinal directions away from the Sakura, at the diagonals were benches about long enough to fit three people, set just slightly into a cleared section among the various flowering plants so people might enjoy the sight of the Sakura and scent of any exotic specimens the owner might want to show off. To her right one the pathways meandered back to a multi-story building designed in the ancient cultural architecture of Nagazora, Nagoya, Yokohama, and other similar city-states. It was beautiful, yet it screamed “high class” and struck her as something her father would love to use as a symbol of their family prestige. That sense of being watched steadily grew more intense the longer she gazed upon it.
“It is rather beautiful for something born of human arrogance, isn’t it?”
Almost relieved that her paranoia had been proven accurate, she spun and raised her katana at the ready in a single practiced movement. Her steps faltered however, when she was met with a face far too familiar on the other side of the rain of Sakura petals.
Dark purple locks fell down this woman’s back and hovered unnaturally above the ground a full meter past her feet and her bangs framed her face just the same as Mei's, her facial features an eerie mirror of the priestess. However her eyes glowed with a pink light, her pupils a strange tall diamond shape with smaller diamonds marking each diagonal like a stylized crosshair in the usual lavender of Mei’s own eyes. Her head was crowned with brilliant red horns growing from her upper forehead like an Oni of ancient myth. Her clothing was a modified copy of what Mei was always wearing in her visions of that rainy rooftop, with less fabric around her shoulder and armpits. This woman before her also bore several additional pieces of brilliant red armor styled like a samurai of old protecting the forearm and shoulder of her sword arm. A keepsake in the form of a lock of white hair dangled from her waist.
“Who are you?” Mei demanded.
The woman laughed, though it was a dangerous sound and not at all joyful like a laugh should be, “What, you don’t recognize yourself? I’m Raiden Mei,” She slowly began following the path around the Sakura tree, seemingly uncaring of the sword readied at her. Mei moved in the same direction, keeping the same distance between them, “I am the Mei that embraced what it truly means to have the authority of conquest, who would not be held back by these pathetic insects who cower in fear of our potential. I am Raiden Mei as she should be.”
Mei's grip tightened. Her boots scuffed against stone and she chanced a glance down just long enough to confirm that her uniform had- at some point- appeared on her body, “So you’re a trick from the Honkai. A vile vision sent to test me even as I rest?”
The woman scoffed, “After that pathetic display you put on attempting to harness the power of Gods, I would hardly qualify this as a deserved rest. However, that uncontrolled rush of Honkai did allow me to wake, so I suppose I should thank you for being so terrible at this.”
“Kiana and Bronya didn’t seem to expect things to go like this,” She extended her arm and the point of her blade came down, held level with the woman as they paced around the sakura, “Are you to thank for these troubles?”
“Kiana, oh Kiana,” The other Mei sighed, “That silver-haired idiot. So eager to jump feet first into a lake without first checking its depth. Though in this case, she has you to blame,” She scoffed.
“What does that mean?” Mei growled, “Kiana has done nothing but attempt to help me and gift me a companionship I have rarely felt.”
Mei watched as her own face twisted into a sneer, “There is much you don’t know, fool. You play at being a warrior unaware that there are things beyond your sad mortal flesh already in motion, content to live your life as a mere servant barely even worth a second glance. Even abandoned as I am by that traitorous bastard of a creator, I find your weakness disgusting,” The air above slowly began to gather ever darkening clouds, a distant thunder rumbling in Mei’s ears as the woman grew more and more agitated, “I cannot stand to look at what has become of you, and yet if I want to reclaim what we once were I have no choice but to endure your pathetic flailing. Do you have any idea how that infuriates me ?!” As if to emphasize her point a bolt of lightning lit up the sky behind her, the boom of thunder rattling Mei’s bones.
“You seem to hold a different me in your mind. Tell me what you know!”
“No,” The other Mei laughed, “If anything that would only make things worse. You are once again just as meek and pathetic as the day we first met, barely ready to take your first steps onto the path laid out in front of you. Yet it is a path you must learn to walk, or this world you love so much, as you know it, will surely perish,” She raised her gauntleted finger and pointed towards Mei, “You hold more strength than you realize, Raiden Mei. Yet you are hesitant. Scared. You contain a gem of conquest, yet what could you ever hope to conquer by being so weak and timid? You contain a gem of conviction, and yet what I feel in your heart is not nearly adequate enough. Is this humanity you dedicate yourself to not enough? Is the Goddess you serve? Is Kiana? What about your other friend, Bronya?” She shook her head like a teacher admonishing a particularly disappointing student, “These forces conspiring against you are no stranger. You have conquered them before and you will conquer them again. Look deep inside yourself. Find your reason to become the Raiden Mei you must be. Or I’ll do it for you. Just like I did when this all began.”
Mei’s sword arm shook, her teeth grinding. Her grip tightened and yet she could not bring herself to strike out, for she had struck some chord of truth buried deep within Mei’s heart. The wind had picked up speed, quickly growing stronger and more intense while lightning and thunder split the very sky, “Answer me!” She shouted, “Please! I need to know! What is this beginning you speak of? What are these visions? Why does it all feel so… familiar?!”
The woman began to fade behind a whirlwind of sakura petals, her eyes shining with emotions Mei could not hope to parse, “You will learn in time. Farewell-” Her final words were whisked away in the roaring wind, though as Mei strained her ears she swore she could just make out the words “ my foolish host ”.
Mei dashed towards her, determined to receive the answers she seeked, but her limbs felt leaden, a weight holding her down as the wind pushed against her like hands holding her back. She twisted and fought, her powerful legs pressing onwards to no avail. Until her world disappeared, and she fell into darkness. The tension in her legs released with one last kick, her heel connecting with something solid for just a moment before she continued her fall into blackness.
“Fuck, my nose !”
In an instant, the darkness had been replaced with blinding fluorescent lighting. Mei jolted awake, sensation flooding back to her as she woke up in that hospital bed once more. She snapped into a sitting position, breaths coming fast and confusion stretching across her face as the first thing that met her eyes was Kiana reeling in pain.
“K-Kiana?”
Kiana grinned even as she held her nose and crinkled her eyes in pain, “Mei! You’re-” She groaned, “You’re awake!”
“By the Moon, Kiana, I’m so sorry!”
“It's okay, it's okay,” Kiana assured her, “Gahd, well, I can at least attest to the fact that you still have some level of Honkai enhanced strength.”
“I am heartened to see you return to us, Raiden Mei,” At her bedside stood the High Priestess, a relieved smile on her face, “You began thrashing about in your sleep, I was about to call in some of your sisters to ensure you did not hurt yourself.”
“T-thank you, ma'am,” Mei stammered out, her gaze only momentarily leaving Kiana.
“The Bronya warned Kiana idiotka not to stay within striking distance,” Bronya piped up from her seat set comfortably outside of Mei’s reach, “Regardless of the idiotka getting a well deserved pummeling, how are you feeling, Mei?”
Kiana’s jovial attitude almost immediately dropped away at the change of subject. She approached the other side of the bed and clasped Mei’s hand with both her own, her eyes quickly gaining a worried edge, “Yeah, you doing okay? You gave me- everybody a bit of a fright.”
Mei gave her limbs a quick stretch, flexing her fingers and noting the lack of Honkai corruption, “Physically I feel fine… But the experience of opening myself up to the Honkai is… haunting… Such an overwhelming torrent of horrifying power,” Mei shuddered.
The dour mood could be felt by all in the room. Kiana lowered her head in shame, “I'm sorry, Mei… Usually controlling Honkai through gems like that isn't so utterly overwhelming. It shouldn't hurt.”
“Am I doing something wrong?” Her voice wavered.
Kiana shook her head fervently, “No! No. You're not doing anything wrong, Mei. I think… I think there's something else going on. Bronya can back me up on this, but for both of us, controlling the Honkai in our gems may have been difficult and dangerous, but it never hurt or started corrupting us to the point of visible infection unless we were severely overtaxing our abilities.”
Bronya nodded, “The doctors here were forced to inject you with a Honkai neutralizing serum designed specifically for someone who's been altered by a Herrscher gem like you. The sudden drop in Honkai levels knocked you out for a few hours. The speed at which the infection appeared and spread across your body is highly unusual,” She stood and floated over to stand next to Kiana, “While Honkai is incredibly dangerous, the energy from our gems wants to be used. It wants you to feel its power so it can attempt to twist you into an enemy of humanity.”
Mei stared at her hand as she clenched and unclenched it, her mouth parting slightly as she searched for the right words, “When I touched the gems with my mind I could feel their warmth. When I first began tapping into their energy it felt… right .”
Bronya and Kiana nodded, “That's Herrscher gems for you,” Kiana confirmed.
“But when I drew more out, it was like a… like a dam had burst and this uncontrollable tide of Honkai energy crashed into me. I could feel… it's like there's something on the other side that takes notice of me drawing on the energy and does not want me there. Or it… is trying to get in?” Mei continued staring at her hands as small tremors began to shake them. She looked up at the high priestess, then at her friends, “I- When Bronya first helped by giving my gems a boost of Honkai energy there was something else there. In my mind.”
The high priestess's brows furrowed, her hand resting on her chin.
Mei took in a shuddering breath, “I didn't say anything at the time because… well, I thought it was the normal process. It was like voices whispering in my head, calling to me. It was just like all the stories I'd heard of other chosen of the Gods that became corrupted. But unlike those, when I resisted I felt something grow… angry. It felt like claws were digging into my mind like a punishment for my resistance,” Mei's voice cracked, “It hurt so much…”
“Oh, child…” The high priestess gave her hand a supportive squeeze. Kiana practically jumped at Mei to provide her own comfort.
The high priestess hummed in thought, “This is troubling news indeed. I will inform our archivists that your friends are to be given the same level of access as yourself. Bronya has already questioned me on the matter. Maybe something buried within our gathered knowledge can help shed light on your troubles. In the meantime, rest. I have ordered some of our guest rooms to be prepared for your friends as well.”
“Thank you, Your Grace,” Bronya bowed. After a second of silence she unceremoniously elbowed Kiana in the side.
“Ow! Oh, um, yes, thank you, Your Grace!” She shot up from where she had still been holding Mei and gave a quick bow of her own.
The older woman's eyes danced in part amusement, part irritation, “Oh do not worry. I have long grown used to the irreverence of Kaslanas. Come, let me show you where your rooms are.”
Kiana gently clasped Mei's shoulder, “You all good?”
Mei nodded, unable to stop the smile that flit across her face at the girl's worry, “I'll be fine Kiana, you can always come back afterwards.”
The high priestess nodded, “I'll call for the doctor to come check you over while we are away.”
As the door quietly clicked shut behind them, Mei couldn't help but wonder if she should have told them about the strange other self she saw in her dreams. Her sneers still echoed in her mind.
If I wish to reclaim what we once were, I must endure your pathetic flailing.
I'll do it for you, just like I did when this all began.
She spoke as if they had met before, though Mei could not find a suitable memory no matter how hard she tried. Was this a side effect of the gem? The lightning… did the authority of conquest the gem drew power from cause her to see visions of herself as the Herrscher of Thunder? Exhaustion seemed to sweep over her like a wave now that Kiana was gone. Deciding to interrogate her memories of the conversation later, she laid her head down and closed her eyes. Scenes of that battered rooftop, the fluttering of white hair, and the intense glare of cerulean locked with gold played on the back of her eyelids, even as sleep refused to come.
“So you'll be staying there for now?”
“Yes mother,” Mei nodded at the shimmering window hovering in midair before her and displaying her mother's face, “Kiana and Bronya are adamant that what I have been experiencing is extremely abnormal, and so I believe it will be best if I rest at the temple where I can access the full breadth of our library in our search for answers.”
“A smart decision. I wish you a speedy recovery, dear. Your father and I will be busy meeting with his business partners and smoothing things over with the media after that little storm you caused,” Mifumi smiled proudly at her wordplay, “Ryoma is quite irritated that he is having to host the partners that have travelled to Arc city. His office is still undergoing repairs after that incident the other week.”
Mei couldn't quite keep the wince off her face, “Yes, that is quite unfortunate.”
Mifumi raised an eyebrow, “Oh, your father is quite aware that it was Kiana's doing.”
Mei nearly choked on her own spit.
“He is aware and currently willing to live and let live,” Mifumi added, “As long as Kiana is aiding you, that is. Though despite her seemingly boundless eagerness to help you, he is concerned about how suddenly she appeared,” Mifumi raised an eyebrow and locked her daughter with a knowing look as her mouth opened to defend Kiana, “Do not forget to err on the side of caution because she flashed you a pretty smile. She is unnervingly knowledgeable about things Ryoma and I have only learned after decades in service to the Herrscher of Thunder.”
“I-” Mei fought against the heat rising in her cheeks, “Mother! Yes, I know I must be cautious! But her knowledge may be just what I need to surmount this obstacle.“
Mifumi looked on in amusement, “You're a big girl, I know you can handle yourself. But I also know how you are with women. Keep in touch. I love you.”
“W-wait, what is that supposed to mean? Mother!” Mei whined in embarrassment, but her mother had already terminated the call. She sighed, disabling her earpiece’s now empty holo projection and stuffing it into her pocket.
“Was that your mom?”
Mei yelped in surprise “Kiana!”
The girl giggled and skipped into Mei's room. She had taken great joy in seeing Mei's rarely used quarters within the temple after the priestess was discharged from the infirmary. The Valkyrie's excitement brought a quiver of embarrassment to Mei's voice despite the room's rather spartan look. That same pleased grin lit up her face every time she entered after. A smile that made her cerulean eyes sparkle in the cutest way, if one were to ask Mei's opinion.
Mei calmed herself with a deep breath, “Yes, I was informing my mother of what happened. She might've gotten worried that I didn't call or come home last night otherwise. My father is busy with work so she will inform him when she can.”
“You seem to have a pretty good relationship with them,” Kiana's smile softened, “It's nice.”
“We do not always see eye to eye, Goddess knows how many arguments I've had with my father, but at the end of the day we still love each other,” Mei said, “I will admit I… haven't exactly been close enough with other people to know if this is a common dynamic. What about your parents?”
Mei watched as, for just a split second, Kiana seemed to freeze up and her lips twitched downwards before she forced them back up, “Ah, my parents, haha…” Kiana rubbed the back of her head, “My mom… she died when I was really young, I barely even remember her.”
Mei felt her heart drop as she realized what she had stumbled into, Kiana giving the priestess a weary smile.
“My dad was around for a while longer. He was probably one of the best knights the Kaslanas have ever had. Kinda a shitty dad for a while,” Kiana grinned wryly, “But he did his best. I loved him a lot but… he's gone now, too.” Kiana's face settled into a more neutral expression, the practiced stoicness of one that has felt incredible pain, and lived through even harder losses.
“Kiana, I’m so sorry…” Mei sat on her bed, patting the sheets next to her, which Kiana took to with slow movements.
“It's alright Mei,” she said quietly as she sat down, “It's not like I talk about my past enough for you to have known.”
Silence fell for a moment, Kiana watching as Mei hesitated with various emotions crossing the priestess’s face. Eventually she spoke, “I know we haven’t known each other for very long- despite all that has occurred since our first meeting- but if you ever need a shoulder to lean on, I will gladly offer mine.”
“Heh, thanks Mei,” Kiana smiled, wrapping her arm around Mei’s shoulder for a gentle side hug, “I feel better already!”
Mei attempted to quell the fluttering of her heart as Kiana’s face came perilously close. She failed, “W-well, besides the fact that I simply would like to help a friend, it’s only right I do something to aid you after all the support you have given me.”
Kiana released Mei and leaned back on her hands, “Weellll…” Her smile grew conspiratorial, “If you really wanna help, you can help with all the research Bronya wants me to do. Reading all those stuffy old books is so boorriinngggg,” She released the last word with a drawn out groan.
Mei scoffed in mock disbelief, “Already leveraging our friendship?” She paused just long enough for Kiana to jump her eyebrows up and down multiple times, a move that caused a laugh to burst from the priestess’s chest, “I’ll be helping you two, don’t worry. If you find it hard to concentrate by yourself, perhaps we can research together?”
Kiana grinned, “You’re the best, Mei! It’s a date!”
A strange sense of deja vu rippled through her mind. Shaking the strange feeling from her senses, Mei instead focused on the fact that she couldn’t wait to spend more time with the endearing Valkyrie. Together, they would surely find the answers they seek.
And so they found themselves up to their ears in old literature and historical records.
“Ugh, I swear this is making me age years at a time… At this rate I’m gonna go grey before we find any useful info!” Kiana threw her arms up in defeat.
“Kiana, your hair is already white,” Mei chuckled.
“But still!”
“You are right though,” Mei sighed, “It's getting late, lets pause until tomorrow.”
Kiana immediately straightened up and started gathering up books and powering down the data tablet for the digital archive, “Hey, you won't hear any no from me.”
“Would you check in with Bronya and see if she found anything?”
“Yeah, sure,” Kiana shrugged absentmindedly as she stacked materials onto the book cart for the librarians to re-organize. She shot Mei a curious look, “What about you? Where are you going?
“I’m going… to pray,” The two women steadily made their way out of the library, Mei nodding to the few of her companions that remained reorganizing shelves or otherwise cleaning up, “Do you remember the sacred place I mentioned when we first met?”
“Uh…” Kiana chuckled in embarrassment, “My memory isn’t quite that good…”
Mei smiled, “It’s okay. In short, it is a place deep within the temple grounds where one can easily experience the feeling of the Goddess’s power. Her lingering touch has made it a place where others long ago have experienced great spiritual revelation and it may even facilitate an easier connection to her. So I thought, if I have been chosen by her personally, perhaps if I pray there I will be able to talk to her again.”
Kiana shrugged, “I’m not very good at all this Goddess business, but it couldn’t hurt to try, right?”
Mei nodded, “Exactly.”
Soon enough they approached the crossroad of hallways where they would need to part, “Okay, I’ll check in with Bronya. Good luck, Mei!”
Mei waved goodbye as the Kaslana ran off down towards Bronya’s room. With Kiana gone, Mei found herself growing strangely hesitant at her idea. A small seed of anxiety slowly sprouted in her heart as she walked deeper into the building. The area she was travelling to was set far back in the temple grounds, at the very center. She had been there only once before to observe a ceremony for one of Finality’s holy days. It had been… overwhelming. But unlike when she attempted to draw upon the Honkai herself, the Goddess’s power seemed to saturate the very air with a comforting warmth even in the dead of winter. Mei had felt as if she only needed to reach out and she could have touched the Goddess herself.
After several minutes of walking, she exited the main building and made her way down a stone path stretching towards another building separated from the rest in the midst of an open field of well-tended lilies. The other facilities of the temple formed a protective wall around this central area. The walk was only a few minutes, but it was enough for the cold of the night to begin seeping into her bones, her casual clothing not designed to combat the wind chill. The cold wrapped her in an embrace that sent a strange, confusing shiver down her body. It felt more invigorating than uncomfortable, a curious realization for the chill averse Raiden Mei.
As she got closer the details of her destination became clearer. The building was a grand dome shape several stories tall like the large and spacious curves of a cathedral. However the petal-like indents usually made of stone were instead formed of glass. Moonlight spilled freely into the interior and the glass came down far enough that Mei could see the branches and leaves of the nature housed within. Below that topping of glass it was built out of stone much like one might expect, an even spread of windows at ground level and another at a higher story matching a human's height. While much like the temple the stonework remained plain for the most part, the area above the large double doors marking the entrance were inlaid with intricately formed purple glass in the shape of the eye of Finality. That same diamond surrounded by a counter-clockwise swirl of energy like a whirlpool or a galaxy that Mei often saw decorating other people and things around the temple (if much more opulent).
Her heart raced in anticipation and anxiety both as she pushed open the door- which being around twice her height dwarfed the priestess- just enough to slip into its confines. Her hand guided it back closed with a satisfying thunk. Now inside she could marvel at the sight that had remained in her memories clear as day for more than a year.
The inside of the cylindrical dome felt almost indescribably large and was blooming with growth. It reminded her of the pictures and art she had seen of the greenhouses kept by those who followed the Herrscher of Rebirth (though not nearly as humid), a beautiful collection of native undergrowth mixed with strange ferns, small trees, vines, and flowers she could not name. Many of these stranger plants were tinged purple with Honkai corruption, but in a place where the very air seemed alive with the presence of the moon, such a thing held an ethereal beauty rather than horror. Silver twinkles like fireflies hovered through the air, as if the very starlight had been enthralled by the beauty of this place and was loath to leave.
In the center of it all stood a tree mightier than all the rest. Like a queen lording over her subjects, it rose to the heights of the glass roofing far above, its leaves nearly brushing against its confines as if it was reaching in search of its own freedom. The trunk was incredibly thick and would take at least half a dozen women hand in hand to circle around it completely. It stretched up and twisted and split into smaller but still no less impressive branches up up up into the open air of the dome several dozen meters above her. The branches almost seemed to collectively curve inwards as they twisted, and if Mei looked hard enough she could almost see how one might slide down safely from top to bottom in this cradle of wood. The path to the tree ended in a small circular area big enough for only a few people to stand shoulder to shoulder, a plaque commemorating the sacred site but little else in terms of objects of religious reverence. There were no pews, no altars, no grand spaces for many to fall to their knees in worship.
This was not a place for the crowds that flocked to the temple outside. This was a place where one could truly form an intimate connection with the touch of the Goddess's power.
In this moment, this was a place for Mei and Mei alone.
She crossed her arm over her chest, pressing the knuckles of her closed fist against her heart and bowing her head as she began a whispered prayer. A practiced reverence. When she was finished, having done her dues, she allowed her gaze to wander up the great branches before her. The moonlight filtering through the glass and the branches of the tree bathed her surroundings in a majestic cool light. The soothing sounds of the night and peaceful calm that came with it washed over her, but could not still the worry eating at her heart.
And so she appealed to the energy suffusing the air. To the tree that represented a miracle of the divine made physical. To the moon itself, peeking through the branches. She begged for guidance, laid bare her struggles,and lamented her failure. After her heart had emptied itself and tears had begun moistening her eyes, she waited. First a minute. Then two. The air shifted and ran across her skin like a caress and yet she received no answer.
“Please…” Mei begged once more, the wet trail that slid down her cheek burning against the cold, “I know I must press forward but I am lost. Please help your loyal servant.”
The air gently shifted once more. Only this time, so did the silver pinpricks of light around her. Slowly at first, and then faster they flew past, beginning to gather in a spot in front of the tree. As they gathered together they coalesced into a shape. A shape that then became reality one little pinprick at a time, filling with color and building a familiar athletic body and tattered wedding dress. That lovely white hair and those honkai stained hands. Until the Herrscher of Finality stood complete before her, eyes closed as if in peaceful sleep.
But the oppressive weight that settled over her mind could not match the instinctive panic in her heart when those eyes opened not to the beautiful mix of cerulean and pink, but a cold and harshly shining gold.
A fear that seemed to bubble up from the deep recesses of her mind matched the speed at which a similar sight she saw often in her dreams flashed to the forefront.
Her hand moved to grasp her katana only to be met with empty air, as she had no need to carry it while off duty. With no other option, she stood tall and forced herself to meet the gaze of this stranger that radiated an aura of death.
“Your eyes. You're not the Herrscher of Finality.”
The woman wearing her Goddess's face grinned. She did not move or otherwise act hostile, but such an expression of joy seemed to carry with it an inherent malice that chilled Mei to the bone, “Very good, Raiden Mei. You know, most people don't recognize me that quickly. Have you been studying my host that closely? Cute,” Her voice was strange. An otherworldly sound like multiple voices layered over each other. She looked down at herself and scoffed, “I am not wearing this,” As if triggered by her very words, the Herrscher of Finality's clothing was smothered in a bright white light, shapes and forms writhing and changing until the light disappeared once more. She smiled, hair falling freely and now wearing an eight-tailed white and black battlesuit Mei had only seen in her dreams.
Focusing on one thing at a time she stammered out, “H-host?” Mei frowned, “Who are you?”
The woman clicked her tongue in annoyance, “Tch, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised she let mortal memory forget about me,” She graced Mei with another unsettling smile, “I am the Herrscher of the Void.”
Mei instinctively took a step back as the title all of humanity feared met her ears. So often had the Herrscher appeared in the mortal world, whether to threaten a city that had displeased her, dispensing judgement on her fanatical followers, or just to destroy, that she was also one of the few Herrschers who’s true name was well known. Mei’s anxiety reached its peak as the words fell from her lips in a horrified whisper, “You’re Sirin?”
The woman shrugged and began approaching Mei at a leisurely pace, “Yes… and no. You see, your precious Herrscher was once host to the complete core of the Void. When it was ripped from her by the Legion Herrscher in order to revive my whole self, she managed to hold onto a shard of that whole. Me.”
“The Herrscher of Finality has a gem of the void?”
Suddenly the woman disappeared in a flash of gold only to instantaneously reappear at Mei's right shoulder, her face twisted into a sneer as she glared at Mei from the corner of her eye, “I am not some pathetic gem! I am a Herrscher! I could vaporise you where you stand, do not insult me with your ignorance!” She growled out a sigh, “Still insufferable.”
Mei's heart was racing, the icy chill of fear spreading through her veins. She dared not do more than keep a watchful eye on the Herrscher’s movements in her peripheral vision. Even if she had come prepared to fight, she was no match for a being so lustful for death she was infamous for taking to the battlefield personally, a rarity among Herrschers unless they deemed it absolutely necessary. The destruction the Herrscher of the Void could unleash quite literally made history.
Mei struggled to keep her expression neutral as the woman circled her like a shark, “Why are you here?” She pushed out. The tails of her battlesuit writhed like they were actually alive, one caressing Mei's calf as it passed by.
“You’re awfully unafraid for someone I could crush without lifting a finger.”
“The Goddess will protect me. This is her holy place,” Her chest burned with pride at the lack of a quiver in her voice, “So I ask you again, why are you here?”
The Herrscher of the Void laughed, “This place? Where she- Okay, fine,” Sirin laughed even harder, though Mei failed to understand what she found so amusing, “I’m here because I want to be. The idiot I'm trapped inside kept talking about the amazing priestess she gave a gem to and I wanted to see if this was true or just her chasing skirts again,” She winced and tilted her head to the side like someone had spoken behind her, “Ugh, fine, I will concede you don't really chase skirts anymore.”
Mei decided to ignore that for the moment, her mind barely able to comprehend that the Herrscher of the Void was talking to her instead of killing her.
Sirin eyed Mei once more, “I guess I shouldn't be surprised it was you she was giggling about.”
“What?... Why are you telling me all this? What do you mean you’re not surprised it was me?”
“Why?” The Herrscher tapped a finger to her chin in thought, completely ignoring Mei’s final question, “Well I like talking about myself. And it's not like anyone is going to believe you if you tell them,” She grinned, “I haven't had the chance to really stretch my legs in years. Then I heard your pathetic begging and decided why not?” Her eyes narrowed at the priestess, “She gave you her precious gem of conquest as well as her own power, did she not? Your honkai levels are rather lacking.” Sirin spat the last word with thinly veiled disgust.
“I'm still recovering from an anti-honkai serum!” Mei protested, feeling the need to defend herself even to a being such as Sirin, “There is… more to it. But that is why I was praying to the Goddess for guidance.”
“Oh? And what else avails my host’s pathetic little human toy?”
Mei grit her teeth but managed to swallow the angry reply building in her throat, “Each time I immerse myself in the Honkai energy from the gems it wrests itself from my control and overwhelms me, like there is something in the abyss attempting to claw into my mind.”
The Herrscher of the Void rolled her eyes, “Yes, yes, I see the problem now. This idiot thought she had distracted it and you would be able to come into your powers peacefully, but it seems she was mistaken,” Sirin groaned in annoyance, “She must have been too distracted from seeing you again to focus properly, there’s no other reason for her to have failed so miserably that it is able to attempt personally corrupting you through the barriers erected by the Herrscher of Human Ego.”
Mei blinked, “What are you talking about?”
Sirin brushed her off with a wave of her hand, “Not important. She’s always been annoyingly focused on you. I’ll just have to remind her what her failure is costing you,” She paused to give Mei another frown, “Actually, is she still in there?”
Mei shrugged, irritation flashing across her face as the emotion welled up in her chest, “I have no idea who you’re talking about! Who is ‘she’?! You keep talking like you already know me but I didn’t even know you existed like this until now!”
“I do already know you, idiot, I’m a Goddess,” Sirin shot back. She suddenly stepped closer and jabbed her finger into Mei’s chest right where the gem of conquest had entered her body, “I mean in here!” She leaned in and grabbed Mei’s shoulder to hold her in place when the priestess attempted to lean away. Golden eyes seemed to stare into her soul, now close enough Mei could trace every little detail of the strange circular crosshair shape etched into her starry irises, “You still in there, you fucking bitch?” Sirin growled, though Mei got the distinct- and strange- sense that she wasn’t the one being spoken to, “Stop lazing about grumbling like an edgy teenager and help her, or do you plan on shaming the authority you act so proud of? The authority I allowed you to keep?”
Mei blinked rapidly as an intense upwelling of anger surged through her. Before she could properly think, she had shoved Sirin away and balled her fists as a fury stronger than any she had ever felt before burned beneath her skin. Sparks of electricity darted across her body just like when Bronya had infused her with Honkai energy, “What the fuck are you on about?!” the priestess shouted, “This is the second time in the last twenty-four hours I’ve had to deal with a strange entity I’ve never seen before talking like they know me and refusing to give me a straight answer! “ Thunder rumbled in the distance, though it only seemed to make Sirin’s eyes shimmer in amusement much to Mei’s continued anger, “What do you want from me?! What authority?! What are you talking about?!” She could feel this furious energy welling up within her growing with every word, every line that vented her frustration and anger. She barely noticed the way lightning had begun arcing from her body into the ground around her, or the darkening clouds rumbling overhead, “Answer me!” Her voice raised to a crescendo as she demanded an answer, a crack of lightning nearly blinding her as it lit up the inside of the building.
Sirin only grinned wider, “Oh, did I hit a nerve? My bad~” she finished with a singsong, teasing note.
Just as quickly as it appeared, the anger subsided, leaving behind a strange tingling along her limbs and a disorienting exhaustion burdening her mind, “I-” Mei shook her head in confusion, too confounded by what had happened to even remember to be afraid, “I’m… sorry. I don’t know what came over me.”
Sirin shrugged, “Normally behavior like that would result in your death, but I was checking something, so it’s not quite your fault this time. If you did that under your own will, though…” Her eyes flashed and three portals behind her spawned deadly sharp black and white lances. They hovered over Sirin’s shoulder and pointed themselves directly towards Mei, “You’ll barely have time to see your punishment coming,” Her head flinched to the side again, “Shut up! Of course I’m not going to- Ugh,” She turned to Mei and scoffed, “Whatever, I’m done here. Try to access your power again tomorrow and if it still doesn’t work I’m going to come back and tear out that useless little upstart from your chest myself.”
Sirin slashed at the air with her hand and she collapsed into a golden singularity. Almost immediately the environment returned to its formerly peaceful state, as if the Herrscher had never been here. It was only now that Sirin no longer loomed over her that she realized how tense her body had become. Shaking legs nearly collapsed as she lowered herself to the ground in a daze. The nearly overwhelming amount of information the Herrscher had revealed to her raced through her mind faster than she could truly parse and understand its true meaning. Sirin had been right about one thing: No one would ever believe her.
“What is going on?” Mei whispered to herself in disbelief. “She was distracted by seeing you again,” Sirin had said. She was distracting the Herrscher of Finality? Mei almost scoffed to herself. The mere thought was almost unbelievable, if it hadn’t been for all the cryptic and cagey comments multiple otherworldly beings had directed towards her in just the last few days.
All she knew was- part of the Herrscher of Finality or otherwise- she did not want to endure a visit from one of humanity’s greatest enemies again.
Nothing could be worse than that, right?