Chapter Text
The Herrscher of the Void is a being of malice, they were told. The Goddess of revenge, she ruled over the very concept of the void and bent the laws of space as she willed. Prayed to by those in search of their own revenge and fostering a deep hatred towards another human, she gained power from their foul intentions. Of all the Herrschers and their myriad of ways to break the laws of nature, it was Sirin who could effortlessly tear open holes in reality and travel wherever she pleased, whether that be the mortal world or otherwise. Humanity disgusts her and, despite being revered as such a figure of violence, revenge, and vengeance, it was increasingly rare to find someone willing to speak of the Queen of the Void as anything but an enemy. A spectre of violence to invoke on your enemies. A maelstrom of murderous fury that had wiped whole nations from the face of the planet and constantly sent hordes of Honkai beasts to stress humanity’s defences even when other Herrschers might rest and rebuild their strength. Ancient tales say she is capable of some level of shapeshifting, appearing as a siren with ethereal white hair during the Great Eruption thousands of years ago. That was what Mei had been taught.
This knowledge smouldered in her mind, a constant that had pressed against her consciousness ever since she was brought into this illusion. And yet, try as it might, it could not stop the conflict in Mei’s heart as she beheld the dissonance between these teachings and the tortured, shattered girl before her. A victim lashing out at those that had caused her so much pain. Goddess of revenge, indeed. Perhaps, if anyone deserved the numbing release of revenge, it was this girl in nothing but tattered rags and bloody bandages. A girl desperately latching onto the promise of a power great enough she would never suffer under somebody else’s ever again.
Mei’s heart had ached as she watched Sirin finally grasp the full breadth of that power she desperately craved. The voice whispering to Sirin grated against her mind every time it egged Sirin on, pushing her to destroy the cruelty that was humanity. Sirin had looked back to Mei with gleeful eyes, the blue flames having burned away her rags and replaced it with similar elegant purple and white clothing to that which Mei often saw in her dreams. Her small slumped form now standing tall, confident, and appeared to search Mei’s face for some sign of approval. When outward validation had seemed unforthcoming, the air grew heavy as Sirin’s anger flared stronger than ever.
Theresa had been her saving grace, the woman having tracked them down and stolen Sirin’s attention. Mei had almost been surprised when the small Valkyrie fell from the darkness, dragged by ghostly hands formed from pure Honkai energy. However, now bolstered by practically limitless Honkai energy, the redirection of Sirin’s anger moments before was exceedingly obvious. Theresa’s surprise to find Mei in this same void was quickly overcome by horror as new scenes grew to life in the void just as when Mei and Sirin had first entered this strange space. Mei watched on as scenes of Sirin’s torture played out before them, the scientists blatant disregard for the children as human beings as they injected the deadly liquid Honkai into their veins leaving Theresa shocked and appalled. The image of Sirin screaming herself hoarse begging for help and writhing on the ground as her body was slowly torn apart by the Honkai would forever remain burned into their memories. The callous disregard for even Sirin’s grief as she was given only a few minutes to bury her friends in the snow, her tears falling for Bella, Avrora, Agata, Galina, and her own helplessness. The last of her love for humanity lay within those cold bodies now sunk in shallow graves forgotten to all but the tundra and the girl who had placed them to rest.
Though Theresa’s heartbreak had not taken the form Sirin had desired. The girl had believed seeing her past would have brought Theresa to her side, even if Mei had been unwilling. When it instead coalesced into a pitying desire to save the girl from herself, Sirin had plucked a cross-shaped device from the back of Theresa’s hand and tossed her into the void. Mei’s heart had still raced even as she did everything in her power to present herself as non-threatening as possible. Sirin, however, already seemed more interested in the device she had taken from Theresa. The Honkai energy and space around it roiling and forcefully collapsing and ripping against it to no avail.
It was here that Sirin finally turned her full attention back to Mei, who had stood observing in silence, “What a weird little toy, don’t you think? I can’t break it, even with all my powers. Do you know anything about it, Mei?”
“It is a curious structure,” Mei agreed, “I haven’t seen anything like it before. It must be made of something rare indeed if it is able to resist a Herrscher.”
Sirin clicked her tongue in annoyance and grumbled, “Useless.”
Before either girl could react, the strange cross stood upright and flashed. In that instant, it grew to several times its original size until Mei was forced to look up to look at its very topmost point. A mechanical click echoed through the void and a seam along the depth of the device split open wide and several spears with chains attached to their hafts shot from inside and into the darkness. The intervals at which they exited made the chains leading back to the inside of the device splay wide, almost like the collapsible hand fans the Raidens would use in the warmer regions of the world.
After a few moments the chains ceased their movement. The golden metal went rigid and shook as if anchoring into something before rapidly beginning to retreat back into the device. Sirin grit her teeth and quickly spun her gaze between all five points where the spears disappeared into the darkness. However, that did not prepare her for the speed at which Theresa fell from the darkened skies, golden chains wrapped around her arms.
The diminutive Valkyrie grinned as she landed, “You can’t get rid of me that easily! I should have told you that Judah and I are bound as one! Give up, girl! I don’t want to fight you!”
Mei’s mind raced at that. Judah... the word sounded hauntingly familiar. The cross shape, the bladed chains, its apparent durability against Herrscher level powers, her own history lessons. The answer was before her as clearly as the weapon stood before her now. The Oath of Judah. A deadly weapon that was wielded by Overseer Theresa Apocalypse throughout her tenure as the head of Schicksal. It should have been no surprise then, to find Theresa’s younger self wielding that same weapon. A weapon created using the core of the Herrscher of Binding, a deadly artefact that led to Theresa hiding the weapon away to prevent opposing Herrschers from attempting to extract the core and resurrect a second Lady of Binding. As a result, images of the weapon had been purged and files locked away from the public. And now Mei finally had an image to put to the name.
Sirin, however, was furious, “How can you turn against me even after listening to my story?! I’ll kill you in the blink of an eye!”
Mei’s heart dropped as Sirin swung her arm to the side and Honkai energy coalesced into a black and white lance complete with the separate band orbiting around a detached core just like in her dreams. Sirin swung her arm forward, fingers spread as if commanding a charge, and the lance flew through the air at incredible speed.
“Block the lance, Judah!” Theresa moved the massive cross-shaped weapon with ease despite it now being larger than she is. Both women watched in disbelief as Sirin’s lance turned transparent where it touched the solid matter of Judah and began moving through it as if the weapon wasn’t even there, and then did the same to Theresa. The surprise on her face was clear and her attention quickly shifted from the lance back to the Herrscher in front of her, seeming to dismiss it as an illusion.
A move Mei realized was a mistake as Sirin grinned and raised her hand, “I said I’ll kill you in the blink of an eye~” She snapped.
Within the echo of the Herrscher’s snap, the sickening sound of flesh and bone tearing pierced the space, Sirin’s lance lodging itself in Theresa’s abdomen and knocking the Valkyrie back several astonished steps. “The lance…” Theresa wheezed, “It’s real…”
Mei instinctively stepped forward with her left hand wrapping tight around her scabbard just under the guard, teeth gritting as she was paralyzed with indecision.
Sirin, however, saw it differently.
“And you? Are you finally betraying me too, Mei?” She growled, her eyes darting to the hand wrapped around her weapon, “I thought at least you would understand, but I see I have always been alone.”
“Sirin, wait-”
“Shut up! I thought maybe I could trust you, but you’re just like the Valkyries, aren’t you?!”
“No! Sirin-”
Mei was forced to jump to the side as another lance cut through the air where she had stood just moments ago.
“All humans are the same!” Sirin created three more lances, portals appearing in the air around Mei, the priestess narrowly evading the lances that flew through them at difficult angles to guard against, “You’re all lying, murderous traitors!”
Mei struggled to keep up with the constant barrage of projectiles, the lances beginning to get dangerously close, the priestess unwilling to attempt deflecting them with her katana in case Sirin made them incorporeal once more. That is, until the sound of the very air around them being torn asunder rippled through the void and interrupted their deadly dance.
A resounding ripping sound, like the grating twang of an energy shield being torn open with brute force, was accompanied by the surrounding void shattering to pieces. The snow and trees of the real world appeared round them once more. As well as two men Mei had never seen before.
The brown-haired man that had just ripped Sirin’s void space apart frowned at the sight of Theresa collapsed at Sirin’s feet and the panting Mei taking the chance to catch her breath, “Your little game of hide and seek is over,” His eyes flashed a dangerous red, eyes that contained a glowing mechanical gear-like pattern in contrast to the crosshair in Sirin’s own glowing gold. He turned to the white-haired man behind him, “Theresa is still alive. Bring her to the tower and get her treated. I’ll handle this one.”
“Wait,” The man protested, “You can’t do this alone!”
“Dammit, Siegfried! If you want Theresa to live, stop being stupid and get her help!”
The man dashed into their midst and scooped up Theresa with ease, “Alright, Welt. I owe you another one! No, I owe you three times now!” He quickly retreated back past Welt with Theresa’s limp body in a bridal carry.
Sirin quickly created another lance, “I didn’t give you permission to leave, insect! Put that girl down!”
Mei dashed forward, desperately crying out, “Watch out, the lance is-!”
Welt was a blur, appearing between Siegfried and the lance long before Mei could have ever reached them, a red hexagonal field of honkai energy blooming to life before Welt’s chest and stopping the lance in its tracks.
Siegfried looked back with a mile upon his lips, “I’ll get her to safety, and then I’ll be back to help you out!”
Welt’s glowing eyes locked onto Mei, the man seeming to analyze her in an instant, “You! Go with him! Keep them safe!”
Mei quickly nodded in response and took off running after Siegfried. The man was surprisingly quick considering he had Theresa in his arms, but the Honkai flowing through her body enabled Mei to catch up with him in short order.
Siegfried only shot her the barest glance as she fell in step as they bolted through the trees, “You must be the Mei Theresa was talking about,” He panted, “What happened in there?”
Mei’s eyes darkened, “Sirin showed us her past. The horrible things she experienced in the Babylon Labs. She wanted us to join her, but her only goal is taking revenge on humanity.”
The two of them lapsed into silence, the physically enhanced warriors speeding through the trees. While they might be faster than an ordinary human, their speed was still not enough to assuage the fear in their hearts every time they caught sight of bright red dripping down Siegfried's arms and onto the pale snow. It took much too long for them to get through the valley and within reach of the Labs. It was as they were making their way to the peak of an incline on the mountain that Mei felt a shiver run through her body completely unrelated to the cold environment. She paused just long enough to look back, a buzzing instinct in the back of her mind confident that she had just felt an absolutely massive spike in Honkai energy. A mighty voice echoed off the walls of the mountains like the very heralds of heaven, its inhuman vibrato shaking their very foundations.
“I AM WELT OF HUMANITY! AND I STAND AGAINST YOU, DARK QUEEN, AS A WARRIOR GUARDIAN OF THE HUMAN RACE! LAW AND REASON, NOT THE CHAOS OF THE VOID, SHALL PREVAIL THIS DAY!” His next words seemed to echo not off the solid rock of the mountains, but directly into Mei’s mind, a mighty, irresistible force that was steeped in power as if travelling through the surrounding Honkai energy itself, “HEAR ME, MIGHTY HOST OF HUMANITY! UNLEASH A MIGHTY TORRENT OF FIRE AND IRON UPON THIS FALSE DEITY!”
The valley they had just left promptly exploded.
Multicolored light flashed from within the cloud of smoke as explosions rocked the surrounding mountains. Not a single large attack, but many in quick succession. The thick smoke obscured everything, yet if Mei looked hard enough she could almost make out a massive dark shape moving within.
“Keep moving!” Siegfried yelled at her, “It’s dangerous to stay too close to them!” When Mei got within arms reach Siegfried paused, his final step at the top of the incline announced with the tumbling of snow down the opposite face. He held Theresa out to her, “We’re just about to the Labs. Take her! I need to get back to Welt!”
Mei carefully took Theresa into her arms, “What? Do you have a death wish?”
Siegfried laughed, “Not quite, pretty lady! I have a wife and kid back home and I don’t intend to leave them hanging! I’ve gotta watch my little Kiana grow up, after all!” He grinned, “But I’ll be damned if I let Welt fight that girl alone.”
Mei nearly dropped Theresa as the words pierced her mind like a knife to the gut, “Kiana?”
“Yeah, she’s my little girl,” Siegfried explained gleefully, “You know, you look a lot like my buddy er, acquaintance , Ryoma. He has a little girl named Mei just like you! I’ll take you to meet them someday! After we heroically save today from this Herrscher, of course,” He flexed a bicep and clasped it with his other hand in a show of bravado, “Take care, Mei!”
“Wait, but you just said-!” Mei watched as Siegfried ignored her and rushed back the way they came, even speedier now that he was not weighed down by Theresa, “...It’s too dangerous,” She quietly finished. Siegfried Kaslana… another name for her to file away in her mind to search for once she was out of this illusion. Along with Welt. Though that was a name she at least knew of already. Even so far into the future she knew of the original sovereign of Anti-Entropy. Welt Yang, rival to Otto Apocalypse.
And the second Herrscher of Reason.
To say things weren’t going well would be an understatement. Mei had successfully brought Theresa back to the Babylon Labs where Einstein took her under her care. Not an hour later and Siegfried and Welt both stumbled back into the control centre in similarly terrible shape, Welt leaking blood from injuries to his head and Siegfried with a hole burned through his side. Welt’s recovery was strangely slow from what Mei knew of Herrscher healing factors. Siegfried's seemed less like a healing factor and more like sheer stubborn force of will. While he was out of bed after a nap, the wound in his side obviously still pained him. Yet the stubborn Kaslana pushed on, staying in the command centre to help monitor things while Theresa recovered.
Quite frankly, Mei could not believe the girl had managed to survive being gored on Sirin’s lance. The hole in her abdomen was large enough Mei could have shoved her entire fist through the girl’s body if she so wished. Einstein had only muttered something about the Honkai beast Vishnu and gotten back to work. Three hours had passed when Einstein tracked her down, finding Mei checking on the rescued children.
“Raiden Mei?”
Mei looked up from where she was tucking in one of the exhausted girls, having just finished changing the bandages on her wounds. Her exhaustion was clear in her voice, “Yes? Einstein, right?”
“Come with me, the Sovereign wishes to speak with you,” Einstein turned and walked away without waiting for an answer.
Mei wasn’t sure what she was expecting, but the battered and worn man waiting for her on the hospital bed was not it. His forehead was wrapped in bandages and his wrist was in a cast, sitting against the headboard and reading a book like he hadn’t just destroyed half the valley like it was nothing. A red-haired woman sat next to him peeling an apple- Dr. Tesla she assumed. Once she was in the room, Einstein left them. A moment later Welt put down his book.
“Tesla, please give our guest and I some privacy?”
Tesla narrowed her eyes at Welt but put the apple on a plate on the bedside table and did as Welt requested.
Once the door had slid shut behind her, Welt continued, “You must be Raiden Mei. I’ve heard how you helped Theresa rescue the children and took care of them afterwards. Thank you,” He finally met her eyes, his irises now a normal warm brown instead of bearing the red glow like when they first met, “One of the kids even told Einstein that you looked about ready to fight one of the Valkyries when she wanted to return them to Schicksal. Then while Siegfried wasn’t looking we got our hands on some security recordings after Theresa said you’d gone missing. It’s quite curious seeing a Schicksal Valkyrie take the time to try and talk down a Herrscher who’s already murdered an entire lab of her companions and shown herself to be a threat to all humanity,” His expression did not change from a casual neutrality, his gaze never leaving Mei’s, “And then I found you in Sirin’s Imaginary Space, unharmed while Theresa had been impaled.”
Mei’s fingers flexed at her side, the woman having to fight the instinct to wrap her hand around her katana, “Are you trying to imply something, My Lord?” She struggled to force the words out. Talking back to the first Herrscher to ally with humanity went completely against her training as a priestess. However, if there was ever a time to blaspheme in service of her own mission, there was no better place than this illusion.
Welt raised an eyebrow at the title but otherwise did not draw attention to it, “No, I just wanted to confirm something,” Welt said, steepling his fingers, “And now that you’re in the room with me, even in my weakened state, I can sense the Herrscher gems within you. Honkai signatures that I’m… not familiar with. It is obvious to me that you’re not truly a Valkyrie, and you bear the family name of a close friend. So the question remains… Who are you?”
For a moment Mei’s heart dropped into her stomach, the sense of danger from being exposed washing over her mind in seconds. Yet the Herrscher of Reason did not move. He did not even look disappointed, or angry. The reactive moment of panic faded, and Mei took a deep breath before taking the plunge, “My name is Raiden Mei, daughter of Raiden Ryoma and Raiden Mifumi. You are right, I am not a Schicksal Valkyrie,” She paused, eyes darting away from the heavy gaze of the Herrscher for a moment, “This might sound strange to you in this moment, but I am a priestess of the Herrscher of Finality.”
This time Welt's eyes widened ever so slightly, “Priestess of the final Herrscher? Out of thirteen, only two Herrschers have a mortal form in this plane. Me and Sirin,” Welt held his chin between his forefinger and thumb as he ran this information through his mind. He murmured softly to himself, “If the final Herrscher truly does command time, then…” he fell silent.
When his eyes eventually returned to Mei she took it as her opportunity to speak, “You specify this plane. Are there other areas of existence where Herrschers might exist?”
Welt seemed to settle on something, his lips curving into a small smile, “Herrschers always exist in some form or another. We are given form by Honkai energy itself, and wherever Honkai energy exists, it will learn the laws of that realm and develop ways to overcome these limitations. The power of Herrschers has existed in other planes- other dimensions- for millennia, ready to bring a sort of… control to the chaotic forces of nature. However it seems the Honkai is particularly interested in the mortal realm. This planet and the civilization on it. Honkai’s attacks against humanity almost succeeded before, with the destruction of the Previous Era. When the Core of Reason was passed to me by my predecessor all the memories of the past Herrschers of Reason that failed to wipe out humanity were burned into my mind. I am not capable of fully understanding most of it, but I became one with this extension of the Honkai’s will. I cannot describe what it feels like to struggle against the hatred and viciousness that characterises those who are originally chosen as vessels for the power of a Herrscher. Yet every time the Herrscher’s failed, every time humanity found some way to survive, the Honkai only grew stronger. Honkai energy festering and growing within a sentient body, feeding the Honkai with each death until we were truly the Gods some people see us as. Do not misunderstand me, Herrschers have always had such power so as to be perceived as demigods, however the more this realm becomes saturated with Honkai energy the more inhuman we become. I- or rather the Herrscher of Reason- had the good fortune of special circumstances aiding our turn against the Honkai. Humanity always finds some way to survive by the skin of their teeth, and as a former human I wish to aid them with this unfathomable power.”
“I- this is… I was surprised to see Sirin has not always been the Herrscher of the Void,” Mei said quietly. Receiving such a breadth of information directly from a Herrscher was… overwhelming to put it lightly. She might even doubt it, if Seele had not told her that what she was experiencing had been built from the memories of all major players who had survived the Eruption, which included the second Herrscher of Reason himself. Herrschers had not always been the all powerful godlike beings she knew them as? It beggared belief. That thought alone was enough to send her head spinning, “I thank you for this information, though it is… overwhelming,” Mei steadied herself with another deep breath, “I do not know the whole story, but Sirin has somehow persisted as a Herrscher all this time…” She paused. Part of her hesitated to speak the thought hovering on the tip of her tongue. It almost felt like a betrayal to circumvent the Moon Goddess with another Herrscher, however her need for knowledge was like an inexorable push forcing her onwards regardless, “I have a question, if I may.”
“I will answer if I can.”
“When My Lady blessed me with the Herrscher gems something attempted to invade my mind. It told me to return to it, to embrace the power it offered. When I resisted it felt like something was trying to claw my mind apart from the inside. This persisted every time I attempted to access the Honkai Energy within me. Until I informed the Herrscher of Finality, and she told me that there was another force- a ‘thing’- that she would hold back so I could come into my powers properly.”
Welt appeared troubled, “She… The Herrscher of The End not only resisted the Will of Honkai but struck back against it?”
Mei tilted her head curiously, quickly choosing which name to focus on, “The Will of Honkai?”
“You don’t know?” Surprise was clear on the Herrscher’s face, “The Will of Honkai is the name we have given to the Honkai Gestalt. A greater will that guides Herrschers to embrace their power and manipulate them into giving in to their darkest emotions to turn against humanity. Its psychic power is unmatched as the ultimate source of all Honkai,” His expression darkened, “If Herrschers are multidimensional Gods, then you can only imagine how powerful the entity that created us must be,” He fell into thought for several minutes, Mei unsure if she should continue her questioning. Finally he spoke again, “From what time have you graced us from?”
Somehow, Mei wasn’t surprised at how unbothered he seemed by the notion she had travelled to the past, “According to the dates I saw on the security logs… all this happened three thousand years ago.”
Welt sucked in an astonished breath, “A three thousand year stalemate…” He murmured to himself.
“I…” Mei grimaced, “I cannot tell you why. Our society worships the Herrschers as Gods and they themselves have told us how they receive even greater power from our faith or dedication to the concepts that define them. Yet every day since I obtained these gems I realize just how little I know of the truth of this world. Much has been lost over the centuries of our battles with the Herrschers that do not think as kindly of humanity. Our technology is far behind where it should be after the Herrscher of Corruption infected and destroyed most digital archives and turned much of our technology against us. The Herrscher of the Void and others have left large swathes of the planet Honkai irradiated wastelands, and the Herrscher of Finality is often absent. I can only assume that as the most powerful Herrscher this Will of Honkai requires much of her attention. Her partner, the Herrscher of Thunder, has not been seen for several decades now.”
“Two Herrschers that work closely together…” He seemed to lose himself in his thoughts for a moment, his eyes never leaving Mei. It was an unnerving gaze, as if the Herrscher was not truly looking at her, but inside her or through her, “May I see your hand, Miss Raiden?”
Mei stepped around to the side of the bed and tentatively extended her hand. Welt slowly extended his own. His fingers wrapped around her exposed hand and a strange sensation almost immediately shivered through Mei’s body. The sneaking sensation of a familiar energy yet foreign power crawling across her psyche. That storm of emotion that seemed to always simmer in the back of her mind now rumbled in anger as the distinct feeling of Welt’s Honkai energy shot through her. She could feel it probing at the gems within her, a curious snaking around her own energy and across the Gem of Conviction. That anger bubbled to life in her chest once more as Welt’s mind caressed the Gem of Conquest. All of this happened in only a second, until Welt chanced extending his observation to her mind and that quiet storm of energy whipped itself into a frenzy, the emotion rumbling like a thunderstorm in her chest and before she could even register what she was doing, she had ripped her hand from Welt’s grip.
Lightning ran defensively over her body and her voice growled without her conscious input, “Stay out of our mind, weakened fool!”
Welt hardly seemed taken aback by this turn of events. He simply pushed his glasses up his nose and hummed thoughtfully, “I believe I understand what is going on here.”
Mei winced, hand holding her temple as a pulsing pain drilled into her skull. She quickly dropped to one knee and bowed her head in apology, “I-I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me.”
Discomfort finally broke through the calm on Welt’s face, “Please stand, that is… not necessary,” He waited for Mei to stand before continuing, “Is it common to be granted gems in your time?”
“It is a known occurrence,” Mei answered, “But people chosen to bear a Herrscher gem are rare, personally chosen by the Herrscher themselves. We become a weapon against the Honkai more powerful than anything Schicksal can field, a substitute for the Herrscher on the battlefield and a symbol for the people.”
Welt raised his eyebrow, “I have done such a thing in the past, though it is difficult for me to maintain it nowadays. I certainly felt one gem within you, but the other was certainly no gem, even with my limited knowledge of the other Herrschers I could feel-”
The lights flickered, strange digital artefacts flickering across most surfaces. Welt frowned but seemed to study the events with a curious eye. Before Mei could comment on them herself, a purple rimmed rift of Honkai energy bloomed to life beneath her feet and all she could do was lock eyes with the Herrscher of Reason one final time before she fell into the darkness.
Mei had been within the depths of the illusory memory for nearly two hours when a short- but intense- burst of Honkai elsewhere in St. Freya shuddered through Seele’s mind. Not a moment later and a familiar head of white hair and pink-starred blue eyes were pushing their way through a rift of Honkai energy and into the archives control room.
Seele’s serene demeanor did not change as she turned and beheld the narrowed eyes and furrowed brow of the Herrscher of Finality, the otherworldly being’s psychic presence pressing against her mind, “Greetings, Kiana. It’s been a while since I’ve seen you like this.”
“Seele,” Kiana replied sharply, “Where’s Mei?”
“I think you already know, or else why would you be here?” Seele said softly.
“Why, Seele?”
“Why not?” She raised an eyebrow, “Is she not here to learn?”
“Not like this!” Kiana gesticulated with wide motions, her features twisted into clear distress, “This is- things can’t go this fast! Pull her out.”
“No. I’m sure you told her to learn more about the truth of Herrschers, didn’t you?”
“There’s a process that needs to be followed or else something could go wrong!” Kiana’s voice was steadily rising in volume now.
“You’re being too strict. How could this possibly harm her?”
“I’m making sure things go smoothly! Welt's memories know too much!” Kiana sucked in a deep breath and ran a hand through her hair, “You don’t understand, Seele,” Her voice wavered, “You don’t understand… What it was like. The Will of Honkai is…” Kiana seemed to subconsciously press her fingers against a spot in the center of her chest and winced. Her eyes narrowed at the smaller woman once more, “Don’t butt in.”
“Butt in?” Seele’s serene demeanor faltered, as even she couldn’t hide the hurt that fluttered in her heart at Kiana’s words, “Mei is my friend! And what about Mei herself? Have you considered her feelings being kept in the dark like this?” Seele countered.
“This was her plan!” Kiana snapped, “Do you think I’m just doing all this for the fun of it? Do you think I like leading Mei on like this instead of just telling her and doing everything I can for her from the get-go?! I’m doing my best to do what she asked of me! If something goes wrong and she can’t handle regaining her power, I-” Kiana’s fist clenched tight, her teeth grit and a small growl building in her throat, though it seemed to be more at her own thoughts than at Seele, “This isn’t just about my desire to have Mei back at my side. Yes, I need Mei. But the world needs the Herrscher of Origin.”
Seele’s eyes flashed to a deep crimson, “Hurt Seele like that again and I’ll rip your throat out. You owe us or Mei wouldn’t even be here for you to worry about, so watch your fucking tongue, Kiana. The power of Origin died with Elysia. You’re chasing ghosts.”
“Oh shut it, O’ Herrscher of Death! You remind me I owe you every time you get even mildly annoyed,” The Herrscher of Finality rolled her eyes, “Look, I am truly sorry if I hurt you, Seele, but I am trying to fulfill the role Mei left to me, and quite frankly, neither of you can understand the position I’m in. Mei and Bronya came with me into the void between worlds, and you two didn’t. They suffered through the trials we faced there, things you know nothing of, or else you would understand why Mei did what she did. End of story,” Kiana looked like she wanted to say more, to keep venting her anger, but she bit her tongue. Instead she sighed, “I don’t like getting angry like this,” She forced out through grit teeth, “I’m sorry. But this entire situation is… infuriating . Mei is the only reason Bronya and I can stand here today as Truth and Finality, so it would be nice to have a little bit more faith from my friends,” She forced her attention through the glass and into the hologram room proper, not bothering to wait for Seele to reply, “I’m ending this.”
Mei snapped back to reality with a tumultuous wave of disorientation. She hardly had time to register that she was once more looking at the empty holographic chamber before the ground fell out from under her. Gravity shifted dizzyingly around her and her feet found ground once more as she was ejected from a purple rimmed rift. Her feet tangled as she attempted to regain her footing despite how her head was spinning. However, before she could fall to the ground warm, strong arms slid under her own and held her in an embrace. As soon as she felt like she was steady enough to not tip over from dizziness she pulled herself up.
The instant she realised who was standing before her she gasped and dropped to one knee, bowing her head.
“Please stand, Mei,” The Herrscher of Finality said, the previously sharp tone she had used with Seele now the soft and loving entreaty Mei had come to associate with the Goddess. When she had regained her footing the Herrscher’s expression darkened, “What did you see?”
Mei blinked, taken aback by this cold expression on her Goddess’s face and the steadily increasing pressure on her mind, her eyes almost instinctively flicking to Seele seeking support. Regardless, she quickly revealed everything she had experienced in the illusory history. Encountering Sirin and watching her descent into an anger and hatred that was multiplied tenfold by her embrace of her new status as a Herrscher. Her encounters with Theresa and Siegfried. When she got to Welt, Kiana’s eyes narrowed, the Honkai energy saturating the room swirling invisibly with the Moon Goddess’s change in mood.
“I-I apologize if I angered you, My Goddess,” Mei bowed her head, “I just… I was trying to learn more of the past like you asked.”
“You have nothing to apologize for,” Seele said sharply, blue eyes never leaving the Herrscher, “Your Goddess is being unreasonable.”
Said Goddess sighed in annoyance, “Seele…”
“Actually, since you’re here now, I think this would be a great opportunity to tell Mei just what happened to the Herrscher of the Void. Since you interrupted her studying and all.”
“Seele-”
Blue eyes flashed red once again, “Why do you insist on being so difficult?!” She stomped her foot and the instant it made contact with the ground the Honkai energy pressing down on them exploded in a dark blue mist, an explosion from her foot that coated the room and all surfaces blooming with a scattering of the same ethereal flowers that adorned Seele’s dress wherever the mist touched.
Mei took several rapid steps backwards, the mist an unknown variable. It caressed her skin despite her small attempt to avoid it, an unnatural cold tingling across her skin and a strange sense of calm pressing against her mind, “What…” She raised her hand and twisted it back and forth, fascination gleaming in her eyes as the mist curled around her limb like a supportive caress. Seele quickly regained her composure, eyes once again a calm blue and the mist gradually fading from existence. With the sensation it brought with now fallen away from her mind, Mei looked back to her Goddess, “My Lady, please, what happened to Sirin that makes this information so… taboo?”
“It’s not…” Another frustrated sigh, “It’s not that it’s taboo. It’s just… extremely personal. For both of us,” She blinked and her right eye locked Mei with a cold golden stare, “You saw the beginning of the Herrscher of the Void. After Welt was injured by Otto Apocalypse, Sirin was guided to the Moon by the Will of Honkai where several Herrscher cores lay within Previous Era ruins. Humanity could not combat her at such distances, and Sirin launched meteors at earth with impunity. Several major cities were severely damaged and others remain nothing but uninhabited craters even to this day. Welt sacrificed his mortal form opposing Sirin on the Moon. Sirin’s only flaw was being too young to fully understand how to utilize her powers. From turning the corpses of her friends into pseudo-Herrschers to resisting the Phoenix’s illusory mind control and even stealing a piece of it, she was the greatest threat humanity of the current era had ever faced. But once the power of Death was torn from her she could no longer heal the grievous injuries humanities mightiest warriors then inflicted on her. And yet…” The Herrscher hesitated, her gaze dropping and focusing on something deep within her memories only she could see, “Yet at the end, as Otto buried the region under a hail of Honkai fission missiles, Shicksal’s strongest Valkyrie embraced this Herrscher. This terrible existential threat that had murdered millions. You see, Sirin had attempted to use the piece of the Phoenix’s powers she stole on her and Siegfried. But she did not know how to control it, and so Fenghuan Down created an illusion from the innermost desires of her heart. A family. A normal life. A loving mother. Maybe even a sister. And so she embraced her as a final apology to this lost girl at the end of their lives.”
The Moon Goddess blinked, moisture welling up in her eyes despite her attempts to hold down the emotions threatening to burst from her chest.
Mei finally understood, her gut twisting as her own memories of that history surged to the forefront of her mind “Sirin’s story… it’s not simply of a villain humanity must defeat. It is a tragedy of a girl who was denied the simple happiness of a normal life and twisted against the world by humanity’s own cruelty and the manipulation of the Honkai.”
“If only that was the end of her story,” The Herrscher held a hand to her head, her eye slowly fading back to its usual pink-starred cerulean, “I’m… sorry for being difficult tonight. I truly am simply doing my best to bring this sad story to a happy ending. I need to leave now. We need to go punch something.”
Before either of them could respond the Moon Goddess disappeared in a flash of purple.
Mei eyed her remaining companion, thoughts racing but knowing that they would not settle until she laid down and attempted to rest, “You seemed to know what she didn’t want to say. And that power… The calming vapors of death… I have read that not even the strongest gem bearers have been able to manifest such abilities. You’re the Herrscher of Rebirth, aren’t you?”
Seele smiled sadly, “I was hoping to remain normal ol’ Seele for a little longer, but you’re as sharp as ever. Yes, I am… Rebirth incarnate.”
Mei nodded, such confirmation merely piling on the already overwhelming knowledge she had received in this short time. Her eyes drifted to the floor, “I apologize for my lack of decorum, I feel like receiving such information should leave me awestruck and worshipful but after tonight I am just… tired,” Despite her words, Mei bowed deeply with an arm crossed over her heart.
Seele shook her head and gestured at her to rise, “Please, Mei, most of us never wanted to be worshipped anyways. I would much rather be your friend Seele than your Goddess, and I know the Finality feels the same despite her incessant need to put duty before all,” Seele smiled softly, “From what the Herrscher of Reason tells me, she’s always been like this to some degree, even before she fully became a Herrscher.”
“I- but I-” Mei stammered, “Of course. That might take some getting used to if that is your wish, Lady- I mean, Seele. I… will do my best.”
“That’s all I could ever ask of you,” Seele smiled.
Her thoughts did not settle even as she laid down to attempt to sleep. So much information- TOO much- raced through her mind, every thought a new piece to a puzzle that was slowly breaking apart everything she thought she knew. Yet at the same time the strain of the illusion had left her mind unfocused and utterly exhausted ever since she left the archives. She had never seen her Goddess so… distressed. Angry. It was a truly frightening thing even if she logically knew that it was not directed at her. And Seele… A Herrscher lowering herself to the position of Schicksal principal? She had never heard of such a thing. It seemed almost blasphemous of Schicksal leadership, though Seele did not seem to mind in the slightest.
Sleep finally took her. Her eyes closed, and she fell into an exhausted slumber. As she slipped into unconsciousness the pleading, desperate face of Sirin stared back at her, and she couldn’t help the wish beating in her heart to have been able to give that broken girl the love she longed for so long ago.
It was not long before her eyes shot open, unfamiliar surroundings shooting a thread of fear down her spine as she beheld the large darkened metal room, a faint green glow from machines around her illuminating little of the space. Bright lights directly above her left her lit up like a beacon in the center of the room. She attempted to get up only to find her limbs restrained. The soft bed that had lulled her into slumber had been replaced by a hard uncomfortable table, the restraints holding her down screwed tightly into the flat surface. As she struggled her purple locks fell across her vision, something deep within her heart knowing she needed to get out now . She kicked and pulled and writhed, her mind confused at the weakness her body displayed, her instincts telling her she should be able to shatter these restraints with ease. With metal bands around her wrist, ankles, thighs, and biceps, all she could do was thrash her torso uselessly.
“Stop struggling!”
A hand lashed out from her peripheral vision, her vision swimming as her head was snapped to the side, cheek stinging. At the very least, the pain focused her mind. She did not know how or why, but she simply knew that there were three people standing behind her with some sort of obstacle in front of them. A control panel of some sorts, perhaps.
“Who are you people?” She yelled, her voice sounding strange and unfamiliar to her own ears. Much too young, “Let me go!”
The man that had walked over and slapped her scoffed, “Shut up already! If you had stayed dead instead of reforming neither of us would have to put up with this right now!” He leaned away, “Begin the procedure.”
A vicious looking pointed contraption whined as its gears shifted and moved it over her chest, various other arms connected to the table all pointed down at her. A switch was pushed somewhere behind her and the tip in the center brightened with an inner light, preceding a beam of energy bursting forth. The pain was immediate and intense, the acrid smell of burning flesh filling her nostrils. The scream that tore from her throat seemed to only intensify the pain as a burning line was cut down the center of her chest.
“Stop squirming or you’ll only make things worse for yourself,” Somebody said, though through the haze of pain she could not tell who it was.
A quiet voice could barely be heard over the pain thundering in her mind, “Sir, are you sure we shouldn’t have used at least some anesthetic?”
“We’re not wasting precious resources on a Herrscher,” The same harsh voice from before snapped back.
“Doctor, we’ve located the core within her chest cavity.”
Another thunk as something else metallic was pulled. The extra arms surrounding her lowered towards her body with the whine of mechanics. Hard metal arms pressed one wide digit of a padded claw into the new gash down her torso and pulled.
White hot blinding pain. That was all she could feel. She screamed and screamed, pulling desperately and uselessly at her restraints. Her voice hurt, her body burned, and yet the laser continued to lower even closer to its handiwork.
“Ugh, you two hold her down! If she moves too much we won’t hit the core properly!”
Four hands pressed down on her shoulders and her instincts lit up with even more desperation as the color of the laser tip changed and adjusted position, “No! No! Please let me go! I’ll do anything! No more! It hurts! It hurts so much, please!!!” Her arms bruised and bleeding, yet the instinctive desire to escape even greater pain would not allow her to stop, the edge of the cuffs digging into her arm feeling like it was cracking her very bone. Her breaths were rapid, uncontrolled, her head spinning as the shallow breaths did not get her enough oxygen.
The laser device’s tip brightened again, this time a deep terrifying blue.
It burned through a piece of her ribcage and hit something else nestled within her body, an object she did not remember being there yet something whispered in the back of her mind that she could not let them finish whatever they wanted with it. Still she was helpless to do anything but scream as this thing attached to her, a thing that was a part of her, splintered. Every crack along this gem nestled next to her heart was like feeling her very being break apart, a mental pain that she could not describe, her mind going blank as the crack grew larger and the pain grew in intensity. It was not a physical pain of the nerves that could be tuned out by the brain, but something deeper, something that could not be stopped, could not be blocked out or lessened. Every agonizing moment burned deep into her psyche.
The crack snapped and a piece of her broke along with it.
Another arm quickly darted in and gripped whatever they were after in its mandibles, drawing back just in time to avoid the small shockwave that erupted with the tortured scream tearing from her throat. Lights flickered, torturers cowered in fear, consciousness began to fade as the device finally released her burned flesh. She did not know how much time she spent here. Day after day different devices poked and prodded at the thing inside her, at her flesh, at her very bones. Time was not real within these walls, it could have been days, weeks, months, she had no way of knowing. As darkness crept into her vision, her ears were drawn to the faint sound of someone’s surprised exclamation, followed quickly by the sound of bodies hitting the floor. The vague sense of rough, but gentle hands pulling open her restraints was enough for her hazy and disoriented mind to lock on just enough to keep conscious. Arms slid under her and a sharp breath was sucked in.
“Gods,” A faint voice, ringing and muffled in the new silence of the room, the girl no longer even having the strength to lift her head, “What have they done to you?”
Her savior ran with practiced caution, only jostling her a little, yet each step renewed the burning pain in her chest. Through the curtain of purple shrouding her eyes she could just make out… white hair… sharp, fearful blue eyes that nonetheless held a kindness within them. It struck something within her. A… nostalgia. An anger. A fear. Yet with her body so broken and battered she could only pray that this person was taking her far, far away.
The man carrying her shifted his weight, seeming to struggle with something. He jumped his arm as if adjusting something else in his grip. Perhaps she was not the only body he carried. His movement paused. Then quickened. She could feel him messing with something before him, and then lowering her limp form into it. A seat of some kind judging by the way her body was supported. Then he began moving rapidly again, the sound of wheels against metal flooring rumbling emptily through her ears.
“Target spotted!” A voice echoed from far away, “Take down Siegfried Kaslana at all costs!”
“Shit,” the man whispered harshly, “Come on girls, we gotta get out of here fast!”
She couldn’t hold it anymore. The long hoped for respite from her pain and the knowledge that this man seemed to be helping her was enough for her mind to finally cease its stubborn resistance. Her eyes drifted shut even as the man begged her to stay awake. Darkness in all its sublime peace finally washed over her.
The next thing she knew she was jostled awake, her surroundings shuddering, the vague sense of temporary weightlessness twisted at her insides. Her head lolled to the side, where a window showed her the truth of her thoughts. They were speeding through the air away from an awe inspiring group of floating islands, environmental domes scattered across their surface growing smaller by the minute. The ship banked, and below a magnificent port city came into view. A busy harbor dotted with the small black shapes of ships moving in and out, high walls no doubt bristling with hidden defences to hold back the Honkai, and clusters of skyscrapers reaching into the sky like many fingered hands. The bend in the river and distant mountains struck her as rather distinctive, even in her barely coherent state. A voice whispered in her mind that it was… important. Yet important as it may be, it could not prevent darkness from quickly washing over her once more, a slumber even deeper than before awaiting her if only she would give in and slip away…
What she was not expecting was for her eyes to open once more. This time not to a harsh metal room filled with torturous devices, but instead to a simple wooden ceiling. A soft blanket covered her aching body and for the first time in who knew how long she could move her aching limbs freely. Cautions fingers probed at her chest. Curious touches that were snatched away with a hiss when pain shot through her torso, but she could feel enough. Somehow… no, someone had stitched closed the wound her torturers had inflicted. It hurt to move, yet the sounds of running water and the clinking of dishes from somewhere else in the structure pulled at her curiosity.
Her eyes quickly darted around the darkened room. Besides the one she had woken up in, there was another bed pushed against the far wall. The rest of the room was rather sparse, but between the beds was a dresser with two columns of four drawers. On top of it was a simple mirror that would let someone of small stature see themselves clearly from the waist up when standing in front of the dresser.
Small feet slowly pattered across the wooden floor to this mirror. Fingers gently pressed to her cheek, pressing and pulling down at the skin as she slid her digits down the flesh. Dull golden eyes stared back at her, darkened patches under her eyes and messy long purple locks giving her an absolutely miserable appearance. Her other cheek was darkened with nasty bruises. Something about her appearance seemed… wrong. But that was too hard to think about right now. Pulling her gaze from the mirror, she finally noticed the folded clothes left on top. Someone had left a simple purple dress for her. Looking back in the mirror, she quickly decided anything was better than the loose rags she currently wore. Movement came with a dull aching pain, but still she stubbornly raised her arms to pull the dress over her head and quickly brush down her hair, pulling uselessly at a few knots before deciding it must be good enough. She moved to the far side and pulled open the slightly ajar door to the room. Upon stepping out the girl found herself on an upper landing. A railing guided her towards a staircase down to the first floor and also allowed her to look over the edge and see the doorways into the other rooms of this… home she found herself in. Step by painful step, she used both her arms to hold herself steady as she worked her way down the stairs. Her eyes were wide and darting back and forth, alert for any sign that this was some kind of cruel trick from her captors.
Now on the first floor she chanced a glance through the closest door to her right. A smaller girl with white hair lay on a carpet in what appeared to be the main lounge, playing with a strange yellow stuffed toy. Bandages encircled her head, and she could not see due to the girl facing away from her, but the angle suggested they wrapped around the front and covered her right eye. Or at least a part of that side of her face. But the sounds that had drawn her were coming from the second doorway.
Cautious footsteps tapped softly against the hardwood as she moved to peek around the doorframe. Compared to the dim hallway, the light within shone bright, the girl having to squint against the sudden assault on her vision. When her eyes finally adjusted, the first thing she saw was a head of white hair pulled up into a ponytail. She had found what appeared to be a kitchen. Behind the island counter running down the center of it, was a rather tall man. She vaguely recalled seeing the same ponytail the day she had been rescued from that hell, and it was this thought that let herself allow another step into the room. She managed to get around the island and all the way to the man’s side without him hearing her. She watched as he hummed softly to himself and rubbed away at the plate in his hand with a sponge. It was only after he had rinsed it, put it onto the drying rack to the side, and turned back towards the sink that he finally saw her.
The man nearly jumped out of his skin when he noticed the golden eyes staring curiously up at him, “In the name of-!” He quickly stopped himself and took a deep breath, “You’re awake! How… How are you feeling, kiddo?”
Sirin opened her mouth to speak, suddenly keenly aware of the dry scratchiness tingling there when a cough came out instead of words. Her next attempt went better, “Thirsty,” she croaked.
Siegfried wasted no time throwing open one of the cabinets and snatching a cup from within, grabbing a container of filtered water on the counter and filling it with the desired liquid. She took the cup with a grateful glance, though her first gulp was met with a grimace as her rush to drink made her throat’s terrible condition known. Small sips it was, then. One cup, then two. By her third, she finally felt as if her throat was soothed enough to speak.
“Everything hurts,” Her voice was still scratchy, but the pain was lessened and she wasn’t coughing, so it was good enough, “Did you… help me?”
Siegfried’s awkward smile melted into something more genuine, but… sadder, “Yeah, kid… you don’t have to worry about those people hurting you anymore. Do you… remember how you got there?”
Golden eyes did not miss the way the fingers of his crossed arms flexed as she met his gaze, “N-no… I don’t-” She flinched, lips pulling back in a grimace, “I don’t remember anything before waking up in that place.”
“That’s alright,” The man smiled, “I’m Siegfried. What’s your name?”
The girl frowned, “I-I don’t remember that either…” Why? Why couldn’t she remember her name? Why couldn’t she remember a life outside that horrid lab? She was old enough to have something before… right? How old even was she? “I-I don’t remember anything…” Moisture pricked at the edge of her eyelids, “D-do you know how old I am?”
Siegfried’s brow wrinkled with worry, “I don’t know exactly kid, but,” He made a show of measuring her height with his hand before gently resting it on top of her head and smiling, “You look about fourteen, so that’s a good enough place to start as any until your memories come back, right? You and my kid did hit your heads pretty hard while we were making our escape,” He winced, “That was kinda my fault. I wasn’t paying enough attention in my rush to get you out of there.”
The girl nodded, taking this in. It would make sense, though really her entire body hurt so what was one more injury? “Can I stay here? At least until my body stops hurting?”
“Kiddo, if you weren’t welcome here I wouldn’t have brought you,” Siegfried gave her a small grin, “There’s lots of orphans around after the second eruption messed this place up. I guess I’ve sorta… adopted you?” He shrugged, “My… daughter is in the lounge if you wanna say hi, otherwise feel free to wander around and ask if you need anything. I wouldn’t go outside right now though, there’s still some Honkai beasts wandering around. Wouldn’t want you getting hurt.”
The girl nodded and padded towards the sliding door into the lounge Siegfried had pointed out. Eruption? Honkai beast? These words prodded at her mind but if they were meant to evoke something they failed. That white-haired girl was still playing with her strange stuffed toy, sprawled on the floor and giggling while she made it prance around and every so often glancing at the book haphazardly opened before her.
Left alone in the kitchen, she did not notice how her rescuer’s face fell as soon as she had turned around. Nor how he quickly reached under the counter and took a large swig from an open bottle, eyes hollow and forehead drooping to the wood in dismay.
Mei shot awake with a desperate gasp, hands clawing for a supportive surface as the memory of a hole being burned into her chest quickly faded into the ether. For that is what it was, she was certain. A memory. The sight of golden eyes and curling purple hair looking back at her in the mirror still hovered in the front of her mind. The pain, the screams, the same cruel indifference. If these were memories, then?...
Mei shook her head, the Herrscher of Finality had mentioned the possibility of seeing her memories through the gem, and if she had the Void within her then no doubt Sirin’s memories were there as well. She knew the thing she had felt next to her heart had been Sirin’s Herrscher Core. So then how had she survived? Why could she not remember? Why would Siegfried Kaslana break her free? Questions, questions, and more questions, yet so little answers. Her mind began to wander before that always present spot in the back of her mind jolted her back to her dreams. The landscape!
Mei nearly face planted into the hardwood floor as her legs tangled in the sheets from her frantic scramble to reach a paper and pencil. Through much effort she managed to avoid embarrassment and reach the desk next to her bed. With help of that presence in the back of her mind she kept Sirin’s memory of the landscape in her mind’s eye and rapidly sketched down every important detail she could remember. The curve of the river, the sprawl of the city and its lines of defenses, the vague shapes of the mountains in the distance. It was rough, but her instincts told her she had discovered something important. Instincts her Goddess had told her to follow.
If Schicksal had recaptured Sirin after their bombardment, then there was only one place it made sense to keep such a secret and dangerous captive. The heavily fortified city, the floating islands, the advanced technology… If she could locate this geography then…
Perhaps Schicksal’s ancient headquarters was closer to her grasp than she’d ever dared hope.