Armor umbilicals trailed behind Himeko's frame. After cleaving through Raiden Mei's thunder barrage, she burst off Hyperion's deck.
She had no room left to spare for Tatsuki's sudden appearance. A Herrscher stood before her—distraction meant death.
Within the Herrscher-consciousness, Mei bristled.
A mere insect—a human—had shrugged off her strike and now dared to meet her blade to blade?
"You raise steel against me? Ignorant vermin!"
Under the moon, a single lightning wing blazed. Mei lifted her hand; an even denser plasma thunder orb condensed.
"Turn to ash before me!"
Her pupils thinned, predatory; the next instant, a lance of incandescent EM light detonated outward.
BOOM!
The thunderball speared for the tiny figure on the carrier—Himeko.
Himeko's face stayed calm in the Herrscher's fury. She wasn't only Himeko now—she was Hyperion's blade.
"Sorry—but I am not going down before I find a good man!"
She raised her greatsword high. "Nexus system—engage!"
Her Valkyrie exosuit flared to life.
This rig drew on Hyperion's entire reactor grid—the ship's power, concentrated and compressed into one user.
Hyperion's drive roared—for her alone. Torrents of energy sheathed Himeko and the sword in her hands.
"—Haa!"
A-rank Valkyrie Himeko brought the blade down against the oncoming rail of lightning.
The cylindrical electromagnetic cannon split—clean, vertical, in two.
Spillover ignited into a blooming sun over Changkong, a white blast that forced those below to shield their eyes.
Cocolia and the others threw up arms.
"This battle is a bit much, isn't it?" Furina blurted, stunned. In all her four or five centuries, she'd never seen a duel this savage.
"Hmph. This is a Herrscher," Cocolia murmured, eyes alight with hunger. So this is a true Herrscher Core's power. Only a Core could fully drive the Moonlight Throne…
The thrill lasted a heartbeat; then bitterness returned. Her lips twisted. Nothing is mine anymore. What's the point of wanting?
"Mother…" Bronya's muted affect left her unsure how to comfort anyone.
Kiana, meanwhile, stared into the blast, sick with worry. "Mei… she'll be okay, right?"
She nearly lunged skyward on instinct.
Silver Wolf, purple visor gleaming, stayed lax. "Relax. If Tatsuki's off-screen, he's in the fight. If he can't handle it, we're already dead. So—we're fine."
"Oh—right!"
Kiana blinked. Tatsuki had vanished again. He wouldn't just watch; if anyone could steady this, it was him.
…
Schicksal HQ — The Coffer Between.
A sealed chamber where eight true power-holders spoke. No faces—only numbered sigils on screens; anonymity perfected.
"The third Honkai has erupted in the Far East—just as foretold. One step closer to judgment," intoned 02-SA.
03-ER: "Far East forces are in contact with the Herrscher, but interference blocks accurate reports—most likely the Herrscher's high-intensity magnetic ability."
04-AF: "So long since the outbreak and still no hard intel? Splendid performance from the Far East."
A dry barb.
04-AF again: "And without an S-rank Valkyrie assigned. Against a Herrscher, that's wishful thinking."
03-EA: "They are outfitted with our most advanced warship and arms. That's leagues above, say, Africa Branch—they can't even lay down a Yamato-class."
"Order." 01-EU's voice cut through, and the bickering stilled.
"Director Theresa of the Far East Branch was appointed by Bishop Otto himself. We should trust her judgment."
03-EA: "Indeed. Theresa fought in the Second Eruption. She'll have prepared thoroughly. There won't be another Prypiat."
The name chilled the room. In Prypiat, poor command against a Herrscher—despite strong Valkyries and advanced weapons—meant total failure. The city died; a thriving tens-of-thousands metropolis became a ghost, a stain on Schicksal's history.
"Gentlemen, ladies."
At center, where no number showed—only the Apocalypse crest—another screen pulsed: OTTO.
Bishop Otto Apocalypse spoke, and silence reigned.
"Herrschers are envoys of destruction, guided by the will of Honkai."
"They are born from Honkai and descend in human guise to mock millions of years of our evolution. To them, humanity is a puff of smoke."
"But find the root of Honkai within a Herrscher—and you can seal it."
"Overall command of this operation is granted to the Far East Branch. All branches will provide maximal support. The Third Herrscher must be captured."
"Fourteen years of preparation was for this day."
"The counterattack begins. We live with Schicksal—or not at all."
Voices answered as one: "We live with Schicksal."
Screens winked out—save Otto's. In the emptiness, his murmur lingered:
"Don't disappoint me, Theresa."