I admit, I immediately assumed the worst. And I don't think anyone would fault me either. Pandora laid there unmoving, the Box was opened right by her, and there was literally something carved menacingly in the wall.
My knee jerk reaction was to immediately call up Artoria so I could get my hands on Avalon or something, but all that came screeching to a halt when I heard her snore.
Mordred gave me the most deadpanned look and I felt very similar.
I walked over and poked her once and she barely budged.
I searched through my ring for a bucket and made sure it was filled with water before I dumped it on her.
"AHHH!?" She shot up screaming, throwing her hands into the air and tumbling off the couch in a panic. "What's going on, why am I wet, where did you come from!"
There was a little bit of water left so I splashed it on her again.
"Ah!? Stop throwing water at me!" She whined.
"It's what you get for making me worry!" I found a water bottle unopened in my ring thrown to some corner and started swinging it at her, splashing more at her.
At this point she was soaked and throwing her small fists at me with a fury. "Don't bully your mother!"
I finally stopped and instead pulled on her small cheeks. "I brought someone with me. And since you're apparently okay, introductions." I gestured to Mordred.
"I'm Mordred, sup." Mordred casually introduced herself.
Pandora, despite dripping wet smiled happily towards Mordred, walking up to her and getting a good look at her. "You're just like my new daughter, aren't you?" Almost immediately, there was nothing but affection in her gaze.
"Y-yeah." Mordred seemed stunned just as well and looked away at Pandora gently putting a hand on her cheek.
Mordred always liked being compared to Artoria so that hit her right in her weak spot.
"I'm Pandora, the All Giving Mother. You must be her child, so you can call me Grandmother if you want, or whatever is comfortable with you." She smiled.
"Alright, now that introductions are out of the way, why this!?" I pointed to, well, the fact that there was something carved into her wall.
And I purposely did it to give Mordred an out. I noticed the blank look and her uncertainty of how to properly reply to Pandora, so I didn't want her to feel like she was put on the spot.
"Oh that, teheh~"
"Don't just laugh it off." I pulled on her two pigtails, gently of course. She was my momma Pandora, so I wasn't going to hurt her.
"I panicked!" She whined.
"What happened?" I let her go because that sounded concerning.
Pandora huffed cutely, fixing her hair. "I looked into the….box." Her tone shifted. "Well….I probably shouldn't have looked as deep as I did. I notice the anomalous additions considering its….origin and connection that I seemingly had to it. I tried to use my power to divine it and I delved too deep." She said sheepishly.
"Are you okay?" I jumped to the most important question.
She let out a breath. "I'll be fine." She casually waived her hand. "It's just…..I didn't expect to get that kind of feedback. I got hit by a surge of backlash for delving into 'essence' too deeply. It wasn't pleasant by any means, and my head went all dizzy and I wasn't thinking straight. I think I did that.." She pointed to the wall. "Because I was afraid I was going to forget what I learned."
"Then you passed out?"
"More or less."
"Even though you're a True Goddess right now in the middle of what could be called your Divine Domain."
Her smile stiffened. Not embarrassment but more…concern. "That's right."
"If that isn't the biggest hint." I snorted, looking at the big 666 still etched into her wall. "But…..?"
Pandora flipped her hand and the wall mended itself. With a sigh, her eyes glowed and she picked up the box. "And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is 666."
The passage of the bible was not unfamiliar with me, nor was the number 666 something unknown to even mundane people.
But confirmation from Pandora was appreciated with her divination.
I rubbed the bridge of my nose. "Thank you for your help."
"It's dangerous." Pandora said softly. "It was just a tiny spark of the thing inside. I squashed it easily enough so the Box is….safe now. But I could see it for a brief moment, you know? It looked back at me, and I felt frightened."
That sounds bad that a True Goddess like Pandora felt scared.
"Anything else you learned?"
Pandora shook her head. "Be happy that I know this much considering the origin."
Right, it was from a different world, I really am thankful she was able to help me this much.
"But as I said, the box should be safe now." She pushed it towards me. "Truthfully, it's not mine, but I can feel the bad memories it holds for someone else. Would you please take it away from here?"
I just nodded, making sure to properly seal it regardless and putting it back inside my storage. Even though I completely trusted Pandora, I was not going to take any chances with that thing.
Settling that inside my Ring, I quickly grabbed Pandora, wrapping her up in a big hug. "Thank you."
"Aww~ I'm happy to help." Pandora happily accepted the hug.
"Good, then give me my Authority!"
"Bwah!?"
"I killed a God." I huffed. " I want my Authority!"
Pandora looked confused and surprised, she then took out a large circular object with the picture of a dragon on it. There were symbols on it, swords and letters of unknown origin.
The Divine power on it was palpable.
The sheer divine power of it eclipsed almost every other Divine Item I've ever come in contact with. I think only the Bow of Auriel or the Spear could compete or surpass it, atleast at its full state.
"You did!? Ah, I didn't notice…." Pandora squawked. "There's a God's Authority held here and it does show you beat him fair and square…."
Well, it makes sense I suppose, she was indisposed which was not a normal occurrence considering what happened.
Pandora paused and she looked at me and Modred. "Oh, you've never seen this in person, huh? This is my Circle of Usurpation. It's what lets me reproduce and distribute the Authority of Gods to Campione. Of course it requires a sacrifice in order to activate – that of a God's soul."
"It looks like a golden frisbee." Mordred snorted.
"yoink." I snatched it.
"Wah!?" Pandora's eyes widened. "No, give it back!"
"What happens if I use it?" I flipped it over, inspecting it closely.
"You can't!" She practically climbed on top of me as I held it in the air out of her reach. "Only I can use it or give permission to other people… Wait! Don't lick it, no!" I eventually stopped teasing her and let her reclaim her frisbee.
She held it protectively in her arms, not letting me anywhere near it at this point.
"What happened while you were out? I thought my children were going to start fighting, but here you killed a Heretic God?" Pandora looked like she was cleaning her frisbee for some reason.
"Funny story actually. I popped in on Godou while Voban was playing games with him. We went to confront Voban together, I may or may not have sent Voban to the other side of the world. Then Odin appeared, making things more complicated. He brought with him Guinevere and Lancelot – do you know them?"
Pandora's face scrunched up. "I am aware of them."
"And I cut off the Adulterer's arm." Mordred said rather proudly.
"Good job!" Pandora beamed happily.
"Mordred also stole her Lance and Shield. That shouldn't be a problem, right?"
Pandora blinked. "Can I see them real quick?"
"….alright, but they're mine." Mordred took them out for her to see.
Pandora hummed looking over them. "Theoretically, Lancelot should be able to retrieve them if she's nearby…."
Mordred, rather cutely, hugged her new toys. "I'll just keep them at home then."
Yeah, good luck getting them back then, Lancelot.
"Right, so yeah. Me and Mordred double teamed Lancelot – Mordred cut her arm off like she said. They ran away, but not before Guinevere used her….Grail?"
Pandora's expression shifted ever so slightly.
"You know something." I stopped, looking at her.
"I can't say! It's against the rules." She pouted. "No matter how much I want to strangle that trumpet."
….odd.
"Does it have anything to do this with mysterious 'master' that both Guinevere and Hanuman spoke about?"
"So you figured out the Heretic God was Hanuman?" She seemed happy that I knew that tidbit, particularly so.
"Hard to miss it when his Authority named himself."
In the Myths, Hanuman was friends and or servant to Rama, but how does that tie in with King Arthur?
I swear, the myths and legends here are so freaking complicated.
Pandora let out a sigh. "I really can't say anything. Honestly, you being here is…..not against the 'rules' but walking a very fine line. If I do anything, even brush against the line myself, they wouldn't sit still."
Ominous.
"Hanuman was pretty strong. Strong enough to hurt me, I feel like my ribs are cracked….and other things." My shoulder in particular, I wanted to get Artoria for some healing even if I was relatively fine otherwise.
"Yes, yes, I can take your hint." Pandora rolled her eyes. "This isn't usually how I give Authorities, but then again, there's nothing normal about you."
"I feel like there was a hidden insult in there."
"You're imagining things. Now, what's that on your face?"
"What's what – "
"My Circle."
My vision filled with gold as the world around me spun and I found myself staring up at the ceiling, dizzy and disorientated.
It didn't hurt, oddly enough, but at the same time, I tried to push myself up and found my legs weak and fell back over.
Eventually, I just laid sprawled on the ground as my head wound back into place and the world stopped existing in a perpetual state of upside-down.
"….did you hit me with your divine artifact?'
"That's for dumping water on me!" Pandora pursed her lips. "You should have your new Authority now."
I sat up slightly, still sitting on the ground but new information flooded my mind and I felt a new strength fill my body. Somewhat literally in the latter case as physically, I could feel my strength increase.
It wasn't a drastic amount, I wasn't going to be throwing punches like Hanuman was, but it was a noticeable and passive improvement, so I wasn't be upset about it.
I'll need to test with this Scáthach to figure out where my new 'base' was at for future reference.
The bit of strength increase however, was only a minor aspect of it.
Nearly giggling to myself, I realized I definitely needed to get some sparring in because this Authority was quite interesting.
The happiness did offset the foreboding feeling from finding out what it was I was doing with regards to the 'thing' that was hiding inside the box.
Frankly, I am not looking forward to that at all. I would need to put some feelers out and see what others know about that thing.
Thankfully, I have a few Godly relationships I can leverage for just this.
[***]
Scáthach POV
"This is your homeland?"
"Yes." I looked out at the sea. The nostalgic way the waves crashed against the cliffs. Despite being worlds apart, and centuries later, this was a place I found familiar with very few changes. "The Isle of Skye was not far enough. I visited this spot, these shores when I was still alive."
"It is…charming." My Student's Servant replied.
I let out a bark of laughter. "The weather here is shite. It's murky and damp, and it rains nearly every day. The land is full of rocks that make for poor farming, and nothing is flat. But….it is home."
Perhaps my old home, I should say.
Now my new home is wherever my lover resides.
"I don't dislike it."
"I suppose it has its own charm." I found myself agreeing.
Every true born Scottish man and woman would say the lands of their forefathers were utter shite, but they'd all still call it home with a warm smile.
"We should proceed. I have a feeling our mutual lover will return after causing some sort of problems and I wish to be there when he does." I turned around, letting the nostalgia fade.
"You would have gone with him. I wouldn't have minded doing this on my own." Raikou stated.
"It's alright." I shook my head. I admit I was tempted, I do so love fighting opponents of that level. A world full of Gods and Godslayers did spark a competitive spirit inside of me. However, this new perspective of life….it allowed me to view it through the lens of patience. "There will be many fights in the future, I feel no regret for missing a few that our lover inevitably causes."
She laughed. "Yes, that is most certain."
"Just as well, I wished to share this time together."
"That makes me happy to hear." She smiled.
"I am curious as to why you did not ask our lover to join you. It is something he would have no qualms about participating in."
"Ah….I did not wish for Master to see me doing work such as this." She said softly.
"He has seen you fight before. I would reckon he would find it enticing if anything." I snorted, thinking about how he acts normally. "What difference does it make?"
"Yes, Master knows me when I fight. However, he has never seen me during an extermination."
I merely shook my head and offered no argument, as it was not my place. Even though I knew for certain that our lover would not think any different from her.
But I understood her sentiment. Perhaps my student wouldn't or doesn't understand the implications of our past merely from stories and legends. Myself, the warrior next to me, the small knight…..we have a great deal of blood on our hands, and the source of it is not always pleasant to speak about.
We both walked for a few minutes back to where we were earlier.
"I do not know the customs of these lands. Would it be impolite for me to offer my condolences and say a silent prayer?" She asked.
I looked down into the large pit, bodies peeking through, half buried and somewhat decayed as we recently dug up this several days old mass grave to verify certain information.
"I believe they would appreciate the sentiment." I cast a quick spell to push the dirt back over, burning the faces of the corpses into my mind. The Old Ways mostly died out, I believe these lands worship the Biblical God now, thus I fashioned a wooden Cross and planted it at the side.
My student's Servant knelt one a knee, giving her silent prayers and I didn't speak as she finished, pushing herself back up with a frown.
No more words needed to be spoken here as we turned on our heals and walked away. There was a village not far, a genuine village in this modern world.
Perhaps not but a fifteen minute walk.
It appeared to have modern conveniences, but they still worked off the land as villagers looked up at our arrival. I saw familiar crops being tended to, farm animals making noise and even the same smells that came from such.
The houses, while made of stone and cobble, they had modern glass fixtures and those lines above that supplied electricity for light and heat.
Maybe two dozen houses in total, with some form of storefronts, a bakery I could notice, a butcher not far away as well. I even saw a woodworker practicing his craft at such a time.
It was serene and almost peaceful.
The villagers looked at us curiously, as one would assume. We did not exactly fit into the area and we were outsiders.
One child in particular walked up at us.
Before he could utter a word, my student's Servant summoned her blade and beheaded him. Blood splashed across her face as the head rolled across the ground.
She had quite the bloodthirsty and malicious smile on her face and I then understood her words from earlier.
For me, my spear sailed through the air, pinning a man to the side of a house and I matched her own smile. It was oddly pleasant to know that my Harem Sister shared…..peculiarities such as this with me.
I picked up the severed head of the child just slain, inspecting it before tossing it away. For it matched exactly to the face of the child we had just found in the grave outside.
All around us, feral screams resounded, inhuman language erupted and bodies transformed.
I called back my spear into my hand and slammed the butt of it onto the ground, casting a large spell to seal off the village and revealing the true forms of the residents.
Wings, non-human appendages, fur or animalistic features.
Not a single Human resides within these streets any longer.
The Fae were something abhorred even in my time. I have killed many myself and regret not a single one of their deaths by my hand.
Yes, I believe she was correct in her naming.
Extermination is the proper description.
[***]
Non-Canon Omake: The Foolish Genius (Honkai Star Rail) Part 1
I looked out the window as the stars passed by.
I was riding a train through space, I don't think I would ever forget this memory despite the fantastical sights I've witnessed in my long life.
"Thank you again. Honestly, when I asked, I really wasn't expecting much." I looked at the other 'riders' of the train.
"Did you think we don't backtrack?" The Red-head, Himeko, the Astral Express's navigator looked at me and chuckled.
"Well, I always hear how the Astral Express never stops going forward in the tales. Always pushing forward, trailblazing the paths that no one else will."
That merely got a chuckle from them. "It's hard to keep Trailblazing without supplies. We were getting ready to move on to our next Trailblaze as it were with a stop to Penacony. But we wanted to stock up before making a proper jump forward. Herta's Space Station just so happened to be our destination for that, so it was no trouble taking a passenger along."
"The money helps too." The one named March nodded sagely.
"March!" Himeko covered her face.
"Well, one is expected to pay a fare when chartering a ride on a train." I didn't take offense. "Honestly, I'm grateful. This is a wonderful experience, and I've heard much about the Nameless and their recent journey through the stars."
"Really, you've heard of me too?" The Silver haired girl looked intrigued.
"Of course. The tales of bludgeoned individuals and scoured trash cans are well known." I nodded.
"Sweet!" She held up a peace sign while the others groaned and sighed. "Then you can call me by my official title, the Galactic Baseballer."
"That's not her title, ignore her." Himeko sighed, running her hand down her face. "However, I suppose we should properly introduce ourselves. "I'm Himeko, here we have Stelle, March, Dan Heng and Welt. And of course Pom-Pom is the conductor, but they're busy at the moment."
They all gave a polite nod my way.
"Charmed." I politely bowed my head. "I am Wilhelm Henry Schweinorg, though you probably already knew that after doing a background check."
"Actually, there was very little information I could find even with the services of Luofu. I only was able to retrieve some passing mentions of you working with the Genius Society." Welt stated. "If you don't mind me asking, where are you from, Mr. Schweinorg?"
"Oh, I'm from a small planet you probably never heard of. Funny enough people look at me and are like 'you named your planet dirt', but it was named Earth and –"
Welt's cane scraped across the floor. "Come again?"
"Did I say something wrong?" Everyone was looking at me strangely.
"Your home planet….Earth?" Himeko repeated. "That is surprising to hear."
"Why – "
"I am from Earth." Welt stated bluntly.
"Oh?" I was genuinely surprised because…well, I didn't really take the simple way to this universe. "Color me surprised, a fellow countryman. Though, I was born in Japan, where were you from?"
Welt clamped up clearing my throat. "Excuse me, I apologize. I was skeptical for a moment, but unless you have knowledge of Earth, you wouldn't know the term 'Japanese' without prompt. This is….odd for me, I never thought I would mean someone from my home. Do….do you have the coordinates?"
"I apologize, I didn't leave through….traditional methods. I have no idea how to get there through the paths." I said helplessly.
I wasn't even sure there was an Earth in this universe until now.
Apparently, Welt here didn't leave through traditional methods either.
"I see…..I thank you regardless. Knowing that there is someone else from my home here among us….it fills me with a sense of happiness." He smiled rather grandfatherly. "If you don't mind, I would like to speak later about home, it has been a long time since I have had someone to share those memories with."
"I would be delighted." Well, as a fellow Earther, I felt sympathy, so It wasn't difficult for me to accept his request. "I'm curious about that Black Hole You're carrying around in the form of a Cane just as well." I chuckled.
He raised an eyebrow. "…not many people are able to see through it. Curious."
Well, the atmosphere got a little awkward.
"So you're with the Genius Society?" Himeko seemingly changed the subject.
"Well, it's a little nuanced. The Genius Society is only the main members that are rather well known….but some of them have quite a few people working directly under them that while aren't 'members' are ... .co-workers?"
"That's impressive. We've met Madam Herta, Screwllum, Ruan Mei!" Stella excitedly relayed. "They're all…."
"Anti-social, lacking common sense, a bit crazy?" I offered.
"….unique." She snorted.
"What was your job then?" March asked. "Madam Herta has a lot of people under her in the space station, but they're always doing a bunch of other stuff."
"Oh, I was a retrieval specialist. Basically, I went out and obtained precious or difficult to acquire resources that they requested." I summarized.
It was fun, if a lot less glamorous than they probably thought.
"That sounds interesting! I bet you've gone to and seen a lot of places! Is that why you're going to Herta's Space Station, to drop something off for her?" March asked.
"….something like that."
"Should we give them a heads up about your arrival then?" Welt asked.
"Uh, there's no need." I quickly waved it off. "I'll just….surprise them with my visit." I forced a smile.
"oh…..was I not supposed to say anything?" Stelle went blank and I noticed she was holding up her phone…and it started vibrating like crazy. "….why is Herta getting mad at me? And….why is she saying you're not allowed within 100 quadrants of her space station?"
They all stared at me and I awkwardly cleared my throat. "Well….it's complicated."
Himeko let out a sigh, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Please don't tell me we let a wanted criminal onto the Astral Express, or that you intended to use us to smuggle you aboard her space station."
They all looked like they were about to restrain me.
"It's complicated!"
"Un-complicate it."
"Technically, I'm not banned from her space station."
Stelle held up her phone with quite a few…..interesting choice of words directed her way by Herta for which she described me. None of which were pleasant.
"I was never officially banned. While Herta founded it, named it, and well…everyone acknowledges it as hers, it's actually Asta's since she paid for it and continues to pay for everything." I quickly stated.
"Sophistry won't help you, Mr.Schweinorg." Welt replied. "We are more than willing to listen to your explanation, but we are friends with Madam Herta and the Space Station as a whole. Not only that, but they provide us with significant donations and resources to continue our Trailblazing mission. We can't turn a blind eye to something like this. So please give us a reason to not lock you up for the continuation of our journey and alert the security at the Space Station upon our arrival."
I let out a sigh knowing I was backed into a corner here. I really didn't want to become hostile with either the Astral Express crew or the Space Station considering the reason I'm going there.
"Herta and I...are married."
That was apparently enough because the overt tension dissipated immediately as they merely looked at me with bewilderment and confusion.
….this was going to be a long train ride.
[***]
A/N
Random HSR Omake that popped into my head, starts similar to the Chaldea omake, but goes in a different direction.
Second part of this omake, Kunou's first part Side Story, and next part of the Looking Glass Omake are all up on the p.a.t.r.e.o.n
If you want to read 10 chapters ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / astoryforone
I also have a boosty under the same name if you can't use the above.