Lights in a Starless Sky - A Honkai Impact 3rd Fanfiction

Act 32: Prodigy

12PM: Cells, Shicksal Vimur Labs

The fish salad on Kiana's plate sat untouched, the appetite she once had was all but gone after thinking about Perceval's talk with Durandal the day before. Both of them were heroes, yet they worked for Shicksal. Kiana was still so confused about why they continued to work under the Overseer, whom Perceval openly expressed his dislike for with absolutely no regard for any repercussions his opinions could have. Durandal sat across from her, with her head in her book. "You haven't eaten, Kiana. Do you not like catfish?" Kiana fell silent, looking down at her plate in slight disgust. "I don't like fish cause it has bones in it. Someone would always help me pick out the bones." Durandal chuckled softly, closing her book with a satisfying sound. "... Heh, I see you're well enough to start making jokes." Kiana looked up at the blonde Valkyrie with confusion, only just noticing Perceval walking through the door. "You'd have a hard time eating a Barramundi then." The Knight sat down next to Durandal with a plate in his hand, on the plate were two slices of toast with a dark brown looking spread on them. Kiana raised an eyebrow, pointing to Perceval's plate. "What's that on your toast?" Perceval picked up a slice and offered it to the Valkyrie, smiling slyly. "Oh, it's a little Australian condiment. It's called Vegemite." Just as she was about to take a bite, Perceval chuckled. "I will warn you, Kiana. It's a little... Salty." Kiana's face turned up like she had eaten a lemon, but she had already swallowed the bite of toast and began to cough. "Augh! That's disgusting!" Perceval picked up his slice and took a large bite, his expression unchanging. "It's an acquired taste." Durandal frowned. "In my opinion, others would think you're insane. You have Vegemite in a very thick layer on your toast." The Knight put on a heavy Australian accent, which would have sounded completely natural if not for the fact that for some reason, it just was wrong. "Aw, mate. That's just how I grew up." Reluctantly, Kiana ate up the rest of the toast with a sour expression. "You Australians are weird..." Perceval shrugged, sighing softly as he stood up and began to walk towards the door. "That's what you think, anyways." The Knight looked to Durandal with a smile, winking quickly at her. "You go on ahead, I'll meet you there." Perceval closed the door behind him with a quiet mechanical clank, his footsteps echoing out into the hallway. Durandal also stood and quickly placed a set of handcuffs on Kiana, helping her up to her feet. "Let's not keep him waiting." Kiana raised an eyebrow as they began to walk out the door. "Wait, where are we going?"

2PM: City outside Shicksal Vimur Labs, North Africa

Sand swept through the quiet city, the wind rushing past the buildings creating an eerie howl. The former city now looking like the aftermath of some apocalyptic fallout where the Honkai had ravaged everything, leaving nothing to spare. Kiana gawked at her surroundings as her white hair swayed gently in the wind, the Valkyrie's expression twisted in sorrow. "What is this place...?" Durandal took off Kiana's handcuffs and looked back to the young girl with her usual stern expression. "It's just another city in ruins." Kiana looked down to the sand at her feet, tapping her heels on the ground. "... Who did this?" 

"Do you really have to ask that?"

Perceval appeared by Kiana's other side, walking up from behind her clad in his Night Sky battlesuit. Durandal nodded while dusting the sand off her Bright Knight: Excelsis battlesuit, looking at Kiana slightly confused. "Is there anything else besides the Honkai that can destroy a city overnight?" Kiana remained silent, looking around the city for something. Perceval noticed a small flicker of amber in Kiana's eyes: she was using her Herrscher powers. The Knight dashed forward in a blur, the Holy Sword Durandal at Kiana's neck. The young Valkyrie shivered, looking to Perceval in shock. "H-How did you?" Perceval's expression was stern yet worried, he held the blade firmly against Kiana's throat. "Don't even dare. You're still unstable, Kiana." Durandal chuckled, drawing her Hler's Serenity lance from her hip and levelling it at Kiana. "Perceval is right. And besides, If you want to escape, I'd rather you do it honourably." The Valkyrie gestured for the Knight to lower his blade, to which he complied and walked over beside Durandal. "Defeat Perceval and I in a fair fight and I'll gladly let you leave." Kiana gawked, her jaw dropping open angrily. "T-Two on one? That's not fair!" Durandal opened Kiana's cuffs, causing the steel cuffs to fall into the sand and slowly sink into the ground. "Perceval and I are a team, an extension of the other. If you fight me, you fight Perceval." The Knight tapped Zagreus against the pavement and wiped some sand away from his feet, leaving slight gouges in the concrete. "Are you up to the challenge, Kiana Kaslana?" The white haired Valkyrie held out her hands, into which Perceval placed guns she had recently made: ARC Serratus. "Alright then... If you want a fight so bad..."