Chapter Four: Home

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(A/n): Accidentally published a draft earlier.

Formatting:

"Speaking"

'Thoughts'

"Herrscher of the Void Speaking"

'Herrscher of the Void Thoughts'

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Mei opened her eyes to a building that she never thought she would see again. St. Freya, in all of its glory. 

However, she wouldn't be able to focus on the building and its intricacies as she heard a pair of footsteps approaching her location.

Ducking behind the nearest building, she holds her breath and waits for the pair to pass. As the pair got closer, their conversation also got louder and louder.

"Mei Senpai! Carry me to the cafeteria please!"

Raiden Mei knew this voice too well, after all, it belonged to someone that she regretted losing all her life. 

'Kiana'

And of course, the "Mei Senpai" would naturally be her in the past. 

"Come on Kiana, the cafeteria is just up ahead."

She desperately wanted to jump out and call herself and hug Kiana again, and of course offer to carry her to the cafeteria, but she managed to hold herself back. She didn't know about the consequences of changing time yet.

Suddenly, she felt a spark from her Herrscher core, and it seems that her other self had also felt it. Hearing the rapid approach of footsteps, she closed her eyes and concentrated on trying to get back to the space outside of time. Feeling a tug, she allowed herself to be pulled back, just in time for the other Raiden Mei to round the corner and find nothing there.

Catching up, Kiana just tilted her head and asked

"What's wrong, Mei Senpai?"

Sheathing her blade, Mei just shook her head

"I don't know either, it just felt like something was here."

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Arriving back in the familiar apartment, Mei let out a breath that she didn't even know she was holding. 

She was bracing for the snarky comment she would no doubt receive for her sorry state, yet when she looked up the Herrscher of the Void was missing, assumingly going off on her own timeline joyride. 

'I knew I couldn't trust her to stay put' Mei thought to herself.

She was a bit stressed out, knowing that a genocidal maniac was running wild somewhere in time, but at the same time, she didn't feel like looking for her.

Nothing mattered to her anymore, she was someone who had lost her motivation for existing, rather just going about her day and carrying out the duty that she set upon herself. 

'For Kiana'

That was what she told herself all the time. If Kiana could break out of the Void Herrscher's grip once, she could do it again. 

But evidently, she didn't do enough. 

On the other hand, she found the Herrscher of the Void more and more tolerable as time went on. It made her angry, more at herself than anything. The thought of accepting Kiana's fated disappearance and having the Herrscher of the Void being the only proof of her existence was a disturbing concept for her. 

'Well if she thinks that I am just going to sit still, then she's dead wrong."

Without the other Herrscher potentially hindering her plans now, she strolled down the timeline until she set her eyes on a very specific panel. 

'I don't care about this timeline bullshit anymore' 

Touching the panel, she felt herself be pulled in.

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Himeko Murata grasped the serum in her hands as the elevator shook and the lights flashed red in warning. 

'So much for retirement' she joked to herself.

As the doors slid open, she was met with a piece of debris that flew strait at her face.

Slinging her trusty broadsword, Surtr, over her shoulder, she put on a confident smile despite there not being anyone around to see it.

Swinging the like a baseball bat, she flung the piece of debris right at the rampaging dragon, striking its neck and stunning it momentarily as she leaped above him. Delivering a downward kick to the dragon's skull, it slams into the ship.

Landing in front of the dragon, she takes a moment to charge up the blade, taking in a deep breath as the pain from using her blade catches up to her and multiplies from the strain. Swinging her glowing blade down, it strikes something else as she is blinded.

Opening her eyes, she finds herself in an unfamiliar place, with the ship stuck in place and various floating rock cube formations across the purple skyline. 

Hearing the familiar hum of the void behind her, she turns to find her former student, now turned Herrscher, strolling down casually to the ship.

"Do you think you can escape."

It wasn't a question, but a mocking statement that truly meant that she wasn't going to leave on her own accord.

However, she wouldn't have willingly met the Herrscher in battle if she wasn't prepared to pay for it. Pointing her sword at her student, she replies,

"Humph. I've been waiting for you."

Finally touching down on the ship, the Herrscher raised her hand

"I hope you're ready...to meet your maker."

Himeko feels all of her muscles tense as she flies towards the Herrscher, however, when the Herrscher's face was finally visible, it wasn't one of indifference, but one of shock, as the Herrscher hurriedly releases her and turns to try to block an incoming attack.

All Himeko saw was a flash of lightning as a blur tackled the Herrscher of the Void away from her. At the same time, the familiar serum she hid was also sticking out of the Herrscher's chest as she screamed in pain, the look of shock not leaving her eyes. 

In the place of the Herrscher, Raiden Mei stood, on guard and watching as the power of the void struggled to grip onto its host. The sight of her student in front of Himeko was shocking, they looked so foreign and much taller than she recalled.

Yet it would seem that she had no time to ponder this issue, as the adrenaline that pumped through her was now wearing off and the full brunt of the backlash of using Surtr with her damaged battlesuit hit her. Feeling her eyelids grow heavy, she collapsed, but not before feeling a firm grip catching her as her conscience faded.

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(A/N): Sorry again for the accidental publish earlier. First attempt at writing a fight scene and also starting on Raiden Mei's arc. I don't know if Himeko can logically survive but if she can't...well this is a fanfiction so anything is possible, though I don't wish to bend the rules too much, so I'm looking into her condition more deeply to see if there is a non-luck way to get her to survive. 

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