Ice Cold Heart | A 'Honkai: Star Rail' Fanfiction

Chapter 1 - Malefic Visions and Joyful Memories

(Image Credit: "Kin of the Stained Blade" from League of Legends)

[A Dark Memory from the Past]

Pouring rain, the vision of a dead field in the middle of nowhere. The sound of Y/N harsh breaths as he tried to regain the strength he'll need to continue to battle. "Okay..." A sharp grunt exits his mouth as he attempts to rise up from his knees. Taking a stance prepared to battle despite his exhaustion and pain, his hands trembled as he took hold of his blade.

His opponent's gaze narrowed towards his own, a faint smirk could be seen through the curtain of rainfall separating them both. "You never learned when to give up, did you?" The woman with snow-white hair tauntingly asked as she approached him. She was calm, composed, and deadly.. She held her blade firmly in her hand, absolutely tremorless. Contrasted to Y/N's own state, and ironically, the state of her own mind.

"It was an admirable trait..." She admitted, still walking menacingly towards Y/N. She stopped not too far off, but not close enough that either of them could surprise-strike the other. "But you're wasting your time"

"Jingliu, please..." Y/N gritted his teeth as he pleaded to her with all of his heart. The blade in his hand slowly became more stable, as in the back of his own mind he was already losing hope. "This isn't you, just stop this madness!" Words of persuasion exited his mouth. But really, he was only fooling himself. Jingliu wasn't thinking straight, not anymore.

Jingliu heard him out, however. That is, if only for a moment. She looked around them as frozen Cloud Knights, empty husks of armor, shattered weapons, and blood stained the field. She slowly turned her gaze back to face him, and without another word dashed towards him with a swift strike.

Y/N parried the strike, but she followed up with a relentless flurry of attacks that left him unable to take any other action. He was unscathed, but his bones and muscles screamed for rest. "Fight the mara!" He yelled out, but his words fell on deaf ears. The insanity that comes with the curse of long-life had taken her far too deep.

In his mind it was clear, there was no saving Jingliu now. This fight will end, where one has to live, and one has to die.

Jingliu leaped into the air, with shut eyes. She let the mara fully consume her, if for a moment, turning her eyes blood red. She slashed the air, sending waves of energized ice to crash down towards Y/N.He leaped out of the way, but half of his blade was still struck by the waves. A shattered weapon, a broken spirit, slipping hope, and a lost friend.

Y/N picked up whatever rusty sword he could from a fallen Cloud Knight. Jingliu landed gracefully before him, her stance ready to go again. With what remained of his voice after endless combat, he tried to save his friend one final time. "You dishonored our names, you're a High Cloud-Quintet! You swore to lead us to virtuosity, we were sworn to protect the Xianzhou!"

Jingliu kept her stance, but his words were enough to at least get her to listen. Noticing that she held herself back for a while, Y/N loosened his stance. He breathed in and tried to speak to the human between the Mara-stricken eyes. "Look around you, Jingliu. Your honor stains the ground."

Her gaze sharpened and narrowed at his words. "Stop talking..." She visibly seethed in response, but her voice kept that calm and composed tone. A facade to her shortening temper, perhaps. Maybe, the voice inside her was listening and knew that he was right.

"-" Y/N barely opened his mouth before she decided to finally strike again. The rusty sword he picked up from the ground would barely last against her attacks. He decided enough was enough.