Chapter Text
Kiana didn’t know where she was, her head was swimming, and all she could do was wait, hoping that her senses would clear. Everything around her was a mess of incoherent shapes and blinding light, and an insufferable ringing in her ears made it hard to focus.
Gradually, she became aware of her surroundings. The ambient hum of fluorescent lights told her that she was in a room. Following was feeling, or rather, pain. She felt like she had pins and needles all over her body. Soon after, the others returned.
Kiana hoisted herself up. She was dressed in a medical gown.
A sudden headache prompted her to hold her head, she felt bandages wrapped around her head.
It was then she noticed that her hands seemed slightly smaller. Her body felt strange, and the way her hair draped over her face and shoulders was heavier.
That didn’t seem right.
Kiana sat upright, but when she glanced around, she caught an unfamiliar face in the bedside mirror.
She felt the colour drain from her face.
Looking back at her was the spitting image of Sirin, but her hair was Kaslana white with the familiar streaks of red Kiana had in her Herrscher form. Her eyes were still blue too.
Her mind struggled to process what was going on, when the door suddenly creaked open.
“Oh! You’re awake!” A woman spoke. she had long green hair put up into a ponytail, and her eyes were fuchsia red with slitted snake-like pupils, yet they had a feeling of warmth to them.
“Where am I?” Kiana felt uneasy at hearing someone else’s voice come out of her mouth.
“This is Ouroboros Medical and Wellness Centre, my clinic.” The green haired woman said with a smile. “I’m Dr. Penrose Ouroboros.”
“…”
“You were found injured a few days ago, so I brought you in. Can you remember what happened?”
Kiana blinked. Her mind was still reeling from her new reflection. She tried to recall what happened before she woke up, but she could only see incoherent flashes of colour.
She shook her head, not wanting to startle herself with her new voice.
“Do you remember your name?”
Kiana flinched at that question. Could she even answer truthfully? It’s not like anyone would believe her if she said she was Kiana Kaslana, especially not looking like this. A part of her wanted to answer with Sirin, but she pushed the thought away. Gears turned in her head as she thought of something.
…
…..
……!
“Celine, it’s Celine Kaslana.”
The snake eyed woman looked at her with an expression of intrigue.
“A Kaslana? What are you doing so far away from your House?”
The white-haired girl smiled sheepishly. “I grew up outside with my father, I don’t really know my relatives…”
Penrose sighed. “Alright, not going to push it. Miss Celine, do you have anywhere to go?”
“No...”
Where could she go? She honestly looked like Sirin had been palette swapped in a video game. It could raise alarm if someone from Schicksal/Anti-Entropy mistook her for the second Herrscher. Well, she IS the second Herrscher, but it was a bit more complicated than that.
How were her friends on the Hyperion doing anyways? That was certainly a pressing matter, they were probably worried sick about Kiana, but she wasn’t in a state to look for answers.
“Well, if you need a place to stay, why not stay here for now.” Penrose smiled, scratching the back of her head. “I might call it a clinic, but this is also my home.”
Everything about this new body took time adjusting to. It wasn’t too different from her original body, but there were slight quirks, such as the distance between each step.
Thankfully, her body wasn’t identical to the Second Herrscher’s, more like a Sirin that was around Kiana’s current age.
She had lost a couple centimetres in height, nothing too drastic, but it meant her wardrobe were noticeably looser in some areas.
Her hoodie was larger though. It now extended a little past her hips.
Penrose had been escorting the Herrscher to her new, hopefully temporary room.
What struck Kiana was the Doctor’s recognition of her family name.
That meant she knew about Schicksal, and certainly of the Honkai.
Did Penrose have ties with Schicksal or Anti-Entropy, or even World Serpent?
The latter would be a little on the nose though, Penrose already had snake-like eyes and had ‘Ouroboros’ on the name. It would be a bit too obvious to assume she was a part of WS with a name that unsubtle.
That was a question for later.
Penrose opened the door to Kiana’s new room.
It was fairly modest, had all the essentials. Pretty similar to her room back at Salt Lake Base.
“If you need anything, you’re welcome to ask me. Also, we will be performing a general check-up tomorrow regarding your health, as you’ve been unconscious for roughly three days.”
‘Celine’ couldn’t sleep. Everything about her situation was just bizarre. It felt strange to think of herself by this new alias, but she couldn’t exactly go about revealing her actual identity, not when she looked like this.
She even practiced repeating the alias to herself so she didn’t slip up around other people.
Her phone vibrated.
She still had her phone on her.
14 missed calls.
God knows how many messages.
Her friends back at Hyperion were looking for her, they’d probably be worried to death-
Kiana groaned. She certainly couldn’t respond by call, as her voice was different, but texts were likely safe.
Maybe she could feign a cold as an excuse.
The messages were from pretty much everyone she expected, though Theresa was oddly absent, and there was a surprising number of messages from Bianka.
Maybe her auntie wasn’t as concerned for her safety-
Nyet! What was she thinking? Theresa would definitely be worried about her missing niece. Maybe something happened to her.
Wait? ‘Nyet?’
Kiana blinked.
Was Sirin’s mannerisms blending with her own?
That’s certainly something she needed to unpack, later.
Right now, she wanted sleep.
But…
There was something she wanted to confirm first.
She stepped into the bathroom to wash up, although she was hesitant to look in the mirror.
When she finally mustered up the courage, she looked herself straight in the eyes.
Her hair was styled almost identically to Sirin’s, save for the lock of hair that curled upwards. Some traces of her old body were still left over.
She snapped her fingers and a flame coalesced in her palm. The Herrscher dried her face with it. This wasn’t exactly an apt usage of her powers, but this was the same girl that was raised by a father used a Divine Key to cook pizza toast.
Kiana braided the hair to the left of her face. She wanted a bit more of a personal flair if she was going to look like this for who knows how long.
Her face is definitely Sirin’s, though she wasn’t as disturbed as she thought she’d be. It felt like it belonged, and there were enough differences in her appearance that she could probably pass as a close relative if anyone asked, or even a cosplayer, although it would be unusual to cosplay as the Second Herrscher.
Now that she was looking at herself more closely, she only just noticed the two locks of hair that stood out to the side like droopy cat ears and suddenly felt an impulse to fiddle with them. Kiana found herself grinning mischievously.
There was no one to stop her from messing around with the Herrscher’s face. It was her face after all.
She poked her tongue out, the reflection followed. She looked goofy; the original owner of this face wouldn’t be caught making any of these immature expressions.
This probably wasn’t an appropriate way to handle her current situation, but she sure as hell wasn’t going to let it stop her from having some fun.
Then she realised something.
Her eyes had been glowing the whole time. She had clearly shown her Herrscher eyes to Penrose and didn’t even realise it.
Idiotka.
Kiana breathed in and out. She closed her eyes.
The Herrscher cores were still in her body, though she felt like a fog had been cast over them.
Regardless, the stream of Honkai energy emanating from them faded.
A pair of normal blue eyes met her reflection – save for the diagonal crosshairs over her eyes. Sirin’s eyes. Her hair lost its streaks of red.
… It was close enough, at least they weren’t glowing anymore. Now she could sleep.
As she drifted off, the fog over her mind cleared.
She remembers being on the Hyperion with the others. It had been a few days after they had left Kolosten. They all thought they had gotten a moment of peace.
They were wrong.
Very wrong.
Alarms sounded, the ground trembled. It was like the entire ship was being shaken and pulled apart.
She felt ambient Honkai energy soar.
Kiana and Theresa were the closest to the epicentre of the attack and had ran to meet it.
When the two made it, something prompted Theresa to freeze in her place, paled like she had seen a ghost. Kiana looked where her aunt’s eyes led.
Her heart sank.
There was a woman in the hallway in front of them, dressed in white with gold and violet decorations. She held a banner that bore the symbol of House Schariac.
But the part that truly frightened Kiana was her face.
That was Cecelia in front of her, her own mother.
But the impassive, uncaring expression on that woman’s face told her that this wasn’t her mother, it couldn’t be.
Honkai energy radiated from the woman in overwhelming waves, distinct from that of a Herrscher or a Honkai beast. It was strikingly similar aura to that of Durandal’s recently awakened stigma powers.
Something deep inside her Void Core snapped, screaming at her to run.
It wasn’t the hateful Herrscher of the Void’s persona that called out to Kiana, her other half was long gone after their confrontation in the Theatre of Dominance.
What called out sounded more like a scared child, one that had her world taken away from her in the confines of a tower deep within the Siberian tundra.
Theresa made the first move against this imposter Cecelia, something prompting her to forgo her Battlesuit limiters on her Vishnu genes. Both of them knew the risks, but this doppelganger had an air of danger that shook them to their core. She wasn’t thinking rationally, Theresa was about to go under an Active Honkai Reaction, an artificial cascade not unlike what Siegfried had done during the Second Eruption.
‘Cecelia’ smiled. She rose her banner. The world swirled with violent energy.
White hot pain ran through Kiana’s very being, like something had collided with her Core’s own energy.
The powers resonated with each other. A maelstrom of light burst into every inch of her surroundings.
Her world turned to black after that.
Kiana snapped awake, sweat trickling down her face. Embers hung in the air as her Flame Core radiated warmth throughout her body. It felt far too real to be her imagination, those were clearly memories.
Taking a moment to collect herself. Her breathing slowed to a regular pace, and the embers sputtered out as she withdrew her Herrscher powers. Luckily, her room wasn’t scorched by her outburst.
The nightmare was fresh on her mind. It confirmed her fears that something had happened to herself and her aunt, and that something had separated them after their confrontation with that Cecelia double.
Kiana affirmed herself that she needed to find Theresa, but where would she even start?
And how would she explain her appearance? People don’t just suddenly wake up in different bodies.
How did something like this even happen? Was the world responding to her accepting who she was? If so, this wasn’t exactly what she had in mind.
She struggled out of bed, almost meeting the floor with her face.
Her body felt weak, like she hasn’t moved in days. And the morning light that poured from her window felt like it would blind her.
She then opened the closet.
Penrose had been generous enough to provide some clothing, since her current ones were a bit loose. Though Kiana suspected that the majority of these were hand-me-downs, which she didn’t know how to feel about.
First, she tried on a white blouse with a black pencil skirt.
It looked… nostalgic? This wasn’t Kiana’s style at all, but for whatever reason, she was drawn to it. It matched her new body well, too well. This felt really strange.
…
“…Maybe I should wear something else.”
Finally, she settled on something plain. A white shirt, shorts with leggings, and a dark olive-green coat she left unzipped.
Something casual enough to make sure she didn’t stand out.
The past day had certainly been unusual, but Kiana has braved much worse predicaments before.
She can handle whatever the world throws at her, right?
Apparently not.
After finishing her check-up with the doctor, Kiana had wandered into the clinic’s kitchen for a snack. It was less of a clinic and more like a house that doubled as one.
She wasn’t prepared for what she saw next.
Kiana was prepared for many things, Honkai beasts, Herrschers, Zombies… this was not one of them.
In front of her was a girl raiding the fridge. She assumed she was another patient, given her medical gown.
She had white hair that fell past her shoulders, and was about Kiana’s height, if not slightly taller.
If she had her hair put into a braid, she would look like a younger version of Schicksal’s Holy Maid.
The girl stared at Kiana with wide blue eyes. Her mouth stuffed with…
Bitter melon?
Kiana’s bewildered expression soon turned to shock as the girl in front of her almost choked on her bitter melon. The Herrscher moved to comfort her.
The girl recoiled.
Did her appearance frighten her?
“A-Are you okay? I didn’t mean to startle you.” Kiana sounded, trying to calm the girl.
“I’m S-“ Kiana had to catch herself. Did she almost introduce herself with THAT name? She excused herself with a cough.
“I’m Celine, a patient like you. What’s your name?”
The girl was silent, she seemed oddly apprehensive. Somehow, she felt familiar to Kiana, although the Herrscher couldn’t put her finger on it.
“ …Renna.” The girl spoke, her cadence had an uncertainty to it.
Was she in a similar situation? Kiana shooed the thought away, that would be too much of a coincidence.
Though, she thought, this Renna would probably get along with Theresa. Kiana didn’t know many people eager to devour bitter melon raw.
“I see you’ve made a friend.”
Kiana and ‘Renna’s eyes turned to see the green-haired doctor standing by the counter. A cup of Milk Bubble Tea in her hand. She looked at the two with a smile of amusement.
“ …How long have you been standing there?”
“The last 5 minutes.” Penrose huffed. “Though you should’ve probably asked for permission before rummaging through someone’s fridge.”
“It wasn’t me-!” Kiana whined.
Penrose sipped loudly from her beverage.
Rude.
“At least I found you two, instead of my assistant. She’s a lot less forgiving than I am.”
The snake-eyed woman turned around and left.
An uncomfortable amount of time had passed. Kiana had dragged Renna over to a couch to talk, though she didn’t know where to start.
She was normally sociable, so why did it feel so difficult now? Maybe it was the bizarre situation she’s found herself in, or the fact that everyone here was a total stranger.
So, Kiana started with the first question on her mind.
“Renna… Do I look like someone you knew?”
The girl nodded.
That… didn’t exactly feel great?
What Renna said next didn’t help in the slightest.
“ …You remind me of someone from a long time ago, someone I wish could’ve helped.”
Oh.
Oh that wasn’t good at all.
“She had been hurt by some bad people, and she took her anger out on the world. I… I was too late to help her. She was a child, she never deserved such cruelty…”
(Why does this feel so familiar?)
“Her eyes… looked just like yours.”
If Kiana had been holding anything, she would’ve certainly dropped it.
“What—” An alarmed Herrscher almost screamed her words. “W-What do you mean they looked like mine?”
Renna didn’t respond.
“…”
“…”
“A-Anyways.” Kiana dreaded what the answer could’ve been and tried to change the subject.
“Do you remember how you got here?”
“Not really. My head hurts like hell, and I don’t remember the past few hours, or days…”
“You too, huh? Friends are probably looking for me. Though… I’m not sure they’d recognise me.”
Renna shot her a puzzled look.
“I-I mean, I’m just saying nonsense now. I must be pretty tired right now haha…”
“It’s only midday, youngsters like you have lots of energy-"
“Who’re you calling young.” The Herrscher pouted. “We’re the same age, aren’t we?”
Renna huffed. She seemed a lot more open now.
The girl moved to say something but paused to consider her words.
“You’re right, we are.”