***
"Is that a fucking slingshot?!" Thor's shout made Alter cackle in glee. She pulled the sling back utilising its multishot ability before releasing.
–FWOOSH– –FWOOSH– –FWOOSH–
They tore through the air, faster than most bullets. Mini bolts sparked turning into comet trails.
He analysed the oncoming projectile, opting to back hand each one,
–CRACK– –CRACK– –CRACK–
He reached over his shoulder, drew the soulium pole, and gave it a few effortless spins. With a surge of energy, the top snapped into a jagged, gleaming scythe
A weapon he'd been learning lately. Using a mix of Honkai, runes and lightning. The atmosphere shifted, tiles cracked floating around him. Glowing eyes, his pupils now red in both.
She slumped slightly, pouting. All she'd wanted was to show off the new form they'd unlocked together…
***ALERT, ALERT, HONKAI ENERGY CRITICAL***
***HERRSCHER IMMINENT***
***PROTOCOL A IS IN EFFECT***
Thor's power vanished, Alter's body froze, face pale.
"Already?? It took 10 years for the 3rd.
It's only been 5 months?!?" The disbelief in Thor's voice, the seriousness of his gaze, this was a major problem.
He moved, grabbed Alter and appeared in the control room. Mei and Elysia are already there.
"Mei! What happened?" Thor set Alter down, eyes locked on the main screen.
"I don't know! Everything was fine and then boom it happened." Mei was in panic mode, checking whatever she could trying to pinpoint the location of the eruption.
–Shhhh–
A bunch of people flooded in through the door. People who were originally sleeping awoke. They rushed to their stations relieving the two watchmen.
"Alpha! Location." Thor shouted. Alpha team. Responsible for locating the origins of outbreaks and eruptions.
They scrambled as fast as they could. A man stood up abruptly. "Overseer! Last known location of the spike is over the coasts of Australia."
The image on the big screen changed showing satellite imagery of the Oceanic continent.
Elysia didn't believe what she was seeing. "Where's the continent?!"
Understandable. What everyone was looking at was a storm, a storm spanning an entire continent.
Many stopped what they were doing and were too shocked to do anything.
Thor furrowed his brow, thoughts running millions a second. An idea came to mind, he turned to face the room. Fear, unease, despair. Everyone with no exception felt that.
Glancing up at the door, the rest of the team arrived. Most stopped in their tracks at the screen.
"I'll go." Cutting through the tension Thor appeared back on deck next to Mei.
"Himeko Utilise all our forces create a perimeter around the surrounding islands. Don't let this spread, any further. Retreat back if the storm expands" Himeko nodded leaving with Hua.
"Su contact the 3rd and 2nd institutes, tell them to co-ordinate their forces with Himeko and Hua. If needed, contact the 3rd director directly, that woman seems smart enough to help. Then report to Hime. She'll take you to shelters for the injured." Taking a second to process, he also nodded and went to do his role.
"Kevin. Take Mei's suit." He blinked.
"Wait, isn't that for—"
"It's soulium now. Mold it to fit. You'll assist with search and rescue — provide escort and cover fire."
He nodded, caught up fast, and moved.
"Mei, you got logistics from here. Mobius and Klein will assist you here." Glancing back, Mobius put her stack of papers down taking one of the 2 remaining consoles, Klein doing the same.
"Eden, Elysia Aurora." The trio listened intently.
He glimpsed their expressions. 'Determined'. "You three with me. I'll handle the Herrscher, Eden and Elysia take the templar class and below, Aurora you'll do the same, unless an emperor-class appears."
From there the entirety of FireMoth, mobilised. The councillors couldn't do anything, some even wanted to profit from the destruction caused by the Herrscher.
None of them knew it yet. But this day would split history in two.
***
"That's… not good is it?" Thor was hovering just below the clouds outside of the storm wall.
The reason for his words. He could see the Herrscher. Why…
"A flying ant?" Her face contorting into one of annoyance.
Because she was right in front of him.
'First of all, rude.'
"You wouldn't happen to, I don't know. Talk it out?" Maybe they could be reasoned with. He'd rather not destroy a continent fighting a Herrscher he knows nothing of.
"Talk it out?" She paused. Her frown deepened before her face shifted once more.
A grin, a twitching one. 'She'll attack in 3…'
"Talk with an ant?"
'2…'
"Ants are to be crushed"
'1…'
She flicked her hand, "Die."
A cut appeared across his chest, it healed instantly, but it cut.
'Did she just try to "Cleave" me?' He felt the atoms around him move into something like a blade before they hit him. He'd been catching up on a lot of anime, courtesy of Vill and Kevin.
Seeing the ant not fall, shocked the Herrscher.
'Not a full cleave recreation, but dangerous on its own.' He vanished, reappearing behind her, hand thrust forward aiming for the heart.
Just before piercing her back his fist stopped.
'Huh?' He felt resistance, more of a squishy barrier.
'Did she surround herself with wind? Water maybe.' The atoms around her were closer together than air would be, but not solid. He rushed back avoiding the air slash from above.
"A fast, flying ant." Her head snapped back doing a full 180.
'Creepy.'
The storm still ongoing grew in power, winds becoming stronger, even thunder and lightning was occurring within.
'Slicing it is.' He drew the soulium pole, changing to the scythe form.
Imbuing Honkai, and a couple pierce and amplify runes, he returns with his own slash.
The Herrscher didn't move. Too confident.
A streak of red tore through the storm, visible even from nearby islands.
'She just took that? I still feel their presence there. Did they try to tank it?'
The light cleared showing the now wounded Herrscher.
'She did. Fucking idiot. Works for me though.' A cackle of blue and he's gone, a trail of blue left behind.
"Second Form: Omni–Slash."
He appeared, scythe ready — slashed — vanished. Then again. And again.. After hundreds of slashes, he landed back where he started, scythe over his shoulder, focused on the herrscher.
Time caught up as all the slashes headed for the herrscher, who's prior wounds were healing in real time at once.
It seemed the herrscher hadn't even clocked the attacks.
But then — The wind changed.
Not the storm. Her. She twisted her fingers ever so slightly, and the air coiled.
A sharp crack echoed as she vanished. One second she was standing exposed — Next, she was behind him.
–FWOOM–
A burst of compressed wind drove her forward, scythe barely missing her neck as she slipped past it like smoke.
Thor spun on instinct — too late.
A blade of slicing wind skimmed his back, drawing sparks off his suit.
He skidded back mid-air, readjusting his form. 'Alright... she's not just a tank.'
She hovered now, wind spiralling tight around her like a cyclone in reverse. Hair lifting, eyes glowing.
"You're fast for an ant," she said, tilting her head. "Let's see how fast you are... when the wind's mine."
'She's faster than me.
Other than her initial move, there was nothing, no resistance, no friction…' It dawned on him.
'Shit. Her ability isn't wind or weather manipulation." That changed things.
She charged him for a clash. He returned in kind.
***
***
***
What IF – Entry #1: Thor wakes up in Star Rail
Disclaimer: This is fully NON-Canon, Just enjoy it for what it is.
…
"Ugh, my head…Huh?" Thor's eyes fluttered open. Where am I? Instinctively, he activated his Lightning Authority massively increasing his perception of time.
'What the hell is going on here?' You might be asking, "What does he mean?"
Well let me tell you–
'–Why is some pink-haired chick trying to kiss me?'
Yep that's right some random girl with pink hair of all things. 'Please don't be a Karen.' He silently prayed.
And this girl was trying to kiss him, for what reason.
He took a deeper look at her and realised she was quite the beauty.
'I mean should I reject a beauty kissing me… logically no…However…she has pink hair. What if she's a yandere?'
Now he didn't mind the idea of that, he basically had two back on his Earth, but here, he doesn't know this chick.
'Ah fuck it, I should stop thinking, just do what Adam does, don't think and hope it works out.'
Deactivating his lightning authority, time resumed as normal, the girl's lips meeting his.
'Soft.' He thought.
For some reason, completely out of his control his arms reached out wrapping around the girl, pulling her down onto his lap.
"Eep!"
She squealed but didn't stop, instead she closed her eyes and leaned into it.
"Uhm, March?" A voice interrupted their session.
The now named March pulled back, red and embarrassed. She scrambled to get up, grabbing her bow in the process.
"Soooo what was that for?" Thor asked.
March flinched, but the voice cut in–
"She was meant to do CPR, but it seems she got a little too into it," March felt scrutinised under their gaze.
"Cool, now te–" The place shook, followed by an explosion.
–BOOM–
While the 2 regained their footing Thor asked, "Want to tell me what that was."
March and the man smiled wryly.
***
A/N: I'll do more of these little What IF's every now and again, I might continue this Star Rail one from a different point, say after the space station, and do a little there or whatever.
Ciao