The end is often sudden and abrupt.
What seems permanent and unchanging can suddenly collapse. That's what happened in front of Mei. Kevin was missing, so she decided to leave Celestia Academy and follow her instincts.
On the streets, car horns and angry voices filled the air. The sky started turning gray, and dark clouds spread from the city center, threatening to cover everything.
"Why can't you drive faster?!"
People were getting angrier and more scared. They felt a deep, unexplained fear, and their frustration showed in their anger.
Mei looked at the transportation options.
"Electric things might not work, so there's no point in trying those..."
She thought hard but couldn't come up with a good plan. Most modern tools rely on electricity—trams, phones, computers, batteries. Without power, it's like going back to the Stone Age. Even a bicycle might be dangerous with metal parts.
The best option now was to walk, though it felt absurd. Mei wasn't in great shape, but she had no other choice. Without her phone's navigation, she headed toward the edge of the city.
As she crossed two streets, Mei heard shouts from behind. She looked back and saw a huge purple glow spreading from the city center.
"It's getting closer..."
Mei checked her hands and pulse. Her skin and nerves seemed normal, but her heart was racing.
Behind her, things were falling apart. Traffic lights went out, subways ran out of control, and workers got injured. The purple glow caused many people to die, mainly from a stopped heart.
But dying wasn't just the end of the chaos, as the dead started standing up and moving towards others.
Mei had already abandoned any conductive items she had, and she also put on running shoes and started sprinting through the streets.
The screens on buildings went dark, leaving only gray screens. It felt like everything had paused, and all technology based on electricity was breaking down.
The street noises were much quieter now, making Mei feel anxious.
"What's going on?"
Exhausted and nervous, Mei ducked into an alley to rest.
When she looked up, her eyes widened in shock.
In the dark alley, some homeless people stood still, their bodies pale and moving like they were controlled by something unseen.
"Zombies?"
Kevin used to make her watch scary movies, but seeing real monsters left her frozen with fear. She wanted to move but couldn't.
In the corner of her eye, Mei saw something big and white moving calmly down the street, crushing cars along the way.
As the zombies in the alley moved toward her, Mei dropped down, hoping to avoid the monsters above. The impact from sitting made it hard to get up. She knew she might not escape the next attack.
The white beast on the street heard the commotion and headed her way, moving so fast that Mei knew she couldn't outrun it.
At the end of her rope, Mei closed her eyes, thinking of Kevin and the boyfriend she had just met.
Suddenly, she heard something leaping from the sky and a clear call.
"Mei!"
When Mei opened her eyes, she saw a boy with white hair and piercing blue eyes leap from the top of a building—a baseball bat gripped tightly in his hands.
He landed hard, the ground cracking beneath him, and swung with brutal precision.
The bat struck the zombie behind her, its skull shattering on impact.
Without hesitation, Kevin grabbed Mei by the arm, pulled her close, and sprinted away.
Behind them, a massive white beast roared, shaking the ruined academy. Kevin didn't look back. He knew he couldn't take it head-on—not yet. His only mission was to get Mei to safety.
Their eyes met for a brief moment amid the chaos. No words were needed. He'd found her—just as he promised.
Kevin vaulted over collapsed walls and rooftops, carving a path through the undead as they escaped the academy grounds.
As they disappeared into the burning skyline, a single thought cut through the noise in his mind:
He hoped his friends in the other cities were still alive… and that they weren't facing the same nightmare.
"Orion..."
Inside Orion's mindscape, things were heating up with Herrscher Orion filling the skies with various explosives.
No matter how fast Original Orion swung his sword, it couldn't cut through all the attacks.
Orion put away the Judgment of Shamash and thrust his hand forward. Suddenly, a beautiful flower appeared in the air.
"Rho Aias!"
Rho Aias, also known as the Seven Rings that Cover the Burning Heavens, is a legendary shield from Greek mythology used by the hero Aias during the Trojan War. It is famous for its incredible defensive power, capable of stopping even the mightiest of weapons. The question is, which would win, modern weaponry or this shield?
One layer, two layers, three layers!
The intense attacks from Herrscher Orion were quickly breaking through the shield, strong as a city wall. It might last for a while, but with endless attacks, what can you do?
Original Orion had streaks of blood on his arms and was pushed back by the force. Only a few layers remained, and once it was gone, he would be exposed to the artillery fire.
Herrscher Orion looked down with a hint of disappointment.
"Is that all…"
The last layer of amethyst petals shattered with a small sound. But then, a bright light flew out from the light!
Red lightning jumped in the air, forming diamond shapes, and cut through the blocking force.
"Ancient Dragons' Lightning Strike!"
The lightning quickly broke through the steel curtain, leaving a trail of explosions.
Although the lightning was very fast, behind Herrscher Orion, a giant fist blocked the attack.
Original Orion's figure suddenly disappeared. After his attack, thick smoke filled the battlefield, making it hard to find him.
But the position of Herrscher Orion in the air was easier to spot, helping him prepare a counterattack.
Herrscher Orion noted, "He seems to be improving?"
He noticed that the moments just now were a new usage of Remembrance he hadn't seen before.
It seems that the original Orion understood a new part of the Remembrance. As his constructs were fueled with not just regular memories but memories with emotion, which added a certain power and weight to them.
Herrscher Orion knew his advantage was powerful firepower and endless Honkai energy. As long as he kept using it, the original wouldn't stand a chance.
"There's nothing that power can't solve. If there is, you're not using enough!"
The heavy bombardment damaged everything around him. Herrscher Orion knew the other wouldn't just wait to die and that an attack would come.
He closed his eyes, feeling every move in the air with all his strength. Even the smallest change was under his control.
But unexpectedly, he felt a sword piercing his body from behind. A sword had gone through his chest.
In the air, Original Orion slowly appeared. A black helmet on his white hair seemed to absorb all the light.
"Hades' Cap of Invisibility"
Blood flowed from Herrscher Orion's mouth, but he calmly asked, "What enhances your memories?"
Original Orion didn't answer. He knew what the "other him" meant.
"Do you think this is over?"
A smile appeared on Herrscher Orion's face, and his purple eyes glinted.
The wounds from the sword healed quickly. The muscles in his body held the sword tightly, making Original Orion unable to pull out the sword.
"I know you well, and I know you can do this."
"And my 'weakness' right now is just a trap to lure you into my 'range'!"
Original Orion's expression froze as he felt the air around him starting to condense.
"Witness the power of void!"
The air around him suddenly felt heavy, and even moving his fingers was hard.
The power of the void from Herrscher Orion is more skilled and powerful than the previous Herrscher of the Void.
"Surprises are nice, but they're just surprises."
Herrscher Orion crossed his arms over his chest. The wound from the Judgment of Shamash was healing quickly, like it was never there.
"Compared to Herrschers like the Herrscher of the Sky, who was not well trained, my abilities are much more advanced."
"Void is a basic part of the world, and the power behind it is immense. Even the Herrscher of Void could only use a fraction of its power."
Herrscher Orion's eyes grew cold, and a hole in the void appeared behind him. The other side was filled with nothing but darkness.
"Original, you've made good progress, but it's still not enough to beat me."
Herrscher Orion looked up at the sky, his purple eyes seeming to see far beyond this world.
"We might have only been to two worlds, but we are drastically outmatched, at least for now, so don't…"
"Don't give 'hope' to people you can't protect."
Original Orion used all his strength to resist the pressure of space, turning his mental energy into colorful flames around him.
The mental power burned fiercely, and Original Orion was wrapped in bright-colored flames. His colorful energy seemed to break free from the space blockade.
Powerful rays of light shot out from the space door behind Herrscher Orion.
Original Orion's body was almost at its limit as he moved through the huge light beams and punched towards Herrscher Orion.
"I've already said that such an attack won't work on me...?"
In the colorful energy Original Orion used, a red "feeling" surrounded his punch, creating a threat that Herrscher Orion didn't expect.
Herrscher Orion tried to move the attack to imaginary space, but Original Orion's "red energy" ignored the space and went straight to him.
"Bang!"
The attack missed Herrscher Orion's face, but a bloodstain appeared there.
Usually, such a wound would heal quickly, but the red energy left a mark even when Herrscher Orion moved forward.
"This is..."
Herrscher Orion was surprised. Even though he was low on energy, Original Orion's attack was stronger than expected.
"Now this is getting interesting."
Herrscher Orion smiled, wiped the blood from his face, and laughed wildly.
Original Orion, wrapped in red flames, charged like a comet.
"Fight, fight, fight, fight!"
Original Orion and Herrscher Orion fought fiercely, using their most basic instincts.
Punch after punch, they put all their emotions and fighting spirit into their attacks.
"Wow, the essence of this colorful power is 'emotion,' right?"
Herrscher Orion grinned. During the intense battle with Original Orion, he realized the source of this power.
Memory is made up of emotions.
Emotion adds the brightest color to memory, and it has immense power, often bypassing things like time and space if strong enough.
If space is blocking Original Orion's power, then break through it!
The emotion represented by the red power in Orion is "anger."
His punch hit Herrscher Orion and burned through space.
Each punch hit Herrscher Orion, igniting and burning him!
"Can 'emotion' and 'memory' really ignite molecules?"
"Damn, it's a setting even science fiction writers wouldn't use."
Herrscher Orion laughed wildly, even though each punch from Original Orion left scars on his body.
Original Orion's damage was significant, but Herrscher Orion was confident he would win using his power.
The powerful attacks from Herrscher Orion almost completely shattered Original Orion.
But no matter how much damage he took, the "red light" and the power of anger filled him.
There were no battle cries, only pure emotion and drive in every punch.
Even if his body broke, Orion kept attacking with whatever he could, using "memory" and "emotion" to keep fighting.
"Okay, okay! Only with this kind of power can you have a chance of being in control!"
Herrscher Orion kept smiling, knowing that human emotions aren't endless. No matter how strong the anger is, it will fade over time.
And he had two Herrscher Cores, giving him almost endless energy. What could Original Orion do against him?
Another round of intense fighting: the two Orions clashed, fighting endlessly.
Outside, the world was also about to face...