Honkai Impact: Scion Of A Thorn

Chapter 5 Farewell

The sun had risen above the clouds and set itself below the horizon once again.

Within the previous night Otto had imparted his words of motivation as well as his plans for the future to Kallen to which she spoke not a single utterance. Morning to night her body was still but inwardly she was in turmoil.

Otto began his attempts to converse so kindly that she had almost felt her heart repair itself in full, as if every little trouble over their months together was worth that moment. She clung onto his words but his reason melted away with every step of his plans that he let leave his lips.

He had promised her honesty but even the truth was undeniably cruel. His truths always hurt her more than anything else no matter how much he tried to change and that was the only reasonable truth that she could chose to accept. Deep down she knew that whatever he had and hadn't revealed about his plans were still thought out with utmost brilliancy and care.

"I'll continue my experiments only for the sake of the people, nothing else." That was what he promised her, that was his plan.

His plans were always meticulous, they would always succeeded even if the chance of them working seemed to be an impossibility far beyond their reach. She had as much faith in him as she had fear that he would go against what he had promised her, that he would hurt the innocent again. He must have thought she was a fool if he believed she would trust him fully. She wouldn't wait out the months that it took for him to expose his lies, she would expose them herself.

Her movements were sluggish. Days of being completely immobile had just barely taken it's toll on her. She felt her joints ache as she stretched and straightened out her uniform. She would confront Otto somehow but at the forefront of her mind was the yearning for guidance, she would deal with that first.

Even with her little strength the bars of ice were crushed in two before they could melt in her hands. She made careful steps to avoid the puddles that remaining pieces of ice had left over. Shards crushed under her feet and droplets fell from the ceiling signalling the end of the frozen wastelands.

Kallen didn't waste a single second. It would be a trek longer than she might be able to handle but she was willing to make it, she had to make it. Her father, he was her saving grace. In her moment of need it was his voice that guided her heart back to her oath, her promises, her duty. Surely he would guide her again, like always.

Her determination barely kept itself intact as she marched her way through the streets. Pebbles and dirt sunk under the weight of her every step. Each footprint left the tiniest bits of her resolve in it's wake as she got closer.

She passed by the modest shops and homes of the people she vowed to save. They would have undoubtedly suffered in the months that Schicksal was left unopposed, maybe if she didn't leave then they would have suffered far less. Few lights lit up the windows far above the streets but no signs of life came from inside. She scanned over every alleyway she went past but not a single soul presented itself. There was no warmth in the streets and no light to guide lost souls back to their home. This was what had become of her home that was once so boisterous even in the latest hours of the night. The sound of her slowing steps did little to ward away the unusual silence of the city.

The gate of the cathedral cemetery hung open beckoning in the families of heroes bygone. This was where the grass was greenest, where the see of trees seemed to stretch into a world of it's own. She passed by many headstones and graves of previous heroes but only one would ever be her hero.

She didn't need to lower her head to admire the memorial plaque at her feet. A small bouquet of white flowers covered the inscription of her father's name, petals looking much livelier than she had felt in the recent weeks. A hand rose to her chest to soothe her aching heart.