-"That's the gist of it."-Mei finished presenting her findings, looking around at everyone present.-" To sum it up, we are currently experiencing a Honkai Eruption unlike any other, one that covertly created a Herrscher who lurks in the consciousness of unsuspecting people."
-"How do we kill it?"-Kevin asked the core question.
-"We need to enter the battlefield it's in, the mentalscape it's existing in."
-"Are we able to trace it?"-I asked.
-"Not yet. We identified the method it uses to trap people, but it changes too fast for us to capture it."
-"So our options are to either shut the interned to prevent its proliferation or to create a trap for it."-Vill-V pointed out possible options.
-"Is there any ability that can help us with it?"-I looked at Mobius.
-"I have one in mind, but its genome is unused yet."
-"Who is the match for it?"
-"That young MD, Su."
-"I'll inform him and ask his opinion."-Mei volunteered.
-"Then next, how do we enter its world?"-Mobius asked about the next step.
-"Herrscher must possess enough Honkai Energy to exist. As of now, we only confirmed that it uses those put into a coma as its Honkai reserves, so we could start from there."-I suggested.-"If we trace the paths through which the Honkai Energy flows, we should be able to find the Core; then we only need to create Stigmata space to connect with it, creating a battlefield that way."
-"It's feasible, but we still have to have a way to enter there."-Mobius reminded me.
-"We already utilise quantum channels to transmit equipment, so it should be possible to temporarly quantomize a person to send him into the Stigmata space."-I turned to Vill-V and Mei, who were experts in this field.
-"It can be done, but the quantum state is always unstable. To prevent any accidents, we'll need to create some way to stabilize it."-Mei explained briefly.
-"Misteln. Reference her state in your attempts. As she is now, she can freely traverse her own stigmata space."
-"That will help; give us a day or two."-Vill-V patted her chest.
-"Then the last matter…"-Mei looked at Mobius.-"How is…"
-"Bianca? Not good."-Mobius appeared unconcerned, but I could feel the rage hidden underneath.-"Inhibitors are no longer working; she has two months at most."
-"What about the operation?"
-"I give her 20%, not much more."
-"Do what you can. Griseo…"
-"Excuse me!"-A sudden entrance of a guard interrupted Mei.-"Little Griseo had just collapsed!"
Not even a minute later, we gathered around Griseo's bed, watching as Su and Mobius confirmed her current state.
-"Most likely she was captured by the Herrscher."-Mobius gave her opinion.
-"She is safe, and her condition is stable, but the Honkai concentration in her body is rising slowly. With her Resistance, she should be safe, but I don't know how long."-Su added to reassure us.
-"Then we can't waste time."-Vill-V left for her workshop.
-"Su…"-Mei looked at the young doctor.
-"I agree."-He nodded without needing an explanation.-"I hope to become MANTIS as soon as it's possible."
-"Then come with me."-Mobius also left the room, leading him to her lab.
-"Misteln, can you come with me?"-Mei looked at the girl who was crying while holding Griseo's hand.
-"Can I help to save Griseo?"-She looked up.
-"Yes, we need your help."
-"Mhmm. I do what I can."-She nodded and tried to cheer herself up.
Soon, only Kevin and I remained in the room.
-"How much do we need to lose..?"-Kevin asked while looking at the unconscious Griseo.
-"I'm genuinely afraid to know anser for that question."-I sighed, hearing him.-"But it's not time to surrender."
-"I never will. I shall see the end of Honkai."-Kevin made a solemn vow.
-"Then let us see that day together."-I fully agreed with him.
-"Good."-He nodded and walked out of the room.
After taking one last look at Griseo, I also left the room.
I returned to my lab and sat by the table, unable to focus on anything for a good hour or so. I was just thoughtlessly skimming through all the documents on my desk when something caught my eye. Draft for a rather audacious project: SWARA.
Subliminal Weaponization & Artificing of Reflex Arcs. In more human terms, it's a use of hypnosis to 'program' a human body to autonomously control Honkai Energy as if it were breathing. Imagine making your body remember a martial art without training; this was what I wanted to achieve, but on an even deeper level than muscle memory. It's quite literally skipping the steps of learning and adapting directly into a level of mastery of Honkai control.
The idea was to find a more natural way for a mortal body to adapt to Honkai Energy while also augmenting the strength of MANTIS. For normal humans, learning precise Honkai control could effectively increase their Honkai Resistance to a higher rank, meaning even those susceptible would be considered to possess Normal Resistance. This alone could save billions of lives in the long run, changing the previously 95% of doomed to only a little over 40%.
Aside from that, this would be an additional weapon in the hands of MANTIS, helping them adapt to their Honkai genomes, lowering the required adaptability while increasing their strength, and even possibly allowing one to enter a theoretical state of Artificial Collapse. This could even double the power of MANTIS, a real trump card against Herrschers.
Both of those reasons are enough for me to focus on this research, but there was one issue standing in the way. The draft assumes the use of Aponia's special power after it's enchanted by the MANTIS operation, so first I had to get her to agree to undergo it and cooperate, and only then could we start. With nothing else to do, I decided to go and ask her directly; who knows, maybe I will be able to convince her.
Entering the Deepest Place, or P-21 as it was officially classified, wasn't an easy task. Even for me, it required two layers of verification and permissions, requiring three signatures from the high command and a biometric confirmation of identity. Luckily, I'm a member of the high command, so I quickly got Mei's and Vill-V's signatures and had Hua fly me there.
On the island, I passed all required checks and entered the prison that, in Vill-V's words, could hold even a Herrscher. Inside, I headed directly to where Aponia was imprisoned. After walking for about ten minutes, I found myself in front of a metal room with a simple bed, toilet, and sink, separated from me by specially reinforced glass.
Aponia sat on the bed, her expression serene, without any worry or boredom. She appeared as if it wasn't a cell at all, but rather some seaside resort where she could rest. Noticing my approach, she looked at me and smiled.
-"Eno, good to see you back in health."
-"I apologise for making you worry, Miss Aponia."
-"Just call me Aponia, please. How can I help you?"
Using the small opening normally used to deliver food, I handed her my revised draft, describing Project SWARA in a way a layman could understand it. She took it and read it carefully, her eyebrows slightly furrowing from time to time.
-"It's a fascinating proposal, and I'd love to be a part of it, but I'm afraid it might fail."-She spoke up after finishing all the pages.
-"May I know the reason?"-I was surprised by such an assessment, as I couldn't see any fault in my proposal.
-"It's due to how hypnosis on such a deep level works, especially if it was induced using my power. I call my ability 'Discipline'; it's nothing more than a power to make a suggestion that, if one doesn't oppose it, will be followed."
-"So, if you try to make someone do something that he disagrees with, they won't follow your words."
-"Exactly. I can convince someone to calm down as it's something everyone wants, but if I had told you to kill me, you'd not follow that order. That's why I call it Discipline; it never forces an order from outside, it just makes your own will absolute."
-"Then why wouldn't this work?"
-"Because of a need for an anchor, or a core of the precept. For such a deep and complicated precept as you wish to create, its core must be enormously powerful; calling it obsession wouldn't be an understatement. In your proposal, even a simple pathway for Honkai Energy requires over a hundred minute adjustments, each its own command. For a warrior with enormous hatred for honkai, it might be feasible, but for an average human…"-She shook her head.
-"So we'll need to find a way that uses fewer commands. But allow me to ask about the reverse of this principle: if one's obsession is strong enough, can they create a precept counting even more commands?"
-"Yes, but for such strong obsession to exist… It would be as if their whole soul only existed for that sole reason."
-"Thank you. I still plan to implement this plan, so I'll make a petition to Mei for your conditional release."
-"I'll do what's in my power to assist you, My Lord."
-"My Lord? Never mind."-I was surprised by how she referred to me, but decided not to dwell on it for now.-"It probably won't happen in a week or two, but be mentally prepared."
-"I will wait."
-"See you then, then."
After bidding my farewell, Hua and I returned to my lab; our task now was to create a Honkai Energy Pathway that was as simple as it could be. But on the side, I also worked on the opposite: a pathway complicated beyond human comprehension. It was a personalised pathway, similar to how Hua used one that she created by referencing her martial arts and body.
As for the core of it, I had the perfect thing already in my possession; I just needed to connect it here, as the power of my main body still couldn't be used here. Luckily for me, my understanding of Stigmata space was much higher than when I created the Stigmata, so I could attempt to use it as a bridge between me here and me outside of this 'dream'.
As for what will happen if I achieve this, I can't be sure; but one thing was certain: this 'dream' existed for a reason. While I already considered this place to be as real as the Terra or the Lands Between, I never stopped trying to find a real purpose for why I appeared here. And after all those years of research, I finally found some clues.
First, there was the Imaginary Energy; this energy was at least on the same rank as Divine Energy or the Power of Faith. If I could use it instead of Faith, I could turn from God of Faith into a True God. This way, my authority wouldn't be subjective but objective, increasing its purity.
The Next thing was the MANTIS, or rather, adapting to foreign genes. I appeared here after entering the Sarcophagus that could modify what I was, so it's easy to assume that this is also an important aspect of my presence here. And while the lack of a matching genome complicates that, I still think that given some time, I'll find a matching Honkai power.
Lastly, my blood. It's obviously special, and its origin is also a mystery, so among all the clues, it's the most solid trace. Even now, I can barely tap into its capabilities, let alone claim to understand it. One thing is for sure: as it could possess such a powerful restrictive, if not outright purifying, power over Honkai, its essence wouldn't be lower than that of Honkai or Imaginaty Energy.
But to uncover that, I had to take everything step by step, and now, SWARA offered the greatest possibility of taking me further. So I focused on my research wholeheartedly.
A few days later, I acted as an assistant during the operation to trap and defeat the 8th Eruption, helping Mei and Vill-V in stabilising the Stigmata space and the quantumisation of those fighting there. Once again, I could only watch how others fought, unable to participate due to a lack of strength, further increasing my frustration.
Through the screens, we watched how the operation proceeded. Under Su's watch, the Herrscher entered the trap and was quickly confined to the Stigmata space; then the battle began. The Herrscher appeared to be rather weak; someone even commented that it was the weakest Herrscher so far. I also agreed with this sentiment, but in the back of my mind, I felt that there must be more to it. But it appeared that it was indeed correct, as Kevin led all the MANTIS to victory without much of an issue; yet, at the very last moment, the Herrscher appeared to smile, causing me to feel uneasy once again.
Kevin didn't hesitate and ended it, but I couldn't shake that feeling off, so I excused myself from the room and quickly moved through the base, looking for any problem. I looked around in all the places that came to my mind: all the labs, meeting rooms, even the barracks. Everywhere I looked, there was nothing strange, only the celebration of victory over another Herrscher. As I was about to convince myself that it must have been nothing, I heard a scream from the infirmary.
Running inside, I saw Bianca, Griseo's mother, stabbing her unconscious daughter. I jumped forward, disarming her while calling for help. When I knocked the weapon from her hand, she instantly collapsed; there was no breath in her. She had been dead for some time, her body most likely manipulated by the 8th Herrscher.
Seconds later, a doctor who heard my call rushed inside, instantly attending to Griseo with me. Looking at the wound, I quickly confirmed that it was caused by a material possessing a high concentration of Honkai, causing high contamination in Griseo's body. As soon as we stopped the bleeding, I was about to sigh with relief, but I noticed the markings of Honkai infection, which, judging by the speed at which those appeared, meant that Griseo was still in critical condition.
Sending the other doctor to find Mobius, I started to prep Griseo for MANTIS surgery, as this was our only chance. A minute later, Mobius ran to my side with a facial expression depicting fury and shock; without wasting time to speak, we started operating.
With all the damage done, the surgery needed to proceed much more carefully, so we took all the precautions twice as seriously. A blessing in disguise was that we had already prepared a genome for Griseo some time ago, and it had high compatibility with her.
This increased the chance of the successful surgery, but even with all that, both of us were aware that the chances for Griseo's survival were slim. But we worked as hard as we could; together we would make sure that even fate wouldn't be able to take her away.