Honkai: Fire Moth Herrschers

As the numbers on the Honkai energy detector settled at 700, Immer let out a long sigh of relief. His legs felt weak, trembling uncontrollably. He casually leaned against the rail of the nearby railgun to maintain a semblance of composure.

But he kept glancing at the ground, as if expecting something to burst forth at any moment.

He suddenly understood. Courage, ruthlessness, training – all were meaningless in the face of overwhelming power.

"No… that's not my mission…" He pounded his chest, finding a convenient excuse to mask his lingering tremors.

Sakura happened to glance at him. "Is your chest hurting?"

Immer was embarrassed. The girl before him was younger than he was, but her gaze was calm and unwavering, carrying a chilling indifference and a hint of killing intent. It made him feel inadequate.

Especially since he vaguely sensed a similar aura emanating from both Sakura and Michael…

They were all… But when truly facing the Honkai, why was the difference so stark?

"N-no… it's nothing…" His voice trembled again.

Sakura ignored him. "Captain, I request permission to enter the underground Honkai reactor zone for reconnaissance."

"Crazy! She's absolutely crazy!" Immer screamed internally. "Even if the hundreds of meters of earth weren't there, the sheer magnitude of the Honkai energy reaction would be enough to turn most people here into Deadmen!"

And it was true – they had just been organizing the evacuation of Pohnpei Island. Two people, clutching their chests, had suddenly transformed into Deadmen right before boarding. If Sakura's blade hadn't been fast enough… He glanced at the unsheathed katana in her hand, blood still dripping from it.

Sakura, seeming to sense his gaze, flicked her wrist, the blade instantly clean.

Immer stared at the bloodstains on his boots, feeling nauseous.

The other end of the comms seemed to be having a disagreement. Almost a minute had passed since Sakura's request, but there was still no response.

Sakura considered herself patient, but the current situation could worsen at any moment. She couldn't wait indefinitely.

"Captain, I've made my decision. Have Immer and the others evacuate. I'll enter underground alone. Over."

Immer breathed a sigh of relief.

"Wait!" Michael's voice came through the comms. "Sakura, give me half a minute!"

"?"

Michael pulled Elysia aside, ignoring the stares of the others in the cabin, and whispered four words in her ear.

Then he glanced at Himeko, who nodded. He suddenly opened the cabin door and jumped out.

Mei gasped. The sudden decompression and rush of cold air as the door opened startled everyone. Thankfully, they were all strapped in. Kevin scrambled to the open door before Elysia, looking down as he closed it, but there was no sign of Michael on the churning sea below.

A bolt of lightning flashed past the helicopter, making Kevin break out in a cold sweat. He quickly slammed the door shut.

Raindrops began to patter against the windows.

"Um… may I ask what's happening? And… what organization are you with?"

Half a minute was enough time for someone with Immer's training to board the helicopter and evacuate. Of course, they had to abandon all their equipment, but that was a small price to pay. For Fire Moth, experienced warriors were far more valuable than equipment.

After the helicopter carrying the regular soldiers flew away from Pohnpei Island, Sakura turned her head slightly. Michael was standing beside her.

"How did you do that?"

Michael remained silent, staring intently at the 680mm railgun, even reaching out to touch it.

"Let's go. I imagine you've already found the entrance to the underground Honkai reactor complex, haven't you, Sakura?"

"Wait, we can't go any further!" Himeko slapped the steel plate behind the cockpit. This crude form of communication was effective. A few seconds later, the helicopter slowed, hovering in mid-air.

The Honkai energy on Pohnpei Island was now a visible purple. Himeko and Elysia could handle venturing further, but the others…

"Increase altitude. Maintain at least fifteen hundred meters above sea level."

"Okay! This altitude is sufficient!"

Mobius glanced towards Pohnpei through the window, instantly estimating the distance. "Wait, Himeko, are you planning to use that? Are you crazy?! With this spiral airflow, the strong crosswinds and tailwinds… you're asking for death!"

"While I am a combatant, I have to admit, I'm nowhere near as reckless as you." Himeko retorted as she pulled out a wingsuit from a metal box.

"Not to mention, Elysia and I aren't exactly ordinary humans. Besides, do you have any other ideas?"

As she spoke, she put on her goggles, opened the door, and jumped, Elysia following close behind.

Mobius shrugged at Mei. "See? This is what my colleagues are like. A bunch of lunatics."

The helicopter, its task complete, began to turn slowly, but Mobius banged on the cockpit door. "Hey! Don't fly too far away. Hover fifty kilometers out. I want to observe the situation on Pohnpei."

Landing with a tailwind was a cardinal sin in wingsuiting, especially with the current swirling, high-speed air currents. Himeko and Elysia landed in a series of tumbling rolls. Fortunately, Ruruye City Hall had flattened the island to build the airfield for Fire Moth One.

"Ptoo!" Himeko spat out the dust she had inhaled, then struggled to her feet. At first, she had to support herself, her body aching, but as the ambient Honkai energy flowed into her, the pain quickly subsided.

"Elysia, what did Michael tell you?"

Himeko was a warrior. Warriors excelled at following orders, not thinking – even she believed this.

And while she had previously been reserved about Michael's strategic thinking, after the Second Eruption and the recent Yaksha hunt, she sometimes preferred to have Michael give her orders.

"Captain, do you remember what Michael asked the AI before we landed on Pohnpei?"

"The AI… Fire Moth One?"

Elysia patted her fluffy hair, sending up puffs of dust, and nodded. "Yes, the AI said that Fire Moth One only needs two people to take off – one in the cockpit to pilot the ship, and one in the boiler room to start the engines."

"You mean…" Himeko instantly understood Michael's plan. Whatever the enemy was, humanity's only immediate recourse was the still-incomplete Fire Moth One.

But Fire Moth One wasn't armed… No, that wasn't a problem. Michael was already familiar with the construction of the two smaller railguns, and the 680mm giant railgun was fundamentally similar…

Meaning, Fire Moth One could take off unarmed, and Michael could construct the weapon later!

And the ordinary people on Pohnpei, including the original crew, had already evacuated. No one knew what was happening here, allowing Michael to perfectly conceal his identity.

"So, when he asked the AI that question, was it really just an innocent question?" Himeko wondered.