Kenji
Kenji tried to take a breath, but it felt like his lungs were heavy, and he couldn't quite get enough air.
He didn't know what he expected when he disappeared from the Path Space, but it certainly wasn't this.
The shock of seeing all his predecessors standing before him was quickly replaced by a need to appear strong.
'Come on Kenji, you can't be looking weak in front of them!"
He tried to stand up straight, but it was as if he were experiencing real-world lag. His mind was telling his legs to hold steady, but the signal wasn't reaching them fast enough, and he felt himself start to tip over.
He looked down at his hands and saw they were trembling. But it wasn't because of any form of fear. It was because his very form looked as if it were falling apart.
'What the hell happened to me?'
Sharp, glowing cracks were splitting across his skin in weird geometric patterns, pulsing with a shaky pink light. Whenever he tried to blink, his vision would stutter and skip like a corrupted video file, leaving him staring at three different versions of the same couch.
"Whoa there! Easy does it,"
Kenji felt his balance give out entirely, but a pair of arms caught him with ease. He looked up to see Elysia's concerned yet smiling face.
The second she touched him, the shaky flickering of the cracks on his skin started to quiet down, and that annoying sound in his ears finally stopped.
"You really do love making an entrance, don't you?" There was something about Elysia's voice that both put him at ease and made him extremely embarrassed.
Kenji felt his face burn. He tried to scramble back and get some distance, but his arms and legs still weren't listening to him, so he just ended up slumped awkwardly against her.
"S-sorry about that, I'm usually—"
"Shh, it's fine," she giggled. She didn't let go, either. She just pulled him into a better position until his head was resting right against her, her fingers starting to run through his hair in a slow, steady rhythm that actually helped him feel a bit more grounded.
He was very much embarrassed and aware of the stares of the other vestiges, but he found it hard to care.
"You've been through a lot, Kenji. Ripping through reality and fighting with that grumpy side of yourself... honestly, it's a miracle you're even in one piece."
She leaned back a bit to look at him, her eyes searching his face with that motherly look that made him feel weirdly conflicted—like he wanted to hide his face but also didn't want her to stop.
"You called for your mom earlier, you know," she teased, giving him a grin that was way too smug. "I have to say, I'm pretty flattered. I knew we were close, but being the first person you call for in a mess like this? My heart is practically melting!"
"I was barely conscious!" Kenji managed to get out, though it seems his excuse fell flat as he definitely heard the catgirl chuckle.
"And that's exactly when you're the most honest," Elysia said softly. Her smile stayed, but her eyes got a lot more serious as she tapped one of the glowing cracks on his wrist.
"When Zero forcefully took control of your body, he destabilized both your body and soul. That's why you feel tired right now. But don't worry! We made sure to fix the most dangerous parts, so you should be ok!"
"And that is because of my brilliance! Acknowledge my genius, successor!" The pale-haired woman shouted from the back. Earning an amused look from the rest of the vestiges.
Kenji looked at the cracks again, feeling the odd sensation seep through his very soul. "Is he... is Zero..."
"He's not here," Elysia whispered, guiding him over to a plush chaise lounge. "He won't be a problem for a while. We made sure to use his messy takeover attempt to reinforce our barriers. But you don't have to worry about that right now. I'm sure you have a lot of questions."
He nodded repeatedly.
Elysia chuckled and guided him back onto the couch. "Let's start with some introductions~."
"Introductions?"
"That's right! And since I'm the easiest to talk to, I'll go first!"
Something blurred in his peripheral vision. Before Kenji could even process the movement, a face popped up inches from his own.
"Surprise!"
"Whoa!"
It was the cat-eared girl. Up close, her eyes were mismatched and gleaming with a mischievous energy that reminded him scarily of Kiana. She sat perched on the armrest of the couch, balancing with an uncanny, feline grace.
"Name's Pardofelis!" she chirped, extending a hand. "But you can just call me Pardo. Or Felis'—whichever you prefer! I'm the weakest of the bunch, so don't expect me to do any heavy lifting, alright?"
Kenji blinked, his brain still buffering. 'Weakest?'
"Uh, nice to meet you, Miss Pardo. I'm—"
"Kenji Aoyama, yeah, yeah, we know!" Pardo grinned, leaning in to poke one of the glowing cracks on his shoulder.
"We've been watching the whole time, Little Boss. Gotta say, you've got some shiny stuff going on here. If that red lightning ever solidifies into a crystal, let me know. I bet it'd sell for a fortune—not that I could sell anything in here anyway."
Kenji didn't know how to respond. He didn't expect to be slapped in the face by someone with high energy almost immediately after waking up, and was dutifully unprepared.
"Pardofelis, do not harass the guest," a melodic voice cut in.
Kenji looked past the cat-girl to see the red-haired woman approaching. Her aura practically screamed elegance, from the way she walked to the way she spoke.
A part of his mind saw a semblance of similarity with Himeko, but that was only from the hair. He couldn't imagine Himeko possessing this kind of aura.
'Sorry Himeko…'
"My name is Eden," she said, offering him a gentle smile. "It is a pleasure to speak with the one carrying our legacy finally. I would offer you a drink to settle your nerves, but…" She glanced at his flickering hands. "I fear it might simply phase through you in your current state."
"Yeah, probably for the best," Kenji muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. "I don't think I can hold a cup right now without glitching out."
"A problem that wouldn't have happened if it weren't for your poor maintenance!"
A loud clang echoed from the back of the room. The steampunk-styled woman marched forward, adjusting her top hat with a theatrical flourish. Her multicolored eyes locked onto Kenji like a scanner.
"I am Vill-V!" She threw her arms wide. "And you, my dear successor, are a walking example of terrible hardware management. Do you know how many times I had to fix you up every time you recklessly damaged your body?!"
Kenji blinked, unsure of what to say. "I don't—"
"Too many to count!" She shouted, then she walked closer to pinch his cheeks hard.
"Ow!" he shouted, and tried to hold her hands back, but it was no use.
"Apologise for your transgressions!"
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
She pulled on his cheeks for a good while more before finally relenting. Kenji quickly rubbed his now red cheeks to ease the sting.
"And I am Su."
The grey-haired man appeared in Kenji's field of view, sitting on a floating cushion with his eyes closed.
"You treat your mind like a battlefield, Kenji," Su said softly. "Even here, in a place of rest, your thoughts are screaming. You must learn to silence the noise, or the cracks will never seal."
"O-ok?" Kenji nodded slowly, though he had no idea how to interpret Su's words.
"I'm Griseo! It's nice to finally meet you!" A girl with light blue hair shouted and waved.
Kenji was taken aback by the sight of such a young face. Though they might technically be older than him, it still caught him off guard.
His mind tried to process all the faces he's seen so far. It was… not what he expected when he thought about his predecessors. But it was definitely welcome.
Then his eyes landed on the final figure standing near the back.
The figure was translucent, wreathed in soft, golden flames that flowed like water. She stood with her hands crossed around her chest.
Kenji's eyes widened as he recognized the face instantly
"Fu Hua?"
The vestige didn't speak, though he could see a grimace take shape on her face. An expression that answered his question instantly.
"That's a long story. One that we will answer shortly after we discuss more pressing matters," Eden answered.
At her remark, Vill-V clapped her hands. "Alright, we don't have much time, so let's get the hard part over with."
With a wave of her hand, she summoned multiple intricate thrones from thin air, each matching the respective Flame-Chaser's character. The other Flame-Chasers quickly sat down, and Kenji promptly straightened up from the serious atmosphere.
"To start, I want to say that you have done me proud, successor," Vill-V said with a genuine smile, one that made Kenji feel giddy. "You embodied what it means to be a Flame Chaser and relentlessly fight for the sake of others—"
"—But that is part of the problem!" She suddenly leaned in close, grabbing Kenji's face and forcing him to face her, "You keep recklessly damaging your body so much so that One For All cannot keep up! Just because you're strong doesn't mean your body isn't made of flesh and bones. You can't keep relying on your regeneration!"
The rest nodded in agreement at her statement, and Kenji had the decency to look ashamed.
"Kenji, we know you care much about the people around you. But it's also important to care about yourself." Eden gently spoke. "You cannot hope to protect others by breaking your own body again and again."
"I know that…" Kenji weakly countered.
"Knowing and actually doing are completely different things." Eden countered back, a contemplative look on her face. "Would you stand by if your friend Kiana were doing the same thing—"
"That's not the same." Kenji impulsively answered, only to panic as he realized he just cut off his predecessor. But her expression showed no offence, and she let him speak his mind.
"One For All makes things different… This power, because of its regeneration, I was able to save so many people."
He paused, carefully choosing his words, "I know that I can go overboard sometimes, but it was so that no one else would get hurt. If I had to endure temporary pain to save others, then that would be worth it, right? Isn't that what being a Knight is all about?"
His answer met with silence, and Kenji feared he had angered them. But then Griseo spoke up, "A Knight is supposed to risk their lives for others. But I don't think you're really doing that."
A sad expression crossed over her face, "Knights risk their life to fight the Honkai, but you fight the Honkai without any thought for your own life. You aren't risking it, you're waiting for the chance to throw it away."
Kenji stared at her, unable to come up with a counter. He didn't think her words were accurate, but he couldn't form the words he needed.
It wasn't that he wanted to throw his life away. It was just his duty to repay this world for letting him exist and giving him the power to fight.
"We know you will have to make many hard choices as a Knight," Elysia whispered, "But… take care of yourself more ok? Your body and soul can't handle anything reckless again, and… I'll be sad if you keep hurting yourself."
Kenji didn't know if it was her expression or the way she said it. But he couldn't find it in him to argue any further.
"Ok, I'll… keep that in mind."
"Promise?"
Kenji blinked and looked up at Elysia to see if she was serious. Only to be faced with an insistent, stern gaze.
"I promise."
Elysia kept her gaze for a few more seconds before she was finally satisfied. Huffing as she turned to face Su, who somehow knew she was looking at him despite his eyes being closed.
Su waved his hand, and a hologram appeared mid-air. It showed a transparent image of his body, with pink and red cracks seeping through it, matching his current state.
"As you already see, your body isn't in the best state right now. After Zero took control, he destabilized One For All's limiting ability by pushing his Core out to the real world." He said as another hologram of a core appeared before them.
"Thankfully, you and the rest of Shicksal's forces were able to subdue him, and we were able to get your body back in stable condition."
"I'm sensing a but here."
Su sighed, "You would be correct… Not long after we stabilised you—or more accurately, your spiritual form, we sensed One For All's innate energy glow around you. Not long after, Elysia was able to wake you up."
"Do you have any information on why One For All could have reacted so strongly?"
Kenji thought for a moment, his mind replaying the moment back when he saw Zero in that empty, terrifying place.
"Zero dragged me somewhere. It was... just empty space. I think he called it the Path Space. Zero showed me that's where One For All's core actually is."
The atmosphere in the room shifted instantly.
Elysia's smile faltered for a fraction of a second. Su's eyes opened a sliver, revealing a sharp, discerning gaze.
"You were able to enter the Path Space?" Su asked, his eyes meeting Elysia's for a split second before turning back to him. "Were you… able to meet ▀▊█?"
Kenji frowned, a sharp spike of static hitting his eardrums. "What?"
" ▀▊█ " Su repeated calmly.
"I… I can't hear what you're saying," Kenji said, rubbing his temple as a dull throb started behind his eyes.
"It's like my brain can't register your words at all." He shook his head, trying to clear the fog. "But I'm guessing you're talking about the being that made One For All what it is now?"
Elysia's eyes widened, and so did everyone else's. "Zero told me about it in the Path Space—"
""You met Zero?!"" They shouted simultaneously.
Kenji frantically shook his arms to calm them down. "D-don't worry, nothing happened, and he didn't hurt me—surprisingly. He actually seemed calm!"
While the assurance that he wasn't harmed eased their tensions, they were still highly suspicious of Zero.
After they all calmed down, Kenji continued. "He talked about how One For All's purpose was to connect the stars, how it was a blessing from… Something I don't know. Every time he tried to mention anything relating to it, my brain gets all foggy, and I get a headache."
"That is the censorship of an Aeon," Vill-V murmured, looking genuinely fascinated. "At least this gives me something more to work on regarding ▀▊█. Maybe I can analyse your condition to find a way to break into the Path Space…"
Kenji watched her continue to ramble off to herself. Sensing his confusion, Eden stepped in to clear things up.
"You can think of an Aeon as a fundamental force of the universe," Eden explained. "Our current understanding is that they are concepts given form." As she finished, she saw the look on his face that indicated that he still didn't understand.
She scratched her cheek in embarrassment, "I apologise, we also aren't entirely sure about what THEY are. But the simplest way to put it is that THEY are gods revered throughout the universe."
"Gods?" Kenji repeated, "Like actual gods? What's next? Ghosts are real now?"
Pardofelis's head perked up, "You know we're technically ghosts, right?"
"Oh yeah…"
Eden chuckled at his reaction, "Your surprise is unexpected. I thought after seeing Herrschers that you wouldn't be surprised at the idea of higher beings."
"Fair point."
"Although I can't fault your way of thinking. You have yet to meet a complete Herrscher, after all. Those beings are on an entirely different level." She said, as her eyes subtly gaze towards Elysia.
After that, they fell into a comfortable silence as Vill-V ran some analysis in the background. Simply letting the moment pass as they took a moment to ease themselves.
But after a while, Kenji remembered something he had been thinking about for a while.
"I have a question, if you don't mind."
He looked up, locking eyes with Elysia.
She chuckled, "You don't have to be so formal, you know. Just ask anything, and we'll answer to the best of our ability."
"I vaguely remember Zero mentioning something about a miracle. So I want to ask, why did you pass down One For All in the first place?"
"A miracle?" Elysia repeated. The playful smile on her face stiffened the smallest amount, and Kenji spotted her clenching her fists.
She leaned back against the cushions, looking up at the ceiling like she was seeing something else entirely.
"Well, he isn't wrong. To us, it really is a miracle." She looked back at Kenji. "I passed it down as a final gift for future generations. We fought the Honkai with everything we had, but in the end, it wasn't enough. We didn't want the future era to have to fight that battle alone like we did."
"So… it's a backup plan?" Kenji asked, trying to wrap his head around it. "You mean you passed down this power in hopes that someone would wield it in the future?"
"Something like that!" Pardo chimed in, maybe a little too quickly. "Think of it like… a time capsule! One that we didn't know would really work…"
Kenji frowned. The answer made sense on paper, but it didn't explain the weight behind Zero's words. He seemed so… hateful of them. Kenji knew to take what Zero said with a grain of salt, but that raw emotion doesn't just come out of nowhere.
"Wait," Kenji said slowly. "What do you mean you didn't know it would work? Zero kept talking about One For All coming with a big cost. What did he mean?"
He saw Su's eye twitch—just a tiny bit.
"Zero is… dramatic," Eden said smoothly, swirling her wine. "I assume it's due to his nature as a Herrscher, being influenced by the Will of Honkai. Herrschers tend to view everything through a lens of transaction and loss."
Kenji was too focused on her to notice the offended look on Elysia's face.
"Is he?" Kenji pressed. "Because he seemed pretty sure about—"
"It's been fifty thousand years."
The sudden voice cut through his words. Kenji blinked and looked down. Griseo was standing next to the couch.
"What?" Kenji asked.
"That's how long it's been," Griseo said simply. "Since we were alive. A really long fifty thousand years."
'Fifty… thousand?'
He looked around the room, waiting for someone to laugh. To tell him it was a joke. But no one was laughing. They all held their serious expressions.
"Wait," Kenji stammered, sitting up straighter. "You're serious? You guys are… from the Stone Age? No, wait, that's way further back. That's like… before history."
Vill-V snorted out a laugh, "That's the first time I heard someone talk about our era like that! Never thought it would be my own successor."
"The Previous Era," She corrected gently. "Was also an advanced civilization—more so than this era—that spanned the globe before a great tragedy. We are the remnants of that time."
Kenji felt a cold shiver run down his spine. He looked at the golden room, the advanced tech floating around Vill-V, and the clothes they were wearing. It didn't look ancient at all. It looked futuristic.
'I never thought ancient advanced civilizations actually exist… wow.'
"If you guys are that old…" Kenji turned his head slowly, his eyes locking onto the silent, burning figure in the back. "Then… what about her?"
He pointed a finger at the vestige of Fu Hua.
"She's definitely Fu Hua, right?. I recognize her presence. It's the same as the Class Monitor… You two are the same person, aren't you?"
The vestige of Fu Hua closed her eyes and let out a silent sigh. Then, she gave him a slow nod.
"So she's… fifty thousand years old?" Kenji whispered, his mind struggling to comprehend the large number.
Eden saw his confusion and wanted to elaborate, "I know it may seem outlandish, but—"
"I punched a senior citizen? A prehistoric senior citizen?" Kenji spoke without thinking.
"..."
"..."
Silence echoed through the group, and Kenji slowly turned his head to face Fu Hua, whose expression turned dangerously sharp.
"Oh, you've done it now!" Pardofelis chuckled, "She's not going to let you go after a comment like that. Good luck!"
Her words were followed by more laughter from the others, while Kenji tried his best not to pay attention to Fu Hua's fiery glare.
"Speaking of little old Hua," Pardo jumped in, seeing her chance. "You gotta tell me, what's she like now? Is she still super uptight—OW!" Her words were cut off by Fu Hua, who lit the end of her tail on fire.
"Uh," Kenji blinked, still reeling. "Yeah. I guess so. She is really strict when we train."
"Pfft—yeah, I saw!" Pardo cackled, slapping her knee. "Some things never change! Hey, hey, does she still have that weird fashion sense? Or did she finally upgrade?"
"Fashion sense?" Kenji muttered. "She wears the standard uniform mostly, I never really see her wearing anything else."
"Boring! Even after fifty thousand years, she is as bland as ever." Vill-V laughed out. With Fu Hua behind her, she was only growing more irritated.
"W-well, I wouldn't say—"
Zzzzt.
The room flickered. It wasn't anything dramatic at first, just a sudden drop in resolution, like a video call losing connection.
The edges of the couch blurred into white noise, and the room's warmth dropped a few degrees.
"Huh, what—?"
Elysia sighed, her smile dipping just a little. "Looks like that's our cue."
"What? Already?" Kenji tried to stand, but his legs felt heavy again. "We barely talked. I still have a million questions about you. And One For All. And... well, everything!"
"Your body is waking up, Kenji," Elysia said, her voice cutting clearly through the rising static. "You've been asleep for a long time. Making you stay asleep for longer would only damage your body further,"
"Long time?" Kenji frowned. "How long? A few days?"
Elysia hesitated for a second. "It's not that far off… It's just… A month."
Kenji froze. The static in his ears got louder, but the words cut through.
"A month?!" Kenji shouted, his eyes widening. "You're joking. I've been out for thirty days? My attendance record is going to be destroyed!"
"Priorities, Kenji," Elysia said with a soft laugh, though she stepped closer, looking a bit more serious. "Listen, there's a catch. We were able to pull you in here because your being was unstable, but Zero is still messing with One For All again. Reinforcing the barriers between us."
She looked him in the eye.
"Once you wake up, it's likely that we won't be able to talk with you for a while. We're working on fixing it from the inside, but until we do… You won't be able to hear us. You're going to be on your own."
Kenji slumped a little. It wasn't that he was worried. He mostly handled One For All by himself anyway, but it was just… annoying.
He finally got to meet the vestiges of One For All, people who could help him better understand his powers, and now the connection was being cut just as things were getting interesting.
"So that's it?" Kenji asked, feeling a weird sense of disappointment. "I finally meet you guys, and now I'm not gonna be able to talk with you again?"
"Only for a while," Su said.
The monk appeared beside him, already fading into transparency. "The world outside is loud, Kenji. Don't let it drown you out. Find some quiet every now and then. That's where you'll find your answers."
"And don't forget to stay slippery!" Pardo popped up on his other side, giving him a thumbs up even as she faded away. "Value your life, Little Boss! Have some pride! You're still standing, so make it count, yeah?"
"And respect the hardware!" Vill-V called out from the back, her voice sounding like it was coming through a bad radio. "Your body is a machine, not a blunt instrument! Treat your body right, or it'll quit on you!"
"Take care of yourself!" Griseo shouted with a wide smile.
"Farewell, Kenji." Eden elegantly said. Followed by Fu Hua, who gave him a small wave, though her expression still showed some bitterness at being called prehistoric.
"Guys, wait—I still need to know about—"
Kenji reached out, but the room was dissolving fast now. The floor was gone, replaced by white emptiness.
Then, he felt arms wrap around him.
It was a tight hug. Elysia held him close, resting her chin on his shoulder as the vestige world fell apart around him.
Kenji stopped trying to talk. He just leaned into it, gripping the back of her dress. It felt… nice.
"Listen to me," she whispered, her voice right against his ear. "Take care of yourself out there. Eat properly. Sleep when you're tired. Don't feel guilty about taking a break… You must learn to cherish your EGO."
She pulled back just enough to look at him. The world was nothing but screaming white noise now, but her expression was clear.
"You're loved, Kenji. Not because you're a successor, or a Knight, or a vessel. Just because you're you. Remember that."
SNAP.
The transition was instant. Kenji's consciousness slammed back into his physical body.
Gravity hit him like a truck. His chest felt heavy, and the fresh air of the lounge was instantly replaced by the sharp, antiseptic smell.
His nerves woke up all at once. The dull ache in his arm throbbed in time with his heartbeat, and his throat felt dry.
He gasped, his eyes snapping open.
The first thing he saw was the stark, white ceiling of the ICU.