Fate's Slave - Shadow Slave X Honkai Star Rail-Chapter 104: Molten Will

Small, glimmering shards of ice rained down from the sky — the remains of Cocolia's ice spear. Instead of landing on Sunny and Seele, they bounced off the small amber barrier, protecting them from her Awakened and Ascended Ability. Natural snow caused by the blizzard instantaneously melted and evaporated into steam, creating a thin cloak of smoke.

Crystals glimmered across her body like frozen stars, her form cloaked in violet shadow and pale ribbons of light. The jagged crown above her head caught the cold gleam of her own Aspect, and behind her, the silence stretched wide — pierced only by the fading echo of her strike.

Cocolia's face had become an eldritch void, absent of eyes, a mouth, a nose, and other features. However, a feeling of shock was able to be sensed.

"No... It can't be..."

As the last of the ice fragments fell to the ground, Sunny dispelled the stalwart shield that had protected them, helping the bloody-eyed Seele to her feet. Pulling the flaming Lance of Preservation out of the ground, he provokingly pointed it's end towards the floating entity above, a cocky smirk on his face as he radiated haughtiness.

"Looks like Qlipoth likes me more than THEY like you — I'm not surprised. I am pretty amazing."

As he finished his provocative speech, multiple footsteps could be heard approaching them, muffled by the snow and raging blizzard.

"...Sunny? What's up with that lance? And what happened to your hair?!"

Slightly turning his head, Sunny saw March and Dan Heng. A few dozen paces behind him, Bronya could be seen with a startled expression, one that contorted into confusion once she saw him.

"...Long story short, resurrection comes with benefits."

Ignoring the baffled expressions from everyone except Seele, he sent the distant figure of Cocolia an arrogant gaze.

"Aren't you thinking too highly of yourself, looking down on us from all the way up there? Why don't you come down to my level...?"

The transformed Cocolia — who was still uneasy after watching a man brush off death itself — sensed the massive shadow moving much too late. She whirled around, just to find herself face-to-face with the back of a massive steel hand.

It backhanded her with the strength of a thousand giants, causing her figure to blur as her body was flung to the ground. Once she unceremoniously crashed into the ground, the impact caused a small quake. A small wave of snow flew upwards, returning snowflakes back into the air.

However, she did not stay down.

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She floated back up into the air, at a level that wasn't even remotely far from the five Awakened that stood against her. Her inhuman visage was unharmed, as if she hadn't been struck by the ancient creation of the Architects.

The first thing she saw however, was a pitying expression.

"Geez. I took your weapon, and your mech. If I was you, I'd wish I was dead."

Cocolia coldly leered at him.

Around her, the weapons began to take shape — phantoms of ice and light, half-born from the void. Their forms flickered in and out of solidity, jagged and sharp like the thoughts of a waking storm. Each blade spun slowly, suspended in the air by will alone, the tips glinting with the promise of precision. They pulsed faintly with an otherworldly hue, as if catching the heartbeat of their master, waiting to be called forth with a mere breath.

Her distorted voice echoed across Everwinter Hill, the edges of the rotating weapons violently pointing towards Sunny, contrasting the Lance of Preservation in his hand.

"Fortunately for you, your wish will come true. This time, there will be no coming back."

Seemingly unbothered by the clear threat, Sunny lowered his stance with a conceited scowl.

"Is that so? How exciting."

Not in the good way.

Sunny was not underestimating Cocolia — especially after her metamorphosis. He could feel a certain frigidness in the air around them, one that reminded him of when he was around people like Herta, Clara, or Saint Tyris.

All three of these individuals had one thing in common; they were Transcendents.

However, Sunny could acutely tell that Cocolia had not reached that level. In fact, she seemed to be in the midst of Transcendence — her connection to the world incomplete and fragile. In such a state, her Aspect and control over Soul Essence was bound to be unstable.

Instability created mistakes, and mistakes equated to openings.

But power was still power, no matter how raw or untamed it was. To win, caution and patience were key.

Sunny summoned a Memory. After a couple seconds, a glass tube filled with hazy blue liquid appeared in his hands, another Memory he had gotten from Natasha before they left for the Overworld. This one was more valuable than the others due to the scarcity of the materials used to make the concoction. He had planned to save it for himself, but...

"Seele. Catch this."

Without looking, Sunny tossed the potion through the air. Seele barely reacted quickly enough to catch it. Through his shadow, he could see the perplexed expression on her face.

"It'll restore your Soul Essence. Once you have enough, make sure to help out."

As he finished speaking, he augmented himself with both shadows, calculatively observing the alien form of Cocolia.

The world exploded into movement.

The blades that Cocolia had summoned launched forward, exponentially faster than they were before. They swerved through the air with different trajectories, making their movements almost unpredictable.

At the same time, Sunny lunged forward, Lance of Preservation in hand. His black eyes, parted by an amber light, flickered around, predicting the movement of the icy weapons with his battle-specialized mind, courtesy of [The War].

As they flew through the air, he came to a single conclusion; he would not be able to dodge all of them.

Fortunately, he didn't need to.

Flaming lance in hand, Sunny rotated his body, allowing one of the projectiles to harmlessly graze the damaged Mantle of the Underworld. A small scratch was left behind, a testament to the power of a being that stood between Ascendence and Transcendence.

As he rotated however, another weapon was being aimed directly to his head. Without being able to redirect his momentum or use his own weapon to block, it was inevitable that it would pierce his skull.

It was stopped in it's tracks by body-sized illusory shield of amber, shattering into countless pieces. At the same time, the shield didn't seem able to maintain itself, crumbling into ether.

The Preservation was a powerful thing, able to halt the attacks of a quasi-Transcendent. However, it was being fueled by the soul of an Awakened Demon. Although the shields were able to protect him for a moment, they wouldn't be able to last for consecutive attacks.

Whirling around, Sunny slammed the Lance of Preservation into another approaching blade as if he was wielding a bat. The force of the frozen armament was staggering, but he didnt buckle. With the Preservation, he was able to withstand the pressure, redirecting the blade into the snow.

Then, holding up his hand, he caught another blade of ice by the edge.. A condensed layer of amber energy coated his hand, separating his palm from the cold, sharp weapon. Otherwise, even if he succeeded in catching it, a small injury would cause him to be infected by Cocolia's Aspect.

That wouldn't do at all.

Seeing that Cocolia was preparing to fire another salvo of mind-numbing, soul-freezing projectiles, Sunny stabbed the Lance of Preservation into the snow, causing it to melt due to it's ambient heat. The amber glow in his eyes began to intensify, burning with molten will.

An amber glow began to travel across Everwinter Hill, stretching a dozen meters behind him. The snowflakes evaporated into mist, while the snow-covered ground began to boil.

Dan Heng's eyes widened. A wave of warmth washed over him, seeping into his skin. He instinctively held up his hands. There was no visible change, but there was an intangible shift. He felt more durable, immovable...

Permanent.

At the same time, he felt like there was something around him, unseen to the naked eye. Turning his head, he made eye contact with March, who seemed to notice the same phenomena if her gaping face was any indication.

As they looked ahead in amazement, Sunny turned back as if he wasn't facing a tremendously powerful foe. He had a sneer on his face as he glared at them.

"What are you waiting for? If you can fight, then don't just stand around!"

His words snapped them out of their reverie. As Bronya caught up to them, the three of them summoned their weapons — a spear with an rotating orb imbedded, a rifle with a bayonet, and a sleek bow.

As Cocolia formed a new array of blades — swords, daggers, halberds, spears, and sharp weapons that couldn't be described using human terms — her warped voice roared across Everwinter Hill.

"You know nothing of the plight of this world... nothing of the wait for its final end!"

The blizzard raged on, becoming thicker to the point of being almost blinding. However, Sunny's figure, illuminated by the warm glow of the Lance of Preservation, stood like a beacon of stability in a turbulent world. His self-assured grin contrasted against the emotionally-consumed Cocolia.

"You think so? Well... I think I've seen enough."

He remembered the starved boy he saw in the Underworld — the one he had given water to as he and Sampo headed towards Natasha's clinic for the first time. The conflict between the miners and vagrants in the Great Mine, all over mere money. The lives of the Silvermane Guards that were abandoned to die, despite how unsuitable they were for combating the dangers of the Fragmentum.

It must end.

Sunny breathed deeply, yet smoothly. His eyes narrowed, a burning flame rising in their shadowed depths.

If that was his will, who dared to stop him?