Belobog 1.5

Disclaimer: I don't own Honkai Star Rail and any of their characters. All belonged to their rightful owners - Hoyoverse.

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"Stelle, do you hear me?"

"Stelle.."

"Hey, Stelle.."

"Stelle!"

Stelle blinked, her solidified expression broke as she turned around in the direction of the voice. She found March, standing near her, her expression was that of annoyance. She was giving her the "Are you serious?" look again.

"Why are you staring dazed all of a sudden? I've called your name for the past couple of seconds and you barely even registered it!" March pointed her finger toward her, accusingly.

Her raised, yet concerned voice brought the dazed girl to bow her head and mutter an apology.

"Sorry.."

It seemed that the little action took a hit towards March as she bit her lip and proceeded to sigh "Seriously, I am just worried you know? You've been like this ever since Ethan went missing."

At the mention of the name, Stelle perked up, lifting her face only to see March raising a brow at her.

"I knew it."

Stelle blinked

"Well, it seems I won this bet, Dan Heng~" March grinned at her fellow nameless.

"I didn't even say yes to that bet."

"But I know you did~"

Dan Heng sighed, and his gaze went up to Stelle. "Stelle, you see him fight off fragmentums and stand pretty well against the captain of the SIlvermane guards. I'm pretty sure he can do well on his own better than most, I assume."

"But in the Space Station.."

"Stelle, that was before he got to learn how to use his power" With the deadpan expression that Dan Heng wore, together with the stern voice he ushered. Stelle was lost for words, specifically, finding no way to refute that claim.

"That is true," However that wasn't enough to ease the worry on her chest. "Still, what if…"

"You're worried about the fragmentum portal, aren't you?" Dan Heng guessed which proved correct as Stelle's subtle nod was a sign. "Hmm, the probability of him getting captured is not that high considering he can run fast. The most probable theory I have is that the fragmentum took him elsewhere."

"But we arrived at the same location. Why can't he?" Stelle asked, furrowing her brows. It didn't make sense to her.

"That is strange, I have to agree." Dan Heng calmly responded, "But we have limited knowledge of how the Fragmentums work. It may be that its location to the other side can vary depending on how long you actually go into the portal"

"You mean–"

"We less or so managed to get in almost at the same time but Ethan on the other hand...."

"He went in late," March concluded with a look of realization

"Basically," Dan Heng nodded.

"Do you think he's in the underworld or he's still in Belobog?" Stelle asked

Dan Heng frowned "There's a huge chance he's still in Belobog rather in the underworld"

Stelle frowned as well. "T-Then that means…"

"Oh come on, stop the negativity you two!" March interrupted with a pout, hands on her hips. "We have to stay positive. Maybe he's here and we don't know yet. Have you thought of that? Huh?" Her gaze firmly locked onto the boy next to her.

"That's highly–" Dan Heng tried to say something but was stopped by March with her finger placed in front of his lips.

"Dan Heng.." March uttered his name in a low tone, her gaze leveled at him. Dan Heng blinked in response, their gazes settled one onto the other. It seemed like there was silent communication between the two.

As if having a new-found realization, Dan Heng turned to Stelle with a calm look, his mouth opened "I see." He said.

Stelle tilted her head, curiously. What was that reaction?

Dan Heng coughed as March pulled her hand away with a bright smile. "Well, we could only hope he's here. The chances.." He paused, catching himself quickly to change his words. "Nevermind,"

On the side, March nodded, appearing satisfied. "See, Stelle? No need to be a worried cat and trust him for once that he'll be fine okay?"

Stelle looked at the two nameless with a suspicious look. Why did it feel like there was something going on that she was not aware of?

Nonetheless, she nodded "Alright"

March smiled brighter in response "Great! I'm sure Ethan is out there doing fine. So let us focus on what is now, okay?"

"We can't spread ourselves too thin; otherwise, we'll lose focus on what we're doing at the moment," Dan Heng agreed with her.

"But isn't finding Ethan much more important?" Stelle argued with a frown.

March looked like she was about to say something but Dan Heng beat her to it. "That is true but for now, let's clean up this mess as we promised with Miss Natasha then we'll reallocate our attention on finding him."

Stelle gazed evenly at him. She found his point understandable yet still, the irritation she got from hearing his words earlier left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"Okay"

"Hey! Are you guys finished there yet?" A shout broke through the three's conversation. All turned their attention toward a certain long purple-haired girl, waving at them.

"We're coming!"

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"Seriously, when do these guys give up?" Seele, the girl with the long purple hair and a weapon that was a scythe, voiced her annoyance with a huff. She gazed down at the several unconscious vagrants on the ground, kicking the motionless body near her to the side, and walked slowly ahead. Not bothering to spare a glance.

"Indeed" Dan Heng nodded as he put away his weapon. He glanced at the several men unconscious on the ground and couldn't help but show a bit of pity on them. "I think we should tone down the violence for a bit" His gaze went elsewhere towards a certain person with a bat. "Especially, you Stelle"

Stelle looked offended at the mention.

"Hmph" Seele huffed "They were the ones who started it. In fact, they deserved the beating they got. The question is, is it enough?"

Stelle nodded, agreeing, pointing at Seele. "What she said,"

Dan Heng sighed, knowing he couldn't convince the two further. He decided to pay attention to the other members of the group and no It's not March.

"Are you doing alright there, Miss Bronya?"

Bronya, whose body was still, turned her head slightly towards Dan Heng. "I'm…fine" She replied, quite weakly. Her eyes flash a brief disbelief. "Why are you even concerned with me?"

"Is it wrong to be concerned about a person?"

"I–" Before Bronya could respond, March suddenly shouted from the group.

"What's that commotion? It sounds like something big is happening over there!"

Bronya pursed her lips as she now remained silent.

"More of them?" Stelle asked, turning to look at March. There was a hint of anticipation from her voice yet none seemed to notice.

" I don't think so…" March hesitated, unsure.

Stelle got curious and decided to get a good look for herself.

"Wait, Stelle! Don't just rush in like that!" March cried out in alarm, seeing her friend running off like that.

"Come on! what are we waiting for?" Seele quickly caught on with Stelle.

March slumped her shoulders. "And off they go"

"Who knew? You've found yourself a competition, March"

March, with a puzzled look, stared at Dan Heng. Not knowing what to say. "Eh?"

"Let's go, March." Dan Heng walked past her.

"Wait! Dan Heng what do you mean by that?!"

Bronya stared at the figures ahead of her. Her thoughts wandered about for a short moment before she started following them. Having no choice but to do so.

When they got closer, they finally found out what the source of the commotion was. It was none other than the vagrants arguing with the local miners.

"Them again" Seele hissed, attempting to pull out her weapon but was stopped by Dan Heng who placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Not the time," Dan Heng spoke sternly.

Seele sized him up and huffed. "Fine"

"Cowards and bullies. I don't remember you guys acting this tough around Svarog's minions. Did your parents never teach you what a backbone was?"

"Pff! We ain't stupid! Why would we risk our lives against robots? And get off the high road—you can't just find a huge chunk of Geomarrow and hog it all to yourself!"

"The mine is our territory. The mining team is laboring here day in and day out. You guys don't even pretend you're here to lend a hand!"

"That's right! You're lazy and all you guys want is to profit from our sweat and tears. And you don't even try hiding it…disgraceful bastards" The man spat at the Vagrants

"Hey! Watch your tone!" One of the Vagrants yelled.

Stelle, and the rest watched in total silence. "Should we--?" Stelle tried to suggest but Dan Heng gave a signal.

"Wait," Dan Heng said. "Barging into the situation would result in unnecessary fighting. Let's wait it out and see what will happen." Knowing that there would be a possible chance the two parties could end this in a peaceful manner, he kept himself patient. They seemed to be engrossed with each other's insults to notice them watching.

"Hmph, a disgrace? Where does that word even come in when we can't even fill our stomachs, huh?! I know your game—you're just waiting for us to starve to death, so there's more food for your mining team"

"Boss, I think we don't need to reason with them at all, we've got after all..advantage."

"Right…right. I almost forgot which side brought loaded guns to the party"

"Those miners are unarmed," Bronya said in panic, seeing the situation take a turn for the worse.

" I think we should intervene," March suggested with a nervous look.

Dan Heng sighed "It would seem so" It seemed peace was never an option.

"Whoa, easy wh–what are you trying to pull off?"

The Vagrants seemed to want to say something but were interrupted.

"Ok, that's enough!" Seele's voice vibrated through the area as she pulled out her scythe. Her sharp glare directed at the Vagrants "Scoundrels, you want to show your weapons huh? Well, let me introduce you to mine!"

Seele without any hesitation dashed off in a blink of a second. The vagrants, who were caught off guard by such action, were unable to deal with her relentless attacks despite their best efforts to do so.

The others could only watch in shock at the scene unfolding before them.

"She's taking it too far..isn't she?" March asked the group with a nervous laugh. She knew Seele was a strong fighter by any means but the way her fighting style works was…brutal. Even Dan Heng seems surprised by her methods.

"Seems normal to me," Stelle said with a shrug. Finding nothing wrong with what she witnessed.

"I think your definition of normal should be checked, Stelle" March gave the girl a side-eye look.

Meanwhile, on the back side of things, Bronya looked at the miners and tried to assure them. "Everything is alright. Are any of you hurt?" Her voice was as soft as a feather.

"N-No, everything is alright. Thank you." The short girl bowed deeply at her.

Bronya nodded as she turned around and watched how the fight unfolded. Needless to say, it was a one-sided slaughter.

"You didn't hurt them that much, did you?" Dan Heng asked when the fight ended. He turned to Seele who seemed to be oblivious to the groans and suffering of the Vagrants. Rather she didn't care. "I told you to lower it down."

"Relax, I didn't kill them" Seele shrugged, showing off her scythe. "If it were the case, they would be dead within a second. And don't worry, they only broke a bone or two….or probably more."

"That sounds reassuring," Dan Heng remarked with a blank look, not knowing whether to take that seriously or not.

"Seele! We would like to thank you guys once again. We were nearly.." A boy tried to say but Seele interrupted

"Nothing but a few knuckleheads. I'm just glad you're okay." Seele smiled, turning towards the girl with a scarf. "Antonia, have you seen Chief Oleg?"

"Oleg? He took a group into the inner section. Said it was to clear off the invading robots," Antonia replied, blinking. "They've been gone for a while now. Hmph, if Wildfire was around, those thugs wouldn't have dared."

"Seems like the core of this problem is Svarog Robots." Seele spat like the very thing annoyed her to the core.

"What do those robots want?" Stelle asked curiously.

"Annoying, that's what and they are dangerous. Their aim is merely Svarog's aim."

"Svarog?"

"Yes, Svarog. He…appeared suddenly after the Guards were redeployed, and became a major player in the Underworld" Seele explained, swirling her hand around like she was telling a story. " He claims to be the guardian of humanity yada yada and that all the ownerless robots obey his command. They've occupied the furnace core hub, and they're not letting anyone get close."

"Is there a reason for such actions?" Dan Heng asked. Finding the entire odds. "If he were to claim to be the guardian of humanity then he should be an ally"

"An Ally? Pfft like I can see that. He won't even hesitate to obliterate you into pieces if he doesn't deem you worthy of living," Seele rolled her eyes "Nobody knows why Svarog did any of this. He never leaves the furnace core and interferes unless some kind of disorder breaks out in the underworld."

"....A guardian of humanity? Who can command robots? I've never heard anything like….it sounds absurd." Bronya tried to say only to be met by an amusing snort from Seele.

"Hmph. It seems your mighty Architects weren't all-knowing as you thought" She snickered.

March seemed enough watching the two. "Can you two say anything without quarreling? This isn't the time! It sounds like there's danger waiting for us in the inner section, can we still get through?"

"I want to meet Svarog and his minions," Stelle said with a hint of anticipation in her tone.

"You're looking for something to smash using your bat, aren't you?" March questioned the girl who smiled at her sheepishly.

"That can wait, Stelle," Dan Heng told her.

"Indeed it can wait. We still need to talk with the chief. It's only a bunch of scrap metal. What are we afraid of?" Seele scoffed.

"Ohh~Is Seele starting to appreciate our strength? Hmm?" March teased the girl who merely shrugged at the comment.

"I'll be honest. You guys are hardworking. If everyone from Wildfire were as impressive as you on the battlefield, we wouldn't be so hard pressed by Svarog" Seele said, then turned her attention back onto the girl in front of her "Antonia, can you take the mining team back through the entrance to meet up with Natasha?"

"Sure thing! But be careful. There are a lot of robots up ahead."

"That should be of no worries," Seele replied with a smug look, dismissing Antonia's warning.

Watching the mining team depart, Seele let out a breath "We should continue deeper into the mines."

Everyone agreed with that.

In the next couple of minutes, they encountered some hurdles on the way.

"Why is there a random minecart here!" Some of which consume most of their time wasting in finding resources to solve that specific problem at hand.

What came at the other end was another thing altogether.

"Whoa! Stop! Ah! Stop, stop, stop! There's a big evil hunk of metal right there!" With a shaken finger, March pointed at the large robot with a chainsaw for a hand right down the alley.

"That model…it's one of Svarog's lapdogs alright" Seele eyed the robot with a renewed interest.

"Is it strong?" Stelle asked with sparkling eyes.

"Yes," Seele replied without missing a beat.

"Dibs!"

"Wait, Stelle!" March cried out.

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"This vein…So this is what everyone is fighting over" A short, young girl with white hair and a red coat spoke. She stared at the crystal, bright orange color with an unreadable expression. She turned her head to meet the gaze of a Robot, two times larger than her size. The robot wore a leather coat jacket with a singular red eye for its head. Its body was made of metal, sleek and refined in a way that looked indestructible at first sight. "Mr. Svarog, it's such a massive vein. I've never seen so much Geomarrow before."

"Calculating….Based on the average rate of excavation. This vein is enough to supply Belobog with 231 days of energy with a margin of error of seven days" Svarog replied "I sense that your reason for summoning me is not the ore in question. State your true intention, Clara."

Clara wasn't afraid. Fear would never and will never show towards him. Instead, all she felt was nervous about what she was about to ask. "..Rigjt. I wanted Mr. Svaro to see that many miners have gotten hurt because of the vein…can you help them?"

"I have already prevented the dispute and taken temporary control of the evacuation zone. Evaluation result: In the event of no further variables, there will be no large-scale conflicts within the next thirty days."

Clara frowned at this response "I know why you did it Mr. Svarog! It's just…..I don't think it's enough" She said "The mining team and Wilfire…they don't understand your actions…if only we could do more for them."

"My mission is the protection of the Underworld. The trust of the minority sample is redundant to my calculations" Svarog responded "Human behavior will always deviate from the rational calculation, Clara" He then turned to the side, seeing multiple figures up ahead " As evidenced by their presence here"

"Svarog! I believe we haven't settled our final score yet"

"Seele, subordinate to wildfire"

"Oh? I'll show your subordinate alright!" When Seele was getting ready, Dan Heng quickly stopped her.

"What?"

"Not now," Dan Heng told her. Seele clicked her tongue in displeasure.

"Your resistance is futile" Svarog reminded them "The result of my calculation is unequivocal: Remaining in the Underworld is the optimal strategy for survival"

Seele let out a sigh "This again, Calculation results, survival strategies, blah, blah, blah. I haven't got time for your thesis and your nonsense." Her eyes turned sharp as she warned "Withdraw your forces or I'll lose my temper."

Svarog didn't show concern nor reaction to her threat rather he told the girl, calmly "Observe, Clara. Even under abject conditions, humans are unable to avoid division and conflict. Human failure to accept the calculation results is a significant threat to the survival strategy of the underworld. Calculation complete, result: unequivocal: Armed suppression and their allies is the optimal course of action."

"This guy looks stronger than the other robots.." Stelle said, inspecting the robot.

"And more fashionably dressed too…." March noted with her hands on her hips.

"We must leave, Clara. External variables have triggered a calculation reset. The Furnace Core hub requires protection."

Clara seemed uncomfortable with the situation, so she turned to the giant robot beside Svarog. "Please Mills, don't hit them too hard."

Seele overheard this which caused a scowl on her face "You're leaving? Not on my watch!"

"Seele wait!" Dan Heng tried to stop her but failed as she dashed right away with her scythe in hand. The blade was inches away from Svarog however right in the moment, something intercepted forcing Seele to fall back.

"Ah, that hurts."

"I told you not to rush in quickly," Dan Heng said, pulling out his spear in the process.

"Yeah, You could have gotten seriously hurt!" March added with a worried tone.

"Tsk" Seele eyed the robot who managed to land a hit on her. She licked her lips as she prepared for another go. "Fine, I was getting bored of those minions anyway. Time for a real fight."

Just as the tension was running all-time high, the two opposing teams were seconds away from going to an all-out brawl. However, it was all broken down when a sudden shout from behind caught all of their attention.

"Ah help! March! Dan Heng! Stelle! Gah, Why are there so many robots here?! "

They watched as a boy was running towards them and behind him were multiple robots tailing at him.

"Who's that?" March scratched her head, confused as to wonder why he knew them. When she finally took a good look at the boy's face. "Wait, is that Ethan?!" She let out a gasp, unable to contain her surprise "But why does he look so different?" Her surprise quickly turned to confusion.

"And why is he so small?" Stelle wondered aloud just confused like the rest. Many thoughts ran through her head at that moment.

"Who's he?" Seele asked, turning to Dan Heng while folding her arms.

"He's one of us," Dan Heng answered.

"Oh. Is he-?"

"For the record, he's not a child nor a kid. For what happened to him to turn like that…I don't know." Dan Heng had a feeling this might bring along some headaches.

On the other side, Svarog watched up ahead, scanners zoomed in on the boy. "Another variable…"

"Mr. Svarog.."

"Let's go Clara while they are distracted."

"...Okay,"

Bronya noticed they began to walk away, leaving the single robot to stand in between them

"They're getting away!" Bronya said aloud to the group which in turn divided their attention.

Seeing this, Dan Heng immediately took action "March, Stelle, help Ethan. The rest will fight the robot."

"Now that's a plan I agree with" Seele cracked her knuckles, lips curving into a grin.

"Go!"