Departure + OMAKE

Kinda a more serious chapter, but things will get more chaotic very soon…

******

[Aster POV] 

I watched the stunned man in the anime glasses drop his cane. His face was blank as if his worldview had been shattered. 

"Welt…Are you ok?" Himeko said while lightly grabbing his sleeve to get his attention.

Snapping him out of his little episode, Welt looked back at me with a complicated expression.

"...Yes"

"Aster…" he paused, his voice trembling with uncertainty. "When you mention earth…"

"Does the word Honkai have any meaning to you?" 

'Honkai? Like that one gacha game?'

"Like that anime game?" I say, confused. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"..." He stood there puzzled. "Anime game???"

"Yeah! Or was it Honker?..." 'Hmm, If I'm in Honker Star rail, I might be getting it wrong…'

'Big Honker Impact?'

"...Do you know what Honkai is?" Welt clarifies

"Nope!" I said, popping the p.

"I see…" Welt said, looking like he had a lot to say. "Well, this gives me a lot to think about…"

Suddenly, a small rabbit thing started to walk towards me. "Hello! Welcome, passenger! To the Astral Express! I am the conductor, Pom-Pom!"

'A rabbit?' 

I immediately pick it up and raise it above my head to get a better look.

"Put Pom-Pom down!" it said as it started to wiggle around, trying to break free.

"Ok, ok," I say, placing the walking plushie down. 

'Dang another talking object…Space is wild…'

The rabbit started to fix its uniform and hat. "Pom-Pom is here to tell you that since you chose to board the express, you should follow the rules. Everyone here has their own stories and secrets, but that does not exempt you from the rules here." 

The rabbit stated before pushing its little arms downwards with a ticked mark on its head. "And don't pick me up like that!" it said while stomping its foot. 

"..."

"Anyway, if you have any trouble, come find me," it said before it waddled towards a cabin door.

'Huh, that is definitely something you don't see every day.' I think while I manifest another bottle of Prime Energy into my hand before walking back to the group and sipping my drink.

I look back to the racecar bed carrying two of the crew members. "I'm surprised you guys didn't take them out of it."

"Well…" Himeko started. "We didn't want to disturb their rest, and they seemed pretty comfortable," she said while looking at March in an ever-increasing puddle of drool.

"I see…" I say while looking at the ice cream girl melting. "Do you want me to wake them up?"

"...please"

"ALRIGHT! Leave it to me!" I say while rolling up my sleeves.

"I'm starting to regret asking…"

"No takebacks!" I say before reaching into my golden portal. 

"Hmm, Let's see… No…not that…or that…" The sounds of items crashing against each other could be heard as I tried to find something that would work. "No, that works too well…hmm…AH! Perfect!" I pull out a small baggy filled with bat-shaped earplugs.

Walking over while opening the bag. "Now, these bad boys are usually for the good ol' ears, but I think they should work just fine."

"Can't you use something else?" Himeko stated with a raised brow.

"Well, lady… it's either this or smacking them with whatever else I got in here…"

"Let me do it. I can just wake them normally…" She said as she reached for them before I cut her off with my arm.

"No can do, lady!" I say before quickly shoving the bats into their nostrils. "You asked me to do it, and like I said…No takebacks!"

I call upon a jar filled with white powder to show her the other option.

"It's either this or this gallon of cocaine I have right here. I accept no alternatives."

"..." she stared at the jug bigger than her head before sighing. "I suppose there is a reason you are an emanator of elation…"

"Whazzat? U called me an emancipator? …I suppose I am… I do free a lot of people from the bindings called life after all…"

If she could sigh even harder, she would as she looked towards the sleeping dragon. "... I'll just let Dan Heng inform you later after you wake them up."

"You got it, boss lady!" I say while saluting.

"..."

"I'm gonna go get some more coffee…" she said before leaving the room.

It was around this time that the two sleepy heads started to stir.

GASP. They both shot up simultaneously and immediately started pulling the bat-shaped earplugs turned nose plugs out.

Primogem gem girl started coughing while rubbing her head. "Unhnn… My head… Where am I?" 

"Ug March, is that you?" dragon boy said while recovering.

"Yeah…Dan Heng…how did we get back to the Express?"

I look at them, amused, before clearing my throat. "Ahem, Good morning! Sleepy heads!"

"AHHHHHH!" March screams as she turns around and backpedals to the edge of the racecar bed. Dan Heng stayed silent as he pulled some kind of Rasengan out of his hand.

At that moment, Stelle, who was on the side, quietly slipped away.

"Hey…Is that any way to treat your savior?"

They both pause before the realization hits them, and they relax slightly.

"I see…" Dan Heng stated while looking around. "I assume that it was you that got us to safety?"

"Yep!" I said while turning to the pink girl. "And you! How are you feeling?"

"Me?!" she said, almost baffled. "Wait…What happened anyway?... I remember we reached the… the…"

I put my hand on her head. "It's ok, May 7th, you don't need to say it. I am proud of you for facing your greatest fear."

"Get your hand off me! And what did you mean my greatest fear?!" She stated while trying to slap off my firm grip on her head.

"Well…are you sure you want me to say?"

She just nodded her head, which looked kinda goofy since I had my hand on it still.

"Elevato-" I didn't get to finish. She seemed to freeze up as the word reached her ears.

"See? That's why I didn't want to say the E word…"

"March?! Are you okay?!" Dan Heng quickly put his hands on her shoulders and tried to reassure her. 

"What's wrong with me? Why don't I remember what happened after we split up?" she said confused.

I start to lean down before gazing into her eyes. "It's ok…There is nothing that can hurt you here…"

"Right…" she said, thinking hard before recovering with a gaze filled with resolve. "I may not remember what exactly happened, but that won't stop me!"

Dan Heng looks at me almost accusingly. "What happened when I left her with you?!" 

I looked at him before lowering my head. "She…We went to take the e-word, but she saw it and passed out after getting to the top floor. I hadn't heard of an e-word phobia, but anything can happen, I guess…"

I look back at him. "Don't worry, Dan. I made sure that nothing happened to her after she collapsed. You have my word."

"..."

"I may not remember what happened…but Aster…Thank you for helping me." March said as she recovered.

"No problem Primogem!" I said while ruffling her hair.

A chorus of laughter can almost be heard in the background, but I ignore it.

"So, what is the deal with your new horns?..." I ask, trying to change the subject.

"Oh right…" he said before he returned to normal. "Don't worry about it…March would call it my "hidden strength." So think of it like that."

"Wait!?! Dan Heng, you transformed?!" March said, surprised. "Aww, I wanted to see you in action…"

"Don't worry, March. I'm sure we will get plenty of opportunities in the future." He stated before muttering."Although I hope I won't have to resort to that…" He said before that suddenly, we heard a high-pitched voice over the coms.

"Ahem! Ahem! The express is now departing. Please come to the main area and prepare for departure!" the voice stated,

"That's Pom-Pom!" March stated, surprised. "We are already leaving?"

Good thing we were already in the room as we waited for the others to meet up with us. Eventually, Welt and Himeko returned to the room, with Himeko carrying an extra large thermos filled with coffee. The tiny conductor soon followed after waddling to the center of the room.

"Wait, where is my disciple?!" I said, looking around the room.

"You mean that grey-haired girl who was here earlier?" Dan Heng said,

"Yeah, my amazing disciple, Stelle!" I stated smugly, with my chest puffed up.

The moment I said that, the door behind me got kicked in…

I turned around as the eyes of the two in front of me widened.

There at the doorway was Stelle, but…

She was carrying a huge pile of pastries in her arms, with some kind of puff pastry filling her cheeks like a chipmunk.

"I brought snacks for the trip!" She said, muffled as crumbs fell out of her mouth.

"..."

"MY POM-POM PUFFS!" The rabbit screamed before running towards the raccoon girl.

'Thats my disciple, alright! I am so proud of her.'

-

-

-

After getting that matter settled, I went to inspect the cool space record player in the room to try to find a fitting song for our travels. In the corner of my eye, I saw my disciple talking with the Astral Express crew. They were talking about something called a stellaron and March wanting juice. Still, I didn't really care as, more importantly, I wanted to see some sick beats.

Eventually, playing some song called Journey, I met the others at the sofa.

"So our destination has been set," Himeko stated. " We will be going to the planet Jarillo-VI."

Apparently it was a planet full of life and was a cool place to travel to, so I was pretty excited. I hadn't been to another planet since coming here, so this sounded like a lot of fun. 

We got ready to be seated as the express started to take off, with the rabbit conductor counting us down. March had said something about not falling over again, but I left Stelle with her to deal with that.

Then suddenly, the train started to rocket forward as we warp-jumped.

"WOOO!" I screamed as the ship jumping gave me a rush of adrenaline. "Now that's what space is all about!"

While I was celebrating, Himeko looked shocked, looking outside the window.

"After all those millennia… is this what Jarilo-VI has become?" She seemed baffled as the planet she claimed was full of life seemed like a giant ball of white.

I look towards the window. "Let's go! Snow day!" I scream before running to the door…

and ejecting myself into the vacuum of space.

"..."

'Whoops?'

*******

[3rd Person Canon(?) Omake] [Shortly after rescuing Aster from the bush]

It's up to you all if u want it canon or not.

"..."

"Aster, please…"

"..."

"ASTER!" Stelle shouted while trying to grab his shoulders.

Aster stood wordlessly before sticking his hand toward Stelle's mouth to silence her. His gaze was fixed on what was in front of him.

He stood there, his eyes unblinking, his gaze fixed on the imminent threat. The Gate of Bat-ylon, a pulsating portal humming with an intense power, stood behind him. Stelle, her voice filled with desperation, tried to pull him away from the impending conflict.

"...my disciple…" Aster stated solemnly, "On my signal…run away."

"NO! YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO THIS!" Stelle's voice cracked with panic as she fought to drag him away. Her palms were pale, her grip on the back of his shirt tightening.

"PLEASE ITS NOT WORTH IT!" She screamed, tearing up as Aster stood resolute against the threat.

"Stelle... don't ever, ever give up. Stelle, Be brave. Push on. You can still end the story the way you want. Live, Stelle." Aster's voice was filled with unwavering determination.

"..."

"NOW GO STELLE!" Aster said as he unloaded his collection of truck-shaped bats at the threat.

In the brightly lit space station, Stelle closed her eyes before running away tearfully away from Aster's last stand. The air was heavy with tension; the only sound was the distant hum of Aster's Gate of Bat-ylon.

A cloud of dust and debris exploded at the impact zone as Aster narrowed his eyes at the silhouette of the threat. 

His eyes did not leave the name box hovering above it.

"..."

[Strange Plant]