Honkai: Star Rail — Kamen Rider!

The sun dipped below the horizon, casting amber rays across the desolate wasteland.

Vroom… Vroom…

Across the arid plains echoed the hum of an old-fashioned motorcycle engine, kicking up clouds of crimson dust behind its speeding wheels.

But anyone glancing at the riders would be startled—for atop the bike were two young girls, one especially notorious throughout the galaxy.

She was none other than Silver Wolf, a Stellaron Hunter, with a bounty of fifty-one billion credits placed by the Interastral Peace Corporation.

With slim arms gripping the handles, Silver Wolf raced the oversized motorcycle at breakneck speed through the wilderness.

"So cool! Riding across a western wasteland at sunset is something even the best games can't replicate!" Silver Wolf exclaimed gleefully, feeling the vibrations surge up her arms.

Nothing compared to the real sensation—games were pretty, but reality? Reality had soul. A pity this planet lacked old-fashioned revolvers, or she'd have already dressed for the part.

"Um, Silver Wolf… could you slow down?" pleaded the silver-haired girl seated behind her.

Her name was Firefly—perhaps forgettable—but if you called her by another name, none would fail to recognize her. She was Molten Knight Sam, another of the famed four Stellaron Hunters.

"Aw, come on," Silver Wolf replied cheerfully. "We finally got ourselves to a classic wasteland planet. If we don't live out this wild-west sunset fantasy now, who knows when we'll get another chance?"

Firefly sighed softly, giving in to one of her rare friends. Yet, her gaze soon drifted toward the high-tech container secured by her side.

As Stellaron Hunters, their reason for coming here was obvious:

The Stellaron hidden deep within the planet.

Yet they had arrived too late; civilization here had nearly been wiped out by the Stellaron's corruption.

"Silver Wolf… What do you think a Stellaron really is to a civilization?" Firefly asked, voice tinged with quiet curiosity.

Why do such destructive things even exist in this universe?

Silver Wolf adjusted her sunglasses. "Hmm… If you ask me, it's like gambling for a buff in a game. Win, and you get an unbelievably powerful boost. Lose, and you end up like this world here."

Firefly's gaze swept across the ruined landscape around them.

"But most of the cases we've seen ended in failure…"

"Just unlucky, I guess," Silver Wolf shrugged lightly. "Still, some lucky soul could always strike gold—just look at the planet with the Jepella Brotherhood."

On that world, a Stellaron had neutralized the planet's chaotic magnetic field, allowing life to thrive above.

"But…" Firefly pressed a hand gently against her chest. "What if someone actually succeeded?"

"And what's that got to do with us?" Silver Wolf asked, mildly puzzled. "Instead, shouldn't you be more curious about that Stellaron shipment that vanished four centuries ago from the IPC?"

"After all, even Elio personally said, 'Don't bother investigating further.' Now that's a mystery worth digging into."

At Silver Wolf's words, Firefly's heart suddenly thumped painfully. She clutched at her chest instinctively—not from illness, but from a strange, resonant sensation, as if something intimately linked to her had stirred.

What is this feeling...?

---

Meanwhile, Hoshigaki Sora's heart still pounded violently, adrenaline coursing through him as he faced the figure in front.

A woman with pure white hair stood opposite him, clad in form-fitting armor that covered vital areas. But none of that mattered—what troubled him was the brief twitch of her finger he'd just witnessed within this fully-frozen world.

Was that an illusion? Sora doubted himself momentarily.

But recalling her earlier manipulation of [Heavy Acceleration]—identical to his own—made him wary. He'd nearly become her "companion," whatever that truly meant.

A quick glance confirmed Asatsuba and Robin staring dumbfoundedly at where he had just stood. Clearly, Titania's sudden appearance hadn't gone unnoticed by them.

A battle here will endanger them both.

Neither Asatsuba nor Robin wore their Fyrefly or protective armor now. Deciding swiftly, Sora grabbed Titania tightly around her waist, leaped out the window, and raced into the distance.

Raindrops, suspended mid-air by the frozen atmosphere, shattered as a streak of golden light crashed through.

Holding Titania, Sora soon felt her limbs shifting slowly.

It wasn't my imagination!

Titania truly could move within this frozen field!

Questions raced through Sora's mind. Even the Iron Cavalry soldiers were frozen solid. Why, then, could their progenitor defy this immobilization?

He halted abruptly at the city's outskirts as Titania's struggle intensified. Her fists began to batter his back relentlessly.

Thud! Thud!

Slow yet devastating punches struck him. Each blow felt heavy enough to flatten a normal human instantly, pain welling within him as blood rose bitterly in his throat.

Forced to let go, Sora hurled Titania into the earth below.

Crash!

A deep trench gouged through the ground as Titania landed, giving Sora precious seconds to catch his breath.

But soon, Titania rose, slow yet unstoppable, eyes tilted curiously, staring intently at him.

Then, with a powerful kick, she launched herself toward him.

Boom!

The ground beneath her shattered explosively, debris freezing instantly mid-flight as she advanced.

Just then, a streak of crimson flames rushed to Sora's side.

"What's going on?" Hotaru demanded urgently. "Who's she?"

She had sensed something amiss from outside the hospital room, drawn instinctively by the strange figure beneath the sun. Struck by the uncanny similarity between their appearances, Hotaru wondered if the woman belonged to her species.

But Sora's next words made her freeze in silent shock.

"Titania, the origin of your genes."

Titania—Empress of the Iron Cavalry she once served, and the source of their senseless march toward death on the battlefield.

They had followed her orders unquestioningly, sacrificing themselves against the Swarm.

Only after countless comrades had fallen did Hotaru learn the bitter truth: the empire was long gone, their queen merely a puppet sending them to slaughter.

Now this woman, this orchestrator of their deaths, stood alive before her?

Rage replaced Hotaru's former loyalty, her breathing harsh as painful memories flooded back. Images of broken comrades, bodies so mangled they mixed with the insects' remains, haunted her endlessly.

And here stood the culprit behind every tragedy.

"You…!" Hotaru roared furiously, surging forward amidst blazing flames.

Unfazed, Titania pivoted impossibly mid-air, aiming a slow but deadly punch straight at Hotaru.

Sora dashed forward desperately to intercept—but Titania lifted her hand, and the greenery along her earlier trench instantly morphed into countless hands, grabbing viciously at him.

Trapped, Sora activated the bracelet on his wrist, violet energy flashing brilliantly.

'[Come On!]'

'[Medic!]'

Golden tendrils erupted from his back, spinning protectively around him and shredding the hands effortlessly. Freed, he charged once more toward Titania.

[Why?]

Titania's question echoed within their minds clearly.

"Why?" Hotaru spat bitterly, flames blazing fiercely. "Because you're the root of all suffering!"

Faces of fallen friends flashed vividly through her mind, each death tied to the queen's orders.

"He's my friend. You—you're the enemy!"

Had his bracelet not intervened, Sora realized grimly, he'd have already become a genetic clone under Titania's forced transformation.

No sympathy remained for Titania now.

Together, Sora and Hotaru attacked fiercely.

'[Hissatsu]!'

'[Full Throttle]!'

'[Heart]!'

Hotaru's blazing fist threatened to incinerate Titania, while Sora's kick flashed golden, moments away from impact.

Yet facing their combined strike, Titania did nothing—frozen in place, lost in echoes filling her mind.

She lost her companion. She was alone once more.

Loneliness engulfed her utterly, thrusting her back to the moment of her creation—utterly solitary.

In this suffocating solitude, she glimpsed a distant figure, shattered and bleeding golden blood dripping onto her body…

Deep beneath, the Stellaron suddenly erupted with radiant power, sending a golden beam bursting skyward, enveloping Titania instantly.

At the farthest edge of the galaxy, a body sealed in amber quivered faintly. Imperceptible to instruments, yet resonating clearly through the cosmos.

All swarms rampaging across the galaxy turned as one, converging toward a single point.

Far away, a beautiful Aeon opened her eyes sadly, mourning softly:

"The beating wings that return—is it truly you, Tayzzyronth, source of all disharmony…?"

She grieved quietly, sorrowfully, anticipating the Swarm's impending resurgence across the galaxy.

Who now could halt its advance? Who could silence its beating wings once more?