Chapter Text
Crimson scars crawled on Tartaglia’s pale skin.
The scar didn’t bleed, just… cracked like canyon that split the plain. Doctor Baizhu’s herbal medicine seemed to mollify it, but never for long. So Lumine insisted that they visit Cyno, the sorcerer in Sumeru Academia who masters in medicine and divination.
Right now, the white-haired, dark skin male bent forward, tapping at Tartaglia’s wrist and murmuring something imperceptible. Lumine held her breath, and even Paimon was nervous. But Tartaglia himself was still wearing the lazy smile and watched with amusement.
Cyno straightened up. “Despite the malicious nature of the mark,” he announced with a frown, “there’s no deleterious effect it will bring.”
“So…is the mark harmful or not?” Paimon said Lumine’s confusion out loud. Cyno’s brows furrowed further and glanced at the subject at topic. “I believe this gentleman have figured; the mark was the manifestation of its cause, that is all. Yet to invalidate the cause, which is the only form of treatment the Academia offers, is not appropriate here. Hence, there’s not much I can do.”
“I apologize for the bewilderment.” his voice softened, “but leaking what is known will threaten the source of knowledge itself. Still, there’s one hint I can offer: Rummage through what you already know. Put the puzzle pieces together. You might deduce something new.”
“Take this notebook. Use it to record your knowledge, and in time, the answer would manifest itself.”
“And I wish your journey well.”
—————
Five hundred years ago, two golden meteors crossed the sky and fell at the east of the Teyvat continent, which is nowadays the oversea region of Mondstadt.
According to astrologists at Sumeru Academia, the twin meteors is a sign of “Intertwined Fate”.
— The lines written on the first page of the notebook
——————
“You’re like my sister a lot.” Tartaglia told her after they left the Academia.
“I thought all of your families have blue eyes and ginger hair?”
He chuckled, eyes filled with gentleness that she rarely saw. “You’re right, Tonia doesn’t resemble you. Yet somehow… seeing you just reminds me of her.”
Her body tensed up. “You mean you enjoyed fighting against your little sister too?” she countered.
“Haha, good one, ojou-chan! No, I would never fight against my family.” he played with a thread of her hair. “It’s just Tonia is also quiet, and she’d be stubborn when she sets her minds on something. And she would get worried about me for no good reason, like you.”
Crud, she didn’t see that one coming. “it’s a perfectly good reason because you’re never fully honest with others” — well, this is Childe they’re talking about, after all. “Luckily you’re different from Aether. Else I might make mistakes.” she blurted out after an awkward silence.
“Aw, now that stung, ojou-chan.” he laughed, but the authenticity was long gone. “Still, I have to remind you. Some past stories of mine are better left to catch dust.”
———————————
Their voyage around Monoceros Caeli had reached the midpoint. The fisherman suggested that they take a break. As a result, the boat was idling at the center of the lake, rising and falling slightly with each passing wave.
The young man with a long braid nudged at his sister. "You alright? I think we might find him this time."
"I'm not sure. The old man was essentially telling a folklore --- it could be any traveler's story glorified. Why did every Teyvat citizen we met enjoy epic stories." the girl sighed.
"Well, it is a folklore to them. Also, at least the name 'Ajax' matched with the name of the boy I oversaw in the abyss. A simple one with talent. Highly shapable."
"I don't even know why I'm looking for him. Just some vague instincts kicking in...nothing from rationale."
Nor could the transparent waters of Monoceros Caeli provide the girl with any answer. It just reflected her countenance faithfully.
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Lumine buried her face into the nape of his neck, and wrapped her limbs around his torso as if she’s holding onto a single tree amongst a flooded world.
Even with all the body heat Tartaglia was sending to her, she couldn’t help trembling. The sight of humans transforming into hillichurls right in front of her was simply too much. How could she ever unsee their contorted faces under those masks?
She spread her fingers over his back and dug in. Her inner walls clenched around his erection, like an oyster embracing its pearl. That raw, swollen sensation in her lower abdomen was the only thing that competes with those flashbacks ---
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The chief of the village — he was so kind when he picked them up from the snow! They would have frozen to death if not for the village’s campfire.
Lumine was checking the notebook about Khaenri’ah that they collected from Cyno. Tartaglia was removing bandage from his wounds. With the melting of frost magic, dark purple blood dripped on the snow and formed into ominous pattern.
“How’s everyth —— “the chief’s voice stuck in the throat as he entered the camp. She turned around only to see a body twitching and growling violently, and the next thing she knew, a Mitachurl stumped and glared at her.
She could still recognize the elderly female healer that the hydro samachurl once was as it put on its mask. The being that once sang lullabies to soothe her pain was now wavering its sticks and grumbling. Young (are they?) hilichurls yelled at their own reflections and fighting over arrowheads and slime grenades. Overwhelmed by all the hassles, curses and cries, she didn’t even realize that she was pushed onto the ground until the Mitachurl in front of her collapsed.
“Get up and FIGHT!” Tartaglia yelled at her.
They slaughtered the whole village within the next hour.
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She ground him harder and moaned the exact moment she was penetrated. Tartaglia paused moving and laid his forehead against hers. “You don’t have to hurt yourself like this.” He cooed.
“No.” She turned away and bit down his shoulder to silence him. Even her wounds from prior fights and her inside soreness added together was not enough to distract her from the anguish she felt. Now she understood why he would avoid talking about his experience in abyss. She couldn’t help but think, what if one day those curses were targeted at me?
When I meet the gaze of the Abyss, will I ever remember that I, too, was once a sentient being? That I once, too, had feelings?
Her hands were tainted with blood, and broken masks piled up at her feet. One day even the stars would fade out and hide her path. But — Tartaglia pressed a burning kiss at her collarbone — until then he’d be right here with her, the survivor of the Abyss, always anchoring her and filling her so she’s more than an empty shell.
"I know." He said hoarsely. Pyro crystalflies danced wildly in the cave inside her as she felt his throbbing. "Now hold still, ojou-chan."
So she closed her eyes and clung to him even tighter. Their cores were connected seamlessly, boiling with violence and lust, fear and attachment. She whimpered and arched herself open, meeting each of his thrust with increasing intensity. His breath became heavier and heavier, and finally bursted into a cry when they both shuddered and went still together.
She silently prayed that time would forever stop at that moment.
Lumine finally dared to open her eyes and met his gaze. The blue in his eyes winced, hardly forming into a rueful smile when it dies out again, flat and emotionless as she ever remembered.
He pecked her on the cheek. “Have some rest, ojou-chan. I’ll go cook some broth for us.”
Tartaglia made sure that they took away every last bit of food and medicine that the villagers stored.
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Traveler,
Hope this letter finds you well.
Like I once said, I hoped that you'd keep the stories told at Teyvat in your memory, maybe even pass them on one day. This letter is just to add a few tales to the archive.
You may have already heard about the recurring disturbances in Liyue. Unstable energy gathered underneath the ground and threatened to overturn the land of Liyue --- from Qingce Villiage to Wuwang Hill, from Nantianmen to Tianqiu Valley: earthquakes, mudflows, lava eruptions, all happening at an aberrant rate.
Liyue people believe that these disasters reflect the wrath of rock. Indeed, they are not wrong — except that the disasters do not stem from the will of one Geo Archeon, but the geo element itself. The primitive energy contained within element is more fundamental and powerful than any Archeon's power.
I've seen how humans rely on law and order --- the power to explain all happenings around them --- to gain sense of safety. So I’m not surprised to see a few opportunistic people pretending as adepti or messengers of the new Geo Archeon -- mostly Azhdaha or Osial -- and develop schemes in exchange of mora. Fraud and cheats rise as contracts fall.
Yet I also had to witness those who’s been honest and hardworking all their lives being fooled by fate. Some had all their goods and wealth destroyed in mudflow and went bankrupt. Others became debilitated after the earthquake. Even Wanmin Restaurant had to close at this time.
And there’s Keqing. As the Yuheng who’s directly in charge of transportation, construction and real estate management issues, she had to deal with the complaints and hassles heads-on. Since the recurring disasters, her integrity and resilience had only increased, despite the growing voice calling to impeach her for her “obsolete, misleading beliefs about contracts and Rex Lapis.”
...
Although I had foreseen the hardship that the people of Liyue had to experience, I did not expect it to arrive so soon. The bard in Mondstadt, though, said he had been practicing this for a thousand years. Practice letting go and doing nothing for your people except watching them suffer, because in due time that’s all you’re allowed to do as an Archon.
Last night as I walked past Guili Plain, I heard the calls for Rex Lapis, old and new, echoing on every inch of the earth. The calls pleaded with Rex Lapis to descend and bring them to safe heaven, as per the contract thousands of years ago. Yet even the God of Contract himself cannot revoke the ending of contracts. Heaven was no longer, and all the glaze lilies had withered amongst the desert of sorrow and anguish — except for this bloom.
(Light blue flower petals attached to the letter)
This is the last glaze lily that carries the wishes of Liyue people. Keep it with you, traveler, as a goodbye gift from Liyue.
My greetings to little Paimon and that Snezhnaya rascal as well. It is relieving to know that they are still able to accompany you further. In due time, they, too, have stories to tell you.
Farewell,
Zhongli
—————
Tartaglia did not bother her while she was reading the letter, although he approached the moment she finished. “Got any news, Mr. Zhongli? Maybe you’d remind him that he still owes me a sparring?”
Weariness suddenly rose in Lumine’s heart. These days, his light-hearted, innocent expression was like a shield she couldn’t break. He’s been using it to deflect any questionings from her, be it about the Tsaritsa or the Fatui.
She worried that she’s running out of time, and Zhongli’s letter only confirmed this. Yet she still couldn’t load off this stress onto Tartaglia’s shoulder, despite they had been traveling together for months.
His loyalty lies at the Tsaritsa’s feet, after all. Shouldn’t be too surprised if it turns out the Fatui kidnapped my brother. She thought bitterly.
“Ojou-chan?” his smile wavered and he tried to touch her cheek. She dodged, of course. “I’m checking on Paimon. She’s probably feeling sea sick again.”
And they are entering the border of Snezhnaya, his homeland, tomorrow.