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Cyno held the crying girl in his arms, making sure he wasn't creating any discomfort for her as he allowed her to pour out tears born from severe regret and guilt.
He was never one to be good with words, so he did not speak until she did, stroking her lush green hair to assure her that he wasn't mad at her.
Things weren't supposed to be like this, they weren't supposed to happen in the first place. But they did, and he was powerless to stop it.
And while he may be helpless to stop it at first, he will prevent the end results from being produced.
He had arrived at the Grand Bazaar after escorting the Eremites into Sumeru City, finding Alhaitham already there and they silently agreed to wait for the others to arrive before they begin to brief on what happened with their side of the plan.
He never expected to find Collei was with them, alongside the scholar she sometimes spoke about.
She was being held in the arms of the Traveler, holding her like a fragile egg. Bandages were wrapped around her stomach, her face buried into their cape as she let out occasional muffled sobs. Dehya was carrying the scholar, and Paimon was observing everything with great concern.
Before they could elaborate further on why the two of them were here, Nilou arrived and allowed them to use the backstage of Zubayr Theater to let them rest.
Once they let Collei and the scholar have a nice, brief rest, everyone else gathered for a meeting.
"I'm assuming you have a good reason for bringing the Forest Watcher and a scholar here?" Alhaitham asked. "Something must've gone wrong, isn't there?"
"You could say that." Paimon had a solemn expression on her face as she, Dehya and the Traveler took turns explaining the story from start to finish.
By the time they were done, Cyno was mad. He didn't make it obvious, but he was boiling with anger. He wanted to tear the Fatui limb from limb, wanted them to feel the weight of their sins, to face justice that they rightfully deserved.
Alongside the anger was a stab of guilt and worry. And horror.
"Did the Doctor take him to Snezhnaya?" Cyno demanded, staring at the ground to mask his emotions, his hands clenched into fists. Dread had begun to pool in his stomach about this possibility. In a far away nation, there was no way they could get there in time, no way to protect him, save him.
"Luckily, no." The dread did not completely dissipate from the relief he felt. The Traveler was just as mad as he was, judging by their tone. "We managed to find traces and clues that suggests that he's still in Sumeru, in the city to be precise."
"But why?" Cyno asked. He didn't know why he asked that question, or why he sounded so aggressive. "Why take him to a safe place in Snezhnaya? Somewhere we can't easily track him down?" The Doctor left Sumeru, yet he was seen in Gandharva Ville. Why would he leave Tighnari in the Sages' clutches?
He looked up at the group again, finding that everyone was staring at him with varying degrees of concern. He knew he was glaring at all of them, for reasons that aren't their fault, yet he couldn't stop himself from looking at them the way he looks at criminals.
"I suspect it has something to do with the Sages' plan." Alhaitham said, far too calmly. "However, why would they want a Forest Ranger to be a step in that plan?"
It finally clicked in his mind.
"The spirit." Cyno blurted out. "They want to use the spirit."
"Spirit?" Dehya looked surprised. "What are you talking about?"
Cyno took in a deep breath before recounting everything he knows from the past. The Archon Residue Experiments, the sealing process, and the consequences if the seal was broken.
Truthfully speaking, Cyno thought of Tighnari to be a resilient person for enduring so much and choosing to press on.
He knew the Fatui would stop at nothing to remove the seal. It was robust, but there was no guarantee that it would be able to withstand everything thrown at it. Knowing that the Doctor had left Sumeru was a relief, but the Fatui are still dangerous even without their Harbingers.
When he finished, everyone had different reactions.
Alhaitham looked to be deep in thought. The Traveler was trying to keep it together. Paimon was covering her mouth, shocked. Dehya was clenching her hands, angry. Nilou looked devastated that something so horrible had happened to someone in Sumeru.
"Those Sages..." Dehya hissed. "The hell is wrong with them? First they abandoned their Archon and now this?"
"What are we going to do?" Nilou's voice had dropped to a whisper. "I...I want to save both of them but..."
"I believe there's a way to incorporate another rescue into the plan." Alhaitham spoke up, getting everyone's attention.
"There is?" Paimon was hopeful again.
"As far as I know, the Akademiya's research labs are all open to students, and thus wouldn't be good places to perform experiments on unlucky subjects." Alhaitham began. "A secret workshop has to be where they would create their new god, however there is another possibility of where he could be." He looked at the Traveler and Paimon. "Confinement."
"So you mean we also have to save Tighnari?" Paimon was shocked. "But how are we going to do that? We're not going to be transferred into the same cell as him, and we also have to save Nahida too!"
"There is...another candidate for the rescue. However, I am reluctant since she's clearly not in the best condition."
"Collei's injured! You can't expect her to perform a rescue mission!" Paimon balked.
"She is persistent." Cyno said. "And I know her well. I believe she will find a way to join this plan even if we refuse." He knew she would feel intense guilt for this. For breaking a promise, even though it wasn't her fault. "Still, I must ask that she is given a task that doesn't require her to be extremely active. In addition to her wound, she is cursed with Eleazar that may flare up at any given time."
They exchanged ideas and arguments for about ten minutes or so, before finally settling on a good additional segment of their original plan. They broke away after that to take a breather, and Cyno went to check on Collei, who was looking somber.
"Collei." Cyno called her, and she gasped as she looked up, the guilt that was already painting her expression increasing tenfold.
"Cyno..." Collei sounded fragile, shaken, on the verge of breaking down. It almost scared him to see her like this.
The closest he's seen her to letting tears flow was when she told him about the Fatui's first attempt to take back Tighnari.
"Are you alright?" Cyno sat down by her side, looking at the bandages that covered her lightning related wound, a bottle of medicine beside her, recently taken it seems.
Collei stared at him for a few seconds before muttering, "... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
Cyno barely had any time to respond before she began a tangent of apologies full of sorrow and regrets. "I should've been more vigilant. I should've come back to Gandharva Ville or stayed there in the first place- I just let him get- get taken like that... I'm so sorry."
"I'm not mad at you." How could he? If she was there, he doubts that she could do much either way.
Maybe if he checked Gandharva Ville that day, he could've prevented it.
"You should be. I'm... I'm..."
"Collei. It's the Fatui's fault. Stop blaming yourself." Cyno mumbled, holding her close and allowing her to make herself vulnerable. It felt wrong to see her this way, but at the same time, it was relieving to see her allowing herself to be emotional in front of someone else. Someone she trusted.
Something else was igniting inside of him, the need to protect her too beginning to spark. Seeing her like this made him think of the Fatui, and what they had done to people he considers as close associates.
He wanted them all to be at his mercy.
He sat there patiently waiting for her to run out of tears, waiting for when she's ready to be strong again.
Soon, that moment came. Collei's tears reduced to the occasional sniffle he heard when he saw her again.
Once he's certain she can comprehend what he'll tell her next, he spoke.
"Would you like to take part in a plan?"
"Huh?" Collei looked up, puffy eyes widening as much as they could.
"We're going to get Tighnari back. And as long as you promise to take care of yourself and not push yourself too far, you can join."
A silence was formed between them, simultaneously comfortable and uncomfortable before it was broken by Collei giving a response.
"Okay...oh and Cyno?"
"Hmm?"
"Trust your own senses and experiences."