Work Text:
His body collapsed against a large rock, not exactly the most comfortable place to sit, but it was about the only thing left standing within walking distance. The immediate vicinity was almost completely flattened, and it was a miracle that his flesh and blood remained mostly intact.
Mostly was the key word here. He attempted to steady himself as he fell to the ground, but his right side was lacking any measures of providing the needed support. As for why that was the case, he hadn’t quite fully registered the reason, since his body was shocked far beyond the point of numbness. What he wasn’t numb to was the sight of a blood puddle where he would expect to see his hand resting on the ground.
A glance up the side of his body provided a simple explanation as to why this was the case. He saw the burned off sleeve of his lab coat, with nothing more than a shard of bone and charred flesh where his arm should be.
A horrid sight. Any sane person would break at the realization of their own body becoming mangled in such a way. On the contrary, why should he spend the last few minutes of his life worrying about something that no longer mattered? His close friend was gone and his endeavors were a complete and utter failure, along with the rest of the experiment. He had already accepted that he’d lost everything; losing an arm was simply part of that “everything.”
There was no use in worrying about it now. Contacting Huaxu Academy for backup would send the entire place into a disorganized frenzy for what would be absolutely no reason in the end. He took a breath as deep as his weakened lungs would allow him to in an attempt to soothe away the last of the worries still lingering in his mind. As the thoughts that overran his mind faded, the pain where his arm once was gradually got more intense. Couldn’t get away with complete peace during his last minutes, it seemed. It’s what he deserved anyways, for failing to stop what should’ve been an easily avoidable catastrophe. As the gentle breeze blew past the aftermath, so did his ambitions that he once held so close to his heart.
Everything was devoid of meaning.
All that he has achieved up until now no longer held any significance to him. Tacet field research can’t save his life. Nothing could at this point. The very thing that piqued his curiosity was now his downfall. Or maybe it was his selflessness that was the root of his failures.
He took another deep breath. The pain shot throughout his body once again. It was quite the miracle as to how his body didn’t succumb to the shock of his injuries quite yet. Perhaps it had something to do with how calm he was about accepting his fate. Too calm, one may argue. One way or another, his injuries didn’t bother him. Soon, he would feel no pain, no stress, absolutely nothing.
Xiangli Yao disregarded the stinging agony in his side and used the last of his energy to look up at the night sky. The dust had long since settled and the sky was quite clear of visual pollution considering the events that had unfolded moments prior. He had yet to lose his sight, but his eyes were starting to become blurry. One star blended into another as the night sky appeared to morph into a glittery indigo blanket over his dying body.
He was starting to feel tired.
Dying alone wasn’t exactly his ideal plan of going out. At the very least, his best friend Pascar was waiting for him on the other side. That is, if he didn’t turn Yao away for dying himself. Or for not successfully prying him away from self-destruction. A tragic worst-case scenario either way.
At least, since he was alone, nobody would have to see Xiangli Yao in such a deprived state. As the stars blended together, he still hadn’t lost his sight of the moon quite yet, which would ultimately be the last glimpse of light to ever reflect in his eyes. If it were not for the moon still shining bright, his eyes would be utterly devoid of light as he slowly began to drift off to sleep.
What was once a contagious smile was nothing more than burn marks and blood. It wasn’t out of desperation or depression, but rather, peace.
His eyes were getting heavy.
It became almost impossible to differentiate one detail from another in the sky. The scorched field seemed to blend in with the stars, and the full moon was the only thing that made the land distinct from the sky.
The pain that had been stinging his body had once more faded out of his mind. Knowing that his end was minutes away, he could finally set his mind at ease. Losing his life in the name of science. There was always a nonzero chance of such happening. Maybe one of the researchers would notice an abnormality in the readings and retrieve his body at sunrise. Maybe it would be too dangerous and they wouldn’t. What happened to his body after he passed was of no concern of his.
Through the blurriness of his vision, he saw a figure clad in black riding atop a pale creature, overshadowing the moon.
It must be coming for him.
The physical form of Death was described in a multitude of ways. Some viewed it as a king that dragged the departed to the underworld. Others depicted it as a collector of souls, or a guide leading them to their final, safe resting place. Xiangli Yao could not tell if this mysterious rider was akin to a manifestation of Death or not. In his state, he was not one to judge who or what took him away after his last breath.
The pale creature’s howl was carried with the breeze. It sounded majestic, almost as if it were too cruel to call it the steed of a soul-stealer.
Maybe Death had been viewed too cruelly by others. Maybe it just wanted to help by letting anguished souls finally find their rest.
The rider descended towards him.
There was no mistaking the mysterious figure’s goal now. He spoke, but the words were not registering in Yao’s mind. Around what was left of his arm, he felt something be placed around it, perhaps as a futile attempt to limit further blood loss. The sudden jerk of whatever was being tied around his body shocked him awake slightly. He heard the voice speak to him again, only this time, he could tell that it was not a man, but rather, a woman.
Her hair was long and black, matching the garbs she was clad in, and rode an unusually white, slender steed. Before he could make out any more details, his body finally gave into exhaustion and he collapsed into her arms.
No longer could Xiangli Yao piece together what was happening around him. Death was at long last carrying him away. Away from the regrets, his failures, everything.
His eyes closed. A smile formed on his face.
The Grim Reaper is a beautiful woman... he thought.
☾⋆⁺₊
Baizhi paced. And paced. And paced. Paced. Paced. Paced. Paced. She has dealt with her fair share of anxiety attacks over the course of working as a healer. It’s to be expected. For the most part, she was rather adept at quelling them before spiraling out of control. But no deep breath was going to do her any good right now. Not even screaming out the stress would be of any help.
Yes, she was a skilled researcher. Yes, she had You’tan’s healing powers. But she had never saved a human who was that close to death before. And who knows what the frequencies could’ve done to his vulnerable body?
You’tan could tell that she was once again distressed. It tried to give her a reassuring nudge on the shoulder, but she was too on edge. Out of everyone that it could’ve been, why did it have to be him? Anyone else, it wouldn’t have been as big of a deal (relatively to her), but Yao? The incredibly sweet, adorable genius that she hardly even had a chance to speak to face to face?
Baizhi took a deep breath. She knew that she was acting rather unreasonable, even considering the situation. Nobody could see her having a breakdown in her office. Nobody but You’tan, that is, and its little eyes were filled with almost as much distress as Baizhi’s were. She scratched the Remnant Creature on its chin and patted its nose, to try and assure it despite the lack of confidence herself.
One thing that Baizhi was going to have to concern herself with was the crafting of an entirely new arm for him. Anomalies and the human flesh were her specialties, not metals and machinery. At least other researchers in the academy were specialized in such topics, but she still had to be concerned with how the arm will take to his body, if she can even properly connect the neural pathways...
Forget all of that for now. Baizhi was just grateful that he was still breathing. If she had arrived any later, then...
She didn’t want to think about that. You’tan could sense that she was becoming increasingly distressed and nudged her once again.
"You’tan...what am I going to do," she said.
You’tan let out a little howl and gestured its head in the general direction of the medical department. It was as if it was signaling for her to go see him.
"You really think I should see Yao? Now? In his current condition?"
You’tan nodded its head.
Baizhi did work in the medical department after all. She technically did have all right to be there. In fact, she probably should be with him right now. Almost knocking You’tan out of the air, she ran out of her office and made her way to where Xiangli Yao was resting.
A most unpleasant sight she was greeted with.
Three researchers, including Mortefi, surrounded the bed that Xiangli Yao was laying in. None of them moved a muscle, or spoke a single word, and the air felt stiff and eerie.
"Did something happen? Why didn’t anyone get me?" Baizhi shouted.
She pried her way in between two researchers, but she was instantly met with just as much, if not more, disbelief as shown on the others’ faces.
"He’s a resonator," one researcher said.
"He can bend metal," another said.
"He can make his own bloody arm," Mortefi said, through his teeth.
And surely enough, where his arm was previously nothing more than shattered bone and bloody flesh, was now shiny metal in the shape of an arm.
"What do you guys think?" Yao said, lifting up his metal hand to observe it for himself.
Scratch that. A working arm made of metal.
"Ehhhhhh!?" the four researchers said in unison.
"You...but....you almost bled out!" Baizhi said, in shock.
"But I didn’t," Yao said with a smile. "And I’ve scored so much valuable raw data."
"But your arm got blown off," Mortefi pointed out very matter-of-factly.
"And that didn’t end up being a big problem."
"But you almost bled out." Baizhi said.
"I’m just a little tired."
Baizhi worried for absolutely no reason at all it seemed.
It was very likely that he was downplaying the severity of his symptoms, but perhaps becoming a Resonator would account for the life suddenly returning to his body. Granted, was still understandable as to why she worried so much, with him looking well beyond the point of his last breath on the way back to Huaxu Academy.
But here he was, allegedly just a little tired after that whole ordeal. And with that same goddamn smile that made Baizhi’s heart flutter.
You’tan could sense this as it peeked over her shoulder and happily chirped in response. Baizhi pushed it back gently, but that only made Yao smile more in response. Dammit.
"Would you all be as kind to allow me a moment alone with the Baizhi, here?" Xiangli Yao requested.
A moment alone. Surely, he just means for a routine check-up.
The other researchers nodded their heads, though still appeared incredibly dumbfounded. Mortefi stomped out, still growling something in between his teeth. It wasn’t like he didn’t have strengths of his own. Perhaps Baizhi wasn’t meant to know the answer. But he wasn’t the concern right now.
"So… how are you actually feeling?" Baizhi asked him.
"Tired. But the data is safe," Yao admitted.
"Forget the data. You’re going to get yourself killed one of these days because of it. It almost did."
Yao looked at his arm, and wiggled his artificial fingers. Sure, it was well constructed and seemed usable, but it will never be the same as human flesh.
"Come here," he asked her.
Baizhi walked closer and leaned down without a second thought. He attempted to reach his metal arm up, but appeared to be struggling to do so.
Baizhi grabbed it by his wrist and rested his palm against the side of her face.
It was cold.
Yao's expression sank. He was clearly trying to retain a smile, but a sadness filled his eyes.
"...I can’t feel anything," he said.
Not surprising in the slightest.
"It would be difficult, if not impossible, to replicate the human sensation of touch through machinery without compromising performance," Baizhi said, "at least, from a doctor’s perspective."
"All’s well. I still have one working hand."
Baizhi gently let down his metal hand and picked up his other one. She again held his palm gently against the side of her face.
It was cold.
"That...that I can feel," he said. "You feel warm."
"You feel awfully cold. Are you sure that you feel okay?"
"Just tired. I already told you, Baizhi."
"You’ve lost a lot of blood. Please, just let the research sit for a little while."
Baizhi could feel his hand slipping away from her face and his fingers going limp. In a fit of panic, she held his palm firmly against the side of her face. Yao did not seem as concerned about his deteriorating strength as Baizhi was, as it was merely tiredness that filled his eyes.
"You’re looking at me like I’m about to die," he said with a soft laugh. "Believe me, you don’t have to worry about that as I’ve already been carried away by Death once."
"What do you mean? You’re right here. Breathing. And very much alive."
"Oh, but I swear on my life that the Grim Reaper was about to take me as one of her own. She was gorgeous, much to my surprise. Long, black hair… the dark dress to match… and mounted upon a most peculiar white steed."
Baizhi blinked. That was a description suspiciously close to that of her physical appearance. And she indeed took You’tan, a white Remnant Creature, to the middle of ground zero the moment she noticed abnormal readings.
"Yao," Baizhi said, "...I don’t think that was Death carrying you off."
"How can you be so certain?"
"I was the one who bought you back to the academy. That woman you described was me, and her ‘peculiar white steed’ was You’tan."
Though heavy exhaustion, Xiangli Yao manage to smile. "Ah...that certainly explains a lot."
Explains a lot? He’s just talking about how he managed to return alive, right? This had nothing to do with his perception of him and this so-called Grim Reaper, right?
"No wonder why she looked so beautiful..." he said, before letting sleep take hold.
Baizhi lowered his hand onto his chest, but held it with both of her hands. He still felt cold, barely being warmed up with her touch. It was best for Yao to be left alone to rest, allowing for him to slowly regain his strength. He put on a bright smile thought all of this, but Baizhi could only imagine how much pain he was truly repressing.
She had more than enough questions to ask Yao, but it was better to wait for him to recover more as to not overburden his already exhausted mind. With so many tests to be ran and questions to be answered, Baizhi normally wouldn’t waste a moment in doing so. In his current condition, it seemed most unwise, so she held off on contacting the others for assistance. Even then, they probably wouldn’t listen to her, and would most likely start prying without her clearance anyways.
Better for her to stay with him, just for now. Still holding his cold hand, she sat down beside where Xiangli Yao was resting. Purely for medical reasons, she kept telling herself.
Not because she could feel his fingers gently wrap around her hand in return, no, not at all.