Chapter Text
Just one more day, March and Stelle had begged, two days before they were set to depart back to the Xianzhou Luofu. Well, March did. Stelle only stared in a way she probably thought were like puppy dog eyes. In truth, she looked more like a squinting seagull pretending to have done nothing wrong while proudly holding the food it stole from you.
Himeko laughed and agreed nonetheless. The new celebrations in Penacony were quite expansive, after all – even after a week of festivities there still seemed to be more things to look at with every turn. March kept taking pictures of the things she didn’t get to capture from their last few visits here, and Mr. Yang finally bought the animation merchandise that were sold out before.
Dan Heng himself was ready to go back to the cozy confines of the archives. Penacony in general had always been a bit too loud for him no matter how many times they visited, at least within the Sweet Dream. He didn’t have the heart to go against the others’ enjoyment of the place, though. Still, it was close to the Lunar New Year celebration back in the Luofu and they were supposed to get there after a few more stops…
The phone in his pocket vibrated.
‘Lunar New Year is still some ways away, Dan Heng, there is no need to apologize. Please enjoy yourself while you’re still there, don’t worry about me. This old man can wait :3’
… Dan Heng just really, really wanted to see Jing Yuan again.
At least he could admit that to himself now. He’d come a long way dealing with the feelings that always came whenever Jing Yuan was involved.
‘Alright. Don’t stay up too late and try not to make Qingzu mad again’
‘Haha. Yes, yes, I will try. You be careful too, my dear. I will be waiting for you.’
Dan Heng felt the heat blossoming across his cheeks as he sent an uncharacteristic heart emoji. It stayed as he pocketed his phone, his heart feeling floaty as he headed out of the train with a wave to Himeko and Pompom from the parlor car. He was supposed to look for Stelle, who had apparently gotten lost after being disoriented by a ‘lordly trash can’ (he would rather not think too deeply about that). Luckily she still had some signal, wherever she was, and she was able to contact him and a few others for help.
She didn’t seem distressed or even in a rush to be found, so he figured she was mostly fine. He still worried though, so he volunteered to help look for her. He didn’t have much to do anyway, all new documents were already transcribed and uploaded to the databank last night.
He set out to Hotel Reverie, arriving at the station with the transporters that would bring him down to the reception. Just when he was about to board, the hairs on the back of his neck rose. There felt like a metaphorical prick to his spine, a familiar feeling of him being watched. He looked around the station and froze.
It was empty.
He immediately summoned Cloud Piercer.
What was going on? He could have sworn the station was packed just a moment ago. Even when he noticed something was wrong earlier, he could still hear the noise of the crowd in spite of the late hour. Only when he looked around afterwards did it all disappear in an instant. Was it an illusion, or was he somewhere else entirely?
There was rapid movement on his periphery and he brought up his spear just in time to parry an attack from a memory zone meme. But how? He wasn’t even in the dreamscape yet!
Unless he was forcibly brought into it without his notice.
Dan Heng cursed, blocking another attack and stabbing the meme through what looked like its head. It dissolved into iridescent goo. Soon after he got rid of it, another took its place. And another, and another.
What was going on? Why here, why now? What about the other people at the station? Was he the only one brought here? If so, why him? The others; March, Stelle, Mr. Yang, were they also targeted?
That last thought had him freeze for a millisecond and he almost got sliced across the stomach for it. He dodged and paid back with a thrust and stab.
In the off-chance that he wasn’t the only one to be targeted, he had to get to the others. Even if that wasn’t the case, he still needed to warn them of this new threat. Again and again he fought the increasing number of memes with a flurry of moves and simultaneously trying to find a way out.
Then he saw an object tossed in his direction and instinctively moved to attack it, only realizing his mistake when it burst into a cloud of pungent smoke.
He was unconscious before he hit the ground and his body was snatched away before it could enter the primordial dreamscape.
___
When Dan Heng woke up, it was to darkness, and his mind was sluggishly trying to comprehend what happened. He couldn’t move, couldn’t even feel his arms with how tight they were bound. There didn’t seem to be much space to be able to move around in, either. He could feel the push of a solid surface under his feet and on the top of his head, and his knees were already pushed up.
He took a deep breath, and another, amidst the thundering of his heartbeat. Memories of another place, also dark and cramped and had him kept in chains, passed through his mind, and he had to keep telling himself he wasn’t back in there. At least he had an entire cell to himself in the Shackling Prison instead of this small box.
He thought of golden eyes, shining like twin suns that washed away the darkness; a warm smile and an even warmer pair of arms that would gladly wrap around him despite everything.
That’s right. Jing Yuan had freed him back then and did everything he could to keep it that way. He’d found his family in the Express thanks to that, and more. He just had to get out and make his way back to the train, so they could travel to where Jing Yuan was waiting for him like they initially planned.
His breathing was steadier now, and he took the opportunity to take stock of his situation. Outside the confines of the box he could hear the hum of an engine, its occasional sputters suggesting that it was either an older model or it just wasn’t maintained as it should. Indistinct voices, not too far from him, along with the faint clicks and beeps of buttons being pressed. Faint clanging and clattering of objects not properly secured or just too big for their containers. A small vehicle then if the controls and the cargo were this close to each other enough to be recognizable.
Outside whatever vehicle he was in, he could feel faint traces of water, light enough to move and float around as they passed through. Clouds, which meant he was likely on an aircraft of some kind, low enough on a planet’s atmosphere to touch the clouds.
That could work then. His main priority was getting out to reunite with everyone else. Investigating could come later. He reached for the power locked inside him and pulled. His hair grew longer, horns manifesting heavy atop his head and pushing through the top of his container. His ears elongated, and his senses heightened with every change.
Furious waters burst forth and blasted everything including his restraints to bits, roaring muffled but reverberating through his being as Dan Heng let the dragon summon surround him. There was faint screaming from his captors (would ‘transporters’ be more accurate?) beyond the wall of water, fading away swiftly to be replaced by rushing wind as they began to freefall.
Dan Heng paid it no mind, too focused on making the dragon stable enough to cushion his eventual landfall. The parts of it that flew off from the strong wind were immediately replaced by moisture from the surrounding air, repeatedly, until Dan Heng felt close enough to a winding body of water below. He steered with the intention of falling into it instead of the solid ground around it, where he could see what looked like civilization along the banks.
The collision was deafening for an instant until it wasn’t. Dan Heng sank among broken lotus roots and wooden debris, and felt exhaustion creep around the corners of his being. He could only be thankful that Vidyadhara couldn’t drown. His vision turned dark, and he was unconscious once more.
____
General Jing Yuan; the Arbiter-General of the Xianzhou Luofu, the Divine Foresight, the Dozing General himself; if one were to be given the opportunity to meet him in any scenario apart from the battlefield, his overall demeanor would be described as pleasant. Laid-back, even. If not for the ominous presence in the air around him, one likely wouldn’t even think he was a general with centuries of service under his belt.
But if one were to look at him now, after the Astral Express’ frantic message, those centuries would be evident on his face. His gold eyes, one covered in a veil of fluffy white hair, were hard and cold. His lips were set on a tense line, his jaw even more defined than usual with how hard they were clenched. One would think he was looking at a losing army instead of a long dead phone call.
Dan Heng was missing. Taken, under everyone's nose. Jing Yuan could hardly believe it but he knew the Express crew would never make such a claim in jest. Dan Heng was taken just after their last conversation, separated from the rest of the crew and outside of Jing Yuan's protection.
According to Mr. Yang, who was still rational enough to explain in detail, the initial perpetrators involved a paid-off member of the Nightingale Family and a Punklorde hacker. The Family member was detained after an investigation by the Bloodhounds while the hacker's identity was revealed after the Trailblazer asked that Stellaron Hunter for assistance. Both were swiftly interrogated, but by then Dan Heng was already long gone, off-planet in some cargo vessel and headed somewhere they couldn't trace. At least, not yet.
“General,” Fu Xuan greeted, her hologram coming to life.
“Just in time, Lady Fu.” Jing Yuan turned to fully face her from his place by the window, some of the tension easing from his face.
“I heard what happened from Qingque. While I understand how you're feeling, the Matrix of Prescience is not something to be used for personal matters. The case isn't even officially under our jurisdiction.” She sighed. “However, I don't think you care too much about that, do you?”
The corner of Jing Yuan's lips curled up. “I'm afraid I have no idea what you're referring to, Master Diviner.” At her deadpan stare, he chuckled. “Your insight has always been impressive, Lady Fu, but you are wrong about one thing this time.
“This is within our jurisdiction as followers of the Hunt. The perpetrators have admitted to taking payment from individuals of Xianzhou origin, ones who happened to be devout followers of the Abundance. For them to target a Vidyadhara, this Vidyadhara in particular…”
Fu Xuan gasped. “The Disciples of Sanctus Medicus? Again?”
“Indeed. And who knows? Perhaps Dan Heng is not the only one they've taken. To seek them out is simply a move to ensure the safety of our Xianzhou citizens, as well as fulfilling our oaths to the Reignbow Arbiter.”
“I…” Fu Xuan gaped at him for a moment before shaking her head. “Well played, General. Very well, I shall look into it to ensure these miscreants do not pose any further danger to the citizens of the Xianzhou. Perhaps I will come across their base of operations along the way.”
The general’s shoulders relaxed slightly, a small smile on his lips. “Thank you, Fu Xuan.”
“You can thank me by retiring and giving me your seat, Jing Yuan. It's about time you stepped down. The times you were forced on bed rest do not count.”
“Ah, is that so? It's not the time yet, unfortunately, but if you want another go then I could delegate everything to you for the time being.”
“Wait, what?” Fu Xuan looked alarmed. “Are you serious? What are you planning this time?”
Jing Yuan sat down behind his desk, signaling Yutie to call in Qingzu. “I shall join the Astral Express in the search and rescue of one of their members. It will not do to let down one of our greatest allies, after all.”
He dismissed her soon after, her form flickering out into particles of blue light. Qingzu, now at her station next to his desk, looked at him pointedly and handed him a folder. Inside held the profiles of potential candidates from the Cloud Knights for small planetary expeditions.
“Just in case you need backup, General.”
Jing Yuan hummed. “I don't think that's necessary, given the abilities of the Express crew. But thank you, Qingzu, please keep them on standby.”
“Understood. Please get Master Dan Heng back as soon as possible. He’s the only one who can get you to finish your paperwork on time.”
I will, Jing Yuan promised to himself, hours later when the Express has docked onto Starskiff Haven. He bid Yanqing goodbye with a ruffle of his hair and a promise to return triumphantly. He greeted Ms. Himeko and Mr. Yang’s grim faces with a solemn nod, and March 7th and Stelle’s determined ones with a smile. He let the anxious PomPom show him one of the empty rooms in the guest car, but ultimately ended up in the Archives surrounded by Dan Heng’s belongings.
I'm not losing him, he told himself, scrolling fondly through their last conversation. Not like this, not again.
There was a ping, a report of Fu Xuan’s predictions. A knock, calling for the new temporary member to the parlor car to pool information from the crew members’ many connections.
The Astral Express set off into the stars, leaving only motes of light in its wake.