Chapter Text
Cyno was not one for parties or politics, but for the chance of peace, he must endure both. The Akademiya were untrustworthy people, spinning words into webs so one could never know which way was up. They constantly beat around the bush but also the bush was on fire though they assured you it wasn’t. Yes, Cyno would rather not deal with people like that, though he was quite good at spotting them and navigating such conversational mazes because of his affinity for Judgment. That didn’t make him all-knowing however, no that was the Akadamiya’s job- they were quite vocal about it.
The Akademiya was crafted into and around a singular massive tree within the forest, Sumeru City sprawled around its roots much like hungering plants surrounding an oasis. The tree itself towered up as far as the catacombs of the desert temples traveled down, casting its shadow over the rest of the forests.
He will admit, the land was beautiful. The flora was robust here, vibrant to an almost violent degree. As much as the desert felt like it sucked the life out of everything, here it felt like life was strangling itself.
It made him anxious. Something was wrong with this place. Something as precious as life should not feel so… deadly.
But with the Akademiya’s Sages in charge, of course something was wrong. The sniveling weasels felt much like the flora, suffocating any and all in their path with complicated rules and permits just for existing. Their power was absolute, he could see it in the people he observed on the way to this ‘meeting’ for peace. He saw market stands, their wares all neat and tidy, with rarely any variation in quality. The sages controlled the markets, what was allowed to be sold and bought. Even more unnerving about the market was the lack of culture, there were no bards, no music or dancers, no entertainment. Control the knowledge, control the people.
But here Cyno was, attempting to prevent war. War would never be a good thing for the citizens of their nations, but it’s not quite up to them when their leaders have only things to gain. Cyno just wanted to keep his people safe, they were people and held a right to autonomy and free trade. The Akademiyademia in their ‘great wisdom’ decided the desert people were lesser and cut off any supply they had to their lush forests and ports and even barred them from the trade market. The desert was harsh enough that the ‘great sages’ of Sumeru decided it wasn’t harsh enough. Cyno didn’t even want their guarded trove of approved books and knowledge when the desert had plenty of their own and all in free trade.
They cited history, as proof of their superiority and need to further silence the desert people they had already forsaken. For decades the desert kept to itself just as the forest did, but it’s in the nature of life to consume.
In all honesty, Cyno had no quarrel with Sumeru City, much less its people who were only fed specific information. The Sages had such tight control over even the simplest of knowledge, making their people stupid and easily manipulated. Judging them was pointless, just as with a little child who could not know what evil was. Besides, it was the Sages who poisoned them in the first place, the Sages who wanted war for no other reason than to win.
Sumeru (as a true whole, decades of quiet animosity towards each other do not nullify their identity. Sumeru was the desert and the forests- Cyno could not forget.) would not gain anything except death, which is why it confused Cyno to no end why the Sages felt the need for conflict with them. They point to history and events long before they were born, creating privilege out of nothing. Cyno felt more like they were an impertinent teenager, whining and stamping feet for permission they were not granted.
A teenager Cyno now had to deal with, because this teenager had armies and would consume the desert people by sheer numbers alone. Though it wasn’t much that the desert didn’t have an army, it was that the desert was their defense. Cyno would not allow his people to die on forest grounds, though if the forest people came to them they wouldn’t have to do much, the desert would take them easily enough. Still, it would be so much needless death, that is what he wanted to avoid. The people of Sumeru City were misguided, they did not deserve to die for their leader’s misplaced pride.
Cyno would personally rather deal with an actual teenager than this petty mess. He was probably the youngest one here, yet these Sages boast wisdom and knowledge to put anyone to shame.
Wisdom and knowledge do not equal maturity, Cyno mused to himself as he watched with arms folded as the ‘party’ wore on.
The room was full of sages and scholars, all here to rub elbows with those they consider less than themselves to put themselves on an even higher pedestal. They were simple cogs in a machine, a system of complicated rules and hierarchy completely fabricated for themselves that ultimately achieved nothing. They were just people, like anyone else, these embellishments of intelligence only served to make them look more like fools to Cyno.
However, the longer this ‘party’ went on, the more Cyno felt the fool.
He was here for peace talks, they had invited him personally. This was no war meeting, there were no talks of peace treaties, of all the posturing and boasting of knowledge in the room he found none that cited any upcoming war or even simple conflict with the desert. The Akademiya did not want peace. They wanted to waste his time.
Cyno, in his General uniform- a stark difference between all the scholars in their whites and soft blues and greens, had mingled at first, attempting to find those who would have the authority he needed to establish those peace talks while he still held his thread of hope. He was talked at by many who had nothing worthwhile to say, thinking themselves important enough to convince a ‘foreigner’ of whatever they found interesting. He was a foreigner, but not to Sumeru. He was truly baffled by their ignorance.
He found a corner to stand in, observe, and scan for those he could speak to instead of whatever party this was hosted. Though he did see one scholar who looked just as annoyed by this party as he was, but the tall grey-haired man had left. He hadn’t looked much like a scholar though, Cyno had taken note that his clothes were green and dark grey if not black, none of which any scholar Cyno had seen wore. Perhaps he was a different type of scholar, no matter, he was not of any use to Cyno as it was. Cyno needed the Grand Sage.
With an inaudible sigh, he slipped around the main clusters of high-brow speakers, inwardly rolling his eyes at the sweet nothings they spoke of as if they had any honor at all. He made his way to the tables of food provided, snacks all laid out and available to eat. Another insult, they so lavishly laid food out for anyone as long as they subscribed to the fabricated hierarchy the Sages created for the express purpose of control.
He had barely begun to look over his choices when a Sage called out to him.
“Ah! General Cyno!” Poisoned glee dripped from the man’s voice, and Cyno turned to see the Grand Sage himself sitting at his ‘desk’. It was a throne, Cyno had seen plenty to recognize one. Gods were supposed to sit there, not mortals playing at it.
“Grand Sage Azar.” Cyno greeted cooly.
“Enjoying yourself?” The Grand Sage asked, gesturing lazily to the party.
Cyno considered his options and decided he might as well be a little honest. “I find little progress in standing around. But if you are referring to if the event is enjoyable I can say it suffices.” For them.
The Grand Sage took his detachment to the party well in hand, probably already knew Cyno would not enjoy such an event. Cyno was here for peace, the Sages were not.
“If it is progress you desire, then I’m sure I can provide a more engaging conversation.” The Sage said. Cyno disliked the look in his eye, he was planning something. And no doubt he was, which irritated him because he had no choice but to move forward to find out.
“And what might that be?” Cyno prompted, eyes narrowed. Judgment came, but he still didn’t know what he didn’t know. Manipulators love to talk without saying anything at all. Cyno couldn’t help but feel mocked.
Grand Sage Azar leaned over to him, all the image of a lounging king effortlessly displaying his power. “Have you heard of the Valuka Shuna?”
The General blinked, though it was unexpected he did hesitate for such a sensitive topic. “I have.”
“They were companions to the Scarlet King were they not?” The Grand Sage continued as if speaking of such sacred people were nothing more than the morning weather. “Fur pure as snow, bright as the sun that shines on your kingdom of sand- or before it was sand.”
He ignored Azar’s tone, clearly trying to use his so coveted ‘knowledge’ against him. Knowledge that was not so regulated in the desert. Everyone knew of the Valuka Shuna. They did not speak of them often out of respect, and when they did it was with reverence. Reverence the Sage openly mocked.
Cyno did not respond, as it was rude to speak of the race that had long died out. The Valuka Shuna were strange and powerful, connected much closer to the gods than mortals were -similar to Liyue’s adepti, but they retained as much mortality as normal people. They died and passed on just as everyone else does. It was because of respect that the desert people spoke little about the once-desert-dwelling foxes. They were sacred, the last remanence of a lost kingdom. Their ancestors, their people.
“They didn’t stay in the desert though, did they?” The Sage led on darkly. The pit in Cyno’s stomach continued to drop. This man was about to defile something sacred on purpose. Probably to get a raise out of him. If he is truly about to weaponize the desert's sacred people against them, well, it would be remiss of Cyno to disappoint. “The Dendro Archon so graciously gave them shelter here in the forest, it turned their fur green as the grass.”
Cyno knew of such facts. It was the forest that took their Valuka Shuna away. Cyno harbored no ill will towards the Dendro Archon, which he knew to be frighteningly young at the time (which was centuries ago now) and he could hardly be upset with anyone who gave a Valuka Shuna shelter. No, he was upset with the forest because the foxes never returned. The foxes died in the forest, disappearing over time into its undergrowth, lost in the writhing abundance of life that choked out anything else.
The desert may be harsh, it may attempt to kill you with every passing moment, but it is fair. The desert does not coddle, it does not care for its inhabitants, but its inhabitants have the spark to fight to survive anyway. The one thing the Akademiya boasts is the one thing ultimately necessary for not just surviving but living in the desert; knowledge. An unknowledgeable person in the desert would die to a great many things, and it would be fair. Pride was cut down by the desert, eroded by sand and time. For every one correct decision, there are five more wrong decisions that could end your life. Pride has no place in the metal being hammered down and molten into a new shape, just as the dunes shift with the tide of the wind. Nature will make one bow, one way or another.
The Akademiya has forsaken nature, they mock it with their home in the great tree and their ‘akasha‘ system, believing themselves better. Pride that would have been snuffed out in the desert was left to flourish here, poisoning everything. Poisoning the Valuka Shuna, who could not survive in such an environment. Like the god bonded to Cyno’s soul, the Valuka Shuna were too godly for such pride, the plague humans created wars over.
Like the one he was trying to stop now.
“I am aware.” Cyno finally said, “The Valuka Shuna are sacred for me and my people, we do not speak of them so blatantly.” It was both a chastisement and an opportunity, for what purpose does the Grand Sage bring up the Valuka Shuna?
The Grand Sage regarded him quietly, amber eyes sharp and considering. Then the Sage stood. “Come. I wish to show you something.”
Cyno continued to have a bad feeling about this but could do nothing but follow. Grand Sage Azar led him to the elevator in the middle of the room, gesturing to a guard as they were lowered down. Leaving the party apparently was no big deal to the Sage, and Cyno was not surprised nobody noticed their exit- too busy on their personal soap boxes.
The descent was quiet, the gentle hum of the elevator did little for the atmosphere except keep it from being deadly silent. However, they passed the main floor, the house of Daena it was called, the great library of the Akademiya. It was no surprise that the tight hold the Akademiya had on the books of their people greatly disturbed him. Truth and Justice could be muddled without proper knowledge of right and wrong. It made him anxious in a sense, the idea of an entire people dumb to the fact they might not even know what truth is. Now, they were going below it.
The air grew colder as they descended, the lights hidden in ornate plant-like architecture seemed to dim and the walls themselves got darker, stained with something like dirt. Cyno started to rethink following the Grand sage to a secondary secluded location. He was not afraid of the Sage himself, as he was elderly and probably couldn’t lift even the lightest of swords. But the Akademiyademia was known for letting others do their dirty work, the Sage himself would never sully his own hands. Cyno was afraid of the unknown, but fear was a tool he wielded himself more often than not. He wasn’t unarmed, he could summon his polearm at any time and his electro Vision was a comfortable weight at his back.
The elevator finally came to a stop, slowly unveiling the deepest floor of the tree, it had to be considering all the roots breaking through the walls and flooring. The elevator was gated however, with iron bars keeping them away from the ruined room.
“What is this?” Cyno asked, turning to Grand Sage Azar.
“I want to show you something important.” The Sage reiterated, and by now Cyno knew it was to get on his nerves.
The bars surrounding the elevator slid up, allowing them to enter the somewhat abandoned basement of the Akademiya. Cyno followed Azar with a silent huff, eyes darting from side to side in case of an ambush. Something was definitely wrong here, he could feel it in his soul.
The Sage led him around the room, staying close to the elevator where the damage from the roots was the least. This room must have been some deeper archive, there were still some books and scattered papers strewn about between rubble, splintered bookshelves, and great tree roots. (And how obvious the Akademiya treats their precious ‘knowledge’, only picking and choosing and leaving the rest to rot) Whatever it used to be, it was not anymore.
They came upon new bars, these thicker and more permanent, yet newer in the fact the rubble seemed to be cleared for its placement. What made Cyno’s heart stop, was the figure chained within the prison.
The Grand Sage Azar stopped in front of the bars, a smirk on his face and eyes glittering with greed. “The Valuka Shuna are not quite gone as you think, and they are not yours anymore.”
Cyno felt frozen to the ground, heart beating loudly in his ears. In front of him was a Valuka Shuna, the mere fact made him want to kneel, to praise the gods and archons themselves for this opportunity. However, the state of the Valuka Shuna made him want to do the opposite.
The Valuka Shuna was kneeling on the ground, tattered fabrics covering them that could barely be considered clothes. Their arms were spread and angled behind them, chained taut to the walls. They were leaning forward heavily, head bowed with a third chain dangling from their neck that led to the floor. Pulled in two directions, the chain only slack enough to give relief to one direction or the other, keeping the prisoner in a constant state of tension and pain. Their dark bushy tail was matted and dusty, hair similarly disheveled. Their ears were pinned down and backward, not a single twitch.
Cyno was speechless, he couldn’t figure out what to say first.
How dare you. He wanted to shout.
Release them. He longed to demand.
“What have you done.” He whispered in horror.
“The Valuka Shuna belong to us now.” The Grand Sage Azar said, overzealous pride drenching his every word and even his person.
A sin.
This, all of this, was a sin, many sins.
The Valuka Shuna twitched, chains rattling. They peeked up through dark hair, a startling piercing gaze of cool amber and glinting green, unnatural and exotic. Then the Valuka Shuna snarled. Their nose wrinkled and they flashed their teeth at the Sage, their previously still tail now twitching and trashing. The fox attempted to lunge at them, only to be held back by the chains on his wrists. He saw a flash of pain on the fox’s face before he snarled again, ears still pinned and eyes wild.
Wild with fear.
“No,” Cyno said, hand already flying, grabbing the Sage’s front collar and slamming him against the cage wall. “You do not control anything.” He snarled to the man. “I came here to keep the peace, you came here to start a war. You will win nothing but the weight of your own sins. You have defiled something sacred, a life you should be protecting, a life you should have cherished and been grateful to even be in the presence of.”
“ You should be grateful I let you see it.” The Sage spat, apparently unconcerned with being pinned against the wall by the wildly upset general. “It was hard to come by, and certainly living better here than where it was.”
Cyno growled and threw the man to the ground, summoning his polearm as he leveled it at the Grand Sage Azar. “ That is a person in a cage. ”
Azar only smiled at him, cruel and twisted. “Ah, so now you want to change your mind about peace talks?”
Cyno was disgusted by this man.
“If I must.” He said coldly, “You won’t live to see it.”
Purple overtook his vision, electricity sparking around him as he lunged forward, the god of Anubis’s claws sinking into the man’s throat. “See you in H*ll Grand Sage Azar.” He whispered to the bulging eyes of the dying man who was struggling weakly and gurgling on his own blood.
Cyno watched the light die from his eyes, satisfaction curling in his soul as a sinner’s weight fell from this world onto the next. Good. He will certainly reap his rewards for a life spent in pride.
He yanked his electric claws from the corpse’s throat, stepping back and turning to look at the victim of this terrible crime.
The Valuka Shuna was no longer snarling and trying to fight, instead fear had properly overtaken the fox. With his full attention on the Valuka Shauna, Cyno could see they were most likely male. He was trying to pull himself away, only to be stopped by the chain bolting his neck to the floor. The jerk on the fox’s neck made Cyno wince, whimpers of pain and fear falling from the Valuka Shauna’s lips. Bare feet slid uselessly across the ground, bushy tail tucked tightly under him and ears flat.
Then came the pain in his soul. The Valuka Shuna was afraid of him.
Objectively this made sense, he just killed his captor right in front of him and had turned his attention to the only other
target
person in the room, but it still stung like a scorpion strike to the heart.
Cyno didn’t bother attempting to open the cage with any sort of key, he doubted The Grand Sage would keep it on his person. He didn’t need a key anyway. He reached forward and dug his claws into the iron walls then wrenched it away. The Valuka Shuna yelped and ducked uselessly, succeeding in only yanking his neck awkwardly again. Cyno bent the metal even more out of the way so he had a clear path.
Standing in his newly created doorway, Anubis fled from physical manifestation. His claws flitted away, the glow of the eyes on his headdress dimmed and electricity stopped arcing over his skin like raindrops. Cyno noted Anubis’ absence, the god had dealt the necessary justice, however Cyno’s work was not done.
Cyno approached the fox slowly with his staff pointed away, he paused when the trapped Valuka Shuna flinched at his sudden closeness. He again ducked his head to hide behind a scruffy curtain of dark hair. Though the dim lighting of the cell made his hair seem black, slim strands of vibrant green split the darkness framing the fox’s face.
Cyno knelt, planting his staff into the ground and bowing his head. This great being deserved much more than his simple respect, but he could only do so much if the Valuka Shuna thought he was there to harm.
“I will not hurt you,” Cyno promised, though he felt it was obvious. Thinking back to the last minute or so, the Valuka Shuna should know by his words and actions that he at the very least did not agree to his treatment by the Sages.
The Valuka Shuna was shuddering, a tremble shaking the whole fox’s body. “Please don’t.”
His voice was small, quick, and panicked. Pleading for no reason at all. Cyno would not hurt him.
“Whatever it is you do not wish, I will not do it.” Cyno declared. Then considered himself. “May I release you?”
The fox sucked in a tense breath, quiet for a moment before nodding with a quiet, “Please.”
Cyno nodded and stood, shifting his heavy polearm towards the fox’s left. He slashed through the chains, sparks flying where the electricity met the metal. The broken chains clanged against the ground and the Valuka Shuna whimpered and tucked his free hand close with a full-body flinch. Well, mostly free, there was still the manacle tight around his wrist but Cyno couldn’t do much about that yet.
Cyno moved to the other side and repeated his actions, the fox still flinching and whimpering at his freed limbs. Having been strained for who knows how long in that position, Cyno could imagine the pain of relief. Once again he settled into kneeling before the Valuka Shuna, reaching for the final chain. He had to be careful here, he could not cut the chains too close to the Valuka Shuna’s neck. Even if he were to leave a few links, some of the broken chains might pierce him. So Cyno chopped the chain near the connection to the floor, upset that it would leave a foot or two of chains hanging from the fox’s neck. The Valuka Shuna flinched once more as he was finally freed.
With his newfound freedom, the fox skittered backward to the wall of rubble and roots. Hunched low and shivering with fear, the fox was ever the image of his namesake.
Cyno was frankly confused. “I still won’t hurt you.”
The Valuka Shuna’s tail flicked, his voice still whispering but suddenly fanged with seething rage. “I don’t care how nice the cage is, I’m not yours.”
Cyno blinked, taken back. Did… did the Valuka Shuna really believe Cyno killed the Sage just to have him for his own? His soul hurt once more, realizing the depth of the situation was much larger and more complicated than he thought. How many times has the fox changed hands for him to assume people would kill each other just to own him ?
“I do not own you,” Cyno said, realizing he was rather unequipped to comfort someone. His job as judge and executioner (as a war general) did not often need that skill and if it did it was typically a brief comfort of words to the afflicted after he goes after the sinner. He was not used to… calming someone down. “In the desert where I am from, owning people is against the moral codes we set as a society. People found owning anyone are quickly persecuted. I had thought the same here. Clearly, I should have put less faith in them if they are willing to chain a Valuka Shuna-”
“My name is Tighnari.” The fox interrupted him, offense dripping from his tone. Then he huffed, tail flicking in irritation again. “They don’t have much issue with owning objects.”
But Cyno was confused once again. “…But you are a person?”
“No.” Tighnari hissed with disdain, “a Valuka Shuna is not a person.”
Cyno once again felt taken back. How many times has Tighnari heard such a thing, then have had it been proved in action to say it so factually?
“Then they lied.” Cyno said curtly, “I knew the Akademiya’s leash on knowledge would ruin them. I am sorry their ignorance has hurt you.”
Tighnari’s eyes finally flicked towards him, his sharp gaze surprisingly wide. “You really aren’t from Sumeru, are you?”
Cyno shook his head. “I am not from Sumeru City, though the desert is still part of Sumeru as a whole. My people have a respect for the nature of Teyvat, your people are part of that. We view your people just as sacred as the gods themselves, though just slightly more mortal. We had thought your species had died off here in the forest. As heinous as your situation has been, I am glad to see you alive.”
Tighnari’s tail twitched angrily and he muttered something under his breath that Cyno didn’t catch.
Cyno, feeling wrong-footed, tried to progress somewhere.
“We should leave.” He said, standing up to take a few steps toward the cage’s opening. “You do not belong here in a cage.”
The Valuka Shuna stayed on the far side of the cage, watching him as he walked out of the broken bars. Cyno made sure to step away from the opening, not wanting the man to feel trapped. After a few moments of tense silence and frozen stares, Cyno shifted to look away, trying to ease the pressure in the room. He was rewarded with the sound of movement from Tighanri, who he could see finally leaving the cage out of the corner of his eye.
However Tighanri paused at the feet of the dead Sage, ears perked forward and staring.
Cyno only saw the fox’s eyes for a brief moment as he stared at the corpse, but he saw something sharp and vindictive. He opened his mouth to say something along the lines of ‘he can’t hurt you now’ or ‘he is reaping the consequences of his actions’ in an attempt to be soothing, but he was stunned silent as the fox leaped onto the corpse with an animalistic shriek.
Cyno was frozen in surprise for a moment, watching Tighnari crouch on top of the corpse and rifle through its clothes.
“Tighnari.” Cyno finally spoke, not wanting to cross the already soured Valuka Shuna, but he couldn’t in good conscience let him mangle an already dead man. “Tighnari you can’t-“
The Valuka Shauna gasped, holding up a palm-sized orb in a metal casing, glowing green and pulsing in the fox’s hand.
That’s… a Vision? A Dendro Vision. Cyno didn’t know the Grand Sage had been a Vision holder.
“B*stard.” Tighnari hissed at the corpse before shoving himself to his feet and stalking away, only to pause and flinch at the sight of Cyno in front of him- like he’d forgotten.
Cyno looked between the Vision, the corpse, and Tighnari, and realized something very important. The Sage was dead, yet the Vision still glowed, alive with someone's ambitions . Tighnari scowled at him, turning away and tucking the Vision, his Vision, close to his chest.
“You’ll have to pry it from my cold dead body if you want it.” Tighnari snarled, tail flicking dangerously and ears pinned once more. “You’ll have to suffer the great hardship of your precious Valuka Shuna owning something instead of you owning it .”
Cyno couldn’t possibly take this personally- in fact, he was quite glad. Tighnari was angry and had every right to be, Cyno was just the only one around to take that anger out on. Cyno did not mind if it meant the fox felt better after pushing for his autonomy.
However, there was one thing Cyno found great issue within his statement.
“You are not an ‘it’,” Cyno said. Though less barbed, he said it just as seriously as Tighnari had fought for his Vision. “Your Vision is yours. If anyone tries to take it from you, they will have to answer to me- if you leave anything left of them yourself that is.”
Tighnari was effectively stunned. His eyes widened, tail freezing behind him and ears ever so slightly lifting from where they were pinned.
Good, he understood then. Cyno grunted and turned, ready to leave this place filled with sin. Not just the basement, but the library, the Akademiya; the whole of Sumeru City. With the Grand Sage dead there would be no peace talks, Cyno must regroup with his people to prepare for the fallout.