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The smell of blood was thick in the air.
Yanking against the leather bindings, Childe squeezed his eyes shut, turned his head away. Dottore leaned above him, humming softly. His knife sliced…somewhere in Childe’s chest. He didn’t want to think about it. If he thought about it too much, then the world started spinning, his heart began to beat faster, and he didn’t have blood to lose. It pooled under him, running down his sides and dripping to the floor. Panting, Childe dug his nails into his palms.
He'd heard warnings from Arlecchino about Dottore taking in wounded children. Something from the Knave before. He didn’t like those stories, but—
The knife slipped on his ribs.
Screaming into the muzzle, Childe tasted copper.
Leaning close, Dottore began to talk.
The words were soft, almost delicate. “Just tell us what we want to know, and the pain can stop. Or don’t. I quite love anatomy, but it can be quite difficult to learn about it without getting your hands dirty.” Turning back to—he didn’t want to think about it. Gritting his teeth behind the muzzle, Childe opened his eyes. The world was blurred, tears running down the side of his face. He rasped in a breath, chest shaking. Casually, Dottore pulled out a bone saw. “I am curious, how long does it take to grow back a rib? But I’ll give you another chance.”
Setting the bone saw to the side, Dottore pulled off Childe’s muzzle. Gasping in a breath, Childe turned his head away. Dottore waited, patiently.
“We could bring your brother into it.”
“Please.” Childe whispered. Tears ran down the side of his face, dripped off his nose. Slowly, he pulled in a breath. Humming, Dottore leaned closer to him. Mouth filled with copper, Childe shuddered. He turned and met Dottore’s gaze. “Wh—what do you want to know?”
Dottore grinned wickedly.
Crossing her arms, Lumine looked out across the table at the Liyue Qixing, Neuvillette, Wriothesley, Xiao, and Zhongli.
Nearby, Keqing was leaning forward, discussing something with the Tianshu. As for Xiao and Zhongli, they were glancing at Paimon…who was unfortunately snoring away in a seat next to Lumine. They were all gathered around a large table pulled into the Palace’s main room, Ningguang sitting at the head with the other Qixing members fanning out around her. Neuvillette was sitting at the other end of the table, Wriothesley to his right and Paimon to his left. He seemed far less irritated by Paimon’s snoring than anyone else. Instead, he was looking at Zhongli like the man had offended him somehow, while Zhongli had made a point not to look in his direction at all.
Technically, Lumine was pretty sure that Xiao and Zhongli weren’t meant to be there, but they had been travelling with her and Gaming at the time when Ningguang asked for their presence as a third party. While Gaming was with his father and family, the other two had tagged along. (Though, now Lumine was wondering if she should have sent Paimon with Gaming. He had offered…) With a sigh, Lumine turned to their food, picking at some of the vegetables and wondering if she needed to shove one in Paimon’s nose to wake her up.
The meeting had been stretching on for quite some time. Crossing his arms, Xiao settled back in his seat. Looking at Lumine, he glanced at Paimon. Yellow eyes narrowed. She shook her head, rolling her eyes. If she could have signed something, she would have. Still, Paimon was—
The door was thrown open.
Everyone whipped around to look at the opened doors. Some of the Millelith were running in as well, following—
Fatui agents. Already, Ningguang was on her feet, calling out, “What is the meaning of this? What gives you the right to—” Her eyes flicked down. Suddenly, her face went cold. “What is that?”
Lumine turned. The Fatui had dragged in Childe, slinging him between two of their agents. He stumbled along, head dropped forward. Blood dripped onto the floor below him. His knees buckled as they came to a stop. “We discovered your little spy in our ranks.” The leader, a blond woman with harsh gray eyes, snapped. Gesturing to Childe, who was wheezing, she continued, “We managed to break him. Dottore quite enjoyed his work.”
Lumine’s heart thudded to a stop. Standing against the table, gripping her sword in her hand, she stared at Childe. Slowly, he raised his head, looking at her. Shaking, he leaned heavier against the man on his right.
Stepping to the side, the Fatui dropped him. One of them grabbed the back of his shirt, held him upright. His knees were buckling further, a hand pressed to his side. Red trailed from the corner of his mouth, his eyes were hazy and she could see that even from the table. They’d changed his clothes, too—he was wearing a white shirt and torn trousers, he didn’t even have shoes. Blood dripped down his left leg, joining the pool steadily growing beneath him. There was a tear through the shirt on the inside of his left hip.
“We don’t have a spy in the Fatui.” Keqing fired back, straightening her back.
“Don’t you? Then why did he know what really happened to Rex Lapis? That you lied to us about his death?”
Stiffening, Keqing growled out, “We didn’t lie.”
There was a flash of metal. The Millelith moved, Lumine and Xiao moved as well to brandish their weapons—but the Fatui yanked Childe’s head back by his hair, braced the knife at his throat. “Then why don’t we end this right now? If he’s not the Qixing’s spy, then he knows your secrets, too. If we rip his throat open then we can end this right now.”
Lumine glanced at Keqing, then Ningguang. Above her shoulder, Paimon was hovering—dead silent for once. She couldn’t say Childe was her spy, that wouldn’t save anyone—
“He’s mine.”
Everyone turned to Zhongli. With a wet, raspy cough, Childe forced out some sort of word. Maybe a name. Maybe a protest. It was too bloody to make out, though.
Stepping forward, Zhongli said, “I have a deal with the Tsarista. He belongs to me. His family as well.” He wasn’t looking at any of the Fatui. Just at Childe. “The Qixing were unaware of my actions.”
“Zhongli…” Paimon whimpered.
Without looking at her, Zhongli continued, “If you touch him, then you will go against the Tsaritsa herself. I would advise against such a thing.”
Sneering, the woman replied, “You’d want a broken spy back? What use does he have to you?”
Childe’s legs were beginning to buckle further, knees almost touching the floor. The haziness in his eyes had grown worse. We’re going to lose him. We need to get him help. She glanced back at Zhongli. Jaw tightening, Zhongli looked at the woman. His eyes sparked gold, fissures lining his skin from his fingertips to the ridges of his cheeks. “You will give him to me.” The ground shuddered beneath them. “I will not ask a second time.”
The Fatuus’ eyes widened. Suddenly, her arrogant air dissipated like the ground crumbling away in a rockslide. “Rex Lapis—” One of the Qixing breathed.
“Get. Out.” Zhongli stormed forward. When none of them moved, his face darkened. He roared, “Get OUT!”
Dropping Childe, the Fatui ran. “Go after them!” Ningguang ordered. Already, Lumine and Zhongli were moving to Childe, who hit the ground hard. “You, with the red hair! Go fetch Doctor Baizhu! Quickly!”
“Yes, Tianquan!” The Millelith replied. His footsteps faded. Then, Ningguang joined Lumine and Zhongli at Childe’s side. He shivered against the floor, curling in on himself and wheezing. There was blood soaking into his shirt, staining the white fabric like spilled wine.
“Childe.” Zhongli brushed Childe’s hair away from his eyes, voice softer now. “What happened?”
Childe’s lips formed words. He murmured something. Leaning closer, Lumine tilted her head, “’m sorry, ‘m so sorry, they had my family—” He croaked. Squeezing his eyes shut, he cried out. Gently, Ningguang hushed him.
“Maybe we should let him bleed out,” Keqing began.
Ningguang carefully pulled Childe’s shirt away. Underneath, Lumine saw blood staining his skin, dripping down his sides. His collarbones were starkly visible against his skin. “Be quiet, Keqing.”
“I’m just saying. He tried to cause damage to Liyue and Fontaine. Shouldn’t he be in a Fonatinian prison?”
Snapping his head around, Zhongli scowled at her, “Be quiet.”
Reeling back, Keqing stepped away. The other Qixing milled about anxiously.
Sharply, Zhongli looked at Xiao. “Get them out of here. Guard the door.”
“Do as he says,” Ningguang said to the Qixing, “I don’t know if we’re going to have to do surgery in here or not, but we need privacy. Keqing, that means you, too. And Adeptus Xiao, I believe Cloud Retainer has skill in healing. Do you think you would be able to fetch her for me?”
“Of course.” Xiao was gone in a flash of light. Lumine turned back to Childe.
“He doesn’t have any spinal or skull wounds that I can feel. Lumine, help me roll him onto his back. It’ll be easier to put pressure on his wounds that way.” Nodding, Lumine did as asked. Wheezing, head tilting to the side, Childe looked up at her. The little light that he still had in his eyes was gone. Blood wet his lips. Swallowing weakly, he groaned. He stared at her. Then, worryingly, his eyes rolled back in his head. Panting, mouth open, he let out another weak sound.
There was blood wetting his lips. He was limp as Ningguang, Zhongli, and Lumine pressed their hands to the wounds on his stomach. Paimon fluttered around worriedly. Blood pulsed between Lumine’s fingers, red heat flooding between them.
Baizhu arrived in a burst of shadow, Xianyun and Xiao with him. Shaking his head, Changsheng doing the same around his shoulders, he turned and hurried to Childe’s side. Xianyun stepped in as well, so Lumine moved back. She couldn’t do anything for Childe.
A low moan left Childe as Baizhu cut the blood-wetted shirt away. Underneath, there wasn’t just the slash to his left hip. There were short slices all over his arms, his ribs, his sides. Two long, bloody lines traced sideways across his body, one at his collarbones. The other was just above his hips. Both were connected by another, longer gash right down the middle of his body. Sucking in a breath, Ningguang looked away. “They vivisected him.” Xianyun murmured worriedly. Blood had started running from Childe’s nose.
“He’s bleeding internally. I believe his legs are broken as well.”
“He was barely able to stand on his own. I believe he’s been tortured.” Ningguang explained.
On the tiles, still bleeding, Childe shuddered. “Focus on me, Childe.” Zhongli whispered to him, brushing his hair away from his face. Eyes teary, blinking, Childe looked up at him. He shook again, swallowed thickly. “Focus on me.”
Taking Paimon with her, Lumine went to guard the door.
In the end, Lumine and Xiao stood with the Millelith outside the door for six hours.
It wasn’t the best operating room. By the end of it, though, Neuvillette and Wriothesley had joined their quiet vigil, and Baizhu left the Palace with Ningguang and Xianyun first. Quietly, Baizhu said, “He should be alright, but I want him back at my clinic. He’s weak and needs monitoring. If you can get me access to anyone willing to donate type O negative, then he would have a better chance, but I wouldn’t push my luck on it.”
“How is he?” Wriothesley asked, crossing his arms. Turning to him, Baizhu smiled. There were dark circles under his eyes. Around his neck, Changsheng was deep asleep.
“I’ll have to ask you not send my patient back to Fontaine’s prison. I understand that he may have done wrong, but he is in my care at this time.”
Lumine stepped in, touching Neuvillette’s arm. Turning to look at her, he held her gaze. She looked back. Then, carefully, she raised her hands. “I will protect.”
“Do you understand what that entails, Traveler?” He asked.
“I will protect.” Then, she brushed past the others, walking inside without another sign. Xiao followed her.
At some point, Childe had been moved. It was either by Zhongli or someone else. Still, he had been laid out on a small chaise, pillowed against the red velvet cushions and wrapped in bandages. Dark circles were under his eyes. He looked paler than normal, even for him. Every breath was shaky, even aided by the Anemo mask that Baizhu had pressed to his face. He didn’t look good, though. “Paimon doesn’t think he looks okay,” Paimon began.
Slowly picking her way over, Lumine reached out. She touched Zhongli’s shoulder. “He is unwell. He will not get better.” He kept his gaze on Childe’s pale face. Under the mask, his lips were tinged blue, cracked and bleeding. There was a gaunt look to his face, like he hadn’t eaten in weeks. “I told Baizhu to lie. I didn’t want him to perish surrounded by strangers.”
Lumine glanced at Childe. Something welled up in her chest. Rage. Determination. If she hadn’t already had a Vision, she was pretty sure she would have ended up with one in that moment.
Grabbing Zhongli’s shoulder tightly, she squeezed her hand until he turned to look at her. Then, she raised her hands. “Pick him up. We are going somewhere. Now.” She commanded. Looking at the Palace doors, she rasped, “Xiao.”
He appeared in a second. “Yes?” His eyes fell on Childe. They hardened. “What do you need me to do?”
Turning to him, Lumine pulled out a map, handed it over, and began to sign after pointing, “We need to go here. I’ll explain when we’re there, but it’s the only way to save him.” He nodded once.
She turned to look at Childe, who was still wheezing in Zhongli’s arms. Then, they were out of the Palace, standing on Liyue’s grassy plains. The faint smell of dried hay and grass lingered in the air. She turned, looking up at the statue of Rex Lapis. Then, she took Childe from Zhongli.
He was barely breathing as she settled him on the stone podium and matted grass just in front of the castle. Eyes fluttering, he groaned. She brushed his hair away from his face, hummed under her breath like she would have for Aether once upon a time. Then, she pressed her hand to the cold stone, feeling warmth and Geo spill over her.
The Geo lodged in her chest, and she pulled it from her heart. The pain was inconsequential. It meant little. She would handle this. As gold threads spilled from her chest to her hand, wreathing over her fingers, she opened her eyes. There was a golden-yellow haze to everything, like sunset beaming around her.
With a slow breath, she pressed that energy to Childe’s chest.
There was a sharp gasp, and Childe’s eyes snapped open. For a split second, there was Geo reflected in his eyes, and then—Lumine knelt over him. Turning his head to the side, Childe swallowed behind the Anemo mask. The bruises under his eyes and along his chest, just visible under Baizhu’s bandages, were beginning to fade. His breathing was getting easier, too.
“Easy, easy,” Zhongli murmured, brushing his hair back with a hand as he slipped closer. “Xiao. I have a favor to ask of you.”
Paimon hovered in front of Childe, who leaned back with blurry eyes. “Paimon is glad you’re okay! How do you feel?” She asked.
Swallowing, Childe opened his mouth to reply. What came out was a croak. Pulling out a water bottle, Lumine fiddled with the mask, managed to tip some into his mouth with a hand cupping the back of his neck. Swallowing gratefully, Childe closed his eyes.
“Thank—you.” He rasped out.
Looking at him, Lumine signed something to Paimon. With a nod, Paimon turned to him. “The Traveler wants Paimon to say you can thank us by staying alive. Doofus.” He turned to look at her, smiling weakly. Behind them, Xiao disappeared in a roll of dark clouds. Zhongli turned his attention back to the three of them, slipping forwards. He placed a hand over Childe’s chest. At the touch, Childe shivered once, closed his eyes.
“You will be fine.” Turning to Lumine, Zhongli added, “Thank you.”
Smiling, she returned the nod.