Work Text:
The tomb stood alone, withstanding the ever-changing tides of time. The Captain's body in decay, the once tight grip on his sword long lost to time. A pitiful fate for a soul which led armies to victory, which navigated through every situation despite the odds.
A soul which carried the burden of the fallen.
500 years of curse and rot, his body clutched the souls of his damned comrades and himself in desperation to ensure they won’t fade into nothingness. Perhaps his predicament could have been seen as a blessing and a curse, to finally rest from the constant agony-filled screams of the lost he keeps so close to his heart, to not feel the pain of his rot.
No one dared to disturb his rest. Only one mourning man entered his final resting place, to find closure in this fact.
The Regrator stood tall as he descended down the place, the men who accompanied him staying behind in silent respect and awe at his ever upkept composure.
And yet, once alone, confronted with the body of his dearest, he wept for him with no restraints.
The banker stayed for two nightfalls, going through denial. His duties be damned, no money could replace the man he had lost. His sobbing only came to a standstill at the dawn of day three as he forced himself to leave. The Captain wouldn’t want him to stay in his tomb forever. As tempting as it was to raise his blade against himself, to join his love in eternal slumber, he knew the other would only take the blame for this death as his own. So, with a final kiss to the war-beaten helmet, he left for his home once more.
•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•
The grave went ablaze in the middle of a quiet and lonely night, the burning light of the icy silver flames nearly blinding the ones with the misfortune to pass by before it started to dim. One glowing spheroid after the other slowly ascended from the entrance in a slow, yet confused manner, beaming in every colour visible to the human eye, having left behind the chains that were the corpse of their fallen leader. They circled and bounced around the open field like children, and a sharp ear would have been able to hear the sounds of tearful laughter filling the air, growing in intensity as more and more glowing souls left the tomb.
Their movements halted as the final radiant orb emerged, shining the brightest among the array of colours. Seemingly wavering, it remained still among them before it shot into the sky, followed by the rest. The brightest star among them led their way, higher and higher, to the cracks which had formed in the sky. Their path illuminated by their radiance created a deep-coloured meteor shower Teyvat had not witnessed before in its existence, and may never do so again.
Every nation, no matter how far from the events, was able to be a viewer of this spectacle, many damned to be forever unaware of its significance.
But in the deepest snow, where warmth was a concept many had forgotten, a man residing far away from the nation of war gazed into the sky as his tears fall. He knew the one that was once his solace had been freed, guiding the forgotten to their final sanctuary beyond the realm he could grasp, free of the pain that was plaguing their existence. He may never reunite with him in death. And yet he was beaming, as to love was to let go.
The false sky of their world was graced by the shine of soul-filled stars beyond its barriers, the bright spheres swayed together in a waltz as they celebrated their freedom, regaining the bodies long lost to the cataclysm of the Archon wars, to soar with their gift of flight. Countless wings fluttered in the silence that was the tranquil of the great beyond.
Capitano watched his brothers and sisters with a smile, a motion his once decayed visage was unable to create. To have a face- a body which was not a pile of rotten flesh and bones? Oh how human he felt once more, the wait to be free had been called to an end. The four wings which now adorned his spine shall forever keep him afloat, to never be bound to the mortal shackles again.
But he couldn’t feel complete as he was supposed to be. He may be freed of a world built on lies and deceit, but could he truly let go of it? Could he truly leave behind a treasure more valuable than light itself? How much time had passed since their last encounter?
To lose a soul as marvelous as the Regator’s? He could not allow such a thing to happen.
The shrieks of surprise his brethrens let out were unheard to his ears the moment he broke through the celestial cracks of the heavens. He held his people dear, he did not deny such assumptions. But they were no longer bound to the deceptive shackles of the damned earth, yet for his dove it was not the case.
His forever silenced heart spilled over with contrition. How could he not have taken him to the great above right from the start? Even if he hesitated before he led the lost to the heights without having the other by his side, he should have found a way for the banker to come along. The thick wall of clouds parted as he drove through their mass, the wind growing colder the closer his wings carried him to the land of everlasting frost. The gentle snowfall engulfed him like a silent greeting, blending into the white-feathered limbs as they landed. He did not care for the cold he felt through the fairly simple cloth his body was adorned with, his being only filled with the determination to find the cunning man he had handed his heart, his mind, his being on a silver platter, time and time again. What an honor it had been, to let go of their titles behind closed doors. A fleeting sample of an easier life they both knew was unattainable for them.
The glittery snow crunched underneath his feet with his rather gauche landing, but there was no time to care for aesthetic nor for grace. He bolted towards the door, gripping the handles of the ebony doors as he nearly tore them out of their hinges.
To his surprise he did not stand alone in the corridor. On the far end of the floor he could see, hunter's gun raised towards his head, pure hatred in the banker’s eyes which ordinarily only held a love filled gaze. The detestation in Pantalone fled as quickly as it rose as the man standing before him was recognised, the rifle plummeting out of his shaking hands, the tears threatened to fall from the man who prided himself to be ruthless and sharp. The words unspoken hung between each other, none able to form a single thought.
Until, to waste no time, they moved in sync, both rushing their path to one another. The instant the once-dead felt Pantalone’s arms encircling him it seemed all his vigor vanished from his grasp, falling to his knees with a silent cry. Capitano leaned his head towards the banker’s chest, his breathing hitching over and over again as he gripped onto the others' robes. Their teary silence carried on, was it due to sheer shock or awe at their thought impossible reunion? The answer might be unknown, even within themselves.
"My darling dove, please, speak to me... I have missed your voice in our time apart, please..."
It was unlike for the Captain to beg, much less for anyone's attention. Yet he remained kneeling before the banker, grabbing onto his body like a lifeline in a crushing embrace, his wings limply spread over the granite floors. Oh how he felt the guilt overrun him again, to have left the only one who ever truly mattered in his unbearably long life. If not for the equally desperate hands in his hair holding his head close to the Regrator’s heartbeat he feared he would be nothing more than a drowning bird in a roaring river.
"My dear, why do you feel such guilt?"
The other asked, his long fingers slowly carding through the black mess that was his beloved's hair. "As much as your departure may have shattered my soul in pieces, who am I to deny you the fulfillment of finishing your duty?"
One of Capitano’s hands, with a bit of reluctance, loosened its grip on the other’s torso in favor of shakily taking his hand into a gentle yet firm hold, caressing it with his thumb as if any roughness would break the porcelain-like skin. He slowly looked up into the face of his beloved, drinking in his feature like a droughty man in the desert. His eyes filled with tears which had been unshed before, as if to grieve how the man before him could not understand how selfish he saw his actions.
"Pantalone, you are more to me than just a colleague, more than just my partner. In my long life I only knew suffering, to hear the voices of my fallen comrades scream in agony from day to day anew. When you came into my life the shouts, even if only for a moment, have stopped. You are the most beautiful soul I have had the honor to meet, the highest one being you allowing me to stand beside you.” He took a breath, closing his eyes as the tears fell. He buried his head back into the banker's chest, his grip on him not faltering. He choked back a whimper in favour of continuing to let his words and feelings flow out of the depths of his heart.
"I was painfully aware of having to set free the fallen I have carried in me. And yet... I found myself hesitating before taking the final step. And that is because of you, my dearest."
The hand which held the Regrator’s slowly moved towards his tears-spilled face. He once more gazed up in a silent request to be given permission, to give his pulsepoint a gentle, yet slightly desperate peck once granted.
"Do you see it in your heart to forgive me for leaving you behind? To not have found a way to return to you sooner?"
The sight in his arms was heartbreaking. The stoic, proud Capitano, reduced to a grieving mess searching for forgiveness. His heart may have broken once he received the news of his beloved's passing, yet he found a comforting feeling of contentment, to have known the other was at rest after carrying the burden of a thousand men in his ill-fated soul. He had always been ready to let him go, to have him set free of the mortal chains keeping him in everlasting agony. To have him return, the rotting of his body now gone and in a glory he had never had the privilege to see. He loved him no matter how he may have looked behind that mask and armor. Nevertheless, the contrast from his rotting deteriorating body to a solid, healthy one? It felt exhilarating. The hand in the Captain's hair nudged his head up to create eye contact, but the Captain avoided his eyes, his gaze showing pure remorse. One deep inhale, and he answered the questions hanging in the air. “Your duty was above my being, there is no need to beg for forgiveness. My heart was ready to let you be free as your soul has always deserved to be. To have you return into my arms was not something I believed myself privileged to be allowed."
He leaned down to the Captain's face, leaving a kiss on his forehead. "So please, no need to feel such guilt. We now have so much time, just the two of us.”
•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•
So much time, such lie spilled from the Regrator’s lips.
Only a few moons had passed since Capitano returned through the shattered skies, the days and nights of both men filled with contentment. And yet, his heart had to cry once again, only now it was for the living. The Captain's body returned to the state he had been seen before the Archon war, now never changing as his soul no longer stood connected to Irminsul itself. But Pantalone still was bound to mortal chains, doomed to pass into the death which the winged man would never find himself in.
He was aware he would only slowly age, threading towards his end. But wasn't what they had become to one another not a concept of eternity itself? He found himself unable to accept the fate of a forever separation. If the other could return from death itself through sheer will then they could defeat the impossible odds once more. But how does one cheat death anew? His philosophizing stretched through day and night as his eyes stared towards the sunset outside his window, but no answer came to his mind.
“My dove, you are in a daze once more, what is your brilliant mind theorizing tonight?”
The arms and wings of the other engulfed his being in their feathery warmth, all the while pulling him closer to the Captain's body. A habit the other had developed quickly and, quite frankly, didn’t plan to let go of again.
“Capitano, my dear, I… have to admit, our situation, as fulfilled as it has made me feel, brings me sorrows.”
The Regrator turned in his hold to face him, a saddened expression present on his face.
“No words in Teyvat could show how grateful I am for your return. But to know we will separate once my time eventually arrives rips my heart to shreds.”
“And if I told you your departure doesn’t need to be connected to what Irminsul has planned?”
He halted momentarily. It didn’t?
“Explain. I do not care what kind of riches or morals I have to give up for it. If it means I stay by your side it is worth it all.”
The taller of the two quietly chuckled at the expected impatience of the banker. He, of course, shared an equal amount of avidity, but he would never admit to it.
“Of course.” Capitano took the Regrator’s face into his hands, determination filling his being. “But I have to insist you do not fret, as what I have to do to fulfill your desire may appear grim to most eyes.”
Pantalone nodded at his answer, accepting the reality. He took a step back as the winged embrace broke, set to pull through with the Captain's endeavors.
But his keenness faltered as the other grabbed the scapulas of his bottom wing pair, lightly tugging them at first, growing in their force until-
CRACK!
The wings fell limply to the ground, their axillaries which should have been bleeding like a lynched pig leaked faint streaks of liquid light as he gently held them up. With heaving breaths the gaze returned to the banker, his voice, while filled with softness, was showing the slight commanding tone once used for training Fatui recruitees. “Turn around.”
The instruction was followed, quickly and silently, but nervously nonetheless. Pantalone had seen his fair amount of ripped-off limbs, but to see someone do it willingly and with no sign of enduring an immense amount of physical pain was quite the other thing of unlikely- no, impossible tomfoolery.
The robes covering his back were gently pushed aside. A callous yet soft hand caressed over his shoulder blades, causing a shudder to go down his spine. The sudden heat emerging shortly after on his body interrupted the oddly enjoyable sensation from before. A gasp escaped him. Was it painful? No, not exactly, but uncomfortable nonetheless. The surging blaze went through his flesh and bones, his posterior becoming heavier and heavier the longer the Captain took to complete his work. A shaky breath fled from the Regrator’s mouth, hunched slightly to the front at the new, odd weight laying on him, the gentle hands remaining there to keep him grounded.
“Capitano, please, what have you-”
How many times had he been reduced to speechlessness during this snowsparked night? His eyes, wider than they had ever dared to open, stared back to the scene awaiting him.
The Captain, now possessing one wing pair less, shakily smiled at him, perhaps even with the slightest tint of amusement. Pantalone’s gaze followed the other’s, down to his shoulders-
And there they were.
The shining bright, ripped out feathery limbs, now attached to his own body. They still faintly leaked the golden liquid light, but he could not bring himself to care for his now ruined clothes. He barely felt the other turn his body to face him once again, taking his hands into his own cold ones.
“What do you think, my dearest dove? I believe my gift suits you quite well.”
“You- but-”
He lightly shook his head. He was of high rank for Archon's sake, he needed to get his grip on himself once more. “They are absolutely stunning, my sweet… Thank you so much, but are you certain I am worthy of such gift-”
The pleading look in Capitano’s eyes silenced every sentence which was about to be spoken. Curse him once again for having such an effect on him. He squeezed Pantalone’s hand as if to reassure him, the loving gaze staying prevalent.
“Of course you are. I refuse to leave you behind like I did during that fateful night. No one else could be more worthy than you, for I do not have anyone but you on this wretched soil of a deceitful earth left to care about. I am not requesting you to leave with me tonight, but know I will remain by your side as long as you wish for me to be.”
“I insist on departing, as quickly as we are able to.”
The silence which fell after such a request left him felt heavy, the former Harbinger’s demeanor changing. It felt sudden to him. Not unwelcome yet out of the blue.
“Are you certain Pantalone? This would be permanent, we wouldn't return again, we will be gone for good. Do you feel no desire to, perhaps… get some things done you wanted to have finished?”
“No. Similar to you, I have got no one else alive that matters. I feel no need to force myself to continue my duty for Her Majesty any longer, nor do I believe I owe anyone a farewell. I don't fear the end as long as you are with me so please, take me.”
•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•
The flight earned by mere chance and devotion does not fall easy on the untrained. The wings moved haphazardly, too quickly or too slow at intervals and struggling to gain much height. If it wasn’t for the Captain’s grip on his waist guiding him to the skies the once proud banker feared he would have crashed into the snow covered land more than he would ever like to admit.
But Capitano took his time, much to his annoyance. He didn’t speed towards the open skies, he merely soared above the quiet world they would have left behind once the sun rose again.
“My sweet, apologies for my impatience, but could we leave the grasp of this damned world just a tad bit faster? I do not need to gaze upon Snezhnayan grounds, I will not miss this wretched chunk of stone and frost.”
Taking his complaints as a command he threw his plan to give him a goodbye flight over the regions out of the window. The banker was right, there was no need to grace the soil with a final gaze at them. He adjusted his hold on Pantalone’s body, securing him against his body before he shot up through the clouds, straight forward to the damaged sky. His wings carried them, higher and higher, the great beyond becoming clearer to the eyes.
The silver flames flared up from the taller man again the closer they got, earning a yelp from the other. The arms around him held him impossibly close, illuminating more and more the closer the celestial cracks.
“Pantalone, it is time. Do not fear what you will experience the moment we surpass the borders, it will be over very soon. I will be with you all the way.”
The warning barely left the man before the banker’s vision started to blur, an array of lights quickly blocking his sight. The urge to wipe them away grew within him, but he was unable to follow through. His body stopped obeying his command, still in the Captain's embrace. A moment of panic surged through him before it came to a sudden halt. His solidified heart he had sworn carried the same cold demeanor of his homeland’s snow itself felt a freezing sensation encasing it in an iron hold, seeping into his veins, his lungs, his body. His breathing heaved the colder he grew, the only pillar of centering being the other man holding onto him like a lifeline. And as the beaming colours which obscured his vision burned out one by one, it was already over.
He awoke with a jolt, a deep breath following the action. His eyes immediately fell to Capitan’s tear-filled, yet beaming countenance. A pair of silvery shackles around Pantalone’s wrists grew visible, just for them to snap open, uselessly falling back down to the detestable piece of soil they had once called a home. The banker’s body appeared to shine in gold the second the mortal chains left his presence, the specks of light prancing along his skin as if in celebration.
Irminsul had lost its hold onto the man, he had been freed of its decisions. Freed of a destiny he had not the ability to control. He could only stare, too overwhelmed to laugh or weep at his newfound liberty.
A calloused hand on his head coaxed him back into the moment, the Captain’s forehead meeting his. Their gazes locked, but no words fell to fill the eternal silence engulfing both their beings. But none were needed anymore, they both knew of what this meant, what the other had in thought.
This fateful sundown, two stars were seen from Teyvat’s sky, illuminating the darkness in their silver and golden light. They seemed to be so far away from the mortal grounds, but oh so close to each other, as if they shared a kiss in an embrace which was meant to last beyond eternity's reach.