insurmountable | you know i'm the type / type to risk my life, not afraid to die

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you know i'm the type / type to risk my life, not afraid to die

[Call it crazy, call it morbid curiosity, call it insane. A craving for battle, a craving to test his skills against the powerhouses of the Abyss, he follows a few Heralds into the portal they'd left behind as they whisked themselves away from the camp they'd set up for their next assault in Teyvat. He couldn't leave the Abyss without aid, of course, but if he could find his master once again, he'd be able to return to Teyvat. And maybe get a good sparring match out of her while he was at it. Either way, he's got his sights set on those Heralds who thought they were alone, announcing himself behind them as he brandishes his weapons with glee.

They look surprised. Good. That was the point.

The battle rages on for some time. They prove to be incredible foes, taking several on at once. One dies, cut down by the Harbinger- the others wounded badly. But what Childe hadn't counted on was that they'd get reinforcements so soon, and with more numbers, they manage to overpower him. The Foul Legacy Transformation still proves to be a large burden on his body, and with waning strength, he finds himself captured and chained. The remaining Heralds drag him to an incredible hollowed out ruin, one that looks like the very architecture of the ancient dynasty from Khaenri'ah itself. Finally, he's thrown to the ground in a room that clearly was made for some sort of royalty, his knees hitting the concrete hard.

His head bowed, he coughs up blood, knowing he'd really messed up this time. This isn't good, and he has no way out of it. His body is wrecked. It's taking all his strength just to keep from passing out, as he looks up and sees the leader of the Abyss...]

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Hey, that was uncalled for.

[She's really trying to deflect, isn't she. He continues to follow her deeper into the factory, passing by ruin guards he'd already destroyed enough parts of so it didn't activate and try to kill anyone. Other ruin guards look like they've been completely destroyed, that he'd fought weeks before.]

I don't think I'm wrong in my thinking. You showed me an undeserving amount of compassion, and don't think I'm about to forget it.

[He doesn't say for what reasons he won't forget it, he doesn't say what he thinks. He'll let her guess. Will she regret being nice to him forever? Probably.]

[ she stops in her tracks and whirls at him, annoyance simmering beneath her skin ever since he's started to follow her. ]

One gesture of kindness, and it has you wagging your tail, seemingly begging for more.

[ what happened to his spite, his scathing remarks at her? what happened to calling her a bad sister to aether, a villain for wanting to destroy the gods? and here she thought she was doing him a favour for returning his vision, doing aether a favour for releasing his friend. ]

What makes you think that my actions are not disingenuous and calculative? That they're not meant to ensnare you, turn you away from your Archon?

[ because it's clearly working in her favour—even if she doesn't want it to. she's done with him, unwilling to deal with his unrelenting stubbornness. ] Just go away.

[He doesn't let her cold shoulder turn him away, only smirking and stopping right in front of her. He's not unused to people who act this way, though their actions are usually a little less sympathetic than what he's seen from her.]

You could be leading me right by the nose down a path that ends up in my betrayal to Her Majesty the Tsaritsa.

[He says it as a thought, as if that would ever happen. But sure, he accepts that might be the plan here. But he knows himself well enough that he doubts there's much that could turn him.]

But you can think whatever you want. I'm not some dog that you can just feed a treat to and thinking I'm forever loyal. But...

[He tilts his head at her, still wearing that same smirk.]

I'm very intrigued with you; I'm starting to lose track of how many times you could have killed me by now. So has it really only been one gesture?

[Why is that?]

[ his face is so irritating to look at that she wonders how her twin brother can stand it. aether must've lost his mind, allowing this man to tag along with him during his journey across teyvat. so a part of her thinks that he mustn't have a choice either, the way she doesn't have a choice with him stalking her like this. ]

Your interest will get you killed one day, [ lumine murmurs, averting her gaze from him. ] And I'm sure Aether ...

[ whatever she wants to say next, she stops, pressing her lips together. there's no point in telling him more, is there? she starts walking once more, feeling even more annoyed. ]

... Leave. I'm sure you have better things to do than follow me around.

[He really doesn't have that much better of stuff to do at the current moment, with things in Liyue being as calm as they were. But she doesn't need to know that.

But, what was that about Aether?]

I can tell that you miss him.

[Yeah, he did call her a bad sister and all. But, he knows what happened five hundred years ago- and from that time in the Abyss, he gets why she's doing what she's doing, even if he doesn't agree with it.]

I do see him from time to time. Since you don't see him for whatever reasons you have, do you have anything you'd like passed along?

[ aether's name sends a pang of loneliness lancing through her, but she says nothing further. a part of her wonders if he resents her for telling him to continue his journey across teyvat. after all, they could've just left this world upon reuniting, needing only each other to go on. that's how it's always been with them.

but her reports say otherwise, her brother seemingly in high spirits despite the obstacles he's met. he's clearly well, still searching for ... ]

What would I need to do to have you leave me alone?

[ honestly, doesn't he get exhausted by her deflections of his questions? she certainly does. ]

[Ah...looks like he might of hit on something there. That's an interesting look on her face. But hey, that's a concept he can understand, quite well actually.]

Don't go dismissing me quite yet. I can't really let you roam about in here unattended, as much as asking you to fight me would be the one thing that might encourage me to do as you ask.

[If only they'd been somewhere else, that didn't require his attention.]

So I'm afraid you're stuck with me for the time being. We could make the most of it, you know. I'm really not a bad guy.

[ she doesn't see the reason why she can't walk around this factory unattended, especially when she's more than capable of taking care of herself and handling whatever else is lurking around the corner. the mere fact that he wants to fight her proves her point enough, but he somehow has concluded that she needs his company to make it through this place. ]

That's quite rich, coming from the Harbinger who decided to wake an ancient god and drown an entire city.

[ not a bad guy? who is he kidding? she's at least not claiming what she's not, unlike him who clearly needs to work on his skills at convincing people. ]

I have no interest in "making the most" of things with you.

You got me there, [he laughs, though there's an underlying irritation at the whole thing. Set up to fail, having to take all of the blame for it, unacceptable. He'll still get even with Zhongli for that, somehow...]

But surely you understand, yes? Doing what it takes to accomplish the mission set before you means taking actions you may not necessarily agree with.

[He really didn't want to do that. But he thought he had to.]

Don't you make those kinds of decisions on the daily?

[He imagines so; somehow, he's not sure if she'd want to just kill off innocent people either, if being around Aether is any indication.]

[ lumping her in with him. that's even more irritating than having her undertaking get foiled in front of her. ]

And yet I still don't claim myself as a saint despite making those decisions.

[ those were difficult choices, choices that others shouldn't make. others who won't be able to deal with the burden of its consequences. lumine would rather that her hands are the ones stained with blood than anyone else's, willing to carry this war she started against celestia by herself. ]

[He spreads his hands out, mock offended.]

Now, when did I say anything about being a saint? Just because I'm a bad guy doesn't mean I'm a bad guy, you know.

[He thinks for a second.]

Hmmmm...well, since it seems I've made you a little perturbed with me, why don't we have a little sparring session? Exercise usually helps get the tension out, and we've got plenty of room in here. You'd get the chance to punch me right in my face, if you wanted.

You make less and less sense with every passing minute.

[ ... is this normal for any harbingers? it doesn't seem so, based on the reports she's received. the others seem to be a little less incoherent than this one; could just he hit his head far too many times getting into brawls.

lumine supposes it wouldn't hurt to indulge him, also feeling a little irritated by his presence and the fact that he's still following her around. a sparring session isn't something she's unused to, just something she hasn't done in a while. she doesn't stop walking, however, even as she considers his suggestions, instead lifting a hand in front of her just as a thoughtful expression crosses her face.

tendrils of abyssal energy slowly creep up behind him like living vines, slithering on the ground. keep yapping, childe, and she'll have your ankles ensnared and this sparring match over in a second. ]

...Oh. Is that how it is.

[His battle instinct is pretty sharp, and it's not as if he wouldn't notice those tendrils behind him. He looks to her while he walks alongside her, body now tense, and ready to move at a split second's notice.]

Is that a yes then?

[His eyes shine brightly, hoping so. Even if she tries to ensnare him, he'll do his best to dodge and fight her anyway.]

[ she doesn't want to get his hopes up too much, does she?

lumine finally stops her tracks in the middle of another room, littered with ruin guards, many of which he's yet to deactivate. a mistake on his part, really, to try and challenge her in a place containing ancient technology from khaenri'ah. she might not even need to pull out her sword for this, she thinks as she watches several orbs light up in the dimly-lit hall like lanterns during liyue's festivals. ]

Think what you will, [ she says as she shifts her attention towards one of the ruin guards lumbering towards them, the mechanical giant kneeling in front of her and offering her a hand to climb onto. ]

But I'll let you play with them first.

[ she turns her head away as a cluster of missiles fire at him. ]

[His eyes immediately widen. One after one, the ruin guards activate once someone enters their vicinity, and he has to take a step back as she climbs into the hand of one of them that offers her a ride. Incredible that she can control them, and he hadn't even seen how she managed to do it.

His mind now races on how to deal with this sudden problem. There's a lot, and he can see two graders stand up from the back as well. He can't let her out of his sight, but it's going to take at least a minute to clear all this up. He's got to work fast, he can't lose her in here.

Good thing he's not injured this time.]

Don't miss the show, now.

[He says as the missiles rocket towards him. He moves, lightning sparking all around him as he moves from one opponent to the next, until an explosion of dark energy throws some of the ruin guards backwards as he transforms. No time is wasted in his assault, machine after machine being ripped apart. The graders both aim their lasers at him, firing constant beams of energy that he has to dodge while destroying more guards just to move across the room.

Seconds tick by as he fights, machines getting slammed into walls, joints being destroyed, until he finally reaches the graders who manage to hit him with a full blast of their beam. He won't let that stop him however, taking the damage but pushing through it as his blades fly through the air to lodge themselves into the eyes of each respective machine- they fall finally, as he breathes heavily from the effort of fighting and from the burden of the transformation.

He looks behind him, to see if she'd escaped in the fray. He feels as if he'd taken too long.]

[ an entire minute is more than enough for the ruin guard to take her out of the room and move her to another section of the factory. slow as they may seem while walking, they can cover more ground with their size. but that's just a ploy, lumine slipping down from his mechanical hand to go down a different path while the automaton continues its way through the factory.

let childe follow that lumbering piece of metal once he's done fighting while she finally gets to explore this place and find the other sentinel that's still intact.

it doesn't take her long to find another room, hidden behind a panel of sliding doors, where several machines seem to be slumbering, littering the floor or hanging from the ceiling. none of them stir in her presence, as if realising who it was that's come to visit them. her eyes dart around in the dimly-lit hall, finding a hint of glowing red-gold. ]

... And here I thought the reports were mistaken.

[ buried under the wreckage of other robots, an intact sentinel orb still attached to an unresponsive body. she summons tendrils of abyss energy once more, cutting away its pieces and prying it from the pile. ]

[He has to hurry.

His body is wrecked, but he can't afford the speed loss of returning to his original form, so he has to push it a little farther.

He moves down the hallways, teleporting from one point to another. He sees the ruin guard, but no Lumine- so he's got to turn around. There was a fork in the road at some point, and he finally darts down the correct path and finally finds that hidden room. He hadn't known it was here to begin with, not being the Harbinger that had built the factory, but he bets she's in here.

But it seems he's too late. She's already got what she came for.]

N̠͉͜g̢̘͓h͍̝-͓̦̙!

[A circle of electro energy appears under the eye, and he's trying to summon electro blades to fall upon it to destroy it, but he's tired. He isn't moving as fast now, and every second is crucial to see if he can stop her before she can get away with the piece of machinery.]

[ she senses his presence, heavy and nauseating. it's difficult not to, abyss energy emanating from his body in waves and the scent of ozone in the air. lumine knows what's about to happen next, and she's unwilling to allow her plans to go to waste again, working harder on the unmoving sentinel.

but just as his blades form on top of it, poised to destroy it once more, she glances at him over her shoulder. ]

You're too late.

[ a portal opens beneath the eye, the orb dropping into the void of the abyss, and closes immediately the moment it's disappeared from sight. she then jumps away to avoid the lightning strikes, landing back on the ground gently. ]

[No...

He'd failed, angry that he wasn't able to destroy the ruin guards faster, angry that his body was so torn apart from the transformation that he was unable to keep her from getting the thing she'd came for. He takes a few steps into the room, rage emanating from him.]

U͍̫̠n̙͔͜a͔̘b̝͚̼l͍̦e̝̞͜ t͍͓͜o̼̙ h̫̝͖a͙͓n̼͜͜d̞̝̪l̡̘͙e̡̦̪ m͕͍͉e͖͍̻,̺͙͓ s̝͖͖o̘̼͔ y̻͔̘o͉͎u̠̝͖ h͎̠a̫͖d͉͖ ț̺͔o̢̼̟ s͇̪i̞̟͎c̢̞͜ y͙̼͉o͍͚̻u̡̼r̫̟͚ m̙͜a̦̙͓c̺̪h̫̞͜i͓̦̟n̦͔͜e̡͔͜s͇̠͜ o̘̘͜n̡͎͖ m̡͕͚e͖̠͍ i̡͍͓n̼͚̘s͉̻̦t͎̘͕e̟̞͜a̠̝̞d͉͉͎?͔̼͓ S̘͓̙p̝̠͜i̝͔͜n̺̫̠e̙̦͙l̠̪͜e̪̝͖s̢͔̼s͚̟͜.

[But he doesn't get very far. He stumbles once, going down to his knees. The transformation dissipates, flicking away into the air until all that's left is himself, breathing heavily.]

Ngh...

[He's not in a good position again, and he knows it. She has no reason to be nice to him again, especially after he'd destroyed the first core she'd been after earlier. He begins to struggle to get to his feet; he can't be caught down like this...]

[ he doesn't pose a threat to her, not even in his transformation. which is why lumine remains fixed on the spot, simply watching him as he returns to his human form. it's taken a huge toll on him, that much is clear to her, and she's more than certain that he's just shaved off a few years from his life. all in exchange for power ...

it would be so easy for her to kill him right there and then. a flick of her wrist, her sword sharp enough to cut through flesh and bone, and it would be over. but she makes no move to take his life, waving a hand instead to summon a portal beneath his form. ]

Ley lines, [ she leans in to whisper in his ear as she watches the void of the abyss slowly swallow him like quicksand. ] That's the secret to the power you seek.

[ and if he feels something barely there, like a momentary tickle against his cheek ... well, does it really matter what occurred in that millisecond? especially when she starts to walk away, her herald welcoming her from another portal a few feet away. ]

Say hello to my brother for me.

[He's almost to his feet when suddenly his leg shutters and sinks, surprising him. Looking down, he can see the familiar markings of an abyss portal under him, and his legs are slowly being encased by it. He tries to pull himself out, but finds he has no footing to do so. All he can do is stand there, sinking into the floor.

He grimaces. This is really bad now, he has no idea where she's sending him. All he can do is shoot her a glare as she walks over to him, until she whispers that kernel of knowledge into his ear. His eyes widen...why did she just tell him that?

What catches him even further off guard is what she does after. He stares at her bewildered, at a complete loss for words. His cheeks color with the faintest pink, still angry, confused and baffled all at the same time. The darkness swallows him, those last words ringing in his ears as he falls through the portal, falling for who knows how long until it finally opens on the other side and dumps him right in front of Aether.

He lands with a loud thud, right on his back, crying out in pain. He has to lie there for a moment, as his hand comes up to find his cheek, ignoring Aether's disturbed cries to give a brief thought as to what just happened, before he sits up to have to explain everything to Aether...

Archons, is he in Inazuma?]

[ look, lumine doesn't know where she's dropped him off. but she's always kept one nearby aether for certain, unpredictable circumstances. because while she's practically sent her twin off to continue his journey chasing after her, that doesn't mean she won't keep tabs on how he is, where he is, how he's progressing.

if only she'd known it would be in inazuma ... well, it works well to her advantage, in a way. no harbingers to chase after her while she does her work in liyue, unraveling some of the mysteries lying within its ruins. she's certainly riled him up and he won't take that lying down, a part of her expecting him to show up and challenge her again because of what she's done. and while she'd rather have him leave her alone, still ...

she presses her lips together, walking through the portal into the familiar structure of the palace, glancing at the mage who's received the sentinel's eye. it's still operable, it seems, but they'll need time to extract the information they need from it. ]

We have more than enough time. See to it that it gets done.

[ for now, she supposes she can walk around liyue in peace for the meantime. perhaps even visit the harbour while she's at it. ]

[It's several weeks before Childe can get back to Liyue. Even as a Snezhnayan diplomat, the Tri-Commission didn't take it lightly that someone as powerful as the Eleventh Harbinger had just been dropped right into Inazuma City without their knowledge. All the conflict and confusion the Fatui had caused put him in a spot of trouble, so he has to do a little lying to be able to get out. It's a headache.

Thankfully, the story he weaves about battling monsters from the Abyss and how they'd pulled a fast one on him could be supported by Aether, because it wasn't completely a lie, but it wasn't the truth either- and he somehow manages to protect himself and Lumine's identity all in one breath. He thanks Aether for collaborating his story, being a witness to the portal he'd fallen though, and also thankful that the traveler had some weight now in Inazuma after having the Vision Hunt Decree lifted.

It works out, barely.

At least he gets to spend some time with Aether, promising him he'd try to see him again sometime soon in the future, without telling him of what the Fatui had planned next in Inazuma. But Childe can't stay- he is deported as soon as all the paperwork is done, and he gets on the first boat back to Liyue with something in hand.

The air is fresh and the city looks as grand as ever when he finally arrives, having faced down the storm that surrounds Inazuma. After stopping at Northland Bank for some time, he goes back out to relax and try to enjoy himself after the stress of having missed so much back here in Liyue. That's when he spots a certain gold-haired woman enjoying the sights herself.

The audacity.

Childe wastes no time catching up to her, and this time he makes sure he approaches with people around. Not a crowd, but enough people that if she did something, everyone would notice.]

Hey, fancy seeing you here, [He says lightly, with a hint of annoyance to his voice.] I didn't think enjoying city life would really be your thing.

[ she's not sightseeing, mind you; just because she's around the harbour doesn't mean she's there as tourist. for one thing, her face is far too conspicuous, far too similar with aether's that anyone who takes a second glance at her would immediately know that she's the sister he's looking for. for another, she wanted to see this city that's been ceded by its god, if celestia has intervened in any way.

besides, lumine didn't think he'd be back so soon. after all, even with the end of inazuma's civil war, things are still quite tense within its borders, the diplomatic ties between snezhnaya and the shogunate strained from the other harbingers' previous actions.

which is why she's momentarily surprised when he suddenly accosts her in the middle of the street, stopping in her tracks. the annoyance in his tone is, at the very least, something she expected. ]

It was enjoyable until I saw your face. [ she tries to sidestep him, averting her gaze from his expression. ] Quite a shame, really.

[He's not letting her sidestep him, not quite yet. They can leave this spot eventually, but he's very shocked to see her here and he's not entirely happy about it.]

What are you doing here, [he whispers.] I know you wouldn't show up somewhere for no reason at all. Liyue Harbor has nothing for you, so why show your face when there are so many missing person posters up for people to identify you by?

[His eyes shift to indicate one of the very posters he's talking about hanging up on a wall.]

The whole city is going to recognize you.

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