A warning for this chapter: Like stated Rape isn't shown, however there will be a moment where it may be a little uncomfortable as it's leading up to rape and a rather graphic death scene.

If this makes you uncomfortable then skip from: "She stopped responding." and come back at: "Lumine was one step closer to freedom."

Lumine ached. Her whole body hurt from every which way. When she tried to sit up she could only hiss in pain. "Paimon?…" She muttered, gods, even her throat hurt. She put her hand to her throat in response and grimaced uncomfortably. Her voice didn't sound like hers, it was hoarse and cracked. "Paimon?" Despite this, Lumine tried again to call out to her friend.

No response.

The hairs on the back of Lumine's neck started to prickle.

'Something happened to me…' There was a little spark in the back of her mind. "Paimon?" She tried for a third time to call out to her dear friend. When she didn't get a response this time, Lumine threw the covers off of herself.

'These aren't my clothes…' Her mind felt sluggish and it didn't help that her vision swam with dizziness. Still, she knew her own clothing and…

'My clothes were torn.'

Lumine gritted her teeth as an image flashed in her mind. The straps of her dress being cut with a sword- She slapped her hand to her mouth like she had said something she wasn't supposed to. 'Where am I?' She decided to quickly take a look around in an attempt to keep her thoughts, and memories, hidden away for a little bit longer.

It took Lumine a few minutes as she didn't recognize the room with all of the flowers littering the floor and tables surrounding her, but she was in the infirmary. The infirmary in Mondstadt.

'I was in Liyue-' There was another flash of memory that interrupted her thoughts suddenly. Only this one was a lot more vivid.

"-You're saying Qiqi is in there?" Paimon inquired as she turned to face the teenager named 'Dahlia'. The name was fake, Lumine knew this much, but it wasn't her place to pry. They all stood in front of a two story home that looked freshly built, like, Lumine was sure she didn't see this house here last time she went to Wuwang hill, then again, she doesn't go to Wuwang hill too often.

Still, it worried Lumine to see the girl so frail and skinny. Her cheeks sullen inwards and her eyes baggy, like she was always exhausted. Lumine made up her mind long ago, after Qiqi was recovered she'd give this girl another meal. Maybe something less heavy than Golden Crab as she threw it up earlier…

"Hey, if you knew Qiqi was in here, why didn't you get her out yourself?"

"Paimon." Lumine sighed out as she crossed her arms over her chest. Lumine then pulled on Paimon's ear. "She's clearly scared."

"Ow! Meanie!" Paimon pouted as she rubbed her, now sore, ear. "Just you wait-!" She stomped her foot in the air threateningly. "-When you're asleep, Paimon is going to pull on your nose!"

"Try it." Lumine grinned at Paimon before turning back to Dahlia. "Just stay here alright?" Lumine asked Dahlia in a soft voice. She then summoned Festering Desire into her hands. "I can handle this on my own-" She never got to finish her sentence as an arrow lodged itself into her shoulder.

Lumine's vision went blurry as tears started to fall down her face. She tried to blink them away, but if anything that made the tears come faster. She didn't sob or scream, she just sat there as tears fell. "P-...Paimon?" She knew it was hopeless, Paimon wouldn't come no matter how many times she called.

'It was an ambush...' Her stomach churned and she felt like she was going to vomit, but still, there was no denying it. She fell for an ambush, plain and simple. "At least I got Qiqi out of that situation…" Lumine brought her arm up and wiped her tears away with a sniffle. "Now-" She swung her legs over the side of the bed. "-To get Paimon!" Lumine pushed herself off of the bed, but with no warning her knees buckled from her weight and she collapsed to the cold ground.

Lumine groaned in pain as her stomach gave another unpleasant turn. She tiredly rested her head against the floor and shut her eyes. Another memory suddenly invaded her head.

"She stopped responding." A treasure hoarder huffed as he puffed on his pipe. Lumine could see them, two of them, just standing there, watching her. She just felt numb. How the hell can she come back from this?

Is this her life now? To be used and abused again and again? Stripped of her pride, dignity and clothes…

Lumine tried to fight, to struggle, kick with her legs, but they just tied those down. When she tried to use her anemo power they shoved arrows in her hand so deep that the shaft was halfway in. Of course she had cried when it happened the first time, even the second time, but they didn't stop. Again, and again, and again…

She had no more tears in her anymore. She just had one thing on her mind: Survive by any means necessary. She felt like she was just wasting energy if she kept fighting. So, Lumine kept quiet and stopped fighting it.

They thought she had gone into a stupor.

Little did they know that she was just biding her time.

The man staring at her hungrily, the big one with a gut, she knew him. If she were correct: He's the second in command. "What're you thinkin'? Should we just get rid of her?" The little treasure hoarder asked.

"The boss is closing a deal today. If all goes well she'll be shipped off to Natlan by tomorrow morning… but… if she's stopped responding…" he bit his lip as he stared at her naked body.

She felt like she was fishing. She had bait and she was just waiting for this fucker to take it. On the outside she was just gazing up at the ceiling, on the inside Lumine felt hope lick at her nerves. It made her both anxious and scared. This may be her one chance.

The second in command licked his bottom lip. "Why don't you go and eat some lunch? I can watch her…"

The smaller man sighed and shook his head. "Alright…" He turned and Lumine heard him walking away. After a few seconds of silence, the second command came into her line of sight. He leaned down so she could see him. They stared at each other. Lumine didn't even blink.

He then snapped his fingers in her face.

She didn't move a muscle.

"Hey!" He snapped his fingers again.

Lumine kept staring at the ceiling above his head.

"Damn." He laughed a little. "Didn't take long to break you, huh? I figured the Honorary Knight of Mondstadt and Hero of Liyue would have put up a bigger fight… oh, well…"

Lumine felt her heart rate increase and she prayed he didn't notice.

"Not that I'm complaining. But… I guess that means you don't need these anymore-"

He took the bait.

The arrows were painstakingly removed from the palms of her hands. It felt like fire exploding down the her hands, white hot pain as he slowly, oh so slowly pulled the arrows and their heads out of her palms. Lumine wanted to scream, to cry and struggle…

But she didn't.

Because she wanted something more: she wanted to survive.

She just needed the right moment, the right opening.

Blood ran down the open wounds of her palms, going down to her wrists and soon her forearms. The open wounds felt cold as fresh air invaded them. When the second in command looked away to toss the arrows to the side, Lumine twitched her fingers. She could still feel them.

"I've always wanted to do this…" He grabbed her body and lifted her up so she was sitting. Lumine let her body go limp. Going as far as to tip her head back a little. He responded by cradling her head with his hand and pulling her head into the crook of his neck.

He smelt like tobacco and urine. Lumine wanted to curl her nose in disgust.

'Wait for it.' She thought to herself.

He was positioning her so she was going to be sitting on his lap. Lumine waited with baited breath as he continued to move her limbs around so he could find a more comfortable position for himself. She needed an opening, a good one.

He grumbled a little when he just couldn't find a good spot for her hands and arms to be.

He then threw her arms around his neck.

Now.

Lumine pounced like a predator that's been waiting on its prey. She curled her hands around his hair, pulling his throat into her face. Lumine dug her teeth deep into his throat. Blood squirted out of his jugular from this violent act and the man went to scream- but before he could Lumine yanked her head back with his jugular still in her mouth.

Lumine felt his skin tear beneath his teeth. She spat the wet flabby flesh to the floor and he fell back gasping pitifully as he writhed on the floor grasping desperately at his throat. Blood squirted out from between his fingers, drenching his clothes, hands, and the floor.

Survive!

Lumine lunged at him. She grabbed his wrists and forced them away from his throat, and she bit again. She heard a noise leave his damaged throat, she was sure he was trying to scream. All she could taste was blood as her teeth squished his windpipe. Blood squirted all over her face and down her chin. Like before, she pulled, yanking her head back. There was a sickening squishing noise as she tore his windpipe from his body.

There was nothing more. After only a few seconds, he stopped moving; he only twitched. Blood pooled around his body and continued to violently squirt out of his open wound. Lumine watched him for several long seconds. Finally, when she was sure he was finally dead. She spat his windpipe out of her mouth. Blood trickled down her throat and smeared all over her mouth. The taste of the blood was coppery, like if she just stuck a piece of mora in her mouth.

Still...

Lumine was one step closer to freedom.

One step closer to freedom.

Yes.

But where was Paimon's freedom? Lumine wasn't going to sit here and wallow, as much as she wanted to, but Paimon needed her- those little girls needed her. She'd wallow later, but for now she had a mission.

"Paimon. I'm coming…" Lumine growled with anger as she pushed herself off of the ground. Her arms shook almost violently. 'I'm not fully healed…' It was a horrific thought, but it was there. Lumine was not only still injured, but her body wasn't ready for a fight, not now anyways. "That's not going to stop me-"

Her arms suddenly collapsed from under her.

Lumine sighed out and decided to do the next best thing. She pushed herself up, but she put herself in the plank position before she rolled herself on to her back. The wind was basically knocked out of her for a few seconds, but at least she wasn't looking at the floor anymore.

"I can't do this alone…" She needed help, but she couldn't get help by just laying on the floor surrounded by flowers. Her body was weak, if she had some food to maybe help her gain some health, energy, or even strength, then she could get a move on.

"Maybe if I scream?... no." She knew if the knights got involved they'd refuse to let her out of bed. 'I'm honestly surprised the knights aren't here right now… I figured Keaya would at least be the one to watch over me, if not Barbara.'

"... Maybe I can convince someone to get me to a healer…" A healer was something she needed, but again, Barbara was nowhere in sight.

Lumine laid there pondering as she stared at the ceiling of the church. Before too long her eyes started to slip shut. 'No! I don't want to sleep! The longer I sleep the less chance I have of finding Paimon.' Lumine gritted her teeth. 'I need help! But who? Who can I get to help me that's not a knight-'

Then it struck her like a lightning bolt.

Lumine sucked in a deep breath.

"Xiao!"

It was the glint of Mora that caught Xingqiu's eye as he traveled up the stream. He immediately dove for the piece of money. "Good- great even! I must be on the right track!" Xingqiu sighed in relief. He's been following this stream for a good twenty or so minutes, meaning he must be close, hopefully.

'I'll bring those that harmed you to justice, I promise.' Xingqiu promised as he curled his fist around the piece of Mora. Xingqiu then continued up the stream. He kept his fists to his sides as only determination filled him. Nobody was going to stop Xingqiu, not his friends, Not Zhongli, not even the Fatui, nobody.

The farther up he walked, the more he realized he was on the right trail. Little things would float in the stream, not everything would be Lumine's though. He saw hair ornaments float by, a little doll, and, most disturbingly: a child's dress floated by him. 'Archons…' Eventually it got to the point that Xingqiu had to have his sword in his hand just to feel safe.

He followed the stream and eventually paused when a thick patch of brambles and weeds with only a small opening at ground level. Xingqiu frowned as he narrowed his eyes. 'Those items were coming down from here. So logic says-' Xingqiu put his sword to the side and pushed himself down to the ground and peered under the opening. He couldn't really see much, but from what he could see, these weeds and brambles were a diversion as the land behind the Brambles was barren say for bushes and trees.

Tucking some of his long hair behind his ear, Xingqiu laid down fully on his belly and started to crawl through the small opening. His clothes got a little snagged and he scowled a little at this and about how dirty his legs were becoming, but he would complain another time.

Xingqiu swallowed a lump down when a waterlogged cloth doll floated on by. He shut his eyes tight and his hands slightly shook, eventually he made it to the other side and stood up. Quietly he dusted the dirt off of his legs before he brought his sword back into his hands.

Off in the distance was a two story house that Xingqiu knew wasn't there before. Ominous vibes radiated off of his house and made the air heavy, if not tense. 'This is… this is it. If I wasn't looking for it, I might not have found it…' When Xingqiu looked back at the weeds and brambles he came to realize that it was like a fence. A fence of thorny plants to keep intruders out that surrounded the house. 'This was man made…' Xingqiu realized fairly quickly once he got a better look at the brambles. 'Given the fact that I'm looking at the side of the house and not the front, I must have caught a whole by accident.'

A yell caused Xingqiu to jump and he instantly turned his head towards the sound. "-The kid ain't mine! That's what I keep telling that tramp-" Xingqiu's instincts took over and he immediately ducked into a bush as that voice sounded uncomfortably close. Keeping his sword tight in his grip, Xingqiu listened.

There were heavy footsteps coming around his way and Xingqiu's breath froze in his throat when he heard how close they were to him. Xingqiu shut his eyes as he listened to them talk. Two men. Xingqiu didn't look over the bush to see who was who. They were way too close for comfort. One wrong move and he'll be spotted. 'I need to get to that house…' He also knew he needed to play it safe. These people took down Lumine.

Oblivious to Xingqiu, the two men continued to chat about children that may or may not be theirs. They then continued to walk off towards Xingqiu's left. When he felt they were at a safe enough distance away; he cautiously peeked up.

'As I thought. Treasure hoarders.' Xingqiu knew those outfits anywhere. Thankfully, the two men had their back to him. 'They look like grunts.' Still, Xingqiu decided to take a cautious approach. He ducked back down.

Xingqiu gave it about thirty or so seconds before he slowly extended his leg out of the bush and he kept himself low to the ground as he wiggled himself free from the bush. Once free, he kept himself hunched and low to the ground, basically staying in a squat.

When the coast seemed clear, Xingqiu quickly rushed to the nearest tree, which thankfully wasn't too far, and hid behind it, keeping his back and shoulders against the itchy bark of the tree, carefully, he peered around the tree to scope the area out.

The house was maybe a good fifty yards away from him. The issue was that there seemed to be treasure hoarders surrounding the place. They all looked like look-outs. Xingqiu scowled and looked around to see for any blind spots.

'Most of the hoarders are on the sides, scooping around the house. Some standing, some walking about. All of them keeping an eye out. Two are in the front, but not directly in front of the door. If I'm quiet enough, I could possibly sneak in. Or… If I can get close enough and distract the right people… I could try a window-'

There was a sudden 'click!' Behind his head; Xingqiu felt his whole body turn to ice.

"Don't move." A voice growled behind his head. "Or else you'll find a crossbolt in your skull, got it?" A male voice hissed in his ear. Xingqiu's heart leapt in fear as he stood there frozen. The voice sounded male, no doubt about that. Xinqiu gulped. 'Dammit…'

"Those are some fancy threads you got there… You're a rich boy." A hand reached up and tugged at the sleeve of his shirt. Xingqiu was tempted to turn and slash, but- the crossbow lightly bumped against the back of his head, likely not by accident. It was a threat, no doubt because the treasure hoarder could see the sword in Xingqiu's hand. The man hummed.

"You got a name?"

Xingqiu didn't want to answer, he almost couldn't as his mouth stayed sealed for a solid heartbeat. It was only the nudge of the crossbow that made Xingqiu open his mouth again. "Xin...Xing." It was a pitiful and feeble attempt to keep his full identity hidden.

"Xinxing, huh. Well… Xinxing. Here's what's going to happen: You're going to give me that sword, and come quietly. Then we'll see what the boss wants to do with you. I think you'll either be a pretty penny or daddy might be willing to fork over some money." For a solid second Xingqiu wondered if he could take this guy. It was just one guy after all…

But this 'one guy' would yell and scream, no doubt alerting everyone else in the area. Thus giving Xingqiu an even bigger problem to deal with. So, with a heavy heart, he relinquished the sword Lumine had gifted him over to the treasure hoarder. "That's a good boy. Hands up to your head, and walk."

'Dammit, this wasn't supposed to happen! I failed again.' Xingqiu put his hands up to his head as instructed and started to walk while the treasure hoarder led him to the house. Obviously, this caused the other surveying Treasure Hoarders to either stop and stare, or worse, laugh.

'You'll all pay. Not just for this, but for what you did and what you are. The lowest of the low.' Xingqiu's cheeks burned with anger as he glared at each and every Treasure Hoarder that looked his way. The closer to the house they got the more unnerved he was becoming. Xingqiu gritted his teeth so hard that he feared he may crack a tooth.

Before Xingqiu could stop it he was forced inside the house. The moment he stepped inside he became painfully aware of the sound of crying that seemed to resonate throughout the whole house. His blood boiled under his skin when he realized those crying distinctly sounded like children.

Xingqiu wanted to look at his surroundings to map the place out if needed, but the man behind him wouldn't let him. Every time he tried to move his head to look around, he was pushed with the crossbow. The only thing Xingqiu managed to note was that there was an upstairs and a downstairs. They were going downstairs and that scared Xingqiu.

Even though the stairs seemed to be freshly built, they still squeaked under their weight as they descended down. "Open the door." The man ordered. Xingqiu's hands shook, but he did as he was ordered. He opened the door leading down to a basement. The very moment the door opened the sound of crying multiplied tenfold.

Xingqiu couldn't register it all before his back was pushed and he fell into the room. "Be a good boy and stay there-"

"-Wait!" Xingqiu scrambled to his feet and tried to rush to the door, but he was too late and it slammed shut on him just before he could get to it. He tried to pull on the handle but, as expected, it was locked. "..." A few tense seconds passed and Xingqiu felt himself start to bristle before his temper unleashed. "Dammit!" He screamed before he kicked the door. "This isn't- It wasn't supposed to be like this! You- you- fucks!" He seethed before giving the door yet another kick.

Then he spun around and his heart dropped.

There, in this hellish basement were girls of varying ages. Little girls at least five or six of them. They, thankfully, were dressed, but only in their underwear. Xingqiu's scalp bristled at this. Each girl was in a cage like they were nothing more than animals. The girls never ceased their crying, if anything, they cried harder at Xingqiu's outburst.

Xingqiu let his eyes wander over each girl. Some were clearly from Mondstadt, some from Liyue, and eventually, Xingqiu's eyes fell on someone who looked familiar. "Little Lulu!" Xingqiu carefully ran to her. He almost didn't recognize her without her hair ornament. When he got to the cage, she let out a sobbing scream before crouching down with her hands over her head.

"Don't hurt me! Please don't hurt me. I'll be good, I promise!" She whimpered as a wet sob left her mouth. "I just want my mommy!"

"No- No, Sweetie…" Xingqiu lowered himself to the ground in an attempt to make himself less intimidating to her. "It's me. Xingqiu. I'd give you, Little Meng, and Little Fei, lotus heads sometimes? I'd travel with Ms. Lumine. You remember Ms. Lumine… right?"

Little Lulu sniffled in fear, yet, she still peeked up at him cautiously. "Xin...Xingqiu?" She innocently asked before sniffling again. Some recognition lit up in her eyes.

Xingqiu wished he had a tissue on him. He wanted nothing more than to wipe her tears away.

"Ms. Lumine…" Little Lulu's breath hitched a little. "Are you here to save us?"

"If it's the last thing I do." Xingqiu promised her in a soft voice. Little Lulu looked skeptical about that promise, but didn't question it.

"Mr. Xingqiu… I don't want to go to Snezhnaya…"

"I'm sure you don't and I won't let that happen. Okay?"

Xingqiu's blood was absolutely boiling, but he did his best to hide his anger; looking away from Little Lulu for now, from her bloodied fingers and bruised arms, he decided to scope out the room to determine how much trouble he may be in.

The only light source came from a few scant candles on the floor and one torch on the wall next to the door. There was no natural light, not windows, just the main door….

'This room was designed to keep the girls in.' Xingqiu's teeth continued to grind against each other as he tried to think about a way out of this mess he put himself in. Feeling someone grab on to his hand, it made Xingqiu turn his head to look at Little Lulu, who was reaching out of the cage to hold his hand. She was shaking violently, and Xingqiu held on to her hand tightly.

"Don't worry, Little Lulu. You'll be reunited with your mommy and daddy soon." Xingqiu promised her.

Little Lulu just sniffled and laid down on the ground, but not before scooting so she was laying her whole body against the bars.

If Xingqiu was going to say something, he quickly forgot it because of the increasing sound of someone wailing just behind the door.

"I want my mommy! I want my mommy- let go! Let go! Dahlia, help me-"

"Sounds like they got another girl…" One little girl to the left of Little Lulu's cage mumbled, she looked like she came from Mondstadt and like Little Lulu she was littered with bruises. At first she seemed uninterested, that was until she suddenly sat up. "I think I know that voice!" She gasped almost excitedly. "That sounds like-"

The door burst open and Xingqiu quickly stood to his feet. With no sword to defend himself with, Xingqiu did the only thing he thought best, he raised his fists up.

Xingqiu would like to say that he noticed the little girl first, but no, the first person he noticed come through the door was the man for the sheer fact that this man was massive.

He stood tall, taller than Mr. Zhongli if possible. Maybe a head taller than Mr. Zhongli if Xingqiu had to guess. He was also huge in size.

A bulky man made of nothing but pure muscle alone with tanned skin. He made Xingqiu feel like a toddler in size alone.

This man had a clean shaven head, but he had a black dragon tattoo that seemed to start at the base of his neck and spanned from the top of his skull that went down to the center of his forehead. He had blood-red eyes, a crooked nose with one nostril completely missing, and no neck, his head looked like it was connected to his shoulders.

This man didn't wear traditional treasure hoarder garb, he was instead dressed in clothing similar to that of Master Diluc in the sense that it was more upper class and also very Mondstadtian. He wore a ruby red colored jacket with matching colored pants. Under his jacket was a white shirt that was just barely visible.

"So, this is the little roach that found its way onto my property?" When the man spoke his voice was deep but raspy.

Xingqiu found his courage slowly sapping out of him as he took a startled step back. This man was easily three times his size.

"Yes, sir."

It was then did the cotton in Xingqiu's ears dislodge as he realized there was someone behind the man. It was Crossbow guy, and the Crossbow guy had something new in his hands: The wrist of a struggling and wailing little girl. "Let me go! Let go!" The little blonde girl was screaming as she tried to smack the guy, but he kept her at such a distance that her hits would do nothing. However, if his bloodied wrist were anything to go by, it seemed that the little girl had gotten a good bite in.

Xingqiu's courage and bullheadedness came back with a vengeance the moment he saw the tear stained cheeks and horrified face of this girl. Xingqiu took a step forward. The man put his arm out instantly, and that was when Xingqiu saw it for himself.

A Pyro vision hung off of this guy's fat wrist.

"Now… Why don't we just talk? Yeah?"

Xingqiu kept his fist balled tightly by his face ready to strike if needed.

"You have no business having these children in your possession…" Xingqiu hissed between his tightly clenched teeth.

"... Is that so…" The man quietly reached over to the little blonde girl in red clothing.

The girl, surprisingly, didn't scream, no, she tried to bite him when his finger got too close. When that happened, the man suddenly pinched under her chin, squeezing her cheeks together uncomfortably. "You say that, but I'm seeing it more as a business. I didn't make these children, no, but somebody else did and you bet somebody will be willing to buy them for a whole lot of Mora."

"Get your fat fingers off of her!" Xingqiu roared, but his demand either went unnoticed or they just didn't care as this Monster just stared at the little girl.

'Monster. That's a fine name for him.'

"Klee!" The little girl next to Little Lulu suddenly screamed.

"Lily…" Klee whimpered to the little blonde girl. "You too?"

"You see, Xingqiu, as much as you hate to admit it, I have people from far and wide asking for these little angels…" Monster said softly before he finally let go of Klee's face. "Some with big names…"

Xingqiu opened his mouth, ready to retort, to put this fucker down, but then he realized something. Something troubling. "I never told you my real name."

"I know. I must say, you and your older brother look a lot alike."