Diluc felt horrible. Ever since his argument with Rosaria, he had the sensations of burning insects crawling in and out of him. He abandoned the ledge they had lunch on and headed straight east for the Regisvine, marching into the shade of a tree grove. The pinpricks of sunlight trembled around him whenever the wind blew and his mind rattled with them. Diluc tried so much to simply focus on the task of killing the Regisvine, but his thoughts pursued him.
He had known Kaeya was lying when he the man supposedly went 'out-of-town' and returned with serious injuries he claimed were from fighting monsters on his way back. Monsters that Diluc secretly hunted for and couldn't find trace of. Diluc actually appreciated it when Rosaria revealed the truth, that Kaeya foolishly raided a Fatui camp on his own and barely escaped with his life. That gave Diluc a target, and he was more than eager to enact vengeance on the Fatui. No, what Diluc couldn't stand and made his insides crumple like ash was the fact that Kaeya had likely been bleeding to death within walking distance of Dawn Winery and while Diluc was none the wiser.
What was I doing while Kaeya was laying in some cave, injured and hunted by Fatui? If I had known—but I hadn't. He never said anything. This can't be the only time. How often does Kaeya do things like this? Throwing himself into danger, and I have no idea…
Anger fluttered through his chest like caged birds. He didn't like to imagine Kaeya running off on his own, risking his life in secret.
Doesn't that sound familiar? Diluc thought ruefully. However, Diluc didn't allow himself to get far in questioning his own vigilantism. It was a necessary risk, and, in a sense, Kaeya was always at risk of getting hurt simply due to his line of work as a knight. What bothers me most, Diluc realized. Is that he didn't say anything to me.
'Then maybe he was avoiding you,' Rosaria's words had cut several inches into his heart. Each one of her words only furthered that pain, but his heart didn't truly split in halves until she said, 'You avoid him, you insult him. Worst, you've said nothing to him.'
He hated what Rosaria said, and he hated how he agreed with her.
Of course Kaeya would avoid him. The awful actions that Rosaria listed were among the nicer things that Diluc had done. He blamed Kaeya when the knights failed to arrive in time to help their father, though Diluc now believed the blame to be on the knights themselves. But then Kaeya revealed things about himself and his heritage to Diluc that would have shocked Diluc under normal circumstances but destroyed him in light of their father's death. Someone he trusted so dearly had been lying since the first day. He didn't recognize his brother anymore. Perhaps that was what led Diluc to do the unthinkable and raise his sword against him. Diluc didn't simply swing his blade either; he drew upon his Vision, coating the sword in flames that were meant to destroy monsters and threats—he tried to burn Kaeya. If Kaeya hadn't acquired his Cryo Vision, Diluc isn't sure how things would have ended and the possibilities scared him horribly. Disowning Kaeya and leaving Mondstadt to hunt for answers on his own seemed merciful in comparison.
Upon returning to Mondstadt, even with its beautiful scenery and the precious friends who were there to welcome him back, Diluc was filled with a wretched disappointment at the truth of things he could never have again. Kaeya was someone Diluc lost, no longer acting like the brother that Diluc knew and could read the thoughts of, instead a stranger walking among them the entire time. Objectively speaking, Kaeya Alberich could be entrusted with the safety of Mondstadt and Diluc would protect him as he would anyone else. But Diluc still missed Kaeya Ragnvindr.
Diluc hated the ache in his heart as he walked towards the Cryo Regisvine. He was thankful that Rosaria ran ahead of him and informed him of Hilichurls blocking their path. He put the fiery maelstrom in his chest to use and launch those flames across the beach to burn up all obstacles in their way. Disposing monsters helped to unclutter his mind.
Though he could think more clearly, he didn't exactly feel better. The salty air of Falcon Coast clung to his throat, along with the horrible smell of burnt Hilichurls. Diluc also didn't fail to notice Rosaria keeping distance between them as she followed him.
Have I scared her? Chords of guilt stirred in his chest. His thoughts of apologizing were weighed down by a sense of hopelessness. What does it matter? We weren't friends at the start of this and we certainly won't be by the end of it. This is merely a monster extermination for me. Rosaria was right, this isn't going to fix things with Kaeya, and it's not going to justify my attending his birthday party.
The thought of going to the birthday party seemed like a joke. Jean's intentions were thoughtful but naïve; Diluc wasn't on good terms with the guest of honor and his relationship with Kaeya's other associates were ambivalent at best, aside from Jean herself. If this journey with Rosaria indicated anything, it was that he would only risk straining those relationships all the more. The only way to help them would be from a distance, in the night, like always.
The dark grey cliff to their left towered over them as they rounded the corner. The salt-worn faces of the rocks reflected the sun, almost blindingly. Sea foam scraped the sand with raspy sighs. Farther ahead, the cliffs melded into a large cave that exhaled fog from where the frigid cold clashed against the coastal air. The Cryo Regisvine's lair was within there.
Diluc came to a stop, not yet upon the cave. His boot nearly stepped upon a blue-shelled crab, which scuttled away and scratched its claws into the sand, burrowing away to escape.
"What is it?" Rosaria asked. She had her weapon ready and her eyes darted over the rocks and sand for an enemy. The only thing of note was the Mist Flower by the shore, where the tide lapped against the thin isle of ice it made around itself.
"I believe it's best that I proceed alone from here on."
Her confusion was evident, "What? Why?"
"The Regisvine will be resistant to your Vision. That's why you wanted my help, isn't it? So I can handle it from here."
"You think I haven't dealt with Cryo creatures before?" Rosaria answered indignantly.
To further her point, she spun her spear so it was little more than a blur and a whistle, before she slammed the blunt end against the sand.
Rosaria continued with a scowl, "What you're suggesting is needlessly reckless."
"I've handled far worse on my own," Diluc answered, adjusting his left glove.
Rosaria's leer only grew colder, "That's not a risk I'm willing to take."
"Risk of what exactly?" Diluc scoffed. "Do you not regularly go out alone, traversing Dragonspine of all places? How is that not just as risky?"
"I'm not stupid about it. Just like how I'm not stupid enough to take on a Regisvine alone. That's why I asked for help," Rosaria snapped. She glowered and asked, "Where is this coming from? Are you trying to protect your pride or what?"
She tried to move past him to the cave, but Diluc stepped in the way. Though his eyes smoldered, his voice came out small and serious, "Kaeya likely wouldn't want to see you hurt."
For a moment, the shush of waves could be heard. Rosaria's stunned face flushed to anger.
"You hypocrite," she growled. "Now you care what he thinks? I thought you didn't care about him!"
Her reaction caught him off guard, and he reacted in frustration, "I don't care what he thinks of me. I only care about Mondstadt's citizens, including you and him. And that means keeping you from fighting something that you know that you can't."
"Then what? So you can throw yourself headfirst into danger instead?" She spoke with a bite in her words.
Diluc rose his voice, "I know the danger I face each time I lift this sword!"
"So do I!"
"But why do you insist on fighting alongside me? It's a pointless gesture! We'll only separate once this is done anyways."
Rosaria hesitated.
Diluc pressed in further, his voice low, "I see no point in pretending we're anything more than strangers. Can you honestly fight alongside someone you don't trust?"
"What do you know about trust?" Rosaria snapped. Her tone became cold and hard, "Who do you actually think you're protecting here? You're wasting precious time—"
"Wasting it? I'm trying to save time! I told you to stay back before, and now I'm telling you again—"
They closed the gap between each other to better shout. With each heated word, Diluc felt more and more out of control while the sun steadily fell above them. Impatiently, Diluc stabbed his sword into the sand, the noise loud and sharp as it struck a rock beneath, and the metal he unthinkingly heated hissed against the sand. His voice rumbled all the while, "This is my fight, not yours. I do not need—"
The sand continued to hiss as it shifted, until it erupted beneath them. Diluc was thrown off his feet and fell backwards. His shoulder sharply struck a rock and his landing swallowed him up in plumes of sand.
That wasn't an explosion, Diluc thought as he coughed sand and tried to blink it from his eyes. What is that?
His answer came in the form of a leathery vwhip and a cold snap of Cryo choking the air. A light blue Whopperflower loomed over Diluc.
Instinctively, he closed his fist over his sword, only to realize he didn't have it; it was still jutting out of where he stabbed it in the ground, which the Whopperflower now sat in front of.
The plant rose its corolla and its drooping petals moved like tendrils. The Whopperflower lurched down and stabbed the ground with its Cryo-tipped petals. Jagged spikes of ice ripped through the sand, racing to Diluc. The man rolled over, out of the way of the spikes. Halfway onto his feet, Diluc saw the flower raise its petals to launch another attack.
The Whopperflower's thorny body jerked sharply to the side, but it did not seem intentional. It jerked again, with some leafage sliced off by a metallic flash, and only when it was kicked to the side did Rosaria's near blur of a form finally become visible. The flower flopped to the side in a messy heap but still stirred.
Diluc took the opportunity to rush to his claymore, yanking it from the ground.
At this point, the Whopperflower burrowed into the sand, barely leaving a trace. With an earthy rumble, it burst from the ground farther away. Rosaria closed the distance immediately, but her spear reached the flower too late. It curved its petals upward, swallowing up one of the sparkling crystals that floated around it and formed a bulb shape that pulsed piercing blue, Cryo energy. Rosaria's spear could only chip against the icy shell that it formed over itself, while the lights inside dangerously brightened.
Diluc charged over, his sword upraised. Fire raced up the blade and growled as he sent the claymore crashing into the Cryo shield. The ice snapped and exploded into steam, with the Whopperflower crumpling beneath. But when the cloud of hissing vapor disappeared, the flower was missing.
It had burrowed away again and reappeared in a different spot, though not as far as before, and the flower stirred dizzily, its petals torn and leaves singed. Once again, Rosaria caught up in an instant. In a flash of metal, her spear skewered the corolla and she swiped outward, ripping it open and splattering the flower's golden nectar across the sand. The Whopperflower finally collapsed into an unmoving pile of pale thorns and foliage.
The waves against the shore seemed to foamily sigh in relief.
Diluc caught up to Rosaria and asked, "Are you hurt?"
Rosaria paused over the plant's body. Her back remained to Diluc, but she replied, "No. You?"
"No."
Diluc lowered his gaze, pressing his lips together. He looked to her and continued, "Rosaria, I'm…sorry. For losing my temper with you. That wasn't right of me."
Her head turned in Diluc's direction. Her expression was stony yet softer than it was before. She replied, "I get it. I'm not exactly great with talking nicely…Sorry for crossing a line."
Diluc shook his head with the words, "I don't hold it against you. I shouldn't have let my personal feelings interfere with business. I still want to honor our agreement."
"Are you sure you can?" Rosaria asked. She caught her blunt tone and more carefully added, "I mean…if you're bottling up your feelings, then maybe that might make it harder to set them aside?"
Diluc couldn't help but blink in surprise.
"Are you," he asked, "suggesting I talk about my feelings?"
That last thing he expected was to be consoled by the nun with the most notorious and disagreeable bedside manner in all of Mondstadt.
He did realize how rude his question sounded and started to apologize, but Rosaria spoke up. But there wasn't anger in her voice, "Yeah, yeah, I know how it sounds, especially coming from me. But I'm not saying that just talking will fix your problems. What I mean is," Rosaria looked to the ocean, with a wistful look in her eye. She said quietly, "If you're going to face monsters, sometimes you need to face your own first."
A weight settled in Diluc's heart. His nerves stirred uncomfortably and he wanted very much to push the feeling back down. But instead, he wrestled the words up from his throat and said, "I'm…not certain how to face…this particular monster."
He wasn't referring to the Regisvine. Wordlessly, Rosaria seemed to understand this.
"There isn't a simple solution. I think everyone's monster is a bit different. But I can at least say…letting go of fear is important. Specifically fear of the past," she said. The woman put aside her spear to hold her arms gently. Rosaria spoke with a sincerity in her eyes, "I sometimes feel that my former selves from years past still exist alongside me, urging me on. I'm sure you know the feeling, too. Even if you decide to venture down a new path, don't just abandon the former you. For that is the foundation upon which you now take footing. Do not fear your past, and do not be scared to come to grips with it."
The shore murmured quietly as they fell into a surprisingly comfortable silence. Her words lingered in his heart like the salted air did on his shoulders. Diluc exhaled and closed his eyes.
"Thank you," he murmured. "You've given me much to think over."
When Diluc re-opened his eyes, he glanced up at the sky. The sun started to drop into late afternoon.
He said, "There's still time left to collect the Shivada Jade. If we act quickly, we could still make it back to Mondstadt tonight. Why don't we discuss strategies?"
When Rosaria looked to Diluc, he could've sworn he saw the hint of a smile. She answered, "Sure."
Within minutes, the two huddled on the beach and drew out the battle map in the sand as they carefully planned. The Regisvine was rooted to its spot, so they had the advantage of mobility. It was a matter of timing their attacks, dodging the Regsivine's ranged attacks and focusing on the weak points in its roots and corolla. Depending on where the Regisvine stored its energy, it created an icy shield over where it was most vulnerable. Primarily, so long as Diluc broke the shields, then that left the Regisvine open for both of them to attack and hopefully end the fight as soon as possible.
Once the planning was complete, they took a brief moment to review their weapons and supplies. Rosaria also had the foresight to bring potions like Frostshield. She even had a vile of Flaming Essential Oil that she provided to Diluc, which he accepted gratefully. As he applied the oil, he listened to rhythmic scrape of her sharpening her blade, which they each seemed to regard as a comforting noise. His mind steadily drifted back to Rosaria's words about past selves.
He remembered the more cheerful boy he used to be, the one who proudly brandished his Vision and joined the knights in the hopes of fulfilling his father's dream. He remembered the brother he once was, the one who promised to keep his family safe and never leave them behind. He dreaded recalling the monster he almost became. That was the one who rose his sword in a blind bloodlust and nearly became that which he hunted. But that is still a part of me, Diluc thought soberly. He then looked over his two hands. Perhaps I can truly take all these things that I used to be, he reasoned as he clenched his hands. And use them to reach who I am now. Diluc exhaled and took up his sword.
It was time to enter the cave.
The sunlight couldn't follow Diluc and Rosaria into the cavern, leaving its golden light at the fringes of the entrance. An alternative light gleamed from the blue, icy crystals that pushed through the ground and walls like weeds. The dark stone walls greedily sucked away the warmth, and the frigid air scraped against itself, prying past their outfits to bite at their skin and bones. Diluc suppressed a shiver and could only imagine how it would have felt to someone without a Pyro Vision.
Just as Diluc wondered Rosaria's thoughts, she clicked her tongue and murmured, "It's warm compared to Dragonspine."
Diluc scoffed, almost a laugh.
Finally, the cavern opened into a wider space and their path ended in a ledge. Though the walls and floor were still lined with glowing crystals, there was some sunlight that broke in through the openings in the ceiling, which would have reconnected to the green hills that now felt so distant. Below the ledge, it dipped to the cave floor, where there was a circular pattern of stone blanketed in strips of snow. In the center of the circle was a massive, blue plant. The long, curling blue leaves splayed out like a water fountain caught in a flash-freeze, which gave it a grand yet delicate appearance. It waited like a spider in its web. Silently glancing at one another, Diluc and Rosaria readied their weapons and proceeded onto the stone platform.
The plant stirred, as if their footsteps triggered something. The glittering leaves twisted up and closed into a large bulb. All the while, the stalk slithered higher up out of the ground like a serpent, with thorns lining its twisted body. When the plant towered over them, the corolla hung above as a frosted moon, suddenly snapping open in a hissing spray of ice. The center of the Cryo Regisvine was an unblinking eye of luminescent Cryo trapped behind a coldly cut plate of ice, framed by a mane of pale, compound leaves. At the foot of it, a ring of ashen leaves curled up and a knot of Cryo formed over the vulnerable roots. That was their first target.
The plant's face was fixed upon them, then it began rattling its head as it slightly drew back. The Regisvine snapped forward like a viper. Rosaria and Diluc darted aside as the plant's head slammed between them, quaking the ground and sending a shockwave of ice. After evading, Diluc dove for the roots. Pyro snapped onto his blade and it swooped down onto the ice casing. The ice hissed and cracked, and he swung again and again. By the time the Regisvine lifted its corolla, he brought down his fourth strike. The ice buckled under the fire and finally snapped in half, spewing a spray of mist. For a split second, Diluc was struck by nostalgia, his mind snapping back to the hot summers of old, when he used his Vision to melt Mist Flower shells so he and Kaeya could hold the corollas against their necks to cool off.
He was brought to the present when the Regisvine's body jerked, stirring dizzily and it toppled onto the stone in a leathery crash.
Now, Diluc and Rosaria rushed the fallen creature in a storm of blades and elements. Even Rosaria drew upon her Vision, since the Cryo enhanced his Pryo with a Melt reaction.
"Punishment!" Rosaria shouted, more as a warning to Diluc.
He jumped back just before the cold air above condensed into a dark blue spear of Cryo, and it stabbed into the Regisvine like righteous lightning. The elemental spear impaled the plant's side as its coils of frigid thorns pulsed icily. Diluc relit his claymore in a renewed burst of flame. He charged at the Regisvine and swung at the spear. The flames ripped through it, and the places where the ice thorns pierced the leafy flesh now exploded in boiling steam and fire.
The Regisvine yanked itself upright to writhe violently, spitting mist like thunderous hisses. The plant had fully regained its corrupted consciousness, re-settling its glowing face upon them for a moment. Then the creature dropped its head against the stone floor with an icy clink, but Diluc quickly fled to the edge of arena with Rosaria, as the plant then yanked around its head in a circular flail. The force of the swing could have brought a brick building to its knees. The Regisvine brought its head back up, but its stalk now bent at awkward angles where it had been split open and exposed its pulsing network of glowing, Cryo veins.
Now the cold air clumped together and rushed into the plant's corolla, as the face plate shimmered with Cryo. The Regisvine lowered its head again, pointing directly at Diluc and Rosaria. It fired a beam of ice, and the two ran out of the way, circling the plant. But the Regisvine's head followed, so the shrieking geyser chased them. When they completed the circle, the beam died away. The cold remained, as the beam left a ring of Cryo along the floor of the arena's edge. The ice on the ground emitted a thick vapor that warned of the seething cold that surrounded them. The Regisvine's face fixed onto the pair, while a protective layer of Cryo crackled over the core of its corolla as an icy cocoon.
Rosaria raced forward and slashed at the plant's side. The cuts seemed thin, but it was enough for a kind of angry shudder to travel up the Regisvine. Like a hammer, it crashed its corolla down and sent a straight wave of ice rippling across the ground, but it missed Rosaria, who practically appeared on the other side of the plant. While the corolla was still lowered, Diluc's fiery claymore struck it, cracking the protective ice. The Regisvine flinched its head back up, but Rosaria goaded down again. The cave violently shook every time the creature slammed its head. Each time, Diluc struck the Cryo shield. It was then down to one last hit to break it entirely.
The Regisvine had tried to crush Diluc but missed. The corolla rattled against the floor and Diluc upraised his sword. A crackle of ice and splintering stone raced up behind him, and a sharp stab struck the back of his leg.
"Agh!" Diluc cried and jolted as he swung. His sword missed the corolla and cut off one of its petals, leaving a singed stub.
His head whipped around, to the trail of jagged ice spikes that jutted from the ground. At the other end of the trail was a Cryo Whopperflower.
"Move!" Rosaria yelled.
The Regisvine had lifted its head and loomed over Diluc. The plant rushed down, faster than Diluc could dodge. Rosaria slammed into Diluc first, and they both flew out of the way of the attack. They landed in a heap. A ripple of pain went through Diluc's leg.
"You're hit," Rosaria said, eying the bloodied frost on his calf.
"I'm fine," Diluc answered. He gritted his teeth and forced himself to stand. He then glared at the Whopperflower, "I thought they only grew above the cave."
"It must've climbed down an opening," Rosaria said. She suddenly grabbed Diluc and yanked him aside as the Regisvine's corolla dove down, nearly crushing them.
She rose her spear, but Diluc seized her and pulled her back, away from the row of ice spikes the Whopperflower sent.
"They're trapping us. Stop the Whopperflower! I'll finish the Regisvine," Diluc directed. A charged attack from either will devastate us, he thought. Thankfully, Rosaria was already gone and slashing the Whopperflower.
The Regisvine's shadow hung over Diluc. He only caught a glimpse of the spiderweb cracks in the corolla shield before it rushed at him. Diluc leapt back, nearly falling over as the plant's head punched the ground to make a tidal wave of Cryo. But Diluc swung his fiery blade and split the shield. The melted Cryo hissed and the Regisvine collapsed.
Diluc didn't hesitate to launch at the plant, hacking and cutting relentlessly. But his body resisted slightly, hampered by the lingering Cryo from his wound. He pushed through, trying to make up for the lost speed. Rosaria hadn't rejoined, still dealing with the Whopperflower. No matter, he could still do this. Diluc poured fire into the Regisvine, leaving deep and blackened cuts in its stalk. Diluc twisted around for a heavy attack, but his leg sharply rejected the motion. His sword didn't cut deep as it was supposed to. He forced himself to keep swinging. Almost! The Regisvine's body stirred, and it started slithering away from Diluc.
"No!" he cried breathlessly as his sword fruitlessly clipped the plant's skin.
Then Diluc realized he needed to get away, for the Regisvine rose its head and twisted its body, as taut as a drawn bow string. He turned to run, but his injured leg seized up. He wasn't out of range when the colossal plant spun around. The corolla struck hard and fast, felt for only a moment, like a massive, icy fist against his torso. Diluc barely registered the hit, only the breath knocked from his body and the floor gone from his feet. Diluc felt the shock most of all as the world rapidly blurred around him, air whistling in his ears. It ended with him crashing into the arena floor, sharp pain stabbing through his back as ice beneath him cracked. His body felt like it screamed.
He was thrown into where the patches of Cryo were, and their cold seeped through his gloves and coat, biting through his skin and to his bones, burning his nerves. Diluc clawed to his feet, the cold too painful to remain on the ground. He faintly heard Rosaria shouting to him.
Diluc looked up, and the Regisvine was crouched down, its face pointed directly at him, while its corolla glowed blindly blue with a build-up of Cryo energy. No time to run. Diluc stabbed his claymore in front of himself, turning it ablaze and ducked behind it when a torrent of ice blasted into him.
The fiery sword somewhat protected him, but it was not a shield; Diluc was still struck by a direct hit of condensed Cryo. He couldn't even open his mouth to howl in pain as bullets of ice shards and blizzard-force wind crashed into him. His body locked up and burned, crushed by overwhelming cold.
He barely registered when the Cryo blast had stopped. His body felt numb and the only thing he felt were stinging throbs of pain, with his skin and extremities shrieking at him. Diluc clutched at his Vision and he tried drawing out its Pyro, trying to free his locked-up body and break up the ice shards and frost that covered him. But the Regisvine was still moving, still alive.
The corolla reformed to a glassy plate, and the Cryo shield formed at its now exposed roots. The Regisvine was nowhere close to Diluc, so it rose its rope-like tendrils, which had sharp blue crystals at the end, perhaps even made of the very Shivada Jade that they sought. The gems glowed dangerously. Yet Diluc's trembling form could hardly move his foot.
Rosaria's spear shot through the air, thrown entirely, and it impaled the Regisvine in one of its gaping, singed wounds. She pounced onto the spear as a mountain lion. She let her body weight yank it free, so the spear came loose and took a chunk of the plant's side with it. The Regisvine jerked and withed violently, angrily spitting mist. Lasers of Cryo still shot from its tendrils, but the beams were wild and missed their targets. Still, one beam had scraped just several feet away from Diluc. The laser had carved lines across the stone floor from the sheer, condensed force of the Cryo and likely would have cut through him.
And now the Regisvine's full attention was on Rosaria.
Go. Every step was stiff and his body resisted him. Help her. He couldn't feel his feet as he stumbled like a lamb and landed on his knees. Get up! Diluc tried to push himself up, but his arms and legs shook too much. Up!
The ground rattled every time the plant slammed its head down, trying to crush Rosaria, and the tremor crawled up his numb body. He summoned his claymore to him in a flash of gold and he pressed it against the ground. A boiling groan bubbled from Diluc as he used the sword to pulled himself up, onto his feet.
You can't stop, not yet. Diluc's body pleaded for him to lie back down, to stop moving. But he did the unthinkable and lifted his heavy claymore. You're not done yet. He called the Pyro from his Vision. A horrible ache tore at his body and spirit, from the strain of over-using his Vision, compounded by his injuries. She needs your help! Diluc huffed past gritted teeth, but he managed to ignite his sword. Though the flames were blissfully warm, the fire rattled unstably, due to his sword shaking in his trembling hands and body. The fires seemed like they could go out any second. His claymore almost slipped from his fingers while the cold clawed his insides. Mondstadt still needs you! Fight! Diluc looked to the shield of Cryo, which sat several meters away and felt like several miles.
It seemed the Pyro caught the Regisvine's attention. It ignored Rosaria and focused its gleaming corolla on Diluc. It rose its tendrils and the ends wickedly glowed. If he didn't move, the lasers would rake through him. Everything would end in an instant.
I don't want to miss Kaeya's birthday. Nothing was colder than the regret in his stomach. I never said sorry.
A burning shot up his body, and Diluc's breath heaved through his clenched teeth, "No."
Stone and Pyro erupted around him, through him, all caught in a fiery vortex. Fire filled his veins and bled onto his blade. In a whirl of flames, Diluc swung his claymore forward, roaring, "I won't fall yet!"
For a moment, Diluc only saw fire, and he felt nothing but the searing heat. He cast Dawn and saw the flames swallow up his view of the Regisvine, as if he filled the cave with a red-orange hurricane. He thought he took a step forward but then he met the ground, the stone biting his skull. He fell, he needed to get up. I need to finish the fight. His vision swam blurrily and his pain became a ceaseless, burning drone. Diluc couldn't find his sword, he could barely find his hands against the floor.
Diluc then felt something hook under his arms from behind and pull him up. Warmth, another person. Rosaria.
It was the last thing he thought before finally succumbing to unconsciousness.
CatCrescent: Man, Whopperflowers are the worst, aren't they? They're among my least favorite enemies in the game.
Funny thing, when I fought the Regisvine with Diluc and Rosaria in game, my poor Diluc actually did get the crud kicked out of him and Rosaria had to finish the fight by herself. But that was more my fault than theirs. I honestly think Diluc and Rosaria could easily dominate a Cryo Regisvine together, so I put in the Whopperflower to balance it out.
I really enjoyed writing this. I was always fascinated by the question of, why does Diluc treat Kaeya the way he does? And this is one way I imagine it. Also, I pulled Rosaria's line about past selves directly from her voice lines. For all her gloominess, Rosaria has an earnestness and sincere devotion to protecting people that made her one of my favorites. Diluc may be the dark side of dawn, but Rosaria's dwelt in that darkness longer, so I imagine she knows how to keep from losing herself and can help advise Diluc.
We're past the halfway point! Stuff is going to steadily wind down, and the chapters should be shorter. Stayed tuned for tomorrow where we get Rosaria's side of the fight and the aftermath!