This fanfic is exactly what it sounds like, I wanted to write something with the Liyue cast as well as try for an actual combat chapter. I hope you like it.
Xiangling opened her eyes…and immediately knew that something wasn't right. Rather than the grass field she had passed out greeting her again, the surface that she rested was flat…and cool. Putting a hand to it told her brain that it was stone. As more and more of her senses slowly returned, the fact that this floor stretched out for a while became known…it was circular and she had woken up near the middle, so that meant..
The chef looked up in a bit of a panic. Defying all rationale, there were floating stones that seemed to have crumbled off the ceiling long ago. And speaking of which, Xiangling was able to make out a …hole(?) in the shape of a triangle up above. Such a indent had a significant size from her view, so there was a feeling that it could be large enough for her to fit through. After all, she wasn't exactly weighty.
But there was an obvious problem with this method of 'escape', there was no way she could even come close to reaching it, the wisps of broken floating stones didn't extend near the floor.
"Somewhere else then?" She got up and started walking around, looking for anything that might be an exit…but not before realizing that someone else was missing…
"Gouba?"
"Piii~"
At that command, her brown familiar appeared out of nowhere, just like always. So that was at least a relief that she wasn't alone here either. The bear quickly waddled over to the edge of the platform, forcing Xiangling to run him down. It seemed that this was some kind of underwater cave, with how completely surrounded they were by the stuff. Maybe there was some kind of hidden passage in the murky depths. Xiangling gulped, she wasn't a bad swimmer, but the water looked deep…
And that wasn't the only weird thing…three large structures stuck out from the depths and surrounded the platform, as if they had likewise fallen from the ceiling, but just hadn't sunk. They definitely looked ancient though…a few powerful strikes would make the whole thing crumble.
Could this be the place…?! Xiangling's eyes shone. A hidden place, clearly untouched by anyone for Archon-knows-how many years? This must be an excellent spot for fishing!
Sadly for the Liyue chef, her time in enkanomiya wasn't going to be that peaceful.
She felt it before she saw her foe…a sinister presence right behind her, materializing out of a portal…although they had the general body shape of a human, their bright red clothing, the red gem on their chest, and the circular headpeice that looked like their catalyst told her that this was no friend.
Official title unknown to her, but this was an Abyss Lector, one well versed in the arts of Pyro.
"You!" Xiangling cried, annoyed. Gouba likewise recognized the intruder as hostile and made a noise of anger.
"It would appear there's been a misunderstanding." The red 'salamander' spoke. "You are not the Pyro Holder I seek."
What? Another Pyro Vision wielder? Who…. She knew of three people who met that description in particular, but also knew that there could be plenty of others that this monster could be referring too. Opting not to provide the name of her friends, Xiangling chose to take the hopeful route.
"S-So…you can help me out of here right?"
It smirked…at least, that's what Xiangling thought it did. It was tough to tell at the distance, plus the lizard head wasn't helping with facial cues. Either way, a smirk wasn't good in this situation…
"Good joke." With its' yellow hand, a sharp snapping sound pierced the whole arena…and the water behind it started rumbling intensely…harder than any sound Xiangling had heard before. Seconds later, the source and explanation for the sound being so thunderous was known. With a thrash and a mighty leap came out not just one animal, but two. They both were massive four-legged beasts, that looked a bit like the Geo Vishaps that Xiangling was oh-so familiar with, rolling around Liyue like they did. Aside from their size, the difference between these two was one was light blue on the exterior while the right-most one was purple.
Cryo and Electro…?" Xiangling slowly stood up, gathering her spear… the new arrivals let out a simultaneous roar, sending chills down her spine. Were they seriously going to attack her?
"In honor of you making it this far, I'll let you choose how you want to die. Eaten alive, drowning, or…" The creature looked at the floor beneath and started concentrating. Just then, the threat of imminent danger struck Xiangling's senses like a hot knife. Her feet and legs felt like they caught fire, so she quickly jumped back by instinct…lucky thing too, as the place she was at was engulfed by a plume of intense flames.
If Xiangling has hesitated for half a second more, her face would've been burnt off.
"Being burnt to ash." Her attacker cackled.
Xiangling wasn't I done trying to talk though. "W-W-Wait, why me?! What did I do…!" She was just a chef, why was she being attacked?!
'I told you". It hissed. "You 'did' nothing…but now that you've seen this form, you can not be allowed to live. To me!"
At that command, the two Vishaps behind stabbed the ground with their huge tails, somehow cleanly piercing through the stone. A strange sensation surrounded Xiangling right after, one that made her skin freeze and yet all tingly as well.
It was already too late though…Solid ice pillars completely surrounded both girl and bear alike, coupled with a wide ring of electricity around that for double coverage.
AH!
To her absolute horror when Xiangling looked up, she saw the pyro-user above, somehow levitating.
"Die." The Lector finished charging up a fireball in its' hands and was about to-
"….haaaaaAAAAAAAHH!"
Interrupting everything, an echoing voice came from…the ceiling? The next thing Xiangling knew, there was a massive crash coming from the platform's center. Did somebody else show up? But who would it be…?
"Wait…what's going on- Xiangling?!" That was a voice she knew very well, but what HE doing here?!
"Chongyun! Is that really you?"
"Who dares to interfere?!" The fireball was launched, not at the captured chef, but at the new character with light blue hair and eyes. But with a skillful slash of his claymore, the crimson orb was cleaved in two and exploded behind him.
"For once…my sense didn't mislead me." Chongyun smiled. "So this is the source of the incredibly powerful spirit I felt… Xiangling, don't worry, you'll be fine!" He tried to put his friend at ease before glaring at the leader of the attackers.
"You there…release her and retreat! Or else, I will be forced to use my exorcism and banish you from whence you came!
Of course though, such threats were viewed as laughable to the object behind his shouting. "HAHAHAHAHA!" It cackled. "You think you can order me around?! An exorcist, you say? The Abyss laughs at your parlor tricks! To prove it's point, it started concentrating once again, in a fashion identical to what Xiangling had witnessed.
"CHONGYUN! Jump back!" She desperately cried out, unsure if the urgency in her voice would reach.
"Spirit Blades, attack!" Stopping the incoming attack, Chongyun yelled and like magic, suddenly three huge swords appeared out of nowhere and surrounded the apparent Abyss member. After a precious instant for him to realize how stuck he was, all the summoned blades converged on the monster with a triple slamming sound.
"Parlor tricks, huh?" Despite how those words sounded, Chongyun's face didn't wear a smirk of any kind, but rather one of quiet rage. It was an expression even Xiangling only rarely saw on her friend, the Cyro-user took pride in remaining calm and in control, even with him relying on outside sources to accomplish this.
"I'll give you one more chance. Release her or face the consequences!"
"Fool! Your weak strike means nothing!" Directing its' anger at the 'Electro' Vishap that hadn't moved, like its' partner, the Abyss Lector barked an order. "You! Kill the boy!"
The electric ring surrounding Xiangling's ice prison disappeared as the maker of that trap focused on Chongyun. With another roar, the beast SPAT out a huge Electro crystal at him from across the arena. Brandishing his claymore once again, this time he brought it to his body in a defensive stance and took the shot head on, causing the attack to explode into a purple mist. But before anyone could take stock of the situation, an "I see" was heard from the target.
With a loud grunt, Chongyun charged forward directly at the Electro Vishap, deftly avoiding a sudden stomp and swing of.a giant limb. Feinting an overhead slash, he used that distraction to enter the freezing aura and strike the icicles surrounding Xiangling, destroying them with one hit.
"Xiangling!"
"Chongyun!" She exclaimed back, suddenly hugging him in relief. Naturally this made the serious boy's body completely heat up, not used to this strange feeling.
"Xiangling…please, not now….I'm feeling hot…"
"Awww you~ C'mon, just for- wait, hot?" Her face, buried in his white clothing, switched from pure happiness to horror in a second. "Archons! LOOK OUT!"
Quickly shoving him back hard and then leaping backwards, she was unsurprised, but still no less horrified to see another roar of flame roast the spot where she and Chongyun were just embracing. Unfortunately, the unplanned nature of her evading meant the hard stone collided with her shoulder, slightly bruising it.
"Tch." The Lector grunted. "So close."
Apparently they were not going to be left alone for even one moment while fighting. To reinforce that, now that both Liyue citizens were on one side of the platform, the Abyss Lector saw a prime opportunity to trap them again, so it issued a silent command to both Vishaps this time. Another massive roar was heard before both beasts jumped back in unison. Any remaining ice crystals from the 'prison' promptly disappeared as well.
"What are they doing…?" Chongyun adopted a ready stance.
"One rat or two, it makes no difference!" At this apparent signal, both Vishaps smacked their tails together and started to fire sharp and small Electro and Cryo crystals in rapid succession. Seeing the shots coming, Chongyun didn't hesitate and took Xiangling's hand, dashing to the outer edge.
"They're trying to separate us!" She realized in time to keep pace with her friend, hands still locked. The exorcist nodded. No offense to Xiangling, but Chongyun knew that their respective 'jobs' meant that he was better equipped to handle this fight. If they had gone in opposite directions, they would have surely tried to pick her off first using their projectiles to block him off. He shook his head at that ugly thought. Focus, I just need to buy some time! Shooting a quick look to the ceiling, he had to speed up as the sound of crystals whizzing by them intensified.
Please get here…
"From the ashes…" Xiangling let out an audible gasp at that noise, and Chongyun knew what that meant…
"Into the water!" Both Vision holders didn't hesitate, leaving the cool stone and making splashes of their own, avoiding a massive thrown ball of flame. But with the bullets still coming, there wasn't a moment to lose,..they quickly (as quickly as they could anyway) swam behind one of the submerged stone plates that surrounded the stage.
With barely a foothold above the water to step on, both Xiangling and Chongyun had no choice but to grip the deteriorating 'wall' and each other…yet even this solace was crushed at the wall shook violently.
"Ah come on!" Chongyun cried. "Can these guys leave us alone for two seconds?!"
Xiangling said nothing, eyes full of fear. Not only were they outnumbered and with their backs to a literal wall, but Chongyun was also losing his strength, she could tell. Recapping the fight reminded her of that huge blast he had took in earlier…did it have some kind of energy-draining effect?
We haven't even hit the Vishaps yet….
"Just need to hold…out till everyone gets here…" Chongyun grunted as the wall took blow after blow.
"Huh?! Who's everyone?!" A quick realization came to her. "Xingqiu! Right, he'll know what to do!"
Aside for his penchant at teasing poor Chongyun, Xingqiu was a great friend and a prodigy in the Guhua arts. But importantly for this mess of a situation, he was a Hydro user who could easily put out the flames that the Lector was throwing around. Xiangling began to feel hopeful again.
"You hear that?" Chongyun spoke up, getting her out of the daydream.
"No…?"
"Exactly…I think they stopped attacking…"
Indeed he was right, she realized, nothing was crashing again the fragile wall anymore, and the only natural noise in the area were the ripples in the water that they had just came from.
"Should we take a peek…?" Xiangling whispered, and got a quick nod in response. Cautiously, she maneuvered around the debris and stuck her neck out into the open. The fact that she didn't immediately pull back told Chongyun what he needed to know, and sure enough, "They're….They're gone…"
When the Cyro-user looked out as well, he saw much of the same. Which is to say, nothing. Both Vishaps and the Lector were gone…aside from the wounds both had received, there was no sign that a battle had even taken place. However, Chongyun couldn't relax in the least bit, his ability to sense demons was still going haywire. Trust my instinct first, my eyes second….
Both of them scrambled to the top of the wall before jumping down back on the platform.. Still on the lookout, Xiangling caught sight of the triangular hole in the ceiling that they had came from.
"How-"
"I know what to do." Chongyun interrupted with a realization. "Stand back….Yah!" After lightly moving her away from the center, he did a midair flip and slammed his claymore down, creating a chilly Cryo field. In its' own center though, was the key to this, a ghostly object that looked like a very small version of his so-called "Spirit Blades", but it also had a blue light that went skyward through the hole, like a beacon. Upon seeing this, Xiangling understood what was going on.
"Now anybody will be able to see us?"
"Exactly….well, I hope this works anyway…"
"Nice! But what-" Xiangling never got to finish that sentence though…as some awfully familiar roars were heard in the distance. Neither of them knew what this meant, other than not anything good, Sure enough, that feeling was confirmed seconds later as both Vishaps suddenly appeared again by leaping from behind the two other stone walls that surrounded the arena.
"They copied us?!" Chongyun yelled in disbelief. But not just that, as the pair of monsters had abilities to properly exploit the distance. Hanging from top with their fearsome arms, both turned their heads to the teens and started shooting off tracking crystals.
"Get behind me Xiangling!"
Quickly obeying his order, the exorcist held his weapon in a wide stance so it was in the right position to intercept and block both kinds of attacks coming from the Vishaps.
But…the shots didn't stop there, projectile after projectile, perfectly timed so that Chongyun couldn't let down his guard at all. While the earlier attacks were fired primarily to drain energy, this time they were definitely going for the kill.
And Xiangling couldn't do anything to help. Move, and she would put herself at risk. Do nothing and Chongyun would….
"Chongyun, stop and run! You can't keep this up!"
With a shake of his head came grunts. "No…not until our friends get here…I believe in them! So…I'll protect you until they arrive!"
"But-"
"How charming."
Xiangling felt a massive chill over her whole body at that absurdly demonic voice…for just an instant, because her left arm felt insanely hot after. She gulped, a sudden burning feeling overtook her throat… Fighting back fear, she slowly turned to the source of the heat…
And saw a huge wave of fire about to completely engulf them.
….
Xiangling knew. If- no, when- that hit them, they were going to die. She was going to die. Chongyun was going to die. And this was all because she had a Pyro Vision…what? She was just a cook, and had only come here to catch some exotic fish…not get into a fight.
Fight? No, this was a slaughter. A curb stomping. They always had no chance, outmanned and completely unprepared…
"Piii!"
That sound barely registered as she and Chongyun were completely thrown back to the edge again. Being a cook who specialized in making…a certain degree of food, this was easily the hottest Xiangling had ever felt in her entire life. The molecules in the air felt like they were all spontaneously combusting as she flew by…Lungs on fire, veins melting down one by one… Xiangling tried to say something, but all that came out was smoke, if her brain was even transmitting what it was seeing properly, that is.
Hitting the sizzling floor with a thud, it was a miracle her mouth still cooperated. "Chong…yun…you ok?" She croaked.
A voice came from somewhere behind her. "I've…been better…Thanks Gouba."
What? Gouba? The mention of her friend's name actually regained some sense back into her body as she realized she could still look around. Sure enough, Gouba was barely within her view, lying much the same she did now, flat on their backs.
He took some of the attack…must be why….
"Xiangling! Look out!"
To no one's real surprise, the Abyss Lector had floated over to where the trio laid, pretty much motionless. Xiangling caught a tiny tinge of flame from the center through hazy eyes…this monster must've put out Chongyun's beacon…of course. Both Vishaps were approaching them as well, completely cutting them off from even attempting to run.
Heh, hope they like…burned food…
"Any final words, children of Morax?" While the Lector taunted, Xiangling thought she saw some kind of purple streak fly…another electro crystal perhaps? And luckily for her broken voicebox, Chongyun did the talking for them. "Just that…you still… have a chance to run away, evil spirits love to cower after all…"
"…The boy dies first."
But right then…
*AAAAARRR!*
A massive roar was heard from one of the Vishaps (Xiangling couldn't tell which one), surprising everyone else with the sudden noise. The time, the cry wasn't one of obedience, but of pure pain. The noise got higher and higher and even higher still, turning what once was a ferocious creature of power into a sniveling being only capable of making desperate yelps for whatever was happening to stop.
"Shut up! What is wrong-" The Lector snapped, before being interrupted by a object tossed in front of it. Curiosity got the better of Xiangling. Using whatever strength she had left, she peeled her head off the ground and focused admist the haze.
The object solidified into view….It was a tail…a bright purple tail.
The Electro Vishap's tail had been severed clean off.
"I warned you…" Chongyun pointed behind them all, back to the center.
Xiangling felt a strange moment of clarity…for just a second, she had no injuries or anything…and using that time, she let her eyes follow Chongyun's finger where she saw someone she knew extremely well.
A pirate.
A very, very pissed off pirate.
"Bei…dou…"
