22nd of the 2nd Cycle
Qian'an was a formidable fortress.
It sat just south of Liyue Harbour, within the protection of the Tianheng Mountains. At first glance, the fortress town's location seems counterproductive, nestled away in a horseshoe-shaped valley out of the way from the Jade Road which led to the Harbour.
However, Qian'an's purpose was not to act as a barrier for any invading army, but as a garrison. Any army that ignores the fortress and instead attacks Liyue Harbour would soon find themselves with their supply lines cut by sallying troops out of Qian'an - or worse, find themselves trapped between the stalwart defences of Chihu Rock and another army hailing from Qian'an.
Thus, to take Liyue Harbour from the south, it was absolutely necessary to take Qian'an, lest your plans fall into jeopardy.
However, Qian'an was never used for this purpose, since by the time to fortress was raised, the Archon Wars were already in its waning days - and Liyue Harbour was never attacked from this direction, in the end.
Instead, after the war ended, Liyue Harbour found itself overcrowded and overpopulated from the amount of refugees that had fled to the city to find safety. Thus, the then Yue Dynasty had chosen to relocate all those people to Qian'an, which was also located within the safety of the Tianheng Mountains. Soon, a castle town sprung up around the fortress, and another set of curtain walls were raised.
Then came the need for a place to mint and store mora, for mora was now accepted as a continental currency. Deciding that Liyue Harbour itself would be too exposed, but a hidden location in the countryside would be too inconvenient, the Yue Dynasty selected Qian'an for its relative closeness to the Harbour and also for its sufficient fortifications.
Thus the original castle was remodelled into the Golden House, Teyvat's largest and only mora mint.
Qian'an consisted of its walled citadel in the centre of the town, the Golden House - built half sunken into the mountainside. From above, the town had a distinct shape - two concentric half-circles in the form of two formidable walls, their ends meeting the mountainside adjacent to the Golden House. In front of each wall were deep moats filled with inky black water sourced from mountain run-offs.
Housed within the inner wall was the military district, quartered into neatly organised rows of barracks, muster grounds, and other military infrastructure meant to house the soldiers garrisoning the town. Lastly, between the inner and outer walls was the civilian district, a haphazard mess of twisting paths with no clear conformation.
Crossing the drawbridge of the inner wall and passing under the gatehouse, on the other side they were greeted by the military governor of Qian'an, a tall woman named Gongming. She wore a stern expression, framed by short hair cut at her shoulders. She was accompanied by two Millelith guards, and bowed with her hands put together before Keqing.
"My Lady Yuheng, we have received your raven ahead of time. Qian'an is ready for your inspection."
"Organise accommodations for my men," Keqing ordered, "And open the Golden House for investigation."
"At once, my lady."
"Good. By dusk, I want all entry and exit records on my desk - and I want everyone who has access to the Golden House to be under house arrest until the morrow."
"Understood," the military governor bowed before barking orders to her subordinates.
Keqing whipped her reins and her horse started moving forwards once more, beckoning them to follow her. Behind them, the five-thousand strong detachment she brought began dispersing under orders.
Climbing up the stairs and approaching the doors of the Golden House, he noticed that the gates seemed to be carved from stone. No, not carved from stone, they were stone - two massive slabs of mountain earth fixed unto hinges, shallow carvings of some manner etched into the rock.
Keqing stepped forwards, motioning to the guards standing in front of the door. The guards weren't Millelith, instead the Golden House's exclusive elite guard, dressed in enchanted archaic bronze.
The guards raised their tasselled spears - then slammed the butts into the ground, and a resounding boom was heard.
The carvings in the stone doors lit up, revealing themselves to be zhuanshu runes. Like a layer being peeled off, the rough grey stone was transmuted into shining bronze and gold. The guards then pulled the door open, revealing another rockface behind the doors.
A second set of guards came forward, these ones not wielding any weapons and clearly mages. They positioned themselves before the entrance and stomped the ground, forcing a great reverberating rumble to wash over the earth. Then, they raised their hands into a pose - and pushed something invisible, prompting the stone wall to suddenly crack in two, rumbling as they slid to the sides - revealing a long hallway.
Aether whistled, admittedly impressed - it was clear no expense was spared to ensure the Golden House was as secure as possible.
The mages silently led them into the dark hallway, their steps echoing off the rough stone walls.
Before long, they were in a vast circular chamber - and unlike the rugged stone behind them, the walls were black marble, and the floor was polished bronze and silver. Massive columns supported the high, domed ceiling, and banners draped from the walls - hanging listlessly in the stagnant air.
Standing in the centre of the chamber, there were three massive vault doors in front of them and to their sides, with the entrance being behind them.
The mages lowered themselves and slammed the ground with their hands, causing the circular section of floor they were standing on to split off from the rest of the floor and started descending like an elevator.
If the chamber they had just left was large, then the chamber below was outright cavernous - so vast and expansive that the ends were shrouded in mist and fog. Water vapour clung to his skin in a light sheen, and Aether inhaled to take in the rustic tang of the metals the chamber was built off, and the earthy smell of mora.
The elevator came to a stop, slotting perfectly in a hole in the ground. High above them, Aether could barely see the opening in the roof through the fog and darkness. Around them, mountains of gleaming golden mora surrounded them - vast like rolling hills spreading as far as he could see - all the way to the far curved walls shrouded in hanging mist. He couldn't fathom the sheer amount of wealth located in this single hall, for it must be enough to purchase entire kingdoms.
"There it is," Keqing's voice cut through his thoughts.
Aether spun around to follow her gaze, and beheld the Exuvia - the great dragon corpus hanging on the wall, curled in its inanimation. Aether could clearly view it now, he could make out its harsh scales of dark red granite, and its majestic head crowned by a great mane - and it's sharp obsidian eyes. Running down its serpentine spine were triangular scutes of amber, ending at its tail.
A walkway led to the Exuvia, cutting through the mounds of mora - like a moat around the circular platform they stood on. As the crossed the walkway, Aether couldn't help but ask;
"If Liyue has so much wealth hidden away… why don't they use it?"
Mona coughed in surprise, turning to stare at him with wide eyes.
"...Inflation?" she asked incredulously, "It's common sense!"
Common sense? Clearly, Aether was still quite unfamiliar with the quirks of the mortal realms. Wealth was wealth, as he understood it, if an object was worth something, then so it was - that was how bought and sold came to be.
"What," he said flatly.
"You have a sword," Yanfei told him, "And it is worth much because there is only one of it. Would it be worth just as much if everyone on the continent had five of your swords?"
"Why wouldn't it be?" he confusedly asked, "Aphelion is a powerful weapon, forged amidst the cosmos. It's one of a kind."
"Exactly, one of a kind," she nodded, "If everyone had an Aphelion, it would no longer be one of a kind, but just another sword, wouldn't it?"
"...Well," Aether paused, mulling over her words, "I suppose so…"
"Mhm, same thing with mora. If everyone had too much of it, then it's worth would be the same as any rock on the floor."
"So it's just kept here, uselessly?"
"Not uselessly," she corrected, "The Golden House ensures the value of mora stays constant - too little mora is just as bad as too much mora. Since Liyue Harbour is a continental trade centre, the Qixing can accurately identify if the price of goods become too high, and introduce more mora into the economy to lower prices."
"The purpose for doing so," Yanfei continued, "Is to ensure the commonfolk can continue to afford said goods, which keeps the economy active-"
"That's enough," Mona cut in, "No one needs to be bored by the specifics. Just know that at the end of the Archon Wars, the seven victors sat at the first Council of Seven and created the first continental currency, mora. They chose Morax to administer mora, and everything done in the Golden House is to ensure mora remains the continental currency."
"Here," Keqing said, looking up.
They were right under the Exuvia now, standing in the shadow of the dragon. Mona swiftly went on ahead, taking out her journal and graphite pen. Her Vision glowed, and several disks of Hydro formed in the air, creating a stairway upwards. She proceeded up, feet finding purchase on air - moving up to the dragon's torso, right between its forelimbs.
Keqing sighed, looking around, "It is ironic, that the age of mora seems to be over."
"What?"
"The Golden House is a mint," she bent down to pick up a single coin, "The coin itself is created by the Geo Archon. If Rex Lapis is dead, or has no intention of revealing himself, then mora is at its end."
Yanfei paused, "I… hadn't thought of that. Then… what will happen to the Republic now?"
"The Lady Tianxuan and Lady Tianquan are in the process of creating a new currency for the Republic," Keqing released an unladylike snort, "They can barely even tolerate each other's presence, yet they insist on taking the role. In any case, we have already sent ravens to our allies in the Windic Union and Sumeru Academia."
"Then what about all this mora?"
Keqing shrugged, "Mora is still heavily used in thaumaturgical circles due to its worth as a physical catalyst. We will probably begin selling mora at a jade standard to consumers, then use that income to fund our conversion to a non-mora system."
"How… duplicitous," Hu Tao slowly said.
"We prefer materialistic," Keqing offered a small smile, "Not to mention, experimentations are being planned - to see whether mora can be recreated by mortal means. If Rex Lapis is trying to test us, then he will find himself pleasantly surprised. If he is truly dead, then we must learn to stand on our own two feet nonetheless."
Suddenly, a light tremor shook through the hall - causing several mora to slide down the hills, clinking all the way. Keqing craned her head up to the ceiling, narrowing her eyes. Aether noticed that she had a hand on the hilt of the sword sheathed at her waist.
Hu Tao noticed Keqing's anxiety and followed her gaze, gripping her staff harder.
"I'm done!" Mona called, distracting them
"So quickly?"
"Depends what I'm investigating for now?" she leaped down, before clearing her throat, "As expected, this is a corpus - and a sloppily crafted one at that. There are no organs inside, no biological systems, only a few veins of Geo to give the appearance of Elemental life - without a doubt, the Exuvia is merely a puppet, and never meant to be the physical form of a god."
"So it is confirmed? Rex Lapis faked his death?"
"Upon the Hexenzirkel's honour," she nodded, "Furthermore, I cannot sense the presence of a Gnosis, which hammers the nail in the coffin. Either Rex Lapis had handed his Gnosis to someone else beforehand, or he never inhabited this corpus in the first place."
"Gnosis?" Keqing questioned.
Mona's eyes widened, "The Gnosis- an Archon's claim to their seat as Archon. The Council of Seven didn't hand the responsibility of mora over to Morax, they handed it the Geo Archon. Anyone can be an Archon with a Gnosis, you may not be a god- hells you may be a mortal, but you will still most certainly be an Archon."
As Keqing opened her mouth to reply, another tremor swept through the hall - this one much more violent than before. Keqing unsheathed her blade with a shing, and revealed a finely crafted straight sword with only one edge. The spine of the blade was black steel, while the edge was silver - and the two metals clashed as if they were beasts clashing for dominance. The hilt was a golden dragon head, shaped in a vicious snarl, and Aether swore he could hear a faint roar as the blade was exposed to air.
He brought Aphelion to his hands, following Keqing's lead, and started stalking forwards.
Suddenly, a figure dropped from above - from the hole in the ceiling - and crashed into the floor with a sickening crunch.
Keqing rushed forwards, kneeling at the body - before slowly standing up.
"One of the guards… the mages," she murmured, "Who is so bold to attack so openly?"
She was answered by a second figure plummeting to the ground, forcing her to back away. The figure slammed to the earth, shattering the metal floor - landing on a knee. They stood up, and Aether recognised the man - Childe, back from Wangsheng.
"Lady Yuheng," the man greeted with a nod, "Mind if I check out that Exuvia you got back there?"
His gaze looked over her shoulder, at the corpus secured to the wall, nodding at it.
"You are…" Keqing's eyes narrowed, "The Eleventh Fatui Harbinger, was it? Tartaglia."
"I am honoured!" he laughed, "Haven't we and the Qixing have such many great deals? Why did you choose these… strangers… over us for this investigation contract? This could've been so much easier, you know?"
"What have you done?" she hissed, "Begone!"
"I can't do that," he drawled, "Not unless-"
"Begone!"
Tartaglia's easy smile melted away into a scornful scowl.
"Have it your way, then!"
The Hydro Vision on his belt shone, and two short blades of an unknown fashion formed in his hands, created entirely from pure blue Hydro.
Keqing assumed a high guard, "Longyin, roar!"
She lowered herself, crackling arcs of Electro at her feet - and shot forwards like an arrow, so fast it was impossible to see anything but a flash of violet glow. At the same moment, a murderous howl shook the hall, and Aether felt as if a great beast was boring down upon him.
The Harbinger raised his blades to counter just as quickly - and in the fraction of a moment it was over. Keqing came to a halt in a crouch behind the man, black-silver blade born and coated in blood. Tartaglia coughed blood, then stared down to see his blades cut in half, and a horizontal gash cut straight through his waist - nearly bisecting him.
Keqing flourished her blade, standing upright while flicking the blood off her sword. Turning around, her eyes widened fractionally when she realised the man was still standing, before she brandished her blade again - ready for another strike.
The Harbinger fell to a knee, both hands gripping his waist in an attempt to stop his torso from falling off his lower body - gritting his teeth as blood continued to pour from his wound like a waterfall.
Suddenly, Keqing's gaze caught something on the man's back.
"Delusion!" she screamed in warning.
Just in time for an earth-shaking explosion to rock the cavern, followed by massive chunks of steel-coated earth to come crashing down from the ceiling. Aether gritted his teeth as he resisted the force emanating out from the man in waves, Hydro and Electro crackling together in a violent reaction.
As the smoke cleared, he caught sight of the Harbinger once more - his grey trousers and coat now covered in fiendish black armour. Two blade-like tassels hung from his waist, covering his legs - and his face was covered by a dreadful horned sanguine mask, a sigil pearl set in the centre like an eye. His red sash no longer draped over him, but instead held a vast flowing fur-lined cape billowing in non-existent wind.
His cape, that shimmered with countless stars in inky darkness. Aether knew that feeling, he distinctly recognised it from somewhere, somewhen. And yet, no matter how much he rocked his memories, he couldn't put a name to it.
"▂▂▃▃▅▅▇██▅█▇▅▇▇█!" he released an inhuman roar, shaking the cavern once more.
The Harbinger clawed at his side, where his wound once was - before raising his palm to his eye. Heavy, rasping breathing could be heard through his mask, and he slowly stood up, turning around to face the person who nearly killed him.
"You will pay for that!"
He formed two more blades in his hands, one Hydro the other Electro - before slamming their pommels together and extending the haft, creating a double-ended swordspear. Flourishing his new lance, the Harbinger dashed forwards, ready to hew the Lady Yuheng in two.
Keqing dodged to the side, knocking away the strike before twisting and jabbing forwards - her blade snarling as it bit into the Harbinger's side, yet only scratching his armour. They continued into a series of attacks and counterattacks, Tartaglia's swift and flowing, yet heavy strikes in stark contrast to Keqing's jagged and sharp footwork, weaving in and out of strikes and jabbing through the gaps.
Aether looked over his shoulder to see Hu Tao holding her staff with two hands before her, eyes closed and muttering a prayer. Yanfei had a mighty tome in her hands, and she leafed through its pages at a breakneck pace, muttering to herself.
Mona met his gaze, before closing her eyes and mouthing 'centre.'
He sighed, nodding, forming a lance of starlight in his left hand. Three steps forward, he cocked his arm back - and launched it forwards. A crackling lance of gold shot forwards, propelled by swirling Anemo.
With inhuman senses, the Harbinger noticed the projectile and split his swordstaff in two - deflecting his lance with one and parrying Keqing's strike with the other. Unwilling to give the man respite, Aether charged forwards, sword bearing down on the man.
Tartaglia knocked Keqing away just in time to spin around to counter Aether's attack - only to be jabbed from the rear by Keqing who had recovered swiftly. Snarling, the man slashed downwards in both directions, sending arcs of electrified Hydro lashing out - forcing them to weave out of the way, buying the man time.
Aether and Keqing didn't miss a step, attacking the man once more in a coordinated assault - intent on ensuring the Harbinger didn't have time to breathe. Keqing's swiftness ensured the man was always light on his feet, forcing him to move around constantly to defend himself from light but relentless attacks.
In exchange, Tartaglia bided his time, striking whenever he was certain to hit the Lady Yuheng's nimble form - and that was where Aether intervened. He would cut in and block the heavy strikes, using his inhuman strength to match the Harbinger's own - before pushing upwards and out, slashing at the man's neck at the same time.
They continued to trade blows, Aether and Keqing working in clockwork tandem to keep pushing the Harbinger back. Yet with each countered strike and dodged blow, Tartaglia continued to grow more and more visibly irritated. Each following attack would be more feral, more brutal - more unpredictable, yet skilled.
Aether was certainly not as skilled as the Harbinger, merely just as strong and fast. He recognised that the man was not losing as cool as much as he was slowly coming to the realisation that he had initially underestimated them. As such, Tartaglia slowly put more speed and muscle into his strikes.
Aether blocked another blow - grunting through grit teeth as he realised this was one he could not fully block without breaking a bone - and thus slanted his blade, letting Tartaglia's strike slide off him.
Just then, he formed another spear of Geo in his off-hand and jabbed it down at the Harbinger's feet.
As expected, the man skillfully danced out of the way - only to be assaulted once more by Keqing, her beastly blade flashing in violet hue. Preoccupied and off his stance, the Harbinger was in a disadvantaged position - allowing Aether to rush in and slam into the man's chest shoulder first.
"Gah!" the man roared, "Enough with this farce!"
He lifted his swordstaff into the air, a great swirling mass of Electro and Hydro gathering at the points.
"Not quite!" Mona called, and suddenly a dozen whips of Hydro shot out of the ground around the man, lashing onto his limbs and pulling taut.
Tartaglia was forced to drop his weapon, crumpling to his knees. Looking down in surprise, the man finally realised he had been lured into a trap - for below his feet was a massive watery glyph, a masterpiece of formalcraft built from Windic, Liyuean and Fontainean sorceries covering the entire floor.
Keqing swiftly kicked the swordstaff on the ground out of the way - and out of reach.
The Eleventh Harbinger wrathed within his bounds, muscles straining as he savagely tried to tear at his binds - and slowly, he began to rise, pulling fiercely at his watery bondage.
At the side, Mona clenched her jaw, visibly being physically affected as she swore - sweating as she desperately kept the man bound.
"Hurry…" she groaned, "Up!"
"Prithee!" Yanfei announced, "Ajax of Morepesok, you are accused of unlawful entry of a restricted area, disorderly conduct, and assault on a citizen of the Republic! How do you plead!?"
"GRRAAAAGGH!"
The Harbinger roared, yanking at his binds - snapping a few, and the earth cracked and splintered as he pulled them out of the ground. Mona cursed, and swiped at him, more whips of Hydro bursting out of her hands and lashing around his neck and arms - and she pulled back, forcing him to stumble off-balance.
Tartaglia snarled, spittle flying. He shakingly fought against her, grabbing the whips with his clawed hands - and yanking Mona forwards and off her feet.
Aether formed a lance of Geo in his hand and hurled it forwards in an attempt to interrupt him, but the man noticed it coming. The Harbinger knocked the javelin away with one hand, and with his other he punched Mona in the gut as she flew towards him. Then, he grabbed her neck and squeezed.
Keqing cursed, breathing heavily.
She brought up her sword, "Longyin, roar! Jianchu, yingsui–!"
She moved with all the speed of a falling star, launching herself at the Harbinger, her blade's killing edge glinting with eagerness to draw blood. Tartaglia noticed her approach and hastily hurled Mona across the room - and she smashed into a column, cracking it and slumping lifelessly.
Then he swivelled around in an attempt to stop Keqing, but she was simply too fast - every motion he made to intercept her, she was already twenty steps ahead. Like a violet blur, she danced around him - so swiftly nothing could be seen but the trailing glow of her Vision and the afterimages she left behind. Keqing jabbed and slash, every strike clinical and unavoidable - piercing his armour bit by bit, chipping away and cutting at its straps.
Keqing leapt up, leaving behind an afterglow. Her sword flashed viciously, and cleaved through the Harbinger's mask shattering the pearl - before tearing into his face, hewing through his nose in two and ripping out his left eye.
As she backflipped and kicked off his face, Tartaglia's arms shot upwards - grabbing her feet, and slamming her into the ground. A spear of Hydro formed in his hand, and he pierced downwards - impaling Keqing through the gut, making her grit her teeth as she suppressed a cry of pain.
Aether rushed forwards, throwing Aphelion like a javelin - having it cleave the spear in two just as he scooped up Keqing's fallen form and moved her out of the way.
"You-!" the Harbinger's face was set in a bloody, rictus snarl.
With his mask in pieces, the man's single remaining eye burned with rage as he heaved like a beast. His armour was in tatters, falling apart at the seams from Keqing's lightning onslaught.
"I'll tear you apart-!"
"You are accused of inflicting grave bodily harm on a government official," Yanfei intoned, seeming unmoved, "How do you plead?"
Tartaglia spun around, teeth bared, "Guilty! So what!? Do you think-"
"Guilty."
Aether blinked, and there was no longer a short-statured lawyer with a large book. Standing in her place was a golden beast, tall as a man. Golden scales covered its form like armour, its smouldering red eyes piercing the soul. Two bony horns crowned its head, framed by a vibrant blazing mane.
The lion-like creature snarled, revealing rows of sword-like teeth dripping with saliva - its four limbs shredding the metal floor with wickedly sharp claws the length of an arm. The creature's fiery Vision gleamed.
"For the crime of unlawful entry," the beast rasped, "I sentence you to branding."
"What?" Tartaglia scoffed, "Do you think- ggyYAAAAGHH!"
Suddenly, a conflagration erupted across the man's face - scorching away the skin, and when the fires died down, a crude tattoo had been burned into his flesh - LAWBREAKER - running diagonal from cheek to temple.
The Harbinger clawed at his cheeks and forehead in confusion, small licks of flame still remaining on his skin.
"For the crime of disorderly conduct and assault," the beast snarled, "I sentence you to amputation."
Tartaglia roared, leaping at the beast in rage - only for a flaming axe to appear above him and strike downwards, cleaving through armour, flesh, and bone - amputating his right leg at the knee. The Harbinger fell short, crashing into the ground and grasping at the cauterised stump.
He released a wordless howl, Hydro and Electro crackling across his form. The Harbinger struggled to his feet, Elements swirling down to his missing limb to replace the lost appendage in a faux-foot. Tartaglia hastily leapt backwards, all the way to the other end of the hall - and nearly stumbled when he landed, false foot slipping.
The Harbinger formed a massive longbow in his hands, and drew back the string - aiming at the floor.
He shot the arrow - and the metal earth beneath them turned to water. Aether stumbled, falling to his knees as the floor rippled and warped as if it was liquid. Then, he could hear a whale song echo through the cavern, and from the earth a colossal horned whale burst forth as if breaching the ocean surface.
Aether cursed and attempted to stand - but the heat had long drained from his veins, and he could already feel the exhaustion creep in on him. Shakily, he rose to his feet - only to stumble on another ripple. A shadow cast over them as the whale reached the apex of its breach.
Suddenly, Hu Tao rushed forwards directly under the whale - nimbly leaping over waves and warps, slamming the butt of her staff into the ground as she landed. The staff's red wings lit aglow with fervent Pyro, and the sweet scent of spring plums permeated the air.
"Damned souls…" she prayed, "Pay your debt!"
The cavern shook, fracture lines creeping across the ground from her staff - and in the blink of a moment the earth ruptured - splitting in two, revealing a massive cragged ravine. Aether hastily pushed Keqing away from the chasm, feeling the heat of hells' fires burning deep below, an orange glow emanating forth. On the other side, the beast of justice danced out of the way just as the screaming started.
It was as if the chasm was a gateway to the deepest pits of hell, for ear-wrenching wails and screams poured forth from the gap - followed by a great flight of butterflies. Countless butterflies fluttering out of the ravine in an onrush such that all could be seen and felt was a flaming mass followed by a gust of wind.
The butterflies were the source of the noise, the horrific howling and moaning, the outpour of pain and agony and sorrow. And to his horror Aether could see that each butterfly had the face of a human twisted in anguish and suffering as they cried.
Pyro met Hydro, the butterflies against the whale. And the air burned with hot steam, sizzling hot wind poured forth as more and more waves of flaming insects poured out of the chasm in their relentless attempt to stop the horned whale.
Tartaglia reacted swiftly, drawing another arrow - this time Electro - aiming right at Hu Tao's still form.
Aether pushed Anemo down to his feet and leapt forwards, flying over most of the distance between them - another spear of starlight in his hands. The Harbinger's pale gaze snapped to his, and the man switched his target mid-draw - not aiming up to him. Aether panicked, hastily gathering more Anemo to move himself out of the way.
It was too late - he could feel the bolt of crackling violet tear through his gut, ripping out his innards and emerging out the back.
Aether hit the ground with a crack, feeling his spine snap with a soundless scream. He struggled to take back control of his body, using the last of his Geo to craft a makeshift crutch in his spine - allowing him to pull his torso back up.
Tartaglia had already nocked another arrow, aiming at Hu Tao - who was kneeling, gritting her teeth as she held her staff above her. The butterflies had formed a flaming barrier above her, stopping the whale from falling - vaporising the Hydro away. And yet, the amount of Hydro was simply too much, forcing Hu Tao to call out more and more butterflies to sustain her barrier.
It was a battle of attrition, and Hu Tao was losing. Aether could see her skin flake and fall apart, revealing flesh and muscle straining underneath. Half her face had been burnt away, revealing a grinning skull underneath, a blooming eye still sitting in the black socket.
Suddenly, a glowing azure glyph formed above the Harbinger's head, followed by another bound within a crescent moon, and another glyph with runic binds he could not recognise, all layered atop one another vertically.
Aether's gaze snapped to the side, where he could see Mona staggering to her feet - blood dribbling from the corner of her mouth. She raised her hands upwards - then brought them down with speed.
The spellcircles above the Harbinger slammed into one another downwards - the weight of the stars behind them. Tartaglia was belted to the ground, his false foot crushed under the weight. With his concentration interrupted, Hu Tao heaved one last time - one last massive flood of butterflies rushed out of the crevice, the cacophony of screams overwhelming his senses.
Then, the chasm was sealed shut - and in a moment there was peace.
There were no more whale, no more butterflies - no more pits of hell rising to the surface.
Mona huffed, then collapsed to the floor again - followed by Hu Tao, who was now half skeleton, the arm holding onto her staff nothing more than bleached bone.
Tartaglia was climbing to his single foot, using a Hydro lance as a crutch. His Delusion laid cracked on the floor, once vibrant violet now dull grey. The Harbinger limped forwards, the remnants of his black armour falling off him in pieces.
"That… was…" he huffed, "A good fight!"
The madman laughed with a childish glee, eyes bright.
"I've never… never," he tripped, but caught himself just in time, "That was… quite splendid…"
Suddenly, Aether felt someone grab his arm - and swivelled around to see that Keqing was conscious. He swiftly pulled her to her feet, holding on as she shakily stabilised herself.
"What… what happened?"
"It's over."
She was in no position to fight, her form was littered with bloody wounds that would hamper her style of battle - or any kind of battle. Aether was in a similar position, he could admit - his body the end of its strength. Now calmer of mind, he could feel the strain of his muscles and the pain of every bone he had broken come back to him.
His energy reserves too, were at their end.
So instead, he turned his gaze to the last person left - Yanfei. The beast was gone, and once more the young lady stood - unflinchingly looking down the Harbinger as he continued to limp towards her, heavy tome in her hands.
"For the crime of assaulting a government official," she intoned, "I sentence you to hang."
Tartaglia stopped in his tracks, his free hand clawing at his throat - where a thin flaming strand was encircled around his neck. The blazing noose was pulled taut, and the man's eyes bulged. He began clawing, tugging at the noose - his hands blistering and peeling from trying to grab hold of Pyro, his throat too, being burned to the bone.
For a long moment, all that could be heard was a man choking to death while suffocating from the black smoke of his own burning flesh.
"My lord!" a shout came from above, "Millelith reinforcements have arrived, we need to retreat!"
The Harbinger's eyes widened and he gasped, as if remembering something he had forgotten. Suddenly, his leg went limp, and the man fell on his own spear - and the Hydro spear tip pierced the noose around his throat with a cloud of steam, and in the brief moment where he could speak-
"Contingency plan!" he roared.
"Yes- yes my lord!"
Yanfei reactly swiftly, "Do not escape justice!"
The noose enclosed his neck once more, along with Pyro fetters clasped to his arms, chaining them behind his back. Tartaglia fell onto the floor face first, his Hydro spear dissipating into a puddle of water. He groaned.
"Do not kill him," Keqing suddenly called, "I need him alive."
Yanfei paused, before bowing, "As the Lady Yuheng commands."
The Pyro noose fizzled out, revealing a blackened line of flesh on his neck - still steaming. The flaming fetters, however, still remained.
Aether released a long sigh, and his legs gave out from under him. As he fell on his back and stared up at the ceiling, he could only be relieved it was all over.
Oh, he suddenly remembered, they should probably demand a reward - or at the very least, compensation.
Rewritten on 1/7/2022