CHAPTER TWELVE: A TWIST OF FATE
A set of grunts escaped Reshav's mouth upon his wake in a near-complete darkness. The only light was a lantern and four lit torches in each corner of his small space that he now occupied, and upon trying to move, found that he couldn't. His arms and legs were bound by rope, and he was seated in a wooden chair. It took a minute for his eyes to adjust to his current area, but once his vision was clear, he found that he wasn't alone.
Before him were four figures; one taller than the other three, and barely visible by the faint amount of light.
"Oh good, he's finally awake," spoke a deep, smooth, and feminine voice. "Now, we can finally have some fun."
Another voice intervened almost instantly.
"Easy. I know you want to give him what he clearly deserves, but we need him alive to get what we want from him."
The second voice was similar, but more mature and authoritive, and upon the faces of his captors coming further into the light, Reshav recognized only one of the four women that were eying him like a predator to prey.
"Where am I, and what is the meaning of this!?" Reshav exclaimed towards Jean, clearly irritated and lost on the matter. "You drag me to your city, only to knock me unconscious and tie me up! Do you realize who you are dealing with?!"
His exclamation was followed up with a swords tip meeting his vision, just inches from cutting into his flesh. It silenced him almost instantly, now aware that his captors weren't just casuals he could intimidate.
"Silence!" Keqing commanded. "We know very well who you are, as much as what you did to the place we once called home. We also know that you know exactly why you're here, so don't even think you can weasel your way out of this with lies!"
"What in the world are you talking about?" he questioned, seeming legitimately confused. "I'm a simple Snezhnayan official who negotiates with other people on business matters! You are mistaken on whatever you have brought me here for!"
Another voice cut through the damp air of the cell.
"You're lying," Ganyu claimed confidently. "I recognize your voice; you were the one on the dock that night that killed the Tianquan, blew up the city, and spared me. Don't even bother questioning my ability to recognize a voice, because being half adeptus, I have a great memory; a memory that ranges over three thousand years of life. So, you can either stop lying, or we can get you to do what we want the hard way."
"And trust me when I say that we have no trouble doing things the hard way," Yelan added. "You killed and destroyed an entire city, so it's only fair we deliver you the equivalent by giving you the most agonizing death possible. By that, I mean that your life won't go until you give us the information we want. We can peel your flesh off, burn you, rip your teeth out, and much worse before we even let you die.
I've done such to others like you for information, so don't even think for a second I'm feeding you false threats. Nobody can hear you down here, nor will your fellow snakes ever find you, so if I were you, I'd start talking and cut the lies."
Reshav was intimidated, pinned, and he knew they weren't bluffing, so he tried his best to reason with the four ladies.
"I'm telling you, I have no idea who any of you are, minus her," he pleaded, directing his gaze at Jean. "I have done past dealings with the city you are referring to, but would never try anything malicious such as genocide on its people. Whatever you are thinking I did, I did no such thing."
He seemed legitimate, but Yelan shook her head at the words, being experienced in interrogation and knowing how to read her target like a book.
"Stubborn and well-versed in the art of lying; exactly what I expected from someone of your caliber," Yelan stated. "However, there's only one problem with your tactics, honey…
Yelan had met the back of Reshav's chair, and, like a flick of a switch, lifted her right leg up to catch the back of the chair. Following that, she lowered her leg at the same speed, bringing Reshav down to where he was staring upward at Yelan like an ant to a monolith. He grunted from the force of the fall, the impact having knocked the breath out of him and causing him to cough.
"I can read through your pleas with little to no effort, just like I have while making your comrades wet themselves out of absolute terror," Yelan followed up. "Now, unless you start listening and stop your useless attempts to fool us into letting you go, I'll make this little fall seem like a pinch in comparison to what I plan to inflict on you."
Ganyu, Jean, and Keqing were terrified at the state of Yelan. She wasn't kidding or lying about anything, and the thought of what could make his current collapse to the floor seem like a mere scratch in comparison to other tactics sent shivers down their spines. Neither Ganyu or Keqing had seen this side of Yelan, and now understood why Ningguang had trusted her with getting even the most valuable of information out of people who most-likely would keep their mouths shut.
Reshav was petrified in fear at Yelan's words, and it was clear as day, but he still stuck to his original claims.
"I-I'm serious! I have no idea what you think I did, but I didn't do it! Please! I'm being honest!"
Ganyu almost believed that Reshav was telling the truth, but she trusted Yelan's experience more. They had literally figured out that it was him there that night, and Ganyu knew that voice was the same, seeing the events of that night had traumatized her.
It was In no doubt the man they were looking for, so she didn't intervene, and just let Yelan do her work.
If anything, Reshav deserved whatever was coming his way.
"Very well, if you choose to accept torture, then I'll deliver you what you wish," Yelan stated. "Lady Keqing, would you mind lending me your sword?"
With zero hesitation, Keqing slid her weapon from its sheath and held it out to her colleague.
"Gladly, Miss Yelan," she responded.
Yelan took the blade in her grip, and stared down her prey once again with predatory eyes.
"This is your last chance to speak before I make you suffer irreparable damage. Speak up, or allow me to show you that I'm a lady of my word."
Reshav only continued his fruitless efforts to escape the binds that held him tight, to which Yelan merely smiled deviously at. She held her word, walking over to one of the nearby torches and allowing the bright flames to embrace the tip of the blade. It was a slow and tense process of waiting for the sword's sharp end to turn a bloody red color, Yelan removing her tool from the heat of the torch and eying Reshav like a carnivorous animal fixing to rip into its meal's jugular.
Reshav's movements increased ten-fold, but the knots rendered the rope binding his arms and legs unaffected by his attempts of escape.
"You think you're so clever, honey, but allow me to show you what happens when you meet your match," Yelan stated, moving the blade to his forehead.
With gentle and sinister care, Yelan placed the blade against the surface of his forehead, immediately erupting with a sizzling noise, and causing Reshav to scream and struggle all the more in his binds. Yelan added pressure to his flesh, similar to how a cook would flatten a burger patty on the grill for proper assurance that it would be finished on both sides, and just watched Reshav squirm and writhe in pain in his inescapable state.
After a long ten seconds, Yelan released the pressure and allowed her victim freedom of the searing agent. Upon seeing the damage, all that remained was a charred portion of dead flesh that was steaming like meat in a pan. Reshav continued to shout and yell in severe agony at his irreparable injury that he'd forever see as a reminder of his incompetence any time he'd look in a mirror.
Yelan handed Keqing back her sword, to which the recipient just held it in her grip, fully aware the sheath would burst into flame if she slid it back in. After her torture tool was returned to its rightful owner, she walked back over to Reshav and set his chair back up onto its four wooden legs.
"Now you know what those people felt that night, and can live with a constant mark that will make you relive that pain," Yelan stated with triumph. "However, if you think for a second that that's the worst thing I can do to you, you're dead wrong. Therefore, unless you want your pain to worsen, I suggest you start talking."
Her voice was calm, despite the things that he had done, and in the eyes of Keqing and Ganyu, if she had a calm demeanor in such a tense situation, it meant bad things for Reshav. Apparently, Reshav had gotten the message as well, considering, after a minute of calming down and somewhat-adapting to his pain, he didn't hesitate to drop the act he'd been playing.
"Alright! I'll talk!" he assured out of desperation to avoid another torturous act by his worst enemy.
"That's more like it," Yelan stated. "Now, you will answer whatever these two ladies ask. Any sort of resistance will end you up in pain beyond your wildest dreams. Do I make myself clear?"
"Affirmative!" he pleaded, turning his gaze to Keqing and Ganyu.
"Well, you heard our little rat; ladies ask whatever you wish."
Ganyu and Keqing nodded, walking forward and eying the cause of their current situation with absolute hatred.
"First things first," Keqing started, "what's the motive behind all of this? Why did you kill the Tianquan and destroy Liyue Harbor? I suggest you choose your words carefully."
Keqing showed she wasn't kidding by holding her blazing-hot sword's tip to where it was inches from his face.
He nodded to show that he understood, following up with an answer.
"I'm just following orders. I was ordered to eliminate all of Liyue Harbor, seeing we knew that you were onto us."
"Who's "us?" Keqing demanded.
"My team of fellow soldiers. We are custom-designed supersoldiers by Snezhnayan scientists of the highest ranks. We were created as a crucial part of a master plan being executed by the Tsaritsa to eliminate all of the archon capitals and their gods as well. Her majesty plans to recreate a world with new gods, with her being the leader of all of these new gods in a whole new world."
Ganyu jumped at the mention of "new gods," knowing now that Rex Lapis was in definite danger.
She spoke up instantly.
"You say she plans to make new gods, but what does she plan to do with the current ones?!" Ganyu demanded.
"I-I'm not sure."
Yelan didn't even need to act upon that, Keqing taking the initiative to show Reshav that he'd messed up majorly.
"Wrong answer!" she declared, pulling back her blade and stabbing the tip of it into Reshav's right shoulder.
Once again, Reshav screamed in agony and shook in the chair. However, upon noticing something in particular, the whole situation changed.
Reshav's wound didn't leak blood, but something black, and upon inspecting the wound closer, all of them connected the dots.
Wires.
The substance leaking out was oil, and the person known as Reshav Starchovski was an android.
Upon making the discovery, the machine changed its demeanor and appeared less in pain and more as if it had claimed victory in something.
"At long last, you put the pieces together. No human, not even a god, is capable of what I did to kill your precious leader. Only engineering and godly power are capable of such abilities, and if you think I'm the only one of my kind, you are sorely mistaken.
As we speak, an army of machines just like me are being created in a place only those who created me know of. All of your efforts have been for nothing, and soon, your existence will be terminated. No god can stop us, nor can any weak and pathetic mortal."
Upon the statement of "godly power" being used to create these androids with archon-like strength and abilities, Ganyu found the answer to her own question.
"They're using the Adepti and archons energy to power the machines! The Tsaritsa is going to use them as a battery until they have nothing left to give!"
Reshav laughed in response, showing that Ganyu had hit the nail on the head.
"Aren't you a smart one. Now I'm really glad that I spared you that night; seeing the look of horror on your face at the realization of the truth is truly an amusing sight to behold."
Anger, horror, sadness; they all engulfed Ganyu at the reality of the situation. She fell to her knees in defeat, tears starting to flood from her eyes. Keqing wanted to comfort her friend, but jumped at the sudden action of Reshav's head being severed from his shoulders.
Oil and sparks from the cut erupted, following with the rest of the mechanical corpse limply falling forward. Yelan retrieved her hydro-infused rope to her bracelet, having been the culprit for Reshav's demise.
"I thought he'd never shut up," Yelan stated calmly, turning her gaze to Ganyu. "Get up, now's not the time for tears, dear."
Ganyu's head slowly lifted from her lap, wiping away her tears and doing her best to recuperate.
"What are we going to do?" Ganyu asked, her words coming out inbetween tears.
Keqing followed up by holding her hand to her fallen comrade, along with a simple statement.
"We're going to stop the Tsaritsa and her army of artificial gods."
Ganyu took Keqing's hand and made her way back to her feet, trying to figure out how her colleagues could be so calm in the current situation.
"But, where do we even start?" she asked with sincerity. "We have no leads, no plan, and are completely outmatched in power and numbers. How the hell are we even going to have a chance of going against the Tsaritsa?"
"With this," Yelan inquired, holding Reshav's head in her palm as if it were a trophy. "Get ready girls, because we're going to Sumeru."