Genshin Fanfiction - The Golden Apple Of Karma

- Chapter 7 - In The Name Of Love -

[ "Death God's dance, come forth. Bear thy fangs, strike thy enemies. Death God's dance, come forth. Bring doubt to righteousness, voice of the living."  

"If you are world's justice, it makes me sick to my stomach." ]

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Through the storm, in the land of illusions, trust.....in itself, has doubts of it's own. The howling of the wind and the distant cries of spirits in the nightmare. Lost souls that feel victim to the blade of Foul Legacy. Zhongli, tightly holding onto Teucer's hand, shoveled through the thick blankets of endless snowy wilderness. In the Abyss, there seemed to be absolutely nothing in sight, just a empty stretch of blizzards and frostbite. Even with his brilliant golden eyes that has been fused with his powers, he could only see past 10 meters ahead of him. But he still failed to make out the silhouette of a familiar looking ginger head. No, he can't give up hope just yet. He did not travel all the way from Liyue to Snezhnaya just to back out right then and there. Zhongli turned back to look at Teucer, who was also struggling to walk upright, in the midst of violent winds. Making sure he was alright, Zhongli faced the front once more. 

Meanwhile, perched atop the cliff of a monstrous object that seemed to be squirming underneath, there stood a stranger dressed in dark ragged clothes and a mask that concealed most of his features. It watched the two hiked through the snow storm, not saying a word. The stranger then vanished in a flurry of black feathers, disappearing in an instant as if he was never there. 

Glancing up within that split second, Zhongli managed to spot a glimpse of those feathers before it was gone. He stopped abruptly, trying to figure out if they have finally stumbled onto they were suppose to find. A few seconds pass and surprisingly, nothing have decided to spring out of the bushes and attack them. Not yet, Zhongli thought, I have to be prepared. 

Just then, Teucer tugged at Zhongli's sleeves. The man turned to see the boy pointing at a little house in the distance. Blinking away the snowflakes that had gathered on his lashes, Zhongli then realized that it must be someone's home, and he knew exactly who it was that lives in it. He exchanged looks with Teucer who nodded confidently. The two of them began to walk towards it as fast as they could, with no second thoughts. 

Approaching the cabin with beating hearts, Zhongli  stood at the front door and swallowed a nervous lump. He knocked a three times, then again. No response. Fear crept in, turning the door knob and the door instantly opened up. The entire room was a scene of destruction and bloodied horror. Photographs were scattered all over and there were overthrown boxes, including furniture that had shattered into pieces. The foul stench of blood filled the air, broken glass and forsaken stems of flowers. Stepping into the living room, Zhongli could see tthat the fireplace was charred to a burnt black color, indicating that this incident had just occurred not long ago. Crouching down, Zhongli gently touched the debris, with a spark of magic he could see right away the flow of elemental magic flittering in the air. It was all over the place, staining the walls and forming puddles on the floor. This place reeked of abyssal power and a strong one at that. He then spotted Teucer, frozen in place right where the bedroom was. Going to where the boy was, what they both saw was enough to make Zhongli's stomach churn with nausea. His body stiffened. 

It was Childe, his body was there. Not moving, not breathing. As still as a statue of the seven. Zhongli forced himself to enter the room and noticed that there was a dagger stabbed right through the ginger's heart. It was dripping with a bright golden liquid at the hilt, where a glowing ruby gemstone sat proudly. It gleamed and thrummed on the inside, as if it were alive. Teucer gripped onto the sheets of the bed with anticipation as Zhongli reached out to the hilt of the blade. As soon as his hand made contact with it, something intense began to overtake the man and he stumbled back, wincing. Steadying himself again, Zhongli used every bit of his strength, tightening his grip and yanked the blade right out. An explosion of red and golden streaks of light, beautiful and mystical, spilled out of where Childe's heart was. It flowed around them, across the room and straight towards a tall grandfather clock that was ticking in a deep, mournful sound. Just as the light had all entered into the very center of it, the clock began to chime in a deafening sound. Zhongli and Teucer slammed their hands to cover their ears immediately, feeling a mysterious force come into presence right where they all were. Whispers echoed intensely, like a chorus of weeping angels, drowning out all other noises. Teucer was now crying in fear, desperately holding onto Childe's body. He watched in terror as everything around them dissolved into a dizzying motion, the objects swirling about until they disappeared. Zhongli had grabbed onto Teucer, trying not to let go of him as they plummeted down into another dimension of insanity and illusions.