【Ｌｏｓｔ】

VΣЯMIᄂᄂIӨП

You saw streaks of red in the fresh snow, and when you inspected it, you came to realize it was blood. You felt your chest tighten as you broke into a run, almost falling over because you stood up too quickly. You didn't know whose blood that was, but you were about to find out. The cave was right there, and the usual red glow was brighter than last time. You swallowed your fear as you walked in, but the sight made you want to scream.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

The mountain was painted white with snow. That snow had seen years of loss as it melted and evaporated again and again. Water always remembers loss, no matter how long it's been. People however, could forget. They could naturally forget, or force it. Water doesn't have that kind of luxury. It has to live with the truth. And naturally, so did you. For the first time in months, you were going to have to remember something gruesome. 

"Albedo.. Is that you..?" You took a shaky step forward, your vision flashing as if it were trying to tell you something. Albedo glanced back at you, and smiled. You heard a disgusting noise, like someone squeezing something slimy, before there was the thud of a human sized object. Blood dripped off his blade, staining the snow. You couldn't see what it was from your angle, with the dark red lighting. You assumed it was a human body, and you felt like you wanted to gag.

"Oh, it's you." The angle Albedo twisted his neck at to look at you was horrifying. It was inhuman. His hair was draped over his face, but it couldn't hide the black and dark pink cracks on it. The part of his arms that was visible was also cracked, possibly worse than his face. He still had a stupid grin on his face, and for some reason, you felt like you had to trust him. "How do you like my experiment, miss (Name)?"

"Albedo.. What did you do?" You reached for your bow, but you realized you'd left it with Klee. You cursed yourself for it, but tried to mask your annoyance. Albedo seemed to notice, and he laughed. You could make out the glint of the Festering Desire, even though you were sure he had given it to the traveler. You could only assume that the Traveler was close by, and Albedo had either borrowed the sword or wrestled it off him.

"I simply wanted to bring my brother back. Is that so wrong?" Albedo pointed his sword at you, fresh blood dripping off it. You clenched your fists, and in your dominant hand, a blade made of water formed. It would have to do. You only hoped Klee hadn't gotten curious.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Klee was making some bombs with Albedo's equipment, when she suddenly blew one up. She knocked a huge whole in the ceiling, and barely had time to grab her bag before the entire lab caved. Everything was going wrong that day. Klee was going to freeze to death if she didn't find (Name), so she started looking around. She chucked a bomb at anything that looked like it was trying to attack her, running down the path.

"Miss (Name)! Where are you???" Klee was yelling loud enough for the whole mountain to hear. So naturally, the fatui stationed around also heard her. Thankfully, the ones who found her had no ill intent, and let her sit in the tent. She was a little wary of them, but they insisted it was fine.

Thankfully, it wasn't long before the fatui they sent found you. You were battered and bloody, covered in sword slashes that were leaving traces of corruption. Somehow, you'd managed to stay conscious, and demanded that Klee didn't have to see you. You despised the Fatui, but you were at their mercy. They had Klee taking shelter, and you were in bad condition.  But you just had to get patched up well enough to go back to Mondstadt. 

Fortunately, the particular party of Fatui you and Klee were dealing with weren't on any hostile business. They were just scouting out a strange occurrence, which was strangely out of their normal work. You didn't think about it as you rummaged through their medical supplies, refusing their help. You wrapped bandages around all the wounded areas, ignoring the medic's protests that you were being too rough. 

When you were done, you took your coat, which had been somewhat washed out in the time it took to get patched up. You put it back on and walked back outside, where Klee was playing with one of the cicin mages. You didn't want to ask what game they were playing, wincing in pain. Albedo had done a number on you, and had gone somewhere. 

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

You didn't want to draw a weapon against him. It would devastate Klee if she found out. But Albedo was out of his mind. Something had happened to him during his "experiment." You had a suspicion on whose body laid mangled on the floor, but you didn't want to admit it until you saw it. You took a shaky breath in, and ran at him.

Albedo surpassed you in sword skills, he always did. You were known more for being able to aim a bow. You always had better aim. But now you were outmatched. Your amateur sword skills were going to be your downfall. Albedo seemed discontent with getting too far away from Durin's heart. He wasn't fully corrupted yet. You could tell. His movements were rigid, and the cracks were spreading. 

"Albedo, wake up!" You clashed your crude hydro sword against the Festering Desire, and you could FEEL the power coming from it. You searched desperately in Albedo's eyes, looking for a hint of humanity, but there was nothing. Out of the corner of your eye, you finally recognized the body. You faltered, in shock, and Albedo took his chance. He twisted his blade in a way you couldn't counter, and you were forced to let go, the water falling to the ground, freezing instantly. He slashed at you, tearing into your arm, and the wound burned.

You hissed in pain, and took a step back, resorting to flinging hydro energy at him, hoping his feet would freeze to the ground like your sword. But it wasn't fast enough. He closed the gap easily, slashing at you again, grazing your shoulder. Your dominant arm was exploding in pain, but you held in a scream. Albedo smiled, watching as your blood trickled down your arm.

"It hurts doesn't it? It's only a fraction of my brother's true power! You must have sinned terribly if he wishes you death!" You grit your teeth, forming a fresh sword, swinging madly at him, forcing him to back up. You had to corner him to even stand a chance. You wanted to scream so badly, your arm feeling worse and worse, but you had to keep going. You had to stop him. But you had forgotten about all the ice you'd made on the ground by accident. 

Albedo's balance was stable enough to ensure he didn't slip, but you weren't wary at all. You slipped on the ice, not falling, but giving Albedo a huge opening. He slashed you across the chest, thankfully not deep enough to be fatal. But you fell backwards in pain, and Albedo stabbed you in the leg, before stopping suddenly.

"I'll spare you, just this once. I'll let the mountain take you. Durin will wake any moment, and surely you'd love to see a family reunion." Albedo smiled at you cruelly, and the beating heart behind you stopped glowing. The cave dropped nearly 20 degrees in temperature, and you screamed for Albedo to stop. He stopped briefly, looking back at your pitiful form on the ground, before turning away, walking out of sight. You managed to get to your feet, but only made it to the entrance to the cave before screaming in pain, falling to the snowy ground, blood staining the pure white snow.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.