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Entry tags:
- arcane: vander,
- arknights: gavial,
- bastard!!: dark schneider,
- black butler: sieglinde sullivan,
- expanse (the): amos burton,
- fate/: quetzalcoatl,
- fate/: rin tohsaka,
- fire emblem: claude von riegan,
- genshin impact: tartaglia (childe),
- genshin impact: zhongli,
- granblue fantasy: eustace,
- magnus archives (the): the archivist,
- orv: dokja kim,
- star wars: cassian andor,
- star wars: jyn erso,
- trigun maximum: vash the stampede
The Seeds of Unrest, Phase Two 🌱
UPROOTED
Time has not been kind thus far, and the future will be no kinder.
The slow passage of days to weeks has seen both cities increasingly ravaged by the untamed growth of the enlarging roots. Their size is enough to uproot buildings by their foundations, if not bisect them entirely where they push through unfettered. In the worst-hit areas, entire blocks are left abandoned - if even standing at all, displacing families and leaving businesses in ruins.
Cetina and Kathova have been in near constant contact with Bearers via Communion, feeding them information about which areas to focus their lifesaving efforts. Yima’s Manor and the Seat of the Tribune - despite their closeness to the Trees - have been fortified by your leaders and act as a base of operations for each respective faction. You will be able to return to either to find sanctuary from the chaos beyond, but the innumerable civilians are not so lucky.
Bearers are tasked with rescue and recovery efforts and requested to assist hands on the ground with taking refugees to temporary shelters. Survivors must be dug out of the debris. Those who are capable of healing will be enlisted to assist at hospitals and triage centers. Supplies must be gathered and harvested from areas that are collapsed and too dangerous for civilians to navigate. If you are feeling generous, you can go on search and rescue missions, as many people are considered missing in both Highstorm and Springstar. Some areas are completely cut off to regular foot traffic by the massive, winding roots bearing countless Blight-blooms. Citizens are succumbing to the Blight flower’s effects persistent from phase one with more and more frequency.
While both cities slowly succumb to a deepening catastrophe, the situation worsens.
The slow passage of days to weeks has seen both cities increasingly ravaged by the untamed growth of the enlarging roots. Their size is enough to uproot buildings by their foundations, if not bisect them entirely where they push through unfettered. In the worst-hit areas, entire blocks are left abandoned - if even standing at all, displacing families and leaving businesses in ruins.
Cetina and Kathova have been in near constant contact with Bearers via Communion, feeding them information about which areas to focus their lifesaving efforts. Yima’s Manor and the Seat of the Tribune - despite their closeness to the Trees - have been fortified by your leaders and act as a base of operations for each respective faction. You will be able to return to either to find sanctuary from the chaos beyond, but the innumerable civilians are not so lucky.
Bearers are tasked with rescue and recovery efforts and requested to assist hands on the ground with taking refugees to temporary shelters. Survivors must be dug out of the debris. Those who are capable of healing will be enlisted to assist at hospitals and triage centers. Supplies must be gathered and harvested from areas that are collapsed and too dangerous for civilians to navigate. If you are feeling generous, you can go on search and rescue missions, as many people are considered missing in both Highstorm and Springstar. Some areas are completely cut off to regular foot traffic by the massive, winding roots bearing countless Blight-blooms. Citizens are succumbing to the Blight flower’s effects persistent from phase one with more and more frequency.
While both cities slowly succumb to a deepening catastrophe, the situation worsens.
STIRRING STORMS
As the days pass, inexplicable and unnatural weather occurrences will randomly plague both cities. They can last as long as a full day or as little as an hour before dissolving entirely.- Flurries: this snow is tainted by the Blight, making the snowfall look like ash. Any organic matter it touches will be affected by reopening wounds, re-infection of illnesses, or re-experiencing injuries that may have healed over years ago.
- Thunderstorms: these storms carry a frigid rainfall and heavy cloud cover, making already difficult-to-navigate disaster zones harder to clear. As each thunder bellow crashes overhead, you might swear you hear a familiar voice reaching out to you in the fading rumble… one that sends a message - either from the future or past.
- Fog: dense clouds of thick, freezing fog will roll in randomly, making visibility even more precarious. In your search for survivors - or your companions, you may find yourself coming face to face with someone else, instead: a version of yourself (or a companion) from another timeline. You may also hear your own voice calling out to you from within the fog, attempting to beckon you further into the mist.
- General Note: Exposure to any of the above weather patterns will increase your Blight infection.
THE BLIGHT COMES FOR ALL
As if it were not enough to see the cities that have become your salvation at the end of the Timestream falling to collapse and ruin, the Bearers will slowly begin to realize their previous immunity to the Blight is eroding. They will begin to show symptoms of infection that increase into May’s event. ( For more information on the effects of the Blight and purification methods, please see the OOC Summary. )
Now that their last bastion - the Bearers - are just as much in harm’s way as everyone else, the populous’s efforts to formulate a temporary stop-gap solution are being rushed to completion. Time is not on anyone’s side. They will continue to work with those who have been kind enough to volunteer their resources and brilliant minds - collecting materials and attempting to figure out a way to avert their otherwise inevitable destiny.
🌙 YIMA will stress for all Zenite Bearers to prioritize their well-being and to avoid unnecessary exposure, to manage their symptoms as much as possible. They must fight for their own survival to bring in the birth of a new universe - and their lives are too precious to risk. Beyond that, she asks them to save what they can of their people and their most critical structures with the understanding that hard choices may be necessary.
🌞 CYRUS will implore all Meridian Bearers to prioritize the general population's lives and turn their efforts to save as much of Springstar as they can. He will note that Bearers have ways to help keep one another from suffering too much contagion and to coordinate their usages appropriately, to keep one another safe, and watch their backs.
Now that their last bastion - the Bearers - are just as much in harm’s way as everyone else, the populous’s efforts to formulate a temporary stop-gap solution are being rushed to completion. Time is not on anyone’s side. They will continue to work with those who have been kind enough to volunteer their resources and brilliant minds - collecting materials and attempting to figure out a way to avert their otherwise inevitable destiny.
ORDERS
Orders from your leaders will come as soon as infections among the Bearers have been confirmed.🌙 YIMA will stress for all Zenite Bearers to prioritize their well-being and to avoid unnecessary exposure, to manage their symptoms as much as possible. They must fight for their own survival to bring in the birth of a new universe - and their lives are too precious to risk. Beyond that, she asks them to save what they can of their people and their most critical structures with the understanding that hard choices may be necessary.
🌞 CYRUS will implore all Meridian Bearers to prioritize the general population's lives and turn their efforts to save as much of Springstar as they can. He will note that Bearers have ways to help keep one another from suffering too much contagion and to coordinate their usages appropriately, to keep one another safe, and watch their backs.
ANOTHER EN-TREE-TY
The Tree of Life continues to sicken, yet - thankfully - the progression of the Blight is slow. Still, Bearers will find themselves occasionally compelled to take a moment to sit beneath its boughs and vibrant leaves, even as some begin to show signs of discoloration and rot. Any characters who sit with the Tree with the purple leaf they found on their person after phase one will find it warming to the touch, its veins laced with gold. This effect will be even more effective if taken into the cavernous roots beneath the Tree! While this may fill you with a temporary sense of calm, it doesn't seem to have any other effects... yet still, you are compelled, if not curious.
The Tree has offered you this gift for a reason. Perhaps you will find its use before long.
...As long as you - and Kenos - survive long enough to discover it.
The Tree has offered you this gift for a reason. Perhaps you will find its use before long.
...As long as you - and Kenos - survive long enough to discover it.
Zhongli âť– Advocate âť– T1 Zenith
For Set
That was Zhongli's first thought as he opened his eyes to a rotted building in Highstorm, one of his own earthen constructs the only thing keeping it aloft. He waits for three heartbeats (one two three), and when he detects nothing living buried within, Zhongli dismisses the construct with a frustrated hand gesture. The entire structure tilts and wobbles precariously for a few seconds more before succumbing to the overwhelming power of the Blight.
It's wrong. All wrong. The darkened and narrow streets of residential and commercial area intertwined and the gothic peaks of architecture that make the city stand tall even when it is so much lower to the ground - this is not his city. These are not his people to protect. So how did he---?
He'd lost time again - is the only conclusion that Zhongli can think of as he turns on his heel and heads back toward his home city of Springstar. Surely this had to be a side effect of the Blight, and not something else. Not the ailment that eventually claimed every immortal being in Teyvat if battle did not return them to the earth first. Zhongli reaches up one hand to run down the side of his face, the exhale of relief barely audible when he finds no cracks or breaks in the surface. Good. Good.
The cries of the people of Highstorm and the responding shouts of the rescuers echo around him as Zhongli quickly makes his way out of the heart of Zenith. There's a nagging uncomfortable feeling that itches underneath his skin, demanding his attention with every step. Ah, the millennia of peace in Teyvat had made him complacent, tugging at his heart to save all that could be saved. But times of war did not allow for such generosities, and Zhongli had his own vows to keep.
(Perhaps when the Blight was properly contained in Springstar, he might return.)
And so as Zhongli finally makes his way toward the entrance to the prized city of the Meridian, thunder rumbles in the distant darkening clouds as another wave of Blight also makes its way on a similar path. ]
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Yima had always understood, the thing that he valued most was never going to be the world. It would always be his son, the shard held close to his heart, wrapped in a pretty wire shell and woven into his hair ( his sunbeam was there, his sunbeam — what sunbeam? why would he have such a thing? let his world burn, his son will learn to forgive him, in time ). Springstar is around him, bright and burning fast through its own energies, and he is repulsed by it; he longs to soothe the heat of his sun-warmed existence in the cool evening skies of Highstorm. Where he may look up, to the stars and know that his own beautiful mother is immortalized in memory.
He huffs, turning his back upon the Springstar militiawoman who calls to him: Shard-bearer Set? Please, where are you going? and disgust curdles within him. None of them had the right to remake a world. Such provenance lay solely with the gods, and without a god, they were simply playing with the idea that they could roll back time upon the natural end of the world instead of ensuring the next was properly styled, maintained and grown. ( He needs to focus on Highstorm. The Beyond calls to him, as does the dark divinity within him — untethered by control and emboldened by the purity of Zenith's acceptance. )
He plans to skip town through a cornerstone, to drop himself into the midst of Yima's Manor and carry on his work there — really, not too different from his former life ( no, he has always BEEN ZENITH ) — because Zenith asks that her people prioritize themselves. It is there, nearly upon Springstar's nearest cornerstone, that he spots Zhongli. As beautiful as burnished gold and copper, as he comes to Springstar. Returns to? ]
Zhongli, [ he purrs, smile growing sharp and indulgent upon his mouth. ] Do tell me where you're returning from, and so quickly! Were you looking for me? I've yet to compile the trip dossier, what with — everything going on, you know.
[ Every time he sees this man, he feels the weight of his existence; he yearns to lunge for him, to drive himself against him in battle, in eternal dance. Like calls to like, whether they are or previously were divinity incarnate. ]
— you do still owe me a date, by the way. [ Coyly said, as he drifts from the cornerstone. Sand swirls, in soft curls and eddies around his ankles. Nonthreatening, but omnipresent, as flesh and blood and bone were to him — so was the earth itself. ]
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[ The answer is spoken almost distractedly as Zhongli realizes that he has been effectively caught by another Shard Bearer derelict in his duties. How shameful. It seemed his fondness for the people of Teyvat were a more magnetizing force than he had first anticipated. But what to do about it? What to do?
Nothing, at the moment. Not when the other Shard-Bearer was one that required and inspired his full attention. ]
Greetings, Master Set. While the grace of your presence is ever welcome, I'm afraid my intentions are less personal in nature. The people need protecting, do they not?
[ Zhongli eyes drift from Set to the cornerstone he has turned away from and back to the god once again. Bold to ask where someone was coming from (of where Zhongli had no place being) while simultaneously making haste from a place Set should remain. But perhaps that was what was strangely endearing about the other - that he was so refreshingly blatant in his everything, regardless of what he was doing. A hint of a smile plays on his lips as Set approaches.
(The earth thrums as the sand washes over it, a complementary beat to its rhythm, save for the dissonant notes of a Savant and an Advocate dancing around each other, neither retreating nor touching.)
Zhongli crosses his arms, weight perfectly balanced as he gives a thoughtful hum to Set's inquiry. Really now, he would not be bothering with reports and intel unless it directly helped the people of Springstar, fascinating as the Beyond was in its own right. And as for the date---
Well, Zhongli had never once turned his back on an agreement. ]
As for our future entanglements, with everything going on, you know, I'm afraid it may be some time before I can prepare the proper experience. I would hate to provide something subpar after making you wait so long.
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[ Placing a finger to the side of his jaw, he tipped his head — questioningly, at the choice of words. How could assisting one's chosen faction be a distraction, hm? He had thought Zhongli was interested in his retirement, after all. To have uncovered his absence among the Unharmonized, and his presence among those of Highstorm, was enough for Set to have concluded that the other had effectively decided to come out of said retirement and join hands with the side devoted to a new world. How interesting, what had been the push? Was it Alenroux, he wondered?
( How he wished he had devoted a little more time to inspecting Alenroux. Meridian would have been driven back, by his strength of arm; by the war god that coiled dark and insidious among Zenith's own. )
Taking his hand from the cornerstone, he drifted — closer, closer still. Until the discordant note plucked between their Aspects was shrilling, keening like a warning: go no closer, take no solace in one another, you are anathema, anathema. And to some Shard-bearers, that might have been enough of a warning. For Set, whom would one day count discord itself among his chief domains, it was delicious. ]
Yes, yes. If that is the sort of thing you are into, 'our people' do need tender, loving [ and then, he is upon Zhongli; the flash of Set's natural violent intent stifled quickly, as he pours himself across the other's shoulders; draping his arm along them, buddying up to his side ] care. Springstar is in shambles, serves them right for issuing me such a challenge in Alenroux — they are far too interested in caring for one another. Their Shard-bearers will be exhausted by the end of it.
[ He makes the attempt to turn them around, back towards Highstorm — where they belong. ]
Not us, though. We gave up on what's gone for a reason, after all. If this is the natural order of things in Kenos, we ought to get back to obtaining Oracles and leave this shell of a reality behind.
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The discord rises to a beautiful crescendo. The shifting sands begins to droop under an unseen gravity. ]
It is the sort of thing I am into, as you put so aptly put it, Lord Set. If Springstar is in shambles, then this is where I am needed most. I promised the Tribune as much.
[ The rest of Set's words make little sense, however. Well, except for the exhausted part. Surely, some of the Meridian Shard Bearers would over-exert themselves for the good of the people, and that is part of the reason that Zhongli felt compelled to return to organize the efforts. The rest, though-- the rest... ]
While normally I would indulge in the banter of wits and words of which you are so skilled, I'm afraid duty does not allow me the luxury this day. I have already allowed myself to be distracted for far too long from our city of hope.
[ Ah, the Blight he had accumulated in Highstorm must be affecting him more than Zhongli thought when the only response to talk of Oracles and reality was the upcoming headache of "one crisis at a time". He'd barely set foot back in the city, and the first Oracle loss was a known sore spot. Unless ... perhaps it was Lord Set that needed some respite for the Blight. ]
I know not of what transpired between you and Alenroux, but if you need some tender, loving care before you depart, I suppose there is some I could offer.
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The Tribune? A promise? ] Did someone addle your brains, make you stupid? You did not pledge anything to the Tribune. You chose to turn your back on the people of your world, and seek something new with the Matron.
[ Zhongli remains rooted in place, and Set ceases to lead him. Instead, he lifts his head a little, to peer out from below the edge of his mask thoughtfully, gazing at the perpetual calm upon the other man's face. He has always been an intriguing thing, as even-tempered and thoughtful as the earth itself ( as, perhaps, Set's own father — ). To try and move him in this moment, he feels, might be a battle that he does not feel like starting between himself and his Zenith kin. Maybe another time, though. For fun, to test himself and Zhongli both.
Instead, he flicks his fingers up through the dark, coppery bangs near to the man's temple. Pushing them to one side, then to another, as if seeking an injury that could explain his obvious confusion. ]
You did not choose hope, Zhongli. Come now, abandon Springstar to their silly flights of fancy and return to where you belong, with me. The only distraction here is either your own addled mind, or the effects of the Blight. Are you feeling ill, hm? I feel perfectly well, [ cold, he feels cold, his Shard is cold even despite the Discord that burns throughout him, wrathful and full of light. ] But, you are acting strange.
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Vash
That's the first thing that comes to Zhongli's mind as he can no longer feel the tips of his fingers. Karma, the miasma of fallen gods that could twist and infect all around it - these where things Zhongli was intimately familiar with. He had always been careful and rational about exposure to ensure that he would not become the threat he was trying to push back.
Perhaps it was the lost time. Perhaps it was the fact the very weather chilled him to his bones in a way that no amount of warm clothing or tea could warm him up. Either way, he has overestimated how much the Blight he could withstand, and now making it back to the safety of one of the Zenite camps seemed like a momentous task, and one that scratched at his pride more than a little.
Ah, he'd never be able to call one of those younguns from Teyvat reckless again, now could he?
Pinching the bridge of his nose, Zhongli takes a moment to glance around at the hunk of rubble that used to be a thriving part of the city overtaken by vines and flowers and Blight. Not ideal. If someone was trapped further in, there would be no safe passage from them to traverse the Blight. Just a little more - as long as he did not touch anything, his own afflictions with the Blight should not worsen. Then he would return.
So Zhongli raises a hand that he cannot feel, golden glow wrapping around his palm. If he hears the other Shard-Bearer approach (a certain possibility as he is still alert if winded), with a slight tilt of his head: ]
If you could be patient, I shall have the path forward cleared in a moment.
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what's important is he seems in good spirits, and his state of vitality is a stark contrast to the Zenite's. this Meri must have dealt with his Blight recently; there are none of the symptoms of encroaching frostbite, of fatigue and malaise. and there's a sharpness in amiable aquamarine eyes as his footsteps slow. ]
You look like you could use a hand, friend.
[ Vash doesn't just mean the obstruction barring the way through the street, either. but still, it's good to open with something non-committal; he doesn't know what sort of company he's run into and how willing this fellow might be to accept kindness from a stranger, after all. ]
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Only if you have one to lend. Though you seem in good health and good spirits.
[ The dust and debris clinging to Vash's clothes hint that it isn't his first time going out into the ruined parts of the city. Though it is curious that Zhongli does not recognize him as one of Zenith. Unharmonized perhaps? Or could it be that only their own city had been hit by this dreadful escalation? Or perhaps even another unknown reason.
Ah, speculation would get him no where. And his own Blight affliction had reached an unfortunate level - one that Zhongli could not ignore. But he had to make sure he understood the trade being offered here. ]
Is this what one might call your second wind? It seems you have seen much yourself.
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Yeah, guess you could call it that! Someone was nice enough to give me a bit of a pick-me-up, so I figure I ought to pay it forward, you know?
[ whether it was a Meri or a Zenite, whether it was a Bearer or one of the citizens who had been born and raised in Kenos all their lives, they were all in this together. there is no reason to leave anyone suffering a slow, cruel consumption by the Blight if it could be helped, and Vash was never one to see among 'party' lines, as it were. ]
You've been at this for a while, haven't you?
[ Zhongli looks-- well, he looks exhausted, if a very regal and dignified sort of exhausted Vash couldn't hope to achieve in all his years for sure. ]
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[ Practical to almost a fault, Zhongli will certainly see the logic and value in having those who would come to offer aid to those who were at the proverbial frontlines. New fresh soldiers to replace the exhausted. As someone who usually stayed behind as others did the more dangerous work until the situation became truly dire, there was always a trade-off. There was no reason to not accept this offer, except--- ]
Though I greatly appreciate the generous offer, I am also a person who believes strongly in mutually beneficial agreements. Might there be something I can assist you with in return. For example, some area of the city in particular you wish to see salvaged or investigated.
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Marc
One of the soldiers of Highstorm quickly averts their gazes, bowing respectfully to both Marc and Zhongli as he tells them that he will bring them out of danger. With a thump of one fist against his chest, the soldier is off carrying the smaller child as the mother and older son crowd behind.
Drip drop. Drip drop.
Dark clouds begin to collect overhead, thunder rumbling in the distance, as Zhongli allows the slab to fall back down upon the Earth, kicking up white dust and ash into the already darkening sky.
Wonderful.
(Zhongli swears he hears the sound of a bell chiming and the offended squawk of a bird. He ignores both.)
Turning to his companion: ]
I do believe a storm is coming. We should get any other survivors out quickly.
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he doesn't know the other shard-bearer he's ended up working with, and they haven't really conversed much so far — there'd been little need to — just vague directions here, odd commentaries and explanations there — meant predominately to drive the two of them in helping those who need it.
marc watches as the family they've just helped hurry off, gaze following them until they're lost amongst everyone else. zhongli's quiet too, for the moment, and marc brushes distractedly at the dirt and the dust that have accumulated on his clothes (it does nothing) before looking up at the sky, grey and ugly as heavy drops of rain start to fall.
great, marc thinks, as zhongli speaks and marc's attention snaps back to his companion. I think a storm's coming, he says, and marc's lips quirk, the barest hint of a smile (acknowledging, not so much humorous), and he murmurs a soft noise of agreement. ) As long as it doesn't come down too hard, we should be okay. ( by a definition of the word, anyway. 'okay' not by any measure of actually being okay, but in the comparative scheme of things. ) Getting a chill will be the worst thing... ( other survivors will have to contend with, at least immediately. from there, yes, it'd get worse, but—.
marc pauses, a flicker of what he thinks to have been movement catches his attention, and he gestures in the direction of (yet more) rubble and debris. ) —There.
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[ What's a little more with how dreadfully cold it's been here in Highstorm recently. But now is not the time to bemoan inconvenient weather as Zhongli's eyes follow where Marc is pointing. The number of people trapped under the rubble is unknowable at this point, and the longer they stay out here the more risk that befalls both themselves and those they would rescue. Speed was of the essence here.
And so, Zhongli makes his way quickly over in that direction until he standing atop of the rubble of what must have been a small shop of some kind before it collapsed. A colorful banner and half a wooden sign lay atop the broken stone as the building's only remaining identifiable features. He taps the ground lightly with his heel, listening to the sounds of the earth underneath him as it groans and shifts from the ferocity of the Blight until he finally finds a pocket of air large enough to house survivors. ]
Here.
[ And thus the digging begins once more. ]
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But today, today Zhongli is late. And there is no sun to greet them by the time he arrives at the door to their shared abode. The weather is miserable, wet, and a dense fog clings to Zhongli's ankles as he pushes the door open. Without a word, he steps inside.
The fog rolls in with him.
Even more uncharacteristically, Zhongli does not toe out of his shoes and carefully place them on the rack as he normally does when he enters the house. Instead, he passes straight through the entryway and into the living room and kitchen area, footsteps damp from the Blighted weather that seems to hover over all of Highstorm. Carefully methodically, he searches through every room in an attempt to find the house's other occupant. ]
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Instead of doing such things, however, Zhongli will find the Snezhnayan in the room where they are keeping the flowers that help warm off the Blight, having been primarily constructing a small little house for the cat surrounded by the flowers so it has the safest possible place to stay and rest without it needing to be distressed about its health. (aka Childe need not be distressed about the possibility of it getting ill).
( If Kaeya dropped his weasel off, he's accommodated the arrangements for it, also, so they can both have a sleep area in the flowers safely without hindering the growth of the flowers— something Childe had to read up on since taking care of flowers isn't a thing he's exactly used to being from Snezhnaya. )
With the (potential two) animal(s) currently snoozing in the house as Childe plays with a garden headlamp, he'll pause when he notices Zhongli appear. ]
Oh, Xiansheng! I didn't hear you come in— [but he did, just moments before the other appeared in the doorway, hear the unusual sound of shoes being part of the footsteps that approached the room, which he's quick to confirm were Zhongli and not someone or something else.
That's... huh. Is he in such a hurry for some reason?
Nevertheless, it's not enough to change the warm getting Zhongli gets from the younger man. He'll go to set the lamp down and approach, intending to gently pull him along towards the main area back towards the kitchen. Something makes Childe especially concerned about making something hot for the other to have for dinner. ]
Ahh, I had turned the stove down when you didn't show up at your usual time, but now that you're here let me go heat the soup again!
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(This is no time for soup.) ]
Childe.
It is not safe here. Please gather your things and get ready to leave.
[ His voice is agitated, glancing between Childe, the cat and the plants as if he's trying to mentally jenga the most efficient way to scoop them all up and get them out of here. But ah, there were also the shards in the foyer that could not be left behind... how distressing, would Childe be allowed to keep those if all went according to plan?
Perhaps Zhongli was being a little heavy-handed and overly dramatic, but he had been patient long enough and anymore time spent dallying in Highstorm would certainly spell disaster for both of them. Zhongli needed to return to Springstar - he needed to protect his people, he needed to aid his fellow Shard Bringers, but yet he could not in good conscious leave without Childe. Not with great chunks of the city disappearing before their very eyes. Perhaps it had been advantageous in the beginning that they could keep a watchful eye on both sides, but for now--- ]
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Still, as far as he knows, there is no real safe place, at least in regards to the two cities. (Has the underground been spared, he wonders?) Does Zhongli know something new that Childe hasn't yet gotten wind of because he's been limiting his exposure? ( He just... can't be bothered trying to protect nameless people, especially when Lady Yima had made it clear who and what to prioritize. He's going to have to protect Zhongli and the others from themselves since he can't stop them from trying to help everyone, which means he has to be extra vigilant to be in a good enough position healthwise to do so
]
What are you talking about? Where are we going?
[ As he waits for an answer, Childe suddenly notices the fog that came in with Zhongli starting to creep down the corridor aiming for them both. The way the wall is brushed with that strange color of the blight flowers before the paint flakes off and the wood begins to shrivel and rot has the harbinger cursing before defaulting to a kneejerk reaction: Childe will immediately throw a conjured barrier around the flowers and the cat made of hydro even as the fog surrounds them both.
— And he slams the door shut (it gleaming with the sheen of a hydro barrier itself that stretches over the walls and encircles the room to prevent the fog from entering it,) too, even if it puts one or both of them into an awkward physical position as a result. ]
Is this what you're talking about? It's... it's fine, it'll go away. We need to check your infection, though.
[ His own grip does tighten around the other though, as if needing to make sure the consultant doesn't somehow disappear into this sudden and unwelcome fog. ]
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Any dealings you have with me now will increase your own chance of contracting symptoms of the Blight. I should get rid of these clothes first.
[ Zhongli takes a step back, tugging gently to loosen Childe's grip on him. If Childe's grip persists, he will not further pull away. Lingering concerns from how the horrors of Kenos had already graced this house stop him from completely separating himself from the other. ]
There is no sign of the Blight stopping. To the contrary, the longer we wait, the worse everything has become.
We should return to Heliopolis. I know that previous encounters have not left you with a good impression of the Tribune and his people, but it is where I need to be. And I have no intention of leaving you behind.
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parking my starter here;
Her prudent approach has been keeping her standing and in relatively better health than most, but she worries that won't be the case for much longer as she spots Zhongli looking bedraggled. It has been some time since she'd seen last him in person, but she would still attribute most of his health's decline to their current situation.
Rather than stall and give his affliction time to worsen, she sprints up towards him and wraps an arm around his waist to help hold him upright. ]
Don't tell me you've been working overtime healing everyone in sight. Do you want to end up dissipated?
[ She has it on good authority that dissipation is Not Fun, and neither is hanging around with a high level of discord, constantly freezing and hallucinating at all hours. ]
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He feels no threat associate with the touch, no ill-will toward his person, so the flare of amber dies almost as soon as it arises. The chiding voice is enough to identify his benefactor and perhaps it is a bit selfish that he is grateful that Rosaria found him in this state instead of one of the men of Teyvat. It's a little bit difficult to instill self care when caught not practicing what you preach.
At least Zhongli has the humility to at least look a little bit sheepish. ]
That was not my intention, no, though I could see how my actions could be perceived as much. My apologies, Rosaria, I did not mean to add to your list of responsibilities.
[ aka babysitting. ]
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[ Nor the last. She recalls her rescue mission after Kaeya had been possessed not too long ago... and when Childe foolishly decided to chase the same tree down. How they all managed to survive the past few weeks without her, she'll never know.
Her arm tightens as she tries to keep Zhongli upright. He's taller than her and far from light, so it's not the easiest ordeal, but she is managing well enough, all things considered. ]
How bad is it? You're still conscious and you recognize me, but beyond that, what are your symptoms?
[ Is it worth trying to help him herself, or can he manage until Rosaria finds someone more altruistic for her to foist him on? She's been trying to keep herself stable and not allow the blight to affect her much either, but she's also grown fond(ish) enough of Zhongli that she doesn't want him to perish painfully from being kinder than anyone really ought to be to a bunch of strangers from another world. ]
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[ Enough that holding him even with the many outer layers is still a chilly endeavor. Luckily, even though he dislikes the cold, he has a higher resistance to it (but perhaps not as high as two cryo users who use it on the daily). Zhongli shifts, pointing toward a stack of rubble that he might rest on so she doesn't have been carrying the dead weight of a god of stone. Luckily, it seems that most of the survivors here have already been cleared out and most of his efforts were on keeping the vines from growing further into the city. ]
Also, I believe I occasionally hear people from Teyvat who are not here, but I do not know if that is caused by the Blight or not. The walls between consciousnesses are already terribly thin here as is the veil between worlds. I cannot tell if such is a hallucination or an echo of their memory like a Ley Line.
. . .
Do you hear anything?
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Just you losing your mind.
[ Her steps manage to keep for a few more paces until she spots a leftover bench she can deposit him onto for the time being. She's honestly surprised it didn't get destroyed, but she's not going to question her fortune right now. She's more concerned with also finding anyone else nearby...which seems unlikely. ]
Can you access your shard at all in this state?
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