The Banquet

There was a deafening burst of soot and fire. Eula’s blade was blown off course, and they both staggered back from the explosion.

Klee had shown up at the head of a crowd, Masters Azzi and Daiyu included. Her explosive Dodoco sent fragments of ice and stuffing to every corner.

She ran to Kaeya with tears in her eyes. Although her lips moved rapidly, a shrill ringing drowned out any words she might have said.

Kaeya’s heart beat like a drum as the world came into focus. There was the smell of iron and sulphur, the cold tang of ice. Klee’s restrained sobs and the creak of the sect’s doors.

The approaching footsteps were firm and purposeful. Kaeya looked down at his little sister. Too short to reach higher, Klee clung to his leg. The world seemed split in two. Wooden floors overlapped cellar dirt, the holy sunset smeared with candlelight.

Kaeya wiped his hands on his shirt, calling to Jayu. “Come here.” There were gasps of alarm as the sword flew to his hand.

“Drawing one’s weapon against a senior. Irredeemable; even for a godless cultivator.”

Kaeya finally looked up. It was just Tani Haru, although that swapped one trouble for another.

He evaluated the room before turning to Liu Daiyu. She had arrived not moments ago with a gaggle of disciples following behind. “You’ve left the two guests to fend for themselves, and you allowed them to destroy the main hall as well. I see the sect is flourishing as always.”

The sullen look was back on Liu Daiyu’s face. She knew what Tani Haru was there for and cut directly to the point. “I’d like nothing more than to see your wish through. But orders are orders, Master Haru.”

“Then you will oppose me?”

“No. Our sect will.”

“As if you’re anywhere near full strength.”

Liu Daiyu mirrored his flat tone. “As if you aren’t speaking nonsense. You are like an arrow scorning its own quiver.”

“Juniors are too quick to cast blame on their predecessors. We built this sect from the ground, and you’d let it be trashed so easily?“

Flushing, Liu Daiyu snapped, “It isn’t any of your business, defector. If it were up to me I’d ban you altogether.” She bit her tongue until the hint of red in her cheeks faded. “I will see to it personally. On my master’s name, this hall will be flawless within a week.”

Her admission softened the sharp exchange. Although the promise was impossible, Tani Haru accepted it. He turned to his original motive and approached Kaeya.

His eyes tracked Kaeya’s wounds and the crying girl who clung to him. He had been pulled to his knees in an effort to soothe her and didn’t spare a glance for Tani Haru.

Liu Daiyu looked at them from the corner of her eye. “Don’t spare her feelings when they’ve already been so trashed. She’ll hear it from everyone else. Just get it done and leave.”

Tani Haru cleared his throat. “As a solo cultivator, you don’t know the damage the Chalk Prince did here. Everyone is grateful. But both the dead and the living must be appeased.”

A single blue eye fixed on him, chilling in its intensity. Such a thing was not capable of humanity. Pushing past his unease, Tani Haru explained further. A solo cultivator would not be educated and therefore required instruction on these matters. “If there are any spirits that blame him for their deaths, the resentment they hold could quickly pose a problem.“

Klee made a threatening movement towards her bag. Kaeya quickly stopped her, speaking without meeting anyone’s eyes. “You ask if he suffered enough… to satisfy the victims.”

Master Azzi said, “The gods have blessed us enough. It would be greedy to ask for more.”

Tani Haru frowned. “You know this is important. I ask that you refrain from causing a scene.”

“Surely Master Mizu isn’t so frightened of social situations. You’re seeming more and more like him by the day.”

“I’m nothing like him,” he said. “You’ll know soon enough.”

She looked away. “It seems we are running late. I apologize for the poor reception, Captain Eula; although we’ll have to patch you up on the way there, you will receive proper treatment once the meeting has concluded.”

Eula nodded, her face pale as snow.

“I will leave too,” said Liu Daiyu. She offered no farewell, merely walking away. An exceedingly plain youth also hurried forward. The four of them soon set a brisk pace.

Although Tani Haru stared after Master Azzi, her back was straight and unyielding. A soft ‘ohh…’ came from a female disciple. She flinched back as intense, dark eyes bored into hers.

“How far the sect has fallen, that the juniors dawdle around sucking their thumbs. Master Gelida would have you locked in confinement for less.”

The disciples dispersed at once, only a harassed healer lingering by Kaeya. She reached out her hands only to be slapped away each time. She looked to Tani Haru for help.

Blood poured freely, and Kaeya’s face grew paler with every moment. Instead of seeking help, he clung to the little girl in front of him. They both seemed paralyzed.

Tani Haru found himself questioning reality, wondering if some earth-ending tragedy had replaced the triumph. He looked away uncomfortably, wishing they would look normal again.

“Is everyone here so thrilled?” asked Kaeya. His expression was now collected, but his voice didn’t match. It was like a dam about to rupture.

Tani Haru was about to speak when the little girl rudely interrupted. He wanted to reprimand her before remembering the smoking hole she’d made in her earlier escape. He took several steps back.

One of her hands uncurled. There was a corroded wrapper in her palm, stained with gold and crystallized salt. It was crumpled and dirty, nothing but used-up trash. But the girl held it like some great treasure. She showed it to Kaeya, whose eye rounded imperceptibly.

“Where did you get that?” His voice was just a breath, nothing like the sleek confidence of months ago.

“In his hand,” she said. “He must have run out by now. Let’s get some for his birthday, Kaeya.”

The little girl must be delusional, as she had certainly seen the body. The situation was very awkward for Tani Haru. Like many disciples, he was sorely unprepared for matters involving children. He took another few steps away.

“You said you would bring him back,” said the little girl. Kaeya didn’t answer, and she grew more agitated.

“Why aren’t you saying anything?” She asked. Her eyes were a paradox. They drew in one’s attention, angry and begging at the same time. But more strongly sensed were the emotions which warred within her.

“You always tried to be my favourite brother. You said it was unfair he got to see me first. But I loved you both the same, Kaeya! I wanted two brothers, not one!”

“I‘m sorry.” The admission was nothing but a whisper. A victor was no longer kneeling before them. Here was a wounded man, his mask slipping to crack on the floor.

Tears rolled down Klee’s face. She shook her head vehemently. “No! You liar! I saw… you said… everyone is saying…” Her expression crumpled like the wrapper in her fist. She could no longer deny the truth.

“He’s… gone? But why? Did he want to leave me?”

Kaeya held out a hand but it was slapped away. “I’m sorry,” he repeated. It seemed his voice had shut down but for that phrase. What had been impossible was now the only thing he could think or say. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

She was in a world of her own making. It was a dangerous mix of volatility and grief, and she lacked the restraint to speak with anything but honesty. “‘I’m sorry’ won’t bring him back, Kaeya! How could you mess up so badly? I don’t care if you hate him, he’s my brother! You didn’t try at all to save him! I heard what they said about you - you evil person! I wish you died instead of him!”

Kaeya’s sword dropped to the ground with a dull clatter. The little girl stared at him, face twisting in a horrible expression, before fleeing at full tilt. Her escape was cut short as she struggled with the heavy doors. 

Liu Daiyu ordered a disciple, “Go with her. Don’t let her out of the sect.”

Both girls were soon gone. Tani Haru extended a hand. Kaeya ignored it and stood, his left hand in a claw-like vice. The silver blade was again in his grasp.

“I suppose you’ll want my testimony now,” Kaeya said flatly.

Tani Haru was determined to see his mission through, picking up from where he had left off. “It’s unfortunate that I couldn’t be there myself. But I’ve been diligent in collecting reports, and I’ve come across a discrepancy. Considering the situation, it would not be just to cast blame. Under that backbreaking stress, in such an anxious situation… once a seed of the idea took place, even a large group could ‘see’ something that never was.”

This discovery was the point at which most disciples quit. Although the phenomena stopped soon after, the juniors had spread enough horror stories that matters regarding the corpse were shoved from public view.

The healers compared it to a chicken. You might cut off its head, but some vestige of its soul would keep it in motion. Most of the sects had accepted this explanation. Tani Haru doubted it.

One might work.

Although the waves were fierce, his time by the beach showed him a multitude of tiny miracles. A bottled letter from Liyue, a wax crane turned soggy at the joints. Perhaps an hour-long string of miracles had been enough, keeping the tiny parts in place.

But two?

The disciples only fought evil beings; seeing what amounted to a human in such a state was a sight too grotesque for many to bear.

No, he was sure of it. The time. The waves. One might have moved. But both eyes?

“They weren’t found in the same place,” said Tani Haru. “And seeing the amount of time between each recovery, we can conclude it was nothing more than mass hysteria.”

A few disciples grumbled quietly at this dismissal.

“But for posterity,” he continued, “It would be best to either confirm or deny this theory.”

Kaeya shook his head wordlessly.

It was impossible to know what he meant, but Tani Haru didn’t mind. The public adored macabre tales, but there was a certain threshold for their sensitivity. Tani Haru would push the story far past it. The commoners might pass it around, but those who shaped history - nobles, cultivators, god-worshippers - would drop it like a hot coal.

‘I’ve failed you, Eike. It should have been my hands that brought you justice. But for you… for your memory… I shall excise his very existence from this world.‘

A strange feeling welled up in his chest. He realized with astonishment it was gratitude. “Truly… I must thank you,” he told Kaeya. “The investigation is an internal matter, but I have urged the masters to support you. May your seas be calm from now on.”

Kaeya stared at him in silence. His skin had paled, eerie eye turned flat and glassy. Tani Haru had no desire to look at that strange expression any longer. He quickly took his leave.

The doors closed behind Tani Haru. Kaeya collapsed to the ground.

The darkness was bliss. But as quickly as it began, it was cut short.

“Master Kaeya!”

A face came into view. It was incredibly plain, so much so that Kaeya questioned if it was a face at all. He closed his eyes at this nightmare and resolved to try again in several minutes.

There was a chagrined murmur. It seemed that an imaginary crowd had formed around him.

“You’ve lost a lot of blood,” said a young girl. “And your appearance… is it really okay to go in there like that?”

She was quickly hushed, although there were murmurs of agreement.

The plain man spoke. “Master Azzi, may I proceed with the healing?”

“Master Azzi, my ass! You’re my disciple, not hers!”

A sigh. “Master Daiyu, please show some restraint in front of our guests.”

There was an ill-tempered huff in response. Kaeya was poked fiercely in the forehead, followed by a resounding slap.

He was shocked into opening his eyes, greeted with the sullen glare of Liu Daiyu. This must be real, after all; nothing in hell could compare to that frightening look.

“You have the audacity to faint like a maiden? Where was that weakness while you trashed our hall?” She slapped him again before rising. She deliberated for a moment. She slapped him once more. “You fool.”

Her gaze stabbed into the plain-faced individual like a knife. “Heal him just enough.”

He looked incredibly frightened. “Just enough for what?”

“So he survives,” she said grimly. “After this meeting, I will beat this ingrate until his eye can no longer open.” She walked briskly away, her robes spinning like autumn leaves in a breeze.

The healer girl sighed. “This is what happens when you refuse treatment.” She stuck her hand in Kaeya’s face alongside the unfortunately-featured one.

Kaeya slapped away both, scowling.

Master Azzi also sighed. “It seems you’re just as stubborn as your cousin. The king awaits your presence, Master Kaeya. It would be wise to make haste.” She summoned a small crystal. “This will alleviate your symptoms for the time being. Please swallow it whole.”

Kaeya stung all over. The blood from his wounds had slowed to a trickle, but it would be wise to treat them anyways.

He took the crystal without a second thought, walking quickly to match her pace through the hallways.

The crystal must be ‘Master Sucrose’s’ invention. She might have improved the flavour; he wished desperately for alcohol to wash out the bitter taste in his mouth.

He felt nauseous, a wave of dizziness nearly causing him to fall over. The plain healer made a move towards him but quickly backed off at Kaeya’s glare.

The hallways were sparse, stripped of decoration to make up for waning revenue. Faint shadows marked these losses. One large spot against the ground, two smaller ones in the centre of the wall. One large, two small. One large, two small. This strict pattern continued endlessly.

It seemed for each step he took, he only grew further from his destination. The only assurance of his progress was the faint trail of blood he left behind him.

A blotch caught his eye. Kaeya stopped to stare at it.

“Master Kaeya?”

One large, three small. The pattern was disrupted.

“We really must be going.”

The shadow was nearly identical to the others. He tilted his head before reaching out, fingertips brushing against it.

A chilling scream echoed through the hallways.