Teyvat's Mailing Dove (Genshin OC Storyline)

3. Backstory - Special Child

Ever since she was very young, the Anemo archon became fond of her personality and ambitions. It didn't take long before her parents noticed the wings. It was quite a shock. They felt fear and confusion from that unknown phenomenon. They've decided to believe that the child was simply blessed with special powers, something similar to the visions, and tried not to think too much of it. However, since it was an unusual case, they insisted that she hides them in public, and not use them unless she was home under surveillance, for extra safety. When Aekls grew a bit older, she became the older sister. Her little sister was named Collei, she was born with a special condition and was very fragile. She would get sick easily and Aekls always felt the need to protect her. They would spend a lot of time together and develop similar interests.

As days passed, rumors started spreading about a child with angelic wings. It was quite a surprise, people were curious since it had never happened before. But as expected, people dropped the interest quickly, thinking that it might simply be that the child received a vision at a very young age. Unfortunately, someone grew more interested in the rumors and seemed to desire to find the truth. It must be related to some greater strength.

Aekls is 11 years old by now. The whole family got startled with unexpected knocks at the door. The parents looked at each other, then turned to the kids, ordering them to go play in the backyard. As the door opened, the parents felt a strong wave of anxiousness. In front of them, stood a rather dangerous-looking man. It was no other than one of the fatui harbingers, Dottore. As the parents slowly backed a few steps, Dottore took a few steps forward. With a smirk cornering his lips, he spoke: "I heard you were in a bad financial situation. I'm here to help. Not that I might leave you any choice though".

It was true. Aekls family was in a lot of depth. They barely had any money to support themselves, and live decent lives. It was practically unbearable and stressful.

Dottore offered them a large sum, enough to live like royalty (obviously to him, it felt like nothing), the only thing he was asking in return, was the child with the special ability. The trade sounded unspeakable, but they currently struggled in survival mode. They didn't have enough to support a family, and even if they refused the offer, they thought, they might end up in greater danger, with the harbinger standing in their living room. With these fearful expressions, they let the child to him.

Not that Dottorre was that interested in the wings. He, like any other, doesn't find that phenomenon extraordinary in any way. His minions simply found someone that might be strong and worthy enough of becoming his lab rat. It seemed like a simple coincidence, wrong place wrong time. Nothing more. He needed someone who would be able to resist any experiment. His previous test subjects were rather weak and useless. He couldn't make any progress. That someone had to have a strong will, and a strong mind. He wanted to see it for himself. Worst case scenario, to him, was that he was wrong about the kid's strength. The moment he saw what he was looking for, his decision was already set. The other fatui agents dragged the child to him, her eyes were glowing, not with fear, rather with frustration and confusion altogether. Those were not the eyes of a lost little puppy, those were the eyes of a hawk that was ready to strike. This girl knew no fear, and that's exactly what he's expecting.

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Aekls never understood how her parents could've sold her out. She always believed in family bonds. But tried to not take it personally. She understood the situation they were in, and accepted her fate as a sacrifice, at least, until she realized what she was signed up for.

At first, Dottore acted like a friendly young uncle. He didn't need any whining on the way. He ordered the guards to walk behind as "safety" measures. Aekls managed to relax for a short while and quietly followed. She couldn't stop thinking about her sister, and if she's worried. Were her parents in pain when she left? And where was Venti...

The trip was far longer than she expected. A melancholic feeling dropped upon her. They were way far from Sumeru, and everything else. She gathered enough courage and asked Dotorre where they were heading. He answered nonchalantly "your new home". "And where is that? Like... on the map". He looked at her from the corner of his eyes "Snezhnaya, I hope you heard of that place before" He replied with a fake smile, trying not to sound annoyed. Aekls noticed and fell silent.

A few days have passed, Aekls anxiety grew stronger as they approached the Fatui headquarters. By this moment, the atmosphere changed, and Dottore finally showed his true colors. He ordered his agents to drag Aekls back to the basement and wait for orders. She was put into a room looking like a jail cell, it was small, cold, and dark. Only a little window at the bottom of the wall letting some light through the thick, metal bars. The window was barely a few feet high. This is the part where it gets tough, and she knows she has to stay composed no matter what. Not showing any weakness, or signs of defeat.

The next few weeks felt like hell. If only she knew this would last over several years. The day after the arrival, Aekls was thrown into the experiment room. She was pinned to a chair, arms and legs immobilized. Dottored would enter with sadistic excitement and entertainment in his voice. "Those wings of yours look quite shiny and transparent, I'm curious to see if your blood looks the same. Don't worry, I'll try~ to be gentle". Despite the huge terror Aekls felt, her almost expressionless face made Dottore bored. He sought to find a way to bring those emotions out of her, and test her limits.

Shackles on her feet kept her from flying too far away. One of the experiments let her loose, while 3 ruin guards used her as a flying target. It was shocking how Aekls survived after being hit by those missiles. It gave Dottore some kind of reassurance that his intuition about her strength was correct. She passed out, but remained alive. Another experiment tested her endurance, which involved some newly constructed ruin hunters that shot electric lasers. Some experiments were made multiple times in a row, some required a longer recovery time than others. These experiments were crazy enough to drive a person insane after a few hours, or kill. Aekls didn't lose her sanity, but she lost her innocent, easygoing behavior. As time went by, the torture she went through hardened her, gave her scars, trained her into becoming a strong fighter, building her with a potential to be recruited by the fatui agents. That was the only way, she thought, that would allow her to escape being Dottore's lab rat. Seeing through her hopeless goal, Dottore kept raising the experiment's difficulty level. There was no way he would lose a subject like her. These sufferings lasted over 3 and a half years. Until she found allies.