Purrsonal Catastrophe

17

The orb changed color in the sky and radiated dark thorns in every which direction. The thorns spread out and attacked nearby buildings, causing them to fall. Luckily the people around had the smarts to flee. No one in the city wanted to stick around to see what would happen. 

A shriek was heard in the distance as the dragon grew closer. He held out his talons and grabbed the orb, trying to pull it apart. 

"Did I not tell you?" Dvalin snarled. "That human was dangerous!" 

"Stop!" Lumine ran closer to the orb. She jumped across the roof of buildings to get as close to it as she could, holding out her arm to try and catch Dvalin's attention. "Don't attack it!" 

"Another human?" Dvalin scoffed. 

"The orb is trying to fuse with our brother," Aether followed the path Lumine had taken. "If you attack the orb further it could either cause it to explode or send Dainsleif into a panicked state. Fischl," Aether turned and called back to her. "Would you shoot a charged arrow at the orb?" 

Fischl reluctantly summoned her bow and aimed at the orb. She shot the charged arrow and it hit the orb directly. The odd color surrounding the orb dissipated for a moment to reveal Dainsleif, unconscious, wrapped in shadows. 

"Dvalin," Aether began, "would you please lower a wing so my sister and I can get closer to the orb?" 

"Why should I? I could destroy the orb and your brother right now and use wind barriers to maintain the destruction." 

"Our brother saved your life. Please return the favor," Lumine reminded. 

Dvalin reluctantly lowered his wing and the twins climbed up it and onto his head. The two placed their hands on the orb, wincing as the thorns wrapped around them as well. They spoke to Dainsleif, trying to wake him up. 

"Dainsleif!" 

"Wake up!" 

"We're not trapped in the Abyss anymore!"

"Our city is already gone!" 

"Trapped...?" Kaeya created an ice path under his feet as he ran up into the sky to get closer to the twins. He didn't dare ask to walk on Dvalin's wing or stand on his head, but he did hover over him. 

...

Dainsleif clutched Dottore's throat tightly in his hands. His eyes raging as constellations continued to pour off of him. Thorns growing with them. He felt the energy in the darkness shift for a moment, hearing thumping that he couldn't place. 

"Dain..." Dainsleif turned his head to see Kaeya standing there. He was wearing the same thing he wore to meet the Queen. "You have to stop."

"You want me to spare the man that killed my siblings in front of me?" Dainsleif didn't know if he was shocked or pained by those words. Maybe a bit of both. 

"He is on the Queen's council. You can't just kill him."

"Unless you make it abundantly clear using this magical mask that I cannot kill him, I am going to kill him," Dainsleif snapped.

"I don't want to do that to you, Dain," Kaeya placed his hand on his chest and outstretched his other one to Dainsleif. 

"As much as I love to be strangled while people have a bit of a domestic fight," Dottore raised his hands and waved. "Can we make the decision please?" 

"There is no decision," Kaeya sighed. "Dainsleif, this is an order, release Dottore." 

"Heh," Dainsleif's mask crackled and his hair stood on end. He snickered briefly on the brink of insanity before he realized that he felt no pain. He released Dottore and looked up and around at the place. 

"This is fake."

"I don't know, it seemed pretty real to me a minute ago," Dottore grabbed his neck, rubbing it. 

"You want me to be angry, why?" Dainsleif's aura diminished. "What is your goal here?" 

"My goal?" Dottore snickered, taking off his mask. "To destroy the world, of course. Isn't that always the goal?" 

"The orb...I'm...in it?" Dainsleif reached out to feel the edge but there was nothing there. He didn't know how he knew, instinct maybe? Or maybe he knew what it was like to be trapped in a true abyss. This wasn't quite the same. 

"Are you sure you want to escape?" Kaeya wrapped his arms around Dainsleif, hugging him from behind. His outfit had changed to his bunny suit. 

"You aren't Kaeya," Dainsleif pushed Kaeya back and walked as far as he could. It kept going and going but he expected an end to be there eventually. 

...

"It's not working," Aether stopped banging on the orb. "What are we to do?" 

"We have to keep trying. He is only getting more and more agitated." 

"No, he has calmed down," Kaeya said. 

"What?" Aether looked up to Kaeya. 

"It's changed color," Kaeya nodded in the direction of the orb. 

"Order him, prince," Dvalin spoke. 

"How would he hear me if I'm out here? What that just kills him because he can't hear my voice?" 

"Then it was foolish of him to get the mask. Order him, prince. You test my patience." 

"Dain," Kaeya moved closer to the orb and pressed his head against it. He closed his eyes, trying to reach him. "Dain, can you hear me in there?" He opened his eyes to watch the color closely. "I need you to come out."

...

Dain.

Dainsleif stopped walking and looked up. Was this another illusion?

Dain, can you hear me in there?

"Kaeya?" 

I need you to-

Dainsleif couldn't hear the rest. The Kaeya inside with him had covered his ears. "I'm the real Kaeya. Don't you trust me?" 

"You're not Kaeya-" 

"How do you know?" 

Dainsleif gritted his teeth and trusted his instincts. He held his fingers close together and stiffened his hand, forcing it through Kaeya's torso after wrapping it in his thorns. Kaeya coughed, bleeding out of his mouth. 

"For your sake, I hope you're right..." Kaeya fell to the ground that wasn't really there. Dainsleif stared at the blood on his hand and held his arm out, finally feeling the wall. Kaeya's blood was the key. Dottore hadn't accounted for Dainsleif to be able to kill him, he expected the loophole to be foolproof and underestimated Dainsleif's intelligence. 

...

"Dain?" Kaeya watched the color change once again. "Dain!" 

Dainsleif's eyes opened and whatever it was binding him snapped piece by piece as he moved. 

"It's time for us to leave," Dvalin grabbed the twins, one in each arm, and grabbed Kaeya by the scruff of his panther neck with his mouth. He flew off, as the orb nearly exploded and dispersed, damaging a considerable amount of buildings as Dainsleif escaped. Several portals opened around the orb, collecting the energy Dainsleif dispersed to minimize the damage. 

Dainsleif hovered in the air with his right eye glowing terribly bright. The portals dispersed as he waved his hand. Purple thorns grew off of him, picking up the pieces to the buildings that had been destroyed. He put them together, eyes scanning the area for that insufferable man. 

"Where is the masked clown?" Dainsleif seethed.