This isn't real

Not again

TW: angst, blood, gore, yelling, grief, death (I swear this is the last angsty chapter)

November 10

Childe had tried every method he knew how to contact Zhongli but it seems that the Prince of Liyue truly had cut all ties with Childe. Even to the point he left behind everything Childe bought for him. This was affecting Childe's mental health. He seemed to smile a lot less and wasn't as mischievous or as obsessed with fighting as he usually was. The only good outcome of this whole situation was that Lumine had gone back to Celestia and Childe wouldn't be stalked by her. But even this didn't make things better. Every day was the same for Childe. And each passing day brought a new wave of grief and regret. The rest tried to cheer him up yet nothing was working. Even his younger siblings tried but Childe just pushed them away. Tsaritsa told everyone to leave him alone and let Childe be on his own for now. But things changed when Ningguang sent a blood stained letter to Tsaritsa. Written on the front were the letters 'Emergency'.

From her royal Empress Ningguang, Current ruler of Liyue, owner of Jade Chamber,

Tsaritsa. There is no time to explain everything but Liyue is in grave danger. Please send as much help as possible and I promise to tell the rest when I can. Quickly, I beg you. Before I lose my heirs.

To The Tsaritsa of Snezhnaya, Founder of the Fatui.

"Tartaglia, La Signora, Scaramouche and Dottore." This was one of the rare occasions Tsaritsa addressed them all by their full names. That meant something serious was happening. "I need all of you to go to Liyue now. I don't care if Zhongli said he never wanted to see you again, Childe. I will explain as soon as I can. Just go now please."

When they had to leave, the other three harbingers had to practically drag Childe out of the castle to the docks, where a ship was awaiting them. The ride there was pretty uneventful except for Childe overthinking every single possibility at Zhongli seeing Childe again.

C: Is he going to be mad? Or will he forgive me? But what if I screw things up even more?

Childe was so caught up in thought that his knuckles were turning white from how hard he was gripping the railing.

"Oh my archons..." Signora had visibly gasped at the sight before them. Liyue was up in flames, multiple hydro users and cryo users trying to put out the flames desperately. Everyone else was fighting, if not healing. The Jade Chamber had been secured tightly to the ground and was used as a hospital. Across the ocean was the Abyss Order. And Lumine was in the center of control. Childe heard some very familiar grunting from the many nights he had some adult fun with a certain someone...

"ZHONGLI!" Childe subconsciously yelled at a very wounded figure. Long brown amber tipped hair with eyes that now blazed like molten gold amidst a black abyss, arms as black as charcoal, the gold within shining through the veins bursting through his skin. Two very long and chipped horns made out of amber gleamed in whatever little sunlight could pierce through the thick smoke. The familiar fourteen foot long tail was bruised and bleeding gold that seemed to burn through the wood he was standing on. Even longer fangs showed through his mouth as he growled at the amount of abyssal creatures coming his way. Zhongli threw a big rock pillar at the oncoming hilichurls and it eventually reached an abyss mage, shattering its shield. Once it was confirmed dead, Childe ran up behind the brunette and hugged his waist, as now Zhongli stood a head taller than Childe.

"WHA-? Ajax?" The almost entirely dragon Zhongli turned to face the seemingly small ginger gripping his waist as if his life depended on it.

"I'm so glad you're not dead! I'm so sorry!" Tears of both shame, guilt and relief spilled out of those ocean blue eyes.

"Ajax..." Zhongli turned around and pulled Childe safely towards the geo shield around the Jade Chamber. Once the two of them arrived there, Zhongli's wounds had already been completely healed and there were no signs of scars or marks. Childe marveled at this and pulled his fiance closer for a kiss, to which their lips met. Their positions quickly changed from Zhongli being on top of Childe to below him. Childe kissed away the single tear that ran down Zhongli's face.

"What is this fuckass doing here?" Xiao had stumbled up to them and was currently being healed by Ganyu. Childe managed to catch a glimpse of the rest of Zhongli's family. Albedo looked practically the same except some black substance was leaking out of his right eye, Gorou and Itto also looked the same but something was more intimidating about them. Yun Jin, however, had noticulous jade embedded along her skin and a long shimmery blue tail replaced her legs and was being carried by Albedo. Noelle also had some major differences, that being a third eye on her forehead that was as gold as Zhongli's own eyes and her two normal eyes were pure white and had 'tears' dripping from them and a pair of huge wings extended from her small back with cor lapis studded amongst the soft down feathers.

"It's fine Xiao. Everythings fine." Zhongli gave his son an endearing look and then went back to the battlefield. Childe swiftly followed him.

"Guess who decided to show up? Such a lovely surprise!" Lumine had descended and was now right in front of the couple. She still had that demonic grin but there was a hint of frustration that her plan didn't work. After all the trouble she went through and these two were making out on the battlefield like it was their private bedroom.

"Why are you doing this, Lumine? What did he ever do to deserve this?" Childe's overprotective boyfriend mode kicked in and he stood in front of Zhongli. Despite everything that happened, Childe wanted to protect this dragon until the day he dies, even if that day is today.

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! I'VE LOVED YOU SINCE THE DAY WE MET! AND HE JUST COMES ALONG AND YOU FALL INSTANTLY HEAD OVER HEELS?!" Lumine yelled at the top of her lungs at the two of them, all the fury she had been building up over the last few weeks finally bursting through her grin. "Now...you both will pay. I really wish it didn't have to be this way, Ajax."

At that instant, Zhongli hurled a stone dumbell at her and it instead collided with a bunch of abyssal creatures. Childe got what they were doing and switched to his delusion form.

"Is that your Foul Legacy Form?" Zhongli was blushing profusely at the image of Childe but with his electro delusion glowing amongst his ocean blue eyes.

"No. This is my Delusion Form. Before my Foul Legacy. I see Signora has already activated her delusion." Childe pointed at a very tall woman breaking free from an iceberg and burst into flames. There stood a moth-like woman, engulfed in her own flames.

"Barbatos! Beelzebul!" Zhongli gasped in excitement as a strong breeze and a lightning strike landed near them, materializing into his archon friends.

"Why do you look like a twink?" Childe pointed at Venti in his archon outfit. It was a crop top with a hood, showing a glowing mark on his upper chest and extremely short shorts with one sock. It didn't help that his body had a feminine shape to it.

"EEEEEHHHH?!" Venti scrunched up his face as if he was going to cry.

"I told you, Barbatos." Ei had a look of satisfaction on her face before drawing her attention to the wave of more abyss creatures. She drew her polearm, electro energy sizzling from it. "We'll hold them off, try and get to Lumine."

Zhongli nodded as the other two archons began to destroy everything in their path. Literally. Zhongli and Childe pushed off into the air using Venti's air currents and soon depended on the small stepping stones Zhongli provided with his element. The battle seemed endless, with Childe entering his Foul Legacy Transformation, receiving the look on Zhongli's face that just seemed to say 'I will get down on my knees and suck that length dry'. Finally, after what seemed an eternity, Lumine had surrendered. At that moment, almost all of the monsters had disappeared with Lumine. But a bloodcurdling scream pierced through the air. In Ningguang's arms was Zhongli, but there was a huge deep gash across his chest. Blood was gushing out like waterfalls.

"No...No, no, NO!" Childe had transformed back into his regular self and was sprinting towards the dragon. Grasping onto the corpse, tears landed on the soft skin. Raising a hand to stroke his cheek, Childe noticed how much he was trembling. If only he hadn't chased Zhongli away in the first place, this wouldn't have happened.

"It's all my fault..." -C

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