Chapter Text
Zhongli was just a bit tired. He goes by many names. Rex Lapis, the title given to him to as the ruler of Liyue; Morax, the name given to him as an archon; and Zhongli, the name given to him be his mother. Only he knows about the last one and never intended to share it. He has ruled over Liyue for centuries. He has seen the rise and fall of Khaenri’ah and the population increase. He oversees the descendants of his friends; their bloodline so thinned they wouldn’t know their name if he mentioned it. However, with his age, he carries the face of a young mortal. As well as having a youthful face, he holds powers surpassing that of any other archon. His hands drip red with the blood of his former enemies. And his friends. The archon war is still fresh in his mind, even though it occurred many thousand years ago. He lost many of his people, including almost all of his yaksha, his adepti disciples and even his parents. There is no one he can talk to about it, seeing as Beelzebub became the electro archon afterwards, and Barbatos somehow became the anemo archon while watching from the sidelines. Buer is the only person he could talk to about it, but he has not heard from her in many years. Not even his citizens could listen. They would either not understand or be so loyal to him they were too scared not to. In fact, thanks to his devotion to his nation, not a single person in Liyue has begone a hardship comparable to the awful wars. And as they shouldn’t.
But sometimes, at night, as he watches the moonlit city from his window, a selfish part of him wishes there was. Someone who could listen and understand. Someone who could relate to him, so he wouldn’t be alone. But he chastises himself the moment it comes to mind.
Rex Lapis yawns and sits up in his bed, smiling as he watched the sunshine through the window. He bathes in the sunlight, wrapping his tail around himself. He slowly gets out of bed and strides over to his wardrobe. Choosing simple robes adorned with his symbol, he pulls them over his head, being careful not to tear them with horns. He opens the doors to his room, waving good morning to the soldiers that stood guard outside. Morax began to walk down the gold hallway before a figure materialized beside him in a burst of anemo energy.
“My Lord.” It says, dipping its head. It’s a boy, appearing to be in his teens. His hair is mixture of greens and blues and and a turquoise anemo vision is sewn into his glove.
“Good morning, Xiao.” Rex Lapis smiles at him. Alatus, one his most trusted adepti, his general and the last of the yaksha. He is quite fond of him, being closest adepti. Xiao has stuck by his side for hundreds of years, despite the adeptus looking not a day over 17. “I trust you slept well?”
“Yes, my lord.”
“That’s good. Keep walking; join me for breakfast.” Xiao nods and quickly follows.
“So,” Rex Lapis continues, “How have the new soldiers been doing? Anyone who’s that caught your eye?”
Xiao nods vigorously. “Yes, one. She’s quite adept at fighting, almost at adepti level. And she carries a cryo vision as well.”
The archon clicks his teeth. “Have you checked to see if she’s not half adepti?”
“Yes, my lord. She carries no adepti traces whatsoever. Unfortunately, she was abandoned to us when she was young.”
“What happened to the parents?”
“She doesn’t seem to have a mother, but her father left her here and disappeared quickly after.”
Morax had a think. This girl seems too skilled for the regular troops.
“Reassign her to Cloud Retainer’s group. If she’s caught your eye, she must quite a special one.”
“Will do, Lord Lapis.”
The two entered the dining room and sat down at the end of the banquet table. Two maids put a bowl of congee in front of Rex Lapis and a plate of almond tofu in front of the young general. Morax raised an eyebrow.
“Almond Tofu for breakfast?” Xiao went bright red, and he could only laugh at his flustered face. Digging into his congee, he sighed with content. C Xiangling’s food was perfect as always. He was happily eating when a servant rushed up to him, smiling nervously.
“Uhm, Lord Lapis, sir?”
“Yes?”
“Y-you are late to a meeting with the Opus, your highness.”
Ah. He’d forgotten about that. The Opus was the legacy family of Liyue. Their bloodline started with one of his closest mortal friends, having died centuries ago from age. Ever since, he’d made a regrettable decision to hold them high, as they were quite rude and cruel to those below them. Rex Lapis didn’t let his reluctance show as he nodded and stood up.
“I’ll eat with you another time, Alatus.” The boy nodded. The god quickly followed the servant as they hurried into a meeting room where Count and Countess Opus sat with their oldest daughter. The two parents smiled as he sat down.
“Your imperial majesty.” Count Opus bowed his head and smoothed his hair down. “Such an honour to talk with you here today.” Rex Lapis smiled.
“Thank you. Now, what were you wanting to discuss?” The count and his wife exchanged glances.
“Well, since the Guizhong, we have noticed that you have never taken a bride nor employed concubines.” Count Opus grinned, resting his hands on his daughter’s shoulder.
“Oh?”
“And we thought to ourselves, ‘well wouldn’t it be great if Rex Lapis found a bride?’”
“Which is why we came to the conclusion that our Ninguang” – he gave his daughter, whose mouth was open in shock, a shake – “Would be a perfect candidate for your hand.”
Rex Lapis’ eye twitched.
“There is no need to worry, Count Opus. I am perfectly content on my own. Besides, perhaps Lady Ninguang would like to choose her own husband? This is a free nation after all.” He replied calmly.
The count’s smile slipped.
“I assure you, Lord Lapis, Ninguang is quite devoted to being your bride. She is gorgeous and smart. She is also very healthy and at the perfect age for childbearing.” Poor Ninguang went pale, and she tugged on her father’s shoulder like a toddler.
“Father, I don’t- “
“Quiet, Ninguang.” Her mother quickly silenced her, and as the young lady quickly plastered on a serious face, Morax couldn’t help pitying her.
“While that may be, I’m afraid my decision has not changed. I will be going if that is all you need to speak to me about.” He stood up and left the room, his robes swishing behind him. Would there be enough time to rejoin Xiao for breakfast? He wondered. He dismissed it quickly. The Adeptus would already be training. He thought back to his schedule for the day. Come to think of it, that was all he was needed for. He smiled to himself, and the dragon in him purred at being able to return his hoard of books. It was a brisk walk back to his chambers.
That night, Rex Lapis was plagued with a strange dream. A nightmare in which he would wake up and every day would be the same as the last. They would repeat over and over, to the point where he went insane and ended up bursting into small pieces of cor lapis. He awoke in a cold sweat.
“What was that?” he murmured to himself. He carded his hands through his hair anxiously, breathing deeply. Could it be trying to warn him of something? Suddenly, a treacherous voice whispered in his brain.
You are bored, Zhongli. It’s trying to warn you that you will never break ever break out of this cycle. You repeat every day. Why don’t you just…leave it all behind you? Run away?
He gasped aloud. Run away? He couldn’t! He grumbled at himself, pushing the thoughts away and going back away. But they didn’t leave. They reappeared when he woke up and stuck with him for several days. And the more they reappeared, the more he found himself considering it. Where would he even go? Certainly not anywhere in Liyue; he would be immediately recognized. Mondstadt was off the table as well. Barbatos would recognize him the moment he crossed the border. As for Inazuma, would he even be able to get in? He’d need to apply for a travel permit, and then the Shogun would recognize him, so what was the point? As he thought about it, he realized he was too close to any of the other Seven to escape there. He was about to abandon the idea when his guards threw a small thief at his feet.
“What is the meaning of this?” He wrinkled his nose. The Guards dipped their heads.
“We’re sorry, Lord Lapis, but this man had snuck into your quarters and was trying to steal your collection of antique vases. He was planning to take them to Schzenaya and sell them there.” Morax froze.
Schzenaya…of course! He had rejected the Tsartitas alliance! Schzenaya would be perfect. Nobody would dare enter that frozen wasteland, let alone look for a Liyuan God.
“Sir?” He was pulled from his thoughts.
“Yes?”
“What would you like us to do with the thief?”
“Lock him up.” If he encounters the thief in Schzenaya, his cover will be blown. The soldiers nodded and dragged the man away. Closing the door and returning to his desk. Bringing out the map of Teyvat, he traced the trails to Schzenaya with his index finger. How would he get out? He sighed. He’d have to walk. A brilliant thought occurred to him.
No one would look for him if he faked his death. And they wouldn’t! A few scraps of fabric, a bit of his blood and a bloodstained dagger, and he’d be in the clear. However, he’d need a bit of time to set it up, so he’d have to play the dead lover card and go into mourning.
Guizhong hadn’t really been his lover. No, after establishing the assembly, they decided that a marriage would be the best way to raise morale and set the reputation that they were stronger. In truth, Guizhong, in all her kindness, had no desire for a romantic relationship with anyone. They both still loved each other dearly, just not how husband and wife normally would.
Over the next few days, Morax made a habit of gazing wistfully at bouquets of glaze lilies and sighing sadly whenever a servant passed him. On the night of the new moon (there would be no moonlight to catch him with), he turned to the soldiers outside before closing the door to his chambers.
“After the meeting with the Opus Family, I have been plagued with memories Guizhong.” He sniffs, subtly wiping away non-existent tears. “I will probably not emerge from my chambers for a few days, so please tell everyone not to worry if they do not see me tomorrow.” The soldier's faces softened.
“Of course, Lord Lapis. Take all the time you need. I know losing a loved one can be hard.” Says one, and the other nods in agreement.
“Thank you for understanding. I wish you a good night.” He closes the doors. He pulls out the sharp knife he stole from the armoury and stabs it into his right leg. Grimacing, he separates the wound and holds it open, letting the blood run down and create a substantial puddle on the floor. Once he is satisfied, he cuts a stripe of his robe and wraps it around his injury as a bandage, blocking any more blood. Limping to his wardrobe, he pulls out a simple grey coat and trousers, complete with a white shirt the Tsarita gifted him back when she asked for his allyship. Complete with a Schzenayan-style ushanka hat, he looked like a common Schzenayan citizen. Using the knife one last time, he cut scraps of his bed robes and dropped them near the pool of blood before placing the dagger beside them. Stepping back, he admired the crime scene he’d created. Then, transforming into geo-energy, he flew to the royal stables. He surveyed the horses. Best to go with a common mare. Choosing a plain Palomino, he saddled her up and mounted. Morax takes off. He urges the stallion to go faster and faster, not daring to look back at his city. Before he realizes it, the sun breaks through the sky, and the horse has galloped over Liyue’s border. He grins. He’s escaped. Slowing the horse to a trot, he inspects his surroundings. In the distance, he can see the looming peaks of Mondstadt’s Dragonspine.
“If my calculations are correct, Schzenaya should be that way.” He points just left of the mountains.” And they are. In merely a few hours, snow crunches under the horse’s hooves. He shivers. He should’ve brought more coats.