#superbcandyangel

Kaeya’s not bothering to stay out of sight this time. There’s no point. Across the river, Diluc has lost his entire mind in a way that freezes Kaeya solidly stone, his breathing too shallow and his heart too fast.

Diluc roars from the midst of the fatui camp, those deadly purple-black chains slicing through the air. Kaeya’s mind overlays a similar Diluc, his claymore wreathed in fire as he bellowed, blade arcing down, intent on shattering Kaeya.

The chains impact with horrible noises, echoing across the water, and Kaeya flinches. Tries to gather himself.

Skirmishers, gunners, boxers, cryo cicin mages, elements clashing and reacting in flashes of color, and in the center of it all, Diluc’s red, red, red hair, streaming wildly behind him as he lashes out over and over, never pausing, never relenting.

The enemy lands their own hits. Diluc’s gone full bezerker, too far gone to have any other reaction than violence. His body lights up purple, spasms wracking his frame.

It gets worse from there.

Diluc ducks down, coming back up with a weapon in his hands— a discarded gun. The chains move seemingly by themselves, barreling into the Anemo boxer’s shield as Diluc uses his insane strength to hit a mage full force across the face with the gun, the blow sending her body up and back, to crash into the ice. She does not get up. Diluc hurls the gun at his next target, flipping and careening around, chains wild, his hands suddenly wielding a sword. He slashes, parries, stabs, the ice is nearly as red as his hair. The sword is lost when Diluc himself goes flying back. He lands between the skirmishers, and they turn their guns on him in synch. He freezes.

He freezes.

Kaeya lurches forward, a scream tearing his throat—

The ice shatters. Diluc’s chains punch through one man’s body with a slash of his hand. Down, twist, overhanded blow, and kaeya’s lost all track of what he’s seeing, until Diluc pauses for the slightest instant.

A claymore. He’s snatched a claymore from somewhere. Even across the water, kaeya can tell the expression on his face is wrong, deranged. There’s no one home right now. Kaeya knows that face, has had nightmares about that face.

The chains move with him, around him, seamless and cruel as his blade is relentless. The ice is red, so very red—There’s nothing left, no one left, save Diluc, who screams again, as though he’s challenging the mountain itself.

Kaeya’s across the water before he has time to think about claymores and ice shields.

Diluc spins, and Kaeya’s terrified, but kaeya’s not the same this time, kaeya’s ice is just as relentless and hungry as diluc’s fire ever was, and kaeya is faster.

His ice forces diluc back, his spine hitting the tree. Kaeya’s ice keeps him in place. Kaeya’s ice coats, covers, the ugly roiling red-black of the delusion.

Diluc watches.

Kaeya gets closer. Slides his sword beneath Diluc’s chin, hears the rasp of hair against metal as he tips diluc’s head back, revealing the beard curling along his jaw, the blood trickling down his throat. he leans in closer. “Go home,” he says, proud of how firm his voice comes out. “It’s time to go home. They’re waiting for you.”

He leaves. He leaves and he does not allow himself to look back when he hears the ice shatter.