Chapter Text
“Aether, come home!” His sister pleaded with him. Although her body was visibly shaking, his own shaking was not visible to the eye. Her sparkling golden eyes shook in the dim purple light as his own stood still, dull like the bright moon blocked by the clouds. His heart felt like it was trying to tear through his chest. That horrible sinking feeling of guilt. But in the end, his sister would understand. She would understand that he needed to make this sacrifice in order to save the world he cared so deeply about. And to seek revenge for those who have destroyed that.
While his face was expressionless, but his teeth began to grit together. It felt like his throat was suffocating him. His eyes burned.
Conceal, don’t feel.
His eyes glanced over to the blonde man next to his sister. Aether felt his heart sink even deeper.
“Lumine, why are you with Dain?” He questioned her. When he noticed her helpless expression, he regretted his tone. It was like human nature to speak in such a cold manner. If he acted like… how he used to be, the whole abyss would fall down with him.
“You’re asking about… Dain?”
Paimon put a hand on her chest with a shocked expression, “Huh?”
Lumine only glanced at him with a sad expression. He felt like stabbing himself in his sinking heart. Anybody who hurt the one he cared the most about would suffer.
“Your brother… knows Dain, Lumine?” Paimon questioned, she too took notice of her sad expression.
Dainsleif glanced down at the floor. Only Aether noticed his tightened fists.
“...”
“Aether. We meet again.” Dain greeted him with an expressionless face, but he saw those dirty eyes. Those dirty, dirty eyes.
His sister immediately turned around with yet another painful expression. Aether tried his best not to reach out to her. But Paimon returned him to his senses when she spoke out first.
“Wh–What’s going on here? Dain knows him, too!” She squeaked, she too felt betrayed as well. Dain must have treated them well, he thought. He thanked the Abyss for that.
But he wouldn’t let him go. He couldn’t allow such a filthy and disgusting man to stand beside his sister.
“You shouldn’t team up with this man.” Aether told his sister with his cold voice, “He is my enemy.” he declared.
Dainsleif looked at him with a hurt expression. “Aether…”
It seemed that Lumine had enough of the situation and released her pent up emotions, “Stop saying stuff that doesn't make sense, Aether!” She shouted at him with gritted teeth.
If he had a choice, he would have told her everything. But he must not put his sister in danger. However, she must be informed about what this man did to him. What this man did to Khaenri’ah.
He stayed silent for a moment, thinking about his words. “...”
“But it must be said… Don’t try to stop me. Don’t try to stop the Abyss.” Aether declared to her. He knew she wasn’t listening properly, but at least her little fairy companion was. As well as him…
“That man, Dainsleif, was the “Twilight Sword,” one of the royal guards of the final dynasty of Khaenri’ah. 500 years ago, he failed to prevent the destruction of Khaenri’ah.” He felt the memories beginning to flow into his mind. Those horrible memories of a time so long ago… yet they still set fire to his wounds.
“...A curse of immortality was laid upon him, to forever wander the wilderness…” He put his hand on his chest, preventing any eyes from noticing them sweating. “...while he watched the people he was supposed to protect turn into the monsters of the Abyss.” Aether put a little more emotion into those words. But the only emotions that fueled it weren't positive ones.
Lumine was still too shocked to speak, however, Paimon recovered faster, “You’re saying.. Dain was from Khaenri’ah!? The same Khaenri’ah that was destroyed 500 years ago!?” Her words shook, finally realizing the extent of the tragedy. Her eyebrow furrowed, “And you said the people turned into monsters… You’re trying to tell Paimon that the Abyss Order is not only related to Khaenri’ah but is actually the people of Khaenri’ah themselves!?”
The fairy put her hand on her head in frustration. “Uh… and the whole thing about Dain being your enemy? Ohh… Paimon’s so confused…”
But before he answered that question, Lumine spoke again, but she wasn’t focused on the backstory of his past home. “You can tell me all this later. Let’s go home!” She pleaded with him once again, she held both her hands up to her chest. Lumine still shook uncontrollably.
“Home…” Aether mumbled, for at that moment, he revealed some of the pain hidden inside of him through his eyes. When he realised this, he covered it up. But he wanted to secretly comfort his sister.
“Yes, of course. “Home” is wherever we are together.” He stopped. And he remembered his role. “But I cannot go with you to the next world to find a new home… at least, not yet. Until the Abyss has engulfed the thrones, my war with destiny will see no end…” He trailed the last words off, his throat began suffocating him again. Sister… please… don’t meddle in this any longer…
He began to turn away.
“Destiny…?” Lumine questioned.
Aether turned again to gaze at Lumine. Bright lively golden eyes met his own dull ones.
“Listen to me, Lumine.” When he saw his sister gaze up again, he continued, “I have already traveled through this world once. Once you reach the end of your journey as I did, you will see for yourself the true nature of this world.”
His mind trailed back to his journey through old Mondstadt, Inazuma, Snezhnaya… those days alone, searching for his sister, still battling the betrayal of the gods. Only time would pass. If nobody stepped up, this world would plunge into the rule of the Gods, only to be sunken by the saviours. At least, that’s what the unknown god told him. And he would obey.
The abyss herald behind him opened up the purple vortex portal he came through, it began swirling around, purple mist flew into the air, making the scene look even eerier.
As his sister gazed at him with a sad face, he spoke his goodbye.
“So we’ll meet again.” He began, staring at his sister. “Though we need not rush, sister. I have more than enough time to wait for you…”
Lumine watched in horror.
She screamed, her feet began moving and she rushed towards him.
“We have always… had enough time.”
Nobody knew that his heart had sunk.
Aether and the abyss Herald disappeared into the portal with Lumine running after them. However, he didn’t notice Dainsleif charging towards him. They all plunged into the portal.
And then, Lumine was left alone.
† † †
[Five Hundred years ago]
It was black. Pitch black. It felt like his eyes were closed. But they weren't. He knew they were open. He felt the strain of opening them for too long. Was this a dream? The scariest lucid dream he’d ever experienced? Perhaps he was blindfolded? But he couldn’t feel anything around his face. But then again, his whole body felt numb. He couldn’t move at all. He was stuck floating around in an endless void.
The boy began to think. Where was he? What was this overwhelming darkness surrounding him? It was all so painful to experience. It felt like the darkness surrounding him was holding him hostage, pulsating around him, making sure he was forever trapped. The best way to explain it was that the darkness was suffocating him.
Maybe encouragement would motivate him to escape? Perhaps it would awaken his body? He had to tell himself some encouragement. What could he use to motivate himself? Past experiences? The boy tried his hardest to remember his past. But nothing came to the surface. This made the boy question himself.
What was his name? What did he look like? Who was he?
“You have woken up, Prince. ” A melodic voice spoke to him from out of nowhere.
Although his body didn’t move, he mentally flinched. He wanted to move his mouth to speak, but nothing moved. Prince? Was he a prince of a kingdom? Why couldn’t he remember anything!?
“I know what you’re thinking, my Prince.” The feminine voice answered, as if reading his mind. “We have long awaited your awakening. You can finally return and raise our Dynasty to its former greatness.”
Our Dynasty? Was that his nation? How was he supposed to rule if he didn’t know anything?
The boy felt warmth surrounding his head. Like a mother soothing her child’s head. Slowly, he felt his body returning to him.
“Wake up, Aether.”
† † †
[One year ago]
Aether remembered everything. He knew everything. He remembered his identity. He was the Prince. The Prince of the Abyss. The Prince of Khaenri’ah.
He remembered that fateful date like it was just yesterday. The destruction of his home. The murder of his people. The unforgivable betrayals. And…
“Unknown God, where is my sister? ” He spat out with venom in his voice as he summoned the deity through the crystal located on his chest. “You promised me that if I became the Prince, you would return my sister.” He fulfilled his side of the contract. As the Morax would like to say. But he hated saying such a thing, something so similar to a God.
The unknown goddess hovered above the air, staring down at him with her divine appearance. She wore a white dress with black stripes that fitted tightly around her frame. Black fur hung behind her thin neck. Pale skin matched the floating white hair that danced in the bright sky. Her golden eyes stared down at him, the crystal like pupils dilated. Her eyes did not hold a spark. She had lost that many, many years ago. She pursed her lips as she stared at the golden haired boy who too held no life in his eyes. The goddess was to blame for that. But she wouldn’t ever reveal her guilt. Aether was destined for this life. Chained to it, just like her.
“And I fulfilled that promise, Aether .” She informed him. Her voice held the truth he was looking for. But he questioned that truth.
Aether hated his name being spoken with that tongue. Then again, he didn’t like his name. He had come to hate it with a passion after hearing it being spoken with fear… sadness… anger. His role in this world forced him to commit horrible acts. It was justified though… right? These were the people who destroyed his home, murdered his people. Of course it was justified.
His face furrowed in frustration, “So, where is she?” Aether gave the Unknown Goddess a deadly look, arms crossed.
The Unknown Goddess’s lips tightened. “She has awoken. You’d have to find her yourself though. It won’t be hard if it’s you trying.” She chuckled out the last part. His cold attitude brought a slight mood of envy. She saw how much Aether sores on his sister, the love he gave her. The God felt like breaking that bond. Breaking him a little bit more. So he would answer to her and only her. (No Romance! This is simply a ‘queen’ complex)
“You–!” Aether was interrupted when she disappeared back into the unknown. She had left with no goodbye, no reassurance, no clues. What a selfish God he thought. Her smirk at the end of their conversation would burn into his memory for a very long time. It was just like those other Gods...
Although Aether was still in a mood of frustration, he couldn’t help but feel his heart lighten up. He felt relieved for once. Reassured. It had been a long time since he had felt that way. For centuries, he was alone, serving under the Unknown Goddess for the sake of his sister. His sister was safe. She was finally in this world. They could finally reunite. Together, once again.
Oh how wrong he was.
† † †
Aether quickly gathered his troup’s and sent them on a manhunt for his sister. He told them to immediately report back to him if they saw any sight of her.
His memory of his sister had been slightly muddled over the years, but he never forgot her. Never. Aether gave the best description of his sister to the abyss army and they happily accepted the challenge. They were even more motivated when Aether announced the reward for finding his sister.
“The one to find my sister first will be promoted to my personal attendant.” He announced, gazing upon the motivated looks of his people. They knew that this ‘personal attendant’ would be in the Prince’s presence at all times, serving his every need. His people loved him. And he felt much guilt for that. They were too loyal… he was not somebody they should love. Would they love his sister the same way? He hoped so. The Prince and Princess of the Abyss. The Prince and Princess of Khaenri’ah. The nation that would rise again.
His war with destiny will not stop until he ungulfs the throne that this world had chained him to. It was okay if he sacrificed himself. It was for the greater good.
Aether then switched his commanding gaze to a cold one. “If any of you dare even to lay a hand on my sister… I will personally deal with you. Death is not the worst punishment.” He told the crowd.
Each of them nodded their heads and turned to begin the search.
Sister, we will finally be reunited. This pain… will become tolerable again.
He thought of all of these nice things. And they were starting to become a reality.
But why couldn’t he smile?
His thoughts were interrupted when a familiar voice filled the air. A harmonic voice of a soldier. But a caring person as well. “ Aether.” The boy felt his face drop into disappointment as soon as he realised who it was.
“Ajax.” Aether mumbled with his cold tone. Golden eyes glared at the ocean blue ones.
The Eleventh Harbinger, Tartaglia. His code name was Childe. Fitting for such an immature character. But Aether wouldn’t underestimate his strength. The man himself could eliminate half of the abyss itself without any help before he would be killed by The Prince. He hid his bloodlust, but he didn’t hide his itch for a fight. Only a few knew or were allowed to call Tartaglia by his given name. The same name he had just called him. He did it by accident. Aether did not regard Tartaglia as a friend. He… did not… that bast*** was a moron who mindlessly killed. An annoying pest in his way.
“There is no need to be so threatening, your highness .” Childe spoke to him with his cheeky manner. Aether flinched slightly when the Harbinger said the word ‘highness.’ He didn’t like it. He… didn’t want to be… the…
He hoped that the Harbinger wouldn’t notice, but Childe only gave him a sadistic smirk. Aether tried to keep his calm, but his breath hitched when the taller man began to move closer to him. When the Prince tried to walk away more, he hit the wall. After hitting his dead end, he stared daggers into Childe’s eyes. But the taller man only returned his gaze with eyes filled with mischief.
“What are you doing?” He spat out, pushing his arms against Childe’s chest, trying to prevent him from getting any closer.
The Claustrophobia that Aether hid deep inside himself began to muddle his mind. That suffocating feeling of the world closing in on him…
When the Harbinger noticed the look on Aether’s face, he felt a sense of guilt. He had taken advantage of the fact that the boy had claustrophobia just to weaken Aether so he could hold him close. Childe knew one secret about Aether. The one thing that would ‘cure’ his phobia would actually be the one thing that others think would worsen the situation.
He wrapped his arms around the fragile boy and pulled him into his chest. Like a cat, the prince immediately melted into the touch, closing his eyes in the process. Childe’s hand leaned against Aether’s small head to push him in further and his other hand rubbed circles on his back. His experience as an older brother really helped. He knew how children reacted. He knew their comforts. And Aether… even if he had lived many years, it wasn’t just his physical appearance that remained the same. Aether’s mentality had been cursed to never age by the God that trapped him in his fate.
Aether felt his eyes burn, tears were threatening to release. His brain suddenly returned back to its senses. He refused to show such disgusting mannerism. His weaknesses would only bring him down. Using his arms again, he pushed off and hurried away to the door. But a hand stopped him as they grasped at his wrist.
His eyes were hidden beneath a shadow. Nobody would be able to see his red burning eyes. However, Childe knew what was hidden from him. Just like a soldier scouring the battlefield and piecing together clues.
“Aether, I’m sorry.” Childe tried to apologize to his Prince, but he was only met with shaking hands.
Aether tried to reply with the most commanding voice he could conjure up, “Eleventh Fatui Harbinger, Tartaglia. Your only purpose is to serve my needs. This is not what was ordered to be served. Get out. ”
“Ahaha… you’re so mean, Aether. I was only acting upon my job.” He gave a cold smirk, “I came to inform you of your sister’s whereabouts.”
Aether’s eyes widened, his face turned bright again.
“...What? Tell me at once, where is she? ” His cold voice sent shivers even in Childe’s spine.
Childe sighed, his advantage over Aether was now over. He would be forced to tell Aether and he had no excuse to be around him. The Harbinger chuckled mentally. It would be a fun challenge to find a way back to Aether again. He would do it over and over again. Until he came to terms with his undying lo–
Aether sent him across the room with little effort, using his abyssal powers. The dark energy surged through his hands, he could see the pain they could inflict. But he didn’t feel any fear. Childe felt excitement.
“You want to fight!? I’m always up for one. If you win, I’ll tell you where your sister is–”
But when his eyes gazed upon Aethers, his own pair softened. The boy’s eyes were usually dull, beautiful like the sun, but emotionless like the moon. Sad. However, for once, his eyes had that little spark of hope. Hope for the happiness he once had. Childe couldn’t help but be a little jealous. But he hated seeing Aether suffering.
Maybe he shouldn’t be the bad guy for one day. Just let him reunite. Perhaps his sister would save Aether. But she would allow him to be free again.
He hoped he wouldn’t regret his decision.
“She’s in the city of freedom. Mondstadt. Anemo Archon’s domain.” As soon as Childe began telling Aether, the boy’s eyes lit up even more. But just as he was going to suggest escorting him, an abyss mage appeared.
“Your highness, I have come bearing both great news and disastrous information.” The abyss mage told him with a shaky tone, the squeaky and raspy voice of the warrior sounded annoying to the Harbinger.
The Prince narrowed his eyes, “Tell me at once, speak,” he commanded.
The Abyss Mage put a hand to his chest, “We have located your sister,” the abyss mage told him proudly, “But there has been a disruption in the corruption of the Dragon.”
“The Anemo Archon rises up again for the protection of his people?” He questioned. The last time he met that disgusting God, Aether was in the middle of his own travels. Barbatos was a sly and arrogant person. His excuse of being ‘good’ was ‘protecting’ his citizens from harm's way. And in doing so, killing his own friend. He now possesses that body, ‘honouring’ it.
His subordinate bowed down even lower with a solemn expression, “No, Your Highness. The problem is… your sister.”
Golden eyes shrunk, shaking. “...what?”
His sister… Was the one disrupting their plans? Aether had to… stop her? But he was just told of his sister’s awakening. How was it possible that she was brought into their operation so quickly? Unless…
“I will see her at once, send out a battalion of hydro, cyro, and pyro mages to protect the entrance of Stormterrors lair. Send troops within the heart of the lair. Stop any intruders at any cost. But if any harm is dealt upon my sister, you must be aware of the consequences.” His voice didn’t falter at all and his expression was scary. The Harbinger found the look amusing. It was like watching a child dress up as a monster for the Natlan tradition, Halloween. He found it very cute.
“Of course, your highness” The abyss mage gave one more bow before disappearing into the abyss.
When Aether’s subordinates completely vanished, it was just him and Childe once again. He wanted to completely ignore the man and leave, but the Harbinger was persistent. In the end, he would only follow him in secret. Eyes gazing upon him from the unknown. Aether didn’t like that feeling. He grudgingly obliged to the Harbinger’s begging eyes.
“Disrupt me once and you’ll face the consequences.” Aether warned the Harbinger. The man only waved his hands in innocence and gave a sly grin.
“Of course, my dear prince.”
† † †
Lumine followed her (emergency food) into the stormy lair known as ‘Stormterrors Lair.’ It certainly lived up to its name. She felt shivers down her spine. Of course, it was of fear and not because her back was exposed. Her white dress was custom made. It was a beautiful white dress made with expensive silk. White flaps came from the chest part like petals, they had a baby blue rim that shone in the light. However, Stormterrors lair was covered by a dark and stormy cloud that looked over and already made the place look like something out of a horror story.
“Traveler, aren't you cold with just that dress on?” The acting grandmaster asked the question with a worried voice. She started to move her hands to take off her cardigan, but Lumine stopped her.
She gave her a small smile before denying it, “I’m okay. I have been to many worlds far colder than here. You don’t have to worry.”
Jean frowned, “You can still catch a cold.”
Lumine chuckled, “Don’t worry about me. My desire not to wear anything over my dress traces back to my brother.” But the last few words were quickly shut off. Although she trusted the acting grand master, she still couldn’t put her brother in danger.
Was Jean trustworthy? She couldn’t help but think of her own mother when she compared them together. Strong and kind. The perfect pairing that she strived to be. Lumine hoped she wouldn’t regret her decision .
She mumbled her words to Jean so only she could hear, “This dress was handmade by brother. He bought the silk and stitched it all together by hand. All day and night, he worked. To this day, I still can’t get over the beauty of this dress.” Her lips curved as she reminisced about her dear brother, “He made this all for me because I had previously burnt mine while trying to cook.”
“Your brother sounds very responsible. He seems like a very kind person as well.” The acting grandmaster replied with a soft voice, as if reminiscing about somebody as well.
That day, she had tried to cook him a nice breakfast for his birthday, but she accidentally caught her previous dress on fire when she stood too close to the gas stove. Luckily, the twins put it out quickly and there were no injuries. But her dress was sacrificed and the large hole on the right hip was barely held together by the remaining pieces of fabric. Aether had been so upset about the dress and demanded that the two get a new dress immediately. His excuse was that none of the other outfits in the wardrobe matched the world’s fashion. Aether had said that he didn’t like the unwanted attention on either of them. The twins ended up shopping for materials and Aether refused to allow her to stitch the dress. He told her that it was to return a favour. And no matter how hard she tried to protest, he wouldn’t budge. The dress he gave her the very next day was the gift that Lumine should have given him. She would have laughed at it then, but both past Lumine and present Lumine would agree that Aether would look spectacular in it.
Lumine ended up wearing the dress throughout the many worlds they traveled in. And to this day… she never changed. It helped her remember him. Even though it granted her great pain. And if he were to come across her again, he would be able to recognize the dress.
She had been asleep in a deep abyss. Lumine had no idea where she was. It was as if she was forced asleep. Living through horrible nightmares… When she awoke, she realised that her body had aged.
The twins knew they had expanded lifespans. Which also meant that their growth was paced. It took them approximately one-hundred years to age a year. When they had met the unknown god, Lumine looked around fourteen and Aether… her sweet, sweet brother looked like a thirteen year old. He would pout whenever she teased him for his height and appearance.
Now, she looked as if she was nineteen. Her proportions were much more curvier and she was much taller. Yet, her dress grew with her. Perhaps Aether blessed it with a spell? Her shoulder length hair glowed in the sunrise when she awoke. It looked like the sun. The type of thing that would attract the many eyes they had on them in other worlds. Even she had to admit that she was beautiful. However, she wasn’t arrogant. The siblings were blessed with beauty from their homeland. ********, the place where their two brilliant parents birthed them. Two ***’s who had incredible power. And everybody knew what happened when two powerhouses combined.
Their father unfortunately passed away in a war when they were young. Lumine never had a close connection with her father, but Aether was much closer. After his passing, their mother worked hard to care for them. She appreciated it dearly. Her mother still loved her with everything, even though it was hard for her to manage. That’s why it was even more painful when the two were separated. There were no family members to support her. Lumine knew that Aether was the shyer type. But she didn’t expect him to be so quiet around his own mother as well…
As the acting grand master, the dawn winery owner, the bard, and a traveler slowly approached, the young traveler felt a warm sensation on her back. But it quickly turned cold. Sensing something behind her, she flipped her head around in an instance, looking for the source. However, she was only left with the large cliff behind them. Perhaps it was the sun shining through from somewhere and a gust of wind blew it away. She thought nothing of it and returned to where the group was walking.
“Traveler, as a final check, are you aware of the strength of Dvalin?” The bard turned around and stared right into her eyes. He wanted to make sure that the traveler wouldn’t be harmed in any way. It was his promise to him after all… But he also didn’t want the traveler he had quickly become friends with to leave, just like his old partner. As much as he loved Dvalin and cherished him, his people would have to come first. The dragon had already killed so many. It was his job to prevent the harm of the innocent.
Lumine nodded her head with a confident manner. “Together, we can definitely return things to how they were!” She told him with another happy expression. The bard returned the smile and turned to look at the seal on the ruins.
He pulled out his lyre and told them his careful instruction. “We’re about to enter Dvalins special domain. It’s a cosmo’s infused area that is only supported by a few platforms. This mission is going to be very dangerous. If any of you have any second thoughts, nobody will blame you for it.” The bard opened his mouth to say something, but he quickly closed his mouth in hesitation. “His weak point, it’s the corrupted crystal on his head. Attack it with all you’ve got.”
All three of them nodded in agreement after none of them turned to leave.
“Alright, let’s go!”
Venti used his delicate fingers to play a soft tune on the lyre. Anemo energy began to surge all around him. His black braids blew in the wind delicately as Lumine’s blew in her face. The seal on the ruins began to absorb the teal anemo swirls. Slowly, but gracefully, the patterns on the seal began shifting. It looked like embroidery. The sky blue and the teal merging together in a beautiful dance that looked like the night sky in a world they traveled to. Suddenly, the seal shattered and the group were blinded by a bright blue light.
When the light dispersed, Lumine suddenly felt her heart drop. Both she and the rest of the group began falling from an unknown height, but were saved by Venti just before hitting the ground.
“Phew! We almost splattered!” Venti jokenly shouted out in the middle of the wind storm.
But before either of them could answer, another gust of wind blew them back. They held their ground as a massive dragon flew up from under their platform. It’s mighty form soared into the sky and yelled out in anger with a roar.
“Who dares intrude into my domain?!” The dragon yelled, it’s voice piercing through their ears.
Venti stared at his old friend with a sorrowful expression. His own heart was corrupted with pain for his old friend. If only he could have seen this coming earlier. The bard already knew the organization behind the corruption, but he had never discovered the source of the problem. Venti met the prince of the abyss once. He barely managed to sneak into the abyss palace. It was only possible with his ability to turn into the wind. But his power was weakened significantly in the abyss.
† † †
When he finally met the prince, he was hidden under a white cloak. The cloak was made out of a fine silk, with beautiful gold embroidery stitched in that created beautiful patterns. The prince’s body was very slim. Thin. Perhaps he wasn’t human? He had noticed that the abyss creatures definitely weren’t human. They sure acted like humans though. So he had his doubts about the anatomy of the prince. But the prince’s body looked perfect, even hidden behind the cloak. The cloak traced around the proportions of his body. His body was thin, but it curved perfectly around the waist. Venti couldn’t see the prince’s legs though. It was hidden under the layer of fabric.
Dvalin’s words reminded him of the prince’s. “Why have you intruded into the abyss, Barbatos.” The prince’s voice was soft. But it was colder than ice. It reeked of a hidden pain. Venti expected the voice to sound arrogant, evil. But what truly was evil? What was he thinking? How did he find the enemy’s voice attractive?
Venti stared down the back of the prince, “Don’t mind me, your highness . I was only intruding to give a quick greeting.” He let his lips curve into a mischievous smike.
The prince crossed his arms. But he didn’t dare gaze back at him. It was as if he could see behind him. The sixth sense perhaps? “Oh please, that’s not the reason why you’re here. Spit it out, anemo archon.”
He could only wave his hands in the air in defence. His smile didn’t falter though. “Okay, okay. I admit to having ulterior reasons.” Venti could only give a small breath before being held hostage from dark cosmo knives that floated in the air, threatening to stab into his neck. “I wanted to see if you were a new storm or a child in rage.”
“Doesn’t seem like a good comparison now does it?” The prince scoffed, his hand was in the air with his index finger and middle finger lifted while the others bent down. It was obvious that the prince was controlling the knives. It sent shivers down Venti’s spine of how easily he could control his ability.
But Venti himself was powerful. He dispersed the knives into the abyss. “Well, do you have an answer.”
Although the anemo archon couldn’t see the prince’s face, he could feel the prince give a small smile.
“I’m no hero… but I strive to restore.”
Venti furrowed his brow, he had to know what the prince meant by that. “And in what context do you talk about restoring?” He already knew the destruction of Khaneri’ah many years ago. But Teyvat had revived themselves. The only thing in their way was the abyss order. If they wanted to restore, why would they attack the current Teyvat? Unless..?
“You’re… from Khaenri’ah?” Venti barely managed to get the words out. The nation that the original seven had destroyed? There were survivors?
The prince finally turned to face him, but Venti could not see the face hidden behind the cloak. “Whether I am from Khaenri’ah does not concern you. What should concern you are the consequences of your actions.”
Suddenly, his throat began to close up. The prince began choking him with his cosmo abilities and it didn’t look like he was about to stop anytime soon. Venti gagged and tried to hold his throat by reflex. But nothing would help. His eyes began to water. It was only now that he truly had a taste of death. What was the human saying for death? Right… it went somewhat like “Your life flashed right through your eyes.”
After many minutes of torture, the grasp on his throat was loosened and Venti fell to the ground.
He was lifted up by his collar and then the unwelcome feeling of being choked came back again. This time, Venti’s throat did not produce any sounds. It was far too sore and weak to do anything up to this point. But he didn’t want to die. The prince noticed this and gave him an offering.
“Protect a girl named, Lumine. Do not let a single soul dare harm her. She is the last hope for your nation. If you ever want to stop me.”
At the time, Venti didn’t understand a single word of that sentence. It was two hundred years ago after all. But when he met the girl who introduced herself as Lumine, Venti took action.
His memory of the fateful encounter didn’t stretch any further than that.
†††
This led him back to the current predicament they were dealing with. Now was not a great time to be reminiscing about the past while fighting a dragon. He could think about the confusing encounter another time, they would have to... defeat a dragon at the moment. The friend he knew for so long. The comrade he felt so connected to. It pained him to think of ever fighting him. But now that the time had come, it brought him a storm of emotions that Venti never felt previously. The voice of Morax echoed in his mind, reminding him never to feel any mortal emotions.
He gazed at the traveler, staring into her confident, but concerned eyes. She was also about to face a dragon. Venti forgot that he wasn’t the only one struggling through this. He eyed the dragon, trying to find the weak spots he was told of. Was he truly betraying the trust his friend put into him? No… this was salvation. This was to save him. Dvalin was surrounded by a blue shield that protected him from attacks. But the shield wouldn’t protect him forever. They would have to destroy the outer layer using their full strength. Once his shield was down, Dvalin would be pralyzed for a short amount of time. By then, they would be able to defeat him.
“Traveler, remember back when we glided through the air back when Dvalin attacked Mondstadt?” Venti asked, reminding the Traveler of their first interaction. “Dvalin’s weak point, do you remember where it is?”
Lumine turned to look at him. She nodded her head, “The purple spike on his head, the one infected by the corruption.”
Venti curved his lips, pretending to smile. He truly did not want to smile in such a dire situation, but he needed to bring confidence to the traveler. She didn’t need to know the situation she was truly in. That would only bring her terror. He just had to hide the fact that this dragon could murder an entire city in one breath. Lumine could do this, he knew she could. Venti aimed his bow into the sky, his arrow pointed right at the dragon. With shaking hands, he unleashed the anemo infused arrow towards his friend. It shot through the sky, it’s bright teal colour lighting up the sky. The arrow hit Dvalin with a loud bang, the anemo energy burst and cracked Dvalin’s shield ever so slightly.
Dvalin let out a big cry, he didn’t expect his shield to be penetrated so quickly. When he stared back at the person who shot the arrow, his eyes squinted with a betrayed expression. The stupid bard did not know that a part of his corruption was due to his desire to keep him safe. The abyss order promised to keep the bard safe for the destruction of the seven nations. Dvalin only cared for two people in the world. And if one of them was promised to be safe, then he could live with that, no matter what. So, why did Barbatos want to protect the mortals who once harmed him?
“Barbatos, you will regret this!” He roared, his breath knocking back those who stood on the platforms. They barely managed to stay on them.
The bard only stared back with confident eyes, “Dvalin, I’m sorry for what they did to you!” He pleaded with the dragon to come back to reasoning. But the dragon would not budge. This made Venti clench his teeth harshly in frustration. He wouldn’t dare let the others know.
The dragon flew down towards the platform, his wings to try and blow the intruders off the platforms. But they all dodged. Barely. When the dragon flew back up, he was greeted with another arrow. Dvalin’s shield was already halfway destroyed.
Dvalin landed onto the platform with a large crash and used his fiery breath to create a large ball of energy. He began to unleash the energy onto the intruders, but they rushed to the other side of his attack. They began attacking his claws, damaging his shield and breaking it. It let out a loud crashing sound. The dragon felt his energy leave him for a moment and fell down onto the platform.
“Climb up now! And attack the corrupted crystal!” Venti yelled, edging for the traveler, the tavern owner, and the knight to attack. He himself pulled on his strings to attack as well.
Lumine put her entire body’s force into her sword swings and unleashed many anemo attacks. Jean used the power of the wind and unleashed a large area of effect burst. Dandelions blew into the sky and the anemo energy radiated into the air, destroying a part of the crystal. Diluc swung his claymore with all his might. His strong arms used the claymore like a sword. The tavern owner infused his claymore with his pyro power and swung it towards the crystal. A large pyro bird flew into it and flew back into the air.
The team was starting to lose energy, but the dragon was almost done for! They couldn’t give up yet! They continued to hit and hit, it felt endless. But suddenly, the dragon regained its strength and flew into the air.
“H-how dare you.” Dvalin spat at the intruders, propping up his shield once again.
Lumine felt herself biting her lips in frustration. It had taken up so much effort to destroy that shield. The fight already seemed endless. So destroying it again would feel like an eternity. But this was to find her brother! The dragon might know something about her brother!
But this time, Dvalin became angry. His entire sense of rationality was gone.
He aimed his mouth into the sky and shot out fireball meteors. Which rained down onto them. Diluc and Jean dodged with grace while Venti flew into the air using his anemo abilities. Traveler also managed to dodge them with elegance, her foot work was exceptional. Jean even whispered a compliment into her ear. But what she wasn’t prepared for, was the massive fireball that came her way. Before she could scream, she was already knocked out.
Venti’s eyes widened in worry, “Lumine!” He screamed, rushing towards her. He held Lumine in his arms, Venti immediately went to check on her pulse. When he felt a beating heartbeat, he sighed in relief. He didn’t want to break his contract with the abyss prince anytime soon. It wasn’t his life he was betting either. Lumine was the hope for humanity. She was capable of saving them all. So why did the abyss prince tell him that? Why did the abyss prince keep her alive?
“Venti, what happened?” Diluc yelled, his eyes shook in horror at the young girl’s unmoving body.
“She’s fine, focus on hitting the dragon! I’ll protect her.” He yelled back, Venti used his anemo energy to wrap around her body and lift her into the air. He moved his finger and her body followed him.
Jean clenched her fists. She had distracted her and almost cost the girl her life. That was unforgivable for a knight. She would discipline herself when this was all over. “Let me heal her–” Another surprise came their way, a large burst of dark purple energy surged through the air.
Their vision became impared, but they could all hear Dvalin’s blood curdling scream.
When the fog cleared, they stared with horror at the sight of the fallen Dvalin. Something had just defeated Dvalin in one hit… but who…? Their eyes brought themselves to the figure that sat on top of the dragon’s head. A white hooded figure sat with their legs crossed. Their face was completely hidden, but anybody could feel the murderous aura that radiated around them.
Venti recognized the person already, “Y-You!?”
The figure tilted their head towards them, their voice was cold, emotionless. But it sent shivers down their back. “You were supposed to be fulfilling a contract, Barbatos.”
Diluc raised his claymore behind his back, saddling it onto his shoulder. He prepared himself for another fight. His forehead had several lines and his eyes cautiously watched the unknown visitor’s actions.
Jean however, still hadn’t recovered from the sudden defeat of the dragon. Her mind was racing with thoughts on how somebody could be so powerful. They were considered the most powerful people in Mondstadt and were even guided by the anemo archon themselves. So who was this person?
“Abyss prince…” Venti mumbled. His hands clenched into fists, they began shaking in both fear and anticipation.
The Tavern owner’s face turned ugly when he heard those words. The abyss order…? The anemo archon was involved with the people who killed his father?
He raised his normally calm voice at the anemo archon, “What deal? Speak at once, anemo archon!”
Venti could only give a pitisome look at Diluc. The one titled the abyss prince jumped off the dragon’s head and walked closer towards them. The prince stopped right in front of Venti.
“Barbatos… if you cannot hold up your end of the deal, your life will cease as you know it.” The abyss prince spoke in a softer manner. Diluc couldn’t help but compare it to a child’s mannerisms.
The prince wore the same white cloak Venti remembered. It’s smooth silky fabric framing the unnaturally thin body. The group couldn’t help but stare. Lumine was still unconscious in Jean’s arms as she tried to heal her injuries. The same gold embroidery was present on the cloak, only this time, it shone in the unknown light. Venti noticed that the prince wore white boots with the same golden embroidery and suppressed his rare laugh when he noticed the heels on them. The prince was already the size of a young teenager, but Venti didn’t expect him to be any shorter. When he originally met the prince, he expected a tall man with a demanding demeanor. Although he still couldn’t be sure, the prince was more of a divine figure than a villain in his opinion. But he couldn’t put aside the murderous aura that he emitted. He couldn’t help but speak about it.
“Without your high heels, would you have been able to defeat the dragon?” Venti sneered, forgetting his position for a moment.
Diluc could feel his veins popping out of his temple at the comment. Was this really the right time to be joking around? Especially at our most dangerous enemy yet? He could feel the Abyss Prince tense up.
The prince crossed their arms, “Think before you speak,” He hissed, “the last person who didn’t lost more than their tongue.”
This statement finally shut up the party members. They began to feel their fear again. Why did the prince of the abyss intervene? Venti already knew that it was the Abyss Order who began Dvalin’s corruption, but the Abyss Order did nothing to prevent them from getting into the lair. There must be an ulterior reason behind this. Diluc had long since recovered from the sudden appearance of the abyss prince and was now trying to piece together pits of information. He began by studying the abyss prince. The prince was stunning, even with the cloak on. It made him wonder about what the prince looked like from underneath that cloak. But, he did take note that his fashion sense was much different than the rest of the abyss. It still had many engravings of the abyss symbols showcasing themselves on the prince, but formally speaking, white was not a colour of the abyss. Diluc had expected the many blues and reds the Abyss Order wore. He would have even understood black more. But white was a colour of peace, unity… and change. It was not the colour a revolutionist would normally wear and certainly not one that a murderer would wear either. It made the prince look divine, truly. Just by looking at the prince’s movements and mannerisms, he could tell that he had a stern and ruling type of display. But it didn’t seem to be arrogance. Just experience. Almost the same calm manner that Diluc usually wore. However, Diluc couldn’t be sure without looking at the prince’s eyes. No matter how you spoke, no matter how you acted, the eyes would always reveal the truth. Diluc learnt that when he was just a child. But Kaeya learnt that the minute he was born. After all, he was abandoned by his own father. He needed to survive in a world where he couldn’t blindly trust anyone. Even now, the two of them could never let down their guard. In the world of adulthood and knighthood, was trust even a thing?
Venti immediately shut up after hearing the prince’s threat. But he couldn’t help but let down his own guard. As Diluc was being extra cautious, Venti wanted to get closer to the prince. The same prince who was threatening his people, the same prince who defeated his dragon friend. He quickly rubbed his head in an attempt to get rid of any of those thoughts as he returned to reality.
He wanted to know why the prince was here. Only Venti had ever seen him in flesh before. It couldn’t just be that he… ‘broke’ the promise… right?
“Your saviour, lying unconscious. How could you let such a thing happen?” He asked Venti, his voice held a hidden protectiveness. This left the party confused as to where the prince was getting at. Diluc moved to block Lumine from the prince’s view when he began to move closer.
Diluc bit his lip, “Why do you have such a fascination on Lumine? If you truly wanted to destroy this world, you wouldn’t want to save the person you claim would stop you!”
The prince stayed silent for a moment, but it was enough to change the atmosphere to something far beyond awkward. “Lumine…” he breathed out, the prince secretly gasped for air after hearing her name.
“You’re expecting me, the person who initiated all of this to tell you? ” He laughed, nobody expected such a menacing tone coming from the prince. But they should have. After all, this was the conqueror of the abyss, the ruler of the abyss. The supposed ‘god’ of the abyss. How could any of them forget that. They had become so lost in the prince’s calm mannerisms. However, as soon as the thought appeared in their heads, it disappeared in an instance when the prince spoke once again in a lighter tone.
“She’s my friend,” he spoke. “But she doesn’t know that. She isn’t supposed to know that.”
Jean’s jaw almost dropped. Lumine knew the abyss prince? Did she lie to them before?
The prince noticed the look on the acting grandmaster’s face and chuckled, “She doesn’t know who I am, just simply, I ran into her during one of my journeys long, long, ago.” He reminisced about his travels with Lumine and how much he missed them. But it was his duty to carry out the task given to him by the Khaenrian people. “So, if you utter such words to her in regards to me… not only will I know, but you will be disposed of… immediately.” Although his words were threatening, he would never dare harm Lumine’s comrades. He didn’t mean to tell such a lie. However, Lumine must never know about him. Not until the time is right. Because until the abyss has engulfed the flames, his war with destiny would never cease to be.
Luckily, the rest of the group understood his words and didn’t dare move their mouths. Even the anemo archon, Barbatos, was chilled to the bone. “...we understand.”
Aether did still feel the urge to murder the anemo archon, “I wouldn’t mind if you fell to the ground with a splat, Barbatos.” He spat those words out, fully intending it’s context.
Everybody knew that the prince was smiling from under the hood.
†††
Aether was mortified. His sister… was the one siding with the gods that had ruined their lives. The same gods that destroyed their home… and forced them to separate. Now, she was helping them? Helping them with their problems when they’re the ones who caused all of it?! It took all his effort not to scream in the agony of his painful encounter with his sister. Five-hundred years of suffering just to find that the light he was searching for was… fake? A painful tingle in his lips brought his back to reality. It was a painful effort to separate the grasp on his lips. They bled down his chin. Aether lifted his fingers to wipe the blood off and brought it in front of his eyes.
It was red. Still red.
“Ah… I’m still human. ” Aether laughed, “I’m not… lost yet.”
He had followed the traces left behind by his sister and the approximate location given to him by the abyss mage. When he finally found her, he couldn’t help but freeze. It felt like his body was connected to her, like the red string of fate. The string tried to pull him closer to her, but he wouldn’t budge. Although it pushed, he had to stand his guard. If his sister was truly helping the seven nations with their affairs and intersecting the plans of the abyss order, Aether would have to wait until she understood the true nature of this world. It’s history and it’s events. Once she discovered what happened so many years ago, she would be able to come back to him. Lumine would finally see the world through his eyes. Even before the destruction of Khaenri’ah, Lumine never truly understood the suffering Aether felt. Lumine was loved by her family, but Aether was just the same old foreigner he was referred to in this world. But he didn’t need to think of the past anymore.
Aether swore to the abyss that he would complete his mission to restore the greatness his home once posed. He would take revenge on the ones who murdered his people. That time hurt dearly to him. It hurt even more as time went on and on.
Perhaps this was the most painful experience he would ever encounter.
The boy followed the group as they infiltrated into Stormterror’s lair. But for some reason, he didn’t do anything to stop them. They were destroying everything he had worked so hard on right in front of him.
Was this because he was weak? Is it just like before? Could he be a good leader? Was he even strong enough to call himself a warrior? Much less a prince? As a million thoughts rushed through his mind, he noticed the party trying to break the barrier to stormterror’s domain. Was this really happening? His sister was about to defeat a dragon. His dragon. Aether couldn’t decide what the feeling inside his chest was. But it pulled him towards the action. Somehow, he was satisfied with the way the party was struggling, however, he was also terrified at the same time. If they managed to get a hold of Dvalin, would he betray Aether and inform the group of his identity and his plans? Or would he remain loyal to him? The prince wondered if he would be betrayed by yet another friend. It truly was just him alone in this world, wasn’t it?
But instead of standing there pitying himself, he secretly followed the group into the domain. He was already used to the drop from the sky into Dvalin’s lair and flew through it the portal, he decided to hide himself using his cosmo’s power. Aether’s ability was very powerful. He rarely used his ability because of that. It was a hard effort just to hide his presence, but then using his abilities… it had to be done. Surely he didn’t want to blow his cover so soon, right?
His face wasn’t very amused when he watched his sister and her comrades struggle through the fight. Dvalin was at forty percent of his original strength, yet they struggled. They could barely break his shields and so much deal damage. Aether couldn’t help but worry for his sister’s wellbeing. But he couldn’t do anything about it. The minute Aether used his abilities, Venti would notice. The damn gods had a knack for sensing abilities.
So Aether had to watch his sister be hit by a fireball. He watched his own god damn sister almost die from the corruption he raised. His face turned ugly as he watched her fall unconscious into weak arms. It took him a big effort not to run towards them and hold her in his own arms. However… he had a malevolent feeling inside of his chest. A disgusting feeling. Why… did he want to ignore her? Why did he want to watch his sister… experience pain. It was a feeling of, “experience what I did.” With a great effort, he slapped himself across the face and charged towards the dragon after pulling his hood above his head. The dragon fell to the ground with a great roar and the eyes of the party members fell on him. Those dirty, dirty eyes. Those horrifying stares…
“You were supposed to be fulfilling a contract, Barbatos.”
†††
[Months Later]
“Destroy Liyue, huh?” Aether mused, “Already doing the dirty work for us, Fatui?” He asked, eyeing the handsome dark amber haired man. The other boy only stared back with a smile. His ocean blue eyes had a tint of mischievousness. Those eyes could belong to only one being in this universe and one being alone.
Childe , a tall man with shoulder length short hair. His shoulders were refined, those shoulders led down to perfectly sized hands that had a few blisters from holding a blade for too long. The man had any man’s dream chest, a chiseled chest with a six pack. One could tell this from the naughty slit in the top he wore. Although his legs were hidden behind grey pants, anyone would notice the amount of pure muscle and strength that came from them.
“Dear Aether, Tsaritsa is not involved in your… godly dealings. She is an honourable and intelligent woman, therefore, ruthless destruction is not within her invisions.” Childe answered back, serving the Tsaritsa was one of the top priorities in his life. He would remain loyal until the end. Which would also mean defending his god’s reputation. But although he was serious about it on the inside, he had crescent eyes and his trademark smirk.
It was true that the Cyro nation did not have any dealings with the abyss. They were the only nation who refused the destruction of Khaenri’ah. In his gratitude for their efforts, the abyss joined a deal with the Fatui with the same goal in mind. Destroy the Gods. Although Aether was happier being in an alliance over a rivalry, the Fatui were complete rabid monsters. At least the abyss order had rationality! And here in front of him was a teenage monster whose only goal in life was to kill, kill, kill. Then, the Fatui decided it was a great idea to make him a ‘Harbinger.’ What was going through their minds at the time.
“Yeah, it’s not like you’re the only organization to blatantly destroy towns for fun on the excuse of ‘collecting debt.’” Aether spat out as he looked at Childe with slitted eyes, his lips curved downwards into a frown.
The Harbinger raised his hands in defence, “But hey, at least I don’t strive to murder the Gods keeping this world peaceful .”
Aether gritted his teeth, “It’s not my choice–” He quickly cut off that sentence midway, he almost told the least reliable man in the world his darkest secret because he was acting childishly in an argument. Yeah, Aether, go ahead, tell him something you’ve kept from even your closest and most loyal subordinates. Go ahead and send that God after you for breaking your contract. Defy the abyss and be that dumb little weak child who nobody would even want to look at.
This made him think deeply about the past hundred years. If he was sent along with this sister to this current time, would he still be the same teenager he looked like today both mentally and physically? If he was sent down here with Lumine, would things be different? Would cease to be the being he was today and return to his ‘innocent’ stage? He turned to leave in the middle of his frenzy.
A hand grasping his wrist interrupted his thoughts. It wouldn’t let him go.
“You were saying?” Childe asked. In terms of physical strength, the Harbinger was much stronger. He could wield any weapon and of course, his strongest weapon was his fist. This was troublesome for Aether as the Harbinger wouldn’t dare let go of his wrist. He felt himself spiral down into a frenzy at the touch.
He hissed at the man, “ Let go .”
“I don’t want to.”
“I will cancel the contact with the Tsaritsa.” Aether threatened.
Childe snickered, “You’re usually better at lying.” He began to move closer to the prince and proceeded to bring Aether back into the chair, he loomed over the golden haired boy. The Harbinger himself brought himself onto the chair with knees only. In the heat of the moment, Aether himself could not react. So his body did it for him. His face flushed a bright pink and his normally empty eyes were filled with embarrassment. Childe couldn’t contain his surprise and leaned in closer. An unknown force pulled the two closer together. It was like Inazuma’s red string of fate story. They were so close that both of them could feel their own breaths on each other. The Harbinger was about to take his final leap of faith when Aether’s eyes were rid of any emotion and was only filled with realization.
He shot a ball of dark energy from his palm straight into the Harbinger’s chest and watched as the man was flung across the room. The man landed with a loud bang, but the man didn’t begin to wail. Only a cunning smirk was visible.
“Got embarrassed?” Childe teased with a snicker.
Aether stormed to the door with a horrible expression on his face, but before he left, he turned back to face the Harbinger.
“Don’t… harm my sister, please…” He muttered, but those words were strong enough for Childe to hear and deep enough for him to think of his own siblings.
With a softer smile, he chose to forget his Harbinger status for a minute and bowed down in front of Aether, “Of course, my prince. ”
But Childe only agreed because of their contract.
†††
[One Week Later]
“Isn’t this just beautiful, Aether?” The Harbinger laughed, eyeing the god in the water. He had his arms wrapped around the twitching Aether. Although Aether would normally beat Childe to a pulp for such actions, it was his side of his contract being filled. He may not be the Geo Archon, but he certainly held up to his contracts. In return for not causing serious harm to his sister, Aether had to become the Harbingers ‘teddy bear’ for twenty-four hours. However, Childe managed to find a loophole in the contract and decided to use the whole blunt force of it on him.
In terms of the ‘loophole’ he found, Childe took advantage of the way ‘twenty-four’ hours was spent. Meaning, he could use Aether as a ‘teddy bear’ whenever he wanted. But each time he does it, the amount of time he uses Aether like that would be subtracted from the twenty-four hours. In simple terms, like a currency. As for what being a ‘teddy bear’ meant…
“I’m so glad I can hug you, my little Angel!” Childe laughed, “We can be warm and snuggly now!” Aether saw the Harbinger’s face beaming.
Aether pinched Childe’s arm, “You’re sick.” He spat out. Unfortunately, Childe didn’t let go.
As if he wasn’t teasing the prince enough, Childe leaned into his ear, “Remember the rules for breaking the contract…” Aether felt a tickle in his ear with the Harbinger’s hot breath blowing into it. He almost reached up to block it, but realised that it wouldn’t be possible with Childe’s hands tied around his whole body. Instead, he turned the opposite direction of where Childe was to hide his burning face.
Breaking the contract… he could do it if he really wanted to. But the god’s wouldn’t let him. Everytime he signed a contract, you had to bind yourself to all members of the party involved. Which meant that if he broke the contract, the bind would punish him according to the contract’s rules. Aether was forced to sign a contract with Childe to prevent him from harming his sister. He knew that even family members were excluded from the safe list. Honestly, even Aether himself was excluded. But the Harbinger’s way of harming him was much different than the others…
The contract between the two would allow Childe to be ‘intimate’ with Aether. However, anything beyond hugging would have to be consented. Otherwise, Childe would either have time taken off his ‘time currency’ or the contract would be broken completely. Aether’s side of the contract prevents him from intervening in Childe’s intimacy. If he did as much as remove his hand from Childe’s, the timer would be increased by another hour. However, Aether found his own way of taking revenge. Never did the contract say that words would count.
“How does one completely ignore something so horrendous?” Aether questioned Childe, eyeing the monstrosity in front of them.
Osial, the god of the ocean. The being that the Geo archon fought so hard to detain. It was currently heading towards Liyue in it’s reign to destroy all. However, Osial was not in their original form. Instead, it took the form of their godly sea monster appearance. Which came from the Fatui's way of awakening Osial. Reminding one of their worst experiences was something Aether himself would be enraged from. Osial’s memories of being betrayed sparked once again and the bitter feeling of betrayal burning like it was fresh. Aether pondered if being awakened in such a way would result in his wrath.
But then he remembered that he was awakened in such a way… by that Unknown God…
“Thinking so deeply there, my dear. Tell me everything.” The Harbinger once again whispered right next to his ear, the feeling sending sparks down his spine.
With a straight face and stone hard body, Aether denied him with the softest mannerisms as possible in a way to avoid the contract punishments.
“You’re lucky that it is me alone here. At a snap of my fingers, my abyss mages could kill you and leave no trace. As if you were never here.” Aether threatened with a cold voice. But Childe only pulled him closer to his chest. And to Aether’s disappointment, he couldn’t resist, nor snap his fingers for his abyss mages to take him away.
If there were spectators to this little show of his, they would probably wonder why Aether and Childe were sitting there. The reasoning behind that was the fact that Osial was actually bait. Bait to catch the Geo Archon. His old friend, his old historian, Morax.
Aether had to rid himself of any personal emotions regarding the Gods. He vowed to kill them on behalf of his people. And he vowed to bring back the glory of Teyvat. When they were once peaceful!
The Anemo Archon was let off because of his contract to protect his sister. But anyone else would be brought down and exterminated, immediately.
“Did you like Zhongli?” Aether asked Childe, he had watched Childe become Zhongli’s wallet. For the one who created all the mora in the world, he didn’t seem to be well off… at all. Zhongli and Childe quickly became friends, ‘enjoying’ each other’s company fairly often. Childe claimed that it was all for the sake of the Tsaritsa and whispered his name. An unfamiliar feeling was always stinging his heart when he saw the two together. What was it? He couldn’t give it a name. It stung. Like a bee sting. But it kept happening again and again.
Why..?
Childe hummed a tune that sounded like something from his homeland, “Zhongli was a lot like you.” He pointed his finger to his heart, “The you on the outside.”
Aether raises his eyebrows with a frown, “The me on the outside ?”
“You have a cute little stubborn battle spirit in there. And I love it.” He whispered the last sentence with a warm whisper.
?
“Ajax…” He whispered. It was filled with murderous intent
The Harbinger smirked wickedly.
†††
The ordeal ended with the protectors of Liyue putting Osial back to sleep by sacrificing their beloved Jade Chamber. It fell down with a loud bang, that big bang almost blew Childe and Aether away. But they were saved by Aether’s shield. Childe had commented on how it looked similar to Zhongli’s jade shield and Aether mutely nodded. Neither denying or confirming his theory. The truth was, just like his sister, he had the ability to harness the abilities of the seven nations. Back then, each Archon was much more powerful than they were today. Their power had slowly begun to dye out due to so much time passing and the war or the Gods from so long ago.
In the end, he had discovered that Morax had struck a deal with Signora in order to prevent harm to the people of Liyue in exchange, he would give up his Gnosis. However, Signora wasn’t exactly the most trustworthy person. She had asked Childe to steal the Gnosis because her deal with Aether required her to ‘destroy’ all seven nations. In terms of ‘destroy,’ it would be to eliminate all high ranking officials and destroy Liyue as a city. Aether excluded the citizens because he would not be able to justify their deaths. He could justify his own though.
The problem with Morax’s death was the indefinite cut of mora for the human world. Of course, that wasn’t a problem for the abyss order as the abyss gave him the same ability to produce mora. But for the humans, without mora, they could not level up their weapons, create alchemy, nor could they transcend in technology. All because everything takes mora as the offering of choice. Was this an advantage of Aether? Most likely as it would make it harder for humans to stop Aether in his mission. But it would also dimper the hope that he could return everything to peace. Would he have to bribe the citizens with mora–probably. Aether wondered if they would accept it. Were they selfish like the gods? Or would they be different like the citizens of Khaenri’ah. Aether doubted it would ever be like that. The people of Teyvat were all selfish. Aether may have been the most selfish one of them all.
Aether had his order spectate his sister. It wasn’t just a matter of keeping her safe, but keeping her out of matters that did not concern her. He told his mages not to bring any serious harm to her, just keep her out of his way. Although it seemed like he did not care for his sister, he really did want to reunite. That was the entire reason why the abyss order was formed. But now that he was this far into his piece, he could not stop the music. The conductor could not abruptly stop the strings from vibrating, air from blowing or drums from drumming. He would have to continue. Until the song finished.
Which was why his hands were shaking from the fact he could not do a thing when his sister was eating dinner with Morax’s adepti. Xiao. The only remaining adepti. Of the five, he was probably the strongest. He could have easily broken free of his contract, especially after Morax ‘died.’ However, the adepti chose to remain loyal and protect Liyue. Truly, the only harm that Liyue was under is from the abyss order. But Aether didn’t have any more intentions to harm Liyue for quite a long period of time. And because the Fatui was contracted with them, they too could not harm Liyue.
Seeing Lumine eating dinner with Xiao was horrifying. His sister was still a teenager! She was not allowed to date! Especially somebody as dangerous as Xiao! Aether knew his strength… and one day, he won’t be able to control it. Couldn’t Lumine sense his dangerous presence?!
Xiao wasn’t somebody one could just ‘chat’ with. Adepti Xiao would sacrifice everything he had for the sake of Liyue. Aether definitely didn’t want his sister exposed to this behaviour. Not like him… She couldn’t end up like him.
He truly hoped that Xiao would continue denying Lumine’s invitation to the lantern festival.
†††
“Come with you… to the Lantern Festival?” Xiao muttered, shocked by the girl’s words. The traveler stared at him with gleaming golding eyes. Her false hope of him ever attending such a festival was non-existent. Both of them already knew the outcome. Xiao had already accepted and completed dinner with the traveler. Was this not enough?
“These mortal traditions are of no use to me. I must follow through my contract and protect Liyue. I have no time for something so useless.” Xiao meant his words, why spend precious time on something that only took place once a year.
“Please, Xiao! This year will be different!” She begged, she had her puppy dog eyes in her arson ready to use. Lumine took full advantage of that.
But Xiao only fell weak from one pair of eyes.
He shook his head and stood up abruptly, “No, traveler. I do not wish to concern myself with mortal traditions. Such bright and loud annoyances are intolerable to me—”
“Hey Xiao, you know, not all humans are selfish.” The boy beside him told him, the pair sat on a large cliff. They dented the long grass beside them as they held hands, gazing off to the sunset. They were sheltered from the smouldering heat under a large blossom tree. Multiple petals blew past them and some even fell on them. One such petal fell directly on Xiao’s cheek. The boy next to him leaned in and used his thin pale fingers to lift the petal off. But he didn’t drop the petal, nor did he lean away.
Xiao could feel his hot breath against his ear. When somebody got this close, he would normally swat them away at such mortal actions, but Xiao did not feel any disgust at the action. If anything, the adepti only wanted to move closer.
“It’s because they are selfish that they’re human.” He told him, “They work so hard to get what they want because they only have a second to get it. They are weak, but… they’re determined. They take time as mora. Think about it, the difference of having eighty years to complete your dream compared to the centuries we have?”
The adepti stared at the boy in astonishment, he gave a deep frown. “We?” He questioned, Xiao still didn’t pull away from the boy’s presence,“Are you implying that you’re not a mortal yourself?”
He felt the beautiful boy beside him give a soft giggle, “My origins are somewhat divine.” Xiao felt as if he was understood for once. This boy was the closest person to him. He would sacrifice everything for him. This boy was the reason why the corruption in his heart had paused.
“Does that mean you won’t leave me..?” Xiao mumbled, one could tell the desperate tone of the voice. The adepti took a leap of faith that even he himself despised.
Xiao kissed the boy’s pale skin, embracing him in a tight, but welcoming hold. His arms wrapped around his waist as he felt a slight shiver from [redacted], but that slight shivering was slowly replaced with another pair of hands wrapping around himself.
“I won’t leave you, Xiao.”
Lips crashed onto each other. The adepti dominated the kiss, bringing the two to the ground. With their faces pressed together, Xiao felt the soft sensation of the boy’s plum lips and cherished it like his mask. The air around them was filled with gasping as the kiss took away all their air.
“I love you–”
The wind suddenly picked up, blowing the both of them apart. Up above them, the sky swirled together to create a dark grey storm.
Xiao immediately rose from his spot, staring up into the sky. No way could the weather change like this so suddenly. Only someone of great power could do this. Donning his mask, he rotated his head in all directions to look for his partner. When his eyes finally fell upon the boy, it wasn’t the same boy that he just kissed just a moment ago. The figure still had their beautiful golden hair, pale and smooth fragile skin, their beautiful frame, but… those eyes were not the same as they just were. They were empty. Emotionless. Void of any mortal or divine emotions.
“W-Who are you?”
The boy chuckled, a pained look flashed across his face. “I’m hurt, Xiao. We just kissed a moment ago.”
He clutched his hands tightly, he watched the boy wrap a white cloak with gold embroidery over his casual clothing. It was like a replay of an old scene. The same scene when his former adepti comrade became corrupted. Making him the solivagant person he was today. This wasn’t happening again… was it? No… had he been tricked.
“I can see exactly what’s going through your mind, Xiao. Your eyes give it away. Even behind that mask. I really did {redacted} you as well… but we can’t change fate, now can we.” The boy had a pained look, but he still smiled. It was something he was very good at.
His feet began to move as fast as they could, when they reached the boy, he grabbed onto his arm as hard as he could. “What do you mean, fate?!” Xiao gasped those words out, desperate, “I promised you that I would help you when you were endangered!”
With a shadow covering his eyes, the boy slapped his hand away, leaving him frozen. They were left standing for a few moments, both of them gasping for air. Xiao was much louder than the other boy.
“That is why this must be done.” He turned around, looking over the vast nation of Liyue. You could see anything from the mountain they were standing on. If only he could stand there forever, with Xiao, the boy thought. His hands moved in a circular motion, dark purple energy was unleashed from the boy’s hands, creating a large vortex, which could be assumed as a portal.
Once more, Xiao gazed at his ‘lover’ with hurt eyes, his ‘lover’ stared back at him.
“Don’t love me, Xiao.” The golden haired boy told him, “You’ll only end up suffering and regretting it all.”
Finally, when he had spoken all that had to be known, he stepped through the portal.
Xiao ran after him, trying to use his powers to dash after him.
“Wait! Don’t leave me all alone,–”
Xiao gave a loud throat clear, “Look, this… mortal– lantern festival just isn’t to my likings. It is my duty to protect Liyue, now more than ever. I appreciate the offer, but I must take my leave.” He turned away and donned his yaksha mask. Green anemo swirled around him, lighting up their dark surroundings.
He jumped high into the air and used his luminescent dashes to fly away, just before he managed to leave the traveler’s sight, she shouted the same words he shouted many years ago. Those words made him shiver.
“Wait! Don’t leave me all alone,–” She chased after his light, screaming.
“Xiao!”
“Aether!”
╔═══*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═══╗
A lonely boy sat at the top of the tallest peak in Liyue, staring down at the city down below. His eyes reflected the many lanterns that filled the night sky. It looked like the stars in his own world. Beautiful.
If only he could watch the sky with his sister…
Aether shook his head to clear his thoughts. During the time he had first entered this world, he had participated in the lantern festival with his old friend… He remembered how much they had laughed that day. Smiled at each other like idiots. Aether wondered where the man was now. Was he busy defeating his abyss soldiers asking for his whereabouts? Or was he avoiding mortals still? As much as he missed him, he could not forgive his unforgivable deed.
Lumine seemed to be quite acquainted with him. Would he betray her as well?
The boy gave a quiet chuckle. His legs dangled against the edge of the mountain, it looked like a child sneaking away from their parents. Even though it had been five-hundred years since he had come to this world, his mentality and appearance had stayed the same. His curse of immortality had truly prevented him from returning to those blissful days. Those days when he and his sister would run around causing mischief.
His ear twitched at the sound behind him.
An abyss mage appeared after the sound of ice breaking was heard. The soldier bowed down to his prince. A low hum was heard from the prince who was awaiting the information from the mage.
“This humble servant must report much… unfortunate news.” The mage told him with a grim tone.
Aether’s highbrows perked up. Although his face remained calm, his lips curved down into a frown.
“The traitor had intruded into our camp of operations. He is attempting to dismantle the corrupted statue of the seven as we speak!” His soldier stepped out of the way to reveal a purple cosmo portal. “Acqua has currently been dispatched to… deal with the intruders…”
It was unfortunate that he would have to leave such a beautiful sight, it would have to wait another year.
“What a shame… out of all the decisions he had to make, you chose to die today.”
His legs moved automatically towards the portal and jumped without hesitation. In the middle of the transition, he pulled out his golden sword. The same sword he and Lumine created together. The abyss mage followed closely behind him.
There was no need to ask who he was about to face.
It was already fated that they would finally meet again.
╚═══*.·:·.☽✧ ✦ ✧☾.·:·.*═══╝
[Present Time]
When Aether had finished his farewell with Lumine, his loyal abyss herald (Acqua) entered the portal to return to the abyss once again. He shut his eyes closed as tightly as possible to get rid of the image of Lumine’s horrified face out of his head. There was absolutely no time to go back on his promise against fate. It was too late now, anyways. Even if he returned to Lumine, he would be killed by the unknown goddess or the residents of Teyvat. They all seemed revenge for the abyss mage’s reign. However, it was his turn in the game of chess to ration it.
“Farewell, Lumine.” He whispered because letting out a loud yelp. A large pair of arms wrapped around his waist from behind. (What was with people and wrapping themselves around him!?)
“My prince!” Acqua yelled, trying to reach him. The person who grabbed him did not let that happen.
When they had fully entered through the portal, they landed on the cold quartz floor of the abyss palace with a large thud. Aether immediately twisted his body around in the intruder’s right hold and stared in horror at his face.
“Let go!” He screamed frantically, not liking the invasion of personal space. His hand pressed up against his shoulders, but they did nothing. That phobia of his…
The blond haired man only held on tighter and leaned in closer to his face. “I refuse, Aether. ”
“ You! ” Acqua yelled, teleporting behind Dainsleif to forcefully pry him from the prince. He threw Dainsleif across the room, but the twilight sword landed gracefully without any noise.
Aether quickly recovered as he was helped up by the abyss herald. His leg became limp and he had trouble standing up on his own. Acqua lifted him up onto his back.
“How dare you touch the prince.” His soldier yelled, protectively hiding Aether from Dainsleif’s view.
Dainsleif wiped the trace of blood leaking down from his mouth and stared at the both of them with a deadly expression. Aether knew this expression. This was the possessive bloodlust that Dain had whenever he lost control of his emotions. The same aura only the hunter would unleash. The first time he witnessed it was when Aether had been injured by ancient Tevian monsters. ‘Shōka,’ they were named. In his original tongue, it translated to ‘Extinguish.’ The name came from their ability to control a light substance that was a mix of Geo and electro. They could control your awareness of the world. They manipulated your vision by mixing the two elements together. Mixing the earthly Geo element with electro created a yellow shockwave that would first ‘electrify’ the victim and then send a transmission to the eyes to ‘shut off,’ which was in turn, extinguishing. After that, your brain would be affected by the electro and the geo provided the illusions as it was after all, the element of the body. It could mess with the brain by becoming a part of the brain. It was a scary beast that was eradicated many years ago by the founders of the knights of Favonius.
When Aether was affected, he had many illusions of his sister. Although one may know the effects of the monster, it would always find your weakness. When you are blinded by that weakness, you are left vulnerable. Which allowed the normally weak monsters to attack Aether and leave him wounded. Dain later went and massacred an entire tribe of the ‘Shōto’ monsters. The look he had in his eyes that day scared him. Would that ever happen to him?
Was this the moment he never wanted to encounter?
Oh, those sweet, sweet, deadly eyes that betrayed his people. He didn’t care about the history between them anymore. Dain was an obstacle in his way. He would trample anything in his way to reach his goal. A selfish ruler. Cold and merciless.
He already knew that was one big lie.