The Spark [Xiao x Aether]

Forever |

"Wake up child. It is not time for you to leave just yet." A mysterious female voice spoke in Aether's head. He knew he was dead, this was most likely one of his sister's schemes out of Teyvat's reach, so he ignored it.

"Lumine is gone. Right now it's just me and you here. Nobody will hurt you. Feel free to open your eyes." It spoke again.

The Traveler wanted to keep them closed, whatever was standing in front of him didn't seem like it could be trusted. Enough weird creatures betrayed him so far, there was no hope left that this one wouldn't do the same.

"Who are you?" He asked after some time.

"I'm Istaroth. You may have heard of me back in your trip to Enkanomiya or from old books in Mondstadt. Most mortals aren't aware of my existence, so don't worry, I won't get mad if you haven't heard of me." The goddess spoke gently, her words sounded pretty trustworthy. Despite being a stranger, the blonde felt that he could trust her.

He never heard of such a unique name before. Nobody in the entirety of Teyvat had a name like that. It sounded very familiar, yet the boy wasn't sure where it came from.

"You see Aether, I've been looking over you for a long time now. Maybe even before you entered Teyvat. You've always seemed like an interesting individual. You make dangerous choices all the time, it was frightening watching you do what you just did. You're brave."

The boy still didn't want to open his eyes, this was his end. If he opened them then he would return, but did he really want that?

"What are you? And...where am I? I'm supposed to be dead if I'm not mistaken."

She chuckled a little.

"I am the goddess of time and wind. I can see everything that happened as long as someone recorded it as a memory. Even if deleted by Irminsul I'm able to review it once more. We're in a space they call 'the in-between of life and death'. You aren't completely dead but neither are you alive." The woman explained, her voice seemed way too familiar.

"Why aren't I dead then? It's supposed to end that way. I have no business left in Teyvat. I knew it was going to end like this and I accepted my fate...so why?"

Nothing made sense anymore. Why would the goddess of time try to talk with him in this situation? She had nothing to do with other people's lives or souls.

"Hahaha...You ask too many questions, little one. It's not your time yet. You've got tons of other adventures to return to."

He felt a hand caressing his hair. It was cold, like the one that attacked him not too long ago. He wanted to flinch but he couldn't move. The sudden touch felt comforting.

"I may not be the God of death. But I have the ability to return your soul to your body. Due to certain contracts, I'm not really allowed to do that, but since it's you, I'm willing to break that contract. As I said previously, you're interesting, Aether. I want to see you alive just for a while longer."

"My life isn't worth living anymore. There's no reason for me to return. Stay loyal to your contracts." Zero hesitation was in his voice when that came out of his mouth. He was so done with everything.

But yet again, despite not caring about dying, he felt empty. His sister was now dead so why would he return? There's nothing for the traveler to look for anymore. He solved Teyvat's biggest issue so there's no reason to go back. They don't need him when there's no danger. Dying would be the best option for him. What would he do in Teyvat? He explored every last corner and met all kinds of people. Nothing worth visiting was there.

It all felt pointless. He hated to think that way but deep down he understood that it was the correct mindset to own at such a time.

"You say that but I know you don't mean it. You want to go back yet you feel guilty. If you believe you've made a mistake, I can reassure you, everything went perfectly as it should have. Everyone is happy, nothing is attacking the people anymore, and the archons feel Overjoyed most of the time. You did all that and you deserve to be there and see it."