Clear dark skies brightened by the warm glow of hundreds of paper lanterns. Children exploring the festivities with their parents, Lovers spending the evening together, elders reminiscing about their past. The lantern rite festival had arrived once again to bring joy to the hard working people of this nation.
Watching from high in the air from the jade chamber, Aether gazed at the people below, a faint smile adorning his face. Paimon excitedly floated by his side, entranced by the bright lights. Keqing admired the scenery with a proud look upon her lovely visage, appreciating the hard work of the people that made this event possible.
"Lady Keqing!", a worker approached from the jade chamber, "The item requested by Lady Ningguang for you has arrived."
Thanking the worker for letting her know, Keqing turned to Aether "Traveler, wait here for a moment. Don't go anywhere!"
Nodding to let her know he understood, Keqing went inside the looming chambers behind and Aether turned once again to gaze at the festival. Taking a quick glance to the ground below, he chose to sit down on the floating concrete.
So many bright colors and fun to be had, Aether thought. Moments of respite come few and far between, it's important to appreciate and spend time with loved ones in these moments. Yet, try as he might, his mind could not truly appreciate the happening in front of him.
Tired eyes cast their searching gaze upon the land below. They looked at the happy children, running around and having fun with their families. They looked at friends meeting at food stands and talking about happenings of the past and hopes for the future. They looked at the crowds entertained by shows of great tales of legends of the world.
How many times have I seen all of this before? Wondered the weary traveler. Thousands of years, hundreds of worlds. So many memories of similar events, each moment lived with a little less enthusiasm. Older memories blurred like an unfocused Kamera.
The only intact thing, the only constant, was Lumine. Always dragging him from world to world, from one adventure to another. The only thing holding him together.
"Where you go i'm going, there'll never be a me without you"
Many months passed since their last meeting, a reunion that did not go so well. His already fragile will shattering all the more by the confusion and desperation felt in the situation.
He could not lie to himself for much longer. The many centuries of his lifestyle have taken a toll on his psyche.
He was distracted for a moment by the clicking of heels on hard stone. Turning around Aether saw Keqing standing a few feet behind him, in all her opulent splendor. He stood up to appreciate her dress.
"Ningguang had her personal tailor make it for me. Said it's an imported style" Flicking one of her twintails behind her shoulder, she struck a pose. "Well? Do you like it"
"Wow, it's beautiful!" Paimon said while floating closer to see the details better.
She truly was. The rich blues and deep black only highlighting more than ever the ethereal beauty she possessed. Against the vibrant green of the jade chamber she stood out even more, making the glimmering lights below seem like nothing in comparison.
All he could do was stand there and appreciate the image, like you would to a painting. Only gazing longingly, but never touching, for fear of ruining such a lovely thing. Albedo would understand the feeling. So he stood and took her in, as it was all he could do.
There was a time such a sight would make him weak in the knees, even more so with such a disarming smile held in her beatific face. Now all it does is bring a wistful smile to his visage.
Oh, how he wishes to blush like a lovestruck fool and walk with her through the festival, as if they were lovers. In that path laid only heartache and grief. So he would not do so. Not again.
A clearing amidst trees. A lone woman, dancing graciously beneath the moonlight. Soft steps carrying her through grass. Red dress shining with the stars high above. A final twirl, she stops. A hand outstretched. "Won't you dance with me?"
Keqing had passed him while he was lost in his memories, now standing in front and assuming the position taken by him before. Familiar faces had ascended to the floating platform to join them.
"It's time Traveler!" She exclaimed, pride evident in her voice. "Please enjoy the grand finale of this year's lantern rite, the fireworks show!"
As if on command, as soon as she finished her phrase the first firework ascended to the sky, exploding with a loud sound and emanating a blinding light. More fireworks soon followed, basking the region in a warm embrace of calming, vibrant lights.
Aether could only feel cold. No blistering wind of the dragonspine peak. But light prickles on his skin. A tender reminder of the bindings of his soul. His feet might touch the ground, but his spirit was gone, far, far away to a place unknown, where the warmth of the fireworks could not reach. Even so he tried to appreciate the scene in front, just like a painting.
The show continued on, showing various different shapes and colors. Yellow and purples slimes, the symbol of all elements, and many more amazing displays were appearing in the night sky.
Suddenly shapes recognizable as things local to Inazuma started appearing. This was possibly the way the people of Liyue were welcoming Inazuma, as they've recently re-opened their borders. Harsh pink light started coming from the fireworks, the mesmerizing shape of the typical sakura trees of the land of eternity.
Ever since his first steps on the land, the trees had caught his attention and brought bittersweet memories to the forefront of his mind.
A field of flowers, with a lone tree with pink leafs. A man - a friend - lying on the ground, staining the ground with his life. A wanderer, holding gently - desperately - on to his withering body, spilling his sorrow from his eyes.
Sounds of explosion dispelled the mist in his mind, bringing his attention back to the sky. The combination of the scene in front and memories weighing his back brought the tears that once touched the flowers back to his eyes.
Never has this world been more beautiful than at this moment. Never has it been more fleeting.
He could no longer concentrate on the show, his mind wandering to many worlds like he once did.
"Happy lantern rite, Traveler!" A soft, calm voice like wind chimes pierced through the sound of explosions, in spite of the volume. Slightly startled, Aether turned to find Keqing facing him, warm smile aimed at him. "Happy lantern rite, Keqing." His calm voice betrayed the deep sorrow reflected in his moist eyes. Too tired for anything more, he put on a small smile, hoping she was too distracted by the show to see anything wrong.
Her smile dimmed a little, and her eyes narrowed slightly. Clearly she knew something was wrong, smart woman she was. There was a big explosion of light, bigger than all the previous fireworks. Our attention turned to the signal of the end of the show. Turning back, many of his friends could be seen talking to each other excitedly about the grandiose lightshow. Ningguang approached Keqing, likely to congratulate her on organizing such a lovely event.
Paimon came back rushing to his side, in a rush to stuff herself with as many of the different delicacies being sold down below as she could. Chuckling at her antics, Aether gave her some mora, knowing she would run ahead and get lost even if they were to go immediately. Shouting in glee, she grabbed the bag and started floating as fast as she could to the exit, followed shortly by their friends looking to join the festivities.
Intent on following them he started walking, only to stop and gaze, once more, to the dark canvas of the night sky. His feet started carrying him, oh so slowly, towards the ledge, his eyes fixed to the barely visible mountains.
Static filled his vision, whispers reached his ears. The scenery started flickering. Night turned to day, rocky mountains to green planes until they disappeared in the horizon. And then to sandy dunes reflecting the harsh light of the sun. And then to snow capped peaks surrounded by thick forests.
Landscapes kept flickering while the wind brought maddening whispers to his ears. Ghosts of his past brought back by memories resurfacing. Sadness overwhelmed his being by the reminder of all he had lost. All I have abandoned.
Unforgiving gales and rain started assaulting his surroundings, but Aether stood numb to it all. At the moment he was not capable of paying attention to anything. Not to the disorienting shifting of his surroundings, not to the elements hitting him, not the unforgiving memories.
His feet reached the edge of the platform, and suddenly, everything stopped. Taking a moment to regain the breath he did not know he lost, he looked around, and noticed he was alone. Still in a somewhat delirious state, he noticed wetness in some parts of his clothing. Gazing at the festival below, his ailed mind thought if today was a good day to host such an event.
"What a terrible day for raining"
Silence settled over the floating grounds, the sounds of festivities barely reaching the high altitude. This is what happens when you stop walking forwards. A wanderer is meant to wander, forever lost. Thus is the curse of his life.
"All that is found must be lost first!" Lumine used to say this and many other things, ever the shining optimist. Even then those words did not lift his spirits much. The more she repeated them, the less he believed her. Now the words ring hollow in his ears.
With another reminder of his sister, more and more of his emotions surfaced to create a whirlwind in his mind. Eyes downcast, and shoulders slumped, suddenly it felt like his back could no longer support him, and his posture, once of a young hero, resembled that of an old man that went through much in his life.
He was tired. Tired of going from world to world, falling in love with places and cultures and people. Tired of becoming disillusioned with their adventures and his life in general. Tired of walking aimlessly with no end in sight, running, tripping, falling. How long has it been since he started doing this? Maybe millennia had passed and he didn't even notice, only his bones felt the weight of all he went through. He was jaded, and depressed, and oh so very tired.
For a moment everything became still, not even the joy from below reaching him. Despondent and downcast eyes with blinding sight watched the sky, still blurry from moments before. I brought the rain, he finally noticed.
The wind came back, a gentle caress upon his face. Curling upon his head it tried to ease away his sorrows, bringing soft whispers only he could hear. A voice like velvet, unintelligible but recognizable. On instinct, he tried to find the origin. His eyes found a shape far, far below him. Despite the distance and how unfocused his eyes were, the silhouette was somewhat visible, only being slightly blurry upon its edges.
It was familiar. Intimately so. Yet it kept changing. Man. Woman. Child. Adult. Fizzling from one form to another, static covering it everytime it did so. Finally, it settled. Bright, kind eyes and ethereal shining hair, the only features clearly visible to him.
No more gentle words had been spoken while this took place, and silence permeated the air for moments more. It's eyes smiled reassuringly and in a voice near and dear, spoke a single melodic phrase to his ears.
"Aether, won't you jump for me?"
A blink and the figure was gone from his view, but lingered in his soul. Gazing once more at the festivities and seeing the beautiful nation of Liyue down below, Aether closed his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he tried to let go of all that was weighing him down. He remembered an exercise a dear friend of his once taught him. With that thought in mind, he opened his eyes.
And jumped.