'The sun is long gone.'

"I know."

'You're just the moon.'

"I know."

'You're not her.'

"I know," whispered Nahida, hugging her body tightly as she shivered.

It was the first analogy she'd ever been taught, and perhaps the one which still rang the truest to this day. Her meager light had only ever touched a handful of mortal souls, and fleetingly at that, but it was those few moments that made up her most cherished memories.

Nahida felt something wet trickling down her cheeks. This life of hers was all that she knew, and yet, year after year, a small part of her wished for the cycle to be broken.

She wondered what this year's samsara would entail - hopefully it would make for a better birthday gift than the last one.

"Happy birthday, Nahida."

Beep.


Nahida loved to dream.

It was in her dreams that she found hope, and from that hope would later discover a joy in living. Dreams were like the seedlings of realities, she thought, tiny glimpses into all that could be, irrefutable evidence that her fate was not set in stone.

When she finally awoke within her dream, her feet met with solid ground, cool and firm to the touch. Her eyes burned from lack of use, rarely open outside of a dream, and most certainly unprepared for the blinding, all-encompassing light that engulfed her vision.

Once the brightness receded she couldn't help but gasp, enraptured by the sight of an ancient city suspended in the sky, golden domes and ivory towers reaching beyond even the heavens.

Taking a tentative step forward, Nahida treaded along a narrow, stone-laden path, coated in sunlight and surrounded by the whitest clouds she'd ever seen. Many such paths were spread out across the blue expanse, she noticed, some breaking off prematurely while others led to tall, golden gates, shimmering with mystery as though hiding the secrets of the universe on the other side.

She walked and walked, losing track of time as she made her way down the endless path. No matter how hard she squinted her eyes, Nahida couldn't make out any sort of end to it.

What a bothersome dream, she thought, and frowned.

As beautiful as it was, she didn't want to remain trapped in this place for eternity. She wanted to go home, to visit the cities of Sumeru and all of Teyvat, and perhaps find some interesting people to observe.

No sooner than the thought crossed her mind did her surroundings change, the stone tiles rippling and churning, refashioning themselves into an archway similar to those she'd seen all around her but just out of reach.

"Ah, you figured it out. I did expect as much, of course… God of Wisdom."

Nahida turned on her heel, startled by the sudden voice coming from behind her.

A young man smiled down at her, able to pass as a teenager were it not for his pair of golden eyes. Their luster hinted at knowledge far older than his appearance suggested, perhaps even older than the world itself.

"Who are you?" she blurted out. "What is this place? Are you with the sages?"

This was without a doubt the strangest samsara that Nahida had ever witnessed, and as far as she could tell they were still within their first cycle. The man, however, kept on smiling, even if she noticed a few laugh lines growing more prominent on his face, betraying his amusement.

"I suppose you would have a few questions. Though, I must say, coming from someone who usually does most of the asking it's certainly nice to be on the opposite end for a change."

He then knelt, bringing his face level with hers, and to her surprise took her tiny hands into his own. She thought her first instinct would've been to pull away, but the touch was soft and caring, paternal even, though she knew little of such affection.

"My name is Aether," he revealed. "As for where we are, I suppose I should preface that by saying that my companions and I have hijacked this samsara."

"Hijacked?" asked Nahida, her eyes growing wide. "That's- that's impossible! The kind of power that would take is-"

Aether laughed, cutting her exclamation short.

"Oh, I know! Believe me, I know. Remind me to thank a certain someone once we return to the land of the living, but for now…"

He trailed off, eyes roaming across the city, and while the man's smile never left his face she could see some of his cheerfulness receding.

"This place - it was known as the Empyrean," he said quietly, a hint of wistfulness in his tone. "My home as I recall it… before it was reduced to ruins."

She didn't know what to say to that, whether to be awed or horrified or something else entirely, but the last thing Nahida expected to hear was a tale of a people that spent their lives wandering the stars, traveling through gates that would take them from one world to the next, seemingly for no purpose other than to record their findings in the annals of history.

"Enough about me, though. I'd much rather hear your story, Dendro Archon."

'You're not her.'

"I- I'm not-"

Nahida felt a lump in her throat, the words refusing to be spoken, and Aether gave her hands a gentle squeeze.

"I'm not… her." she whispered. "The sun is long gone. I'm just the moon. I'm just… Nahida."

Briefly, she saw the world burning in his eyes, but the moment passed as quickly as it came.

She understood then that the man was dangerous, more so than the sages, the Fatui and perhaps even the archons themselves, yet glimpsing his righteous fury on her behalf caused a warm, fuzzy feeling to grow within her chest.

"Is that such a bad thing, Nahida?"

The way her name rolled off his tongue made her happy. It was the first time anyone had ever called her by her chosen name.

"The moon… it is our most loyal companion, drowning out all but the brightest of stars."

He stood back up, still holding onto one of her hands.

"It's always there, watching us in our highest and lowest moments, changing just as we do. The moon understands what it means to be human, to be alone and uncertain, to be imperfect. It is the greatest friend anyone could ask for."

"Aether…"

A tremor passed through the gate before them, a pair of immaterial doors swinging wide open to reveal a warm and welcoming light.

"The world may have forgotten you, but I will not. You have my word."

Nahida knew that stepping through the gate would mean to return to her sanctuary - her prison - but she found herself uncaring. At long last she desired to wake up, to abandon her dream and face the real world, eagerly awaiting the moment that her Knight of Flowers would come and set her free.