viii. your forever is all that i need
the adepti watched liyue harbor grow over the millenia, some more than others. adepti like ganyu, yanfei, and even grandma ping have even decided to live with the mortals. others like the yaksha have opted to watch from afar.
but in teyvat, even immortals expire. the world has seen countless gods fall in battle. xiao himself has slain more souls than he could remember during the archon war. and he continued to slay, acquiring karma too big.
it has already been more than a hundred years since hu tao left him. her friends have all passed on as well, leaving him once again in the company of morax.
yet life goes on in liyue. they all may be gone but the city is just as noisy as ever. xiangling's descendants still run wanmin restaurant, and feiyun commerce guild is active even to this day. the hus still manage wangsheng funeral parlor though none of the directors after the seventy-seventh were as lively as she had been.
technology is abundant even more than it has been when hu tao and her friends ran around the city. truly, the adepti have become a thing of the past.
but still xiao continues to uphold his contract; protecting the citizens of liyue in the dark. protecting them until his body can no longer bear the weight of karmic debt.
it seems that time is now.
the yaksha lies on the cold ground of wuwang hill, his golden eyes staring at the dark sky, his body writhing in pain as lips cough out blood. the day, it seems, has finally come.
wuwang hill. the place where he first met the butterfly. the place where they said their farewells. as well as the promise.
what a fitting place to die.
xiao coughs up more crimson liquid, his whole body shrouded in the black aura of karmic debt, but he doesn't mind. when he closes his eyes, he can almost imagine a familiar warmth. when he closes his eyes, he can almost see a blazing butterfly fluttering in his vision.
despite the pain, the yaksha manages a smile. though the thought of leaving the geo archon saddens him to an extent, he assures himself that the others are still there to offer him company.
there is no need to be afraid of death. in death there is hu tao.
he has endured her absence for more than a hundred years. now, he thinks, it's time to reunite. the adeptus' body takes a breath one last time and as he closes his eyes, he thinks he can hear the chime of her laugh. see the ghost of her smile.
"see? i told you i'd be waiting for you."
the yaksha's smile only widens.
"let's go now."
brilliant green envelops the conqueror of demons' body before dispersing. a single green butterfly flaps its wings where the body had been. it soars up, up into the dark sky before being joined by a brilliant gold one.
together, the two soar into the heavens.
free.
morax watches as two butterflies fly together in the distance, a small smile on his face. tomorrow, it seems he would have to prepare for another funeral.