Notes: English is not my main language; I try my best for it but ... there's still probably some grammar and spell errors xD. Also, this is the first time I write something.
Anyway, enjoy the story everyone :D
"Quick, Aether, we need to find a place to hide!" The little fairy's voice was urgent as she tugged at the young boy's sleeve.
"I know, Paimon, just stop yelling at me!" the blonde replied, his voice tense with frustration.
Aether, known as the Traverler from another world was accompanied by his trusty companion, a small fairy named Paimon. The two of them had been running non-stop for over half an hour, with a horde of soldiers hot on their heels. Thanks to his "reckless" behavior during the ritual incident, and now they were desperately trying to get out of this mess.
One hour ago
"Rex Lapis has been killed! Seal the exit!" The woman with long, white hair commanded her troops to surround the ritual area. Without delay, the soldiers of the Millelith responded, interrogating anyone within range.
Aether and his companion watched from the crowd, frightened that they would be suspected of being too close to the ritual area with no proof of their innocence. They knew they had to sneak out to avoid any trouble.
The blonde and the fairy looked at each other in terror. "We need to get out of here before they accuse us of something!" whispered Aether.
After ten long minutes of trying to escape, they finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel. Freedom was just a few steps away.
But then, fate had different plans for them.
They tripped on a pebble, a tiny insignificant pebble. A rock so small, it could barely be called a rock. But it made a loud clank, as if it was mocking them for their clumsiness.
Suddenly, a guard appeared out of nowhere at the "right time" to make the situation even "better". "Stop right there!" he yelled.
Aether cursed under his breath. "Why couldn't it have been a quiet rock?" he muttered as he and Paimon started to run again.
"Come on, Aether, run faster!" Paimon urged as they dashed through the narrow alleys. The guard was right behind them, calling for backup.
"Fantastic, just what we needed. More people chasing us," Aether remarked sarcastically.
"Oh, be quiet and keep running!" Paimon snapped back.
"How about you carry me?" Aether quipped.
As they were fleeing, they collided with a fruit vendor's cart, spilling fruits all over the ground. Aether quickly grabbed an apple and hurled it at the guard, hitting him square in the face.
"Headshot!" cheered Aether, grinning in satisfaction. "But there's still a lot more chasing us!" he sighed as he saw a sea of angry guards closing in on them.
And with that, they both ran for their lives, hoping that their luck would hold out just a little while longer.
Back to the present …
Since they hadn't even bothered to unlock the map of Liyue, forgetting to touch the statue of seven, they found themselves lost in the city. So, they resorted to running blindly, which inevitably led them to a dead-end. Three towering buildings blocked their path, and to make matters worse, at least twenty Millelith soldiers had them surrounded.
Aether unsheathed his sword and surveyed their opponents. "Looks like it's time to show them what we're made of."
But Paimon quickly chimed in, "Hold up there. Let's not go around killing anyone. Just knock them out cold, okay?"
"You think you can take all of us on!" The Millelith's leader yelled, "Troops, arrest them!"
Aether sighed. "It's time to flex again."
The Millelith soldiers attacked Aether with all their might, but it was like trying to tickle a dragon with a feather duster. With his impressive skills from defeating Dvalin and Andrius, these ordinary soldiers were no match for him. Defeating them was as easy as swatting flies with a sledgehammer. In no time, all of the Millelith soldiers were lying unconscious on the ground, and their leader was left with his mouth gaping open in disbelief, looking like a fish out of water.
"What... are you... you don't even have a Vision?!" the leader stammered.
Paimon interjected with a witty remark. "Sounds like a skill issue, buddy!" she laughed. "But don't worry, they'll wake up soon."
Aether grabbed Paimon's hand, eager to escape the scene. "Less talking, more running" he said as they took off, leaving the Millelith soldiers in their dust.
The poor guy finally found a good spot to use his teleport ability, but out of nowhere, a purple lightning stiletto flew straight towards his face like a crazed boomerang. It was like a ninja attack, but with a flashy twist. Luckily, Aether was able to react in time and draw his sword to parry the attack.
Aether slowly opened his eyes, he found himself face-to-face with a young girl who possessed amethyst eyes and striking purple twintails. She sported pointy hair buns that were reminiscent of a cat's ears, and was dressed in a stunning pale lavender top, paired with a high violet collar and a ruffled dark blue skirt that was layered beneath a deep violet overcoat. Her fashion sense was impeccable, and it was clear that she had put a lot of effort into her outfit. If that wasn't enough, her Electro's Vision continued to glow brightly behind her back, almost like it was showcasing her incredible electro abilities.
"Wow, such strength! Finally, a worthy opponent," Aether thought to himself, grinning from ear to ear.
The girl shouted at him, demanding answers like an angry cat, "Do you think you can escape after you've done this?! The people of Liyue will never forgive you!"
Aether tried to explain, "We didn't do anything! We're not even from here; we just came here recently."
The girl wasn't buying it, and retorted, "Well then, why are you running away?"
Aether was caught off guard and speechless. He knew he should have stayed put and explained himself better.
"Nothing else to say, huh? Well, let's see if you're still feeling chatty after I'm done with you," the girl taunted.
"Wait! I don't mean tha-" Aether began to protest, but it was too late.
The girl's lightning-fast movements left Aether scrambling to keep up, his defenses barely holding against her relentless onslaught. With each strike, he found himself pushed further and further back, until he was forced to retreat and reassess his approach. Sweat beading on his forehead, Aether knew he had to come up with a new plan if he wanted any chance of turning the tide in this fight.
Paimon, his trusty companion, piped up with her usual helpful commentary. "Hey, Aether, you look like you're losing focus. Are you okay?"
Aether scowled. "I'm fine. I'm just... distracted by her cuteness," he muttered, before quickly realizing his mistake. "I mean, her flashy outfit! It's so distracting!"
Paimon rolled her eyes. "Focus, Aether! You can admire her outfit later. Right now, we need to win this fight!"
"Then lend me a hand!" Aether pleaded, feeling a bit desperate. He knew Paimon wasn't exactly a fighter, but he was starting to think that maybe her constant snacking was weighing her down. "Come on, Paimon, put down the snacks and pick up a sword or something! We need all the help we can get."
Paimon looked up at him with a mouthful of food. "Sorry, Aether, I need to keep my energy up. You know how cranky I get when I'm hungry." She took another bite, munching loudly.
Aether groaned. "Great, I'm fighting a powerful enemy with a sword, and my only backup is a fairy who can't put down the snacks. This is fine, everything is fine."
As Aether and Paimon bickered like squabbling siblings, the purple-haired girl couldn't resist the opportunity to poke fun at the situation. "Oh, look at you, Mr. 'I-Can-Dodge-Lightning-But-Can't-Multi-Task'," she teased, her words laced with sarcasm. "Let's see if you can dodge this!" With a charged-up energy, she vanished into the shadows of her blade, unleashing a barrage of thunderclap-blows.
Aether looked around frantically, trying to find his opponent, but she had vanished. Suddenly, a voice boomed from above: "Meet your end!"
"Great." He muttered "just what I needed. Aerial attacks. Just what every man dreams of."
With a burst of adrenaline, Aether leapt out of harm's way just in time. The girl crashed to the ground with a thunderous blast, causing the earth to tremble beneath them. Aether stood his ground, unfazed by the attack.
Breathless and stunned, the girl gaped at Aether in disbelief. "How did you...? How could you...?"
"Let's just say I have a strong aversion to dying," Aether quipped. The girl seemed to shrink back, realizing she was up against a formidable opponent.
Aether should have taken the opportunity to escape, but instead, he sat there with his face turning red, trying to cover his eyes.
"Next time, if you want to fight... please consider your attire," he suggested, attempting to be helpful.
It was only then that the girl realized what had happened during her attack. As she had lunged towards him, the wind caught her skirt and blew it up, revealing her black pantyhose and shapely legs to Aether's gaze. She hastily used one hand to hold down her skirt while pointing her sword at him with the other, her face turning red with anger and embarrassment.
"You...you...you pervert!" she stuttered in indignation.
Paimon, always the voice of reason, chimed in. "Uh oh, looks like you've made her mad now, Aether. Be ready for her next attack!"
"I just wanted to give her some good advice!" Aether protested, readying himself for her next attack. He knew he had to tread carefully from now on or he might not be able to dodge her attacks as easily.
The girl's face contorted with rage as she shouted, "I WILL DEFINITELY KILL YOU THIS TIME, YOU PERVERT!" She tightened her grip on her sword and began channeling a massive amount of lightning energy.
Aether quickly realized the danger and tried to reason with her. "Hey, calm down! There are a lot of people around here. Do you really want to risk hurting them?"
But his words fell on deaf ears. The girl seemed to have lost her senses and was consumed by her desire for revenge. Aether was worried that even if he managed to block her attack, the resulting blast could harm the innocent bystanders. He braced himself for what was about to come.
A sudden downpour of water arrows rained down between them, halting the girl's attack. A man then jumped down from the building behind Aether and grabbed him and Paimon, whisking them away in a flash.
Once the storm of water arrows had passed, the girl looked around and realized that the two had disappeared. She took a moment to compose herself before rushing back to check on the soldiers.
"Is everyone alright?" she asked the leader.
"No one was seriously hurt," he replied, apologetically "We're sorry we couldn't stop him."
The girl shook her head. "No, he's much stronger than we anticipated. Even I might not be a match for him," she murmured to herself. "Who could he be?"
After that, a woman with long white hair who ordered the Millelith from the ceremony earlier strolled up to the group.
"So, did you catch the culprit?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.
"No, he got away." the lilac-haired girl replied with a frustrated sigh. "He seems to have accomplice."
"Oh well, no use crying over spilt milk. Let's go back," the white-haired woman said cheerfully to the troops.
"Yes, madam"
"But what about him? We need to chase him down; he can't run away that far now!" The lilac-haired girl tried to convince the woman, but she got ignored.
"Well, he doesn't seem like a threat to us. Besides, he's probably not the only one involved in this mess," the woman said, flipping her hair.
"But...Argh! Fine then! I will find him myself!" the lilac-haired girl girl shouted in frustration, determined to get justice for the victims.
"Suit yourself then...Keqing," the woman said, flashing a grin. "Hey, how about a little bet? Whoever catches the wrong culprit has to buy the other a bag of a piece of jewel."
"I will prove you wrong this time, Ningguang!" Keqing shouted, her competitive spirit rekindled.
As she watched the troops and the woman leave, Keqing muttered to herself, "You will never get away from me after what you have done to me...you...you damn pervert. But...wait a minute. He's kind of cute. Maybe I should get to know him better-"
She shook her head violently, as if trying to shake off the thought. "No, no, no! Focus, Keqing! Vengeance first, romance later. Or maybe vengeance and romance at the same time? Hmm, that could be interesting..."
"MARK MY WORD! VENGEANCE WILL BE MINE!" she yelled, ready to start her search. "But first, I need some preparation for this hunt. Golden Shrimp ball, here I come!" She then raced towards Xiangling's restaurant, determined to fuel up with some delicious food after a "fierce" fight.
Meanwhile, somewhere in the bar of Mondstadt …
"Achchoo !" The woman has light blue hair with Cyro Vision sneezed. "Did someone say my line …?"
After their conversation with Childe, Aether and Paimon made their way back to the Wangshu Inn, eager to rest after the day's events. Aether collapsed onto the bed with a sigh of relief, while Paimon rummaged through her bag for some snacks she had purchased from a nearby vendor earlier. As Paimon happily chomped away, Aether felt a sudden shiver run down his spine, causing him to sit up in confusion and scan the room.
"What's with this deathly cold feeling?" he wondered aloud.
"It's probably someone trying to threaten you," Paimon suggested.
Aether sighed. "Great. Just what I needed. Maybe it's that purple-haired girl from earlier. She's cute, though. Kind of reminds me of a kitten."
"Wait, you like her?" Paimon asked, surprised. "No wonder you were so distracted during the fight. And when she attacked you from above, you were just staring at her, weren't you?"
Aether's face turned red as he quickly covered Paimon's mouth. "Okay, that's enough for today. I just want to rest. Hopefully we don't run into her again." He paused for a moment. "Come to think of it, I don't even know her name."
Paimon giggled mischievously. "Uh-huh, sure you don't. But you know what they say, Aether. Love and war are two sides of the same coin."
"Can't we just focus on the adventure and leave my love life out of it?"
Paimon chuckled. "Of course, of course. We'll leave it for another time. For now, let's get some rest."
Aether let out a prolonged groan and buried his face in the pillow, hoping to find some solace from the chaos. Meanwhile, Paimon continued to munch on her snacks, giggling to herself. Who knows what kind of trouble the pair will get into next.
END?
P/s: I rarely see or make ships, but Aeqing is one of the best ships for me in the game. They make them almost feel like canon, love their fan-service so much.
