Note:
Italic text = Inner thoughts/past events
Bold text = Abyss Lumine speaking.
Chapter 2
Somewhere else unknown...
Splash
A figure emerges from the depths of water. It's slim figure stood up elegantly akin to a flower blooming in the time of spring. Droplets of water drips down from it's body who has smooth white milky skin, as well as from the short light golden hair on it's head.
Taking a deep breath, the figure release a relieved sigh, before slowly opening her eyes. Allowing for the sun to shed some of it's light to it's golden eyes.
"Well... Looks like I'm back to the real world..."
The figure, a girl with short blonde hair and a pair of golden eyes, softly spoke up, as she glanced around her surroundings to confirm her thoughts.
"Well... Now I can understand why we were placed in such perverted conditions inside your mind. So you're taking a bath to begin with."
The blonde haired girl gasps, almost tripping over her own feet at the sudden appearance of a voice inside her head.
"W-what? How are you...?"
"I have to say, this is much better than being inside your subconsciousness. It feels as if I am back being alive, back in my body. Though I'd still prefer if I could wiggle a finger or two."
The blonde haired girl looks around for a moment, as if trying to find something, but when she couldn't find anything she's looking for, she turned her attention to the voice in her head instead.
"How are you talking to me right now? I don't see you anywhere."
"Well that's because I am in your mind, silly. Or to be accurate, your mindscape. It's really weird you know, you should've come and see it. It was like there's a corridor here, with two rooms at each of its ends. I'm currently sitting inside mine, while your room is at the other end."
The blonde haired girl sighed at this, listening to the voice in her head, she's starting to worry about the possibility of her other self trying to do anything funny in there.
"I can hear that you know." The voice spoke up, causing the girl on the outside to jerk a little.
"Stop reading my mind!" The blonde haired girl yelled... To herself. "How are you doing that anyway?"
"I am currently standing in the corridor. Unlike my room, your room is a doorless one. Things such as what you see, what you heard, what you say, or your inner thoughts, I can feel them all as if they were my own."
"Well that's... Horrifying." The girl on the outside trembled slightly. "If you can gain access to outside information that easily, does that mean you can... Take control?" She ask a bit hesitantly.
"Hmm... I'm not so sure. I am probably able to access the information stored in your brain by entering your room, but I'm not sure if I can do much more such as taking control of your body. I PROBABLY can if I try, but you wouldn't like that, wouldn't you?"
"Yeah you're right. I would never be able to sleep knowing if someone would take over my body while I was out." The blonde haired girl muttered with a hint of discomfort in her voice.
In any case, she really should get dressed up now, standing here doing nothing without her clothes is starting to make her feel cold.
"Yeah, you really should've get dressed up already. What were you even thinking bathing out in the open like this, you perv?"
"Can you just stop reading my mind already?! I'm getting on it, okay?" The blonde haired girl yelled in protest.
Ignoring the following snicker from inside her mind, she quickly brought herself to shores, taking the neatly folded clothes that she placed on top of a rock hours earlier.
~o~0~o~
"So... This is where you landed? After you were captured by the Sustainer?"
"Yes, this place is where I woke up after spending however long I've been trapped inside that cubic prison, and I haven't moved out yet ever since."
"Really? Why so?"
"Because I have no idea where I am obviously."
Now fully clothed, the girl with short blonde hair who goes by the name of Lumine is currently sitting around a lit campfire, seeking warmth whilst also drying out her hair.
The outfit she's wearing is a sleeveless and backless one, with the main color being white and gold. A white dress held up by crossed black straps of her undershirt, a pair of legwear consists of angled thigh-high stockings and white ankle-high boots. She also wears a long two-tailed scarf that trails behind her back, as well as a hardened flower petals that she normally wore on her head, she doesn't wear it now simply because her hair is still wet.
For the Traveler Lumine, her outfit means nothing more than a practical clothing suited for adventuring, not just for different biomes and climates, but different worlds as well. And any other than that, the reason why she cherish the outfit was because it was made by a talented craftsman who gifted it to her as thanks for saving his worlf. Made out of a special materials that made it practically indestructible, hence the reason it had stayed with her for so long.
On the other hand, for the Abyss Lumine, that much story has a little more meaning for her.
"Amazing... it works even for your dress too..." The voice inside Traveler Lumine's head muttered in a somewhat amazed tone.
"Hmm? What is it? You find something that caught your attention?" The living Lumine asked, whilst putting on her clothes.
It feels kinda weird to talk with someone that isn't physically there. A small part of her brain even instinctively wanted her to cover herself up from embarrassment. But the big part of her brain keep reminding her that that person she's talking to is literally living inside her mind. So of course it would be impossible for her to hide her privacy from that person.
"I've looked closely at the design of this outfit, from top to bottom, and there's no mistaking it. It has the same exact design as mine." The boddyless voice said, giving Traveler Lumine a pause.
"You're wearing this outfit?" The Lumine on the outside asked with a raised eyebrow. "I thought you said you're a princess or something, yet you're still wearing this outfit of a lowly Traveler?"
"It's up to me what kind of clothes I wore, dummy. Never mind the fact that I was the royal princess of a once thriving nations, or the great calamity that dwells in the Abyss, this outfit is still special to me." Abyss Lumine said with a scoff, and although Traveler Lumine couldn't see her other self directly, a mental image of the former princess pouting at her with her hands placed on her side surfaced inside the Traveler's mind. "Tell me then, "Me," is this dress made by THAT god? One whom his homeworld you saved from destruction?"
The question made Traveler Lumine paused a little, before realizing what her other self just asked.
"Yes... It was one of the many rewards he given us as thanks for saving his home planet from being destroyed by some random glasses eyed dude who called himself a genius for creating "The End Bomb." He was surprisingly nice for a god, even with such a... Creepy appearance." She'll never be able to forget that God, that fat grinning guy with top hat. Aether even once tried to kill him due to mistaken him for a demon, thankfully though, she's able to separate them once she realized that the man mean no harm. "What's the matter? What are you thinking?"
Abyss Lumine didn't say anything for a moment after that, but then she sighed, before speaking again.
"Nothing, just slightly surprised that even the history behind this dress is the exact same as mine. I Wonder if this meant that any history we had before arriving in Tevyat stayed the same between us. But somehow, once we arrived here, our fates starts to differ from one another, creating more than two separate realities each with different outcome." The voice inside Traveler Lumine's head muttered, sounding like she was very deep in thought.
"Who knows? The fact that you are a me from another reality is already surprising enough. Image if there's actually hundreds of different mes out there, that would be ridiculous." Traveler Lumine said with a shudder at the thought in her head. Once all parts of her dress has been put on, she was about to pin the hardened flower she got back to her head, but then she remembered the state of her hair that's still wet, she needs to dry it first.
"Ah, that's right! Since our history is different from one another once we arrived in Tevyat, then what about your Intevyat Flowers?" Abyss Lumine suddenly asked, causing Traveler Lumine to get confused.
"The what flower?"
"The Intevyat, that flower you're holding on." Abyss Lumine answered, prompting Traveler Lumine to look down on the object in her hand. "How did you obtain it?"
"Oh this? My brother gave it to me moments before we tried to leave this world." Traveler Lumine answered, gripping the hardened flower in her hand firmly. "He said that he knew I would like it, so he plucked one and gave it to me once we are far enough from all the chaos that was happening that day. This was supposed to be a memento, a reminder of this world that we should've been left that day. You seem to know about these, tell me about it."
"This... Flower, it was the national flower of Khaenri'ah." Abyss Lumine replied.
"The destroyed nation..." Traveler Lumine muttered softly.
"Yes. It was a symbol, a symbol of a Traveler far from home, signifying the tenderness of the homeland. It has some special features you see, as it can only grow and bloom in Khaenri'ah, it would only stay for at least two weeks before wilting, but if you were to pluck one and take it out of Khaenri'ah, the petals would stop growing and turn hard. Only by returning it back to its home, will the flower turn soft once more, before turning to dust. And it was for that very reason that I decided to take one with me because of both that it looks beautiful, and because of how much I can relate to it."
"I see..." Traveler Lumine nods her head after listening to her other self explanation. "So what you're saying is that back in your world, you were the one who picked it up yourself since you are the first one to awaken. While in this world, Aether was the one who picked it up for me."
"Exactly. Which proves my hypothesis regarding how this world is responsible for creating multiple different realities of our fates. And as for the reasons? That I cannot answer." Abyss Lumine said with a shrug of her shoulders, if she could even do that while stuck inside Traveler Lumine's mind.
"Yeah... Even this one world is confusing enough, I can't imagine what the other worlds would like." Traveler Lumine said with a heavy sigh, feeling all the confusion starts stacking in her mind. "But how will this info help us?"
"Well, it helps because it means that whatever the fates that awaits us in the future, we can probably change." Abyss Lumine answered, before releasing a little sigh. "Including HIS fate, if he even shares a similar role with mine."
The Traveler Lumine didn't say anything afterwards, only nodding her head in response. As the sun begins to sit on the horizon, she'll start by making herself a campfire.
Looking back at the hardened flower known as the Intevyat. Lumine releases a heavy sigh, pondering over what her brother's situation as of now, especially after the lengthy talk she has with her deceased self.
"I know what you're thinking. Be glad for now that we know nothing about this world of yours yet. If it can make you feel better, then you are free to pray with all of your heart that your brother won't turn out to be a heartless, cold, and cruel enforcer of the Abyss." The voice of the spirit Lumine spoke up, causing Traveler Lumine to jerk in surprise by its sudden appearance after a long silence.
"Shut up. You know nothing about my Aether. He's not a person that would do those kinds of things." Lumine frowned, feeling terribly annoyed by her other self who constantly reads her inner thoughts.
"Heh, like I said, you are free to keep thinking like that. Just notice me once you start with your begging so I can go back to my room and lock the door so I won't be bothered by your pathetic whimpering." The voice inside her head replied with a sense of sarcasm.
"Well, then I'll start praying now. So go away!"
"Heheh, alright then, I'll be leaving you alone. Good night, have a good sleep."
Lumine doesn't know whether her spirit self was lying or not. But she got the feeling in the back of her mind that Abyss Lumine told the truth, that she really is sealing herself inside her own soul room to not bother Traveler Lumine anymore.
With that in mind. She settles down for sleep, grabbing as much grass and twinks she can to make a makeshift pillow before lying down. And as sleepiness slowly overtakes her, Lumine couldn't help but to think of what her other self had said, and began praying for what Abyss Lumine said is not true.
There's no way that her dear brother would do such an evil act, right?
~o~0~o~
"Ahh... I know that place. So we're in Mondstadt after all."
"Mondstadt?"
When morning came, it's finally time for the blonde haired Traveler to starts walking towards whatever direction that would led them to any nearby civilization. But since the Traveler has no idea of where she is at the moment, her first priority is to find out exactly that. And after she climbed up to the top of a tall tree by the urges of the deceased spirit living inside her, she can finally get the answer she's looking for.
"It was one of the seven nations governed by the Seven Archons, the lesser gods of this world. Those shores right there, I believe that was the place where my Aether spends most of his times before he starts his travel, or at least that's what I heard." Abyss Lumine explained, ending her explanation with a shrug.
"Lesser gods? You mean like there are a hierarchy systems with the gods in this world?" Traveler Lumine asked in wonder.
"There is. But it wouldn't be no good to explain it all now. And it's not like everything I know would stayed the same anyway." Abyss Lumine said with a little sigh.
"You always says that every time you touched an important point." Traveler Lumine deadpanned.
"Heh, sometimes, things are better to be experienced and understand, rather than being told upfront, me." Abyss Lumine muttered with a little scoff, sounding somewhat unamused. "Anyway, our top priority as of now is to get from here to that shores, that'll be our starting point before we go to Mondstadt."
"Okay, sure. But the question is, how the heck am I supposed to get there? That's WAY too far, and we are in the middle of the ocean!" Traveler Lumine complained loudly.
"What do you think those legs are for? You have to swim of course." Abyss Lumine asked with a raised eyebrow, but it's not like her living self would able to see that.
"Are you kidding me? You expect me to swim from here to there? Across the ocean?!"
"Well, do you have any better idea than that then?"
"...No"
"Well good luck in trying to find another way then. I'll just sit back here and enjoy the show."
Traveler Lumine groaned loudly in complaint, but there's no denying it that her other self is right. How else is she going to cross the ocean aside from swimming there? Building a raft sounds like a good option, but she doesn't know how to.
Two hours later...
On the sandy surface of a beach somewhere in Mondstadt, a blonde haired girl can be seen lying face down on the ground, just a distance away from where the sea water met the sand. Her body is wet all over, and sand is piling up all over her pristine white dress and also her hair, but she couldn't care less about it, not when she's completely exhausted, the reason why she's panting and breathing heavily.
"See? I knew you could do it." The voice inside her head spoke up smugly.
"Shut the hell up! You have no right to say that when all you do is to sit there and watch me struggle." Lumine complained mentally, not having enough strength to say it with her mouth. But she knew that her other self can read her thoughts anyway.
"I've struggled even more than you could possibly imagine back when I was alive. I deserve this kind of peace." Abyss Lumine replied with a huff, sounding proud.
"You are being too full of yourself for a dead spirit, you know that?" Lumine muttered out a response, using whatever the remaining strength she has, she pushed herself up, and look around to see that she has indeed reached her destination.
"Well, all of those rude comments aside, it seems like we've made it to the shores of Mondstadt."
"How long does it take for us to get into nearby city?" Lumine asked, standing up and dusted herself off from all the sands.
"Probably not long, just a few hours will do, IF my calculations is correct that is." Abyss Lumine said with a shrug of her shoulders.
"Seriously? A few hours? Aww, I'm so tired though!" The blonde haired girl whined, feeling how her legs feels like noodles from all the swimming she does.
"Come on, you can get all the rest you want once we reach the city of wind."
"Boo hoo, fine. I'll be heading there, but just give me moment to spend some time here, alright?" Lumine said, looking around before walking towards one particular rock near the shores where she sat down and release a relieved sigh.
"What are you gonna do?"
"...I'm hungry..."
"...Seriously? It's still around eight in the morning and you're hungry already?" Abyss Lumine asked with a raised eyebrow, sounding a bit disbelief.
"You speak like it's not normal for one to have a breakfast." Lumine retorted back, feeling slightly confused but also annoyed by her deceased self constant pestering.
"Well that's because I rarely even have to eat in past life. My work is far more important than my needs. Though admittedly, the mages and lectors in the palace would constantly reminded me to take care of my needs also. Especially that guy who particularly enjoys making me breakfast."
"Well I'm not you, so how does that going to make me feel better?" Lumine asked back, a vein pops out on her forehead.
"It's not, but we're both are Lumines. We were born a divine being, so starvation won't kill us." Abyss Lumine replied back.
"Yeah yeah, I know that much already. But, it's still such an uncomfortable feeling! I won't be able to focus with an empty stomach like this!" Lumine retorted back, receiving a sigh from the voice inside her head.
"Fine... I guess you could take a break for a few hours here. It's not like we're both in a hurry after all." Abyss Lumine muttered, closing her eyes and shaking her head.
At her response, the Traveler Lumine smiled softly upon finally getting her other self's approval. Nodding her head mentally as a thank you.
"So then, what you're gonna eat?"
"It would be great if there are some crabs nearby for us to catch. But unfortunately there are none. But we have the whole ocean in front of us, so... Why not we just use that?" Lumine reaches out her hand, and an object materialized in her palm, which is a self made fishing pole.
After tying up the bait she made from the leftover berries she picked a few days earlier, she cast the pole into the water in front of her, and waited for the bait to get its prey. And so she waited while sitting down there and enjoyed the fresh breeze of the ocean. And waited, and waited, and waited, and waited...
"You know I'm starting to feel like you're actually fishing for air instead of fish." Abyss Lumine said in sarcasm, causing Traveler Lumine to twitch her eyes.
"Shut up, fishing requires a great deal of patience, you know. This is normal." Traveler Lumine said with a huff, feeling annoyed.
"Normal for you to wait for three hours?"
"Shut-"
Suddenly, there's a tug on the rope of the pole, it starts as a gentle one, but then it turns violent, almost making Lumine to release the pole in instinct if it wasn't for her who quickly regains her focus.
"AHA! I knew my patience would pay off!"
"Oh wow, you actually did it..."
Rapid splashes appear on the area where the bait is being cast, a sign of a big catch, and Lumine couldn't contain her excitement for finally getting her meal. She stood up from the rock she was sitting on, ignoring her exhaustion as she exerted all of her strength to pull the surprisingly heavy catch.
"In three, two, one... Hiyaah!"
By putting all of her strength in one move, she successfully pulled the catch out of the water. The mysterious thing flies through the air and barring all its appearance for Lumine to see. And what she sees is no fish.
It was a tiny creature, humanoid in appearance, but it was as small as an infant baby. Its hair is white as silk, and so does the clothes it wear on it's petite body, giving her the look of a fairy. The dress is a long-sleeved white jumper and a night-blue cape flecked with stars, and white stockings with white boots. And there's also the rose-gold tiara that levitates above it's head as though it was a halo. What a fascinating creature.
"What the heck is this?" Lumine asked in wonder and confusion. Starting at the little creature that she brought off shore. It seem to be unconscious, with it's swirling around and water coming out form it's mouth. "Is this thing a rare breed of fish?"
"No... That's no fish... I know her."
"Wait, this thing's a person?" Lumine asked her other self in shock.
"Yes. This fairy is... My brother's best friend."
To be Continued...
Third chapter, let's go!
And probably the last one as well for now. I'll be back working on "Memories of The Forgotten Star." I have delayed it's update for far too long :'(