Hello everyone!
As you will notice, this chapter is much shorter than the previous one, but it contains a lot of information and the arrival of new characters.
Please consider this as a transition between the two arcs, that of Redemption Refused and that of Fontaine.
Good reading!
The next morning, Aether woke up refreshed despite everything that had happened yesterday, even if he found it hard to admit. Aether was happy to have finally had a good night's rest after the past few weeks of non-stop fighting. His body was still somewhat sore from the wounds he received from Xiao, Shenhe, and the Archons, but he pushed through it.
He watched Paimon still dozing beside him, quite exhausted by all the events that had happened, and her reunion with her best friend. Aether decided to let her sleep a little longer, before getting up to approach the window, opening the shutters to enjoy the fresh air and to be able to look at his next destination: Chenyu Vale ahead of him, and Fontaine just beyond.
He remained calm, staring at the landscape, thinking about all the events of the day before, hoping that each of his former friends he had seen in Mondstadt had made the right decision and stayed out his way. He made his choice, and couldn't afford the lingering regret in his heart to weigh him down. Aether could concentrate on his next objective clearly, not afraid to use force if necessary since that was the only thing everyone could understand.
A little later, when he had washed up and tidied up, he woke Paimon to go and eat, knowing that she wouldn't resist the opportunity to have a good breakfast, even if she still didn't have much of an appetite yesterday.
The little fairy was still a little shaken up being around Aether, speaking a lot less before her separation from him, no longer wanting to say useless or stupid things. All to avoid upsetting him, because even if he had said he didn't mind, she knew he was still very unstable. She wanted to show him that she could be useful and not be deadweight.
The two Travelers were helping themselves with the food that their Inn provided consisting of multiple plates Tea Eggs, Rice Dumplings, Steamed Buns, and Tofu Pudding. They were getting a lot of odd looks from the other guests as they were shocked that a young man, and tiny child could eat that much. However, Aether and Paimon ignored the stares and continued eating their hefty breakfast.
Having finished eating, the duo, after Aether had asked some of the locals the best way to travel to Chenyu Vale, went to the local clothing shop for their new disguises.
The clothing shop wasn't anything special, it was as bland and plain a store that sold apparel could be. Skimming through the various pieces of clothing that adored the clothing racks and mannequins, nothing caught Aether's eye. Then again that was the whole point, to begin with: to not draw attention. Aether finally found something that caught his interest, he wasted no time grabbing it off the racks and headed to the changing room.
When he came out of the changing room, Aether's clothes were quite different from what he'd been wearing before, and Paimon was quite surprised by his choice, although when she thought about it, it suited his current personality. Aether was now wearing a dark gray top, black trousers, and boots of the same size as his previous ones, as well as a black cape with gold embellishments, and gloves of the same color and about the same length as his old ones.
He was no longer wearing any of his ornaments to show which element he was using which he was going to use to his advantage in a fight, as he could now surprise his opponents. What's more, his old clothes were recognizable because of how famous he was, so it suited him. However, he resisted undoing his braid, as it was his way of keeping Lumine close to him from the start, as she always did his braid for him.
Although Paimon liked Aether's new outfit, it was rare for him to wear anything else than his usual clothes, but Aether replied he thought it suited him. It was more practical for him not to have too many ornaments when he was fighting, remembering that his scarf got in the way from time to time.
Once Paimon had approved of his new outfit, he smiled slightly, pleased that she could joke around with him again, before giving her a small gift. Which were more or less the same clothes the little fairy had but in darker tones, as if it were the starry night, so that they would be matching.
Paimon hadn't expected this, knowing after all he'd been through that he still managed to want to please her, almost crying in joy before giving the Traveler a warm hug as he patted her head gently. She was glad to wear it because she knew it was something that came from the heart, even though he changed for the worse, it gave Paimon hope that there were some sparks of light in his heart.
After Paimon had tried on her new clothes, she was quite pleased that they looked like her usual clothes but it was a palette-swap, before giving a sincere smile. Reminding Aether of the smile she used to give him when they were both traveling at the beginning, a bright smile on her face without a care in the world.
Once these formalities were out of the way, the traveling duo finally headed for their next destination: Fontaine, with a serious look on the face of the former Hero of Teyvat as he prepared to take on new obstacles.
"After so many setbacks, we're finally making our way to Fontaine. Except this time we're not looking back because nothing's waiting for us if we do…I made sure of that." Aether said, staring at the ground, his voice couldn't be more dead.
"Yes, don't worry, Paimon's got it. The whole point of this journey was to move forward after all. We have to move on or else everything we did until now would be pointless. Paimon also understands that fighting is unavoidable so do what you have to do…" Paimon spoke out, trying her best to deal with cutting ties with the people they befriended and how vicious Aether can be now.
"Thank you for understanding. If it's ever too much for you, just close your eyes and don't look." Aether said softly to Paimon, not wanting her to be traumatized anymore by his own actions.
"Understood..."
"Well, that's enough wasting time now... It's time to go..." finished Aether before walking out of the village, with Paimon right behind him. Staying close to Aether as she always had done from the start.
Somewhere near the village of Qiaoying, a ginger-haired man was sitting by himself in the local restaurant having a plate of Tea-Smoked Squab and complaining to himself about the extra work he'd been asked to do.
"Just because I was going to do some shopping and have a bit of fun in Fontaine, they took the opportunity to assign me a new mission. Anyway, I admit that the news that several of our squadrons perished so quickly is rather worrying...I wonder what could have caused this?"
The one thinking out loud was no other than Fatui's 11th Harbinger, Tartaglia, who was feeling slightly sorry for himself. Having carried out a few missions for the Tsaritsa, he was keen to enjoy his visit to Fontaine, thinking that he had free time to buy souvenirs for his brothers and sisters, as well as hoping to fight the Champion Duelist, Clorinde, as he had heard that she was very strong.
What's more, with his colleague Arlecchino already in Fontaine, he could have avoided extra work since intelligence gathering was her department to begin with. Sadly his new task fell onto him because the other Harbingers were busy, and it was something that worried some of them. Having no idea who or what was responsible for decimating almost all the Fatui in Liyue and Mondstadt.
At first, Tartaglia had two suspects in mind: The Darknight Hero or the Abyss Order.
The Darknight Hero decided to finally step his game up, turning from a nuisance to an actual viable threat to the Fatui. However, the Darknight Hero operated solely in Mondstadt, and it was strange that he suddenly set his mark in Liyue. Also the risk of him causing an international incident if The Qixing caught him since they wouldn't openly support his vigilante activities, so he was crossed off as a suspect.
The Abyss Order seemed like the more likely culprit as the Abyss Order and Fatui never saw eye-to-eye, to begin with. Maybe they were tired of the neutrality and decided to make the first move by provoking a reaction towards the Fatui. However the unknown culprit didn't only slay just members of the Fatui, but also the various monsters that plagued Teyvat including every Churl imaginable ranging from basic Hilichurls to Lawachurls of all things. Tartaglia couldn't pretend he knew what was going inside the Abyss Order's head, but he doubted they would be that cruel enough to throw away the main bulk of their forces as easily as their declaration of war.
Tartaglia consoled himself by telling himself that they would surely be very strong opponents that he was excited to face, even if he tried to keep a straight face as he investigated the matter. He found it rather bizarre that someone would dare attack so many Fatui so recklessly, without any fear of making an enemy out of the Fatui.
One point to note was that Tartaglia was currently traveling alone, without a squadron, which seemed incredibly foolish despite the unknown danger he was facing. He saw this as a positive thing, as there would be no more massacres of his subordinates, as he didn't want to take the risk of losing more comrades.
After eating something, he left the village, trying to get closer to the epicenter of the problem, not knowing what he was waiting for, as he hoped to get it over with as quickly as possible. However, little did he know that his investigation would turn fatal for him, and the rest of the Fatui…
The next morning, in the middle of his office, Neuvillette was tending to his daily morning paperwork before meeting Furina again. To organize a pre-trial hearing for the defendant regarding the crime of selling counterfeit Fontainian watches.
However, before starting work, the Hydro Dragon had the latest newspaper from the Steambird in his hand while sipping a glass of water. Not just any ordinary water from the tap, it was a glass of water from the Seirai Island, which he found to be somewhat acidic, with hints of spiciness, which was no doubt linked to the island's electrical activity, more electrified than the other islands of Inazuma.
Enjoying his glass of water, he took the opportunity to read the morning paper, which he knew to be of high quality, as Charlotte was renowned for giving news containing nothing but the truth.
The Hydro Dragon was so engrossed in his watery beverage and schedule that he almost failed to notice the picture of Mondstadt in ruins! The cover photo was the image of Mondstadt's lush landscape resembling a land of death that Neuvillette compared to the aftermath of the Cataclysm. He did something he hardly ever did because it was inappropriate, he spat out the water he had in his mouth at the shocking news.
The title of the newspaper article said it all:
ABYSS ORDER ATTACKS MONDSTADT!
"Impossible..."
In the following photos, Mondstadt buildings were toppled and destroyed, the people in agony, emotionally and physically from all of the destruction. It almost hurt the Hydro Dragon's eyes just seeing it, but pushed through it as he needed more information.
Neuvillette's eyes carefully read every word in the summary. According to Charlotte, the Abyss Order was responsible for nearly destroying Mondstadt using their vile dark magic setting off a series of earthquakes followed by a massive explosion that nearly wiped the City of Freedom off the map. All of it was confirmed by Acting Grand Master Jean of the Knights of Favonius.
The revelation of the Abyss Order nearly destroying Mondstadt shook Neuvillette to his core.
The Abyss Order were well known for their hatred for humanity, but the Hydro Dragon would have never suspected their latest act of terror was nearly succeeding in destroying the City of Freedom. Another thing on Neuvillette's mind was where was the Anemo Archon when all of this was happening? While no one had ever seen the Anemo Archon, it was unlikely that he would sit around and let his precious city be destroyed.
Could the Abyss Order have slain Barbatos?
No, Neuvillette quickly shook his head. The death of an Archon wasn't something that could have been done quietly. The Hydro Dragon would have known firsthand noticing a disturbance in Teyvat.
As the Hydro Dragon was lost in his thoughts, the door opened followed by a loud female voice shouting at him. "Neuvillette!"
Neuvillette saw the Hydro Archon enter his office, her face stricken with panic and fear. No doubt, she just finished reading the paper regarding Mondstadt's grim fate.
"Bonjour, Lady Furina." Neuvillete said politely while sipping his glass of water to calm his nerves.
"How can you be so calm right now, Neuvillete?! Our nation is in danger from the Abyss Order and all you can think right now is drinking water?!" Furina ranted angrily at the Iudex, not taking the situation seriously.
Neuvillette calmly set his cup of water on his desk.
"I'll have you know that I'm taking the news regarding Mondstadt and the Abyss Order very seriously."
"So you say, but I don't see you assembling our forces right now! We need to put Fontaine in lockdown! Gather every personnel in the Maison Gardiennage, the factories producing Clockwork Meka non-stop-!"
Neuvillette calmly raised his hand to cut off Furina's frantic plan.
"Your concern is well-warranted, however, we cannot put Fontaine in a permanent lockdown. The economy, the manpower, and civil unrest will ruin Fontaine before the Abyss Order makes their move."
"So we do nothing?!"
"I'm not saying that, Lady Furina. What we can do now is set up extra patrols with the Maison Gardiennage. Captain Chevreuse will have her work cut out for her, but her diligence has never failed. Also, our Naval ships will be on high alert if the Abyss Order tries anything. A storm is brewing over the horizon, but we'll be ready." Neuvillete said firmly, giving out the best option for Fontaine at the moment.
Furina gave out a reluctant nod wanting to do more, but trusted his judgment. Furina left the room to practice the speech she needed to give to Fontaine's citizens regarding the safety measures needed to put into place when the Abyss Order inevitably arrives. The last thing she needed was the people panicking over the Abyss order and Fontaine sharing Mondstadt's fate. Furina already had her hands full regarding the Prophecy…
She sincerely hoped that the Traveler would arrive soon, as he would be an invaluable ally for her if she wanted to save Fontaine. Fontaine needed all the help it could get.
"Fontaine will not fall. Not to the Prophecy or the Abyss Order. I'll do anything that I can to ensure that."
At one of the tables on the terrace of the Café Lutèce, a woman dressed in red, with pink hair and a single monocle over her eye, Charlotte, was stirring her cappuccino with an expression of sadness on her face.
As soon as she saw Aether leave the City of Mondstadt, her heart aches. She really wanted to do something good for him, even if she didn't dare go talk to him. Knowing full well it wouldn't end well for her as all of Aether's former friends tried to do the same thing. Resulting in a lot of brutal rejections, and violence.
She had almost forgotten that she had come back to Mondstadt to give Mona another interview about her astrology column. Charlotte didn't bother interviewing her as Mondstadt's grim fate had far greater precedence. She still couldn't believe that the Traveler's wounded heart could have led to him lashing out brutally and destructively. Aether was the hero who saved everyone, but no one saved him leading to his downfall.
Charlotte shivered in fear remembering the overwhelming power Aether had used against the Archons. Granted, she had already seen a glimpse of Aether's combat prowess before against the Treasure Hoarders when she met him during the King of Invocations Grand Prix. While it made sense that Aether would hold back against mere bandits, the overwhelming power he displayed when he defeated the Archons was unreal. Perhaps Charlotte was underestimating Aether and he was always that strong to begin with. That would make sense as no one could stop a rampaging dragon, an ocean god, ending a civil war, and overthrowing a corrupt government if they were so weak.
Charlotte wondered if she did the right thing about the fake news report she made regarding how the Abyss Order was responsible for Mondstadt's near destruction, and not Aether. A lie concocted by Acting Grand Master Jean of the Knights of Favonius to protect him. Normally, Charlotte would have never compromised herself, as she was fully devoted to revealing the truth. However, she understood why Acting Grand Master Jean lied as confusion, fear, and panic would spread across Teyvat all because of Aether.
The once kind and heroic Traveler now turned villain willing to point his blade at the very people he once saved and befriended. Apathetic to the pain and destruction he was causing after going insane from the negative emotions consuming him. The Cryo Catalyst user had heard his story, because she had watched the confrontations, apologies, rejections, and the battle between the Archons.
Even with the might of four Archons, they barely slowed Aether down before being overwhelmed by Aether's greater power. He did the impossible and defeated the Anemo, Geo, Electro and Dendro Archon by himself. The very beings that embodied power and strength that mere mortals like themselves could only dream of achieving were defeated. No matter what anyone did, Aether seemed unstoppable.
Charlotte didn't want to think about what would happen if Lady Furina confronted him, and judged him for his crimes. Aether would retaliate back as he had no patience for the Archons anymore, especially when their power was inferior to Aether's. While Charlotte wanted to believe in Lady Furina's strength, she never saw a glimpse of what she could as Clorinde did all the fighting for her. Clorinde may have been the Champion Duelist with an undefeated streak, but all of her power and skills were all worthless against Aether's greater power and skills that surpassed the gods.
The journalist thought very hard about wanting to comfort Aether because she understood how difficult his situation was, and how neither the people he had met on his journey nor the Archons had done anything to support him. The Archons themselves were the most responsible for Aether's drastic change as their sins and failures were the root cause of it all. After the citizens of each nation were aware of this, their faith and trust in their Archons had diminished drastically, and Charlotte was no exception. Even if Furina hadn't done anything wrong for the moment, she knew that the Hydro Archon had to be hiding something as everyone had skeletons in the closets.
Charlotte took a sip of her drink barely awake, not having slept all night to publish her article before Aether arrived at Fontaine. She was now exhausted, both physically and mentally.
As she put down her half-full cappuccino, she wondered in the back of her mind, like many other people now, whether it was for the best that Aether no longer played his role as the hero. After all, he had no business in interfering with international affairs that had nothing to do with him to begin with. So many problems that plagued Teyvat all originated from the gods and the people themselves. It was only fair and right that they tried to solve it themselves, and not rely on an Outlander who just wanted to find his missing sister.
The journalist wondered if Aether losing his mind could have been avoided if all the nations he visited had just openly asked for his help to begin with. Instead, everyone manipulated him into doing so much and receiving very little in return. Especially with the one thing he desired most in this world: his sister.
Charlotte took a picture out of her pocket and held it firmly in her hands. On it was a photo of her and Aether posing for a selfie, her left arm around Aether's neck, which she'd taken with her Kamera after solving the investigation into the TCG card trafficking, as a souvenir between the two of them. She'd really enjoyed spending time with him, traveling through the four nations and helping her discover new things and meeting new people. In the picture, both of them were smiling although the smile that Aether once had was all in the distant past now.
Charlotte let a teardrop fall over the image, staring at Aether's face, with a myriad of emotions: sadness, grief, anger at all those who had played him for a fool, compassion, and appreciation for him, but also something deeper than she couldn't explain, telling her that she wanted to support him...
"Aether..." she murmured to herself as if waiting for an answer, hoping that everything would go better for him.