Chapter Text
Aether tends to think back on what had happened, constantly regretting and cursing his own uselessness. Signrora leaped towards venti, shoving her hand into his chest and ripping the gnosis out. Helplessly, Aether watched Venti fall to his knees and Signroa look at her prize. Why couldn’t they help him, they needed to help Venti. Signora gone, as if she didn’t just do something so unthinkable. Once they were released from the grasp of the fatui soilders they ran to Venti’s side, yelling for help. After such a occurrence Aether was depsprate to leave, departing the day after. They were riddled with a guilty conscious, not wanting to see the object of their guilt and look him in his eyes. Aether couldn’t stand to do such a thing, so they went along their jounry heading toward luyie harbor, sleepless nights filled with images of what occurred followed them every step of the way. The days seemed to blend together, Aether couldn’t seem to tell the days apart, they couldn’t remember the simplest of things anymore.
They made it to Luyie, they didn’t remember how long it took, why were they here again? How long had it been since they last had a good nights rest? Oh, Rex lapis, that’s why. In a dreary and tired way they dragged themselves over to the event, in which maybe they could talk to Rex Lapis and receive some kind of information in which could help them. They watched the body fall limp, they ran, the guards were suddenly surrounding him when someone shot them all and dragged Aether away from the danger, he had seemed so nice so why, why must he be one of them. He introduced himself, he had said he was Childe, he said he was with the fatui, he said he was a harbinger. A burn clawed it’s way up Aether esophagus, they quickly teleported away before he vomited, simply from meeting another harbinger. His throat burned in pain, as tears started to well up in his eyes and fall to the ground. It was painful.
After Aether had coughed up the remains of his lunch, he returned to apologize to childe, his voice a bit horse from the tears and the burn of acid along his throat. His eyes were still red from crying, mildly bloodshot. Childe seemed genuinely worried by such a thing, it was sickening to them. Childe looked at them, eyes filled with worry as he had the audacity to ask “Are you ok?”
no
“Yes”
Please help me
“If you say so”
Days always seemed to go by so fast. Aether didn’t notice how his declining mental state seemed to be effecting his fighting amongst many other things. People were beginning to notice the change in Aether, and see the results. He tended to stumble more, make mistakes during his commissions, it resulted in a plethora of bandages littering his body. Then, the day which he entered the golden house came around. He had been off his game, unsuspecting of what was about to occur. He was foolish to ever put his trust in a harbinger.
Aether was trying to hold his ground against Childe, he needed to prevent him from getting the gnosis, that was all that mattered, so why was he struggling so much? Why did tears start to well up in his eyes and obscure his vision? Why had he allowed himself to consider a harbinger a friend, someone who he wanted to protect?
Aether had thought he got the upper hand, he had thought he was able to defeat Childe, but he had been mistaken. Childe threw Aether back as though he was a ragdoll and took on another form, how was Aether going to survive this? He wasn’t
He failed, He failed, He failed again. He watched as Childe thrust his hand into the exudia’s chest, he was going to take the gnosis out. Aether was helpless, as he watched in horror. He watched as someone he trusted, someone he thought cared for him like he cared for them, ripped his hand out of the Exudia. He felt as stomach lurch at the sight, he almost vomited but he managed to swallow the acid that tried to worm it’s way up his throat. Childe opened his and to both their surprise it was open, and at that moment Childe locked his glare onto Aether once again as he leaped back into their battlefield. Cracks appeared in the floor as it shattered and fell apart beneath Aether due to Childe’s final transformation. With a thump, and the crack of a few ribs, Aether tumbled down onto a lower floor of the Golden house, he swiftly got to his feet in order to continue the fight once again.
-Yet another time jump because the author is so lazy? It’s more likely then you think!”
After helping the Adepti defeat a god, as well as dropping the Jade chamber on top of said god, Aether thought he might be able to get a break, maybe do some makeshift treatment to his wounds (As always) but the world decided to deny him such pleasures. As he was preparing to go to the nearest cave and black out Paimon (un)helpfully chirped in “Hey! Aether, don’t we still have to find out who Rex Lapis is?”
Aether let out what he hopped was silent groan before mumbling “I suppose we should go talk to Zhongli, after all he’s most likely to know who it is”
While making their way to the body disposal site (PLEASE REMEMBER to REPLAACE THIS WITH THE ACTUAL NIME OF THE FUNERAL PLACE) Paimon happened to take notice of the fact Aether had a limp. She voiced her worries and Aether simply brushed her off, saying his favorite phrase ‘I’m fine’
Once making it there, they were informed Zhongli had gone off to the fatui,,,Fatui,,,,IDK THE NAME OF THIS PLACE EITHER BUT WHERE CHILDE GETS HIS FUNDS TO BE A SUGAR DADDY,,,, Great, more walking.
Having finally arrived at the bank Aether’s body cried out in exhaustion. He didn’t want to walk in here, he didn’t want to, but after pushing his fear to the back of his mind he walked his way in, and maybe he should have listened to his fear. He shouldn’t have came in here. Why was she here.
Her, La Signora of the fatui harbingers, set her piercingly cold glare on Aether the moment he walked in. That glare seemed to freeze him in place, unable to move from this spot, his mind was flooded with so many different thoughts as he tried to calm down and still his rapid heart bear. Aether still managed to hiss that vile name “Signora.”
Signora laughed, She Laughed “It’s you two. I believe we’ve met once before…In the city of bards, was it? I’m glad you still remember my name.” That vile smirk of hers continued to adorn her features as she continued “Ah, right. I imagine that it must have been rather hard to forget watching helplessly as something precious was snatched away from your friend.”
At this point Aether was unable to prevent his body from shaking as the memories of those moments pushed their way to the forefront of his mind once again. He was still able to hold it together, barley, he wasn’t going to show weakness in front of them. He was planning on keeping it together until he could leave and allow himself to break down in some random alley, but things don’t ever seem to go as planned. The moment Aether saw the gnosis, saw Zhongli willingly giving it away, was the moment he broke. He was sure the horror he felt in the moment had to be written all over his face, Childe had been watching Aether ever since he walked in with concern on his features.
Sicking
Disgusting
Aether couldn’t stop it this time as the acid once again clawed it’s way up his throat, and he fell to his knees. The vomit finally escaped out of his system as it fell onto the bank floor, a sick mixture of his lunch, blood, and salty tears which fell from his eyes. He felt so weak, he let out a bloodcurdling scream and slammed his fist repeatedly against the floor until blood started to leak through his glove and stain, until his vision went black and he fell over, collapsing into his own blood.
When Aether came too he was in somekind of room, seemingly a place to take care of injured. He was angry mostly at himself at Zhongli, Rex Lapis, Childe, Signora. He needed to get that anger out, so without even sparing a glance around the room he was in, or himself, he left out an open window and started to sprint towards the nearest Statue of the Seven even if his whole body was straining and begging him to stop as he ran, even if all he felt currently was pain. When he arrived at it, he climbed up it, so he could be face to face with it. Then, he began to punch the face of the statue. Punch after punch, ignoring the shooting pain that came with ever punch he landed on it. He screamed, he allowed tears to fall down his face as he continued on with his punching, ignoring the cracking of his bones and the blood that was now dripping down the statue’s face. Aether wanted to ruin himself the statue. He wanted to break it, he wanted to do something that would make him feel slightly less shitty. As he continued to think about why he was doing this his punches began to slow down and his sobs began to get louder and more frequent. Soon he was collapsed in the lap of the statue, sobbing and hitting it weakly as his hands continued to bleed. He didn’t deserve to be called a savior, what kind of hero is he if he can’t seem to protect those he cares for.
What kind of hero breaks down in front of enemies? What kind of hero allows others to see their pain? Hero’s aren’t supposed to need help, they are supposed to be fine on their own, they weren’t supposed to make anyone else have to help them with their pain. They were supposed to be strong, Aether wasn’t strong. He wasn’t fit to be a Knight, he wasn’t fit to be a savoir, he wasn’t fit to be his sister’s hero.
Then Aether heard a thump and some muffled laughter following soon after. He turned over to look down at whatever had caused the disturbance, only to see childe trying too climb the statue with a bloody nose while Xiao, Scaramouche, Ninguanng (UH I CANT SPELL THAT WHOOPS), and Zhongli laughed at him. Aether watched as Childe fell off, for what seemed like another time, and everyone started wheezing again, including Aether.
“Wow, that’s kinds pathetic” Aether snickered
Scaramouche nodded in agreement “Loser, you can’t even climb a simple statue”
Ninguang joined in on the mocking “I could do better then you, and I’m in heels!”
Xiao seemed to glance at Zhongli to make sure it was fine before mocking Childe as well, he did so by climbing the statue himself (quite easily).
Everyone else decided to do the same, climbing the statue and standing on it, while looking down at Childe who seemed to be screaming some Sneznyan (close enough) insults up at them.
Scaramouche snickered “What was that? I can’t hear you when you’re all the way down there.”
After staying on the statue for a little bit longer and joining in on the mocking of Childe, Aether climbed down and walked over to Childe, for a moment he had forgotten all the events that had brought him pain as he smiled at Childe and said “When I’m all healed up I’ll help you climb the statue, then, we can mock people from above together!”
Ah, that seemed to make Childe cheer up a bit. On the walk back to the hospital like place, just for that short amount of time, the pain that Aether felt in his heart was drowned out by the laughter, jokes, and conversation of those he considered friends. Moments, sadly, always must pass.