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The first time Xiao hears of erosion is during the fall of Azhdaha. Even across Liyue, he can feel the rumble of earth beneath his feet, see the flashes of lightning in the clouds as Rex Lapis calls meteor after meteor to seal away his old friend. It leaves Xiao anxious and on edge -- he serves as Rex Lapis’s weapon, but this is one battle he cannot fight.
With nothing else to do, Xiao wanders his station at Dihua Marsh, wiping the area of any traces of evil. It’s on his sixth hilichurl camp that an arrow whizzes by his ear, followed by a familiar “hehe”, and he sighs, plunging his spear through the last mitachurl’s stomach.
“Lord Barbatos,” Xiao turns and inclines his head respectfully, but even he cannot keep the fond exasperation from his voice. Barbatos floats to the ground, cheerfully stepping around arrowheads and cracked masks.
“Xiao! Where’s Morax? I can feel the shifts in the wind all the way from Mondstadt.”
“There’s something wrong with the Lord of Vishaps,” Another tremble rolls through the earth, and Xiao frowns. “Rex Lapis is sealing him away.”
“Ah,” For once, Barbatos’s trademark grin falls away. He lowers his bow, plucking at the bowstring like a lyre. “Then Azhdaha has fallen to his erosion.”
Xiao once asked Rex Lapis about the changes in Azhdaha, but the pained grief in his Archon’s eyes quickly dissuaded him from asking again. Still, he’s not sure he understands. How can one as powerful as Azhdaha lose his memories and betray Liyue? Betray Rex Lapis? It’s unthinkable.
But Xiao knows better than anyone what it’s like to constantly fight himself, to be his own greatest enemy.
Suddenly, a thought strikes him. “Azhdaha is an elemental spirit,” Xiao begins slowly. “You’re an elemental spirit, too.”
Barbatos blinks owlishly at him -- fuck, did he say something wrong? -- then breaks out into howls of laughter. He clutches his stomach, rolling around in midair as he giggles.
“Aww, Xiao,” Barbatos teases. “Are you worried about me?”
Xiao scowls. Forget it. He never should have asked.
“I think erosion is more of a ‘rock’ thing,” Barbatos wipes a tear from his eye and gives Xiao a blinding smile. For a moment, the anxiety in his gut fades away, replaced by warmth and affection. For a moment, Xiao forgets how to breathe. “But even immortals eventually face the trials of time. As an Archon, it will be long before anything happens to me. And besides, I have you to look after me.”
Barbatos winks. Xiao turns away, more to hide his glare than his flushed cheeks. Yes. That’s what he tells himself.
“I serve Rex Lapis and Liyue,” He mutters. “Go bother your own people.” He pauses, then - “Just call me if you need me.”
Even as Barbatos breaks out into another peal of laughter, Xiao can’t deny that there’s something about the God of Freedom that calms the swirl of negative karma in his stomach and turns it into butterflies.
“Xiao! You came!” Barbatos waves him down excitedly from the border between Mondstadt and Liyue.
“You called,” Xiao looks around warily. He knows that Liyue’s side of the border is safe - he just cleared it yesterday. From what he can see on the Mondstadt side, there doesn’t seem to be any danger. He flexes his grip on his polearm, scanning each shadow for creeping enemies or hidden threats. When he finds nothing but a pair of foxes, he sighs and turns to Barbatos. “I said to call my name if you’re in danger.”
“I’m in danger of dying of boredom,” Barbatos dramatically drapes a hand across his face. “Woe to me, a lonesome bard in the night. Might the Guardian Yaksha save me from this plight?”
“You’re rhyming. Why are you rhyming?” Xiao deadpans. His eyes dart over the environment every few seconds, just to make sure Barbatos is truly safe. Fucking Archons, there are mortals who are terrified of calling his name in life-or-death situations, and then there’s Barbatos, calling Xiao at his every whim.
(Once, Barbatos pointed out that despite his complaints, Xiao answered every time. Xiao couldn’t say it’s because he missed Barbatos’s contagious laugh or that he wanted to find out if the Archon’s eyes reminded him more of the Sea of Clouds’ rolling sky or bottomless ocean -- so instead, Xiao glared at Barbatos and told him he would never answer again unless Barbatos’s life was truly in danger. The next week, Xiao answered Barbatos’s call to pick cecilias together.)
“I’m a bard, of course I rhyme! Yet you judge my actions like a crime,” Barbatos giggles at Xiao’s scowl. “Look, I know you don’t like leaving Liyue, since you have your whole-” Barbatos deepens his voice in a raspy imitation of Xiao’s - “ ‘I’m the Conqueror of Demons, I have a contract with a rocks-for-brains Archon who throws mountains at cute little bards’ thing going on, so I came up with a solution!” He plops onto the ground in a sprawl of limbs and white robes. “You stay there in Liyue, and I’ll be here in Mondstadt. See?”
Xiao rolls his eyes, but he sits down next to Barbatos. He lays his spear on the ground within easy reach, just in case, but he does appreciate Barbatos’s plan. He’ll go wherever and whenever Barbatos calls, but leaving Liyue makes him restless, and knowing that Barbatos cares...it makes his heart flutter.
Barbatos pulls out a lyre, humming under his breath. Xiao is content to sit and listen -- he knows that Barbatos likes to have company when something’s on his mind and Xiao’s happy to just sit by his side. After a few minutes, Barbatos closes his eyes and starts to sing. His fingers deftly pluck the lyre’s strings, creating a sweet melody to accompany the story he weaves.
Xiao rests his head on his knees. It takes all of his self-control to stay still when all he wants to do is reach out and trace Barbatos’s features with his fingers until he can commit his face to memory. It surprises Xiao, how much he cares about the Archon. Rex Lapis may have been the one to set Xiao free, but Barbatos showed Xiao what that freedom means. Liyue and its Geo Archon grounds Xiao, gives him purpose and duty, but the Anemo Archon fills Xiao’s lungs with wind and teaches him to fly, like he can let go of the burdens that weigh him down, reach out for the stars, and take them for his own. Barbatos makes Xiao feel like he’s standing on air, so it’s only natural that Xiao falls.
“You’re staring,” Barbatos murmurs, still strumming chords. Xiao startles. He hadn’t realized that Barbatos had finished his song, and he’s glad that the darkness of night hides the heat rushing to his cheeks.
“I haven’t heard you play that song before,” Xiao changes the subject.
“I wrote it a few days ago, you’re the first person to hear it,” Barbatos shifts, and his shoulder brushes against Xiao’s. When had he moved that close? “What did you think?”
Xiao’s mind goes blank. Honestly, he didn’t hear a word of Barbatos’s song, his brain too occupied with writing its own poetry about Barbatos.
“You’re pretty,” is what he says instead. He...did not just say that out loud.
“I am,” Barbatos laughs. Gods, Xiao wants his negative karma to swallow him up right now. He tenses and reaches for his spear, ready to disappear in a flash of green and black smoke. Then, he feels a hand on top of his.
Barbatos smiles at him. This close, Xiao can see that his own cheeks are flushed a faint pink. The lyre lies abandoned between them. “I think you’re pretty too.”
Xiao looks away. He lets his face fall blank, he’s perfected this mask to be as unfeeling as the one he wears on his hip, but he wonders if Barbatos can see past it. He wonders if Barbatos sees Xiao .
“As a Yaksha, I serve Liyue and Rex Lapis.” Xiao fixes his eyes on their connected hands. “That is my contract. I don’t know who I am without it. I have no responsibility to you, and yet...I come when you call.” Tentatively, gently, Xiao flips his hand over so that he can intertwine his fingers with Barbatos’s. “I care about you.”
With his other hand, Barbatos tilts Xiao’s chin towards him. His eyes glimmer with the same swirl of fondness, hesitation, and yearning that fills Xiao’s gut.
“Just kiss me already, stupid Yaksha.”
Xiao presses his lips to Barbatos’s and discovers that freedom tastes like apples and wine and summer.
“Xiao! I wrote a new verse of that song I showed you!”
“Oh? May I hear it?”
“ Xiao I really really like you, you make me want to yahoo-”
“I think that’s enough.”
“Aww, you’re blushing!”
“...Please stop squishing my cheeks, Barbatos, it hurts-”
*ೃ༄
“Xiao, the way you fight is so graceful. Have you ever danced before?”
“A few times. Before I served Rex Lapis, I was expected to entertain my old master in several different ways.”
“Would you dance for me?”
“I’m literally in the middle of killing a demon.”
“Pleeeeease?”
“One day, when I finish my duty, I will dance for you until my feet bleed and you run out of songs to play.”
“Th-That’s a little extreme, don’t you think?”
*ೃ༄
“Xiao! Hold still!”
“Get that infernal flower crown away from me.”
“It matches your hair! Come on, at least try it! See how cute it is on me? Imagine what it’ll look like on y-”
“I love you.”
“Asldfkj???!!?”
*ೃ༄
“Xiao, why do you love me?”
“There are too many reasons to list.”
“Well, what’s the first one that comes to mind?”
“Every time I’m with you, you take my breath away.”
“But the wind is always shifting. It may stay in one place for a while, but in the end, it will always move on. Aren’t you afraid that the wind will change directions?”
“Then I pray that the wind will blow my way for just a little longer.”
Pain floods every part of his body. Panting, Xiao stabs his spear into the ground, leaning against it for support. His vision swims with dripping, oozing red -- red like blood, red like death -- as the invisible hands of wrathful demons wrap around his ankles and pull him to his knees. Xiao closes his eyes and tastes iron on his tongue, his heart racing. The phantom voices whisper vengeful threats into his ear, fill his lungs with the wisps of their hatred, it’s too much, it hurts too fucking much, he can’t breathe, he can’t-
The soothing melody of a flute breaks through the haze of pain, and Xiao latches onto it, focusing on each note until it drowns out the voices. He still sees flashes of red, but it’s warmer now, more the color of Windwheel Asters and sunsets on Starsnatch Cliff. As the world swims before him, Xiao gives in to his fatigue and slumps bonelessly to the ground. A gentle breeze caresses his cheek, carrying the familiar scent of cecilias and dandelion wine, and Xiao chases it into sleep.
He floats in and out of consciousness. Xiao dreams -- he dreams of chains around his neck, of gentle callused fingers intertwined with his, of the sweet melody of a flute, of his spear sinking into fallen gods and soaking the earth with their blood. Normally, his nightmares are much worse, but each time his dream begins shifting into something darker, he feels a gust of wind wrap around him, shielding him and nudging him back. Sometimes, he thinks he hears a faint voice on the wind.
Shhh, it’s okay. I’m here now. Come back to me, love. You’re safe.
Slowly, Xiao starts to sink back into his body. He doesn’t have the energy to open his eyes, but he doesn’t feel like he’s in danger either. As his senses return, he tries to piece together where he is. There’s something soft under his head and fingers combing through his sweaty hair. Another hand plays with Xiao’s fingers absentmindedly. He recognizes Barbatos’s -- no, he goes by Venti now -- soft voice above him.
“-stained with blood. Mine are too, love, even if you can’t see it. I think that’s the one thing even the God of Freedom can’t be free of,” Venti taps out a rhythm on his palm. “Guilt. I can run away or be forgiven, but I can’t forgive myself either. This burden is mine until the end of time.”
Venti sighs, then there’s a long pause. Xiao desperately wishes he could hold Venti.
“The stars are beautiful tonight, love.” Venti cards his fingers through Xiao’s bangs. If Xiao could move, he’d lean into his touch. “Sometimes, when I try to find your constellation in the sky, I can’t remember what it looks like. I don’t remember when you confessed to me or how we first met. I’m sorry. You’ll forgive me, won’t you?”
Venti lifts Xiao’s hand and kisses his knuckles. “I’m not an Archon anymore. I can’t recall things like I used to,” He traces Xiao’s scars with his lips, whispering into his skin. “But I’ll never forget you, Xiao. And if something happens to me,” Venti’s voice cracks and breaks. “I hope you are the one to set me free.”
Xiao finally manages to open his eyes and he blearily looks around. They’re nestled under a tree, his head cradled in Venti’s lap. The bard’s eyes are closed, and though his expression is serene, Xiao knows the tight lines around his lips, the furrow in his brows. Gently, he pulls his hand free from Venti’s grip and cups his cheek.
“Ven...ti…?” He coughs hoarsely. Venti smiles down at him.
“Xiao, your hand’s dirty,” He teases, as though he hadn’t been kissing it only moments ago. It’s only then that Xiao notices that his hand is caked with dried, crusty blood. Xiao curses internally and pulls away. He would never let the filthy blood of demons defile a light as bright and pure as Venti.
“I won’t let you,” Xiao rasps. His throat is dry and tight, but not from dehydration. “I won’t let you forget me, or become...whatever this is. I’ll protect you.”
The hand in his hair still as something unreadable flashes through Venti’s eyes. Even after thousands of years, there are parts of himself that Venti has never shared. Xiao hates it, hates that he can’t read Venti when he needs Xiao the most, but he knows better than to push. Venti will tell him when he wants to.
“Silly Yaksha,” Venti murmurs. He presses a soft kiss to Xiao’s forehead. “Stop picking fights that leave you half-dead. What would you do without me?”
“It’s my job,” Xiao snuggles closer to Venti. Mmm, he’s cozy. “And I won.”
Venti hums in acknowledgement as he resumes petting Xiao’s hair. Neither of them mention that Xiao didn’t answer Venti’s question. Neither of them bring up that this is one fight Xiao cannot win.
There’s something wrong with Venti. Xiao looks into his eyes, and sees star-shaped pupils instead of round ones.
“Venti, what happened to your eyes?”
“Huh?” Venti walks to a nearby pond and glances at his reflection. “I have no idea. That’s weird. Eh, I’m sure it’ll go away.”
The next time Xiao peeks at their reflection in the water, Venti’s pupils are back to normal, but Xiao’s are filled with concern.
*ೃ༄
There’s something wrong with Venti. Xiao gifts Venti a bottle of Rex Lapis’s aged osmanthus wine in a desperate attempt to avoid Venti’s wily plots of getting Xiao drunk on dandelion wine. Xiao can smell the grape juice on his breath as Venti thanks him but turns it down.
“I thought you hated grape juice,” Xiao wrinkles his nose. “Or any non-alcoholic drink.”
Venti plucks at the strings his lyre. “I don’t know, I’ve just had a craving for something else. Dandelion wine...doesn’t taste as good as it used to.”
Worry tugs at Xiao’s gut. He can’t say he doesn’t approve of Venti’s new healthy choices, but since when did Venti turn down alcohol?
*ೃ༄
There’s something wrong with Venti. One day, the bard pops in while Xiao is fighting off a Hydro Abyss Mage. Xiao hacks at its shield, then suddenly, a gust of Anemo blows him back.
“I swear by my sword!”
Xiao raises an eyebrow as he narrowly dodges being caught in a bubble. With Venti’s help, he quickly strikes the Abyss Mage down. As soon as its body dissolves away, Xiao turns his attention to Venti. He stands stiffly, his back straight and shoulders squared, almost like he’s at attention.
“Xiao? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Venti...you don’t use a sword.”
“I-I don’t?”
There’s something horribly, horribly wrong with Venti.
“Deposition,” Zhongli tells him over lunch. “It’s a process in which the wind slows to drop the sediment it carries.”
Xiao frowns down at his almond tofu. “And Venti’s facing this...deposition. Is it like erosion?”
“Similar, but not quite. Perhaps it is simpler to think of it this way -- to the rock, the wind is simply a force that wears it away over time. However, to the wind, the rock is only one stop along its journey. Each time the wind erodes another rock, it carries remnants of that rock as it travels, and the farther the wind reaches, the more pollution and dust it picks up.” Zhongli blows away wisps of steam before taking a sip of his tea. “Barbatos is the wind that blows across all of Teyvat. He takes a part of each person he meets with him, but now, he is beginning to lose himself in the midst of all that he has picked up along the way. How much of what’s left is the wind, and how much of it has become polluted with dust?”
Xiao’s head reels. But, it makes sense. Venti hasn’t been himself lately. Xiao can see it in his lover’s shifting physical form, the small personality changes, the flashes of disorientation. It takes Venti longer to respond, and Xiao doesn’t miss the way that he struggles with even the most basic of questions. Every time Xiao glances at him, Venti looks different, like he can never decide what he’s meant to appear like. He remembers that night under the tree, when Venti had admitted that he was losing some of his memories. Archons, Xiao should have fucking known. He should have seen it coming.
Xiao feels the iron grip of fear in his heart and a sting behind his eyes, and gods , he hasn’t felt either of those sensations in thousands of years. Xiao wants to laugh, wants to cry, wants to scream into the canyons of Jueyun Karst until the wind blows away the last of his voice. Fuck, they were immortals, they were supposed to have time. He promised Venti that he would protect him, and-
“It’s inevitable,” Zhongli continues. Xiao picks at the scratches on the table’s surface. He can’t look at Zhongli. They both know what happens when an immortal falls. “Losing his Gnosis simply sped up the process.”
“What if I get it back? I-I’ll take it from the Tsaritsa, then Venti will be better-”
“His deposition has already started. There’s nothing we can do to stop it.”
“Venti would never hurt anyone, he doesn’t even like ruling his own nation.”
“A god does not become one of the Seven without soaking his hands in blood. Not to mention, the last time an Anemo god suffered deposition, Decarabian trapped all of Mondstadt away from the rest of the world. Decarabian loved Mondstadt too.”
“Venti would never do that. Nothing matters more to him than freedom. Please, Rex Lapis, there has to be a way we can help him, maybe we can find a way to slow it down or stop it, or-”
“Xiao,” Zhongli’s voice is pained. Xiao finally looks up and sees his own grief reflected in his Archon’s face. “I understand your sentiment. Barbatos is my oldest friend, and it brings me great sorrow to see him deteriorate like this. Yet, we have both witnessed it for ourselves. Barbatos has begun reflecting the personalities and faces of those he loves. For now, the Barbatos we know is still there, but it’s only a matter of time before he loses himself to his deposition. The wind has picked up too much sediment. It’s too late. There’s nothing we can do to save him now.”
Zhongli sighs. A light breeze sweeps through the window and tickles Xiao’s nose. It’s playful and warm, just as it always is. Just as it always has been, just as Xiao knows it always will be.
“Without my Gnosis, I am not as powerful as I used to be. If I am to…” Zhongli wavers, and he clears his throat. “If I am to seal Barbatos, it must be soon, while I can still contain him. Xiao, I am not asking anything of you. I know how much you and Barbatos care for each other. I only hope that you trust me. This is what must be done.”
Xiao doesn’t respond. He stares at his untouched almond tofu and his cold tea, and sits at the table long after Zhongli leaves and the sun begins to dip below the horizon. His entire body is numb, he doesn’t - he can’t feel anything except for the slight push of the breeze swirling around him and the throbbing ache in his chest that threatens to swallow him whole.
Xiao should be strong. Xiao has to be strong. For Venti. This is the right thing to do.
For Venti.
Only the wind bears witness when the Guardian Yaksha breaks down and starts to cry.
“Xiao! This Noctilucous Jade reminds me of your eyes! See, its shape is characteristic of the pickaxes used by the miners near the Chasm, but this luster can only be achieved through a special technique developed by the jewelers of Mingxi Jewelry. It would be a shame not to add it to my collection. I-I don’t remember where I put all my rocks, but I know it’s around here somewhere.”
“My eyes are golden, Venti, not blue.”
“No way, I swear your eyes were blue the last time I checked.”
“Maybe you were thinking of someone else.”
“But I would never forget something about you like that.”
“...Don’t worry about it. Here, let’s go look for some Cor Lapis. The color of those rocks is much closer to my eyes.”
*ೃ༄
“Xiao, is there something on my face?”
“You lined your eyes. And the diamond on your forehead, that’s new.”
“Oh, we’re matching! Ehe, it helps remind me of my duty. I feel like I’m responsible for something, but I’m not sure what. Something M-Mon...ugh, it was....something with...windmills?”
“You should get some rest, Venti. I’ll take care of Mondstadt for you.”
“Sure! Uh, who’s Venti?”
*ೃ༄
“Excuse me! I think I’m lost, do you know where we are?”
“Venti?”
“Huh?”
“Nothing. I’ll walk you back to Monds- I’ll walk you back home.”
“Thanks! Hmm, you seem really familiar. Have we met before?”
“We’ve...spent time together in the past. You can trust me, but in the future, you shouldn’t follow strangers around.”
“Hehe, I’ll keep that in mind. Sorry, for some reason, I just feel really safe around you.”
“....”
“Oh! I never caught your name.”
“I’m Xiao.”
“Nice to meet you! I’m- I-I...sorry I swear it’s on the tip of my tongue.”
“It’s fine. We’re here. Just knock on that door and the Knights of Favonius will be able to help you. If you get lost again, you can call my name.”
“Thanks! Have a good night, Xiao.”
“Goodbye, Venti. I hope the winds bring you peace.”
Xiao knows when Venti’s time is up. For the past few days, the wind blew sluggishly across Teyvat, empty and distant, instead of playful and comforting. He knows Rex Lapis can sense it too and that the Archon plans to act soon, so that night, Xiao slips away from Wangshu Inn and waits at the border of Mondstadt and Liyue. There is no breeze tonight, and the silence weighs on Xiao. He crosses his arms and waits for the inevitable.
Venti will appear soon. The bard has wandered to the border every night for the last week, where Xiao waits for him, then walks him home. These are the only times that Xiao sees Venti, but even he cannot recognize his lover anymore. Looking at Venti is like looking at a reflection in rippling water -- his features constantly blur and shift. A scar over his nose suddenly moves to his cheek, or morphs into a worn eyepatch and fuzzy cat ears. The only things that remain the same are his eyes. They’re the same aqua-green, full of the same sparkling light, that makes Xiao believe that his Venti is still in there somewhere.
There’s no other explanation why Venti comes to this spot every night, other than it’s where he and Venti first fell in love. This is where they had their first kiss, where they discovered that perhaps their hearts beat not only for survival, but for each other as well. Even when he can’t remember Xiao, Venti remembers who Xiao is to him, and that has to mean something. If Xiao can prove that Venti is in there, maybe he can still save him. So Xiao waits at the border, his heart racing. He prays to every god he can think of -- please, let Venti come home.
Venti finally appears when the stars are high in the sky. He stumbles into the clearing and immediately spots Xiao, looking at him in polite confusion. Xiao immediately strides over. He can’t afford to waste any time.
“Hello,” Venti begins uncertainly. “I think I’m lost-”
“Venti,” Xiao holds his face tightly and stares into his eyes. He brushes his thumbs over Venti’s cheeks -- despite their blurring lines, his skin is soft and solid under Xiao’s touch. “Please, I know you’re in there. You can fight the deposition.”
“I-I think you have the wrong person,” Venti stammers. His hands fly up to wrap around Xiao’s wrists. “I don’t know who yo-”
Xiao presses his lips against Venti’s, then peppers the bard’s face with kisses. When he pulls away for breath, Xiao presses his forehead against Venti’s. “I’ll protect you, I promised , so please, love, come back to me.”
Venti trembles under his fingers. The bard blinks rapidly and his knees buckle under him. Xiao follows him to the ground, wrapping his arms around Venti protectively.
“Xiao?” Venti whispers. Xiao studies him anxiously. His eyes are lucid, no trace of the foggy confusion that Xiao has come to hate. Venti lifts a shaking hand to Xiao’s cheek, and Xiao leans into his palm, kissing his hand softly. He missed this, he missed his Venti.
“Welcome back,” Xiao chokes back a sob, but he can’t stop the hot tears from silently running down his cheek.
“I don’t think I can maintain this for long,” Venti’s voice is weak. “The voices, they’re so loud.”
“I hear them too,” Xiao cradles Venti. “I’ll teach you how to make them go away.”
Venti thumbs away Xiao’s tears. “It’s too late. I’m sorry. I broke my promise.”
I’ll never forget you, Xiao. He remembers when Venti whispered those words to him. That night seems so far away now.
“Venti, please-”
“The voices are so angry,” Venti murmurs. The hand on Xiao’s face starts to fall away, but Xiao desperately grabs it and presses it against his cheek. “I don’t know what will happen when I lose control.”
“You won’t, I won’t let you-”
“Do you remember what I asked of you?” Venti smiles at him sadly, his eyes glowing with love, with grief, with all the emotions that Xiao feels ripping his soul into pieces.
If something happens to me, I hope you are the one to set me free.
“No,” Xiao starts to shake too. He can’t- Venti can’t be asking him to-
“Yes you can,” Venti’s eyes start to slip closed. “You have to.”
“No, no, no, Venti, stay with me-”
“I never said it back,” Venti’s voice fades away, and Xiao strains to hear him over the roaring in his ears. “I love you too, Xiao.”
“Venti, please -” This time, a sob wracks through Xiao’s body, and he pulls Venti closer. “I love you, come back to me, Venti, Barbatos- ”
Suddenly, wind explodes around Venti’s body, whipping at Xiao’s face and arms until he drops Venti’s body. The wind lifts him into the air and slams him into a nearby tree with a sickening crack. Xiao groans as pain flares along his sides.
Across the clearing, Venti floats in the air. His eyes are no longer that warm aqua-green -- instead, they are a deep blood-red, filled with a cold anger that doesn’t belong on Venti’s face. As Xiao struggles to his feet, Venti turns to him with a sharp glare.
“Who are you?” Venti sounds like a thousand howling winds.
“Venti,” Xiao croaks. For a brief second, Venti’s eyes flash aqua-green. The bard groans, and presses a hand to his head.
“Stop, stop, stop!” Venti growls.
“Venti-”
Venti holds up a hand, breathing raggedly. He eyes Xiao.
“The voices say I should spare you. We must have some history, so I will give you only one chance. Run, little Yaksha. Run like your life depends on it.”
Because it does , Xiao realizes. This…this isn’t his Venti. His Venti doesn’t exist anymore. This is a tornado that will leave a trail of rampage and destruction in its path. This is a hurricane that no one can control. This will kill him. Even now, Xiao can feel the wind picking up, biting into his skin.
If something happens to me, I hope you are the one to set me free.
A trickle of blood drips from the corner of Xiao’s lips, and he wipes it away. That last blow...Venti hits harder than he thought. Xiao has killed many gods over his lifetime, but this is a battle he cannot win. He knew that from the beginning.
Xiao could wait for Rex Lapis. The Geo Archon must have felt the changes in the wind. Rex Lapis is still strong enough to seal Venti away, but-
If something happens to me, I hope you are the one to set me free.
Venti can’t survive under layers of earth and rock. Venti is the wind of change, the breeze that carries whispers of hope, the promise of freedom.
Xiao couldn’t keep his promise, but he can fulfill Venti’s last wish. He calls on his spear, holding it tightly by his side. He starts to reach for his mask. He doesn’t stand a chance against Venti, even with the Bane of All Evil, but-
Xiao rips the mask from his belt and drops it to the ground. The mask hides the parts of him that are human, but Venti is the only person that Xiao has laid himself bare to. It is only fitting that the Archon witness the last bit of humanity left in Xiao. He won’t hide when Venti is the wind that fills his lungs.
“Made your choice?” Venti sneers at him. He materializes his bow and nocks an arrow.
If something happens to me, I hope you are the one to set me free.
“I love you,” Xiao whispers into the breeze. He lifts his spear. It has never felt heavier. “Thank you for setting me free. Now let me do the same for you.”
Even in the end, Venti takes his breath away.