Chapter Text
The winds of Teyvat are said to be the eyes and ears of the Anemo Archon Barbatos. So it stands to reason that the God of Freedom would be capable of hearing anything, anywhere so long as the wind is present. Any cry for help would surely be heard.
However does this include winds from other worlds? What would happen if an invading breeze from another world were to make its way to this God? Would that God be capable of understanding the message that a breeze from another world brings? Would they even be capable of answering the call or even do something?
These are questions that have an answer. But the consequences for these answers is one that will have an effect of unparalleled proportions for one world. Some would say it is for the better, others would disagree.
However, there is one thing that can be made certain of, The God of Freedom will always answer the calls for help from those whose Freedom has been taken from them.
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It was a peaceful night in the lands of Teyvat. The stars were out and shining their ever watchful glow upon the sleeping lands of a world filled with Gods and Monsters. Many normal people would be sound asleep by the current time of day with many late night workers watching ever vigilantly over their cities and night time people. Not many, if any at all, would be outside the safety of the walls and guards of their God ruled cities. At least without a few strong individuals for protection or a group for safety in numbers.
However, there is one individual who is indeed out and about without such precautions in place. This is unnecessary since this individual happens to be one who has no need for such things. After all, what does an almighty God fear from the night other than another unfriendly God?
The God of Anemo, recently declared as one of the 7 Archons of Teyvat after the end of the Archon War in which many Gods fought to the death for the title of Archon, has embarked on his first soon to be famous, World Tour of Teyvat. After the end of the Archon War, Barbatos had decided he would leave his city of Mondstadt to its own devices while he went out to explore the world. After all, as the God of Freedom he could not, in good conscience, lead his own city for fear of becoming like the previous God of Mondstadt, Decarabian.
‘They would be far better off with having my protection and being free to do what they please.’ These are the thoughts that Barbatos has as he moves onwards into the night after having left from visiting Liyue’s own God of Geo, Rex Lapis. After being scolded by Rex Lapis for visiting without any real reason other than a drink, Barbatos wonders off as he thinks back to Rex Lapis’s words.
“Aren’t you a God? If so, then that means you have a duty to lead your people to a bright Future. You don’t have time to simply wander the world if you have people to lead and rule. Are you sure that you can trust your people to grow into a prosperous nation without your guidance?” Rex Lapis had said as he glared coldly at the shorter God.
“Of course I can trust my people to grow on their own. I made sure to assign certain families with different responsibilities in order to help each other share the workload. I even told them of the kind of city that both of us wanted in the end before I left. A city of freedom, no ruler to have total control but just a big community built city where everyone is free to be whoever they desire to be.” the God says to himself as he walks off into a forested area in the dark. He walks with sure feet as he wanders away from the land of Laws and Contracts. Letting the wind guide his way even in the dark of night.
“It was what we dreamed of…..what we fought for….” the young God says as he looks down in sad reminiscence. “ Surely there is nothing to worry about….right? Yeah….Yeah!! There is nothing to worry about. There’s no way that they would forget the sacrifices we made in order to gain our Freedom.” He remarks while shaking himself out of his momentary reminiscence.
“What does he know of how I should act as an Archon anyway? He is new to this whole thing too!!! It's not like before, in the War, where we were all under constant threat of invasion. After all, none of us want to incur that lady’s wrath should we ever step out of bounds of our place.” Barbatos grumbles as he walks onwards while crossing his arms in a huff.
He walks on ever forward, unaware that the winds that he was originally following towards the land of the God of Wisdom had changed without his knowing. Leading him into the forest to a place that did not at all belong to the very world he treads. The location was a set of ruins from a lost civilization that had no origin in this world at all. In fact, the ruins came from a place that predates even the current period of creation. Thus, who knows what secrets or dangers lurk within?
“Huh? What is this? I don't believe I have ever seen something quite like this so close to Liyue and Mondstadt.” Barbatos says as he finally looks up to see ahead of him, his green traveling Bard disguise coat billowing in a breeze not natural to even him or this world.
While he is looking in awe of the crumbling building, he can see that the material that makes up the structure was made from what appears to be riverstone rocks with what seems to be shining blue rocks sprinkled throughout the crumbling building. Markings of strange figures and writing can be seen around the crumbling remains of a doorway with the metal hinges all that remain of the door. The light of the stars and moon seem to give the already ominous looking ruins an even more other worldly vibe while the doorway remains shadowed with bits of faint light off in the distance.
As Barbatos looks upon the eerie building weary, a slight whisper of wind catches his attention. “ Help! Someone please help me!!” A message heard faintly that caused the God to straighten up in alarm and start to clench his mouth with a grim look.
A cry for help that seems to originate from within the decrepit ruins. Ruins whose origins are unknown with what could be an endless amount of unknown dangers. Barbatos recalls faintly about a nation called Khaenri’ah that is famous for building elaborate buildings filled with all kinds of traps and guarded by huge machines of war. However, as far as he is aware that nation is nowhere near where he is currently at and is in fact still thriving even now.
‘There is no way this could be their work.’ Barbatos thinks as he backs away slowly. ‘Besides, why would they set up a base like this so far away only to leave it to rot?’ he thinks further as he takes an even more assured step back. ‘I should be careful not to enter into this recklessly...HUH!?!?’ However, upon taking several steps back a gush of wind rushes past him carrying with it even more voices calling for help causing the short braided God to stop in shock.
“Help someone? Please!!! I can’t take this any more!!”
“Please someone, anyone?? Free me from this hell!!”
“I can’t keep living like this….WHY DO THEY DO THIS!?!?”
“Please...listen to me! This is inhumane!! You can’t treat people like this!!!”
“Mommy…..where did you go?? You said to wait for you here but it's already bed time…..Are you coming back?”
“Where am I??? Have I…. just been…..kidnapped? Wait…..PLEASE SOMEONE!!!! HELP ME!!!!!”
“ Please...someone…..anyone….I DON’T WANT TO LIVE ANYMORE!!!!!!”
“In this world, not all people are created equal. Some people are born lucky and have a bright future ahead. While others are born unlucky and are force to suffer discrimination, abuse, and/or neglected for something out of their control. The world is a cage for the unlucky, different or unimpressive to be forced into only and fated to die a slow death. All the while being seen as the waste of humanity that deserves to just fade away from history….. What a cruel world for the Quirkless”
“...... What? ” Was all that the stunned God could say as he stood rooted in place as a couple of tears fell from his wide eyes. Unable to fully process what he heard, the God starts to take shaky steps forward that slowly but steadily speed up to a sprint as the God of Freedom rushes to the location of the voices carried by the unknown wind. He wooshes past all manner of rooms and traps. Dodging past strange winged statues that move toward him, ducking underneath reaching arms, lazers and bladed traps. Nothing stopping the God of Freedom from his goal of reaching and rescuing the poor people from their cruel fates.
As he rushes past many doors, blasting them all down in order to save time, he ignores the subtle feeling of wrongness that is creeping up his back as he draws ever closer to his goal. He goes with many different images of people in cages flashing through his mind all the while he pays only slight attention to the new voices crying out.
“This is the 25th school that rejected me...and for the exact same reason as every other one…”
“I can’t come in today, my kid is sick and we can’t get anyone to watch over them till I can get back….wait….YOU CAN’T DO THAT! IT VIOLATES OUR CONTRACT!!!!!.......What? NO LEGITIMATE REASON IS BEING GIVEN!?!? MY CHILD IS SICK HOW IS THAT NO-what…. Why does it matter if my kid is Quirkless? HEY!!! YOU CAN’T SAY THAT ABOUT MY KID!!!!!”
“What is the point...all that hard work and he takes all the credit!?!? And for what?? Because he has a quirk and I don’t!?!?”
“Of all the reasons for me not getting this job…..just because I’m Quirkless!?!?! THAT IS BLAITEN DISCRIMINATION!!!!”
Shaking his head, the kind hearted God speeds up as he can feel himself get closer to the source of the voices.
“Don’t worry you guys!!! I, Lord Barbatos, am coming to save you!!!” The God shouts while vaulting over a pit of spikes as he then comes upon the last door, not noticing that from the very things he is hearing he shouldn’t expect to see a group of people in cells. However he does think this as he rushes forward with the same amount of Determination.
BANG!!!
As he reaches the final door, Barbatos smashes down an ornate door as he steps into a room with his bow out and an arrow notched and ready to fire.
“I DEMAND YOU TO LET THESE PEOPLE GO!!! YOU ….WILL NOT …..GET AWAY….. With…..this?? Hello?” the God says, shouting as he quickly looks around the room only to realize that he was in a seemingly empty room.
“Huh? That’s weird. I could have sworn their cries were coming from here…..” The Bard God says as he looks around the room suspiciously before he spots something in front of him in the middle of the room. “Huh?? A mirror?” he slowly approaches a strange mirror with his bow and arrow still drawn, ever vigilant of any possible threats.Upon getting closer to the mirror, however, the God can clearly see that what he thought of as a regular mirror couldn’t be further from the truth.
It seems to be a long pane of glass inlaid in an ornately decorated metal frame placed upon a raised platform. It seems to have galaxy designs with the stars being actual cut gemstones of an assorted variety of colors but all of the same type of stone. Words seem to be engraved around the top of the rounded mirror, words that the God cannot seem to read at all nor could he recall any civilization with similar writing. Assuming it to belong to a long ago lost group from the Archon war, Barbatos steps closer to the mirror to take a closer look. Unknowing of the glow that grew brighter in the room that he originally thought of coming from a hole in the ceiling.
“Is this some sort of mirror? Where are all the people calling out for help?” he says as he stops in front of the mirror while looking around. ‘Could they be inside a hidden room somewhere?’ he thinks as he starts to look more closely around for a hidden switch or a difference in any part of the room only to be startled as the mirror before him flashes.
“ Please don’t ignore me!! I matter too!!”
“ Another day….. I wonder what they are going to do to me too ‘Show me my Place’ this time...god I’m so tired of this…”
“They look like they are looking for me…..that's not good I have to hide. I don’t want to have to treat any more bruises or broken bones again.I don’t have the money any more for this month…”
“Huh!?!?! Are….the voices….coming from here?” Barbatos says as he looks closely at the mirror’s surface only to be surprised as images start to flash across the many different people in terrible states. A girl who was standing in the middle of a forest at night looking around in fear. A man who is hiding behind a wall as he peeks over to look at a gathering of rather menacing looking people who are looking around with dark grins on their faces. A woman looking down in despair over a piece of paper in the middle of a dark and miserable looking room. A young man looking over a precipet with dull eyes over a dark cloudy day without any shoes on.
More and more images of people all suffering in misery, pain and sadness flash before the God as he looks upon them in horror feeling all the pain that they are going through. The young old man raises a trembling hand as he tries to hold back tears. “What is this? Who are these people? I HAVE TO HELP THEM!!!” the God slowly starts to shout as he places his hand upon the mirrors surface while slowly growing angry at these people's torment.
However, upon placing his hand on the mirror's surface he is suddenly thrown for a loop as everything around him drops as he is suddenly thrusted into the thoughts of a black, curly haired kid with bits of green hair on the tips, who seemed to have been the one who was standing over a precept. A horrible decision was clearly about to be made. The kid is wearing no shoes and seems to be wearing some sort of strange uniform that seems not so unlike the stuff that the Cryo Archon’s people prefer to wear. His dull, green eyes look downwards, not unlike those of a doll, as his thoughts seem to carry with them a great amount of pain and weight.
‘I’m sorry mom, but if not even the Number 1 hero believes I can do it then what else is there for me? I have always held out hope that someone would believe that I can be a hero, but now that my dreams have been crushed by everyone then that must mean that I have no reason left to live in this world. What can I live for now? This world of the Quirked has only ever dragged down the Quirkless… I don't want to live in a world where I’m nothing but scum to others….’ The boy thinks as he starts to lift a foot forward.
“WAIT!!!” Barbatos shouts as he rushes forward with his hand out to stop the kid from falling forward. “Don’t do this kid!!! You don’t have to give up your life in order to gain Freedom kid!!! Don’t give in to this!” He says as he looks at the kid in front of him in concern as he unknowingly floats right in front of him while his bard disguise fads into the form he made from his dear friend's image unconsciously. His wings came out and started to gently move in a light fluttering motion creating the image of an Angel from Heaven.
“H-H-HUH!?!?! W-W-WHO ARE YOU!?!?!?!” The kid shouts out as jumps in fright and falls backwards in astonishment as he looks upon what appears to be some sort of angel-like being. He stares in awe at this winged person who is floating right in front of him. They seem to be surrounded by some sort of ethereal teal-colored aura that surrounds them as they look upon him in concern with their kind Green eyes. For some reason they remind him of green rolling hills on a windy day. “A-AN A-A-ANGEL!?!? Wait...D-D-DOES THIS M-M-MEAN THAT I'M D-D-DEAD!?!?” the kid starts to panic as he frantically starts to stutter rapidly as he flings his arms around in a panic. His eyes have now gone from the dull lifeless green to a wide eyed panic green with his pupil slowly dilating as his mind starts to become consumed in his panic.
“NO!!” the God shouts as he waves his hand placidy, trying to calm down the frantic kid, “I’m not this ‘Angel’ thing you are talking about. I am Barbatos, the Anemo Archon and the God of Freedom.” He says as he slowly approaches the kid before he bow slightly as he helps the kid up onto his feet, gently patting his head soothingly.
“H-Huh? A God? B-B-But I’ve n-n-never hear-r-rd of y-you before!” He says as he tries to calm down before looking at the ‘God’ with weariness. “Could this be the effect of a quirk? Could it be an illusion based quirk or could it be-” he starts to say before he starts trailing off into quiet mutterings of the many different possible quirks that could possibly be affecting him.
“Umm..” the God says as he sweats slightly while he watches the kid mutter up a storm. ‘My, this kid is quite the thinker huh?’ He thinks as he can’t help but look at the kid fondly as he remembers other people he has met in life who remind him so much of his dearly beloved friend who he lost so long ago. While they all only had slight similarities, everyone who he has ever met who reminds him even slightly of his dear friend have always managed to unknowingly endear themselves to him. Thus leading to them receiving his blessings in some way.
“Shh, it's fine.” Barbatos says as he soothingly stops the kid’s muttering storm by gently placing a hand under his chin, lifting his face to look at him as he places a finger on the kid's lips. “I get the feeling that the reason for you not knowing is merely because we're from different worlds.” He says gently as he looks at the kid who’s features now greatly remind him of the people of Inazuma, even if he did start to blushed furiously. “I also feel that even if I were to explain things it would be a pointless endeavour.” He says with a rather worried face before he perks up. “Oh! I have an idea, how about I give you something of a demonstration?” the God says as he backs up slightly with a smile on his face as he rests his right arm on his hip, looking at the kid expectantly.
“U-umm, sure?” the kid says as he looks at the angel-like being before shrugging, his blush still persisting but slowly fading away “ I guess you can show me something, it's not like this could all be explained by a quirk.” he says as he looks at the ‘god’ with expectant, if filled with a little bit of excitement in his eyes.
“Okay! Give me a minute to compose myself.” Barbatos says as he ignores the slight denial in the kids last sentence. Thus, he summons up his instrument from his personal pocket space, where he keeps his stuff that he picks up along his travels. He takes a slight breath before he starts to play a melody that immediately sets the kid at ease. The kid stares in awe at the lyre the God had pulled out from nowhere. Its design is from a type of white wood with gold and brown engravings that only give it an ethereal look as the strings on the instrument start to glow with a light green color. The lyre seems to emit a sort of aura that seems to give the feeling of a powerful, but gentle breeze that is filled with many songs that the ever listening winds carry.
The song that Izuku hears him play is one he doesn’t recognize from any song he has heard of before. Though Present Mic’s own radio shows always play many different types of music, he can’t help but feel a nice calm settle over him. Like it's a familiar tune that his mom could have possibly sang to him, but he knows that he has no memories of such a thing. As he starts to close his eyes to listen more closely, he stops as he catches glimpses of what seems to be streams of teal wind that start to gather around the pretty man and himself. He yelps suddenly as he is picked up by the breeze and starts to flail a bit as he is led to circle the winged man in a sort of spiral dance as the man continues to play with a serene look on his face as he continues to play with his eyes closed.
Through all of this the kid notices that his surroundings start to flicker slightly from the dreary cloudy day, to a peaceful night sky filled with many twinkling stars. He stares in awe as he is slowly and gently placed back on the ground as the song comes to a brief respite.
“Well? Are you convinced yet?” the black haired man with green tipped braids that the kid only just notices to have been glowing the same teal color as the wind before fading away.
“Umm… that was a really incredible display!! How exactly does your quirk work? Does it require you to play any song in order to use it? Or are you only able to use the wind? How does changing our surroundings have to do with the wind? Is it because of that song you were playing? Where did you get that lyre?? Did you make it with the wind or is it a collapsible Lyre?” The kid starts to throw question after question as his eyes shine brightly from what he believes to be the work of the quirk of the pretty winged man before.
The God sweats at the fact that the kid still doesn’t believe him, he looks at the kid with a slight helpless look. “Ehe, you still don't believe what I said, do you kid?” he rubs the back of his head with his left while holding his lyre in his right hand. Suddenly he perks up as an idea comes to mind of a way to show this kid he really is a god. “Hey, how about I give you something that will truly show you that I am a god?” he says as he quickly puts away his lyre back where he had it before holding out both of his hands to the kid. All the while he stares into the kids eyes with a serious look.
“Okay kid, tell me your name.” the God says as he looks back at the god with surprised eyes at the serious look from the seemingly gentle and playful man. “M-M-My name? OH RIGHT!! I didn’t give you my name! I’m sorry for being rude, my name is Midoryia Izuku.” The kid, now named Izuku, says as he gazes upon the winged man with an apologetic look in his eyes.
“No worries Midoryia,” Barbatos says as he drops the serious look to give him a gentle smile before he grows serious again. “Now then. Midoryia Izuku I, as the Anemo Archon, have decided upon giving you my blessing of power in order to help you in your life.” he says as he stares into Izuku’s eyes with a serious and expectant look. “However, in order for me to due so I must see into you what has allowed you to continue pass your pain and forbid hatred of others from clouding your heart.” he says as he gently moves forward before cupping Izuku’s face into his hands while he looks at him with serious but gentle eyes. He smiles gently as he looks upon him in understanding as Izuku stares back at him with uncertainty.
The curly haired kid looks down in thought, a rather unsure look that slowly starts to become one that is filled with determination. Looking up Izuku says the words that ,at one point, would have led him down the path of a long lived legacy but now would give birth to a new legend.
“Okay.” Izuku says as a new wind blows into a world where the weak are dragged through the mud and the strong rule in hidden cruelty. A wind of change rolls across the land as he gazes upon the God with determined green eyes.
“I’ll tell you.”