Chapter Text
A realm of flowers. Meadows, trees, bushes, all kinds as far as the eye can see. In an open field lies a garden, and in the middle of it, a gilded cage.
It reaches as high as the nearby orange trees, stuck in an eternal bloom.
In the cage there sits a hunched over figure dressed in a white cloth, frail and elegant. Its purple locks reach the ground as it absentmindedly hums a simple melody. Its eyes are covered by a white cloth that wraps around its head, tied in a simple awkwardly made knot. Upon further inspection, one would notice the crude ball joints that replace its wrists. The knees are segmented as well, and further down, in the place of ankles and feet,
there is nothing.
In the flowery realm, time does not move. The eternal blooms, light sky, it would all be beautiful if not for the nature of the garden. For it is nothing but a lavish dream a lone doll inhabits. A prison, its beauty gone unnoticed by the inmate.
Time flows. Forwards? Backwards? It is hard to tell. The doll sings a song to fill the silence. It admires the slight flickers of light as it moves its head. Despite lacking sight, it can sense changes in brightness. After realizing this, whenever ”he” visits the realm, he brings new lights for it to admire.
”He” is a boy much like itself. Short indigo hair, piercing eyes. A frail beauty dressed in white. He excitedly tells stories of the outside world, of beautiful sights, sounds, music. He tells it how he had been in a place not much unlike its garden, a timeless pavillion, and how a kind human had found him. He recounts tales he had heard of their creator, their mother, a powerful god and a beloved ruler. It has grown rather fond of this visitor. Its brother. Unlike he though, it had not received any proof of its birthright.
For it is a halfway built puppet, a discarded prototype, one that did not even wake. It’s one of the earliest trials created by the grieving archon, and as such its form was left incomplete. Outside the realm of dreams, its body has most likely already returned to the earth, alongside all the other failed trials it regards as its siblings.
”Do you not resent her?” The indigo-eyed boy had once asked it, reaching through the bars of the cage to place a crystalfly in its hands. The crystalfly stays still, flickering a dazzling purple light. The doll brings the creature to its eye level, admiring the spot of light in front of it.
”I do not. This place is peaceful, I feel at ease here. If there is one thing i wish, it would be for her to have completed my form. I would love to see the world with you” it sighs before letting the crystalfly fly up from its grasp, the beautiful light flickering a few times before disappearing, its world once again becoming quiet.
”If that is what you wish, I will continue to visit you, to share stories with you. I have one in mind right now, if you’d want to hear it?”
The tone of its brothers voice had become heavier, though it did not understand why, so it happily nodded its head. A gesture it had learnt by listening to the many tales of these ”humans” his brother had recounted during the countless visits.
And so did the indigo youth tell the story of a deceitful human, a strange mechanic, and a naive puppet, who thought of the human as a friend only to be abandoned and made a mockery out of. Of course, the caged doll knew who these characters represented, as its brother was very fond of the place called Tatarasuna as well as its people. It knew the human was a young man called Niwa, a person it had hoped to meet one day because Niwa seemed to accept its brother despite his nature. Tragically, even if it could leave the realm of dream, this idea was now impossible.
After the youth was finished recounting the tale, the two souls sat in silence for a while. One stuck re-experiencing the still fresh wound of betrayal, and one unsure how to comfort the person dearest to it.
”I’ve left Tatarasuna. I do not understand humans, I want to wander the land to learn more about them, and about myself. I will search for your body, maybe you can join me then?” He added after the silence had gotten so heavy it could be felt.
It smiled in response, full of renewed hope. ”I’d love that. Come visit again soon, brother.”
He left without saying anything further, but the doll knew he would be back, he would not abandon it too.
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As the silence dragged on and on in the ever unchanging prison, it found itself recalling the first time its brother had come to visit.
Long ago, after an eternity of stillness, the doll had felt a new presence in the garden. It had taken some time before he had wandered up to the cage, gasping once he saw the figure. He had been a fledgeling then, no more than half a year free from his own prison. He had been excited to find someone so much like himself, insisting they ”looked alike”. That day it had learnt of sight, and it has never stopped being curious about it since. The visit had been brief, but he had returned soon, each time with stories about the world, as well as things he had been taught by the humans. They shared a fondness for music, so he sang it cheerful melodies, telling tales of furnaces and warriors from foreign lands. These visits warmed the doll’s hollow form, they were its treasure.
So why had he not come back yet?
It was hard to perceive time in a realm like this, but each moment spent thinking made its worry grow. Had something happened? If he was hurt, there was nothing it could do. Its brother once told a story of a worker who fell off a ladder, spraining his ankle and as a result not being able to walk for a few days. Its brother had assured it that he was more durable than the humans, but durable did not mean indestructible.
The doll grabbed a glass ball, a gift it had received after the forging of a particularly impressive blade had taken place. The orb had a fractured pattern on the inside, causing light to bounce and reflect off of it in unique ways. It held the object up to the gentle light that flooded the realm, perceiving the beautiful flickers in order to distract it from its thoughts. Oh, how it hopes he will return soon.
When he returned, he had changed. Still a gentle soul, but the innocent affliction to his voice was long gone. He states that it has been many years since the last visit, and that he has not been able to locate its body. He had learnt much about both humans and them though.
First, he makes sure his sibling understands humans cannot be trusted. They’re weak, their livespans fleeting, and they give into greed too easily. He had once regarded the humans so fondly, so the seemingly sudden change leaves an odd ache in the doll’s chest.
Secondly, their purpose was to serve as prototypes in their ’creator’s’ search for eternity. They had been given form roughly 100 years ago, in the years after ’the cataclysm’. Luckily, it seemed unlikely the doll’s body, made to be a test to withstand erosion, would have decomposed so quickly on its own. It is either out there, or has been destroyed. As the doll has a soul, the former is most likely the case.
He promised to continue looking, apologising for not visiting sooner. The doll only shook its head in response, thanking him for coming back at all. In truth, it was scared of being left alone, so it did not want to make demands of its brother. It was unlikely anyone else knew of the doll’ existence, its creator probably did not anticipate it had gained sentience despite not being finished.
Thirdly, he told his sibling about a mysterious disease permeating through Yashiori island, and his plans to visit the place once again. He promised to return soon, bearing news of what the island was like now.
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It’s brother would keep his promise, returning only a few nights later. He had found a young boy with no parents left to care for him. He had felt bad for the child, seeing similarities between them, and decided to care for the child.
It is then that the nameless doll learnt that its brother was able to visit it through dreams, and since he was now living with the boy, he slept almost every night. Thus his visits increased back to a familiar level from his time in Tatarasuna. Its brother’s mood was also brightening, old wounds starting to heal.
The years the siblings had spent apart had not changed much in the end, which made the doll breathe out a sigh of relief. Change as a concept was something truly foreign to the realm it called its home now, and it was quite frankly scared of it.
They chatted about everything from the small boy to different foods. Turns out its brother was quite the cook, and it so desperately wanted to experience it all for itself too. Through the stories, it grew quite fond of the small boy as well.
Unfortunately, it soon became apparent that the boy was gravely ill, and the search for the doll’s body was put on hold until the child would be better. The doll agreed with this, sincerely wishing for the child to feel better. Both for the sake of the child himself, and its brother. However, knowing the fragility of humans it feared the worst.
Tragically, in the next few months the worst would come to pass.
It had been many weeks since its brother had once again stopped visiting with no explanation. Sorting through its now numerous gifts, it took a deep breath. An useless motion for an automaton, yet it helped soothe its mind somewhat. Mimicking humans made it feel more alive, despite being stuck in a place of dreams.
Once its brother returned, the indigo boy donned a name. Kunikuzushi, a title the nameless doll could vaguedly remember from one of its brother’s rambles about Kabuki theatre. Oblivious to the meaning of the name, it was happy for its brother.
One day it would earn an identity of its own too. One day it would be free.
Sadly there were no news about its body, only the tragedy that had unfolded many moons ago regarding the small child. It could not weep tears, but its nonexistent heart was still tearing apart. They stayed in silence for a while, before Kunikuzushi gave it a small bottle, containing a crystalfly.
He left without a proper goodbye, a sign it knew to mean he would not be gone too long.
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For the next hundred or so years they fell into a routine. A few times a week, Kunikuzushi would visit the doll, telling of his experiences while it eagerly listened to all of it.
As time went on, they grew closer. The nameless doll’s mind was sharper. It was able to quip back when they bantered. It could not read so instead it composed small melodies to hum. The doll had gotten much better at it, mainly thanks to its brother and his feedback.
Kunikuzushi on the other hand was getting mentally worse by the year. His hatred of gods and humans alike was growing with each new negative experience. He was convinced he was a being above humans, one ’not even gods dared to meddle with’. Though the doll knew nothing of the world, it still remembered the small fledgeling with fondness. It could not agree with its brothers pholosophy, but the doll kept quiet out of fear of upsetting Kunikuzushi.
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One day after being gone for a while once again, he entered the realm, donning a new outfit. The doll was oblivious to this fact, but the words spoken by its brother felt like a deep cut.
He had joined an organisation called ”the Fatui”, promising to unseal some ’latent power’ within him, as well as help him to get revenge on the blacksmiths that had thrown him aside at the first sign of trouble. He would not be able to return for some time, but he left a small cloth doll with his sibling to keep it company. When asked about it, its borther admitted the toy was apparently made in the image of one that had existed in the past. Sensing the reluctance Kunikuzushi was feeling, it did not press further.
After bidding farewell and good luck to the youth, the doll was left alone again. For the first time in a hundred years, it felt truly empty again.
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The doll spent most of its time asleep, emotional exhaustion lulling it to sleep for the first time in its life. To any onlooker, it surely looked nothing more like an abandoned marionette, completely still. It would not dream, it would not cry, it would not breathe. When awake, it would spend most of its time reminiscing on the memories of its time with Kunikuzushi. Slowly it began spending less and less time awake, having dragged its way back to the centre of its cage. After all, there were no visitors for it to be near to.
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One day, it woke up to feeling a familiar presence enter the realm. Kunikuzushi was back! It had been so long that the doll had started wondering if it dreamt up his whole existence. However, something seemed off. He walked up to the cage, but did not sit down as usual. Instead he began to talk, his voice frigid.
”…I’ve gotten back our– my birthright.”
While speaking, he had pulled out a glowing object from his pocket, a low and powerful hum filling the garden. It was a beautiful light, yet the doll felt afraid of it. The smell of ozone and sakura blooms permeated the realm.
Unnoticing of his sibling’s dostress, he continued: ”This is the Gnosis.”
He raised the light higher, pausing for a moment. The siblings both fixated their full attention on the pulsing light. Something about it felt off. Dangerous.
”Our mother had deemed me unfit for it. Ha, like I hadn’t been built for it.” He spat.
”With this, I’ll finally be able to fulfill my true purpose and ascend to godhood.”
His voice had an edge of madness to it now. The doll instinctively shuffled backwards, yet the boy was still too enamoured with the Gnosis to take offence.
”We were discarded. You weren’t even granted a complete form, and now slumber in an eternal realm. Ah, or perhaps this is the eternity she seeked in the end~”
His bitter laughter rang in its ears. Distressed, the doll felt the gnosis’ everpresent hum grow louder and louder in its ears. Fear overtaking its mind for the first time in centuries, it tried to reason with its brother.
”Brother, wait, this is not right!” It started.
Despite sensing Kunikuzushi’s displeasure, it felt compelled to continue. This was for his sake after all.
”What if you hurt yourself again? Please, that light is not meant for us-”
”SHUT UP” He snapped.
”You act as if you know anything when you’re just a failed prototype stuck in this hellhole. Even your lack of interest in the Gnosis is further proof of your failure”
Upon these words, the doll had fully retreated backwards. He had never been angry at it before. Did it go too far? It knew how important this was for him, but it was sure the ”Gnosis” was not what it seemed. Could he not perceive the hum?
Once more, the doll’s brother paid no mind to its distress
Anger still simmering in his voice, he continued lashing out.
”Ugh, why am I even debating this with you? YOU were not made to even hold the Gnosis, you’re nothing but a purposeless husk! Hah, no wonder you were left here to rot.”
The look of devastation was present on both their faces once he fell silent.
A moment passed. Then another. Instead of saying something, anything, to his sibling, he turned around and exited the realm without a word, leaving the doll to collect the broken pieces of its ”heart” on its own. It cried tearlessly for a long time. It was sure that this time, its brother would not return.
After it stopped, the realm fell into an endless silence.
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