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There are many who have dedicated themselves to researching the world and figuring out its secrets. While some try to piece together the events of the past or experiment in their laboratory, others travel far and wide to uncover hidden information in old ruins and the like.
They all go to great lengths to finally reach their destination and it may well be that one or two researchers actually manage to dig up something new, earning themselves fame and attention.
But if you truly want to come close to understanding this world and its rules, you must first understand one very important principle:
Nothing lasts forever.
It took a long time for the Raiden Shogun to come to terms with the fact that it is impossible to make the world stand still for eternity. Life moves ever forward, and even a god as powerful as she could never hope to change that. While she meditated in her Plane of Euthymia, Inazuma changed without her knowledge, for she could not comprehend that her ideals only caused more harm than good.
Every living being will change over time. Be it gods, fellow immortals, humans, animals, or even the thousands and thousands of blades of grass, nothing will end the same as it started out in this world.
Because there is no such thing as stillness. The Raiden Shogun may have successfully resisted erosion, but she could not defend against the alteration of her memories.
Such is the inevitable truth. Even history is able to change. It could very well be that today it will be one thing and tomorrow another.
But history is important, as is the truth. And so, there exist different methods to prevent the true history from being completely forgotten forever. Because however wide-spread the changes are, with a little trick or two, the truth - or at least a back-up of it - can remain hidden.
The god of wisdom, for example, has a rather complicated way of doing things. She hides the truth in an allegory, which she hides in her own dreams. The latter might just be an extra precaution, though. After all, who knows whatever her close connection to Irminsul might entail.
Another example are the fine ladies of the Hexenzirkel. Their approach is quite similar, concealing that which is to be concealed inside a fairytale. If you are aware of this, it is no surprise that one of the first ever members used to be an author.
While both of these methods do sound impressive, it is nothing compared to that of the Anemo Archon. Being friends with the ladies of the Hexenzirkel means having access to all kinds of information, as Venti quickly found out. There are countless benefits from being the - even though self-proclaimed - gentlest among all gods, and when he treated the witches with kindness, he received kindness in return.
His method of preserving the true history might not be as detailed as the one of the ladies of the Hexenzirkel, but it might be the grandest, most spectacular and, dare he say, the best hidden one out of all. Because who would suspect an entire nation to be a secret hide-out of the truth?
It is rather obvious, really. He is the god of many things and concepts, after all, and people often forget to name one or two.
Wind, that goes without saying.
Freedom, the second most obvious of all.
Poetry, because everyone knows how much Barbatos loved this form of art.
Song, as it is so very similar to poetry.
Bards, since there were bards before the Mondstadt of today.
Dance, as song and dance always go hand in hand.
Alcohol or Drink, however you want to call it, as it goes well with every song.
But do not forget that he is the god of stories as well. Just as poetry is so close to song, the same is true for stories. Poetry is a story, as is a song, as are his nation and his people.
And so, without even knowing, his children are means through which the true history is preserved. The true history of every nation, except they do not inhabit the past but the present, for the present is a story as well, and every story is history.
At first, there is Amber, a most energetic child of his. She embodies Liyue, as she stays true to herself and her ambitions, just like Mondstadt’s neighbor, and both strive to prove themselves to the ones above.
To Amber, the ones above culminate in the Acting Grand Master, while to the people of Liyue, the one above is none other than Venti’s dear old friend, Rex Lapis himself. And so they both try their best to live up to the expectations their symbolic superiors have for them, whether they might actually exist or not is a different question.
Besides that, does Amber not have Liyuen blood in her veins? Is she not the best person in all of Mondstadt to embody the nation of Geo?
Next, there is Fischl, a girl who others might call strange. And while she indeed is, Venti sees nothing wrong with how she lives her life, because that‘s what his freedom is all about, is it not? To live their life to the fullest and how they see fit, do what they please, as long as it does not interfere with the freedom of others.
That is something Inazuma had yet to learn. But with time there is change, and so, too, is this nation, that used to be as closed off as Fischl used to be, on its best way to recovery. Every day, it’s a step closer to find a new ‘normal’, one that fits its culture and history, but that also sets new heights for its people’s spirits.
And though it might be only a small detail, Fischl loves to read novels just as much as the Inazuman’s.
After that, there is Lisa, one of the most mysterious children in all of Mondstadt. To Venti, at least. She possesses a great amount of knowledge but spends her time as a humble librarian, enjoying the simple things in life, like drinking tea and relaxing.
A lot.
And of course he knows about how she received her vision. He wouldn’t be the Anemo Archon if he didn’t. It is something that has puzzled him since the day it happened.
But the smarts she has been blessed with make her also the perfect candidate to act as Sumeru’s representative, if you will. She studied at the Akademiya, has strong ties to some of the people of this nation and used to be just as thirsty for knowledge as many other Sumerians today.
In this way, Lisa’s life embodies many different types of scholars. The one expecting to go to the Akademiya, the one willing to learn as much as possible, the one smart enough to experiment and research on their own, and the one who caught a glimpse of the dark side of knowledge. One who might’ve seen something they shouldn’t have.
Which, of course, is just a natural phenomenon. Everyone reacts to knowledge differently and especially the people of Sumeru are prone to experience the dark forces that loom in the mind.
Following, there is Mona, a child that cares more about the stars than the gods. She, who is a disciple of a member of the Hexenzirkel, is all about fate, which obviously makes her the best choice to preserve Fontaine. A nation bound by fate like no other, destined to meet a tragic and inevitable end.
While that seems to be the only string by which Mona and Fontaine are connected, there is a little more to the story than that. As the young woman struggles to live her life, trying to combine what is the natural course of society with the virtues of an astrologist, so, too, struggle the people of Fontaine with societal problems.
By no means is Mona poor, but it always seems that way since all her mora is used to buy the tools she needs for her profession. And just like that, Fontaine can not be seen as a poor nation, for it is filled with wealthy people. But let’s just say, in no other nation is the gap between rich and poor as big and wide as it is in Fontaine.
Nothing is as it seems, not in this nation and not with Mona.
Nor with the stars, but there are even less people who are aware of that.
Next, there is Bennett, probably the most unluckiest person in all of Teyvat. Born into a small group of Adventurers, who had given their very souls to make sure that he would survive. His parents, stripped away from him by the cold claws of death before they could even give him a name, and lost was the chance for a normal up bringing like most children had.
Away from the nation of his birth and without the so important connection to the Wayob, his life has been an endless series of unfortunate events, failures and near-death-experiences. With his bad luck, he is the personalization of the nation of war, which could also be declared to be Bennett in nation-form. After all, it certainly is the unluckiest of them all, if you only count the main seven.
Since its establishment it has been plagued by the Abyss the most, unable to free themselves from its angry claws. Destruction always looms in the shadows, as does death with the young boy. But both have the determination and will-power to live on, to not go down without a fight, and at best not even go down in the first place.
And both have learned the importance of celebrating what they have, for there could always come a day on which they loose it all. So they persevere, for that is all they want.
Following, there is Diluc, a child that has seemingly turned around completely. He started off as a sweet, energetic and pure boy and is now a man with a heart full of hatred and suffering. Such is the nation he represents, even though he would probably hate Venti for choosing him.
Snezhnaya is certainly not the easiest to measure. Just like Diluc, this nation has changed a lot and Venti has come to learn that this is the biggest difference between the two of them. He knows a lot about Diluc and barely anything about Snezhnaya. Because a nation always changes with its Archon. It always did and it always will.
Nevertheless, he knows there is no better option than Diluc. People have a collective idea of him, just as they do about Snezhnaya, and while those ideas are true, they do not cover the whole picture. There is so much more to both of their stories that it is impossible for a normal human to comprehend if not told directly.
Yes, Diluc is a fine gentleman, and yes, the Fatui that represent Snezhnaya to the outside world are mostly not the friendliest bunch. But in the shadows, both factions work on important projects. One is the Darknight Hero, the other collects the Gnoses for an unknown reason.
Last but not least, there is Kaeya, a lost soul that Venti could never come to regret adopting into his nation. He knew of his presence the moment he and his father stepped over the border, and when he first met this sweet child he made a promise to himself that he would never abandon him.
Not because he saw in him a chance to make amends. No. He knew that he could never make amends for what he and the other Archons had done. It was because he could see the future in those sparkling eyes.
Eyes full of wonder for this beautiful city.
Those eyes have lost its spark now. But Venti remains hopeful. This man is the living proof that there is a possibility for humankind to thrive again. Not that he needs any proof, not after seeing of what the fourth descender is capable of, but it is a nice reminder to have and not loose hope.
Because for what other reason could a child of Khaenri’ah have been brought to the nation of freedom if not to take his place as representative of his homeland?
Whenever Venti thinks of this, he can’t help but smile. All things considered, the future doesn’t look too bad.