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Life in Snezhnaya—and Teyvat in general—has been peaceful for the last 50 years. The Tsaritsa has stepped down, with then Mayor Pulcinella now ruling as its leader. He has since abolished the Fatui and created the Parliament.
As for Ajax, formerly known as Tartaglia of the Eleven Harbingers, his life has grown to become uneventful. That is: being at the ripe age of seventy, with eyes that glisten nowadays with unspoken mischief. He may have long been past his days of being an elite vanguard, yet his every stride still carries the confidence of one that has mastered the art of combat.
Of all the feats that he managed to pull off in the entirety of his life, this is the one that surprises him the most. Ever since he fell into the Abyss, he has acquiesced himself to the idea that he did not have long to live. To die in the heat of battle was the only future he could see for himself.
After all, who would have thought that the inheritor of the Foul Legacy would live to settle down, let alone see his own children grow right in front of his eyes? Certainly not him.
(The world does move in mysterious ways.)
Speaking of mysteries… he would find himself looking up towards the sky more often. While he has always loved the night sky, he would gaze at it for extended periods of time. As though he was desperately searching for something within among the expanse of the stars.
Another one that he could not seem to fathom is how a lone flower would flood him with a rare kind of loneliness, bordering on grief.
Resting on the palm of his hand is an Inteyvat, the national flower of Khaenri’ah. A relic from a forgotten nation, a flower that has not aged a day in his eyes. Even after all these years, nobody could answer how such an artifact came into his possession. Not even himself.
All he knew was that this Inteyvat on his hand signified deep mourning.
Through mist-filled eyes, the night sky looked especially charming. He was seeing it like never before. The reminder that he is but a speck in the vastness of it all soothed his weary soul. He felt the stars call out him, beckon him to cast aside everything and become part of it.
As the last teardrop rolled across his cheeks, he felt himself embracing that eternal paradise.
🌙
She is now but a shell of how she used to be.
Her body has long faded, scattered across space and time. Yet a piece of her remained firmly lodged on a tiny star within the skies of Teyvat, a guardian watching over the planet she had once saved from the brink of destruction. A world that she truly held dear, even at the cost of her own life.
This was how this tiny star, once known as Lumine, witnessed the one she loved most leave the world of the living. He may have forgotten she existed, but his memory would always be the one she held on most steadfastly all this time.
Never once had she regretted her decision of making him forget, of making the whole world forget—even when it meant never getting to live out the dream they promised to each other. Even when he would always fall out of reach. As long as he lived and died peacefully, it was enough for her.
🌙
Fifty years ago
Teyvat had reached a point of no return.
It turned out that the Heavenly Principles, the supposed creator and savior of humanity, had been the one to have inflicted the curse of corruption on Teyvat. An abomination so great that not even the combined powers of the Third Descender, the divine beings and even Aether can annihilate to the ground. The casualties were innumerable, and almost everyone was on the last vestiges of life.
In Lumine’s eyes, only one option stood a chance in turning the tide in this great war with the heavens.
“Absolutely not!”
Ajax was livid. Lumine had never seen this kind of reaction stem out from him, and especially not on her behalf.
Lumine started to explain. “Listen—”
He stood up, his fingers tightly curled into tight fists against the wooden table. Everyone in that small manor somewhere in Liyue—one of the last safe houses—dared not make a sound.
“Absolutely not.” He started pacing across the small room. “There has to be another way, Lu.” He gestured to the people with them, comprised mainly of the Archons, the Hexenzirkel mages, Neuvillette and Columbina, as well the remaining Harbingers Sandrone and Arlecchino. “We still have enough power among us to take Phanes on. Hell, I can even fight him face to face if you want.”
More silence ensued among the occupants in the room. Everyone knew just how dire the current situation was.
After a few more tense moments, he stopped moving. Took a deep breath and asked, “Does Aether know?”
Lumine could only nod. “Yes. We both agreed that this is the only way.”
The meeting went on for another hour before wrapping up. Tomorrow would be the day to ultimately decide the fate of Teyvat once and for all, and everyone went upstairs to rest. Almost everyone, that is—except Childe and Lumine.
Lumine was firmly rooted on their seat, but sitting near the fireplace did so little in making her comfortable. The tension in the air remained thick with no signs of abating. Ajax did not react once after his initial burst of rage, but neither did he spare a single look at Lumine throughout the whole meeting. In fact, he would immediately look away the second their eyes met.
The fact that their standoff was happening at a time where even the ground they stood on was also at stake felt especially hurtful. Lumine had always known that this desperate gamble of a plan would be met with some kind of resistance from Ajax. Still, a part of her expected him of all people to understand the reason behind her actions on such circumstances, as someone who faced death one too many times.
At this point, Lumine would very much rather take on the fiery and tempestuous fires of his rage than the scathing waves of indifference emitting from him right now.
“Come with me.”
Ajax was suddenly in front of her. Lumine had to consciously blink lest she was seeing it all in her head. When she fully got her bearings he was already walking towards the door. She followed suit.
Lumine had never been more thankful for having a moon goddess as an ally, for she had been the one ensuring that this safe house remained untouched. Columbina’s frequent trips to the Frost Moon allowed her to master the Lunar Veil technology invented by the dragons and completely conceal this place from the watchful eyes of the Heavenly Principles. The entrance was also cleverly hidden among the dense greenery, with hidden traps that were carefully maintained by Sandrone.
Columbina also added some lovely touches like a small lake on the back of the manor that reflected the stars from above, as well as Teardrops of the Moon and Nod-Krai’s Moonfall Silver that added an otherworldly glow to the place. She also made sure that there would be an unfettered view of the night sky from the back porch.
Ajax was already seated on top of the steps. For a moment, Lumine’s heart was relieved of the all too familiar dread that accompanied her as of late. Right now, her world was limited to her, him, and this last piece of sanctuary.
His head was atop her shoulder the moment she sat down beside him. Then, drops of moisture touching her skin and arms circling her waist. Lumine instantly turned to face Ajax and hugged him tightly. There was no need for words—the way their skin seemed to meld together in that tight embrace was more than enough to convey their deep yearning for each other.
I love you.
Don’t go.
Let us stay like this forever.
An indeterminate amount of time passed before they were finally able to let go of each other. Even then their fingers remained linked and their bodies faced one another.
Ajax was the first one to speak. “I am sorry, Lumine.” He cupped her chin and tipped her face towards his. “It’s our last night together and I should be making the most of it.”
Lumine simply shook her head. “You had every right to be angry.” She gently stroked his tear-stained cheeks. “Thank you for loving me the way you do.”
“Even if I forget, know that my heart will always love you.” He brushed a kiss on her forehead. “You’re all I’ve ever wanted, Lu.”
“Me too.”
Lumine gazed deeply into his eyes. Where others could only look to as endless pools of darkness, Lumine saw as a testament of survival from the horrors that had befallen and had never left since. This was why she had to do what she needed to do. So that his eyes can see true light once more.
Lumine’s head turned to face the lake, then back at Ajax.
“You know, a dip in the lake sounds good right about now.”
A whisper of a twinkle flashed across his dark eyes. A slow smile spread across his face, highlighting the more boyish side of his features. “Race you to the middle of the lake?” And then they were sprinting, making a mad dash to the imaginary finish line and laughing and splashing each other along the way.
The kiss that they shared as their bodies crashed into each other in the center of the beautiful lake encapsulated the exhilarating mix of passion and melancholy that defined their romance. The way their relationship withstood the impossible circumstances they found themselves in never ceased to amaze the people around them and even themselves. Along with it came a desperate, silent plea to the powers that may be that they can weather this storm together one last time, and come out victorious.
As for right now, however, only Ajax and Lumine mattered.
—
The sun was barely peeking through the clouds when the team started to put the plan into motion. Nahida would venture into Aaru and collect every strand of memory that every person in Teyvat had of the Traveler. Mavuika would do the same inside the Night Kingdom. Columbina and Neuvillette would be taking care of the portions that could not be covered by the two Archons. The remaining mages of the Hexenzirkel—Alice, Nicole, and Mona (the successor to the deceased Barbeloth) would guard Teyvat’s borders so that no one can enter or exit Teyvat. Aether and Lumine would be the ones facing the Heavenly Principles head-on, and the others including Ajax will be distracting the shades.
At Aether’s signal, Nahida, Mavuika, Mavuika and Neuvillette will erase the people’s memories of the Traveler.
“Promise me you will give it your all.” Ajax was clutching the Inteyvat that Lumine had given to him the night before.
Lumine placed her hand over his.
“See you on the other side.”
—
Lumine’s last memory of that was of her twin stabbing her through the heart with her sword, the Lumenforge. The only weapon powerful enough to break her into a million pieces and disintegrate the Abyssal corruption she had absorbed from Phanes along with it.
She knew that people would only see blinding light and people of Teyvat seeing the true sky for the very first time. That was how most people would perceive a dying star. By this time, Nahida and Mavuika would already have deleted her existence from Teyvat. Even Aether would not be immune to the memory, given that he was also considered to be part of that world. And certainly not Ajax.
As the parts of her started to dissipate across space and time, she all had but one wish:
May Ajax’s eyes see the light of day again.
🌙
“Ajax is the bestest big brother in the whole world!”
All those in audience in Ajax’s funeral could not help but laugh through their tears upon hearing those words from Tonia, the youngest girl in the Alexandrov kin. Even as she is pushing towards sixty, some things would never change between her and her favorite big brother. Ajax may have been many names to many people, but to Tonia, he will always be the one who would spoil her the most.
Contrary to Snezhnayan tradition, Ajax requested to be cremated along with the Inteyvat that he always had with him. Tonia never once questioned why—and neither does she want to. Her brother would make the saddest expression known to man whenever they would come close to broaching that topic, so she just let him keep that little secret.
By chance, Tonia looked up at the sky while her brother’s ashes were being scattered by the wind. Maybe her eyes are playing tricks on her, but she swore she saw a tiny star shine extra bright before going out.
Whatever that may have been, the sight filled her with a sense of relief.
At least her brother will not be going to the afterlife alone.
-end-