NOCTURN BRIDE • genshin Impact | ✓

CHAPTER NINETEEN.

falling seemed to be a fascinating phenomenon that intrigued the apostle. the feeling of liberty and escapism, similar to freedom itself yet not quite.

falling in amidst of the sky as her thoughts drifted, and drifted along the skyline.

and stopped.

"hm? xiao~" the apostle hummed, laughing in delight with a dolce like breath; sweet and soft — that could put ordinary mortals into a hypnosis that entranced them into an everlasting slumber of desire — as the yaksha fleetingly floated in the air, using his anemo vision to safely land amongst a field of qingxin flowers, arms embracing the apostle with warmth. "what a grand entrance you made!"

"hmph, it seems that you haven't changed that demeanor of yours." xiao's golden iris illuminated, eyes carefully surveying the apostle before he let out a subtle sigh. "i've just heard from ganyu."

"oh? in that case that'll lessen the trouble~" hopping off the yaksha's arm, her delicate fingers slid across his pale porcelain cheeks. the apostle's eyes darted across, before getting greeted by her beloved marionette, ganyu. "so, how about we join forces?"

"do not judge me with your twisted ideas. i have decided to decline your offer." scoffing, the adepti couldn't help but stay loyal to rex lapis. he had sworn not to get involved between another revolution; as he could still hear them — their screams, their cries — demanding for more than death. "morax released me from the endless pain i've endured. and even if the connection between us is strong, how long do you think it would last?"

now, the apostle wanted to be selfish. she wanted to be selfish, she had to be selfish. why couldn't she have him? why why why? where did it go wrong, what did she do wrong? she wanted him, she needed him, she must have him. perhaps, in the views of others; the apostle would be deemed to be an unfit deity, holding an egocentric personality, unfit to the position of a pioneer.

but that was more of a reason why she wanted to be selfish.

"why are you going for such lengths to protect liyue?" the apostle, almost as if like a fragile petal, wilting almost instantaneously, a reaction that she portrayed wonderfully of sorrow. of course, her name wasn't a gambit dell'arte by name. in ran in her veins, naturally, a gifted actress like a jester. "why are you devoting your life to a city that doesn't even know who you are!"

and since it was her first time being selfish, she wanted to be greedy. the apostle wanted a little more, a little more, just a little more.

"morax lied to you xiao. he lied to us."

was it wrong for her to want something?

"what do you mean-" with an offended look plastered across his face, his eyebrows scrunched, frowning. he gave a gaze of untrusting, slightly puzzled with the apostle's statement of morax lying to him. it was impossible.

"he's alive." with a single sentence; no longer than two words, it was as if time had stopped for both ganyu and xiao. their master, someone that they devoted their lives to serve, to protect his city and people, lied to them? it held a sensation of drowning in despair, a pang of worthlessness as it felt that in morax's eyes, they weren't worth the truth.

"i'm sure he has a valid reason." a shaky, and unstable breath came from xiao. the apostle held back a grin, perfect, her taunts seemed to have aggravated his thoughts. glancing at his side, she saw ganyu, who seemed to hold a distant blank stare — as if she had anticipated for this to occur — yet she silently stood still, not disappointed, nor was she relieved. "i'm sure of it he must've had a reason-"

"that's because he doesn't need us!" further pressuring the yaksha, the dynamic of the apostle's voice raised, a firm crescendo as every words she said would strike with a timing that was right. "he doesn't need me, he doesn't need you, nor does he need ganyu."

"impossible- rex lapis would never-"

all she needed to do, was to make his mind adhere to her words.

"but he did." tear him apart, his sole, his hope and his one and only saviour. twist the words and use them as a backstabbing knife to rebel against rex lapis. "i dare say, he abandoned his people, his city, everything. just for... his selfish desires."

"then are you saying that we should destroy everything he had built?" ganyu spoke, a gentle voice strummed through the tense atmosphere. with a nimble and soft-spoken tone, she sighed. "although we had spent our lives protecting liyue."

"such an absurd thought-" the yaksha rebutted, initially, opposed against the idea of decimating the city. mortals, he didn't want to get involved with them. he didn't want them to suffer, he didn't want to kill them once more. "what sort of-"

now, listen to a tale! hush, once upon a time, the apostle had a wish. she had wished, she wished, and prayed every night — every passing second — that her revolution would come true. for the fall of teyvat to come forth.

"we won't obliterate liyue."

fortunately for the mortals, the apostle; like a princess, an elegant dame, was someone who spared mercy. of course she wouldn't want the filthy blood of impure creatures up her soul.

so the only thing she did was pray.

and pray.

and pray.

she would pray everlastingly, regardless on dirt or dust, she'd wish and hope for her comrades to fall into her simple allure of words.

"we simply won't protect it." drawing a fine line between destruction and protection, the apostle reached out her hand to the adepti, who seemed somewhat lost and disheartened.

she prayed.

it had to come true. there was no should or could. it must come true, an absolute command and statement. he must be hers.

"see me as a weapon." slowly nodding his head, it was as if the yaksha had acknowledged their temporary alliance of defying the fate written by archons. rather than being a fool to fate, the apostle would rather be a living corpse with her own free will. and she knew, that she wasn't the only one who wanted peace. "and nothing more."

and that was when she realised that her once upon a time, came true. all she had to do, was pray, over and over again; with those same words. day till night ever since she came back to life, she'd pray as if it became her religion of allure.

she'd pray, and pray, and pray. all over again.

she wished life hurt less than death.

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( CHAPTER XIX )