Genshin Impact - No. 12 of the Harbingers

Ch. 3 - The Fall of an Archon

When I woke up, the sun was already high in the sky, birds singing their songs as the busy streets of Liyue were filled with people, excited for today's festivities.
Right. Today, the Rite of Descension would take place, and Rex Lapis would be coming down, but unlike the other years, I wasn't going. I just didn't feel like it, and besides, I was going to hang out with Tartaglia.
That was at least what I hoped for, but when I couldn't find him anywhere, I gave up on that too. Guess he had work to do. How annoying, he always had important things to do and just when I wanted to get away from all the busy streets in Liyue, he wasn't here to take me out somewhere. Stupid redhead and his shitty Fatui work...

Although, what he had proposed yesterday was still going through my mind. If I'd start working for the Fatui, I could spend more time with him...then again, the thought of leaving the comfort of Liyue and the pharmacy, it was something I didn't want to do. Letting out a sigh, I pushed that thought to the back of my mind, and passed by Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, my eyes falling on Hu Tao, who was currently talking with...yeah, had to be Zhongli.
Should I go and ask him some stuff about himself?
Nah. Hell no. Not in a million years. That would be awkward. I ignored any further commotion, and made my way up the hill, staring at the open ocean and into the distance. It was quiet today unlike other days. Everybody was gathered at one spot, so not too much noise from the usually busy streets. From where I was standing, I could see Ningguang making some last-minute preparations, while talking to two weird looking girls which I'd never seen before, one with blue hair and red horns, the other with purple hair. I assumed they must be working for Ningguang, and scanned the crowd, laying my eyes upon a certain blonde.

It was none other then the mysterious Traveler, Aether. Baizhu had told me about him a few days ago, he'd arrived in Liyue to see the Rite of Descension, but there wasn't much known about him since he had just gotten here. A little weird thing was accompanying him, with white hair and weird clothes, just like the outlander. Huh. Interesting. I eyeballed other people, but found no-one else that piqued my interest, so without much to do, I set off to somewhere, I didn't have a place in mind, but at least I'd end up in a nice and peaceful place, maybe fight some hilichurls...the usual.

I ended up somewhere completely random not far from the city, and as I was wandering around, I could hear some thundering from the city. Turning around, I watched as something fell out of the sky at an alarming speed, shaking the whole ground as it fell. My mind was still processing what I had just witnessed, and without thinking, I started sprinting back to city, my legs working by themselves. What in the name of all the Archons has just happened? I ran until I reached the cliff nearby the city, and I had to look twice to make sure I was dreaming, I even pinched myself, hard.
But I wasn't. Unfortunately. The sight before me left me cold, and I was repeating the same question in my mind 'How? Who did this?'
as I watched Ningguang panic, shouting orders to the Milleilith as the crowd backed away from the scene.

What had unfolded before my very own eyes, was an undescribable happening;

It was none other then Rex Lapis. The dragon had crashed down from the skies in the middle of the crowd, breaking all the ornaments and offerings that had been set there for him. The Archon's body was laying there, unmoving, making everyone panic. The Milleilith were now asking questions around, and I saw the Traveler sneaking away with his floating companion, so once again, my legs started moving before I could think. When I arrived at where he was, I could see he was surrounded by soldiers, and right before I went in to attack, guess who showed up?

Childe.

"Hold still Traveler" He knocked them out at a speed you wouldn't expect from a normal human being, and then pulled the seemingly confused blonde down the stairs, waving to me
"Hey comrade, lets get to a safer place, they're gonna come by any minute now!" He said, a grin plastered across his face.
With no choice left, I ran after them until we arrived at the Northland Bank, where we went inside, and then Tartaglia let out a small laugh
"Quite wild wasn't it?"
I smacked the back of his neck, nearly punching him in the face.

"You idiot, you could've gotten us into a lot of damn trouble, you know that!"
Aether was watching the two of us, or better yet, me argue with Childe, until the redhead turned to him "So, we haven't made aquintance yet, I am Tartaglia, or as my friends like to call me, Childe. And the guy over here is Alex, one of my best d-"

*Smack*

I hit him once again, gazing at the blonde "Thank you jerk, but I can introduce myself. Now, what do you need?" After some time, Aether had explained the whole story to us and why he was here, and when he finished, I did feel a bit of sympathy for him. He was from another world, and he had lost his sister, now embarking on a journey to find the Seven Archons and try to get her back. I crossed my arms, and sighed
"Well, that kind of sounds serious. But now that..."
Even saying that the Geo Archon was dead was a hard think to say out loud. It couldn't be. Gods didn't die, right? Yet I had witnessed the god of our nation perish away.
"Well, now that he isn't here anymore, it's gonna be quite hard to get some information regarding your problem"
Childe interrupted me with a small cough "If you don't mind Traveler, I have...a certain friend that might be able to help you, and I am sure that my comrade here could provide us with some information"
"Me?"
"No-one else here is worthy enough to be called 'my comrade' except for you, so of course I am referring to you, comrade"
I rolled my eyes in a sarcastic manner, and looked back at Aether as Tartaglia started speaking again

"So, let's meet up at Liyue Pavilion tonight, and we'll talk there. Oh, and don't worry about bringing any Mora, I'll pay! We'll have an business dinner, and at the end of it, we'll see how we can help you. See you two tonight then!" Tartaglia smiled and left the bank with a cheeky smile, leaving me and Aether plus that floaty thing alone. Bubbling with questions, I exited the Northland Bank along with the two of them, and started heading for Bubu Pharmacy

"What's with the little floating thing next to you?"

"Hey, I'm not a floating thing, I'm Paimon!"

"Okay sorry, didn't mean to offend you"
Aether laughed at the conversation between me and his traveling companion, and started telling me how he had come here, he had fallen from the sky, and he'd saved Paimon, and after some time they had gone to Mondstadt to look for help. The mention of the city where I was born stung me a little, but I didn't show any of that to him

"If you've been there you surely have met Wilson, my older brother"
The blonde nodded, but before he could speak, Paimon started making remarks on him.
"Yeah, I remember that guy, he's working in the Tavern all the time and he's also a Knight of Favonius!. Diluc introduced him to us when we were at the Winery. He was just like master Diluc actually, he didn't even smile..weird resemblance, but now that I look closer you really look alike!"
While Paimon kept on rambling, I started a small conversation with Aether, and shortly after we arrived at the pharmacy. Baizhu and Qiqi were nowhere to be seen, so I assumed they had left off to help some people, I showed Aether and Paimon around the pharmacy and my room, and before we knew it, it was already time to leave for Liyue Pavilion. For the occasion, I changed into some fancier clothes, and then left off with my two companions, giving them a bit more of information about random buildings we saw as we walked.
Once we had arrived at the Pavilion, I saw Childe waiting for us, waving at both me and Aether as we came closer
"Took you some time! Alright then, lets head in so you can meet my friend"

He led us inside, and I nearly froze in place when I saw who was sitting at the table, currently consuming some Bamboo-Shoot soup, watching as Aether and Tartaglia sat down.

It was Zhongli, the Wangsheng Funeral consultant. Wow. This was a bit awkward. With no other choices left then to be polite, I sat down next to Childe, trying to stop my hands from trembling so much as Zhongli put his bowl aside, smiling

"Since everyone is here, lets discuss the matter at hand, shall we?"