His most faithful friend died before his eyes years ago. After a time of bitter grief, the moment of coming to terms with this loss finally came, he even got rid of resentment towards the killer of a person so dear to him.
This autumn was unusually...
Far beyond the borders of Teyvat there were lands unknown, to which even Celestia's authority did not reach. Those places were ruled by completely different laws than the world we know. Death and life were so tightly interwined that the boundary between them completely ceased to exist. The Archons tried to forget that there is something else besides the seven nations. Therefore they never traveled outside of Teyvat and people who happened to end up there never ever came back. Because of this, no one knew what was hiding on distant lands until they disappeared from the memory of humanity.
But what made even the Archons pretend that their world ended with Teyvat? No one but them, not even their loved ones, knows the whole truth. The only things known are some of the facts from many years ago, when the Archon War was still going on. The Victorious Seven defeated the hostile deities in the fight for the terrain. Some of them were killed, and those who managed to avoid this fate left Teyvat, where they never returned.
"Something doesn't sit right with me in this story." Golden-haired head leaned over yelowed from old age journal cards. "Aren't they talking about the Dark Sea?"
A small figure sitting on a desk stopped consuming roast chicken and thought for a moment.
"Maybe exuberant imagination or common lack of knowledge? After all, it misses some of the facts"
His companion raised a gaze full of curiosity. The world in which he ended hid a lof of secrets, so any information could be useful for something.
"What do you have in mind, Paimon?" he asked, sitting in a chair. He was only supposed to take a look at the notes he found in Inazuma, but it looks like he is going to have a longer analysis.
"Don't you remember when we read A Drunkard's Tale? It was written about palaces in the wasteland, which are inhabited by Seelies."
Instead of admitting that she was right, Paimon was met only with the raised eyebrows of the interlocutor.
"As you stated yourself, these are drunkard's stories. Someone probably made it up."
At these words, his friend's face turned purple.
"And Paimon is convinced that this is true! Besides, there's also Enkanomiya and the Haar Islands! Or... Or Khaenri'ah! Ha! Paimon vs Aether, one to zero!"
The young man smiled slightly, though his heart trembled at the memory of the fallen nation.
"Enkanomiya is a bit far-fetched, but let it be, theoretically it counts as the Dark Sea."
"Not far-fetched at all! Uh... Maybe a little. No matter, read on! Paimon wants to know who wrote it and why!"
Aether grabbed the next piece of paper and began to read. The words on this page sounded completely different from the previous ones. Instead od resembling the introduction to a fairy tale, they were in the form of a diary.
I once wandered around the island of Watatsumi. The locals told me about a god who emerged from the Dark Sea and took care of their people. I wonder if he saw this place. If so, I'm not surprised that he returned to Teyvat.
Both friends exchanged communicative glances before returning to reading.
Raiden Shogun killed that god with her Musou no Hitotachi. What a tyrant.
"Paimon doesn't understand any of this." Paimon said, shaking her head. "That sounds like totally chaotic notes! And the next ones are almost impossible to read!"
The focused expression on her companion's face did not disappear even after he grabbed the last page. Indeed, the writing on it looked like it belonged to a madman or a child who was just learning letters. Still, Aether had no doubt that he would easily read the notes. Those weren't the worst difficulties he faced.
A long time ago I knew a wanderer. I don't remember his name. I don't remember my name either. But i know that if there is someone who has the courage to go to the Dark Sea, it's him. Im waiting. Maybe one day someone will come here. In the meantime, I will continue my work.
"It explains how the box with pages ended up on the shore of Watatsumi Island" Aether replied, leaning back in his chair. He was clearly toughtful, so Paimon did not speak, wanting not to distract him. "It was right on the beach next to Mouun Shrine, and that's the westernmost point of Inazuma. Hm..."
"Do you think the waves carried the box all the way out of the Dark Sea?" his companion was hardly surprising, but now she looked genuinely amazed. "But... Is this even possible?"
Aether got up and started to wander around his room in Teapot. His seriousness somewhat disturbed Paimon. The Dark Sea was beyond the control of the Archons and even Celestia itself. Who knows what dangers were hidden there? To travel around Teyvat is something else, but if it was a world so unknown that it could be the Abyss itself, and the evil Gods walked on it, then the vision of trying to reach it didn't sound too tempting to Paimon.
"We know that the barrier between Teyvat and the Dark Sea has recently been extremely unstable. Maybe the box was able to get through it thanks to this..."
"...And that means we could too." Paimon's sigh echoed from the walls of the painted in twilight room.
Aether turned to her with furrowed eyebrows.
"Excuse me? I'm not going to travel to the Dark Sea anytime soon."
"You aren't?" The face of the traveler's tiny companion again expressed sincere amazement. She has become accustomed to traveling wherever their legs can be carried. "So what are we doing?"
"Well, I think we'll contact a certain wanderer from Inazuma who may know more about it."
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Ya, I am publishing an english version of this fanfiction. The plan is simple - I am writing the text in Polish and my wonderful translator translates it into English.
Who is this translator? Well, Jaskier_kun! Thank you so much for your work. Great job, really 💜
