Chapter Text
A grand staircase rose up the side of the mountain, at times disappearing within the stone, then reappearing again higher, snaking and climbing up and up and up towards the clouds. The first steps, where everything was still clearly visible from the ground level below, was a popular spot: both as a tourist attraction and as a meeting spot. People would come here to sit on the stairs to catch up with friends, climb higher to wonder at the scenery over the rooftops of the city all the way to the sea, or take out their Kamera for a commemorative shot. This was an excellent spot for a meetup, anytime at any day of the year, because no matter the weather further away was, it never rained near this mountain.
Where the stairs then for the first time disappeared within the mountain, there was a giant gate, guarded by the millelith. That was as high as the people were allowed to go. Only the appointed guards and on special occasions the Liyue Qixing themselves ever ventured behind those tall and heavy stone gates. Because beyond them, was a domain no human or other race was allowed to enter, without the permission from the Qixing. The stairs eventually led all the way to the top of this nigh unclimbable mountain. Unless someone could have flown all the way into the clouds or climbed up the near vertical walls up that high, this was the only way to reach the peak.
The God’s Reach. That was the name of this place. One of the defining landmarks of Liyue.
On the same square where all the tourists and locals flocked, was also a temple. People, no matter the reason for their visit, would often stop by this temple or just on stairs to pray. Because this was the closest the people could ever get to the divine that once laid claim upon these lands. On the top of this mountain, was the residence of their Archon. The Lord of Geo. The God of Contracts, Commerce and Wealth. The ancient ruler and king who had been there when the first houses had been built and the first fields tilled on these lands. The one who had taught and led the people through millennia, protecting them from calamities and strifes. The one who had made the prosperity and peace people enjoyed today possible.
The righteous and steadfast deity, watching over their city from above to this day.
Lumine was afraid.
She made certain to not show it on her face, for the sake of her family’s reputation. She had agreed to this, she had to remind herself. She had stood before her parents when they had overjoyed and celebrated, and never once had she opened her mouth to refuse. No. Never publicly, or in front of them. She was an honoured choice. The lucky maiden. She would get to meet and see their god above, which was one of the highest privileges any Liyuan could be granted.
This was not a sacrifice.
But now that she stood here before these stairs that she too had hanged out at or climbed casually many times in her life, suddenly even the first step was difficult to take. The point of no return, she realised, had truly passed. Step by step, the people she loved were getting further and further away. She could not turn back to look. Perhaps that was what she was most afraid of: seeing their faces one last time. Because she knew she would waver, when she wasn’t allowed to.
Because this was an honour.
Higher and higher, above the walls of the plaza and the roofs of the city around. The scenery must have been lovely up this high already. And this was only the beginning of her ascend.
People still cheered below. Her feet shifted against the next stone steps and she found herself biting her lips together to keep up a brave face. Deep down, she wished she had listened to Aether this morning.
.
“Lumine, there’s still time,” Aether said, desperate to have her reconsider one last time. “If we go now, there is still time to hide you somewhere for a time. I’ll help you get out of the city. We could go travelling together. We could go back to Mondstadt to our friends to live there for a time until everything blows over. I know they would help hide us!”
Lumine bit her teeth in frustration. “Aether, no. …It’s too late. I can’t back out now, you know that. If I could, I would have needed to do that ages ago.”
“But this is wrong!” her brother shouted, angrier and sadder when she refused to respond to the pull he had on her arm. She stood firmly by the full-body mirrors giving her a sight of herself from every angle, digging her heels into the floor when Aether tried to get her to move. “If we just talked to mother and father—”
“Stop!” Lumine snapped, getting frustrated herself. “You know how they feel. You know how much this means to them! I can never forget the looks on their faces when I was chosen. If I ran away, our family would never live it down. People would stone us out of the city in the worst case for ruining this day. You know I cannot do that to them! Or to you!”
“I don’t care about me: I care about you!” Aether argued. “This isn’t right. Lumine, I… I don’t want to lose you. Don’t… make me say goodbye.”
Lumine turned away and gnawed at her bottom lip, her nervousness leaking through. “Maybe it’s not a goodbye… Maybe I can… come back one day. Maybe he’ll let me go…”
“And by then: what?!” Aether’s anger exploded now and he grabbed the frame of one of the mirrors, shoving it out of the way of his frustration with all his might. The sound of shattering glass echoed along his words. “What will be left of you?! He is a god! You expect him to be gentle or think how you might feel?! What does he care?! He’ll just do whatever he wants and leave you to gather dust alongside all the other trinkets he's given!”
“Shut up!” Lumine screamed and covered her ears. “Shut up! You’re not helping… You’re not helping, Aether! Leave me alone… I have to do this. I can’t back out of this now! Don’t… make it worse. Please… You’re scaring me… At least… At least let me keep believing it’ll not be so bad. Please. Please.”
.
The stone doors opened.
Beyond this, she had never gone. Very few people ever did. Once a week, the people’s offerings and gifts to their god would be delivered up by the chosen two soldiers. At the cusp of a new year, and on some special occasions like the selection of a new member, the Qixing would also make a visit. But for someone like Lumine, everything beyond this was new ground.
The doors closed.
“This way, miss Lumine.” one of the two millelith officers with her directed her forwards the short, gently lit corridor. “This lift will take us up the next portion of the way.”
Lumine… Lumine repeated her own name in her head as her feet took her forward and she stayed silent. I wonder if he’ll ever even call me by my name. Maybe… maybe these men I don’t know will be the last people to ever call me that. Or the last who will ever even see me…
She wondered would her parents miss her, now that the deed was done and the long wait over. They had come by before Aether in the morning, while her preparations were still underway. Even now, inside the layers of cold stone, Lumine could remember the warmth of her mother’s arms around her.
.
“I am so proud of you,” her mother whispered into her ear, holding her tightly. “You did so well this past year. I know it was hard at times, but I always knew you could do it. Oh, my sweet baby girl… I can’t believe the day has finally come.”
Lumine smiled cautiously, trying to share a portion of her parent’s enthusiasm, and hugged her back. “Mother, don’t make me cry now. You won’t believe how long it took them to get this make-up right. We’ll be late for the ceremony if we get it smudged at this point.”
Her mother took a step back and her hands slipped down Lumine’s arms from her shoulders until she could clasp her daughter’s hands tightly in her own. “Right… We cannot let anything go wrong now. Oh Lumine, you look absolutely beautiful.” She looked up and down the layered, white, long hem and billowing sleeves of her gown. “Everything will be alright, dear. I know you will accomplish everything perfectly.”
“Just don’t trip on the hem or get too feisty when climbing the stairs,” Lumine’s father chimed in with a satisfied smile on his lips as well. “We can’t have the special girl all sweaty and her clothes messed up when meeting with a god.”
“Father, please don’t say that,” Lumine hid her actual anxiety behind a little laugh. “You’ll just get me nervous.”
“Lumine,” her mother brought their arms up and her father joined in, cupping his hands over both of theirs. “I know this is a big day and huge change for you. Whatever happens, always remember that we love you, very much.”
“It’s hard to imagine the little girl who talked about becoming a warrior who would fight off evil dragons and monsters growing up, could now look so delicate and refined on her special day.”
Lumine groaned. “Father…” she protested, making her parents laugh. To not disappoint them, she had laughed with them.
.
Climbing up the second set of stairs was harder than the first. Not only because of the realisation and doubts that weighed her mind, but also because she soon felt the strain of the climb in her muscles. The millelith with her were understanding, thankfully, and she could take it slow. She was in good physical shape, her training had made sure of that, but this was quite different from dance practice. And her gown, as lovely as it was on her, and especially the shoes with their little heels, were not suited for this type of exercise. Lumine wished she could have taken off her shoes and walked barefoot, but that would have been extremely disrespectful. She would know. Everything from religious and sacred to the forbidden when facing the divine had been hammered into her head as part of her training. They were already past the great stone gate and thus, already in the domain of the Geo Archon. Even the floor she walked on belonged to the god.
Technically… Lumine sighed, masking it as exhaustion to her guards, who once against stopped to wait for her and offered her some water when she stopped. Shaking her head at the offered drink, Lumine looked up the stairs, towards the summit she couldn’t see. Technically, I belong to him too already, don’t I?
That too, had been hammered into her head over and over and over again for the past year.
.
The 499th anniversary of the New Order had approached. The all-important date they celebrated every year, to commemorate the Old World that had been left behind in the wake of the Great Calamity. The New Order Festival was a world-wide event that every nation shared: a day where tales of old were told in song and dance, families came together to celebrate both their oldest roots and newest sprouts, cities and villages alike came to life at night with lights that honoured the lives that were lost, and the gods watching over their people were prayed to and received gifts to thank them for the present day and another year.
But that year, the Qixing of Liyue had been struggling with a conundrum. Not the present festival, but the next. The 500th anniversary, still a year ahead. The event needed to be grand: larger and mightier than any in the past.
And the gift sent up to their god needed to be more special than ever.
“Company,” a member of the Qixing had said, his voice certain of the idea. “Our god spends all of his time alone, watching over us mortals below. Surely the most special gift we could give him, is someone to share the special day with.”
And after a rigorous screening process for suitable candidates, a knock on the door of their home had changed Lumine's life forever.
Her family was of minor noble birth, having risen to their status originally through valiant service in the military, but then expanded to business to increase their family’s wealth and standing within the social hierarchy. Because of the recent struggles with their business, the wealth, fame and glory offered to her parents in exchange for Lumine’s selection as the honoured maiden, had been enough to instantly raise her family to the uppermost echelons of the city. She had been perfect: young, fair, untouched and gifted. She had noble roots, but didn’t come from a so well-known family that people would have complained about the fairness of the selection or favouritism.
Not that many people knew. Because they all had a very difficult job ahead of them for the next eleven months: keeping a secret from their god. His gift needed to be a surprise. He must not suspect the true nature of this special gift on the very special day.
After her parents had accepted, in secret, Lumine had been trained. In etiquette. Arts. Dance. Calligraphy. Music. All the usual things expected from all the high noble ladies.
Except, there was a difference. A stark difference between Lumine and the rest. A difference that had her train while both awake and asleep. She was taught like no one else. Taught things that were taught to no one else. Day in and day out, someone would be by her side: watching, monitoring and correcting her behaviour whenever she made a mistake.
A mistake that, if allowed to happen, would cost her her life.
.
Another, shorter elevator ride later, the next climb up the stairs snaked up the mountain side, inside a pentice carved straight from the stone itself. Lumine had never been this high up in her life. Despite her fears or tiredness, she could not not stop to look at the view many times in awe. Luckily, her escorts were once again understanding. The city spread under her feet, stretching far and yet all of its sides were in her line of sight. The sea glimmered in the sun and she saw the ships docking for a rest or leaving, on their way to new adventures. Their capital city that was by all parameters giant, felt so little when looking from up here.
And still they would go higher.
The air around them shimmered and Lumine could see where the fast winds of this height hit an invisible wall outside the pillars and the railing that protect them from falling. Only a small, gentle breeze made it through. It should have been much colder up this high and perhaps already even harder to breathe, although Lumine did not know for certain when that usually started, although she had heard of that phenomenon.
But this mountain was sacred: protected against the unforgiving natural laws. It had been raised from the ground in the wake of the great calamity that had collapsed the old mountains that had surrounded and sheltered the harbour for eons. This new mountain was the mark of victory for the people of Liyue: reminder of how the Great Calamity had been quelled, 500 years ago to date.
.
The world ended that year.
Mountains were torn asunder. The earth moaned under the bodies of the dead. The seas broke out of their confines. Fire rained down from the sky. Monsters ravaged the lands, tearing families and family members apart. Forests bent down to the winds. Life was frozen to the ground, abandoned. Dust filled the air until nothing living could gasp for a breath without being reminded of the stench and disease all around them.
Nations as they were collapsed and the Old World ceased to exist.
That year, the gods prayed.
And the heavens answered.
The strength of the Seven stabilized what was left of the world. The survivors raised their heads from the ruins of the past and were greeted by the light of the sun.
A gentle breeze.
A still earth.
Calm skies.
Verdant fields.
Gentle waves.
A warming fire.
And a promise of rest.
The heavens descended upon the earth and leant the gods their might to save the world.
And a New Order was formed.
.
“We’re here, miss Lumine.” Her escorts stopped her at the foot of the final stairs before an open stone arch. “I am sure you know, but I must remind you of the rules.”
The mountain before them transformed from a natural looking structure into a smooth, curving wall that almost pierced the clouds. They had climbed so far… Whoever was down below still, had no way of seeing them all the way up here. Standing here now, Lumine was happy she had taken the few moments before to look down at the city below. Once she would walk past these walls, she wasn’t sure if she would ever walk back the other way again.
“After we pass that arch, the Vow will be in full effect,” the millelith spoke still.
Of course, they need not remind her of the specifics. She knew. She knew all too well what would happen if she made a mistake.
In the old world, many gods had lived side by side with their people, mingling with them freely and overseeing many troubles firsthand. It must have been wonderous, Lumine had thought many times. It sounded like fantasy story: where gods walked the earth and humans brandished the powers of the elements as their own. But as a price for the power the heavens had gifted to the gods to stop the Great Calamity 500 years ago, things had changed. Now, their god lived far away from the people, up on his mountain raised specifically for one purpose:
Mortals were no longer allowed to speak in the presence of gods.
It was the same in all nations, only the methods of separating the gods from their people varying around the world. Lumine didn’t know all too well what those methods were. It was enough for her to know the rules directly in front of her.
This was why she had been trained both day and night for eleven months.
Why she had never taken classes that involved singing or speaking.
Why she had been trained to never talk back or ask questions.
Why someone had woken her up immediately if she mumbled in her sleep.
Why she had been trained to receive both pleasure and pain without making a sound.
Because once she would step past this arch, she was never allowed to speak again.
Because that was the Vow of Silence.
“Is there anything you would like to say, before we continue?”
Lumine paused for a moment and then shook her head. If she was allowed to never speak again in her life, she did not want her last word to be “no”. She much preferred the “see you, some day” she had whispered to her brother before the start of the ceremony.
With her decision, she was led up towards the arch. Lumine managed to take her deep breaths in preparation, when they suddenly got stuck in her throat in silent surprise. She was glad she had been trained to take in surprises and scares so well, otherwise she would have already broken the Vow, when a flash of green through the air materialized into a person, who now stood still a few steps above them.
The millelith immediately stopped and bowed deeply. Lumine followed their example and curtseyed as well as she could on the stairs. She could guess who this was, but seeing him was nevertheless causing her heart to beat faster in anticipation of what would happen.
The Conqueror of Demons. One of the illuminated guardians.
The short man with dark and green hair and very old, traditional clothes stood silently before them. Lumine was uncertain if the illuminated guardians could even talk, although surely, they had some way to communicate. Maybe just not with humans. With the power from the heavens, the followers of the Geo Archon had obtained power beyond all other warriors. They no longer needed sleep nor food, and could perform their duties without taking breaks. Lumine knew of three illuminated guardians by name and although she knew there were more, she did not know what their tasks were. The Conqueror of Demons was warrior, watching over the safety of Liyue and fighting against monsters and demons.
This warrior now before them said nothing and did nothing. Lumine peeked up from her curtsey, her eyes meeting with the golden ones. He was staring straight at her. When their eyes met, his feet shifted ever so slightly against the stone, but his face remained impassive and emotionless. Lumine couldn’t help but feel that his eyes felt… empty, somehow.
When the silence stretched, the millelith straightened, asking the Conqueror of Demons what could they do for him. They had not passed the arch yet. In fact, the silent man standing in their way was standing almost right under it, half a step from the final boundary of silence, blocking their path.
The Conqueror of Demons didn’t answer. He only kept looking at Lumine with that expressionless stare of his, his feet slightly moving against the stone, almost too little to realise.
Then… he was gone.
In the same way he had arrived, the trail of green and black faded into the air and opened up the path for them. Lumine’s escorts looked at each other, frowning. Lumine guessed it was out of the ordinary for one of the illuminated guardians to appear here. But seeing as there was no longer anything on their way, the millelith gestured to Lumine that they should keep going.
A couple of steps and she walked under the arch and into the innermost realm of their god.
On the other side was a large yard of smooth stone and perfectly still water. Light shone from above although the sun wasn’t in sight and wind no longer reached them. After a round entrance platform, a singular stone path led across an area of water that filled the entire space from the high stone walls to the manor that stood in the middle of it all. Or was it a castle even? There were no windows, so it was hard to say what to categorize this grand residence as. There was no vegetation, fish or seemingly any other life in the water, nor did anything climb up the side of the walls. Everything was so clean and still that it felt unnatural. Only the sound of their steps accompanied them as the three of them walked across the flat stone bridge to the only door in sight.
At the touch of her escorts’ hands, the door opened for them on its own. Lumine’s heart was beating faster and faster, in anticipation of finally meeting the person she had been… been… sold to by her parents. She could now think of it that way. They would never know her true feelings. No one would. This was her role in life now: to play a silent companion to a being far above herself, in this world where no one would ever come to see her and from where she could never leave, unless her new master grew bored of her and threw her out. If that happened, her life might have as well been over. She could never face her parents, nor the people of Liyue, even if she were to return back down. Perhaps at that point, the faster way down would have been better.
The inside of the building was already a lot livelier than the outside, but then again: that wasn’t saying much. It still wasn’t overly extravagant for a home of a god. But Lumine would have to get used to living inside all stone walls, instead of wooden or paper ones. The entrance hall was big, big enough for Lumine to immediately realise, that this building must have been much larger on the inside that it was on the outside. Where the outside might have been mistaken for a manor, the inside was most certainly a castle. Most of the furniture were made of hardwoods or glimmering stones and the walls were lined with tapestries that dulled the echoes of their steps. The pictures on the cloths and paintings depicted scenes from ages past, from the Old World, if Lumine had to guess, because she didn’t recognize most of them, although she had been quite interested in her history studies.
Yet more stairs up, the millelith led her forward, straight-ahead past corners and rooms, deeper and deeper, until finally a pair of doors much grander than any other they had passed blocked their way. Her escorts nodded to her one last time, before together touching their fingers against the doors and they once again opened on their own.
The room on the other side was a long grand hall and lined with dozens and dozens of high windows. Lumine’s breath was taken away at the sights that she saw on the other side of the glasses. Anything. Anything and everything. One window depicted the sights of a street she recognized, while another was a scene from the countryside. One showed a room indoors, while another was at the deck of a large ship. One window followed the play of a theatre, the one next to it showed a mining tunnel deep within the earth. Every scene moved: alive and vibrant to her eyes, but silent to her ears.
And then she saw him.
At the very end of a hall, a few lone stone steps above the rest of the floor, was a singular stone chair with a high backrest and figure sitting on the seat itself, leaning his elbow against the armrest. A pristine and well-kept outfit lining a lean body, but much less fancy or extravagant than what Lumine would have expected a god to wear. Brown hair with its tips illuminating in faint orange glow, tied into a ponytail on the back. Slender fingers supporting his head up as he stared past his own hand into nothingness. Although her escorts guided her forward, the man did not look up or seem to even notice them.
This is… the Geo Archon? Lumine wondered in her head as she followed her escorts’ example and knelt down to the floor. Her gown pooled at her feet. But whereas the two men with her silently lowered their heads, she couldn’t resist looking at the man sitting down the hall one more time. He was so different from what she had expected. He looked so passive it didn’t match the stories and plays of the great warrior and protector at all. He had a lost or maybe even forlorn look in his eyes: not as lifeless as the type she had seen before in the Conqueror of Demons, but close. Nor did his posture convey to her any of the literally earth-shattering strength he supposedly had.
After a moment of waiting had passed, the god sighed quietly and his eyes finally moved to glance at them, finally acknowledging their presence.
He looks so uninterested, Lumine thought, still stealing glances at him. Isn’t this a special day?
But before she could wonder about it more, she drew in a quiet breath when the god’s first, uninterested glance turned into another, sharper one, and he straightened in his seat.
A frown appeared on his face as he looked between the three people kneeling on the floor, his eyes lingering on Lumine longer than the others. And then, he spoke. But it wasn’t any grand welcome or divine declaration she had expected. Instead, Lumine heard genuine confusion in his voice.
“What is this?”