A Star's Fate | aether x reader

Chapter 19-

Low bellows of thunder rumbled overhead as the two of you ran towards the Golden House. The building sat tucked away between the rocks, shaded by trees with nothing but a worn dirt path leading up to it. Steadily, the sky darkened and the first patters of rain began to fall just as you entered.

The interior was exactly what you'd expect of a building of riches; polished floors, gleaming gold decorations, towering ceilings, and of course, piles upon piles of mora. A large circular space sat in the centre of the building, slightly lowered by a few steps. On the opposite side of this platform floated the true treasure— the Exuvia.

Yet even surrounded by the splendor of opulence, you felt nothing but cold. A sinister crawling feeling that seeped in from the breathless air around.

"Wow..." your voice echoed slightly, "This is the Golden House? It looked impressive enough from the outside, but it's even more rich and fancy on the inside! This is where all of Teyvat's mora is minted, right? In that case, maybe they won't notice if a few mora go missing..."

"Touch a single mora and we're done for!" Aether put his hands on his hips.

"Well... we can at least... appreciate it...? Imagine taking a nap on a mountain of mora, it's like a dream come true!"

Aethers brows furrowed as he looked around, "Something feels amiss here..."

"Oh, right. Back to business," you also looked around, "Its quiet... Too quiet. Surely someone's gotta be guarding something as important as the Exuvia."

"(Y/N)! Look! The Millelith have been knocked unconscious!" Aether's exclaim caused you to whip your head around, noticing the slumped forms of the guards.

"Suddenly it doesn't feel so safe in here anymore," your brows tensed.

"Quick! We need to make sure the Exuvia is alright."

The echoes of your footsteps were loud against cold floor of the house. Rex Lapis' form loomed above you as you approached the Exuvia, floating and sealed by some sort of gold coloured power. The great dragon looked the same as it did that first day you arrived in Liyue, impressive and enormous but somehow, somehow, deceased.

"You've already fulfilled your tasks as guides, so why do you still linger here? Haven't you already seen enough trouble for today?" a familiar yet now sinister voice resounded against the towering walls. Quickly, you and Aether both turned.

Childe. As he walked up the steps towards you, his face held not the knowing cheerfulness it usually did, but the dull eyes of someone bloodthirsty. A Harbinger.

He sighed, "If you were Fatui, I imagine that you would be entitled to a generous reward from the Tsaritsa herself. But now, you're nothing but dross— and you're in my way." He gestured his head to the side for you to move.

"Looks like we were just in time, then," Aether stood firm.

"Hah! Although I'm deeply grateful to you that I was able to effortlessly find this secret location, don't you think that trying to stop me now would just be wasted effort? Stopping the mora mints, hiding away the Exuvia..." he laughed, but the sound was anything but jovial, "The Qixing are really pulling out all the stops this time..."

"So even though you saved and befriended us, you were planning to take the Gnosis from inside the Exuvia all along?!" you exclaimed, partly in disbelief, and partly with a sense of you should've expected this.