Well well, what do we have here? Is that a new chapter??? Ohhhh yes!
Do tell me... how many of you, dear readers, noticed that today is the 1st year anniversary of this fic? Happy anniversary!!!!
Gosh time passed by so quickly... I feel like it was only a few weeks ago that I started writing down the first drafts...
I am so very, terribly sorry for the long wait! I know, I know, this is getting old, and I know I'm leaving you guys with terrible cliffhangers, but I don't want to rush myself. If I don't have the motivation to write then I just... don't. Otherwise I'm afraid the quality of what I give you might significantly drop :')
"Arc 7: Archons' grief starts" here!
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By all means, Kaeya Alberich should be dead. Should have been a long, long time ago.
If he was being honest, he was never meant to live, but life decided it did not want to get rid of him.
By all means, Kaeya Alberich should have perished the night his home was destroyed. Oh, yes. He should have been buried under the rubles of the place he had once called his home. Kaeya Alberich should have died alongside the nation he used to call his own, alongside the people he used to call his friends.
If he closed his eyes and thought long enough, he could still recall the sound of laughter that he used to hear every day upon waking up. He could still see the smile of the gentle but old neighbor as she gave him an apple every single day when she passed by him on the streets or in front of his family's house.
If Kaeya thought long enough, he could still hear his mother's gentle laughter, feel his father's arms around him.
Kaeya Alberich had once resided in a nation that was targeted by the Heavenly Principles for the simple sin of being governed by human beings instead of the gods.
By all means, Kaeya should have died when the sky turned red and the elements turned against his home, his country.
He never should have survived long enough to witness his neighbors beings turned into monsters. He never should have survived long enough to reach an age when he would start killing those very same people he used to hang out and laugh with.
Dear Kaeya,
(...)
And yet, here he was, fists clenched around a crumbled piece of paper that he read over and over again.
By all means, Kaeya Alberich should be part of a legend, a myth, a long forgotten memory.
By all means, Kaeya Alberich should despise gods, hate their very existence, spit on their so called righteousness and virtues. All of them, without exception.
And yet, here he was, regretting a decision he made without even realizing it. Regret was a funny thing, he mused.
Kaeya Alberich had plenty of regrets. In fact, he had so many he couldn't count them on his hands, wouldn't stop counting until hours had passed. That was how much he regretted the choices he made in his life.
And yet.
He had allowed one small God to fray a way for himself in his heart without even noticing he was warming up to said God.
By all means, Kaeya should consider himself the enemy to every single God that existed.
And yet.
And yet, he could not bring himself to hate one Anemo Archon.
One reckless, stupid, stubborn, Anemo Archon.
By all means, Kaeya should have suffered the wrath of the elements when his nation was burned to the ground.
Except, that wasn't exactly the case.
Khaenri'ah had perished while Kaeya had survived.
The Anemo Archon was nothing like what Kaeya expected him to be.
At first, he never particularly thought of any Archon. Then, the Cataclysm happened and no Archon made it into Kaeya's good books. Until the Anemo God saved him. Then, and just then, did Kaeya imagine him to be a kind Archon. The kindest, in fact. Kaeya had imagined him to be a gentle God, one who listened to his people, one who disapproved with the other archons – for there was absolutely no way that the Anemo Archon who had saved his life agreed with the very ones who had wanted to take it away.
The naïve young child that Kaeya had been back then used to only see the world in black and white.
Now he knew better.
And then, he had arrived at Mondstadt, left there by Dainsleif in front of the Dawn Winery with a promise to come back eventually.
Apparently, in that time, Dainsleif had had many things happening to him, but so did Kaeya.
Eventually, he met the Anemo Archon. Rather, the bard the Anemo Archon was acting as. Kaeya had found It endearing, and the very fact that the God chose to hide in plain sight from his people, simply relishing in their happiness and freedom, was what confirmed to Kaeya that yes, his assumptions as a child concerning the God of the Wind had indeed been correct. Or at least, most of them.
Sure, Barbatos was someone who was perceived by his people as a drunkard, also someone who could not, for the life of him, get serious enough to hold a deep conversation, he was at the same time worshipped by those very same people in a church built for him, or in front of a massive statue that represented him, or prayed to anywhere in Mondstadt.
That's when Kaeya learnt to make the difference in his mind between Barbatos, the divine being, and Venti, the seemingly human bard the God chose to become around his people.
Neither bothered Kaeya, as long as he could stay close to his savior, to the one he owed his life to.
Kaeya was rather shamefully never able to break from the habit of seeking Barbatos out, feeling safe whenever he was in the other's presence. He knew very well the God was aware of who Kaeya was, but neither of them ever approached the subject.
It was just fine like this. Kaeya was happy with the new life he had found for himself, serving the nation of the one who had saved him. It was such a small thing to do to repay the debt he felt he owed to the God, but it made him happy knowing he was doing something, at least.
And although Venti never told him, Kaeya knew he was pleased that the once traumatized child had found a place in the nation the God of Freedom had tried so hard build. That he was happy in that very same nation.
And sure, Kaeya's fight with Diluc sent him back for a while in a state he liked not to dwell on now. And sure, that very same fight had hit too close to home for comfort. And sure, it had reminded Kaeya of the nation that had been completely wiped out from the map in front of his very eyes in the span of a couple of hours only, but he liked to think he was in a better place now.
Kaeya was as happy as he could be. He relapsed sometimes (often), but he was not alone either whenever he deigned to speak of his troubles, even when he only briefly alluded to them.
And, thinking about it – truly thinking about it – Kaeya would never ignore the fact that this would never have been possible if it weren't for one Anemo Archon. And Anemo Archon who, if Kaeya's eyes were not deceiving him, was about to do something extremely stupid.
And Kaeya didn't have vision issues, so what he read over and over and over again must not have been only a figment of his imagination, mind playing unappreciated tricks on him.
"So he gave you one, too."
To his credit, Kaeya did not startle when he heard the voice. He turned his head slightly, only to be met with Diluc's own stare. Kaeya wasn't sure what it was that he was currently seeing in those eyes, if he were to be honest.
Once upon a time, he could read Diluc like one read a book, but ever since his father had died, the red haired man had completely shut off, emotions unreadable for even Kaeya.
However, tonight – or was it today? – he could shockingly enough discern only the slightest of emotions in the red pool that was gazing at him, its owner having fallen silent ever since making Kaeya aware of his presence.
He thought he could see a hint of concern, concern for Venti most probably, and Kaeya would lie if he said he was not expecting the same concern to be reflected in his own eyes.
They had both received a letter from Venti. They had both received their own final words from the God. Or at least, that is what it looked like. And apparently, Diluc had come to the same conclusion.
"We cannot let this happen," Kaeya firmly said.
Diluc only nodded, not saying a word. He didn't need to, Kaeya knew perfectly well they both had the same goal in mind.
They would save the God who had done so much for the two of them, no matter what. They would not allow him to so carelessly throw his life away for 'the greater good'. There must be another way.
There always was another way.
"How can we go back?"
Kaeya didn't need to elaborate; Diluc understood perfectly well what he meant.
How could they go back to Mondstadt?
"We ask the traveler."
Yes, yes it was perfectly reasonable. They had to ask the traveler to teleport them to the closest waypoint to Venti's location, directly besides him if possible. They did not have time to walk there. By the time they got back, Venti would have done the irreversible already.
Kaeya refuses to have Venti die before he himself did. Gods weren't supposed to write letters to their people announcing they were about to sacrifice themselves.
Things just did not work like this. They never did, they never would.
Not if Kaeya had any say in this.
Diluc turned his back and ran. Kaeya did not need to be told what to do, immediately setting out after him. They ran as fast as they could, as if their life depended on it. It did not, but the one of someone they both cherished and cared for deeply did. This thought alone was enough to send Kaeya into an even faster course.
They were running against time. And oh, how ironic was this. They were fighting against the time, omnipresent little thing that waited for no one and also happened to be controlled by the very being Kaeya was certain was to blame for this.
Of course, Venti, as the forgiving soul he was, never mentioned in his later what was it exactly he had to do. He never mentioned what was the purpose of his sacrifice, just how exactly having one less Archon against Celestia was the best thing to do (and didn't Kaeya beat himself up over that thought). But Venti mentioned that Enkanomiya's deity knew better, that she had 'opened his mind on something he never thought about, and now he knew what he had to do because everything was so much clearer'.
Kaeya didn't need to control time and travel to the past to know what exactly had happened between the two of them. Or to be more accurate, even if didn't exactly know all the details of what was said, he knew enough to assume with almost certainty that it was her who had gotten this stupid idea into his head.
She had told him who knew what, had convinced him that sacrificing his life was the only way out of this stupid war with Celestia, a war that Dainsleif and Kaeya had convinced Venti was the best thing to do. And Venti had believed her.
Dainsleif was no longer here to see what their decision had resulted in, and Kaeya only hoped he had died peacefully. It hurt, Kaeya thought, his heart clenching painfully. He had lost Dainsleif, had not even been there when the man was last spotted, was attacked by Celestia and sent to his death, if he had not already breathed his last before being transported to the cruel and unforgiving abyss while most probably heavily injured.
And now, he was about to lose Venti too. If that were to happen, Kaeya would be left all alone in a lonely world.
Life would not be worth living anymore when the only people who truly cared for him were no longer there.
Kaeya had undeniably lost Dainsleif, and he could do frustratingly nothing about it. Not when he died because he wasn't even there, and not now when the man was lost somewhere beyond Teyvat.
He would be damned if he allowed for the same thing to happen to Venti. And the first thing to do would be to find the traveler.
It seemed that luck was on their side, thankfully enough. It did not take very long for them to find Aether, although he found that every second that tickled away seemed like minutes wasted doing nothing to save the Anemo Archon.
"Traveler!" screamed Kaeya as soon as he spotted the golden haired boy. "You need to take us to Mondstadt now!"
Aether startled, looking up at them.
Upon noticing the lack of a letter, Kaeya wondered if Venti had only wrote one to Diluc and him. But it wouldn't make much sense seeing as the bard adored the traveler.
When they rounded the corner, they were met with the other six archons, and Kaeya was not pleased. He did not have time for this. They did not have time for this. They needed to get to Venti as fast as possible.
And he would be damned if he let the six sorry excuses of an archon they were stand in his way.
"Kaeya?" he asked, bewilderment clear in his voice. "Diluc? What is going on?"
Kaeya saw the way Diluc's jaw tightened. He could practically hear the grinding of his teeth. He could feel the annoyance and urgency oozing from the man. Kaeya found he rather agreed with the sentiment.
Even more than that. Kaeya wanted to scream, shout from the top of his lungs for the world to hear. He wanted to ask Aether why didn't he know about what happened, wanted to ask whether or not the traveler received a letter.
Kaeya found it hard to imagine he didn't, but before he could say anything, Diluc beat him to it.
"It's Venti, and it's urgent," he said, unusually frantic.
Perhaps it was Diluc's tone of voice that finally convinced the traveler that something very wrong was happening, or perhaps he had been able to read through them too easily. Kaeya wouldn't be surprised, with how panicked they both felt.
"Venti?" asked the Dendro Archon.
"What happened to him?" came the Electro Archon's worried voice.
Ah, so now they cared!
Neither Kaeya nor Diluc answered, and if it wasn't for the urgency of the situation, the knight would have been very pleased to grow the growing frustration and worry that were simultaneously etching their way on the gods' faces.
They had no right to feel that way, they had no right to pretend that what happened to Venti mattered to them.
Yes, it was true that Kaeya had absolutely no idea as to what transpired between the gods and the Anemo Archon, but he knew enough to assume it was nothing good, and it had badly affected Venti.
And in Kaeya's books, anyone who hurt the one who saved his life when he was defying orders to do so was definitely bad news.
"Where?" was all the traveler needed to ask for both Kaeya and Venti to understand.
They didn't know where Venti was, it was never mentioned in the letter. Kaeya glanced at Diluc, finding him doing the same already. Diluc nodded, and Kaeya fell silent.
"Windrise would be a good start."
Because that was a known fact, that the Anemo Archon liked Windrise. It was also a sacred place for Mondstadt's citizens because of the history this place holds. But above all else, both Diluc and Kaeya knew how much Venti liked to spend time there. Whenever the bard would want to hide from the world or be by himself, he would often wander to the tree in which Anemo energy flowed like dandelion seeds floated in the wind.
Fitting place, if you asked Kaeya.
The traveler nodded, and there – finally, finally. They would go to Venti, they would search for him before he did something stupid, before it was too late and whatever he was planning came into motion, reached a point of no return.
Kaeya could have jumped in the air, cheering with the overwhelming hope that suddenly surged through him.
Except that hope was squashed down as soon as it appeared when the ground shook under their feet and Kaeya had to hold on for dear life.
"What is going on?!" screamed the Electro Archon in panic.
One second everything was fine. The next, it seemed like the ground would split under the feet, like everything would come tumbling down on them, like the world would come crashing down around them.
Amidst the chaos, Kaeya saw a blinding white light coming from the sky, appearing out of thin air and growing in intensity. His heart was beating loudly as he struggled to keep standing, wondering what the hell was going on.
Then, Kaeya's boy went completely stiff.
This couldn't be. There was no way this was what he thought it was.
Kaeya had lived through this once, and he only survived because of sheer, dumb luck. Kaeya only survived because he was lucky enough to be spotted, because he had been protected prior by people who had pushed him out of the way, who had told him to hide here and there so he could avoid the worst of the destruction, so he could avoid the flames and the bricks, the burns and the pain.
And it had worked well enough, or at least as well as it could have. It had kept Kaeya alive until somehow, somehow, his savior who was also supposed to be his killer had saved him.
That day, Kaeya had looked at the hooded figure that had towered over him, had fully expected this God to be the last thing, the last person he would see in the short life he had lived until then. Kaeya had fully expected to die. Kaeya had fully expected to shut his eyes and never open them again.
Instead, he had been asked by that very same God to play dead. Instead, he had been given a secret of utmost importance; had been showed what the Anemo Archon looked like under his hood. And all for what? So the Archon could have Kaeya's trust. Or at least, so the Archon could have that trust long enough to move Kaeya to safety while he went and searched for other survivors.
Kaeya never figured out if there had been other survivors, never bothered to ask the od when he – against all odds – met him again while playing as an ordinary human, hiding amongst his people who were none the wiser.
Kaeya had stayed silent, and so had his savior.
But now, now that Kaeya was seeing that light head straight towards them, he wondered if he would die now, if the Heavenly principles were bringing him the sentence that should have befallen on him five hundred years ago.
The light was bright, it was approaching fast, growing bigger and bigger.
Kaeya felt like something was amiss, still. He had thought Celestia could not reach Enkanomiya. He had thought this place was safe. Kaeya had thought the only reason they were hiding here instead of going back out there was because they needed time to recover, because Celestia couldn't touch them while they were here and they all desperately needed that time to recover.
It seems, now, like he had gotten it somewhat wrong. And he didn't know how it could have been when the God who had resided in this place for even longer than Kaeya was alive had said so herself, when even she had told them Celestia could not reach this place.
Something then suddenly seemed to click in Kaeya's mind, because he was right. Celestia could not reach that place. Celestia could not touch them while they were here.
And this light that kept getting bigger and bigger the closer it got to them did not look anything like the red sky, the red cubes and the destruction that was brought on his home when Kaeya was barely a few years old, barely a toddler who had not yet seen anything of life.
He did not remember much from his childhood, but if there was one thing Kaeya knew for certain, it was that he did not remember a blinding white light before the destruction. The first thing that had come back then was red.
Red like blood, not white like light.
This could not be Celestia, this was not what Kaeya remembered.
He remembered a blood bath as soon as the first red light was spotted, he remembered destruction and chaos as soon as the light got slightly brighter.
The ground was shaking so much Kaeya was still convinced it would split and crack, but that was it. That was how far the chaos went.
So what was that light?
It was so bright Kaeya could barely keep his eyes open, but he forced himself to look at it, to see where it was heading, to try and figure out what it was because something strange was happening, but at the same time something bad was also happening; the more time they were losing on that thing, the more Venti had time to do the irreversible.
Gritting his teeth, Kaeya saw the light pass directly behind them, go all the way to the Dainichi Mikoshi and stop there. It seemed that whatever happened next was brought straight out of a dream, Kaeya was not sure if what he was seeing was real.
Wind blew hard all around them, so much so that Kaeya had to place his arms in front of him to avoid being hit with the worst. His eyes stung, he was forced to shut them as he felt tears gather at the corners.
Heart in his throat, he hoped and prayed with everything he had that this was Venti, that he was back, that he had changed his mind. But knowing the bard, Kaeya was painfully aware this was impossible.
Venti was stubborn, he rarely backed out, and especially not when his nation or his people were at stake.
Then what was that? Why was the wind blowing so fiercely all of a sudden? Why was the ground still shaking? What was the connection between Venti and all this? He didn't know, he didn't know and it was frustrating him to no end.
Kaeya hated not knowing. Kaeya hated being in the dark. Kaeya hated this situation.
He hated what was happening, he hated that he couldn't for the life of him figure out what was going on.
He hated it. He hated it.
Then it all stopped as suddenly and abruptly as it all started.
The ground stopped shaking, the light was no more and the wind died down.
"What was that?" he heard the Hydro Archon ask breathlessly, a hint of the same frustration Kaeya felt seeping through her voice.
He was loathing to admit he could perfectly understand the way she was feeling.
And suddenly, glowing slightly, Istaroth appeared in front of them, walking from the Dainichi Mikoshi in an ethereal and elegant way. She looked, for all intent and purpose, every part of the God she was.
"I didn't know the ground would shake this much," was all she said when she reached them.
Diluc made a strangled noise, losing his composure and looking incredulous at the God.
"What is going on?!"
The fact that none of the archons threw a nasty glare his brother's way was a testament of how shaken they all were.
"We don't have time for this!" suddenly screamed the Pyro Archon. "We need to get to Barbatos!"
Kaeya didn't like her, not one bit. But he thought he could agree with her on this point.
They were losing time over something they could figure out later. They had to get to Venti now.
Istaroth shook her head, and Kaeya felt his stomach churn uncomfortably, his heart skipped a beat. And then a second, and a third.
"It's too late now," she declared, voice even, not looking even slightly remorseful. "Barbatos is dead."
Kaeya's breath hitched, his ears started ringing.
Dead.
He was having difficulty breathing, he could barely hear what was going on around him.
It was too late.
They were too late.
Venti had written them letters. Venti had hinted that he would not see them anymore. Venti had said he was sorry.
He had written a suicide letter, and only now did Kaeya realize that this was what this letter was.
A fucking suicide letter.
He felt sick.
Why was it that Kaeya failed to save the one who had saved him when he was younger? Why was it that Kaeya always, always failed to save those he cared about? Why was it that Kaeya was so incompetent he was unable to repay to Venti the debt he owed?
Kaeya felt like screaming. He felt like crying, like breaking things. Kaeya wanted out of this place. He wanted to get out, wanted to go search for Venti because he simply refused to accept that this was the truth. Kaeya wanted to get out of this place, Kaeya wanted to get back to Mondstadt, wanted to get back to his home, between the people he now considered family. Kaeya wanted to get back to the place that had cared for him when he was lost.
Kaeya wanted to get back to the tavern and pretend like none of this happened. Kaeya wanted to sit behind the bar and get berated by Diluc for drinking too much. Kaeya wanted to joke with Rosaria as she explained what a horrible day she just had. Kaeya wanted to raise a toast as Venti sung. Kaeya wanted to appreciate the bard's talent with the other people of the tavern.
Kaeya wanted to turn back time and redo it all.
He wanted to change his mind, he wanted to tell Dainsleif this was a bad idea.
Kaeya wanted to return to a time when they never provoked Celestia to begin with. He wanted to return to a time when Dainsleif was still alive. He wanted to return to a time when he didn't have to worry about the people he loves dying – not that he'd admit he loved them.
Not for the first time in his life, Kaeya wished he could just turn back time and fix his mistakes, make things better.
.
.
.
She failed.
She promised herself she wouldn't and yet she did.
Focalors failed in protecting Barbatos, she failed to give him the justice he deserved.
Focalors swore to herself she would help him. She swore to herself she would protect both him and his nation.
Mondstadt is safe. The nation the Anemo Archon gave everything for was safe, but Focalors didn't know for how much longer.
The God of Freedom was dead – when did that even happen? How? – and the God of Justice had no doubt that Celestia would replace him, and soon.
And then, because things could never be easy, Celestia would choose a new Archon who will 'erase the mistakes of the past God of Freedom, never to turn against Celestia'.
From this moment on, there would be no guarantee that the new Archon wouldn't be a tyrant. There would be no guarantee that the people of Mondstadt would be safe.
Focalors wanted to understand, she was really trying to understand, but she couldn't for the life of her figure out what was going through Barbatos' head when he died. It couldn't have been murder, so it must have been suicide.
She gulped, fear gripping her insides and squeezing. Hard.
Here she was, in a land unknown to her, and the one she and the rest had been searching for was dead. Gone.
Forever.
Which means it had all been for nothing.
Focalors was familiar with desperation. She was familiar with powerlessness; she was no stranger to the guilt. After all, wasn't she plan to kill herself when she amassed enough power? Wasn't she planning to destroy the Hydro Archon's throne and give Neuvilette his powers back?
She wanted to laugh at herself. The only reason she had not split herself into two parts, divinity and humanity, was because she knew how much her human self would suffer. She knew how much pain she could inflict on someone. She knew, after the archons' argument with the Barbatos, after she swore to try her best for her people, that she could not in good conscience have someone else repair her mistake.
Focalors had turned the oceanids of her nation into people, using the primordial water and completely bypassing Celestia.
Focalors was a sinner whose people where cursed to one day turn into water.
She had made a grave mistake and her people would be punished for it.
She had made a grave mistake and she would die because of it, because she refused to see them suffer a mistake she made.
Curiosity and greed led her to a point of no return, and she knew, she knew that the only solution was to sacrifice herself, to give the Iudex his powers back.
She swore she would protect Barbatos' people because she knew what it was like to have your people threatened over a mistake you made, even if Barbatos' mistake was extremely different from hers.
Focalors was punished because she was greedy, seeking power she should never have had.
Barbatos' mistake was rebelling against those who threatened them constantly, their presence looming over the gods every single day.
Very different mistakes indeed, because in Focalors' eyes, Barbatos did the noble thing while she did not.
That's why... that's why she refused to see him and his nation suffer for it.
Barbatos was a better Archon than she ever would be, she had to admit.
No, Barbatos had been a better Archon.
For she failed in protecting him. He was gone and she couldn't do anything about it anymore.
How long had they searched for him? How long had they desperately ran towards the truth only to be met with more and more dead ends?
All their efforts were for naught. All their efforts, and Barbatos ended up dying. All their efforts...
"I refuse to believe this," Murata weakly laughed. "You're lying. You must be."
It was odd, Focalors decided, to see Murata in such a state.
"The seal is broken, we now stand a chance against the Heavenly Principles," was all Istaroth said.
And Focalors... Focalors wasn't sure she understood everything, she couldn't pretend she did. She wasn't the God of Wisdom; that was Rukkhadevata's job, not hers. And yet, she still felt as if she should understand, still felt as if there was something missing, there was something Istaroth was not telling them.
"You...!" she heard.
Turning her head, she saw it was the red haired mortal who had spoken, fury etched all over his features. It seemed he had understood something the rest of them did not.
"Earlier today, you were talking with him," he seethed, and oh, Focalors wanted to know, needed to know. "I don't know what you told him, but I am sure it was your doing!"
Focalors still wasn't sure what this was all about, but she had the feeling she was closer to the truth. And if it turned out it was really Istaroth's doing...
"What is the meaning of this?" Morax asked slowly, dangerously, the expression on his face matching the one on Murata's and – surprisingly – sweet Makoto's who was the hardest Archon to anger.
Focalors was sure the same expression was on her own face.
And Istaroth, that God who Focalors couldn't understand for the life of her, did not look bothered by the accusation thrown at her. Instead, she nodded.
"I told him to do what was necessary, as I'm sure you understand." Then, she added before anyone could interrupt her: "Barbatos' death was a necessary sacrifice to end the Heavenly principles. I have no doubt this is our common goal, even if you do not agree with my ways."
She spoke so casually about Barbatos' death that anyone hearing her could think she was talking about the weather, and it stirred something deep within Focalors, cold furry she hadn't felt since she discovered she had wrongly judged Barbatos.
"YOU COULD HAVE FOUND ANOTHER WAY!" screamed the knight, and for all that Focalors mistrusted him, she knew she felt the same way as he did.
Istaroth stayed silent. Focalors felt like screaming.
Focalors itched to take the God to her opera, so she could judge her to heart's contempt.
"I would suggest getting ready, the fight will not be pretty," she suddenly declared, unbothered.
"The fight?" came the blond traveler's small voice.
Focalors quickly glanced at him, seeing his horrified face, tears streaming down his cheeks. She wondered just how close he was with Barbatos.
The ground shook again, but this time no white light came. No, this time, Focalors had the feeling it would be much, much worse.
"The Heavenly Principles retaliate," announced Istaroth. "Prepare yourselves!"
Focalors loathed to have to take orders from her. All she wanted to do was mourn in piece, return to her nation, to her people. But it seemed like this had to wait.
Time had passed quickly since she started looking for Barbatos, and before she even knew it, she as well as the other archons had challenged Celestia.
And now, they had a war to fight.
She could only hope their side would win. After all, Barbatos' sacrifice had to have been worth it. She refused to see it any other way.
No matter the cost, she would either make it happen or die trying.
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I'll admit, I do not like this chapter very much, but things are finally starting to happen!
...Well, a war is 'things' but heh, you know what I meant.
Did I randomly improvise Focalors backstory because the Fontaine Archon is now officially done? Yes. Yes I did. I understand many of you may be confused, so I'll explain it to you guys: (SPOILER ALERT! DON'T READ IF YOU WANT TO AVOID SPOILERS ON THE 4.2 ARCHON QUEST!!!)
In canon, Egeria was the previous Hydro Archon, right? But since I started writing this fic before even Sumeru came out, I put 'Focalors' as the original Hydro Archon instead of 'Egeria', so we'll continue pretending like Focalors is the original one, and Egeria never existed.
In canon, Egeria turned the oceanids into people using the power of the primordial sea and was the dubbed as 'the sinner' by Celestia, thus dooming her nation and her people to the fate the prophecy predicted. In my fanfic, since Egeria never existed, the sinner is Focalors. Focalors was the one who turned oceanids into people, and she is the one responsible for the prophecy.
However, instead of appointing a new Archon like Egeria did, Focalors took it upon herself to find a solution to her mistake. She created the Oratrice Mecanique d'Analyse Cardinale. That thing's goal was still the same: kill Focalors. She put the power of the gnosis into it, instead of being in it herself. Now, here's one more change: Focalors never created Furina, she never separated herself into Divinity and Humanity.
Why? Because of Venti. She saw the way she made him suffer, she refuses to make anyone else suffer the consequence of her mistakes.
If anything's still unclear, tell me in the comment section so I can explain this further! I am aware there are some gaps in this story that don't make sense, but I had to adapt...
With this, see you next time, and happy anniversary to A lost friend's journey! Thank you so much for following this fic!