Chapter 1
November 22, 2023 at 8:54 AM
This happened before the fall of Kaenri’ah. Before the world fell into the Abyss. Before the Heavenly principles ceased to differ from the very darkness that it had been trying to eradicate for millennia. This was right after I was separated from my brother. And I’m probably glad that he didn’t see all this.
The guardian of the Heavenly principles imprisoned me in a cube. I only had time then to cast a farewell glance at Aether. I didn’t sleep that long. I thought it was more. And when I woke up, I wanted to find my brother. But I no longer had my strength with me, which means it became much more difficult… Monstadt, Li Yue, Inazuma, Sumeru, Fontaine, Natlan, Snezhnaya. I visited all seven regions, but none of the archons was able to help me. Aether was one of those who descended, like me, but there was not a word about him in the ancient tree of Irminsul. As if he never existed…
Sumeru has become my favorite region. The funny Aranars nicknamed me Nara Varuna for helping them. I already understood that my brother was imprisoned somewhere, hidden. Therefore, I then told the Aranars that he would help them. Who shines gold brighter than me. Aether has always been vivid. Much more than me.
After the Snezhnaya, my path led in Kaenri’ah — the underground kingdom of the atheists. I gave up trying to find my brother and decided to wait for him where the archons had no power. As is time. This became my fatal mistake.
In each region, I received the power of the element from the archon who ruled there. All seven elements united within me, awakening my forgotten native power — light.
Kaenri’ah was gloomy. It’s as if all the colors have faded or someone has sucked the life out of this kingdom. People looked at me with suspicion: my white travel outfit did not at all match their national style of clothing. I also looked at them with surprise and interest. Their unusual clothes, of an unusual cut in the rest of Teyvat, were emphasized by their eyes. Blues are rare in this world. And the pupils are in the shape of a sharp four-pointed star. I saw these same stars when the guardian of the Heavenly principles…
“Who are you?” a sharp voice pulled me out of oblivion. I recoiled automatically, putting my hand forward. The second one mechanically dropped onto the hilt of the sword. Warrior reflexes have never failed me before. But that time it cost me my balance. I started to fall. And of course straight into the dirt.
Before I even had time to think that Kaenri’ah greeted me “much friendlier” than Natlan, someone grabbed me by the wrist. He grabbed it with a steel grip…
“Huh?” I raised my eyes and fell into a stupor again. Too often in the last minute this stupor has taken hold of me. Aether probably wouldn’t approve…
“When will I forget about him?..” I thought, but after I locked eyes with the stranger, there were no thoughts at all.
Those bright blue eyes with a star burned everything out of my head and made my heart beat faster. Who is he? And what a strange energy he has… It didn’t resemble any of the seven known elements.
He was dressed nobly, but not sufficiently, as for a person of royal blood. Over the years of my travels, I have learned well how to determine a person’s status by their clothes. Monstadt and its Lawrence clan especially helped with this. And then I was sure who stood in front of me… My eyes slid lower, caught on the hilt of the sword and the belt with the weapon. Guardsman?
“Are you okay? It’s like you’ve been hit on the head by a cultivator…”
Having no idea what a cultivator is, I grabbed my sword and… Immediately dropped it.
“Dain, how have you already displeased the young lady so much that she was going to kill you?” someone laughed from behind the stranger.
“Be quiet, Halfdan,” the stranger said to his friend and turned to me again. His smile disarmed me. “Forgive me my joke. I’m sorry if it offended you.”
“It’s okay,” I nodded, smiling too.
There was a silent pause, during which we simply looked at each other in silence. As if they were studying… In every detail.
“Dain…” his friend finally broke the silence.
“Huh?” this Dain looked away, and I was able to exhale. There was something in his gaze. Something that could touch me through the wall of coldness that I erected after the loss of my brother.
“Maybe you look at each other somewhere else and you will remember our goal?” He sighed and rolled his eyes theatrically.
I looked at him gloomily. This Halfdan did not inspire any confidence in me.
“Half, calm down. We’re not really at work, remember? And she doesn’t look like a criminal.”
“Ahem!” I coughed loudly, attracting the attention of the disputants. “In all of Teyvat, I have never seen such a practice that a visiting guest would be stopped without warning with ridiculous questions by two guardsmen from the king’s guard. Even if they are “not really at work,” I mimicked Dain.
They looked at each other. The blonde guy, who had already managed to hook me with something from his first appearance, got his bearings faster. A slight bow with all his inherent grace made me seriously doubt that he was a simple guardsman. And the following words confirmed my suspicions.
“My name is Dainsleif. I am the captain of the Black Serpent, Royal Guard.”
A light kiss on the hand, as in the old chivalric romances from Monstadt, made my heart beat faster. And that gaze of deep blue eyes… It seemed like he was looking straight into the soul.
His friend again, as it can not be broken in time, the tightened silence.
“And my name is Halfdan. I’m gust a Royal guard of the Black Snake.”
I smiled and gently released the palm from a slightly rigid, but at the same time the gentle of the candle of Dainesleif. I was scared of what happening between us. Whether I read the novels like a dreamy student from the Sumeru, I would call it spark. But I was not a student and did not seek knowledge. Already looked at enough. “My name Lumine,” I nodded in response to the smile of Diansleif. “I’m afraid I have no titles. I am a traveler.
“Hmm, and what is the purpose of your travel?” asked Captain.
“It's finding my brother,” I answered without thinking.
“That’s a serious reason. And you think you can find him here?”
“I do not think, so” I shrugged. “If he was not found in any region of Teyvat, you think he will be waiting for me here?”
“In Kaenri’ah, there are many visitors-” Halfdan started, but Dainsleif immediately kicked his elbow. Almost unnoticed. Almost.
“If he is here, be sure that I will inform you” nobly promised Dain.
I gave him a grateful smile.
“Such a pleasant acquaintance. And now you could not tell me where the hotel is here? Or can I rent a house? I do not complain about the lack of mora”.
Guardsmen immediately caught.
“What is funny?” I clarified with bewilderment.
“Lumine mora will not help you here. We have no currency of the Archonts in our everyday life,” answered Dainsleif.
From his pronunciation of my name, something burned into my heart. It seems that he also noticed that there was some kind of connection. And he decided to use it.
“So what will help? Is it possible to exchange mora?” I got angry. I did not like how this blond guy was influenced by one of his eyes or voice. Well, truly I liked it. And I liked too much… It was not normal for the first day of meeting.
“Nope”.
“Calmly, Lumine, a little more, be patient…” thought I and than asked if they didn’t like tourists at all.
“They usually come to us for ages,” Dainsleif smiled, and all my anger somehow crawled sharply.
“It’s not my option,” I dramatically waved my head, breaking the visual contact. “Where can I get this yours… money?”
I saw Halfdan wink at me conspiratorially. And I immediately guessed what would follow.
“Dain, maybe you could show your guest the city? I will continue to do “non-work” and can cope quite well alone. You can’t leave a person in trouble!”
The captain of the guard immediately realized what his friend was planning. He gave him a meaningful look, and then turned to me. And again the look of those eyes, the mysterious energy of an unknown element made me freeze. It was unpleasant to feel like a controlled doll, but I could do nothing with that. I was drawn to him, like a moth to light.
“Only if Lumine wants.”
And again a gaze that pierces the soul.
“I… I will be grateful for your help.”
“Just a guide, Lumine, he’s just another guide in a new place for you. No more. And the strange connection… Perhaps I just sympathize with him for his manners and appearance… It will pass.”
After saying goodbye to Halfdan we walked along the streets of the city, and the attention to my modest person diminished a little. I saw Dain smile to every person in Kaenri’ah and nod at them. He knew many of them by name. Initially, we hardly spoke to each other; I only listened to the melodic sound of the voice of this unusual guide.
“Do you know everyone in the kingdom?” I asked a little naively.
He looked at me so that I froze again. But a slight half-smile diluted the tension.
“Of course not. But I know many of them. Before taking up the position of captain, I lived among these people for some time and studied them.”
“Why?
“It’s strange to hear such a question from a traveler,” Dain smiled again. “You’re looking for your brother, aren’t you? This means that you must know the value of information obtained from the inside. Who would speak to you in Monstadt from the local aristocracy if you did not know local customs? So do I. It is important for me to know what people think about life here, so that the king can control everything without leaving the castle.”
“Doesn’t he have special mercenaries for these purposes?” I remembered Snezhnaya.
“It was coming from me, Lumine.”
I thought for a while. Then she asked again:
“Have you been anywhere other than Kaenri’ah? You just mentioned Monstadt as if you had been there…”
“I had. I often went out into the open world, but never stayed there for long. The principles of human life under the rule of the archons are… Incomprehensible to me.”
“Why? " his remark made me smile.
“If you don’t know, then I hasten to inform you that we don’t have an archon here. Everything you see we got on our own.”
I looked around again. Kaenri’ah was truly unlike any of the seven regions I had seen before. Basically, everything was mechanized and worked with the help of people. They didn’t have the power of the elements, so they compensated with science. And they compensated with interest, since, judging by what I saw, the level of development there was significantly higher than anywhere else. For example, although we were underground, I did not feel cold from the soulless stone walls.
“I understand… Where are we going? You still haven’t said the final goal of this 'excursion'.”
“Let’s say that of one of my old friends can shelter you.”
“Sounds suspicious. We’re not going to live together, are we?” I joked.
“You like to rush things, don’t you, Lumine?” Dainsleif raised eyebrow. I suddenly became embarrassed and turned away. Noticing this, he laughed. “Calm down. The friend does exist, she just constantly disappears at work in the workshop. Reindottir, have you heard anything about her?”
“Not very much. Is she an alchemist?”
“To the bone,” Dain smiled. “Let’s go. She lives not far from here.”
He went forward, I followed. The captain of the guard was taller than me, so my steps seemed very tiny to me then. I looked carefully at his blue flowing cloak, at his black boots… My gaze slid higher and caught on the high collar, on the blond hair that only slightly fluttered from the underground winds. For some reason I wanted to hug him, although I understood that it was stupid. It seems that my energy was drawn to his, unfamiliar to me.
“Dainsleif,” I called. He immediately stopped.
“What is it, Lumine? You’re shaking all over.”
I raised my hands and really noticed the trembling of my palms. I was afraid. I was incredibly afraid of this strange connection, as if even then I felt how it would all end…
“Sorry,” I hid my hands behind my back, but almost immediately I quietly squeezed the sword with one of them. It always calmed me down. “It’s just- I wanted to ask… You can feel the elemental power from me, right?”
“Yes. You are glowing.”
He was so calm, as if he had been waiting for this question. I clarified:
“And you? What is your power?”
Dainsleif suddenly turned away sharply, and I realized that this topic was not worth raising.
“It doesn’t matter, Lumine, I don’t use it anymore.”
He exhaled noisily. It seems this question was painful for him. I lowered my eyes. And where did my stamina and composure go?..
“Forgive me. I didn’t know it wasn’t worth asking.”
“Nonsense.”
But this was not nonsense. I walked up to him and gently took his hand to support and calm him down. The shock that ran through his arm was similar to the power of Electro, but much, much stronger. I wanted to pull my hand away, but instead I intertwined our fingers, pressing myself against his back. Finding myself so close to him, I felt that, oddly enough, he smelled of ripe sunsettias with a slight aftertaste of fragrant fire smoke. The unusual combination turned my head.
“Dain…”
He also froze. This simple touch awakened many things. There was also a realization: we had found each other. If it was not the archons who united us, then we ourselves. It was fate, only at that time I didn’t know how it will end.
“We have arrived, Lumine,” Dainsleif suddenly said, leaning forward. Contact was broken, but the connection remained. I looked at my palm as if I expected to see something unusual there. My soul suddenly felt sad, and I almost didn’t hear what my guide told me.
“I warned Rayna. She said that she’s busy for now, but if you come down to her laboratory, she’ll be glad to meet you. If you’re afraid, the third door on the left will be your room. You understood me? Lumine!”
“Yes.”
He looked at me carefully, as if he wanted to read my thoughts.
“You know, you haven’t seen the whole city yet. I can give you a full tour, let’s go wherever you want.”
“Just you and me?”
“Well, yes. Would you like to invite someone else into our company?” he asked with a slight half-smile.
“Yes! I mean, no… I don’t know!..” I crumpled the outfit by the pockets and took a deep breath. “You felt it too, didn’t you?.. This strange connection. Maybe we shouldn’t support her and it’s better to see each other less?..”
“Lumine, connections in Teyvat don’t just appear, much less in Kaenri’ah,” the piercing gaze made my heart beat faster. “And if it appeared, then that means something. But if you wish, I will disappear from your life.”
And better I would have wished it, but then… Then I just wanted to be next to him, giving in to this strange call of power.
“No!” I looked up. “I don’t want…”
The whole world collapsed from this look. Only he and I were left in some incomprehensible space. Universal peace, which even the archons could not achieve.
“Then see you on…”
“Evening,” Dainsleif nodded, and then smiled again. “Don’t be afraid, Lumine. It won’t be a date unless you want it to be.”
And while I was digesting this phrase, he turned around and quickly disappeared into the crowd. I took a strand of hair and wrapped it around my finger. Then it seemed to me that Kaenri’ah greeted me too warmly…
***
Evening came quickly. All this time, I naively assumed that Dain would forget about me. And I tried to distract myself. I went down to the laboratory and met, probably, the greatest alchemist in all of Teyvat. Reindottir turned out to be a pleasant woman, sincerely passionate about her work. She was glad to see me, but she couldn’t leave the laboratory yet. She explained that she was on the verge of some very important discovery. I was just listening silently and sometimes nodded. An excellent tactic if you don’t understand something. After visiting the owner of the house, I looked into the kitchen. The food in Kaenri’ah was also different from the usual diet of the rest of Teyvat. Or maybe it was just that Reindottir, because of her business, ordered something that could be eaten quickly. I had a snack, looked around my room and decided to tidy up a little. But as soon as I took the mop, there was suddenly a knock on the door. Rayna said that I could only open it to Dain. However, I had no doubt that it was he who came. Goosebumps and trembling would have prevented me from making a mistake. Then everything went smoothly. We walked, had fun, talked like ordinary, completely ordinary residents of Kaenri’ah. The walk lasted until the morning, and everything was wonderful. Just like the next few weeks. I managed to form an attachment to the kingdom and, more importantly, to him. I’ve never felt this way. I felt so good with him that I wanted… to stay. It scared me, but over time I started to like it. I could no longer imagine life without Dain… But only a few months had passed. What would happen if we were together for years?.. One day, however, everything collapsed. In an instant. Nobody expected this, but it happened. The day when the sky turned burgundy, and instead of clouds thick black smoke rose, when the air was filled with screams of horror and pain. The day of the fall of Kaenri’ah. The day passed as usual. In the evening, I was already looking forward to meeting Dain again, so I carefully combed my slightly longer hair and put on clothes. The knocking and familiar enticing energy of an unknown element carried me along. I opened the door and immediately fell into a tight hug. “Wait, Dain!” I hissed and tried to escape, but the door suddenly slammed shut, and I was carried somewhere. I cursed a thousand times in those minutes the fact that the alchemist’s house was located on the very edge of the city. Even during the day there were few people here, and late in the evening there was not a soul at all. I was dragged somewhere without any hindrance. The only thing that calmed me down and restrained me from righteous anger was an unusual energy that I would not confuse with anyone. “Good evening, Lumine,” Dainsleif finally deigned to say hello. He immediately released me from his grip, and I jumped back. “You’re crazy!” My eyes were burning, and his too. Both of our hair was disheveled and our breathing was heavy. “Don’t be silent!” I was indignant, breathing almost like an angry dragon. “Why did you steal me?!” “So that someone else doesn’t do this,” Dainsleif smiled and extended his hand to me. All my anger immediately disappeared. Literally against my will, I took his hand. The discharge that time was even stronger than usual. I didn’t want to let go at all… He knew perfectly well what influence he had on me. Knew and used it! “And who would dare?” I lowered my eyes, examining his clothes. Informal blue shirt, vest. For some reason I was amused by the weapon belt. “Lately… The situation is turbulent,” Dain shrugged his shoulder, trying to look at ease. “How turbulent is it?” “I don’t know, but, Lumine…” he turned me, raised my head by the chin and looked carefully into my eyes. “If suddenly something happens to me or in general- Promise that you will run away, okay? That you hide as far as possible from this place.” “What could happen?” my heart sank with a bad feeling. “I don’t know. But promise me, Lumine. You have to promise that you won’t interfere.” “Dain…” I closed my eyes and reached out to him. “I’ve already lost my brother, I can’t lose him too… The one who has become dearer to me than anyone else,” I thought so, not imagining what awaits us. Suddenly the light went dark. I instinctively pressed myself against Dain and closed my eyes, feeling my heart pounding. An explosion was heard. Distant, but it made the walls shook. Then there was a loud roar from the heavens and… “Lumine! Run!!!” He let me go and just kissed me briefly on the forehead goodbye. Chaos began. I understood where Dain ran. As captain of the royal guard, he had to put the interests of the king and the people first. He rushed to the palace, risking himself. Surely the attackers would have targeted there first. “Dain…” I understood that he could not hear me, but fear paralyzed my mind. It was like I was that lonely girl again who had just lost her brother while wandering the worlds. Someone pushed me with his shoulder, almost knocking me off my feet. This brought me to my senses. And I ran. Not away from chaos, but into the very heart. To the royal palace. I had to help in some way. It’s been a long time since I began to consider myself one of the residents of Kaenri’ah… “Protect the people of Kaenri’ah at all costs!” I heard an unusually firm voice when I ran up to the castle gates. The crowd thinned out a little and I saw him. In the same dark cloak as on the day we met, with disheveled hair and a sword at the ready, he seemed to be in his element. The energy that had always attracted me was then overflowing. And I went. Wings of light opened behind me. This means that my power was also at its peak. When he saw me, his eyes widened. He sent troops to protect people, and he himself ran to me. Kaenri’ah was destroyed, the heavens thundered, and the fire engulfed an ever-increasing area. Then I thought that only the gods could attack Kaenri’ah. Who else would dare to touch such a powerful civilization? Only the archons… “Lumine! " he caught me in his arms, covering me with his cloak from the chaos reigning around. I felt a familiar smell and calmed down a little. But at the same time, the wild heartbeat of my protector made my heart beat faster. “Dain… I can’t leave, I’m also part of Kaenri’ah… I can’t leave you,” I whispered, pressing myself even closer to him. “I expected this. But you do understand that a war has begun, right? Everyone is in danger. The gods will not stop until they raze us all to the ground,” Dain stroked my hair with a heavy sigh. I felt the wings of light slowly disappear behind me. “Why did the gods attack?..” “There're many reasons. The situation had been heating up for a long time, but… They were probably just scared. Kaenri’ah is a nation created entirely by human. And it’s the most powerful.” I did not believe that the archons I knew could do such a thing. I didn’t believe that the kind Barbotos or the wise and prudent Morax, the Great Lady Rukhadevata and any of the gods were capable of this… The ground suddenly shook and we were thrown away from each other. I extended my hand to him, but already understood that the matter was lost. The crowd running away carried me away from him. “I didn’t have time to say… I didn’t have time to do anything…” “Dain! Dainsleif!” my screams were drowned in the crowd. A bright flash blinded, a sudden sharp explosion deafened. Stones flew down. Someone remained under them forever… My heart was again squeezed by an invisible icy hand. I was afraid that this could happen to… “Lumine!” someone grabbed my hand. “Halfdan?” It really was Dain’s friend. Beaten and pretty dented, but the same fire burned in his eyes that I noticed in the captain’s gaze. “Run, Lumine. He told you to run, so run!” “I won’t leave without him,” I answered firmly, pulling my hand away. “I am also part of Kaenri’ah!” He looked at me with some kind of madness. Screams were heard again. Halfdan grabbed my head and turned me straight towards the crowd. The stone above threatened to collapse any moment. People ran and saved themselves, but someone was buried under the previous collapse so that they could not escape. Their friends and relatives tried to help, but there was no escaping fate… Someone was in such despair that they simply fell to their knees screaming, unable to understand and comprehend the crumbling reality. Their screams were full of such powerlessness that I could not understand. They were so absorbed in their own grief that they did not notice the danger moving towards them. The air filled with electricity and the ground shook again. Water poured from the cracks in the walls, and an indestructible wall of fire began to approach the city. The gods threw all their strength at us… Another shock confirmed my thoughts. A new collapse occurred, killing several people in despair before my eyes. “No!” tears welled up in my eyes against my will. I sniffled. A light cool gust of wind brought me the smell of burning, ash, sparks and hopelessness. As if he was trying to bind him even deeper with his power. “Do you see it now? That’s why he told you to run,” Halfdan explained, releasing me. “If you rushed into the thick of things, you could get lost and-” I didn’t hear. I wiped away my tears with the sleeve. “Show me the place where you were going to meet.” “What?” “You have heard.” He seemed completely taken aback. Apparently, he did not expect that such a clear demonstration would not produce the desired effect. And, fortunately for him, he quickly realized that it was useless to argue. “Are you sure? Is his word really an empty sound for you?” I turned around and put my hand on the hilt of the sword. “One more word, Halfdan, and I swear…” He was clearly frightened by the fire in my eyes. He backed away and then waved his hand resignedly. “Follow me.” And we went. Through the fire. Through the storm, earthquakes. Through the electrified air. Through the noise of flying defensive vehicles. Through the cold, which chilling soul. Or maybe it was just the cold inside me. But nevertheless, Halfdan led me to the very outskirts of Kaenri’ah. I almost immediately felt a familiar energy. My guide will disappear into the crowd as soon as he sees his friend. And I just rushed forward. “Dain!” I screamed so loudly, as if there could be no more time. However, that’s how it was. He caught me with one hand and pressed me to him. Another showed people passages to secret tunnels. “Dain…” I whispered, clinging to his cloak as the last stronghold in this crazy world. The passage has closed. The last inhabitant of Kaenri’ah has disappeared. We were left alone. Dainsleif’s face trembled in the flame of the torch. But even in such twilight, I noticed how the right side of the sleeve shone. “Are you wounded?!” I frantically grabbed his shirt. There was no armor there. But he suddenly gently pulled my hands away. “It’s okay, Lumine. Tell me better, are you okay?” “Yes! And I will be even better when I bandage your wounds!” “Stop!” he intercepted my hands when I was about to tear the sleeves of my clothes to make bandages. “I became captain of the guard for many reasons. The wounds will heal within a few minutes.” “Is this related to your power?” I bit my lip and looked up. The blue eyes of my obsession burned all remaining questions from my head, giving me a blissful emptiness. “Yes.” “Dain…” I didn’t think. The wind that brought me the smell of burning itself pushed me to action. It might not have happened any other way. “Yes?” he stroked my cheekbones with his thumbs, without looking away. The familiar, pleasant sensations of connecting our energies were calming. His cloak carefully covered me. It seemed to me that he wanted to hide me from the whole world. Protect at all costs… That’s what I’m for- “Dain, I- I love you.” His hands trembled, although maybe it just seemed that way to me. He sniffed noisily. I felt the tension in his hands. “I know, Lumine. I love you too. Despite what happened now… I hope all is not lost and we can try.” “What can we try?” my voice trembled. Dainsleif was the standard of calm. He smiled and stroked my cheek. I shuddered, but not from the connection of energy, but from how much tenderness there was in this gesture. He didn’t have to say much to make it clear what he felt, what he wanted. And then, instead of answering, he just lifted my head by the chin and- Kissed me. It seemed to me that some kind of explosion occurred. But not physical. Everything suddenly ceased to exist. There are only us left. Just his smell, the taste of his lips, his heavy breathing. Just my short moans of pleasure. This was our first kiss. It became fatal. “ENOUGH!” The heavens suddenly opened up. And Dain and I were thrown away from each other. I got scared and tried to grab him, but vainly. I was nailed to the wall with such force that I suddenly lost consciousness. And when I woke up, I saw… Her. The goddess that separated me from Aether. Again I didn’t even think, I just jumped up and ran, getting my sword on track. The wings appeared behind my back by themselves. “Pitiful little girl” she laughed. The red and black cubes, as then, shackled me. “Do you think I will allow two pathetic mortals to disturb the heavenly principles?!” I looked around. We were in ruins. Ruins near the northern part of Kaenri’ah, but on the surface. Not far away I noticed Dainsleif, caught in a trap just like me. “Dain!” “Lumine!” “Shut up!” the goddess ordered. “You have already violated the laws of the heavenly principles enough. Don’t think I’ll let this go unpunished. The era of people’s self-government is over.” “Who are you?” I asked, trying to escape from the trap. “And what did we violate?” She grinned and waved her hands. “I am Asmodeus. Guardian of the Heavenly principles. And you violated the main law. Which is about opposite energies. The punishment will be proportionate to what you did: your weakness will turn against you.” “What kind of law? Answer me!” “Darkness cannot be with light, just as light cannot be with darkness. But they will always strive for each other. That’s the order. And enough questions.” I also wanted to ask where my brother was, why we were guilty if we were just traveling around the worlds. So young and naive. However, before I could say anything, the trap released me. I fell to the very edge of the stone circle. My sword landed next to me. I looked up and saw that Dain had fallen in the same way. Somewhere deep down I already understood what she wanted, but I refused to believe it. Suddenly a flash of pain shot through me. It was like the presence of all the elements at once. I didn’t understand what exactly happened, but everything quickly stopped. Something has changed… “Kaenri’ah has almost fallen, Lumine,” Dain whispered in my ear. I jumped back in fear. When did he manage to move?! “How are you?..” “Shh! Lumine, she wants spectacle. She wants a fight. For one of us to try to kill the other.” “I will not raise a sword against you!” “You have to, understand? She will control us if we refuse, I’m sure. And this- very unpleasant. I don’t want you to get hurt. Everything depends on us…” “No, Dain…” tears flowed from his eyes. He tried to return to his place, but I pulled him towards me and hugged him tightly. I whispered: “So darkness is your power?” “We’ll talk about this later, Lumine,” he stood back and headed back. So fast and so far… “When?..” I asked into the void, from where the answer immediately came: “We have eternity left.”***
I don’t know how much time has passed from this very eternity, but I managed to think about everything. And the decision was tough. All for the sake of victory. It wasn’t a real duel. This means that we didn’t have to fight for real. “Go ahead, Lumine,” I told myself. “You can do it”. Thoughts about Kaenri’ah no longer bothered me as they had at first. I cleared my mind for battle. When I heard the heavenly bell ringing, I was ready for anything. I stood up and entered the circle. Almost invisible, but no less tangible walls immediately appeared around. Inhale… Exhale. I looked up. Dainsleif was also steadfast and decisive. And his eyes… There was such a fire in them that I could never understand. My thoughts were filled with pictures of our first walk, but I grabbed one phrase… “This flower dries up if it is taken away from its homeland. But as soon as he returns home, he falls apart.” I straightened the flower in my hair. He gave it to me then… Did we know how everything would turn out? “Begin,” came the voice of the cruel goddess. Dain attacked first, I dodged. Thinking that I had little chance against the captain of the royal guard, I went forward. Wings opened behind my back and I took off. Dainsleif tried to grab me with some kind of energy, a dark clot. I dodged and attacked. The sword entered the shield of light. “Show me everything you can!” my opponent shouted and pushed me away. It hurt me to see him like this, but much later, replaying this episode in my head, I examined his gaze. It was all just a game… Oddly enough, there were no thoughts. Just cold rage and cruelty. At both sides. I defended myself and attacked. Dainsleif kept dodging my attacks and trying to grab me with his elemental power. These “ticks” quickly exhausted me. “Shh…” strength was running out. “Dain!!!” and I attacked from the sky again. I was so weak that my wings disappeared in flight. But I still flew down. For the finishing blow. Dainsleif easily dodged and intercepted me. Our gazes crossed only for a moment. I heard his frantic heartbeat and heavy breathing. I felt his burning. He also had no strength left… The touch of my hands burned. Time seems to have slowed down… “You do understand that there can only be one winner, right?” he whispered in my ear. “And what is the price of losing?” I swallowed. “Death.” He pushed me away again. I fell onto the shiny, luminous floor, but without the sword: it flew off somewhere to the side. There was no elemental strength left — I was completely defenseless against fate. In his person. “Lovely!” the goddess who had been watching us all this time from a high throne under the very ceiling of the heavenly hall clapped her hands. “Now kill her. Clear the world of the light in her person.” I looked straight into Dain’s blue eyes. I saw determination and strength in them. I knew that he would do anything to save his people. Even against his own interests. “Dain…” I didn’t try to delay my fate. I just wanted to say one last thing. “My feelings for you will remain unchanged. And even if this is just the attraction of our opposing forces, know that I still love you.” I lowered my eyes, ready to accept my fate. There were a few seconds of silence. I could even hear my heart beating under my clothes. Then a sudden ringing and crashing sound pierced the silence. “I won’t do this.” “No… Dain, she will kill us both…” I wanted to say, but I couldn’t. Something stopped me. Perhaps the power of the goddess, or perhaps myself. He didn’t kill me because I was important to him… “What did you say?” the guardian of the Heavenly principles rose from the throne and waved her hand. Red and black cubes flew from everywhere, from all sides. The same ones… “I won’t kill her. It will upset the balance,” Dain repeated calmly. “You think I’m not worried about balance? I have her brother, whose power will also awaken when he goes through his own path. So what are the reasons to keep her alive now? You have violated the law of heavenly order. This is your fate, punishment. Now kill her or suffer worse.” I caught a soulful look. He would never hurt me, that’s what Dain was trying to tell me. It’s a pity that I didn’t understand then. “I can’t.” “Well, you chose your destiny. Kaenri’ah fell.” She waved her hand, and the red cubes crawled down somewhere. In Kaenri’ah… Dainsleif suddenly raised his sword. “Dain?..” “Get up, Lumine! Our fight is not over yet!” he threw the sword at me, and I grabbed it. Behind him, wings of light opened again. “Attack!” I jumped and, like lightning, flew up to him. The first blow landed right on the blocking sword, the second too. I don’t know what came over me then, but it was as if I had forgotten who I was fighting. If Dainsleif hadn’t been so skilled, I would have undoubtedly wounded him. But even in that moment of madness, I understood that nothing could last forever. At some point I missed a shot. The sword passed along the shoulder, tearing the fabric. Blood gushed from the deep cut. A bolt of pain crawled down my arm, so much so that I thoughtlessly put a blade in front of my face in defense. This became a fatal mistake. Dain used the power. He grabbed me by the throat with his darkness and easily lifted me off the ground. I was choking, trying to get out. The surge of rage did not subside, I still wanted to fight, but with my mind I understood that this was the end. The wings of light flickered with an increasingly dimmer light… “This time…” the goddess hissed in my and, obviously, in his head. “Kill her, Twilight Sword. I won’t give you a third chance.” The hand of the winner of the duel trembled treacherously, but pure rage still splashed in his eyes. Cold and merciless. The lashes of darkness wrapped around my neck even tighter — I almost lost consciousness. It became more and more difficult to breathe every moment. I raised my last glance at the one who was going to finish me off without hesitation and destroy everything that was between us. There was neither that tenderness, nor the desire to protect, nor… love in his gaze. Who was this man? “Dain…” I thought, feeling like I was about to close my eyes forever. “I forgive you…” The wings, flickering with light, went out. The eyes closed, the thoughts went away. All that was left was a dull throbbing pain in my temples, but that soon went away too. The bright half of this world has left him… “Lumine!” Or not… “Lumine!..” I felt the familiar smell of sunsettias and warmth near my face. I tried to get up or at least open my eyes, but vainly. It was as if something was holding me. All I could do was listen. "She's alive. She will live, promise me." "She is immortal now, Twilight Sword, just like you. You were cursed by the gods, like all the inhabitants of the kingdom of Kaenri'ah. Forever. The era of human self-government has come to its end." "But she is on the edge of death!.." "And, believe me, I will do everything possible so that she stays there. Unless you disappear, become a shadow. Her enemy. You tried to kill her. At your own request..." "You think I don’t know what you-" "Remember, Twilight Sword, your oath. Remember. And just dare to break it!..” I again stopped hearing and feeling anything. After some time, I woke up on the surface of Sumeru and saw with my own eyes the fall of the great kingdom of Kaenri'ah. Beside myself with rage, I then blinded half of the hermits with my flash of light. And she promised that until all seven archons fall, until I destroy the goddess that took my brother from me and made Dain my enemy, I will not rest. Never… Many years later, when the Order of the Abyss had already been formed and I came to power, our paths with the Twilight Sword crossed again. He tried to stop me, to convince me, and by doing this he really made me realize: now we are on opposite sides of the barricades. Light and darkness... They have always been incompatible. Two extremes of one whole that can never be together. Never… I'm hardened again. I forgot about everything warm and bright and simply began to confidently walk towards my goal, following my ideals. And only sometimes, in distant nightmares of the past or future, I dreamed of something that I could not forget. Something I shouldn't have realized. That same gentle voice, the aroma of sunsettias, after which I always woke up in a cold sweat. Once I even managed to make out the words of this nightly obsession. I kept them close to my heart, waited until the time came... The cherished words of my nightmare and desire... The Dark soul... “My little girl... My little luminous flower... I love you so much...”
