No Longer Active Here

The world you’d descended into was… not the Teyvat you’d known and loved.

As it had been described to you, this Teyvat experienced an event they called the Creator’s “Descending” several thousand years ago, an event even Zhongli failed to remember. Somehow, another "powerful deity" had managed to invade Teyvat, bending its very fabric to their will. Teyvat's history was entirely rewritten, now including this "creator" sitting on their throne for eons and eons. There was no telling how long they'd actually been there, but they might as well have descended several millennia ago as they made their followers believe.

And after a few thousand years of being socialized to act, think, and feel the way the impostor wanted… Getting out of it wasn’t exactly easy for them. All of Teyvat had been frog-boiled so hard they truly, honestly believed what that impostor said, and it nearly made them kill their true creator.

You tried your hardest to hold your tongue when you were in their presence, carefully choosing your words so as to not make them fear you more than they already did. Oftentimes you would travel throughout the nations, and every time you entered a new city, someone was there with an “offering” for you. Liyue was often the worst about this, Ningguang struggling to give up the old habit she had with your impostor, which naturally spread to her people.

Whether you’d simply gone to Mondstadt for a few days or you’d been traveling for months, there were gifts waiting for you when you returned to Liyue. You’d already ordered all of their temples be demolished, so instead these people would meet you at the edge of the city to give them to you personally.

It’s a very sweet gesture, and you can’t be mad at them when they’re only trying to make you happy! Yet… with each beautiful jade pendant or sweet-smelling bottle of perfume or fine silk clothing set they pressed into your hands… the horrible feelings of guilt and embarrassment only grew in your stomach. These people were so happy to see you, even if you’d just been gone a few days, and you couldn’t help but feel bad for dreading walking into Liyue Harbor.

You often berated yourself for how overwhelmed you were, especially in moments like this. If anyone else were put in your position, plucked out of their average life and placed on this "holy" pedestal, surely they would get exhausted too! But not you, never you. You're their god, you're not a person like them. You often wonder if they even see you as a person, or just an idolized statue with the capacity to kill. That kind of exhaustion is strictly a human concept, so of course they can't imagine their god dragging themself back home after being showered with praise, laying in silence for several hours until they can fall asleep. The situation that'd been dumped in your lap was more than you could handle, especially completely alone like this.

That's how you ended up here, spending a night at Wangshu Inn with your bodyguards before heading south toward the Harbor. You'd intentionally asked to take a detour to Qingce Village, stalling your return until it was "too late" to get there before nightfall. Your guards didn't question you or try to convince you otherwise, of course, so you checked in a few rooms for the night.

It must've been at least two or three in the morning when you snuck out to the balcony. Very rarely did you have any time to yourself like this, so you basked in the silence nighttime brought with it.

You'd become very well acquainted with everyone you recognized, The Crux fleet in particular as they often helped you reach Inazuma. Beidou was one of very few people willing to joke around with you, offering you a drink not as some holy offering, but as a friend might to another. You'd also gotten to know Heizou fairly well, who read you like a damn book. Almost everyone approached you, eager to earn your favor. All except one.

"Xiao?" you whispered, hoping not to wake anyone.

The man appeared in a puff of smoke on the balcony, kneeling with his face tilted toward the floor and his spear tight in his hand. He didn't say a word.

You took a step forward and knelt to look at him, placing one hand on his face and guiding him upward. “You don’t have to kneel like that anymore, y’know,” you mumbled, helping him to his feet. He only nodded.

“You’re the only one I haven’t met yet,” you said, leaning against the railing. “Since I’m here, I thought I’d drop by and say hello. I hope I’m not disturbing you…” Xiao shook his head.

“Hey, why aren’t you saying anything?” you asked. “You know you can talk to me, right? I’m not like them, you don’t have to do that.”

“…If that’s what you want, Your Grace,” he finally said, hand still gripping his spear tight. “What do you need from me?”

“Oh, I just wanted to finally meet you,” you said. “I’ve met everyone else so far except for you. If I'm interrupting your work, you don't have to stay."

"You came all the way out here just to... talk to me?" he asked, finally putting his spear away. "Why are you interested in me when there's a million other people throwing themselves at you, begging for your attention?" There was a bitter twinge to his voice, mostly undetectable if you hadn't noticed the way his eyebrow twitched downward as he spoke.

"Well, I thought it'd be nice to get to know you," you mumbled. "I know I'm not supposed to have favorites, but you've always been one."

Xiao sighed and leaned an arm against the balcony's railing. "You really aren't like them, huh..." he muttered to himself.

"What? Did they not like you or something?" you asked.

Xiao closed his eyes as he thought of his next words. "I am a Yaksha. I was created to kill, and it's all I'm good at. I'm a breathing weapon, and they treated me as such," he said. "They didn't like nor dislike me, not that it matters. I did what they told me to and that's where that ended."

"That's why you wouldn't say anything to me earlier, isn't it?" you asked. "You expected me to give you an order for you to follow and that be the end of it." He nodded.

Xiao sighed and crossed his arms. He'd heard the chatter about an "impostor," he'd seen the celebrations down in the Harbor, he'd somewhat overheard what was going on. The person they believed was the creator was actually another being entirely, similar to the creator, but definitely not the creator. Their blood gushed the same dull red as everyone else's, and the "impostor" they'd ordered Mondstadt's Knights to execute bled rivers of gold when hurt. The impostor was actually in Liyue at the time, and Zhongli dealt with them himself. Other than that, he had no idea what you were really like.

"Sometimes people still try to bow when I go somewhere," you said. "It just... It really upsets me how horribly you were treated. Of course I understand them being a little cautious of me, but... I figured word would've gotten around by now that I'm not like that..."

"What could possibly motivate someone to be so cruel?" you ask to yourself. "Every person I've talked to has had some kind of traumatic experience with them or their cult, and it makes me feel sick."

Xiao shrugged. "I don't think anyone knows but them."

You chuckled a bitter laugh. "Yeah, but the dead can't exactly spill their secrets."

Xiao stared at you for a moment, a concerned look on his face. "Your Grace... Did Mondstadt ever tell you what happened with them?" he asked, gloved hands gripping the rail. You shook your head.

He took a deep breath and looked away from you, out at the fields surrounding Wangshu Inn.

"They're not dead, Your Grace... They're being kept alive."

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