NOCTURN BRIDE • genshin Impact | ✓

CHAPTER SIXTEEN.

once upon a time, she would open her eyes. a stray vision as the apostle would wander around the celestial skies that pathed a starry route that guided her. thus, she never felt alone.

polaris; with its glaring luminous light as it illuminates within the starry dark night — dusted with specks of pulsating beats of life. she'd remember the tedious attempts, to reach for the stars; though it ended to no avail.

sirius; surrounding her lonely vicinity, it slowly became her whole universe. in a space where only she, her and her sole existence itself slowly drifted. drifting, so softly, so slowly — ever so peacefully.

she felt, loved.

of course, as a young naive fool that was neglected in the realm of gods — naturally, she adapted in the world of mortals when the pair of hands were reached out towards her — rex lapis and barbatos. the way of human lives, emotions, nonetheless; was a foreign concept that took time to inherit, a forsaken mistake that had she known would bring demise in her entire life, she would've fled from the tedious adventure.

had she known she would've fell in love, had she known she should've ignored the act of kindness displayed around; had she known that it would bring her demise. death, brutality, bestiality were traits that she could have, should have, would have avoided — the ugly tragedy that fate has sewn upon her eyes, her shoulder, her hands, her legs, tongue tied with the red string of destiny that slowly became treacherous shackles that further pulled her away-

into nothingness.

the apostle grew tired as time passed. tired, amongst the ugly humans that reveals their inner thoughts. greedy perfidious goblins with an adroit compatibility when it came to mouthfuls of profanity.

she's tired. famished, exhausted, fatigued by a humanity that imagination couldn't preach.

for the sake of humanity's salvation, they shall perish into an unknown nation, of death perhaps. begone, foul fiends! ripples of disturbance within the once tranquil peace of life, as they'd slowly demolish the chain of being that god once carefully made into a non existent hierarchy that almost feels like it became a sort of myth. the segregation of power and ruling, ceased to exist.

frivolous creatures indeed. they dare disobey archons — the birth of life — in order to fulfill their greedy needs. money, wealth, power, authority. all sorts of nitty little things and liabilities that stirred up havoc, an unsightly scene bestowed upon. humans don't deserve, though, the apostle would see them more as of a blank canvas waiting to be completed.

a beautiful canvas to paint; drenched in the most crimson blood, sturdiest bones, gruesome flesh, tainted skin. another wrenching day where dreams are torn, faces of scorns, another day to mourn. a fascinating thing they call; emotions.

another day, as the blank canvas is gone.

empathy, sympathy — these unsightly words were absolute felony in the apostle's little world of confinement — a sort of ecstasy that deluded realities, slowly, slowly, further away from the truths as the realities slowly becomes a built up imaginations of actuality.

another gash, another mark onto the canvas; tedious marks of impurities from the once supposedly saintly cast formed with utmost perfection and glory crumbled within an instant. though, every mortal's canvas was unique. one of a kind, seemingly grotesque at first glance, though, the more one glances at it, it slowly forms into notorious masterpieces.

it defied the laws of systematic sequence, and the apostle detested that. though, she had to admit, she was once a victim of the tainted command. where barbatos and rex lapis guided and welcomed her — with a noble passion — only to discover, the flawed ideologies they held.

teyvat deserves a better mankind. and to do so, to rid the current ones seemingly felt like the only right methodology.

"barbatos loved you so dearly, don't you feel a speck of pity?" rex lapis questioned. pity, another nuisance for the apostle, and he expects her to display some sort of, compassion. "looking at you now, i can't believe you were once in love."

"under love's heavy burden i sink." a sacred oath that slowly became a grief the apostle weeped over. embodied, scars that were once bloody gashes would never fade. carved deeply as it became a scribe that kept her eyes wide open like laceration; an unsightly decoration that filled the apostle with regret. giving a playful grin that didn't match the tonality of her voice, rex lapis assumed it to be a sort of facade. "i sunk. i drowned, i suffocated till' i couldn't breathe."

but if she were to choose love over salvation — she'd indeed make a great jester, a pantaloon fool.

unlike the blinded archons who respected the mortals of the realm for unending loyalty swore upon, to live a happily ever after without experiencing hardships; oh, she wouldn't let them have it easy.

"and you're telling me that i should feel pity?" with a fake gasp, her head tilted back, eyes widening in surprise, pupils dilating through mydriasis. "what if i tell your people of your deeds? hm? their god, a slacker who refuses to care for his people; your forged death perhaps?"

"how have you become such... like a mangled brute-" rex lapis had his jaw clenched, the brim of his knuckles turning white from the amount of pressure he tightened his fist. alas, it seems that the apostle's taunting worked!

his existence, her amusement. oh, how it wounds her. so deeply, though she had nothing to lose, watching the unsightly expression from the stoic rex lapis only widened her grin, as she slowly awaited for teyvat's withering.

one by one. they will fall.

by her hands.

"and that's why the sustainer chose me rather than the likes of you and barbatos." pointing her index finger, she lifted his chin. such fascination, an interest that never ceased to impress her. temporary happiness, a delusional matter that even archons themselves submerge themselves in. yet, when the little bubble pops — they turn into imbeciles, a flawed creature like humans. "to take over the throne and rule over teyvat."

but who was the apostle to complain? her journey was like a tale, a journey of revolution.

where once upon a time, she would close her eyes.

━━━━━

( CHAPTER XVI )