The sun hung low over the horizon as Aether made his way up the winding path towards Wangshu Inn. The air was cool, the evening breeze carrying the faintest whisper of the ocean as the traveler approached the stone steps. High above, the Vigilant Yaksha, Xiao, stood atop the inn’s highest rooftop, his spear glinting in the fading light and the turquoise strands of his hair blowing in the wind. He gazed out across the plains, his ever-watchful eyes scanning for signs of corruption, monsters, or any threat that dared to disturb the balance of Liyue.
Aether called out to him softly, and the adeptus descended, as swift as the wind, appearing before the traveler with his usual stoic demeanor.
“You. What brings you here?”
The traveler shifted slightly, sensing the weight of the message he was about to deliver. “Hey Xiao, Ningguang requests your presence at the Jade Chamber. She says it’s important.”
Xiao’s golden eyes flickered with something unreadable, but he nodded. If Ningguang herself had summoned him, it was no trivial matter. Without another word, the adeptus summoned the power of the winds, and within moments, he soared toward the sky, appearing before the palace that gleamed like a beacon among the clouds.
As he approached the magnificent structure, Xiao’s mind wandered. He had not been called to the Jade Chamber in some time. Usually, he preferred to stay grounded, closer to the battlefield. But something about this request tugged at a memory deep within him, something from long ago, something that unsettled him.
Ningguang stood at the entrance to the Jade Chamber, her elegant form silhouetted against the backdrop of the setting sun. The palace’s walls gleamed with gold and marble, its beauty a testament to Liyue’s grandeur. She greeted Xiao with a nod of respect, her expression as composed as ever, though her eyes hinted at the seriousness of the matter.
“Thank you for coming, Conqueror of Demons,” she said, her voice as smooth as silk. “I would not have called for you unless it was urgent.”
Xiao inclined his head slightly, his gaze sharp. “What is this about?”
She turned, gesturing for him to follow as they walked through the expansive corridors of the Jade Chamber. The palace was adorned with treasures from across Liyue, artifacts of history, relics of battles fought long ago, and trinkets that whispered stories of the land’s many forgotten cultures. But Xiao’s attention was drawn to a specific series of adornments as they passed. His eyes caught on the intricate designs of wings etched into the wall, feathers of deep silver, grey, fiery orange and black, unmistakably Qiong Qi in origin. Some of the feathers, he realized with a jolt, were real, woven into the design like trophies.
A flicker of memory surged within him. The Qiong Qi…
He remembered their plight, the cries for help that had gone unheard, and the elders who had once approached the adepti. They had asked for aid, their wings quivering with desperation as they pleaded for protection from the people of Liyue who feared them. But the adepti had dismissed their requests. 'We were too focused on other threats… monsters, not men.' Xiao thought bitterly. 'We left them to fend for themselves.'
A heavy wave of guilt washed over him, though he forced it down as quickly as it came. He had been younger then, still consumed by his own battles as a yaksha, not yet bound by the pain of his karmic debt. The Qiong Qi’s disappearance, their eventual extinction, had been a byproduct of their own recklessness… or so he had been told.
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cursed wings of grief | genshin impact x f.reader
Fanfiction"..i guess we really aren't that different, you and i." when the time was right, she would remind them of the power they had dismissed. she would make them remember the qiong qi. and she would watch them burn. __ -this is a xiao x reader published...
