Chapter Text
The Sanctuary of Surasthana was still just as eerie as before, even as it had ceased to be a prison. Something about the stillness of the atmosphere felt otherworldly, as if the space itself was not of Teyvat at all. It reminded Aether of his time spent traveling between worlds, but not necessarily in a good way.
Nahida had called him here, though she wouldn't tell him why; not until they stepped inside. They walked in together, coming to a stop in front of the brilliantly glowing sphere of Dendro energy, which cocooned a small human shape within. Last time Aether had been here, the body of the Balladeer had been battered and broken almost beyond recognition - a reminder that even with the divine construction of his body, it was a miracle he was still alive.
Now, he looked haggard and weak, but considerably better. At least, he was no longer a mangled heap of unrecognizable puppetry, which was undoubtedly an improvement. He looked like he was alive again, just tired and injured.
Paimon floated in beside him, eying the Dendro sphere while saying nothing. Out of the corner of his eye, Aether could see the same uncertain expression on his companion's face that he was sure mirrored his own. A long stretch of silence lingered in which no one seemed willing to speak.
"He's still not waking up," Nahida finally broke the silence. "I don't think he's ready yet." She took a few slow, deliberate steps forward, clasping her hands together and igniting the gentle glow of Dendro in her eyes and hair. "But... he's dreaming. I can't see it, but I know he is."
Aether peeled his eyes away from the Balladeer as Nahida spoke. "Is... that a good thing?" Uncertainty knotted in his stomach.
She didn't respond for a few moments, before shaking her head. "Not for this long. Dreams are beautiful things, but they can't go on forever." She turned to face Aether. "We all know that from experience, don't we?"
"Do you think he's stuck in another Samsara? Like the Sabzeruz Festival?" Paimon's voice was softer than usual, saturated with anxiety.
"Maybe, but maybe not." Nahida shrugged, the gesture conceding that her insight wasn't terribly helpful. "I can't see his dream, I can only sense that it's there, and that he can't wake up from it on his own."
A few beats of heavy silence passed. Aether cleared his throat to break it before daring to speak. "You said you... needed my help. Why did you bring me here?"
Nahida's expression grew somber, and she looked down at the marble floor of the Sanctuary. "The Fatui are looking to retrieve him and bring him back to Snezhnaya. If the intentions I sensed within the Doctor are accurate..." She paused, gathering herself before continuing. "I believe they intend to 'disassemble' him and make a new puppet out of the leftover parts." The grim words are spoken matter-of-factly.
"What?" Paimon let out a squeak of horror. "I-I mean, Paimon knows he's a bad guy, but being taken apart like a machine... that's horrible!"
A weight settled into Aether's stomach. "Do they - do they know he's being held here?"
Nahida shook her head. "Not yet, but I imagine the only reason they haven't checked here yet is because they're trying to lay low after the turmoil of the sages' exile." A look of guilt crossed her face. "I imagine this will be the first place they check once they feel secure enough to do so, which, if they do... I don't know if I can protect him."
"Huh?" Paimon frowned sympathetically. "But, Nahida... you've been getting stronger every day! I'm sure you can take on some dumb Fatui goons!"
"It's not a matter of strength," she continued. "Assuming it was just their rank-and-file soldiers and not a Harbinger like the Doctor, I believe I could fight them off, but..."
When she trailed off, Aether chimed in to finish her thought. "It would put the people of Sumeru in danger, wouldn't it?"
A nod. "I doubt I could convince the Fatui to leave him here without using force, but if I were to harm soldiers that are, on paper, Snezhnayan diplomats... it'd be an act of open hostility between Sumeru and Sneznhaya. It could spark retaliation that would undoubtedly catch innocent citizens in the crossfire."
"Oh, no..." Paimon breathed.
"I have much sympathy for the Balladeer, now that I better understand what he has lived through, and I do truly wish to give him a better life." She looked back at the small, floating form within the Sanctuary. "But I cannot risk my own people's lives to save his. I have to put them first - that is what it means to be an Archon."
Aether agreed with her, even though he still felt a twinge of sympathy; for both the Balladeer and Nahida herself. He imagined having to weigh lives against each other was a heavy choice, even if the correct answer was clear. "So... are you going to hand him over?" He suspected she wouldn't, but he couldn't blame her if she did. Still, he prayed there was a better way...
Yes, the Balladeer had done terrible things, most of which Aether wasn't sure he could forgive him for. He had selfishly lashed out due to his own trauma, inflicting his pain upon others instead of making any attempt to break the cycle. The people of Inazuma, who Aether had spent the past few months of his life with prior to heading to Sumeru, were still feeling the effects of the suffering he had inflicted decades - if not centuries - prior. Through his actions, the Balladeer had cemented himself as not unlike a ghost story in Inazuma, creating inter-woven stories of manipulation and tragedy caused by a vague, unknown figure.
And yet.
Maybe it was folly, or Aether's tendency to feel compassion where it wasn't deserved, but he struggled to truly hate the Balladeer. He hated his actions, certainly, but every time he tried to reconcile his feelings for those actions with the perpetrator himself, he couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy. He knew no amount of inner turmoil excused his crimes - only time and reparation could do that - but he still couldn't help the way he felt, especially after the crushing defeat and loss the Balladeer had faced when they had finally met in battle.
"I'd like to avoid having to do that, for his sake..." Nahida continued, "but also because I don't want the Fatui to get their hands on whatever power they're able to get from his body, either."
Aether grimaced, but nodded in agreement. "What's your plan, then? And... where do I factor into it?"
Nahida let out a soft sight before turning to him with a renewed determination in her expression. "Between the Samsara and that time you reached out to my consciousness after it had been locked away, you have a talent for navigating dreams." She glanced between him and the Balladeer. "He's not fully healed yet, but his recovery is far enough along that if he were to be removed from stasis now, he would be alright." She took a step towards the Dendro sphere which contained her charge. "If you could find him inside the dream and bring him back, I'm almost certain he would wake up."
"And then...?"
"Well..." Nahida suddenly looked a bit sheepish, shifting on her feet. "I remember that Adeptal artifact you showed me; it was a sort of pocket dimension inside of a teapot, right? I was hoping you could hide him in there and use it to sneak him out of Sumeru. Considering how severe his injuries were, I doubt the Fatui would ever suspect he could make it out of here, so if you went even just as far as Liyue or Mondstadt, they'd never know."
Right, Aether had shown Nahida the teapot, figuring she would find the technology fascinating (an assumption which turned out to be correct). Still, the plan was a bit undercooked for Aether's tastes. Would it really work?
Paimon let out an uncertain whimper, her expression knitting with concern. "But... the last time he saw us, he was so angry! He hates us! What if he doesn't let us help him?"
"Then we can't help him." Nahida's voice was resolute, even if her tone was mournful. "I want to give him a second chance, I really do, but if he refuses... there's nothing we can do about that. We can't force him to learn from his mistakes." She let out a sigh. "I hope it doesn't come to that, though. I really hope that... you can help him."
Aether could feel his stomach knot with uncertainty as he looked between Nahida, Paimon, and the Balladeer. He wanted to help him, he really did, but was it a good idea?
"Please know that I won't force you to do anything against your will. If you do not want to do this, I can try to find another way to hide him from the Fatui," Nahida added, likely sensing his hesitation. "I don't want you to feel obligated to do anything you don't want to."
Aether took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. Sure, there was some temptation to refuse, but largely he knew he wouldn't be able to walk away from someone in need. Call it being over-sympathetic, or even call it having some sort of... how did the Balladeer put it? A 'guardian complex'? - but he couldn't just ignore someone trapped in a painful situation, even if it was their own actions that landed them in that state.
"I'll do it." He took in another deep breath to calm his nerves. "I'll try to wake him up."
Paimon was still skeptical and visibly nervous. "Eh? But are you sure...? Paimon knows it's just a dream, but still, what if he tries to hurt you or something? Isn't it bad for your mind if you get hurt in a dream?"
"That's a valid concern," Nahida's expression was serious, "he cannot hurt you physically, but what happens in a dream can still be bad for your mind."
Further concern blossomed in Aether's stomach. "I figured that was a risk, but..." He sighed. "I'll be careful. I won't let him hurt me."
Nahida's expression softened with relief. "Alright. I believe in you, Traveler. I believe that you can help him. Whenever you're ready, I can connect your consciousness to his."
The first sensation that reaches Aether is the smell of ozone, followed shortly by the scent of sakura blossoms. The sound of falling rain comes next, bringing with it distant rumbles of thunder and the cool, damp air of a storm. Only then was he able to open his eyes, finding himself sitting under a wooden roof, the open walls around him showing a serene landscape gently showered with rain.
He had spent enough time in Inazuma to recognize it at a glance, both its geography and its architecture. He sat on the open porch of an Inazuman mansion, ornately decorated with deep purples, blues, and jet blacks. The storm around him was constant and unwavering, yet it seemed to cradle his surroundings almost lovingly. From where he sat, sheltered from the weather, the scene was peaceful and beautiful.
Behind him, there was a large sliding set of double doors, emblazoned with the symbol of Inazuma - the Electro sigil. He couldn't hear anything from inside the mansion, but he just somehow knew that something was inside. Even without that sense, of course, he could've guessed based on context alone that was where he was supposed to go. After all, the rest of the scenery seemed slightly blurred and out of focus, like an incomplete set piece that existed only to decorate the dream. The real focus was the mansion itself, and the consciousness held within.
Deep breath in. Deep breath out.
He steeled himself, gathering his resolve, and moved forward to open the doors. He placed his palms on the smooth wood and pushed forward to slowly slide them apart. The entrance hall opens up before him, lit dimly in deep violet hues. Everything was pristine yet visibly aged, like a collection of well-kept antiques.
However, Aether didn't pay much mind to consider the aesthetics of the dream, as his gaze quickly settled on something at the far end of the hall. It opened up into a large, empty room, in which he saw a figure clothed in white sitting on the floor. The individual's back was turned, but Aether recognized it immediately.
The Balladeer!
Aether resisted his initial impulse to run towards him, instead forcing himself to proceed with caution. He had to remember his place - if the Balladeer's mind were to suddenly become hostile towards him, who knew what sort of effect that would have on his own consciousness? Besides, unlike his own dreams, this dream seemed to feel a bit more 'real', with more vivid sensory details. Presumably, if it came down to it, that would include being able to feel pain.
His steps were slow and deliberate as he made his way towards the veiled figure. It was he exact outfit he had been wearing in the memories Aether had witnessed from Haypasia. Presumably, these were the clothes that Ei had given him before she placed him into his slumber.
In person, he noticed further details that the vision lacked. The designs embroidered into the edges of the veil bore the same floral patterns Aether recognized as being associated with outdated depictions of the Shogun - as in, depictions of Makoto and not Ei. On top of that, the Balladeer's hair, previously cut off above his shoulders, flowed long and pin-straight down his back. The lighter streaks were even more prominent and noticeable with the increased length; another trait he shared with his 'Mother'.
As he entered the open chamber, he paused to look around. Paper screens made up the other three walls, each one with a sliding shoji door presumably leading into another room. A second level, lofted above the first, was visible from where Aether stood. A narrow walkway wrapped around it, granting access to one final shoji door. How he could get onto the second level from here was unknown, but he made a mental note of the fourth door nonetheless.
Finally, his gaze fell to the small figure knelt before him. Aether hadn't realized before how influential the Balladeer's bombastic personality had on his overall presence. When he spoke, his sharp tone and dramatic gestures made him seem larger than life. Without them, it was obvious just how small and vulnerable he was. He flowing clothes he wore seemed to swallow him whole, drowning his lithe frame in pristine fabric.
Before Aether could figure out what to say, the image of the Balladeer slowly stood up and turned to face him. Its gaze was downcast and difficult to read, bearing no discernible emotion. He appeared disconcertingly doll-like, as if he had no will of his own and existed simply to be a decoration to fade into the background.
"I was wondering if someone would come to find me," said the memory. Aether was immediately struck by how different the Balladeer sounded. His voice was several pitches higher and considerably more androgynous than before. Not only that, but the tone was unnaturally monotone. Between the longer hair and the lighter voice, Aether could have easily mistaken the past self of the Balladeer for a younger version of Ei.
"I'm here to help you." Aether carefully chose his words and kept his tone level, not wanting to somehow upset him. He had a feeling that the figure he was speaking to was not the true consciousness, but instead a projection of a memory. Still, whether this was the 'real' Balladeer or not, Aether was reluctant to do anything to upset him.
The memory folded its hands neatly in front of itself, the movement practiced and almost robotic. Aether still failed to see any spark of life within those eyes. "I see." The words were delivered without any emotion. "...why?"
"Er," Aether should have been prepared for the question, but it still caught him off-guard, "what do you mean, 'why'?"
The memory's gaze drifted to the ground. "You have no reason to be here. Please leave." Before giving Aether the chance to respond, the figure turned and walked towards the door opposite from the entrance, disappearing through it like a ghost vanishing into the air.
Despite this, Aether sprang forward, hurrying over to the door in an attempt to open it and pursue the memory. Though the fragility of the shoji door was clear from the texture beneath his fingers, it didn't budge even slightly as he pushed into it. A familiar lock had appeared before him, one he had seen in many Inazuma domains - a Magatama lock with three slots. He needed to find the other components before he could pass beyond here.
He swore under his breath, but tried to remind himself that this was progress. If the door was locked, it stand to reason that was because the Balladeer's mind considered what was behind it worth protecting. This made it highly likely that his goal was just behind that door. As long as the dream's logic remained consistent - which, hopefully it would - he just had to find the Magatama within his memories and bring them back here.
With that, he turned and pushed his way through the western shoji door.
Aether found himself stepping into an open courtyard. Though it was surrounded by walls on every side, the space was opened up to the sky. Thunder rumbled and rain fell, but almost as if he were surrounded by an invisible cone that deflected the weather, not a single drop landed on his skin. The earthy smell of petrichor mixed with the scent of fresh flowers.
Troublingly, the door he had entered from had disappeared behind him when his back was turned. Concern immediately gripped his mind about how he would find his way back to the Magatama door, but he forced himself to focus on the task at hand. He would have to just find it again another way.
A river cut the courtyard in half, though the water's source and where it exited was unclear. A small wooden bridge arched over the flowing stream, which Aether approached with caution. Deciding it looked sturdy enough to support his weight, he carefully stepped onto it, leaning over the rail to look into the water. Koi fish swam peacefully through it, barely even causing a ripple when they occasionally surfaced in search of food.
"They're cute, right?" A voice startled Aether out of his thoughts and he turned quickly to face the source. Another memory of the Balladeer stood beside him, much more recognizable than the last but still so distinctly different. He still wore the pristine white robes Ei had given him, though the long sleeves were tied back with tasuki. The veil, too, was missing - and his long hair had been cut off in the choppy, angular style Aether was used to seeing.
But, what Aether noticed first was none of those things; it was instead the Balladeer's expression. He had the same face, of course, but it looked completely different with how bright his eyes were. He had a glimmer of life in him that Aether had never seen on the real person.
"Oh, uh -" Aether stammered for a moment, trying to collect himself after being caught off-guard by the memory's appearance. "Yeah, I... uh... I like fish." He kicked himself internally for having such a lame response, but the memory didn't seem to mind.
He gave a soft laugh, so unlike anything Aether had heard in the real world, and stepped forward to stand beside him and peer into the water. "It's sort of funny, isn't it? Humans eat other fish all the time, but the time I tried to eat one of these, my friends panicked and rushed to stop me."
Aether tried to picture the scene and couldn't help but smile a bit at the thought. "Well... unlike fish in the wild, these are someone's pets, aren't they? And I doubt they'd want someone to eat their pets." Not to mention how expensive they are, apparently...
"Katsuragi lectured me, but by the end of his rant, he couldn't stop himself from laughing." The memory crouched down, sliding his arm through the gaps in the railing to stick his finger into the water. The koi surrounded his hand curiously, inspecting it for any food. "I'm glad he stopped me, though. I realized I like koi."
He made a mental note of that name - Katsuragi - and sat down beside the memory, dangling his feet over the water. "I'm sure the koi appreciated it too."
"I think it's a bit sad though," the memory lifted his finger from the water, "because they're stuck here, in this little artificial stream."
A bad feeling settled into Aether's chest, though he couldn't place why just yet. "Well... at least it's safe, and they're well cared for."
The memory wasn't looking at him. "But don't they want to be free?"
The bad feeling only grew worse. "I don't know if fish really worry about things like that. They're not exactly like people." He looked back down at the water, frowning in confusion as he realized how deep it was. He could have sworn the water was only about knee-deep at its lowest point, but looking at it now, it seemed to be so deep that one would have to swim a considerable distance to reach the bottom. Who has a koi pond this deep?
"They're... not?"
Aether looked up at the memory again and every word he'd intended to say was stolen right out of his throat in a single, horrified gasp. There was a dull plop sound as the memory's face slid off like a mask, falling through a gap in the railing and sinking into the water. All that was left was a featureless black voice with only piercing indigo eyes underneath. Its gaze was like an accusation and Aether felt icy fear stab through his chest.
He tried to scramble to his feet, to get away, but the wood splintered beneath him and dug into his skin as it buckled under his weight. He felt cold, lifeless hands grab onto him from behind and pull him down as the bridge collapsed. The sky above him disappeared as black water consumed him, the weight of the Balladeer's memory pulling him further and further into the slimy, suffocating depths. Mud that tasted like crude oil filled his mouth and nose even as he struggled not to breathe it in, and his eyes burned even as he tried to keep them shut.
Eventually, the will to fight left him as his limbs felt as though they were pulled down by lead weights. All he could do was drift limply down further and further into the foul water. He numbed to the sensation of being consumed by it until he felt nothing at all - no sensory input aside from darkness.
A voice crept into his mind, though it was less that he 'heard' it and more that it simply appeared in his thoughts. It was the Balladeer's voice, unmistakable and distinct.
"Do you think I'm beautiful, Aether?"
An image appeared before him, as if somehow superimposed over the inky blackness that had swallowed all of his other senses. The memory he had just spoken to looked different now. A long crack ran through its face, forcing one of its eyes shut. Tears flowed down its porcelain cheeks, mixing with blood spatter, and the light in its eyes which had caught Aether's attention before had all but gone out now. The gentle curiosity and amity in its expression was completely replaced by abject horror and desperation. The image moved to cup his face, pulling them closer together until they were barely a few inches apart. He swore he could feel the ghost of its fingers against his skin.
But he couldn't answer its question. The darkness had filled his lungs and throat, rendering him silent. The memory pulled his face closer still, and were this image real and not a hallucination, Aether likely could have felt each breath against his face.
"Was I only kept alive because I was beautiful?
Aether felt sick. He wanted to say something, but not a word would come out as tears spilled down the memory's cheeks.
"They said my body was divine, that I was special," the memory sobbed, closing his eyes tight and burying his face in Aether's chest, "and then they decided I had to die for that. Why? Why?"
Aether's chest constricted with the lack of air, and the image of the Balladeer began to flicker away like a burned-out lantern. He was left to drift away into the inky blackness until he felt his mind fade.
The first thing he did when he awoke back in the entrance room, before the Magatama door, was empty the entire contents of his stomach. Black slime flowed out of him and dissolved into nothing before it even hit the floor. He struggled not to sob as he wretched violently, only stopping when his lungs and stomach were finally clear of the rotten, oily substance. He tried to remind himself over and over that none of this was real, that it was all just a dream, but his heart pounded in his chest like it was a fluttering bird trying to escape its cage.
He collapsed onto the ground, into a trembling heap as he tried to collect himself. All he had to do was breathe in and out and try to focus all of his attention on the sensation of air entering and leaving his throat, the internal flow keeping him grounded and forcing his mind to tear its focus away from what had just happened to him.
In his hand, which he clutched close to his chest like a lifeline, was the glowing Magatama he needed for the door. He wasn't sure when he had come to possess it, but he held it tightly as if he feared it would slip away. 'I'm making progress,' he reminded himself as the buzzing static in his mind finally began to ease.
Eventually, he was able to stand, leaning on a wall for support. The door he had entered previously was gone now, the paper screen splattered with a large, ink-black stain. He limped over to the Magatama lock to slide his key into it, letting out a sigh of relief when he heard some sort of mechanism click from inside the lock. It seemed that though this was a dream, it functioned nearly the same as the Domains he was familiar with and followed a similar logic.
It made sense, really. The Balladeer had been sealed inside of a Domain for such a long time, it wasn't surprising that the time spent inside had affected his consciousness. It was also a relief, since the dream being grounded in something familiar meant that he had a bit more confidence in navigating it.
He turned to the opposite shoji door, needing to gather his resolve once more before walking towards it. His gait was still a bit shaky, but he forced himself to press on. He had survived the sensation of drowning before, surely he would be able to handle whatever came next.
When he pushed open the sliding doors, the first thing Aether noticed was how a rush of hot, smoky air hit his face. The hallway was charred and filled with an acrid stench like a mechanical fire or a poorly-maintained forge. He stepped forward, blinking away the burning in his eyes and trying not to cough as the ashen air hit his throat.
Aether continued forward, blocking the falling soot and embers from hitting his face by using his arm as a shield. The room was unbearably hot and even though he knew it was a dream, he could feel sweat building up and evaporating from his skin. He persevered, though - otherwise, he would have endured the previous trial for nothing.
At the end of the hall, the walls had been completely torn down, revealing the scene of a burning village. Bodies were littered everywhere and standing among the carnage was another memory of the Balladeer, holding a sword that still dripped with fresh blood.
The memory turned around to face Aether as he approached, looking at him with an impassive expression that seemed almost... bored. There was a cruel coldness to his demeanor that made Aether want to flee, but he didn't have the luxury of doing so.
"Are you here for the show?" The memory's words were smug, but its tone just seemed to be flat and empty. "You're too late. Everyone's either dead or escaped."
"You... did this?" Aether asked breathlessly, looking down at the bodies. Each one was armed, bearing weapons of different kinds, and had their faces twisted into furious, warlike snarls. Their wounds were grievous and brutal, but each one had clearly fought until they had collapsed.
The memory shrugged. "So what if I did?" He looked down at the bodies impassively. "It doesn't matter who's holding the sword when everyone else is already dead." As if to punctuate his point, he tossed his own sword onto the ground and crossed the gap between himself and Aether with a few long, purposeful strides. "What do you care, anyways?"
"These... were living, breathing people." 'No, it's just a dream,' he reminded himself, but it was hard to detach from the scene when he was standing in it. "They... they had their own dreams, and desires, and -" Aether's plea was cut off.
"And so did he." The memory's voice was like ice. "So did he, but he still died." His gaze slid coldly across the scattered bodies. "Humans are... insignificant animals. Their lives are short and meaningless, and they're all too quick to turn on each other when things get difficult."
Aether took an unsteady step back, intending to put distance between himself and the memory. However, it only stepped closer and closer until he felt bloodied hands wrap around his throat, smearing across his skin. Any words he could have said were cut off as he struggled to breathe, the memory's fingers digging into him with shocking strength.
"They acted like family, you know." The words were dripping with a loathing so deep and venomous that Aether felt poisoned just by hearing it. "But they still slaughtered each other like rabid dogs based on a few lies."
Aether gasped fruitlessly for air as the memory continued on. "But it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. Human lives are barely even a ripple in the flow of existence. Each one is so meaningless that when it comes down to it, none of them actually care for each other."
Suddenly, Aether felt the weight of his sword at his hip. He scrambled for it as strangulation coiled around his chest. "Don't you agree, traveler? Everyone you've ever met only helps you after they've used you." A cruel grin spread across the memory's face. "If you stopped being useful to them, would they even remember you existed? Have they done anything to show their adoration as anything other than conditional? Does anyone in this world actually, truly love y-"
The memory was cut off with a wet, fleshy crunch as Aether drove his sword through its chest. The grip around his throat loosened as his assailant fell backwards onto the ground, limp and lifeless. Shimmering violet blood streamed out of the open wound, seeping onto the charred ground in an ever-growing puddle.
Aether collapsed to his knees, clutching his throat as he gasped for air. He could feel his own heart pounding in his ears as blood rushed through them. He shut his eyes tight, trying to cut off the horror of his surroundings. It took some time before he felt steady enough to reopen his eyes.
When he did, all of the bodies were gone, as was the scene of the burning village. Instead, all that lay before him was a glowing Magatama and another shoji door. He reached out and picked up the key, pulling himself to his feet and hurrying to the door, just wanting to get out of there as soon as he could -
Behind the door, he found himself back in the room where he started.
With two Magatama placed into their slots on the locked door, the original room had changed. A shimmering tree, reminiscent of the roots of Irminsul, had sprouted through the floor boards and extended upwards toward the lofted area, granting Aether access to the final unlocked door.
He took his time climbing up to it, not particularly willing to rush into whatever horrors were awaiting him next, but he knew he had to strengthen his resolve and continue. There was only one Magatama left and then he could - hopefully - rescue the Balladeer and be free from this nightmare. Of course, after the things he'd seen, he had no idea how he was going to feel about that goal when he awoke, but...
He just had to stay focused for now.
Behind the door was another long hallway, though this one was considerably longer than the previous one. Even if he squinted, he could barely make out what was at the other end of it, just that it was another wide open room.
The hallway was suffocatingly quiet at first, and with each step forward was filled with cautious unease. The traditional Inazuman architecture was occasionally broken by exposed machinery and pipes that seemed strikingly out-of-place. Any time Aether's guard lowered, a mechanical sound would strike out of nowhere, startling him into a heightened state of unease each time.
He froze in place as he passed a shoji door to his left, realizing with a quickly rising dread that he could hear voices behind it. One of them he recognized as the Balladeer, while the other... was the Doctor. Despite his fears, he crept over to the door, his hand hovering over it as he debated whether or not to open.
"You are a divine creation," came the Doctor's voice, so utterly drenched in smug satisfaction that Aether felt a bit queasy listening to it. "Flawless, down to every aspect... except for one. Do you know what that is?"
"...what is it?" The Balladeer's voice was closer to how Aether remembered it, but it still held an air of trepidation that the real thing did not.
The Doctor laughed. "Why, you're missing your... 'heart', so to speak."
"My... heart?"
There was the sound of shuffling, and then a sudden gasp from the Balladeer that made Aether's heart sink. Slowly, he began backing away from the door.
"Yes, right here there's an empty space. This is where your creator was supposed to put your heart... but I suppose she must have forgotten." The Doctor let out a cruel chuckle. "Do not despair, little puppet. I can fix this. You just have to let me..."
Aether heard another strangled gasp from the Balladeer's memory before he decided he could no longer take it. He quickly stumbled away from the door, trying not to hear the sounds that followed. Something about the almost perverse glee in the Doctor's voice as he spoke to his new experiment made Aether feel sick to his stomach, and he just needed to get away from it.
The silence that had filled the hallway before was gone, and he realized there were many, many other paper doors that lined the dark hallway. Each one had its own scene playing out behind it. A cacophony of voices, belonging primarily to the Doctor and the Balladeer, echoed all around him.
He covered his ears and marched forward, doing all that he could to drown out the sounds leaking through the walls. There were laughs, pained screams, even the horrible crunching of flesh - every so often there would even be sounds of distress from unfamiliar voices as well. 'Just how many people had the Doctor dragged into his experiments with the Balladeer?' He tried with all of his might to block the words being spoken from reaching his ears, but some still wormed their way through nonetheless.
"Hold still, now. How am I supposed to help you if you just keep squirming around?"
"What ever are you crying for? Didn't you ask me to do this? Isn't this what you want?"
"Look at how powerful you've become. Everyone will finally show you the respect and fear which is your birthright."
"I've done everything you've asked, but you're still not satisfied, are you? No, no... you need more, don't you?"
"This substance will make you powerful enough to rival the gods. Don't mind the way it burns when it's injected - I've experimented enough to know it works already."
"Compare yourself now to who you were then. When you came to me, you were nothing... but now? You're divine."
"Shut up - shut up!" Aether screamed, trying to push the voices out of his ears with his own. The sound of the doctor's smug voice purring all around him made him want to be sick all over again. Something about hearing it made him feel like he was the one strapped down to an operating table, laid bare under dozens of eyes as they touched and pulled at him from all over.
Eventually, the voices stopped, and he all but tumbled into the room at the end of the hall. It no longer resembled an Inazuman home even at a passing glance, replaced with the cold and sterile metal of a laboratory. It felt entirely too large yet claustrophobic all at once.
Of course, at the center, was a metal chair connected to dozens of wires and tubes. Another memory sat within it, having been stripped of all clothing from the waist up. His chest was splayed open like a dissected animal, showing off all of his internal mechanisms that twitched and pulsed as if organic in nature. Glowing, violet fluid ran through thin tubes like veins, silken sacs inflated like lungs, and a tangle of unidentifiable rubbery ducts and wires filled the stomach.
However, there was no artificial facsimile in place of its heart - only an empty, hollowed out hole with faintly luminous circuitry within. The memory stared at him with lifeless eyes that made Aether initially assume this memory was somehow dead or unconscious, but with a chill he realized that the gaze followed him, remaining focused as he approached.
"...hello?" His voice came out as barely a whisper. "S-Scaramouche?" No response. The memory slowly blinked. "...Kunikuzushi?" Still nothing. The memory did not move or speak.
A jolt of terror ran up Aether's spine as he heard footsteps coming from somewhere. The sound had no source direction, but he could tell that it was getting closer and that he needed to flee if he wanted to keep his life. Bile rose in his throat as he looked around wildly, praying to find the tell-tale glow of a Magatama for the locked door, but -
With bone-chilling dread, he spotted the characteristic shimmer from within the memory's body, buried underneath its pulsing artificial organs. The dead-eyed stare seemed almost expectant now, and Aether didn't know whether he wanted to sob or vomit.
Even if the Balladeer's organs were artificial, there was still an unpleasantly sticky quality to them that clung to his skin as he reached in. Faux tendons and muscles twitched against his hands as his fingers fished around within the wetness for the Magatama. When his fingers finally closed around it, the first sign of life from the memory came as a breathy gasp.
Aether reflexively shuddered and pulled back, yanking the Magatama out with a spray of glowing violet fluid that was uncomfortably cold against his skin. He staggered backwards, a scream tearing from his throat as his feet met nothing but empty air. Before he could react, he descended into dizzying nothingness.
When he awoke in the central room once more, it took even longer than either of the previous times for him to steady himself enough to function again. He spent what felt like several minutes curled up in a ball on the cold wooden floor, heaving with dry sobs.
A portion of his mind, the one that was running around in panicked circles like a frightened animal in a cage, tells him to abandon everything and run. But... he knows he can't do that. He's so close. He's almost done. To abandon his mission now would mean that everything he had endured would have been pointless, and most of all...
It would mean leaving the Balladeer behind.
Aether wasn't stupid, nor was he as trusting and idealistic as people seemed to think. He knew there was every chance that the Balladeer would refuse the second chance he was offered. After all of this, he could just laugh in Aether and Nahida's faces and deny any chance at redeeming himself or making up for his past actions.
Even so, Aether couldn't just leave him here. Maybe it was selfish, but he knew that even if the Balladeer was beyond saving, he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he abandoned him. Even if all of these efforts were in vain, he knew he had to at least try, or else he'd carry the guilt for the rest of his life.
"You still want to save me?"
Aether startled and looked up. The first memory, the one that had previously been in this room, stood over him. His mouth dried up immediately, but he tried to stutter out a response nonetheless. "I -" He swallowed. "I do, I want to help you."
Silent tears fell down the memory's face as it looked at the floor. "I... I'm so alone, Aether. I'm so -" Its emotionless face finally broke as it crumpled to its knees, sobbing loudly into its hands. "I'm so lonely, please don't leave me here, please don't abandon me, please -" He was stunned into silence by the display before him. "I want to be saved. I want someone to love me. I want to be whole again. Please - please - I know I can't do this alone, I need someone to - someone to help me..."
Aether reached out a hand towards the memory, hoping to bring it some comfort or reassurance, but just as his fingers would have brushed against its white robes the figure disappeared into thin air. He was left there, unable to do anything but sit in stunned silence at what he'd just seen. 'Was that... how the Balladeer really felt?' He didn't know how to feel.
He picked himself up off of the floor, slowly making his way to the locked door with the final Magatama in hand. This was it, he could end this nightmare and both of their entangled minds could be freed. As the last key clicked into place, he pulled himself forward into the doorway as it slid open.
The door quickly snapped shut behind him as he stepped inside, leaving him in a room much smaller than any of the others. It was the only room in the nightmarish mansion that actually seemed like it belonged in a home, and it had a warmth to it that was missing from the other rooms.
Sitting on the tatami floor, with his back pressed up against the far wall, was the Balladeer himself - the real one. He looked just as tattered as the one in reality, just as pitifully small as he hugged his knees up to his chest and buried his face in them. Aether could see that he was shaking.
He stepped forward slowly, kneeling down in front of the centerpiece of the nightmare. "...hey," he breathed softly, praying he didn't startle him. "I'm... I'm here."
The Balladeer picked his head up ever-so-slightly, glaring at Aether from behind the choppy fringe of his hair. His eyes were red-rimmed and teary, with the obvious exhaustion in his gaze sucking all of the venom out of his angry, defensive front. "...what the hell do you want?" His voice was a spiteful mutter. "Are you here to laugh at me? Pity me? Tell me how disgusting I am? Just get it over with."
Aether shook his head. "N-No, no, that's not..."
"Hah, don't tell me you're here to help me, are you?" The Balladeer sat up fully, a cruel yet joyless smile plastered forcefully on his face. "Don't make me laugh. Like you'd ever actually want to help me after what I did."
"I am here to help you!" Aether protested, his patience growing thin. "Do you - do you know what I went through in order to find you here!? Do you think I really would have done all that if I wasn't being serious?"
The Balladeer recoiled, his mocking smile quickly dropping into shock. "You -" He swallowed, still clearly reeling. "You're actually here to help me? Are you insane? Did I knock your brain loose when I hit you?"
He shook his head, desperate to get the Balladeer to just listen to him. "No! No, please, listen to me. I want to get you out of here-"
"So it's pity, then?" His lip curled in disgust. "Let me guess, that vision you got from Haypasia had your bleeding heart aching for me, and because you just can't help your little guardian complex, you had to-"
"-shut up and listen to me!" Aether exclaimed desperately, grabbing the Balladeer by the shoulders and shocking him into silence. "I'm here because nobody, nobody deserves to be left in a place like this! I don't care if you think it's stupid, or if you think I'm just some idiot with a complex, but I can't leave you here." His voice audibly cracked at the end of his words, and he could feel tears burning the corners of his eyes. Every ordeal he had endured to bring himself here was becoming too much to bear.
The Balladeer's eyes were wide with genuine shock. "You-" His voice caught in his throat. "But - why? What have I ever done to deserve your help?"
"It's not about deserving anything," in the aftermath of his outburst, Aether's voice had softened to a whisper, "it's about how, despite everything, I want you to have another chance."
"...another chance at what?"
"I-" Aether faltered. "I don't know, but... that's the point. Whether you choose to make up for your past actions, or run away, or... whatever it is you decide, I want you to have that choice."
Trembling hands grasped Aether's forearm. The Balladeer leveled him with an uncertain look, his expression shifting with something just barely contained within. "You... you're such a fool. Who's to say I even want to redeem myself? What if I'm - what if I'm perfectly content to stay as I am?" His voice wobbled, losing any confidence his words were intended to have. "You really came all this way just to risk that?"
"Think of it however you want, but... nothing will change if you stay here, trapped in this endless cycle." It was an impulsive decision, really, but against his better judgement Aether found himself pulling the Balladeer into a hug, holding him close to his chest. "Please, just... come with me."
He could feel him trembling in the embrace, but he made no effort to pull away. "You're... you're an idiot..." He swallowed. "You're so..."
Aether could feel a shift in the atmosphere of the dream, as if it were unraveling around him. The Balladeer didn't say anything further, but as the seams came undone, he could hear his thoughts bleeding through, unbidden and unrestrained.
"I don't want to hurt anymore."
"I don't want to be alone anymore."
"I just want to feel at home somewhere."
"I just want to be loved."
"I want...
"-to be whole."
With a surge of blinding light, the dream melted away.
When he woke up, he was being cradled in softly glowing Dendro, woven around him like a hammock. The serene stillness of the Sanctuary spread out around him, no longer as eerie as before. Paimon let out a joyful squeak when she noticed he was awake, flying in close to grab his shoulder and begin a long, rambling tirade about how worried she was and how long he had been unconscious. Aether wasn't listening, though. His gaze was transfixed on the center of the Sanctuary, several feet away from him.
The Balladeer was awake, knelt on the ground as Nahida carefully wrapped the worst of his unhealed wounds with Dendro-infused bandages. He looked a bit sheepish and almost embarrassed to have his wounds tended to, averting his gaze from the young god and glaring at the floor beside her. After a moment, he must have noticed Aether looking at him, because he glanced up to meet his eyes with a visible start.
Nahida turned as the Balladeer's gaze shifted, her expression lighting up with delight and relief. She finished wrapping up her patient's wrist and hurried over to Aether, lowering the Dendro hammock as he stepped off of it. He could feel his legs shifting like a baby deer's, but he managed to stay upright without completely embarrassing himself.
"You did it." Her voice was soft with warm joy. "I was so worried, you were in there for so long..." A flash of guilt crossed her expression, but she shook her head to clear it.
Aether frowned. "Er - how long?"
"It's been three years, dipshit," an unexpected voice chimed in. The Balladeer was wearing a mocking grin from where he sat. "The whole world's changed while you were out."
"...what?!"
Nahida shot him a glare like a scolding teacher at a young, misbehaving student. "No, don't listen to him." A sigh. "It's been about twelve hours. I expected it to take less than half that much, but I must have miscalculated. The toll the dream took on both of your minds was immense..."
"Don't scare Aether like that! He just saved you!" Paimons shrieky, indignant voice was aimed at the Balladeer like an arrowhead. "Ugh, you're so ungrateful!"
He stuck out his tongue at her. "It's his fault for believing it for even a second. Obviously it hasn't been that long."
"I just woke up, cut me some slack..." Aether felt the tips of his ears grow a bit warm, and he quickly decided to change the subject. "Listen, that aside, did Nahida explain the plan to-"
"To smuggle me out of here?" the Balladeer interrupted. He staggered to his feet, prompting Nahida to summon a glowing sprout from the floor for him to lean on for support. "She told me everything. You-" His eyes narrowed incredulously. "You just... carry around a pocket dimension in your bag? All the time? Like it's not even a big deal?"
Aether shrugged. "I mean, it's really not...?" Maybe he had grown a bit desensitized to how strange it might seem to others that he casually owned a custom-made Adeptal artifact. "But - more importantly, what do you think about it?"
The Balladeer was quiet for a moment, the brief hesitation enough to have Aether's heart sinking. "...obviously," he muttered, practically spitting the words onto the floor as he averted his eyes. "Do you think I'm an idiot? Whatever the Fatui has planned for me, I want nothing to do with it. I'm not going to ignore my ticket out of Sumeru just because it's with you."
Relief flooded Aether's chest. "Oh, good. Listen, you'll barely have to do anything. I'll set you up with a room, so you can just focus on your recovery, alright? And I'll-"
"Gods," the Balladeer rolled his eyes, "what are you, my babysitter? I get it, I get it." He crossed his arms, scowling. "Don't get it twisted - we're not friends. We're just... on the same side, for now."
Aether managed not to let out a disappointed sigh. "...alright, that's fine." A small, petty part of him wanted to make a comment about how the Balladeer had clung to him during the dream, which really didn't lend itself well to his harsh words, but he managed to control himself. "Not friends. Allies, then?"
A few beats of silence passed. "Allies. Just... allies. That's fine."
Aether managed a relieved smile. "That works for me. Now let's get you hidden, stowaway."
"Good luck, you two." Nahida smiled, clasping her hands together. "Be safe, and take care of each other!"
"Yeah, yeah," the Balladeer dismissed her words, "whatever." It could have just been a trick of the artificial light, but Aether could've sworn there was a pinkish-violet hue coloring his cheeks. "Let's... just get out of here."
Aether felt a bit of amusement warming his chest despite himself, and he returned the Balladeer's barbs with a smile. "Yeah, let's."