#5.1 genshin

[a-person-in-the-rain]

Mom Dad pls stop fighting T-T

[maximwtf]

“I would endure endless defeats before burdening you.”

Capitano x Reader

Words: 4200

Google Docs Pages: 7ish

Warnings: 5.1 spoilers but just about Capitano, established relationship but everything has to be horrible so it’s not established but kinda is but just when you think it is, it’s not. Angst/ kinda comfort? Idk you try to comfort an immortal man rotting from the inside and see how it goes. I guess like the tiniest amount of fluff but that’s sad too. Bad communication, emotional hurt. I imagine him with more real rot, maybe with some abyssal like Dain? Idk, but this is written based on that :) Rotten man, save us.

Opening: Does he have people to open up to about all the years he’s spent with his condition and the thoughts of regret he’s accumulated? Would he allow himself that comfort even if he did? Because that has been for you to figure out, bit by bit. 

AN// G/N reader. I don’t think yall understand how happy I was to get this lore drop on Capitano. Like wdym they have a suffering old man in the cast, and you kept him from me for this long?! Anyway, I feel like it was my duty to write something for him due to that. Enjoy.

If you have any fic ideas for him, feel free to request :)

“I would endure endless defeats before burdening you.”

The hallway outside was silent, matching the space behind the door at the very end of it. A faint light on a sturdy wooden table, a couple other lights scattered here and there. But no amount of warm candles nor a bigger fire could truly disperse the coldness in the room. The man inhabiting it, so stupefied by it by now that he barely noticed anymore. And the people who had before, dared not mention it anymore either.

The light outside had disappeared some time ago. The sun never truly rose in mid winter, or at the very least it didn’t seem like it did. Especially on the days when the snowfall was so thick it painted the horizon white. Covering the sun along with its soft blanket. And so it had done on this day as well, and by the look of it grown tired by the end. Yielding, and soon the snowflakes turned so small it looked more like powdered sugar from afar. Only a little too late for the sun to make any sort of appearance anymore, the chance for that long gone.��

Did the sun have regrets at the end of days such as this? Had it not tried hard enough to repel the heavy snowfall on this day? And now that it had failed, would the people who’d longed to see it shine once more at the end of the day be disappointed? Would they be blinded enough to not see that it had tried to save the end of the day with a few rays of its light, only to realise it was far too late for that? And that it would try again just as hard if another chance was given. 

Capitano stared outside through the window of his office. These seemingly eternal thoughts running through his mind yet again. At times hoping his mind would rot enough to be able to forget any sort of regret he may have still been holding on to. But a curse seemed to stay as such, unable to forget and let his mind rest. 

Not when small things around could be used to remind him, having to shut his mind from viewing these aspects around him on such a deep level. In truth having nothing to do with the past and the actions taken and left undone. All the more reason to try and forget any regret. 

His eyes gazed outside at the snowfall. It coming down in a straight line, placid as ever as it settled to its rightful place. To perhaps be blown to a new location the next day with a gush of wind. The weather was so calm it almost appeared warmer outside than in the uncomfortably chilly office of his. The cold that would have sent a shiver or two down his spine in the past.

Capitano’s eyes focused on his reflection against the window. A man he’d constructed his outer appearance to be, something to stay unchanging as everything else was torn from him bit by bit. That was a man with no regrets, someone powerful to look up to. Someone he’d once been fortunate enough to truly be and live as.

Not that he wasn’t that now as well. Enjoying the respect of his peers, troops and alliances. But each show of power reminded him of who he wasn’t anymore. The person he could no longer even become. A rare few amongst the people he met even being able to comprehend the status he’d held all those years ago. 

His head lowered, a careful pair of hands taking a hold of the carefully constructed mask. Removing it with a slow, almost dragging motion. Lowering it along with his hands, eyes having returned to peer at his reflection. The space dim enough to not allow his full appearance to truly show off. But he knew exactly what the blurry and darkened out parts looked like. What the mask so diligently hid behind it. 

What the outer man he’d built was concealing underneath. The commander he’d been and the person he’d turned into. Forced into being. Cursed with something others would spend their lives seeking, not understanding the cost of living beyond their years. How the flesh would deteriorate and rot. How even his soldier’s will and self respect wavered under the power this change had. How his mind had to come to terms with what used to be and what was now. Who he had to be and what he could now do in order to use what he’d been given to make a mark. Even if only to himself, he wanted to be able to to make this time count. He’d be a disgrace to his former homeland if he had given up all that time ago and frozen in place. The only option was to move on. Even if this curse was eating him alive. 

A part of him sighed in relief when the silence deep in the hallway was disturbed, releasing his mind of these thoughts. Focusing on figuring out who was nearing his door. There was no knock, steps that were silent as ever and that paused almost right after as the door behind this person closed once more. The silence, almost like a vicious entity, taking over the space like it was guarding it. And just before that Capitano had come to a conclusion, you. 

“Greetings,” he spoke with a surprisingly formal tone. Quick to adapt from his thoughts to the current situation. Not foolish enough to not have a guess as to what you were doing here at this hour, but hopeful enough a conversation might make you change the course. But the sound of your voice as you replied, ‘evening’, suggested there was a little chance you’d yield. 

There was much he could have done to try harder, yet he surrendered so soon. Who was he to resist your sheer will? The same will he’d tried to direct elsewhere in the past multiple times, yet it always returned to him. A seasoned warrior smart enough to recognize a losing battle when stumbling upon one, he would have known. 

Your eyes followed keenly as Capitano placed the mask from his hands onto the table. The man’s eyes looked piercing in the faint light of the room, no doubt even frightening to the less knowing. You couldn’t even see his face, only the broad frame of his back. Only the blue shine from the glistened against the reflection from the window, as if peering back at you. The sight overall something not seen every day, something most never saw.

There was no reason for your eyes to be the ones to be allowed to see, to watch and analyse. Or so you believed, if there was a reason neither of you dared to word it. As if doing so would unleash some sort of a spell neither of you wanted to see the aftermath of. There was only so much change a person could bare to their person, so whatever it was that Capitano refused to word, was good as it was. 

Of course, you hadn’t come here for simply the joy of visiting. That never seemed to have formed into a habit, but instead seeking him out when word of him rose from the troops. Anything alluding to his person, not the more usual reputation talk. If that ever changed was when it felt almost mandatory to see him. A difference in the behaviour of a person such as Capitano was sure to never go unnoticed. 

“How was your day?” You broke the silence, seemingly ignoring the reflection from the window. He wasn’t a man to hide himself from you, yet some part of you liked to imagine that respect made you not bring his condition up. Not so soon. 

Waiting for his response after a deep ‘hmp…’ felt like an eternity. Allowing you a chance to slip closer to his desk, eyes skipping mindlessly on the items he’d left there. His words had a deeper growl in them when he spoke so silently, “nothing out of the ordinary.” Which likely was true. Your eyes had scanned the papers on the table, a very few left there to linger. Nothing important ever left for the prying eyes to catch. Yet it proved his words correct, no straight lies ever told. He had no reason to lie to you, to hide anything. But the both of you knew the question had been intended for a deeper analysis of his day instead of an overall view. He hid things. Not out of malice, you knew better than to think such things. 

“That’s good,” you answered soon after. Straightening out a few of the papers, stacking them so the corners met each other in a straight line. The moment was so heavy and you’d only now started to realise as much. There was never much you could do if the murmurs around the troops turned out to be true. He felt so far away even when he was so close, merely on the other side of the desk.

You knew him, better than most, yet he’d seen more than any mortal could likely wrap their head around. So who were you to tell him that it would simply ‘be okay’ or that you were ‘there for him’ when you started to notice his gaze wander. He was not simply sad, he appeared melancholic. But at times even that seemed to be rooted so deep down within him that you couldn’t find a word to describe the emotion radiating from him. And he was unable to give you a word for it. Leaving the now physical distance between the two of you to form into a deeper pit of confusing aches. 

But there was also the root of the problem. This was by no means the first attempt of coming to him, seeking him out and attempting to figure out why his mind wandered. Where it was trying to get for it to be something he couldn’t word. What was the reason for the superficial answers, as if speaking to any one of his soldiers. Why let someone so close, but keep them at the threshold when they were willing to come in?

Though, thoughts like these felt ironic. Knowing you played along with this act of his, not only to entertain him but because it felt easy. How easy it was to allow him to care and dutifully take care of his tasks as he always had, and when it came time to actually connect with him to just let it slide each time. His actions never held any malice nor betrayal, there was no man more loyal to their own morals and comrades than him. So who were you to simply blame him for not letting you closer, when it was you who indulged in his way of communicating. 

“The men seemed to have lived a different day.” You commented after, hoping Capitano would pick up on what you meant. He was not foolish enough to be fully unaware of what his own men were doing and talking about when his back was turned. 

And you’d been correct, the comment made the man look down at you over his shoulder. The piercing eyes of his holding so much in them, it was hard to put to words, but you could tell he knew what you meant. And so you indulged in this way of communicating once more.

Seeing as he had nothing else to ‘say’, you continued. “Thankfully the snowfall gave in on the way here. It was an honest nuisance today…” Continuing to speak of the things you always did, the things you found slipping from your lips each time instead of the actual questions and words you wanted to say. But what use would that be when it felt as if there was no one who truly received those words. 

“Here’s to hope tomorrow will be better on that front,” you continued on alone but knowing full well he was listening, even if he knew exactly the topics you’d choose. The mantras you repeated. His attention on you while you slowly circled around the desk to his side, hand sliding against the smooth surface of the desk. The act as if a final cry to ask for him to reciprocate. 

The fabric of Capitano’s clothes rustled, the movement appearing heavier than they likely truly were. He gave you space near him, allowing you to join him near the window he’d been so keen on. “Hm, may it be so then.” He replied, leaving the end of his response hanging. As if there was more to be added, but left out due to the everlasting heaviness of the room and the air inside it. But you didn’t need more. Past a certain point the conversations you held as a coverup to attempt to communicate started being more tiring than standing in silence to try and understand him better. 

Your eyes gazed at the window, his reflection. Turning to peer at his face soon after. The rot, having consumed so much of the man he used to be, carved him into someone else. You had not seen how he’d looked all those years ago, but he’d insisted that even his comrades from then wouldn’t have been able to recognize him today. 

So how could you ever understand him truly? You weren’t sure what sort of explanation you were waiting to gain from him to make you understand, when there likely was none. He’d seemingly accepted his fate a long time ago, an eternal life ahead of him each morning he woke. Up until the day his body would falter at last. 

But in your eyes that was not a life worth leading on, not with the regrets you knew he held. How could a man rotting from the inside still yearn to fix something that hadn’t even been within his power to save in the first place?

You’d initially not even realised that was likely what he was thinking when his mind started to wander. Not when you’d first seen his face, seen the state he lived in each day. You’d initially feared he held some form of heaviness within him for the way he looked. For a human, losing everything you had and who you were would have been a fate worse than death. Losing the strength you held and the person you had been. Yet he held himself the same each day, seemingly no shame in his condition, if only a flickering light of anguish against the fate he’d been dealt. 

On top of that, he had seemingly never let himself fall to ruin. The person he’d been might have changed into something unrecognisable that could easily disturb the too comfortable. But this was a man of honour, a dignified soldier. For the sake of others, you’d concluded, he diligently kept himself clean. Kept the rot that bothered him not, from causing disturbances to the rest. 

So it was clear, by no means had he given up. He was in terms with who he was now, yet at times like these it seemed like his mind hadn’t. When you so clearly tried conversing, attempting to get him to speak his mind, he refused. Treating you gently, leading your conversation on for long enough to tire you and finally make you stop worrying for him. 

You gave the mask on the table a look, an attempt to lean back towards the topic. Neither of you had forgotten nor had it gone unnoticed by him either. Not now or earlier. 

Capitano followed your movements, eyes landing on the all too familiar mask. Not having to even gaze upon it to know what was being asked of him. And he wished, internally held up hopes that the rot was messing with his mind, feeding him thoughts that weren’t true. That you hadn’t come back to him out of sheer worry yet again.

He was ready to be moulded by you into any shape, ready to yield in front of you if that’s what you asked of him. He cared about what you thought, but in some sense wanted to keep you from worrying. The burdens he held within were self inflicted, he knew that much. A part of him knew the regrets he had were foolish, he couldn’t have done anything more than he had. So when he wasn’t driven mad by those thoughts, he had time to try and form a bond with you. A bond which he wished to not be based on a worry of him. 

He knew you were curious, that was only natural. That was why he’d been open about who he was now, what he could offer you anymore. But what would have been the point of going further into his thoughts, those were his burdens to bear. A fault in himself which he’d created. 

“Your cheek appears irritated?” You said silently, gazing at his face with keen eyes. Pausing for a moment as he turned to face you. “I’m sorry if that-” Backing away from what you’d said a little, cringing if it had come across mockingly. Capitano raised his hand slightly, pausing your rambling. “I know. No need to apologise, you’re fine,” he said after and watched as your expression softened back to normal. 

But you’d been honest, the irritation was no mere frostbite that’d got him. You’d seen it before when he hadn’t had the time to upkeep the condition. A neglect he didn’t participate willingly, but something his work on some occasions forced him to pick up. And which you’d find he let you take care of on those very certain occasions. The least you could do to ease your own worry and the yearning to communicate with him about himself. 

Your hand moved to brush some of his hair from his shoulder to a better position. Running your fingers through it gently so as to not tug him on accident. And he didn’t move, not even if you had. Watching you with the same fond expression he always seemed to. Following keenly when you turned your back to him, abandoning his hair and the caresses he’d grown fond of by that point. Rummaging through the upper drawer of his desk. 

The light in the room was rather dim, not allowing you to see what you were seeking for at first. But your hand knew the shape of the small jar containing a lotion you were familiar with. It was no match for something as detrimental as his condition, but seemingly if this world carried anything that did anything to combat it, it was worth it. 

You fiddled with the jar for a moment, turning it in your hands before daring to look back up at his towering form. He didn’t move an inch, even without the mask he appeared honourable as ever. To you, maybe even more so now. 

An old ache radiating from unsaid words and praises stung your chest at moments like these. An uncountable amount of exalted thoughts of him that you just couldn’t bring yourself to tell him, to make him understand that you wanted to share his burdens. None of them would make you view him any differently. No matter how many regrets, scars or rotten flesh would face you, he’d still be the same honourable and respected man in your eyes. 

Your eyes gave him an asking look, almost automatic. The request yet again something you couldn’t put into words, and that would leave an awful ache into your chest for not saying. But you adored how he still always understood, hesitated like he’d always done and still ended up accepting. It was you, after all. 

Capitano sat down on the chair behind him. The old wooden thing let out a small noise under the added weight, the room not falling fully silent after. He watched as you undid the lid of the jar, placed it on the table and carefully leaned closer. Taking some of the product onto your finger and with the same tenderness spreading it on the irritated parts. Yet, even from so close up it felt as if some sort of unremovable distance stayed. Always. 

Capitano closed his eyes for a moment, a low breath escaping him as his form allowed his shoulders to ease ever so slightly. Your touch was always gentle and careful, no matter how far he kept you from his burdens and regrets. So who was he to completely refuse your care? He never wished to turn you down or push you away, but he’d also had the time to rot for 500 years. Building something like this was exceptionally hard, and he’d only now come to figure out what that meant truly. 

You made sure the salve was nicely spread before pulling back, watching as his eyes opened after. Feeling how they followed you when returning back to the lid to put it back on. With movements clearly familiar to the situation, you placed the jar back into its rightful place, closing the drawer with a faint thud. 

“Thank you,” his low voice called out with the familiar growl at the end of his words. Capitano leaned onto his knees, pushing himself up from the chair to return back to the window. His silhouette appeared more frail than when he had the thick cloak on, something that somehow still surprised you every now and then. He was by no means a small man to begin with, yet the cloak changed him so much. Making you wonder if that was why he preferred wearing it so. 

You watched him walk up to the window, this time clearly gazing out rather than at his reflection. Following the now faint snowfall outside in silence. Following along from the side, attention moving back to his reflection at what almost felt like force. Mind so occupied by him it felt impossible to focus on the weather outside. 

You felt almost on edge with how much you wanted to tell him, let him know of what you thought about him to get him to tell you more. It felt almost as if something in your chest stung each time a good moment like this was spent in silence. 

Which was why you almost jumped when he began to speak, not turning around to do so, but nevertheless. “I understand you have your fair share of curiosities about this. But allow me to be selfish, and have you without burdens. And if that by itself is a burden too heavy to carry, you’re not obligated to stay. Know, you are respected even then.” Capitano’s familiar voice spoke, this time for longer than you’d heard during this entire time. Leaving you slightly shaken for a moment, though for an odd reason the air didn’t feel heavy. As if air itself had paused to allow you this conversation. 

And it stayed that way as you walked behind him, hesitating for a moment before placing your forehead against his broad back. Arms sneaking gently around his waist, lose in their hold as your eyes closed. You took a deep breath, mind ticking to form a response. Feeling Capitano tense for a mere moment in the hold before his muscles eased once more. 

Normally, no matter how many walls of protection you shattered from around him, he didn’t seem to react to anything. No matter if he was wearing the helmet or not. A part of you wondering if the corrosion was a sort of a mask itself. 

“I’m not going anywhere. But I don’t want the way I see you to be written on your epitaph. Let me in, make this easier.” The words coming out in a whisper loud enough for him to hear, but not disturb the usual silence. 

A low chuckle escaped Capitano, a part of him amused by the plea. But nevertheless taking it seriously, knowing you’d meant it. “You’re more hopeful than I am,” he replied with a hum. Placing his hands over yours, against himself. Pressing them together lightly, as if hoping that was an answer enough. Aware that it wasn’t, but using it as a way to ask for more time. 

He feared he’d overstep a boundary of sorts, if he told you of his thoughts on a deeper level. He didn’t wish to put them on your shoulders, protecting you from himself in a way. If that was one of the only things he could do for you, not expecting anything from you in return, ever. 

The squeeze from his hands made you lean against him more heavily, a gentle sigh escaping. Not bothering to feel frustrated, not at him. The curse wasn’t his fault, what’d happened to him wasn't his fault and he was in no way obligated to ever let someone so close as he’d allowed you. So even the smallest of actions kept you close to being carefree, in the sense that you didn’t fear that there was no way to help him. There was, and you’d allow him to show that path to you on his own terms. 

[moccajelly]

GUYS OMG THEY'RE SO CUTE I'LL EAT THEM

Guyssss look at them they're so cute. They're everything bro can't wait for the festival 😻

[jayisabellsart]

"C'mon Traveler, let's head inside!"

"Hold on Paimon-"

[scenearcee]

SPOILERS FOR THE NATLAN QUEST AFTER THE TEXT BREAK YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

okay so for a while now I've had a theory that Columbina is the second descender but holy shit I was wrong???? or right??? I don't know to be honest but what I do know is that she is undeniably Rovona, the god of death

when speaking with The Lord Of The Night, we discover what seelies were- ANGELS. When we take a look at Columbina's design it becomes so painfully obvious, people have already made the connection between her design choices and the seelie courts, but we just received confirmation that she's got to be one of them, she's an angel- or rather a shade thereof.

In Mavuika's memories, Rovona mentions that she is a Shade, that she doesn't have as much freedom as Xbalanque thinks she does, and that she will twist her logic to betray him to the heavenly principles if necessary. In Arlecchino's voiceline, she states that Columbina always has a unique and convoluted take on certain questions, if she even bothers to answer at all. She is more than meets the eye, and both Childe and Wanderer also say this.

One final thing to note is how she was lying on Signora's grave, singing her a song. that makes sense for a god of death, right?

Columbina is one of the biggest mysteries this game has to offer. The Captain also says to The Lord Of The Night that he's here in Natlan on the God of Death's instructions, alongside his own personal gambit. HE KNOWS THAT COLUMBINA IS THE GOD OF DEATH. Something tells me that we're about to have a very nasty fight with her in the upcoming updates to the game, and that the Captain will likely be on our side. Hell, the Heavenly Principles are probably going to get even more involved.

ALSO MAVUIKA RIPPED A HOLE IN THE FALSE SKY EJWJZJ??!1!1!???2!/?

I'll reblog and add more to this later because I'm tired and can't exactly take notes rn but this is my official statement and my claim to "I FUCKINF TOLD YOU SO"

[sora-genshin]

Happy Birthday, Nahida!!

[aeroblossom]

i've thought a lot about what cryo could represent, and i jumped from every answer, from love to a distinct pattern of family issues. but with 5.1 and the abilities of the masters of the night wind, i think there's a more clear answer now. cryo is related to spirits, to the ethereal and undead. the masters of the night wind very distinctly are capable of communicating with dead souls (citlali, ororon, even il capitano is hinted to have something residing inside him).

kaeya is someone who wasn't quite meant to survive, but he did. qiqi is very obviously an undead. chongyun and shenhe regularly deal with exorcisms, and shenhe has a very otherworldly, ghostly quality to her. la signora's coffin was encased in ice. i think the only ones i can't fit into the equation are ayaka, mika and charlotte? wriotheseley is themed after cerberus, a dog of the underworld, ruling over the dead.

'absolute peace' is what the tsaritsa promised to pierro and her people. if you think about it, 'absolute peace' may mean death. a true death, undisturbed and peaceful - promised to a man cursed to never die.

[lunaressa]

🌸 my HoYoLAB, Pinterest: Lunaressa

[nocherrybombs]

Getting Your Priorities Straight

Lumine: Listen, Mavuika. I'm glad the war with the Abyss worked out... for a particular definition of "worked out"... and I'd love to prepare to follow you to our almost certain deaths in the gentle embrace of a cold, dead, eldritch oblivion, but can we put that off a couple of weeks? I need to go to Sumeru for a thing.

Mavuika: I suppose so, Traveler, and of course, it's your choice whether you will join me in my final battle against the Abyss. I'm just wondering, what in the world could possibly be so important that you must leave right now of all times?

Lumine: Nahida's birthday party.

Mavuika: And you haven't left yet?! Screw the Abyss, you're gonna be late! Here, climb on my back. I'll fly you to Port Ormos, it'll be faster.

Lumine: ...you do know I can use the Waypoints to teleport, right? Also, don't you usually burst into flames while you're flying?

Mavuika: Eh, details. Now, do you want a ride or not?

[asterinthewritten]

I just finished the 5.1 natlan archon quest and WOW. That was brilliant. I obviously have a bias to fontaine but that was so GOOD. the pacing was perfect, and despite kinich, ajaw and kachina being muted, it was such amazing story telling. they really captured the grief, rage, and consequences of war while still balancing the epic and heart rousing battles. the gameplay mechanics during the abyss invasion was so good, it really made me feel panicked the way you might feel facing decisions like that in war. AND CAPITANO? WITH MAVUIKA? i sCREAMED. that was so EPIC!! i cannot wait to watch all of the breakdowns and lore explanations that will come from this!!!

[maximwtf]

“Whatever soul I may have left, is for you to keep.”

Capitano x M! Reader

Words: 3770

Google Docs Pages: 6ish

Warnings: 5.1 spoilers…actually just in general Natlan archon quest spoilers, angst, yearning, romance but in the sense that we all know it’s never gonna happen but it’s a nice thought, Capitano with actual rot idk maybe some abyssal mixed in there, M Reader but I don’t use a lot of pronouns so can go as GN too.

Opening: 500 years ago had he last met someone like you, and that was the problem. He couldn’t tell you that, nor could he get closer if he was unable to see you as yourself and not a vision from the past. 

AN// Thank you so much for requesting, happy to write for Capitano again AGH. I’m sorry if this feels like it drags on, I can’t help myself. No matter how simple notes I make, I end up yapping like crazy. Somebody sedate me pleaseeee

“Whatever soul I may have left, is for you to keep.”

You’d told him, of course you had. Told him that facing Mavuika likely wasn’t the way to get his hands on the gnosis any faster, but he’d insisted. Saying he had it all planned out, no matter what the outcome may have been. As if that had made you worry any less. He was a strong man, that you didn’t doubt for a second, but to say Mavuika was any less formidable would have been a lie. But as he had firmly stated, he was prepared for any outcome. 

You weren’t aware anymore if the warmth coursing through your body was due to Natlan’s natural heat or simply the anticipation while waiting for his return. And which only increased after a grand explosion of light emerged from the stadium with a loud wave of noise. Leaving you wide eyed at the closest base with a few other guards. 

The air felt still after the explosion disappeared, still as warm as ever. But that didn’t seem to bother you anymore, left stunned as you waited for any sign of life from the stadium. Any flicker of that familiar icey blue, yet it only seemed that a gloomy smoke kept rising from the middle. No other major movement. 

Only the footsteps of another guard got your attention back to the present moment. The man firmly informing the rest that the Captain had been hit by one of Mavuika’s attacks and was being transported back to a base further back, to give the troops more time to assess the situation. That the new guy that’d been following Capitano around had seemingly saved him and the few other guards that’d come along. 

You wanted to question him more, to ask if anyone had seen how severe the injuries were. If you’d have to prepare yourself to see the worst. Knowing it would be some form of a burn you’d be dealing with once meeting up with the rest of the group. But there was no time for that. The more this group was stalled, the longer the rest would have to wait for your assessment. There was no time to be selfish. 

Hearing some of the guards start to usher you to hurry up, assisting you with picking up the equipment from that base. Doing their best to wait up, but ultimately having to hurry up and follow the command given. They had to move up to not be caught after such commotion. 

You weren’t necessarily a trained medic nor any other form of a healer. The Fatui had their own section trained for such matters, but this group didn’t have one. Most of the men had the basic crumbs of medical training, if even that, under their belt. So by popular vote, they’d nominated you as their medic. Having the most experience with any sort of medical care. Likely now also expected to be the one able to check the wound inflicted and to be able to determine how the group would continue on from here. 

Knowing that after attracting attention like that to the Fatui’s presence and Capitano himself showing up for a fight, it was only in due time someone would come looking for him and the rest of the platoon. There wasn’t too much time to waste, only hope that the wound wasn’t so serious it would require months to heal. And even then, that it’d be minor enough to not cause him harm while working. 

You barely had the time to set the equipment up when the word of his arrival came to your ears as well. Turning to face him as the man himself along a couple of guards entered. None of the bases were truly anything spectacular. You didn’t have to be a medic to determine the lack of resources in a place like this. That being a worry each time someone got injured. This one consisting of a smaller cave under a cliff where if the group stayed near, it had a chance of being completely unseen. The cave itself providing you a cooling shade to work in, feeling rather bad for the rest of the troops who spent their time outside it. Underneath the scorching sun. 

The area had no chairs to speak of, no proper tables. Crates being used as both, of which you pushed out one for Capitano to sit on. But being too quick to ask questions of his condition for him to be able to sit down before answering. “How do you feel? Is the burn area only on the chest?” Noticing this a little too late, cringing as the two guards still there had likely witnessed the urgency in your speech. Hoping they only took it as a hurry to check up on the Captain, knowing he was a high ranking fatuus. And if anything happened to him due to your tardiness, that fate would be for you to explain to the next higher up. Truthfully speaking, only hurrying like this due to your genuine care for him. 

It wasn’t this mission alone you’d been within his chosen troops. And a part of you hoped, knew, that it wasn’t merely because of your medicinal capabilities. A decent fighter among many other, so that shouldn’t have mattered to him. Yet you’d noticed yourself delivering messages to him little by little more often, him requesting your presence in situations you thought not suited for someone like you. Perhaps for an assistant of sorts, but for a mere soldier by then, it was by no means a usual position to be in. To be seemingly favoured by such a high ranking member. 

And when he’d asked you if you had any interest in becoming his aide, it hadn’t exactly come as a surprise. In his eyes, the things you’d already done for him counted as training. Which he wasn’t wrong about, he had practically trained you for the exact job even if he hadn’t meant it. So who were you to refuse? If he saw the potential in you, it must have been the right choice. Someone of his status likely knew better than you either way, able to spot specific talents amongst soldiers. 

“Believe me, this will heal over time. My desire to protect this nation still stands. If anything, Mavuika’s show of strength was important for those to witness it, to uphold hope.” He insisted, swearing that Mavuika hadn’t been at her full capability. And knowing Capitano, he most certainly would have never taken advantage of a situation such like that. All he would do is use the information he’d gathered to push the mission onward. But never start playing unfair, that much was for certain. Yet you found yourself wondering if that would have made the fight even. Knowing the condition of the Captain. 

You were all too aware of the curse and its effects, as much as he’d initially insisted on keeping it a secret. At first thinking it must have been a form of insecurity, but truthfully you weren’t so sure about that anymore. Knowing he’d opened up a lot more about it later on. So hearing Capitano declare his morals once more felt off this time. It almost worried you, if he’d only be willing to go all out if Mavuika was fully empowered. That would surely leave him as the weakened opponent. Having to shake that though away as soon as it appeared, not wanting to imagine such a fight. The outcome of the last one had been tragic enough, you thought. 

Yet, as much as you wanted to believe the man was unfazed by what had happened. You couldn’t help but see those subtle flashes that resembled something akin to astonishment in his speech and movements. Each aspect something you had to diligently pick up on to notice, a habit mastered over time working alongside him.

You ignored his former response, seeing it as something not worth following up on. The burn area still had to be checked, if only for your sake. Capitano letting you rather willingly, aware of how much peace he’d have left if he were to refuse the check up now. 

Before removing the outer pieces of clothing you ushered the two guards out of the cave, waving your hands at them in a quick motion a few times. To which they responded, signing out before making their way back under the sun. Eagerly waiting for the next move, leaving you to carefully start tending the burnt area. Eyes ignoring the corrupt, rotten areas with practised ease. Not an aspect you hadn’t seen before, a part of the man you’d become familiar with. It was him, it was something you knew him by. A part of him that’d always been there, ever since your paths had intertwined. 

Capitano listened keenly at the command thrown at the two guards, hearing susurration of the gravel under their boots as they turned and walked out. A part of him amused by their behaviour, willingness to take the command and follow. Something that would have otherwise been frowned upon, an absurd action to take from someone not pulling the reins. And so would have he thought as well, if it hadn’t been him who’d allowed you that power over the guards. 

The prerogative something not often seen from his aides, but something that now had an odd echo from the past each time he witnessed it. The tone of your voice, the formatting of the words and the action that happens almost immediately after. How a trained soldier listens, moves when commanded. There was something so familiar about it all, a familiarity dating back 500 years. 

Capitano’s memory swirled, a feeling that nagged at him every now and then. An altercation with his own mind, as if none of the memories were fond enough to think of. They were, a lot of them were. But when it came to how it all ended, were the good memories worth nothing more but agony? Agony that he couldn’t avoid, there was no hiding from one’s own mind. 

An image of a person long gone, never forgotten. Each detail still there as they’d been over 500 years ago on that day. Time that now felt so far away, remembering how much younger he’d been and how little he’d seen. How much he thought he’d experienced by then. And how little that version of him had truly seen. One person stuck by him through most of it. An aide assigned to him, someone he hadn’t meant to get close to. A person meant to ease his workload, but still someone he’d grown to care for. Grown fond of over the years, gaining high respect from the troops due to that as well. That very same aide having gotten the very same prerogatives as you had. 

And there it was. This person, now nothing more but an image in his head, someone who’d been dear to him, now stood by him again. As if some sort of a reincarnation. Of course, he knew better than to believe that. There was no peace for a Khaenri'ahn, no such thing as reincarnation to get to live a full life once more. You were your own person. 

But he couldn’t help himself. Not when you acted the same, had the same tone of voice…everything he could still remember. The memories he’d held on to, as if some sort of sick parting gift from his homeland. And how could he not hold on. For a very long time he’d believed this aide hadn’t been but merely a comrade in his eyes. But he was a high ranking commander of the forces, what face would he have left if he’d been to mingle with an aide? Thinking of the greater good of his homeland, he’d abandoned any hope of pursuing his thoughts further. 

Had he known what was to come, he wasn’t so sure if he would have truly chosen those actions. The years he’d spent pondering over those peaceful years, the chances he’d had to try and pursue what he assumed to be a possible future. The regrets that he’d now accumulated over the years for the decision made all that time ago. 

When Capitano had escaped with the remnants of his troops, this aide had held on. A trained aide, by no means a seasoned soldier, it felt a miracle to see them still standing by after the escape. A flicker of hope had ignited within him as they’d settled into Natlan. That perhaps this nation which he viewed similar to their home, would have been able to protect what he still held close to his heart, the very remnants of that. But the world wasn’t known for its kindness, or so he had decided then. In that moment when this aide had fallen, slain as one of the last of his men. Having fought side by side with him to the very end. The men he had failed to lead and command, something he’d been trained to specifically do.

As valiant as the death had been, the then soured commander had begun to blame himself. And how could he not? He was a commander without his troops, without anyone to command. He was a soldier without a home to return to. He had failed his homeland, his men and the very thing he’d hoped to keep fighting for if nothing else. But not even the years could truly erase those regrets that kept accumulating. The yearning to get another chance to protect what had been his, if only for his own dignity. All of the memories piling up with the what if’s as he watched his form rot. Diligently constructing a new him, holding on to his morales while being forced to dwell among the living. Cursed to having to watch anything close to dear for him rot away along with himself. 

Then again, as much as he might have hoped the memories of the aide he had, had changed over time, they hadn’t. The way you spoke and behaved reminded him deeply of that person. All of those small details bringing him back to times he liked to think had been simpler, realistically the time likely having sullied the truth. Nostalgia had always been such a dreadful creature. 

But pondering over those similarities would never help anyone, him the least. There would never come a time when he’d be able to tell you of these memories and thoughts. Especially not if he wished to keep any face as an authority figure, the last crumbs he had left of that in your eyes. Nevermind the companionship he’d grown fond of. 

How could he possibly come to you solely for the reason that you reminded him of someone from the far past? Merely because you shared similarities with someone whom he’d highly respected. That would surely only lead to further complications, which he did not wish for. There was no room to be selfish. 

Having to force his mind to pinpoint the differences, be it subtle or not. Truthfully, there would have been a difference in the way both of the aide’s viewed him, who they knew him as. How would have this first aide reacted to seeing his corroded form now? What this curse had done to his body, to the man he once had been known as? A part of him was glad the men he’d unknowingly led to their slow end hadn’t seen their commander in the state he was in. The men he’d failed to bring home. Having fallen by his side, in duty. 

But you had. As much as he had insisted on keeping this certain problem to himself. Something he found hard to find shame in, yet not seeing it as an aspect to be shown around. If he was to ever regain those missing pieces of his former self, he didn’t wish to be pitied. But much to his dismay, he’d grown closer to you. Allowed himself to be perceived by your eyes, knowing there wasn’t much to lose. The look in your eyes then told him as much. 

So at the end, you were different. Your own person, fully unaware of his past companions, just like it should have been left. You’d made your judgement on him long before, something this initial aide hadn’t had the chance to ever do. He would never know how the events back then could have turned out. But if this was the way the fate of this world had played out, who was he to resist now. 

He hadn’t had the chance to even thought of such things back then. No time to simply even wonder how and what he could have said to that aide. So if he’d now been gifted the chance to try again, he was prepared to not redo the same mistakes. If anything, the events he’d endured had taught him how ephemeral something like this could be. As much had been clear to him for a long time, the past had to be left to rest in its rightful place. These thoughts having been one of many he’d go through and ultimately put to rest. It was easy to dwell in the past, but with the time he’d been forcibly given, he was going to spend fighting for what he hadn’t been able to in the past. Whatever soul he may have had left, was yours to keep. 

You inspected the damage, using what little time there was to the best of your ability. For a man having taken such a serious blow, he was in rather good shape. Nevertheless, on a mission such as this, even small injuries had to be taken into consideration with the next step. Having patched the area up, hands working with practised ease by now. Gentle in their movements as the last bit of the gauze was tied down. There wasn’t time to start being fancy, not after such a huge event. The whole camp had to be moved to a safer location. 

“I recall telling you that this would be a bad idea, and should have been kept as a backup plan, if anything,” the complaint slipping from you. No malice in the words, what truly mattered was that everyone was safe. Furthermore, having heard him preach of why he hadn’t felt the need to finish the battle. The upkeep of his morals never ceasing to amaze you. Which in all honestly puzzled you, knowing that the man himself was weakened as well. 

But there was no use in going over small details, especially not now. Nor was there time to truly worry about him. You were aware of his ability to somewhat heal, so there was a possibility he could have treated this injury by himself. So seeing him sat in your care was a mind calming sight. He was going to be okay. 

In truth, you knew multiple of these small details about him. Minor mannerisms he often performed, having noticed them by simply following him around. By that time having grown rather close to him, an obvious reason why his men earlier had listened to the command. Yet, as many details and personal information you’d accumulated over the years, it still felt as if he was somehow far away. Only allowing you closer, but keeping himself at bay. As if you were something to admire and respect, but as if some force was causing him to behave this way. The thought of time possibly fixing this keeping you from pondering about it further. 

Surely for someone forced to live and dwell among the living for so long, forming any sort of close bonds was a thing to deeply consider before giving in. So allowing him to think on his own felt like the natural choice. Fully aware that he wasn’t keeping things from you out of malice or to break the bond you had with him, never. Knowing it probably wasn’t appropriate to ask him about this, as his aide, while fully aware that the man had a long past. Even if you weren’t fully in on with said past. 

Capitano’s eyes followed your movements as you carefully buttoned his shirt back up to cover the scarring. Tugging the rest of his clothing back onto his weary shoulders, careful yet diligent in your movements. “You have my thanks. Keep proving yourself to be useful, as always,” his voice came through the mask, a compliment you’d grown used to. “Oh please, I’m not even a medic.” Was your response this time around as well. Yet a part of Capitano knew you would have requested a check up for him if he hadn’t come for one himself, that was merely how you’d always been. No matter for his own ability to heal himself. 

And perhaps this was how it was meant to be. Everyone from the platoon on this mission working as they had always been, not a step out of the ordinary. That would keep his men safe. Wondering how ironic of a thought that was, considering the past he’d just been reminiscing. The future he held a flicker of hope for. 

Capitano thought to himself before saying his goodbyes, aware of how little time there was to waste for mind games such as these. 

Perhaps today nor tomorrow would come the day when he was able to return to these thoughts. When there was safety and time for him to tell you all this. He needed not the comfort from you for this, merely to have the knowledge and peace of mind of one day being able to come to you with these thoughts. He was fully aware of what he had to offer anymore, what was left of him. That he had come to terms with. 

But somehow this world had blessed him with another chance. As if he hadn’t failed his men, failed to bring them home. That didn’t seem to shake Fate, a devious thing that concept was. His own regrets hadn’t held it back from allowing him this turmoil. A new chance without the worry of having to be on the run. He had nothing but time anymore, neverending time to pursue something taken from him then. No destiny should have been unchangeable, that he believed in. So if he was allowed to tie a loose end from 500 years ago, that would be enough for him. 

There wasn’t a lot of him left, not much he was able to give. But that what he still had, he was willing to surrender to you.

[chaotic-snowflake]

whichever one of y’all at hoyoverse was in charge of writing the natlan 5.1 archon quest, you deserve a raise bc holy shit

[noideawhatshappenin]

So can we please talk about how the Archon Quests in 5.1 fucking carpet bombed us with lore?

CW for 5.1 spoilers, but I won't be explicit about them

The lore about the Lord of the Night? And the Seelies as well??

The reveal on what's necessary to get Traveler their Ancient Name?!

Literally every second Capitano is on screen??!?!

The lore bombs about the power of Rovona?!?!?

And then the fucking 3rd cutscene

You'll know what the fuck I'm talking about

[sora-genshin]

Gramps???*

(ororon is suspicious🤫👀)

[aeroblossom]

am i overthinking or did she spawn out of the real sky

[mossyeverest]

Is it too soon to say I ship it or…?