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hypostatic-oath · 4 months

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Hydro Archon, Hydro Archon, Don't Cry

I've noticed a pattern with 5star characters in my game - they only come home after I've done their story quest or at least the Archon Quest where they appear. From an in-game perspective it's obviously because it takes me a while to finish the quest and I raise the pity in the meantime, however... from a SAGAU perspective, it's adorable that they only come around after I've spent the time to get to know them better.

Content Warnings: Angst, Furina desperately needs a hug.

SPOILERS FOR 4.2 BELOW

Imagine Furina before the Archon Quest. She's holding it together, like she has been for five hundred years. She's been performing her role so well for so long, yet she feels like she's already gone beyond her limit. She doesn't know how long she can handle doing this for, but she knows she must.

Late at night, she takes a break to catch some air. She's aware that she's still performing - she's alone, but she cannot risk lowering her mask, even before an invisible audience. She takes a deep breath and looks up, and doesn't even feel the tears flowing down her face.

A shimmering light crosses the sky.

Foçalors, it beckons. Come home.

Oh no. Not this. She's not ready, she's not ready! Not tonight. She tells herself she'll answer your summons tomorrow. In truth, she doesn't feel worthy of answering. What if she's not what you expect?

That isn't even a question. She knows she's not what you expect.

She knows you have other Archons - real Archons - among your Vessels. She panics - she doesn't even have a Vision, much less an Archon's authority. There's only so much she can achieve with acting. What would she do when you took her out on the battlefield and she inevitably failed?

Come on... Another shooting star crosses the sky, your voice a faint, ethereal whisper in her ears. I need an Archon team...

It fills her with dread. She can't answer your summons! She absolutely can't! Not only would she disappoint you - because there's no way she wouldn't, surely, she can't imagine a world in which you are not disappointed once you figure out just what she is, a fraud who can't even use Hydro much less be the literal Archon - she'd also jeopardize her only purpose.

She rushes inside, back to her room, closes the shutters and the window and the curtains and almost leaps into bed, placing the covers over herself as if to shield herself from the world.

She can still hear you calling.

The next day, Poisson is struck. The prophecy is in full swing. She's frantic, searching for something, anything that could possibly help. All the while maintaining the façade. At least you seem to have given up.

It's both relieving and heartbreaking.

At night, she doesn't even risk it - her windows are kept shut. She analises every report, and locks her door when she notices that she's crying, the papers she's holding becoming dotted with tears that fall despite her best efforts. She can hear the rain hitting her window, and the downpour has her feeling even more hopeless.

Neuvillette speaks with her in the following morning. If the pressure from you wasn't enough, she now also has to manage to assure the Hydro Dragon Sovereign that she has everything under control. It's funny, how those eyes capable of such gentleness seem to gaze into her without a shred of mercy. Just speaking to him now feels like she's been put on trial, and Furina knows, deep down in her soul, that she is guilty.

He presses. Poisson has fallen. She knows. She also knows she's likely crying, the mask is slipping, but she can't give up. She has no right - no right at all, to sacrifice the lives of every person in Fontaine for the sake of her comfort. She cannot afford to slip up. And that means she cannot trust anyone - not you, and not Neuvillette. So she gathers the little control she can at this time, tells him she knows exactly what she's doing, and dashes out the door.

Wait, Furina!

She barely hears your voice as she runs. "I'm sorry, but I can't answer!" She thinks, as she rushes to the top floor of the Palais Mermonia. She knows she gas no time to lose. She needs to get herself in check, to wipe away her tears, to figure something out. Where had she gone wrong? Five hundred years, searching for a solution. Five hundred years of observing every trial, hoping it'll finally be the one she needs. But nothing.

She has nothing, and Poisson has fallen.

She thought the Traveler - and you, by extension - would be the key. That by judgding them she'd have the "most magnificent trial" that her mirror self spoke of. And yet, at every turn, the blonde outlander had managed to evade being sentenced, or even making the trial as grand as she'd expected. She paces around in her room as she mulls it over. Should she had judged you directly? Could she have done so? That would've been a trial for the ages - the Overseer, brought to justice by the Hydro Archon of Fontaine, for the crime of... what could she even accuse you of? Posessing people's bodies? That had to be illegal - or at least immoral enough to warrant a trial...

She lets her body flop onto the bed, covering her eyes with one arm as she lets out a sigh that despite its overdramatic appearance, is in fact incredibly genuine. She's tired. So tired.

Foçalors, come home.

Furina buries her face beneath one of the pillows. She hopes it'll drown out the sound of your voice. She can't distinguish whether that ache in her chest is from your summons growing more insistent or from how much she needs to cry.

The shooting star turns golden outside the window, and Furina wonders if the fact that someone else intercepted it will be enough to dissuade you. She hopes it is, otherwise, her days are numbered.

No more stars cross the sky that night, and relief washes over her body, in a wave so intense that she once again doesn't notice the tears. She falls asleep like that, and dreams of rising waters.

Furina heads to the Opera Epiclese in the morning. She's not looking forward to seeing Neuvillette, but she prays that there'll be a trial. "Please," she thinks, as she sits down in the throne reserved for the Hydro Archon, observing the stage from on high, "let it be today."

It isn't. Instead of a trial, there is a performance... and though she usually loves them, now is not the time. Worse yet, she's spotted by the crowd as she's getting ready to leave. They're angry, of course they are. The prophecy is true, and what is their Archon doing? Furina performs as best as she can, but this time the audience is completely unreceptive. She doesn't blame them. She'd be angry, too, in their shoes. She knows they're terrified. She's terrified, too.

But what can she do? Her search has turned up empty. She has no powers, not really, none besides the power of persuasion and even that seems to be slipping more and more these days. She cannot reassure her people. Neuvillette no longer trusts her, if he ever did. The water rises every day with no signs of stopping.

"Why, mirror-me? Where am I failing?"

The crowd chases her out of the theater. Neuvillette is nowhere in sight, and even if he were, Furina isn't sure she could call upon him now. The time in which he acted as her shield if gone. Neuvillette is now just another of the many she's disappointed.

It hurts.

With no other choice, she runs - as far as her legs will take her, she dashes away from the crowd, and guilt tells her she's being a coward. That she needs to stand up and reassure the masses, that she needs to do what an Archon would at that time.

The notion feels almost ridiculous. She cannot command her element freely like Barbatos, or raise protections over her city like Morax. She cannot threaten to strike down the unruly like the Shogun, nor does she have Lesser Lord (Lesser Lord! Hah! Even someone known as 'Lesser' is leagues beyond Furina's ability) Kusanali's foresight and wisdom.

So she does what she can do.

Whether it is fate or simply her own feelings of guilt, she finds herself in Poisson, at the base of the Spina di Rosula. The place where all those people - her people - had lost their lives to a disaster she was supposed to prevent.

When the Traveler extends their hand, she doesn't know whether it is a blessing or a curse. She wants to run again - what else can she do? But her pursuers are apparently still giving chase, and the outlander offers her aid. She can feel your presence from within them - every time she's crossed paths with them, as brief as those moments were, you were there. She can tell that the longing in the blonde's eyes is, at least in part, yours.

She's sorry.

She follows the Traveler to the hiding place - someone's home? It seems irrelevant. For a moment, she wonders if she could sue you for invasion of private property. "Oh, what am I thinking? The time for the grand trial is over... and even if it weren't, suing the Overseer for something so trivial would warrant the same result as the first time I challenged the Traveler..."

The Traveler. The outlander whose presence preceeded disaster. They were known for solving it, sure, but she knew that the moment they set foot in Fontaine the prophecy would have already started. Was it their fault, or yours?

Furina still feels like it might be hers.

The Traveler offers help once again. They extend their hand, and the look in their eyes as they ask her to confide in them is so earnest, so genuine. She swars she can hear two sets of voices saying the words - the Traveler's, and yours. It's faint, and gentle, and pained, and carries a yearning she knows she cannot fix.

Through them, you reach for her and she almost breaks. She knows you'll stop reaching once you know the truth.

Furina, please. You can trust us, love. Let me- let us help. People from your world cannot know, but neither of us fit that criteria. Your people will not dissolve, I promise you. I've seen enough worlds to know.

She considers it.

She hears your voice, and considers it. But there is uncertainty in your tone. You're gambling, and she's a good enough actress to know you're not sure yourself. They wouldn't do it, that's your reasoning. Furina doesn't know who 'they' are, but you're placing all your bets on the fact that 'they' would not erase an entire Nation. Who are 'they'? Celestia? If so, she knows for certain that your wager is more optimistic than based on facts. It's not enough - blind optimism is not enough for her to risk it, not even from a being like you. Besides, that is not her choice to make.

She cannot give up. She cannot lower her guard. Not with Neuvillette, not with the Traveler, not with you. The Traveler urges her for a response, reaches out, and she's about to deny them, when the house's walls fall.

Damn it, we needed more time! Furina, I'm so sorry.

She feels your sorrow about at the same time that she feels the spotlight on her.

Neuvillette looks down from his seat as the Chief Justice, and somehow the sliver of pity in his eyes hurts more than the coldness of a few days prior.

She's on trial.

________

She's crying.

She's not even making an effort to conceal it anymore. It's over. The curtains have closed and everything she worked so hard for has crumbled. The people know. Neuvillette knows. You know. Furina makes no effort to hear your voice. She knows you're disappointed.

If she did, perhaps she'd hear how you're screaming at the Traveler to go check on her. If she did, perhaps she'd hear how despite everything, you're reaching out, still. How you wish to hold her tight, as she deserves. She'd perhaps hear your outrage at the thought of her being subjected to the death sentence, she'd hear you trying to tear Neuvillette apart for allowing it, she'd hear you slowly realising that the fact that the sentence is addressed to the Hydro Archon means it's not her who dies.

She doesn't witness your relief.

Instead, it is you who gain an understanding of her thoughts. The Traveler reaches for her, and she can feel you pushing through, but she can't stop performing. Even now, she's still holding it, as much as she can.

You tear through her defenses with more ease than she expected. Furina had, until now, thought of you as detached. She knew you saw the world as a stage, a story for your amusement. Sure, you liked them, but only to the extent that one likes characters in a play, right? You were, as far as she knew, exactly the type of god - or, er, entity? - she emulated. Fickle. Boastful. Using lives as entertainment, watching trials and tribulations like a performance and solving the Nations' troubles like nothing more than a game. She had not expected you to care.

Not about her.

Not after knowing the truth.

You push forward. She knows it's you, and not the Traveler, who's in control. She can feel it, the intensity with which you reach out is the same she felt tugging at her very being every time a star crossed the sky. She knows it's you who's still trying to reach her. Even if she's failed.

Even if she's not capable of being in your Archon Team.

So she sighs, and lets you witness. That is your role, after all, isn't it? An audience of one, watching an interactive play. You haven't given up on her character, even though it's not what you expected. You're not what she expected, either. Funny, she finds herself thinking, you're both more human than anyone realised.

You witness her life. She lets it play out like a film before your eyes, the endless stream of memories of growing hopelessness as she realised that the prophecy was slowly setting itself up and she was not any closer to finding out how to stop it. Now you know - the truth, the whole truth. She has nothing left to lose now, anyway. Everything is lost. She was unmasked. She failed.

You're pushed out of her thoughts after she invites you to take your place on stage. You act in her memory, but this time the Traveler doesn't speak. You barely have time to state your piece - all you manage is an I'm sorry before being forced away. She has nothing more to share. That is enough, she figures, and far more than she ever thought she'd share. She still feels the urge to cry, but part of it is from relief.

After that, she doesn't feel your presence until after the flood.

The prophecy comes and goes and Fontaine is unharmed. The flood lasts no more than minutes, and no one is dissolved. Furina remembers your words - 'they' wouldn't do that. Though she is unsure as to 'their' identity, she is thankful that you were right. The sunlight feels like bliss upon her skin as she steps out of the Opera Epiclese, gentle rays drying the remaining water from the streets and the tears on her cheeks, and for the first time in five hundred years she breathes easy.

"They're still hoping you'll come." A familiar voice pulls her out of her trance. The Traveler, alone, stands behind her. Your presence is nowhere near. They look the same, yet different, without you within. Furina can't quite explain it, but it feels odd after being so used to seeing you within the outlander.

"I'm not an Archon." She answers, a certain bitterness in her voice as she looks down, defeated.

"I don't think they care. I know you need to rest for now, and they don't have enough primos for a ten pull anyways, but... just so you know. They'll keep trying."

Furina doesn't quite know whether that is meant as a warning or as an opportunity presenting itself. They're gone before she can ask. Either way, they're right - she is tired, and she does need rest. Out of instinct, she heads to the Palais Mermonia, but stops herself as she reaches for the door.

"Lady Furina." The gentle, deep voice she knows as belonging to the Iudex pulls her from her thoughts. She doesn't dare look him in the eye. He opens the door for her, but she simply turns away. She cannot face him, not after that trial, not after everything she'd done.

"Thank you, monsieur Neuvillette. But I... I think I'll be going, now."

The now fully restored Hydro Dragon can only watch as Furina walks away. He knows she needs her space right now, but that doesn't stop him from worrying for her. He'll arrange the best apartment he can get for her, and make sure she never lacks for anything. In the meantime, though, he'll just try not to let his emotions get the best of him, lest he causes a downpour to fall upon poor Furina, who definitely does not need rain right now. If there is one thing he knows about humans is that rain does not, for the most part, cheer them up. So he holds it in, promising himself that he'll take a small break for a walk after the aftermath of everything is over, and heads to his office.

There is so much to do...

_________

Three weeks pass. Furina lays on her bed, her window open, the soft breeze bringing the smell of a night that promises rain into the apartment. She is busy, not with work, or with renovations, but with the azure glass sphere that she holds up to the light, examining it under her lamp. A Vision... during all those years, she had never thought she'd receive such a thing, much less after being pushed away from her role as the Archon. She is thankful, yes, for her newfound freedom, and, she supposes, for the fact that she'd gotten to act again. But it still remains that this bauble was completely unexpected.

Power. This little thing can give her power. She's still unsure on how to use it, and it crosses her mind that the Traveler - or you - might know. You owe her, after all, after what she did to help you out with the play... she could feel you trying to strangle the Traveler and Paimon on the astral plane and that was perhaps why she wasn't entirely offended by their remarks. Still, she had made a great effort for that play. It was only fair that at least one of you repays the favor, no?

Furina smiles softly, sighing. She'll have to put up a commission at the Guild tomorrow.

She examines the light reflecting within, and it reminds her of the surface of the sea as seen from underwater. The holder, a silvery ornament not unlike those she's seen worn by Vision-bearers, has a distinct characteristic - four fang-like details that seem to secure the glass in place. Before she can give it more thought, the first pitter patter of raindrops reaches her ears, and she rushes to retrieve the clothes hanging on the line she has in the small balcony of her apartment before they get too wet. She rushes outside, hearing as the rain and wind pick up.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it..." She mutters to herself, quickly shoving the clothes onto a basket, trying to pick them off the line as fast as she can. Behind her, a flash of light illuminates the night sky. "Oh, I am so not in the mood for thunder..."

Furina cringes, hoping the storm is not directly above. Maybe she'll be able to sleep if it's just a faraway rumbling. What she hears, however, is not the booming sound of a storm.

Furina. Come home.

You're still trying. For a moment, she forgets about the heavy rain, and the clothes, and simply looks up at the sky. Blue flashes, one after the other, cross the clouds in rapid succession. Even after everything, you hadn't given up. The Traveler had warned her, but at the time she hadn't been in a stable enough state of mins to even care, still shaken from everything that had happened.

Now, she simply looks up.

"Overseer." She answers. You won't be able to add her to the 'Archon Team'. She knows she's not as powerful as most of your Vessels - hell, she doesn't even know how to use her Vision yet. But you still want her.

You know the truth - the whole truth - and you still want her.

The next star that crosses the sky turns gold, and glows brighter and brighter until it lands in front of her, hovering above the railing on her balcony. It emits a soft, warm light, and Furina reaches for it like she'd reached for her Vision.

Warmth spreads over her body, and it feels like every time she'd looked at the Traveler with you in them, except everything feels more... intense. It's not like she's seeing the filtered bits of you that shine through the cracks in someone else, no. She can feel you directly, and she understands why they call it 'coming home'. It's warm. It's comfortable. And for the first time she can truly, honestly say she doesn't feel alone.

You're happy she's there. Time seems to stop around her, and she finds herself dry and in a field full of stars. If she squints, she can barely make out a form, a swirling swarm of stardust in the vague shape of a person. She reaches a hand out.

You place the cursor over her outstretched hand.

Welcome home, Furina.

#heavy self indulgent vibes on this one y'all #FINALLY this one was in the drafts for so long istg #also you will pry neuvillette caring about furina from my cold dead hands udc what sort of relationship they have HE CARES ABOUT HER #furina deserves sm better #PLEASE let yourself be taken care of furina we love you #yes i hc it rained after furina moved away from the palais mermonia #sagau #genshin sagau #self aware genshin au #genshin impact sagau #sagau overseer #sagau furina #man i really need to write happier stuff. theres always someone sad i wonder if this says smth about me

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hypostatic-oath · 4 months

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I can see it depending on personalities and on the characters themselves tbh. It's an interesting thing about hsr - they have different perspectives on the Aeons (Yaoshi my controversial beloved) and other entities based on cultural and personal experiences and that is actually shown. Since hsr characters are familiar with videogames, though, it is easier for them to grasp the concept of what is actually going on. It is possible that some may see you as a sort of Aeon or spirit, some seriously and others for the meme (*cough* the trailblazer *cough*).

The first thought that comes to mind is that Silver Wolf has immediately gained a kindred spirit. Someone who also understands that the world is a game? Finally!

She'd 100% be the most talkative and the most nonchalant. Reality is a game, of course there's people playing. And if they happen to be chill, well, she's more than happy to lend a hand. Befriend your local Silver Wolf, y'all. She's onto you. Idk enough stellaron hunter lore to know whether she'd share it with the others, but this girl would know what's up.

The Trailblazer now uses you as an excuse for anything. Dan Heng and March wonder what the Trailblazer keeps looking for in the belobog dumpsters? Not their fault, it's definitely you who insists on investigating. They put their feet up on the couch and Pompom is panicking? You made them do it. They keep flirting with everyone? Clearly, your doing. They introduced themselves as something super dramatic and largely innacurate? Guess who's to blame. "The devil made me do it but I also kinda wanted to" vibes from them. Like yes, those are things they would've been naturally inclined to do or say... but it was totally, definitely the MyStErIoUs SpAcE bEiNg that made them do it. They will 100% think you're the Stellaron that is inside them at first. (I love the fact that we can just. Fuel the trailblazer's dumbass energy. Like hell yes eat garbage for the achievement. We're basically their intrusive thoughts at this point and we are winning.)

If you end up being considered an Aeon, oh boy. Prepare for the weirdest Simulated Universe encounter. Imagine pulling up to one of the worlds and

If that is the case, Herta is most likely smug about the fact that you get her for free, because essentially she gets unlimited access regardless of whether you pulled her or not. I wonder which type of blessings ya'll's Paths would have...

Idk enough stellaron hunter lore to base this on more than "sounds cool idk" BUT. Keeping in line with my interpretation of sagau, I'm gonna say that the player as an Aeon would be considered the kind of entity responsible for making events come to pass. (If you don't play the game, Kafka doesn't put the stellaron in the Trailblazer's body, no one defends the Herta Space Station from the Antimatter Legion, Bronya never discovers the truth, etcetera that I will not list to not spoil the game for anyone). This ties in with the whole "slave of destiny" thing Elio has. One of the player's Aeon titles could very well be "Bringer of Destiny" or "The Fate Enforcer" (kinda like Yaoshi is seen as "The Plagues Author" and Lan is "The Reignbow Arbiter"). Either way, the Stellaron Hunters are rocking with us for now. Silver Wolf knows the truth, Kafka is the first person we meet and the first person we help/guide/control in the game...

The Xianzhou's Divination Commission classifies the Aeons into three groups: "The Arbiters," who determine mortal births and deaths, and are highly connected to the rise and fall of civilizations, "The Sacrosancts," who are difficult to predict as good or evil, and "The Authors of Calamity," who are seen as the main culprits behind all disaster. With this in mind, I'd wager that you would fall somewhere along the Sacrosancts, but one can never be sure. After all, who's to say that the disruptive arrival of a force that sets catastrophe in motion just by existing wouldn't be immediately placed among the last group? I do believe that it'd depend on the way each of us as players interacts with the world.

sum thoughts about sahsrau, like would they hate your guts for stuff, idk or would they think of you as an Aeon?? It probably depends on your personalities or smth like that :P

#sahsrau #self aware honkai star rail #cube.rambles #this time it's REALLY rambling bc while i am still new to the game I have insane brainrot

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hypostatic-oath · 4 months

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Anyone remembers when the SAGAU idea was focused on the characters in-game knowing that they were in a video game and how would they feel about the player? I do, I miss that.

Now, most of the SAGAU stuff I see is with this whole isekai cult/villain/imposter/yandere stuff, and it's so boring. I saw the first steps of SAGAU and the amount of creativity there was beautiful. Granted, there is some amazing stuff with the isekai idea free of the mentioned dark tags, but I kinda miss the most normal stuff without any hurt involved.

If anyone knows more works about self aware genshin without all that dark nonsense, please let me know. I would love to see them.

#YES THIS #i cannot guarantee that my version is one hundred percent edge-free but I do focus mostly on game mechanics #and the way they are perceived by both the characters and the player #what I can guarantee is that my blog is impostor au free because it is simply not my cup of tea #as a reader I miss the early days too things have spiraled a lot

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hypostatic-oath · 5 months

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Are you feeling better Cube?

🚬anon

Yepyep! Almost full recovery (my sense of taste is still gone even though I am no longer covid positive), though lately I have been busy with uni, my job, and protesting. I think this next week will be softer on me though, so I might be able to get back on track! Thank you for checking in on me, that means a lot ^^

#cube.answers #cube.rambles

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hypostatic-oath · 5 months

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On one hand I understand not making the Aeons playable makes them seem even more powerful and otherwordly, and also gives Hoyo more creative freedom with their designs.

On the other I would sell my soul, my firstborn, and both kidneys for Yaoshi on my team.

#crying screaming throwing up at the fact that we side against The Abundance #LIKE NO LET ME WORSHIP MY SANCTUS MEDICUS IN PEACE #me joining the cult like ''are you here for immortality'' ''screw that I just wanna see Yaoshi''#this while also choosing The Hunt in simulated universe all the time. the irony. the pain.#but still. lorewise I got beef with The Alliance. leave my aeon ALONE they did nothing wrong ever #''oh they cursed us'' bbg you cursed yourselves don't ask for rain and cry because you're wet #if Yaoshi has no defenders I am DEAD BURIED AND BRICKED #cube.rambles

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hypostatic-oath · 5 months

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I recently came down with covid and wasn't able to write anything (essentially a week and a half spent either asleep or barely conscious, it hit hard this time), but I'd still like to come on here and say two things:

-first, if you've sent an ask, I am so sorry for the delay, I'll get to it asap. I also have a Furina fic in the works, based on the archon quest.

-second, I stand with Palestine. If you know any reliable organizations to which people can donate or ways in which they can help, please let me know, and I will share them here. What is happening in Palestine is outrageous, a violation of human rights, and we cannot simply stand back silently while atrocious acts keep being committed every day against the people in Gaza and the West Bank.

🇵🇸From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. 🇵🇸

UNICEF

Doctors Without Borders

#those two are the organizations to which I've donated #if you have any more suggestions or links please let me know and I will edit the post to include them #i feel like this is too serious for the cube.rambles tag

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hypostatic-oath · 5 months

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I've started playing Honkai Star Rail and I love how dramatically silly it lets me be. So far I have stolen mail, searched garbage cans, entered a closet to become one with the darkness, waxed on about how life is just a road to death to a terrified guy (somehow that seemed to make him less terrified), bowed in respect to a dumpster, investigated an inconspicuous lamp so many times it got mad at me, investigated a trash can so many times it insulted me, and felt bad for two different trash cans and several sandbags (I believe my Trailblazer is going insane from putting up with me). All this not counting with the countless dialogue options with NPCs around the world that allowed me to be incredibly dramatic (think almost Fischl style) for no reason (you can bet I took them). However, I cannot jump or climb, and fights are turn-based... we respect our opponents in Star Rail (and die. A lot).

What I conclude from this is that while the Traveler has a moral code (and some standards) when dealing with interpersonal interactions but isn't bound by physical restrictions or conventions (stairs? The Traveler does not understand that concept. Fair fights? Please, they don't have time for that), the Trailblazer is the exact opposite. The physical rules may hold them but their only ties to social rules or convention so far have been March and Dan Heng saying "hey, maybe don't fight the guards" and "hey, you can't just accept random jobs".

It also might be because the Traveler is a thousand year old entity that has been through A Lot (has learnt the power of friendship, but is too tired to take the long route) and is on a serious mission while the Trailblazer was quite literally Born Yesterday with the sole purpose of housing a massive problem inside their body (walks and fights like a Normal Person bc they're mimicking everyone else, but is absolutely unhinged) and is just having fun with tjeir newfound existence.

Either way I love both of them and they're basically cryptids but in different ways.

#the Traveler gives off ''i'm too old for this'' enegry but also ''If I don't fix it who will''#while the Trailblazer is the most chaotic neutral mf I've ever seen and I love them so much #hoyoverse mcs my beloved #When I started genshin I expected a soft game with silly moments and was instead met with pain #Also I love how powerful the traveler has become (I like to believe they're just recovering the power they used to have)#The Traveler holds the braincell between these two btw #I want to understand Star Rail lore better so I can write smth abt the two of them meeting in like a dream sequence kind of thing #when I started genshin I expected haha funny colorful game but was met with pain and post-apocaliptic worlds and cataclysms #when I started star rail I expected pain and apocalyptic worlds and cataclysms and was met with THE ABILITY TO BE SILLY #I CAN HIDE IN CLOSETS #fun fact: i started playing both games for the Hot Dragon Men #also: in mondstadt there's a goth hotel (the hotel is named goth but doesn't seem to have ties to goth culture)#and in star rail there is a goethe hotel that is pronouced rather similarly. both are family establishments and both are ran by an old man

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hypostatic-oath · 5 months

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Incognito, But Very Appreciated

So I finished the new event's quest in the Chasm and have been left with feelings.

Warnings: Some SPOILERS for the new Chasm questline. Also extremely self-indulgent - I have no excuse I just wanted something soft with Zhongli. Heavily based on what I did as soon as I finished the event.

Summary: Overseer!Reader feels like a proper "thank you" is in order.

As he watched the Traveler and Paimon walk away, Zhongli couldn't help but let a fond smile make its way to his lips. Playing the part of a regular mortal meant he wouldn't take the credit for any grand or extraordinary feats, nor acknowledge his involvement in or even knowledge of such matters, but it still didn't stop him from feeling proud of how far his people had come.

Xiao, Yanfei, Yelan... He closed his eyes and sighed, contempt. Over and over again, the people of Liyue had proved to him that his decision was not one he'd come to regret. It was humanity's turn now, and his adepti were adapting to this reality rather well.

"You did good."

Zhongli felt the familiar aura wash over him, the starry cloak settling over his shoulders. You'd been with the Traveler when they'd thanked him, he'd heard your voice echoing theirs. Yet, it seemed you wished to express your gratitude personally.

Allowing the feeling of you to settle, it was easy to note that you were slightly more emotional than usual. More talkative, too. Had the events that happened in the Chasm had that much of an impact? Your voice was soft, gentle, unlike the creative expletives you said through gritted teeth mid-battle, or the occasional remark as you wandered around. No, this time it was as if you really were speaking to him. It wasn't unheard of, but definitely not common either.

A slight smug look made its way through his aloof facade. Heh. His little stunt had landed him right in the spotlight of your affections, it seemed.

Zhongli felt himself be teleported to that tea shop near the Liyuean border. It seemed to be a favorite spot of yours, at least when with him. You'd take him there occasionally, give him a cup of tea, and if he squinted hard enough he'd be able to see the mantle of swirling galaxies positioned ahead, as if you were somehow trying to take a seat in front of him.

It never failed to bring a smile to his face.

"Thank you, 'Li." Your voice echoed through his head. "I swear, he had my heart jumping out of my chest until you came in. I mean, I knew he'd live, I just didn't know how... Still. It was a relief when you turned out to be there."

You guided him to buy the tea - it was only Zhongli in your party, but you still bought two cups. The former archon placed yours down on the spot in front of him, and waited for you to shift from watching over his shoulder to your preferred sitting spot before drinking his tea, your steaming cup merely symbolic in nature.

Zhongli found himself wishing to say something, held back by whatever mysterious force prevented him from speaking freely. It was rare to have you actually speak, like this, at least. A soft moment like this usually took some sort of big event, and he didn't know when the next would come - he needed to make it count. Needed to make sure you knew he'd heard you, and that you knew he rather liked these moments with just the two of you.

You spoke before he did, though. Recounted the events of the Chasm, and how creepy the situation had become by the end of it. Zhongli had never seen that Coraline play you mentioned, nor was he familiar with the associated mithology or the fan theories, but he still listened to your ranting about eldritch horrors (hah! As if to the people of Teyvat you weren't one as well), tunnels that are throats and other worlds that are stomachs.

You spoke of Yanfei and her being the "MVP" of the quest, of the new arrivals Yelan and Shinobu (while Shinobu wasn't someone Zhongli knew, he was fairly certain Yelan was not a new arrival in Liyue - which led him to conclude that by new arrival you meant that the woman was now a potential vessel), of Itto and Paimon's argument, of how your control over the Traveler being close to none once they entered the last portion of the domain... And of Xiao.

You were proud of Xiao. And of him, too.

You had a tendency to ramble, apparently.

As both a talkative person and a good listener, Zhongli rather liked that.

"Where do you want to go next?" He asked, as you brought him closer to the railing to watch as the last rays of the sunset disappeared over the mountainy horizon. "If you'd like to see Liyue's tourist spots, I have a few references."

"Let's stay like this a while." You said, settled beside him. With a bit of imagination, he could almost picture you, leaning against the railing, a tired smile on your face as you looked at him, expression matching your voice. "I have one more comission to finish, and there's renovations to be done in the teapot. For now, though... I think I've got enough primos for a pull."

You tossed the intertwined fate up into the heavens, watching as it crossed the sky and crossing your fingers. Zhongli knew the energy you exuded now quite well - he'd witnessed plenty of starshowers before, after all. It seemed that your state of mind regarding the 'pulls', as you called them, would never change. Hopefulness, a whispered "come on, come on, come on!", followed either by an exclamation of excitement or a dejected sigh.

He watched intently, and wished alongside you.

But the star did not turn gold.

Nor did it turn pink.

Still, the spectacle of lights never failed to amaze him.

"Aaaand that's another Debate Club." You clicked your tongue, displeased. "Well, they can't all be winners. Only means there's some grinding to do. I'm too tired for the Abyss today, though... Let's see those tourist spots, shall we?"

Zhongli knew he couldn't exactly guide you to them, but you seemed to be rather familiar with his nation anyway. What he could do was offer you trivia about the places you brought him to, and hope you enjoyed them as much as he enjoyed your rantings and company. You stopped to listen whenever he had something to say, allowing your very talkative vessel to guide you as you took everything in. After catching a glimpse of him in the Chasm, you'd felt that a little 'spoiling Zhongli time' was in order, and the fact that he seemed particularly chatty today was quite appreciated.

You took him back to Third Round Knockout once you were done, sitting him at his usual table, taking the seat beside him. You whispered your exhausted farewells, and Zhongli could swear he felt you reaching out to cup his face gently. He closed his eyes and leaned into the phantom touch, a smile on his face.

Perhaps one day you'd visit Teyvat in your own body, he hoped, as your touch dimmed until your presence was gone, and he'd be able to hold your hand in place for a little longer.

#i found one!#cube.reblogs #thank you blooming-cecilia for the link to this one!#sagau #genshin sagau #self aware genshin au #sagau overseer #sagau zhongli

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hypostatic-oath · 5 months

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I've the post about how you think comps would work and we are allow to ask. Assuming I read that right.

And if so, I was wonder if you had any thoughts on how Dehya, Zhongli, Ei or Nahdia team would interact. Especially when I often joke she the bodyguards to three Archons, even if she doesn't know Zhongli was a former Archon it still funny to me.

DEHYA MY BELOVED-

I can see her being very proud of being Nahida's bodyguard. That one is obvious right off the bat, those two would absolutely adore each other.

Dehiya is thankful for the old consultant on her team. There is something odd about the man, always in those heavy robes that cover his full body - she has no doubt that out of all of them, he'd have the hardest time in the desert. And yet, the refined gentleman never seems to issue a complaint.

They've developed a kinship, she figures, of being the two mortals sided by two gods. Dehiya assumes he is the one meant to watch over the Electro Archon, just as she is the protector of Lesser Lord Kusanali. His shield is nearly impenetrable, and he is rarely ever startled... to her, it makes sense why you'd chosen him to be Eternity's guardian, even though the man hails from Liyue and not Inazuma.

They get along well, too - Ei seems to hold as much respect for him as he does for her, and the two converse with an ease that highlights the consultant's old age.

As for Nahida, she is slightly nervous. It is true that with Dehiya as her protector, and Rex Lapis raisong those shields of his, nothing will ever harm her. But she is still aprehensive to speak to the other two Archons - it has been a long time, and she has no idea how to introduce herself. She wonders if you'll give them time to play hopscotch together sometime amidst your exploration.

When you name Dehiya as the "Archons' Bodyguard", Ei is curious. She has fought for her entire life. Her skills are unparallelled. Why would she need a bodyguard? She's asked Morax about it, confused. Did you think she was weak? The old dragon had only laughed and said it was probably some sort of term of endearment - that Dehiya had been a bodyguard by trade before. Nevertheless, Ei was still curious about the woman's skill. Whenever you're logged off, the two can be found sparring. Both of them appreciate the opportunity to train.

During these times, the God of Wisdom sits next to the funeral consultant. Though reluctant at firstn their conversation ends up flowing. It is widely known that Zhongli likes to talk, and Buer, if given the chance and the encouragement to do so, will ramble about almost any topic. They have you to thank for placing them together in a team - they've become fast friends, and Nahida feels much more confident about approaching the rest of the Archons.

As for Ei and Nahida, it is almost the opposite. Both have been isolated for far too long, and neither knows how to start. The Raiden Shogun is an intimidating god, and her silence makes Nahida wonder if the ruler of Inazuma would even care to speak to her. As for Ei, she simply enjoys that Nahida has chosen to sit beside her, unaware of the God of Dendro's struggle as they both sit in silence. They eventually bond over their shared love for sweets, and as they grow closer, Nahida's worries diminish. It is not that Ei looks down on her - the Shogun is simply just as bad at interacting with new people as she is, or perhaps even worse. Kusanali is instilled with newfound resolve - she will share with the Electro Archon all that she's learnt from you and the Traveler when it comes to talking to others!

After months of traveling together, of being guided by you all across Teyvat, Dehiya has begun to suspect that there might be something odd about one of her travel companions.

You've named her the Archons' Bodyguard - Archons, plural - so what is Zhongli's role? The more she learns about the Shogun, the more she wonders why the Electro Archon would even need a bodyguard, let alone two.

Plus, the man's occupation makes no sense whatsoever. How does a funeral consultant learn to fight like that? He wears gloves, so she cannot thell whether his hands are calloused, but she's willing to wager they might be - he swings his polearm with an ease that tells her he is an experienced fighter. His dominion over his element is astonishing, and there is something... off, about how both her Archon and the Shogun talk to and about him.

Maybe one day one of them will slip off and call him Morax in front of her. Or maybe one day you'll tell her who he is. Either way, Zhongli drfinitely won't open up - both to preserve his secret identity, and because he knows that Dehiya finds comfort in the notion that she's not the only mortal among them.

#sagau #genshin sagau #cube.answers #sagau team comps #nahida is a sweetheart and I love that every archon's voiceline about her shows that they love her #even though she herself only has one that states she'd like us to introduce her to them #zhongli thinking he's mastered the art of looking human only to drop a meteor on a hilichurl

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hypostatic-oath · 5 months

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Though I have been too busy with work to write in these last few days (oof) I just want to say that the Skirk brainrot is real. Sure, her design was unexpected, but she won me over. I'm in love.

There is nothing in the sagau skirk or skirk x reader tags I'm- PLEASE LET ME BE GAY (without having to do it myself bc I already have so many things to write).

#me grabbing skirk and arlechinno after this patch like ''let's go lesbians let's go''#look I LOVE her leg thingies. I had galaxy print leggings back in the day. i still have them.#and also... new element??? hello #skirk is really pretty and i'm tired of pretending she's not. did i expect smth more beidou-like for her design? yes. do I love her? yes.#''it fails as a pet'' I love her.#also I would 100% keep that narwhal as a pet idc if it fails at it it's CUTE #cube.rambles

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hypostatic-oath · 6 months

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Three am thoughts but would y'all vibe with SAGAU smut if I wrote some? I think I've only actually done so once on my old blog and it was by request, but ngl the lack of sleep is making it seem like a good idea...

#sagau #genshin sagau #cube.rambles #minors dni #self aware genshin au

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hypostatic-oath · 6 months

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Oni's Royale

Inspired by the fact that Itto came home twice on my first ten pull when I was nowhere near pity. He must've been looking forward for his chance to shine...

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Out of the many things that reinforce not only your existence but also your continued influence over Teyvat, the most noticeable (and perhaps the one with the biggest degree of associated mysticism) would have to be the several bursts of shooting stars that cross the skies ever so often.

These do not seem to have a scheduled time, and though there are certain places from which they are more easily sighted, they are visible from about anywhere. The amount of shooting stars, too, is not always the same. Sometimes only one crosses the sky, a blue flash splitting up into three fragments before vanishing from sight. Other times, ten to twenty of them show up, and those tend to contain one or two of other colors.

The people of Teyvat know not what purpose these serve, but that doesn't stop them from enjoying the show. Some, though, have claimed to feel your calling through these stellar bursts, a faint but persistent tug at their very soul, beckoning them closer.

Few have put together that, save for very rare exceptions, the only time you've taken new vessels has been during those starry showers.

This time, the stars are particularly bright over Inazuma. Arataki Itto finds himself mesmerized, eyes fixed on the sky. He's heard that Kujou Sara has heard her name during such a show, felt the pulling sensation not once but twice, and that afterwards she'd grown considerably stronger. That Kazuha, the wanderer, had experienced the same calling, much like the daughter of the Kamisato clan and their housekeeper.

He wonders if this time it will be his turn.

"C'mon..." He whispers, fingers crossed, eyes on the blue lines that cross the sky, one after the other. "Come on, come on, come on..."

Itto hopes you'll hear him, wherever you are. He hopes you'll turn your gaze to him, even if just for a moment. He repeats his wish over and over, muttering it like a prayer as he does his best to clear his mind of anything that could obstruct the path of whatever you used as a means of connection.

One, two, three, four blue stars split in three parts and he's felt nothing. No call, no tugging, no godly presence, no getting miraculously stronger. He crosses his fingers harder.

The fifth and sixth stars cross the sky and there it is. The tugging sensation that seems to want to take him by the hand, faint, but it gets stronger the more he leans into it.

And lean into it he does.

His eyes widen as he hears you loud and clear for the first time. "Come home", you beckon, and he swears he can hear the same eagerness in your voice as he had moments ago when he wished to hear your call. "You can do it, come home, Itto!"

Without a second thought, he does. He follows the pull, that feels much, much stronger now - hitting him at full force, guiding him in a direction he cannot comprehend but that feels oh so right. And the stars glow purple, then pink, then gold.

"YES!" He hears, and he isn't sure whether it was you or him who shouted it. Most likely it was both. The feeling of ecstatic disbelief running through him is far too strong to be his alone, and the oni knows you too are smiling from ear to ear now that you've claimed him as a vessel.

He doesn't see you, but he feels you. It's the same aura the Traveller had, but so much deeper, warmer, stronger. He feels your gaze upon him, and though he cannot see anything other than a darkened, stilled, star-filled version of his homeland ahead of him he knows that's just where you are... Or, at least, where you're looking at him from.

So that's the direction in which he chooses to introduce himself.

If there's a slight nervousness in the way he lists his many titles, silently praying they'd manage to make you satisfied - actually, scratch that. Impressed. He wants you to be impressed - he's the only one who notices it. At least, he hopes so. He doesn't want to mess up a first meeting, after all.

Almost immediately he feels his strenght grow. The basic claymore he holds is swapped out for something far more powerful, and before he knows it Itto feels like he'd be able to fight the Shogun and win. He makes a mental note to do that later. You'd definitely be impressed if he did, right? You'd see his potential and want to keep him around. He really wishes you'll keep him around...

The darkened starry field leaves and his homeland is no longer static. However, your presence is still very much there, over his shoulders like a cloak only he can see.

In a flash, he's out of Inazuma and entering a domain he knows nothing about. His plan had been to challenge the Shogun as a way of testing his newfound power, but hey, if you'd rather use his strenght for something else, it was all fine by him.

As long as you wished for him to fight and travel by your side, the oni was quite happy to accompany you wherever you desired to take him, especially since you seemed to enjoy humoring his chatty nature during the journey. Maybe one day, he hopes, he'll get to hear you voice your opinions as well.

#i found one!#cube.reblogs #thank you to the anon who sent me the link for this one #i think this was one of my earliest ones so it's really nice to find it #sagau #sagau itto

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