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Character Base
• Character Name: Aether
• Age: 500+ years, physically looking around 17.
• Canon (Date/Year Released)/Canon Point: Genshin Impact (September 2020 - ongoing) Patch 2.2 (late September 2021).
• Items Coming Along:
- 1. sword (weapon)
2. clothes
3. non-functioning teapot
4. gold seelie
5. bag of mora
Character Background
• History: here.General canon quick info for unfamiliar parties:
- Genshin Impact is set in a universe of supposedly many worlds and the story begins 500 years prior to the start of the game, where the two star-travelers named Aether and Lumine, come to a world called Teyvat. They soon realize Teyvat is caught in a cataclysmic war of and attempt to leave, only to blocked from leaving by a entity known as the Unknown God. She separates both twins forcibly, one being sent into slumber and losing all their powers, the other either kept awake or wakes up much earlier than their sibling and witnesses the events that transpired. They travel through Teyvat themselves in search of answers (and presumingly their sibling). However, they end up following a path that leads them to becoming one of the greatest dangers to the world of Teyvat-- the Prince(ss) of the Abyss Order.
One of the main antagonists is known as the Abyss Order. They are a group of non-human monsters that despise humanity and the gods and seek to destroy both.
The second sibling wakes about 500 years from the point they were sealed away, by chance meeting a small being named Paimon. As thanks for saving her, Paimon promises to help the protagonist (Known as 'The Traveler') find their missing twin.
Teyvat is a world of 7 nations ruled by 7 gods that are known as Archons. As they are the most powerful deities, Paimon suggests that the Traveler seek the blessing of the Archons in order to hopefully identify which one is responsible for taking their sibling away from them.
Archons are known to have direct links to Celestia, the home of the gods, which allows them access to great power. These links are in the form of various chest pieces, known as gnosis, and are currently highly sought after by a group known as the Fatui ( their leader's name). The Fatui serve the Cryo Archon, known as the Tsaritsa, and since the cataclysm that happened 500 years ago that the Traveler and their twin were caught in, she has changed and declared war on all the other archons. She seeks to take all of their gnosis from them, but her ultimate purpose is still unknown. There are 11 Harbingers of the Fatui, each having been given god-like powers by the Tsaritsa, and are allowed to run amuck so long as they do what she wants. Needless to say, the Fatui have a not-so-great reputation and are considered a main antagonist in the story.
Each Archon has an element they are associated with and these elements form the "rules" of Teyvat: Anemo, Geo, Electro, Dendro, Hydro, Pyro, and Cryo.
The Traveler is able to resonate with the elements and make use of them, where people in Teyvat must possess items known as Visions to wield an element. They are said to be gifted to those who are at their most dire point in their life (usually assumed to be near-death), and are blessings from the gods themselves.
• Core Relationships:
- Lumine: First and foremost, Aether’s entire motivation for everything he does is finding his sister. Despite all their positive qualities and likeability, he is simply going through the motions of being a selfless person when things happen along the way during his journey to find her. He has no particular interest in getting involved with any of the country's affairs when arriving (even though they always end up doing so.) Lumine is his most important person hands down, so much that even after assisting two countries in Teyvat and becoming friends with many individuals from both, Aether is willing to put all of it aside in order to return home with his sister.
"Why are you talking about things that don't even matter? Let's just go home together!"
— Traveler (Aether) to their sibling (Lumine)
This isn't an indication of disregard towards the friends and connections they have made through their journey so far, but it demonstrates the overwhelming bond the twins share with one another and how desperate the Traveler is to have their sibling back with them.
"Home, yes. Home is wherever we are together."
- the Traveler's sibling (in this case, Lumine).
Even with the Traveler's sibling certainly being corrupted in some (currently unknown) manner, their bond is still quite strong and their sibling is forever in their hearts, so they are extremely attached to one another.
Paimon: Paimon is the Traveler's only constant companion throughout their journey, and at the start of the game are only a month of two familiar with one another. Although the Traveler meets many characters along the way and makes close friends with them, only Paimon so far actually journeys with them to a new nation once they've finished their goals in a certain place.
Without Paimon around for Aether (in Deer Country) to lean back on (she's his constant support), he will find it more difficult to be alone in things. The fortunate thing is that Lumine is in Deer Country and she will more than full that void. Still, Paimon claims they are best friends and so they are very important to one another and he will be looking for her every chance he has.
Not-as-important, but have some influential reach beyond their nations to the Traveler. }
- Xiao: Xiao is arguably the closest thing to a legitimate party member on their journey that the Traveler has. He has made the promise (and continuously acts on it) to appear to them when they need him. All they must do is call his name. Thus relationship is significant as Xiao is very introverted and has little to no interest in any affairs outside of his duty to Morax and Liyue. Human affairs are not something he is interested in, positive or negative, and he will actively dismiss being involved in them and leave them to other humans.
It's clear there is a real fondness for the Traveler, and the Traveler very much likes Xiao, too, always attempting to get him to come along and do things with them whether it be enjoy a meal together or watch the Laurens during the Lantern Rite Festival light up the sky.
Tartaglia: Tartaglia can be considered the Traveler's first true rival. He's an enemy but also not quite, and their relationship is particularly strong in an unconventional way. It's driven by strength and the best traits of a rivalry, the ones that inspire both to continuously strive to do better and be better to not disappoint one another the next time they cross blades. It's also canonly noted that he joins you on your adventures from time to time when he isn't busy, alright it's on Childe's trend rather than something like the Traveler's relationship with Xiao.
Zhongli: The geo archon (it ex-geo archon, technically) is a trusted friend and someone the Traveler feels they can rely on. Their thrust stems from the fact that although Zhongli has deceived them, he has never outright gone out of his way to lie to them, and instead will amor to having such information but being unable to speak of it. The Traveler believes him at this point in time, whether these claims turn out to be true or false. It's clear from friendship lines that Zhongli is very protective of the Traveler, particularly being rather unhappy when he finds that Venti gets the Traveler drunk at one point.
Venti: the anemo archon, Venti is extremely close to the Traveler, and there are several suggestions in game pointing to The fact that their first in-game meeting is not actually the first time they have met. Therefore, it feels especially worthwhile to mention n their relationship as being close friends to one another. I usually play Aether as trusting Venti more than anyone else save for Paimon or Lumine. While he does not actively join the Traveler on adventures outside of Mondstadt he seems to always be there waiting for them if they wish to find him and he will drop everything to assist them (not... That he was doing that much to begin with, but details!)
Character Personality Through Key Moments
- The Traveler is the type of person who will help someone in need. A relatively stereotypical trait for a protag, but important, nevertheless. There aren’t any real "immoral" options that you can choose for him, and others look at him positively in the game despite the quirks and differences in their relationships.
What I can interpret of Aether from the various options we are provided in the game, is that he has a kind and sunny personality. He is polite and respectful to the people he meets, and generally addresses them formally (Miss, Mr., Title), even after becoming friendly with them. This can sometimes change based upon the circumstances of a situation- as an example, being more formal and polite toward authority figures in public. As an honorary knight, he has good etiquette regarding formalities.
As an extrovert, he has little trouble approaching people for small talk and is very friendly, usually willing to offer his help if the conversation seems to imply the person might be in need of some. Even so, he never forgets his main purpose and will turn down someone if he's preoccupied… which generally means that he will simply help them at a later date.
Family is also more important than anything to Aether. Although Lumine, his twin and once constant companion, is on another level, his friends in Teyvat can and do earn a sort of ‘family’ status too, where he cares for and wants to protect them. When saying farewells in Mondstadt, the Traveler can respond saying that they will miss their Mondstadt family (which I'm going with here as the option Aether would have said.)
Aether is extremely emotional and easily moved to action. He can become quite volatile in reaction to terrible events, and sometimes heated. However, it takes a lot to get him truly angry and he comes equipped with a sort of stubborn patience. That isn’t to say his generally trusting and happy nature doesn’t sometimes backfire on him. When frustrated with others, Aether can become closed off and push people away verbally. His preferred method is to simply find some alone time in order to cool off. He is presently trying to learn to control his emotions better so that he isn’t so reckless. He isn’t self-sacrificing, but he can be impulsive. When caught up in the heat of the moment, he’s not always good at working through things constructively. That said, disagreements with allies are rare and usually glossed over quickly. As an example, Aether confronts Zhongli at one point about the truth regarding his sister and the Abyss Order to find out what really happened 500 years ago. Zhongli replies he is bound by contract to not speak of it. He insists that Aether believe him that he wants to tell him but is literally unable to due to the binding contract (as the god of contracts himself). Despite having two choices to answer, neither are aggressive or otherwise frustrated over getting no answers. They’re simply disappointed over the situation.
Because he feels so strongly, he is also extremely determined and not one to simply roll over. Even when he loses, he is resilient and won't give up even with the odds against him. He can be extremely overprotective of his friends, as well, even when they are more than capable of taking care of themselves. This is demonstrated through the fact that whenever his comrades find themselves caught in a situation, he’s quick to try and help immediately and rush to their aid or try to help.
Similarly, while Aether generally doesn’t get involved in the business of strangers, he is very much a nosey little brat when he wants to be concerning his friends. He doesn't quite reach the level of ‘obnoxious’-- His friends seem to find it more endearing than annoying, but it does get to a point where you as the game player are mentally thinking "JUST GIVE IT UP, ALREADY."
His moral compass is true, and he generally believes in the good of other people, but neither is he particularly gullible. If he’s wary or suspicious, he’s able to maintain good relations with the individual and is willing to wait for them to prove him right or wrong before reacting accordingly. This is a trait that sometimes makes him appear gullible to others, actually, but it usually turns out to his advantage. This is particularly seen in canon with Childe: despite Childe being a Fatui Harbinger and having not great experiences with the Fatui, he chooses to cautiously trust him despite ending up being backstabbed in the end.
It's important to note that the single most life-changing event that he’s experienced thus far, as you may have guessed, is being forcibly separated from his sister. He experiences nightmares of the events and an apparent war that occurred when his sister was taken from him. But he doesn’t really understand them and is unable to accurately piece events together. What he recalls is destruction, burning, screaming, and worse.
Naturally, the loss of his powers and having slept for 500 years has been a difficult adjustment, too. And it’s been suggested recently that the Traveler and their sibling are particularly subject to succumbing to the terribleness of mankind and loneliness via extreme despair (the example in Canon is through the changes the Travelers sibling incurs rather than Traveler themselves, but I think it's an extremely important trait to be mentioned for Aether because of the type of game Deer Country is.) Enough of it can seem to manipulate their view, and in extreme cases, can cause them to take up what they believe to be right even if what they are actually doing could be considered ‘evil’. Presently, this is what seems to have happened to Aether's sister, although we have no idea if there is more involved. What we do know is that Aether is convinced there must be more to the story that he can’t see yet.
Aether's anger/hatred is also seen to be quite strong although extremely difficult to get to properly manifest. For the first time in canon, however, in Inazuma, when confronting Fatui Harbinger Number 6, Scaramouche, and Fatui Harbinger Number 8, la Signora, we see some of this anger come to the surface. With Scaramouche, Aether's anger (which Scaramouche intentionally fuels by hurting people that Aether cares about with his methods) and hate is enough to feed an old god's power and drain him enough to cause him to pass out. With Signora, he challenges her to a duel at the throne, which means death to the loser. While he doesn't kill her when she loses, the Raiden Shogun does it for him and leaves him extremely shaken and temporarily dissociated with himself until he sees his friends coming to his aid as he is leaving the Shogun's castle.
Thus far, the biggest betrayal Aether has faced is due to Tartaglia (or Childe as his nickname goes), the 11th Harbinger. While they initially get along well, and Tartaglia goes so far as to save him when arrested for a murder he didn’t commit, they ultimately cross blades when Aether and Paimon discover and interfere with the plans of the Fatui. He’s both unhappy and hurt for being manipulated and realizing Childe’s deceit. Ultimately, Aether wins their battle. It isn’t until later that their strained relationship mends, when he ends up eventually protecting Childe’s younger brother, as well as the vision his younger brother has of Childe. His earnest love for his sibling softens Aether’s feelings and Childe comes to respect him. This demonstrates not only the fact that he is forgiving toward others, but that whatever charm and kindness he possesses leaves an impression on others.
Deer Country Attributes
- • Canon Powers:
- Weapon Mastery: Sword } very profiteering in using a sword, it is his main weapon and has demonstrated countless times he can fell trained soldiers and enemies with relative ease using it.
Elemental Resonance: Anemo, Geo, Electro } a lot ned) He has the ability to use the elements of wind, earth (rock and stone, specifically), and lightning. These abilities will be weakened to slightly above in-game gameplay tier versus lore tier (which is kind of OP arguably, anyway.) He can combine two elements together, but not all three.
The Anemo element allows him to summon tornados and whirlwind, the Geo element allows him to summon small meteorite like rocks and earth spikes in the ground, and the Electro element allows control of lightning balls/strikes and use of temporary shields that can protect from lightning and electricity elements.
Purification } (severely weakened.) He's been down to be able to purify corruptions, but this will be severely weakened in Deer Country. He can use it to a purifying status but it takes a lot out of him. I was thinking it might require his blood to work, but they aren't exactly connected in abilities, so I wasn't sure if this was a thing that could be done.
Above Average Traits } Pain tolerance is high, speed/agility are high. Stamina and tolerance to blood loss is higher than average. Doesn't lose consciousness easily in response to physical trauma.
• Blood Type: Paleblood
• Omen: Fennec Fox
• Blessed Day: Lantern Rite Festival. Traditionally the 15th Day in the first month of Lunisolar calendar, so I'll go with February 15th for ease even though it changes yearly. In game, it ran from February 10th to February 28th 2021, while in China, the actual date of the festival was February 26th for 2021. It's basically the last day of the Chinese new year celebrations.
• Patron Pthumerian: the Doorway
• Blood Power Manifestation: I'm thinking of going with when Aether either makes eye contact with someone or something (assuming his own blood is spilling), he can manifest hallucinations or telepathic abilities with them, and the longer they make eye contact, the more potent that hallucinations or the telekinesis becomes and the longer it will take to wear off on the individual it's used on. Likewise, if he touches inanimate objects, I was hoping he might be able to see visions of what may have occurred "in front of" these objects. An example would be if a murder was committed near a rock, if he touches the rock and uses his blood magic he'll be able to get a vision of the murder to varying degrees. Similarly, it might come back as a prophetic vision instead of a memory (unless palebloods wouldn't be allowed to dig into memories). I'm much more interested in the idea of Aether being able to see backwards rather than forwards, if possible, though!
Writing Samples
One: Deer Country: October TDM
Two: Imeeji: Fourth Wall Event
The Player
• Player Name: seiko
• Player Age: 30+
• Player Contact: discord dpscheck#5185, PM
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