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Before there was Remnant, before the Light and the Darkness descended upon the world, there was Teyvat.
There was a time when the gods would walk among mankind, the people they swore to protect, a time when they thrived. Maybe not all was perfect, but it didn't have to be.
But like it ought to, gods or no gods, all stories must eventually reach their end.
Teyvat's came in the form of Celestia and delivered by the Abyss' hands. Those two forces collided, in more ways than one and often indirectly, bringing the world down with them.
It culminated in a cataclysmic event, the greatest since Khaenri'ah, but one much bigger in scale, for it encompassed the whole world. Eventually, it did what the calamity 500 years prior couldn't, it brought ruin to every city, in every nation.
The archons could only but watch from above as the tragedy befell their nations. Faces contorted in abstract horror, powerless to do anything about it, having been called up to Celestia and now being detained among its pristine walls.
When Celestia first presented itself as a threat to the world, Mondstad, with its deeply ingrained sense of freedom, was the first to rise. The first to spark the fires of revolution against the high divine.
But, Mondstad was also the first to fall.
Concerned as they were for retaliation from up above, they did not look down in time to see the Abyss taking the chance to hit them when vulnerable.
Liyue may have presented itself as a formidable opponent once upon a time.
But as it stands, stripped of its greatest protectors, both adepti and human alike, who had fallen in battle, one by one, not long before this calamity started, one thing was clear.
Liyue never stood a chance.
Inazuma had barely started to stitch themselves back up from the civil war and the deep jagged scars it left on its inhabitants.
It caught most by surprise then, when the islands were attacked.
Divided and unprepared, the people of Inazuma, though they did try their hardest, were fighting a losing battle.
They couldn't hope to win, not without their god's aid.
It was not as different from the rest of Teyvat.
The rest... well the rest went down just as easily, just as sudden, giving unforgiving ends to glorious stories.
And so it goes like this, destruction consuming all until the bitter end, till the day Celestia collapsed in itself and the Abyss fell deeper than they could crawl of.
And no one was there to see the archons return to what was their homes and no one was there when two stars left the world, hand in hand, with promises to never forget.
When the dust finally settled, the world of Teyvat was no more, it was barely recognizable even. All that was left were the cries of sorrowful gods echoing in the wind and the remains of what once was.
A Remnant.
And in time, not even that stood the test of time, and eventually, all vestiges of past civilization were gone, the archons along with them.
They, who had aimlessly scoured the lifeless earth for centuries past the disaster, had finally given into a deep slumber, and, in doing so, left Teyvat truly devoid of life.
As far as anyone who would come after its destruction was concerned, nothing of the sort could ever have possibly existed.
After all, if it did, there would be some sort of proof, right?
But the winds carried whispers of an inevitable return, prophesied that one day what was gone would return, that this was not the last the world would see of the archons or their people.
Eventually, Light and Darkness descended upon the barren remains of this world, and the two brothers created - or destroyed - whatever they wished, waging a pointless war between each other.
As a means of ending their feud, they decided to create something together. Something they could both be proud of, giving them their four gifts - creation, destruction, knowledge, choice.
Their creation was entirely based on these concepts, sure, but one would wonder about the shape those beings took. For these new gods might not know the history buried under the scorched earth, but, the ever-present elements around them always would. And the Ley Lines that still made their course underground still held the memories of those days.
So, while the brothers might not have had in mind how their mankind would physically look like, the unseen forces of the world had a mind of their own, carving them into a familiar shape.
It ended up taking Renmant thousands of years before they came to be aware of the godly presence that took root on the land once more.
And Teyvat may have been long gone by then, and a new world may have been born of its debris, and its people, they might just never learn of what happened before their time.
But that didn't mean that a few certain individuals were happy to let it stay that way.
Remnant didn't really know what hit them just yet, but they would see soon enough.
"She should be right over there, follow me," the bartender's gruff voice said, heading towards the back corner of the place.
A black-haired man wordlessly got up from the barstool he was perched on and, after one last sip of alcohol soon followed.
Qrow was supposed to be meeting with a well-known informant in Atlas. The informant in question was fairly new in the scene but had already gained quite the reputation for herself. She was said to be aware of all that happened within the kingdom.
He had finally caught up to the bartender when the magic that came with his then-new bird form seemed to resonate with something - or better yet, a certain someone. For some reason, it was resonating with the one he came all the here to meet.
Huh, how interesting.
She was sitting at a table in the corner of the bar, hidden from view from anyone who might mindlessly walk that way. As he approached, internally mulling over that sensation he had just felt, a smooth voice rang, bringing him back to reality, and forcing him to put that new discovery on the back of his mind, "Whatever did I do to catch the attention of such a well-known hunter like yourself, Qrow Branwen?" She smirked, as if to say 'i know all about you'.
Oh, so that's the approach she's going for.
He sighed and sat down in a chair so as to face her, laying his hands on the table.
There was one thing bothering him, though, and he had to sort it out before this went anywhere else, "Well, it seems already know my name and reputation, but all I've heard about you is how new to the scene you are or how you're a big name out there already." He leaned back on his chair, pulling up his feet over the table "They say sharing is caring, you know? Mind telling a guy your name?" He said, flashing a smirk.
This had to be what had bothered him the most, in his early quest to find any useful information on her, before going to meet her.
Not once, not a single time, had someone called her by name, or by a moniker even. It was always 'the informant' or simply 'she'.
"Well, I don't normally tell this to my clients, it's a matter of safety and privacy really," she said, leaning into her elbow. "I hope you do understand that much"
"But" she sighed, "I heard you were looking for a... long time work relationship and I think we can both benefit from this. So I'll make an exception and grant you this one thing, as a token of my trust."
And finally, extending her hand "My name is Yelan, pleasure to make your acquaintance"