Chapter 18: Chains of Eternity

Tian Hui and her husband Satoshi were preparing for their next big adventure. The husband and wife duo, both archaeologists, stood side by side, ready to embark on their journey.

"Are you ready, dear?" Satoshi asked with a smile.

"Yes, I'm ready! Let's get going!" Tian Hui replied, her voice filled with excitement.

Satoshi chuckled softly as he adjusted the sails, and soon the boat was gliding away from the shores of Liyue Harbor. As the sun dipped below the horizon, the stars began to twinkle overhead, casting a soft glow on the water.

They passed the time with stories and laughter, the sound of their joy mingling with the gentle sway of the waves. By the time the first light of morning touched the sky, the night had already slipped into memory.

"We're here," Satoshi said, pointing toward the horizon.

Tian Hui squinted, looking around. "How do you know? There's no landmarks in sight."

Satoshi smiled and pointed toward the sky. "See those birds? They've been circling this area for a while. It means there are fish here, and where there are fish, there's coral. 

Tian Hui laughed and kissed him on the cheek. "You're cute when you talk like that."

Satoshi grinned. "Alright, enough sweet talk. Let's go check it out!"

They quickly changed into their swimming gear and donned their diving helmets. Tian Hui paused, glancing at him thoughtfully. "Honey, maybe you should bring your vision with you, just in case."

"I always do," she replied, with a wink.

They dove into the sea, the cool water enveloping them as they swam deeper. It didn't take long before they spotted it — a massive stone wolf's head lying in the depths. Its wolf-like ears and huge snout loomed out of the darkness, a silent guardian of the deep.

Tian Hui's heart raced as she swam closer. The teeth of the statue were enormous, far larger than fully grown human. No, they were far larger than that, sharp enough to bite through anything. She couldn't help but feel a mix of awe and unease as she took in the sight.

As they swam toward the neck, Satoshi noticed something strange. Moss covered the statue's body, but the stone remained smooth and flawless. His fingers brushed over the surface as they continued their descent, and there, around the wolf's neck, was a chain. It was barely visible beneath the sea moss, but the faint glow of the runes caught Satoshi's attention. The magic in the chains pulsed slowly, almost like a heartbeat.

Fish glided past effortlessly, undisturbed by the ancient statue looming below. Satoshi squinted at the runes, his fingers tracing the weathered stone, but the letters were too large and overgrown with moss to make sense of. The inscriptions remained a mystery, obscured by time and nature's embrace.

"This… this is every archaeologist's dream," he murmured to himself.

His wife tapped him on the shoulder, signaling it was time to go back to the surface. Reluctantly, they swam back up, leaving the forgotten relic behind, their minds racing with the possibilities of what they had discovered.

They left the stone behind, the thick chains still wrapped not only around its neck but its entire body, leading down to the sea floor. The statue remained undisturbed, its presence silent beneath the waves. Yet, inside the cold stone, memories stirred, flashing to life like distant echoes, a god's past flickering through the darkness.

"Fenrir, what is it?" Rose asked, noticing his sudden distraction.

Fenrir flicked his tail upward in a special signal—a sign of danger.

"I'll wait for you guys outside of town," Rose said quickly, cutting off any response. Without waiting for their answer, she hurried out.

"Fenrir, what's going on?" Rose asked, concern in her voice.

"That thing we fought… I sense more of them," Fenrir growled. "They're moving toward Saintfall."

"We can't let them get there," She said, her voice sharp.

"You want me to go?" Fenrir asked, turning his gaze toward her. "I'll go, but you must stay behind. It's too dangerous."

"I'm not letting my best friend go alone," Rose declared, crossing her arms firmly. "I won't let you face them by yourself."

"But—" Fenrir began.

"I won't let you be in danger alone, Fenris," Rose cut him off firmly. "We do this together."

Soon, her friends caught up with them. Rose quickly explained that something terrible was happening at Saintfall. Of course, they believed her without question and immediately wanted to help.

Without hesitation, they set off, their feet pounding the earth as they raced toward their destination. Fenrir's mind lingered on the gravity of the situation. Soon Fenrir's memory drifted to another time 

Michael had been at church, sitting with his mother, father, his little sister as the session began. The soft murmur of prayers filled the air as Michael, his heart heavy with worry, silently prayed to Christ. Every day, he begged for his sister's health to improve. Their family had been placed on the transplant list, but it was a long wait. Michael would've traded places with her in a heartbeat if it meant she would be okay.

"God, please save my sister… she means everything to me," he whispered to the heavens.

But nothing came. Then, his memories shifted, and the sound of crying echoed in Michael's mind, as he was pulled back to the moment everything changed. His sister had died, pronounced dead at just 12 years old. The grief flooded him again, as clear as if it had just happened.

He could still hear his mother's sobs, the heartbreak in her voice as she clutched the empty space where her daughter once stood. His father, usually so strong, tried to hold it together—but even he couldn't stop the tears.

Michael's eyes locked on his sister's lifeless body, and the world around him seemed to crumble. Every breath he took after that moment was a reminder of the weight of the loss, a hollow emptiness that would never fade.

Fenrir's chest tightened in a way he had never experienced before. He longed to shed tears, to allow the sorrow to overtake him as it would for any human—but he was stone. He was cursed to remain unfeeling, a god frozen in time, bound by an eternity of silence.

"Hey, brother, don't cry…" The soft voice of his sister whispered through his mind, as if the memory was still alive. "We'll see each other again, I know it."

Then Rose's voice broke through, comforting yet distant. "We'll see each other again."

"No! Don't go, Daisy. Rose, please don't leave me!" Fenrir's desperate cries echoed in the darkness, his voice cracking under the weight of the unbearable loss.