Chapter 5

I quickly flew down the between buildings towards the fountain in front of the city's main shopping district but just as I crested over the railing blocking the next level to the city in front of the water fountain. I was buffeted by a massive wind and even though my own cries of shock I heard Amber and Lumine screaming out to me as the updraft of wind threw me bodily into the sky.

"This is bullshit!" I cried out desperately keeping my spinning form from turning on my side or allowing my wings to collapse as that would lead me to diving to the very hard and unforgiving ground.

Finally, I managed to right myself, but a deep roar overtook my senses as a series of pitch-black tornadoes formed within Mondstadt.

"Jake take my hand!" Lumine screamed as she herself was thrown into the sky and more importantly, she was gliding upwards and in a circular motion with one of the tornadoes pulling her upwards.

Our hands managed to catch each other's wrists when I gave up trying to use the tornado's chaotic winds to get back to the ground, but I could only mentally groan as Dvalin the massive dragon coated in evil dark winds roared again and another powerful updraft threw us both high into the sky.

But as the black winds that carried us to an obscene height petered off and Dvalin began flying around at an equally high height seemingly lazily shooting condensed Anemo bombs towards Mondstadt, I heard Paimon yelling from over Lumine's shoulder. "How are we maintaining this height!"

I couldn't help but notice that not only was she right that other than us still moving closer to Dvalin it seemed that we were both maintaining a steady height but with how far the ground was I couldn't really compare that accurately.

I guess Paimon isn't completely useless and can at least act as a height gauge should we ever manage to make a plane or something...

Before I could think more a somewhat feminine voice spoke almost like a wind caressing my ear making me shudder at the feeling almost gagging at the knowledge that a trap was giving me an ASMR treatment.

"You are being carried by a thousand winds. Now concentrate as I have imbued you both with the power of the winds, now harness it!" The voice cried and I could feel the Anemo energy within myself multiple exponentially in depth and potency allowing me to shoot a cascade of Anemo bolts of energy into Dvalin.

Lumine seemed to pick up what I was doing as well instantly, but rather than just continuing to shoot a cascade of melon-sized Anemo balls I changed so my output became a solid beam of intense Anemo energy aimed directly at Davlin's wings and his neck when I could fly over him for a bit.

But Dvalin for all that he was being tortured into insanity by the abyss order's magic spike embedded into his neck was not weakened or otherwise going to take being pelted by endless magical energy and began counterattacking by shooting what seemed to massive house-sized Anemo bombs at us that had lightning arcing within the wind bombs.

That made sense seeing as he was a storm dragon and not simply a wind dragon... But after getting hit by an arcing bolt of lightning that carried over from where it barely touched Lumine I was already feeling the mental strain from holding onto Lumine, maintaining the magic laser on Dvalin, and dodging the massive wind bombs Dvalin was leaving floating randomly in the air like mines.

But finally, with another roar Dvalin dived down beneath the cloud cover, seemingly tired of being pelted by our attacks and being completely unable to hit us as we were far smaller targets, and the surrounding wind would violently push out of the way when Dvalin tried to simply ram us with his large body.

Me and Lumine shared a glance-filled relief being plain in my blue compared to her golden amber eyes before we had instinctively tightened our grips on one another feeling the otherworldly wind leave us forcing us to begin gliding downwards towards the thick clouds beneath us.

"Think we could have been blown out all the way to Sumeru..." I giggled nervously as the dark clouds blocked all details beneath us seemed to swallow us whole preventing me from seeing Lumine who was literally within my arms as the black clouds were so thick.

"I hope not..." Lumine grumbled seemingly disturbed by the thick cloud cover as she buried her face into my white jacket. "The darkness makes my head hurt. It's like I should remember something but thinking about it only brings pain in my heart, and my head." She groaned

I frowned lightly as Paimon began fussing over Lumine who was still using my chest as a cushion to nurse her headache. 'Could she already be regaining her memories of what happened when she and her sibling were sealed away?' I thought before I had to clear my mind seeing as we broke through the cloud cover and Mondstadt was in the distance.

"Lumine, we broke through the clouds. Help me fly us back to Mondstadt." Basically, I had Lumine control our direction of gliding while I concentrated on shooting a stream of Anemo energy from my feet giving us a bit more lift and allowing us to barely make our way to the Anemo Church's courtyard where Amber was franticly waving at us.

Amber ran up to both of us grabbing our arms and seemingly taking in our forms as she almost hysterically questioned us both. "Oh, Barbatos! Are you both alright?!"

Feeling Amber literally pull up my shirt actually checking my chest for my organs to be falling out which... I was literally wearing all white and light blue from literally head to toe as even my shoes seemed to be made out of a white leather. I didn't have any blood seeping through it and only a bit of dust on me so her actions almost made me push her away before a series of claps broke through the howling winds.

"You actually got the power to go up against the dragon..." A man spoke as he approached us. The tan skinned wearing an eyepatch, was dressed mostly in blue-toned clothes with a notable Cryo amulet hanging on his waist.

"Now the question is, whether you both are new allies or a series of storms..." The man spoke lightly and I couldn't help but feel the dude was just all around skeevy to put simply.

"Right! Kaeya, Jake, Lumine, we must go to!" Amber said excitedly but Kaeya cut her off speaking in his airy drawl that seemed to put Amber at ease and call down a bit.

"Hold on Amber. I believe you are forgetting to introduce us..." He said chuckling making Amber run a hand over her head and calming herself down, though the sight of her long red bow somehow magically propping itself back up from her hand going over her head made my lips twitch.

"New friends, this is Kaeya our Cavalry Captain and those three are Jake, Lumine, and the flying mascot is called Paimon," Amber explained and magically, we all seemed to ignore the cries of said mascot as somehow her words got carried away in the wind. Never to be heard again...

Amber then went on to explain that we weren't spies or anything and why we had come to Mondstadt with Lumine looking for her brother and myself simply looking for a home with Amber seemingly staking her own reputation as she herself welcomed us into Mondstadt. "I see. Welcome to Mondstadt in any case, though I'm afraid you haven't arrived in the best of times."

Kaeya continued to speak as the winds maintained their constant howls. "I understand both of your plights in looking for your own family, as well as simply trying to find a place that will accept you. I won't pressure you Lumine, as to why you want to meet the Anemo god but on behalf of the Knights of Favonius I extend our deepest thanks to the both of you for pushing back the dragon."

Lumine shrugged almost throwing off Paimon who was holding onto her shoulder in hopes of not being carried away in the violent winds speaking lightly. "I couldn't allow the situation to get worse... Plus my friend was being taken away by the wind."

Kaeya clapped happy to see our camaraderie and began speaking about how the city's people who didn't go inside for shelter somehow managed to see us beyond the pitch-black clouds covering the sky that even we couldn't see through. "Also, the Acting Grand Master of the Knights is very interested in meeting the two of you, formally inviting you both to come there as soon as possible so we can discuss what has happened."

Me and Lumine shared a look, and I could already tell her thoughts coincided with mine, so I turned to Kaeya and Amber speaking. "Please lead on. It would be best if we got on top of the situation immediately."

Even as Kaeya and Amber took us to the Knights of Favonius's headquarters' I couldn't help but think about Kaeya's title in the Knights. 'Could we get horses or something to shorten travel time?'