Genshin: Teyvat's Wandering Demon (Rewrite)

-2800 words-

Night stretched across the land, the stars scattered like tiny lanterns in the sky. At the mouth of a damp cave, Tayden stood, caught between the cramped darkness behind him and the open wilderness ahead. He had spent six long days in this cave, where the wet walls and the constant drip of water provided little comfort. 

The only reason he hadn't dared to leave sooner was the memory of an arrow lodged in his forehead, those masked people weren't exactly the welcoming kind.

The moon hung low, casting long shadows over the trees. He exhaled, tapping his foot against the rocky ground. "Well," he muttered, pulling his tattered jacket tighter, "guess it's time to go."

It wasn't leaving that made him nervous -he actually liked exploring- it was what would happen once the sun came up. He had learned the way that daylight felt wrong, like some primal instinct is telling him to stay away. His instincts screamed that stepping into direct sunlight would be a death sentence. But hiding in a damp, moldy cave forever wasn't an option either.

He rolled his shoulders, testing muscles that felt strangely strong ever since waking up on that distant beach. He still had no idea where he was. The locals -if those masked figures even counted- had made it pretty clear he wasn't welcome. But despite everything, a part of him wanted to see what lay beyond the cave.

The truth was, he knew nothing about this place. No signs, no towns, just abandoned campfires and the occasional leftovers of merchant carts. "I'll figure it out," though it didn't exactly make him feel better. 

"Better than wasting away in here."

He glanced back at the cave one last time. Shadows stretched over damp stone, the air thick with the scent of moss and stale air. A pile of ash sat in the corner, the remains of his attempt at roasting wild boar. He hadn't been able to eat it. Fruits, roots, even meat, none of it tasted right.

Suddenly having superhuman strength and regeneration was neat and all, but was it worth not being able to eat anything? Absolutely not.

He let out a dry chuckle. "Alright, time to find out what this world has in store for me."

Stepping past the cave's entrance, Tayden let the cool night air wash over him. The scent of damp earth and tree bark filled his lungs as he took a deep breath. He ignored the small knot of unease in his chest, he'd deal with sunrise when it came.

"One step at a time," he murmured, and walked into the trees.

—

The forest surrounded him in shifting shadows, he assumed that things would be super dark, but for some reason, he could see perfectly fine. 

'Probably another aspect of my power…' While he was excited at the prospect of having literal superpowers. The fact that he was all alone in the middle of the wildernes, alone in literally another world, made him too anxious to really focus on his new powers.

Every so often, moonlight broke through, lighting patches of undergrowth. He tried to tread lightly, but leaves and twigs snapped under his shoes. More than once, he swore he saw movement in the corner of his eye, only for it to be a bird. Another thing that he realized is that every single sound, smell, and even shift in wind was amplified. Like he could sense everything that was around him.

"At least I'll know if those weird people are sneaking up on me." he muttered. The memory was still sharp: the hiss of an arrow, the impact, the sudden numbness. The masked tribe had scattered, or maybe he had just fled too fast to see what happened next. The panic was overwhelming, until he yanked the arrow free from his skull, and the wound sealed up like nothing had happened.

Now, the silence put him on edge. He wasn't afraid, exactly—just wary. If there were people out here, he'd rather see them first than the other way around. "Still," he muttered, stepping over a fallen log, "better than sitting in that cave."

The ground sloped downward, scattered with jagged rocks. One wrong step and he'd go tumbling. But considering how fast he healed, he had to wonder. 'Would a broken leg even be a problem?' An odd thought, but weirdly liberating.

A shift in the breeze carried the scent of flowers that was instantly identified by his enhanced sense of smell. He slowed as the trees parted, revealing a small clearing dotted with… glowing plants? He stopped at its edge, momentarily caught in the beauty of it. Above, an unfamiliar sky stretched wide, filled with constellations he didn't recognize.

"Wow," he breathed, stepping closer. He saw hundreds-no, thousands of stars that covered the night sky. 'Earth could never.' He chuckled at his joke as he walked closer to the glowing plants.

He crouched by a cluster of them, running his fingers over soft petals. Unlike the cave's suffocating boredom, the forest felt alive, distant rustling, the occasional hoot of what he assumed to be an owl. It wasn't safe, but it felt… better.

Standing up, he scanned the area. The real problem was the sun. He needed a place to hide come morning. A part of the forest completely covered by trees, a cave again, maybe he could weave something together for cover. 'Nope that won't work, I don't know how to make anything'

An owl's cry broke the quiet, making him tense. Helistened. No footsteps, no voices. He let out a slow breath.

"Relax," he muttered. "If those things wanted me dead, they would've shown up already." Unless they liked playing with their prey. The thought sent a chill down his spine, but he shook it off. No turning back now.

He kept moving, pushing deeper into the woods. Low branches snagged at his clothes, moonlight streaking the forest floor in silver lines. In a small clearing, he leaned against an old tree, arms crossed.

"Let's see. No idea where I am. No idea who lives here. No idea how I'm supposed to get real food." He tapped each point on his fingers. "On the bright side—no more cave, no more stale air, and at least I can see something other than stone."

He tilted his head, gazing at the sky. The stars were foreign, yet oddly comforting. He had accepted, in some strange way, that he wasn't home anymore. He had no idea what this place was. But this is what his life is now.

—

After wandering for what felt like hours, Tayden crossed a vast clearing of grass, the cool night air brushing against his skin. His path eventually took him alongside a quiet river, its waters reflecting the moon like shards of silver. It was peaceful, until he spotted something ahead that made him stop in his tracks.

A humongous frozen slime sat on the edge of the river, its translucent body faintly glowing under the night. There was a layer of thick ice under it so he came to the realization that it must be so cold that it can freeze water with just a touch. Tayden narrowed his eyes, carefully backing up. 

'Nope' 

He had no clue what that thing was, but judging by its size, he wasn't about to get close enough to find out. The last thing he needed was to get flattened by some weird blob monster. Making a wide detour, he kept walking until the glow of the slime disappeared behind the trees.

Not long after, he realized he had unknowingly walked to the top of a steep hill. The terrain sloped downward ahead of him, revealing a wide gap —at least seventy meters across— with another hill sitting directly opposite. He stepped closer to the edge and looked down.

A ravine. Great. Rock walls stretched deep into the earth below, lined with jagged outcroppings that would definitely not make for a fun landing. His first thought was to find another way around, but that meant wasting time— and he wasn't exactly eager to take a detour back toward frozen blob territory.

A wild thought appeared within his mind. "I could jump," he whispered. For days he'd tested minor feats of strength, a tossed boulder here, a snapped tree there. But jumping across a 70 meter long ravine? That was something.

He frowned, rubbing his chin. It was stupid. Absolutely stupid. But ever since waking up in this world, he had super strength, ridiculous speed, and a body with regeneration of all things. Granted, he didn't know how powerful his regeneration was exactly, but something inside was telling him that this jump would be nothing.

Tayden exhaled, shaking his arms loose. "Screw it" He took a few steps back, bent his knees, coiled his muscles, and sprang forward with everything he had. 'Here goes nothing!' Finally he jumped.

For a brief moment, he was flying. The wind howled past his ears as the ground blurred beneath him. The leap had more power than he expected, and he instantly realized—

Way too far.

"Oh, sh—!"

"Too high, too high, too high—!" He barely had time to finish his shout as gravity took hold. He crashed onto a plateau of rock beyond the hill in an awkward position, arm first, bone snapping with a sickening crack as he finally settled into the ground. Pain shot up from his elbow to his shoulder.

"Mother fu—!" The scream cut short. 

The pain stopped. 

He caught his breath, his heartbeat hammering in his chest. 'Ok where the heck did the pain go?'

He glanced at his arm. It was… not broken. Back to normal. The insane wave of pain disappeared near instantly. "Oh yeah." He swallowed, not sure if he wanted to laugh or hurl. 

"Regeneration sure is convenient." He looked to where he had landed, blood had spattered the ground from the initial break, but his skin was already healed, not even a scar.

He slowly stood. A swirl of emotions clashed: relief, confusion, and the terrifying reminder that he could break a limb, and it might not matter. If only he could just not feel the pain. He cradled his now-intact arm. "I can't believe I… overshot the landing."

He rubbed a hand behind his neck. 'That was insane.' He tested his arm, rotating the shoulder. Not even sore. "Geez," he muttered, "glad I didn't do anything like that when I was still… well, alive." He frowned. "I mean, I am alive, but you know what I mean." Why was he talking to himself you may ask? Try 6 whole days of isolation in a cave after thinking you drowned to death. That does things to a man

Dusting himself off, he clambered over the rocks. The vantage point here gave him a gorgeous view of the horizon, distant mountains, and a faint sparkle that might be a town or city. "So," he said out loud, "my first big jump in this world ended with a broken arm that got better before I could even start screaming. I'm officially unstoppable." A beat, and then, "Or I'm an idiot."

Who says he can't be both?

He spent the next few minutes pacing around, before finally deciding to continue onwards and descend the hill. "No more stupid decisions." he vowed, "Not until I can control my powers better.." There was a quiet comedic note in his voice, but a thought passed in his head 'Am I turning reckless because I can heal so fast?' 

—

Tayden picked his way across the rugged ground, pausing every so often to peer through the darkness. Hours ago, he thought he'd spotted lights glimmering on the far horizon, maybe lanterns, maybe torches. Whatever they were, he hoped it meant civilization. Finding people might finally give him answers to why he was here—or, at the very least, where "here" even was. If it was a city of sorts, then he hoped that the inhabitants were more friendly than the others he came across here.

"Come on, where were those lights…" he muttered under his breath, stopping at a slight rise in the terrain. He scanned the tree line, squinting into the distance. Even though night vision had practically become his default, the flickers weren't there anymore. Either the lights had been extinguished, or he'd wandered in the wrong direction.

He hissed a quiet curse, turning in a slow circle. Part of him still wanted to press on, determined to find someone out there. But then… a troubling warmth crept along the horizon. He glanced up and froze.

The sky was shifting from inky black to a deep, glowing orange. Dawn was on its way. A cold sweat beaded on his forehead. 'Already?!'

"Not good," he said, voice tight with worry. He'd been so caught up in exploring, he'd lost track of time. His body tensed, that same primal warning flaring in his mind, sunlight would equal death for him. He could almost feel the rays itching to reach him, as if daybreak itself was a hunter closing in.

A sharp tremor of fear overtook his muscles, and before he knew it, he was sprinting. He tore through the undergrowth at a speed that left even him startled, the world around him blurring as branches whipped by. He jumped over logs, ran through trees, and scrambled to find a place to hide, leaving behind a trail of destruction. He wasn't really thinking, his body was too busy shouting Hide! Hide now!

"Gotta… find… shelter," he breathed between strides, his eyes felt so focused, like he could see the littlest movement even at this speed, and he wasn't even winded. He wove through a patch of dense trees, nearly toppling a trunk as he grazed it. Everything around him became a chaotic swirl of rushing wind, snapping twigs, and pounding footsteps far too fast for a normal human.

A minute later, he spotted a cave mouth up ahead, carved into a cliffside that jutted out of the earth. Relief flooded his veins. "Yes, yes, yes—!" he shouted, pushing himself to run even faster.

In his frenzy, he didn't slow down soon enough. The moment he got to the entrance of the cave, his foot caught on an uneven rock. Momentum did the rest. 'Dammit!' He launched forward like a missile and smashed into the cave wall, caving in the stone with a thunderous crack. The cave shook from the force as dust billowed in all directions as he ended up embedded deep in the rock, arms and legs sticking out at awkward angles.

For a second, Tayden just hung there. Then, with a groan, he pried himself out, stumbling onto the cold cave floor. The dust settled around him, and he coughed, waving a hand to clear the air. His heart hammered in his chest, more from panic than from any form of exhaustion.

"Okay," he wheezed, still dazed. "That was a bit more speed… than I expected."

Shakily, he stood and made his way to the entrance, keeping well out of reach of any sunlight. Outside, the sky had fully taken on those gold and orange hues, rays of day edging closer. He would have marveled at its beauty if it weren't for the fact that his body was horrified by it. Thankfully no sunlight breached the cave's interior.

"Made it…" He swallowed, running a hand through his hair. "Just in time." A few more seconds, and he might've learned firsthand exactly why his instincts screamed about daylight.

Turning back, he stared at the him shaped hole on the cave wall. It was like a cartoon, but didn't laugh as he was still recovering from running from the sun. Then he thought about the speed he'd just displayed. No panting, no burning muscles just.… fear. 

A part of him wanted to know why his body was telling him to stay away from sunlight, but the thought of testing anything sent shivers throughout his bones. He was mentally drained, heart still fluttering from panic, but physically? Not a trace of fatigue.

He let out a shaky laugh. "Ooookeeyyy… That is enough adventure for one day.."

Slumping down, he settled onto the hard cave floor, too on-edge to bother finding a comfortable spot. His gaze drifted toward the creeping glow outside.

"I'm going to think about all this shit later. I'm too tired for this shit." he mumbled, pressing his back against the stone. His eyelids felt heavy, panic tended to do that. There'd be time to freak out more when he woke up.

For now, it was enough to have escaped the sun even if it meant scraping himself off the wall first. Slowly, his breathing evened out, and, despite the upheaval of the last few minutes, sleep claimed him in the dim safety of the cave.