Traveler/Lore

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The keeper is fading away; the creator has not yet come.
But the world shall burn no more, for you shall ascend.

—In-game character profile text

Don't lose faith in that which you have lost. In this new world, you will never be alone. Where you leave your footprints, and where you have yet to stride — your new world will unfold before you.
Welcome to a new world.

—K · K, Male character card official introduction

The world you once knew is but dust, and the wonders you knew but rubble. Though you should have your own world, and your own people — lamenting what is already lost...

—K · K, Female character card official introduction

Personality

A traveler from another world who had their only kin taken away, forcing them to embark on a journey to find The Seven.

—In-game character attributes and profile page text

The Traveler's personality is determined primarily by the player themselves through dialogue options.

Their personality can range from stoic, humble and helpful to boastful, lazy and short-tempered. Regardless of the player's in-game decisions, they are generally liked by the playable characters. There are instances of single speech options or similar options which give a glimpse at their personality overall. They are, for example, observed by Paimon as not believing the gods are any more worthy of unearned respect than mortal inhabitants of Teyvat. They also are pointedly uninterested in getting involved with each nation's troubles and primarily only concern themselves with finding out their sibling's whereabouts. Their response to Morax's "death" was initially to simply leave, both to avoid suspicion and seemingly a level of apathy considering the circumstances of their arrival on the world.

This trend continues into Inazuma, where the Traveler initially denies aid to the rebellion and refuses to take sides, interested only in meeting with the Raiden Shogun. The Traveler is visibly frustrated, not wanting to meddle in the country's affairs or get involved with anyone, even for a task as simple as delivering a letter. Yet despite this hesitation to get involved, they are ultimately a compassionate person, eventually choosing to aid the resistance against the Shogun's injustice after seeing the circumstances of each situation particularly at the prodding of Kamisato Ayaka and Thoma. Later on in Sumeru, they later help free Lesser Lord Kusanali from the sages of the Sumeru Akademiya after learning of her plight. Despite their slight indifference to Teyvat's conflicts, they greatly cherish every bond they create with the people.

The Traveler does not appear to be very talkative, with several characters noting that they are not very fond of speaking or starting conversations. Shikanoin Heizou also once joked about Paimon serving as the Traveler's "voice."

Due to their experiences with the Fatui and the Abyss Order, the Traveler is immediately on guard at the mere mention of them, though on somewhat reasonable terms with some of their members who respect them, such as Tartaglia and Enjou. Although initially friendly with Lyney and Lynette, the Traveler found it difficult to trust them after learning that they were Fatui operatives from the House of the Hearth, ultimately defending them from false accusations regardless. The Traveler also took sympathy on Lyudochka Snezhevna after seeing her regretful of her actions as a Fatui, and helped her to defect from the organization. They also show significant concern for their sibling, as their initial goal was to find them and get answers from the Unknown God that sealed them away. Even after becoming aware of their position with the Abyss, they still ultimately resolve to follow their instructions in seeing the world for themselves.

Appearance

See also: Rising Star

Aether uses the medium male model, and Lumine uses the medium female model. Both siblings have (‍blondblondText for male Traveler/blondeblondeText for female Traveler‍) hair, fiery-gold eyes, and pale skin. During their fight with the unknown god, both siblings had yellow wings.

Aether's hair is a more saturated color and very long, while Lumine's hair is paler and chin-length except for two locks of shoulder-length hair framing her face. Lumine also has two light-blue Inteyvat flowers pinned on the right of her head and two pale blue feathers tucked at the left.

Story

History

Aether and Lumine arrive in Teyvat, yet for some unknown reason the player's chosen sibling does not wake and remained asleep for an unspecified amount of time. The Traveler's sibling eventually manages to wake them up and says that they should leave, with both twins witnessing the destruction of Khaenri'ah. However, an Unknown God, describing herself to be the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles, blocked their way. A fight ensued and resulted in one of the twins getting consumed by red cubes from the Unknown God, and the other trapped in a seal which caused them to lose their powers. Five hundred years later, the Traveler wakes up, separated from their sibling, and stranded. One day they accidentally fish out Paimon from the sea, saving her from drowning.

Paimon would stay with the Traveler and teach them the Teyvat Language: to her amazement, it only took them two months to become a conversational speaker. After learning of how they got stranded on Teyvat at the start of the game, Paimon suggests they get in contact with The Seven, in order to help the Traveler look for their lost sibling. Along the way, the Traveler resonates with a Statue of The Seven, resonating with the Anemo element and allowing them to wield it despite not having a Vision. The Traveler's trip starts at Mondstadt, the City of Freedom, and meet Outrider Amber. Though Amber promises to help the Traveler with looking for their sibling, she mentions that she and the rest of the Knights of Favonius are currently preoccupied with Stormterror terrorizing the city. They help out with the incident, which they find out was orchestrated by the Abyss Order, and learn that the bard Venti is actually Barbatos, one of the Seven, and the Anemo Archon. They also first encounter the Fatui and the Harbinger Signora here, who take advantage of the situation to steal the Gnosis from Venti. They also learn that the Tsaritsa, the Cryo Archon and ruler of Snezhnaya, appears to have unknown motives. Venti apologizes as they know not the God who took their kin away, but suggests they head to Liyue to meet with Morax, the eldest of the Seven and the Geo Archon, who may be able to provide them with answers.

At Liyue, the Traveler and Paimon attempt to meet with Morax at the Rite of Descension, only for him to inexplicably die and are subsequently made a suspect due to being foreigners. They are able to escape with the aid of another Harbinger, Childe, who suggests they meet with the adepti to resolve the issue. He introduces them to Zhongli, a consultant at the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor who can bring them to Morax's Exuvia, or the corpse. Childe's assistance is later revealed to be a ruse as he attempts to steal the Gnosis from the Exuvia but finds that it's already gone. He then breaks the ancient god Osial out of Morax's binds, but with the help of the Liyue Qixing and adepti, they manage to repel the ancient god. Only after resolving the issue do they learn that Zhongli is actually the Geo Archon, that he was retiring from his position and thus faked his death with the help of La Signora, representing the Tsaritsa, whom he had made a contract with. He hands over his Gnosis for delivery to the Cryo Archon as per their agreement. As the Fatui leave, Zhongli tells the Traveler to head to Inazuma.

While waiting for the chance to do so, they are recalled to Mondstadt where they meet with Dainsleif, who wishes to stop the Abyss Order. Dainsleif warns them against siding with the Archons, mentioning how the gods were the reason why Khaenri'ah was destroyed. During this time, they stop a plot in which the Order was attempting to "mechanise" Osial to do their bidding. Unexpectedly, they manage to run into their sibling, but are shocked to learn that they lead the Order. They attempt to convince their sibling to leave Teyvat with them, but the sibling refuses, mentioning that they still have a war to fight in. The sibling instructs them to continue traveling Teyvat so they can experience the truth first-hand before leaving, with Dainsleif chasing after them. The Traveler attempts to follow but is shut out.

Back in Liyue, the Traveler tries to meet with Zhongli to get answers regarding the truth about what happened in Khaenri'ah, however he says he is bound by contract to not speak of it. With help from the Crux crew, the Traveler is able to bypass the storm and arrives in Inazuma, where they witness the land in chaos due to the Vision Hunt Decree, the Sakoku Decree, and a civil war between the Shogunate and the Resistance. Hearing of their feats in the other nations, Kamisato Ayaka and Thoma attempt to persuade the Traveler to help but are shut down, saying that they are only here to meet with the Electro Archon and nothing else. Ayaka agrees to help them meet with the Shogun but instructs them to first see victims of the Vision Hunt Decree, after which they agree to help with the war. They soon join the Resistance based on Watatsumi Island after meeting the Shogun and nearly being killed by her. In their journey, they meet with the Guuji of the Grand Narukami Shrine Yae Miko, who reveals that the Shogun is actually just a robotic puppet and that Ei, the Archon they are looking for, resides inside it. They soon learn that the chaos in Inazuma was caused by the Fatui and confront Signora, defeating her in a duel before the throne and witnesses her death at the Shogun's hands. The Shogun then tries to cut them down as they leave Tenshukaku, but the timely arrival of the resistance allows the Traveler to confront Ei once more and defeat her with the aspirations of the seized Visions, prompting her to abolish the Vision Hunt Decree. With the chaos resolved, Yae thanks them for their assistance, but mentions that they know nothing about the Traveler's sibling or the Unknown God. She then advises them to make their way to Sumeru next.

While crossing to Sumeru via the Chasm, the Traveler investigates the mysterious area and discovers an Abyss Order plot intending to use a strange water source found in the depths of the cave to restore the hilichurls' minds, learning some of their past from Dainsleif. After this trip, they arrive at Sumeru and are greeted with a vision of a massive Irminsul tree and try to speak with Lesser Lord Kusanali, only to discover that the sages of the Sumeru Akademiya had shut off all physical access to her. The Traveler is roped into a plot by the sages to harvest energy to power a god, upon which they finally meet her while in a dream samsara; with her aid, they are able to break it and free the city's inhabitants. Learning of the full extent of the plot, they manage to find allies to stop the sages, who had been gathering resources to create a new God of Wisdom by empowering Scaramouche. They ultimately defeat him and witness Kusanali remove Greater Lord Rukkhadevata from Irminsul, but as it had not stored data on them, were one of the few who were not affected by the change in data. Ultimately, they chose to keep information about Rukkhadevata a secret to respect her last wish. While talking with Kusanali, they are knocked out by a sound wave by Il Dottore and learn that she had given up both her and Ei's Gnosis for information. Kusanali then suggests they visit Fontaine next to meet with its Archon, Focalors. She also informed them that they were labeled by the Fatui as a "Descender" and that their sibling was not one of them, leaving them wondering if Teyvat had done something to their sibling as they had always been traveling the universe together.

Similarly to the other nations, while waiting for the chance to enter Fontaine, the Traveler meets with Nahida and Scaramouche, the former trying to find information in Irminsul about their sibling and putting the latter into their custody while searching. During the trip, Scaramouche learned the full extent of Dottore's manipulation and willingly erased himself from Irminsul, prompting the Traveler to return to Inazuma to see what changes he had made. They ultimately discover that the changes were minimal, as the events still occurred with different actors and find him in the new iteration as a wanderer. With Kusanali's aid, they restored his memories and the Traveler could rename him.

Later on, the Traveler caught up with Kaeya at Port Ormos before running into Dainsleif yet again, where they investigated Avidya Forest to help jog his memories. During the investigation, Dainsleif went off to investigate the Ley Lines and discovered that the Abyss Order had tampered with them. While he had been investigating, the Traveler encountered a fragment of their sibling's memory, learning how the Abyss Order was founded and their encounter with a "Sinner" that was responsible for Order's foundation.

Character Stories

Character Details

The keeper is fading away; the creator has not yet come.

But the world shall burn no more, for you shall ascend.

Character Story 1

A boy and a girl stood amidst the tumult, under an unfamiliar sky.

You were a pair of traveling twins, passing through countless worlds during your journey.

Descending upon a continent named Teyvat, you hoped that you would be able to enjoy your time here.

But as you awoke among the falling stars, you saw the world in turmoil, a cataclysm raging across the land...

You sought to leave this place and move on to the next world, but then an unknown god stood before you, barring the way.

This deity was spotless, floating over a world of chaos.

Looking down on you.

The god took your only kin away, and you were sealed and cast into a deep slumber filled with nightmares...

When you reawakened, the world was changed.

The flames of war raged no longer, and nothing was left that looked familiar.

How long had you been asleep? You had no answers.

Thus, you began a lonely journey, seeking the deity that you had once laid eyes upon...

Character Story 2

Song of the Dragon and Freedom

---

After that, you met Paimon, and wandered together for some time.

You learned that this world has seven deities who rule the seven nations as the Seven Archons.

Your first stop was the free city of wine and song, Mondstadt, a city built by the Anemo Archon.

As you stepped into Mondstadt as an outlander, it was, as the other nations were, beset on both sides by non-human and human threats.

The non-human threat was comprised of the confederacy known as the Abyss Order.

The human threat, on the other hand stemmed, from the ambition of the Tsaritsa, god of Snezhnaya.

The Abyss Order had corrupted an ally of the Anemo Archon, the Dragon of the East of the Four Winds of Mondstadt.

The envoys of Snezhnaya, for their part, used this opposition to the Abyss as an excuse to put pressure on Mondstadt.

These threats from without and within caused the return of the Anemo Archon, who took on the form of a bard and joined you in your journey to save the dragon.

Yet there was something then that you did not see — for as the dragon fell to the Abyss, a certain figure had been reflected in its eyes...

The one who rules the Abyss.

(‍SheSheText for Aether/HeHeText for Lumine‍) had once traveled with you, and you had once crossed many worlds together.

Character Story 3

???

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Not yet available

Character Story 4

???

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Not yet available

Character Story 5

???

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Not yet available

Vision

When faced with circumstances that they cannot control, humans often bemoan their powerlessness.

But if a person is found to have surpassing ambition even as their life reaches such a desperate turning point, then the gods would look upon them with favor.

This favor is the Vision, an external magical focus given to those who have been acknowledged by the gods which they can use to channel elemental power.

Celestia is the realm of the gods, and the wielders of Visions walk the earth below. When they depart from this world, the chosen will ascend.

After coming to this world, you often hear people speak of such things.

You, for your part, can never receive a Vision, for an alien lifeform does not belong...

Is it wise to allow a moment's ambition to dominate one's entire life?

You have needed to consider many such thought-provoking questions, ones that require lengthy consideration, during your journey through many worlds...

Loom of Fate

???

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Not yet available

Constellation

Viator
	Meaning: (Male) Traveler

Viatrix
	Meaning: (Female) Traveler

Character Trials

Quests

• World Quest Rowboat's Wake in Series In the Wake of Narcissus: Act IV - Rowboat's Wake
• World Quest Waking from the Great Dream in Series In the Wake of Narcissus: Act III - Waking from the Great Dream

Events

• Clash of Lone Blades
• Warrior's Spirit

Character Mentions

Character Stories

Character	Stories
Amber	Amber's Journal
Fischl	As the Traveler: Character Story 5 As the "Visitor From Outer Worlds": Vision
Kaedehara Kazuha	Vision Shell
Yanfei	Character Story 4
Yelan	Character Story 4
Zhongli	Gnosis

Trivia

• No default name is given for the Traveler at the start of the game. Their real name, Aether (male) or Lumine (female), was first determined through the name the Traveler calls their sibling by in the opening cutscene. Later, during We Will Be Reunited, their sibling calls the Traveler by their real name regardless of the name the player chose.
• Both Aether and Lumine are shown wielding the ascended version of the Silver Sword in their character cards and portraits, and the Dull Blade in their cutscenes. In the opening cutscene with the Unknown God, the siblings are shown wielding white-and-gold swords. Aether's sword had a cruciform guard and Lumine's sword had a crescent guard.
• The Traveler is currently the only playable character who:
  • Does not have a Utility Passive.
  • Has their Vision listed as "None" on their profile.
  • Has no Friendship Level listed in Attributes — their Story passages are unlocked by completing certain Archon Quests.
  • Does not appear in the Character Archive at all.
  • Uses different means from other characters to obtain materials used for Ascension and Constellations.
    • Ascensions require the Brilliant Diamond Character Level-Up Material, which are only obtainable through Adventure Rank rewards.
    • Ascensions do not require Ascension Gems.
    • Constellations, which are maintained separately for each element, require Memories, which are obtained through various means, including Adventure Rank rewards, Quest Rewards, and the Souvenir Shop or similar of the respective city, as opposed to Stella Fortuna obtained for other characters from wishing. As a result, neither the male nor female Traveler have Wish artworks.
      • The Traveler was initially the only playable character who was completely unavailable through wishing. As of Version 2.1, Aloy is also unavailable through wishing. However, unlike the Traveler, Aloy does have Wish artwork viewable from the Character Archive.
• Though the Traveler does not possess a Vision, they are still able to use the power of the seven elements by resonating with Statues of The Seven, and do not require the respective Archon's permission to do so.
  • The Traveler's clothing will glow with the color of the element they are resonating with: teal for Anemo, yellow for Geo, purple for Electro, green for Dendro, and blue for Hydro. When unaffiliated with an element, those parts won't glow. In the opening cutscene with the Unknown God, both siblings' clothing will glow white. The Traveler's Sibling's clothing glows white in their present-day appearances, but the Traveler's will match their resonated element.
    • During the mid-battle cutscene in Heart of Glaze, the Traveler manages to use both Anemo and Geo regardless of their resonated element.
    • Starting in Version 2.0, pre-rendered cutscenes and Hangout Memories usually have the Traveler match the region's element instead of the player's preference.
• The Traveler is one of the characters with ornaments that glow. While wearing their default outfit, Rising Star, when the Traveler's Elemental Burst is ready, various parts of their outfit will glow the way other characters' non-Vision gems glow along with their Visions. On Aether, these parts are his chest plate, the wrist joints of his gauntlets, arrow shaped areas on his kneecap guards, two diamonds attached one to each half of his cape, two accents in his shoulder guard and two orbs, one hanging off the end of his scarf, the other in his earring. On Lumine, the glowing parts are her chest plate, the wrist joints of her gauntlets, the diamond at the top of each of her boots, an oval on her waist at the back of her dress, the diamond at the end of each tail on her scarf, and the stem in each Inteyvat flower in her hair. These parts change color based on the element (or lack thereof) with which the player's Traveler is currently resonating.
• The Traveler has no object that appears to be a Vision while wearing their default outfit, Rising Star, but when switching to the Traveler when their Elemental Burst is ready, the projected elemental symbol that is typically seen over other characters' Visions is seen over their chest plate.
• In the Traveler's Chinese official introduction, as well as the first official artbook, their profile's Constellation parameter reads 命之座 (伪) "Constellation of Life (Pseudo)", which is not found on any other character's profile. In-game, the Traveler's Constellation parameter is named the same as everyone else's.
• Despite their youthful appearance, the Traveler descended on Teyvat five hundred years ago and has been traveling between different worlds for an unknown amount of time before that, making them older than they look. In a developer video regarding Azhdaha's design, one developer mentions that "the Traveler's life span is by no means short." A running gag in the game features the Traveler hoping to drink alcohol only to be rebuffed, probably on account of their youthful appearance. On other occasions, the Traveler voluntarily rejects alcohol. Voiceover lines with Paimon indicate, however, that the traveler thinks and acts in a manner befitting a mature adult.
  • As such, a select few characters are aware the Traveler comes from outside Teyvat:
    • Barbatos, Morax, Ei and Lesser Lord Kusanali are aware of the Traveler's origins, likely due to their status as one of The Seven - the other Archons are likely aware of this too.
      • Although she was maintaining a façade of being an Archon, Furina is aware of the Traveler's origins, as the Traveler told her about it during their discussion prior to her trial.
    • Neuvillette is aware of the Traveler's origins, likely due to being one of the Seven Sovereigns and their shared experiences of being outsiders to Fontaine.
    • Fischl is somehow able to determine this without any logic.
    • Like Fischl, Kamisato Ayato also determines this without any reasoning behind it.
    • Mona determines this through her astrology.
    • Albedo compares himself similarly to the Traveler while also discerning this through their ability to use multiple elements without a Vision.
    • Similarly to Albedo, Kaedehara Kazuha also notes that the Traveler is capable of using multiple elements without a Vision, while also commenting to them that they have an "incredibly complex" smell that he compares to a mysterious being.
    • Xinyan also knows that the Traveler is not from this world. Based on how she talks about this fact, it seems that the Traveler has deliberately told her about their origin.
    • Ganyu has at least been able to clue in that the Traveler is different from other people of Teyvat, viewing them as something not exactly human similarly to herself.
• The Chinese version of the opening cutscene trailer is titled 空中荧火 "Luminescent Lights in the Aether", which incorporates both Aether and Lumine's default names.
• Diluc's voice-overs suggest that the Traveler is skilled in playing chess.
• According to the Chinese, Japanese, and Korean pronouns the twins use to address each other in the opening cutscene and in later interactions, Aether is the older twin and Lumine is the younger. The English translation does not make distinction on which is the older/younger twin.
• As children, both the Traveler and their sibling had imaginary friends.
• The Steambird's Teyvat Food Notes columnist, Long'er, is a rendition of Aether. (See Teyvat Food Notes § Trivia for details.)
• The Traveler likes Rock and Roll, according to Yun Jin's voice-overs.
• The commission quest Archery Demonstration reveals that the Traveler is proficient in archery. However, because the Traveler only wields a Sword in-game, they must rely on ranged Talents such as Starfell Sword to complete the commission.
• The Traveler has been granted the following titles:
  • Honorary Knight of the Knights of Favonius
  • In the Watatsumi Army:
    • Captain of the Watatsumi Island Special Operations Unit
    • Swordfish II Captain
  • The First Sage of Buer
  • Yasnapati of the Pari, Sorush
  • Honorary Senior Researcher of the Fontaine Research Institute
  • Ann's Holy Blade of Narzissenkreuz
  • Super Zenith Boss-Level Force by Turenna
• The Traveler is referred to by a few nicknames:
  • Their blonde hair has been the basis of a few nicknames, such as Kayabuki Ikkei's "blond-haired outlander" and "Golden Whirlwind," Taliesin's "golden-haired (Traveler)", and Kichiboushi's "Yellow Fur" (shortened from "(‍UncleUncleText for Aether/AuntAuntText for Lumine‍) Yellow Fur"). In Sumeru, the Aranara give the Traveler the nickname "Golden Nara" presumably also in reference to their blonde hair.
    • The Traveler is not fond of such nicknames, going as far as to call Taliesin's (and Paimon's "Blondie") "terrible-sounding, non-consensual appellations." They also disapproved of Kichiboushi's nickname, but tolerated it for the duration of Eight Locales Over Mountains and Seas.
  • Teucer addresses them as "(‍Mr. Nice GuyMr. Nice GuyText for Aether/Ms. Nice LadyMs. Nice LadyText for Lumine‍) throughout Mighty Cyclops' Adventure!, because despite having known the Traveler's identity the entire time, he forgot their name.
  • The Traveler and Paimon are sometimes called "the Guests of Tenshukaku" by Inazuman characters, such as Souka in the Fabulous Fungus Frenzy event.
  • Souka also referred to the Traveler as "Her Excellency's Hanamizaka tour confidante."
  • The fourth "Descender"
  • A prince/princess in exile by Liloupar
  • "Knight" by Ann and other members of the Narzissenkreuz Adventure Team
• The voice-over line About Jugemu references the famous Rakugo story about a child named a very long name due to his parents' indecision.
• The voice-over line About Tanuki has the traveller humming "Shojo Temple Tanuki" in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. In English, the traveller hums randomly.

Etymology

• The English name "Aether" is the name of the fifth element in ancient and medieval science, which fills the universe beyond the terrestrial sphere.
  • In Greek mythology, the god Aether was the personification and god of the clear upper sky which embodies the air that the gods breathe. The Greek word Aether, both modern and ancient Greek, also means sky.
  • In Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, his name is 空 "Sky, Air, Void." In Buddhism, this word is used to denote the concept of Śūnyatā, which has multiple meanings but generally relates to the lack of intrinsic, permanent existence or nature.
    • In the Japanese Godai philosophy of the five elements, which is based on both Buddhism and the Chinese Wuxing elements, Void is the highest of them.
• In English, Lumine is of Latin origin and means "light."
  • In the Chinese version, 荧 Yíng means "luminous" or "bright."
  • In Japanese, her name is 蛍 Hotaru means "firefly".
• Their Constellation, Viator or Viatrix, are both Latin for "traveler." The terms are the masculine and feminine forms of the word.
  • The Chinese name for their Constellation, 旅人 lǚrén, also means "traveler."