4 Shades

self, one of which was Naberius. 40 years after the Heavenly Principles's appearance, the Seven Sovereigns were vanquished and the seven nations submitted to its authority. Naberius was responsible for helping the Heavenly Principles create animals, plants, and humans.[6]

During the Great War of Vengeance, Naberius presumably participated in the war on the Heavenly Principles's side against the voyager and the ancient dragons.

After the deposition of the Primordial Sea's first heart, the Hydro Dragon, she created Egeria to serve as the new heart of the Primordial Sea.[7]

After the Cataclysm, her heart was eventually discovered by Albedo and his master, Rhinedottir, deep in the heart of a dungeon. Shortly after discovering it, Rhinedottir disappeared, leaving behind a message for Albedo to uncover the "truth and meaning of this world."[8] Her heart was later devoured by Rhinedottir, and Naberius fused with her.[5]

Ronova is a god and the Ruler of Death among the Four Shades of the Heavenly Principles.[5]

Ronova was first mentioned in the Archon Quest Echoes of Life in Chapter V: Act II - Black Stone Under a White Stone and later in As One We Watch the Setting Sun. She makes her first physical appearance in the Archon Quest When All Becomes a Monument in Chapter V: Act V - Incandescent Ode of Resurrection.Profile Ronova helped Natlan establish the rules and gave guidance to Yohualtecuhtin, Lord of the Night, in creating the Night Kingdom. She had done this out of an expression of love and act of reparation, but these actions were considered to be overstepping her authorities as a Shade and it displeased the Heavenly Principles.[5]

Appearance Ronova's personal form is that of a tall curvaceous woman with pale skin, long and thick white hair and golden eyes with 7 petals flower-shaped pupils.

Her outfit consists mainly of shades of black, gray and red. She wears a black translucent bodysuit under a black strapless dress with the front part of her skirt open, revealing her legs. There are two triquetras on each side of her skirt over a ruffled gray translucent skirt that falls to the ground. The back part of her dress' skirt consists of black feathers with a dark red interior.

Her accessories are black opera gloves, a pair of red eye-shaped accessories on each side of her hair, black high-heeled shoes, a white transparent veil attached to the back part of her hair and a pair of upwards-curved dark red wings with eye-shaped holes.

The Ruler of Death utilizes a crimson-red rift in the skies of Teyvat to gaze upon the world below through the technique she employs to observe Teyvat.[6] From this rift, Ronova manifests six eyes—two positioned to her right, three to her left, and a larger central eye. It can be reasonably assumed that the crimson energy forming this rift is a manifestation of Ronova's power.

Story History After the arrival of the first throne of the heavens, the Heavenly Principles appeared and fought against the Seven Sovereigns of the old world. To that end, it created Four Shades of itself, one of which was Ronova. According to extant sources, forty years after the Heavenly Principles' initial appearance, the Seven Sovereigns were ultimately defeated, and the seven great nations of the realm capitulated to its dominion.[7] Subsequent observations attributed to the scribe known as the Voyager suggest that, from then onward, Ronova and her three sisters partially functioned as metaphysical instruments—referred to metaphorically as "shackles"—through which the Winged One maintained its grasp upon its established world order.[8]

During the Great War of Vengeance, Ronova presumably participated on the Heavenly Principles's side against Nibelung and the Ancient Dragons. Amidst the widespread devastation that accompanied this conflict, the region that would later be known as Natlan suffered extensive ruin, with its Ley Lines sustaining severe damage. In the aftermath of the war, Ronova instructed the Lord of the Night with the task of reconstructing the Ley Lines, an endeavor realized through the establishment of the Night Kingdom. However, this would greatly displease the Heavenly Principles, who regarded it as an overreach of her authority. Confronted with their censure, Ronova "succumbed to self-pity," displaying increasing indifference to the fate of the land.[5]

After Xbalanque ascended and became the first Pyro Archon, he leveraged the divine throne to borrow Ronova's powers and establish the rules of Natlan, a framework which allows ordinary humans to become Pyro Archons through the Pilgrimage of the Return of the Sacred Flame. Those who ascend are then granted knowledge and memories of the land through the Sacred Flame.[9] The two came to an agreement that those who used Ronova's powers would eventually die, and if the Heavenly Principles were to find out, she would simply deny involvement and claim that her powers were stolen. Xbalanque also asked to be given a chance to see Natlan's future should its people prevail over the Abyss, which she agreed to.

During the cataclysm, the Ruler of Death cursed the full-blooded Khaenri'ahns with immortality, leaving them to rot and suffer. According to Capitano, Ronova made no distinction in whom she cursed despite the fact that the Five Sinners of Khaenri'ah and the Vinster King were the primary culprits responsible for the calamity.[10][6][11]

Present Day Main articles: When All Becomes a Monument and Hearken, Ye Who Have Returned After Mavuika used Ronova's powers to thwart Gosoythoth's abyssal invasion, Ronova demanded Mavuika's life as payment to fulfill their pact. However, the Lord of the Night and The Captain had agreed to have Il Capitano offer his life instead, intending to exploit the Curse of Immortality imposed upon him by Ronova. This would create a paradox and allow him to obtain vengeance against Ronova for the suffering inflicted upon innocent Khaenri'ahns, including himself, by forcing Ronova to break one of her own rules. Ultimately, Ronova elected to continue upholding the Curse of Immortality, resulting in Yohualtecuhtin gaining eternal life as The Captain's life force was transferred to the Lord of the Night.[6]

Due to the Natlanese winning the war, Ronova honored her bet with Xbalanque and allowed him to see present-day Natlan. Xbalanque decided to stay for a single day in Mausau's body, and offered Mavuika the rest of his life force that the Shade had given him as payment for their duel, to allow her to bring her loved ones back temporarily in his place — an offer she declined.[12]

Istaroth, also known as Tokoyo Ookami is the Ruler of Time among the Four Shades of the Heavenly Principles.[1] She is known by a plethora of titles, including the God of Moments,[1] "the thousand winds of time" (or simply "the thousand winds"),[7] and the "undying wind".[7][8]

She has been worshipped in Mondstadt and Enkanomiya both before and concurrently with the rise of The Seven.[1][9] However, the worship of Istaroth or even the knowledge of her existence has been all but forgotten in Teyvat,[10] though her legacy has been subtly preserved through phrases related to "the winds of time."[11][12] The Enkanomiyans continued to worship her after their island sunk beneath the surface world, seeing her as the only one who had not forsaken them.[1] Later, this worship faded following Orobashi's appearance, and disappeared completely after the move to Watatsumi Island.

Profile Introduction Seeds of stories, brought by the wind and cultivated by time. Stories brought on the wind will bloom into legends in due time.

—Carvings on the sundials[9][12] We knew the only one who had not forsaken us as the "Ruler of Time." She was the moment. She was every moment. She was the measure of a thousand winds and the sun and the moon. She was every second of joy, every moment of rage, every instant of longing, every minute of obsession. She was every flash of delirium.

—A scribe of Istaroth, as written in Before Sun and Moon Story History After the arrival of the first throne of the heavens, the Heavenly Principles appeared and fought against the Seven Sovereigns of the old world. To that end, it created Four Shades of itself, one of which was likely Istaroth. 40 years after the Heavenly Principles's appearance, the Seven Sovereigns were vanquished and the seven nations submitted to its authority. Istaroth may have contributed to the new world the Heavenly Principles made.

During the Great War of Vengeance, Istaroth presumably participated in the war on the Heavenly Principles's side against the voyager and the ancient dragons. In the midst of the massive destruction, the land of Enkanomiya sank below the waters and was cut off from Teyvat.[1]

In Mondstadt Istaroth's direct role in Mondstadt's history is currently unknown, but in the early days of Barbatos' Mondstadt, she was worshipped alongside the Anemo Archon himself.

Barbatos amassed power during the Archon War as a result of the Gunnhildr Clan's worship of him, and he later participated in the rebellion against Decarabian.[13] Before he gained power, he was a "single thread of the thousand winds that roared through the northern lands," an elemental spirit without any divine power.[14] Istaroth herself is known as the "thousand winds,"[1] but no direct relation between the two has explicitly been made.

After the fall of Decarabian's Mondstadt, Barbatos ascended to godhood and became the Anemo Archon. During the formation of the new Mondstadt, at least three of its prominent clans — the Gunnhildr Clan, the Imunlaukr Clan, and the Lawrence Clan — all worshipped both the Anemo Archon and Istaroth. The worship of both gods was primarily conducted on a tall clifftop facing the eastern sea,[10] likely at the Thousand Winds Temple which shares its name with one of Istaroth's epithets.

Somewhat ironically, Istaroth was forgotten over time and people came to believe that Barbatos was the sole deity of worship in Mondstadt.[12] Two notable incidents may have contributed to loss of information pertaining to Istaroth: During the Mondstadt Aristocracy's corrupt period, the Lawrence Clan suppressed knowledge about Mondstadt's history and destroyed historical records and relics to hide their own degeneracy.[15] After the fall of the aristocracy, the Mondstadt Library — once the largest library in northern Teyvat — was reduced to a sixth of its former size following the Great Fire of Fall Equinox.[16]

In Inazuma Ei believes that Istaroth may have assisted Makoto, with or without her knowledge, in manipulating time to plant the Sacred Sakura, as both her and Yae Miko were unconvinced that Makoto would be able to do so herself.[17]

In Enkanomiya

After Enkanomiya fell into the depths, their pleas and prayers went unanswered by the Heavenly Principles and its other three Shades. Only Istaroth continued to answer them, and there were "scribes of Tokoyo Ookami" who dedicated themselves to recording history and the passage of time in the lightless land.[1] Out of reverence for her, her worshippers refused to say her name directly and usually opted to call her Kairos, her traditional name, or its Narukami-style rendering, Tokoyo Ookami.[8] In the event that they used her true, secret name, they wrote it backwards.

Istaroth's power of "undying wind" was recognized as one of the major elements in Enkanomiya, along with the Bathysmal Vishaps' "water."[7]

Enkanomiyans practiced the Sentou Ceremony, which was capable of dispelling the abyssal Void Realm's darkness by gathering light in the Bokuso Box,[18] and the Light Realm Sigils used to upgrade it are said to bear a mark symbolizing Tokoyo Ookami's recognition. Both the box and the ceremony only work in Enkanomiya and were not brought to Watatsumi Island, although both are rediscovered and utilized during the Three Realms Gateway Offering event.

Legacy In Mondstadt, Istaroth's legacy has been preserved primarily through the phrase "winds of time." The carvings on the sundials at the Thousand Winds Temple and the Nameless Island leave messages associated with both her and Barbatos which respectively read:

"Seeds of stories, brought by the wind and cultivated by time." Stories brought on the wind will bloom into legends in due time." During the quest Time and Wind, a faint voice is heard saying "An ancient tale comes whisked in the wind... In time, it will grow and sprout once again..." while fighting an Eye of the Storm by the Sundial near the Thousand Winds Temple.

The Sumeru scholar Sayid, while visiting the Mondstadt Library during nighttime, recites a truncated version of the phrases inscribed on the sundials: "Seeds brought on the wind will sprout in due time..."[11]

In Old Mondstadt fairytales surrounding Sal Vindagnyr and the area of Dragonspine, the "Wind of Time" had abandoned the mountain and left the winds to freeze it over in its moment of destruction.[19] Roald does not specify whether "Old Mondstadt" refers to Decarabian's Mondstadt or the Mondstadt Aristocracy, making it difficult to determine the origin of these fairytales.

One of the incidents that reinforced Ei's belief in the inextricable link between progress and loss is referred to in the format of "the winds of time": The winds of parting came whistling in from the outer edge of time. This phrase comes after references to incidents in Khaenri'ah and Liyue, indicating that the phrase relates to Mondstadt.[20]

Hilichurls may also have a connection to Istaroth and the Heavenly Principles. Jacob Musk believes that hilichurls worship elemental power itself, giving the example that hilichurls worship the power of Anemo rather than the Anemo Archon,[21] and there is a notable cloister of hilichurls dancing around the Sundial by the Thousand Winds Temple that the Traveler may be commissioned to exterminate.[22] According to people from Enkanomiya, Istaroth is the personification of undying wind, and her name is sometimes rendered as the "thousand winds of time."[7] Furthermore, the Musk Family's research has indicated that the Hilichurlian word "Unu," which means "one," is also a holy word which they use to refer to gods.[23] Altogether, this points towards a connection between hilichurls, the Heavenly Principles and its shining Shades, and the unified human civilization that once existed (which Enkanomiya was originally part of).

During World Quest The Final Chapter in Series Agnihotra Sutra, Aranaga gifts the Traveler a flower which they describe as being unable to be destroyed by the "Ad Oblivione," a title they later clarify to be "the wind that flows forever, the thousand winds that return to one."[24] This is very likely to be referring to Istaroth, as her titles include "the thousand winds," the "undying wind," and similar.[7]