Interlude 4 - Where the world lies in pieces at my feet
Zhongli stood atop the pillars of stone that made up the Stone Forest, and stared into the depths below.
He could sense his old rival writhing and churning, fighting against an unknown force even he did not know of. Indeed, for all his age and experiences, Zhongli has never encountered a force quite like this.
Void Gods are notoriously reclusive, star gods even more. What transpired that day must've been the actions of one of each cooperating together. It was fortunate, then, that he had reinforced the Stone Forest just prior to Osial's unsealing. His reason for doing so was to ensure only Osial broke free, but then the Sky fell and he was extra thankful he did so lest the entirety of the Stone Forest be blown away.
Except, a Void and Star God acting in tandem should have incinerated his reinforcements, no matter how strong they were. Rock Gods like himself were old, old as the very rocks they took their name from, but Star Gods? Hells, Void Gods?
They are ancient, malevolent beings that even Celestia would cower in fear under. He was certain he felt the old Night's presence that day, and for the first time since he was but a wee rock spirit, he felt like a newborn under the gaze of a god.
If gods ruled mortals, then who ruled gods?
…
No matter, the Mother's presence must've been a one-off thing, Teyvat is less than a small fish in an ocean of worlds. Istaroth was the last Elder God to grace Teyvat, another will be nothing less than calamitous. The void and star gods in question were weaker than they should be, and after pulling down the Sky the Void God went missing and the star god fell into the Vortex. He will keep watch for their return.
He felt a passing anemoi whisper in his ears. Indeed, he still has a contract to fulfil, and he will not let it be said that he breaks his promises.
–
The atmosphere in Northland Bank was tense, and everyone in the know was on edge. This must be the Qixing's doing, Zhongli thought, he had overheard that the Tianquan had demanded the 11th Harbinger be handed over to them, to face trial in Liyue's courts. He expected nothing less from her.
An employee greeted him, "Greetings, esteemed patron, how may I help you today?"
"I have come to fulfil my end of the contract, call the Fair Lady over, if you would."
The employee's eyes shone in understanding, "Of course, Zhongli sir, please wait a moment."
She scurried off.
He glanced around, many agents were looking at him from the corner of their eyes, others were quietly ushering the other patrons out the door. Employees who didn't know of the Bank's true purpose were quite confused.
Ah, there she was. The Fair Lady came forward, a smile dancing on her lips. How arrogant.
"You remember the agreement, Morax. Now, if you would be so kind… the Gnosis, please."
There weren't many who dared use his true name in Liyue, but that was another matter. He chalked it up to Snezhnayan haughtiness. Only Fontaineans rivalled theirs, truly.
"The contract is fulfilled. That which thou seeketh is now bestowed unto thee, for my promise is solid as stone."
He materialised his Gnosis, shaped like a rook, humming with Geo. It will be quite a loss for him, to give it up. He will no longer have the ability to command Geo, no Allogene would willingly give up their own Visions… except a certain few. Except he was a god, not a mortal, even after surrendering his Gnosis he still rules over the earth as a Rock God.
In actuality, he was quite glad to give it up. Will he was never an irresponsible person, handing over all of his problems over to the Tsaritsa does indeed feel quite refreshing. Perhaps the director does have the right of things after all.
It's not like the Harbingers will do any harm with it, they are all going to die in Inazuma anyway.
"Hmph, how sanctimonious."
The 8th Harbinger's words shook him from his thoughts. An attendant timidly took the Gnosis from his palm and handed it over to the Fair Lady.
She spoke, admiring the Gnosis between her fingers, lifting it to the lights, "With this, our transaction is complete."
"Not quite." There is still unfinished business to discuss. "It has come to my attention that Zapolyarny Palace has created… quite a ruckus up north."
The Harbinger stilled, face turning blank. "I wasn't aware that Mondstadt had anything to do with you, Morax."
He ignored her, "You have stirred Barbatos from his inactivity, I advise… not antagonising him anymore. I am sure your god would understand."
"I still do not understand what your business is with-"
"Do you think we are daft? Do you believe us senile because of our age?"
"What-"
"Do you think this is the first time a god has tried to rebel against Celestia?"
The pressure was crushing. Rosalyne saw many of the Fatui agents crumbling to their knees, she herself could barely stand. Cracks formed as the tiled floor began to cave.
She understood that she was no longer standing before Zhongli, a consultant of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlour, but Morax, God of Contracts and Lord of Rock.
Still, this cannot stand, she was still an emissary of the Cryo Archon.
"T-this…" She gasped for air, "this wasn't part of the deal!"
Morax's cold eyes stared down at her,
"I am altering the deal, pray I do not alter it any further."
"You- the Tsaritsa will-!"
"That child has her hands tied, girl. Barbatos has warned her quite clearly. The Wind God has always been hands off with mortal concerns, and I am willing to play along to your script. But Beelzebub will not be so… cooperative."
"The three of us will take no part in your god's revolution, nor will we side against you. But be warned, should you continue your quest to collect the Gnoses in such a crude manner… the only thing you will find in Inazuma is death."
Divinity faded from his form, and Morax was no more. The pressure lifted, and she collapsed in relief. Zhongli spun on his heel and headed for the door. He turned his head and regarded her one last time, as if she was nothing more than dirt.
"Baal has always been the most composed of all of us, and she always kept her sister's rage in check. But she is dead, killed in a war your god didn't participate in. Beelzebub has held a grudge for half a millennia… your god must know this. Perhaps her temper has cooled over the centuries, but it is hard to tell, hers always the silent type of anger."
She didn't know what he was talking about. As far as she knew, there has only ever been one Electro Archon, but he is talking as if there were two. The consultant weighed something in his head, before seemingly coming to a decision.
"Your god must know this… yes, she must. Whichever Harbinger she sends to Inazuma will most certainly die." He turned, and continued out the door, "Like Northland Bank, Eternity is nothing more than a front to conceal her true goals. Are you sure you are ready to find out what it is?"
He left, the door closing behind him with a click. She shakily rose to her legs, she had the Geo Gnosis, no matter how hard her pride was hit, she had accomplished her mission.
With Mondstadt now hostile lands and Liyue a sad excuse for a harbour, she will have to travel to Sumeru to get a ship back to Snezhnaya. Furthermore, Tartaglia is now a wanted criminal in Liyue, and so was recalled back to the Palace as well.
She called over an agent, "Prepare a carriage for Sumeru, we are returning to Zapolyarny Palace. Keep it inconspicuous."
"Yes, My Lady."
"And- keep our actions in Liyue passive until another Harbinger arrives to replace us, we are already under scrutiny from the Qixing."
"Yes, My Lady."
"Dismissed."
As he left to carry out her orders, she sighed. She thought back on Morax's words, either the Tsaritsa is as ignorant as she was, or she was purposefully withholding information from her. As Rosalyne returned to her chambers, she grit her teeth, she will hand the Cryo Archon the Gnosis, but she will demand answers as well.
They made a contract, after all, and the Crimson Witch will not be happy if she finds out the Cryo Archon has broken it.
Notes on Act 2:
1) Nation of Liyue
Unlike Mondstadt, Liyue is a nation in the usual sense. Numerous cities and towns dot the region and are under the authority of the Liyue Qixing. In the 2.4 Lantern Rite event, Keqing mentions that there are numerous towns between Qingce and Liyue, so it's not totally made up. Beidou's Hangout also confirms that fishing villages dot the Bishui River. Of course, notable landmarks are now cities, including Wangshu and Qingce. I wanted to make the Golden House be located in a city as well, but realised the Fatui sieging down an entire city would be stupid, so I made it be located in a castle. 'Jin' in Jin Castle is mandarin for gold.
2) Liyue Qixing
What the fuck is Liyue's government system? At first I thought they were ruled by seven oligarchs, similar to Russia's oligarchs, but then I surfed the wiki and found out they had actual positions! Tianquan's is Law, Yuheng's is Land Usage, etc. This is proof that the Qixing are an official government body, so how the fuck do they work? How are they elected, who are candidates for election, who are they elected by? The game doesn't clear up any of this.
So, I decided to base Liyue's government loosely off of the Merchant Republics of the Middle Ages, such as Venice and Genoa. Each member of the Qixing must be a merchant, and are elected to their positions by the merchant class. The Eight Trades play a big role in these elections, and use bribery/lobbying to have their favoured candidate elected. Their terms are for life, unless they resign or are voted out by the other Qixing members. As such, elections happen whenever there's an empty seat.
How is a merchant qualified to write the law? Fuck if I know.
3) Keqing (and Ningguang)
Like Jean, her character was (in my opinion) absolutely butchered in the game. The game has clearly clarified that the 7 members of the Qixing were the 7 most powerful and influential merchants in Liyue. Of the 3 Qixing we know of, the Tianshu rose to his position by pitting his rivals against each other, the Tianquan is well... yeah, but the Yuheng? I don't know. She is hardworking, honest, and definitely not a merchant, hell she even overworks herself in the name of the country. I don't know about you, but shouldn't she be overworking herself in the name of her own political influence and personal power like Ningguang does? She is definitely not a merchant by any means.
So while she doesn't have much screentime here, just know that in this story, Keqing is a cutthroat, politically adept merchant who clawed herself up to the rank of Yuheng at such a young age. I also refuse to believe that Ningguang and Keqing are less than 20 years old. This is Teyvat, a land set in a pseudo-Middle Age, unlike Mondstadt where yay nepotism allows Jean to become next Grand Master easily I doubt NG and KQ are Heads of State at 16 or 18 or whatever. While granted, them being Vision holders must make them seen as blessed by the gods, they are still young women, you get me? (I'm not try to be misogynistic here, this is just how to world works)
So yeah, props to them for navigating cutthroat Liyuean politics and clawing their way to the top of the food chain at such a young age, and while being female.
4) Morax (and the Guyun Stone Forest)
It is hard to believe that Morax pinned sea gods to the ocean floor with big rocks, they are still gods after all. So I made it so that he used big magic stone rocks, with runes of sealing or whatever. Childe used the Sigils of Permission to weaken the seals, which allowed Osial to break free. What Morax meant at the beginning of Interlude 4 is that he reinforced the seals on every big rock except for the one that is trapping Osial, to allow him to escape. Yes, he knew all along.
People like to wax poetic about how powerful Morax is compared to Barbatos and the Electro Twins but I don't really buy it, y'know? The four of them are really really really old, we don't even know how old Ei and Makoto are, but we do know that they have essentially unified Inazuma by the time the Archons Wars started, they just left out Watatsumi and Tsurumi. Kill a big snake here, kill a big bird there, and boom, one Inazuma. They must be plenty strong then, yeah? Or at the very least plenty clever.
5) The Day the Sky fell
Based off the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear bombings in 1945. If you want to visualise the scene, search up the images of Hiroshima post-bombing. The 'shadows scorched into the ground' is a real phenomena, you can search up Hiroshima Shadows to find out what they look like. Creepy stuff. Deafness and blindness are all real symptoms of being too close to the explosion, the only thing lacking is that there is no nuclear radiation here.
6) Quotes
"Be present, Goddess, to thy suppliant's prayer, desired by all, whom all alike revere, blessed, benevolent, with friendly aid dispel the fears of twilight's dreadful shade."
- Orphic Hymn 2, Line 8 - 9
"Only Fate (Eimarmene), or universal necessity (Ananke), the inevitable 'Adrasteia,' the faceless countenance and hollow sound of unknown Destiny, was absolute."
- Vyacheslav Ivanov