Well I was busy for November, so I didn't have time to write anything.
That said, it wasn't like I had much confidence either, so I took it slowly.
Anyway, the story is about half way done.
Disclaimer: I owe nothing but the idea of the story.
"I must confess, I never expected that you would come to me personally." Sara stared at the figure in front of her. "You are a wanted criminal waiting for me. It's almost as if you are seeking death."
Lumine couldn't help but laugh at that statement.
"Believe me when I say that I have too many things to do to even consider such a thing." She replied. The Traveler faced her with her arms crossed. "Originally the plan was to ambush you, but I decided that was a reckless plan. I didn't know what you were capable of, and being straightforward and honest was a much better way to start a negotiation."
The two were staring down at each other in front of the Grand Narukami Shrine. This was a place in which fighting was forbidden. If there was any place to house a negotiation, this would be it.
"If that's the case, then I can assume whatever is it you wish to inform me must be something worthwhile, otherwise it would be foolish that you would risk your life coming here." Sara turned to her men behind her. They may not have their weapons drawn, but the way they carried themselves implied that they would without hesitation if anything bad were to happen. "You two, go and gather the men."
"Are you sure General? This place is-"
"There is no fighting in the Grand Narukami Shrine. However, that does not mean I cannot do anything to you. The moment you step out of this shrine, I will have you arrested on the spot."
"Then I better give you a reason to not do that." Lumine smugly replied as she crossed her arms. "Do you think that I would be foolish enough to come to see you if I didn't have any leverage to force a negotiation?"
"And what is this leverage you speak of?"
The Traveler reached behind her and pulled out a large scroll. "The answer is this. I stole it from the Kujou Clan, or to be more specific from your father himself."
That was a lie. She didn't do anything. All she did was sit around in the tea house and relax while Sayu did all the work. There was no need to tell her that though in case the poor girl got punished.
The general lunged forth and seized it immediately. Lumine didn't even try to resist as she did, rather she continued talking. "You know, I have been kind of curious as to how and why this stupid war even broke out in the first place. Everyone seems to constantly ask that, but no one really knows. The closest I got was that maybe the Commission knows, and so I decided to break into their headquarters and get some answers of my own, and what do I find? This whole war is a farce caused by them and the Fatui. Or to be more specific, it's the fault of the Kujou clan and the Fatui."
"What are you implying?"
"I'm not implying anything, it's the truth. Read the contents of the scroll, and if you don't believe me, you can go and see Yae Guji inside. " Lumine shrugged in response. She kept a straight face the entire time, though she was actually nervous inwardly. If Sara had attacked with all of her men, there would be no way she would make it out of this place alive.
Her only option was to convince her to give her a chance. One wrong move, and it would be the end of her.
As the general read through the contents of the scroll, Lumine kept a close watch on her. It was subtle, but anger and disbelief were clearly there. The way her grip on the scroll tightened, her eyes widened in surprise. The way she bit her lips. All signs that gave away her thoughts.
"You said that the head priestess can confirm this?" She glared at the Traveler while asking.
"Yes she can. In fact, I was planning on going in with you as well. She answered a lot of my questions, but there were still a few that she avoided. Now that you are here with me, perhaps she will."
Sara folded the scroll and put it inside her pocket. "I will have words with her. If this is a lie, I will make you regret it."
"That's fine." Lumine replied as she gestured for Sara to follow her.
It wasn't a surprise to find Yae standing in front of the Sacred Sakura. The grin on her face made it clear that she was expecting them.
Lumine tuned out the conversation between the two of them. It was already something that she had heard. It wasn't until their conversation had finished did Lumine finally speak up.
"I'm curious. You never told me how the Fatui managed to seize control of the puppet?"
"It was a joint effort. Support from both the Fatui and the traitors made it possible. In fact, I believe that you should be familiar with the answer." Yae's reply had caught her by surprise. "Think back to when you met the Balladeer in the factory. Recall how you were defeated."
Those words bought back the bitter memory. She couldn't stop herself from frowning just by thinking about it. "He taunted me about the death of a friend of mine, and I got really angry, but before I could attack him, suddenly I felt immense pain all over, as if my heart was about to burst and my head was about to split apart. And then, I passed out."
"Correct, but before that, you were fine were you not?"
"Not entirely, but I was still capable of fighting nevertheless." Lumine answered her. The air was heavy and the stench was horrible, but she had pushed through with it despite the difficulties. That said, Yae's question did bring up an issue that she had overlooked. "Wait, what does that have to do with him defeating me without throwing a punch?"
Yae couldn't help but chuckle at the question. "The miasma you were walking around in was a concentrated mass of negativity formed by the spirits of gods and humans long passed. The mass produced delusions were made using such things. It offers great power in exchange for one's life."
"The resistance was working with those Fatui? Why were we not told of this?!" Sara demanded to know. "If we had known that, we could have used that as a reason to remove the Fatui from our lands."
"There would have been no use, in fact, it might have been worse, especially since your father was in on it, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he controls the Shogun. Currently there are two Harbingers in Inazuma. One is the Ballander, and the other is the Fair Lady. The latter would simply write it off as a rogue faction and instead will try to act as if they were taking responsibility by pretending to help us. Had we tried to remove them that way, it might have caused more problems."
"Wait!" Now it was Lumine's turn to be shocked. "Fair Lady? As in La Signora?! She's here as well?"
"Ugh! Seriously?! Why is she everywhere we go?!" Paimon cried out angrily. The other three however ignored her outburst and just resumed the conversation.
Sara was the one who answered her question. "Yes. She is a Snezhnaya diplomat, and also someone who has a lot of interaction with my father. I honestly do not like that woman at all. She has quite a number of private discussions with my father and several other high ranking officers, though she has met with the Shogun personally on a few occasions."
"Ugh...Paimon really does not like that woman. I can't wait to give her a piece of my mind." The fairy stomped on the air while floating over their heads.
Lumine clenched her fist. There was a mixture of emotions rising from within. Anger, surprise, and excitement. Anger for what she had done to Venti, and excitement at the thought of revenge.
However she knew now was not the time for such things. She took a deep breath to calm herself in order to focus on the topic at hand. "We'll deal with her later on, for now let's get back on the topic. What was that about the gas?"
"The mass produced delusions are what happens when they crystalise the miasma and put it into a catalyst, turning it into a source of power, allowing it to function similarly to that of a Vision. It's also why anyone can use it." Yae went on with her explanation.
"But it also kills them right? I have fought with a Harbinger before, and while he used his delusion, it never ended up killing him. Greatly weakening him after one use, yes, but it didn't kill him that's for sure."
"That's because the methods used to make those are different. In the case of the mass produced delusions, they feed off and amplify the negative emotions of it's wielders. Tempting them to use their powers despite knowing the risks. Once you use said power, it will cling to you like an evil spirit. The surge of power is extremely addictive, the more you use it, the harder it is to let go. Even when you know that it will kill you, you simply cannot stop yourself."
"I see." Lumine nodded. "Though it doesn't excuse her entirely, I guess I shouldn't be too hard on Kokomi then."
Though she still held some blame for allowing the mess to build up in the first place.
"It is also how you were defeated back in the factory. The miasma resonates with one's darkest thoughts and emotions. Feeding on them in order to corrupt the user. The moment you give into your anger and hatred, you become vulnerable to their effects."
The blonde traveler remained silent. She had nothing to say to it.
"Assuming what you say is true, what does this have to do with the Shogun?" Sara asked.
The shrine maiden let out a dramatic sigh before going answering. "Contrary to popular belief, gods are not as perfect as people make them out to be."
"That's an understatement." Lumine grumbled, remembering both the Archons of Anemo and Geo.
Yae chose to ignore her and continue speaking. "Ei on the outside may appear to be a near perfect and invincible being, but mentally and emotionally she's nothing but a broken child who is in desperate need of help."
Lumine blinked, while Sara stared at her. What she had just said went against all they had known about her.
The shrine maiden however had no interest in them and continued with the story. "For several years, Snezhnaya attempted to open a diplomatic channel with us. At first our leader was strongly against any sort of direct interaction with them. Nevertheless they wouldn't give up. I trust you remember that time period Sara."
"I do." The general nodded. "My father and a few others back then attempted to convince Her Excellency to reconsider. She refused to do so regardless."
"Ei has always been the type to be afraid of change. When she promised eternity, she meant it in a literal sense. Inazuma for the most part has remained peaceful, but also stagnant for quite some time. This peace however has divided the people. Some wishes for things to remain the same, while others want to start adapting to the present. It is understandable why some people are nervous when they are looking at our rival nations, particularly Fontaine and Snezhnaya. Their technology and military are on a different level compared to other nations, which also includes us."
"I remember that there was a growing discomfort among the higher ups discussing such things. Wandering if we were to be able to hold our own if other nations were to invade. Her Excellency has protected Inazuma for a very long time, but knowing how other nations have been growing stronger, some people have begun to worry. Rumors among the higher ups have only gotten worse when word of Liyue's god having passed away reached here. Now some people have begun to doubt her capabilities, and worse, are questions like if the Geo Archon could die, does the same apply to the Electro Archon? A foolish notion."
"Well, Zhongli was right about his death having an impact." Lumine thought bitterly. She hadn't expected it to go in this direction though.
Yae suddenly let out a chuckle, surprising the two of them. "And that is where the issue lies. It is not just Takayuki who betrayed her, there are others as well. He just happens to be the biggest culprit. Many people in recent years challenged her to a duel hoping to convince her to reconsider."
"Yes I recall such a case." Sara closed her eyes. "I seem to recall that they were exceptionally skilled despite having no vision. Yet despite that, all of them were quickly defeated by her Excellency. Each time she would give them a chance to surrender, but every one of them stubbornly refused to the very end, claiming that they would not change their ideals no matter what. Since they refused to surrender, by the rules of the duel, Her Excellency cut each of them down using the Musou no Hitotachi."
"This may be speculation, but I suspect that cutting them down was what they wanted." Yae surprised them yet again. "The cooperation with the Fatui has likely been going on for far longer than anyone had realized. It was unusual how many of these people would have the courage to challenge the Shogun, and even more so refusing to back down even when she gave them a chance to surrender, and so I looked into it. It seems that each of them had something in common. They were down on their luck, people with nothing to lose. People who blamed their misfortune on the Shogun and such."
"I'm starting to see where this story is heading." Lumine spoke up. "The Fatui located these sad people and got to them. They tried to convince them to assist them, promising them power or wealth in exchange for their help right, that or their sacrifice would help make Inazuma a better place."
"That is correct." Yae nodded in confirmation. "Though, I am curious, how did you come to this conclusion?"
The Traveler shrugged. "Back in Mondstadt, I ran into a similar case. A man who felt that he had been wronged and lost everything, and so he worked with those Fatui in hopes of getting what he lost back. It wasn't too hard to come to that realization based on experience."
"Oh right. With Eula and her uncle." Paimon said out loud. To which her partner nodded.
"The Fatui target such people, take advantage or brainwash them. They probably turned said people into tyke bombs and sent them against the Shogun."
"Since you are familiar with their methods, I will avoid talking about it. You just need to know that each person who challenged her was someone they got to. Naturally their strength was not natural because they had already been infected with the Miasma. Which was the reason for strength and fanaticism."
Lumine realized the final piece of the puzzle. "And since the Musou Isshin was where the soul of the real Shogun lies, she was infected the moment she cut them down wasn't she? I also know from experience that physically gods may be on a completely different level from humans, but mentally and emotionally they are about the same."
Yae nodded while smiling playfully. "It seems that you have caught on. If that was not the case, there would not have been any way for anyone to control her. By the time she realized it, it was too late. Realizing the dangers she could bring while corrupted, she chose to lock herself away in the depths of her mind, in a deep meditative state to stop herself from going insane."
Lumine finished up the story. "However by doing so, she had left an emotionless puppet in charge, and without any real mind or will of its own, Takayuki and the Fatui were able to seize control of Inazuma."
"That is correct. Ei cannot return to the real world, out of fear of erosion from the misama."
"If what you said is true, then why have you not told anyone about this?" Sara bought up another question. "Is it because of the Traveler?"
"Yes." She nodded as she played with her hair. "Stories of your feats have made it all the way here. If there is anyone who can help her, it would have to be you."
"In short, you want me to purify her the same way I did to Dvalin, is that it?" Lumine already suspected what her end game was. "If so, that's going to be a big problem."
"And why is that?"
"I can't do that on my own. I needed help from the acting grand master of the knights, another incredibly skilled warrior, and most of all, the Anemo Archon himself to save Dvalin, and the Shogun is even stronger than him, and this time round, I don't have the help of another god to do so. If I went to challenge her directly, I'm very certain that I wouldn't come out alive."
Her last encounter was already proof of that. In fact, she was certain that the only reason why she and Thoma got away was because she allowed them. For a person whose reach extended across all of Inazuma, and could move like lightning, stopping their escape should have been extremely easy.
Not to mention that there were also a handful of other problems, but a lack of power was the most obvious one.
"Oh is that all?" The way Yae replied was almost enough to make her faint.
"Is that all? Do you have any idea of how absurd you sound right now?"
"Oh come now, I told you that I was waiting all this time for you. Did you really think I would ask you to take on such an unreasonable mission without at least laying the groundwork for you? I did not spend all this time simply waiting for you after all."
Lumine let out a sigh of relief. Perhaps there was some hope after all.
"Before I can explain my methods to you, I would like to know your thoughts about this." Yae glanced at Sara.
The general glared at her in silence. Yae simply smirked as she awaited her response. After a few seconds, Sara finally spoke out. "I do not want to simply believe this. I will confront my father. If it is true, I will hear what else you have to say, but if you are wrong-"
"I will formally apologize to the Kujou Clan." Yae cut her off.
It was at this point in time did Lumine cut in. "In that case, allow me to come as well."
Sara raised an eyebrow at that statement.
"Why?" She asked.
"To prove my sincerity. I will surrender myself as your prisoner with no resistance on the condition that you allow me to sit in as you meet with your father."
This was a reckless plan, but time was running out. Any plan was better than no plan at all. Not to mention that she didn't want to fight her men on the way out. It would have made future negotiations more difficult.
The general considered it for a brief moment before nodding. "Agreed, but do not try anything foolish. I will not hesitate to cut you down if you do."
With nothing left to be said, Lumine accompanied Sara out of the Shrine. She offered no resistance as her men cuffed her hands.
The journey back to Inazuma was uneventful. Though the atmosphere was rather suffocating. She walked next to Sara while being surrounded by her men. The most she had to suffer through was some minor complaints from her men, but one glare from their general was enough to shut them up.
The public's stare as she was being escorted through the streets wasn't as bad as she had thought. The blonde even thought that she had seen Ayaka in the process. She quickly pushed that thought out. Even if that was true, it wouldn't matter.
Upon arriving at their destination, Sara had her men on standby as the two entered.
"Is your father here?" Lumine couldn't help but ask as she walked into a large room with Sara. Surrounding them from all sides were armed men. One look alone was enough to tell her that these were not normal grunts, but likely elite warriors.
"I know my father is here. I wish to have a word with him." She declared.
"Apologies Ma'am. Orders from the top, no one is allowed to see him. Not even you." One of the guards stepped forth.
"Who are you to stop me from seeing my father? I will not repeat myself. Move or suffer the consequences!"
Lumine sensing that a fight was about to break out, raised her handcuffs. "You wouldn't mind if I were to fight now would you?"
She didn't wait for a response as she stomped on the ground. Sharp rocks burst from the ground, breaking the cuffs. She then summoned her weapon as the two stood side by side.
The two of them tore through the guards with some difficulties, but it was not something they couldn't handle.
"Enough! Sara, have you gone insane? What are you doing?!" An elderly man roared as he walked into the room.
"Well, you want to learn the truth? Now's your chance." Paimon reminded her as she floated next to Lumine.
Sara nodded in response before turning to face him. "Master Takayuki, I have recently received several reports indicating your collaboration with the Fatui, and worse of all, your betrayal of the Shogun and your actions that led up to this war."
"So, it was by your hand that those documents went missing?!" He growled at her.
"Actually, that was my doing." Lumine responded to his accusations. "Though, we can take your response as confirmation then, otherwise you wouldn't acknowledge those topics as your documents."
Was this man really that foolish? Or was there something else driving him? Lumine couldn't help but wonder.
It took everything Sara had to maintain a straight face upon hearing his confession. "Why?" She asked calmly.
"Since you have learnt the truth, there is no longer any reason to hide it. I will be straight forward and say it,the Raiden Shogun is a terrible ruler. She has made Inazuma weak."
"What are you saying?! She has protected our lands for countless generations!"
"You misunderstand. I never said that she was weak, I said that she has made Inazuma weak. For so long, the state of Inazuma has mostly been stagnant because of her. Her obsession and blind pursuit of eternity has left this country weak. Other countries have started to take matters into their own hands, and we cannot fall behind."
His answer shook her greatly, but Sara remained strong. "But-but you worship the Shogun. How can you betray her and act like nothing's wrong?"
"Ah Sara, so blinded by your faith. If you would just take a step back and look closely, you would see how incompetent our ruler is. All she has is power, she doesn't see nor acknowledge our people. Imagine my shock when I discovered that our Shogun is just a mechanical puppet and that the real Electro Archon was hiding away in a different dimension like a scared little girl."
"She's hiding away because of what you did." Paimon angrily called out. "She can't come out into the real world anymore because you corrupted the sword."
"That is wrong. She has never paid any attention to us, even before the Fatui got involved."
"But Master, despite saying that, you cannot deny that without her protection, Inazuma would have been destroyed many times over. Since young, you have always taught me the value and importance of loyalty, and yet you betray her so easily?"
He simply huffed as he crossed his arms. "Loyalty is earned not given. Since our Shogun is but a fraud, she is no longer deserving of it. I will not deny that she has protected us from outside threats many times over, but when it comes to internal affairs of the country, not only was she never there for us, worse still, she was an active hindrance. If so, it was decided, not just by me, but others as well. It would be better if we locked her up in that dimension that she enjoys so much and put the power of the Musou no Hitotachi to better use."
Lumine finally had enough and decided to cut in. "I still don't get it. What do you get out of this? I know you are not satisfied with the Shogun's rule, but you know that the Fatui have a habit of betraying and throwing away people when they no longer serve a purpose right? There are a number of ways that this could end badly for you."
"Yeah. those Fatui bastards won't hesitate to lie and betray you like they do with every other person who worked with them. We've seen them throw away people who worked with them" Paimon followed up.
She hadn't seen many people who made deals with Fatui, but she had heard stories of them. If she was able to learn of these stories, there shouldn't be any reason why others couldn't as well.
"We agreed on the terms of an alliance between our countries, along with trading some of their technology and weapons in exchange for some of our resources and a chance to test some of their weapons. Naturally said weapons data will also be given to us."
"You are referring to the delusions right?"
His eyes narrowed. "So you are familiar with those as well."
"That's stupid." Paimon said what she was thinking before she could. "Delusions will kill it's users as well. Only an idiot would think it's useful."
"You are the idiot here. We wouldn't use such a weapon unless we had our ways to protect ourselves from the side effects. Furthermore, while we may be trading information and technology, we are not trading all of it. Not to mention that apart from those dangerous tools, we were promised other alternatives with no risk involved. Firearms, machines and so on."
Lumine frowned as she recalled her conversation with Childe back in Liyue.
It wasn't very detailed, but based on what she had heard from him, guns, explosives and machines were common among the military. In terms of technology, it was likely that Fontaine was it's only real competitor.
Naturally the chance to obtain stronger weapons was a very enticing offer, one that maybe worth working with them for.
"Master, many have died because of this?! How can you even justify this war? So many people have died because of you!" Sara clenched her fist as she placed over her chest. "All this time, I always had doubts about what we were doing, but I pushed through it on the belief that our Shogun was doing what was best for Inazuma. Yet now you tell me that it was a lie?! And this whole war was pointless?!"
"It's not pointless. Everything was but a sacrifice for the greater good."
Lumine had heard enough out of him. She couldn't help but snort in disgust. "Whose greater good? Inazuma? Or yours? You are only able to say it because you aren't the one paying the price. The Shogun may be an incompetent ruler whose stuck in her old ways, but at least she didn't torment or sacrifice innocent people like what you are doing."
Had Sara been in her usual state, she would likely have objected to it violently, Lumine suddenly realized how fortunate she was to get away with that.
"Enough!" He roared. "Sara, if you are so upset about this, then return to the frontlines! Put an end to the resistance once and for all. Our warriors have backed them into a corner. One last push would end this war. Or would you prefer if you made all the lives lost go to waste?"
His words seem to have struck a nerve as Sara did a take back before she frowned in anger. "I refuse! You dare to talk about wasting lives when you are the reason why they died in the first place!"
"So you will not do it?"
"I refuse to partake in this pointless war anymore!"
Takayuki let out a sigh in response. "A pity then. I had hoped that you would have more sense than this. You may hate me now, but soon you'll see that everything we have done is for the sake of Inazuma."
As he raised his hand, dark figures emerged from the ground up.
"The Fatui?!" Paimon shrieked at the sight of them. "What are they doing here?"
"You shouldn't be surprised. You know that they have been working with us from the start. They assisted us in eliminating anyone who comes close to knowing the truth. Capture Kujou Sara, you may do as you please with the others."
"Wait!"
He ignored their cries as he walked away. Their assailants drew their weapons as they approached them from all sides.
"I think it's best if we retreat. I know that you aren't happy, but we better not risk unnecessary fighting. There's no telling if he has anything else up his sleeve." Lumine said as she drew her weapon once more. "
"Even though I am reluctant, I must agree. Get behind me." She moved in front of the Traveler where she reached into her pocket and drew a fan. As she swung it upwards, electricity burst forth and shot out in every direction. It provided enough of a distraction for the two to slip out without resistance.
"You know, as nice as this place is, I was most definitely not expecting to come back here again so quickly." Lumine opened the conversation seeing how no one else was willing to.
The tea house was once again being used to hide her. This time round she bought in a new guest.
"I suppose this was one of the best places to hide. Since it was private property granted by the Shogun herself, no one would dare to come looking here." Sara muttered. She sat across the table facing her. Her unreadable expression made it difficult to hold a conversation with her. Lumine was just glad that she was holding herself together, knowing that the truth must have hurt her greatly.
"Uh…would you like some tea? Or maybe something to eat?" Thoma gently placed a cup of tea in front of her. "I promise you that it is not poisoned or anything. I'll pour myself a cup from the same pot if you don't believe me."
"That won't be necessary. I don't have any appetite at the moment."
Paimon let out a sigh. "So does anyone know what we should do now?"
"I think Yae mentioned that she had a plan, but she obviously needed Sara in order to go through with it."
"Oh right, she told Sara to go and see for herself. Which means she probably predicted this would happen." The fairy realized. "Which means that our next move is to return to the Grand Narukami Shrine."
"I apologize for the interruption, but I believe that may not be necessary." Ayaka stated as she walked into the room. "Kujou Sara is now a wanted fugitive on the account of being an accomplice that helped the Traveler escape. Her role as General is going to be replaced by someone else."
"That's not good. Takayuki is determined to put an end to the resistance no matter the cost. I worry that her replacement might not be so worried of the consequences and just go charging in regardless of what happens." The blonde hair Traveler replied.
"Oh this is terrible. We have to hurry back to the shrine!" Paimon clenched her head. "But what about the troops? The army? Oh, I don't know!"
"Regarding that, a shrine maiden approached me with two letters from the head priestess herself. She told me to pass one to you and the other to General Kujou. She only told me that it was important that you received it."
Upon receiving the letters assigned to each of them, both women opened it.
Lumine's eyes widened as she continued to read the contents. It was a short letter that delivered the message directly.
"I have to head back to Watasumi." The Traveler proclaimed as she folded the letter and put it inside her pocket.
How much did that woman know? Lumine couldn't help but wonder. Ever since she stepped foot on Inazuma, many people had approached her, hoping to take advantage of her. Yae was no different in that regard.
However the amount of knowledge and planning she had for her easily eclipsed anyone else. While everyone else had approached her in order to ask her to fix the mess, Yae was the only one who seemed to be able to come up with a proper plan in order to do so.
It sent a chill down her spine the more she thought about it. It was understandable why some people were downright afraid of her. If the Shogun was the face of Inazuma, then she would be the brains.
"Are you sure? The fighting is going to start again soon." Thoma reminded her.
"I don't have a choice. If what Yae said is true, we only have one chance to do something about it, and we need the resistance's help for this."
"Do you think they will help us?"
"I don't think they have a choice. They are likely on their last legs, and this may be their only chance for survival."
And that's about it. The story is about half way done. I did mention that this story was going to be a short one. It doesn't help that I started off this story in the middle part of the last act as well.
Honestly, I don't have the strength to bring myself to write a long story, partly because I got other things to do, and also because I don't have much confidence in my writing.
One look at this and I can already see all the flaws in my writing, but I don't know where to even begin fixing it.