A/N: Before anyone gets worried, yes, I'm definitely still going to be working on The Twenty Fifth Knight and The Untold Heroes, but I've gotten really into Genshin Impact recently and the suggestion of one of my friends, and I had a really good idea this morning while packing my lunch for school (because let's be honest, you always have the best ideas for a new story while spreading peanut butter and blackberry jelly on wheat bread.) about how I could incorporate it into the overarching storyline of my self insert multiverse idea.

So without further adieu, here is the pilot chapter for Genshin Impact: Through the Storm!


Chapter One

Three months before the end of the Stormterror Crisis

The sounds of the ocean waves washed through the ears of the battered seafarer on the beach, just like the tides of the salty water did too. A silver sword lay embedded in the sand nearby, both it and it's owner surrounded by shattered planks and debris. The man wore a warm, buckskin tunic, with other similar pieces of clothing that definitely would not be commonplace on a beach like the one he laid on now.

"Urgh… wh… what happened…" he groaned as he opened his eyes slowly, only to close them again quickly as the first thing he saw was the bright sunlight shining right into them with a blinding radiance. He held his arm up to block it and tried to open his eyes again, and he turned his head to the side. He could see a handful of tall, rocky spires jutting out of the ocean's surface, with trees of many colors all over them, ranging from the deepest purples, to the brightest of cherry reds and pinks. Suddenly, in the corner of his vision was a human, wearing a red kimono and with a longbow strung around her chest.

"Uh, are you ok?" the human asked, and the seafarer's eyes widened as he quickly tried to stand up, his face full of nervousness and mistrust. But as he pressed down on the sandy beach to push himself up, a sharp pain shot through his arm, and he winced, collapsing to the ground.

"Woah, are you hurt? What's wrong?" the girl asked, running over to him with a look of concern. She pulled a bandage out of a bag on her hip as she knelt down next to him. She quickly saw the sparkling cyan gemstone on his waist, and the paler blue crystal hanging from his neck by a leather cord. "Two Visions? But… that's impossible, right?" she thought to herself.

The man, whom she realized upon closer inspection was just a boy in his late teens, tensed as soon as he heard her get close, and she realized that not only was he in pain, but he was scared of her. "Hey, you don't have to be scared of me. Did you get shipwrecked?" She received no verbal response, but there was a very faint nod of his head. "All right, don't worry. I'll pull you into some shade and I'll be right back, ok?"

The boy felt her pick up the other arm that wasn't injured, and she gently dragged him off of the hot sand and onto shaded, cool grass. After leaning him against the base of a tree, she said "Ok, don't move. I'll be right back with help." In enough pain still that moving wasn't much of an option anyway, the seafarer waited there, his head leaned back against the tree and his eyes closed. Soon after, he could hear voices in the distance. And they were slowly getting louder.

"You, child! The Tenryou Commission is confiscating your vision. By order of the decree, you need to hand it over now."

A much younger voice responded. "B- But I j- just got it! I was going to use it to help my family keep our food col-'

"Doesn't matter. Hand over your vision now, or else," a third voice cut him off, this one sounding about as old as the first voice.

He didn't know why, but hearing that indifference infuriated the seafarer. By the sound of it, these two older men were trying to coerce a child into giving them his vision, and threatening to take it by force if they had to. Even in as much pain as he was, the seafarer knew he couldn't just sit by and do nothing.

His eyes shot open and he used the pale blue crystal on his neck to chill his injured arm. With his most serious wound numbed, he pushed himself up. The cyan gem on his waist glowed, and suddenly a gust of wind picked up, pulling the silver sword still stuck in the sand to his hand. Re-armed, he walked in the direction of the voices, fighting back the pain from each step he took.

"Please! Don't take my vision! My brother tried to leave forever after you took his!" Said the younger voice, but the older two men merely laughed.

The seafarer narrowed his eyes. What were they talking about? What would anyone need to confiscate visions from innocent people for? It didn't make any sense, even as he quietly crept up a hill and saw the scene unfolding with his own eyes.

There were three people in a clearing below him, like he'd heard. Two of them were obviously much older than the third, being both much taller, and wearing armor that looked equal parts intimidating and heavy. On both of their waists were matching sheaths with what looked like katana hilts protruding from the front ends.

The third person was much younger than the other two, and was holding something tightly against his chest, presumably the vision the two older men were trying to take. The seafarer was disgusted. Even in the harsh climate and lifestyles of his home, and the people who lived there before he made his escape, he had always upheld a strong code of morals and honor. He had never been afraid to call people out on things he knew were wrong, no matter how much trouble he would get into for doing so. And this time was no different. His Anemo Vision pulsed in time with his heartbeat, echoing the emotions he was feeling now. He took a step back, holding his sword in both hands.

With a shout, he jumped off the outcropping and landed between the two men and the child, piercing the ground with the blade of his silver sword. A gust of wind pulsed out towards the two older men like a wave, and they staggered back. Their faces showed matching expressions of surprise, but that surprise quickly changed into expressions of anger.

"Whoever you are, you're dead," one of them announced, and the seafarer merely looked up, and grinned as he responded.

"I wouldn't count on that."

The two men pulled out identical katanas, and the boy held his sword out in one hand, his other held out to the side to protect the child behind him. The child let out a scared whimper, but the boy cast a quick glance back to reassure him. "Don't worry, I won't let them take your Vision. Everything's going to be ok."

The other older man laughed. "You must be new to Inazuma. We're part of the Tenryou commission. We're the enforcers of the Almighty Shogun around the parts, and what we say, goes."

The seafarer narrowed his eyes as he looked back at them. "All I see are two bullies who are too cowardly to pick on someone their own size, and pathetic enough to be willing to gang up on a child."

The two men snarled. "You better watch your mouth. You don't want to get on the bad side of the commissioner," the first one said, swiping through the air with his sword. The seafarer grinned, which annoyed the first man even more. Little did he or his partner know, but they were right where he wanted them.

In a flash, the boy darted forward and slashed his blade at the first man, having used the prior conversation to look for weaknesses. The person his blade was aimed at was much more fueled by his emotions than his partner, and that made him vulnerable. A blade of wind shot out from his sword, and his target was sent flying back into a tree trunk.

His partner turned in shock. Never had he seen someone move so fast, and it was clear the vision he wore on his waist was how he did it. In a single movement, he brought his katana up and attempted to finish the duel in a single strike. But the newcomer caught him off guard again, and released a blast of frigid cold ice out of his hand that flash froze his weapon's blade. And then, with a smooth swing, he brought the longsword around and shattered the katana into pieces.

But strangely, he didn't follow up with the attack. He could've easily killed them both right then and there, but he just stood there, a calm, but razor sharp expression on his face. This boy was no novice fighter, but a seasoned swordsman whose age betrayed the skills he possessed.

After a moment of stunned silence, the older man ran over to his fallen companion and helped him up. "Keep your Visions then. But just remember, the Tenryou commission is everywhere, and we will claim them all for the Almighty Shogun's eternal rule one day," he said, before leading his partner away.

The seafarer turned around to see if the child was ok, but as he looked behind him, he felt a sharp surge of pain in his injured arm, as well as a throbbing agony in his head, and he collapsed. The child let out a shocked gasp and ran over. "Are- are you ok?" But the pain was so intense, the only thing the boy could do was move his injured arm slightly. The child ran off, calling out for help as the seafarer edged closer and closer to unconsciousness.

"I'm sorry… old friend…" he muttered under his breath. The last thing he saw before his eyes closed was the child running back towards him, pulling on the hand of the person he saw on the beach, and some other people running behind them as the sun set in the distance.