DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. Metal Gear is created by Hideo Kojima and owned by Konami. Genshin Impact is owned by miHoYo.

METAL GEAR SHOGUN

Episode 7
THE VIOLET DEMONESS

Ei continued to drift down the river, slowly being carried to the processing plant. After a minute of swimming, she spotted a concrete wall with large pipes coming out of it. She began to swim over to the pipes, grabbing onto the edge of one and pulling herself inside. Shaking the water off her clothes and body, she drew her knife and snuck deeper into the pipe, eventually coming across a ladder. She climbed up to its top, lifting the trapdoor at the end and climbing out into the station.

It was still night, so visibility was very low. Though, Ei was still able to see several different buildings in the area, all made of concrete. A few searchlights were present, periodically scanning the floor for intruders. There were also vehicles for transporting materials and soldiers, some right next to her. Ei heard the sound of another vehicle approaching, so she rushed behind a small building and hid.

The vehicle parked itself next to the others, its tire blocking the trapdoor she had come from. Now she had no way out. She felt scared by the fact that she was now trapped inside this facility without a means of escape, yet… another part of her felt excited about the situation.

Putting aside her thoughts, Ei snuck through the shadows, trying to find a way to destroy this place. Staying low, she watched for any nearby sentries before running over to another, larger building. Hugging the wall, she passed around the corner and up a nearby ramp. An enemy soldier passed by and squinted at her, his eyesight not being as precise in the darkness.

"Is there somebody there?" The soldier called out. Ei rushed the man and stabbed her knife into his neck, killing him. She dragged the man's heavy body over to a corner, hiding him behind some wooden crates. Looking one last time, his face was warped into one of sudden horror. Ei ignored his expression before continuing through the darkness.

Making her way to the edge of the building, Ei saw two spotlights moving across the floor between her and the next building. She paused, waiting for a gap to form between the searchlights. A few seconds later, her opportunity arrived, and she bolted through the bridge of darkness made by the two lights. She entered the building she had just arrived at, hoping to find any intel.

Dim fluorescent lights hung from the ceiling, slightly illuminating the halls of the building. She looked around, finding a small room with different terminals and servers inside. There was also a soldier stationed inside, checking the readings on the terminals. The soldier took out his radio and spoke into it.

"CP, this is Zulu 5." He spoke. "Come in, over."

A short moment later, another voice crackled from the radio. [This is CP.] The voice said. [Report your status, over.]

"Situation normal." The soldier said. "The readout for the current batch of materials is green. We'll be able to ship first thing tomorrow morning, over."

[Copy that, Zulu 5. I'll radio the commander and inform him we'll be coming soon. Make sure the refinery keeps running in the meantime, over.]

"Understood, CP. Over and out." The soldier clicked off the radio and hung it back on his waist. Ei snuck up behind him and jabbed him in the back of his knee before slitting his throat when he fell.

Now Ei knew where she could target next: the refinery. First and foremost, she would have to locate the means to destroy it, as well as the location of the refinery itself. She grabbed the soldier and dragged him through the building. Coming to a door labeled "restroom," she opened it before dragging the man inside and placing him into one of the stalls in the room. She exited the restroom and made her way out the back door of the building.

Ei exited into a crossroads of alleys, created by four buildings being built adjacent to each other in a grid. She walked over to the center, where the corners of the buildings were closest to one another. Looking around one corner, she saw a dark figure right in front of her. It raised a rifle at her, but she quickly grabbed it and positioned herself behind it, placing her knife on its throat. Suddenly it whispered to her.

"Jacqueline…!"

Ei realized, this was Ryan. He must have made it inside the station somehow. Relaxing, she released him from her hold.

"Ryan…" She sighed. "Don't scare me like that again…"

"You're the one who scared me." Ryan said, taking a breath. "I guess Father calls you 'Ripper' for a reason."

"Jack the Ripper." George's nickname given to Ei, along with the name Jacqueline. She had learned that the name came from a serial killer who used knives to kill his victims. Either George had a twisted sense of humor, or he deliberately named her that way because of this fact. Possibly even both.

Ryan began speaking again. "Were you found?" He asked.

"No." Ei answered. "Though I killed two people."

"Are they hidden?" Ryan asked.

"Yes, they won't be found. Did you find anything?"

"Yes, an armory." Ryan answered. "If they have explosives there, we can use them to blow this place up."

Ei then gave the intel she learned to Ryan. "We should target the refinery." She said. "Do you have any idea of what to do?"

"There has to be some kind of control room somewhere." He said. "A place that manages all the machines here."

"I'll try to look for one." Ei responded. "Where's the armory?"

"Follow me." Ryan beckoned her. He began to lead Ei back through another part of the station. On the other side of an open area was a moderately sized building. In their way were several searchlights and patrolling soldiers.

Ryan snuck over to the fence on the station's edge, with Ei following behind. They stopped when they came to a post next to an entrance of the processing plant. Ryan watched for an opportunity patiently. When the time was right, he motioned a symbol to Ei, and the two rushed over past the entrance, reaching the armory building.

The two child soldiers entered the armory, finding a variety of weapons inside. Rifles, pistols, and submachine guns lay on racks mounted to the walls, and ammunition and magazines were housed in boxes nearby. Ei took a few magazines for the pistol she was given, reloading the gun and placing the spare magazines in her vest. Eventually, the pair found what they were searching for. A crate labeled "explosives." Lifting the lid off the crate, they found explosive charges inside along with remote detonators.

"C4." Ryan said to himself. "Just what we need." He took a few of the charges and placed them in a pouch alongside a detonator. "You should take some with you." He said to Ei. She followed his directions, taking four charges and a detonator.

"So, what should we do now?" Ei asked Ryan.

"We should split up." Ryan answered. "I'll go look for the plant's refinery. You see if you can find the control room. We'll both plant the C4 inside and blow it up after five minutes."

"I see." Ei said. She began to leave to find the control room before she was interrupted.

"Wait." Ryan called. Ei turned around to face him. "I… I've been thinking about what we talked about. Finding something to believe in."

Ei felt a little happier about that. Maybe she was able to reach him. "And what did you find out?"

"That you were right, Jacqueline." Ryan answered. "I'm only fighting for Father because I don't believe in anything."

Ei sighed. She hoped that he was able to learn more about himself. But it seemed as if he barely learned anything. "Do…" She spoke. "Do you think you'll ever find something to believe in?"

Ryan was silent. "I don't know…" He answered.

Ei then looked back and began to leave once again.

"Jacqueline…!" Ryan called once again. Ei faced him yet again. "Be careful." He said.

Ei nodded and went off to find the control room.

Immediately outside the armory was a soldier standing nearby. Ei quickly killed him with her knife, disposing of his body in the corner of the outer fence. She walked along the fence, hidden in the shadows of night, looking for some place which could be the control room. To her right was a long three-story building with a top floor with lots of windows. She assumed that must be where she had to go.

Walking up the metal stairway to the catwalk surrounding the glass top floor, Ei stayed light on her toes so she wouldn't make too much noise from walking on the grated surface. She came to a door that led inside, but imagined the building to not be unguarded. She first knocked on the door to draw a soldier or two out, then came up with an idea.

She learned a few basics on how guns worked while fighting in George's army, and they mostly had similar functions. For one, there was a cocking mechanism in each one which made the gun ready to fire. It also cycled every time a bullet was shot out, ejecting a casing the bullet previously housed. Ei deliberately pulled the slide on her pistol back, and a single bullet was ejected from the gun. A soldier from inside the control room opened the door, and she began to put her plan into action.

She threw the bullet over to the opposite edge of the catwalk, and it made a clanging sound when it hit the ground. Enough of a sound to distract the guard. He walked out of the door frame towards the noise, and Ei rushed inside when the coast was clear. Inside the large, windowed room were five men, who quickly noticed her presence. She took out her pistol and quickly aimed, shooting all of the men before they could report her presence.

Ei then looked at some of the men she had just killed and noticed something – they weren't soldiers. They were wearing some kind of uniform different from the military kind, and didn't carry any kind of guns or weapons with them. Ei then realized what she had just done – she had killed innocent civilians. But… she had to, didn't she? They were collaborating with the enemy soldiers, after all. They wouldn't care if she was killed, would they?

Ei tried her hardest not to think about these things and took out the C4 she was carrying. She stuck the first charge to the side of a long terminal directly in front of her. Stepping over the lifeless body of a civilian worker, she placed the second on the floor beneath a table holding communications equipment. Planting the last two charges on a large computer server and underneath a terminal next to the wide line of windows overlooking the rest of the station, she took out the remote detonator and set it and the charges to the same frequency. Her job done, she exited the control room and headed back down the catwalk.

Looking over to her left this time, she saw Ryan near a different structure, most likely the refinery. He planted the last of his C4 charges on its base and set up the detonator. Ei noticed an enemy soldier walking up behind Ryan and began to panic. She couldn't call out to him, or else she would be caught as well, so she watched helplessly as Ryan was caught.

The soldier behind Ryan first kicked him to the ground, making him drop his rifle, then grabbing him by the wrists and hoisting him off the ground. "Intruder spotted!" The soldier shouted, getting the attention of everyone nearby. In a matter of seconds, Ryan was captured and surrounded. The soldier who restrained him examined his captive closely.

"So, it's you, huh?" He interrogated Ryan. "Should've known that dog, Sears, would send one of his little devils to do his dirty work. But I never would've thought it'd be you. You've done quite a lot of shit to my troops, and you better believe you're gonna pay the fuckin' piper."

Ei looked on as Ryan was hanging helplessly from his wrists, unable to move. Ei took out her pistol, aimed, and shot the man restraining him, hitting him right in his shoulder.

"AGH!" The man shouted, dropping Ryan. "Son of a…!" Ryan made a mad dash away from the man, up the catwalk surrounding the structure he was near. The other soldiers turned to Ei's position, aiming their rifles. The man who Ei had just shot pulled out a radio and shouted into it. "Intruder alert! Find the little bastard who shot me and kill 'em! I'm going after the brat!"

BGM:

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain – Bloodstained Anthem
By Ludvig Forssell

The soldiers immediately began firing in Ei's general direction while the soldier ran after Ryan. Ei quickly aimed at each of them and shot three of them, one of them taking two bullets to kill. She tried to reload her pistol, but a bullet very nearly hit her head, so she rushed behind a crate and hid. Replacing the empty magazine in her gun, she got up from behind the crate and unloaded three bullets into the last man's chest, killing him.

The soldier chasing Ryan followed him up the catwalk that surrounded the refinery, and pulled him over to him by his shoulder. Ryan punched the soldier hard in the stomach, before kicking him in the crotch and pushing him down onto the floor. However, two pairs of soldiers cornered Ryan on the catwalk, their rifles trained on him. Ei knew she had to act now. However, she couldn't kill them all before Ryan was shot dead.

"RYAN!" Ei shouted over to him. Ryan looked down at her. "Jump!" She yelled. Ryan listened, climbing over the catwalk's railing, and jumping down. Ei did her best to catch him and break his fall, the two running a short distance away from the refinery. The soldiers on the catwalk opened fire down at the child soldiers while more soldiers came from behind the structure, unaware that it was rigged to blow. Ei took out her detonator, and Ryan did the same with his.

"There!" Ryan shouted as he and Ei activated the detonators simultaneously. The C4 planted on the refinery and in the control room combusted, two great fireballs incinerating everything they engulfed. Shrapnel shot out everywhere, wounding those not directly caught in the blast. The sheer noise of the explosion left a ringing sound in Ei's ears for a while.

BGM end

Ei and Ryan looked at the smoldering wreckage of what used to be the refinery. Their mission was a success. They looked at one another, satisfied.

"We're alive…" Ei gasped, still disoriented from the explosion. "Thank goodness…"

"We are…" Ryan responded. He looked at Ei and gave the slightest hint of a smile. "Thank you, Jacqueline."

Ei began to form her own smile, but their moment of victory was interrupted by the sound of a metal plate clanging against the concrete. She and Ryan looked over to the sound. The man who had chased Ryan was still alive, though only barely. His uniform was very dirty and torn, and he was bleeding from his ribs, stomach, and mouth. His view now illuminated by the raging fire, he got his first good look at Ei.

"You…" He growled. "You're the little… piece of shit who killed Louis two weeks ago…!" Ei didn't know who the man was talking about. George had Ei kill many people, and she couldn't determine which one this man was talking about. They had all bled together in her memory, almost indistinguishable from one another. "Your little bastard friend there may have killed lots of my guys, but you… You're just a fucking violent demoness! You kill without thinking about who it is, you don't care what those people are fighting for, or what they've lost…! I hope for your sake that you've confessed your sins, because when you die, you're going straight to hell!"

As the man continued to yell at Ei, she became more distraught. She panicked. She started hyperventilating. Tears began to pour from her eyes. Eventually, she couldn't take it anymore. Jacqueline jumped right at the man and stabbed him right in the throat. Unsatisfied with what she had done to him, she took the knife out and jabbed it back in, rapidly stabbing his throat open. This continued long after the man's life ended, and at the end, Ei was exhausted from stabbing the man's corpse so much. Ryan walked over to her.

"Violet Demoness…?" Ryan muttered. It seems he mistook the word "violent" for "violet." Ryan looked over to Ei and thought to himself. "I like it." He said.

"What…?" Ei asked, still shuddering.

"What he called you… 'The Violet Demoness.' It's a good name. It really fits you." Ryan told her.

Ei thought about what Ryan had just said. As if "Jack the Ripper" was bad enough, now she was being called a demoness. She didn't want to be remembered this way, as some kind of monster. Could she even decide what her destiny was anymore? Was she doomed to turn into something else entirely? Would she ever find the answers to Eternity? She didn't know.

Hours passed, and the sun rose once more. Ei and Ryan had eliminated any soldiers left in the base after the explosion. Soon enough, a Jeep approached the remains of the station, coming to a stop in front of the two child soldiers. George and the soldier who was driving the vehicle stepped out and approached the pair.

"Looks like you've made quite a mess over here." George said. He looked down at Ei and Ryan, satisfied with their work. "So, how did it go?" He asked.

"If you want to know," Ryan began. "Then ask the Violet Demoness here." George looked at Ei.

"Demoness…?" George mused to himself. All of a sudden, he started cackling like a madman. "So this is what they call you now…!? Impressive, Ripper! Most impressive! You're becoming everything I'd hoped you'd be…"

Ei turned away from George and walked off, feeling ashamed of George's appraisal of her grim new nickname.

"I don't think so, Father." Ryan said to George. "Jacqueline does have a high kill count, but she hesitates. I don't think she's fully prepared for what you're doing with her."

George pondered Ryan's words for a moment before speaking next. "It's only natural for her to be scared." George answered. "She'll get over her fears eventually. Just as you did, Ryan. Now bring her over to the Jeep. We're heading back to base."

"Wait." Ryan called to George. "Father… what do you believe in?" He asked.

George looked at his adoptive son and answered. "I believe in many things, Ryan. But, most of all, I believe that the legacy that we leave behind is much more than just our progeny. Our actions and accomplishments, our impact on the world around us, and how the world will see us once we are gone. What I wish for is for my legacy to be remembered for all of eternity. That is what I believe in."

Ei had listened to George's words, and felt conflicted. On one hand, George was the one who forced her to fight in this war she wanted no part in. But on the other hand, she understood what he was saying – and strangely enough – agreed with what he said. Ei's pursuit of her own Eternity was strangely similar to what George had just described. Trying to preserve Inazuma as it was, so she would never lose what was precious to her ever again.

"Are you still here, Jacqueline?" George called out to her. Ei looked over and saw George standing by the Jeep, Ryan and the driver already having gotten inside. She walked over to the vehicle and climbed into the back seat. "Come now, Violet Demoness. You've earned your keep today."

Ei cringed at the mention of her nickname. She wondered how much longer her torment would continue.

And that's the end of that chapter! A few things: First of all, big thanks to ThavoArtz for making the new cover image for this fic! Secondly, an explanation for Ryan's name. It sounds similar to "Raiden," and it was actually Solidus' original last name instead of "Sears." Now, for our reviews.

KenjiApex: I'm sure you know the person I'm talking about. Also, there isn't anyone in the Metal Gear world who knows about Teyvat or anything from Genshin so far. However, I might make a character who likes Ei during the civil war arc, but it might not last long.

Thank you for reading again! Make sure to leave feedback and reviews while I'm writing the next chapter!

-Azzy Asbourne

Music: watch?v=nyI20u9i4Ss