CHAPTER TWENTY: WATATSUMI ISLAND

The ride to Watatsumi Island had been a peaceful stroll accompanied by sights that would bewilder anybody who came into sight of them. The most notable had been another of Inazuma's islands far off in the distance, a giant plume of clouds and radiant purple hue spotlighting the mass of land. The main center point of the island looked like a giant crater that had been formed by the collision of something like a meteor or comet, but, upon their guide explaining that it wasn't a crater nor had been formed into its current state by an object beyond their world, the three had been left stunned.

By the time they had met any eyeshot of the shores of their destination, over an hour had passed since their departure from Tenshukaku. Upon seeing Watatsumi Island for the first time, the three were captivated by its appearance. To say it was beautiful was an understatement; the island gave a sense of welcome and peace; something that Ganyu, Keqing, and Yelan had been seeking desperately ever since the fall of Liyue Harbor's existence.

Upon coming into contact with the island's shores, they were immediately met with a soldier that was armed with a spear. This was no surprise to any of them, knowing that they were strangers to the occupants of Watatsumi Island, so they treated the approach with care.

"Halt!" the guard demanded. "In the name of the Divine Priestess, I demand that you identify yourselves, and state your reason for coming here!"

Yelan took the lead in the situation, being the best at negotiation.

"Greetings, my name is Yelan," she started calmly. "These two are my comrades, Ms. Ganyu and Keqing. We've come under order of the Raiden Shogun to speak with your leader, Sangonomiya Kokomi. We have no malicious intentions nor wish to pose any threat to you or anyone who occupy this island."

The guard didn't lower his weapon, again, not surprising Yelan the slightest.

"A likely story, but unless you show me proof that you were sent by the Shogun under innocent intent, I will not even consider your request!" the guard proposed.

"Very well," Yelan answered, grabbing a rolled up piece of paper from Keqing who had been carrying Ei's submitted letter of confirmation ever since they'd left Tenshukaku.

She handed out the paper to the guard, to which he took, unrolled, and read. After a short thirty seconds, he rolled the letter back up and followed up with a second request.

"Your letter checks out, but, if you have no reason to cause harm or endangerment to the Divine Priestess, then I ask that you disarm yourselves of any weapons you have on you," he requested. "Only after that will I allow you to take even one step onto Watatsumi Island."

Yelan nodded in understanding, turning to Keqing and Ganyu.

"Well ladies, you heard the man. Hand your weapons over."

The two nodded in agreement, and, one by one, gave Yelan their weapons. Ganyu was first, reaching out and giving her comrade the Amos Bow she'd carried as her tool of defense ever since receiving it from the person of the same name in the Archon War. It was a gift she'd received as a thank you after Ganyu had done her best to protect them in a siege where they were greatly outnumbered.

With her abilities as a half-qilin and Amos's archery skills, they had managed to stand against the hundreds of enemies firing in their direction. Ganyu had taken several arrows to her body, as much as lacerations to her flesh and fractures to her bones, but, despite the several wounds, she survived. Amos hadn't been so lucky however, having lost too much blood from her wounds, despite Ganyu's efforts to protect her from the barrage of attacks aimed at her.

It had been a painful day, and having to part with a very meaningful gift she'd now carried for centuries upon centuries stung her heart. However, it was only for a temporary short time, and, right now, the world was at stake. Therefore, she allowed Yelan to take her weapon, following with her giving it to the guard.

Keqing was next, unclipping her sword tucked away in its sheath from her left hip. Her weapon carried sentimental value as well, having had it custom made not long after settling down in Liyue Harbor. She had handpicked the metal to be used for the blade and had requested the weapon to "carry the might of a lion's roar." The blacksmith, Kunwu, had honored Keqing's one request, and had crafted and named the blade "Lions Roar," the end result being a durable lightweight sword that could withstand over a thousand strikes to the surface of a diamond.

Even to that day, the sword remained light, and the blade didn't have a single chip, dent, or scratch. Even its sharpness remained, having never been sharpened ever since the day of its forgery. Parting with it made her feel unbalanced, but there were bigger things at risk, so she swallowed her emotions and allowed Yelan to take Lions Roar from her grasp.

Yelan was last to part with her weapon, gripping her bow, Aqua Simulacra, and handing it over to the guard. Parting with her weapon was the equivalent of tearing her heart in two, the weapon having been a gift from one of her dearest friends she had tragically lost during a mission that had gone wrong. It had been customly forged, and carried special properties that allowed Yelan to infuse it with the energy her vision granted her while preparing a shot.

It had gotten her through several scuffles, including the time she had spent wandering around prior to Ganyu finding her. She managed to defeat any threats that crossed her path with ease, and had even provided herself with meat from animals she'd shot and killed with Aqua Simulacra. Less to say, it had been her tool for survival and had gotten her by, so to give it away to a stranger was very hard. However, like Ganyu and Keqing, she knew the bigger factors at play, so she just ripped off the bandaid and gave the guard her only remnant of one of her past comrades.

With their hearts torn and pride stained, the guard nodded his head and allowed them access to the shores of the island.

"Follow me, and I'll take you to the Divine Priestess," he commanded.

All three of them nodded in agreement and followed the guard from the sandy shores, deeper into the island. They followed a main dirt path that came to a wooden bridge, eventually leading them to a small village that was occupied by only very few people. From there, they came to the sight of the island's center, the view being a beautiful array of colors and waterfalls.

Off in the distance, the sight of a single structure came, appearing as a stack of gargantuan clam shells that led to the main place atop the peaks of the inner island's center. They crossed another two bridges, coming to the peak they all had spotted before, and, after traversing up to the top, met the very building that appeared as a shrine.

It was a gorgeous and massive structure, definitely befitting for one with a title of "Divine Priestess." The display was so mesmerizing that they hadn't realized their practical guide had come to a stop just before the staircase that led to the main building of the entire mass, causing Yelan to accidentally bump into the guard.

He paid it no mind though and remained steady as if nothing had even happened, turning to address them further on the task at hand.

"Please wait here," he directed. "I'll go and retrieve the Divine Priestess for you. I shouldn't be too long."

"Do what you gotta do," Yelan answered. "We'll just admire the view until you get back."

The guard nodded, then turned toward the shrine and disappeared upon entering the main building. The three girls didn't really say much during their wait, too captivated by the several perspectives surrounding their current position.

It was on par with what you'd expect to be the abode of a god; dazzling spectacles and flourishing panoramas everywhere they looked and admired. It carried a sense of peace and harmony unlike any other, causing them all to just fall into a trans of numb bliss.

Up until they were interrupted by the sound of the guard yet again, turning to see said person, accompanied with a lady that resembled a mermaid.

She was an average height, skinny, and her blondish pink hair was tied up into a ponytail, extending down to past her waist. Her eyes were mystical, being a mix of blue and purple, and her attire seemed to mimic a mermaid's body.

It fit the atmosphere of the entire scenery perfectly along with the fact that it fit her title amazingly well.

"These are the people that asked for your acquaintance, Ms. Priestess," he explained with a gesture of his hand, waving it out towards the three.

The majestic priestess merely nodded her head with a smile, clearly sensing no malice from any of them.

"Greetings," she greeted, her voice soft yet authoritative.

She walked out towards them, wanting to present herself with a proper welcome.

"My name is Sangonomiya Kokomi. It's a pleasure to welcome you to the Sangonomiya Shrine."

"The pleasure is ours, Ms. Kokomi," Yelan followed. "My name is Yelan, and these two are Ganyu and Keqing. We all are former officials of Liyue's government."

"Interesting," Kokomi answered rather simply. "You all have come so far, so please address why you've requested this meeting."

"Of course," Yelan replied. "However, it's probably best if you just read this."

Yelan handed out the letter that Ei had given her, to which Kokomi accepted with care, unfolding and looking over every single line of text with full focus.

It didn't take her long to catch on, lowering the letter from her eyes and rolling it back up neatly.

"Come with me," she commanded, her voice tone having changed to something more serious and stern.

Nobody spoke, following her command and moving to wherever she planned to take them for likely safe talk out of the ears of potential threats.

Kokomi led them into the shrine, into a secluded room that resembled a meeting place for people like generals. Just from its current state, Yelan, Keqing, and Ganyu could all tell it hadn't been used for years, which made it less likely to be suspected by any potential threats disguised in plain sight.

"Please take a seat," Kokomi offered.

The three didn't argue and just took a seat in one of the many available ones. Once they all were properly seated, Kokomi seated herself across from them, her demeanor surprisingly calm.

"First, I'm dreadfully sorry for all that has happened to you three," she comforted. "It must've been terrible to suddenly lose your home in the blink of an eye."

"Thank you for your kind words, Ms. Kokomi," Keqing stated. "It's been hard, but we've found ways to rebound, hence why we're here."

Kokomi nodded, sighing before speaking.

"Watatsumi Island has had its bouts with the Raiden Shogun in the past, and, while some still carry hatred for her, this is a situation that I don't think we can let hard feelings get in the way of. Therefore, I'm willing to help in any way I can, but I need to know the full extent of this crisis to understand what I need to do."

A breath of relief escaped all three of them, having expected this to go so easy. However, it wasn't done yet, so Yelan moved to explaining everything they knew about the situation.

"Well, it all started with three, but the truth is that we're up against up to hundreds or thousands of androids that look like any ordinary human being," Yelan started. "These androids are capable of absorbing elemental energy created from visions, and can use it as a weapon in rebound. Ms. Ganyu witnessed this herself, having saw the Tianquan, Liyue's ruler, be killed in a horrible way. Ms. Keqing was also injured terribly by another of these things, having only managed to escape death by a hair's width.

However, there's one fortunate thing in this entire endeavor; the army of androids thst the Tsaritsa is producing isn't done yet, so we still have time before the worst case scenario can occur."

"I see," Kokomi answered. "Anything else?"

"Yes. These androids are being powered by the elemental energy of the Geo Archon, Rex Lapis, and the guardians of Liyue, the Adepti. Ancient beings with power potent enough to end the world. It's why these androids are capable of inhuman abilities. That's the reason why we informed your archon first; she could be in danger."

"Alright. Thank you, Ms. Yelan," Kokomi said, putting a hand to her chin. "The way I see it is that we are on a very thin time window to get the advantage, and, unless we get the advantage, it's basically the end of the world."

"Correct," Yelan confirmed.

Kokomi sighed, coming to full realization of just what she was about to jump into.

"Okay. The first thing I can see as an advantage is to find some way to counter these androids capabilities. Weakening the enemy makes it much easier to destroy them, and, with this solution, we wouldn't need to battle every single android at their max potential."

The idea surprised all three of them. It was a solid counter to the issue; if they could slow down or weaken their enemies, it would make taking them out easier. However, one problem remained with that idea.

What counters the elemental energy of the divine?

"Do you have any idea on what could possibly do that, Ms. Kokomi?" Yelan questioned.

"Unfortunately not, but, if there's one thing I've learned as a strategist, it's that sometimes solutions aren't as direct as they may seem to be. Sometimes the solution to something that seems impossible can be practical in nature."

Yelan caught exactly what she was saying. The formula to counter a god's power didn't need to be something complicated, but something more simple and effective.

Then Yelan remembered something.

The day they caught Reshav.

"I've got it!" Yelan stated, turning to Ganyu and Keqing. "Girls, do you remember how we caught Reshav?"

Keqing and Ganyu were confused, up until they connected the dots and answered.

"Lisa's spell!" Keqing and Ganyu confirmed in unison.

Yelan nodded, then turned back to Kokomi across from her.

"Forgive me for the sudden exclamation, but I have a solution that is guaranteed to work," Yelan stated.

"You do? Please feel free to explain," Kokomi allowed.

"Thank you. Now, in our journey getting here, we had to catch the very android responsible for the Tianquan's death in a trap. This all occurred in Mondstadt, during which we subdued the machine by use of a very nasty spell that the city's librarian mage, Lisa, cast on the doorknobs of the entrance to the building we had lured him to.

Upon touching the doorknob, he was infused with the spell's potency, and, as a result, he fell unconscious. That's our counter to the power of those machines; a nasty dose of whatever Lisa cast that day."

Kokomi's eyes brightened.

One crucial factor had been solved, but the task remained of finding out what kind of hex Lisa had conjured to submit Reshav to the floor like a rock sinking in water.

"That's great to hear, but do you have any idea what this "Lisa" cast to cause this?"

Yelan shook her head.

"Not exactly, but we do know that it was an uncommon spell that takes lots of physical energy and strength to cast in a large amount. To get a straight answer, we'd need to ask Lisa ourselves."

"We don't have that amount of time, and I'm sure you all are on the same page as me about that issue?"

Yelan nodded, fully aware that traveling to Mondstadt would take at least three days to do. They were on a time clock and couldn't afford to waste anymore time than they already had. The fate of Teyvat was at risk.

Kokomi continued upon confirmation that they were all thinking on the same level.

"Good. Therefore, we have to find a way to recreate that hex that subdued the first enemy you encountered, and, from how you explained it, it seemed to be nothing more than a very powerful surge of electricity that managed the task. Therefore, I believe all that we need is some kind of weapon that can inflict a very powerful electrocution to its target."

Yelan nodded in agreement, having thought the same outcome, but there was much to consider in this solution.

Kokomi had caught on fast.

"So, what can inflict a shock with the same amount of strength as that spell, and, more importantly, how much electricity did that spell exactly exhume?"

Again, more obstacles than a solution. They were getting nowhere in this meeting, meaning that the time that Yelan, Keqing, and Ganyu had all feared.

"The way I see it, there's only one way we can find these answers to properly get an advantage against the Tsaritsa," Yelan spoke. "We can't blindly guess at the risk of it not working, otherwise we've already lost before the battle even had a chance to start."

"What are you suggesting?" Keqing chimed in, fearing she already knew the answer.

"We need to split up," Yelan answered with a heavy sigh. "There's no way we can do this with all of us in one place. It'll just cost precious time that we don't have, so the only option is for one of us to go back to Mondstadt to get the answers we need."

Ganyu and Keqing both didn't like the answer, but they also were aware that Yelan was correct on the matter. Splitting up was the best way for them to cover more ground and get more done than they would traveling together. It was terrifying for them to go separate ways, but it had to be done to have a chance of victory.

Keqing sighed before answering.

"You're right. While it is a huge risk to split up, it's the best option in our current situation. Therefore, I'm in agreement that we should separate for now."

Ganyu nodded with no argument.

"I agree as well. It's a huge risk, but we can't just take blind guesses and risk failure when the time comes in battle. I've seen too many friends and allies die over assuming they had enough strength or power to beat an enemy, and I'd rather not see more blood of the dear people I love fall on the battlefield."

Yelan nodded again, turning her attention back to Kokomi.

"I assume you agree as well, Ms. Kokomi?" Yelan questioned.

"Affirmative, Ms. Yelan," Komoki answered with confidence. "Given this crisis involves all of Teyvat, I agree that the best course of action is to cover more ground to advance our plans."

"Excellent," Yelan answered. "Then, considering I'm faster and the Fatui sources in Mondstadt won't suspect me as a threat, I'll take the trip back. You girls will stay in Inazuma and continue to make progress and protect the Raiden Shogun with all of your strength."

Ganyu and Keqing didn't argue, knowing that Yelan was definitely the best of them to go back. She could travel fastest across land and evade any Fatui that may suspect her easily. There was no reason to debate or question it.

"I have no objections to that," Keqing agreed.

"Me neither," Ganyu added.

"Good. Now, back to other matters," Yelan finished, allowing Kokomi to speak on any further actions or plans.

"Of course," Kokomi followed. "Now, the bigger issue; getting my people to agree to this whole thing. Ever since the Shogun separated Watatsumi Island from the others, all of the citizens of Watatsumi have had a grudge and heavy hatred for her. Getting them to agree to helping protect her and Narukami Island from these threats is the equivalent of getting ice to befriend fire."

"But once it's clear that it's either protecting her or their lives, they'll come to reason, right?" Keqing stated. "Surely, they wouldn't choose death over life?"

Kokomi sighed heavily.

"The answer to that is a mixed bag," Kokomi answered. "For some, yes, but for others, even hatred can root deep enough to die over it."

That wasn't the answer any of them had been expecting. It was a sad and dark one, but, at the end of the day, the fact remained that it was their choice.

It was silent for a long minute, until it was broken by Keqing's voice.

"Then I suppose all we can do is try. After all, in the end, their choice is theirs to decide."

Kokomi didn't even flinch, knowing full well that Keqing's statement was inevitable conclusion, and exactly what was to come in short time.

"Affirmative. Shaking a person's will isn't easy, but I'll do my best to persuade them. They won't think I'm lying, so at least that factor isn't a potential obstacle. However, their choice to fight or die will be their's alone."

Kokomi sighed again, dreading the coming hours, but, if she wanted to save her home and the entire world, she'd have to suffer potentially a few losses as a price to pay.

"With that, this meeting is adjourned. Please give me some time to write a proper speech for my people to hear. Until then, it's probably best you all head back to Narukami Island to inform the Shogun of the new plans. I sincerely wish you all a safe trip back, and a safe journey to Mondstadt for Ms. Yelan."

"Thank you, Ms. Kokomi," Yelan thanked, bowing as an additional gesture. "I'll do my best to get my mission done as fast as possible."

Kokomi bowed in return, concluding the meeting.

"Watatsumi Island thanks you all for all you've done," Kokomi gracefully stated. "Please be safe, and may the gods grant you safety in your endeavors."

Ganyu, Keqing, and Yelan all bowed in return then got up from their seats and walked back out of the shrine, bracing themselves for whatever was to come next in their journey for retribution for Liyue Harbor.