CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO: CHECKMATE
The trip back to Mondstadt had been turbulent and anxious for Yelan, currently enjoying a cup of tea in Beidou's private quarters. It was nothing more than a long room with a queen-size bed, blanketed with crimson-red sheets made of fine fabric that was far from cheap, and a bedside table that housed only one lone object atop its structure. That one thing was a picture of her crew and best friend, Ningguang, huddled together at a banquet, drunk as hell.
That had been one of Beidou's most treasured memories, having very little recollection of that night from the moment she'd poured herself a third pint of rum. A fine one that had aged for over two centuries before the cork had been released from its bottleneck prison. It had been too good of a pristine alcohol to not go back for at least a third serving, however, that had been all it had taken to dilute every fiber of her senses to nothing but a drunken mess.
However, she hadn't been the only victim to drunkenness, Ningguang having faltered as well, but, with a stronger alcohol tolerance, had managed to remain somewhat sensible for the sake of her role as the Tianquan of Liyue. It was a carefree night of laughs, embarrassment, and memories that wouldn't be forgotten so easily. Just looking at the picture destroyed Beidou emotionally, but, for Yelan's sake, had kept herself composed to accompany her friend and comrade.
"We should be arriving soon," Beidou said. "We'll have to dock near Falcon Coast, seeing it's best not to endanger your safety by having to travel through Whispering Woods."
"I appreciate that, but you don't need to worry about my safety," Yelan assured. "A few hilichurls are nothing I can't handle. Not even the snow witch we share as a common enemy could stop me the night everything went south, so it'll take more than a hilichurl to kill me."
"Believe me, I know, but…y-you are one of my only friends I have left…and I'd r-rather not lose anyone else right now…
Yelan felt a ping in her heart, realizing that she'd not taken Beidou's feelings into account. Therefore, she quickly acted to make up for her unintended carelessness.
"O-oh…I'm sorry, Captain Beidou," she apologized. "I-I didn't realize…
Beidou waved off the words with a wave of her right hand, assuring Yelan she knew she hadn't meant any ill intent.
"It's alright, don't worry about it," Beidou assured. "I've just been so afraid of losing someone else to those bastards since the day I found out the horrid truth of our current reality. It was like my heart had been stabbed over a hundred times, and I don't want to feel that aching pain again."
She paused briefly, sighing heavily before speaking again.
"Can I make just one request of you, Ms. Yelan?"
Yelan's curiosity spiked, averting her gaze from her reflection in her tea to Beidou's.
"Hmm? What is it?" Yelan answered.
Beidou sighed again.
"No matter what, no matter how bleak things may seem, you will do your best to stay alive. This goes for Keqing and Ganyu as well."
Yelan gasped at the request, but she understood exactly why Beidou had asked her this. She was hurting and was scared to death of being alone in their current world; a realization that made Yelan's heart drop in sadness. However, she held her emotions and nodded her head in assurance.
"Okay. I promise to hold your request to the moment I inevitably stop breathing. You have my word, as much as Ganyu and Keqing's as well."
Beidou nodded, her expression holding a look of seriousness and trust.
Upon the agreement being solidified, a sudden abruption from above deck broke the still rhythm of the waves leading The Alcor to Falcon Coast. A sudden exclamation that immediately drove Yelan and Beidou into motion.
"Smoke in the distance! All hands on deck immediately!"
Smoke.
That one word was enough to send Beidou and Yelan to the top deck without hesitation. It was something they had wished to not even have heard, because smoke meant only one thing; fire.
Upon meeting the main deck, Beidou quickly addressed the situation, but, upon looking out, she was met with a massive plume of visible smoke. Yelan saw it too, and froze in horror at the realization that it was coming from the direction of Mondstadt.
"N-no…
Yelan's words were only a whisper as Beidou started her duty as a captain.
"Full speed ahead!" she commanded. "Everyone to your positions now!"
Every crewmate moved immediately, rushing to their positions and acting as fast as possible. It wasn't long before the ship had clearly begun to travel faster, Falcon Coast coming into eyeshot in no time. However, that still wasn't fast enough for Yelan, knowing for a fact that the smoke wasn't the result of a forest fire; Mondstadt was under attack, and at risk of becoming another Liyue Harbor.
She couldn't wait for the ship to dock, lives were at risk. Therefore, as soon as the ship was within distance of what her stamina could handle, she immediately took action.
"I'm sorry, Captain Beidou, but I can't wait any longer!" she stated anxiously. "You get the ship docked! I need to save who I can!"
"Yelan wait!"
Yelan didnt hear her, and, with no further word, ran to the east side of the deck and jumped over the side. Beidou saw it out of the corner of her eye, but didn't give chase. She had a ship to command, and she knew Yelan was no fool or pushover.
She gritted her teeth at the truth of the matter, but knew she needed to focus right now. Therefore, she continued to command the ship while Yelan went on ahead.
"You damn best stay alive," Beidou said to herself, following with her moving to steer the ship to Falcon Coast safely.
On the other end of the situation, Yelan had already found herself to the shores of the coast, and, with no thought or moment of rest, ran off in the direction of Mondstadt. She followed the main trail past the beach, the nearby Statue of the Seven, and onto the main dirt road that led to the bridge that led to Mondstadt's gateway.
In her heart she prayed that she wasn't too late, but, the closer she got, the more her hopes started to sink into the pit of her stomach. It was just like the aftermath of Liyue Harbor; a thick mist of white smoke that came from the smoldering debris that was still burning. It was haunting and sickening, and, upon meeting and crossing the bridge, the truth came to light with an agonizing pain that hurt more than any wound she'd ever been dealt.
She was too late.
The city was littered with ash, scorched homes and establishments, and an ungodly number of charred and bloodstained corpses. The damage was already done, and whoever had caused it was long gone.
The sight before Yelan sent her to her knees, crying and cursing to the wind. Women, men, and children, all dead and left to burn in what remained of Mondstadt's ruins. She pounded her fists on the ground and screamed in agony, up until she heard a sound.
A cry for help.
It was distant, but Yelan didn't care, getting to her feet and calling out for whoever she had heard.
"Hello?!" she cried out, hoping the voice she had heard wasn't just a figment of her imagination.
It was silent for a few seconds, but then something broke through; the voice of a woman coming from within one of the nearby buildings.
Yelan moved fast, shuffling through the rubble blocking the door, and moving inside to the sight of more toppled debris. She used every bit of her strength to remove the litter from the floor, eventually finding the lady who had called out to her. She was horribly burned and covered in cuts and soot, leading Yelan to assure the victim that help was on the way.
"Don't move, ma'am," she directed. "You're in bad shape and need medical assistance."
She grunted and hyperventilated from her injuries as Yelan worked quickly to make room to get her out of the building. Until then, Yelan decided to comfort the victim and hopefully get some information.
"Can you tell me your name?" Yelan asked, not wanting to be too pushy or forceful.
It took a lot of strength, but eventually she did get a response.
"M-marjorie…
Her voice was nothing more than a raspy whisper, further clarifying that she needed to get her out of here.
"Alright Marjorie, I'm Yelan, and I'm here to get you out of here. Therefore, I'm going to need you to do your best to work with me so I can get you out. Are any if your bones broken?"
"M-my l-leg…
Upon that response and confirmation, Yelan worked to analyze her legs, quickly finding the broken one upon seeing that her left ankle had a compound fracture. Luckily, she had seen a handful of these in her years as an agent of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, so she'd be able to lift and get Marjorie to safety without hurting her.
"Alright Marjorie, this is gonna hurt, but I need you to toughen through the pain. I need to get you out of this place before it collapses."
Marjorie didn't like the idea, but knew Yelan was right. Therefore, she slowly nodded her head and braced herself for impact. With as much gentle care as she could, Yelan put her arms under Marjorie and carefully started to lift her from the ground. Upon the slightest movement, Marjorie immediately started to squirm and utter exclamations of pain from behind her gritted teeth.
Yelan just did her best to ignore the sounds, making careful haste of evacuating the building, back out into the open air of what used to be Mondstadt City. Once she was outside and safe from any further danger, she placed Marjorie down slowly and began to perform first aid on her most major injury. A jagged fragment of her tibia was sticking out of her right leg, and, upon further examination, found out that her right knee was dislocated as well.
Yelan guessed that she had been standing when she was buried by the debris and had fallen wrongly, causing this trauma to occur in the collapse. She couldn't just leave these two injuries without first aid, so she worked quickly to find some ways to temporarily treat the injuries.
The first order of business was getting the compound fracture wrapped tight to prevent infection or further damage, therefore, seeing she had nothing but her weapon and clothes with her, she stripped herself of her top, planning to use it as a bandage. To avoid anything bacterial getting into the opening of the wound, Yelan turned her attire inside out and prepared to wrap it tight around Marjorie's leg.
"This is gonna hurt like crazy, but I need you to stay as still as possible," she warned, holding a stern look.
"I-I'll try m-my hardest," Marjorie replied shakily.
"Alright, take a deep breath, and find yourself a happy place in three, two, one!"
Upon the last command, Yelan started to wrap the injury tightly, causing Marjorie to tense up so hard and grunt in pain. Her eyes were shut tight, and her teeth were gritted so hard that it showed just how much agony she was enduring with every individual wrap of Yelan's attire. She wrapped it three times then finished by tying the ends into a double knot, making sure it was sturdy enough that it wouldn't come loose.
However, Marjorie's hell wasn't over yet, because now came the second task of shifting her knee back into position. Yelan wasn't shy of this treatment, given she'd had a few cases of relocating bones in her past, both on herself and comrades. Therefore, she knew exactly what to do, and just how horrible the pain would be for Marjorie.
"Okay, now I need you to take another deep breath for me, Marjorie," she instructed softly. "Your knee is out of place, so I need to get it back in place. It's going to hurt like hell, but it needs to be done if you ever want to walk normally again."
Beads of sweat were rolling down Marjorie's face, and, upon hearing the horrid task ahead, her eyes bulged.
"P-please, give m-me a s-second to r-recover," Marjorie pleaded.
"It's only going to take me a second, and it's best to get it done now, seeing I don't know how long it's been that way," Yelan countered. "Unless you want to walk with a cane for the rest of your life, take a deep breath and scream when I say one,"
Marjorie couldn't argue, so she just nodded and did as Yelan instructed, taking in a deep breath and preparing for the worst.
"Alright, I'm going to do it fast," Yelan said, positioning her hands in the proper spots to perform the task. "Three. Two. One. Scream!"
Upon the last command, Yelan twisted Marjorie's leg in the proper direction to reposition the bone, a simultaneous cacophony of a very loud pop and Marjorie screaming like a banshee erupting in a chaotic harmony. However, that symphony of absolute pain and madness lasted only a few seconds, Marjorie's knee going back into socket, and her nightmare ending.
The madness had been enough to make Marjorie pass out, which Yelan knew wasn't anything to worry about. The two worse things were handled for now, so she turned back to searching for more survivors.
"Rest tight, Marjorie. I need to figure out what the hell happened here."
She got back to her feet and turned to the street, resuming her search. She searched each building all the way up to the fountain, and, unfortunately, had only discovered the remains of Mondstadt citizens. Rummaging through the clutter had grown her to a fatigued state, stopping momentarily to catch her breath in front of Good Hunter. It killed her to stop searching, but she also knew that she couldn't kill herself searching either, so she made the logical choice.
As she sat taking slow and easy breaths, she thought about her fellow comrades, now hundreds of miles away. The fact that Mondstadt had been attacked and destroyed scared her to no avail, and she hoped in her heart that they hadn't acted too late. She had no idea how long ago Mondstadt had been sieged, and, if it had been days, the androids responsible for this attack could be in Inazuma awaiting the command to attack.
However, she was smart enough to know not to focus on what could be, and immediately removed any thoughts of Inazuma being next from her mind. Right now, she just needed to focus on one thing; figuring out what happened and finding any survivors.
As she went to get to her feet to continue her pursuit, a sudden sound of footsteps met her ears, driving her to her feet and drawing back an arrow for an attack. She didn't move, and, like a fisherman waiting patiently for a fish to bite their hook, waited for whoever was nearby to come to her. They were heavy footsteps, like combat boots, and they carried a sense of familiarity.
While Yelan wasn't entirely sure if she was correct, she suddenly felt like she wasn't in danger and that the situation had changed. The steps drew within yards, and, upon the reveal of who was walking, Yelan was relieved.
"Sir Diluc?" she addressed, wondering if she was imagining this encounter, but, upon his reply, it became clear that he was really there.
He turned his gaze to her, armed with the same claymore that he'd armed the day of their capturing of Reshav. He was on edge and relieved upon seeing Yelan's face.
"Ms. Yelan?" he questioned, taking a second to regain his composure. "I'll admit that you were the last person I expected to see among these ruins."
Yelan withdrew her weapon and walked to Diluc's position, both of them in shock that this encounter was even happening.
"I'm just glad to see you're still alive," Yelan started. "Can you explain what the hell happened here?"
"Of course, but, first, I need to know where that scream came from," he replied.
Yelan gasped, having forgotten her aiding of Marjorie's injuries amidst the shock of meeting up with an old ally.
"Oh! I came across a survivor named Marjorie," she explained. "She's hurt really badly, but I managed to temporarily treat her injuries through the use of…
Yelan paused, having completely forgot she had used her clothing to wrap the fracture, meaning she was standing in broad daylight with only her bra covering her upper body.
She blushed instantly in embarrassment, feeling as if she were nude in a spotlight in her current position. However, Diluc calmed the situation by taking the initiative to shed his jacket and offer it as cover for Yelan.
"Take this, Ms. Yelan," he offered nicely, to which Yelan took with hesitation.
While she was still embarrassed, she could respect Diluc for his kindness in sparing her any further exposure than she already had. She slipped on the warm leather jacket, and worked quickly to cover her entire upper body, thanking him accordingly.
"Thank you, Sir Diluc. I'm very sorry you had to see me so…exposed."
"It's no problem, Ms. Yelan," he replied. "After all, it's thanks to your sacrifice that one of our own will live to see another day. Now, where is she?"
Yelan didn't waste any further time and led Diluc to Marjorie, still passed out like a light. Diluc did the honors of picking her up carefully, and followed with only one more thing that would answer all of the questions on Yelan's mind.
"Follow me, and I'll answer any questions you may have."
The cathedral door echoed upon closing tightly, Diluc having led Yelan there with Marjorie in tow. Upon entering the long and open infrastructure of the building, both familiar and unfamiliar faces were met by Yelan's gaze. At the other end, the sight of Jean, Barbara, and a passed out Lisa came into view, and, off to the side were two strangers.
The first was a lady that resembled a witch with two long pigtails adorned with astronomical fixtures attached to their ends. The second was a bard with piercing teal eyes and two short braids with teal-dyed ends that hung off both sides of their head. Both of them were in disarray, showing that they'd both experienced trauma recently, as much as loss.
Upon Diluc's approach, the bard was the first to speak.
"We've got another survivor!" they spoke frantically. "Barbara get into position quickly!"
"On it!" Barbara responded, hurrying to meet Diluc. "How is she?!"
Diluc didn't answer immediately, only worked to gently place Marjorie into Barbara's arms.
"She's stable, but badly hurt," Diluc answered. "It's best you get her healed as fast as you can."
"Yes sir," she answered, carefully escorting Marjorie to a proper healing spot.
Yelan could tell that the situation was serious just by the fact that she hadn't been recognized. Her curiosity was burning for answers to what had happened, so she continued down the aisle, coming to a stop in front of Jean.
"Ms. Yelan?!" Jean stated in surprise. "Are you hurt?! Do I need to assign you for a heal?!"
Yelan shook her head, responding quickly with assurance that she was unharmed.
"No need to worry, I'm fine," Yelan answered. "I was on my way back from Inazuma, but, once I saw the smoke, I ran here as fast as I could to help. Can I ask exactly what happened to cause all of this?"
"Of course," Jean responded. "However, allow me to introduce you to these people first."
She turned her head in the direction of the bard and witch, taking steps towards them both. Her approach cause both of their attention's, to which Jean gave the proper proceedings.
"Ms. Yelan, this is Mona Megistus, Mondstadt's local astrologist, and a main reason we are alive," Jean stayed, gesturing towards the female witch.
"A pleasure to make your acquaintance," Mona greeted.
Yelan nodded as a way of greeting Mona, allowing Jean to move to introducing the bard.
"And this is Venti, h-however, it's best you address them by their proper identity as…
She paused shortly, causing Yelan to become confused, but, upon the identity being revealed, she understood exactly why Jean had been so nervous.
…Lord Barbatos."
Yelan's eyes bulged.
Barbatos?! As in, the God of Freedom?!
"Oh Grandmaster, there's no need for such pleasantries," Barbatos said in a casual tone, surprising Yelan. "Just call me Venti. My archon name is such a thing of the past, and I'd rather not be associated with it."
It was as if he were just a regular person, but Yelan had a hard time believing a god could be so carefree and humble.
She respected his wishes though, and carefully chose her next words.
"A pleasure to meet you, Venti."
"Hehe, see. No need to be so formal, Grandmaster Jean," he stated. "Anyway, what's your name, ma'am?"
"Y-you may call me Yelan," Yelan confirmed, still in disbelief that she was talking to the Anemo Archon.
"Nice to meet you, Ms. Yelan." he greeted politely.
"Likewise," Mona added.
With introductions concluded, Jean resumed the original request she'd promised to grant, sighing before starting.
"Alright, now that we are all acquainted, could you two explain what happened to lead to all of this to Ms. Yelan," Jean questioned.
"I'll start," Mona accepted, moving her gaze to the floor. "It all began with the nightmares."
Three days earlier
Mona shot up from her slumber, her eyes bulged and breaths rapid. She had just awoken from a nightmare she'd been having for the past few nights, but this time it had been something more extreme; a nightmare so vivid in detail that it felt like more than just a regular nightmare. It had been as if it were reality, and, upon eying the person who had awoken her, she had known her every thought that it hadn't been just a bad dream became all the more true.
Lisa had a look similar to a worried mother when their child gets seriously hurt; she had been sweating, nearly crying, and had looked so scared as if Mona had sounded like she had been dying in her sleep.
This had been the fourth nightmare.
It all had started as a tame dream about her being locked in her house on fire with no escape three days prior. It had been your usual nightmare that ended with her waking up before the flames could reach and burn her to death, a spectacle that had scared her, but she'd waved it off as nothing more than a night scare. Nightmares like these were common, and the result of being under heavy amounts of stress.
Being an astrologist, Mona was constantly under stress and fatigue, so she didn't see it as anything abnormal, up until the next night. It was the same dream, except it hadn't started the same. Instead, it had started with her doing her usual habits prior to bedtime; reading and studying. However, it quickly became more familiar upon her finishing her nightly rituals and retiring to slumber, only to wake to her house ablaze in flames. From there it played out exactly the same, up until she was kicked from slumber and awoken.
Again, dreams repeating wasn't anything new, so she'd written it off as nothing but a hint that she needed to take time off from her studies.
Then came the third night.
The dream started out differently again, this time beginning with her buying goods from the local produce stand. However, something odd occurred upon her departure just out of the corner of her eye; she spotted an odd looking figure just above outside of the Goth Grand Hotel. While it was a faint glimpse, she was sure she had seen two specific things.
A tophat and red raven masquerade mask.
By the time she had turned in time, nobody with such a description was anywhere to be seen, so she had waved it off as just a figment of her imagination and went home. From there, the dream played out from where it had started the second night, and followed with the same exact events to the point of where she was roused from slumber.
That had been the point of where Mona had started to speculate that these recurring nightmares were more than just thar, so, upon the following day, she started to look around for any clues that may lead her to whatever the hell these nightmares were trying to tell her. She searched Lisa's library for all literature based around dreams, and, after hours of endless research, found one specific thing that may have related to her situation.
Premonitions.
Several cases of recurring nightmares being warnings of real things to come had been recorded in history, but there was only one thing all of her nightmares shared.
The fire.
What did these other dreams that had given her more insight have to do with that specific aspect?
Then she had remembered a key detail of her third one. The mysterious figure out of the corner of her eye.
The tophat.
The raven mask.
That was when she had turned to the shelves of the library for something else.
Information on the mask and if it had any connection to the fire in her dream.
She searched for hours, up until she had grown exhausted, and returned back to her home with her hoard of knowledge. Too tired to read any further, Mona had gone to sleep, only to meet another horrid nightmare.
The fourth one had started completely different, having begun with a whole different scenery. She had been standing outside the borders of Liyue Harbor, now nothing more than a smoldering mass of ruins submerged into the sea. Mona had been confused, up until she was suddenly grabbed by someone from behind, and a sudden rapid succession of scenes had flashed before her eyes.
It had been terrifying, having ended with her in her home, once again ablaze in flames and no exit on sight. Just like the rest, the dream had ended before the flames could reach her, having lead to her waking up and hyperventilating in absolute fear.
Now she had known something wasn't right, so she had gotten up and started to investigate the books on what-she'd-hoped was related to the figure she had seen. After hours of nothing, Mona had grown hungry for a lunch at Good Hunter, so she had departed for a short break.
Luckily, the line hadn't been too long, so she'd requested and received her serving in little time, Mona having enjoyed her meal slowly and properly. However, just as she had gotten up to pay for her food, something eerie had struck her.
Just out of the corner of her eye, she'd seen a figure with the same details as in her dream, causing her to quiver in mild fright. It had gotten only more creepy upon her having turned to see whoever had been haunting her sleep for the past four nights, only to see nothing. That alone had been enough for her to get up and run back home, having felt as if she were being watched.
To settle her paranoia, Mona had decided to take a nice hot bath, having hoped for it to rid her psyche of those terrifying nightmares and allow her to get a good night's sleep. Once the wooden tub had filled with what she had hoped to be her solution to her troubles, she had stripped to nothing but her birthday suit, and had soaked in the water for a long hour before getting out.
After the bath, Mona had dressed herself in nothing but her bathrobe and had returned to doing her usual astrological studies, up until night had come. She hadn't cared to dress into anything and had retired to slumber with nothing but her flesh on, having hoped that maybe a bare sleep along with the long hot bath would've been enough to get a full night's rest.
That had been proven null in void, upon her having awoken to her home ablaze yet again.
No exit having been in sight.
She'd risen from the bed in a haste, having wrapped her nude body up in the bath robe just off her side of the bed. She had attempted to douse the flames with her hydro attacks, but the raging blaze had already grown too powerful for any amount of water to dissolve them to nothing but cinders.
It had been vivid.
Terrifying.
Traumatizing.
However, it had only gotten worse upon her noticing she hadn't been alone. Just a few yards across from her had been the very figure that she had seen in her previous nightmares, his head adorned with the same tophat and his face covered by a blood-red raven masquerade mask with golden linings along all the curves.
Behind the mask she had been able to see their eyes as well, their pupils were black and outlined by crimson scleras. They had been piercing, feeling as if they'd been stabbing the core of her soul to nothing but fragments of lifeless remains of what used to be her.
She couldn't move.
It had been as if she were petrified.
The figure had suddenly grabbed her left shoulder with a force so powerful that it could've rivaled a god's strength, lifting her up above him and forcing her to look him in the eye. She had protested and tried to break free, but it would've only cause more damage. She had been absolutely sure her shoulder was broken, but all of the pain and fear she'd felt in that moment alone had been muted to silence by his one and only set of words.
"For the greater good, a new world shall be born from her ashes."
After he'd finished saying that, Mona had been flung back to reality upon being thrown into the flames, her bathrobe coming off in the process. The flames embracing her skin had immediately caused her to scream in pain, habing been unable to move or attempt to escape her searing agony. The pain had become numb to her over the long several minutes of having wished for death to greet and free her from the blaze drowning her, the smell of burning flesh and hair having permeated her senses to a point of suffocation.
Having become numb to the pain and ready to escape, she had collapsed and closed her eyes in surrender, only to have been awoken from slumber by Lisa, and leading to where she currently sits in a terrified state trying to catch her breath.
Upon seeing Lisa's face, Mona was absolutely sure she had been screaming in her sleep, disrupting the library's usual quiet ambience. Not only that, her eyes were also moist and puffy, proving that she had been crying as well.
That dream had been too real for her to just go home and rest. Now she definitely knew that her dreams had been telling her something.
She had felt the burns, her shoulder being crushed, and knew that the words the figure had said were not just a random manifestation of her psyche.
Something was amiss.
Therefore, she decided to bite the bullet and relay this information to Lisa, knowing that she couldn't solve this alone.
"Mona, are you alright?!" Lisa asked worriedly. "You were not only screaming as if you were in serious pain, but you're also sweating horribly!"
Mona attempted to catch her breath, using a free hand to wipe away the sweat pouring from her forehead. Her face was drenched so badly that it had stained her glove, furthering clarification that her "dream" was definitely something else beyond just a dream.
She worked quickly to calm down, managing to reach a stable condition after a couple minutes of performing proper tactics to calm herself down. This was by far the worst reaction she'd ever had to a nightmare in her entire life, which gave her the initiative to finally start explaining to Lisa why she'd ended up like this in the first place.
"I-I need your help," Mona spoke slowly. "Something isn't right, and my recurring nightmares over the past three nights have been trying to tell me something."
Lisa raised an eyebrow in confusion, having not expected that to be Mona's answer of all things. However, she decided to listen, due to the fact that Mona had clearly experienced something drastic before waking up.
"What do you mean?" Lisa answered, hoping to get more details that would give her a better idea of Mona's situation.
Mona then proceeded with explaining all that had occurred over the past three nights, making sure to include every detail to assure Lisa that she wasn't just making up nonsense. When she concluded the full explanation of her traumatic predicament, Lisa looked pale in the face. Being a witch herself, she knew of some of the particular occurrences that some may face, and she'd heard of something similar to Mona's case before.
"Alright, I think I know what's happening," Lisa answered, causing Mona to gasp in surprise. "However, if this is what I'm assuming, I fear that Mondstadt might be in danger."
Mona gulped at that, partially not wanting to know what may be the truth. However, the fact that it risked Mondstadt's safety made her just continue to listen.
"I fear you are experiencing a precognition, and, considering you are an astrologist with connections to fate and destiny, the messages could appear less as fantasies, and more like actual reality. If you could actually feel the burns, and have a dream inside of another dream, I believe it's a clear message or warning from fate itself. Therefore, I suggest you check your scryglass for actual confirmation."
Mona didn't have any better ideas, and knew well that Lisa had made a great analysis. Just like a gnosis allows gods to have connections to Celestia, she, having the knowledge and abilities of an astrologist, has connections to fate, destiny, and the universe. That could explain why her nightmares were so vivid and realistic, as much as point out that Lisa was correct with checking her scryglass for proper confirmation.
She decided to try it, hoping that nothing irregular or malicious would cross her path during the reading.
"Alright, I'll try it," Mona agreed, getting up into a proper posture to assure an accurate reading.
She summoned her scryglass with no issues and started to analyze, only to quickly become horrified at what she was seeing.
Fire.
Destruction.
Deaths of hundreds.
Mondstadt in ruins after the dust settled.
Everything was beginning to make sense, and, upon closing her scryglass, she turned to Lisa with a look of horror painted on her face.
"We must warn Acting Grandmaster Jean and the Knights of Favonius immediately!" she spoke with urgency. "Mondstadt will be attacked and destroyed in two days! We must prepare for a counterattack!"
Present day
"From there, Lisa and I went straight to Jean and explained everything. After that, Jean informed Kaeya and several others of the impending doom, and we managed to build a good defense plan against the attack. However, the attack was much more severe than we'd expected, leading to countless casualties and damage. Up until, a saving grace finally arrived to end the chaos."
Mona finished, her eyes averting from Yelan to Venti, signaling that it was his turn to start speaking. He caught the message, and, with a nod, resumed where Mona had left off.
"I had been resting at the Windrise tree when I spotted the plume of black smoke rising from Mondstadt," he started, his tone of voice more stern and melancholic. "As their god, I immediately rushed back to the city, only to see an endless amount of fire and chaotic warfare. What shocked me was that there were only three enemies fighting against Mondstadt's army of hundreds, yet they were somehow holding off all of the attacks as if it were nothing but a scratch."
"That's because they aren't human," Yelan intervened, causing Venti to jump in surprise.
"What do you mean?" he replied.
"These are the same things that attacked and ended Liyue Harbor's existence. They're machines fueled by the energy of gods that can absorb elemental power and use it to enhance their strength and abilities beyond that of even a god's. They were created by the Tsaritsa, and are being used to wipe out the existence of archons and their nations in hopes of recreating the world in a whole new way.
The only way to kill them is by brute strength or natural combat; Vision-infused attacks cannot be used against them, otherwise you will likely die in seconds."
Venti was slightly shaking in fear, completely dumbfounded by what had just heard.
"So, the Tsaritsa was responsible," Jean interrupted. "I feared that Mona's vision had something to do with the attack on Liyue Harbor, so I had ordered all of our soldiers that possess Visions to not use them in our defense. It seems my intuition saved Mondstadt from extinction, but, regardless, we still lost many lives."
"Don't blame yourself, Grandmaster," Yelan stated comfortingly. "It's because of you that Mondstadt will live to see another day. While many were lost, their deaths weren't in vain, because all of you are still here, alive and well."
While Jean was still hurt from the losses, a smile graced her lips at Yelan's words, knowing her comrade was right. Therefore, she expressed a look of assurance and said one thing.
"Thank you, Ms. Yelan. I needed to hear that."
Yelan nodded with her own smile, allowing Venti an opening to speak further on the events of what had occurred.
"Anyway, the battle had appeared to me as a stalemate, and I knew I couldn't beat them," Venti explained, continuing further on. "As a veteran of war, and having witnessed battles of high magnitudes, I knew I was outmatched. However, I knew one thing that could beat them, so I called them with a simple strum of my lyre. While he had originally retired from affairs of battle and relations to my duties as an archon, Dvalin couldn't watch the people of Mondstadt die.
Those monsters were no match for an elemental dragon, and were defeated in no more than three attacks."
Yelan gasped at that, shocked at the fact that these supposedly indestructible androids had been easily defeated with little effort by the Elemental Dragon of Wind. A spark of hope erupted in her chest, starting to finally see a potential way to defeat the Tsaritsa.
"I have one question, Venti," Yelan asked.
"Huh? What is it?" Venti replied curiously.
"During the entire duration of the elemental dragon's attacks, did it exhume any elemental energy?" Yelan questioned, hoping for her hypothesis to be true.
"Of course," Venti confirmed. "Dvalin used gusts to attack and kill them. The force was too powerful for them to handle, and the impact of the attacks shut them down instantly."
Yelan nodded with a wide smile.
"Thank you for confirming. Now I know that they can't absorb elemental dragon energy, and that's a perfect advantage against the Tsaritsa."
Upon that statement, everyone became fully aware of Yelan's hypothesis and exactly what she was going to say next.
"Venti, I hate to say this, but this won't be the last attack, and as long as you remain free to roam, you will always be in danger. Also, this attack doesn't just involve Mondstadt, but all of Teyvat, and, until we stop the Tsaritsa, this will just keep happening."
Venti nodded in full understanding, having read between the lines easily and knowing what she was asking of him.
"I know, Ms. Yelan, otherwise, Liyue Harbor would still exist," he assured. "I know exactly what you're saying, and must regret to inform you that what you are requesting is not my choice to make."
Yelan nodded, having expected this answer.
"I already knew that, so tell me what it will take to get Dvalin on our side of the matter we're all facing."
Venti took a moment to pause and think, and, upon collecting his thoughts to a point of being able to deliver Yelan a rational answer, spoke his response.
"You need to persuade and give him a reasonable motive to fight for the entirety of Teyvat."