Genshin Impact: Following the Winds

Their swords clashed, and the world exploded with gold and lightning. The ground shattered beneath them, soil thrown into the air, swept away by the ensuing shockwave. The samurai surrounding them quickly retreated, now seeing that their enemy was one that only their lord could potentially ward off.

In the midst of it all, Lumine hid a grimace as pain shot up her arm.

From the moment their swords met, she knew she would lose against Ei. She might be physically stronger due to her travels, but the sealing of most of her powers wasn't one she could make up with brute strength alone. She could see why many people feared when she told them that she'd be the first line of defense against a potential invasion—Baal was just that strong.

Yet, she smiled. Smiled brightly, even. Her heart pumped with adrenaline she hadn't felt in what felt like eons. To face an enemy that was stronger, to have to rely on underhanded tactics to achieve victory.

She chuckled. How nostalgic. How long had it been since she felt this way?

Raiden Ei watched her opponent with narrowed eyes. For her to laugh in such a situation, and for to meet her sword with strength that surpassed her own—that was the mark of a high-tier god. Her opponent was not someone she could treat lightly, lest she face defeat.

Eyes glowed as their thoughts matched.

I cannot hold back.

Lightning flashed, and Ei's blade snaked forward at impossible speed. It wasn't a strike many could avoid, and yet Lumine did—letting the sword sail inches past her ear, causing her blonde hair to sizzle slightly. Ei's eyes widened in slight surprise, though it didn't stop her from defending when Lumine suddenly slammed her foot forward. 

The winds bent as Ei was sent flying back, before stabbing her sword into the ground to slow herself. Ei took a bated breath as she stood up, the arm she used to defend shaking slightly.

Lumine took a breath. Most of her strength might be gone, but her Skills were still there. Her [Observation Haki] informed her of Ei's strike whole seconds before it came, and though she wasn't a master of [Armament Haki] like her brother, she could apply just enough to make sure all her attacks hurt.

It wasn't just that, of course.

She lunged forward, her sword glowing like the sun as she clashed with the goddess. The earth was torn with every clash they made, and the hiss of metal echoed across the air as sparks fell onto the earth. 

Every time her sword met Ei's, lightning would snake through her body, burning her from the inside. She could've avoided it had she simply avoided Ei's attacks. And she could've certainly done so—her [Observation Haki] would've allowed her to dodge most of Ei's attacks if she followed its advice.

But that wasn't it. She wasn't just trying to win.

Every time that Electro burst into her body, Lumine allowed it. Practically welcomed it like an old friend. And once the Elemental Energy thought it had a free path towards her heart, Lumine clamped down on it and locked it down as best as she could. Used what little of her own powers left to strangle the energy and consume it.

Honestly, Lumine was surprised Ei hadn't noticed it yet. Their swords had met dozens of times at this point. Surely she must've noticed, right?

She was wrong.

What Lumine didn't know was that Ei was simply that stubborn. She thought the slight weakening of her strength was simply her tiring, and she silently chided herself to keep training. Moreover, the new body she'd received from Makoto was one she was still adjusting to, and so she didn't realize that something was amiss.

A perfect storm.

By this point, minutes had gone by since their swords first met, and it seemed like they could go on for hours more. The samurai Ei had brought could only watch in horrified awe as their enemy not only met their Lord head on, but was seemingly holding her ground against the god that had killed hundreds of the divine.

The landscape was completely ravaged. Entire hills were blown to smithereens, and what little grass the salt-bleached island had was charred back by the rising temperatures. Deep gouges were now scattered all across the area, rendering it inhospitable to life for years into the future.

Through it all, Lumine kept ravenously consuming Ei's Electro, absorbing them whenever they thoughtlessly entered her body to harm her. With every bite, she converted that Elemental energy back into the sun-like warmth that coursed in her veins, regrowing the strength that'd been sealed away by the Heavenly Principles.

Then, Lumine's power finally recovered to its first threshold.

And Ei was forced to shield her eyes as her opponent suddenly glowed brighter than the sun. A pillar of white and gold arose to the clouds like a javelin against the heavens, brewing with power. 

A moment later,

Ei's instincts rang, and she spun around and saw Lumine suddenly behind her, a sly smirk on her lips as her leg burnt with smoldering sunlight. "Hey," she casually began, eyes gleaming gold. "Ever been kicked at the speed of light?"

Ei didn't get to answer. Lumine's leg moved too fast to dodge, and Ei gasped in pain as Lumine's leg slammed into her abdomen. Her back arched, before she went flying back at such speeds that a giant explosion arose when she slammed into the ground. The sheer strength of Lumine's kick left her buried nearly a meter into the ground.

The samurai gaped. Their Lord had been hit!? It was a sight they never thought could ever occur, and made them realize that the enemy was someone who could've destroyed Inazuma had they wanted to. The samurai who'd been particularly vocal against her could only kneel and pray that she would forget.

As for Lumine, she hissed slightly as she brought her leg down. As flashy as that was, the recoil was no joke. Her leg was probably going to bruise tomorrow, assuming Venti didn't just use his healing of course. And though she'd been quippy, her kick wasn't moving at light speed, no matter how much she wished it was.

Still, thanks Borsalino, you lazy bastard. That was the one cool line he had, at least.

"So, that enough?" Lumine called out, resting her sword lazily on her shoulder.

Her answer came in a giant burst of lightning, followed by Ei burst out from the ground, her eyes blazing purple.

Lumine sighed. "Course not." She shrugged. "Oh well."

Their battle continued, but things had shifted. Ei was far more careful, now realizing that her opponent's strength was far more than she anticipated. For the first time, the threat of truly losing hung in the back of her mind, and that caused her heart to spark with a dark emotion she couldn't identify.

On the other hand, Lumine had only grown more lax. Not careless—of course not. Rather, every strike she met only caused more Elemental energy to enter her body, which meant more food to regrow her powers. The longer this battle went, the easier things got for her. 

And honestly? Raiden Ei's swordsmanship was basic. Outright rudimentary even. Stripped of all the flashy effects, the way she swung her sword was no different than relying on brute speed and strength. There was none of the sharpness her sword carried, or the grace Venti's sword had. Just pure, directed power.

Lumine's excited smile dimmed slightly. The underhandedness of this fight had felt so fresh at the beginning, when she was faced against an opponent she couldn't defeat head on. But now?

Her eyes narrowed. It was becoming clearer by the second. Baal might've been called a War God, but her skill paled in comparison. Compared to Morax's millenia of experience, she was practically a fledgling. Hell, if Venti allowed himself to use all his might, he would surely attain victory as well.

Disappointing.

Disappointing.

Before long, Lumine's energy recovered to its second threshold. Another burst of sunlight arose from her, rising towards the clouds. Ei didn't flinch this time, and she quickly surged forward to strike. Only to then find her momentum halted, and incapable of movement.

She quickly looked back, and her eyes widened as she saw the golden chains that now bound her arms and legs. They seemed to have risen from thin air itself, forming from golden portals to shackle her. She tried freeing herself, but her Electro was completely absorbed whenever it hit the chains

Lumine sighed, somewhat thankful her idea worked. She wasn't sure what to do when her energy reached a new apex, and decided to borrow a certain golden king's chains as inspiration. Thankfully, it worked, and now she had a goddess in chains.

Time to finish this.

Ei watched in confusion as her enemy stabbed her sword into the ground, leaving it behind as she approached her. That confusion shifted to mounting dread as Lumine cracked her fists, eyes narrowing in what could only be annoyance. It was similar to the gaze Makoto would send her way whenever she did something wrong, and it made her chest feel tight.

"I can tell you're young." She began, voice stern and sharp. Ei shivered. "But that doesn't excuse your actions. If I hadn't been here to stop you, you could've slaughtered hundreds of people. Hundreds of innocents." She scoffed. "And you probably wouldn't even care, huh?"

Ei shook. She wouldn't. And even now she wouldn't feel anything. For what reason should she care for mortals? She didn't understand her sister's fascination with them, especially with how annoying and fussy they could be. Why couldn't they just let her be in silence? Why did they have to make demands of her and her sister?

Lumine sighed. She could tell her words weren't getting through. Oh well, that was fine. As her Papa used to say,

The best lessons are learnt the hard way.

She stomped her foot down. The ground shook and shattered beneath the impact. And Ei watched with wide eyes as Lumine's fist began glowing. More and more motes of light gathered around her fist, and before long it looked as if Lumine was holding a second sun in her hands.

"Hey, lil' sis."

Ei looked up at Lumine with shaking eyes. Lumine returned a feral smile.

"Catch these hands."

Lumine's fist flew forward at insane speeds, and slammed into Ei's cheek with no remorse. Energy leached into the air, expanding outwards as a ball of light. The chains that held Ei down rattled due to the force, before they shattered outright. And then Ei went flying, turning into a blur as she smashed into the ground. She gouged a small gorge nearly five meters long before she finally stopped.

Ei gasped as her consciousness returned. She'd fully blacked out when that attack came, and even now she could barely think as she struggled against the immense pain. Her body, still just recently created due to Makoto's authority, struggled to process everything it'd just experienced.

And so, silence returned to Watatsumi Island. The thundering clouds parted as Ei's control faded, and sunlight fell back onto the island. Gentle winds began blowing once more, carrying the scent of Spring.

Her enemy defeated, Lumine took a deep breath to refresh herself. And to endure the stinging pain in both her hand and leg. That-, was definitely too much. She'd pushed herself far beyond her current limits, and she'd probably need to rest even after Venti healed her back up.

Ah well, she was fine with that. Beating down that dull-faced child was still kinda satisfying.

So, she turned back to the terrified samurai and smiled gently. "So, who's next?"

They stared in silence. After all, what could they offer against that!? They'd just watched their Lord be defeated, and now her opponent was facing them with a calm smile, as if she hadn't even tried! 

So they did the one thing they all knew.

They all fell to their knees, pressed their foreheads into the dirt, and prayed. "Please, we beseech of thine's mercy, Kami-sama!"

…

Lumine's eyes twitched as she looked up at the sky. Inazuman spoke like ancient Japanese, so it wasn't hard to realize what they said. "Sorry Venti." She whispered, smiling wryly. "Seems like our 'disguises' might not hold for much longer."

Though no one replied, she could feel a gust of wind fly past her ear, almost as if Venti was assuring her that it was fine.

Which wasn't really wrong.

From the peak of the mountain close to the people's new camp, I smiled wryly as I lowered my bow. Seems like Lumine now suffered the same thing I did. I'll make sure to reward her with a good bundle of the most prized Sublime Peaches when she returns. She definitely deserved it.

That aside,

[Recalibrating Physiological Defense against Absorption…]

I snorted. "Wow, Lumine must've really spooked you, huh?"

The Genshin System offered no words in return, but the answer was clear. 

I could only giggle.