Meraki

Part 3 Chapter 5: Vision of Inazuma

"Indulge my curiosity. What is the reason that I find you both standing here before me once again? Do you hope your foolhardiness will shelter those people? Or was it simply a means of seeking an audience with me?" Ei asked, glaring at Sying.

"The Fatui have deceived your Shogun puppet." Sying replied.

"Surely you didn't rouse me from my state of eternal meditation only to tell me this? If so, then you underestimate me. I am quite well informed about the Vision Hunt Decree and how it started." She said.

"You know everything that's going on outside?" Aether wondered.

"Not so. Only everything that pertains to eternity. The Vision Hunt Decree has my tacit approval. The Fatui's actions thus far do not constitute a threat to eternity, otherwise; they would have been purged long ago.

"But the Vision Hunt Decree is damaging and comes at a great cost to the people of Inazuma." Sying protested.

"Individual ambition is inherently incompatible with eternity. What you may not realize is that all too often; people have far more to lose by chasing their dreams. Consider this: no one will lose their life on account of having their Vision taken away. Rather, those who have lost their lives are the ones who insisted on pursuing their own aspirations, are they not? Aether, your existence is unique in my eyes. There seems to be limitless uncertainty in you. To put it another way, you are the furthest thing from eternity. So I won't insist that you comprehend the meaning of my actions. What matters is that I tread the path of eternity on my people's behalf." Ei spoke.

"This is your Plane of Euthymia. It is created by your consciousness, yes?" Aether questioned.

"That's right. I'm surprised you understand it so well. Anyway, you're looking to shake my will, aren't you?" She replied.

"We're not here to debate your ideas. We're here to demolish them." Aether declared proudly, pointing his sword at the Electro Archon. Sying smirked in response to the comment. He was finally going to fight his enemy.

"So be it. Well then, you who would defy eternity, time for you to enlighten me. And you, Astral, we will finally settle this." Ei announced.

"Indeed we will. You'll pay for killing Chao-xing." Sying snarled, changing into his "Archon form".

"And I will avenge my sister Makoto." She said, observing the two in front of her. Sying and Aether started the fight with a double attack. Flying Nova infused Electro blades. They hit the Shogun head on, but when the dust cleared, she wasn't hurt at all. Aether created shields for the two of them with Geo and Sying engaged in a sword fight with Ei. Whenever he could, Aether attacked their enemy and even made elemental reactions to Sying's Nova weapon. He knew that Sying was their best chance at staying alive, so he had to make sure he took the least amount of damage possible. However, as lightning came down from the sky, Ei decided that Aether was too much of an annoyance and targeted him. The Traveler wasn't given a chance to defend himself. It was one attack after the other, and there was nothing he could do to block. As her polearm came toward his stomach, it was blocked by Sying's sword. He kicked her away and sent a wave of Nova energy. Taking a chance, Aether ran forward and came down from above at the Shogun. Their weapons made contact as Ei's eyes glowed a bright purple. The Outlander was sent back toward Sying as Yae Miko appeared next to them.

"Dear me, aren't you cutting it rather close?" She wondered. Sying laughed to himself as Ei looked confused.

"Miko? This was your doing?" She asked.

"Now, now. Don't forget who taught you how to place your consciousness in objects." Miko told the Shogun before turning her attention to the adeptus and traveler. "You don't think your ambitions alone are enough to shake Ei's will? Do you? Though you two are here, they too have ambitions, which they long since entrusted to the both of you. Now then, close your eyes." Aether obeyed and as he heard the ambitions of the people of Inazuma, different colored stars lit the sky of the Plane of Euthymia. He glowed with a golden light and he heard a voice echo in his mind.

"Abolish the Vision Hunt Decree." It spoke. The sky turned a bright yellow as Ei drew her sword. Sying took charge of this fight and managed to let Aether get a few hits in. The Nova Archon lifted his sword into the air and dark blue light surrounded it. Soon, the light had made his sword bigger than it was before.

"This is for the lives of the Khaenri'ahns you killed and for my wife Chao-xing. And also, for the people of Inazuma you endangered." Sying yelled and unleashed his final move. Constellation Strike! The attack hit Ei from close range, and she was on the ground when the dust settled. "You have lost."

"Yes, I have." She admitted. Sying smiled and gave her a hand up.

"Why can you not trust your people, and in the power of their ambitions? These ambitions have transcended space and time. They are something that no one can snuff out." Miko said.

"When people move forward with all their might they can surpass the gods' expectations, and even take over the work of the gods." Aether spoke.

"Even so, eternity is the only way. We have seen what change has brought." Ei told the group.

"The Heavenly Principles are a bunch of irrelevant nonsense as far as I am concerned." Sying announced, crossing his arms. "I mean, all you're trying to do is protect Inazuma, like how I protected Khaenri'ah. However, the way things are progressing, a nation with no hope or ambition isn't really a nation that deserves to exist. If it were to disappear, no one would really miss it, would they?" The adeptus found a polearm pointed at his throat.

"Retract your words, Astral." She demanded. The Archon moved the weapon away with a smile. "Never changing eternity is the promise I made to my people."

"But what your people need from you isn't your promises. They want your attention; your divine gaze." Sying informed her.

"You mean Visions? And if you're going to criticize me about Visions, you could do a better job handing them out." She frowned. "And humans have a lifespan of barely a hundred years. They cannot afford to bear any extra losses. But I have experienced it all. That is why I have chosen to guide them along the correct path toward eternity."

"But eternity is far too cruel a fate for you, Ei. Not only have you stopped paying attention to the world, but you have stopped paying attention to yourself. It must have been terribly lonely here, all alone, for centuries on end." Miko commented.

"But it is necessary." Ei argued.

"You will miss much by refusing progress. You seek to prevent loss, but have you considered all you are losing by remaining here in stasis for all eternity. You are obviously lonely, and yet for the sake of eternity you choose to stretch your loneliness out to infinity. Tell me this. Why is the sky here that was once so dark glowing again? Why now? This is your Plane of Euthymia. It's your inner world. So it can only mean that you are happy to see me again. You have found the loneliness here unbearable for a long time now, haven't you?" The Shrine Maiden continued.

"I have nothing to say to that." Ei confessed.

"Aw, you were so lonely, even my presence makes you happy." Sying teased.

"You wish." She retorted, giving him a forceful shove. Ei looked over at Aether. "I will honor your wish to abolish the Vision Hunt Decree."

As promised, the Raiden Shogun abolished the Vision Hunt Decree. Finally, her people's wishes penetrated her locked heart. Beyond the Plane of Euthymia, she saw what eternity means in the eyes of the world. When one's fervent ambition burns brightly, the gods will cast their gaze upon you. Some ambitions have the power to heal wounds, to inspire hope, but some ambitions outlive their masters, long after the soul ascends. They remain as they were in the beginning; burning bright and true for all eternity.