Tenshukaku, Inazuma.
A small room down a long corridor.
Kamisato Ayaka kept glancing anxiously at the window. Since "Raiden Ei" returned from Yashiori Island, this cramped suite had become the only world she could move in. At every mealtime, Kujou Sara personally brought her food and left immediately afterward. No matter how loudly Ayaka called, Sara never once paused to meet her eyes.
When Raiden Ei confined Ayaka, he had spoken of locking up the high ranks of the Three Commissions. Ayaka had escaped imprisonment only because she possessed a copy of the diary. From that day on she'd been cut off from all news — each day stretched like a year.
Thankfully, before Sangonomiya Kokomi was suppressed, she fled Watatsumi and found Su Xuan, which set the thought of returning to Inazuma in motion. Ayaka knew full well that Su Xuan's arrival was her only chance to get out of this place.
She let out a heavy sigh. "I don't even know how my brother and the others are doing now. If only—"
After all, none of them but the diary-bearers had any guaranteed safety. A resolute Raiden Ei could kill on a whim. If things were truly like that, even if Su Xuan freed Ayaka, what would the future look like? How would she face what came next?
"Hey there, little one — what are you brooding about?"
A lazy, teasing voice snapped Ayaka out of her thoughts.
She looked up. A pink silhouette framed the doorway, smiling like mischief itself.
"G-God-… Guuji-sama." Ayaka's eyes, previously hollow, suddenly lit. "Guuji-sama."
"Tsk." Yae Miko laughed softly. "What could possibly occupy your mind so completely that you didn't even hear me open the door?"
"S-Sorry… Guuji-sama, I—" Ayaka stammered. Before she could explain, Yae Miko tossed a book across the room.
"I can guess what's troubling you," Miko said. "But worry not."
"Yag—no one's been dealt a fatal hand… for now." She gave Ayaka an appraising look with her foxlike eyes. "You still have a chance."
Miko's gaze traveled over Ayaka: good lineage, excellent qualifications, a dancer to boot — the white heron princess of Inazuma in the eyes of the people. "When that person arrives, if you do well, your family's matter will be small potatoes."
Ayaka, clever as she was, understood from Miko's few words the state of the outside world. At least those detained in the Yashiro Commission were not in mortal danger. And, by implication, releasing them would depend on Su Xuan's will.
"Isn't Mr. Su uninterested in meddling with internal governance?" Ayaka asked. "Would he even intervene?" Her eyes flicked to the book Miko had thrown.
One glance at that volume turned Ayaka crimson as a sunset; her legs squeezed together with a little gasp. "Guuji… Guuji-sama?"
Miko had expected her reaction. She'd risked a lot to procure this little manual on service and ceremony — a secret text. Even for the pink-haired fox, sneaking a read had made her heart race. For the naive Ayaka, it was devastatingly scandalous.
"Precisely because he won't interfere with statecraft, some things will rely on you," Miko said. "When he arrives, I'll find an excuse to bring you before him. After that, it's up to you." She grinned. "Little Kamisato, do Inazuma proud — don't let Liyue and Mondstadt show us up."
Ayaka blinked. …What did Liyue and Mondstadt have to do with any of this? Two seconds of thought later, her eyes trembled. "Guuji-sama, do you mean they—?"
"Oh my, I don't know that." Miko tapped her lip and sighed. "The Traveler and Paimon arrived in Inazuma on the starship last night. I'll be seeing them later." She stood. "For now, study hard — this is one of the rare secrets I risked to get."
…
The Death's Omen (the ship).
Shenhe woke slowly from sleep, stretching her lithe body with a contented sigh. "So comfortable…" she murmured. Ever since she'd been taken by the disciple of the Cloud-Retracing Lord, she'd never slept this well: nightmares or uneasy dreams always haunted her. That had been the curse of the red thread restraining the Solitary Star Calamity. Yet after last night's intensive training with Su Xuan, she'd slept soundly until dawn. A feeling of simple delight spread across her face as she glanced at Sangonomiya Kokomi beside her, still breathing softly. What lovely dreams must she be having?
At the sight of Kokomi's slightly upturned look from last night, Shenhe's composed eyes betrayed the smallest flutter. Maybe she had been affected in the same way. Perhaps a mirror would tell for certain.
The room Shenhe and Kokomi shared had been set aside by Beidou for Su Xuan — it used to be the captain's cabin. Beyond the door lay a small office for business. Shenhe left the room and found Su Xuan sitting behind the desk, cradling a little jet-black flame.
"You awake? Sleep well?" Su Xuan asked, smiling when he heard movement.
Shenhe nodded. "Very well. Only my legs ache a little; the wound still throbs." She paused, thoughtful. "But I feel different. Could it be from taking the Demon's Extract?"
Su Xuan pinched his brow. Shenhe's bluntness was something else. After a small cough he answered, "You'll adapt. I gave it to you while you slept."
"Ah." Shenhe's face relaxed. She felt relief. Su Xuan had claimed that even without powers from beyond the world, Shenhe could change her fate through time with him or the Traveler. But now that she'd been given that otherworldly power, the Solitary Star Calamity no longer held sway. She had been reborn.
"By the way, what was that black flame you just had?" she asked, remembering the ember that had burned in his hand. "A new power?"
Su Xuan said, "Yes. It's called Amaterasu — an unquenchable black flame."
Shenhe tilted her head. Su Xuan then explained how he'd pooled his recent draws and, possibly because they were nearing Inazuma, all the powers he'd been granted had a ninja theme: an unquenchable jet flame (Amaterasu), explosive clay that detonates (detonator clay), and the illusion that sends people into the mindscape, Tsukuyomi. Amaterasu and the detonator clay, combined with his Lost Sky magic, conferred on him resistances and a devouring regeneration: he could now "eat" ice, lightning, wind — even fire or earth — to restore energy and stamina. Tsukuyomi, being a mental illusion, let Su Xuan reach into another's psyche as long as he could sense them; mixed with telekinesis and mental sensing, it allowed long-range mind-traps. Of course, if the target's mental strength exceeded his, Tsukuyomi would fail. Useful, if imperfect.
"Unquenchable flame…black fire." Shenhe whispered. "I can't quite grasp your power. But may I ask something?"
"Go ahead." Su Xuan replied.
"Do you have a mirror? A full-length mirror. I'd like to see how I appear when I train." Shenhe admitted candidly: she'd watched Kokomi lose herself in practice last night but couldn't see her own changes.
For a moment Su Xuan didn't know how to respond — he'd expected questions about giving away powers or more metaphysical curiosities, not concerns about posture during practice. The world was getting weirder by the step.
"I have plenty in the storeroom," he said with a smile.
Shenhe nodded and pointed to the door. "Do you have time? I'd like to continue."
They were interrupted by a cool voice. Rosalyne swept into the cabin with an elegant sway.
"Sorry to intrude," she said. "Before he continues with you, I need a word."
Shenhe watched Rosalyne warily. "You're going to train too?"
"That won't take long," Rosalyne purred. "We can practice together; conversation helps the exchange."
Rosalyne blinked at Shenhe's serene openness. She quickly turned to Su Xuan. "Remember the Fatui executor who was charged with guarding the Heart of Inazuma? Scaramouche? What's his situation?"
"Scaramouche? How is he involved?" Su Xuan asked.
Rosalyne moved to Su Xuan, sat in his lap, and looped her arms around him. Shenhe observed each motion intently, as though storing them for later study.
"Scaramouche always treated Raiden Ei as a mother," Rosalyne said. "Your links with Raiden Ei are basically open knowledge now. So—do you claim Scaramouche as your son?"
Su Xuan choked. "Are you insane?" he hissed, pinching Rosalyne's thigh. He then complained in his diary: Early morning and Rosalyne's come to make trouble. She asked if I'd adopt Scaramouche as my son. What rotten luck. I can have children — many — but I don't want heirs. As an immortal, offspring mean little. And why would I adopt a manufactured puppet? If I wanted a child, Lisa could make me one from alchemy. And that loudmouthed Scaramouche? I'll hang Rosalyne and beat her until the Death's Omen docks. Yes, very fair.
Rosalyne recoiled as the others gaped — a spicy start to the day. Su Xuan's mood had plummeted enough that he'd used the same irritated phrase twice.
"Wait!" Rosalyne tensed in his arms. "Don't be hasty. Calm down. Have some tea." She continued, "If you don't care about his ties to Raiden Ei, then if he's in the way when I go to Inazuma next, I'll cut that bastard down."
—
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