Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Ei upon returning from her meditation in the plane of Euthymia and sending Traveler off to the land of wisdom to speak with the Dendro Archon. Was going through old reports– they weren't that old, only 2 decades had passed since they were filed and now but that wasn't important, what was however, was the fact that it had asked for both military assistance and funds.

When she had brought it up with the Tri-Commission they had told her that the Ubuyashiki clan had filed these reports three separate times, with intervals spanning roughly 35 years between each submission. The implications were clear: the threat had not been eradicated, merely suppressed. And had asked if she wanted it to be further investigated.

She told them not to push it off to the side but that the Fatui was to be the main priority for the time being. She then went to see Miko for her opinion which she had laughed at and pointed her in the direction of Kamisato Ayato who said that this was the first time he's heard of the matter and recommended that she talk to an adventurer or Katherine if she's looking to investigate further. That's how she found herself sitting in Komore Teahouse waiting for Kuki Shinbou.

“I received your letter, you needed to speak with me? Shogun-sama”

“Please just call me Ei” she smiled ” We have much to discuss”

---

“Unfortunately I don't have any more information.” she smiled sadly. ”My travels on Amarashi were brief even with the Arataki gang.”

“Ah, well thank you shinbou-san if you find anything else contact me” Shinbou nodded and promptly left. Ei had spent the past few weeks trying to tie the very obvious link between the missing people and this ‘slayer corps’. The information provided by Kuki Shinbou had done little to help but it was better than nothing. Kuki Shinbou was one of the few adventurers to have traveled to most islands in the nation, let alone venturing back to Liyue and returning.

The Arataki gang was always traveling, they mostly stayed on Narukami but sometimes ventured to others. The rumors and sightings Kuki had experienced would greatly help with the investigation. Amarashi was twice the size of Narukami, the topography was very diverse with tall mountains and thick forests. there were many small port towns and many villages scattered about. The island was easily home to at least half of the Inazuman population, so the increase in missing or murdered person reports was a growing concern for her and the Tri-Commission.

Since the Tri-Commission was putting the investigation of the Fatui on top priority. She decided she would travel to Amarashi to investigate herself.

Chapter Text

Having told the Tri-commission that she was leaving to investigate, they had been hesitant but they gave her some Mora for the trip. She had left the nation's affairs in the hands of the Tri-Commission and Yae Miko. mostly Miko but that was the finer details. She had taken a short boat ride to Kujou Encampment on Kannazuka before going to the second boat to take her to Amarashi.

The boat ride was tranquil as not many people were going to Amarashi but rather leaving. By the time the boat had stopped in a small town, it was already twilight. She got a few odd looks from onlookers when she passed some of the busier areas which she decided to avoid. Sticking to the alleys and remaining alert she continued looking for the house the Tri-Commission had rented for her ‘trip’.

She was about to enter the courtyard when she heard a shrill scream from a connecting alley behind her—sparing no time she had her polearm ready and ran off to find the origin of the scream. She found a man hunched over a child biting into her arm. Disgusted, she allowed the Shogun's judgment to sway her actions and advanced quickly as lightning to cut off the man's hand holding down the child. When the minute she was free she ran off wailing. The scum whose hand she had cut off had turned to look at her with a manic look in his eyes. His hand which she could have sworn she had cut clean off was starting to reform.

“You bitch! That was my food!” he snarled. And charged at her.

She gracefully sidestepped leaving him unbalanced as she brought her polearm up cutting through his neck. Which fell to the ground, he or rather it, as this thing was still spewing insults and curses at her even with his head severed from its body.

“Flashy blade work, but that won't work unless you have a Nichirin blade.” she turned to face both the head and the tall white-haired man.

“Why Nichirin?” she inquired

“It's the only metal that will keep a demon from regenerating its head”

“I see”

Speaking of the demon it had found its head and was trying to connect the two. just before it could start attacking them the white-haired man had brought out his two blades and swiftly decapitated the demon. This time the head was disintegrating into ashes.

“How exactly do you get one?” she asked.

“You’d have to pass final selection,” he responded. “But first you’d need a hand-me-down blade to even stand a chance. Regular steel has no effect on demons. But I'm sure they might have a spare on Mount Fujikasane for you” he had re-sheathed his dual blades and placed them on his back.

“I see.” she let the information sink in.“Thank you for helping” She did a small bow.

“It's my job, Besides I couldn't let such a flashy woman be injured on my watch” he laughed.

“What exactly is your job?”

“I'm a demon slayer. Tengen Uzui; Sound Hashira One of the nine pillars” Tengen responded sounding a little smug.” and your name is?”

“Raiden Ei”

“Such a flashy name” he grinned “Well I best be off the townsfolk need me. I hope to see you around Raiden-san” he jumped off the ground and disappeared into the night.

She sighed Mount Fujikasane was halfway across the island from where she was. She would have to leave now to make it there in time. Luckily the body she was using or rather the puppet’s body didn't need sleep as often as normal people would. She tracked down the house again to grab the extra bag of Mora the Tri-Commission had placed there for her to use during her stay. She set out with her blade, Mora, and vague directions.

Chapter Text

Ei had arrived exactly just before the exam. She had to climb up the side of the mountain and pass into a wisteria forest. The tree was special to Amarashi as it only grew on the island. She soon came across a clearing, there were two young girls in matching kimonos and wisteria headpieces. They seemed to be in charge. They did have an extra katana for her to use, it wasn't the best and she certainly would have liked to use hers. The handle was old and the blade was chipped.

She was one of seven people, who had better swords and more suitable clothing; however, she only had one outfit choice at the moment; they all seemed very mature and had strong wills. She turned to face the two girls who had taken their places beside two pillars.

“Final Selection will now commence,” the white-haired girl said

“This will last 7 days. The top of the mountain is filled with low-ranking demons caught by members of the corps “ her sibling chimed in.

” You must survive the seven days and make it across the mountain to the other clearing by the seventh sunrise”

—

She tightened her grip on the old katana, she just heard a gut-wrenching scream from somewhere on her left. The second scream was cut off before they could continue. She had jumped up into a tree to get a look at her surroundings when she saw a rather ugly demon run by sniffing the air like a feral animal. She would have rather dealt with more Ronin than this mess. She was about to let the Shogun handle the whole 7 days when a girl came running into the clearing she was above. sobbing and screaming.

“Please! Don't kill me!” she had tripped on a stray root and fell to the ground. Moments later two demons- one green and one blue, had followed from where she had run from. The green was holding which she could only assume was her katana. The other was taunting her.

“Now why would we do that?” he sneered, licking his lips.

“Yeah you're helpless and we haven't eaten in years!” the green one added, dragging out the word ‘years’.

She felt like striking them with lightning for that alone. She jumped down without a sound behind the still sobbing girl who was calling for her mother now. She spared no time in bringing the katana in a swift cut to the upper right catching both demons off guard and decapitating them.

The heads fell and they sputtered for a second before shouting insults at both her and the crying mess behind her. They soon completely burned away into ash and got blown away by the wind. Leaving only the katana behind. The girl had stopped her wailing to literally grab her leg to thank her.

“Oh my Archons, thank you! ” she had her leg in a surprisingly strong grip.

“Ah...no need to thank me.” She tried to pry her off but she refused.

“Nonsense, without you I would have died” she retorted, ”you're my savior!” she had sparkles in her eyes and was recounting every cool thing she had done, which according to her was everything. The girl let her arms loosen and she took the opportunity to get her leg back.

“Well you should probably take your katana with you” She extended a hand to her to pull the girl up. Which she took and dusted herself off before squatting down to grab it.

“Well I suppose I'll get going,” she said after a moment then jumping away. She let the shogun run things for the next few days, lingering in the back of her mind, making sure the Shogun did not make rash decisions. Before she knew it the 7th sunrise was upon her.

She had made her way to the clearing they were instructed to report to in the beginning. She arrived to find that she was the only one to survive. She was with the same two girls from the beginning.

“Congratulations, ” the white-haired girl spoke.

“We’re pleased to see that you're safe,” the black-haired one continued. Her sibling clapped twice and a crow flew out of the surrounding trees. she raised her right arm allowing it to land.

“We will now assign you a Kasugai Crow. They are used as a mode of communication,” she explained.

“There are 11 ranks in the Corps, you will start at Mizunoto,” the black-haired sibling said. she could assume it was the lowest.“Since you are now a recognized member of the corps you will receive a new sword. If you would please come up to the table and select your Nichirin Ore.” she finished.

She walked towards the table, her crow flapping to land on her shoulder. Her heels clicked slightly on the stone tiles. She approached the table. There were 7 chucks of ore, she held out her hand and felt for the electro in the air.

“This one” she had pointed to a chuck that had a light purple hue. “May I request a Polearm instead?” she inquired.

“Certainly”

“You will receive your uniform and polearm a day after tomorrow and your first mission by the end of the week, you are now free to go,” they said in sync. She turned to leave as the crow had flown off towards the west. She went to find the nearest town and she planned to eat a few sweets in her time off.

Chapter Text

Ei stared at the uniform with barely hidden disgust. the uniform- if you could even call it that- consisted of a long-sleeved button-up shirt and a pleated skirt. It was made with a special, fire-and-slash-resistant fabric. The shirt had a large opening on her chest, and the skirt was so short she might as well not wear it. She eyed the Kakushi who had brought it to her. who was daydreaming over the chance of her trying it on.

“Absolutely not. ” she spat. The Kakushi broke out of his stupor to splutter.

“What! Why not!” his blush wasn't gone, but Ei couldn't tell if it was from embarrassment or from the thought of her putting it on. She stared at him and then at the shirt.

“I will not be wearing this,” she repeated, throwing the uniform back at him. “Get me an actual uniform. Not whatever that was,” she said.

“That is the actual uniform!” he sputtered. Her gaze grew stormy, and the sky darkened, and thunder sounded above. The Kakushi jumped at the sound. “I-I’ll go make another one right away!” he squealed and quickly left. She sighed, turning back to sharpen her polearm.

“Well, you certainly instilled fear into him” a man's voice sounded from outside the door. “May I come in?”

“You may '' she replied. The door slid open to reveal a man wearing a red mask and an abnormal hat. He was holding a long wooden box. She suspected it had the polearm she had requested.

“A polearm is an odd choice, most slayers use swords' ' he said, removing the cover to grab the polearm. It was almost the same as her Engulfing, but instead of a steel blade, it was Nichirin. And the handle was very basic. He offered it to her which she took the blade flickered between black and purple before settling on a dark purple.

“I've seen a variety of colors but, never seen that color before,” he said after a moment.

“The colors have meaning?” she inquired. The swordsmith nodded and made a move for the door. She sighed and went back to observing the polearm. It had a few details and looked very plain. She was interrupted by the landing of a crow on the edge of the window. The crow inclined its head for a brief second. Then shouted

“Caw! Demon reported on the south side of town!” it flapped its wings, jumping a little before continuing, “Master asks for it to be disposed of quickly!” it inclined its head again.

“Thank you” Ei responded, she figured she should name her crow. She turned to face it mulling over names; “I shall name you Sora” Sora only squawked in response and flew back out the window.

Ei figured she could fight in her modified kimono once more and grabbed her nichirin polearm. She quietly left the room with the polearm in one hand and a bag of mora to get more sweets. When she returned in the other she turned down the hallways till she reached the front entrance of the inn. Since the inn was located in the northeast region of the town she didn't have to run far. She ducked into a side street and jumped up onto the roof and started running.

She heard it before she saw it, that's for sure. She heard the ear-piercing shriek coming from her right and she jumped over to the next row of buildings to reach the area. She saw a man in his late 20s being chased by a ma- no demon, the horns on its head and the blood running down its chin and clothes gave that away.

She leaped off the roof and landed in a space before the demon caught it off guard. Before it could react or attack her she advanced, swinging the blade through its neck and earning herself a rather creative string of curses. She flicked the polearm to rid it of any blood that had stuck to the metal. And returned to a fighting stance, she waited till the demon's head and body disintegrated to ash to turn around to face the direction where the man had run, only to find nothing. She sighed and jumped back up to the roof to inspect the nearby areas.

She was relieved to find nothing. She headed back to the shopping district looking for a stall that sold sweets. A few minutes and about 25,000 mora later she had a small bag filled with sweets. She had even found some candied Bulle fruit from Fontaine. She quickly walked back to the inn. She had a small chat with the kind old lady at the front desk about extending her stay and then walked back to her room.

Chapter Text

The wind ruffled the leaves of a nearby tree and Ei pulled a piece of her hair out of her mouth. She shifted in her uniform; a long sleeve button up and a knee length pleated skirt. She had packed her original outfit away in a small bag she had purchased a few hours prior. Her crow had told her that her next assignment was only a few towns over.

Normally she would leave her meager belongings in the Inn and simply run to the village or town but the only problem this time was the very tall mountains that separated the villages. So, she could only part ways with the kind receptionist and the delicious candy stalls.

The Archon sighed and turned towards the foreboding mountains; a slight feeling of unease settled in her mind.
—----------
She had come across a small village deep in the mountains, the houses had clearly seen better days, yet the limited shops sold well preserved meats and vegetables or charcoal. All the villagers seemed wary of her but not hostile, probably the uniform she guessed. She asked around and it seemed like a few young men had gone missing in the past days.

Ei assumed it was the work of a demon, since most abyss monsters would feed off the Key Lines this high up. She would simply have to wait till nightfall. She planned to rent a room for the night in a nearby Inn while asking around for any information.
“Oh they were lovely children, so helpful and full of life no one had a problem with any of them.” Rei Tanizaki, an old wife of a fisherman, had given her a lengthy speech about the four young men who were killed, and of the widowed young woman who had recently moved up.

“Well, I'm certain Yuki-san is a wonderful lady, Tanizaki-san, but I really must get back to my room-”

“Nonsense dearie you'll come eat with my Husband and I tonight, it's not often we see that uniform you know.” The Archon could only follow as the old but strong woman pulled her towards what Ei could assume was their home.

“Oh, Hanta we have a slayer joining us for dinner!” Rei called out as she slid the door open, revealing a man and young girl with pale skin, short white hair and red eyes.

“Oh, Rei darling, I found this girl outside just a moment ago” he said while handing her a small bowl of steaming fish soup, which she took a small sip of. Ei closed the door behind her.

“Oh you old man, you always did have a bleeding heart.” Rei remarked walking into a side room to retrieve a warm pair of clothes for the girl. Ei stood awkwardly by the door. Before Hanta gestured for her to come sit.
“Come on now it's not often we have a slayer visit our small village.” Hanta said, carrying some seaweed and steaming bowls of soup to the table. Rei was handing the pair of clothes to the white haired girl.
“There must be a reason, please tell us.” he added setting down the chopsticks in front of her

“Don't be rude Hanta, didn't you hear about the murders a night ago?” Rei huffed sitting on the opposite side of the table from him.

“I did but I figured it was just the work of a rift hound, not those creatures.”

“This is why I don't let you greet guests, I bet you didn't even ask the poor girl for her name.” she said exasperated.

“my names Mukago,” she said shyly, staring Ei in the eyes. If you asked Ei later what she’d noticed as strange she would have said her eyes flickered to show the words ‘Lower 4’ in olden inazuman characters. Or maybe the fact she could have sworn she saw two bright red stripes on her cheeks, two horns on her head and the sharp teeth of a demon.

It was probably these factors that Ei narrowed her eyes causing the demon to lash out and grab Rei by the throat, jumping back against the wall and shuffled toward the door, hissing in a clear silent threat of “not a sudden move for she gets it” not that it stopped Ei, being the Embodiment of Lightning, the Archon of Eternity, welder of the Musou no Hitotachi, meant she moved as swift as lightning itself.

In a literal flash Ei had manifested a storm and the Musou Isshin and lunged, cleanly cutting the arm holding Rei and the head of the demon, she returned Rei to her husband briefly hearing his panicked and relieved thank you’s, she turned her head looking at the crumbling head and body behind her and fully turned raising her chin as the head spouted curses and empty threats.

“My master won't take kindly to this! He’ll kill you!” she spat fury growing on what remained of her head.

“I doubt your master could kill an archon, let alone one who's lived for as long as I,” Ei said, her eyes lighting up reflecting the storm's fury around them.

It wasn't till long past the dust from the former lower moon 4 demon had seeped into the ground did she feel Rei’s hand on her shoulder.

“We thank you, Great Electro Archon-”

“Please call me Ei” the archon cut Hanta off with a simile

“Well, Ei, if you’d still like to stay with us we’d be more than happy to have you ” Rei said getting to work fixing the room, Ei dropped down to help them, barely noticing her crow before it jumped and flew south, leaving Ei in the worn but warm home of the Tanizakis.