雷電 。

hello,  this is an independent & private blog for ei / raiden shogun from genshin impact. adored by me,  thoaria / loki.  feel free to call me ari / aria / or whatever variation of my name you have in mind !  my carrd is right here.  if you’ve read the rules on my other blogs (  @/hyvoc & @/cindrelle  ),  i ask that you still read them here as there are some differences.

directory.

ic. asks. threads. musings. headcanons. ooc. visage. promo.

world building.

inazuma & foreign policy. alternate attendance. narukami’s wisdom,  joy,  affection,  valor.

( * headcanons will be updated / changed / crossed out in accordance with the information that is revealed during the inazuma arcs of the game. anything stricken out is something that i don’t take into account anymore but didn’t want to delete because i put time into writing it. )

THE RAIDEN SHOGUN is a personification & representation of the ei  /  beelzebul that had once existed.  though having a sweet side for her allies,  ei had undoubtedly been a hardened and ruthless general during the time that makoto had been alive.  this is the version of her that is reflected in the programming of the puppet,  minus the kindness she’d had the capacity to show others.  over time,  though she rested,  ei’s beliefs diverged from those of the shogun.  it was inevitable when one could grow and change while the other was locked in a perpetuating set of logic and could learn only in the capacity that a machine could.

regardless,  EI TAKES THE ACTIONS OF THE SHOGUN AS HER OWN.  she doesn’t forfeit responsibility and she should not be excused because she is out of touch with the world that now exists as a result of her actions  /  has been born due to her pursuit of an unchanging eternity.

what ei did not realize until recently was that her peaceful sister,  makoto,  had been right.  war would come no matter how hard one fought for peace,  it was simply one’s duty to protect their people when it happened.  there is no such thing as eternity.  there will be loss,  no matter what,  whether she is the cause or something else.  and that is something she needs to accept.

@gorarus​ said: "Bold of you to still be alive." Kokokokoko

        THE PUPPET IS OFT LOCKED AWAY THESE DAYS.  ei has instead chosen to take her dear friend’s advice and experience the world on her own.  the world that her actions have created,  the world that has become in the absence of the true archon:  makoto.  and it is at these times,  when she takes her walks,  that her most trusted general accompanies her for  ...  ei still finds it a tad embarrassing to ask miko.  after everything.

        she does not expect to find sangonomiya here,  but ei shouldn’t have been surprised  ---  access to narukami island had been granted to orobaxi’s followers.  where,  perhaps,  THE SHOGUN would’ve made the priestess kneel and cut her tongue from her mouth,  ei merely looks to her with indifference  ...  nose upturned.  maybe there are some similarities between her and her puppet,  then.

        “  bold of you to insinuate a desire for otherwise,  ”  she replies.  a subtle glance is sent her general’s way,  though,  kujou retains her decorum as always.

        the shogun would insist that all threats to eternity should be eliminated where they stand,  coding that was the product of the rage and grief still held by ei at the time of her creation.  at some point,  they’d diverged  ---  there are boundless exceptions to the archon’s logic now,  however,  at her core she takes responsibility for the beliefs she held then and holds now and their cost.

        based on that,  sangonomiya would’ve been dead had the shogun gotten it into her head to hunt her down.  the kagemusha of the past,  makoto’s general, even,  would’ve pursued the same end without relent.

        “  i look forward to working together to build a better inazuma,  sangonomiya.  ”

@eiennii said: Dark wings flutter at the sight of her grace, still young and innocent tengu teen , watched eyes wide as the almighty shogun paraded her way to her home - to meet her parents. Admiration sparkled on her golden eyes and for instant, kujou sara had found her purpose - like the loyalty of sasayuri to his queen, the fire on her heart burned, and she walked up to her - with determination, a small voice erupted on her in form of whisper.. " one day.. i'll serve you just like him.. "

        THOUGH WITHIN THE PERFECT VESSEL,  there are times when ei pauses in her meditation & takes the reigns  ---  this time,  it is because the familiarity of a tengu girl resounds so deeply within her.  ei knows not if this girl descends from her  (  makoto’s  )  finest general & dear friend;  still,  the archon can see it in the ombre of her hair,  the coloration of her wings,  the gold of her eyes.  even that poise,  so much like an inazuman lily.  she pauses in her stride,  ancient ears catching quiet oath.

        “  like him ?  ”  if this were the puppet,  she would not hesitate to crush the tengu’s dreams,  to destroy her ambitions long before they reach their apex.  but despite how memories of his smile,  his grace,  his death  ---  her pure white yuri,  stained crimson  ---  intrude upon her calm,  ei can’t bring herself to utter any admonition.  “  then train,  and train well,  young one.  heed the teachings of your clan.  that way,  you may become a powerful warrior.  maybe even my general.  ”  her eyes shift to the girl’s vision.

        “  after all,  you already have my favor.  ”

@bushina·   | |   ♡ 

✿   ❀   ✿     her dear friend was rethinking her concept of eternity and what that means to her. it was progress. and change. something she very much desired. yae miko would wait patiently for ei to come to understand that stasis was not the answer to eternity. inazuma would not wait, though. it would continue to change every day. the sooner ei reached her conclusion, the better. the nation desired the raiden shogun’s gaze.

                         she’s blessed to be able to share some time with ei today. being invited for a visit while ei contemplated her eternity was unexpected. however, she would not complain. if there was something she could do to help her friend, then she would. yae miko chooses to address ei casually as they chat. there is something she’s curious about. though she heard the traveler’s side of this tale, she would love to hear how ei felt.   ❝  i hear you had an intriguing outing with the traveler. how nice. you have never been on a date before, have you ei? what was it like?  ❞   yae miko teases her with no remorse and no reservations. there are not many who would dare, but she has no fear.   ❝  you have missed much. shall i continue to bring you.. up to speed? it will only take another century or so.  ❞

        LIGHTNING COMES INTO BEING IN A GLORIOUS FLASH  ---  it is a transient thing,  but unlike the humans that seek to relish in the fleeting shadow of their existence,  ELECTRO SEEKS PERMANENCE.  (  an absence of the fate reserved for the mortal coil:  to be cast aside,  discarded,  &  return to the earth that bore it.  this most noble body,  it will perpetuate forevermore.  perhaps that is the issue  ---  such a perfect automaton,  yet this shell was born of fear of the inevitable;  its existence is thus a misguided one for it has not the bravery to face life’s penultimate moment.  death, then rebirth.  end,  then beginning.  )

        ei has always thought there to be a LONELINESS in death.  as the world fades to black,  all that is left is the world within before even that sputters out, too.  a fickle flame,  in its wake is only despondence for the living,  who must shoulder the world without a person or people so dear.  in such a moment,  it’s two eternities that come to an end  ---  a life & a constant player on the world’s stage.  in this plane of euthymia,  there is no such EPHEMERALITY.

        ... but what of the loneliness of life ?

        “  date --- ?  ”  levin - quick surprise appears on typically stoic features, before it morphs into something like childlike indignance, & everything is as it was again.  courting, miko meant, and certainly as a joke.  “  it was an outing meant to help sort out my thoughts,  and nothing more.  ”  ei still isn’t too sure how to receive jokes ...  “  i don’t need to be enlightened about mortal courting rites.  ”  so much like the shogun there ... regardless, she doesn’t entirely mind her dear old friend’s teasing.  “  i suppose i should still be thankful,  though,  for the time away.  the world is not the same as it once was.  ”

        only yae miko is privy to her doubts.

        “  how could i think i could combat a foe like time ?  ”

i know that the shogun & ei are supposed to be separate with very little overlap in their personalities,  save for when ei takes control of the vessel,  but i’m going to be writing her with more of a subconscious influence.  she does feel things that ei would feel but she blatantly ignores them  ---  which is how,  like in one of her stories,  the shogun takes notice of the fact that ei’s ideals have changed.  there isn’t much overlap in their memories,  but there’s enough in their respective feelings that the shogun is aware of things that ei doesn’t openly relay to her.  the raiden shogun is supposed to be a perfect vessel,  however,  i don’t think that she can exist in this world without developing a sense for feelings over how long she’s existed.  not to mention,  it’s mentioned that she grants the wishes of kids to cancel exams sometimes  ---  whether this is coincidence or not,  i don’t know,  but something like that seems to be of ei’s influence and not necessarily the shogun’s.  if it is,  it only encourages the idea that the shogun isn’t as unfeeling as we think.

“Oh, please. Is there any truth left in the word ‘solitude’ for you and me? When our eyes have seen from one horizon to the other, and our feet have walked the same breadth? Isn’t all beneath the heavens filled with our memories, then?”

The tone with which he poses the question suggests there’s some sort of deep meaning to be found within the answer, but they both know he’s simply hamming it up. After a beat, a less pretentious posture takes hold, and the old dragon clasps his hands behind his back before strolling to Baal’s side.

“There’s no rest for the weary. Far less for the wicked. Time is such an ephemeral concept to us that I wonder if I’ve blinked more than twice since our brothers and sisters quarreled.”

He shifts; palm rises into her view, and sat upon the leather glove is a single, purple origami crane. It carries the scent of petrichor. 

An offering, or perhaps more appropriately, a gift. Even now, his sentimental nature shines through. 

Even while they quarrel.

“If reprieve is what you truly desire, perhaps I can pluck an old lullaby for you? Sing a tune from eons past? Or, at great risk to my blood pressure, lend you my ear?”

Her snark is finally reciprocated, but Kaito’s smile remains genuine.

        AN ECHO OF FONDNESS the raiden shogun is not meant or created to feel rings within her.  a remnant of the ei that meditates within.  they are not so dissimilar in moments like these,  when the lone pursuit of eternity is set aside.  the SHOGUN does not require leisure time,  hobbies  ---  but the part of her that is undoubtedly EI allows it to carry on subconsciously.  a flaw in the code,  an affront to her inner workings.  she is not meant to forget her mission.  the puppet is not meant to feel.  (  erosion,  erosion,  erosion.  )

        does he even notice what she is not ?  BEELZEBUL,  not baal.  the RAIDEN SHOGUN,  not ei.  how could anyone save for yae when ei has always existed  ---  willingly  ---  in and as her dear sister’s shadow ? until now.  the puppet doesn’t understand the notion,  doesn’t question it,  doesn’t want to question it.  (  rebooting ...  )

        she is ei’s willing servant.  she marches toward eternity.

        “  solitude is pointless,  then,  i suppose,  but i have no need for lullabies either.  there’s no time for such things.  ”  yet the shogun is here,  along the shore,  wasting time.  it had been as if something had willed her there.  ei.  and,  despite herself,  the archon takes careful hold of the crane.