hello i saw from your name that you might like lore-?
if you like genshin lore what are your thoughts on celestial nails?
ooooooo YES I DO like lore!
as far as we know right now, there's only 2. and both of the ones we DO know about are in pretty significant locations. The first on Dragonspine, and the second being in the Chasm. When we're looking at where each nail is, we also need to take into account how the land looks. We know that the first Celestial Nail was dropped onto Dragonspine, and the other ended up in the Chasm, but it was underground unlike the first nail. Using our evidence, we can possibly tell which nail was dropped first, and even tell how each nail was used individually. So let's take a look at Dragonspine first.
Dragonspine: The nail is broken into multiple pieces, and the land around is like a pit. This would make sense for the surrounding area to look like this. I like to think of the nail here as like a meteorite. When a meteorite hits the ground, it would make a dent on the ground it lands on IF it was large enough. Meteorites also never land on the Earth while being very large. Most meteorites that land only have 5% of the original remaining, so it would be rare to document something large. This fits regarding the state of the Dragonspine nail. The nail landed onto Dragonspine, but ended up breaking into smaller pieces on impact.
The Chasm: The nail in The Chasm is a bit different. This nail is completely intact and underground, but we don't know why this is. We're told that on the surface of the Chasm, Morax fought a battle where he used the stone pillars that are there to this day, so one would assume that the surface of the Chasm looks the way it does because of that. However, the pillars seem to be sticking in a general diagonal direction, and they don't really face a certain way. Meaning that these pillars are the result of the battle Morax fought, but not how the Chasm looks. Compared to the pillars, there are a multitude of cliffs that all face the same way, almost like they're rotating as well. Not to mention the entrance to the Underground Mines of The Chasm are in the very center of this rotation. The best way I can put this is that the surface if The Chasm looks like a hurricane. A hurricane's spin and direction are caused by the Coriolis Effect, which causes the path of fluids — everything from particles in the air to currents in the ocean — to curve as they travel across and over Earth's surfaces. But what would cause land to look the way it does. The nail in The Chasm was likely used like a drill compared to the nail on Dragonspine. This would perfectly explain why the Chasm looks this way as well as the nail being underground. The surface of The Chasm is the hurricane, and the entryway to the Underground mines is the eye of the hurricane. The eye being where the nail was placed, and when the nail was used as a drill, causing the surface to look like a hurricane. This would also explain why the Ancient City in the Chasm is upside down, since it would only be upside down if it WAS on the surface and drilled underground. However, that's a different subject.
What's also important is that both of these nails are located where ancient and forgotten cities are.
So now we can tell how each nail was used, but how do we tell which nail was used when? Well, we can't tell EXACTLY when each nail was used, but we might be able to know which nail was used before the other. Given how the first nail was dropped onto Dragonspine and broke on impact, I doubt Celestia would want to make the mistake of one of their pillars breaking again. So, they used the nail in The Chasm as a drill instead. This is only just a theory though, and there's really no evidence to back it up.
We also want to know WHY the nails were dropped where they were. For this, we want to take a look at the books left in the ruins of Enkanomiya, the ruins on Dragonspine, and the architecture of both Enkanomiya and the city in The Chasm, The books in Enkanomiya, made by the scribe of Istaroth, talking about the Primordial one and The Second Who Came, and when the Traveller and their Twin arrived to Teyvat.
The Primordial One and The Scribe of Istaroth: The Scribe wrote about the Primordial one, a god from another world theorized to be Teyvat's creator and fought a 40-year war against the Seven Sovereigns. The Primordial One also seemed to be pretty benevolent towards humans. Then the Second Who Came appeared and restarted the long-ended war. After the war, The Enkanomiyans tried to get back onto the surface. Unfortunately, their way was blocked, and The Scribe believed that the Primordial One sealed them in the underground, with only Istaroth responding to their cries. This seems like pretty unusual behavior for a god such as the Primordial one who views humanity so highly.
The Ruins in Dragonspine: I forget the name of it, but there is a specific claymore you can obtain by doing a quest in Dragonspine. In the room where you obtain the claymore, there 2 different paintings, 2 painings of each being on 2 of the walls. The first painting most likely depicts the Primordial One and Humanity, and the other seems to depict Celestia. In the painting, Celestia is depicted as a floating island in the sky. But we don't know if this is Celestia for sure, because what could be depicted is JUST the island or Celestia in it's entirety.
The Architecture of Enkanomiya and the city in The Chasm: I the second Traveller Archon Quest, Dainsleif points out that the Architecture of Enkanomiya is pretty much the same as the Architecture of Khaenri'ah, except the city in The Chasm is upside down. We also know from Ancient books in Enkanomiya that Teyvat was just one big civiliation with one culture, which ended uo changing after the war between The Primordial One and The Second Who Came. During this war, Enkanomiya fell into where it is today.
We also need to take into account the first cutscene of the game. This cutscene takes place during the destruction of Khaenri'ah, and the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles states; "The arrogation of mankind ends now." This could hint as to why Celestia dropped the nails.
Conclusion/Theory: gathering the evidence we have; we can finally come to a hopeful conclusion as to why the nails were dropped where they were. The conclusion I came to was that the nails were dropped on these ancient cities, as well as Enkanomiya being left underground, is for the same reason that Khaenri'ah was destroyed. We can start by going with what the Sustainer said about the arrogation of humanity. Celestia wanted the arrogation of mankind to end, so it would make sense that they would destroy any country that became too advanced. Hence, nails being dropped onto The Chasm and Dragonspine. But what about Enkanomiya? When we look at what The Scribe of Istaroth wrote, the entrance to the outside world was sealed off by the Primordial one. Think of it like putting away dishes in a cabinet. When you put the dishes away, this particular time they were put away in such a manner that they would probably fall. But to prevent that, you shut the doors to the cabinet and left the dishes be, thinking that it would be fine. But when you later go to open the cabinet, the dishes end up falling out. This is what Celestia did to Enkanomiya. They sealed Enkanomiya underground after they fell, thinking they would not make it back to the surface. But thanks to Orobashi thousands of years later, they did. There's also a second reason they could have done this, to get rid of evidence. When a murderer kills somebody, they want to hide the evidence that they did the murder as much as possible. In this case, the murderer is Celestia, and the victim is The Primordial One. Since these cities knew about the Primordial One and the war against The Second Who Came, Celestia likely killed the Primordial One and then got rid of the citieas that were too advanced or had a connection to the Primordial one, hoping to get rid of all evidence that there were gods before Celestia.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
A landscape of blue, white and grey, speckled by red infecting its ground and spreading to its ores. The core of it being a still beating heart hidden within the mountain, spreading life through its corrupted warmth.
The closest beings to a brother this heart has remained on this land warmed by him. Taking refuge in the caves scattering the mountain.
One, marked by the star of his creators' homeland. He wishes to understand humans and the world, valuing flaws, understanding that they are a vital aspect of humanity.
Whilst the other craves perfection, trying to erase any mark of failure, erasing the mark his twin brother bears.
Their creator abandoned one with a mission and left the other to return to source material through the once-maw of the mountain's heart.
While its brothers move, trying to achieve their goals, the beating heart remains warming this frosted land, wishing that a better fate befell it. Yearning to return to the skies and once again meet the other dragon who slayed him under a better situation.
This land these creations call home is a place many fear to travel. For its freezing temperatures, deadly landscape, and the many creatures which live upon it.
Amongst those few who travel through this land include a rare expedition team or two, trying to research the ancient history told through the mass of ruins littering it.
The friends and allies of the star-marked brother, amongst them are his two apprentices and a strange traveller that too is created from something different than many upon this land.
The final group is the many Fatui who have made camps on this mountain, which unlike most who visit these lands, find a sense of familiarity and home there. For the cold reminds them of their snow-laden home and dear Archon.
This land of frost and corruption of poisonous blood was not always this way. Before the heart of this land came to reside here nought could survive upon its frostbitten ground. No tree, plant or animal could thrive or survive there. But if you go even further back this land was far warmer.
Upon it was an ancient civilization erected to flee from a frozen land, their palace set upon the peak of the mountain. Within this kingdom resided a silver tree that is said to have granted powers of knowledge of the future to the princess of the land.
Eventually, a celestial nail descended upon this kingdom, sealing the tree and surrounding the kingdom in clouds and snowstorms across the once-lush lands. Despite the attempts to heal the land by the people of this kingdom, nought succeeded and eventually, the kingdom was no more.
The princess died trying to preserve part of the silver tree, the head priest perished trying to climb the summit to ask the heavens for guidance, and the kingdom's scribe tried to heal the ley lines, only to discover they had already withered. He layed the princess to rest and then he too eventually died, cursing the heavens and the hero who he thought abandoned them.
Although, the hero had not abandoned the people of this city, having been given a quest by the princess to find a way to save them elsewhere. But in the end, his search failed and when he returned to the kingdom there was nought there for him but the dead. He lay to rest his sword in a tomb upon this mountain and left for a land of war and blood.
The silver tree did one day reawaken, although not the same as it once was. It craves sustenance from the force that awoken it, the corrupted power of the mountains dragon heart. In memory of its lost people, the now silver and red tree grows a single fruit, to be used as a catalyst for justice upon the world.
