The Shrine Maiden and The Embodiment of Scarlet Devil
Chapter 1
Reimu Hakurei
Hatsukaichi, Japan
Hiroshima Prefecture
They were two foreigners in a strange land. One was from the United States of America while the other was from the United Kingdom. The land was indeed strange to them since it the first time they had ever came to this part of the world. Yet, all around them they could see that the country was still in a state of change.
Since the day Commodore Perry had came to Japan in order to open its trading ports, the country had be changing from the inside out for nearly the last sixty years, adopting western customs and traditions while still keeping its cultural identity. The transition into the modern world was not easy, for the famous samurai who had followed the shogun for so long would not accept change and would rather die than give up their power.
The year was now 1902. The visitors was mesmerized by the beauty of the country in the season of spring. The sakura trees bloomed their pale pink petals and the grass was much greener than they had imagined. Soon they passed through the young city of Hatsukaichi, which was alive and cheerful. First founded in 1889, the city was an example of Japan entering a new age.
After they were through the visitors were see the torii of the famous Itsukushima Shrine in the distance, standing on top of the water as though it was raised by the Shinto gods. This place would definitely become a tourist attraction in the future, but the visitors were not here as tourists.
They were Christian priests representing Christian orders from their respective countries and they were here on a mission. Their destination was the Itsukushima Shrine itself.
The western style carriage, lent to them by the mayor after their arrival by airship, pulled up to the main entrance of the shrine and the door was opened. Both priests stepped down and stretched, brushing off their black robes as they looked up at the great shrine. A young kannushi stepped forward, bowed in greeting, and in passable English instructed the priests to follow him inside.
They entered the wide main room of the shrine where a large group of teenage kannushi, along with their females equivalents mikos, were doing sword training. The sight to the priests was amazing to see, then they saw something completely unusual when their eyes rested on the instructor who was observing the practice session.
It wasn't the fact that it was woman or that she wore a dark blue Japanese outfit instead of a miko one. It was her bushy blonde hair that fell below her shoulders, not something a Japanese person would have.
The kannushi instructed them to wait and walked over to the woman, leaning over to speak in her ear. The woman turned her head around to where she could see the priests and they saw that she was clearly caucasian, not Japanese. The woman said something to the kannushi and handed him her shinai. Turning around, she walked over on bare feet toward them.
"Howdy, folks," she greeted in perfect English, "Ya must the preachers sent over from the other side of the world."
Both priests blinked, the woman's accent taking them by complete surprise.
"You're a Texan?" said the American, recognizing the accent.
The woman's grin widened, "Born and raised. Used to live there until ah started a-travelin' around the world and met mah good friend who is the Shrine Maiden of this joint. Ah believe she's the reason y'all here?"
"Uh, yes," said the Brit, "Is she here? It's vitally important."
The woman raised an arm to the right, "Foller me, gents. Ah'm due to meet her right now anyway. Ah'm Marisa McKenzie by the way, although here ah go by by the last name Kirisame."
"McKenzie?" said the American, "You're not related to Reverend McKenzie in Texas by any chance?"
"He's mah adopted uncle, yes," the woman named Marisa replied as she led them through the shrine, "If ya don't know ah'm not actually related. Ah was adopted by the McKenzies after mah parents were murdered by a Apache war party when ah was only a baby. When ah turned sixteen ah decided to become a magician."
Both priests looked at each other, intrigued.
"Did you attend the magic university in England?" asked the Brit.
"Ah did, but ah was a-kicked out due to mah 'wild American' ways."
"Yes, I did hear something about you nearly blowing up the school."
Marisa laughed, "It wasn't anything like that ah assure ya. The lessons were too boring for me anyway."
"So why is an American woman living in Japan?" asked the American, "And how did you get the name Kirisame?"
"Well, why not? There's no law that says ah can't live in good ole' Japan," Marisa grinned, "But to be serious ah'm the Shrine Maiden's protector and assistant."
"But you're not a priestess here?" asked the Brit.
"No, but ah have good relations with the people here. They've allowed me to live here since ah'm close friends with Reimu and ah also help train other kannushi and miko to prepare for the unknown out there. As for the name Kirisame, that was the name Reimu gave me after ah agreed to become her guardian. It means 'drizzle' in Japanese. Ah, here we are."
They walked outside to an open wide patio. In the center was a stage that resembled a boxing ring. Two kannushi in full kendo gear were testing their skills against each other while several other watched. Further back, several miko were practicing their archery skills, shooting at targets that were floating out in the river. Behind the targets was tall floating wooden protection wall, along with several signs floating around written in Japanese to warn civilians traveling on the river to stay away from the shooting range.
Marisa led the priests over to the shooting range to where they stood behind a woman who appeared to be the oldest of the miko shooting. They watched as held a firm hand on her yumi bow, drew the arrow to her cheek, took a moment to aim, and released, hitting a perfect bullseye as several other arrows had.
"Perfect shot yet again, Reimu," said Marisa, "Ah have yet to see you miss."
The Japanese woman turned, her beauty taking the priests by surprise as she nodded to her friend before her dark eyes turned to the priests.
"Are these the Christian priests?" she asked in perfect English.
"They are," Marisa introduced them, "They just got here'.
"Welcome to Japan, friends," she said as she bowed and waited until the priests returned the bow, "I'm Reimu Hakurei, Shrine Maiden of Itsukushima Shrine."
To the priests it was hard to believe this priestess they've been sent to seek for aid in the west. She was of average height with a small and, to them, a fragile body, hardly what they imagined to be a warrior priestess. But then again these were the Japanese, renowned warriors descended from the samurai.
"We received word of your coming," she went on, "I hope your journey was pleasant and safe?"
"It was," said the American, "I had no idea Japan could be so beautiful at this time of year."
"Could we speak in private, Miss Hakurei?" asked the Brit, looking impatient.
"Here will do," Reimu waved around here, "Most here do not know English. But before we start…"
She looked around to the others miko and called out to them in Japanese, which they responded with "Hai!"
"She's askin' if they're are done a-shootin'," Marisa translated to the priests.
Reimu said something else in Japanese and the miko responded with a very excited "Hai!" and put down their bows. Several of them then climbed onto little boats and rowed out to the range, removing arrows before taking down the targets.
"This is somethin' we like to do every Friday," Marisa said to the priests as she made her into the shooting stall, "We give them a little show with me and Reimu's special weapons."
As she said this, Reimu placed her bow on a table and flipped opened a cloth, revealing a 1886 Winchester rifle and a Remington revolver lying next to wild west style holster and belt that had two cylinders loaded with cartridges and additional cartridges placed in the loops.
"Good God!" exclaimed the Brit.
The American was also speechless. He was well familiar with American firearms and the 1886 was not a rifle he'd imagined a woman using, much less a small Japanese one, since it fired such a big and powerful round.
On another table Marisa flipped out another cover, revealing her own Winchester rifle that was a carbine version with a wide loop lever and fired a smaller bullet. Also lying beside the rifle was a Colt Peacemaker lying inside its holster with the loops filled with .45 cartridges.
"Heaven preserve us," said the American, "When I was told you were the most modernized Shrine Maiden in Japan they weren't joking."
Reimu grinned as she put on her gun belt, "These are my prized treasures. Now, what brings you to Japan? There must be some sort of trouble going on in the other side of the world."
The Brit cleared his throat, "There is. For the last five years the Christian Orders has been trying to eliminate a vampire that has been running rampant around Europe, the last great vampire threat we believe."
"A vampire, eh?" Marisa said over her shoulder, "As in Count Dracula?"
"No, we've already dealt with him years ago. The vampire we're dealing with claims to be a descendant of him but we've confirmed that she's created that lie in order to put fear in people."
"About five years ago in Austria," said the American, "A red cloud suddenly appeared near the city of Innsbruck, covering up the sun immediately. It remained that way for a short period of time before it suddenly dispersed, as though it had never happened. The church was immediately notified of the event and agents were sent out to investigate."
"The warrior priests in Austria found that the cloud had from a old castle owned by one one of most powerful noble families," said the Brit, "But when they got there… the entire current family was dead, their blood completely drained. They had shoot them because they had turned into ghouls."
Reimu and Marisa looked at each, their faces turning dark. They knew about vampires but were not aware of what they were capable of. Behind them the miko were taking down the archery targets and replacing them with cheaply made glass bottles and vases of various sizes.
"Go on," said Riemu.
"The Pope ordered all the Orders to hunt down and eliminate this vampire," the Brit continued, "We believe that cloud was an alchemist spell designed to block out the sun but has not yet reached perfection."
"Meanin' that it's bein' done by another magician," said Marisa, immediately picking up the situation.
"Exactly," said the American, "The Orders have spent the last five years trying to hunt this vampire down and we've gotten close, very close, but each time she's either evaded our grasp…"
"Or it's ended in complete disaster," finished the Brit, "And that's not the worst of it. This little vampire is more cunning than we realized. She's deliberately been toying with us, always seeming to be ten steps ahead of us."
"Just last week in England," said the American, "the vampire was was spotted out in the countryside. A team was sent in but... they walked right into a deathtrap. None survived."
"This is tenth time this has happened and now our governments are starting to question our effectiveness in eliminating monsters," the Brit pounded his fist angrily against the rail, drawing some attention, "All of the Orders are up to their necks on what to do and even the Pope is all but ready to pull his hair out!"
The American put a hand on his shoulder, "Please forgive him. One of the members of the team that was killed was a childhood friend of his. He's still upset about it."
At that moment, one of the miko called over and informed Reimu that they were finished switching the targets.
"Perhaps we should pause from this while Marisa and I shoot," she suggested to the priests, "It will give him a moment to calm down."
"Sure," nodded the American, noticing that everyone in the shrine had gathered to watch, "Go ahead. We can wait."
Reimu made sure the shooting range was clear before she and Marisa loaded up their rifles. Then Marisa pulled out a Seated Liberty dollar coin from her kimono.
"Mah lucky charm," she grinned at the priests before asking Reimu, "Heads or tails?"
"Tails."
Marisa flipped up the coin and slapped it on the back of her hand, "Tails it is. You go first."
The bottles and vases were all of different colors and were set in different ranges. The entire shrine had gone silent as Reimu loaded a cartridge into the barrel, took aim, and fired. The exchange seemed to shake the entire shrine and some spectators noticeably jumped. A bottle at long distance shattered into multiple shards.
Everyone clapped while Marisa looked at Reimu with an amused yet unimpressed look. Then she loaded her own rifle by spinning it around in a fancy flip, aimed and fired much quicker than Reimu. Another bottle at long range shattered.
Again everyone clapped as Marisa smirked at Reimu, as though challenging her to do better than that. The Shrine Maiden only shook her head in an amused way before loading another round and firing again, this time at mid-range.
It went on like that from that point on. Each young woman fired nine rounds each from their rifles, shattering bottles and vases at various. Once the rifles were emptied they placed them on the table and pulled out their pistols.
Both pistols had cylinders capable of carrying six cartridges, but for safety reasons they were only loaded with five. Again they took turns firing their shots, saving the last cartridge for a target at long range.
Afterwards they placed down their weapons and Reimu signaled to a group of people to go out and straightened any targets that were knocked from the shards of shattered targets.
"You said this vampire was a she." she said in low voice to the priests, "Just how dangerous is she?"
"Very," said the American. He opened the leather case he was carrying and took out a black and white picture, handing it to Reimu, "This is her. Her name is Remilia Scarlet."
Marisa stepped closer as Reimu looked at it, her eyes narrowing and her pale face growing dark. In the picture were six figures, all of them female. The two in the middle were children while the rest were adults.
"That's the one?" Marisa stared in astonishment, "She's only a child!"
"She may look like a child," said the Brit, "but in truth she's over 500 years old. The women you see there are all her servants, none of which-interestingly-are vampires themselves."
"So I see," Reimu looked at the right side of the picture, "This one here is clearly a succubus. The other woman, is she wearing Chinese clothes?"
"She is," the American confirmed, "That's Hong Meiling, but you can see clearly that she's not Chinese at all given how tall she is. From the few encounters we've had with her she's been described as having long red hair, cobalt blue eyes, and caucasian features. Again, not something you would find on a Chinese woman. We believe that she's Remilia's head bodyguard. She has no magic abilities but we've heard that she's very strong and is a master in Chinese martial arts. If you want to get to Remilia, you'll have to go through her. However, the maid you see on the other side is even more dangerous."
"Yeah," Marisa nodded, "That one has the look of a killer."
"She is," said the Brit, "That one there is Sakuya Izayoi."
Both Reimu and Marisa looked at him."
"She's another one who's not who she says she is," he went on, "She has a Japanese name, but we know for certain that she's actually British. She's Remilia's number one assassin, a master sword fighter and knife thrower. She even has the ability to summon as many knives as she wants. But her real ability, her most dangerous ability, is that she's able to briefly stop time."
"Stop time?" Reimu blinked.
"Everyone who has encountered her has ended up dead in the same gruesome way," the Brit took a deep breath, "Not so long ago, a group of policemen in a French town spotted Sakuya and tried to captured her. A witness who saw the whole thing told us that at one moment the police were facing her with their weapons drawn… the next moment they were all dead, their bodies stabbed by dozens of knives like porcupines."
Reimu and Marisa had gone very quiet, not noticing that the miko had returned from fixing the targets until one nearby informed. Shaking her head, Reimu put on a smile to the spectators eagerly waiting for the second round to start.
"Excuse us for a moment, sirs," she said before she and Marisa loaded their weapons again.
The priests stayed silent. Their revelations had clearly disturbed these two young women. This time, however, Reimu and Marisa shot their weapons quicker before placing them down again, signaling the miko to go out and adjust the targets again.
"This woman here," Marisa pointed to the woman standing next to the assassin maid in the picture, "She must be the magician, correct?"
"We believe so," said the American, "We don't know her name and I've been told that the European Orders have never encountered her in person."
"Probably because she's immortal," said Marisa.
"Pardon?"
"A lot of powerful magicians who seek to be immortal often have to sacrifice a great deal, mainly with their bodies," Marisa explained, "Ah'm a average magician at best but if ah were a bettin' man ah'd say that one's power has caused her to become very weak, makin' her stay indoors most of the time. But where she's weak, her power is very strong. If ah were to a-face her right now ah'd have tough time tryin' to beat her."
"This other girl," Reimu pointed to one standing next to the vampire, "Who is she?"
"To be honest, we're not sure," said the Brit, "We think she may be Remilia's sister, but we not certain if she's... if she actually exists."
Reimu frowned, "What do you mean?"
"Vampires roamed the night and when one appears near a town or village we can figure out right away how many vampires there is and how they attack their victims. We know for certain Remilia is the only vampire we've encountered in recent years and how she prefers to toy with her victims before draining their blood."
"However," said the American, "there is another possibility concerning that girl. It's possible she's also a vampire like Remilia, but the victims have only one bite mark on them and we've confirmed they're all from the same vampire. Maybe she actually does exist but has remained well hidden all this time. And if that's the case-"
"Than it raises the question: Why?" finished Reimu.
"Exactly," nodded the Brit, "Could it be she's more powerful of a vampire than Remilia? Or is there a different reason?"
"That is a very good question," Reimu agreed.
At that moment the Miko signaled again that the target range was cleared. Loading their weapons once more, Reimu and Marisa began the final round. Reimu said something and one of the miko raised a hand.
"Ready!" she said in broken English, "Go!"
This time they fired at break necking speed. Bottles and vases shattered by the second and shards were flying everywhere. By the time it was over not a single target was left standing.
"Tie!" yelled the miko as the smoke cleared.
Everyone cheered and applauded, even the Priests were impressed. Reimu and Marisa smiled in appreciation, but the priests could see that their smiles were stiff.
"That was very good shooting, my ladies," said the Brit as the crowd began to disperse, going back to their training sessions.
"Just out of curiosity, where do you get your ammunition?" asked the American, "Do you import it?"
"No. Me and Reimu actually make it ourselves whenever we have the time," said Marisa, "But gettin' back to the topic on hand, since the Christian Orders have been unable to deal with this vampire the Pope has decided to seek some outside help."
"Yes," said the Brit, turning to Reimu, "When we started asking around to see who would be our best chance, your name came up several times."
"You've already developed quite a history, being only twenty-two," said the American, "After a certain event that happened in your native Japan, you were sent out on a training mission that would take you around the world at the age of sixteen. You would spend the next five years traveling to China, Europe, and both North and South America, learning about the different cultures and religions."
"I assume that's how you met her?" the Brit asked Marisa.
"Yep," Marisa nodded, "First in China and then a couple of years later in England. Ah then went with her to the States and we ended up havin' a big ole' adventure down in Argentina."
"Yes, so we were told," the American turned to Reimu, "Reverend McKenzie was the one who strongly recommended you since you were the one who saved his niece and nephew after they were kidnapped."
"I'm not surprised," Reimu smiled, "The McKenzie family is eternally grateful for what I did for them."
"And you had quite a number of adventures in Europe and China as well," said the Brit, "Your reputation definitely proceeds at such a young age."
"Show off," Marisa smirked at Reimu.
Reimu merely smirked back, "You're one to talk."
"And to think you're only a year younger than me," Marisa gave a big exaggerated sigh, "We also just took care of a oni that was terrorizin' a village nearby last week."
"A oni?" asked the American.
"Our version of your Christian demon," said Reimu.
"Can you help us, Miss Hakurei?" asked the Brit in a desperate voice, "We've lost too many good men at the hands of this vampire and we don't want this situation to get any worse than it already has."
There was only a brief pause.
"Where was this vampire last sighted?" asked Reimu.
The priests nearly cheered in relief.
"In the southern part of France," answered the Brit, "Although by the time you get there she's likely to be somewhere else right now."
"The British are hoping to keep her in France or, if push comes to shove, trap her in England," the American pulled out a couple of boat tickets, "You'll be to travel with us with these. We'll stop first in Panama to travel overland for another ship bound for Europe. While we're there, we'll get in touch with our contacts to see what the current deal is with the vampire and her whereabouts. The ship will leave in two days."
"Let's hope they'll be able to contain her before we get there," said Marisa, "Ah would hate if this turned into a wild goose chase."
"As would we," the Brit agreed and held out his hand to Reimu, "Thank you very much for agreeing to help us, Shrine Maiden. Should you succeed, the Christian Orders will be eternally grateful."
Reimu smiled and shook his hand, "We are warriors chosen by our respective gods. We all share the same mission: To protect the innocent and to vanquish the darkness. I'll exorcise this vampire. You have my word as a Shrine Maiden."
On the day they were they were to leave Marisa flew on her broom to Reimu's private shrine located in the hills just outside of town just before the crack of dawn. The shrine was small but of reasonable size. Marisa had her own cottage a short distance from here but she would occasionally spent the night at the shrine depending on what she and Reimu had been doing during the day. The shrine also had two other facilities. A gunsmith shop that was a good safe distance from the shrine and a stable.
Marisa landed next to the fence of the stable and approached one of the two horses, who immediately recognized her and trotted over.
"Hey there, Big Jake," she greeted as she pulled out an apple from her blouse for the horse to eat.
Big Jake was Marisa's black and white paint horse, given to her when she returned to Texas with Reimu. He was somewhat larger than the average paint horse, but very strong with a great amount of speed. While Marisa was a magician, a witch as she was sometimes called, she preferred to ride instead of flying on her broom. However, as magnificent as Big Jake was, he paled in comparison to Reimu's horse.
And on that thought came the other horse, neighing impatiently for a treat as well.
"Don't worry, Genji," Marisa chuckled as she pulled out the other apple, "Ah got one for you too."
Genji was Reimu's prized stallion, also given to her shortly after she'd arrived at the McKenzie Ranch in Texas. He was a beautiful horse with a shiny black body, a white blaze, and four white socks. Not to mention very fast when it came to running. And he was fiercely loyal to Reimu. Marisa couldn't but feel a little jealous that Reimu had such a fine steed who was also a loyal friend.
As she rubbed the horse's nose her eyes drifted to the expensive western style saddle and saddlebags resting on the post nearby. Like the gun belt, rifle, and pistol, the saddle was also given to Reimu by the McKenzie family. Reimu definitely had been spoiled like a royal princess when she arrived on that ranch. Not that Marisa minded; she cared little about the luxurious ways of life. She was perfectly content with the way it was.
She entered the shrine and immediately noticed how quiet it was. She paused for a moment but her senses told her there was no danger. Then she saw that the main room was illuminated. She entered and saw Reimu sitting before the shrine. Well, four of them to be exact.
Reimu's private shrine was a series of shrines dedicated in honor to four of the most important people in Reimu's life. One was to her mother, the previous Shrine Maiden of Hakurei Shrine before it was destroyed several years ago. The other three had been warrior priests like her who had died shortly before she had left on her training mission around the world.
Marisa quietly slipped off her boots and approached. Reimu eyes were closed in meditation as she came to her side. She settled down and waited patiently until Reimu opened her eyes and looked at her.
"What's a-troublin' you, Reimu?" she asked, "You've been strangely quiet ever since those preachers left."
There was a long pause as Reimu contemplated her words, then she picked up the picture of the vampire, her supposed sister, and her servants. At her request, the priests had left her the picture for her to study.
"Something has been bothering ever since I first looked at this picture," she said slowly before she pointed to the assassin maid, "Especially this one."
"Hmm," Marisa nodded, "Ah can see why. That one's definitely goin' to be trouble."
"No… it's not so much that," Reimu paused again, "You see her as a killer, and she's most likely is given what we've been told, however… I see something else when I look at her."
"What?" Marisa waited.
"Pity."
"Pity?" Marisa frowned at her, "How much saki were you a-drinkin' before ah got here?"
Reimu ignored her, "It sounds strange, I admit it, but that's how I honestly feel whenever I look at this Sakuya. And when I look at her… I end up looking at this girl, Flandre."
This time Marisa didn't respond, but she continued to frown, "You definitely got some strange ways of lookin' at things."
"I say this because I'm with those priests. Something else is going on here. Something deeper. Ever since yesterday I can't shake that feeling. And I believe it has to do with those two."
"Hmm," Marisa said again, "Ah can understand your sympathy for that Flandre girl, but not the maid. What makes you think there's some sort of connection between them?"
"I don't know, and that's what is bothering me the most."
Marisa raised a brow, "There's more?"
This time Reimu chuckled, "I'm actually feeling a little nervous right now. This will be the very first time I'll be tested as a true Shrine Maiden."
"Oh," Marisa grinned, "Ah see."
"You think I'm up to it?"
Marisa looked offended, "Of course you are! What in tarnation gave you the notion that you weren't? You've been thinkin' too much on this."
"I suppose I have," Reimu sighed heavily, "I just want to do this right."
"Just remember your duty, stay focus on the task at hand, and use your head," Marisa winked, "And ah'll be there to get you outta trouble when you need it. That's mah job as your guardian after all."
Reimu smiled fondly at her friend, remember when she had first met her, "You really are a unique person Marisa."
"Hey, now," Marisa frowned to hide her blush, "Don't you go a-sweet talkin' to me. It makes me feel funny."
"No, I'm serious. People always ask me why you became my guardian. You used to call me the 'strange' one, but I think you're even stranger than me."
"Reimu…" Marisa's voice turned serious, "Ah'm your guardian, and your friend. When ah took that oath, ah meant it because it became a habit of mine after ah first met you back in China. Ah swore to watch over and protect you. Ah agreed to follow whatever order you give me even if ah don't like it. Ah'll be at your side at all, and like any other guardian ah won't like it when ah'm separated from you. Now don't you start a-doubtin' yourself in this time of need. Your mother and friends sacrificed a great deal for you. Don't let 'em down and don't let me down. Ah don't care what the others think. This is your time, Reimu."
This was what Reimu admired most about Marisa. Despite her "wild" American ways, Marisa showed far more intelligence than people gave her credit for. She would not have anyone else as her guardian even if she was given a choice.
"You're right," she smiled in appreciation, "This is what I was born for afterall. I won't let you down, Marisa. You have my word on that."
Marisa slapped a hand on her shoulder, "That's the spirit, girl! So, ah'm to assume we'll just at the break of dawn."
"Yes," Reimu flexed her shoulder. Marisa had a tendency to get over excited, "But first…"
Marisa saw that Reimu was looking at the shrines and stood, respecting Reimu wish to have a moment alone before saying a prayer to her deceased loved ones.
"Right," she said, "Ah'll go ahead and change and pack the rest of mah gear."
"Yes," Reimu nodded, "If I'm not out there by the time you're done go ahead and saddle Genji for me, please."
"Sure thing," said Marisa before she left.
Silence embraced the room once again as Reimu looked at the pictures placed on the shrines depicting the loved ones she had lost several years ago when she was still a child.
The first had been her mother, Minako Hakurei, the previous of the Hakurei Shrine before it had been mysteriously destroyed. Reimu had been six at the time. Her mother's guardian had come to inform that her mother was dead and that she had to be taken back to Earth. The Hakurei Shrine had existed in another world that was ran parallel to Earth and was called Gensokyo. However, Reimu knew very little of it since she had been there for a brief period of time. After her mother's death, she was taken to the Itsukushima Shrine on Earth where she would be raised and trained as a Shrine Maiden Warrior.
Ten years later, when she was sixteen, a disastrous event took place at Itsukushima Shrine. A group of demons that had been sealed within the shrine suddenly broke through the seal and escaped, killing several priests and wounding many others. Reimu and three close friends of her had just returned from a pilgrimage when the disaster happened. They were then told that they were the only ones who could stop the demons. And with that, each was given a magical and sacred weapon, past down from their ancestors.
Reimu now shifted her gaze to those weapons, remembering the names of the ones who had once wielded them. First there was the yari spear of Ogasawara Shinei, a tall and powerful man with a great sense of humor. Next there was the yumi bow and arrows of Yamagata Yae, an intelligent woman with a kind yet stern heart. And lastly there was the katana of Takaki Koji, a brave young man not much older than Reimu.
All three had been very close to Reimu, having become her family after she arrived at the Itsukushima Shrine. Shinei and Yae had been like older siblings to her, along with teaching her how to fight along with learning how to read and write. Koji, on the other hand, was a more special friend. He was the first one to talk to her after she had settled at the shrine. At first she had ignored him, wanting to be alone, but his persistence eventually won her over and she eventually opened up to him.
They had started as childhood friends, but as they got older going into their teenage years it wasn't long before they'd started to develope feelings for each other. Unfortunately, Reimu's hopes for possibly having a normal life would be shattered with the task of exorcising the demons.
While she and her friends had succeeded, it had come at a great cost. All three of her friends had died taking down the demons while also protecting her. First Shinei, then Yae, and then Koji. Koji's death had devastated her the most because they had grown so much closer during that quest.
At their request Reimu had taken their weapons with her, adding them to her own as her way to honoring them and the sacrifice they made. She now moved her gaze back toward her mother's shrine and to the weapon that was past down to her. The Seifuku-sha, "Vanquisher", was a custom made gohei. Designed to be like a Western whip, the wooden handle was half the length of a normal gohei while the two shide were several times longer and made of white leather instead of paper. Each streamer was enchanted with a magic Japanese character, allowing Reimu to use magical powers to help seal away monsters. However, like the whip, it could also be used as such when she needed to get out of tight situations.
She looked at the pictures again and sighed heavily. All of them had died doing their duty while also protecting her. Now it was her turn. It was time to show them and the world that she was ready to be a real Shrine Maiden. On that thought she placed her together, closed her eyes, and spoke her prayer.
"Mother, Koji, Yae, and Shinei, lend me your strength and watch over me while protecting others and this time of need."
Opening her eyes, she gave a little nod and stood. It was time to set out on her mission. She reached over to the custom made gun belt carrying her two Remington revolvers. One she carried at her side while the other served as a backup. Next to the loopholes carrying ammo cylinders there were four brass Yin-Yang balls the size of an American baseball. She took out three of them, leaving the fourth in its place.
The Yin-Yang balls were actually mini storage units and was another item past down from her mother. The three she took out were empty, the fourth one carrying two magical Yin-Yang orbs inside that Reimu would use to combat powerful enemies. The other three would carry the weapons of her lost friends.
She placed two of the balls down on a little table and held up one, looking at the katana on its display. She pushed the mechanism that opened it and the ball split in two. Removing her hand, she watched quietly as the two pieces floated in the air. Two streams of blue light appeared and reached out to take hold of the katana. In a flash, the sword was absorbed in by light and pulled between the floating pieces where the light formed into a little sphere. Then the pieces came back and Reimu caught it in her hand. Placing the brass ball back onto the belt, she picked up another one and repeated the process with the other two weapons, leaving the Seifuku-sha in its place.
Once she was finished she turned to her traveling outfit that hung on its stand like Samurai armor. A smile of admiration came to her lips as she couldn't help but take a moment to look at it. The outfit was a piece of art itself. Designed by the combined efforts of English taylor and his wife, a French dressmaker, it was basically a westernized version of a miko's outfit made for her during her stay in Europe.
The top resembled a woman's riding habit, a white short sleeved shirt under a red button up tunic with a yellow tie underneath the collar. The very wide white sleeves with red trimmings that covered her lower arms were separate from the outfit and were tied down. The red skirt with white decorations was designed for a woman to be able to ride astride instead of side saddle, something Reimu found to be ridiculous and impractical during her travels around Europe. Underneath the skirt were a pair of white trousers and a pair of black leather French riding boots.
When she came to the McKenzie's ranch in America the gunbelt had been added while the local blacksmith had designed a special piece of body armor made of hardened leather that was strong enough to stop a Bowie knife. This gave additional protection to her upper body since she also wore long lengths of cloth wrapped around her chest.
Snapping herself out of her daze, she removed her normal clothing and put on her special outfit, leaving the boots till last. Once she was finished she pulled out a red and white ribbon designed to match her skirt. Lifting one lock of dark hair at the back of her head, she wrapped around until it formed into a fashionable bow tie. After making sure everything was straight, she walked over to the table and put on her gunbelt. Then she went over to her mother's shrine and, giving a respectful bow, picked up the Seifuku-sha and placed on a loop where it hung against her left thigh.
Reimu paused one last time to pay respects to lost loved one before she turned, picking up her boots as she headed toward the entrance. The rest of her gear was sitting quietly in the corner and she sat down and pulled on her boots. Picking them up, she slid opened the door and walked out.
Outside, she found Marisa standing there holding the reins of their horses. She was already dressed in her own traveling outfit, a black dress with a slitted skirt, black jeans and boots, a black wide brimmed witch's hat, and a black poncho with gold filigree. When Reimu stepped out, Marisa looked over her and grinned, reminding her how much Marisa admired her outfit.
"Lookin' good as always, Miss Preacher," said Marisa, using the old nickname she used to call Reimu when they first met.
"Arigato," Reimu replied and stepped down.
She placed her rifle in the saddle holster before placing the saddlebags over Genji's rump. After making sure the saddle was tightly secured, Marisa handed her the reins and she swung up onto her horse.
With Marisa following behind Reimu Hakurei, the Shrine Maiden, led the way. Their adventure was about to begin.