Lethal Liquor of Seventh Heaven
Gensokyo, the Land of Fantasy, is a fictional land that largely resembles feudal Japan. Ages ago, it was nothing but a desolate, forsaken land that was terrorized by youkai—supernatural beings—until heroic and powerful humans showed up to exterminate them.
Fujiwara no Mokou is considered one of those humans. A loner by nature after being ostracized for so long, she lives in the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, escorting the humans through the dark, vast and seemingly endless forest surrounded by thick bamboo trees. As the forest also housed a few youkai, Mokou also was able to protect humans with her pyrotechnical powers—the manipulation of fire. Additionally, a well-known secret about Mokou is that she has lived for longer than a millennium. After consuming Kaguya Houraisan's patented Hourai Elixir in an act of revenge for Kaguya humiliating her father, Mokou had become immortal and it is now impossible for her to die.
One steady morning in the Bamboo Forest, Mokou was resting easy at her home, with no humans having stepped in her territory yet. She sat outside peeling fresh fruits, a small smile on her face as the sound of bird chirping in the background was her only acoustic support.
"...Slow day today," she murmured to herself, dropping a freshly peeled fruit into the straw basket sitting idle by her right side. "The humans must not want to bother crossing the Bamboo Forest..." After some time, her last freshly peeled fruit was set into the basket, which was filled to the brim at this point. Wiping her forehead with the back of her hand and heaving a sigh of relief, she looked at the basket before turning her head back out to the Bamboo Forest. It was a very foggy day out today, but the bright sun still shone clearly. The atmosphere put Mokou's mind at ease.
That was the case, however, until she heard footsteps approaching her home. Turning her head towards the sound of the footsteps along the ground, her smile faded and she turned to the sound with a somewhat disgusted face. She stood up slowly, greeting the young woman that approached without caution.
"No, no... you may resume sitting," said the approaching woman in a condescending manner. "It's only appropriate that trash such as yourself does not stand before a princess."
Kaguya Houraisan. She was a princess of the Lunarians, the race that presides on the Moon, before she was exiled to Earth for illegally creating the Hourai Elixir which granted her eternal life. As a result, she cannot die by any means. She is the now the princess of Eientei, a mansion hidden deep within the Bamboo Forest, so the two meeting up together is very frequent.
"As if you have dominion over me here," Mokou replied jokingly. "Quite the attitude... what do you need, anyway?" Kaguya merely laughed at her, clearing her throat as her voice echoed throughout the entire forest.
"Oh, I was just reminiscing our three-hundred-year fight... you and I, killing each other over and over again. How lucky am I to have run into you! I've come to tell you that I will be returning to the Moon." Mokou's eyes widened as Kaguya laughed again.
"You're... going back again?" Mokou asked half-heartedly. She seemed less excited and more worried.
"Yes!" Kaguya cheerfully replied with a smug look on her face. "As the Lunarians have stopped hunting me for my crimes—heavens forfend that they could accuse anybody of anything—I have made the executive decision to return to the moon and take back what is rightfully mine...my throne."
"And of course, you'd tell me in person... why, exactly?" Mokou said, taking a step forward. Kaguya scoffed.
"Because now this makes you the only human on Earth who will live forever." Kaguya's words were so direct that they were like knives being flung. Mokou grunted, and Kaguya narrowed her eyes, realizing that she struck a nerve. Naturally, she decided to continue. "Of course, that doesn't make you sad, does it? Most of the humans you've guided through this forest have perished one way or another, and yet...you are alive to see it all."
"...Shut up," Mokou said under her breath.
"I suppose that's a hidden effect of the elixir... you consumed it willingly, of course, to take revenge on me for humiliating your father, if I remember correctly." She knew what she was getting into; she wanted to instigate a fight with Mokou, and it was working. "I bet you didn't think that an emotional attachment would be possible, huh?"
"You're asking for it," Mokou replied a bit louder, with small embers emanating around her body.
"Come to think about it... I wonder if you still feel regret for killing Iwakasa for it?" That last sentence by Kaguya was enough to anger Mokou. Generally calm, her fury was shown as she took another step forward, flames flaring up underneath her footstep.
"Kaguyaaa!" Mokou shouted. "That's it! I've had enough of you bringing that up! This time, I'm definitely not going to forgive you!" She pointed her index finger out directly at Kaguya, who laughed just as loudly as she did before.
"Oh no!" Kaguya chuckled. "Oh, my heavens, what am I going to do if you won't forgive me—" Her sentence was cut short fairly quickly. With extreme speed, Mokou grabbed her by her throat, lifting her up and slamming her on the ground with a heavy hand. The collision could be heard throughout the forest, and it even shook the bamboo trees.
"Humans were put on this earth to live and die," Mokou shouted furiously, "what makes you think that you are any better simply because you defy that cycle!?" She clenched tightly around Kaguya's throat, making it difficult for her to speak. She grabbed Mokou's arm with both hands.
"I am beyond your petty morality, you dog!" Kaguya shouted back. Lifting her foot up, she kicked Mokou back and away, causing her to release her grip. Kaguya managed to scramble to her feet quickly, rushing to Mokou and bringing her hand to her stomach. Mokou, who was too stunned to deflect the attack back, was struck by Kaguya's open palm; this simple movement caused Mokou to stop in time altogether. Kaguya then followed up with a sloppy yet weighted punch to the face, but it wasn't until she released her grip on time that Mokou was affected by the blow. Once she was, however, she was sent flying far back, landing on her side from the blow.
She sprung right back up after the attack, forming her hand like a claw. With a horizontal swipe, Mokou let loose a trail of flames that rose up from underneath the ground. Kaguya looked at the ground around her, noticing that the flames would soon rise up and engulf her. She leapt back hastily into the air to avoid the attack as the fire quickly rose up.
"Not yet!" Mokou exclaimed. Kaguya, who turned her attention away from the attack to look at Mokou, who rose up above the flames to meet her head on, slamming her fist into her stomach with great force. As she buried her knuckles into Kaguya's stomach, Mokou's entire arm ignited into flames and she finished delivering her punch, thrusting her fist out and propelling Kaguya down to the ground. With a great impact, she rattled the bamboo trees with the shockwave of hitting the dirt. Mokou landed quickly on the ground, right before Kaguya, who laid in a crater with a smile on her face.
"Just like old times, yes?" She laughed. Her body levitated out of the small crater, repositioning herself to stand upright. She tilted her head at Mokou, cracking her neck and laughing. "You got so defensive all of a sudden... does me leaving hurt you that badly?"
"No, I'm just shutting you up because you've talked too damn much!" Mokou shot back through her teeth. Her arm was still engulfed in flames, although the size decreased in intensity. Kaguya smirked, giggling.
"You don't always have to hide your feelings, Mokou-chan," Kaguya joked. "But if you insist..." She held her arm out slowly, and almost as instantaneously as she did, the surrounding bamboo trees were sliced in parts. Their pointed edges surrounded Kaguya, facing outwards towards Mokou. With the snap of a finger, the hollowed sticks of bamboo were flung straight at Mokou. As if she had seen the attack coming, Mokou responded by deftly striking away the bamboo with a fiery fist. However, Kaguya was quick; she caught Mokou off guard from her side, and a sharp bamboo stick struck her through her arm. Gritting her teeth, she was quick to grab the bamboo from her arm and pull it right back out, dropping it on the ground. Her arm was bleeding profusely.
"...So annoying," Mokou complained. "What's your deal, anyway? What the hell is up with you!?"
"Ahaha, left yourself wide open!" Kaguya taunted. Mokou outstretched her wounded hand, and despite the blood leaking from it, she still had total control over it. Thanks to the Hourai Elixir, she was able to regenerate the damage done, and the wound had mended completely. Flexing her fingers, it was as if nothing happened. "Now then, have you finished this pointless struggle?" Kaguya asked.
Mokou's only response was that she sprinted up to Kaguya as she was barely paying attention, bringing an open hand to her face and grabbing it as she ran. Taking her completely off of her feet, Mokou jumped straight up with her, and with full force, she brought Kaguya's head down on the ground, deepening the crater that was already created.
"I've had more than enough of you, Kaguya!" She shouted, her hand still covering her face. Flames engulfed her entire body with a simple charge, and she clenched her teeth. The flames grew in intensity, causing the surrounding area to darken around them. "Spell Card: Let This Whole World Burn Away to Nothing!" She triggered her spell card with the scream of that command.
"Hmm...? What's that over there?" A schoolteacher by the name of Keine Kamishirasawa, who resided in the Human Village, could see the flames emanating in the distance towards the Bamboo Forest. Apparently, the heat was so strong that it was starting to darken the sky. Keine looked down to the children she was keeping watch over and tipped her building-shaped hat, pointing to the school building. "Alright, children! It's time to go back inside! Recess is over!" The children, of course, collectively groaned, but she paid them no mind. As they went back inside, Keine turned back to the flames. She squinted at them at first, before the flames suddenly disappeared. Seconds after, however, an explosion sounded off in the distance, with heat sparks rising to the clouds. The dome-like explosion seemed to cover only a fraction of the forest, but firepower of that caliber could only be explained by one natural cause: Fujiwara no Mokou.
"...Mokou..." Keine uttered in complete worry. Leaving the children with their human guardians inside of the school, she left the playground, heading as quickly as she could to the Bamboo Forest.
Back in the forest, the explosion had finally subsided, and the dome of heat had subsided. Despite how massive and heavy the attack was, the bamboo in the area appeared to be unscathed, or at the very worst, slightly burnt. The resilience of the trees proved their worth. Mokou, who was panting heavily from the attack, managed to get a nosebleed from the heat. Looking down at the crater, however, Kaguya was nowhere to be seen. She was assumed to have been burnt to ashes, but even then, nothing of her remained. Kaguya would not be defeated so easily.
"Over here," said Kaguya in a sing-song voice. As expected, she not only lived the attack, she successfully evaded it and appeared behind Mokou. "You should have known that time manipulation would have saved me, Mokou-chan..." Mokou turned around quickly, trying to roundhouse kick Kaguya. However, the attack had missed as quickly as it was thrown out, for Kaguya simply took a step back. Mokou was too exhausted, however, to follow it up with anything. She wiped the blood away from her nose and staggered slightly.
"I got too carelessly provoked...?" Mokou grumbled. Kaguya's smirk faded away, turning into a small expression of annoyance.
"...This is our last meeting, Fujiwara no Mokou." She laid both of her arms out to her sides, and behind her, she created small distortions behind her, tearing through the air. Upon their creation, they surrounded Mokou from all sides, leaving her with no escape. Lifting her right arm up and pointing a singular finger, she brought it down quickly. "Spell Card: End of Imperishable Night – Morning Mist." The distortions surrounding Mokou grew brightly, and from within, small aetherial butterflies emerged, glowing a bright neon blue. Mokou looked around as they surrounded her, their wing speeds increasing in intensity as they went from floating around her to darting in a circular motion from all sides. Catching Mokou completely off guard, the butterflies dashed in at lightning-fast speeds, piercing right through her sides. The next struck through her arm, then another through her body, before all of the other butterflies started to swarm her. Kaguya could be heard laughing maniacally before she snapped her finger loudly, and the aetherial tears surrounding Mokou began glow brightly before exploding intensely. The explosion was similar to Mokou's spell card—the explosion covered nearly the entire forest, but the flames were blue in contrast to Mokou's fiery explosion.
Seeing the explosion as she entered the forest, Keine let out a shaky gasp. The explosion had not reached her, but the shockwave blew dust back against her. She kept her footing, nearly sliding back from the attack. Once the flames dissipated, she unguarded her face, and although she winced, she could see from one eye a figure that floated up in the sky.
"Kaguya... Houraisan?" Her eyes widened immediately. Kaguya, who was high up in the sky, turned her head around and looked down to see Keine staring at her. With a smirk on her face, Kaguya faced back up to the sky.
"It's time for me to go home again..." Kaguya said, turning her head away from Keine and towards the sky. Closing her eyes, she vanished instantaneously, leaving only light particles behind her.
"Oh no..." Keine thought to herself. "If Kaguya was here, then that means... Mokou!" She pulled her strange hat off of her head, and shut her eyes tight. Large demonic horns appeared from her head, her clothing changed to an emerald-green color and her eyes shone with a bright red. She had transformed into a hakutaku, a spiritual beast. In her new form, she received enhanced speed, and with her head held forward, she dashed through the forest; traversing every pathway that she knew at nigh-impossible speeds. After a moment, she came to an immediate halt, stopping at a crater that was near Mokou's home. She gasped loudly and replaced the hat back to her head, reverting back to her original form. Mokou was brutalized; bleeding all over the ground as holes riddled her body. She was unconscious, considered dead.
Two years ago...
"Mokou! Mokou!"
"Yes, Kaguya?"
"I did it! I made it!"
Mokou, with Kaguya visiting her home, were both together one night. Mokou had just returned with a basket of various fruits from the forest strapped to her back. Setting them on her patio floor, she stretched her arms out. Kaguya, who had noticed her returning home, greeted her at the patio. In her hands were two sticks of yakitori, which was skewered chicken—something that Mokou was fond of making. Kaguya pointed one stick of the cooked meat out to Mokou, and Mokou was taken aback as a response. Although Mokou was fond of the gesture... Kaguya was a terrible cook.
"Ah... yakitori?" Mokou bleakly smiled. Examining the food, it seemed to have been cooked through and through, and it was marinated with sweet and sour sauce. On top of that, the scent was impressive, as if Mokou made it herself.
"Yes, indeed! I have perfected my culinary arts by watching you!" Kaguya swaggered, nodding twice. Mokou looked at the yakitori, then back to Kaguya with a slight blushing smile. She took the yakitori from her and moved to sit at the edge of the patio, looking up into the sky. Kaguya sat down beside her. The sky was a very vibrant navy blue, with the bright white moon shining down with a lustrous glare. The sound of crickets chirping in the background was their orchestra for the night.
"It's awfully bright tonight..." Mokou murmured to herself. Despite this, Kaguya could still hear her. She smiled at Mokou before looking back up at the moon, her smile fading into a frown.
"Yes... it is indeed quite bright." She took her gaze away from the moon, looking down at her yakitori. With her hunger looming over her, she took the first bite. Closing her eyes, she savored the flavor of the sweet and sour sauce with the cooked chicken. She hummed in pleasure, prompting Mokou to try it herself. Shutting her eyes tight and preparing for the worst, she took the first bite. It took her a few moments to chew and swallow, and Kaguya was practically staring at her the whole entire time, eager for a response.
"It's pretty good!" Mokou said. "You did a good job making this... I'm actually quite impressed."
"Truly?" Kaguya replied excitedly. "Oh, perfect! I suppose I really do know how to cook! Take that, Eirin!" She laughed heartily.
"Goddamn it," Mokou thought to herself. "It's burnt on the inside, and the amount of sweet sauce—on top of other things—is expired and beyond mortal consumption. I'm going to die tonight."
"The Moon... it's been so long," Kaguya said to herself, taking another bite of her yakitori. "I still think about my exile, although I'm quite content being in Gensokyo now." She smiled down at the ground. "You've done a lot for me. Eirin and Reisen too, but... I enjoy your company the most, believe it or not."
"Well..." Mokou cleared her throat. "Killing each other over and over again for three-hundred years, having you send assassins to attack me and having you embarrass my father didn't really seem like favors, but... I suppose that everything we've done after the fact has been better than your experience on the Moon." Kaguya chuckled nervously as she wrapped her arm around Mokou, who was surprised by the act but was okay with it nonetheless.
"Oh, do not worry about that, Mokou! We've set our differences aside. I can't think of anything that could come between us! You know, other than the occasional buffet and Super Mario rally."
"Marisa still hasn't returned that game," Mokou grumbled. "Anyway, Kaguya... it's getting late, and I may sleep." Mokou stood up and stretched Kaguya's arm off, grabbing her fruit basket. "Good work on the yakitori... I'll have to show you a few tricks next time to really make it shine."
"Ah, wait, Mokou!" Kaguya called out, before Mokou proceeded indoors. Mokou stopped walking, but she only turned her head slightly to hear her out. "Do you... mind if I sleep with you tonight? Eirin's away in the Outside World to take care of some medications..." Mokou paused for a second, closing her eyes tight.
"...Sorry, Kaguya. I need my bed to myself tonight. I'll... be busy tomorrow." Kaguya frowned, sitting back upright on the patio.
"No, that's... that's quite alright! I'll just return tomorrow..." Kaguya stood up, looking away from Mokou and walking off into the woods, presumably returning to Eientei. Mokou slid open her door, looking back at Kaguya as she walked off. A miserable scowl stretched across her face from denying her a place to sleep.
"...Ugh. I'm sorry..." She shut the door behind her soon after, and the echoing sounds of the door sliding closed filled the forest.
Current date...
"Huh!?"
Mokou jolted awake suddenly. She laid on a tatami bed, topless—save for a sarashi wrap that covered her breasts—and patches that covered her body. Her regenerative properties allowed her to recover from death, although her body was groggy and weak. She held her head as the world was spinning around her. Trying to recover her senses, she looked around the room to get a better look at her surroundings. She was in her own home, more specifically in her room. Looking out of the nearest window, she could tell that evening had just fallen and the sky was painted with an orange color.
"Mokou!?" She heard somebody call her name. The sliding door opened up quickly, and Mokou blinked twice before seeing who it was. Surely enough, it was Keine Kamishirasawa, who heaved a heavy sigh of relief.
"Oh, thank goodness... you're awake," Keine beamed, rushing to her side. "Does it still hurt? Do you need more treatment?"
"Keine?" Mokou grunted. "How long have I been out for...? Where's Kaguya?" Mokou looked around. She tried to stand up, but Keine grabbed her arm and set her back down gently.
"Mokou, no! Lay down... rest a bit," Keine quaked. "You just recovered from death, and you've been out for three months now. Me and Sumireko—"
"Three months!?" Mokou exclaimed. "No... she has to be gone by now, back to the Moon..." She set her head back down on the pillow on her tatami bed. Closing her eyes and covering her face, she knew she was too late. "Kaguya... I'm sorry..."
"I heard a noise!" Another voice piped up, sliding the door open to the bedroom. Bursting through it hastily was the leader of the Secret Sealing Club, Sumireko Usami. She was not wearing her typical high-collared cloak, leaving her with just her school uniform. "Oh! Is she awake?" Sumireko asked.
"Yes, Sumi," Mokou replied with a groan. "You've got the power of ESP and you couldn't even tell that...?" She grumbled inaudibly, trying to sit back up. "Anyway... three months...?"
"That's correct," Keine responded. "You remember your fight with her, right...? I noticed two large explosions from when I was in the human town before coming here... I notified Sumireko as quickly as I could."
"It's a relief that you woke up so quickly," Sumireko replied. "Keine-sensei told me about your injuries so I wanted to help by putting my Zanar cards to use." Mokou smirked slightly. Despite her own regeneration, the assistance of the two helped her to relax more easily.
"Anyway, Mokou... what's the deal with you and Kaguya?" Almost fifty consecutive years of you two not fighting and now... this?"
"I just remember that she started it," Mokou said. Sumireko approached alongside Keine, handing Mokou a mug of warm matcha tea. She took it in hand, but did not take a sip. "She brought up our three-hundred-year fight, then instigated me to challenge her by picking me apart. Said that she would return to the Moon to reclaim what was rightfully hers. As far as why she started it..." She paused, setting the tea in her lap. She was deep in thought.
"You think that maybe she wants to relive that thrill of battle?" Keine asked. "She doesn't have a reason to, if I recall. She was always so recluse..." Mokou squeezed the mug in her hand.
"...Perhaps she doesn't take rejection too well," Mokou muttered. "Just the same as she tried to make me feel, reading me the riot act before leaving to the Moon..."
"Rejection?" Sumireko thought, pressing a single digit to her cheek. "Are you trying to say that Kaguya has feelings for you?" Her deductive reasoning was spot on. Mokou pursed her lips slightly, bringing the tea closer to her so that she could partake in it.
"We've... tried to get closer since our fights. It's not like I've been trying to push her away, but..." Mokou's voice trailed off. "I know how she feels being alone. I'm just used to it, so I prefer it..."
"So, she killed you and fled to the Moon... We haven't seen her since, Mokou." Mokou released a shaky sigh of discomfort at Keine's words. Her disappointment couldn't have been clearer. Sumireko turned to Keine and nodded, standing up and walking out of the room quickly. Keine put her hands on Mokou's shoulders.
"...Mokou." Keine tried grabbing her attention as she held her head down. She picked her head up slowly to face Keine, a defeated expression on her face. "Get some rest. Sumireko's going to Eientei as we planned while you were asleep."
"...For what?" Mokou asked, confused.
"Kaguya is gone, but... Reisen and Eirin are still here. Eirin, of all people, hasn't noticed Kaguya's disappearance; she has not even left the estate to begin searching for her." Mokou's eyes widened. "So, Sumireko is going to rally Eirin and most likely Reisen as well in order to find a way to the Moon... they know they way through Youkai Mountain, after all."
"Ah, the Mount Fuji of Gensokyo... damn it. We're not taking Sumi with us, are we...? You know how the youkai around there feel about humans."
"Oh, don't worry about that. She'll be protected by a were-hakutaku, two Lunarians and... you." Keine smiled, and Mokou scoffed.
"Very well. Give me a week's worth of rest and I'll meet with the Lunarians." Mokou laid flat on the tatami bed, lifting her arms up and relaxing her hands behind her head. Keine nodded and stood back up one foot at a time, beaming with delight at her. With no further words, Keine left the room and shut the door behind her, leaving Mokou in the room by herself. As the door shut, a sullen mood breezed through her like warm winds.
"You've done a lot for me." Kaguya's words echoed in her head. She turned over in the bed and choked back a few tears, despite her strong demeanor.
"...Kaguya..." She closed her eyes and returned to sleep, and the sunset disappeared behind the trees only for the Moon to return again. One week's worth of time was all she needed... and she would make right what had gone so horribly wrong.
To be continued...