Chapter 1: The First Steps into a Dark Unknown Land

Warning: Outside World names are now being used here. Just to remind everyone

Asahi = Japan

Chugoku = China

Registan = U.S.A

Bevelle = United Kingdoms

Necopolis = Germany

Malkrantia =Russia

Note: In POVs where there are only speakers of one language, the normal text will be expected to be in the language that the speakers are talking in. In POVs with one or more languages at the same time, the italics are the foreign language spoken, and the normal text is English spoken. Brackets will be added to foreign speech, if it is not possible to fit all dialogue in the A/N sections where simple phrases will be transcribed to English.

Note 2: Note that there are two seperate Alices. To tell, the one with the STI is Alice Lou, the Chinese-American, and the other is at the Hakurei Shine, as Alice Margatroid.


Inside the GA-RAID VTOL airship...

"Alright men, we're almost at our location." The intercom blared with the voice of the young Registanian pilot. "I hope you bastards enjoyed the flight on STI airlines, done by our proud and strong GA-RAID, Big Claire!"

The men let out the words 'PRAISE HER GLORY AND MAY SHE LIVE LONG AND PROUD!' in a cheerful cry of honour, as LT only chuckled at this, before then looking at David, who was inspecting his gun all over.

"You know, it really cracks me up every time, when our vehicles that are considered to be among the best, and spent a long time in service, my own men and staff begin to praise them as if they're men and women themselves." LT said in a humorous manner. "Not that I would object, but it just really makes my day when this almost always happen every time I fly in this GA-RAID aircraft, eh David?"

"Well, LT, my friend and boss-man..." David replied, as he lifted his head to face LT. "You know that every person has their tradition and cultures? Well, if you spent more time caring about the inner workings of your men, instead of training and teaching them at almost every moment you spend with them, you'd catch the idea already."

LT lets out a quiet hiss, as he smacked his lips together with a smile. "Ooh, now that's a good burn you gave me, David." He answered back. "Of course, if I were to be some normal grouchy mofo, like the occasional and stereotype officer, I'd have you drop to the ground and give me fifty for that kind of back-talk. But then again, I ain't one to care much about my men, because I'm not someone who would pry into the lives of others. So long as they can handle themselves and not screw up when it's critical not to, then they are all proud men in my point of view."

"Hey, Commander?" A Turk, who was sitting just a few seats away from him, his eyes being obscured by the sun-glasses over his eyes. "Mind if I ask what the hell we're about to dive into? Briefing's all detailed and all that crap, but I still ain't got a damn idea about why the hell we're bothering to go to southern Asahi just to investigate an area where all kinds of planes and men disappeared in? I would be lost in that area, if it was considered how thick and desolate the forest was, especially considering the fog and the damn 'static' mist down there that makes contacting anyone in it like trying to find a needle in a barn of haystacks! I thought that shit was National Rescue's cup of tea!"

"Patience, my dear padawan." LT replied with a snide smirk on his face. "Of course people would be lost in there, except that National Rescue couldn't do shit. And that's because the ones that are lost are in a different dimension entirely. You did not notice that there was a high concentration of spacial emission in the target area, high enough to levels that are beyond human comprehension? That, my friend, is because the space there is bent and twisted like a pretzel there. There has to be a rift somewhere around here. And besides, shouldn't you be checking the preparation of our gear?"

"I did, sir." The Turk replied with a slight nod.

"Oh, REALLY?" LT drew the last word out much longer, to signify his suspicion. "Alrighty then, Mr Know-It-All, tell me, what's our standard gear, and our extra equipment?"

"We have been equipped with our own personal weaponry, standard-grade, we're provided with tactical gear fitted for night, jungle, desert and naval combat, including flashlights, night-vision goggles, and everything regarding that category. We're stocked up with enough ammo so that we won't be required to scavenge for any. And we have our Zantetsu-Maru at full charge and durablity for melee or last-resort circumstances." The Turk listed off the equipment in stock without hesitation. "As for you and the RAIDERS, we've stocked up with four ammo boxes loaded with fifty clips of Boomers in each one, for your pistols, two Doomsticks with slight overcharge to keep a balance between power and duration. David has been supplied with the number of mini-sentries he needs, as well as the 'Ricochet' prototype bullets loaded into his tactical vest. Alice Lou is provided with extra gear and weapon packs for her Shanghai Doll, as well as a arsenal of most of her preferred arrow types, especially her miniature war-head arrow for emergencies. And Edge Calloway is supplied with a recharge pack to keep his powers at optimal charge, as well as a bolt rifle to utilise his lighting aura into ranged projectiles. Oh, and their melee weapons are just beside their loadouts."

"Shit, that's a huge list. I barely kept myself awake through all of that." LT yawned. "Alright, you've done well, my fellow Turk. Just remember, there is a reason why I've ordered this much gear for the RAIDERS and all of us. It's because I have a feeling this won't be a easy search-and-rescue mission.

Suddenly the VTOL began to jolt violently, before it then began to sink towards the front, causing the soldiers to be shocked, with some panicking, as a loud alarm rang through the craft.

"What the FUCK!?" Edge cried out, as his head banged against the wall of the plane very hard, causing the Bevellian soldier to wince and rub the bruise that came on the back of his head.

Suddenly, a blonde-haired humanoid doll, that was armed with white medieval armour, as well as a mini assault-rifle in her hands, flew out of the back of Alice's suit.

"Alice? ALICE!? What's going on? Why are we... falling!?" The doll cried out in a young female voice.

"Shanghai, get back here, NOW!" Alice ordered her doll to come to her, as she then grabbed it and held it close to her chest, as the doll let out a worried whimper.

LT, was struggling to keep himself on the seat, before turning to the Turk he was talking to before.

"Hey, what the hell happened!?" LT demanded from his subordinate.

"I don't have a clue, sir! Something doesn't seem right about all of this-"

"MAYDAY! MAYDAY! The damn engines have suddenly given up when we passed through that rift!" The pilot informed everyone in a stern voice. "If you want to come out of this in one piece, you better brace like there's no goddamn tomorrow, because we're going to be free-falling in seconds!"

"Shit, everyone BRACE!" LT roared to everyone.

LT curled himself with his head and back arched to keep himself from slamming it on anything hard enough to crack it open, before the craft hit the ground, sending a earth-shaking jolt around the craft, as it slid across the earth, causing LT to almost lose consciousness from how the harness was digging into his lungs like metallic claws.


Meanwhile at the GHDF Base...

There was the sound of gun-fire, as various board targets scattered around the area were torn apart by dozens and dozens of bullet-holes, some of them having whole parts of them being destroyed from the onslaught of projectiles.

"TRAINING SESSION OVER." A automated voice said, as the ground near the targets opened up as metallic hatches, as the targets sank into them before the hatches closed themselves. "PARTNER GRADE 5 COURSE COMPLETE WITH A RANKING OF EXCELLENT SPEED."

Far away from the target were Richard, who was blowing the barrel of his machine-gun with great emphasis, while Reisen Inaba, the Inaba of the Moon, still had her modernistic assault-rifle in her hands, as the barrel was still steaming with energy, keeping her hip-fire posture as rigid and straight as she could make it.

"Now that was one hell of a massacre, Inaba." Richard whistled. "You know, I feel bad for actually calling you over to partner up with me for this course. It's only unfair since you're the one who took out most of the targets, and every single bullet you fired hit without any deviation to where its supposed to go!"

"Never underestimate a Lunarian like me, Richard." Reisen intoned back at Richard, as she slung the rifle back over her shoulder. "You should know that I have had decades of experience with this. Something like this is merely a walk in the park compared to what I can possibly achieve."

"You know that all this talking is making me envious of your skills, right?" Richard replied, with a frown on his face. "I could only wish that I could get to your levels, Reisen. And then I could simply go juggernaut on the human ass-holes and bring them down before they can cause enough damage to force me to make a tactical retreat."

"The possibilities of that can only be made possible with my illusionary powers. Perhaps I should put you under one if you want to have that kind of feeling." Reisen answered back with a cold tone.

"Damn, you cruel, girl, you too cruel!" Richard complained, as he simply dropped the gun, and pouted slightly in annoyance.

Before the conversation could continue further, there was the sound of a ring-tone from beside Richard's ear, where a long wire-like communicator, with a bud placed just over it, as Richard then lifted a hand to gesture for Reisen to wait, using his other hand to bring out the microphone to his mouth.

"Hey, private channel! State your intentions, soldier!" Richard spoke in a very strict manner, as there was silence for a moment. "...Yes, I read you, Wenzu. You know better than to call me when I'm in the middle of a training session. And no, for the thousandth time, I am not interested in flirting with Major Reisen, thank you very much, you damn pervy kappa! So? You have a signal... Let's hear what you have to say about what your fellow pals detected. Cut to the chase, and tell me what kind of thing it is."

The communicator buzzed again, as Richard then paled.

"...Come again? Repeat your last statement, Wenzu. SLOWLY." Richard spoke in a very shocked tone, before he then clutched his face. "This time, it's a military aircraft!? Oh, I get it, they've must have really wanted their spies back. I know we should have just simply wiped their minds and sent them back. Fuck the risks, it would at least give us more time to prepare for all of this. What's your extra specifics? STI... huh... STI..."

Richard suddenly turn much more whiter, as he begins to stutter.

"Oh fucking hell. The worst case scenario has come." Richard blurted out in a very shaky tone, before he then regained his composure, and placed his hand over his mouth and mic. "Listen closely, Wenzu, and listen very closely. Do everything I say, and inform the other squad members to proceed to their locations. And inform Yukari about this. She may know, but I don't want to take chances, she must know as fast as possible! We CANNOT remain unalerted at all. Make sure it's on the highest security in the channel. Those bastards could possibly be listening on us already. I hope they haven't heard this one yet. They've crashed already!? SHIT! No more talking, comrade, get Yukari. NOW! And from now on, codenames only!"

Richard soon turned off his communicator, before turning to Reisen.

"Reisen, you need to speed back to Eientei, ASAP, if not instantly!" Richard replied. "The Outside World bastards have come, and this time they sent that fucking bastard and his warmongering company right to our doorsteps. Go there, and get the Lunarians and rabbit youkai armed. Place as much traps as you can with Tewi, and make sure everyone is on 110% morale. We cannot risk underestimating them all. Make sure to shoot them down first, and then capture later."

"Already..." Reisen cursed under his breath. "Alright, I'll see to it as Kaguya's general. But what about you?"

"I've got some preparations to make, and that includes the evacuation of the Human Village to the underground shelter of the base.' Richard replied. "Protect Kaguya with your life, my friend. If I find that a single hair of hair is harmed, I will not guarantee that any of those intruders will live to be brought before Yukari and the other leaders. Now go!"

"Understood." Reisen replied, as Richard opened up a sukima for her, as she jumped into it, and disappearing, along with the portal, before Richard then pressed a few buttons on his communicator.

"Chiron, Chiron? Do you read? This is Odysseus! Yes, the time has come. Order a full evacuation of the unarmed and the civilians. Make sure that no-one who cannot fight is left behind. Gather your troops and mobilise them. I'll do all I can to halt the advance of the intruders. Don't worry, you know I've prepared for a full-out war, let alone such a small conflict like this. And while you're getting the troops ready. Notify Pathos, get her armed with the prototype magitek naginata, and get Esper armed to the teeth. We won't let those bastards do what they desire here. It's time we remind them why Gensokyo is not something you can simply hope to take from us!"


Meanwhile, at the Crash Site...

The GA-Raider Big Claire, found itself being entrenched on a large clearing in the Forest of Magic, as it was wedged in a large mound of earth, that was caused by the long slide it undertook. Even though it grinded against the earth for a long time, the craft was relatively unscathed, save for a few scratches on its paint and outer hull.

LT only sighed, as he shook his head with his hand on it, while his troops were inspecting the craft, and pulling out the crates of equipment that were stored inside the aircraft, through the rear ramp.

"Just fucking great. We end up in Kansas, and there's not a single Wicked Witch in sight, let alone a single mouse." LT swore at himself, before he pulled out a pair of goggles, and placed them over his eyes, as the green HUD began to scan the VTOL airship, showing its specifications and current status. "Huh, strange. It seems that the craft is relatively unscathed, but the engines and turbines are in a utter grid-lock, by some sort of magnetism force. And one that we have no fucking clue how to even know what type it is, let alone attempt to get rid of it... I have a feeling that this is Mother Nature's way of repaying us for what we did to her. Ah, who am I kidding, she was a grouchy bitch to us humans ever since we entered the modern age..."

Suddenly a compartment on the rightmost side of the craft opened with a torrent of dust, as Edge came out rolling, coughing severely.

"FFFUUUUCCKKKIIIINNNGGG CHRIST!" Edge screamed, as he got up and dusted himself vigorously. "Did anyone get the plate number of the damn truck that slam-dunked us right into the damn ground!?"

"Edge, how the hell did you end up in the exhaust compartment of the craft!?" LT roared at him.

"No damn clue! All I did was wake up, and I find myself in a room filled with goddamn dust." Edge replied, before he then stomped towards the edge of the forest, muttering under his breath. 'Goddamn secret compartment my ass...'

LT then turned to his men.

"Alright, men, I do believe that I do not need to tell you what must be done. But in case anyone of you didn't pay attention enough, or forgot, allow me to state my orders." LT called out to his subordinates. "We're in a land that we have no intel or recon on. That must not remain as so. I want scout teams to prepare for short-range recon around the area. Find out where the hell we landed, and if there are anything that should be noted. As for the rest of you, get to setting up camp, and necessary defences. Level 2. The land is quiet, but I ain't going to waste equipment over some cockroaches and pests. Now GET MOVING! And if I catch any of you bastards slacking, I'll fry your ass with a low-charge Doomstick shot!"

"SIR YES SIR!" The soldiers cried out, as the Turk saluted back at him, before returning to their duty in supervising the lower-ranked soldiers.

"I'm not one for camping trips like this. Then again, at least it's better than the last few times we were called into action." David commented with his arms crossed.

"Be happy we're not in threat the moment we landed here. With a sound like that, it's by sheer luck that nobody heard or detected up by now. We need to keep our eyes open." Alice Lou replied back.

"So true, Lou, So true..." David sighed.

Far away from the crash-site, inside a large gathering of trees, there are three figures inside the large foliage of the trees, hidden clearly out of sight. One of them was Reimu Hakurei, the shrine maiden of the land, Marisa Kirisame, the blonde-magician with a knack for fun and danmaku, and Alice Margatroid, the Seven-Coloured Puppeter, and close friend to Marisa.

"That is a lot of Outsiders, ze." Marisa muttered under her breath, before turning to Reimu. "I have a bad feeling about this..."

"I could only feel the same, Marisa." Reimu responded back. "And by the looks of it, they sure aren't planning on being welcome on these lands..."

"Ssh... Quiet. We don't want to be heard. They look like that they're serious about trashing their way through this land." Alice hissed at the other two girls. "Look!"

Alice then points at where LT is, as he picks up a long gun that is fitted with four barrels in a square-formation in the front.

"Holy Makai..." Marisa swore. "What is that thing!? It looks like as if it's a bunch of guns mashed together, ze!"

"And look at that sword..." Reimu added, speaking about the Zantankou on his back. "That thing is literally like one of those swords that Sanae swoons over... It's far larger than the Roukanken and Hakurouken combined for sure..."

"I feel like that this isn't going to go well... I think we need to go now!" Alice warned her companions.

Before long, a sukima appeared behind the girls, as Richard quietly stepped out of the sukima, and onto a branch silently.

"Thank god you're all here." Richard sighed in relief.

"Richard!?" Marisa cried out. "What are doing here, ze!? I thought you have to take care of your army stuff.

"I've had a bad feeling about all of this, when I heard this thing crash-landed, and you girls are within this area" Richard explained calmly."You all fine? Have anything happened yet?"

"No..." Reimu replied. "So far, they look like they're preparing to set up camp here."

"Then there's not long until they repair this craft, and screw us over." Richard answered back. "Either way, you girls need to go. Now."

"See, he agrees with me!" Alice cried out a bit louder in a harsh voice.

"Fine, fine, ze. We'll leave." Marisa grunted, as she then turned around, before she then stepped on a fragile branch, which dropped to the ground with a thud.

The four residents paled, as they looked at the branch, as they saw LT whip around and point the gun Marisa identified at them, as it fired off a green ball of energy that seems to be growing by the second.

"SHIT! JUMP!" Richard cried out, as he then created a sukima, as the three girls jumped hastily into it.

Richard then closed it, and used another sukima to make his escape, just before the green ball of energy landed where they were standing, exploding into a green aura of energy that blew most of the foilage and branches to pieces, and left the rest on fire.

LT looked at the damaged trees, before he then looked back at his men, whipping the gun back onto the crate.

"Like I said, goddamn pests." LT replied. "That was a damn waste of a good charged shot from the Tau Cannon."

"Sir, are you alright?" A soldier asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." LT replied in a nonchalant tone, before he then turned to the soldier with a stern expression. "And get back to work. Me and the RAIDERS need to have a talk, and you're not supposed to be wasting time talking with me."

"I... Yessir." The soldier responded back, before running back to join his men.


At the Hakurei Shrine...

Reimu, Marisa and Alice appeared through Richard's sukima, and landed on the ground staggering slightly, before they got their bearing back, before Richard landed on his chest, and groaned as he rolled over onto his back, clutching his chest.

"Aarrrggghhh..." Richard cried out in pain. "Note to self: Never do this kind of thing again."

Soon enough, one of Yukari's sukimas appeared, as she walked through it, with a serious expression.

"So, I take it that the Outside World has finally decided that they would back-stab their agreement with us for peace?" Yukari replied.

"Heh. Some ass-holes they are, Yakumo." Richard chuckled, as he got up. "First they send spies to us, and expect us to either kill or imprison them. We did the latter, and now they send that fucking bastard on our trail, thirsty for our blood."

"And their weapons are strong indeed, ze!" Marisa stated as well. "It's a damned wet dream for any good weapon collector and soldier!"

"Not to mention that they seem to be more refined than the soldiers that we have been informed about, Yukari." Alice replied.

"That's because they're STI, Alice. They're a hybrid between a technological company and a private military force with their own mercenaries." Yukari replies. "The name stands for 'Summers Technological Industries', and their head is Lieutenant Colonel Jack Summers, one of the people who was present at the peace conference long ago."

"And the bastard who wants to suck Gensokyo dry, and commit genocide against us." Richard spat in disdain.

"Wait, how do you know all of this, Yukari?" Reimu asked.

"I've done legal research on the company and its men. Slow and inefficient, but with this method, the Outside World will have jack-to-none for a clue about what I have done. Especially when I covered my tracks quite well." Yukari gave Reimu the answer she wanted, with a stoic tone.

"Wait, where the hell is Rumia? She's also a resident of this forest! If they find her... They're going to rip her apart!" Richard asked.

"I have no clue for such things, Richard." Yukari answered back with a sigh. "And I cannot try looking for her, now that Jack Summers has arrived. It is heard that he is a fair equal to us youkai, in terms of science is to magic. In fact, most of his tech revolves around being counter-magic."

"Goddamnit..." Richard cursed. "Then I will have to take the long way around this place. Before I leave, I need to ask you something."

"You may ask it, Richard." Yukari replied to him.

"Yukari, I need to ask you a favour." Richard replied. "You saw how that damn VTOL made it in Gensokyo, without a single scratch? I know your barrier has electromagnetic interference that will keep them stuck for days, but I need you to make sure that they cannot leave, no matter what may happen. I need you to take whatever power source they have, as well as any weapon inside that may be related to mass-destruction."

"...I cannot promise that." Yukari replied. "But I will at least do that. In fact, my intention is to give the STI men a little warning."

"Thank you." Richard thanked her with gratitude, and bowed slightly to her, before turning to Reimu, Marisa and Alice. "As for you three, I need you to prepare for war. These bastards could find you without warning, and I need you to make sure that you won't die when you fight them unprepared. Remember, if you die, I'll go to Hakugyokurou and strangle your spirits for being idiots."

"Woah, cold joke there, ze." Marisa hissed, before she then smiled, before placing a arm over Reimu. "Don't worry, Richard pal. I'll be sure to take care of Alice and Reimu in your stead."

Reimu begin to have tick-marks on her head, before she then pulled Marisa's arm off her, and slammed her gohei into the magician's head, causing her to clutch her head in pain.

"Ow ow ow..." Marisa replied, as she looked at Reimu with hurtful eyes. "Fine, I didn't mean that. I know you're stronger than me, but at least play along a bit..."

Alice smiled lightly at this, as Richard nodded, before he then ran down the steps of the Hakurei Shrine, and disappeared into the forest.

'Hang in there, Rumia...' Richard thought. 'I'll make sure you'll make it to Cirno in one piece. I swear it to the heavens!'


Fast-Forward to Nighttime...

At the Crash Site in the Forest of Magic...

The dark skies of the mystic land are alight with the flight of many fireflies, as their light were like faux stars among the space. Edge lifted a hand, and let one of them rest on his hand, as he inspected it with a warm smile.

"Even though this place is a bit worrying, it sure has a nice landscape and good natural beauty." He spoke to himself. "When was the last time that I saw such a landscape like this with my own eyes, and in reality? I wonder if there are other kinds of animals here..."

LT placed a hand on Edge's right shoulder, as he then waved the fire-fly away from his comrade's finger, as it flew back to join with the rest of its brethren.

"You know, we've never been so close to wildlife, nor have we seen such beautiful sights for so long..." LT assured him, before turning to the soldiers who were resting and keeping watch over the place. "Even so, we need to keep our eyes open. We can't let nature distract us further. Men, what is the status of the perimeter?"

"Sentry Guns are primed and armed, sir." A engineer responded with a wave of his hand. "These babies will put down anything that so much doesn't look like it's nice and friendly, and put 'em down faster than you can say 'Father Science'! Now ain't that a beauty to behold? And as for the Camera Drones, well it seems the magnetism also rendered them useless, since the propellers are broken."

"But isn't magnetism supposed to affect electricity and power as well, if that's the case about the sentry guns?" LT asked back. "This is definitely not natural interference."

"Nada about knowing about all that stuff, Commander LT." The engineer shrugged. "Permission to hit the hay, and earn some well-earned Zs?"

"Granted." LT accepted his request.

Alice Lou soon pulled out Shanghai out of where she was stored, as the doll looked around.

"That's strange... Why do I have a feeling... A strange one that there's a sense of familiarity around here?" Shanghai muttered to herself.

"Shanghai? What's wrong?" Alice asked her doll.

"Nothing, Alice... It's just a strange feeling. I wonder if I have feelings like you... Maybe this feeling is synthetic..." Shanghai muttered to herself.

Alice grabbed the doll, and hugged her.

"Don't you dare say that. Even if you were born because of a experiment, doesn't mean that you're not my truest friend. I refuse to call you a doll, because I know you have a heart to feel..." Alice comforted her companion.

Shanghai only smiled lightly, as she looked at the skies.

"You're... right. I must be stupid trying to think that I'm a controlled being..."


In the recesses of the Magic Forest...

"I feel like my luck is shit..." The soldier muttered in a dejected tone under his breath, as he trudged around the road, letting his rifle slump with his arm. "First day as a soldier, and I end up being stuck with the RAIDERS for a suicide mission, and I take first shifts of the night patrol. Alone even. I feel like some bastards are laughing at my misery."

He then noticed a large tree in front of him, as he then slumps against it, to sit down under it.

"Man, I feel like that I'm going to die here. I mean, come on, what's a man gotta do to earn some respect and cash!?" The soldier complained, as he took off his helmet. "Do I really have to act like a damn mook? It's basically like trying to lump me with Red Shirts-"

There was a loud rustle that rang across the forest, as the man stood up, and picked up his assault rifle, and turned on the flashlight, as he looked around.

"Must be a wild animal or something. Jeez, how tense am I now?" The soldier said, as he rubbed his forehead with his hand, before another rustle caused him to look around. "Nope. NOPE! I ain't imagining things here. That definitely doesn't sound like anything harmless!"

The rustles soon became more and more rapid, and louder, indicating that whatever was coming is getting closer to the soldier, as he began to sweat all over, and was trying to keep himself calm through deep breaths, although his whimpering was tattling about his current state of fear.

"This is scary..." The soldier whimpered. "H-Hello? A-Anyone t-there?"

The soldier's arms were shaking, as the rustles reached a climax, in both sound and rate, before they stopped altogether.

"Alright, come out! COME OUT!" The soldier demanded, with a new spout of bravery in his heart, as if he lost all of his fear, and gained some courage to speak out. "Whoever you are, or whatever, come out now, or you're going to be sprayed with 10 pounds of earthly Justice!"

All that he got in reply, was the sound of a childish giggle, as the soldier paled a few more shades, as the rustling started again, before a little blonde girl with a black and red dress came out, with a red ribbon tied to the right side of her head. The soldier then let out a sigh of relief, as he then put his gun down, before he then approached the girl, who was looking at him with a innocent and curious look.

"Oh, heya, little one..." The soldier smiled at the girl. "You must be lost, poor girl... Don't worry, I'll take you back with me... I promise that we're not going to do anything bad to you. I promise."

"...So na no ka~?" The little girl asked in a meek voice, as she lifted her head to face the soldier.

"Eh? What's that, little one? Uh... So na no ka... Is that so?" The soldier muttered under his breath, before he then answered back hastily. "Yeah, it is so! I'm honest!"

The little girl then smiled, as the soldier felt warm from such a kind smile, before the smile turned wide and crazy, as her eyes showed pure hunger.

"That is so, THEN." The little girl spoke in English, in a creepy voice, as darkness began to leak out of her body.

The soldier then froze, as he felt true fear and helplessness, as the demonic girl sprouted darkness from her body, as they formed ribbons that begin to orbit around them, as he felt himself wet his pants for the first time in his life.

"...Mommy." The soldier uttered his last words in a undignified and shattered tone.

The ribbons of darkness formed a ball of darkness around the two people, before there was the muffled sound of torturous screams, as well as the sound of flesh and bone being rendered apart, as well as quiet chewing and munching, while blood began to leak from the ball of darkness.

"AAAAAAaAaAaaAaAaAaAAaAaAaaAaAaaAaAaaAaAaAAAAAAaAaAAaAaA!"


Richard soon traversed through the forest, as he used a silenced Minebea replica, as well as his personal machine gun on his back as a secondary armanent.

Through his eyes, the darkness of the night had little to no effect on him, as his eyes were enhanced by magic to allow him to see in the dark, as the brightness was raised a few levels for him.

He kept his eyes wide for anything that could be nearby, constantly flicking left and right with his gun pointed in front, looking for anything to note.

As he searched around the place, he felt something soft hit against his foot, as he turned to point a gun at it, before he then paled at looking closely at what the object was.

It was a severed human arm, being messily and uncleanly separated from its main body, which was nowhere to be seen, as the muscle and bone inside of it poked out of the severed section for all to see.

Richard then bit his lip, as he fought back the revulsion in his mind, as well as the urge to scream, or even gag at the sight.

He then looked slowly up in front, as what came to sight was a large pool of red blood, with several spatters staining the nearby trees around it.

"Oh god... Although I admit that Rumia has to eat flesh raw to complete her diet, especially in such a god-awful way." Richard muttered under his breath. "It still always surprises me. I bet that's one of the STI men. There's no identification, but there's no doubt it's human blood, and that is definitely not from some stray child who was unlucky to be Rumia's next snack. No, the blood... It's enough to spill from an adult."

Richard then placed two fingers inside the blood pool, before pulling it out, with some of the bodily fluid sticking to them, as he shook the rest off.

"The blood's fresh. I must be close." Richard noted, before he then closed his eyes, as he began to sense his surroundings, before he then grit his teeth. "Damnit, the trail's cold here. I don't know what happened to her trail of magic, but somehow... I can't sense it anymore... Could it be that I'm already too fatigued to sense the faint traces?"

He then slapped his fore-head a few times, before he then turned back.

"I need to take some rest, and then report this death to Yukari. She won't be happy, for sure, and I ain't going to let her scream me awake because of all of this in the middle of the night..." Richard spoke to himself, before he then took off to the skies, as he flew back towards his base.


The Next Day, in the Hakurei Shrine...

"She WHAT!?"

Yukari was outraged, as Richard told her the news that she was not going to enjoy hearing, as Richard only nodded gently, as Reimu, Marisa and Alice were standing with them.

"Yes, you heard, Yukari." Richard responded back. "Rumia has made a meal out of one of the Outsiders."

"Damn the gods..." Yukari cursed. "Richard, do you know why this will not end well?"

"...Tell me." Richard calmly asked her.

"There's a reason why Rumia is attracted to Outsiders, and that includes you, a long time ago." Yukari explained. "And that is because like how the barrier magnetised the craft that came in, the barrier also coats any humans with a aura that makes them appealing to youkai."

"So, it's basically sticking a note on them, saying 'Eat me.' to anyone. And Rumia's a pure meat-diet girl..." Richard added, before he then paled. "Wait, then don't tell me...!"

"Yes, Richard. You're on the dot. Rumia is going to end up heading for the craft, since she'll be on a bloody frenzy, because she's on their scent. Maybe she might have slept before, but she's still going to be rushing at the Outsiders near the craft like a bloodhound after sausages." Yukari spoke in a harsh tone.

"Then what are we wasting time for!?" Richard cried out. "I need to go, now!"

"Wait, we're coming with you, ze!" Marisa said.

"NO!" Richard roared hastily. "You can't go! Neither of you leave here. You're the most powerful residents here, especially Reimu! If you girls die, then we won't have a last-resort in case things goes to shit! And I refuse to put you at risk, as your friend and ally!"

"But what about you?" Reimu asked.

"I'll get Rumia, and then warp like crazy out of this area. Rumia's not even able to fight them properly at this level. And if they shoot the ribbon off... God help us..." Richard answered back.

"Fine, but you better not die! Marisa hates it when her friends suffer!" Alice cried out with puffed cheeks.

"I promise. If I die, then let Komachi throw me in the Sanzu River." Richard answered back, before he then ran down the stairs.

"Wait, you can't make such a suicidal promise!" Reimu cried out, before she realised Richard is out of earshot.

And while Richard left, Yukari stepped into one of her sukimas, without any of the remaining trio noticing her departure.


Inside the Crash Site...

LT was standing over the severed arm of the soldier who was killed in patrol earlier, as the arm is laid on a blue tarp, as there was a forensics expert checking over the corpse, while the other soldiers chatted nervously amongst each other, as the RAIDERS were keeping watch in their stead.

"Jesus, whoever this guy was, he must have met such a gruesome fate..." LT muttered. "Poor guy had everything taken from him, and all that's left is this arm. What kind of monster would be able to do such a feat!?"

"I could say the same, sir LT." The Bevellan expert responded. "The person was eaten alive, and very gruesomely indeed. Not only that, when the scene was found a few hours before, there was blood everywhere, on the trees and ground, and the weapons he was carrying remained untouched at all. His rifle has not lost a single round, and there was no registration of his finger pressing the trigger to prepare firing. On top of that, his twin Zantetsu-Marus remained untouched."

"So you're telling me whoever got this guy, managed to get him before he even noticed the threat?" LT asked.

"Indeed." The expert confirmed.

"That is indeed strange... Protocol stated that every single men under my employment, even the non-combat staff, were to be trained to respond to threats without fault at varying levels. Not even a Turk could expect to sneak up to any soldier, and expect to succeed in being unnoticed before they are dispatched... That means whoever killed or ate this soldier, was far better than a Turk at doing silent executions."

"LT? Have you found anything?" David asked, as he walked up to LT. "I've got news about this incident, and I feel... sorry for the guy really.

"Ah, David. Good to see you're up." LT replied. "I have just deduced something. Whoever killed this guy either used a trick or distraction to keep the soldier's attention away from attacking them, before they destroyed him. Or they must have done something beyond what normal science and technology can do, even for us."

"Huh? You mean they used..."

"Yes, Magic. The hocus-pocus jazz that is popular in the Middle Ages, and considered to be nothing more than entertainment in our times." LT stated. "And this sort of magic is definitely not fun and games."

"God... First we end up in a unknown land, and next, one of our men were killed by magic. What next, a fantasy monster is going to come out and maul more men to death!?" David hissed in anger.

"That remains to be seen. We cannot discount every possibility, especially when we have no idea what everyone is capable of." LT answered back.

"CONTACT!" A Turk cried out, pointing at a rustling bush, that showed large amounts of sound. "Everyone get ready! We might have our culprit of the murder coming. Let's blow this ugly bastard and avenge our brother-in-arms!"

"Battle-stations!" LT ordered his men to follow suit. The men-in-black: Guards, whipped out their futuristic submachine guns, which had the same appearance as the WL-2 submachine guns from the Wasteland game series. whereas the cloaked men: Turks, whipped out a small pistol from their cloaks, while the RAIDERS rushed into the GA-RAIDER, in order to gear up for combat.

"Use your right hand for the Boomers, can't afford to waste the explosive shots from these bad boys. Don't press the Detonate button until you get at least one shot on the target. Wield your Zantetsu-Maru with your left hand, in case the target got close to you." LT commanded his men.

The RAIDERS soon came out of the VTOL airship, armed with their gear. Edge was dual-wielding his bolt rifle, which was a large assault rifle that had electric panels on the sides, as well as a split-ended barrel, and his own sword, which was a clay-more that had lightning bolts for a cross-guard, as well as the silver blade cracking with blue electricity. David, was holding a large futuristic bastard-sword, which had red-hot lining on one side of it, steaming with heat. Alice had her own personal compostie bow in her hands, which had a large scope attached beside the grip, as well as her quiver filled with an arsenal of assorted arrows. Takagi came out with his sniper-rifle strapped to his back, as it seemed to have become much larger than it was back when he was in the STI heli-pad, complete with other mechanisms, and a large canister that hinted that the ammunition of the rifle was not metal bullets.

LT then pulled out dual pistols, as he pointed them at the clearing, where the sound was coming from.

"Come out, wherever you are. If you come out peacefully, we will not shoot you on sight." LT calmly spoke to what was in front of him.

Suddenly a ball of pitch black darkness, as large a room came out. "So na no ka~?" A childish female voice rang from it, causing Takagi to be surprised, as he looked from his rifle.

"What the... She speaks Japanese!?" Takagi exclaimed, before he then spoke in Japanese. "Soko ni ite. Watashitachi wa anata ni nanika shitsumon shitai dakedesu." (Stay where you are. We just want to ask you something.)

However, the ball of darkness only giggled, as it came closer.

"Oi! Yameru! Anata ga ugoite irunara, watashitachi wa anata o utsudeshou!" Takagi once again spoke to the mysterious figure inside the ball of darkness. (Hey! Stop! We will shoot you if you keep moving!)

"...Urusai." Was the reply that came out of the ball of darkness, as it picked up speed. (...Noisy.)

"SHOOT IT!" The Turk cried, as he fired his pistol on the ball of darkness, joined by the other defenders, only for the the bullets and projectiles to ping off the ball of darkness as if it was a wall of steel.

LT only growled before he then pulled out a large and long tubular cannon that was strapped to his back, with handles and triggers on either side of it, making it look like a hunting rifle with handles on either side of it. He then held down the triggers on both sides of the guns, as the gun began to hum, while white particles of energy gathered on it.

"Keep firing! Give me time to get this Boomstick charged to maximum charge! Use everything you got to keep this abomination away from us!" LT ordered his men, who switched over to using heavier ordinance, such as rifles and sniper bullets, which slowed the ball of darkness more than their lighter counterparts, especially Takagi's shots, which actually seemed to push the ball back, but still left it unharmed.

"LT! My sonar bullets are having no effect on it!" Takagi replied.

"You don't need to tell me, Takagi. I can see that this thing is as sturdy as a damn fortress!" LT roared, before the bar on top of the gun reached full capacity, as there were a loud buzz, as he smiled.

"Make way, assholes! I'm a firing my laser!" LT cried out to his men, as they immediately dodge-rolled or sprinted out of LT's way, while the ball of Darkness was right in front of them.

"Alright, bitch! Listen up, and listen closely!" LT taunted the moving darkness. "You're about to meet my own personal big gun, the Doomstick. Say hello to my... DOOMSTICK!"

On the last word, LT released both triggers, and fired off a burst of white energy in the form of a pale laser that was circular and wide enough to punch a perfectly fitting hole through a wall 5 metres tall, as it slammed right into the ball of darkness, sending it backwards, and taking the full brunt of it, as the beam kicked up a lot of dust from the crater the beam created when hitting the ground.

LT soon dropped the weapon, as the weapon beeped, since it was completely out of charge,

"Hah, not so scary now, you goddamn horror stalker reject!?" LT insulted, with his right hand doing the middle-finger salute, aka 'The Bird'.

However when the dust cleared, the ball of darkness was unscathed, although it was stuck around a bunch of toppled trees that it slammed over, before it floated back up, as LT's smile drooped, and some of the soldiers' jaws dropped at how the ball of darkness walked away undamaged from such a storng attack.


Richard heard the shot of the Doomstick from within the forest, before he then dashed towards the sound of the conflict.

"Please, don't be dead don't be dead..." Richard repeated under his breath, as he ran like he was the wind itself.


"Hehehe..." The figure inside it spoke again, this time in English. 'You're fun~"

The ball of darkness then rushed back the group, as the soldiers kept on firing on it, while Edge and David slashed at it, with Edge's blade leaving trails of blue thunder, and David's slashes having a hot red trail, as the ball remained unharmed.

"Oh, FUCK ME!" LT cussed out loud. "How did that bit-"

LT then remember how the laser did envelop the ball of darkness, but it still was visible inside of it, as if it was parting it away slightly.

"CRAP! It's immune to light-based attacks!" LT said, as he realised one of its strengths. "All men, forbid the use of laser weaponry or anything that creates light. This son of a bitch will just shrug them off!"

LT then picked up the blade on his back, as it showed his Zantankuto, a blade which was shaped like a katana, except there was a golden edge around it, as well as a silver aura around the blade, and the cross-guard and hilt was coated in silver metal.

"Project Anti-Deus... The Zantankuto." LT spoke in a solemn tone. "Long have I used this blade as my own personal weapon in soul. Through the blood of many evils, and many conflicts, this blade shall wield the power to defy the gods themselves, and destroy all that bears the power of magic."

He then placed the blade in front of him, in a center-guard pose.

"And with this, I shall defeat the undefeatable." LT intoned. "For now, your time shall come, demoness of the dark!"

LT then rushed at the ball of darkness, before he then did a sudden draw, slashing across the ball with all of his might, as the ball stood still.

"Did we... get her?" A soldier wearing analytical goggles over his eyes. "I don't read any heat signatures or bio-signs inside the ball of darkness... It seems that the layer of darkness is like what insulation is to a thermal-sensor..."

Suddenly, after a moment of stillness and silent, there was a silent painful and long-lasting moan, as the ball of darkness dripped with red blood, as if the person inside was injured, before the ball of darkness then evaporated, as the blonde girl who was maintaining it, dropped to the ground, clutching a large gash over her chest, face-down, before she then fell limp.

The soldiers gasped, as they saw how young and harmless the girl seemed, as Alice was among them the most surprised.

"A... child!?" Alice cried out. "We were... fighting a child!?"

"Shit... This is messed up in so many ways..." David groaned. "LT, don't tell that attack was going to kill her! I swear... we swore an oath to minimise young causualities-"

"That was not a lethal slash, David." LT interrupted him, as he shook off the blood from the Zantankuto, before placing it on his own back. "Still, I'm actually surprised that a little girl would be able to do such things. That was definitely magic. Hey, analysis guy. Find the wavelength that is found inside of that sphere and the girl, and mark it. We're called this Magika Radiation the next time we meet this same stuff."

"Affirmative, Commander." The analyst replied.

"So what then? She could be the one who killed our man here." A Turk said, before he then approached the girl. "We should take in for questioning. After all, she doesn't look like that she's some little girl who would just-"

Suddenly the girl then sprang up suddenly, as she then lifted a hand, with claws out, aiming to take off the Turk's head, before the suited agent dashed backwards to avoid a swipe barely, as his black suit was frayed by the edges of the claws.

"Crap! It's a trap! Shoot her, now!" A random soldier called out, as the soldiers fired at her before she could speak out her words, as her body took all of the shots, with blood leaking out of her wounds.

She then began to stagger, before she then laughed childishly, before it became more and more raggedly, as her face twisted into tiredness, before she then fell face-first into the ground, this time down for real, as the men put their guns down.

"Shit... Did she just take, let me guess, a full round of bullets from all of us, and barely ended up staggering, without that dark sphere of hers?" Another Turk commented on the situation.

"Think so. And she might still have enough in her for another round." LT replied, before he then levelled his pistol to aim at the girl's head. "Let me give her a painless death."

Before LT could fire, Richard came out of the forest, with his expression twisted with pure fear and worry.

"NOOOOOOO!' Richard roared, as he charged right at the girl. "RUMMMMIIIIAAAAA!"

The men were stunned at how fast Richard was pedalling through the ground, unable to even react, as even David and Edge were at awe at the speed he was clocking at. LT, however, merely raised his pistol ready to fire at the charging person.

However, just before LT could pull the trigger to fire the shot into Richard, the latter managed to grab the now-identified Rumia by her head, and then created a sukima just as soon as LT fired off a few bullets, as it went into the sukima, disappearing to who-knows-where, as Richard entered through the other side with the unconscious girl, disappearing before any of the men could wisen up and begin firing at them.

LT, only growled, as he then pressed a red button on the side, expecting something to happen, only to be met with silence. He then threw his pistol down on the ground with great force.

"DAMN IT!" LT replied. "That murdering two-faced bitch managed to escape!"

He then stopped, when he realised something, before turning to the soldiers.

"Wait a minute... Did anyone see what I saw?" LT asked his men.

"A black-haired guy charging at the girl we just managed to put down, and take her to Wonderland with his own magic and a portal?" A soldier stated. "Yeah, we saw, Commander. And I can say neither of us are on drugs or intoxicated, or even hallucinating."

"Why do I feel that I know that guy..." LT muttered to himself. "Something about his power... seems familiar..."

Suddenly the analyst rushed at LT, pointing at the GA-RAIDER.

"Sir, we got dire news! Another signature registered in the area, and it's almost as large as a whole goddamn city, all of it being Magika Radiation!" The analyst squawked in panic and fear. "And it's right inside the VTOL."

The men cringed, as LT then looked at the analyst with a blank face, and then at the GA-RAIDER, and then back at the analyst, then to the GA-RAIDER, back and forth a few more times, before his fists then curled so tightly that the bone could be seen under them, as he bit his lip in pure rage.

"GODDAMN SON OF A FUCKING-" LT fumed, before he then pointed at the VTOL with a shaking finger. "ALRIGHT, EVERYONE INTO THE GA-RAIDER, NOW! I WANT WHOEVER FUCKING THOUGHT IT WAS A GOOD IDEA TO TRICK AND FOOL A SUMMER FOR ONCE! I AM GOING TO MAKE A EXAMPLE OF THE PEOPLE WHO DARE TO TRY AND SCREW WITH THE RAIDERS!"

The men rushed into the VTOL, ready to find out who's the intruder inside of it.


Inside the GA-Raider...

Yukari was walking through the large aircraft, which was barren of any personnel. She then walked through the rear compartment, and into a a large room, where she came face-to-face with a large metallic box, with a secured lid hinged by multiple locks, both biometric and physical.

"Hmm... What's this?" Yukari asked herself, before she then smiled. "I do believe that there's something valuable inside of it... And nothing will stop me."

She then created sukimas over the bars of the locks, before she then clenched her fist, as the sukimas cut right through the locks, allowing her to flip the lid open to take a look.

What was inside, was four tube-like glass cylinders, that contained blue energy, that was coalesced into a large sphere of energy, with the residue revolving around it like a ring of debris around a planet, as well as metal mechanisms inside the tube regulating the energy, causing them to thrum quietly, and glow periodically.

"What..." Yukari stated in awe, at her discovery, before she then picked one of them up, as her voice then turns to fear. "What is this!? Could this be... the Zero Point Modules my dear Ran warned me about!?"

Yukari then quickly picked up all 4 of the ZPMs.

"This cannot exist. But breaking them would lead to unknown consequences..." Yukari spoke in a harsh tone. "I have to keep this away from them. With this, they could be able to create the weapons that would be our bane, and destroy Gensokyo entirely. I won't let that happen, not while I stand as its protector and creator..."

Suddenly, she heard shouting.

"I have to go..." Yukari said, before she then picked up a flash-bang from one of her sukimas. "But not without a surprise..."

A few soldiers managed to spot Yukari, but couldn't fire fast enough before Yukari detonated the flash-bang, while using her parasol as a shade to keep her senses safe, before she then closed it and opened a gap to flee.

However, LT managed to see her, and fired off a few rounds of metal bullets at her, most of them pinging against the metal walls, missing, but one managed to seek her right ankle, causing her to stagger into the sukima, before she could take more damage.


Meanwhile, elsewhere in the Forest of Magic.

Richard soon appeared through one of his own sukimas, as he then landed on the ground, stumbling, before he then fell to his knees.

"Shit... SHIT!" Richard roared, as he slammed a fist into the earth, as it left behind a large indent into the rough ground. "I should have came earlier! If I was only a little more earlier..."

Richard then slapped his own face, as if trying to wake himself up from a nightmare.

"Get your damn act, together, Richard!" He spoke to himself in a self-loathing tone. "There's no time to panic or sob like a weakling! Rumia will live, she's at Eientei... Eirin will patch her up, and keep her away from the conflict. And everyone's prepared. There is no way in hell that the STI will walk out of here with knowledge about our land, and live to tell about it!"

Suddenly, another sukima appeared, this time, it was Yukari who stepped out, holding the ZPMs in her hands, as she limped her way towards Richard.

"Yukari!? What are you doing here... AND WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU HOLDING IN YOUR HANDS!?" Richard demanded, as he got up to face her.

"Their trump cards..." Yukari smiled faintly, as blood began to pool from the ankle that was shot. "I deprived them both of their greatest weapons, and their one way out..."

"Wait, those things are their WEAPONS!?" Richard cried in outrage.

"Yes." Yukari spoke simply.

"You damn idiot, Yakumo!" Richard hissed. "Even if you're General of all of us, that was a stupid mistake! You're basically cornering them without a back-route!"

"Richard, it's the only way. And you were the one who asked me to disarm them as much as I could." Yukari calmly explained.

"BUT I DID NOT ASK FOR YOU TO-" Richard yelled, before he was then choked by the throat by Yukari, who gave him a cold glare.

"Listen here, Richard. Do not question my orders. Even if Minerva and I respect you, I will not stand by to have you yell and spit at me like a baby." Yukari spoke in a threatening tone. "You either help me with this, or you can keep bitching, and I'll just conk you out and do the protecting myself. So what will it be?"

Richard then waited for Yukari to release him, before he then coughed out his words. "Fine, fine!" Richard hacked. "I'm sorry. I'm just nervous after all of that. And anything else you have done?"

"I left them with a message." Yukari answered back with a smile. "A nice and helpful one."


Inside the GA-RAID...

"...Fucking hell!" LT raged, as he slammed his fist against the wall of the VTOL craft. "Fucking intruders pulled the wool over our eyes!"

"Sir, calm down..." A Turk advised him.

"HOW!?" LT bursted in a enraged voice. "THE ZPMS ARE GONE, YOU DAMN GOON! WITHOUT THEM, WE'RE UP SHITS CREEK WITHOUT A BOAT TO EVEN STAND ON!"

"Well, look on the good side, Commander." David replied, to try and calm his partner down. "At least we have a clue. The blood isn't human, so we know that we're not fighting humans.

"YEAH, WE'RE FIGHTING LOTS OF DAMNED MAGIC-USERS!" LT yelled. "AND THAT IS MUCH, MUCH MORE WORSE!"

Suddenly, there was a beeping sound, which caused LT to sprint at the console, as the other RAIDERS followed after him, as they find it to be at where the cockpit was, with a green screen on it.

Suddenly the green screen came alive, as words were being typed on it, in Japanese, as LT only frowned.

"I only got the 'Yukari Yakumo' part of the message. Takagi, could you translate for us, okay?" LT asked his comrade.

"Understood. Ahem, the message is as follows-" Takagi was about to speak, before the characters then turned into English wording.

You are a fool to come here, STI men, especially you, Jack Summers. By trespassing the land, your lives are now in the hands of the residents here. If you want to know why I took your ZPMs, then know that I took them, because I will not allow you to know our land, and start the war you so desire. You are given three choices. You can either co-exist peacefully and forget the Outside World, or you can surrender peacefully, and we will ensure that you will be catered to, until the crisis has passed for us. The third option is to resist. And I warn you, we of Gensokyo will not take threats like you lightly. Know that if you resist us, what comes next is on your heads.

Yukari Yakumo, General of the Gensokyo Forces.

"Yukari. Yakumo." LT spat in hatred.