Greetings, fellow authors and readers! I am J the Observing Author and I welcome you readers to Touhou Strikers, an epic tale of science, magic, and a homage to many other shoot 'em ups that I could think of!

Remember, the music links are not really required to enjoy this story, but the links are for the readers want to enhance their reading experience. The choice is up to you readers.

And I personally thank Terry N. Muse and Lunatic-Over'9000'Lord for their help on this chapter.

Of course, Touhou belongs to ZUN. I only own the Original Characters and the plot.


It was the dawn of spring, a purple glob materialized near the Hakurei shrine. A mysterious man draped in a purple cloak emerged from the purple glob, and he looked both left and right in search of something.

And then, he noticed a small crater not far from the shrine. He descended down to the crater to investigate.

"Ah, this is the place where Fidel met his end," The purple cloaked man mused. "And I heard from Grimoire of his fitting end as the Chaos General of Wrath. In due time, he will be back."

He scooped the ashes that were imbedded deep within the crater and put them on a small pouch. Suddenly, he noticed that someone was quickly coming to the area. A fine mist covered the mysterious man and he was gone just in time for that someone to arrive at the shrine.

The purple-cloaked man materialized on the top of a nearby tree, observing the arrival. A wide smirk appeared on the man's partially hidden face as he recognized the person.

"So, that human is Frank Shinka Kizuna," The purple-cloaked man glared at the human. "You are not strong enough, at least not yet. It will be amusing to watch you grow though. . ."

As he uttered those words, purple clouds began to cover the cloaked man and moments later he was gone from the area.


東方ストライカーズ-希望の兆し

Touhou Strikers - The Silver Lining

Chapter 7: A Visit to the Human Village


It was early in the morning and the sun slowly rose in the horizon. As sunlight reached the porch of the Hakurei shrine, its shrine maiden woke up by its glaring light.

"Huh, it's spring already?" Reimu yawned as she stretched her arms. "Whatever, it's a nice day-"

Suddenly, she heard a loud series of clattering sounds nearby. Immediately, she readied her gohei I case it was an attack.

"Where did that noise come from?" Reimu wondered. "It sounds as though it's coming from the donation box. . ."

Reimu flew to the donation box and examined its contents. Apparently, it was filled up with coins approximately 10,000 yen. Unable to process this into words, Reimu silently closed the donation box and remained silent for a few moments.

"That guy," Reimu muttered as she stared at her donation box. "He didn't have to donate this much . . ."


It was already morning as I flew from the Hakurei shrine. While Reimu was still asleep, I figured I donated a portion of my money to her shrine as I do owe her for saving my life. It's just too bad I didn't know she wasn't a heavy sleeper. That was understandable, considering her role in Gensokyo; Reimu has to prepare for any incident.

"Subject Marisa Kirisame approaching fast on our current position."

Upon hearing what EVOLVE said, I turned around and saw Marisa Kirisame flying towards me.

"Yo Frank!" Marisa greeted me. "What are you doing at this early?"

"Ah, I just went to Reimu and donated to her," I answered. "It's not such a big deal if you ask me."

Suddenly, Marisa's expression turned from curiosity to intrigue. A cocky grin was present in her face as she snickered at my reply.

"Hehe, that's what you want me to believe ze," Marisa sneered. "You have a crush on her, am I right?"

I was taken aback when I heard Marisa's statement. Me, having a crush on someone like Reimu?! T-that's preposterous!

"I-I don't really have any feelings for her aside from friendship," I stammered. "I-I just felt that I owe her for saving my life many times already."

Marisa was still grinning as I explained my reason for donating. I couldn't believe she wasn't convinced of my answer.

"Hehe, whatever you say ze," Marisa was still grinning at me. "Oh well, I gotta go. Say hi to Reimu for me!"


Anyway, I managed to land in the entrance of the Command Center. As far as I could tell, our home wasn't even halfway repaired. With that notion in mind, I went inside and proceeded to the dining room, where my sister was finished cooking our breakfast.

"Where did you go Frank?" Lumina asked me. "I'm surprised to see you wake up so early just to go somewhere particular."

"Oh, I just went to the Hakurei shrine and offered some donations," I replied. "I owe Reimu a lot lately; especially that she saved me when I first came here."

I could smell the aroma of chicken soup and fried fish as Sis put the food on the table.

"If I'm correct, we gave you 100,000 yen prior to your arrival in Gensokyo," Lumina remarked. "I guess you donated around ten percent to her shrine, right?"

I was starting to eat my food when she spoke those words, so I wasn't able to reply immediately.

"I understand why you owe her so much," Lumina put the food on the table. "And here I was, thinking that you might have a crush on her."

I nearly spit out my food as I heard her words. Truly, my sister often teased me like this, but Reimu is just a friend! You're teasing me as much as Marisa!

"I-It's not what you think!" I stammered. "Reimu and I are j-just friends! We're not ready for that kind of-"

"Haha, it's alright, I was just teasing you," Lumina winked. "Now go eat your breakfast."

Geez, you almost made me spit my food out with your teasing. Sis, you behavior still confused me even back the time we were younger. Thankfully, I managed to swallow the food back and drank water.

"Oh, I almost forgot," Lumina said at me. "Both Nitori and Proton are looking for you. They want to discuss something important with you."

"Sure, I'll go to them after I finished eating breakfast," I nodded as I continued to eat my meal.


Sometime after eating my breakfast, I proceeded to the Tech Lab to see what Nitori has been doing since her initiation as the Chief Engineer.

As I entered the Tech Lab, Chief Engineer Nitori Kawashiro is examining the Tech Lab console and looked up when she hears the door open. She greeted me as I was still walking across the bay.

"Hey Frank! It's been a whole day since I last saw you! " Nitori chuckled cheerfully. "So, what brings you here?

"I just came here just to check what you're doing," I answered. "What do you got for me, Nitori?"

"It's the usual," Nitori replied. "I'm renovating the Command Center and improving our tech."

I walked on the console and looked around the Tech Lab. Wow; she really was keen to renovate the entire Command Center, starting with the Tech Lab. I let out a light chuckle and remarked at what Nitori said.

"Maintaining the Command Center and improving our tech, huh?" I repeated. "It sounds good to me."

"Yeah, you can add upgrades for our tech right here on the console," Nitori explained. "But all of this isn't going to be cheap. You brought back resources and money this time, right?"

"Look, I know money and resources has been tight," I elaborated. "But with combined might of Gensokyo and the EVOLVE System, we have a fighting chance against CANY!"

"I've heard that before Frank," Nitori explained. "But having a sophisticated machinery like the EVOLVE System doesn't give us the instant advantage against CANY."

"I get what you're saying," I insisted. "But, I have that feeling that it will be different this time around."

"Yeah, I heard that one too," Nitori nodded as she continued her work. "So, do you have anything else?"

"Upgrading our current tech that we got is all well and good," I acknowledged. "But when are we getting new stuff? Seriously, CANY surpassed us in tech even before their invasion of Earth."

"Sometimes I occasionally have breakthroughs and I get to develop a schematic for it so we can test it out," Nitori explained. "The other options we need to exploit are either: salvage after a battle, borrow from other kappas, or reverse-engineer tech schematics from the bad guys."

"That's a darn shame," I replied. "I guess research is slowed until we can gather more materials."

Nitori grabbed a small black sphere from the table and showed it to me. She pressed the button located at the top of the sphere, thus the sphere began to transform like before. Then, a bright light shone from the sphere to reveal a holographic blueprint for us to see.

"But, I've been working on a new project lately, based on the schematics I found here," Nitori elaborated. "It's a design for a worker mech, which I dubbed the 'Constructor'. Of course, I'll need to return back home to gather some materials, and the rest will be up to you."

"In that case, do you have any leads?" I asked. "Where I can get the materials needed for this?"

"Since these CANY fellas showed up, many humans and youkai encountered and destroyed many of their mechs," Nitori answered. "I'm sure there are a lot of leads around Gensokyo. Who knows, any lead may just give this project a head start!"

"Okay then, we might consider heading to the Human Village sooner or later," I remarked. And then, I noticed that she packing stuff in her backpack. "Nitori, are you going somewhere?"

"Yeah, I need to go back home to get some of my stuff," Nitori explained. "I'll be back by tonight, and if you got any leads when you travel around Gensokyo, let me know!"

"Sure thing Nitori," I thanked her as I left the Tech Lab. "I'll see you later."


As I left Nitori's room and entered the hallway, I met up with Doc Brown, who was leaning on the wall, holding a notepad and a pen on his hands, and he was apparently lost in thought as he was holding Perfect Memento in his left hand while his right hand was holding Symposium as he was reading from it.

"Hey there, Frank!" Proton greeted me. "I assume you've already eaten breakfast, yes?"

"Of course, and I assume you took those books from my room?" I replied, in which Proton nodded as he continued reading. "But, why are you reading the Perfect Memento and Symposium? Are you looking for some inspiration?"

"In a way, you're right," Proton rubbed his head. "There's just this one of the many issues that's been bugging me lately."

"Okay Doc, I'm listening," I asked. "What do you have in mind?"

"You know Frank, we should come up with a cool group name," Proton suggested to me. "We gotta think of a group name or an acronym that'll be remembered in Gensokyo and beyond."

Doc, your eccentric thinking has struck again. A group name or an acronym sounds nice, considering that the name CANY was probably an acronym, so it would be appropriate for us to have our own group name.

Hm, this was going to be hard, I just need to remember the anime shows that I've watched and . . . I got it!

"Hm, I could think of a few names," I nodded. "Let me think . . . what about names such as NERV, BABEL, or FLEIJA?"

Proton grabbed a two pieces of paper from his pocket and used one to write those acronyms using the Symposium as a makeshift table. After thoroughly examining each of them, he scrunched up the paper and put them in his pockets.

"Hey, did I say something wrong?" I asked in concern.

"No, those names don't sound right to me," Proton rubbed his chin, and then his face brightened up. "Ooh, I've got it! What about STRIKERS?"

"STRIKERS?" I blinked. "What about that name?"

"To me, the name STRIKERS is an acronym," Proton replied. "It means Special Tactics Rapid Intel Karmic Elite Recon Squad. The words have a nice ring to it. What do you think?"

Doc, I absolutely applaud you for thinking up the group name and the words that came along with it. That acronym wasn't that bad; the words that composed its meaning weren't too shabby either.

"I think it sounds good enough," I answered. "The acronym 'STRIKERS' isn't a bad name to describe us being a ragtag bunch of misfits."

"Now, that's what I like to hear from you!" Proton smiled as he started to use the remaining paper to write down. "It's settled; from now on, we'll be known in Gensokyo and beyond as Team STRIKERS!"

"Okay, as much as I'm fond of our new group name, I do have to address one issue," I said at him. "You must have a good reason as to why you're reading Perfect Memento and Symposium."

"Haha, you got me," Proton admitted. "In all honesty, I was reading the books in search of clues as to the whereabouts of Yumemi Okazaki in Gensokyo."

"Yumemi is the one who originally created the EVOLVE System," I rubbed my chin in thought. "What makes you so sure that she's here in Gensokyo?"

"Frank, everyone saw the Probability Space Hypervessel opened a wormhole when it was attacked by CANY," Proton reminded me. "In all honesty, it's actually possible that Yumemi and her ship time-travelled to Gensokyo, presumably in this time period."

That brought back horrible memories during the advent of the CANY invasion. Yumemi was constantly mocked by other scientists due to her theory on magic and the warning of an impending invasion, which went unheeded. When the Probability Space Hypervessel disappeared through the wormhole, the world regretted their mockery of her warnings. It was depressing for everyone who personally knew her, especially Proton.

"Yes, everyone saw that on live TV," I agreed. "But, is this enough to prove she's here?"

"I can't say for certain," Proton admitted. "But, I won't just stay here clueless, right?"

Wow, you're really that determined to find your teacher. I understood your conviction; maybe she could help us in our struggle against CANY in the near future.

"Sure thing Doc, but don't let it go over your head," I replied. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'll be going outside for some fresh air."

"Alright Frank, just don't take too long!" Proton answered as I went outside. "I'll be going to read these two books in the meantime!"


In the CANY spaceship, Hevea Grimoire was going to the dining hall in search of a certain person. As the door slid open, a man could be seen eating in one of the tables.

He had short, red hair and eyes that glisten in crimson. His attire consisted of a red shirt along with black shorts with orange flames embedded in the rims. In his head, he was wearing a white hat called a toque, which was unusual, since it didn't fit with the rest of his attire.

"Oh hi there Grimoire," The man spoke to her as he swallowed his meal. "We all heard about the defeat of Fidel Jäger."

"Yeah I get it Kiga Kuiru, but it's old news," Hevea scoffed. "Say, do you know where Narcissa Kagaku went?"

"Oh, you mean the Chaos General of Sloth?" Kiga wondered. "I have no idea where she is at the moment. From what the other Chaos Generals told me, she was doing some sort of experimental research or something."

"Thanks," Hevea nodded, and then she noticed the ridiculous amount of food on his table. "Kiga, I'm quite worried about your eating habits. I think's it's going a bit too far."

"Aw, don't worry," Kiga smirked. "My powers can nullify any potential side effects, so I can eat this safely!"

"Whatever you say," Hevea rolled her eyes as she left the dining room. "Just remember my advice."

As the Witch of Lustful Knowledge left the dining hall, Kiga scoffed at what Hevea said to him. He continued to consume the ridiculous amount of food on the table.

"Geez, what's with her being so concerned about my eating habits?" Kiga grumbled. "I am Gluttony incarnate! I can eat all of this food, no problem!"


In the dining room of a mansion deep within Mayohiga, Yukari Yakumo sleazily walked towards the table, still wearing her evening gown. Upon reaching the dining table, the blond youkai grabbed a chair, sat down, and yawned as she stretched both of her arms. Her shikigami Ran arrived in the dining room, awaiting her master's requests.

"Lady Yukari, I'm surprised you're awake today," Ran said to her master. "Usually, you would be sleeping at this hour."

"Yes, I should be sleeping during the day, but I've got a lot of planning to do," Yukari yawned. "Ran, please get me a cup of hot coffee."

"As you wish, Lady Yukari," Ran bowed in respect and proceeded to the kitchen.

As Yukari patiently waited for her coffee, she casually opened a gap to see what was happening in this particular morning. A smile crept on her face when she saw Frank donated a sum of money into Reimu's donation box.

"My, what do you know, I never thought Frank would be so generous," Yukari mused. "It's quite understandable, considering that Reimu saved his life one time too many."

"Here is your coffee Lady Yukari," Ran arrived just in time with a cup of coffee.

"Ah, thank you," Yukari thanked her shikigami as she sipped the coffee, as it was still hot.

As Ran left the dining room, she was enjoying her cup of coffee. A lot of things were going on in her mind, particularly the sinister plan of the Chaos Queen.

True, she may be the super-powerful youkai of boundaries, but Yukari knew that even her powers have its limits. Yet, she enjoyed planning against the schemes of the Chaos Queen in every single turn, as she saw her as a worthy opponent.

In the midst of those thoughts, Yukari recalled the arrival of Frank Shinka Kizuna into the scene. At first, she was cautious on the human, even perceiving him as a potential threat to Gensokyo as a whole. She even considered killing him and throwing his corpse to vicious, feral youkai; however, his recent acts made her reconsider her opinions on the human boy.

"Ah, that coffee sure was refreshing," Yukari mused as she finished sipping her coffee. "Well, let's get this day started, shall we?"


It was an hour since I ate my breakfast. I looked into the morning sky and, I realized this was March 21, the first day of spring. I could almost hear the cry of someone declaring the arrival of spring or something similar to those words. But, I was mesmerized at the sight of the Gensokyo sky.

"My, you're really admiring Gensokyo, aren't you?" A familiar voice said to me.

A gap materialized a few feet near me, and Yukari Yakumo emerged from the gap, and sat on it with her purple eyes looking at the surroundings.

"Yukari Yakumo," I replied. "What brings you here among other things?"

Yukari pulled out a fan through a gap and covered her mouth. I was sure she was covering her smirk at seeing my reaction to her appearance.

"Oh, I can appear in any place in Gensokyo whenever I please," Yukari answered. "I have appointed myself as one of Gensokyo's guardians after all."

So, you came here just to check me out? Well, that's nice, considering I did pretty much the same act to Sis, Doc, and Nitori earlier. I reckoned you manipulated the boundary between stealth and detection just to bypass the EVOLVE System. Moments later, I shifted my attention from the scenery to Yukari; by the gleam present in her purple eyes, she had a lot of things going on in her mind.

"I'm sure you appreciate the beauty of Gensokyo as much as I do," I muttered. "But, we need to prepare for the coming days."

At that moment, Yukari retracted her fan and I could see her mouth curved upside-down in acknowledgment to my words.

"Yes, I know what you're talking about," Yukari mused. "But, such thoughts will distract you from other important things. Oh, there are more people coming this way!"

Yukari pointed behind me and thus I looked back and saw Lumina and Proton running towards me.

"Frank, there you are!" Lumina greeted as she and Doc walked towards Yukari and me. "Yukari, it's good to see you too."

"What are you doing here?" Proton asked her. "Did you come to check on us?"

"Yes, you're right," Yukari smiled. "However, that's not my only reason for coming here. I came to here to offer an advice."

"Okay, we're listening," Proton replied. "What kind of advice do you want to say to us?"

Yukari returned her fan back in her pocket and gazed at us with her glowing purple eyes.

"So, here's my advice for you three," Yukari said to us. "In the meantime, why not you three visit the Human Village?"


Meanwhile, the moon rabbits Eren and Teal reported to the Chaos Queen about the results of the test run of the Fanatics and Diamondbacks.

"My Queen, here are the results of the test run of the Fanatics and Diamondbacks," Eren inserted the USB drive into the hardware.

"Hm, the battle data show some promise," The Chaos Queen mused. "I shall forward the data to Narcissa Kagaku. You two earned day off for your efforts starting tomorrow; this concludes our debriefing."

"We are most happy with your decision, my Queen," Eren bowed. "We humbly accept our rewards."

"Excellent, continue to serve me in the future," The Chaos Queen said. "You two are dismissed."

As the Chaos Queen closed the communications feed, Hevea Grimoire entered the room. The two moon rabbits were a bit surprised at the arrival of the pink witch in the command bridge.

"Hello Hevea, we just finished uploading the battle data to the Chaos Queen," Teal greeted the pink witch.

"Yes, congrats on a job well done," Hevea replied. "Say, have you seen Narcissa Kagaku?"

Eren and Teal both looked at each other before one of them answered to Hevea.

"I'm sorry, we haven't seen her lately," Eren replied. "Why are you looking for her?"

"I need to discuss with her," Hevea answered cryptically. "It's really important."

"Maybe you should ask the Chaos General of Greed, Goyoku Mubo," Teal suggested. "He has a lot of ties with Narcissa."

"Sure thing, and thanks for the directions," Hevea nodded as she left the command bridge.

"Hevea is acting strange today," Teal said as the door closed. "What is up with her?"

"Let it go, Teal," Eren replied. "Whatever it is, it's not our business to intervene. Let's just take our well-earned day off tomorrow. So, do you have any idea where we can spend our day off?"

"Hm, I'm not so sure where to go," Teal wondered. "I got it! How about we go to the Bamboo Forest of the Lost?"


In a secluded room in the CANY starship, an ambitious man was gleefully squealing at the table, gawking at the amount of resources they had gathered from Gensokyo. He took a blueprint under the table and unrolled it.

He had bushy, golden hair and eyes that shimmered in yellow. His outfit consisted of a black waistcoat with a long-sleeved shirt underneath and black pants. Furthermore, he was wearing a monocle above one of his eyes and he also wore a black top hat.

"Mwahahaha, I can't believe how many resources we're siphoning from Gensokyo!" The man boasted. "What's even more incredible is that the materials are being replenished in an incredible rate. If I can exploit this to my advantage-"

As he was about to re-read the blueprints, a sudden intrusion interrupted him. He turned around and saw Hevea Grimoire entered his room; he was less pleased at the presence of the pink-haired witch.

"Goyoku Mubo, have you seen Narcissa here?" Hevea entered the room. "I want to discuss something important with her."

"Of all the other Chaos Generals that bothered me now, it had to be you Grimoire," Goyoku frowned as he replied at the pink witch. "If you are looking for that scientist Kagaku, she's at the CANY Armory, reading the results from the test run of the Fanatics and Diamondbacks."

Hevea nodded in understanding and left Goyoku to his devices. With the intrusion out of his sight, the Chaos General of Greed resumed reading the blueprints and correlated the plans with the resources they've stolen from Gensokyo.

"All these materials will be used to fuel my diabolical plan against the Netherworld," Goyoku mused. "Not even Frank Shinka Kizuna or the Netherworld's Ghost Princess can stop me!"


Wait, was Yukari suggesting us to go to the Human Village today? We remained silent to contemplate what Yukari has said to us. This was all too coincidental, as if she was planning this from the start.

"So, we're going to the Human Village for the time being?" I remarked.

"Of course, it's about time you three socialized with your fellow humans," Yukari answered. "You've been hanging around with Reimu and Marisa for far too long. A change of scenery would do wonders to you three."

We looked at each other as we started to comprehend Yukari's offer. True, she likely planned all of this, yet Yukari had valid, legitimate reasons. I couldn't be sure if I applaud her or despise her for being a manipulative youkai.

"Well, I suppose a visit to the Human Village is possible for today," Proton scratched his head. "But, our home is being renovated and there's a lot of stuff we have to move around-"

"Don't worry, just take it easy," Yukari interrupted. "And I know Nitori Kawashiro is also helping renovating the Command Center, right?"

"That settles it, I'll send you three to the outskirts of the Human Village after lunchtime," Yukari explained. "Take your time preparing for the trip. I'll be back in a few hours."

With all that was said and done, Yukari disappeared from sight using one of her gaps. No doubt we have a lot of time to prepare for our trip, and we need to get it done quickly.


In the Armory in the CANY starship, the door opened for Hevea Grimoire to enter the said room. The CANY Armory was a secluded place; there were machinery scattered around the room, with parts of Scouts and Diamondbacks lying around. In the heart of the room sat a woman who was tinkering with more fragile machinery.

"Ah, there you are, Narcissa Kagaku," Hevea said. "I've been looking everywhere for you-"

The woman in question suddenly stopped her tinkering with the electronics and faced Hevea. She had wavy, blue hair and with matching eyes. Her outfit consisted of a white lab coat with a black shirt and shorts underneath. She also wore a light teal ribbon in her hair.

"Hevea Grimoire, what are you doing here?" Narcissa demanded. "You'd better not disrupt my delicate work."

"I'm planning to stay for long anyway," Hevea answered. "So, are you done with the construction of my battleship?"

"You battleship will be completed in time," Narcissa replied. "I don't like being rushed to my work."

"Okay, I'll wait if I need to," Hevea agreed. "In other news, what do you think of the feedback on the Diamondback's test run?"

"The test run was a success, and I was able to analyze the weak points of the Diamondbacks," Narcissa explained. "Upgrading them will take a while despite the current resources that we have."

"I assume that our outlying bases are continuously mining areas of Gensokyo as we speak?" Hevea questioned.

"Yes, our Mech-Probes are mining the ore veins in Gensokyo," Narcissa answered. "We even have mining bases hidden away in Youkai Mountain! Those blasted tengus don't even know that we're there!"

"That's good to know," Hevea nodded. "Just don't forget to inform me when the Asmodeus Scarab is finished."

"Jeez, you're just as impatient as ever, Grimoire," Narcissa groaned. "I'll come to tell you personally when your battleship is finished. Now leave me to my work."

Due to the tone of Narcissa's words, Hevea quietly left the Armory. Upon doing so, Narcissa let out a sigh of relief and continued working on the table.


Not long after Yukari revealed that we're going to the Human Village, we were in the dining room of the Command Center eating our lunch. During this time, we began to discuss miscellaneous events that took place beforehand.

"So Frank, do you have idea why Nitori didn't even eat with us today?" Proton asked me.

"Well, she had to return to Genbu Ravine to retrieve some of her stuff," I replied. "She said she'll return within several hours."

"But, did she take anything from us?" Lumina expressed her concern. "We have tech that can potentially be disastrous if it fell into the wrong hands."

"You worry too much darling," Proton calmly said. "She let Frank check her backpack and he found no traces of our tech in there."

And thus, we continued to eat in the dining table. After I consumed more than half of my meal, I took the opportunity to ask Doc of his opinions of the two books that he read earlier.

"So Doc, what are your opinions on Perfect Memento and Symposium?" I asked. "After all, you took the books from my room and read them."

"Hehe, please don't elaborate on the stealing part," Proton sheepishly replied, I saw Lumina glaring at him. "Yes, the two books are interesting alright. Now, I want to go to the Human Village to meet the author, Hieda no Akyuu."

You've found a good reason to go to the Human Village, Doc. Now, all we need was to eat our lunch and we'll be going to Yukari shortly.


After we finished eating our lunch, we went outside and as expected, Yukari Yakumo was waiting for our arrival. Even a gap was present alongside her; talk about perfect timing. She's really that good with numbers!

"Ah, it's you three," Yukari smiled. "And it looks as though you're just in time though."

"This gap will lead you three in the outskirts of the Human Village," Yukari explained. "When you three enter the village entrance, a certain schoolteacher will be your guide."

"And one last thing, you three are supposed to have a little fun while visiting the Human Village," Yukari added. "Just promise me that you three don't do anything outrageous enough to start an incident."

"Will do, Yukari," I nodded as we stepped into the gap.

Only moments passed after we stepped into the gap and we found ourselves in a small hill. Below us is a small hamlet with many people going to and fro. This must be the Human Village Yukari was telling us about.

"So, this must be the Human Village," I said as we went through the entrance. "For a small village, it looks so lively."

When we entered the outskirts of the village, we could already see humans going to and fro with their daily lives. As we walked by, some people were staring at us as if we're something new; others didn't care at all.

"Err, why are the people looking at us like that?" Lumina asked me. "It's really making me nervous with all of this attention."

"I guess it's the clothes we're wearing," I remarked. "We're sticking out like a sore thumb."

"Come on, don't be discouraged by their suspicions," Proton said. "Sure we stick out like a sore thumb, but that's what makes us unique, right?"

"So, you three must be the new outsiders everyone in Gensokyo is talking about," A feminine voice greeted us.

We turned around to see the speaker, which obviously turned out to be a woman. She had brown eyes and long silver hair with blue highlights. She wore an intricate-looking hat that seemed to be out of place, even in Gensokyo. Her dress was colored dark blue with white short sleeves, and a red ribbon was tied to the bottom of the collar.

"You must be the three outsiders depicted in the newspaper," The woman dressed in blue answered to us. "My name is Keine Kamishirasawa and I welcome you three to the Human Village."

"So Miss Keine, I heard that you're running a history school in the village," Proton asked. "May I ask what kind of history do you teach?"

"I teach the history of Gensokyo in my school," Keine replied. "People must appreciate the value of history, especially the children."

"Since Yukari informed you of our arrival in the village," Lumina assumed. "I assume you also knew about the previous events?"

"Nearly everyone has been informed of the past incidents," Keine answered. "Ever since the attack at the Hakurei Shrine, people here were quite anxious, fearing that this place would be attacked next."

"That is understandable," I added. "As the adage goes, people fear for what they don't know."

Keine began to turn her attention to me as I spoke my opinion. As we looked at each other's eyes, I could sense her suspicions on me, especially that she read the newspaper, she might know who I am at this point.

"Ah, you're the one called Frank Shinka Kizuna, correct?" Keine asked me and I confirmed with a nod. "Well, I wanted to thank you personally in helping save Reimu and Gensokyo."

"Well, I did what is needed to be done," I scratched my head. "Marisa, Alice, and Aya helped too, so I couldn't have done this alone."

Keine smiled as I unintentionally showed my humility towards her. I figured that she saw me as a humble student so to speak.

"Miss Keine, do you know any spaceships that appeared in Gensokyo?" Proton asked. "We need to know since our mentor may have travelled to Gensokyo."

Keine pondered on that question for a while before closing her eyes and answered to us.

"I'm terribly sorry, but even with my abilities to hide or create history I never heard or seen any Outside World spaceships," Keine shook her head. "Perhaps you can go to the Suzunaan book renter or the Hieda residence."

Well, that was disappointing. And here we thought the History-Eating Half Beast could provide the answers we seek. Yet, there were still two leads we could still follow. Then, we saw a group of village children entering Keine's history school, and the schoolteacher realized that class hours were about to resume.

"Oh dear, it's nearly class hour," Keine said. "You three can look around the village, but don't wander outside, especially at night!"

As the schoolteacher left us, we were pondering if we should consider her advice to either go to the Suzunaan book renter or the Hieda residence. For a few moments, neither one of us spoke a word since we were considering our options.

"So, we're going to the book renter, right?" I asked. "They may have leads since Keine doesn't have any records of the Probability Space Hypervessel–"

CRASH!

Suddenly, I bumped into someone and both of us fell into the ground! Gah, I was focused on talking to Proton and Lumina to notice that other people were walking around the village!

"Frank, are you alright?" Lumina said as she and Doc helped me stand up. As for the man I bumped into, he wasn't happy for this unfortunate encounter.

"Ow! You're in my way!" The man warned as I accidentally bumped into him. "Can't you see I'm in a hurry?"

"Right, I'm so sorry!" I apologized. "We're in a hurry!"

As I apologized to the man, I got a good look on him. Apparently, he was around in his late twenties, he had green spiky Mohawk-styled hair and he had those green eyes that continued to glare at me. His attire was fairly simple; he just wore a long-sleeved green trenchcoat. I could assume that this person was a former outsider.

"Tch, just go," The man scoffed. "Don't do it again."

After responding to my apology, the man turned around and walked away from us. He was grumbling in incoherent sounds we could barely hear.

"What was that about?" I wondered aloud. "Did we bumped into that man, or did that man ran towards us?"

"I can't say for sure, but since Proton and I saw what happened, I believe it's the latter," Lumina deduced. "Still, it's still baffling as to the possible reasons why that person bumped into us."

"Well, that was rather strange," Proton commented, and then he noticed a particular signage nearby. "Wait, that's the sign of the Suzunaan book renter! Let's go!"

Wow, your short attention span never ceased to amaze me, Doc. In the pinnacle of his excitement, he grabbed my hand as well as my sister's and we walked towards the book-renting shop.


At last, we entered the Suzunaan book renter. It was a small shop, decorated with bookshelves that comprised most of the space in the shop. Strangely, there were no other people in the shop apart from us.

"Hello?" Lumina called out. "Is anyone there?"

Lumina's voice echoed throughout the shop, and then we heard footsteps coming this way. Moments later, a person whom we presumed was the shopkeeper approached us.

As the light shone on the person, it turned out that she was a young girl with red eyes, light red hair and twintails adorned with bells. She wore a checkered kimono and apron with the English word 'Kosuzu' and the kanji for 'Suzunaan' written on the front.

"Ooh, we have new customers!" The rose-haired girl squealed in delight. "My name is Kosuzu Motoori, and how may I help you three?"

"Oh, we came here to check your books," Lumina replied. "Particularly, we're looking for any book that depicts the history of Gensokyo."

Kosuzu looked at the bookshelves around the store, shook her head, and let out a frown.

"Oh, we don't have those kinds of books here," Kosuzu replied. "We usually sell books that came from the Outside World."

While Lumina and Kosuzu were discussing, I noticed a large book with a small paper written in kanji that reads "To Eientei". Kosuzu noticed that I was looking at that particular book and held it for us to see.

"Oh, that's one of the books that appeared a few days ago," Kosuzu explained. "I managed to decipher it and apparently the book is about medical science. Eirin Yagokoro has already purchased it, but her assistant Reisen hasn't picked this up lately."

"We've been acquainted with Eientei a few days ago," I said. "Why not I deliver the book to them in your behalf?"

Upon offering myself to deliver the book to Eientei, I could see Kosuzu flustered, her cheeks turned into a shade of rosy hue.

"You'll do that?" Kosuzu stammered. "That's great! I-I don't know how to thank you-"

"There's no need to," I conceded. "It's just a-"

"But I insist!" Kosuzu said. "You can buy one of the books on one of the shelves, 10 percent discount!"

"Sure, I'll take the TvTropes manual in that shelf," Proton pointed at that particular book. "How much will be for that book?"

"Oh, that manual cost around 1200 yen," Kosuzu explained. "But with the discount, I'll lower the price to 1080 yen."

"Of course, we'll take it," Proton handed the money over to the shopkeeper. "Here's 1100 yen."

"Here you go sir!" Kosuzu presented the manual to Proton. "And here's your change."

"Of course, I won't forget that," Proton replied. "One more thing, do you know anyone by the name of Akyuu? She is the author of Perfect Memento and Symposium."

"Akyuu, you mean Hieda no Akyuu?" Kosuzu's face lit up as she answered my question. "She's at not far from here. Why do you seek her for?"

"We wanted to confirm something that may have happened in Gensokyo," Lumina explained. "We figured she may hold the answer to our lingering questions, since Keine couldn't provide any answers for us."

"Yes, her mansion isn't that far from here," Kosuzu explained. "It's just a few blocks away and a mere walking distance."

"Thank you for the directions," Lumina nodded as we exited the shop. "We shall go there shortly."

"Thanks for stopping by!" Kosuzu waved at us. "I hope you three will come again!"


As we left the Suzunaan book renter, we were walking towards the directions Kosuzu said to us. While on the way towards the Hieda mansion, we were talking about the events we experienced so far.

"Since neither Keine nor Kosuzu had anything that could lead us to Yumemi," Proton said. "Visiting the Gensokyo Chronicler is the last lead we have in this village."

"If this lead turns out to be a red herring," Lumina agreed. "We may need to expand our search outside."

"We may never know until we find out," I remarked, and then I stopped walking and stared. "Whoa, we're here."

The house we're looking at was located at the edge of the village. Although it was not too big or grand, the house was rather huge compared to its contemporary buildings. The main building was surrounded by walls, and its design was that of the Japanese feudal era. In front of the house is the calm-looking garden. All of these factors gave a calming and relaxing sensation, which was perfect for writing and reading.

"Hm you three must be the recent outsiders," A voice came from the other side of the sliding door. "You three came to seek me, yes?"

It slide open and revealed behind it a girl, probably on her late teens based from her appearance. She had purple hair and eyes and wears a light pink flower-shaped decoration in her hair. Her kimono has yellow flower-patterned sleeves, a green vest, and a shortened hakama skirt separated by a red, white laced obi.

"I am Frank Shinka Kizuna," I bowed to her in respect. "And these are my sister Lumina and her husband Proton. And you must be the Child of Miare?"

I could swear she looked at us like we're some sort of rare specimens ready for exhibit. But I figured that was expected since we originally came from the outside world.

"Yes, my name is Hieda no Akyuu, the current Child of Miare," The young woman bowed. "And I welcome you three in my residence."

Hieda no Akyuu; she's the one who authored Perfect Memento and Symposium, collectively known as the Gensokyo Chronicles. It was quite an honor to meet with her personally.

"Is there something wrong?" Akyuu asked out of concern.

It seemed my sudden silence worried her as Akyuu looked at me. Even Proton and Lumina were looking at me with concern.

"Ah, I was just lost in thought," I replied. "I just remembered that you're the author of Perfect Memento and Symposium of the Gensokyo Chronicles."

"Yes, it brings me joy to see another person reading my works," Akyuu let out a smile. "Please come inside; we shall continue our discussion shortly."

As we entered into the Hieda mansion, we tactfully removed our shoes and placed them in the steps before following Akyuu inside.


As we sat down into the living room, silence was prevalent. It took a few seconds before one of us had the courage to speak first, and it had to be Proton.

"Um, I did read a little bit of your books," Proton asked Akyuu. "And I talked to the people in the village and they said you can reincarnate with your memories intact. Is it true?"

"You are absolutely correct. I was born with perfect memory; it means I can remember absolutely everything I see," Akyuu explained. "As I said before, I am the ninth reincarnation of the 'Child of Miare' and therefore I inherited the memories of the previous incarnations."

She inherited the memories of previous incarnations? You mean she have at least the memory of eight other people? Wow that's awesome; she could be a literal human version of an archive herself.

"Hm, you inherit the memories of your incarnations," I continued asking her. "That means you can't forget anything you saw."

"Yes, I can't," Akyuu sighed. "There are times where I wished I could forget some awful memories, but I grew to accept them as part of me."

I remembered a phrase I heard from an anime show a long time ago. Ordinary people would break down if they retained all those memories from their past lives; the human brain has its limits, after all. At such a young age, this girl has more life experience than any of us in more ways than one.

"To obtain something, you must lose something of equal value," I said as a compliment, which caused Akyuu to smile once again. "You're very mature in thinking at that age."

"Well, that's the second time you've complimented me today," Akyuu stated. "So, what brings you three here to my residence?"

"So Miss Hieda, could we consult you?" Proton asked her. "Do you anyone by the name of Yumemi Okazaki?"

The chronicler fell silent for a few moments before she answer what she knew at us.

"Hm, from what I could recall, there was a woman with that name a long time ago," Akyuu answered. "She came here using a floating ship and tried to abduct various people for science, including Reimu."

"Yeah, that's Yumemi alright!" Proton was excited. "So, did she appear here recently?"

"I'm afraid I couldn't recall any recent appearances of Yumemi Okazaki," Akyuu shook her head. "The last record we have on her was her ship opened a portal, went through, and no one saw her again."

Damn, we were hoping to get a concrete lead from her. Wait, this might not be a total loss; since the Probability Space Hypervessel can travel through time, it's possible that she might have ended up in a different time period.

"We want to confirm if anything happened shortly after Gensokyo's formation," I requested. "We tried to ask Keine and Kosuzu, but we couldn't find any concrete answers."

"Of course, let me meditate on that for a moment," Akyuu nodded. "And you may call me Akyuu, as referring to my clan name is too formal for my tastes."

"According to my memories, there was one such event that happened during that time," Akyuu read the scroll. "It was called the Great Falling Star incident."

"So, what is the Great Falling Star incident supposed to be?" I asked Akyuu. "Do you know what happened during that time?"

Akyuu fell silent for a moment before she began to answer my question.

"Hm, it's hard to say, the Great Falling Star incident happened more than a century ago," Akyuu stated. "Not long after the creation of the Hakurei Border, eyewitnesses saw what appears to be a shooting star as bright as the sun."

So, folks saw a shooting star that completely blocked the sun? That's highly unusual, even in a realm where fantasy overshadows reality.

"The object crash landed on Youkai Mountain," Akyuu continued. "The impact caused forest fires all around the mountainside. Many youkai and nearby humans have perished in the impact."

"With the impact so great, I bet this hasn't gone unnoticed," Proton speculated. "I'm sure people would investigate the crash site."

"Many humans and youkai descended on the crash site to investigate and possibly find it, but the impact was so powerful that it imbedded the object deep into the mountain," Akyuu stated. "Furthermore, it's possible that the unknown object was destroyed in the impact."

"And thus, this raises more questions than answers," I muttered. "Does anyone recognize the shape of the object?"

"The shape of the unknown object is undefined," Akyuu replied. "Perhaps if I showed an eyewitness illustration to you three you may be familiar to its shape."

One of the doors opened, and a female servant entered the room carrying a scroll. She handed the scroll to Akyuu and left. Without further ado, Akyuu unravelled the scroll in front of us and we get to see its contents.

"Yes, the illustration is quite unusual alright," Proton examined contents of the scroll. "A rectangular shaped object with a triangular top and a flames sprouting from its back? That sketch depicts a spaceship!"

"Hm, the shape vaguely resembles a spacecraft," Lumina examined the sketch. "But since it's from an eyewitness account, we can't be entirely certain."

"If you three are that determined to seek out that person wherever she may be, then keep that scroll," Akyuu suggested. "It's quite fortunate I still have an extra copy of the same scroll."

"Now, why not you three tell your tales both in Gensokyo and beyond?" Akyuu asked. "After all, it's only fair after I complied with your request."

"Of course, we'll tell you our story," Proton answered. "But, it's going to be a long one, so I'd better hope you'll listen closely."

"I'm sure your story will be interesting," Akyuu smiled. "Please, tell me of your adventures. . ."


Sometime later, three particular girls arrived in the Human Village. There were looking in various directions in search of particular people that arrived at this very village, at least according to the rumors they heard.

"Okay, I suppose the people were looking for are here," The blue-haired woman dressed in red said. "I want to meet with them as soon as possible."

"Come on, can't you be patient?" A small blond girl berated the blue-haired woman. "If you wanna meet new people, you've gotta be patient."

In the middle of the two arguing women, the green haired girl just put her right hand in her face in shame. Then, the green-haired girl noticed three people leaving the Hieda residence. From their attire, she assumed them to be outsiders, perhaps the ones they were looking for.

"Lady Kanako, Lady Suwako, that man looks familiar," The green-haired girl pointed at the three people that recently left the Hieda residence. "Should we ask them?"

"Hm, those are new faces alright," The blue-haired woman replied. "That bears enough merit to ask them."

"Yeah, it's quite exciting to meet new people!" The blond girl cheerfully replied. "Let's ask them already!"


As we left the Hieda residence and told our current adventures to Akyuu, we began to walk around the village. The sun began to set already, indicating the amount of time passed since we entered the Human Village. However, this didn't mark the end of surprises for today.

"Three unidentified female subjects approaching walking distance. Based on their power levels, proceed with utmost care."

As EVOLVE informed us, three women were approaching us. Hm, these women seemed familiar . . . ah; I've seen their pictures at the manuals!

"Excuse me; can we talk with you three?" The blue-haired woman said to us. "You three must be the new arrivals here, right?"

We stared at the blue-haired woman as she and two more women were approaching us. The blue-haired woman wore an elaborate red shirt with long white sleeves and a round mirror over the center of her chest. She wore a long black skirt with a red flower print hem. Her hair was colored in blue and she had dark red eyes. Behind her back was a large twisting circling rope called shimenawa with long poles called shide attached with it.

"Yes we recently came from the outside world," Proton replied in our behalf. "May I ask who are you three?"

"Oh dear, we were caught up in our search for you three that we forgot to introduce ourselves," The woman talked to us. "My name is Kanako Yasaka!"

Then, the green-haired girl began to look at us with utmost interest. She has long light green hair, and eyes that matched the color of her hair. She wore a snake-shaped hair accessory wrapped on one side of her hair, and a frog-shaped one on the other side.

"I'm Sanae Kochiya," The green-haired girl bowed her head. "I am the shrine maiden of Moriya and a miracle-working goddess."

Feeling left out, the blond girl jumped to get our attention. She wore a short simple purplish-blue dress with a frog print design, large white sleeves stitched onto the torso, and a white collar. She has medium length blond hair, grey eyes, a light brown wide-brimmed hat with two frog eyes on the top, white knee-high socks and black shoes.

"And I'm Suwako Moriya!" The blond girl said. "It's kinda nice to see new faces around here!"

"My name is Frank Shinka Kizuna," I introduced myself. "And these two are Lumina and Proton, my older sister and brother-in-law respectively."

"Your name's Kizuna?" Sanae repeated. "Now that you say it, I do remember your name from somewhere."

"Isn't he on the newspaper, Sanae?" Suwako replied. "I'm pretty sure he is."

"Lady Suwako!" Sanae gasped. "So it's true! I remember, you three came from the future! So, are there any flying cars? Did the humans venture out to space? Do you even pilot humongous mecha in the future?"

Wow, Sanae sure was hyped on seeing us in person. I could only imagine the squeal she would utter if I activated the EVOLVE System in front of her and the goddesses.

"Stay calm, we'll try to explain each question one at a time," Proton said. "Yes, we come from the future, and there were flying cars, but only to the rich, and we do pilot mecha of varying sizes, not just humongous."

"By chance, did you come here to look for us?" Lumina asked. "After all, Frank was on the headlines in the past few days."

"Ah yes, we came into the village for your whereabouts and now you three are talking with us," Kanako smiled. "Though I'm quite interested at the technology you three have brought along. Mind if we take a look?"

"Hm, a little bit of demonstration wouldn't hurt at all," I assumed. "What do you think?"

As I looked at Doc and Sis, their faces were riddled with doubt over this decision. However, Proton was the one who answered to my suggestion first.

"Hm, these people are just curious," Proton answered. "I say let's satisfy their curiosity!"

"Normally, I would object," Lumina reluctantly agreed. "But, since it's just a demonstration, I don't see any harm in it."

Since Lumina and Proton agreed to this, I pressed the green button located at the center of the remote control. Suddenly, a bright green light enveloped me and the remote control, forcing me to close my eyes in response. In a flash, I realized that I was now wearing the EVOLVE battlesuit. At the same time, two EVO-Dynamos materialized and flew to my side.

"EVOLVE System online. EVO-Dynamos stable. All green." EVOLVE confirmed.

"Wow, it's so cool!" Sanae was awestruck. "It's like those sentai shows that I used to watch back in the outside world!"

Hm, I agree on your opinion, Sanae. That's the very same reaction I had when I first activated the EVOLVE battlesuit.

"I agree with her," Suwako cheerfully replied. "You're cool with me, boy!"

"Hm, I do admit this is impressive," Kanako inspected me from head to toe. "And I assume that this form is capable of battle, yes?"

"Yes, the EVOLVE System is capable of battle," Lumina confirmed. "After all, my husband and I developed it based on the original designs by Yumemi Okazaki."

"Yumemi Okazaki?" Kanako repeated. "Pray tell, can you tell us who she is?"

"Yumemi Okazaki is one of the brilliant scientists in all time!" Proton explained. "She even came here to Gensokyo once, and lost magnificently against Reimu Hakurei!"

The three women looked at each other as they began to understand what Doc has said to them.

"So, what happened to her?" Suwako asked.

"It's hard to say," Lumina answered. "After her adventures in Gensokyo, there was an invasion of Earth. She escape through a wormhole and was never seen again."

"Which is one of the reasons why we came here to the Human Village," Proton added. "We were hoping that Hieda no Akyuu may hold some leads, but the closest thing we got for a lead is this scroll."

Wait, Kanako was eyeing us carefully. From what I've read on her, she often treated religion like a business, with profit being "faith". She'll do what's necessary to gather faith, justified as she was a goddess after all.

"I see your plight," Kanako smiled. "Nonetheless, it's a pleasure meeting with you three. Feel free to stop by the Moriya shrine if you need anything!"

"Yeah, we'll have lots of fun!" Suwako added. "We'll chat, play a lot, and even do some Spell Card battles for the heck of it!"

"Please visit us sometime; I really want to know more about your life in the future!" Sanae said. "I hope we meet again."

As the three women left us, I got myself thinking. It seemed our presence here in Gensokyo was making an impact. The question was: What kind of impact we're achieving in our stay?

"Come on Frank," Lumina urged me. "We'll be seeing them again, so let's go home."


As we left the Human Village, we were all contemplating in all the people we had met so far today. We managed to trek back to the small hill where Yukari's gap has sent us here.

"Man, this was an eventful day for all of us," I said to Doc and Sis.

"I agree with you," Proton replied. "Today, we met a history teacher, a book renter, a chronicler, and three people from Moriya Shrine."

"I guess Yukari wasn't kidding on how interesting today would be," Lumina concluded.

"Oh yes, and that's not the only surprises in store for you three," A voice replied as familiar gap opened to us.

"Ah, Yukari Yakumo," I said. "So, I assume you arrived to take us home, yes?"

"Ohoho, I loathe such accuracy in your words," Yukari smirked. "That's one of the things I like about you, Frank. I'll take you three back home, and there's a surprise waiting for you three."


Somewhere at the outskirts of the Human Village, a spiky-haired man started to walk away. He couldn't forget the fateful encounter with CANY's most hated enemy and felt the sheer power of the denizens of Gensokyo.

"Pitiful Gensokyo scum," The spiky-haired man glared at the Human Village. "These beings harbour power that makes me feel . . . envious."

Suddenly, a purple shadow glob materialized near the spiky-haired man. The purple-cloaked man emerged from the shadow glob, his eyes glaring at the spiky-haired man.

"There you are, Senbo Midori," The purple-cloaked figure said to the spiky-haired man. "We need to head back. The Chaos Queen orders us, especially you, the Chaos General of Envy."

The spiky-haired man named Senbo Midori looked at the Human Village for the last time today and shook his head.

"Humans, youkai, and gods," Senbo muttered. "Soon, I'll siphon the negativity from all of you and make them mine. In this promise, I shall return."

And thus, Senbo stepped into the shadow glob and disappeared from sight.

End of Chapter


Well, this is an interlude chapter. There are no combat scenes whatsoever. Yet, this chapter introduces the rest of the Seven Chaos Generals, whose actions will be important to the plot later on.

Non-action scenes are quite hard for me to write on. But, a writer can't just rely on pure action, right? There will be action on the next chapter, I assure you readers. And if you reviewers spot any errors, please let me know.

Yep, their actions of the Chaos Generals in their debuts will serve as hints to where the plot will go. And yes, I am a troper and I'm not afraid to invoke tropes if needed to. Now, let's continue at the stinger below!


In a secluded area in the CANY starship, the purple-cloaked man appeared from his shadow glob. He walked his way to the console, activated it, and watched the screen as the silhouetted face of the Chaos Queen came into view.

"So, how was your trip?" The Chaos Queen asked the purple-haired man. "Did you do as I have told, Jinrou Hokori?"

The cloaked man removed his cloak in front of the Chaos Queen. He had short, purple hair and eyes; furthermore, two wolf ears were seen sticking out of his head. His outfit consisted of a purple sleeveless trenchcoat with a purple kimono underneath. Also, two pistols were seen sticking out in the pockets of his sleeveless trenchcoat.

"Yes my queen, I have successfully retrieved the remains of Fidel Jäger," Jinrou bowed as he presented the sack containing his remains to the Chaos Queen. "It isn't that much, but it's enough for him to be revived."

"Of course, even his remains contain a portion of his soul," The Chaos Queen agreed. "And that may be enough to revive him from that pitiful state."

"So, step 1 of your Grand Master plan is complete," Jinrou stated. "My Queen, can I ask what Step 2 is?"

"Step 2 is to eliminate the traitors that sided with the impure ones," The Chaos Queen answered. "The two moon rabbits are going to Bamboo Forest of the Lost as part of their 'day off'. They'll be the decoys while our forces assault Eientei."

"Understood," Jinrou nodded. "What if this assault would fail?"

"Whether Step 2 will succeed or fail isn't important," The Chaos Queen replied. "It's the assault itself that will hasten the Grand Master plan. Have you heard of the phrase, 'Xanatos Gambit'?"


To be continued in . . .

東方ストライカーズ - 希望の兆し

Touhou Strikers - The Silver Lining

Chapter 8: Eternal Rivalry Blues!

The next chapter is on its early stages.

So, please wait kindly until the next update . . .