Darkness of Illusion

Chapter 11

Visitation – Innocence Lost

Daytime came again to Gensokyo. To its inhabitant's relief, no more attacks came, no more fiends crawling out of dark portals to slaughter and corrupt. The human village continued to mourn those they had lost, and continued to rebuild the homes and businesses that had been damaged in the fires.

The tengu city worked on its own repairs as well. The newspapers and journals were already being produced on the previous events, and things seemed to be returning to near normal.

The relative calm above stood in stark contrast to the underground city. The constant party had actually ceased and the city had become a warzone, as the youkai fought back against the strange creatures that had appeared. The demonic forces had emerged from the tunnel leading to the Palace of the Earth Spirits, and had immediately set upon the city.

Ayon charged forwards through the city, leading the armies of the abyss through the streets. Danmaku shots rained down from all directions, and Ayon was forced to take cover. From there she spoke words in abyssal, the language of demons. More black circles appeared on the ground, and from them emerged more hideous monsters. These particular creatures were called manes. They appeared like short humans, albeit horribly bloated. Their skin was pale white, and covered in bleeding sores. Whenever they moved, something sloshed about inside of them, and they moaned in pain. Ayon pointed forwards with her sword and the manes rushed down the street to where the enemies were. They were no match for their opponents and were easily gunned down, but that was hardly the point. As they were defeated, their bodies exploded, spraying a horribly caustic acid over the enemy. There were screams, as the youkai backed away. Ayon directed more of them into buildings where people took shelter. She heard the sound of danmaku being fired and then screams as their targets exploded. She saw youkai running out of the houses as the acid ate away at their flesh and bone. Ayon laughed. Manes, the abyss' natural suicide bombers.

She then directed her forces forwards. The more powerful demons surged forwards, those built to actually fight in melee combat. The majority of the forces were tall goat headed creatures called buleazu. The buleazu charged forwards, and cut through the wounded enemies. Those that had managed to escape the acid fought back, though the strength of the buleazu overwhelmed all but the oni. Those, Mara dealt with herself, using her spells to injure or weaken them.

As the demons finished slaughtering all the opponents in that street, a green winged creature flew down from above. Mara held out her arm and the little creature, called a quasit, landed. It spoke to her rapidly, delivering its report. Mara frowned at the news.

Urban warfare was very different from normal open combat. Victory on one street might mean defeat on two others.

Mara had a better idea on how to deal with the problem. She spoke again in abyssal and a massive black circle appeared on the ground. A towering creature with a bison's head and cloven feet emerged from beneath her. The creature, called a goristro, stood as tall as a three story building. Its arms rippled with muscles, and its eyes were blood red. These creatures were rare in the Abyss, and kept as valuable living siege weapons.

Mara stood atop the fiend, and shouted orders in abyssal. The creature charged forwards, demolishing buildings and trampling enemies underfoot…

"No way!" Flandre shouted. "You're lying!"

"Am I now? What did you think was in that cake? Strawberries? And what were you drinking? Juice? Did you really believe that?" Zeri said. She lay back down on her bed. "Although, I am interested in where exactly the blood came from…"

"But… but…" Flandre started to cry.

"Face, it. You're a vampire, and vampires drink blood. Here, have some." Zeri reached into her pocket and pulled out a flask. She tossed it at Flandre, who caught it and stared at the thick red liquid.

This couldn't be true! Everything she ate, it came from hurting somebody? Zeri had to be lying! Kyreth would know the truth.

Flandre rushed out of the room carrying the flask. In the absence of its previous inhabitants, Chireiden had been taken over and turned into a house of demons. The fiends of the abyss now filled the palace. Flandre rushed past a trio of bird creatures and down a staircase. She passed by a duo of red skinned demons in a conversation with rat like creatures and down the hallway. She shortly came to what she thought was Kyreth's room. Instead, there was a creature with bat wings and a tail, what was it called? Kyreth had told her… a succubus? She was rolling around on the bed with some other demon, were they wrestling?

Flandre didn't concern herself with their games. She left the room and rushed down the main hallway and towards the throne room. The hallway was long and the fires of Former Hell outside lit the stained glass windows.

She found Kyreth sitting on the throne, discussing things with another fiend, this creature having a jackal head and wearing long flowing robes. When she saw Flandre running into the room crying, she gestured, and the jackal-fiend gave a slight bow and disappeared.

Kyreth walked over to Flan and knelt down beside her. "What's wrong, Flan-dear?"

"Zeri… Zeri…" Flandre tried to speak in between sobs. "Zeri told me that what I've been eating is… is blood!" She held out the flask.

Kyreth placed her hand on Flandre's head. "I don't want to lie to you, Flandre. So I'm going to say the truth." She took the flask from the vampire girls, trembling hand. "Vampire's do drink blood. But why are you so upset by the fact?"

"I have to hurt people like some kind of monster!"

"Flandre, let me tell you a few things. Having to drink the blood of another doesn't make you any sort of monster. It makes you strong!"

"Strong?"

"Flandre, it's the natural order of the world that creatures prey on one another. A vampire's power puts them near the top of that chain. Why would you oppose that? As a vampire, you're one of the most powerful creatures there is, not to mention your own given ability makes you even stronger than that."

"Really?" Flandre stopped crying as she thought about this fact. "Do you think Remilia knows about the blood?"

"Of course she does."

"Then why would she not tell me?" Flandre asked.

"Think about it. You know the reason." Kyreth said.

Flandre stopped to think. Despite her best effort, she couldn't come up with an idea.

Kyreth answered for her. "Then consider this. Do you know one of the best ways to control a society? You control the food. Remilia never told you about how vampires drink blood, because then she would lose her ability to control you. She puts just enough blood in your food to keep you alive, to limit your power. Limited to the point where a simple priestess and witch could best you.

"She wanted to control me?"

"Of course. Your power far exceeds hers, Remilia is obviously jealous of this."

Flandre didn't want to believe what Kyreth was saying, but it was starting to make sense. "That can't be true. Big sis loves me!"

"Love? Locking you away in the basement behind door, bar, and spell your entire life is a strange way to show love! Having her maid stop time when delivering you your 'cake' and 'juice' to minimize any outside contact is a strange way to show love! Hunting you down to destroy you is a strange way to show love!"

"Hunting me? Destroy me?"

"Ah! You didn't know, did you?"

"She wouldn't, she wouldn't…" Flandre protested weakly.

"Would she? Would you like to know something interesting? Her maid, Sakuya, has in her possession a silver knife, capable of bringing an end to even the most powerful of vampires. A knife given to her for the sole purpose of ending you, should Remilia lose her control over you. And don't even get me started on the spells that that librarian can use. It's clear she no longer wants anything to do with you."

Flandre began to shake. It looked like she was going to start crying again, but then the crystals on her wings glowed brighter and brighter, and her eyes blazed with rage. The entire castle began to shake. Flandre rarely felt anger. It was a new, strange emotion, and she let it flow through her. She embraced its blazing heat.

"She's been using me, all my life!" She shouted.

"That's right, Flan. To her, you're nothing more than a tool, a weapon. And when a weapon poses a threat to its wielder, what is done with it? It is cast aside, broken, destroyed. Remilia won't risk you escaping again; she'll merely kill you when she finds you. And even if she wasn't going to kill you, she'd put you right back where you were, in your little room in the basement. Answer this final question. After seeing all the things the world has to offer, would you be willing to return to your life as Remilia's prisoner?"

Flandre's answer was a shout of rage. She opened the flask and drained all the blood. She then tossed it aside, where it shattered against a wall. Flandre's crystals grew brighter and she lifted her hand. The black spear Lævateinn appeared in her hand, flames dancing along its length. "I'll destroy her!" She shouted, the words echoing through the entire palace.

Patchouli Knowledge was surrounded by books. She sat at a table in the library pouring over texts, trying to find mention of the creatures that Remi and Sakuya had fought. So far she had found nothing. The creatures had referred to themselves as fiends, but they weren't any sort of fiend that Patchouli knew of. She had a while ago questioned Marisa, Reimu and (at great risk to Koakuma) Yuuka about their journey into the demonic realm of Makai. Nothing they said had applied to the creatures appearing now. She had wanted to go out and capture one of the creatures to study, but Remilia was adamant about keeping them away from the manor.

She closed the book she was currently reading, and said. "This book tells me nothing, Koakuma could you-" She stopped short, realizing what she was saying. Koa was gone, without a trace.

"Is there anything you need?" Asked a voice behind her.

She turned to see one of the hell ravens standing behind her. After their flight from the underground, they had followed their mistress to the Scarlet Devil Mansion. They had integrated well with the rest of the servants, and were eager helpers.

"No, I'll shelf them myself." Patchouli said. She took off into the air while carrying several books. She flew past the many shelves. However, she sighed. Despite having spent most of her life inside Voile, she had always relied on Koakuma to shelf and find the books for her. She had no clue as to where most of the books went. She sighed, and prepared herself for a long night of most likely fruitless research.

Sakuya was exhausted. Her duties as chief maid were many, and she relied extensively on her control over time to get them completed. As it was, she was finished for the day, but only barely. Sakuya was amazed at how little of a sense of time she had in spite, or perhaps because of, her control over it...

"Utsuho! Do you want to eat our hosts out of house and home?"

"Awwwww… but Satori, I'm still hungry!"

Well, almost finished. She thought, noting the steadily increasing dishes piled up around the nuclear hell raven. In contrast to her pet, Satori had eaten very little, only finishing half of a plate.

"If you must, you can have the rest of mine." Satori pushed hers over towards Utsuho, who eagerly devoured it.

"And mine." Another guest at the table handed Utsuho her food. This girl had multicolored hair and she wore a black and white dress. Byakuren Hijiri had arrived at the manor, once the news that Satori and her pets had brought had spread.

"How does that girl manage to eat so much?" Satori wondered.

"Probably all goes to her boobs." Rin mused.

The door to the dining hall opened and Remilia walked in. Sakuya had known her mistress for many centuries, and could tell that although she appeared calm, she was deeply worried about her sister.

She sat down next to Sakuya and waited for Utsuho to finish her latest plates of food.

Surprisingly Satori was the first to speak up. "I would like to thank you for tending to our wounds, Lady Remilia. And for taking us in when we fled from the underground."

"It means nothing, you told me that you have information on my sister?"

"Flandre…" Satori sighed. "She is with those fiends."

Remilia was about to speak up when Satori answered for her. "It's not one of those two who you encountered in the forest. There is a third."

"A third?" Byakuren asked. "This isn't good."

"It's worse. I only managed to get a glimpse into her mind. But I can tell that she's far more volatile and dangerous then than the couple you previously encountered. She goes by the name of Kyreth, she was the one who ambushed China, and broke into Flandre's room."

"My sist-"

"You sister is not held against her will. She believes Kyreth to be a friend. A belief Kyreth is exploiting for all it's worth."

"Flandre…"

At that moment, a bat flew in through one of the vents; it landed on Remilia, and sank into her skin. She sighed.

"Patchy…" She began.

"Has found no further information on the creatures or their masters." Satori said.

"Yes that." Remilia said.

"Has Miss Knowledge had any trouble finding information before?" Byakuren asked.

"No she hasn't" Remilia answered. "What could this all mean?"

"I might have an explanation." Satori offered.

"What is it?"

"Perhaps Patchouli is unable to find anything, because Voile has no information on otherworldly things."

"Otherworldly?" Remilia asked. "What? Like the moon? Because I've been there, and I saw nothing of the like."

"No. I believe the term she means is extra dimensional." Byakuren said

"Extra dimensional hasn't been a problem before? There's plenty of information in Voile about Jigoku, Makai, and Hakugyokuro."

"Yes, that is true, but I think that merely proves my point. Those realms are different dimensions, true, but they are still connected to Gensokyo, just as Gensokyo is connected to the outside world. This allows these realms to interact and for their residents to cross between them, with, if not ease, then at least not extreme difficulty."

"Wait. So what you're saying is that they're-"

"From a realm, or number of realms that previously were unconnected to Gensokyo. I managed to glean this from Kyreth's mind." Satori finished.

What Satori had neglected to mention, was the extreme difficulty she had had in reaching this information. The demons mind had nearly overwhelmed her.

"So basically were fighting against an enemy we know next to nothing about from some weird other dimension..." Rin summarized.

"I wouldn't say no information."

"Sanae came by the human village while you were helping to rebuild, and she said that Vincent possibly knew something about these monsters." Satori said

"Yes and-"

"You have already sent Shou over to the Ash Mountains to see if there was anything that could be found out.

"Yes..." Remilia said, appearing slightly irritated. Satori smiled mischievously.

A flock of bats flew over the gate, and across the yard. They entered through an air duct and came out in one of the hallways. They circled around for a bit waiting for the rest of the group to enter and then headed for the library. Nobody payed them any attention however, as the Scarlet Devil Mansion had bats everywhere. Who would notice a few more?

"Where are we Kyreth?" Flandre asked.

They were surrounded by darkness so thick that even to Flandre's vampiric eyes, it was impenetrable. However the place felt comfortable in a way, like something welcoming to her.

"We're in Gensokyo's shadow. Each plane of existence has its own Shadow Plane. As to why we're here, it's the best seats in the house. Good view and close enough to the action so we can jump in if need be!"

Two thrones appeared, formed out of the darkness. Kyreth sat down in the larger of the thrones and directed Flandre towards the smaller.

"Seats? What are we watching?"

"You wanted to make your sister pay?" Kyreth asked. "Well we have quite the show planned! Do you want snacks? No? More for me!"

Two portals opened, showing demonic armies, standing and ready.

"Triel... Triel... Ahriman... Triel... Triel... Triel... Dispater... Belial... Triel... Gah nothing!"

"Well to be fair, we don't even know his name..." Hotaru said.

Vincent held up a book, and an air elemental picked it up and carried it off to it's proper shelf. The being was composed of swirling winds and clouds held in a humanoid shape. Other elementals hung about the library, cleaning, or awaiting orders.

"Gah!" Vincent shouted. "I've searched every book in this library on fallen angels, and every book on baatezu and nothing on that man!"

"Well at least we found a few mentions of Kanna." Hotaru offered.

"Nothing more than her name on a list of baatezu nobles, just as I suspected."

"We can still provide the rest of Gensokyo with information on the fiends."

Hotaru handed a book to an earth elemental, who placed in on a stack of books.

Shou walked over to Hotaru, with another book in her hands. She pointed to a page and Hotaru looked at it.

"Oh. Yes." Hotaru began to speak. "Those would be the barbazu, also more commonly known as bearded devils. They're the basic soldiers of the Nine Hells, and fortunately not that bright."

Hotaru turned the page, and pointed to a drawing of the skeletal creatures. "Those are called in their own language, osyluths. They're more like the elite guards and overseers. Their common name is bone devil, for obvious reasons.

"And this thing, the one that Keine was..." Shou stopped suddenly.

"It was a gelugon, or in our language an ice devil, and you can see why."

"So..."

There was a sudden crashing sound, and then the sound of one of the cave's tunnels collapsing. Vincent stood up immediately. "What was that?"

Miharu came rushing into the room, a panicked expression on her face. "Were under attack!"

"What's' that out there?" One of the youkai guards asked.

Meiling turned to where he was pointing and saw that at the edge of the lake, black circles were forming. Just like what Remilia said. Meiling thought.

She turned towards the youkai who had pointed it out and said. "Go warn the mistress! We'll hold them off for now!"

The guard flew off just as a demon came charging out of the portal. It had red skin and long sharp claws. Meiling flipped back from its attack. She retaliated with a punch, sending it flying backwards where it landed and disappeared into a cloud of darkness.

Meiling looked up to see more and more demons charging out of the portals. She thought quickly and shouted "Get behind the gates!"

They entered the front yard of the manor to have more room to maneuver and watched as the demons began to tear at the gates. The battle for the Scarlet Devil Mansion had begun.

The cloud of bats entered Voile and then clustered together. Shortly after, Zeristine formed. She looked around the library, and smiled. "So this is the Voile, the magic library..."

The place was far larger on the inside, and shelves and shelves of books stretched on endlessly. "Amazing." Zeri said.

She heard a coughing sound, and then someone walking towards her. "Remi? Is that you?"

Another person rounded the corner. She had long purple hair and wore robes that resembled pajamas. She held in her hand a book.

"Ah, you must be Patchouli Knowledge?" Zeri asked.

"Yes, I am. Who are you and what are you doing in my library?" Patchy asked.

"The name's Zeristine." She held out her hand and the black quarterstaff appeared in it. "The SDM is currently under siege; don't think you stand a chance of victory."

Patchouli opened her book and drew a card from its pages. She spoke calmly. "So you are with them." There was the hint of a smile on her lips. "I was hoping for a research subject, and it appears that fate sees fit to deliver one into my hand. Fire Sign! 'Agni Shine!'"

A blast of flame arced from Patchouli's outstretched hand. Zeristine leaped into the air, clinging to the side of a shelf. From there she formed black fire in her hands and hurled it down at Patchy. The fire was easily dispersed, but as she did so, Zeri leapt towards Patchy and brought the quarterstaff down upon her.

Both of the larger tunnels had been collapsed, leaving only the smaller tunnels open. Ayon pointed forwards and the first waves of demons surged forwards through the tunnels.

Vincent rushed down the hallway, after ordering Miharu and Mara deeper in the caverns for safety. He came to the main hall and leaped down off the balcony in front of a group of goat headed demons. They immediately thrust their spears at him. Vincent ducked beneath the blow and rushed forwards. He hit one with an uppercut, sending it flying, before spinning and slicing another open with his claws. Both of them hit the ground and faded away.

Hotaru and Shou followed closely behind. Vincent turned to his sister. "Hurry! Go organize the youkai and elementals, and get them ready for battle! Shou come with me!"

The two of them were about to move forwards, when more demons charged into the room, closely followed by Ayon.

Shou immediately charged towards her, she leaped over the heads of other demons and brought her spear down on her. Ayon stepped aside and drew one of her swords. She slashed at Shou who intercepted the attack with her spear. She kicked Ayon in the chest, knocking her to the ground. Shou raised her spear to impale the demon, only for Ayon's tail to wrap around her leg and send Shou to the ground.

Vincent's claws glowed like hot metal as he slashed his way through the demons, searing flesh. He jumped over a swing of a gorilla like demon and exhaled a burst of flame landed where the demon once stood and punched the next fiend straight into the wall. He gestured with his hands and flames formed in his hands which he send swirling around him, incinerating the enemies in the room.

"Damnit!" Ayon shouted she quickly stood up and spread out her hands. More black circles appeared, and more demons sprung out.

The fighting in the mansion had moved inside, as the defenders out front were again forced to fall back.

Remilia, Byakuren, Meiling, Sakuya, Utsuho, Orin, and Satori had joined in the battle, to prevent the demons from getting any further into the mansion.

Sakuya rushed down the staircase, as a huge spider-like demon skittered towards her. It attempted to impale her with one of its eight legs, which Sakuya deflected with a swing of her knives. She slid under it and struck its underbelly, impaling a knife inside it. The monster screeched in pain, but wasn't finished yet. It leaped off the side of the staircase, and Sakuya followed it.

Bad move, the creature smacked her to the side and then attempted to impale her again. She rolled to the side, and threw a knife up, hitting it in the eye. It reared back and Sakuya used the opportunity to hurl more knives. However, the creature turned to the side, and the weapons bounced of its hard carapace. It then opened its mouth, and a blast of webbing shot out, sticking Sakuya to the floor. She quickly cut herself lose, but not fast enough. The spider demon lunged forwards and attempted to sink its likely poisonous fangs into her.

Again Sakuya ducked and struck upwards. This time she drove her knife even deeper into the spider's soft underbelly.

The creature roared in pain once more and fell to the side; it lay motionless for a few seconds before fading away. Sakuya was about to rejoin the battle, when she heard a shout.

"Atomic Fire! 'Nuclear Fusion!'"

"Hit the deck!" Remilia shouted.

There was a blinding light and the sound of an explosion. Windows were shattered and doors were blown open. The demons were vaporized, but now there was a smoking crater in the middle of the front hall. Remilia and Sakuya's mouths hung wide open.

"Uh… Sorry…" Utsuho apologized.

"I think we should take our battle outside." Satori said. "Let's see if we can stop those portals…"

The new fiends Ayon had summoned turned out to be a diversion. She had retreated behind them as Shou and Vincent dispatched them. They followed her down the tunnel and came into another room with a vast amount of demons.

"Oh come on!" Vincent shouted.

"There's no point in complaining, just fight!" Shou said.

"I think we would do better to fall back…" Vincent offered.

Sakuya rushed through the hallways of the manor. Remilia had commanded her to alert Patchouli about the attack, and gain her assistance.

Sakuya rounded the corner and ran down the hallway leading towards the library. However she stopped as a black cloud obscured her path. The darkness converged together and formed into a strange creature.

It wore long flowing robes and had the head of a jackal. Various pouches and bags hung from its belt and it wore plenty of rings and pendants.

Sakuya didn't waste any time, she swiftly drew and hurled several knives at the creature. However, it held out its hand and the knives stopped in mid-air, hung there for a second, and then dropped to the ground.

"Now now… let's not be so hasty, Miss Izayoi."

"Who are you? And how do you know me?" Sakuya demanded.

"I am the arcanaloth, Alcain Fem'Att." Said the fiend. "As to how I know you, well your reputation precedes you."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

The arcanaloth spoke calmly. "Sure now you are Sakuya the Perfect Maid. But I do keep track of things that happen in this world, and I know you were once Sakuya the Killer, a girl living on the streets and…"

"What does that have to do with anything? That part of my life is over!"

"Is it now? Tell me, this invasion, you're excited about it, aren't you? The chance to finally use your true skills again. To once again feel the rush of excitement as you plunge the knife into living flesh. To feel the warm blood rush out of their body. To feel the pleasure of watching the life leave the eyes of a victim. To-"

"Enough! You're with them! Aren't you?"

"Yes… and no. Really it's rather complicated." Alcain replied.

"That's all I need to hear." Sakuya drew a knife in each hand, and slowed down time as she charged towards the fiend. However the creature held out its hands again and a jet of fire shot from his palm in slow motion. Sakuya leaped to the side, jumped off a wall and towards Alcain. He lifted his hands and Sakuya was frozen in mid-air.

Alcain pushed forwards and Sakuya was sent flying. She flipped over and hurled her two knives at her foe. The arcanaloth crossed his hands and a barrier appeared intercepting the weapons. He then fired several bolts of magic, which streaked through the air towards Sakuya. She quickly drew two more knives and deflected each of the shots. She then hurled them again, but to no effect as he deflected them.

"You haven't changed, Miss Izayoi, I can tell you that much."

Alcain launched another fireball. Instead of running to the side Sakuya ran towards it. At the last second she dropped to the ground and slid underneath the flames. She came up towards an off-guard Alcain, knives at the ready.

"Earth Sign! 'Rage Trithilon!'"

Massive boulders began to fall from the sky. Zeri was forced to abandon her attack, and focus on dodging the rocks. She leaped from bookcase to bookcase. Patchouli took off into the air above the shelves, and launched another ball of flame at her opponent.

Zeri landed atop a bookshelf, and twirled her staff; the flame struck it and passed to either side. Zeri then launched a bolt of black colored lightning at Patchouli, who had just enough time to erect a barrier to block it.

Zeri held up her staff, and the tip of it glowed with red energy, which formed into a spear tip. She leaped across the books shelves, and landed behind Patchy, who turned enough for the energy spear tip to strike her arm.

She leaped back and shouted. "Earth Water Sign! 'Noachian Deluge!'"

A huge wave of water burst forwards, and engulfed Zeri. She was caught up in the sudden flood of water and washed down to the ground. As the water receded Zeri tried to regain her balance. But Patchouli wasn't going to give her a chance.

"Fire Metal Sign! 'St. Elmo's Pillar!'"

A massive ball streaked down towards Zeri.

A towering humanoid creature made entirely out of fire charged into the mass of demons. Those too slow or too unfortunate to get out of its way were set ablaze. Hotaru appeared, from another tunnel, leading a group of the elementals.

However despite the reinforcements, the demons still outnumbered them.

"I've got an idea!" Vincent shouted. "This way!"

Vincent and Shou leaped over towards the tunnel Hotaru was coming from, and followed them down it. As they reached the end Vincent stopped and turned back. The demons were in pursuit, Ayon at the head. She had both swords drawn, and was laughing. "We have them on the run! Now! Finish them off!"

At that moment, Vincent slammed his fists into the side of the tunnel, again and again. The entire cavern trembled and then began to cave in, crushing the majority of the demons beneath tons of rock.

Ayon managed to get clear along with a few demons that were in the front of the charge. She shouted orders to the remainder of her force, and the charged at Shou.

Their weapons met in a flurry of blows. Shou knocked one of Ayon's swords lose. Ayon didn't move to pick it up, and instead hurled a blast of dark energy, hitting Shou square in the chest. She was sent flying backwards; however she flipped in mid air and landed on her feet. She then hurled her spear. Ayon ducked beneath the weapon, however that wasn't Shou's aim. A card appeared in her hand and she shouted.

"Light Sign! 'Absolute Justice!'"

Shining beams of light fired forth, striking Ayon head on. She blasted back into a wall, causing the cavern to tremble again.

"Careful! I already collapsed one tunnel!" Vincent shouted, and then ducked the swing of a demon. "I'm not looking to bring down the entire place, I live here after all!"

Ayon picked herself up. Both of her swords had been blasted away, but she wasn't without a means of combat. She clenched her fists and charged straight at Shou. Shou dodged her swings and struck back with a kick. Ayon caught her foot and hurled her to the ground. Shou rolled aside as Ayon's tail struck down. A leg sweep brought Ayon to the ground as well. Fortunate for both, as there was a "Heads up!" From Hotaru who had blasted a demon through the air.

Both combatants rolled away from each other and stood up. Ayon then fired bolts of shadow at Shou who countered with a glowing beam of light. The two attacks met, and exploded.

Shou charged through the cloud and hit Ayon with a flying kick. She was knocked to the ground. Shou didn't waste any time. She drew another spell card and shouted.

"Heaven Sign! 'Scorched Earth Mandala!'"

A pillar of light struck down upon Ayon, creating a blinding flash of light. When Shou could see again, she saw Ayon crouching on the ground, wounded.

"Damn it all!" She shouted, and then disappeared. A retreat.

The rest of the fiends vanished along with her, and the echo's of battle quieted down. However the peace lasted for only a moment. Then the entire cavern began shaking once again. The victors looked up to see the ceiling collapsing down upon them.

"Well that went about as well as I expected…" Kyreth said.

"You didn't expect them to win?" Flandre asked.

"The attack on the Ash Mountains was more of… an experiment." Kyreth explained. "I wanted to see how strong the dragons were. That was all."

"So now what?"

Kyreth smiled and stood up. "I think it's time we joined the game. Don't you agree?"

Remilia dodged the swing of a sword wielding demon and impaled it with her spear. She leaped back as the creature faded away, and then fired several red blasts of energy from her hands. The bolts took the shape of bats and homed in on more fiends, destroying them.

There was a momentary reprieve as Utsuho's arm cannon blasted another crater in the ground, vaporizing more fiends.

Remilia leaned against her spear, catching her breath. She called Meiling and Satori to her side. Satori rode on the back of a demon whose mind she had taken control of.

"Satori, I'm leaving you in charge for the moment. Keep up the fight, and try to destroy those portals. Byakuren, will you come with me? Sakuya and Patchy haven't returned and that worries me."

Sakuya's knives passed through Alcain, hitting nothing but air. An illusion!

She turned around just in time, and blocked a swing of Alcain's claws. She then struck again with her knife, aiming for Alcain's heart. However at the last second, alcain twisted and the knife struck him in the side. He fell back, holding his hand over the wound.

"Not bad, I still see after all these centuries that you have that killer instinct."

Sakuya charged forwards again, however Alcain gestured and a barrier blocked her stab. He then fired blasts of dark energy as he fell back, which Sakuya dodged. Again she slowed down time around her before pursuing the arcanaloth. Alcain, didn't form a barrier, and instead, lifted his hand. An incredibly bright flash of light went off, blinding Sakuya. She stopped her attack and put up her guard, expecting a followup attack.

When she could see again, Alcain was gone. She heard the rustle of robes behind her, but it was too late. Alcain's claws tore into her back. She ignored the pain and turned around to see alcain reappear, having been temporarily invisible.

Putting some distance between her and the arcanaloth, she felt over the wounds. It wasn't deep. Sakuya chose to ignore the cuts, and hurled more knives. Alcain gestured, and the knives diverted in their paths, imbedding themselves into the walls.

She was about to attack again, when she began to feel dizzy and lightheaded. Poison! She thought.

Sakuya rushed forwards again, but the poison had spread fast. Her vision blurred and she found herself falling to the ground.

"Now now, don't try to move so much. It will only cause the poison to act faster."

Sakuya threw one last knife at her enemy, a knife he easily caught. She tried to move but she felt cold and weak, unable to catch her breath.

"If you survive, perhaps we'll meet again. I'm looking forward to getting to know the real you, Miss Izayoi."

Alcain disappeared in a whirlwind of darkness, leaving an unconscious and rapidly fading Sakuya on the floor.

Zeri dispersed into a cloud of bats, and they scattered away from the fireball. She reformed back on top of the shelves, and the spear tip of her staff had transformed into a scythe blade. She slashed at Patchy who dodged by taking off into the air.

Zeri lifted her hands, and a swarm of black energy bolts went firing towards Patchouli.

The witches spell book opened and she shouted. "Moon Metal Sign! 'Sunshine Reflector!'"

Solid metal hexagons formed a sphere around Patchouli. The dark bolts were absorbed by the disks. Patchouli then shouted. "Fire!"

The metal disks shot out, spinning like buzz saws. Zeri flipped and dodged through them, barely avoiding getting sliced in half.

Once she saw an opening, she hurled her weapon straight towards patchouli and then dispersed into a cloud of bats.

Patchy dodged out of the way of the scythe, only for Zeri to appear behind her. She caught the scythe and smiled.

Patchy flew away, barely dodging another swing. Zeri transformed the scythe back into a spear and then hurled it at Patchouli. She turned about, and managed to catch the staff. However, before she could examine it, a black aura surrounded the weapon, and Patchy cried out in pain before dropping it. The black energy surrounded Patchouli forcing her to the ground.

"Nice try, but it only works for me." Zeri said, before swooping down on Patchouli, claws outstretched. Patchouli dispelled the aura engulfing her. The black energy shot outwards in all directions, knocking Zeri away. Patchouli stood up and then hurled another blast of fire.

Zeri ran to the side, dodging a volley of fireballs. She then held out her hands and cast one of her own spells. A cloud of noxious gas appeared over the entire area. Zeri held her breath, but Patchouli wasn't so lucky. She immediately began to cough. It quickly intensified, and she collapsed to her knees, clutching her throat.

"Wow... I should have done this at the beginning." Zeri gestured, and her staff flew towards her, and the scythe blade appeared again. She lifted it up and brought it down on Patchouli.

Remilia and Byakuren flew down the hallway at top speed. They came to a stop when they saw signs of battle. Scorch marks on the walls next to imbedded knives.

"Sakuya!" Remilia rushed over to her fallen servant. She was looking pale, and didn't respond to anything Remilia did.

"She's been poisoned." Byakuren said.

"Can you treat her?" Remilia asked.

"Yes I do know a few healing spells." Byakuren said. "We should take her to the library, perhaps Patchouli can provide some additional help."

Byakuren lifted the unconscious Sakuya over her shoulder and followed Remilia into Voile. However Remilia stopped suddenly as she entered the room.

"What's wrong?" Byakuren asked.

"There's been a fight here! I smell blood!"

"That would be the librarians." Said a voice.

Both Remilia and Byakuren looked up to see Zeristine sitting atop of a shelf. She held in her hand Patchy's torn and shredded robes. "She'll probably be back. I forgot to use the method to kill beings like her off for good."

"How dare you!" Remilia shouted.

Zeri casually tossed Patchy's robes to the ground. "No need to get all pissed off, kid. I'm done here anyways." She held up a bag containing several books in it.

"Kid? I can tell I'm several centuries your senior, you upstart-" Remilia started.

Suddenly a black circle appeared on the ground between the two of them. "And here's my ride! Ciao!"

Zeri leaped down into the portal and vanished. Remilia cried out, and was about to attempt to follow her in when another voice spoke out from the dark depths.

"Leaving so soon? But the main event is just starting."

Remilia fell back as Kyreth and Flandre emerged from the portal, which closed behind them.

"F-Flandre? You're alright!"

"Yes, yes she is." Kyreth said with a smile. She placed her hand on Flandre's shoulder. "Unfortunately, I don't think the same can be said for you."

The flaming spear Lævateinn appeared in Flandre's hand and she charged towards Remilia screaming. "I'll kill you bis sis!"

Remilia immediately blocked her swing with her own Gungnir, however the sheer force of the blow knocked Remilia off her feet. She managed to right herself in mid-air only for Flandre to slam into her again, sending her crashing through several bookshelves.

Remilia climbed out of a pile of rubble. "Flandre! I don't want to hurt you!" She pleaded.

"Well it's too late for that!" She drew out a spellcard. "Taboo! 'Four of a Kind!'"

Her body split into four exact duplicates of herself.

"Oh that's pretty cool!" Kyreth said, watching the battle.

Byakuren set down Sakuya on a table and walked over to her. "What have you done with her?"

"Me?" Kyreth asked innocently, spreading out her arms. "I've done nothing but tell her the truth. Why nobody seems to get that is a mystery to me."

"Any truth you've told her has been distorted and twisted to your own desires. Your just using her!"

"Perhaps, but who are you to talk? You once used youkai for much the same purpose, am I right?"

"That has nothing to do with this!"

"Does it? As a matter of fact it has everything to do with this!" Kyreth said. She absently ran her fingers through her hair. "You feared death so you delved into black magic to grant yourself immortality. You're protection of the youkai was only as a means to sustain that power."

"I may have once been like that, but I have come to genuinely care for them!"

Kyreth began laughing. "Care for another? The weak do not deserve your pity, they only deserve to submit or be crushed."

"If that's what you truly believe, then there's no more reason for us to talk." Byakuren clenched her fists.

"So you want to fight. Heh, this should be good for a laugh!"

Kyreth charged forwards, slashing her claws at Byakuren. She side stepped and punched Kyreth in the side of the head, sending her flying. Kyreth flipped and landed on the side of a bookcase.

"Strong. More than I expected."

"Physical ability enhancements." Byakuren said. "If you know so much about me you should have known that."

"Well you learn something new each day!" Kyreth leaped from the side of the shelf towards Byakuren, claws outstretched. Byakuren caught her by the hand and slammed her into the ground, before lifting her up and slamming her again.

Kyreth broke free, and slashed with her claws, catching Byakuren on the side of the cheek. Byakuren kicked away the demon, sending her crashing into a bookshelf and knocking it over. Enhancing her speed, Byakuren ran towards Kyreth, smashing into her as she tried to rise. She then brought both fists down upon Kyreth, smashing her into the ground and forming a crater.

Kyreth shouted, and a wave of dark energy exploded outwards, knocking Byakuren back. She stood up from the small crater and hurled more dark energy at Byakuren. She dodged the projectile and unleashed a barrage of danmaku at her. Kyreth leaped over the shots but they were only a distraction. Byakuren caught Kyreth with a blow to the stomach, before unleashing a roundhouse kick, sending Kyreth flying. She flipped and landed on her feet. Byakuren rushed towards the demon again. Kyreth ducked beneath the attack and kicked Byakuren's feet out from beneath her.

"What happened to you? You were once a great magic user, seeking to become more and more powerful. but now, look at you, a peacemaker? Pathetic! I could teach you real power!"

"Don't try your tricks on me!" Byakuren said. "They won't work."

"Bah, I guess you really are a saint. It's so sickening."

"Well if you love violence so much, then how do you like this?" Byakuren grabbed Kyreths leg and pulled her to the ground. Kyreth attempted to slash her with her claws but Byakuren trapped both Kyreths hands with her legs. She then gripped one of the demons horns, and with loud crack!, it broke off.

Kyreth managed to free herself, and rolled away. She stood up at the same time as her enemy, and then felt the stump where one of her horns used to be. She shouted in rage and then leaped towards Byakuren. She sidestepped and then brought the demons horn down, piercing her back.

Kyreth fell to the ground, unmoving. Byakuren examined the demon, thinking the battle over. Suddenly Kyreth's arm shot out and she gripped Byakuren's ankle.

"If I can't corrupt you, then watch what I've done to Flandre!" A sphere if energy surrounded Byakuren, entrapping her.

Remilia weaved through the air, dodging the attacks of the four Flandres. She hurled the Gungnir at one of them, destroying it.

"Flandre! We don't have to fight!" Remilia said.

"Yes we do!" Said the remaining three Flandre's in unison. "You kept me locked up in the basement all my life, you refused to let me see anyone at all!"

"You were dangerous! To yourself and everyone else!" Remilia tried to explain. "I had no choice!"

"I'll show you dangerous!" Flandre shouted. "The yellow crystals on each of the Flandre's wings glowed brighter than the others. A blast of electricity fired down the tips of their spears and straight into Remilia. She was blasted down to the ground. One of the Flandre's tried to bring down their spear on her. Remilia's aura flared up and she unleashed a burst of red energy from her hands, destroying that clone, leaving only two remaining.

"It was for your own good!" Remilia said.

"The hell do you know about what's good for me?" Said the two remaining Flandres. "Was keeping me locked away from the world a good thing? Was never telling me about how vampires drink blood a good thing?"

"You know?" Remilia asked, shocked.

"Of course I know!" Flandre shouted back. One of the two Flandres charged forwards towards Remi. She slashed upwards with her claws destroying it. "Kyreth told me. Kyreth told me how it makes me strong. You tried to control me by not telling me. Well now I don't need you anymore!"

Flandre swung her spear, and a wave of fire shot out. Remilia leaped out of the way, but Flandre moved in front of her.

"Flandre! I am your sister!"

"No! Not anymore! Kyreth and Zeri are my sisters now! You can go die!" Each of Flandre's crystals began to glow brighter and brighter. The fire on the spear flared up until it was almost blinding.

"Is that what you really believe Flandre?" Remilia asked. "I love you, I always have and always…"

"Taboo! 'Lævateinn!'"

There was a huge explosion, and Remilia was sent flying. She smashed through row after row of book shelves, and the hit the ground, plowing a great trench. She finally came to a stop near where Kyreth and Byakuren were.

Kyreth walked over to where the unconscious vampire lay, and waited for Flandre to land next to her.

"Good job, Flan-dear!" Kyreth said. "Now let's finish the job."

Kyreth gestured, and a sharp piece of wood from the wreckage levitated upwards towards Flandre. She took the piece of wood in her hand and looked at it.

"A wooden stake. This should finish the vampire off for good. Why don't you do the honors?"

Flandre lifted up the stake of wood prepared to plunge it into Remilia's heart. Byakuren slammed against the walls of the sphere entrapping her and shouted. "No! Don't!"

Flandre stopped. She lowered the stake and looked at Byakuren.

Byakuren spoke up. "You'll be making the biggest mistake of your life if you do! It might not look like it right now but your sister loves you more than anything! She doesn't want you dead, she isn't using you! She's spent all the time she could searching for you!"

"What are you waiting for Flandre?" Kyreth asked. "Finish her off! Remember, this is the girl who kept you locked away in the basement! She doesn't love you; you're just a burden to her! You are the stronger sister! She is the weaker! She will not submit, so she must die!"

"No Flandre, This isn't how it has to be! Killing your sister isn't the answer! Think! Kyreth is the one who is using you! She- mmph! mmph!" Bindings suddenly appeared over Byakuren's mouth.

"That's enough out of you." She said calmly. "So finish the job Flandre. You said you would kill her, didn't you?"

Flandre was silent, she then dropped the stake. "No… I can't…"

Kyreth growled. "Well if you won't, then I will!" She gestured towards the stake and it flew into her hands. She laughed as she raised it up.

"No!" Flandre shouted.

Several things happened at once. As Kyreth was about to plunge the stake down, Flandre clenched her fist and shouted "Kyuu!" Remilia regained consciousness and seeing the stake, knew her peril. Unaware that Flandre was nearby, she unleashed one of her strongest spells.

"Scarlet Sign! 'Scarlet Devil!'"

A huge pillar of red energy burst forth, engulfing both Flandre and Kyreth. When the light faded, both Kyreth and Flandre lay on the ground, wounded. Kyreth, now missing one of her hands, struggled to stand, while Remilia tried to approach Flandre.

"Flan?"

"No!" She cried out, trying to crawl away. "Get away from me!" She held out her hand and Remilia was blasted back.

The sphere trapping Byakuren disappeared, and she ran over to tend to Remilia.

Kyreth gestured and a black circle appeared beneath her and Flandre. Both of them began to sink into the portal. "This isn't over, vampire." Kyreth said, before they both disappeared.

Outside the manor, the few remaining demons began to flee, most disappearing back into portals before the youkai defenders could finish them off. The portals near the lake disappeared, leaving nothing behind but the damaged mansion.

Byakuren helped Remilia up. "You can relax now." She said. "It's over."

Remilia looked at the wrecked library, at the unconscious Sakuya and the shredded robes of Patchouli. She thought about her sister, and the fear in her eyes the end.

"No…" She said. "It's not." And then Remilia began to cry.

Well this is the longest chapter so far. We finally get to see the forces of the Tanar'ri in action, and who's this mysterious Alcain fellow?

I hit writers block several times during this chapter, but I'm damn proud of it. I'm already getting to work on chapter 12.

EDIT: Okay, so at some reviewer suggestions I redid the battles of this chapter, making them less... one sided. Tell me if their better.

I'm going to answer a few reviews here now.

Tao Tai: No this isn't a hatefic. It's intended to be dark, but I had no intention of writing anything resembling a hatefic.

Kayne Kellan: Why does everyone compare my story to Imperfect Metamorphosis? I only said that I happened to like that fic and would recommend reading it of you haven't. And yes I have realized now that I've been making the conflict too one-sided. I have no intention of changing the outcome of the fights I've already written, but hopefully these edits will make them less of a curb stomp.

Anonymous: On the question of the news show, the idea just popped into my head, and it was too good to pass up. I'm glad you liked chapter 7. That chapter too is one of my favorites. As for Parsee, I might not have explained this enough. She doesn't like other people that much and might rather wish them harm. But not to the level of what Kyreth did to Aya. And as for the idea of the radio tower battle. Hmmmmmm...

Thanks for reading this far. Please leave a review and tell me what you think!

~Dragonexx