With the new arrivals from the Underworld, a large amount of animals had taken up residency throughout the Scarlet Mansion. The fairy maid staff was quickly swamped with more work thanks to the spirited animals.
Within the main drawing room of the mansion gathered Remilia and the new guests from below the surface of Gensokyo. Remilia sat in a chair, one leg crossed over the other and a hand rubbing her chin. A troubled look on her face, she studied what her new guests had brought her; what they managed to find before escaping the Underworld.
What stood in the center of the room was Reimu Hakurei; at least that's what it appeared to be. At first glance, it simply looked like a mummified corpse in the shrine maiden's clothing, but from what Remilia's guests had told her, this so-called mummy was indeed the maiden herself. She didn't want to believe it, but she had no other choice but to.
Sitting next to Remilia was one of the new arrivals as well as the owner of the Palace of Earth Spirits, Satori Komeiji. She sat patiently while Remilia soaked in the bad news she had just revealed to her just moments ago, the reason why she and her companions had come up to the surface and to her home. Yuuka, Aya and Momiji stood idly to the right of them, having listened in on Satori's tale.
Marisa was also present in the room. She was seated opposite of Remilia and Satori, her elbow rested on the arm of the chair and her forehead propped up on her fist. She was sulking over the terrible state of her best friend, angry with whatever it was that had snatched her beautiful form away, as well as possibly her life. Sitting on either side of her was the two chiefs of Satori's pets, Rin Kaenbyou the Kasha and Utsuho Reiuji the Hell raven. Both were trying to perk up the depressed witch to the best of their abilities.
Once Remilia was finished thinking about everything Satori had told her, a long sigh flowed out from her lips. No words followed and she continued to stare sadly at the mummified form of her young friend.
Provoked by the vampire's silence and the desire to break the melancholic silence of the room, Satori spoke up. "Miss Remilia, please let me thank you again for allowing me and my pets to stay here. I wish I could repay you with something other than this disturbing sight," she said apologetically.
"It is quite alright, Miss Satori," Remilia said, her eyes stuck on the frozen Reimu. Another sigh left her lips before continuing. "So much keeps happening and still I know nothing of what exactly that is."
Satori nodded. She did not need Remilia to explain to her of the things that had occurred on the surface. A quick read of her mind revealed everything, and she wasn't all too surprised with what she had found, though it was no less unnerving.
When strange disappearances had started in the Underworld, Satori thought nothing of it and had only cautioned her pets to be careful when adventuring out of the palace. But when the disappearances got worse and rumors of Horrors being sighted had reached her, she was quick in fortifying the palace in case of a similar scenario like that of the Horror Incident over a year ago. She was right in doing so, but it proved to be useless. She was far from prepared for when the entire space of Underworld suddenly became warped and twisted, forcing her and her pets out of their home and to the surface. During the difficult travel through the subterranean world, she had found Reimu in the current state she was in now: mummified and her expression preserved in what seemed to be a state of total horror.
Not everything Satori found in Remilia's thoughts was bad. A peculiar name was caught and this brought out a little chuckle from her.
"My, what a surprise. I was looking forward to visiting his grave, but it seems like that won't be necessary," Satori said.
Remilia glanced to the side towards Satori, eyes narrowed. "Miss Satori… I am very much aware of who you are and what your abilities are. If you wish to remain here in my mansion then I suggest you keep your third eye to yourself," she said curtly.
Satori smiled and nodded. "I apologize. It is a habit of mine," she said.
Rin was patting Marisa on the back to comfort her, but stopped and looked to her master, curious with what she had said. "His grave? Who do you mean, Lady Satori?" she asked.
"Why, that handsome gentleman you had taken a liken to, of course. The one with the red eyes," Satori said then tossed Rin a wink.
Rin's face went pink when she remembered who the so-called gentleman was. "Wh-What are you saying, Lady Satori? That guy's dead. Isn't he?" she said, confused.
"He lives!" Aya excitedly blurted out. "Our old friend Max the Harbinger lives and now our very own shrine maiden has been turned into a shriveled up corpse. This. THIS is why I love my job," she said as she quickly jotted down some notes. She released a small squeal of fright when Yuuka softly grabbed her behind her neck.
"Careful with what you say, Tengu reporter, because remember… I can snap your neck like that of a chicken's," Yuuka said with a content smile.
Aya got the idea and slowly tucked her notebook back in her skirt pocket. "Sorry. Sorry…" she said quietly.
"Max?" Utsuho said, her eyes filled with interest. She put a finger to her chin, her eyes looking off to the side as she tried to put a face to the name. "Hmm… Was he that Arab boy?"
"Turk," Marisa corrected.
When Utsuho believed she had the right face, she jumped out of her seat, eyes glittering with joy. "Really?! Him?! Where is he?! I want to see him!" she said loudly.
"Now just a minute, Okuu," Rin said as she stood up from her seat to calm her now excited friend. "Wasn't he dangerous to be close to?"
"It would appear he has lost that evil power he once had so you have nothing to fear from him anymore," Satori said, and Rin placed her hand to her chest and sighed in relief in response.
"Indeed," Remilia said before letting out yet another sigh.
Marisa too let out a sigh as she stood up. "I know what you're thinking, Remilia. But y'know he's only gonna get mad, right?" she said.
"I'm aware of that, but it's obvious that we're dealing with another Horror. I hate to involve him again but he's the only one who can tell us anything about them," Remilia argued. "Sakuya," she called out.
Hearing her name, Sakuya appeared out of thin air before her master. She bowed and said, "Yes, Mistress?"
"Please go and bring Max here," Remilia said.
"Right away, Milady," Sakuya said before vanishing from sight.
"Ayayayaya," Aya sighed. "Things seem to have taken a serious turn. Momiji and I will report the unfortunate circumstance of our fair maiden to the others and tell them to be cautious about… um… those things. Wouldn't want to be caught off guard like the last time."
"For once, I agree with you," Momiji said.
"Sounds like a plan, ze," Marisa said with forced cheerfulness before Aya and Momiji took their leave.
Satori stood up and approached Rin and Utsuho. "I would like you two to go play somewhere else in the mansion for now," she said.
Utsuho looked upset from the command given to her. "Wha? But why? I want to see Max again," she pouted.
"You may talk with him later, Utsuho. We have some very important things to discuss so please do as your master says," Satori said in a stern voice.
"I get it," Rin said then took Utsuho by the arm and smiled at her. "Let's go, Okuu."
"Aww…" Utsuho frowned and was lead out of the room by Rin.
Marisa sat herself back down on a chair. With a depressing sigh, she brushed her bangs out of her face and looked once more at her mummified friend. She didn't keep her eyes on Reimu for long and looked away, the sight being just too painful for her.
Yuuka, with a slight smirk seen on her face, walked up to the mummified Reimu and studied her at close up. "Oh, how the mighty has fallen. Unfortunate that it wasn't me to beat you, but I promise I'll at least avenge you, my sweet little Reimu," she said tauntingly as she circled Reimu.
"Shut up, Yuuka…" Marisa growled, resentment leaking out with her words.
"If you want to start a fight then just leave right now. I'm in no mood for this," Remilia said threateningly.
Through the door arrived Sakuya with Max right behind her. Max took two steps into the room then saw the mummified statue standing in the middle of the room. He shook his head, feeling both angry and disgusted with what he was looking at.
"What the fuck…" he said incredulously. "What the hell did this idiot do?"
Marisa hopped out of her seat and raced up to Max. "I don't know if you met her before, but this idiot here is my best friend, Reimu," she said.
"Max, we're hoping that you may know what kind of condition this girl is afflicted with," Remilia said.
"Oh yeah, I know exactly what. Now let me guess… You want me to tell you not only what caused this, but how to cure it. Is that right?" Max said, glaring at Remilia with a sour stare.
Marisa stood with desperation in her eyes. "Max… If you know anything that could help my best friend… anything at all… then please tell us," she said.
Max could easily see that the mummified person in the middle of the room meant a lot to Marisa, but the only thing he could do was to be honest with her and not fill her with any false hope. He glanced over at Remilia and, as expected, she too begged for answers from him with her eyes. It gave him such a headache to see those kinds of eyes coming from Remilia. He would very much like to not give any answer at all and just leave, but given past experiences, that wasn't going to happen.
He looked away from Remilia and settled on Marisa's eyes. It seemed to him that Marisa was already expecting a not-so-good answer from him which made it a little bit easier for him to tell her.
Max took a deep breath, exhaled then said, "I can't tell you how to save your friend because there ain't a way to save her."
Marisa's eyes fell to the floor as her muscles tensed up. She didn't expect a positive answer but it still upset her. She was again angry with how pessimistic Max was, but feared more the thought of him being right.
Remilia was not happy with the negative answer and quickly went to voice her disapproval, but she said nothing when Max held up a hand towards her.
"You shut your cute little face, Remilia," Max demanded. "You want answers so badly? Then shut your damn mouth and listen," he said, stunning Remilia silent with the aggressiveness in his voice. He walked over to the mummified Reimu, pointed at her face then looked to Marisa. "You see this? What does this look like?"
Marisa spared only a glance, having already seen the terrible expression on her friend's face and having it burned in her memory forever. "She looks horrified out of her wits," she answered glumly.
"Exactly," Max said. "She saw a certain Horror that is so god damn hideous that it turns anything and anyone that sees it into a living mummy."
Marisa's melancholic expression brightened up a little upon hearing the word living. "A living mummy? That means she's still alive, right?" she asked anxiously.
Max sighed, hating the false hope that grew in Marisa's eyes. "She is, but…" His sight then went to Remilia. "She's trapped in her own damn body; stuck with the vision of the thing that turned her into this. To put it very simply: she's literally in a nightmarish prison right now, and the only way to release her is to-"
"Kill her," Yuuka said with a dark smirk.
Remilia's and Sakuya's eyes widened from the unthinkable suggestion, and they only widened further when Max nodded in agreement. Marisa's eyes widened also, but her expression quickly turned to intense anger.
"Like hell we'll do that," Marisa sneered, her fists shaking at her sides as she tried not to let her anger get the best of her.
"The longer you leave her like this the longer she'll suffer," Max said as he headed for the door to leave. "She's your friend so do what you want. I don't care."
When Max passed her by, Marisa turned around and grabbed him by the arm. Her eyes watering into tears, she voiced a desperate suggestion. "There's gotta be a way. Like… Like if we find the thing that did this to her and kill it then she might return to normal," she said.
Max ripped his arm away, turned around and faced Marisa with a hardened expression. "You wanna try that poorly thought out theory then you go right on ahead, Marisa. Subject yourself to the same fucking fate as your friend here. I'm sure she'd like that," he said harshly. He was talking to Marisa, but he aimed his statement primarily at Remilia and she knew it. He ignored the tears that were now dripping from Marisa's eyes and faced Remilia. "It's inhumane to leave her trapped like that," he said then quietly left the room.
Remilia was far from convinced that Reimu's fate was sealed. "Wait, Max!" she called out. She went to chase after Max, but someone grabbed her arm. It was Satori.
"Allow me to speak with him," Satori insisted.
What Max had suggested troubled Satori, but quite frankly she was a little more upset that he didn't take notice of her. Made her a little sad, but alas, he had numerous things running through his mind that it wasn't too much of a surprise that he overlooked her. She was more concerned with the chaotic thoughts he struggled painfully with.
"No. I can talk to him myself," Remilia said stubbornly.
"You won't be able to get him to tell you anything the way you are now, Miss Remilia. You're angry. He's angry. So please let me at least get him calmed down," Satori said.
Remilia huffed. "What I say about keeping your third eye to yourself?" she said.
"Again, I apologize, but he truly feels the only way he can help anyone is by keeping what he knows to himself," Satori said. "I think I can get him to tell me what is on his mind."
Remilia thought about it for a moment. She didn't like the idea of Satori invading Max's mind or anyone else's for that matter, but she had no better alternative.
"I will only use my powers sparingly," Satori said, hoping to put Remilia at ease a little.
Remilia gave in. Unhappy, she sighed and nodded her approval. Satori smiled and nodded back before heading for the door and leaving to follow after Max.
After stepping over and kicking off to the side several animals that scurried around the mansion, Max made it into his room and slammed the door shut behind him. He dived into his bed, burying his face into a pillow. He tried to force himself to sleep, but a knock at the door came quickly. He ignored the knocking, but the person behind the door proved persistent.
With an angry grumble, Max pulled himself out of the bed and stormed his way to the door. He yanked it open, ready to verbally tear into the annoying pest, but the individual proved to be a huge surprise to him. He recognized her in an instant.
Max's jaw hung loosely as he stared at Satori. It was such a surprise for him that he burst out laughing. He then promptly slammed the door shut then hopped back into bad, his laugh trailing off into silence.
The door opened and Satori let herself in. "It is nice meeting you again also, Max," she said. She was upset at having a door slammed in her face, but she let it go. Max gave her a different reason to be upset with him by ignoring her. She let out a sigh before having a seat on the edge of the bed, her back to Max. "It seems you and Miss Remilia have been through quite a lot lately. It would also seem that what started over a year ago never ended and still continues… I'm sorry that you're still tied to that Outer God."
Max sat up on his bed, pointed menacingly at Satori's back and stressfully said, "Get out before I pop that eye of yours."
Satori turned to face Max and smiled. "It is so nice to see your eyes and heart no longer consumed in that vile haze," she said. "You look much more handsome, too."
"You read my mind already, right? I can't help that idiot so leave me the fuck alone," Max demanded before shoving his face back into the pillow.
"I'm not here about Reimu's unfortunate condition." Satori crawled over to Max and placed a hand gently on his shoulder. "I'm here because I'm troubled with the fact you think that even if we were able to free Reimu from her prison… that it would be completely pointless. Why is that, Max?"
"Go ahead and read my damn mind then get out," Max said scornfully, his voice muffled by the pillow.
"Reading and understanding are two very different things. You need to explain to me what it is that has you convinced that our world is doomed."
Max rolled onto his back then sat up and slouched forward. "You're just as annoying as before," he said with a sigh.
"And you, my young friend, are just as stubborn," Satori said. Even as Max sat brooding, she couldn't help but smile. Max may have given her permission to read his mind, but he was trying to think of several things at once to try and throw her off, but it was futile. She giggled and said, "Well, isn't this a surprise. If I had been the one to save you… would you have fallen for me instead?" she asked teasingly.
"Hmph. No flippn' clue what you're talking about," Max said tenaciously.
"It's cute and it goes to show that you are not the bad person you try to convince yourself that you are," Satori lectured. "I know you want Miss Remilia to spend time with you rather than waste her time fighting those monsters for compassionate reasons and I praise you for that. But what I don't know is why you think her past battles and the future battles she may be drawn into is meaningless." Satori scooted herself closer to Max when he looked away from her. She leaned close to him and asked, "What is it that scares you enough to not look up into the sky? What is up there that has you convinced that the Earth will die soon?"
Max growled, irritated to the core. "You're getting on my last nerve."
"I'm not trying to get you to tell me solely out of my own curiosity, Max. I'm asking you to tell me because I think you being the only one burdened with so much horrific knowledge is detrimental to your health. You'll have a mental breakdown if you don't share that burden with someone. I know you wish not to harm Miss Remilia with that knowledge so share it with me. I am more than happy to take off some of that weight for you," Satori said.
"As am I."
Max and Satori turned their heads to see Remilia standing in the doorway. Satori did a mental face-palm, upset with the vampire's stubborn refusal to let her converse with Max alone. Max, meanwhile, became increasingly angry.
"Since when did you become a peeping tom?" Max scowled.
Remilia huffed, dismissing the glare Max had pointed her way. "This is my mansion and I may do as I please while in it," she said.
Satori sighed, feeling both impressed and troubled by Remilia's and Max's stubbornness. She got off the bed then went to wait outside the room. She stopped next to Remilia and smiled. "You're so lucky, Miss Remilia. I'm actually a little jealous," she said.
Remilia raised an eyebrow as she watched Satori leave the room, not understanding what she was talking about. She then turned her attention to Max then walked to the other side of the bed and stood close to him. She stared intently into his eyes, now wanting to know all that he did more than ever. She had indeed acted as a peeping tom for a little bit and overheard a good portion of the conversation. She wanted to know to better understand the reasoning for the many appearances of Horrors, but wanted more so if the knowledge Max knew was truly a blight on his mind, and wanted to share in the burden thinking her vampiric mind was more than capable of handling the eldritch knowledge.
Remilia cleared her throat before speaking. "Max… I had a dream once… nay… a vision. A vision of some horrible, alien eye in a pitch black sky. It sickens me just thinking about it, but I need to know what that eye is and why these Horrors keep appearing. So please… tell me what is happening," she said with pleading eyes.
Max was surprised to hear that she had seen the dreaded eye, but not for long. He thought it typical that she would have seen it. After all, she could see the fate of things thus it wasn't a surprise that she had seen the fate of the world. He pitied her for being shown that fate, and damned her power for showing it to her.
Max crossed his arms behind his head and laid it down on the pillow. He looked to the ceiling, looking through it and to the sky. "You really wanna know that badly, huh?" he asked, and Remilia silently nodded. "You're a stupid vampire for the ages."
He didn't want to tell her, but figured if she had to find out then it may as well be from him, even if it would feel like he was putting a gun to her heart and shooting it with a silver bullet. With a heavy sigh, he gave in to her foolish desire.
"Eihort's awakening… Cthulhu trying to break free… Y'golonac appearing in your library… And now the fucker down below…" Max said. He turned his head to face Remilia. "They want to taste the death of the Earth, Remilia. They all do. Every single fucking one of them. That's why they keeping pouring in here like roaches. You can keep on fighting them all you want, but there will always be another one of those pricks hiding in the shadows. Another… more powerful Horror to drain your soul dry. And even if you managed to defeat them all… Nothing you do will stop the bastard that's coming."
Remilia saw in Max's eyes that he believed his own words to the fullest, which upset her. She saw it as an insult to her and her abilities and past victories.
"What, Max? What is it that is coming?" she asked sternly.
Max looked away from Remilia, slid his fingers through his hair, sighed tiredly then looked back at Remilia. "The Crawling Chao's idiotic stunt didn't go unnoticed by her lord and master," he said, causing Remilia's muscles to tighten up, making her suddenly regret wanting to know the name of the being that horrible eye belonged to. Her heart raced with dread-filled anticipation.
"Who, Max? Who?" Remilia asked again.
Max returned his eyes to the ceiling, the leviathan eye flashing in his mind once more. He cringed from the painful thump in his head, sighed, then, with much needed exertion, said with trembling words, "The Daemon God Sultan…"
Remilia stood in perplexed fright, the revolting title not being enough for her. She wanted a name, and she got that name, but the name would not come from Max.
"Azathoth," said the voice of a woman. "He is coming."
Remilia and Max turned their sights to the end of the bed to see a blond-haired woman standing there. They both sneered upon recognizing the woman.
"You…" Remilia snarled as she got on guard, prepared for a rocky fight.
The woman, unfazed by the menacing eyes laid upon her, simply grinned. "Hello, Remilia, my cute little Scarlet Devil… And hello, Max, my handsome Harbinger of Madness," Yukari Yakumo greeted.