This place is… strange… intoxicating even…
Me, Cirno, and Letty walk through the Forest of Magic. It is dark here, but dim rays of light filter through the leaves and help guide my way… assuming I still know where I am going.
The forest is a strange and abnormal place. The bark of the numerous forest trees are dark swirled with streaks of gray. The leaves are a deep blue color, causing the faint sunlight to become blue as it passes through them. Root-like plants and large colorful mushrooms grow in various places, giving to the foreign fantasy world appearance.
But it's not the appearance of this place that is getting to me here. It's the air. It's the magic.
I have been warned by Patchouli, Meiling, and Remilia that this place does things to people. The enchanted air here has a very strong effect on untrained minds. This energy has turned the air into a toxic miasma. It's like a powerful drug, distorting thoughts and blurring judgment.
This place is one big magical anomaly. It's a place where strangest things are born, like fairies. It's a place where the most insane youkai come to find peace. It's one of the most dangerous places in all of Gensokyo.
And I still am not even halfway through it…
I slowly walk behind my two allies. I'm trying to stay focused, keeping my eyes on the towering mountain in the distance. Just keeping my mind on that is enough of a challenge for me right now. I've given up on looking for Marisa already, as I don't think I'm going to last that long out here. My allies sure didn't.
Ahead of me, Letty and Cirno whisper jokes to each other. They have already succumbed to the forest miasma. Perhaps they have willingly done so, as they are having a good time right now. They are in unusually light spirits, laughing and teasing one another and sometimes slowing down to poke at me as well. It's like they're drunk on the atmosphere. Maybe this is what Cirno meant by going to have fun in the forest.
All the while, they have taken to delivering winter as best they can. Letty occasionally sends out a burst of cold air, gracing the forest foliage with glittering frost. Cirno is recklessly freezing random things with small concentrated ice beams, creating scattered ice surfaces. To me, it seems like they aren't making much progress, but the punishing sleet has become a gentle angelic snow, and the temperature has been dropping rapidly. Perhaps a simple declaration is really all that is needed for a season to change in Gensokyo.
I continue to think on that last train of thought. Hmm… in a world of magic do words really have power? Perhaps there is some merit to loudly declaring spells after all. Perhaps I should try being a little more enthusiastic during fights. I wonder if-
…
A sigh of agitation occurs from Arcane. He has been keeping a close watch on me know. The dark god is the only thing keeping me anchored to this world. When the miasma begins to take over, his presence chases away the dreamy feelings I have, and returns my concentration; like he just did.
Right… focusing.
I look up through the trees once again. The mountain is still terribly far away. This journey is dragging on and on, and it's only been half an hour.
Suddenly another burst of laughter erupts from Cirno. "Kkk…hehe…Kyahahaha!"
"Hehehe. Oh Cirno…" Letty giggles along with her.
Well… at least those two are having a good time.
I quicken my walk to see what they are laughing at. It takes me only a second to catch up with them.
I stand right behind them and peer over Cirno's shoulder to see what she is doing. Using a fine beam, Cirno once again etches her name onto a large tree. I sigh and take a step back.
What is so damn funny about that? I swear the forest is full of laughing gas or something. These two have been laughing at everything. I think to myself.
But then… I notice something odd. As I look past Cirno's ice graffiti to the area up a head, I see a clearing. In the middle of the clearing is an unusual looking tree. The air ahead is clear, and the lighting is normal for a cloudy winter day.
I tap Cirno and point ahead. "Hey, what's that over there?"
Cirno is very familiar with the forest's layout, and instantly replies. "Oh, look what we found. It's the fairy shrine. Come on, I'll show you! Your just gonna love this place Knight!"
"Oh yeah, you never did show me this Cirno. Let's go have a look!" Letty says sounding just a bit too cheery compared to her usual self.
I stop. Wait… do fairies get shrines?
Of course not.
Cirno suddenly grabs my hand and starts to pull me forward. "Hey hey hey! Why ya standing around? Come on, this way! I'll show you our shrine! We just rebuilt it too."
I barely keep up with Cirno and Letty as I am pulled towards the clearing. "Hey now, easy. No need to… w… what the hell is that?"
As I walk up to the clearing, I am surprised at what I find. More than surprised, I'm completely shocked. The tree in the middle of the clearing is no tree. I immediately recognize it, and am surprised that such a thing is here. I did not expect to ever see one of these again.
"Is that a… radio tower?" I whisper in awe.
In front of me is an ancient radio tower. Steel shafts cross into each other to form a lattice that reaches several stories high. On top is a pair of radio dishes facing Youkai Mountain and the Scarlet Devil Mansion. The whole thing is covered in dark brown rust patches.
But it is also covered in something else. Thin trees rise up and spiral around the tower, merging with the tip of the tower at the top. Branches intertwine with the steel lattice and leafy canopies jut out in a few different places. One fat branch has a ladder and a walkway attached to it, allowing access to the dish from the ground.
I'm completely taken aback. It's a radio tower… what is this doing here? This is from the outside isn't it? How did it get here? Did it get moved?
Things that are forgotten lose their ties to reality. These forgotten things or places drift through unknown space between realities until they are found again. This tower happened to be inconveniently found in the midst of this forest as it passed through this particular unknown space, binding it to reality once more. Arcane replies to my flurry of questions.
So…
There is more I want to ask him about how things like this appear, but Cirno's voice interrupts me.
"Hey everybody!" Cirno calls out.
Immediately, there are a numerous replies.
"Oh hey, Cirno is back!"
"Cirno? Hey, it's been a while."
"Yay! It's Cirno!"
"Hey Cirno. Good to see you."
In my shock, I had not realized how many fairies were here. The clearing is pretty big, and it's full of fairies. Fairies on the ground, in the trees, in the air, flying around the tower… everywhere. There has to be at least a hundred of them.
All at once, fairies of various shapes, wingspans, sizes, and colors fly down and crowd around the three of us. Countless gemstone eyes innocently look up at us as they gather around.
Cirno greets them all. "Hey everyone. How's it going? Me and my friends are just passing through here and I thought I'd introduce you. You already know Letty right?"
A small fairy jumps up. "Yep! You're the winter lady."
Another fairy asks a question. "Hey. You said you were going to fight those nasty Aki sisters…. How did it go? Did you beat them up?"
Letty replies in a normal tone thanks to the clear air. "Not quite. But don't worry little fairy. They won't be bothering me or Cirno for quite a while."
"That's right! We put them in their place! It's going to be an early winter everybody!" Cirno victoriously exclaims.
Everybody cheers. All the fairies are excited for playing in the snow and enjoying seasonal treats. They're just like little kids.
Cirno continues. "Hahaha! That's right everyone! And I owe it all to my buddy here."
As she points to me, the cheering slowly quiets. Excitement shifts to curiosity. All of their eyes are set on me now.
Um… what should I say? "H-hey everyone. You can call me Knight."
"Who's he? He looks kind of scary…" A fairy in the crowd says.
"What? Him? Aw, now way. He just looks tough. He's a good guy on the inside. If it weren't for Knight, we would still be stuck dealing with those two." Cirno reassures.
The fairies clamor about me for a moment. As they do, they slowly begin to agree with Cirno and start to relax.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that Cirno."
A new voice rises up to challenge Cirno's opinion. Me and everyone else look towards the voice.
Sitting on a low hanging tree branch on the fairy's tower is another large fairy about Cirno's size. I don't have to use my devil's sight to tell she is probably pretty strong magic wise; maybe a fairy leader or something. She's dressed in a red in white dress, matched by red hair and a white headdress.
She kicks her feet through the air while she casually continues. "I heard from a sunflower fairy that some mysterious guy is ruthless and unforgiving to fairy kind. She said he was a tall dark haired youkai who wielded alien weapons and powerful magic."
The fairies all look at me for a second. Doubt spreads amongst them, and they slowly begin to back away from me.
Cirno looks at me with shock. "W-what? Knight? Don't tell me you hate fairies. I thought you were friends with us…"
I panic a little. Uh oh. I'm putting Cirno in bad position as my ally. I need to explain this before something happens.
"She… er…" The fairies look at me with suspicion as I struggle. "Look… it's not like that. It was an accident. We miscommunicated and the fairies thought I insulted them. We got into a fight, and I defeated them. It was purely in self-defense… I'm an outsider. I wasn't familiar with Gensokyo at the time, and I still have trouble to be honest. I never meant any harm."
Everyone seems to calm down at that.
Cirno is about to speak when another voice interrupts. At first, I thought it was Letty, but the pitch is a bit too high. It's another fairy; a particularly calm sounding one.
"I heard some things about him as well. I read an article in the newspaper that said he got in a fight with Wriggle Nightbug. I also saw him once with Rumia one night, right before she disappeared. Don't you know those two Cirno?"
Another pries on us. Parasites, all of them.
I turn towards the voice. Another powerful fairy in a blue dress with a star on the skirt sits on a rock near the side of the clearing. She has long black hair that is topped with blue ribbon. She looks at us with a calm, colorless stare.
Cirno once again is shocked by this fact. "Knight? Those are some of my friends! Why did you attack Wriggle? What did you do with Rumia?"
Crap… let me try this again. "Wriggle was a mistake. Again, I didn't know any better. I crossed a line I shouldn't have, and she got defensive. I had no choice but to fight her off. Rumia is actually on good terms with me. That night she got sick from the rain and left. I honestly don't know where she is."
That girl again… it has been a long time since you accidentally damaged her seal. I cannot help but wonder what has happened to her now.
Arcane's musings go unheard among the fairies. My words seem to calm them down once more.
Cirno laughs a little. "Oh… haha. I see. You didn't tell me you knew Rumia though. Have you ever-"
Another voice, a sleepy sounding one, interrupts. "Wait one more minute. I don't like this Knight guy either. I heard from the newspaper's editor that Knight is at odds with Alice Margatroid, and that she showed up just so she could fight him. I don't know about you, but this guy sounds like trouble if Alice is after him."
I turn to face a third doubter. She is another powerful fairy equal to the other two. She is dressed in a monochrome dress; white with black buttons and ribbons. She has a lot of these ribbons on her, including her sleeves, around her neck, and on her white beret. Contrasting that, she has bright golden hair and ruby eyes that stare at me with uncertainty.
Cirno is just a little surprised this time. "Eh? Alice? What does she have against you?"
Alice… another name I haven't heard in a few weeks…
"Alice is…" I hesitate. I can't decide what to say.
I sigh when I give up. "Look that really isn't something I want to talk about. It's a personal matter. All I'll say is that we are enemies, and that's all there is to it. That fight has nothing to do with anyone else, so there's no need to worry."
They hesitate to accept the evasive response, but they slowly ease again.
These fairies sure are easy to manage. Now, who's talking me down like this?
I look at the three questioning fairies. Wait… three fairies. They're all pretty powerful for their kind…
I talk to them while I look between them. "You three must be the Three Fairies of Light. Cirno told me about you. What do you have against me?"
Cirno perks up at that. "Oh yeah! I remember talking about that. Yeah, these are those three."
The three fairies jump down from their spots and walk over to us, wading through the crowd of lesser fairies to get closer.
The three introduce themselves.
"I'm Sunny!" Says the red one.
"I'm Luna!" Says the white one.
"And I'm Star." Says the blue one.
"We're the Three Fairies of Light!" They simultaneously finish.
Ugh. I loathe these creatures. Why must you stand about? Be done with this accursed place!
Luna speaks to me. "It's not that we don't like you, but we fairies are just a little suspicious about a guy with a history of violence like yours."
Cirno crosses her arms. "Suspicious? Violent? What do you mean?" Do you have a problem with my friends?"
"We're saying that you're too easy Cirno." Luna replies. "You don't even know this guy. How do you know he isn't a spy for... um… someone? You can't just let him into our shrine."
"Says who?" Cirno demands.
"Says us. We made the place." Sunny states.
"Grrr…"
Sunny laughs back, which only adds to Cirno's frustration.
Whoa whoa whoa! "Hey, Cirno! No need to get upset. Let me handle this."
She scoffs. "Tch."
I look to Sunny. "I can understand you being a little uneasy around a guy like me, and I'll admit I'm not the nicest guy sometimes, but I don't mean any harm. I'm just trying to get through like everyone else. I'm just passing through."
Sunny thinks on this before finally nodding. "Well… I guess it's ok if you're just passing by. I can't really blame you being a newcomer and all. But be nice to us in our shrine here. We may just be fairies, but don't forget where you are and who's the strongest around here."
"Me!" Cirno exclaims.
"Ha! In your dreams. Don't forget who won that little war we had." Sunny counters.
Cirno confidently replies. "Yeah, me."
The red fairy takes a step back. "Eh?"
Luna sighs. "Sunny… we lost. Remember?"
"We did?"
"We did." Star confirms.
"Oh. Ok." Sunny mutters to the ground. Cirno laughs aloud at her mistake.
Oh boy… I think you're right Arcane. I can't stand around here any longer.
I talk to all the fairies. "Hey, it was nice to meet you all. But I've got places to be. We need to get going."
"Ah, wait a sec." Sunny suddenly says. "We have something you might be interested in Knight; since you're here anyways. Something about Alice that might be useful in your own little war with her."
Something about Alice? "Alright… you got my attention there. What is it?"
Sunny smiles. "Ok! You know how Alice has disappeared right? Her home has disappeared too. It seems like she really doesn't want to be found. But expert illusionists like us easily saw through her weak spells! We know where her house is! She's out most of the time, so sneaking in would be easy. Imagine the goldmine of dirt you can sling over your enemy Knight!"
Perhaps this one is not totally worthless. Servant, I want you to go into this home. I want to see what kind of spells this meddler is bearing against me.
Alice's home? I don't know about breaking into someone house…
Cast aside your reservation. It is your life that is at stake. You may learn a vital secret there.
Err… I still feel sick about agreeing to that. No decent person says 'I'm just going to break into this person's home and look at their stuff'… But you're right. This girl has way too many secrets to not warrant a visit. And if she really is adamant about killing me, than I shouldn't hesitate to look for something to use against her.
I nod. "Fine. Show me and I'll check it out to… er… see what I can see."
Sunny wags her finger at me. "Ah ah, hold on just a minute. This isn't free you know. We want something in return."
I blink. "Um… what do you want? I don't have a lot to give… well… I have fifteen hundred yen, would that work?"
Sunny does not seem impressed. I look at Luna and Star, and they aren't either. In fact, even Cirno and Letty are looking at me like I'm an idiot. Some of the crowding fairies are giggling at me.
I sigh. "Sorry. Maybe that isn't worth it. How much do you want then?"
The three think for a moment. Luna is the first to speak up. "Well… money is nice every now and then. But…"
Star continues her sentence. "I don't think that money is worth it. Perhaps…"
Sunny adds on next. "You could take something from the house! You're going into the house of a magician after all. Perhaps you could bring us some magic spells or something fun."
Steal from Alice? Going in is one thing but I'm not a thief.
I don't care what you think you are. Just do something to appease these fools so you can get there.
Star suddenly speaks up again. "Wait! I just remembered. You know how Alice sometimes goes to Makai?"
Letty nods at that. "Yes. I talked with Alice once during that long winter that happened a while ago. As a matter of fact, she's quite close to Shinki."
That name again… "Who is that?"
"The supreme goddess and ruler of Makai. She created the demon world with her own power alone. She is perhaps one of the oldest and most powerful beings in the entire world." Letty explains.
Hm…
And she and Alice are against me. Shit. I hope I don't end up against her.
Star nods. "Exactly. Shinki is like royalty right? If Alice is friends with her, then she must get all kinds of nice gifts that we don't normally get to see. Like… "
Sunny suddenly realizes something and begins to grin. "Ooooh! Like sweets! I bet Shinki gives Alice some nice snacks when she visits Makai. I bet she has some things that we've never even heard of before. Ooh, I wonder what a goddess eats. Or maybe Shinki hand makes treats just for Alice; her cooking must be divine! That's a great idea Star. Knight, if you can get a special treat from Makai in Alice's house then we'll take you there."
I almost laugh at that. Are you kidding me? Just like a storybook fairy to give into the temptation of sweets. If it's just a treat they want, then maybe I can just swipe something from the kitchen that looks interesting and be done with it.
Sunny puts her hands on her hips. "Well what's your answer?"
I agree. "You have a deal. I'll see if I can find something good for you in there. Just one item though. I'm not crazy about stealing, even if they're an enemy."
"Deal."
"Deal."
"Deal." All three agree.
"Alright. Let's go then. You ready Cirno?" I ask.
She nods. "You bet! We'll see you later everyone!"
The fairies begin to depart and scatter back into the air.
"Bye Cirno!
"Goodbye Letty! Come back soon."
"See you later. Tell me how it goes."
A young fairy jumps up and enthusiastically waves goodbye to me. "Good luck mister."
I can't help but smile at such a cute display. I wave back. "Thanks. Goodbye."
We all say goodbye as we pass through the clearing. I look up at the giant radio tower altar as I walk past it. Fairies are already back on its branches playing games and chatting with each other.
Fairies are strange little creatures. But I got to admit, they can be pretty loveable at times. I think to myself.
I look away from the tower and up ahead at the other end of the clearing where I am headed. The three fairies and my two allies are already ahead of me.
Luna waves back at me. "Hurry up! We don't want anyone to start following us."
I quicken my pace and catch up to them just as we exit the clearing and enter the shadows of the forest once more. As I near them, Sunny suddenly grabs me by the arm and pulls me along with her.
"Come on, come on! This way. Hurry up Knight!"
I struggle to keep up with the fairy's speedy flying. "W-whoa! Hey, you're dragging me!"
She lets go of my arm. "Then hurry up!"
The three fairies zoom forward. Cirno flies just as fast. Letty also hovers after them. Without any means of flight, I break into a run to keep up with them.
I slowly start to fall behind. "Hey! Wait up! Why the rush?"
They all slow down. As if to taunt me, Cirno starts to fly backwards.
"Geez Knight. You are so slow!" She says with a laugh.
Suddenly Letty falls back and floats behind me. "Come on, you can move faster can't you? How about a little motivation?"
Letty holds a hand forward, now covered in glittering ice magic. She leans forward a little and drags a finger down my back. I shudder as pure cold runs down my spine.
"Gah! Ouch!" I cry out.
"I'm gonna get you!" Letty teases, already wasted on the forest's miasma once again.
She pokes me with her icy hand again. I sprint to get away from her stinging touch, but she remains just right behind me.
Everyone giggles at my struggle.
"There we go! Just like that. Keep it up Letty! It won't be too long at this speed." Sunny says with another giggle.
"Right! Come on Knight, let's go up another level." Letty says as she starts to move faster.
I pour all my strength and concentration into my running so I can get away from her. Come on! Give me a break!
The six of us move swiftly through the forest towards its edge. We head towards the Great Youkai Forest near the base of Youkai Mountain. Somewhere near the edge of the Forest of Magic and the Great Youkai Forest if Alice's house; apparently unguarded. I can't help but wonder what secrets I'll find in there.
Another icy tap on the shoulder from Letty stings me.
"You're falling behind again. Keep up or I'll get you!" Letty says.
I frantically flee from the pursing snow youkai. Cirno somehow finds the time to continue to freeze things in her haste. Sunny, Star, and Luna lead the way, occasionally looking back to laugh at my plight. It's one crazy party all right.
Together, we all head towards Alice's house, searching for whatever dark secrets the magician has brought against me.
A/N
Thank you for reading my latest chapter. I hope you enjoyed it.
Well, I finally got to the forest. I've been thinking about how I'm going to play this part out for a while. About 1 month and 100000 words later, I finally get here. I'm really happy that the story turned out ok. As new writer, I get incredibly nervous. When I started I was afraid I wasn't going to be any good; that my new story would loose interest, or that it would just fall flat.
A special thanks to everyone who has been reviewing, faving, and following me. All of you are a huge morale boost for me, and encourage me to keep writing in spite of my doubts.
Also, for those of you who may have missed the reference. In one of the Touhou manga stories, a radio tower appears in the forest and the Three Fairies of Light turn it into a shrine for the fairies after Reimu decides to not destroy it. I thought it would be an interesting place to have Knight pass by, and would be a unique landmark where I could stop all of the characters and introduce the three fairies for this next part. As my knowledge of the Touhou manga is extremely sketchy, I don't intend to make many manga references. Still, I thought this added to the crazy and bizarre atmosphere of the forest.
Anyways, I'm letting my notes get too long now.
Thank you again. I hope to have the next chapter ready soon.
