You see, there is a reason why in PN14 we jumped a bit into the future. Why we saw a little of Yukari go into September of that year.
Time-lines may have been vanilla, but they went their course, and we got to see what came out of that future. Seija. And what did she go and do?
Well, what she did has repercussions. And of course a certain other person is taking further steps.
I know I said Meltdown was next, and this prequel chapter would imply it, but...
Something else has to happen beforehand.
"SWR"
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is owned by Nagaru Tanigawa. Touhou Project is owned by ZUN and Team Shanghai Alice. I own neither. This is a fan fiction of those works.
Beta Readers for this Episode(Alphabetical Order):
Another Duck
Smooglii
This is what I said, wasn't it? The bit about playing catchup after a time skip?
I mean you had to expect it was coming. Otherwise you'd just be dropped into a new situation without knowing what's going on. Time marches on, events happen, people learn from experiences. History passing by with every tick of the second hand. That's the way it is.
Things haven't changed much. In retrospect, it's all that I could have asked for, as the following years were stable in comparison to what had happened in my first two years in high school. Things have calmed down between the factions here in my world, and Haruhi and I had continued our relationship.
As for closed spaces, as I said, things have stabilized, so they had dropped to a low number per year. Again, this is all according to Koizumi. I never got any actual numbers or statistics. I'm sure the organization has people who run accounting and stuff.
That's got to be a weird job to show up to work for. Sitting down at a desk and counting how many pockets of a separate dimension-thing pop up every month that threaten your very existence.
I wonder if it pays well.
The Meltdown of Haruhi Suzumiya
Episode 0
["The Disappearance of Sanae Kochiya"]
"The underground world has different arrangements, so we can't act too overtly."
"Well, the humans aren't going to do anything. At this rate we'll lose our initiative; is that what you want?"
"Hm, that's true... I suppose I have no choice, I can't let you all just do whatever you want again."
"What do you mean, again... ? In any case, will you do something? You seem to know something about the underground."
"No, I can't do anything. Only humans can go to the underground. Besides, this might be a trap to draw us in."
-Conversation between Yukari Yakumo and Patchouli Knowledge, Touhou 11: Subterranean Animism Prologue
The brigade had reunited at the collegiate level, to a point, and yes, we 'reformed' the Brigade. Haruhi had taken over a small unused room in one of the older buildings on campus to be used as the new home of the Brigade. While some of the officials wanted to kick us out, since nobody was using it, nothing really happened. Every semester we would use it without any real incident, even though... well... there were certain areas at college that needed that good old paranormal investigation. In other words, we'd go to a location, kill time, go eat, kill time again, and go to our rooms. It was just like in high school, except we lived on campus. You know, it was real nice of Koizumi to pay for that. You should have seen the look on my parents' faces when I had somehow been accepted for a grant (that I never applied for) that nobody heard of. I'm not complaining - it paid for room and board, and it allows all of us to live in close proximity to each other. It made things easier.
Especially since I was dating her.
Okay, okay, we didn't go that far. You know - that far. I wasn't sneaking into the girls dorm and she wasn't sneaking into the boys dorm. But things did regularly get hot and heavy without going all the way. Frustrating, yet satisfying. Haruhi did this amazing...
...Hold on.
Where was I?
Right. Uhm, I lost myself here.
Indeed. We were surrounded by some of the people we knew in high school. Heck, Tachibana and Sasaki were going to the same college as us, so we had quite the reunion. They were even room mates. I didn't even know they were here until my second semester. Fujiwara was a no show, as was Suou, of course.
Speaking of no shows, it's sad, but Mikuru had accomplished her 'mission'. She had to go back.
It was inevitable, really. Adult Mikuru had to get things ready. I was told that there was another time traveler at the college, but they were observing from afar.
It was like we said - things change. We lost someone due to business decisions. It wasn't a total loss, though - Tsuruya took her place in the club. It... made things interesting. Tsuruya was a very unusual maid.
Hey, someone had to take up that role, and she looked good in doing it. Though her tea wasn't as superb...
Okay, barring that, it was kind of nice, really. It's much easier to make a transition to a new place with people you know. Oh, and speaking of people I knew, Emiri, Tsuruya, and a few others from North High made it as well. Tsuruya ended up being Haruhi's room mate. Speaking of room mates, Kunikida was mine. He was quiet, kept to himself, so I don't have any complaints. He confessed to Tsuruya, so they became a couple. It's nice. There have been double dates like twice, but when Tsuruya and Haruhi get together, it gets loud, and they take control of the situation. Kunikida and I have agreed to not do that again.
I still kind of find it weird that Haruhi managed to reform the brigade so easily. I have to reiterate it - someone should have put up more effort against her. The faculty allowing themselves to be steamrolled that easily kind of dampened my expectations of them in getting me a proper education. I mean, these are the people who were going to help put the finishing touches on me before I went out to the real world, and for them to bend that easily? To the demands of a small group? I was not filled with confidence over how well they did their jobs. Ah well, it wasn't like my parents were really paying them.
Training with Nagato was... decent. I never got a perfect score on that fitness test, but I got close enough, which was good enough to pass, according to that regimen Nagato was using. I gotta say - seeing the results of my hard work was quite satisfying. The looks I got from so many college girls weren't unwelcome, either.
Not that I was inviting it, mind you. Haruhi was jealous, so this was a big double edged sword here. Whenever I attracted too much attention from other girls, it only caused more problems.
As for building my dodging skills, I have been doing a little parkour.
You've probably heard of it, or even seen it online. Videos of people doing... it's pretty much urban gymnastics. It requires a high level of agility to pull off successfully and seamlessly. Wall jumps, jumping from building to building or object to object. A lot of climbing, wall running, that sort of thing. There's also free running, which is all about keeping your momentum going, and using your body to get around objects. Going over rails, and if you fall from a decent height, you roll to try to retain your speed.
I'm not particularly good at either, but I'm confident enough in it. I've even caught myself a few times admiring the architecture of a building, wondering how it would be to run up something, or climb up; which path would be the easiest to take? Even thinking about it now brings a smile to my face, as I had finally found a real use for the time when we'd go out for our excursions. Draw a lot, go for a little parkour, eat, lots, parkour.
I still never get paired with Haruhi. What is up with that? In all the years, I've never gotten an answer to that.
That being said, I was more of a runner than a lifter. I had that proverbial 'runner's physique,' where I was lean enough, but wasn't built too much. I wasn't like ripped or anything. A human's physical strength didn't account for much in a world of youkai playing a game of knockout magic. Such strength didn't hurt, but ultimately it was agility, and I had gotten more agile.
I also took up some tennis as well. When you think about it, danmaku is sort of a tennis match in itself. Each side takes time for an attack, you have to position yourself, and have some hand-body-eye coordination. You don't line up your body directly at the ball - you have to set up to where you can make your attack. In reality, it was a pretty good training, much better than I thought it would be.
One of the plus sides was that it became a thing between Haruhi and I, a sport we shared together. Of course, I got wasted by her, but it gave us some time to spend together. At least once a week we'd play. It vastly improved my footwork, and it got me in shape too. Again, it improved my hand-eye coordination, something I found to be very grateful for. And since it got us to spend even more time together, it was something we both were grateful for.
Of course, being in shape gave me more energy, and boosted my mood a bit. I mean, I was taking care of my body, and it was taking care of me. It's a big confidence booster to look in the mirror and see yourself in shape. I never used to get fitness nuts, why they pushed themselves as far as they did, you know. But after I started getting into shape, I did. I had decided I didn't want to let it go to my head though, as I still inwardly looked down on such people. Vanity is a deadly sin, after all.
Still, I can't deny the feeling it gives me.
Well, other than the usual bumps in the road that is life, there is nothing that really springs to mind. No real incidents occurred for the Brigade since high school, save one. Koizumi had his closed spaces whenever Haruhi got unstable, but nothing big enough for me to get involved with. I guess since Suou got defeated, we never had any more trouble with opposition. No one dared, since we had the data entity advantage. Suou's supporters were gone, while Nagato's weren't. Chiyuri had also been around a lot, usually popping up whenever Koizumi went to his 'job'. She seemingly didn't particularly like to be out in public - she was with the professor, after all. The stigma that surrounds Okazaki still stands, even to this day, and that caused its own problems - Haruhi knew about the two of them, so Chiyuri could only approach us when Haruhi wasn't there. That assistant had a fine line to toe, and it's had to be tough for her. As for the professor herself, I've never met her. I think I may have heard her voice when Chiyuri answered a phone call one time, but I'm not sure.
Speaking of incidents, there were I think two that happened in Gensokyo since I left. I do realize you want to know what happened, so I'll relay what I was told. These are the major ones, mind you, the ones classified as incidents; they were not the little events that would happen on a daily or weekly basis. This is also the extent of the details afforded to me, so if it seems incomplete in data, it's because it is. I'm telling you everything I know on these.
In the spring of 2005, that incident involving Komachi happened. Turns out that a buildup of lost souls occurred, causing flowers to bloom for some reason? I... I myself don't understand why that happened. But it did cause a commotion. Turns out Cirno was actually useful for that one - she had lived during World War 2 while in Gensokyo, and she remembered that this happened back then due to the influx of souls to the dead realm. Remember: Gensokyo has access to the Sanzu. Somehow. I don't even know where, but there is supposed to be a way. Also, Cirno is much older than I had thought. I guess fairies always look young? Anyway, Reimu began defeating people to get to the bottom of the incident, and they were joining her. People like Marisa, Sakuya, Reisen, the Prismrivers, Mystia, and yes, Cirno. Yuka Kazami even got involved. Reimu eventually got to Youmu, who was investigating on her own - she could see the ghosts that had flooded the land. That, and with Cirno's information, they followed the source of the ghosts, coming to the Sanzu river. That's where they fought the shinigami, who was taking a break.
That was it. She was taking a break, not ferrying souls across the river, and it caused a huge backup.
I'm so glad I wasn't a part of that. I would have yelled so loud and for so long out of pure frustration. It would have been a complete waste of my time. Considering my luck, I'm surprised I wasn't there for that.
Still, I couldn't really get mad at Komachi, especially since she helped me in the future. I can't forget that I owe Death herself for her part in saving my family.
...And I can't believe I am in such a position to even think such a thing.
During the incident, Komachi proved to be a difficult opponent, easily taking down the Prismrivers, the fairy, and the night sparrow. When the rest had to team up to even defeat Komachi, that Yama showed up. The judge of the dead, Eiki Shiki. She admonished Komachi for her laziness, but then began to judge the people before her. The Yama saw the sins each person carried, and decided to dole out some justice.
The Yama then proceed to lay waste to the Gensokyo girls. She defeated everyone but Reimu, and from what Nagato said, that was a tough fight for the miko.
I still remember what the miko said to me, that the Yama's power is beyond anything anyone can comprehend. That would have been epic to watch, though - to take on Death and the judge of the dead on the banks of the river of the dead.
When I say it like that, it sounds, as some would put it, metal. That would be a perfect fit for some sort of metal song lyrics.
After the Yama's defeat at the hands of Reimu, the dead were ferried to the next life by Komachi, incident resolved, and the Yama returned to the afterlife after finding respect towards Reimu's abilities.
Next incident... it happened that summer. Aya Shameimaru was part of this - she went around Gensokyo snapping pictures of everyone in some rush for newsworthy photos. Aya went through everyone. It was almost like Seija's rebellion, but Aya was doing this for pictures and news. People and youkai alike got annoyed, and attempted to take her down, but they could not. Reimu got wind of this, and had specifically developed a spell card to defeat the fastest thing in Gensokyo.
Reimu failed.
When I heard that, I had to sit down for a while. But it was because Aya had a particular advantage that was not just due to her speed. Aya was using her special tengu camera that negated magic when it took a shot. Remember the one wielded by the rebels? That was it - Seija got that thing. If you managed to snap a picture of active danmaku, it would fade. That's why a spell card that was developed to take down the tengu failed, because the magic itself was neutralized. Man, if only I could tell Aya to break that camera, then the rebels would have a harder time. Then again, I'd be only screwing myself over, and cause a paradox. Oh well.
You know, I had thought that all of Seija's items only became tsukumogami because of the Miracle Mallet, but apparently in my time, the camera still erases danmaku. It's just something that the tengu camera does - magic nullification.
To be fair, Aya didn't exactly cheat in a danmaku battle. It wasn't like the rebellion. While her targets were using it, the tengu herself wasn't shooting danmaku, so she wasn't essentially fighting. It was a gray area, and Reimu couldn't really punish someone who essentially passive ran through everyone and retreated. Again, Aya didn't attack - she just used the camera to eat up the shots and left when she had enough pictures. From what I hear, some people don't even consider it a full incident.
Still, that camera is unfair. No wonder Seija made use of it. Though I wouldn't mind having it myself.
For the entirety of 2006, nothing major happened, from what I was told. The entire year was relatively peaceful. No incidents, no major threats. Everything was fine in Gensokyo. I'm sure Reimu was grateful for it.
That year, 2007...
You know how I mentioned that there was an incident on our end? At the beginning of the year itself, right after the New Year's festival, it turned out that an entire shrine disappeared from my world. Everything. The building, the grounds, even the shrine maiden assigned to it. Heck - a lake was taken with it. It was the Moriya Shrine, and it was kind of famous for its miko - she could apparently induce miracles, according to what was said in interviews. It caused quite a stir in Japan, actually. So many people wanted to solve this mystery.
Which included Haruhi. Which, of course, meant us.
January 7th, 2007
It caught Haruhi's attention, of course. Thanks to Tsuruya paying for the travel costs, we took a weekend to investigate this paranormal occurrence, and arrived on a Sunday. Getting there, it was just plain eerie. Yes, there was a crowd, police, and some workers, but... it was just so unreal.
I couldn't help but stare out at it. It was just a big chunk of land gone, and due to the cragginess of the exposed ground, it looked like a bomb or an explosion had happened. I was unnerved by the whole thing. Standing where I was, it looked like a gas main explosion, especially since there was an actual gas main pipe there just jutting out of the ground, thankfully turned off.
"Geez, can you believe this?" Haruhi shook her head. "I thought it was something spectacular, but... this is just a tragedy."
"Yeah..." I didn't know what else to say. I had thought the same way too, wondering if it was something else. But it looked like an explosion happened.
"Haru-nyan," Tsuruya said. "You'd think you'd only see this stuff in movies or news shows. I've never seen this in person."
"Huh. Maybe we didn't need to come out for this." Haruhi crossed her arms, staring out at the damage. She all of a sudden got this serious look on her face. "...that's weird." She turned back to us. "I'm gonna ask some questions. Don't go too far, okay?" With that, she went to go speak to people within the crowd. Tsuruya didn't listen, and went to the crowd to talk to people, leaving Koizumi, Nagato, and I there to stare at the scene.
I sighed as the two girls left, still not sure what to make of this. I mean, for crying out loud. The poor shrine. What a tragedy. Although...
"Something is missing, isn't there?" Koizumi said from behind. He moved next to me. "If this is a gas line explosion, there is something definitely wrong here." His eyes narrowed as he continued to survey the damage from where we were.
I shot him a glance. Koizumi had voiced the concern that was at the back of my mind, but I couldn't put a finger on it. "What do you mean?"
"What happens during an explosion?" He pointed out at it. "Look at the wreckage and tell me what's missing."
I glanced over at Nagato, who simply nodded. "You don't see it?"
Huh. Okay, so I'm missing something here, and they both see it. I stared back out at the cragginess of the ground, unsure of where to look. The more I stared at it, the more I was sure that something was not, as they say, kosher. The ground is blown to hell, it's a giant crater, and you can clearly see that clean copper gas pipe, shining...
I blinked. I couldn't believe I didn't see it instantly. "Where are the burn marks? The scorch marks? If this was a gas line explosion, then there should have been a fire, and there's no scorching." I looked back at the two of them. "Damn it all, you're right."
The problem was that there were no burn marks or scorching. It was too clean, even though it was made to look like something happened. Nagato said she'd be right back, and went to inspect it closer.
"This is too clean. It has to be staged." Koizumi nodded. "That is getting me thinking."
I had a creeping feeling that I knew who caused this, especially since I had some dreams the previous night. After all, I had an idea of a certain demon who could pull off something like this.
Don't tell me that the shrine was spirited away.
Koizumi then pointed a finger to some of the nearby buildings. "Look at the surrounding area, too."
I looked to nearby trees, buildings, and the other areas. They were right. No damage to anything else. No pieces of the ground, shrine, whatever, scattered about. Absolutely no debris. Either the shrine and its grounds had completely vaporized in a giant heat explosion that left no marks, or something else occurred. Again, it was too clean for a gas main explosion. How did I not see this the second we got here? Maybe because I was just in slight shock over the fact that a whole building was gone.
I felt a tugging on my sleeve, and of course, it was Nagato. I didn't even notice that she had come back.
"Nagato, what do you got?"
She made sure that we were out of earshot from Haruhi, before she spoke. "I feel something familiar, something I haven't felt since encountering the gap youkai."
Dammit, Yukari. What did you do?
Koizumi let out a low whistle. "Wow. For her to be bold enough to take a building like this?"
"I wouldn't put it past her - I mean, it would be well within her abilities, but-" I scratched my head. "Still, what's a demon need a shrine for? I mean, can she even touch one? And why do this?"
Why import another shrine? Another Shinto shrine? I mean the Hakurei shrine was the same in the future, at least, it looked like to me, so it's not like it's a replacement job. And there were no shrines near the village, at least that I could see, so where did she put it when I visited Gensokyo in the future? I had to accept that I couldn't understand this until I had a chance to speak with Yukari.
Nagato shook her head. "It is difficult to gauge Yakumo's plans until they have played out, I've learned. Still, Koizumi is right. This is a bold tactic, and something that has brought a lot of attention."
Tsuruya, who had also went her way, and had come back after talking to people within the crowd herself. She looked like she had something to say. "What's up?" I asked.
She glanced back at the shrine. "You're not going to like this, and I don't think Haru-nyan will either. There was a casualty, it seems. There was nobody that was supposed to be here, but apparently one person went up with the explosion." She said that like she didn't believe there was one. Well, explosion, I mean. She did mean it about the person who disappeared with it.
Yukari took someone. I glanced at Koizumi. "You thinking what I'm thinking?"
"That Yukari would cover up the taking of one person by taking a whole building? Again, that's way too bold." He crossed his arms. "If I were her, I wouldn't do such a thing. There has to be something else at play here."
Yeah, we included Tsuruya into the discussions. She had the basic grasp of what went on, after all, since Mikuru would confide in her what went down. For all intents and purposes, Tsuruya actually was pretty calm about hearing everything. I mean, she's now part of a group that has so many supernatural things going on. Her best friend was a time traveler, she is dealing with an esper and an alien, and her club leader is a god (supposedly). That would be a lot to take in for a normal person, but Tsuruya took it in stride.
Anyway, back to what was being said. That makes sense. Upon hearing what Tsuruya said, yeah, I had thought that the building was taken to cover up the spiriting away of a single person. But that would be a very high cost for just one individual. Koizumi was right.
I rubbed my chin, still in deep thought over this. "...Yeah, yeah you're right. That's too costly."
Either Yukari wanted to kill a person and cover it up, or she really needed someone for Gensokyo. If it was the latter, which I hoped, then I couldn't help but wonder who. Because if it wasn't anybody important, they'd be brought in to be eaten. Someone who's useful to Yukari would be taken care of. But that brings up a question. Who is this person that could benefit Gensokyo? Who in this shrine could provide for Gensokyo?
I returned my attention to the Brigade newbie. "So who was it? Who was the person who disappeared?"
And then I heard the name.
"Sanae." Haruhi had come back. "Sanae Kochiya."
I felt like I got slapped in the face.
You see, Haruhi had come back, with a flier. It read 'in loving memory of Sanae Kochiya', and had a picture of her. A beautiful young woman with long green hair and a warm smile in a shrine maiden's outfit. And two accessories in her hair.
I just stared.
No way.
Girl with the green hair. Snake and frog accessories. On that crosswalk when I bumped into her.
It was her.
But that wasn't all. I just couldn't tear myself away from the picture of this young woman. Memories of my middle school came roaring back.
"Kyon?" Haruhi turned my head to face her, and I could see concern on her face. "What's wrong?"
I glanced back at the picture, before returning my attention to Haruhi. "...I... I knew her."
Haruhi's eyes widened. "What?"
"I went to school with Sanae. She was in my 7th grade math class."
Haruhi's face softened, her lips pressing together in a rare display of sympathy. "Oh, Kyon. I'm so sorry."
I had grabbed the flier, and looked down at it. I could feel my blood run cold.
The one who played cupid. The eccentric yet socially awkward girl sitting next to me. I didn't recognize her on the street three years prior because of what she wore, because she had a different hairstyle, and she had her growth spurt. She really grew into a beautiful young woman - it was a far cry from what she once was, the petite little eccentric girl who for the most part kept to herself in middle school when she wasn't playing cupid.
Why did I forget her name?
That's what bothered me about that encounter on the street. Seeing where we were at that point, it began to make sense. Yukari was scouting Sanae. I didn't even know the Sanae that well - like I said, she was pretty much an outcast when I knew her. Hell, I didn't even know she was a shrine maiden. I thought, even by my standards back then, that she was a weirdo. She would occasionally talk to herself, you see. Walking down the hall, at lunch as she sat by herself on the roof - I had followed her one time, and since then have seen her up there looking down at all of us a few times. Besides that and her cupid obsessions, I didn't know her. I mean, I talked to her a few times, especially since we both shared an interest in the occult and other paranormal subjects. She was the only one who seemed more into it than I was. Heck - she helped string it along during middle school, my interest. Sanae would always have these clippings, print outs, and the like on a lot of the weird stuff that went on in the world. It wouldn't be unusual for us to spend breaks together. She seemed to enjoy my company, but again, I didn't really know her. Also, you remember how I was cited as 'attracting weird girls', right? She was one such example, in a way.
I know. That's weird, right? We had such a great interest and conversations, but other than that, we didn't talk about ourselves that much. Just kept the talks about the paranormal. I mean, hell, I had forgotten her name. That's just sad. We spent a lot of time together, and I had forgotten her.
She has something special about her. She's got to be beneficial to Gensokyo in some way.
Now that I knew about about her paranormal connections, that Yukari targeted her, maybe she really was talking to someone. If she has something special about her, who knows? Maybe a ghost? I dunno.
Maybe if I had been friends with her, if I had pushed a bit more to become closer, I wouldn't have lost my belief in the fantastical. She obviously was fantastical herself. But if I did, then I wouldn't be where I am today, and she'd be still taken out of my life regardless.
I told Haruhi about Sanae, barring the parts about Yukari and my suspicions of her paranormal connections.
"She was just a socially awkward kid. Always had been." I gave the flyer back. "I just forgot about her."
Haruhi stared down at the flyer as well. I could see the sympathy in her eyes. "Kyon... I'm sorry."
"...Yeah, me too. Sanae didn't deserve this. She was a good girl, if I remember her correctly."
Why am I having such a hard time remembering her? Maybe it's because she really was an outcast. If she didn't play cupid, I don't think I would have remembered her at all. Poor girl. Maybe that was it - the world didn't need her, or the shrine. Or just simply neither. I don't know. Unless I manage to track down Yukari who's in a policewoman outfit right over there and get some answers, I'll never-
I blinked, and did a double take. ...Yukari?!
I stared right at her, and it had to be her. She wasn't disguised as anyone - she was just wearing a policewoman uniform. I turned to Nagato, who was staring at the gap demon as well. The interface silently said "That's her."
Well, fine. This works. I wanted answers from Yukari, and there she is. 'Ask and you shall receive.'
I excused myself, citing that I needed to find out a few more things.
"Okay, but come right back." Haruhi stood there with her arms crossed, her brow furrowed. "I still think something's not right here."
I shot Koizumi a glance. He gave a quick nod, as if silently agreeing to what I was silently saying - get her mind off it. Try to coax her from going down that path. I hoped that he would be enough to get her to lose interest in this.
Making sure I was out of earshot of Haruhi, I approached Yukari, who had stopped at one of the police barriers that were set up. She leaned on it, looking out at the crater.
"Admiring your handiwork?" She didn't turn her head to me, and when she didn't answer, "I didn't expect to see you here."
Yukari kept stared out at the crater, not looking towards me. "Same here. That's why I'm in this getup. I didn't think the Brigade would be interested in this."
"You didn't count on Haruhi being Haruhi. That's not like you."
Yukari gave a small smile. "Ah, yes. Dragging you out on your weekend to do her search." She scoffed. "I should have anticipated this."
"But I assume you were busy." I glanced at her outfit. It was... kind of tight on her. "Nice getup."
She pinched the bridge of her nose, obviously a bit frustrated. "When you guys showed up, I had to quickly come here just in case." Yukari let out a sigh as she readjusted what she was wearing. It really accentuated her body. "Dammit, why did Haruhi show up?"
Passion, keep your mind elsewhere. Remember, you're here to do serious talk. Not gawk at her amazing body.
Hey, like I said - not a bad looking demon.
"What are you planning?" I crossed my arms. I realized that question was kind of late to be asking. "Okay, scratch that. What did you do? Was this really necessary?"
She shrugged. "Yes, it's necessary."
I frowned. "Taking a whole shrine was necessary to just take one person?" Because that is overkill.
She finally turned to me. "You fail to see the big picture here. It wasn't just for one person. The shrine itself, one human, and two gods. That is what I needed for Gensokyo."
I know I shouldn't have been so surprised, but I was. Two... gods?!
Yukari grinned at my reaction. She gave me a few seconds to recompose myself. "Ah, now do you understand?" She gestured to the crater. "Besides, this was a deal that was years in the making, and everything had been prepared and, well, 'paid' for. The Moriya shrine is currently the newest address in Gensokyo."
I shakingly looked back at the hole. "...Sanae..."
"Another thing I didn't anticipate. I've done research on you, but apparently not enough. I didn't expect you to have a connection with this particular person. But I suppose that's par for the course after what I learned."
I looked back to the youkai, intrigued. "What did you learn?"
"All in due time, human. All in due time. But do not worry for Sanae. She is safe, and she agreed to this."
I guess that's comforting? I mean, if she asked for it, then... there is no real reason to be upset, right? I sighed. "I don't suppose you'd let me talk to her, do you?"
"And what would you have to say to her?"
Yukari had me there. I mean, what could I say? Hi, how's it going in that fantasy land with youkai running around all ready to eat you? I shook my head. "Okay, what's going on? Really? Why do this now?"
"It will involve an incident later this year. This is supposed to happen, Kyon."
Yeah, gotta keep that timeline going. "So what's special about her? I kinda want to know; what does Sanae have?" I placed my hands on the barrier, leaning on it. "I hope it makes her strong so she could survive in Gensokyo." Please don't let her have a really hard time in that place.
"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to tell you. I have no plans on bringing you into Gensokyo to see anything she's involved with." Yukari looked like she was really going to enjoy sharing this information. "You're not going to believe this, because it will make three."
I gave her an annoyed glare. I don't have time for your games, you know. "Three what?"
"Three goddesses you've gone to school with."
Okay, first off, I was still against calling Haruhi a god. I know that's the term everyone is using, and I still resist it. Second off, what?
I don't know how I still manage to be surprised by things. You'd think that I'd be totally jaded at that point. I mean, I was dating a "god," I hang out with supernatural beings, I've been to the end of the world, I was there for a battle against a giant cave cricket, I melded with another multiverse version of myself, I went to the freaking future and messed with timelines, I've been in alternate timelines, I went to the afterlife, I'm friends with a Lunarian princess, and I also got to know Prince Shotoku herself in person. I should be immune to revelations of this nature.
...Holy hell I've seen more action these past four years than most people see in their entire lives.
Tangent.
But hearing that Sanae was a god?!
...WHAT?!
She saw my reaction, and chuckled. "Oh, no, she's not a full god. She just so happens to be a descendant of one. But it explains her powers."
Sanae... is part god?!
Yukari used her index finger to close my wide open mouth. I gulped, before recollecting myself.
Sasaki, Haruhi, Sanae... when does this end? Who else is a living god? Who else in my school life is divine? Again. Lottery. I really should play the damn lottery. I was essentially struck by lightning three times this way.
"She will be a rival to Hakurei. This will... help the Hakurei shrine. And you know how I said that the underground incident sets off chain reactions?"
She's going to be going up against Reimu? Oh come on, that's not fair for Sanae. "Yeah," was all I could mutter.
"The Moriya shrine sets that off. It's the ignition. Gensokyo is about to enter a whole new era, and this shrine and its inhabitants are the beginning of it all." Yukari spread her arms. "The religious battles are beginning, and it all begins with the rival Shinto shrine. And, Sanae will assist in a few incidents at Reimu's side. They'll take on those two I mentioned, Buddhism and Taoism when they first 'arrive' in Gensokyo."
An era of religious factions, Seija, more groups, and eventual unrest. And Sanae would be the first one to fall to Reimu. But for her to also end up assisting? I guess that's good to hear? I didn't know.
"But no, the Moriya shrine will be instrumental in getting nuclear power to Gensokyo. The Komeijis do not trust me, but the Moriya shrine will get it done. They'll do it, and all of Gensokyo will benefit from access to the electricity." Yukari chuckled. "Of course, they can't be allowed to fully understand it. If they do, belief will be replaced by science, a problem that has happened in your world." She gave a slight shrug. "It seems that the industrialization and modernization of Gensokyo is beginning. Too many modern things have been appearing as of late." Yukari got this sad look in her eyes. "It's a problem. For one, I'd like to have the modern luxuries of the outside world spread across Gensokyo, but I have to keep the human population under a certain level of control."
I never thought of that. But yeah, I mean, if Hell has a nuclear reactor, then it could easily power a small place like Gensokyo. Then all those CRT TVs would actually have a use, and all the kappa would find work in wiring up Gensokyo, especially Nitori. That would be beneficial, now that I had time to think about it. Sanae would be instrumental in bringing in more modernization into Gensokyo.
Though is that a good thing? Modernizing Gensokyo? I kinda liked Gensokyo was it was because it was set to a simpler time, but for it to become modernized? I don't know how to properly feel about that. I mean, maybe it would make it more appealing for me to go there on a more frequent basis, like maybe Reimu's shrine could get some proper air conditioning.
I mean hell, one of the reasons why Gensokyo was sealed up was because of modernization, at least, according to what Nagato said when we were in the village together.
"So you're in a pinch, then. You have to keep the humans in Gensokyo relatively ignorant." In other words, Yukari has to play dictator, to a point. Keeping the masses ignorant. The thing is, for her, it really is a matter of survival, not greed.
Yukari crossed her arms. "I would love to do away with the limitations of needing humanity, but we need to be believed in. That's why I'm so thankful for the kappas - most of their technology is mixed in with magic." She gave a small smile. "In fact, the best generators we have are magic based. It's real green energy too, but you need constant mushrooms to run them, which means constant runs in the Forest of Magic, and that can be quite dangerous for humans, so it's not that practical for them."
Ah, so that's where the SDM gets its electricity. I had always wondered about that.
"I can't stop everything that comes in, and the new people that come in bring in more ideas and items. That's why fewer and fewer are brought in who understand it, and the ones who do..." Yukari's eyes glowed. "Well... I don't think you want to know what I do with them."
Cooking teams.
"That's why I want that reactor. I need that cold fusion reactor. It's going to be a true mixture of magic and technology, providing endless energy for us, and it will solve the technology problem." I didn't understand what she meant by that, so she explained. "Technology and magic. With all the new people coming in, they're bringing in their knowledge of modernization, as are all the items that just pop up."
Like that stack of TVs at that shop.
"No. The kappa have been successful with their hybrids, but that will be the best thing I can get. Endless, limitless energy, and people will see that magic plays a part in it. When I saw the working prototype, I immediately made big plans for it." She looked to me. "If you were in my position, how would you run it any different? Would you let technology come in and allow the humans in Gensokyo to lose faith and place more trust in science? That would undo Gensokyo. Or would you do what I'm doing, a path ensuring that we can advance technology while also ensuring that the youkai can survive?"
It didn't take me long to answer her. "...No, no you're right", I smiled, answering Yukari. The reality is, when she put it like that, I couldn't disagree with her. Like she said - youkai are trying to survive to see the next day, just like us. And they needed faith. "But that's only when we win, right?"
She smiled as well. "Quite right. I know I speak of the rewards, but we'll have to survive in order to reap them. That reactor is still a ways away."
I couldn't remember if the human village had also benefited. Well, actually, they did. One of the youkai signs was an electric one, and I think I remember light bulbs in the school house and the book renter. How could I forget that weird, gaudy neon sign for youkai?
So the human village might also end up being on a youkai's power grid. That's... interesting.
Also, I could see why Seija could have an argument about the hypocrisy of Gensokyo. The human village would have been enjoying the electric power they got from youkai. So in a way, yes, Seija is still right about certain things. Gensokyo is just so... weird. No real government, just enforcement, and people & youkai alike are pretty much free to do what they want. Free to believe what they want, as long as that belief doesn't end up erasing the youkai. And the fact that it still works, and has been working for over a hundred years without completely falling apart is amazing in its own right.
I had to give it to Yukari - she has made a rather successful 'country' in this way. Its lasted for over a century.
I furrowed my brow, as I brought my thoughts back to my old classmate. "Sanae will be okay, right? I mean, she won't have a hard time like I did at first and end up in a coma or anything, right?"
Yukari chuckled. "No, nothing drastic like that. She'll adapt just fine. She will try to take over the Hakurei shrine for her own, but she will fail."
I shook my head, still feeling sorry for her. "Sanae is going up against Reimu..."
Another nod. "Sanae and the two gods that come with the shrine. They'll want the Hakurei shrine for themselves so they can gain its faith. They will fail, and become contributors to Gensokyo. Since Sanae is essentially paranormal herself in the form of the god blood that runs in her veins, the youkai will leave her alone. She has nothing to fear, as she is essentially one of them. And if we get past the underground incident, she will assist on future incidents. That is, of course-"
"-Will get past." I corrected her. "Not if. When."
Yukari had paused for a moment, staring at me, I guess studying my face due to my sudden outburst. "You're very determined."
I cleared my throat, still not sure if I should tell her. "I have my reasons."
Yukari narrowed her eyes. "It wouldn't have anything to do with you disappearing on me three years ago and then asking me to put your upside-down bed back in place a few days later, would it?"
Right. After not screaming, I had called Nagato to see if she could get Yukari to come over to my place. I didn't want to bother Nagato with it, and again, that was Yukari's mess, so I expected the gap youkai to clean it up. Within a matter of seconds, Yukari popped into my room and helped me get my bed down. She silently stared at me, as if expecting an explanation. I was hesitant to give out that info, as I did not know if she kept in touch with her future or past selves. I still haven't told her - the only ones I've spoken this about was with the Brigade, with Nagato being the first. I mean, they all understood, and of course Mikuru got upset that I had been to a timeline where I didn't make it.
You know, I think part of me blames myself for Asahina leaving. Maybe she couldn't stand that thought. She was pretty down upon hearing that, and when it came to her final goodbye to us, she almost lost it when she came to say goodbye to me.
But at least they were supportive. They understood how serious this was, that we were not guaranteed a win. It gave them a resolve, to really put forth the effort towards what was coming. Koizumi surprisingly took it better than either Nagato or Asahina, well, on the outside. I think it ate them up equally, and I couldn't blame them. I think it still does, actually. It does for me.
I've lost a few nights sleep over it, of course. There are times where I'm not strong enough to handle this on my own. This weight is too much for one person to bear, so I'm grateful I have my friends around me to help me out.
Ah, I'm getting off track again.
I chuckled. "Maybe. Maybe not."
I could see the annoyance on her face. "Do you seriously think you can play me?"
She really does know something is up. I should be grateful that she doesn't try to find out something. I mean, imagine if she interfered when I spoke to Seija in front of my house? That could have caused damage. "Heh. Okay. Well, yeah, it had to do with that. You know, if the situation were reversed, you'd tell me that I shouldn't know due to the dangers of time paradoxes or whatever."
"Really now."
I was kind of glad I had this over Yukari. "Yes, really. And besides, if it were that important, your future self would show up and tell you - and I've already said too much with that."
Yukari slowly nodded. It appeared she understood the situation. "Fair enough."
"You lied to me, you know."
She went silent, expecting me to continue. Also, since she didn't ask about what, I'm guessing there is a lot she's lied to me about.
I crossed my arms. "You said that Byakuren's incident would help the Taoist saint."
It wouldn't. Byakuren kept Miko sealed, but right before I went to the future, Yukari had sat down in that car and told me a lie. I don't think Miko lied to me - there was no reason. But Yukari...
"And how did you figure that one out?" Yukari snapped, getting this annoyed look on her face, turning to me, and tapping her finger on the barrier.
I gave a sly shrug. "Let's just say I found out my own way." By talking to that saint in person.
She narrowed her eyes. "Besides my own bias with Byakuren, I had to emphasize that things needed to happen in order. And that doesn't include the fact that the Taoist should not be getting out before Buddhism is established, otherwise selfishness will win out over selflessness." Yukari grimaced. "I do not need that selfish Taoist to have the upper hand in my Gensokyo. It wouldn't be for the good of the people."
You're surprisingly honest with me over this. Though... dammit. Again, she makes sense. Hell, it's like Miko said herself - Buddhism is better for controlling others. Of course Yukari would want that religion to establish dominance in the human village. And if the dream was to be believed, then yes, Yukari would have a bias towards Byakuren.
"You really do need to let me know what happened when you had that upside down bed."
"You'll find out in time." Did I just do a pun? I wanted to slap myself.
Yukari appeared upset with me, but she eventually let it go, letting out another sigh, and turned her head to where I came from. "Your friends are waiting for you."
I nodded as well. I would have to get going. "So. Time table on the Underground incident? Any idea when?" I wanted to know, at least.
"It happens next year. Winter, 2008."
"Nothing's changed?"
She shook her head. "Everything appears to be the same. The timeline remains. Events are going to happen. And I am doing my best to bring in as many people as I can. If it doesn't seem to be as bad as we think it is, they'll just be on standby for the final battle. But if it is as bad as your premonitions make them out ot be, then hopefully we'll be ready."
"Hopefully?"
"Underground youkai are a different, tougher breed." She clenched her jaw. "Even without her upcoming power boost, Okuu would be a handful on her own."
Well, barring that, part of me wishes you could have prevented the rebellion, but it's not like there was any real damage done. Besides, Seija failed.
"So. We have less than two years until a world threatening incident."
Yukari straightened up, and looked around. She was getting ready to leave, it seems. "The next time you see me, barring any unexpected surprises, it will be time for the incident. I have no further plans to bring you in at this time." She gave me a genuine smile. "I really like your progress, Kyon. I admire your enthusiasm." Making sure Haruhi wasn't looking this way, she blew me a kiss. "Goodbye, human."
I turned and walked away, unsure of what to make of that. "Like I said, I have my reasons." I'm not dying there. "Goodbye." I remembered something, and turned back to her. "Ah, Yukari?"
She paused mid-turn, looking to me.
"Can you say hi to Sanae for me?" I looked out at the crater. "I just... I don't know. Just tell her hi for me."
Yukari seemed to think that over for a bit. Eventually she nodded. "I don't see why not." She gave a nod. "Goodbye, human."
I returned to the group, explaining that I had learned nothing new about what happened to Sanae from the policewoman, which was a complete lie. Suffice to say, after I told the group what really was said when Haruhi wasn't around, Koizumi was really impressed over what Sanae was.
Eventually, the story was that a gas line blew, taking the shrine out, but few people believed it. Like I said, the whole thing was just too clean for a gas line explosion, and guess who noticed it. The lack of debris, a point that Haruhi loudly pointed out, got people to thinking. A lot of people were unhappy with how the investigation ended, especially Haruhi. She became obsessed with the Moriya shrine. The following weeks saw a steady increase of pictures, articles, and print-outs all around the club room. Every other weekend, we'd go back and retrace our steps. We weren't the only ones - there were a lot of people who wanted to know what happened, especially some of the shrine maiden's former classmates. Man, that's got to be terrible - for a person to disappear like that, and in such a public display. From what I heard, the miko herself was sort of an outcast, especially due to her rumored abilities. But besides that, she was a girl with good grades and a boyfriend. I even saw him once. He was so distraught that I couldn't even approach him. We met some nice people, but as time went on, fewer and fewer people came back to the former shrine, until it was just us. It was kind of sad, to see these people move on. But, alas, that's life.
Even we had to move on. By the end of that season, we couldn't do that any more. We had explored the grounds so many times that I could tell you, in detail, most of the trees of the area. Also, they were building a replacement shrine.
Out with the old, in with the new.
September 9, 2007
Haruhi stepped up the the line, getting ready to serve. "So, I gotta ask you."
I adjusted my sweatband. "What's up?"
It was an early September day in 2007, the air was beginning to slightly chill, and the two of us were at the tennis courts on campus. Two being Haruhi and I, and we were playing each other. Well, no, I'm wrong. Nagato was there too, but she was on nearby bench 'observing' us while reading a book. Some things didn't change.
Haruhi tossed up the ball and hit it towards me. "Why are you pushing yourself?"
As Haruhi and I were playing, we were talking in between shots, back and forth. We were both in white tennis uniforms, her in a dress, and me in shorts. I rushed to the ball, using a backhand in hopes of throwing her off guard. "What's the matter with it?"
"Look, I'm not sure why you've become Mr. Workout."
"Is it that bad? I mean, I'm not out there in the gym 24/7 like one of those bodybuilders."
"...I wouldn't mind that."
I paused. "What was that?" Then I rushed to knock the ball back, as I realized that I was about to let it hit inbound.
She blushed, herself pausing. She then effortlessly made it to the ball and hit it back too. "Nothing."
"Is it wrong to take care of myself?"
"Well, no. It's just-"
"You are so jealous."
She got angry at that. Using an overhand, she smacked the ball past me, barely getting it inbound. She got a point. "I am not!"
I grabbed the ball and tossed it back to her so she could serve. "Okay, okay, fine." I didn't want her to get angry, especially since she was smacking the tennis ball and might smack it into me.
Taking up tennis wasn't so bad. It was rough at first, but pairing with Haruhi made it tolerable. Not a bad sport. Work on your quickness, your stamina, and your hand-eye coordination.
"But it doesn't make any sense. You're with the Brigade, not with a sports club or anything. You don't have collegiate matches."
"Neither do you, and you're an ace. You'd easily take this school to Nationals."
She shrugged before serving. "This stuff comes naturally to me."
"Yeah, all athletics are easy for you, Miss Perfect."
She narrowed her eyes. "...Do you feel inadequate?"
That made me stop, and I missed the ball. "What?"
She smirked. "I mean, I'm obviously the one kicking your butt every time we come out here, so why do you even try?"
"What, I can't spend time with my girlfriend?"
"If you were a fitness nut in high school, this might make sense. But you spent most of your days in a club room." She shook her head. "You weren't in the tennis club at North High, so why the sudden interest?"
I grinned. "So you're saying that my time in the Brigade was a total waste of time for me."
That actually caused her to glare at me, but what really got her angry was that it also made her miss the ball. I had scored a point. My grin got even bigger as she grumbled to herself and got the ball to serve again.
"It's not like you're complaining about my body."
That caused her to miss the swing of her serve, a fault. She blushed. "I-I-Shut up!"
I chuckled, then noticed Nagato. She was looking up from her book, slightly shaking her head. Right. Don't push her. I gave Nagato a small nod.
"Haruhi, this can't hurt, right?"
She served, and she was silent, miffed.
"Is it wrong that I want to take care of myself? Is it wrong that I like having another excuse to spend time with you?"
She didn't have an answer for that, and kept quiet.
I have my own reasons. Maybe some day, I'll tell you. "Besides, why aren't you in the tennis club here? I keep saying it, you could easily go to nationals."
"Because this stuff bores me."
I stopped. "If it's boring, why are you here with me?"
She stopped too (my hit went out of bounds), and she sighed. "If I were in these clubs, do you realize how much time I'd have to spend there?" She narrowed her eyes. "I'd have no time with the Brigade. I mean, you think I want that? After everything I invested into it?"
You invest very little. You take what you want for the club room. "You didn't answer my question." It's a guilty pleasure of mine - flustering her like that. Getting her to admit that she likes to be with me. After all, it was true. We both liked to be with each other, even though she tries not to openly admit it.
I had gotten the reaction I wanted from her. She blushed a deep red. "Kyon, do you want me to unleash hell on you?" She said that as she got the ball again, and got this predatory smile on her face.
Seeing that sent shivers up my spine. But this was great practice. When I got her riled like this, it pushed me to my limits. As I said, my footwork had been improving, and I was increasing my anticipation of shots. It was almost like inducing her to use a Lunatic spell card on me.
All useful attributes for someone dealing with danmaku from the ground.
I grinned back at her. "Bring it."
I had never survived on the court when she got like that, and by that, I mean she would win the game from that point out. I would never score a lucky point, no matter how hard I tried, when she got serious.
I noticed that Nagato had put her book down, and was watching us intently - me especially. This would be a testament of my training with her - we would practice in the new club room with Asakura twice a week. That's the main reason why Nagato would always show up to the matches Haruhi and I would have, to keep an eye on my progress. I had asked her to do so, especially since I told her what happened. And by that, I mean the whole 'I don't think I survive it' thing. She wanted me to survive, so she was making sure I was ready for all of this.
My body wanted to tense up, to be ready for Haruhi's serve, but I had to calm down. I had to remain loose but focused. Strength plays a part, but skill can win the game, tennis or danmaku. The strongest has a great chance at winning, but someone skillful and agile can still bring them down. Intelligence and grace can still win you the match. I breathed in and out, keeping my eye on the ball as she bounced it.
Focus. That is it. The lead off shot. Don't be right in front of it. Close enough. But not too close to where the other shots can back you into a corner. You have to be ready not just for the current shot, but for the next shot as well. Don't be led into an unwinnable pattern. That's the killer right there. The opponent can lead the shots to where you won't be ready for the next one. But you can do the same.
Haruhi tossed the ball into the air, and just whacked it to my side. I intercepted, knocking it back. She rushed the net, quickly knocking it to where my back was.
I had anticipated this. I was already turning to match it, and knocked it past her. Her eyes widened, and she rushed back, lofting it to my side when she caught up with it. Already she steadied herself, getting ready for my return.
I met the ball, hitting it right for her. In tennis terms, hitting the ball right at the opponent is called a brutalizer. She blinked, as she was obviously not expecting such an aggressive shot, before readjusting herself to where she could hit it from her right side - that opened up the court for my return. Haruhi was obviously shaken up by that, even if just slightly - her shot lobbed high into the air, giving me a chance at a power shot. She realized what was going to happen the second she saw me line up for it.
I overhead smashed it to where she wasn't. Haruhi lunged for it, but it managed to get past her.
Point.
Haruhi quickly got up from the ground, staring at the ball. "How'd you do that?" She turned to me.
I felt such elation from that. To be able to do that, something as impossible as getting one over on Haruhi when she got serious in sports, was such a big deal to me, especially since I knew how impossible it was to stop her in that state.
To tell the truth, it was the first time I was able to actually focus on the ball when she hit it like that. All the previous times, it was only a blur to me. And now I can see it. I can anticipate it. I was able to match her and her shots. I can see the lead off shot now.
I had felt accomplished. I had been training with a someone who was pretty much perfect, and it was paying off.
"So who is Shinki?"
"Shinki... According to this, the one known as 'Shinki' is the goddess of Makai."
Nagato had called for a meeting, saying that she had something. I had asked her, months prior, for information on the incidents of Gensokyo, to see if there was anything I could learn. I didn't expect it to take this long for her to get back to me.
It was right after that tennis match. Yes, I managed to hang in there and score a couple of points, but ultimately Haruhi still beat me. At least I didn't get crushed like I had every previous time I went up against her.
Anyway, Nagato and I were in the empty club room, going over a number of papers sprawled out on the desk. The club room, while bigger than the one in North High, was set up pretty much the same way. It made things easier to get used to. Right. Back to the papers. They had all kinds of information on them.
Oh right, I forgot to mention what they were - Emiri's notes on Gensokyo.
"And what the heck is the 'Trinity Spark'?"
Nagato joined me, looking over my shoulder. From what I was reading, there were references to something called the 'Trinity Spark' over and over during the Makai incident. She shook her head after a while. "Whatever it is, the description isn't in there. If I had to guess, it might be a combined three Master Sparks, considering who was involved in the incident."
Marisa, Yuka, and Mima. All able to use a Spark. Geez, can you imagine? Three Master Sparks at the same time? Who could stand up to that? Nagato then returned to where she was before, and went back to her paper.
A lot of these notes were observations, battle reports, threat assessments, and the like. Real reconnaissance. I was amused by the report on Cirno - 'low level threat'.
Well considering that her Perfect Freeze can actually pull off some wins, I'm surprised that Cirno is written off like that. I mean, she'll end up beating Marisa in a fight one of these days. Also, she almost suffocated me, Reimu, and Sakuya. Cirno would be a pretty big threat if you'd let her be.
A lot of interesting stuff was there - like how Mima and Marisa were a duo that wreaked havoc on Gensokyo unchallenged for a while until Reimu stopped it. And even then, Marisa and Mima were together until after Yumemi's tournament, which was when Marisa and Reimu had to team up for Yuka's incident to even stand a chance against the flower youkai.
So many incidents. Incident One. Vampire. Bloodline, Temple, all of those. Though it was kind of weird to read a report on the two incidents I was a part of.
Seriously, why is my name redacted, and they use that stupid nickname in the official reports? I demand someone fix that!
Anyways, back to the matter at hand - Makai. "The world of youkai that has an entrance behind the Hakurei shrine." The paper I had regarded Shinki as a high level threat if she should ever become hostile, but deemed friendly.
"Yes. Shinki fought against Reimu, Marisa, Yuka, and Mima during the 'Makai Incident.'"
I looked up from the paper. "The one where Alice showed up." Where she fought Reimu, lost, and then gave up her humanity to try again, and still lost.
...Doesn't that make her like Seija, then? Alice could not let a loss go, did something drastic, and came back at Reimu, only to lose again. The difference was that Alice became a good ally... though if that was the case, then wouldn't Seija become an ally later on after being so soundly beaten? I mean, she kept saying that - 'we beat them, they'll join us.' Of course, I didn't expect such an empty creature to follow her own words. She does the opposite of what other people do, right? That's what an amanojaku does. So of course Seija wouldn't respect people who defeat her in Gensokyo.
"Mmm-hmm." Nagato was looking over some papers of her own. "Alice was always magical, it seems, so she had no problem making her way from Makai to the human village." Nagato scratched her head. "I guess she was a student of Keine? That's what was said, right?"
That's right, Alice is from Makai. She's from a different world than the rest of us. "Yeah, it's confusing. So... If Alice is from Makai... That doesn't make any sense. Why would a human be from a world of youkai?" And why would she make the trek from one world just to go to the school in another? Man, I thought my commutes to school got crazy. But I never jumped from one world to another to get to class.
Nagato looked at another paper, and then another, before going back to the one before her. "There isn't much info on Makai itself, since these are notes about Gensokyo. Makai is still unknown to the Data Overmind, it seems. But there are humans in there, according to these." The interface tilted her head, a thoughtful look on her face. "It looks like Emiri tried to get some information on it." Nagato shrugged. "It's just that if something wasn't sealed in there from Gensokyo, then it was created by Shinki."
I blinked. "Whoa, hold on. ...Alice was directly created by a god?" Man this really lends weight to the whole creationism theory, doesn't it? A god can directly create beings.
"From the little information we have, yes. And if she is from Makai, it explains her affinity to magic. Makai is magical in nature, and if you aren't from there, the miasma within can be very deadly to humans from our world." Nagato then took the time to gather the papers together - I guess she was done reading them.
"So," I said as I handed back my paper. "I suppose one could say that Shinki is Alice's mother."
"I suppose so." Nagato placed the papers back into a folder. "But by that logic, and depending on what version of creation you believe in, one could say that Haruhi is my mother in a way. If I was created by her to fill a role, then one could argue for that."
It took me a few seconds to find the words, as that kind of stunned me. I mean, it was true. One could make that argument. "That... that's something else."
Nagato lowered her head. "Yeah." With the folder under her arm, she stared out the window. "It's just amazing, what Yukari is pulling off. She pretty much made a country with some of the most powerful beings in existence and has found a way to keep everything relatively peaceful. And a human girl is able to be the enforcer there. Gensokyo is just truly amazing." She glanced at me. "You did well today, you know. You were able to hold your own against Haruhi, and you have definitely been improving." Nagato smirked. "Training against perfection appears to have been the right choice."
Yeah, but it caused me a lot of losses to even get here.
I still had a nagging thought. "If this... Okuu, as she's nicknamed... if she is serious, if she is going to go into a fight and try to kill everything, it makes me wonder... why bother with danmaku?"
Nagato patted the folder. "Because of Shinki. There is a reason why I requested this information. During the fight against Reimu, Shinki got so infuriated that she almost destroyed her own realm."
Whoa. Hold the phone. "Excuse me?"
Nagato nodded. "Shinki could not down Reimu or Marisa. She was so enraged when she started losing, that her world began to be undone. She was about to end Makai, until those two finally knocked her out."
That's pretty hardcore, and also childish. For a god to throw a tantrum like that? "What about Yuka and Mima? What happened to them?"
"They were powerful, yet they got downed in the final battle. But they were useful throughout the incident, from the information I've read." Nagato again looked out the window. "The point is that danmaku worked against Shinki. Do you now get what I'm trying to say?"
I realized it. And it was one of the best news I could have heard in a while, regarding the upcoming incident. "...Danmaku can even knock out a god."
That changed everything. It was always on the back of my mind, you know - how could we go up against a nuclear youkai? But hearing that even a god was able to be downed was a huge boost in my morale.
Nagato nodded. "Exactly. Physical blows and magical attacks can be shrugged off by a god, but danmaku will knock them out, same as anybody else. And while they may have a higher tolerance to the knockout effect, requiring more shots, it would still be the quickest way to put them down."
I was wondering about that, why we were focusing on such a non-lethal fighting style. And now I know - danmaku is a great anti-god weapon. So weird that such a way of fighting is so effective like this. I mean... taking down a god?
This really was some of the best news I could have gotten.
"Kyon."
"Hmm?" I returned my attention to Nagato, who had stepped closer to me, staring up at my eyes.
"Beginning from today, would you object to nanomachine treatments?" She gently brought up my hand, holding it with both of hers. "Just something to help. 2008 is approaching, and I would like to give you an advantage."
That would be cheating, wouldn't it? I smirked. "Of course, Nagato." I had no problem with it.
Nagato nodded, and then a small smirk appeared on her face. "Though, try not to let Haruhi in on it, obviously. It would get very messy if she found out her boyfriend was sneaking off to get bit by one of her friends."
...uh... yeah. That sounds pretty kinky, doesn't it?
We both shared a laugh, ending up staring into each others eyes, our smiles dropping.
"I'm not letting anything bad happen to you, Kyon."
I forced a smile. "Really though, what better way to go out, right? Giving your life to save the world and those you care about?"
This was one of the things I had kept telling myself. I was fighting back a depression that wanted to take control, and I had to keep reminding myself that it wasn't set in stone, and even if I didn't make it, it wouldn't be for nothing.
It was tough, you know? Sometimes I just wouldn't want to get out of bed in the morning, because I would be thinking 'what's the point to all this?' And that is why I told the brigade, because I was still not strong enough to deal with this on my own. There's nothing wrong with seeking help from the ones closest to you, after all.
Although...
The fact that I couldn't go to Haruhi for support in this was a killer. The person most important to me, and I had to pretend I was all right, that everything was A-Okay. That was heart breaking.
Sometimes I just wanted to sit her down and tell her, even if it was painful. Tell her that there was a good chance I would die. But who knows what damage that would do. Or good? If she knew, then wouldn't her powers activate and prevent it?
...on the off chance she ends the world, though...
Like I said, this was tough.
Nagato frowned, apparently getting a little bit upset with that. "Don't talk like that." She blinked. "What about those you'll leave behind?"
"If we do this right, if we prepare, then there is a good chance I'll live, right?'
Nagato took the time to think that over, gave a nod, and brought up my hand to give me an injection.
Rubbing my had, I turned around to get my things. She spoke as I was busy doing so. "I don't think I'll be strong enough to see you die."
I turned, to see her blinking back tears.
All I could do was hold onto her, patting her head.
"I'm scared too, Nagato. I don't think I'm strong enough to see it happen to any of you either."
I know I'm not.
I'm not strong.
The ones around me give me my strength.
April 11th, 2004
Yasumi bowed again. "I'm truly sorry for getting your hopes up, but yeah, I'm just a middle school student. Please forgive my actions."
Haruhi just stared after her in disbelief and disappointment as Yasumi turned and left, leaving the yellow ribboned goddess. But that wasn't who Yukari was waiting to talk to. When Haruhi closed her door, Yukari came out from her hiding place, and began to follow Yasumi, hoping she would be able to catch up to her before she disappeared.
I don't know how this works, if she'll just disappear, or if she has to later meld with her or what. Even after all this time, Yasumi was still a mystery to Yukari. Besides her supposedly being the mere subconsciousness of Suzumiya, and that she took on some of the goddess' characteristics, she was a complete wild card. Ran had vastly opposed Yukari approaching her directly, but Yakumo was desperate.
Also, actually being in her presence and feeling her raw power... Yukari had gotten shivers by merely being there. So much could be learned from such a being, but I have business to conduct.
Turning a corner down a back alley to follow the girl, Yukari suddenly realized that Yasumi was gone. But then-
"Needless to say, it's very rude to attempt to stalk someone you just met. And that's saying it lightly."
Behind?!
"Good morning." The girl spoke.
Yukari flicked her hair, trying to retain her composure. "You got the drop on me." Yukari chuckled, turning. "That was instantaneous. As expected of something like yourself."
The smiling girl stood there. "Ah, let me guess... you are Yukari Yakumo, right?"
"Yes, Miss Suzumiya."
Yasumi smirked. "There isn't a need to call me that."
"It's who you are, isn't it?"
Yasumi merely shrugged. "Oh, it wouldn't be far from the truth." The girl smiled at the demon. "Demon, what do I owe the honor of a you placed out of time?"
Yukari blinked, unsure if that Yasumi blatantly calling her a 'demon' was some sort of an insult. "You can tell?"
"Indeed. Despite your cautions, I can tell that there is another you in Gensokyo at this very instant, and I can tell you are older than her." The girl beamed. "Time travel is quite interesting, isn't it?"
Again, as expected from something like her. "When it isn't getting used by rogues."
Yasumi sighed. "Ha, yes. I think those people have been troublesome lately."
"So had Suou." Yasumi just silently stared at Yukari, not answering. Yukari had felt something she hadn't really felt in a long while - discomfort. She could definitely feel the power radiating from this small girl, and it was larger than anything she could have imagined. "She gets soundly defeated in a few months from this point in time, but that isn't what I'm here for." Yukari stepped forward. "I... I need your help in a few years time."
"So, how far down the line are we talking?" Yasumi tilted her head.
"The year would be 2008. But not in the winter." Yukari gave a devilish grin, despite her shaken confidence. "I need your help in the summer."
Touhou 9: Phantasmagoria of Flower View, or PoFV, is unusual, as it shares Touhou 3: Phantasmagoria of Dimensional Dream's (Chiyuri's game) gameplay - where you and your opponent are both in your own bullet hell screens, and you build up power by doing well on your side, unleashing cards to make the other screen more difficult while clearing out your own. Yumemi and Eiki are considered some of the tougher final bosses, because they are, well, 'cheap'.
Speaking of the Yama, Eiki Shiki is actually her name. Yamaxanadu, "judge of paradise" is actually her title. But when the first translation of Touhou 9: PoFV came out, her name was read as Shikieiki Yamaxanadu, and it stuck. Even to this day, after corrections, she's still known as "Shikieiki" to longtime fans. When you search for her, that's the name you commonly use. But yes, it was a translation mistake, and it stuck. It's still fine to just call her that. And yes, she is considered an extremely difficult boss. Some people consider the Phantasmagorias to be more of a timeout simulator for the higher difficulties, as the AI won't allow itself to lose until a certain time is met. In fact, PoDD is considered to be the toughest game to clear on one continue, mostly because of Yumemi.
Seriously, look up Lunatic runs of Touhou 3 and 9. Those two do not go down easily.
Speaking of particularly tough bosses, out of the fighting games, there is one final boss who is considered the toughest.
You've already seen her in this story, but only got a taste.
ICB is "going Hollywood".
Imperfect Cherry Blossom: The Movie - Scarlet Weather Rapture. It's going to be a long single chapter.
Read and Review!
Lady Yukari demands it!