Into the Ring
Gensokyo was a country in name only. If one were to be accurate, it would be better described as a land rather than a country, one which contained several loosely connected settlements and other commonwealths. There was no common government, no state of law other than what the communities enforced within their own borders, no real rule beyond "Annoy us, and we'll mess you up." And if anyone was unable to uphold that rule…well, that was just too damned bad.
Not to say there hadn't been attempts to unite all of Gensokyo under a single flag. One eager young visionary had gone from settlement to settlement, trying to convince the various races and peoples to put aside their differences and work toward a common good. After three months of failing to generate any sort of interest, he had finally given up and headed home…only to be waylaid and eaten by a couple of wild youkai. Nobody really cared; he had been considered the family pest anyway.
Another attempt early in the country's formation saw greater success. The ambitious leader of a youkai tribe had decided that Gensokyo would serve nicely as her own personal kingdom. She began to unite other nearby tribes, bringing them together with the promise of bloodshed and the spoils of war. More and more creatures joined her cause, including some of humanity's more vicious members, who saw her campaign as a way to settle some scores with their neighbors. They even began construction on a fortress city, one which would serve as her capital and their headquarters in the coming war effort. Even in the present day the city is considered quite the accomplishment, as it marks the only time that many different races had been convinced to work together on something of that scale. It also is noted as the single largest city to be built in Gensokyo's history, with souring towers, imposing walls enchanted against fliers, an intricate grid of city streets and dwellings and enough supplies to withstand a year's siege.
Unfortunately for them, as the city neared completion and the day of the invasion drew ever closer, they had finally drew the attention of Yukari Yakumo.
These days, the Ruined City sits desolate as a reminder that some things are to be left well alone. There remains little else except a field of stone piles, long worn down by the elements. Here and there stands the fragment of a wall or a doorway, but on the whole it bears no resemblance to the proud metropolis it had once been. Everything was destroyed or looted, first by Yukari herself (the foolish self-imagined queen's crown still sat over her fireplace) and then by everyone else. Occasionally a treasure hunter would poke around the city's bones, hoping to find something that had been overlooked, but they always left disappointed.
However, there was one structure that had escaped the devastation: the citadel of the Youkai Queen remained in the city's center, silently watching over the ruins. Yukari had seen the benefit of preserving the tower for her own private use and had taken steps to ensure that it would not be disturbed. Among these uses was hosting meetings for the leaders of the very much divided communities that dotted Gensokyo. She found the irony to be quite amusing.
It was in this citadel that Yukari sat waiting, in the hall constructed for the Youkai Queen's court as they plotted their conquest, in the chair intended for the queen herself. The hall stretched around her like a small stadium, full of elevated stone seats surrounding an open area in the center, with Yukari's seat rising above them all at the far end. While she didn't condone the Youkai Queen's actions in the slightest, she had to admit that sometimes she saw the appeal. If nothing else, there was something to be said for having such an awesome place to sit and look important.
Then again, the appeal was going to wear off as soon as some of those seats filled and the meeting began. She just hoped she could scare them enough in the debriefing stage to convince them to work together, but the rationalist in her truly doubted it. The room was nicknamed "The Court of Conflict" for a reason.
"Yukari? They're arriving."
Yukari nodded to Ran, who was standing near the door. Indeed, when she looked through the huge arching windows that were set over the seats, she could see several small dots moving in the distance, flying towards the citadel.
"Well, I suppose I better be there to greet them," she muttered. With a sigh, she pushed herself to her feet and floated to the floor, the heels of her shoes sending an echo through the stone chamber as they tapped against the stone. "If nothing else, maybe they'll get a fraction of the yelling out of the way at the front door."
…
Reimu's jaw dropped as the imposing structure came into view. "Holy wow!" she gasped. "It's so…huge!"
"Nearly a mile straight up," Mima called to her. Despite their purpose for being there, the green-haired ghost seemed to be utterly unconcerned. She was flying belly up, arms behind her head and didn't seem to even be paying attention to where she was going. "Took the builders near fifteen years to construct."
"Wow." Reimu's eyes traced the jutting spike of the citadel from top to bottom. Even though they were still several miles away, its sheer vastness was still apparent. "And Yukari really owns it?"
"You keep what you conquer," Mima said. "Though ironically enough, that was the catchphrase of the tower's original owners. I guess they never intended for it to apply to anyone else but them."
"I don't see what's so great about it," Suika grumbled. She shielded her eyes from the sun as she squinted forward. "Pandemonium is way cooler."
From atop her broom, Marisa rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "So there's probably a whole lot of interesting stuff from that city locked away in there…"
Reimu shot her look. "Don't even think about it, Marisa."
"What? I'm just saying-"
"No."
"Hey, you can't-"
"Seriously, just no."
"Anyone ever tell you how you like to take the fun out of life, Reddie?" Marisa grumbled.
"Hush now," Mima told them. "We're almost there, and it doesn't look like we're the first to arrive."
The four of them swooped down low, heading for the citadel's courtyard. There, they could see Yukari standing before the massive double-doors of the entrance. She was conversing with a tall, regal woman with blue-colored hair that brushed her shoulders. The woman wore a flowing red dress that held a round, mirror-like pendant at the center of her breast. Standing behind her was a young woman dressed in a pale blue shrine maiden's robe, not too dissimilar from Reimu's. She had long green hair that flowed partway down her back. One lock was decorated with a curling ornament fashioned in the form of a serpent and fastened with a pin that resembled a frog's head.
"Oh, hey, look at that," Mima remarked as they approached. "The newbies showed."
"I heard that," said Kanako, goddess of the Youkai Mountain. She turned to the new arrivals. "Well, well, well, if it isn't the competition. So what brings you girls here? Did you finally grow so tired of the lack of business that you wanted to see how the goddess of a real shrine operates?"
Reimu feet touched ground. "You got us," she said. "Specifically, we needed help learning how to lose fights. We were hoping you guys could give us a few pointers, since you're so good at it."
"Yeah? Well, here's a hint," the green-haired girl broke in. "Just take a nap in the middle of a duel and let the other guy pound you. Falling asleep should be something you're well experienced in."
"That doesn't sound too hard," Marisa remarked. She shouldered her broom. "I'm practically falling asleep every time I duel you guys anyway."
"Concussions have a way of doing that," Kanako said. Then she laughed. "Good to see you guys," she said as she leaned over to embrace Reimu.
Reimu smiled as she returned the hug. "You too. I was growing worried that the tengu might have kicked you out by now." She pulled away and waved at the green-haired girl. "Hey, Sanae! How's the knockoff shrine?"
"Doing great business, thank you very much. There's been talk of starting a yearly festival in Kanako's honor."
"Really? Nice! A few more favors like that you might actually become halfway legit." Reimu looked around. "By the way, where's the frog-girl? She didn't want to come?"
"Suwako never really had the patience for these sorts of things," Kanako answered. "Though I see you brought the oni-girl. She seems a bit put out though. Did something happen I should know about?"
Reimu stole a glance at Suika, who had landed a small distance away from the rest of the group and was now pacing back and forth, mumbling to herself. "Um, yeah. She kinda broke that gourd of hers."
Sanae's eyes widened. "Wait, she did what?"
"Smashed it flat!" Marisa crowed. She slapped her palms together to demonstrate. "And now she's sober for the first time in centuries, ze! Makes you wonder if her brain will start-"
The rest of the sentence was cut off when Yukari suddenly appeared behind the witch. She threw one arm around Marisa's throat and the other over her mouth. "That will be enough of that," she hissed as she lifted Marisa fully off her feet. To the staring representatives of Moriya shrine, she said, "And do Suika and favor and don't bring it up again. She's taking it a bit hard."
With that she released Marisa, who fell to her knees coughing. "Why…you…crazy…bitch," Marisa wheezed. She pushed herself to her feet and reached into the pocket of her apron. "I'll…teach you to…huh?" She pulled open the pocket and looked inside. "Wait…what?"
Yukari, who was already walking away, turned to smirk at her. "Looking for this?" she asked, holding up Marisa's hakkero between two fingers.
"Ooooohhhh…" Reimu and Sanae exclaimed, perfectly in unison.
"Shut it!" Marisa snapped at them. "And give that back, you decomposing old-Ahhh!"
A gap opened beneath Marisa's feet, sucking her in before closing up. Less than a second later another opened up five feet above where she had been standing, dumping the witch into an untidy heap.
"I'll return your toy when I feel like it," Yukari coldly told Marisa as the latter tried to scramble to her feet. "And remember this: you're on my property, so you will play by my rules. So behave. Got it?"
Marisa's eyes flashed, and her right hand began to glow. However, Mima took that moment to sidle up to her former minion.
"That's enough, Marisa," she whispered into the girl's ear. "Not the place or time."
Marisa frowned, but she relaxed her hand. "Fine. Got it. But I better get that back."
Yukari smiled, but she didn't respond. To the others, she said, "Sorry about that, ladies. And now, I must ask you to go inside and take your seats. The others will be arriving soon and…"
Her nostril twitched.
"…Hmmm, anyone else smell brimstone?"
"YuKARi!" a commanding voice thundered across the courtyard.
"Oh, her."
Everyone turned to face the newcomer, who was marching toward her with a clear bone to pick. She was easily the shortest person present, at only four-and-a-half feet tall. Despite this, her demeanor suggested someone who was used to being respected. She wore a smart but elaborate blue-and-black suit and covered her aquamarine hair with the single most ridiculous hat that Yukari had ever seen in her long life of meeting people with ridiculous hats. A painted casket-shaped rod was clutched in one hand, which doubled as her mark of office and a handy prop whenever she needed to whack someone on the back of the head. Behind her walked a much taller girl whose red hair was tied up in two messy pigtails. A large and very dangerous looking scythe was carried over one shoulder.
Despite the noticeable size difference in height and weaponry, there was no question that the former was the superior of the latter. And heaven help anyone who would be so foolish for mistaking it to be the other way around.
"What is the meaning of this?" Yamaxanadu Eiki Shiki, Judge of the Dead, demanded. "Your actions are inexcusable and I demand and explanation!"
"Hello Yamaxanadu," Yukari said. She bowed low out of respect. Even though she found Eiki Shiki to be a ghastly overblown windbag, one had to acknowledge her office at least. "Thank you for coming."
"Forget the greeting!" Eiki snapped back. "You will tell me the reason for this outrage!"
Yukari inclined an eyebrow. "What, calling an emergency meeting? All proper protocol was followed to the best of my knowledge. I don't see-"
"Not that! I refer to your blatant disregard of the laws set in place to govern life and death. You Yukari, yes you! You had the audacity to prevent a mortal from completing their natural transition to the second life, a clear violation of the statues outlined in The Absolutely Unbreakable Laws Of Life And Death That Must Be Adhered To If Anything Is Going To Work, page one-hundred fifty seven, paragraphs three through four, which clearly state that any such intercession must first submitted in request form to the office of the First Judge of Paradise, namely myself, which according to my records never took place!"
"Ah, that. Well, I was a bit pressed for time-"
"Furthermore, in doing so you prevented my subordinate from completing her duties!" Eiki indicated her retainer with her rod. "Do you realize how difficult it is to motivate Komachi to actually do her job when she's supposed to? She does not need outside interference! She's getting enough of that as it is from her own laziness!"
Komachi merely rolled her eyes and mouthed, See? I told you so.
Yukari's mouth was set in a straight line. So, the games were beginning already, and they hadn't even gone inside yet. She glanced around to those gathered, who were watching the proceedings with great interest. Marisa seemed to be especially gleeful at the sight of Yukari being chewed out.
Well, might as well give them a show. Yukari took a deep breath and said, "Yamaxanadu Shiki, believe me when I say it was not my intention to upset the balance of life and death-"
"Your actions suggest otherwise!" Eiki scoffed. "Or do you mean to tell me that they were involuntary on your part?"
"-but I was forced to act quickly in order to prevent an obstruction of justice."
She had said the magic words. The anger immediately dissipated from Eiki Shiki's face, to be replaced with surprise and interest.
"An obstruction of justice? Of what kind, and how does that relate to the life you preserved?"
"The person whose life I saved was one Eirin Yagokoro," Yukari continued. "She was both a witness and victim of a murder attempt. Furthermore, she contained intimate knowledge concerning the murderer, who was able to elude capture and is currently at large. Had I not acted, such knowledge would have been lost and I would be unable to have her present that knowledge to an official council meeting, which is our reason for meeting today. Surely you wouldn't have wanted me to let vital evidence fall from our grasp?"
"No, no I would not," Eiki muttered. She shook her head. "Very well, I retract the accusation. You did the right thing in this instance. I suppose this would count as a good deed in your favor. Komachi? You are forgiven. Now, come."
With that, she spun on her heel and marched inside the citadel. Komachi shot a glance at Yukari and spun her finger in a circle next to her ear before saying "Coming Master!" and following.
Yukari coughed into her hand. "You better go in as well," she told the others. "The less standoffs we have before the meeting starts, the better."
Everyone muttered their assent and turned to walk inside. Before they were all gone, Yukari sidled up to one of them and muttered, "Reimu, a moment of your time."
"Huh?" The shrine maiden looked at her in bewilderment. Then she shrugged. "Sure, I guess."
The two of them walked a small distance away from the others, to where a stubborn tree had forced itself up from the rubble.
"So what's up?" Reimu asked. "Something happen?"
Yukari folded her arms and leaned against the tree. "No, actually I just wanted to see how you were holding up. I haven't been able to check up on your since the day before yesterday."
A brief silence passed, and then Reimu said, "Okay, this is starting to creep me out. Who are you, and what have you done with the real Yukari?"
"Pardon?"
Reimu started ticking off points on her fingers. "Come on, first you go find me during the battle and make sure I got proper medical attention instead of just telling me to suck it up like you usually do. I actually had to fight with you to get you to let me go home to the shrine, and then you insist on putting some big-ass force field over the whole thing, and then you go and apologize for getting me into this. And now you pull aside to see if I'm okay. No offense, I appreciate the concern and all, but it's really weird and kinda disturbing."
Yukari's finger tapped her bicep. "Would you rather I was cold and distant?"
"Look, it's just strange, coming from you. Seriously, what's up?"
"Nothing, I just-"
"Yukari Yakumo!"
They both turned to see the latest arrivals, this time a white-haired woman with six massive purple wings sprouting from her back. Accompanying her was a humorless blond woman in a red maid outfit.
"Shinki?" Reimu blurted. "No. Fucking. Way. Shinki's here?"
"Well, she the leader of a prominent territory."
"You mean Hell, right?"
"That would be a prominent territory, yes. Just as well too, I needed to speak to her about something." Yukari glanced at Reimu out of the corner of her eye. "Go on inside, we'll talk later."
"Um, yeah. Sure." Reimu shrugged. "Sounds good."
Shaking her head, Reimu quickly left Yukari to catch up with her group. She started running, partially because she had fallen very far behind and partially because she didn't know if Shinki was the kind to hold grudges.
She hurried through the open double-doors of the entrance and looked around. Despite living in a smallish shrine all her life, Reimu had had the chance to visit any number of opulent dwellings in her time. The Scarlet Devil Mansion for one, as well as pre-destruction Eientei, Hakugyokurou and several others. Still, she wasn't sure what to expect upon stepping inside the ancient tower.
It did not disappoint.
The entrance led to a curving hallway, which stretched in either direction. As far as Reimu could tell, it circled the entirety of the citadel's circumference. The floor and the walls were an endless sea of black decorated with flecks of gold. Walking down that corridor would likely give the impression of striding across the night sky.
However, as interesting as that was, Reimu's attention was focused on what was directly in front of her. Another doorway was set in the wall across from the main entrance, leading into a cavernous open space. The room was circular in construction, with cornerless walls enfolding what had to be the heart of the tower. The flecks of gold twisted themselves along the floor in a spiral pattern, growing more and more dense the closer to the center they came. A series of haphazard looking stairwells lined the walls and crisscrossed through the air overhead, making Reimu feel like she was in some kind of giant mine or an insect colony. The latter imagery was enhanced by the many doorways set into the stone of the walls, reminding Reimu of a honeycomb.
"Impressive, isn't it?" asked a soft voice from behind.
Startled, Reimu jumped and whirled around. Her eyes widened when she saw who it was. Yet another one of Gensokyo's most important persons had arrived, this one a brown-haired woman with a flowing black-and-white dress. Her hands were clasped in a prayerful position at her waist, with a rolled-up scrolled held in her grasp. Her eyes were turned upward, towards the bizarre construction above.
"Byakuren!" Reimu exclaimed. She stood up a bit straighter. "I mean, hello. I wasn't aware that you would be attending."
"What choice did I have? Yukari hates these meetings. She would only call for one in the case of a dire emergency." Byakuren Hijiri's eyes continued to stare at the space overhead. "Look at it, Reimu. One of the very first of its kind to be found in Gensokyo. A center of government, the dwelling place for the head of state. Even today, there are few places that can rival it. Did you know that this tower alone took over fifteen years to build? The people responsible for its design probably forgot more about architecture than we will ever know. Considered to be one of Gensokyo's greatest wonders…and all of it created for the sole purpose of bringing tyranny and pain on others." She shook her head. "Amazing that a people so devoted to destruction would create something so breathtaking. Hello Reimu. I'm glad to see you again."
"The same. Did Yukari tell you what this was all about?"
"No, but that isn't surprising. She was never one to turn over a card unless it was absolutely necessary. Though I have heard some troubling things…" Byakuren bit her lip. "Speaking of which, word has reached mine ears that you got wrapped up in a bit of trouble recently. Are the two events related?"
Reimu grimaced. "Um, yeah. Same problem. I'm fine though. Just put me on the bench for a couple days."
Byakuren nodded. "Still, the problem itself is significantly greater than what has troubled Gensokyo in the past."
It was not a question, but Reimu shrugged and said, "You got that right. Hey, look, I'm sorta new to this place and got separated from my friends. Can you show me to where we're all supposed to be meeting?"
"Of course. This place can be a bit confusing, I'll admit. This way…"
Reimu started to follow, but then someone said, "Aw, is the little shrine maiden lost?"
Reimu started, but then she rolled her eyes. Ah great, her. She turned to see that they had been joined by a young woman in a form-fitting black dress, adorned at the hem with dozens of green crystals. Matching gloves covered both of her lower arms. Her flowing blue hair had been brought up in a bun and was tucked neatly underneath her wide-brimmed hat, which was decorated with three-dimensional representations of peaches. For all Reimu knew they were peaches, kept from rotting by the Celestial girl's power.
Tenshi Hinanai smiled at Reimu and Byakuren. It was not a nice smile. "Well, look who finally made the big-leagues. What's the deal, Reimu? Wanted to get a taste of what real power was like before age shriveled you up?"
Reimu bristled, but she didn't respond. Byakuren said in a neutral tone, "She's here with Mima, in representation of Hakurei Shrine."
Tenshi snapped her fingers in front of her nose. "Oh, yeah! That's right! Yukari decided to play favorites and give a seat to that floating has-been. Father was complaining about that for a month straight. I guess the only place fitting for her was some second-rate prayer box that's only famous because it keeps falling down."
"That's because assholes keep knocking it over," Reimu said crossly. "Like you."
"That's right, I did. You should be thanking me. That musty place was so old that it had fire hazard written all over it." She rolled her eyes. "Though of course they would go make me put the useless place back together. But I guess Yukari needs an out-of-the-way place to keep her whores. Really not seeing any other reason for you losers to get a seat on the council."
Reimu's right hand gave a sudden twitch. Three ofuda appeared between her fingers, ready to be thrown. She took a threatening step forward, but found herself stopping when Byakuren laid a firm hand on her shoulder. Reimu blinked in surprise and looked at up at the magician in askance. Byakuren just shook her head.
"Tenshi, enough," Byakuren said. She didn't raise her voice, but it was clear that she wasn't amused by Tenshi's flippancy. "She has just a much right to be here as you. Even more so than you, in fact. Because the last time I checked, the name card for Heaven's representative did not read 'Tenshi'."
"Maybe it was under 'Chiko' and they just forgot to update them," Reimu suggested wryly.
Tenshi's eyes narrowed. "For your information, Father and Mother decided that they wanted nothing to with that Yukari's ridiculous games. So I'm here as their proxy. Is that official enough for you, you obsolete old hag?"
"Really," Reimu said. "So they sent you to do the job they felt was beneath them. Not exactly what I would call a high honor. More like you're becoming their litter gatherer."
Tenshi sniffed and flicked the brim of her hat. "Well, someone has to do it. And if I'm to take my place as Queen of Heaven someday, I need to learn the ropes somewhere, even if it does end up being a big waste of my time."
"Queen of Heaven?" Reimu gaped. She started laughing. "You? Wow, someone woke up on the stupid side of the bed today."
"Oh Reimu," Byakuren sighed.
"What was that, little Human?" Tenshi snarled. "Have you forgotten whom you're speaking to?"
"Me? You're the one who forgot that your parents are immortal! If you're looking to inherit the throne then I suggest you find something to do in the meantime, like counting all the leaves in the Forest of Magic. Because unless you're planning on assassinating them or something, you're gonna be stuck having the dirty jobs bummed off to you for a long, long time."
Tenshi bared her teeth. Her gloved fists began shaking. For a brief moment, Reimu was certain that the Celestial would actually strike out. Reimu honestly wasn't sure if she wanted that to happen or not. She reasoned she could always chalk the ensuing beat-down up to self-defense if she did. Yukari would understand.
Instead, Tenshi simply let out a shaky breath. "Mortal trollop," she muttered. "At least I know what wealth feels like."
With that, she stormed past Reimu and Byakuren to the center of the room. She crouched down low and pushed off, rocketing upward toward one of the doors.
"Reimu, you were deliberately trying to provoke her," Byakuren admonished.
"No, she was trying to provoke me. I was just returning fire. Not my fault if she can't take it."
The magician frowned in disapproval. "Haven't you ever heard the expression 'Turn the other cheek'?"
"Have you seen what I do for a living?" Reimu said with a laugh. "I've only got two cheeks, Byakuren. Four, if you want to get technical. I ran out a long, long time ago."
"From your perspective, maybe," Byakuren muttered. She pressed two fingertips to her forehead and sighed. "Do I want to learn how you…ran out of the other two?"
Reimu just grinned. "Hasn't anyone ever told you it's not polite to inquire into a lady's private life?"
"I guess it's better not to know," Byakuren said. She sighed again but allowed herself a small smile. "Still, I have to admit that was rather amusing. Now, if you're done putting spoiled and brainless young upstarts in their place, shall we continue?"
Reimu bowed low and swept her arms out to the room beyond. "By all means. Lead on, Youchrist."
"Reimu, I already told you that hate that name."
"Yes, I know."
…
"The Shadow Youkai?" Shinki said warily. She exchanged a glance with Yumeko. "This again?"
"I'm afraid so," Yukari responded. "A third party has recently managed to access her powers and certain bits of her personality."
"Which ones?"
"The nasty ones. Which would be all of them, come to think of it. That is why I'm asking you again: do you, or anyone you know, possess any information whatsoever relating to Rumia of the Darkness' origins?"
"What makes you think I do?"
"Well, there's the small problem of the Shadow Youkai possessing many, many qualities that could be said to be demonic in nature. And come to think of it, you were quite adamant about refusing to let that thing anywhere near your domain. Shinki, it does not take a conspiracy theorist to draw some unfortunate conclusions."
The Master of Makai set her mouth in a straight line. "Yukari, I do not appreciate being accused of lying."
"You're avoiding the question again," Yukari pointed out. "If you had nothing to hide, than there should be no problem in answering."
"Really? Well, here's a straight answer for you: I have no idea where the Shadow Youkai came from, and neither do my subjects. She was no creation of mine and has had absolutely nothing to do with Makai. My refusal to let you use my domain as a prison was fueled by a simple desire to keep things that way. Now, does that satisfy you?"
Not in the slightest, Yukari thought, but she said, "I suppose it'll have to."
"Good. Now, if you've finished interrogating me…"
"By all means." Yukari stepped aside, allowing the Queen of Hell and her silent bodyguard to walk past her and into the tower.
Of course, Yukari didn't trust Shinki's explanation, not one bit. As far as Overlords of the Infernal Flames went, Shinki was actually fairly reasonable. However, she was also fiercely protective of those serving under her command and was not above bending the truth to cast suspicion off of them. Yukari remembered battling the Shadow Youkai with perfect clarity, and it possessed too many demonic attributes to ignore. And since Shinki was the ruler and creator of most, if not all, of the demons, Yukari was going to be keeping an eye on her.
"She's not lying, you know," a soft voice said from nearby.
Yukari turned to meet the sullen gaze of Satori Komejii, the mistress of the Palace of Earth Spirits. Just as Shinki rules over the spiritual underworld, Satori was given dominion over the physical one. Those who dwelt beneath the earth but did not enjoy Makai's climate followed her lead. However, she wasn't exactly the most sociable of Gensokyo's leaders, and with a good reason, one that had something to do with the unblinking eye that sat in the spherical pendant that hung from her breast from four wires that encircled her body.
"Is she not?" Yukari asked irritably. "Well, I suppose you would be-"
"Of course I am. Her every thought is an open book to me, as is everyone else's. If she were withholding some guilt, it would have been written on her mind the moment you spoke to her."
"That doesn't mean-"
"Shinki's dominion over her realm is absolute. None of her subjects would be capable of unleashing something on that level without her knowing."
"Still, perha-"
"She is innocent, and no, I am not simply defending her because her realm is in close proximity to mine. Your reasons for suspicion were valid, but incorrect. Pursuing her further borders on paranoia."
Yukari folded her arms and scowled. "Has anyone ever told you-"
"Quite often. And no, I have heard nothing of this 'Rin Satsuki's' current whereabouts, nor have I met anyone who does. And yes, I shall inform you the moment such information makes itself available to me."
A large, black cat trotted across the cracked cobblestones of the courtyard, its twin tails held high. Mewing insistently, it curled itself around Satori's legs. Its master knelt down to scratch between its ears.
Satori gathered the cat into her arms and started to make her way towards the entrance. However, she stopped suddenly fixated a disapproving look on Yukari.
"I do not judge way you treat your pets. I must ask that you extend the same courtesy toward me."
Yukari rolled her eyes.
"That was impolite. It is no business of yours how many friends I possess."
Satori left without another word.
Yukari growled. There was a reason she preferred to keep to herself. Already this day was starting to grate her nerves.
To her surprise, Yukari found herself wishing that the perpetrators of Satsuki's creation would hurry up and arrive. Despite being responsible for one of the most abhorrent affronts to nature Yukari had seen in hundreds of years, they were the closest thing she had to supporters. It was a disheartening thought.
…
Some miles away, Remilia Scarlet stood upon a chunk of solid marble. Once upon a time, that stone had been a part of the foundation of the city's court of law, where criminals and prisoners of war would go to throw themselves at the mercy of the bloodthirsty invaders. Such proceedings never went well for the condemned.
Remilia knew none of this, of course. To her it was simply a convenient place to stand. Still, had someone informed her of the stone's original purpose, she might have been amused that a place that had been such a domain of fear had now been reduced to a heap of rocks. There are few things more amusing to eternal creatures than change.
However, at the moment Remilia was less concerned with ancient history as she was with current proceedings. She was peering through a pair of small, dainty binoculars, which she held up on a thin pole. The view was that of the Ruined City's citadel, specifically on the small group of people that were gathered at the entrance.
"Huhhhh…" she muttered, more to herself than anything. "Quite a few big names. There's Yukari Yakumo over there, of course. And I'm pretty sure I just saw Tenshi Hinanai go inside. Hmmm, that woman Yukari's talking to…If I'm not mistaken, that would be Shinki herself. Curious indeed. The situation must be bad if the Overlord of Makai is making an appearance."
From her place on the ground, Rika Asakura perked up. "Wait, the Queenbitch of the Demons is here? Um, anyone else thinking we'd be better off just buggering off?"
Remilia gave her a brief glance before returning to her observations. "Sakuya, please tell the warm meat that I require neither suggestions nor color commentary, and if it feels compelled to provide them I will remove her arm and have it made into pudding."
From her place of holding her mistress' umbrella overhead, Sakuya said, "The Mistress respectfully requests that all opinions be kept private unless specifically asked for."
Rika's face paled. "Ye…yeah, okay. Gotcha." Shaking, she leaned up against a block and slid to the ground.
Beside Remilia, Flandre Scarlet was crouching low and shielding her eyes as she tried to make out what was happening. "I don't know, they look too small to me." She held up one hand, with her index finger and thumb a few centimeters apart. She peered through the gap in her fingers, fixating it over Yukari's tiny form. "They're like ants. Tiny ants, all marching in a row. Who do they take their marching orders from, Remi?"
"That would be the queen, dear sister. In this case, Yukari."
"Huh. So very like ants then. I wonder if they know the tune that they're marching to. All the ants back home sang the same song as they marched, one-by-one-by-one. I could hear their song in my head while I slept. I made them stop singing, and their neat and pretty line was made into confusion. I wonder if this tune will stop if the queen is squished."
She squinted and started to bring her fingers together, but Remilia's hand suddenly snapped around her wrist and jerked it up. Flandre looked up at her in surprise.
"No, no, no," Remilia said as she patted the back of Flandre's hand. "No squishing, Flandre honey. It isn't polite."
Flandre sulked. "But when do I get to play?" she whined.
Remilia smiled and tousled Flandre's hair. "Soon enough, Flan, soon enough. Now, Sakuya. I believe it's time for you and Patchouli and…" She turned her nose into the air and sniffed. "…those snacks you've brought along to join the rest of the party. Flandre and I will wait here until the time has come for us to make our entrance."
"Yes, Mistress," Sakuya said, handing Remilia the umbrella. She looked down at Patchouli and the Asakura sisters, who were sitting in the shadow of the marble fragment. "Get up, all of you. We're moving out."
The others exchanged a brief look, but they obeyed, taking to the air and following the maid toward the tower.
Once they were out of earshot, Rika exploded, "What the bloody hell? I'm sorry Sakuya, but your boss is completely bonkers!"
Rikako shot a fearful look at her sister. "Rika, shut up!"
"You shut up! You heard her! 'Warm meat', my ass! What do we look like, roast chicken? And to actually let that psychotic sister of hers out! That vampire's completely batty…um, no pun intended…"
Sakuya stopped suddenly, bringing the entire party to a halt. She turned in midair, her face completely expressionless.
"And it is only by my 'batty' Mistress's' favor that you continue to draw breath. And Flandre is under Remilia's strict control for this excursion."
"Yeah? One crazy vampire's controlling another. Wow, I feel so much better now."
Sakuya's lips tightened. "I advise that you watch what you say, tinkerer. Because if your tongue continues to itch I would be delighted to scratch it for you."
She held up a wickedly pointed silver knife. The message was clear.
"Fine, have it your way," Rika muttered. "But don't forget that it was your precious Mistress that beat the snot out of you guys yesterday."
"We had made an error. She saw fit to correct us. It is the Mistress' prerogative to chastise her servants if the need arises. But we will speak no further on this topic, nor on anything else for that matter. Remain silent until we get there."
The Asakura sisters muttered their assent, and the four of them started to move again. As they did so, Sakuya took the opportunity to steal a glance at Patchouli. The magician had been strangely quiet since the day before. While she certainly was no chatterbox even under normal circumstances, she would at least voice her opinion if the situation presented itself. But she hadn't said anything all day, except to give single-syllable answers to direct questions.
Sakuya had to admit she wasn't exactly sure why. Certainly, the Mistress' treatment had been…harsh, but it was no more than they deserved for using her younger sister in such a manner and trying to hide the fact. Like she had said, it was the Mistress' right to discipline her subordinates when they stepped out of line, and this situation certainly qualified. Now granted, Patchouli wasn't exactly so much a subordinate as she was a personal friend of the Mistress who was tending the library as a favor (though exactly who was doing who the favor was something Sakuya had never been clear on) and had never been treated in such a manner by Remilia in the near century they'd been companions. And then there was the fact that the treatment had come as a direct result of an extremely distressing message delivered by none other than Patchouli's idol, which was likely causing her to go through a stage of disillusionment. And then there was the problem that Rin Satsuki, someone whom Patchouli had been personally responsible for keeping safe, was now on the loose and doing untold amounts of damage, and that they were now being called to task for that problem, something that was unlikely to go well for either of them, especially since the Mistress seemed bound and determined to rile things up as much as possible in a manner that Patchouli might be hit with some of the fallout…
Sakuya had a feeling that she had just answered her own question.
Well, it wasn't as if there was much she could do about it. Playing wet-nurse to upset magicians was not part of her job description. Her first and only duty was to serve the Mistress. All other issues simply fell by the wayside.
As they neared, two figures came into view, standing a good ways away from the tower. Sakuya's eyes narrowed when she identified them. Well, this should be interesting.
"Wait, isn't that…" Rikako began.
"…Eirin Yagokoro and her pet bunny, forget her name?" Rika finished for her.
Patchouli's head perked up. Though she didn't say anything, it was evident her interest was piqued.
"It would seem so," Sakuya said. She sighed. "Well, I suppose they'll be wanting a conversation. Come."
The four of them swooped down to where the two representatives from Eientei were standing. For their part, Eirin and Reisen did not look well. Eirin's face was drawn and haggard, its color even more pale than usual. And although it would not be visible to the common layman, Sakuya got the impression that she was remaining upright through sheer force of will.
As for Reisen, the Lunarian rabbit did not seem injured. But there was something obviously wrong. Her face was downcast and she didn't seem to know what to do with her hands. She kept fiddling with the buttons on her sleeves, entwining her fingers together only to release them and sticking her hands in pockets only to take them out again.
They were facing the citadel but turned as Sakuya and the others touched down next to them. Eirin's eyebrows jumped up and down. She smiled.
"Well, look at that, Reisen. It's our old friends, come to say hello. Sakuya Izayoi and Patchouli Knowledge, straight out of the Scarlet Devil Mansion. By the way, ladies: that large glowing thing in the sky is called the Sun. Don't let it blind you. And what's this? Rika and Rikako Asakura? This is something of a reunion. All together again, just like old times."
Her smile disappeared. "Pity the circumstances are so unfortunate. Our little science project gone wrong, on the loose again and more terrible than ever. Now, refresh my memory: wasn't it your responsibility to make sure such a thing never happened? If I recall correctly, and I always recall correctly, you told me that there was no chance she could escape, that those boxes of yours were foolproof. So tell me: if that were the case, why were so many fools meddling with them?"
"Oh, stick it up your full moon," Rika snapped. "We weren't the ones who-"
"Quiet, I wasn't talking to you."
A spark flashed in Patchouli's eyes, finally breaking through the daze she had been walking in. "It isn't our fault Marisa stole the fucking thing," she hissed.
"And do not forget, this whole ordeal was your doing in the first place," Sakuya added.
Eirin cocked her head. "Two points of fact: yes, it is your fault. And you mean our doing. You had just as much involvement with the Satsuki incident as we did. And had you taken more precautions to ensure that creature did not escape, we would not be not be in this situation."
"And if you had properly tested that elixir before jamming it down Satsuki's throat, this would have never happened!" Rika snapped, forgetting that she wasn't being accused of anything.
"The same could be said of your equipment!" Eirin returned. Her voice was starting to rise, a dangerous sign. "I wouldn't be surprised if the fault lay with-"
"Enough!"
Everyone turned to stare at Rikako Asakura, who was red-faced with rage and shaking.
"I'm stopping is entirely illogical line of conversation right here! Are you all daft? Have you completely lost your minds? We have our collective head on the chopping block, and you want to get into who's-to-blame contest? We were all there, we all contributed, it's all our fault…"
"Not the part about Satsuki escaping," Eirin put in icily. "That was-"
"I. Do not. Care. I refuse to allow us to continue behaving so bloody unproductive when we clearly have bigger problems to worry about! Like, oh I don't know, a bunch of gods putting us on trial? Have you forgotten that part? What's done is done, and we need to prepare what is to come."
Eirin's eyes narrowed, but she didn't contradict the human scientist. She exchanged a look with Sakuya and Patchouli and sighed.
"Very well, I suppose you have a point. I'll let the matter rest." She looked over to the citadel and the small figures that were now going inside. "I suppose there'll be enough guilt-mongering going as it is." Her shoulders heaved as she sighed.
"I'm afraid I must concur, this is no time for pointless bickering," Sakuya agreed. "Actually, I've been hoping to speak with you. The details given to us concerning Satsuki's escape and ensuing rampage were unhelpfully vague. Perhaps you can fill in some of the holes?"
Reisen, who had been standing silently in the background during the confrontation, broke in. "Look, this is trying Eirin enough as it is. I don't think forcing her to-"
"Reisen," Eirin admonished. "Remember your place. After all, her request is entirely reasonable." To Sakuya, she said, "Sorry about that. She can be overprotective to a fault. Why don't we walk the rest of the way? That should give us time to bring us all into the loop."
Sakuya nodded her assent. She motioned with her hands in a "Lead the way" gesture.
As the small party of potentially condemned conspirators began moving and Sakuya and Eirin started to exchange information, Rika took that moment to sidle up to her sister.
"Damn Sis, you can be pretty sodding terrifying sometimes, anyone ever tell you that?"
Rikako winced. "Please don't say that. I hate confrontations, I really do."
"What? Come on, that was incredible!" Rika grinned and shot her a thumbs-up. "You just faced down two of the freakiest people alive! They've killed people greater than you for doing the same thing! If that were me, I'd be getting a massive ego-boost right now."
"You're not making things any better. Please Rika, just let this drop."
Rika shrugged. "Fine, have it your way. Anyway, what do you calculate our chances of surviving this whole dog-and-pony show?"
Rikako ran her fingers through her hair as she thought. She shrugged. "Right now, I'd say roughly identical to our chances of convincing Satsuki to give herself up without a fight."
There was a pause. And then Rika muttered, "You don't have to be such a downer."
"The truth is truth. Honestly, no matter what is decided here, I feel this story will end in tears for everyone."
…
Sometime later, Yukari Yakumo decided it was finally time to get things started. She had delayed an inordinate amount of time already. Anyone who was going to come had already arrived.
On the whole, it wasn't that great a turnout. This wasn't surprising, as the last meeting she had called had been only last year, and it had been to reinstate Byakuren as a member, as well as initiate Kaguya, Kanako, and Mima. The first three had been accepted with little complaint (relatively speaking), but Mima's addition had caused…controversy. As it was, Yukari considered herself lucky to have gotten the number she had.
Master Sonozika, leader of the Human Village, was among the missing. Given the grief Mima had caused for the humans during her spotty past, he was probably still holding a grudge. Also missing were the lords of both the Dragons and the Kirin. The Dragons never showed up anyway, and if they did bother, they sent a proxy, usually in the form of Iku Nagae, who was also absent. The Kirin's absence was odd though. The Queen Mother Qilin Zhuan usually made a point to always be in attendance. The fact that she had declined to appear for this one either meant that she had some sort of personal problem to attend to, which was possible, or she too did not like the idea of the former Evil Ghost of Makai sitting next to her. Though given how forgiving she could be, that was unlikely. Yukari wasn't sure how she felt about her absence. On the one hand, she could provide valuable information regarding Kirin ways of thinking that would be useful in predicting Satsuki's next moves. On the other hand, the Kirin tended to be rather protective of their young, and there was no telling how she would react to the news of Satsuki's current predicament.
However, perhaps the strangest of all, Yuyuko Saigyouji was also missing. Given that the ghost princess was one of Yukari's strongest supporters, this was troubling. Yukari wondered what could have happened to prevent Yuyuko from attending. She was sure that she would know instantly if something had happened to her friend. Another thing to worry about.
Still, she still had gathered her fair share of big-names, even if she was now nursing a grudge against Master and Madam Hinanai for sending Tenshi. She could not stand that girl.
Yukari sat up straighter in her chair and cleared her throat. When that failed to silence the muted conversations, she said in a clearer voice, "All right, quiet! This meeting is now beginning."
"It's about time!" Eiki snapped. "I was growing concerned that you had forgotten the reason for our summoning!"
Yukari ignored her. "Ladies, gentle…uh, humans, youkai, gods and…miscellaneous, thank you for coming. I understand that my needing to call an emergency meeting is highly irregular, especially so soon after the last one, but I would never have considered had the situation not been that grim."
"Some of you might have heard rumors of an incident that took place at Eientei three days ago. Others might already know the full story. But to those who are still in the dark, let me begin by saying that we now have an incident on our hands that is far more troubling than any this Council has seen since a time out of mind."
She raised her hand and immediately the lights in the room began to dim, even though the windows were still wide open and the sun still functioning. It wasn't a difficult trick, nothing more than a simple manipulation of the border between light and dark. However, she didn't expect anyone to be impressed. Yukari pulled a golden sphere from her dress and resisted a smile. What was coming next though, that might catch some attention.
She continued speaking. "As you know, our country has more than its fair share of secrets. Some wondrous and breathtaking, while others…well, let's just say they're kept hidden for a very good reason."
With that, she tossed the sphere toward the center of the room. It stopped before hitting ground and hovered upward. There was a low buzzing sound, and suddenly it exploded outward, becoming a transparent bubble of energy ten feet in both height and girth.
The interior of the sphere filled with dancing shapes and shadows, which then came together to form the body of a young girl with short blond hair and scarlet eyes. She wore a black skirt, a long–sleeved white blouse with a black vest and red necktie over that. Her arms were outstretched to either side with all ten of her fingers pointing straight out. Some of the older members sat up straighter in their seats in recognition. However, those who were only recently inducted began murmuring in confusion, as the girl's appearance wasn't ringing any bells.
"The youkai you see before is known as Rumia of the Darkness," Yukari explained. "As far as threats go, she ranks above most of her kin in that she is powerful enough to use spellcards and has a record of attempted maneating, but on the whole she is more of a nuisance than anything, with low intelligence and subpar fighting abilities. Perhaps you will recognize her better in this setting."
The picture blinked, and now Rumia was seen flying with a myriad of other creatures, specifically two fairies and two other youkai: a green-haired firefly and a night-sparrow. They were all (with the exception of one of the fairies, who seemed more panicked than anything) grinning widely as they fled some scene of the crime or another.
A rumble of recognition made its way through the room. If there was one thing that could be said about Cirno's gang, it was that they had earned their share of infamy.
"For the last several years, Rumia of the Darkness has participated in activities of mischief-making as a member of a team of pranksters known as Cirno's Gang or occasionally, for unknown reasons, Team Nineball. Their escapades tend to be judged as annoying but ultimately harmless. However, unknown to her friends and indeed Rumia herself, she has a past that was far from harmless."
"Sixty years, seven months and nineteen days ago, there was a similar such incident, one that some of you may remember. The images you are about to see are from the memory of a man who was a witness and victim of the incident, taken from him after his death. Just a word of warning though; what you are about to see is a bit…disturbing."
Within the sphere a scene started taking place, seen from the point of view of someone who appeared to be running from something. The images were indistinct and difficult to make out, partially because the view kept shaking and turning, and also because it looked like it was in the middle of the night. However, from the look of it, the man was running through a small village that had had been set ablaze. Short glimpses could be caught of simple dwellings that were being consumed by hungry flames. From everywhere were cries of fear and panic, while a bout of hysterical cackling could be heard echoing through the scene.
"Here it comes!" one of the voices shouted.
The view immediately whipped around and up, as the owner apparently had fallen backwards to the ground. A blur of black, white and red could be seen leaping from the flames and coming down directly toward him. The man screamed and threw up his hands in a desperate attempt to ward off incoming death.
The scene froze right before the blur could strike home. Now the entirety of the sphere was taking up with the image of a creature that shared a few similarities with Rumia of the Darkness. Blond hair, red eyes, a black dress and a similar facial structure. However, that was where the resemblance ended. This being was obviously much older and much, much more deadly. Her hair was longer and tipped in black. Where there should have been fingers were ripping blades more akin to knives. Her dress was ripped and torn and splattered with blood. A twisted sword was clutched in both hands, its blade blackened with the gore of those it had slaughtered. From her shoulders spread two massive leathery wings, seemingly ripped from the back of some great prehistoric creature.
Her face though, that was the most different. While the first couple of depictions of Rumia wore expressions that were mischievous and a perhaps just a bit nutty, they weren't outright malicious. This one however…
Her burning red eyes were wide open with glee, and her pale features were splattered with blood, almost as if she had been feeding messily from her victims. Her mouth was split open in a wide grin of outright sadism, pointed teeth exposed and gleaming. It was as if she were the incarnation of senseless death and loving every minute of it.
A low murmur of unease swept through the room. Monsters and unusual incidents were nothing new, but for someone to be so deliberately destructive was rare in the extreme. There were very few beings in Gensokyo who could objectively be called evil. This girl was one of them.
"Rumia of the Darkness, as she was then," Yukari said by way of introduction. "Obviously she's undergone a change in wardrobe and style since then. Under the self-proclaimed title of the Shadow Youkai, she razed more than a dozen settlements, slaying humans, animals and even fairies and youkai."
Kanako took that moment to break in. "Now, when you say she killed fairies and youkai, do you mean-"
"I mean permanently, yes," Yukari answered. "Her personal ability was death, pure and simple. And she had mastered its use to such a degree that species immortality meant nothing to her. Once she had killed something, there were no respawns, no second chances. They stayed dead."
Kanako sat back in her chair, looking sick.
"Anyway, I stepped in and dealt with the problem myself, along with the current shrine maiden of Hakurei Shrine." She glanced in Reimu's direction. For her part, the girl simply crossed her legs and said nothing.
"We managed to defeat and restrain the creature, but after trying numerous methods of disposal we found that she had many failsafes to prevent her from being removed permanently from this world. To that end, we sought the help of a powerful mage. Mima?"
Mima bowed slightly and smiled. She floated down to the floor, occupying the space at the foot of Yukari's chair. Then she turned to face those gathered. The murmuring resumed in force. That was no surprise. The ghost's addition to the Ringleaders' numbers had been extremely controversial, as there were many who held personal grudges against her. Yukari could distinctly hear Eiki Shiki snarl in a not-so-quiet whisper, "What's she even doing here? The nerve, the absolute nerve!"
Still, although she had to be aware of what was being said, Mima gave no indication of being offended. She's probably just enjoying making people upset, Yukari thought to herself.
Mima began to speak. "My sincerest thanks, Yukari Yakumo. For though my time as a member of this esteemed institution is but a fraction is but a fraction of many of our gathered colleagues, you have allowed me the honor of speaking before the council. I can only hope that what little information I am able to offer is in some way-"
"Oh, cut to the chase already!" Eiki shouted. "Or do you mean to assassinate us with filibustering?"
"Of course. My apologies, Yamaxanadu. You know I would never deliberately-"
"Mima, the information," Yukari said wearily. "Please."
Mima bowed her head. "As Yukari stated, my assistance was sought out to deal with the problem of the Shadow Youkai. Though my talents were meager and my resources small, I swore to do anything in my limited power to aid in the threat's removal. After many sleepless nights of pouring over my tomes and trying spell after spell to no success, wondering if I would ever be able to live up to the faith invested in me…"
The Yamaxanadu threw her arms out and slumped in her chair in exasperation. From the other side of the room, Rika Asakura could audibly be heard to say, "I should have brought a sodding book." Even Byakuren was starting to look impatient.
"…it finally dawned on me that I was going about this the wrong way. As noted, the Shadow Youkai's power protected it from death, and it was highly resilient against being gotten rid of in other manners. So I started thinking: if we could not safely kill the creature, then was there a way to eliminate the threat while still keeping her alive?" Mima's teeth flashed as her grin widened. "To our immense fortune, there was."
Mima spread her arms in a grand and totally unnecessary gesture. The image in the sphere blinked again, to be replaced with what appeared to be a simple red-and-white hair ribbon.
"Witness, if you will, the humble ribbon," Mima pronounced. "A popular hair ornament, found decorating the heads of many a girl of every species. These days, hair decorations are so commonplace that it would be difficult to find someone who prefers to go bareheaded. It was into one of these simple objects that I worked a powerful spell, one that would partition off the majority of the Shadow Youkai's power, sealing it away so deep inside that it could not hurt anyone ever again. The ribbon itself was enchanted to prevent people from fiddling with it. Attempts to so much as touch it would prove futile, and the person would soon lose interest. It was also strengthened to the point that if it were larger, it could be used as armor against even the most powerful of spellcards."
"Naturally, with most of her power out of reach, this greatly reduced the barriers protecting the Shadow Youkai's mind. While she remained resilient to our probing of her memories or our attempts to destroy her physical body, it did weaken her defenses enough to make her vulnerable to a powerful psychic attack, one which destroyed her memories and crushed her personality, turning Rumia of the Darkness into nothing more than a little weak youkai, no different from thousands of others wandering to and fro through Gensokyo. And so she has remained, up until three days ago."
The ghost extended a single hand, palm up, toward the Eientei delegation. "And now, to enlighten us as to the second half of the current incident, I turn the floor over to my dear friend Eirin Yagokoro, the highly accomplished Lunarian doctor and standing representative of Princess Kaguya Houraisan, who was sadly unable to be with us today due to being eaten alive."
The room erupted into shouts of surprise and demands for explanation. More than one expressed their disbelief, citing Mima's troubled history with telling the truth. Others wanted to know why they hadn't been informed immediately. Yukari glowered down at the green-haired ghost, who was clearly enjoying herself immensely.
"Thanks a lot," Yukari said in a low whisper that only Mima would hear. "Way to keep them under control."
Mima smiled, but she didn't respond. She returned to her place next to Reimu and Marisa. The former was slumped in her seat, hand to her forehead in exasperation, while the other was doing a very poor job of holding back laughter.
Yukari glanced over to Eirin, whose expression was unreadable. She pushed herself to her feet and made a small levitating hop down to the space Mima had previously occupied. Yukari couldn't help but wonder if Eirin was up to this. While she had recovered from Satsuki's assault remarkably well, she was far from being a hundred percent. Still, given the sheer power of the Lunarian's will, it would be impossible to dissuade her otherwise, even if Yukari felt inclined to try.
If Eirin's injuries were still bothering her, there was no indication in her posture or voice. "My thanks, Mima," she said in a loud, clear voice. "And on the behalf of Eientei and the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, I extend our greetings to the rest of Gensokyo. I wish I had better news to deliver, but I'm afraid that due to the recent events Yukari has just spoken of, we are all in great danger."
She began to pace around the room, hands clasped behind her back. There was a kind of focused intensity in the way she walked, almost shark-like in manner. Yukari, who had worked with the woman on more than one occasion, knew that was just how Eirin preferred to do things that mattered, whether it be surgery, public speaking or organizing war efforts. It certainly made her an effective orator, as many beings who possessed far greater power and influence than the doctor were paying strict attention.
"As you know, Eientei has only recently joined the rest of the Gensokyo community," Eirin said. "Prior to that, we were fugitives, outlaws, with little but the rabbit tribes inhabiting the Bamboo Forest of the Lost as allies. However, on occasion, we would find ourselves affected by outside events."
Eirin gestured with one hand toward the center of the room. The picture within the sphere changed. Now it showed none other than Rin Satsuki, at a time before she had been experimented on. Like Rumia, she had short blond hair and fair skin, though her hair was just a bit darker, her eyes were blue instead of red and she stood just a little taller. She wore a red-and-white dress and had decorated her hair with beads. In the picture, she was sitting under a tree, scribbling furiously on a notepad.
"The child you see before goes by the name of Rin Satsuki," Eirin explained. "She is, or was, a Kirin who had become separated from her parents and found her way into our care-"
"And how did that come to pass, one wonders," Shinki interrupted. "After all, your people aren't exactly known for your altruistic natures.
Eiki seemed to agree. "Indeed. After all, there are miles of difference between…" the Yamaxanadu made the appropriate air-quote signs with her fingers "…'found her way into our care' and kidnapping!"
Eirin remained unruffled. If their words had offended her, she made no sign. "You are correct in one regard, Yamaxanadu. The child was kidnapped, though not by us. Simply consulting your records of misdeeds will confirm this fact. No, the real perpetrators were a duo of human slavers who had the poor judgment to go after one of our children as well. They were dealt with accordingly. Rin herself as found among their belongings. And while what you say is true concerning our charitable tendencies, we were not about to leave a child to fend for itself."
Eiki leaned back in her and crossed her arms. An annoyed grimace coated her face.
"At any rate, as we did not know who the child's parents were, we decided to take her in and raise her ourselves. It seemed the good and decent thing to do, and considering…"
And so she continued, describing the raising of Rin Satsuki, skimming over the unnecessary details of her childhood while paying special attention to the discovery of her powers and the plan to increase their potency and hopefully harvest them for others' use. In time, she reached the part about the experiment and how she brought in outside help. Sakuya Izayoi and Patchouli Knowledge took their turns standing before the council, as well as the Asakura Sisters. Sakuya's bit was short and straight to the point, as was to be expected. However, Patchouli had to be reminded twice that she was giving a personal report and not a lecture on the nature of magical abilities, while Rikako Asakura was so nervous that she had to restart her bit three times. Yukari really wasn't listening. She had already had her own debriefing. No, her focus was on the faces of those gathered, gauging their expressions and seeing how they might react.
Byakuren Hijiri looked absolutely sickened. That was of no surprise. After all, she was one of the foremost trumpeters of youkai rights, as well as spearheading her personal campaign of establishing more peaceful relations between the youkai and the humans. And it wasn't simply due to the practical long-term benefits such a coexistence would create. She genuinely cared for the nonhuman inhabitants of Gensokyo and took personal issue with the idea of youkai extermination. It was only natural that she would be disgusted of the deliberate perversion of Satsuki's natural existence. Yukari chalked her up as the eventual moral objector but not a dissenter. The threat Satsuki represented would not be lost on her and she would likely help in whatever way she could, but Yukari was counting on hearing a great many lectures on humane treatment and the avoidance of unnecessary ruthlessness. It was a fair tradeoff, especially since all she had to do was play a little bit with the border between sound and silence and nod appropriately to make it seem like she was listening.
Yukari was also fairly certain she could count on Kanako Yasaka's help, especially after she learned the rest of the story. Kanako was pretty decent as far as gods went. She poured out her blessings in return for the prayers and offerings she was given, she leant a hand to her equals when asked, she treated her worshippers fairly and she took an active part in improving life in Gensokyo. But when it came down to it, Kanako was a businesswoman. She thought in the long term, her mind focused on matters of loss and gain. That was why she had come to Gensokyo in the first place; her previous dwelling place hadn't been serving her needs, so she had relocated to some place where she could do better. And there was no telling what damage a raging Rin Satsuki could do to her prospects.
Eiki Shiki though, she was another matter. While Yukari had long discovered that the judge's overly boisterous ways and single-minded adherence to the letter of law made her ridiculously easy to manipulate, she would remain steadfast in one regard: she did not become involved in the affairs of the living. Period. Unless she or her staff were personally responsible for causing an incident or if someone had the ill fortune to wander close enough to be lectured at, Eiki stuck to the belief that she was placed in this world to do a job, and only that job. She attended these meetings out of a sense of duty and was certainly not shy about expressing her opinion, but at the end of the day she would decline to take part in whatever plan that was decided on, citing that it was a mortal issue and therefore no concern of hers. Yukari couldn't help but think that Komachi would be of a different mind, seeing how anything involving the Shadow Youkai meant more work for her to do, but in the end there would be little she could do about it.
Shinki's assistance was also doubtful. There still was some friction between her and Yukari. The spat at the entrance was just another in a long line of disagreements that they have had over their many, many years of acquaintance. And while she wasn't coldhearted, she also preferred not to involve herself with above-world dealings, citing that doing so would draw undue attention to her and her subjects. And if she didn't want the Shadow Youkai anywhere near her realm the last time around, she certainly wouldn't want to do anything to cause it to go on a rampage through her domain, even if it was by proxy.
Mima, Reimu and the remnants of Eientei were already on board, there was no question there. As was Suika, and if the little oni could manage to convince the other three Devas of the Mountain to throw in as well, then all the better. Yukari was also reasonably sure that Satori Komejii would assist as well. While she preferred to keep to herself, the girl was deadly practical, even more so than Kanako. And if something threatened her comfortable life with her pets, then she would deal with it. She wasn't likely to jump into the front lines anytime soon, but there was still much she could offer.
Yuyuko's absence was a problem though. Yukari was counting on her incorporeal friend's assistance. She wondered if Yuyuko had even gotten her message, and if she had, why she had neglected to appear. Of course, the ghost did tend to be a bit whimsical at times and was prone to go wandering. Yukari resolved to check personally the next chance she got.
She wondered if she should pay the Kirin a visit as well. While their input would be helpful, she didn't trust them to reign in their maternal instincts enough to keep from trampling the Scarlet Devil Mansion and what was left of Eientei to dust.
As for Master Sonozika…well, if he didn't want to show up and help, then too damned bad. Yukari did give him the chance to participate. And if Satsuki did happen to run across his village…
With a sigh, Yukari chastised herself for allowing that line of thought. Of course she would have to warn the Human Village. It was unfair to sentence hundreds of innocents to death just because their leader was an ass.
The reports continued. Yukari took the stand again, followed by Mima, Reimu, Marisa and even Reisen as they described what had happened the day of Satsuki's escape. Yukari took special notice of the Lunar rabbit's bit, as it was easily shortest and most bare of details, whereas Marisa's was quite filled with deviations and personal observations. That was quite curious, given Reisen's personal history with the fugitive. Yukari stole a glance over to Reisen's master. Eirin was watching Reisen carefully, almost as if she were trying to control her apprentice with the power of her gaze. Interesting.
Finally however the accounts came to an end. Yukari waited for the general babble of questions and personal conversation to die down. And when that took too long, she motioned for silence.
When she had it, she said, "As you can see, this is a problem threatens us all. So long as Satsuki remains loose, the potential for more innocents lives to be lost rises exponentially. We need to come up with a plan now and execute it as soon as possible."
"Our objectives are as follows: first, the location of Satsuki. Sources indicate that she was last seen fleeing into the Dragonfire Canyon and, as far as we've been able to determine, she has yet to leave. However, considering the massive amount of underground tunnels existing in that area, she could be all the way to the Forest of Magic by now."
"Secondly, she must be captured. This will not be easy. Given that she can adapt to just about any outside assault and recover almost instantly from any damage means we'll have to think outside of the box as much as possible."
"Thirdly, she must be made to surrender Princess Kaguya Houraisan and Fujiwara no Mokou, as well as anyone else she might have picked up in the meantime. This will be even more difficult, and will require us to seek options that might be…uncomfortable to use."
Byakuren winced noticeably, but said nothing.
"And finally and most important," Yukari said, standing to her feet for emphasis. "Current events have proven that simply sealing away these creatures is unacceptable as a long-term solution. There is no telling when they might be accidentally set free again. To that end, we must all work towards finding a way to permanently find a way to ensure such a thing never happens again."
"I know that official executions by this council are almost unheard of, especially given how we prefer that each and everyone one of us handles their own affairs. However, in this case we have no choice. We must find a way to eliminate Rin Satsuki and Rumia of the Darkness."
"I will start taking suggestions now."
…
Got a few things I want to comment on, both in-story and out, so bear with me here.
First of all, I've got a real love-hate relationship with this chapter. On the one hand, it gave me the chance to play with some new characters (Satori and Eiki were especially fun) and put in some interactions that usually aren't seen. On the other hand, it meant doing a lot of character descriptions (which really isn't my strong suit) as well as rehashing a lot of information that we already knew. While this would make sense in the context of the council meeting as the other characters haven't been brought up to speed, it doesn't make for especially exciting reading. I was originally going to put in the whole thing, from Eirin's bit all the way back to Yukari, but then I remembered how my conversations tend to wander and wondered what the hell I was doing. We would be looking at a forty+ page chapter! So instead, snip-snip.
And yeah, I know Byakuren didn't have a retainer. I was going to stick Shou in there, but the scene was too crowded already. So let's just say Shou was sick, Murasa and co. were off adventuring, and Byakuren decided that there would be no problems in attending alone. As for Tenshi, she's just arrogant like that.
By the way, is it just me or does Eiki have a really confusing name? I mean it's properly Shikieiki Yamaxanadu, but Yamaxandu is more of a title, and Shikieiki is more of the Japanese way to arrange 'Eiki Shiki'. Since most of the other characters have Romanized names in translation, it just makes it all the more weird.
In other news, props to Pyramid Head and Soelke for identifying the song! Sweet Times is definitely one of the cooler arrangements of U.N. Owen Was Her? out there. And the Midnight version is fantastically creepy. Try listening to it in the dead of night with the lights off. Go on, we'll wait.
Also, even more props to Pyramid Head for digging up a really awesome picture of Ex-Rumia. Give her a haircut and dye her hair black and you've got a really cool version of the Rin/Rumia hybrid! Kinda looks like a Heartless if you ask me. The website won't let paste a link (bugger all), so if you're curious send me a pm or something.
Hmmm, a Kingdom Heats/Touhou crossover. That could be…interesting.
And changing gears yet again, if anyone wants to read one hell of a fanfic not found on this site, then definitely go check out The Reinterpretation of the Scarlet Devil by a fellow known as Usually Dead. It's a retelling of EoSD through Reimu's point of view. While he sticks to the general chain of events found in the game, the way he's reinterpreted those events, the characters and even Gensokyo itself is nothing short of amazing. You can find it on the Touhou Wiki.
And in the same vein, if anyone's looking for some really good Touhou remixes, then google poltergeist mansion and click on the second hit. It's pretty much a huge storage of hard rock, classic and even techno versions of our favorite Touhou songs from several different artists. The files are easy to download and store, and the songs themselves kick some serious ass.
Man, I should start charging for advertising space. ;)
And last but certainly not least…Holy cow, someone put Imperfect Metamorphosis up in the Touhou Fanfic Recommendations page on the TV Tropes website! Like over a month ago! I didn't even notice until now! Seriously, I was just visiting that page out boredom and there it was! My heart definitely skipped a beat. A very big thank you to Makuta9999 for the awesome write-up. Dude, you have seriously made my week.
Until next time, everyone!