Hello, fellow authors and readers.I've just decided to upload another chapter after working on it for sometime. Decided to do so, sine I would be pretty busy after this, so I might as well give you guys what I've got so far. Well, I'm still working on the length, but yeah...
So I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and until next time.
Touhou Duel Masters Café
Chapter 2-
"Fuck!" Marisa swore as she slammed the table with her fist. The teacups shuddered, teetering dangerously close the edge of the table. Cards lay scattered across the floor and table, and they had no desire to tidy them up. "We need to get those cards back. Its all they left us, and we…"
Her voice trailed off, and her eyes lowered to the floor. "We…"
Reimu said nothing in return. Her bangs covered her emotions, and Marisa couldn't tell what face she was making. Anger? Sadness? Regret? Shame? This was all what Marisa was feeling right now.
Time passed in silence, with the occasional silent sipping of hot tea.
The incident solvers of Gensokyo defeated so easily… No one would believe it.
Letting out a sigh, Marisa picked up a card from the floor.
Fortification Against Barrage and Ambush. She clenched it hard, hands trembling.
My deck… My pride… My soul….
She stood up, picked up her scattered deck, and pocketed it once again. Donning her black witch's hat, and grabbing her broom, she said, "I'll be back for dinner."
Leaving that sentence, she kicked off into the air without turning back, leaving Reimu in the company of the scorching hot afternoon sun, and the sounds of nature.
Rinnosuke sat in his usual spot, reading some unknown book as Marisa burst open the door of Kourindou, his shop. The building, and his productes, rattled when the door was threw open, and he shot a disapproving look at the blonde visitor.
"How many times have I told you my merchandise are precious and fragile…" Rinnosuke started but was subsequently interrupted by Marisa.
"Never mind that Kourin."She said as she referred to him by his nickname. "I need to ask you a favor…"
Rinnosuke arched his eyebrows at that.
As the sun started to set, painting the sky orange, the Human Village quieted down, all the hustle and bustle dying down. Of course, that does not mean the streets are deserted. Before long, some youkai, carrying their food stalls with the, began to start with their business, grilling meat and making cakes, luring costumers in with the fragrance of their food. Teenagers began filling the stalls, enjoying the company of their friends, drinking sake and gulping down meat.
As Kamishirasawa Keine, the teacher at the school in the Human Village, began to work on the children's homework, she heard a faint at her door. She did not expect a visitor at this time. Surely Reimu must have remembered that she would not be coming to the festival tonight. She opened the door, and her lips parted slightly as her eyes widened in faint surprise. The next instant it was replaced by a soft smile.
"Please, do come in." She gestured the visitors to come inside. "Make yourself comfortable, I'll go brew some tea. We have a lot to talk about."
The Hakurei shrine was filled as usual. The party started once again, as music and duels brought excitement and joy to guests.
The cheerful mood did not extend to the incident solvers of Gensokyo, however.
As Reimu just stared, Marisa rummaged through the crate she had brought earlier, pulling several cards used to build an entirely new deck. After the crushing defeat of during the morning, she decided to stay true to her ideals. Speed and Power. That's what fits her most.
"Alice, could you hold these for me?" Marisa held out some cards to her fellow magician.
The blonde with skin almost as white as a doll, with a modest attire composing of a white dress and blue apron complete with a ribbon on her head, did as she was asked. Her green eyes scanned through the cards she was handed.
"…Are you sure about this?" The puppeteer inquired, as her doll, Shanghai, flew over to inspect Marisa's progress.
"Definitely." The black-white affirmed. "I need new power…enough to defeat those guys. I need this strength soon."
"But to think that you two were so soundly defeated… Not only you were unable to take down one of them, you even allowed a Perfect Duel…" Remilia said, her vampire drooping slightly behind her as she took off her cap and fanned herself with it. "Just who are those people?"
Reimu just shook her head.
"Do you not plan on investigating this matter? After all, you have lost some of your cards." Sakuya, with her maid outfit and silver braided hair, decided to throw in a comment.
"We… We'll do that later." Marisa said in a defeated manner after hesitating for a bit.
Sanae, who was wearing her usual green and white shrine maiden outfit and frog hairpin, scratched her chin thoughtfully. "Just what are those people going to do with those cards? What did they take, actually?"
"That's…" Reimu was hesitant to answer the second part of the question.
"I only know that they're up to no good. Whoever and wherever they are, I will find them, and I will beat them to a pulp." Marisa's had a cheerful grin on her face, but her words and attitude says otherwise. After taking a few more cards out of the crate, she began to organize and build her deck.
"Bolcon and Spring Shachihoko… This ought to beat the hell out of them."
Reimu resumed staring outside, when suddenly she was pushed from behind. Turning around with an annoyed look, she found Yukari leaning on one of her gaps, her long blonde hair covering her shoulders, and a smile, mysterious as ever, on her lips.
"…What do you want?"
"Oh, how cold of you, Reimu~" The Youkai Sage spread her fan and covered her lower face. "I'm just here to comfort you~"
Behind her, Remilia gave a disgusted look.
"I don't need that, leave me alone." Reimu snorted and turned her back on Yukari.
"Arara, I was just going to give you a gift." As Yukari said that, a gap opened beside Reimu and card dropped down, softly landing on the shrine floor. "I wish you will use that well."
"Just disappear already." Reimu waved her hand dismissively towards her back.
"Ufufu… I'll be looking forward to your use of it." With that, Yukari closed her gap and vanished from the shrine.
"Hmph."
It was a long while before Reimu picked up the card, Remilia peeking over her shoulder to inspect it.
A card neither of them had seen before. A card with two sides…
As Reimu examined it closely, a wave of warmth washed over her body. She stiffened at the foreign sensation, and as she refocused on the card, she realized what that feeling was.
It was the feeling of fiery passion.
Mokou arrived to see Keine waving her visitors off. "I'll be sure to help with your requests." She heard Keine say.
The teacher turned to welcome the white-haired immortal, and with a smile, invited her to come in. Mokou, scratching her cheek, sheepishly went in and sat down.
As Keine pushed a cup of hot tea towards her, Mokou asked, "Were those visitors?"
It was a pointless question, but she felt the need to be the first to speak, for a change.
"Oh yes. They haven't come by for quite a while." Keine cheerfully answered.
"…" It took a while for Mokou to register the identity of the visitors. "I see."
They left it at that, and Mokou watched silently as Keine continued her work.
Turning her head, the undead Phoenix gazed at the white, round moon in the sky. The mesmerizing beauty of it never failed to capture her attention, even after a thousand years. One thousand years, long enough to wipe out all hate and sadness. Three hundred years of deadly dueling and combat, and now her fists are without pure hatred.
Thinking of another woman connected to the moon, Mokou just sighed and closed her eyes, resting in the company of the half-beast.
Marisa woke up to find herself in a midst of messy cards, empty bottles and dishes, and unconscious girls. She was fortunate enough not to suffer from a hangover, since she was too preoccupied with deck building she had consumed little sake last night. Pouring herself a cup of tea, Marisa took a sip, and frowned.
Cold tea. "Bleh…"
Stepping out of shrine, she was bathed in warm sunlight, and she stretched her stiff muscles, moaning a little from the stress and fatigue.
"Oh, right. Time to restock my supplies…" Marisa remembered. "Time to go to the Human Village huh… I'll buy Reimu something too."
Once again, the ordinary magician tied up her hair, donned her hat, and set off on her broom into the blue, cloudless ocean known as the Sky.
"Hope I don't run into my old man…" Marisa muttered as she trudged through the streets, carrying a bag of supplies in her arms.
When was the last time she saw her father? Seven years? Eight years? She couldn't remember, but his face, the face that told her to give up on being a magician was deeply implanted in her mind, never fading away. That angry face that made her run away to pursue her dream as a magician, in her mother's footsteps.
Marisa shook the thought away and huffed. She continued down the street, and she stopped abruptly, right in front of a short building as its sign caught her eye.
"Duel Masters….Cafe…" She read aloud. "A free cup of coffee everyday…for those who can defeat the owners?" She was practically jumping with excitement as she finished the sentence.
She deliberately ignored the last part- "Starting from tomorrow"- as she walked right into the shop.
"Hello, anybody here?" She chirped cheerfully, the bell on the door ringing loudly as the entrance opened and closed.
There was no response. In fact, there was no sign that anyone was in the shop at all, except for the abrupt intruder.
"Huh, weird…" The black-white scratched her head in confusion. She scanned her surroundings, taking note of every detail.
There were a few round tables of moderate size, six, maybe seven, located somewhat sparsely between each other. Each table was assigned five chairs, pushed neatly under the tables. All of these were wooden. She shifted her attention to the back of the large room.
A long counter with a push-up entrance on its left, center hollowed out for the masters to serve their costumers. On the counter was a red machine, which Marisa identified as a coffee machine, something Kourin had among his merchandise before. Come to think of it, they looked strangely familiar…
There were also coffee beans, tea leaves, cookies on a small shelf on the counter, placed neatly in order.
Then on both sides of the counter were four duel tables, two on each side, with enough space for people to enjoy their duels there.
Right in the center of the back of the room was a wooden door, simple and clean with no decorations, with a bronze doorknob.
"Hmm… Ahem! Uh, anyone home?" Marisa inquired once again in a larger voice.
There was still no answer.
"Well, don't blame me for this then…" Taking our her mini-Hakkero, she aimed it at the door. "Master…"
"Number Nine!" A voice cut in. Upon command, a sword streaked past Marisa, imbedding itself on the front door with a thud while leaving a faint scratch on her cheek.
Marisa suddenly lost all strength to channel her magic power into her prized weapon, and she had no choice to put the mini-Hakkero down.
"Don't you consider blasting someone's door open very rude?" The previous voice resonated through the store as the doorknob of the back door turned.
"Hey, it was your fault for not…answering…" It suddenly occurred to her that the voice sounded familiar.
Don't tell me…
Her guess was confirmed the moment the door was opened wide.
"You…!" Marisa growled furiously.
"Hmph. Have you not noticed that business starts tomorrow?" The First, still hooded said. "Coming in was your own fault."
"Yes, Miss Kirisame. We are not open yet. We can only ask you to leave." The Second came out from behind. He made a gesture towards the door. His covered face was a taunt towards her, and this only served to flare her anger further.
"As you may have noticed, magic does not work now. Not in this store." The First continued. "Please, leave. We have no time to play with you."
"A duel!" Marisa took out her new deck instead. "Give me back those cards if I win."
"And in return? What are you offering? Your mini-Hakkero? Your deck? You've got nothing to give us, Kirisame Marisa." The Second scoffed lightly.
"…!" She gritted her teeth. "Running away from a duel, how can you even consider yourselves duelists?"
"If it's the challenge for a free cup of coffee, we'd gladly accept. No more, no less." Answered The Second. "However, apart from duelists, we are realists. A duel that is one-sidedly unbeneficial to us is of no worth."
"Please leave. Now."
"Those bastards…" Marisa was slumped on the table, sulking.
"They're right. We have no bargaining chips at hand." Reimu poured her friend a cup of tea. "We cannot do anything now. After all, we agreed to the duel on the terms that they give us information if they lost…"
"Groan…" Marisa remained sprawled on the table, her hand clutching her cup. "Hey! Maybe we can use "stop pestering them" as a condition!"
"They'll just laugh it off." Came the reply.
"Yeah…"
"Reimu-san, Marisa-san!" A high-pitched voice came from outside the shrine, and there was the sound of someone landing on the ground.
"Oh, it's Sanae." Marisa peeked outside to see the Kochiya Sanae, puffing and panting. "What's the matter?"
"This is terrible! You've got to see this!" Sanae told them between deep gasps for air.
Reimu and Marisa stared at each other in the eyes, then back at the green haired shrine maiden.
"Let's go."
The three arrived at the Moriya Shrine at the Youkai Mountain. What was left of it, anyway.
Half of the shrine was burned away, and the standing half wasn't looking much better either, covered in scars and scratched, and it looked like something had chewed on the roof.
"Wow… This is awe, I mean, terrible." Marisa quickly corrected herself after being given a glare from the two gods, Kanako and Suwako.
Kanako, the short-and-purpled hair god, dressed in her usual red, sighed heavily while grasping the mirror on her chest. Suwako, still wearing her big hat and blue dress with white sleeves, looked heartbroken over the destruction of the shrine.
"Uh…well, what happened?" Reimu asked Sanae, who was equally distraught as the gods she served.
"We were out surveying the Youkai Mountain, and when we came back, this was it." Kanako gave her a brief explanation.
"Huh…" Reimu said as she examined the destroyed building. "Any idea whoever did this?"
The three goddesses shrugged.
"Whoever did this must be very strong. Even our divine defenses were easily broken…" Suwako's shoulders sagged in defeat. "How can it be?"
"Hey, could it be those two guys?" Marisa offered her opinion. "I mean, they took those cards. They must've been doing bad stuff with them
"That has nothing to do with this, though." Reimu refuted her argument. "That wouldn't explain why they would destroy the shrine here."
Marisa look deflated.
"Look, I know you want to beat those guys up. I do too. But we should gather up evidence before acting." Reimu explained, picking up a piece of rubble and throwing it aside.
"You know me. Duel first, questions later." Marisa replied with an unsatisfied frown.
"You just met them this morning." Reimu said. "How could they possibly do this?"
"Well…" Marisa scratched her head sheepishly.
It was then the other half of the shrine erupted in an explosion.
Everyone gaped at the fragments of the shrine rained down on the ground. Reimu barely had enough time to shield herself with holy power, but that was enough to stop her from suffering any damage.
"What the…" From the pile of rubble and rising smoke and ashes, Marisa could make out a silhouette. A slim figure that disappeared right away after it realized that it was noticed.
"Hey… Wait!" Her efforts to stop the figure from vanishing were in vain, as Kanako and Suwako knelt on the ground in despair and disbelief. As for Sanae, she lost her consciousness from shock.
As the smoke cleared, Reimu said, "Don't worry, I've put a tracking talisman on that person. Let's see… He's headed for the Myouren Temple… No, the Hall of Dreams' Great Mausoleum! Let's go beat them up!"
She took off into the air in a flash.
"You're actually more eager than me to have a fight, right? Reimu?"
Marisa took off after her on her broom, leaving the three occupants of the Moriya Shrine among the ruins of it.
Oh well, thought Marisa. Suika can take care of it in a flash.
"You over there! Stop!" Reimu demamded, but that only caused the figure in front of them to speed up. "Don't say I didn't warn you!"
She shot a few talismans at the escaping figure. One of them nicked the figure, causing it to lose acceleration, and as Reimu almost caught up with it, something whizzed past her face. Forced to dodge the projectile, she turned in annoyance to see where it came from. A girl with pale skin and wearing a red Chinese dress among on the ground caught her attention, and she heard the figure she almost caught up with say,"Yoshika, I'll leave this to you."
By the time Reimu snapped her attention back to the escaping person, she was gone.
"Gr…" Reimu sped after her target, turned to yell at an arriving Marisa. "You take care of this, Marisa!"
"Hey!" Marisa started to complain, but then noticed Yoshika, her outstretched, stiff arms holding a deck. "So you won't be letting me through easily huh?"
She landed on the ground, facing the girl blocking her way. Her deck shone with a ferocious red aura, while her opponent's flared a chaotic black energy.
"I'll be your opponent then! I'll tke you down in a flash, and you'll regret interfering with our business!"
"Duema, Start!"
BGM: Ruthless Duel (YGO ZeXal Sound Duel 2)
"I summon Maeterl, Beautiful Sunday!" A humanoid Outrage, dressed in fancy clothes and wielding a chain, appeared alongside her summoner, Marisa.
"Heh… Creatures are even materializing in normal duels… This is becoming an incident!"
"I summon Necrodragon Abayo Shabayo, and destroy Duel Hero Atsuto." Yoshika declared in a monotone. The Dragon Zombie appeared, slashing the Duel Hero into destruction.
"Ku… I destroy Mypad, Start Dash" The Cyber Lord-like Outrage dispersed into light upon command.
"My turn! With Maeterl's effect I draw two cards and discard one card from my hand." Marisa discarded a card and charged a mana right after that. "I cast Brain Typhoon! With its effect I draw three cards and discard one card after that. But with Maeterl's effect, I can draw two cards every time I draw a card in return for the discarding of one card! I draw six cards and discard four this way!"
"Fufu, I'll show my speed and power now!" Marisa grinned. "When I have drawn 6 cards this turn, I can summon this guy for no cost! G Zero! Crossfire, the 2nd, Billionaire!"
The Outrage with a dragon-like appearance stood alongside his master, blades of torrent and flame humming with energy.
"I'm not done yet! Since I have six creatures in my graveyard, I can also summon this one for no cost!" Marisa continued. "Oh mighty Outrage! Burn your foes with your unbeatable power! G Zero! Crossfire, Wicked Millionaire!"
A pillar of flame crashed down from the sky, and as from it, the original Crossfire burst out from it, howling at the sky, as his cannons swirled alongside him.
"Battle Phase! I attack your shields with Crossfire, Wicked Millionaire!" The Outrage
let out a battle cry, and his cannons fired out two beams of concentrated energy, shattering two of Yoshika's shields.
"…Shield Trigger, Devil Hand. I destroy Crossfire the 2nd, Billionaire." Two hands clamped down on said creature, pulverizing it into dust, as the top 3 cards of Yoshika's deck went into her graveyard.
"Heh, you're not half bad. Maeterl, break her shields!"
The girl responded by flinging her chain and piercing one of the zombie's shields.
"…Shield Trigger. Inferno Sign." The shattered shield, reformed as a card, shone with a black light as Yoshika uttered the casting of the spell.
"Kuh…what a lucky zombie you are!" Marisa found herself irritated by this 1-in-40 chance.
"I revive a cost 7 creature from my graveyard. Come, Babelginus, Demonic Dragon." The Dragon Zombie and Grand Devil hybrid appeared, his dragon heads howling at Marisa. "I destroy himself with his effect, and bring out Truename Viva La Revolution from my graveyard."
The demonic Dragon exploded, and from the ash and smoke, rushed out the Dragon Zombie that had awakened to the power of emotions. With a particular skeletal appearance and large size even among Dragon Zombies. Marisa was a little unnerved by the creature's presence, but what worried her most was his effect.
"Before I trigger Viva La Revolution's effect, I activate Guljeneraid's effect in my graveyard." Marsia could faintly hear a trace of emotion in Yoshika's voice now. "When one of my dragons are destroyed, if Guljeneraid is in my graveyard, I can return him to the battle zone."
"Dragon of Nightmares, torment those who harm you with your undead body, and arise from Hell once more to wipe out the world!" Yoshika chanted. "Necrodragon Guljeneraid!"
"Wha…" Marisa almost fell over as the ground shook, and it took her some effort to stabilize herself again. A crack opened up beside the ground Yoshika was standing on, and from it, the Dragon of Nightmares returned to the world of living. Not one, but two Guljeneraids. Their bodies jet-black, foul ooze dripping down from their bodies, breath of poison coming out from their mouths.
"Kuh…! Reanimation!"
"Viva La Revolution's effect. Gachinko Judge!" The top decks of both players flipped themselves, revealing Romanoff the 1st, Demonic Eye on Yoshika's deck and Deepsea Typhoon on Marisa's deck.
"Since Romanoff the 1st has a higher cost than Deepsea Typhoon, I win this round. Next round. Ganchinko Judge!" Yoshika declared as the revealed cards placed themselves under the bottom of their respective decks.
Necrodragon Danchigai Fankigai and Maeterl, Beatiful Sunday.
"This is bad…" Marisa thought to herself as she lost once again.
"Third round! Ganchinko Judge!"
Duel Hero Atsuto and Scramble Typhoon.
Marisa breathed a sigh of relief. Her joy was not long lived, however.
"…For every Ganchinko Judge I win this way, I choose an opponent's creature, and it gets -4000 power this turn. I choose Crossfire, Wicked Millionaire. Since he has only 7000 power, he is destroyed." Yoshika's voice returned to the monotone that started since the beginning of the duel.
The Dragon Zombie lunged at Crossfire, crushing the Outrage in his jaws, and the shockwave that occurred due to Crossfire's demise nearly knocked Marisa backwards.
"…Turn End."
"I cast Scramble Typhoon. With its effect I draw five cards and discard three." The Jiang Shi fattened her grave and replenished her hand at the same time with a water spell.
"Battle. I attack your shields with Abayo Shabayo. But before that, Attack Chance. When one of my Dragon Zombies attack, I can cast this spell from my hand for no cost. Dragon Bone, Secret Technique of Wicked Dragon. I put Codename Yabasgil Skill into the battle zone from my graveyard."
The gigantic Dragon Zombie crashed down out of thin air, multiple mouths ready to devour his opponents.
"I'm not finished yet. I activate Yabasgil Skill's effect." Yoshika added. "I return Babelginus to my hand, and destroy Maeterl."
The large mouth on the Unknown Dragon Zombie's chest gaped wide open, and a beam of black chaos fired down on the targeted Outrage. Marisa could only watch as her creature was reduced to dust.
"Abayo Shabayo's shield break." The Unnoise smashed through Marisa's first shield as she braced herself against the impact.
"Guljenaraid, attack." The second and third of Marisa's shields were broken by an acidic breath.
"…No triggers." Marisa confirmed as the cards were added to her hand.
"Break the last of her shields, Guljeneraid."
The last of the magician's shields disappeared with a blast of acid.
"…Looks like this the end." Marisa muttered under her breath.
"Indeed it is." Yoshika agreed. "Viva La Revolution, Direct atta…"
"Shield Trigger! Ragnarok, The Clock!"
BGM: Once more, Hope the King of Wishes (YGO ZeXal Sound Duel 3)
"!"
"When The Clock is put into the battle zone, the rest of the turn is skipped." Marisa explained with a large grin as she tipped her hat. "It's my turn now!"
"I summon Crossfire, Wicked Millionaire with no cost again! Then since there are 9 creatures in my mana zone, I summon this guy with 3 mana!"
"The speed-star of the Outrages! No weakling shall stand in your might!" Marisa chanted. "5000GT, Riot!"
The dragonoid Outrage equipped with a buzzing round saw on its left arm materialized, slashing Abayo Shabayo and The Clock into oblivion as it did.
"When 5000GT is put into the battle zone, he eliminates all Psychic creatures and creatures under 5000 power!" Marisa explained as she readied her next move. "Battle, 5000GT, Triple Break!"
The Outrage shattered Yoshika's shields as he swung his arm.
"Shield Trigger. Necrodragon Odol Needle." Yoshika activated her defense. Or at least, she tried to. "!?"
"5000GT makes all players unable to summon creatures with power 5000 or less. This is the end! Crossfire, Direct Attack!"
With a loud cry, Crossfire blasted at the Jiang Shi, The ofuda on her head was blown away by the wind, and she lay on the floor, unmoving.
"Heh, so much for Dragon Zombies." Marisa taunted, "Oh well. New stuff is almost always better than antiques."
Leaving the immobilized Yoshika, Marisa flew towards the direction Reimu was headed towards.
"…What is your purpose? Why are you doing this?"Reimu interrogated the culprit.
"Arara, do you think I'd tell you that easily? Reimu-chan?"
Standing in front of the shrine maiden, was Kaku Seiga, the wicked hermit.
I suppose sharp-eyed readers can tell at once what card Reimu got from Yukari.
Yoshika: Dragon Zombie Reanimate
Marisa: FW Graveyard Source（赤青墓地ソース）