Foreword: Hello everyone. It's been sometime since I last updated so I took the liberty of taking some free time and writing a new chapter. There's no duels this time but more focus on conversation and a plot. Hope you enjoy! Again, suggestions and comments are always welcome.
Touhou Duel Masters Cafe
Chapter 30 – Akashic Record
Seiga stared at a card in her hand, her latest victim. The illustration space showed a horrified face of Komeiji Satori, the expression she had the moment before she was turned into a piece of paper. The evil hermit smirked as she tucked the card into her clothes, and it joined the other cards, all of which were residents of Gensokyo transformed into cards. Taking a last look at the sky, Seiga disappeared off into the forest, looking for the next duelist to defeat.
Almost a week has passed since the starting of the tournament. Some of the participants have been staying at the top and kept on winning, among them Reimu, Marisa, Remilia and other top-rank duelists. The preliminary round was heating up as the stars started to shift towards the upper level.
"…These few days… There seems to be a report of some people going missing." Michael reported to his partner as he brewed some tea in the Hakurei Shrine. He let the leaves sit in the pot for a moment, and filled two small cups with the hot liquid.
"…Missing persons…" The white haired young man pushed his glasses, observing the steam rising from his cup as it vaporized and became one with the air. Fingering the cup to feel the heat, he lifted it to his lips when he deemed it warm enough to drink, and took a small sip. The tea moisturized his throat, and flowed down to warm his stomach. "Any specific people?"
Michael tapped on his duel orb, and a small semi-transparent screen was projected. "Keine-sensei…Aya…Nitori…that gatekeeper in front of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, what's her name again? Ah right…Meiling…and Satori." To this his fellow duelist frowned.
"How have they gone missing…? They should be able to hold themselves…given their skill in dueling and their special abilities." Jonathan wondered aloud. "There doesn't seem to be a pattern or something in common between them… Unless there's a greater force behind this…"
"Remember that Seiga hasn't been caught yet." His colleague reminded him after a sip of tea. "She might be related to this incident…directly involved or not. We need to go find out who did this and why."
"Hah… I wished that we could've passed this tournament without anything happening." Jonathan sighed, downing the last of his tea. "Let's get going then." Nodding, Michael finished his tea too and stood up, and the both of them soared into the blue sky to search for the culprit.
The egg yolk in the orange sky slowly crawled its way down the horizon, and the countless stars that littered the universe shone above Gensokyo, silently watching over its residents. Michael and Jonathan walked out of the Forest of Magic, their efforts ending in vain as they failed to catch anything that interests them or connects to the incident. Slightly dejected, Michael sighed, as something caught the corner of his eye. A fluttering dress that looked familiar, disappearing behind the trees. His mind flipped through his memory, and after recognizing the dress as the evil hermit's, he darted towards the location, finding nothing there.
"What's the matter?" Jonathan inquired as he caught up, momentarily confused as Michael suddenly ran off.
"Seiga…she's here somewhere." Michael replied, still looking around despite the lack of light. "Chi…" Casting a simple illumination spell he learned 10 years prior, he shone through the trees, but there was nothing to be found except silence and darkness. " …"
As Jonathan joined in the search, a breeze blew and something rustled behind them, catching their attention as they turned to face whatever that was there.
And there stood Seiga, her teal dress and blue hair flailing weakly in the wind, eyes filled with a mix of contempt and annoyance. "Hmph…so it's the outsider duo. I figured you'd have started to take action by now."
"…I'll take that as admitting you're part of this disappearance incident." Jonathan glowered at her.
"And what if I say I am?" Seiga replied nonchalantly, brushing though her hair as she fixed her sights on the duo.
"Then we beat the hell out of you and take back those missing. Where have you hidden them?" Michael replied in aggression.
"Oh, you mean these?" Seiga snickered, and scattered a few cards in front of them. It goes without saying that the both of them burst into anger after that, but only Jonathan was able to contain it properly.
Michael stumbled into the shrine, collapsing as soon as he set foot inside it, startling Jonathan, Reimu and Marisa, who have been waiting for him to return.
"Michael!" Reimu rushed towards him, and checked his breathing. It was fairly steady, but the young duelist had already slipped into unconsciousness, unaware of his surroundings. "He seems alright…but he's not awake right now." The shrine maiden towed him towards the other two, and Jonathan prepared a futon for Michael to lie on.
"…." Looking over his comrade worriedly, Jonathan noticed a small faint sign, resembling something that of the Zero Civilization symbol with a cross, shimmering on back of Michael's right hand, before it seemingly sank into his skin, disappearing from sight. "…Hah." Jonathan sighed.
"What is it?" Marisa asked, noticing Jonathan's change of expression, and deduced that he knew what had happened to his friend.
"He harnessed his hidden power, powered by his anger, to greatly boost his powers and luck during the duel." Jonathan explained. "It stems from the power of the soul, something exclusive to those in our old world. It also drains the user of his power, so using it wouldn't be a very wise choice normally. It's been quite some time since I've last seen him use it…but I can understand the intense rage he felt before and during the duel. I've felt it too, after all… But to see this anger, it's been more than a decade."
"So you could do that too?" The blonde magician continued to question, slightly intrigued by this power alien to her. Special abilities are not uncommon in Gensokyo, but it's the first time she has heard of a power boost limited to duels.
Jonathan nodded, affirming his ability to do the same. "But I've used it less than Michael, since the risks the quite. That said…with the pump in his emotion of anger…the overall power of Michael's ability might be stronger, but as a result conducts a larger strain on his body."
"…" Reimu turned to stare at the unconscious one. "Aren't you afraid? That this power might consume you one day if you use it too much, and you lose yourself."
"Of course we are." Jonathan answered, and refilled the 3 cups with warm tea from the teapot. "We are cowards. We are afraid of death, of being unable to protect what we should be able to protect…but more than anything, we are afraid of losing what we have finally grasped in our hands again, of what would happen to the ones we want to protect and the ones we love if we can't protect them. Would they be fine? Would they be able to hold out even with the sorrow of losing us? That fear exceeds our fear of using that power… That is why we choose to use it at times."
Silence enveloped the three of them as the words sank into the girls' hearts. It was then that a gap opened, and Yukari, a solemn look on her face, walked out of it, with Ran, Remilia, Sakuya and Mokou following behind her.
"Everyone…" The 3 turned to face the group of women as the gathered around the table too, and Yukari spread out the cards she had received from Jonathan earlier.
"Well…" Yukari started. "I went to Eientei's, and it seems that reverting them to normal would not be impossible."
"But?" The crimson lord pressed on. "I don't suppose it's that simple, gap youkai." To which Yukari nodded and continued.
"The energy from these cards seem to have been absorbed some way or another…so if forcibly returned in this state, their life energy might be depleted and they will disappear."
"Chi… That evil hermit." The white-haired immortal girl clicked her tongue in contempt. "Even Keine's trapped in that card… I won't forgive her for this."
"I can't sit idle either when my gatekeeper is in this state." Remilia said, as Sakuya reheated the pot with hot water and poured everyone present some tea. "I see that as a declaration of war on the Scarlet Devil Mansion." A hint of suppressed anger appeared in her composed tone. "Flan was worried about Meiling…and now that we know what happened to her, we will definitely return her to normal and crush the evil hermit with all our might."
Jonathan took a sip of tea. "That said, what's the purpose of extracting energy from these people? What is Seiga trying achieve with this energy? It's probably best that we know what she's up to."
"Saa… What I do know is that I'll beat her up, then we'll know what she's planning." Reimu replied.
"Haha, as expected of Reimu." Her blonde friend chuckled at her response.
" It seems that Michael has won a duel against her, but seeing he's this exhausted, it would be possible that she has escaped once again after the duel." Ran deduced. "She probably planned to discarded these cards once she extracted energy from them anyway too. We would've to look out for her again, and sadly Komeiji Satori has been reduced to this form…and there's no way to know the details until he wakes up."
"Hah… It's the first time I've seen him collapse from fatigue." Mokou remarked, recalling her memories a decade prior. "Mah…With that body of his, it's no surprise. But what happened?"
Jonathan explained to the crowd again regarding his ability, which ties in to his exhaustion.
"Hm. That's an interesting ability." Remilia commented as she drank some tea. "A boost during duels…but with a price. Not something you'd like to use all the time."
"Exactly." Jonathan nodded. "We haven't used it once since we came to Gensokyo…but now he's finally used it again. I don't know if that's going to be a good thing in the long run…but now that he's already used it, I can't say much."
"I have already noticed the more prominent figures about this carding of residents and the involvement of Seiga." Ran informed. "There should be a large scale search and caution of her, so she won't be able to hide along, whatever she is planning."
"What about the Taoists?" Marisa asked. "They're supposed to be a group aren't they?"
"Toyosatomimi no Miko has expressed that she has no relation to this incident. It is entirely a personal action of the evil hermit, and not of her highness." Ran said. "There is the possibility of her lying…but she is not the person to do so, so that probably eliminates the chances of her covering up for Seiga."
"Hmph. I will personally crush her with my deck." The scarlet demon clutched her small fist. "She taunted our authority and might, and in the name of Scarlet, I will not back down from a challenge."
"Ojou-sama."
"It's alright, Sakuya. I'm fine." Remilia dismissed her maid's concerns with a slight wave of her hand. "…Just that…I cannot forgive a challenge like this."
"…" Yukari spoke again. "Whatever the case, we shall find out what is Seiga's purpose while on the search for her. If we are prepared then we will be able to tackle this incident more properly, since we do have less manpower…" She eyed the cards on the table. "And we may not have much time."
"Chi…" Mokou stood up, clicking her tongue again. "I'll go back and watch over the village. Can't have anything bad going on while Keine's gone. The guard team isn't going to hold if something happens. Jaa na. Tell Michael I sent my regards." Sticking her hands into her pockets, the immortal took off into the night sky and soon disappeared into the darkness.
"…I'm sure Mokou would be able to take care of the village." Jonathan murmured as he watched her leave.
"We can't let our guard down. You might have defeated her before, but these people who have been carded have a reasonable amount of strength too, so it would be best to not underestimate her." The nine-tailed fox shikigami advised. "If Michael had to resort to using that ability of his, then her power has probably increased by a certain amount too."
"…" The shrine maiden turned her eyes towards the unconscious duelist and pursed her lips. Indeed, even if he was in an enraged state, if he had to use his ability, then how much stronger has Seiga gotten to force him to do so?
But she is the Hakurei Shrine Maiden, the peacekeeper of this land. She cannot back down from a challenge like this, one that threatens the safety of her home. It is her duty to maintain the peace and balance of Gensokyo, no matter how powerful her adversary is. And if her friends are hurt, it gives her all the more reason to pummel Seiga to the ground with everything she has without mercy. The girl could almost feel her blood boil, but she quelled her anger and shook her head. She had to keep her cool.
"Maa ii." Remilia stood up too. "It's late already for you humans. You should get some rest. I'll return to the Scarlet Devil Mansion and consult with Patchy about our next actions. Sakuya."
The maid bowed, and the next second she produced a small tin can seemingly out of thin air, thanks to her ability to stop time.
"This is some high grade Earl tea. You can have a taste of it together once Michael wakes up. And tell him I sent my regards too. I don't think it's necessary…but you all be careful too." With that, the vampire spread her wings and flew off into the darkness, followed by her maid who bowed once again to the remaining assembly before taking into the air.
"Very well then. I will give these cards to Eirin for the time being for safekeeping. She'll be able to take care of their conditions." Yukari gathered up the scattered cards on the table. "You should all get some rest then. Be alert." With a wave of her hand, a gap slit through the air and the Yakumos walked through it, disappearing as the gap closed behind them.
"…" Silence once again enveloped the shrine once the two youkai left.
"…Well, we should go home then." Marisa opened her mouth to speak after another moment.
"Yeah." Jonathan stood up. "Reimu. You be careful too."
The shrine maiden nodded in return, and the two departed back to the Forest of Magic.
Two days passed after that night. The preliminary round ended with the usual top ranking duelists advancing to the finals, but with the imminent threat of the evil hermit, it was clear that most of the finalists were not as enthusiastic to finish the match now, and thus it was postponed until the incident on hand was solved.
Michael had awoken from his slumber later that morning, but the fatigue still plagued him and he could hardly walk around freely, let alone work or join in the search for Seiga. Expressing his regret, he could only let the others solve the incident while he stayed in the shrine and took care of it while Reimu was out.
With a widespread search, it was not long before the evil hermit was cornered by a group of residents, who intended to punish her for her deeds. She stood before the small crowd, unfazed by the pressure she faced, with Yoshika by her side.
"Kaku Seiga." Remilia stood under her parasol, a threatening gaze in her crimson eyes. "I believe you're fully aware of what you have done. Your treatment of my gatekeeper is a direct challenge to the Scarlet Devil Mansion…and to me."
"Of course I am. I have my reasons to do this." Seiga replied as she twirled her blue hair. "I do not make actions that serve no actual purpose."
"Then what's your purpose for creating chaos during the Shangri-La incident and turning people into cards and taking their energy?" Marisa demanded, as she prepared her deck. "I'm all ready to give you a good beating to pry that out of your mouth."
"No, black-white. She's my prey." Remilia stopped the magician.
"Hmph." Mokou stuck her hands into her pockets. "I'm perfectly fine with burning her with fire…"
"Seiga-san!" Sanae called out to the evil hermit. "Please tell us why you're doing this!"
Jonathan stood idle, but cautiously as he fixed his gaze on Seiga, while Sakuya was silent as she held the parasol for her master, but her hand twitched ever so slightly as she resisted the temptation to reach for her knives under her skirt.
"Hmph… Alright, I shall tell you the reason for doing this." Seiga snapped her fingers, and a small sphere of light materialized, floating on top of her palm.
"…!" Marisa focused on that sphere of light, realizing what it was.
Reimu folded her arms. "…I suppose that's the energy you extracted from your victims."
"Correct." The hermit affirmed. "I've collected this energy for a purpose, after I discovered something prior to the Shangri-La incident."
She went on. "Before that incident, I've taken hold of knowledge that this world is coming to an end in the near future."
"Hah? The world is ending? Don't make me laugh." Remilia scoffed. "Where did you get that knowledge from, anyway?"
"A certain otherworldly traveler." Seiga replied. "I don't suppose that's out of bounds, considering one is standing before us." She fixed her sights on Jonathan.
"…" Jonathan remained silent at this.
"You see, the universe contains multiple worlds. However, containing all of them requires an absurd amount of energy. Thus, some worlds are destined to crumble away at some point. That previous world Jonathan was in…it might have met its end that way."
"….How did you know?"
"I have my ways. Either way, this world is going to end sometime soon according to that traveller. I do not know how, but I can tell that it was not a lie. Thus, I'm gathering these energies to reach my goal."
"Which is?"
"To reach the Akashic Record and overwrite this world's destiny." She replied.
"Akashic Record…?" The girls looked at each other, without knowledge of what it was.
"Akashic Record…an idea proposed by Madam Balavtsky during the 19th century." Jonathan answered their question. "A set of records, events, thoughts and such encoded into a non-physical plane of existence that defines the world."
"Exactly." Seiga smiled. "I'm surprised that you know of it, but that saves the time of me explaining. But to put it easily…the Akashic Record controls the fate of this world. And by overwriting it, I can change the fate of this world that is spiraling towards destruction."
"And you need to extract energy from people to reach that?" Remilia pressed on.
"Yes. During the attack on the Moriya Shrine previously – I apologize for that – I learnt that a combination of divine power and life energy would be able to grant access to the Akashic Record, if only for a brief moment. But that would be able to save this world from certain collapse." Seiga said. "I took the liberty of taking some fragments of the Moriya Shrine, imbued with the divine power of the two gods that reside there, and combined them with the energy I took from the residents I defeated to form this mass of energy. Thus I will be able to access the Akashic Record for a short moment."
"And that justifies turning people into cards?" Sanae pressed.
"The ends justifies the means." Seiga retorted. "To prevent the collapse of this world, temporarily taking the life energy of someone is low price."
"Kuh…"
"You do not need to worry; since I'm the one dirtying my hands here to ensure the survival of this world." Seiga continued. "It is enough that I carry this burden and sin alone."
"And now…I shall finish this job." The sphere glowed in her hand, letting off a bright gleam of light.
"Hey, wait…!" The light overwhelmed the crowd, and everything turned white.