Chapter 5: The Border Between Realism and Spirituality
NOTE: This chapter starts a little before the end of the previous one.
Yukari smiled. Everything was going according to plan, especially with the faked kidnapping of herself in order to delude the others. After deceiving Reimu with her lies, she had finally acquired all the materials for the power transfer to take place. She hated lying to the miko, as Reimu was a nice friend, but one of the conditions for the ritual was that the power be given willingly. Finally, her scheme was at its climax. This will surely establish the isolation of Gensokyo completely, she told herself. It had come to her attention that humans were fragile, and that the Great Hakurei Barrier best be kept to an undying person, herself. As she finished the final preparations, Reimu asked a question. "Will this really work?" Yukari laughed. "Of course it will, my dear. After it's done, I'll even allow you to walk out freely. After all, it's all for the good of Gensokyo, anyway."
Reimu nervously gulped. "Okay." Yukari proceeded to pull out several musty tomes and beginning the chant, drawing symbols around the miko and herself. The chamber glowed with the power that was about to be transferred, and the walls shook as the final words were spoken. The raw energy emanated from both of their bodies, hovering in the air between them. As the transfer of power occurred, Yukari's spirit shined as Reimu's dulled on the plane of existence. Through the forbidden ritual, the whole of Gensokyo shook, buildings collapsed, rifts opened in the earth and everything was tainted with a faint purple glow. As the ceremony finished, the miko collapsed on the ground, now weak from the spirit tap. Yukari, on the other hand, was exploiting the limits of her newfound power, essentially granting her omnipotence through the combined power. A guttural roar echoed through the chamber as she fully grasped the power.
Marisa stopped. There was a horrific scene that made her forget about the culprit that she was pursuing. The whole of Gensokyo was toppled, with buildings toppled and pillars askew. In the countryside, massive ravines had spontaneously erupted, ruining the once smooth landscape. "I don't think this was here before," commented Marisa. Alice gazed in awe. "I think we have a larger problem at hand here." "Hey, look at this," Patchouli said. "Do you see a purple glow across the land? Assuming it's a spirit incident, this has something to do with Yukari." Alice was rather quizzical. "What do you mean by 'spirit incident'?" "Everyone has a spirit, a form of their pure existence on a certain planar level. As you perceive spirits, they take on a certain color, based on the person." Marisa nodded. "If this is true, it might have something to do with our situation. We'd better get on this case." The three agreed and quickly set out searching for the culprit.
Ran, gazing out at the destruction, realized that her master had returned. She quickly got Chen and quickly took her things, hoping to find her. Using her instincts, she found Yukari among the remnants of their house, literally pulsing with power. Ran shook her master. "Yukari? Come on, please answer me…" Yukari shook her head and slowly woke up from her meditation. "Ran, I need you to help you do some things for me."
Meanwhile, the trio located what seemed to be a chamber for a ritual. Upon inspecting the runes inscribed all over the site, Patchouli's face became grim. "It's as I suspected. These markings all have to do with spirituality. We are currently facing an enemy more powerful than ever before." Alice then confirmed that the power level to carry out such a project singlehandedly without detection would require astronomical levels of power, limiting the suspects to a select few. Marisa, however, spotted the limp body of Reimu lying at the gigantic circle's center. She called to Alice and Patchouli and hurriedly rushed over to her friend, who was laid on the ground. Alice quickly performed a body check. "Her physical body is fine, but her spirit is lacking. She only has a splinter of soul left before she becomes a husk of herself." Patchouli pondered the circumstances as Marisa wept over her unresponsive companion. Suddenly the ground shook and a mystical field of energy formed around them, trapping the three with Reimu. Alice's face became serious. "We've been lured into a trap."
Yukari laughed outside. "Indeed you have." "You… What have you done to Reimu?!" Marisa shouted. "I simply absorbed part of her spirit, that's all. She'll be fine after a while." Yukari smiled. "Although I do have a use for you three… Food." Patchouli trembled. "I think she's going to absorb us as well to add to her power." "Then we'd better fight this out," said Alice. Yukari watched them talk as she prepared her spells. "Let's start with you, Alice." As Patchouli and Marisa watched Alice go into battle against Yukari, Patchouli noticed something and quickly began to talk to Marisa with a frantic voice. Meanwhile, the battle raging above was not going well. Alice had at least hoped to stall enough for Patchouli's plan to work, but it seemed as if they didn't have enough time. Yukari was substantially stronger, and not playing by the rules. Alice gritted her teeth as she dodged lasers coming from gaps that opened in front of her. Guess I don't have to play fair as well, she thought. Using forbidden doll magic, she was able to temporarily distract Yukari with the clones that she summoned, but Alice could tell that this wasn't going to go like this forever.
As she speculated about the battle, Alice was completely oblivious to the Yukari that had gapped behind her and was preparing a spell. Too late did she notice, and Yukari had the chance to ensnare Alice in chains to bring her to the ground. As she lay on the ground, her breath knocked out of her lungs, Yukari walked up behind her and leaned down beside her ear. "You've gotten soft," she crooned, before slamming a ball of pure energy into her back and knocking the magician unconscious. Patchouli and Marisa looked on as Yukari ripped Alice's spirit from her body before consuming it, causing Yukari to glow with the additional power. Patchouli shakily rose and spoke her final words to Marisa before ascending to face the gap youkai. As Marisa watched Yukari slowly gain the upper hand, she considered what the two magicians had told her. It was a huge decision that she had to make, and as she pondered the consequences of the action, she gazed at Reimu, and how her decision would affect the closest childhood friend she had. As Patchouli fell and Marisa rose, her decision was finally set. It was time for her to discover who she really was.
What's Marisa going to do? Thanks for reading this far into my story! Please leave reviews as well! They really help me with my story!