Touhou belongs to Team Shanghai Alice. So do concepts, characters and everything else you have experienced while playing the game, except the dishes. Here's another man who wants to use his ideas for a story.

Half an hour into the performance and Mystia knew that everything was going according to plan. The audiences were enthralled with both vocalist and orchestra, giving an honest applause at the end of every song. Mystia Lorelei was done with her third song and so stood at a far side of the stage while the Margatroid Doll Orchestra performed a complicated instrumental piece of their own.

Yes, we should have been here from the start, Mystia thought to herself as Alice Margatroid began the first segment of Four Seasons. Music is the strongest form of magic, the wine that fills the cups of silence, and the key to the tightest closed heart. Through music as a language, one can express something even a metaphorical portrait worth a thousand words may not paint right.

Alice, through her instrumental performance, is calling out to everyone here in Japan in the universal language. I can feel it, the call to unite with each other once again. Her performance, even on the piano itself while conducting the entire orchestra, is strong-willed and genuine, mirroring the struggles of her life for the past decade and more.

What about myself? I lived a sheltered life here. Others might say that I worked for my own success, but would any of these be real if that man hadn't found me on the streets twelve years ago? I have been depending on others; none of these are truly my own doing.

Even Kokoro has a hand in this, or I wouldn't be standing on the stage in one of the most prestigious theaters in Japan.

I guess… the only motivation I had for coming so far… is you. I would like to think that you are sitting among the audience, with the rest of our fallen friends, watching the performance and enjoying yourselves. This is the least I can do to repay you.

…

…

"… Mystia?" Alice hissed across the stage, trying to get the Night Sparrow's attention.

"Uh?"

"Your next performance!"

"Oh? Oh!" Mystia managed to knock herself out of her reverie and return to the center of the stage. Right… so my next song would be… oh, that. The one that both Kokoro and I had been working our butts off for three straight days and nights.

After greeting the audience again and announcing her next song, she turned to Alice, who returned the gesture with a nod, signaling that she was ready, and began singing her only Japanese song.

Snore…

Pffff…

Snore…

Pffff…

*pattering of soft feet*

Snore…

Pffff…

"NYAAA!" Chen pounced at the sleeping figure on the small bed, intending to wake her master up in the most frightful manner ever. "Wake up, Ran! Yukari's calling!"

Snore…

Pffff…

Yakumo Ran continued to sleep even as Chen began shaking her body, almost to the point creaking could be heard from the large bed, possibly stolen through a gap from the Scarlet Devil Mansion by Yukari and given to her shikigami. The bed was definitely nowhere as comfortable as Yukari's, but it still provided an overworked kitsune a good night's sleep without fail.

Of course, Chen was barely more than a third of her size, and so when the nekomata pounced on the sleeping figure, Ran barely registered her presence in her sleepy brain. It had been a long night for her, doing all the work for Yukari while the ever-sleeping youkai slept, literally. She could have used Chen's help, but knowing her uselessness in doing chores, she had done everything by herself.

It was an everyday occurrence for Ran; Yukari would sleep for more than three quarters of the day off while she slaved away, maintaining boundaries and cleaning the mansion while making sure Chen didn't break anything or cause enough mischief to wake her master up. Only when Yukari's 'breakfast' was done with would she finally hit the bed, exhausted beyond belief, despite being one of the strongest youkai around.

And as usual, Chen had to wake her up, always four hours after she fell asleep, which was about the time Yukari would be heading off to bed. However, it was different this time; the nekomata knew Ran had only went to bed half an hour ago, but under Yukari's orders, she was to wake her master up. "Wake up! Wake up, Ran, wake up!" she continued tugging her both Ran's fluffy tails and her covered ears.

"Uhhh…" the kitsune moaned, but otherwise failed to awaken from her deep slumber.

"YUKARI! RAN REFUSES TO WAKE UP!"

Five seconds later, a lazy voice responded to the call. "Alright, alright, I heard you, Chen, let me handle this."

There was silence in the bedroom for ten seconds, then Ran, in the midst of a dream about having a wonderful holiday all alone somewhere in Gensokyo, suddenly felt herself cannoned directly into the air before her face smashed into the ceiling. Wincing in pain, her eyes flew open and, on instinct, looked below her.

Bad move. Instead of her bed, she found herself looking into a tub of water and before being able to react or even yelp, descended deep into the tub, soaking her totally, the impact forcing water into her wide-opened eyes. Yukari strikes again!

Yukari, while being the responsible boundary manipulator, also had tendencies to play pranks, almost as horrible as those played by fairies, on her shikigami whenever she was bored. The bored youkai had apparently jumped into Ran's bed, the resulting impact sending the kitsune flying into the air and, using a gap, teleported the descending body into a prepared bath tub in the adjoining bedroom.

"YUKARI!" Ran's screams from the bathroom could be heard in the bedroom as she trashed around in the bath tub. Cruel laughter rang throughout the entire mansion. Not bothering to change out of her nightwear or even dry herself, she climbed out of the tub and furiously stormed her way to Yukari's room, her nine tails leaving wet rivers of water as if they were mopping the ground. "YUKARI! You had a good night's sleep, have some pity on your humble subject who works all day-"

"Save that for later, Ran. We've got bigger things to worry."

How long has it been, Reimu?

Remember when we first met in this village? That danmaku battle we had in front of nobody? I think that was the last time we really met, wasn't it? Between then and now, so many things changed. Yukari slept more, Chen's growing up fine, although still the useless kitty you beat up those years ago.

I think… maybe it would have been better if we had never met? I was enthralled by your superior powers when we met at the border that morning, so much that I was relieved I wasn't the last hope if doomsday strikes. Never in my nine hundred years have I seen such latent raw power in a human, much less a miko! All along I had thought only both me and Yukari held the positions as the strongest in the land.

Then came along that little oni who always wandered the surface of Gensokyo, instead of staying underground. Another beacon of strength, don't you see? My eyes are opening; there is so much more beyond Mayohiga, Yukari, Chen and myself. The beauty of the world that Yukari slept through her life, the 'decadent' shrine of yours that the doll maker used to speak about, even the Saigyou Ayakashi that never bloomed.

Probably unknown to you, but I have been to your shrine numerous times, especially those flower-viewing seasons. The air was so fresh, I was afraid I would simply want to move out of Mayohiga and stay with you. Of course that wasn't to be; I'm bound to Yukari, and you can't have youkai living with you. Sometimes I wonder how it would be to be your shikigami, but then again, you don't practice such arts.

So… Yukari told me that you asked her a question: why am I also a Yakumo?

That's… that's a really hard question, way beyond my calculations and sizable knowledge. Yukari probably just added me into her family line without a second thought. I'm just a kitsune who has grown beyond the fabled nine hundred years with nine tails to boot, literally; Yukari loves using those tails to pull pranks (no pun intended), not to mention another troublesome Chen.

So it's simply just us three forming up a Yakumo family in Gensokyo, all living under one roof. What else can we call ourselves if not a family, then?

All around the trio, fires consumed everything in its wake and the ceiling of the Voile was crumbling, sending chunks down in a deadly rain of stone and sand. Curtains that had once adorned the windows were licked up by tongues of flame, revealing a crimson and smoked-filled sky beyond the walls of the library; Gensokyo's darkest day had arrived.

"I'm sorry, but we don't have time to let you rest," Ran apologized as she lifted the wounded librarian up and cradled her in her arms. "We got to get out of here before-"

"Wait!" Flandre Scarlet tugged the shikigami's sleeves. "Where is Big Sister?"

"…"

"…"

"…" Ran began picking her way gingerly across the scattered debris littered on the floor, a spell work laid on her clothes preventing any burning debris from damaging her clothes. Her orders had been simple: evacuate any survivors she encountered to Mayohiga on foot, the skies being too dangerous and irradiated for flight.

The Scarlet Devil Mansion had not been the first target; many other buildings all across Gensokyo suffered similar, if not worse, fates. Before arriving at the mansion, which was her last destination in her dedicated list of venues, she had been searching for survivors at the Human Village, only to find Fujiwara no Mokou frantically searching for someone herself when they had met at the gates. Apparently Mokou had not been able to find whoever she had been looking for and so refused to follow Ran back to Mayohiga, although she promised to head over once she was done, bringing along anybody else that she could find.

The Forest of Magic had been next, and for once, she was glad to see Kirisame Marisa still in one piece, together with Alice Margatroid and later on, Mystia Lorelei, who had been alone. Marisa had obviously gotten into a fight with Usutho just above the forest, as could be seen from the large number of fallen trees and burning craters, including one cylindrical shaped gap of missing trees in one direction, the probable result of a Master Spark. The witch was leaning onto the puppeteer, herself burnt in some places, for support, a telltale sign of an exhausting battle with the hell raven.

Mystia had apparently been frightened to the point she could not speak or even move, her face drained of any colors that she once had. Seeing that there was nothing else she could have done for them, Ran contacted Yukari through telepathy and soon enough, Yukari appeared through a gap and told them to enter, Ran herself taking ground-hugging flight towards her next destination: Scarlet Devil Mansion.

When she had arrived at the mansion, the usual gatekeeper Hong Meiling was missing from her post; the entire mansion was shrouded in pyre, smoke from the burning creating black clouds to the already smoke-filled skies. The clock tower had been smashed and most of the rooms had their windows already shattered, probably by some explosion from a fierce battle above the mansion.

The chief maid of the mansion, Izayoi Sakuya, was also missing when Ran entered the mansion, which itself was a nightmare of fallen beams and pools of inferno. It was her first time entering the mansion, but somehow she found her way into the library and, after noticing a dead succubus crushed beneath a floor-high shelf, detected elemental magic energies swirling weakly around the area, which enabled the shikigami to find Patchouli Knowledge, also buried under shelves, but alive thanks to the way the shelves collapsed on her.

After being pulled out, Patchouli had informed the kitsune of another survivor deeper in the mansion grounds: the younger sister of Remilia, Flandre Scarlet. Breaking the seals on the door with whatever magical energies left in her, Patchouli collapsed into Ran's arms as the door opened, revealing the last survivor of the attack on the mansion.

Ran had heard stories about the supposedly insane younger Scarlet devil, but Flandre had apparently been none of that when she first saw the timid kid emerging from her confined room. Beckoning her to follow, she had made her way back up to the surface.

"Who did this to my home?" Flandre asked while following the kitsune.

"A bird. A very large and mean bird," Ran replied. "But don't worry, we are going to repair this place. Meanwhile, I've got somewhere for you and your sister to stay in." She knew it was a lie, but she thought it better not to tell Flandre what exactly had happened. Once out of the burning structure, Ran contacted Yukari again, who had just evacuated some survivors from elsewhere in Gensokyo. The youkai sage appeared in her usual fashion and this time Ran followed through, having completed her assigned locations.

Yukari said that it was all her fault.

She did not show it, but she is very upset about your accident underground. She kept repeating that she had fallen asleep while waiting for you to finish your mission, and that she must have missed your cries for help. I still do not fully understand what had happened, but Yukari simply told me of this plan that both of you had came up with some years ago.

Apparently, in the event that Gensokyo can no longer support our existences, Yukari would try to bring whoever she can to the Outer World, where she has some large mansion capable of holding all of us. I don't know if that is true, but you probably knew better, seeing that you were also involved in the planning. A boundary tunnel between Gensokyo and the Great Hakurei Barrier, from what I know, was complicated to conjure for even Yukari herself to travel, so I can imagine what she had to do for an evacuation of this proportion.

Before she did that, she had both Chen and myself gathered in her room and began giving us our orders. All of us, including Yukari herself, were to split up and search various locations for survivors, Yukari bearing the largest share of the list, since she was able to instantly find her way through her manipulation of gaps. I knew it was not the right time to hesitate, but I questioned Yukari's decision to split both Chen and I, fearing that Chen would not have been able to fend for herself should Usutho strike while her distance from me was too great.

I could not offer an alternative, owing to the fact that we had only so much time with so many able-bodied persons available, so we had to stick to the plan. Chen immediately set off for Youkai Mountain while I went to my allocated share of Gensokyo.

Once we found someone, each of us were to evacuate the survivors to a safe area before contacting Yukari through our telepathic powers to have them transported directly to Mayohiga.

There had been no visible survivors at the first few places on the list, and I was fearing that all that had survived were Yukari, Chen and myself, but my hopes rose when I encountered the immortal at the gates of the Human Village.

She claimed to be looking for that were-hakutaku Kamishirasawa Keine and would not even consider leaving the area until she found Keine. I had no time to persuade her, so I left Mokou to her devices, but not before making her promise to make her way to Mayohiga as soon as she could. I only prayed that she could find the person she was looking for; the Human Village had looked completely gutted from inside out.

It had been a long afternoon of searching, and all whom I found were simply people we had met, be it once or on a common basis: Marisa, Alice, Mystia, Patchouli and Flandre.

I am really tired.

Very, very tired.

I haven't had much sleep in the past month, and this conveniently happened today. Here I am, back in Mayohiga, catching a much needed break while constantly trying to comfort those who had physically or mentally broken down despite being alive.

I wonder where that silly nekomata of mine is right now. All I ca- *words become illegible*

"Raaaaaaaaaaan!" a familiar voice shouted her name. "You gotta help me!"

Yakumo Ran jolted up from her curled-up position under a tree, her ears turning in the direction of the voice like a radar dish. Turning her head in that same direction, she saw an exhausted Chen dragging somebody through Mayohiga's gates. Some of the survivors got up from their seated positions on the open ground to help, but Ran had gotten there first.

"Sanae was all that I could find, Ran…" Chen explained her situation as she tried to catch her breath before falling, bottom first, onto the ground. "Yukari did not come for me, Usutho attacked us while I was leading the way and-"

Damn you, Yukari! "What matters is that you are alright, Chen," the kitsune hugged her shikigami tight, releasing after a short while. From the corners of her eye, she saw Youmu carrying an unconscious Sanae to Alice, who had her dolls try to resuscitate the miko, the Lunarian pharmacist Eirin assisting in the efforts.

Turning around, she counted the number of survivors who had made it to Mayohiga so far. The numbers are not great. Just how did Usutho wipe us out in mere hours? At least Yuuka made it here, a testament of rumors of how strong that sunflower youkai is, but I don't see that Mokou around. And while Youmu is here, I don't see Yuyuko.

I can feel Yukari's continued presence here. Does this mean she was also done with evacuations? Are these really all who had survived?

Some cries of relief were heard, causing everyone around the area to look; Mokou had arrived in Mayohiga, Kawashiro Nitori and the Aki sisters following closely. None of them looked to be injured in any way, but the kappa had looked ill, even though she seemed relieved to have made it to Mayohiga alive. Shortly after, the annoying crow tengu Aya showed up, along with some faces that Ran did not recognize except for one very drunk and short oni.

The newly arrived all spoke of how they managed to escape the hell raven's onslaughts with either sheer luck or simply acting dead, while noting that the latter was especially effective for some reasons, probably due to being easily fooled. There were some other things about Usutho that were being said, but Ran's brain was already turning their voices away, her sleep-deprived weariness creeping its way back.

"Ran," somebody from behind said as Ran felt a poke in her ribs, jolting her wide awake again.

"WHAT THE… Oh, Yukari?"

"You sure are jumpy today," the youkai sage commented in her usual tone. Curious eyes were looking in their direction, but turned away shortly after.

"Try sleeping for only half an hour after twenty hours of work," the kitsune replied dryly. "Haven't you got work to do?"

"That's harsh, Ran," Yukari pouted, flicking her paper fan open and covering half of her face. "I just came to check on my dearest shikigami. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"The deal," Ran growled in a lower tone. "Don't forget the deal we had."

"Of course," Yukari still hid behind her fan. "You have been waiting centuries for this, haven't you?"

"Yes."

"Fair enough. Keep your side of the bargain and I will keep mine."

"Really? Like how you ignored Chen's call for help while she was in the Youkai Mountain?"

"I was busy."

As usual.

"For somebody who has always complained that her shikigami is useless in everything, you really seem to care about Chen," Yukari commented.

She's actually right, I found myself defending Chen more with each time that she gets me into trouble with Yukari. Chen is simply my shikigami, I wonder what is making me protect her so much. It isn't as if she is my own daughter, but… I don't know. "Hmph. Remind me what I have to do for you to keep your side of the bargain."

"Other than the 'get us the hell out of here' part?" Yukari joked. "Don't you trust me, Ran?"

"Just making sure, since this deal greatly affects me. Well, may I catch some sleep now? There's nothing else to do."

Yukari flicked her fan and it closed in a loud snap. "Not like you can help me with the spell work, for once. Wished I could let you, but you know, the-"

"I get the picture," Ran turned her back on her master, something which she had never dared before, but after agreeing to the deal, she no longer cared. If I disobey Yukari, I get into trouble. If I don't get enough rest for this, I might get into more trouble. Either ways, I'm pretty much in trouble already.

Looking around Mayohiga, everyone else was either sitting in small groups and chatting quietly or simply leaning against whatever they were nearest to and, in some cases, were sleeping their fatigue off. Alice was still busy prodding her dolls around, Marisa had gotten into an argument with Yuuka over the ownership of 'Spark' while Youmu was leaning against a tree alone and staring into the sky.

Let's see… Chen's still helping Eirin, and I can tell, even from this distance, that the Lunarian pharmacist didn't really need her help. Part of the evacuation plan for Chen is for her to simply assist others in any way she could, be it moving stuff or comforting others. I know that she can't really be totally trusted to work on her own, but nothing seems wrong… for now.

Once Yukari is done opening the portal, both Chen and I would guide the rest of them out of Mayohiga to somewhere near the Sanzu Lake, behind Mayohiga, which is where the weakest boundary between Gensokyo and the Outer World lies. Mayohiga is simply a staging area for the survivors to gather before we move off, as one, out of this place.

An irradiated world wouldn't really harm us youkai much, but things would change. We could simply abandon the humans, but without them, Gensokyo would be totally different from what it has been all these centuries. Imagine a world without that thief… well, I bet even Patchouli would be happier without her.

But then again, this 'Usutho" that Yukari mentioned, the murderer of the Hakurei miko… who exactly is that? I personally have never heard of that name once, how could somebody unknown suddenly burst from beneath the ground and burn this land down?

Anyway, from what I have seen with my own eyes, everywhere else in Gensokyo is burnt down. I don't think anyone else is still alive out there, but we will continue to wait until Yukari is ready.

Yukari… she's acting differently now. It only took half an hour to turn her from her usual self to somebody who couldn't hold herself anymore. During the planning in her room, she didn't have that commanding tone she would always use on me when giving orders. It was a tone that I haven't heard her used before, something akin to worry.

Even though I hate the way I was treated by her, I still wonder why she would even feel guilty for anything. The last straw came when Chen left the room; Yukari offered me the deal. It definitely wasn't something I would ever dream of her saying, but it happened.

The deal… for my freedom. No more shikigami contract, no more unconditional loyalty to her.

I am free to go, either with her to the Outer World, where she promised to allow me to stay with her if I wanted, or go on our separate ways. The catch? I was to simply assist her in this final mission, all the way until we reached the Outer World, where our contract with each other will end.

Easy does it, I agreed without hesitation. There was no trickery, no other underlying conditions or regulations. The deal was on.

Even if it's Yukari that I am dealing with.

A shout of warning pierced through the air; Yakumo Ran leapt up from her sleeping spot on the grass as if she had been struck by lightning. A severe wave of ache immediately shot up in her forehead, causing her vision to blur temporary. A quick shake of the head and rubbing on the back of her head solved the problem, and she was already on her way to the direction of the shout.

Chen was at Mayohiga's entrance, pointing up at the sky, with some others also running towards her. When Ran turned her head up, she saw what Chen had seen, heading towards Mayohiga at high speeds. Her hands curled into tight balls on their own will. She's here. She's finally here.

"Chen," Ran released one hand and placed it on the nekomata's shoulder. "Lead everyone out of Mayohiga towards the River, I will deal with this. Get Yukari to hurry up."

"But Ran, Usutho has already seen us! We won't be able to get that far!"

If Usutho could level Gensokyo in a day, she could probably wipe us out in seconds, but…

For Chen.

This is for Chen.

For Chen, I will do it. "I will buy us some time," Ran said.

"What? You aren't ser-"

"Get out of here before it's too late. I will catch up."

"But Ra-"

"GO!" Ran roared at her younger charge, loud enough to cease all movement in the village and turning eyes on the duo.

Chen visibly shrank at her master's commanding tone. "B… b.. but…" her voice quivered as she dared to defy the order once more.

Ran herself began to feel guilty for shouting at her shikigami. Deep down she knew she had loved Chen more than anything else, but she also knew that she had a job to do. And a bargain to keep. Reaching down to Chen's height, she pulled the nekomata towards her and embraced with eyes closed, whispering into her ear. "Listen Chen, I will catch up with you later. All I need now is for you to get them out of here, alright?"

Chen did not respond verbally but returned the hug, nodding slowly.

"Once we are out of here, I have a surprise for you. You do love surprises, don't you?"

"… yes…"

"Good. It will be a good one, I promise."

"Promise?"

"Promise. Now go."

Pushing herself away from Chen, Ran turned around, only to find herself staring into the face of Fujiwara no Mokou. "Oi," Mokou grinned. "That was touching, you know?"

"…"

"Look here, fox, there's no way you are doing this alone," Mokou said, her smile still on her face.

"I have to, Mokou, I have to do this."

"Then I'm doing this, too."

"You don't need to, Mokou."

The smile left. "No?"

"Just follow Chen and you will be safe."

Mokou suddenly exploded into a fiery bath of light, blinding the kitsune in her face. She used her arms to cover her eyes immediately, and when she had lowered them seconds later, she was staring at a winged immolated legendary creature floating slightly above her eye level. Two patches of small fires burnt where Mokou's legs were last standing on the ground, the grass around them already burnt to crisps.

With each flap of the wings, which seemed not to be the main mechanism for the creature's flight, Ran felt the scorching heat emanating, but not enough to send her scurrying away in a hurry to prevent herself from being burnt. The heat waves were strangely gentle and welcoming, almost like one who was in front of a fireplace during the harsh winter season of Gensokyo.

The body had tendrils of fire for feathers, the pair of sharp claws beneath radiated fire as well. The head was of a bird and the eyes shone as bright as the sun itself. When it opened its beak to speak, it was, however, the voice of the person who had stood in front of Ran just moments ago. "I found her."

Ran didn't need to guess what the creature was referring to. "I have to assume the worst, since she isn't with you."

"I swore to protect everyone with my fists," the creature's talons curled into themselves in an effort to form a human fist.

"Fire," the immolation on the creature amplified ten-fold to emphasize the word.

"And my immortality," the creature was soon bathed in its own fire, crumbling down to ashes on the grass. As Ran stared for a couple of seconds, she detected a mass swirling of divine energy forming in front of her, centering at where Mokou used to stand.

In another explosion of light and fire, the creature was reborn whole.

"They say that one is strongest when she strives to protect the one person she cares for," Ran repeated the idiom.

"Yet I wasn't there for her when she needed me. Nor was I there when the village needed me."

"So you seek to atone for your failure, Mokou?"

With a sky-piercing screech, the creature made a wide berth dive around the kitsune and, with its physics-defying wings, soared into the skies of Gensokyo towards Usutho. So it's true, Ran thought to herself. Mokou indeed is possessed by the spirit of a phoenix. But what does she intend to accomplish?

The phoenix soared like a flaming arrow on a crash course into Usutho's flight path. From a distance, it wasn't clear if Usutho even noticed something was heading for her as she continued in ignorant bliss of the danger below her. As the phoenix neared its target, the immolation intensified as it had just before rebirth.

With another shattering screech, the phoenix collided with the hell raven in a ball of flame akin to a supernova. Ran could even feel the effects of the collision as she struggled to maintain her balance. Abandoned huts behind her in Mayohiga vibrated, some even collapsing onto themselves. A few curses were heard from the remaining survivors and Ran heard one of them cheering for Mokou. "Give it to her!"

With Usutho evidently preoccupied with dealing with Mokou's rude interruption in her peaceful flight, Ran turned her attention to the evacuation, which was still ongoing. Some of the unconscious ones had to be helped by others, some themselves already injured during their own escape to Mayohiga, further hindering the evacuation speed.

Maybe this will go as planned, Ran thought to herself as she ushered some other youkai whom she had never met before towards the direction of the river. Mokou probably can hold her own ground, and when it's done, I will just need to come back for-

A loud explosion roared behind her in the sky, forcing them to turn their heads again; a flaming fireball was descending at terminal velocity towards them, the hell raven still floating triumphantly in the sky.

Ran stopped in her tracks, her lips closed tightly into a line. Faith in humanity minus one.

Ordering the rest of them to continue moving through the village, Ran dashed towards the front gates of Mayohiga, where she leapt into the air before ascending into the air, headed for Usutho as Mokou's flaming body hurtled towards the direction of the river. Looks like it's now up to me.

Usutho, who was at least a couple of minutes away from Mayohiga, again looked to be ignorant of the approaching kitsune as she set her eyes on her destination ahead.

This wouldn't do! At this rate, she's going to simply avoid me and attack Mayohiga instead. Braking in midair, Ran took a deep breath and bellowed out, her voice being carried in all directions and echoing across the corners of Gensokyo.

Finally, the hell raven did notice her, but did not slow down as she just waved at her, smiling.

What?

HOW DARE YOU?

Her rage shooting through the metaphorical roof at Usutho's ignorance of her challenge, Ran began channeling some of the most lethal magical energies she had known into her right fist. With an explosion of force, Ran yelled and almost teleported towards the rude bird in a trail of dust and delivered a punch in the abdomen with such impact that she herself was thrown slightly backwards while in flight.

The blow did its job by sending Usutho falling from the sky like a bird with broken wings before disintegrating into a dust of feathers. Half expecting Usutho to have counterattacked, dodged or even deflected the attack, Ran barked out in laughter when she saw what really happened. W…what? Haha! That was all it took? For all Yukari has been saying, that was all it took to take out Gensokyo's Doomsday?

But… what really happened underground? That couldn't have been all. After all, Reimu didn't make it out alive. There must be something else.

As if to answer her question, the feathers suddenly integrated onto a glowing body and, in another split second, Usutho's body reformed, undamaged, charging towards Ran, who blocked it with one arm, flattening her eyes as if she was looking down on her opponent while being pushed back by the impact. Thought so. "That was unfair!" Usutho whined. "We haven't started and you jumped the bell?"

"You tried to run away from a duel, didn't you?" Ran kept her voice as flat as her eyes as she continued to block Usutho's advance.

"We are youkai!" Usutho claimed. "We should unite against the bad humans!"

What? What did she just…? "Huh?"

Usutho broke off from contact as Ran lowered her arm, keeping a short distance between the two of them."You are a youkai, right? A kitsune?"

"I'm a kitsune who has lived nine hundred years, and I am the strongest youkai ever lived, second only to my master," Ran lifted her chin up, as if looking down on Usutho.

"Great! Then you and your master should join me!"

"We do not need you, and we do not see a reason to eliminate the humans of Gensokyo."

"Why not? Mistress Satori says she was bullied by the humans of the surface!"

Satori? They still exist? "I'm sorry, but your mistress has got nothing to do with mine. Turn around and look at your surroundings. Haven't you done enough to make your mistress proud, whoever the low leveled being that is your mistress?"

"Low… leveled?" Usutho seemed to struggle with understanding what Ran had just said. "Uh… I don't know what you really mean, but I have to burn the surface down, because it's full of humans! They could be hiding anywhere!"

"And what about the youkai living on the surface?"

"Wait! There are youkai on the surface too?"

Oh dear. This bird is even worse than Chen and that fairy combined. "What have you been doing all your life, bird brain?"

"Oooh, you know of my nickname too? Orin always calls me that!"

Figures. "Listen, Usutho, I'm really tired today and I don't have both time and energy to deal with you. I can't let you raze this village, it belongs to my master. Go home and never come back."

"But there are humans there! I can see them from here!"

Ran felt her headache from fatigue creeping back into her head and so shut her eyes to relieve the migraine. End of the line, no more diplomacy with this bird brain. I will defeat this monstrosity of everything avian, roast her in the fires that she caused and feast on her with wild abandon! With Yukari out of the way, I am finally on my own, and I can live a free life here. The air may be dangerous, but what will it do to youkai like myself? Why did Yukari even bother to evacuate in the first place?

Actually… Usutho is right. We could just rid this land of the humans and live happily ever after. She goes back down underground to her mistress while I stay on the surface, causing trouble like I used to, those centuries before Yukari enslaved me. There would be nothing to stop my reign; nobody will be around to get in my way, not even that shrine maiden Hakurei Reimu-

Ran suddenly stopped her thoughts, her eyes flying open. Reimu is dead, isn't she? If she is really dead, without another Hakurei maiden taking over…

The Great Hakurei Barrier! That barrier is what that keeps us from disappearing! That is what that keeps our existence in Gensokyo! No wonder Yukari is evacuating! No wonder she decided to sever our contract! If I had chosen to stay and am still linked to her, she disappears too!

If I stay here, I disappear!

No… I cannot do that!

This Usutho… she doesn't realize what she has done!

But would it matter? It isn't as if explaining the consequences of her actions would help.

Maybe I can just let Usutho kill everyone else off but Yukari and I. Once Yukari goes through the portal, I will follow on. For myself to continue existing, I have to sacrifice the others. And Chen will-

Chen.

I could just leave her.

…

…

…

No.

I promised Chen a surprise. She will never forgive me if I break that promise.

And if Yukari knows about what I did, she might kill me instead. Yukari felt as if she owed Reimu something, and if she fails to carry out Reimu's last wish…

That's it.

I'm finishing this bird off, just as planned.

During her long process of hesitating, Usutho had mistaken her silence for consent and had begun flying towards Mayohiga again. As she flew past the kitsune, Ran, who was still looking down at her own feet while thinking, reached out and grabbed Usutho's arm as she passed. With the momentum she gained from stopping Usutho in her flight path, she threw the hell raven back in front of her. "Where did you think you are going?" Ran asked venomously in a low tone.

"Are you going to stop me, kitsune?"

"Funny that you know of my species when you don't even know that other youkai existed on the surface as well."

"Orin always talked about the other two tailed cat existing in Gensokyo, who belonged to a kitsune," Usutho explained. "That's how I know about you."

"You are not going anywhere, Usutho."

"Don't get in my way, kitsune. I defeated a human who claimed she pacified even the strongest youkai on the surface. I'm going to take it that even both you and your master are no match for her. What are you to me?"

Ran's chest thumped vigorously with excitement, a glowing card materializing in front of her. Even if this is a diversion mission, at least I can go all out with my powers to put this bird back in her place. "Nobody talks to me like that. There seems to be only one way to prove who will buckle at her knees to the other."

Now that I think of it, I can't believe myself for thinking that way. Why would I have ever thought of ruling the surface? Why would I even think bad thoughts of you? All along I have been thinking that if I were your shikigami instead, you would have treated me a lot better than Yukari, but that will never come true as you will never practice such dark arts.

Usutho spoke truth when she mentioned how the humans of the surface bullied youkai. I do not know whether the satori still existed, but there are legends of their race being hunted down for being able to read through minds; nobody wants to have their minds read like an opened book.

Assuming Usutho also spoke truth about her mistress being a satori, you must have met one underground, knowing your tendencies to wreak havoc on every youkai you come across. How did it feel to have your mind read by another in plain view? I haven't come across one, but I would really wish I will never come across one.

But was the genocide by you humans worth it? Has the remaining satori retreated underground and now invoke lesser hell minions to bring justice to their lost members? Look at the trouble you humans have caused for everybody else. Soon this world will disappear, and the last refuge for us youkai will go along with it.

You have foreseen this, haven't you? Is that why you had drafted that plan in secrecy with Yukari six years ago? From what little information from Yukari herself, she claims to own some sort of property in the Outer World and has substantial funds in her name, ready to be used anytime. Yukari also claimed that you knew of the Outer World, the ways of the humans out there and the methods to secure wealth and properties.

Maybe, all these times, whenever Yukari was sleeping, she was actually travelling out to the Outer World to prepare for this? Owing to the fact that she is the Youkai of the Boundaries, this isn't exactly impossible for her, and all along I thought I had the harder task of maintaining the household and one troublesome Chen.

This… property, as she claims, is a mansion capable of holding us in the Outer World. But for how long? What would happen to us youkai? How would the humans of the Outer World react to the sight of youkai among them? Wouldn't the shrine maidens out there come after us?

More importantly, we are bringing two vampires out of Gensokyo along, wouldn't they start going insane at the sight of fresh blood walking everywhere?

And then there's me. I have nine tails to conceal if I were to live there as well.

Does it mean that everyone of us has to stay in that mansion and will be unable to leave it forever? Or did you not consider about how some youkai might need a bigger space than an enclosed environment?

Or were creatures such as myself were never included in your plans?

Ran's fourth spellcard fizzled as the spell's duration was up, signalling a time-out. She was preparing to unleash her fifth when Usutho suddenly retreated a few paces back. "That's enough!" the hell raven cried.

The kitsune smirked as she thought Usutho was giving up. From the beginning of the duel, Usutho had been struck countless times by her bullets, but she had never totally given up, always appearing to be defeated in a cloud of feathers before regenerating her body and returning to battle, her perseverance admirable. Usutho had been, once or twice, able to dodge some of the trickier patterns, but she ate most of it, and Ran had already lost count of the times Usutho had been struck.

Every of her four spellcards had been timed-out, and while it fell nicely in the diversion plans, she was getting worried that Usutho simply would never give up and, ultimately, after a battle of attrition, she would run out of methods to deal with the hell raven and would need to concede over to her. I can only hope that Yukari will be done by then, for I will not be able to hold out any longer after that.

"What? Are you giving up already?" Ran taunted at the panting hell raven. The kitsune herself was sweating at her brows, but only a little, as she had told herself. Just a little workout in the tainted air, I can always purge the impurities later. Turning around, she saw that the evacuation from Mayohiga was still ongoing at a good pace, even though only a few minutes had passed.

Apparently Usutho was also staring at the evacuation, as a sudden look of desperation entered her eyes. "You are letting the humans escape as well?" she demanded.

"Sadly, yes," Ran smiled. "I'm doing exactly what you don't want happening. What can you do? You have to get past me before you can reach them."

Expecting Usutho to suddenly attack her again, she was visibly surprised when Usutho began to develop a creepy smile on her face. She tried to hide her surprise by continuing to talk. "Oh, you still have something up your sleeves?"

Usutho remained silent, but her smile grew wider. Raising a finger to her lips, she signaled for Ran to be quiet, who obliged.

At first, Ran heard nothing and was about to laugh at the hell raven's stupidity, but then the first of the sounds reached her sensitive ears through her cap. Faint at first, the sounds became clearer with each passing second, and they seemed to be originating from somewhere far behind Usutho.

The kitsune focused her stare at the far burning lands behind the hell raven and began to notice some black vibrating movements on the horizon. A few moments later the black movements spanned in breadth in both directions, and soon it became a black vibrating cloud that was heading in their direction.

Usutho had also turned around to gaze at the approaching black cloud. "Not up my sleeves, kitsune," she replied to Ran's question. "From far, far beneath the surface, my brothers and sisters rise to the surface to aid me."

The hell raven turned around. "I have had enough of your games, kitsune. I'm not going to care about what duels and games that you want to play with me anymore. I've come here on a job, and I will finish it, with or without you."

Brothers and sisters? Are those… hell ravens? There must be thousands of hell ravens in that black cloud! "Try harder, bird, you will never touch those people!" And with that, Ran turned on her nine tails and began retreating back to Mayohiga while easily dodging the singular lasers that Usutho had been firing at her from behind.

From below, faces turned as the missed shots began peppering the village, Ran shouting at them amid the explosions to hurry. As she finally reached the front gates of Mayohiga, instead of touching down, she made a beeline towards the largest of the houses in Mayohiga, surrounded by a large garden. My home for the past millennia, the home of the Yakumo.

If anybody thought there were only three people living in this village, they were right. But if anybody thought that defeating the three citizens of Mayohiga would grant them permanent ownership of the legendary village… well, they are right too.

However, as long as I stand, that will never happen. Yukari had entrusted the defense of Mayohiga to me long ago; it's time to show her that I can be more than just a defender of the village.

Descending onto the highest point of the roof, Ran clasped both hands, closed her eyes and lowered her head slightly as if in prayer, then begun muttering in a language almost similar to the reverse of the common tongue. Her robes began fluttering in a non-existent wind as her chanting accelerated in speed.

On the trunk of each tree in Mayohiga, scattered spots around the grasses that covered most of the village, various points of each building that existed in Mayohiga, including the Yakumo's house itself, amulets that had been planted during the quiet peaceful times of Gensokyo flared, revealing their hidden positions. These flares were of sky blue, and each of these grew into large glowing spheres of vibrating energy that even the non-initiates of magic could feel.

The physically non-existent wind became real as swirling waves of energy began gathering at each flaring amulet, causing trees to sway violently and abandoned buildings of Mayohiga to shake slightly against the force of the wind, but Ran stood resolutely still at her spot, concentrating on her spellwork. As she did so, her enemies approached mile by mile, bringing their distance dangerously close to the outskirts of the village in the air.

As soon as the spell work was ready, Ran reopened her eyes and brought her arms back into the large sleeves before straightening and looking up; Usutho was still floating in front of the black cloud of ravens, which were waiting behind her.

For a full minute, nobody made the move to initiate the battle. Usutho withdrew slightly into the mess of hell ravens, presumably to coordinate the attack, while the kitsune took the opportunity to make quick glances behind her to ensure the evacuation was still moving. It had been, largely thanks to the presence of the black mess in the sky, which had blocked out most sunlight, leaving only minor rays shining through miniscule gaps between the hell ravens.

Looking down at her own feet, she saw no shadow being cast from herself; Mayohiga was located in the western end of Gensokyo, which would mean that it was still sometime in the afternoon. Thirty hours and counting, Ran mentally reminded herself of time as she suppressed the urge to yawn in the face of her enemy. Once this is done, I'm going to hit the sack at Yukari's in the Outer World, then maybe decide if I would go on my own ways or continue staying with her.

The last time she turned her head around, Mayohiga had been successfully evacuated, save one small figure standing at the other end of the village. That figure stood at her spot defiantly, despite Ran's orders to leave, and stared at her direction.

"You promised," the figure called out telepathically. "You promised to catch up, Ran. You promised me a surprise."

Ran felt something rise within herself and held back the tears that were trying to form in her eyes as she returned the stare. I did, Chen, I did promise you that.

"Then why wouldn't you come now?"

Because I have a job to do, Chen.

"Is your job that important?"

It is. I do not wish to leave it unfinished.

"Are you abandoning me?"

No, Chen, I would not abandon you. I still love you.

"Then why aren't you coming with me now?"

Ran turned her head back to the front and closed her eyes, taking in a large breath of air. When she reopened her eyes, she caught sight of Usutho again, this time seemingly to stare right into her own pair of eyes. Thoughts of Chen quickly smoked away as she refocused her attention for the upcoming battle.

Without warning, from all over Gensokyo came loud screeches and caws, albeit not uniformly as one, and the hell ravens nearest to Usutho suddenly dove towards the lone defender of the legendary village, others following suit. Soon a small detachment of the black clouds over Gensokyo began diving towards Mayohiga, with Yakumo Ran as the primary target.

Said kitsune, however, stood ramrod still, not even the slightest twitch or surprise at the attack. She had already expected the ravens to attack sooner or later, and it was only a matter of time before they commenced their assault. The blue glow all over Maoyhiga was an obvious clue that it was capable of countering the ravens' attacks, but they paid no attention as the distance between the lead hell raven and Ran closed.

Ran smiled as the hell raven, initially a small black dot far away, took shape as it approached. At roughly ten seconds to contact, the ravens began thrusting their claws forward while stretching them open, all of them wanting to tear her head from her shoulders. At just three seconds away from her grisly death, Ran finally took action.

Her right palm slid out from her sleeves like a card dealer pulling a card from a deck, literally holding up a spellcard between two fingers. With a shout in the same language she had used to bring out the power of the the amulets, the spellcard burnt in her fingers as it was raised into the air, the forbidden powers sealed in the amulets manifesting themselves in a split second and the blue glows exploding into the sky with a loud roar, consuming all the hell ravens that were caught in the wake, putting Marisa's Master Spark to shame.

The gigantic blue laser drew such a tremendous amount of energy that every building in Mayohiga, with the exception of Yakumo's residence itself, crumbled to the resulting local tremor, throwing Ran off balance and finding herself falling into the backyard of the very building she had been standing on.

For five seconds, the thunderous roar continued and Ran was unable to hear anything else, and it wasn't as if she was going anywhere at that moment. Yukari's secret defense of Mayohiga, created long before the Spellcard rules. Only I, as her shikigami, even had the slightest knowledge of its existence in Gensokyo and today, I am the first to utilize the forbidden spell. Yukari claims it was created in the event invaders, both Outer World and probably even in Gensokyo itself, decided to overthrow her control over the boundaries that had kept Gensokyo in its balance since its birth, and that it was capable of destroying anything caught in the spell, down to the tiniest speck of a soul.

Considering the threat we face today, it probably warranted such a spell, but against that hell raven? I still cannot understand why Yukari would rather not simply swallow that hell raven, even if that would not have saved Gensokyo from its own destruction due to the fall of the Hakurei Barrier, in one of those scary gaps of hers to make my life easier.

Or even alter the boundaries of whatever that's giving that mad hell raven her powers.

The roar finally subsided along with the glow, and all that was left in the sky was a major gap in the black cloud that covered Gensokyo's skies, along with black feathers of the hell ravens fleeting aimlessly in the air. Surviving hell ravens nearest to the blast either withdrew slightly or were hopelessly trying to maintain flight as part of their bodies, or even one whole wing, had been caught in the blast.

More importantly, Usutho was nowhere to be seen.

As for Ran herself, she suddenly felt the fatigue from earlier creeping back again. Trying to fight it off, she willed herself to sit up from her lying position on something soft, which had been the main culprit encouraging her body to shut down from the tiredness. Somehow, I fell onto one of the futons from inside the mansion. It's so comfortable, I could really just forget about everything and sleep.

Her youkai body finally giving in to the fatigue, Yakumo Ran expelled all the air inside her as she fell back onto the futon, back first, while admiring her work, a gift of fleeting feathers in the smoking skies. Soon, the heavy eyelids willed themselves to cover over the strained and tired red eyes like curtains falling down to the stage to signify the end of a performance.

I want to sleep.

I'm done here.

Goodnight, Gensokyo. Goodnight, Reimu. Goodnight, Yukari, and goodnight, Chen.

Chen, be a good girl, blow the lamps out for me, will you?

…

…

…

Chen? What are you doing?

Is it hard to simply blow out the flames?

Why are you summoning so much power to do a simple task, Chen?

Chen?

CHEN?

Ran opened her eyes. Instead of the idyllic peace of her bedroom, instead of a clear sky that she had been hallucinating of, was the wretched hell raven, impossibly alive again, smirking at her exposed and defenseless frame on the futon from just a few hundred meters away in mid-flight.

Shielding that smirk was a harsh glow of light originating from her arm cannon.

"OH SH-"