The party stumbled into the yukkuri's home.
Yukkuri Reimu stared up at the. "Rest easy?"
"Just fuck our shit up." Osamu agreed on behalf of the party.
Thud.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
The three rose from an abrupt and sleepless slumber, stiffly crawling out of the tiny barrel drum hut.
'Time to freshen up…' Hikari supposed.
Hikari tried Healing α!
Hikari's morning stiffness disappeared!
"We gotta haul some serious ass!" Osamu shoots up out of the hut, stiffly waddling along like his trousers were made of cement.
"H-hey! Get back here!" Hikari ran after him.
...Marigold stiffly wiggled from the house. "A-ah… Hikari… Hikari~!"
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
After Hikari managed to cast Healing α on the entire party, the three made their way back up the canyon side and into the eerily linear bamboo forest path.
"This place still gives me the heebie-jeebies…" Osamu hugged himself, glancing around at the forestry nearby.
Hikari grinned at him. "It's not like they'd just come back to life, you know."
"I know that, but like… this place's freakin' weird!" Osamu emphasizes.
Marigold looks around the forest questioningly. "...Is it really that weird for it to be like this?"
"Dude- the forest's like a maze!" Osamu retorts.
Marigold shrugs.
'...We're almost at the end.'
The party was nearing the end of the linear path, which ended at a small cave entrance.
'Hopefully we don't encounter any more nasty surprises. That last fight was tough enough to be the guardian; perhaps they were just mute and unable to announce such?' Hikari could dream.
They stepped towards the dark cave… when dirt began flowing from it.
…
'Well. Can't say I wasn't expecting that…'
…
The dirt continued flowing, the party backing away from it.
"...Anyone bring any shovels?" Osamu takes the initiative to ask.
"We could make some." Marigold proposed.
The dirt eventually piled up to the very top of the open door, and eventually came to a stop.
"How would we make a shovel?" Osamu glanced back at Marigold critically.
"There's bamboo around, right?" Marigold began, "Surely that should be easy to sculpt. The tools would be bad, but they don't really need to be good if we're just gonna throw them away…"
A small sprout emerged from the dirt, its yellow leaves now exposed to the air.
'Something weird's about to happen. I can feel it…' Hikari never could be sure with this place, though. She took an aggressive stance.
The other two saw her, and looked to the sprout as well.
"...A plant. Nice place to live, buddy." Osamu snidely remarked towards the sprout, even if it couldn't hear him.
Dirt began sifting from two spots in the piles. As the dirt flowed out and emptied two small holes, tiny, tiny red dots illuminated the depths of the dirt mound.
Marigold furrowed her brows. "What's going on, there?"
'Beats me.' Hikari wasn't letting her guard down, though.
More dirt began pouring away from the lower portion of the pile, making a large, gaping maw of dirt. The dirt just continued spreading, making the hole deeper and deeper…
'I think the dirt's just going to keep shifting like this. Maybe there's another way around…?' Hikari wasn't entirely certain.
"I… am the guardian- hou~hh… of Milky Well…"
Hikari froze. 'Who said that?'
The unmoving maw of the dirt began moving.
"For millions of years… I have been- hou~hh… cursed… to be a sprout."
"...It talks." Marigold observed.
"Somehow." Hikari was perplexed.
"F-for millions- hou~hh… of years… I've obse~rved… fauna grow and move… onto other fields…"
The sprout spoke with immense strain, roots beginning to just through the mouth, revealing the method it used to control it.
"Now… you, too… shall endure my own pain…"
Osamu glared at it. "So's that mean you wanna fight?"
The sprout said nothing, its mouth moving as if breathing.
"Hupupupup…!" It made a large inhaling motion.
Hikari strafed around it, ready to whack at it.
"Hooo~h!" It exhaled, shooting stones from its mouth.
"Shit!" Osamu shielded his face with his arms, rocks launching into him.
Marigold reacted instantly, moving aside and drawing her NF Burst Gun.
PoPoPoPoPop!
ThuThuThuThuThunk…
The bullets struck the dirt, doing seemingly nothing.
Hikari engaged the dirt.
Whack!
A cloud of dust rose from where Hikari struck, but that was all.
'...The sprout!' It was high up on the pile, so Hikari wasn't sure she could reach it, but…
"Marigold, aim for the sprout!" Hikari was sure one of the others could.
Osamu dusted himself off. "I'm gonna need a little help over here!"
Hikari moved to guard him from further rocks…
Trillionage Sprout tried Paralysis α!
Hikari began to feel numb…
She fell to the floor, dropping her gohei aside her.
"A-ah…"
'I-I can't move…'
"Hikari!" Marigold's eyes widened as the miko lied still on the dirt.
'...But…'
Hikari tried Shield α!
Osamu was protected by the shield of light!
'Huh. I can still do that.' Being numb wasn't so bad, Hikari supposed. She tried to open her mouth, but couldn't. '...Okay, maybe it is pretty bad.'
"I have witnessed… species evolve… and head into eternal slumber… hou~hh…"
"Ah, shut up, you stupid plant!" Osamu shouted back.
Osamu tried PK Freeze ß!
KaKa-KaKaKling!
The rapid freezing and thawing of ice crystals made the dirt vibrate.
Kra~ck!
A blast of frozen air was produced, doing little but stirring up dust and sifting the soil.
"...I wonder how long… humanity will survive…" The sprout pondered.
Trillionage Sprout tried PSI Shield α!
The soil was protected by the pale blue glow of a psychic shield!
Marigold aimed her gun, and fired.
PoPoPoPoPop!
...The shield made all the bullets disappear!
"No way…" Marigold frowned.
'...' Hikari lied on the grassy floor of the woods, still. 'This sucks.'
Osamu gritted his teeth. "Oh, come on! Stupid…"
Osamu tried PK Thunder α!
Thwaa~sh!
…
Everyone heard a thunderbolt, but did not see a thunderbolt.
"Where'd that one go!?" Osamu yelled, confused.
"Hupupupup…!" The sprout breathed in again.
Osamu shielded himself with his arms.
"Hoo~h!"
Rocks flew out, the shield of light slowing them to a snail's pace once they entered. Osamu was able to calmly bat the rocks away once they were inside.
"Hah! S'not gonna work a second time, planty!" Osamu smirked.
Marigold perked up in realization. "Ah…!"
She pulled out the Stun Gun, and set it to 'Arse Blaster'.
Zzzzazazazazap!
Marigold focused on the Stun Gun as the sparks of the electrical surge began reaching even her arm, lightly…
She stomped towards the blue shield carefully…
Meanwhile, Hikari had figured out a solution to her predicament.
'Let's see if this works…'
Hikari tried Healing ß!
…
Her numbness disappeared!
Rising from the dirt, Hikari readied her gohei again.
Zazaza-Blam!
Marigold was thrown back from the electrical blast, electricity running up and down her body as the shield was fried.
Hikari winced. '...That didn't look healthy.'
"Aa-gua-ghu…" Marigold convulsed on the floor, tears running down her face, the Stun Gun lying next to her, now momentarily fried.
Hikari tried Lifeup α!
Marigold stopped convulsing and relaxed.
Marigold was paralyzed!
"A-are you alright?" Hikari asked her.
"Does she look alright?" Osamu snarked.
Marigold's eyes darted around, but aside from that, she couldn't move.
'...Actually…'
Trillionage Sprout tried PK Flash α!
Flash!
…
The bright flash forced the party member to shield their eyes almost immediately- for those that could, anyway.
It didn't work on Hikari!
Marigold started crying uncontrollably!
Osamu started crying uncontrollably!
Hikari tried Healing ß!
…
Marigold stopped crying, and could move again!
She took a moment to feel herself, and to stare at her hands. "M-my… I can move…"
Hikari pulled her up from the floor. 'What was that flash…? It felt… familiar.'
Osamu was quietly sobbing, for some reason. "A-ah… W-what the hell…"
'O-Osamu?' Hikari was slightly worried that he was crying now, of all times.
Marigold stood uneasily, and lifted her NF Burst Gun, determined to keep going.
PoPoPoPoPop!
The bullets flew for the sprout at the top of the dirt mound.
Thu-thunk, thuthuthunk…
A few bullets struck the sprout.
"Uaauu…!" The dirt mound let out a guttural moan.
"I-I have an idea…" Osamu wiped his nose.
Hikari turned to him, curious. "Are you alright…? I mean…"
Osamu frowned. "Y-yeah, I'm a-alright! I just- ugh…" He stopped to wipe his nose. "I-I dunno why I'm crying… l-look," Nose wipe! "T-try that fancy move. With the-the colors and things…"
'Oh, that one… I could, and probably should.' Hikari reflected. 'It hasn't seemed as useful recently, sometimes. Here goes nothing, though…'
Hikari tried PK Fantasy ß!
She closed her eyes, focusing on the Trillionage Sprout.
Fizzle!
An array of colored sparks and drops slammed into the soil ahead, vibrating it with an echo of colors.
Fizzle!
The soil eroded partially to reveal more roots and other assorted bits of plant matter.
FwOwOw!
Throwing her arm forward, Hikari summoned a polygon of technicolor light. It flew towards the dirt pile, blasting a chunk of it away.
FwOwOw!
She did the same with her other arm, decimating the dirt pile.
Bwaa~sh!
The large blast flattened the sprout…
…
It stood up again, though.
'W-woah…' Hikari felt dizzy. 'Not as bad as last time, but I don't think I'll be pulling that one out again anytime soon…'
The dirt slowly began reforming and piling back up…
"No." Marigold marched up to it with her NF Burst Gun.
PoPoPoPoPop!
The little sprout was crushed against the dirt by the danmaku orbs. The dirt ceased reforming for a moment, but continued.
"S-step back, I-I got this…" Osamu's strained voice attempted to announce.
Osamu tried PK Thunder α!
Thwaaa~sh!
The bolt struck the shorted Stun Gun.
Zazazap!
It was revived!
Marigold spared it a glance before resuming fire on the sprout.
PoPoPoPoPop!
"W-work!" Osamu wiped his nose before he tried again.
Osamu tried PK Thunder α!
Thwaaa~sh!
It struck some of the rockside nearby.
"Gaa~h!"
Hikari sighed, and stumbled up to the dirt pile, holding her gohei high.
Thwack!
She whacked the sprout with it like a broom.
Thwack!
The sprout was bent.
SMAAAA~SH!
The sprout was crushed. The dirt flowed back out across the ground, the roots ceasing to hold it. The dirt that blocked the doorway also flowed back inside, and the dissipating darkness revealed there wasn't even a real cave to speak of, it was just a doorway to the next part of the woods.
...Marigold retrieved the Stun Gun, turning it off. "That… that really was something."
Hikari agreed. 'One tough battle after another…'
Osamu was still crying. "S-stupid eyes…"
'Maybe I should see if I can fix that.' Hikari wasn't sure if it'd work, but…
Hikari tried Healing α!
Osamu stopped crying!
Wiping his eyes one more time, he had cleared them of their tears.
"Finally… I don't know how the hell that happened." He examined the water and snot that built up on his robe sleeve, grimacing at it. "Aw, crap…"
Hikari awkwardly stepped through the uneven and loose dirt to get to the clearing on the other side.
Once inside, she immediately felt the warm glow of the sun comfort her, even though the previous hall was also just as sunny.
'I think we've found it…'
Osamu and Marigold step in, Osamu kicking through the dirt and roots with Marigold following in his treads.
In the center was a milky pond, a single lilypad in the center, in pristine condition.
Hikari knew what to do, this time. She took out her Sound Stone, and pressed it to her forehead.
...
She heard a melody play.
A gentle breeze rolled through Giant Step, caressing the indent in the hill…
It then rolled through the crevice leading to Subconscious Steps, before whirling around and escaping into the sky above...
Fluttering through the valley, it weaved through bamboo trees before circling around the Milky Well. It circled back around, and flowed right back out through the trees...
…
...
…
A beat continued to play after the numerous notes, but no more actual music continued to be produced by the stone.
'Those visualizations are starting to become quite the adventure.'
Hikari felt the breeze wash over her face, and through her hair.
Marigold looked around in wonderment. "...I don't think I've ever felt anything like that before."
Osamu shrugged. "Felt pretty good, I s'pose. Nothin' like the wind in your lungs…"
Wind whirled around the small clearing, rustling the tops of the thick wall of bamboo that protected the sacred place.
Hikari paused. She thought she heard something on the wind…
'...Don't worry, Mom. I'll be strong.'
…
Hikari stared down at the milky well, mystified. 'With that wind, I gained all the knowledge of this place… except for this. Why is the water white?' The world may never know.
Osamu stretched, walking over. "...Yeah, that's some weird ass water, alright. Looks like milk, sorta…"
Marigold walks up to stare at it, too. "It's kinda pretty…"
…
Osamu snapped his fingers. "I know where we are! We're on the world's boob!"
…
"Maybe we've been here a little too long." Hikari suggested, shaking her head.
Marigold giggled.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
Walking back through 'Easy Town', the party found the time to notice the walls were now more prevalently lined with ladders.
"When'd those get there?" Osamu scratched his head, looking around.
"Probably while we were asleep. We were in a pretty big hurry when we woke up." Hikari explained.
"...Do we got that bad of tunnel vision?" Osamu questioned.
Marigold got one word into the discussion. "Apparently."
As they neared the pile of trashed NERF blasters, a yukkuri was seated on the tipped drum barrel of keyboards.
It had some cups, and a pitcher of coffee next to it.
Hikari blinked. 'An Akyuu yukkuri, huh? That's unique…'
It smiled casually. "Easy coffee…"
…
It was then crestfallen. "Cannot obtain easy coffee."
Hikari tilted her head. "Why?"
It stared at Hikari.
…
'Ooo~h, right. No arms.' Hikari couldn't help but wonder how yukkuri got anything done.
She took the initiative and poured the coffee herself, into all five mugs.
'...Wait, there's only four of us. Ah, well. More for the yukkuri, then.'
Osamu took the nearest cup and began chugging it.
...Hikari and Marigold lifted their cups reluctantly, neither having actually drank coffee before.
'Well… I guess it couldn't hurt to try.'
Hikari took her sip, and scrunched her face at the bitterness.
'Ack!'
Marigold sipped hers, and quickly swallowed it without tasting it after the first few drops hit her tongue. "Egh… So bitter…"
Osamu looked over to them. "...Y'know, you guys coulda added sugar or… whatever. Not like we have any here anyway…"
Hikari shrugged.
…
She began to feel dizzy. 'U-uh… Is this normal?'
...Osamu took a seat next to the barrel drum.
"C-coffee is weird…" Marigold stutters out, sitting down herself.
Hikari takes a seat, spacing out…
==== coffee break. ====
You've traveled very far from home…
Do you remember how your adventure began by being nudged from your bed? It was Porky, the worst man from the human village, who shoved you out of bed that fateful night.
Throughout your adventure, you have walked, thought, and fought. Despite this, you have not faltered. You steadily grow stronger, even though you've experienced the pain of battle numerous times.
You are no longer alone on your adventure. Osamu, the headstrong and ambitious but loyal human magician, remains by your side. Marigold is with you as well. Timid she may be, she has stepped down from a more comfortable lifestyle to assist you.
Hikari, though you may know it by now, you are not a regular young woman… You have a bountiful destiny ahead of you.
Your journey from this point will be long. It will be more difficult than anything you have undergone up until this point. Saying this, I know you will be alright. When good battles evil, which side do you believe truly wins? Do you have faith that good is triumphant?
One thing you must never lose is your will. Believe in the goal you strive for, and you will have will. You have many difficult times ahead, but if one keeps their sense of humor and ability to work through tough endeavors, even in adversity they can enjoy themselves. Remember, adversity and existence are one in the same.
When you have finished this cup of coffee, your adventure will begin once more. You will have to explore less straightforward locations, and once again reclaim the village of humans from the jaws of evil.
Hikari…
Osamu…
Marigold…
I wish you luck...
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
Hikari blinked, snapping out of a trance. 'W-what…'
Marigold shook her head around, and abruptly got up, wobbling around.
'...I don't get why people drink that stuff, but I guess that was kinda cool.' Hikari nodded, satisfied.
Osamu shot up. "Holy shit!"
'Zero to sixty.' Hikari summarized.
"I don't think that was fucking coffee, du~de!" Osamu looked to where the yukkuri used to be, and only saw nothing. Glancing around the side of the barrel, a broken pitcher, shattered cups, and a puddle of 'coffee' was also visible.
'...Guess his needed more sugar.' Hikari recalled him saying something about sugar…
Marigold dusted herself off. "I think we should get going. That 'coffee' thing kinda freaks me out."
"That shit was spiked, dude…" Osamu shook his head, lowering it. "We got juked."
'...It was relaxing anyway. That was what people drank it for, right?' Hikari wasn't entirely certain.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
The party walked through the bamboo forest without consulting the map in the slightest. Truth be told, they just forgot the map even existed, but the forest seemed to lead them to the clinic, anyway.
It was within minutes that they reached said clinic.
"...Is it me, or was the way here faster than the way to that creek?" Osamu pondered.
"Forests are weird." Hikari decided.
"Agreed." Marigold didn't have a lot of experience with forests.
The moving doors of the clinic slide open automatically.
On the inside, the lights were all on and a bunny girl was at the front desk, a green-haired one.
She looked up at the party. "Oh, hey. We're kinda closed right now, on account of um… zombies. Yeah. We had a zombie attack."
Hikari nodded. "Yeah, we know. Are they gone?"
The bunny furrowed her brows. "What's it look like? 'M I gettin' my brains munched, or what?"
"Alright, alright…" Hikari responded, reserved.
'What's her problem…?'
"Man, this is a drag…" The bunny pulled out a cigarette and a lighter. "Stupid Reisen, not here to do her stupid job… stupid…" Lighting her cigarette, she put it in her mouth.
'...Right.'
Marigold stepped up to the desk next. "Would you happen to know where doctor Yagokoro is?"
"Nope, neva heard of her, wrong clinic." The bunny rattled off.
"We're here for a prescription." Hikari told her.
"Look, whaddaya want, advil, tylenol…?" The bunny stood from her swivel chair at the counter. "Chances are you just need some basic crap and none of that shit Doc prescribes. I gotcha medicine right fuckin' here."
Hikari furrowed her brows. "Um… I mean, we'll take some-"
The bunny chucked a box at Hikari's face.
Hikari obtained the Cold Medicine!
"There." She sat down again. "Get outta my sight."
Hikari stared at the box, then looked back up at her. "... I think we still need to see the doctor."
The bunny stood up again, more aggressively this time. "Oh my fucking- look, I don't care. I'm on my smoke break, kids. Life's not all sunshine and lollipops. Go home."
...Hikari glared at her. "We'll find the doctor ourselves, if we have to."
Marigold assisted her. "I'll also put in word about your rather rude reception."
Osamu folded his arms, saying nothing but looking like a dissatisfied customer.
The bunny girl stuck up her middle finger. "What? You buncha human kids wanna go? 'Cuz I'll go if you wanna, and you'll be sorry!"
She stuck up her dukes, beginning to step around her desk…
Hikari tried Hypnosis α!
Energy rippled around the bunny girl…
"C-c'mon… I, uh… I'll knock you…" She stumbled around, and brought her fist around for a sluggish hook. Marigold stepped back, and the bunny girl fell over onto the floor. Her cigarette rested a foot away on the floor, where it quickly went out.
'Good job.' Hikari stared down at the unconscious bunny girl.
…
"Guess we're finding her ourselves, then…" Hikari decided, the team following her into the now-illuminated hallways. Other bunny girls moved throughout the halls now, seemingly devoid of the previously grim atmosphere.
'This place had a complete turn-around…'
After backtracking through what they could remember, they came across the one laboratory from previously…
Hikari took a deep breath, and leaded the way inside.
Eirin was at one of the counters, filling out paperwork. She glanced at Hikari as she came in. "Ah, it's you. I take it you were successful?"
Hikari nods. "Mmm."
"Did it take you multiple days to find your way through the forest? I wouldn't put it past Mokou to not have helped you after that last encounter…"
Hikari shakes her head. "No, we had business to attend to. That magical place."
Eirin nods her head. "A~h, right, right. Did my recarbonizer vials come in handy?"
Hikari shakes her head.
"...No? Well, all three of you are still here, so…" She scratched her head in confusion. "Were not one of you diamondized?"
'Diamondized?' Hikari wondered.
"Whaddaya mean 'diamondized'?" Osamu asked.
"...It's nothing. I'd hold onto those vials, if I were you." Eirin told them. "In any case… my anti-zombification gas only seemed to work after the malicious intent had left the fairies. I don't know what the cause was, and it irks me."
Hikari traded a glance with Marigold. 'Might have been that weird metal base in the woods, or something. It seemed like it did some pretty weird stuff.'
"...Are you three here for any reason in particular?" Eirin inquired, glancing from her paperwork at Hikari curiously.
"Medicine. Three prescriptions." Hikari summarized.
"Ah, right… three?" Eirin shook her head. "Butterfly pills, cough medicine… and… Was there even a third?"
"Ice pack." Hikari asked.
…
"You do realize the entirety of the ground outside is coated in ice, yes?... I'll give you a bag, but the ice chipping is in your hands. I'm a doctor, not a miner."
Walking over to a nearby drawer, Eirin drew a empty bag of ice, and some notebook paper. She scribbled something down on it and handed it to Hikari.
"Here. Prescriptions for the attendant at the front counter. Green hair and such, she's a rather quiet character." Eirin told them.
'Uhh…'
Marigold decided to break the news to her. "...She's kinda out of commission."
Eirin turned to her, slightly more serious. "...Why might that be?"
"Well, uhhh… She kinda fell over, and passed out." Marigold awkwardly described. "...She was also rude?"
"Rude…" Eirin pondered the word. "...Not sure if we're talking about the right rabbit. Regardless, someone at the counter'll help you, I'm sure." Eirin turned back to her paperwork…
"I don't think so." Hikari pressed.
"I think so." Eirin smiles. "It would probably be best if the three of you tried."
"Pretty sure no one was in a hurry to man the desk." Osamu argued. "Like-"
"It would probably be best if the three of you tried." Eirin's smile became more forced.
Hikari looked at her determinedly. "Doctor, I think you-"
"Take a hint and get out, I'm busy." Eirin's voice rose as she stood. "I don't care who you find, and I don't care how many rabbits it takes, but only attempt to find me if you see this door open. Understood?"
'...I'm not sure if we should bother pressing further.' Hikari looked to her teammates.
Osamu looked ready to rumble, but Marigold seemed to have slinked back a bit.
She sighed. "Let's just go. I'm sure there's someone who could help us."
Eirin smiled more naturally again. "Thank you."
The party walked out, the door closing.
"...This is gonna be great." Osamu huffed.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
They had arrived at the front counter again.
The green haired bunny girl looked up at them from her swivel chair, and almost fell out of it. "Y-you three, again!?"
"Hi." Hikari casually waved at her.
The bunny girl angrily walked around the desk. "What the hell didja do to me!?"
Marigold and Osamu shrugged.
'...Made you spontaneously fall asleep?' Hikari didn't know how it worked, either.
The green-haired girl frowned at their lack of a response. "I see how it is…"
She walked back across the counter, addressing the party tiredly. "I take it you found Doc, huh? You get your pills you wanted?"
Hikari shook her head. "She wanted you to fill the prescription."
…
The green haired bunny sighed, and pulled some keys from one of the drawers. She moved to a large cabinet of unknown contents, plugging the key into the lock…
She then moved aside, and tipped the entire cabinet over.
Bam!
The party jumped at the sudden loud noise.
"...Looks like it fell over. Oo~ps. The key must be broken, too…" She melodramatically drew an arm across her forehead. "Oh, what a tragedy…!"
...She turned back to the party, expression souring again. "You want a prescription? I got your prescription right fuckin' here!"
She grabbed a small container full of pens, and chucked them blindly at the party, before leaping onto the desk.
'W-woah!' The pens bounced off Hikari, and she raised her gohei.
The bunny clicked the pen she had, and she jumped towards Hikari in an attempt to impale her with it. "Hraa~!"
...Hikari neutralized her landing by blocking with the gohei, causing the bunny girl to awkwardly slide off it and onto her feet.
She went for Hikari's gohei, attempting to grab it, which proved futile.
Marigold aimed her NF Burst Gun at her. "Hey, hey, hey!"
The bunny girl turned to her, and grinned. "Pffft… The hell're you gonna do with-"
PoPoPoPoPop!
"A-ah, hey, hey! Stop, that shit stings!" The bunny girl stumbled away, releasing grip of the gohei.
Hikari raised it up and slammed the bunny in the face.
SMAAAA~SH!
…
Thud.
Hikari stared down at the unconscious bunny girl. '...Okay, then.'
Osamu snickered incredulously. "What the hell just happened…?"
...The party went around the desk to find the cabinet on the floor. It was metal, and large.
"We should try to flip it around or something." Marigold suggested. She bent down to try and tip it back into an upright position, achieving little.
…
Marigold looked up at her friends irately. "I-I could use a little help here!"
'Oh, right.'
Hikari and Osamu went to Marigold's side and started helping lift the cabinet…
Slowly but surely, they tipped it back into an upright position. Rattling and the movement of pills was heard on the inside.
The key was embedded in the floor, which had cracked open entirely to fit the key.
"Hoho~ly shit." Osamu stared at it. "That, uh… wow."
...The three looked at the lock, which seemed to be awkwardly jammed into itself, broken entirely.
Marigold did what came naturally in this situation.
PoPoPoPoPop!
PitPatPatPitPi~ng…
Nothing seemed to happen, but the lock glowed with residual energy a little while after.
…
"I think we should engage the door." Marigold elaborates on her idea.
"Just fuckin' wail on it? Like, annihilate it?" Osamu searches for details.
Marigold shrugged. "I guess. Like, try not to destroy the medicine, if you could."
'Might as well get started, then…'
Hikari begins whacking the door.
Bo~ng…!
…
Bo~ng…!
Marigold fires at it again.
PoPoPoPoPop!
PitPatPatPitPi~ng…
Bo~ng…!
Osamu punches it.
Bo~ng…!
"Yeeeowch!" He caressed his hand.
'What did you think was going to happen…?'
PoPoPoPoPop!
PitPatPatPitPi~ng…
The lock was glowing multiple colors of the rainbow now.
Hikari whacked it one final time.
Bam!
The parts of it were knocked inside the cabinet, and the door swung open.
Marigold swung the doors aside further, and looked inside.
…
"Uuhm…"
Hikari stepped past one of the doors to look inside as well.
'...I have no idea what's going on in there.'
Plastic containers with labels that read nothing but numbers were inside. These containers were translucent, containing nothing but pills in each of them.
...Osamu looked at the clipboard. "We need, uh… Forty two of… P-ninety?"
Marigold took it from him. "Give me that…"
...He folded his arms.
Marigold read over the clipboard. "...Yeah, he has the right idea, the things here correspond to the shelf labels."
Hikari found the box with P-ninety. 'Why forty two specifically, though?'
Hikari just took the entire, two-hundred count container.
"...Fifty ounce bottle of C-Y-nineteen." Marigold listed.
In the upper left corner of the shelf was an entire plastic container full of fifty ounce bottles, which Hikari took out as well.
Marigold furrowed her brows at the bottom of the sheet. "...It says it costs nineteen thousand yen in total."
'...They didn't give us money to pay for the things, did they?'
"...No one has to know." Hikari rationalized.
"But what if they find out?" Osamu questions. "It's not like we can take whole boxes of crap and, uh…"
…
The party all looks to the unconscious bunny girl.
"Nevermind, I'll carry 'em." Osamu takes the boxes of things, and the party moves for the door.
The doors slid open, but Osamu paused. "Hey, guys…"
'Hmm?'
"...What if we take the entire cabinet?"
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
Heavy footsteps were audible, coming from the leaf-laden floor of the Bamboo Forest of the Lost.
Two teenagers were carrying an entire medicine cabinet with them, the third standing guard and escorting them with her rifle.
In moments, they found their way to the edge of the woods, where the large bamboo walls were mysteriously gone.
'Works for me.' Hikari would've hated to put the cabinet down just to cut open another hole in the wall.
Like that, they marched across the plain towards the human village, following the path towards it.
"Hey, uh…" Osamu began, carrying the cabinet by the back. "How about we just go around the human village? I don't think it'd be easy to get an entire cabinet through the guard, even if we could fight some of them."
'Agreed. I'd rather deal with them later…'
Continuing down the path, they eventually neared the walls of the human village and went around the side.
A guard took notice of the odd sight, and began following them.
Marigold saw him. "Hey, uh… we're being followed. Guard, I think."
Osamu sighed. "Ah, crap… Can you shoot 'em?"
Hikari blinked. "That'd just attract more. Ignore him unless he approaches us. Let's go faster."
Pretending they didn't see him, they quicken their pace and cut across the grass towards the path that leads to the Hakurei Shrine. The other guard at that gate saw them, but because they were moving away from the village, the guards had no choice but to give up their pursuit.
...They reached the final obstacle of their endeavor.
'These stairs…'
Osamu looked up the staircase. "Holy crap. I heard uh… I heard about these stairs, but I didn't expect them to be uh… this big from the bottom."
Marigold nodded. "...They're not that bad. Unless you're carrying an entire medicine cabinet, then uhm…"
…
"Should I go get Reimu?" She proposed.
"Probably for the best." Hikari agreed.
They dropped the medicine cabinet on the ground at the base of the stairs.
Thoom…
Osamu wiped his forehead. "That's freakin' heavy…"
Marigold began her walk up the stairs…
==== GENSOKYOBOUND: MARIGOLD'S VIEW ====
She knocked on the front door of the shrine.
…
The door slid open, Reimu on the other side. "Hey…"
Reimu stared at her closely. "...You're Alice and Patchouli's kid, aren't you?"
Marigold nodded. 'She should remember me, even though we've only met a couple times…'
"...You're kinda a hot topic at the moment, among other things." Reimu stated. "Come on in."
Marigold walked inside, only to see both of her mothers at the kotatsu… and Marisa.
'W-woah…' Marigold wasn't sure what to think of such a situation, but she knew it could only end poorly.
The three mages and Marisa all stared at each other silently.
…
Reimu glared at them. "You three were arguing up a storm moments ago. Someone say something."
Alice began the discussion. "...Where were you, Marigold? You said you went to the clinic, but…"
'Well, I was…'
"It was a long stay." Marigold jested.
'Explaining everything would be a little bothersome…'
Alice stared at her critically.
'...Maybe I could afford to explain a little, though.'
Marigold came up with her cover story. "...We had to negotiate for the medicine. It, uh… it took awhile."
"Numerous days." Alice stated. "...What do you mean, 'we'?"
Patchouli perked up at the mention of the medicine.
'...Perhaps I should just be blunt about this.'
"Well… come check it out." Marigold gestured for them to follow.
...Alice got up to follow, and Patchouli reluctantly rose to go with them.
Marisa got up even more reluctantly. "...I still don't know why you guys insisted I be here…"
If anyone acknowledged what she said, they didn't bother replying.
Reimu followed along.
Outside the shrine, Marigold pointed to the bottom of the staircase…
Reimu blinked. "...An entire medicine cabinet. I know Patchouli has like, five different disabilities, but I don't think you needed that much."
Patchouli blinked in surprise, turning to Reimu. "Very funny, Hakurei…"
The other mages and Marisa giggled at her expense.
"...My daughter's apparently down there, too. I was starting to get really worried myself."
…
"Do any of you know who that guy is, though?" Reimu questioned.
Alice shook her head, and Patchouli didn't bother replying.
"Beats me, ze…"
'...I don't know if I should say anything or not.' Marigold figured they'd find out eventually.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND: HIKARI'S VIEW ====
Hikari looked up the stone stairs when she heard talking.
'Oh, hey, there's Mom… and a bunch of mages, apparently.'
Hikari waves her arm at them.
Osamu looks over to her. "The hell're you… oh." He looks up at a bunch of people he doesn't know. Debating whether to wave or not, he does a sort of awkward half-wave with only half of his arm.
Reimu begins floating down the staircase towards them, and eventually touches down at the bottom near them.
...She gazes at the medicine cabinet. "An entire medicine cabinet, Hikari?"
Hikari grins sheepishly. "It was on sale."
Reimu snorts. "I assume you need my help with this?"
Hikari nods.
Reimu lifts the entire medicine cabinet over her head, and begins flying up the stairs with it.
Osamu's jaw dropped. "Oh. Fuckin', okay. Sure!"
Hikari giggled.
They continued up the stairs after Reimu…
Marigold greeted them at the top with a thumbs up.
'I assume everything went well, then.'
Reimu plopped the medicine cabinet down at the top. "...Don't ask how my daughter got an entire medicine cabinet, just take what you need."
...Patchouli floated up, looking at the cabinet. "Am I supposed to just know off the top of my head?"
Marigold pulls a clipboard out of her backpack, and hands it to her.
Patchouli stares at it dryly. "...Thanks."
After moments of examining the sheet, she reached for the box of cough medicine…
"Oh, there it is. I didn't see that earlier…"
Marigold rolled her eyes.
...Patchouli stumbled around after plucking it out, nearly dropping it.
"Easy there…" Marisa stepped towards her to help her, but Patchouli eventually just used telekinesis to hold it instead.
"I have it." Patchouli confirmed. "...Now, I believe I'll take my leave."
"See you later." Alice saw her off.
...She turns to Marigold. "What you did that evening was extremely impulsive... I'm glad you're safe. Bye Alice, Marigold."
She floats off with the entire box of medicine, likely to not need another refill for a couple centuries.
Alice nods as Patchouli leaves. "...Yeah, I'm still not sure what you were thinking that one night, but we've already talked about it anyway."
Marigold blinks, somewhat taken aback by the sequence of events.
Moving up to the medicine cabinet and grabbing the clipboard Patchouli left behind, Alice narrowed her eyes. "...How did you pay for all of this?"
...Marigold looked to Hikari for answers.
"Well… it was on sale." Hikari repeated. "Stuff."
Osamu piped up, too. "Yeah, it was a twenty finger discount!"
Hikari looks at him sternly. 'Don't blow our cover, you…'
…
Alice sighed. "I guess I won't pry…"
Reimu shrugged. "As long as Eirin doesn't come knocking on my door in the next few days, I'm fine with it."
After a few moments, Alice pulled out the entire container of Butterfly Dream pills.
"I feel somewhat guilty taking all of it, but… it'd be a waste to just leave it here, wouldn't it?" She bobbed her head back and forth, debating with herself.
"It's just gonna sit and rot here anyway." Reimu told her.
"I might as well, then." Alice holds the box under one arm. She turns to Marigold. "Do you wanna come with me, or…?"
Marigold shakes her head. "I've got stuff to do with my new friends."
Alice smiles. "Right, Hikari, and…" Her gaze runs over Osamu, unsure of who he is. "...that guy."
...Osamu smiles sheepishly.
"He's actually an aspiring mage." Marigold tells her mother.
"Interesting… Well, I had best be going before it gets dark. Stay safe, Marigold. Love you."
"Love you too, Mom." Marigold responds as her mother begins floating off with the pills.
…
Osamu runs to the edge of the Hakurei hillside. "The name's Osamu, by the way! O-sa-mu!"
Alice looked back in the air momentarily, continuing forward.
...The three turned to Marisa, who was awkwardly holding her broom behind herself.
She noticed the sudden attention, but became somewhat more relaxed now that the other two magi were gone. "...So, uh… how've you been doing, Mary…?"
Marigold stares at her judgingly.
"...Good, I guess?" Marisa answers for her. "Eheh…"
Reimu stares at her friend with a look of pity.
...The three turn around, looking back at Reimu again.
"H-hey, wait!" Marisa calls out. "I-I've got somethin' cool to show you this time! Honest!"
Marigold turns back around, folding her arms. "Is it another doofy hat?"
Osamu's eyes lit up.
Marisa shook her head. "Uh, no, I guess- just look…" Marisa slipped an object from her hat.
"It'sa homemade bottle rocket, ze!" Marisa grinned. "Just watch…!"
She kneeled and set it up against the floor. Marigold watched her slide the base around and undo some plastic bands on the bottom.
The rocket shakes, then it shoots into the air.
Fwoosh!
...Some ways into the air, it explodes.
Boom!
A small burst of star-shaped danmaku splashes against the night sky.
"Cool, right?" Marisa grins.
"I guess." Marigold shrugs.
'Explosives, basically.' Hikari was pleased by the display.
Osamu grinned, which is probably all that needs to be said, and is also a bad sign.
Marisa scratched the back of her head. "...These things cost a fortune to make, ze… I could give you some, but uh… How's eight hundred yen a rocket, sound?"
...Hikari had different plans.
Hikari tried Hypnosis α!
Energy rippled around Marisa…
"W-woah, not again!" Marisa lost her balance for a moment, but quickly regained it. "Phew… Must be a nervous reaction or something, ze…"
Hikari was not amused, and neither was Marigold.
"Eight hundred yen." Marigold echoed. "Because I'm sure making returns on this investment of yours is a necessity."
Marisa winced. "H-hey, you know I've gotta make a living somehow!"
"That you don't really need. If I remember correctly, you can live off forest mushrooms just fine." Marigold argued.
Marisa sighed. "...I know, I feel weird about it, but these things were so expensive…!"
…
Hikari tried Hypnosis α!
Energy rippled around Marisa…
"A-ah…!" Marisa spun around, battling gravity. "C-can my body cut that out, ze!?"
Hikari focused on Marisa harder…
'Just fall asleep already…'
Hikari tried Hypnosis Ω!
Energy visibly rippled around the entire side of the yard Marisa was on.
"A-ah…"
Marisa fell over, eyelids drifting shut.
Osamu chuckled. "Woah! How much power'd you put into that one?"
'That felt a lot more draining than it usually does… I probably put too much power into that one.'
Reimu wasn't sure what to think of the spectacle. "...So, was that what happened to Marisa that other time?"
'I probably shouldn't have done that with Mom standing literally right there.'
"...Yeah." Hikari confirmed.
"...It's getting late." Reimu noted. "Let's go inside."
Reimu, Osamu, and Hikari all moved to go inside.
...Marigold approached Marisa's fallen body, and searched her hat for additional bottle rockets. She pulled out one, perplexed how she fit two in her hat…
Marigold obtained the Bottle Rocket!
...She dug deeper, and eventually found two more, mystified further at how in blazes Marisa uses her hat like some sort of backpack in and of itself.
Marigold obtained two Bottle Rockets!
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
Marigold entered at sat at the kotatsu with the other three.
"...Can you do any other magical things like that?" Reimu asked her daughter. "Barriers, talismans… anything of that sort?"
'Not really, no.' Hikari realized a lot of her abilities to this point were utilitarian. '...I do have one thing, though…'
Hikari tried Shield α!
Reimu was protected by the shield of light!
...Reimu feels the air around her, looking over the shield. "...Not quite what I had in mind, but it's something. It's more like… raw light energy." She critiqued the shield.
'Not like I knew what form it would take… I'm lucky that I can form that at all.'
"Still… I'm proud of you, Hikari." Reimu smiled. "It only took ten years, right?"
Hikari gave a lopsided smile. "H-heh, I guess…"
Reimu stood up. "Let me get you and Marigold something to drink."
Osamu blinked. "What about me?"
"...I'll get you a water, or something." Reimu added offhandedly.
He grinned in satisfaction.
Reimu moved to the counter to get some orange juices and a glass of water.
While she was up at the counter, Hikari decided to make some chat to break the ice.
"...So, why was Marisa waiting with the other mages? I don't think she'd need that pack of ice so many days after the fact…" Hikari questioned.
Marigold sighed, making a tired face. "...All three of those mages," she began, "are my mothers."
...Hikari formed an 'o' shape with her mouth.
'...I'm not sure how that works, but alright. It seems like a tricky issue, so I think I might just let it rest.'
Osamu's jaw drops. "...How does that work?"
Hikari gets ready to facepalm…
Marigold fidgets uncomfortably. "W-well…"
Osamu beams. "That musta been hot! Did you see that purple one?"
Hikari fumbles for her gohei, alarm setting in.
Marigold looks like a deer in headlights.
"Dude, imagine the rack under those ro-"
SMAAAA~SH!
...Thud.
"A-ahah…" Osamu smiles from the floor, out of it.
...Reimu arrives back at the table to see a blushing Marigold and a facepalming Hikari. She sets down the orange juices, then looks over at the dead mage from the other side of the kotatsu.
...She walks over to him, and splashes the water on him.
"Hey, hoo, hah, I'm up, I'm up!" Osamu flails his arms before he realizes where he is.
Everyone stares at him judgmentally, and he eventually notices their stares after wiping himself off a bit. "...What'd I do!?"
Reimu gets up. "I think I'll be going to bed now. Don't stay up too late, you three… Also," She points at Osamu, "you're sleeping in this room, like last time."
Osamu grumbles to himself as Reimu walks off, leaving through a door into the side rooms of the shrine.
Hikari stands and stretches. "I think I'll head to bed, too."
Marigold gets up and follows her into her room.
…
Osamu stands from the kotatsu, instantly perking up. "...At least I've got the drinks all to myself now!"
He charges for the bar counter and slides over it.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
"The nerve of that man…" Marigold hugs herself, fuming.
Hikari sighs. "He means well. He's just a bit… careless. Tactless, rather."
"Grace and subtlety of an oni, more like it." Marigold agrees.
Hikari snickers. "Yeah, that's good…"
Moments pass, and Hikari gets herself into her pajamas. Marigold ends up using some of Hikari's pajamas, having none on her herself at the moment.
'It's a good thing Mom keeps the guest futons rolled up in my room…' Hikari would've had to use Hypnosis on Osamu if she actually had to leave the room in her pajamas.
After the moments of preparation pass, the two get into their respective futons.
"G'night, Marigold." Hikari gives her good night as she rolls over in her futon.
"Good night…"
…
==== GENSOKYOBOUND: MARIGOLD'S VIEW ====
Marigold sat at the table, eating her pancakes.
Alice sat down across from her, placing down no pancakes for herself, curiously. "...Marigold."
They were in Alice's house, and it was a fairly sunny morning. It had been a string of sunny mornings, lately, Marigold realized.
"Yeah?" Marigold looked up to her mother.
Alice exhaled evenly. "...I think it's time I told you about how you were born."
It was the conversation that seemingly started it all- but Marigold had come to realize the world had a way of obscuring past facts until just the right moment arose.
This was that moment.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
Marigold awoke with a start, expecting the soft blowing of snow that typically accompanied such strange dreams.
Sitting up abruptly but not suddenly, she looked to the left for her window, only to see the paper walls of a shrine.
'O-oh, right…'
Instead of the blowing of snow, there was light chirping of birds.
Shouting came from the main room.
Reimu made her presence known. "...What are you doing on the counter!?"
Thud.
"Aaa~h!" Osamu yelled.
...Marigold sighed in relief.
"Mmm…"
She heard Hikari begin stirring.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND: HIKARI'S VIEW ====
Rising from her bed slowly, Hikari stretched…
'Aaa~h…'
...Looking around, she saw Marigold smiling at her.
"...Good morning to you, too…" Hikari drowsily greeted her.
"Morning…" Marigold rose from her futon.
They drowsily got ready for their day, getting their respective outfits on.
Hikari lead the way into the main room of the shrine, Marigold following behind her…
Reimu was polishing the counter. "Your friend slept on the counter again like an animal. There were even soda cups everywhere."
'About time someone drank the soda. The only other time it sees use is at parties, because neither me or Mom drink it.'
Osamu stuck a finger into the air. "I'll have you know…!"
Reimu paused, looking at him.
"...That was some good soda."
Reimu continued polishing the counter.
"...Hey, Hikari." Reimu called to her daughter in a softer tone, and Hikari came to her. "...Your father left you, in fact, multiple allowances while you were out… buying discounted medicine." Reimu paused to evaluate how the last of that sentence came out. "...Here."
Reimu laid ten-thousand yen down on the counter.
Hikari's jaw dropped. 'So much…!'
"...Don't spend it all in one place, now. And… I know Marisa was being a complete moron last night, but could you do her a solid and at least buy something at some point? To make her feel better?" Reimu requested, more to Marigold than to Hikari. "...She's been rather down as of late."
Marigold folded her arms, which Hikari didn't miss.
"...We'll consider." Hikari told her.
"...Thanks." Reimu smiled.
Slowly waking up and going through the morning routine of eating breakfast, the three readied themselves for the day.
They all stood outside, ready to go.
Reimu adjusted her daughter's clean outfit. "...Try to not disappear for days at a time. Also, I'm not sure if you should head towards the human village right now." Reimu cautioned them.
'Why?'
Reading her daughter's expression, Reimu sighed. "When I went looking for you earlier, the village had some weird gathering, and ever since the guards have been acting funny, even towards me. I wouldn't want to see them do anything bad to you guys… in fact, I might go there today. The only reason I didn't stick around the other day was because I was looking around for you."
Hikari rose a brow. "Didn't you know I'd be going to Eientei?"
Reimu nodded. "When I saw the wall around it, though, I figured you couldn't get in, so I'd wondered why you hadn't come back."
'Seems legit…'
Reimu walked back inside. "You're in good company, I hope, so you should be alright. Have fun out there, Hikari."
Hikari blinked. "Bye, Mom."
…
Hikari turned to her party, finding a smiling Marigold and a grinning Osamu.
"So, what's the plan?" Osamu started the discussion.
Hikari shrugged. "Well… we're just gonna look around for more magic places, I guess. We don't really have any leads for where to go today, and the human village sounds out of the question."
"Sounds good with me. I can feel the magic already, baby!" Osamu tried his spark hand trick again…
Hikari stared at it slightly warily.
"...I have nothing better to do." Marigold tells the party. "So, yeah."
'Well, then…'
…
Hikari snapped her fingers. "I know where we could explore!"
'There was that weird crawlway under the shrine that I never had the courage to go inside… I wonder if something curious is hidden there?'
The other two stared at her expectantly as she wandered off in search for the cave. They eventually followed her…
Down the side of the Hakurei hill, there was a small, square crawlway that lead inside the hill.
'Here it is…' Hikari stared at it. She wasn't claustrophobic, but the space always seemed scarily tight to her.
Osamu kneeled and looked inside. "That's dark as balls, dude."
'We needed that analogy.'
Marigold examined it. "...I don't think my backpack will fit with me."
'Hopefully it's not a sprawling cave system, then.'
Hikari got onto her stomach, and starting crawling inside the cave through the small, stone passage way.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
After a solid minute of crawling, the three made their way into some sort of inner sanctum. It was indeed 'dark as balls' as Osamu had put it, completely black.
Marigold had crawled inside with her NF Burst Gun, so she fired it at the floor to produce some light.
Five bright flashes of danmaku light illuminated the room, and lit it up. A large crystal hanging from chains reflected the light and shone brightly in the center. While the room was a myriad of colors at first, it later revealed its true color to be pale green after some moments. Smaller crystals hung on the walls by chains as well, and a collection of ofuda, talismans, and other assorted holy paper crafts were hanging everywhere.
Dark halls stretched from the stone room, all of paper walls and slightly smashed up from the earth surrounding them, sporting creaky floorboards.
"Woah…" Hikari gaped at the grandeur of the underground chamber. 'This was underneath the shrine?'
Osamu's jaw dropped. "Woaa~h… I dare someone to lick that crystal. Two hundred yen says you'll do it."
Hikari sighed. "We share the same budget, and it's technically my money. No."
He folded his arms. "Killjoy."
Marigold looked around the complex room, mystified. "Uhm… H-Hikari, are you sure we should be here?"
"Nope." Hikari stated bluntly. "It's right under my home, so it's probably worth exploring, though."
"I guess…" Marigold's not certain about that logic.
Choosing a random direction, Hikari took the leftmost dark hall which lead away from the large crystal.
'I'm pretty sure that large crystal shouldn't be poked, with all of the ofuda and seals on it… Something big must be locked down here, and that's all there is to it. I'm still curious about these side rooms, though…'
They continued down the increasingly dark and derelict hall…
Strange forms appeared in the halls, featureless.
Hikari looks up at them, holding her gohei ready. "...U~h…"
"Fuckin' ghosts!" Osamu exclaimed.
Marigold frowned. "Ghosts, huh? So they do exist…"
The ghosts sported red eyes, and became slightly more humanoid.
"Hakurei…" one echoed.
"...Hakurei."
"...Blood."
'Well, that answers one question.' Hikari readied herself for combat.
'...I really need to remember to bring ofuda. When we get out of here, I should grab some.'
Vengeful Spirit A tried PK Freeze α!
KaKaKoo…
Rapid freezing and thawing occurred right around Hikari's torso, a familiar pattern of ice crystals forming and melting rapidly.
'E-eegh… s-so cold…' Hikari wanted to hug herself on impulse, but the spell prevented her from moving much.
Krack!
The ice blast that resulted sent Hikari to her rear.
Hikari was chilled!
'A-ah…'
Marigold fired wildly at the ghosts.
With the numerous pops of her NF Burst Gun, the ghosts began dispersing to avoid the danmaku.
Osamu debated what to do…
Osamu tried PSI Shield α!
Hikari was protected by the shield of psychic energy!
'N-need… warmth…'
Hikari tried Lifeup α!
After a moment, she felt better, but still chilled.
She stood up shakily, shivering. 'Ugh…'
The second Vengeful Spirit floated menacingly towards Marigold, spreading its ghostly figure out to avoid the danmaku she was firing.
She drew her Stun Gun, and turned it on.
Zazazap!
...The ghost began its advancement in the opposite direction, the bright light of the Stun Gun intimidating it.
'That's it…!' Hikari felt like an idiot for not realizing it sooner.
Hikari tried PK Flash α!
Flash!
The figure of Vengeful Spirit B was erased.
Vengeful Spirit A was unaffected.
'It k-kinda worked…' Hikari shivered.
Vengeful Spirit A tried Brainshock α!
Hikari heard an ear-piercingly loud static sound, but nothing else happened.
'...Ouch. W-where did...?'
Marigold marched towards the Vengeful Spirit with her NF Burst Gun, firing a random spread of danmaku bullets.
The spirit produced a soft hiss as it retreated into the wall.
Vengeful Spirit A fled!
…
Hikari shook her head, still shivering. "T-that was… weird."
Marigold noticed how feeble her speech had become. "...Are you cold, Hikari?"
"...Y-yeah." Hikari thought that went without question.
Marigold walked up to her side and hugged her, causing Hikari to freeze.
'...U-uh…'
Osamu groaned. "That was my idea! I just thoughta that, too!"
Hikari stared at him dryly. 'If this was you, you would've caught a gohei where the sun doesn't shine.'
Slowly they continued further, until they reached a familiar looking room- at least, to Hikari, as the other party members hadn't gone farther than the main room for the most part.
'Is this… my kitchen?'
Hikari looked around curiously.
Osamu grinned. "Sweet! Never thought some creepy-ass underground tomb would have food and stuff!"
He walked over to the pantry, and opened it up.
Vengeful Spirit C lashed out with a raw burst of mana!
Osamu was flung from the pantry doors, landing against a very rotted kitchen table, breaking it on impact.
Bam!
"Fuck!"
Hikari broke from Marigold's hug and ran towards the vengeful spirit, whacking at it with her gohei.
"Oouhh…" The spirit recoiled in pain from the presence of the gohei colliding with its ethereal form.
Osamu tried PK Thunder α!
Thwaaa~sh!
Bam!
The lightning bolt struck a primitive stove, smashing it.
'That freaking lightning bolt…' Hikari snorts.
Marigold opened fire on Vengeful Spirit C!
"Fwaa~h…"
Vengeful Spirit C's form broke apart, disrupted by the danmaku which pierced its ethereal existence, tearing it asunder.
…
Hikari was still cold, but she felt like she was getting better.
She took a proper look around the surreal room, which looked far too much like the shrine's kitchen on the surface, sans the stalactites and stalagmites that adorned the roof and floor. Puddles and torn floorboards were also a commodity, and the appliances were all even more primitive than those the shrine had, if one could believe it.
'...Creepy.' Hikari didn't mind spirits, being a miko, but the cavern was simply uncanny.
"I really shoulda brought my backpack with me…" Marigold reflected solemnly. "We might need it."
Osamu rolled his eyes. "Ah, they're just stupid ghosts. They're more scared of us than we are of them!"
'I'd beg to differ.' The ghosts sounded like they held a grudge to her.
There was another hall along the room's right wall, which the party ended up deciding to traverse.
Continuing into the ever darkening hall, Osamu created a shoddy fireball to create some light for the party.
The entire hall was dark and empty.
…
Reaching the other side, what seemed to be a bedroom was found. It was a general, square room with a futon and dresser on the other side of the room. It was as simplistic as her mother's room, but laid out differently… not that it made much difference.
Hikari's attention was turned to the dresser. 'I wonder how old the clothes in there are, if there's even any…'
Moving across the shattered floor of the room, she slid open the dresser.
Inside wasn't really anything she recognized…
'Wait, I see some arm sleeves, and other red bits…'
...Hikari took out a few things from the dresser, including a black leotard and a hakama.
She glanced at the arm sleeves, and decided they weren't necessary to take out. 'I already have my own, and those ones look a little different, so… no.'
She couldn't properly gauge the quality of the clothes from the very dim light provided by Osamu's fireball, so she just folded them up to carry with her.
Osamu looked around the room slowly. "...Why's all this stuff underground, anyway?"
'I have no idea.'
...There was a curious, flat-ish box in the corner of the room, with a valve on it. On one of the sides was a hatch of some sort. The entire thing was made of wood.
Hikari picked it up, examining it.
'What could this be…?'
She twisted the valve, but nothing seemed to happen.
'It's kinda stiff…'
Sitting down, Hikari continued twisting the valve…
After a lengthy moment of twisting, something was shot out of the box.
Fwoop!...
Splat.
A green substance struck the wall.
'Best machine, without a doubt.' Hikari stared at it dryly.
Marigold crouched next to her to properly examine it. "...That's weird. I wonder how it works."
'I don't.' Hikari didn't have much interest in a giant box that only shot some slime.
"I don't think there's much down here but ghosts and knickknacks." Hikari told her friends. "We should head back before more ghosts get in the way."
Osamu shrugged. "Yeah, I was kinda done here after I found out the kitchen didn't have any food…"
'...It would have been old, anyway.'
The party backtracked to the large green crystal room they came in through. Osamu crawled out first, having nothing he had to carry out.
Hikari turned to the crystal one last time, mystified. 'I wonder if Mom knows about this place… If she did, she never told me anything about it.'
Hikari left next, precariously protecting the clothes she nicked from the underground dresser as she crawled out. Marigold followed behind her, pushing the box forward through the crawlway.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
With their newfound loot, the party returned to the shrine to assess it, since it was literally just up the hill, after all.
Reimu sat at her kotatsu, drinking tea to rouse herself for an excursion to the human village…
The three walked in, carrying their loots.
Reimu's eyes were drawn to the large wooden box. "You guys're back already?"
Marigold brings the box to the kotatsu table, prompting Reimu to look at it further. Hikari walked off to her room to try out the new clothes she found, while Osamu slinked towards the bar counter…
"...What's that?" Reimu finally asked after watching Marigold fool with it for a few moments…
"I don't know." Marigold replied, mystified. She turned the valve…
Fwoom!
Splat.
"...It appears to be some sort of slime generator." Marigold observed.
Reimu stared at the splat. "...Try not to get it all over the walls, alright?"
"Eheh…" Marigold gives a half-hearted giggle as she rotates the box around, looking for a way to open it.
Osamu chugged another glass of soda at the counter. After finishing it, he burped loudly. "Now that's the good stuff…"
...Reimu turned around to face him.
He waved back sheepishly.
Reimu just sighed.
Hikari's door slid open again, and she stepped out in her new outfit.
Hikari equipped Combat Miko Outfit!
She looked over her outfit one last time to make sure it was all set. 'Man, this thing is faded…'
The leotard was more so a dull grey, she realized, and the fabric of the hakama was frayed in some places, even lightly ripped at the knees. The red was a fainter color than the red of her previous outfit, which Hikari figured was also due to aging.
Reimu glanced at her, but held her gaze when she noticed what she was wearing. Hikari navigated to the kotatsu.
"...You know, I wasn't going to question the neon green yukkuri ribbon," Reimu began, "but now you've suddenly put on your grandmother's clothes, somehow. My only question is where you even found those."
"They were in a hole." Hikari summarized.
Reimu snorted.
"...What was with that place? The one underground." Hikari questioned.
"It's really nothing," Reimu told her. "Just some old seal and dusty furniture. Nothing you really need to be concerned with."
"And the big, glowing crystal of doom?" Hikari pressed.
"...Part of the old seal." Reimu abbreviated. "Specifically, it's to seal a rather powerful vengeful spirit me and Marisa beat up awhile ago. She wasn't really that tough, but I don't think letting her get out would be a good idea, so don't go attacking the seal or anything."
Hikari was satisfied with the answer. 'It's a good thing we didn't. I probably could have gotten away with licking it, though.'
Marigold groaned in frustration. "How does this thing wo~rk? I can't even open it…" She fumbled the box around rapidly as her strain increased. The box had seemingly no nails or screws to hold it together even though it was obviously made of multiple crude wooden parts.
Reimu shrugged.
==== GENSOKYOBOUND ====
END OF CHAPTER 8
Protagonist: Hikari Hakurei, Disciple of Paradise
-Inventory-
Weapon: Magical Gohei - Ability to whack stuff really hard. Amplifies whacking power, too! Able to deal magical damage. Critical hits enabled.
Arms: Iconic Hakurei Arm Sleeves - Keeps arms warm. A Hakurei tradition. How they stay on is a Hakurei family secret.
Body: Combat Miko Outfit - A black leotard and hakama combination worn by the previous-previous Hakurei miko. Designed to be suitable for excessive physical activity and close combat, it slightly improves physical combat prowess.
Misc: Yukkuri Ribbon - Looks like a bad Christmas ornament. Lime green, with yukkuri decals!
-Skills-
Attack: Quickly! Swing your gohei at them for massive damage!
PK Fantasy α, β - Bombards the enemy with pain in the form of flashing colors. Deals magical damage. Heavy mental strain that increases with each tier.
PK Flash α - A bright flash that distributes very random status effects to enemies. Usually makes people cry.
Hypnosis α, Ω - Puts weak enemies to sleep for a short time. Works better on tired or exhausted foes. Can also be used in a far more costly form that works on multiple opponents.
Shield α - Halves damage the target takes. Only works against physical attacks, and enough strikes, or powerful strikes, will dispel it.
Lifeup α, ß - Heals target a little. Higher tiers heal more grievous wounds, like bone fractures.
Healing α, ß - Heals basic status ailments. Higher tiers can cure more dire effects, like burning alive.
Ofuda Toss - Throw a holy ofuda that does massive holy elemental damage to youkai and dark elemental foes. Effect lessens the more holy the thing you're attacking is, to the point of healing holy things. Only works if you actually have ofuda, though.
β-β-β-β
Mage: Osamu Katsumi, the Wannabe Mage
-Inventory-
Weapon: Fisticuffs!
Arms: Nothing
Body: Worn Magician Robes - An old robe from the days when the village respected the medium of magic. Well past its due date, but still comfy!
Misc: Yukkuri Beanie - Resembles a really tacky tablecloth, made in the Yukkuri theme. Lime green and has tons of fun yukkuri decals!
-Skills-
PK Thunder α - Very random thunder attack that deals limited damage.
PK Hydro α, β - Gets everyone wet. Usefulness with PK Thunder and PK Freeze depends on whether you hit yourself or not! Creates whirling water spirals at higher tiers.
PK Freeze α, β - Generates ice crystals at the target's location. Medium damage and effect; may freeze some targets, especially wet ones.
Fireball - Manipulate mana to make a shoddy fireball. Low damage and effect.
Static Hands - Not a real spell. Result of a very undercharged PK Thunder that can accidentally go off.
PSI Telepathy α - Speak to friends you haven't met yet! Unstable connection and only works if they have the skill or are asleep.
PSI Shield α - Halves damage from magical and psychic attacks. Thunder spells fry it instantly, and harder blows dispel it.
β-β-β-β
Inventor: Marigold Knowledge, the Tri-Magi Love Child
-Inventory-
Weapon: NF Burst Gun - A Marigold Knowledge invention. Uses a Pop Gun as the base, but amplifies its power with an array of random batteries jammed into the base with the Pop Gun. The more batteries, the better, but the typical yield is about five bullets per trigger. Spamming the trigger doesn't make it go any faster, unfortunately. Has no foreseeable ammo limit, and the batteries are only there for mana circulation, meaning their power is really inconsequential.
Arms: Nothing
Body: Custom Dress - A custom dress made by Alice. Provided slight defense against magical and psychic attacks.
Misc: Swirly Glasses - Lets Marigold not be blind.
Backpack - Allows extended inventory. Aged relic from the Kourindou.
Unnamed Lock Opening Device - Opens locks very precariously. Made with steel, burnt cloth, packaging peanuts, thumbtacks, string, and wooden wheels. Don't even ask…
Ruler - Lets you measure the world around you!
Protractor - Lets you find the angles of anything ever. Totally overpowered.
Deck of Cards - Allows Marigold to play Strip Poker with the party. Just kidding… or am I?
Stun Gun - Electrical device used to subdue harassers. Has settings ranging from Tickle Torture to Arse Blaster. Able to stun and inflict paralysis on certain foes. Deals electrical damage, and on the highest setting can fry shields, at the cost of temporarily shorting itself out.
Air Gun - A Marigold Knowledge invention. Uses air to propel moderately powered danmaku particles at high speeds. Bland, but efficient. Filled with foil chip bags to conduct the mana, and it is transmitted into a wind stone. Coagulated fairy fingers are currently the only viable mana-providing ammo for this weapon.
Holmes Brand Designer Hat - Village swag! A retro village hat that ceased production ten years ago. Sells for a pretty penny nowadays, but it's pretty useless otherwise.
Slime Generator - A bulky box that shoots a small splat of slime. Doesn't seem good for much.
-Skills-
Knows The Konami Code - Up-up, down-down, left-right-left-right, B A, start!
Crazed Gunman - Actually an assassin.
Also Not An Assassin - …
Debatably Professional - Is polite, quick, and efficient. Sometimes.
Does Not Throw Jars of Piss at People - Marigold cannot equip Jar of Piss.
β-β-β-β
Author's Note:
welcome, friends
...pissed off ghosts!
finally time to develop some of their skills, as it were!
my proofreader was really engaged with this chapter, and actually suggested a lot of neat ideas to help shape it along
it always helps to have a second person who is engaged judge what you're writing; it's definitely a strong step in quality control and keeps things fresh; you just gotta be ready to engage in a little light debate when it comes to ideas
don't be afraid if they bash your skull in; that's what they're there for, yo
as always, see you all next time! don't get freakin' gobbled up by VENGEFUL SPIRITS yo
Proofreader's Note:
If anything, bash their head in more. Keeps 'em on their toes. Remember to stone those writer-fucker's heads, otherwise they might do stupid shit like putting fluffles in their fics.