Chapter 15: The Phantasm of Gensokyo
The warning bells from the Human Village rang all the way up to the Hakurei Shrine. At the entrance of the staircase to that underground chamber, Shou was keeping guard for the shrine maiden's presence until those bells grabbed her attention away. The tiger looked into the stairs and exclaimed "Hey! Something's going on in the village!" It took a few minutes for Nazrin and Mamizou to pop out from the darkness, a perplexed scowl on the tanuki's face.
"I read about these bells. They signal an approaching catastrophe to the village. With Spell Card Rules in effect though…" Mamizou grit her teeth and ran to the top of the stairs, glancing back with a swing of her arm to state "Nazrin, keep searching down there, I'll be right back!" Her voice was, for her, very forceful and swift. The mouse made no rebuttal and the tanuki was allowed to rush to the front of the Hakurei Shrine.
There was a newspaper there now that she scurried to sweep into her hands. The front page displayed not an article of gossip as usually expected, but a warning to all Youkai about the war that would ensue soon enough. From the words chosen Mamizou suspected that the Tengu were looking to recruit people to their side. Though thoughts ran around like a whirlpool in her mind, there was something that the tanuki was able to focus on.
"The Tengu wouldn't be able to survive a war against the Underground after their numbers dwindled during that one incident. What even incited this…" Mamizou read over the article until the cause was found in the form of the captured satori. Her thoughts lingered on that for just a little bit until she murmured "The satori that took the Mask of Hope from our young menreiki, eh?"
By that point, her mind wandered to what she figured the night before, that that very same satori had brought the ill menreiki back to her home. Her presence couldn't be detected, but the scent was quite clear at the time. When that fact clicked in her head, the article couldn't possibly make sense.
"If that satori was with Kokoro, then she couldn't have been in jail. Then that would mean the Tengus were setup to go to war by someone. Who though…? Who could possibly benefit from a war of this scale?"
Mamizou's hands tense and crumpled the paper, her eyes widening as it dropped onto the porch. Her mind went back to a couple days ago, when she suddenly caught wind of Kokoro's scent in the Human Village. It wasn't something that built up, so how was it possible for that to happen? There had always been a question of what the menreiki had been up to, but now all facts were starting to blend together into a single truth that made the tanuki's fur crawl.
"Yakumo…Yukari…!" Her anger built up and erupted all at once, even as she tried to restrain it with her gritted teeth. Looking back and seeing two specks suddenly flying out of the Human Village, one that had long pink hair and another that was carrying a parasol. Perhaps it was paranoia biting at her, but the tanuki could've sworn the second figure was looking this way. It would be far too easy to imagine a docile smirk on that person's face too.
Mamizou's fists clenched up before she turned and made a beeline back for the staircase. She ignored Shou and Nazrin as she reached into her sleeve and pulled out her smoke pipe. "We don't have time to deal with these obstacles!" She proclaimed furiously as she ended up in front of a wall of darkness, Nazrin shrugging her shoulders and saying in her smart-aleck tone "Then why are you wasting time on a smoke, gran-"
In a second Mamizou turned her pipe into a metallic leaf-shaped sword and slashed through the wall with enough force to send the crumbling bricks flying back into the room. Nazrin and Shou stood with mouth agape, the only thing the mouse could muster being a meek "Holy shit…!" With the sword turned back and put into her sleeve, the straight-faced tanuki advanced into the holy confines of this chamber while muttering "We're going to find the treasure and get to Kokoro, before SHE has her way with her powers!"
"Huh…? Who?" Nazrin and Shou said as their minds snapped away from the sudden awe-filled display of Mamizou's strength.
Meanwhile, at the Myouren Temple, Byakuren had returned in a blink of an eye to find Miko and her two subordinates Futo and Tojiko with her. The rest of the temple goers had gathered outside, their faces filled with fraught.
"Kokoro's gone missing. Hijiri, what's the meaning with this?" Miko spoke in frustration fueled by what she had been forewarned before. She walked up and placed her hands on Byakuren's shoulders, staring deep into her concerned eyes as the priest could only offer a brief shake of the head.
"I-I don't know. I went to deal with her problem…Was she not here when you arrived?"
Miko pulled back and while trying to relax she commented "No, which means she disappeared in the interim. This is bad, we can't have her out during a war. Not to mention what the tanuki warned us about, as much as I hate to heed her advice now…"
"We should split up and try to find her like last time!" Kyouko shouted out with her usual enthusiasm even in these dire times. Yet Miko's rebuttal was understandably blunt "You mean like how we failed to track her down? We're without either the tanuki or the tiger's perceptive noses, and…" Upon mentioning that the Crown Prince froze up and clenched tightly her shaku.
"N-No way…Did we really underestimate that witch this much?" All eyes were on Miko as she muttered those words strangely, only Byakuren being able to respond with a curt yet concerned "We let our guard down for just a second…and that's all she needed to get Kokoro away from us."
"W-Well a-actually…" A meek and quiet voice spoke up, the figure of Kogasa slipping out from between the rest of the temple goers. She approached the authority figures with a thick gulp down her esophagus then peeked out from the shade of her umbrella to state "I-I might have been the last person to speak with Kokoro…"
Byakuren's hands were immediately clenching the girl's frail shoulders, and she understandably let out a shrill and panicked cry as the priest glared her in the eyes and demanded to know "Where. Did she. GO?" In the face of her overwhelming pressure, the truth shot out of Kogasa's mouth like a danmaku bullet "S-She went to find that one satori! I don't know where she'd be otherwise!"
A mother's fright and concern all culminated at once in Byakuren's mind, making her grip loosen as she stood up and her head along with body began to feel a dizzying pressure. Miko was right behind her placing weight on her shoulders, which helped to stabilize the body, and it was her words of wisdom "If we hurry and work together, we can find Kokoro before the witch" that alleviated some of the pain in her head.
"R-Right…" Byakuren gave a nod and smiled, showing appreciation as much as her expression could allow as she rubbed her temples and looked to the others, swinging her hand out to proclaim "Kokoro is one of us, regardless of whether you're Taoist or Buddhist, so lets bring her back to where she belongs! I assume there's no disagreements?"
Everyone let out a resounding "NO!", only a couple being louder than the rest. The message was made clear, and Byakuren firmed a serious expression and turned to look at Miko as she smiled. "I didn't think it'd come down to another grand battle occurring in Gensokyo, that witch has some gall to make something like this happen again, but that's why we can't let her succeed. It's time to send her a message that we won't be dealing with her machinations any longer!"
The group was about ready to march out to find Kokoro when all of a suddenly something crashed down directly outside the gates and erupted a plume of dust into the air, masking their presence until a cheery if not slurred voice called out "Message received! Sorry, but you party guests are going to have to sit here for the time being!" A punch was thrust that shook the air and removed the dust via sonic boom, revealing a small girl with bent horns as big as her head, long orange hair that went to her knees, a sleeveless tattered blouse complimented by a purple-pink shirt, and chains attached to her wrists.
As the display of strength left the group cautiously in place, Miko going for her sword while Byakuren clenched her fists, the little oni known as Suika Ibuki grinned her fangs together and planted her fist into her palm hard enough to shake the temple, saying almost excitedly "You're welcome to fight back, I welcome the challenge! But maybe you should take a second to evaluate the situation before jumping in, eh?" Left in this confusing and sudden stalemate, both sides would have to tolerate each other into someone decided to make a move…
During this moment though, Kokoro would be seen flying towards the scene of the battleground, Kuriya floating precariously behind her. The menreiki looked back to her, thinking of the conversation they had before their departure.
"Kokoro, am I hearing that right? The bell ringing means catastrophe is approaching?" Kuriya spoke as she walked up to the menreiki and the satori, who was currently floating upside-down without a care as the village became scarce with humans.
"I-I don't know! M-Maybe…?" She could only respond uncertainly as she shook her head back and forth, unable to explain the feeling of pain in her heart that the word 'war' brought on. Kuriya stepped up to her and commented with her secretive smirk "It seems that, perhaps, fate is giving you a chance to be a hero after all."
The girl's approach got Kokoro leaning and stepping back slowly, and suddenly Koishi got in the way to spin herself upright and say "Hey hey! Who do you think you are partner?" Kuriya brushed the back of her hand against the satori's face to move her as though she was a branch in the way, casually moving ahead to state "Kokoro, do you understand the implications of the word 'war'?"
"N-No…?" She was hesitant to admit and slowly she shook her head until the girl twirled her parasol and explained "It's a dreadful word describing the foolish behavior of two or more sides going into conflict over differing beliefs. Earth history speaks of many wars occurring both big and small, and I suppose for Gensokyo that's no different either…Yet there's always one guarantee."
Her smile slowly creaked wide and her vibe became overall eerie as she said with an overall childish expression "People will die, whether soldier or innocents…"
"NO!" Kokoro suddenly spoke out, her tone coming across as offended to the highest degree while containing a little fear. Kuriya lingered on the expression the menreiki had as she began to pant and shake her head "No one should have to die! I-I thought Gensokyo used Spell Card Duels to solve problems!" Her tone was more mature than before, yet her empathetic nature was ripe for exploiting.
"No one should have to die…? Then lets make that proposition a reality, Hata no Kokoro. Let us go to the battlefield at the Youkai Mountains and resolve this matter. I believe with all my heart your powers will be useful."
When she was done remembering everything, there was an unease in Kokoro's heart. Kuriya looked innocent, yet that almost seemed like a guise from the way she had been behaving today. There was a matter of trust that Kokoro could not shake off her mind, but she would not get the chance to say anything as the scene of battle came into view up ahead. The Tengu and Underground Youkai were at a standstill, their leaders taking the forefront of their armies as they appeared to be conversing.
Kuriya got ahead and used her umbrella to keep Kokoro from advancing, pointing out "The last thing we'd want to do is attract their attention. From here should be fine…" She then waited for the menreiki to turn around to fold her parasol and grasp it in one hand, using the other to reach into her dress and delicately tug at something.
"Your power of manipulating emotions, if used it in combination with this…" Kuriya pulls out a small blue magical crystal and smiles as Kokoro's eyes light up and she mutters "A-A Philosopher's Stone? …Why do you-" Kuriya cupped the stone and raised a finger to the menreiki's lips, making her heart beat faster.
"Shhh…It's alright Kokoro, it doesn't matter why I have this. You need it to stop this war from escalating." When Kokoro's body looked to be easing up, Kuriya pulled back and gave an uneasy grin before continuing "Now, this stone can amplify magical energies. Your emotional manipulation, when combined with this, can remove all feelings of hostilities from the Tengu and Underground Youkai. However, you have to concentrate in order for this to work. I'll funnel the Philosopher Stone's energy into your body so you can get the job done."
"A-Ahh…" Kokoro murmured, but with the stoicism of a puppet Kuriya lifted her head up and basked in the glow of the stone as she coldly said "Or perhaps…you'd like for Gensokyo to be bathed in a sea of blood?"
A palpitation of the mind causes Kokoro to see Byakuren, Miko and Tenshi's corpses floating behind Kuriya, dragged away by a river of blood. The world just felt so hollow at that point. Kokoro's mouth felt dry, her body quivering as her arm moved all on it's own towards the Philosopher's Stone. Kuriya raised a finger to her lips and went "Shhh…" as she floated behind the menreiki like a phantasm on the ethereal plain.
Time slowed for Kokoro as she turned to face the two armies, who appeared ready to charge into battle, their emotions inflamed. One budge is all it would take for blood to be shed, for carnage to consume the once peaceful Gensokyo.
"It's not right…It's just not right…" Kokoro raised her hands up and unwittingly summoned her calming mask beside her face as blue flames radiated around her small frame. Kuriya's dress spread out and ruffled in the breeze as she held her arms front and center to balance the Philosopher's Stone between the palms. The stone glowed and poured it's energies through Kokoro's being like strands of webbing, and Kokoro grit her teeth and let out a gasp as she felt her body's energies being carried out towards the two armies.
They were not made aware of what was approaching and thus could do nothing as they were swallowed up by waves of gentle, relaxing emotion. Kokoro looked down upon the armies and saw traces of resistance amongst the stronger Youkai. Tears were forced from Kokoro's eyes as she proclaimed "STOOOOOOOOP!" shrilly out, and her voice echoed throughout Gensokyo in a reverberating shockwave of emotional energy.
The first yet most important person the wave reached was Tenshi, who happened to be descending from Bhava-agra on her keystone. The wave nearly threw her right off, and as she kept her hat from flying off she widened her eyes and stated "K-Kokoro? The hell is going on here?" As the Celestial went to investigate the sound the clouds in the sky grew darker.
From the two armies' perspective, they were slowly dropping to the ground, their will to fight drained slowly but surely. Not even the onis could fight against this feeling. Satori, the last to fall unconscious, looked up into the sky and finally saw the figures responsible for this act. When she focused on Kuriya in particular, she saw her for who she truly was, and the figure of her true form gave an acknowledging smirk. Teeth grit as she dug her nails into the ground, Satori muttered calmly "Y-You tricked us all…Yakumo…Yukari…!" and then her mind went to sleep against it's will.
With the last person down, "Kuriya" gripped the Philosopher's Stone tightly to turn it to dust, sending a surge of magical energy through Kokoro's body that shocked her mind so suddenly that her eyes widened and nothing else as her body went limp and began to fall forward. "Kuriya", surrounded by a grey fog, moved forward as she returned to her true identity of Yukari Yakumo and caught Kokoro's body in her arms.
By the menreiki's eyes were blank and motionless, making her a doll in the gap witch's grasp. Yukari looked at her with a small smirk as a gap opened up beside her, the loyal Ran emerging from it with claws folded into her sleeves and traces of blood on her lips.
"Lady Yukari, everything went according to plan. I have disposed of all traces of the disguised corpse in the Tengu palace. Shall I move on to the next step?" Yukari nodded her head and with eyes shut said "You may. Make sure to keep a faint trace of my presence in the satori's memories for later."
Ran nodded her head, and both of them looked ahead and saw Tenshi floating a fair distance away with her mouth agape and her arms held stiff beside her hips. With a piercing glare her way, Yukari muttered "I will see you back at the Mayohiga for the final steps, Ran." As the kitsune retreated into a gap after a nod, Yukari turned around and began to step into a gap of her own.
Tenshi's emotions flared up as she summoned her Hisou no Tsurugi in her right hand and flung herself at Yukari, blurting out with the utmost fury "LET GO OF HER YOU WITCH!" But just inches away from being able to connect with her blade, Tenshi suddenly was met with the impact of four knuckles to her face, and were just a little more strength used her face would've likely ended up as paste. Instead, a shockwave shattered the keystone and sent the Celstial rocketing to the ground.
After crashing Tenshi bounced and was sent flying through two trees, then was sent tumbling through the forest until being launched into one more. Going through those trees killed her momentum enough that when she finally slammed back first against the wall beside the Myouren Temple's gate her body stuck to it instead of breaking through. Cracks spread out until the wall broke down all the way around the temple, Tenshi buried in the rubble as the Taoists and Buddhists noticed her sudden appearance.
Suika, however, was joined by a copy of herself that shook some blood off her knuckles before giving the original a high-five. The clone dissolves into a thin white mist and is sucked into the oni's skin pores. She then turned to the groups and flexed her right fingers so tightly the bones looked ready to pop out, saying with the fierce grin of a demon on the battlefield "So now that I've made my first point, who wants to go next?!"
Next Time: A Mother's Fury