Reimu's teeth clenched. She shook as she gazed down at the now normal-looking ground. Marisa pulled her into her arms.
"It's 'ight, Reimu. Dey ain't threats."
Alice also stepped forward. "After the incident, they lost almost everything. All any of them want is peace and a home. I'm from there, and you let me stay here."
A human becoming a youkai was against the law, and back then Reimu knew very well what happened. If it weren't for Marisa stepping in to defend her, no doubt Reimu would've exterminated Alice for good. The two magicians seemed happy with each other, and aside from the menial shift in the population count, Reimu couldn't place any negative outcome on that girl. If the rules were bent like that once without Yukari batting an eye, perhaps she could get away with it again. But….
"Gensokyo is… a paradise built for humans and youkai." Reimu's voice couldn't come out at full strength. "The balance between them is delicate… a third force would easily break it…." Reimu felt the urge to smack herself with her own gohei for regurgitating the words Genjii had fed her, but that turtle, the sages and the Hakurei God surely knew what was best for Gensokyo more than her. She was just their shrine maiden - an errand girl, really. A dog of the gods. She should be thankful that they allow her to float through life most of the time. They even let her tackle incidents of her own accord. But in serious situations like this… what choice did she have? As far as Gensokyo itself was concerned, this was no mere 'incident'.
"They're no different from you or I. They're just… lost. And scared of the sages, you, even regular people."
"Ya know, Reimu." Marisa pulled back. "What happened back den was parta why we made da spell card rules. We all messed up real bad."
"I know that." Reimu's voice came out hard and defensive.
"Den it ain't too late ta help 'em out. I'm sure even dat angel up dere sees ya don't really wanna fight."
"They destroyed my shrine. Hell, they just destroyed the Buddhist temple! And almost killed me! I can't just let them run free, who knows what they'll do? They're… they're a threat! They've proven as such!"
"We can keep 'em in check. Y'know how many other dangerous folk we've kept in check?"
Reimu gripped the yin-yang orb, staring into it as if her god would ever offer any form of guidance. "Look, I… I don't have a choice…. This situation is different… it's my job - I can't just ignore it. The risk… it's too much. This kinda thing just… comes with the job. My mother must've done stuff like this all the time."
"C'mon, Reimu…."
"Marisa, I - I'm not a bad person…. I just…."
"Ya think ya have ta coz some old turtle, some sages and a god decided dey're enemies. I dunno nothin' 'bout how serious those guys think dis is, but the people from Makai don't pose any more threat den, I dunno, dat bird underground. Dere's much bigger threats amongst humans and youkai den them, I think."
"Y-yeah… but…." Reimu felt her will dimming, much like the power she felt from the yin-yang orb. "Wh-what if a conflict starts between them and youkai before we can get them settled in? Like, before they're following the spell card rules properly and we've sorted out how they'll fit into the balance? It'll end just like back then, except it'll be Gensokyo this time! I… I know how… much it means to you…" Reimu gave a quick glance at Alice. "But Gensokyo wasn't made for them. It's delicate as is, with all the incidents, humans idolising youkai, becoming them, not to mention trying to keep youkai out of the village. Introducing something else to that mix… there's just too much to keep track of. So… we need them to stay in Makai. I don't hate them - I… I'm sure they're not too different from us - but… it's just not worth the risk. Please understand…."
Before either of them could speak up, a small barrier formed in Reimu's hand and rapidly expanded, pushing the two of them away. It enveloped the two Makai residents above, keeping them inside. Alice and Marisa pounded and blasted at the barrier, fruitlessly trying to get in from the outside. Sariel turned, gently pressing a hand against the inside of the barrier. They withdrew it, looked at the bat beside them, and frowned in annoyance.
"Please, just go back to Makai. Maybe… maybe later. Let me discuss it with Yukari, first. Maybe she'll find a way to… somehow make things work."
"You've seen the hell we come from, yet you still demand we stay there?" Sariel retorted. The type to have an answer for everything. "I must admit, I've gained a great deal of respect for you. To do what you think is right for the people you protect, even when those close to you disagree, requires nothing if not a strong will. You must understand I cannot leave the fate of those I protect up to 'maybe' and 'somehow.'"
Reimu gripped the orb and looked down at the dirt. She had to admit the respect she had for the angel, too. She looked up. She could only wish her will was as strong as theirs.
The gate in the mountains was foreign when Yumeko paced towards it, Lady Shinki at one side, the flower youkai at the other and Mika and Senkou close behind. It was a sight which - now she could think about it - she'd never seen. Ever since her creation, she could never conceptualise why someone would ever want to leave, and thus found no reason to venture to the gate herself. She turned to the comforting red light of Makai; while certainly unpleasant compared to the wondrous white light the world once had, it was a dim blanket of certainty and safety compared to whatever was outside. Yet now it fell on her to play the hero, venturing to a ruthless, unknown land which she'd only known as aggressors. To say she felt a twinge of uncertainty would be an understatement. Especially with her having to put her faith in an ex-invader.
"Are you feeling okay, Yumeko?" The echo of Lady Shinki's voice against the cave was like a warm embrace. Yumeko moved to speak but the flower youkai beat her to it.
"We don't have time for that. Open the gate."
"I'll be watching from above," Lady Shinki said as another form of reassurance while she approached the gate. A realisation hit Yumeko as the gate slowly opened, as she ruffled through her hair and undid the hair tie, holding it out.
"Lady Shinki."
Lady Shinki turned around and looked down at the hair tie. As if taking that glance as a signal, the hair tie floated up, flew around, and nestled back into Yumeko's hair, much to the maid's annoyance. She ruffled back through her hair, attempting to pull it out once more, only to receive a strike on the head for it.
"How in Makai did you deal with this thing!?" Yumeko cried out, rubbing her head as she continued trying to pull it out, the hair tie fighting back. "I'll put you back to sleep if you don't cooperate!" The hair tie struck her again. "Gah!"
Lady Shinki giggled, holding her hand over her mouth. Mika and Senkou behind her also laughed, though the youkai watched on impatiently. Lady Shinki withdrew her hand. "I think it's grown attached to you. You should keep it."
"I could never. It's yours, that I've worn it this long is already an insult. And annoying - gah!"
Lady Shinki stepped forward, taking Yumeko's hands in hers. "I'm not the god of Makai anymore, you need not revere me. Besides, it hates me now. Ever since… I abandoned everyone, it was so restless and angry. And then… I abandoned it, too. I have no right."
The hair tie bobbed up and down, affirming Lady Shinki's claim. Yumeko focused more on Lady Shinki's initial words, her face sinking. "Lady Shinki, you're still my-"
"We should leave, Yumeko."
Yumeko looked to the open gate, exhaling. She'd just say it later.
The group left through the gate and flew towards the bright, white light of Gensokyo. A light which gave Yumeko a strange sense of familiarity. It dragged her mind back to when Makai wasn't destroyed. She buried the sense of nostalgia, reminding herself of the dangers that lay behind that light. Dangers which leapt out at her once she reached the mouth of the cave, wincing and staggering back once the light burned her eyes. Even Lady Shinki raised an arm to block it. An overwhelming urge to turn back and run into the safe, dark shade of Makai overcame her. Everything she believed was justified. They couldn't even look at this world, yet alone be safe here.
The flower youkai withdrew her parasol and opened it. A dark black shade stretched behind her. Yumeko breathed a sigh of relief. As they flew, her eyes adjusted to the bright light from the safety of the shade. It differed from the old Makai, for sure, but Yumeko could see the influence Shinki's time here had on Makai's creation. In that influence, Yumeko found a sense of familiarity. The world was peaceful, much to her surprise. Nothing like the barbarian filled land she'd envisioned. Peaceful, except for the blasts emerging from the trees on the other side, signalling their destination.
Sariel's projection dashed forth, lashing out with a magical sword and sending the shrine maiden on the back foot. Despite hopping backward, she parried the sword with her stick, locking eyes with the central core. Her attack on it failed as Sariel's main body shot a thin laser between them. Despite the sacrifice of power and speed creating the projection came with, seeing as Reimu forced Elis into this fight regardless it'd be foolish not to push the numbers advantage. Sariel raised an arm to their side, unleashing a flurry of bats that Elis' small form blended in with.
Their game plan went off without a hitch. While its attacks alone were relatively non-threatening, Reimu couldn't take her eyes off the projection without risk of taking a slash. She could never find the opportunity to strike back, as Sariel's main body hovered above raining fire. Elis blended in with the bats, sneaking around and transforming into her humanoid form either to kick Reimu and retreat, or launch a blast of her magic while the shrine maiden was backed up. None of the attacks were particularly lethal. They were, after all, merely stalling for time.
Despite the odds clearly overwhelming her, Reimu's breath remained steady, and she moved with a controlled grace.
Sariel bit their lip, dashing down urgently while firing stronger blasts. Elis transformed, but all attacks proved fruitless as Reimu erected a barrier around herself. The barrier expanded, pushing Sariel and the projection one way and Elis the other. The barrier morphed and folded towards Elis, freeing Sariel and the projection with the angel seizing the moment to dash towards them. The barrier folded around Elis, locking her in place with no holes large enough for even her bat form to escape through. Reimu hesitantly raised her yin-yang orb. The projection merged with Sariel once more, giving them a burst of speed as they pointed their wand between the panicking Elis and Reimu.
Three walls of light erected between them which Sariel flew over. Reimu bit down and fired the blast, shattering the first wall. It slowed a bit and shattered the second wall, allowing Sariel to land between the blast and Elis. The third wall shattered and the blast slammed into their chest. The world blurred. Sariel's soul departed from their body. The moments crawled by, but there was no pain. They only watched as their body collapsed to its knees. Reimu's eyes widened as if shocked. They looked behind them, at Elis' distressed face clawing at the barrier.
What an idiot they were. All that foolish act had done was delay the inevitable. Elis still lay trapped, and now there was nobody there to save her. The angel of protection, in their dying moments, protected the one they loved the most despite the fruitlessness of it. Elis must hate them - any rational person would hate them for such a thoughtless act. No, any rational person would think most of their acts thoughtless. In the grand scheme of things, they knew the smartest decision would've been to remain in Makai and bond together as a group before coming up here. That would sacrifice Louise's life, yes, though facing threats like this alone ran the far greater risk of Sariel, Elis and Louise dying while everyone else remained trapped for an eternity. A risk that seemed to have caught them. Everything Yumeko, Mika and Senkou had yelled at them encompassed their entire soul. The rational, safe option just never felt like the correct one. To sacrifice one life to bolster the chance at safety for the rest - god forbid forget about that sacrifice entirely and 'move on' once their efforts proved fruitful - those were actions the Noble Sariel could never bring themselves to do. Was it out of a warped sense of pride, the thought that either everybody or nobody had to be saved? Or was it a desperate attempt to prove everyone wrong? To prove Sariel was Shinki's superior, to throw caution to the wind and reject that safe path because that's what they thought any good leader should do. Now their name would be etched into Makai's history books as a fool. One who tried to lead them into the light, only to die alongside those who came with them. Their life was nothing but a cautionary tale, one detailing the dangers of losing oneself in a dream. A dream of making the world a wonderland. But a world like that could never exist - Sariel had said so themselves. They really were no better than Alice or Shinki. They looked to the sky as time crawled on. Besides condemning Elis and Louise to an untimely death, there were no regrets in their heart. To die fighting for their wonderland… there was no other way to go. If only they hadn't put others' lives on the line for that dream, just as Shinki had.
The moment caught back up to them, and their soul forced itself back into their body. They felt their breathing, their pounding heart, the pain once more. But… they were alive? That blast, one from a god specifically designed to kill anybody with Shinki's magic… didn't kill them? They looked up at Reimu, whose confused face portrayed the same thoughts that Sariel had. She shook it off, though, and held their orb tightly once more. Sariel staggered to their feet, gripping their wand and forcing their mind through the pain.
Sariel's vision became red when someone appeared in front of them, then again when they teleported away. They looked down right when Reimu fired another blast, this time straight towards the caged Elis. But a red blob appeared beside the barrier, and then the barrier itself became a red blob that vanished from sight just before the blast could connect. Sariel shook their head, keen to restore their vision from its blurriness.
"Senkou!" Elis screeched in glee, banging against the side of the barrier. Sariel turned to their side; Elis and Senkou smiled at each other through the barrier. "You actually came!"
"Sure did," Senkou said. Mika floated out of her collar. The fairy flew into the cage through a gap small enough only for her and greeted Elis ecstatically. Sariel watched on as the two exchanged pleasantries, Elis offering a brief apology for the fight her and Senkou got into.
"It's okay!" Mika declared. "We're friends now!"
…Friends. Sariel couldn't fight the brief vision of a future where Elis, Mika and Senkou ventured around a peaceful Gensokyo, taking in fresh sights, experiences and memories together.
"You okay?" Senkou asked, leaning against the cage and narrowing her eyes at Sariel. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
Sariel ran their hand through their hair, holding their head as they looked down at the shrine maiden. They gripped a handful of their hair and pulled it, still unsure if they really had survived. "...Something like that…." Their voice came out a whisper despite them trying to talk normally.
Senkou scoffed, leaning further back onto the cage. "Just stay back. Yumeko'll handle it."
As if on cue, a sword emerged from the top of the barrier, spinning through the air and barely missing Reimu's neck. The shrine maiden hopped back, eyes following the sword's trajectory to where Yumeko dashed into the barrier, landed behind the blade, and pulled it out the dirt. Sariel shook their head and sighed. If Yumeko's plan to settle this was to throw a sword at her, then Sariel definitely couldn't just 'stay back'.
The invader before her gently tapped the side of her neck, giving her finger a brief examination afterwards with a face of one lucky to be alive. Yumeko raised her blade, tilting her head to gaze down its edge. This was the Hakurei Shrine Maiden? An invader from long ago, though admittedly seemed to be the least violent of the four. Now she stood as the greatest threat to Makai, possessing the power to become untouchable. Yumeko figured it was a power similar to her own technique, though much more powerful as the invader could attack whilst using it. Still, a dangerous adversary, especially given Sariel's current state after their battle.
She gripped her sword tighter. The invader's eyes betrayed a strange mix of sadness buried behind emptiness, eyes that made Yumeko understand almost instantly her dilemma. The least violent invader, willing to go home immediately upon simply getting lost. Those would not be the actions of someone who truly despised Makai and its people. So to stand here now, either the sages or the god must be forcing her. In that case, she saw no point in condemning her as an 'invader', especially if the flower youkai could turn herself around.
"Reimu Hakurei, right?" Yumeko asked. Reimu nodded. "I don't believe we've met. I'm Yumeko. Lady Shinki's maid."
Reimu glanced at everyone else within the barrier, then at the orb in her hand, then closed her eyes. She took a few steps backwards, signalling a retreat.
"Wait."
"What?"
Yumeko drew in a deep breath remembering the (extremely brief) 'training' she went through with Yuuka. To think getting embarrassed so thoroughly would be their best chance. She could hardly live a loss to Sariel down, now this? She exhaled, stepped forward, and threw her sword to the side as it vanished. Reimu raised her orb defensively when Yumeko reached into her pocket, but flinched when Yumeko withdrew her card and held it out. Reimu's eyes fixed on it. Her entire body seemed to shiver.
"I challenge you to a spell card duel, one card maximum. If I win, you'll open Gensokyo to the people of Makai and let them live here safely, under any additional rules you choose." Yumeko paused for a moment, remembering the specific wording Yuuka had mentioned. "If you win, each Makai resident currently in Gensokyo will do one thing you ask."
Reimu seemed lost in a trance for a moment, but once she snapped out of it she looked up at the other Makai residents. Yumeko followed her gaze to Sariel's expected look of shock. Senkou leaned in and whispered something in their ear, and after a couple seconds of processing, with their hand still clutching over their heart in what could only be pain, Sariel gave a piercing glare into Yumeko's eyes yet offered no verbal or physical rebuttals.
"It's not… that simple."
"There's people above you, right?" Yumeko asked, turning to face her again. Though still on edge, the shrine maiden seemed noticeably more laid back. "Then I'll beat them in a spell card duel too." Yumeko's tone switched on a dime to one of slight condemnation. "That's how you do things here, right? You decided everything through non-lethal duels of beauty to eliminate needless casualties and place the strongest on an even footing with the weak. As Lady Shinki's strongest creation, I'm of course her most beautiful. Surely I'll be a natural at that."
Reimu seemed confused, glancing up at those who hovered above the ground, then back to Yumeko as if comparing them. "At a glance… isn't the angel stronger than you? And for beauty, I'd say I prefer-"
"Do you accept the terms or not?"
Reimu clasped her hands together, an additional barrier appearing around her and Yumeko. The other barriers vanished, and the new barrier nuzzled Sariel, Elis, Senkou and Mika away as it expanded. The four of them met up with Alice and her friend. Yumeko gave a last glance up to the top of the barrier, where Yuuka waved and Lady Shinki smiled.
"Alright. Fine. Better for me than fighting all of you."
Of course she was right, Yumeko could barely even be called a novice at this style of combat. All Yuuka had told her was how it works, to write a 'spell name' on the card and to 'make everything else up as she went along'. Meanwhile, Reimu would be far more experienced. Yumeko could hardly even conceptualise how to make an attack 'beautiful', given such a thing would never be practical in any other situation. Still she readied herself, thrusting the card forward and, after a brief look at the name written on it, cringed.
"I'll go first, alright."
"Not usually how this works, but sure."
Yumeko hovered into the air, all the while readying herself to 'declare' the name of her spell. Reimu floated up as well, seeming fairly nonchalant.
"Ahem… uh…" Yumeko could swear she felt her cheeks growing warm. "S-Sword Sign! 'Blade of Dreams'!" Reimu laughed at the blatantly rushed name Yumeko came up with in less than thirty seconds, but quickly focused on the mass of blades spawning around the maid with Yumeko at the epicentre. They spread out in a flower-like pattern, inspired by the youkai that 'trained' her. She fired in all directions at a slower speed than Yumeko would usually throw a sword. Perhaps because of that, Reimu effortlessly weaved through the 'pattern', the swords never so much as grazing her until she raised a hand which she allowed a blade to hit. It bounced off, a result of Yumeko ensuring the blades she created were 'soft', a toy rather than something intended to damage.
All the blades vanished after hitting the barrier or the ground. Yumeko let out a deflated sigh. That had to be the most embarrassingly named, rudimentary 'pattern' the shrine maiden had ever seen. To use it in the name of Makai was nothing short of shameful. She looked up at Reimu, who, for once, seemed to have a smile on her face as she pulled a card from her pocket.
"My turn, then?" Reimu said with a tilt of her head. She confidently thrusted her card forward and declared its name: "Spirit Sign, 'Fantasy Seal'!"
In an instant, Yumeko's heart was overwhelmed. A rainbow of glowing orbs cast over Reimu, turning the shrine maiden into a shadow in front of their splendour. A battle promoting beauty made little sense until that very moment. The orbs danced through the sky towards her. She dashed out of the way, only for the orbs to change their trajectory to chase her. Trapped against the ground and surrounded by orbs of transcendent light that crashed into her and exploded in wondrous harmony, she realised the goal of this 'battle of beauty' was not to show oneself as more beautiful, but to capture the opponent's heart with wonder.
Yumeko lay on the ground, but easily forced herself into a seated position. Her body tingled a bit, but nothing close to a sensation she'd describe as pain. Reimu landed in front of her, hand on her hip as she dispelled the barrier separating everyone.
"You won…" Yumeko said, taking a deep breath. Spell cards were art - self expression. As she sat there, Yumeko couldn't help but wonder if she could create something as beautiful as that. She figured she'd at least have to try. How beautiful would a spell card created by Lady Shinki be?
The other residents of Makai floated down. Sariel gave Yumeko a look of utter confusion. Alice and her friend stepped forward, Lady Shinki floated closer, while Yuuka remained far from the group.
"So, I get to order each of you to do something." Reimu glanced from person to person, nervousness on only Elis and, to a lesser extent, Sariel's face. Reimu pointed to Senkou first. "You. Hide your wings in public. You too. And you!" She said, pointing to Elis and Sariel, respectively. Her finger remained on Sariel. "Why do so many of you have wings? Anyway, you fix the messes you've caused."
"That's two orders."
"AND you can tell that ghost girl she's free to roam around as long as she hides her aura from the humans." Sariel rolled their eyes as Reimu's finger hovered down to Elis. "You can tell anyone still in Makai they can do whatever they want as long as they learn the rules from me and make themselves look human." Reimu pointed at Yumeko. "You can make sure everyone knows what the spell card rules are and keep practising them." She then pointed up at Lady Shinki, who quivered momentarily. "And you better keep an eye on everyone, got it? I don't want one incident out of any of you!"
"What about me?" Mika asked. Reimu jumped in shock at the sudden voice. Her face paled as if she'd heard the whisperings of a ghost, only calming down slightly when the fairy hovered directly in front of her.
"I-I don't know, wear a bell or something!" Reimu turned, took a few paces, then glanced back. "If any of the sages confront you, tell them to take it up with me. DON'T. Try to fight them. Now if you'll excuse me, I need some sleep." With those as her parting words, she flew off into the distance.
Yumeko rose to her feet as Sariel passed by them. "Change of heart?"
"Is that how you say 'thank you'? Fighting them wouldn't do anything, all you were doing was proving them right."
"I tried the peace route."
"Really?" Yumeko asked, outwardly and inwardly surprised. "Oh. Well… colour me surprised. Guess you should've looked into some other way to solve the conflict after that failed."
"Stop acting preachy just because you did something good."
Elis stepped forward, hand on her chin as she bit at one of her fingers. "I… don't fricken get it. Why'd she stop fighting?"
"They viewed us as threats," Yumeko said, glancing over to her. "They thought we wouldn't follow their rules and fit in with their society. I just proved we could." Yumeko looked up to the sky, tapping her own chin in thought. When Lady Shinki's creations rebelled the first time, and then when Makai was destroyed through conflict with Gensokyo, the sages and Hakurei God figured it was their safest option to just keep everyone there to avoid further tragedy. She thought a little more, back to what Yuuka said to expect from this little scuffle. "Although… it shouldn't have been that easy."
Elis turned upbeat in the blink of an eye. "Oh! I know!" Elis perked up, floating above Sariel's shoulder. She pointed her wand down at Yumeko. "If you're supposed to teach us whatever the heck those spell card rules are, why don't we all learn it together?"
"And how do you propose Yuugen even hold those cards?" Sariel asked.
"Oh. Uh…" Elis raised a hand to her chin, bobbing her head up and down slightly. "That's not the fricken point!"
"Dashed away without sorting out the nuances." Sariel shook their head. "Sure. I guess we could all use that."
With their answer to that initial question, they glanced back at Yumeko. Their eyes, no, their entire body language portrayed one true to that word - one ready to learn alongside the others and strengthen their bonds. Surely, through Yumeko's actions and eyes, Sariel saw her willingness to do the same, given the fact they gave a small smile.
"C'mon, Sariel! We gotta go tell the others, right?"
Sariel agreed, following Elis into the sky.
"And I have to hide these," Senkou said, twirling as she glanced at her wings.
"And I have to… wear a bell?"
"Don't worry about that part," Alice said, stepping forward. Senkou gently tapped Mika with her finger, the two of them teleporting into the distance. Yumeko looked up at her sister, then to her left where a black-clothed magician stood. She fumbled awkwardly.
"S-so about-"
"It's fine." Yumeko raised her hand. "If you're Alice's friend, I'm sure we can get along."
"Friend? Alice, did'ya not tell anybody-"
"We'll figure that part out later."
Yumeko tilted her head, a small, questioning noise emanating from her mouth.
"Well…." Alice looked up into the sky, a smile on her face. "I guess that's… well, that's at least the biggest step."
Yumeko took a place by Alice's side. Small tears rolled down her sister's face, an overwhelming emotion Yumeko never thought she'd see from this new, adult Alice. It was like she was a child again, living in her own, small wonderland.
"Hey, Alice." Alice snapped out of her staring contest with the sky. "Since none of us have a place to live here yet, mind if I stay at your place for a bit?"
Alice smiled at the thought. "Of course! Oh, but what if Sara needs to stay at mine for a bit, too?"
"That's fine." Lady Shinki hovered down to their level, a warm smile on her face. "I'll notify you in advance whenever I visit."
Yumeko didn't understand how that had any correlation. She shrugged it off, pulling Alice close like she was that crying baby sister once more. After a while, Lady Shinki hesitantly joined their embrace. In that moment of pure bliss, Yumeko looked to the sky. Those lost in that tragedy… perhaps after all this, any resentment they had towards Lady Shinki has been replaced with smiles as they looked towards everyone's future while floating off into a peaceful land. And it took only one glance at her sister to realise how much this wonderland meant to her.