This is getting quite ridiculous.
Keine Kamishirasawa kicked a man wearing crude body armor in the gut, sending him crashing into the wall behind him. Then, she caught hold of the metal pipe that was being swung in her direction and crushed the end of it like it was made of cardboard. The man wielding the pipe struggled to free it from her grasp before abandoning his weapon entirely.
"I've told you once already; I will not have you making a mess of my schoolhouse," she said, voice stern and eyes narrowed.
Indeed, violence of any kind was unacceptable inside of her school. Any student caught breaking this rule would've had a lengthy detention lined up for them. Yet, here she was, participating in a fight of her own just outside the front doors.
She'd thank whatever gods she could that school had not been in session today. Though she didn't doubt her ability to keep her class safe, being put into that sort of position would have made things more… difficult.
Difficult to explain, that was.
Keine grabbed the disarmed man by the shoulders. "Think about your actions," she admonished, before driving her skull into his and delivering a devastating headbutt.
Yes, beneath her appearance as a straight-laced, dutiful teacher laid the strength of a half-youkai and a spine of steel, absolute necessities when one's classes often consisted of the most rambunctious human, half-youkai, and full youkai children in Gensokyo. If she was possessed of anything less, then she would have given up her efforts long ago.
The man went limp and dropped straight to the ground.
Another one down-
The villager wearing body armor had managed to stand in the time it had taken her to knock the other unconscious, and he swung clumsily at her with his knife. With the armor weighing him down, Keine had no problem avoiding his slash and slugging him in the jaw, hard.
-and one to go.
Keine looked over her shoulder.
There was one more villager present. A man, no, more like a teenager just old enough to sprout the first hairs from his chin. He trembled where he stood, staring at her wide-eyed. No doubt, his fragile confidence had been shaken by the swift defeat of his companions.
He seemed just a bit more compliant than the others, at least. If there was a chance to avoid further conflict, then…
"You don't truly want to be here, do you?" she said evenly.
The man… The boy shook his head quickly. He shifted back onto his heels, as if ready to turn tail and run at a moment's notice.
"Convinced or coerced into coming here, I'm sure. Do you have anywhere to go? Anywhere… safe?"
Again, he shook his head. "I-I'm sorry! Uncle, he…" The boy trailed off. Keine followed his line of sight, landing squarely upon the unconscious, armor-clad villager. "I didn't-"
"Shhh," she hushed, more soothing than harsh. "If you are truly sorry, then I ask that you drop the pitchfork in your hands."
Immediately, the farming implement clattered to the ground. Keine smiled.
There was a certain beauty in watching someone realize that they were making a mistake. It presented them with a crossroads. If, after that revelation, they chose to correct themselves, well, there was no greater joy to a teacher.
It was never too late to redeem oneself, after all.
"Go to the Myouren Temple. You will be safe there, and you won't be alone," Keine directed.
"But, Uncle…"
"Your uncle will face proper repercussions for his actions under village law. Until then, he will be confined here. He will be unhappy when he wakes, but he will live."
A look of relief passed over the boy's face. "...Okay," he breathed before taking off in the direction of the Myouren Temple.
He would be safe there with the buddhists. The youkai that called that place home were strong, and they always sheltered those in need during a crisis. Every refugee she'd seen today, she'd sent that way.
Keine simply watched him as he left, grateful that at least one villager had experienced a change of heart.
…
One of the defeated men moaned.
Keine sighed. It certainly didn't feel great to inflict harm upon the human villagers, especially after all of her time and effort spent protecting them.
What had gotten into them lately, she truly didn't know.
Perhaps, like all children, they were going through their rebellious phase. Most children's rebellious phases, however, didn't involve forming angry mobs and burning down the very place they called home.
"Now, if only I had a length of rope…" she muttered aloud to nobody but herself.
"Here ya go. Keine!"
Suddenly, as if the sky itself had answered her, a thick coil of rope landed at her feet. This was quickly followed by three villagers, tied together with the very same rope, hitting the ground with a solid thud and stifled grunts of pain.
Keine looked up, and she was greeted by the sight of a famously large hat and equally devilish smile.
"Special delivery, ze!" Marisa Kirisame called. "Take care of these guys for me, will ya? They were pickin' a fight and tryin' to burn down my house!"
Keine glanced at the men that Marisa had unceremoniously deposited beside her. They were injured, but not gravely so, and they were bound together by their arms.
Marisa seemed to zero in on the losers of Keine's battle. "They're giving you trouble here, too, ze?"
"Yes," she said simply. "They were looking to damage the schoolhouse and speaking of 'human liberation.'"
Marisa seemed to sober at that. A look of contemplation crossed the witch's face. "What in the world is going on…" she mumbled.
That was quite the question, and one that Keine also wanted to know the answer to. Then again, with Marisa here, there was another question that she felt compelled to ask.
"Tell me, do you know how Rinnosuke is-"
"Sorry! Gotta go, ze! Incidents take priority!" And with that, Marisa zoomed off, heading towards the center of the Village.
Keine watched Marisa's retreating form, before releasing a heavy sigh. She supposed that she would simply find out later. Not that she necessarily doubted her husband. He was a smart man and a rather diligent father.
It was simply better to have some sort of confirmation. That was all.
Keine dusted herself off, and then proceeded to tie the two men she'd been fighting together with the length of rope Marisa had provided. Just their upper bodies, back to back. She wasn't quite sadistic enough to bind their feet as well.
That was fine, though. If they regained consciousness before being properly dealt with, then she doubted they'd be going very far.
She dragged both bundles, five men in total, underneath the eaves of the schoolhouse's roof. Then, she looked once more towards the center of the village.
A concerningly large amount of smoke was coloring that portion of the sky, far darker than the other plumes that rose around her. Logically, that was the area that needed the most help.
And so, that was where she would go.
…
It did hearten her to catch a glimpse of Mokou's long white hair, and it gladdened her further to witness the pyromancer moving from building to building, trying her best to snuff out what flames she could. She was doing them a massive service, reducing the fire's theoretical impact on the town.
However, the Human Village was large, and she was but one, albeit immortal, human. It would take time to soothe all of the ravenous flames.
Time that some, Keine imagined, might not have.
~~~~~~Tradition's End~~~~~~
Useless bastards…
Those useless, idiot bastards…
At the center of the Human Village, surrounded by fanatics and fires and failures, one man seethed. His grand ambitions, much like the buildings before him, were going up in smoke, right before his very eyes.
This wasn't supposed to happen.
It was meant to have been a quick coup. Invade the town hall and armory, throw out those who resisted, and take control of the heart of the Village. At the same time, sprinkle some fires and sow general chaos outside of town to keep would-be interventionists stretched far too thin to respond.
A beam collapsed, sending a fountain of sparks billowing out from the town hall. Heat bathed his form like he'd just opened a window straight to hell. The man clenched his fists and glared harshly at the roaring blaze. At his intended seat of power.
It was useless now.
Just like his plans.
All of his time spent scheming, growing, and instigating… It should have been perfect.
What he hadn't accounted for, however, was the sheer stupidity of those who dared to call themselves his followers. Someone would pay for this. He would see them executed, if they hadn't already been claimed by the flames they'd so recklessly birthed.
It was their fault! Not his! He had planned everything perfectly, executed everything correctly! It should have been swift and easy and decisive!
But, the old adage held true, that no plan survived first contact with the enemy.
The fires… Oh, the fires… They should never have been set in town! And look at how quickly they'd gone out of control!
He didn't tell them to do that!
The fires had only been meant as a distraction. A way to sow enough chaos and confusion such that once a response could be organized against him, he would have already usurped power and consolidated his control over the Human Village.
And his control over the Village… It was meant to have been the ultimate bargaining chip, holding the youkai's most precious resource hostage and forcing them into a very uncomfortable negotiating position.
It would have put him on top. Where he always should have been.
The best outcome was right there in his grasp, and, now, it…
It…
…
Gah! There's nothing for it now!
It was ruined. Everything was ruined.
He turned away from the conflagration, bitter words swirling in his head and clawing at his throat.
His eyes then fell upon the scene that laid before him.
The center of town had been transformed into a battlefield. Clashes continued between his militia and the Village guard. Weapon to weapon, fist to fist, the struggle raged on.
There was no end in sight. It was almost certain that many would lose their lives today. A pity, but, perhaps, one that would serve him well.
It was here that he could still find a glimmer of hope.
His faithful still outnumbered the guards by at least two-to-one. He still had quantity on his side, as well as fanatical zeal and purpose. They may be driven into a metaphorical corner, but it was the cornered animals that were the most dangerous.
Yes, he still held the advantage here, even after Plan A had crumbled.
Perhaps it was time that he, too, showed his mettle.
The man rolled his shoulders, and he removed the scabbard that had been slung across his back. Then, he unsheathed a greatsword, a weapon that complimented his great height and broad shoulders.
It had been a conscious choice, picking such a weapon. He wasn't necessarily skilled with it in particular; he simply needed to appear as imposing as possible to shake the enemy's resolve.
He huffed, anticipation and drive coiling up in his core, like a snake ready to strike.
Despite it all, there was still a future where he won. He was sure of that. He would make sure of that.
It would not be easy. It would be long and grueling and bloody, but a pyrrhic victory was still a victory in the end.
With a forceful swing, he drove his sword into the shield of a nearby guard, knocking the man to the ground.
Besides, since when has he ever backed down from a fight?
…
…
…
I can't understand...
A giant laser of rainbow colored mayhem and pure power roared to his left.
I just can't understand.
A flurry of knives struck down the man to his right, one of the few legitimately well-trained and well-equipped members of his revolution.
I can't understand how a bunch of girls in frilly dresses can be so damn strong!
The battle was going poorly now, the tides having turned with the arrival of the ones they called 'Incident Resolvers.'
At first it had only been one, a fragile looking witch astride a broom. A single, well-placed shot should have been more than enough to take her down, but she was as agile as a fox and as quick as the wind. And the firepower she possessed was beyond the scope of anything he thought realistic.
Then, there were more. A silver-haired maid with the apparent ability to appear where she pleased and a seemingly infinite number of knives. A serious looking woman with blue and white hair and a penchant for delivering brutal headbutts in close quarters. A rabbit woman who could conjure bullets out of thin air with a snap of her fingers. A pale-skinned girl in green wielding two swords who had taken to fighting five, six, even ten of his men at once. A crow tengu, who had the absolute nerve to simply flit around the battlefield taking photographs instead of fighting. All these, and more.
And, for some reason, they were all capable of flight!
He stepped back, and, for the first time, the man seriously considered retreating. Perhaps, in the chaos surrounding him, he could slip away without a trace. Some way, somehow, he could recover from this failed attempt at ambition.
It wasn't cowardly in the slightest. Sometimes, one had to know when to cut their losses.
The man took another step back, then another. He would live to fight another day.
That was the new plan. However...
"Hey, you." A voice rang out above the din of battle. It could have been calling out to anybody, but a gnawing feeling in the back of his mind said that it was referring specifically to him.
He looked up, and he saw a shrine maiden. A red shrine maiden. Even he knew who it was that he was dealing with.
Reimu Hakurei stared down at him, a hard scowl on her face. She held her gohei over her shoulder with one hand as if it was a broadsword, and in the other hand she bore a fistful of long needles.
She meant business, and he knew it.
"You're the leader, aren't you? Tall, dark, and imposing? The Soup? Er, Superior, I think they called you? Something pretentious like that?"
She was looking down on him, as if he was nothing but a wretched bug who had just committed a grave sin. If there was one thing that he hated more than anything else, it was somebody looking down on him.
He straightened, looking to cut an imposing figure in the eerie firelight. "Remember yourself, girl. You speak to the Superior of the Human Liberation Movement."
"Ugh, you're one of those bosses. Figures it'd be someone like you who caused this whole mess." Reimu bit back. "Look, you've got a lot to answer for! You've seriously pissed me off!"
He put on a stone face. "And why, pray tell, does any of this concern a shrine maiden like you? There are no youkai to blame here. If anything, you should be thanking us for taking up such a righteous crusade! We will finally deal with the youkai menace, once and for-!"
A needle whizzed past his face, grazing his cheek and leaving a burning in its wake.
"Why should I be thanking you!? You ruined my morning, set Gensokyo on fire, and completely flaunted all spell card rules! I ought to put you in the ground right now! Especially for that last one!"
He brushed his cheek with his hand, only to find a trickle of blood on the back of his fingers. He had hoped, at one point, that the Hakurei Shrine Maiden would back their mission, or at the very least stay out of the way. But now?
"It would be paradoxical for you to kill the humans you are tasked with protecting, would it not? And to usurp the authority of the Village and carry out your own justice? Tyranny, in the flesh!"
Reimu wore a cold smirk. "Unfortunately for you, I don't particularly mind needless killing." She began to drift closer, and a strong sense of foreboding settled over him. "Humans aren't necessarily under my protection, either. My job is to protect the balance of Gensokyo. Plain and simple."
"Meaning?"
"If they cause enough trouble, nobody is exempt from being exterminated. And you have caused a lot of trouble."
Reimu threw a volley of needles.
The man brought up his greatsword, and, either by luck or by talent, managed to block them with the weapon.
"Guess you're not helpless, huh?" Reimu quipped.
He had blocked something. That was a relief. Maybe this shrine maiden wasn't as tough as she was always made out to be. The unrepentant part of his mind flared with ambition.
Maybe he could win this. And if he defeated her, then the rest of the resistance should crumble.
Right?
He solidified his stance. He didn't mind killing the Shrine Maiden of Paradise.
"Bring it on, girl. I do not need, nor do I care for your precious 'spell card rules.' Only that I am the one to come out on top."
Reimu smirked. "Then, let's see how you like it when we fight without handicaps."
…
…
…
A man lied in the dirt, bleeding into the very earth he'd sought to control.
Needles stuck out from his body, and his right arm laid several feet away.
It was all… fading…
I… I can't… move… anymore…
…
Regret consumed him, just as the fires consumed the town around him.
~~~~~~Tradition's End~~~~~~
It was time, now.
"Blue Sign: Ceaseless April Showers!" Alice called.
A pale blue spell circle manifested around her feet, luminous and ethereal, giving structure to the modified spell card she had just cast. Dolls crisscrossed along the edges of the clearing, inundating the area with dozens of little torrents of water.
The benefits of dousing the greenery were two-fold.
A physical layer of water upon the blades of grass and leaves that remained would provide an initial resistance to the smoldering heat of the arriving flames. At the same time, the added moisture taken into the plants themselves would grant them increased resilience, taking longer for them to dry out and grow vulnerable.
With this in mind, she swept over the same areas over and over again, seeing the spell card through to the end.
With the fire so close now, this would be the final layer of preparation that she could provide. From here on out, confronting the blaze directly would require all of her effort.
It was all she could do. It had to be enough.
The first flames reached the edge of the firebreaks she had prepared.
It had to be.
…
"There you go! Just like that!" A man's enthusiastic voice drifted through the air.
Alice glanced in the direction of the sound, and she allowed herself to smile.
There, at the far side of the yard, was Eric, guiding several fairies as they settled into their roles as fire fighting support. He appeared to be enjoying himself, having meshed well with them despite their childlike personalities and fickle nature. Likewise, excitement and determination shone brightly on the fairies' faces.
Alice couldn't help but feel a small flicker of pride on his behalf. What he'd said to calm them down or how he'd managed to convince them to help so quickly, she wasn't entirely sure, but coordinating fairies to achieve any sort of order or productivity was a feat, intrinsically.
Truthfully, she didn't know what to expect when he'd first suggested enlisting their help. She was simply glad that it had turned out this way.
And though the fire was just now beginning to reach the prepared defensive line, Alice felt that she could breathe just a little bit easier, knowing that he was helping, too.
Everything seemed like it would go well.
Remarkably well.
~~~~~~Tradition's End~~~~~~
"Eyes up! We've got another tongue of fire creeping in on the left," Eric called.
"Oh, no you don't!"
"I'm gonna be the one to get it!"
"Kyahaha!"
Everything was going… remarkably well, actually. Much better than he'd honestly expected.
Even the fairies seemed to be taking the situation seriously. Well, as seriously as the fairies of Gensokyo could take anything, that was.
Whether they were truly invested in the concept of a 'defense game,' enticed by the promise of cake as a reward for their help, or simply afraid of what would happen to them if the fire and smoke were to overrun their location, he wasn't entirely sure.
What he was certain about, however, was how grateful he was for their assistance. While Alice and her hundred dolls were the stars of the show, Eric was proud of what the little contingent of fairies could do.
The water fairies, Dew-chan and Mist-chi included, fought the fire directly, spraying more water individually than Eric himself would have been capable of. With enthusiasm to spare, they jumped at every chance they had to rebuff the flames.
A warm breeze blew from behind him, proof of the two air fairies' efforts as they wrestled with the chaotic air currents that drove the fire's uneven advance. The opposing wind they were able to whip up worked to slow the blaze's march and keep the falling embers and smoke largely at bay.
Even the lone earth fairy contributed in her own way, scattering dust and dirt in the fire's direction, attempting to smother what she could beneath a layer of inflammable earth.
"Keep it up! We can't let some little flames beat us, can we?"
"No way!"
"We're winners!"
Eric grinned again, and he shot forth his own line of water.
One thing he'd learned from spending a decade in Gensokyo was that nothing was impossible. Nothing was unbreakable, and nobody was truly unbeatable. Even gods lost from time to time.
If everyone did their best, if everybody played their part, then surely this forest fire, too, could be bested.
With every move, every moment that the fire was held in check, Eric clutched that little thread of hope harder.
Alice and her dolls… Eric and the fairies… It was only thanks to the combined efforts of every single entity present that the situation remained relatively under control. So long as a coherent line of defense could be maintained, then they could hold out.
And, for a little while, the plan worked.
Until it didn't.
…
Somewhere along the fireline, a doll exploded. The sound rang out above the growl of the fire, causing Eric and some of the fairies to flinch.
He could hear Alice curse aloud, that in her haste, she had allowed a single kamikaze doll to join their ranks. Pressed by the fire, the gunpowder had reacted as anyone might have expected.
Tiny pieces littered the ground. While the loss of a single doll was small in the grand scheme of things, such a violent end had consequences.
"An explosion!? One particularly anxious fairy cried. "Nobody told me we might explode! You said we only had to deal with fire!"
"Is that what happens when you get too hot? Quick Dew-chan! Spray me with water!" another fairy squealed.
"It's okay! It's okay, it was just a doll," Eric tried to reassure them. "It was just an accident. Don't worry! Nothing else will be exploding."
After a moment, the fairies seemed to collect themselves.
"Oh…"
"Okaaayyy~"
Eric breathed a sigh of relief.
They were so easily distracted, their focus so quick to scramble. He was genuinely worried that he wasn't going to be able to get them back under control.
He considered himself lucky that he did.
"Oh! More fire at 10 o'clock," he said. Eric figured that staying upbeat and positive was the best way to keep the fairies invested in their little 'game.' He just hoped that they couldn't hear the wavering in his voice. "Come on, let's get back to it!"
And just like that, everything went back to normal. As normal as things could be in a clearing surrounded by fire, at least.
Minutes passed, and as they did, the nature of the fire changed. No longer was it a series of precocious fingers reaching forward from some unseen hand. It was now more akin to a wall of flames, pressing in against them as smoke choked off the sky above.
As the heat mounted, so too did an unspoken tension. Where it had once been a game of spotting and retaliating, it was now a constant fight of water, wind, and earth against fire, with no time for rest.
How long could the fairies keep their composure under this pressure? What would be the straw to break the camel's back?
Any unexpected setback had the potential to completely destroy their cohesion and make it all fall apart.
Early warning was key. To that end, Eric kept his head up and his eyes on the move. The fairy front was, for the moment, stable, and Alice and her dolls were still going strong.
Only after he turned towards the house did he notice something amiss.
There was smoke rising, and not from the conflagration that surrounded them. No, the source of this was from another place entirely. Much, much closer to home.
A scattering of large burning leaves, perhaps having previously caught the fire's strong updraft, had fluttered down from above. As if possessed by malicious intent, they had settled on the eaves of Alice's roof, sparking small spot fires on the house itself.
Adrenaline rushed through him at the realization. "Alice!" he called. "There's a fire on your roof!"
That instantly got the dollmaker's attention, and she immediately peeled away a small contingent of dolls, Shanghai included, to douse the surprise flames.
Her response was fast, even if she had to momentarily take her focus away from the main line. The sound of hissing and sputtering was a relief to-
"Fire? At the house? Does that mean-" one fairy began.
"We lost!?" another fairy finished.
"No, no, no, we haven't lost anything yet!" Eric jumped quickly to quell their fears. "That was just unlucky! We just have to-"
"I can't believe it! We're losers!" Dew-chan wailed, cutting Eric off.
No, no, no, he was not about to let this spiral out of control.
"No! I'm telling you that all at have to do is-"
*KER-CRACK!*
A great crack forced his words to die in his throat.
Eric looked around.
Then, his eyes settled upon a tree that had seemingly begun to move in slow motion.
But, this was not just any tree. It was an ancient tree, grand in both height and width, long dead yet suspended by the branches of its living neighbors. A tree that leaned precariously, always destined to fall one day as it slowly rotted away.
As fate would have it, that day was today.
Calamitous groans and snaps sounded above the roar of the fire. What remained of its base splintered further as gravity took hold. With the supporting branches eaten away by flames, there was nothing left to keep the tree from its destiny.
Only now, on the day of the great firestorm, was the widowmaker finally released.
For a moment, he was stunned. Then, Eric watched as the mass of burning bark and branches tilted over and rushed towards the ground. At this angle, the path it took would miss the house, headed instead towards…
"Alice!"
~~~~~~Tradition's End~~~~~~
Hysterical strength was a strange phenomenon.
Accessible only in a true life or death crisis, it allowed one to cast away all unconscious restrictions, temporarily unlocking one's full, unfettered physical ability. Magic, too, could be augmented by such a reaction, as all concepts of conservation are overcome by the instinctive and complete release of one's mana.
In a way, it was desirable. This all-or-nothing state of being could, and often did, lead to incredible feats and impossible stories of survival.
Such power came at a price, however, as limits were not meant to be broken. It put a perilous strain on one's body, tearing apart the muscles and exhausting the mana reserves of the individual. Recovery from such injuries was also rather brutal, as the process could take weeks, or even longer, leaving one vulnerable, inconvenient, and in a great deal of pain.
But, sometimes, it was all worth it. For those brief few moments of unrestrained action, it was as though one's potential was truly limitless.
…
…
…
Alice's mind scrambled to piece together what had just happened.
One moment, she was turning her head to locate the source of a truly horrendous crashing sound, and the next moment, she was face down in the dirt with a weight on her back.
She struggled to move. She couldn't move, pressed as she was to the ground.
Panic began to seep in, both from the feeling of restraint and the sheer unknown of the situation she now found herself in.
Had something fallen on her? Had someone attacked her? Judging by the moderate weight and slight give, it certainly felt like a body, rather than an object that was on top of her.
Whatever it was, it hadn't moved an inch since pinning her down, and that was a serious problem. The feeling of being trapped was deeply unsettling, and she wriggled in place. It was quickly growing hot and uncomfortable and she needed to keep fighting the fire or else it would overtake the clearing and-
The weight shifted, rising off of her body and giving her the space to roll over onto her back, an action she took without hesitation. As she righted herself, for the third time today, Alice almost couldn't believe her eyes.
It was Eric. That was right; he'd called her name just a moment ago, hadn't he? But, why was he…?
Eric loomed over her with his arms spread wide, his hands on either side of her shoulders. His face hovered close to hers, mere inches away. His heavy breathing blew warmly against her own face and neck in a way that elicited a very strange feeling when taken together with everything else.
Had the circumstances been different, normal, then she almost certainly would have thought this move to be uncharacteristically bold of him. Aggressive, even. Unexpected from someone as self-conscious and trepid as Eric was with these matters.
Strange, but also not altogether unwelcome.
These circumstances, however, were not normal, and Alice quickly oriented herself.
The look on Eric's face was not one of bold desire. It was one of great struggle, desperation, and pain. His body shook as if he bore the weight of the world upon his back, and his teeth were clenched tightly together. His eyes were wide, and there were tears beginning to spill over once again.
"What-?" Alice cut herself off as her focus shifted past him.
The tell-tale amber gleam of Eric's barrier shone brightly behind him, and just beyond that was the reason they were in such a compromising position. The massive, burning trunk of a once great tree rested squarely atop the barrier, its incredible weight bearing down upon the two of them.
That must have been the violent cracking sound she'd heard earlier; this tree had lost its integrity and fallen down right on top of her. And the only reason that she hadn't been smashed flat was because…
Eric's barrier creaked as the trunk ground against its surface. The current danger of their situation crystallized instantly.
She had to move. She had to leave immediately. Or else…
Eric shook his head. "A-Alice, y-you have to hurry… I-I don't… I-I c-can't…"
"You can." She brought a hand to his cheek, even as she started to move.
This would not be the end for them. It couldn't be. Not like this.
"D-don't you dare give up," Alice breathed as she squirmed her way out from underneath him.
It was not an easy task. There was little room to maneuver down here. The force of the falling tree driving into his barrier had scoured a depression into the ground, but even so, she only had a scant few inches to work with.
Alice sucked in a sharp breath. The heat increased immensely once Eric was no longer between her and the burning trunk. Her heart raced as the oppressive atmosphere bore down on her, knowing that, at any second, the tree could complete its journey down to the earth.
Eric released an anguished groan, and the barrier shuddered. Alice didn't dare look behind herself to see what sort of face he was making. The sound alone was enough to wrench her heart.
She could help him. She could save him. All she needed was a better position. One that laid an agonizingly short distance away. It was an awful feeling, dread and powerlessness in equal measure, but still she persisted.
With great effort, Alice dragged herself up through the grass and dirt, managing to crawl her way out from beneath the fallen tree. What had only taken seconds for her to achieve had felt like an eternity.
She stood, shaken up and disheveled, but alive. A small measure of relief washed over her, but her job was far from finished.
There was so much more to do.
Immediately, dolls swarmed her location, like bees surrounding their queen. Alice quickly re-established direct command, eyeing the burning tree before her.
Eric had saved her. Now, it was her turn to save him. She would not fail this.
All at once, the assembled doll army unleashed a deluge of water. Steam and smoke erupted from the burning wood in a crescendo of sizzling and sputtering.
A blazing log was untouchable, but an extinguished one could be moved.
That was the plan, at least. Moments later, however, a thin crack could be heard. Then, another, and another. Cracks like fracturing glass, rather than splintering wood. Fissures were growing along the surface of Eric's barrier, a sign of impending failure.
Icy dread chilled her heart. They were out of time. It was now or never.
Dozens of hands, doll and dollmaker alike, pressed onto the side of the steaming tree trunk. Alice hissed, as the wood was still burning hot to the touch, despite her efforts to soak it. In a way, she was grateful that her dolls weren't able to feel as she could, that they were spared from pain such as this.
A spell circle materialized beneath her feet, glowing white and true. For just a moment, Alice's eyes shined. Then, with a surge of power and one mighty push, the massive tree shifted.
It did not go far, only a few inches in fact. However, it was just enough displacement to send the trunk rolling off the side of the rounded barrier and crashing to the ground with a rumble and a shower of sparks.
No longer tasked with bearing an impossible weight, the waning barrier flickered tranquilly out of existence. Eric gave one last shudder and collapsed face first into the now muddy earth at the bottom of the depression.
Alice wasted no time reaching out to him. With her own two hands, she latched onto his body and pulled him out of that dreadful little crater. Once back on even ground, she held him against herself, as if her arms could be a bastion of safety.
His body was almost limp, his eyes were closed, and his breathing was labored. Such fatigue was unsurprising. He very well might have exhausted every last bit of mana that he had.
His glasses sat askew on his face. Alice spared a moment to carefully readjust them. It was the least that she could do, considering he'd saved her from being crushed.
Eric coughed. "Thank…you…Alice…"
Alice could almost smile.
She didn't even mind the dirt and mud that rubbed off onto her hands and her dress, nor did she care that she could feel just how out of order her hair was at the moment. He was still here; he was still alive, and that made it all okay.
…
*Crack*
*Hissss*
Another loud crack and a nearby hiss jolted her back to reality.
They weren't out of the woods yet, both figuratively and literally. There was so much work left to be done.
Alice softly laid Eric on the ground. Then, she stood.
The situation around them had progressed poorly in the time they had been trapped underneath that tree.
The fallen tree and its crown of branches still burned, drawing a line of fire across the yard, through her garden, and nearly to the house itself. The fairies were nowhere to be found, and the flames had begun to claim what remained of her defensive line.
It was all starting to fall apart.
Alice mustered her dolls, only to find less than half of them still operational. Without her guidance, the ones closest to the fireline had been overrun by the advancing blaze. She moved to deploy more, and while some did spill forth from dimensional storage, the first hints of strain began to creep in.
There was an emptiness, a weakness growing in the core of her being. It caught her off guard. Had she really utilized so much mana already? The earlier preparations must have drained her more than she'd expected.
She wasn't running on empty quite yet. By her estimate, she was perhaps only halfway to the point at which mana starvation would begin to have serious consequences.
But with the amount of mana she would have to expend in order to fight back, just to push the fire back to where it was merely five minutes ago… The pit of doubt within her heart grew, as did the apprehension that chilled her limbs. Now was the time for action, yet her movements were mechanical.
Alice set her dolls loose upon the burning tree. This was a major intrusion by the flames into her territory, and that made extinguishing it priority number one. Once it was dealt with, she could turn her attention towards pushing back against the fire that steadily encroached from the Forest.
From there, she would maintain the defense as long as it took. She had to. She was the only one left who could.
She simply wondered if she could last.
If she was enough.
If she had finally grown to the point where she was in control of her own destiny.
"Automaton: Inanimate Procession!"
With driving purpose and a creeping hint of desperation, Alice unleashed another modified spell card, enlarging the magical conduit between herself and her dolls. She closed her eyes, and all at once it was as if her senses had fragmented. There were a hundred perspectives, a thousand sensations. It was a cacophony of perception that only she could make sense of.
She stilled, and when she opened her eyes again, they shared the same eerie blue glow that her dolls now possessed. This was the greatest level of control, the highest degree of synchronization between herself and her dolls that she could possibly achieve.
It was not a spell card she used often, as it was necessary for her to remain still. Though it had little use in a duel, it suited a situation like this perfectly. Her dolls moved faster, they fought with more precision, and the potency of the magic that could be channeled through them increased dramatically.
She was not one, but instead one hundred. A multiplication of potential.
Her mana was theirs. Her power was theirs. And through them, she would overcome.
…
…
…
Alice sucked in a harsh breath.
Her limbs ached. Her shoulders felt heavy. There was a cavernous hole in her core that yearned to be filled, and every second she lingered, every ounce of mana she spent, only made it worse.
She was reaching her limit, and her body was calling, pleading for a rest.
But, the blaze would spare her no such pleasantry. Smoke billowed and heat bore down, seemingly endlessly, as she struggled to press on.
She had pushed it back, beyond the prepared defensive line even, yet the intensity of the fire seemed to be no less than it had been earlier. If she dared to slow down, if she were to take even a moment of respite, then it would only come roaring back.
But… she couldn't. She couldn't do it anymore. Alice took one step back, and she stumbled. She blinked, and her eyes no longer glowed with power.
The dolls around her drifted delicately to the ground, bereft of the energy that once flowed through them. She simply had none left to spare.
Any further strain, and she risked her own body beginning to break down.
After mere seconds, the only doll that remained was Shanghai, sustained as she was by her self-perpetuating magical core. The doll looked around, as if confused by her sisters' lack of activity.
Alice slowly sank to her knees. Before her laid a fiery, ravenous maw, and now she was left without the means to combat it. Amidst this chaos, her mind kept leading her to one simple conclusion:
Nobody is coming to save us, are they?
For the first time in a long while, Alice felt truly lost.
What could she do? What more could be done?
Eric was spent. She was exhausted. Though her mana pool was deep, it certainly wasn't bottomless.
Humans… Youkai… Even Gods… All power had a limit, and she could sense when she was near hers.
What she needed was more mana, but aside from natural regeneration, there was no quick, effective method available to her that would gather the amount she required. A simple mana potion would do too little for a mana pool as wide and as depleted as hers.
Shanghai's core was another possibility, but therein laid two problems. The first was a matter of its construction. The core was specifically designed and meticulously calibrated to fit the needs of a small doll, rather than a youkai magician. Perhaps it provided more power than Shanghai truly needed, but pushing it too hard could easily lead to its destruction.
The second was a matter of principle. Though her dolls were considered disposable to a certain degree, to disassemble Shanghai would be tantamount to killing her own child. Unsurprisingly, this made the very consideration a non-starter.
Aside from this, there was precious little time, too little to dream up a solution in her workshop.
Escape through the smoke and flame was a risky proposition, and considering the state Eric was in after he'd made his journey earlier, he may not survive a second pass. Likewise, sheltering in the basement could prove effective for a short time, but she had no way of knowing how well the heat would be kept out, and the fire at the surface would quickly sap the oxygen from the air.
The house didn't matter anymore. What mattered was surviving.
Alice brought a hand to her head. Her mind was roiled by numerous thoughts, each clamoring for a solution that seemingly didn't exist.
There must be something… Some way to escape this predicament…
…
Something tugged at her hip.
Alice looked down to see Shanghai's small, porcelain hands gripping the ribbons that bound her grimoire, removing the book from where she'd affixed it. The doll quickly offered it up to her master, an unmistakable eagerness in its demeanor.
"That's…" Alice failed to speak.
Just in case… It's always just in case… But… Just in case of what…?
Shanghai nudged the book into her hand. Alice simply stared at it.
When was the last time that she'd been forced to open her grimoire? How many years has it been since she was made to acknowledge her own weakness in such absolute terms? To use her grimoire now, to rely on its borrowed power, would be to destroy the fragile pride that she'd worked so hard to cultivate.
Alice's hands trembled, and she felt sick to her stomach.
Why carry it if not for a situation like this…?
It would be easy to justify it now. This was a crisis, after all.
But… it all ran far deeper than a simple matter of pride. Her identity as the Seven-Colored Puppeteer was one of unrevealed limits, of mysterious and undisclosed potential. The dollmaker who was powerful enough to leave foes thinking 'She's this strong right now, and that's without even using her ultimate weapon. I shouldn't mess with her too much.'
There was always more to her, always new heights to reach, and always more room to grow. There were no limits in sight, and that meant that her potential could very well be infinite.
And, she could do it all without help.
That was the impression she so relentlessly sought to give, and, after a while, she had begun to believe it herself. It was easier to turn a blind eye to reality and instead dream about the most capable possible version of herself.
A version that may or may not have actually existed. Finding out, in no vague terms, would have been the riskiest possible thing she could have done.
But, that strategy was the problem. No matter the challenge, Alice Margatroid never gave her all. If she succeeded, then it was because she was strictly better. If she failed, then the opponent was lucky that she had been holding back. It was with these safeguards in place that she'd carved out a niche for herself in the tumultuous world of Gensokyo. Because, if she was ever made to face true defeat again, to be once more left with nothing and no hope for recourse, then it would have destroyed her.
It was far better to live within a protected lie. For those like her, the fear of revealing the truth of their fragility, of crashing back down to earth, was paralyzing.
…
Then, a hand joined hers.
Alice looked to the right to see Eric, having dragged himself several feet across the ground from where he'd laid. Their fingers intertwined, and he held her hand firmly, stabilizing it. He wore a sad smile, and he spoke as if he'd just been given his last rites.
"Alice… i-it's okay… W-we tried… We gave it our best shot, didn't we…? S-sorry I couldn't do more…"He
He breathed heavily, as if the mere act of speaking was exhausting. The rapidly thickening smoke wasn't helping matters, either.
"We… We can't save the house… huh? That's… a shame…" Eric let out a weak, hollow laugh. "But, if you leave now… then you might just find a way out of here…"
He was all but giving up, though his eyes were clear, like he hadn't lost an ounce of faith in her.
No… He can't be insinuating that I should…
All she could feel was distress. The mere idea was abhorrent. Alice snapped back. "What? No! I wouldn't… I couldn't! Not without… Not without…" Though she choked on her own words, the sentiment was clear.
Not without you.
Alice turned her body and drew him closer. He was a gentle sort of warm, easily distinguishable from the wild heat of the surrounding fire. Her fingers gripped his clothes tightly, never wanting to let go.
"I… can barely move… And… you don't have the mana left to… take me with you… I think…"
She failed to resist the urge to sob. It couldn't end like this. It just couldn't. They had only just gotten started!
Eric mumbled into her shoulder, voice heavy with unshed tears. "It's okay… It's okay… Some things happen for a reason… don't they? You… You should go… I'm… I'm not scared…"
But Alice didn't go. How could she? She only squeezed him harder, as if doing so would protect him from what was to come.
"I just… I wish that we'd had more time together. I wish that I'd… told you that I love you more… I…" Eric released a shuddering breath, joining her in crying. "I… I love you Alice. R-remember that… okay?"
Alice tried to respond, but she couldn't. Her heart clenched so painfully. His words were so pure, so bittersweet…
Deep inside of her, something cracked.
She was on the brink of losing everything again: Her home, her family, her sense of self, and possibly even her life. It was just like all those years ago. Just like Makai.
No. No, she would not stand for it.
Alice looked once more to the grimoire in Shanghai's hands. She reached out for it as she untangled herself from Eric. Then, she gave a final sniff, acrid smoke stinging her nose.
Pride be damned. What good was pride if one was dead? What use was clinging to a facade if it only led to regret?
Alice gripped the book, and Shanghai dutifully released her hold on it. She rose to her feet, and then she began untying the ever-present ribbons that bound the tome.
"What… are you doing… Alice?" Eric wheezed.
"I'm saving us," she said solemnly. Her voice was still thick with grief, and her eyes were still wet with tears, but she was deadly serious.
She looked around, she stood alone, and she knew what she had to do. Alice Margatroid, The Seven-Colored Puppeteer, required her grimoire. Without it, there were things she could not do.
That revelation, though a punch to the gut, was… well…
Eric stared up at her with a mix of worry and hope in his eyes.
It was not as painful as she had imagined.
She wondered, very briefly, what it was that had pushed her to this point. The answer, however, was plain as day. The only thing more terrifying than the destruction of her own ego was the loss of the one she holds most dear.
To that end, she would go to the ends of the earth, even if that meant throwing away the unrealistic self-image that she'd built her identity around.
The red ribbons fell away, and the golden text leapt out from the black cover. A multitude of vibrant colors pulsed and blended together at the edge of the pages as the grimoire practically sprang to life in her hands.
There was no turning back now. The cover creaked open, revealing luminescent pages that had not seen the light of day in well over a decade. A wave of pressure forced itself out, as if the grimoire itself demanded respect, floating between Alice's hands.
A rush of power, overwhelming and irresistible, flooded her body. Immediately, her weariness was soothed, and it was replaced by vigor. It was as if the mana sang to her, buzzing just beneath her skin. She felt as though she could truly do anything.
It was nostalgic, in a way. This was the very same power that had given her younger self such a large ego to begin with, and, when she'd lost, such a large complex.
She took a breath, and then she sighed. She really, truly didn't want to have to resort to this.
Alice wasn't sure whether to grin or frown. It was distasteful, just how good this easy power felt. She knew that it wasn't hers. It only served as a reminder that Alice Margatroid couldn't do it on her own.
But, that was simply how things had to be.
An unspeakable light shone from the grimoire. Alice rose a hand to the sky, as if drawing power from Heaven itself. In doing so, she struck a pose both noble and powerful.
Eric would later attest to her that in that moment, he was certain that her eyes gleamed with every color of the rainbow.
…
*KRACKA-BOOM!*
But, before she could utter even a single spell, there was a flash of light, like lightning in the sky, and there was a mighty boom, as if the air itself had split in two.
Then, the clouds above suddenly burst open. Fat, heavy drops of rain came in thick sheets, drenching Alice almost immediately and streaming off of her magically water-resistant grimoire.
In an instant, the roar of the deluge overpowered the growl of the fire and doused the swell of emotions that had been building up within her. A cacophony of hissing and sputtering echoed in the clearing as pure white steam began to mix with the thick grey smoke.
The rain… The rain will… extinguish the flames… The rain will… save us…
Alice simply stood there, frozen, hand still reaching skyward. Rivulets of water ran down her arm and flowed off of her flattened hair. Her dress had long been soaked through, and her boots would need a serious drying.
Then, Alice lowered her arm, and she snapped her book closed. Though she was soaked to the bone, she began to laugh.
The sky was… so ignorant of the things happening on the earth.
It was the most ridiculous thing.
All of the pain she'd just put herself through… The incredibly hard decision to finally open her grimoire…
This was… It was… All of it was ultimately unnecessary. She hadn't needed her grimoire after all.
They had lasted long enough.
She had been enough.
She was enough.
The fear, the uncertainty, the unparalleled peril… It all began to melt away.
She sank back to her knees as soft, incredulous laughter shook her frame.
They would be okay.
Everything would be okay.
She repeated these words to herself over and over, and then, slowly, her laughs turned to sobs.
The mix of astonishment and relief was powerful, so potent that it was overwhelming. To cease her tears now would have been… impossible.
A hand touched her shoulder.
"Alice…" came a fragile whisper from her side.
Alice threw her arms around him.
Water dripped off of their hair, and both of their clothes were wet beyond measure, but she didn't care. None of that mattered right now.
She gripped him with all of her might, and Eric responded in kind.
How pathetic they would seem, if another were to see them like this. But, that didn't matter, either.
They could do naught but weep, cradled in each other's arms, as their tears met the earth… lost in the rain.
~~~~~~Author's Notes~~~~~~
Congrats! You've made it to the end of what I consider to be the climax of Book One!
I really do like Keine as a character, and I think she has a lot of potential for a fic that focuses on her life and her experiences. Just imagine all of the stuff she has to deal with and situations she probably gets into in her position. I'm sure that she's the type to care a lot about propriety, but at the same time she's willing to crack some skulls (literally and metaphorically) when the going gets tough.
Reimu can be pretty brutal if the situation calls for it. Remember, she's canonically killed a man (youkai man, whatever). I didn't think she'd be all that averse to killing a human if she had to.
And not following spell card rules is a great way to put yourself on the chopping block. Bc if you don't follow them, she won't either, and she's more than able to do it to you. Not only are spell card rules designed to give the weak at least a small chance of winning, it was canonically so that youkai could win (like, at all) against Reimu in a fair duel. If the youkai with their special abilities couldn't win, just think of the disadvantage a regular human would have against her.
The Superior died an unceremonious death, and I think that's fitting. Despite it all, despite how high his opinion of himself was, he was just a regular human, and he died like one, unimportant in the grand scheme of things. That's also why I didn't give him a name. Despite all his ambitions, it didn't really matter.
He might not have mattered specifically, but the unintended consequences of his Incident sure did. Believe it or not, massive fires were not the plan. His followers were overzealous, setting more and larger fires than they were supposed to.
Of course, using fire at all during a drought is insanely risky, so it's not surprising that it almost immediately spiraled out of control.
And then we have Alice and Eric. Everything was going so well for them until it wasn't. If a certain few events hadn't occurred, then I think that they very well may have held out until the rain came without much incident.
Of course, Eric was always going to throw himself into harm's way if it meant having a chance at saving Alice, whether it worried her or not. It's practically baked into his character at this point. Shielding her from that tree was both his big moment, and the thing that incapacitated him for the rest of the event.
As capable and focused as Alice can be, that's usually the cause of her downfall, as well. She can have accounted for a thousand different things, but it always seems like there's one that ends up being missed, or a quick change in circumstances that catches her off guard. That, and she is only human (youkai, but the sentiment stands). In taking on the burden of trying to do it all herself, she ended up overtaxing herself.
With both of them spent, there was really only one option left. The Grimoire of Alice. The grimoire that Alice so desperately seeks to avoid using. While it may seem odd to an observer, I think it's well-within her character to experience that sort of internal conflict about it, even during a life or death situation. It would take something truly critical for her to finally decide to open that book up, and I think that she finally decided what that was.
And despite all of that, right at the cusp of Alice's big moment, something else rushes in to sweep it away. It's absurd. It's ridiculous. It's so undeniably Gensokyo. I couldn't imagine how I would feel if faced with a similar set of circumstances, but I'm confident that above all else, Alice would have felt relief.
She can say that she doesn't need her grimoire just a little bit longer.
Anyways, I'd like to thank you all for reading. This project has changed so much in terms of size and scope as I've continued to write it. These last few chapters were originally meant to have been a single chapter, and I was even thinking of incorporating the lyrics of Porter Robinson's song Goodbye to a World into it, but that ended up being changed.
Funny how that works. I can't say that I expected to end up here when I first started writing, but I'm glad that did. I didn't think that the 'Fire Arc' was going to turn into what it did, but I like what I ended up doing with it. I didn't quite plan on Alice and Eric's relationship turning out exactly as it did, but I wouldn't dare to change it.
It all worked out in the end.
This is not the end of the fic. I still plan on having a couple resolution chapters before taking a bit of a hiatus to work out how I want to continue this story. Perhaps I'll take a crack at writing a couple other fics during that time, or even try my hand writing something original.
Until next time.
Thanks for reading! Comment or review if you want! Have a great day!