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My first fanfic. Be gentle; it's my first time~

I randomly started thinking up scenarios one night, and I finally decided to start typing. I showed it to my friends and they thought it was good. Now I wanna expand my audience!

The story is FINISHED. Enjoy!

This story is a fan-fiction work based on Touhou Project. I had taken an unusual method by implementing a fan-made character into the story, as the main character. Another unusual thing here is that said character is MALE. Sorry, to those who was expecting a yuri pair-up~! XD

Constructive criticism is encouraged, but please, don't bash me. Like I said, this is my first one.

Please excuse the consecutive posting--I want to keep the chapters as separate posts.

Also, you can find this fanfic posted on MotK and my dA page.
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The Crimson Digital and Audial Enigma
低音拍子ラズ

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CHAPTER 01 // Welcome to Gensokyo

Gensokyo, from what I had read, and heard from others, is an interesting place, filled with interesting people. I'd also heard that something always seems to be happening in Gensokyo. My old town was boring--nothing ever happened. Despite our technological advances, no sort of action or adventure was to be found anywhere. The only thing I had going for me was my knowledge of computers and nuclear physics, and my occupation as a small-time DJ. The DJ thing was going downhill, though, so less and less started happening. Soon, I started working for the city's science industry. Then, the accident happened...

I had recently moved into Gensokyo. Most of my things were still in boxes around the house. The only things not in boxes were my computers, a gaming console, and some other things that were too large to put in boxes to begin with. I had moved into a vacant house near a magic shop in the forest.

The house was three stories--attic, main floor, and basement--although you couldn't really tell from outside. It just looked like a small house like those you see in the Human Villiage. Hell, if I were still human, I would have moved there instead, and simply built onto it.

I had just finished reassembling the recharging station. Since it was finished, I felt like taking a nap, but I remembered, youkai like to roam these forests, looking for food and such. I needed to set up my field generator so I could protect my home. Now that I think about it, it might have been a good thing that I didn't move into the Human Villiage. With all the technology and such, my house would stand out like a sore thumb, and always attract all sorts of unwanted attention.

The instructions for assembling the field generator weren't in the same box as the rest of it. I sighed heavily, knowing I'd end up searching every single box in the house. I had the power supply--a nuclear fusion coil battery--in my hand, as I searched for the instructions. Suddenly, someone knocked on the door. It was quiet, and the sudden noise startled me. I dropped the fusion coil onto the floor. It cracked. Dammit. I was lucky that the nuclear-powered coil didn't explode, but I wasn't sure it would work anymore. I whispered expletives to myself as I walked to the door.

I forced a smile and opened the door. The girl outside seemed kinda off. Then again, there are a lot of strange characters around here...not to mention myself. She had blonde hair, gold eyes, and was wearing some sort of witch's dress/maid's outfit combination, with the black dress and the white apron. Her witch's hat was obsurdly huge. She was looking at me with a tomboyish grin. I thought I recognized her, but I wasn't sure yet.

"New neighbour! Don't get many of those around here, ze!"

That's all I needed to hear. I knew who she was. I had heard about her and a shrine maiden going around solving incidents of sorts almost all the time. The girl in witch clothing would speak strangely, usually adding a "ze" somewhere in every other sentence. She was none other than--

"Marisa Kirisame, at your service, ze! I live and work at the shop back that-a-way. So, you here for business, vacation, or..." She stopped and looked past me and saw all the technology spread out across the livingroom floor. Her gold eyes lit up. I knew what that look meant, too. I heard Marisa likes to "quietly borrow" things. I should get that field generator put together soon.

She was stuck. I decided to continue the conversation and draw her attention back. "Nice to meet you; I've heard so much." I extended my hand for a shake. She slapped me five instead.

"So, what's all that techy stuff in there for, ze? Not only that, but aren't you a human? Why didn't you move into the Human Villiage instead? Kinda dangerous around here sometimes, ze."

I decided to answer both of her questions at the same time. "That over there is my recharging station, and that's a field generator for keeping youkai and other intruders out." Her smile faded slightly at the mention of a type of security system, but she didn't seem to change her mood much. I continued. "And to answer your other question, I'm not exactly human...well, not completely. I'm sort of a cyborg. There was this accident, and...well, I don't wanna bore you with my life story."

"Cyborg, huh? Not many of those around Gensokyo, from what I see. So what brings you to these parts?"

I didn't want to tell the truth. My memories of what happened were flooding my mind. I blurted something out. "Just wanted to see new places, is all."

"Well, drop by the shop sometime! You know the place, right? Kirisame Magic Shop, just down that path over there."

"I'll be sure to pay a visit soon." I nodded and smiled. She turned to leave. She stopped after a few steps, and turned back to me.

"Oh, what's your name, ze? You forgot to tell me."

I was from the other side of the world. I figured nobody here would know anything about me or the accident.

"Razu Teionhakushi. Everyone calls me Raz."

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CHAPTER 02 // Love-Coloured Magic

I closed the door and went back into the livingroom, and looked down at the damaged coil. As I picked it up and looked at the crack, I had a flashback of the accident. A massive explosion. Everything, destroyed in an instant. I shook my head and tried to force the memories away. Coming back to the present, I looked at the coil and wondered...where can someone get a nuclear fusion coil around here?

For now, the field generator will have to stay inoperational. The coil might still work, but I didn't want to chance an explosion if it didn't. I didn't know much else to do; I'd just ask Marisa tomorrow. It was getting late, and I hadn't slept in a couple days. I connected to the recharging station and went to sleep.

// // // // //

I woke up and disconnected from the recharging station. I got some things from out of one of the moving boxes and put together breakfast. I looked at the clock, which was sitting on the table. I hadn't hung it up yet. 13:37. Damn, I slept in again.

The coil was sitting on the table now. I picked it up and figured I might as well pay Marisa a visit.

My hair was a mess. I had black hair that reached to my back, and it was all over the place. Setting the coil down at the sink, I looked at the mirror, into a mysterious character's crimson eyes. The mirrored image had a strange deformity in his right eye that was shaped like a three-parted circle, where each part had a small outward-going prong. The copycat in the mirror straightened his hair as I did.

Broken coil in hand, I walked out the door and locked it. I started down the trail towards the magic shop. Strangely, it started to get dark. It couldn't be that the trees were blocking out the sun that much...

I checked my internal clock. It was only a bit past 14:00; no way it could be this dark already. Then I saw something. No, someone. A girl in black and white school-like attire was floating a few feet above and in front, with her arms extended out to each side. She had blonde hair with a red ribbon tied to it.

I remembered Marisa saying something about how dangerous the forest can be. But this little girl in front of me seemed close to harmless. Sure, she was flying, but that's nothing new around here, from what I understand.

She stayed floating there, smiling at me, with this childish smile, arms outstretched. A few minutes had passed. It was getting creepy. I had to say something. "Who are you?"

The girl laughed a childlike laugh. "Who am I? I'm Rumia...who are you?"

I told her my name. She kept smiling and holding her arms out. Why the hell was she doing that?

"Is that so?"

"I'm looking for the Kirisame Magic Shop. Could you point me in its direction...?"

"I wouldn't be worried about getting there. You won't make it that far."

What did she just say to me? I was beginning to reconsider my previous opinion on how much of a threat this Rumia was.

"What are you saying?" She was still holding out her arms. It was getting annoying. "And why are you holding out your arms like that?"

"You know, not a person goes by that doesn't ask that. How is it not obvious?"

"Are you trying to pull off a crucifiction?" I was puzzled, but I tried to keep her talking while I examined my surroundings for an escape. I could defend myself, but not for long.

"Finally, someone gets it!" Rumia laughed and applauded briefly. This girl seemed more and more childish. Then she said something I had never expected a child to say... "Since you didn't give me so much grief, I'll make your death quick and painless before I eat you!"

Sure, I was 45% prosthetics, but that other 55% of me was, in fact, human. Meaty, tasty human. She started moving towards me. My sensors detected her stress and adrenaline levels. Silent alarms were pulsing my senses. I knew she was about to attack.

She came at me, arms still outstretched. God, that was getting annoying! I jumped out of the way. She missed, but recovered quickly. I was only delaying the inevitable. She came at me, going for the kill. I was on the ground. I wouldn't be able to escape this one. I held up my arms in an attempt to block and tightly closed my eyes.

"Love Sign: 'Master Spark'!"

I could feel the sudden wave of magic and overwhelming power. I opened my eyes. Marisa was standing to my left. She was firing a wide, brightly coloured beam from her palm. It was a direct hit. Rumia was gone. The light returned to the forest.

Marisa helped me up. I looked at the scorch mark that went across where Rumia was. I was wrong. If it had really been a direct hit, there surely would have been something left of her. Marisa walked up to where I was looking, and must have thought the same thing. "Hmm, got away, ze."

I looked up. "Now I see what you meant when you said it can be dangerous here."

"So I'm assuming that you decided to come to the shop, ze?"

The damaged fusion coil. I checked my pockets. Then I looked over where I had dove out of the way from Rumia's first attack. It was laying on the ground. It seemed to not have taken any more damage from the day's events. I picked it up. Examining the coil, I thought to myself, "I've got to be more careful."

Marisa observed the object I was holding. "What's that?"

"This is the reason I came this way. What do you know about nuclear power sources?"

"Not much, ze, but I know someone who does." She paused. "I'm heading to Reimu's place after awhile. We will all three go to see her afterward. In the meantime, come on over to the shop."

I had nothing better to do. Why not? I followed her to the shop.

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CHAPTER 03 // Music is the Greatest Weapon

As Marisa and I walked to the magic shop, I thought back to the encounter with Rumia. Marisa declared her attack. I could hear it. When I opened my eyes she was firing a wide magical laser-like attack. When it cleared out, I remember seeing a piece of paper falling from her hand, burning and turning to ashes, and blowing away in the wind.

I stopped pondering about it once we arrived. The shop looked like a simple house, except it had kudzu growing all around and over it, and had some strange, glowing mushrooms growing in the front yard. She saw me looking. "Magic mushrooms, ze," she said. I kept my jokes to myself.

We walked inside. Oh my God. Books. EVERYWHERE. A thousand different books about different types of magic, spells, and such, in stacks and piles all over the place. It was actually kinda difficult to navigate through the house. On the table was a lamp, an ink pen, some blank cards, and a book. The book was laying open on the title page. The inside of the cover had a lavender ink stamp on it--two letters: PK. The title was "Elemental Spells IV: Utilizing Fire and Metal Spells".

Without realizing it, I went over to the table and picked up the book, and I found myself thumbing through the pages. These were pretty interesting. Powerful spells, like summoning of large sawblades that fly at the enemy, and generating molten fireballs to use as projectiles.

Marisa noticed how deeply interested in the book I was. "Know any spells like that, ze?"

"I don't know any spells."

Marisa appeared surprised. "You live HERE and don't know any spells?"

"I don't have very much experience with magic." I looked around. I saw a red book with a music note on the spine. Being a former DJ, it caught my interest. "...Mind if I take a look at this?"

"Huh? Oh, sure. Go on ahead."

The book had its title in gold embossed letters, on the cover. "Duel Tactics: Manipulating Sound to Gain an Advantage".

I got lost in this book. Amazed, I was, at how soundwaves can be manipulated using magical energy. I memorized key information, and decided to bring the book to Marisa. "I wanna try some of this, but I need help with something."

Marisa looked at the page I was on last. "'Zat so? What'cha need help with?"

I pointed at the paragraph in question. "It mentions something of a 'prerendered evocation foci'."

"Oh, it means a spellcard," she answered. "The magical energy comes from you, but without the card as a focal point, all you have is raw magic energy. You see, anyone can manipulate magic energy, ze, but for inexperienced and weak users, it could easily get out of control, and they can do as much damage to themselves as they do to their opponent." I thought about it for a second, and I saw how it could make sense.

It took me almost no time at all to come up with some spellcard ideas. "Say...if I come up with some basis for a few spellcards, can you make them for me?"

"Sure! Hell, you might even get to use them when we go visit the crow."

Crow? Was she talking about Reimu? I didn't see how that made any sense, but I didn't say anything regarding it. I assumed that I would find out soon enough. I wrote some spellcard ideas down and gave her the paper. "Make a couple extra. I wanna test these once they are ready."

// // // // //

"Finished, ze!!"

I must have fallen into sleep mode while waiting. Marisa's sudden exclamation woke me up. I checked the time; it was about 17:00. I looked at her. She held the cards out inches from my face. She seemed very proud of her creations.

I took the cards and observed them. Sound spells. Good ones, too, from the look of the designs on the cards. One instantly caught my attention. It seemed to be a wide, beam-like attack.

"10,000 Decibels: 'Bass Blast'."

"Based it on Master Spark, ze. Big laser made of bass sound. Makes a big boom, ze!" I liked the sound of that. "I made eight of them, so feel free to use whenever, ze."

I decided to skip the test run. I like surprises. Besides, what better test method is there than on the field?

"Here's something to carry them in." She handed me a leather pouch she had fashioned together. I clipped it onto my belt. "We're heading over to Reimu's in a minute."

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CHAPTER 04 // The Red-White Shrine Maiden

The shop door slammed shut behind us. The hinges seemed loose so the door swung loosely and freely.

Marisa was holding a bamboo broom. "You fly, ze?"

The changes my body went through when the prosthetics were applied caused an abnormal circulation of magic to start flowing through me. Due to this, I can manipulate force at will, meaning I can lift and move things without touching them, using magical energy to manipulate either carbon or oxygen atoms in or around things. I could even use this ability to move myself at will, resulting in flight. This power also allowed me to create field barriers, sorta like what the field generator does. The only reason I don't make my own field around my house is because it would drain my energy dramatically to keep it sustained for so long.

I answered Marisa's question. "Good thing, ze. I don't do passengers," she replied as she mounted her broomstick. "One-seater, y'know."

// // // // //

There are some amazing sights to behold from this high in the sky. We were probably about 300 feet off the ground. From here, I could see the entire forest. A bit of a way from the forest there is a lake. There appeared to be a building, some sort of mansion there, on a small island in the middle. I could see a girl in green sleeping at the front gate.

"That's Scarlet Devil Mansion." She answered me before I had even asked the question.

That's right, Scarlet Devil Mansion...I remember reading about a sort of incident involving a red mist that turned out to be caused by a vampire that lives there, back in 2002. Since then, I've wanted to visit there. I don't know why. It just seemed to peak my interest.

Marisa saw me observing the mansion. "Wanna go there sometime, ze? I'll take you with me next time I borrow books from Patchy."

"Sure," I said.

// // // // //

We were coming up on a hill that had what looked like a thousand stone steps leading up to a shrine. I bet this is Reimu's place.

We arrived at the shrine. The shrine maiden was wearing the standard red and white shrine maiden attire, along with a yellow neckerchief and a large red ribbon in her hair. She seemed to be talking to a small girl with horns. The girl was wearing chains on her wrists, and had ribbons on her horns.

"But this isn't enough to get sake with all that other stuff!" the horned girl whined.

"It's all I have," Reimu responded.

"But I want sakeeee!"

"You said you wanted to run to the store for me, didn't you? I'll give you more money for sake once I get a bit more in the donation box."

"But who knows when that'll be!?"

Reimu scowled at that remark. She didn't like it when others commented on her money problems. "Besides, what happened to your gourd?"

Marisa made her presence known in the best way possible. "Oh, I borrowed it, ze."

Reimu and the horned girl looked at Marisa.

"Got super drunk the other night, ze!"

"You friggin' klepto! Give it back now!"

"Suika, chill, I'll bring it back! But first I have business, ze." Marisa pointed her thumb over her shoulder and behind her, towards me. Everyone's attention followed suit.

Reimu looked at me, and smirked. "Got a boyfriend, do you now, Marisa?

Marisa laughed, and I found myself turning a slight shade of red. I turned and looked off to the side.

"No, this is my new neighbour, Raz."

I turned and walked toward Reimu, and formally introduced myself. She did the same. "Reimu Hakurei. Finally, another human around here with manners." She thought for a moment. "Wait...you're human. Why do you live in the forest where all the youkai are roaming about?

"Well, I--"

"He's a robot, ze!" Marisa said, cutting me off.

"No, I'm a cyborg; there's a difference!"

"Alright, alright, RoboRaz, don't overheat on us, now." I see why Reimu was emphasizing the whole manners thing. She has to put up with Marisa all the time.

"I see. That's quite different," said Reimu. She turned briefly to Suika, who had hung around to see what the fuss was all about. "Why don't you go on to the store now?"

"But I want sake!"

It seemed that she wasn't going to leave for groceries until she had enough for sake as well. I pulled out my wallet and gave Suika enough to buy a couple bottles. Her eyes lit up. She excitedly hugged me and ran for the store. Reimu seemed to be eyeing the money in the wallet. I noticed, then realized I was standing next to a box labeled "Donations". I casually dropped some money inside it. Reimu smiled. I heard it hit the wood bottom of the box. She really didn't have any money left.

"So," Reimu asked, "what did the two of you need?" Marisa started.

As Marisa was explaining her reason for coming, I observed the area. There was a great view of most of Gensokyo from the shrine. I see why she built it here. The evening sunset gave the land below the perfect palette.

I hadn't been paying much attention to the girls. Marisa had already finished discussing her business with Reimu. I heard my name.

"Oh, Raz needs help with something, ze." I turned towards the two and walked back to them. I showed Reimu the fusion coil. I explained my dilemma.

"My, that is a problem, isn't it? Well, the only other person I know that handles nuclear ANYTHING is Utsuho."

"So how do we go about scheduling a visit?"

"We will have to go and visit her in Old Hell. She's the regulator of the fires and such."

Hell? Regulator of the fires? My confusion was visible in my facial expression.

Marisa filled in the blanks for me. "She's a yatagarasu, ze. A sun goddess; a hell raven."

Goddess? So, to repair a fusion coil, my best bet is this Utsuho character? This "hell raven"? Well, things seemed to pick up already. Looks like I won't be worrying about boredom here in Gensokyo.

"Sounds like fun. When do we go?" My sudden increase in interest caused Reimu's eyes to widen. Marisa grinned. "'Atta boy, Razzy! Show no fear, ze!" I smiled.

"So, how do we get there? To Old Hell?"

"There's a way down back behind the shrine. We can go now, if you like."

I was so ready to use the spellcards Marisa had created for me. I smirked. "Let's go."

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CHAPTER 05 // To Hell and Back: Part One

We started down the old inactive geyser behind the shrine. From the looks of things, it sure enough went straight down into Hell. "How did this geyser get here, anyway? Is Utsuho to blame?"

Reimu responded. "There was an incident not too long ago, where this geyser first appeared. Youkai from underground started flooding out of it and causing trouble above ground. Marisa and I went down to investigate. Utsuho actually was the one behind it."

"Thankfully, Okuu's kinda ditzy though, ze," Marisa added. "If she wasn't such a birdbrain she probably woulda blown us up into tiny little pieces!"

"So, what does she do nowadays?"

"She regulates Old Hell's fires, by means of nuclear fusion."

So she handles nuclear fusion directly. She would, in fact, be the best choice for my request.

// // // // //

We had been travelling down for a while now. I couldn't see the sky anymore. I checked my clock. 23:27. Sure, it was late, but no matter. I'm more of a nighttime person anyway.

It was starting to get hot. I could see a light on ahead. I recognized the way it glowed. That's nuclear energy. I could feel it, too. As we got closer, it got hotter.

When we arrived to the lowest level, I looked around. Was this Old Hell? It looks like a nuclear reactor chamber.

Suddenly, a loud klaxon alarm sounded. A PA system shouted: "CAUTION!! FOREIGN SUBSTANCE DETECTED IN MAIN REACTOR!!"

Almost right on cue, she came to the area to check, to find us. She seemed to be more focused on Reimu and Marisa than me.

"You two again! What the hell are you doing in my reactor?" The angry girl before us had large raven-black wings that held a white cape aloft. The inside of the cape had a starry pattern about it. She wore a white blouse with green trim, a short green skirt with white trim, and a green bow in her hair. She seemed to have a large red third eye in the center of her chest. Her ankle had what looked like atoms orbiting it, and the opposite foot seemed to be covered in congealed matter. I recognized it--fission and fusion. She had a device on her arm. It seemed like a cannon of some sort. I could tell that that was what she used to regulate her nuclear abilities.

"Well!?" Utsuho was becoming impatient.

Without thinking, I moved forward. "I've come seeking your help. I have a nuclear fusion coil that needs to be repaired or replaced, and you seem to be--"

"And just who might YOU be?"

"Razu Teionhakushi, or just Raz is fine. Would you--"

"I have no business with you, go away! I'm dealing with intruders!" Was I really so insignificant??

She focused on the girls. "Give me one good reason not to incinerate you both where you are!" She aimed her arm cannon as if to both point her finger at the two as well as take aim and prepare to fire. She seemed to be charging a shot.

Reimu and Marisa were bracing for an attack. Reimu had a spellcard at the ready. Marisa was reaching for one of her own.

Utsuho smirked. "No reason, huh? Guess I'll just have to eradicate you!!" She fired, and a beam of raw nuclear energy was unleashed, heading right towards them. They weren't ready for it yet.

She wasn't focusing on me. I pulled the spellcard from the leather pouch and took aim.

"10,000 Decibels: 'Bass Blast'!"

I felt a surge of magic energy come from within me. It flowed through my body, and into my hands. I instinctively held my hands forward. An extremely loud, extremely low bass sound pulsed from my hands, so strongly that it created a visible wave that soon focused into a red beam. I was pushed back a bit. The sound of the attack itself shook everything.

Utsuho's attack was stopped dead as the attack hit its mark. She was slammed hard against the chamber wall. I could see Reimu looking on in amazement. Marisa seemed amazed, too. She knew it would be powerful, but it was VERY powerful. Probably even with Master Spark itself.

When the spell was finished, the card disintegrated. It had been used for all it was worth. Everyone looked at the Utsuho-shaped crater in the wall, where she had been pushed through. She was still conscious.

The hole in the wall was suddenly blasted wide open. Utsuho came out of the wall.

"Oh, you shouldn't have done that."

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CHAPTER 06 // To Hell and Back: Part Two

"Just who the hell do you think you are!?"

Utsuho was pissed. The blast did nothing more than knock her backward through a wall and tatter her clothing. If I hadn't interfered, though, Reimu and Marisa might not have survived.

"I'm Razu Teionhakushi, and I won't stand for you attacking my friends! You're going down!"

Marisa and Reimu were amazed. I hadn't known either of them for long at all, and I've already saved their lives once. But, realizing the coming battle, they came to my side to assist me.

"Thanks, I really owe you one," said Reimu.

"WE owe you one, ze. I probably woulda been fine though, but Reimu woulda been blasted hard, ze!"

Reimu smacked Marisa in the back of the head. "Hey, shut up!" I chuckled.

"ENOUGH!!!" Utsuho was becoming irritated. "I'LL EVAPORATE YOU ALL THIS INSTANT!!!" Utsuho held out a spellcard. She charged the nuclear energy around her, and it ignited in the form of rockets behind her.

"Rocket Dive!"

She charged headstrong towards us, the nuclear energy propelling her forward. Marisa and I flew clear. Reimu was clipped trying to escape it, and was sent into a spin further down the chamber. She regained flight before going too far down.

Utsuho had her back turned to me. Now's my chance. I pulled another card from the pouch. I thought to myself, time to see what this baby can do!

I held the card out towards my target, with two fingers, as I declared the spell.

"Audio Sign: 'Electrostatic'!"

An electric pulse flowed down my arms, to my hands, and fired outward in the form of a crackling lightningbolt. The sound of the attack sounded like jagged, rough noise.

The bolt hit her right in the center of her back, inbetween her wings. She was forced forward, and collided with the wall. She fell downward towards the core below. She was able to recover. She placed her hand on the right side of her face. Her forehead was bleeding all down one side, and she couldn't open her right eye. She looked up at me from below.

Reimu was about fifty feet in front of her. She saw an opening for an attack. She drew a spellcard and declared.

"Spirit Sign: 'Fantasy Orb'!"

Several brightly coloured orbs of elemental magic energy came from her body. They orbited her for a moment, until Reimu directed them towards Utsuho. All of the orbs went straight for her. She hadn't realized the attack until it was too late to dodge. She took every orb. Feathers flew.

Utsuho was weak by now. But she wasn't showing it. Clothes torn, one wing fractured, and blood pouring from her forehead, and she still seeks to "eradicate" us. "Nnh...doesn't hurt at all...!" ...That was a straight-out lie. She could barely keep from falling into the core below.

Utsuho looked at Marisa and myself. She looked like she was about to give one more attack all she had. She was holding another spellcard. As she held it, she aimed her arm cannon in our direction. It opened. She was charging for one final blast, and she was going for a big one. "This is it; I'll burn your sorry asses until there is nothing left!!"

How did she still have this much energy left? Now was no time to think about it. Marisa and I both pulled one spellcard each. We looked at each other, and smiled. "Time to finish this, ze!"

Everyone declared at the same time.

"10,000 Decibels: 'Bass Blast'!"

"Love Sign: 'Master Spark'!"

"Explosion Sign: 'Giga Flare'!"

Master Spark and Bass Blast merged into one brilliant high-powered laser. Utsuho fired an ultra-wide beam of overwhelming nuclear power. The two attacks collided. For awhile, it was a standoff. Everyone poured as much power into their attacks as they could. Finally, the Bass-Spark combination pierced through Utsuho's attack, and hit her directly. She was sent careening straight down towards the core. I materialized a field below to catch her. A dead hell raven can't fix my fusion coil.

Utsuho was unconscious, and badly injured. But she would be able to heal with rest. I looked at Reimu. "I need her alive. Can we take her to the shrine to rest?"

Reimu was stunned. "What? You want me to keep a walking nuke at my shrine? You're nuts!"

"Hmm. I might have more money for the donation box. Maybe I'll chip in more when we return..."

"...I guess she can stay, as long as she leaves immediately after your business with her is done." I smiled.

// // // // //

I kept Utsuho floating next to me as we headed towards the surface. Marisa was smiling at me.

"...What?"

Marisa turned a slight red and turned forward, as if she weren't looking at me at all. "Ahh, it's nothing, ze. Just glad we won, that's all."

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CHAPTER 07 // Redemption

Utsuho was still out when we arrived at the shrine. Some blankets were set out on the floor, as there was only one bed in the shrine. Despite that, Marisa and I stayed over as well. I had no need for a comfortable bed; I could simply sit leaning against the wall and sleep. Marisa just slept in the floor.

// // // // //

I woke up around 11:00. I looked to find Marisa and Utsuho were still sleeping. Reimu was up, and had already eaten her breakfast. She was now cleaning the shrine.

She saw I was awake. "Thanks again for protecting us last night."

"Thanks for coming with," I replied. "I wouldn't have been able to handle her alone."

We both saw Utsuho awaken, then jerk up in surprise. "Unyu? Where am I?"

"You were going to fall into the core," I told her. "I kept you from falling in. I brought you back here to rest and regain your strength."

"Oh, if I were to fall into the core, I would have been fine. Most of my being is nuclear energy."

I felt kinda stupid for not realizing that. But whatever. I had her here, and now it was time to get what I came for. I showed her the fusion coil. "Can you repair this?"

Utsuho analyzed the coil. "Psh. I can make you one ten times better than that!"

I didn't want one better. Having this thing alone was dangerous enough. "Please, just fix this one."

"Fine," she sighed. She took the coil and got to work. I went over to Marisa, who was still asleep. She was snoring. Not loudly, but audibly enough to hear the little "ze" sighed after every other snore. I laughed quietly.

I looked over to Reimu. "Think I should wake her?" No answer. She was preoccupied with her cleaning. I decided to nudge her. "Hey, Sleeping Beauty, wake up." She twitched. I poked her forehead.

She jerked awake with a sudden "snort--ZE!?" and looked up to find me poking at her forehead. I laughed.

"Nice snore."

"I was snoring?"

// // // // //

Utsuho had finished repairs on the fusion coil. She brought it to me. I looked it over. Sure enough, it was good as new. I let Marisa know. "Alrighty, ze. Come with me to the shop. I want to give you something." I nodded, and we walked outside. We waved goodbye to Reimu and Utsuho, and took off.

// // // // //

We arrived at the shop at about 13:30. Marisa entered first. She told me to wait in the main room. She took a book from one of the stacks and went into the back.

Probably about seven minutes later, she returned. She gave me three new cards. They were the same one. But these were different than the others. Advanced spells, that drain a lot of energy. She looked at me. "Figured you were ready for something more powerful, ze. But listen..." Her face became serious. "Only use these as a last resort. They drain a lot of magical and physical energy when used. Use them at the wrong time, and you'll be too weak to continue fighting, and you'll be left open, ze." I nodded, and took another look at the cards. The illustration showed an array of Bass Blast-type lasers that went in a wide area-covering wave, as well as a homing Electrostatic bolt. It also hit a certain frequency that causes electromagnetic pulses that could disable electronics.

Intelligent Dance: 'Subsonic Fracture'.

"Another thing," she continued. "Pretty neat trick that was last night, when you combined Bass Blast with Master Spark, ze. I'm impressed."

I smiled. Then I remembered, I should probably get this coil home. I said my goodbyes to Marisa, thanked her for her help, and went on my way.

I had walked about halfway to my house when it started getting dark again. Not this again...

It suddenly became pitch black. Thankfully, my left eye--the one with the circular deformity--was a prosthetic, and could see in different ways. For example, nightvision. Rumia must not have counted on that.

But she was smarter than I thought. She didn't waste time with reintroducing herself. She took advantage of what would have been the perfect time to strike. Suddenly, she swooped straight in towards me. I put up a small field in front of me to block her. I saw her collide with it. She didn't seem very phased. She moved back a bit, then lunged for me again. I couldn't get a field up quick enough. She sunk her teeth into my arm.

"Agh, you b***h!" I swung her off of me, and pulled a spellcard. Hm. I hadn't used this one yet. I noticed it had two uses: 'hi' and 'lo'. Hi seemed to be a stun. Lo appeared to inflict physical damage. I thought, "let's try..."

"Noise Sign: 'Orbital Sine' - Hi!"

I held out my palm in her direction. A high-treble wave formed a piercingly high sound. Rumia covered her ears and fell to the ground, cringing. I took control of the atoms surrounding her and lifted her into the air, then slammed her down. Rumia was barely conscious. She hadn't the strength to continue.

I grabbed her by the hair and lifted her head so she was looking at me. "Come near my house again, and you will not survive." She passed out. The darkness cleared. Suddenly, my left eye could only see white. Nightvision is useless in the light. I switched back to normal vision.

// // // // //

When I arrived home, the first thing I did was locate the instructions for the field generator. I assembled the generator, putting the fusion coil in its place, and activated it. My house was now protected from the greater youkai of the forest.

I went to the restroom and observed the damage done from Rumia's bite. It was bleeding, but it was only a little bite. I cleaned it off and bandaged it. Then, I went back to the main room to continue unpacking my things. It's time I actually got settled in.

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CHAPTER 08 // Kappappa, Kappappa

About a week had passed since the fight with Utsuho. I had removed all of my belongings from the boxes. The computers were set up in the small library offset from the livingroom. The shelves were now filled with books. Not many, though. Books about certain sciences, technological books, and dictionaries, for the most part.

The field generator had been doing its job efficiently. I had not had any issues with intruders, youkai or otherwise.

It had been almost just as long since I had seen or heard from Marisa. I was beginning to wonder what she had been up to lately. Not only that, but I had an idea for a new spellcard. I decided to pay her a visit.

// // // // //

The walk through the forest was quiet, for once. Rumia hadn't tried to attack me since the last near-death experience I had given her. Aside from that, Marisa wasn't with me, either. This is the quietest it has been in the forest since I had moved here.

// // // // //

I arrived at the magic shop. The door was open, so I simply walked in. Marisa was talking to someone. "Oh, here he is now, ze." She turned to me. "Razzy! We were just talking about you, ze!"

"I don't know whether I should be proud or afraid," I said.

The new face had been focused on me from the moment I had walked in. She had blue hair and eyes to match. The girl wore a blue dress with many pockets. She was carrying an aquamarine backpack on her back.

She seemed to have taken an interest in me.

I mean a serious interest.

She was staring at me.

Then, she walked closer and stared some more. I was becoming uneasy.

"Uhm, can I help you?" I said, hoping to get something other than this strange investigative stare as a response. She looked up at me briefly, then went around behind me and lifted the back of my shirt. "Hey!? What are you doing!?"

She looked up, seeming dissatisfied. "Where do the batteries go?"

"I'm guessing Marisa told you all about me."

"Yup," the girl in blue answered. "She said you're a robot, sooo...where do the batteries go?"

I shifted my attention to Marisa. "Damn it, I told you I'm a cyborg, not a robot!" Marisa started laughing at how red my face was getting.

"Hey, cyborg guy!" The girl in blue was suddenly demanding my attention. "You think you're more advanced than me?" Was she trying to pick a fight? I hadn't even known her for five minutes...

"What's your issue??" I looked down at her. "And just who are you?"

"I'm the kappa Nitori Kawashiro!" She was looking at me with quite an aggressive expression of determination. She reached into one of her many pockets and brandished a screwdriver. "I wanna take you apart!"

"Whoa, hold on a sec!" I took a step back. She was looking at me as if she were a curious young boy with a screwdriver, staring at a vintage radio. I was part machine; she wanted to see what made me tick.

"Marisa, you wanna do something about your friend, here?" When I looked over to where she was before, she was no longer there. I saw the restroom door was closed. Great. I'm about to get disassembled, and my only help is on the toilet.

Nitori was coming closer. I had to act. No way I was letting her take me apart. I took hold of the atoms surrounding her feet, and held her in place with a firm grip. Not enough to hurt her...just enough to keep her screwdriver-crazy self in one place.

I should have held her hands in place, too. She reached in a pocket and revealed a spellcard.

"Water Sign: 'Kappa's Flash Flood'!"

A flood of water rushed from behind her and hit me with great force. I was swept back a few yards, back into the forest. I could see Nitori's satisfaction in her smile.

Marisa walked outside. "What's with all the noise, ze?" She looked around. "...Did it rain?"

"Call off the kappa!" I yelled from the forest.

"It could have been worse," Nitori snapped. "At least you're waterproof."

// // // // //

Marisa explained to Nitori that I was a friend of hers (which somehow wasn't said before I arrived, yet she was talking about me then). "Razzy's not for taking apart, ze. He's our ally." Nitori gave a "Hmph," and turned to me. "Fine, I won't take you apart...yet." She smiled and winked at me. I wasn't sure what to make of that.

"Nitori's an engineer, ze," Marisa said to me. "She sees new tech, and has it taken completely apart within five minutes!"

Awesome. Another reason to keep my house locked and shielded. The last thing I need is my recharging station reduced to its base elements. Well, then again, this means I now know someone with mechanical smarts, should I need the help.

Nitori looked at Marisa. "Well, the heater's fixed, anyways; anything else I can do before I go?"

"Nah," said Marisa. "Me and Razzy are about to head out, anyway, ze."

Where'd THAT come from? Usually, I know, somehow or another, when I have plans to go places. I gave a perplexed look at Marisa. "And where are we headed out to, exactly?"

"I told you we'd take a trip to the mansion, didn't I?"

Suddenly, I took interest. I've been wanting to check the mansion out for a while. Then I remembered...

"Hey, I have an idea for a spellcard." I held out a piece of paper. "I want to be able to use more magic energy when manipulating something's surrounding atoms. If I can do that, I can move things faster, hold things down tighter, create stronger barriers, and other things." Marisa nodded, took the paper, and maneuvered around the book stacks to her desk, grabbing a pen and getting to work.

Nitori and I were still at the door. "Well, I should get started on my way back home. I'll be seeing you..." She looked me in the eyes, and smiled. "You can count on that."

// // // // //

After a short while Marisa was finished. She walked up to me and handed me the spellcard. I read the name aloud:

"Force: 'Electromagnet's Polarity'."

"Yep. It's designed to amplify the atoms' magnetism and shift their polarity, depending on what you plan to do with the target."

She only handed me one, but I felt that I'd need more of these. I had a photo copier at my house. "Do you mind waiting a moment before we go to the mansion?"

// // // // //

I left for my house, and when I returned to the magic shop, I had ten of the new card. I wanted to try it out. I took one, and focused on a nearby tree.

"Force: 'Electromagnet's Polarity'!"

I held my hand at the tree, two fingers pointed at it. Then, I threw my hand to point upward. The tree was easily torn out of the ground. Marisa applauded. Then, I decided, let's try something new...

The tree was still airborne. I kept my focus on it. I held my hand out, as if I was holding the tree's mass in my palm. Then, I quickly clenched my hand into a tight fist. The atoms surrounding the tree collapsed into the tree itself, causing the tree to implode, showering Marisa and myself in thousands of splinters of wood.

That was enough to expend the card. When the tree imploded, the card dispersed into small fragments that soon withered away.

I looked at Marisa. "I like it." She grinned at me.

"Now that you're done testing it out, let's go! I hear Patchy's got some new books!"

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CHAPTER 09 // Mind your Manor

Marisa went back inside and grabbed her broom, but hesitated. I saw her set the broom by the door, and go back to the desk. "Hold on a sec, ze. Gotta finish this real quick." She had another

piece of paper on her desk. She took a couple minutes to write something on it, then she put the paper in her hat. "Save this for when I really need it, ze."

She met me outside, grabbing her broom on the way out the door. She looked at me. "Ready, ze?" I nodded, and we took off.

// // // // //

We were flying above the forest. I could see my place further back into the forest. To the right was a clearing. That's the magic shop. Wait...there's another house just west of hers...

"Hey, Marisa," I asked. "Who lives in that house?"

"Oh, Alice lives there, ze. She works with a combination of ventriloquism and magic."

"I see."

Further south, I saw what looked like a small store of some sort. The sign read, "Kourindou". It didn't appear to be a magic shop like Marisa's. In fact, it was so small, I don't know if it had

customers often. I'd have to check it out sometime.

// // // // //

We were coming up on the lake that surrounded the mansion. Suddenly, I felt a cold breeze rush past my ear. I looked down. Several more sharp projectiles came towards Marisa and myself. Something

was firing ice at us!

More ice spikes were sent our way. They seemed fairly easy to dodge, though. Whatever was shooting couldn't aim well at long range. Suddenly, an ice spike hit the brush end of Marisa's broom,

sending her flying over the front of it.

"Marisa!!" I quickly swooped down towards her. The ground was coming up fast. Then, I remembered...duh. I facepalmed. I took hold of Marisa's surrounding atoms and stopped her, about three feet

from the ground. I gently placed her on the grass.

"You alright?"

Marisa gave me a grin that said, 'Of course I am!' She held up her hand and caught the broom. That was kinda cool.

// // // // //

We had decided to walk until we found who or whatever was shooting at us. I believed that the ice was coming from the shore of the lake, which wasn't much further.

We walked around for a bit, soon reaching the lake shore. There, before us, stood a fairy, dressed in blue and white. She had blue hair, and crystallized ice wings frozen to her back, that looked

like she fabricated them herself. She gave us an angry look, though I didn't feel very threatened.

"No trespassing!" said the small blue fairy. "This is my lake, and I won't have you taking any of my frogs!"

Marisa must have known the fairy. "Calm down, Cirno...we don't want any of your frogs, ze. We just want to cross the lake."

"And why should eye let you?" She seemed to pronounce 'I' strangely.

"I dunno, ze," Marisa said. "But I have a question." She reached into her apron and pulled out a puzzle cube. All the sides were fixed, except for two. The coloured stickers on a corner block

were swapped. "I've been trying to solve this all day, ze! Can you help?"

Surely, this fairy wasn't that stupid--

"No worries, for eye, Cirno, will solve the puzzle!"

I was surprised that Cirno hadn't noticed the obvious fact that the stickers were switched out. The stickers themselves were even offset, tackily stuck onto the squares.

I looked over to Marisa. "What are you--"

"C'mon, while she's distracted, ze!" she whisper-yelled to me. While Cirno had her back turned, blindly rotating the cube's sides trying to get a better result, we quietly took flight across the

lake. As we flew, I thought to myself, are all fairies that dumb?

"Cirno's pretty stupid, ze," said Marisa. "Easy to trick. Distract her with a puzzle or a riddle, then just walk around her, ze."

// // // // //

We reached the mansion side of the lake. The sleeping girl I saw before, on the way to the Hakurei Shrine, was still at the front gate of the mansion. She wasn't asleep, this time. Marisa must

have wanted to avoid confronting the gatekeeper, because she was aiming to completely avoid the front entrance. Following Marisa's path, we tried to keep out of sight. We headed for the west wing of the

mansion.

"Do you always take the side entrance?" I was beginning to think that she, instead of asking, silently lifts books from this "Patchy" person. She didn't return any answer, only grinned.

We went around the west side of the mansion and stopped at a window in the rear, below the clock tower. The window was locked.

"Think you could open this, ze?"

I was feeling witty. "What's this? The mighty magician Marisa Kirisame, bested by a window lock?"

"Not a chance! Could easily blast the window open, but that'd make too much noise, ze."

"Besides," I replied, "why not take the front door?"

Marisa gave me her trademark grin. "'Cause, we're gonna surprise Patchy!"

"Suuuure."

I manipulated the lock open, and pulled the window open. Marisa and I went inside and touched down in a hallway. The area was lit by sparklamps. I could see the fancy decor--red carpet with golden

trim. The walls were a slightly darker shade of red than the carpet. We were in the hallway of the second floor of the Scarlet Devil Mansion.

Marisa guided me to a stairway. We followed the spiral stairway down to what appeared to be a dining hall. Nobody appeared to be in sight, so we moved through, past all the tables and chairs, past

the foyer, and further on down the following corridor.

We continued walking. Eventually, Marisa stopped me.

"What is it?"

"We're here, ze."

"But there's nothing here." I checked my surroundings. All I saw was...wait, there was a seam in the wall...

"Hidden door, ze." She opened the door. I followed her down the small hallway, that led to a set of fancy-looking double doors. The bronze sign above the doors read, 'Voile'. Marisa pushed the

doors open and entered. I followed.

Books. More books than I have ever seen in my life. More than Marisa had at her place. We stood on a small balcony, with a stairway to our right, going down. As we walked down the stairs, the

shelves on the wall seemed to climb higher. I couldn't possibly fathom how many books were in this library...

A girl was peeking her head around a bookshelf. All I could see was her red hair and an unusual (and presumably useless) pair of wings sprouting from her head. She saw us, then gasped and ducked

back behind the shelf. I could hear her running.

"Marisa, I think we've been spotted," I said.

"Indeed, your presence has been made known," a new voice replied, from beyond the bookshelf.

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CHAPTER 10 // Lavender Flowers

We were standing in the largest library I had ever seen. The library, belonging to a person--an acquaintance of Marisa's--whom I have yet to meet. But I had a troubling feeling that I was about to.

"You do know, it is illegal to enter someone's dwelling without first acquiring that person's permission." The voice came closer.

Another girl emerged from around the bookshelf. The girl was wearing what would normally be interpreted as nighttime wear--a lavender gown, with a matching cap, which bore a crescent brooch. She had many ribbons in her hair. She had royal purple eyes, which were focused on us. She was carrying a book with no title on the cover. Behind her followed the girl from before. Apparently, she had wings on her back as well as the ones on her head.

The lavender girl spoke. "Marisa Kirisame...did I not explain to you that there would be consequences to breaking into my library?"

"Your library," I said. "So, you must be Patchy."

The girl in the lavender pajamas shifted her gaze from Marisa, to glare at me. "My name is Patchouli Knowledge," she said. "I will not be referred to by such a monicker as you had stated." She gestured to the quiet girl standing by her. "This is my assistant, Koakuma. Now, then...what do I call you, other than 'intruder'?"

"I am Razu Teionhakushi," I told her. "Most everyone calls me 'Raz'."

"Very well, Razu Teionhakushi...now, both of you, explain your business here."

"Just came to borrow some books, ze!"

"You will not be 'borrowing' any more of my books," said Patchouli, "for you have yet to return those which you had borrowed on previous occasions...without permission, I might add."

Suddenly I remembered the lavender ink stamp on one of the books at Marisa's place. PK. Patchouli Knowledge.

"You have ten seconds to vacate these premises before I do away with you."

Marisa just stayed there. I knew what was coming. I made ready for the inevitable battle.

"Time's up." She opened the book she was carrying, and declared.

"Fall Slasher!"

As she declared, she held the open book in one hand, and held her free hand upward. A purple light gathered above her, then split into five. Suddenly, the lights began to collect matter, shaping five metal Okizeme swords. They were all aimed in our direction. "Now is your final opportunity to escape!"

Marisa drew a spellcard from her pouch; I drew two. I couldn't tell what she had drawn, but I was holding two cards that I have yet to use. Their illustrations and their titles was all I had to go on as far as their usage. I had a good idea of how to use these two. I held the first one up.

"Transient Skip!"

My force maneuverability speed had been increased ten-fold by the card. The spell's effect would probably last for five minutes. I levitated an inch from the floor, then moved, at an unfathomable speed, around and behind Patchouli. It seemed almost as if I had teleported; I had moved so fast. Patchouli heard me as I lifted the second card in an attempt to declare and use a combination attack.

"Carbon-Fibre Blade:...!"

She turned around, looking surprised, but otherwise unfaltered. All five of her blades shifted to aim at me. I continued to declare the card.

"...'Ethereal Edge'!"

A chunk of the tile floor, and the concrete below, lifted from the ground. I quickly shifted the carbon atoms into the shape of a broadsword, crushing the leftover tile and concrete into dust. As I took hold of the hilt, Patchouli threw her hand down and aimed toward me, sending the blades after me, one by one. The first blade missed my leg by mere inches. I jumped over the second. I put up Ethereal Edge to block the third. However, the fourth one, which was coming right after the third, grazed my arm. The momentum of the blade pushed me into a slight spin as I fell. Ethereal Edge was thrown backward and stuck into the tile floor a few feet behind me, where it stayed briefly before crumbling into carbon dust. I looked up at the last blade, which was still pointing directly at me. I could see Patchouli's face, which seemed to show little emotion--she had been wearing that expression almost the entire time. She looked down at me coldly.

"Do you have any last words before I transform you into a mere mess for the maid to clean?"

I saw, behind her, Marisa was getting ready to declare her spell.

"Just one: DUCK!"

Patchouli looked at me, puzzled, then turned around to find Marisa mid-declaration.

"Love Sign: 'Master Spark'!"

Patchouli reacted quickly, turning to another page in her book. As she called out the new spell, the remaining blade above her head shattered into metal shards and fell to the floor.

"Emerald City!"

She threw her palm to the floor, causing a wall of emerald pillars to rise from the tiles, in front of her. The pillars blocked the entirety of Marisa's spell. She appeared dumbstruck.

I seized the opportunity to get up and run towards Patchouli. I reached for another card as I ran toward her. Patchouli then turned around, and pointed at the floor below me. She declared another spell from her book as she did this.

"Winter Element!"

The ground quickly turned cold-blue, then shot up in a geyser of frigid water, sending me upward, then back to the tile floor. I landed flat on my back. The impact knocked the wind out of me. I couldn't move.

"Raz!!" Marisa called out to me, then glared at Patchouli. "Patchy's gonna wish she didn't do that, ze!" She pulled another card. Patchouli flipped to another page in her book. I started to get up. Suddenly, I felt something hit me in the back of my head. Hard. I fell back to the floor.

My vision was fading. I could see Marisa getting ready to use her spell, but something out of my line of sight seemed to steal her attention. Patchouli declared her spell.

"Sun Sign: 'Royal Flare'!"

I fell unconscious before the spell hit.

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CHAPTER 11 // A Brief Detention

I was hearing voices.

"I could have handled them without your assistance."

"I was merely keeping more of a mess from being made."

I was starting to come to. I recognized the first voice; that was Patchouli. But I couldn't quite figure out who the second person was.

When I had my vision back, I only saw the heavy steel door shutting and locking behind Patchouli and the other mysterious character. The room I was in was dark. I could barely see.

Right then, I remembered. Was Marisa alright?

At that moment, I heard someone stir. "Marisa?" Marisa seemed to have just woke up as well. She was coughing on the other side of the room.

"Yeah, I'm here, ze."

"What happened?"

"Patchy got me while I was distracted, ze," Marisa said.

"Where are we?" It was quite dark. I couldn't tell any detail about the room we were in.

"My guess, ze, probably a holding cell of some sort, in the basement area. Dunno where exactly, though." I heard her stand up. "Brace yourself, ze, I'm going to light up the room a bit."

A moment passed, and then I could see. Marisa was using magic energy to create a small orb of light at her fingertip. She touched the light to the brim of her hat, making it stay there.

The room we were in was certainly a holding cell. Bare concrete floors and walls, no windows, and a steel door. Marisa went on ahead trying to pick the lock.

After about five minutes, she hadn't made any progress. I reached for my spellcards. I was gonna simply blast the door. I reached for the leather pouch--

My cards were gone. Damn, they must have taken them while we were knocked out. My guess is that Marisa didn't have hers, either.

Marisa stopped trying at the lock, and stepped back. She stood there for a second. Then, she took off her oversized hat--hatlight and all--and reached inside.

"What," I said, "you gonna pull an escape route out of your hat?"

"Precisely, ze!" She pulled out the piece of paper. It was a spellcard. "Call me crazy prepared, ze!" She took the card between two fingers in her right hand while she checked her pockets for something else. She pulled out some sort of octagonal object with a hole in the center. She held it in her left palm, aiming the hole at the door. She took a moment to charge. "Haven't tested this yet. Stand back, ze; this might not go as planned!"

I stood back, as she had asked. This was going to be good.

"Magicannon: 'Final Spark'!"

The hole in the center of the tool she was holding was emanating an immense light. Then, it fired, creating what started to be a widespread beam like Master Spark's. It came in contact with the door. Suddenly, the beam thinned out and closed, and suddenly exploded. Marisa and I were both thrown back against the far end of the cell. My eyes were blinded by the flash and my ears were ringing. My head hitting the wall didn't help.

Upon recollecting my senses, I got up and checked to see if Marisa was alright. She looked up at me. "Don't worry. Didn't hit the wall too hard, ze." She picked up her hat, which still had its light on the brim. After replacing the hat onto her head, we checked the door. I simply touched the door. It fell out into the corridor. "Well, at least it dislodged the door, ze!"

// // // // //

Looking around outside the cell, we could see a few others--still with intact doors, but with nobody inside. Since there was light out here, Marisa saw no more need for her hatlight, and dismissed it. On the far end of the corridor, there was another door. That must be the exit. We made our way to the door. Marisa opened it slightly, and peeked outside, only to be knocked backwards, back inside.

"What's out there?"

"A very angry maid, ze," said Marisa, looking up at me from the floor.

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CHAPTER 12 // Timeless: Part One

The maid threw the door open and entered the corridor.

I recognized her. She was the other person from before. She wore a standard maid's outfit, except instead of black, it was a faded navy blue colour. She had silver hair and cold, faded blue-grey eyes. She was holding a throwing knife in her hand.

She didn't seem to want to waste time with banter. She ran towards me aiming to perform a sort of melee-knife attack. She got up really close to me, and, before I could move, punctured my arm with her blade. Lucky, however--she was aiming for my chest, but I moved in an attempt to dodge.

I kicked the killer maid in the side, creating some distance between us. I reached for my spellcard pouch--oh, right. I didn't have them.

She stopped and looked at me. Then, she took something from her pocket. It was my leather spellcard pouch. "Looking for these?"

I scowled. No doubt she had Marisa's deck as well.

Marisa was just now geting up. Without her spellcards, she was just a standard human. Only magic thing she could do was fly. I, on the other hand, had an advantage, unbeknownst to my enemy. My carbon atom manipulation didn't necessarily need spellcards to work.

She had gotten out three more knives. Marisa thought she could try and tackle her and get her cards. She started to run toward the maid, who saw her coming, and threw the three knives at Marisa. I grabbed Marisa's collar and pulled her out of the way, and stopped the knives in midair so that they would not hit me. Marisa was sent off-balance and fell to the ground.

"Idiot!" I shouted to Marisa. "What the hell were you thinking!?" She just stayed there and looked at me. Without her spellcards, Marisa wouldn't stand a chance against her. "Stay back. I'll get our spellcards."

I turned back toward the maid. "So, what is your--" She wasn't there.

"Raz, watch out, ze!!"

The blue-clad maid was now behind me. A knife was poking my back, at the base of my spine. Another was at my throat. When she spoke, her voice was cold, yet somehow polite.

"My name is Sakuya Izayoi," she told me. "I am the chief maid of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, under order of my lady Remilia Scarlet. And you, Razu Teionhakushi, and your friend Marisa Kirisame, are trespassing on my lady's property." She pressed the blades against me. I arched. I couldn't do anything. Sakuya had me.

Marisa kicked Sakuya's feet from under her. She didn't expect it. She went down, but her knife scraped down my back as she fell. I moved away, paying no attention to the blood trails on the floor from my arm and back. I looked at Marisa.

"You're insane."

"I know, ze."

Sakuya was not pleased. She got back up, and looked at Marisa, now with red glowing eyes. I didn't see where they came from, but she suddenly had four knives in each hand. Then she disappeared. Where'd she go?

"Careful, ze! Sakuya can stop time and move around while time is stopped around her!"

Sakuya was standing behind us. I turned around, only to find a barrage of eight knives coming my way. I stopped them in midair like I did the ones before. Sakuya appeared impressed by this. I was even more pleased. I had projectiles now.

I started sending the knives her way, one after another. She danced and dodged around them. She was toying with me. I didn't think I was going to hit her at all, since she could simply stop time and walk around the knives in still time.

Marisa picked up a knife from the ground and tried to throw it. She hit Sakuya, but only with the round end of the throwing knife, and THAT was only because Sakuya didn't see it coming. Wow, Marisa was absolutely lost without her magic.

"I said stay back!!" I forced Marisa back down the corridor, and sent her back into the cell, and manipulated the steel door upright. I warped the steel so that it would hold in place. Marisa beat on the steel door, while I was left facing Sakuya on my own. That's how I wanted it.

I stood there before Sakuya. We both waited for the other to make a move. I grinned, and urged her hand.

"Ladies first."

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CHAPTER 13 // Timeless: Part Two

I urged her hand. "Ladies first," I said.

She smiled politely. "How chivalrous. I'll try to make your death less painful, then."

She came at me and swung a fast kick, aimed for my temple. I ducked, and her heel skimmed my head. I reached my hand up to catch her leg, and threw my arm to trip her other leg from under her. She fell onto the floor. I prepared to bring down my heel onto her stomach, but she rolled out from under me, rolled backward and landed on her feet. I saw the small belt around her thigh that acted as a knife holster.

I saw one of her throwing knives nearby on the floor. I grabbed it and moved quickly toward her. She grabbed another one and used it to block mine. With her free hand, she pulled another knife and swung for my abdomen. I arched my body, moving my waist just far away for her to cut my shirt clean through, barely grazing the skin. I delivered a swift kick to her midriff, pushing her away.

"You're not bad," she said, smiling at me.

I nodded, as if to say, 'you're not that bad, either.'

// // // // //

Marisa was still pounding on the steel door. She really wanted to help me. Was I wrong to keep her from my side when she wanted to assist?

// // // // //

Sakuya ran for me, then pulled a quick blade and threw it in my direction. I stopped it in midair. "Gonna have to show me some new tricks, maid!"

As I said that, she had disappeared, and reappeared behind me. A spellcard was standing in midair in front of her, frozen in time.

"Perfect Maid!"

A circle of knives was around me, all aimed at my waist. They stayed there, as if frozen in time. I was too surprised to react fast enough. I dove over one side of the knife ring, but not before catching four knives in the lower half of my leg. I yelled in pain before crashing to the floor.

She stood there, smiling, with a hint of satisfaction in her eyes. I was injured and on the floor, bleeding even more.

"You're making a mess. I should wrap this up so it doesn't get any worse down here."

I looked up, and gave a small laugh. "Is that your best?"

I made sure to keep my focus long enough to hold onto the blade I stopped before. It had fallen to the floor, but I was still manipulating it. I swung my arm up at Sakuya, and the blade arched across, following my arm's movement, cutting her deep in the shin. She started to bleed pretty quickly. She couldn't keep her weight on her leg anymore, and fell.

"Doesn't...feel too good, does it...?" My leg was throbbing. Four knives were still sticking out of it. I did the only thing I thought to do at the moment. I pulled them out, one excruciating blade at a time. Each time I pulled a blade from my leg, an arch of blood followed from my leg to the tip of the weapon. I cringed in pain after removing each one.

I stood up. My leg was bleeding, but the wound wasn't terrible. The pain was agonizing, but I would bear it. I looked down to the immobilized maid in the floor.

She showed a furious scowl. "You think this is over!? I'm not through!!" She was barking at me like an infuriated child that wasn't getting her way.

"It is over. Even though you can still stop time around you, you can't stand. You are a fixed target."

Sakuya looked down. "You're right. How can I be so arrogant?..."

I took my and Marisa's spellcards from her, and walked back down to the cell where I had locked Marisa inside. She wasn't beating on the door anymore. I unbent the edges so the door would move, and removed it, standing it up against the concrete wall in the corridor. Marisa was sitting there, on the floor by the wall.

"Marisa, are you okay?"

She slapped me.

I was stunned for a couple seconds, and the room went dead silent. Then, I turned toward her.

"What the hell was THAT for!?"

She was yelling. "What right do you have to force me to sit here while you fight her by yourself, ze!? I was only trying to help!"

"'Help'? You threw a knife and hit her with the wrong end!"

"What else was I supposed to do!? She had our spellcards! I was trying to get them back, ze!"

"You didn't have anything to defend yourself in case she attacked you! You could have gotten your a** beat!"

"At least I had a plan! Why the hell is it such a problem!?"

"BECAUSE I WAS WORRIED THAT YOU WOULD GET HURT!"

"I--" She started to say something, but what I just said had stopped her cold.

I was speaking softly now. "You could have been hurt...I was worried...scared..." Tears were welling up in my eyes. I looked through them, into Marisa's. She was beginning to tear up as well.

"I don't want you to get hurt. I don't want you to die...I don't know what I'd do without you by my side... I..."

Marisa looked at me, as I looked at her.

"I...love you, Marisa." A tear finally rolled off my cheek and hit the floor.

Marisa was crying now. She wiped her eyes on her sleeve, then looked back at me, now smiling.

She then stepped closer and hugged me, wrapping her arms around my neck and resting her head upon my shoulder. I held her.

She then looked up at me, blushing, with tears rolling from her watery golden eyes, and smiled.

"I love you too, Raz..." We both stayed there, holding each other, smiling.

"I'm glad that I am with you, ze..." She leaned toward me.

"Me too." I closed my eyes.

Our lips met; we kissed.

// // // // //

After giving Marisa her deck, we proceeded out of the cell. Sakuya was gone. My guess is that she had stopped time and hobbled away, or even crawled. She would now probably be informing Remilia of our escape.

"Marisa," I said, as I took her hand, "we're leaving. Let's go."

Marisa and I walked to the door at the end of the corridor. I didn't know what would happen beyond this door, or even if I would get out alive. But I was going to make damn sure Marisa escaped safely.

I took Marisa's hand, and opened the door.

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CHAPTER 14 // Stolen Precious Things: Part One

We had to make a choice.

The dungeon corridor Marisa and I had just escaped from was through a door in dead-center of the hallway. Both directions looked rather dark. There were sparklamps going down both ways, but after a way down, in both directions, it became too dark to see the end. We decided to go left.

As we walked down the long hallway, Marisa was writing something on a piece of paper. It looked the size of a spellcard. I asked her what she was doing.

"It's a surprise," she told me. She smiled, and gave me a merry little "ze☆!" I laughed.

// // // // //

After what seemed like ten minutes of walking, we came upon a large steel vault door. And when I say "vault door", I mean something similar to a bank vault. No doorknob, just a large round crank.

"Well, we might as well go in, ze," said Marisa. "No point in going all this way just to turn back around." She was right. Besides, beyond this door might be the nearest exit. I reached out my hand, and took hold of one of the spokes on the crank. It was hard to move. I tried with both hands. I couldn't move it.

I stepped back, and took out my spellcards. I looked for the appropriate spell. After a brief moment of searching, I found the card I wanted. I put the rest of the deck back into the pouch, and held up the card.

"Force: 'Electromagnet's Polarity'!"

With the spell in effect, I manipulated the crank's surrounding atoms. After a moment of trying, the crank gave off a loud 'CLANK!', and became easier to move. I rotated it a full three revolutions before it stopped. The door became loose with nothing holding it closed, so I opened it the rest of the way, and walked in with Marisa.

This room was dark, humid, and quiet. There were a few areas of this large room that were lit by dim red sparklamps. Marisa and I walked a little further inside.

The door slammed shut. I could hear the crank rotating and sealing the door. I did not like this...

I heard someone giggling. I couldn't see anyone or anything, and it was creepy. Marisa clinged to me as we both heard footsteps circling around us. Then we heard her giggling again. It sounded like the giggle of an amused eleven-year-old girl.

"Who's there?" I called out into the darkness. "Show yourself to me!"

I heard something land in front of me; the jingling of something like crystals on a chandelier. Right then, I could see sixteen differently-coloured prisms, glowing brightly, dangling from what appeared to be iron rods. These were attached to her back--false wings. I saw the blood red glow of her eyes piercing the dark. She appeared very short, however...perhaps three feet tall. She was looking up at me.

"That's not fair...you should come down here so I can look at you."

She jumped up, grabbed my shirt collar, and pulled me down to her level, taking my legs out from under me. Marisa came into view as she stepped towards us out of the darkness. She saw me being held by the collar, and, in a panic, charged. The girl holding me heard her approach, and quickly turned and struck her chest with her iron rod wing. Two of the prisms stabbed straight into her. Marisa's facial expression showed how much pain she was in. The false-winged girl tore her wing prisms out of Marisa's chest, and I watched her fall lifelessly to the floor.

"MARISA!!!"
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