Death.

I don't want to die. I don't want to die. Dying is frightening. I shouldn't have to do this, to be here, to be subjected—but why won't he listen to me? My pleas go unanswered. My tears are ignored. The fear in my mind gives way to the crushing, all-encompassing pain. It floods my mind, driving out every thought. Every time my heart tries to beat again, the agony returns, renews, and redoubles, as if the knife was stabbing into my chest again and again. No hope remains to me, as no compassion remained to my killer. My killer.

I am dead.

It's unfortunate, saddening, and pitiful. I could have had a long life. I should have lived a long and fruitful life. Just finding a place in the world, a use for my talents, just finding love... Love, joy, compassion, happiness, gentle warmths and hot fires and it's so cold, so cold here with only the pain and the bleeding and my insides falling to outside and all of it stripped away from me. That life that will never be mine, can never now be mine, because—I don't know, I have no idea why, only that he did this to me and that they let it happen and no one has saved me and now I am dead.

My life is stripped away.

Every purpose of mine has been robbed from me by this opponent, this enemy, this hateful thing. Every motivation, every intention, every goal and all meaning—destroyed in an instant, by this piece of metal stuck into my chest. Nothing remains of the me from yesterday, nor an hour ago, nor even a minute. In that instantaneous destruction of my self, my body transformed into a corpse. Now it is an unliving container, not fit for habitation, yet I am trapped in its confines. I stand trapped, my killer the only thing I can see before me. Is that a sneer on his face? A smile? A grimace? A grin? I can't tell. My vision is full of deepening red and black, yet I still stand. Could it end, just like this? My knees would buckle, but I cannot control them. They remain rigid, ignoring me. I can't even relax in death. My body won't fall, even though it's only a corpse, now. Why can't I end it, and leave this all behind

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[X] Suika's right, the others probably really could use some help.

***

"Good point," you concede, "as much as I'd like to fool around with you, I can't think of anything to play that wouldn't be better done during the party than during the preparations."

"Right," Suika confirms with a sly grin, "ain't nothing we can do together that can't be done better when we're drunk, and you've lost your inhibitions."

"You mean when we've lost our inhibitions," you correct her automatically.

"No," Suika whispers lowly. Suddenly you find yourself being yanked forward, bringing your face within an inch of hers; her brown eyes, half-lidded and smoldering with a soft glow, fill your vision, and your lips tingle with the slightest brush of hers, maddeningly just beyond your reach. Her voice comes a sultry warm breeze caressing your lips. "I mean your inhibitions."

Something in your chest tightens up, and your eyes drift shut as you lean in... and Suika abruptly releases you, causing you to pitch forward, narrowly avoiding a faceful of floor only by the instinct to start floating. You scramble back upright, sputtering all the way, your tongue too tied to talk. As you flounder about for words, Suika simply stands back and shakes her head.

"You should know that oni like me always say what we mean," she says, wagging a finger at you. "My inhibitions never entered into this."

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"...What about the shrine?" Seeing Renko raise one eyebrow at this, you wave your hands and laugh strangely as you continue. "S-sure, we've been there before, but it's big enough that we might find something new! Right?"

Looking up, Renko shakes her head a little as she considers this option. "I dunno... It could be fun, but I just really don't know. What do you think, Mary?"

Mary, who had been studiously observing the ground for the past minute or so, looks up at the two of you with some level of surprise. Looking back with a little uncertainty, she seems troubled for a moment before speaking her mind.

"I've kind of forgotten just what it's like there, so I wouldn't mind going back. Besides, like Aoi said, we'll probably stumble across something we haven't seen before."

"...Well, I guess that settles it." Mounting her bike, Renko lifts the kickstand with one foot while focusing on clouds in the distance. "Alright, this shouldn't take too long with a shortcut. I'll lead the way."

Getting on your own bike, you follow after Renko as she starts to peddle down the edge of the road, looking ahead with some kind of stoney determination. Mary, late to react, follows a few yards behind you, hurrying to keep up with the rest of the group.

For a short while you merely look ahead, following Renko whenever she takes a turn or speeds up. It occurs to you that time seems to go by quickly when you're focused on something, and, as you have that thought, the realization that Renko is leading you off the usual path hits you like a truck.

"Wait a second!" Coming to a stop, you look around the dirt road and the trees lining it, feeling uncertain about this sudden diversion. "Is this the shortcut you were talking about?"

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We must find the villains and cut them to pieces as soon as we can!

You groaned. As couches went Ryotsu's seemed to be pretty comfortable, though with the bruises covering most of your body the comfort really didn't do much for you. Every time you so much as twitched new spasms of pain flared up over your skin. Looking around you could tell that Ryotsu was a bachelor - one that Koishi had evidently made a decision to change it seemed, given how the man bumbled around his recently cleaned rooms and his needing Koishi to tell him where everything she had cleared up had gone.

The aqua-haired girl had half-dragged, half-carried both you and Tokiko to a safe hiding spot some distance from the earlier battlefield and had kept an eye on you until Ryotsu had shown up with his car. From there both of you had been brought to his apartment where you had spent the past few hours recovering - after a quick call to your mother to assure her nothing was wrong of course. It seemed the fight had made the national news although it was being labeled as a possible terrorist action of some kind and my wasn't it lucky no-one had been seriously injured.

You'd snorted derisively at that but on several levels you were damn thankful that none of the cameras had gotten close enough to catch sight of any of the combatants involved. You really, really did not relish the idea of having to explain your presence at something like that to you mother.

“Koishi says y' lil' friend is recovering fine.” The police officer - off-duty police officer right now - declared as he wandered into the room carrying a tray with a few rolls of bread and a glass of water on top. “Dunno how but seems like these youkai girls heal real fast when given some time to rest.” He placed the tray down on a small coffee-table near the couch before giving you a quick look over. “Seems we humans do too as long as we got one of those books. Most of yer bruises look like they're a week old already.”

“Good to know,” You mumble as you reach over for a bread roll. “Bad to know too, means if we don't finish someone off they can just come back after us again.”

“And you didn't finish yer opponent off.” Ryotsu

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Two Kingdoms, One Purpose: Gain power and might.
Adjoining together and then without spite,
They strike without mercy and hurt without cause,
Forgetting their past and ignoring their laws.

Who knew when it started. The blood shed between the Hakurei clan and the Kochiya clan was already second-nature to the residents of Gensokyo. Hundreds of years had passed since Reimu Hakurei and Sanae Kochiya had passed on, but their bitter separation had caused this nearly millenium-old war.

Along the bright pathways they run not asunder
The methods align to their anger and thunder.
Lightning and fire formed from human emotion
Were naught but a cause for the swirling commotion.

The people of Gensokyo weren't sure when the fighting started. Heck, even most of the youkai alive at this time weren't sure when it started. A certain violet mistress, however, had seen the entire thing unfold, and had left Gensokyo before it escalated to what it was now.

The brighter maroon that belittles the blue

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As a result of my /gensokyo/ thread, by the will of the votes, I have begun this story.

-----

First, what is your class?

[ ] Knight - The noble warriors of old. Lacking in magic and speed, they more than make up for it in power, and few foes can pierce their defenses. Their code of honor is legendary.

[ ] Barbarian - Uncivilized but powerful nomads, these warriors are feared by even the mightiest armies. They disregard everything else in favor of a brutal, crushing attack, and leave destruction in their wake.

[ ] Brawler - Rough-and-tumble fighters, adept for any situation. They develop quick reflexes and low scruples, favoring their fists above all, but resorting to numerous armaments as the need arises. Underestimating them has been many an opponent's last mistake.

[ ] Paladin - Pillars of moral integrity and righteous upholders of law, these holy knights carry the blessing of their god into battle. Their divine gift allows them to save the bodies of their comrades and shield them from harm.

[ ] Battlemage - Hardened soldiers who have amassed a wealth of arcane knowledge, they mix sword and spell into a single, devastating machine. Unfortunately, time spent studying is time not spent in battle, so they are not quite as hardy than most of their cousins.

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[x] Are there any other basics of being a shikigami?
[x] How about a stroll outside?
[x] Could you tell me more about Gensokyo, at least as far as basic knowledge goes?

There's a lot you want to ask, but for the sake of Ran, and possibly yourself, it might be best to take things one step at a time. The first of which though is learning how to adjust to your new life as a servant. Since Ran here has apparently been doing it for a very...very long time, it's obvious that asking her would result in the best answer.

"So, are there any other basics to being a shikigami? Anything you haven't yet told me?"

"Well, I think the first and foremost thing you should know is that regardless of how you feel or whether or not you think it's right, you should never disobey Lady Yukari's orders. If she orders you to do something, then you must follow willingly and decisively about the order and carry out what you were told to do." You look at Ran for a moment, that just seems wrong. You're tempted to challenge her on that.

"Regardless of how I feel? Even if I feel that what she's doing is totally wrong, or completely immoral? Doesn't she make mistakes too?" Ran shakes her head.

"Lady Yukari always knows best. No matter how difficult it may seem, what she orders you to do is always the right thing to do, and she would never force you to do anything wrong. Any decisions she makes thataren't always right, she never involves her family in." You can only stare at Ran for a moment before sighing. It's quite pointless to argue with someone as sure as she is. So you decide a change of subject in is order.

"Right, well...how about a stroll outside then? I kinda wanna see what the outside is like." Ran looks at you before holding back a chuckle.

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You smile as Mystia chews her cake. She really seems to like it. You finish your piece, and then Mystia reaches for the cake again.
“No.” You pull the cake away. “You can’t have any more until dinner is over.”
“Awwww, Why not?”
“It’ll ruin your appetite.”
She pouts and turns her head, puffing out one cheek you smile as the little girl tries to act like she won’t listen to you anymore, and you get up with the cake to put it away.
“What would you like for dinner?”
No answer. You smile and walk off to put the cake back in its place.
“Okay then. I guess we won’t have dinner tonight.”
You hear the chair scoot out and Mystia runs into the room.
“Hamvurger! I want hamvurgers!”
“No, Mystia, that’s hamburger.”
“Ham…vurger?”
“No, Ham –B- urger.”
She nods and clenches her fists, ready to try again.
“Hamvurger!”
You smile and run your hand through her hair.
“That’s okay, Misty-chan. You can always learn.”
She takes off in another direction and yells for you to follow. You follow her and find her sitting on her bed in the room that belonged to your husband once.
“Mommy! Can we look at the pictures now?”
You feel joy and sorrow at the same as you walk over to show her the picture from the photo album. Mystia smiles as you point out events like when you and your husband first got married, and when the three of you visited that theme park that you were going to go to. You eventually finish showing her the pictures, and she skips over to the door.
“Mommy, I want to see if a friend can come over. Is that okay?”

[ ] “It’s fine, Misty-chan.”
[ ] “Maybe their parent could visit too?”
[ ] “I’m not in the mood for company.”

Yatsugatake stood proudly in the distance, its peak completely white with snow. The snow spread from the summit to almost the very base, interrupted only by occasional patches of color. At this distance, the many trees that normally covered the mountain were indistinguishable, much like the hairs of a brush. These were the days when it could claim to be Japan's tallest mountain. An undoubtedly marvelous sight and one that would surely be forever imprinted on the mind of any man that saw it.

The snowfall had been steadily increasing over the past hour and threatened to obscure the view of the titan from between the trees.

The heavy branches above his head groaned a bit as the amount snow piled on them continued to increase. Wrapping his heavy winter cloak around even tighter, he decided that it was time to move on. Moving his heavy boots through the snow his weight, as well as that of his gear, encumbered him slightly. He had hoped that the hunt would have been over over days ago. Instead, he had been forced to pursue his prey ever deeper into the wilderness, where it would have an ever increasing advantage.

The thing he was hunting (and not even for an instant did he consider any of them anything but a monster) was elusive, its ability to hide in the woods matching its fox-like appearance. Killing it had proven difficult, with a previous trap only resulting in the wounding of the creature. But he had an advantage, something that this resilient abomination did not possess in the least, his years of experience in tracking and hunting. Even now, in this snowy wonderland, he had a solid lock on where the creature was headed and how fast it was moving. This despite the lack of footprints or other telltale signs.

He had been hurt in the earlier scuffle as well, but a makeshift bandage kept his chest tightly secured. He knew that the creature could smell his wound, its bloody allure making him as noticeable as a still-green bush in the snow. This is why he was moving quickly, taking less breaks, and keeping himself relentlessly at the heels of the creature. It would soon tire of fleeing and, like most of its kind, would attack in a frenzy while cornered

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