Author Topic: Transient Illusionary World  (Read 2669 times)

Curious Sign

  • -Recollection- "Smugness of the Underground"
Transient Illusionary World
« on: December 06, 2010, 02:10:48 AM »
I've been wanting to start this for a while. This is my first Touhou fanfic so be sure to bash the hell out of it leave helpful criticism!
Being inspired by Concealed the Conclusion's take on the Touhouverse, I wanted to explore Gensokyo in different viewpoints that don't necessarily reflect the way I see it, but in ways which seem interesting to me.
The points of view work like this:
A heading such as this
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Character's Name
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will appear when a change occurs in the point of view. However, the main story remains mostly in the third person, so the point of view indicates who is doing first person thinking.
That's pretty much it. Be sure to review!

Edit: Oh yeah, it's probably important to mention that this story takes place in an alternate reality in which the whole entire concept of Touhou (games, characters, ideas, etc.) do not exist in the outside world as they do in our world. By this, I mean Touhou only exists as reality, not as a fictional representation as dictated by the outside world. So no "Touhou characters using teh interwebs to find out what kinds of horrible memes revolving around them are creeping about," as much as that would make for an interesting story, hint hint, nudge, nudge, graze, graze, pichuuun~

2nd Edit: Added the title: "Prologue"

Prologue

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Marisa

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“Hmm… that’s odd. I can’t seem to find it.”

Marisa Kirisame was in the middle of her routine mushroom collecting when a thought had suddenly sprung to her mind.

Wait… don’t tell me…

Marisa chuckled to herself softly as an unlikely conclusion danced in her thoughts.

Maybe I picked all the mushrooms growing here already~

However, as she began to ponder this, it didn’t seem as unlikely as she initially thought. It wasn’t until this very moment that she had started to wonder where the time went.

“Have I been so caught up in my routine that I don’t even have a decent sense of how many days have passed since I’ve done anything remotely interesting?” she asked herself. “When’s the last time I stole anything from anyone? When’s the last time I had a good danmaku battle? If all I do is pick mushrooms, eat, and sleep all day, I’m gonna get rusty, ze~!”

Speaking of which… there hasn’t been any of those recently. Incidents that is. Maybe there’s one going on right now and Reimu hasn’t told me about it so she can get a head start?

“Nuh-uh, I don’t think so,” began Marisa as she hopped onto her broom, “It’s time to take a little tour of Gensokyo.” And with this she soared off into the afternoon skies, past the darkened canopy of the Magic Forest.

I haven’t heard from Reimu in quite some time…

I’ve almost forgotten how amazing it is to fly through the air like this, to flow with the tides of wind. Have I been cooped up in my house for that long? Gee, all I need are some pajamas and a bad case of asthma and I’ll be just like

The young witch’s train of thought was interrupted not by something overtly overwhelming, but in fact, just the opposite— the subtle sense that something is wrong when—

“There’s nobody to be seen. Where the heck is everyone? There should be more than a few idiot fairies wandering about. This must be an incident. Maybe a certain oni gathered everyone up for some sort of sake incident? Nah, I wish. Nue put Seeds of Non-Identification in everyone’s food and they all turned into something else? No, but there’s an idea.” Marisa proceeded to entertain herself by imagining the most nonsensical incidents she could come up with until she finally decided to visit the Hakurei Shrine.

Upon nearing the shrine, however, she began to feel as if she were slowly losing consciousness.  An eerie feeling that she had in the back of her mind as she flew over a dead silent Gensokyo suddenly became amplified.

As she had landed in front of the shrine gates, Yukari Yakumo exited the shrine… with a pained expression on her face?

It seemed as if Marisa had taken Yukari by surprise, because she acknowledged Marisa’s presence with a slight start.

Is this really Yukari? Why does she seem so… off?

“Marisa,” began Yukari suddenly, startling Marisa in a similar manner, “I was not expecting you.”

Not expecting me? But, don’t I come here frequently? Well I haven’t visited recently, but since when do YOU not expect anything, oh Miss omniscient enigmatic one?

That’s what Marisa wanted to say, but somehow her gut feeling stifled any humor those words would have had, had they left her lips. Instead, she let Yukari continue,

“Don’t be scared,” she said, feigning her usual ominous smile.

Now this warranted some inquisition.

“Of what?” Marisa asked, almost angrily, like a child feeling angst towards that which they cannot comprehend.

“I’m sure by now you have noticed that Gensokyo is nearly deserted. I will not insult your intelligence by telling you otherwise. However, there is no need to be afraid.”

“Actually, I’m pretty sure I have a damn good reason to be concerned if half of Gensokyo isn’t even here. I haven’t seen any fairies, humans, or youkai except for you. Don’t tell me Reimu isn’t here either.”

“And do you know why?”

“Why do you think I’m here asking you? Because I know why?”

“I’ll take that as a ‘no’. Good.”

“Good!? What the hell are you talking about?!”

“It is time for one world to end and another to begin.”

With this, Yukari began to open a gap.

“Wait, don’t just leave it at that!” Marisa yelled back at the youkai of boundaries.

“Before you misunderstand, I’m keeping you in the dark for your sake,” she responded, taking a step into the gap before hesitating, “We will meet again.” With this, Yukari went completely inside the gap and sealed it.

Whether it was the anxiety of uncertainty Yukari was overcompensating for, or her hasty retreat, Marisa was not convinced she’d ever see anyone again…

Marisa collapsed into unconsciousness.


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Author's Comments: I'm a whore for italics aren't I? I'm always quite bad at starting off a story but once I get into the real zeal of it-- revealing the framework of the plot and how it all comes together-- I'll feel more comfortable writing.
« Last Edit: December 12, 2010, 03:41:24 AM by Curious Sign »

Re: Transient Illusionary World
« Reply #1 on: December 06, 2010, 03:12:12 AM »
I enjoy your writing style and format. It's very pleasing to my eyes and easy to read.
This seems like a good setup for a good story. I look forward to more.

Curious Sign

  • -Recollection- "Smugness of the Underground"
Re: Transient Illusionary World
« Reply #2 on: December 11, 2010, 09:09:35 PM »
I enjoy your writing style and format. It's very pleasing to my eyes and easy to read.
This seems like a good setup for a good story. I look forward to more.

Thanks! I'm glad you enjoy what I've written so far.

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Reimu
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A sharp inhale is suddenly heard from a frail, bed-ridden girl as she awakes in a cold sweat. Chills rush throughout her entire body? except her hand. Clasped around this hand, are the hands of another. The tired visage of this woman holding the younger girl?s hand bears both indescribable pain and bliss simultaneously as she feels life return to the awakening child.

Reimu struggled to make significance of the figure standing beside her, who was clenching her hand as tears rolled down her face. It was difficult, as the lights in the room blinded her eyes as she tried to open them and adjust. The pupils, which had not seen light for several weeks, dilated from a medium-sized coin to a pinpoint to regulate the flow of artificial light.

Light was only a small part of the vast stimuli that overwhelmed her body and mind. The crinkle of bed sheets which did not belong to her, the complete loss of any sense of time or position, the source of the beeping coming from the side of the bed opposite from where the other woman was standing, the identity of the woman standing next to her?

Mother?

Was the last thought Reimu?s fragile consciousness could gather before slipping into a disconcerted stupor.

Reimu?s mother continued to hold her hand. The expression on her face couldn?t decide whether to let more tears out or to let a pained smile flash across her face.

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Yukari
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In Kyoto, Japan, there?s an obscure private college. Only Japan?s most dignified students are allowed into this prestigious educational center. Only students who will become world leaders in medicine, science, politics and the like, are allowed to be in the know of such an institution.

?Renko? Renko, are you alright?? calls out a young blonde donning a rather odd white mob cap.

?Ngh,? cries out a voice underneath a bed.

?Oh. How?d you end up under there??

?Because you put me here? OOF!?

Renko, dressed in a more traditional manner than her counterpart, manages to pull herself from beneath the bed? barely.

?Here, I?ll help you up,? offered the blonde.

?You damn well better,? retorted Renko, chuckling.

After being pulled up from the ground, Renko dusted herself off and began to speak to her friend,

?So, Yuk??

?At?tat?tat,? chastised the friend.

?Oh, right. Sorry, Mary.?

?It?s quite alright. It has been quite some time, after all.?

?I do have a question though??

?Ask away.?

?Why do we have to use pseudonyms??

Mary let out what seemed like a sigh she had been holding along with her breath,

?You forgot already? I trust that if I explain it more clearly this time, it?ll stick??

?You betcha~?

?Alright. Well, you are at least aware that we are shape shifters, yes??

?Yeah, that much I remember. Go on.?

?We have such powers because people do not know our true identity. Identity, in itself, is ambiguous at best. However, a popular belief is that all objects, sentient and non-sentient, are given an identity when they are named. This belief stresses that nothing has significance until it is given a structured way to recall it. Since names give an individual a way to recall an object, their existence becomes known. In cases where entities are not meant to exist such as?? Mary paused for a bit before continuing, ?You and I, recalling our true names will, in essence, remind the universe that we?re not supposed to exist. Any precautions that can prevent this must be taken.?

?Yes, I remember now. You said we were intangible sentient beings? that we were on the border of existence and nonexistence.?

?Indeed. Unfortunately, our real names in this world aren?t the only things we have to keep secret.?

?We have to keep our names between worlds different as well.?

?Exactly. Because identities change from world to world, we can maintain multiple instances of identities simultaneously. If anyone recalls a pseudonym from a different world, we can no longer return to world where the false identity lies.?

Yukari Yakumo and Suika Ibuki are shape shifters of the forgotten age? the last of their kind. Yukari is able to alter her appearance by manipulating delicate borders between colors, shapes, sizes, and similar physical characteristics, as well as non-physical traits like her voice. Suika changes her outer appearance by gathering the particles and genetic structure that make up her body differently as well as manipulating the density of herself to achieve various results.

They are here, conversing in the college they had chosen as the best medium for studying all modern conclusions that humans had drawn about the world. Yukari, whose powers involved the manipulation of borders, masqueraded as an eager psychology student to see what assumptions humans had made on the mind and behaviors. She is particularly interested in the advent of what each individual perceives to be their own ?reality?.

Suika, whose abilities revolved around manipulating density and ?gathering? (in multiple senses of the word), was more interested in objective, hard science. She acted under the pretense of being a disputatious physics student to understand what humans had gathered about the motion and energy of the world around them.

Each had chosen their respective subjects to learn how to limit their powers to the limits of human understanding, in order to avoid detection. If they were to reveal their true capabilities, frightened humans would exterminate them as they had exterminated their youkai brethren. Although capable of unfathomable feats, their morality also influenced how they controlled such incomprehensible forces. It is for these reasons that the two youkais? true potentials remain unknown. It is the reason why no one knows just how much influence they have on the natural world of mortals?



Prologue End

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Touhou Fan-Fiction ~ Transient Illusionary World
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Curious Sign