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Just a silly little idea I got. We'll see if I get the inspiration to continue it later.
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"In this land of Gensokyo, there are two forces: Light and darkness."
In a darkened room, a lone figure stood. She was dressed in red and white robes that hung loosely on her small frame.
"Indeed. The light pushes back the darkness, and is often portrayed as the desirable force. Most everyone sides with the light in any situation, believing it to be superior."
In a slow and practiced manner, the woman tied her long purple hair into a ponytail.
"However, such narrow-minded fools do not realize the true might of the dark side. While light always does appear to win out, it is dark, not light, that rises time and time again to become the dominant force."
The young woman brought an adorned scabbard up to her face, balanced between her two hands and partially drew the katana within.
"Yes...this unrelenting and undying might that will never give up its struggle for dominance...this is the true power of darkness!"
The girl drew the katana fully, buckling the scabbard to her robe's belt. With a mighty cry, she swung her steel blade forward, sideways, spinning around and cutting diagonally.
"Yes! Any fool who believes light is the force to side with is just kidding themselves. On the other hand, I, the dark samurai Meira, do not-"
Meira, what are you doing in there?!
"AH!"
Startled by the loud voice on the other side of the room, Meira jumped in the air a bit, losing her grip on her sword. Upon coming down, she stumbled a slight amount, which led to her catching her feet on her flowing robes. A loud THUMP could be heard as the young girl crashed onto the ground.
A door opened, and a middle-aged woman marched in with a bemused expression.
"Meira, I don't know what clap-trap you're mumbling about, but you don't have time for it. Look outside!"
The lady walked over to the black curtains and thrust them open. The morning sun now beamed directly into Meira's eyes, who shielded them.
"Mooooooom! I told you to not come into my room without permission!" Meira shouted at the detestable figure who ruined her monologue.
Meira's mother put her hand on her hip and looked down on the floored samurai.
"Don't give me that tone of voice young lady. Like it or not, it is morning now. Hurry up and take off those silly clothes and change into your uniform. You're going to be late for school! And don't you know swords are dangerous to swing around like that? Honestly, I didn't raise you to turn out this way..."
Continuing to mutter to herself, the woman stormed out and slammed the door. Meira winced at the sound.
Shaking her head to get rid of the dizziness, she got up and reluctantly took off her robes and changed into a blue sailor uniform. Meira grumbled to herself about how her mom doesn't understand her and trudged out the door.
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If luck is with me and I keep the inspiration going, this will likely be updated with small chunks of the story as I go.
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Yes.
This is very yes.
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XD XD XD
This is awesome.
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Hee hee hee, it's so fun to write without the worry of whether or not people like it. HAVE SOME EXPOSITION RAAAAAW.
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Meira sat near the back row in her classroom; None of the cool kids sat anywhere near the front. Not for the sake of rebellion either; the teacher was really frightening when she got angry. Meira eyed Ms. Kamishirasawa warily as she droned on about history or some other pointless drivel. She sighed and stuffed her left hand in her skirt pocket while supporting her head with her right.
Man, why do we have to learn this boring crap anyway? There's so many cool things yet we only ever learn about the history of some place we can't even visit.
Meira had read some interesting things about this "outside world" as it was called, but without a means to go through the border and visit it it's just another fantasy. Meira could read about the interesting world out there her whole life, but what she really was into were things she could obtain for herself. On that note, Meira turned to her wide-eyed classmate Kotohime, the only person in this school that was actually interesting.
"Psst, Kotohime."
The redhead dressed in a kimono turned to face her. "Hmm? Yes miss samurai-san?" Meira closed her eyes at this nickname and continued.
"You wanna ditch class later and do cooler stuff?"
Kotohime nodded fervently. "Aye. This counsel session has gone on far too long. There's too much crime in the world to waste on discussing the taxing of the lower class!"
Meira never could figure this girl out. On the first day of class she had introduced herself as the princess of Gensokyo, even though there was no monarchy in this world. A few weeks later, she produced handcuffs and started hogtying random classmates, asserting herself as a "policewoman." Out of curiosity, Meira once asked the teacher why she allows this and why Kotohime didn't have to wear a sailor uniform. The only reply given was "she is special."
Her bizarre personality aside, Meira could not fault Kotohime for both finding and producing strange new things of all sorts. It was Kotohime who lent her her robes, not to mention her sweet katana. Meira continued to befriend her just so she could continue to hear and learn of strange new things. As soon as class had a break, it was time to learn something new once more.
"A-HEM. Meira, is your conversation with Kotohime so important it's worth talking over the signing of the Magna Carta?" Ms. Kamishirasawa took off her glasses, which was never good news. Meira so wanted to tell her that, no, she doesn't care about some pansy country's haggis a la carte or whatever she just said. Of course, that would be suicide, so Meira bit her lip and remained silent.
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About an hour later, it was math time. Math. Another subject Meira could never care for. Hell, there wasn't anything in this school taught she cared for, but math was needed least of all. Instead, opened in front of her math textbook, Meira busied herself with an interesting tome she picked up at that one shop down by the forest.
UFOs...future technology just ripe for the taking? Man, it would be so cool to take over one of those and blow up the school. Then we'd see who doesn't learn!
Meira chuckled as she continued reading. Keine stopped writing a calculation down on the chalkboard long enough to glare at Meira, who didn't notice. After a moment, she resumed talking.
Bored out of her mind and the welcome release of break time still another twenty minutes away, Meira busied herself some more in her book on UFOs.
Crop circles? Flattening the crops to form a symbol? Man, there really has to be a deeper meaning to it.
Truth be told, there was only two things in the world that interested Meira: The eccentric, and the powerful. Her dream is to become a super samurai who can cut anyone down with overwhelming might. She even has the robes and the sword. Sure she's never actually cut anyone down, but...
Hmm, alien probes? What the heck does that me-WHOA.
Meira blushed a bit. She bent over to another classmate, Rikako, who had been paying close attention to Keine's lecture until this point.
"Hey, get a load of this."
Pressing her glasses to her face, Rikako muttered "quiet, I'm trying to listen."
Meira snorted. "Oh please, you can't be serious." She glanced up at Keine, who had stopped writing and was piercing Meira's soul with her glare.
Rikako, tapping her feet, turned and spoke in a matter of fact tone. "Minds like you may not realize it, but our whole world runs on the world of mathematics. You would do well to pay attention to Ms. Kamishirasawa's teachings."
Maybe it was the hay fever, maybe it was her mom interrupting her earlier this morning, but whatever the cause, Meira was losing patience with school fast today. Closing her book, Meira slammed it down on the desk and said all too loudly "Oh come ON, when will we ever need to use math? This is useless! U-S-E-L-E-S-S! Tell me one thing any of this will ever do to help us.
"Meira, isn't it obvious?"
"Tsk. What is it teachhhh-?!"
Meira trailed off when she turned back to come face to face with her teacher, flashing a very wide smile with her eyes closed. Meira felt a primal fear well up within her.
Her smile betraying her real feelings, Keine said in a very slow voice, "well, you can use math to count the amount of seconds you have left in this mortal coil...~"
For some reason, Meira can't recall much of what happened after this.
---
To be continued?!
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I said it once when you wrote that Yumemi tale for Ruro, I will say it again, you have a fun way with words and I like it.
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Heh, cute.
So ... half the cast of PoDD are really little girls, huh?
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Meira eyed Ms. Kamishirasawa warily as she droned on about history or some other pointless drivel.
Meira has no taste whatsoever. >:<
Also, Kotohime's view of social justice made me lol hard. She's really got her priorities confused if she thinks the Magna Carta is boring, though... :|
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Actually, that strikes me as a perfectly cromulent characterization of "kids who think school is useless because they aren't actually fully considering what is actually being taught there." ;)
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Oh, I feel obligated to say that the story hasn't been worked on due to Sakura Wars-related reasons. Don't worry, I'll probably still work on it over the weekend. o>
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Sorry for the delay~ I have trouble with exposition chapters. :( It's good just to move past this.
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Meira regained consciousness about five hours later in a dark alley behind the school. She shook her head and felt around to see if anything was broken. While everything still functioned, Meira had bruises all over her body, and it hurt to move.
"Ooh. That damn Kamishirasawa. Surely in that stinking textbook of hers you'd think there'd be some history of not punishing students...or something. Geez..." Biting her tongue to withstand the pain, Meira slowly rose to her feet and used the walls to support herself as she made her way back to the school grounds.
---
By the time Meira arrived, most of the kids had already gone home. Meira was in no hurry to return though, as what was there for her back home? Her mom would just complain about how she wasn't a "perfect lady," she'd probably ground her for some arbitrary reason, and she'd be stuck in her room. Rather than go through that, she walked around the school to see if Kotohime was still around. She never did get around to hearing about her daily new information after all.
Sure enough, she soon found Kotohime sitting down and leaning against a tree. Her eyes were closed, so she didn't notice Meira walking up to her. She was humming some strange song that repeated the same rhythms over and over. Meira kept silent to hear the song out ("it might get better...") After about thirty seconds Meira realized she was just repeating the same rhythms over and over. Meira sighed and cleared her throat.
"Hmmmm?" Kotohime stopped and opened her eyes. "Oh, miss samurai-san, you're back!" She looked at Meira's bruises and tattered skirt. "Ah! Off keeping up your samurai honor? Good show, good show!" Kotohime bent forward and kowtowed to Meira, who proudly accepted the honor being bestowed onto her.
What a maniacal princess this is...but that?s why I like her
Once Kotohime sat back up, Meira's eyes lightened and she got a giddy grin on her face. She sat on her knees and looked at Kotohime with a nearly childish anticipation. "So?!"
The delusional princess tilted her head. "Soooooo?"
bees Meira put her hands on the floor and leaned in on her friend. "What do you have? Surely you have something cool to show me!"
"Eh? You desire payment? I don't take kickbacks you know."
Meira's hopes were dimming. "Look, do you have anything in that kimono of yours?"
Kotohime stood up and dug around in her front pocket. "Hmm...ah!" She extracted a small, round ball. She handed it to Meira, who ran her fingers over it to feel the texture.
Meira looked at her friend like a kid who just got underwear for Christmas. "Uh...what's so special about this? It's just a rubber ball."
Kotohime laughed. "Miss samurai-san, this is no ordinary rubbery ball. It is a ball blessed with the power to bounce! Here, follow me." She walked over to the sidewalk as Meira stood up and followed.
Where is this going...? It's just a stupid ball.
Kotohime took the ball from Meira and walked onto the sidewalk. "Now, watch this!" In an overly dramatic gesture she raised the ball to the heavens and threw it down onto the ground. Rather than making a dent in the pavement, the ball rebounded and bounced up into the air. Meira could only gawk as it flew nearly thirty feet into the air. As it descended, Kotohime leapt at it, caught it, and landed gracefully at the ground, turning her head to wink at Meira.
Meira was dumbstruck. "Kotohime...what you just did..."
Kotohime waved her hand at the faux-samurai. "Oh, stooop. It's something that comes naturally to a princess!"
Meira continued. "...was so lame. But that ball was cool. Gimme gimme." She snatched it from Kotohime's hand as her brain tried to process the blow Meira just did to her ego. Meira eyed the ball with fascination, her eyes shining with adoration.
"A ball with unusual bouncing capabilities?amazing. Kotohime, where did you get this?"
Kotohime snapped out of her trance, deciding she did not hear Meira call her anything short of perfect.
"Oh, that? They just pop up at this interesting hill I like to sleep at in my off-duty days. I have a whole collection of them actually!"
Meira's eyes widened even more, ignoring Kotohime's inability to decide what she was supposed to be impersonating. "Really? Where, where, where?"
Kotohime dug around in her robes some more. "Lessee, they should be around here somewhere...hmm...what's this?" She brought her hands up in the air. "They're not here. I must have forgotten them in another robe."
Meira frowned. "Well, that's okay. For now, I wanna test this out. Here goes!"
With a mighty cry worthy of a real samurai, Meira tossed the bouncy ball into the sidewalk with all the strength she could muster. Meira's eyes darted in the sky to see where it was, but couldn't see it.
"Woow, it must have bounced so high we can't see it! This is soooo cool. I never thought such a bouncy object could exist! This is something fit for my collecti-AUGH!"
A dull pain filled Meira's head as the bouncy ball - which had bounced straight up, came down upon her head. Meira gasped and kneeled onto the ground.
Kotohime was rolling on the ground, giggling her little head off. "Pfft. M-miss samurai-san, that was something else! You need more training! A real samurai could toss a shuriken and cut the ball clean in half before it ever reached you. Hee hee hee..."
That's a NINJA weapon, noob!
Meira was back in a bad mood, being laughed at as both Meira and as a samurai. She was TOTALLY a samurai! She had the sword, what more is there to the deal? Gritting her teeth, Meira picked up the ball and tossed it even harder at the ground. This time she watched in satisfaction as it rebounded high into the air.
Pivoting, she turned her attention to the red head insulting her honor, she flashed a grin. "On my samurai honor, I shall make you pay!" She went to grab the nearest stick, when-
"AIIIIIIIIIIIIIE! MY HAT!"
Meira turned to the source of the ear-splitting shriek. Whoops, did I hit somebody with that? Heh, I wonder who has such a high-pitched scream.
Forgetting her vengeance on Kotohime, Meira ran over to the kneeling figure. "Eh, sorry about that. I guess I'll be a bit more care..." Her voice trailed off.
Keine, who had just started to head home for the day, was bent over her intricate hat, the red ribbon wrinkled and the pagoda stained by the muddy ground it had fallen into.
Keine let out a whimper. "My...hat..."
Meira gulped and stepped back. "I-I'll be more c-care..."
Keine got up from the ground, and turned to Meira, piercing her with a demonic glare.
"My...hat...
"Ca-re...fu...ck."
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Will Keine's hat be okay? Will Kotohime find her missing bouncy balls? Will Meira have enough non-ripped clothes to not be arrested on the way home for indecent exposure? Find out, next time!
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Lol I read chap 1 and was like "oh a Jedi parody" and then "omg a cute comedy".
Very nice.
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Something about this new chapter made it sound so much more accomplished than the previous two... I can't quite put my finger on it, though. :V Good stuff, at any rate.
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I dunno, this just seems like general awesome to me.
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Sorry for the delay folks. /o\ I have been working on this gradually throughout the last couple weeks. Here's a nice long chapter to make up for it:
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“Man. Why is Ms. Kamishirasawa such a hardass?” Meira was sitting against the school building next to Kotohime, tossing the bouncy ball up and catching it. Kotohime eyed the ball as it ascended and descended with a dull gaze.
Since her last encounter with Keine, Meira looked like a complete wreck. Her normally smooth hair was frazzled, and in the struggle she lost her hair band, leaving her long hair to fall across her back. She had a black eye, and a bloody nose which had finally stopped just a minute ago.
Meira caught the ball and held it, looking over to Kotohime. “You know, if you’re a police officer like you say, can’t you do something about teachers that abuse their students? You know, arrest her, imprison her, toss her into a pit, the like?”
Kotohime shook her head. “Oh, no no no. You can’t just arrest someone without probable cause! That would be abusing the power entrusted to me!”
Meira narrowed her eyes. “You were there. You saw everything. You can’t tell me that isn’t enough to arrest someone!”
The police princess’ eyes widened at this revelation. “Y-yes, well you see…” Kotohime began sweating under Meira’s glare.
“Eh heh heh, the corrupt authority figures certainly are the scariest, aren’t they?” She laughed and rubbed her neck. The bruised samurai sighed.
“Yeah, I know. The only reason that loony is able to get away with all this because none of us can fight back. Even my blade would likely shatter against her hard head.” Meira chuckled a bit to herself at her great play on words, sighing afterwards. “And the hunt for power continues…” She closed her eyes.
Kotohime swayed her head from side to side. “I do say, if we had a bit more than mere political power, we could perhaps change this land. If only we could have the strength of the Hakurei shrine maiden...”
Meira’s ears perked up. “Hakurei shrine maiden?” The title sounded vaguely familiar, but she had never been to a shrine before.
Kotohime waved her hand. “Oh, some heretic that hunts demons on her own time. Word has it she has an artifact containing wondrous powers.”
Meira’s eyes opened at the sound of her favorite word. “Power…?”
She nodded and continued, her arms crossed. “Yes yes, they say the Hakurei shrine maiden has the power to defeat any youkai. Of course, she’s no good. A vigilante! A lawless ruffian! Our legal system has no place for such…”
Meira was no longer listening. An artifact of power, great enough to destroy any youkai…oh baby. I want it. I want it so bad. I want it I want it I want iiiiiiit.
Meira, unable to contain her excitement, burst out “And what is it?! The artifact? Can you get it? Tell me girl!” She grabbed Kotohime’s kimono and shook her vigorously.
“Yah! M-miss samurai-san, please remember your place!”
Snapping back to reality, the samurai wannabe tossed Kotohime to the ground and cleared her throat. “A-anyway. What is this artifact? Don’t leave me hangin’ princess!”
“Hmph.” The princess wannabe put on her most regal airs, knowing that retaliating for her samurai friend’s behavior would be bad PR. “The Hakurei clan holds in their possession the legendary yin-yang orb, an artifact of most peculiar power.”
“Uh huh, uh huh…” Meira drooled slightly.
“Its true powers are still mostly unknown, but rumors from …”
”Grah ha ha ha! This village is mine! Now to destroy the schoooooool!”
The hulking entity was at the school’s doors. The village leader had surrendered already to the demon, too frightened to even fight back.”
“…pounds of chocolate and suffered only a ruptured…”
”Stop! This is MY school, and I will not allow you to desecrate it! This is my torture chamber and mine alone!”
The entity cackled at the thought of the wimpy teacher standing up to it. With a mighty roar, it reared one of its thick tentacles and slammed it right onto Keine’s thick skull. She was dead in an instant.
“Oh, will no one save us from this horrible fate?” gasped Rikako, the local nerd. She brought her hand to her forehead and fainted.
“…stated that it was the second most adorable cat in existence…”
”Halt. You who would disturb the peace, prepare to meet your fate!”
The entity looked up above its head to see a mysterious, cool, sexy lady dressed in the cloth of a samurai. Behind her was a massive sphere decorated with the yin-yang symbol.
“N-no! The dark samurai! Not now, when conquest is so close!”
The figure drew her sword. The monster could not even bring itself to fight back as the sword glowed and fired a wave of electricity. It exploded in a ball of fiery, burning passion.
“…And they say that the Hakurei shrine did in fact smell like burning youkai for years after. …Um, Miss Samurai-san…?”
“Miss Samurai-san? Th-thank you for protecting our humble village. I hereby grant you the key to the city.”
Meira sheathed her sword and bowed. “No need to thank me. I was merely showing who was the strongest in Gensokyo.”
“Three cheers for the dark samurai!”
Meira turned towards the still untouched school. “And now, I shall free of us all of oppression forever! Down with the school!”
Cheered on by everyone around her, she grabbed her blade, and-
“SAMURAI-SAN.”
Meira snapped out of her daydream. Kotohime had a distraught look about her.
“Eh? Ah…ha ha ha. Very awesome Kotohime, just peachy.”
Hugging herself, the princess mumbled “I had reasonable suspicion to believe you were going to do bad things to me from the way you were looking at me...”
Grinning and clapping her hands, Meira got back on topic. “So, where is this shrine? I, uh, want to visit it.”
Kotohime tilted her head. “Ah? Miss Samurai-san, you’re not thinking of converting to her satanic deity, are you? You know very well we function as an autocracy.” She frowned.
Afraid she was losing her loopy friend, Meira quickly came up with her best bet at keeping on this lead. “No no, you got it all wrong! In fact, to uphold your royal rule, I want to punish the heathen! PUNISH!” She stood and thrust a non-existent katana into the air. “No matter where they reside, I will show them what happens when they cross-“ she flashed a forced grin at Kotohime – “our fair princess!”
Kotohime smiled. “Aah, good. I was worried you had forgotten your code of honor! In that case, the shrine is located to the east, on the other side of the forest of magic.”
Meira froze. “The…forest?” She turned a little pale and gulped. “Y-you mean the one swarming with…youkai?”
Kotohime nodded, smiling. “Indeed. But I’m sure Ms. Samurai-san will have no problem fighting her way through. You are an honorable warrior, no?”
Meira scratched her cheek and looked away. “Y-yeah, of course…” I’ve never actually slain anyone…is this really worth it…?
“Princess! Here you are!”
Meira turned to see an older woman looking at Kotohime. She seemed to be relieved.
“Ah, dear mother! I have waited for your coming!” The strange girl stood up and stepped over to her mom. Meira breathed a sigh of relief. Whew, saved by the bell.
Kotohime turned to Meira and waved. “All right Ms. Samurai-san, the queen is here to escort me back to our castle. Good luck on your mission!”
Meira shuddered at the thought of carrying out said mission. Going through a dark scary forest was NOT on Meira’s list of things to do. Still…I’m going to be bored again until tomor-ah, I almost forgot! Meira called out to Kotohime and tossed the bouncy ball back to its owner. She caught it, waved again, and departed.
Meira looked up at the darkening sky. “Hmm, it’s getting late. I suppose I should be heading home myself.” Remembering her wounds from earlier and hissing a bit, Meira started the long, painful trek back home.
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Don't touch that dial kids! Tune in next time to find out the exciting, ACTION-PACKED events that follow!
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I like the update, Meira's attitude is like all kids bored with school who don't like their teachers.
*turns the dial to a different station*
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Ah the mighty powers of the Hakurei orbs. Too bad Kotohime neglected to mention Requirement: Hakurei bloodline. Still, I imagine it will be a very pretty cat.
Also I'm not sure if I should pity Meira, or the forest for what seems likely to happen.
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*turns the dial to a different station*
You meanie-head. :(((((((
EDIT: Aaaargh, I haven't worked on this in over a week. I need to force myself to keep writing, but I'm short on ideas for this chapter. :(
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After yet another delay, here we are once more! To be honest, I'm not very happy with this chapter for a number of reasons, but eh, complaining about your own story is unsightly. Hopefully you'll find some entertainment in the story that follows. Enjoy!
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By the time Meira reached her house, the mid-summer sky had turned to a dusky blue. Nursing her injuries from earlier, Meira stopped a few times on her way home to rest. It wasn?t as though much waited for her there anyway; she?d be lucky if there were any dinner left, and her mom no doubt was going to yell at her for being late. Mom is always so mean to me after all... All that Meira was looking forward to was the comfort of her own bed.
?Aah, what a day. Maybe if I?m quiet I can sneak into my room without having to talk to mom?? Meira was no ninja, but she was willing to give it a shot. She walked up the sidewalk and grabbed the door handle, twisting it as quietly as she could. With minimal noise, the door swung open. She could make out light from the kitchen as she took off her shoes, but she wouldn?t need to go there to reach her room, to reach home base. Just tiptoe along, and she?ll never know you were here? Easy?easy??
?SURPRISE, YOU?RE CURSED!?
Gasping in shock, Meira didn?t have time to let out more than ?What the-? before a small figure leaped from the side of a doorway and slammed a slip of paper into her face. The force knocked Meira into the opposing wall, only helping the headache that she had JUST gotten over. Though she didn?t see the figure clearly, there was only one brat that could have done this.
?Noroiko, you little snot! Have you been getting into my stuff again?!? Meira tore the slip of paper off her face and stood up to confront her giggling kid sister. The paper had the kanji for ?curse? written on it; one of Meira?s stash of curse slips she picked up from the occult shop. In Noroiko?s hand, Meira saw a bunch of identical slips. Sh-she took them ALL?!
?Alright ya little half-pint, time to teach you a lesson. Now hold sti-?
?CURSED~ YOU?RE CURSED~!?
Noroiko split the deck of slips across her hands and began throwing them at Meira like a ninja maid would her knives. Shrugging them off, Meira leapt at her sister with the intent to commit wedgicide. Noroiko, always quick on her feet, sidestepped out of the way, leading Meira to crash into the other wall.
The samurai held her head and staggered to her feet. Noroiko was grinning like a Cheshire cat, tossing curse slips one at a time with surprising accuracy considering their flimsiness. Meira growled.
?Aah, you?ve done it now, peasant! Looks like it?s time to dish out some kiri sute gomen on your ass!? * (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiri_sute_gomen) Grinning a bit herself, Meira caught the next curse slip in her hands, prompting Noroiko to go on the defensive. With her more rational movements, Meira quickly tripped up her little sister and backed her into a corner. Pulling back her torn sleeves, Meira advanced to deal the finishing blow --
?Augh! Ow ow ow!?
-- had her mother not grabbed her ear and forced her back a few steps. A wall candle was lit and Meira was now face to face with a highly bemused parental figure.
?Meira, just what do you think you?re doing to Norry?? She put her hands on her hips as Meira winced - in pain, and at the pet name attached to her sister.
?Mom, look at what Noroiko did! She took my curse slips without my permission!?
Meira?s mom looked at Noroiko, who was now bouncing on her heels, an innocent smile on her face.
"You mean these slips of paper on the ground? I don't see what's so wrong with her using them. Haven't I told you two to share?" Noroiko nodded vigorously, shuffling up to her mom.
Meira's heart sank. "But they're miiiiine.
?Well, were you using them? Norry seems to be having much more fun with them than you have.?
Meira already knew she was not going to win this battle, but she could not just give in to this injustice. ?But I bought those! I saved my allowance all week for that set of cur-?
?How about this? You let Noroiko play with them tonight, okay? And if she is bored with them, you can have them back tomorrow.?
The samurai was furious. It took all her willpower to keep from stamping the ground. Why is this suddenly a bargain for me to get them? They are MINE. MINE you wench!
Her inner monologue came out as little more than a quiet growl. She watched as Noroiko gathered up the curse slips from the ground and bounced away. Well, whatever. She doesn?t know how to activate them anyway. I?ll just curse her later.
Meira?s mom cleared her throat. ?ANYWAY, young miss! You have some explaining to do.? Meira gritted her teeth, bracing herself for the gauntlet.
Oh boy, what?s she going to rap me with? ?Meira, you?re late?? ?Meira, you look like a mess?? ?Meira, you have a real attitude problem and need to start acting your etc.??
Meira?s mom continued in a stern voice, ?Meira, why did you leave the front door open like that? You know the bugs come in when you don?t close it.?
The growl from her daughter abruptly stopped, followed shortly by a flat ?what.?
?Just try and remember it from now on, okay? It's not much to ask.? Her mom blew out the candle and walked back to the kitchen.
For reasons Meira could not put her finger on, this twist really pissed her off. Th-that?s it? All this other stuff and that?s what she gets on my case about. I-I-I
Before she knew what she was doing, Meira screamed in anger. ?What?!? She ran after her mom into the kitchen, where her mom had started doing the dishes.
?Hmm? What is it now Meira??
?Mom, isn?t there anything else you want to say to me??? Meira?s tone of voice matched that of one fishing for compliments.
Meira?s mom put down the plate she was washing and thought for a moment. ?Hmm?well, I left you some dinner. It?s on the table if you want it.? Meira glanced over to see a cold bowl of miso soup.
The self-centered samurai girl was somehow disappointed. ?Is?that it? Isn?t that still there because of how late I was getting home??
Her mom sighed and turned to face her difficult daughter. ?Listen Meira, I?ve been your mom for seventeen years. You?re slow to leave and slow to come back. I?ve accepted it by now. Just don?t get yourself into any trouble, okay??
The pit in Meira's stomach grew deeper. ?You really don?t care about my life, do you? It?s all about Noroiko to you, isn?t it?!?
Meira?s mom blinked, unaware of how she just set her daughter off. ?Meira, I don?t think I should be getting involved in your life. I read somewhere teens don?t like that.?
Meira was furious. Taking advice from a book? She really DOESN?T understand me. Damn it. Trying her best to articulate herself, she stammered ?W-well, no, but?but??
Her mom chuckled to herself and patted her on the shoulder. ?I tell you what. I?ll start the inquisition if you start attacking people in the streets, alright?? She smiled at the thought.
On the verge of crying tears of frustration, Meira shook her mom?s hands off and said ?Yeah, well maybe I will then!? She stormed out of the kitchen and into her room, slamming the door behind her.
Meira?s mom let out a long sigh. She just didn?t know what to do with her daughter. She was so rebellious, but she hadn?t the slightest idea what she wanted. She even tried the permissive parenting technique she had read about and her daughter still hated her. Maybe I?ll just let her sleep through school tomorrow as a treat She closed her eyes in thought. ?Hmm??
The sound of a door being yanked open interrupted her thoughts, and her older daughter stormed into the kitchen once more. Without even looking at her parent, she picked the miso soup off the table and stormed back out, slamming the door again. Meira?s mom blinked a bit, then smiled to herself. ?Still my little girl as always.? She went back to doing the dishes.
---
Well? What do you think? Any feedback would be appreciated. Whether or not you like it though, you can be sure that there will be an update once more, same samurai time, same samurai place.
Also, since I realize the average person wouldn't get it, here is art of Noroiko: http://www.pixiv.net/tags.php?tag=%E5%91%AA%E3%81%84%E5%AD%90
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I think the part that made me giggle the most was the phrase "commit wedgicide"
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Isn't she too childish for a seventeen years old?
Other than that, it's still good as always.
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Isn't she too childish for a seventeen years old?
Yes! Thank you! I knew there was something about all this I was bugged about, but could never put my finger on it. Oh well, I can only go forward from here. :x
If only I were a juvenile deliquent I could write this better. :V
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Well? Why can't she be too childish? I mean, we know Cirno's at least 60 from the fact that she remembers the first end-of-60-year-cycle explosion in PoFV ...
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I don't see Meira as too childish, pubertal is more fitting I suppose.
Also your Noroiko is amazing, adorable and annoying at the same time.
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The problem is with it, that she was established as a seventeen years old. I don't know how people over there act when they are seventeen, but here it's all about sex, parties, drinking, or eventually drugs etc. If we go by the almost feudalistic Gensokyo, then she would be already married.
As for the Cirno thing... I don't know, is Meira youkai or not? I think as her as a human.
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She's a human, just letting you know now.
Also, over here in America, it's (slightly) less about the drugs and more about the teenage angst. :V
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Also, over here in America, it's (slightly) less about the drugs and more about the teenage angst. :V
Yeah? Well over here, it's all about the drugs and the TEENAGE angst :V
That aside, I thought you portrayed Meira being childish (about... everything) intentionally. Huh.
/me lurks more
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Oh crap, I realized I never posted an explanation.
Ahem. The Cool Samurai Girl Meira is on temporary hiatus until I take care of something...else. A more personal story I've been writing off and on for the past 2 years or so. Writing will probably resume before August. Probably. :V
It is now August. I am still working on said story. o_o
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Yay! I look forward to reading updates :)
I love Meira and Kotohime's personalities!
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To anyone who cared about this story beyond a passing interest, I apologize for the long delay in this update. As of yesterday the story this was put on hiatus for has been completed, and I am ready to resume work on this story!
...Is what I'd like to say, but needless to say my writing skills are rusty. Before I start on the story proper, I would like to indulge in a warm-up. Feel free to disregard everything you are about to read.
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HOW DARE YOU PENETRATE MY TERRITORY? YOU HAVE ROBBED EVERYTHING I POSSESSED...
The mechanized bee known as Hibachi waited behind a white curtain, while words were displayed on it by a grainy projector. In the thirteen years she's been in the business, she has heard this spiel so many times they had lost all meaning to her.
YOU KNOE, WHAT YOU HAVE DONE TO ME IS JUST UNFORGIVABLE...
Hibachi knew this was her job and she was expected to take it in stride, but the prerecorded speech plugged into Microsoft Sam wore on her artificial nerves every time she heard it. It made her...angry. So angry. But that's just what was needed.
I WILL PUNISH YOU MYSELF AND SEE TO IT THAT YOU DIE A MISERABLE DEATH WITH MY AWESOME WEAPON
You see, Hibachi has a job: She was a True Last Boss of a Cave shoot-em-up, Dodonpachi to be precise. Hiding within the armored carapace of her shell, "Hachi," she waited for strong souls to battle their way to her, where they would then engage in a large-scale battle of wits and wills. It was a long, noble tradition. Yet, even the joy of fighting worthy players had lost its thrill on the jaded mecha-bee. The grizzled Japanese players who were 100% of her clientele showed no emotion towards their battles. As far as they were concerned, Hibachi was nothing more than an obstacle in the way of their "score." They didn't care for her at all. Just the thought of another callous player coming for her made her mad...very mad. She clenched her pincers together in anticipation. She would grind their ship to dust!
DIE, MAGGOTTS
Well, showtime. The curtain rose and the player emerged.
"Hibachi, we meet at last! I'm Sapz, the bee hunter, and I have come for you!"
If Hachi had eyelids, it would have blinked for Hibachi. This is possibly the first time her opponent was not Asian, but that wasn't what stunned her. Already, three things were very off about this player. For one, no player had ever talked to her; It had always been straight to the shooting with these bozos. Second...
"Bee hunter?" HIbachi spoke through a voice synthesizer that emitted a cliche anime girl's voice, "Just who do you think you are, human? Come, let us get started." Her wings were burning for a fight at this point - literally.
The diminutive human, "Sapz," responded in a smooth, incredibly deep English accent (the third thing that caused her circuits to heat), "Ah, of course. C'mon Hibachi, let us dance." For reasons the bee could not fathom, this caused her vision to become static for a brief moment. She shook her head and clacked Hachi's pincers together, signifying the beginning of the fight.
---
"No matter," Hibachi thought as she controlled Hachi. Voice or no voice, he's no different from those other dozen or so other players Hibachi fought each year. Though Hachi fired with its usual fervor, the controller within sighed. She knew the routine. Even if this was Sapz' first time reaching her, he would probably milk her body parts for points like all the others. Destroy Hachi's wings bit by bit, ripping it limb from limb, taking as much time as possible to disembowel her armored shell like it was a horror movie for his precious "points." Standard stuff.
Yet, this was not what happened. As soon as the fight began, Sapz dashed up to Hachi's glowing yellow eyes and began shotgunning its face.
What? He won't get any points this way! W-what's he doing...?
Hibachi ordered Hachi to gnash its steel pincers at the orange ship, but a quick strafe to the right thwarted this attempt on the Brit's life. Before Hachi could strike again, the powerful laser dispatched one of the pincers!
Aaaah, I can't kill him with just one! Grr, take this!
While he was concentrated on removing Hachi's second pincer, Hibachi switched up the attack routine. Rather than throwing a bunch of red danmaku in lines to overwhelm him, she ordered Hachi to fire a burst of blue danmaku from its mouth. This indeed caught Sapz by surprise and his ship's armor punctured, exploding in with a small bang. This was not the end, of course, as Sapz respawned less than a second later with a fresh fighter.
There, now go and pick me apart, that'll make it easier to ki-what?!
Much to Hibachi's surprise Sapz flew right back up to her face. She ordered another blue burst, but this time the intrepid player was ready. He let loose an unfocused bomb, doing heavy damage to all of Hachi's parts. Her plan being thwarted made her mad. Heck, a lot of things get Hibachi mad, but NOW she's MAD.
How conceited of him! What kind of player would do this? What...what...
All of a sudden, Hibachi forgot about shooting for a split second.
What gorgeous eyes.
Hachi was not designed to show expression, and its eternal scowl betrayed Hibachi's emotions. While the shrapnel from the bombs tore into Hachi's body, Hibachi caught a brief glimpse of the pilot inside. Black hair smoothed into a slick hair-do, well toned body, and that voice...that VOICE. She had to hear it again! Doing her best to hide how flustered she was, she spoke out, just in the hopes of hearing it again.
"G-gaaah! Quit bombing and fight like a man!"
Sapz smirked and said in that sexy voice, "No can do Hibachi. I'm here to fight you, and this is the best way to do it. I've been waiting for this meeting for years."
All bullets stopped at this exact moment. Hibachi's circuits were becoming dangerously overheated.
He's here for...me? Oh god...oh god...
The mecha-bee had never felt so filled with human emotion. She felt herself turning red, and not from anger. This feeling, could it be...
Love...?
Alas, it was not. The turning red was in fact Hachi's defenses giving out. Snapping back to reality, Hibachi noticed the area she was in about to explode, revealing her true form - again. Letting out a girlish giggle (Hibachi'd have to talk to Donpachi about giving her a better voice synthesizer), the mecha-bee readied herself to give this "Sapz" everything she had.
---
"Haa...haa...you're not half-bad Sapz." Hibachi hadn't felt this invigorated against an opponent in years. As she looped through her attacks for the third time, she noted her health bar was dwindling.
Sapz, hissing at the pain from his disappearing ships, said "Well, I've been practicing for a long time. I wanted to make this count."
He practiced for me. Oh my~ The flaming boss had never felt so special. This man, he was so...prepared. His dodges, the timing of the bombs, the grazes, the agility, it was as though the smoking fighter were an extension of his (also smoking) body! And if a fighter could be an extension of his body, then maybe, to a mechanized being such as herself...
Bzzzzzz-no! Hibachi slapped herself. Why do I always pick the worst times to think about stuff like this? It's time for the final attack!
At a quarter health left, it was time for the big finale. Hibachi knew no matter how good Sapz was, he would not not survive.
"It's been a good run Sapz, but it's time to end this." Hibachi tried not to let her voice show the sadness behind these words.
"Bring it on, Hibachin."
And bring it on she did. A truly frightening barrage of triangular purple bullets came Sapz' way. Though he dodged deftly, he had only one bomb left, and the openings only left so much room to dodge. This would be over soon. Sure enough, that final bomb let forth, to which Hibachi brought her trusty invincibility shield to nullify. She was victorious. There was no way he would win. But...that would mean he'd go away. That would mean it would be back to the souless Japanese score-runners who thought nothing of her but as a tool for points. She didn't want that!
But it's my duty. I can't go easy, not even on him. But can I show how I feel...?
Her man-made brain straining to think while continuing to fire, after a few seconds she figured it something she could do. Manipulating the current of bullets, she let out one final burst -
Leaving an opening in the shape of a heart.
A solid wall following this, Sapz failed to dodge.
Boom.
And there he went, gone as quickly as he came. Hibachi ceased firing, turning her attention instead to the painful sound of the continue screen ticking down the seconds. She let out a sigh. Would Sapz ever reach her again?
"Augh! Good fight Hibachi. I'm going to call it a day. It's getting late."
In a sentimental tone exaggerated even more by her voice synthesizer, Hibachi cried out "Don't you want to continue?!"
"Nah, when I defeat you, it will be a glorious 1cc. I will be back Hibachi, and I will get you. For I am the bee hunter Sapz!"
That was the last she heard of his voice, and she heard the strangely sadistic voice wringing out the words "Game Over." Hibachi sighed. He must not have caught her feelings. He dodged them after all...
---
As the white curtain lowered back down, as a team of chain-smoking grunts in coveralls towed off Hachi's charred remains for repairs, Hibachi closed her eyes and thought of the man she had just encountered.
I'm Sapz, the bee hunter, and I have come for you!
I've been waiting for this meeting for years.
I will be back Hibachi, and I will get you.
Bringing her upper limbs to her blushing cheeks, Hibachi sighed. "Yes Sapz, you will come again. You will come again to reignite the flame in my soul..."
"Oy! 'ibachi! 's time fo' repairs!" One of the workers belted this uncultured banter at her, but nothing could spoil her mood now. She awaited Sapz' return with great anticipation.
"Coming~"
Closing MAME.exe
---
/me cackles.
And that's that! With school starting next week, updates may still be sparse, but I am back! Hope you enjoyed my little crack fic. :3
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/me falls over giggling
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Oh no you didn't
You diiiiiiiiiiiiid
:o
Now you must get Sapz to do a recorded blind read of this, in his sexy, sexy voice.
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The mental images this story brings up are frightening, yet hilarious. Well done, pastry :D
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Jesus Donut :V
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[11:54] <YoseiOnmyoji> Oh my Goddess
[11:54] <YoseiOnmyoji> Donut
[11:54] <YoseiOnmyoji> what have you done?
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What the heck is this
Even Hibachi can't resist Sapz's voice?!
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OH GOD
WHAT
...There are no words.
As for the blind read: no can do since I just read it. :V I could read it anyway, or wait for the next chapter, though.
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I advocate a reading anyway. Oh, and don't count on a second chapter - that plan fell through.
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Awww. :(
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I'm ready to get started on this story again
:derp:
Yyyyeah, I have no excuse. College wasn't even that tough until the last few weeks, but this chapter really hung me up. I have revived though, and am ready to update at long last! \o/ I hope this is an acceptable offering for stalling on an update for over six months. If not, well, read it anyway. Or don't. It's a free country where I live after all.
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Meira, the teenage samurai, was now secure in her room. Her fortress. No matter how bleak the day was, no matter how much suffering she went through at school, with her sister, with her jerk mom, Meira could always count on her cozy room to take her away from this hell hole.
That said, Meira's room was a hole in of itself. Used dishes lined the wall next to the door, assorted clothes were dumped into a big pile next to the bed (newly added was a torn sailor uniform, swapped with a pair of brown shorts and a black T-shirt), and nick-nacks collected over the years were stuffed into every nook and most of the crannys on every shelf. Perhaps the only part of the room that was well kept was a small table in the corner, where a long, sharp katana rested on a pedestal. As messy and disorganized the room was, it was the one place in Gensokyo where its inhabitant felt at ease.
As for said messy inhabitant, Meira was laying down on her bed, kicking her legs as she read her favorite comic book: "The Cool Samurai Guy Jack." The title was in English unlike the rest of the comic, indicating that it was originally from some country other than Japan. The comic followed the adventures of the titular samurai, who wandered the bad streets of Japan, cutting down any tough guy who stood in his way. He was a bad boy who didn't follow anyone's rules (save the bushido code!). He was Meira's hero, and the reason she aspired to become a samurai. One day, Gensokyo will fear her as "The Cool Samurai Girl Meira", slicing and dicing bad guys, youkai, and brutal teachers alike. Meira giggled at the thought of the future her as she turned the page.
Yeah...if I only had Jack's power, I wouldn't be held back by anything. Not mom, not Noroiko, not even Ms. Kamishirasawa. Haa, now I'm getting in the mood again.
Tossing aside the comic book, Meira slipped off her bed and made her way to the clothes pile to change into that.
---
"In this world, there are two forces that govern all: The light and the dark."
In a darkened room, Meira started anew the monologue she had attempted earlier that day. She was once again dressed in her samurai robes.
"The light. Yes, the light is often seen as the good side, since it's, uh..." After such a long and exhausting day, the samurai girl was drawing blanks. She paused momentarily, deciding to start over.
"In this world, there are two forces that govern all: The light and the dark. The light is often seen as the good side, as it..."
Think, think...
...
Order! Right, I heard that once.
"As it represents order! Yes! Just as darkness represents chaos! People side with order for fear of what they can't see, holding down the chaos time and time again." Meira grinned, pleased with how this sounded. She unsheathed her katana and held it parallel to the ground.
"Yes, the light holds down the dark, order, chaos. But they can't see! Blinded by the light, they can't see the true power of chaos! For it - uh, chaosssss..." Meira hissed as she drew another blank.
"C-chaos! It is the true force to be with. For throughout history, chaos, the freedom to do whatever you want, rises to squash the order! It will never bow down to the light! For the chaos is..." Not about to backtrack having come so far, Meira snapped her fingers and rolled with whatever came to mind. "Chaos is, freedom. Freedom, and following...your heart, yeah. And no tyrant parent or teacher will ever squash it!"
Going with it, Meira brought her katana high with a mighty roar and slashed down, sideways, and thrusted forward.
"And that, is why I, the cool, free-spirited samurai Meira, will NOT bow down to th-"
Several loud knocks on the door interrupted the teenager's tangent, cutting her disjointed monologue short.
"Meira, dear..." It was the dreaded parental tyrant! "It's getting late. Could you please keep it down in there?"
Having had enough of everybody messing with her fun, Meira finally snapped. She stomped on the ground and screamed "Oh for fuck's sake, can't I finish one freaking monologue without you intruding on me?! Why don?t you go and tuck Noroiko in, since she's sooooo precious to you!" A silence filled the house after this exclamation, followed by quiet footsteps.
Meira let out a long sigh and rubbed her temples. "Gah, now I lost my place." She sheathed her katana and placed it on her bed. Meira slumped down into her desk's chair and rested her head in her hands. A few minutes of silence and sulking passed.
In a soft voice, Meira said to herself, "Why can't mom respect me for who I am?" For the last few years, her mom had always expressed concern with how Meira "won't act her age" and "does those childish activities all day long." Meira simply wanted to continue doing what she thought was cool, and her mom's refusal to accept this pissed her off to no end.
Well, no matter. Once I become the most powerful human in the village it won?t matter what she thinks. The Cool Samurai Girl Meira will command respect. Meira gave a weak smile to herself.
Meira glanced across her desk and saw one of her many strange trinkets. Looking vaguely like a set of metallic balls attached to monkey bars by a thin string, it was meant to simulate something educational that some famous person found out ? Fig Newton she believed his name was - but she could care less about that. Shifting the support of her head entirely to her left hand for a moment, Meira pulled the ball farthest to the right back and let it go. Meira watched with delight as the ball dropped and collided with the cluster of balls, somehow causing the ball farthest to the left to bounce and swing to the left. Meira had a thing for bouncing balls.
Resting her head on both hands once again, Meira took the time to let her mind wander as she absent-mindedly watched the balls swing back and forth.
Hmm, I wonder if tomorrow will be any better?today really sucked
The balls continued to swing back and forth.
I guess the bouncy ball was a highlight. Kotohime always has the coolest stuff
Back and forth.
Wonder what Kotohime is gonna have tomorrow?
Meira yawned as she continued to watch the contraption click back and forth.
Maybe it?s gonna be?something really awesome. Like a sword. Swords are awesome?
Back and forth. Back and forth. Meira?s head began slowly sliding down her hands.
Mmm, maybe it?s going to be a super flashy sword. Y?know, something liiiike mmmrgh?flashy lights, makes the bad guys go boom whenyeah that?d be so bitchin? it?d be so ggggggggggggg?
Baaaaack and foooooorth. Baaaaack and foooooorth?
---
*BAM
?Aah! Ow, fucker what the fuck-?
Meira felt a stabbing pain in her knee and instinctively stood to get out of the chair she zoned out in. Not thinking about the extent of her knee?s pain, her left knee buckled almost as soon as she stood up, and another, louder thud emanated through the room as she landed on the ground for the second time that day.
?Oww, my knee did that jerk thing that happens when I fall asleep. Damn it?? Meira hissed in pain as she rubbed her knee. And did she land on something?? Doing her best to hoist herself off the ground, Meira checked the area around her left thigh for the fiendish item that was causing a dull pain, but there was nothing. Huh, must have imagined it
Heh heh heh.
Mmm? Was that a giggle? Meira could have sworn she heard someone snickering. Meira froze, not sure whether it was the wind, a thief, or even a rogue youkai.
?
*rustle*
Ah ha! It wasn?t just the wind! The sounds of movement came from Meira?s open window (no doubt her mom opened it to let the wind in, meaning she intruded on her private sanctuary, AGAIN). Steeling her will, Meira slowly rose and limped over to see what she could see. Cautiously, she peered out the window, and saw-
?CURSED AGAIN!?
Startled as she was, Meira instantly recognized the gleeful bellow and ducked back into her room. No sooner did she do this than a curse slip flew upwards with frightening speed. The magical adhesive stuck it fast to the gutter above the window.
Augh, it?s even worse than a youkai!
Forgetting the pain in her leg for a moment, Meira leapt back at the window to confront Noroiko, who was crouching a meter below in the bushes. Holding the bottom of the window as support, Meira whispered down ?Noroiko! What the hell are you doing out here?? Her sister said nothing, merely flashing her usual insidious grin.
?Noroiko!? Meira swiped at her little sister in vain.
?Just cursing~?
Meira, practically supporting herself with her stomach at this point, held out her hands to catch the next curse slip her bratty sister threw. But instead of tossing another of Meira?s curse slips, Noroiko gave an ominous wave upwards. She chanted something in a (for once) hushed tone that the samurai couldn?t make out. Then, as if pulling a rope, she abruptly brought both hands down.
Meira raised an eyebrow at this odd display and was about to go grab something long and pokey to continue the rage, but was cut off by something slamming into her back. Gasping more in confusion than pain, she reached behind to pry whatever it was off her. She ran her fingers across the culprit and felt a papery material. Meira?s eyes opened wide.
?N-no, it can?t be..." In a panic, the samurai waved her hands at her cursed sister.
"Noroiko, don?t you dare-!?
With a clap, Noroiko unleashed a powerful electric shock to Meira?s system. This time the cry was definitely in pain.
---
And to think, this is both my accomplishment for my three year anniversary of getting into Touhou, and also coincidentally on the last day of NaNoWriMo. Well, hope you enjoyed, and keep a look for chapter 7 - I promise this next chapter will come faster than the last.
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Told ya I'd shell one out in less time. ;D It feels great to have my writing spirit back. As an early Christmas present, here's a new chapter for my three or so readers. Enjoy~
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?Aaah, god, it hurts?? Meira lay slumped against the wall beneath her window in a particularly uncomfortable position, her face stained with tears. After the shock the curse slip gave upon activation, crying was pretty much all she could do.
How did she do it? You?re not supposed to be able to use those things if you don?t know the chant! Meira cursed her cursed sister who somehow knew those cursed words that?cursed?her. In between screams of agony, Meira had seen Noroiko scamper off into the night before her body refused to move and she slid down into her current position. No doubt she?s off to cause trouble somewhere else.
Well, screw her, Meira thought as she tried to free her body from the paralysis. After that last stunt, Meira officially didn?t care about her sister anymore. Let her attack others or get eaten or whatever. For now she was more concerned with the stinging pain coursing through her body.
After what seemed an eternity of holding back tears and moaning, Meira?s skin was starting to get itchy from pressing against the wall. Systematically testing her limbs one by one over a matter of minutes, Meira became confident enough that she could move. In short bursts, Meira threw her weight in order to face the opposite direction. Having done this, the samurai tested her hands to confirm they still worked. With a strained grunt, she used them to press against the wall and slowly make her way to her feet (reminding her of the pain in her knee of course). Half-walking, half-stumbling, Meira trudged to her bed and collapsed onto it, thus completing the long process of rehabilitation.
---
Sprawled across her somewhat lumpy bed, Meira stared up at her wooden ceiling in a daze. Familiar thoughts of malice and self-pity began swirling around in her head. She thought of how unfair the world was, how stupid everyone except her was, and how she wanted to just burn everything to the ground. She was just getting into the mood, when something clicked in her mind.
?Wait a minute. I?m just repeating myself. ?today sucks, everyone sucks,? it?s so lame! I?m cooler than this!? She pounded the bed with her fist. ?A cool visionary like myself needs to tread new ground! I need to go into new territories of just how unfair things are!? Meira spoke with a dissonant enthusiasm.
?Like?like Noroiko!? Meira pumped her fist towards the ceiling. ?How the hell did she use those curse slips?? The teenager glanced at the window where the curse slip used against her lay. Those curse slips were useless unless you knew the right chant to bring out their super spooky and dark and awesome power. After reaching her room, Meira dug into her stash and found that while every curse slip was pilfered, the sticky note with the incantation written on it was left untouched. And yet, she very clearly just used one with nasty results. So how?
!
What if?she somehow knows? Meira?s eyes opened wide. In Gensokyo, all the scary supernatural beings such as youkai, vampires, demons, and gothic lolita dolls all have a unique power over the world. Meira rarely interacted with youkai, bacon but she?s heard rumors from ?the hood? of such amazing abilities as changing the fate of those around them, causing instant death in anything that could die, and even manipulating darkness itself! Meira always admired the youkai, despite how depraved and inhumane they were ? or at least, they were from the stories she had heard. They could always assert their place in the world with their kickass ability no one else had.
But?it?s different for humans Meira looked at her hand with sorrow. Humans, even those born in a magical land like Gensokyo, were not so lucky. True, everyone in the village is descended from youkai-busting mystics and therefore have innate spiritual power, but an ability like that of a youkai was pretty uncommon. Meira had tried all sorts of things to bring out her power: She learned much to her chagrin she could not shoot shurikens and lightning out of her hand (dashing her initial hopes at becoming a ninja); She learned she couldn?t summon a sword at a mere mention of the weapon; She could barely even fly, which is something anyone with moderate spiritual energy could manage. Eventually Meira was forced to accept that she had no innate power.
And yet, Noroiko somehow knew how to use those curse slips of hers. It wasn?t just a weak spark either; the powers in those slips hit her full force back there. Even if she memorized the chant somehow, there?s no way a novice could bring out those babies? full potential on the first try. It was only a theory, but the longer Meira mulled over it the more certain it became in her mind: Noroiko had an innate power to cast curses!
...
?It just?it isn?t fair!? Meira grinded her teeth. That little snot was born with an ability and she wasn?t?! Meira wasn?t familiar with how common it was, but the mere fact that she didn?t have anything, yet her bratty seven year old sister did pissed her off like nothing else. Why wasn?t she born a youkai, or as a powerful human?
Why??
Meira tossed herself to her side and sighed. If only I had a way to gain power?I could show up everyone else. Some way?
Hey, wait a minute. This last thought jogged her memory. Earlier today, didn?t Kotohime mention something about a way to get power? Meira strained her mind to recall what her friend said.
If only we could have the power of the Hakurei shrine maiden?
That?s right! Meira remembered now. An old-fashioned woman who still hunts youkai, living on the other side of the forest of magic near the village: The Hakurei shrine maiden. The source of her awesome powers is?some artifact called the ?yin-yang orb,? powered by?something. The Hakurei, whatever. In any case, this was exactly what she needed!
Sure, it?s dangerous to travel the forest, especially at night, but if I can make it, then, somehow I can steal the orb, and then ultimate power will be mine! This is it, my big chance! I?ll go right now!
Excited at the upcoming adventure, Meira raised her fists to the air once more. ?Right! It?s time for The Cool Samurai to rise! Let?s go!?
?
Meira noticed she was not moving. She was still glued to her bed, staring at the window. She tried again. ?I can?t let myself stay in this funk forever! I?m off!?
?
Meira slowly lowered her arms and gave a long sigh.
Who was she kidding? She was a wreck. Her body was still sore all over from the time Ms. Kamishirasawa beat her up ? or wait, didn?t that happen twice? Though the curse slip?s effects were dimming, Meira?s body still resisted movement. All day, the samurai was beaten and battered mentally and physically from every individual event. And these were all normal humans. Noroiko, Ms. Kamishirasawa, both were normal humans. This Hakurei shrine maiden must be a mighty warrior! She must be armed to the teeth with...whatever it was shrine maidens had. The thought of her stealing a mystical artifact from someone like this through some crackpot scheme was just?unreasonable.
Now Meira just felt miserable. Miserable at her inability to get anything she wanted, doomed to forever remain mediocre. All her energy was drained, and she frankly couldn't care less about life at the moment. She once again turned to lay on her side. I?just wanna sleep now. Screw it. Screw everything?
Meira was about to close her eyes, when she noticed her katana was still on the bed. ?Sigh, guess I may as well move it. I have no right to use something as cool as this anyway...? She reached out to cast the katana to the floor and allow herself to erase the day?s pains in peace.
*ZAP*
?AH! OW, WHAT THE-?
Meira sat bolt upright. Th-the blade?it shocked me! She rung her hand to lessen the pain. It was a particularly painful shock. ?Aah, the curse slip must have left a current in my system. I mean, I should have grabbed the hilt, yeah, but??
Meira trailed off. She looked down at the blade, then to the samurai robes she was still wearing. She closed her eyes. The pain of the shock was already subsiding, but a new feeling was welling up inside of her: A feeling of determination. She chuckled softly to herself.
So, this is how it is, huh? Well I won?t lose! I?ve still got energy to spare!
Without any more introspection, Meira knew what she had to do. She got off the bed and went over to her desk. She took out a spare hair band.
A true action hero never lets anything get them down. I was being so lame just now.
Licking her hand and taming her long hair, Meira once again tied her hair into a thick ponytail.
Noroiko, Ms. Kamishirasawa, mom, all of them are against me. Well I won?t let them pull me down! I am destined for greatness!
Attaching her scabbard to her side, Meira grabbed her katana ? this time properly ? and sheathed it.
So, the Hakurei shrine, eh? All I need to do is cut across the forest and steal the orb, right? Hah! Jack would do something like this in a single issue. I will do the same! In a single night it will be mine!
As battered as Meira's body was, she no longer let it hold her back. She moved towards her window to make her grand entrance into the night. The night she will tame!
?Yes, the cool samurai girl Meira will not?mmph!? Meira grunted as she tried to climb up through the room?s large window. The scabbard was catching on the wall and refusing to let her move through the frame. She balanced one foot on the windowsill as she tried to coerce it into letting her through.
?The?cool?nnngh! C?mon, why won?t you ? wh-whoa! Ah!? Yet another crash resonated as she fell backwards to the ground.
---
Dashing out through the front door, Meira let out a mad fit of laughter as she triumphantly marched towards the Forest Of Magic. This will be her finest hour! Nothing will hold her back from gaining the ultimate power, the power of the Hakurei. She will be victorious!
?Just you wait Gensokyo! I will show you the true power of darkness! The cool samurai girl Meira will NOT back down! AH HA HA HA HAAAAA~!?
---
What adventures await our heroine in the forest of magic? Tune in next time to find out!
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FINALLY
I love you, pastry. Can't wait to see Meira's butt handed to her (here's me dealing with trauma from my first few encounters with her).
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Meira rarely interacted with youkai, bacon but she?s heard rumors
Were you hungry when you typed this? :3
I wonder how Meira's going to get those curse slips back.
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Were you hungry when you typed this? :3
Blame Sapz and Purvis for that. :[ But hey, I bet you didn't notice the earlier insertion of "bees," did you? :P
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Blame Sapz and Purvis for that. :[ But hey, I bet you didn't notice the earlier insertion of "bees," did you? :P
/me goes back to look
Oh hey, there it is. How did I miss that before?
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I like this story.
A lot.
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This particular chapter was awesome, like all the others.
My favorite bit:
A cool visionary like myself needs to tread new ground! I need to go into new territories
Oh, she's actually going to try to be --
of just how unfair things are!
-- oh. Hah.
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And now for something completely different.
---
It was a cool night, for summer that is. The nighttime breeze was cool and crisp, and looking at the sky it might even rain, which would be nice for a change. Lying in wait for my intended stalkee – would that be what one would call it, or – no wait, it doesn’t matter – at the top of a tree, I swung my legs in boredom. I was worried about this and that, so I came to see if I was right.
Mmm, will she really come? It’d be such a shame if she didn’t. Then I’d have come all this way for nothing
Loudly yawning, I leaned against the tree trunk. It had to be past 11:00 by now, but the yawn was more out of boredom than anything. I mean, she was going to come, right? She seemed more mad than usual today, so I thought she could be angry enough to go through with it. Or maybe she was so mad she forgot about – no, she surely wouldn’t do that. The friend I know wouldn’t just give up…maybe.
I fidgeted. I wasn’t sure how much later I could wait. It gets so dull waiting for such a long time, so to pass the time I let my mind wander aimlessly like a bird through the sky. It was a little chilly for a fantasy, so I just wanted to meditate instead.
Though, a bird like in the sky is fun to think about, just gliding lazily through the air… I closed my eyes thinking about this with a calm expression. A minute or so passed before I realized I was day – or night, whichever – dreaming even when I said I wouldn’t! It’s too chilly, and if I get lost in my thoughts I may miss my target or catch a cold! Unless I was a penguin. Tee hee…
…
Gah! I slapped myself for doing it again. But then again, that’s what I like; I like to fantasize about everything. I have ever since I was little. People think I’m crazy because I act this way even though I’m almost an adult, but I don’t mind. It’s better than looking at things through normal eyes anyway. With that in mind, I thought to properly indulge myself. After all, if she was going to come, she would do it loudly, I thought. My imagination caught the next breeze and my heart flowed into a sea of tranquility.
Flying through the air…not a care in the world, not a youkai could catch me. Just a whimsical little bird…flying through the cool cool breeze. Though I suppose I still must take into account how cool it is. Mmm, right, I’m a penguin. I have those cute little flippers and the fluffy feathers. Fluffy wings, carrying my well-dressed body through the night sky…
“Wait…” I opened my eyes, which had closed at some point. “I wasn’t thinking much, but don’t penguins not fly?” Folding my arms (taking care not to lose my balance on the tree branch), I thought it through. Certainly, penguins don’t exist here in Gensokyo, but I’ve seen pictures. They look ground-bound, but like chickens they may be able to –
Wait, what am I doing?! I slapped myself for doing it again. Trying my best to get comfortable, I went back to the wonderful fantasy in a way that hateful part of my mind would leave me be.
Moving along the ground, I was in my cute penguin form. Just waddling along idly, not a care in the world…~ No youkai would mess with a bird as cute as me, nope. Well, maybe a cat youkai, but – no, I would totally beat their butts. I’m a penguin after all. If one came after me, I would dive into the river and swim to safety. Nothing can catch me in the river, because I read penguins swim real good.
…
But the kappa would be in the river. Penguins being an Antarctic bird wouldn’t be their normal menu item, but I read that kappa are very resourceful, and would probably find a way to cook me. I heard a story after all, saying that…that…
“AHH! NO!”
My eyes flashed open and I bent forward, clutching my head and shaking, trying to rid myself of the hateful voice of reason. I became a little dizzier than I expected doing this, and given my sitting position, is it really a surprise I came toppling to the ground? I winced because I landed on my tailbone. It was quite painful.
But what was more painful was what happened before the fall. That…that…
Rationalizing
Seeing the fun was over, I let out a pained sigh. All of a sudden, I wanted to cry. Scooching back to lean against the base of the trunk, I let out another sigh.
“It happened again…” What kind of fantasy is grounded in logic anyway? A true fantasy runs on the power of one’s imagination alone, disregarding everything that would make it impossible in reality. That’s the whole point! You can’t let yourself be trapped by common sense in a fantasy world! But…
But it’s not so easy now
I looked up at the sky. The twinkling stars should have been visible, but there were only clouds now, obscuring those dreams I would normally have gazing up at the sky. In a similar fashion, despite how much I have fought against it, I have found it increasingly hard to fantasize these days. Much as I hate to admit it, I am seventeen. No other girl is interested in pretending to be a princess anymore, or a police officer, or anything else of the sort. But, I don’t think any less of them for it. I know it’s strange, but this is my way of life.This is how I want to live.
So why can’t I do it anymore?
I have kept track of this process well. It started about four years ago, when my body started changing. When I discovered these new-found feelings in me, and learned more about the true nature of love. How it can heal…and how it could hurt. Hearing the awful stories of the latter tarnished my image of love, so I can never go back to the old me who dreamed of a prince coming to take my pure heart away.
I continued on despite that. All was still bright and happy in my life, until I began to hear stories from my older peers. Stories of youkai. Youkai always seemed so fun to hunt, with a common childhood game being to “exterminate” whoever is assigned the role of youkai. But these stories, they were much less idealistic. Little children wandering off from the village and being… I shook my head to rid myself of the thought. It does no good thinking about it.
“Hah, but that’s all I can do…” I let out a sigh and sunk into my knees. No matter how much I have tried to fight against fate, I can’t win. The cruel claw of reality has cut into me over and over again, wounding my inner child. I want to hold on to this world of fantasy, I really do. I hold it closer and dearer to my heart than anything in the world. If I were to lose it, I can’t see myself living anything other than a dull and mundane life. Without my fantasies, I, I’m nothing. Will I one day lose this part of me and become assimilated? Will I-
“Is she strong? Listen gal. She’ll cut every unjust male.”
“Eh…?” I looked up. That voice…!
“Does she follow the bushido code? Take one look and you’ll surely know…crap, that doesn’t rhyme…ah well.”
It is! Hearing that uncultured voice brightened my spirits instantly. I scrambled to my feet and made sure to make myself less visible. Sure enough, marching down the path nearby was a rather short girl clutching onto a long katana. It was too dark to tell, but I was sure she must also be wearing a red and white samurai garb. She seemed too into her jovial tune to notice me.
“Samurai, samurai, Meira the cool dark samurai! Wealth and fame, will be hers! Ultimate power are her…um, slippers? Ah to hell to with it, nobody’s listening anyway.” She continued on, humming the melody she was doing a poor job of following earlier.
Part of me wanted to put on my princess airs and give her the royal spirit-lifter, but I had to resist the urge. After all, this is a secret mission for my samurai friend. I must maintain the fantasy's world, for both of us.
Yes, this girl, she’s my friend. I can feel relieved whenever I’m around her. Even now, I feel my chipper self returning to form seeing her spiritedness. One day, when I felt so sad I might have given up my life that very day, this girl popped into my life at the school taught by a scary teacher. Meira, who despite her boorish behavior and selfish attitudes, despite obviously not knowing the first thing about honor or dignity, insists that she is a samurai of high esteem. “How silly,” I thought, to see a seventeen year old continuing to uphold a childish fantasy. I scoffed at her, and then I realized I had found my savior. Seeing a peer holding on to such a ridiculous delusion made my heart go pitter-pat. I thought, “If this girl can keep a delusion like that, surely I can find the strength to keep going myself.” The crushing thoughts of assimilation and hopelessness were all of a sudden replaced by a need to make this girl my companion at any cost.
Yes, I did everything I could to get close to her. Being lost in my own fantasies, it was a miracle I still know how to make friends in real life, but it turns out I can do it after all! Though she seemed put off at first by my odd mannerisms like all the others, all it took was to flash some shiny things her way to make her my friend! Heh heh, my hobby is collecting strange trinkets after all. Fantasy and collecting trinkets. Just the perfect two things to draw this girl to me.
At some point I came back to the present time and saw that she was gone, disappeared into the forest. I then thought about why I had come here: To see if she really took on my royal mission.
The mission I sent her on, to steal the Hakurei shrine maiden’s source of power…was this really a good idea to do? I didn’t think about it at the time (because thinking is what got me into my problem in the first place), but whether she succeeds or not, it must be quite dangerous in the forest. With all the youkai, could she end up…no, no need to worry about that. I’m certain that resourceful girl will be fine. She has to be. Surely. The “cool samurai girl” wouldn’t let her life end in such a sad manner. For me, and for her, the fantasy must go on. That is more important than the result.
I then realized I was thinking too much again. Shaking my head, I pivoted and began the march back home. It was now beginning to rain, but that won’t be a bother to me. I can just imagine that I am a karakasa, bouncing along with no fear of getting wet~ As for Meira…the events of this night will surely be something to remember. Before getting lost in fantasy once more, I took one more look at the big scary forest.
“Good luck…Miss Samurai-san.”
---
Fun fact, this chapter has 2011 words. :> Funny how an "intermission" ends up being the longest chapter yet. :]
Anyway, now that I am done destroying the dynamic of the fic, I hope you can forgive the mind screw and look forward to the next chapter.
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Well... That was interesting.
She I admit it was a little different from the flow of the story normally, it makes sense since it's from Kotomine's point of view. That's an interesting companionship there.
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I really like this "intermission," it adds new dimension to the story. Gives it more depth.
And I enjoy the way you described the loss of youthful innocence while keeping things witty.
One of my favorite stories. Keep it up.
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Yeah. One of the things that struck me is how Kotohime basically wishes she could be more like Meira in certain aspects ... which we-the-audience usually see as merely being side-effects of how Meira is an irascible twunt who's more self-absorbed than a Russian nesting sponge. Nice way of adding depth.
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;^_^
I feel kinda bad about this delay. Not because I had plenty of opportunities to work on this before midterms came up, but because this next chapter has been finished for a while. I was intending to save this until I was finished, but certain...difficulties have made me decide to release the first section as-is. Now that the technical difficulties of a small fic with an equally small userbase are out of the way, I hope you enjoy!
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?Come out. I know you?re there.? A young and proud-looking woman gazed into a patch of darkness. The figure shrouded by the forest trees chuckled, anticipating that her target would sense her. With measured steps, a woman emerged from the shadows, a small smirk on her otherwise calm face.
?Well done Miss Hakurei. I am Meira, the dark samurai.? Immaculate in the garb of the honored warriors, the woman rested her left hand on the scabbard of her katana. ?I have come here to take the Hakurei.?
The shrine maiden opposite her gave a grim nod. She extended her arm forward, her hand cupped as though grasping an invisible aura. ?I know. I had foreseen your presence here tonight, and have come to strike you down. I will not allow the likes of you to come into possession of this holy power.? As she spoke, a large sphere dressed in the symbols of yin and yang orbited around her hips. There was no doubt in Meira?s mind: That orb contained the power of Hakurei she coveted. The mere proximity to that which she had desired for so long sent waves of excitement coursing through the young samurai?s veins.
?Of course. I would expect no less from the famed youkai exterminator. If the purpose of our meeting is clear, than we need speak no more. Prepare yourself.? Meira crouched slightly, ready to begin the fight at any moment. Though both women knew only one would walk away from the forest alive, the shrine maiden?s expression softened. In a half-hearted tone, she said ?Is there?no way to change your mind? I do not wish to destroy one of my own.? The dark samurai did not bat an eye, predicting such sentimentality. Silent, she let her unwavering glare convey her answer. The air between the two combatants was filled with enough tension to cut with a knife. Finally, the shrine maiden gave a sigh of resignation before hardening her face.
?Very well.? She spread her arms out, as if to charge her power. The orb, whose rate of revolution had been slow to this point, quickened its pace. The orb rose to the shoulders of the shrine maiden, who locked eyes with her opponent. ?In the name of the Hakurei clan, I shall purge your evil from this world!?
Meira smirked, pleased that the heroic pleasantries were over. She let out a low laugh. ?Fu, fu, fu. Hakurei shrine maiden, you may be well-versed in the extermination of youkai. However.? Meira?s hand reached for the hilt of her blade. ?You will soon find that a human burning with resolve is more frightening than any youkai!? With one swift movement, Meira unsheathed the katana and shifted her feet into a battle stance. ?Now, you who swears by order and justice?feel the power of darkness!? The samurai charged forward, and the battle began.
It was truly a sight to behold. Two warriors, both masters of their craft, locked horns in mortal combat. The power of the yin-yang orb was truly stunning, but it was nothing Meira had not prepared for. Through superior agility, the Hakurei shrine maiden?s volleys fell short of inflicting anything other than a scratch on the master samurai. Calling upon the knowledge of every attack of every combat form in existence, the samurai unleashed wave after wave of unrelenting swordplay. Though the shrine maiden was adept at avoiding the assault, Meira?s efforts prevented her from regaining her balance. With each charge, a little more ground was gained. Before long, there would be no more room to evade, and victory would be in her grasp!
Realizing her plan, the Hakurei shrine maiden raised the yin-yang orb high above her head. Concentrated beams of spiritual energy rained down and surrounded her, forming a defensive perimeter in order to prevent Meira from coming any closer. Yet, the cunning samurai immediately perceived a fatal flaw in the maiden?s strategy: In attempting to increase her defense, she had completely eliminated her offense. If she could break through this barrier-!
With a mighty roar, Meira bounded forward. Her keen reflexes guided her true, and she passed unscathed through the defensive cage. The Hakurei maiden recoiled in shock. ?I-impossible-!? In a panic, she attempted to redirect her lasers to cast down the approaching enemy, but it was too late. With a mighty thrust, the maiden?s body was impaled by the samurai?s katana. Before long, blood began seeping out her wound. The yin-yang orb lost its shimmering display of power and fell to the ground with a clunk. It was over.
---
Though the life was rapidly draining from her eyes, the shrine maiden wore a serene smile on her face. She gazed up at the one who had bested her. Through her pain, the shrine maiden whispered, ?Miss?Meira. You?win. I-I am glad that it was a human?who defeated me.? With her victory assured, the dignified samurai decided to show some compassion. Supporting the maiden?s body with her free hand, Meira held her close so she could hear her. ?Miss Hakurei, you too put up a good fight. Mark my words, I will ensure your name and your clan will be honored in death.? Hearing these words, the shrine maiden shed a tear.
?Thank you?? Her eyes, drained of all vision, fluttered to a close. She struggled to murmur her final words. ?My power?now flows to you. Not that?you ever needed it. Farewell?miss samurai.? With one final exhale, the shrine maiden?s head fell to the side. The dark samurai took a step back and retracted her katana, leaving the lifeless body of the legendary youkai exterminator to collapse onto the ground. Meira faced away from the one she had slain. Wiping her blade clean of blood, she sheathed her weapon and turned her attention to her prize.
?At last?the ultimate power is mine. After all these years, I have it! It?s mine?all mine.? Meira abandoned all composure as she giggled with glee and rushed over to the yin-yang orb lying on the ground. Its new master, Meira was free to control it as she wished. Concentrating her mind, the young girl willed the orb to raise above her. She couldn?t help but laugh.
After all these years, things are finally going my way. Nothing can stop me now! I am all powerful! ALL POWERFUUUUL!
?Ha?ha?ha??
SPLASH
?Ha-?!?
---
With a jolt, Meira flailed her limbs before raising her head. Her mind was hazy, her vision blurry. For reasons she did not understand, her clothes were now dripping wet.
?Wwwwhat happened?? Where?? Shaking her head, the samurai girl glanced back and forth. Wherever she was, it was not where she was a second ago. The orb she held above her was gone, the shrine maiden?s body, vanished. It was then that Meira noticed she was leaning against a tree.
?O-oh?I must have been dreaming.? She rubbed her eyes and let out a groan. Now that she thought about it, she did recall taking a short break from her gallant march. I just rested my eyes for a minute. How did this happen? Damn it. She seethed at her lack of vigilance. But why am I wet?
Her senses returning, Meira?s ears picked up a pattering sound above her. Squinting as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she took in the sea of leaves blanketing the forest above her. ?Aah, it?s raining. Right, that?s right?? Meira wiped her mouth clean of what she convinced herself was water and not drool. Though thick, there were gaps in the canopy that let in glimpses of the clouded night sky. One such gap was right above her. Putting two and two together, Meira deduced that she was drenched in the run-off of the leaves high above her. Meira always did hate biology.
Making her way to her feet, Meira wiped the remaining water off her samurai garb. ?Ugh, even this forest sucks. Now my clothes are all muddy?? Spitting to the side to rid her mouth of rainwater, Meira shouted out against the forces of nature, ?Well you know what? You?re hardly the worst thing to happen to me today. You hear me? You?re not going to get me down you stupid forest!?
While Meira was not expecting an answer to her show of defiance, the forest indeed answered her - with a hollow echo as her voice carried through the forest. It was almost mocking, hearing her own words repeated to her. Meira?s fist shook from the lip she just gave herself. Just before she engaged in a thorough elaboration of all the degrees to which trees suck, Meira took in what the echo actually said.
?You?re not going to get me down you stupid forest!?
In hearing her own words, Meira picked up something that caused her eyes to widen. A certain key word triggered a thought in the girl?s brain that made her skin crawl.
Forest?
Taking a tentative step from the tree that splashed her, Meira nervously looked around. There was barely enough light to see, thanks to the countless trees that stood around her. The imposing trees cast a dark shadow over the young girl. No matter where she looked, the identical scenery only fueled the sinking sensation surrounding that word.
Forest?
Meira unconsciously clutched her shoulder and gulped. Another drop of rain dripped onto the base of her neck, sending a shiver down her spine. Meira?s breath quickened as she collapsed to the ground, feeling frantically for the path she was certain she had followed to this point. Nothing. It was only now that Meira became acutely aware of her situation.
I?m lost. I?m lost in the forest. At night.
Gazing into the void stretched out before her, Meira?s voice cracked as she uttered the only thing a young teenage girl in her situation could.
?Oh crap??
---
To be continued...
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*triple-thumbs-up*
No worries, I know how that kind of RL stuff is.
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Oh god, how did this happen? Where did I go wrong?
The young samurai huddled beneath one of the larger trees in the area as she did her best to gather her thoughts. To escape this predicament, she had to calmly assess the situation and decide on the best plan of action.
Why me? Out of all the people in the village, why me, of all people? Th-there must be someone out there who has it in for me, I mean especially. They’re the ones who did this to me. Why must everything bad always happen to me? Damn it damn it damn it damn it damn iiiiiiit-
It was not going very well.
Her original intent for entering the forest entirely forgotten at this point, Meira’s fragmented thoughts were dominated entirely by terror. A good part of her knew that traveling into the forest at night was a bad idea, but Meira had cast off rationality in favor of the power of believing in herself. She made a mental note to never follow such crackpot advice ever again. ..If I ever get a chance to use it again…
Meira trembled in place, her heart pounding. Part of her wanted to scream, another part wanted to cry, and yet at the same time none of her wanted to move at all. It was as if the mere act of moving would cause her to become even more lost. The samurai knew staying in place was just as dangerous if not more so, but fear was the emotion of the moment. An eternity seemed to pass with Meira locked in indecision.
After some time in this state, Meira began to get a hold of herself. First her breath slowed down – not quite to a normal pace but no longer resembling a fish out of water. Following this, the intense trembling lowered in frequency to a low hum. Finally, her heart rate – while still beating faster than usual – downgraded from a bass drum to a low timpani. Having exhausted the range of bodily analogies, the samurai girl took several deep breaths and listened to the sound of rain pattering onto the trees above. The ambiance helped to calm herself down and gather her thoughts.
Okay…okay. Concentrate girl. You can do this. Just think. You’re lost, yes, but you can’t be that far off from the path. One of these directions must lead back to the path. Just…start walking.
Meira nodded to her own advice. She straightened back up and clenched her fist. “I can’t let this forest get me down. I’m a strong, awesome woman, and I’m going to find my way out. I’m too cool to die now!” Psyching herself up (or at least tricking herself into feeling confident), Meira took a bold step forward and gauged her surroundings once more. Same darkness no matter where she turned. Figuring she had a one out of four chance of success, Meira span on one foot and pointed in the direction she came to a rest at. Meira pumped her fists and took the first step towards her destiny.
“I will not be beaten. The cool samurai girl wi-AAAAAH!”
Meira shrieked as she caught something leaping at her out of the corner of her eye. Instinct took over and she leapt backwards, landing in a pose somewhere between a karate battle stance and protecting her eyes from sunlight. Petrified, it took a moment for the girl to realize what she was looking at; More specifically, what she was looking down at.
Oh, it’s just a frog. Meira gulped. That’s only a little better than what I thought it was. Meira was not too fond of frogs. The samurai girl remained perfectly still and kept her gaze trained on her slimy assailant. The frog flicked one of its eyes in Meira’s direction and croaked. Without a second glance, it hopped forward once more and continued on its way. Meira took a deep breath in, gathered her courage, and started forward.
---
Hoot, hoohoohoot
The hoot of an owl resonated through the otherwise quiet forest. Meira looked up from the ground upon hearing it, but soon returned to searching for the path she had lost. The sounds of the last ten or fifteen minutes had been nothing if not monotonous: The drops of rain upon the canopy; the rapid beating of her heart; the faint squelch of her shoes against the moist grass beneath her; the constant thoughts of “Where is the exit? Where is the exit?”
Meira cast a nervous glance back and forth. Nothing had changed since the last time she checked about a minute before. In front of her, behind her, to her left and to her right, there was nothing but trees for as far as she could see. In the time since she began searching for an exit, Meira’s eyes had fully adjusted to the darkness. The formerly vast expanses of darkness were much more visible than they were before, and she could now see about ten meters in each direction. A surprising amount of light streamed through the trees; the combination of light and shadow formed an almost purple hue over the midnight forest. The samurai was not any less on edge because of her improved range of vision however. Though she saw nothing, she had no idea how visible she was to…them.
Hoot, hoohoo
Again! Meira could not help but feel unnerved by the owl’s call. Were it not for its chilling hoot, she could give herself the illusion that she was alone in this dark forest, that this was merely a trial of guts. It was not the owl itself that frightened Meira, oh no. Their eyes were unsettling for sure, but what made her hair stand on end was those more unnatural inhabitants: The youkai.
Yes, those denizens of the forest that Meira had heard of all her life were now closer than they had ever been in her life. The very first thing children in the Human Village were taught in school was that youkai are a human’s natural enemies. Even though youkai walk through the streets daily and may even appear polite, you must never be fooled – if they could get away with it any one of them would snap you up without a second thought.
She had been idolizing them just a bit ago, but Meira was quite scared of youkai. Supernatural beings, they could physically overpower any human. Worse, they were all but immune to physical attacks, leaving normal humans powerless to resist them. Though they take the forms of humans most of the time, the schools taught that they were nothing like humans, and defenseless girls like Meira were regarded as mere livestock. Worst of all, their powers that she fantasized over only a couple hours ago could be used to manipulate any human into their hands.
One youkai rumored to live in this very forest was the dreaded night sparrow. This beast would chirp an innocent-sounding bird song to passers-by. At first the song would be unnoticeable, grating at most. As time went on however, the night path would grow darker and begin disappearing before their eyes. Soon, the bewitching song would cast a sense of blindness over the victim, until the sparrow’s song is all they could perceive. And then, when they are unable to see anything, the song would get louder as the night sparrow drew closer… and closer…until finally…
Meira shuddered. If she were to run into this beast now, she wouldn’t stand a chance. She had spent almost her whole life in the village, safe from the clutches of the more outwardly aggressive youkai. But now…
Hoohoohoo
Now I gotta be careful, or else I’m youkai food. Meira held her arm close to her chest as she continued through the endless sea of trees.
---
Nothing. Still nothing…
The samurai girl groaned as her search for the path continued to prove fruitless. At this point she knew that this must have been the wrong way all along, but turning back was even more depressing. She let out a sigh and decided to continue forward in hopes of finding her own way out.
Man…if only there was any way of knowing where I was. Everything looks so samey I can’t even be sure I’m going straight. How big is this forest anyway? Meira clenched her teeth. After ten more minutes had passed without incident, Meira calmed down enough to find things to complain about again.
Meira took a deep breath in and blew it out in exasperation. She glanced up at the blanket of leaves above her with a look of contempt, and saw something that caught her attention: There was a sizable break in the canopy. Raindrops were still falling, but Meira could make out a few brighter stars in the patches of sky beyond the gap.
Wait a minute… If I can climb through that, I can see where I am in this forest! Meira’s eyes lit up for the first time all day. The samurai girl looked under the gap and picked out a sturdy-looking branch on a nearby tree she could use. It wasn’t exactly the model climbing tree, but there were enough smaller branches to climb a decent way up, at least up to the foliage. With heightened spirits Meira swiftly began climbing.
The cool samurai girl was a bit exhausted from all the events that had transpired that day, but motivation is a great climbing tool, and soon Meira was dangling from the branch she had her eye on earlier. With a grunt, Meira pulled herself onto the thin yet sturdy branch. Meira hugged the trunk for balance and looked up at the gap, which was now only a few feet above her. The light from outside the forest made the opening appear as a halo, and Meira slowly stood up in order to meet it. The young girl’s heart pumped with excitement as she the approached the ray of hope that would lead her out of the forest.
Closer…closer…
…
I…I can’t reach.
Meira’s heart sunk lower than ever before; the canopy met her at eye level. Meira wanted so badly to step over to the mocking leaves and tear them apart, but she didn’t want to lose her grip on the trunk. Instead she seethed at her petite frame. Meira had always admired the image of the tall, long-haired girl with a fanclub of younger girls fawning over her, but her body decided it wanted to be a pathetic 161 centimeters instead. To think that even her own body would be against her at a time like-
Wait, what if there’s another branch above this one? Meira chuckled at how she had missed such a possibility. Meira shuffled up against the trunk, holding onto it tight as she squinted upwards. The tree indeed was unusually thin on leaves, and as a result the next usable branch was over a meter above her. But if I can reach it, I’m sure to be able to see everything! Taking care not to look down, Meira hugged the trunk and resumed her ascent.
I can’t look down, gotta keep my eye on the prize. Go go go girl! The climb was rougher than before due to the lack of footholds, but Meira was a surprisingly good climber. Her scabbard clanged softly as her legs wrapped around the trunk for support. In this way, she lifted herself closer and closer to her goal. Just a couple feet short, Meira’s left hand brushed against a small branch on the other side of the trunk. She grinned at her luck, grasped the branch –
And took in a sharp breath as she grabbed something decidedly untree-like.
Squishy, furry, on a tree- oh god!
Meira yelped and immediately let go of the creature she grabbed, flailing her hand wildly to drive it away. Though she never got a good look at the beast, the high pitched squeaks left no question in the girl’s mind that it was the master of the night; the most dangerous and frightening of all bugs: It could be none other than a slimy bat! Her desperate attempts to keep it away proved fruitless, and the samurai girl saw to her horror a shrieking shadow rush towards her. Instinctively she ducked her head to the right.
The bat grazed her ear with one of its disgusting wings in its escape, but this was far from Meira’s only problem now. The sudden jerk of her head - coupled with her left hand no longer holding anything – threw off her balance enough to cause the girl’s torso to swing and partially twist around the trunk. In only a couple seconds her head had sunk below her right arm. From this position Meira was presented a great view of just how high she had climbed.
!
To Meira’s horror, her remaining hand started to slip from the awkward position. She summoned all her strength and attempted to tighten her grip with her remaining arm.
“No! No! Nono! Noooooo!” Her emphatic protests proved to be of no use, and her arm gave way to the increased weight.
!!
With nothing left to support her, the samurai’s body fell backwards. Tight as her legs were wound around the trunk, they too were unable to handle the stress put upon them. There was a fleeting second where Meira’s descent came to a halt, but then her legs slipped -
And then there was nothing holding her up.
Ohnoohnoohnoohno-
Meira felt a dull thud on her left shoulder blade as she slammed into the branch she had balanced on before. The pain was nothing compared to the twenty foot drop coming into view as her body bounced off the branch. If only she had something to –
There is!
Meira threw her left arm out towards the branch. Her arm rolled off the branch, allowing her hand to grab it. It was nothing short of a miracle.The girl had no time to celebrate however; the momentum of her fall launched her body under the branch. Meira swung for only a few seconds before she lost her tenuous grip on the branch. Because she had fallen away from the trunk, she couldn’t count on any of the smaller branches to save her this time. She was out of hope.
“AAAAAAAA-wh-wh-wha?!“
The biggest shock of all came to Meira when she landed on her feet. She stumbled backwards from the angle had landed. With one final crash, Meira sprawled onto the ground face-up. Her eyes were out of focus from terror, her lungs gasping for air. After a few seconds of this, the panic attack ended as abruptly as the fall. Meira gazed at the gap in the canopy above without thinking a single thought. For one minute she just wanted to sit listlessly, feeling nothing other than her samurai garb soaking from the damp grass.
“Okay, that is out of the question.”
The shaken girl finally found the strength to pull herself to her feet. She winced a bit at the pain. Her legs were rather stiff, but all things considered they fared rather well. She got lucky. Well, as lucky as she could be in a situation like this. Meira stretched to try and relieve the tension in her back, but it didn’t help much.
Well, gotta keep going…
Meira took in a deep breath and continued her search without a second glance at the cruel, mocking opening in the impenetrable darkness. There had to be another way to escape this forest – she just had to find it.
---
It has been a year today since I started this fic on a whim. I would say it's come a long way but...heck, it really hasn't. :P Still, it's been pretty fun to watch Meira grow, or in this case shrink in terror. I'm not sure how well this chapter will be received, but I hope you enjoyed it on some level.
To be continued...
-
Hm... Interesting. I has a theory.
Though I am still wondering which way our errant Samurai is going. And what Kotohime's response will be if Meira doesn't make it home by dawn....
-
I has a theory.
It could be bunnies?
Looking forward to seeing how Meira will find her way out of the forest.
-
I like the balance between the "oh shit I'm stuck" intensity and Meira's usual comic derpery. :3
-
Urameshiyaaaaaaa Surprise! It's certainly been a while. Not only was school really nasty those last two months, but this and that has stopped up the progress of this fic for some time now. I was...thinking, about how amateurish my writing is. There are so many ways it could be better if I were to rewrite it now. More than that, I was worried that I had completely lost the spirit of the story I originally wanted to tell. However, after doing some thinking, I realized that this was the natural order of things. The original path of the story is perhaps one fit for an alternate ending, but it is too late to return to that path. The story has taken a life of its own, and I can only watch and continue writing it to its conclusion. I hope you will continue to join me on this journey.
With my late night ramblings out of the way, let us begin!
---
“Nngh…”
Once again the cool samurai found herself resting against one of the hundreds of trees in the Forest of Magic. A long time had passed since the incident with the tree of false hope. How long exactly was impossible to tell for Meira. An hour? Two hours? Certainly it couldn’t have been only a half hour…in any case, Meira simply couldn’t walk anymore and reluctantly sat down to rest.
*pat pat pat*
She was certainly not happy with sitting still though; even though she had not seen even a hint of a youkai, the eerie silence only confirmed in her mind that the beasts of the forest were there, watching…waiting for her to let her guard down. She absolutely could not let that happen; this “rest” only left her more on edge than ever before. Meira scrunched the area around her eye and groaned; the forest was beginning to take its toll on the samurai’s mental state. She just wanted this all to go away…she just wanted to go home… Meira let out a sigh and allowed her eyes to draw to a close.
*pat pat pat*
Wait, what am I doing?!
Meira snapped back up and brought a fist to her forehead. “Was I really going to go to sleep? No you idiot, that’s exactly what got you into this situation in the first place.” Meira gritted her teeth and did her best to fight off her exhaustion. Meira’s eyes scanned her surroundings, desperate for something to hang onto.
The ground? Meira looked at the moss-covered earth. She hadn’t thought about it, but the mud caused by the rain no doubt had left her samurai robes an absolute mess. And worst of all, after that fall her hair fell into it too…
*pat pat pat*
Finding no further mental stimulation there, Meira’s thoughts turned to the tree she was leaning with. Its bark was rough and pointy, and her neck was starting to get a rash. Why did this forest have to have such antagonistic trees?
…
No, I’ve already thoroughly gone into how trees suck. Something else…
*pat pat pat*
Meira snorted. “This forest is all the same anyway. Maybe if anything looked the least bit different, I could find something. Maybe I could even find my way out. Maybe if-“
*pat pat pat*
“Maybe if this FREAKING RAIN WOULD STOP, ARGH!” Meira pounded the ground with her fist.
She held her head in frustration as she found her object of fixation and growled at the canopy above her. The pattering of the rain, once calming, was now beating into her mind with each passing second. How could she have ever thought this was relaxing?!
Wait a second though. This rain is pretty damn annoying, but aren’t the leaves and branches up there what are really to blame?
That’s right. In the end, trees really were the source of all Meira’s problems. The samurai put “burn the forest” on her list of things to do once she became all-powerful. Yet, the part that really got to Meira was how puny the flora in the forest was.
“I mean, these trees aren’t even that big. If it were anyone else stuck in this forest they could just fly right above these trees and would have been out of here hours ago. They wouldn’t even have to think about it.”
Meira felt a pit growing in her stomach as her thoughts turned to this cold truth. Indeed, the average person in the village could float in the air at will due to their spiritual power. They could concentrate their innate energy into bullets and use them both for show and for combat. The lucky few even had supernatural abilities to make the world turn in their favor. And what do these people do? They just take it for granted. They’ve got all these amazing talents some people would kill for, and they just…use them. It was disgusting. Meira couldn’t help but growl.
Those dorks wouldn’t last one day in my world. Take away their power and they’d probably drown in a well. A full well.
Meira was getting really steamed now. What would they do if they were here, hopelessly lost and scared out of their minds, never sure when their next step could be their last? They’d just curl up in a ball and cry, that’s what!
“Those ungrateful assholes, I hate them!” Meira pounded the tree and curled up into a ball.
…
“God damn it…”
The hot-headed samurai rubbed her temples to nurse her headache. “Why am I even letting those jerks get to me? Those jerks couldn’t survive without those stupid abilities made for jerks. If anything, this just proves how much better I am than everyone else. So why…?”
Meira lifted her head and gazed at the canopy, letting out a deep sigh.
All my life, I’ve seen others fly above the rooftops. All my life, I’ve seen the other kids shoot bullets and make those cutesy patterns with their danmaku. All my life, I’ve had to watch them from below. All…my…life… Meira’s hands balled into a fist.
“But…but you know what? I don’t really care. I don’t! What’s the point of spiritual power anyway, if all you can do is shoot cutesy girly patterns with them? It’s stupid! A true fighter swears by her sword! You don’t need any sissy energy to wield a sword. Those lame-os can keep their stupid danmaku. I don’t need it. I don’t want it!
Then why…
Meira’s lips curled up. “And flying…the flying’s so stupid too. Everyone always looks sooooo happy when flying in the sky. I mean what are they, five? Sure it’d be useful to get out of here, but honestly, they are so lazy! What would they do if they were trapped here like me? That’s right, they’d just curl up and cry, just like I said. Those lazy-ass losers can keep their flying. A real adult doesn’t need such kiddy things.
Then why…?!
Meira noticed her fists were shaking and tried to still them. She looked at the moist ground. “It’s just…why do they have to enjoy this stuff so much? The kids, the grown-ups, why do they all have so much fun with this? It’s all so stupid. So why…?” Meira’s breathing became heavy. “The flying, the danmaku, the flying people and the flying danmaku they shoot, who gives a flying fuck? It’s all so fricking idiotic, so why…why…”
Why not me too?
Meira’s shoulders drooped. She rubbed her eyes, which seemed to have gotten some dust in them. She found her hand covering her eye again.
“God…I feel like shit.” Meira did not like these new feelings of self-loathing, so she decided it must be time to get moving again. Grunting, she struggled to her feet. This mocking forest stretched all around her, but surely there must be an escape to this horrible nightmare.
I’ll prove it them…I’ll prove I don’t need their powers. I’ll find my own way out. Because this is the only way I can be better…I’ve got to do this. Meira did her best to hold back her tears.
---
Man…
Shapes swirled in and out of focus. Her legs could not stop moving, for if they did she would collapse.
Man…
All alertness had faded. The never-ending tension brought by her hidden enemies had taken its toll on Meira, and she finally gave up her paranoid vigil. She hardly even cared anymore if she was caught.
It never ends…
At some point it occurred to Meira that the Forest of Magic couldn’t possibly be this big and she was most likely traveling in circles. Not that she could tell since the forest all looks the same.
“Oh well. What does it matter anyway. Better keep moving…” She could barely bother to keep her eyes open. Her feet hurt and her eyes were dry and the clanging of her scabbard was close to creating a bruise in her leg and she just didn’t care anymore. Sometimes she wondered if there ever was a life before the forest. Maybe she died at that tree and this is hell.
Well, that’s fine then. I don’t care anymore. This may as well be hell. Just let some youkai take me to he-
*Crack*
“AIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!” Meira snapped up and leapt to her side, crashing against a nearby tree. Her gasps for air punctuated the silence as her bloodshot eyes scanned her surroundings for the enemy. Seeing nothing, she took a few deep breaths and let go of her chest.
“W…wha…what was that?” She gazed at the ground and found a small twig. Meira groaned, picked up and threw the broken pieces into the trees.
“Fuck damn iiiiiiit.” The newly awoken samurai shook her head and continued straight ahead.
Wait, was this the way I was heading before?
Meira’s eyes opened wide as she considered this fact. She concentrated as best she could on the trees, the ground…a quick look in vain for the path…nothing she could use to orient herself.
“ShiiiiiiiIIIIIIT!”
I did it again! I’m gonna get lost. Again. Why do I have to be so useless?!
“Grr…I. Can’t. Take. This.” Meira rolled her eyes around her.
This forest, it’s said nothing to me! Not a single sign of the way out! Why is everything so silent? Why won’t it say anything? Am I not good enough for it? Then why won’t it let me out? Why won’t it let me out? WHY WON’T IT LET ME OUT?!
“God, something, happen alreadyyy! I wish Noroiko would just pop out or something already so I could relax. Anything, damn. This tension is killing me!”
Meira froze at this thought. Did she just…wish for her sister? That psychotic little snot that attacked her and ran off into the night? She really must be going crazy! She shook her head and stormed forward.
*pat pat pat*
*pat pat pat*
*pat pat pat*
You know, she’s not so bad, Noroiko. Meira’s expression softened. I mean, sure we have our fights, but…is she really that hard to like? The samurai’s weary mind drifted…
---
”King meee!”
“No no Noroiko, that’s not how you play Checkers!” Meira grabbed her little sister’s hand, which had attempted to move a piece to the other side in one go. The young toddler pouted.
“You move it diagonally, remember?” The younger sister tilted her head. “Die a gone alley?” Meira moved her red piece up and to the right. “You see? Like that. Di-ag-on-ally.” She moved it back.
“Now it’s your turn.” Noroiko slowly nodded, picked up the piece she had attempted to move before, and moved it diagonally to the other side of the board.
“King meee!” Noroiko’s grin was insufferable. Meira did her best to control her temper.
“No! Move it back!” She forced her kid sister’s hand once more. “You can only move one space at a time!”
“Wha? But that’s booooriiiing.”
“It’s the rules!”
“Rules are booooriiiiiiiing.”
Meira nodded. “Yes, exactly!” She paused. “I mean, yes, yes they are, but in this case you have to follow them, otherwise we can’t play.”
Noroiko puffed her cheeks. “Mmmmmwaaaaah. Fine!” She picked up the piece once more, glaring at her older sister. She then slowly and deliberately moved it one space diagonally.
“Good! Now it’s my turn.”
---
“Wha? No fair! You moved two spac-HEY! GIMME MY PIECE BACK!” Noroiko pounded at Meira’s arms as she retrieved the piece she captured.
“You jump over pieces to capture them. What, I didn’t tell you that yet? Must have slipped my mind.” Meira flipped the piece and caught it, a big smirk on her face. Noroiko’s eyes looked as though they could kill, or at least curse.
“Fine then! My turn!” The enraged toddler took one of her pieces and moved it over another piece several spaces away and snatched it away. Meira was stunned.
“No Noroiko, no! NO!” She reached for her piece, but her little sister was too nimble. The young girl fell instead on the checker board, knocking the pieces out of alignment.
“Oooh. See what you did Noroiko?!”
Noroiko crossed her arms and looked away. “You fell, not me!” Meira couldn’t say anything to this but growl. “Nngh. Fine, just help me put the pieces back.” Noroiko dropped her angry face and set to work helping. Within a minute, the pieces were more or less returned to their original positions.
“Alright Noroiko. I put that piece back, so it’s your turn again. Only jump pieces next to yours, okay?”
“Okay!” Her chipper voice should have immediately alerted Meira that something was up, but not until it was too late did she notice that Noroiko had replaced one of her pieces right next to the end of the board.
“King meee!” Meira could only gawk at what just happened.
“King meee!” She felt a nerve snap.
“What’s wrong? King meee!” Something about those sparkling eyes just…
Meira’s hands balled into fists. “No! I will NOT king you! In fact I’m gonna DECK you if you don’t shaddup!” Meira bent down to throw the piece across the room when-
*THWACK*
Meira froze as she took a deck of thrown cards to the forehead. Noroiko covered her mouth and giggled incessantly, but Meira could no longer hear her. She couldn’t feel the dozens of cards fluttering down over her hands, over the ruined checkers game. All she could feel was the blood in her veins writhing, boiling. All she could feel now…was hate.
“AaaaaAAAAAAAAH!” Meira pounced at her sister, who deftly moved out of the way. A loud thump resounded. She scrambled to her feet and whipped her head to meet her opponent, and was met with a card thrown straight to the bridge of her nose. Incidentally, it was a king.
“Ah-! Youuuuu!” This time Meira charged her sister on foot – or at least she intended to. In reality she took one step and slipped on the pile of checkers pieces and was sent tumbling to the ground. While she tried to catch her breath, Noroiko trotted up to her fallen sibling and stepped on her back, then rolled over her.
“Captured you! Now you’re mine!” She cackled to herself.
Meira seethed, but saw her chance. She made a grab at her sister’s legs and jerked them backwards. The lightweight toddler didn’t stand a chance, and crumpled to the ground.
“Ha ha ha, I got you now you little brat!”
“Wha-wha-whaaa. Meira, that’s cheating! Waaaaaah!” She kicked her feet in vain. Meira rose up over her sister, maintaining her grip on her little sister’s legs. She lowered her head above Noroiko.
“You said it yourself Noroiko: Rules are boring.” She grinned.
“Now it’s time to play wheelbarrow!” Noroiko’s eyes opened wide and she struggled. “Nooooooo!”
*bang bang bang*
“Girls, what are you two doing in there?!”
Both girls spoke in unison. “Nothing mother!” Eventually the image behind the sliding door sighed and walked away, and the pair instantly returned to the eternal struggle, grinning all the while.
---
Meira sighed, a wistful smile on her face. “She can be a real pain sometimes, but…I guess she only ever wanted to have fun.” The lost samurai’s eyes narrowed in sadness. “I admit…I had fun, too. Noroiko…will I ever see you again?” She sniffed.
And mom too. Oh god, I didn’t even think of mom. The samurai’s thoughts turned to the tyrannical matriarch that was her mother. The one that always stood in her way and talked her ear off over every stupid thing.
But, was she really that bad?
“She’s quite a pain, yeah…but she’s always been good to me, huh… She’s never tried to throw me out, she never asks me to do any chores…” Meira sighed.
“Maybe she was right to lecture me all these years. After all, where I am now…” Meira’s lips curled into a sardonic smile.
Meira’s eyes refocused and she noticed that she had stopped walking. That was fine; there was no point in trying anymore. All she could bring herself to do now was stare at the impenetrable forest in despair.
What is she going to think when I’m not there tomorrow? When she finds out I’m gone, she’ll freak out, she’ll be hysterical! It will be just like with father!
Something clicked in Meira’s mind. It’ll be just like with father. A shiver ran down her spine as a long repressed memory began to surface.
“Just…like…father…”
---
“Cmon Jack! Kick that big bad eye’s butt!” Meira kicked her legs under the kotatsu as she read her favorite comic book by the light of the morning sun.
“Meira, please don’t use language like that in the house.” Meira narrowed her eyes at her mother, who had been pacing around the room nervously for the past hour.
“Moooom, it’s not a bad word; it’s cool!” She had gotten up early so Noroiko wouldn’t be up and making noise as usual, but now she had her worrywart mom to deal with instead.
“Meira dear, please, not now.” She eyed the door again for the third time in as many minutes. The young girl rolled her eyes. “Moooom, dad’s gonna be just fine. He’s just a little late coming home is all.”
“Very late!” She stamped her foot toward Meira. She took a large breath in and regained her composure. “I-I know he often comes home late when he goes out hunting, but this is far too late! Where is he?!” She fiddled with her shirt collar.
Meira huffed. “Then yell at him when he comes home, not me!” She buried herself back into her comic book.
“Gwa ha ha, it’s over for you Jack! Now all of the lands of Japan are miiiiine.” She turned the page. “What do you have to say puny samurai? Cower before the great Mastoff! Gwa ha haaaaaaa!” Meira grinned in anticipation for her favorite part. The blood-soaked face of the titular samurai gave the evil eye a steeled glare as he supported himself with his long, equally blood-soaked katana.
“Where do you get off, Mastoff? Japan can’t be owned by the likes of you! This is a land of honor! This is a land of freedom! It can only belong to the strong and cool, like me!” He rose to his feet, a powerful aura growing around him. Meira voiced her favorite line of the whole comic:
“On my honor, I, the cool samurai guy Jack, will not give up Japan to the likes of you! PREPARE YOURSELF MASTOFF!”
”Meira, please.” Meira was shaken a bit by her mom’s outburst and nearly dropped her comic.
“M-mom…” She was not used to being yelled at like this; tears were welling up. Her mom’s eyes softened, but Meira didn’t give her time to say anything else.
“FINE, I’LL GO AWAY THEN!” Meira snatched up her comic, hopped to her feet and ran to her room.
---
“S-stupid mom...” Meira was sitting on her bed, hugging her knees. “Why’s she always got to think about herself? Doesn’t she care about her daughter?” She sniffed.
Meira didn’t get why her mom was worried - Her dad was awesome! Every week him and his drinking buddies would go off and fight the evil youkai surrounding the village, to protect us all. He was amazing – almost as cool as Jack. He’d always come home with tales of near escapes and stunning victories over savage youkai, showing her his battle scars and letting her feel his muscles. A man like her dad would never do anything selfish like die, and she loved him for it. Someday, when her spiritual energy awakened she wanted to be just like him, wandering the outskirts of the village and driving off the bad guys.
Meira giggled, her tears having already dried up. “What’s holding him up I wonder? Did he chase the youkai all night? Have fun drinking afterwards? Getting a present for his favorite daughter?? Aah, I can’t wait for him to come home.” Meira grinned. Until he came back and settled down her fretful mom, she just had to settle with her fictional idol. She flopped onto her stomach and picked up where she left off.
“Gwa ha ha, what a foolish samurai you are to oppose the great Mastoff! Prepare to meet your honorable doooooooom!” The titanic eye demon fired a powerful beam, which the cool samurai guy jack deflected with his katana like a badass. With a mighty shout, Jack jumped forth.
Several panels of incomprehensible movement (but many loud sound effects and colorful explosions) later, Jack was on the counterattack. The golden aura around him intensified as he made a cool samurai pose, his katana balanced on his free hand and pointed straight at the iris of his adversary. He charged forward with a mighty cry in untranslated English:
“Jack attack!”
Meira giggled at her hero’s catch phrase. She didn’t understand English, but it sure sounded cool.
The young samurai fangirl heard the faint sound of a door opening. “Aah, there’s dad. I’ll go say hi after this.”
“Gwa ha ha! You fool! You have fallen right into my trap!” Mastoff leered and fired a colorful laser beam at the samurai charging at him.
Gritting his teeth, Jack leapt forward and thrust his katana forward.
“Gwa ha ha, die samur-aaaaaaai?!”
To Mastoff’s shock and horror, Jack pierced the beam with his blade, cutting it in two. Meira squee’d in her mind at how awesome Jack was, as though she hadn’t read the issue a hundred times before. Once again she had to voice the awesomeness.
“THE COOL SAMURAI GUY JACK WILL NOT-“
“MEIRA!”
Meira yelped as the door to her room slammed open. At the doorway was her mom, her breathing labored to the point of hyperventilation. Argh, again you have to ruin my fun? She scowled in contempt.
“Moooom, what now? Did dad tell you o-“
“Meira…Meira…!” Tears were streaming down her face. Meira blinked. “Mom…?”
“Meira, Your father…he’s…” Meira’s mom staggered over to her and collapsed by her bedside. Meira didn’t understand – what could have happened?
“M-mom, what is it? What about dad?”
“Y-you’re father…he’s…he’s…” Her mom wiped her tears. “Your father is…”
Meira’s eyes opened wide.
---
Meira still felt the bitter taste of that morning when her father did not return from his weekly hunting game. One of his friends appeared before them, covered in deep gashes, to break the news of his death. Never before or since had Meira seen her mom look so devastated. For over a week after the funeral, she stayed in her room. She left her bed at most three times a day; she wouldn’t eat, she wouldn’t cook, it was a rare occasion she would do more than mumble in response to Meira’s attempts at communicating. It was then that Meira began to distance herself from her wreck of a mom. Even after she recovered, Meira never forgave her mom for such a self-centered period of weakness and neglect.
For her part, Meira was of course broken by her father vanishing from her life. He was her role model. Her hero! He wasn’t supposed to die like that, so soon. It tore at her every day as well.
Yet, Meira refused to let herself cry at his burial. While her mom buried her face in her hands and Noroiko tugged at her sleeves, still too young to fully understand what was happening, Meira could only stare at the casket with steeled eyes. She knew her dad wouldn’t want her to cry. Instead, she had to get strong, to grow powerful, to make her father proud.
But mom, she never wanted that. It’s always been “come home by supper” this and “don’t wave swords around the house” that and “surely you don’t think that is sanitary” all the time. Never was she allowed to follow her dreams. Why…?
Meira closed her eyes and let out a distressed sigh. Her legs sank to a sitting position (getting her robes further muddied). With all the stress of being lost, of the endless trees, and from looking for youkai predators, Meira’s mind was too exhausted to care about the forest any longer. The samurai gave in to exhaustion and let her mind wander once more among her memories, looking for a pleasant memory to latch onto in her final hour.
*pat pat pat*
*pat pat pat*
*pat pat pat*
A rare embrace from mom… That felt nice…
---
“Mom? Wha-what are you doing?”
“Meira…I love you.”
“Wha- Mooom, you’re embarrassing me! I’m not a little-“
“Meira, please never leave me…please don’t throw your life away like your father…”
“…Don’t tell me what to do!”
“Please Meira…just lead a normal life. Don’t throw it all away over senseless pride…promise me…*sniff*”
“…”
…
“A-aaaah!” Meira gasped. Her hands were cupped over her mouth. “What mom said…she meant…!”
Live a normal life…that’s what my mom wanted? But…but I’ve never…aaaaahoh my god
True, this was always an implication from her mom’s constant disapproval of Meira’s behavior, but Meira had never seriously stopped to think just why this was until now. It’s so obvious now… Her father’s dangerous lifestyle, concluded by a violent death…why wouldn’t she disapprove of her daughter following his path in life? Her mom wanted only for her two daughters to live a comfortable life.
“Mom…only wanted us to be normal…” Well, that’s all well and good for her, but Meira, who desperately wanted power to match and surpass everyone, couldn’t possibly live with that. Without power, she felt beneath everyone. If she couldn’t get stronger…
“…AAH!” Her arms started shaking, her mind practically shattering over what she now realized.
I’ve wanted power so badly. I’ve searched for it for so long…I’m nothing without it! I NEED it to be worth anything! But…
“Promise me…”
But…!
“Just lead a normal life…”
…
I never saw that there was someone who accepted me all along… Tears began welling up in Meira’s eyes. “Mom…you’ve only ever been looking out for me…you never hated me. But I…I…” On the verge of tears, the samurai brought her quaking hand over her eye.
*pat pat pat*
No! What am I doing? I can’t let myself be brought down like this. I’ve got to…got to keep moving. I can’t believe I’m doing this melodramatic shit. I’ve got to calm down. I’m going to find my way out!
Meira attempted to tame the tremors reverberating throughout her body and forced herself to her feet. Her vision was cloudy from tears, but if she just started moving…
*step*
Surely she could escape…
*step*
She would be able to prove her strength, something that…
*shiver*
That…
*shiver*
“Oh god…” Meira brought her hands over her face.
I’m…such…trash…
Meira collapsed to her knees. Her chest was heaving; she couldn’t control herself any longer.
“Wah…Waaaaaaaaah…wa-waaaaaah!” The tears…they wouldn’t stop. But Meira couldn’t care less at this point.
“Mommyyyyyy! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! I’ve been so…so stupid! I-I…oh god, I want to go home! I want to see you again! I don’t want to die! I want to live! Please, let me out…let me out…” Meira wept bitterly into the night.
“I’ve been so blind…I’ve been…so…blind… I want to see you all again…Noroiko…mommy…Kotohime…Ms. Kamishirasawa…”
Meira choked.
“…Well, not Ms. Kamishirasawa, but…ooh, I’m so stupid.” The formerly silent forest now rang with the laments of the broken samurai.
“All this time, I could have just lived normally…I would have been fine that way. Why did I insist on following father? I wanted power…I wanted power?! Well look where it got me! STUCK IN A FUCKING FOREST!” Meira dug her nails into the ground as she crumpled into a pitiful wreck.
“I’M SORRY! I’LL BE GOOD! I’LL BE A GOOD GIRL FROM NOW ON! So please…somebody…help me…help me…”
*sob*
*rustle*
Meira’s heart stopped.
What…was…that…? She gulped. She prayed it was just another bat.
*rustle*
Meira’s breath quickened. It was faint, but she could hear a wooshing sound, almost like…wings. Slowly she lifted her trembling head and looked up. Her eyes nearly popped out of her head.
The first thing she saw were the wings she had heard. Short, thick, batlike wings. The next thing she saw was the body – or, what could be called the body. A small, round green center about the size of a soccer ball.
Of course, Meira could no longer notice the center without seeing it for what it was – a single large eye. With a somehow menacing look, the eye stared back at Meira, its “whites” actually blood red. There the green cyclops hovered, without making a sound.
Meira could feel her breath receding. A youkai. A youkai had finally found her. A large, creepy, no doubt slimy youkai had found her. A big scary eye had found her. And it was looking
Right
At
Her.
And then it moved.
“H…HYAAAAAAA!” Meira nearly fell backwards as she scrambled to her feet and ran as fast as her legs could carry her.
---
Countless trees whirled in Meira’s vision as she ran for her life. Were these trees ones she had passed by already? Meira couldn’t even think straight, and it didn’t matter anyway. All that mattered is that she run, run until she could run no more.
ohgodimgoingtodiepleasedontletmedieaaaaaaah
Meira was functioning on pure adrenaline at this point. It was all she could do to weave and avoid smashing into the trees. Several times she nearly lost her balance and grazed the sides of a tree. She couldn’t afford that. She could not afford any mistakes.
No, no, this can’t be happening…THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING!
It was a pure nightmare. Meira, a girl who had never known true hardship in her life, now ran like prehistoric women must have ran from a savage tiger. At this moment, her thoughts echoed that of said woman: “I have to keep running or I am going to die.”
Someone, anyone, help me! I’m not strong enough…I can’t win on my own… Meira desperately wanted to shout these words, but was terrified that she would only attract more attention from youkai. So all she could do was run. So she did. She ran and ran.
Meira’s feet carried her for several minutes afterwards, deep into the forest. She never once stopped for a breath, never even stopped to change direction. Never before had she exerted herself so much, but she knew she couldn’t stop, or else she would surely perish at the hands of that horrible beast. Maybe it wasn’t as big as the youkai she had heard of, maybe it wouldn’t be all that intimidating if she could fight back, but as far as the defenseless Meira was concerned, that eyeball was a shinigami coming to take her life away. She had to run. She had to run…
Finally, Meira’s strength began weakening. Her lungs felt as if they were being punctured with knives.
Oh god, I can’t keep this up much longer. Is it still following me?
Still running, Meira whipped her head the other way. It was difficult to see in this light and at this speed, but she couldn’t see the beast. Did she lose it…?
“Ah-!” Before she could see what she hit, Meira was sent tumbling through the air. Her lower leg hurt like hell, but worse was what she saw as she looked forward: A large tree stump. At this rate…!
NO!
Meira brought her arms up to her head. The gambit paid off, as her arms took the brunt of the impact. It hurt, but she could deal. She grunted and pulled herself back to her feet. She immediately regretted this action, as she stumbled sideways back against the tree stump. She took this temporary immobility as a chance to catch her breath.
“Hah…hah…guess this…is where I get off. Ooh…” It was only now that she was off her feet that she felt the agony she had just undergone. She rubbed her calf gingerly, hissing as she did so.
With this momentary peace, Meira took in her new surroundings while she waited for the throbbing in her legs to stop. She had stumbled into a clearing of sorts, thirty, maybe forty feet in each direction. For whatever reason, all the surrounding trees were cut to nothing but stumps, allowing Meira to get her first good look at the night sky in hours. It was…almost man-made. In any case, the view of the cloudy sky was a welcome sight for the weary samurai. If it weren’t for the eye demon –
Oh god! Meira whipped her head in all directions. There was no sign of the beast, and chances are she had run hundreds of feet from there. There’s no way it could have followed her.
“I…think…I…lost it…” Meira drooped her head. Her long hair fell into her face, but she didn’t care. She had survived. She was a survivor. The joy of being alive made up for the hours of torture she had been subjected to. The beautiful sky was bringing back hope to the girl’s heart. She took in the clean summer air into her lungs and let out a large sigh.
“Siiiiiiiiigh. I’m alive…I’m still standing. Heh heh…ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha-!” She pulled herself to her feet, her legs having recovered.
“I’m alive! I lost the youkai! Yes…YES!” She pumped her fists in the air. She felt better than she had all night, nay, for a long time now. “I did it! I outwitted the beasts! I’m not helpless after all! Ha…Ha!” Meira looked at her hands, which now felt like they were pulsing with energy. She grinned.
“I’m not worthless…I’m-“ Any further shouts of jubilation were abruptly cut short by a sharp blow to her back that sent her sprawling onto the grass.
“What the-?!” Meira quickly flipped onto her back and gasped. There it was, as though it had never left: The eye demon, and no worse for wear after the chase.
Shit. What did I just learn not to do. Noise. Why did I make noise. Shit… The pit that had dug itself in Meira’s stomach all night burrowed deeper than ever before. She gulped, backing away with her hands.
*rustle*
“Wha-wha-“ Meira looked behind in horror as another, nearly identical eye demon appeared as if from nowhere. She looked between the two youkai flanking her, unsure of what to do. Quickly she leapt to her feet and tried to make a break for it.
*rustle rustle rustle*
“No…” Meira’s eyes widened as three more of the cyclopean horrors emerged from the dense foliage in front of her. She slowly stepped back into the center of the clearing. The five red-eyed monstrosities spread out and surrounded the clearing. She looked around herself desperately, but the clearing was simply not big enough – there was no opening in their formation. The five monstrous beasts looked upon her with looks of pure relish; there was no question as to their intention. She wasn’t sure what an eye could hope to do to her body, but…she shivered.
Is this…how it ends? Am I finished? Meira brought her fist to her chest. She was trapped, trapped by a pack of youkai.
…
No…I won’t let it end like this! I must fight back. I’ve GOT to fight back!
She had no choice but to fight…
Can I…can I really do this…? Meira gritted her teeth. She didn’t have much of a choice. The forest had finally had its fill of the samurai’s fear. This pack of youkai was its call to arms. Now was the time for her to prove to the world just what kind of a person she was. She had to kill. It was death, or die. No prisoners! One side would fall! It was her, or them!
“Bring it on…the cool samurai girl Meira…*gulp*…accepts your challenge!”
---
Maybe I was hitting this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8q-P-bcKQiM&feature=related) song a liiiiiiittle too hard there. ;^_^ In any case, I hope you enjoyed the fruits of my labors.
Will Meira overcome the devious denizens of the destructive deciduous...uh, forest? Or shall all her efforts and epiphanies end in tragedy? Find out in the next episode of:
Samur Eye Z!!!!!!!!
-
Samur Eye Z!!!!!!!!
http://mirrors.rit.edu/instantCSI/
Awesome chapter, as usual.
And once again, she proves herself to be even more self-absorbed than Karkat Vantas. That said: NOOOO, CLIFFHANGER
-
Welcome back! Once again, I am Ninten "Cannot keep to a schedule" Donut. As for my excuse, Tsukihime. Damn chapter lay in an 80% completed state for a whole month. >_< In any case, I hope you enjoy!
---
Meanwhile...
The Forest of Magic lay in a peaceful state of rest. The light rain pattered against the thick canopy, lulling all within with a natural melody. At times a wind would race across the tree-tops, causing the leaves to sway gently, as if rocking itself to sleep. Truly, this night was out of a dream. Quiet. Calm. Serene...
And that was exactly the problem.
?Ka-go-mee, Ka-go-mee, the bird in the cag?ggggge..!?
One of the few things to punctuate the scene was a young girl, hopping down the path from one foot to the other on each syllable of a classic folk song.
---
??Ka-go-mee, Ka-go-mee, the bird in the cagggggge. Whe-n, whe-n will you?comeout?ah?? Noroiko stuck out her tongue. Why wouldn?t the rhyme work like it always did?? Not to be stopped, she continued her jaunty hop, doing her best to make the words work.
?Ka-go-mee, Ka-go-mee??
Had the girl been supervised, a second party would no doubt have told her she was singing to the tune of ?Sakura Sakura? rather than ?Kagome Kagome.? Alas, no such luck. But misattributed lyrics were hardly the only thing vexing Noroiko. She simply could not believe this place! She must have walked through the whooooole village without finding anyone out and about!
She checked the streets?nobody there.
She checked the park?nobody there either.
She checked the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker, nothing!
And they insist night is the adult?s time, hmph!
Noroiko kicked the ground, raising up a clump of dust from the worn path. She took this to mean that adults were all sleepyheads. Yeah, they must have made up ?bed-time? so they could snore loudly every night without her getting her fun. She was just about ready to give up and go home.
But then, right as she strolled into her home street, she remembered what the grown-ups always said while shaking their finger:
?Don?t you go near that forest! The big evil youkai live in there! They would gobble a little girl like you up in a second!?
That?s right; monsters are in the forest at night! Noroiko grinned in glee and galloped off to the forest as quick as her legs could take her.
The talk of the cool kids at school was about such mean and creepy crawlers that stalked the woods at night, looking for humans to snap up like a box of Meira?s hidden pocky. Kazuki at school once told her of this night sparrow that took away your eyes, making you unable to see anything as it gored you and broke your bones one by one. That sounded soooo cool! She really hoped to find one to take home.
But?
Nobody was here either! Were even the monsters too sleepy? She couldn?t believe this world.
And I was so hoping to play with them some more?
She clutched the front of her knee-length purple dress and took out a stack of paper slips.
Earlier that day, Noroiko had discovered a wonderful thing in her daily rummaging through big sister Meira?s stash of goods. Hidden among the pointy arrows, the strange metal boxes with letters she couldn?t read and other interesting junk, Noroiko found this stack of flimsy slips. She was about to pass them over, but?it was hard to explain. Her hands wouldn?t move from the stack once she touched them. It felt as though they were?calling her. She had to have them.
?Noroi?? Noroiko traced the kanji from her name that adorned the top of the first slip. It meant ?curse.? It was a bit hard to see in the forest, so she squinted in order to look at the rest. As before, pure gibberish; squiggly lines that meant nothing to her. Even so, she could feel a mighty spirit living in them. As she held the thin slips she thought she could hear a voice enticing her to recite the ancient incantation in order to unleash untold evil, pain, and suffering unto the world.
They?re SO cool!
Noroiko giggled and hugged her new friends. Now all she needed was someone to play with~ She already tested them on big sis Meira, and she was totally flattened.
?Ka-go-meeiraa. Ka-go-meeiraa.?
Someone has to be in this forest! They?re just waiting for me to find them!
Noroiko knew there was something else here, because out of nowhere she kept hearing this faint wailing in the distance. But, she wasn?t stupid enough to leave the path to follow it. You?d have to be a complete idiot to do that.
Noroiko shrugged. She was not tired at all, and she had energy to spare. She continued down the path, eager to find her prey.
?Yo-u-kaiii, yo-u-kaiii. When oh when will you come out~??
---
???
?Hmm???? Noroiko stopped in her tracks. She thought she heard something in front of her. Could it be her prey come out to play?!
??So boring here??
It was! Something else was coming along the path! Noroiko hopped to the left and fished the curse slips out of her pocket. She shuffled under a tree to hide herself within the shadows. Whatever was coming, it was getting closer!
??Wish something?d happen??
There it is!
She picked out an outline of something about three classroom?s away. Noroiko leaned forward slightly to pick out details. It was difficult, but she could see some shapes?
Whatever it was, its bottom was all flat-like, with long flubby feet. It almost looked like those thingies?you know, the things! The funny shelled animals that cower when you tried to flick them?turtles, right! But there was more?on top of the shell there was a small, humanish shape. It looked like it was holding something long?like a sword? Yeah, a sword! It had to be! Then?this thing?must be a half-turtle, half-human swordsman youkai!
It?it?s better than I could have hoped for?!
Noroiko clapped her hands over her mouth and hopped up and down. She could see it now?
?Oh my goodness! A YOUKAI, AAH! >o<? Mommy waggled her arms.
?Don?t run away mommy, it?s my new pet! I beat it up and now it?s ours! =D? I beamed at my pet turtleman as it rubbed against me.
?Oh my gosh, it?s so cute!!! Norry, you are so brave! ^_^? *pets*
?Aren?t I? :D? *rubs against hand*
?You?re so much better than your older sister.?
?I know, I know~!?
Said sister appeared with a banana peel on her face. ?Duh, can it do my chores? I wanna swing my sword some more. :B?
?No! -^- Stupid sis can get her own pet!?
?:(?
?Geez Meira, you are such a handful. Why can?t you be more like your younger sister??
?:(?
?Suuuuuuch a handful!? I cackled. ?Don?t worry sis, you?ll catch up someday!?
?;_;?
?It?ll be juuuuuuust like that!? A huge smirk was plastered on Noroiko?s face as she wiggled her arms from side to side.
?Eeh, what was that?? A whiny, high-pitched voice brought her back to reality. She peered again and saw the big lug not one classroom away.
Right! No need to dream about it, a youkai is right here!
Noroiko gripped her curse slips. She began to concentrate.
Oh mighty spirits, speak to me! Tell me what to do!
Though there was no visible answer, Noroiko felt something from the formerly innocuous curse slips. A voice began speaking to her with strange words.
"Необходимо е да се вземе ти силата ми млада.Удари тези, които се осмеляват да не се поддават на моята воля."
Come on spirit, you know I can?t?understand?that?
The young girl?s head drooped, her eyes fluttering to a close. She let off a faint moan as she slipped into a trance.
"Да ...стане едно с мен младо момиче, и да приемат това, което сте родени да предприеме."
It?feels so strange?
Though it was not the first time that night she had called upon the great spirit?s powers, she wasn?t yet used to this feeling of taking in the thoughts of another.
White wisps rose from the curse slips and twisted around Noroiko?s arms, working their way up her small shoulders. Noroiko let out a soft gasp as they penetrated her skull.
I?feel the power. I feel your words.
Noroiko?s head was swimming. It was like apple juice was moving through her head. It felt weird, but it also felt very, very good.
?Yes?we are one now.?
Will it be more of the same then?
?You know what you must do! Burn her?destroy her!?
Noroiko nodded. This feeling?it?s soooo good. All these years, she pouted at the adults who looked down at her just because she was a kid. For so long, she felt like she could never do anything her way. But now she felt it. These curse slips were meant for her. These slips with ?curse? written on them were made for her. This is the power to do everything she?s ever wanted. And she would do anything to keep it.
She would hurt?
She would harm?
She would?
KILL
Noroiko?s eyes flashed open. She spread her arms out, splitting the decks in each hand.
Самонасочване куршума в лицето!
The kanji for ?curse? began glowing a pale white on each slip. As if an invisible bird gripped her shoulders, Noroiko slowly levitated into the air, stopping just short of a low branch. The pulses of energy were much stronger than when she had cursed Meira. Noroiko flashed a devilish grin, unable to resist the tantalizing voice within her. Her hands were quivering with anticipation to obey. She chuckled as her victim drew near.
That?s right you youkai? Come closer?closer?
?Milady, over th-?
?SURPRISE, YOU?RE CURSED!?
Before the beast could do more than yelp, Noroiko dashed forward above the path. She tossed several curse slips into the air. The possessed toddler watched in fascination as they flew on their own at her target even though she wasn?t aiming very well. As if she knew what to do, Noroiko traced her fingers through the air. The slips bent to her command, converging towards the turtle-thing?s center.
?Aah!? The youkai screamed and swerved to the left. The slips missed, and faded into the trees. Hmm, that was a pretty girly scream. Guess it?s a turtle-girl. Noroiko clicked her tongue.
You will not evade us. We have reserves.
She bent her sleeves and more slips flew out into her hands.
?Take this!?
*fwoosh*
Because it was dark, all she could see of her slips she was controlling were the glowing kanji. The youkai dodging them must have only seen a flurry of ?curse.? The top half ducked down and once again the slips sailed over her, this time embedding themselves into the bark behind her. She?s already being driven off balance. Noroiko strafed right to push her prey against the trees.
*fwoosh*
Hee hee, she must be scared out of her mind! Noroiko commanded this volley of curses as well, directing each with one hand to smush her on both sides. To Noroiko?s surprise the youkai cut down the quicker right wave with her sword and dropped down to the ground to avoid the other wave. Another failure.
Grr, if only these could turn faster?!
Noroiko drew more slips and rose up to pin her to the ground. It won?t be long now.
?Gaah, take this!? Noroiko?s snapped back to attention and spotted several sharp-looking red triangles streaming out of the girl-part?s sword. Danmaku! Noroiko swerved her body to dodge, but was too slow. She groaned in pain as the bullets hit her in the chest and dispersed. This girl packs a punch?
Do not falter little one. See the girl? Destroy her!
?R-right.? Noroiko let out a war cry to bear the pain and flung six more curse slips at her target. She gritted her teeth and traced the air with every finger that wasn?t holding on to more slips. Her blind assault directed the slips every which way. Left, left, right, up, down, up. No way that dumb beast could dodge this!
?Kyaaaa!? Yes, a direct hit! A satisfying crackle lit up the darkness as two of the curse slips sapped life force from the girl. Noroiko felt her own power increasing and felt her head grow light. Grabbing another set between her fingers, she reared her arms to fire once more.
*fwoosh*
Noroiko cackled. This was truly heaven. The ecstasy of control, of POWER. She traced this salvo in the same erratic pattern. Her foolish target was still hunched over in pain.
It?s at my fingertips. This is the power no adult could ever know. Yes, burn youkai, burn. Fry until there?s nothing left! This is only the beginning!!!
?Grr, I don?t have to take this! BOMB!?
Bomb??
No sooner did Noroiko pause at this when she was engulfed in a blinding light. She brought her hands to her eyes.
?Y-yaaaaaah! AAAAAAAAAAUGH!? The young girl had no idea what was happening, but every inch of her body was now in extreme pain. She let go of the curse slips and clawed at her body. It was as if every part of her was being pinched.
?Ah, ah, aaaaaaaah!? She couldn?t see; the white light seared her eyes. Please, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop iiiiit!
As quickly as it came, the blinding light disappeared. A thin wisp rose from Noroiko?s shoulders.
?Aah?? Noroiko felt the energy leaving her. With nothing left to hold her up, she crumpled to the ground. She moaned, tears running down her cheeks. Her arms and legs twitched as she tried to lift herself in vain.
W-what was I doing? W-w-who is this thing? Spirit, help me?
Noroiko turned her gaze to the slips she had dropped.
"Уви, това е прекалено силен ...Аз трябва презареждане.Този кораб все още не е достатъчно силна..."
The white kanji on the slips faded away before her eyes. Time grinded to a halt.
S-spirit??
The feeling from before was gone; all that was left were her own voices. Her eyes widened.
Wait, don?t leave me!
She found the strength to reach forward and grip the slips. There was no answer. She shook them half-heartedly.
?No?n-no. Wait, I?? Noroiko sobbed.
She wasn?t good enough for the spirit. Does this mean she was just a hopeless little girl like the big kids said? She thought this was her chance to finally become a grown up, but now?now?!
?What the heck, it?s just a kid.?
!
Noroiko struggled to her feet and looked up. The thing that struck her down was now towering above her. The turtle part gazed down at her with a grouchy face, while the little girl leaned forward and wrinkled her nose. It?it was a person. Somehow this made Noroiko cry even more.
But wait, what was that? At this close distance (only a few desks above her), she could almost make out the girl?s features. She was dressed in red and white robes, and carried a big sword-like thing. She had long purple hair that would have been pretty if it weren?t frayed from the blast earlier.
?Wait?? Noroiko sniffed. Red and white robes, sword, long purple hair??
?
M-meira?!
Noroiko clutched her chest. The pain was already horrible, but, but this was done by her big sister?! Meira?she never felt so hurt in her life. This?this?!
?Wh?WHAAAAAAA, YOU BULLY! I?M TELLING MOMMY!!!? Tears streamed down Noroiko?s cheeks. Bending down and scraping together all the curse slips into her arms, she fled into the trees; she didn?t dare take the same route as Meira. She knew she wouldn?t get lost though. After all, the curse spirit will guide her back home?surely?
---
The girl let out a sigh and stretched.
?So what was her deal?? She twirled her gohei around in her fingers. Those kanji hurt, but she?ll live. There was much bigger fish to fry tonight anyway.
?The forest is full of odd characters milady. Let?s keep moving.?
---
Oh ho ho ho.
Next chapter won't be for a while. Until then, stay tuned when we return to our regularly scheduled madness! o/
-
Oh dear.... I see where this is going. Meira's gonna be sooo ticked.
-
Yayifications! An update!
I saw that coming, but it's still an interesting take on that battle. Hoping to see more soon.
-
Oh man...so Noroiko is the
stage 2 midboss personified?
:o
I wonder what'll happen when Meira finds out...
-
Oh man...so Noroiko is the stage 2 midboss personified?
:o
I wonder what'll happen when Meira finds out...
Also, since I realize the average person wouldn't get it, here is art of Noroiko: http://www.pixiv.net/tags.php?tag=%E5%91%AA%E3%81%84%E5%AD%90
@Donut: Why does the curse spirit speak in Bulgarian? :V
-
Also, since I realize the average person wouldn't get it, here is art of Noroiko: http://www.pixiv.net/tags.php?tag=%E5%91%AA%E3%81%84%E5%AD%90
oh look, there's porn on the first page :V
-
Not for me there isn't..eh probably changed.
-
Nope its still there :V
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oh look, there's porn on the first page :V
Only if you're logged in and set to view porn. :V
-
A happy holiday hello to you all! This chapter was particularly difficult to write, and I'm not sure how well it went. Regardless, this is the way the delicious samurai cookie has crumbled, and I can do nothing but sweep it up and
toss it in the garbage continue baking. Without further ado, here we goooo!
---
*flap flap flap*
Not a word was spoken. Meira could do nothing but turn her head to confirm the demons hadn?t changed formation. The five eyes slowly circled the clearing in tandem, like vultures. Well, she wasn?t going to let herself get picked apart!
?So she told herself while she quivered.
Ooh?my stomach?
This tension could kill. She didn?t dare move, but the eye demons seemed like they were waiting for her. How devious?they must be super intelligent and stuff. Meira hissed.
Okay, what are my options??
With the moon high above, Meira could see everything clearly. She was standing next to a tree stump, one of four in the center of the clearing. It looked like they had been there for a while, but they were quite sturdy ? she had the bruises to prove it. Turning her attention to the edges of the clearing, there were eight stumps arranged in a square formation, evenly spaced out. It was?unnatural.
*flap flap flap*
O-okay, so what do I got. I got me, and I got?uh, me.
Meira clenched her fist. This would not end well.
They?they look flimsy. Ye-yeah, I can totally punch an eye out. This?ll be a snap. Yep. A snap.
*gulp*
Meira turned her attention to the eye now passing through her field of vision. It was perfectly on level with her face. Good. It would have caused problems if it flew too high or too low.
Praying they maintained their distance, Meira crouched into a running stance.
*siiiiiiigh*
Alright, here we go?
*siiiiiiigh*
Just think of Jack?
*siiiiiiigh*
Ready?set?
The eye demon flew past the center of her vision.
*siiiiiiiiii-*
GO!
Meira sprang towards the eyeball. It was only 20 feet away, and she was closing in fast. This oughta ?
!
Suddenly a dark outline of a stump came into view. Meira nearly tripped over her feet and stumbled sideways. Blast. She was so focused on the eyeball she somehow missed the outer stump! But if she can adjust herself rig-
*BAM*
?Aah-!? Meira was knocked down, her head landing only a foot from the stump. The damn thing got her in the ribs. Sucking up the pain, Meira leapt back to her feet to catch the eyeball off guard while it was still at arm?s length.
?Haaaa!? Meira swung with her right fist, but she hadn?t even finished winding up when the beast retreated back into formation.
?Grr?? Meira brought her fist down and rubbed her chest. Damn bastards were faster than she thought.
Meira caught to her left another eye demon; the formation was coming her way. Alright, it?s do or die!
?HIYAAAA!? Like a B-movie actress, Meira performed a spinning jump to her left. She brought her first high and slammed down. Once again the eye dodged out of the way.
Shit-!
Meira was quick enough to extend her legs, and she landed in track meet formation. Her arms rattled in pain.
?Grr, you damn-!?
*BAM*
Her bottom was struck by the demon, sending Meira sprawling to the ground next to another stump. Her muscles felt cramped, but now was not the time. Meira wasted no time in flipping herself over.
?Aah-! Y-you PERVERT! I?m gonna ? WHOA!?
Meira rolled to her left just in time to dodge the eyeball?s slam into the ground. From this distance Meira could see the bloodlust in the demon?s crimson eye. Meira pushed herself to her feet and turned around. She had to retreat for now before it got up!
Wrong way
Meira saw another eye incoming not ten feet away, and she was pretty sure another was behind it. Damn, the formation was continuing to rotate! What now, she had to get away-
The approaching eyeball divebombed towards Meira?s head. She dunked her head and it flew harmlessly over her head. No time for relief though ? the one that slammed into the ground was now up, and the formation was continuing to catch up.
No time to think, GO!
Meira bolted to her right - the only way the formation couldn?t catch her. Meira crossed the center of the arena and hopped onto the southern stump. Two of the eyes to her side predicted this, and dived at her in unison. Meira put all her strength into her legs and barreled forward.
*bamf*
Meira heard a satisfying noise behind her signifying that the dumbnuts hit each other. For her part, Meira landed a good two meters from the stump and pivoted. It seems she made the right move ? all the eye demons were now behind her, sifting back and forth in disarray.
?Ha, see! I can totally do strate-?
The eyes stabilized and adopted a line formation, spreading out across the clearing. They formed a wide curtain, and stared at Meira, unmoving.
?-gy. Ku?? This did not look good. With her pinned to the end of the clearing, she was at their mercy. Meira took a step back, then looked behind her: The darkness of the forest stared back like a gaping maw. Meira shook her head; she would rather die than get lost in there again.
But?this wasn?t working. Meira didn?t consider herself a boxer, and these freaks weren?t intent on being her punching bags. If only she had a weapon?
?!
Wait. If only she had a?
I-if only I had a-?!
Meira?s left hand dropped to her hip. She ran her shaky fingers over the metal scabbard. Adrenaline flowed into the samurai?s head.
?If only I had a SWORD, HYA!? Meira drew her katana from the scabbard and thrust it into the air.
Yes, I totally planned this! NOW we can get down to business. Meira lowered the sword and gripped it with her left hand. She trained it on the center eye.
?Come on. I?m ready for you now you son of a bitch. The samurai is in town.?
*flap flap flap*
The dramatic pose was beginning to give Meira?s arm a cramp, so she swung her katana downward.
*flap flap flap*
Meira snorted and took a step forward.
?W-well, come on! What kind of horror monsters are y-?
*PEW*
?Wha-? Meira recognized that sound. That was the sound of ?
?OW!? A shot of danmaku exploded into her chest. Meira gripped her stomach as a burning sensation welled up. Meira?s eyes flared.
?You cheaters! That?s not how you fight a swordsman! You can?t use bulle- AUGH!? Meira leapt to her left to dodge a second wave.
The sound of single-shot danmaku filled the night as Meira dived behind a nearby stump, bullets trailing her steps.
?Shit, this is not what I wanted?? Meira wasn?t sure how long the eyes would stay in place, but she should be safe for the moment.
Meira beat the damp ground with her palm.
Come on girl, think. THINK! What would Jack do in this situation?
She closed her eyes and tried to control her breathing.
?
Right! Remember issue 41, when he revealed his status as a Judai master? He deflected bullets with his sword!
She stroked her katana and grinned.
Yeah, and then he used his Judai master skills to knock over all the neo-droids. Man, that was such an awesome issue. Meira giggled. If she ever got back alive, she?d have to ?
*PEW*
!
Meira felt a pop at the ground behind her and yelped. She popped her head up from the stump and saw the eyes approaching; they must have got tired of waiting.
*PEW PEW PEW PEW PEW*
Meira?s eyes widened and she dropped to the ground. She leaned against the stump and saw five more bullets sail in quick succession above her head.
?Grr, now?s not the time. But, if Jack did it, it?s worth a try!?
*flap flap flap*
Shoot, they?re getting closer. If I wanna stand a chance, I?ve got to ?
The center eye rose up into the air and targeted her.
?MOVE!? Meira flipped forward onto her stomach, but wasn?t quick enough to avoid getting a bullet to her left calf. She hissed, but wasted no time in hoisting herself to her feet. Meira panted and dashed forward, sword in hand.
Meira ran right from the stump. Pock mocks created from the trailing danmaku kept Meira quick on her heels. Approaching the next stump, she caught a detail out the corner of her eye: The offensive line had closed in on the stump she had hid behind. That means there must be an opening at the corners! Meira planted her feet and dashed to her right to flank them. Sure enough, the eyeballs had left a huge opening at the corners of the clearing. Even better, the left-most eyeball was within slashing distance.
?
No, killing them like this is not the samurai way! I gotta keep my distance so I can show my stuff!
Meira made a running jump past the eyeball. She felt a woosh and cast a quick glance back; it had thrown a clumsy headbutt at her. The other youkai teetered against each other in their attempts to face her.
Hah, take that you creeps!
Meira couldn?t help but feel a bit proud that she was more agile than these superhuman youkai. She reached the other side of the clearing and did a 180 jump. Upon landing, she dug her feet into the ground and crouched like a true samurai. Considering everything she had gone through, her body was feeling quite light. It was almost like she really was a samurai reborn.
In their confusion, the eyeballs bunched together into a trapezoidish formation above the center of the clearing, two hovering above the others. With all five of them bunched together like this?
They?ll fall right into my trap! All right Jack, lend me your power! Meira loosened herself up and gripped the hilt of her katana with both hands. It was time for some bullet deflecting action!
?
*PEW*
?Ah HA!?
Eyeing the glowing pellet, Meira swung her katana like a baseball bat. Somehow this didn?t work.
?Ggh-!? Meira winced; her shoulder was burning.
I can?t believe that didn?t work! Maybe if I-
*PEW*
?Oh shi-? Meira tightened her grip on her katana and swung wildly at the bullet. Yet again she missed, and the pain spread to her left breast.
?Grr?!? The samurai stomped and lowered her katana.
Alright, calm down. That one eyeball in the lower-center is charging, it looks like. Come on, come through for me?!
Sure enough, the eyeball fired another white pellet. Meira brought her katana horizontal to her face to meet it. She couldn?t miss!
*POCK*
Yes, a perfect block! This-
?Ah-AUGH!? Meira recoiled in pain as the blunt end of the katana smashed into her face.
?A-aah, aaaaah.? The samurai stumbled as she clenched her left eye.
?What the hell, wh-what the hell is this??
*PEW PEW PEW PEW PEW*
Meira?s eyes opened wide.
?KYAAAAA!?
Meira tried to swing her sword, but with only one hand on her sword, she only managed a clumsy wave. Miraculously, this blocked two bullets (leaving the other three to singe her torso), but the force left by their impact was such that she almost lost her grip.
?No-!? Meira gritted her teeth and brought both hands to cling to her only lifeline. It just hit her that all this time, the demons were slowly closing in. Shoot, what would a samurai do in this situation??
?
What ELSE would a samurai do in this situation?!
?SAMURAI SPIRIT, AAARGH!? Meira charged the cluster head on, brandishing her katana. If she can?t block, at least she can cut!
*PEW PEW PEW*
?Nngh-!? Meira stumbled as a bullet hit her calf, but kept going. If they were just going to sit there, she would take them down!
Meira readied her katana as she closed the distance between them. Five meters. Four meters. Three, two, one ?
In one swift move, all the eyeballs spread out, creating an arch-like formation.
?Wha?!? Meira almost fell over stopping herself as she ran through them. That is SO unfair!
Wait, I?m in range! Meira saw one of the eyeballs to the right. With a cry, Meira swung her sword to her right.
?Skreeeeeee!?
It connected! The eyeball now hung limply, one of its wings slightly torn. Meira was elated.
?Ha! Take that you little worm!?
?Skruuuuu!?
?Eh-? Disturbing noises now surrounded her.
?Skreee!? ?Skree!? ?Skruuuu.? ?Skrawll!?
Meira gulped. Looking to the sources of the bestial screeches, she realized the arch had reformed around her; they all looked pretty angry. She whipped her head back to the one she wounded. With its blood-red eye, it looked even more pissed than normal.
?Oh crap-!? Meira pulled back her sword and ran forward. She heard various crashes behind her, but there was no time for that! She had to ?
Run? Wait, what am I thinking? I got one of them! NO TRUE SAMURAI RUNS AWAY!
Meira planted her feet and turned around to face the enemy. After their failed attempts to body slam her, they were a jumbled mess.
?Meira Mash!?
The samurai girl lunged. With them all messed up like that, she?s bound to hit one of them! She raised her katana.
*PEW PEW PEW*
?Wha- NNGH!? Meira?s armpits of all things were now burning. Her arms instinctively retracted, and stumbled to her knees trying to catch herself on the ground. Shoot, how had she not seen that coming?!
Meira struggled to her feet and glared at her three adversaries.
?Wait, three? But there?s five of th-?
*BAM*
?Ooh-!? Meira toppled to her left as an eyeball delivered a body slam from her right. It must have flanked her.
Meira grunted, and muttered, ?A samurai never shows fear?!? With some effort, she hoisted herself to her feet and -
*BAM*
?KYA-!? An eyeball opposite the last slammed into her ribs, sending Meira onto her back.
?Fffff?? She shook her head. No sooner did she regain her senses did she see the other three demons sail above her.
?FFFFFFFF!?
Meira rolled to her right. Three terrifying figures slammed into the ground like meteors. Somehow, Meira had managed to avoided them.
?Gck-? The samurai panted as she rose to her feet once more. The eyeballs were slow getting off the ground, but she had to move before they did!
Scanning the field to pick her next move, Meira centered her gaze and realized one of the eyeballs who tackled her had her in its sight.
RETREAT
*PEW*
Meira bolted to her right, barely avoiding the blast.
The stump. I gotta get behind the stump-!
Meira ran at top speed, traversing more than half the clearing. Summoning her dwindling strength, Meira performed a full body dive, grazing one more bullet in midair. With a grunt, Meira landed on her belly, safe behind the stump.
*pant*
*pant*
Meira pulled herself up to a crouch. She rubbed her hands, which were throbbing.
Wait, her hands? But at least one of them should have her ?
Meira?s eyes widened. ?Oh god.?
Frantically, she looked around for her katana. But there was nothing except a few roots and twigs.
??I must have dropped it when I got knocked down back there.? Meira?s words were hollow.
?Ha. I tried to act like a samurai, and I lost my sword. It?s kind of funny how that worked out. Ha ha?ha??
?*sniff*
?Aah? God, why must I tear up now?? Meira wiped her tears away.
Dammit, it?s useless! No matter what, these youkai counter anything I try! I tried blocking their danmaku, I tried rushing them, I tried flanking them, none of the tricks I?ve learned work! And now, I?ve lost my sword, the only thing left that made me a samurai?
Meira clawed at her face. She was a failure as a samurai. Without all the glamour of the bushido code, what good was she? She?s just some pathetic little girl. A piece of trash like her couldn?t hope to defeat five youkai. She was as good as dead.
Meira shivered. Die. Is she?going to die? Is she going to turn into one of those missing persons that people talk about for a day or two in the village, then shrug their shoulders and forget about?
*flap flap flap*
?God, they?re getting closer too?what am I going to do?? Meira fell to her knees and held her head in her hands. Her breathing became ragged. In the end, is this her worth?!
?I don?t want to die. I don?t want to die. I don?t want to die...!? Meira?s teeth chattered.
*flap flap flap*
?I?don?t want to die.? Meira spoke softly. Her breathing calmed.
Was she really that worried about herself? After all the dumb crap she?s said and done, was she still that invested in life?
??I-I don?t want to die.? The samurai girl?s eyes slowly widened. She gazed down at her hands.
?I don?t want to die.?
It?s true. Meira knew how high she was on the scum scale. She was weak, and she was self-centered. She was ungrateful, brash, lazy, and perhaps not the best at thinking things through.
But still, I want to live?!
Yes, there?s still a lot left she wants to do. There are still so many more comic books to read, so many more lessons to complain about?despite everything she had been forced to see about herself that night, did she hate herself enough to wish for death?
?No, I don?t. I don?t want to die.?
Meira felt so alone. For the first time in her life, she was truly in danger. Nobody was going to come for her. Not mom, not dad, not even Jack could help her now. She couldn?t depend on any of them. And since she had nobody else to rely on?
?Clearly, she will have to rely on herself.
Meira raised her head and stared into the expanse of darkness.
?I?m not Jack?perhaps I never will be. Maybe I?m not even cut out to be a samurai. Maybe. However, I know one thing I am for sure!?
Meira clenched her fists. She heard the flapping of the approaching eyeballs. It wouldn?t be long now.
All this time, this wretched body had robbed Meira of everything she ever wanted. But, thinking about it, she has hung on for so long, waiting for that miracle that will change her life. And, maybe she?s not trash! Maybe, someday, she can find the power she desired, and gain the respect she so totally deserved! After seventeen years of being spat on by the world, was she just going to let herself die here, to serve as a snack for some ugly-ass eyeballs?
Well?
Am I?!
?I don?t want to die. I don?t want to die!?
Meira sprung up from her crouch.
?I. AM NOT. GOING. TO DIE!!!!? The forest echoed with her cry.
?Haaaah. Haaaah. Haaaah.? Meira slowly calmed down and quit shaking, and looked at the situation.
The eyeballs had been waiting for her. At some point they spread back out, blanketing the clearing. The closest one, only two meters away, leered at her. Meira snorted and stood tall.
?Sorry to keep you waiting. I don?t think I ever properly introduced myself!? Meira took a deep breath. Who was she, above all else? Beyond the samurai garb, the katana, the hatred, the regret, and all the crazy shit piled on her, who the hell was she?
?I am Meira. I am here, and I plan on living. You got a problem with that? Huh? DO YOU?!?!?
*PEW*
Meira ducked her head left, and the bullet sailed by harmlessly. She brushed her long hair back behind her neck.
?Nice one. Now it?s my turn!? Meira hopped backwards, and ran forward. Using the stump as a stepping stone, Meira lunged at the nearest eyeball. First order of business: Break this offensive line, and get her sword back. The cool samu- no, Meira will NOT back down!!!
---
To be continued...
-
WHOOOO! GO MEIRA! ... you know, I wasn't sure I'd ever end up actually saying that.
-
Excellent.
I give that a 72/96 on the hotbloodedness scale. Keep at it Meira.
-
Gasp! An omake? Here? At this time of the year?! It's more likely than you think!
---
…
Meira ran right from the stump. Pock mocks created from the trailing danmaku kept Meira quick on her heels. Approaching the next stump, she caught a detail out the corner of her eye: The offensive line had closed in on the stump she had hid behind. That means there must be an opening at the corners! Meira planted her feet and dashed to her right to flank them. Sure enough, the eyeballs had left a huge opening at the corners of the clearing. Even better, the left-most eyeball was within slashing distance.
1. Strike now
2. Wait for a better opening
Meira smirked and tightened her grip on her katana.
“Hah, you underestimated me you youkai. Now you, YOU will pay the price!” Changing directions, Meira ran right towards the eyeball, which was off-balance.
Alright, just like you always practiced…
Channeling the inexhaustible spirit of the samurai of old, Meira waved her sword menacingly to her left, like a tiger crouching in anticipation for its prey. Channeling all of her power into her right arm, which held the steel that she staked her life on and trusted to reach out and cut the enemy’s lifeline, she was now ready! Everything seemed to slow down, as though time itself, in its relentless march forward, wished to witness this landmark in history. Meira gave out a mighty yell, swung her tempered samurai sword, and –
?!
It was gone! The eyeball had somehow perceived her attack and dodged! Having thrown all her weight into her arm, Meira stumbled forward.
*BAM*
A blow to her right hip sent Meira flying to the ground. She gasped.
What the hell, I did it like in the books and everything! Meira tried to get up, but stumbled. She planted her katana into the ground and pushed herself to her knees.
*BAM*
“Ah-!”
Another blow to the side sent the samurai into the ground head-first.
“Ooooh…”
Meira’s mind was swimming. She could barely think straight.
My sword…I have to get my…
Meira gasped. Though her vision was blurry, she noticed a shadow above her. No, not just one shadow. There were two, three…four…
“No...”
All five eyeballs had now surrounded her. As her senses returned, Meira once again saw their vicious glares. They were not merciful.
Meira began hyperventilating. She saw her sword, still sticking out of the ground. She lifted her back and reached for it with her left hand –
*BAM*
“AUGH!” One of the eyeballs smashed her back into the ground, breaking her ribs.
*pant, pant, pant*
“No, I gotta…!” Meira reached half-heartedly with her left hand.
*BAM*
There was a sickening snap, and Meira screamed; she could no longer use that arm.
No, please no!
Before Meira could attempt to reach for a third time, another eyeball slammed into her head. Meira’s vision faded to black. Tears now flowed openly.
Mom…dad…I’m so sorry…If only I had been…
One final unseen blow to the skull cut Meira short. As her monologue short-circuited, so too did her consciousness…
END
Teach Me, Keine-sensei!
The bell for class rang. Meira found herself in Kamishirasawa-sensei’s classroom. Her teacher tapped a pointer to her left hand.
W-wha-wha?
She was dead…wasn’t she? She must have died back there. Then why-
“Now now. That’s enough talking everyone. It’s time for Teach Me, Keine-sensei!”
Meira looked around; she was the only person there.
Her teacher looked very different from normal. Rather than her ridonkulous box lunch hat and frilly blue dress, now she was dressed in green and had…horns?!
“Miss Kamishirasawa, w-what just hap-“
“I SAID NO MORE TALKING!”
*BAM*
Meira was headbutted. While this was no different than normal, with those horns…
*gurgle*
Meira held her throat as blood oozed out of the wound. The pain was unimaginable, but somehow she clung to consciousness.
Blood visible on her horns, Kamishirasawa-sensei smiled and continued.
“Now that we are all quieted down, let us begin the lesson!”
Meira made a horrifying gargling noise as she gripped her ruined voicebox. Keine appeared nonplussed as she looked over a paper and clucked her tongue.
“Oh dear Meira-kun, this won’t do! I am happy you are being proactive for once, but you should have known better than to handle a youkai in such a manner. Especially in such a manner."
Keine picked up a piece of chalk.
"Now, what have we learned?"
The teacher turned to the chalkboard and wrote in bold letters.
Poetic Imagery Isn’t For Survivors
Kamishirasawa-sensei shook her head.
“Honestly Meira-kun, you should have watched fewer samurai movies.”
What’s a movie.
“A real fighter must learn their own style, and never be so lazy as to imitate fiction. Remember that in your next life.”
“Yes, never be lazy like a cow! >w<”
A preppy catgirl suddenly popped out of a nearby desk. She had purple hair and wore a green and yellow outfit. Meira was dumbstruck.
“Move fast, like a cat, and you will make history! Real history, not what Keinye writes down! OwO”
Keine smacked her hand with the pointer once more.
“Alright, that’s enough out of you, Hieda no Nekyuu.”
The hyperactive freak bounced from desk to desk.
"Cavegirl!" > 3 >
"Four eyes!" < 3 <
"Horny cow!" > 3 >
"Whitewasher!" < 3 <
Suddenly, the lights went out.
“N-NYAAAAAAA!” >o<
The lights came back on. Meira’s teacher wore a delicate smile that betrayed the copious amounts of blood now splattered on her dress.
“Go back to arithmetic class, you reincarnating rat.” She turned back to Meira.
“Anyway, that is all Meira-kun. Let’s meet again somewhere in Touhou!”
Meira looked around. Nothing happened. Her teacher did not move a muscle.
Finally, Kamishirasawa-sensei returned to her senses and looked around in confusion.
“Strange, that’s not what should have happened.
…Huh.” She clasped her hands together.
"Well, let us begin math then!” With a big smile, Meira’s teacher picked up a piece of chalk.
Th-this must be hell… Kamishirasawa-sensei did have horns…
“Now, if you subtract 'shirasawa' from the equation…” She erased the last two kanji of her name from the board.
“You get 'kami'! That means I’m a god! Isn’t that wonderful class?”
Meira put her head down onto the desk, ignoring the searing pain from her throat as she did so.
This is the end. All is lost…
“KamihamiHAAAA!” Keine giggled like a little girl as she fired a blue laser out of her hands into the mangled corpse of Nekyuu.
All is lost…
---
The moral of the story? Don't write yourself into a corner during a fight scene. X(
Anyway, Meira Christmas everybody! :3
-
XD XD XD XD
I give this update four XD's out of five.
-
Ooh boy. There were so many reasons behind this delay. Difficulty in writing, physical problems, personal problems, college, the works. But, let's toss that aside now, and tune back into our good friend Meira, yes?
---
I'm not the same Meira I was two minutes ago! This time will be different! Here we go!!!
As Meira sailed through the air, she reached forward, grasping at the center eyeball's wings. The demon's eye widened, and backed off. This was exactly what Meira wanted. She dropped her arms and landed gracefully on the ground. With this, there was now more room for her to work with. And she had to use it too - if they crowded her, she'll never get past them, and she'll never reach her sword.
As soon as she stood up, the two eyeballs next to that one rushed forward.
"Kya-!" Meira thrust her palms, meeting the two youkai's charge. The impact was hell on her wrists, but she succeeded in knocking them back.
Not about to let their prey get the upper hand, the center and outer eyeballs rose up and began firing danmaku in tandem.
"Aah- shoot!"
Meira's abdomen and shoulders stung. With the eyeballs at three meters, they were too close for her to dodge. Maybe if she could get closer, she could force the line open. It's worth a shot.
Meira charged forward, waving her hands as menacingly as they could. The eyeball she focused on didn't seem fazed, and smoothly moved to block her escape.. Meira swatted at the eyeball, sidling in vain to outmaneuver it. But it refused to budge, staying at head-level.
"Come on dammit, MOVE!" Not even her best armor-piercing slap seemed to phase it. At least it had stopped firing at this range.
*BAM*
"Aah-!" Meira was knocked backwards to the ground.
Damn, I forgot they did that... Meira pushed herself up, but immediately felt the sting of danmaku as the eyeball resumed.
"Ooh, to hell with it all!" Meira bolted back towards the stump and vaulted over it to lick her wounds.
Argh. And after I made that big speech and everything...
Meira pressed her hands into the soil as she mulled over her options. She tried to ignore the painful bruises from all the danmaku.
Okay, I gotta get past these eyeballs so I can search for my katana, but they're too quick for me to charge through them like this.
Meira stole another glance towards the foreboding trees at the edge of the clearing. She shook her head.
No... Even if I were to try and get past them that way, I'd get headed off. And no way in hell am I taking one step back into that maze.
Meira scowled at the ground. Inappropriate as it was, she momentarily took note of her grimy nails. All this trekking will take days to get out of them...
"Skree!"
!
The center eyeball cleared the stump. Meira sprung to her feet and ran to the right just as her hiding spot was blasted with danmaku.
Shoot, gotta buy some time...!
"Umm, umm...!" Meira teetered backwards, grazing most of the bullets. She glanced at the changing formation: The three eyeballs that were firing flew backwards, while the two which she had palmed earlier had now recovered. With a battle cry, both eyeballs charged.
"Aaaah-!" Meira dropped to the ground, missing the double assault by mere inches. Once more Meira's hands were dirtied by the moist ground.
"Tsk..."
Wait, the soil...!
No time to think it out. Meira clutched her hands, squishing the soil into her palm. She whipped around and came face to eye with the youkai (she'd have to tank the danmaku for now). They narrowed their eye at her and reared back to charge.
"Not this time!"
Meira slinged the dirt at the left one, and then the right.
"Skreee-!"
Bingo, two direct hits! The two eyes writhed in pain, trying in vain to clear their vision. Meira grinned and hopped back toward the stump to take cover from the fire behind her.
Finally, a weapon! Meira hastily scooped up some more dirt. If it meant her survival, she didn't mind playing...dirty!
Meira sprung out of hiding, this time moving to the left. Two of the danmaku-firing eyes were close together - this was her chance!
"Hiiiii-YAH!" Meira reared back her arms and threw both loads with a mighty samurai swing.
...
She missed. Both of them. They didn't even slow down their rate of fire.
Oh crap.
Meira's mind went frantic as she dodged with the finesse of a clumsy aerobics student. What now? She couldn't just hop behind the stump this time; those eyeballs back there will surely recover soon, and then she'll be pincered!"
It was strange, but just then, it felt like there was less danmaku to dodge/get hit by. Meira looked to the right, where the third danmaku eyeball was. It was suddenly a lot closer than when she last looked, and it was moving.
"Uh oh...!"
It wasn't attacking, but she couldn't let it control her zone - that's how they got that loser in Rurouni Kenshin! Meira backpedaled, waving her dirtied hands defensively at the approaching enemy.
"G-get back! Get back I say!"
"Skree!"
!
It's charging!
"Oh shi-!"
In pure desperation, Meira bent her head backwards. Meira held her breath as the eyeball passed within centimeters of her face. She saw the wrinkles of its sickly green skin as its form passed over her. A single band of sweat ran down the samurai's forehead as she exhaled.
I...can't believe it.
*PEW PEW PEW*
A few fresh pock marks snapped the girl back to reality. Meira gnashed her teeth, but...something has finally clicked in her mind.
Man...I can do this! Why did I never see this before?!
You see, Meira had a revelation about a certain quality of hers. A strength that she never knew she had. Heck, it's something she had always complained about. But now, it might just save her life. She clenched her fist.
Come on girl, this is your chance! Let's do it!!
Meira ran towards the two remaining danmaku eyeballs.
I always wanted to be a tall, cool bishoujo, but I guess I'll have to do!
If nothing else, she was catching the youkai off guard. She accelerated, aiming for the small gap between the demons. It was impossible to dodge the danmaku, but she pushed forward with all her strength. It was now or never!
"GO!"
Meira jumped, landing in a crouch a few feet away from the youkai. Summoning all her strength, the samurai sprung forward. Realizing her intent, the right eyeball ceased its fire and slammed downward. But it was too late. The eyeball crashed into the ground as Meira passed clean under it. Meira sadly did not have the ninja skills to finish with a forward somersault, but she quickly scrambled to her feet. She had endured the bullets, passed the eye, and broken their line!
HELL YEAH! PINT-SIZED POWER!!
Now, where did she drop her sword...? It was when the youkai all flew into an arch, so...
Right, the stumps!
Meira ran forward to distance herself from the eyes. As she neared the central stumps, she scanned the ground.
...
There! Meira saw for a moment a small gleam from the moonlight above. She hopped over and sure enough, there it was! She picked it up and held it in her hands in awe. Her katana...her lifeline. She resisted hugging it.
"Don't worry baby, I won't leave you again..." She did a firm practice swing and turned to meet her enemies.
"Come on you bastards. I'm ready for you!" Meira extended her free hand and motioned in a "come on you bastards, I'm ready for you" fashion. No way was she charging into that rabble.
The lead eyeball - the one who tried to block her - met her challenge and charged. Meira steeled her will and held her ground.
Steady...wait until you can see the whites of its eye...!
"Ole!"
Meira shifted to her side. The eyeball zoomed past her, clumsily trying to change directions. With a battle cry, Meira leapt at the eyeball and sliced downward, aiming straight for the center.
"SKREEEEEE!"
Meira winced at the shriek, but it confirmed that she did some damage. It didn't seem to be fatal, but Meira definitely felt a squishy feeling as she pulled her katana back up.
"Hah hah. Not so tough now, are ya?" Meira reared back her arm to thrust her blade into the youkai's back, when it turned to face her. Meira gasped.
Blood seeped down the whites of its eyeball. From the top, all the way down to the iris, there was a bloody gash. The iris itself was deranged, the top collapsed to an oval shape. Meira felt the strength drain from her arms.
"Ah...ah...!"
"Skreeeeee..." The eyeball lumbered forward, its torn eyelid contorting in pain. The veins that were once so pronounced now seemed as if they could pop out at any moment. Meira's knees began quaking, her breath becoming labored. She couldn't move; it was too much.
Is this...is this what this blade can really do?
*BAM*
"Aa-!" A sharp blow from behind sent Meira forward, colliding head-first with the eyeball. The blow, combined with the wounded youkai's pained shriek, caused Meira to crumple to her knees. She shook her head and looked up. That fucking creepy eyeball was replaced with two fresh ones, leering down at her.
"Shit."
Meira propelled herself to her feet and jumped to an open space to her right. She cast a furtive glance to the right, towards the central stumps. She may need to use them soon.
*PEW PEW*
"Aah!" More pain, this time from danmaku. Meira looked behind her, and sure enough, there was an eyeball bringing up the perimeter. More importantly, it was all alone! Meira ducked the next bullet and spun around to face it.
"Aaaaah!" Meira dashed forward, slicing horizontally. The eye dodged up, but it stopped firing. Meira ran under it, turned, and swung upwards.
"Skee-!" Not a clean hit - she couldn't swing effectively at this angle - but Meira saw more blood tinge her sword as it stuck the bottom of the youkai. It turned, frenzied, and divebombed. Meira couldn't dodge at this distance, and took its full force in the face, crashing into the ground.
"Nngh..."
Meira grabbed her sword and rolled over, holding up her katana to block any other assault the eye might try.
*PEW*
*POCK*
Before the samurai could realize her mistake, the sword recoiled into her skull. The samurai cried out in pain.
Kkk, gotta get up...!
Meira found the strength to push herself back up, still reeling from the blow. She took a moment to catch her breath. Why did her arms have to ache so much...?
"Skree!" The eyeball charged forward.
"Kuh!" Meira sidestepped, almost losing her balance in the process.
*gasp*
*gasp*
Dammit, she won't last if this keeps up. She had to put some distance between them so she could recover.
So Meira ran; the eyeball left a huge opening to the south of the arena. Looking to the north, she picked out the three non-wounded eyeballs moving towards her in synch. Where did that wounded eyeball go anyway?
Bah, forget about it. If it runs away, that's one less to worry about. Besides, she did not want to see that...bloody...thing...ever, ever again.
Meira came to a rest at an outer edge stump. Positively breathless, Meira plopped down against the stump, keeping a wary eye on the approaching eyes. The one she just fought had joined the other three. All together, the four had adopted the familiar wall formation and were closing in. They seem to be a bit tired as well, because their pace was slower than it was last time this happened. Still...could she really win at this rate? What she needed was a drastic turn of events.
Like, certainly, she's making some headway. She managed to trick that eyeball and cut it down to size. If she could get behind these eyeballs...
Yeah, yeah... The samurai stroked her chin as the wheels in her head started turning. She was better at this thinking thing than she thought.
...
Alright, they're getting close, so time to make this happen!
Meira grabbed her katana, took a deep breath, and rose to her feet. She crouched into a fighting stance. Any moment now, one of those demons would break formation and charge.
Well, not this time!
"Hi-yaaaaah!"
Meira charged forward, aiming for the center of the formation. The four eyeballs widened - she must have caught them off guard. As Meira neared them, they split apart, creating the same arch formation as before. Ha ha, but Meira had expected something like this. Planting her feet into the grass, Meira switched directions, turned on the eyeball to the right, and released her slash.
*FLAP*
Shoot, it dodged! Meira wanted to try again, but experience taught her that right around now-!
Meira ducked her head, and sure enough, she felt a whoosh over her head, as the opposite youkai charged. Meira smirked. Looks like they can break formation if she razzles them enough! Then how about a bit more?!
Meira pivoted and dashed to her left to keep the other two eyeballs from flanking her. Human and demon exchanged glances - it seems these two were holding their position, higher up where Meira couldn't reach them.
Well, I gotta recipe to fix that!
Meira hopped backwards, bent down and scooped up her recipe - a little bit of...some good ol'...whatever chemicals are in dirt!
"Yeah!" The samurai punctuated her mental affirmation by hurling the dirt at the left eyeball. It wasn't a direct hit, but she caught it off guard enough that it couldn't avoid all the grit.
"Skree!"
Sure enough, the agitated eyeball broke formation and charged. Meira wasn't done yet though!
"Taaaake THIS!" Meira slashed with her sword. The charging eyeball arched its movement upwards and avoided it. Damn, she was sure she had it this-
Aah, here come the other two!
They could double team her, but Meira now had a feel for how these things attacked. Meira hopped to the right, watching as the stupid idiots once again tried in vain to halt the momentum of their failed charge. The one that charged her before was dizzy. Meira glanced to the left, toward the central stump formation.
She flashed a grin.
Alright, NOW!
Meira cut through the eyeballs, in between the center stumps. Snaking through them, Meira emerged to the other side. Meira quickly turned around, and faced back towards the eyeballs. They totally fell for it; they're all confused. Now...!
Meira jumped onto the stump. She spotted one of the two eyeballs who double-teamed her, its back totally exposed.
Meira leapt with confidence from one stump to the next. She rose her katana high above her head.
Now is the time to strike!!! Meira sprang from the final stump.
"HIYAAAA!"
It was at that point Meira noticed the last eyeball, the only one that had resisted her taunts. Only then did she see that it too had moved, drifting downward to guard the others.
Already in the air, she was too late to prevent it from blasting into her stomach.
"OOOOOOOoooooooough!"
Immediately, she was flat on her back. She was sputtering. She couldn't breathe. This this was definitely the wind getting knocked out of her. Why, why, why didn't she-
*COUGH CO-gkkk*
Get away must get awaay
But she couldn't move. Her stomach was in agony, her fingers tingling. She felt drool on her face but couldn't do anything why did it hurt so MUCH?
Meira gasped for breath. She couldn't even get up. She could barely see. Maybe she'll pass out. But then she'll die, so no, gotta hang on. Focus on the pain, that will he-*cough cough cough cough couuugh*
*gaaaaasp*
*gaaaaaasp*
*gaaaaaaaaaasp*
Amidst all the swirling trees, Meira focused her attention on the moon high above. With a center to her vision, Meira's shattered breaths gradually brought oxygen back to her brain. With each gasp, her senses returned. The canopy. The light rain on her face. The localized pain above her stomach. The rabble of eyeballs bordering her vision. The...the...
!!!
Meira sat bolt upright.
"Nngh-!" She clutched her stomach.
I...I can't move...!
The four remaining eyeballs slowly circled around her. Meira's face broke into a cold sweat.
S-sword... Meira felt around.
Where's my swo- *cough cough* A-aah, there it was, to her right. She slid it forward until she came to the handle.
"Skreeeeee...!"
Oh god...in this condition, she can't fight. She can barely even see straight. This...she was in deep shit.
*gulp*
Meira dug her hand into the handle of her katana. What now...what now?
She chuckled and rubbed her neck.
"O-okay. You guys win. I'm only human, heh heh...
*cough*
"So, can I go home now?"
"Skree..."
Meira whimpered. "P-please?"
"Skreeeee." They stopped circling. The one that growled stared down at her must have been the one she nicked earlier - it had a small gash below the eye. Its icy stare sent a shiver down her spine.
Oh no... Meira held back her tears. Its wings began flapping harder.
"Sraaaaaaaw!"
This is it. This is the end. One more blow...one more hit and it'd be all over. Meira's breath crossed into hyperventilation.
Why? Was this all I was capable of? Was I really this useless, in the end? Her brain was tingling. The leathery grip of the katana dug into her palm.
No...no! She wanted to do more. Finally...she was going to discover who she was. She was going to be someone!
"Rrrrrrr...!"
Not...SHE WASN'T JUST SUPPOSED TO DIE LIKE THIIIIIIIIS!!!
"SKREEEEEE!"
!!
It charged!
"SKREEEEEEE!"
"NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!" She shielded her eyes.
A sickening sound of impact.
...
"H-h-h-h-huh?"
She was...alive. It felt as though time had stopped. The only sound remaining was the ringing in her ears. Meira lifted her head and opened her eyes.
*gasp*
Meira nearly heaved. On the other side of her katana, that katana which she clinged to so tightly, was the eyeball. The eye was completely ruptured. Blood oozed down the blade.
"Haa..." The samurai girl's jaw hung open.
I-it's dead.
Meira wiggled her katana around a bit. With a slimy noise, the eyeball slid off the blade and onto the ground. Meira quickly crawled backwards to put some distance between them. Slowly, silently, it melted into a green puddle.
*flap flap*
*flap flap*
*PEW PEW*
"Aa-!"
Right, now's not the time. There's still more to be done!
Meira sucked in her breath and stood up -
"Gck-!"
And immediately sank to her knees.
"Aaah..." Meira held her chest.
Damn...what now? She needs to get out of this position so she can recover from that blow. But if she can't move...
"Skreeeee!" The eyeball to her right stopped firing and reared back.
!
Meira instinctively raised her katana in defense. To her surprise, the eyeball startled and froze in place.
"Hmm..."
Meira grunted and crawled forward using her knees.With all her will power, Meira rose to her feet and barreled forward, keeping her katana trained on the beast.
"Haaaaaaa!"
Of course, the eyeball strafe-dodged, but she didn't even bother slashing. All that mattered was that she got passed it.
Meira panted, doing her best to ignore the pain. Well, one thing was for sure - she wasn't going to lose them out in this clearing. Time to finally gather her courage and step out into the unknown...
Upon entering the twisted forest, Meira weaved through a few trees, going just far enough that she was fairly sure she'd confuse the youkai. She soon found a suitable tree - one with lots of branches for easy climbing. Catching her breath, she looked up.
If I'm this injured, surely they won't think to look for me above ground! Part of her questioned this logic, but hell if she was going to let logic stand in her way now. She sheathed her katana and got to climbing.
Maybe it was the adrenaline, but considering her stomach felt like a cannonball hit it, this was pretty easy climbing. Within seconds, she was atop a branch.
Ooh... Meira collapsed against the tree trunk, hanging her legs over the sides of the branch. These eyeballs are pretty simple-minded, so this might just work.
...
Once again, the forest was silent. Other than the rain pattering against the treetops, all there was to focus on was the pain in her gut and the swaying of the leaves. After all that had just happened, it was almost eerie...
...
Killed...
?
I actually killed...
Oh god, she really did. Meira stared at her hand in awe - It hadn't really registered until now. She smiled.
Dad, I finally did it. I killed one, just like you.
"Kree..."
Meira jumped, quickly grabbing the trunk for support. To her left, Meira heard that infernal flapping. Meira turned, and regretted it immediately.
Because staring right back at her was that misshapen, blood-soaked eyeball.
"Ooh no..." Meira felt queasy.
She reached for her scabbard, then stopped herself. Where she was, she couldn't fight with a sword...!
"Sh-shoo." Meira waved her hand tentatively. It didn't budge.
"Shoo!" Meira's voice broke. No matter what, she couldn't stop staring at that broken iris...
"Skreeeeeeeeeeee..." Dear god, it sounded like a creaky door.
"G-get away! I'm trying to hi-!" Meira covered her mouth. She couldn't give herself away to the other eyeballs, or she really would be up a creek without a paddle.
*gulp*
*pew*
"Ow-!" Meira bit her lip as she held her shoulder, careful not to lose her balance. So it still has enough strength to attack. She was afraid of this...
*pew pew*
Meira grunted. What could she do? Her stomach was already starting to feel a bit better, but what good does that do her up in a tree?! And what if the others find her...?
*pew pew*
"Aaaaaah!"
Damn it, this thing's really pissing me off! Attacking with that fucking danmaku that everyone always uses, always! I oughta take its stupid energy and stuff it up its-!
...
You know, it's not like she can't. Use it, actually. She had forsaken what little power she had years ago. Having only a little felt like it was worse than not having it at all.
But, it's not like I was born with nothing.
Meira's left hand balled into a fist. That's right. Earlier, she had sworn to start being true to herself. And who was she, if not a girl of Gensokyo...?
Meira narrowed her glare at her bloody opponent.
*pew pew pew*
"Stop it." Meira cut through her headache and focused on her childhood. She struggled to recall what using it felt like.
*pew pew pew*
"Stop it!" A warm energy pulsed through her arm. Meira let her anger bubble, sending every stab-filled fantasy to her glowing palm.
*pew*
Shut up. Just shut up...!
*pew pew*
"I SAID SHUT. UP!!!" Meira thrust her palm forward. With a surge of energy, over a dozen white bullets erupted from her palm. Each bullet hit its mark, dead center, exploding with satisfying pops and flashes. The eyeball recoiled, writhing in the air.
"SKREEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee..." The mangled youkai recoiled backwards, crashing into a nearby tree. Meira couldn't even call it an eyeball anymore - just an empty cavity. Slowly, it fell backwards and dropped to the ground below.
Meira let out a cool breath. She felt her heart swell.
"This rocks...this rocks!"
She laughed. It had been years since she had fired danmaku. And never, ever before did using it work so well! Shifting to regain her balance, Meira pressed her hands to her breasts and sighed.
I get it now... I am Meira. I am a resident of Gensokyo, youkai buster, samurai extraordinaire!
Meira could feel it: Her second wind. She flipped over and rappelled down the trunk - it was only a matter of time before the eyeballs found her. No matter, she'll come to them.
The samurai dashed between the trees, her hand trained on her scabbard. She soon emerged into the clearing, where the eyeballs had reformed their familiar line formation. Funny, with only three, they didn't look near as intimidating. They even looked kinda goofy. Meira crouched into a fighting stance.
"Sorry, needed a quick break." She smirked, but quickly shifted to a harsh glare.
*sheen*
Meira raised her katana high, grabbed the handle with her other hand, and waved it down.
"Let's end this."
Meira dashed diagonally to the right, towards one of the outer stumps. The eyeballs began spreading out, with one coming towards her, one heading left, and one right. As she ran, Meira exchanged glances at the approaching eyeball and the stump - she wouldn't reach it in time. Not unless she slowed it down!
Meira shifted her katana to her right hand and reared back her left. Arching her fingers, she swung and released a stream of white danmaku. Out of all that, maybe only one hit, but the eyeball did a double-take in trying to avoid it all. Grinning to herself, Meira took cover behind the stump.
"Hmm..." Meira only had a few seconds, but she wondered how she could streamline using her newfound power. I mean sure, danmaku is helpful, but she needed some way to aim...
A loud roar came from behind the stump.
"Hup!" Meira took off to the right, evading both eyeballs as they crashed down on her position.
Now, what could she do with danmaku again? Meira had never used it much, and certainly never in a real fight. As she ducked behind the next stump, she mulled over her childhood...
"Bang!" Meira looked up from her comic. Noroiko had a finger pointed at her.
"Go away Noroiko, I'm busy."
"Bang!!" She giggled in her typical, grating way.
"Don't make me get mom!" Meira noted the page number of her comic book and rolled it up. Noroiko scampered to the door.
"Bang bang!" There it went. That familiar "snap" of her nerves. She gripped the book and concentrated.
"Oh go away!" Meira swung the rolled-up comic book, releasing several danmaku out of it. Noroiko yelped and slammed it shut. The white bullets exploded harmlessly against the frame.
"Moooooooom!"
Meira snapped up. "That's right!" Meira laughed. How could she have forgotten?
The sound of approaching wings indicated Meira had lingered too long. She set her sights on the next stump and took off -
Head-first into one of the youkai.
?!
Meira ducked just in time to dodge its attack, but it was only a short charge. By the time Meira stood and turned to face it, it had already reared back for another.
"Kree!" The samurai gritted her teeth and raised her katana to her face. Instead of charging though, the eyeball strafed right and fired at the tip of the blade.
*Pock*
Meira gasped and grabbed the hilt with both hands. The sword sent vibrations through her arms, but she kept it steady.
"Why you...!" Meira stepped forward and cut downwards, but the eyeball shifted back left. Before she could recover, it charged.
*BAM*
"Aah-!" Meira was knocked backward, but managed to keep her footing. Lurching forward, Meira grabbed one of its leathery wings.
"Skr-?!"
"Get outta my face!!" She planted her foot down and hurled the eyeball to her right. The eyeball screeched and spiraled away.
Meira shook her head and faced forward - just in time to see another eyeball on the attack.
Meira stepped back and fired a single bullet from her left hand, right into the pupil. She fled while the eye rattled in place.
As she arrived at the next stump, she looked back at the stunned youkai.
No good. I won't be able to hide here at all.
"Nngh..." Meira held her stomach. She forced herself to move to the next stump.
Meira gasped for air and leaned forward on the moist stump in the corner of the clearing.
Darn, I can't keep this up much longer... If she was ever going to put this plan into action, it had better be now.
Meira climbed up and turned to her enemies. The eyeball she threw was still spinning in the distance, but the other two were approaching. Yet again, they were in a line.
Weird...whenever they go into a line, they always move slower. Were they one of those "hive minds" that stuffy science chick in class talked about once?
"Hmph." Meira lowered her stance. Doesn't matter what they are. All that matters is that the scenario couldn't be more ideal. She closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. She readied herself with a practice swing.
"Skree!" One of the eyes fired, but it couldn't be easier to dodge.
"Skree!" The other joined in, both of them approaching.
That does it!!!
Meira planted her feet down, taking two danmaku to the chest.
"Skree! Skree! Is that all you can say?!" Meira growled and blocked out the noise, focusing on the sword in her hand.
Concentrate...on how annoying they are...how much you want them gone...! A strange warmth emanated from the sword's handle.
Meira flashed open her eyes and drew back her katana.
"Taaaake THIS!" Meira cut the air in front of her from left to right, and a stream of danmaku fired from the tip of her blade.
Both eyeballs widened. The thick arc of danmaku whipped them both sideways, and they screeched about in pain. Meira stared at her sword and grinned.
"Alright...let's go!" Meira leapt off the stump and charged.
"Haaaaaa!!!" Meira attacked the eyeball on the left first, cutting forward. The eyeball caught a glimpse of her and backpedaled. Meira stumbled forward before regaining her balance. Damn.
"Skrrrrr-!"
Meira turned to her right - the second one recovered!
*BAM*
Meira stumbled to the ground. She shook her head and sat up. The eyeball rose above her and looked down menacingly.
Meira glared and brought her sword up.
*PEW*
Meira was having none of that. She cut diagonally, channeling a wave of danmaku through the katana. The eyeball's bullet was obliterated, the eyeball seared by Meira's spiritual power.
"SKREE!"
Meira hopped back to her feet and charged forward. The eyeball, shaking about in agony, could not even see Meira approaching. She brought back her sword, and thrust through the center.
A sickening squelch filled the night. Meira turned away so she didn't have to see the carnage this time. She heard was a stomach-churning "pop," like a really large boil.
"Nngh..."
Calm down, Meira. Remember: This is what papa lived for! The samurai nodded to herself and faced forward. The eyeball's wings drooped - it was most definitely dead. Meira took a good long look at the ruptured corpse. She calmed her nerves and took a deep breath.
Meira turned right and swung her sword two-handed. The eyeball's corpse slipped off and fell just short of the stump she stood on moments before.
"Phew." Meira wiped her brow.
"Raaaaa!"
Meira snapped to attention. It looks like both remaining eyeballs had recovered. She shifted her eyes to the left, at the one she blasted with danmaku, and the one on the right - that must be the one she threw.
Silence. The two flapped, unmoving. A smile creased Meira's face.
"Huh? What's wrong? Not so tough with just two of you, eh?!"
They glanced at each other, however possible that was for giant eyes. They turned back to Meira and let out an ear-piercing scream. Meira steadied herself and prepared for their attack.
The eyeball on the right charged her, which she easily sidestepped. She shifted her stance in preparation for the second, but it didn't charge.
?
*PEW PEW PEW*
"Ha-?!" Meira took several danmaku to the chest. She backed up to give herself more room. Shoot, she didn't expect that.
Wait, the other-!
*BAM*
Meira gasped in pain as she was slammed into from the left. She let her feet stagger along with her body, and kept her footing. She held her side and flipped to her aggressor.
*PEW PEW PEW*
Meira growled - that other eyeball wouldn't stop firing. Her body was pretty tired - she couldn't take much more punishment.
But before she could even ready her sword to retaliate -
"Skree!"
Meira cursed and hopped backwards. She dodged the eyeball as it charged from the left, but not the bullets.
Meira sucked up the pain and thrust her hand, counteracting the eyeball's danmaku with her own. She could fire faster than these lugs, so if she can keep this up -
*BAM*
"Oogh!" Meira took a right-hand blow directly to the ribs. Tripping over her legs, she stumbled to the ground - coincidentally, right behind the stump.
"Ow ow ow ow..." Meira felt that one. Feels like she fell onto something on the ground as well... She tried to get up, but her body was giving out again - she wasn't sure how many more winds she could pull.
As if to challenge that claim, the charging eyeball loomed to her right.
"Shit." Meira braced herself with her katana above her head. The eyeball screeched and charged - at her hand.
"Ya-!"
The katana flew out of her hands. Meira watched in horror as she saw it clang to the ground falling several feet to the left. Damn it, looks like she pulled that trick one too many times.
Meira pushed herself to her feet before the eye recovered - her body was screaming at her to stop, but there was no way, no way in hell she was letting it end here. She backpedaled towards her sword, keeping her eyes locked onto her opponent.
As expected, the eyeball was not going to let her get away. It screeched and attacked. Meira sucked in her breath and bent backwards, letting her momentum carry her down. Just like last time, the youkai flew above her head.
Now!
Meira pivoted and ran forward. Her sword was just in front of her now, glistening in the moonlight. She swiped it up and pointed it at the receding eyeball.
"No, wait...!"
Meira dashed right, where the danmaku eyeball sat on standby. It widened as Meira approached and fired.
Gotta avoid it...let's try this!
Meira changed directions and ran to the eyeball's left. She swung her sword at the eyeball and sent a stream of danmaku at it. It growled in anger and turned to face her, but she wasn't done, with running OR firing!
Meira switched directions again, keeping the tip of her blade centered on the eyeball. Because they were only a few feet away, the eyeball could neither dodge her bullets, nor face her to retaliate.
She switched diagonals again! It screamed as glistening white bullets battered it from all sides. It strained to change directions, but as Meira had observed, these things were clumsy at turning.
Man, if I knew these things were so weak to bullets, I would have used them from the start!
With one final diagonal change, she found herself back where she started. She cut off the danmaku to conserve her energy. Her eyes lit up as she saw its exposed back. It's open!
"Hi-yaaaaa!"
The eyeball was halfway-turned to Meira before she cleared the remaining distance.
"Too late!" Meira slashed her katana right.
"Skre-"
The eyeball stiffened, its eye wide open. The sharp end of the blade dug into its soft, exposed center. Meira let the sweet sensation of the kill set in for a few moments. Then, she brought her katana to her foot and kicked the eyeball off the blade.
...
Meira straightened up. She turned and faced the final eyeball, frozen in the distance.
"Well?" Meira started forward.
"Are you satisfied?" She swung her katana, sending flecks of white pus into the soil.
"Skree..." The eyeball narrowed at her.
"You're a youkai, aren't you? Youkai eat humans. So why aren't you doing anything? Huh?" Meira cocked her head.
Meira paused thoughtfully for a moment, then looked at the shrinking eyeball.
"Everyone always looked down on me, ya know? Everyone always treated me like a failure. My mom yells at me, my teacher beats me, even my best friend always outperforms me on everything. I'm a failure. I thought I should have just gone and died."
The eyeball growled and hovered backwards back. Meira spat to her side.
"But, I realized something during all this. No matter how shitty your life gets, everyone has the right to live. Everyone should be able to fight for that right." Meira hardened her gaze.
"You, on the other hand...you're just a bunch of bullies. A savage pack of demons, only existing to get in my way. The ones with no right to live...ARE YOU."
The eyeball turned around and fled into the forest. Meira broke into a sprint.
"Get back here!!!"
---
Meira tailed the eyeball by a good five meters. Trees and shrubs whirled by her periphery vision as everything but the eyeball faded away. Her lungs felt like they were about to burst, but she would keep moving to the last. She just had to keep running forward!
Wait, something's strange
Meira cursed her head for trying to think at a time like this. It'll get away if she doesn't keep moving!!
But isn't it weird? Why are we running in a straight line...?
?
It was true. Trees lined her left and right, but there was virtually nothing between Meira and the youkai.
...
Meira glanced down, and nearly had a heart attack
The ground...
Meira gawked.
It's beaten down...!
Meira looked up. She was still traveling in a more or less straight line. Everything in front of her was totally flat.
"Th..." Meira coughed. Right, don't talk.
The path...!
She found the path!!!
This was a sign...
The gods favored her. Now she was certain...!
She
Is
Not
Going
To
"DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIE!"
Meira screamed and pushed herself forward. Slowly, but surely, the distance was closing. She raised her left hand and shot forward. Missed.
Meira fired again, but this time the eyeball swerved left...
Fire, fire, fire fire fire fire!!! Damn it, it kept rocking back and forth! Meira let out a cry.
Her lungs were burning...
She was fading...
But she was not going to let it get away.
The proof of her life...the proof of everything...
She will show it, right
"HERE!!!" Meira threw her arm forward. A purple, melon-sized bullet shot out her hand. She held her breath as her steps trickled down to a halt. She watched it trace through the air.
Through the air...
...
Into the eyeball's right wing.
"SKREEE!"
!!!
Meira yelled and readied her blade. The eyeball hung limply on its right and was nearly immobile. Clearing the distance in only a few seconds, Meira wasted no time gloating. She did a horizontal cut at the gyrating wing. It didn't even get stuck; the wing was completely severed.
"RAAAAA!" The eye fell to the left, its center of gravity destroyed.
"YAAAAAA!" Meira swung her sword back the other direction. Its scream was almost deafening, but that only meant it was another clean cut. The eyeball crashed forward to the ground.
Meira jumped forward, landing just short of the writhing monstrosity. Grabbing the hilt with both hands, she slammed the blunt end of the katana down into the youkai.
Then she did it again. Again. Again! AGAIN! AGAIN!
She rose on one foot and held her sword up high.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUGH!"
Meira plunged the sword down.
And then, all was silent in the forest of magic.
*Pat pat pat*
*Pat pat pat*
*Pat pat pat*
-
Been a long long while. I'll have to reread from the start to fully enjoy it. But Meira's triumph over the annoying eyes is nice.
Now to see what the rest of this trip has to hold.
-
Oddly enough, I'm reminded of the bard from The Last Hero. Starts out as just, y'know, this derpy spoony bard, and he ends up battle-weathered, playing music on a harp he made from a skull.
Except that Meira's still a bit of a derp.
-
Hello again! My schedule just keeps getting harder and harder to make excuses for, huh? ;^^ So I won't.
Still, It's amazing. When I started this journey with Meira, we were both seventeen, and now I'm twenty. How time flies...oh well, what can you do? Let us get on with the show!
---
Light raindrops fell upon the Forest of Magic, and a gentle moonlight shined through the treetops and into the clearing. On this early morning, one young woman celebrates her good fortune with enough exuberance to brighten the dark forest.
"In this world, there are two forces: Order and chaos."
Meira swung down her katana, cutting the late-night air with a confident swish. Back in the clearing, she decided to celebrate her victory with some good-old fashioned speeching. It's been a while since she had recited it, but she had a pretty good feeling going on. Even better, nobody would be able to stop her this time with stupid interruptions.
"Yes. Countless fools side with order, believing it to be the only side worth fighting for. But, in reality, it is light which is flawed. In its blind attempts to control everything, the light stamps out all who don't agree with its narrow views, forcing them into the dredges of society!
Yes, that has always been the case. Always always those assholes brought me down, trying to make me behave, mold me into a cookie-cutter adult... Every day, I had to fight against that... She shook her head.
But no more. On this night, finally, she has reached the end of her suffering. She stood up for herself, she fought, and she won. She couldn't stop replaying that image of her bringing her sword down into that last miserable eyeball. It was a feeling she would never forget for the rest of her life. When she's head of the village, she'll look back at that moment and say "yeah, that's when it all turned around."
Meira grinned and slashed through the damp air. "But little do those poor fools know how wrong they are. They say with light comes peace and harmony. But if you remove all the things that make one unique, how, then, can people grow? Such an empty ideal is desired for only by the weak. It has no place among the strong!" The samurai girl jumped and sliced downward.
"Yeah..." Meira closed her eyes. "It is chaos which runs through my samurai veins. The power of imagination, boundless energy, indomitable will...no matter how much they try to squash it, chaos will never die. The awesome power of the self can not be destroyed!!"
Meira nodded as she bounced on her legs. She was really on fire tonight. She always knew she was in the right to follow her ambitions! After all, if she had behaved tonight and not gone into the forest, she would have never discovered this fabulous power she now held in her hands. Though, wasn't there another reason she came here...?
With a shout, Meira charged one of the outer stumps and bounded on top of it. "And now, chaos reigns supreme. For tonight, the dark side welcomes its new princess!!"
Under the Moon's spotlight, Meira thrust her sword to the sky and let her mind fill with sweet visions of the future...
"Let's hear it for The Cool Samurai Girl Meira, the coolest samurai of them all!!"
Meira waved her hand at the cheering crowd below. "Oh no, it is nothing."
At the front was Kotohime, dressed in what appeared to be a cheerleader's outfit. "Here we go, Sa-mu-rai-SAN! Was laughed at by all, but now she has WON! Goooooooo MEIRAAAA!!!" She hopped absurdly high.
Meira waved her hand. "Oh no, it is nothing."
A tear-stricken Ms. Kamishirasawa hopped up and down from the back. "Meiraaaaa! I love youuuuuu! How could I have ever doubted you would be my star pupil?! Can you ever forgive meeeee?"
Meira waved her hand. "Oh, no, it is nothing!"
"Waaaaaah ToT" Fighting through the crowd, two familiar faces emerged. The ones she finally wanted to see. Her dear family. Her beloved mother, and her sweet little s-
"Big siiiis! YOU SUCK!"
Meira stiffened and fired lasers from her eyes. Noroiko yelped and disintegrated.
Finally, the one she wanted to see. Stepping onto the barren ashes was...
"Meira, dear, isn't it time for you to head home? You need your beauty sleep!"
She hung her head and pouted. "Mooooom! Geez, and this is my big moment...!"
"Hey, wait..." Something clicked in Meira's mind. A while back, didn't she remember something...?
Please don't throw your life away...
She opened her eyes. "Crap, that's right..."
Just before all that eyeball stuff happened, something else happened to her. She had...well, she'd like to think of it as just a moment of weakness, but...
Just lead a normal life...
"Mom..." Meira looked down. That's right. Her mom had only wanted her...
...
She shook her head. If her mom liked her as the sniveling, weak Meira of yesterday, then she'll be floored by the new, cool, sexy Meira she'd meet tomorrow! She almost performed a hair flip, but then remembered that her hair was gritty as hell because of all the times she fell into the mud and decided against it.
"Hmm, I wonder how my life will go now..." The samurai crossed her legs and planted her katana into the stump for support. Now that she's finally reached the end of her long journey, what's left to do in her long life...?
Aah, it's so hard to think of such things now! But let's see...I'll earn respect from everyone, for one. No more will they just be able to ignore little old Meira! The cocky samurai chuckled loudly to herself.
And as she said, her mom will practically be at her beck and call after this...yeah, and maybe she'll start bringing her sword to school more often? I mean, she has yet to become an all-powerful samurai; she only just leveled up her powers, so she's still on the weak side. Maybe that will be her next goal...?
"Ooh, it's so exciting!!!" Meira giggled to herself. Everything's already moving so fast; she's already planning her path to becoming an all-powerful samurai...!
With a grunt, she lifted her katana back up and swiped it through the air.
"Hiyah!"
And it's all thanks to the power of darkness!
"Yes, it is chaos, not order, which is the answer! Any fool can see that!!" Meira crouched and readied herself for the grand finale.
"With the ultimate power behind me, I, the cool samurai girl Meira, will not...!"
She jumped into the air.
"Give...!"
She rose her katana high and -
"Milady, did you hear that?"
"Eh-?" Before Meira understood what broke her concentration, she lost her stride and crashed to her knees.
"Ooh..." She rubbed her calf. Did she hear something?
"Ugh, it's probably another banshee-girl..."
Meira raised her head. These voices, they were...voices? Huh, makes sense, but...
The samurai crept to her feet and squinted towards the path. It was hard to make out, but something was approaching.
Meira's puffed chest deflated like a balloon. She may be an unstoppable badass, yeah, but that doesn't mean she wanted to prove it again!
"Crap..." She grabbed her katana and scurried to the shadow of a nearby tree. Hiding behind the trunk, she focused intently on the approaching shadow.
"Well, whatever. The power of yin-yang will protect me, tee hee!"
"Milady Reimu, your training is still incomplete. You're not even a full shrine maiden yet."
"Whaa? You take that back you dingy old turtle!!"
Yin...yang? Meira looked down to the ground. Why does that sound so familiar?
"Yin..." She dug through her mind.
- legendary yin-yang orb, an artifact of most peculiar power
"Wait..." Meira brought her hand to her mouth in thought.
The clan holds in their possession the legendary yin-yang orb
shrine is located to the east, on the other side of the forest of magic-
Meira heart jumped. Just earlier that day, Kotohime had told her something. That seemed like so long ago...
The Hakurei shrine maiden. The source of her awesome powers is…some artifact called the “yin-yang orb,” powered by…something. The Hakurei-
!!
"Aah!" Meira shouted without realizing. The important realization...
Meira spat out some dirt.
...Is that she should not cover her mouth with such a dirty hand. BUT! Why she came here in the first place...It was to find this woman!
"Milady, please remember this is not a game. The forest is dangerous, and -"
"Yeah yeah gramps. I'm the big scary Hakurei shrine maiden, nobody's gonna touch me..."
Hakurei...! Sweat formed on her brow. Her. It was her...! The reason she entered the forest...the reason she put herself through this hell...that reason was now within reach!
Meira stared at the silhouette. At this distance, she could now make out a spinning sphere, rotating around the childish figure.
Wait, child? Meira was so sure she'd be a grown-up...
The shrine maiden continued to bicker with some geezer-type voice as she drew closer and closer. At this distance, there was no doubt. Not only was this THE shrine maiden, not only was THE shrine maiden a little girl riding on a bearded turtle, but that was THE yin-yang orb. An orb of ultimate power...
Power...
Power...!
Power.........-!
Meira's grip on her katana tightened. This little girl, was she really in possession of such power? But she's just a kid. Why does she get a toy like that? That's not right! Just looking at this puffy-cheeked brat, she can tell she hasn't worked and slaved to survive like she had for so many years. Not like her, the all-powerful Meira. She was much more deserving. And because she deserves it...
Isn't it only right she take what's hers?
Meira's breath became heavy. This wouldn't be a crime. No one could blame her for what she was about to do...
Yeah. This is it: The grand premier of the new me. The strong rule the weak. That's -
Meira's paused; Her head had tensed up for some reason.
Th-that's how it goes. I can't turn back now...not when ultimate power is so close...!
She rose to her feet in a daze. She would strike once the shrine maiden's back was exposed. With the power of Hakurei on her side, the girl had the advantage for now. So, she'll use her own wits to overwhelm her. That's how this kind of thing goes, right? She'll just beat the girl, and take it! She'll just take it! She probably won't even have to kill her! Just one solid swipe and -
Please, Meira. Live a normal life...
"Nngh-" Meira's head started hurting. She...
Don't throw your life away over foolish pride...
Meira growled at this annoying voice. No! That was all in the past! It means nothing! Not now that she's found the REAL answer!
I can't stop now! This is fate! This is the only path for me!!! Meira pounded her chest, and the voice went away.
Meira took a deep breath. Yes...she will gather her courage, and take the first step forward in her new life. For the first time, SHE will be the one to decide her fate!
At long last, the flying turtle and shrine maiden entered the clearing. The dark samurai steeled her eyes, waiting for the opportunity to strike. Just a little longer... The cool samurai girl Meira, backed by the power of darkness, will prove victorious once again!
...
"Hey, gramps. Something stinks..."
---
Ooooooh hoh hoh hoh hoh. I have been waiting for this for years.
Stay tuned for the next exciting (?) episode of The Cool Samurai Girl Meira! With luck, to be posted in the not-three-months-from-now time frame!
-
Finally, this part.
-
Oh poor Meira. All that only to meet the Hakurei.
Your only hope is she Yin Yangs herself in the face.
-
I'm sorry, all I could think was "POWER! UNLIMITED POWER!"
But yes. Meira is about to ... meet Reimu. And get befriended, Takamachi Nanoha-style!