It's been a long time MotK, but after a haitus involving getting my self-esteemed crushed and having my friends pull me out of it, I'm back and looking to make a comic! I've already passed the story by my normal channels, but I wanna get your reactions now.
I want to work on a comic adaptation of Double Dealing Character and Impossible Spell Card, as well as make something that'll be the ultimate antithesis to my self-insert fic deconstruction story Diamond In The Rough.
I call it...
Wrath of the Amanojaku
I've already written six of the ten chapters, and it's all outlined. My goal is to make a story that starts out in typical darkfic politically-torn amoral Gensokyo, but end on classic vanilla girls-shooting-eachother-with-lasers heroic Gensokyo. Despite it ascending in tone as it goes on (i.e. going from dark to light), it's actually inspired by the depression and hopelessness I've gone through these last couple of years, dealing with the loss of several friends and non-stop online harassment, and my struggle to get out of it and have hope again. It's also my answer to my previous work, Diamond In The Rough, which exposed the amoral core of typical darkfic Gensokyo in hopes of jarring fanfic writers into rethinking how they write (and ironically, it was written from a happy, playful place): if DitR is Gensokyo gone wrong, WotA will be Gensokyo gone right. As such, there will be several, several jabs at DitR throughout the story: especially nearing the end.
Here's the synopsis of the current draft:
Chapter 1:
Short Version: As the events of Hopeless Masquerade end, Seija makes her move to manipulate Shinmyoumaru so she can use the Miracle Mallet for her.
Full Synopsis:
The story begins at the end of Hopeless Masquerade, where Reimu, Miko, and Byakuren team up to fight Kokoro, who accuses the religious leaders of manipulating the masses. In the crowd, Cirno and co. watch, and they ask her why she's not involved, but Cirno says she doesn't understand what's going on, nor does she think she'd last in a fight with any of the competitors of the war.
The incident wraps up with Reimu giving Kokoro a new purpose as a performer. Byakuren and Miko argue what solved the incident, but Reimu tells them to not take everything so seriously, going on to say there will never be a youkai dangerous enough to put Gensokyo in danger. To help Kokoro perform, we meet a very meek and unfamiliar Raiko, currently a simple taiko drum tsukumogami, who barely commands any respect from the folks present at the Shrine.
Meanwhile, Seija shows up at Shining Needle Castle and meets Shinmyoumaru, who apparently doesn't know much about the history of the Inchlings. Seija reveals she has the Miracle Mallet and is willing to give it to her for free. Shinmyoumaru wishes to learn the history of the Inchlings, but Seija tells her to stop, and says she could tell her herself. Meanwhile, Aya spots this and, knowing the history of the amanojaku, runs back to the Tengu Village to report what she found.
Chapter 2:
Short Version: Aya knows what Seija is up to and tries to rally support to try and stop her, but nobody seems to care. Akyuu worries Gensokyo is on the verge of imploding, and all Aya can do is hope somebody saves Gensokyo in time.
Full Synopsis:
Aya returns and demands an alert be sent out: whoever captures the amanojaku will be given a reward. However, Hatate tells Lord Tenma that Aya is simply being paranoid, and convinces Lord Tenma that Aya is jumping at shadows due to an apparent obsession with the long-forgotten Vampire Incident. Tenma tells Aya to stand down, but Aya sneaks out to find help.
Without funding, she cannot hire Marisa, and Reimu is too suspicious of Aya after an incident involving her and the Three Fairies of Light pranking her. She goes to the Myouren Temple, and Byakuren reveals Seija did try to join, but was banished for trying to get the youkai to attack the humans. Byakuren reveals her strategy is to simply do nothing and wait for the situation to resolve itself, but Aya doesn't believe the amanojaku have evolved like the other youkai races. Byakuren tells Aya that only she is badmouthing Seija, and that Aya's rumor-mongering is far worse, and asks her to leave.
Finally, Aya sees Akyuu, who actually does remember the history of the amanojaku and is willing to give her a history of them to prove they are a threat. However, when they find the recordings on the amanojaku, all of the pages have been ripped out, meaning Seija must've already sabotaged her. Akyuu despairs that if an amanojaku gets ahold of the Miracle Mallet's power, it'll mean the end of Gensokyo, but by this point, Akyuu reveals she has become jaded and doesn't even believe Gensokyo should even be saved, citing the growing political rift between all of the factions.
Aya gives up and returns home. Momiji scolds her for sneaking out, but then tells Aya to please have faith in Gensokyo. Aya sighs and tells Momiji she'll try.
Chapter 3:
Short Version: Seija carefully manipulates Reimu to crash the Religious Symposium so she can raid the Hieda Family Archives, giving Shinmyoumaru all the "proof" she needs that Gensokyo must be destroyed and taken over by the weak. Two weeks later, everyone's tools begin acting up, and Reimu, Marisa, and Sakuya embark on their journies...
Full Synopsis:
Weeks earlier, it turns out Seija had already visited Reimu, disguised as a human, and warns her that the religious leaders are holding some sort of meeting to take over Gensokyo. This "meeting" is actually the Religious Symposium, where Byakuren and Miko argue over leadership in the human village, while Kanako says the youkai rule Gensokyo. Miko says that if that's the case, the humans are no more than animals in cages, and that with the current situation, Gensokyo is going to implode at any moment. At the end of the Symposium, Reimu busts in to break it up. Keine rushes in to stop Reimu, but not before Seija sneaks behind her back into Akyuu's archives and steals what she needs.
Cut back to the present: Seija twists Gensokyo's history to paint the land as a cruel, hideous place full of cruel, selfish, monstrous people, where might makes right and the strong dominate the weak. Seija tells her the power of the Mallet can reverse this, and Shinmyoumaru agrees to help her with a rebellion.
Two weeks later, Reimu wakes to find her gohei moving on its own, Suika being wrestled by her own sake gourd, Marisa accidentally blows up Alice's house to save her from revolting dolls, and Sakuya and Meiling are forced to defend the Scarlet Devil Mansion from a fairy revolution. Remilia calls Sakuya aside and tells her to go after the rampaging youkai, giving her an ancient youkai-hunting dagger which apparently changes her behavior into being more bloodlusty.
As Sakuya flies off, Remilia reveals the dagger was simply a form of "bait," and Yukari shows up to congratulate her on her "plan" working. Yukari and Remilia apparently know exactly what's going on, and that Gensokyo is about to remember its history the hard way... (But since this is supposed to be the "Anti-DitR", it's not as sinister as it lets on...)
Chapter 4:
Short Version: Reimu, Marisa, and Sakuya meet up in a skirmish over Misty Lake. Although they defeat Wakasagihime, they then knock each other out in a duel. With them indisposed, the tsukumogami are free to launch a wide-scale assault on Gensokyo.
Full Synopsis:
The fairies, using their newfound powers, decide they're going to take over Gensokyo, but not before Cirno shows up with her own newfound powers and decides to become the strongest herself. Marisa, on a supply run to the Scarlet Devil Mansion, challenges her to a fight, only to be interupted by Reimu, who's investigating the incident. Marisa and Reimu argue, only to be interupted by Cirno and the fairies putting aside their differences to take them down. Reimu and Marisa use their cursed weapons to win, but Wakasagihime shows up to overpower them both. They only survive thanks to Sakuya showing up in the nick of time, but all three argue over who's kill it was.
Sakuya accuses Reimu and Marisa of using the incident as a power grab, while Marisa and Reimu argue over who should resolve the incident. They decide to have a duel to see who will go ahead, but it's a three-way knockout. Yatsuhashi observes the situation and reveals that they were waiting for all three incident resolvers to meet thanks to the fairy uprising and, of course, knock themselves out. Yatsuhashi and Benben signal the beginning of a widescale, Gensokyo-wide tsukumogami rebellion. When Reimu, Marisa, and Sakuya recover, they find out Gensokyo is now amidst quite possibly the biggest incident to date.
Chapter 5:
Short Version: The human village is under attack by Sekibanki and the tsukumogami, and Reimu, Marisa, and Sakuya learn to work together to take her down. They learn of the Grassroots Youkai Network, and set their sights on finding Kagerou, who may know what's going on.
Full Synopsis:
The Human Village is under attack by the tsukumogami, and the chapter opens with the Myouren Temple, the Taoists, and Keine all battling to protect the villagers as they rush to the shelter. Sekibanki terrorizes everyone, attempting to become the scariest youkai in the village, but Reimu, Marisa, and Sakuya rush in to save the day. Marisa attempts to Master Spark her, only to forgot she put it on a timer when she was experimenting with it earlier, which allows Sekibanki to escape. All three of them get overwhelmed as the tsukumogami plunge in to attack, but they're all saved by the combined forces of the Myouren Temple and the Hermits. The three chase Sekibanki through the village canals, using their cursed tools to battle their way through, eventually coordinating a final attack that shoots Sekibanki out of the sky.
When brought back for questioning, Sekibanki reveals nothing, but Kogasa, a tsukumogami who did NOT join the rebellion, reveals Sekibanki is just a harmless wannabe, and Sekibanki shamefully admits she wishes she was really the scariest youkai in the village. Kogasa then tells the heroines of the Grassroots Youkai, and says Kagerou might be the only one left to know what's going on. However, she's in the Bamboo Forest on a full moon, Eintei has gone dark, and the heroines will have to get there alone while the Hermits and Myouren Temple protect the village. Reimu, Marisa, and Sakuya accept the task, and Keine says that once full moon goes down, she will regain her ability to eat history and hide the village, and everyone will be able to provide backup. However, in the background, Yukari tells Cirno to follow the incident resolvers, and that once Cirno meets the person behind the incident, she will help make her the strongest fairy in Gensokyo.
In the shelter, Kosuzu has a panic attack regarding the attack, but Akyuu assures her they'll be fine and the shelter is protected by a youkai-proof barrier, and once it's all over, the humans will ring a youkai-proof All-Clear Bell to let them know everything's okay. However, as Kosuzu drifts asleep, Akyuu worries that it really is the end of Gensokyo...
Chapter 6:
Short Version: Realizing their weapons are cursed, Reimu and co. are forced to fight Kagerou without their primary weapons. Kagerou goes into shock when she finds out the other Grassroots Youkai were involved, and helps the heroines find the source of the tsukumogami's power, but not before being taken out by the tsukumogami who label her a traitor.
Full Synopsis:
Eintei has been destroyed by Kagerou and the tsukumogami, but everyone inside has safely hidden themselves in the Lunar Passage. Unfortunately, Reisen and Mokou were stuck outside helping everyone get in, forcing them to fight alone. Reimu, Marisa, and Sakuya show up just in time to help fight Kagerou, who reveals the youkai are happy they have power and can now act independently. The three duel Kagerou, but Marisa's trigger-happy nature, which has already been going overboard all night, goes over the top as she nearly burns down the forest. Meanwhile, Sakuya tries to stop her, but then goes into an unstoppable bloodlust. Reimu knocks them both out as Kagerou escapes, and finds out that whatever is making the tsukumogami stronger is also affecting their weapons, which are in-turn affecting them.
Reimu tells everyone to sheath their weapons and switch to their secondary weapons. Marisa struggles to fight as they chase down Kagerou, and she struggles to fight Kagerou, but it turns out Sakuya was using Marisa as bait so Reimu could trap her.
With Kagerou defeated, she reveals she's acting alone, but when Sakuya tells her that Wakasagihime and Sekibanki attacked, she goes into shock and says the tsukumogami used her. She tries to tell the heroines there's something up in the clouds, but is branded a traitor by the tsukumogami and is shot before she could say anything else.
Reisen reveals that Youkai Mountain has also gone dark, meaning this attack has affected virtually all of Gensokyo, but Reimu remembers that the Celestials might have good enough defenses to survive and a good enough overlook of Gensokyo to know what's going on. Since Tenshi owes the heroines a favor, everyone heads to Heaven. Meanwhile, it's revealed Raiko has been following the heroines, now with a digital drum set and flashy new threads, and says that Reimu will have to accept that she is not just the savior of Gensokyo's humans, but the tsukumogami as well...
Chapter 7:
Short Version: Reimu and co. dive into the magical stormclouds hiding the source of the tsukumogami's power, just as the remaining forces of Gensokyo become overwhelmed, leaving them to fight alone. Reimu meets Raiko, who fills them in on the truth behind the incident, and wishes to help to save the tsukumogami.
Full Synopsis:
Tenshi says she knows what's going on and lays out a battle map of Gensokyo: virtually everything has been overtaken by the tsukumogami, the Scarlet Devil Mansion has been destroyed, Hakyugokuro has been destroyed, the Moriya Shrine, the Tengu Village, virtually everything but the Human Village and Genbu Ravine has been destroyed. The Moriya Shrine and the Tengu have all been pushed down to Genbu Ravine with the Kappa, where they're preparing for a final stand. It turns out that the tsukumogami are hiding and protecting something in a giant storm cloud, but nobody knows what it is. Reimu says the Hermits and Myouren Temple are waiting until sunrise to look for the culprit, but Tenshi believes that they won't stand a chance unless they figure out how to take out the source of the tsukumogami's power by sunrise. Yuyuko, pushed back to Heaven with Youmu, gives her plan: a small team will infilitrate the storm while everyone else rescues the Genbu Ravine, and once the power source has been taken out, the survivors of Genbu Ravine will come to the rescue. Reimu and Marisa naturally volunteer, but Sakuya argues with Youmu whether or not she should go, with Youmu having doubts Sakuya cares about anything other than the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Sakuya says she does, but also adds the Scarlet Devil Mansion is all she has. Tenshi calls Sakuya out, but Sakuya does the same to Tenshi, who is only joining the incident for the fun of it.
As they split off, Tenshi asks Sakuya if she really thinks she's as alone as she says she is. Before descending into the storm, Sakuya flashes back to the end of Scarlet Weather Rhapsody, and upon remembering how close she was with everyone else, she enters the fight with new gusto.
However, this is all a trap: Seija was planning for everyone to go to Genbu Ravine, and then sends everything she has to trap them and cut off Reimu and co.'s rescue. Worse, once the Myouren Temple and Hermits get word of this, Yukari, Ran, Chen, and their fairies show up to keep everyone from leaving. Yukari says she's fighting for the tsukumogami and the Grassroots youkai and lets Sekibanki go, shocking everyone, and everyone rushes to fight Yukari.
Back up in the clouds, Yatsuhashi and Benben fire everything they got at Reimu with the intent to kill her, cutting of Marisa and Sakuya before they have a chance to catch her. Marisa and Sakuya are forced to fight alone, and as the battle wears on, Marisa is shot off her broom, forcing Sakuya to race past Yatsuhashi's and Benben's shots to save her, and then carry her on her back while fighting them both. Down below, Raiko rescues Reimu mid-fall and tries to explain the situation, but Reimu fights Raiko, thinking she is the cause of the incident; especially with Raiko's talking of really building a world where tsukumogami can live in peace. However, Reimu stops fighting Raiko when she reveals her powers did not come from the thing the tsukumogami are protecting, and that both their races depend on them. Raiko and Reimu rush up to stop everyone from fighting, and Raiko explains the situation: the tsukumogami have been manipulated by the infamous amanojaku Seija Kijin. Marisa goes into shock, because they have met before...
Chapter 8:
Short Version: It turns out Seija has been planning this incident for ages, laying the foundation in many past incidents, all so she can attain the Miracle Mallet's power. Unfortunately, the heroines fall right into her plans: Seija uses Reimu and co.'s attack as the reason Shinmyoumaru must share the Mallet's power with her. Shinmyoumaru gives Seija a Replica Mallet and endows it with power, and Seija reveals her plan to take over the Human Village, which would effectively kill off all youkai and make her a god.
Full Synopsis:
Cut back to Mountain of Faith. It turns out that Seija gave Marisa Illusion Laser B, but only so that the tengu could publish an article of Marisa that she was deliberately breaking Spell Card Rules. Marisa reveals what happened, but Seija goes into hiding. Sakuya says Seija came by the mansion to pick up a history on the Vampire Incident, and everything about Seija's actions, like badmouthing Remilia to Sakuya before badmouthing Sakuya to Remilia, unsettled her.
Benben and Yatsuhashi don't want to betray Seija in fear of losing their powers, but Raiko convinces them it will be fine. Marisa and Sakuya use what little experience they have to play Benben and Yatsuhashi's instruments while Raiko explains the nature of the tsukumogami and why it's affecting their weapons: the power of the users make tsukumogami strong, and Raiko bets once Seija betrays them and tries to take their powers, this will be proof that everything she's told the tsukumogami was a lie. Reimu feels hesitant helping the tsukumogami, but Raiko assures her that the Hakurei Shrine Maiden's job is to protect everyone, and that she will have to learn this lesson sooner or later.
Meanwhile, at the Myouren Temple, Yukari reveals she's keeping everyone in because once they all launch an assault on Shining Needle Castle, Seija will have the "proof" she needs to convince Shinmyoumaru to share the power of the Mallet with her, and that the heroines are going to defeat her by themselves. Miko suspects Yukari of a power grab, saying that starting a war like this could give youkai indefinite power, but Yukari says that'd be overkill and a stupid idea since the humans of the village already think that's a reality (despite being mostly a fiction), and Yukari reveals she's actually super-protective of Gensokyo, but does it in a wierd way. She says Genbu Ravine will be fine, and all that's left for them to do is wait until sunrise.
However, Byakuren reveals Miko told her about Yukari talking to Cirno, and she sent Koishi, who could easily slip past Yukari, to warn the heroines. This sends Yukari into a shock nobody's ever seen before, and she quickly calls for a Plan B: Cirno was supposed to set off another one of Seija's traps, but without her, the very presence of the heroines will alert Shinmyoumaru to their presence. Yukari orders everyone to attack at once.
Back at Shining Needle Castle, Koishi shows up to tells Reimu she's being followed, and they catch Cirno and send her back home, telling her it's too dangerous and she's too weak to be of any use. Dejected, Cirno leaves as the heroines rush in: Reimu, Marisa, and Sakuya decide to take out Seija while Raiko tries to take back the mallet before Shinmyoumaru can use it again. However, Raiko falls into the trap as planned, and it's left uncertain what happens to her as the bullets fly.
The heroines find Seija and chase her through the castle, only to end up in the same room as Shinmyoumaru. Seija has thoroughly convinced Shinmyoumaru that Gensokyo is at fault for its destruction, it destroyed itself in trying to take control from the tsukumogami, and that Reimu is planning to send "her" army of youkai to destroy them for disagreeing with them. Seija offers them a shot at redemption by joining her forces and fighting back the youkai who "destroyed" Gensokyo. Obviously, the heroines don't listen to Seija and try to reason with Shinmyoumaru. Shinmyoumaru has none of it, gives Seija a replica of the Miracle Mallet, and makes a wish to endow it with her power, cementing her plans.
Seija then tells Shinmyoumaru she plans to use the Mallet's Power to ring the Human Village's All-Clear Bell, and once the humans see not only the humans and youkai fighting side-by-side, but her singlehandedly defeat everyone, it'll destroy their fear in the other youkai and make everyone fear her instead. As a result, it'll simultaneously kill off ALL of the youkai in Gensokyo AND turn Seija into a god. To top it all off, Seija then lies to Shinmyoumaru that it was Reimu who commanded the youkai to kill off all of the inchlings, and that Shinmyoumaru is next. Seija escapes as Reimu, Marisa, and Sakuya struggle to survive Shinmyoumaru's onslaught.
Just as Seija escapes, she's met by Yukari, Miko, Byakuren, and all their forces, but Yukari is shocked to see that they are too late: Seija has the Miracle Mallet's power, and she is now the most powerful being in Gensokyo. Yukari tells everyone to void Spell Card Rules and give everything they got.
Chapter 9:
Short Version: Gensokyo rallies for a final stand against Seija as the heroines battle Shinmyoumaru for the Miracle Mallet. They get the Mallet, but its powers can only be used by an Inchling. However, Shinmyoumaru witnesses Seija's true colors as the tsukumogami and Grassroots Youkai turn on her, and she changes her mind and decides to help Reimu and co. stop her.
Full Synopsis:
Just as Genbu Ravine is overun, Remilia rushes in to save the day. She tells everyone that Hatate has been in contact with the amanojaku, and uses the false history of the Vampire Incident she gave to Seija as proof. Remilia says she handed over a false history because Seija would've stolen the REAL history if she didn't, and this was the perfect bait for anyone who remembers the incident. Hatate admits she made Aya look paranoid because Seija promised her newspaper would gain fame and fortune using the information she provided.
Lord Tenma believes it is too late, and the best option is to just leave Gensokyo: Seija has become too powerful, and even if that weren't the case, Gensokyo has become too much of a political hotbed. Remilia calls out Tenma and says Gensokyo hasn't changed one bit, and that everything Seija's done was to make Gensokyo give up hope on itself, citing how right now, the Tengu, the Kappa, the Moriya Shrine, the Lunarians, the Celestials, and now the Scarlet Devil Mansion have teamed up to save one-another, all while two factions who were at war are now fighting to stop an amanojaku together while a Shrine Maiden, a Witch, and a Maid fight to take back the Miracle Mallet. Inspired, everyone vows to fight to the bitter end, even Tenma. Aya is finally allowed to call for a hunt of the amanojaku with a reward for her capture. Cirno has given up and has gone home as the rest of Gensokyo rallies for the final battle, but Team 9 shows up to convince her she's stronger than she thinks she is, and she joins.
Reimu, Marisa, and Sakuya defend themselves from Shinmyoumaru as the forces of the Hermits and Myouren Temple dwindle as they fight Seija, trying to run out the clock so Keine can hide the village at dawn. Just when it seems like nobody can hold out from Seija any longer, EVERYONE in Gensokyo shows up to fight back Seija. EVERYONE: the Scarlet Devil Mansion crew, the Netherworld Crew, the Lunarians, even the forces of Makai (who heard about Alice's house blowing up and assumed it was the tsukumogami), the forces of Hell (when Satori thought Koishi might be in danger), the Ministry of Right and Wrong, EVERYONE. The heroines are awestruck at the sight of a united Gensokyo flying together as the sun breaks outside, but Shinmyoumaru just sees it as proof that Reimu has brainwashed the youkai to do her bidding.
Everyone holds back Seija just in time for dawn, or at least what they thought was supposed to be dawn: it turns out Seija had told Shinmyoumaru about the Imperishable Night spell, and that means the moon will hang in the sky as long as she wants, meaning Keine cannot hide the village. With no other choice, Reimu and co. fight for the Mallet, racing against the clock as Seija single-handedly destroys ALL of Gensokyo. A battle of titanic proportions ensues, with all combatants fighting at full power and no Spell Card Rules.
Finally, as the forces fighting Seija are wittled down to only a few of the strongest (and Cirno hiding behind a shield of ice, unable to keep up with Seija's power and just giving up), the heroines get the mallet... only to find only an inchling can use it. This causes the Tengu to retreat, losing Lord Tenma in a heroic sacrifice to cover the escaping flights. Just as Yukari, Miko, and Byakuren are shot down, it turns out Raiko escaped just in time, now fully in control of her powers, and rallied together the last of the tsukumogami and the Grassroots youkai, filling them all in of the truth. This buys Marisa just a little more time to figure out a way to use the Mallet's power, but it's no use: it's locked so tightly that it'd take weeks to unlock. This means the only way to stop Seija is if Shinmyoumaru changes her mind, but she's convinced the heroines are evil and Seija is good.
Though, as Seija fights the Grassroots youkai, Shinmyoumaru has second thoughts, but not enough to change her mind. Then Seija tries to take away Benben and Yatsuhashi's powers, but it doesn't work, so she tries to take away everyone's powers, restoring the heroine's weapons and reducing the tsukumogami to their weaker original forms, further shaking Shinmyoumaru's faith, as well as all of the tsukumogami's.
Finally, it's down to Raiko (while Sekibanki is also forced to hide behind Cirno's ice shield, also too scared to fight), the last survivor who can fight Seija, and now that's she's in command of her powers, she holds out for a surpsingly long time. Raiko calls out Seija for her belief the strong oppress the weak, saying the strong can make the weak powerful as well, inspiring all of the tsukumogami to the point where they stop attacking her. However, it's clear that not even Raiko at full power can win, leaving Reimu to simply pray something will stop Seija, while Marisa and Sakuya throw in the towel and have one last drink together.
Shinmyoumaru has a breakdown, unable to figure out who to believe anymore: Seija is her best friend, but the heroines really do seem like they want to save Gensokyo, but Seija also said never to trust them and they'd stab her in the back if she did. Reimu tells Shinmyoumaru to have faith, and if she really cares about the fate of the weak, she'll stop Seija. Shinmyoumaru asks why a shrine maiden would help protect the youkai, and Reimu swallows her pride to tell her that as the Hakurei Shrine Maiden, it is her duty to protect ALL of Gensokyo. They give her back the Mallet, just as Seija defeats Raiko.
The chapter ends just as Shinmyoumaru demands Seija returns the power of the Mallet...
Chapter 10:
Short Version: Seija nearly wins after betraying Shinmyoumaru one last time after losing her powers, but Seija is finally defeated by Cirno. Shinmyoumaru realizes Gensokyo is nothing like Seija painted it as, Raiko thanks Reimu for saving the tsukumogami, and the cast celebrate saving Gensokyo together. In the epilogue, Akyuu goes back on her earlier thoughts of Gensokyo being on the verge of imploding, and watches the sunrise with a new hope for Gensokyo's future.
Full Synopsis:
Seija refuses to give back the power of the Mallet, so Shinmyoumaru orders Reimu to trap her in a Duplex Barrier as she takes it back by force. Shinnmyoumaru makes her wish, but the Mallet's power isn't enough to cancel it out. Unable to fight back, Seija takes out Reimu.
The Tengu return, knowing it was only a matter of time before Shinmyoumaru changed her mind, and buy Marisa and Shinmyoumaru time to figure out how to squeeze extra juice out of the Mallet. It turns out most of the power is being used to sustain Shining Needle Castle, and destroying it will give Shinmyoumaru just enough power to remove Seija's own powers (which it turns out wishing for that will cause a spike in power output).
Marisa and Sakuya carefully time a coordinated attack to Master Spark the castle (using the timer from Chapter 5), but Seija takes them both out: Seija takes out Marisa as she distracts her from Sakuya, and then Sakuya jumps in front of a bullet heading for Shinmyoumaru as she makes her wish for everything to turn back to normal. The moon goes back to where it should be, but Keine is knocked out and unable to hide the village. Seija loses her powers and threatens to kill Shinmyoumaru in revenge, but the tsukumogami have had enough to all gang up on the defenseless Seija.
Seija pleads for mercy, but the tsukumogami don't let up. Seija begs Shinmyoumaru for help, saying she's learned her lesson and that everyone deserves a second chance, and if she lets her go, she'll never bother Gensokyo again. Everyone tells her not to listen, but when Seija tells Shinmyoumaru she was her only friend, Shinmyoumaru decides to give her the benefit of the doubt and stop the tsukumogami attacking her.
Seija tearfully hugs Shinmyoumaru and thanks her for saving her... and then Seija shoots her at point-blank and calls her an idiot.
It turns out Seija didn't think she was at fault at all, and she says that Shinmyoumaru was the one who planned on stabbing her in the back. Seija keeps demanding Shinmyoumaru to apologize, but every time she does, Seija says she doesn't truly mean it. Shinmyoumaru falls into despair and yells out that she hates Seija. Seija then picks up the defenseless Reimu and hurls her into the All-Clear Bell, and the humans in the shelters prepare to leave.
With no time left, it's clear that Seija has won. Cirno and Sekibanki chastise themselves for being cowards, only to accidently realize that maybe there's still a way to save Gensokyo if the people can't escape the shelters. Reimu's intuition picks up on this, and Reimu taunts Seija to distract her. Seija beats the crap out of Reimu and gloats how she'll murder her in front of the entire human village, but before Seija can do anything, she turns around to find that Sekibanki's heads have blocked the path out of the shelter, scaring the humans back in, and Cirno's ice has made an impenetrable wall of the heads.
Without her powers, Seija is utterly defenseless against Cirno, who instead of wanting to become the strongest fairy, just wants revenge on Seija for hurting her friends. Seija tries to convince Cirno that "friendship" is just a tactic by the powerful to manipulate the weak, and that "good and evil" are simply made up by the strong. Cirno doesn't listen to Seija's lecture on amorality and simply freezes her into a giant hunk of ice. Everyone in Gensokyo is shocked, but relieved.
Yukari reveals Cirno was never meant to be a distraction at all: since there was a 0% failure rate for defeating Seija, thanks to centuries of planning, Yukari just wanted to give Seija the most humiliating defeat she could and deflate her argument about "the strong and the weak" by being defeated by a fairy. Aya is hailed as a hero for rallying Gensokyo to hold back Seija just in time, while Cirno is hailed as a hero for stopping Seija (and given the reward, which sadly turns out to be a steakhouse giftcard). The Grassroots Youkai and tsukumogami apologize for their actions, but Gensokyo gladly accepts it since causing incidents is what youkai do.
Howevery, everyone demands Seija be killed. Reimu refuses, and Yukari supports her decision: not because it'll make her the better person, but because Seija WANTS them to kill her. If Seija dies, once the amanojaku find out, they will use her death as proof Gensokyo is corrupt and send even more amanojaku. Rather, the best choice is to simply accept Seija as one of them while ignoring her lies: it will make Seija powerless, miserable, and outcaste amongst the amanojaku who believe she "went native" in Gensokyo. Reimu asks Yukari why Seija did this, but not even Yukari knows: all she does know is her grudge against this land will never cease, and she will refuse to leave, no matter what. So, Reimu vows that they must never give up, either: they'll continue making the land the opposite of what Seija says to keep proving her wrong.
Reimu then goes to see Shinmyoumaru, who is distraught over the loss of her castle and destroying Gensokyo. Reimu says she forgives her and swears to protect her, no matter what, in the meantime. Shinmyoumaru still feels horrible that she's the last of the inchlings, but Yukari tells her she's not: Seija lied about that, too, and that her next goal is to rebuild the kingdom of the Inchlings. Shinmyoumaru cries tears of joy knowing Gensokyo is nothing like Seija described, all as everyone gathers around to offer their condolences to her.
Raiko then thanks Reimu and Shinmyoumaru for saving the tsukumogami, vowing to make the paradise for tools that Seija never gave them, and Reimu gives her word that she will not attack Raiko's tsukumogami. Everyone's next challenge is to rebuild Gensokyo, but not before retiring to (what's left of) the Scarlet Devil Mansion for a quick afterparty.
Keine and Mokou return to the village to open up the shelter. Akyuu, knowing Cirno must've worked with Sekibanki to freeze those heads and block the shelter, leaves with a refreshed optimism for Gensokyo, taking back everything she said before about Gensokyo being on the verge of collapse and tearing itself apart. Akyuu and Kosuzu watch the sunrise together as the village rushes to repair itself, and Akyuu says that as long as we never forget why we love Gensokyo in the first place, there'll always be another day.
The End
My goal here was to write a story where the ending fills people with hope and a refreshed love and appreciation for Touhou: a reminder that at the end of the day, past any drama that happens in the story or in our community, Touhou is just a game, a game that's brought so many different people together from across the world. The story begins with Gensokyo in political turmoil, but ends with everyone putting aside their differences for one moment because of how much they love the Eastern Wonderland of Gensokyo. As I said before, I want something that'll be the opposite of Diamond In The Rough, which ends on hopelessness, nihilism, despair, and confusion over who was really in the right: here, I want hope, victory, a sense of accomplishment and success, clear heroes celebrating their victories, and the villain finally defeated.
The current target release date is August 12, 2018 (the five-year anniversary of DDC), but I'm known for missing deadlines.
I hope you guys like it. Let me know what you think, any plot holes or whatever I should clear up, suggestions, etc.
