The old man staggered through the halls of the school, a near-crazed 
grin loosely plastered on his face, his hands clenching and unclenching 
almost spasmodically.  The halls were darkened, empty, but even if they 
had been teeming with students, he would still have remained unseen.  
The edges of a sloppy field flickered around him, weak, fighting 
reality for its space.  He burst through the door, stumbling down the 
steps, towards the street.  His mouth worked awkwardly as he headed 
down the street.  The field finally flickered and died as he reached a 
narrow alley less then a block from the school.  Straining for the 
shadows, he pitched forward, landing in a shallow puddle.  He struggled 
into a sitting position.

"No, don't bother getting up."  Something appeared directly in front of 
his eyes and he jerked back in fright, before realizing it was only a 
face.  Although a face turned the wrong way around...

"You!"  He pushed himself into the brick wall behind him, as far away 
from the hanging figure as he could.  "You're dead!"

"No, you *thought* I was dead.  There is a difference.  As you can see, 
I'm doing quite well.  Better than you, I'd say."

"The... the others..."

An upside-down smile flashed brightly.  "Did you really think that your 
ploy succeeded?  What is it with you over-ambitious Minor Arcana 
anyway?  Can't you just remain happily in your place?"  He sighed in an 
almost theatrical manner.  "For the Council's purposes, it was easier 
to let you think you were the only one left.  But you seriously thought 
you had become the Emperor as well?  Now that is just pathetic."

A flash of fire pierced the old man's madness, and he slowly raised 
himself to his feet.  "I will not be spoken to that way, not by a lowly 
messenger such as yourself.  I have power that you-"

"Any power you had was left behind at the Tower Reversed."

The King's angry facade crumbled slightly at the Hanged Man's cold 
tone.  "I still accomplished more than the rest of the Council 
combined.  I killed Fortune, with my own hands!"

"Really.  Well if you truly did, I applaud you.  But considering your 
past history, I am somewhat skeptical."

"I killed her, I did."  His voice was once again broken, almost 
petulant.

The Hanged Man smiled.  "And I suppose I should return the favor."

A glittering silver wire sprung out of nowhere, wrapping tightly around 
the old man's neck.  There was a single choked cry, then silence.


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Arcana

Created by Scott Schimmel

Part 25: Ghosts

By Lady Brick

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"Oh my god," Natsu whispered, her eyes trapped on the pale, broken 
figure of Miyuki.  "He..."  She couldn't finish.

Hotaru continued clinging to Natsu's arm, tears pouring down her 
cheeks.  "I thought... I thought you were dead too."

Natsu looked down at hole in her shirt, the edges soaked with bright 
red.  "I think I'm supposed to be."

"Hmm, this is odd," Ishido muttered, having knelt down next to the 
blind girl.  "I think she's still breathing."

"What?"  The two girls turned to stare.  Despite the obviously broken 
neck, Miyuki's chest was slowly but steadily rising and falling.

"Is that... can all Arcana do that?"  Natsu's voice shook.

Ishido frowned.  "I've never heard of anything like this before.  
Though it *would* be great for parties..."  Hotaru, who had come closer 
to look, smacked him in the back of the head.

"Miyuki?" she said quietly, not expecting a response.  The girl 
remained motionless, but for her gentle breathing.  "What should we 
do?"

"I'm not sure... I don't know if we should move her-"  He was cut off 
by a shrill scream.  Hanako stood by the entrance, fists clenched, face 
carved into a mask of horror.  Tetsuya stood behind her.  His hands 
rested on her shoulders, and his eyes were blank.

"Miyuki... no... she can't be dead..."  Hanako's eyes filled with 
tears.

"Well kid," Ishido began, "I think you hit the doornail on the head..."


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Keisuke leapt at Will with a ferocious growl, his eyes trained on the 
man's figure.  The businessman simply crossed his arms patiently and 
did nothing.  Therefore, Keisuke was rather surprised when something 
impacted his side with incredible force, sending him flying a good 
twenty feet.

The Knight of Wands stood a bit shakily, first noticing that Will 
hadn't moved in the least, and than that his monstrous, driverless 
vehicle was bearing down on him.

"You've *got* to be kidding me," Keisuke muttered, diving out of the 
way as the jeep-type thing roared past.  He rolled to his feet, glaring 
at his smirking opponent.  "Why don't you fight fair?"

Will raised an eyebrow.  "My boy, I'm not the one fighting you."

Keisuke gaped, and as he dodged Victory again, he got a strange 
tingling in the back of his mind.  *That* thing was the Arcana, not the 
man as he had first expected.

"The... Chariot?" he hazarded to himself.  Whichever it was, he was in 
trouble.  Unlike some of the others, his powers dealt more with 
breaking down and controlling barriers and the fields, not attack.  And 
letting down the barrier he had placed wouldn't do any good.

Though perhaps controlling it would.

Backing away hurriedly from the vehicle, and towards the edge of the 
field he had placed, he concentrated hard.  He had never tried anything 
like this before, and wasn't sure if it would work.  But it was most 
likely the only shot he had.

He gritted his teeth.  Slowly at first, and then more rapidly, the 
field began to shrink.  It seemed to pause as it reached him, then slid 
over his frame with a sensation similar to emerging slowly from some 
viscous liquid.  However, as soon as he lost physical contact, it 
became a violent struggle to sustain it, costing him a ruptured vessel 
in his nose.  With the surety of a fist, the field began to squeeze 
tight Victory, who was all that remained within.


There was a straining squeal, and then the sound of shattering glass at 
the windshield exploded.  Will's scream was somehow drowned out by a 
silent but shrill shriek that seemed to reverberate through his skull.  
He was forced to his knees, but didn't release his ever-tightening 
grip.  Until what felt like a shockwave tore through his into his head 
as the power finally overwhelmed him.  He collaped to the pavement like 
a puppet with cut strings.

Stunned, he weakly struggled into a sitting position, blood still 
running from his nose.  Will stood over him, clutching his hand, face 
twisted by a vice of rage.  "I was prepared to let you go, but now 
you're gonna pay for what you did."

"No, he won't."  A streak of silver cut between the two.  Slowly, 
Sumire brought the edge of her sword to rest at the businessman's 
collar.  She spoke coldly through slitted eyes.  "Go.  Now."

Will quickly took stock of the scene, then hurried over to Victory, 
which looked worse for the wear, but still in one piece.  The engine 
gave one feeble growl, and then the pair disappeared down the street.

Sumire knelt to help Keisuke up.  "Are you alright?"  Despite the 
uncharacteristic concern of her words, her voice was cool as ever.

The Knight coughed, a tiny spattering of blood escaping his lips.  
"Been better," he gasped.  "Don't think I'll be trying that again for a 
while... what are you-"

"I was returning to the Tower Reversed when I ran into Hanako and 
Tetsuya near the entrance.  The Page insisted that I come here to aid 
you, though I am unsure why."  Her voice was edged with mistrust.

I didn't betray any of you, his mind pleaded.  Instead he merely said 
"We should head back... I think something is wrong at the Tower.  Or at 
least those two seemed to think so.

The Ace nodded stiffly, and with her grudging assistance, the two 
slowly made their way towards the school.


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"I'm so glad you agreed to go out with me.  I mean, considering you 
know nothing about me," stammered Chris.  He was glad when the stunning 
girl, whose name he had learned was Maki, smiled back, instead of 
possibly agreeing with him that it had been a big mistake.

"It must be hard to be in another country with no one your age around," 
she said, her voice soft and smooth.

Chris straightened his sunglasses.  "Well, actually, I have been to 
Japan several times.  I have family here.  And my cousin Natsu goes to 
school here... we're pretty close."

Chris babbled on about Natsu and the rest of his family that was in 
Japan for several minutes before he realized that Maki was probably 
incredibly bored by it.  She surprised him by asking several questions.  
Gradually the conversation danced on different subjects, the two 
walking slowly down the street in comfortable amicability.  Until Maki 
asked the question that Chris had been dreading.

"So what have you been doing on your stay in Japan so far?"

He gave a weak smile and shrugged.  "You know, just sort of hanging 
out."  He hadn't been doing much of anything remotely interesting so 
far this trip, and he knew how bad it had to sound.  "I'm been visiting 
relatives a lot.  And I found this cool arcade... I've been going there 
a lo-... a bit."

Maki gave a gentle laugh and wrapped her long, cool fingers around 
Chris' arm.  He barely restrained a gasp at the somewhat cold touch.  
"It sounds like fun... would you take me there?"  Her eyes shone up at 
him, dancing invitingly.

Chris swallowed audibly and nodded.


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They ended up taking her into a back room where she often stayed in the 
Tower.  Tetsuya carried her.  Hotaru tried to avoid seeing how Miyuki's 
head lolled so unnaturally as she hung in the Knight's arms... the 
sight made her stomach turn.  Noticing that Hanako was walking a bit 
behind the rest of the group, she waited for the younger girl to catch 
up.  She offered her hand, but it was ignored.

Reaching the room, Ishido silently opened the door for Tetsuya, who 
entered and placed her on a small bed by the far wall.  The five 
gathered around.

"What can we do for her?" Natsu asked, fingers idly twisting the edge 
of her sleeve.

Tetsuya's voice was hollow.  "I don't know.  I don't know at all."


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She could see, but for some reason, this wasn't that important an 
observation.  She watched the Arcana and the other girl positioned 
around a bed with a person that seemed to be her lying on it.  Again, 
this seemed to be of little consequence.

Miyuki raised a hand in front of her face and moved it back and forth, 
feeling the odd sensation of her eyes following it.  So this was what 
it was like to see outside of what was simply inside one's mind.  She 
looked down at herself.  She looked solid enough, but the fact remained 
that something very odd was going on.

"Am I dead?" she wondered aloud.

"Not yet," came a soft, unexpected response.

"Is someone there?" she asked absently, her seeing eyes still focused 
on the group before her.

"In a sense."

Somewhat interested now, Miyuki turned.  "Who are you?"

At first, there was nothing there.  However, very slowly, a form 
coalesced out of seemingly nothing, until the vague shape of a young 
man stood before her.  His clothing was indistinct, but his face was 
clearer, gazing down at her gently.  "Hello, Miyuki."

She was somewhat surprised at the clear voice that emerged from the 
ghost-like figure.  "How do you know me?"

"I have known you for quite some time, Fortune.  I have aided you and 
those with you as best I could.  It is I who now stand between you and 
death, though I did unintentionally have a hand in your attack."  His 
voice took on a sad note.  "Things had been calm for too long... I had 
let my guard lapse.  For that, I am sorry."

Miyuki tried to add up all that he had said, and was left with only 
fragments.  "I don't understand... who are you?"

He gave a pale smile.  "I am not surprised that you cannot figure out 
my identity.  After all, you probably had no idea that I existed in 
this form.  I am the Tower Reversed."


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Maki chatted all the way to the arcade.  Chris was somewhat surprised 
by her choices in topics; where most girls her age would talk about 
school and friends and perhaps even family, she seemed very focused on 
politics and worldly issues.  While she did come across as very 
intelligent, he learned almost nothing about her.  Even discussing 
current events, she seemed to skate smoothly past defining any 
particular stance.

"Here we are," Chris said as they approached the arcade, cutting off a 
discussion about events he knew nothing about in a country he had never 
heard of.  Fortunately for his ever wavering self-confidence, she 
didn't seem at all put off by it.

"So, are you any good?" Maki asked playfully, pulling him through the 
doorway.  Unsure of what to say, he just shrugged.  He had never played 
video games with another girl besides Natsu... would she get upset if 
she didn't win?  Would she get upset if he let her win?

He was almost relieved to see his old opponent calmly decimating one of 
the lower-level bosses on their usual game.  "Keeping the world safe 
from vampires?" he asked, leading Maki over.

"As always," the old man replied peaceably, skillfully tweaking the 
controls and using Ibuki's super special to get the KO.  He turned 
toward the pair and raised an eyebrow.  "Found a new friend, have you?"

Chris turned to Maki.  "This is-"  He was cut off abruptly by a sharp 
glare from her, which seemed to be aimed at him.

"So, you know him, huh.  Seem to be on very good terms to me."  Her 
voice was a spear of ice.

"Um... yes?" Chris replied, very confused.

She aimed her gaze towards the old man, who watched her unflinchingly.  
"So, you set this up, didn't you?"

He raised an eyebrow.  "I'm sorry young lady, is there something 
wrong?"

"So, you think you can pull one over me, huh?" she sneered.  "Well, you 
can forget about it.  I have my own games to play, and I'm not 
interested in yours.  You can keep him if you wish."  With that, she 
turned on her heel sharply and stormed out of the arcade.

Chris blinked very slowly, utterly confused at what had just happened.  
"Did... did I say something wrong?"

"My boy, I believe that was all of her own doing."  He gave a shrug and 
turned back to the game.  "You are welcome to join me, if you like."

Chris scrounged his pockets and came up with some change.  "Do you have 
any clue what she was talking about?"

The old man's face broke into a smile.  "If you ever live as long as I 
have, you will discover you still know absolutely nothing about the way 
a woman's mind works.


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"The Tower Reversed?  But..."  Miyuki broke off, unsure of where to 
begin.

The soft smile remained.  "Rather, the spirit of the one who was once 
called the Tower."

Miyuki looked down at the ground, studying the intricacies of the 
floorboards, so unfamiliar.  "I thought that when the Tower Reversed 
was created, the person who held that power became a normal person."

"Less than that actually."  His face blurred to something less 
distinct.  "Without a spirit, that body was merely a shell.  It died 
not that long after."  He refocused.  "I have been here since that day, 
watching over the Arcana who have resided her.  However, things have 
been quiet for so long... I didn't realize that it was the King of 
Wands accessing the power in my walls.  By the time I did, it was too 
late."

She nodded quietly.  "The King said you built the Tower Reversed... so 
you chose to become this... why?"

"What do you know of the Great War?"

"Not very much."  She pursed her lips.  "I remember very little of that 
time... all forty-two Arcana had been reborn and gathered into two 
sides."

He nodded.  "The Arcana exist in this world as embodiments of 
incredible power, but with no understanding of their purpose.  Through 
each rebirth, the image becomes more blurred; the understanding of who 
they are becomes fainter.  Earlier in this century, shortly before the 
second World War, there was a difference of opinion of what place the 
Arcana believed they should take in this world.  Some believed that our 
duty was to elevate man to a new level of knowledge and understanding, 
a sort of enlightenment.  And some believed that the age of normal men 
had passed, that the Arcana stood at the brink of a new age that they 
alone would enjoy, subjugating those not gifted as they were.  And 
unfortunately, I was among the latter."

"But you changed your mind?"

The smile returned.  "There are two things that have existed since this 
world came into being, two conflicting forces if you will.  One of 
constant violent change, and another of eternal balance.  They are 
always present in this world, and unlike other entities, such as the 
vision of one's future," he indicated her, "these have never died and 
been reborn.  The Tower and Temperance... these two have been around 
since the beginning."

"So you two were the leaders of the different sides?"

He laughed, a bright, tinkling sound that tickled the air.  "Hardly.  
The more the other Arcana fought, the less involved he became.  
Maintaining a balance, and all that.  And I was little more than a 
pawn, a weapon of Chaos for those who sought to destroy.  I was quite 
old by that time, in a sense, older than I am now.  While the others 
went through many lifetimes learning and relearning their abilities, 
granted new perspectives of the world around them, everything had long 
since become worn for me.  I was an entity that brought constant 
upheaval, but I myself never changed.  I was tired.  I needed a change, 
stability.  The war was fruitless... even those who wanted to help 
humanity were destroying them to achieve the enlightenment they sought, 
under the mask of Earthly military battle.  They would have destroyed 
the world."

"What happened?"

"I destroyed them."

She stared at him, the calm expression on his face never shifting.  
"What?"

"Well, not intentionally.  I had the idea for the Tower Reversed, quite 
ingenious I thought.  The stability I had always longed for, and one 
that could aid those Arcana who truly wanted to work for the good of 
the world.  All I had to do was to turn my power on myself really... 
change that which couldn't be changed.  My essence became that of the 
Tower Reversed, but the magical backlash of the effort killed off many 
of the Arcana.  The rest of the world never had any notion of what 
happened, how close they came to destruction.  I never expected that to 
happen, but I wasn't sorry.  It did end the war, after all.  The few 
that remained organized themselves with the purpose of working together 
for a better purpose.  Temperance even joined in with them for a while.  
They were the original Council.  I helped them in what ways I could."

She nodded slowly.  "That is why the Council left here when they 
decided to move on to their own private agenda then?"

"Well, I didn't force them.  But I did my best to dampen their powers.  
As time has passed, my grip on the physical world has lessened a great 
deal.  And that is why I need your help, Miyuki.  I need you to join 
with me, be my link to the rest of the Arcana.  I have a feeling that I 
might be needed, and soon."


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Keisuke and Sumire were stunned by the news when they arrived.  The Ace 
immediately set off to try to find the King before he could cause 
anymore harm, while a numbed Knight joined the rest of the somber group 
watching over the fallen girl.

"Damnit, I should have been here," he muttered, seated against the wall 
as he slowly recovered from his battle.  In all the confusion, no one 
had asked about his condition, and he hadn't thought to explain.  "I 
was out for a stroll while all this was going on... I could have helped 
maybe, or-"

"It doesn't do any good to think that," Hotaru said, her voice still 
teary.  None of us were here, and there's no point in trying to think 
what we could have done."  Her voice took on strength as she spoke.  
"The important thing is what-"

"I think I saw her eyes flicker!" Natsu broke in.  "And there, again!"

They gathered closer around the bed, watching over her.


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"Join with you?  I don't understand."

He took a few steps forward, taking her hand in his.  Despite his 
appearance, it felt solid enough; I was only upon looking down that she 
realized she was now as filmy as him.  "I have kept you alive for a 
reason, Fortune.  I fear that events are now occurring that will cause 
the events of the Great War to repeat themselves.  If so, the forces 
here will need all the help that they can get.  If you tie your spirit 
to the Tower Reversed, you will still be able to aid your friends."

Shaking slightly, she looked away from him.  "But I'm not an Arcana 
anymore."

"Miyuki, the outward gifts of an Arcana are not all that there is to 
being one.  You lost your vision, that is all.  You are still Fortune.  
And you are linked to the Page of Pentacles... you will be able to 
speak to her, guide her as your powers guided you.  As long as she is 
within the Tower Reversed, your voice will reach her.  And you, in 
turn, will be my link to the rest of them."

She thought, then nodded slowly.  "I want to be able to help them 
again," she said haltingly.  "What do I have to do to join with you?"

He took her other hand, holding them within his own.  His eyes gazed 
into hers.  "Not very much.  You only have to choose to die."


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Hanako had strayed from the others, going to stand by the far wall.  
She couldn't stand to look at the other girl.  Tetsuya had told her 
what happened, that somehow she had taken the powers of Fortune.  That 
was why she had been having all of the funny dreams and stuff.  But if 
Miyuki had still had her powers, then she would have been able to see 
what was going to happen, and she would have been fine.

It was all her fault, and she hated it.  No wonder Miyuki had attacked 
her.  She deserved it.  She didn't know how she had done it, but she 
had, and that was all that mattered.

*Hanako, can you hear me?*  The voice rang through her head like a 
chorus of bells.  She jerked with surprise.

"Miyuki?" she whispered, looking over towards the others.  Tetsuya had 
a hand reached over to the girl's face.

"She's stopped breathing," he mumbled to the others, gently closing her 
eyes.  "She's dead."  The other seemed in shock.  Ishido quietly put an 
arm around a now-weeping Hotaru.

*Hanako?*

"No," Hanako said slowly.  "No, she's not."


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The Hanged Man shimmered into existence in an upscale apartment 
decorated in modern whites and chrome.  A trim-looking man in his late 
forties sat on an overstuffed couch dressed in sharp black and sipping 
a glass of wine.  He looked up at the entrance, peering over his slim 
silver spectacles.  "Another loose end tied up?"

"In a nice bow," the other replied dryly, looking at the decor with 
slight distaste.

"In with the new and out with the rubbish."  He took another drink.  
"There is only so much one can gain by living in the past as they did.  
Any word on the actions on the Queen of Pentacles?"

"I believe she said something about having a date tonight."

The older man chuckled, placing his glass on a side table.  "And she 
still has no idea of your involvement with me?"

"She knows that I am associated with other Arcana, but not the Council.  
I'm not even sure she knows that Hierophant is active."

"Very good.  It should remain that way.  After all, knowledge is our 
main advantage at this point in time, isn't it?  We don't have the same 
numbers as they do, but we will soon.  Especially when the Queen's ploy 
for Empress fails miserably.  Well, I suppose that is all for now."  He 
settled back into his seat, retrieving a volume from the coffee table 
and flipping to a seemingly random page.

The Hanged Man sighed quietly to himself as he respectfully transported 
himself away.  "The least he could have done was offer me a drink..."


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Very long, and lots of new things... hope it doesn't piss off too many 
people ^_^;;  Not enough Ishido though, oh well.  Thanks to Brett for 
the quick partial preread.  And as always, comments are appreciated.

LB