Author Topic: The Legend of Hieda: Daughter Zero - Completed (Read 30806 times)

Jq1790 · « **Reply #270 on:** July 13, 2012, 06:54:17 PM »

Welp. Now I feel kind of silly. When Fightest was introducing the story-lock, he GAVE us all of the key terms highlighted in the proverb.

Thusly...

>Place the story-pearls in this order:(Are's key)>Ani's pearl>Ami's>Aichi's>Ago's>Ayo's.

Fightest · « **Reply #271 on:** July 13, 2012, 09:28:06 PM »

> SO DID THE DAUGHTER ZERO LEARN OF THE WYLD, AND SO DID THE WYLD LEARN OF HER.

> You have done it! You have finally broken through the mighty magma flow!

> AND SO DID THE DAUGHTER THREE TELL ALL THAT CREATION WOULD NOT SURVIVE, AND ALL KNEW THIS TO BE TRUE.

> The current feels different now, as if it's pulling you in.

> AND DAUGHTER TWO SAW THE PAST AND THE FUTURE, AND FORMED A SOLUTION THAT WOULD SPAN GENERATIONS.

> Drawn in by magma - no, not magma but a pure fire - you go deeper, deeper.

> AND DAUGHTER ONE DID CUT DOWN ALL THAT WOULD OPPOSE THEM, THAT NONE WOULD DARE RAISE ARMS AGAINST THEM.

> Until the fire parts, and your wings again hold you aloft in an enormous space surrounded by the purest fire, and before you is something that defies your - admittedly young and naive - imagination.

> AND DAUGHTER FIVE IGNITED THE FORGE, THUS SNUFFING OUT CREATION'S ALREADY DYING FLAME.

> A castle? A mountain? A solar furnace? And inside of it, through the glass - are those houses, streets and gardens?

> AND DAUGHTER FOUR UNDID THE FATE-STRANDS, THAT NONE WOULD REMEMBER WHAT CAME BEFORE TO PROTECT THEM FROM THE WYLD.

> You feel your heart skip a beat. Then two. Another. Ano-

> ...

> THUMP

> ...

> THUMP

> And as your heart starts beating again, you feel a resonance from within the vast object, pulsing in time with your heartbeat.
> And you know - how could you not? - that it is READY.
> It will obey your every thought, as if it were - no, but it is already far more than that - it is a part of you. As you live and die, so will it. As you rejoice and grieve, so will it.
> Satori and Orin would probably like to see it.

Jq1790 · « **Reply #272 on:** July 13, 2012, 10:54:31 PM »

>Return home, our goal accomplished

Fightest · « **Reply #273 on:** July 14, 2012, 07:03:45 AM »

> You ascend, and it follows, swimming through the fire, then magma like a fish, vast fins extending from its sides - golden scaffolds between which runs a shimmering silver light.
> Even the rock is no obstacle, parting before it like an honor guard letting through an ancient, returning Queen.
> And suddenly you break through and you plunge into water, ice-cold, with the noonday sun shining brilliantly through its surface, and yet higher and higher you fly.
> And rise from the lake, sending a plume of water hundreds of meters into the air, forming grand rainbows as it comes back down again.
> And it gleams in the sun, hovering in place quietly, dwarfing the mansion at the side of the lake, the final salvation of Creation and all who survived its fall!
> STARSHIP GENSOKYO!

Mr_Bob · « **Reply #274 on:** July 14, 2012, 07:41:15 AM »

Quote from: Fightest on July 14, 2012, 07:03:45 AM

> STARSHIP GENSOKYO!

Bahahaha! The possibilites of this amuse and excite me.

>Examine the SS Gensokyo

Fightest · « **Reply #275 on:** September 10, 2012, 09:59:03 AM »

It's about time we got this started.

Quote from: Bob on July 14, 2012, 07:41:15 AM

>Examine the SS Gensokyo

> You would, but you are too busy being Are.

> It took you a frustratingly long time to arrange the formalities, but you have successfully attached yourself to the ambassadorial mission to Empyrian.
> Mo-Ko will not accompany you this time - she took off a few days ago to pursue some decidedly tight-lipped personal issues.
> It had seemed too easy to get through the usual rigmarole of customs - even despite your diplomatic immunity, you'd never normally be given this much freedom to wander the streets of the wondrous city-state as you are now.
> And truly wondrous it is: vast golden towers reach to the skies all around you, and not even the ground level is truly the bottom part of the city - the foundations extend far below you as well, and activity buzzes on every level, all the way up to the clouds.
> Luxuries and comforts of all sorts are available to the most critical of tastes, and magnificent riches are on casual display everywhere, as if it is normal to plate one's attendant elementals in oristeel decorations.
> But distractions are distractions, and you are wise enough to know that they are there to keep you from noticing that you are being followed.
> However, it is perplexingly difficult to figure out by whom and how. The state police seem to have upped their game since the last time.

Mr_Bob · « **Reply #276 on:** September 11, 2012, 08:26:42 AM »

>Quick recap: we need to go to the library to find a scroll and learn more about the Chaos, right?
>Are there any abassadorial obligations we have? Visits to anyone?

Fightest · « **Reply #277 on:** September 11, 2012, 09:15:13 AM »

Quote from: Bob on September 11, 2012, 08:26:42 AM

>Quick recap: we need to go to the library to find a scroll and learn more about the Chaos, right?
>Are there any abassadorial obligations we have? Visits to anyone?

> Correct, White-Lotus Hijiri told you privately that she read a strange book in the libraries of Empyrian. It was filed as fiction, yet a story in it bore worrying resemblance to the events of the chaos-wave attack.
> This particular point is worth elaborating on: it cannot be historical. You literally know the entirety of the history of Creation, as it has not been more than a few hundred years since the Celestials and their Chosen took it from its creators. You were there when it happened, after all.

> Your position is the comfortably vague Ambassadorial Aide, which essentially means that you are free to do whatever you want unless the Ambassador herself requires your immediate presence.
> You do have an old acquaintance that you have not seen in a few years, a master artisan with skills to rival Patchouli-And-Lavender's, but specialised in the production of homunculi - Alice of the Outbound Road. You recall she mentioned looking to improve her skills in Empyrian.

Mr_Bob · « **Reply #278 on:** September 12, 2012, 09:49:40 AM »

>A prophetic story perhaps?
>Mingle with the crowds, gauging how we are being followed. Start for one of the towers.

Fightest · « **Reply #279 on:** September 12, 2012, 11:20:02 AM »

Quote from: Bob on September 12, 2012, 09:49:40 AM

>A prophetic story perhaps?
>Mingle with the crowds, gauging how we are being followed. Start for one of the towers.

> If so, then it did well in getting by certain instances in Heaven unnoticed.
> You dive into the many-tiered hustle and bustle of midday crowds. Flying transports pass by above and below - larger and more elaborate than the ones you tend to see back on the Isle, and sights and sounds assault you from every direction.
> You check for the usual signs of a tail, and go through the old tricks to throw off the average agent.
> But the attempt seems fruitless, as you are absolutely sure that there is no physical individual to throw off.
> Literally everyone that you can see and that can see you is just a civilian, or a civil servant, or what-have-you.
> But you know you're still being followed.

Mr_Bob · « **Reply #280 on:** September 13, 2012, 09:17:14 AM »

>Perhaps we can shake the tail with speed. Continue to the top of one of the towers.
>Get a good view, and choose a spot where it's a straight shot down to the bottom.
>We wouldn't cause too much trouble if we jumped and hitched a ride, would we?

Fightest · « **Reply #281 on:** September 13, 2012, 12:07:25 PM »

Quote from: Bob on September 13, 2012, 09:17:14 AM

>Perhaps we can shake the tail with speed. Continue to the top of one of the towers.
>Get a good view, and choose a spot where it's a straight shot down to the bottom.
>We wouldn't cause too much trouble if we jumped and hitched a ride, would we?

> Even in your concentrated effort to lose your tail, you take the time to take in the increasingly phenomenal sight of the city-state of Empyrian spreading out in all directions around you as you make your way ever higher through the multi-tiered metropolis.
> You can clearly see key landmarks of the city, gleaming in the noonday sun, the Great Library one of them, its already-impressive bulk only the tip of the iceberg - the underground component of the library is a near-endless expanse, almost a city of its own. It is this phenomenal wealth of knowledge that gives Empyrian the political clout it needs to stay independent.
> And from here, one of the many observation platforms, you can look out over the side and see, oh so far below you, the ground.
> Yes, jumping off would definitely cause trouble. Nobody would question you, of course, but it is a bit of a stunt.

Mr_Bob · « **Reply #282 on:** September 17, 2012, 07:27:12 AM »

>Are we being watched through the eyes of the civilians (meaning as long as a civilian can see us, the tailer can as well), or something else entirely?

Fightest · « **Reply #283 on:** September 17, 2012, 02:13:42 PM »

Quote from: Bob on September 17, 2012, 07:27:12 AM

>Are we being watched through the eyes of the civilians (meaning as long as a civilian can see us, the tailer can as well)?

> That would require some very insidious sorcery.
> That is not to say that you do not know any individuals who are capable of such trickery.
> Indeed, your old acquaintance, Alice, is certainly one such individual.

mad · « **Reply #284 on:** September 18, 2012, 10:47:19 PM »

>Do we have a direction from which we are being watched or is it always behind us? Could our follower simply be watching us from a high place?

Fightest · « **Reply #285 on:** September 19, 2012, 09:47:12 AM »

Quote from: mad on September 18, 2012, 10:47:19 PM

>Do we have a direction from which we are being watched or is it always behind us? Could our follower simply be watching us from a high place?

> Whatever the watcher is doing, they're tricky enough such that there is no singular possible direction from where they could be observing you.

Mr_Bob · « **Reply #286 on:** September 19, 2012, 09:53:57 AM »

Quote from: Fightest on September 17, 2012, 02:13:42 PM

> That is not to say that you do not know any individuals who are capable of such trickery.
> Indeed, your old acquaintance, Alice, is certainly one such individual.

Best way to deal with a spy is another spy.

>On the off-chance, do we have anything that would make us invisible? Does that make a difference?
>Either way, high-tail it to Alice's. See if speed forces a chase, or reveal.

mad · « **Reply #287 on:** September 21, 2012, 04:50:15 AM »

>Instead, if we can go invisible, perhaps a nearby toilet stall would have enough privacy and a large enough opening that we could visibly enter through the main entrance and invisibly leave through some opening.
>What can we do to extend our senses?
>Do we have a way to watch through others' eyes?
>If no invisibility, I agree we should move fast and don't have any reason to favor any particular direction.

Fightest · « **Reply #288 on:** September 25, 2012, 08:30:31 AM »

> Whist Are is exceptionally skilled, things like invisibility are not her forte. She is, indeed, better at being seen than not.
> Time passes.
> You have no issues finding Alice's home.
> And she has definitely moved up in the world.
> You stand before the gates of a small, but stately manor, neatly tucked away in the corner of a verdant park that is suspended high amongst the spires of Empyrian, where the sun shines bright and the air is clear.
> Beyond the gates you can see a well-maintained garden, its flowerbeds blooming with beautiful reds and blues.
> A scraping sound alerts you to a figure kneeling over near one of the flowerbeds, busy at work tending the plants.

Mr_Bob · « **Reply #289 on:** September 25, 2012, 09:05:06 AM »

>Tending

Spoiler:

? Examine the figure.
>Have we learned anything new about our tail?

Fightest · « **Reply #290 on:** September 25, 2012, 10:08:40 AM »

Quote from: Bob on September 25, 2012, 09:05:06 AM

>Tending
Spoiler:
~~or destroying~~
? Examine the figure.

> The figure is dressed in simple gardening clothes - thick gloves, scuffed boots, overalls, a hat against the sun. They look pretty absorbed in their business.

Quote

>Have we learned anything new about our tail?

> It is a strange feeling, and you only have your intuition to go on, but there seems to be something strange in the air.

Hanzo K. · « **Reply #291 on:** September 25, 2012, 10:09:39 AM »

>Perhaps what we're dealing with, then, is a Hired Air Elemental.

Fightest · « **Reply #292 on:** September 25, 2012, 01:14:29 PM »

Quote from: Hanzo K. on September 25, 2012, 10:09:39 AM

>Perhaps what we're dealing with, then, is a Hired Air Elemental.

> If so, it's been doing a remarkable job of keeping up with you.

Hanzo K. · « **Reply #293 on:** September 25, 2012, 01:19:37 PM »

>Well, they have been renowned for being as swift as the wind, so perhaps this is a rare high-grade one.
>Do we know of any spells to force things out of hiding, and into a visible form?

Mr_Bob · « **Reply #294 on:** September 26, 2012, 08:48:18 AM »

>Who is this figure? Inquire if Alice is present (if this isn't her).
>Also, if it comes down to it, leave the figure to their labor, we can have a more proper conversation after dealing with this "air".

Fightest · « **Reply #295 on:** October 04, 2012, 02:24:45 PM »

Quote from: Hanzo K. on September 25, 2012, 01:19:37 PM

>Well, they have been renowned for being as swift as the wind, so perhaps this is a rare high-grade one.
>Do we know of any spells to force things out of hiding, and into a visible form?

> To be more accurate, in some form or another, air spirits and elementals are the wind. It is somewhat flattering that Empyrian would bind a force of nature just to keep track of you.
> If it were indeed a spirit or elemental, you could simply command it to show itself. Your commands are difficult to refuse.

Quote from: Bob on September 26, 2012, 08:48:18 AM

>Who is this figure? Inquire if Alice is present (if this isn't her).
>Also, if it comes down to it, leave the figure to their labor, we can have a more proper conversation after dealing with this "air".

> You call out, and the figure stands up to look at you.
> She has changed a bit - her eyes brighter, her features sharper - but she is definitely the Alice you knew.
> She walks up to the gates, her pace measured, and makes an almost-imperceptible smile.
> "I trust I will not be seeing the state police at my doorstep as a result of this visit?"

GuyYouMetOnline · « **Reply #296 on:** October 04, 2012, 03:52:01 PM »

>"I hope not, but... something is following me. And has been since I arrived in the city."

Fightest · « **Reply #297 on:** October 05, 2012, 07:05:28 AM »

Quote from: GuyYouMetOnline on October 04, 2012, 03:52:01 PM

>"I hope not, but... something is following me. And has been since I arrived in the city."

> Alice's expression does not change, but her eyes flicker quickly as if to look behind you.
> "That is entirely unsurprising. Come in."
> She unlatches the gates and swings them open herself.

Hanzo K. · « **Reply #298 on:** October 05, 2012, 07:16:49 AM »

>Let's go in, and take a look at what she was tending to while we're at it.
>"Since your brand of magic can be applied for this sort of thing, I felt I should get your opinion on the matter."
>Chuckle a little. "That, and it's always nice to pay a visit sometimes, no?"

Fightest · « **Reply #299 on:** October 09, 2012, 03:09:46 PM »

Quote from: Hanzo K. on October 05, 2012, 07:16:49 AM

>Let's go in, and take a look at what she was tending to while we're at it.
>"Since your brand of magic can be applied for this sort of thing, I felt I should get your opinion on the matter."
>Chuckle a little. "That, and it's always nice to pay a visit sometimes, no?"

> You follow Alice down the garden path towards the manor proper.
> She looks to have been tending a patch of roses. They are blooming brightly and vigorously.
> "My brand of magic can be applied to anything, Are," she says, her back still to you as she leads you down - you notice immediately - a slightly circuitous route to pass by the most impressive flower arrangements.
> "But I appreciate you coming not for just my troubleshooting experience."
> Soon enough, you are standing inside Alice's manor. It is spotless, but a bit empty of furniture and decorations.
> The moment the door closes behind you, Alice turns around and speaks, her voice resonating with a power you are intimately familiar with, a crimson light pouring from her mouth and eyes.
> "I spend years searching for the cause of this city's corruption, and you would walk in through my front door uninvited?"
> The air around you convulses.
> ...
> ...and speaks with a jovial, mocking tone.
> "Says the one with the bloodshine. Admit it, you messed up."
> Alice turns to you, still shining, but without the power in her voice.
> If anything, she looks sheepish.
> "Are? A little help?"