Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 2, part 2

[Hello Purvis]

>Put something between us and the beam!
>If this is not plausible, leap back from it.

[Oldmansour]

>Put something between us and the beam!
>If this is not plausible, leap back from it.

>The glass display cases afford you few options of large objects to move, and there are barely inches between you and the wall to your right.
>You crouch a little deeper, and then launch yourself backwards away from the yellow blast. This proves more effective than you'd expected, as you catapult backwards almost all the way to the wall behind you, well clear of the yellow beam, before coming back to ground, still behind the counter.
>That defensive wall you were using earlier, is it not strong enough to handle the youma's attacks?

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>It was working less well when I was tiring, but I have not tried it since becoming reinvigorated.
>Put up a barrier, and if it looks like that will buy us enough time, bring out the new ability.

[Oldmansour]

>It was working less well when I was tiring, but I have not tried it since becoming reinvigorated.
>Put up a barrier, and if it looks like that will buy us enough time, bring out the new ability.

>You stand straight, calling forth another screen of pale blue light to give yourself some protection from whatever attack the youma employs next. You note that, besides the two coffins wheeling in the air over and around you, all the rest have come off the ground and are orbiting the youma, like satellites. Only one of them, however, has an energy stream coming out of it. Odds are, that's the one Ran's in.
>Have you considered created a stronger one? the doll asks you, but you've not time to respond before the youma adjusts its aim towards you again.
>Its arm is still outstretched, but it does not fire another energy shot, nor does it send one of its coffins flying at you. Rather, it fires another volley of nails at you. As before, the nails are absorbed by the veil of light before you.
>"How much longer can you keep this up, human?" it taunts you in its horrible screeching voice. Little does it know what you've got in store for it now...

>You point your violet-colored scepter at the youma, and invoke the phrase, "Scarlet Lotus: Realization of Impermanence"
>With a sound like a thunderclap, a stream of red and white globes of energy burst forth from your scepter with astonishing speed, and you have to fight to keep your scepter in line against the unexpected kickback generated by the attack.
>Not unexpectedly, the youma puts a coffin between itself and your attack. Unlike your Wanderings attack, however, the Impermanence attack is not consumed in destroying this coffin. The stream of globes impact against the coffin and it dissolves after only about half of the stream, revealing the young woman, evidently an oni, trapped within. The globes travel straight though the oni, neither harming her nor slowing her fall out of the air, the remaining 55%, more or less, carry on and impact themselves against the youma, detonating in bright bursts of white and red light.
>The youma screeches again, writhing in midair under the force of your assault. It remains intact and in midair after your attack subsides, though charred and beaten. Your Othersight reveals, perhaps more importantly, that the blackness within it seems to have thinned. You still can't clearly see the core of the thing, but you think you can catch hints of it beneath the swirling black energy.

>"Not enough!" the youma screams, unleashing another one of its angry yellow blasts at you.
>You sense a tremor in the air around you.

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>Let's try a stronger barrier, then.
>And then blast it again.

[Hello Purvis]

>Do we feel we can dodge this one? If so, do it. Relying on the shield too much makes us predictable.

[Oldmansour]

>Let's try a stronger barrier, then.

>A stronger barrier would be a good idea. If for nothing else, to know you can create one.
>And much like forming another attack, the idea and then intent yields the words,


Rest assured, I will get to the other two commands posted in due course. But I wanted to get this in first. That being the name of your defensive skill.
"Sapphire Lotus: Clarity Ward" was my idea. Feel free to use it, or venture another choice.

[Hello Purvis]

>A barrier, I think, would most represent the idea of samkalpa. So let us call it Renunciation.

[Oldmansour]

>A barrier, I think, would most represent the idea of samkalpa. So let us call it Renunciation.

>And then blast it again.

>Do we feel we can dodge this one? If so, do it. Relying on the shield too much makes us predictable.

>While you've no desire to appear predictable to your enemy, this blast seems faster than the others, and you're fairly certain you won't be able to dodge it. At least not entirely. Perhaps you've angered the demon behind it, or its stepped up its attacks, now that you've increased your threat level. Regardless, it seems this blast will be your first test of your improved barrier.
>You elevate your baton over your head as you twirl on your heel, speaking the phrase "Sapphire Lotus: Renunciation". A ovular bubble of blue light appears around you, encircling you and while not obscuring your vision, you can sense the screen is much thicker, much stronger, than the more basic shields you've created so far.
>The youma's yellow ray impacts against this new barrier, and dissipates harmlessly against it. You feel no strain, no drain in energy, and the impact creates barely a ripple, even at the point of impact.

>Its attack defeated, you return your attention once again to offense, as the oni you freed from its coffin falls to the floor with a crash. She's lucky she didn't land on her head, but even with oni toughness, that can't have felt good. That's a solid eight foot drop. A human might not fare so well.
>You point your scepter at the youma again, readying your new attack spell. As you unleash it, the blue shield around you dissapears. Evidently it doesn't remain active when you use your Impermanence attack. This time, the youma puts two coffins up before it as a screen, its driver evidently learning. While as before, the coffins dissapear and your attack does reach the youma, the number of globes that reach it this time is far less than before. This attack has barely any effect on the swirling blackness protecting the youma's core. The two people freed by your attack, a pair of middle aged human males, begin to fall from the air, one towards the floor, the other over a glass display case containing necklaces.
>You sense another tremor in the air around you.

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>Sweep a purification beam across the room to get rid of any remaining coffins, then blast the youma again, evading or putting up a barrier as necessary.

[Hello Purvis]

>Before that, does it seem like either person will be hurt by this fall? If so, do we feel we can get to them in time to catch them?

[Oldmansour]

>Before that, does it seem like either person will be hurt by this fall? If so, do we feel we can get to them in time to catch them?

>One of them is facing an eight foot fall onto a hard linoleum surface, the other about a six foot fall onto a glass display case. When the oni landed from that height, she had rolled to land pretty much face-first, dead weight hitting the ground. A human COULD survive this, but the risk of injury is moderate to high, depending on the person in question. It certainly would do him any good, that's for damn sure.
>The other is potentially in greater risk, given that he's angling to land on a glass case. Either the glass will shatter and cut him very badly before he hits the floor, or it holds, and he hits two hard surfaces instead of just the one. Either way basically doubles the risk of injury.
>From your current position, you could run and catch either one of the two for certain. But they are falling from the same height at the same speed, so you could not catch both with your arms.

[Hello Purvis]

>Time for a gamble, then.
>Dash toward them, prepare our sceptre, and try to create another barrier. This time, try to make the barrier horizontal rather than vertical, so that it extends out like a tray or an outstretched hand, and place it under whichever is closest. Then do it again for the other person if it seems to work for the first one. At the very worst, it'll break therir falls for a moment, and two shorter falls are much less damaging than one.
>If it doesn't work at all, favor the one who might slam through the glass case and try to physically catch him or her.

[Oldmansour]

>Time for a gamble, then.
>Dash toward them, prepare our sceptre, and try to create another barrier. This time, try to make the barrier horizontal rather than vertical, so that it extends out like a tray or an outstretched hand, and place it under whichever is closest. Then do it again for the other person if it seems to work for the first one. At the very worst, it'll break therir falls for a moment, and two shorter falls are much less damaging than one.
>If it doesn't work at all, favor the one who might slam through the glass case and try to physically catch him or her.

>Did you wish to employ a basic barrier like the first ones, or the stronger Sapphire Lotus ability?

[Hello Purvis]

>Whichever is faster.

[Oldmansour]

>Whichever is faster.

>You believe you have time for either, but you're not certain of the strength of the simpler veil, and you've never tested either against physical impact beyond small projectiles. So you elect to employ your Sapphire Lotus technique.

>Dash toward them, prepare our sceptre, and try to create another barrier. This time, try to make the barrier horizontal rather than vertical, so that it extends out like a tray or an outstretched hand, and place it under whichever is closest. Then do it again for the other person if it seems to work for the first one. At the very worst, it'll break therir falls for a moment, and two shorter falls are much less damaging than one.
>If it doesn't work at all, favor the one who might slam through the glass case and try to physically catch him or her.

>You leap over the counter and spring forward, towards the luckless men falling towards the floor. Blue light swirls around your scepter as your call forth another screen of energy, this time not to protect yourself from harm, but others. Despite your intention to form first one cushion of light, then another, two seperate beams of strong blue light emerge from the lotus tip of your scepter. They fly out before you, stop beneath the two men, and expand into two glowing blue hands, one less than a foot above the floor, the other directly above a display case. Left and right hands, even!
>Both men come to a halt, but not with a crash or a thud. They come to a surprisingly gentle halt.
>The result on your body, however, is not quite as gentle, as the force of stopping the falls of two grown men produces a sharp wrenching motion on your body. Not enough to break your concentration, but it's more than uncomfortable, it downright hurts.

>And while your heroism has saved these two men from potentially serious harm, it affords the youma a clear shot at you. You can practically hear its skin stretch in a savage grin as it crows, "Soft heart!" You brace yourself for the impact of another attack....
>A massive disturbance rocks the building, and a sound like an explosion comes from the area of the entrance. The sudden severe reverbration in the air momentarily makes you lose your focus, and you stagger, falling down onto your butt. The blue hands vanish, letting the humans fall. One man falls to floor, but only 7 or 8 inches, and is likely fine. The other barely falls at all, and the glass display case does not break under his impact. He remains atop it, lying still.
>A vicious yellow beam drills into the floor less than an inch away from you. The youma's still in the air, but its aim must have been thrown off by that detonation.

[Hello Purvis]

>Move from that beam, and try to figure out where it's coming from!

[Oldmansour]

>Move from that beam, and try to figure out where it's coming from!

>You scootch sideways away from the yellow beam the youma fired. It fades, having missed its mark.
>You hear footsteps running up the stairs from the entrance.

[Hello Purvis]

>What's the Youma doing?
>Assuming it's not about to come after us, or one of the victims, look toward the stairs.

[Oldmansour]

>What's the Youma doing?
>Assuming it's not about to come after us, or one of the victims, look toward the stairs.

>The youma is actually doing the same thing you're doing, turning its head to look at the stairs. Somewhat disturbingly, it twists its neck around at an angle that is gruesome to behold to do so.
>A young woman with striped cat ears and matching tail, wearing silver and white miko clothing, bounds up the stairs, a paper charm in her hand. It is Kiku, the somewhat hard-assed miko from the Metal Tiger shrine. She looks towards the floating youma, and her face changes from dour to determined.
>"Youkai!" the youma screams at her. "Where did you find the strength to break my barrier? You reek of fear."
>"I have more strength than you know, creature." the youkai miko intones, holding her charm before her, the paper coming upright with a flash of light. She spares a glance at you. "Get to safety, woman. I shall destroy this creature here and now."
>In your head, the doll wonders aloud, A Terran miko with enough magic to break a barrier? I didn't think the mikos of this world still had that kind of power.

[Hello Purvis]

>"Let us work together instead; I can cleanse it!"
>Unleash Realization of the Wandering on it again, while it's distracted.

[Oldmansour]

>"Let us work together instead; I can cleanse it!"
>Unleash Realization of the Wandering on it again, while it's distracted.

>It's attention turned to the new arrival, and said arrival assured of your intent, you set about proving your ability. This youma has damaged property, threatened lives, and has taken a treasured item away from someone that loves it. You will set this right.
>Coming to your feet, your point your scepter at the youma, noting the remianing coffins are no longer spinning, affording you a clear shot. You unleash the brilliant light of your Wanderings spell, drawing another scream from the youma. This time, it screams in rage, and turns you, the rage in its molten orange eyes so thick you can almost feel it. So much anger...
>When the youma's mouth moves, the voice that emerges is that of the bat you encountered after purifying the gold ring. "ENOUGH!" it howls, the sound almost forcing back your spell. The youma raises its arms, and a pair of yellow beams emerge, pushing your Wanderings away. "ALL you are DOING is delaying the inevitable! We cannot be stopped! We will not be forgotten! A coward and a fool cannot stop ME! This world will SUFFER OUR RAGE!!"

>As your spell battles the youma's beams, and endure the demon's hatred, you see a swirl of golden light appear around the striped miko. "Great Byakko of the west, Metal Tiger and Father of Beasts! Your daughter calls upon you, to aid her in vanquishing this abomination." Her eyes filled with that same light, the talisman she holds snaps up straight as a razor, edged in a silver glow. She throws the paper with a flourish towards the youma, and its lands on the floor beneath it with a snap. She holds her arms out before her, right hand gripping her left wrist, her left hand turned palm up.
>A silver pentagram spirals out from the paper talisman across the floor, and a shaft of golden light emerges from the middle of the star, enveloping the youma. It howls again, and the angry yellow beams holing back your Realizations of the Wandering begin to falter.
>Your Othersight shows you that the black energy protecting the youma's core is extremely agitated, but its seems to be dissipating. It's weakening!

[Hello Purvis]

>"No one will forget you. I will make sure of it."
>Keep it up; or invoke the purification if needs be.

[Oldmansour]

>"No one will forget you. I will make sure of it."
>Keep it up; or invoke the purification if needs be.

>The youma was quite a challenge for you, and would likely have been as much or more for the priestess of the Metal Tiger. Together, you're more than a match for it.
>"This world will suffer no more at your hands. So swears Kiku." the miko vows, adding her voice to yours.
>The light of Kiku's seal grows brighter, as you pour more power into your own attack. "The light...." the demon's voice strains, your purification beam getting closer and closer to its body. "We will drown the light. The coward will be OURS! And YOU-" The youma's threat is cut off as its head jerks forward, a flash of red light streaking in from behind its and striking it in the back of the head, faster than your eye could track, accompanied by the report from a gun.
>Doubles! He's back up, at least to one knee, and still fighting. And with the impact of his bullet, the youma's beams fade, and the light of your purification washes over the stricken youma. You hear it screech once, "The light... takes me....!"and then its form vanishes, dissolving into the light. Kiku lowers her hands, her breath leaving her in a rush you can hear from here.

>As the light from the combined attacks of you and Kiku fade, you hear a dull metallic tinkling sound on the linolium sales floor. Beneath where the youma once was now rests a golden heart-shaped locket. You'd bet your scepter that's Chen's locket.
>The coffins that remain in the air all begin to gently lower to the ground, fading out of existence, revealing the people trapped within. Ran is the only that seems conscious, and she shakes her head groggily and halts her descent for a moment, as if to take stock of the situation. For a moment, as the coffins fade, you fear their victims will plummet like the last three did. They do not, however, and come to rest where they land gently, safely. Their ordeal over.
>For now.

[Hello Purvis]

>Heave a huge sigh of relief.
>"Thank you. Thank you very much."
>Let's go check on these people.

[Oldmansour]

>Heave a huge sigh of relief.
>"Thank you. Thank you very much."
>Let's go check on these people.

>After what seems like hours, you can finally breathe easily, heaving a massive sigh. And then wince slightly at the muscular twinge this creates in your chest. That was a hell of a fight.
>But you'll recover, and the victims of the youma could be hurt worse, so you walk from individual to individual, checking their status, beginning with the oni that fell hard onto the floor. There's a contusion on her forehead, likely from the fall, but she's still breathing easily. In fact, she's drooling a little. If you didn't know better, you'd think she was dreaming. The others, humans all as far as you can tell, do not seem as restful as the young oni, but there are no injuries in evidence on any of them. They seem to be in relatively the same condition that Lily and the others were in after their encounter with the first youma, though not quite as cold to the touch. You take this as a good sign.

>Ran, for her part, floats down the ground, holding a hand to her head, her tails and ears drooping. She looks rather like someone suffering a bad handover.
>With a stiff groan, the aging oni gunman pulls himself to his feet, with difficulty, holding a hand to his chest cavity, leaning against the wall he was thrown against for support.
>Kiku is kneeling by the human that was in the coffin near the top of the stairs. She still seems on alert. Her hair seems to have become some frizzed after employing her spell, but she seems otherwise unaffected by her display of power.

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>Retrieve the locket and hand it to Ran.
>"Here. I believe this is what Chen was looking for, is it not?"

[Oldmansour]

>Retrieve the locket and hand it to Ran.
>"Here. I believe this is what Chen was looking for, is it not?"

>Content that the civilians are in decent shape, you set about the next bit of business; restoring that which was wronged to those its belongs with.
>Scooping up the locket from where it fell, to approach the store's owner and offer it to her. Ran blinks slowly, then looks at you before looking at the item in your hand. A slow, warm smile spreads across her face as she gingerly takes the locket from you. "You did it." she breathes, as if trying to make herself believe. "You really did it." She closes her hand over the keepsake, taking a moment seeming to compose herself, then places her free hand on your shoulder, smiling at you. "I don't know how to thank you, hero. You saved my store, these people, and gave my daughter back her precious jewel. I am in your debt."
>Despite being in fairly obvious pain, Doubles gives you a congratulatory grin. For her part, Kiku stands again, and produces another ofuda charm, her eyes sweeping the area.

[Hello Purvis]

>"You're welcome."
>Look to Doubles. "Do you need me to call the hospital?"
>What do we recall about Kiku? It's been a long couple hours.

[Oldmansour]

>"You're welcome."
>Look to Doubles. "Do you need me to call the hospital?"
>What do we recall about Kiku? It's been a long couple hours.

>"Ran Yakumo honors her debts. Anything you want, anything you need of me, and I shall provide."
>The aging oni chuckles. "I've had a lot worse than this, little witch. I jus' need to catch me breath. 'sides, I heal real fast."
>"She's no witch, old man." Kiku admonishes Doubles. "That was great power, but it wasn't black magic."

>Kiku seemed to occupy a position of power, or seniority, within the temple, admonishing the other miko you encountered about their behavior. She had a severe bearing with them, though you were assured she was a fair woman by another miko, just one who took her role very, very seriously. She disapproved strongly of Eagle, that she made no bones about, and warned you, repeatedly, about keeping your distance from her, and not trusting her for an instant. And yet, you caught a hint that she might be afraid of the Manari member.
>She was very polite, though, if formal, thanking you for providing her fellow mikos with a song. You even got a smile out of her with that performance. She spoke very properly, very formally.
>Eagle seemed to think earlier that Kiku was following you both, or was having you followed. Her presence here seems to lend credence to that theory.