Maribel Quest Abridging - A Z-Machine Adventure

[Kilgamayan]

> "Check on the fairies first."

[Hello Purvis]

> "Check on the fairies first."

>"You might have to buy me some time," says Renko, "But I'll get what help I can from them."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Thanks. And I'll do my best to hold out."

[Kilgamayan]

> "Just check the pantry for them. If they're there, do your thing. If not, head to Patchy. We'll have to worry about them later."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Thanks. And I'll do my best to hold out."

> "Just check the pantry for them. If they're there, do your thing. If not, head to Patchy. We'll have to worry about them later."

>She nods. "Just...she's probably going to be in front of the door to the kitchen"

[DracoOmega]

>Didn't Alice just exit through the middle door?
>That WAS the room we were in, right?

[Hello Purvis]

>Didn't Alice just exit through the middle door?
>That WAS the room we were in, right?

>She went into the Eastern gallery, which is the door that she was near. You have not really followed her in, but you watched her go through said gallery.

[DracoOmega]

>"Ok, you go to Patchouli first, then, since there's a clear path. I'll try to draw her back towards the foyer so you can run past her afterward, ok?"
>Assuming affirmative, exit into the hallway from this gallery.

[Hello Purvis]

>"Ok, you go to Patchouli first, then, since there's a clear path. I'll try to draw her back towards the foyer so you can run past her afterward, ok?"
>Assuming affirmative, exit into the hallway from this gallery.

>She nods. "Got it."
>You exit, and find Alice waiting in the hall. She floats behind the construct, which stands firmly on the ground. It's head comes shy of the ceiling by a foot.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Now that I think of it, Alice, you said that wasn't your handiwork. Whose was it?"
>How wide is the hallway itself compared to the construct? How much room is there to slip past it?

[Hello Purvis]

>"Now that I think of it, Alice, you said that wasn't your handiwork. Whose was it?"
>How wide is the hallway itself compared to the construct? How much room is there to slip past it?

>"That's an excellent question," she says. "The answer is, someone from outside. I am not certain who, alas. It's difficult to research. But I have gathered a few things on my own."
>It's wide enough it could probably reach anyone trying to slip by unless it was close to the wall, and the person trying to slip by was close the opposite wall. But, it does not fill that space with its bulk, one can walk by pretty easily.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Oh? Like what? I'm curious."
>Did Renko follow us out?

[Hello Purvis]

>"Oh? Like what? I'm curious."
>Did Renko follow us out?

>Renko did follow you out. She's trying to sidle away.
>"I investigated where it was sealed. Very interesting...From what I was able to gather, it was created by a Vedic magician, I've yet to be able to trace exactly when he lived, but that's really not important. The important part is it's intricacy, it's beauty! Did you not see the exquisite craftsmanship of its parts? It must have been a life's work!"

[DracoOmega]

>"The worksmanship is certainly very impressive. But... you said it was sealed. Why?"
>"And how did it end up in your possession afterwards?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"The worksmanship is certainly very impressive. But... you said it was sealed. Why?"
>"And how did it end up in your possession afterwards?"

>"It was powered by something forbidden," says Alice with a shrug. "As for how I got it, it got loose, and Reisen defeated it, then left the body. It's a stroke of luck I was able to see it at all. By the time I got to it, the faeries had stripped it half to pieces. I took what I could, of course, and have been trying to get the little nuisances to give me what they could find in exchange for cherry tarts and the like. Probably why they brought me Renko in the first place. She was all too happy to round what parts she could find."
>Renko, you note, has escaped now.
>"Unfortunately, some have been lost forever, and it's just not feasible to get everything the faeries took. So, replacements must be made. Replacements which are not cheap by any meaning of the word."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"No, I can imagine they mustn't be. Gensokyo itself seems rather lacking in the infrastructure for precise machining. Well, I suppose the kappa might have some, but they seem a little... imprecise in some ways."
>"Is that energy that's filling some of the gaps a temporary measure, then? Until you can make the actual metal parts to replace it?"
>"And is that book of yours essentially an integral part of it, as well? Or could it be assembled in the typical physical way, once the missing parts are replaced?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"No, I can imagine they mustn't be. Gensokyo itself seems rather lacking in the infrastructure for precise machining. Well, I suppose the kappa might have some, but they seem a little... imprecise in some ways."
>"Is that energy that's filling some of the gaps a temporary measure, then? Until you can make the actual metal parts to replace it?"
>"And is that book of yours essentially an integral part of it, as well? Or could it be assembled in the typical physical way, once the missing parts are replaced?"

>"Yes, and yes, a temporary measure. As for the Grimoire, it needs something to power it, now that the original source is gone. My usual techniques wouldn't affect it. It'll be a goal for the future. But for now, let us focus on today's goals..."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Well, the curiosity is honest, even if I don't approve of how you're planning to raise the money for it. But I'm pretty sure we've already established that."
>"I guess that makes me a test subject of sorts, doesn't it? Well, I guess I'm going to get to see what it can do, one way or the other."
>Get ready to respond to sudden attacks
>How far away are Alice and the construct?
>How far away is the foyer from here?

[Hello Purvis]

>"Well, the curiosity is honest, even if I don't approve of how you're planning to raise the money for it. But I'm pretty sure we've already established that."
>"I guess that makes me a test subject of sorts, doesn't it? Well, I guess I'm going to get to see what it can do, one way or the other."
>Get ready to respond to sudden attacks
>How far away are Alice and the construct?
>How far away is the foyer from here?

>"You could think of yourself as such," says Alice, as she manipulates the construct forward.
>She is about 5 yards away, and closing quickly.
>The foyer is about 4 yards behind you.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Shift backward.
>Try to fire at Alice. Adjust our vertical and horizontal position to get a clearer shot at her around the construct.

[Hello Purvis]

>Shift backward.
>Try to fire at Alice. Adjust our vertical and horizontal position to get a clearer shot at her around the construct.

>You shift backward as the construct approaches.  Despite being on the ground, it is fast enough to keep pace with your flight.
>You fire upon Alice, and she tugs on the construct's strings, causing it to shoot its hand out and intercept the bullets.
>If you intend to keep avoiding it, you'll be forced out into the foyer.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Then fall back to the foyer. We'll need the maneuvering room against something so large.
>Try to shift back and forth to the side as we fall back (assuming it does not impede our momentum too much), launching bullets at Alice from different angles. Let's see how fast she can make that construct block

[Hello Purvis]

>Then fall back to the foyer. We'll need the maneuvering room against something so large.
>Try to shift back and forth to the side as we fall back (assuming it does not impede our momentum too much), launching bullets at Alice from different angles. Let's see how fast she can make that construct block

>You fall back into the Foyer! The doors to the library are still wide open, as are the doors outside.
>Moving to and fro, you try to fire upon Alice from several angles. Sometimes she has the construct intercept them, other times she dodges them herself., while closing in.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Keep falling back. Try to maneuver so that the construct will be in view from the library, if someone were to look out the door

[Hello Purvis]

>Keep falling back. Try to maneuver so that the construct will be in view from the library, if someone were to look out the door

>You continue to fall back, and Alice continues to advance. You think that you may end up hitting the wall soon.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>What is the rough position of ourselves, the construct and Alice, and the library doors, given the layout of the room?

[Hello Purvis]

>What is the rough position of ourselves, the construct and Alice, and the library doors, given the layout of the room?

>The library is to the south, on your left, about ten or twelve yards away. Alice and the construct are about 4 yards ahead of you, to the west. You are pretty sure you've traversed most of the room trying to get away from them.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>As we back up, swing out to the north a bit to avoid being wedged against the wall
>Try firing a stream of danmaku at Alice with one hand. If the construct blocks it, try to direct a second stream at Alice with our other hand without immediately ending the first one.

[Hello Purvis]

>As we back up, swing out to the north a bit to avoid being wedged against the wall
>Try firing a stream of danmaku at Alice with one hand. If the construct blocks it, try to direct a second stream at Alice with our other hand without immediately ending the first one.

>You swing north a bit, giving you bit more time to back away before you end up in a corner.
>You fire a stream of danmaku; the construct blocks it. You fire a second stream! The construct blocks that one with its other hand. From Alice's grin, it seems she is enjoying herself. You also find that maintaining two streams at once is a bit difficult.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Try to move such that, by pursuing us, Alice's back is drawn in front of the open library doors
>How close is she to that position now?
>"Well, it's pretty solid, I'll give it that."
>Fire a few more times. Let her enjoy herself, and perhaps hopefully not be too alert to other things.
>Can we see anything, or more importantly anyONE in the library by looking at it? Try not to make it obvious we're looking that way.