Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 2

[Oldmansour]

>Yes?

>The Champion of Fire is moving.

[DracoOmega]

>Where?
>Cast our own senses out and see what we can see

[Oldmansour]

>Where?
>Cast our own senses out and see what we can see

>It appears to be traveling towards you.
>You have to cast your senses pretty far to detect your quarry, but after a momentthe warning is confirmed. You can sense the Fire Champion, and they do seem to be moving in your direction.

[DracoOmega]

>...if we put our mind to it, can we possibly detect Fire's Avatar here? Or approaching here? We did hear that they were on their way to this country, after all....

[Oldmansour]

>...if we put our mind to it, can we possibly detect Fire's Avatar here? Or approaching here? We did hear that they were on their way to this country, after all....

>You have demonstrated the ability to detect the link between a Champion and their chosen Avatar before. There's no reason to suspect you wouldn't be able to do so with Fire's Avatar as you did with Air and Water. It's possible Fire's might even be easier to detect, considering how easy it's been to sense the Champion's presence.

[DracoOmega]

>That wasn't a 'can we in theory?'. It was a 'try right now'

[Oldmansour]

>That wasn't a 'can we in theory?'. It was a 'try right now'

>Oh.
>Despite the clarity with which you can sense the approaching Champion, at this time you cannot detect the same sort of tether from him that you sensed from Water and Air. Either the Fire Champion hasn't made the connection with his Avatar yet, or it's too weak to detect with your senses. You do sense an approaching darkness from the northwest, but it is unrelated to the Champions' presence, as best as you can tell.

[DracoOmega]

>Another darkness from the Northwest? How far? How fast? Can we tell anything else about it?

[Oldmansour]

>Another darkness from the Northwest? How far? How fast? Can we tell anything else about it?

>Yes. Fairly close, and approaching rapidly. Given the direction, you believe you're sensing the aura Semitur is generating. If you can sense that from here, she must be extremely powerful indeed. But you're not certain about this, since the sensation isn't as profoundly evil as you might have thought. The plane hasn't quite landed yet, so you can't discern much in the way of details yet.

[DracoOmega]

>To everyone: We have a problem. The Champion of Fire appears to be on their way to our location. Given what we were told earlier about Fire's Avatar being in transit to Mayoiga, I fear they may be planning to meet them here, now.

[Oldmansour]

>To everyone: We have a problem. The Champion of Fire appears to be on their way to our location. Given what we were told earlier about Fire's Avatar being in transit to Mayoiga, I fear they may be planning to meet them here, now.

>Should we try to cut him off? Rin asks.
>No, we can't leave Haruka here. Minoriko protests.
>Kiku agrees, You're right, Carnation. Sawashiro-sama only took Subala and Yuna because of our presence here. If we leave, they won't be able to handle Semitur.
>We could split up? Rin suggests.
>Then we might not be able to handle the Fire Champion. says Reisen.

[DracoOmega]

>If Fire is coming here to meet their Avatar, their intention may not be to provoke a confrontation. I'd rather prevent their meeting for the time-being, of course, but I don't know that we realistically can, and we certainly can't fight all of them at once; our best bet may be to hope we won't need to come to blows at all today. But Haruka should be informed, regardless.
>Judging by speeds, do we think Fire will arrive before Semitur? And if so, by how much?

[Oldmansour]

>Judging by speeds, do we think Fire will arrive before Semitur? And if so, by how much?

>Yes. But by how much you can't tell, it depends on how long it takes the plane to moor up and to let off its passengers. The plane will land is just under five minutes, while the Fire Champion, if his speed remains consistent, will arrive in around two minutes.

>If Fire is coming here to meet their Avatar, their intention may not be to provoke a confrontation. I'd rather prevent their meeting for the time-being, of course, but I don't know that we realistically can, and we certainly can't fight all of them at once; our best bet may be to hope we won't need to come to blows at all today. But Haruka should be informed, regardless.

>That may not be necessary. says Kiku, nodding towards Yuna. The miko is speaking with someone on a cell phone. She is speaking with Sawashiro-sama now.
>Do you think he might help us against Semitur? Rin asks suddenly. Fire and Ice helped us out back at the shrine.

[DracoOmega]

>It's possible. There are certainly some kinds of evil that they do not want in the world they wish to claim. Though I don't know how restrained they intend to be with their 'assistance', so we may have a problem regardless. Let's hope not.

[Oldmansour]

>It's possible. There are certainly some kinds of evil that they do not want in the world they wish to claim. Though I don't know how restrained they intend to be with their 'assistance', so we may have a problem regardless. Let's hope not.

>I think we could convince them to work with us. says Rin. Mistress, you've got the best senses of us all, can you tell if the Fire Avatar's here now?

[DracoOmega]

>I couldn't sense them, no. But if they've yet to arrive, it's possible they're still too far away. Or perhaps that wasn't why Fire is coming in the first place; it was only a theory.
>We still don't sense anything on that front, right?

[Oldmansour]

>I couldn't sense them, no. But if they've yet to arrive, it's possible they're still too far away. Or perhaps that wasn't why Fire is coming in the first place; it was only a theory.
>We still don't sense anything on that front, right?

>Like on the plane we're waiting for?
>What makes you think that? Kiku asks.
>Fire's been hiding in the same place for days. He wouldn't come out unless it was important, and probably not longer than he has to. Since our plane's arriving soon, maybe the Fire Avatar's on it. That means Semitur's on the plane he's waiting for, and probably doesn't mean them any good. We could work together against her!
>That means we'd be helping Fire get his Champion. Reisen points out bluntly.
>You can sense Rin's ears droop a little. Oh yeah. I guess I didn't think of that.
>Correct.

[DracoOmega]

>I'm not sure we could really prevent them from reaching each other, if they're already nearby. I mean, you saw what being kept away from Water was doing to Patchouli in those last moments in front of the apartments...

[Oldmansour]

>I'm not sure we could really prevent them from reaching each other, if they're already nearby. I mean, you saw what being kept away from Water was doing to Patchouli in those last moments in front of the apartments...

>I was about to point that out myself. says Reisen. Even if we could keep the two of them apart, we might end up killing both of them that way.
>Are you suggesting we simply ignore the Fire Champion? Kiku asks pointedly.
>Maybe we should. Minoriko suggests. If all he wants is his Avatar, then he won't hurt anyone he doesn't have to, will he?

[DracoOmega]

>Quite possibly not. They certainly had plenty of chances to try that up to now, after all. And if we can 't reasonably keep Fire away from their Avatar and have another incredibly dangerous woman to worry about, then the fewer other problems to worry about this very moment, the better....

[Oldmansour]

>Quite possibly not. They certainly had plenty of chances to try that up to now, after all. And if we can 't reasonably keep Fire away from their Avatar and have another incredibly dangerous woman to worry about, then the fewer other problems to worry about this very moment, the better....

>I can't believe you're suggesting this. Kiku protests. Even after being helped by Fire and Ice, she still plainly doesn't like the Champions.
>We can't afford to fight on three fronts. Reisen points out. And let's not forget. From what we know of the Fire Champion, the Ice Champion won't be too far away. Even if we could beat two Champions at once and then turn around and beat Semitur, I can't believe we'd be able to do it without incurring a lot of collateral damage.
>And Ice has their Avatar. Lily points out. It'd be three of them against us, that'd be even worse.

[DracoOmega]

>These are poor circumstances for a fight against so many. The Champions have proven their willingness to part peaceably before and if we have to pick one of the two to deal with today, then I think Semitur must take higher priority. The Champions may be more powerful than her, but when they choose to act, we will know. If Semitur is allowed to settle into this city, I think a great deal of people stand to be victimized from the shadows.
>And lest you've forgotten, I would still like to find a way to parlay with their Mother and forge a peaceful conclusion to our conflict with her kind. I do not believe this is an avenue that even exists with Semitur.

[Oldmansour]

>These are poor circumstances for a fight against so many. The Champions have proven their willingness to part peaceably before and if we have to pick one of the two to deal with today, then I think Semitur must take higher priority. The Champions may be more powerful than her, but when they choose to act, we will know. If Semitur is allowed to settle into this city, I think a great deal of people stand to be victimized from the shadows.
>And lest you've forgotten, I would still like to find a way to parlay with their Mother and forge a peaceful conclusion to our conflict with her kind. I do not believe this is an avenue that even exists with Semitur.

>So what are you proposing? Kiku asks. That some of us fly out and talk to the Fire Champion before they get here? Her tone makes it plain how she feels about the thought.
>That may not be a bad idea. Minoriko replies. Wouldn't it be better to talk things out now, before things go wrong?
>I agree. says Reisen. They're going to know we're here eventually. If we talk to them now, we can tell them that we have a common enemy again, rather than trying to explain it in the middle of a pitched battle with Semitur and whatever surprises she has in store.

[DracoOmega]

>I... think I agree. We won't escape their notice indefinitely and it's probably better to establish what is going to happen before Semitur arrives. At worst, if we're forced to engage Fire, we may be able to defer Semitur until later. I'll go.
>Are any of us near Haruka? She needs to know what we're planning, at least.

[Oldmansour]

>I... think I agree. We won't escape their notice indefinitely and it's probably better to establish what is going to happen before Semitur arrives. At worst, if we're forced to engage Fire, we may be able to defer Semitur until later. I'll go.
>Are any of us near Haruka? She needs to know what we're planning, at least.

>You can't go alone! Rin practically screams.
>Reisen adds, more sedately, Agreed. You'd be too tempting a target alone.
>But if she was alone, Fire might think she was no threat and wouldn't do anything to her. says Minoriko. And like we said earlier, we can't all go, we'd be abandoning the shrine maidens.
>And it'd take all of us to handle two of 'em. Lily agrees.

>You cannot see Haruka from where you are. The only miko in range is Yuna, and she is on her way over to you.

[DracoOmega]

>I can have backup in a moment, if I need it, remember.
>Let's go meet up with Yuna, then, and see what she has to say

[Oldmansour]

>I can have backup in a moment, if I need it, remember.
>Let's go meet up with Yuna, then, and see what she has to say

>A moment is all it takes. Reisen says. Especially with creatures as powerful as these.
>"I'm afraid we may have another problem." the heterochromatic miko says to you. "We just got word from the shrine maidens watching that race track where the Fire Champion's been hiding. The Champion just took off. We think he may be traveling in this direction, maybe even to this airport."

[DracoOmega]

>"Yes, I just learned that myself. And they do seem to be; I'm afraid they may be heading this way to rendezvous with their Avatar, though I've not been able to detect them yet."
>Do we think it would be possible to set up a sort of... delayed teleportation on ourselves? Like, we've already demonstrated our ability to teleport considerable distances. Is there any way we could anchor ourselves back here, prime the spell, and then be able to trigger it at a later time to return here in a hurry? If, say, Fire decided we were a tempting target and we needed to get back to our group?

[Oldmansour]

>"Yes, I just learned that myself. And they do seem to be; I'm afraid they may be heading this way to rendezvous with their Avatar, though I've not been able to detect them yet."

>"Sawashiro-sama's called the Tortoise shrine for reinforcements, but none of the spellcasters there can fly. It's going to take them at least fifteen minutes to get here. We're on our own until then."

>Do we think it would be possible to set up a sort of... delayed teleportation on ourselves? Like, we've already demonstrated our ability to teleport considerable distances. Is there any way we could anchor ourselves back here, prime the spell, and then be able to trigger it at a later time to return here in a hurry? If, say, Fire decided we were a tempting target and we needed to get back to our group?

>You've demonstrated the ability to pull people to you across great distances, but you're not certain you can propel yourself. At least not with perfect accuracy. And the energy consumption would be greater than the last time, when you had Rin and Lily's help to form the spell.
>As for this specific implementation, you don't think you can use this location as a waypoint. Emotion drives your magic, and you have no real emotional connection to this place. You may be able to form a recall spell for your apartment, but not for here.

[DracoOmega]

>"I think there is reason to hope that Fire didn't come here looking for a fight. I intend to try and parlay with them and gauge their intentions; Semitur is quite enough for us to deal with here already."
>We have no emotional connection to this place, but we to do to the people here. Could we, say, create a link that we could use to recall ourselves to Rin?