Author Topic: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3  (Read 69643 times)

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #240 on: April 23, 2018, 03:29:06 AM »
>"If you'd cared not to send her tumbling over a 15 foot drop, you could have."

>"The frailties of humanity long since stopped being something I cared about." she responds casually, crossing her legs. "But in truth, I am pleased you saved her. Now I have the chance to figure out how she and the other two have resisted me."
>"You've been trying to subvert them, too?" Yuna asks.
>Semitur spares but a moment to give the miko a dismissive glance. She seems to be considering whether or not Yuna is worth replying to. Evidently she decides in the affirmative, as she says, "Yes. The chief is the key, of course, she's the one with the peculiar mind. But the others might have some answers, too."

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #241 on: April 23, 2018, 05:44:07 PM »
>"You may not care about the 'frailties of humanity', but I do, so if you're hoping for my cooperation, I think it best to keep that in mind."

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #242 on: April 23, 2018, 05:52:56 PM »
>"You may not care about the 'frailties of humanity', but I do, so if you're hoping for my cooperation, I think it best to keep that in mind."

>"Oh, spare me." the Succubus remarks dismissively. "You're no threat to me, and we both know it."
>"Don't bet on it." White Rose growls.
>"And we both know your leader won't let you kill me." She aims a smug smirk your way. "You value life too much for that."

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #243 on: April 23, 2018, 08:30:46 PM »
>"I also value the lives of those who would fall victim to you if left unchecked. I'm sure you realize that."

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #244 on: April 23, 2018, 09:20:57 PM »
>"I also value the lives of those who would fall victim to you if left unchecked. I'm sure you realize that."

>She nods. "I do. Though I am curious if that's a universal truth." She starts to say something else, but pauses briefly, her eyes darting towards the doors you came through. You feel another surge of heat emerge from the succubus, presumably the soul of the Fire Avatar churning within her. After a moment, she finishes her thought, "Since I don't see the Stuntrons with you, did you simply turn them loose on the city after you changed them?"
« Last Edit: April 23, 2018, 09:29:34 PM by Oldmansour »

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #245 on: April 23, 2018, 09:40:53 PM »
>Does it seem like the Avatar's soul is getting any looser on its own?
>"That wording implies I expect them run havoc of the city. I do not."

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #246 on: April 23, 2018, 10:17:18 PM »
>Does it seem like the Avatar's soul is getting any looser on its own?
>"That wording implies I expect them run havoc of the city. I do not."

>It could be. Or it could be that the Avatar herself is trying to call it back. Or the Fire Champion is, you're not certain. Either way, Semitur- outwardly, at least- appears to have settled her stomach, as it were. For the moment.
>"That wording could imply you did something to make sure of that." Semitur infers, leering at you. "Do tell."

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #247 on: April 23, 2018, 10:32:04 PM »
>"People free of the Abyss need no compulsion to be a positive force in the world. This city alone is filled with them."

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #248 on: April 23, 2018, 11:03:31 PM »
>"People free of the Abyss need no compulsion to be a positive force in the world. This city alone is filled with them."

>The succubus throws her head back and laughs. "Oh! Oh, I had no idea you were so idealistic! I never UGH!"
>The laughing demon's words end in a pained grunt. Almost out of nowhere, a winged humanoid has seemingly materialized behind Semitur. The Succubus pitches forward, and her discommodation reveals the form of Subala standing behind her, a bloody dagger in one hand and a talisman in the other. Vaulting the still prone Oni policeman, Subala strikes the succubus on the back, placing her ofuda between the shoulder blades of the bleeding demon. Magical energy erupts across Semitur's body, and the evil woman screams as the miko's magic rocks her frame.
>White Rose has started to point at Semitur even before you do, ready to seize the opportunity to either blast the demon or shield the policemen, but something happens before either of you can fire. The sensation of heat permeating the area spasms chaotically, then it spikes dramatically as a wispy red form escapes Semitur's body. The succubus' pained howl at this event is even louder than when Subala slapped that talisman on her. With a sense of fascination, you watch the soul of the Fire Avatar escape its prison, and fly out the door.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #249 on: April 23, 2018, 11:08:37 PM »
>If she's still too stunned by this to react, now's the time to seize this opportunity. Use a Sapphire Lotus to yank the police officers out of harm's way, then hit the succubus with a Violet Lotus, along with the rest of our allies.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #250 on: April 25, 2018, 10:17:27 PM »
>If she's still too stunned by this to react, now's the time to seize this opportunity. Use a Sapphire Lotus to yank the police officers out of harm's way, then hit the succubus with a Violet Lotus, along with the rest of our allies.

>Between the assault of Subala- who prudently seems to be retreating now- and the experience of losing one of her captive souls, Semitur is definitely stunned. And once again, Rin shows her quick reaction time and fires first, before you. The succubus is engulfed in your kasha's white fire as you deploy your Sapphire light, pulling the large Oni and the smaller human closer to you. You hear White Rose scream something at the writhing demon in Eire, but you can understand it entirely. You do know that she sounds very angry.
>Don't kill her! Kiku shouts at Rin.
>Are you kidding?! Why the hell not?! the kasha screams back.
>Because if she dies before releasing the other souls she's taken, they may be lost forever.

>And that is your cue to fire your Violet light at Semitur. The beam's emergence from your scepter coincides with Lily's voice coming to you, Whoa! Some kinda red cloud just came out of the airport! You okay in there?

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #251 on: April 25, 2018, 10:27:27 PM »
>That was the soul of the Avatar of Fire. And we seem to have the upper hand, at last - but perhaps be cautious of Fire.
>And keep that beam going!

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #252 on: April 26, 2018, 12:27:58 AM »
>That was the soul of the Avatar of Fire. And we seem to have the upper hand, at last - but perhaps be cautious of Fire.
>And keep that beam going!

>As if you were going to stop. Perhaps because of all the damage Semitur's taken in such a short span of time, you can sense the other four... Actually there's more than just the four souls you expected to find inside Semitur. There's two more within her. You know of the Soulless she'd made out of Flandre and her band, but you're not certain who those souls might belong to.

>Should we do anything about it? Poppy asks you.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #253 on: April 26, 2018, 01:00:42 AM »
>Does anything about the souls feel distinct or unusual - like the Avatar of Fire's did? Or are they probably just fairly ordinary people?
>Assuming we do not detect some obvious reason why we shouldn't set them free, keep doing so.

>Do not interfere with the Avatar's soul; I'd like to hope their Champion will be grateful for what we've done, and no good will come from leaving them broken like this, at any rate - not while we are so spread out. Just stay guarded around them, afterward, just in case.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #254 on: April 26, 2018, 01:11:13 AM »
>Does anything about the souls feel distinct or unusual - like the Avatar of Fire's did? Or are they probably just fairly ordinary people?

>One of them is definitely not normal. You can feel that it bears the taint of the Abyss. It must belong to the Blood woman Semitur was using as a puppet. You can't tell how deep that connection is, though you don't believe the woman was an especially strong Blood. All the same, you won't be able to do to her what you did to the Stuntrons in this situation, not while you're still fighting Semitur. If you wish to free her soul, you'll be restoring a Blackblood.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #255 on: April 26, 2018, 01:23:23 AM »
>Well, if the alternative is just killing her, that's no good either. We can deal with her later, if we have to.
>Keep going.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #256 on: April 26, 2018, 03:28:05 AM »
>Do not interfere with the Avatar's soul; I'd like to hope their Champion will be grateful for what we've done, and no good will come from leaving them broken like this, at any rate - not while we are so spread out. Just stay guarded around them, afterward, just in case.

>Okay. Poppy replies, though she doesn't sound entirely comfortable.
>Best thing to do. says Lily. I sure don't want to fight the fire fox AND these other four out here if we mess with that soul.
>Good point.

>Does anything about the souls feel distinct or unusual - like the Avatar of Fire's did? Or are they probably just fairly ordinary people?
>Assuming we do not detect some obvious reason why we shouldn't set them free, keep doing so.
>Well, if the alternative is just killing her, that's no good either. We can deal with her later, if we have to.
>Keep going.

>Settling the matter of the Blood soul, and judging the other soul to belong to an ordinary person, you press on in your endeavor to purge Semitur of her stolen souls. Six souls, though. Seven if you count the Fire Avatar's soul. And each of them stolen. All those souls, and she doesn't have one of her own. You wonder how that could have happened. You begin to develop a sense of sympathy for this succubus. Is that why she does what she does? To try...
>The heat of Rin's fire wrapping around your Violet light muffles those thoughts as they form. They fall even more quiet when you realize their source. Even in this situation, Semitur had been trying to influence you. Whether consciously or simply as a consequence of this form of contact with the succubus, you can't tell, but you can tell where things were leading. Sympathy leads to mercy, mercy leads to attraction, and the more you felt, the deeper under her spell you would have fallen. What a devious opponent.
>But an opponent you are stronger than. Under the assault of both you and White Rose, and the ongoing magical field created by Subala's ofuda, the succubus loses her grip on the souls within her. One after another, they burst forth from the immolating form of Semitur, hovering for a moment before flying back towards their respective bodies.
>Except the soul of the Blackblood. You sense conflict there. You know it wants to be free, but at the same time, it shrinks from the touch of your light.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #257 on: April 26, 2018, 05:03:15 AM »
>Do we have any idea what we can do about this? We can't transmute it as we free it, can we?
>Semitur still looks in no shape to interfere with us at this point, right?

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #258 on: April 26, 2018, 04:16:20 PM »
>Do we have any idea what we can do about this? We can't transmute it as we free it, can we?
>Semitur still looks in no shape to interfere with us at this point, right?

>You might be able to, but it would be even more difficult and more time-consuming than when you changed the Stuntrons. And without contact with her Jewels, you're not entirely sure what changing her soul might do in the long run. The Blood are a tangled, confusing people. If you don't change her Jewels at the same time as other aspects of her being, you might have no effect or not the desired effect.
>For now, but you can sense that Subala's ofuda is running out of charge. She won't stay as debilitated as she is for much longer.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #259 on: April 26, 2018, 06:18:48 PM »
>Would just blasting her more likely be sufficient to free the soul, whether it likes this beam or not? Might some other form of firepower from us work better?
>If so, keep it up, or swap, as needed. We'll have to deal with helping her (if we can) afterward

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #260 on: April 26, 2018, 10:48:56 PM »
>Would just blasting her more likely be sufficient to free the soul, whether it likes this beam or not? Might some other form of firepower from us work better?
>If so, keep it up, or swap, as needed. We'll have to deal with helping her (if we can) afterward

>Actually, you think blasting Semitur LESS might be helpful. Your power runs counter to the nature of the Blackbloods, it may be instinctively retreating from your light. At this point, you've opened the door for the soul. Slacking off your beam a little won't close the door, and it might give the Blood's soul the breathing room it needs to make its escape. It has to want to reunite with its other half, you can sense that much, but its instinctive fear of your light may be preventing that.
>The only problem would be giving Semitur that much more breathing room. You're not sure how much you'll need to dim your Violet light before the soul feels comfortable fleeing. But with Rin still maintaining the pressure on Semitur, while slacking off your own beam presents a risk, you don't think it's too big a risk to try taking, if you wish.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #261 on: April 27, 2018, 01:07:34 AM »
>Give it a try, but be ready to change our mind quickly if Semitur does something

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #262 on: April 27, 2018, 03:50:08 AM »
>Give it a try, but be ready to change our mind quickly if Semitur does something

>Hoping the captive soul understands your intention, you dial the power of your spell back a bit. You also try to communicate through your Light, wary though you are of Semitur trying to exploit this, trying to assure the soul that you're not its enemy, that you're not trying to hurt it.
>To your surprise, you get the sensation that the disembodied spirit understands what you're trying to do. You sense that it doesn't trust you, but it does understand its chance at freedom.

>As the Blood's soul tries to make its escape from its captor, you feel a surge of power from outside the building. The surge feels familiar to you, but not a recent experience. It is an old feeling, very old. It sends your mind back to a time long ago, when you stood with someone you can't remember. Someone tall, but friendly. Motherly, really. The two of you were walking towards a blonde girl with bizarre wings who was sitting alone in a field of blood-red flowers. She was crying, and the arms that covered her eyes were covered with blood. "She will need your strength." the woman says to you.

>Lotus? Poppy's voice says to you, her sober tones bringing you back to reality. Flandre just transformed. She IS the Fire Avatar.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #263 on: April 27, 2018, 04:07:16 AM »
>I am not surprised. And I hope the others are standing down?

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #264 on: April 27, 2018, 04:57:02 AM »
>I am not surprised. And I hope the others are standing down?

>The-
>She's heading your way! Lily cries, interrupting Poppy.
>Her warning comes only about a second ahead of the doors you entered the building from exploding inward, the air behind them filled with a fiery light. You have to erect a Sapphire shield to prevent the flying molten debris from harming any of the fallen officers or civilians. Almost as bad is the blast wave of heat that washes through the room, giving you a sense of what it might be like to stand near a blast furnace when it is opened.
>You have to squint to see the Fire Avatar through the heat and the light. Her long blonde hair flows down her back, waving in the heat around the black ribbon on the left side of her head. She wears a red vest over a black shirt, a heart-shaped cutout offering those around her a glimpse of her bosom, frills and lace decorating her cuffs and upper arms, each set with a rose pin. Her black and red skirt is similarly frilled, and the stockings on her legs have roses on the garters. Another rose accentuates the thick black choker around her neck. All things considered, her outfit would not be all that far removed from one of the ensembles she normally wears on stage. What makes the difference is her fingernails have lengthened to become almost claw-like, and she carries a polearm in her left hand. The weapon is around the same length as the woman who wields it, and has a truly bizarre bladed edge. It appears to be shaped like a spade with a couple of extra curved blades extending from the bit of metal that extends from the top of the spade. It resembles nothing so much as the hand of a grandfather clock.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #265 on: April 27, 2018, 05:22:53 AM »
>"Hello, Flandre."

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #266 on: April 27, 2018, 05:32:56 AM »
>"Hello, Flandre."

>The Avatar's head snaps up and over at you when you call her name. You resist taking a step backwards. Her eyes are terrible things to behold, bright red things that gleam with a terrible power, and more than power. The instability you felt the air around you before pales in comparison to what you see in those stormy red eyes. They hold a promise of terrible things to come, and they carry the weight of someone that has seen and done terrible things before.
>"I know you." the Avatar says, the sound of embers snapping rolling off every other consonant. "You did something here. Something to me NOW I remember!" she stops, and a smile instantly appears on her face. Despite the threat implied by her eyes, her smile is broad, easy. Almost... innocent. "You helped me! You shone that light at me when I was lost."

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #267 on: April 27, 2018, 07:17:39 AM »
>Nod gently
>"I did. I'm glad you're safe."

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #268 on: April 27, 2018, 07:31:54 PM »
>Nod gently
>"I did. I'm glad you're safe."

>The harsh light behind the Fire Avatr fades, and the temperature of the room drops sharply. The lance wielding woman strides lightly across the battlefield, making her way towards you.
>Mistress? White Rose asks cautiously, approaching you from the rear. She doesn't sound angry anymore, but it's not hard to tell she's nervous about Flandre getting closer to you. And judging by the looks on Carnation and Yuna's faces, she's not alone in the feeling.

Re: Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 5, Part 3
« Reply #269 on: April 27, 2018, 08:16:04 PM »
>It's okay. I don't want us to have to be enemies, if we can help it.
>But, er... don't let our guard down completely, even if we don't let it show on our face.