Author Topic: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 9) (Read 47314 times)

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #330 on:** April 10, 2012, 12:58:42 AM »

> Good enough.
> Draw the Kurokirimaru, rolling and/or otherwise shifting to make such a thing possible if necessary.
> Cut the ropes binding our feet so we can scrabble around better.

DracoOmega · « **Reply #331 on:** April 10, 2012, 02:04:15 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 10, 2012, 12:58:42 AM

> Good enough.
> Draw the Kurokirimaru, rolling and/or otherwise shifting to make such a thing possible if necessary.
> Cut the ropes binding our feet so we can scrabble around better.

>You draw Kumokirimaru and twist around to give yourself access to the bindings constricting your legs. Then you put the blade against them and carefully slice. Somewhat vexingly, the apparently mundane rope cuts much less easily than the spider youkai's tethers did, though the blade still severs them cleanly enough when you press it against them.
>As you cut through the first layer, you hear the sound of someone swooping swiftly through the air behind you. Then, before you have time to react, you are thrown violently forward by a sudden gale, strong enough to actually lift you clean off the ground.
>"Sorry, but you're not supposed to be moving around!" the tengu's voice says brightly.
>To your side, you hear another heavy impact as Murasa connects with Sotsu again. Chisato lets out a frustrated growl that turns into a smothered wince.

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #332 on:** April 10, 2012, 02:11:08 AM »

> Keep a tight grip on that sword. We CANNOT let it go.
> How badly are we hurtling through the air?
> Are we still anywhere close to the fallen tengu?

DracoOmega · « **Reply #333 on:** April 10, 2012, 02:25:44 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 10, 2012, 02:11:08 AM

> Keep a tight grip on that sword. We CANNOT let it go.
> How badly are we hurtling through the air?
> Are we still anywhere close to the fallen tengu?

>You keep a very determined grip on your sword. If they want you to drop it, they're going to have to do better than this!
>Fast enough that you're very glad there isn't anything immediately in your way to bump into! While your legs are a little less restrained now, you're still encumbered enough in multiple locations to make steadying your balance next to impossible in the turbulent wind.
>Gravity quickly wins out against the lift the gust provided and you tumble hard into the deck, striking your hip and tumbling end over end again. It's only by quick thinking and good fortune that you manage to avoid rolling bodily onto your own blade. That would be embarrassing at this point.... Glancing back up, you see that you've ended up at least a dozen or so feet away from where you just were, though the fallen tengu seems to have been carried a shorter distance by the gust as well, and is now lying face-up. She's probably about 8 feet away.

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #334 on:** April 10, 2012, 02:29:22 AM »

> What material is the deck made of?
> Where's the tengu with that wind fan?

DracoOmega · « **Reply #335 on:** April 10, 2012, 02:37:21 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 10, 2012, 02:29:22 AM

> What material is the deck made of?
> Where's the tengu with that wind fan?

>Mostly wood, though a couple sections are reinforced with metal, such as around the base of the rotor struts.
>She's generally towards where you'd been before the wind blast, about a half-dozen feet in the air. She seems to have turned back towards Murasa and Sotsu somewhat, though not enough for you to be outside her vision.

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #336 on:** April 10, 2012, 02:39:24 AM »

> How mobile are our legs and feet right now?

DracoOmega · « **Reply #337 on:** April 10, 2012, 02:42:07 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 10, 2012, 02:39:24 AM

> How mobile are our legs and feet right now?

>You have a little more flexibility, though they're not quite free yet, given how much rope was originally applied to them. You should be able to change that fairly quickly, though.

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #338 on:** April 10, 2012, 02:49:55 AM »

> We should know whereabouts on our legs and feet the ropes are at this point, right? Try to cut the remaining ropes based on where we remember them being while watching the wind tengu. Keep a careful watch for any motion toward us from her.

DracoOmega · « **Reply #339 on:** April 10, 2012, 03:14:14 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 10, 2012, 02:49:55 AM

> We should know whereabouts on our legs and feet the ropes are at this point, right? Try to cut the remaining ropes based on where we remember them being while watching the wind tengu. Keep a careful watch for any motion toward us from her.

>You do have a good enough sense of body position to try cutting the ropes without looking directly at them. Instead, you keep an eye on the tengu while you work on freeing yourself.
>She brings her fan up again, but it is aimed in the captain's direction this time and not yours. She gives it a quick sweep in one direction and then the other, and a pair of wide crescents fly from it, trailing a gust in their wake strong enough to ruffle the tengu's own clothing. They arc out swiftly in opposing directions, then each twists back down towards Murasa's sides as she tackles Sotsu with the heavy bludgeon in her hand. She takes the first shot with a grunt as her anchor connects solidly with Sotsu again. But then the captain's form wavers and blurs, and the second passes harmlessly through her. Sotsu leaps away.
>As you pass your blade through the last of your leg bindings and start to shrug them off, the tengu turns back and dives towards you with great speed.
>"That doesn't look like stopping!" she says with a smile as she brings the fan around again.

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #340 on:** April 10, 2012, 03:30:50 AM »

> Is there any cover in the immediate vicinity?

DracoOmega · « **Reply #341 on:** April 10, 2012, 03:37:08 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 10, 2012, 03:30:50 AM

> Is there any cover in the immediate vicinity?

>The closest would be the rotor strut that Miyuki, Neu, and Ishi are still by, though a position that could shield you at this angle is still at least 8 or 10 feet away. You're not certain whether the structure is solid enough to stop a gust of wind, either, though it should do fine against more tangible things.

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #342 on:** April 10, 2012, 03:40:00 AM »

> Is there anything attached to the deck in the immediate vicinity that's grippable?

DracoOmega · « **Reply #343 on:** April 10, 2012, 03:42:06 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 10, 2012, 03:40:00 AM

> Is there anything attached to the deck in the immediate vicinity that's grippable?

>The only thing closer than the strut which would meet this criteria is the rail of the deck itself. This is a few feet behind and to your side.

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #344 on:** April 10, 2012, 03:47:08 AM »

> Wait a minute. The blast of air that knocked Sotsu's blade away from hitting Chisato...was that this tengu's doing?
> Are both of our arms free or just the sword arm?

Going to bed.

Relatively "safe" option: Stab the sword into the wooden deck as hard as we can and cling for dear life.
Insane option that just might be crazy enough to work: Hold out sword right behind our head with the point of the blade pointed at our neck, give Aya a crazy toothy grin, and tell her to come the fuck at us, sis. She's already a filthy pirate, might as well blow our neck into our own blade and become a murderer on top of it.

DracoOmega · « **Reply #345 on:** April 10, 2012, 04:29:50 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 10, 2012, 03:47:08 AM

> Wait a minute. The blast of air that knocked Sotsu's blade away from hitting Chisato...was that this tengu's doing?
> Are both of our arms free or just the sword arm?

>You didn't have an angle to see her do it, but if it wasn't from her, you have no idea where it came from.
>Just your sword arm at present, though you could probably wiggle your other one free as well; with one of them removed from their bindings, the remaining ropes are substantially less tight.

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #346 on:** April 10, 2012, 10:35:35 AM »

Changed my mind!

> Stop cutting the ropes.
> "Wait! Can't we talk?"

DracoOmega · « **Reply #347 on:** April 11, 2012, 04:20:04 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 10, 2012, 10:35:35 AM

> Stop cutting the ropes.
> "Wait! Can't we talk?"

>You stop cutting the ropes and make a quick appeal for parlay.
>The tengu flashes you a grin and then glances towards Murasa as the ghost starts to run towards her. "Just stay put while I take care of a couple things and then I'm all ears."

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #348 on:** April 11, 2012, 04:22:15 AM »

> Look over at Murasa with a worried look.
> "Captain, wait! Let's talk this out!"

DracoOmega · « **Reply #349 on:** April 11, 2012, 04:50:24 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 11, 2012, 04:22:15 AM

> Look over at Murasa with a worried look.
> "Captain, wait! Let's talk this out!"

>You throw the captain a worried look and ask her to hold off for a moment.
>"Like hell!" she replies without slowing, hefting another anchor in her hand. "Either they get the hell off my ship or I'm breakin' their wings and throwing 'em overboard."
>The tengu actually manages to look faintly disappointed, though this does little to mute her gumption. "Too bad," she says as she rises up and turns towards the captain. "But we're not leaving without what we came for."
>Murasa hurls her anchor at the tengu, and at this point you realize that there is somehow a length of chain attached to this one! However, the tengu moves easily aside of the projectile even as the chain merely starts to uncoil; the difference in their two speeds is great enough that you wonder if evading it took any real effort at all on the pirate's part. She responds with another flick of her fan and a small whirlwind forms suddenly beneath the captain's feet. You catch a brief flash of startlement in the ghost's eyes as the wind tosses her forcefully up into the air, swinging her around erratically. The chain appears to get caught around a shoulder.

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #350 on:** April 11, 2012, 05:00:52 AM »

> "Come on, both of you! Look at what's happening to your crews around you!"

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #351 on:** April 11, 2012, 05:26:11 AM »

Bed.

I think a ceasefire is a very real and possible thing; Murasa and Aya may be relatively unharmed, but they both have duties to their respective crews, who are in the process of completely mauling each other. If/when we do secure a temporary truce, however tense it may be, that's when I'd want to ask Aya directly if she's looking for the Mouthful Blade. Specifically namedropping it in her presence is important if it is indeed what she's looking for, because it gives us credibility (as opposed to asking her what she's looking for and then going "yeah, that's our thing", which could very well be a lie on our part for all she knows).

DracoOmega · « **Reply #352 on:** April 11, 2012, 05:28:46 AM »

Quote from: Kilgamayan on April 11, 2012, 05:00:52 AM

> "Come on, both of you! Look at what's happening to your crews around you!"

>"Don't you... dare stop... for me..." you hear Chisato rasp bitterly.
>"She puts that spear down," the tengu says as she darts around to Murasa's side, "and we'll get her patched right back up, I promise."
>"Fuck you!" Chisato snaps.

Oldmansour · « **Reply #353 on:** April 11, 2012, 07:08:39 AM »

>Slightly snarkily, "How generous of you."
>"But why should we believe you, any more than Ren? Especially after Sotsu over there tried to cut us to ribbons."

DracoOmega · « **Reply #354 on:** April 11, 2012, 07:27:21 AM »

Quote from: Sourfang, the Falling Star on April 11, 2012, 07:08:39 AM

>Slightly snarkily, "How generous of you."
>"But why should we believe you, any more than Ren? Especially after Sotsu over there tried to cut us to ribbons."

>"Playing coy, are you?" the tengu says as she pulls her fan back again. "Don't pretend you didn't notice."
>She makes a mighty sweep with her fan and a absolute gale blasts forth from it. You're not even in the line of fire and you feel your hair tossed violently about by the trailing winds. The sudden gust strikes the already-aerial Murasa and sends her hurtling swiftly through the air and over the side of the deck!
>"Captain!" Miyuki cries in a panicky voice.
>You hear Chisato start to say something, but then her words are cut off in a wince. From the opposite direction, you see Sotsu closing in on the group of you.

Oldmansour · « **Reply #355 on:** April 11, 2012, 07:51:47 AM »

>Oh shit.
>Get back to our feet, and pull our other arm free, if we can.
>"I knew we couldn't believe scum like you...!"
>How far away is Sotsu from us?
>Raise our sword and close in on her as well. Better us than Chisato.
>How does she look now?

DracoOmega · « **Reply #356 on:** April 11, 2012, 08:46:47 AM »

Quote from: Sourfang, the Falling Star on April 11, 2012, 07:51:47 AM

>Oh shit.
>Get back to our feet, and pull our other arm free, if we can.
>"I knew we couldn't believe scum like you...!"
>How far away is Sotsu from us?
>Raise our sword and close in on her as well. Better us than Chisato.
>How does she look now?

>She didn't...
>You kick the last of the severed ropes off your legs, and then work on quickly wriggling your other arm loose.
>"Have a little faith!" the tengu says as folds her wings close and then dives after Murasa with incredible speed, rapidly gaining on the tumbling captain as the latter flies clear of the Maiden's deck.
>About eight feet and closing.
>You raise your sword and move to meet her. She throws you a smirk of an entirely different character than the other tengu - more smug cruelty than casual confidence - and readies a blade to throw.
>You spare a glance at Chisato. ...to see the tengu she'd been sparring with retract a fist from her gut and wrench her spear away. The woman herself looks in bad shape, with blood from the wound on her back staining far too much of her shirt red, and the gash on her arm leaving much of that limb slick in its shadow. You can see one of her legs subtly trembling beneath her and you have to wonder how much of what's keeping her upright is simply willpower at this point.

Oldmansour · « **Reply #357 on:** April 11, 2012, 09:04:31 AM »

>Pause for just a moment.
>Take into consideration our injuries, our skill with katanas, and the injuries present on the two tengu we're currently facing, and assess odds of victory if we fought them both alone.

DracoOmega · « **Reply #358 on:** April 11, 2012, 09:37:49 AM »

Quote from: Sourfang, the Falling Star on April 11, 2012, 09:04:31 AM

>Pause for just a moment.
>Take into consideration our injuries, our skill with katanas, and the injuries present on the two tengu we're currently facing, and assess odds of victory if we fought them both alone.

>You quickly assess your combat odds against the two tengu still on the deck. Given the broken wing and spear wounds Chisato's partner has sustained, you think you may have the upper hand against her. She hasn't demonstrated any flight that you've seen since taking an anchor to the wing, and may not be capable of it at all now. You also noticed no other special abilities or secondary weapons. Sotsu on the other hand... She looks a little roughed up, but only slightly, and seems to have reacquired some of her ammunition in the brief downtime. You've seen full-well the effectiveness of her weaponry and she doesn't appear to have any injuries which would impede her capabilities. The same cannot be said about you. While you're still hanging in okay, your leg has not gotten any better with the various demands you've been placing on it, and you still have a half-dozen other wounds at least. And, frankly, you're pretty close to worn out. Sotsu still looks mostly fresh. Unless you can pull some trick out of your sleeve, you don't think there's any real chance of beating her in a straight-up fight, and it may be difficult to merely remain intact. She did seem to demonstrate some paucity of spatial awareness given that Murasa was able to turn a minor distraction into a solid blow, but you're not sure there's a way for you to capitalize on this right now.

Kilgamayan · « **Reply #359 on:** April 11, 2012, 10:54:01 AM »

> Spread our arms out to our sides.
> "Go ahead. Kill me. Make your captain proud of you."