> Look around the immediate area to make sure no one's coming after us directly.
> If no one is, get back to watching Sachiko, and let her take care of things.
> Is it aimed at Sachiko, or is it errant fire that is part of another battle?
> How far away are we?
> Are they coming at her from her left, her right, or behind?
> Does she at least seem aware of it?
> Eh, she probably has this well in-hand on her own, then. Especially if she's a Kochiya.
> Whereabouts is the most important-looking structure on these grounds?
> Are the main doors guarded?
> Point to Sachiko while glancing over at Alice.
> "We're going to test those main doors. Keep an eye on her while we do, please."
> Dash toward the important-looking doors.
> Try opening the doors.
> "Shoot."
> Where is Sachiko at present? To our left or our right?
> Look to the left. How does guard activity look that way?
> "Indeed. Let's not, at least not yet."
> Left
> Is there another obvious entrance into the castle?
> How far away are the courtyard walls?
> Check out the air above us to make sure it's reasonably clear of bullets and the like.
> If it is, head straight upward until we can see over the courtyard walls.
> Did Alice follow us, or is she still on the ground?
> How empty does the practice field look?
> Beckon to Alice.
> Nod.
> Fly into the practice field. Keep an eye out for hostiles on the ground, as well as possible alternate entrances to important-looking places.
> How far are we from that balcony?
> Mentally estimate the distance between where the danmaku starts to become a problem and the balcony itself. Could we cover that in a single time-step?
> Would it leave us gassed? Or would be still be reasonably well-off?
> "All right, we're aiming for that top balcony over there. If we both make it, all well and good. If I blink over there to get around dealing with hostiles, though, I want you to help out Kaori and Sachiko, okay?"
> "Of course. Assist them one at a time as you are able."
> Head directly toward that balcony, monitoring Kaori's battle as we fly.
> Given we are aiming for the balcony, is it coming at us head-on, or from our sides?
> How dense is what's coming at us?
> Aim for the nearest hole that allows for continued forward progression.
> Are the soldiers actually on the balcony?
> Is/Was Yuki among any of the groups we've seen so far?
> Oh, there are multiple balconies? Is there anything special about the one we're headed for, then? Like, is it the highest of all of them?
> Does this disturbance appear to be purely demoralization/worry? Or have they actually lightened up on firing?
> At a glance, are any of the balconies unoccupied?
> How crowded is the one we're aiming for?
> Drat. Well, it is what it is.
> Keep heading directly toward that balcony. (I'm assuming we have a little bit of safe time to do this since no update was made on bullet status in the last time-lapsing update.)
> Any immediately obvious holes?
> Aim for the optimal one for getting to the balcony as fast as possible.
> That's fine. It's probably better if she gets there first anyway. Keep on going.
> "You still there, Alice?"
> Well, whatever. Continue onward to the balcony.
> Glance back for Alice.
> "Alice, I'm heading in!"
> Turn back around and follow Kaori.
> Keep following her.
> Do any of the three paths look different from the others?
> Has Alice caught up to us yet?
> How far behind us was she when we last glanced back?
> Is Kaori still visible?
> Take the Locator Quartz out.
> Is it vibrating more than it was when we first showed up in Haihan?
> Keeping the quartz out, head down the path on the right.
> Keep heading down that hallway, then, until something else of interest happens.
> We did not pass by any intersections before the vibration began to weaken, did we?
> In which direction does the corner go? Left or right?
> Keep heading down the corridor, turning the corner as needed.
> Would we be able to turn left down the corridor?
> So the soldiers in the distances are turning right from being in this corridor?
> Stop and head back the other way, to the four-way intersection.
> Head down the hallway Kaori took.
> Head up/down the stairs.
> Right
> Forward
> Head toward the stairway, glancing inside each room as we pass them by. Make a note if we see anything of interest.
> Stop outside the room with the servant.
> "Pardon me, miss, but where might I find Lord Teru?"
> "She appears to be in possession of a pocket watch of mine. I wish to retrieve it. And possibly arrange for her to achieve her ideals without threatening the rest of Gensokyo, though I will admit that one may be harder to arrange."
> "She may be treating it as a powerful magic relic for her collection."
> "Would this Minister have the authority to arrange returning my watch to me?"
> "Of course. I'm afraid I do need someone with that authority, though."
> Nod and gesture to ourselves.
> "Of course. I can certainly sympathize, as you can see. I do not know how to get to her, though."
> Do we have any idea where we are at present?
> "And, ah, where am I now?"
> "I see. Thank you. In that case, I need to resume searching for Lord Teru."
> Turn to leave.
> "I can only hope my aimless wandering leads me to her eventually. It is a shame I have been unable to find anyone to give me directions of any kind."
> "As you should not, as a good and proper maid."
> Look back to the maid with what we hope is a good-natured smile.
> "How unfortunate for me that I was unable to get you to talk. Farewell."
> Continue down the hall, heading down the staircase.
> Didn't we go down a staircase to get to this floor in the first place?
> Have we passed any intersections between the two staircases?
> Head back toward that intersection, then, monitoring our rock.
> What are our options for directions we haven't gone in yet?
> Oh.
> Head toward the fighting.
> Descend the staircase. Make a note of the rock's behavior once we do so.
> Float as necessary to the intersection, looking down all directions for either extra signs of battle or a staircase down.
> Left
> Head down the stairs, continuing to monitor the quartz.
> Is the hallway large enough for us to pass by the battle and continue onward?
> Let's aim for that, then.
> Is anything coming right at us?
> Is anything headed right toward the wall ahead of us on our current travel path?
> If we stepped out of time, how difficult would it be to dash the rest of the way to the other side of the battlefield?
> Let's keep heading 'forward' along the wall for now at whatever expedient speed will not run us face-first into a stray bullet, without stepping out of time yet.
> Where is Kaori at this point?
> How open is the path onward?
> Has Sanmei made any aggressive moves particularly toward us yet, or has she just ignored us?
> How good is the view?
> Can we even tell if she has noticed us yet?
> What is Sanmei wearing? We saw her earlier.
> Eh, not worth it, then.
> Keep on scooting past the battle.
> Is there no exit on the other side of the lobby from where we entered?
> Does Sanmei appear to be defending any of them from Kaori?
> How close is that one to us?
> Scoot on over to that one, then.
> Head down the corridor, monitoring our rock.
> Can we see who is in the Office of Military affairs?
> If so, is it anyone we recognize, either from our own encounters or Aya's notes?
> If so, have they spotted us?
> Onward down the hall, then.
> Take a closer look down each path. Which ones goes on for longer, and can we see any other specific offices?
> Right
> Has our rock changed at all?
> Turn back and head the other way, then, down the longer hallway.
> Right
> Frown.
> Turn around and head back the other way down the other hall that was at that T-intersection.
> Stop.
> Wave at the person with what we hope is a gentle, friendly smile.
> "Good day. Can I bother you for some assistance?"
> "I am looking for Lord Teru."
> Hold up our vibrating quartz.
> "I understand she is in this area of the castle."
> Bluff time!
> "This stone here vibrates more the closer I get to her."
> "I needed to find Lord Teru, and a sage who has known me for some time was willing to help me out. So she made this."
> Frown a bit.
> "Where is she, then?"
> Give her a mildly unimpressed look.
> "Ah. Well, if you must know, she has a possession of mine, and I would like it returned."
> "Does she have the authority to return it to me? I am aware Lord Teru takes an interest in collecting powerful magical artifacts."
> Sigh.
> "You are putting me in a difficult position, you realize."
> "There are other reasons I need to see Lord Teru that have nothing to do with the Ministry of the Treasury, you see."
> Grin a bit.
> "If it was, do you think I'd admit it?"
> "I have told you all that I can, unfortunately. For what it is worth, I have not made a single actively aggressive action since arriving on castle grounds."
> Frown.
> "Frankly, given I caught Miss Takusan yesterday trespassing on my Mistress' property with intent to loot, I don't really think Haihan has much moral high ground in calling me an invader."
> "The Office of Military Affairs? I don't suppose Miss Otari would be in charge of that?"
> "Hmph. I imagine she would rather not see me again either. This region's military could really stand to be less aggressive. But I digress. I suppose I could take up my complaints with the Ministry of the Treasury."
> "Very well. Have a pleasant day, miss."
> Backtrack to the Ministry of the Treasury, which we spotted earlier.
> Give a small smile and make our way to the woman doing her best to have nothing to do with us.
> "Good day. It is my understanding the Lord Teru and Haihan's government have obtained a powerful magical artifact that belongs to me. I would like to request it be returned, please."
> "A silver pocketwatch."
> Hold up the quartz.
> "The vibrations of this stone here have helped me narrow my watch's location down to somewhere rather close by. Base on what I have heard, I believe this office is the most likely location."
> "Well, I would like it back, please."
> Our watch isn't engraved or anything, is it?
> "Well, it is not engraved or anything like that. I suppose I could describe it to you, as well as demonstrate that it and I have the same abilities."
> Where did we appear in the future our second time around?
> "Presuming it was not found on the ground somewhere in the Forest of Magic, I believe it would have been found at the Golden Lake Temple."
> "Then I presume it was either sold to them after I lost it or they found it on the ground."
> "Particularly given I am not sure what used the kobito would have for a human-sized watch, beyond perhaps the curator of the Old Hometown museum. Unless they have discovered a way to mass-produce the effects of Princess Shinmyoumaru's mallet to grow themselves to normal human sizes."
> "Probably."
>"Before doing something like ferrying a bunch of people halfway across Gensokyo I would like to at least see it to confirm it is, in fact, my own watch... if that's possible."
>Frown. "I could have many people vouch that it belongs to myself, including the goddess Reimu Hakurei; however all but one of those people are rather far away at present. Before doing something like ferrying a bunch of people halfway across Gensokyo I would like to at least see it to confirm it is, in fact, my own watch... if that's possible."
> Don't say this part, it will make it pretty obvious we intend to try to take it.
> "The offer to tell you its special features still stands."
> How long does the watch's time stop last?
> Can the watch do anything other than stop time?
> After the watch has been used, how long does the watch need before it is usable again?
> "When activated, it can stop time for the user. How long it lasts, relative to the user, varies from person to person."
> "Out of curiosity, who provided the preliminary report? It would not happen to be Juza Takusan, would it?"
> Did we?
> Blink.
> "...I don't believe so? Unless the informal complaining I have done to various Haihan military and government personnel about catching Miss Takusan trying to loot my home counts."
> Shake head.
> "I do not recall doing so. Perhaps the Young Mistress Flandre Scarlet did instead?"
> "Who is it, then?"
>"The only other person to come directly to mind would be Hong Meiling. Unless someone filed a claim in my own name, Sakuya Izayoi."
>Is she currently holding a scroll or somesuch that would presumably have this name on it?
>The next time she looks down at it or otherwise away from us, stop time and look over her shoulder at this scroll. Taking note of how we were standing before we stopped time.
>Search for a "claims" column, and if possible a column that would contain information about the current storage location.
>It seems the dispute is one Kagaya Houraisan, who is claiming ownership.
>Intentional typo?
>How much longer do we have in timestop?
> ...How much did that dead woman have to do with the Lunarians?
> Move back into our exact same position as when we stepped out of time.
> Step back into time.
> Adopt a thinking face.
> "Mmm...well, it's an extreme long shot...but with our history together, they may try to claim the watch is theirs...Would it happen to be Eirin Yagokoro, or perhaps Kaguya Houraisan?"
> Give her a meaningful look, then sigh.
> "I see. Where can I find the two of them?"
> "They will invariably be together. If you know how to find one, you know how to find the other."
> "With that being said, where can I find the other you do know about?"
> "Really now? Interesting. That raises a handful of questions, most notably what happened to the other person I mentioned. Regardless, I do not suppose it would do me any good to claim that we are old acquaintances? Certainly civil enough, our house considered theirs an ally back in the day, but not quite friends."
> "You could ask her. I'm willing to stay here in the meantime."
> "Perhaps we could go together, then? Or with some sort of escort?"
> Frown.
> "Then perhaps you can tell me where she is and how I can get to her, and I will go alone. Surely you would like to see these conflicting claims resolved somehow, yes?"
> "And how might I get there? I'm not terribly familiar with this castle."
> "How do I get there?"
> "Yes, but where are the stairs to get to the ground floor? All stairwells I have seen so far have been pretty broken up from each other."
> Based on what we've seen so far, does that make sense?
> Do we at least know what 'the intersection' is?
> "All right. And then what?"
> "So the second floor gallery has an obvious staircase to the ground floor?"
> "All right. My apologies for being so picky, but I have already gotten lost in here once already."
> "What discussion?"
> "Thank you for your time, Miss. I hope you have a pleasant day, even despite the circumstances."
> Head back out of this office and follow the directions we've been provided to get to the ground floor.
> Head down the stairs on the left.
> Well, that's useful, at least.
> Head east down the corridor. If we start passing by residential rooms, peek inside to check for anyone we know as we go along.
> Keep heading down the corridor until we find someone we know in a side room, the fighting noise reaches a crescendo, or we reach the end of the corridor.
> Follow those combat sounds! Who knows, maybe Kaguya got roped into all this.
> How much danger are we in of getting caught in the crossfire?
> Watch from the doorway for a bit, then.
> Is the Warlord about the same size as Kaori, assuming her armor doesn't add too much size to her?
> Take the chance and step inside to get a better view.
> Was that person on our side of the fight or on the other side?
> If we were to step out of time and book it across the floor to the door the black-haired person vanished through, would we make it before needing to step back into time? Or is it too far away?
> Do so, then.
> Does it look like Kaguya from the back?
> Step back into time.
> "You have my attention, Princess."
> "If she did, they wouldn't be me. Why are you placing claims on my pocketwatch with the Ministry of the Treasury?"
> Give Kaguya a curious look for a couple of seconds, then look as though we have realized something.
> "Ah, of course. I do not live in Haihan at all. Rather, I dwelled in the Scarlet Devil Mansion nearly a thousand years ago, back when you lived with your doctor and rabbits in the Bamboo Forest of Lost. I suppose it is not surprising you do not remember me."
> "What happened to you? Why are you here, and what has befallen Miss Yagokoro?"
> Was that dead woman originally from the moon?
> Follow.
> "The Lunar Capital? Why?"
> How did we come upon that watch, then? Kaguya's words seemed to imply it is Lunarian in origin.
> "I see. Still, though, my curiosity remains. Why did you put in an ownership claim on my watch?"
>"But its not yours."
>"Because i have inherited it and it has been in my hands ever since until some peculiar events brought me here to this time period."
>Keep following carefully, be mindul of any threats from either Kaguya or an third party.
>"Being flung around through time by some unknown force like a toy, something not even the Hakutaku or Miss Yakumo could understand fully."
>"Who would be 'she' ?"
>Anything about Mokou from both of our memory sets ?
>"All i know is that someday she went to Higan, some mysterious event that they refused to elaborate on happened, and she has been missing ever since."
> "My apologies."
> Keep following.
> "The watch, you mean? I have had it for as long as I remember, yes. And Miss Yakumo implied it was related to why I am still in this time instead of back in my proper time."
>"So the clue is that getting it back means i can go back to the time period i belong to."
>"So, with that in mind, would you give up the watch in return for me delivering a massage to your past self?"
> "All right. I think we'll need to wait until that fight is over before getting back to that office, though. Unless you know an alternate path."
> "Oh. Are you going to steal the watch from it, then?"
> "...I suppose."
> "They seem to have a fair amount of documentation."
> Nod.
> "Not at all."
> Continue following Kaguya, wherever she's going.
>What do we know of Kaguya's powers over time?
>What is our past history with Kaguya?
> "Interesting."
> Continue following.
> Is there stuff inside the cases?
> "What is in those cases?"
> "Ah."
> Was there another lamp, or did Kaguay take the only one?
> How are our time resources holding up?
> Could we step out of time for long enough to grab a lamp and return here?
> Step out of time, head back up the stairs, grab a lamp, return to our current spot, and step back into time.
> "Duly noted."
> Look around at what's in the immediate vicinity, bringing our light closer to things as needed.
> Is there an obvious way to open the glass cases?
> "Is there any sort of security on these cases?"
> What did the four gems cut in various shapes look like?
> Do we know anything about gems Reisen owns? If so, do we know what they look like? If so, do they match the above four gems?
> Try lifting the cover from the case with the small box. If we are successful, take the box out and open it.
> Close the box and put it back.
> Gently close the glass cover.
> Make our way back to the four gems. Open the cover and retrieve all of them. Mistress will probably enjoy them, at least.
> "Ah, good."
> Close the case and continue onward toward Kaguya, making a note of anything else of interest we see in the cases.
> Nothing else noteworthy?
> Blink.
> "Who's gone? And who's changing?"
> "I'm afraid I don't really know much about the Lunarians beyond what you and Miss Yagokoro have brought to Gensokyo. And that one of them has a sword and cheats at danmaku."
> "Ah. My apologies that I cannot be more helpful for such things. But hopefully the ride here on Earth was at least enjoyable?"
> "...For what they're worth, you have my sympathies. Though, at the risk of being macabre, if Miss Fujiwara found a way out, as it were, then perhaps you can do the same?"
> "No. I am merely pointing out that it is possible, given the seemingly-rhetorical question you posed a moment ago."
> "Ah. My apologies for misunderstanding the situation."
> "So...what will you do, then?"
> "...I'd, ah, rather get my watch back intact..."
> !
> Are we still able to move, or at least think?
> Is Kaguya gray as well?
> "Oh..."
> Try walking toward Kaguya.
> "...You wish to freeze the Lunar Capital?"
> "And then what?"
> "And what of the rest of us?"
> Is all the time moving and talking draining our internal resources, as it were?
> How far away is Kaguya?
> Sigh.
> "I suppose I was never to reclaim that watch, then."
> "My apologies, Princess, but only one entity reigns over me."
> Pull out a knife.
> "And I cannot let stillness stop me from seeing her again."
> Danmaku does not travel very far when time is stopped, yes?
>Any curious things we can do with danmaku during timestop, without our spellcards on hand?
> Take to the air as well and head straight at Kaguya.
> How much horizontal space do we have?
> How much vertical space do we have?
> Are we far enough away that we can expect the bullets to stop before they reach us?
>Does it look like we will need to avoid it entirely or can we attempt to find an gap ?
>How far do we think we can throw a knife, considering time is stopped?
>How many knives do we have?
>Would it be hard to retrieve a thrown knife frozen in time if we happen to be close to one later in the fight?
>Obviously she'd stop it again unless we retrieve the watch first, but would it be significantly draining to unstop time for a bit?
>Focus on dodging through the web. Back up a bit if absolutely necessary, but moving to the side would be preferable.
>What is the maximum amount of time that we know of that the watch can keep the flow stopped ?
>And how much can we expect Kaguya to hold out with the time stop ?
>How high did she ascend ?
>So within the range of our 3 yards (Imperials... :< ), will they be able to outrun her ?
>Compare our Luck and Int Stats with Kaguya's.
>Hmmm, is she going straight upwards or is she also doing horizontal movement ?
>Begin to slip through the web as we advance. Ready a knife in each hand so that we may quickly fire once we decide on action.
>How much different is slinging a knife at her and throwing a cloud of knife danmaku at her? In terms of the effect should one hit her. Like. Stabbity stabbity power.
> Can we tell if the bullets she is firing are freezing in mid-air?
> Is she within slashing or stabbing range?
>Can we sacrifice some of our magic reserves to make an projectile stay unaffected by the time manipulation ? Much like how we are nullifying it's effects on ourselves.
>Normally, but normal circumstances don't include fighting an mind-shattered Kaguya attempting to use our watch to bring tempore mortis to the world.
>How far away are we from her overall ?
>Use one knife to throw a circle of danmaku around Kaguya, due to the fact that we are below her- such that it will not hit her if she stops almost immediately. Do it as soon as possible; a haphazard mess around her rather than a circle is fine enough, this only really works if she's mostly above us. The goal is to interrupt her movement, moreso than to actually hit her.
>So long as we're not about to be hit by a bullet from Kaguya's danmaku web, immediately use the other knife to throw a nondescript cloud of knife danmaku focused at her.
>Are we capable of throwing a wave of knives that will change direction at a certain distance, and then come back?
> What are we now looking at for bullet coverage coming at us?
> Maneuver in closer to Kaguya while pulling out two more knives (one in each hand).
> The latter.
> Can we see her previous bullets frozen in the air now? Or have we not turned all the way around yet?
>Is it possible to dodge above, below, or to the side of the wall?
>If not, back up as necessary until we can realistically seem to start weaving through.
>Vaguely how far is Kaguya from the wall behind her? And where are we in relation to the exit of the room?
> Does this wall look like it is beginning the same way her first (deceptive) attack began?
> Head left to get around it.
>How far are we from her ?
> Is she above or below us?
> Go down and under the incoming wall.
> Go down and under the incoming wall.
>How much of it will hit us if we keep going after Kaguya ?
>If we throw a knife at Kaguya and keep it unaffected by the watch, how quickly can it catch up to Kaguya ?
>It should work in a similar fashion as we are channeling our ability on ourselves to keep us moving, but using part of it on the knife object instead, so say that works, how fast it can cover those 3 yards+ of distance ?
> How much coverage to our left and right does the wall have?
> How deep is the wall?
> Are the falling bullets accelerating downward from being stopped, or are they already moving down at a decent downward clip?
Hmm...
> Are we actually underneath the wall yet? Or did it start breaking up before we got there?
> If the latter, given the bullets' current falling speeds, if we beelined it underneath, would we reach underneath first, or would the bullets reach our level first, thereby smacking us face-first into them?
> Good enough. Book it underneath everything, accepting that we may get plunked in the back a couple of times.
>Is she constantly keeping an eye on us ?
>Is she just going straight for the exit ?
>Inventory.
> Where'd that ring come from?
> Are we actually wearing it, or do we just have it in a pocket?
> Does our second set of memories have anything to say about the ring? (Don't ruminate on this for so long that we get distracted and lose a tempo in the fight.)
> How close are we to Kaguya? Surely our top forward speed is faster than her backward speed; hopefully we gained some ground.
> Toss a circular knife spread at Kaguya's chest with the knife in our dominant hand, while continuing to head straight for her.
> Once we've tossed the knife in question, slip our dominant hand into our pocket and put the ring on.
>Keep heading straight to the exit, closing the distance in the meanwhile.
>She had a key for the door correct ?
>Give her another spread to be busy about, throwing it more towards her right, let's discourage her to gain more time to get there first.
>How hard would it be to close the door while time is stopped ?
>Will the wall get in our way to the door ?
>This IS the only way out right ?
> Did the wall only collapse and fall down last time, or did it spread everywhere?
> How much space do we have to our left and our right?
> Bank right to go around the side of the wall while still moving forward.
> How deep is the wall?
> How high and how low does it go from our current position?
> How many are staying on their original straight-forward paths?
> Back to the left, then! Let's take our chances with the thinned-out wall.
>Is there an gap we can squeeze right through while at full speed ?
>"No wonder they didn't stay here with you, you became so boring after all."
> Flatting out as need be and slip on through, as directly-toward-Kaguya as the bullet lines allow.
>"No wonder they didn't stay here with you, you became so boring after all."
>Prepare a knife just in case.
> Don't say this.
>Can we make the knife danmaku curve trajectory as well ?
> Did we determine earlier that the walls are too far apart for proper reflecting shots?
> What about the floor and ceiling?
> Is she still moving backwards?
> How far apart are we?
> Are we capable of doing a wide horizontal line spread with reflection properties that fans out with a single knife? If so, how wide?
> As we continue pursuing Kaguya, fire such a single-knife reflecting horizontal spread with the single knife aimed at the side of Kaguya's hip that is on our right side (her left), spread wide enough that the right-most knife from our perspective will hit the wall at about a 45 degree angle.
> Then fire a second single-knife reflecting horizontal spread with the knife in our other hand, aimed at Kaguya's right shoulder (our left), with the same spread width as the first line.
>Can we move on an intercepting course towards Kaguya's path without much issue ?
>Start slipping through the bubbles.
> Are we fully through the bubbles or still making our way through them?
> Are all of the lasers aimed directly at us, or are they more covering a spread of our area?
> What are our options immediately above us and immediately below us?
> Good enough! Down.
>Prepare two more knives as we weave through lasers.
>Are they horizontal, vertical, diagonal or a mix the previous ?
>So would laying low to the ground while doing light adjustments to the left and right get us through safely without much loss at speed ?
>Hm... what if we keep an direct route as it is with minimum dodging ? How bad it will be ?
>You can only get lucky if you gamble ! Go for it.
>Are we able to use our knifes to parry some danmaku ?
>Which one looks like it will be the best we can get while still going straight for an interception ?
>How about a middle point ? Are there any ?
>Go for a middling amount of safety and speed, where we... probably won't get hit.
> Is there still any bullet/laser coverage between her and us? If so, is it from her, us, or both?
> Is Kaguya closer to us than the door? Or has she gotten closer to the door at this point?
> Is she still facing us, or has she turned to escape?
> If she is still facing us, is she still headed backward?
> Resume flying directly at Kaguya, pulling out two more knives as we move.
> While doing these things, try focusing some mental energy on the Agate Ring and willing it to activate.
> Were the other walls also green arrowheads, or is this one new?
> In which direction did the previous wall shift after she fired it?
> As we continue traveling straight forward, try willing the Agate Ring to stop time even further, for everything other than ourselves.
> How much of each side of the wall is moving toward the wall's middle?
> Bank left!
> Is it coming at us directly from our right, or from ahead of us and to our right? Or perhaps both?
> Continue forward and list just a little bit more to the left, then.
> Did we gain any ground on Kaguya?
> Is she still closer to us than the door?
> Are we close enough to the left wall to make reflecting shots meaningful?
> Continue heading forward (toward the wall with the door out of here, rather than straight at Kaguya or straight at the door) and listing ever-so-slightly to the left to get ever-so-slightly closer to the wall.
> Pull out two more knives (if we don't have any in our hands already) as we fly.
> While still moving in the same direction, dip down momentarily, and then come back up, to see if the bullets partially home in on us, or if Kaguya's just a really good guesser (or a mind-reader).
> Did the bullets not deviate at all from their initial path?
> Are we still in path to get smacked now that we've dipped a bit?
> Dip lower, then, to get under the walls.
> How good are we at reflecting off the floor?
> Dip down close to the floor, then, to get under the wall. Make sure there's still a bit of listing to the left as well, to inch closer to the wall of the room.
> Has the horizontal wall done anything of note?
> Keep heading in our current horizontal direction, then.
> Splendid! Keep on in our current direction, then.
> Has she turned around at this point, or is she still floating backwards?
> How is our position now for attacking Kaguya in terms of left wall reflection and floor reflection?
> Are we dextrous enough to throw one knife at the floor and the other at the wall at the same time?
> Throw one knife at the left wall, aimed to reflect off the wall so that the middle of the resulting spread will shoot by just behind Kaguya.
> Immediately after that first knife is thrown, throw our other knife at the floor, aimed to reflect off the floor so that the middle of the resulting spread will shoot toward Kaguya's midsection.
> Keep up the pursuit while doing these things (or resume pursuit if we have to stop to throw things).
> What did the multi-colored bubble shots do before?
> How close is Kaguya to the ceiling? Is she close enough we could rebound a knife or two off the ceiling and have it come back down on her?
> How many knives do we have left on us?
> How close are both of us to the door?
> Although if the need to dodge is impending enough, back up before the shot as necessary.
>Send a wave of rebounding knives up at the ceiling around Kaguya, before beginning to dodge through bubbles. Although if the need to dodge is impending enough, back up before the shot as necessary.
> Actually, rather than backing up, keep pushing forward horizontally, toward the door. We need to get there before she does.
> Did we at least actually hit her with something?
> How close are we to her?
> Try sharply curving our flight path upward. Make sure the change is not an instant stop-our-forward-momentum-and-head-straight-upward change, but an actual curve. Ideally, we will get "between" Kaguya and the doorway in the process, but our final goal should be to get right up in close and personal with Kaguya.
> Do the dark blue shots appear to be threatening us at all?
> Relative to her direct-line path to the door, did she curve to the left or to the right?
> Whichever way she curved her flight path, did it bring her close enough to a wall to make another reflecting shot feasible?
> Level ourselves off and resume aiming directly for the door.
> While doing so, pull out a knife and fire a reflecting shot at the left wall such that the middle of the spread is aimed toward Kaguya's midsection.
> Was Kaguya always this rude during fights? We fought her once before; use that time as a check.
> Do we have any other 'tricks' at our disposal?
> What's coming at us now?
> Change flight course to aim right for the doorway again.
> Pull out two more knives as we do.
> Is she still closer to the door than us?
> Are her bullets flying anywhere yet?
> What sorts of patterns do we specialize in with non-knife danmaku? Like how Kaguya has made lots of walls that shift and is now apparently doing whatever she's doing.
> Do we have a non-knife bullet of choice? Bubbles, arrowheads, beads, etc.
> Fire off a line of kunai shapes at Kaguya, aimed in front of her, so as to try to interfere with her path toward the door.
> Continue heading toward the door ourselves.
> Are there lines headed toward our current position, toward the space in front of us given our flight path, or both?
> What about above us and below us?
> Lighter above, lighter below, or both?
> Fire off another vertical line of kunai aimed directly at Kaguya this time.
> Drift upward while continuing toward the door.
> Girl, this is gonna be a giant mess when it's all over.
> Do we now have a clear path to the door? Or are there frozen bullets in our way?
> Continue toward the door, then.
> "How curious you are, Princess."
> "You stress over those on the moon changing, and yet you have changed as well."
> "So the image of grace and dignity a thousand years ago was merely an act?"
>If we absolutely coat the doorway in pointy danmaku and knives, would Kaguya probably be able to eventually deal with it and get through anyway in her eternal timestop, or might she need to unstop time for a moment? ...well, I guess she could just take it to the face like a (wo)man, and we don't have many Real Knives left to mix in. :T But it's a thought.
>How much longer do we think we can hold out?
> Did we ever see what's on the far side of this room?
> Did we see the far wall, at least?
> If so, did it have a door on it?
> So she's probably not trying to run away to a different exit, then. At least we now have the only way out blocked.
> Okay, let's reset.
> How far apart are we?
> What's the bullet coverage between is like at the moment?
> How many knives do we have on-hand?
> Are any of our previously-thrown knives visible?
> Could we retrieve a previously-thrown knife from being frozen in time?
> Can we grab any ol' danmaku and recycle it as such? Or does it have to be one of the components of the knife attack? Or does it have to be the original knife and not any of the rest of the attack?
> Are there any such knife attacks between her and us at present?
> Fly directly toward Kaguya. Once she starts looking like she is preparing (or outright beginning) an attack, grab some of the existing frozen knife danmaku out of the air and fling it at her in a recycled knife attack, aimed at her torso.
> Have the lasers actually started moving toward us yet?
> How's the laser coverage looking to be above us?
> So we can keep moving straight toward her and have everything more or less go around us? If so, do so, pulling out another knife while watching how our most recent attack behaves.
> Are we surrounded by her previously lasers at this point?
> Are any recyclable knives within grabbing range?
> Grab a recyclable knife and whip it at Kaguya's torso.
> Then reach out and grab two more recyclable knives and whip them at Kaguya's left and right sides, far apart enough that they'd just pass her by on both sides if she stayed perfectly still.
> Oh, right, that. Yeah, put that plan on hold for a moment.
> Come to think of it, aside from lines, can we we make circular patterns with knife throws?
> Use our held knife to throw a circle pattern at Kaguya, aiming the center of the circle at her midsection.
> Then reach out and grab two more recyclable knives and whip them at Kaguya's left and right sides, far apart enough that they'd just pass her by on both sides if she stayed perfectly still. Do our best to make vertical line patterns out of these.
> Perpendicular, and large enough that the left-most and right-point points on the circle extend just a bit beyond her arms.
> And given that specification, change the two recycle knife tosses so that they are horizontal line patterns, one just above her head, one just below her feet.
> Did she at least not get off her counterattack?
> Are the lasers bothering us at all?
> Has she made it all the way through the circle at this point?
> Are there any more frozen knifes within reach?
> How many frozen knives are within reach?
> Can we make plus (+) patterns or cross (x) patterns with a single knife?
> Grab a recyclable knife and throw it at Kaguya in a circle formation. Aim the same place on her that we did last time, but this time make the circle a little bit larger.
> Then grab a second recyclable knife with our other hand and fire a cross pattern at Kaguya, with the same center as the circle, where the ends of the cross would just barely touch the circle if they were thrown at the same time.
> And she has still made no effort to counterattack?
> Grab a recyclable knife and fling a horizontal line at her midsection.
> "Of course. I imagine no one would plan for a human suddenly reappearing after a thousand year disappearance."
> How close is she to a wall or the ceiling?
>How taxing would it be to create some danmaku-shooting familiars?
>...actually, would the familiars even last for more than a few seconds before they were stopped in time? :S
> "It is Miss Kamishirasawa's belief that history and, possibly, fate made that decision for you."
> While we talk, throw another recycle-knife circle at Kaguya with the center aimed at her midsection, large enough to give her several inches of breathing room on either side of her.
> Then grab a second recycle-knife and watch how she behaves once she sees the circle.
> If she tries to move through the middle of it, throw a cross (x) spread with the recycle-knife.
> If she tries to move to our left, throw a vertical line with the recycle knife that is another foot to our left of that edge of the circle. If she tries to move to our right, do the same, but on the other side of our circle.
> If she tries to go down, throw a horizontal line with the recycle knife that is half a foot below the bottom edge of the circle.
> If she tries to go up, throw a horizontal line with the recycle knife that is aimed at the ceiling such that it will reflect off and head toward her head.
> Throw a recycle-knife horizontal line at Kaguya's feet.
> "The sentiment is appreciated, at least."
> Throw another recycle-knife horizontal line at Kaguya's knees.
> "It would be if I did not have a home I needed to return to. But I can appreciate where you are coming from."
> How close is she to the ceiling now?
> Throw another recycle-knife horizontal line at Kaguya's knees.
> "That second one sounds like it could be problematic eventually, even for one such as you."
> Throw another recycle-knife horizontal line at Kaguya's knees.
> "Well, if it is as you describe, I cannot imagine an infinite buildup of momentum is possible."
>What do we know of Kaguya's physical strength?
> Glance at the Agate Ring.
> So, Reimu, you don't quite interact with time like we do, huh? Well, if you're aware of what's going on, any help from the goddess of heroes would be greatly appreciated right about now.
> Glance back up at Kaguya.
> Give Kaguya a curious look in return.
> "I've never seen or heard of any Lunar gods. Unless the purple swordswoman counts, and I'm pretty sure she doesn't."
> Frown.
> "If we're setting desperation aside, then why are you doing this at all? Surely there are simpler means to get what you want."
> "Messages to the past, of course, to prevent the current problem from ever becoming a problem in the first place."
> "Oh, I was referring to the fate of Miss Fuijwara. But if they would not listen to me, perhaps they would listen to you, or Doctor Yagokoro?"
> "That all depends on what exactly you want your present to be."
> "I cannot really suggest what such a message would be without knowing what exactly it is you want here and now. Do you want the moon to stay the same as it always has, or perhaps do you a favor in some capacity? Or do you simply want an eternal antagonistic playmate, as it were?"
> "I'm afraid I don't understand why all this is necessary, though."
> Gesture all around us.
> "What is the difference between this frozen state and a non-frozen state?"
> "So...you have made it so nothing anywhere will ever change again?"
> "What else is unaffected?"
> "You implied that nothing anywhere will ever change again 'shortly', as opposed to right this instant. What else risks changing given the current state of affairs?"
>"Ah, that is true. But I find it strange... you're doing this because even things you thought would never change have changed; that those who would never leave, have left. Yet, your solution is to leave as well. To leave the flow of time itself, and become truly and absolutely alone. Is that really the kind of eternity you want?"
> "But you would be as still and frozen as the rest of us."
> "So...what would you do then?"
> "...If it's all the same to you, then, what if you could be frozen in stasis forever without inflicting the same on the rest of reality?"
> "You wouldn't be aware of it either way."
> "There's no practical difference from your perspective, though. What benefit is it to freeze all of reality?"
> Sigh.
> "Let's try something else, then. What state of reality would you prefer to everything frozen forever?"
> "What about a world where you got back what you threw away?"
> "Was that the eternal night, or something else?"
> "Then I suppose we are left with only the original desire. How exactly has the moon changed?"
>"If they allowed Eirin to return... would they allow you to return as well?"
> "That seems rather fortuitous for you, if you ask me. It would suggest that whatever downside there was to what you did has ended, and you are now free to act as you please with whatever you gained from your misdeeds. But I'm guessing that is not at all how it really is."
>"Isn't dedicating oneself to an unchanging life, that one cannot do anything about... what you're trying to do now?"
> "So...you want them to remain on the path to self-destruction, or be frozen forever."
>"What if... I told you? Hundreds upon hundreds of years before now, in my time. That one day, far in the future, they will eventually change their mind. Of course, you wouldn't believe me. But perhaps if you provided me with something that would convince you. Maybe... if you knew so far ahead of time, before Eirin, Mokou, or the others left, it wouldn't have to come to this?"
>"I cannot undo the sacrifices that you've made. Perhaps nothing can. But I could grant you this."
> "I imagine my words would carry little to no weight. But perhaps evidence and a message from their future selves would be enough to persuade them."
> "Then I think you have a decision to make, regarding letting them destroy themselves, or destroying them your own way by freezing everything for all eternity. Or do you desire something else for them, perhaps? I did notice you didn't immediately offer a response."
> "Why?"
> "I wanted to be sure, since I thought it odd you did not respond to my summary."
> How much 'time' do we feel like we have left?
> "Was it inaccurate, or just unpleasant?"
> "I am not sure how it is inaccurate, based on what you have said. Is there a realistic third option?"
> "And you would sacrifice all of the rest of reality to see that through, never mind setting spell card rules aside. How Lunarian an approach."
> Grin a bit.
> "Very well, then, if that is what you wish. I should warn you, though. Speaking from experience, when one spends too long bending time, time is rather wont to bend back."
> "I would rather consider the abilities to move and think 'something' rather than 'nothing'."
> "I wonder if anyone other than you would want such a thing."
> Chuckle.
> "Not that it matters now."
> Chuckle again.
> "Don't bet on it, Princess."
> "Like I said...time bends back..."
> "I don't know. But I am...disappointed I won't get to see until after it's complete."
> "Oh, I'm aware...If you don't want to save yourself...from a fate worse than freezing...then that's fine. Just remember...I told you so."
> "I told you...time bends back. It's done a number on me before...I can only imagine how much worse...it will be for you..."
> "I'm not sure...who would know...better than me."
> "What difference does that make?"
> Chuckle some more.
> "...Lunarian arrogance...will doom you to self-destruction...How ironic..."
> How on earth are we supposed to know who made the watch when we got it second-hand from a shopkeeper?
> "You implied earlier...that you did."
> "Most certainly...but I don't really matter anymore. What will happen to you...will happen independent of anything I do."
> Look behind us really quickly.
> How much of it is headed at our current position?
> How high off the ground are we?
> Turn back around to a normal position, and hit the floor!
> How are we feeling?
> Look up and around.
> Frown with a bit of a sneer.
> "I do not particularly enjoy being toyed with."
> "If you are truly convinced that all of reality deserves to be frozen for eternity, then there is nothing more to discuss. I am demonstrably unable to stop you by force, so either get on with it and try your luck out-willing time itself, or return my watch to me and let me go home."
> "I told you already, I do not matter now. What will happen to you will happen independent of anything I do. I have never claimed anything to the contrary in regards to how time will react when frozen for too long. If you truly believe I am bluffing, then call it. If not, then stop wasting our time and fold, and we can work out something else."
> "With all due respect, you also could not see the Lunarians diverting from their inevitable destiny, and yet here we are."
>Whats the status of the door?
> Did we close it on our way in?
> If not, did we close it mid-fight?
> "All I can tell you for sure is what I have experienced myself my whole life. If you choose to ignore that, well, do not say you were not warned."
> "What do you mean?"
> Has pushing ourselves too far ever resulted in being aged up, or has it always been being aged down?
> Do we eventually recover?
> So we have to reset ourselves manually?
> "Ah. Well, I suppose the best way to describe it is that when I push time too hard, it will significantly increase or decrease my age, with corresponding changes to my body. It would not surprise me if some of the less pleasant rumors that resulted from this reached the ears of your rabbits back long ago."
> "Yes. Regardless, even with what limited strength I had with which to push time, I have been altered by several years. Granted, I am sure that means extremely little to one such as yourself, but pushing unfathomably harder than I ever could, I imagine, would produce unfathomably worse results."
>"Indeed, I wouldn't be surprised if immortality could safeguard you from the effects of pushing time at the extents I have. But what you're suggesting would be unfathomably beyond the scope of what I have ever attempted, and so I imagine the consequences would be as well. I wonder, if it tried to reverse your age by enough of an extent, could your body be rewound to before you partook of the Hourai Elixir? Or even infancy and beyond? How ironic it would be if, by attempting to gift all with eternity, you merely ended your own."
>Does Kaguya look any older or younger from when she did all those years ago?
>Do we recall if the watch extends the amount of time for our time stop?
>"Expermenting? Did Eirin know of your plans?"
>"I don't think she would've approved of your plans. Hell, she may have gone out of her way to stop it.
>"Even so, understanding doesn't always mean agreement."
>"I'm sure she would not have left if she supported your plans".
>"Have you ever seen her since then?"
>"Why did she leave you?"
>"So she didn't even care about tending to her princess."
>"I would imagine she misses you."
>"So she forgot about you. How unexpected."
>What do we know of Eirin and Kaguya's history?
>"You centuries long love, who would always come back, no matter how long it took, finally abandon you for the moon. It must've been extraordinarly heartbreaking."
>"I can only assume it was a very messy break up."
>"This had to do with Reisens death, didn't it?"
>"...So she didn't even care about her love for you, she was just there to study your pet, how appropriate for a Lunarian."
>"The last few days have been quite stressful, but that was a bit much, and I apologize." Frown. "I could hardly be described as good with matters of love, myself. Although I doubt you wish to hear about my own love problems at the moment."
I feel like it'd sound desperate to go "hey maybe I can fix your relationship by changing the past"Not if we convince her that would be the best for her (And not blindly insulting her for no reason). I'm starting to think that all of this is just born from her nasty break up. Also remember that Sakuya has had some experience with messy relationships too.
>"Still, i wonder what could've led such a long lasting couple to such a break up."
>"It's just that it feels like this is the real reason we're both here right now, doing this. Normally it'd be none of my business, but given your plans, I simply can't ignore it. Of course, I'm sure you're thinking there's nothing I could possibly do about it... but, I can change the past. I already have, in many ways. This is, after all, my second trip to the future."
>Groan. "I wouldn't recommend it if you ever have the chance to time travel yourself, it's quite disorienting having two different sets of memories about the same events."
>"I hoped Eirin was the real root of the problem, but it seems that was a little optimistic." Frown. "I thought that perhaps, if your time on Earth was better, you wouldn't be as angry at the capital for invalidating the reason you left."
>"After all, I'm not sure I could possibly change the past in a way to stop the Lunar Capital from changing the way it has... or if I would even want to. If they were willing to admit they were wrong and try to amend their mistakes, fix their ways, it's difficult for me to see it as a bad thing. But I know it's different for you, who sacrificed so much to get away from what you thought would never change."
>"Hmm? What about Mokou, now?"
>"I assume your implying the lost of your rivalry with that phoenix-like immortal was another factor that led to the state you are currently in. Very curious, any other person would've been happy to have their nemesis gone."
>"What were you two even competing over?"
>"I see, it's the presence of eternal adversity to keep you occupated for centures on end that you used to relive boredom. A shame then, that you'll never get that again once all of time has stopped."
>Now that we think about it, what happened when encountered her during the eternal night incident?
>"I think you underestamite how truly relevant she is to all of this, princess."
>What was the actual fight like?
Writing speeches is hard. But, the idea I have is to pointing out that Kaguya's plan is kinda also a attempt to return to how her life was back when she lived with Eirin and Mokou in a way, as she enjoyed the eternal companionship they bought, without any form of change foreseeable, but by destroying the watch she's throwing away the last chance she can get to truely return to that time. Probably not a great idea, but it's an idea. Asking for thoughts to anyone who's actually still playing at this point. That's pretty much all I have in terms of diplomacy right.Well, she's not destroying the watch, so much as destroying time. She needs the watch to even do this, after all. I dunno, the problem is mostly that she doesn't believe we can really fix her life even if we go back and change things. We've already suggested a few times that we could try to go back and fix stuff, but she'd say "Well, maybe if that was the only thing, but it's not only that...".
>Do we recall if it's possible at all for her to be affected by our time abilties, like say if she stopped time before she did?
>How exactly would the watch work for someone who isn't us or Kaguya? How could they use it's power?
> "Besides, you still have me as a message to the past. Even if you believe I cannot alter the course the moon has taken, I have a rather decent chance of preventing Mokou's disappearance. Frankly, even without all this, it was on my to-do list anyway."
> "I have come to learn that Keine Kamishirasawa passed away prematurely from a bout of pneumonia, probably as a direct result of the accident in my home a thousand years ago damaging her immune system. I have also come to learn Mokou disappeared not to long afterward, with the rumors being that she is sealed away in Higan. It seems likely the former event caused the latter, so the solution to your problem would seem to be convincing Mokou to not cause havoc in Higan."
> "Now, what exactly convincing her will take, I cannot say. It would depend on exactly how the conversation goes. But I can't imagine it's anywhere close to impossible."
> "Well, it is not as though removing her opinion from the equation by simply preventing Miss Kamishirasawa's death is not an option."
> "I imagine that, if the seriousness of the situation is impressed upon them, Miss Yagokoro and Miss Kamishirasawa would work hard enough to find a way to avoid her passing prematurely. If not avoid her passing entirely."
> "I imagine only she could answer."
> "Regardless, that seems like the best bet for fixing this situation and altering the course of your history."
> "Besides, if this somehow does not work, you can always drag me back here and try something else."
> "That is all I have. The rest is up to you."
> "Besides, if this somehow does not work, you can always drag me back here and try something else."Uh, doesn't that have a high chance of backfiring on us?
> "I can't promise anyone involved will like what I have to say. Not your past self, not her retainers, not Mokou, not Miss Kamishirasawa. But I do believe I have a clear enough picture of which dominos fell to lead us here that I can alter their course."
> Take out one of those gems and casually wave-wiggle it in front of us.
> "Particularly if these gems here are indeed the ones Reisen possesses in my time, as I suspect they are."
> "Evidence of my time traveling will make this all much easier."
> Give a slight grin.
> "Keeping these on my person and away from the guards here will not be a problem."
> "Do try to avoid getting hit yourself."
> Duck and cover!
> Poke our head out and look around.
> Where is the candle?
>Let's take the candle and try to recollect our knives.
> How many knives do we have in all now?
>"Did you happen to see where any of my knives went?"
> Raise an eyebrow.
> "You okay?"
> "If you say so. Will you be offended if I vanish on my own? I cannot promise you will not be held accountable for whatever valuables go missing."
> "That is the kicker, since where I am going, I cannot take you with me. You had best escape while you can."
> How far above thievery are we?
> "Farewell, Princess. Until we meet again, one thousand years ago."
> Look around. Any interesting treasures in the immediate vicinity?
> Head further into the vault, looking at what else is on display.
> Any of it look familiar?
> Have a closer look at that golden comb.
> Pah.
> Continue onward in search of interesting things.
>It'd probably be pretty hard to tell what's special in here, honestly... our own stopwatch would look quite mundane if we didn't know otherwise. Do we have any way of trying to identify magical enchantments? Seems a bit more like Patchouli's territory.
> Still nothing that looks familiar?
> Do we have anything to burn things with?
> Oh, right, duh.
> Continue onward, exploring the vault, until we find something we recognize, we find something of abnormal interest, we reach the end of the room, or we become aware that someone else has entered the room.
> Make our way back toward the entrance, then, paying attention to the contents of the shelves rather than the cases.
> Acquire the scroll and continue onward in our investigation.
> And we're back at the entrance at this point?
> Well, that's boring. At least Patchouli will get a souvenir out of this.
> Make sure the gems and scroll are stored somewhere not easy to see at a glance, and then pull out Ran's Talisman and light it with the candle.