Author Topic: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!  (Read 249006 times)

Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #180 on: July 08, 2011, 03:52:01 PM »
Chimura Genko - My first impression is an extremely flamboyant character that often breaks out into Michael-Jackson-eque dance moves to narrowly dodge. Not bad company, but has a very different understanding of norms of behavior which involve unnecessarily dramatic posturing, and very much a character that lives in her own little world. Not a fan of her ability.

Well her ability was based on one of the theories for what Doguu's were used for in the past which was that people would use them as a talisman for health and then thrown away when the good health came to the person.

Aoi/Aka Manto - I don't see a reason for the bathroom backstory. I picture this character as the hammiest character ever. Incredibly overdramatic, views the whole world as her audience to a never ending show. I like the idea of magic on top of magic tricks, so that even the mages can't figure out what's going on, and I like the idea that the tricks kill. For this character to be relevant, you need to either 1. establish inherent limitations in magic which she seems to overcome with trick, or 2. establish that she is unsuccessful because all her tricks can be easily explained by magic, even though they aren't. She herself though might consider herself the best magician ever, and everyone who criticizes her magic as naive.

The reason for the bathroom is that it explains why she doesn't do what traditional people of her kind do.

Hokabe Futouseki - I picture a good nature and devoted guard. Generally friendly, but she will protect her charge to the death. If I understand her correctly, she should casually, constantly be building walls and using them for every purpose imaginable.

Ananta & Nitya Hogasha - I'm not sure if I would use a silent character in the medium of writing; because dialog is such an important dimension in establishing character. I picture Ananta as a loud mouth that tends to cut her sister off, while Nitya is usually trying to get her sister to so some restraint.

Well Nitya is actually a boy but anyway, one of the things I thought of was that Nitya would often try to speak up but end up getting cut off by his sister while he makes an "Unnnn..." noise whenever it happens. If this WERE a story then I'd simply have Nitya's emotions be conveyed through his body language.

Buddhist Monk - I'm not seeing much character here, but from your description I would say revenge is the primary quality, and a hatred for the land of fantasy. She would need to be given a reason for that hatred. You need more depth.

My thought is that she actually hate youkai because it's thanks to youkai that she's the only human left at her temple. You may ask why then she has a Nurikabe as a body guard, well that's because Futouseki is an artificial youkai since she was actually created by her.

Three eyed oni - This character sounds like a troll in the traditional sense. By that I mean a hulking, hideous upright monster thing that has little intelligence or personality. You probably don't need more depth if all you want is an ugly monster to put before the heroes, but if you want to give this character some character, you should probably get rid of the brain damage. You need to decide that you want this monster to be nothing more than a monster, and you need to decide if you want to end your story with everyone fighting a plain old monster. I don't think I can justifiably call this character an intelligent being in its current form.

She's not ugly or a monster though, the thing about her is that she switches between moments of "insanity" and moments of clarity. Usually she isn't a threat to anyone but if she gets overly confused or emotional then she lashes out at things but then can end up realizing what's happened and get upset over it. This isn't a monster that just swings wildly at people, she's a person that's suffering.

Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #181 on: July 08, 2011, 03:53:56 PM »
Well her ability was based on one of the theories for what Doguu's were used for in the past which was that people would use them as a talisman for health and then thrown away when the good health came to the person.

The reason for the bathroom is that it explains why she doesn't do what traditional people of her kind do.

Well Nitya is actually a boy but anyway, one of the things I thought of was that Nitya would often try to speak up but end up getting cut off by his sister while he makes an "Unnnn..." noise whenever it happens. If this WERE a story then I'd simply have Nitya's emotions be conveyed through his body language.

My thought is that she actually hate youkai because it's thanks to youkai that she's the only human left at her temple. You may ask why then she has a Nurikabe as a body guard, well that's because Futouseki is an artificial youkai since she was actually created by her.

She's not ugly or a monster though, the thing about her is that she switches between moments of "insanity" and moments of clarity. Usually she isn't a threat to anyone but if she gets overly confused or emotional then she lashes out at things but then can end up realizing what's happened and get upset over it. She's dangerous because she's unpredictable she can go from happy to sad to angry in a minute. This isn't a monster that just swings wildly at people, she's a person that's suffering.

capt. h

  • Only sane townie
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #182 on: July 08, 2011, 04:41:51 PM »
3 eyed oni - Mismatched eyes, broken horns, chains, long pauses in sentences cause by brain damage (which probably left a scar) - My first impression from the description is that she sounds like a monster, and the brain damage led me to believe that she was reduced to babbling and mindless. I'm getting a Frankenstein description.

I do not believe I can judge the version of this character you described in your previous post. This is because I somewhat strongly dislike the character type you are making her out to be. Your character sounds like a simpleton who has to be put down for her own safety and the safety of everyone around her - too stupid to understand the consequences of her actions due to being legally retarded, which frankly makes her an innocent character that you plan to beat into submission because she does not possess the ability to know any better. Many, many good stories have such a character, but it always hurts me a little on the inside to see it (maybe intentionally, on the part of the writer), which limits my ability to be objective (or universal, which I personally consider more important than objective, but that would take a long time to explain, has to do with personal writing philosophy, and doesn't help you).

Chimura Genko - I still don't particularly like the ability to store disease in a pot and then break the pot to eliminate it. I'm very American remember; knowing of the Japanese backstory will not make it more culturally relatable to me. Personal preferences, I suppose.

Aoi/Aka Manto - I have no idea what her people traditionally do or even what her species is, so I don't understand your explanation of her bathroom antics. However, the theme of a character or being forcing a false choice on passerbys, such as left versus right with each resulting in a different kind of death, is relatable. Kind of like the hermit in Monty Python and the Holy Grail that asked three questions, and was tricked into falling into his own trap. The true solution is to not answer the question at all, the best solution is to trick the questioner into answering incorrectly.

Nitya Hogasha - Are you writing a story, or are you making a game? The difference is significant.

Buddhist Monk - I'm still not seeing much character here. You should discuss the exact reason she wants to bring the border down. You should probably go into more detail about how the characters relate to eachother. For example, Monk and Hokabe Futouseki (and Genko) - Are they mother/daughter? Employee/employer? Teacher/student? Leader/follower? How does Ananta and Nitya fit into this "family?"

Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #183 on: July 08, 2011, 05:41:39 PM »
3 eyed oni - Mismatched eyes, broken horns, chains, long pauses in sentences cause by brain damage (which probably left a scar) - My first impression from the description is that she sounds like a monster, and the brain damage led me to believe that she was reduced to babbling and mindless. I'm getting a Frankenstein description.

I do not believe I can judge the version of this character you described in your previous post. This is because I somewhat strongly dislike the character type you are making her out to be. Your character sounds like a simpleton who has to be put down for her own safety and the safety of everyone around her - too stupid to understand the consequences of her actions due to being legally retarded, which frankly makes her an innocent character that you plan to beat into submission because she does not possess the ability to know any better. Many, many good stories have such a character, but it always hurts me a little on the inside to see it (maybe intentionally, on the part of the writer), which limits my ability to be objective (or universal, which I personally consider more important than objective, but that would take a long time to explain, has to do with personal writing philosophy, and doesn't help you).

O_o When did I say she was a simpleton or that she was going to be put down? She hasn't been made retarded because of her brain damage, it hasn't made her any less intelligent,  it's just caused problems for her train of thought, think of it like how a person with short term memory loss would react to things except add to that that sometimes her wires get crossed and she misinterprets what's happening to her. I also said earlier that after she's been fought that the people of the temple would attempt to help her out with her problems, it's been a long time since she was sealed away and both she herself and the people that sealed her didn't think there was a way to actually help her deal with her condition.

This is also a situation that shows that my monk character has started to move on from her former prejudice because she's now attempting to help out an oni, a youkai that she used to hate.

Joveus Molai

  • Bear the Word, and the Word will bear you.
  • *
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #184 on: July 10, 2011, 08:09:45 AM »
Hello, newbie here. Tvtropes linked me to this site from their Fanfiction Recommendation page, and I was quite pleased to find a dedicated and fairly populous fanfiction subforum.  :)

I'm heavily contemplating writing a "backstory"-type fanfic on my favourite Touhou character: Fujiwara no Mokou. But while I'm confident that my writing skills aren't so terrible that they'll burn out the eyes of readers, I'm far less familiar with the Western Touhou fandom's tastes in derivative works, so I'm making my first post here to throw out my ideas and test the waters, to see if the story I'm thinking of will be acceptable or be loathed by all. This isn't to say that I plan on merely pandering for the sake of popularity, but I still would like to see whether the general reaction to my story's premise will be, "Huh, this could be interesting" or, "OH GOD WHAT IS THIS I DON'T EVEN-"

So, as I said, the story I'm hoping to write will trace Mokou's backstory, filling in the details of the years between her tasting the Forbidden  DrinkTM (which should be early 8th Century AD) and her running into Kaguya again (~18th Century AD) .

Spoiler:
Disclaimer Regarding Canon
--Although I respect the following of Touhou canon, I will have to discard it if it gets too much in the way of what I think would be an interesting story. This means that, if possible, I will be sticking to canon (or at least not write events and dialogue that directly contradict it), but if I feel that it is necessary it will be discarded. Also, due to the nature of this derivative work, a great number of details will necessarily have to be invented. For example, among other things this fic will explore how Mokou gained her pyromancy powers, got white hair, got her distinct clothing, her phoenix motif, etc.

General Facts:
--As mentioned before, the story will focus almost entirely on Mokou and her life from ~8th Century AD to ~18th Century AD.
--Notable events in Japanese history and famous and/or legendary historical Japanese figures will make their appearance as appropriate; the latter will range from major secondary characters who make significant impacts on Mokou's life and personality to cameos and off-hand mentions.
----This means that Mokou will likely travel across much of Japan before she settles in Gensokyo's Bamboo Forest of the Lost.
----Other Touhou characters will also make appearances if appropriate.
--The story will probably be divided into 3 arcs; the first taking place from ~700 AD to ~1000 AD, the second from ~1000 AD to ~1300 AD, and the third from ~1300 AD to ~1700 AD, as these are three of the ?periods? that Mokou herself categorizes her immortal life.

Mokou
--Note: I will admit that I have yet to play the Touhou games. I'm very familiar with a lot of Touhou derivative work (doujin, music, etc.), but I have little interest in shoot-em-ups and 2D fighting games, which, unfortunately, all canon Touhou games are. That means that I'm much more familiar with fanon interpretations of Mokou than canon ones. I've read all the canon Touhou material involving Mokou as I can (including Ch.4 of Cage in Lunatic Runagate), but my portrayal of Mokou may be a little off from canon ones, especially in the earlier chapters where Mokou's personality and thoughts will be different from the ones she will have later on.
--For the most part, Mokou's personality throughout the fic will match the ones mentioned in Lunatic Ch.4 (?For the first three hundred years...The next three hundred years...etc. Etc.?) As an example, I will likely write Mokou in her first three hundred years as a frightened, lonely child thrust from a life of wealth, luxury, and isolation into an unfamiliar world that hates her and despises her.
--Mokou will not gain her pyromancy abilities from drinking the Hourai Elixer?if the Lunatic Ch.4 images are anything to go by, then she seemed to have gained her abilities by at least her second 300-year period of life (the one where she apparently kills like a million youkai).
--I interpret Mokou's distinct physical characteristics (white (technically very light purple) hair, red eyes) as consequences of drinking the Hourai Elixer, so for pretty much all of the story her appearance will match the one we see in IN.
--Mokou's immortality is a little vague to me, so I'm thinking of setting down some rules as to how it works. Canon indicates that her immortality gives her eternal youth, regeneration, and some restrictions on where she can go (i.e. no trips to Hakugyokurou) but Mokou's immortality here will also exhibit the following phenomena...
----If cut off or damaged, Mokou's hair will grow back to whatever length it was before it was damaged. So if her hair was, say, 2 feet long and then got torn off by a rampaging demon, then when Mokou regenerates her hair will grow back to 2 feet in length. Her hair will also over time, so ?whatever length it was before it was damaged? will change over time. Thus, if Mokou's hair length becomes 4 feet in length some hundred years later, and it is then damaged or cut, then it will regenerate back to 4 feet in length. Mokou will therefore have no way of keeping her hair short unless she constantly snips off her hair at every waking moment. (This rule is in place primarily to explain the discrepancy between Mokou's hair before drinking the elixer and her appearance in Imperishable Night.)
----Mokou's body, while not needing food to function, will still digest foodstuffs if Mokou eats; this means that Mokou won't be running around with hundreds of years old food in her belly.   :barf: She'll get hungry, as canon indicates, but she'll never weaken from hunger, only be discomforted by it.



The details at the moment are, admittedly, rather sketchy at this point, partly because I still have a bit of research to do for some of the historical characters, and partly because I'm not especially good at planning. Nonetheless, I would highly appreciate it if someone could give my ideas a cursory glance and point out any glaring faults. I would also appreciate it if someone could help outline what exactly constitutes "NSFW" on this site; I read the forum rules and, although I have a pretty good idea as to what level of sexual content would equal Not Safe For Work, I'm less certain of how strictly it applies to violence and gore. While I don't plan on writing either Mokou's Murderfest 3000 or scenes reveling in blood and guts, I don't plan on being skirting aside the blood and violence, either, as I interpret Mokou's past to be a pretty dark and bloody one. At the moment, I'm planning going for, oh, an Assassin's Creed 2 level of violence;
 [nsfw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HIED-aARfk[/nsfw] (NSFWed just in case).

Again, any help and criticism are appreciated.  :)

Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #185 on: July 10, 2011, 09:05:26 AM »
A backstory, hm? I've always wanted to see more of these. Don't worry about making the early part of the story a bit out of character; no one matures in a day. If you haven't played the games, go read the pre-Mokou-battle dialogue on THWiki.

Also, 1 million youkai just for a power? I will be watching. :V

Crow's Dumping Ground of Art

"So I never have to worry what tomorrow will bring, because my faith is on solid rock; I am counting on God."

Joveus Molai

  • Bear the Word, and the Word will bear you.
  • *
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #186 on: July 10, 2011, 09:12:15 AM »

Also, 1 million youkai just for a power? I will be watching. :V

A bit of a hyperbole on my part, but according to Lunatic Ch.4....

Spoiler:
"The next three hundred years I spent harboring a grudge against this world, and was able to preserve the faintest sense of identity by immediately dispatching anything that crossed my path, youkai or otherwise."

...so by the time she could "dispatch anything that crossed her path", I figure she would've had that power. And who knows? Perhaps my Mokou will find immense catharsis in the charred corpses of ten thousand demons.  :V 


Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #187 on: July 10, 2011, 09:18:52 AM »
Killing is an artform! :getdown: But wasn't there an article somewhere in the wiki that talked about power coming from killing youkai?

Crow's Dumping Ground of Art

"So I never have to worry what tomorrow will bring, because my faith is on solid rock; I am counting on God."

Joveus Molai

  • Bear the Word, and the Word will bear you.
  • *
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #188 on: July 10, 2011, 09:30:29 AM »
Killing is an artform! :getdown: But wasn't there an article somewhere in the wiki that talked about power coming from killing youkai?

If there is, I'm having difficulty finding it. Given that neither the Perfect Memento article on youkai nor Lunatic Ch.4 mention this, it must be an off-hand mention.

I've also never heard of this "Youkai give you XP lol" anywhere, in either canon or fanon...is this a feature that fanfic and doujin creators rarely mention?

capt. h

  • Only sane townie
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #189 on: July 10, 2011, 09:31:49 PM »
I (personally) wouldn't go with that rule concerning hair length; it has some unsettling implications about the future.

It might be easier to say she keeps it long for sentimental reasons.

You're going to need to know a lot of Japanese history to do this story. You should probably have an idea of the events that were going on during each era. For example, what would Mokou have experienced during the first 300 years? What were the current events to her?

Still, I always wanted to read this kind of story, so good luck!

Bias Bus

  • It's unpleasent
  • *
  • if you're better than me
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #190 on: July 11, 2011, 02:08:52 AM »
A setting focusing on outer space in my original setting. Most was inspired by One Piece but, I sorta gave up on writing it.

Spoiler:
In the year 2019, an all out war between Mankind and space organisms called 'Cosmic Majins' has just come to pass as the single most destructive war in the history of our civilization. Earth, being the prime battleground for this war, is nearly destroyed in one attack of the Majins and the humans end up having to take the fight into space. During the nearly one-sided space battles, back on Earth, the remaining scientists (with the help of a lunar race known as the Lunamorphas) create biologically engineered super soldiers called 'Nues' and the biomechanical weapons called 'Talos' to combat the ruthless alien creatures. With the aid of their new weapons and a newfound ally from above, the humans managed to push back the Majin threat but at a grave cost of having a terribly beaten homeworld...

With little resources to rely on, the humans worked together with the Lunamorphas and have since taken their home to the stars and have begun colonizing several planets in the solar system. Now, in the year 2050, humans have achieved the power to travel at the speed of light enabling them to visit places they could never reach before...all thanks to the Lunamorphas who descended and aided them. The Cosmic Majins are still at large in the universe and are still enslaving planets under their rule, but with the humans and Lunamorphas (who have now established the Galactic Fedaration of Cosmic Order) they work to make sure the Majin's conquests are stopped and the universe can live in peace.

Our story takes place in the Solar System a day before the anniversary of the Majin War's end, during one of the many parties used to celebrate this time a mysterious message is sent to a select few indivudals via digital contact. The message contains one of the keys that may help in bringing down the Majin God and his forces... The Princess of Voids, the Majin God's daughter and the only one who is set to rule in his place if he is to be killed.

The message tells of her importance to the Majins and that she holds within her mind the one and only secret to killing the Majin God and crushing the Cosmic Majin regime. Indeed, the Cosmic Majins all had a weakness but if anyone is to discover this weakness they need to find and capture her and claim the fame that is rightfully theirs...

However...nowadays...there maybe more than just Majins that prove to be a threat to not only the peace but the entire universe as well...

[-Glossary-]

=Races=

Humans: We all know what these are and what they're capable of so I won't go into too much detail about them biologically. Originally from Earth but after the Majin War tore the blue planet a new one, Humans sought to make Space their new home and have done a remarkable job in doing so as well. Colonizing planets and creating space stations across the galaxy. Humans while the weakest of the races have become highly versed in technology and invention, giving birth to constructions that even the Majins can't create (usually because the Majin's can't understand the signifigance of technology, despite being a 'superior race').

Nue: A genetically altered human that was given animalistic properties via genetic manipulation. First created near the beginning of the 'Majin War' to give the humans a better edge against the superhuman aliens. Nues are far stronger than any normal human, and have the lifespan to outlive most of them as well. Some of the stronger sets of Nues are able to transform into the beasts they were created from, these Nues known as an Awakened Nue. However, only those with a strong enough will are able to do so plus it takes far more effort to control oneself, via rationality, when in this state. For example; if a Nue that is strong enough to transform, but does not have the rationality to control themself, they will then go completely wild and usually can't revert back until they've been sedated or killed. This problem has always existed within the Nues (in fact, it was one of the first problems that arose when the first Nue was created) and the scientists have worked nonstop to find away to override it. Unfortunately, it seems as though that this ability to transform is a manifestation of a Nue's animalistic nature (while their heightened intellect and ability to reason is a latent trait of their human nature), thusly such a problem cannot be effectively erased lest you opt to rid a Nue of his or her animal like properties all together.

Now that the wars are over, Nues have since integrated into human populations although there are still some humans who only see them as the creation of man and thus do not believe Nues can be their equals. Ironic, considering the Cosmic Majins are about the same in this sense...

Talos: A similar variant to the Nue class, only more in tune with machines and technology. Created as a means to combine war vehicles and weaponrary with the human body, via nanomachines. Talos' tap into their super human powers by infusing their bodies with the nanomachines and transforming their once human forms into something bio mechanical. While a bit stronger than Nues in the sense of having a body of metal, Talos are experts at utilizing the skill known as Hacking (see below) and thus are key units when computers and technological missions are concerned. However Talos are also highly susceptible to Malware and Hacking attacks from rivaling opponents, the latter being responsible for corrupting a good number of Talos at one point after the war which resulted in the tragic "Madness Virus" event that took the lives of many until the creation of anti-virus program "Espoire". Ever since then, many humans are either afraid of Talos for this event, or despise them for taking their family from them in that cataclysm.

As of now, some of the Talos live alongside humans, but many of them have since seperated from their creators and dispersed elsewhere in the vast cosmos. It is now a common law among them to have their nanomachines disabled via a chip, lest they wish to be drafted in the military. The chip can be removed only by a special code that government officals are aware of. It is believed that the Talos who did not recieve the vaccine program during the Madness Virus outbreak are still out there...

Cosmic Majin: Inter galactic aliens from outer space who are regarded as the 'Elitist Assholes' of the universe. Attacked Earth in the year 2027 and later retreated after Earth proved 'too troublesome' to conquer. Cosmic Majin look humanoid for the most part, but are taller than earth humans and are look rather demonic some having horns, tails, oddly colored skin and even wings. Majins are a feared race through out the cosmos so much so that the mere mention of the word instills fear in everyone's hearts. Most are prideful of their Majin blood and look down on other species as an inferior race, which only leads to more wars (and even worse reputations). The ruler of them all, and usually an instigator for most of the wars and violence they commit, is known as the Majin God; Tlzokrsth. Tlzokrsth is a Majin so powerful that his very existence alone is said to defy the laws of the cosmos, so much so, that his movements are greatly restricted so is not to cause damage to the space/time continuum. Some would go so far as to say that he isn't even native to this known universe...

They are ranked as such; Terra Majin, Space Majin, Star Majin, Galaxy Majin, and Void Majin being at the top. It is believed that a human can become a Terra Majin (lowest ranked, usually civilian level), although doing so is strictly forbidden by law of the Galactic Fedaration of Cosmic Order. Violation of this law, even in the slightest of senses, is punishable by a swift (but not always painless) execution. No exceptions.

Cosmofauna: The 'sea monsters' of the cosmos. Many are extremely large by our standards the largest recorded Cosmofauna having eclipsed an entire planet. Cosmofauna are said to have originated from 'The Void'...a mysterious realm that no one knows anything about, nor are able to comprehend on what it truly is to the known universe. Scientists are attempting to study Cosmofauna but so far have been unsuccessful in capturing one. Only about a few are born with a human like appearance, but those that are born in humanoid form are usually giants compared to humans themselves, but as a result of their humanoid form they are ranked as the weakest among Cosmofauna most lacking the ability that regular Cosmofauna have which allows them to travel through the vaccuum of space. Rumors are beginning to spread that an even more powerful set of Cosmofauna exist somewhere in the Universe...needless to say, some people (especially the Galactic Fedaration of Cosmic Order)  are shitting themselves at the mere thought of a monster more powerful than a normal Cosmofauna...

Lunamorpha: Humanoid space bunnies who lived on the moon for eons hidden from our knowledge by the use of technology and general shyness. Lunamorhpas have a highly advanced technology, one that is far beyond our own. As such they are regarded as the most technologically skilled race in the Solar System their aide alone giving rise to many machines and inventions that many would believe was merely science fiction or just downright impossible to create. Lunamorphas are all born with the ability to use a Psionics their knowledge of the ability passing on to humans after the war and giving rise to the first PSI Soldiers thereafter. The Lunamorpha aided the humans in the Majin War by giving them the technology needed to create the Nues and Talos, since then Lunamorpha and Humans have been on good terms and have aided each other in many different matters.

=Organizations and Groups=

Galatic Federation of Cosmic Order: A sturdy form of government that was created by the Humans and Lunamorphas as a means to govern the masses across the Solar System. Also known as The Order, it accepts other races into it's ranks (barring Majins) and encourages lawful endeavors to said races when they join. Recently, despite their reputation for keeping the Solar System safe, the Order has been subject to a few reports of corruption among it's officals. It is these reports that resulted in a growing lack of trust towards the Order and the eventual creation of rouge bands such as pirates that deliberately seek to break laws as a form of 'Take That' to the Order.

Hunter's Guild: A division that is semi-affiliated with the government in a means of crime fighting and pirate hunting. The Hunter's Guild is an unofficial branch of government paided individuals who work to catch criminals and outlaws as a means of payment from the government, basically Bounty Hunters. Before, when the guild was first established, rules were a bit less strict and the government allowed Bounty Hunters to work "outside the law" on some occasions, which made for catching criminals slightly easier but also put alot of people in danger.  Now The Order has made it so Bounty Hunters can also suffer punishments if they break several laws (adeptly named Hunter Codes) that were created to moniter and control their activity. Many hunters usually abide by these laws, but there are few who get over...

Cult of the God Beasts: A religious cult that has slowly been gaining publicity over the years. Their purpose is to help the masses realize that the legendary Cosmofauna, Kamijuu, are in fact gods and that they should devote their wills and lives to them. There are 9 different 'religions' avaliable, 8 for the original Kamijuu and 1 for the God of Cosmofauna. Although they were at first harmless, now they appear to be having more violent disputes against non-believers. Their leader is unknown...

MetaGenesis: A mysterious group of Talos that had been infected with the Madness Virus during the cybernetic terrorist attack and have since believed that with the virus they have become more powerful than the average Talos (naming themselves as Meta-Talos). They haven't really been as active as everyone believes and have rarely taken much attention ever since they announced themselves to the public several years ago. The only real worry is the fact that they still harbor an active strain of the Madness Virus and can infect other Talos with it via their Hacking powers.

Kingdom of Asmodai: Those affiliated with the Majins, even if they are enslaved by them, fall into this category. No one exactly knows who first established the KoA or for how long it's been around, all that is know now is that it's rapidly expanding since the Majins are enslaving planets and other races as they go. The humans and the Lunamorpha were regarded as lucky in escaping the Majin's grip. The Kingdom is led by the powerful Majin God, while a smaller group, known simply as the Lessers of Solomon, act as the Majin God's political and defense system. It is unknown as to how many members are with in the Lessers of Solomon.

For now the Kingdom appears to be working to eradicate anyone who knows of the Princess of Voids and will usually go so far as to destroying an entire planet if it means keeping the Princess' identity and existence secret.

=Other=

Princess of Voids: The daughter of the almighty Majin God and heir to the Majin throne. Supposedly, she is the only one who knows her father's weakness and what it takes to kill him and his evil empire once and for all. No one has ever seen her face before (save for Tlzokrsth and a select few of the Lessers) and her location remains a heavily guarded secret among the tight lipped Majins. Now however, her existence has been revealed by an unknown individual and many seek to find the Princess as a means to gain the crucial weakness needed to defeat Tlzokrsth for good. Although her existence is known by some individuals now, her location is still unknown...it is believed that one of the Lessers might know of her location and as such some have begun to hunt for Lessers as a means of pulling the needed information from them (although most were killed in this endeavor)...

Kamijuu (lit. 'God Beast'): these abominations are the most powerful Cosmofauna around and obviously are the most feared. While their appearance is just as rare as the regular Cosmofauna, they still should not be taken as a mere myth, there have been sporadic reports of ruthlessly powerful Cosmofauna that laid waste to entire planets in only a matter of moments. So far only 1 has been discovered in it's infant stage (and has been sealed up promptly after), but many suspect that there are a total of 9 Kamijuu in the known universe. The 9th, and final, Kamijuu is rumored to be the "God of Cosmofauna".

Hacking: A form of 'magic' that was created by Hackers and later perfected by the Talos during the Majin War. Hacking is a type of technomancy that taps into the energies and elements of an alternate universe, known as Cyberspace, and manifests them into our own universe in the form of magic and various other phenomenon. Hacking is highly dependent on an energy called Code and those who house said energy are usually able to peform Hacking. Talos are born with Code in their body as it is needed for the Nanomachines, humans however usually have to undergo special training in order for their body to harbor this energy without any ill effects.

Madness Virus: A computer virus created by a terrorist group of unknown origin and name, the virus only effects the Talos and targets their brain. The virus invades the Talos' mechanized brain and overrides any other mental processes with it's malicious code, in the process all of their reason and rationality are erased and replaced with the viruses line of code which causes the infected Talos to fly into a murderous frenzy. The virus was soon put to a stop when an anti-virus program was used to remove it from the infected Talos. However there are still a few Talos who house the only live strain of the virus and have since learned to 'adapt' to being infected thus becoming stronger by harnessing the virus as a secondary power. These Talos are known as Meta Talos.

Shell: A shell is giant mech unit that was invented during the Majin War, through the collaboration of Lunamorpha and Humans. Although the Shells were used during the war for combat, the mechs themselves were not mass produced until 10 years after the war supposedly 'ended'. Shells come in 4 different class types: Light, Balanced, Heavy and Support. Light shells are used for speed and stealth, Balanced are just what the name suggests they are, Heavy are stritcly offensive and are rather slow, while Support is similar to light but only has gear that can give aide to other units. It is believed that these mech units are in fact a prototype of what would soon create the Talos race. Shell's are often regarded as the only defense against a Cosmofauna threat...

== Now for the story itself ==

Spoiler:
Plot: In the year 2050, an all out war between Mankind and space organisms called 'Cosmic Majins' has just come to pass as the single most destructive war in the history of our civilization. Earth, being the prime battleground is nearly destroyed in one attack of the Majins and the humans end up having to take the fight into space. During the nearly one-sided space battles, back on Earth, the remaining scientists create biologically engineered super soldiers called 'Nues' to combat the deadly alien creatures. Amoung them is Yuuko Hoshitora, a Tiger Nue who is well known for her devastating physical strength and high potential in the battlefiled. However, soon after she enlisted into the army, the Cosmic Majin's withdraw claiming to have grown bored with killing so many humans with so little challenge to show for it. Everyone who's alive rejoices for their spared lives, Yuuko on the other hand, feels cheated about how she doesn't get to fight. More than a little peeved at her wasted talent, Yuuko disappears into the vastness of space only to return years later with a rag-tag group of followers who support her radical (and some would say utterly insane) new goal: Killing the Majin God; Tlzokrsth.

However to do this, one requires the exact coordinates to the Majin God's lair, the Nirvana Terminus, and the only one said to know is his daughter, the Princess of Voids. So with that logic in mind, Yuuko and her gang set out to kidnap the Princess from her mansion and take her hostage to lure the Majin God out so Yuuko can kill him in compensation for the many fights she missed.

However...they'll soon find out that they're little hostage is a charm for all sorts of bad luck, things only getting worse when word gets out of the Majin God's daughter being out in the open and a mess of bad company starts coming out from the cosmic woodwork; Bounty hunters, maddened biomechanical andriods, Slave traders, crazed cosmic cultists, eldritch creatures of deep space, the Galactic Federation of Cosmic Order and even the fiance of the Princess are all but a few obstacles Yuuko and her group have to overcome just to get to God's Egde...the location that holds the Nirvana Terminus and their destiny...

-Characters, so far, include...

Yuuko Hoshitora: Tiger Nue created for battle but sadly didn't get to test run her powers and now is a little peeved at the Majins for not letting her fight them. Impulsive and thinks everything can be solved by punching it hard enough (and if that doesn't you should punch it harder). Yuuko truly believes that she can Punch out Cthulhu kill Tlzokrsth with raw might and ferocity alone and doesn't take kindly to those who laugh at her for thinking this. However despite her rather questionable intentions and mindset, she can actually be a good friend to those she's close to, namely her "nakama". Leader of the (badly named) space pirate crew "The Space Rouges."

Rimi "Disk-Killer" Morris: A skilled hacker who travels with Yuuko and her rag tag group of 'vagabonds'. Plays true to the The Only Sane Man trope and usually tries to maintain what little reason the group has. Rimi dislikes taking any form of risks, and would rather avoid confrontation...even though she knows her leader is pretty much a battle crazy tigress. Case in point, she doesn't really have much confidence in the success of Yuuko's plan to kill Tlzokrsth, but keeps these misgivings inside so is to continue forward with her leader.

Diana Lise*: gun totting, trigger-happy, sharpshooter of Yuuko's group. The Stoic of the group who rarely speaks her mind and sticks to doing what she does best; shooting folks. Once a renowned member of the Hunter's Guild that managed to slay Nyx, older sister of the God Beast, Erebos, but later joined Yuuko when she found out that she would be able to fight Majins. Diana has a nasty habit of swearing alot...

Zak Yorick*: A former skate punk who was dragged into everything when he 'totally trashed' Rimi's computer during a freak accident involving his Airboard and a stray cat. Joined Yuuko's group because he wanted to see the vast cosmos. Being the youngest (second only to Rimi) of the group, Zak is seen as a child in the eyes of the older members. His reckless, irresponsible, and hotblooded nature don't really help his image much. However Zak has a knack for makng explosives and other nasty traps that actually prove useful, believe it or not. Is actually well skilled with using Shells of any kind, but excels at using Light type Shells.

Theodore Minos*: An aging Ox Nue that appears to be the resident old geezer of the group. Joined in order to keep an eye on these 'crazy youngins', namely Yuuko who has a real talent for getting herself into rather dangerous binds. Personally, Theodore's against Yuuko's decision to take the Princess of Voids as a hostage, but sees that his words won't change the mind of Yuuko in anyway, so he simply rolls with it. The 2nd strongest of the group, and is quite skilled in weilding his prized beam axe, Apis. He's not too shy with his fists either, having enough brute force to split the earth open if he wished.

"Princess of Voids" Hel*: The spoiled rotten daughter of Tlzokrsth who was kidnapped by Yuuko's group as a ransom for the Majin God to come out of hiding. Haughty, selfish and just down right bitchy. Takes great pride in her father's ability and sticks true to her Majin roots by looking down on 'inferior races', more so since she's royalty. Was kept in the Abyss of Eden, an alternate dimension created by her father, so she could remain hidden from the universe and the countless amount of folks who want the Majin's dead for their atrocities and crimes.

"Majin God" Tlzokrsth: The ruler over all Cosmic Majin everywhere and the final target for Yuuko and her group. There's a very good reason why he's called the Majin GOD; Housing an insane amount of strength, far beyond that of the high ranking Void Majins that are said to destroy planets if they so wished. Needless to say, there have been absolutely no accounts of opponents defeating him, let alone surviving more than 5 minutes in his absolutely soul crushing visage. Lives at the edge of the univers within the formidible palace known as Nirvana's Terminus, and barely moves due to his very existence distorting space and time to the point of creating dimensional anomalies at even the simplest of motions. Keeps his daughter in a seperate dimension so is to protect her from the massive amount of enemies that are trying to kill him and rid the cosmos of his damning prescence. It seems that, despite being an extremely powerful cosmic demon overlord who orchestrated countless wars that wiped out, or came close to wiping out, various other races...he's actually a good dad to his only daughter...go figure.
« Last Edit: February 27, 2012, 09:34:02 PM by Touji Suwagata »
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Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #191 on: July 11, 2011, 02:29:12 AM »
I (personally) wouldn't go with that rule concerning hair length; it has some unsettling implications about the future.

The purpose of the hair length rule is to explain the apparent discrepancy between pre-elixer Mokou's and post-elixer Mokou's respective hair lengths. I asked myself, does a Hourai immortal's hair grow? And I decided that the answer was yes. I also asked myself, what happens to a Hourai immortal's hair if you cut it? And I figured the most reasonable answer ought to be that it simply grows back to its natural length before it was damaged. Also, I have plans for involving Mokou's hair length in her character development.

Quote
You're going to need to know a lot of Japanese history to do this story. You should probably have an idea of the events that were going on during each era. For example, what would Mokou have experienced during the first 300 years? What were the current events to her?


Indeed. I'm still in the process of doing research, but after having taken a few college-level courses on Japanese history I'm a bit familiar as to how the general flow of history went in Japan from the beginning of the Heian period onwards. Some of the historical folks that Mokou will likely run into are Tomoe Gozen, Saigyou Houshi, Minamoto no Yoshitsune, and Benkei, among others (this means that Mokou will probably be heavily involved in the Genpei War, perhaps deciding its outcome in a subtle way). The Kemmu Restoration may be the cause of Mokou's ?loss of motivation towards everything?. And so forth. (This unfortunately means that Mokou will be sitting out during most if not all of the Sengoku Jidai, which makes me sad.)

Quote
Still, I always wanted to read this kind of story, so good luck!

Thanks! I will begin writing the prologue and the first chapter today.

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Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #192 on: July 13, 2011, 08:32:52 AM »
More on witches and a look at how Magic works in my setting.

Spoiler:
- Other Witch types -

Kitchen Witch
- A type of witch that is suited for magic centered around the kitchen, cooking and food. Unlike most other witches, Kitchen Witches are on good terms with humans as their work is usually sought after to bring good fortune to the cook and help others hone their culinary skills either through magic or traditional means. All Kitchen Witches possess the ability to conjure food and food beasts with their magic, however they only seem to use this for themselves and use their vast knowledge of culinary skills to teach those who wish to cook well and become an item in the kitchen. Some Kitchen Witches have a natural affinity for Pyro and Cryo Mana and thus have an easy time casting fire and ice base spells.

Artistic Witch
- A witch who is skilled in fusing both magic with the arts. Artistic Witches are renowened for their skills that work as a splendid combination of artistic genius and magical prowess, most being able to bring their works of art to life through their magical skill. Although they can be summoned to help others hone their skills in any art, they forbid themselves from teaching any human their magical secrets. To do so is usually considered a good way to keep the person from discovering how to truly create art rather than rely on magic to do the work for them. Artistic Witches usually have no Mana specialty to speak of and simply take up any sort of affinity as a back up for when they cannot cast Art Magic.

Beast Witch
- A witch who's seen as a more primal variation of the traditional witch, having more animalistic qualities and a far more physical attribute compared to the other witches. Beast Witches have dominion over a certain animal, using their magical to tame the beasts they represent and to summon them to their side for guidance and assistance as powerful familiars. Despite being fairly physical witches, Beast Witches do have affinity for traditional elemental spells like the ordinary witch would. However, Beast Witches combine this with their close combat skills and often rely on physical attacks embued with magical force to make their attaks twice as effective/deadly.

White Witch
- A witch often thought of as a contradition to what all witches stand for, a White Witch is a witch that delves in the holy and healing arts rather than the rest of magic like most other witches. Because of their position, as well as the overall disdain some of the Uber Witches seem to have over them, White Witches are often prime candidates to be taken in by the Holy Order and trained in the Sisterhood as a counter unit to continue the hunt and execution of witches who have, by some claims, grown far too powerful for the Holy Order to deal with by their usual tactics and techniques. White Witches also have a higher chance of befriending humans, most being exposed to them far more than the average witch due to their alliance with the Holy Order.

- Other Witch stuff -

Culinary Grimoire: A tome written by a kitchen witch and enchanted with her magic, imbuing it with her magical essence. These books contain recipes for both the kitchen as well as methods for creating or summoning food beasts. the spells in these tomes are usually only to be accessed by the witch who wrote it. Special defenses are often embedded in a Culinary Grimorie to ward off anyone looking to steal magic spells.

Medium of Inspiration: An object or book created by an Artistic Witch that is able to channel the power of her mana and allows her to cast spells using her art as a base. Like the Culinary Grimorie, most Mediums hold various creations of the Artistic Witch who owns it and are also protected by several spells, some allow her creations to actually attack and devour the one who is trying to gaze upon her work without her permission. Destroying a Medium of Inspiration is a good way to render an Artistic Witch helpless, but given their ingenuity it's not uncommon for them to have another within their Witch Ball or elsewhere just in case their main one is destroyed.

Hex Casting: a type of secondary form of spell casting that revolves around manipulating certain aspects of reality to give birth to, what mortal beings call, a curse. While traditional witches use the combination of Umbra Magic and concocting various mixtures in a cauldron, others have managed to utilize their Witch Eyes as a portable and, some would say, far more effective medium for Hex Casting. When using the eyes, anyone who is within seeing distance of a witch once she casts her Hex will be inflicted with it's ominous presence and will remain with them until the witch who has placed it upon them decides to lift it. Hex Casting on a witch is often difficult to do when using the older method being the influx of Umbra Mana use during the spell casting is easily pinpointed, even from afar, and the alerted witch can protect herself accordingly from the Hex and may even be able to counter with her own if she wishes. The Hex caster usually has no idea if the witch has been effectively cursed or not without proper observation first. The Witch Eye method is harder to counter as it can be used with less disturbance to Umbra Mana and usually can't be detected by other witches until it's too late. Witches using their eyes can also 'mark' their targets with Umbra Mana which not only makes them targets for other attacks but also allows them to see that their target has been successfully inflicted with the Hex.

Those afflicted with a Hex are infested with misfortune and bad luck and are sometimes driven to madness, and even suicide, from the sheer amount of horrible things that happen to them on a daily basis. 

Magic and Other Abilities

Sorcery, or simply the ability to bring about a supernatural phenomenon that is not native to the mortal line of thinking or rationality. Magic was created by Okuni-Nushi and was then passed down to Aradia who then spread her knowledge to humans on the earth below. The end result not only gave rise to the Witches but also the beginning of the study and practice of magic in the known realms. Although, witches themselves are seen as the originators of many of the magical techniques that exist today, a fair amount of them are actually rediscovered practices that were then recycled by modern day magicians and witches. In the Jigokusekai, Magic is one of the driving forces that exist in that realm, magic being something all demons are born being able to use (much like witches). Humans are the only ones who do not have a natural affinity for learning magic and thus a normal human with no genetic traits that hold magic in their heritage is usually unable to learn and use magic without extensive training.

Mana
- An energy that resides in all living beings with the potential for using magic and sorcery, Mana is the source of all magic, it's presence being what makes magic possible in the world. There exists 15 seperate mana elementals in the known universe, each one pretaining to a different type of magical style and allowing a magician to cast a spell in that elemental category.

Mana Elementals
- Pyro
- Hydro
- Cryo
- Electro
- Geo
- Flora
- Areo
- Toxin
- Photo
- Umbra
- Lunar
- Star
- Solar
- Holy
- Devil

To those born with potential in magic, the mana elementals they shall have is dependent on the parents. The magic the parents have wielded or held in their bodies will determine what the child can use as magic. For those without magic, like most humans, it can be attained several ways. One is through realizing that these elementals occur naturally in the environment all around them, in the air, the soil, and in the water...all of these contain the presence of mana. However, only knowing this isn't going to unlock the doors to magic, one must also find a way to fully harness this presence of the elements to use it in the form of magic. Witches were the first who took note of this and thus were able to master the magical arts before many of the other races were. This was due to the simple reason that their Witch Eye allows them to automatically 'see' the presence of these elementals and thus granting them a handicap for casting the spells they need.

Another requirement is to have what is known as a Mana Pool, which is essentially an internal well of magical energies that produce mana, usually for the means of creation of that certain element (like manifesting water out of thin air). Again, Witches were able to construct their own over the years and thus are the only true masters of creating and maintaining a Mana Pool. Human magicians require much more training and dedication to do this and even then, their bodies might not be ready to construct a 'Mana Pool' to hold the magical energies they will need to cast spells.

Another way to obtain the power of magic is to study under a Witch and copy the technique used to create and open a Witch Eye (at which point, it will be deemed a Spellbinder, rather than a Witch Eye). The human with the Spellbinder is essentially then regarded as a Magician, but as a result are also seen as an enemy of the Holy Order because of their ties with Witches and are classed as 'Witchspawn'. Magicians aren't as powerful as witches so hunting them is easy for the Holy Order, in fact, Magicians are so weak that the hunting of one is considered a training exercise for rookie agents. Obtaining a Spellbinder is regarded as the most difficult route to master magic, this being due to the nature of Witches themselves. A Witch rarely trusts a human with their magic and techniques. As a result, the Uber Witches have made strict rules that often forbid teaching outside humans magic of their creation. Violaters are often ostricized from Witch society and seen as traitors.
« Last Edit: July 13, 2011, 08:38:04 AM by Maou Prierebus »
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Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #193 on: July 13, 2011, 03:33:08 PM »
I always enjoy reading about your original universe, Ere, especially anything regarding Witches. Some of these things are very cleverly thought out. I can see you worked hard on it. :)

Regarding those Witch types, is Cinquelle one of those four types, or only an Eld Witch? You did once tell her sister is a Kitchen Witch.

And regarding the elementals, I think Star stands a bit out compared to the other names, since most of them can be pasted onto the term '-mancer' (pyromancer, hydromancer). Starmancer sounds a bit odd. I would personally suggest renaming Star to Cosmo (Cosmomancer), but the choice is entirely up to you.
« Last Edit: February 27, 2012, 03:30:59 PM by OkashiiKisei »

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Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #194 on: July 13, 2011, 04:25:01 PM »
I always enjoy rreading about your original universe, Ere, especially anything regarding Witches. Some of these things are very cleverly thought out. I can see you worked hard on it. :)

Regarding those Witch types, is Cinquelle one of those four types, or only an Eld Witch? You did once tell her sister is a Kitchen Witch.

And regarding the elementals, I think Star stands a bit out compared to the other names, since most of them can be pasted onto the term '-mancer' (pyromancer, hydromancer). Starmancer sounds a bit odd. I would personally suggest renaming Star to Cosmo (Cosmomancer), but the choice is entirely up to you.
Thanks, it's actually pretty fun looking through all my older works, finding different written databases and putting things together as I go.

As for Cinquelle's type; She doesn't really have a one, so she's just an Eld-Witch. Secondary types aren't usually decided by family and all that, most witches who have a secondary type (like Cinquelle's sister) usually choose to study as one when they're an Occultess. So it's really a case of 'oh I want to be a kitchen witch, I'll study as one now' kinda deal. Of course, this isn't saying that older witches can't obtain a secondary type any time they wished either. Most just choose not.

I see where you're coming from with the Star bit. I had planned for Star Mana to be the elemental associated with Dimensional/Spacial magic, as well as the cosmos and it's known attributes. Star Mana also functioned as an elemental that bypasses magic resistance. This all being said, 'Cosmo' can be a good replacement for Star considering what it's functions are.

Thanks for the input~

Also...
Spoiler:
this means that Mokou won't be running around with hundreds of years old food in her belly.   :barf:
No wonder Mokou's so angry. She's constipated :V

Spoiler:
I'm sorry, that was in poor taste.
« Last Edit: July 13, 2011, 04:30:05 PM by Maou Prierebus »
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Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #195 on: July 23, 2011, 09:42:39 PM »
Guh.

Writing a story where Ex-Rumia's more or less a walking mass of amorphous, hideous, biological tar (think a shoggoth, but extremely angry and may cause totally not zombies).

I'm not sure if I should make Ex-Rumia a tragic monster or just go for the "IT'S A MINDLESS MONSTER! SHOOT TO KILL!" route.
Sonata of Scarlet Sunflowers, a Flandre x Yuuka story. | Laziness of Daemonic Wastrels, wherein The Dude, Frylock, HW Guy, and David Wong get their asses kicked in Gensokyo.  | T.O.U.H.O.U.: Land of Shadows, a S.T.A.L.K.E.R./Touhou crossover. | Abomination, a monster story.

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Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #196 on: July 28, 2011, 09:14:16 AM »

I'm not sure if I should make Ex-Rumia a tragic monster or just go for the "IT'S A MINDLESS MONSTER! SHOOT TO KILL!" route.

Well, that depends on who you want your story to focus on. If it's the former, then Ex-Rumia will almost inevitably have to share the limelight, unless you want her to be sympathetic just for kicks. If it's the latter, you probably ought to focus on other characters and how they react to Ex-Rumia.

(Of course, the two options you listed aren't mutually exclusive; for one thing, the tragedy could be that it's a mindless monster >.>)

Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #197 on: August 15, 2011, 01:56:57 PM »
I got hit by a dream, and now I want to make it a fanfic. Please tell me what you think about the idea. By the way, the story is an AU fic. 

Hatate is a hired gun infamous for her professional sniping skills. Dr. Alice Margatroid, a scientist in search for the perfect human-robot hybrid, recruits her to neutralize some threats who may just spill the beans on the scientist's unethical methods. These threats include Dir. Gen. Utsuho Reiuji, head of the national peacekeeping force, and the wealthy Koishi Komeiji, a businesswoman who travels incognito.

Hatate assassinates Utsuho under the cover of the ashen grounds of the peacekeepers' headquarters. Although she is detected, she is able to escape with ease and without being recognized.

For the next target, who would be staying in her mansion for a day, Alice provides the sniper with aid, in the form of one of her adopted daughters/test subjects, named Kyoto. Alice gives Hatate a keychain with a peculiar ornament: entwined red ghosts, and Alice instructs her to throw it near the mansion once the mission is complete in order to mask any suspicion that would be found and raised against them.

The only two guards at the mansion are silently killed by Hatate and Kyoto. They split up, scanning the windows on the right and left of the mansion for their target. They find Koishi in the back garden, prancing around like a silly child. Hatate is taken aback by the childish actions of their target but, before she could begin to hesitate in shooting her, is reminded that this was part of the businesswoman's incognito shtick. Two bullets are put through Koishi's head.

As instructed, Hatate throws the keychain, and it lands in the garden. Both she and Kyoto leave, but an unseen assailant begins shooting at them. Kyoto does not leave unscathed, but Hatate is free of injury.

They return to Alice, Hatate receives her payment, and takes her leave. Hatate's conscience begins to act up again, just like all the other times before this, subsequently making her remind herself that playing the good guy will never turn out to be good. That is enough to calm her down.

Now please excuse me while I slap myself for using Koishi too often.

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Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #198 on: September 08, 2011, 03:06:45 AM »
Take warning, listed below is a complete left turn in regard to AU's. Basically, this is the only setting where I actually reject some canon to make room for my own little mythos on things. You've been warned (I guess).

Seems we got, duh-duh-duuuh, a bit of an AU setting by Erebus, just listen to this;

Spoiler:
- Creation of Kaijusokyo -

In the beginning, there were no other beings known to have existed, the only knows thought to have been present at Kaijusokyo's creations were 9 deities known as the Elder Beasts who lived within the boundless void of Munashii, an area of Yakumo Yukari's 'Superdimension' to which is apart of her body. The Dragon God came to the Elders with a proposition to create life in the otherwise barren universe. The Elders agreed to help, as they thought the process of forging new life would be entertaining to them. Breaking off a piece of his flesh, the Dragon God gave form to the world of Kaijusokyo and allowed the Elders to bring forth what life they would unto the world he gave them.

To keep things organized, the tasks were divided up among each Elder Beast, each one given out according to her own unique interests...

- Shinki created the world of Makai, linking it to Kaijusokyo as Hell but would later change this to her own seperate dimension. She gave birth to the Primordial Kaiju and, with the unwanted help of Mima, introduced them to Kaijusokyo would later take form as the starting point in which Kaiju began to root in the world and make it their own. Shinki was originally supposed to be in charge of Jigoku when the Dragon God created it to divide up the after-life, but later this was handed down to Shikieiki and Konngara after it was clear that the goddess was going to continue using Makai as a cradle for her children and the new world she had planned for herself. Shinki is believed to be the mother of all non human races, at least one of her eldest children having had a hand in spawning them in some way.

- Yuuka created all plant life and became the nexus of all natural life in Kaijusokyo. As such, many plant like monsters and beings were born from Yuuka. The Gods of the Harvest; Minoriko and Shizuha came from Yuuka's body; Shizuha coming into existance from a pile of Yuuka's dead leaves and Minoriko from an odd fruit that was growing inside Yuuka. Medicine was also created from Yuuka, the Elder bringing her into life as a means of creating plant life with self defense. Yuuka also planted the first tree in Kaijusokyo, naming it the Giant Tree of Titania as the Fairies took to living in it long ago.

- Suwako shaped the very land itself, forming the mountains, forging continents, and creating the rivers and oceans that would work well with Yuuka's creations of nature. With her work of the land finished, Suwako created a haven for herself at the top of what is presently known as the Snake's Pike. However, Kanako's take over forced her out and into the Marshes of Moriya where she now resides to this day. The Kappa race, as well as other Aquatic Kaiju are believed to have originated from Suwako. Among them was Sanae who was the product of herself and the Slug God who helped her keep Kanako away from her home.

- Kanako created the sky and atmosphere of the world, later she would cut several serpents from her body and the severed snakes would take on an independent life of their own, becoming the first Lamia. Kanako would later appoint herself as their goddess once she took up the dominion of war. She would also come to gain dominion over the human settlements in and around the Great Jungles of Yasaka after the human population in that region began to flourish. However, much to Byakuren's distaste, Kanako has often ordered for humans to sacrifice some of their kin to her as a means of 'payment' for allowing them live prosperously in her shadow and for protecting them from outside Kaiju threats...

- Similar to Shinki, Yukari remained to herself and decided to do work on the Superdimension now that her fellow Elders had left to forge the world fo Kaijusokyo. Interestingly enough, the so called work she has done so far on the alternate universe is widely unknown, even by her fellow Elders. After Byakuren introduced the humans to the land, Yukari took great interest in 'spiriting away' humans to her domain and experimenting with them. This has earned her the dislike of Byakuren...not that it stops Yukari's wills in any way...

- Yuyuko took on the role of Death, bringing forth the first Shinigami that would bring her the souls so she could keep them in Nifelheim as an early way of dealing with the afterlife. The Dragon God, seeing that Yuyuko's ravenous appetite would cause more souls to be devoured than judged, would later construct Jigoku and appoint Shikieiki Yamaxandu as the one to judge the souls of the dead as well as have Sariel govern Takahamagara and have it transformed into a segment of the after life. Yuyuko's domain remained apart of the afterlife but as a 'middle ground' for souls with no 'classification' of being evil or good.

- Sariel created Heaven from her flesh and blood, then brought forth the Angels and Divine Beasts from her feathers. Once Heaven (named Takahamagara) was in place, the Dragon God made it so that her domain was a location in the after-life for those who were pious and could ascend to a higher level. The Celestials were an indirect product of Sariel, the race being born of Angel and Human blood. The consumption of an Angel's flesh would also give rise to a Celestial. Sariel would remain at the center of Heaven until thousands of years later when the Celestials managed to overthrow her from her divine throne, the angel falling into Makai where the Hinanawi Clan sealed her in a ruined temple known as the Fallen Shrine. Many of the Angels fled Takahamagara to retain their loyalty to Sariel. As of now, these same Angels work with the Sariel's new ally, Elis, to help the great angel regain dominion over her heavenly throne. It is believed that her rising again and the coming war between Sariel and the Celestials is one of the events prophecized to bring about the end of days for Kaijusokyo.

- Mima presided over the aspects of evil and darkness, acting as the origin of negative forces that drove many beings to commit malicious deeds. Mima herself was a being fitting to the concept she ruled over, her oldest crimes dating back to the time of creation when she kidnapped several of Shinki's newborn offspring and, using them as a base, created various other creatures and Kaiju with the use of her dark, corruptive energy. The first Vampires, the Oo-Oni and many other monstrous races are said to have came from Mima's experiments with Shinki's children. Angered by Mima's actions, Shinki sent her most powerful spawn to deal with Mima, only one managed to survive the initial invasion of Reimaden, but with it came the birth of the first Exalted Beasts; Mugetsu and Nue by the union of Shinki's spawn and Mima. Rumia is also rumored to be one of Mima's daughters, the Elder Beast spawning the incarnation of 'Advanced Darkness' as a catalyst for the end of the world. It is unknown to this day as to what Mima's true reason(s) for spawning Rumia are...

- Byakuren would be the last to act, bringing forth and guiding the first humans on the path to heightened evolution and enlightenment. Many of the Elders saw this as a bad move as the feeble humans would easily be killed in the largely Kaiju-dominated land. Byakuren, however, assured that she would place herself as their goddess and protect them from the Kaiju if she had to. This devotion to protect humans, would later shift to that of monsters as well, when the weaker Kaiju flocked to Byakuren for protection from much stronger entities that threatened them.

- It is widely unknown if Eirin and Kaguya could be considered Elder Beasts as neither of them have known origins and they are worshipped by the Moon Beasts as deities; Eirin presiding over knowledge and Kaguya having given life to the Moon Beasts. However, it's arguable if Kaguya could be considered the originator of the Moon Beasts, someone would say that the Watatsuki Twins brought forth the Moon Beasts, fathered by one of Shinki's offspring. However, legend states that Eirin and the first of the Watatsukis shaped the moon, so perhaps they had some part in the creation of Kaijusokyo just not in a direct fashion.

More to come later, I guess.
No Math Zone - Tumblr (slight nsfw) | Legend of a Hot-Blooded Pig

"The only guy you know to draw fat Touhous." - Erebus

Wolfsbane706

  • Knight of the Accursed Order
  • Boredom is contagious.
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #199 on: September 14, 2011, 04:26:27 AM »
Lots of brilliant ideas posted here.  I'll see if I can keep up using my own.  For my first foray into Touhou fanfiction writing, I'm trying to stay small, just an ice skating party at Cirno's lake (without the little ice fairy's consent) featuring mainly Marisa and company, plus the Scarlet Devil entourage.  Not sure about a plot yet, but, I'm going with the idea that outside of Cirno, only Remilia and maybe Reimu know how to skate, so that oughta lead somewhere.  Plus, it's Cirno's lake, and they're skating on it without her permission, so there's another approach.  Any questions/comments/observations?
[15:30] * Wolfsbane706 pitfalls Roukan.
[15:30] <Roukan> WHAT WHY
[15:31] * Roukan aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa*splat*
[15:32] <Wolfsbane706> That's the funniest reaction I've seen yet.
[15:34] * Roukan thumbs-up from beyond the grave.

Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #200 on: September 15, 2011, 03:36:37 AM »
I got hit by a dream, and now I want to make it a fanfic. Please tell me what you think about the idea. By the way, the story is an AU fic.

Hatate is a hired gun infamous for her professional sniping skills. Dr. Alice Margatroid, a scientist in search for the perfect human-robot hybrid, recruits her to neutralize some threats who may just spill the beans on the scientist's unethical methods. These threats include Dir. Gen. Utsuho Reiuji, head of the national peacekeeping force, and the wealthy Koishi Komeiji, a businesswoman who travels incognito.

Hatate assassinates Utsuho under the cover of the ashen grounds of the peacekeepers' headquarters. Although she is detected, she is able to escape with ease and without being recognized.

For the next target, who would be staying in her mansion for a day, Alice provides the sniper with aid, in the form of one of her adopted daughters/test subjects, named Kyoto. Alice gives Hatate a keychain with a peculiar ornament: entwined red ghosts, and Alice instructs her to throw it near the mansion once the mission is complete in order to mask any suspicion that would be found and raised against them.

The only two guards at the mansion are silently killed by Hatate and Kyoto. They split up, scanning the windows on the right and left of the mansion for their target. They find Koishi in the back garden, prancing around like a silly child. Hatate is taken aback by the childish actions of their target but, before she could begin to hesitate in shooting her, is reminded that this was part of the businesswoman's incognito shtick. Two bullets are put through Koishi's head.

As instructed, Hatate throws the keychain, and it lands in the garden. Both she and Kyoto leave, but an unseen assailant begins shooting at them. Kyoto does not leave unscathed, but Hatate is free of injury.

They return to Alice, Hatate receives her payment, and takes her leave. Hatate's conscience begins to act up again, just like all the other times before this, subsequently making her remind herself that playing the good guy will never turn out to be good. That is enough to calm her down.

Now please excuse me while I slap myself for using Koishi too often.

I like it.

------------

So I am thinking of Touhou cross over, I cant decide for the start of the entwining weather the grail container and her keeper stumble on the Hakurei shrine, or that Sane attracts the Mage associations attention as she is preparing for the move in.

Which is more of a horrible idea?
I have...a terrible need...shall I say the word?...of religion. Then I go out at night and paint the stars.

Ivan The Mouse

  • Don't worry, Yoshika... you will (ahn~♥) protect me...
  • Law Abiding Unless Provoked
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #201 on: September 15, 2011, 03:12:18 PM »
I have this weird idea of the Human Villagers going Viet Cong against an army from the outside world, since the danmaku is being suppressed by some anti-magic field created on Gensokyo. So, no bullet-shooting lolis, easy catch for the Outside Army.
Your sig is too big :V ~TSO

Drakometar

Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #202 on: September 16, 2011, 01:24:29 AM »
I have this weird idea of the Human Villagers going Viet Cong against an army from the outside world, since the danmaku is being suppressed by some anti-magic field created on Gensokyo. So, no bullet-shooting lolis, easy catch for the Outside Army.

Oh, I wrote something like that. Sorta. With Cirno as a main and an over the top, nameless OC as the only antagonist...

Ivan The Mouse

  • Don't worry, Yoshika... you will (ahn~♥) protect me...
  • Law Abiding Unless Provoked
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #203 on: September 16, 2011, 10:33:19 AM »
Oh, I wrote something like that. Sorta. With Cirno as a main and an over the top, nameless OC as the only antagonist...

Oh, man. But yeah, I want to see it.
Your sig is too big :V ~TSO

Bias Bus

  • It's unpleasent
  • *
  • if you're better than me
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #204 on: September 22, 2011, 09:45:52 PM »
More on witches and a look at one of the other organizations in my original setting. Note, said things about this organization may change as I find more stuff on it from past comics/writings, or feel like changing them.

Spoiler:
Evolution and Biology of the Witch

The Witch, while evolving from humans, has done well in becoming it's own non human species that has far surpassed not only it's parent race, but also most other non-human races as well.. However, one of the bigger mysteries surrounding them is that the lot of them can't easily be classed among the dozens of different races that inhabit the world. One of the more common misconceptions about the average witch is that many believe them to be 'humans exceptionally skilled in magic', which is certainly not true by a long shot. Indeed, a Witch can be seen as 'human' due to their very human appearance, but underneath this facade is something entirely inhuman and, depending on the witch, could be borderline eldritch. This being due to how the Witch shed it's 'human' limitations and evolved into what they are now. Ages ago, during the time of their birth thanks to studying under Aradia, the Witches slowly began to infuse their human bodies with the Mana they were learning to master. This, in turn, caused a lasting evolutionary change that metamorphisized their internal organs and allowed 'Mana Pools' to form within their bodies so they can naturally produce magic just like that of Demons. When these pools formed, they interlocked with the organs of the Witches and enriched them with the magical essence of Mana, slowing down the rate they aged and allowing them to attain a weakened form of immortality and granting their bodies a much higher resilience to disease and injury. During the earlier ages, this was rather weak and a powerful witch could still be killed, however, over the years, they have managed to fortify their resilience to attacks and have now become rather resistant to what a normal human would be crippled in pain from.

Another mistake is how the Witch's evolutionary tree is viewed by outsiders. Many see this as a de-facto 'ranking system' and believe that the Witches use this to further organize on who has the most power and who should lead their society. While, this is true in someways but, in reality, the average witch undergoes alot of biological and phychological changes when she 'evolves' from an Occultess to a Witch. One could easily link this change to a form of 'puberty' for Witches that involves a great number of biological changes that their body must go through to fully mature into a Witch. By this logic, an Occultess is actually the 'larval' form of a Witch, only evolving into the aforementioned when she has managed to open her 'Witch Eye' and, in turn, help her body reach a form of 'maturity' that is viewed by outsiders as them 'ascending' in the ranks. Interestingly enough, an Occultess can remain how she is for however long she wishes, the opening of her Witch Eye only coming into fruition through her own dedication towards controlling her inner Mana energies and allowing her body to use these energies to further change itself into her 'adult' phase.

To further understand just how a Witch functions, one must look at what makes an average Witch non-human. Below are several key factors that seperate a Witch from an average human;

- Longevity: Witches, being a race of magically enhanced beings, naturally have a much longer life span than humans and age very slowly as a result. The way they age is somewhat similar to that of demons, being this depends solely on how much mana they have within their bodies. The mana is what their body uses for life functions and preserves their youthful appearance. For witches like the Ubers and Eld-Witches, they have such a vast wells of mana that the lot of them have aged little since they first evolved eons ago. An average Occultess is born as such and slowly stops aging after she has reached her 30th birthday, by this point, her body would have already gained at least enough Mana to halt the aging process, but not enough to further evolve into a full fledged witch.

- Magical Apititude: Naturally, witches have a high affinity for magic of many kinds, this being due to their very biology having evolved into states that can support and channel such vast amounts of Mana in many different ways and forms. Interestingly enough, the Mana of a witch can be manipulated by the one who holds it, meaning that the mana of a witch is a form of 'jack of all trades' and randomly shifts properties according to what affinity the witch has the most experties in. Many non-human and human races are usually incapable of changing their own Mana affinity, it being assigned to them at birth as opposed to Witches who have mana that transforms to their wills and whims.

- Immortality: Another factor is a witch's resilience and how a single witch can recover and revive from mortal wounds a normal human can die from. This is thanks to the above trait that allows their Mana Pools to act as a natural healing factor if their bodies are ever damaged in anyway. Young witches (or Occultess') have limited control over this and their bodies are only able to recover from minor wounds, thus they can easily be killed. However, after opening their Witch Eye, their Mana Pools become alot more complex and are able to help their body heal from injuries and can even sustain them as undying if they gather enough power.

The reproduction for a Witch is one of the more complicated matters concerning themselves. Warlocks, the male variant of their kind, are very rare among their ranks, this phenomenon occuring after the witches allowed their bodies to be enriched with Mana. As a result of this, some would say that the witches were 'cursed' to be an all female race, rarely giving birth to a male and only bound to bring forth a female. To reproduce, a Witch has two options, one consists of finding a male partner from another race entirely and inter-breeding with them to produce a child. While this usually always results in the child being born a Witch, part of the father's Mana will be transfered to the child allowing them to gain additional power and abilities from his side of the gene pool. Another option lies within creating the child herself through the route of magic. This can be done in a number of ways, but the most common is through creating a familiar inside the womb and allowing it to grow from within. This not only solidifies the 'contract' between witch and familiar through blood ties, but also strengthens the bond between them and ensures that the familiar will inherit great power from their parent witch. This method also solves much of the 'lack of males' issue that has plauged witch society for centuries, being familiars born from Witches have a much higher diversity in gender than being always born females. Some witches even have enough mastery in magic to alter the gender of their familiar before they're even born.


Holy Order of Tengoku

An organization originally established by the Tenjin in Tengoku and soon passed on to the humans whom they saw as worthy of accepting the Goddess of All as their supreme ruler and the one who controls all aspects of the known universe itself. During it's early years of existance, The Holy Order was just as powerful as the government (if not even more so), however being the governments of those times were divided by country, the Order was not and held a uniform power and thus was able to function as a global organization as opposed to being divided by country alone. This balance in power would not last long as disputes between whether the Holy Order should govern the people or their respective leaders should. The constant teeter between them soon gave way to a backlash which resulted in the leaders finally coming together as one whole governmental entity and taking on the Holy Order. The struggle lasted up to several months before the victor was decided and the Worlds' United Federation was born.

Currently, the Holy Order of Tengoku works seperately from the WUF, has to adhere to several policies that they pass onto them in order to remain an independant faction. The Holy Order has recently regained a bit of it's favorability as they are the only ones who seem to be knowledgable in Demon Slaying and various things that deal with dispelling or sealing up powerful demonic entities that breach from the Jigokusekai. Their Headquarters is located in the World's Attic, very close to Heaven's Gate. Only those of Saint rank may dwell here.

- Sub-Factions -

Sisterhood of the Iron Maiden: A sort of special task force specialized in healing, exorcism and the sealing of yashas, witches and other monstrous entities deemed 'unholy' by The Order. The Sisterhood was in fact, founded by a group of White Witches who used their magic and witchcraft to aid the Holy Order. While at first proving to have no true leader, the shrine maiden, Asakari, took the witches under her wing and began teaching them the sealing arts which would later prove to be the driving force behind the Sisterhood's creation and usefulness as well as several other techniques that are widespread throughout the Holy Order.

Although powerful in their own right, the Sisterhood can not act unless given the order by the higher ups in the Holy Order. Some claim that this tight restraint on their actions is due to one of the older members within the high ranks retaining some disdain toward the fact that the Sisterhood are technically descendent from witches, another one of the Holy Order's major enemies throughout history.

Devil-Killer Union: Much like the Sisterhood only more offensive than defensive. Members of this sub-faction act on their own violation and appear to function much like the modern day bounty hunters that work for the World's United Federation. Civilians can hire Devil Killers to protect them from a demonic entity or to seek out demons to exterminate them. Members here aren't usually as compassionate about showing mercy to demons, as they are often taught to kill demons on sight rather than negotiate. For this reason, a Devil Killer is usually seen as a last resort call by humans who have no other way to rid themselves of the demonic presence.

- Notable Members -

- Asakari Yasukawa: A powerful miko (shrine maiden) from the Yasukawa Clan gifted with the sealing arts as well as exorcisim. She was noted for the creation of several Sealing Art techniques that would later come to be passed down to the early workings of the Sisterhood. In her life time she sealed hundreds of Yasha and exorcised even more of them, although her most noted sealings were that of Malachoir, Great Prince of the Jigokusekai and the first Ashura to invade the mortal realm with his 32 legions of demon servants and followers. Even after Asakari's death, her Shikigami, Ralph and Louis, are still around and protect different sites to which hold powerful artifacts Asakari used or created in her life. Ralph watches over the Yasukawa Shrine, while Louis stands gaurd within the depths Asakari's Well, making sure evil hands do not touch the Heaven's Pyramid.


- Teachniques, Weapons and Technology -

- Sealing Arts: A form of martial arts or close combat that centers around embuing one self with Holy Mana and using it as a weapon against evil. Asakari Yasukawa was the original user of this fighting style and would later pass it down to her students, giving birth to an effective secondary weapon to those who have mastered it. Sealing Arts itself is named this because of how the Holy Mana that is used to strengthen oneself acts as a surpressent of the counter-active Devil Mana that's present in most Yasha and monsters, the attacks delivered onto demonic foes can actually weaken them further or seal them, although there has been little to no documented slayings with this style. The only known ones to do this was Asakari herself and this was only if the demon could not be restrained reasonably. Sealing Arts are able to destroy an entity if the mana used cancels out the Devil Mana coursing through their very soul, the end result erasing their existence. Entities killed in this fashion usually have no way of reincarnating.

- Eden Drive: Another technique used only by the Sisterhood. This relies on the Holy Mana of the body and uses it to activate an immensely powerful spell that can have a number of effects unique to that one person using it. The technique got it's name due to the theory that the nature of the spell may be drawn from what that one person sees as Paradise or a place of good will and safety to them.

TheoGear: Holy weapons and tools used by various members of the Holy Order. More often than not, these weapons are the main source of defense against demons as the user doesn't have any expertise in manipulating Holy Mana for usage in the Sealing Arts. Demonslayers are often seen with these and seem to be trained to use Sealing Arts as well, making them much more dangerous than the average Holy Order agent.

Angel Caller: A technique reserved for only those who were gifted with the presence of a Cupine or higher ranked Angels. This acts as a summoning spell that calls their respective Angel or Cupine to their aid in battle or for some other means. This works by use of sending out a signal via Holy Mana to the Angel or Cupine partnered with the agent, the user then creates a path from their location to their partners and brings them through toward them.

Eyes of Dominion: A magical technique only present in those who have witch blood in them. By default, those descendent from witches have the potential to open their witch eye if they apply enough training to it. In this respect, the Eyes of Dominion were created as a 'counter' to the Witch Eyes which would allow agents of the Order to see things such as a Witch ladder and it's pattern, thus granting them access to a Witch Ball. Only those with the Eyes of Dominion can see the acts and magic of a Witch, so individuals with this power are the best weapon against witches. As a result agents with the eyes are labled Witch Hunters.

Heaven's Pyramid: A holy artifact created by Asakari and used as a form of amplifier for her sealing techniques. During the early days of the Order, there were very few ways to seal and contain especially powerful demonic entities such as Raetsu and Ashura class demons. For this reason, Asakari created the Heaven's Pyramid to give birth to a 'last resort'. The pyramid functions by engulfing the victim in a ray of Holy Mana which works to deconstruct their very make up and pull them into an alternate dimension built within the very Pyramid itself. This dimension, known as the Labyrinth of Redemption, is a boundless and maze like space that encrouches demons within its walls until they are let out by it's own with the use of a special code that activates the Pyramid's deactivation switch. As of now, no one knows what this code is...
No Math Zone - Tumblr (slight nsfw) | Legend of a Hot-Blooded Pig

"The only guy you know to draw fat Touhous." - Erebus

Wolfsbane706

  • Knight of the Accursed Order
  • Boredom is contagious.
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #205 on: September 23, 2011, 07:50:21 AM »
Alright, since I'd rather have feedback before outright posting an incomplete story, I'm gonna spoilerize what I have of my latest idea and post it here.  Here goes.

Spoiler:
Cirno stretched, groaned, then collapsed and sighed.  ?Too hooooot . . . .? she moaned.  Gensokyou had been hit by a massive heat wave over the past couple days, and despite the little ice fairy?s best efforts, she couldn?t hold it off.  She never did react well to heat, and the rest of ?Team 9? didn?t like the heat much, either.  Rumia wouldn?t come out of her darkness to play, Mystia was too busy running her cart, and Wriggle was off somewhere with Yuuka , leaving poor Cirno alone to suffer in the humid heat of Misty Lake.  Finally, after about five minutes of just lying there, Cirno got up and put her hands on her hips in that ever-defiant pose of hers.  She looked across Misty Lake at the Scarlet Devil Mansion.  Surely they were faring better than her!  At the very least, being inside would be cooler than being outside, right?  Cirno may have been an idiot, but even she knew that houses were usually cooler on the inside.  And so, the little ice fairy collected herself and proceeded to make her way across Misty Lake where, hopefully, a cool house and a sleeping gatekeeper awaited her.
   Sure enough, Meiling was asleep.  Cirno was tempted to wake her up so they could play, but that would just get her caught.  Nope.  The little ice fairy wasn?t stopping at the gates this time.  This time she was plowing right through!
   SMACK!
   Or not.  Cirno wasn?t small enough to fit between the bars on the gate, so instead of flying through them, like she?d wanted, she instead found herself flying into the bars.  Even for someone as hard headed as Cirno, flying into a steel gate headfirst hurt like hell!  Cirno didn?t have time to comprehend the pain, though, so she just flew over the gate (in a particularly drunk-looking fashion) and right up to an open, but curtained, window.
   And, in typical Cirno fashion, right into the head of an unsuspecting, tea-drinking vampire.
   Cirno, still a little dazed from smashing into the front gate, simply went ?Whee!? in a ditzy voice as she and the tea-drinking vampire tumbled across the room.
   The vampire, on the other hand, wasn?t quite so enthusiastic.  Remilia Scarlet was none too pleased to have her afternoon tea interrupted.  Especially by an idiot like Cirno.  Especially by Cirno.

Do you like it so far?
« Last Edit: September 23, 2011, 07:53:54 AM by MFZBdude »
[15:30] * Wolfsbane706 pitfalls Roukan.
[15:30] <Roukan> WHAT WHY
[15:31] * Roukan aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa*splat*
[15:32] <Wolfsbane706> That's the funniest reaction I've seen yet.
[15:34] * Roukan thumbs-up from beyond the grave.

TAKE IT CACODEMON!!

  • OKAY THEN I'M A LEGAL AIDE
  • AND ERIN BROCKOVICH IS MY NAAAME
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #206 on: September 24, 2011, 09:26:38 AM »
A series of ideas that will not turn out original flavor at all:

Book One: Reimu notices something wrong with Scarlet Devil Mansion, but can't get any closer as a solar eclipse hits Gensokyo - and vampires begin an all-out assault. As it turns out, SDM has been hijacked by a coalition of vampire clans, united by the House of Tepes. Remilia and Flandre are taken prisoner, to be used in some sort of hideous experiment, Sakuya is left for dead, and Meiling is the bearer of bad news... and needless to say, the Tepes Clan will reap the whirlwind.

Book Two: More expansion into nuclear power plants... uncovers Hidden Fun Stuff. And by Hidden Fun Stuff, we mean demons. Doom-style demons that are overrunning Former Hell and Makai. Gensokyo is pissed. Again. Luckily, the demons are huge, and that means they have huge guts...

Book Three: Strange soldiers have been spotted milling about in the forest, harassing locals and proclaiming to be of some sort of Japanese Empire, waving the Rising Sun high in the air. They use strange rifles, strange armor, strange energy and magic, and whatever they seek in Gensokyo, it's not for humanitarian reasons. Reimu races against the Imperial Japanese Army before they can get their hands on the secrets of Gensokyo. Think of it as Indiana Jones meets Wolfenstein, with plenty of fifties sci-fi and pulp tossed in.

Book Four: Chang'e, the Hourai Victim, breaks out of his restrains on the moon and leads a rebellion against the stagnant, militaristic, and paranoid regime of Tsukiyomi. In his rage, Chang'e sends a subset of his army to enact revenge on one of the descendents of those who threw him into jail - and to take over Gensokyo as a means of resources and a back-up sector in case his rebellion fails. Gensokyo unites (again) and pushes back Chang'e's soldiers, and chase them all the way back to the moon...

I also have ideas that can go in-between (e.g.: stories about hunting big monsters in a dark version of Gensokyo, or dealing with a glut of historically correct, monstrous youkai), but these are the main ideas. Yes, they're part of a series.
Sonata of Scarlet Sunflowers, a Flandre x Yuuka story. | Laziness of Daemonic Wastrels, wherein The Dude, Frylock, HW Guy, and David Wong get their asses kicked in Gensokyo.  | T.O.U.H.O.U.: Land of Shadows, a S.T.A.L.K.E.R./Touhou crossover. | Abomination, a monster story.

Bias Bus

  • It's unpleasent
  • *
  • if you're better than me
Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #207 on: September 27, 2011, 12:45:46 AM »
Psionics and Psychonautic Abilities

Psionics, or PSI, is the mental ability that is often mistaken for magic due to it's similar function, only being seperated by it's overall mechanics and origins. Psionics is regarded as a rare anamoly that occurs within the brain, allowing it to precieve (and in most cases, manipulate) various aspects of the elements or simply allowing a person to comprehend and sense what is hidden from normal people (often refered to as a 'sixth sense'). However, this mental anamoly only arises in a select number of humans at birth thus giving them a chance to use and master psychic abilities while they're young and growing up. Others have to learn psionics on their own, usually through training and opening their Mind's Eye to awaken their potential in psionics. Often times, Psionic abilities are mistaken as 'magic' or are believed to have came from Witches, neither of these assumptions are true, however as Psionic abilities do not manipulate the flow of Mana, rather it manipulates the very brain waves the user gives off to create it's own source of 'Mana'. This being said, Psychics are usually distinguishable from other humans by how powerful their brain waves are compared to others. In fact, this is often used as a way to determine if someone has the potential for Psionic abilities or not.

It is unknown as to who the originator of Psionics is, but many texts state that not only has Psionics existed since ancient times but also appears to be a human oriented ability, one that arose in mortal humans, and only humans. There are many arguements, however, that state that humans learned Psionics from the Tsukijin and Tsukihare people who came in contact with Earth through UFO sightings and abductions throughout history. Sources state that both races have a vast understanding and mastery of psyhic powers even without having known humans for an extended period of time so, it may very well be the Tsukijin and Tsukihare who were able to pass on their knowledge to humans which would in turn result in others learning of psionic abilities as well. Because of this interaction, it is believed that Humans maybe the only species outside of Tsukijin and Tsukihare that know how to fully weild Psionics.


Mechanics for Psionics
- As stated above, Psionics is often mistaken for magic due to how similar the two are when it comes down to it's execution and the production of supernatural phenomenon. While it is true that Magic and Psionics due share some similarities in what they can effectively do, these similarities end when one truly realizes how Psionics work and what their power source tends to be.

First and foremost, the entire concept of Psionics is built around using the brain and it's energies to manipulate the world and surroundings around the individual. Magic, in and of itself, functions by manipulating the same thing to a degree but this is seperated by how it is manipulated. With Psionics, the brain is the one and only true power source to their psychonautic prowess. The brain naturally gives off a type of wavelength (called Psyche Wavelength) that is, in many cases, similar to the properties of Mana. This wavelegnth is essentially the blueprint to a person's thought processes and subconcious and is what Telepaths often use as a medium to "read" a person's mind and thoughts. Unlike mana, most of the wavelengths emitted from humans is 'mundane' or has no true property to it, often coming off as 'colorless', while a psychic's wavelength can have many different vibrant colors to it, signifying the many abilities they may have or can learn.

For those who have potential in Psionics, their wavelength is strengthened by supernatural means and can have additional properties which can tell what type of special kinesis they can learn or some other abilities that may be attainable to them. And, for them, learning how to tap into these powers is based on how powerful they are mentally and how their brain can bring out this power through manipulating it's own wavelength. To do this, one must mentally manipulate their own wavelength, which can be done merely by thought and imagination. However, the power itself does not merely arise at the simple thought of bringing it out, to fully weild a psionic power is to understand how it functions and how you as an individual can use it through your own thoughts. For example, to use Pyrokinesis, a person must imagine and visual flames which will, in turn, manipulate their wavelength to produce the flame they have imagined within their thoughts.

However, all of this can only be done through one medium known as the Psyche Eye (or the Psychexus). It is the 'third eye' in which one can see and read the wavelengths of the mind and thus can freely manipulate it by using their own mental powers to produce supernatural occurances and abilities. Much like a Witch Eye or a Spellbinder, the Psychexus is the barrier between what classes the user as human or psychic and, unlike the Spellbinder, is only present in those who have enough power in their own wavelength to open the flood gates of the Psychexus. Once opened, another sense manifests in the users mind (called a 'sixth sense') and it is through this sense that they are able to see wavelengths and auras that is given off by others. However, they cannot see Mana flows and thus cannot manipulate them through their minds. The flow of Mana is something the human mind cannot easily grasp and thus cannot manipulate.

There is a second form to the Pysche Eye known as the Asura Eye (or the Asura Vertex) which requires the user to invert the flow of their wavelength and use it to pour all of their negative energies into their Psyche Eye. The end result will corrupt the eye and could have ill-effects on the users mind, but in turn, also trades this with immeasurable psionic power. So far, only one individual has been able to use the full extent of an Asura Eye, one of Cinquelle's familiar's; Omoisouryou.


Psychonautic Abilities
- Much like Magic, Psionics boasts are fair amount of abilities and techniques that one can learn. However, as stated before, many of them can't be called upon by the same method and usually have a special way of invoking it's power. This said, the level at which the person can manipulate or use this ability is ranked as, Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Sigma, Omega. "Alpha" is the weakest level of manipulation while "Omega" is the highest and can be used to fight on equal ground with low level Witches.

Sixth Sense: The base form of psionic abilities and the ability that's often believed to be the building blocks to becoming a Telepath or Mind Reader. In it's unrefined form, a sixth sense is only manifested in the ability to 'see' and sense the wavelengths given off by most forms of life. By training further in this ability, one can not only see and sense wavelengths but also gauge how powerful these wavelengths are, who they belong to and even the thoughts that litter these wavelengths. It is through this ability that one can also see the true form of a Phantom or Ghost even though normal people don't, or can't, see them.

PSI Energy Arts: A form of pyschonautic ability that is considered the basic forms of combat and is mostly used by lower level psychics. By using their wavelength, they can create energy used either in close combat or for ranged combat in the form of psionic blasts of mental energy. While viewed as bare bones and rather low level, the Energy Arts consumes far less energy through their wavelength and thus is far more practical.

Teleportation: A passive ability that grants the user the ability to teleport to a given location embedded within their memory or the immedieate sight of the Psyche Eye. There are many ways to teleport and some may even require the use of a portal to solidify the link between point A and point B.

Psychokinesis: One of the more well known abilities of a psychic, which is the manipulation of various things pretaining to matter, time or space. Many forms of Psychokinesis exist, each one pretaining to a different concept of matter or object which serves as a medium for the psychic to manipulate or (in rarer instances) create and destroy. Through learning a Psychokinetic ability one uses a combination of the Psyche Eye and their wavelength, often times visualizing a form of their medium for manipulation which often results in their wavelength carrying out this mental action. The hook to learning how to master a Psychokinetic ability is that no two abilities have the same psionic evoking, meaning that each one requires a different form of mental visualization to bring forth. Also, the type of Psychokinetic ability a person can wield is often pre-determined the minute they are born, this being manifested in their wavelength.

Approtation: A psychic ability that allows the user to pull forth Psionic Weapons from their mind. These weapons can come in many forms, and no two Apports are similar and vary wildly on the person weilding this ability. Summoning an Apport requires one to visualize and mentally construct the ideal weapon or object and manifesting it into reality through the use of psychic force alone. The weapon is constructed by the user manipulating their wavelength to create the matter needed to build their ideal weapon. Depending on the size and scale of their Apport, it may require more psionic power and energy to craft it. There are three known classes of Apports...

- Id Apportation: The object manifested comes in the form of a weapon of some kind, used primarily for attacking and defense. These types of Apports can have additional abilities attached to them and are viewed as one of the more practical, if not, simpliest forms of Apports.

- Ego Apportation: The object manifested comes in the form of a defensive shield or some other support device used to help protect and heal rather can inflict damage or cause harm to others. These apports are easy summoned from the users desires to protect and, often times, the strength and durability of their Ego Apport is dependent on how strong their will to defend themselves and others are.

- Super-Ego Apportation: A special and rare form of apport that manifests itself as an entirely different being straight from the subconcious of the psychic using the ability. Viewed as the more complex of the Apportations, Superegos tend to be hard to control and more often than not overwhelm the one using it. Only through strict restraint can one weild a Super-Ego Apport with skill.

Anima/Animus Evoking: The psionic ability to summon and create what many would call 'imaginary friends' or beings only psychics and their creators can see. The ability itself is often exhibited in children, but the Anima/Animus itself can only be truly brought into reality through the (usually subconcious) use of the child's latent psionic capabilities (provided they have them). Animas and Animus' are first born within the subconcious and are usually only seen in the person's dreams and imagination (only coming into physical contact with reality through pictures drawn by their creator). This being said, many Anima or Animus can exist in a single person's mind and thus forth many can be brought into reality if this ability is called upon to give their Anima or Animus flesh. Anima refers to a female entity, while Animus refers to a male entity

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Next up, I'll go into Dream Phasing and the world of dreams. A sub category of Psionics and it's inner workings.
« Last Edit: September 28, 2011, 07:52:28 PM by Touji Suwagata »
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Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #208 on: October 01, 2011, 09:29:33 PM »
I am thinking of doing a post-cyberpunk/Space Fantasy/Mecha retelling of Subterranean Animism with Kanako as the AI behind the Moria Group Military Research and Development, The Underground as a slowly dieing former penal colony for those with illegal genetic modifications, The Power of Nuclear Fusion is a Mecha, (expecting a male host..).  The wild hell crows and kasha live off the strange animals that grow from the miniral springs exposed by the couple century old mines.
The Oni are basically boomers from Bubble Gum Crisis, except they like to drink a lot. 
Oh and the Moon is at war with surface.

Likewise Keine, Reimu, Akyu, and the other surface characters are leaders or heirs of various ministries and powerful corporations (zaibatsu) on the surface.

Is this a nuts idea, would anyone want to read this? Anthing strike you as just stupid? Anything almost right?



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Re: Aya's Writing Workshop - Bring us your story ideas and outlines!
« Reply #209 on: October 14, 2011, 01:44:10 PM »
I am thinking of doing a post-cyberpunk/Space Fantasy/Mecha retelling of Subterranean Animism with Kanako as the AI behind the Moria Group Military Research and Development, The Underground as a slowly dieing former penal colony for those with illegal genetic modifications, The Power of Nuclear Fusion is a Mecha, (expecting a male host..).  The wild hell crows and kasha live off the strange animals that grow from the miniral springs exposed by the couple century old mines.
The Oni are basically boomers from Bubble Gum Crisis, except they like to drink a lot. 
Oh and the Moon is at war with surface.

Likewise Keine, Reimu, Akyu, and the other surface characters are leaders or heirs of various ministries and powerful corporations (zaibatsu) on the surface.

Is this a nuts idea, would anyone want to read this? Anthing strike you as just stupid? Anything almost right?

I would read that. Seems like a strong storyline to me.

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