Maidens of the Kaleidoscope

~Beyond the Border~ => Rumia's Party Games => Topic started by: Tapsa on January 21, 2014, 06:42:05 PM

Title: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 21, 2014, 06:42:05 PM
(http://i.imgur.com/IkLb90k.gif)
You are a Yin-Yang Orb. There are many like you.

>But you are that who you are. And once again you find yourself lying in a vast field of lush grass, contemplating the purpose of your existence in Gensokyo.

>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Dormio Ergo Sum on January 22, 2014, 01:20:55 AM
>Check chest for unusual growths. If we have a chest, that is.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on January 22, 2014, 01:24:07 AM
>Relationship status with Stuffman and/or 5MS
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 22, 2014, 06:07:55 AM
>Check chest for unusual growths. If we have a chest, that is.
>If you have one, you can't see it right now. This should be investigated.
>You try to move your arms to check if you have a chest, but you are stopped in your tracks by your lack of limbs. Darn.


>Relationship status with Stuffman and/or 5MS
>Stuffman
>You've never seen Stuffman, but you've overheard from other Yin-Yang Orbs that he is a giant floating eyeball and an artistic person. He is apparently also fully capable of manipulating all kinds of objects, such as monstrous sandwiches,  even with his obvious lack of arms or legs, and that is something you and other Yin-Yang Orbs idolize. You've no idea where this Man of Stuff dwells, though.

>Five Magic Stones
>They probably wouldn't discriminate you for your spherical appearance if you were to find them.



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on January 22, 2014, 06:38:19 AM
>Quickly retrieve arms from chest.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Dormio Ergo Sum on January 22, 2014, 07:01:56 AM
>Note any items, places, or people of interest in the field.
>Check our current relationships.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on January 22, 2014, 07:10:49 AM
>Become kitten.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 22, 2014, 04:26:08 PM
>Quickly retrieve arms from chest.
>The existence of both your chest and arms is still disputed.

>Note any items, places, or people of interest in the field.
>Check our current relationships.
>Relationships

>Parents
>You once had parents. Then, they disappeared without a trace. They were considered to be the greatest warriors amongst the Yin-Yang Orbs, and they taught you the purpose of a Yin-Yang Orb's existence: becoming a great warrior. You had faith in your parents' teachings, genuinely believing that your fate indeed was to become a great warrior like them.
>But now? You've given up on that thought. Many years have gone by, and you still aren't capable of matching your parents' impressive and devastating danmaku. You doubt they ever knew the purpose for the existence of your kind. It must've been their way of coping with their lack of knowledge. Right now, your way of coping with your existential crisis is travelling Gensokyo, occasionally listening to tales of other Yin-Yang Orbs.

>Yin-Yang Orbs
>You don't have any relationships with other Yin-Yang Orbs. This may be due to the fact that so far, not a single Yin-Yang Orb has found unity with your current thoughts. It seems they all think much like your disappeared parents did: "Becoming a great warrior is what any sane Yin-Yang Orb would strive for!
>The origin of Yin-Yang Orbs is unknown. You do know that your race has spread in just about almost every nook and cranny of Gensokyo, much like the fairies have.
>You can communicate with other Yin-Yang Orbs in your vicinity.

>Fairies
>Fairies accept seeing your kind around them most of the time and in the best cases exhibit a sort of wordless comradeship when instinctively uniting with your race during incidents to fight against the renown human incident-solvers.
>Unfortunately, you cannot communicate with them. And you've yet to figure out how to communicate with them. Vast majority of them may be simpleminded and aggressive, but you're more hopeful of them than your quite militant race.

>Humans
>Strangely, they don't like seeing orbs flying near their faces.

>Hakurei Reimu
>Painful memories. In the past, while you still followed the ideals of your parents, you joined the ranks of fairies and Yin-Yang Orbs stirred up during Incidents to combat against Reimu. Usually, you'd only have to suffer for a couple of days with tons of needles and amulets stuck in you, but during the Incident caused by that amanojaku and inchling, her gohei suddenly grew gigantic and smacked you with titanic force. You estimate that you flew at least a couple dozen miles before slamming back on the ground. It's truly a miracle how you still haven't perished from all that abuse!
>However, you won't judge her harshly, even with your anecdotes. She's just doing her job after all, isn't she? Still, you doubt she'd be too welcoming towards you, as she has beat up numerous members of your race before.
>She is rumoured to possess humongous Yin-Yang Orbs. You are unsure if they are of the same kind as other Yin-Yang Orbs, since very few have seen hers. It is said that Reimu only resorts to using them if she is very angry. One of their secret powers is reportedly the ability to turn into a cat. You suspect that this is a joke.



>Note any items, places, or people of interest in the field.
>The vastness of this grass field makes it seem like it extends infinitely towards north, where you can see towering hills and mountains forming the traditional Gensokyoan skyline. There's a forest behind you, and you see two fairies standing on the edge of the field and the forest. They're not too far from you, around at a distance where you can still eavesdrop on them if they'll start speaking. One of them is holding a peculiar googly device with two round cut pieces of glass placed side-by-side. You believe this is one of those things that lets you view distant objects. Oh, she's also got a modified tea kettle for a hat.


>Become kitten.
>You are not a Hakurei Shrine Yin-Yang Orb.



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on January 23, 2014, 09:10:25 AM
>This simply will not do. We WILL become kitten, even if it means leaf ears and reed tail.
>Perhaps our disguise will even fool Reimu and let us join her ranks. After all, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em!
>What's the farseer fairy staring at?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 23, 2014, 04:25:22 PM
>This simply will not do. We WILL become kitten, even if it means leaf ears and reed tail.
>Perhaps our disguise will even fool Reimu and let us join her ranks. After all, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em!
>What's the farseer fairy staring at?

>You come up with an ingenious plan for a disguise, but unfortunately, your attempt at masquerading as a kitten will be hopeless without the required resources.
>You wager it'd be best for you to make the disguise as organic as possible, as Reimu probably has enough perception to see through a half-assed attempt.
>You'd imagine disguises come as a second nature to fairies, if only you could communicate with them right now...

>The farseer fairy is staring skywards with her device, eyebrows furrowed. You doubt fairies are too keen on birdwatching, so something has to be up there.


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on January 23, 2014, 10:12:53 PM
>Can we see anything in the direction the fairy is looking?
>... how do we perceive things, anyway?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Dumanios on January 23, 2014, 11:24:03 PM
>Go to Fairy.
>How do we see, anyway?
>Contemplate the relationship of Fairies and Dairy.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 24, 2014, 06:35:05 PM
>... how do we perceive things, anyway?
>How do we see, anyway?
>You can see things like a creature with eyesight can. You estimate your vision's capability is comparable to either that of an ordinary youkai or a human's, as you cannot 'zoom' your sight and because your field of view is limited to one side of your body.
>You do need to orient yourself to look in a direction, but this is considerably more easier and quicker for you than for most other creatures.
>It appears that you do not require organs for sensing light and processing it into a visual form.

>Can we see anything in the direction the fairy is looking?
>In the sky, you can see a slowly moving tiny dot. You can't really tell what it is from this far away, though.

>Contemplate the relationship of Fairies and Dairy.
>You do not know of anything or anybody who goes by the name of Dairy.

>Go to Fairy.

>You begin approaching the farseer fairy and her companion. They don't seem to be paying any attention to you, as they're already busy with looking at the sky.
>You've gotten rather close by now. Suddenly, the farseer fairy points at the dot in the skies and exclaims: "I see 'em, cap'n!"
>She quickly passes her device to her much more taller companion by performing a wing-assisted jump. Her companion then swifly acquires the moving dot in the skies in her vision with the aid of the device.
>After looking at the dot briefly with the device, the tall fairy extends her open left palm towards the farseer: "That's an unidentified flying humie! Gimme that recognition manual!"
>The farseer fairy pulls a thick book from her messenger bag and gives it to her companion in the same fashion as she gave the device.
>The tall fairy appraises the book's content before looking through the device again: "Red-white markings..."
>"...exposed armpits..."
>"FIRE ALL THINGS!"
>Huh, didn't take them too long to figure out who the flying dot was.
>"I got the beast in me sight!". That was someone's yell coming from the forest. An extremely fast projectile shoots through the forest canopy, seeking into high-cruising Reimu while leaving a long trail of smoke. Upon reaching Reimu's left side, it suddenly explodes into a large cloud of smoke. You spot some danmaku exiting the other side of the cloud, in the direction where the fast projectile was headed at.
>"Aight! Less looking at pretty explosion, more gittin' after 'er!", the tall fairy shouts.
>You notice a LOT of fairies pouring out from the shade of the forest behind the farseer and tall one. All of the fairies, except farseer and tall one, start climbing towards the cloud of smoke with great haste.
>You start approaching the two fairies again after that interesting occurrence. You assume the dynamic duo is going to stay on foot far behind the frontline to ensure their own safety, like most superiors would. You feel foolish for making this assumption, as fairies are certainly not known for their caution and forethought. And so, farseer and tall one takeoff as well to charge bravely together with their comrades, leaving you to be the only poor fella still near ground level.

>Your dreams of Going to Fairy were crushed. Will you accept this?

>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on January 24, 2014, 11:05:09 PM
>Stay near ground level away from Reimu's attacks, sneak behind her, and give her a hug.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on January 25, 2014, 12:42:42 AM
>Have we tried pretending to be a Hakurei Shrine orb?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 25, 2014, 07:35:45 PM
>Have we tried pretending to be a Hakurei Shrine orb?
>You haven't. You do fill the criteria of being a Yin-Yang Orb, but you're red and white instead of black and white like Hakurei Shrine orbs are. Then again, you aren't sure if Reimu discriminates based on color.
>You're also not sure what sort of education, experience or innate powers are required in order for one to be deemed competent for the position of being a Hakurei Shrine Yin-Yang Orb.

>Stay near ground level away from Reimu's attacks, sneak behind her, and give her a hug.
>Incidentally, stealth is the forte of all Yin-Yang Orbs. You're able to establish an adaptive camouflage over your body if you so will it. Humans don't seem to be very good at noticing camouflaged Yin-Yang Orbs from what you've noticed, as you've seen fellow Yin-Yang Orbs flanking Reimu successfully in the past while stealthed and even catching her off guard sometimes.
>You decide to go with the widest possible approach here since you've got all the time in the world while Reimu beats up boatloads of fairies in the skies. You don't want to risk having any purification needles raining down on you here, even though Reimu usually doesn't miss her attacks while going against mere fairies.
>After sticking close to the ground and after getting behind the frontline, you activate your camouflage and start climbing skywards, aiming for Reimu's altitude.

>Upon reaching Reimu's altitude, you sneak behind her and prepare your hug. She's quite preoccupied with dealing with all those fairies, so you could've actually sneaked behind her without using your camouflage. Huh.
>You charge with all your might towards Reimu's back, and images of your fallen kin and disappeared parents flash in your figurative eyes. Eat this! Armless Hug!

>You bump into Reimu's back and hug her without arms. She gasps in surprise to your completely unexpected action, but after realizing that it wasn't a stealthy bullet that hit her back, she performs a breakneck speed somersault forwards, scooping you for a ride with her calves. She releases you at the apex of her stunt, sending you flying high in the air.
>She quickly catches up to you and kills your momentum by slapping an amulet on you. Conveniently, it lands right on top of where your "eyes" would be. The left part of your vision is now obstructed.

>"You will..."
>Somehow, Reimu just disappeared into thin air. You spin around, trying to figure out where she went, until you hear a whistling coming from somewhere diagonally above you.
>"...FALL!"

>Reimu's divekick connects squarely with the amulet slapped onto you, sending you falling towards the grass field like a lead brick on fire, plowing through a couple of flying fairies in the way. Not only did she show utter disregard to your demonstration of affection, she also made a makeshift projectile out of you!
>Suddenly, the amulet blocking half of your vision glows red and yellow and detonates, increasing your velocity even further.
>You impact the ground with almost explosive force, creating a crater disproportionally large to your body's size and launching dirt and grass everywhere up to heights of a couple dozen feet.

>THE PAAAAAAIIIIIINNNNNN!


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on January 25, 2014, 08:11:16 PM
>Nooo Reimu our waifu ;_;
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Cheez8 on January 25, 2014, 10:11:52 PM
> About how much pain is the normal beatdown, compared to this?
> Make a mental note that when Reimu is busy shooting down bunches of fairies, "directly behind Reimu" is probably among the most unhealthy of places for us to suddenly appear. Even though it worked perfectly.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 25, 2014, 10:40:19 PM
>Nooo Reimu our waifu ;_;
>You wish you could cry externally. She just wasn't in the mood for hugs.

> About how much pain is the normal beatdown, compared to this?
>You'd much rather have the stabbing pain of her persuasion needles right now than this. You feel like you aren't going to be able to fly very high for a while.

> Make a mental note that when Reimu is busy shooting down bunches of fairies, "directly behind Reimu" is probably among the most unhealthy of places for us to suddenly appear. Even though it worked perfectly.
>Noted. You shudder to think about what she could've done to you if you had appeared directly in front of her.


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Labuto on January 26, 2014, 11:07:33 AM
>Whine like a kicked puppy.

>How competent are we at danmaku?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 26, 2014, 12:11:44 PM
>Whine like a kicked puppy.
>How competent are we at danmaku?
>No one hears your whining, since you can't talk currently and there was no other orbs nearby to transmit your thoughts to.

>Your danmaku is quite elementary. Creating a field of unaimed shots while firing aimed shots at your adversary is next to impossible for you right now. Your current proven technique involves shooting three long streams of aimed shots in a fan pattern at your opponent. If your opponent panics at the high velocity of the bullets and dodges the streams too fast, the attack becomes much more harder for them, since every single bullet in this fan pattern is individually aimed at wherever they currently might be.
>The largest shot you can conjure is about half the size of an average human male.
>You reckon that with the combination of your current (lack of) skills in danmaku, your agility and your stealth capabilities, you can defend yourself against most fairies and lesser youkai. You aren't going to give someone as experienced as Reimu a run for their money with only your danmaku, though.


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Labuto on January 27, 2014, 10:46:45 AM
>Does danmaku leave behind burn marks on surfaces that it hits?

>If so, attempt to convey a simple "Hello!" by shooting the ground with danmaku in the shape of text, leaving burnt markings that spell out the words.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 27, 2014, 09:34:53 PM
>Does danmaku leave behind burn marks on surfaces that it hits?

>If so, attempt to convey a simple "Hello!" by shooting the ground with danmaku in the shape of text, leaving burnt markings that spell out the words.

>No, danmaku generally does not cause any sort of collateral damage. Especially not your relatively weak danmaku. But still, worth a try!


>With intention to engage in danmaku writing, you attempt to fly out of the crater caused by your rapid descent into ground from a certain shrine maiden's divekick, but you find yourself completely incapacitated by your pain. You aren't going anywhere like this!

>Your mind starts to space out as you writhe in pain on the bottom of the crater, unable to do anything. You don't get to space out much, since you're quickly alerted by a fairy peeking over at you from the edge of the crater. 

>"You okay there, buddy?" You're not sure why this fairy with carmine hair is expecting an answer from you out of all things, but you decide to play along inside your mind for what little amusement you can get to lessen the pain.

>You think she looks pretty battered. There's still needles sticking out of her body.

>"Yeah... I'm beat up real hard right now. Come on, who didn- ...huh?"'
>Her expression looks just about confused as you are right now.

>Did she just.. hear your thoughts?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Hanzo K. on January 27, 2014, 10:55:14 PM
>Whoa. This is new. Did Reimu beat a new power into us or something?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Dumanios on January 28, 2014, 05:10:42 AM
>Are we... talking?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on January 28, 2014, 05:15:14 AM
>Ponder the implications of orbxfairy crossbreeding.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 28, 2014, 09:24:01 PM
Parser's note: Never write while half-asleep in the bed. The identity of the person who said the last line of speech in the previous update became ambiguous due to this reckless action of mine. But I guess it doesn't matter that much, since that line works just as well for the MC as it does for the fairy, doesn't it?


>Whoa. This is new. Did Reimu beat a new power into us or something?
>You wouldn't exactly call this a new power. You've always been able to communicate with other Yin-Yang Orbs in this way, but for some reason, the fairy heard your thoughts. Well, that part sort of does count as new.
 
>Are we... talking?
>Going by the definition of how this works, this isn't exactly the same as physically talking, but in practice, it's the same as talking. You're transmitting your thoughts to the fairy, but she can hear your thoughts as if you were talking aloud. At least you assume that's what's happening on her end, because you've experienced every single case of communication in the past with an other Yin-Yang Orb this way: they transmit thoughts like you do, but you can hear audible voices.

>Ponder the implications of orbxfairy crossbreeding.
>You try to, but you only manage to get your mind to hurt. Now you truly are in a world of pain!


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on January 29, 2014, 12:58:54 AM
>What is the fairy's name? Come to think of it, do we have a name?
>Milt? keiju siivet maistuvat?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on January 29, 2014, 01:58:34 AM
>"I don't understand why you can hear me when most fairys don't, but for the love of all the gods stick with me. Just let me recover from that... ow."
>"Are we safe?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 29, 2014, 09:59:53 PM
>What is the fairy's name? Come to think of it, do we have a name?
>You do not recognize this fairy's face, and you cannot think of any notorious fairies with dark red hair.
>You don't recall ever having a name. Your parents called you their child, and respectfully, you called them your mom and dad.

>Milt? keiju siivet maistuvat?
>Riippuu v?h?n keijusta. Tai niin ainakin arvelet, sill? sin?h?n et pysty maistamaan mit??n. Mutta mit? luultavimmin t?m?n keijun siivet maistuvat Keijulta. (http://danbooru.donmai.us/posts/1021363)

>"I don't understand why you can hear me when most fairys don't, but for the love of all the gods stick with me. Just let me recover from that... ow."
>"Are we safe?"
>The fairy gives you a stern nod without saying anything. She's probably too busy wondering how you survived Reimu's wrath and how she can hear you 'talking'.
>You inquire her about the current situation.
>"Yeah, about that...", the fairy gazes skywards. Her expression is getting fearful. "You know, I don't like how the red-white's hovering far up there."
>The fairy lowers her gaze back to you. "I say we get outta here. Red-white can't be up to any good like that. Can you move?"


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Hanzo K. on January 29, 2014, 11:36:15 PM
>Are we capable of moving now?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on January 30, 2014, 12:17:15 AM
lol, the only finnish I know comes from that comic
>"I can try, or maybe you can carry me?"
>Don't fairies have a compulsion to attack Reimu?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on January 30, 2014, 12:38:06 AM
>Give it a try.
>If it's too hard or we're too slow, ask the fairy if she'd be willing to help.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on January 31, 2014, 03:52:20 AM
>Are we capable of moving now?
>You're not sure, the pain hasn't begun subsiding yet..


>"I can try, or maybe you can carry me?"
>The fairy nods to you again. "It's fine, I can carry you if you can't do it... I think."


>Give it a try.
>You struggle, but in vain. You can't take off in your current condition.
>The fairy observes your attempt and frowns. "Guess that means I'm gonna carry you."
>She walks down to the bottom of your crater to pick you up, revealing her battle damaged poofy white dress. Nothing special about it in comparison to other fairies' clothes, apart from the small yellow bowtie on the collar of her dress. You estimate she's about 3/4 the height of Reimu, which is definitely in the upper spectrum of normal fairy height. Transparent white butterfly-like wings spread behind her back.

>She picks you up with only her right arm, since her left one seems to be injured beyond the ability to function.
>She presses you against her flat chest in order to maintain a firm grip on you with only her right arm. She barely manages to climb out of the crater and starts to limp towards the nearby forest. Poor thing, she's had her share of grievous bodily harm today. Also, there's many wounded fairies suffering on the field who Reimu just couldn't finish off on the spot, so your carrier has to avoid stepping on them.

>After limping to the edge of the forest, she crawls under a large bush and places you on her right side.
>"We made it. Let's see if red-white's up to anything." You've no idea why she's whispering to you, since Reimu definitely can't hear you from this far away. Especially not while up in the air.

>Don't fairies have a compulsion to attack Reimu?

>Most fairies do seem to be hostile against her and other prime youkai exterminators, but of course, there are exceptions. Best one you can think of are the Three Fairies who apparently live near Hakurei Shrine.
>You're unsure why this fairy has shown care for you instead of typical fairy behaviour, and why she wants to avoid Reimu right now. Whatever her motives might be, she seems plenty serious about this current situation.

>_


Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 01, 2014, 01:01:37 AM
>Alas, we are but one orb, and cannot fulfill her dreams of oppai
>Quietly in return, if we can 'whisper' with our methods of speaking: "How will you do that?"
>If there's a lull, also ask why she's being quiet. She probably knows something we don't...
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Labuto on February 02, 2014, 09:03:44 AM
>"Do you have a name, dear fairy friend?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 02, 2014, 10:11:32 PM
>Alas, we are but one orb, and cannot fulfill her dreams of oppai
>Quietly in return, if we can 'whisper' with our methods of speaking: "How will you do that?"
>Not so! Your spherical form would make great pads for her if you were to split in to two halves in some freak accident.

>It's kind of hard to whisper because you don't know how to think quietly.
>"How will I do what? Just gonna watch what that shrine maiden's up to.", responds the fairy.

>She pushes you forward so that you're slightly jutting out of the bush. With a slight delay, her head pops out from the concealment of the bush as well.
>You see Reimu is still hovering in the sky. However, she doesn't begin descending down on the field, but instead starts flying toward her original heading. Soon, she cannot be seen from your position anymore.

>"Heh, you really thought she'd come down here? Silly orb. " The fairy giggles at you. "Why'd she care about a field fulla moaning fairies? Come on."


>"Do you have a name, dear fairy friend?"
>"I'm Hima! Or Himawari, if you wanna be formal."
>She pauses to think for a moment. "I guess you orbs don't have any names, right?"


>If there's a lull, also ask why she's being quiet. She probably knows something we don't...
>You suspect the fairy knows something you don't.
>"Haven't you noticed what odd's been happening recently?", the fairy asks you.

>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 02, 2014, 10:44:16 PM
>HAVE we noticed what odd things have been happening recently?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 03, 2014, 02:48:59 AM
>Aside from fairies randomly being able to hear us, that is.
>"Reimu may have wanted to finish the job if she was worried about any recovering to come after her. But I suppose I'm being paranoid."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 03, 2014, 09:34:14 AM
>"Reimu may have wanted to finish the job if she was worried about any recovering to come after her. But I suppose I'm being paranoid."

>Himawari crawls out of the bush where you both were hiding and picks herself up. It would've probably took more labor from her if she didn't have fairy wings to boost her motions with, since she's only got one working arm right now.
>"I don't think anybody out there on the field is fit for goin' after 'er anymore. Just look what she did to me.." Himawari grimaces and grabs her disabled left arm. "By gods, if you knew how much this really hurts..."

>HAVE we noticed what odd things have been happening recently?

>Aside from a fairy being able to hear you, you've only noticed one other thing that strikes you as odd.

>The weather has been scorching for well over a week now. You haven't seen fluffy clouds in the skies or a drop of rain since this began.
>While heat waves do occur in Gensokyo occassionally, this summer is going to break records at this rate. Even when the sun's down the same dry heat reigns. When you passed by the outskirts of Human Village earlier today, you saw signs of a minor drought developing around those parts.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 03, 2014, 09:38:33 AM
>Try moving around.
>"Its been pretty hot lately, hasn't it?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 03, 2014, 11:41:50 AM
>Try moving around.
>"Its been pretty hot lately, hasn't it?"

>You feel like you're slowly starting to recover from that divekick, perhaps you can now move around a little?
>By concentrating hard enough, you manage to roll out from the edge of the bush by your own means.
>Himawari is amused by your few failed attempts to take off the ground, since it looked like you were desperately trying to put out an imaginary fire by rolling around. However, your embarrassing attempts pay out, as you're now levitating on the level of Himawari's face.
>"Good! I didn't wanna carry you around too much, you're heavy!"

>"Yup. It's been too hot for far too long!" She wipes off some sweat from her forehead hidden under her dark red bangs. "There's gotta be something weird going on."
>"It's so hot I'd love to go to Misty Lake and hug Cirno right about now."


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Labuto on February 03, 2014, 02:17:30 PM
>Come to think of it, did our parents name us?
>How proficient are we at spinning?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Hanzo K. on February 03, 2014, 02:43:55 PM
>"Huh...And she did shoot down pretty much everyone pretty viciously. Even blasted me into the ground when all I was trying to do was greet her."
>Insert Beat panel Here
>"...Incident! I bet that's what's going on! Reimu must be just as bugged by the abnormal heat as everyone else. And when Reimu gets annoyed..."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 03, 2014, 04:50:46 PM
>Was Armpits headed in the direction of Misty Lake?
>We don't need to eat, do we?
>If the drought's that bad, the human village may have some trouble... guess it's understandable she's mad.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 03, 2014, 07:00:24 PM
>Come to think of it, did our parents name us?
>How proficient are we at spinning?
>You don't recall ever having a name. Your parents called you their child, and respectfully, you called them your mom and dad.

>You can spin as much as you like, since you do not have a sense of balance that can get disrupted. However, spinning too fast will cause your world to become a blur making seeing anything impossible, since your vision has its limitations.


>"Huh...And she did shoot down pretty much everyone pretty viciously. Even blasted me into the ground when all I was trying to do was greet her."
>Insert Beat panel Here
>"...Incident! I bet that's what's going on! Reimu must be just as bugged by the abnormal heat as everyone else. And when Reimu gets annoyed..."

>"Yeah, I saw what you were doing. Think we pretty much all saw that. She didn't seem to be in the mood for greetings back there!"

>"You betcha! This has to be an Incident. Something doesn't feel natural about this heat, you know."
>Himawari brushes off some dirt from her damaged white dress. "Oh, and don't dwell on Reimu too much, okay? You won't get your face wrecked if you don't act like a chump around her. She's not the scariest shrine maiden out there if you don't count her power."



>Was Armpits headed in the direction of Misty Lake?
>We don't need to eat, do we?
>If the drought's that bad, the human village may have some trouble... guess it's understandable she's mad.

>She could've been heading towards Misty Lake. However, her bearing could also be set on Human Village or Forest of Magic, since these three areas are within similar distance from each other and in the same direction from this field.

>You don't need to eat. Kind of hard when you don't have a mouth, isn't it?

>The drought seemed minor as of now on the outskirts of Human Village, but if this weather and temperature continues, it may indeed become quite troublesome for the humans on the long term.




>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 03, 2014, 07:42:31 PM
>"Should we avoid getting involved? It seems I've already been rejected."
>What do we know about the healing prowess of fairies? Will our new friend be in need of help for a while?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 03, 2014, 08:16:47 PM
>"Should we avoid getting involved? It seems I've already been rejected."
>What do we know about the healing prowess of fairies? Will our new friend be in need of help for a while?

>Himawari furrows her eyebrows as she hears your question. "Why do you think you've been rejected?"

>An oft forgotten trait of fairies is their ability to regenerate over time. The reason this is forgotten may be due to the fact that most fairies tend to perish easily, so they don't get a chance to heal their wounds.
>Himawari's wounds are going to heal, unless if Reimu inflicted injuries that cannot be healed by her body alone.



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Hanzo K. on February 03, 2014, 09:48:39 PM
>"Well, getting a talisman smacked on what passes for a face among us Orbs, then kicked into the ground so hard you make a decent crater on impact good enough?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 04, 2014, 12:38:36 AM
>Do we know anything about the special power of some Yin-Yang orbs to communicate over long distances? Could our newfound communication ability be somehow related?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 04, 2014, 05:43:50 AM
>"Well, getting a talisman smacked on what passes for a face among us Orbs, then kicked into the ground so hard you make a decent crater on impact good enough?"

>"It's not like you need a permission from her to investigate.. but intervening would be so cool."


>Do we know anything about the special power of some Yin-Yang orbs to communicate over long distances? Could our newfound communication ability be somehow related?

>You've no idea. This form of communication is about as limited in certain aspects as speech is. The farther you are from an orb, the farther their voice is. You can't hear someone miles away, no matter how hard they concentrate on getting their message to you.


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Dorakyura on February 04, 2014, 08:49:39 AM
> Walk the Orbwalk (ability check)
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 04, 2014, 10:18:21 AM
> Walk the Orbwalk (ability check)

>Orbwalk? Surely, the existence of that technique is only a wild rumor.



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 04, 2014, 02:17:52 PM
>"Reimu's already fought with us once. I would be willing to expect her to strike first if we encounter her during the investigations again, and trying to figure things out would make that more likely."
>"Then again, I do want to understand why you can hear me when most fairies can't... if you're set on looking into it, I guess I could tag along until we get some clues about that. I don't see how they'd be related, but..."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 04, 2014, 04:57:31 PM
>Do we have any magical abilities aside from flying, danmaku, talking to fairies?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 05, 2014, 09:37:47 PM
>Do we have any magical abilities aside from flying, danmaku, talking to fairies?

>That's about all the magical abilities you have. You're not a magician or a sorcerer, for sure!
>However, like other orbs, you can activate an adaptive camouflage that will allow you to blend in well with your surroundings. You used this when you gave a surprise hug to Reimu. One that backfired horribly.
>Humans and lesser beings in general seem to have a very hard time noticing you while you're camouflaged.



>"Reimu's already fought with us once. I would be willing to expect her to strike first if we encounter her during the investigations again, and trying to figure things out would make that more likely."


>"You really think she'd recall us if we wandered close to her again? C'mon, we're just a fairy and an orb."
>She glances at the field with wounded fairies lying in it before returning her gaze back to you. "Can't say that being in her way isn't a quick way to get wrecked, tho."



>"Then again, I do want to understand why you can hear me when most fairies can't... if you're set on looking into it, I guess I could tag along until we get some clues about that. I don't see how they'd be related, but..."


>"Yeah!" Himawari fistpumps. "Knew you'd be up for this!"
>"I gotta grab some gear first from my stash near the Lake, okay? Might even run into my pal there!"



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 06, 2014, 03:45:53 AM
>"Alright. What's your pal like, then? Do you think they'd be able to hear me?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 07, 2014, 11:53:04 AM
>"Alright. What's your pal like, then? Do you think they'd be able to hear me?"

>"She's a fairy. Frilly light blue dress, long narrow wings, short black hair. She's got a real weird hair style, hard to miss her in a crowd."
>"She's a bit timid, though. Doubt she wants to join us." Himawari shrugs to your second question. "Dunno. You even sure you can talk to others? Never met a talking orb 'til now."



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 07, 2014, 06:37:29 PM
>Explain the way orb talking usually works to her on the way.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 09, 2014, 09:15:26 PM
>Explain the way orb talking usually works to her on the way.

>You decide it would be best to explain to Himawari how orb talking works while en route to your destination, so that you both can finally embark on the journey towards Misty Lake.

>You still haven't fully recovered from Reimu's manhandling, but neither has your fairy companion from the looks of it. You both agree to stick as close to ground as possible while on the way to the Lake, since if Himawari suddenly becomes too tired to fly due to her wounds while high up in the skies, the results won't be pretty if she falls.

>You head west with Himawari levitating with the power of her wings by your side, through the sparse coniferous forest.
>While levitating towards west in the forest, you quickly explain to Himawari how your "talking" works and how you've only been able to "talk" to other orbs, until Reimu beat you up.
>"Huh, weird little things, aren't you?" she says.

>That forest wasn't very expansive at that part, really. It only took you ten minutes tops to reach the western edge of the forest while levitating forwards at a walking pace.

>After exiting the forest, you find yourself in the middle of an another grassy field with your fairy companion. There's an another forest to the west that you'll have to go through in order to get closer to Misty Lake. There's a large field of sunflowers close to you, and it expands towards north. Its flowers gently sway from the occasional breeze.

>You spot someone exit the field of sunflowers from its west side.
>It's a green-haired lady with a folded parasol in her hand. The sunflowers here are slightly more taller than she is, so you couldn't have noticed her moving in the field even if you had been paying close attention.
>You hear her yawn loud and clear despite the fact that she's not very close to you. She appears to be groggy, although you were suspecting that already since she kind of shambled out of the sunflower field.





>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Hanzo K. on February 09, 2014, 09:49:25 PM
>"It's all relative my fine fey friend, all relative. That said, isn't it weird that we could hear her yawning all the way over here?"
>Indicate Greeny over there in whatever way we can that doesn't involve Danmaku. Never know if she'll take it as a challenge or not, which would be bad.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 09, 2014, 10:01:36 PM
>FLEE!
Edit: >Wait, do we need to flee? What do we know about the Kazami Yuuka?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 10, 2014, 11:30:48 AM
>Regardless of our knowledge of the situation, we're in no condition for a fight if she decides to be hostile. We should go around the sunflower field if we can, since it looks like she might consider it hers.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 10, 2014, 08:36:55 PM
>"It's all relative my fine fey friend, all relative. That said, isn't it weird that we could hear her yawning all the way over here?"
>Indicate Greeny over there in whatever way we can that doesn't involve Danmaku. Never know if she'll take it as a challenge or not, which would be bad.


>You try to indicate where the green-haired lady is by nudging in her direction, only to notice that Himawari isn't near you anymore.
>What the... did she get distracted by something? She was slightly trailing behind you before you noticed the lady pop out of the field.

>You quickly scan your surroundings in an attempt to figure out where the fairy went. Considering how distant both of the forests' edges to the west and east are from your current position near the sunflower field, and how the grass to the south isn't high enough to hide a fairy as tall as Himawari, there's only one direction where she could've went while you weren't paying attention...


Edit: >Wait, do we need to flee? What do we know about the Kazami Yuuka?

>It indeed is the Yuuka. Her red-colored and plaided clothes are unmistakeable, and so is her now unfolded parasol which has the likeness of a flower with pink petals printed on it.

>You don't know too much about her, other than that she's claimed to be one of the most powerful youkai around, despite her allegedly mundane abilities related to flowers and nature. There's rumors of her perpetrating wanton violence on unfortunate passersby, and some also say that she's not quite right in the noggin.



>Regardless of our knowledge of the situation, we're in no condition for a fight if she decides to be hostile. We should go around the sunflower field if we can, since it looks like she might consider it hers.



>While all the negative things that you know about her could be a bunch of slander coming from humans, exercising caution is never a bad idea while in the presence of powerful youkai.
>The sunflower field definitely isn't in your way. You could've circumvented it earlier, but you weren't expecting the flower youkai to appear out of such an ordinary field of sunflowers, and neither were you expecting Himawari to get distracted by something in the field while you were passing by it, since she's been acting rather smart for a fairy up until now.

>Yuuka doesn't seem to have noticed you. In fact, she's faced in an opposite direction from you, and you estimate that she's some 50 yards away.




>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 11, 2014, 03:57:45 AM
>Oh, well that's just lovely.
>... Hima didn't go up, did she? That can be easy to overlook...
>What do we know about fairy respawn mechanics, if Yuuka gets mad at her?
>... since she probably wouldn't be able to hear us explain the situation, let's go into camo mode while working out what to do about our missing friend. Unless that would be too draining or make us look suspicious?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 11, 2014, 10:14:48 AM
>Oh, well that's just lovely.

>Sigh... If that fairy had stayed by your side for a little bit longer...


>... Hima didn't go up, did she? That can be easy to overlook...

>You scan the clear skies as well, but as expected, she hasn't gone flying.


>What do we know about fairy respawn mechanics, if Yuuka gets mad at her?


>You know that fairies reincarnate upon death, but as for where they respawn and what happens to their memories, you don't know.



>... since she probably wouldn't be able to hear us explain the situation, let's go into camo mode while working out what to do about our missing friend. Unless that would be too draining or make us look suspicious?


>If Yuuka is anything like her fearsome reputation claims her to be, you doubt she'd bother to reason with such lowly creatures like you two anyway.
>You deem camo a bit unnecessary for this situation. She won't be able to see you entering the field from this side.
>You head inside the field of sunflowers to search for your fairy companion. You weave through sunflowers as carefully as possible, in an effort to be sneaky and to hear where Himawari could be shuffling about.

>You finally hear rustling sounds nearby. You temporarily activate your camo just in case it's Yuuka...
>You go towards the origin of the rustling sounds and break through a wall of sunflowers, and see a patch of grass with no sunflowers growing on it, even though you're still in the field. And the person standing in front of you isn't Yuuka, but the fairy you've been looking for. What a relief!

>Himawari is startled by your sudden appearance as you turn off your camo.
>"Phew. It's just you." she says relieved. "This field is so nice, I kinda wanted to get lost in it for a while. Oh, did you wanna tell me something?"



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 11, 2014, 11:42:42 AM
>"Well, I was going to ask how I managed to hear that youkai girl that came out of the sunflowers yawning earlier from so far away, but I think now I want to warn you that I've heard she can be very dangerous. We should probably leave so she doesn't get angry about us being here."
>"We were going to go meet up with your friend by the lake, right?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 11, 2014, 11:59:28 AM
>"Well, I was going to ask how I managed to hear that youkai girl that came out of the sunflowers yawning earlier from so far away, but I think now I want to warn you that I've heard she can be very dangerous. We should probably leave so she doesn't get angry about us being here."
>"We were going to go meet up with your friend by the lake, right?"

>"Huh? What did she look like?"

>"And yeah, we'll meet my pal if she's there."


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 11, 2014, 12:04:18 PM
>Do we know which direction is directly out of the flower field, and which direction has the Kazami Yuuka?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 11, 2014, 12:09:32 PM
>Do we know which direction is directly out of the flower field, and which direction has the Kazami Yuuka?
>West, south and east are obvious exits. You saw Yuuka on the west side, outside of the sunflower field.


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 11, 2014, 12:45:17 PM
>"Let's go. Stay quiet, and no sudden movements. I'll explain when we're in a safer place."
>Go southeast.
>Do we know how to powerup playable characters; is it simply by orbiting them?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 12, 2014, 02:50:13 PM


>"Let's go. Stay quiet, and no sudden movements. I'll explain when we're in a safer place."

>"Fine, don't tell me who it was, then."

>Go southeast


>You decide that you don't want to hear more pouting from Hima, so you start heading towards southeast in the sunflower field. The fairy follows closely behind you as you make your way through the sunflowers with her.

>Eventually, you reach the edge of the field and break through one last wall of sunflowers demarcating the field from its surroundings. There's someone standing in front of you a couple arm lengths away...!?
>...how did she...

>You hear Himawari finally coming through the flower wall behind you. "Hey Orby, we cleaAAAAAHHHH?!"
>Judging from the thump you heard soon after her exclamation of surprise, your fairy companion must've been startled so bad that she jolted backwards and came down crashing. But you don't feel like turning around to check her condition, because the someone standing straight ahead of you both is Yuuka!

>"My, my. What is a cute fairy doing here all alone, I wonder?", the flower youkai inquires. Her parasol casts a shadow over her eyes. You can only tell that she is smiling...




>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 13, 2014, 03:39:58 AM
>The strong ones are always smiling. Shit.
>... no, trying to bluff into intimidating Yuuka would be a bad idea. Our best bet is to guide Hima into not saying dumb things.
>"Feeling curious while going to visit her friend."
>Can Yuuka hear us, even if she can't see us?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 16, 2014, 07:45:28 PM
>The strong ones are always smiling. Shit.

>That phrase certainly does have truth to it in Gensokyo!



>"Feeling curious while going to visit her friend."
>Can Yuuka hear us, even if she can't see us?

>You "speak", but Yuuka doesn't seem to react in any way to you. If she heard you, you would've expected her to glance at you at the very least. Talking orbs are unusual.
>You're pretty sure that Yuuka can see you. As to why she considers Himawari to be alone currently, maybe she thinks you're her familiar or something like that? You didn't exactly spot any other fairies nearby.

>"Y-yeah... I... I'm just passing by." That was Himawari's voice. Sounds like she just imitated your line because she was unable to think of anything better to say to Yuuka. "Um... sorry, but I've places to go. N-now."
>Since Yuuka seems to be way more concentrated on the fairy than you currently, you decide to pivot to check Hima's condition. Huh, she really did trip herself. She gently picks up herself off the ground by utilizing her wings.

>"Oh, I can take your word for it.", says the smiling flower youkai standing before you two. "It doesn't matter if you're lying or not, I couldn't care less even if you did something to the sunflowers in the field."
>She steps towards Hima, and Hima backs off a little in response. She walks past Hima to get close to the edge of the sunflower field, almost invading Hima's personal space. Needless to say, Himawari looks quite terrified to have Yuuka even closer to her.

>Yuuka grasps one of the slightly taller than her sunflowers by its stalk and tilts her head up a bit to look at its flower head.
>"I'm embarrassed that I took a nap amidst these sunflowers. I was fooled by their attractiveness. I thought I had found admirable flowers. However..."
>The sunflower she's grasping suddenly starts drooping from its flower head. Its yellow petals dry up and turn brown before your figurative eyes. Yuuka releases her hold on the sunflower, and it falls limp on ground all withered up.
>"...it's all superficial. The sunflowers here are worthless, they're nothing but husks covered by misleading beauty. They're not deserving of my love."
>She steps on the dead sunflower with her sturdy boot, digging it into ground with her heel. She also turns her head to stare at Himawari. She's still got that smile that makes you feel uneasy about her...
>"They are weak and despicable, just like you are, Miss Fairy. Fufufu~♥"

>You bet Himawari, as a fairy, normally wouldn't just stand there and tolerate mockery like that, but she probably fears there's something worse than murder waiting for her if she is to incite Yuuka's wrath.

>"Ah... Just why am I talking to a fairy, anyway? This heat must be getting in my head as well..." She lets out a deep sigh. She then backs off and turns away from the sunflower field, before letting out a very loud yawn rivaling the one you heard from her earlier. Geez, how can somebody even yawn that loud?

>"Oh my. To top it all off, I didn't even get enough sleep while lying in that field. I would really like to see someone burn it down into a pile of ashes."

>She keeps speaking to you with her back turned to you both. "Now... weren't you supposed to be just passing by? What are you waiting for? Go."




>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 17, 2014, 02:10:22 AM
>"C'mon Himawari, let's go!"
>Fly away, assuming our fairy does the same.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 17, 2014, 07:02:06 AM
>"C'mon Himawari, let's go!"
>Fly away, assuming our fairy does the same.

>She doesn't hesitate, unsurprisingly. Hima follows your high-speed flight near ground level.  You're still not confident that she can fly high in her current condition, so you decide to stick near ground while flying.
>You head towards west from the southern end of the sunflower field, as far away as possible from Yuuka. You're close to the edge of the western forest now.

>Pivoting around, you notice that Himawari is sitting on the ground. She topples over to her right side and assumes a fetal position. Well, almost a perfect fetal position, but her left arm isn't working.
>"...horrible. I... I t-thought that old trout w-was gonna h-h-hurt me bad..."
>Her voice is wavering and although her head is bowed in hard, you can tell that there are tears forming up in her eyes.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 17, 2014, 10:11:33 AM
>"She scared me, too. Are you okay? We can take a break if you need it."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 17, 2014, 10:18:47 AM
>"She scared me, too. Are you okay? We can take a break if you need it."

>"I.. I'd really l-love a hug right now.. if that's okay."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 17, 2014, 10:25:27 AM
>"I don't have arms but I'll do my best."
>Gently nuzzle our fairy's torso.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 17, 2014, 09:42:30 PM
>"I don't have arms but I'll do my best."
>Gently nuzzle our fairy's torso.

>You float closer to Hima. She starts to slowly wind out of her fetal position, and before long she is sitting wariza style on the grass.

>With tears still glistening in her eyes, she wraps her right arm around your spherical body and embraces you tightly against her chest. You can feel that her heart is still beating wildly after that uncomfortable encounter with Yuuka.
>"You're warm...", she says under her breath.

>You figure that you should make up for your lack of arms by tenderly nuzzling against Hima's torso. You do so, and in response, you hear Hima let out a barely audible whimper.
>"This... this is getting a bit weird, isn't it?"
>She lets go of you, and upon hearing what she just said you respectfully back off a little from her.

>She keeps sitting still on the grass, avoiding looking at you for a couple of seconds before opening her mouth again: "Thanks... now, let's continue our journey... right?"
>It seems like she's gaining her composure back, since her voice is no longer wavering. Sounds like she's speaking with a lower volume than she usually does, though. Still, you'd rate this a very successful hug.




>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 18, 2014, 01:28:38 AM
>"To the lake then."
>Can we power someone up by orbiting them?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 18, 2014, 03:22:16 AM
>"To be fair, it's been a bit weird ever since you were able to hear me."
>"Though that isn't always a bad thing, is it?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 19, 2014, 05:32:02 PM
>"To be fair, it's been a bit weird ever since you were able to hear me."
>"Though that isn't always a bad thing, is it?"

>She nods lightly. "Guess not..."



>Can we power someone up by orbiting them?

>You're a sentient being, not a power-up! If you were to try to power up someone, you'd imagine it involves more than just orbiting them. And you don't really know what exactly. But who knows, you might just be able to give a placebo effect to someone gullible if you orbit them!


>"To the lake then."

>As it is still not a good idea for Himawari to fly, you plunge into the western forest, this time letting Himawari lead the way. You don't want her to wander off again while you're not looking after her.

>You make your way through the forest with Hima. After a much longer time than it took to get through the forest between the sunflower field and the grassy field where you got beaten up by Reimu, you notice that it's starting to get misty around you.
>Going through that forest was a bit boring, actually. You two didn't spot a single fairy or youkai, or any creature for that matter. And the forest seemed to be coping well with the heat. No anomalies either, since it isn't Forest of Magic, just a plain ol' coniferous forest.

>It seems like you've left the forest behind. You can see a lakeshore straight ahead, which is covered by sedges and various wetland flowers. The visibility is tolerable here, except when going towards the lake, since a thick wall of fog floating offshore prevents you from seeing anything but the shore and its immediate shallow waters.
>If this place isn't Misty Lake, then you are the Dragon!




>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 19, 2014, 06:29:23 PM
>Fondly regard creation.
>"This place is really foggy."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 19, 2014, 09:23:10 PM
>Fondly regard creation.

>'Fondly regard creation' is currently an unavailable action. We are sorry for the inconvenience caused. Here's a crustacean to fondly regard, so that you may alleviate your pain and suffering.

>"This place is really foggy."

>"Yup, it's about the time of day when things get REAL foggy here." You notice that Hima is scanning her surroundings.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 20, 2014, 03:52:07 AM
>"Where would your friend be right now?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 20, 2014, 06:52:27 AM
>"Where would your friend be right now?"

>"Somewhere near my stash, I bet. Would be nice if she's there now."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 20, 2014, 07:00:15 AM
>"You don't look like you have a 'stache."

>"Do you remember where it is?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 20, 2014, 10:21:26 AM
>"You don't look like you have a 'stache."
>You feel silly saying that to Hima, haven't you even noticed that she has one? Its size makes many politicians of the past and 80s English policemen feel inadequate about their facial hair. We're talking about a 'stache so large that when Himawari walks through a doorway, you'll first see only her 'stache for a couple of seconds while it arduously squeezes through the doorway, closely followed by the fairy. Absolutely humongous. Damnit, if only that parser hadn't omitted that detail while describing Himawari, you wouldn't feel so silly right now! Man, you don't even know what color her eyes are.

>"Do you remember where it is?"

>She smirks. "Heh. 'course I do. Follow me."
>She starts moving towards north along the shore, but she stays away from the flowers and sedges. You think it's north, since she's going right if you look towards the lake. You assume this is the east side of the lake, since you came from east... hard to say where the cardinal directions are right now, since it's misty and foggy.


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 20, 2014, 04:25:10 PM
>Follow the fairy.
>What color are her eyes?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 20, 2014, 05:07:05 PM
>What color are her eyes?

>They're amber.

>Follow the fairy.

>You follow Hima. Again, there's not really any other fairies in sight, but that's only good right now since you're going to the place where Hima hides her possessions.
>Hima stops and looks to her left. On her left, there's a large boulder amidst the sedges and flowers. It looks rather out of place on the lakeside, for some reason.
>Himawari gestures towards the forest, which is now on your right. "This way."

>She guides you in the forest for a while until she comes to a halt under a large spruce. Well, all the trees here are large, so it isn't really a point of interest. She quickly checks that there's no-one else around but you, and then goes around the spruce and shows you a mound covered by the spruce's low-hanging branches and overgrown moss.
>She carefully shifts the hanging branches out of the way and brushes aside some of the moss, revealing that the mound is infact a very well camouflaged rotten log. She sticks her arm into the gaping hole on the rotten log and reaches inside it, and pulls out a large messenger bag. It reminds you of the one which that farseer fairy back then had. You wonder if that fairy perished while fighting against Reimu.

>"Oh, you wanna see what I got in this, right?"



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 20, 2014, 06:43:13 PM
>"Orbs don't really have possessions. Except for Crazy Yang."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 23, 2014, 09:50:30 PM
>"Orbs don't really have possessions. Except for Crazy Yang."

>"I can see why..." She giggles at you. You find that giggling a bit offensive. It's not your fault that you don't have limbs to manipulate objects with.
>"Anyway, just take a look. It can't hurt to know what I got. Also, ask me about my stuff if you want to, I'll try to answer. "

>She opens the messenger bag and begins unloading its contents on the ground.

>HIMAWARI'S INVENTORY

>Compact spade: A spade with a steel blade fastened with two screws into a short wooden handle. It's in a deteriorated condition. Its blade seems to have sharpened edges, if somebody swings this around or throws it, they might hurt someone real bad! Aside from that, it would probably make a great gardening tool.

>Glass flask: A nondescript spherical glass flask with a bottleneck. Inside the flask, you see small balls with tiny bulges on them. The balls sport various different colors: red, green, yellow, blue... There's a white label with something written on it with black ink, but unfortunately, you are illiterate and thus cannot read the label.

>Paper fan: A typical fan made out of washi paper. This one is white, with a red circle adorning its middle section on both sides when the fan is unfolded.

>Huge leaf: This appears to be a birch leaf roughly the size of a human adult's head. Aside from its size, there's an another peculiar thing about this leaf: there are three semi-transculent green orbs orbiting each other atop the centre of the leaf. You've absolutely no idea what this thing could be, but it's definitely magical from the looks of it!

>Small bag: You do not know what's inside this small bag made out of burlap, since Hima didn't actually open it for you.

>Koku coins: Minted golden coins with a square cut off their middle. This is an obsolute currency, you're slightly confused why Himawari has a reasonable pile of these coins.

>Straw hat: A bowl-shaped straw hat with a chin strap. It looks exactly like the hat which traveling Buddhist monks wear. Thanks to its size and shape, it can partially cover one's face. You're pretty sure Himawari could wear this without looking too comical, since she has very human proportions.




>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on February 24, 2014, 05:02:32 AM
>"I get the feeling I'm going to want some explanation for most of these. I think I can guess at the story behind the fan and the hat, but the rest I'm not sure I understand. Is the spade just for digging, or...?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on February 24, 2014, 06:27:39 PM
>Would the hat fit our head body self?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Cheez8 on February 24, 2014, 06:39:23 PM
> "Wow. That is one cool leaf. Where did you find that?"
(assuming Hima hasn't just told us where she found it, that is)
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on February 28, 2014, 10:48:57 PM
>"I get the feeling I'm going to want some explanation for most of these. I think I can guess at the story behind the fan and the hat, but the rest I'm not sure I understand. Is the spade just for digging, or...?"

>"Yeah, I got the hat off some humie chump walking down a road. He really didn't see me coming with that hat over his eyes, hahaha!" She looks pretty smug there. While this fairy sports an unusually high drive for self-preservation in your opinion, she hasn't forgotten to take pride in committing petty theft.

>Hima picks up the spade.
>"Sure, you can dig ground with this..." She brandishes her sharp spade at you. "...but you can also dig into a jerk with it and dig a grave for them afterwards!"
>Can you even come up with something cornier than that? She laughs a little to herself, but quickly stops.
>"Just kidding! Anyway... wasn't me who sharpened this. Found it while dawdling in one of the forests next to the Lake. Looks like it's been left outside for a looong time. Wonder how nobody had picked it up before me." She gently presses her finger against the sharpened right side of the spade blade, testing its edge. "Probably hasn't seen much use. Ain't gone dull at all."

>"Okay, lemme tell you about this other stuff, then."
>She drops her compact spade and picks up the paper fan.
>"Grabbed this from a house porch near the humie rice terraces. This heat makes you do desperate things, ya kno~w..." She fans herself so hard that her dark red hair bangs lift up. You wonder why she even bothers to try to justify her thievery, nobody is going to come and apprehend a fairy for their crimes.

>She folds the fan and puts it back on the ground, and then grabs the flask.
>"I was heading back after finding that paper fan, when I happened to run into this! I saw a humie merchant pulling his decked out cart while I was near a trail. He sure was in a hurry! This flask fell off his cart..." She points at the koku coins and small bag while still holding on to the flask. "...and also those, too."
>"But am I lucky! Those merchants aren't dumb, ya know. They put their most shiny things in middle of their carts while on the move, so you can't just zoom past a cart and hope to grab anything cool. You'll only end up jacking a broom head if you do that! And those merchants are no joke, they can fight fairies back!"
>Hima shakes the flask and watches the colorful balls with tiny bulges tumble around inside it.
>"Anyway, dunno what these things inside this are."




> "Wow. That is one cool leaf. Where did you find that?"
(assuming Hima hasn't just told us where she found it, that is)


>"It's from the edge of that one stupid forest... Forest of Magic, or whatever they call it. That place is a real mess."
>Himawari takes a good hard look at the leaf and contemplates as well as a fairy can. But in the end, she shrugs.
>"Another one to my list of things I can't figure out.", she begrudgingly admits.



>Would the hat fit our head body self?


>I'm surprised that you didn't ask if it fits on chest!
>Hey, now that you think about it, it would actually fit on top of you quite well. Wearing it could help you develop a stronger sense of individuality, perhaps?



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on March 01, 2014, 05:44:38 AM
>Hat's not strictly necessary... well, let's try it on and see what Hima thinks of it, at least.
>"What about the bag, if you're willing to say?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on March 01, 2014, 08:42:05 AM
>Hat's not strictly necessary... well, let's try it on and see what Hima thinks of it, at least.

>Try it on how? You're going to need someone's help with this daunting task that requires limbs!


>"What about the bag, if you're willing to say?"


>She gives a glance to the small burlap bag. "Oh, right. The coins that fell from the cart were in that bag. I emptied it and filled it after that with unhusked rice cuz I need my shiny things within arm's reach."



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on March 01, 2014, 09:10:51 AM
>How does our black and white pattern correspond to sensory or internal organs? Do orbs use mirrors?
>"These are some impressive items you have collected Hima."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on March 02, 2014, 06:48:35 AM
>Ask Hima if she wants to help us with the hat and what she thinks of the look.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on March 05, 2014, 12:33:59 AM
>How does our black and white pattern correspond to sensory or internal organs? Do orbs use mirrors?

>You don't know if your appearance has anything to do with how your senses function.

>As a matter of fact, you do have seen your own reflection. You're red and white instead of black and white, unlike those Hakurei orbs.



>Ask Hima if she wants to help us with the hat and what she thinks of the look.


>You ask Himawari if she's willing to help you with your overwhelming task of equipping the straw hat.
>She blinks at your request, but gives you an affirmative response nevertheless: "Yeah, sure!"
>She picks up the straw hat that must've been stolen from a Buddhist monk and starts lowering it on top of your head body.

>Suddenly, she pulls back the bowl-shaped hat that was just about to touch you and clutches it against her flat chest!

>"Hah, nope! This hat's mine!"
>Hmm. Seems like she's taken a liking to that hat.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on March 05, 2014, 01:01:34 AM
>"That's probably for the best. If I dropped your hat I wouldn't even be able to pick it back up."
>"Should we look for your friend?"

>How old are we?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on March 06, 2014, 08:23:50 AM
@O4rfish: I just noticed I missed your second input there. Sorry for that. Don't know why my brain skipped that line and went straight for Mus' post.



>"That's probably for the best. If I dropped your hat I wouldn't even be able to pick it back up."

>"That's right! Not that I'd let you wear this hat anyway, ha!", she winks and smirks.



>"Should we look for your friend?"


>Before you even get the chance to ask this question, Himawari is already in middle of packing her items back in the bag.
>"Yeah, we oughta." She stops packing for a moment to look around. "Well, didn't spot her here... bet she's somewhere near that place on the lakeside where we were just at."


>How old are we?

>You're unable to quantify your age, since you don't exactly keep a calendar of any kind. However, the earliest things you remember from your life date back to the times of the Scarlet Mist Incident. As for your parents, you are unable to determine how much older they are than you. It certainly doesn't help how they're nowhere to be found anymore.





>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on March 06, 2014, 11:11:07 AM
>What colors were our parents, and do we have any special way to tell orbs apart?
>"Ok, ready to go?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on March 06, 2014, 05:22:59 PM
>"What's your friend look like?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on March 10, 2014, 08:08:09 AM
>What colors were our parents, and do we have any special way to tell orbs apart?

>They were red and white, just like you are.
>As orbs do not have facial features or anything else that would make identification easier, it is quite hard to tell orbs apart from each other with only sight. The fact that pretty much every orb is of the same size complicates things even further, the only exception you're aware of were your parents. They were very large orbs, taller and wider than humans. Your parents truly were great in every sense of the word, weren't they...

>However, if you hear an orb's "voice", and even if they're near other orbs, you can tell them apart from the other orbs present. While the "talking" of orbs sounds like normal speech, it shouldn't be forgotten that this "talking" doesn't produce an actual, physical voice. It is entirely a psychic process as far as you know. Now, as for how to proceed with precisely explaining how you can tell orbs apart by listening to their "talking", you unfortunately do not know. But if there was a group of orbs with exactly same colors and voices, you're positive that you could tell them all apart by listening to the imponderables in their 'voice'



>"Ok, ready to go?"

>After finishing her packing, Himawari slings her messenger bag over her shoulders and leaves it hanging behind her. She left quite some slack on the strap, presumably so that she can quickly swing the bag in front of her to access her inventory.

>"Yup, let's go look for her."


>"What's your friend look like?"

>"Ehh? Didn't I already tell you? She's got a light blue dress, long narrow wings and a weird hair style. About as tall as me."


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on March 10, 2014, 08:29:42 AM
>Follow Hima.
>Do we have any hobbies or special traits, other than not following the path of the warrior?
inb4 that's the player's job to decide
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Hanzo K. on March 10, 2014, 02:08:50 PM
>"...Right. It's been a weird day after all."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on March 10, 2014, 07:23:58 PM
>Do we have any hobbies or special traits, other than not following the path of the warrior?

>You do have an ambition.

>Since you couldn't follow in footsteps (figurative) of your parents, you've given up on following the way of the warrior. Instead, you now believe that your destiny lies elsewhere. You want to become something greater than a mere Yin-Yang Orb. Your desire is to transcend this body, breaking free from all of your shackles and constraints binding you down. As a sentient and sapient creature, you deserve the ability to experience the world around yourself to the fullest, without any of your current bodily limitations! By transcending this spherical form of yours, you believe that you can surpass even your parents in greatness.

>If there's anything right now that comes close to being counted as a hobby for you, there's this thing where you've got your hands fu-... there's this thing where you're busy helping this fairy with her investigation of the prevailing heat in Gensokyo. You've got a hunch that hanging too much around fairies is probably going to take a toll on your mental well-being in the long run, but you can't ignore the fact that fairies seem to be the only beings apart from orbs that can hear you "talk" right now, what with Yuuka being seemingly unable to hear you during that scary encounter.




>Follow Hima.

>Before you both leave, Hima recamouflages the rotten log. You do have to admit that her stash is hidden quite well, how does she remember every single time where it is when she wants to access it?
>You head back lakewards with her, making sure to trail behind her so that you can keep an eye on her. You're still cautious with her, since she has demonstrated that she won't hesitate to wander off to places for no particular reason whenever she wants to.



>"...Right. It's been a weird day after all."


>"Yeah. Today, I met a talking orb, and the flower lady didn't break my bones one by one. This heat is making everyone weird!" She puts her hands behind her head and sort of half-reclines in the air while levitating forwards with the power of her wings, and sighs. "Wonder if my pal's okay..."
>You pull up next to her side to have a look at her face. You can tell she's looking worried, even from just the profile of her face.


>Soon, the coniferous trees around you disappear, and mist and fog encircles you. The familiar sedges and wetland flowers of Misty Lake sprout near the waterline. You're back to the lakeshore with Himawari.

>This time, there's fairies gathered around here. It looks like they're up to typical fairy shenanigans. It's quite hard to tell what exactly each fairy is doing here with all the chaos going on, but you think there's fairies engaged in mock martial arts fights in middle of all this hustle and bustle, since their punches, kicks and chops are accompanied by exaggerated yells. You also see a bunch of fairies gathered around a quite smug-looking fairy holding a big catfish.

>"Alright," Himawari says to you, "let's start looking for her 'round this crowd. She's gonna stick out like a sore thumb if she's here. You cover that side, okay?"




>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: E-Nazrin on March 11, 2014, 03:00:10 AM
>"How should we find each other once one of us finds her?"
>How likely is it for us to get in trouble with the fairies around here?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on March 11, 2014, 09:51:11 AM
>"How should we find each other once one of us finds her?"

>"You don't need to 'cover that side', I just wanted to say it because it sounds cool, haha!" Hima grins in that supremely obnoxious fairy way of grinning.

>"You can stick with me, this crowd ain't too big to sift through together. And if we somehow lose track of each other, um... go to that big rock over there." She points to the large boulder by the lake, which you saw earlier.



>How likely is it for us to get in trouble with the fairies around here?

>Unlikely. You've seen bored fairies before, and those didn't bother to annoy you. Orbs just aren't as fun to bugger as other fairies or humans. You don't think Himawari is going to get in trouble here... maybe.



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Captain Infinity on March 12, 2014, 12:37:56 PM
>Commence the search for our fairy's buddy as planned.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on March 12, 2014, 08:13:12 PM
>Commence the search for our fairy's buddy as planned.

>You agree to stick together with Hima while searching for her friend.

>You circle around the fairy crowd with her, luckily, she hasn't picked a fight or done anything similarly troublesome yet. She seems more concerned about finding her friend right now.
>Soon, you spot a fairy who stands out from the rest of the fairies. Quite literally, too, since she's near the edge of the crowd. She dons a light blue dress, four long narrow transparent wings arranged like if she was a dragonfly and a rather strange hair style. Numerous pigtails sprout throughout her short black hair, you can count six from this angle. She matches the characteristics Himawari gave you about her friend pretty well.
>Speaking of Hima, it appears that she didn't spot that fairy, since she's already about to move on...





>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Hanzo K. on March 12, 2014, 08:54:12 PM
>"Uh, that her?" Indicate the fairy in question however best we can.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on March 12, 2014, 09:00:51 PM
>After saying this, fly over to the fairy.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on May 01, 2014, 09:12:28 PM
Parser's note: I'm back to working on this. What originally was a minor writer's block resulting from not being able to come up with a name for Himawari's pal inevitably became a major writer's block as I kept pushing the deadline for writing up further and further, but that block has now been shattered into a million pieces. I can't forgive myself for one and half month worth of updates never happening due to this hiatus, so let's press on!







>"Uh, that her?" Indicate the fairy in question however best we can.

>You manage to make Himawari look over her shoulder back to you, and also elicit a "Hm?" from her. You've got her attention now.

>After saying this, fly over to the fairy.

>You start flying towards the fairy, thinking that Hima will surely notice the fairy she's been looking for while tracking your movements.
>"Mica!", you hear Hima shout behind you as you advance towards her friend.
>Hima zooms past you, rocketing headfirst towards the fairy in a light blue dress. She cancels her arrowlike flight into a skillfully timed front flip and employs her wings as airbrakes, effectively killing her momentum as she lands on her feet 5 feet away from her fairy friend. Hadn't Hima done that maneuver, her poor friend would've got headbutted in the chest by her!

>"Yo, Mica!", Himawari greets the fairy whose name is Mica by getting closer to her and slamming her right arm on Mica's shoulder. "Haven't seen you in a while."
>"O-oh... It's you, Himawari." It goes without saying that Mica was pretty startled at first when she turned her head and saw this Himarocket heading straight towards her, but she's looking much more relieved now that she's figured out that it's her friend: "Phew, I thought I was going to get swooped in all this silliness that's going on around here right now..."
>"Sorry for making you jump there, I felt like doing that. Gotta lighten up my mood some more, today ain't the best day I've had...", Hima stares at her own left arm which she still doesn't seem to be able to move.
>"...what happened to your left arm?"
>"Got in a fight with red-white, with a lot of others. Didn't end up well for any of us, even though it was an ambush. Didn't die though, heh!" Hima jolts backwards a little when Mica tries to touch her left arm. "Don't touch it, still hurts."
>"Ah, sorry...", Mica apologizes even though she didn't manage to touch Himawari's arm.

>"Don't worry about it, it's the only part that hurts anymore." Hima lifts her gaze from her left arm to make eye contact with Mica. "Anyway, what's up? Anyone called you fountain-hair lately?"
>"Huh? No, not at all. Why?"
>"Cuz if some jerks been calling you a fountain-hair round these parts, I'll punch 'em in the snout so hard that they'll need to respawn a couple times before they've got all their teeth back in places!", Himawari clenches her right fist and brandishes it towards the crowd of fairies who don't seem to be paying much attention to any of you.
>"Um... I don't think you need to do that to anyone." Mica lets out a sigh. "I haven't done much else today other than looked for you around the Lake, I'm glad that I found you finally. I've wanted to talk to someone about what has been going on lately. But first..." Mica shifts her gaze to you.  "...do you know what this orb has been doing here this whole time we've talked?"

>Himawari's eyes start glittering: "Oh! That's my new buddy! I saw it getting kicked from reaaally high up by the red-white during that fight, and there was this big boom when it hit the ground! I went to check on the hole it left and it was still there in one piece! It couldn't move after that for a while, though, so I saved it by lifting it out from the bottom of the hole! After that, we've been sticking together all the way to here!"
>Himawari clenches her right fist again and waves it in the air: "But this Orby ain't just any orb..." With lightning speed, Hima changes her fistwaving gesture into a gesture of pointing at you! "...cuz this one can TALK!"
>"Come on, say hello to it!", Hima tries to encourage Mica who seems to be a bit doubtful about this whole deal.
>"A talking orb... really?"

>Mica's expression is a combination of doubt and a perception of being ridiculed as she looks at you before greeting you:
>"Uh... hi?"


Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on May 01, 2014, 09:43:24 PM
>Consider not saying anything just to mess with Himawari.

>"Hello Mica. Nice to meet you."

>Can we rotate ourself perpendicular to our viewing axis, so we stay looking at something but make the pattern spin around? If so, try to do so.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on May 02, 2014, 02:31:46 PM
>Consider not saying anything just to mess with Himawari.

>Considering how she messed with you when you wanted to wear that hat, it wouldn't be unjust to countermess with Himawari. You were close to making a Yin-Yang orb fashion statement...

>Can we rotate ourself perpendicular to our viewing axis, so we stay looking at something but make the pattern spin around? If so, try to do so.

>Yes, this is pretty much how a Yin-Yang Orb can focus its vision on something while spinning. However, since your viewing axis is constrained on a horizontal axis, this obviously doesn't work at all when vertically spinning.

>"Hello Mica. Nice to meet you."

>You give Mica your greetings while trying out your spinning thing. To your relief, you still find yourself able to focus your vision on a point while spinning. Guess Reimu didn't kick that ability out of you to make space for the ability to talk, heh.

>Mica blinks twice at you, she's clearly surprised...
>"W-wow... you weren't joking. It really does talk!"
>You glance over to Himawari, and notice that she's wearing the hat stolen from a monk. You're not sure when she managed to grab it out of her bag.
>"Hehehe... as expected from me, right? I find cool loot and cool other things, like this orb!"
>Hima grabs her bowl-like straw hat by the front ledge and tips it to cover her face.
>"I'm a dealer of cool.", she claims, looking all smug. Probably. It's hard for you to tell what's her expression, since she made the hat obstruct her face.

>"Cool, huh...", says Mica who strokes one of her pigtails. "Well, that's what gave me the idea to start looking for you around the Lake. I thought this heat would make you show up here sooner or later, since it's always cooler here than in the surrounding area due to Cirno." She stops playing with her hair.

>"Yup, at first I thought I should hang 'round here for a while to cool off, but then I remembered about..."
>Himawari quickdraws the folded paper fan from her bag with one slick movement of her right arm.
>"...THIS!", she shouts, raising the folded paper fan above her head, before unfolding it with a flick of wrist, revealing its red circle against a white background.
>Looking at Mica after that, you can almost imagine a massive sweatdrop forming on the side of her head.
>"You're really acting out every thing you do today, aren't you...", Mica notes.

>"Oh, c'mon." Hima gives a sort of disappointed look at Mica. "I told you I'm havin' a bad day, I need to balance it out!"
>"'Sides, I'm hyped for the start of our investigation!" Hima shoots a glance at you and gives you the good ol' fairy grin, before returning her view to Mica.
>"Investigation?", Mica raises an eyebrow.
>"Yeah! You know, an investigation for what's up with this heat!" Hima clears her throat. "Not that kind of 'investigation' red-white and the others do, tho. Orby and I ain't so stupid to think that we've got enough power to go around beating strong people up for clues. Not when it's just us two, at least!"

>Mica blinks and slowly nods to Himawari. "Oh, okay. So you're doing that Incident-solving thing, sort of? Well, you can count me out of it."
>"Boo~", Himawari playfully protests over Mica's pre-emptive refusal to join your party. "Oh well, I was expecting that. You always lack fairy power, really~"
>Mica doesn't respond to Hima, but instead stares at the ground for a few seconds.
>"Still... I can help you get started, I think."
>"Hm?"
>"You know, now that I think about it... It feels like it isn't any cooler near the lake right now than anywhere else, even though it should be." Mica grabs her right arm by the upper arm with her left hand and finally shifts her gaze from the ground up to Himawari. "In fact... it kinda feels like it's gotten even hotter while we've been talking here."
>Hima nods and fans herself with her paper fan. "Hum... that's odd. It really does feel like it's getting hotter..."

>You're not sure if Himawari and Mica have noticed it yet, but the fairy crowd next to you seems to have gotten even rowdier than when you arrived here. The tension building between the fairies in that crowd is almost tangible for you...
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on May 02, 2014, 08:24:05 PM
>"Girls, maybe we should start moving away from the crowd."
>Can we talk to multiple orbs or fairies at once? If not, say that to Himawari.
>Start floating in the direction away from the cloud of fairies.

>What gender are we?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on June 22, 2014, 10:07:53 PM
Ookay. This time, for real.


Quote from: O4rfish
What gender are we?


>Gender really doesn't apply to you as well as it does for other beings. Orbs are notable for their nearly uniform appearance and lack of obvious biological features. You don't care if you're addressed as an 'it' or a 'they', and neither if somebody thinks you're a 'he' or 'she'.


Quote from: O4rfish
Can we talk to multiple orbs or fairies at once?

>You shouldn't have problems concentrating on "talking" to Hima and Mica at the same time, since they're both in plain sight and close to you.


>"Girls, maybe we should start moving away from the crowd."
>Start floating in the direction away from the cloud of fairies.

>Both Hima and Mica seem to react to your "talking". Success.
>"Yeah, was just about to say...", Himawari says. "These folks look reeeal dumb. Let's move." Thankfully, Himawari is also interested in distancing herself from the crowd of rowdy fairies.

>You begin floating away from the fairy crowd, and by rotating your viewing axis to look behind yourself you make sure that Himawari and Mica really are following you. After gaining enough separation from the fairy crowd, you halt and judge that your current position will give you plenty time to react in case something really does spark up in the fairy crowd.

>Hima and Mica follow your suit and halt as well.
>"Much better here. Sooo, Mica, what ya been up to lately?", Himawari asks.
>Mica slightly tilts her head. "Didn't you already ask that question from me?"
>"Uh, what? No, I-"
>Himawari's sentence is cut short by a small glowing blue orb narrowly whiffing past her head. A small gust of wind brought by the orb bullet's high velocity causes Hima's dark red hair to flail around briefly before she finally jolts:
>"Whoah! The heck, buddy!?", she shouts out to the crowd as she jumps and ascends with her wings a couple ten feet up in to the air.
>That bullet caught you completely off guard. You barely heard a loud danmaku firing noise coming from the direction of the fairy crowd before the bullet was already speeding past Himawari!

>You orient yourself to take a look at the current situation in the crowd.  In mere seconds, the rowdy crowd of fairies has turned into an angry mob of fairies engaged in a free-for-all brawl. Bullets emerge sporadically from the chaos of the fight and fly off in random directions, including yours. You've no idea how these fairies are missing shots at point blank range. Some of the fairies outright vanish in a small flash of light upon receiving danmaku-infused punches to their body, while others fall limp and twitch in the lakeside grass, vulnerable to trampling. Every fairy is fighting to the death, no-one seems to be attempting to escape.

>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Hanzo K. on June 22, 2014, 10:34:18 PM
>Stare blankly for a bit, then do whatever passes for a bemused shrug for orbs. "Well girls. any, uh, idea what caused that? Did the heat just fry their brains or something?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on June 23, 2014, 12:09:36 AM
>"Let's move farther away."
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Failure McFailFace on June 23, 2014, 12:33:09 AM
>"Let's move farther away."
>"Very far."

>What is our body structure? Is it basically invincible, since we got attacked by Reimu before?

[Clarification]
Also:
>You haven't. You do fill the criteria of being a Yin-Yang Orb, but you're red and white instead of black and white like Hakurei Shrine orbs are. Then again, you aren't sure if Reimu discriminates based on color.
Reimu in EoSD, PCB, and MoF to TD (Farthest I can confirm) have a red Ying-Yang orb in the sprite sheets:
EoSD
(http://i.imgur.com/Kdz1SrZ.png)

PCB
(http://i.imgur.com/nd7kWni.png)

MoF
(http://i.imgur.com/4c2c7W1.png)
Everything after MoF is the same, but with different shots.

So, it's completely possible for this specific Ying-Yang Orb to fit in easily. (In game, at least)
[/clarification]
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Failure McFailFace on June 24, 2014, 11:00:23 PM
I think I just killed this
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on July 02, 2014, 01:58:24 PM
>"Has this sort of thing happened before?"
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on July 12, 2014, 08:29:21 AM
[Clarification][/clarification]

Reimu's multicolored option graphics in the shmups != the original bouncy youkai facebreaking black and white Hakurei YYO.



>What is our body structure? Is it basically invincible, since we got attacked by Reimu before?


>You're far from invulnerable. Your lack of limbs, muscles, bones, tendons and ligaments does help quite a lot to mitigate damage that would be crippling or fatal to a more biological creature. You're DEFINITELY capable of taking way more punishment than the average fairy, but you have your limits as well and you can still experience disabling pain.

>If Reimu really would've wanted to get completely rid of you back there, you're sure that she could've done it in a much less flashier way. You think it's that amulet which she slapped on you that made you feel the most pain, not necessarily the divekicksplosion.


>Stare blankly for a bit, then do whatever passes for a bemused shrug for orbs. "Well girls. any, uh, idea what caused that? Did the heat just fry their brains or something?"


>"Um, let's think about it somewhere that ain't here. This place sucks for talking!", Himawari shouts to make herself audible to you over all the danmaku noise while she jinks to the side in the air to dodge a bullet.


>"Let's move farther away."
>"Very far."


>"Yeah, let's do that!", Himawari yells.

>You take off along with Mica who hasn't said much about this whole brawl, probably because she was talking too quietly to be heard over all the noise, and rise to Hima's altitude of a couple ten feet. You begin flying as far away as possible from the angry fighting mob of fairies. You look around yourself and notice that both Mica and Hima are backdashing flying backwards so that they can react to any bullets coming this way. It's very unlikely for any stray bullet to hit any of you from this angle and distance, though.

>Soon, youreach the edge of the forest. You land near it, with Hima and Mica following your suit. You won't have to take cover from danmaku behind the trees or vegetation, since the fairies' bullets in the distance seem to lose velocity and then harmlessly drop on the ground instantly disappearing, or just outright fizzle in the air while still flying. You're certain that Hima and Mica have noticed this too, since they turn their backs to the crowd in the distance. From here, the mob of fairies is a barely visible silhouette in the sparse lakeshore mist.

>"Alright, this seems like a good enough place. Sooo... what were we gonna talk about?", Himawari shoots glances at you and Mica, and headtilts.


>"Has this sort of thing happened before?"


>"Nope! Never seen somethin' like that. I guess there's sometimes fairies that beat up other fairies to make 'em know who's the boss, but everybody but us just went crazy there!", Himawari tells.
>"Maybe it really does have something to do with the heat, like Orby said.", Mica says.
>"Whaddya mean?"
>"We fairies are close to nature, aren't we? Maybe things going on in the nature might affect us."
>"You saying the heat suddenly got everyone mad? Eh..."
>"Urgh... it's difficult for me to find words it.", Mica lets out a sigh. "But you'll agree that this heat doesn't feel entirely natural, right?"
>Himawari nods. "Actually... think I said somethin' close to that to Orby when we met."



>"Grr!"
>...? That didn't sound like Himawari or Mica... it sounded like someone vocalizing their frustration somewhere close to you.



>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Hanzo K. on July 12, 2014, 03:07:49 PM
>"Why, I do believe we've got yet another annoyed someone somewhere nearby."
>Are we currently capable of getting a bird's-eye view of this little area? if so; "Gimme a second to scan the area." And then proceed to do so.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on July 14, 2014, 08:38:04 PM
>"Why, I do believe we've got yet another annoyed someone somewhere nearby."

>"Gah, what now..", Himawari replies to you, annoyed that something is interrupting a conversation between her and Mica yet again.

>Mica looks around herself, but it doesn't seem like she's spotted anyone. "Oh, you heard someone as well? I don't see anyone nearby us."


>Are we currently capable of getting a bird's-eye view of this little area? if so; "Gimme a second to scan the area." And then proceed to do so.

>You're feeling perfectly capable, since you've had time to recover from that encounter with Reimu. On a related note, Hima looks to be doing just fine as well, apart from her still limp left arm.

>Himawari nods twice to your plan: "Gotcha. Gonna bet it's just some folk lookin' for trouble, but with all I've got into with ya today, I wouldn't be surprised if the red-white's coming for us for cheatin' death, heh!"

>"Let's help our orb friend by keeping a lookout as well, shall we? I'll look this way, you look that way.", Mica suggests to Himawari.
>Himawari hums in approval, before turning her back towards her friend. Mica turns likewise to cover her own sector.
>Hima backs up a little, causing her butterfly-like wings to brush against Mica's four long, narrow wings. Mica's body jolts a little from the sudden wing contact. Hima looks over her shoulder all confused at her friend's reaction.
>"What's with the jumpiness?", she asks Mica.
>"Nothing... just focus on keeping a lookout.", Mica answers. You notice the skin on her cheeks has turned slightly red... is that something she should be worried about?

>You're about to leave the fairies to their antics by taking off to get that bird's eye view over your party, but you halt to listen to a sharp rustling of leaves coming from the direction where Himawari is keeping an eye on. There's some particularly large bushes that way which span almost all the way to the water's edge from the edge of the forest. One of the outermost bushes close to you is waving about.

>"Somebody's about to appear..", Himawari says, keeping a close eye on the bush.


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Failure McFailFace on July 14, 2014, 11:00:04 PM
> How big are we?
> Would it be possible to douse ourselves with black ink/paint to look like Reimu's orbs?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on July 15, 2014, 07:04:10 PM
> How big are we?

>You're about the size of a sake barrel, maybe slightly smaller in all dimensions, if you were to compare yourself to an inanimate object closest in size to you. Himawari could wrap her working arm around you partially.


> Would it be possible to douse ourselves with black ink/paint to look like Reimu's orbs?

>If you had someone apply a skilled paint job on top of your pattern, you could probably get yourself a believable black and white look.





>"Come on out!", Himawari shouts to the somebody making their way through the bushes, who may also be annoyed.
>The leaves of the bush part, partially revealing a blue-haired girl in a blue dress darker in color than that of Mica's. The girl stumbles forward out of the bush, clutching firmly onto her head in pain with her right arm. Despite grasping onto her skull like that and wincing, she doesn't appear even superficially injured to you. Now that the pained girl is completely in your view, you notice a large blue ribbon fixed behind her short hair and what appear to be large icicles fanning out of her back. The icicles are melting, with flowing water coursing down their length and dripping on the ground. The way these icicles are arranged strongly reminds you of a fairy's wings... could she be a fairy?

>"Oh, it's Cirno, isn't it?", Mica says.
>"Yeah, it is! She don't look like she's doin' all that well, tho'...", Himawari points out.
>You've heard both Hima and Mica throw that name around for a while now, but only now you get to see her in person. This Cirno must've got a high profile only amongst fairies, since you can't recall hearing her name elsewhere.

>Cirno staggers a few steps closer to your group, still clutching onto her head, before stopping to stand pigeon-toed.
>"You...! You're their henchmen, aren't you?!", she points toward your group with her left hand.
>"Huh? Ya got us all wrong. We're free fairies!", Himawari shakes her head and waves off Cirno.
>"Don't try to play dumb with me!", Cirno shouts. "Those cowards left henchmen like you two behind to cover them while they run away with my stuff!"
>"'Those cowards?'", Mica asks.
>"Didn't I just say that don't try to make a fool outta me!? You know who your bosses are, stop lying!"
>"They broke in my house without making any noise, were invisible, and knocked me out by sneaking behind me and pressing some wet rag on my face! After I got back up, some of my very important stuff was GONE! Stolen! Like my first three volumes of 'The Highest Judge of Paradise' and my YAMAXANADU action figure! And they also scribbled things like 'Cirno sucks' all over the walls!

>Cirno pauses to catch a little breath after her relentless barrage of words. Wordmaku?

>"They wrecked my house last time, and this time they stole my stuff! I'm gonna find and beat up those three jerks in a record time! If you wanna stay not-frozen, you'd better tell me where they are!"
>"They're over there!", Himawari points toward the angry mob of fairies which still doesn't seem to have dwindled down in numbers.
>The blue-haired girl guffaws at Himawari's attempted diversion. "Hah! Why would they be in a fight? They're weak cowards! Time's runnin' out for you, tell me where they really are or prepare to get frosted!"


>You notice that Himawari is gesturing you to get closer to her.

>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Captain Infinity on July 16, 2014, 06:33:36 AM
>Get closer to our buddy.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on July 16, 2014, 07:16:26 AM
>Get closer to our buddy.

>You draw closer to Himawari. She also manages to get Mica closer to her.
>"I know how to distract 'er. I'm gonna say a thing to 'er, and when she's all confused, we're gonna run in that forest. You with me?", Himawari whispers to you.


>_
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: O4rfish on July 16, 2014, 07:29:29 AM
>"Sounds good to me."
>Do we know anything about Taoism or other religions?
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Hanzo K. on July 30, 2014, 07:34:34 PM
>Let's let Hima handle it, and then follow her lead.
Title: Re: Yin-Yang Orb Quest
Post by: Tapsa on August 26, 2014, 09:57:31 AM
I've felt for the longest time that I can't feasibly pull off this text adventure due to a multitude of reasons. Just gonna say time isn't one of them, although you may have a different idea about that considering some hiatuses took atleast a month. I'm just not happy with most of my decisions with this Quest. I doubt anything of value will be lost if I stop working on this.

However, I'm putting up a new Quest right now. I'll be recycling the overarching storyline of this Quest for that one, since I didn't even get to flesh it out properly. It'd be plain rude to quit completely, especially since some players in this thread even sent me PMs concerning my inactivity.