A Kappa's Dream of Boundless Flight

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

Reposting this from the previous forum. This is a not-too-serious fic centering on Nitori.

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My name is Nitori Kawashiro. I am a kappa, who lives on a river at the foot of the Youkai Mountain, somewhere in the outlying lands of Gensokyo.

If these terms confuse you, do not be worried. I will try and explain for those who are unfamiliar with the subject at hand. Gensokyo is a land of fantasy, that was sealed off from the outside world approximately over a century ago. Youkai are, in the simplest terms, supernatural beings. Kappa are a type of such being, river-dwelling creatures with power over water.

While anybody in Gensokyo is capable of flight, kappa are water-based creatures, and therefore nowhere as skilled at it as other species. The tengu higher on the mountain waste no opportunity to remind us of this inadequacy. This proves to be rather annoying when a tengu is one of your most frequent visitors.

?I'm sorry Aya, I don't want a copy. I couldn't keep it here anyway, there's too much moisture and it would ruin the paper...?
?Nonsense! My articles are printed on the highest-quality paper! You could probably dip one in the river and it would come out fine!?

Aya Shamaimaru, the tengu I was referring to earlier, was attempting to pressure me into buying a copy of her latest gossip masquerading as journalism. I would have simply thrown her out of the house, but tengu are constantly extolling their supposed virtues to us, so I consider it only fair that we should claim politeness and humility since they opt not to.

?Okay, so I may have underestimated the quality of my material slightly. But I still guarantee it'll stand up to the moistest of air!?

She was still going on with her sales pitch, even though her attempt to prove her previous statement wound up with a copy of her paper soaking wet and tearing in half from the sheer weight of fabricated statements.

?Ooh, what's that??

It appears that Aya had finally noticed the half-open door to my workshop, as she had been previously distracted by her rambling. She jostled me aside, then ran to the door, knocking several things off my table in the process. I followed her in, hoping she wouldn't damage anything.

?Ooh, what's this??

I was tired of the tengu mocking us for our lack of flying ability, so I wanted to create something to overcome that weakness. I decided to start researching the principles of flight. This was initially difficult, as the only material I have been able to find on the subject is from the outside world. However, I have been able to build up a small collection by trading river mushrooms with an acquaintance for books. She claims that the books were given to her by other friends; I have doubts about that.

One of these books has been of particular interest to me. It is a series of sketches by somebody named Leonardo da Vinci (certainly an unusual name, not from a language I've heard before). Most of it's just art, but one of these sketches shows a concept for a fascinating contraption. It appears to be some tentlike device attached to a person by ropes for the means of slowing one's fall.

It is my theory that if I can build and successfully test this, I can determine some of the principles of flight, and build something more advanced.

I have modified the device from its original design; I removed the wooden frame, so it could be folded and thus take up less space in my house. I decided to go with a domelike shape instead of a tentlike one, since I assume that whatever ability it has to slow a person's descent has to do with its volume.

Testing it will be a simple matter. With the contraption folded and attached to my back, I will enlist the help of whatever oni I am able to find to fling myself as high as possible into the air. Should anything go wrong during the test, I will use my limited flight abilities to return to the ground.

But it appears that I have gotten lost in thought. Worse still, that tengu still is in my house. I had best get her to leave before she breaks something important.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

Well, it seems that the oni and kappa have different definitions of ?upward?. I don't know if she was too inebriated to understand me or if she just wasn't paying attention, but Suika threw me straight into a cliff face. You remember how I said that the kappa weren't skilled at flying? We're not very good at digging, either.

Now that I have recovered from that mishap, I must consider an alternate method of getting airborne to test this so-called ?parachute?, as another book I have found describes it. I believe I have found a solution to this.

Some time ago, I designed a cannon. It is not like ordinary cannons, which rely on the explosion of gunpowder to launch projectiles, as combustible materials are not as useable in the watery homes of the kappa. Rather, the cannon I have created relies on the buildup and then sudden release of water pressure to propel objects. Aya attempted to use it to deliver papers to the remote regions of Gensokyo. As a result, the mistress of the Palace of Earth Spirits complained of broken windows, the mistress of Hakugyokurou complained of broken bones, and the mistress of Eientei complained of a splitting headache. All three have since cancelled their subscriptions.

Anyway, it has taken some effort, as the cannon was not designed to launch a person, but I have managed to load myself in. To actually fire the cannon, I have obtained the assistance of two of my fellow kappa, Dosa and Beit.

?Okay. Dosa, you let me know when we've got a clear shot. Beit, when I say 'fire', pull that lever. Got it??
?Got it!?

At this point, Aya had come back. I did not feel like trying to get out of purchasing a copy of the Bunbunmaru again, but it appears she had other business at hand.

?Nitori! You've got to come see this! There's a fire on that road near the human village??
?A fire, huh waitnonotyetI'mnotreadyAAAHHH!?

It appears that Beit had misunderstood me, and pulled the lever before we were adequately prepared. With a massive gush of water, I was catapulted into the air.

The good news is that the parachute works. The bad news that it works a lot less effectively when it's been punctured repeatedly by danmaku. On my descent, I was interrupted by someone who shall remain nameless, who decided to inform me that spring had recently arrived. In a very direct manner.

I am falling faster than I anticipated, and the limited flight capabilities of the kappa mean that I will not be able to slow down in time to avoid hitting the ground. Okay, maybe not the ground, it looks like there's somebody there...

?LOOK OUT!?

The unfortunate passerby looked up at me and yelped as I slammed into her at significant speed. A cold sensation came over me, which is fortunate, since it numbed whatever injuries I had accumulated in the fall.

?Eye'm okay.?

The simplistic manner of speech, the feeling of cold... it appears I have landed on Cirno, a fairy from a nearby lake. Near her was a frog; perhaps she was taking an offering to the shrine at the mountain?

I pry myself from the ground and get up to my feet, gather up my things, and leave. I have some idea on the concept of how flight works now, and I'm going to get to work on building something that can fly under its own power. At the least, something that doesn't require shooting me out of a cannon.

[Tamer Anode/Cathode]

Well, my injuries from that botched parachute test have finally recovered. In the meantime, I've been making research notes. It appears what is commonly referred to as flight is simply the displacement of air in order to lift an object. This sketchbook I have shows a series of pictures of a machine designed to fly by displacing air through use of a spinning bladelike mechanism.

Building this so-called ?helicopter? was not too difficult, merely a matter of finding lightweight materials. Actually getting it to fly, however, is proving problematic. Try as I might, I can not the blades to spin fast enough. Attempting to install a steam engine in the machine simply resulted in several hours of repairs when it collapsed through the bottom. It appears I will need something that can spin at a fast rate, yet will be light enough to not break the machine.

?Hina, want to come over for some tea??
?Sure, Nitori. I'll be there right away.?

Hina, a local deity, was well-known for her constant spinning. In fact, she was still rotating in place while she was standing in front of my house.

?So, Hina, the tea's ready, just come with me.?

I led her into the helicopter in my yard, with tea sitting next to the drive mechanism. As she approached it, I lunged toward her with the strongest rope I had, and tied her down.

?Nitori, what the hell? Is this some kind of joke or something??

Hina started spinning faster, in panic over her situation. This spinning powered the blades of the helicopter, and it started to lift off the ground, taking off. I pushed and pulled levers, keeping the machine as steady as I could.

?Seriously, Nitori, do you think you can untie me??

Hina spun faster and faster, and the helicopter flew higher and higher. And then it happened. I heard a loud snap. The drive mechanism and blades broke loose, and Hina flew off into the distance, still spinning.

Well, this is unfortunate. In retrospect, abducting a curse goddess and using her as an engine for a flying machine was not a good idea. I braced for impact, and the helicopter struck the ground with an unceremonious crash.

This setback aside, I'm still confident that I can construct a successful flying machine. My acquaintance from the Forest of Magic has brought me some books of particular note, detailing the types of aircraft used in the human world. While I am recuperating from this latest mishap, I will study these carefully so I can invent a machine the likes of Gensokyo has never seen.

[ray10k]

I like this. love to see what would happen if she'd find a science fiction novel/comic. Just imagine: "This is a small step for a kappa, a giant leap for kappa-kind!" "more visitors?"

[Teewee]

This is pretty cool ^^ I wonder what will happen next.

edit: oh i just noticed that the last update was a year ago. thanks Keith o.o;

[Kinzo the Astro Curious]

Given the last update was a year ago, probably nothing  :V

I did like this one as well back when I read it though.