Maribel Quest More - A Z-Machine Adventure

[Hello Purvis]

>"Thank you very much, Youmu. Have a pleasant day."
>Head forward in the direction indicated
>Keep an eye on our phantom guide

>"You have a pleasant evening, as well," says Youmu.
>You head forward in the direction indicated, taking flight over the trees. You quickly clear the far wall of the palace, and see naught but forests and fields below you, teeming with phantoms. Thankfully none seem to take umbrage at your presence. Up ahead, you see...nothing but night sky.
>The phantom trails behind you slightly, directly behind you.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Well, she did say that we'd reach the edge sooner than it looked like, so keep on going

[Hello Purvis]

>Well, she did say that we'd reach the edge sooner than it looked like, so keep on going

>You keep going. The phantom follows behind you.
>Soon, the sky begins to become misty. It grows difficult to see ahead very far, or below.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Does this mist seem tangible enough to scoop up and collect?

[Hello Purvis]

>Does this mist seem tangible enough to scoop up and collect?

>It seems like normal mist to you.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Then keep on going

[Hello Purvis]

>Then keep on going

>You go further in.
>The mist around grows heavier. Looking back, you can no longer see anything behind you but mist. You cannot see the ground, and have to accept on faith you have not gotten turned around and are heading toward it.
>You can barely see your guide anymore; it is just a motion in the mist close to you. It is not the only motion you can see in the mist.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Can we tell what these other motions might be?
>Does the mist seem dense enough to gather, yet?
>If so, collect it
>Otherwise, keep going, keeping an eye on our guide so we don't get separated.

[Hello Purvis]

>Can we tell what these other motions might be?
>Does the mist seem dense enough to gather, yet?
>If so, collect it
>Otherwise, keep going, keeping an eye on our guide so we don't get separated.

>You have no idea. Part of you hopes it is other phantoms. But there is a lingering fear that they are not.
>You try to grab the mist, and have no success.
>Continuing onward, you try to keep an eye on your spectral companion. It is floating uncomfortably close to your elbows now, and is still hard to see.
>You continue further in. There's more motions now, giving you the feeling that there are many things, just outside of your range of sight. You have no idea how far you have come now.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Is mist is tangible yet, collect it
>Otherwise, continue onward
>Trust that they wouldn't have sent us here without a warning if we were in any danger. Right?

[Hello Purvis]

>Is mist is tangible yet, collect it
>Otherwise, continue onward
>Trust that they wouldn't have sent us here without a warning if we were in any danger. Right?

>It's certainly thick. But, not quite what Youmu described.
>You continue onward, hoping that they would have warned you it was dangerous. ...Unless they expected you to already be aware of that? Yuyuko certainly seemed to hold some expectations for you...
>You can make out a shape in the fog! To your right, and ahead, It is long and sinuous, with two large things on its side. Are they wings? Yes, it seems to be flapping them, while undulating in the air in your direction.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Move a little closer
>Can we tell what it is, roughly?

[Hello Purvis]

>Move a little closer
>Can we tell what it is, roughly?

>You draw a little closer to the motion, and have to suppress a cry as a serpent bursts through the mist at your face!

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Quickly shift out of the way!
>Follow its path as it moves past us
>Does it seem to be trying to attack us, or just moving too close for comfort in a low-visibility environment?

[Hello Purvis]

>Quickly shift out of the way!
>Follow its path as it moves past us
>Does it seem to be trying to attack us, or just moving too close for comfort in a low-visibility environment?

>You shift away! It undulates past you, nearly buffeting you with its stout, feathery wings. Within moments, it has vanished into the mist again.
>You are no longer precisely certain which way is forward.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Look to our ghostly companion
>"If you can understand me, can you show me the way forward?"
>If it moves, follow it

[Hello Purvis]

>Look to our ghostly companion
>"If you can understand me, can you show me the way forward?"
>If it moves, follow it

>You have to search a bit before you can find your guide. You ask it to help. It slowly begins to float a bit to your left. You follow behind it.
>As you move onward, you become aware of more motion to your sides.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Keep a wary eye on the motion, but make sure not to lose sight of our guide, and continue to follow it

[UncertainJakutten]

> Quick Inventory Check
> If we have the bottle of light, it might be useful?

[Hello Purvis]

>Keep a wary eye on the motion, but make sure not to lose sight of our guide, and continue to follow it

>You look over into the mist. You can't quite make out what is is moving, but it, they, seem to be roughly spherical and about the side of your head. The spheres move in a kind of stilted circular motion, sometimes very quickly, and other times slowly.
>The phantom continues onwards, and you try to keep up. It is not moving quickly, just that it is very easy to lose in the fog..
>You become aware of a massive shadow beneath you.

> Quick Inventory Check
> If we have the bottle of light, it might be useful?

>Your Inventory Contains
>Mop Hat
>Red Robe
>White Hakama
>Branch
>Floating Stone
>Ingredient List
>Ring of Rhythm
>Striped Mushroom Potion of Enhancement
>Starlight Incantation Slip.
>Purple Messenger Bag
>Blue Silk Flower
>65☼
>Emerald Necklace
>Star Armlet
>Silver Rabbit Figurine
>Purple Dress
>Wound Sign: Pain Flow Endlessly. (Captured)
>Kakashi Spirit News
>Frilly Dark Dress (Worn as Clothing)
>Oil of  Vibration
>Black Cube
>Green Yo-yo
>Bolt of Silk
>Jar
>Essence of the Netherworld Jar

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Is that a shadowy form beneath us? Or a shadow being cast by something above us?
>Can we tell any more details about it?

[Hello Purvis]

>Is that a shadowy form beneath us? Or a shadow being cast by something above us?
>Can we tell any more details about it?

>You look up briefly, and see nothing. It is definitely beneath you.
>The shadow is huge, easily six or seven yards long, and a couple of yards across.It is shaped roughly like a cylinder, toward the back of it, you notice a set of flukes, waving in the air. ...Is this a whale?

>_

[DracoOmega]

>We're not flying, right? So how can it be below us? Does the ground under us feel solid?
>Assuming no further potentially hostile action, continue following the phantom

[Hello Purvis]

>We're not flying, right? So how can it be below us? Does the ground under us feel solid?
>Assuming no further potentially hostile action, continue following the phantom

>You...think you're flying. You've not touched the ground in a long time, at least.  You can't see anything like the ground. The air beneath you feet doesn't feel solid.
>You don't see anything hostile about the possible whale, so you continue to move onward. The possible whale continues on this course as well. You notice its shadow is getting larger.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Do we actually remember consciously trying to fly? We did start out by walking, right?
>Continue forward
>Keep an eye on the netherwhale, and try to move such that it's no longer directly beneath us, in case it 'surfaces'

[Hello Purvis]

>Do we actually remember consciously trying to fly? We did start out by walking, right?
>Continue forward
>Keep an eye on the netherwhale, and try to move such that it's no longer directly beneath us, in case it 'surfaces'

>You have been, yes. You did take flight to leave the palace, as there was no rear door out of the garden Youmu lead you to.
>You continue forward, moving away from the shadow of the whale as its shadow gets larger. Watching it, you are suddenly reminded of a whale that you and Renko saw one time when you rented a boat together to investigate a possible ghost sighting off the coast of Gensokyo island. It continues to get larger, as you move out of the way. Then part of it bursts from the mist, its body black and slippery-looking! Its flukes pass uncomfortably close to you, but you are not in any danger otherwise. Soon it passes by and continues on its way, quickly vanishing into the mist.
>Looking around, you realize that you've been separated from your guide.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Sit and wait for it to show up. It seems to be able to see around here better than we can.

[Hello Purvis]

>Sit and wait for it to show up. It seems to be able to see around here better than we can.

>You stop, and wait for the phantom to reappear.
>You can see more motion around you, distinct things like before. Looking around, to you right a ways, you can see something odd about the mist. It is not in normal clouds like mist, but rather stretched into a thin plane rather like a road in the sky. Plumes of mist rise from it; very faint but distinct against the rest of the fog, looking something like trees.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>Go closer and investigate the plumes

[Hello Purvis]

>Go closer and investigate the plumes

>You move closer to the odd misty formations. It is definitely mist, but there's a feeling of cohesiveness to them. Even as you draw near, they don't seem to dissipate or fade away.

>_