(Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 4)

[DracoOmega]

>Does it sound like the noise that preceded the footsteps before?

>Not particularly. You're actually inclined to think what you first heard back there were footsteps; they were simply too distant and muted to properly identify at first, until they drew a little closer. This noise, however, was definitely not a footstep.

[Hello Purvis]

>Regardless, things from upstream aren't good.
>Let's start swimming with the current again.

[DracoOmega]

>Regardless, things from upstream aren't good.
>Let's start swimming with the current again.

>That certainly seems likely.
>You pick up the pace and resume swimming downstream again. A couple moments later, you hear a similar sound to before, though closer. Then there is nothing for a few more moments, though you have to admit that they're quiet enough that you might well miss some over the sound of the current and your own swimming.
>The top of your head brushes against another spider web and you feel some of its strands cling to you.

[Hello Purvis]

>Does the clinging feel strong enough to impede us?
>If so, take the pilfered sword in hand, and give the strands clinging to us a snickersnee treatment. Try not to go hog wild, we don't need more cut strands adhering to us.

[DracoOmega]

>Does the clinging feel strong enough to impede us?
>If so, take the pilfered sword in hand, and give the strands clinging to us a snickersnee treatment. Try not to go hog wild, we don't need more cut strands adhering to us.

>It doesn't feel as strongly adhered as the last web was to your hand, but still enough that you would have to pull against it a little.
>In lieu of this, you bring the sword up and slice across the part clinging to you. The threads part so readily that you would barely realize there was anything in the blade's path, were it not for your head coming free. A few short strands settle gently against it afterward.

[Hello Purvis]

>Continue on.
>Do we still hear that sound from upstream?

[DracoOmega]

>Continue on.
>Do we still hear that sound from upstream?

>You keep swimming forward.
>Things seem quiet enough in that direction at the moment, though you're starting to hear what sounds like rapids in the distance ahead, growing slowly more distinct as you approach.
>There it is again! And significantly closer this time! It seems to be coming from a higher elevation than your position.

[Hello Purvis]

>Keep moving, keep ears open.

[DracoOmega]

>Keep moving, keep ears open.

>You keep moving forward, the sounds of the rapids growing stronger. You... think there may be a waterfall somewhere ahead, judging by the sound. Not a tremendously large one, but a deep enough drop that height difference is audible.
>You hear another light impact against rock, overhead and close behind you, followed quickly by one some distance lower and to your left.

[Hello Purvis]

So, we have two options.

It seems pretty obvious something wall-crawly is following up. Assuming it was also the source of those footsteps, it's probably Yamame.

Option A: Try to talk to her. The problem being that chances are she's not had any kind of change of heart; otherwise she wouldn't be dead silent; she'd be communicative. Not to mention she can function in the dark. We really can't. So we'd be at a huge disadvantage against someone who can see us and attack at a distance in a way we can't reasonably counter more than a couple times (Maybe until she figures out to fuck up the sword arm. ). I don't consider it a real option at the moment. About the only way we could win would be to drag her into the drink, and given her habit of making tethers that won't actually do a lot if we can even win a strength contest as we all.

Option B: Risk that waterfall and hope this place opens up to daylight soon. The problems being our pursuer is way faster than us, and even swimming with the current working for us we can't seem to actually outdistance her at all. On the other hand, it's also the only option we have in the long run to actually get out of here.

So at this point, I'm open to novel ideas.

[Aya Squawkermaru]

I say we go for the waterfall. Our previous attempt at talking with Yamame was less than successful, to say the least. Like you said, she probably hasn't had a change of heart, and she's pretty good with those tethers. Not to say it would happen, but stopping to engage her now may end up with Nazrin all tied up, drowning at the bottom of the river. On the other hand, if we go for the waterfall, we have a chance of escape so we can get help.

So, I say we just keep going for now, and only engage if we think we won't make it to the waterfall without being attacked.

(Oh yeah, I've been watching this thing since near the beginning, but I've decided not to post in these things yet because I have trouble making actions that are actually helpful and accomplish something. That, and staying in character with other people's characters, namely ZUN's. So yeah. Just watching for now and giving out my ideas.)

[Hello Purvis]

Yeah, that seems like it. It's pretty clear water doesn't do a thing for the adhesive or the silk itself once it's caught on, but maybe we'll luck out and it'll keep it from setting, so to speak. I'm convinced, though, if we can get her outside, we can deal with her., if only due to her likely not being used to light.


>Dive again, and proceed underwater as well as we can, come up for air when we need to, but only when we need to.

[DracoOmega]

>Dive again, and proceed underwater as well as we can, come up for air when we need to, but only when we need to.

>You dive under and continue to follow the current from beneath the water's surface. The rumble of the falls changes tone as your ears submerge, growing deeper and more diffuse. It's a little harder to gauge its distance, but you're fairly certain you're quickly closing it. You try to put on as much speed as you reasonably can, though navigating the obstacles of the terrain while effectively blind does slow you down appreciably.
>As your lungs reach their straining point, you surface and take a quick deep breath of air. It's probably about another 20 feet to the edge of the falls now. You hear no other sounds now, but might easily miss something subtle of the noise of the tumbling water.

(Oh yeah, I've been watching this thing since near the beginning, but I've decided not to post in these things yet because I have trouble making actions that are actually helpful and accomplish something. That, and staying in character with other people's characters, namely ZUN's. So yeah. Just watching for now and giving out my ideas.)

Always happy to see another interested party. No need to be shy! With characters like Touhou's (even in a canon Gensokyo, let alone an alternate universe), 'in-character' is open to a lot of personal interpretation, so you needn't feel there's some specific 'Naz-ness' that you need to make sure you capture. And you might be surprised how often even experienced players are only getting by on hunches and keeping their fingers crossed. No pressure, of course; if you'd rather observe, that's fine, but no need to feel nervous either. I won't bite (though the spiders might! ^^;)

[Hello Purvis]

For reals. Pretty much all of spider times has been hunches and deductions.

>Welp, we've chosen to risk the falls, and there's no time to hunt for a shore now. Onward.  Prepare for a fall!
>Try to cannon-ball if we go over and have enough time to react, probably the best way to not hit the bottom and present minimal surface for rocks to beat up.

[DracoOmega]

>Welp, we've chosen to risk the falls, and there's no time to hunt for a shore now. Onward.  Prepare for a fall!
>Try to cannon-ball if we go over and have enough time to react, probably the best way to not hit the bottom and present minimal surface for rocks to beat up.

>You dive down again and press forward! The sound of the falls churns in the waters around you as you cover the last few feet. You feel an abrupt shift in the current and then you're falling!
>You pull your arms and legs inward as you plummet over the edge, bracing for your impact with the waters below. It never comes.
>A half second after you tuck into your dive, you feel two soft impacts against you, one against your torso and the second against your right leg. Something pulls against you, sending your dive into a wide and rapid lateral arc.

[Hello Purvis]

>Throw our weight against it when  we feel it would be most effective.

[DracoOmega]

>Throw our weight against it when  we feel it would be most effective.

>Most effective to do what?

[Hello Purvis]

>To pull against it whatever is trying to catch us.

[DracoOmega]

>To pull against it whatever is trying to catch us.

>You are not being pulled directly towards the tethers, but rather the force applied against them seems to be steering your descent, using gravity and your own momentum against you. You descend near enough to the water to feel the spray from below as you sweep sideways, accelerating. It almost feels as though you're being swung like the weight of a bola.
>As your arc grows tight, you throw your weight against it, trying to pull yourself back towards the water. You feel your course shift and wobble in response, but have little time to ponder whether this accomplishes anything before you are slammed back-first against the cavern wall. You cry out and most of the rest of your breath leaves after it.

[Hello Purvis]

>Are we out of the water, or slammed into the waterfall?

[DracoOmega]

>Are we out of the water, or slammed into the waterfall?

>You are at least a couple few above the water's surface and quite a few feet ahead and to the side of the waterfall. The rock you were thrown into feels mostly dry.

[Aya Squawkermaru]

>Do we think we have enough mobility with our arm to cut the tether that's holding us?
>Are we currently above water or ground?

[DracoOmega]

>Do we think we have enough mobility with our arm to cut the tether that's holding us?
>Are we currently above water or ground?

>Neither tether is binding an arm. You should be able to reach either fairly easily.
>You aren't certain what's directly below you, nor indeed how high you are above it, though the sound of flowing water nearby suggests you probably aren't too high.

[Hello Purvis]

>Slash the strands, get ready to take a fall.

[DracoOmega]

>Slash the strands, get ready to take a fall.

>As you start to bring the sword around to cut at the strands, you feel yourself pulled away from the rock face again and swung. You quickly slash the blade across the air where you know the tethers must be, aiming a safe distance from your own body.
>Whereas your earlier attempts to sever them with your knife had felt like carving stone, this time you slice through them as though they little more than string. The force holding you up gives way and you tumble to the ground a few feet below, hitting it with your shoulder and rolling side over side from the momentum.
>You hear a voice from somewhere above you, its words more breathed than spoken. "No... How did you..." There is a strange note of despair in them.

[Hello Purvis]

>"Same way I did it the last time!"
>Run for the water whilst giving useless non-taunts.

[DracoOmega]

>"Same way I did it the last time!"
>Run for the water whilst giving useless non-taunts.

>You call out an answer to the youkai's question as you scramble to your feet and dash for the water. The ground you're running on ends in a sudden drop as a foot hits open air rather than rock. You tumble forward. Fortunately, it is a soft landing in the water a couple feet below.
>"No... no... no!" The youkai's voice grows more impassioned with each repetition, swelling from quiet disbelief to angry defiance.
>You feel a soft impact against your back as you hit the water's surface.

[Hello Purvis]

>Is the water deep enough to swim in?
>If so, surface for a moment, get a proper breathe, and sever this strand too.

[DracoOmega]

>Is the water deep enough to swim in?
>If so, surface for a moment, get a proper breathe, and sever this strand too.

>Yes.
>You take a good breath and slash the sword across the air above your back, severing this new tether as easily as the previous two.

[Hello Purvis]

>Dive, and it we can orient ourselves properly, continue downriver.