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4866619
This is a continuation of Memories of Dire Situations and Circumstances ( >>/shorts/1862 ) moved to a new board.



Well, I suppose checking up on the other elements wouldn't do any harm - don't want to adventure off in an unknown land without knowing my limits.

Channeling my energy inward, I soon find myself in the landscape of my mind.

All around me are fields of verdant grass hills, a small creek flowing in between the mounds, and small oak trees standing upon the peak’s of the hills. Glancing around I don't notice any of the spirits in the immediate area, so I make my way towards the top of one of the hills.

As I reach it's peak I notice a small trembling in the earth, a hole appearing in the ground in front of me as I am confronted by a large creature made of rock.

As it rises from the earth, it’s giant stone hands propelling itself upwards. As I try to get a better look at it, I realize it is Terroc, the spirit of earth. Unlike the others, he prefers his natural form over his humanoid form. He stands a shocking three meters tall, his body is covered in specks of moss and iron - being a defense against monstrous forces. His forearms are lined with an assortment of gems that harden at times to land devastating punches. His three fingers don't leave much in the way of imagining how he crushes his enemies. Perhaps the most unusual part of his form is his lack of proper feet, he instead rolls around on a boulder made of different mixtures of ores. He says it helps his mobility in combat and honestly I agree.

No matter how many times I’ve seen him, he always frightens me, I think to myself. I know his personality is very docile and kind, however his appearance is that of a juggernaut.

As I stand there watching as Terroc finally rises fully out of the ground, towering over my short form he speaks, his voice deep and rumbling yet filled with knowledge. "Master, I see you have survived the dragon's attack. We were worried, you know. Poor Siara was crying her eyes out in sorrow, thinking we might have lost you." He glares daggers at me, as if I hurt Siara myself.

I merely sigh. "Look Terroc, I'm sorry alright? You know that job was important. If we didn't take it, we wouldn't have had anywhere left to go," I point out to Terroc. "Besides, you always say that I should do more good in the world instead of being drunk at taverns." He grunts in annoyed acceptance.

"If at all possible, I would prefer it if you finished your business here immediately master. The other two spirits have vanished and I'm afraid I don't know where they have gone off to."

Oh dear. If Zephyr and Lilith are gone, there goes a lot of my fighting capabilities - respectively, they are the spirits of wind and fire. Without them, I'm left with earth and water which in theory isn't bad, but it lacks the I'm used to in fights. "What a hassle," I sigh. "Very well! I just stopped by to check on our fighting capability and knowing you are still around is good enough for me." While having the other two might be useful, they aren't the best at making first impressions with natives. "I just need you to be on standby in case things get rough alright, Terroc? I'll be taking Siara with me in the meantime." He nods in acknowledgement and with that, I vanish back into the realm of reality.

As I shake my head of the torpor that usually comes with delving into my conscious, I take another look around. The room is exactly as I last saw it, however, by now the light is shining brightly through the windows. Siara is hanging off to one side of the bed I am laying on, she looks scared. Curiously, I glance around for the source of her fears and I see it clearly in the form of the women to my right.

I see Aya yawning, stretching her arms and wings as she wakes up.

Aya. She stretches her arms and wings as she wakes up.

"Good morning," I say to her.

She sits there for a moment, a look of confusion on her face before her eyes light up. "You're awake!" She exclaims loudly. "This is good news indeed! How are you feeling?"

Looking back over my body, most of my limbs being intact, besides my right leg - which is missing. The spirit energies from earlier seemed to have worked rather well. "I suppose I'm doing well. Although, the more pressing matter is why I am inside a room which appears to be a pseudo infirmary, and why a human who has Tengu wings is sitting next to me and is, presumably, my rescuer."

Aya seems rather shocked for a moment as I mention the name Tengu. Perhaps they are not well known here? They might not even exist in this realm for what I know.

Before Aya gets a chance to respond, a girl I vaguely recall, enters the room. Upon seeing me sitting upright and devoid of most of my harsh injuries, she gives me a strange look.

I merely shrug as the girl looks at me incredulously before looking at the girl with wings. "Aya please leave the room. Our patient is awake and I would rather her not bothered by someone like you while she recovers." She says in a commanding tone.

“But Reisen! I saved the girl how cou-” Before Aya can finish her sentence Reisen grabs Aya and forcibly shoves her out of the room.

As the door closes, Reisen directs her attention back to me. "As many questions as you might have, there are more pressing matters. Your wounds, for instance, were not supposed to heal for a few weeks, maybe months. Yet here you are - a human no less - healed in two weeks. Yet, just yesterday, you were in a condition that was questionable at best.” Her voice full of curiosity and hints of annoyance. "How did you do that?"

"Well..." I start, but Siara speaks up instead, her childlike voice absolutely adorable, "Master simply absorbed the energies here! Now she should be better… for a bit." She adds the last part rather sheepishly, I nod, content with her explanation.

Reisen seems more and more confused by the minute. "How did- You know what? Not my problem." She simply looks defeated at this point, "Just let me run a few tests here alright? If you magically healed yourself it might leave some bad side effects." I agree to allow myself to be tested.

After what feels like an hour, she writes down one last thing before looking back at me with a strange look. "Well, everything looks fine according to these tests," she starts out, her voice still sounding perplexed at the results. "If you wish, you are free to leave, however, I would recommend checking back here every few days just to be certain." I voice my understanding and make sure that she knows I’ll come back.

With that she sighs and leaves the room. When she closes the door, I smile for once in a long time. "Thank the fucking stars!" I exclaim, glad to get some freedom. "Come on Siara, let's go." I don't even let her respond as I hop off the bed, forgetting I was missing a leg, and fall against the wall in front of me. I hiss in annoyance - my energy for adventuring, stopped by not more than a mere loss of limb. "Siara would you mind?" She might be a bit smaller than me, but I put my hand on her shoulder and use her to hop along towards the door. As I open the door and look outside, the hallway seems mostly empty except for Aya.

As she notices me hop out of the room leaning on Siara, she immediately springs into action letting me lean on her shoulder instead.”Thanks for that, uh, Aya was it?" I wait for her confirmation as she nods in response. "Right. Now, how do we leave this place?" I ask, slightly confused as to where to go, seeing that the halls seem to stretch on for an eternity.

"Well that shouldn't be a problem!” Aya declares. “I know the way, it’ll take a while." With that she sets off, Siara walking to my left looking quite concerned, and myself hopping along, leaning on Aya’s shoulder.

"If I might ask," Aya starts, as we continue down the hall. "Who exactly are you? You caused quite a commotion with your arrival ya know. It's not everyday a human arrives randomly among the smoldering remains of a giant lizard, and you were mostly alive as well."

Well, she does have a point. If she cares enough to help me along, I suppose it couldn't hurt to humor her.

What to say?

[] Give Aya your name. If you're here for a while might be good to leave a first impression. (Name time)

[] Don't give her a name and deliver a fake story. You don't know how trustworthy this women is. Best not give her information she doesn't need.

[]Tell her what happened with the Dragon.
-[]Be vague and don't give too much information
-[]Tell her everything about the battle.

[]Ask her where I am. Information is key.
-[]Ask about the native life here. If there are any native elements/fairies I can easily make allies here.

Elemental unlocked! Terroc the spirit of Earth- Terroc is built like a stone giant and hits harder than a pissed off Solar. He manipulated the ground in a combat zone to deflect projectiles and block important pathways. He can take a beating and is often scary enough at a look to defuse a situation through scare factor alone. Right now he resides in your mind waiting to be called upon for any purpose.
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[x] Give Aya your name. If you're here for a while might be good to leave a first impression.
-[x] Sinopa

[x] Tell her what happened with the Dragon.
-[x] Tell her everything about the battle.

[x] Ask her where I am. Information is key.
-[x] Ask about the native life here. If there are any native elements/fairies I can easily make allies here.
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[X] Give Aya your name. If you're here for a while might be good to leave a first impression.
-[X] Clarissa Sinclair

[X]Ask her where I am. Information is key.
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You should make a post in the new stories thread.
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[X] Give Aya your name. If you're here for a while might be good to leave a first impression.
-[X] Sinopa

[x] Tell her what happened with the Dragon.
-[x] Tell her everything about the battle.

[X]Ask her where I am. Information is key.

Well if Aya went through the trouble of saving me from the crash site, it couldn't hurt to be honest with her.

"Well Aya, to start my name is Sinopa, and that 'lizard' you were talking about? That jackass was an ancient Dragon."

Aya's face lights up in surprise as I mention the word dragon. "You mean that was a dragon?!" Her voice filled with shock.

I nod. "Indeed, if I was any normal human I would have been on the floor and groveling at his feet in an attempt to plead mercy." I snicker as I think of how that's exactly how peasants would act. "Thankfully I'm not any normal human, I am an Elementalist!” I dramatically wave my free arm around to emphasize my importance. “The four basic elements of life are mine to command, and any of the forces in between."

"Siara here," I reach out my hand and ruffle her hair electing a giggle from her, "is the spirit of water. She can create, manipulate, and fight with water. Blood, ice, water, even life itself if she wills it with some of my help, can be tools at her disposal." Looking back at Aya I notice she is listening intently. Good, last time I explained this to someone they fell asleep!

"So you control Siara?" Aya asks. Curious as to how this power works.

"In a way, although it's more of a bond than direct control."

"So like a shikigami?" She probes curiously

"A Shiki-what?" I've never heard of a creature like this before. Actually, now that I think about it, I don't even know what language I'm speaking. Thank the four spirits I paid for that permanent comprehend languages effect.

I told you it would be worth it master. Terroc speaks from my mind.

Shut up.

"A shikigami is like a summoned spirit or magical creature, of sorts, that serves a higher power. Usually a powerful youkai." I glance at Aya and raise an eyebrow at the word Youkai, but she doesn't notice and continues. "Sort of like a servant that increases to it's masters strength at the cost of servitude."

"That's close to the case. It's more like they serve me and I serve them in return. For entertaining them and giving them life, they give me their strength." The way an elementalist works has always been considered strange in Aringoth. No divine magic or arcane magic involved, it's purely natural magic.

"Interesting." Aya says. As we continue walking down this long hall we eventually turn a corner into another long hallway. "So how did you encounter this dragon then? Obviously it was a close rival to have injured you like that." She looks at my limping leg to emphasize her point.

"Well, uh, hehe. I guess it was out of boredom I fought him." My free hand rubs the back of my neck. "That and the promise of wicked loot to be had."

"Well fighting out of boredom isn't uncommon around here, but it's never been lethal." Aya comments.

Good information to know, the natives fight constantly but with non lethal tendencies. "Well how much longer we got to walk Aya? This is a fun story but it's not a short one."

"Not too long I suppose, the exit should be just around the next few turns." Aya points out.

"Very well. I'll just give the short version then." Man this fight sucked. "So," I start off. "The dragon's name was Areseafulafar the "Frozen King of the North"." Aya already seems confused.

it might be possible we aren't in Aringoth anymore master. Terroc muses.

I ignore him and continue. "Usually this is a worthless name to make a dragon sound cooler than they actually are, but this wasn't the case for Ares. I actually required the help of four other companions in order to take him down. A courageous fighter, a clever wizard, a smart ass rogue, and our lovely cleric along with myself."

"The trek to his kingdom was a pain enough, what with the small drakes, kobolds, and other random monsters he could subjugate under his control. However once we arrived the fight itself was something none of us were prepared for, in the first few seconds we lost our rogue to a stray tail swipe from the dragon and our fighter was lost soon after."

"So I, the risky temptress of fate I am, found an ancient relic in his lair and used it to slay the beast. What happened next is a mystery to the arcane itself but I'm pretty certain it was a cross continent teleport gone horribly wrong. The act not only practically killing the dragon but bringing me along with it."

"And that," I say with a small flourish of my free hand, "is how I killed a dragon."

Aya seems for the most part impressed, which is good enough for me.

"So what you're saying is that you practically showed up here through a freak accident?" Aya asks?

"That's what it would seem like."

"Amazing." Is the only thing Aya responds with.

As we turn the last corner and out of the building, the story took just enough time to get us outside. I step outside onto grass for the first time in weeks and I feel at home instantly. Taking a deep breath I soak in all the scents around me, the smell of morning dew from last nights rain, small animals making their way around to find prey.

I smile as I, for once since this forsaken trip to kill a dragon, feel the taste of spring.

"So Sinopa," Aya says as she turns me around to look at her. "Where should I take you now?"

Now that she mentions it, no one really told me anything about the world I am in, let alone where to go after leaving the hospice."I'm not too sure Aya. Reisen didn't tell me anything, she simply diagnosed me, looked confused, and then left. So I suppose the best place for me to start would be to find some place attuned to the wind, like a shrine of some sort." Logically this would be the best spot for me. Zephyr would not only be drawn to a location like this, but I can also commune with the wind in order to scout out this place more efficiently.

"Someplace attuned to the wind..." Aya says, thinking aloud. "I suppose that would be Youkai mountain. More specifically the Moriya Shrine, they have a wind god that lives there."

Wait...did she just...

"Did you say they have a god that lives in their shrine?" She must have meant she has a powerful connection to the shri-

"Yup! She's such a sweet girl too, always working hard, she's a bit clumsy though."

...

Master? Terroc says, sounding concerned.

...

"Uh master? Are you okay?" Siara also asks.

No way...

"Hey Aya..." I say through clenched teeth. "Where exactly did I land?"

"That would be Gensokyo! The land of paradise! I suppose the best way to explain it, is that it's a world cut off from the real world. Here all sorts of magical creatures, gods, and whatever else falls onto the 'I'm not human' spectrum, can live here in peace from the outsideworld. There is also a small human population located in the middle of this world, they should prove welcoming enough to someone like you."

This can't be real...I mean sure, Averine could have made this sort of reality if he wished too for a limited time. How she worded it though...

"How long has this 'Gensokyo' been around Aya?" Usually I wouldn't be too concerned but someone that can keep this realm active for a long time would have to be immeasurably powerful.

"Hmm...that would have been about...uh, let me think." She scratches her head in thought, before she suddenly smacks her fist against the palm of her hand. "One-hundred and thirty years...more or less."

"And most of the creatures here are weak right?" I ask, if the rest of this Gensokyo is filled with God-like beings...

"Well not really. A lot of the ferals can be considered weak, yes, but most of the important residents here can rival the gods on the mountain in duels." Aya says. Her tone suggests that the amount of people that can fight them is a lot more than a few.

...

By the four elements...

indeed... Terroc says, as he seconds my concern.

"Wow..." Siara says. Her voice filled with awe as she thinks of how powerful this place is. Considering that dragon we fought was close to the power of a herald to a herald of a weak god. That means this land is no place to scoff at.

"Well," I say with a sigh. "I suppose I should be off to the mountain at some point but-" i cut myself off as a sharp pain is sent through my skull. "Agh!" I reel back, releasing my grip on Aya and falling flat in the process as my mind blanks.

"Woah!"

"Master!"

I can vaguely hear Siara and Aya both shout out in shock as I fall flat on my back. The reeling pain in my head continuing to bombard me, as if seeking something from my mind.

Who could possibly be doing this? The mental wards I placed are strong enough to block out everyone except gods and...

Averine...

I since his presence in your mind master. This must be important if he is attempting to contact you across the world, or wherever we may be. I suggest you speak with him, and perhaps it would be best to recuperate and assess your damage at the village. The shrine and the others can wait, you obviously don't feel well physically and mentally, Master. Terroc says once again proving rocks are not dumb. And as much as I appreciate the help the good doctor gave you, it isn’t nearly good enough to mend you in comparison to Siara and myself's elemental efforts.

“Help…” I try to say but my voice merely comes out as a whisper. Very well. Terroc take me to the shrine on the mount. If they are in fact gods, then they can help my situation.

If that is what you truly wish, then so be it.

Without anymore words my mind blanks as I give in to the mental bombardment, and the last thing I hear before fading to black again is the sound of Terroc materializing and Aya’s shout of panic soon after.

…………….

“Finally!” The all too familiar sound of Averine shouts. “It was such a pain to try and contact you, ya know. Wherever you landed is well protected far away, and I'm afraid I don’t have much time to talk.”

“Well ain’t that a shock.”

Taking a look around I notice that I am sitting in an incorporeal form alongside the corporeal form of Averine in a white, empty expanse.

I smile as I look at him again, good to know he is still alive. His blonde hair slicked back in waves and the red robes of the archmagi, he rightfully earned, and miscellaneous magical baubles adorn most of his figure.

“Yes, yes. I suppose a remark about how I love to hear the sound of my own voice is somehow about to be made, but that is besides the point.” His tone changing from sarcastic to grim in one, not so fluent, motion.

“And what IS the point then? You obviously wouldn’t risk destroying my mental wards and destroying the protective boundaries of an unknown region if it wasn’t.”

“Yeah well you see, the dragon we killed. The Frozen Fucktard.” He uses his hands to emphasize the ‘Fucktard’ part. “Was actually the first stone cast upon a still lake so to speak. While we were off killing him and stopping his frozen expansion, a similarly powerful foe arrived in the south. Presumably he was waiting until we left the home kingdom mostly undefended to make his move.”

Oh dear.

“And as you know us so well, if I am contacting you this is a serious problem. Not only has he already wiped out half the kingdom but he has done so in one day with a very dangerous asset. I think you know what I am talking about as well…”

Of course I do. Anyone, specifically those tapped into the arcane, all seek an item that can amplify their powers exponentially. It just so happens the idiot god who created arcane magic also made said item himself to give as a ‘gift’ to mortals to squabble over. “You don’t mean he has…”

“Indeed he does.”

Shit…

“So in the meantime Holly, Carter, and myself will see to defending the safety of Aringoth against this force. You on the other hand…” He says as he forces my form to materialize to better assess my damage. “Need some serious healing magic.”

He does a double take on my form. “I mean this would be a great opportunity to fix everything wrong with yourself while you are regenerating your leg.”

“Very funny Averine.” I say back annoyed at his casual remarks in this serious situation.

He waves his hands in a practiced gesture and my mind slowly blanks out again returning myself back to reality, nestled in the arms of the giant stone element Terroc.

“Hello Master.” His rumbling voice causing my body to shake to the bone. “I am afraid the bird women did not take too kindly to my appearance and made haste to protect you. As of now she is currently rubbing sand from her eyes and we are close to reaching the base of the mountain.”

Great Terroc. I give you ONE chance to impress the natives and the response is to temporarily blind them...then again that is a better choice than killing them.

“At least we are close to our destination.” For all the things Terroc can be counted on for, is his efficiency in any situation. Straining my eyes I look around to notice that we are, in fact, approaching the base of the mountain. It’s surrounded by dark dense foliage and the path ahead will be hard to pass through indeed.

So not only do I have to try and make friends with whoever is at the shrine, but I also have to worry about what’s going on back in Aringoth. Wizards are a force to be reckoned with and one who can amplify his summoning and transmutation magic fifteen fold is sure to cause havoc fast.

And on top of all of this only two of my elementals are with me. Lilith is probably off somewhere else setting things on fire and seducing whatever has two legs, and Zephyr could be ANYWHERE on this mountain (He could be located elsewhere, but with a high concentration of wind energies like this he can’t resist coming here).

So what to do?

(Pick one Main Goal, then one Style do said Goal.)
[] Main Goal.
-[] Find Zephyr. If I can attune myself at the shrine at the top of the mountain I should be able to locate him easily. Although I don’t think I know of anyone fast enough to catch him…
-[] Make friends with the god at the shrine. It can’t hurt to make a good first impression with a deity. Hell I had dinner with one in the underworld in return for killing a rival of his, so they all can’t be that uptight...right?
-[] Recon. Instead of focusing on locating Zephyr I can focus my attention on engraving the surrounding land into my head. The more information I can gain about this ‘Gensokyo’ the better.
-[] Strengthen. I need to get stronger and fast if I am to return to help fight off the threat in Aringoth. Though this may take a while unless I can gain help from the local elemental spirits.

[] Style of going about doing these goals
-[] Friendly. It will take longer to go about doing these things, but at least I won’t endanger my social standing with the locals.
-[] Aggressive. I might not have as much power as I did in Aringoth, but I should be able to force my way into getting what I want. After all a god won’t expect this type of behavior from a human.
-[] Neutral. Take the middle ground. I’ll just complete these objectives as I see fit. It won’t do any good to rush headlong into things, but in the same respect being too slow I might lose some opportunities.
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[X] Find Zephyr. If I can attune myself at the shrine at the top of the mountain I should be able to locate him easily. Although I don’t think I know of anyone fast enough to catch him…
-[X] Friendly. It will take longer to go about doing these things, but at least I won’t endanger my social standing with the locals.
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-[X] Strengthen. I need to get stronger and fast if I am to return to help fight off the threat in Aringoth. Though this may take a while unless I can gain help from the local elemental spirits.
-[X] Aggressive. I might not have as much power as I did in Aringoth, but I should be able to force my way into getting what I want. After all a god won’t expect this type of behavior from a human.
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>"Aya please leave the room.
>"Well Aya,
>"So Sinopa,"
>"I'm not too sure Aya.
>"Hey Aya..."
>“Very funny Averine.”
>“Hello Master.”
>Great Terroc

When directly addressing someone, you put a comma before the name, or after it if the sentence begins with the name. Like so:

>"Aya, please leave the room.
>"Well, Aya,
>"So, Sinopa,"
>"I'm not too sure, Aya.
>"Hey, Aya..."
>“Very funny, Averine.”
>“Hello, Master.”
>Great, Terroc

It's the difference between "I already ate, Jack." and "I already ate Jack." One is informing Jack that you have eaten, the other is eating Jack. Or in this case, the difference between "The Great Terroc" and "That's great, Terroc".



We should wait to get Zephyr until after we have either Sanae/Kanako (wind control) or Aya (speed) to catch him.

[x] Make friends with the god at the shrine. It can’t hurt to make a good first impression with a deity. Hell I had dinner with one in the underworld in return for killing a rival of his, so they all can’t be that uptight...right?
-[x] Friendly. It will take longer to go about doing these things, but at least I won’t endanger my social standing with the locals.

I must admit to being tempted to see what aggressive friendmaking looks like, but not enough to actually vote for it.
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>>62373 thank you for the input. I'm new(ish) to writing, so I must have skimmed over it.

And as for how to do 'aggressive' friend making...that would be entertaining to write/read.
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