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Stage 142:

You have a few issues.

Now, being a Water dragonette, this kind of goes without saying. Most, if not all Water dragonettes have issues. What makes your issues different is that you lack the typical water dragonette egotism that prevents them from realizing their issues can interfere with their nature and their thoughts. You also have a distinct overabundance of strangeness that accosts you, including, but not limited to: being a demigod and not a dragonette, being the inheritor of the mikoto of the God of Destruction, being the girlfriend of the incarnations – that's plural mind you – of the Goddess of Rice and Home and Fertility (but you'll get back to that one later), making friends with the most capricious of youkai and their children, having the ancient priestess of the old Goddess of Snakes as an enemy, and (we're back!) getting other dragonettes pregnant.

This last is in spite of the fact that you are a girl and yes, you've checked, and so have all of your lovers. Still female, no extra parts. Technically, you have one less part, since your Pearl was dissolved into your body when you became mostly immortal.

This would not be so bad if your adoptive sister, Kami bless her Pearl, had not used a forbidden variant of Water Eyes to fix your future in place somehow, and as a result gave herself over to the Buddhist Eight-Fold Path and asked the King of the Underworld to make you no longer a demigod so that you wouldn't wreck Japan. Which, by the way, the Kami of the Sun and all of the Universe, has requested you do under her very own auspices. You're trying to fix that issue so there isn't quite as much death as there is destruction, really, but more on that later.

Another of your issues is that you just can't not take responsibility. For many things really: the murder of people who were planning to assassinate your best friend when you were twelve, the murder of a friend's big brother (he DID deserve it), getting your principle whom you were supposed to just protect and be a fertility drug for pregnant (along with aforementioned best friend, your priestess, and hopefully your seer if people would leave you alone long enough), and the destruction of a lot of Japan. That last you are getting help with through a nice young woman who took care of you for a while when you were on the streets, who just happened to be a low ranking Yakuza, and soon will be a high ranking Yakuza. You are facilitating this by having the head of a local nogitsune-child clan adopt her (or vice versa, because that's complicated) and your priestess magically bind pairs of Yakuza and nogitsune-born together so they could operate in the spirit-world and the real world simultaneously.

You're probably going to pay for that later, because somewhere in there is a dose of bad juju. You're just not quite sure where yet.
>>
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>>889342
The reason those things matter is because the Diet of Japan, along with a corporation run by Yakuza, and some foreign military people got together and said “Hey, wouldn't it be great if we had an invasion force made up of spirit-born people made from two different continent's spirits so they could travel anywhere and still have all their obscenely powerful abilities?” Well, wouldn't you know it, their plan worked, and the abominations they birthed were a fuckin' nightmare to fight. Fortunately you're pretty much made for killing things, so you took care of most of those problems.

One of the exceptions has just been possessed by the King of the Underworld's lackeys, two of which have showed up at YOUR HOME to try and take you back to meet the King of the Underworld.

To say you are displeased by this would be understating the mater by A WHOLE FUCKING LOT!

Eh hem.

If you were alone this might be an unwinnable fight. Not only are you backed up by your Personal Priestess and beloved Fire dragonette subbie, you have a demigod of the Hunt and Childbirth (the Ainu have some really odd views on what is helpful in childbirth), an enlightened and immortal nogitsune-born samurai who might be a touch senile, and your personal seer and sorceress who may be on her way as well, you have also been given permission by Amaterasu-Omikami and his Imperial Highness of the Celestial Heavens The Jade Emperor (may He live Ten Thousand times Ten Thousand years) to use the ruyi of Horobi to take on his power without actually taking on his mikoto (which is the specific act that would start Japan's personal disaster matrix on overload).

Breathe, Ryukusa, breathe.

So, right now, you are facing:
1 (one) Black Fox Demon illusionist and master manipulator, Hui Daji by name
1 (one) Demon Sorceress of Shadows and Mirrors, Fyusumi by name
1 (one?) Terrifying abomination of futakuchi-onna, ghost, and human sorceress, once called Melinda Blitzenberg by name, now a mindless, soulless victim of the previously mentioned lackeys of Enma-Oh, the King of the Underworld.
>>
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>>889344
Between the natural (?) Barrier of the youkai and you and Matagama-no-Shitoki's specially crafted Barrier, it is unlikely anyone is going to be leaving without permission. Yuuhi-chan is to your right, her sword drawn and focused on what once was Melinda; Inau-kun is on your left and behind you, bow drawn, and a second arrow in hand in addition to the one knocked; and of course you are in front and the enemy is mostly focused on you. Which is good, kind of, because your priestess is currently falling towards the ground, trailing sparks and moving in silence. She can react as quickly as you instruct, but she's still falling at a high rate of speed, so you should probably actually do something instead of reminiscing!

[] Take out the Ruyi of Horobi and show them you mean business.
[] Use Fire Eyes to see what their true natures are and see if that reveals any weaknesses.
[] Prepare for Barrier Combat; you have extra Shen to work with.
[] Use that extra Chi you have saved up to force everyone's attention on you.
[] Open Void Eyes and see how their magics are woven at the moment.
>>
Twitter: @XsQuestmistress

Previous Thread: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/842001/

Interlude: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/37879167/

Threads in Chronological Order, including writeups by XS : http://pastebin.com/Z53TyK0N
or search for tag: Ryukuza on Suptg

Barrier Combat Guide: http://pastebin.com/rZLwzvGx

Ryuu Ryukusa is tall at 5' 8"; 6' in her true form. She is fully grown. Lesbian top.
Matagama Kiku is 4' 1” for ever and ever. Lesbian submissive.
Ryuu Akari is 5' 3" and has another few inches to grow. Sexuality is weird, switch, cosplayer.
Ryuu Yui is 5' 8" and will only grow due to circumstances beyond her control. Dyke, switch.
Ryuu Kiki is 5' 6" and is at full growth. Bisexual bottom.
Er Yin Long is the tallest at 5' 10" and is fully grown. Lesbian dominant.
Ryuu Jinyuu is 5' 7" but persistently hovers an extra three inches. Straight.
Hinata-hakase is 6' 3". Sexuality is terrifying.
Hidesato is 5' 5". Straight.
Kushinada is 5' 8". Straighter.
Taisho Ryoga is 5' 9". Who knows.
Hyun Chisato is 5' 4” and is fully grown. Lolicon with plausible deniability.
Rie is 8” tall or 5' 5” and is fully cat. Her sexuality is cat.
Hagyu Genso is 12' 5” standing upright. He is by and large gay.
Mizumi Shoko is 7' 2” is fully grown. Bisexual top.
Yuuhi is 4'11” and is fully grown. Yuuhi a cute.
Tokei Isusangi, Inau-kun is 5' 3” and still confused.
Reiha is 5' 5 1/2” and is milfy.
Peta is 3' 2” Peta is \>.</ aka Her Most Imperial Highness Patanjali Piri Yokuhime Kuronogitsune Pa
Detective-san aka Mugon Chujo is fully grown at 5'11” and straight.
Kenji Soomi is 5' 4” and gothic lolita.
Musumi Kanako is 5' 6.5” and is pretty straight.
Hebiki Naoto is 5' 9” and belligerently omnivorous, sexually. You hope only sexually.
Kodachi Umetsume is 5' 4” and fully grown. Practicing asexual.
Melinda Blitzenberg is 5'10” fully grown and utterly terrifying.
Toshida Ginka is 5” 3” and fully grown. Turtles have a reputation.
Ryuu Wakaba is a head shorter and also deceased.
Margaret Steinhausen is gratefully dead.
Ryuu Sakumo is dead and spread far and wide.
Ryuu Nabiki is 5' 3” and fully transformed. Embarrassingly straight.
Ryuu Shinju is 4' 11” and fully grown. She is coy, maybe a dodomeki-child.
Ryuu Himeyuri is 5' 5” and is supposedly straight.
Ryuu Fuuta is 5' 6” and slightly less soft.
Kaga Kei is 5' 4” and fully grown. Might be experimental.
>>
>>889354
>Ryukusa's Treasures

Her name: Ryuu Yorihokura

Eight hundred and sixty-one cat youkai live in your aura

Matagama-no-Shitoki, a necklace kami in its own right that protects Ryukusa from inimical magic.

Ame-no-Omukade-no-Musume – Ryukusa's mukade possessed wakizashi; a kami. “Daughter of my Centipede of Rain.”

Gendai-no-Muteki-no-Buki - Invincible Weapon of the Present Age, a secret kami-blade given to Ryukusa by Wakaba that appears to be made of some alloy of titanium.

Seido-no-Shinpi-Tekina-Ken – a mysterious bronze sword given to Ryukusa by the mermaids of Japan; actually found to be the legendary blade Ame-no-Ohabari.

Go-Yurei-no-Rensa, the Five-Ghost-Chain, used to summon or send messages to your (actual) older sister Ryuu Nabiki.

Her Penthouse in the Secret Apartments of Tsathoggua in Shikoku prefecture, Tokyo.

Ryukusa's Family.

>Talismans:
Akari – Black Jade Centipede (Mukade)
Er Yin – Black Jade Scorpion (Sasori)
Kiki – Black Jade Toad (Hikigaeru)
Kiku – Black Jade Lizard (Tokage)
Yui – Black Jade Snake (Hebi)
Inau – Black Coral Ear Cuff (Amatsukami)
>>
>>889346
Ryukusa time!
>[x] Use Fire Eyes to see what their true natures are and see if that reveals any weaknesses.
>>
>>889346
>[] Use Fire Eyes to see what their true natures are and see if that reveals any weaknesses.
>>
>>889346
>[] Use that extra Chi you have saved up to force everyone's attention on you.
>>
Hope you've had a good week, XS.
>>
>>889346
>[] Use Fire Eyes to see what their true natures are and see if that reveals any weaknesses.
>>
>>889342
All of our children will be female, right? If not, then we either gained a Y chromosome or this is some voodoo bullshit.

Also been an infrequent lurker in your quest. Keep up the good work, my dude.
>>
>>889346
>[] Use Fire Eyes to see what their true natures are and see if that reveals any weaknesses.
>>
>>889408
>All female. No voodoo bullshit unless it gets Yui or Ryukusa pregnant, per the players wishes.
>>
[X] Use Fire Eyes to see what their true natures are and see if that reveals any weaknesses.

Opening Fire Eyes gives you a little too much insight into their natures. It's really quite sickening. Literally, just looking towards the thing that used to be Melinda is tying your stomach in knots. You look anyways, because this is your job right now: defend Kiki-hime, destroy the servants of Enma-Oh.

What was once Melinda is now a void of voracious hungers, a nearly immaterial emptiness with a lot of very solid mouths and eyes. The doll-like thing that used to be Melinda is mindless and soulless, a mere anchor for the feeding mouths, the seeking eyes, and the tenebrous filaments that serve as the wispy sheets that they can open from. There's hardly anything too her except mouths, eyes, and that doll-like body her hair extends from. Only the barest fragmented memories of ever having been human remain. Unfortunately, what little humanity does remain is thoroughly and utterly corrupted and monstrous, hungering for the flesh and blood of spirit-children.

She might be worse than a noppera-bo if she gets free of these two.

These two, on the other hand, are not even remotely human. Nor are they spirit children. They are vessels containing some sort of ichor, the substance of which you can only quantify as being concentrated evil humors or bile. You've never seen physical corruption, much less as a liquid. But they are animated by evil spirits, one each.

Hui Daji's spirit is that of an evil man who abused his power and used it to force others to do his bidding and fulfill his desires. Most of those desires were to demonstrate his power over others, in every way he could, so it was a perpetual motion machine of cruelty, vice and self indulgent excess. His death was stupid – he literally died by accident, a simple slip of someone's gas pedal, onto the brake. Head first through someone's back window off his bike....except the window was hard plastic, not frangible glass, and he bled out before the ambulance arrived. He went to hell, and fought his way up through the ranks. There is nothing redeeming in this creature, this honest to kami demon who is the master planner among the Eight Immortal Demons. One day he will sit at the Kings side, for certain.
>>
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>>889446
If he's bad, Fyusumi is worse. She was granted a gift by birth or by the gods of China, a seer born. Except she chose to do as much harm as possible with her gift. That was even before it came into full bloom in her teens, when she realized what others would do for a chance to use her power for themselves. But it was always for herself, her own twisted entertainment. She abused her power in every way imaginable, and became wealthy, powerful, respected, and feared. When she crossed the wrong person, she discovered she wasn't the only person with power, and when you piss off an honest-to-kami sorceress who gives you every chance to change your ways....well, her end was as ignominious and unknown as her life had been star-struck and in the limelight. She became a demon almost immediately, and her hate was strong enough to push her up the ranks quickly. Now she serves as seer and sorceress to the Eight Immortal Demons, and it suits her well. Redemption is a joke to her; to Fyusumi there is nothing better than what she is now – except maybe being King of Hell.

All this you see and understand in a mere instant; Kiku-chan plummets in from above, and the Sorceress and the Fox maneuver for a better position to attack from or defend at. “As impressive as your self-confidence and your intelligence gathering is, Ryuu Ryukusa, I am afraid that we are not going to be dissuaded so easily. However....I – being honorable even as a demon – will make you an offer. Come with Fyusumi and I, meet Enma-Oh yourself, and we shall leave your friends and family to deal with Melinda as they see fit, with no interference or aid from us.” Hui Daji fans himself slowly with the lacy and rather feminine fan he holds. It is more than a weapon, it is a magical weapon, not to be trifled with.

You can tell that just by looking at it and how he holds it.

Inau-kun glances at you sidelong, but her aim at the sorceress is steady; Yuuhi doesn't even blink, all her attention seemingly focused on Melinda, but in truth not focused on anything or anyone; while you can see the bath of Inau-kun's arrow shift with her attention, Yuuhi is a golden-coated death machine ready to do anything or nothing.

[] Keep them talking, keep them talking....let Kiku-chan do her job.
[] Does he speak for just himself or is Fyusumi going to abide by his word too?
[] Declined! Melinda is too powerful for your family to handle!
[] Honorable demon or not, you can't trust his word, and you definitely won't trust hers.
[] Barrier Combat, mortal techniques.
>Listed next with pros and cons
>>
>>889450
>[x] Keep them talking, keep them talking....let Kiku-chan do her job.
>[x] Does he speak for just himself or is Fyusumi going to abide by his word too?
>>
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>>889450
Razor Wit and Cold Heart (Both of these people are egomaniacs, and unlikely to fall prey to this power.)
>Physical attacks are nothing compared to the malicious words and cruel thought. Pain and suffering are meaningless when you have no heart.

Scales and Claws (These two aren't warriors necessarily, but that doesn't mean they're weak.)
>You are a dragon; your claws can slice through steel and your scales are impenetrable. The air and the water are your battlefields.

Storm and Wind. (Power versus power; it could go either way very easily.)
>The purest form of your elemental self - the power of wind and water to utterly destroy all before you.

Style and Sword (They're obviously used to fighting with this themselves, but you're a dragonette defending her family; it gives you home field advantage, sadly.)
>You are swift and your panache unmatchable. Your weapons are invincible and you can bring down the stoutest of foes with grace.

The Deadliest Smile (No one copes with this well.)
>Your love is pure, unassailable, and generous, even in battle. All that would harm it shall be destroyed utterly if they will not yield.
>>
>>889450
>[] Keep them talking, keep them talking....let Kiku-chan do her job.
>[] Does he speak for just himself or is Fyusumi going to abide by his word too?
>>
>>889450
>[] Keep them talking, keep them talking....let Kiku-chan do her job.
>[] Does he speak for just himself or is Fyusumi going to abide by his word too?
>>
>>889450
>[] Barrier Combat, mortal techniques.
Let's smile in a deadly manner.
>>
>>889450
>[] Barrier Combat, mortal techniques.
Let's grin and watch them try to bear it.
>>
Slow day...like most Thursdays I've noticed. Weird.
>>
>>889450
> Keep them talking
>>
>>889450
[] Keep them talking, keep them talking....let Kiku-chan do her job.
[] Does he speak for just himself or is Fyusumi going to abide by his word too?
[] Honorable demon or not, you can't trust his word, and you definitely won't trust hers.
>>
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[X] Keep them talking, keep them talking....let Kiku-chan do her job.
[X] Does he speak for just himself or is Fyusumi going to abide by his word too?
[] Declined! Melinda is too powerful for your family to handle!
[] Honorable demon or not, you can't trust his word, and you definitely won't trust hers.
[X] Barrier Combat, mortal techniques: The Deadliest Smile

You step back and spread your arms. Your hair becomes jet black, and your eyes become utterly human, as does the rest of your appearance, save your midnight blue hair, long and now limp seeming. But this time you are listening for it, paying attention to it. The near silent rustle of infinite scales, the barest breeze that rustles millions of leaves, the soft, gape that the breath of the dragon brings with it. The dress shimmers as it settles around you from the insubstantial breeze that blows past you. “Even if I were inclined to trust you, would your word hold true for the Black Sorceress?” He grimaces, and you can feel her smirk, though it is impossible to see her face. “That is rather what I thought.

Both Inau-kun and Yuuhi-chan glance at you, looking at your bizarre transformation into what appears to be an ordinary human. Then Inau-kun looks up and past you when the shadow falls over her.

“AAHH!” She manages to keep the arrow nocked and her bow mostly draw. You sweep your arm towards Fyusumi, and then lower it. She grits her teeth, which are actually chattering, but her aim is steady and her eyes true. Or something. She's got a bead on at least!

Fyusumi keeps her cool – she's not nearly sane enough to understand what she's seeing is both real and a threat. Hui Daji, though, looks behind you and knows what he is seeing and understands exactly what it means. Yuuchi forgets it as soon as Hui Daji even twitches, her focus now entirely upon him.

The Shadow of Horobi fixes her eyes upon the Black Fox. “Typically, this is where I would attempt to surprise you with the sudden appearance of an ally.” Yuuhi's disapproval at your revelation of Kiku's presence is a mere 'tch' under her breath. Inau clearly wants to look at you like your crazy but really doesn't dare. ”Naturally you already knew she would be arriving shortly to attack you by surprise only to be met with the perfect counter.” Hui Daji smirks under his mask and Fyusumi covers her invisible mouth with her....sleeve? Something. She's tittering at you, the stupid bitch. “But there is one aspect that you failed to take into account.

“And what, Ryuu Ryukuza, would that be?” asks Hui Daiji as he takes a formal Chinese Swordsman's stance in preparation to begin Barrier Combat with you.

Math.
>>
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>>889509
You Flip your fingers at him casually, and Inau-kun adjusts her aim to loose the arrow at Fyusumi. Hui Daji goes to deflect the arrow with his fan to prevent it from annoying Fyusumi, but there is suddenly a six foot long piece of steel with a four-foot-eleven waif with the fluffiest tail behind it and aiming to slice him in half. He blocks the sword with his fan, and lashes out with his other hand, in a claw only to find that steel and that waif exchange places almost instantly. Fyusumi, on the other hand, lifts her sleeve to try and deflect the arrow as well as use her other sleeve to swat your priestess away....

….only to find you, standing between her spread arms and facing her directly, gazing at her with eyes darker than any Hell or Heaven she will ever see.

[] With the lightest touch comes the most painful revelation.
[] A gentle word can bring hope and despair to anyone.
[] The lips that give kindness cannot be withstood.
[] The greatest and wisest fall victim to the most humble and most kind.
[] The gentle, slow growth of Wood can bring even mountains to heel.
>>
>>889513
>[] The gentle, slow growth of Wood can bring even mountains to heel.
Oh, this is getting good.
>>
>>889513
[] With the lightest touch comes the most painful revelation.
>>
>>889513
>[x] With the lightest touch comes the most painful revelation.
>>
>>889513
>[] The gentle, slow growth of Wood can bring even mountains to heel.
>>
>>889513
>[] The gentle, slow growth of Wood can bring even mountains to heel.
>>
>>889513
A lot of these sound either good, or very dangerous for Ryukusa
>[X] With the lightest touch comes the most painful revelation.

Feels kind of appropriate for a seer who abused her powers.
>>
>>889513
>[] The gentle, slow growth of Wood can bring even mountains to heel.
>>
>Writing.
>>
>>889513
>[] A gentle word can bring hope and despair to anyone.
>>
How are you, XS!

Can't believe I missed so much.
>>
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[X] The gentle, slow growth of Wood can bring even mountains to heel.

She whips her 'sleeves' up and you can see her arms within them, lanky and slender, long fingernails ragged and black and undoubtedly as hard as iron. You start lowering the fingers that you flipped towards Hui Daji, and she whips her sleeve up and around to defend herself, only to see they're still coming towards her. She does so again, this time both arms flailing at your arm as you reach towards her only to find herself entirely missing. “It isn't as though I hate you, you know,” you comment mildly as you reach towards her now frantic attempts to swat your hand and those somehow terribly threatening fingers of yours away. “You're simply in my way, and you won't leave me and mine alone. It isn't so difficult, is it, to step aside and let someone pass?

She lashes out at you, her sleeves a hundred, a million, a billion blades, slicing though your robes and clothing, but when they have passed you are still there, off to one side now, but reaching for her, your arm halfway extended. She shrieks and her sleeves billow, thousands upon thousands of black butterflies erupting from them, surrounding you, consuming you....yet when they are gone, turned to ash, you are there, your hand implacably reaching for her, two fingers outstretched as though in benediction. “Is it truly so difficult for you to just let us be in peace, to go your way and do your duties as intended by those we serve? I understand your life and your death have been difficult, but if you do not stand aside....

She moves into you, her talons reaching for you, except there are not two arms, there are ten, twenty, a hundred. Claws tearing at you, slashing at you, cutting you to pieces. They are gone, but you remain, whole, seemingly untouched. Your fingertips touch her breastbone, just below the hollow of her throat.

...you will be moved.” Around your fingertips there are splinting sounds from under the pale dress, black ichor staining the pristine whiteness, as your mere touch shatters the shell around the demonic ichor that is her liquid flesh. She staggers, her breathless shriek high and terrible. Blood falls from under your dress in droplets – a lot of droplets; she cut you up pretty badly, but you should be okay for the moment; you can feel the healing start, but you can't keep the blood from flowing; then again, she hit you with at least two spells and one Barrier technique.
>>
>>889577
Awww geez, this is gonna get Ryukusa yelled at by the wife afterwards isn't it...
>>
I'm sad for Melinda.

I really thought that our cat friend would be able to help her. Though Rie showing up to help wasn't my favored option.
>>
>>889588
The cat would have been enough, if it weren't for the outside influences. I really don't think there was any saving her from that.
>>
>>889585
I mean, yes as long as Ryukusa isn't decapitated/has her heart removed she's immortal, but this is kind of extreme.

>>889588
I feel like if there's a lesson to be learned, it's that of responsibility? If you really want to help someone, it's not really a one-and-done kind of thing. Which reminds me, as soon as we clear up the whole "Enma" thing, we've been avoiding Hinata long enough.
>>
>>889591

Well, dealing with them before they got their hands on her. But I doubt we could have

Now I just hope Rie is ok
>>
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>>889577
There is a sudden roar, hungry mouths erupting from the blackness beside you as the power is completed....and then a soft THUMP and a rush of heat and flames as the monstrous thing once called Melinda Blitzenberg erupts into seething blue flames as Kiku-chan lands on the ground a dozen feet from you, her prayer beads in one hand and her other at her chest in a two fingered gesture of release. A stream of golden and crimson flames is jetting from her mouth as she sprays the youkai in purifying fire, her soft hair hair floating around the blazing white and red of her priestess' uniform.

Fyusumi screams and starts towards her but arrows appear in her sleeves, pinning them together; then two more, slicing the bows along the edges of her shirt, spilling it around her legs and making it difficult for her to move. Mouths lunge at your priestess, only to be slices off at the base by a flicker of movement that must be Yuuhi-chan and slowly collapse into fat, black balloons that are soon aflame

You feel it before you see it, and turn to face Hui Daji as he leaps into the air, his shimmering black lace, pale silk, and steel vaned fan drawn back to one shoulder and his other arm spread wide. Sword and Style the obvious method; his eyes are mere silver beads behind his obsidian and silver mask. The emotion you see in them is that of humiliation and impotent rage, and if what he had in his body was blood you are pretty damn sure it would be boiling.

One thing is for sure – the waves destructive force you see radiating from his fan, his arm, and his leg all intersect on you.

[] Benevolence and Grace are Always Paramount.
[] To Give of Oneself is to Receive from Another.
[] The Patient One Receives all Things in Time.
[] In the End, We are All the Same.
[] Switch to Kami Barrier Combat
>Note: you have one extra use of Shen, and one use of Chi that can be called upon.
>>
>>889596
>[] The Patient One Receives all Things in Time.
Anger and impatience will get you nowhere.
>>
>>889594
>I feel like if there's a lesson to be learned, it's that of responsibility? If you really want to help someone, it's not really a one-and-done kind of thing

Ryukusa doesn't need lessons about responsability, at least not in this case.

And we did pretty much all we could to help, Rie showed up and went all "leave her with me". The only thing we could have done more would have been checking on Rie more, but she's a notoriously slippery spirit

>we've been avoiding Hinata long enough.

We have not. We haven't contacted her because we have no reason to do so, and having more contact than necessary will be detrimential to us.

And we tried to do what we needed to repay her, but we were told to wait.
>>
>>889596
>[x] Benevolence and Grace are Always Paramount.
>>
>>889596
>[] The Patient One Receives all Things in Time.
>>
>>889596
>[] The Patient One Receives all Things in Time.
>>
>>889596
>[] Benevolence and Grace are Always Paramount.

Because he was always utterly malevolent, and

> The emotion you see in them is that of humiliation and impotent rage, and if what he had in his body was blood you are pretty damn sure it would be boiling.
>>
>>889609

I mean, let's show him what he's lacking.
>>
>>889596
>[] Benevolence and Grace are Always Paramount.

What is Kami Barrier Combat?
>>
>>889596
>[x] Benevolence and Grace are Always Paramount.
>>
>>889596
Trying do decipher these, not sure if I get it right
>[] Benevolence and Grace are Always Paramount.
Not really sure what this one means, though I'm assuming Ryukusa mainly means the grace that refers to movement.
>[] To Give of Oneself is to Receive from Another.
I assume that means we're leaving ourselves wide open to his attack so either he leaves an opening for us to counterattack, or one of allies takes the opportunity to hit us
>[] The Patient One Receives all Things in Time.
While not as severe as the previous option, I'm guessing this still means enduring his attacks and taking advantage when he's tired?
>[] In the End, We are All the Same.
Probably not what it's about, but I can't help but see that as "Death makes equals of us all"
>>
>>889596
>[] To Give of Oneself is to Receive from Another.
>>
>>889614
>Using the power granted to you by the Jade Emperor and Amaterasu-Omikami to use Horobi's power without actually becoming Horobi - these are Enma-Oh's direct servants, after all.

>It's how kami and gods fight in a Barrier.
>>
>>889625
>one of allies takes the opportunity to hit us
one of our allies takes the opportunity to hit Hui Daji I mean.
>>
>>889625
>Ryukusa has no more clues than you do - but she does know where the first tier of Deadly Smile is agonizing and soul-shaking, the second tier is more brutal and more inescapable; there will be serious scars left even on a real live (?) demon.

>She literally killed someone for several minutes using third tier, and sent their soul to the afterlife for that time.
>>
>>889630

While I don't think it would fuck us over, I'm not sure we should do it right now.
>>
>>889596
[] Switch to Kami Barrier Combat

Mystery-box is best box.
>>
>>889637
Oh sorry, I wasn't asking for you to tell me, I was just kind of thinking it out.
>>
>>889638
Yeah, it feels more like a thing you should build up to, maybe the next vote, or the one after that.
>>
>>889641
>No worries - the reminders are for anyone new who might be lurking.

>Also letting them know these aren't just a mystery to the players - Ryukusa doesn't know exactly what they do either. However, she is certain they do not involve her allies being harmed. That's pretty much the opposite of the intent with the Deadliest Smile.
>>
>>889596
>[] Benevolence and Grace are Always Paramount.
I'm gonna go with this one. It's possible that it might functionally serve as a taunt, but mainly I just like how it sounds.
>>
>>889446
So hey, is anyone else kind of horrified yet impressed that Hui Daji worked his way this far up (down?) the Infernal Ladder in what seems to be mere decades? Like this Eight Immortal Demons gig doesn't seem like a bad assignment.
>>
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>>889670
except it's literally a "bad" assignment

I'll see myself out
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>>889596
Changing >>889639 to
[] Benevolence and Grace are Always Paramount.

I still think we should agree with the edict, because this fight will harm us more if we don't, but eh.

>>889670
Anon, we're using the Deadliest Smile. One of the caveats of it is that our enemies WILL DIE if we use it, so his meteoric fall has already been sealed.
>>
>>889596
>[] Benevolence and Grace are Always Paramount.
>>
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[X] Benevolence and Grace are Always Paramount.

You look him in the eyes and place your hands together at your breasts, your calm, dark gaze fastened on his angry, shining eyes. You can see him move, his fan twistign and coming at your throat, his arm sliding around to tear at your chest, his leg coming up to crush your solar plexus. The golden haze of destruction your right eye would see is clear to both your eyes in the Deadliest Smile, and it impossibly, unthinkably flickers, the arcs twisting and recombining, just before he strikes. Any other kind of dragonette (except perhaps Fire, whose reactions are faster than yours are) would have been unable to cope half as well as you do; you sidestep, half turn, and extend your arm gently in a polite movement, and are rewarded with mere scratches, in comparison to what they should have done to you.

You take the gut strike from his hand well enough, his nail tearing deep groves in your belly, and leaving raw, bloody wounds. Not poisoned, but he was actually trying to rip your guts out; as it is, the wounds are slow to start healing, and your power can't stop the flow of blood. The kick is not nearly as bad; rather than his heel on your right shoulder, you catch his Achilles tendon instead, which is only slightly less hard as ceramic. That blow should have dislocated your shoulder even as lightened as it was, but your ligaments and tendons are used to keeping things in place, considering that your wrestling partner literally could tear you limb from limb.

The fan is the worst. Your polite gesture to allow him to pass you results in a shockwave of force that brings you to one knee in mid-air, and blows him back to the ground. Everyone around you is literally thrown for yardage, except for Kiku-chan, who races to the edge of the blast wave and stares at all of you with her sleeve covering her mouth.
>>
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>>889744
You float to the ground in a standing position and lift your left arm, studying it. The shattered surface of your left arm seeps sapphire blood slowly, even in your human form, and the bone aches deeply; his fan, on the other hand, is a ruined wad of steel vanes that are bent around the U-shape where your arm was struck, a weapon of power, utterly ruined.

Hui Daji stares at his ruined fan with utter shock. Yuuhi-chan is up and already moving to take the fight to Fyusumi, while Melinda's remnants slowly bubble and sink into the earth, blighting it with her abominable substance. Inau-kun is slow to rise, unfortunately; she was too close to the point of impact. Fyusumi is calling on sorcerous power, drawing it quickly and easily from the depths of the Hells she belongs in. Kiku-chan is quickly assessing the situation.

Your assessment is pretty bleak: the horrible part about this is that his skill is so much greater than yours; he should never have been able to lay a hand on you while you were using that technique. On the plus side, you didn't finish it, so you conserved some of that power.

“That's impossible....Guangzhou De Tie Shan is unbreakable....only a divine weapon could damage such a thing....”

Idiot!” Fyusumi shrieks, her hands surrounded by flickering black and silver shadows and light. “She is a divine weapon!

[] Take out the Ryui of Horobi. Initiate Kami Techniques.
[] Use the Shen you set aside – this is what it is for. Uses the Extra Shen to heal.
[] Focus past this momentary pain. You will persevere. Uses the Extra Chi to ignore your injuries and remain clear headed.
[] Move to the next tier of Deadly Smile and try and take Hui Daji out. Use Extra Chi to do so? YES or NO.
[] You're injured, but that spell she's making needs to go away now. Use Extra Shen to do so? YES or NO.
>>
>>889748
>[] Use the Shen you set aside – this is what it is for. Uses the Extra Shen to heal.
>[] Move to the next tier of Deadly Smile and try and take Hui Daji out. Use Extra Chi to do so? NO.
Let's ride the smile train to tolerance town.
>>
>>889748
>[] You're injured, but that spell she's making needs to go away now. Use Extra Shen to do so? YES
>>
>>889748
Christ, can't we do anything without getting run through a meat grinder?

>[x] Use the Shen you set aside – this is what it is for. Uses the Extra Shen to heal.
>[x] Move to the next tier of Deadly Smile and try and take Hui Daji out. Use Extra Chi to do so? YES or NO.
>>
>>889759
Shit - YES on that last one
>>
>>889748
>[] Take out the Ryui of Horobi. Initiate Kami Techniques.
pull the trigger, this is what it was given to us for
>>
>>889748
>Take out the Ryui of Horobi. Initiate Kami Techniques.

Crush them both.
>>
>>889748
>[x] Take out the Ryui of Horobi. Initiate Kami Techniques.
Anon makes a good point. Go big or we won't go home.
>>
>>889748
>[] Move to the next tier of Deadly Smile and try and take Hui Daji out. Use Extra Chi to do so? YES
>[] Use the Shen you set aside – this is what it is for. Uses the Extra Shen to heal.
>>
>>889748
>“Idiot!” Fyusumi shrieks, her hands surrounded by flickering black and silver shadows and light. “She is a divine weapon!”


This is one of my favorite sentences
>>
>>889748
>[] Take out the Ryui of Horobi. Initiate Kami Techniques.
>>
>>889748
>[] Take out the Ryui of Horobi. Initiate Kami Techniques.
>>
>>889748
>[] Take out the Ryui of Horobi. Initiate Kami Techniques.
>>
In the end, I'm not sure trading so much damage to destroy his magic weapon was really worth it, though obviously neither we nor Ryukusa knew that would be the result beforehand. It was a pretty bad turn overall. Sure that weapon was a pain in our side, but most likely we didn't have to deal with it before we dealt with Daji himself either.
>>
>>889748
>[] Use the Shen you set aside – this is what it is for. Uses the Extra Shen to heal.
>>
>>889778

We didn't only destroy his weapon, anon

We left big wounds on his psyche -admitedly his deadliest weapon- and it'll make a big difference to how he'll be able to react later.

Remember: this guy kills Dragons as a job.

Literal, Heavenly Dragons.

And we made him shit his pants
>>
>>889789
I prefer when we make people shit their hands WITHOUT taking damage!
>>
>>889778
From hoe it was written we STILL avoided the vsst majority of the damage he could have inflicted.

His attack might have scooped out our innards, crushed our arm and the ribs behind it, then blasted us with an insanely powerful weapon.

We got off light
>>
>>889794

If you're expecting to take no damage from fighting two Dragonslayers, I think you're dangerously overestimating Ryukusa.


Not that I disagree with prefering not taking damage, it's just that we cannot do otherwise for this.
>>
>>889759
>>889760
Fuck forget it, drop DEADLY for KAMI
>>
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[XX] Take out the Ryui of Horobi. Initiate Kami Techniques.
[X] Use the Shen you set aside – this is what it is for. Uses the Extra Shen to heal.

You glance at Fyusumi. “You're not really wrong, you know. You might be insane and beyond redemption at this point – and believe me, I would know – but in this case, you're on the money.” Yuuhi looks over at you in alarm and then bolts the direction she came from to where Inau-kun is on the ground. Kiku-chan lifts her hands and claps twice as you take out the White Jade Dragon Wishing Scepter. The youkai Barrier suddenly becomes part of YOUR Barrier, and it expands....

Your body shifts, your human form subsumed by the true form of Horobi. The Shen you and Yuuhi-chan cultivated so carefully slides through your body, becoming part of it, sealing the bleeding wounds and mostly repairing your left arm. The bone stops aching at least, which is the worst part. The blood isn't so great either, but you'll live. You feel your mind shifting, the vagaries and strangeness of Barrier Combat fading as it is replaced by a much deeper, more complete understanding of your place in the universe and how you may perform your duty within it. While Barrier Combat may be a mystery to spirit-children, the power of Ame-no-Horobi-no-Mikado is not mystery at all to you.

It's a weapon.

And you understand weapons perfectly.

You lift your hands, the blazing fires and shimmering oceanic light intensifying and sliding into your talons. The lightnings in the scar along your chest shimmer and fill your mouth, and your horns gleam wickedly as you thrash your tail in delight. These people wouldn't have been content with taking you to Enma-Oh; they would have been back, would have returned to taunt, tease, and play with your family. That's what demons do. they don't let go of toys, they play with them.

Until they break.

If there had been any chance of redemption you would have seen it with Fire Eyes. These two are demons, through and through; they serve the Tao in their own way, but it isn't a healthy or kind way. They are the force of evil that incites others to do good, though good and evil are not truly what they claim to be. You know that from experience.
>>
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>>889867
Fyusumi draws more and more power from Hell and the remnants of Melinda's youkai energies; Hui Daji rolls to his feet and draws a massive black steel dao out of Nowhere. You blink, seeing them for the fragile shells they truly are, their demonic essences liquid and slowing. If they were higher ranked, more powerful demons they might have blood, maybe bones. A true flesh and blood body is only for the very highest powered demons. Not that these are insignificant demons.

But you are Horobi.

Destruction.

You instinctively understand that you have already used the power of Wood; it would have represented the entirety of the Scales and Claws techniques. But the Shen you conserved by failing to finish your earlier maneuver, combined with that you gained from Yuuhi-chan (how right she was, you did need it) leaves you four tiers of Destruction to use against your enemies. Fyusumi has her magic prepared almost, but Hui Daji is an immediate physical threat.

[] VOID: Razor Wit and Cold Heart
[] FIRE: Storm and Wind.
[] STONE: Style and Sword
[] WATER: The Deadliest Smile
>Choose your Target.
[] Hui Daji
[] Fyusumi
[] Both Reduces the destructive power.
>>
>>889876
>[] FIRE: Storm and Wind.
>[] Fyusumi

Geek the mage
>>
>>889876
>[] FIRE: Storm and Wind.
>[] Hui Daji
>>
>>889876
>[x] VOID: Razor Wit and Cold Heart
>[x] Hui Daji
>>
>>889876
>[x] FIRE: Storm and Wind.
>[x] Fyusumi
>>
>>889876
>[] FIRE: Storm and Wind.
>[] Hui Daji
>>
>>889876
>[] FIRE: Storm and Wind.
>[] Fyusumi
>>
>>889876
>VOID
>Hui Daji

He seems likely to employ style and sword, and almost prepared isnt prepared right now.
>>
>>889876
>[] FIRE: Storm and Wind.
>[] Fyusumi
>>
>>889876
>[] VOID: Razor Wit and Cold Heart
>[] Hui Daji
>>
>>889876
>[] FIRE: Storm and Wind.
>[] Both Reduces the destructive power.
>>
>>889876
>[] FIRE: Storm and Wind.
>[] Hui Daji
>>
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[X] FIRE: Storm and Wind.
[X] Fyusumi

Yuuhi-chan is helping a staggering Inau-kun move away from you, and Hui Daji glances towards them. You immediately look at him, seeing his deadly intent before he even makes a decision and he takes a sudden step back as you glare at him. You feel the steady influx of prayer from your priestess, her soft litany of prayers and invocations warming your heart, reminding you why you are doing this, keeping you from becoming a simple minded and remorseless killing machine. Fyusumi whirls around and lifts both her hands.

You're there before anyone can blink, your heart consumed by the fires within you. You lift your right hand, the ruby talons given you by the blood of your beloved Yui – and in a twist of fate, the first 'demon' you 'tamed' and brought redemption to – and narrow your eyes at Fyusumi. She pulls harder, drawing more and more power, trying to raise the abominations, the enemies you feared most, the twisted scientific experiments from the places – heaven, hells, wherever – that they have been consigned.

You squeeze.

Her spell is snuffed instantly, the power blown out like a candle by the elemental forces of Flame, anathema to all magic. You twist your hand and she is surrounded in a globe of smoke, wind, and water that whirls like the hurricane you once created to terrify some petty sorcerers and your old clan-mates with.

Except this one is a true hurricane, and when the lightnings flash and spear Fyusumi in place, no one can hear her scream over the crack of thunder. There isn't a sound except a rush of wind, water, and lightning before she is torn to pieces by the sphere of elemental forces that eradicate her to the molecule. When you lower your hand the sphere swirls away in a soft breeze, a puff of ozone, and a wisp of sulphuric smoke.

Hui Daji now receives your full attention.

[] VOID: Razor Wit and Cold Heart
[] STONE: Style and Sword
[] WATER: The Deadliest Smile
[] Use the Chi you have to force your Will upon him so you may deliver a message.
[] Allow him his one attempt to harm you if he dares.
>>
>>889957
>It was a very close vote, decided by a half vote and a comment - "geek the mage."

>First Rule of Shadowrun.
>>
>>889963
When in doubt, a good rule to follow.

>>889957
>[x] WATER: The Deadliest Smile
>>
>>889957
>[] WATER: The Deadliest Smile
>>
>>889957
>[] WATER: The Deadliest Smile

Let's see if he's still smiling.
>>
>>889957
>[] WATER: The Deadliest Smile
>>
>>889957
>[] WATER: The Deadliest Smile


>>889963
I helped!
>>
>>889957
>[] WATER: The Deadliest Smile
>>
>>889957
>[] WATER: The Deadliest Smile
>>
>>889957
>[] VOID: Razor Wit and Cold Heart
I dunno do we want to try smile again after last time?
>>
>>889957
>VOID
>>
>>889987
Last time we weren't juiced up by the powers of the God of Destruction.
>>
>>889957
>[x] WATER: The Deadliest Smile

Wondering what message that would be, though.
>>
>>889957
>[] VOID: Razor Wit and Cold Heart
>[] Use the Chi you have to force your Will upon him so you may deliver a message.
>>
>>889957
[] WATER: The Deadliest Smile

Should be properly terrifying now that it's on kami steroids.
>>
>>889425
>Ryukusa pregnant
I'll be honest, the idea of Inari as a whole getting Ryukusa pregnant sounds both adorable and hot.
>>
>>890042
If we somehow make it through the whole quest without invoking Inari's power, that is totally what Ryukusa should use it for in the epilogue.
>>
>>889957
[] WATER: The Deadliest Smile
>[] Use the Chi you have to force your Will upon him so you may deliver a message. We are going to be courteous about this after all.
>>
>>889957

>[] VOID: Razor Wit and Cold Heart
>>
>>890054
>>890010

Guys, we should keep our Chi, we're going to need it.

There is still Melinda.

Personally I'm against using it just to look cool.
>>
>>890078
>There is still Melinda
I got the impression that she's pretty much cooked already.
>>
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[X] WATER: The Deadliest Smile

Hui Daji's eyes flick to Yuuhi and Inau-kun, but Yuuhi is supporting Inau-kun and has her sword out and low to the ground, clearly ready to protect her wounded comrade-in-arms. Kiku's soft litany thrums through your heart and your head, her love and adoration filled with the living threads of prayers that have come from others who love you, others who adore you. Hui Daji feels your attention upon him and he shifts his stance, the black iron sword nearly as tall as he is gleaming in the half light of the Barrier. You narrow your eyes and speak softly, the breeze carrying your voice to him.

You would never have become his favorite.

Hui Daji glares at you, his hands shaking, his body trembling in hate, rage, and fear.

Your evils were petty. Your desires were petty. Your subtleties are transparent to him, as they are to me.

The demon lowers his eyes slightly, steeling himself, preparing himself for the charge.

You could never become his Second, because you could never overcome your roots. And your roots are dry, withered, helpless things that you could never let go of. Petty evils, crafted by a petty demon, meaningless to anyone save yourself. But that is why I must release you from your torment. Because....” He looks up, and you have to admit, his power over illusion and distraction is amazing. It could have totally fooled you. Except for one thing.

You lift your hand and the illusions vanish, washed away by the clarity of the Water. “I knew you would come for my family.” He sails towards you intending to have his last blow, to leave his mark upon you.

A smile, a gentle, forgiving, and utterly heartless smile, graces your lips as you snuff his demonic essence. The unmoving statue of his corpse crashes into your left hand, where he shatters like so much glass and porcelain. An empty shell containing nothing more than fragments of black glass. Not even obsidian or jade – only glass, without value or meaning.
>>
>>890078
We'll see what's going on with her soon. She's tainting this area and we've just used our third or fourth technique (I'd say third, since we didn't complete our second).
>>
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>>890099
The ruyi reappears before you and you tuck it into Nowhere. You have to use the Chi your sweet-natured samurai gave you to not collapse on your face as the Barrier collapses around you, the evidence of the battle gone, save for a soft, persistent breeze that flows from where you stand. You still go to your knees and remain there, swaying, your arm, belly and shoulder aching deeply, though you're at least not bleeding at all.

Kiku-chan is there instantly, and her arms are around your neck as she hugs you tightly, steam rising from her eyes. With a smile you gently stroke the diminutive dragon's back. “You know....if that's what being a kami is like....I'm not really all that keen on it, bitsy dragon.”

She sniffles softly. “Bakayero, aniki,” she whispers to you, as you stroke and pet her.

Yuuhi helps Inau-kun over to where you are and the huntress looks up at you. She's got blood all along one shoulder, and the way her eyes are twitching tells you enough – blown eardrum, probably concussed, and the worst case of vertigo ever. You start to focus your mind but your priestess gently lays her finger across your lips. You didn't even move them. “Er Yin and Yui-chan are coming.”

[] Okay, good, now you can sleep.
[] Stay awake, and prepare yourself for the trip home. Even though it's not that far.
[] Tell your priestess to make you some coins of black jade.
[] Kisses, and hugs, then let yourself go.
[] Gently remind her she forgot to close the ritual.
>>
>>890105
>[] Tell your priestess to make you some coins of black jade.
>[] Gently remind her she forgot to close the ritual.

Goddamn that was cold
>>
>>890105
>[x] Tell your priestess to make you some coins of black jade.
>[x] Gently remind her she forgot to close the ritual.
>[x] Kisses, and hugs, then let yourself go
>>
>>890105
>[] Tell your priestess to make you some coins of black jade.
>[] Kisses, and hugs, then let yourself go.
>[] Gently remind her she forgot to close the ritual.
>>
>>890105
>[x] Stay awake, and prepare yourself for the trip home. Even though it's not that far.
That was rather a crushing victory at the end.
Feel a little bad for Melinda though. Oh well!
>>
>>890105
>[] Stay awake, and prepare yourself for the trip home. Even though it's not that far.
>[] Gently remind her she forgot to close the ritual.
>[] Tell your priestess to make you some coins of black jade.
>>
>>890105
>[] Tell your priestess to make you some coins of black jade.
>[] Kisses, and hugs, then let yourself go
>>
>>890105
>[] Stay awake, and prepare yourself for the trip home. Even though it's not that far.
>>
>>890105
[] Gently remind her she forgot to close the ritual.
[] Tell your priestess to make you some coins of black jade.
[] Kisses, and hugs, then let yourself go.
>>
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[XXX] Tell your priestess to make you some coins of black jade.
[XX] Gently remind her she forgot to close the ritual.
[X] Kisses, and hugs, then let yourself go.

“....black jade....” Kiku-chan pulls back, though she still manages to support you with ease. Dragonette strength is still plenty strong, even for a little thing like she is. “Need to....make black jade coins....four, prolly. Maybe....maybe seven....”

She frowns faintly. “So many?”

Doesn't even ask what they're for, silly priestess. “To walk away from Enma-Oh....without offending him....pay the price to get out of his Hell. Black jade.” Her eyes widen and she nods slowly. “.....didn't close the ritual....”

“You need the strength, and my Master and I must purify the grounds before the youkai's essence poisons it truly.” She strokes your brow as you blink rapidly, exhaustion setting in deep and fast. “Sleep, aniki. You're injured, and the power of a kamuy is not a small thing.” You feel more than see or hear Yui-chan touch down, and she rushes to Inau-kun's side, her hands touching, tracing, and soothing. You smile and shake your head, your arms sliding around your bitsy dragon's shoulders as you kiss her several times, and nuzzle gently. “Love her, my little oni-chick....” You feel Kiku-chan nod against your shoulder as she keeps you steady.

“Come, Ryukusa-sama. Let me help you.” You allow yourself to be lifted by powerful arms, and snuggle into your hard bodied China-doll. You nuzzle and give her a kiss too, and she nuzzles back gently. “Sleep, now, My Lord, and dream.”

She must have bespelled you, because you wink out like a light.

>To Be Continued....
>>
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Thank you for reading and playing; I hope it was worth the wait.

Ryukusa will not be quite so exhausted next time, and even less the time after that if she continues to work with these new abilities hope she does not need to.

I will stay a short time for questions and comments, and will of course keep a thread watch and answer others that may crop up later.

I may be able to run tomorrow, but cannot promise that.
>>
>>890188
Thanks for running!
>>
>>890188
thanks for the thread XS
>>
>>890188
Thanks for running XS!
>>
>>890188
It was a very fun session, I'll look forward to the next one whenever it is
>>
>>890188
Thanks for running
>Hope she does not need to

Yeah, I guessed that. Unfortunately the other Six Immortal Demons might realize that teamwork is imperative.

Also wait, this fight took place in the hallway of Ryukusa's apartment complex right? I kind of figured that whatever it's made of is worse than any Youkai poison, considering who the Landthing is.
>>
>>890188
Thanks
>>
>>890245
Actually it's on the ground level of the building, and in the garden area. Still fairly natural earth and water there - Ryukuza (and a number of other residents) use it to keep contact with Japan. Youkai poisoning would be bad.
>>
>>890251
Poor girl, that Melinda. Is there anything left of her spirit to even send a prayer to? Not sure how badly that kind of corruption screws with their hereafter.
>>
>>890188

Thanks for running!

The illusions of what did we destroy at the end?

I feel sorry for Melinda. Is there anything we can make for her at all?
>>
>>890272
No, there was nothing left after the demons got done with her, but she can still be prayed to and made offerings to - she is truly dead, and her soul resides in Yomi.

Or maybe in heaven, she was a good Western Girl (mostly) after all. Aside from the cannibalism.
>>
>>890273
Oh, the illusions were Hui Daji's attempt to confuse the direction of his attack and type of attack. Hard to do with a Water dragonette; impossible with a God of Destruction.
>>
>>890245
>Yeah, I guessed that. Unfortunately the other Six Immortal Demons might realize that teamwork is imperative.
I guess the obvious solution is to hunt them down and make sure it's never this even a fight again. But even though we do have a Demigoddess of the Hunt on our side, that seems easier said than done.
>>
>>890286

But the cannibalism wasn't voluntary, right?

Question: how badly was Inau hurt?

Poor girl can't catch a break
>>
>>890300

Thanks
>>
>>890335
It was voluntary after she found out what it did for her, which was to allow her to stay healthy and strong in any location regardless of how fro from her spiritual center she was (the others had Japan and their center in Europe somewhere - she could be strong anywhere).

Pretty badly - she was only a few meters away from the impact and unprotected and unprepared for any such thing. The weapon protected Hui Daji and Ryukusa's arm protected her.
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>>890357
>It was voluntary after she found out what it did for her, which was to allow her to stay healthy and strong in any location regardless of how fro from her spiritual center she was (the others had Japan and their center in Europe somewhere - she could be strong anywhere).

Uh. Definitively makes her less sympathetic. Kind of the shittiest person we've met, actually.

I thought she had gotten tricked by her father against her will ?

>Pretty badly

God dammit. I hope we can heal her without any permanent damages or scars.

>she was only a few meters away from the impact and unprotected and unprepared for any such thing

So, it's our fault?
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>>890379
It wasn't her father, it was Taisho Ryoga. Her father later encouraged it without her knowing.

No, it was just bad positioning and no one expecting that to happen, including you and Hui Daji In case you hadn't noticed, Inau-kun is not a lucky person.
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>>890286
Well, it's her soul I was worried about so that's... something, anyway. I wonder how praying for her soul works if it's in heaven and not yomi, though.
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>>890396

>It wasn't her father, it was Taisho Ryoga. Her father later encouraged it without her knowing.

So, I don't get it. She was tricked at the start, then said "fuck it, gimme the people to eat if it makes me powerful", then was tricked again by her father ?

Poor Inau-kun. She deserves more than a shitty luck.
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>>890406
Question for your priestess most likely.
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>>890420
Less 'ticked' by her father than 'taken advantage of', as her hunger was controllable at one point, but when he slipped her some on the sly though her other mouths....then things could get out of have, as they did when they confronted Ryukusa and Akari.
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>>890379
She was basically drained completely or barely aware and offered an addictive 'drug' that made her feel even better than normal. Think about that, anon.
>>890406
We can make prayers to both Yomi and the Christian Kami to safeguard her.
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>>890443
>She was basically drained completely or barely aware and offered an addictive 'drug' that made her feel even better than normal. Think about that, anon.

She was apparently pretty aware she was eating people.
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>>890522
The initial description when he first offered it to her is that she didn't understand what she was eating and was incredibly drained from leaving the area of her faith's domain. Combine that with some nudging, while she may have understood at some level, she was already hooked.

I'm not saying it isn't her fault at some level, but not everyone is Ryukusa, anon. Her father tricked her multiple times and she trusted him.
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>>890406
If she's germanic pagan I think she used rune magic? than she's probably in Helheim waiting for her to 'luck' breaks off and 'reincarnate'. Or maybe she'll become an Elf or Dwarf. Or she'll just live in Helheim until Ragnarrok and 99% of everything is sent back to the Ginunggagap until the next world is made. Or some mixture of all three.
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>>890853
Bonus points awarded.
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>>890853
>>892282
good job anon
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>>890853

Actually she would almost certainly get sent to Nastrond, to be melted by poison and gnawed by Nidhoggr.

Not that it's particularly hard to go there: Odin, Thor and Ryukusa would go there, if they were humans following that religion.
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>>889670

Mere decades for the living world, but time flows differently in the afterlives and other Hells. He could have spent centuries grinding his way up and felt very clever about it.

In particular, I recall that while the time a soul has to spend in the Chinese Hells doesn't last forever, but it will FEEL forever.
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>>892377
Ryukusa has mentioned that a minute in Yomi feels like forever.
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>>892383

Well, to be fair, Ryukusa feels like an instant is extremely long, when Things are not happening, and Yomi is filled with Things That Have Happened But Are Not Happening Any Longer. It is the Realm of Still, while as a Demigod Ryukusa is a being of Move.


Not to mention the symbolism of the Descent to the Underworld and the travel back up for the hero.
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>>892373

Funny thing, if you go by Norse/germanic texts we have, the dead can still cast spells and curses on the living, and the ones of a dead Christian woman were considered very dreadful.
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I hope we didn't spook our family, Inau being hurt is already pretty shit
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>>892395
Kku and Yuuhi are less surprised by such things (and Kiku was expecting it). They all heard from the others about the first time, but there is a difference between the tale and the reality.

>>892390
That is a good point.



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