Flandre's Quest (Touhou) World - (Madness Quest)

[Entropy Judge]

Votes are locked.

Spoiler: Tally

[X] Go up to the roof.
8

[X] Keep trying to do things with Ilya.
-[X] Play some games. Board, card, whatever seems interesting.
10

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] Keep trying to do things with Ilya.
- [X] Play some games. Board, card, whatever seems interesting.


You shiver and shake yourself. "No! No, no, no!" Ilya's grip tightens against your thrashing, and you hear rushing footsteps as you bury your face in your hands. "No, I won't!"

"Flan!" You freeze as a thought strikes you, and twist around, flopping back to a sitting position as you pull Ilya so she's in front of you. "Flan?"

"I know! We can play some games!" Ilya stares at you, confused and worried. Then her expression saddens.

"Games, huh?" She looks down at the stump of her right arm and you shake your head quickly.

"No, no - like board and card games! And there's things like magic squares and word games and rebuses." Ilya watches you, still seeming worried, as you stare at her imploringly. "Please? I don't want to do anything involving her, and … and I'm going to keep messing these up, so …." After a few seconds Ilya sighs and nods.

"Alright, Flan." You squeal happily and squeeze her tightly. "Oof! Ah, Flan - thank you. You didn't bring anything with you, though, right?" You shake your head as you pull away.

"No, but - this is a hotel, right? They have to have a place where people can relax, and that'll have games we can use!" It will, right? It has to …. After another long moment of watching you Ilya nods again.

"Then why don't you go find the games and bring them to the dining area? Sella can finish making the dumplings and we can all play them together, okay?" Your head bobs up and down in a jerky nod before you hug Ilya tightly once more, then float into the air to set her back into her chair. Sella seems a little strange, her movements more controlled than usual, but you ignore her and smile at Ilya as you head for the exit. You wave from the door before turning and bolting away.

The clarity of the signs and maps is at once a benefit and a disappointment. Nowhere in the hotel is a sort of general 'game' or 'entertainment' area. No library. There's an indoor pool, but that's physical activity, even if Ilya can she might not want to. An exercise area with curious machines and training equipment. A 'convenience store' that ends up being pretty useless. You walk behind the counter and curl up, hugging your knees to your chest and wrapping your wings forward. It's not working. You're making things worse for Ilya, disappointing and failing her. You can't search every room in the building, not in a reasonable timeframe - and you don't even know if there is anything to find. Maybe you could make up something; you know magic squares pretty well, after all, and half the fun of a rebus is making it up … but the way you feel right now, you'd probably keep messing up. Patchouli's going to win, just like always.

"You stop that right now!" You flinch at Headless's near-shout, hunching your shoulders defensively and burying your face into your knees. "Every damn time! She only wins if you let her! And you don't go complain to your sister! 'She's busy doing important things, so I won't bother her.' 'She knows everything, so she must not have a problem with it.' How about this time you do something about it?" You try to 'push' Headless back down, to make her shut up and leave you alone, but for once she pushes back - and she pushes back harder than you do. A wracking sob leaps from your throat and Headless recoils, seemingly shocked at your failure to contain her. She quiets down anyway, at least, and you busy yourself trying to stuff your emotions down well enough to function properly with Ilya. "… She's your friend, right? She'll understand. Just stop this damn moping and freaking out - it gives me a headache, and now you're scaring Giltless as well." You'd quite forgotten there were two of them, now, and you reflexively tighten your muscles, trying to still yourself so you don't bother them. Headless sighs, however, and you get the feeling that she's rolling her eyes.

"Lady Flandre?" You almost flinch again at the unexpected voice, almost twitch yourself back into the underside of the counter. You slip into invisibility, not exactly eager for a confrontation just yet. "Lady Flandre, are you in here?" Have you really taken so long that Ilya thought she needed to send her servant to track you down? Or has she been watching, and now that you've given up she's sent Sella to drag you back to her side? Why else would she be here, of all places, and apparently standing still, waiting for a response, instead of moving on when it's obvious that you aren't there?

"How about we go have a chat with Patchouli, hm? I'll even do the talking."


What do you do?

[ ] Stay in the store until you feel better.
- [ ] Sleep.

[ ] Go back to Ilya and try to make up for everything.

[ ] Confront Patchouli.

[ ] Other?

 

[SpeckofStardust]

...
[x] Confront Patchouli.

 

[SilverRune]

Difficult choice here.
[ ] Go back to Ilya and try to make up for everything.
Might allow Flandre to cool down a bit before doing something rash, but I'm not sure we won't accidentally hurt Ilya's feelings. Later we could speak with Remilia about Patchouli.

[ ] Confront Patchouli.
This could be a good way to confront the issues that Flandre and Patchouli clearly have with each other, but is Headless or Flandre calm enough to do it right?
And does Headless count as Flandre for the purpose of her geass? Otherwise Patchouli might get surprised.

[ ] Stay in the store until you feel better.
- [ ] Sleep.
And this would be a rather safe choice, but it is also not a good choice since we just leave Ilya without a word alone and won't actually solve anything. It also allows for speaking with Remilia about Patchouli later.

 

[BoundaryPhantasm]

If Flan went and confront Patchouli, it will show that Patchouli was always right about Flan and Flan was a child and have not grow up. Patchouli was however willing to give chances to Flan to prove her view on Flan was wrong as condensing as she was to her through not without valid reason on her part. Flan through out the quest had show she make many bad sounded decision and did't thinks through. If Flan intend to show that Patchouli was wrong about her, Flan will not confront her and instead take up Patchouli challenge on the roof to relieve her stress and able to calm down to make a sound decision. Flan had show to make more sounding decision when she calm and stress free. A trait that was also share with her sister Remelia. If she intend to confront Patchouli, she need to do it with her stress as low as possible and a clear mind.
Also if she goes to to confront Patchouli now, she will lost. Word Of God.

Actually trying to attack Patchouli with intent to kill/harm would end badly for Flan.

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In addition to what @Brainwasher said, Flan currently has a geas on her that Patchouli can use to cripple her. In a blank slate, one-on-one confrontation with no prep, Flan would butcher Patchouli without a contest; when she has a geas that can shut her down and Patchouli has preparations to fight Gilgamesh in open combat and has a temporary 'territory' with as many defensive spells as she could place in a short time without compromising her other objectives, Flan would get wrecked.

Click to shrink...

[X] Go up to the roof.
-[X] Take up Patchouli challenge . You need to vent out your stress. If you want to confront Patchouli, you will do it with a clear mind.
--[X] Say sorry to Ilya before going up and explain why you going up to the roof.

 

[Stormgear]

[X] Go up to the roof.
-[X] Take up Patchouli challenge . You need to vent out your stress. If you want to confront Patchouli, you will do it with a clear mind.
--[X] Say sorry to Ilya before going up and explain why you going up to the roof.

Yeah it's almost like Flan has actual anger problems and needs to vent occasionally before trying to get all cuddly with anyone.

Let's go vent.

 

[veekie]

[X] Go up to the roof.
-[X] Take up Patchouli challenge . You need to vent out your stress. If you want to confront Patchouli, you will do it with a clear mind.
--[X] Say sorry to Ilya before going up and explain why you going up to the roof.

See why trying to force it wouldn't have worked?

 

[SilverRune]

If Flan went and confront Patchouli, it will show that Patchouli was always right about Flan and Flan was a child and have not grow up. Patchouli was however willing to give chances to Flan to prove her view on Flan was wrong as condensing as she was to her through not without valid reason on her part. Flan through out the quest had show she make many bad sounded decision and did't thinks through. If Flan intend to show that Patchouli was wrong about her, Flan will not confront her and instead take up Patchouli challenge on the roof to relieve her stress and able to calm down to make a sound decision. Flan had show to make more sounding decision when she calm and stress free. A trait that was also share with her sister Remelia. If she intend to confront Patchouli, she need to do it with her stress as low as possible and a clear mind.
Also if she goes to to confront Patchouli now, she will lost. Word Of God.

Click to shrink...

You do realize that confronting someone and attacking them are two completely different things?
One is physically attacking someone and the other is calling someone out on their behavior. I already posted that I'm not sure if Flandre can do it calmly, but at least the action that we would vote for is neither showing us as particularly immature or having a bad temper nor is it an automatic loss because of our geass.

 

[Stormgear]

You do realize that confronting someone and attacking them are two completely different things?
One is physically attacking someone and the other is calling someone out on their behavior. I already posted that I'm not sure if Flandre can do it calmly, but at least the action that we would vote for is neither showing us as particularly immature or having a bad temper nor is it an automatic loss because of our geass.

Click to shrink...

The text is red. It wouldn't be Flan confronting Patchouli. I assume regardless of the fact that Headless would be playing a major role, the geass would still apply. So yeah, probably not the best idea.

 

[BoundaryPhantasm]

You do realize that confronting someone and attacking them are two completely different things?
One is physically attacking someone and the other is calling someone out on their behavior. I already posted that I'm not sure if Flandre can do it calmly, but at least the action that we would vote for is neither showing us as particularly immature or having a bad temper nor is it an automatic loss because of our geass.

Click to shrink...

The main problem is that Headless will likely be the one doing the talking with if the text color is any indication. Headless method of solving problem always boils down to two words: Brute Force. Headless likely going to used scare/threaten tactics on Patchouli which unfortunate not going to work in my opinion. Patchouli had known Flan for years and thus Headless. She will known how to handle her even in a talk. Also, Flan will be directly in a area however temporary, was still an area that Patchouli had build and will be in her element. If Headless try something, Patchouli could likely counter it.

 

[SilverRune]

The text is red. It wouldn't be Flan confronting Patchouli. I assume regardless of the fact that Headless would be playing a major role, the geass would still apply. So yeah, probably not the best idea.

Click to shrink...

Sure, but Flandre would have influence on Headless and maybe Headless can keep her temper with her help? Like I said what the vote wants to do is good, but if Flandre/Headless actually manage to confront Patchouli calmly (well calm enough to matter) is uncertain.

The other options are also not particularly attractive for reasons I already explained. The write in for now going up to the roof also is not without its negative points, going now has the problem that it will hurt Flandre's pride in not being strong enough on her own and needing to rely on Patchouli's reward for good behavior. Not something that will have the best impact on her mood though it would likely help in the short term.

Maybe something like this would work? Wouldn't hurt her pride for accepting Patchouli's offer after she already decided not to take it and could help her calm down and confront Patchouli later.

[ ] Apologize to Ilya for needing some alone time to calm down.
-[ ] Just wreak some destruction in the middle of a forest where no one will notice until you are calmer.
-[ ] Try to sleep

 

[BoundaryPhantasm]

Sure, but Flandre would have influence on Headless and maybe Headless can keep her temper with her help? Like I said what the vote wants to do is good, but if Flandre/Headless actually manage to confront Patchouli calmly (well calm enough to matter) is uncertain.

Click to shrink...

When Flan is angry, she likely to follow Headless advice and words. Happen a lot of time in this quest.

 

[Stormgear]

Sure, but Flandre would have influence on Headless and maybe Headless can keep her temper with her help? Like I said what the vote wants to do is good, but if Flandre/Headless actually manage to confront Patchouli calmly (well calm enough to matter) is uncertain.

The other options are also not particularly attractive for reasons I already explained. The write in for now going up to the roof also is not without its negative points, going now has the problem that it will hurt Flandre's pride in not being strong enough on her own and needing to rely on Patchouli's reward for good behavior. Not something that will have the best impact on her mood though it would likely help in the short term.

Maybe something like this would work? Wouldn't hurt her pride for accepting Patchouli's offer after she already decided not to take it and could help her calm down and confront Patchouli later.

[ ] Apologize to Ilya for needing some alone time to calm down.
-[ ] Just wreak some destruction in the middle of a forest where no one will notice until you are calmer.
-[ ] Try to sleep

Click to shrink...

Or maybe it'd be better for Flan to swallow her pride, accept that she screwed up, and actually go burn her anger on something that can pose an actual challenge instead of mindlessly exploding some trees.

 

[Entropy Judge]

Maybe something like this would work? Wouldn't hurt her pride for accepting Patchouli's offer after she already decided not to take it and could help her calm down and confront Patchouli later.

Click to shrink...

Patchouli explicitly forbade leaving the hotel, so going out to wreck something somewhere else is going to require asking Patchouli to be allowed to do it.

 

[SilverRune]

Or maybe it'd be better for Flan to swallow her pride, accept that she screwed up, and actually go burn her anger on something that can pose an actual challenge instead of mindlessly exploding some trees.

Click to shrink...

Or Flandre can just swallow her anger and ignore it, works just as well in improving her mood than swallowing her pride.
And I'm not aware that it was Flandre's screw up that caused Patchouli to try to use her as a tool?

At this point I'm not sure if Patchouli is the mature one in this conflict. I mean Flandre has a temper, but she behaved not all that immature in contrast to Patchouli who seems to find some purpose in provoking her and being condescending to her for no reason I'm aware of besides maybe a personal dislike of her.

 

[Stormgear]

Or Flandre can just swallow her anger and ignore it, works just as well in improving her mood than swallowing her pride.
And I'm not aware that it was Flandre's screw up that caused Patchouli to try to use her as a tool?

At this point I'm not sure if Patchouli is the mature one in this conflict. I mean Flandre has a temper, but she behaved not all that immature in contrast to Patchouli who seems to find some purpose in provoking her and being condescending to her for no reason I'm aware of besides maybe a personal dislike of her.

Click to shrink...

Or it could be that Patchouli genuinely wanted to drive the knife into Kiritsugu and Iri's hearts and didn't think about how Flan would take that precise wording. I think it's more realistic that Patchy made a mistake in her choice in words than for her to specifically be needling Flan for the sake of it. She's kind of a recluse with barely any social life. Making a Faux Pas by accident is just a thing she probably does.

Taking Flan's thoughts as fact in a situation where she is inherently biased to find fault with anything and everything Patchouli does is a mistake. Also, Flan swallowing her anger leads to blowing up later. Flan swallowing her pride has historically been remedied by cuddles.

I'd rather see the latter than the former.

 

[asdx]

[X] Go back to Ilya and try to make up for everything.

 

[SilverRune]

Or it could be that Patchouli genuinely wanted to drive the knife into Kiritsugu and Iri's hearts and didn't think about how Flan would take that precise wording. I think it's more realistic that Patchy made a mistake in her choice in words than for her to specifically be needling Flan for the sake of it. She's kind of a recluse with barely any social life. Making a Faux Pas by accident is just a thing she probably does.

Click to shrink...

Then Patchouli makes a hell of a lot social faux pas:
Dismissing someone of equal or higher social standing like she did in the library.
Attacking Flandre's relationship with her sister though she did apologize for that at least.
Making her take a geass instead of trust her to keep her word, despite Flandre placing a lot of value on her word and thereby implying her word to be worthless.

The entire geass thing was pretty insulting even in how tight the binding was meant to be.

"… regarding the second and third conditions. The fourth requires no force, because it simply is, and despite what is no doubt going through your mind, I am not so foolish as to think I can get away with a geas for your obedience. Besides, you would fight that."

Click to shrink...

And the whole she isn't doing it on intent is not quite that believable if you take into account that Patchouli can't stand Flandre.

"Eh? You don't think Patchouli can keep Ilya safe from Archer?" You try to keep any trace of superiority or mockery out of your voice as you look past your sister at the magician. She stares at Remilia, looking almost betrayed, then glares viciously at you.
...
She spins to face the still-glowering magician and leans forward at the waist, arms behind her back. You try to smile politely at Patchouli as she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. You've had this conversation, you know what she'll say …. She opens her eyes, and while she still looks angry, she doesn't look furious anymore.

Click to shrink...

Hell, it looks a lot for me like Patchouli is jealous of how much Remilia likes Flandre, despite her flaws, and takes it out on Flandre.

 

[Entropy Judge]

Hell, it looks a lot for me like Patchouli is jealous of how much Remilia likes Flandre, despite her flaws, and takes it out on Flandre.

Click to shrink...

Maybe not jealousy, exactly, but Remilia's attitude toward Flandre is something of a sore point for the good magician:

"… Remilia, you're going to kill yourself." The mangled vampire barked a laugh.

"It wouldn't be the first time, Pache. Besides, I can heal myself, and much more easily than we can heal Flan. This is only a temporary malediction." She sucked in a raspy breath, and Patchouli's hands clenched.

"Why? If you keep doing this to yourself, if you keep hiding things from her, she won't learn! She'll just keep doing what she wants, no matter what you want! If you'd just let her suffer -" She jerked back, startled, as a reflexive spasm of Remilia's wings shattered the back of her chair.

"Flandre is my sister, Patchouli. I want her to be happy, to have fun; if she wants to leave, that … I … I can deal with it. Until then, however, I want her to be safe, protected. If that means … this …. I can accept it." Patchouli stared at her friend as her fingernails dug into the palms of her hands and tears threatened her vision.

"Remi …."

"Thank you, Pache." The magician slammed her foot into the floor at her friend's remark.

"I wanted to leave her there, Remilia! I didn't want to do a damned thing to help her! And I shouldn't have helped her, should've left her to her own devices when that damned god threw her out of his world, just left her to recover on her own and maybe learn something for once! But you … you …." Her mouth worked soundlessly for a moment before she was reduced by her own wracking, asthmatic coughing fit.

Click to shrink...

And to be fair, Flandre wouldn't completely disagree ...

… Just as quickly as it flares, your temper dies again. If Ran is here, that means the Yakumos are paying attention. If you do anything – attack Ran, calm yourself by breaking some trees, anything – then they'll go to the mansion and demand to see Remilia. And she won't be there, so things will get even worse – and when she does come back, they'll complain about her not keeping you under control, and they'll use that to gain advantage over her. Just like always, you'd be making trouble for her.

Click to shrink...

 

[A Wise Hermit]

[X] Go up to the roof.
-[X] Take up Patchouli challenge. You need to vent out your stress. If you want to confront Patchouli, you will do it with a clear mind.
--[X] Say sorry to Ilya before going up and explain why you going up to the roof.

We don't want to take anything with red text at the moment, even if we do know headless better now. We need to confront patchy after we go and vent. We act normally that way.

 

[Entropy Judge]

Votes are not locked.

Spoiler: Current Tally

[X] Confront Patchouli.
1

[X] Go up to the roof.
-[X] Take up Patchouli challenge . You need to vent out your stress. If you want to confront Patchouli, you will do it with a clear
mind.
--[X] Say sorry to Ilya before going up and explain why you going up to the roof.
4

[X] Go back to Ilya and try to make up for everything.
1

Also something.

Spoiler: Vampire And Tengu

Remilia drifted along in the night, savoring the experience - the roar of the fighting below, the swirl of hostile magic in the air, her sister carving a swathe through anything foolish enough - or slow enough - to get in her way …. She smiled; there weren't many things that could outpace a vampire, even more the more generalist varieties like her sister and herself. She looked up at the moon and drank in its beautiful silver light before turning her gaze toward the scattered creatures below. A full-on battle between supernatural creatures was raging, and she had yet to take part … her sister and Meiling could shepherd their new allies well enough, and so far none of the sorcerers attempting to strike at their army had managed to break through Patchouli's wards and counterspells. But that could change, and that was why she flew above the combat, rather than partaking in the slaughter.

She had researched this world as much as she had been able to, as well as the stories of the land it had fractured from. She watched from above, not for the superior beings she could feel stirring even now, preparing to mass their strength and overmatch her and her family, but for the great troll-folk of the region. Ogres, demons, oni. Supposedly the greatest relatively common species of horror in these faraway islands, she stood watch that she might gauge their power for herself and prevent them from scattering the band that Flandre led. Then the winds rocked around her, buffeting her with a raucous gale, and she looked up at the small army that had assembled against her. Groups of black-winged warriors armed with the comparatively short, heavy swords favored by this land's nobles, backed up by a contingent of sorcerers that began weaving a tapestry of magical might. Remilia cocked her head to the side as she queried the world around her with a few simple foretelling spells, then raised one eyebrow - the newcomers had come for her, specifically.

She crossed her arms and gave them a bored look as she brought up the information she had read on these beings - a breed of wind demons, akin to the mountain spirits of the Alps that blew snow and storms upon travelers in their domains. One of the squads swooped at her and her eyes widened at their speed. Not only was their speed at least on par with her own, their acceleration was undoubtedly superior, and their control …! She slipped back and turned sideways as the group split around her, seeking to control her movements. She spun with them, hands blurring out to deflect swords aiming for her body and head, cuts aimed at her lower legs were stymied by her red court shoes, and magically hardened wings intercepted the remainder of the incoming blows. After several seconds of defensive posturing, Remilia narrowed her eyes and subtly twisted her shoulder. As she had expected, one of the warriors noticed the apparent weakness on her left side, a gap created by a strengthening of her right arm, and he twisted about to thrust his blade into her shoulder. She snapped around and thrust out with her right arm - and shattered the tengu's throat. It unceremoniously fell forward and dropped out of the sky as the other members of his team flittered out of range, apparently shocked at the ease with which he had been dispatched. Remilia blinked, surprised as well - she hadn't actually expected that strike to connect, much less to be so immediately lethal.

Then two more squads surged forward and the sorcerers began a powerful group casting. With three groups of the tengu wheeling and diving around her, she had to strain herself - every sense, physical and magical, was engaged in detecting incoming threats, predicting which were feints and which were intended to be decisive. Power surged through her limbs, dissolving flesh and bone and muscle and transmuting her body to that of a creature formed of and by magic instead of a more biological being. No longer a mere blur, her six thrashing limbs cloaked her body in a shadow of movement. Not a single blade could touch her … but such an expenditure of power was unsustainable in the long term. Soon enough her energy reserves would run out and she would be forced to draw upon the power stored within the mansion - but if the sorcerers were at all skilled, they would notice that weakness and hound it mercilessly. Not to mention the possibility that they knew of her weaknesses, and the amplification of those vulnerabilities caused by the change in form could well be lethal if they hit her with enough power. She increased the amount of power she spent, ignoring the burning sensation in her heart, and sensed the future before making her decision.

Her body stilled, furiously-pounding magical energy twitching back to comparatively stolid flesh and blood, and she set about crafting her spells. The tengu sorcerers had reached the height of their ritual, but she ignored the obvious weakness of their manner of casting. The tengu had spun away when she stopped, perhaps in reaction to her, perhaps because their magicians were ready. Remilia stared at the lead sorcerer, saw her many chances to render their attack void - and let the spell build up, let it be unleashed upon her. A torrent of chaotic magical energy choked the air around her but was foiled by the spinning sphere of power she had thrown out at the least second, and when the ineffectual attack died away she grinned at the shock and dismay on her opponents' faces. She calmly, slowly raised on arm, and flicked her wrist as the warriors dove at her again. The three most powerful sorcerers exploded in a burst of feathers and blood, and another half-dozen simply fell out of the sky - and then the blades of the warriors reached her and melted like wax in a furnace. Everything metal that approached her liquefied, melted away harmlessly, and Remilia gave them a scornful look before turning away and gliding down toward her sister. Nothing else would happen this night - Gensokyo had had its throw of the dice, and if they had accomplished nothing they now had a better measure of their enemies. Remilia shook her head and made a sending: a gentle tousling of Patchouli's long hair. That last spell had been completely unnecessary.

 

[Entropy Judge]

Votes are locked, writing is happening.

 

[Entropy Judge]

[X] Go up to the roof.
- [X] Take up Patchouli challenge . You need to vent out your stress. If you want to confront Patchouli, you will do it with a clear mind.
- - [X] Say sorry to Ilya before going up and explain why you going up to the roof.


You sit still for a moment, almost cowering, as you consider Headless's offer. Then you dismiss your invisibility and shake your head before slowly, carefully, standing up. Sella, looking at something on the shelves, notices you rise and bows. "Lady Flandre. Lady Illyasviel had sent me out to see if there was anything here that might be good, in case anything happened with the dumplings. I thought I felt your presence …." She trails off as she takes a closer look at you, and you shake your head again.

"I … I'm sorry, Sella. I-I'm going - I need to tell Ilya something." You walk stiffly around the counter, ignoring Sella's confused and concerned look, and pause just outside the shop. To get back to Ilya, you go … a hand touches your shoulder and you flinch away - you spend most of your concentration making sure your wings don't impale Sella. She stares at you for a moment, surprised more than anything, then bows deeply.

"I apologize, Lady Flandre. Lady Illyasviel is this way …." She waves her hand to the side, directing you where to go, and you nod jerkily. She follows you cautiously as you make your way back to Ilya, focusing most of your attention on trying to lightly bury your worst emotions - like a crow hiding food for a few hours - so they don't affect your explanation too much. Ilya looks up when you come in, but her smile fades immediately when she sees you. You raise a hand to keep her from saying anything and walk forward until you're a few steps away from her.

"U-um - I'm sorry, Ilya. I …." You shake your head. "I can't, right now. It's all - it … I - I'm going u-up. To fight. I just …." Ilya's chair glides forward and she holds her arm out, waiting for you to take the last step and hug her. After a moment, you do.

"Need to clear your head and calm down?" You nod, trying not to shudder. "It's fine, Flan. Sometimes you just want to smash something, right? Do you mind if I come up with you?" You pull away and shake your head, but Sella clears her throat.

"Miss Knowledge did state that Lady Flandre was to go alone." Ilya scowls.

"Fine. Then we'll go back up to the room and keep an eye on you - and if it looks like you need help, Berserker can go through the roof to get to you!" You smile.

"… Thank you for worrying about me, Ilya." She smiles back and shakes her head.

"Come on, Leys - we're going back up." The four of you make your way back to the elevator and go to the top floor. You step out last but hesitate as you look down the hall. She might not know that you're going up to fight, and you really don't want to even see her until you've calmed down properly …. "I'll tell her, Flan. Go on." You nod and, after another glance at the far door, turn and run for the stairs up to the roof. You pause at the landing and dig up all the emotional stress you've built up so quickly - Tatsuko, Patchouli, Kiritsugu, the geas, your sister letting Patchouli geas you - and hold it, ready to project it onto whatever it is Patchouli is going to bring out and tear it to pieces. You step out onto the rooftop. For a few seconds, it's empty - but then the air shimmers, outlining a box placed over the rooftop and describing the limits of the arena. And then a woman stumbles onto the roof - red hair, a dark suit, and leather gloves that she takes out of a pocket and begins putting on. It looks like she's listening to something as you start walking toward her, then she looks at you. You snarl and dash forward; as she begins her own charge you let out your clones and - stumble to a halt as you try to fly, and your clones fail to appear. Far too quickly to be human, the woman tears across the rooftop. Her first attack shatters your jaw, and her other hand shoves through your chest, tearing out your heart. As you start to regain control of yourself, she steps back and kicks you away.

"… I like her. A woman after your own heart." You wait a moment after skidding to a halt before you start laughing. A grin spreads across your face …. Patchouli is crippling your ability to fight in order to make this something approaching a fair match, which under normal circumstances might make you appreciate the magician's cleverness, or make you feel pride that nothing around can fight you on your level - but not right now, when you're angry and hateful. Patchouli can't even set up a fight right! You start shivering, and you finally have to laugh at Headless's joke as you haul yourself to your feet, your body recovering smoothly as the organ in the woman's hand fades away. She simply looks at you and prepares for another charge.

"People have been doing that far too often lately, you know? It doesn't work that way."


What do you do?

[ ] Countercharge - you heal and she doesn't, so she'll take damage that you can recover from over time.

[ ] Grapple - if you can make it impossible for to use her greater reach, it'll let you take her apart at your leisure.

[ ] Play keepaway - eventually she'll make a mistake or slip into a pattern you can use to beat her.

[ ] Other?


DM Note:

"And if you do go up there, you won't be leaving again until one of you has won - and you will be able to lose that fight. Keep that in mind."

Click to shrink...

 

[Draggon73]

[X] Go up to the roof.
- [X] Take up Patchouli challenge . You need to vent out your stress. If you want to confront Patchouli, you will do it with a clear mind.
- - [X] Say sorry to Ilya before going up and explain why you going up to the roof.

Click to shrink...

Did Patchouli sick Bazet on us? And what version of the enforcer? Did she made deal with her?


[X] Play keepaway - eventually she'll make a mistake or slip into a pattern you can use to beat her.


If this is truly Bazet, she could have Fragarach, a weapon (last Noble Phantasm, on par with Flandre's special attack) turning the strongest attack on attacker.

 

[Biigoh]

[X] Grapple - if you can make it impossible for to use her greater reach, it'll let you take her apart at your leisure.

Worse... She can actually recover from a death blow.