idolpro | Kino's Heart Game

By the time they reached it, Nimya was walking towards the warehouse from a path on which a splendid looking mansion rest. Seeing the guests, she brightened.

“You must be here to ask, 'what was that all about?' Well, I'll show you now. Welcome to my house. I’m Nimya, Nimya Tchuhachkova. Nice to meet you.”

“Hello. I’m Kino, and this here is my partner, Hermes.”

“Hi there.”

Nimya half-opened the door to the warehouse and invited the travelers inside.

The interior was dark, humid, and reeked of machine oil.

“Now I’ll answer your question. I want to turn the main road into a long, straight path. That’s why the bronze statues have to be moved,” Nimya explained.

Still doubtful, Kino asked. “What for?”

“It’s… for this.”

At the same time, Nimya pressed a switch in her hand. The lights hanging from the ceiling slowly lit up, and ventilation fans also started to run.

There was a transport crane dangling from the ceiling. The floor was lined up with various construction machines, and one corner of the room was littered with a mountain of scrap metal. There were several desks cluttered with documents. There were also a number of bicycles hanging side-by-side in one corner.

And at the center of the warehouse was a silver machine.

Roughly the size of a truck, it had a body like that of a fish with its streamlined form and dorsal and tail fins. At its tail end was a device that looked like a three-bladed fan, and arranged symmetrically on its sides were two panel-like protrusions, the span of which was longer than the machine’s overall length. And below these protrusions were two legs that had tires at the end.

“What… is this thing?” Kino asked after trying to figure it out for a while.

“It doesn’t have a name yet, but…” Nimya turned to Kino and Hermes. Then she declared with a bold yet beautiful smile, “With this… I will soar to the skies!”

There was the sound of a film roll coming to an end. And so, your character finds themself in the warehouse, free to examine the machine - or listen in on the conversation regarding this apparent flying machine.

[ oh okay she found the coolest person in this entire town. nice

she's just going to wander around it inspecting the construction. ]

Oh, you're working on an aircraft!

[She immediately turns to Saffron, shocked.]

Aircraft? Then-

Are you from a country where people can fly?!

[Kino's just kind of watching this play out. But as for the machine itself - it certainly seems flight capable, judging by its construction.]

Hm? Oh, yeah, we've got flight-capable machines like this. The design is nice, though. Like, it's nice to look at, too, and it'll get the wind right, I think, although the range is limited.

[Nimya looks like today is her birthday and Saffron just delivered her the best present ever.]

"R-really? You really mean it?!"

Oh—yeah, definitely. I mean, I wouldn't lie about something like that; honestly, it's kind of nice to see things I think of as familiar.

I'm definitely not an engineer, but I'm familiar with the principles, at least.

[She leaps up and down with joy... only to calm and frown.]

"That still means I need that long, straight road for takeoff, though. There has to be some way to convince the chief!"

...oh, I see. So—

Because of the statues, he doesn't want you using it?

"That's right! If it doesn't have to do with farming, he doesn't see any point in it."

[ glances at kino like

trying to gauge what they're thinking ]

It seems like he values the legacy of past leaders a lot, huh.

[They're just kind of sitting back watching this conversation bounce between the two women tbh.]

"He does... oh! I'm so sorry, I got so excited, I forgot. Would you like some tea?"

Ah- sure. What kind?

"Tea brewed from the gallnut of a tree in this country. It's very nutritious!"

[She steps over to a small stove to get the kettle going.]

Oh, sure—thank you. That's thoughtful of you.

At that moment, a car’s engine was heard from outside followed by a violent rapping at the entrance.

“Nimya Tchuhachkova. Please open the door. It’s me.”

It was the chief’s voice. Nimya clicked her tongue and pressed the switch beside the desk. The warehouse shutters opened, allowing the sunlight to get in. Footsteps of more than ten people, led by the chief, came in.

“Good afternoon, Chief. For you to pay me a visit… could it be that my appeal was already approved?”

“Of course not. …Oh, traveler, how come you’re here?”

“I invited them out for tea and told them my story. I’m just welcoming our honored guest, am I not allowed to do so?”

The chief made a sullen face, but finally calmed himself after some effort.

“Nimya. There is something I would like to tell you.”

“And what would that be?”

“All citizens are free to do anything they want as long as they don’t commit crimes or create trouble for the community. However, this country’s council has decided that you shall no longer be allowed to waste time and money on this ‘flying machine’ and other worthless matters.”

The chief delivered his speech with a dignified and deliberate tone. Nimya only glared back, though not impolitely, and gave a curt reply, “It’s not ‘worthless’. That’s all I have to say.”

Kino and Hermes could almost hear the molars of the chief grinding in frustration.

A middle-aged man spoke up. “Chief. It’s no use no matter what you tell her. This woman has gone crazy. Just look at this weird machine.”

“Don’t you dare touch it!” Nimya gave a piercing shriek to the man who tried to approach the machine.

Kino stands back as Nimya shrieks at the people approaching the machine, watching impassively - but your character certainly isn’t bound to stay still if they want to take action.

Oh, excuse me, Sirs—

[ just, you know. elbowing her way into the group but in such a way that it seems like she's just always been there? ]

If you don't mind me stepping in as someone who's an outsider, Nimya was just making us some tea. I was wondering, though—speaking as someone who hasn't had this conversation before, if you could tell me about what's troublesome, here?

"Isn't it obvious?! She wants us to move the statues - statues that, may I remind you, display the pride and joy of our country, the people whose work improved our country for generations to come, all for this... this useless contraption!"

"It's not useless!"

[Some of the men chortle at her words, poking and prodding at the machine. It's supposed to fly, but it's so heavy - if something like this could fly, shouldn't they all be floating off the ground? The wings don't even seem to be able to flap!]

...sir, have you ever heard of crop dusting?

"Crop wha?"

Ah, sorry! I wasn't sure. I was just about to tell Miss Nimya about it, a practice from my homeland—using flying craft to more efficiently fertilize crops and introduce pest control.

I don't know if you have devices that can do that already, from the ground...?

Edited 2022-02-12 21:44 (UTC)

[He pauses. She is successfully appealing to his Agriculture knowledge.

Nimya clasps her hands together, holding her breath.]

"Well, of course not. People can't fly."

Oh, of course not. People can't fly on their own at all, but if you think about how birds or kites work, it's a matter of creating a craft that can successfully catch enough upward force from initial propulsion and wind to sustain it aloft despite the weight.

So, wings the size of a person's arms wouldn't be big enough, but ones as long and broad as the ones on this craft are actually in the right neighborhood, if you do the math. Then, it can just glide for a long distance; a lot longer, if it has an engine.

[ welcome to PHYSICS for INFANTS ]

[It's probably necessary considering the way he places his hands on his hips, stubborn:]

"Do you have solid proof this really works? Or did she pay you to give lip-service so she can try out her crazy little scheme?"

[Now Nimya's just making indignant faces behind his back.]

[ girlboss hours ]

Well, it's basic physics...

...well, maybe intermediate physics. I don't have holos or anything, but couldn't Nimya construct a scale model with the right weights as a proof of concept?

Edited 2022-02-12 21:58 (UTC)

"How is that supposed to prove anything? Of course something smaller is lighter!"

[Possibly these men do not know even basic physics. The chief shakes his head.]

"Please, traveler. There's no need to entertain her nonsense. And you, Nimya: tomorrow afternoon, we will come to dismantle this weird machine. I’m afraid to say that as long as this thing exists, you will not be cured of your delusions. This is a final and immediate decision by the council. We will buy the engine and use it for a generator. Do you have anything to say?"

“I have.”

“What is it?”

“Won’t you move the bronze statues?”

“Rejected.”

“……”

“Now everyone. That’s it for today. Go home. We’ll continue this tomorrow.”

[The chief turned away and the rest of the crowd also left the warehouse.]

Well, something around here is useless.

[Nimya laughs.]

"You can say that again."

What are you going to do?

[Kino's finally speaking up, it seems.]

"I just have to prove I'm right before he has a chance to dismantle it, of course! But that means figuring out an alternative. There's no way I can move those statues alone..."

Re: “Land of Wizards” ─Potentials of Magic─

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