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Pokemon MysteryDungeon: The Seventeen Plates of Arceus



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Fri Sep 25, 2015 12:39 am
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StupidSoup says...



Day A7 6:00 A.M

Ren sat up, coughing and sputtering.

Xernes stood over him, looking slightly amused.

"My friend you seem to have a fever."

The others looked on, either packing or standing off to the side.

"Absol! I do not think this will be of any concern. He will be able to come with us."

The wolf slipped into view, a slight tension in his features.

"Could've sworn he was worse." Absol muttered, then extended a paw.

Ren stared at it in a mix of anger and horror.

"See? This is what I've been telling you about! He did this same thing every time he woke up!"

Xernes regarded Ren with curiosity, his eyes shining with barely concealed laughter.

"My dear friend do not worry. He's had a nightmare or bad dream. He was sick! Ren is most likely delirious."

Ren was still backed up against the edge of the plateau, eyes wide in fear.

Absol muttered something about ghosts then walked away. Ren followed the wolf with his eyes before a massive antler blocked his view.

"Need some help?"

Ren hesitated, then grabbed the antler. Xernes lifted the Blaziken to his feet.

"We were just about to leave you here with Absol until you awoke. It seems you were quite sick."

Ren opened and closed his mouth, unable to speak. Xernes waited, still smiling.

"I...I don't...I ca--"

Ren doubled over, wheezing. His tongue felt like the back of a Hippodown.

"We can speak another time if you want." Xernes said softly.

"No! No. I had a dream. A dream about Absol."

At this Xernes flinched.

"He, he was telling me to...to..."

Ren trailed off, lost.

"Well, it's time to go. I believe you must speak to Absol if you dreamt about him."

Now it was Ren's turn to flinch.

Xernes didn't wait for a response. He walked back to the group. Ren paused for a minute, then followed. He saw Gabriel waiting with his things already neatly packed. Aegeas was still haphazardly grabbing his gear, fatigue making his features droop slightly. Perhaps he to had a nightmare.

Fluer was standing off to the side with Absol, looking somewhat timid and taking quick glances at the wolf.

"Friends! We leave in a minute. Whoever does not have their rations and sleeping roll will be left behind. Ren?"

Xernes glanced at the smoldering ruin of the Blaziken's sleeping roll.

"Do not burn the berries."

Soon they were off, Gabriel leading with Xernes behind him. Ren walked behind Xernes with Aegeas in tow. Fluer was in front of Absol, who bought up the rear. As he looked at the wolf, a voice echoed in his head.

They are all your burden.


Ren shuddered and looked away. Xernes said it was a dream and he was a god so it had to be a dream right?

The Blaziken had a sinking feeling it was not.

But how can I carry them? How can I love everyone?

Ren dismissed it. It was impossible.

The group scaled the rocky slopes, following long forgotten trails and hovering over gaps via Xernes. Soon they made it to the foothills. Massive pines bent in the crisp breeze and now and again, Ren caught a glimpse of the blue eyes of a Snorunt or a tuft of brown fur from a Piloswine.

You can love them. You can accept their flaws.

Ren considered this.

There nothing but wild animals.

He paused to watch steam rise up from behind him, hitting the sun and becoming a quivering rainbow.

See? You have love in you. Why not just let it out?

Loving and admiring are two separate things.

Ren's face set in a determined scowl as he moved on.

You cannot love everything. It is impossible so stop bothering me.

This time there was nothing but silence. Yet to his horror, Ren felt found doubt in that silence.
I have a license that lets me solve aids - A friend of mine


Here Comes the Birdyyyy ~Poopsie


You gotta have the confidence of a gazelle running through a herd of lions - TK Sharp


I was once Numbers

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Charizard821 says...



Riley | Just Not Diggin' It | Day A7, 1:30PM


"For the last time, Goth, I can not move these things!" Riley exclaimed, tugging at the sacs around his eyes,

"How can you be sure? Maybe it's some hidden power you're meant to unlock."

Riley glanced at him and said, voice dripping with sarcasm, "Yes, it's the almighty sac muscle-moving ability that only the most elite Riolu can learn." He then rolled his eyes and asked, "Honestly, Goth, why is this such a big deal to you?"

"Because I can't stop looking at those things! I mean, what a weird feature to have under your eyes!"

"Gee, thanks."

"Hey, I'm only being truthful."

"At least I don't have those giant ears."

Zulu looked towards the ground and covered his ears with his wings. "Well you don't have to insult me."

"But you just insulted me!"

"No I didn't. I said those sacs under your eyes are weird."

"That's insulting!"

Zulu stared at Riley blankly. "How?"

"Ugh. Never mind. Where are we going?"

The pair had been walking the streets of Cutthroat for a while with no clear goal or destination.

"Not sure." said Zulu, looking around, "Weren't we supposed to be getting supplies?"

As he asked this, both 'Mon realized they had no idea what supplies they still needed. Riley and Zulu stopped walking and gave each other sheepish looks.

"Guess we're exploring then, huh?" asked Riley,

"Guess so." replied Zulu, who turned to face forward, "Hey, look at that."

"Hm?" Riley, matching Zulu's gaze, spotted the unmistakable heads of a Dugtrio up ahead outside its home. They were crying hard.

"Should we check it out?" asked Zulu,

"I don't know. I don't think our boss wants us getting into any trouble."

"We won't be. We're just going to ask that Dugtrio what's wrong."

Riley thought about it for a moment. "Alright, let's go."

They began walking towards the 'Mon. As they got closer, the Dugtrio spotted them and tried to regain its composure, only to burst into tears again.

"Excuse me," said Zulu, "are you alright?"

"Yes, yes. I'm fine." said the Dugtrio between sobs. The high pitch of the voice told Riley this was a woman.

"Are you sure?" asked Zulu, "You look like you're really upset."

The lady's eyes darted back and forth between Riley and Zulu with untrusting eyes. Catching this, Riley reassured, "We're not going to hurt or rob you. We're friendly."

After a moment of thought, the lady said, "Come inside."

Sharing a look with Zulu, Riley followed the Dugtrio into her home, the bat in tow.

"Please, make yourself comfortable." said the Dugtrio,

Looking around, however, there was no visible furniture.

Why would there be? She lives in the ground.

On this thought, Riley took a seat on the floor, followed by Zulu. "Can I get you anything?" asked the Dugtrio,

"No, thank you." replied Riley and Zulu in unison,

"So," said the Dugtrio with a sigh, "what are two young boys like you doing in an awful place like this?"

"We're just here for business purposes." said Zulu automatically,

"Oh, I see. Well you should look for work somewhere else, hun. Cutthroat is a terrible, terrible place." said the woman, fighting back tears,

Riley shared an uncomfortable look with Zulu, who moved a little closer to the Dugtrio. "Miss," Zulu began tentatively, "why are you crying?"

Unable to control herself anymore, the tears started to flow again as she vented to the boys. "I just hate this place! I hate it so much! I only came here because my husband thought it would be good for his business! But he got himself killed, and now my daughter is gone too!"

This time it was Riley's turn to ask a question. "Your... daughter?"

Sobbing hard, the Dugtrio responded, "There's a gang of Sandile around here. They go around finding young girls and taking them back to their hideout where they... they..." However, the lady could not finish, and instead broke down into more sobbing.

Zulu's mouth was hanging open, as was Riley's. Zulu attempted to speak first. "Oh my Arceus... how did this happen? When?"

"Barely ten minutes before you arrived. She was out getting water from the well when they grabbed her and ran. Her name is Annabelle. She's the sweetest little Vulpix who would never hurt a fly."

Sounds like an adoption. Unless the father was a Ninetails.

"What's worse is my son, Ricardo, ran after them. They outnumber him three-to-one. He'll never stand a chance against them. My poor little boy. And my little girl..."

Riley was speechless but the story had ignited anger in Zulu. "That's terrible!" he exclaimed, "Miss, I promise you, we're going to go out right now and bring both your son and daughter back safely."

Riley opened his mouth to protest, but closed it as he looked at the determination in Zulu's eyes.

"Oh, no, no, no, you can't do that. You'd be in so much danger!" exclaimed the Dugtrio,

"We've been in fights before, miss. We can handle it. Just tell us where the hideout is."

After a moment, she replied, "When you leave the house, turn left, then right, then left again and walk straight. You'll run into a small cave. They live there."

"Thank you. We'll be back soon. Come on, Riley." At that, Zulu immediately made for the door, Riley following, dumbfounded, behind.

"Stay safe!" called the Dugtrio as they closed the door,

"You just blew our cover!" exclaimed Riley, "Weren't you the one preaching how important it was earlier?!"

"Screw the cover. She's obviously friendly."

"But what did we just talk about?! We weren't supposed to get involved in anything! I'd love to help her, but-"

"Riley, listen to me." Zulu's voice cut his own like a knife. "There are two kids - Arceus knows how young they are - in danger right now. What kind of people would we be if we let this poor woman deal with this on her own?"

"But... what are we going to do?"

"We're going to go stop the rape of a young girl and the harming of a young boy." Zulu's fiery gaze was unmoving. With or without Riley, he was clearly going to do this.

"Alright then." said Riley, deciding to share Zulu's fierce drive to help, "let's go."

---

They were at the cave in no time. Standing just outside the entrance, backs to the wall, Riley told Zulu the plan.

"Alright. There's three of them and two of us. We're outnumbered, so we need an advantage. You have to hit all three of them with a Supersonic. If you can do that, I can rush in and we can take them out."

"To hit all three of them in one blast, they'd need to be right next to each other."

"See if you can sneak inside, and wait for the right moment. This is crucial though, you can't fire until they're all in a tight group. If even one of them isn't stunned, we're in major trouble."

"Got it."

Zulu stealthily flew in, making no sound to indicate his entrance, then Riley heard one of the Sandile speak. "Stop grunting you little runt, or we'll kill you right now.

Riley heard no grunting, but he assumed they had the boy gagged. What a terrible thing to do.

"So boss," came another Sandile voice, "when do we begin with our lovely lady here?"

"I don't see why we can't start now." came a third voice, presumably the Sandile leader,

"Please... no." came the fearful squeak of a young girl's voice,

"Aw, look at that that boss, she's shaking." spoke the first Sandile, "Baby, that look of terror on your face? I love that. It turns me on."

"No!" screamed Annabelle in a loud sob, "Don't touch me! Stay away!"

"Calm down there, Han. I get her first." came the voice of the boss, "You two hold down the runt. Make him watch, too. I want him to remember the look on his sister's face when I fuck her."

Riley bit down hard on his lip. What was taking Zulu so long? Riley heard a quick scuffle inside the cave and then the voice of the leader. "Ah-ah-ah, where do you think you're going? Trying to escape, huh? Just for that, you can forget me being gentle."

"No! Don't! Get off me! Get off! Don't do it!"

"Shut up!" exclaimed the Sandile, followed by a distinct slapping sound,

"Please..." came the desperate crying voice of Annabelle, "don't do this to me. I'll do whatever you want... just let us go..."

"No can do, sweetheart. Now moan for me."

Just as Riley was about to abandon the plan and run into the cave, he heard Zulu's unmistakeable ear-splitting screech.

"Agh! What the-?!" yelled the leader,

Taking his cue, Riley rushed in to the cave at full-speed and, moving as a blur, tackled the Sandile off Annabelle, pinning it beneath him. He immediately began unloading punch after punch into the Sandile's face. The Sandile, however, was fighting back in confusion, and managed to Bite Riley's outstretched arm, and then Cut his face with a claw. The Sandile, throwing Riley off of him, stood up, wobbling a little from the confusion. He attempted another Cut, but completely missed, instead slashing into his ally who was being badly beaten by Zulu. It appeared that in the commotion, Zulu had managed to free Ricardo, a Diglett, and he was now fighting alongside the two.

Thinking that the Sandile boss was an enemy, the Sandile he had slashed into whipped around and delivered a painful Crunch, knocking out the leader. As he realized what he'd done, Zulu swooped in and landed a Bite of his own to the Sandile. It slumped to the ground, unconscious. Finally, the third Sandile fainted, after receiving a Sucker Punch from the Diglett.

Panting, the Diglett turned and moved to his sister. "Annabelle! Are you alright?!"

The two met in an embrace, the Vulpix bursting into tears on her brother's shoulder. She appeared to be a teenager as well. Only a teenager. Terrible. Terrible. The Diglett looked at the two 'Mon next to him and said, "Thank you! Thank you so much!"

"You can thank us later." said Zulu, "We need to get you home. It's getting dark. Your mother will be worried sick."

"Right. Right." Ricardo said as he pulled his sister along with him out of the cave,

---

It was dark when the knock came to the door. Twinkiel was the one to answer it. He was surprised to find a Diglett, Dugtrio and Vulpix standing outside. "Um... can I help you?" he asked,

"We're looking for Riley and Zulu." said the Dugtrio, "They told us they live here."

After a moment of silence, Twinkiel beckoned for them to come inside. Soon, the six of them were seated at the round table. Twinkiel opened with a question. "So these lovely folks were looking for you two. They even knew your names. Care to tell me why?"

Riley and Zulu both uncomfortably looked at the ground. When they had gotten back, they'd been too exhausted to say anything about the events of the day. Realizing there was no way out of this one, Zulu explained it all, from start to finish.

"So you mean to tell me," commenced Twinkiel, "that you two saved these two from a group of Sandile, who were going to rape this young girl here?"

Riley and Zulu nodded.

"My Arceus... First of all, I'm so sorry that happened." he said, addressing the family, "If there is anything I can do for you-"

"Actually," interrupted the Dugtrio whose name was Melinda, "you can. I'm sure you know this by now, Mr. Thunderfleece, but Cutthroat is not a safe place. It's certainly no environment to raise a family. I'm afraid for the safety of my children. But these two boys proved today that they are good allies to have, and you seem like no exception to this. They saved my poor kids from being hurt in unfathomable ways by those brutes, and Annabelle and Ricardo both feel like they owe Riley and Zulu here a great debt."

"Listen, sir," Ricardo the Diglett picked up, "we would be honoured if you would take us as allies to your cause. We will be loyal to the Resistance and assist you in any way we can. We owe it to you."

Annabelle simply nodded slowly in agreement.

Twinkiel, Riley and Zulu were all blindsided by this. "Well, um... don't be hasty here." said Twinkiel, "What about your poor mother? You'd leave her all alone in Cutthroat?"

"With all due respect, mister, I can handle myself. It's my children I'm worried for. I know that with your group, they will be safe. They could learn much from a journey, and can find their own unique ways to help, I'm sure."

"But this isn't any sightseeing journey, ma'am. We're at war against the New Order. Your kids would be in great danger joining us."

"I know in my heart this is what they want, and it's what I want too. I'm asking you as a mother to please consider this."

"Alright..." Twinkiel replied hesitantly, "then how would you two assist our cause?" he asked, looking at Ricardo and Annabelle,

"My father was a messenger before he died." responded Ricardo, "He taught me how to do the job. We went on many trips together. I could be a messenger for you. And as for my sister, she's an excellent medic. She's been dressing wounds of the weaker local 'Mon for years."

Annabelle nodded once more.

Twinkiel sat in silence for a moment. "Give me time to think this over. I'll have your answer by morning. You're welcome to stay the night if you want."

"That would be very kind, thank you." said Melinda,

"Then I'll show you to your room."

And with that, Twinkiel and the others left the table, leaving Riley and Zulu alone.

"Do you think he's mad?" Riley asked,

"Hard to say." replied Zulu, "Guess we'll have to wait to find out."

"Guess so." said Riley, staring at the wooden table,





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Poopsie says...



Frost

The spider had been building its web for days now. It took its precious time on each spindly strand. The dew hanging off the web made it shine like the stars on a clear night. It worked with careful precision, never slipping, on each of the little pieces that would form its masterpiece. Its home. Every now and then a rigid breeze would surge through the dark hallways and the spider would wriggle up to its corner, shying away from the deadly breeze. Its web, however, would stand strong, as if the spider had left a piece of itself to the web. Its courage, its passion, its artistry. Its love.

One day it had children. They played in the breeze, dancing with the currents of nature. The spider played with them, hanging upside down from its web, tickling them as they passed by.

Days went by and the spiders did nothing but play. Spending their sweet childhood with their loving parent, dancing to the rhythm of the winds, protected by their loving mother. The next day the spider caught a fly. The family rejoiced, it would feed them for weeks. The little spiders danced on the corpse, their naivety shining like a hopeful beacon crying out to the world "here! Come here and rejoice! It is warm in the arms of hope!"

One day frost killed them all. He did not kill them out of hate, but simply because it was his nature. He was not a light in the darkness, he was the darkness. He was not a murderer. Their was no such thing as a murderer if no one was left to say so. Frost was a subject to his whims. Controlled by his passion. Hatred. Trapped in a web of lies.
The Poopsiest.

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BrumalHunter says...



Jewels | Prelude to a Draconic Dilemma | Day A6, 6:00 PM


While Flurry was off either being miserable or making friends, Jewels followed Raikou, with Shaymin on his head, into the Shrine. They didn’t use the amphitheatre to host the meeting, like the previous day, but a war room in the Shrine itself. (At least, Jewels assumed it was a war room, since the Legendaries were gathered around a rectangular table with a map of Terraria on it.)

“Do they have news about Latias?” she whispered to Raikou, who stopped beside Landorus.

“That’s what we’re here to find out,” he replied, winking.

“Shouldn’t Flurry be here too?”

“What she doing when you last saw her?” Shaymin asked.

“Chatting with some of the refugees.”

“Nah, leave her. She’ll just get bored and try to sneak out anyway.”

“That’s true…”

Jewels looked around, surveying the war room. Obviously, it was smaller than the amphitheatre, but it was still very large, considering that Zekrom could comfortably fit inside. Of course, he had to lean against the wall, since the table was too short for him to stand at it and not look awkward. The other tall Legendaries didn’t seem to mind the distance between them and the table as much, but Zekrom was probably the only one who could pull off the nonchalant attitude anyway.

Though Jewels herself was not all impressed. She felt very uncomfortable being one of only two non-Legendaries present (the other being Spadassya) and humiliated at having to stand on the tips of her digit feet to see above the table’s rim. She tried to catch the Servine’s eye so they could share a look of mutual frustration, but the grass snake was more interested in what Lugia had to say.

“…may have died if Diancie had not found her when she did. We don’t know how Latias managed to escape, since Articuno only succeeded with assistance, but we are nevertheless grateful for her return.”

“Has anybody contacted Latios yet?” Moltres asked, concern apparent in her voice and on her face.

“I have contacted Mew and Mewtwo, but not Latios himself,” Cresselia admitted.

“Err… are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“No,” Cresselia agreed, hesitating, “but the Council has agreed it’s better that he should be mad at us for keeping his sister’s rescue a secret than the New Order when he sees the condition she’s in. We can’t risk having him provoke an attack by striking first – we already had a close call with that Riolu’s recklessness.”

Jewels winced. She really hoped the Resistance didn’t hold that against Riley forever. Cresselia could count herself lucky Articuno was ensuring nobody disturbed Diancie and Celebi while they attended to Latias, otherwise there would have been a vicious catfight within seconds.

“Latios is definitely gonna be pissed…” Zekrom murmured, looking at the ceiling.

“What is Latias’ current condition?” Moltres asked again. “The dear looked completely drained when Diancie levitated her past me.”

“She has suffered major burns, apparently due to Toxic and Flame Orbs, and several lacerations, but the worst damage was done to her wings. It’s amazing that she managed to fly here, actually. Though Celebi claims Latias will regain consciousness sometime tomorrow morning, she says she won’t fly for some time still. She also warns that we mustn’t try to ask her about what Hoopa did to her; the obvious reasons aside, she’s delirious.”

“What do you mean?”

“Diancie heard Latias mutter something nonsensical.”

“What did she say?”

“Diancie can’t remember, since she didn’t pay attention. She only knows it made no sense at the time.”

“That’s comforting,” Moltres remarked, frowning.

“If she’s delirious, we need to ensure she doesn’t hurt herself or anyone else in the confusion,” Lugia declared. “Since Zekrom here still needs to guard Tornadus, Articuno offered to keep an eye on Latias.”

“Speaking of Tornadus,” Zekrom added, “how’s the hunt for his brother going? If you had contact with the Mew Duo, surely you must’ve asked.”

“But we have Latias back,” Meloetta sang. “Why are they sti-i-ill looking for your brother, La-a-andorus?”

“To answer Zekrom’s question, yes, Cresselia did ask,” the genie confirmed. “They have made no progress searching the areas around Mt. Providence, so they’re going to search a bit closer to the mountain tonight. If they still find nothing, they will scout the forest around Frontier Town and eventually the settlement itself for any clues. As for your question, Meloetta, it is still to our advantage if both my brothers are in our custody, whether they are kept off the battlefield or traded.”

“Who’s guarding Tornadus if Zekrom is here?” Jewels wondered. Only when everyone looked at her did she realise she had actually spoken. She flashed a nervous grin.

“I gave him a good old shock to paralyse him for the next few hours,” Zekrom answered, chuckling. “If only I could shock creeps more often…”

Meloetta scowled, disapproving of the dragon’s enthusiasm.

Lugia cleared his throat. “The fact remains that we now have the upper hand. We have five Arcean Plates, while they only have one; we have all our members back, whereas they are one down – two, if all goes well; and we removed an important source of New Order slave labourers. We must use these advantages as best we can.

“But for the moment, we have another issue to deal with. We cannot accommodate these refugees indefinitely, and while we shall allow those who want to leave to do so, starting from tomorrow, there will undoubtedly be Pokémon who have nowhere to go. We need to find them a place where they can stay until they know what to do.”

“The tribe of the Venom Knives will happily support the Resistance in caring for the refugees,” Spadassya said. “We shall provide them with all the food and security they require until such a time that they no longer require our assistance. Of course, if there are any refugees who wish to stay in the Greatwood Jungle, my father would be happy to receive them. Our forces would greatly benefit from new recruits.”

“We are glad to hear it,” Lugia replied, smiling. “Of course, we need to remove those foul cuffs first.”

“Have you found a way?”

“Mew and Mewtwo dropped by earlier today and, along with me and Celebi, removed one of them,” Zekrom said. “We have confirmed that the cuffs are of Acolyte make and design, but we don’t know how Darius got his hands on them. Either way, the three Psychics blasted some Umbreon’s cuff and successfully removed it, but in doing so, they proved that it’s… not from this world.”

“What makes you say that?” Spadassya asked.

“An unholy voice cried out when the cuff was destroyed, and within seconds, it had completely faded away.”

“So as you can see,” Lugia said, returning the attention to him, “the only way remove the cuffs are by destroying them, which then removes any trace of their existence. If we send a few refugees along with their cuffs still on, will your people be able to provide more information regarding them?”

“If Voltek can create a cloak that makes Flaafies fly, he can get to the bottom of this as well.”

“We would like this matter to be resolved as speedily as possible, so would the tribe of the Venom Knives mind if we sent them your way tomorrow already?”

“Of course. I have finished my diplomatic duties here, so I shall accompany them on their journey.”

“Good. We can wake the refugees at dawn and then remove their cuffs individually.”

Lugia looked like he was finished speaking, so Raikou ventured a request. “May Shaymin and I have the pleasure of escorting Spadassya of the Venom Knifes to her homeland?”

“You may,” Landorus consented, “and since more than one Legendary will be required to remove the last few cuffs, I shall join you.”

“I should come along,” Cresselia said. “Such a large group of travellers will need as much protection as they can get, and we need somebody strong enough to remove the last few cuffs.”

“You will stay here,” Lugia countered firmly. “All but a few of the refugees will have had their cuffs removed, so they will be more than capable of defending themselves. As for removing the last ones, I am sure it will take a few days at least for the Venom Knifes to finish their research, so you won’t be needed there for quite some time.

“Now, I suggest we all retire for the evening. Tomorrow will bring new challenges, so we need to conserve our energy. The meeting is adjourned.”

As the Legendaries began filing out of the room, Jewels noticed Cresselia stay put. If she wanted to remain behind to speak with Lugia, Jewels did not want to be present, so she hurriedly followed Raikou. Once outside, they ran into Diancie.

“I thought you were busy with Latias,” Jewels said.

“Oh, hello, dear! I was, but Celebi and I are done now. I’m going to show everyone where they are to stay, so you should get your friend. Raikou will show you your room.”

Jewels nodded and followed Raikou, afterwards heading back outside and approaching the camp of refugees. She found Flurry chatting with a Flygon, a Vibrava, and a Krokorok.

“Time to go,” she said once Flurry noticed her. “Diancie is about to start directing everyone to some actual rooms, so you’ll want to stay out of the way.”

“If the Legendaries are helping with accommodations,” Flurry asked, following Jewels, “then when are we going to talk about our next moves?”

“Oh, we already did. Shaymin said to leave you out of it, though, since you were having fun, and you’d just try to get out of the meeting.” Jewels smirked and cupped a hand to her mouth. Leaning over, she whispered, “Though given how happy you were there, even though you said you didn’t want to make new friends, I doubt you would have minded all the discussions that much.”

Flurry crossed her arms, puffed her cheeks and pouted. “They weren’t new friends. They were the ones who helped me get out of the desert on my first day here.”

“But you still didn’t want to talk to them at first.”

“Just because you’re right, doesn’t mean you have to rub it in.”

Jewels smirked and continued through the Shrine. When she reached her room, she stopped and gestured grandly. “Just because I enjoy teasing doesn’t mean I don’t care.”

She left her friend with that thought and entered. She hadn’t brought anything with her (not that she owned anything of value in that world or the human one), so she was surprised to find a pouch on her end table. A note from Landorus explained that she might need the Berries inside and that she could also eat them if no other food was available.

Smiling, she got into the bed and curled up under the blanket of deliciously soft Swanna feathers.

***
Day A7, 9:00 AM


Jewels awoke with a start as a sonic boom rocked the Shrine. She ran outside to find many bewildered and, if she was not imagining things because of only just waking, relieved refugees walking around their camps.

“What just happened?” Jewels asked Raikou, who had been talking to Zekrom.

“Latios took off.”

“When’d he get here?”

“About thirty minutes ago,” Zekrom answered. “And like I said yesterday, he was pissed.”

“How the hell did he even find out?” Jewels asked, dumb-founded.

“He, Mew, and Mewtwo were circling Mt. Providence when Latios picked up his sister’s energy trail. He followed it away from the mountain, so Mewtwo teleported here to warn us. About a minute later, Latios arrived. I’m sure you can guess what happened after that.”

“Well, where’d he go now?” Jewels asked. She bit her lip.

“Mt. Providence.”

“What?!”

“Relax, half the Resistance flew after him. They’ll stop him before he can do anything stupid. But if I were you, I wouldn’t want to be here when he comes back, so you better pack your stuff and skedaddle.”

Jewels looked around her, and sure enough, the refugees had brought their belongings outside and had begun packing. “When was everybody’s cuffs removed?”

“While you were sleeping,” Raikou said, winking. “You snore, you know.”

Jewels rolled her eyes and dashed to her room, snatching the Berry Pouch Landorus had given her and running back to the camp. By then, most of the refugees had finished packing and gathered some distance away from the Shrine, around a figure that was clearly Raikou. Jewels spotted Flurry back at the same group as yesterday, so she jogged over.

“I’ll miss you, Miss Altaria,” Flurry said, hugging the draconic bird.

“I’ll miss you too, but I’m sure we’ll see each other again soon.”

“Why aren’t you coming with us?”

“I’ve decided it’s time for a change in scenery. We’ve been travelling the desert for the past twenty years, so I think it’s high time we move on to the next province. The Foothills sound good…”

“Will it be safe?”

“There’s only one place where you can truly be safe, and you’re standing in it. But I suppose anywhere is safer without Darius the Caturne around.”

“What do you think happened to him?”

“He’s probably licking his wounds, but he’ll back to his old tricks soon. Weeds never perish.”

“Hey!” a nearby Ferroseed exclaimed.

“It’s a figure of speech!” the Flygon responded.

“Anyway,” Miss Altaria continued, “your friend here has been waiting for you for some time. You should go. Be safe!” She gave Flurry one last hug before shooing her away.

“You okay?” Jewels asked.

“More or less,” Flurry replied holding her hand up to her hat.

“Finally, you’re here!” Raikou called once the duo came into sight. When they stopped beside him, he continued, “Everyone that’s coming with us is already here, so we’re leaving now.”

He wasn’t kidding. The moment he finished speaking, they set off. Raikou led the column, Shaymin still on his head, with Flurry, Spadassya, and Jewels herself beside him. Despite that, the first five minutes were still filled with silence, and having grown up in an environment where there was never total silence, that did not suit Jewels at all. Thus, she walked behind Raikou and stood to his left, where Spadassya was walking on her own.

“I don’t believe we’ve been formally introduced.”

The Servine gazed at the Gothorita’s outstretched digit with puzzlement. “We haven’t, but why are you doing that?”

Jewels looked down at her “hand”. “Well, when someone offers you their hand – or anything that qualifies as one – you generally shake it and say your name.”

“Very well.” She hesitantly shook Jewels’ digit. “I am Spadassya of the Venom Knives. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

“When I said “formal”, I didn’t mean fancy, but pleased to meet you. The name’s Jewels.”

“That’s an odd name.”

“My name is technically Jade, but back home, everyone just calls me Jewels.”

“Err, I’m Demetrius.” Both Jewels and Spadassya turned around to look at the Umbreon who had spoken. He blushed and looked at the ground. “Sorry, I’ll be quiet.”

“No, there’s no problem at all!” Jewels said, turning her frown upside down. She extended her arm again.

His face lighting up, Demetrius shook her hand. “What am I supposed to say now?”

“Well, seeing as you already introduced yourself and you heard what my name is, I s’pose the introduction’s done. Demetrius is an interesting name, though. What is it? Spanish? Russian? Persian?”

“I don’t know what any of that means…” he said slowly.

“Right. Never mind. Hey, Raikou, will it take us just as long to reach Sandveil as last time?”

“It better not, since we need to get these guys to safety as soon as possible, and while we may be able to take on the initial bandits, word will quickly spread about a large column travelling through the desert.”

“What’s so bad about that?” Demetrius asked. “Won’t that make the bandits avoid us?”

“Safety in numbers will work against the small fries, sure,” Raikou agreed, “but if the New Order finds out, we’re toast. None of you will be able to last very long against trained NO operatives, and if they send in someone like Zapdos or Entei too, we’re worse than toast.”

“What’s worse than toast?” Demetrius whispered to Jewels.

“Burned toast,” she whispered back, unsure why they were whispering, “which is basically just a collection of charred crumbs.”

“That is bad.”

“That would be why he used the image.”

***
Day A7, 4:00 PM


“General Neona. Welcome.” The Swords of Justice sat upon their thrones in the great hall and watched the Hydreigon enter.

The Dragon levitated in position and bowed. “Greetings, Lord Cobalion, Lord Terrakion, Lady Virizion.”

“Your journey was uneventful, I trust?” Cobalion asked.

“Rather, though I don’t miss leaving Radiance behind. As enjoyable as playing chess against Lord Zygarde is, it grows tiresome, eventually.”

Cobalion wrinkled his nose at the mention of the name. “And how is our slithering friend?”

The Hydreigon spat on the floor with all three heads. “It’s despicable how the silver-tongued serpent smooth-talked his way into Arceus’ Council of Three, ousting you in the process. As far as I’m concerned, he can crawl back to the rock he’s been under the past few months.”

Cobalion smiled. “As much as I appreciate your loyalty to me, General, I cannot encourage you to say such things about our leaders.”

“Like they’d do anything about it. Too few of the other generals have the ba… guts to face Hoopa when he needs to hand out orders, so whether the Council likes it or not, they’re stuck with me.”

Virizion chuckled. “And so they are. But the Council is aware of your value to the Order, which is why they have entrusted you with a task of tremendous importance.”

“I expected as much. What is it?”

“I’m afraid you shouldn’t be too eager to set out just yet,” Virizion cautioned, her smile replaced with a frown. She shot a sideways glance at Cobalion.

“She is right,” the Steel goat agreed. “This one will leave a particularly sour taste in your mouth. Are you aware of the situation with the tribes of the Greatwood Jungle?”

“You insult me, my lord.”

“Of course, my apologies. Well, our spies say that one of the tribes there has allied with the Resistance.”

“The one it aided in that tribal war?”

“The very same. Our spies also report that the Resistance has sent some reinforcements to assist this tribe in securing its newfound dominance. Dialga fears they will soon unite the tribes and form a coalition against us – a coalition with all the natural resources of the Jungle at its disposal.”

“What’s so bad about playing whack-a-Drillbur down there? I’ve had my troops raid resistance parties before.”

“Kyogre has proposed that we flood the Jungle. The Council has given him their full support.”

A moment of silence, but then… “That’s preposterous! No, it’s unthinkable! There hasn’t been such a disaster since the Great Crevice was formed! Surely you can’t allow this?”

“If I were still on the Council, I might have had a say in the matter. As it is, I do not, so I must simply do as I am ordered, and that is to supply you with additional troops and send you to the Greatwood Jungle to ensure Kyogre’s plan is carried out successfully. The Council doesn’t want any unexpected complications.”

“And if I refuse?”

“As much as I would like you to, we both know you won’t.”

“It’s not right.”

“Of course it isn’t, but we have our orders. Besides, Kyogre has already assembled his forces at Portston and is on route to meet them. It has already begun.”

“The general was still fuming, but there was no use having a staring contest with the leader of the Swords of Justice. “It’s a sad day when genocide is the oil that greases the gears of righteousness.”

Cobalion looked weary and sighed in accordance. “That it is, General. That it is.”

Shaking her heads, Neona left. Virizion looked back to Cobalion.

“She’s right, you know.”

“She is also too conservative. We are the New Order because we defy the out-dated ways of old. The act was necessary.”

“And some act it was indeed,” Virizion remarked coldly, “pretending to share her sentiments when you were the one who gave Kyogre the order! And isn’t it ironic that Zygarde actually tried to reverse it?”

“I don’t like your tone, Virizion.”

“You blatantly lied to your most avid follower.”

“As I have said before,” Cobalion replied, bored, “it was necessary.”

“What does that say of us?”

“For all your complaints, you are yourself a supporter of the regime.”

“Keldeo isn’t,” Virizion snapped, “and I’m beginning to believe he may be the most sensible of us.”

“Rebuke yourself!” Cobalion exclaimed.

Virizion tried to hold his gaze, but was eventually stared down. “I shall not,” she persisted adamantly.

“Then you are dismissed.” Virizion made to leave, but halfway to the door, Cobalion stopped her. “Don’t do anything stupid.”

“You should follow your own advice,” she said, striding out of the room and slamming the doors behind her.
But the Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
— Paul the Apostle

Winter is inevitable. Spring will return eventually, and AstralHunter with it.





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Sun Oct 04, 2015 11:52 pm
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TheSilverFox says...



The Silence




Day A7, 5:58 A.M.

Child…

The voice appeared at the fringe of his mind. It was a tiny one, calling out for him at the edge of his subconsciousness, as though the light at the end of the tunnel, imploring him to advance beyond the nightmare that was tormenting him. It certainly had that affect. Without hesitation, without even so much as a notice as to what he was doing, Aegeas felt himself drifting towards the voice, which grew ever so stronger, transitioning from a whisper into more of a shout. His nightmare fell into disarray, shattering into thousands of smaller pieces, all of which descended into black nothingness, while he became immersed in nothing but shadows. Alone, but, for a change, not alone. Something else was there, though he couldn’t identify it.

Child…protector…

He couldn’t piece together the identity of the voice. His dreams were vivid, but not lurid – he had no control, though he had tried many times in the past, over the inner workings of his mind as it concocted these nightmares. There was no way he could dive within his memories and extract the voice’s owner, though he was aware that it was eerily familiar. But there was one thing that he was sure of – the voice could not belong to Absol. The creature’s voice had not the soothing, almost warming tone as this one did. It did not have the nature of this one. This voice seemed…older, perhaps. More graceful. The answer was on the tip of his tongue, but he could not figure it out. And he had not the time to, either.

Protector…AWAKEN!

Aegeas was shocked awake by the sheer power of the voice. Making a series of audible, loud gasps, he lurched from his sleeping position, breathing heavily and deeply. His face was pale, eyes wide, mind exploding with energy and vibrancy as sweat rolled down his face. The effect of the voice had been overwhelming, and overpowering, leaving him in a state of confusion and panic. He clutched his heart, staying in the same position as he tried slowly to regain control over his mind. Aegeas, after a short time, successfully seized again his thought processing, and took steps to return to a calmer state. His breathing became lighter and shallower, and the blue began to return to his face.

It was only then, after most of the initial panic and energy had subsided, that he noticed, a little ways in the distance, the rest of his group packing up their gear and preparing to leave. Unfortunately, Aegeas’s mind began to whirr with old memories. The sight, particularly that of Absol, who was beside Xerneas, both whispering to each other and taking sideways glances at Ren, who was still asleep, brought back the reminders of the previous night. He remembered how he had worked for hours against the rocks, only given the ability to sleep within less than an hour before his awakening. He remembered the argument that had continued between him and Absol, and the nightmare that had followed. He remembered everything.

His body did too. The weariness that he had gone to sleep with returned, creeping up and coursing through him slowly, but effectively. His muscles, which had worked hard in the past few hours, groaned and ached, sore and unhappy, and it took him even a sizable effort to simply stand up. However, he was successful yet again. Despite the fact that he drooped ever so slightly, the fatigue visible on the many lines on his tired, weary face, and his somewhat-deep breathing, he was still able to snatch up his gear and walk over to where Ren had just awoken, having just finished talking to Xerneas and Absol. Aegeas was too far away to hear any of the words of the conversation, although he noticed that Ren seemed to look deeply surprised, Xerneas was bemused, and Absol was…well, Absol. Mysterious. Blank. Nonetheless, Aegeas thought nothing of the conversation; it seemed to have been resolved, and he figured that it was not in his business to inquire.

“Friends! We leave in a minute. Whoever does not have their rations and sleeping roll will be left behind,” said Xerneas, though Aegeas paid attention to no more of his words. The Dewott had realized seconds earlier that his gear was a mess. He was aware that he was usually more meticulous and organized than this. However, the manner of his awakening, he recognized quickly, had undoubtedly stifled his judgment for a brief time. Thus, he had not paid attention to how he’d picked up his gear, and knew also that it would be a greater inconvenience to him carrying it around in that manner, which was, after all that training, the last thing he wanted. Therefore, he stopped next to the campsite, laying down his gear, organizing it, and slinging it on his back yet again. Frankly, he did not have much to carry; he did not much value many material possessions, and could sleep just about anywhere, so he had no need for a sleeping bag. Thus, though the group had started off without him – unsurprising, he thought, given Xerneas and his truthfulness – he was able to quickly catch up to the rest of the group, and, in a reversal of roles from the last time, took up the rear.

He was fine with that. He needed time to ponder. Ponder what had happened, and why he was there.

======

Their procession through the landscape was as smooth as it had gone in the desert, if not more so. They kept a decent pace, traversing the treacherous hills, and the land beyond, without much difficulty. Aegeas was still tired. Other members of the group would, time to time, glance back at him, however briefly. Aegeas noticed, as was typical of him to. However, nobody seemed to show any form of concern on their faces, or even try to ask what had possibly happened. Which he preferred, anyway.
They had traveled for a few hours in silence before Aegeas heard somebody whispering to him. The voice came directly ahead of him, and was entirely unmistakable.

“Did you have any…strange dreams last night?”

The voice was from Ren, Aegeas registered at once. Aegeas’s expression turned from blank to more serious, pondering the meaning of those words. As he did so, he replied with an equally low whisper.

“As a matter of fact…yes, I did.”

Silence. Ren whispered again.

“Did you see Absol in yours?”

Aegeas stiffened when he registered those words. His expression transformed into a darker one. Anger welled up within him, and he looked behind him, glaring at Absol, whose expression remained as blank as ever. The Dewott could’ve sworn that, for a second, one of Absol’s ears had perked up in interest, or that a bemused smile had even appeared on his face, but it was far too brief for Aegeas to assure the truth of either possibility. Nonetheless, its lack of a reaction proved to be incredibly frustrating. Thus, he clenched his hands, turning back to his previous position, and gritted his teeth. He replied to Ren shortly afterwards.

“No, not particularly. There was a voice, and nothing more.”

“Whose?”

“Someone as unendingly an enigma as Absol.”

Once more, no more words.

Aegeas knew that the conversation had ended, and he even knew why. Obviously, being as close as they were to the topic of the conversation, it would not be appropriate to continue they conversation until they had a chance to be alone, separate from the rest of the group. Then they could perhaps discuss the dream.

But, to be honest, he had never hated the silence so much as he did then.
S'io credesse che mia risposta fosse
a persona che mai tornasse al mondo,
questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse.
Ma per ciò che giammai di questo fondo
non tornò vivo alcun, s'i' odo il vero,
senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.

Inferno, Canto 27, l 61-66.





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TinkerTwaggy says...



Twinkiel – Of Devious Machinations


Day A7, 9:33 PM


“Sorry for this interruption,” Twinkiel said, putting a large wooden plank back against an open cavity, thus closing the door to his “living room”. “had to deal with newcomers, and two of my mates ran into trouble. Where were we again?”

Fleedjio and Ariala gazed at Sully, who had finished drinking her tea a long time ago.

“You were finished talking about your story, with you being part of the Resistance and all that,” she summarized, “and I had just finished talking about my… connection to Darius.”

“Right. He killed your Dad. I said I was sorry for that, right? 'Cause if I didn't, I am. Really. I don't know what it means to lose someone that close to you.”

“No, you hadn't. And… it's fine. You weren't there when it happened. I guess you don't mind if I skipped some details, right?”

Twinkiel sat on the ground, staring at the flickering light produced by the lantern in the middle of the room.

“Of course not,” he assured with a polite smile. “I wanted to know more about you, and you to know more about me. You don't need to tell me every single bit of info you have. Plus, your life so far was waaaaaaaay worse than mine, so I'd prefer if you enjoy the present.”

“Speaking of lives,” Sully said, frowning. “There's still something I don't understand about you.”

“Ask away!”

“How… how do you know so much?” she asked carefully. “From what you told me, you've only been part of the Resistance for a few days. But how do you know so much about... everything?”

Twinkiel frowned. “I'm afraid you'll have to be a little bit more precise. I don't know everything, and I sure as heck don't want to.”

She took a deep breath.

Spoiler! :
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“Okay. What can you tell me about Kyurem?”

“Kyurem? Well, he's a jerk, for starters – eating people's not the best of hobbies anyway – but then again, considering the fact that he was separated from Zekrom and Reshiram and basically lived as the “leftovers” of these two for centuries, I guess I can understand his anger. Maybe I... did go to far last time I talked to him. Hmm.”

“That's it!” Sully exclaimed. “That's exactly what I mean. You're talking about him like he was an old friend you hadn't talked to in a while. And the fact that he was separated from the Legendary Zekrom and Reshiram is classified information. Being a fifteen years old Flaaffy with very few experiences of war, you're not supposed to know all of that! How is this possible?”

“You forgot that he eats people.”

“And here's that weird expression again,” Sully added, suspicious. “What do you mean by “people”? Pokemons?”

Twinkiel frowned.

“Weird expression? But I... Oh! Ooooh. I forgot. Oh darn it. Uhh… Should I tell her?” the Flaaffy asked, looking at Fleedjio and Ariala. “I mean, I don't really mind telling her that, but I'm not sure she'll believe me.”

“What?” Sully interrupted, gazing alternatively at Twinkiel and his dragon friend. “What's he talking about?”

“Go ahead,” Fleedjio said, nodding. “The New Order already knows about you anyway, so it shouldn't be a problem.”

“Right. Okay then! So, Sully? I'm not from this world. Bam bam baaaam! Mindblow.”

For several long seconds, Sully looked at him, utterly confused.

“...What… what the hell does that mean?”

“Hey, did you know that Sevipers and Zangooses hated each other?” Twinkiel said, seemingly ignoring her question. “They're natural rivals, it's kind of in their genes. Oh, and Regigigas is the one who moved the continents at the beginning of time. As for Giratina, he...She…? Gender not specified. Ah well! So he used to be BFFs with Palkia, Dialga and Arceus, but his violence got him banished. So instead of helpin' them shape the Universe, he kinda created his own, separated dimension – Distortion World – to pretty much sulk them and plot his revenge. Because based on Satan.”

Sully's eyes widened as she stared at Twinkiel, unable to speak.

“Yeah. I know a lot about the Pokemon world. And that, Sully, is because I'm a human being. Not a Pokemon.”

Twinkiel rose from the ground and approached Sully, who was still unable to say a word.

“Now picture this,” the Flaaffy continued.

Spoiler! :
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“Picture a world dominated by a single species, alright? That's us. Now picture a world in which Pokemons, to us humans, are just some drawings in picture books that we can read over and over again for our entertainment. I'm heavily summarizing stuff here, but essentially, that's what Pokemons were to me. Those funny creatures I loved to read about in animated fairy tales. 649 of those, and I got the chance to play with every single of of 'em – including the Legendaries. Now picture this: one day, I go to sleep, and when I wake up… Whoosh!”

Twinkiel made a large gesture with his paws.

“...I'm suddenly a Mareep sitting in Greatwood jungle. With 3/4 of my memory gone, no idea how I turned into a lamb, and a giant Seviper – that I only knew about in fairy tales, might I remind you – with a REAL version of his knife-for-a-tail pointed at me. Welcome to my life, Sully.”

“I… You… You come from another world?”

“Yeah, I knew you'd react like that. Oh and by the way, when I said that where I came from, we had New Orders all the time? That's because since we humans are the dominant species, well… We have wars. Like… lots of 'em. And in one of the many wars we had, a whole civilization of human explorers found a new continent oversees and decided to conquer it with their new weapons. They enslaved their inhabitants for about two hundred years, because they saw them as too inferior for their taste, so if course, they had to… “teach” these poor, feral beings how to become as amazing as they were.”

Sully slowly shook her head, easily understanding where Twinkiel was getting at.

“These enslaved people… They were my ancestors, Sully,” the latter continued. “The only difference they had with the explorers was that they were dark-skinned, and less technologically advanced. But that's history: what's matters here is that because of this event, dark-skinned human beings from my time – which is about three to four hundred years after the enslavement thingy – are still suffering from various preconceived ideas about their skin and what it implies in the minds of others. Well, I'm one of them. So you see, even though I don't know much about what war is like, even though what you went through was terrible as well, I too, in a way, knows what it means to suffer from its leftovers. Oh, and one more thing...”

Twinkiel's smile disappeared, replaced by a fearsome scowl.

“These explorers claimed to be working for God. Which, of course, gave them the right to perform any vile acts they had in mind. I don't have anything against God himself, though: He's probably a really nice guy, as far as I've read. But I'm worried about how the people working in His name interpret his messages and carry them out.”

Twinkiel sat on the ground once more, waiting patiently as Sully reflected on his words. To his surprise, it wasn't her that spoke again first.

“I… I had no idea,” Ariala whispered, gazing at Twinkiel with a mixture of fear and pity. “About… About all this.”

The Flaaffy raised an eyebrow.

“Like I said,” he replied, shrugging. “That's history. And not even a quarter of it. But don't worry too much about it, Ariala. The human world had badass moments too, but that's another story. A long one.”

“This is too much,” Sully finally said, looking back on Twinkiel. “And kinda crazy, but I don't think you lied about… your story.”

“I didn't,” Twinkiel confirmed. “No reason to. Though I know exactly why you think it's crazy. You'll have to talk to Mewtwo – he'll show you directly how messed up this whole thing is. I mean seriously Sully, all humans bipedal! D'you realize how freakin' weird it is to have shrunken limbs and not being able to stand up?”

The outraged tone Twinkiel had taken made Ariala laugh, and even Sully let a smirk grow on her face.

“Hey, don't complain,” Fleedjio intervened, smiling as well. “I grew wings when I evolved. Flying with these was the hardest thing ever, and I went from bipedal, to a shell thing, to a dragon!”

“Well I don't even have limbs,” Sully commented, “so I can't really participate in that debate.”

“I guess Fleedjio's got a point though,” Twinkiel admitted. “It would've been weird for me to have wings, that's for sure.”

“Weird or not, it's starting to get late,” Sully continued after a short silence. “I'd better go. I need to make sure Alek's okay. He… doesn't know I left to… you know.”

“Yeah. Death Battle. Um, by the way, could you… Could you send him my apologies? For threatening his life. I wanted to do it when he waked up, but I forgot after everythin' that happened.”

“Right. I'll do that. Thanks for inviting me here. All of you,” she added, bowing her head towards Ariala and Fleedjio, who did the same in return.

Sully slithered towards the door before stopping right in front of it. Seemingly remembering something, she suddenly gazed back at Twinkiel.

“...Oh! No limbs. I'll open it.”

“It's not that, actually,” she said quickly as the Flaaffy moved towards her. “It's… Ugh, you're going to think I'm fuckin' paranoid.”

Twinkiel frowned. “Considering what I've done so far, I don't think I'm in the best position to judge anybody. So go ahead.”

She hesitated for a few more seconds, but after a deep breath, she talked once more.

“I... I wanted to know… If I had refused to take your offer. If… If I had decided to keep on trying to kill you. What would've been your reaction?”

“Are you trying to judge how messed up I am with that question?”

“No, it's nothing like that! Just… just answer the question.”

“Okay then.”

Spoiler! :
Twinkiel's plotting theme: Devil's Lamb MkII
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Twinkiel couldn't help it: a small, sadistic smirk grew on his face.

“Had you decided to keep trying to kill me, I would've knocked you out unconscious,” he started gravely. “Then, I would've acted like I wanted to “settle my score with the New Order in private”, to avoid unwanted witnesses. So I would've said – out loud – that I wanted to go to the Hive, where in reality I would've taken to a good friend of mine. One that lives near said Hive and who would've enjoyed cutting your body into tiny little pieces.”

Sully's eyes widened. “Oh Arceus. The Mr.Mime.”

“Bingo!” Twinkiel confirmed enthusiastically. “And since nobody wants you screaming, that and I'm not stupid enough to tell you all of this if you're at my mercy – many villains died doin' that – I would've Enel Impacted you to death and let Mumbles do his dirty work. But, since I always keep my promises, I would've asked him to leave me the knife-for-a-tail you have there.”

Twinkiel began walking in circles, trying to remember what he had thought up after his battle with Sully.

“With that out of the way,” he continued, “I would've gathered the pieces, hide a few in my bag and the other few inside a good old Cotton Guard – though not fully released to avoid suspicion. Then I would've moved towards the Hive, found the Joltiks – which according to you and Alek can be found quite easily – and offered your body parts for their Galvantula Queen to eat before eventually stabbing her with your awesome poison, and spread my Electric Terrain to communicate with all the gathered Joltiks and secure myself their new king.”

A sudden silence filled the room as Ariala, Fleedjio and Sully let Twinkiel's dastardly words penetrate their minds.

“How is that realistic?” Sully asked calmly despite her horrified expression. “They could've decided to get revenge and kill you.”

Twinkiel's smirk grew larger. He looked at Ariala and whistled: from behind the Clefable's back, Moskito the Joltik came and jumped on Twinkiel's shoulder.

“As you know,” Twinnkiel replied, “I have extensive knowledge of the Pokemon species, all thanks to my human origins. And I know for a fact that feral Joltiks such as this one don't function with their minds: they function with their instinct, which is all about survival. And eating electricity is how they survive. I would've provided them with the electricity they needed after killing the Queen, and if they needed more, I could've always showed them the way to other 'Mons - they can suck static electricity out of anyone, after all. And that, Sully, is why I'm certain that they would've obeyed me. That and I can always run away while they eat my electricity.”

Sully slowly nodded, thoughtful.

“And… what about Alek?” “He would've been really affected by my… disappearance.”

“Oh yes, I'm aware,” Twinkiel said. “Which is why I'd make sure nobody witnessed the crime in the first place. But considering his current state, he wouldn't have been much a threat. That, and unlike me, he's a nice guy. Saying something like: “Hey! Sully tried to kill me! I ran inside of the Hive, and we had to fight there! She was eaten by the Galvantula!” with a convincing act would've been enough to at least shake him, and I happen to be a good drama queen. Then you know what comes next: one physical contact, one paralysis from me, and then it's Enel Impact time.”

“There's a Nidoking in the hideout, though,” Sully countered. “You're weak against him, and he's pretty unpredictable.”

Twinkiel rolled his eyes.

“Mumbles,” he replied simply. “I would've brought him along to deal with that body as well. And he's a very powerful Psychic type, which is that Nidoking's weakness.”

Sully closed her eyes. A single shiver shook her body as she took another deep breath.

“I don't see any flaws in this,” she admitted. “You're a damn good psycho for coming up with this stuff.”

She opened her eyes, staring into Twinkiel's.

“This isn't part of what the Resistance wants, right?”

“No. It's just me and the way I deal with my problems. You and Alek, as members of the New Order, would've been threats to us. Had I let you live even after you refused my offer, you could've taken out my teammates, thus threatening the safety of our own mission. As for Alek, I really don't want a vengeful Greninja in my list of enemies. So I'd prefer him dead.”

“At least that's logic,” Sully commented. “I had pretty much the same mindset when I decided to kill you. One last question. Do you care about the lives you take? Do you actually care about any lives besides yours?”

“That's two questions, but alright.”

Twinkiel sighed, a sudden weary scowl replacing his sadistic smirk.

“I know that I care about the lives of those I consider my allies,” Twinkiel answered, “and I know that my conscience would never be entirely at peace if I decided to hurt or… kill... any of them. I also know I... don't mind taking lives as I am right now. I think a good chunk of my mind doesn't understand that I'm actually taking lives when I do – like in a video game. So yeah. I can't care about the lives I take.”

“You don't have to, Twinkiel.”

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The Flaaffy turned around. Fleedjio was looking at him with a determined stare.

“We're here to remind you that you're supposed to care. The Resistance is all around you to make sure you make good decisions. Don't you dare forget that.”

A happy smile made its way on Twinkiel's face.

“Remind me to hug you more. No homo.”

He gazed back at Sully, who nodded once again before opening the door with her tail.

“Thanks,” she said. “For answering honestly. Alek might've been right. I think I can trust you.”

“Glad to hear that. And hey, Sully?” Twinkiel called. “Darius and I are bound to clash again. If you don't slice his throat before me, I'll be sure to remember what he's done to you when I do. So… Sleep and dream, okay? You've got one damn psycho guarding your door.”

“I don't need your sympathy. I can defend myself pretty damn well.”

The Flaffy smirked. “True, but hey, if I can be a psycho to help people for once, I'm watchin' your door anyway!”

“Pff! Fuckin' stalker.”

“I'm also a good flashlight.”

“Well turn yourself off for now, creep. I don't want you anywhere near my door.”

“Fine. But I'm still dealin' with Darius if I see him first. Nighty-night!”

"Yeah... Thanks."

With that, Sully went on her way, leaving the trio on their own.

“Well! That went pretty good,” Twinkiel said in a conclusive tone. “You guys should go to sleep too. I'll stay up most of the night.”

“Are you sure you don't need any help?” Ariala inquired.

“Nah, I'll be fine. Moskito's the only help I need,” Twinkiel assured, pointing at the Joltik on his shoulder. “And besides, what I'm preparing for those two is a bit… special.”

“Don't be too harsh,” Fleedjio warned before leaving the room. Ariala gave one last glance at Twinkiel.

“I don't care if you're a human,” she declared. “And I don't care if you're crazy. You're a life savior.”

She followed Fleedjio to the exit and closed the door behind, leaving Twinkiel in company of a lone lantern and a shaking Joltik.

Harsh, huh...

Scheming time?

Scheming time. I'm definitely gonna need a whole night if I want to teach a good lesson to these two. Moskito's Tension factor's keepin' me awake. But I'll need some music... And more light!

Using his own body as a living lantern, Twinkiel pulled out a pen and paper from his shoulder bag and began writing. Tomorrow was going to be a busy day.
"Is there a limit to how much living I can live with my life? How will I know if I've gone too far?
And why did I spend my life savings on sunglasses for a whale?
I shall find the answers... to these questions."





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Tue Oct 20, 2015 3:46 pm
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TinkerTwaggy says...



Twinkiel – Practice with a Mad Mad Thunderfleece!


Day A8, 6:00 AM


Welp, here we are. Think we're ready?

We just spent a night scheming and learning two new moves for said schemes, one of which we don't completely master yet. I'd say we're fine.

That's all I needed to hear! On my mark…!

SPARTA!!

Twinkiel unleashed a mighty kick, destroying the only protection the residents of the room behind would hope to have against him.

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“UP AND AT 'EM, MAGGOTS!!”

Twinkiel used Electric Terrain! All sleepy Pokemons have woken up!

With a surprised gasp, Zulu and Riley instantly rose up from their beds of comfy straw, shaken by the effect of Electric Terrain. Their eyes widened as the shining figure of Twinkiel appeared in front of them, his diabolical smile on the face.

“What? What's happening?” Zulu exclaimed with an unusual deep voice.

“First off: “Up and at 'em” – I always wanted to say that,” Twinkiel said, nodding to himself. “Second, I've got a surprise for you two. So get out of your room and follow me to the training cave next to our place. We need to talk. No negotiation.”

With that said, Twinkiel immediately left the room.

“Don't worry about all this Moskito,” he whispered to the little Joltik on his shoulder. “It's gonna be juuuuust fine.”

As he had expected, Melinda, Annabelle and Ricardo had been alerted by the sudden ruckus, and the trio of newcomers timidly went our of their room, staring at the marching Flaaffy.

“Good,” he said to them as he passed. “That'll save me the trouble of waking you up too. Come along. I'm having a very important talk with my teammates, and I want you to listen. Especially you,” Twinkiel added, pointing at the Vulpix and her Diglett brother.

“Is… Is there something wrong, Mister Thunderfleece?” Melinda the Dugtrio inquired. “Nothing bad has happened, I hope?”

“Not yet, Ma'am,” the Flaaffy answered gravely. “Not yet.”

******


At the center of the spacious cave, twin to the one Twinkiel and his group were residing in, the Flaaffy was standing in front of Zulu and Riley, who were both surprised that so many people were watching the scene – as Fleedjio, Ariala, and even Gotias the Machoke and his friend Belzia the Venomoth had come – and anxious about what was to come. Twinkiel had been coldly staring at Zulu and Riley for several minutes, waiting for everyone around to make silence.

“I...”

The Flaafy moved his head, locking his eyes into Riley's. The latter slightly shivered.

“I… I mean, if this about… what we did yesterday...”

“It so obviously is.”

“Well we're really sorry we disobeyed your orders and–”

Twinkiel used Thunderbolt! The Voltek Fleece was activated!

Riley did not have the time to move: the crackling beam had passed right next to his face, almost harming it in the process.

“Shush,” The Flaaffy ordered. “I'm making the lecture here. And you sure as heck aren't going to interrupt it with cowardly words such as these. Too late for regrets.”

Twinkiel began walking in circles, still looking at Riley.

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“Ladies and gentlemen,” the Flaaffy declared, “my name is Twinkiel Thunderfleece. And I must inform you all that a good chunk of my being happens to be bathed in insanity. I can control it, but it's still there, so press the wrong button, and I will snap in ways that nobody but myself can predict. I hope this information will remain in your mind and not leave it, especially if I do snap.”

He gazed at the assembly. All were looking at him in silence.

“Now, the reason why I'm saying this is because I want to make sure that you're fully aware of who and what you're dealing with here. See, these two maggots over there saved a mother, her son and her daughter, who by the way was apparently about lose her virginity in the most brutal way possible.”

Twinkiel glanced at Annabelle.

“The truth is, a side of me – the insane side – couldn't care less about whatever fate she would've suffered at the hands of this Sandile. Not because I'm a monster, though I kind of am, but because where I come from, this kind of situation happens all over the place, and not much people can stop it. And for those of you who realize that we're in Cutthroat Pass, you know exactly what I mean. Every 'Mon for himself is usually the rule used to survive, lay low and not fly around like a jackass sayin' “Enel Impact!””

Despite his ironic tone, Twinkiel kept on staring at Annabelle, who ended up gazing at the ground, unable to sustain the Flaaffy's insistant look.

“With that out of the way,” Twinkiel continued gravely, “I'll try to make the rest of this brief. Zulu. Riley. I'm not going to scold you. We work for the Resistance, and the Resistance wants to create an enjoyable, democratic government for everyone. So although it's our job to get the Plates, it's also our job to prevent some of the injustice around us to happen. Which is why I took the liberty of saving Belzia from Mumbles, or Alek from certain death. You two acted on instinct and ignored my orders to save a family of essentially innocent people. And you think I'm going to bash you for such an act? What kind of leader, heck, what kind of friend would I be to you two if I did this?!”

Twinkiel approached his two comrades, putting a paw on their shoulders.

“You guys are heroes,” he exclaimed. “And my immoral insanity will just have to deal with it. Thanks to you two, we've gained new allies, and now, if they still agree to work for the monster that I am, I shall make sure that they remain as safe as possible. I swear it.”

Twinkiel once again glanced at Annabelle, and this time, he was smiling cheerfully. The Vulpix looked at her brother, seemingly overjoyed.

“You are no monster, Mister Thunderfleece,” Melinda said, approaching the Flaaffy. “What you said was certainly harsh, but unfortunately, I have lived long enough to know how true it is. I am proud to know that my children can work for a leader as mature as you are. Please take good care of them.”

Twinkiel nodded back to her, genuinely satisfied by her words.

Looks like we have a fan club.

That's always a good thing.

“We'll work hard!” Ricardo exclaimed, while his sister nodded furiously in agreement.

“I have no doubt that you will,” Twinkiel continued, “but I'm not quite finished yet. There's still something I need to show you.”

Putting his hands behind his back, Twinkiel once again positioned himself in front of Zulu and Riley, who had been too anxious to move from their spot.

“Although you guys now share pretty darn great bragging rights for your recent actions, you've also blown our cover. Everdread knows everything around here, so he's probably aware of what happened by now, and the Sandiles probably work for a bigger boss.”

The smiles of relief and pride that had respectively appeared on Riley and Zulu's faces faded away as they understood the gravity of their actions.

“So they probably told him or her what happened,” Twinkiel summarized mercilessly. “Which is bad for us, because I'm supposed to take all the hits and attention to make sure that you lot are safe. Now that you've fought by yourself, you've added new enemies to our list, and I don't have any info of them, when they're going to strike back, or if they're going to strike at all. And for that, I am definitely angry at you.”

“What can we do to fix that?” Zulu inquired, his determination retrieved.

“Well, that's very simple my dear,” Twinkiel said, chuckling. “We'll have to begin the training sessions earlier than expected. And we're starting now.”

“What?!” Zulu exclaimed. “Now? But–”

“Should I REALLY remind you that you brought this upon yourself?!” Twinkiel interrupted. “Oh, and I should probably inform you two about something. One day ago, Sully and I left for the Hive to find a way to heal Alek. That's when I saved Belzia from a Mr.Mime, as I previously mentioned. And you know what? He was stronger than me.”

“What?!” Riley and Zulu exclaimed in united fear.

“Yes, boys,” The Flaaffy said. “There are criminals all around us, and some of them are stronger than me – which means that they're all waaaaay out of your league. And you two just provoked three underlings who might just come back to you with guys like Mumbles. Or worse: with guys like me. So if I don't train you now, you will get yourselves dismembered. And since nobody wants that, let's train. Rift, you're up. Stand aside, Zulu.”

“Wh-what?” the former said hesitantly. “I'm… I'm fighting you?”

“Don't worry, this isn't going to be my way of training you guys. For now, I'll focus on you, Rift. I need to confirm how strong you are, among a few other things. Oh, and this isn't a fight. It's a test.”

Twinkiel raised his right leg above his stomach and firmly stomped the ground with it, his right arm following the motion.

Twinkiel used Electric Terrain!

Oh yeah. Akuma battle stance, baby.

“Because no matter what you do,” the Flaaffy continued, “do keep in mind that you're not going to win. But I still want you to try, really, really, really hard. Now listen up: when the Electric Terrain disappears, the battle begins. Take as many deep breaths as you want. I'm waitin'.”

Twinkiel once again put his hands behind his back, taking a confident pose as an obviously anxious Riley attempted to calm himself.

Oh my god. This is bad. He's scared of me. Like, really scared.

So… Plan B?

...Yeah. I think I'll have to avoid going all out. That's what that nighty-night training was for anyway.

Twinkiel closed his eyes, sighing.
This was such an ironic situation.
In his previous life, he had learned that the only way for him to defeat difficult computer-controlled players in his video games was to utterly crush them, no matter the method – for they had been programmed to do the same to him. As a result, he became known for his relentless style of gameplay in whichever multiplayer gaming session he took part on.
In chess, his father had taught him merciless strategies to do the same – by cruelly destroying his pieces one by one, hoping that Twinkiel would learn from his crushing defeats. Which he did, as he eventually defeated his father at his own game.
And even in his everyday life, Twinkiel's only options to deal with insistent bullies had been to either give them the witty, sadistic retorts they deserved, or bash their heads against the ground or nearby walls – whichever had the most gravels to make them cry on.
And now, here he was, fighting against one of his favorite Pokemon species, but with the self-given order to restrain himself, thus preventing what he had always been taught to do – to crush bodies and frighten minds.

That Riolu's frightened stare would be delicious though.

NO. I mean yes, but we're not here to be just a scary fighter. It's time to change mindset. But don't worry too much. I'm still Twinkiel Thunderfleece.

Electric Terrain faded away!

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“Well finally,” Twinkiel exclaimed. “Alright Rift, let's do this!”

The Flaaffy calmly marched around Riley, a smirk painted on the face. The Riolu was still hesitant, but his knees were bent, and his gaze was focused.

Well there ya go,” Twinkiel thought to himself. “At least he knows a few things.

Riley used Quick Attack!

Swiftly, the Riolu switched from a battle stance to a running one, attempting a rapid assault against Twinkiel. The latter simply jumped, using his Voltek Fleece to glide in mid-air and evade the attack. He landed behind the Riolu, who turned around and once again bent his knee, frowning.

“You're right, Rift,” Twinkiel said, as if reading in Riley's mind. “It's impossible for me to activate my Voltek Fleece without using an Electric move first. So allow me to answer your question with another question. Remember when I nearly shot your cheek a few minutes ago?”

It took Riley several seconds to understand where Twinkiel was getting at. Then, his eyes slightly widened.

“This was planned all along,” he realized. “You knew what I was going to do.”

“Precisely. I've trained a few Riolus back on Earth, so having your current moveset in mind helps me a lot. I may be crazy, Rift, but I'm not stupid.”

Twinkiel resumed walking, waiting for Riley to make a move. The latter stayed in place, his eyes once again focused on his opponent.

Hm. He's not gonna rush in without a good reason this time. I'll have to make him.

Taunting time.

“Seriously?” Twinkiel exclaimed. “And just because of that, you're just gonna stay there? Do I really have to bring Annabelle in and mimic the raping act to get you movin'? Then again I'm pretty sure I'd do a better job than the Sandiles, with her paralyzed at my feet.”

As expected, Riley's eyes widened, expressing his shock.

“How can you joke about–”

Twinkiel used Charge Beam!

Twinkiel's paw had suddenly aimed for Riley, who managed to sidestep – not quickly enough however, as the beam of light struck his exposed shoulder.

Special Attack raised by one! The Voltek Fleece was activated!

This, Rift, is why I allow myself to joke about pretty much anything. Avoid getting too distracted by taunting words in a fight, that'll help ya survive longer.”

With that said, Twinkiel focused the rest of his energy on his feet, gliding towards Riley. The latter, still on the ground, rose up with difficulty but put himself in battle stance yet again.

Riley used Feint!

Instead of a punch Twinkiel had expected to block, Riley suddenly spun in place to perform a vicious roundhouse kick.

Power: 60. Unavoidable.

“Well crud.”

Taken by surprise, the Flaaffy was pushed aside, keeping his balance despite the blow.

Riley used Quick Attack!

On his knees, Twinkiel only had the time to rise up before a speeding Riley rushed at him, repeatedly assaulting his chest with a flurry of punches.

Twinkiel used Thunderbolt!

Seeing as sparks appeared all over Twinkiel's body, Riley swiftly backed away, his eyes focused on his adversary. But to his surprise, the Flaaffy released a short blast in the air before rushing along with him, once again gliding across the ground. And before Riley could hope to defend himself, a grinning Twinkiel wrapped his tail around his leg.

Twinkiel used Thunderwave! Riley was paralyzed!

Riley used Endure!

Trying his best to ignore the paralysis, Riley put both of his arms around his head. A slight red aura appeared all around him.

“Okay then!” an excited Twinkiel exclaimed. “Endure this!”

The Flaaffy rose above the ground and, using the Voltek Fleece to his advantage, performed a flawless front flip. The captive Riolu unleashed a panicked scream as he followed the movement before brutally smashing into the ground below, with Twinkiel's foot stomping on his chest right after the blow. The Flaaffy proceeded to slowly move his paw towards Riley's face, ready to let his pulsing electricity assault the defeated Pokemon once more.

“Let's see,” Twinkiel said in a thoughtful tone. “You've got about one HP, barely any air in your lungs, you're paralyzed, and I'm about ready to fry your face. Yup, sounds about right!”

A menacing crackling spark appeared on Twinkiel's stretched paw. Riley's breathing quickened.

“Hey Rift,” Twinkiel continued, smiling cheerfully. “Let's play a game! I call it: Beaming Pattern! The rules are simple: guess which beam I'm gonna use to finish you off – between Thunderbolt and Charge Beam – and you may not get knocked out. Go ahead and guess! I'm waitin'. Ah, and you're not allowed to give any other answer than one of these two. So don't screw up.”

Riley stared at Twinkiel's paw, seemingly trying to ignore that it might painfully knock him out if he failed.

“Uhh… I… I think it's Thunderbolt. Yeah, it's Thunderbolt!”

“Ding-Dong! Right answer. Question though: how did you guess right?”

“You… You like to beat your opponents with an Enel Impact. And you usually do that with Thunderbolt.”

“Ah! Looks like Zulu told you a few things. Good, good. Game's not over yet though.”

Twinkiel removed his foot from Riley's chest and took several steps back as the Riolu shakily rose up.

No serious wounds,” Twinkiel thought to himself, examining him. “But Praralysis is tiring him.

“You can stand up! That's pretty neat, for a guy who's about to pass out. Well, that depends on your results, of course, but allow me to help you get the good ones.”

Twinkiel raised both of his paws. He focused a Thunderbolt in one of them, and a Charge Beam in the other.

“Tell me the difference,” he asked softly. “I'll help ya if you can't. Little hint: I know that your Foresight allows you to see a tiny bit of future, but I think you should use it the normal way for this lil' test. 'Cause you know, it allows you to identify your targets.”

Riley used Foresight! Twinkiel was identified!

The Riolu's gaze switched from Twinkiel's right paw to his left as he analyzed the beams, intensely focused despite his paralysis and multiple wounds.

“I… I think I get it,” he finally said, panting. “Thunderbolt's on the left side. And Charge Beam on the right.”

“How are they different?”

“Thunderbolt is making a weird noise, and it keeps shaking all over your paw. But Charge Beam is just… shinning.”

Twinkiel's smile grew larger.

“Another correct answer!” He exclaimed. “Thunderbolt is a genuine thunderbolt-like beam that I can focus or spread to my liking, so its shape isn't clearly defined. Charge Beam, on the other hand, is a single beam of electricity, so its shape is much more difficult to bend. Okay then! Round 2.”

Twinkiel's electricity disappeared and the Flaffy whistled. Suddenly, Moskito arrived on the improvised battlefield, holding Twinkiel's shoulder bag between his tiny fangs. The Flaffy put it over his shoulder and took a green, round berry from the bag.

“Inside this bag are a few Lum Berries like this one,” he explained. “And Lum Berries happen to cure any status effect inflicted to a Pokemon – except Love. So we're gonna keep playing Beaming Pattern. I'm gonna throw beam after beam at you, and your job is to to dodge and guess at least three beams right – those that you guessed wrong but still dodged don't count. Do that, and you win. Got it?”

“But… I'm paralyzed,” Riley objected. “can't we take a break before I do that?”

“Did I ask for a break when Darius pierced my chest with a Super Needle?” Twinkiel replied. “In fact, no need to go that far: did you ask for a break when the Sandiles were itching to rape a Vulpix in front of your very eyes?”

“N-no, but–”

“Listen, Rift. You're getting your break after you either faint, or succeed. But please, try to focus on your current primary objective, which is the Lum Berry. You've got your Quick Attack to dodge my beams, and your Foresight to see them coming. These are your pros. Then you've got your paralysis and your one HP, which are the reasons why you're tired. These are your cons. I need to know how well – or how badly – you can deal with all these elements to make sure I can train you properly later on. Now, enough chit-chat: Let the game begin!”

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Twinkiel used Thunderbolt! The Voltek Fleece was activated!

Twinkiel's beam flew to Riley like a shining arrow, and the latter barely avoided it with a Quick Attack. He almost fell on the ground doing so.

“It was… Uhh… Charge Beam!”

“Wrong answer!”

Twinkiel used Charge Beam!

Faking another shot from his left paw, Twinkiel fell on his four limbs and fired a beam from his tail. Riley evaded the hit, once again using his Quick Attack to swiftly move out of the way.

“Okay, uhh, that one was definitely Charge Beam!”

“Ding-Dong! Good answer! Now, allow me to adjust the difficulty a little bit...”

Using the remains of his electric power, Twinkiel began gliding around the field at different speeds, confusing Riley with his sharp turns and sudden movements.

Twinkiel used Thunderbolt! It turned into EnelSpada!

Pointing his paw at Riley, Twinkiel moved on his left before releasing a lightning fast sword-shaped blast at him.

Riley used Quick Attack!

The Riolu leaped over the beam and tripped, falling on the cold ground. He immediately rose his head, panting heavily.

“It's… It's… Charge Beam!”

“Wrong answer! That was EnelSpada, a variation of Thunderbolt. Man, it is harder when I'm movin' around, isn't it?”

Riley used Foresight! Twinkiel was identified!

Riley had closed his eyes, evidently locked in intense concentration.

“Ah!” Twinkiel exclaimed. “Tryin' to predict my next move, I see It can't help you if you can't recognize the next beam, though, but it's cool! I have a new thing against that trick. Time for an Enel Gatling!”

Twinkiel used Charge Beam! It turned into Enel Gatling! The Voltek Fleece was activated!

The Flaaffy bent his knees and put his hands behind his back as they shone. He pulled them out and began moving his paws back and forth as several, small beams of light came out of them, roughly aiming for Riley and his surroundings.

“It's Charge Beam!” Riley shouted.

Opening his eyes, the Riolu attempted another Quick Attack, ready to evade Twinkiel's deadly assault.

Riley used Quick Attack! But he was Paralyzed!

His paralysis finally getting the best of him, Riley could only dodge several beams before his legs stopped answering his commands. He fell on the ground, inadvertently dodging the remaining rays that were aiming for his face and chest.

“I… I can't move,” he declared, puffing heavily. “I really can't.”

Twinkiel lowered his paw and walked towards Riley, a satisfied grin stuck on the face.

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“Would you people care to give a big, loud ovation for this Riolu?!” he shouted just as the Pokemons around him and Riley began clapping and cheering for the exhausted Pokemon.

“So you totally failed the test, since you got only two of three guesses right before collapsing,” Twinkiel summarized. “But that was a decent first try. Now, listen up!”

The Flaaffy took a Lum Berry and handed it over to Riley, who sat on the ground, munching on his prize.

“You're far from being ready to fight,” Twinkiel continued. “You really lack endurance – especially for a Riolu – you get distracted a tad bit too easily – though to be fair, I can distract pretty much anyone pretty darn well – and most importantly, you lack power, and the experience needed to handle it. You definitely need to work on those muscles.”

“Gee thanks,” Riley said, sarcastic despite his fatigue. “So all of this wasn't even worth the trouble?”

“Actually, it was, as I was just about to cover your bright sides,” Twinkiel replied. “You're cunning, first of all. You try your best to adapt yourself to whatever your opponent's doing, which is good. Then, you seem to master that Foresight of yours, which means that when you'll master Aura – which is your species' specialty, by the way – you'll be able to anticipate everyone naturally. That's something you need to work on. And finally, well, you're agile, and you know how to use that nimble body of yours to surprise your opponents. Which, again, is good. Hey, Zulu! Come over here for a sec."

Zulu obliged, immediately flying towards Riley and Twinkiel, eager to listen to what the latter had to add.

“Sorry buddy, but I won't be training you next right away, I have one or two urgent things to do first. But don't worry, Fleedjio told me about what how you handled Darius' men, and I've seen you fight before, so I know you're pretty good.”

The Noibat stared at the ground, dancing from one foot to another.

“Yeah, um… Thanks.”

“Y'welcome. With that out of the way, listen well: I'll have to go with Ariala today. We need to prepare a couple more things for the Last Exile, but know that we're almost ready to begin. In the meantime, I want you, Rift, to get a long break. And during that break, you'll have to focus on trying to grasp your Aura. Specifically, try to tell me what color it is.”

Riley swallowed the rest of his Lum Berry, feeling much better.

“Wait, how do I even do that?” he objeted, frowning.” “I don't know anything about auras!”

“That's not how you work, Rift.” Twinkiel answered, putting a paw to his shoulder. “Fighting you also helped me understand you a little bit more. You don't have to know Aura. You have to feel it. And only you can do that.”

Twinkiel gazed back at Zulu.

“In the meantime, I want you to practice some moves with Fleedjio – especially the dragon ones. I need your aim to be as good as possible, especially when you're using Tailwind. Master Dragon Pulse and Tailwind, alright?”

The Noibat nodded in agreement, visibly anxious despite his smile.

“Okay then!” the Flaaffy exclaimed, rising up. “Time for the final test.”

Twinkiel extended his paw towards Riley. Crackling electric sparks where stuck on it. Riley slightly fell back, staring at the paw with a terrified gaze.

Just as I thought. Terrified of me.

“You're my friend, Rift,” Twinkiel declared. “This paw, no matter how dangerous it looks, isn't meant to harm, but to help. Just grab it.”

“No offense,” Riley began, still staring at the paw, “but I don't see how being zapped by you would help me in anyway. I think I'll pass.”

“And what makes you think my electricity is meant just for zapping people?”

“I dunno, because that's what electricity does?”

Twinkiel stared at him blankly.

...Is he stupid?

No. He's an average teenager. Which I guess is… kinda better.

“Do you know what these sacks next to your eyes are for?” Twinkiel asked, seemingly changing the subject.

“I don't know. But I do know people are getting really obsessed with these things,” he added, glancing at Zulu.

“That's because most people don't realize that these features only move when you're trying to read Aura," the Flaaffy explained. "Which by the way they help you read better than any other Pokemon around you, even beating some Legendaries to the task.”

“Wha... really?”

“Oh, so it is a hidden power you're meant to unlock!” Zulu exclaimed pridefully. “See? I was right!”

“But how do you even know this?” Riley asked suspiciously.

“Unlike you, Rift, I watched my Pokemon movies – namely, Lucario and the Mystery of Mew. That, and a certain Riolu had a lot of spotlight during Hunter J's arc in the Anime, so I had some time to observe your species. All this to say...”

Twinkiel removed his paw from Riley's sight, shaking his head.

“You have much to learn about me, what I know and the way I do things,” the Flaaffy continued. “I'm allied with insanity, not controlled by it. I have no reason to zap you more than I already did. I don't hurt my allies without a good reason.”

“Yeah, well…!”

Riley seemed to hesitate between his frustration and his fear of angering Twinkiel.

“...How do I know what a “good reason” is to you?”

“That's what the training is for, Rift,” Twinkiel answered. “The more you learn about how I fight, the more you learn about how I am. It's one of the many ways to understand people. And once you begin to understand me...”

Twinkiel suddenly put his electrified paw on Riley's shoulder, making him blench. To the latter's surprise, he felt a burst of energizing power flow through his entire body, much like what Twinkiel felt whenever he used Electric Terrain.

“...You'll be able to answer that question all by yourself," Twinkiel completed with another smile. "Oh, and Rift? Ricardo's a messenger. If you've got, say, letters to send to someone, I accidentally left my Greatwood white leaves and Smeargle Ink and pen back in my room. A shame if someone went to use them without my consent, but I guess I wouldn't really mind if that someone was a friend.”

With a wink, Twinnkiel turned around and walked away as Riley's face turned purple.

“That's... That's none of your business!” was the last thing the Riolu shouted.

“It actually is, considering you're under my watch," Twinkiel shouted in return. "And you're welcome!”

Twinkiel marched back to his audience, seeking to reach for the “home cave” twin to the one his group was currently in.

“Ariala?” Twinkiel called. “We're going. Fleedjio, you already know what to do. Oh, and do help Gotias and Belzia for the rest of the construction of the Last Exile, I'm pretty sure they're gonna need some from time to time.”

“Got it. And I'll make sure our newcomers get used to their new home. Have a safe trip, you two.”

Twinkiel and Ariala left the network of caves before stopping once more as the Flaaffy attempted to expose his schedule to Ariala.

“Next stop,” Twinkiel announced, “a little shop held by a Maractus. I need to pay that 'Mon a quick visit. Then we'll look around to see if my new little project can indeed work, and then we'll get a few more things for the Last Exile. Get ready if we have to steal things.”

Gazing at her, Twinkiel noticed that she was grinning childishly.

“Oh! Yes, I'm sorry," she said, slightly blushing. "Don't worry, I heard what you said. I'm just happy that we're going on our first mission together. Plasmya said she was tired, so she doesn't want to get involved.”

Twinkiel tilted his head, intrigued. “You can talk to her now?”

“Yes. In my dreams, or when I meditate.”

“Hmm. Well that's neat! D'you feel ready to tell everyone about this?”

She shook her head, her perennial shy smile becoming slightly sadder.

“Not until I can make sure of… something. Don't worry, I'll be fine! I just want to see a bit more of the world, this time around.”

Twinkiel nodded, grinning.

“Alright then! Follow my lead, Fairy Lily! I'll show you the world, though I'm not sure all of it's gonna be pretty. ...Hey, that rhymes. Cool.”

“Fairy Lily?” Ariala repeated. “Does that come from another story of yours?”

“More like a reference, though the full title's actually “Injection Fairy Lily.” Allow me to explain!”

The duet marched on, directing themselves towards the noisy streets of Cutthroat Pass.
"Is there a limit to how much living I can live with my life? How will I know if I've gone too far?
And why did I spend my life savings on sunglasses for a whale?
I shall find the answers... to these questions."





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Fri Oct 30, 2015 4:03 pm
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StupidSoup says...



Day A7 8:30 a.m.

Ren smacked aside the last of the wild Snover, trying his best to ignore the freezer burns on his face. The pack of angry ice types had attacked him as he was foraging for food.

Why did you do that? They were just wild, not evil! You practically killed them!

"Oh shut the hell up will you? Now is not the time for this!"

Ren pointedly ignored the voice in his thoughts and bought back the few berries he had found. The team had come to a rest just outside of Frostpoint, outside of the town's icy walls.

Today your going to change! Today your going to understand!

Ren laughed to himself and spat on the ground. Today he was going to be Ren, not some dainty little butterfree that had to caress and fuss over every single thing that came it's way.

"Ren! Hey Ren! We're getting ready to go in!"

Ren turned and saw Absol in the distance. Suppressing a shiver, he shouted back.

"Yeah okay!"

Holding his small pack of berries in one hand, he jogged back over to the camp, wishing it was anyone but Absol that had called him.

Ren broke into the clearing to find the rest of the group already packed up. His own things were in a neat stack near the back of the group. Aegeas was waiting next to it.

"Hey! Did you do up my things?"

Aegeas nodded.

"Well thanks! So uh, what's going on?"

There was silence save for the voices of the group behind the two. Aegeas looked down, collecting his thoughts before answering.

"I need to tell you about your friend over there." He said, gesturing to the wolf next to Xernes.

"Yeah? What about him?"

Aegeas sighed.

"He's a militaristic sonofabitch if anything, and not just in a physical manner."

Ren paused, then broke out in laughter. The entire group turned to him, quizzical looks plastered on their faces. Ren waved them off, giving an assuring nod to the lot of them that he was all right. Aegeas chuckled a bit to, breaking his mask of solemnity.

"No but seriously. Absol tends to teach lessons the hardest way possible. Don't get me wrong, he's a great teacher but I suppose you could say he doesn't understand sympathy."

Ren's smile faltered as his mind flashed back to the dream. Absol's snarling face was burned into the back of his eyelids.

"Yeah. I um...."

Aegeas waited expectantly. Ren's mouth was suddenly dry, his head seemed to be on fire and icy cold at the same time.

"I-I uh....I"

He stumbled and had to lean against a tree to keep his balance. Aegeas turned to shout to Xernes but Ren grabbed his outstretched hand. The Dewott stared at him, a look of understanding flashing across his face.

"I had a dream about Absol. I-I suppose it was a fever dream but it was important nonetheless."

It was a hoarse whisper that escaped Ren's throat to form those words. Aegeas moved just a bit closer.

"He.....he called me a scared little brat. He told me to..."

Ren trailed off. His head was spinning, why was it spinning? Aegeas stared at him, eager to hear what Absol had said. Ren licked his lips, or would if he had had any, before trying once more to speak.

"He told me t-to lo--"

His voice cracked.

"I cant do it. Aegeas, I cant say it. The smallest memory brings back such terror that would shake the very foundation of my being. Another time. Please."

Aegeas nodded and Ren caught a look of dark roiling wrath flash across his face before disappearing just as fast, so fast that Ren could hardly say if he'd saw it to begin with.

"Its okay Ren. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

Aegeas nodded towards the rest of the group.

"Look, were heading out now. Get your things okay?"

Ren nodded, and smiled sheepishly at Aegeas.

"Yeah. Uh...sorry...or something along those lines."
I have a license that lets me solve aids - A friend of mine


Here Comes the Birdyyyy ~Poopsie


You gotta have the confidence of a gazelle running through a herd of lions - TK Sharp


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Now I am Soup





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Fri Nov 06, 2015 2:50 am
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Robusto says...



The Hidden, Dark Heart

Day A8 6:30 A.M.

Zulu let out a grunt of pain as he felt something slam into his small form, resulting in his falling onto his back.

“No sleeping, Zulu. It’s training time.” Fleedjio’s voice scolded.

“What was that for…” Zulu groaned tiredly as he stood back up.
“All you had to do was say my name. I would have woken up…”

“We’re training right now, Zulu. If you’d like, I could get Twinkiel in here to oversee you…”

Zulu snapped to attention almost immediately, the thought of getting zapped repeatedly with electricity a good incentive for him.

“That’s what I thought.” Fleedjio smirked.
“Now, back to training. Do what I said earlier.”

Zulu froze, trying to remember what exactly Fleedjio had said earlier. At what point had he even dozed off anyway?

“…Tailwind.” Fleedjio eventually said.

“Oh, right. Thanks.” Zulu nodded, casting the said move. He felt a burst of energy, which helped wake him up some.

“No, not just on yourself. On me too.” Fleedjio said, clearly starting to lose his patience. So Dragon Types really did have a sort of inherent anger and impatience…

“You want it? Fine, here you go.” Zulu said irritably, giving his wings a flap which sent the burst of speed energy into Fleedjio. But Fleedjio looked angrier than ever.

“Zulu.” He said plainly.

“Y-yes?” The Noibat stuttered nervously, not sure what he’d done wrong.

“Have. You. Been. Listening. At. All?”

“What was wrong with that!? I gave you Tailwind!” Zulu shouted in frustration, which only earned a menacing growl from Fleedjio.

“I said on me as well as you.”

“I did that! Look, I’ve got it, and so do you!” Zulu pointed out.

“Don’t waste your breath. You’re dealing with an idiot.”

“Zulu, Tailwind is a move that’s supposed to give several people, including the caster, boosts of speed in one use, not multiple.”

Zulu felt that gnawing feeling of helplessness and weakness coming back to haunt him.
“But… I can hardly do one by itself right now. How am I supposed to do two at once?”

“I’m not asking you to do two at once. I’m asking you to split one into two parts, and give one to me and the other to yourself.” Fleedjio said, his angry tone having changed into one more instructive in nature.
“Think you can do that?”

“I… guess so.” Zulu said, though already he knew that he’d mess up. He was tired, hungry, and right now incredibly frustrated.
So when he tried to split Tailwind up, it was no surprise to Zulu when it all stayed inside him.

Fleedjio sighed.

“Would you stop that?” Zulu snapped.

“Stop what?”

“That sighing. It’s messing me up.” Zulu said.

Fleedjio raised an eyebrow. (At least that’s what it looked like he did, not having eyebrows and all.)
“If me sighing is messing up your concentration, then how can you expect to perform in battle?”

“I don’t know. I did just fine against those two guys at Darius’s hideout.” Zulu pointed out.

“So are you saying you don’t need any more training?” Fleedjio asked.

“Yes. Wait… no. I…”
Zulu just let out a defeated sigh, sitting on the ground.
“How am I supposed to learn all this stuff…?”

“I know, it’s probably a lot for a human to take in. After all, you weren’t born like that, and you didn’t have any Pokemon parents to teach you this stuff.”

“But look at Twinkiel!” Zulu shouted.
“He knows all sorts of moves! He’s even making up his own!”

Fleedjio had never seen Zulu this aggressive before. Not since…

“Zulu, just take some deep breaths. I’m here to teach you this stuff, remember? No need to get all bent out of shape over it.” Fleedjio said, trying to calm the Noibat down.

“Well you aren’t doing a very good job about it!” Zulu accused, fangs bared angrily.
“Every time I figure out how to do something, it turns out that everyone’s already way ahead of me. That’s because they’re probably getting better teaching than me! I should be on the same level of at least one of them, but I’m still onlyBLAAAARGH!”
Before Zulu could stop himself, the Dragon Pulse that had been building up inside him lanced out of his mouth, grazing one of Fleedjio’s wings, and slamming into the cavern wall.
Luckily, Zulu managed to clamp down on the blast before it caused a cave in.

“Ooh… I’m going to need some Oran Juice on that…” Fleedjio hissed, looking at his lightly seared wing.
“You ok Zulu?”

Zulu was frozen, looking at what he’d done. What’s more, that Pulse had been meant for Fleedio.

“What… how did you do that? WHY did you do that?”

“Come on, you know everything I said was true!”

“You tried to attack Fleedjio!”

“Oh, like you could bring him down with one Dragon Pulse. It was just supposed to make him respect us a little more.”


Zulu was in shock. He hadn’t even realized that the voice in his head was in control until it had tried to attack Fleedjio.

“Hey, no need to get upset. I’m fine.” Fleedjio reassured the frozen Noibat.

“Fleedjio, I’m so sorry.” Zulu said, his voice full of horror at what he’d done.

“No harm done. Well… no permanent harm. At least you’re learning to better channel your anger into Dragon attacks.”

Zulu resigned himself, he had to tell someone about this. He’d kept it from even Cresselia, and now this was getting even harder to control.
“Fleedjio… I think there’s something wrong with me.”

Fleedjio looked at the Noibat curiously, wondering what revelation Zulu had to tell.

“Now, please don’t think I’m crazy…”

“Zulu, I’ve spent plenty of time with Twinkiel. Believe me, there’s almost nothing you could tell me that would make me think you’re crazier than him.”

Zulu smiled a little at that.
“Yeah, I’d bet. Anyways, ever since arriving here, I’ve been hearing this voice in my head.”

Fleedjio’s expression stiffened a little.

“It’s always trying to put me down, convince me to do stuff I know is wrong… and when we were at Darius’s lair, it even managed to take control of my body.”

Fleedjio nodded, seemingly in understanding.
“I thought there was something weird about you there. Well, I think it’s pretty obvious how that happens. This other voice sounds like it can only get control when you’re tired or worn out.”

That actually made a lot of sense. The first time, he’d near passed out from suffocation, and this time he’d been super tired and frustrated. Though maybe the frustration had been from that voice, not so much himself…

“As to to why it happens though… I’m afraid I don’t have a clue. But I think I know how to prevent this from happening. At least during early morning or late night training sessions.” Fleedjio said, smirking to himself.

“How are you going to do that?”

Spoiler! :
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~~~~~
Several Minutes later…
~~~~~

Fleedjio used dunk. It’s Super Effective!

Zulu sputtered as Fleedjio pulled him out of the wooden tub filled with ice cold water, the Noibat’s usually fluffy fur now plastered against his form.

“There. If that doesn’t make you eager for training, I don’t know what would.” Fleedjio laughed.

Zulu’s eyes were wide open now as opposed to their earlier droopiness, his fangs chattering.
“Y-y-y-you jerk…” Zulu stuttered, hugging his wings around himself.

“Now, now. I did you a favor. I expect thanks later for that.”
“But for now, I want thirty laps around the cave. Then we’re going to work on that Tailwind until you can power up a whole army.”

Fleedjio continually pushed Zulu, not even seeming to care about the danger of the other voice taking over if he became too fatigued. But Zulu didn’t even feel the voice’s presence in his head as he pumped his wings, too focused on his training to even think about it. His wings were burning by the time it was over, not having Cresselia’s back to rest on if he got too tired. At least the chill of the water had completely gone at this point. But that had just been the warmup.

Zulu had at first tried to cast two Tailwinds as quick as possible in order to make it look like one was being cast, but Fleedjio saw through that pretty quick, resulting in Zulu having to fly another twenty laps before continuing the Tailwind training the right way.

“Come on, I want to see a proper Tailwind.” Fleedjio said.
“And no moping about how you can’t do it. If a Starly can do it, so can you.”

“I’m… trying…” Zulu panted, having gotten little rest the entire session, save another dunk in the tub for a cool off.

“Then keep trying.” Fleedjio encouraged.
“Just will the move to split into two.”

“I’ve been willing it to split into two for a while, but there’s still only one.”

“Then you aren’t trying hard enough. Maybe another cool off would help with your focus, followed by a therapeutic shock bath in the same tub from Twinkiel…”

“Alright, I’m focused, I’m focused!” Zulu said, horrified at that prospect.
“But these things are a little hard to just cut in…”
Zulu suddenly realized something. He cast off Tailwind to someone else by giving his wings a flap. But what if he did that with only one wing?

Putting his theory to the test, Zulu powered up his wings , taking flight. But instead of flapping both his wings forward, he instead spun in the air so only one of his technically flapped forward.
He gave a whoop of joy as he saw the green wisp of air energy fly forward to Fleedjio, while his other wing retained the energy which quickly spread out to compensate for the unbalanced energy.

“Now that was a Tailwind.” Fleedjio praised.
“With enough practice, you’ll be able to do that without the fancy spinning, or without having to divide the energy in half.”

Zulu landed on the ground, falling onto his stomach in content.

“Hey, this is no time for naps. We’re only halfway done.”

“What?” Zulu asked, looking at his dragon trainer in horror.

“Remember? Twinkiel wanted me to also help you out with Dragon Pulse. You need to learn to use it on command, not just when you’re super angry. And you also need to learn to better channel your anger. You need to find ways to use that attack from determination to defeat an enemy, not just from your own bad happenings. That can take you to a real dark place.”
“But before we get on that, I’m wondering, how’s that voice in your head acting?”

Zulu was about to say “Same as always” except that wasn’t the case. He hadn’t heard a peep out of it the entire session.
“It’s been oddly quiet…” Zulu said.

“Just like I thought.” Fleedjio said.
“Whatever that voice is, it can really only act when you’re experiencing something along the lines of self-doubt. Which means it probably has a lot of that rooted in itself. If you keep your head up, then you’ll probably never hear from it again. At least… that’s my theory.

“Easy for you to say. You’re a massive dragon.” Zulu frowned, the order seeming like a pretty hard thing to maintain. But Fleedjio did have a point.

“And if you keep on working, you’ll be one too. Now, Dragon Pulse. Go. But try to keep it on the low power. I don’t want Twinkiel to come back and find we caved in our temporary home.”

Zulu nodded, turning to a random spot on the wall. He thought back to the Sandile from before, how cruel they’d been, how close they’d come to harming that girl, what might have happened if he and Riley hadn’t been fast enough…

“I can feel you.”

“Well I’m not exactly trying to hide, now am I?”

“Get out. I don’t need you.”

“I’m you. You need me just as much as I need you.”

“That’s a lie. I was doing just fine earlier without you.”

“Come on, you know I make you so much better.”

“You tried to make me hurt my friend. You keep trying to convince me to use Attract to take advantage of people. You’re just evil. Now go away, I’m trying to work here.”

Zulu pushed his earlier scenario to the side, trying to think of something else. He pictured Cresselia, her feathers glowing in the moonlight. Zapdos was in front of her, bristling with electricity. And the only thing between him and her was Zulu…

Zulu opened his mouth, a released a low powered Dragon Pulse, the blast slamming into the far cave wall.

“Not bad. Not bad at all.” Fleedjio smiled.
“Again.”

Zulu fired another one. And then another. Pretty soon, the walls of the cave were scorched black by the Dragon Pulses. Zulu had done it. He’d mastered Dragon Pulse.

Zulu mastered Dragon Pulse. The target is attacked with a shock wave generated by the user’s gaping mouth.


Zulu just stood there, panting. He could feel a happiness swelling inside him that he hadn’t felt since coming here. In fact, it felt as if he hadn’t felt this happy in a long, long time.
He fired another Dragon Pulse, just to make sure that he could still use it. Lo and behold, the familiar beam shot forth and scorched yet another area of stone that hadn’t been touched.
“I can use Dragon Pulse.” He said, as if the fact still hadn’t sunk in.

“You sure did. And as a Noibat no less. Most Pokémon don’t learn that move for a while.” Fleedjio said.
“I bet Twinkiel will be pretty impressed by the amount of progress we made tonight.”

“You… think he’d let me sleep some more?” Zulu asked hopefully.

“Heck no.” Fleedjio said.
“Your training is just getting started.”

“W-w-what!? But… I can use Dragon Pulse! I can use Tailwind! What else is there left to do!?” Zulu asked, horrified at the prospect that he still wouldn’t be allowed sleep.

“Just because you can use the moves doesn’t mean you’re any good with them. You need to learn to fight at high speeds while keeping good attack accuracy. Your moves are no good if they miss.” Fleedjio said.
“Belzia will help you out with that part of your training.”

“Who?” Zulu asked.

“The new Venomoth acquaintance Twinkiel made.” FLeedjio clarified.

“Please… can’t I take a short nap?” Zulu begged.
“I’m going to collapse from exhaustion any second now.”

“That’s just your human mindset talking. You’ve got plenty more energy left in you.” Fleedjio said dismissively.
“Go give yourself a dunk in the water over there, and you’ll be rearing to go.”
“I’ll go get Belzia. After you dunk yourself, fly fifteen laps around the cave again for a warmup. Good luck.”

Before Zulu could protest, Fleedjio turned marched out of the cavern, chuckling to himself. But once he left, his expression stiffened. That voice in Zulu’s head, whoever or whatever it was, had tried to force Zulu to attack one of his allies. That was cause for concern. Unlike Twinkiel, who was allied for the most part with the insanity in his mind, Zulu was trying at all costs to stop the voice in his head from taking over. But Fleedjio was hopelessly uneducated in this sort of thing. They’d need a psychic type for some kind of analysis.
Fleedjio would report this incident to Twinkiel right away. He was pretty well versed in all things Pokemon. Maybe he could be of assistance. And if not… then Zulu might be too dangerous to keep around.

~~~~~

Zulu had certainly though Fleedjio’s training was a literal hell at first. He’d been tired and miserable for the first half, and just frustrated for the second. But it had been doable in the end.
But Belzia took things to a whole new level.

“I don’t think I remember telling you to MISS!” She shouted at Zulu.

“I’m trying! But you keep doing that weird dance thing and…”

Belzia used Flash

Zulu let out a screech as a bright flash blinded him for several seconds.

“I told you. You talk back to me, that’s what you get.” Belzia said.
“Now come on. I’m telling you to go all out for Arceus’ sake! Just land one hit on me, and maybe I’ll let you rest.”

Zulu rubbed and blinked his eyes until his sight came back.
“Would you stop doing that!? How am I supposed to keep good aim when you keep flashing me? It’s messing with my vision.”

“That’s the point. I’m not going to make this easy on you, if that’s what you’re wanting.”

“What a bitch.”

“Hey, watch your language. She’s not that bad…”


Zulu tried to keep his calm. He knew Belzia was right, even she had put it rather rudely. He needed to be able to at least land a hit with Dragon Pulse. He wondered…

“~sigh~… alright. Let’s keep going.” Zulu nodded, relaxing himself. He felt that negative voice go away again, thankfully.

Belzia cocked her head in surprise. She’d expected some kind of retort out of this guy. What a letdown…
“Good. Now actually try and land a hit on me, or you’ll be the one trying to dodge my attacks.” She threatened, taking flight. Zulu did the same, whatever source of power he had in his chest powering up for his attacks.

“Go ahead. Make your move.” Belzia taunted, doing that weird dance move of hers again.

Zulu opened his mouth and fired, the beam lancing forth from his mouth.

Belatiz of course evaded it with relative ease… but she was in for a surprise this time. Rather than the short burst Zulu had been using up until that point, he held onto the attack even longer than usual as he followed Belatiz flight path. Unprepared for this, Belatiz took a glancing hit from Dragon Pulse. With a pained cry, she spiraled down towards the ground.

“Oh my God!” Zulu exclaimed.
“Belzia!”
He dove down towards his Venomoth instructor, landing next to her.
“Are you ok!? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you!”

“Nnngh… oh, that’s it.” She sneered, starting to rise up.
“Now you’re going to get it runt!”

Zulu flinched at that term, it bringing back bad memories.
“W-what!? But… you told me to hit you.”

But Belzia was in no mood to listen to reason, furious over being humiliated by a Pokemon nearly half her size.
“You. Me. Battle. Now.”

“No! You told me to hit you, and that’s what I did!” Zulu snapped, more out of fear than anger. He didn’t know how powerful Belzia was…

“You’ve got five seconds to get yourself in a good position. Then you’d better say your prayers.”

“Belzia, come on. It was an accid…”

“Five. Four,”

Zulu took flight, flying for the cave exit. But before he could even reach it, Belatiz suddenly shouted out “one!”, and Zulu felt a disorienting blast send his mind into a sea of confusion, resulting in him crashing into the ground. Only a well-timed roll to the side saved him from getting hit by a Psybeam attack.

“Hold still! The sooner you let me win, the sooner you get to…”
Belzia was cut off by a flurry of Air Cutter’s flung in panic by Zulu, who then powered himself up with Tailwind while Belzia contended with the elemental wind razors.

“I’m not doing this.” Zulu thought to himself, turning to again flee. But as he flew for the cave exit, a wave of nausea came over him, and rather than shooting through the cave exit, he ended up hitting the wall.

“Ha! Doesn’t look like you’ve ever been on the receiving end of a Confuse Ray before.” Belzia laughed at seeing Zulu’s crash.
She began to flap her wings vigorously, scattering yellow spores over the dazed Noibat. All Zulu did was inhale a few of them before his muscles locked up.

Spoiler! :
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“I’ve always been more of a support fighter. Gotias does the real heavy fighting, and I just stay back and whittle away at an opponent with moves like Confuse Ray and Stun Spore. But seriously, if I can beat you down by myself, then a runt like you isn’t even worth the training.”

“She’s right you know. Let’s face it, you can’t beat anybody without my help.”

“You’re wrong. I beat the Water Guardian and saved my friends. If I can beat him, then I can beat anyone.”

“YOU beat the Water Guardian? Come on, give it some thought. You only managed to use Dragon Pulse because you suddenly got real angry. And you’re not exactly the most fury driven guy around.”

“You mean…”

“Yep. That was me. At least an itty bitty bit of me. You’re not the only one that’s been growing since we got here.”

“But we’re the same person! You shouldn’t be like this!”

“Yeah, we’re both the same guy. I’m just better.”


“Come on, stop whimpering like that. Get up. I’m not going to pound you into the ground if you’re just going to lie there like that.” Belzia said, looking down as Zulu shook from the Stun Spore.
“Oh no, looks like I broke him.” She said nonchalantly.

“I’m… just… better…” Zulu groaned to himself.

“Really? To me, it looks like I’m the better fighter here.”

Samuel’s Dark Heart activated. User is immune to psyche conversion and infatuation. Attacks do 1.5 times the damage. All Status effects cured.

Belzia let out a startled cry as Zulu, still powered by Tailwind, suddenly lunged into the air at her and sank his fangs into her wing.

“Get off you a**hole!” Belzia shouted, trying to shake the small bat off.
Zulu’s grip was vicious, animalistic snarls coming from his throat as he held onto her.

Belatiz used Disable

Zulu felt his jaw suddenly freeze, his grip slackening. Belzia flung him to the cavern floor without a second thought where he hit the ground pretty hard. But in his current state, that hardly seemed to faze him. He quickly leapt to his small feet.

“No escape.” He taunted before launching several Air Cutters. But rather than flinging them directly at his target, the cutters flew out across the room… then began to home in on Belzia. Only a Quiver Dance boosted dodge saved her.

“What is wrong with you!?” She shouted.
“You could have killed me!”

But that just seemed to elicit an almost sadistic grin from Zulu, and he fired Air Cutter again. Belatiz again rose higher as the attacks collided with each other just beneath her. But Zulu, or whoever it was, had expected as much and fired a Dragon Pulse only seconds after the Air Cutters. Belzia was only in time to see the beam accelerate up at her, hitting her right wing.
With a startled cry, she found herself spiraling towards the ground. But at the last second, she managed to right herself. Zulu hadn’t expected her to make such a quick recovery and so couldn’t avoid the Psybeam she fired off at him. The blast flung him back into the nearest cavern wall where he stuck for a second before sliding down onto the ground.

“If you get back up, I swear to Arceus, I’ll fry your brain.” Belzia threatened him.

But that threat didn’t bother Zulu in the slightest. In fact, he started to chuckle as he rose up.
“Oh yeah? Come on then, hit me! I could use a little discipline!” He laughed.

Belatiz didn’t hesitate to fire a Psybeam at Zulu, who took the attack head on.

“Stop it! She’s hurting me!”

“Good. You need to toughen up .Ooh… that one was good.”


Zulu kept rising up only to be beaten back down by a psybeam. He should have fainted by now, but he seemed to be miraculously holding on.

“Just stand down runt! I’ll kill you If I have to!” Belzia warned. Despite her cold exterior, she really didn’t want it to come to that.

“Not… if I… kill you!”
Zulu opened his mouth one last time and fired a Dragon Pulse. Belatiz was too close to him to even stand a chance at avoiding it, so not only did she take the hit, but the short range increased its potential damage a lot. Belatiz was thrown backwards across the cavern, the blast carrying her into the other wall where she stuck. And unlike Zulu, she didn’t slide to the floor.

“Well, that’s that. Have fun dealing with that stupid guilt you have.”

The veritable demon inside Zulu released its hold on him, leaving other one on the ground crying. Though Belzia wasn’t dead (nowhere near death in fact), Zulu didn’t know that. To him, he’d just killed a friend of Twinkiel’s, which was enough to send absolute terror through his heart. First there would be that Machoke’s reaction at Zulu having killed his partner. Then would be Twinkiel’s reaction, which would probably be… actually, Zulu didn’t know what he’d do. Would the Flaafy applaud the kill? Shock him into next week? Kill him back under the age old “eye for an eye” philosophy? He had no idea!
Then, considering he was still alive, would be Fleedjio…
His mentor had told him to keep that other self under control, and look what had happened. This had been worse than any other of his run ins with that voice in his head. It had set out to kill, and this time it had succeeded. And Zulu didn’t know what to do.
Zulu wasn’t even thinking rationally at this point. He was overcome with fear over what might happen.
And so, he did the only thing his panicked mind could think of. He flew.
He flew through the cavern he’d been battling in, through the hole that served as the exit, through the proceeding rock corridor, and out into the brightening morning sky.





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Ventomology says...



Flurry | Wicked Plots | Day A8, 8:30 AM


Flurry hated the desert with a burning passion (pun intended). Only eight in the morning and she was already broiling like the gross, formless white fish her grandpa caught in Minnesomeplace. If only the group wasn't travelling still further south, to a place where the air would be so muggy that Flurry would actually melt instead of sublimating.

Upon mentioning it to Jewels, the older girl only laughed and pointed out that Flurry wasn't helping with takedown of last night's camp and therefore had no right to complain.

"But I'm an ice-type," Flurry whined.

"Even the Pokemon still in shackles are at least trying," Jewels said. "Now give me a hand with covering this up."

Despite her grumbling Flurry blew a weak Powder Snow over the remnants of last night's campfire and let the accompanying wind carry sand over the smoldering charcoal. With no dig marks surrounding the old fire pit and only the slight dampness from melted snow, it looked almost like nothing was there to begin with.

"Nice trick. Maybe you should clean up the other campfires too."

As Jewels left to assist another group with repacking, Flurry wandered the camp and covered up fire pits. She liked compliments, even if they were given in part to boost her motivation. Now that she thought about it though, Flurry got the ache-y feeling in her chest that said she'd fallen victim to flattery before.

She stopped humming a tune she didn't know she'd started and stared into the open sand. Everyone was ready to go now, and she'd finished her job, but she kind of wanted to know who she'd been before, and a tantalizing thread of memory dangled before her mind's eyes.

"Flurry!" called Shaymin's shrill voice from the crowd. "Are you coming or not?"

Ugh. No time for reminiscing now. In a voice as shrill as Kristin Chenoweth's-- whoever that was --Flurry answered Shaymin with a snarky comment about becoming a puddle and soaking into the sand, then scrambled to join the party.

She stood in wait for a few minutes, Shaymin and several of the refugees at her side, while Landorus and Raikou and Jewels debated on who would announce the route for the day. Eventually, Landorus rose into the sky and called for attention. Flurry noted with quiet glee that he'd struck just the right angle to block out the morning sun's blazing rays.

"We aim to reach the Trading Post at the edge of the desert by the end of the day!" Landorus bellowed. "From there, we'll skirt around the dunes and use the hills to reach shore, make camp again, and then follow the shore until we're ready to enter the Greatwood Jungle and meet up with the Venom Knives."

The company gave a cheer, and they were on their way. A new memory thread tickled Flurry's brain, and she leaned over to whisper to Shaymin.

"Catch me if I faint, okay?"

Flory | "Popular" | Winter


It was cold, and Flory hated it so much that if her hatred could combust, she'd start a brush fire.

"Of all the days," she muttered, "why did auditions have to be the same day that both my parents were tied up in meetings until seven?"

"You auditioned for the school musical?"

Flory froze (pun intended), and swivelled with comic sluggishness to peek at the girl next to her. Sarah O'Reilly. Of course.

Sarah stood calm and serene as a tree, hardly shivering despite her thin sports jacket and tied-up hair. For a moment, Flory wished she had some actual substance on her bones, not just thin, stretchy muscles.

"Yes. Yes I did," she said. "I sang "Popular," from Wicked. That song by Kristin Chenoweth."

"That song is overdone."

Flory scowled. "It was the only song from a musical I knew. My friends said I could sing and dance, so I should try out."

For a moment, the only sound was Sarah's ensuing inhale. It was long, resigned, and definitely the precursor to a sigh. Only, Sarah didn't sigh. She sort of chuckled instead, and her belly jiggled through her jacket. "At least you have friends outside the ballet company."

"You don't?" Flory asked. She didn't mean to be condescending, but somehow she sounded snobbish anyways. Well, it was already out, so no point in fixing it.

"Are you kidding? Ballet is all I've ever done. I still don't understand why you forfeited your role. Or why I didn't get it afterwards."

Flory coughed, sounding like a cat choking on a hairball. "I guess I just wasn't that interested in the end."

"Isn't that unfair? All my life, ballet is all I've ever wanted to do, but because I'm fat, no one will let me do it. And then there's you, the little prodigy with the perfect figure. You put in no passion or real effort and your life is charmed nonetheless."

"I did put in effort," Flory protested. "I worked hard."

"You missed Contemporary class every week," Sarah pointed out. Her eyebrows pinched in bitter anger.

Flory gave a loud harrumph and crossed her arms. "I missed Contemporary to learn Chinese folk dance. That's hardly a valid argument. You're just jealous. I bet the real reason you weren't cast is because you're a diva, and no one likes to work with divas." The words tasted like snake venom on Flory's tongue, but she said them anyways. "Besides, everyone thinks you look stupid when you dance."

Sarah's nostrils flared, and her eyes widened so much that Flory could see the telltale glint of tears welling up under her eyelids.

The rest of the wait for a bus to arrive was silent. That was the last time Flory saw Sarah O'Reilly.
Last edited by Ventomology on Mon Nov 20, 2017 9:02 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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They mainly happen somewhere warm and sunny
on an island that I own, tanned and rested and alone
surrounded by enormous piles of money." -Flynn Rider, Tangled





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Poopsie says...



Frost stood in the doorway watching Ho-oh. He sat perched on his throne ordering around servants and other ''lesser'' mons. He watched not because he was interested, he couldn't care less, in fact he didn't really care about much anymore. He watched because he was disgusted. Disgusted by the way Ho-oh treated his fellow pokemon, how he looked down on them because they were weaker, because they weren't as pretty or didn't have frills and colors. Frost wanted to puke, he couldn't tolerate ignorance. Ho-oh wanted to be on the winning side. He didn't want to bring righteousness to the realm of pokemon, he didn't want to restore balance to the hierarchy of legendries, he didn't even want to be part of the NO in general. Ho-oh wanted to be respected and tended too. He wanted to be treated like the king of the winning team. Ho-oh had no respect for order or equality, he didn't know the meaning of camaraderie, he didn't care. Frost walked into the room after the servants had left, Ho-oh spotted him and smirked.

''Well well, the 'dark lord' has decided to join the light.''

''That's rich coming from a burnt out parrot.''

Ho-oh's beak dropped.

''Ohohoho, who are you to judge me, a legendary. You petty wannabe.''

Frost snorted.

''I'm not judging you, that throne is. What makes a burning parrot so much higher than that bidoof over there. Who works more. Who believes in change. Who strives towards it.''

Ho-oh scoffed.

''Is that petty politics I smell. Is that the remnants of mortality that cling to your cloak.''

Frost grinned

''No. It is the rust of yesterday and I will use it to build righteousness.''

Ho-oh sputtered.

''You...you petty brat. You know nothing. You are blinded by the stars in your eyes.''

''The only person who's blinded is you. Blinded by the 'legendary' light that surrounds you. Blinded by the frills of your tail. You cant see past your own beak. I will bring justice to the realm of pokemon. I will restore order.''

With that Frost left the room.
The Poopsiest.

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Robusto says...



Tempest Part 1

Day A4

Only one day after his birthday, and life had gone back to the quiet normalcy he preferred. No more “Congratulations” and “You’re so old” and “Bet you should already be looking for a girl” from the other villagers. Just normal, relaxed life for the shiny Grovyle.

“Tempest!” A familiar voice called out.
A small smirk lit the Grovyle’s snout as he turned to see a Cubone along with a Buizel and Kirlia.
Those three were about the closest things to friends he had in the village, even though the oldest one of the three was still a year and a half younger than him.

“Hello Femur, Jet, Grace.” Tempest nodded at them, resting his wooden sword on his shoulder.

“Tempest, you’ll never guess what we finished last night.” The Cubone, known as Femur, said excitedly.

“Let me guess. That maze you’ve been working on?”

The group’s excited expression faltered.
“How’d you know?” Jet the Buizel asked.

“You tell me about its progress every time I see you three.” Tempest said.
“Honestly, I’d have been more surprised if it hadn’t been the maze.”

“It’s a mystery dungeon, thank you very much.” Femur said, supposedly sticking his tongue out at Tempest under the skull he was wearing.

“So, you want to come see it?” Grace the Kirlia asked.

Tempest chuckled. Thirteen years old, and he was still getting asked to go play. He remembered when Jet and Femur had first “adopted” Tempest as a friend. He’d been ten at the time, while Jet and Femur had both been six. Grace… hadn’t arrived yet.

“Maybe later.” Tempest said.
“I’ve got some sword work to catch up on. I’m studying the style of sword master Weccos…”

“Oh, blah blah.” Jet said mockingly.
“I bet you’re just a big Torchic.”

“That’s not much of an insult.” Tempest shrugged.
“Torchics do evolve into Blaziken, one of the bravest fire types around.”

“Fine. Then… you’re just a Bidoof.” Jet countered smugly.

Femur and Grace’s eyes widened a little.
“Whoa, Jet. Let’s not go too far.” The Cubone cautioned.

Tempest just let out a light chuckle though.
“Oh, is that so? Well, I guess I’ll just have to show you up then. Come on, show me this mysterious dungeon thing you’ve been working on.”

The three subtly high fived one another before excitedly motionin g for the shiny Grovyle to follow. Smiling at their enthusiasm, Tempest followed along.

~~~~~

“Welcome to our mystery dungeon!” Femur announced proudly, sweeping his bone club across their maze, which had been set up in a clearing, but stretched into the surrounding woods some.
Tempest had to admit, it was pretty impressive. For kid’s work anyway.

“Where… did you get all these logs?” He asked.
The said logs were laying on their side, arranged into corridors that led all over the place. And there were a ton of them, ranging in size and length. And where there weren’t logs, there were just sticks.

“Oh, you know. Here and there.” Jet said curtly, though with a hint of nervousness in his voice.

“You went into the withered woods, didn’t you?” Tempest guessed, referring to a part of the forest that children were discouraged from entering. Tempest had actually gone there once when he was ten. Though he hadn’t seen anything, he’d felt like he was being watched the entire time. It was a pretty unsettling place.

“It was Femur’s idea!” Jet quickly declared.

“Nuh uh! Grace was the one…”

“Oh, don’t even try to put the blame on me!” The Kirlia snapped.

“Hey, none of that.” Tempest said, smacking his practice sword on a tree with a loud THWACK.
“Since when does arguing ever accomplish anything? Besides, your secret’s safe with me. I’ve actually gone there once myself.”
The Grovyle returned his attention to the maze.
“So, you made a maze. What’s to stop someone from just stepping over the logs to get to the finish… wherever it is?”

“The rules of course.” Femur said, walking over to a nearby tree.
“Right here. We carved them in just last night. And rule number three says no stepping over the logs or sticks. Unless you’re a ghost type.”

Tempest turned his gaze towards the tree, seeing some roughly scratched foot rune text scratched in it. Personally, Tempest found Unown much easier to read, but that was because of his experience reading stuff like his uncle’s journal.
Some of the rules included no changing the maze unless for a party, no more than four people in it at a time (Unless someone was playing the wild Pokemon), and a scratched out rule that looked like it had once read No girls allowed. Probably the work of Grace.

“Well, looks like you’ve really thought things over here.” Tempest said.
“How big is this place?”

Jet stretched his hands out wide, indicating “very big”.

“You wanna try it out?” Femur asked hopefully.
“The first time is free. After that, you owe us one apple.”

Tempest thought it over. He had been spending less time with these kids lately…

“Oh just leave him alone. If he doesn’t want to, that’s his choice.” Grace vouched for the Grovyle.

“No, no.” Tempest objected.
“I’ll give it a shot. But only for fifteen minutes. After that, whether I’ve finished or not, I’m going. I have a lot of studies I’ve been falling behind on.”

“Being old sounds awful…” Jet whispered to Femur while Tempest said that.

“So, just point me in the direction I need to start.”

Femur pointed to an opening in the log setup with several small stones in a dotted line.

“Grace, Femur. You guys be the wild Pokemon. I’ll be the dungeon boss.” Jet said proudly.

“Come on. Why do you get to be the boss? I’m WAY tougher than you. Plus, Tempest has a type advantage over you.” Femur objected.

“He does for you too.” Grace pointed out.
“I think I should get to be the boss.”

“Ugh… fine. You get to be the boss.” Femur begrudgingly conceded.

“Uh, hello? Waiting over here.” Tempest said, tapping his wooden sword impatiently on the ground.

“Alright! Just go ahead and start walking in! We’ll be waiting further in!” Jet shouted, the three vaulting over the logs to take up positions. They soon disappeared from sight, leaving Tempest on his own. He had half a mind to just go ahead and leave, as he was already feeling pretty done with this whole Mystery Dungeon thing, but of course his conscience said that would be rude, and who was he to argue with that.
Shouldering his weapon, Tempest took a step forward…

And the entire spectrum of reality seemed to shift in front of him. Another vision.

“… please… don’t leave me. I love you…”

Tempest found himself collapsed on the ground, his sword lying nearby. How did that happen! He hadn’t even gotten any warning. He hadn’t even touched anything! But then again… his visions had become more erratic lately. And more vivid.

“Why did I have to get stuck with this…” Tempest groaned, rising up.
Dusknoir didn’t know anything about these visions. He’d considered telling him, but was worried his uncle might think he was going mad and decide to lock him up somewhere.

“Tempest! We’re waiting!” The distant voice of Jet shouted.

“Coming!” Tempest responded, regaining composure. Hopefully that was the only one for now. If only he were so lucky…

Tempest began to walk through the log maze, seeing cheap imitations of items that had been said to reside in mystery dungeons in the past. A nail for an iron spike, a pebble for a Gravelrock, and apple seed for… some kind of seed. Tempest decided it would be a Reviver Seed as he picked it up.

Continuing onward, Tempest soon saw Jet’s head moving through the maze towards him.

“What am I supposed to do when you actually get to me?” Tempest called out to Jet.

“We fight!” Jet responded confidently. That is until Tempest brought an arm up, a glowing red Leaf Blade extending out of the red leaves on his arm.

“You sure about that?”

Jet turned around, starting to walk back the way he came. That would make getting through this quicker.
Tempest turned a corner… and found himself falling forward to the ground again.

“Genesect! Twinkiel! Fleedjio! Rip his limbs from his body! Gut him like the bastard he is! For the love of Arceus and all that is good in this world… kill him!”

Tempest instinctively reached up to his chest from his position on the ground, letting out a small cry of despair. He’d felt it. Whoever that voice had belonged to; he’d felt their sorrow. Their rage. Their anguish. Visions weren’t supposed to have that effect on him. But before he could even rise up, he doubled over again.

"Sorry Mumbles, but it looks like YOU... HAVE... LOST! Better luck next week, pal!"

“Tempest?” A voice called out. It was Jet.

“I’m he…!” Tempest began to call out, only to choke on his own breath.

“Take me with you. We’ll get Dusknoir too, and we’ll all go off together. Just like old times.”

“Tempest!” Jet shouted, seeing the Grovyle collapsed on the ground.
“What’s wrong!?”

“Still, Neona is dangerous. If she were to somehow sway Aegeas to the New Order cause, or worse yet convince one of the others to turn…”

“Guys! Something’s wrong with Tempest!”

“Zizel! Why are you here!?”

“I smelled treachery on you the minute you returned. But stealing the plates… I never would have thought a sniveling, naïve Pokémon like yourself would have had the guts to do something like this.”

“Don’t try to stop me!”

“Tell me, do you have some sort of plan?”

“I’m going to take the plates for myself! I’m going to end this war! Then me, Arthur, and Felicity can go back to eating Snow Cones together!”

“You certainly seem to have your priorities straightened out. Even so… I can’t let you do that. The plates are meant to wage war, not stop it.”

“I want to end all this killing, and the plates are the only way! I want my friends back! I want my life back!”

“Don’t be such a fool. You really think you can stand up to Gods? The New Order will destroy you.”

“SHUT UP!”


“This better not be a trick.”

“No guys, look! Tempest is hurt!”

“What’d you do to him!?”

“I didn’t do anything!”

“I told you that apple we left in the dungeon wouldn’t be safe to eat after several days!”

“No… it can’t be!”

“Look, can you not be melodramatic for five seconds and just tell us who this person isn’t supposed to be? You’ve got almost three hour’s worth of dramatic pauses built up.”

“That creature. That Blackened Banshee. She’s…”


“Someone go get Dusknoir!”

“Grace, you can teleport! Hurry!”

“Who’s idea was it… that humans stood a chance against God’s? There’s only one who could orchestrate such a scheme so subtly. He’s been there all along, watching from the earth itself. His name… is Ze…”


~~~~~

Day A5

Tempest woke up with a raging headache. A damp cloth slid from his forehead as he made to look around, discovering he was in his room. What had happened? Had all that been a dream? No… his wooden sword wasn’t where he usually left it.
Then the memory of all the visions came rushing back to him.

“Oh Arceus…” He groaned, placing his head in his hands. That had been the worst his visions had ever gotten. No doubt Jet and the others had told Dusknoir about his episode in the forest. Now he’d be coming to ask questions. And he could read Tempest like an open book.

Tempest spent the next few minutes trying to think up a plausible excuse for his passing out. Foregoing water? Or maybe not enough sunlight absorbed that morning?

“Tempest?” Dusknoir’s voice called out.
“Are you awake?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m awake.” Tempest replied, trying to sound as alert as possible.

The familiar ghost floated into Tempest’s room, a wooden tray of several berries held in his large hands.

“It’s relieving to see you don’t look as ill as you had yesterday. Here, eat these. They’ll help you regain your strength.”

Tempest nodded in response, reaching out to pluck one of the berries from the tray Dusknoir held out to him before popping it into his mouth.

“Ugh. What is this?” Tempest asked in disgust, his lips puckering at the tart taste.

“A berry you likely never have heard of before. I cultivated them myself many years ago, and still grow them to this day.” Dusknoir said proudly.
“But I digress. Tempest, what happened yesterday?”

“I didn’t drink enough water or get enough sunlight yesterday.” Tempest responded automatically. Unfortunately, he’d done so too quickly to be believable.

“Tempest. As your guardian, I demand an answer.” The ghost said sternly.

Tempest didn’t know how to proceed though. How did he tell his uncle he might very well be losing his mind, hearing all these voices in his head? Voices of people he’d never even met before at that.
“I… look, I’m fine now. I guess I was just a little tired. Maybe I ate something bad. Can we just drop it?”

“Who’s Fleedjio?” Dusknoir suddenly asked without missing a beat.

Tempest started a little. He’d heard that name used in one of his visions.

“I don’t know. A guy, I guess. I’m sure there’s someone out there named that.”

“So, you don’t know who he is. And yet, I heard you mumble that name plus a few others in your sleep. And some of those names… I know.”

Tempest looked up in surprise at his uncle. He knew some of the people from his vision?

“Where did you hear those names Tempest?” Dusknoir asked again.

“Dusknoir… please don’t think I’m crazy. I don’t want to go to an asylum. I read about the one in Batonage, and I don’t want to end up…”

“Tempest, I can assure you that you are not insane. But I can’t help you with whatever this is if you don’t speak to me.”

Taking a deep breath, Tempest decided to come clean.
“Lately, I’ve been having… visions.”

Dusknoir looked at the shiny Grovyle attentively.

“They started a few months ago. At first, they weren’t anything too bad. I just heard sound from stuff that was about to happen in a few minutes. I got used to it. But then they started getting worse. Instead of just hearing stuff, I began seeing stuff too. And it stopped being about people I know. Now, all I ever really see is stuff about people I don’t know at all. And the worst part is… I’m watching most of them suffer. I saw someone falling above the clouds with smoke trailing from their body. I saw someone else looking at this shriveled, black thing with recognition. And I can’t stop it. It’s getting worse and worse, and no matter how hard I try, it won’t stop.”

“Dimensional Scream.” Dusknoir said plainly.

Tempest blinked, looking at his uncle oddly.
“Sorry?”

“That ability. It’s known as the Dimensional Scream.” Dusknoir explained.
“It’s an extremely rare ability. In all my time alive, I’ve only ever known one who could use it, and even then it was with some difficulty. They had to focus their mind and then touch something to activate it.”

Tempest silently wished his Scream worked like that.

“I’ve theorized many things about the ability. It’s said the reason it’s called the Dimensional Scream is that it’s the universe itself screaming for help. Screaming for someone to avert the tragedy it shows. But that doesn’t make much sense, as it can show the past as well as the future.”

Dusknoir began to float back and forth as if pacing.

“And what’s more, it’s an ability that is only gifted to humans turned Pokemon. Any human that comes to our world can awaken that ability within themselves, given enough time. But I’ve never known a pure Pokemon to know it. Unless you’re mother somehow managed to pass that ability into you…”

“Whoa, whoa. Humans turned Pokemon? My mom? What does this have to do with me?”

Dusknoir was snapped out of his musing.
“Oh yes. Sorry Tempest. I merely got carried away.”
Dusknoir floated back near Tempest.
“This ability of yours seems to merely be acting up. No doubt due to the… uh… changes going on inside you. You are thirteen after all. In fact… I think now is as good a time as any to discuss the Pidgeys and the Combees. Honestly, I’d wager your father is off somewhere laughing at me in the knowledge he isn’t the one to have to talk about this with you.”

“What do Pidgeys and Combees have to do with anything?” Tempest asked in frustration.
“I thought we were talking about my Screaming Dimension?”

“Dimensional Scream. And not to fear, I believe I should be able to make something to help with that. But first, the Pidgeys and Combees. You’re thirteen now, so I feel you’re more than capable of handling what I’m about to say. So to start, you must understand that Dittos do not apply to any of this. In fact, I would wholeheartedly recommend staying away from…”

~~~~~

An hour later…

~~~~~

“… and thus, the humble egg is laid. Most parents will of course nest their egg, but some believe that walking around with it can allow it to hatch the day it’s laid. To those fools, I say ha. But the hiring of a Pokémon with a Flame Body ability to nest the egg is a practice proven to help speed up the hatching process. That just about concludes this lesson on the science of life.”

Tempest’s eyes were wide with horror, his muzzle slightly agape.
“What… goes… where?”

“I’m not going to go over this again, Tempest. If you were honestly having trouble following, you should have taken notes. But now that conversation is behind us, thank Arceus, and we can return to discussing your Dimensional Scream.”

Dusknoir rose up a few inches, indicating he was standing now.
“Your sword is made of time stone, a rare mineral that exists… well, outside of our time spectrum. Luckily, I still keep a few chunks of it stored away from my time in Vallus. As the Dimensional Scream is a time based ability, wearing a charm made of time stone should either suppress the ability or… enhance it.”

Tempest’s head hung at hearing that, the horrors of the earlier conversation forgotten. He couldn’t begin to imagine his ability getting worse than it already was.

“I’ll get to work on creating such a charm right away. With luck, you won’t have to worry about those visions so long as you wear it.”
Dusknoir made to leave the room.
“I’d recommend you remain in bed for the rest of the day, merely to recover your strength.”
And with that, Dusknoir left.

Tempest let out a yawn, laying back on his bed. So, he was just supposed to lay here all day? He reached over to his bedside table, meaning to grab the latest Steel Mon action scroll he’d already read. Except, he didn’t feel the scroll. Tempest’s gaze drifted over to see…
Dusknoir’s Journal!
Tempest looked at it, wide eyed. How had he just left it there? Maybe he’d brought it in here, and forgotten about it? Whatever the case though, Tempest did the first thing anyone would have done. He began to read.

The first page of the journal though wasn’t near as interesting as Tempest thought. Rather than the worldview shattering revelations he’d expected, the first few pages of the journal instead had…

“Table of measurements?” Tempest muttered to himself.
Sure enough, that’s exactly what it was. The first pages were entirely devoted to various measurements from around the world. Measurements for attack power of various move types, length measurements… taste measurements? Who comes up with this stuff?
The time measurements were the only thing Tempest was already familiar with. The seven days of the week were listed first. Arcus, Mewlus, Dialgus, Palkis, Groudus, Kyogus, and…

Tempest cocked his head at the last day, representing the day of the week. The one he knew of, Kraius, was there. But it was underneath a scratched out word. Tempest squinted his eyes, trying to make out what it said. He made out the Unown letter G at the very beginning, but the rest was illegible. Had Kraius been known as another day at one point? Tempest shrugged, flipping to the next section.
This one had very few words. The pages were instead taken up by numerous sketches. The first one was of Dusknoir himself from several different angles. He looked a lot more fit when this was drawn than he did now, that was for sure. The adjoining page showed a Legendary Tempest knew well. Dialga, the God of Time. Except… something was off. This Dialga wasn’t drawn as the shining beacon of the process of time that Tempest had been taught of. This one looked dark. Almost… feral. Shuddering, Tempest flipped the page…
And startled at the next image.
Displayed was a creature he’d never seen before. It stood like a Lucario or Gardevoir, but appeared much more frail. Its flesh appeared smooth and virtually hairless, except for a mass of long, flowing hair on its head. Its chest reminded Tempest a lot of a Miltank’s, except rounder and with only two protrusions. A female… something. Tempest’s gaze shifted down to the extensive notes Dusknoir had made on this creature.

Human: Female
No visible means of defense save for teeth. Not designed for combat.
Virtually hairless. Susceptible to cold.
Has garbed itself in rough cloth and foliage. Possible Camouflage.
Update: Not camouflage. Simply possesses and odd instinct to clothe herself.
Has difficulty understanding most Pokemon.
Possesses Dimensional Scream. Kill on sight.


Tempest’s eyes fixed on the last line. Kill on sight.
Dusknoir couldn’t have written that. Tempest had never known him to even fight when defending someone. He was more of a talker than a fighter, and could easily talk aggressors down.
Tempest gave the human sketch a closer inspection. They really were built weird. What was the point of the long flowing hair on the head? It looked like something someone could grab in a fight. And speaking of fights, the human didn’t even have any claws. And the large chest this one had seemed like it would cause unbalance, as there was no apparent counterweight on its back.

His studies of the human done, Tempest turned his attention to the next page, which showed a sketch of a Grovyle. Tempest at first thought it was a sketch Dusknoir had made of him, but figured out pretty quick that it wasn’t. The description ended with the same line though. Kill on sight.
The next pages were of all sorts of Pokemon sketches. Several different Sableye, including one that for some reason had a heart drawn around its name. Some girl named Pam. But the one that caught Tempest’s attention the most was a Celebi sketch. This one was described as being shiny, and of course, should be killed on sight. A Legendary? Killed on sight? What was with this journal…
After that sketch, the journal divulged into all sorts of scientific sounding stuff that Tempest couldn’t understand. But he eventually came across something he hadn’t expected.

Your gems shine brighter than the brightest star

I think of you whenever we are far

Your purple ectoplasm is comparable to none

From troubles that harm you, I will never run

I will always be there to hold you close

Until death finally does take us both

Your lover, Ignotus.


Tempest raised an eyebrow. Who was Ignotus? Unless… that was…
Tempest looked at a note made at the bottom of the page.

Only recite this poem when you’ve lost all sense of decency, you romantic sap.

Tempest let out a chuckle. If Ignotus was who he thought it was, then this was a warning note written by him for himself.
At long last though, Tempest finally found himself at the personal journal entries.

I have decided as of late that personal documentation is something I have long avoided. Perhaps I’m not ready to look at my own thoughts, etched so permanently on paper. Regardless, it has to be done.

Tempest read the first paragraph with interest. It sounded like the beginning to one of those amazing adventure stories he loved reading.

The Inquisition and I move out tonight. We know where our targets are. They’re seeking the help of the only Legendary that can oppose my lord now. They will be easily disposed of though.

Tempest’s expression was grim. This… didn’t sound like his uncle at all. Tempest saw that was where the first entry ended, and went on to the second.

I can count on my two hands the factors that contributed to our failing to eliminate our targets. We were too late to stop Celebi from sending them on their way. But as I stood there on that plain, I felt something. Death. And now, I can only wait for nonexistence to take me.

Tempest had to put the journal down. There was no doubt this was Dusknoir’s journal. But… this was too heavy for him to take in. But he had to keep going. He had to find where his uncle turned around. Unless… he never did.

I’m being sent after them. I’ve been allowed access to the Infinium archive. All the knowledge of the world, at my disposal. My foes will be strangers in a strange land. Yet I will be able to blend in as one of the past kind. I can still avert my awful fate.

But what? What was the awful fate?

The sun. So bright. So warm. Even on one who is, by all means, dead. I stared at it for nearly a whole minute before Its light forced me to look away. I debated treason there as I looked at it. Perhaps I could go into hiding after apprehending my targets. Enjoy the world for just a little while longer before the planet became paralyzed by poisoned time. But better to have never loved than loved and lost. I needed to ensure my future happened, so that I might survive.

Tempest skimmed ahead, looking for any indication as to what this fate was. Yet, there was nothing. Regardless, he kept reading.

I’m enjoying blending in too much. Helping others, talking to and teaching children. I closed my heart eons ago, and yet these past kind are opening it as if it was an unlatched door. I met a young Quilava today, who reminded me of my task. How? Her name was the same name as my target. Sasha.

Tempest continued.

It’s her. It should be impossible. It’s something that contradicts all known science. And yet, the proof is right before my eyes. This thirteen year old Quilava is the very thirteen year old human I’ve been hunting. I had half a mind to kill her then. But there was no telling what killing one from the future in the past might do. I’m no expert on time after all. That is lord Dialga’s job.
While Sasha stays here in Treasure Town with her Riolu partner, I’ll hunt down Grovyle. I have a plan that will lure him in with irresistible bait. The very Time Gear he’s after.


Tempest thought to the gear one the pommel of his sword. It had looked like a gear as well…

I’m writing this from back in the future. I’d grown so accustomed to the warmth of the sun, returning here felt like a Sheer Cold had hit me.
Dialga is upset with me though, for bringing the Riolu boy with me. Why did I do it though? Because the darkness in my heart told me to. It’s in all of us. Every being born into this world of darkness is born with a heart of darkness. Except Grovyle. Why is it he can wield the light like he does? It shouldn’t be possible.
No matter. His light will die soon. I’ll be there, listening to his, his partner’s, and the Riolu’s screams as my Sableye mangle their bodies. That will send a message to any others who can wield the light. They should extinguish it.


Tempest felt a pit forming in his stomach. He desperately hoped this was all just a sick joke.

I have failed again. They escaped, and returned to the past. Again.
By now, they’ll have all of Treasure Town on their side. I can no longer move covertly in that land of the past.
But there is one place they will have to go in order to cleanse the poisoned flow of time. And it is from that very spot that I write this. They will come, and I will emerge victorious this time.


Tempest, wide eyed, looked to the next entry.

Oh, I have sinned.
The things I have done throughout time. I look back on them and weep. All the innocents. All the wielders of light that I made to extinguish. But I was only trying to extinguish my own light. I wanted to blend into this world of darkness. But in the end, my light prevailed. And I thank Arceus for that.
I have much to atone for.
Grovyle and Celebi spend a lot of time together now. I can see the love they hold for each other in their eyes.
I once jokingly told them that between both their personalities, they’ll have a veritable tempest of a child.
They laughed, and said they liked the name.

Tempest closed the journal.
He very carefully set it back on his bedside table, hoping Dusknoir wouldn’t notice it had moved. His eyes starting to tear up, he lay on his bed, and tried to sleep. Several hours later, Dusknoir returned to the room. Thinking Tempest was asleep, he retrieved the journal and left without a word. He hadn’t even heard the small sobs that came from the Grovyle after he’d left.





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Sat Dec 26, 2015 3:27 am
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Poopsie says...



Day A8

What was it you said to the lady of death?

''Hmmm?''

At the last battle to seal her out of terraria? Something cheesy about out of darkness comes light and blah blah blah?

''I don't think I recall...oh. Where there is shadow their is an obstacle blocking the light. There is light in all of us, for without it we would be truly nothing. The only abyssal pit is that which we conceive, for without it their is nothing to climb out of, nowhere to strive towards. Something like that.

huh. I thought it was cheesier.

''Well you weren't the one talking were you?''

swords don't talk silly

The figure floating in the middle of the hallway descended until he was standing on the cool floor. The ground near his feet slowly darkened and writhed, as if the shadows upon it were alive. He looked down at the writhing shadows and frowned.

''Why doesn't that ever go away?''

Maybe its because you're a ghost type?

The figure sighed.

''It still feels like a lie.''

With the writhing shadow trailing behind him, the figure made his way down the hallway, his sword over one shoulder.

I thought you could float?

''Walking always felt more....real.''

Now how would I know that Shade?

Shade sighed, suddenly weary.

''I haven't been called that in a long time.''

Does it bring back memories?

Shade stopped, suddenly adopting a far away look. A dozen visions flashed before his eyes.

Come, it is time.

A lone figure stood at the edge of the horizon, shaded by the setting sun. Two purple eyes gleamed malevolently.

No! They are nothing to me! I am nothing! A shadow in a crypt.

A black army amassed below the shaded figure. The sun passed below the horizon. It would not rise again.

Then you are the Shade. The worthy avenger. It does not matter what you are. It does not matter how others see you, you will do what is necessary because you have nothing left to lose. Now go, and let no god escape your shadow.

Shade shuddered, snapping out of his memories.

You okay there Shade

''Yes...''

Come on, you promised not to talk about that.

''Its easier said then done old friend.''

Don't get sappy on me 'old friend' Lets go find Frost. That poor mislead kid needs to see the light.

''Couldn't agree more.''
The Poopsiest.

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Sat Dec 26, 2015 7:45 pm
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Poopsie says...



Day A8


Frost had that feeling again. Every once in a while he felt the urge to look behind him to check if anyone was following him. He could feel a presence, but he couldn't see anyone. Eventually he resigned to the fate of not knowing whether or not he was being followed and ignored the feeling.

Walking through the last hall before the entrance to the mountain, Frost thought of something.

He hadn't been outside in days.

Opening the doors to the mountain would normally take three machamp on either side. Frost opened it with ease. Outside was calm, the calmest Frost had seen it since he'd arrived. Snow fell in lazy circles down to the ground. There was no sound except the soft rustling of the wind weaving in and out of the leafless branches, making them shiver. Frost turned and was surprised to find the mountain he'd lived in wasn't really a mountain at all. It was a foothill, a tribute to a taller mountain looming behind it. Ice covered its peak making it look like a jagged spire rising up through the overcast sky. Frost was stunned. It had felt enormous from the inside. Rising up off the ground, Frost floated over to the icy spire of a mountain. Up through the layer of clouds and he was there. Standing atop the mountain everything felt serene. The setting sun reflected off the ice on the mountain and lit up the peak in a halo of golden light. The sky above was a vibrant blue, a perfect contrast to the pale sky below the clouds. Frost looked down and was stunned to see rays of light shining through his torso, as if he were a shadow exposed to the sun. In a small questioning whisper, he said to himself.

''But I'm not dead yet.''
The Poopsiest.

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Wed Dec 30, 2015 6:12 pm
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TheSilverFox says...



Buried By The Hatchet


???

He left impressions in the dew-covered grass as he ascended the hill.

The figured skirted and seemed to dance around the graves scattered across the surface of the land. The scene was peppered with broken memories, shattered dreams, teary-eyed faces, all of which being restless, sad, and weary, unable to find a home in the simple names etched upon stone. They could only manifest themselves in those who knew them all too well, and those kinds of people were far and few between. The war was over; the last victories had been accomplished; nobody wanted to be reminded of the pain anymore. These remnants of life found no respite in the figure either, as he refused to look down upon the names of old friends, old allies, heroes he had admired but had perished before he could’ve come to know them.

Why was this so? He had one purpose in coming here. Yes, while it was to reminisce, it was not to be ceaselessly reminded of the many whom he had lost to the cruel and bloody grip of war. He had come for the sharpest, most important heartbreak of all, and was not to be deterred by the many weaker ones that tried to encircle him, trapping and dragging him down with them, trying desperately to express themselves, to gain some semblance of who they used to be before they faded permanently into the mist of death. Thus, the figure ignored each and every one of them, and they sank away, moaning and saddened, to haunt the graves of those who had been their life, and those who would now be their demise.

Finally, he reached the top of the hill. The sea was tranquil, calm and peaceful under the large moon that loomed in the distance. It shone beauteous white light upon them, which gave them the impression that they were flowing waves of silver, not water. The sight was truly gorgeous, and, if the figure had not come here for the reason that he did, he might’ve been honored to see it. However, the blemish came in the form of the clouds were beginning to brew and grow in the distance, meaning that a storm could only be beginning to form. Despite this, the winds blew gently across the waves, as the storm was too far away and too weak to provide any significant impact here. At least, for now, and he knew he had to make his visit quick. Nonetheless, a light breeze whisked about him, ruffling his fur. The figure paid it no attention, and, after just a minute, stared away from the sky and sea beyond. He sighed as he gazed down upon the final gravestone. It looked nothing special – a small stone one, not nearly as tall as many of the others, and with a poorly-carved name that was beginning to wither and fade away – but, to him, it meant so much more. Too much more.

He kneeled down in front of the gravestone, lowered his head so that he stared at the ground, and began to speak.

Hello, it’s me…again,” he began awkwardly. Every word was almost impossible to say, and even harder to string together into coherent sentences, but they needed to be said, and said right. He needed to say them. He needed some comfort. “I…well…I brought you some flowers.

The figure moved his hand, and the small but elegant collection of flowers it held, from behind his back, and subsequently laid them in front of the gravestone.

Yes…I know,’ he continued, chuckling to himself. “She’d never let me have the end of it if she figured out what I was doing to her flowers. But…I haven’t seen Shaymin in a long time. At least…not since the war ended. I wonder if I’ll ever see her again.

Silence. The wind died for a few seconds, before resuming its normal, swift but gentle pace.

I’m sorry…” he tried to say, but stopped himself mid-sentence. He silenced, sitting quietly with his hands clasped together. A single tear dropped down to the ground. The figure took a series of deep breaths, trying to recollect his thoughts. Finally, he was able to, and resumed his sentence, but in the manner that suggested he was originally going to talk about something else, but had backtracked and shifted topics. “I know it isn’t that well-made. I can’t carve stone all that well. A friend of mine – you probably know who I’m talking about – had wanted to help me, but I said that I would do it on my own. I suppose I should’ve listened to him. Maybe then I could’ve made a larger stone. Maybe I could’ve even carved your name right. But I suppose it wouldn’t make a difference, would it?

Again, silence. Another tear fell to the ground, and then a third. However, the figure was stock still, refusing to let himself begin to quiver and shake with sorrow. He didn’t want to show his weakness, even though there was nobody else around to see it; the place was all but abandoned. Oddly enough, though, as if reading his thoughts, the wind grew slightly stronger, and he noticed it. Was it a sign? He was not sure. He was not sure about anything anymore. But what else could he take it for?

I can’t take it any longer,” he said suddenly, after a long time of silence. His voice was wracked with sorrow, cracking and breaking in the midst of every word spoken. Too, it was stronger, harsher, deeper, as though coming more from the feelings in his heart than the thoughts in his mind. Which it was. His façade had been shattered; he had given up with superficial words, with poorly-crafted jokes, with what tried to hide him from the real problem that was staring him in the face. He was ready to face his pain.

The wind, as he continued, seemed to roar its approval – or was it anger? Was it relief? The figure had stopped caring; it needed to be said. He needed to say it. He needed respite. “I’ve tried a thousand times to bury you in this ground, and I’ve failed every time. I can’t shake you from my mind. I’ve done all that I could, tried to run away to the farthest corners of this world and even the other one, but nothing has allowed me to forget you. To let go of you. To make peace. I am the only one still fighting the war; everyone else has let it pass behind them.

The figure suddenly stood up, a determined expression on his face. He had finally made up his mind, and nothing would deter him from doing what he planned. Not even this moment, not even these memories, not even the gravestone that seemed to be looking up at him, crying as though it had just realized what he had in mind.
And I have had enough. If it cannot push you to the back of my mind and move on with my life by myself, I will do so with others, and by force. I…love you…always have…always will. But…this pain…is too much for me. It is not…how I want to remember you.

So…this is goodbye. The final chapter in the story I never regretted writing…but rarely loved living. It doesn’t matter…whether you understand or not…I have given up. This is the end…and I am finished.

Two more tears fell to the ground, and the figure, taking one last, long look at the gravestone, walked back down the hill towards whence he had come. The wind howled and raged and stormed, and rain began to pour down upon the ground, but it could do nothing to change his mind. When it realized that it had failed to persuade him to stay, to not do what he had planned, it broke out in a tantrum, fuming and storming and hating. All to no avail.

Soon, the graveyard was empty of life.



======

Day A7

“Well, what do you make of it?”

“It seems to me as though somebody has had quite the dramatic past.”

“What do you plan to do about it?”

“…See if I can’t get him to remember it.”

“Why?”

“So he can finally reach closure. I want to see the potential that is locked within him.”

“I want to see what he can become.”
S'io credesse che mia risposta fosse
a persona che mai tornasse al mondo,
questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse.
Ma per ciò che giammai di questo fondo
non tornò vivo alcun, s'i' odo il vero,
senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.

Inferno, Canto 27, l 61-66.








She conquered her demons and wore her scars like wings.
— Atticus