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Amber noticed that the others were starting to make their escape, and she knew it was time to leave. She recalled Bubbles, and Arauth, having come back into the village after a few minutes, allowed herself to be recalled again, as well. Amber followed the rest of her teammates out of the village and to the place where she'd met the team the night before. She didn't particularly like causing havoc for other people, despite some of the things she'd done in the past, so having to create chaos to free Darts wasn't sitting well with her.

The sound of a voice that wasn't Sub's had her turning, her proverbial hackles raising at the sound of it. There was something about this Volo that rubbed her the wrong way, and she made a point to stay as far from this person as she possibly could without leaving the area. She didn't like this guy; there was something.... off about him, and she was sure that several of her teammates felt the same, just from the reactions she could see. She didn't speak, preferring to let her teammates deal with Volo.

Volo laughed aloud at Darts’ question, finding it funny. “I deserve that one!” He then glanced at some of the other Snagems and made a bothered face, frowning slightly. “I get it, you don’t trust me, and you’d be right to. People around here haven’t been very receptive to all of you and I do have the face of a merchant, or at least I’ve been told I do. I guess I was born for my job.” He grinned. “If I’m being serious for a moment, no, I don’t have much knowledge of inter-dimensional trivial…” He began to say to Darts, adjusting his hat a bit in the process. “...but I do know a considerable amount about Hisui’s myths and legends, and no I’m not the kind to be humble.” He scoffed at the notion. “For example I know what you really are, you’re a hybrid of Giratina, the Renegade, who dwells in the shadow of creation.” The man said, examining Darts visually with an even more intense, almost hypnotized, gaze before snapping out of his semi-trance.

Realizing he gave them a bit more information than just the fact he was aware of the mythology of Giratina he glanced at the others. “Yes, I’m aware of hybrids. In fact, there are many here in Hisui, all natives to this land. There are a handful of communities of them as well, like the Flying Clan of Mt. Coronet.” Volo said, looking at Amaranth. “A mix of both Channelers and hybrids that is, it’s where your artifact originates. Maybe you should look into them in your time.” He suggested to Amaranth before moving on.

“As for where Cogita is, and your leader for that matter, she lives in the far east of Hisui, in a place she claims is the site of the former village of the Celestica. She’s probably right, in fact she’s right about a lot of things. My cousin knows more than even me.” He mused, showing a hint of contempt for this fact. “Don’t worry, I haven’t done anything to him or the like, he’s actually with her as we speak. He should be here soon, especially considering he’s not on foot. Great guy, by the way, Pokemon almost seems to bend to his will, he must be an excellent Pokemon wielder. I’m not bad myself but nothing like him from what I’ve seen.” Volo explained, also revealing that unlike the villagers he does not fear Pokemon and in fact tames them.

Before he could say more the sound of some sort of Pokemon whinnying is heard followed by a pair of antlers appearing on the horizon and soon the rest of the Pokemon appeared as the Noble Pokemon Wyrdeer mounted the hill, Sub on its back. “Look, there he is.” Volo said pointing as Sub approached.

Sub and Wyrdeer would approach the Snagems, Sub giving a little wave as he closed in. Once he was within several yards of the group he dismounted Wyrdeer and stroked its side, the deer licking his face before the man left it behind to wander off. Arriving in front of his teammates he gave Volo a nod and turned his attention back to them. “I see you guys met Volo, hope you all got along.” Sub said as he sat down on a nearby rock. “Thank you for introducing me to Cogita.” He said to Volo who simply nodded in response. “So it looks like my theory might just work, at least Cogita believes it is not without merit. She is a wealth of knowledge, knowing about myths and history it took our civilization millennia of research to uncover. If I didn’t know better I’d say she almost lived through these times.” It was an idea he did not discredit but moved on for now. "I trust her though. In fact, I wonder if she is actually a Channeler..." He pondered.

“Cogita believes the time-space distortion above Mt. Coronet is not punishment from Arceus, mighty Sinnoh as it’s known by right now, but for who or what created it she is unsure.”

“After explaining Darts’ situation to her and with her own knowledge she believes Darts should be able to travel through the distortion, noting that the legendary Pokemon Giratina is known to require weak points to travel through dimensions as well and the distortion is certainly a weak point. However as I explained and she thinks I’m correct Darts can’t take all of us with him and she fears due to the nature of the distortion and the Distortion World itself there is no way he can return once he leaves. With that said she has a solution for us, the Red Chain.” He explained, Volo perking up and staring at Sub intensely now, as if this was a surprise to him as well.

“According to Cogita in a time too long ago to pinpoint exactly, Giratina had rebelled against its creator and rampaged against all of creation, engaging its siblings, Dialga and Palkia, in battle. Giratina was getting the upper hand as it turned the two against each other and threatened all of existence. In this desperate time the triplets given birth to keep Dialga and Palka in line while Arceus slumbered, the Lake Guardians Azelf, Mesprit, and Uxie, rose up and joined their powers together to forge an artifact called the Red Chain to bind Giratina, and the other two. With time and space qualmed and sent aware Arceus itself appeared and banished Giratina to the Distortion World, faraway from all of creation and it is there it has remained since. Cogita’s theory is that if the Red Chain was able to bind the Trio of Creation and even control them then perhaps it could be used to tame and focus Darts’ own abilities and bind us to him. The artifact’s power is shown in the fact that Arceus alone could not control his children.” Sub pointed out.

“She is certain the Red Chain can be forged again, however we require pieces of the Lake Guardian’s power. These Pokemon are powerful and said to be the embodiment of aspects of humanity, our willpower, emotions, and knowledge, and certainly would not give us what we need without a trial or test. So with that said I-” Before Sub could say more he heard the sound of footsteps, many of them. Walking towards the front of the hill he saw the source, a large group of men, clad in armor and carrying weapons, approaching the hill. Spotting commander Kamado he knew exactly what this was. “Kamado intends to kill us.” He said as he turned back to the Snagems.

“We have no time. I know my plan is still half baked but we have to try, and if nothing else you guys need to escape.” He said, waving Wyrdeer over to him. “Freth, Beau, Larrimore, Leon, Amaranth, you four head to Lake Verity. Aile, Monique, Wren, Keiko to Lake Acuity. And finally Darts, Amber, and Deo to Lake Valor. From what Cogita tells me of the guardians is that they will only assist humans who can prove their willpower, emotion, or knowledge. Pass their trials, obtain their gifts, and make your way to the temple atop Mt. Coronet, the Temple of Sinnoh. It is only there that the Red Chain can be forged.” He commanded the Snagems as he mounted Wyrdeer.

“I’ll go to Lake Valor. It's said it's the toughest one so you might need extra muscle, and to fill out the ranks.” Volo offered as he walks up to Darts, slapping him playfully on the back.

“That’s fine. Now all of you, go. I’ll hold off Kamado and his forces. Don’t worry about me, Wyrdeer has my back and I have my Pokemon. We got this, right?” He asked the Noble Pokemon who snorted in response. “Good. I’ll meet all of you at the temple. See you guys soon!” He told his teammates as he tapped his heel against the side of Wyrdeer, the Pokemon snorting again and charging down the hill to meet Kamado and his forces.

“Let’s go.” Volo spoke up as he watched Sub leave. “Don’t dishonor your leader’s bravery by delaying.” He went on, his words this time seeming to be particularly sincere this time. "Here, take these. It will help you all find your way to the lakes." He said, handing Aile, Freth, and even Darts a map and compass, giving Darts what looked like his personal compass off his belt as a sort of token of understanding, without it he would be lost in the wilderness.

Aile remained quiet as Volo continued to talk and explain things, deciding to nudge Tatooine in an attempt to have the dragon let her down. It would only succeed when Sub finally showed up, with the Flygon keeping close even as Aile was lowered to the ground. The trainer would look at the others called out to be in their group, taking a deep breath before letting out a small sigh. Before she could object to Sub stalling the villagers, however, he was gone, leaving Aile to shake her head. "For the love of.... Hm?" Aile blinked as Volo approached her, Tatooine growling as he got close. "Tatooine, simmer down a moment, please. Can you hold onto this please?" The dragon would continue to leer as she took the staff, allowing the woman to take the map and compass from the merchant with her remaining arm. "Ah, thank you. Tati, I'm riding on your back, I need a way to look at the map on something flat and have a chance of holding it down." With a final look at Volo, Tatooine nodded and lowered herself, allowing Aile to get on and get herself situated to use both the map and compass with her singular hand. After locating their destination on the map and figuring out their pointing, she'd turn to the others in the group. "Due north, everyone. Looks like we might be freezing our hides off."

"Gooooooon," Tatooine would whine, knowing full well what was coming with that word.

"I know, the cold does suck. Hopefully, it shouldn't be too long we're there, though. And if Sub's going to try and stall, we need to get a move on, at least. Hopefully that b*****d hasn't finally gotten in over his head this time. Let's go!" With that, she'd gently nudge the Flygon with her heels, giving an apologetic look as Tati whipped her head back, not expecting the nudge. After a nod, Tati would take off into the air, trying to go slow enough for others to keep up if they didn't have their own Pokémon to ride.

Wren took off "following" the fleeing villagers he had "rescued" from Absol the moment he saw it disappear, the flower petals falling to the ground and beginning to disperse with the fierce winds being whipped up by all the commotion, not to mention the fires Beau had set. He took a short detour to retrieve Altissima from her hiding place outside the village's border wall and then made his way to Deertrack Heights, following after Darts and Monique, who he could see running just ahead of him. Clearly the jailbreak had been successful.

Upon arriving at the appointed place at the appointed hour, he would find himself just as uneasy as the others at being greeted not by Sub as they had all expected by by a man calling himself "Volo" and claiming to know where Sub was as well as a bit about how he might help them. "Merchant to merchant, you're a snake oil salesman in king's cloth as far as I can tell." He quipped at the man as he continued his spiel, eyeing Darts with an almost primal hunger in his gaze all he while. "If he turns you on, you're barking up the wrong tree. A friend of mine's already tried."

He'd be interrupted before he could continue hurling barbs at Volo by the sound of hoofbeats on the grass, Sub arriving upon Wyrdeer's back moments later and beginning to offer an explanation of what he had learned in their absence. He wouldn't have long before yet more new sounds began to ride the wind to their ears - footfalls and clanking armor- forcing him to cut off his explanation before he had even truly begun it. Quickly splitting the group apart and offering to hold off the oncoming army, if what such a small village could muster could even be called such a thing. "Stay safe. We'll see you at the temple." He told the Snagem leader before he took off, following Aile on Asphodel's back as fast as Sub had moved to intercept Kamado's forces. It was only then he'd think to himself that he was glad these Galaxy Team shoes were comfortable. At least his feet wouldn't freeze completely.

The Snagems had succeeded at their assigned lakes, passing the trials of the Lake Guardians and acquiring the fragments of their power, items needed to forge the Red Chain at the Temple of Sinnoh and with it their ticket back home. The way up to the Temple of Sinnoh would involve grueling climbing for those without something to fly them up, and the cold alone would be a challenge. The Snagems would gather together at the base of Mount Coronet, standing in front of the trail leading to the top. From here they would need to travel to the top, a grueling but doable climb.

(Post your characters arriving and reconnecting with the group.)

Upon arriving onto Coronet, winter gear in tow. As the other Snagems arrived, she would pass on the various thick clothing from this time to each of the Snagems. They weren't going to make the journey without it. Though as she passed the warm clothing about, Freth had to wonder the lasting damage that was going to be done to this reality. Sure, it would have no bearing to her own, but this one was going to be altered drastically, probably put hybrids in even more of a negative light than before. Though, incidentally, humans were in fact amongst this band as well. Freth shook her head...a thought for another time. With her done, she looked back up towards the mountain...now that they were closest to that breach in the sky, it looked a considerable more ominous than far away. Unsettling, for that matter. "I hope we know what we're doing here..." she would simply state to no one in particular.

Monique's slow Stantler ride through the highlands rose higher, the temperatures becoming more biting than even in the icelands to the north as the air thinned. However, the rocky terrain had at last become too unforgiving for the deer Pokémon to continue its path. Several other Snagems had gathered there. Freth was passing out thick winter coats—a gift she appreciated, though she wondered where they could have possibly originated.

The Temple of Sinnoh's form poked out from atop the rocky outcropping on which it sat, the very peak of Mount Coronet. Above it loomed the entire reason for their trip—that big crack in the sky. Unlike a crack in the Dome, which could feasibly be fixed by actual people and Pokémon, this one was far more serious. The normal sky yielded to a massive black swirl with hints of vivid reds, blues, and greens, all around a crack that looked like someone had dented an old windshield. Whatever had generated this had power and then some. Even for someone from 2071, this was a breathtaking sight, let alone someone from 1871.

The sheriff stared in worry, crossing her arms under her chest for warmth. Her Murkrow was not going to carry her up even without this thick coat on her body. She was going to need a ride from someone else.