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 Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2017 9:20 pm
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Psychic Master Mission Stage 1
A Relic of the Mind
So you wish to master the powers of the mind, do you? Ordinarily I would send you to see the fabled master of the Psychic forces, Maya, but I think I have found someone far more suited to teach you, a hybrid, than a Channeler would. Your journey will take you to the legendary Relic Castle, it is there you will meet with your soon-to-be master, Daruma the Enlightened.
Daruma is a Darmanitan hybrid that had achieved absolute zen through many years of intense training and thus unlocked the latent psychic power within us all. Ordinarily the Darmanitan species can only enter their Zen Mode during times of dire need or hibernation, Daruma however was able to unlock a perpetual state of zen and never has to leave his Zen Mode. Daruma lived at the Relic Castle long ago, when the castle was still young and thriving. Daruma has never told anyone the stories of the castle's past, and refuses to do so for whatever reason. Regardless he remains at the ruins of the castle and meditates, his permanent state of zen having seemed to have granted him a tremendous lifespan.
Head to the Relic Castle and find Daruma. This may be easier than it sounds as Daruma has made an old secret room in the castle as his chamber, so that he would never be disturbed. You must find this chamber, hidden within the maze that is Relic Castle. The chamber is said to lie at the end of a series of hidden passages and corridors, each one sealed with a different 'test' to deem you worthy to disturb Daruma's meditation.
The first door which leads to the hidden passage can only be 'seen' by the mind's eye, the sense only a Psychic possesses. Including the first door there are three in total before you reach the last which leads to Daruma and is guarded by his faithful Pokemon, which you must defeat in battle. As for the three doors they are distinguished by the Sigilyph patterns on them which will then come to life to administer their test. The first will be a Hypnosis which will send you into a sleep of self reflection, where you will be forced to question your dreams, plans, hopes, and desires. You will be assaulted by negativity and critical thought against your dreams and why they are useless. Endure this and break free from the Hypnosis to advance.
The second door and Sigilyph will execute a special Magic Room, trapping you in it. It is there where your latent Psychic abilities will be awakened for a short period of time. You will have full access to everything you are capable of and with this power you must defeat the Sigilyph. However, as you might guess, gaining all this power at once could have a horrible effect on your mind and body, causing you to lose control and destroy yourself. Keep calm and try not to let the power destroy you. Defeat Sigilyph and move on.
The third and last door's Sigilyph will use a peculiar Mirror Move against you which will conjure the mirror opposite of you. This doppelganger will attack you ruthlessly, verbally, physically, and mentally. Defeat your dark clone to prove that no one, not even yourself, will stop you from achieving your dreams.
The final test, as stated, is to get past Daruma's Pokemon, a Medicham. Perhaps you do not have to defeat it in battle, maybe there is another way you can make the Pokemon understand you do not wish to harm its master. I don't know how you will do that so better think of something, that Medicham is far more powerful than any average one.
So that's it, get past all these tests and reach Daruma so that you may convince him to teach you the ways of the Psychic. Should he accept you as a pupil he will probably reveal to you a quicker way to get to his chamber for next time so you don't have to go the long way.Also be careful of the wild Pokemon in Relic Castle, there are many of them. Good luck.
Objective:
---Get past the Three Trials of Sigilyph and Daruma's Pokemon in order to reach his chamber so that you may convince him to teach you.
Opposition:
---Wild Pokemon at and around Relic Castle including: Sandile, Krokorok, Sigilyph, Baltoy, Claydol, Yamask, Cofagrigus, Sandshrew, Sandslash, Onix, Darumaka, Darmanitan, Maractus, Scraggy, and Dwebble.
---Possibly Daruma's Medicham.
Pokemon:
---You may catch one wild Pokemon.
Rewards:
---The experience will grant you the ability to use a new move.
---10x Snag Coins
---The ability to take on the next master mission.
~~~~~~Alto Mare, Johto~~~~~~~~
"So, hold on. You did what all the way out in Unova?"
Crystal would be sitting at an outside table, right by a café in Alto Mare. Across the table would be a short woman with a moderate tan, gray hair in a short bob, and the same purple eyes as the hybrid. The older woman would be staring incredulously at Crystal, not believing what she was hearing.
"Yes mom. I wound up getting cursed by a Sun Stone at the Relic Castle, and eventually went back there to figure out why that Sun Stone was cursed. While that hasn't happened yet, I did manage to meet a Darmanitan hybrid who's now helping me out with learning my abilities," Crystal explained, letting out a small sigh.
"He's not trying to induct you into some cult that will destroy the pure humans, is he?"
Crystal let out a larger, more exasperated sigh. "No, he's not. He used to train other humans in Unova a long time ago." She gave her mother a stern look. "Do you think all hybrids are out to kill humans or something?" Her mother began to open her mouth to say something, but then closed it and looked down. That just confirmed Crystal's fear. "Right then. So." The hybrid would look down at her half finished cup of tea, watching the light green liquid ripple as her fingers drummed the table. About a minute passed before she spoke again. "This was probably a bad idea. I should go..."
"Wait." Crystal's mom put a hand on her daughter's arm, hoping to dissuade her from getting up. "I'm sorry. I... this is going to take some time to get used to. I mean, I don't know where you went, what's happened, if you're alive. Then after a couple of years, all of a sudden you show up as a hybrid, looking radically different, and...." She hung her head and sighed. "I'm sorry, dear.” She looked back up at Crystal. "So, you mentioned a Darmanitan hybrid?"
Crystal managed a small smile. "Yeah, I did. There's a long story before we get to meet him, though...."
~~~~~~~~Snagem HQ, Mt. Silver~~~~~~~~~
Crystal sat in the library, the table in front of her littered with books from Unova. Some were flipped open to various pages, others were closed, but just the sheer amount of books on said table said that she had been there a while.
“There’s got to be more information than just this stuff about it being a mysterious ruin from a kingdom long past… I mean, seriously! There just has to have been more than a single Espeon hybrid curious about this place,” she began to rant, only to be interrupted by something hard falling on her head and onto the table in front of her. “Huh?”
“You missed a book,” a robotic voice echoed above her, the whirring of a robot fading away behind her, “Maybe you should look harder next time.”
“Oh hush! Do you see how many books I have in front of me already?” She’d turn around to watch a smallish robot drive off and sigh, her ears lying flat against her head in annoyance. “I can’t wait for you to get reprogrammed by someone who knows what they’re doing…” She’d open up the book and begin to flip through it. “Hm. Another archeological journal about the place.”
“The one who authored this was apparently a psychic channeler.”
The hybrid would pause for a moment. “…A psychic channeler? That’s… something to keep in mind, actually.” She’d look up at the ceiling. “Thank you. You’re a gigantic arse, but occasionally helpful. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, now get out of my library. You’ve been here so long, you’re probably stinking up the place.” Crystal would merely leer at the ceiling before taking her leave, leaving the rest of the books for GRAY to clean up out of spite.
“Stupid AI. Thinking he’s superior to everyone else…”
The next few days would be spent reading the book multiple times, trying to glean as much information as she could from it. Some of that time would be spent in the library, cross referencing some of the other books, but the time spent there would be noticeably less than before. After about a week of taking notes and plenty of reading, Crystal would finally get her stuff ready to go.
“Right then. Book, check. Cross reference book, check. SNAG, check. Pokémon… Hey Apolla, you ready yet?” She’d look around for her Espeon, the purple furred fox cat being nowhere in sight. “Of course she’d disappear, right when we’re-“ She’d be interrupted by the door opening, Apolla trotting in with a cookie in her mouth. “You disappeared for a cookie?”
“Yes, a cookie.” Apolla glared at Crystal while sending her message. “Is there a problem?”
“I’m double checking everything before we head out. Don’t want to forget anything while we’re exploring, and don’t want to miss the boat for being late. Ticket…”
“How about your sanity? Because exploring ruins that made you a hybrid and me slightly insane sounds like a bad idea. Almost like Stockholm’s Syndrome.”
Crystal rolled her eyes. “Not even close. This is me wanting to figure out why this happened, and not just a simple answer of ‘I touched a cursed Sun Stone’ or something like that. I want to know why it was cursed in the first place. And besides, as long as we avoid more of those Sun Stones, we should be fine. Kairos can probably steer us away from them.”
Apolla would jump onto the bed and lie down, putting her paws over her ears. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this. Haven’t you heard that curiosity killed the Meowth?” She shook her head and began eating her cookie. “Three Pokémon and their crazy trainer…”
“Everything’ll be fine, relax. You and Demon Wing have plenty of experience, and Kairos knows a thing or two as well.” The hybrid began rummaging through her bag again, searching intently. “That’s there, that’s there.”
“Right. Famous last words. Also, how much of this so called ‘experience’ was spent sitting on our hides?”
“Tell that to Demon Wing. Who knows where he disappeared half the time during… well…”
Apolla would look up and glare at Crystal. “Call it what it was. Your snotty, bitchy, isolationist time.” Her look would soften as she stood back up. “Look. You can’t keep pretending that never happened. That’s a long time to ignore, and you might learn from-“
Crystal shook her head. “I’d rather not,” she muttered, giving Apolla a sharp look. “Now let’s go.” She’d recall Apolla to her Pokeball and sling her bag over shoulder. With one last look around her room, she’d walk out and lock the door. Blowing a long strand of hair from her face, she’d finally make her way out of the headquarters.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“So, you went to the Relic Castle in Unova again because that’s where you were cursed. You wanted to find out why the curse exists. Okay, I understand the reasoning. However, did none of this ring out ‘This is probably a bad idea’ to you? Because that’s something that sounds like it would scream that at the top of it’s lungs.”
“No, it didn’t,” Crystal grumbled, glaring at her mother. “I’m alive and well, though. Everything went fine there. Mostly. Kind of.” As Crystal shifted her eyes away, grumbling, a waitress would come up to their table.
“Do you ladies need any more tea right now?”
“Yes, please,” Crystal replied eagerly, perking up quite a bit, “Your cherry green tea, if you would, please. Any more for you, mom?”
“I’m fine for the moment, thank you.” Noticing the odd look on the waitress’ face, she added, “Yes she is indeed my daughter Crystal.”
“It’s a long story I’m trying to explain.”
The waitress all of a sudden looked extremely hesitant. “Um… Right then. I’ll be right back with your tea, ma’am.” She hurried off into the café with Crystal’s cup, and the hybrid sighed, looking down at the table.
“Crystal-”
“Anyways, where was I,” she continued on, forcing a smile on her face, “Oh yes, leaving for Unova. The trip there was a, but once I arrived, it was another story…”
~~~~~~~~~~Castelia City, Unova~~~~~~~~~~
Crystal stepped onto one of Castelia City’s ports and looked around. “Same big city as before. Let’s go, then,” she muttered to herself, putting her hands into her pockets. She had barely made her way into the city proper when an elderly man approached her. “Miss! Miss, please wait a moment,” he croaked out, panting heavily as he ran up to her, “Please tell me you’re not heading towards those cursed ruins.”
Crystal took a step back in surprise, her ears flicking back slightly before tilting to the left. “Wha? Um, well, I was planning on it?...” She was extremely confused and slightly worried as well. Who the hell was this raggedy man and how did he know what she was here for?
“Please Miss, you musn’t! Many people that have visited the ruins over the years have disappeared, never to be seen again. It happened quite recently, too, a year or so back.” The old man would latch onto the hybrid’s arms. “Please, don’t go near there! Spare your family the heartache of your loss!”
Crystal sighed as her ears drooped down. She’d normally think that he was an old paranoid coot who’d needed to be checked in, but it was actually her he was describing, back when she was human. “Right, I'll keep your warning in mind, but I honestly believe I'll be fine. Thank you for your concern, though.” She'd worm her way out of the man's grasp and begin to walk away, but he'd continue to follow her.
"Please, you must listen to me! Bad things befall anyone that goes there. No one ever returns!"
Crystal whipped back around to face him, her ears slowly beginning to lay flat against her head. "Really? That clichéd line? And I know for a fact that that's not true. Two reasons," she'd state, cutting off the old man before he could interject, "First being that someone would have had to have left the ruins to write this." She pulled out the book GRAY had found earlier to show him. "And second, I've done it."
"I doubt that- wait, I'm sorry. Did you just say that you've done it?"
"Yes," she snapped back, "I'm the woman you spoke about earlier. I didn't make it out unscathed, but I did make it out. I also met a Sigilyph from there who travels with me now, as well as more common sense than last time. So please, stop telling me I'm doomed if I go back there!" She flicked her tail back and forth while the old man spoke up again.
"You returned? But then you must know that it is indeed cursed! Why do you even consider going back then?"
"Because I have unanswered questions that are annoying me. Like, what happened to cause that place to be cursed? What was that place before the curse? And, well, maybe there's a way to reverse it even," Crystal shrugged towards the end. "And don't even bring up the saying. I've already heard it from my own Pokemon," she added, glaring.
The old man looked her over for about a minute, then sighed. "You won't give this up, will you?" He shook his head. "Fine, but please be careful. Many people have gone missing in there, and I do not wish you to be another one..."
Crystal stood feeling kind of awkward after that, as she was expecting that the guy to continue to argue on, to try and press his point further. "Uh... I, well... I'll try, thank you." She looked down momentarily before looking back up. "Um, so, sorry for becoming a bit hostile there. I heard a lot of that from my Pokemon before right then, so it got under my skin when someone I hadn't met before brought it up. My apologies." She gave a small bow to him. "Um, I hope you other endeavors go well?"
"Yours as well, miss." Crystal would turn around and start to walk off after that, but something had caught her ear before she had gotten far. "Maybe... Just maybe." She would turn around to ask the old man what that was about, but when she did, there was no one around, and only the faint remnant of celestial chi. "Right... Now I'm finally getting second thoughts..." She shook her head. "Too late for that, though. I'm already here in Unova. Let's get going." She'd turn around once more and continued on her way through the city, eventually making her way through the city and to the exit to Route Four. When she reached the desert route, she took out one of her Pokeballs and poked the center button, allowing her Sigilyph to appear in a flash of white light. "Hey Kairos. Ready to return to the Relic Castle?"
"I believe you are strange for wanting to return, but then, you have always seemed a bit different than other humans I have encountered." The Sigilyph would look at his trainer before turning ahead. "I will once again warn you of the dangers of the place, as it has been falling into disarray, and there are still traps that have yet to be discovered."
Crystal sighed, looking at her ancient guardian sideways. When she had first met him, his way of talking seemed quite odd to her. By now, she had grown used to it, but there were times where the formal, almost robotic way of talking annoyed or exasperated her. Now happened to be one of those times. "Noted, Kairos," she sighed. "Now then. Shall we head out before the sandstorm kicks in?"
"Indeed. Let us go now before we cannot see and the sand irritates the skin underneath your fur." The bird would glide off ahead, Crystal following behind quickly.
"Hey Kairos, I have a question," Crystal asked the bird, "How old are you? I mean, how long have you been around? What major events have you seen?"
Kairos paused for a moment and turned to the hybrid, who was slowly continuing on. "Well, that was a question I was not expecting. Nevertheless..." He looked around the area, then flew to catch up with Crystal. "I remember when this place was not a wasteland. It used to be a bustling city, not unlike Castelia we passed through. There were many people here, many happy lives. One fateful day, though, this land was seared with the light of the sun, and the inhabitants were no more. After that day, I watched as this land decayed into what it is now, a wasteland. A lonely ruin of a fallen civilization."
Crystal stared at Kairos as he told his story to her, remaining silent and eventually drooping her ears at the end. "Wow," she finally managed to say, "that's... Everyone just was... annihilated by that sunblast?" She shook her head as they continued on, the wind starting to pick up around them. "I think that gives me more questions now, though. Do you know how that sunblast came to happen in the first place? Seems like an odd thing to happen spontaneously."
"I am afraid I cannot say. I can tell you that the epicenter was at what you now call the Relic Castle and the surrounding area. The buildings around it were annihilated, but the temple itself was left mostly intact." Crystal looked down after hearing that, just barely biting her lower lip.
"Right.... But, how are you still here? If you're effectively a relic of that time, how did you survive in the first place?"
"Pokemon seemed to be unaffected by it, only the humans were afflicted."
"With what?"
"Either the same curse you are partially afflicted with, or worse, having their souls torn from their bodies and planted into the Sigilyph of that time, to guard the place for as long as the bodies held up."
Crystal looked at Kairos with her mouth half open, unsure of what to say. She eventually shut her mouth and looked back down, keeping silent as the wind kept growing and sand started to kick up slightly. By the time they had entered the rest area that doubled as the gate to the Desert Resort, a full blown sandstorm had kicked up behind them. "Okay, why is even nature telling me to sod off? I mean, really? Is it really that imperative that I stay away from this place?"
"I believe that nature cannot actually tell what you are doing, and is not intending to impede our way."
"I know, Kairos," she sighed, "but it sure seems that way." She'd walk over to the opposite door, which had a bunch of people huddled around it. When she got closer, she'd see a couple of Pokemon Rangers blocking the doors to the Desert Resort. "Oh dear." The hybrid would weave her way through the group until she reached the rangers. "I'm sorry, can you tell me why you're blocking the way out?"
One of the rangers, a fairly tall male with messy blond hair and brown eyes, answered her. "Sorry miss, but the sandstorm's really bad on this end. We haven't seen one like this in a few years, actually. So-"
"For everyone's safety," Crystal interrupted, "we can't allow anyone outside. I've heard it before." She bit the bottom of her lip and gave a sight bow. "Thank you." She weaved her way back out of the crowd and turned to Kairos, ignoring the looks that were given to her by the people in the crowd. "How about now, Kairos?"
"I believe that this is also a coincidence."
"Kairos," she growled, shaking her head slightly. "Don't you remember the sandstorm that started up when we left here last time," she asked Kairos, lowering her voice slightly. Crystal would look for a window to the outside and point the Sigilyph to it. "Take a look for-" she blinked. "Holy crap, that's bad."
"Indeed."
"I think I'm either more than just half cursed, or this area doesn't like me..."
"Hm... It is true that no other human has left the ruins cursed like yourself. Maybe the sands are reacting to that?"
Crystal would bob her head from side to side. "Hm... Makes enough sense to me right now. We might as well make ourselves comfortable, though. While it should eventually clear, it'll probably keep raging for a while..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Back in Alto Mare, Crystal would take a sip of her tea and look at her mother. "Um, were you going to say something," she asked. Her mom didn't say anything, but she'd glance around to the nearby tables. Crystal would follow her gaze to the nearby tables and noticed the people sitting at them were all staring at their table, until Crystal turned to each table, when they went back to their own conversations. "Well then," she'd mutter, her ears laying back against her head. "You know, if you want to listen in, just ask. I don't bite," she'd say just loud enough for the people around to hear. She'd turn back to her mother and sigh. "I get the feeling news is spreading fast."
"Probably. The waitresses could be spreading it. I wouldn't be surprised." The woman would look out to the canal for a moment before returning her gaze to her daughter. "So, before we move on, how did you become a hybrid in the first place? Outside of just grabbing some cursed Sun Stone."
"Well, the full version is a story in and of itself, but... You remember when I left for Unova?"
She glared. "Yes, and I was against it for many reasons."
Crystal sighed. "Yeah, well. Maybe if I hadn't been so curious, I could have proven you wrong on some of those."
"I never told you my biggest reason."
"Right..." Crystal nodded slowly. "Well then... To answer your question, I traveled to the Relic Castle because, well, you know me, I enjoy learning about old things from ages past. So, I decided to go explore one of the big ruins in the area, the Relic Castle." She glanced down momentarily before continuing. "Once we entered, Apolla and I, something... happened to her. Almost like she went into a... trance, though I'm not sure if that's the correct word. She wasn't herself, at the very least. And when we eventually encountered a Sun Stone in a hidden room, she went berserk. So, I decided to grab it." A small sigh would escape her as she looked up to the sky. "If Kairos hadn't come along when he did, I wouldn't be here."
Her mom brought her fingers together and rested her chin on her thumbs. "Hm." She looked at Crystal, then the tips of her fingers, then back at her daughter, an eyebrow raised but nothing more. "And this sandstorm you mentioned earlier?"
"Kairos and I now are thinking that's one way for the desert to tell me to sod off after not being completely cursed."
"Uh-huh. What kind of magic have you gotten yourself involved with?"
Crystal shrugged. "I dunno. I figured I would finish the story, then get your opinion," she replied, a small smirk on her face. Her mom chuckled.
"Haha, I see what you did there. So, I assume we're going to resume after the sandstorm?"
"Kind of. You see, I swear that desert has a mind of its own, and it loves toying with me..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The sandstorm had ebbed enough for the rangers to allow people outside again, and Crystal and Kairos did the most with that opportunity, able to make it most of the way to the Relic Castle before the sandstorm decided to kick up again. By the time they had arrived at the ruins, it was raging at full force again. "Hey Kai? You sure the the desert doesn't want to kill me? I think it wants to kill me." The hybrid shook herself to try and remove any sand that made its home in her fur.
"I highly doubt that, Mistress Crystal."
Crystal grumbled and rubbed her temples. "I've told you before, I do not need a title, and I will not relent on that."
"My apologies. I will continue to endeavor to remove myself of that habit." The weird bird creature gave a long bow to Crystal.
"Right... Anyways, we're here, so let's start making our way further in, shall we?" She'd take out the book from earlier and crack it open, walking forward while flipping through the pages. "Do you happen to know the way to?... Oh where is- Ah! You know the way to here?"
He floated over to the book and took a look for himself. "No, I am afraid not. It has been a long time since I have roamed these halls in full, preferring the outside to avoid disturbing some of the lingering spirits here. My apologies for not being more useful."
"Well, just warn me of any traps then." Kairos would watch his trainer walk ahead for a few seconds, then follow suit himself. The Sigilyph once again thought his trainer off, but this time at least, it was for the book and writing utensil she brought out.
For a while, the trip went on in relative uneventfulness, though Crystal would seem to stop every so often at a relic or other item. She'd examine it, look back at the book almost intently and scribble in it, then start moving again. At one point, Kairos would get curious enough to look over his trainer's shoulder. What he wound up seeing surprised him. Crystal had written in the book about what she saw on the relics pretty much wherever she could.
"I... My apologies. I had not realised you were documenting this place, nor the items in it."
"Hm?" Crystal's ears perked up and she looked to Kairos. "Oh, did you think I just brought this along only for use as a guidebook? I'm improving on his notes." She shook her head. "It's woefully lacking in almost every regard."
"If I may ask, how would you know?"
"I've read a bunch of these before, especially right before GRAY gave me this one. I bet the original owner of this, before it was so kindly donated, won't even miss it. That is how uninformative it is. Unless you're looking for something specific."
"Which is where we are heading."
Crystal gave a wry grin. "That's right, Kai. Now then, let's see... Where to, where to?"
["Your doom, cursed one!"]
"Mistress!" Kairos would fly into the way of a Shadow Ball aimed straight for them, making sure Crystal wasn't hit by it. The poor bird would fly past her before landing on the ground.
"Kairos! You alright?" She'd look down at Kairos for a moment to make sure he was alright, then she looked ahead to where the Shadow Ball came from. What she saw was a gold and blue coffin with red glowing eyes and four shadowy hands coming from the breaks around the coffin. The creature would scowl at her, sending shivers down her spine. Kairos would float back up off the ground and stare straight ahead.
"I will be fine, Mistress. Your orders?"
"Retaliate with a Shadow ball of your own!"
The Sigilyph would begin charging up a Shadow Ball, sending the orb of shadows flying before getting slapped by one of the Cofagrigus' hands while the creature shrieked loudly, the sound startling both of them slightly.
["A homunculus bonded to a cursed one? How far have you fallen,"] the Cofagrigus asked Kairos, appearing even surlier.
"The mistress was cursed because of my inaction! The least I could do was follow her and guard her further!"
Not how I remember it, but, she thought to herself. Crystal, however, also watched the conversation slightly unnerved. Also, homunculus? Sigilyph always seemed like standard Pokemon, maybe if a bit odd. Not like a Claydol or Golurk, though. She shook her head. Not the time for these musings, though! "Kairos, ignore that for now! Try for a Steel Wing!"
"Yes, Mistress!"
["Foolish creatures."] The Cofagrigus would tank the Steel Wing and barely even budge. His face would gain a wicked grin, however, as smaller shadow tendrils shot out and latch themselves to the bird. While Kairos was able to break away fairly easily, some wisps of the tendrils refused to leave, lingering on various parts of his body.
["The curse of the coffin! It leaves my enemies that much more vulnerable. And knowing Sigilyph, yours seems meant for defensive means...."] Two of his hands would create what seemed to be an ethereal nail and sent it flying at Kairos, grimacing during the creation process. The nail hit the bird while he was still figuring out what had happened earlier.
"Gyaah! What just- Ah!" The Sigilyph would double over in pain as the Curse began to take its first effects on Kairos. Crystal's eyes would widen as she realised her mistake.
"Aw hell, how could I forget? Kai, his ability just suppressed yours! Be careful! Even though I said that way too late there," she muttered at the end, wincing as he took more damage from the Curse. She began to fidget nervously as she tried to think of something to quickly end the battle. "Kai, follow up with another Shadow Ball," she commanded, hoping this would do it.
Her hopes were dashed, though, as while the Shadow Ball did considerable damage, it didn't have enough to bring him down. The Cofagrigus would retaliate with an Astonish, his shriek almost resembling a cackle as he brought two of his hands to slap Kairos on both sides. The Sigilyph would flinch from the pain from both this and the Curse, which gave the animated coffin time to get four light blue flames ready to be fired off.
"Is that?..." She'd dart in front of Kairos once the flames shot toward the Sigilyph. "No!" She put her arms up and brace for the inevitable burns that the Will-O-Wisp was about to bring... except nothing happened. "Huh?" She'd open one of her eyes to see that the Will-O-Wisp bounced back and burned the Cofagrigus somehow.
["What sorcery is this? What did you do,"] The coffin shrieked, flailing around a bit. Crystal would observe the ghost a bit more closely, noting that he was getting slower now.
"I'll be honest, I have no clue. However..." She'd take out a Heal Ball from her messenger bag. "I'm ending this!" She threw the ball at the Cofagrigus.
["What infernal device is-"] His words would be cut off as the pink spherical capture device would hit the coffin and dragged him in, transforming him into a red light before snapping shut. The ball would then land and wiggle once... twice... three times... then the button would flash red, signifying the capture was a success. Crystal would quickly turn back to Kairos.
"Kai, how are you feeling?"
The bird seemed to be recovered from both the ability and further effects of the Curse the Cofagrigus laid upon him. "Exhausted, but closer to normal otherwise."
"You want a break in your ball then?"
"I will be fine. The other Pokemon you have with you are Apolla, who is also cursed, and Demon Wing, who is a complete brute. Not including our new ally here, who is probably also under the effects of the land's curse."
"Partially why I captured him, to be honest. The way he spoke... He knows about the history of this place, too. I'd like to talk to him in a more... sane state of mind." She walked over to the Heal Ball and picked it up. "I'll give him a choice of whether or not he wants to stay after we're done talking."
"That sounds fair. Very well then, shall we continue on, Mistress?"
Crystal gave an exasperated sigh. "You were calling me that during the battle, too, weren't you? Anyways, yes, let's. Before we get ambushed again." The two began their exploration again, continuing the same routine as before. Before too long, though, they paused again.
"Well, this seems to be the place in the book, but I don't see the path, or a door, or anything."
Kairos looked confused. "You do not see it? The hall is... Mistress, if I may humbly ask, how are you seeing? Are you seeing with just your eyes?"
Now Crystal reciprocated the look. "Um... Yes? How else would I see?"
"Hm. You must not be using all of your senses then."
"I'm sorry? What do you mean 'all of my senses?' I'm looking with my sight, my hearing's enhanced... The only sense I can't use is taste, and only because I doubt the taste of the wall would help me find anything."
"No, Mistress. I mean that you are not using your mind's eye. It is a basic ability for most psychics." He did his best version of a bow. "My profound apologies, I should have realized-"
"Kai, relax. Apolla should have mentioned something too, considering how often I spend time with her." Crystal would give Kairos a small smile. "I'm sure it's simple enough, if you want to teach me now."
"It is quite simple, actually. First, close your eyes and take deep breaths. The goal here is to clear your mind."
"On one condition, Kairos."
"Yes?"
"If you have this need to call me by a title, call me Miss Crystal, okay?"
"Heh. Very well then, Miss Crystal."
Crystal's grin grew wider for a moment before she sat down on her legs and put her hands on her knees. "Right then." She'd close her eyes and begin to take deep, calming breaths.
"Clear your mind and focus on your immediate surroundings. Almost everything radiates a chi signature, however minute, so latch onto that and use it to give yourself a general map of the area. Then, try to focus in on the details."
Crystal continued to take deep breaths, make them more rhythmic with each one. Slowly, she began to get the general layout of the area again. "Hm." When the details began to emerge, she found herself impressed that the details were mostly the same, until she eyed the wall to her right. "What is this?" She would turn her head towards the wall and see an image of a Sigilyph with pinkish-purple rings emanating from the eyes. "This is it. Even a fine border big enough to be a door frame around it." She opened her eyes and stood up , looking to the wall where the image was before. "Ready, Kairos?"
"Indeed, Miss Crystal. Let us see what lies in store for us."
Crystal's grin returned. "Right then. Ikimasu!" She'd push on the wall, where two of the circles would have been, and it would give for just a moment. The area would rumble while the now indented part of the wall receded and moved aside. The pair were met with stale air, even more so than during their travels thus far inside. “Wow. It’s been a long time since anyone’s been down here.” She would cough a couple of times, the kicked up dust getting to her.
“Indeed. Maybe even since the writer of this book arrived here. Miss Crystal, is there anything else about what is after this door in that book?”
Crystal shook her head. “Afraid not, this was towards the back. Why?” She eyed Kairos, who remained silent. “Kai, what do you know about this?”
“The Sigilyph marking on the door only the mind’s eye could see… I believe that this is the path of the Lorekeeper.”
The hybrid blinked rapidly, confused. “Lorekeeper? Kind of like an elder who passes on old myths and legends?”
“Effectively. The Lorekeeper was held in high esteem, one of the highest right next to the Council of High Priests. The path of the Lorekeeper is a series of tests meant to gauge whether a person was worthy of becoming the next Lorekeeper. Whether the candidate has strength of spirit, self-control, resolve… Many things.”
“And finding the door with the mind’s eye I’m sure is the first weeding process.”
“Correct.” Kairos would turn from Crystal back to the passage. “Shall we continue then, Miss Crystal?”
“Yes. We won’t learn anything just standing around here.” Crystal would begin to move forward, making careful steps as Kairos would follow behind.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Um, mother? Mom… Earth to Mom…. MOTHER!” The cafe table would shake as Crystal gave it a firm hit with her fist, after waving her hand in front of her mother’s face apparently didn’t work in the slightest in grabbing her attention.
“Gah! What was that for?” The elderly woman was almost scared for a moment, though she quickly regained her composure. Crystal would snicker.
“Wow. I think I’ve almost never seen you like that before. Seriously, though, you started to space out when I mentioned that the contents of that book were… lackluster.” Crystal took a sip of her tea, her eyes never leaving her mom.
The woman sighed, running a hand through her short silver hair. “I’ve seen the book you’re talking about. Probably not the exact one, considering I still have mine, but….” She shook her head. “There’s a few reasons why I never brought it up when you were going to Unova in the first place. First, it truly is as bad as you say. Secondly, I never approved of you going to Unova in the first place. Thirdly… Your grandfather wrote that.”
“Wait, really? You never mentioned that. Come to think of it, you never did say much of anything about grandfather.”
“He was focused on his spelunking more than anything, which got worse the later the years went on. Though, before he completely gave into his mania, he taught me a few things about channeling. Not much, mind you, but some.” She looked at the golden bracelet she wore.
Crystal would look at the bracelet for a moment, too, before looking back up. “So then, is the family line actually from Unova then?”
“Yes. However, I grew tired of your grandfather’s actions and thought that he was beyond helping. He became so obsessed with the family’s history and figuring out the truth of it, and I was looking to move forward, not backwards. So, when I met your father, I decided I wanted to break ties with my past. Including him.” Crystal’s mother would let out a long sigh. “I guess I couldn’t do it completely, though. Your second middle name, Hikari, is the name of our bloodline.”
Crystal looked down at her tea now. “Well then. That explains quite a bit.”
“Um…. Miss kitty lady,” a tiny, high pitched voice chimed in, “Can you continue your story?”
Crystal blinked and looked to her side. A little girl, five or six years old, was tugging on the bottom of her shirt and looking up at her. Next to her, a boy looking a little bit older than her and looking very similar was trying to get the child to leave before Crystal had turned her attention to them. “Oh, hello there.” Crystal gave them both a warm grin. “Are you two lost, or, did you get permission from your parents?”
“Big brother ran away from mommy again. But we like your story! Big brother really liked how you fighted the Cafa… Cafa…”
“Cofagrigus?”
“Yeah! Cafagigas!”
“Nu-uh! Come on, she’ll take us back to mom, let’s go!”
Crystal’s ears perked up at that. “Wait, wait. Just stay here, it’s not safe for you two to just be running all over the place. I won’t send you back to your mom yet. I don’t even know who she is. But you two can’t be just running all over Alto Mare. Just stay, and you two can listen to my story still, and we’ll even get you two something to drink. But please, don’t go running all over the town.”
Before the brother could even say anything, the girl was trying to pull out one of the chairs to climb into. “Geh. Fine,” he grumbled, helping his sister out before he sat in a chair of his own. “As long as you keep your word.”
Crystal giggled. “I’ll keep my word, don’t worry.” She’d miss the look her mother gave her as she began her story once more. “Now then, I made it to the room without much incident…”
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Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2017 11:14 pm
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Crystal would cough a few more times when they entered the room, each step she took kicking up more dust. “If this keeps up, the dust is going to kill me before I finish these tests.” She looked around the chamber after her coughing fit was done, noting the various hieroglyphs on the wall, but more importantly, there was what seemed to be a statue of a Sigilyph on a perch in the middle of the room. “Hey, Kai?”
“Yes, Miss Crystal?”
“What do you think we might find if we complete this series of tests?”
“Hopefully, there will be scrolls or someway the final lorekeeper kept records before that event that devastated this place. Even if his room was somehow spared, very few creatures have that long of a lifespan.”
“Like yourself.” She sighed. “Anyways.” Crystal would walk forward a few steps when the eyes of the statue would begin to glow. “Whoa. Uh, Kai?”
“You who have been chosen for Lorekeeper,” a loud voice boomed, emanating from the statue itself, “Lay bare your soul for scrutiny!”
“Kairos, what’s going on?” She tried to turn away, but found herself transfixed on the eyes of the statue. “Kai?”
“This is part of the test, I am certain. Relax, and go along with it.”
“I… Alright, I’ll-” Everything would suddenly go white while she was talking, and the hybrid suddenly gained a feeling of floating on nothing “-try. Oh dear.” She looked around, and found no end in sight to the white. “What just happened?”
“The Hypnosis took effect. Rather quickly, I might add. Are you ready, child,” a baritone voice would speak up behind her. Crystal would turn around to see who was behind her and had the pleasure of finding out she could easily maneuver as well.
“Ready? I, um… You’re an Espeon.”
“And you’re human here. Is there a problem you have with this already, or are you just pointing out the obvious,” the Espeon entity asked, narrowing his eyes.
“Human? Well, partially, but also-” She stopped abruptly when she looked at her hand. It was tan, not covered with the purple fur she had become accustomed to. This caused her to look herself over now. Feet? While still barefoot, human. Tail? Gone. Her large Espeon ears and fur tufts? Gone as well. Her hair? Well, that still remained black. “How on Earth is this possible?”
“Your soul has yet to accept the dualities of your energies, and has refused to add the Espeon spirit into itself. You still bear the mark of the sun’s curse, though, with your scorched black hair.”
“Right… So, you’re just taking the form of the Espeon half because it’s convenient and represents something spiritual about me?”
“You read into things quite a lot, don’t you? Now, if you’re done with the questions,” the Espeon asked once more, irritation starting to creep into his voice.
“Er, right, sorry.” She hung her head slightly as they began to move. “So.”
“What is your reasoning for returning here in the first place? You’ve managed to escape this place with your mind intact, unlike other unfortunate people over the years. Why would you want to return?”
“Why? Well… I want to learn more about the place that turned everything on its head. Ideally, I wind up learning how to use my abilities, too, but at the very least, I want to learn about the history of this place, why it's cursed, and maybe how to prevent something like this is the future.
The Espeon chuckled. “Heh. Admirable. Knowledge for the sake of knowledge. And yes, as we are drawing from your subconscious, I can tell if you’re hiding things. However, if the truth you seek is something that shouldn’t be known or spoken about? What would you do then?”
“I’m not entirely sure that would be for me to decide. However, if it does fall to me, I would judge it based on the most probable impact it would have on the world. If that would be a negative one, I would keep the knowledge of it to myself.”
“Hm. I see…”
Crystal would continue to stare at him for a moment, the both of them being silent for a good minute until she spoke up. “Is… that all? That was- oh. Not even close.” She would watch as screens with varying images appearing, each from moments in Crystal’s past. “We’re going to watch and review events from my past as well. Lovely.”
“Yes. Is there an issue?”
“I have a feeling we’re going to view events and points of time that I have no desire to revisit.”
“Do you want to end this trial now?”
Crystal looked down and away, taking a deep breath. She held up her hand before the Espeon could say anything else. “I know you’re thinking about saying something else, so let me get this out of the way. I’ve had good times, and I’ve had bad times, and a few of those bad times… Okay, many of them I’m not proud of. I’m not eager to revisit them, but do not take my reluctance for giving up.” Crystal would give the Espeon a stern look, which he would respond with a small smirk.
“Very well then. Let us begin.” His eyes would glow blue as he brought one of the images towards them. “Tell me about this one.”
Crystal would look it over. In the image, there was an Eevee and a golden Charmander in front of a young girl, barely ten, with short brown hair. Behind the Pokemon would be a woman with longer, light brown hair and purple eyes and a man with thick, short brown hair, brown eyes, and a bushy mustache. A bittersweet smile would come to her face. “This would be when Mom and Dad gave me my first two Pokemon, Demon Wing and Apolla.”
“Demon Wing? That little lizard looks nothing like a daemon, nor has any wings.”
“He was a brat way back then, too. I also grew up with a Charizard, my father’s, so I knew what he would eventually evolve into. Both of them are actually the children of my parents’ Pokemon.”
“I see. So, in a way, you inherited both of your parents’ legacies.”
“Hah, I wish,” she replied bitterly, “For one, I’m not even a hundred percent sure what that is, especially with my mother. They never brought up specific details with their past, only that he came from a family of dragon users, and my mom… She was even more tight lipped about it. I don’t think she’s even mentioned anything about my grandfather ever.” The Espeon gave a quizzical look for a change.
“Really? Interesting. So, there would be no one to take you in if something happened to your parents.”
“I think they had something in place with my dad’s family for that kind of event. He at least kept in contact with them a bit, though from what I gathered when I overheard one of his calls, they were less than pleased with him leaving Unova.” She shrugged, letting out a long sigh. “I miss him still.”
The Espeon would narrow his eyes slightly, staring at her for a good minute before speaking. “What did you do after this?”
“Mm? Oh, I was an ambitious ten-year-old, and a bit more mature for my age. I wanted to try for the gym challenge in Johto. They decided to humor me and gave me some money and supplies and allowed me to start on it.”
“A ten-year-old? That’s quite young to send a child out.”
“Oh, there were plenty of rules. I had to check in twice a day, at least, no frivolous purchases, so on and so forth. They wanted to make sure I did things right. Of course, they taught me how to use a few different appliances I’d need to use, like a washer and drier, before I left, but… yeah.” She shook her head. “A lot of people thought they were crazy, letting a child go out on her own, but… I proved them wrong.”
“How long were you out doing this?”
“Six years. Managed to get all eight badges during that time, too. Fell on my face a few times, underestimated some people. I never would have guessed that Demon Wing would have his hide handed so hard to him by an ice type… Still, for someone without teleport or anything, that wasn’t too bad of a time frame. Especially since I had to travel to Violet City, first.”
“I see.” He looked around at the images until he found another one he wanted and pulled it forward, shoving the first one away. “So then, I assume this one happened while you were out traveling.”
Crystal realized what the scene was and looked down. “Um, yeah. The last time I was called while out, I received some bad news about Dad…”
“I want to see this for myself.” Crystal narrowed her eyes and leered at the entity. However, she’d remained silent as the scene played out.
In the window, there would be an older Crystal, about sixteen now, and she’d be staring at a video phone terminal inside a Pokecenter. On the other side of the screen would be her mother, who also looked older and a bit more tired, with gray streaks running through her hair now. “Hey Mom. Uh, how are things over there?” Crystal tried to keep her voice cheerful, but a small tone of worry managed to worm it’s way in. “How’s Dad?”
“...You need to come home. He’s getting worse, and the doctors are saying he doesn’t have much longer.”
“The doctors said that he was going to get better, that he’d recover! Why the hell is he getting worse now,” the teen asked, quickly getting hysterical. “He has to make it! For fu-”
“Crystal Lynn Hikari Tanzanaki, watch your language!”
Crystal’s jaw would still be open at least half way, momentarily stunned. “Er, sorry,” she finally managed to spit out, looking like someone just destroyed her home and life. “But, they said Daddy would make it, they said-”
“Things changed, sweetie. Get back here as soon as possible, I’ll explain more when you’re here.”
“Yeah. I’ll be there soon. Demon Wing’s plenty rested.” She paused before adding, “Love you, Mom. Tell Dad I’ll be there soon.”
“Of course. Love you too, Crystal.” The call cut out and the girl finally broke out into the tears that she’d been trying to hold back. “Why? Why, Daddy?...”
The Espeon entity ended the playback and turned back to the current Crystal. “So, your father had gotten ill?”
“Diagnosed with cancer. I had spoken to them a couple of weeks prior. He wasn’t reacting the greatest to the chemotherapy, getting some fairly bad side effects, but none of the effects were life threatening, and it was still helping to get rid of the cancer. He still urged me to continue on my journey, though.” Crystal looked down and closed her eyes in a futile attempt to hide her emotions. “He caught something while in the hospital, though, and his immune system was compromised thanks to the chemo. I managed to make it home, but just barely. He died a couple of days after I got back.” It was obvious that, while it had a been quite a few years since that happened, the memories were still painful.
The Espeon wouldn’t even flinch or show any sort of emotion to this, as he would speak up rather quickly. “Right. So, I would assume then that this happened soon after the funeral?” He didn’t even wait for her to respond before playing the next memory.
This scene began with Crystal and her mother standing in a hallway in their home now. Crystal would be standing in the doorway to her room in pajamas, her hair completely unkempt. Her mother, on the other hand, was well dressed and cleaned up, but with an ugly scowl on her face.
“Crystal, it’s been a month since he passed on. I know that you were close to him, but you can’t mourn him forever! You need to do something with your life, something productive. Preferably something that isn’t that silly little badge run you’ve been doing.”
That sent the teen over the edge. “Silly badge run? Daddy supported me in that, encouraged me to go on! So did you! I never even needed help from you guys after the first two years! Are you telling me that it was stupid and worthless,” she practically screamed, her hands balled up into fists and tears running down her eyes.
“Yes! I’d rather you stay in school and learn something that will help you do well in life, rather than waste it battling all the time. Battling is crude and barbaric. I really don’t see the point in this day and age when there are other, more peaceful ways to bond with Pokemon.”
“Because we’re giving them an outlet for their natural tendencies as well! They do this all the time in the wild, I’ve seen it a lot! They enjoy battling, growing stronger, testing themselves. Daddy understood that…”
“And he’s no longer here,” Crystal’s mother responded coldly, “So you’re going to knuckle down and find a respectable career for yourself! I’ve heard everyone ask ‘When is she coming home? When is she going to settle down?’ I’m tired of being unable to give a definitive answer, especially since it looks like I can’t control my child.”
“I’m not just your child, I’m Dad’s too!”
“And he’s not here anymore! So get off your a** and get yourself presentable!”
“You ******** b***h! Did you even give a damn about him? You barely mourned before going back to being the perfect woman and your nearly perfect life! Just leave me alone!” The teen would return to her room and slam the door and her mother’s stunned face.
It took about a minute or so for the older woman to regain enough composure to speak again, though she looked furious now. “Crystal Lynn Hikari Tanzanaki! Come back out here this instant!”
“Go to hell, b***h!”
Her mother growled. “Fine! Go wallow in whatever pity party you’re throwing yourself or whatever! We’re not even close to done with this, though!”
Crystal would hear her mom storm off as she sat against the room’s door, her knees up against her chest. “I don’t want to,” she’d mumble to herself, small sobs starting to come through, “I don’t want to, but… Mom, are you really against me living my own life?”
The Espeon pushed the scene away as he looked at Crystal again. “You gave up. Gave up on your dream, your desires, why? Because someone told you to?”
“Because my mother relentlessly harassed me about it until I did. I wasn’t sure what would happen if I went ahead and went back out. Especially if something happened, I wasn’t sure if I’d have anywhere to go. So… Fear really crippled me there, too. My mom’s harassment, the fear of possibly not having a safety net in case anything went wrong… She refused to talk to me if I brought up the possibility of heading back out. So, I was afraid of losing the only family I had left, I suppose, more than my desire was to go out.” Crystal’s voice was barely audible by now, and it had began to waver a bit. “Funny how that worked out,” she quipped, slight strength coming into it. Not much, but some. “I followed my mom’s orders instead of my own heart and I wound up isolating myself from everyone anyways, even her. It took way too long and the stars aligning for me to meet a group of people that helped me open up.”
“And judging by your voice, even that is shaky. Your father was your resolve, and without him, you-”
“Shut up!” The woman would bring her head up sharply and stared fiercely at the Espeon. “I was shaken by, after the support I had while my father was alive, my mother’s support was never actually there. She was my only family left that I knew! And I sure as hell didn’t want to be alone in the world, without anyone that I could rely on. I know now that I should have gone out anyways, and I might have found other people that could have helped me if anything happened. Grief and fear can make people do things that they wouldn’t have done, though.”
“And if something happens again along this scale?”
“I’ll put one foot in front of the other and move forward. Just because one thing ended doesn’t mean my life as I knew it should end either. Sometimes, a huge change will have to happen because life can throw those kinds of curve balls out, but I still need to move forward. I can’t just let life pass me by again.”
“So then, this will not happen again?” The Espeon brought over one more scene and allowed it to play, just like the others.
This one began with the teenage Crystal standing in front of a mirror, looking herself over and adjusting her clothes. She was wearing a pair of black slacks and black boots this time, with a white shoulderless blouse with flared out sleeves. Her hair was pulled back in a braid, but overall, she looked depressed. A knock on her bedroom door would knock her out of her staring contest with the person in the mirror.
“Ah, come in.”
The door opened and her mother walked in, a genuine smile on her face for a moment. “Oh sweetie, you look wonderful. I’m glad everything fits well.” The smile would fade as she noticed the look in her daughter’s eyes. “Crystal?”
“You want me to accompany you out today, right? Let’s go, so you can parade me around.” Crystal would walk out of the room, looking down and pulling on her braid. Her mother merely watched as her daughter walked out of the room, finally realising what her antagonising had caused.
“Silvia, what have you done to your daughter,” she muttered to herself, following the teen out.
The current Crystal interrupted the scene, stopping it herself this time. “Hold on a minute. Where did you get that last bit with my mother? I don’t remember that at all, and it felt like we just switched over to her there slightly.”
“It felt like she was hiding something?”
“Well, yes.”
“I have a link with your bloodline, a bit. The start goes back eons ago, but even more recently, too, I have encountered your kin. So, I can pull small bits from them if I need to. Only to emphasise the scene we’re playing, though. Anyways…” The Espeon would walk around Crystal, a small grin on his face. “You have plenty of potential. No one’s ever interrupted any of the scenes I’ve brought over at all, and you just did it like it was easy.” He stopped and sat down, almost an apeish laugh coming from his mouth now. “Hahaha, I can’t wait to meet you in person, Miss Tanzanaki!”
Crystal would be plunged into darkness before she could react. Almost immediately, she snapped open her eyes and looked around. Where?... Okay, back in the room it looks like, though I’m on my back. Probably have Kairos to thank for that. She sat up and looked herself over. Ears, back to the norm, tail’s here again, as well as the fur… Don’t think I’m dead, at least.
“Mmm… Mistress? I mean, Miss Crystal?” Kairos would slowly lift off the ground from his corner, looking around. “How did it go?”
Before Crystal could answer, the Sigilyph in the center of the room took flight and landed on another perch on the far side of the room. A hidden door opened when the Sigilyph landed, and Crystal grinned. “There’s your answer, Kai.”
“Well done, Miss Crystal.” Some of his rings would glow, bringing more light to the area, and he would move on. Crystal would pause for a moment before following.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Crystal paused her story at the look she saw on her mother’s face. “Uh… Mom?”
“I thought I felt a little… something in my head for a moment a good while back.” Silvia stared intently at her bracelet. “Of course this thing would allow me to be used against my daughter.” She removed the golden bracelet from her arm and gingerly pulled a small rainbow gem from a charm that was attached to it. “I’ll figure out something else to hold this later. But for now, I just need to remove this. It absolutely sickens me that my memories would also be used for something like that.”
“Is that a Key Stone?”
“Yes, your father’s. Desmona has a Charizardite Y. One of the many reasons why your father’s family despises me. I took one of the few people that can have a Pokemon Mega Evolve away from them. They also hate anything to do with the Relic Castle as well, so my bangle didn’t help there, either.”
“That’s a pretty stone…” Crystal turned to the young girl who spoke up, sipping on a soda from a straw now. She was transfixed on the stone Silvia was holding. Her brother, on the other hand was looking at Crystal.
“This is boring. Is this going to get any better?”
“Heh, it might.” She had a slight grin on her face until she turned to her mother. “We’ll continue this conversation later, when the children aren’t here.” Silvia continued to look at the bangle with disgust, but she nodded.
“Right, go on.”
Crystal looked uneasy, but she merely sighed. “Okay then. So, Kairos and I were walking down the corridor to the next area…”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Hey, Kairos… There’s something I want to ask you. I’ve been thinking about something that the Cofagrigus said. Specifically, when he called you a homunculus. That second Sigilyph was extremely still, but alive as well. So… Is it true? Were Sigilyph artificially created?”
Kairos would pause, and Crystal received the feeling that Kairos was uncomfortable. An anomaly for her Sigilyph. “...Would you think any differently of me? Of our kind?”
“No! That’s absurd, Kai. You saved me when we first met from the full effects of the curse, and since then, you’ve been there for me. You, at the very least, I can’t think any differently of. I’m unable to say anything about your kin, but I won’t be able to think of you in any negative light. Certainly no less capable.”
“Right then. Yes. Sigilyph were initially homunculi. We were created to guard the temple and ward off attacks. I specifically was created to oversee the guard half of the Sigilyph before the fall.”
“Defensive means.”
“Correct. And while we were initially created by human hands, they created us with the ability to mate. It was necessary during that time only if the population dropped below a certain point, however, which was rare. Our lifespans are extremely long.”
“Huh. So, you were created with extremely long lifespans, so you only needed to breed if your ranks were depleted, say like after a harsh battle.”
“Yes. And this was needed even a couple of times. The only exceptions to this were the ones that lead the attack and defensive halves of the Sigilyphs. They wanted to have complete control over them.”
“So, were you the first one then? Or did you have a predecessor?”
“I did have a predecessor. However, that might be a story for another time, Miss Crystal. I do believe we continued to move, even after we began talking.”
“Huh? Oh. I see.” The two had arrived at yet another dead end, though this time, the image was in plain sight. This Sigilyph had a shimmering box around it, instead of the three waves of purple energy from the first image. “Right then. Hm.”
“Is there a problem?”
“Maybe. Let me go on a hunch, here…” She folded her hands in front of her and bowed her head, taking a few deep breaths. “And let’s see.” The surroundings came to her slowly once more, showing her nothing out of the ordinary, up until she saw the Sigilyph image. Three of them, to be exact. “Well then. The differences will tell us where to go. Hopefully.” She turned to inspect each one closely, taking about a couple minutes on them individually. After she did that, she nodded and opened her eyes. “Right then. And the winner is…” She pointed to what now appeared to be a blank wall. “You.”
“Well well. Nice call there.”
“I’m assuming you already saw that?”
“Yes. This is your trial, however. I will not interfere with your progression forward in this kind of way. Advice, maybe. But I will not show you the path ahead. Are you ready, Miss Crystal?”
“Heh. As ready as I’ll ever be.” She pushed in on the wall where the two eyes would be on the Sigilyph’s body. As like last time, it moved in and to the side, revealing another hallway with even more dust on the floor. The two traveled down it, kicking up a small trail of dust behind them. As they entered the room it connected to, they noticed that once again, this room had a perch with a Sigilyph in the center. The eyes on this one immediately began to glow when they entered.
“You who passed the trial of the soul, show me your strength!” The room began to shimmer with a blue hue for a moment before disappearing altogether, leaving them in a room that was just various shades of blue and yellow.
“What the-? My head! Gah!” Crystal held her head as what felt like a sharp knife stabbed her at the top, threatening to open her head up open for a split second.
“Show me your full potential!” The Sigilyph stared Crystal down as she started to recover from her brief headache.
“My full potential? What…?” Now that the headache was fading away, she could feel that either a barrier had been removed, or floodgates had been opened, or something. She wasn’t sure, but she definitely felt more powerful than before. “Well then. That headache was worth it for sure. I can get used to this sort of power…” Her eyes would glow a light blue as she sent out a blast of psychic energy at the chamber’s Sigilyph. “Yeah, I could.”
“Miss Crystal, be careful, please. I do wish to see anything happen to you, but this is your test. I cannot interfere,” Kairos warned, backing away from the brewing fight.
“Thanks for the worry, Kai, but I think I’ll be fine.” The hybrid had a cocky grin on her face as the other Sigilyph recovered from her attack.
“If that was your true potential, I am sorely disappointed.”
“Ha! Not even close. I’m just warming up!” Crystal would send out another psychic blast, barely even thinking about it. “Bring it on!”
“Calm yourself, Mistress. This is a test of more than you initially think…” He made himself comfortable in one of the corners of the trippy room, making sure he was completely out of the way.
“I’ll be fine, Kai, don’t you worry about it.” The purple furred hybrid looked at her hands and flexed them. “Hm…” Crystal closed her eyes and focused on her newfound energy and abilities. In one of her hands, she’d focus gathering ghost chi right above her palm. When she opened her eyes, she’d see a wispy black orb forming, a Shadow Ball. “Haha, there we go!” She gathered a little more energy into it, then threw the orb into the ancient test giver, sending it reeling.
“Well well,” the creature chuckled, already beginning to recover, albeit more slowly than the other two attacks, “This might be interesting after all.”
“Uh-oh.” A little bit of hesitation was creeping into Crystal’s mind now as she was beginning to understand, this wasn’t going to be an easy fight or test. Not in a long shot. This barely had a chance to register with her when the Sigilyph finally fought back, deeming Crystal worthy enough to fight against.
“Indeed. Now show me that your bravado is not a one time event.” His eyes would glow a pink color and a blast of energy would be sent towards Crystal.
“Gah! What the?” She took a few steps back and doubled over momentarily. “Was that-”
“Psyshock. Espeons were never known for their defensive capabilities,” the Sigilyph replied, a smug tone creeping into his voice.
A deep growl would emerge from her throat as the bird taunted her, slowly forming a similar energy between her hands. “Right… How about a taste of your own medicine then,” she roared, a feral grown starting to creep into her own voice. The hybrid would launch her own Psyshock out, sending the bird spinning for a moment, but nothing he couldn’t recover from. It was mostly something to distract him as she charged up another attack, between the fork of her tail.
“Was that supposed to- Ooof!” A Shadow Ball would go flying into his face as the catwoman spun, flinging the Shadow Ball out of its sling between her tails. “Well, getting some more fight- Wah!” A pale pink, almost white, blast, a Dazzling Gleam, would hit the Sigilyph, sending him flying back further. “Now this is hardly sporting or fair! Never have I seen such blatant- Gah!”
“Fight back or shut up and lay down,” she snarled, remnants of Ghost chi leaving her hand as the Shadow Ball hit its mark once more. “You never said that this was supposed to be a fair fight!” She would stand tall as her hands held yet another Shadow Ball, but her panting would give away how much she was exerting herself. She was oblivious to this herself, though, her pupils dilated in a way that they looked like thin slivers of black and filled with rage. Crystal was about to throw out the orb, but she was blasted backwards before she could throw it, and lost the shadowy orb.
“Fair indeed. I foresaw that. Now then, how did that barrage go again? No matter. I’ll weave my own pattern.” Blades of stale air would slash at Crystal, before a huge one would send her flying into her back. Before she could even attempt to stand, a Shadow Ball would be thrown into her back, keeping her down. “Now then. Let us see whether or not you can get back up.” As Crystal would attempt to get up, each time she was on her hands and knees she’d feel a blast of energy on her back to shove her back down. “Please keep trying. I would hate to kill you after that show of power.”
She’d try to get up only to get slammed back down on. Up, then shoved down again. Fury ran through her, made her fur bristle up, which actually helped her catch a pattern, if unconsciously. The pattern of how soon he’d attack after she began to get up. By about the fifth time of this, her eyes would light up as she darted up in a direction different from the Psychic attack. “Now then, time to finish this!” Her right hand would glow blue and gain ethereal claws as she ran forward, about to claw her hand into his chest. Only one thing kept her from following through with it, a voice ringing loudly in her head.
Enough!
Crystal froze in place practically, eyes wide as she regained her sane mind. “I…” The exhaustion would finally sink in as her legs gave way underneath her, the woman sinking into a messy sitting position. “What was-?”
“Well then. You pass.”
“I- Wait, what?” She looked around as she saw the Sigilyph flying towards a perch at the opposite side of the room. The blue hue would fade as the bird landed, the door underneath the perch opening. “I didn’t defeat you? I mean, I’m about ready to fall unconscious. How-”
“Your strength can be taken in a variety of different ways. This was meant to test the strength of your will, as well as your mind. Both in tandem are how a psychic generates his or her abilities. Rest and move on, child. Your trials are not done yet.”
“Of course not.” She’d flop back onto the ground, staring up as Kairos now hovered over her. “Kai. Something happened. And I’m not talking about that rage I fell into.”
“Relax. He is right, you must rest.” Kairos’ eyes would glow with a soft blue and stare straight into Crystal’s eyes.
“Kai, wait… I don’t… want… to…” The hybrid would drift off into sleep against her will, her bird doing his best to make sure his trainer got the rest she so desperately needed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“What happened next? What’s the next test?” The boy looked eager to hear more now, probably after the action scene he wanted happened. His sister, however, looked terrified.
“Miss Kitty, are you… Are you going to-?”
“Oh! Oh, no, sweetie. That kind of thing will only happen under moments of intense stress and anger during a fight. You don’t have to worry about that from me right now, okay?” Crystal would pat the girl on the head and give her the warmest smile she could conjure up, hoping to reassure the girl. She’d reply with a small smile, nervous, but a smile nonetheless.
“What actually caught my ear is,” Silvia chimed in, giving her own comment, “there was a voice in your head? What did it sound like?”
The hybrid blinked and turned to her mother. “Um… Well, I suppose somewhat like yours, now that I think about it.” She chuckled. “I’m reminded of an old joke-”
“TYLER! TANYA!”
“Hey! You said that you wouldn’t take us back to our mother!” The boy would turn around to see a woman bearing a strong resemblance to him and his sister, looking angry and accompanied by a Sigilyph.
“Yes, but I never said I wouldn’t give your appearance to one of my Pokemon and have them find her. I was sure she’d be worried sick about you two.” Crystal turned to her mother as she said the last part, giving a slightly apologetic look. She then turned her attention to the children’s mother. “I figured they’d be better off staying in one spot than running around, and your daughter, at the very east, was interested in my story to begin with. Your son started to enjoy it later.”
“I heard that you were telling them a story from your Sigilyph. Very intelligent bird... thing you have.”
“I have been quite blessed to have encountered Kairos.”
“Yes, well. I suppose I should actually introduce myself, shouldn’t I? My name’s Carol. These are my children, Tanya and Tyler, who are now in huge trouble for running off like that without permission.”
“But moooooom, that was boring. The cat lady here has a cool story she’s telling!”
“You found Miss Crystal and Mrs. Tanzanaki after running off. That doesn't excuse it, and it wouldn’t even if you were looking for them!” The woman sighed, running her hand through her auburn hair. “And besides, we’re shopping for school clothes for you two. Tanya especially, since this is her first year.”
“I don’t wanna!”
“How about this,” Crystal would speak up, “You two go with your mom right now, get your school shopping done. And, as long as she’s okay with it, when you’re done, you can return back here. This next part’s pretty boring anyways, I’m sure you don’t want to hear it.”
“Reaaally?” Tyler sounded disappointed, an upset look appearing on his face.
“Yes. Now go, both of you. I’ll still be here.” The two children left their seats, Tyler heping Tanya out. Tyler was extremely grumpy, but Tanya had a smile when she looked up at her mom.
“Mommy, please, will you let us come back to listen to Miss Kitty?” Her mom raised an eyebrow and looked over at Crystal once more. The hybrid shrugged and motioned back at Carol.
“We’ll see. You be a good girl and don’t run off again, okay, and I’ll probably let you.”
“Yes, mommy!” The little girl was all smiles and grins as the trio left, the boy souring up even more. Crystal and Silvia waited until they were out of range before speaking again.
“Well then. You’ve made an impact on the girl.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve seen them run around a few times, and the girl’s always shadowing her brother. Always. For her to ask on her own to come back was something, actually.”
“Huh.” Crystal stared off in the direction they left in, almost getting lost in her thoughts until someone drew her out again.
So, that’s the effect you have on people? Or at least children?
“Huh? You say something, mom?” A confused glance was shot her way. “I’ll take that as a no then…”
“Crystal, what are you talking about?”
Hm. I should have noticed this sooner. Things aren’t right here.
“No kidding,” Crystal would mutter under her breath before speaking up to change the topic. “I’m glad the children are gone for this, I’ll be honest. While it’s not terribly boring, it is a bit… painful for me, and I’d rather them not hear about this.” Her mother was still giving her a strange look when she began her story once more, a look of confusion and curiosity.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Kairos, don’t ever do that to me again without permission.” Crystal would stomp forward irritably, her ears laying flat against her head.
“Are you feeling better, Miss Crystal?”
“Well… Yes, but…” She sighed as her ears lowered. “I told you that something happened in that second test, right? I thought I heard someone else’s voice.”
“There are ghost types here, as you have recently encountered.”
“I don’t think so. It didn’t feel like it came from an external source… But, anyways, I was afraid something else might have happened while I slept. Nothing did, did it?”
“No, Miss Crystal. Not that I was aware of.”
“Right then,” she sighed, closing her eyes as they arrived at the third doorway. “Maybe it was just me then….” She’d open them with a pink glow to find the third doorway, the image of two Sigilyph this time, one in reverse colors. “Interesting.” She pushed in on the wall to reveal the path once more and the two made their way into the room. Inside the room was the same layout as the other two, empty except for perch with another Sigilyph on it.
“You who have passed the first two tests, it is time for you to face yourself!” The Sigilyph’s eyes would glow as a shimmering mirror would appear before Crystal, reflecting herself in an odd way. The mirror itself would fade, but her off reflection did not, brushing aside some of her dark purple hair to stare at her doppelganger.
“So, you’re supposed to be me then? Let me see…” She’d look over Crystal with a thoughtful look. “I wonder… What would happen if I could manage to take your place?”
“I… What?” Crystal took a step away from her doppelganger, shocked about what she heard. “There’s no way you could take my place! People would notice that I’ve become someone else!”
“Are you so sure about that,” the warped reflection asked, a grin growing. “The one who keeps to herself because she’s ashamed of who she was, and scared of people discovering that and judging her on that. No, I doubt it. I don’t think you’ll be noticed if I become you, and you wind up the reflection.” Her grin was now sinister as she began walking towards the original. “Might even be for the better.”
“Stay back!”
“What? Panicked and scared that I’ll follow through with what I said? If you’re so scared, just try to stop me.” Her slow walk changed into a dash as she finished, causing Crystal to quickly move out of the way.
“I won’t allow you to take my place!”
“Prove it then! Show you deserve your life still, instead of giving it to someone else who’ll use it! You’ve wasted your life after a point, sitting on your laurels acting prissy, being the over exaggeration of what your mother wanted. You gave up on what you wanted, so why shouldn’t someone else have a chance at a life to live to the fullest?” A Psychic blast would be sent Crystal’s way, sending her skidding back towards the door. “Now, unless you do plan on fighting back, be a dear and give up now.”
Crystal recovered from the blast and stood up straight, biting her lip. “I’m trying to make up for that time…” She was trying to shove back those thoughts her reflection had said, but the seeds had been planted a long time ago and her words were only bringing life to them now. This time, a Shadow Ball found its way to her gut, and Crystal doubled over and nearly fell to her knees. “Gah!”
“Please. You call running, hiding, and keeping everyone away making up for it? Pathetic!” The reflection ran up to Crystal once more and attacked, this time with a hammer made of blue energy to slam her into a side wall. “Now then, I think it’s about time you gave up. You’re not showing any signs of resistance. Once I grab your head and focus, it’ll be all over, and you won’t have to worry about disappointing anyone again.” She calmly began walking over to Crystal, who was slumped against the wall.
Right… I’m always this disappointment… Maybe it would be a good idea… I mean, why the hell am I even here? To satiate my curiosity and lust for knowledge. Shouldn’t I be doing something for my Pokemon?
You’ve gotten this far, only to give up now? That’s sad. And what do you think your Pokemon want to see from you more than anything?
Honestly? For me to be happy, probably…
Are you? Have you been?
Well, yeah…
And you’re just going to forfeit it all because someone is telling you that you don’t deserve it. I can’t believe you’re my flesh and blood. I would have fought back tooth and stone by now!
Hmph. I-
Fight! Get up and fight back!
I can’t even use any attacks-
FIGHT! I don’t care how, just fight, you spoiled brat!
Excuse me?
You heard me, you brat! Shut up and fight for your survival! Or are you going to prove her right, and you don’t deserve your second chance?
“I’ll show you both!”
The doppelganger was standing right in front of Crystal by the point she jumped out of her mental argument and was about to kneel down when the original’s eyes began to glow a light blue, creating a mental blast to knock back her warped reflection. “Show us- Wah!” The woman fell back as the blast hit her, barely phased, but moving back more by shock than anything else. “So. The housecat finally bares her claws, then. You should have just left-” Crystal had gotten up while her reflection was talking, and just threw a right hook into her face.
“I’m not giving up my own right to live just yet. I’ve got this second chance, and it is not forfeit just yet.” Crystal’s eyes would still be glowing blue as she spoke, taking a slow few steps forward. “Now. Will you give up, or will we have to fight this out?”
The doppelganger stared back at Crystal, eyes widened slightly. “Where did this fight come from? You didn’t have this a few minutes ago…”
“I had a reminder of why I’m here, and what I’ve been doing with my second chance since leaving here the first time. You know, after narrowly avoiding becoming a full Pokemon. I won’t give that up now.”
About time, too.
Shut up.
“I see.” A smirk would show itself on her reflection’s face. “We’ll just see how long it takes for that resolve to break, then!” A Shadow Ball would form in the copy’s hand, and Crystal would immediately use Psychic to angle the hand away before she could launch it.
“No! Not going to be that easy!” A knee would try to make it towards the doppelganger’s gut, but it would only partially make it, being stopped by her own Psychic.
“Same to you,” she growled, her eyes glowing blue as well, even through her dark purple hair in front of her face. “Why couldn’t you just lay down and die!”
Crystal would move to the side to avoid the Psychic blast sent at her, and sent one back in response before going for another punch. “Because I need to complete this. I will not let my life be a waste, and I will NOT give up on anything!”
The Psychic blast would hit its mark, but the punch would be dodged this time, the receiving hybrid snarling. “You think that would work again? And you were about ready to give up earlier. What’s from keeping you from giving up again?” She sent out a Shadow Ball again, this time hitting Crystal, who took a few steps back and knelt down slightly.
“What’s keeping me from giving up? The thought of my Pokemon if I did… And the swift kick in the a** I gave myself!” She’d launch herself up from her kneeling position into a right uppercut, then going in with her left hand to knock the doppelganger back down. “Now, does it work the same way to get rid of you, I wonder?” She’d quickly run up to the hybrid, who was on her back, groaning, and put her hands on her temples. “Let’s see.” She’d focus on willing away her reflection, on making her disappear utterly.
“No, no, NO!” She’d squirm underneath Crystal, trying to scratch and claw at her, to find some way to get free. “I can’t be done yet! No!” The struggle would continue, Crystal only barely keeping a hold on her reflection until she faded out completely, refusing to relent until that point. Only when that happened did she allow herself to show her weariness.
“That…” Crystal shook her head as she slowly stood up, “that was rough.”
“Unorthodox, but acceptable. You may pass.” The Sigilyph watching flew from his post in the middle of the room to one above the door.
“You know, I haven’t had the training that this civilization might have had when prospective candidates went through these tests,” the hybrid spat, annoyed at the comment. She put her hands on her hips as she stared at the bird. “I’m practically stumbling through these, not knowing what each test will be, or how many of these there are. So, you can keep your snide comments to yourself.”
“Merely an observation, not snide in any way. Most other reflections were never that aggressive, either. In any way, you may proceed. Your goal is close at hand.” The bird’s voice was calm, showing no emotion as he stared at the wall ahead. Crystal gave it one last final look before nodding to Kairos, who picked up and followed after Crystal as they left the room.
“Close at hand… I wonder, how many more rooms? Kairos, do you know?”
“I am afraid I do not, Miss Crystal. Word of how long this test was had not reached me.”
“Right… Thanks anyways, Kai.”
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Posted: Thu Feb 16, 2017 12:14 am
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Mom? Mooooooooom…..” Crystal would be waving her hand in front of her mother’s face once more, attempting to get her attention.
“Hm? Sorry… I can understand why you wouldn’t want the children to be here for that. That would be a disturbing prospect for little Tanya, at the very least, and could make her fear mirrors. Tyler, on the other hand-”
“That’s not what you were lost in thought about.”
“Stay out of my head!”
“I never entered,” Crystal replied calmly, taking a sip of her tea. “That would be rude, uncivil, and asking for trouble. No, I just know you. Something about that is bugging you.”
“That voice. You say that it sounded like me, correct?” A nod from Crystal. “But obviously, I wasn’t there.”
“Right.”
“Then where did that voice come from? Unless your teacher already has an idea.” Silvia would raise an eyebrow at her daughter, who shifted slightly in her seat.
“Well, yes, though I didn’t intentionally tell him about her…”
An idea? He knows full well who I am! Just not the how this happened. And he’s working on that!
Will you shut up!
Fine, but… I might know myself, now that I think about it.
“Just tell me later…”
“Excuse me? Tell you what later?”
Crystal blinked and became immediately grateful for the fur on her face. “I, um… Nothing, don’t worry about it.” She shook her head, feeling her face heat up. “Anyways-”
“Crystal.”
“It’s nothing.”
“Crystal.”
“Honestly, there’s no- Oh, Kairos?” Crystal turned to her Sigilyph, glad for the distraction.
“The little girl and boy you sent away with their mother are on their way back. Should I send them away again?”
A grin formed on Crystal’s face. “Only if they don’t have permission from their mom. Otherwise, they’re more than welcome to be here.”
“Right then. I will be back soon.” Kairos flew off, presumably to find the children again. His departure turned Silvia right back onto Crystal.
“Crystal, I’m only trying to figure out what’s going on. Please, tell me,” Silvia pleaded, staring at her daughter.
“Mom,” she replied softly, “Please calm down. I’d tell you to not worry, but that, I believe, is well out the window by now. This is something I believe you can’t really help me with.” She took her mother’s hands and held them in her own. “I’m a grown woman, though. I shouldn’t always need my mother to help me.”
“Stubborn…. Must have gotten it from your father.” Her eyes turned away when the sounds of Tanya and Tyler running up.
“I’ll get there first!”
“Nuh-uh!”
“Okay, you two,” Crystal laughed as they neared the table, Kairos close behind, “It’s not a race to get here first. Come on and sit up here, I’m about to get to another good part.” Her eyes flicked over to Kairos, who nodded the best he could.
‘I asked her myself, Miss Crystal. They have permission,’ he’d send directly to Crystal this time, and no one else.
‘Good, good. Thank you, Kai. Keep on with your rounds or stay and listen, I’ll leave the choice to you.’
‘Thank you, but I believe I will go back to my rounds.’
Crystal nodded. ‘As you will then Kai. I’ll give you a heads up when we leave.’
‘Right. I will return at that time.’ Kairos would fly away, leaving the four now situated at the table.
“Kitty Lady, what happened next?” Tanya looked eager as her brother helped her into her chair. “What happened after the fight?”
“Oh, it was just another small test. Had to show the Sigilyph a few things.” Sylvia raised an eyebrow when Crystal spoke up, but with a beginnings of a grin on her face as well.
“I want the story! What happened?”
Crystal blinked a moment, unsure of what to say as she wasn’t expecting the little girl to be insistent as she was. Her mouth was open slightly, trying to think of something to say when her mom spoke up to cover her.
“Now now, sweetie. She’ll tell you at another time. However, she was here to tell the story to me to begin with, and I have things to do later in the day, alright? I’d like to hear the rest of her story, and it really wasn’t too interesting. There were a lot of small details, though, very tiny.”
“Aw…. Okay...” Tanya looked defeated, but finally settled down. Crystal sighed a breath of relief at this.
Thank you, mom, so much. “Alrighty then. So after the third test finished up, I left into this long hallway. That wound up opening into this huge room without any doors in front of it. It was just so big that I had to wonder where I was in relation to the desert above by that point….”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“How far into the Buneary hole have we gone, Kai?”
“I cannot say. Now, let us see ahead further.” The Sigilyph would increase the strength of the light his markings gave off, allowing them to see further into the room. It was mostly empty, save one Medicham, whose colors seemed faded a bit. It was sitting on its knees, head bowed and seemingly asleep. The two looked back and forth from the Medicham to each other, both appearing confused.
“Um….”
“Miss Crystal?”
“Think we can sneak by it?”
“I have no idea.”
“How long has it been down here?”
“I have my suspicions. But if those suspicions are correct, that would also mean that Master Daruma could be…”
Master Daruma… I haven’t heard that name in so long… But could it be? I mean, if this is who I think it is…
Wait. You’re not just some part of my psyche?
I am a remnant from a time long past. One that is, as of current, stuck with you. So, no, I am not a part of your psyche.
Oh joyous. Just what I wanted, my own voice in my head to wonder if I’m crazy or not.
“Miss Crystal? Is everything alright? You seem to be… Not completely here, if I may be honest.”
“Huh?” Crystal’s head snapped up as Kairos spoke to her again, the woman appearing startled. “Oh, um, sorry, I-”
“You lot prattle on quite a lot. Interrupting my meditation,” the Medicham would send out at them irritably, standing up. The voice sent would indicate that the Medicham was female. At least, it was assumed. “Now, tell me your purpose of being here.”
“I, well… I want to learn about this place. A Sun Stone here turned me into what I am now, and I want to know why it did that. And honestly, I’d like to learn about the history of this place in general.”
“You want to learn about a civilization that doomed itself and cursed the land? You are a foolish one. There is nothing to learn here that would help you in this time and age. The age of technology and science, where if you cannot explain it, it doesn’t exist.” The Medicham would step forward a couple of steps before spinning with her arms outstretched, launching a couple of psychic blades aimed at Crystal. “Leave! You are not welcome here in this place of the dead!”
Crystal would take the Psycho Cuts at face value and fall backwards, wincing at where she was hit. “Ow… Now, look.” The hybrid would slowly stand back up and rub the spots where she was hit. “I think you’re being unreasonable. Not everyone has that kind of opinion. There are some of those out there that have a genuine desire to learn from the past. I want to learn about this place specifically for many reasons, first of all to find out why the Sun Stones here are cursed. They’re the reason why I’m in this form to begin with. Please, I don’t mean any harm.” She held her hands up to try and show the Medicham that she meant no harm. “All I’m here to do is learn.”
“I have met others that have said the same thing, only to try and browbeat their way past. How are you any different, child?”
“I have gone through all the tests and passed them, on my own, without any help.”
Most any help.
Quiet, you.
“Hm… I sensed… something about you, child, something just now. Something… familiar. Who are you? I want your full name, where you came from. Tell me now!”
“I, uh… My name is Crystal Lynn Hikari Tanzanaki. I’ve come from Alto Mare, in the Johto region. My mother’s name is Silvia, um…”
“Who is this with you? The Sigilyph.”
“I am the guardian of this child. I used to lead the guardians of this land when it was alive with people, before the event,” the Sigilyph would announce, coming forward. “I vouch for this young child and her purity of reason. As for a name, she has given me the name of Kairos.”
“I see… Give me a moment.” The Medicham would close her eyes and bow her head, standing completely still for about a minute. When she opened her eyes, they would be narrow, but she lost her aggressive stance. “Hmph. Apparently, he’s been waiting for you. More excited for you than he has been for any others in many centuries. Hopefully, you’re better company than that other man.”
“Wait, another man? He wouldn’t happen to look old and have a Pokémon that can teleport, does he,” Crystal would ask, ears tilting to one side.
“Yes, a Beheeyem. He makes runs into your city for supplies for himself, but otherwise, he keeps himself here, rabidly reading as much as he can. To an obsessive degree. I do not feel comfortable around him. Now, come along, kit.”
Crystal tilted her head and followed the Medicham throughout the winding maze, Kairos staying close behind. The hybrid was about to open her mouth a couple times to ask something, but each time Kairos got within her sight and gave her a stare to quiet her. So, the walk was endured in awkward silence, Crystal rubbing one of her arms in nervousness. By the time the Medicham stopped, she wondered if the Pokémon was just leading them to their death instead of to the person she was supposed to lead them to. The room they were lead to was lit with various shining orbs giving off a warm light, with shelves and walls lined with numerous scrolls. In the center was what appeared to be an odd looking blueish statue of a man. The robe the statue wore would be regular cloth, however, not stone like the rest of the statue, white and red, with wide black pants underneath. The eyes would be white, completely blank and staring off into the wall, the expression matching the rest of the statue’s face. His pose would be cross legged, with the hands on his knees. The oddest thing for Crystal would be the feeling of timelessness that the statue had, like it was ancient, but yet only made yesterday. “I… um-”
“This would be the one you are looking for. Master, the kit you have been watching has finally arrived.”
“Ahahaha, wonderful! I do appreciate you not attacking this one to the point of fleeing, Dicha.”
“This one at least didn’t attack me instantaneously. And the only reason why I didn’t is-”
“Yes, I can tell as well. She carries the spirit shard of another within her. One you particularly liked.”
“At first. Her cowardice began to make me disgusted in later reincarnations,” the Medicham ‘said’ with an annoyed tone.
“Ah, I really don’t believe you have to worry about that with this one, Dicha. The girl’s base spirit is not of the daughter. She only carries the daughter’s shard.”
“Then who-”
“I don’t appreciate being spoken about like I’m not here,” Crystal would comment, finally chiming in. She rubbed her arm nervously as she continued, “I don’t understand what you’re talking about, but I’m still here! You could deign to tell me, even, or at least make your conversation personal at the very least.”
“Ah, yes, my apologies child. It is quite rude to speak of someone like this when they’re in the room. I am sorry. So, let us jump over to you all there, then! It has been a long time, Kairos now, is it? Ever since Sundaria was here, correct?”
“Indeed. When I saw Dicha meditating, I was honestly wondering if it was actually her. When I arrived to investigate ages ago, after the event, I could sense no one.”
“Ah, I managed to protect this area, only just. It was far enough underground that my powers were able to shield this area from the sun’s wrath. It took me a long time to recover from that. And for you, young child, you’re here to learn about this place, am I correct?”
“I am, yes. Looking for the reasoning of why the Sun Stones here are cursed. Trying to get an understanding for why I became a hybrid in the first place.” She rubbed her arm once again, wincing slightly as she did. “Okay, I might need to get a new nervous habit. Fur is not conducive to this. Anyways, also, maybe I could learn something about my family history, as well. Arceus knows that I barely know anything other than the fact that they were from Unova. And apparently, my family is connected to this place.” Crystal shrugged, looking from the glaring Medicham to the statue and back again.
“Well, that is all well and good, but I can also tell, now that you’re right here in front of me that you need severe training to begin with. Most of the people that have walked the Path of the Lorekeeper before you had many years of training to become a Sun Priest even before entering this place. You, on the other hand, have the barest grasp of your abilities I have ever sensed!”
“I, um, well-”
“Oh relax, Dicha and I can teach you and train you, no worries there, my child!”
“Excuse me? I did not give my agreement on training this one!”
“I think you’ll grow to like her, Dicha. Relax and go with it for now. Her trials have shown me that she has much potential.”
“Hmph. As you say, Daruma. I will run with this for now.” The Medicham crossed her arms and viciously leered at Crystal now, displeased with her position. It was all the hybrid could do to not shift uncomfortably in her spot under the stare.
“Ah, good. I’m glad you’ll give this a try, Dicha, for me if nothing else. Now then, before I go ahead and let you read some of the scrolls on the history of this place, I believe you should get some basic training underway, get some solid control of your abilities. You managed to get here without any formal training, and I commend you for that. However, you have walked the Path of the Lorekeeper without the training that many before you have had, that which is required to keep some of the secrets here protected. Dicha, if you could take the young child. I would like to have a conversation with Kairos here, to see how he’s been getting on since the days of old.”
“That would be nice. It has been a long time since I have spoken to anyone from this time period.” Kairos would fly over to Daruma’s side and the two would stare at each other, getting into their own conversation. Dicha, in the meantime, would turn to Crystal and leered at her once again.
“So, kit, I suppose I should begin your teaching then. Follow me again, and do not anger me.” Crystal would follow Dicha into another, smaller room, much less filled than the other one. The only things in there, actually, were a couple of what might have been practice dummies at one point, but they were pretty well beaten up by now. “So, child, show me what you can do now. Show me how large this canyon is that I must fill,” Dicha spat at Crystal, pointing to the dilapidated practice dummies.
“I… Um, okay.” The hybrid would focus, trying to do something to them, and while a blue glow surrounded them, there wasn’t much movement. “Come on… please…”
“Hmph. I could do this as a barely born Meditite. Come on. I have to wonder if there is anything for me to work with.”
“I’m trying!” Crystal’s ears would lay back flat as she began to get frustrated by the lack of anything happening. The dummy was apparently heavy enough to where she couldn’t do much of anything to it, and Dicha wasn’t helping.
“If this is you trying, I doubt that I can do much for you at all. I can’t even see what Daruma saw in-” The Medicham would be cut off by the stone practice dummy being flung at her, barely catching the statue with her own Psychic before it slammed straight into her. The look on her face went to pure shock for a moment before the barest glimpse of a smile appeared on the Pokémon’s face. Crystal, on her end, had her hands covering her mouth, utterly nervous and scared of what she just did. “Well. Looks like I need to get you angry to get something to show up. Or at least frustrated. A dangerous way to activate your powers. You can kill someone like that, without even meaning to.” Dicha set down the training dummy, then looked at the hybrid again. “You’re not the first nor probably the last I have encountered to have this kind of block. However, as I did say, it is a dangerous one. As the block disappears when you’re getting more and more frustrated, your thoughts can become actions without you intending on it. There is plenty of power in you; I sensed it just then as you threw the dummy at me. However, it must be refined, honed. If you’re willing to keep it up, prove me wrong that you’re the kind of person I believe you are,” Dicha’s small smile would grow a bit at that last part, “I believe I might be able to actually train you. If you are willing.”
Crystal began to calm down after seeing that the Medicham wasn’t upset in the slightest, removing her hands from her face as she listened to Dicha. “I...Well, I do need to keep a reign on them anyways, don’t I? So, yes, I am willing. Where do we begin,” she asked, a grin of her own forming. Prove this crotchety old cocky Medicham wrong? That sounded like fun, not to mention the necessity of the training for her anyways.
“Good. Then try to lift it up again. Instead of just brute forcing it with frustration and nervousness, approach it with a sense of calm.”
“Right.” Crystal would take a few deep breaths before attempting to lift the same same statue as before, and the same thing happened as before. A light blue glow matching the glow of her eyes would surround the statue, but no other movement would happen.
“Deep breaths, child. Think of it like this. All of your emotions, imagine them as a fire in the center of a void. As you take breaths, imagine that fire growing smaller and smaller, until all that is left is that void. See if that helps any at all.”
Crystal nodded and closed her eyes for a moment, getting the visual before opening them again. She would slowly take deep breaths, more and more of her attention being put on the statue and nothing else, not even her fears of messing anything up or how Dicha was expecting anything. Just lifting that statue. And before the hybrid realised it, the statue was now at face level, and in much better control than before. “Oh!” When she realised how high it had gotten, it began to wobble before falling. Crystal would barely manage to catch it before it fell on the ground and shattered, letting out a sigh of relief. “At least I didn’t break it further…”
“Not bad for your first time with the technique. Not bad at all,” Dicha commented, sounding a bit impressed, actually. “I would have wondered if you managed to hold it after realising that you got it that high. So, we need to work on having you keep a hold of things, and then lifting them while distractions and threats are going on all around you. And then we can work on translating that into a Psychic attack. One of the quintessential attacks for a Psychic type.”
“Psychic… I did that during one of my trials, actually. I wonder…” Dicha tilted her head and took a step back as Crystal closed her eyes, trying to remember how it felt when she let off the Psychic attacks during her second trial. “The Psychic energy in and around me… Send it to one point and focus it… Flame and the Void….” The Medicham would have a look of curiosity on her face, mixed in with a little bit of worry as Crystal compounded the energy in front of her, forming into a light blue ball. It seemed to be having a hard time keeping its form, however, wobbling and rippling, like if a stone had been thrown into a lake. “Geh… Stay with me… Stay with- Gah!” The ball would explode in front of her, sending the purple hybrid flying backwards into a wall. “Oof! Ow…”
“And this is why I was going to wait. Get you more used to manipulating things with the Psychic energy before going into the full attack. However, I am impressed with how long you held it,” The Medicham nodded, complimenting her. “You took what I taught you with one thing and tried to apply it to another, which I have not actually seen anyone do before. Most wrote me off somewhat because I am a Pokémon.”
“A psychic’s a psychic, no matter if they’re human, hybrid, or Pokémon. You can always learn something from them.”
“And that is a beautiful way to think about things. Now then, on your feet, kit. Our time is not yet done.” Crystal tilted her head at Dicha’s phrasing there, but stood on her feet none the less. The training would continue with for quite a number of hours, during which progress was definitely made. Crystal was getting better and better about lifting the one statue, and Dicha only ended the training because Crystal was having a harder time lifting the training dummy straight up.
“I think this will be enough for today. Well done, though. You do catch on quite quickly, kit.” Dicha nodded as she stood up from the floor, where she had decided to sit for about an hour now. “You probably are in need of sustenance, and I have no doubt that Thomas has returned with some food. Hopefully enough for both him and you. No doubt Daruma managed to let him know that we have another guest.”
Crystal nodded, hands on her knees and panting. “Right. Food would be good. Very good.” She managed to get herself standing up straight, following Dicha out of the room. The two made their way back over to Daruma’s chamber, where there was now two new creatures in the room: A Beheeyem and the same old man Crystal encountered back in Castelia City.
“Ah, so you did make it through after all, child! I’m glad to see that the denizens of this place didn’t consume you in some way. Another scholar ready to learn about the true history of this place! Maybe now, the true history of this place can be revealed to the wider world!” The man laughed a joyous laugh. And while a smile formed on Crystal’s face, her ears went lopsided, and her tail flicked back and forth somewhat irritably. Something didn’t feel right to her, but she couldn’t place it.
“Yes, indeed. I don’t believe I caught your name back in Castelia City, however.”
“Oh, my most humble apologies. You may call me Thomas, my dear, Thomas Hikari,” he replied with a sweeping bow, “And you, my dear?”
“I am Crystal Tanzanaki.”
“Ah, good, wonderful, won- wait. Did you say Tanzanaki? As in those dragon loving, daughter stealing, sons of-”
“I, uh… I apologize, I didn’t mean to- ah!” Crystal would back up slightly when the old man made his way to her, surprised at how spritely he was for his appearance.
“Hmph. I don’t understand why you’ve decided to come here of all places, or how you’re a hybrid of the completely wrong thing, but whatever. As long as you don’t have plans of stealing the orb that’s supposed to be here, I will tolerate you. Here.” He would hand Crystal a loaf of bread various sandwich makings, as well as some jerky. “Some of the food Master Daruma asked me to give you. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must be reading. There is so much here I still have not read, and time is most certainly not on my side. Beheeyem, come.” the two would leave, heading off for another room, and Dicha would scoff.
“And that is the man I spoke of.”
“There was something… off about him. I couldn’t tell what, but something.”
“For just meeting him twice, I would consider that impressive to tell that much. He has not caused any trouble yet, though, so I have no reason to make him leave.”
“The access he’s had to all the writing, though… This worries me. Heavily.”
“I understand, but I have faith that if the time comes, we will be able to deal with whatever happens. Now then, all we can do is relax and allow our young student to rest and eat. Please, my child, sit and eat! I could tell that Dicha worked you hard when you were practicing. Well done on your progress, by the way. Just be careful about attempting too much too soon.” Daruma was cheerful as he encouraged Crystal, who nodded and sat herself down cross legged, digging through the bag Thomas had given her. Making herself a small sandwich, she began to bite into it.
“I understand, um, Master Daruma. However, I honestly thought I could replicate what I was able to do in one of the trials,” she sent out to Daruma as she ate, who would respond with a chuckle.
“Still have the energy to use your powers even after all that, or is it you’re just that hungry? Haha, it matters not, child. I’m just glad to see that Dicha hadn’t returned in such a huff. In fact, I think she might be warming up to you! You must have impressed her, child.”
“Indeed. Dicha never really enjoyed people much to begin with, even before everything happened,” Kairos chimed in, quietly observing until now. “The fact that she returned somewhat pleased is something to note.”
“Hush, you! She just showed me the same respect that the others have shown Daruma, even though I taught them as much as he did.” Dicha sounded huffy, irritated that the others were talking about her like that. “It shouldn’t matter that much, now.”
“Haha, but it is also important that you give your approval as well, Dicha. Because of that mere fact there, that you do as much training as I do with a student. I don’t think that there has been anyone that you would have approved of to replace me, now that I think about it. Not even Sundaria, and she had the most potential until this one here. Speaking of, and I do apologize, but…” A sharp blast of energy would invade Crystal’s mind, causing her to scream momentarily. “Sundaria, I know that you reside within this child. Why don’t you come out and say hi?”
‘Of course you’d make me try to come out. Master Daruma, it has been a while. Why must you pain this girl so? You know that I can’t completely speak out like this,’ the voice, apparently known as Sundaria, commented only to Daruma. And Crystal, but that would only be because Sundaria was sharing headspace with Crystal.
“I am awfully sorry about this, but I wanted to make sure it was you. It has been so long since we have seen you, and I wanted to make sure that it was truly you. You should have arrived a lot sooner than you have, and even now, you are not whole.”
‘I understand, but I have no idea what happened myself. You might want to end this soon, though. The girl is under tremendous strain, and Dicha probably doesn’t want to be in contact with me. Let this end for now, and then we can more easily speak when she is stronger. Just know that I do believe that things will be interesting from here on out.’
“Indeed. Goodbye for now then.” The pain would be lifted from Crystal, who was now holding her head in her hands.
“Ow… A little bit of warning next time…”
“My apologies child, but I wanted to make sure that it was indeed her. You see, usually there’s two spirits that get reincarnated, one generation apart. The time between the two this time around has been longer than normal, so we were beginning to wonder. Anyways, my apologies child. Please, eat and rest again.”
“Right…” Crystal gave a raised eyebrow before beginning to eat her sandwich, which had fallen into her lap when Daruma decided to invade her mind a bit deeper. Her ears were flat on her head as she ate, more annoyed now than she had been trying to get into the Desert Resort. “So, I have someone else residing in me, one of these two spirits that wind up getting reincarnated as if parent and child, and it’s been more than a generation since that happened? Wonderful. That can’t be a good omen,” Crystal snarked, finishing her sandwich.
“I’m sorry, I truly am, child. But please, don’t let that be a factor in whether or not you stay, please. It is truly wonderful and refreshing to have someone else show up with a true yearning to learn about this place’s history, and while yes, you may have her spirit within you, you are not her specifically. You have your own spirit, possibly your own past memories to awaken, if you wish to try and see. Do not let this news hang over your head, please.”
“Alright then.” She would lay down on the floor and stare up at the ceiling. “So. You mentioned something like Sun Priests or something? What did this place used to be in its heyday?”
“A capital and center of worship.”
“Yes. This place was the center of the kingdom that was here, though it acted closer to a theocracy. The High Priest or Priestess made the decisions, and they had a Council of the Sun to help make suggestions. The Lorekeeper was the official historian, and they could also make suggestions to the High Priest, even though the Lorekeeper was not on the Council officially. Typically, the High Priest position was hereditary, brought down from parent to firstborn child, at least most times. Sometimes, if the firstborn refused, or was seen to be unfit, another child would be raised, and if there were no such heirs, it would go to someone else in the family.”
“So, how was the High Priest seen in society? Were they the next thing to a god, or what?”
“No, they were seen as the best one to commune with them. This was believed to be passed down through the family line, thus why the High Priest position was hereditary. Now, whether it was true is hard to prove, but the belief was enough to control marriages to others, to keep the line as powerful as possible.”
“Wow… I’ll be honest, I’m glad I wasn’t around in that time. Sounds like a lot of pressure.”
“It was. But the people of the day dealt with it. As do the people of each era.”
“Life and time keep marching on, whether or not you want it to. Unless you’re a few select Pokémon.” The hybrid would yawn and stretch, sitting back up. “Oi…”
“Heh, that training must have taken a lot out of you. More than you thought, at least. You should rest for now. Sleep and regain your energy. You’ll need it for the upcoming days. Come with me, kit.” Dicha would stand up herself, walking off to one of the exits of the room. She’d wait for Crystal and Kairos before continuing on, leading the hybrid and bird to another room. This room would have a few ancient looking beds in it, though they managed to still look well maintained. “This room was one of the rooms that the potential Lorekeepers would stay during their training. There are two of these rooms, so at most, there would have been four at one time. However, there has rarely been any reason to use these rooms.”
“Then why are they in such good condition,” Crystal yawned, stretching as she asked the question.
“I did say rarely, and the cycle of time keeps moving on like the rising and setting of the sun. The two have appeared here before, so we keep the rooms ready for when they appear.” Dicha nodded, then motioned her head to one of the beds. “Go ahead. Take a bed. Rest. I need you to recuperate for more training later.” Dicha smiled as she left Crystal and Kairos to the room. Crystal looked around the room before tossing her bag on one of the beds while sitting on the other.
“Kai… What have I gotten myself into?”
“I do believe you are now actually an apprentice to the Lorekeeper now. I honestly had no idea he still lived, and I must say, it was invigorating to converse with another one from my time.”
“Kai, I must say… Despite your kind being created as homunculi, I think you’ve got a base grasp of emotions. I just… I can pick up various hints of emotion from you. Not as strong as, say, Apolla or Demon Wing, but emotions nonetheless.” The hybrid yawned, laying down fully on the bed. “I think I will take Dicha’s advice, though. This has been an interesting and exciting day…” The hybrid would make herself comfortable under the blanket that was on top of the bed, curling up and falling asleep quickly, her Sigilyph keeping guard over her once more.
For the next month, Crystal’s days would be spent in a routine of waking up, eating, learning about the Sun Kingdom from Master Daruma, having a lunch, training with Dicha, and then a final meal and time to relax. Most of the learning from Daruma would be about the structure and how day to day like went for the denizens of the Kingdom, at every walk of life. Thomas would pop in during some of these teaching sessions, leering at the woman before shaking his head and walking off, still not approving of the new apprentice. The training with Dicha would continue on lifting the various broken practice dummies, at first one at a time, but as the days went on, Dicha would add one more every three to four days, until there were four she was having to lift at a single time. During the final four days, however, the Medicham had finally decided to move her onto attempting to learn the actual Psychic attack. Which, that hadn’t been going the best.
“Dammit! This is starting to get ridiculous,” Crystal complained as she got up off of the ground, pulling on her braided hair. “This is the same end as before, that ball always explodes on me!”
“Yes, the exploding ball is uncommon… Though it means you’re holding all the energy in one place well enough, it’s not like the energy is dissipating. No civilization can be built in a day, though you are seemingly making a point for a rapid construction nonetheless. Now, calm your head and try again.”
Crystal grumbled as she took a breath and closed her eyes, gathering the psychic energy into a single point, and letting that grow into a ball. As the ball formed, it once again rippled and shook, threatening to come apart once again. “Just like before…. Stay this time… Stay!” The ball only would ripple more violently as she yelled, echoing her frustration.
“Calm down, you’re trying to apply the hammer method once again,” Dicha chided, shaking her head, “If you’re focusing on the fact that you’ve failed countless times-” The ball would explode once more before Dicha would finish talking, sending the hybrid back once more. “-don’t. No one person is born a master of things. I never expected you to progress this fast, but don’t take that as meaning I expect this kind of continual progress.”[/i] She held out her hand for Crystal to grab this time, who accepted the help to get up. “Now then. Again. And don’t treat the energy as something to be controlled by force. The energy is not an enemy. It just has to be handled carefully, like a newborn child. Not every problem needs a hammer.”
“Right…” Crystal shook her head and tried once again, taking a deep breath. “I can do this…” One more time, she could collect the energy into a single point, holding it in place as it grew. Once again, though, it would have the rippling and shaking of before, though. “Stay… I can do this… Just relax…”
It’s a part of you. The energy, I mean. Yes, you have to handle it carefully, but you also don’t need to treat it like an external force. Now that you’re a hybrid, or even if you progressed so far into the priesthood training, this energy started to become a part of you. So, don’t try to force your will on it. Embrace it and guide it. Understand what I’m saying?
I… think.
Crystal would attempt to hold the orb together, and the ripples would slowly lessen, happening around the same time as the hybrid began to relax. They weren’t gone completely as she managed to launch the orb, but the fact was that it didn’t explode in her face this time. “Wait… Did that actually work?” Crystal stared dumbfounded as the orb toppled over one of the training dummies before dissipating.
“What did she tell you? I could tell that she spoke up, but she’s a faint echo, and I could only tell that she spoke up, but I could tell that she helped in some way.”
“Huh? Um, well… She told me to embrace and guide the energy instead of forcing it to do what I want.”
“Hah! At least she remembers her training. I kept teaching her many times over the ages, so at least she remembers her training finally.”
You know, I only actually remember the one life. I know I’ve been reincarnated many times over, but I only remember the one.
“What did she say?”
“Nothing of relevance,” Crystal groaned, shaking her head. She wasn’t going to take part in being the middle woman for an argument.
“Hmph. Fine then. Again. Let us make sure that it’s not a fluke.”
Crystal nodded, focusing once more as she repeated the process. Managing to replicate the process, they kept on, Dicha having her practice until she was exhausted, pleasing the Medicham. As they left the training room, Crystal would stretch and yawn, causing Dicha to nod in approval.
“Good, a training session well done. You’ve managed to get Psychic down as well, or a form of it. You should be able to manipulate it from there, it is very simple. That form, however, we can use to relate to other abilities down the line. Now, go eat and rest. We shall see about where we go from here, kit.” The Medicham’s voice had a jovial tone as they left, the hybrid returning to her room to rest and eat.
“Oi… That was just… Oi.” She collapsed onto her bed, sprawled out as Kairos looked over at her. “Hey Kai.”
“I sense that you had a successful training session, Miss Crystal. Daruma could sense it as well.”
“I figured it out. It’s not a blunt hammer, as much as I might want to use it like one at times.”
“Indeed. I could have told you, but I do not know the effectiveness of it without having to use the energy itself in higher quantities. And I am not suited for long term teaching.”
“Right. You said Master Daruma could sense it as well?”
“Yes. He wishes to talk to you more tomorrow, but believes that you deserve your rest.”
“Fun. This doesn’t sound foreboding at all. Good night, Kai.” The hybrid would curl up underneath the covers again, completely forgetting to eat.
“Um, Miss Crystal? Do you at least want to eat? You should probably eat something…”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Ohhh, what did Darma say,” Tanya exclaimed, jumping up and down in her chair.
“Did he tell you some mysterious secret about the kingdom that was there? Or some secret ritual?” Tyler was at the edge of his seat as well, looking at Crystal more eagerly than he’d admit later.
“No, I’m afraid it was actually all rather unexciting. He just told me that he wanted me to rejoin the society at large and told me of a way to get to the Relic Castle without crossing the desert, using a passage that eventually led to Driftveil City. Master Daruma also told me that he would send Dicha to collect me when he wanted me back for more training.” Crystal shrugged, looking at her audience. By now, the sun was beginning to set, and she had added another member, the children’s mother, Carol. “I’m afraid that’s where this story ends.”
“Aw…” The children groaned together. They were enjoying Crystal’s story, honestly, and were sad to find it end.
“I never said that I didn’t have other stories to tell, though,” Crystal told them with a wink, grinning. “However, it is starting to get late, so you probably need to head home. Carol, Tanya, Tyler, it was a pleasure meeting you all.”
“Indeed. Miss Crystal, Miss Tanzanaki, thank you. Honestly, this was the first time I’ve taken them out together in a long time that they’ve been able to sit still together.” Carol shook both of their hands and smiled. “Now, if you’ll excuse us, we do need to be heading home. Come on, you two.”
“Bye, Miss Crystal!”
“Bye-bye, Miss Kitty Lady!” The trio left after that, and Crystal shook her head, the grin still on her face.
“How did I become a children’s story teller,” she chuckled, sitting up from her own seat.
“Because that was an interesting story, honestly. You’ve got the beginnings of an adventure, it sounds to me, my dear.” Sylvia stood up as well, leaving a considerable amount of money underneath one of the plates so it wouldn’t blow away. The table had become riddled with them, having fed themselves and the children during the story, as well as all the drinks.
“Oh, you don’t know the half of it…”
“Probably not. But that old man, Thomas. I would be wary of him.”
“Of Grandfather? Yeah, I got that feeling from him already.” She turned to her mother as the two began to walk, Sylvia a bit stunned. “I managed to put two and two together a while ago. And I wasn’t lying when I had other stories. Something’s not right with him, that’s for sure.”
“Be wary of his Beheeyem, as well, not just him. One of Beheeyem’s abilities is to alter memories.”
Crystal froze when her mother had said that, her eyes following her as the woman moved ahead of her. “I.. what? How do you know this?”
“He tried to use that thing to alter my memories of your father. Does he know that you’re his granddaughter?” Sylvia turned around and stared at Crystal with a hard look.
“Unless he managed to find things out, no. I never told him. He just thinks I’m a Tanzanaki. Why?”
“He’s the reason why your father and I left Unova. He was already starting to lose himself at that time, and I wanted no part of that. Be careful. I don’t know what plans he had for me, but I don’t want you involved.”
Crystal blew some of her bangs away from her face, shaking her head as she finally moved forwards again. “That I didn’t glean, but wonderful to know. Moving another region away, though… Why didn’t you see about having father’s family help you?”
“It’s a bit of a long story, but they would not have accepted me, I’m pretty sure. Your father came to the same conclusion, as well. And with the ability of a Beheeyem to teleport, we didn’t trust finding any safe spot in Unova.” The woman sighed, shaking her head. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to turn this into a serious conversation.”
“It was going to happen eventually.” Crystal hugged her mother, both of them growing smiles on their face. “However, I refuse to let this get to me. Be a bit more cautious, sure, but I won’t stop with what I’m doing, mom.”
“Good. I caused you to give up on something once, I don’t want to see it happen again. Now, how long do you plan on being in town, my dear?” Her mother wiped small tears from her eyes as she asked the question, chuckling.
“A while. I still have a few other obligations, but I can take some time off to catch up further.”
“Good. I have something to give you when we get home, Crystal.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Summary:
-Traveled to the Relic Castle and explored it, making it to the beginning of the Path of the Lorekeeper
-Passed the three trials on the Path, going through her past, testing her power and restraint, and her willpower.
-Met with Lorekeeper Daruma and Dicha, his Medicham, and effectively was accepted as an apprentice to Daruma, starting in with her training with her abilities and lessons on the history of the people of the Sun Kingdom.
-Eventually learned how to use a form of Psychic, after having many orbs of psychic energy blow up in her face.
-Learned of a way to get to the Relic Castle without having to go through the Desert Resort, which seems to react adversely to Crystal’s mere presence.
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Posted: Tue Jan 30, 2024 7:23 pm
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Aile
(This is just a blorp explaining what's happened between the History Field Trip and the start of the Path of Legends. Mostly explains how Aile has a Paldean Wooper.)
–Day of the Field Trip–
When they landed, Aile would wait until Mateo had left the cab and started to walk off before letting out a long breath, doing her best to collect herself as she unfurled herself and looked down at the brown Wooper. “Hey, little one. Sorry about that. How he just blamed me for being reckless and losing my arm got under my skin.” She knelt down to attempt to pet the little creature, but paused when she wasn’t sure how to pet it. Safely, at least. “Ah… sorry. Maybe we should get out of the taxi, first.” The two would leave the cab of the air taxi and Aile reached down once again to figure out where to pat the little mudfish. As she was about to pat it on its head, the Clodsire hybrid glanced over and chimed in.
“Be careful about their poisonous film. These Wooper have no control over producing it, as they live constantly on land here, unless their group has a Clodsire of their own. So, they constantly produce their film, which is poisonous.” Mateo’s voice would sound calm, but maybe with an undertone of exasperation.
“Hmph.” Aile stood up again to stand up to Mateo. “I’m surprised that you’re not letting me fall on my face for that.”
“Nah. Not for that. I’m not interested in seeing someone get ill from an accidental poisoning.” The hybrid took a glance around, then turned his full attention to Aile again. “When you leave the school, if you go down the stairs and take a right, you’ll come across a standard metal gate in the cliff face.” Mateo pointed to the northwest. “It should be open, go through it. That area’s better for fighting, and isn’t a pain to get through like the other three gates out of the city. If you can get out of school without being caught, meet me there later at night. -That-’ll be where you can fall on your face.” With that, the Clodsire hybrid walked off, a smirk on his face as he gave a small wave.
Aile leered at Mateo until he couldn’t be seen anymore, then let out a sharp sigh. “a*****e. As for you…” She turned to the Paldean Wooper one more time. “You should probably find a way out of here. I’m not entirely sure why you decided to follow us, but you should probably head out. I… I can’t actually tell you where to go, I don’t know the area, but I feel like someone should probably be able to help you out to get to a place where you can thrive. Okay?” The Wooper tilted its head, watching Aile walk off, who occasionally looked back as she made her way back to the school itself, before looking around and deciding to instead go the way that Mateo pointed out. They were supposed to meet over there, right?
The rest of the day would be spent getting to know the lay of the school, any potential good areas to sneak out of the school, and mostly hoping that she didn’t get herself lost later on. When it started getting dark outside, Aile assumed that Mateo would be at the spot. Hopefully, at least. Or this was an elaborate set up. Though, with how he seemed to act, he doubted that it was a set up for her to get in trouble. After getting dressed in more casual clothes, something that she wouldn’t worry about getting torn up in case things devolved(an almost certainty in her mind), she’d make sure her she had her staff pieces packed away in her backpack, jacket and hoodie surrounding them to keep them from moving and making noise before she made her way quietly out of the dorm room she was assigned.
No one seemed to bother Aile as she left, keeping to some of the apparently lesser used hallways, though she did see a few other students heading out in some casual clothes themselves, so she wasn’t the only one heading out for a night on the town, so to speak. She decided to fall in line with another group heading out, and wound up getting glossed over as they all left. She wasn’t sure whether they would have cared, but she'd rather be on the somewhat safer side. Once outside, she practically glided down the stairs, double checking her positioning and looking for the gate Mateo had mentioned. She briefly caught sight of the teacher that had helped her earlier in the day, but she dismissed it as Professor Ussuri also taking some down time as well, probably waiting for another faculty member. Without another thought, she’d find her way to the gate, looking at the tunnel cut into the rock wall before walking through it while taking a deep breath.
Ussuri looked down at her watch as she sat at an outside cafe table, bringing up a book as she waited for… someone. That is until she saw Aile come down the stairs. She tilted her head, raising an eyebrow as she watched where the woman walked off to. She drummed the fingers of her free hand, thinking for a moment before returning to her book. Then, about fifteen minutes later, she’d see a certain Clodsire show up, causing her confusion. He wasn’t due to show up for a few hours still… and then she saw where he was heading, and she suddenly had a look of irritation. “Madre de dios… Did that little aho seriously get the new girl to fight him? Great…” The large brown bear hybrid sighed before going back to her book, though now her mind was preoccupied with why Mateo had sent Aile over there. “...Oh, that boy thinks too highly of himself. Let’s make sure he doesn’t make a complete fool of himself,” the woman sighed, heaving herself up and getting all packed up.
Aile was leaning against a wall, going through her Pokéballs when Mateo finally showed up, a bemused look on the Clodsire hybrid’s face. Aile noted that he, too, wasn't dressed in the academy uniform, a casual set of blue jeans and a black t-shirt instead. “Well well, not very often that someone beats me to my fighting spot.”
Aile shrugged, tossing a Pokéball up into the air with her hand. “Well, I didn’t want to let you gloat over me being late. You never did answer me, by the way. Pokémon battle or a regular fight?”
“Eh… We’ll start with it being a battle at this point.” Aile narrowed her eyes when Mateo announced it, growing suspicious as he walked further away from the entrance of the smaller route. Once he felt ready, he threw out his first Pokémon, a shaggy looking blue and white dog Pokémon, bearing what looked like a candle on its head with a purple and yellow flame. “Let’s go, Greavard!
“The hell? Huh…” She paused, thinking things over. The candle on its head with an eerie flame lighting it… This honestly came across as kind of ethereal. Which registered in her head as ghost type, since it gave her a somewhat similar feeling as her sentient sandcastle. “Well, let’s try this on for size then. Sarlaac! Shadow Ball!”
“Tch. Sure you haven’t traveled Paldea before? Greavard, let’s give them a nice Paldean battle welcome. Use Phantom Force!”
The sentient sandcastle wiggled her towers, charging up an orb near her mouth, as she launched it, though, the little puppy jumped into a nearby shadow and disappeared, the Shadow Ball passing over where it just was. Sarlaac would begin to prepare another Shadow Ball, waiting for the doggo to return and shoring up slightly. Once the Greavard launched its attack from a nearby shadow, she turned and fired off her Shadow Ball back at the puppy point blank, the inky purple sphere knocking the Greavard backwards.
“Greavard, Shadow Sneak” Mateo merely called out, attempting to press any sort advantage his Pokémon could make.
“Sarlaac, hold out, then you know what to do! Just like Orre!” The Palossand nodded and leaned her towers in, in an attempt to brace herself for the attack, as Greavard’s shadow grew to join with Sarlaac’s. Before they knew it, the puppy had disappeared into it and popped out behind Sarlaac and charged in for a sneak attack. However, while it certainly hit, harder than they were expecting at that, the Palossand would rather quickly change the direction she was facing, with everything denoting her face would fade into the castle and reappear on the other side, the now mouth clamping down on one of the paws and beginning to Giga Drain the poor ghost hound. After a moment, Mateo realized what was happening and pulled out the Greavard’s Pokéball again. “Greavard!” Noting what he might have been planning, Aile would call out to Sarlaac. After a moment, at least.
“Sarlaac, release!” The main tower would tilt slightly when Aile mentioned towards Mateo, finally turning around normally and spitting out the dog, who was immediately returned with a leer.
“Hmph. Going there already?”
“You’re the one trying to make an example of me. What’s your next move, or do you already think otherwise?”
“Hmph.” The guy would grab a new Pokéball from his belt and throw it out, revealing some sort of small simian with large green eyes, white and slate striped fur,
and the oddest of all, a finger with what looked like dripping pink and blue ink? This one was harder for Aile to puzzle out, and Mateo would read her look of confusion as an opening. “Grafaiai, Poison Fang!”
“Right, Sarlaac! When in doubt, Earth Power!” At the very least, it didn’t look like it flew, so hopefully the attack would at least land. With the Grafaiai charging in, dripping colorful saliva as it bit down, it wouldn’t be too hard to hit this attack. However, something felt off, like it was too close to her… But yet, she could also tell it was welling up by Sarlaac as well. Instinctively, the woman jumped backwards, just as her Palossand launched her attack. Mere moments after the blast of earth energy from her Pokémon launched, there was also a blast right where she was standing. Looking up from the blast spot, she noticed Mateo’s hand closing back up into a fist, his eyes narrowed in annoyance. “That’s what you meant by start with a battle. You never intended to keep it that way.”
“Only if you kept the upper hand like this. I thought you’d use this time in Paldea for training weaker Pokémon, though.”
“Oh, I have some that need it. However, I have some of my big hitters with me too, just in case. Like for assholes who have a chip on their shoulder.” Mateo gave a snort as Aile stretched her neck from side to side. She gave a look to Sarlaac, who she noted had gained some of that saliva’s coloration further than she expected, and sighed. Probably poisoned, if she had to guess. Fine, just stall it out as much as possible for now. “Sarlaac, Sandstorm!”
“You know that’ll backfire on you personally, right? Grafaiai, Venoshock!” The Palossand shook her arms as a Sandstorm whipped up around them, sand getting into the eyes of the poisonous aye-aye as it went to spit out a differently covered liquid, one more violet in appearance. Despite the sand in its eyes, the Venoshock still managed to hit its mark, aimed right for the poison-saturated wound and caused Sarlaac to cry out in pain. While she still stood after the attack, towers wobbling, the spreading of the poison afterwards would cause Sarlaac to faint, slumping into three connected sand piles. Soon after, the buffeting of the Sandstorm would be too much for the lemur, toppling over unconscious.
None of this seemed to matter to their trainers at the moment, though. Aile had retreated to her backpack to pull something out while Mateo began to charge her. As he came in for a right hook, Aile would pull out the bulbous end of her broken staff and swung it at his face, connecting before he could react and knocking him back. Collecting himself from the stagger, he gave Aile another look through the sand being blown around, eyes narrowing. He also noticed that, sans Aile closing an eye to keep incoming sand from entering it, she also wasn’t bothered by the sandstorm.
“Huh, so that’s your artifact, eh? A mace of sorts, and it looks broken, too? Seems disrespectful of your artifact, to be honest. Something like that, and you’re just simply hitting people with it. Come on now!”
“Man, if you only knew. And besides, you sent the Earth Power at me first!” Aile would be the one to charge forward next, swinging her mace at his chest. This time, Mateo would deftly dodge out of the way, jumping backwards as he summoned another wellspring of earth chi to blast out at Aile. Darting to the side she’d take another swing at the Clodsire hybrid, this time at his knees. This time, her hit would land as his knee buckled, dropping to a kneeling position as the woman repositioned behind Mateo. As Aile was coming in to attack him one more time, the woman would pause just in time as what appeared to be rib bones shot out of his back. “What the hell?!”
“Welcome to Clodsires,” Mateo replied through gritted teeth, the ribs retracting as he snapped his fingers. Underneath Aile, another blast of earth chi blasted her finally, knocking her down and backwards.
“Merde…” She rolled over onto her knees and pushed herself up enough to see the hybrid’s ribs retract and Mateo stand up, cracking his neck and running over to her as fast as his knee would let him. Pushing herself away and rolling on the ground, Aile narrowly avoided getting her head stomped on by his foot. “Well then.” Pulling off a kip-up, Aile would turn to swing at Mateo again only to be socked in the eye by a right hook. The hit would knock her back further and spin her around, with Aile dropping her staff head, holding her own head until she saw another swing heading towards her. Mentally cursing, she’d bring her arm up defensively and try to block as many of the blows coming to her face, trying to find some opening to strike back. The opportunity never arrived for her, though, as the last few blows came to her abdomen, causing her to double over before another punch brought her down to the ground again.
“You can really put up a fight yourself, you know? There’s a good handful of people that can even attempt to keep up with me.” Mateo wiped the corner of his mouth, checking it before coming up behind Aile. “You’re even doing it in a Sandstorm, too.” Dropping to the ground himself, he would grab a hold of her free arm and twist it up behind her, wrapping his legs around her waist and putting Aile into a chokehold with his other arm. “I’ll make sure you’re just knocked out, though. You’re someone interesting to have around.”
Those words would be a cold comfort for Aile, if she even heard them. Once she was in the chokehold, her mind began to race with fear. This wasn’t the first time she was held down, as she began to recall those times. Back in Alola, where she was held down by Darts when she was with Flare and after betraying the team, effectively being used as a trade to finish gathering the Zygarde cells. Fast forwarding from there to The Under, where she encountered Gonzap in a false job listing, getting choked out rather similarly to this to only be used as bait to get the Snagems to Citadark Isle, all to show off what Ein could do when the team returned to the mainland. Not to mention, the amount of times she probably pulled this on others. She understood where this was leading, and she didn’t like it. The times when she was held down, too, she had both arms to give her something of a chance to break free, as if it helped back then. Now, though, she was down an arm, with her remaining good arm being held behind her back, wrenched far back to be rendered almost painfully immobile, and Mateo was clinging onto her otherwise and was a wonderful weight to keep her from getting back up. “No… No! Not… yet!” Still, she’d flail her legs and the stump of her left arm, attempting to gain some sort of purchase. She couldn’t let things end like this. She didn’t fight in the World War, help take down Lysandre and Ein, and survive a goddamned desert unprepared just to be brought low by some student here in Paldea.
“Still fighting back, eh? Appreciate the esfuerzo, however, it’s time to-” His words would be cut short by something, Aile couldn’t immediately tell, hitting him in the face. After a couple more grunts followed by a loud cursing, Mateo would let go of Aile, with the woman rolling off of him and away, gasping for air as vision began to return to the edges of her sight. “What the ******** was that?! You don’t have a Pokémon out, how the hell did you channel?”
Aile wouldn’t respond, attempting to collect herself as she recovered. At this point, her mentality had shifted. If this SOB had decided to try and knock her out, everything short of permanent damage was now on the table. She wasn’t about to be left helpless again. Aile would get into a crouch again and dart forward, bringing out a folded up knife from her pocket. Mateo managed to get himself back up, holding the bottom of his face and looking at his hand. “I think you managed to bust my lip open… crap!” He’d jump to the side as Aile swiped at his leg, narrowing missing the blade that quickly extended from the hilt. At that point when his eyes landed on the dull gray metal, he realized that Aile was taking it up a step, and he started to feel… he’d say concerned, though others may call it nervous or scared, even. Still, the ante seemed to go up here, and he would have to try to be more careful.
Not that Aile was going to make that easy. She came in again, blade extended near her pinky, trying to go for the same leg. He was more prepared this time, jumping out of the way, but the woman would quickly use her hand to pivot herself quickly, swinging her legs around to kick the guy as he landed, putting him off balance as he tried to avoid that attack as well. Aile regained her footing herself and darted in once again, swinging at him with a kick to his side this time. This dance would continue, with Aile swinging at him with either her feet or the knife in her hand, with Mateo continuing to dodge while waiting for an opening to strike back.
His moment would finally come after a kick where she overextended, struggling to get her balance back for a moment. That would be all Mateo needed, as he wound back his arm and charged in, getting a hard gut punch in and bowing Aile over. The woman would grunt and stumble backwards, holding her stomach as best she could while keeping a hold of her knife still. She wound up waiting for Mateo to come at her with a knee, sidestepping the attack with some room to spare, and noting that he had plenty of time to recover and come back at her. Punches would begin to get thrown Aile’s way, starting to get her back up against a wall as she continued to dodge out of the way of his punches. She felt the cliffside against her back and braced for impact with Mateo’s fist when she heard a familiar (albeit angrier) cry, followed by a large brown loogie being hocked the hybrid’s way. “Gah! Hey, what are you doing here? You seriously didn’t head back? Wait, wait, back up a second, back up- Gah!” A barrage of smaller brown Mud Shots would come from the little Paldean Wooper that finally decided to show itself, angrily attacking Mateo after watching it’s apparent favorite human getting back into a wall. “Come on now,” the hybrid roared, wiping the mud off of his face. While Mateo was getting backed away from Aile, she would take a moment to collect herself, charging at the hybrid as he wiped his face off. “s**t.” Aile connected with a spear, knocking Mateo onto the ground before landing her knees on his chest and holding the knife to his throat.
“Where do I rate now,” Aile finally asked Mateo, pushing the knife a little bit deeper into his skin. Mateo started to open his mouth to answer, carefully thinking of what to say, when a loud, booming voice got both of their attention.
“Wyndra, you push that any further into him, expulsion will be the least of your worries!” Professor Ussuri stormed over, with the two combatants scrambling to stand up before she arrived. “And Mateo, do you realize you were taking on a member of Team Snagem?”
“I mean, if I may, Professor, you mentioned in the previous training session that you thought that they-”
“Mateo, I have a preference for dealing with problems out of the spotlight, so I disagree with their methods. I never said anything about their competency, you t**t.”
“I… She also refused to admit to being a ground channeller, and I wanted to see what she was all about!”
“And what did we learn,” Ussuri asked with an exasperated sigh.
“That she needed no help on battling and very little help to keep up with me otherwise.”
“And what’s the first thing I teach in my classes at school?”
“Don’t underestimate anyone,” Mateo grumbled, crossing his arms and looking away. “Especially wilders and channellers. She didn’t show anything that she was purposely controlling anything during that giant Klawf encounter, though!”
“Mateo, that’s the exact point of not underestimating wilders.” The Ursaluna hybrid was clearly unamused by this, crossing her own arms. “You don’t know what they can do, sometimes even they don’t know what they can do. Like how that staff head of hers transformed into a fist to punch your lights out. Or tried to, at least.”
That revelation caught Aile by surprise, finally chiming in herself. “Uh, wait, what? That staff’s supposed to be made of wood or something, with green gems embedded into it. How in the blazes would it transform into sand?”
“You…” The bear woman held up a finger, looking like she needed to process something. This went on for what might have been a minute before she put her knuckles to her head and grimaced. “Are you telling me… that you do not understand the nature of your artifact at all?”
“I… Wait. Is that what Uxie meant,” she mumbled to herself, with looks from both of the hybrid onlookers.
“Uxie?”
“I’m sorry, did you say Uxie? As in, the Sprite of Knowledge from Sinnoh?”
“Uh…” Aile blinked like a Deerling in headlights, trying to figure out how to answer. One of them was just simple non-understanding, but Ussuri had a look of astoundment and confusion. Finally, she just decided to lead with, “It’s… a complicated story. And you probably wouldn’t believe me if I did explain it. And by the way, that story is also where I lost my arm, you piece of s**t,” she added, venomously leering at Mateo.
“You were probably still reckless when you lost it, you cocky bi-”
“Mateo. Shut up before I make you,” Ussuri growled, rubbing her temples. The Clodsire hybrid would take the blatant hint and closed his mouth before the bear woman kept to that promise. “I would like to hear this story at some point, Miss Wyndra. However, I am also trying to not lose my temper and smack you both upside the head for your sheer idiocy. Seriously, Mateo, I know I’ve taught you better than to not goad people into fights, and you were getting better at that. And then you, Miss Snagem member, shouldn't you know better than to get yourself into trouble after the Porto Marinada incident?”
“I didn’t think she’d take me up on the offer to fight!”
“I was asleep when the team fought that giant black land Tentacruel!”
“Shiny Toadscuel,” Mateo corrected her.
“Whatever! Still, point remains.”
“You’re still here, though,” Ussuri explained, “And if you get suspended or expelled because of whatever misbehaving you do here, it’ll reflect on your team. Doesn’t matter if you were involved or not, you’re here now. Now then…” Ussuri would sigh, trying to figure out what to do here. “Let’s go here next, where did this little Padean Wooper come from?”
“Uh, so um, I was showing Aile around-”
“I’m assuming before you insulted her.”
“...Yes, before I insulted her, and I was telling her about some of the local ground Pokémon here. We had this Wooper come up to us, I’m assuming because it was lost, and it followed us instead of going back across the land bridge. I’m going to assume because it sensed I was a Clodsire hybrid?” Mateo shrugged there, looking down at the mudfish before continuing. “So, we eventually encounter this gigantic Klawf, like, as big as a house. Some of her friends are fighting it, and Aile goes to join in. I think the Wooper started liking Aile because instead of having her Palossand fight it, she decided to allow the Wooper try as it jumped up on top of her Pokémon. I think. Or out in front, one of those. When we retreated, I didn’t allow her to leave Wooper behind, and it followed us onto the taxi. I left the landing area before they did, so I don’t know what happened until it shot me in the face in this fight.” Mateo would leer at the Wooper as Aile picked up the thread.
“Not too much more from there. I was going to try and pat the Paldean Wooper, Mateo told me where to go for this fight, and after he left, I pointed towards one of the gates and figured that this little one might head for them, with maybe some of the locals helping it to get out. I guess it just saw where Mateo pointed and went there instead.”
“I see. Aile, do you have a spare Pokéball? Because the way this Wooper has been following you and helping you out, I think it would rather be with you than out in the wild at this point.” Aile blinked as she looked down at the Paldean Wooper, which toddled up to her as she was talking.
“You… Arceus, I feel like this is deja vu, you know?” She knelt down to the brown Wooper, holding out a Great Ball. “I’ll give you the same choice I gave another Pokémon of mine. If you want to join me, you just need to hit this but-” Aile couldn’t even complete her whole speech, as the Paldean Wooper headbutted the ball as soon as it was pointed out how to enter the ball. It wobbled in her hand once… twice.. three times before locking, Aile giving a small sigh. “Don’t even think about it before saying yes. Well then.”
“That was fast. Alright, let’s take a closer look at you two, make sure there’s no hidden concussions, broken bones, or the like…” Professor Ussuri would take a brief look at the two of them, confirming that they were in at least decent health before rubbing her forehead. “Okay then. Why don’t we go sit down at a cafe and have a chat. Miss Wyndra, you can tell us all about the story of how you met one of the sprites of Sinnoh.”
“And maybe you can explain what an Uxie is in general, and how do you know what that is?” Both women’s eyes landed on Mateo for a moment, before Aile turned to Ussuri.
“And along with that… Are you from Sinnoh?”
“We can explain that at the cafe. Come on.” The teacher would lead the two students, who now looked like they had seen better days, back into town and to a cafe, with Aile and Mateo recalling their fallen Pokémon and Aile doing a quick hunt for her staff head, which wasn’t where she had dropped it, giving more credence to what Mateo and Ussuri had said. Maybe she had turned it into a fist without realizing… But that still made no sense. That thing was made out of wood and only held sand, to her knowledge. Somehow. She never did know how it kept it in there. … Especially once she looked into the center of the staff now that it was broken and noticed it was solid instead of hollow. Right…
Once the group arrived at the chosen cafe and ordered some drinks, the discussion began. The Professor went first, explaining how she was born in Snowpoint City in Sinnoh, and how her family moved here when she was a young child. She still grew up with the stories from Sinnoh, though, which is how she knew what Uxie was. When Mateo asked about how she managed to evolve, considering the evolution method of Ursaring into Ursaluna, she made mention that her family brought a peat block over from Sinnoh, but that any of her children wouldn’t be able to evolve. The blocks were extremely hard to find when she was a child, and she doubted the situation changed for the better as the years went on. Plus, there really weren't the right conditions to find them in Paldea, either. It was what it was.
Then it was Aile’s turn to tell her story of how she met Uxie. She didn’t go into much detail of most things, but did admit that she and some of the team went back in time to a place called Hisui, which gave Ussuri pause. She explained how she lost her arm in something called a Time-Space Distortion when it closed, making Mateo squirm a bit in his chair, and then went on to tell how the team had to split up to find a way home. Her group encountered Uxie and underwent their trial, and during that was when her artifact, a staff at the time, had shattered when her Flygon panicked, garnering a frown from the teacher. She went on to tell of how they passed the trial eventually, joined up with their friends again, and traveled up Mount Coronet, meeting her Ursaluna along the way, before finally being dragged through… chaos itself(?) to arrive home to more chaos. It was all some crazy stuff, and to no surprise to Aile, Mateo didn’t really believe much of it. Ussuri was at least diplomatic about things. Still was skeptical, but did not completely write off her story yet. After that, it was a discussion of things around the school, how things shook out, and canceled plans for the night. Ussuri was still rather annoyed at the Clodsire hybrid for his idea of fighting before training, too, chastising him about potentially getting injured before training.
The topics of talking continued to flow until they were told that the cafe was closing up. Ussuri covered the bill, and then she led them back to the school, informing Mateo that training was going to be canceled for the rest of the week, at least. A glare kept him quiet before he could protest, and she sent the two off to their dorm rooms with orders to head to the nurse’s office when they woke up, before heading to the director’s office to give him a heads up on what happened and how she was going to handle it.
The next day, Aile woke up sore as all get out, slowly getting dressed after laying in bed for a good amount of time. “Arceus, give me strength. Or don’t. I’ll just lie here all day, too. God…” Hobbling to her feet, she made her way out of her room and to the nurse’s office, meeting up with Mateo along the way. The pair kept quiet along the way, and that routine would keep up once they were in the office and getting examined, only speaking up when they were asked questions, and in Aile’s case, she grunted in pain as well when pressure was put on a couple areas. Overall, the pair was determined to be of good health despite beating the tar out of each other, though it was recommended for Aile to take it easy. Ussuri picked them up afterwards and took them to the lunch room, where they grabbed some food before the teacher explained what was going to be happening. For Mateo, his homeroom and a few other free spots during class hours, he’d be her student assistant, which elicited a groan from the guy. Aile, however, was informed that she was off with a warning this time, her one and only. And that her teammates were also informed earlier about the different graduation paths, of which she would also be allowed to choose. Ussuri had her own recommendation for Aile, which was taking the academic path. There were some solid classes she could take, including ones that could give her basics on channeling. Nothing so specific, but something that could give her a leg up on actually understanding her abilities, instead of just having crazy stuff happen randomly. In the end, she decided on taking the Path of Legends, at least to start. Mostly because this spawned up after the field trip, and she wanted payback on the Klawf. Mateo started to ask whether it would be possible for him to switch to this as well, but a leer from Ussuri would quiet the Clodsire hybrid, nodding and looking away.
With everything sorted, she told Aile that she and her team would have the rest of the day off, with the intention that they’d take the day to think about the choice. Mateo, however, still had class, and he needed to get going to it. The group broke up, and Aile watched the pair of hybrids leave, Mateo having an almost unreadable look on his face when he looked back once. Eventually, Aile would make her way back to her dorm room, letting out a few of her Pokémon and flopping down on her bed. “Ugh… Tati… Remind me not to get into fights with anyone again. At least here.”
“Goooon,” the Flygon groaned, before looking down at the new teammate. “Fwy?”
“That’s a Paldean Wooper. They’re ground and poison type. And this one took a shine to me.”
“Fwy?”
“Woop!”
“Fwy fwy?”
“Woop pah!”
Aile was confused at what was going on, but it at least seemed like there wasn’t much jealousy going on this time. At least Tatooine got along with this one. The pair kept talking as their trainer fell asleep on the bed, only stopping when Tati caught wind of some small snores. She took care to tuck in Aile, before continuing on with talking. Aile would be on and off sleeping for most of the day, just not feeling up for doing much moving around outside of the essentials. She had already made her choice anyway for the graduation path, so all she had to do was make sure she was ready for tomorrow. And even if she procrastinated, she would make it with plenty of time to spare tomorrow, right? Yeah, it’d be fine.
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