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Frontier Town Civic Courtyard

Reader mode
"I see... well, I hope things work out anyway."

He paused. "So, Jirachi? He's real in your world? I mean, he might be real here too, and he might be real in mine for all I know, but with no confirmed sightings it's hard to argue for it. Does he -- do they really grant wishes?"
 
"Jirachi is very real," Mhynt replied. "...In my world, at least. But he was defeated and... sealed somewhere that his powers could no longer work. But when Owen was at his most noble, yes. Jirachi was around and could grant truly grand wishes with the divine power imbued within him. He was a... general-purpose, mortal crisis manager. The gods had no need for wishes from him since they could do what they needed... but mortals have wishes, and sometimes they could be granted, if they were noble enough themselves. And Owen helped to determine that."
 
"Mm." Mhynt nodded. "Your world... sounds like it was able to function without the presence of many higher powers. I've heard that a lot recently. Even my world functions that way after... Well, the gods more or less removed themselves. Voluntarily or otherwise."
 
Andre sighed. "Well... it functions, but things could always be better. I mean, I'm sure your world has bigger problems if people can fall victim to the powers of darkness, but there are still places with war and famine. It's not a utopia. That's exactly why so many people find the idea of a powerful benevolent god impossible. If they were really benevolent, they wouldn't allow so much suffering and all that."

Do you think you'd be a better god?

Andre shook the thought. He wondered briefly what to talk about next. Getting into why he was an atheist didn't seem like a good idea. Opinions on religion were rarely a good topic.

Oh! Of course. There was some Wayfarer business that had happened to him.

"Onto a completely different topic, though, some Wayfarer stuff: some other Wayfarers and I bumped into a zweilous with heads named Alex and Xander on our Blaguarro trip, and just a while ago they arrived in Frontier Town. Originally, we took interest in them because of their noticeably strong aura, but during our last meeting, Alex revealed that they were part of some organization looking into Shadows as well. Pretty suspicious guy. Wouldn't reveal who he was working for, though. Hopefully he'll come to trust us with time. And hopefully he isn't with the Coven."
 
It was like Mhynt had been petrified right then and there. The look of shock, then disbelief, and then cold, primal panic that flashed through her eyes in the span of a few seconds carried years upon years of knowledge. Dredged up like muck in a stagnant lake.

Without realizing it, her fingers squeezed hard against her arms and her tail curled inward. Her leafy scales were paler like she hadn't been in the sun for days.

"What?" she whispered.
 
"Uh..." Boy, that was certainly a reaction. "Yeah, a zweilous. They also had another thing peculiar about them. Xander, the other head, had a muzzle on and was constantly growling. Alex said that they were a troubled child and Xander was that aspect of them. You... you know them?"
 
The reaction didn't fade but it at least didn't get any worse. Mhynt let out a slow breath, irises trembling. Was she even blinking?

"I know him," she said quietly. More silence where Andre might not have been able to get through to her. "I know him," she said again. "We should kill him. Is that possible?" She still didn't look at Andre.
 
Andre flinched. "Oh, wow, uh, let's maybe, uh, rewind a little bit," he said. "Who is he and why does he deserve death?"

Wow, she's homicidal too. You should be friends, piped up an intrusive thought.

Shut up, thought Andre back. Something important is going on, and I don't need your commentary to go with it.
 
"Hydreigon Alexander," Mhynt said, "brought my world to ruin one thousand years ago. He plunged the world into darkness and took all of the Legends with him into a world where he now rules. It's a miracle that any part of the world remained out of his clutches... but I can only imagine what kind of destruction he'd try here. Let alone how he got here in the first place.

"I was... under his dominion. I was helpless to stop it. I thought I'd escaped at least him during my stay here..." She laughed weakly and bitterly. "But it seems I didn't."
 
"Oh. So not a good guy." That was putting it mildly. Andre frowned. "He seemed like such a nice guy to me... but it must have all been an act."

He brought a vine to his chin. "I can't help but notice that this makes two people from your world aside from you that have been brought here, both of whom you personally know," he said. "I wonder if that makes you and your world special... or if there are more people from other Wayfarers' worlds as well."

He wondered if there could be some people from his world. Good thing he didn't have anyone there he'd desperately want to avoid.

Or...

No, there was someone. He was sure of it. That same person he'd been reminded of every now and then, but could not remember. Someone dangerous.

What exactly had happened to him before he'd been summoned here?
 
"My world has... a lot of divine strife even now," Mhynt said. "Not to mention instability due to the conflict actively creating Dungeons. That could be a factor... It could be a coincidence..." The Treecko took a breath to calm her nerves. "...But that changes nothing about our present circumstances. We should warn everyone..."

Mhynt glanced at Andre. "...Is there anyone you're worried about coming here?"
 
Andre paused for a moment, weighing his options... but he decided to go for it.

"The weird thing is, I think so. And yet, I'm not sure. I've been having... incomplete memories of someone ever since I got here. Someone I seem to be afraid of." He flinched. "Oh, Gods, I really hope that isn't some Shadow thing like that hostile voice is."
 
"...Wonderful," Mhynt said with a grunt. "It sounds to me like we have a lot of old demons following us here..." Her tail swished behind her. "...I'm... I'm sure we can handle it. I'm not alone. He doesn't... have much power here. He can't."
 
Andre debated himself whether or not to tell the truth.

He envisioned Mhynt taking Alex on by herself and dying, and made his decision.

"Unfortunately... he did have that powerful aura," he cautiously said. "And we never did find out why that was. I'm no good at estimating power levels and the like, but I don't think taking him on would be a good idea." He paused. "Promise that you won't... do anything rash, alright?"
 
"I have no intention of taking him on alone," Mhynt said. "I... I've failed at that before. I won't be making the same mistakes. If anything, I'd..." She glanced down. "I'd want to at least rescue Owen somehow. He doesn't deserve this."
 
Andre nodded. "I understand. Hopefully, we'll find a way."

He sensed that the conversation had run its course. "Well, I think I've kept you long enough from your shopping. That, and I think I should go warn as many people as possible about Alex's true nature."
 
"...Please do," Mhynt said. "I'll... finish my shopping quickly and give a more thorough explanation, too." She took another steady breath and then stepped forward.

"Thank you for listening, Andre," Mhynt said. But despite the ease of her sentence, the tone behind it suggested she was more anxious than ever...

<><><>
 
Ch04: Steel Types Really Stick Together [Odette and Steven]
  • Threadmarks
    • Odette could say she was happy the courtyard existed. It gave her something green to look at when it seemed all she was surrounded by were different hues of yellow and brown. And this might be the only time she could touch her bare skin to grass without breaking out into a rash, so by the gods, she was going to enjoy it as much as she could. At least listening to the trees rustle in the breeze gave her something to listen to instead of her own whirring thoughts. Not even reading through and editing things in her songbook was doing much for her head, but at least the change of scenery helped just a smidge. And it didn’t seem like anyone was around, so, bonus.

    Sighing, she settled into the bench she was sitting in, which was set up perfectly under one of the larger trees in the yard. Another gust of breeze cooled her face, and she settled her head back to enjoy it. Little moments like this could easily be interrupted by utter bullshit. So she’d try to savor it.

    [ @Panoramic_Vacuum ]
     
  • Threadmarks
    • Steven wasn't entirely sure what drew him to the Civic Courtyard as soon as he got back to town. Maybe it was the amethyst he still had clutched in one claw, and his body was simply moving on autopilot. Maybe it was his brain wanting to get back to some kind of normalcy, and assisting Lucien with some paperwork sounded as mundane as anything. Maybe it was the first place he saw after veering away from the Haus and the apology he owed to Koa after leaving him an empty room and a vague note.

    But he was certain it was some other kind of intervention when he drifted past the fountain, only to see Odette sitting on a park bench on the other side. She looked comfortable. Definitely not his place to interrupt her peace, but something in his chest urged him to say something. Even if it was a complete non-sequitur, he'd regret not telling her how much she'd helped him, even if she wasn't even there in that cave.

    He squeezed the amethyst tighter in his claw and approached.

    "Odette?" he began cautiously, so as to not startle her. "Hi, I'm sorry to bother you, and I know this is sudden, but I just had to say--" he dipped into a bow, tucking his claw to his chest "--thank you. For being a friend."
     
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