Frontier Town Founder's Square

[Ambyssin]

"An omen?" Nova muttered. He was far too tall for anyone other than, perhaps, Cielo to see his gray eyes empty a bit. "Of course it's a bad omen."

That's what he was, after all. Hell, he introduced himself back home as such. "I've always been... just a dark omen."

Well, shit. Nova said that out loud, hadn't he. He shook his head, jostling the mask. Nova looked up at the sky. The sun was intense as usual. And rather high up. Just how late into the morning was it?

Idiot! He'd nearly forgotten about the invite he received before bailing on the Haus entirely. "Excuse me," Nova mumbled, bowing his head. "I'm late for... an engagement."

He shuffled back, leaning over and whispering to Mhynt, "We can talk more later."

Nova slowly walked away, with that walk gradually shifting to a run. Paws and talons pounded the dirt. Dust that settled on his fur from the days and nights outside dislodged, leaving a trail of brown behind him.

 

[MintyMimix]

Cielo paused, gazing skyward with a hardened stare. "She is said to be the greatest warrior of her time. Constantly roaming the land, keeping watch for imbalance. But, it has been many years since the time when she regularly communed with the Escarpa. Now, seeking out the Light is a pilgrimage only taken by the most experienced."

Ghaspius nodded along with a more genuine, intrigued smile. "Sounds like a lovely guardian. Though I'm guessin' then that her appearance and whatnot are closely kept secret." He chuckled. "Would love to see her in battle one day, though."

The Staraptor glanced between the gathered outsiders. "Mm, it's unusual to learn of so many summoned to our land. Usually there is but one hero in a generation. Some say it is a bad omen, but I want to know what you think, yourselves."

He gave an acknowledging nod to Leaf. "Couldn't agree with her more. We were asked to come to help, and we're here to help. S'all there is to it. Whether that means we need all of us or if that was just whatever summonin' us still learnin' the hero thing, I dunno."

The Misdreavus gave a glance back to Nova as he left. An objection laid on the tip of his tongue, but he let out an exhale. Instead, he continued his prior monologue. "Far as I can tell, we're just wanderin' 'mon like anyone else that just happen to have a bit of a helpful streak. Maybe it's these demons we gotta beat down, or maybe it's some other thing that the summoner only sorta knows about and is just tryin' to cover possible bases."

He performed a silly tumble. "Prepare for the worst, but expect the best. That's my philosophy in life."

 

[Tetra]

Koa nodded along distantly with the others, his mind still adrift. He only really tuned back in as he properly absorbed Cielo's words.

"Mm, it's unusual to learn of so many summoned to our land. Usually there is but one hero in a generation. Some say it is a bad omen, but I want to know what you think, yourselves."

"I don't think its a bad omen exactly," he said carefully. He got the idea that Betel only summoned all of them perhaps not really meaning to, if Alex was to be believed. "The group of us just care about helping however we can but... If we were called here there's probably trouble happening. Like the shadow pokemon. Or demons I guess." Focus. What had Cielo said earlier? He knew the Escarpa, right? And they knew the Wandering Light. Radiance. Power to stop shadows.

"If you know the Escarpa, would you be willing to help us meet with them? I hear they'e trying to stop these demons and we'd like to try and help."

 

[Namohysip]

Mhynt glanced at Nova as he departed, frowning pensively. Something to talk to him about later, she supposed. Right now...

"We were summoned here to save the world from something. Unfortunately, we have not been given information beyond that just yet, so our goals currently have been to gather our strength in numbers and raw power individually."

She decided not to mention their mixed results.

 

[Hap]

"I think we're still at the stage of trying to figure out why we're here in the first place," Ridley said flatly. It was a little discouraging to hear that no-one else here seemed to have any more solid answers than he did.

 

[Chibi Pika]

"Sounds like a lovely guardian. Though I'm guessin' then that her appearance and whatnot are closely kept secret."

Cielo shrugged his wings. "Less a secret and more that she roams with the winds, never staying in one place long. Some have even claimed to see her in Frontier Town, once in a blue moon."

"If you know the Escarpa, would you be willing to help us meet with them? I hear they'e trying to stop these demons and we'd like to try and help."

The Staraptor faced into the wind. "Even if I pointed you toward where I last encountered them, they might've moved on by the time you make it there. But..." His gaze turned steely. "If it is true that they intend to finally do something about the railway, then your best luck might be to follow the rail out of town. You might find their camp, but you would be well-served to have a strong resolve when you do--they're not fond of outsiders, let alone townies."

Cielo stepped down from the fountain ledge and swung his bag over his back, pulling the straps tight with his beak. "I've got a long flight ahead of me, so I'll be leaving town now. But not everyone can say that they have met the visitors called here from another world," he added.

 

[Namohysip]

"Mm. Take care," said Mhynt. "Speak of us if you can so they may be more prepared, perhaps, if you run into them. We would like to pool our knowledge and investigate all the happenings in this area... And, perhaps, find other ways to gain strength. From what I have heard about the Escarpa, perhaps they would not be against a spar with... exotic individuals such as ourselves."

Really, Mhynt had no idea if that was true or not. But it was better to come in transparently and straightforwardly for the Escarpa, if she had to guess. They didn't seem like the sort to appreciate secrecy or "towny" political maneuvers.

 

[Tetra]

Koa stifled his frustration. It wasn't really Cielo's fault if he couldn't introduce them. His paws were itching to try and find the Escarpa and learn about radiance and do anything. But the whole railway issue brought a whole new complication. It sounded like the Escarpa wanted to do something dangerous...

"Thank you for talking with us," Koa said, dipping his head. "Any other tips you can give us to help us make a good impression? We'd like to do what we can to learn about them and understand them better, so anything helps."

 

[Chibi Pika]

"From what I have heard about the Escarpa, perhaps they would not be against a spar with... exotic individuals such as ourselves."

The edge of the Staraptor's beak curled up slightly. "You have heard correctly."

"Thank you for talking with us," Koa said, dipping his head. "Any other tips you can give us to help us make a good impression? We'd like to do what we can to learn about them and understand them better, so anything helps."

Cielo gave the Electrike a hard look. "You are overthinking. To meet them on their terms, to seek understanding of their ways, and to show your heart through battle--that is all anyone can control. The rest is up to the winds."

With one last nod of acknowledgement to the group, he adjusted his bag's straps and then, almost as an afterthought, tucked the newspaper into a side pocket before spreading his wings and taking off.

<><><>​

 

[Ambyssin]

Unfortunately, Nova's route to bring this dead zoroark to the mayor involved going through the town square. It was... less early than before. So, people were out and about now. Nova simply had to look natural. Which was easy enough. He was a big guy carrying some big cargo on his back because he didn't have a wagon or anything to pull it with. Easy enough.

He stopped by the fountain and paused, trying to remember which way to the mayoral residence.

 

[Namohysip]

"...That's a body," someone said from just out of Nova's limited peripheral vision. The voice was... familiar, but deeper.

Grovyle Mhynt stood nearby, eyeing Nova, the body, and then the chip on his mask with slight interest. Still, with a small sigh, she added, "Are you going to explain?"

For now, it seemed they were out of earshot of others...

 

[Ambyssin]

Nova tensed, but it quickly faded when he identified the voice as Mhynt's. Surely, the others were going to have to know the details eventually. Well, to a certain degree, at least. And Powehi had led slip the Cipher bit, so some of the bandage was ripped. Not to mention the treeck—

... Oh.

The null shrank back slightly. Blinking rapidly. That hazy, flame-like shroud around the grovyle wasn't real. He knew that.

Shake it off. Shake it off.

Feeling Fein slipping, Nova bent his front over slightly to steady the zoroark. "Right. Mhynt, meet the Wolf. Wolf, meet Mhynt."

 

[Namohysip]

Mhynt blinked a few more times, then crossed her arms. "...Wasn't the Wolf... a different species? Or was he disguised the whole time?" she asked. "Quite impressive if so..."

The skepticism in her voice was palpable, but it also sounded like a challenge. A test, a mock debate.

"How many people have seen the Wolf before?" she pressed.

 

[Ambyssin]

"Like this? That'd be... some of our teammates," Nova said, without missing a beat. "And the guy whose mug he got on the posters instead of his."

 

[Namohysip]

"I see..." Mhynt nodded. "...I'll need to hear the full story on this later. I've been..." Her leaves twitched. "...Distracted. It seems I can't very easily... keep my form a Treecko here. So now I'm... this." She still didn't look comfortable in her own scales anymore. Instead, she tried to veer the subject away. "Seems you're close, too." She gestured to the broken piece of armor on his mask.

 

[Ambyssin]

But it was a spot Nova couldn't see with the lack of head movement and peripheral vision. It looked like she'd gestured to empty air. "Don't know what you're talking about. Hard to make friends when you... can't really help anyone in battle." He tapped a claw in the dirt. "Though I can't say I've really heard of pokémon who are unhappy evolving."

Nova clicked his tongue. "If I had to guess... something about what you mentioned in the dream?" He shrugged. "You don't have to say it if you don't want to. But I'm willing to listen."

Leaf said that's what good people did, right?

 

[Namohysip]

Mhynt looked instantly uncomfortable but it only showed in her eyes. Her body language seemed much calmer. Still, it was more of a reaction than when she'd seen the body...

She walked and talked. It was safer to do that than stand in the square.

"...This body has... bad memories associated with it," she said. "Even more when I evolve again. I'm... going to need to be strong when that happens. And remember that I'm not there anymore. I stayed a Treecko on purpose for a while since it... kept certain behaviors away."

 

[Ambyssin]

Nova knew that was about the best he was going to get. "So, you made a choice that defied fate, in a sense. And now Forlas is trying to force that fate on you."

He traced a claw through the dirt. Squiggles stacked on top of each other. "With how fast you guys are getting stronger, I wonder if our auras are malleable. And maybe with the right training, you can take that control back at some point."

 

[Namohysip]

"That would be nice," Mhynt hummed. "...But you're getting stronger, too, you know. Your stone mask is starting to chip away. Perhaps with one more training session, you'll find yourself a breakthrough."

The Grovyle shook her head. She had a faint smile. "Much easier than turning into something comfortable again for me, at least. Treecko would be difficult, and Lunala, well... I don't know if this world even knows of that species."

 

[Ambyssin]

"What?" Nova could've applied that to any of Mhynt's claims, but his pivoting around and around in a circle showed it was clearly the mask thing he was stuck on. He only stopped when he realized Fein was slipping off and had to readjust. "It doesn't feel any different than before. Still just as heavy and musty."