Ranger HQ Pueblo Quarters

[Shadow Serenity]

"...You may go to my heart, when you've had your fill of food," she said, softly. "I have opened a way. ...And wash your paws first."

That was far easier than Kimiko had dared hope, considering the challenges they'd faced getting aid from just about anyone else so far. And in exchange for... stories and trinkets? Easy enough, she figured. She was a songwriter, not a storyteller, but they were... similar enough.

"Thank you," she said with another small bow. "I promise we'll be clean," she added with a laugh. Sleep and food had done wonders on improving her mood.

 

[Phoenixsong]

"Thank you!" Leaf said brightly. "Means a lot that you're willing to trust us with this even though we've only just met. Really."

She'd make sure to carefully wipe off her hooves as well, of course. She didn't use them to eat or anything, but hey, it'd still be rude to track dirt all through the kitchen or dining room or what have you.

Bringing back souvenirs and stories, huh... Being a dungeon spirit and having all these rangers around sounded really cool, but maybe it was kind of lonely, too? "How long has it been since you've gotten to see any of the outside world, Sinopa? Like, what's the last place you really remember enjoying before you... stayed here?"

 

[Tetra]

"Thank you!" Koa echoed, smiling. The heart of a dungeon. Oddly, the thought filled him with anticipation and a hint of unease. What would it be like? For a moment he found himself wondering just what Sinopa would be able to see or sense, and how exactly it worked, being the... heart of a whole dungeon, but still aware.

"Like Leaf said, thank you for doing this, I know its a big deal, and we're still strangers. What kinds of stories would you like us to bring?"

 

[JFought]

Thinking about it, there was something existentially horrifying about Sinopa's existence. The espeon didn't appear bothered, but Isidora found herself hoping she'd be able to see outside this place again after all anyway. She nodded to her. "Thanks. Will do."

Isidora sat down at the table and decided to try again at her question. "So when the rooms shifted right then -- that's what I was curious about earlier. Everything's always changing yet no one ever seems to get lost. Do you just always know where everyone's goin' or somethin'?"

 

[Jackie Cat]

Sinopa smiled warmly, accepting the thanks, and put a rasher of fried meat in her mouth. It didn't seem to inhibit her ability to talk.

"Yeah, I rearrange the rooms so that everyone gets where they want to go. If I can make a reasonable guess, anyway. The dungeon does kinda shift on its own when I don't pay attention. Kinda like how you breathe and blink and fidget and all that whether you pay attention or not."

She turned to the others who'd asked questions.

"I used to be a ranger, remember? Technically they never took me off the books, so I'm the longest-serving Ranger of all time, pretty much. It's also been a really long time since I got to go on a mission. Or even just a wander around somewhere that isn't Pueblo Hideout. Here, I mean. I used to walk all over the Soja', season after season, visiting every kind of place. Used to take my sabbaticals in Obstine, out west. Can't go there any more. My last mission was down in Bedaurejo, back when... well. It's been a long time."

Sinopa had been about to say something more, but she'd cut herself off. Had something significant happened on her last mission?

The Espeon swallowed her rasher with evident pleasure.

"Anyway, I just like to get a sense of the world. Live vicariously through the Rangers and other guests. You get it."

 

[Shadow Serenity]

"Anyway, I just like to get a sense of the world. Live vicariously through the Rangers and other guests. You get it."

There sounded like a hint of something in the espeon's tone. Sadness, maybe? "Can you, uh... not leave the HQ anymore?" Kimiko asked in between bites. She hoped it wasn't a rude question. Given that Sinopa... fused with the dungeon or whatever happened there, it felt easy enough to guess... but then again, she'd never have guessed half the things that happened around dungeons anyway, so what did she know?

 

[Tetra]

Koa nodded, listening as he ate, savoring the food. Sinopa was a good cook.

"I would love to swap stories sometime," he said thoughtfully. "I haven't seen a lot of the land, but I can tell you about stuff from the world I'm from, or what we've seen since we came."

He wolfed down a few more bites, wondering how many meals he could persuade Sinopa to cook, and if it distracted her at all from minding the dungeon. Could she been in several places at once? "I would love to hear your stories too, if you don't mind sharing." For a moment, he found himself wondering if Sinopa knew much about what had happened with whatever crisis happened with the last hero. He'd have to ask her later...

 

[Jackie Cat]

Sinopa shook her head in response to Kimiko. Those strange, light-filled eyes held no small measure of regret. No, the spirit of the rift was bound to the rift. Sinopa could never leave the dungeon's shallows – likely just past the outer edge of the pueblos. Small wonder that the rooms were so decorated with keepsakes and trinkets.

She smiled at Koa, and did a sort of feline shrug with her ears and tail. "I like the sound of my own voice well enough to tell a story or two. So long as you have enough of your own in return."

Anything to stave off the ennui, one might think.

 

[Tetra]

"Sounds fair to me," he said amicably. He wondered if she ever regret achieving her goal... if it even had been. Had she chosen this life? Koa tapped his paw in thought, wondering what sorts of stories he could share. Maybe his travels as a trainer, and the things they'd seen in Frontier Town, or stories of legendaries from home. Would she like those? He really hoped so.

There was still a little time before they all finished eating... Maybe he could offer something small. "We met some Bramblin on the way here. A huge horde of them, like a river of tumbleweeds. My home doesn't even have a desert, much less tumbleweeds." Slight exaggeration, but then as an Electrike they were practically bigger than him.

"They cut off the whole path and I don't think there was an end in sight! And they were moving too slowly. It'd have taken us hours to wait or go around. Nico and Leaf and the others had a great idea though." He glanced around the table with a grin. "They combined a bunch of wind attacks to blow all the Bramblin way faster, and cleared the road. I think they were happy about the boost."

A brief sense of self consciousness came over him, and he took a few bites of his food to finish it off. It wasn't much but he hoped it showed a bit of good faith. Now all that remained was to actually make the connection...

 

[JFought]

Isidora ate her breakfast slowly, spending more time thinking than eating. She figured out her guess on why Sinopa fused with the dungeon, but she had a feeling her observation would only bring an already delicate mood down. So she kept it to herself for now.

She nodded along to Koa's account. "It was the first time I got to apply that move too. It really couldn't've worked out better."

Her focus went back to the remnants of her meal. "Anyway, if it's stories you want, I kinda make it my business to know a lot of 'em. Just ask when I'm around, I won't mind."

 

[Jackie Cat]

Sinopa smiled warmly as she listened to the recounting of the bramblin encounter, her tail quivering agreeably.

"I'll be glad to hear plenty of stories from you both," she remarked, beaming. "Thank for for the first~ Perhaps I'll trade you a story of my own, later? For now, once you're all quite finished, I believe we have business at the heart of the rift..."

The spirit of Pueblo Hideout wore an impish expression as she stole a stray sausage from the fullest plate. "Eat up!"

The food was delicious. Sinopa had evidently grown skilled from long practice, if she was as old as Nico had said. Once it was gone, and Sinopa had prompted the group to make good on the washing up, there was another heat-shimmer and the grinding of stone and clay, and a recess in the wall became a doorway to a different kind of room entirely. Time to make that anchorpoint after all, then...

<><><><><>​

 

[Tetra]

Koa paced around the quiet room, glancing ever so often at the door. Not long after he arrived and heard of the Oasis from Sybil, he'd sent word via Betel to ask Archie to make the trip out here.

But he hadn't actually had a chance to tell Archie everything he learned from Mhynt before he left. It felt weird still to share things through Betel. And some small part of him wanted to do it in person. He missed him. So he'd asked if Archie could meet him in private.

It felt like he'd wear a hole in the floor at this rate. Hopefully Sinopa wouldn't notice. His stomach had gotten into knots by now and his mind started to invent worse case scenarios. Would he be forced to turn on Archie? Hurt him? Hurt the team?

How did he explain it to Archie? And how did he explain this to everyone else?

 

[Weazel]

This was his first trip out to the Ranger HQ, and, suffice to say the place didn’t disappoint. The large sandstone windmill was quite eye catching in and of itself, of course The rest of the town around it was no less interesting to behold. He only wished he could’ve come here under better circumstances. Koa had asked for him to visit personally, and, while he was always happy to spend time with his friends, something about this summons felt… Ominous. He hadn’t been able to shake a sinking feeling from the pit of his stomach since he’d gotten it.

So, the Oshawott had hurried out as fast as he could. He wasn’t sure how he felt about the whole, using Mystery Dungeons as a means of teleporting across the frontier, thing. It was super convenient, even though it often left him feeling sick to his stomach on top of everything else. But it just, felt like it was bad, for the fabric of reality? Like this was probably a thing Powehi was not happy about them doing. But, it felt like every day they were needed further and further afield, for events that were happening faster and faster. There really was no other way around it. They’d just have to use their new teleportation network responsibly.

Of course, actually finding Koa once he’d reached the headquarters proved to be an adventure in of itself. The whole place was a maze of rooms and corridors that seemed to shift and change just enough to mock his lack of progress. Eventually the Oshawott just started opening every door he’d come across, knowing that somehow, eventually, by sheer process of elimination, one of them must have the Electrike behind it!

When he actually did find Koa, he froze halfway into the doorway. The Electrike looked like a bundle of nerves, ready to fire off at any second. Archie let himself the rest of the way into the room slowly, and closed the door behind himself, his expression one of obvious concern.

“Hey, you, uh, you doing okay?” He asked.

 

[Tetra]

The sense of relief when he saw Archie was almost overwhelming. He was fine, and he'd made it okay. "Yeah fine," he said, almost absent mindedly. He pushed ahead, quickly trying to gather his thoughts as he still paced,

"I... I talked to Mhynt more about Alex Xander, and I found out some more stuff. That's why I asked you to come here actually." He paused, stopping to gaze at Archie. "Are you feeling alright? Since we um... ran into him." Koa hadn't felt anything off, but maybe Archie had?

 

[Weazel]

Mhynt? Well, if anyone knew more about that Zweilous, it would be the Treecko. She was the one who demanded his death, after all. Still, the Electrike didn’t exactly scream fine, to the Oshawott. He didn’t want to worry the Electric Type further, but, at the same time, he felt like being evasive wouldn’t do either of them any favors.

“Well, it’s been a pretty stressful couple days,” he admitted, before taking a few steps away from the door, towards Koa. He didn’t want to risk people overhearing their conversation. “All this shadow stuff’s been dredging up a lot of guilt. I’ve had a couple people tell me off for blaming myself for everything.”

He tried to make it sound almost like a humorous anecdote, but Archie didn’t think he quite got there. Honestly, it had gone alright with Leaf and Nova, and he’d managed to turn things around with Odette and Wes – speaking of, he really needed to ask Koa about what had happened between him and his fellow blue canine. But then with Steven… He’d really messed up that conversation start to finish.

"That's uh, how I felt when the shadow got really overwhelming, back during the fight with Seth," he added, "Guilty. I think that might be the negativity it keys into, with me?"

 

[Tetra]

Koa stared at his paws. For a moment, his own guilt redoubled at the thought of what Archie was struggling with, but he quickly stuffed it down. "I'm sorry." He felt even worse too, knowing what he had to tell Archie. "How about we split the blame, fifty fifty?" he asked, in an awkward attempt at a sort of humor, smiling humorlessly.

Archie's confessions brought with it wave of uncomfortable feelings, remembering how... angry, the way he'd blurted everything out...

"Mhynt was able to tell me some more stuff. We already know who Alex is but, apparently back where he comes from, he's also skilled at manipulating shadows, or something like it. But his real power was... control. He could control people by using shadows, without them even knowing. Some kind of hook in their spirit." The words came out heavy and hesitant. "I'm worried he could have done it to us."

 

[Weazel]

“Listen, Koa, that… It’s not a healthy way to think,” he said. The last thing he wanted right now was for the Electrike to apologize for him, or start talking about taking blame. It was like everyone said, it would’ve happened to anyone, eventually. They were just the two dumb enough to be the first potential victims. And ultimately, that was what they were, victims. Just as much as anyone else who’d gotten the the Shadow through Betel because of them… Maybe he’d believe it if he kept telling himself that.

What Koa said next though, that made his blood run cold. Alex could control people by using shadow? How did one even get such a power? Was everyone at risk? They all could use the Shadow, after all! He brought a paw up to his muzzle, suddenly feeling like he might be sick.

“What should we do?” He asked, “If everyone’s at risk of getting possessed, we have to warn everyone!”

 

[Tetra]

Koa decided not to point out that it was true, it was his fault.

"Mhynt said he can do it with a touch." Koa's gut churned. They should warn the others, but he had no idea how to explain that on top of everything else that had happened. The way they would look at him...

"We can tell the others but. It sounds like this might apply to anyone touched by Alex. Which means us." He sighed and sat down, staring at the floor. "I think thats how he really controlled Drapion."

Shaking himself he looked back to Archie. He continued hurriedly, realizing he hadn't mentioned their one ray of hope. "But maybe there's a way to fix it! One of the rangers, Sybil, said there's a divine dungeon and a Purifying Spirit, and it can cleanse any ailment! It's going to appear soon." Despite the confidence and eagerness in his voice, it was undercurrent by a desperate anxiousness.

 

[Weazel]

It had to be with a touch? That made sense, he distinctly remembered the Drapion had only calmed after it pierced Alex’s own hand with its pincer. They’d made physical contract in that moment. But… Had Alex touched them at all? He’d certainly struck them, with that shadowy bolt of lightning. The Oshawott tried to replay the encounter in his head, but it wasn’t like he was blessed with perfect recall or anything like that. And it was better to play it safe than sorry, anyway.

“Does he have to be actively touching you to, you know, command you?” he asked, “Or is touching someone once enough? Either way, we have to make sure everyone knows not to let him touch you.”

If he could command them from anytime, anywhere, then, didn’t that mean that they were a danger to their friends and comrades? It was their fears of losing themselves to the shadow corruption all over again! He imagined himself being forced to turn his scalchop against his friends, and the thought made him feel that much sicker. So it didn’t take much to make him latch on to Koa’s potential solution. To be honest, it sounded almost too good to be true. A spirit that could cleanse any ailment? … But, what was the alternative? Sit around and wait for Alex to puppeteer them?

“It’s worth a try, at least,” he nodded. Then, he tried to steel his confidence, and gave the Electrike his most reassuring smile, “No, I’m sure it’ll work. We’ll beat this yet, Koa. I promise.”

 

[Tetra]

"From what Mhynt said, maybe not. He could have already done it. The only real way to know would be finding a way to cure it, or some kind of... aura reader? But if this Purifying Spirit can heal us, maybe we'll be okay. We'll beat this." Maybe if he said it enough he'd believe it. Maybe he'd stop feeling like a failure. Maybe he could forget what Wes had said.

An uncomfortable silence fell. It felt bad enough asking Archie, but he'd seen already how he'd slipped up against him. "If we... if anything happens. Would... will you stop me? If things go too far?" He would have asked Odette, but she might not be here. Leaf mentioned going, but it felt wrong to drag her into all this.

And he felt like he owed the team to set things right.