Sojaveña Wilds Bedaurejo Castle Mystery Dungeon

[Namohysip]

"Mm. I see." Mhynt nodded. "Well. I've had the willpower in my 'off-world' to avoid falling into darkness for a very long time at this point. Whatever we're facing here shouldn't be so bad by comparison. What are we dealing with?"

 

[Jackie Cat]

Laura's face screwed up with effort and a sort of wheezing, purr-like groan escaped her chest as her body began to heal. She reached for the berry from Kimiko with a whispered thanks, and practically inhaled the fucking thing.

"Alight, let's see," she muttered, thickly. "Talks. Gotta... talk about it."

The silver Meowth struggled to her feet, and she discarded her item satchel, caring more for the absense of its weight on her aching shoulders than for any use it might have. She coughed, swallowed, looked around for the rest of the party. Caught sight of Isidora licking her wounds – literally. Somehow, Laura got the impression she'd want to do that alone. She kicked her bag towards the Sneasel anyway, trying not to look as if she was deliberately sending an oran her way, or directly at her.

"I'm guessing—" she began, before her chest and throat rebelled with another bout of coughing. "Fuck. I'm guessing that this 'Coven' is more insidious than abjectly malevolent. Hope you don't mind if we don't already know why we're fighting them. Only, it's just that we haven't even met them yet."

 

[Cresselia92]

Silver stared inquisitively into Valere’s eyes, almost as if trying to grasp his thought process. Psychics sure loved their little mind-games and psycho-physical challenges, didn’t they?

“Huh. Okay. And how’s beating the living lights outta us supposed to test our willpower, anyway?” He crossed his arms and tilted his head, perplexed. “Not that I don’t enjoy a good tussle, mind you! But… Well…”

The now-Sneasel humphed and looked away, his claws unconsciously digging into his arms as he sorted through the flurry of contrasting thoughts.

That entire situation was so confusing, and being both physically and mentally exhausted didn’t help fend off the whispers of his past. He could still hear her, in the darkest corners of his mindscape, mocking him for believing that someone with a tainted heart could make a difference by pursuing a noble goal.

Silver exhaled sharply and glared at the air, the sheer spite stopping his other emotions from pouring out. That wasn’t the right time. He was… strong… yes! Yes, he was! He had to be!

“…I’m not sure I get it. Not totally, at least.”

 

[Chibi Pika]

“Huh. Okay. And how’s beating the living lights outta us supposed to test our willpower, anyway?”

Valere gave the mountain Sneasel a pointed look. "You should know by now that battle is how we understand each other's hearts. When I first heard that such a large group of... of offworlders had arrived, I feared the worst. And now..."

The Gallade glanced away, his expression distant. "Everyone comes here wanting to help the world, even humans. The problem is that their idea of helping is unacceptable to me. I'll oppose it with all my being."

"I'm guessing—" she began, before her chest and throat rebelled with another bout of coughing. "Fuck. I'm guessing that this 'Coven' is more insidious than abjectly malevolent. Hope you don't mind if we don't already know why we're fighting them. Only, it's just that we haven't even met them yet."

Valere gazed at the Meowth, his expression hard to read. "It's true--there's no way you could know that yet. And that's why..."

He sighed deeply. "Even if I still feel deeply that trusting humans again is a grave mistake, it would be a worse mistake to let the Coven get to you all first. I can't know that you can be trusted. I can't share anything that might endanger those who rely on me to protect them. But I can tell you of our fight."

"Well. I've had the willpower in my 'off-world' to avoid falling into darkness for a very long time at this point. Whatever we're facing here shouldn't be so bad by comparison. What are we dealing with?"

"'Into darkness,'" Valere repeated, and there was the slightest trace of an ironic grin. "In our fight, we oppose the light."

The Gallade paused for a moment, sitting down on a piece of crumbled pillar, his tattered covert cloak draped around his lanky frame. For a moment, he looked far older, far more tired.

"The Covenant of Light. Coven, for short. They're an organization that aims to prevent humans from misusing their power. To protect the world because it's their 'duty' as humans to do so. To promote order and enlightenment because they're the only ones that can." He spoke the words as if they were poison.

"People join the Coven because they want to save the world, and they're told that they have a special power that can do that, if it's only used the right way, and that the Coven will show them what that way is. It's not hard for them to go from that, to thinking that the Pokemon of this world need to be saved from ourselves, because we're too violent and uncivilized to live our own lives free from human influence."

 

[Namohysip]

"Hmph." Mhynt nodded along. "Countless people hide behind false light to do their deeds in the shadows. I'm sure this Coven is no different." She shrugged. "That explains why we were warned from certain individuals to be careful who we told about our nature. Now, I'm not human, never was. Born a Treecko, and followed that line." And Lunala but that wasn't important right now.

"In the world I'm from, I worked with gods and saw their virtues and their misdeeds. No organization that touts perfect authority deserves such a title. But, of course, I would be interested in seeing their actual impact on the world, if they are to be stopped.

"What have they done?"

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Gladion couldn't help be curious about what Valere and Farin were thinking. But it wasn't worth lingering on something he couldn't possibly get an answer to.

“You know this firsthand, then?”

Gladion hesitated, because Valere was right but the feeling of scrutiny left him uncertain how to respond.

“It’s… Yeah. I do.”

Fortunately for his desire not to be drilled on the details, the conversation had kept moving around him.

Listening to Valere explain what he knew offered a welcome chance to collect and steel himself.

“Thank you for sharing what you safely can, at least. It sounds… uncomfortably familiar to me. Don’t know where to go from there, though.”

 

[Cresselia92]

Valere gave the mountain Sneasel a pointed look. "You should know by now that battle is how we understand each other's hearts. When I first heard that such a large group of... of offworlders had arrived, I feared the worst. And now..."

The Gallade glanced away, his expression distant. "Everyone comes here wanting to help the world, even humans. The problem is that their idea of helping is unacceptable to me. I'll oppose it with all my being."

Blink. Blink again. Blink once more. That’s all Silver could do as he stared back at the Gallade, trying to make a sense out of his words. “Hmm. I see.”

Yeah, he understood that battling was an important part of that world’s society — heck, it was the centerpiece in his own world, too — but what was all that stuff about ‘hearts’ now?

Unless… Ah! Perhaps that had something to do with a Pokémon’s natural empathy and their innate ability to link with others, including humans. Something about the Pokemon having the ability to ‘glimpse into someone’s heart’ and to connect their auras — the so-called synergy. At the time, he believed that was just some mumbo-jumbo spewed by bleeding hearts, but maybe there was something more he didn’t know about.

However, Silver was no born Pokemon. He was a human, who still struggled understanding his own heart, let alone others’. But he definitely wasn’t going to ask more information to some guy with an attitude who was dealing with their presence only because he had to, not because he wanted to.

By the time Silver collected both his thoughts and his poncho — being half-naked wasn’t exactly going to help his case — the conversation had shifted. Something about a Covenant of Light or a similarly stupid-sounding society with equally stupid foundations. He grumbled and pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling his rage bubbling once more in his chest.

“Tch! Talk about entitled idiots! Of course there had to be people who can’t resist meddling with others’ businesses and senses of agency!” he spat bitterly, shaking his head. “Not the kinda guys you wanna hang out with, that’s for sure! They’re always right, even when they are wrong! Especially when they are wrong!”

Silver breathed deeply, letting the fresh air cool down his anger. “…Alright. Okay. Quite the complicated situation you’ve got here, but whatever! There’s always a solution to problems.” He stared again at Valere. “You don’t approve their methods, and that’s more than fair. So the question is… what kinda help are you looking for?”

 

[Chibi Pika]

"In the world I'm from, I worked with gods and saw their virtues and their misdeeds. No organization that touts perfect authority deserves such a title. But, of course, I would be interested in seeing their actual impact on the world, if they are to be stopped.

Valere gave Mhynt a curious look. Perhaps it was the casual mention of working with gods.

"I can't explain the whole thing in one conversation. And it's not something I would have expected offworlders to care about--they don't kill children in the streets, or whatever you might imagine evil looks like. But their impact on the world is one that threatens our way of life. They have no concern for what Forlasan mon want--since their founding, they've made our nations into copies of human society in the name of progress."

The Gallade glanced away, his gaze distant. "And even if I agreed with their goals, they're not above using screwed up methods to get what they want."

“Thank you for sharing what you safely can, at least. It sounds… uncomfortably familiar to me. Don’t know where to go from there, though.”

“…Alright. Okay. Quite the complicated situation you’ve got here, but whatever! There’s always a solution to problems.” He stared again at Valere. “You don’t approve their methods, and that’s more than fair. So the question is… what kinda help are you looking for?”

Valere closed his eyes. "In truth, I wasn't looking for help when I first had Farin scout ahead at Frontier Town. My concern was judging the scope of threat that we'd potentially be facing. But now..." The Gallade leaned back, fixing his crimson eyes on the moonlit clouds overhead. "Most of the Coven's activity is to the east, in Landsverd--they don't have much influence out on the frontier yet. But that's all going to change once the railroad is completed. If you're serious about resisting the Coven, then you'll need to watch for signs of their influence spreading west."

He paused, as though unsure how to word his next thought. "Use the time before that happens to ready yourselves."

 

[Jackie Cat]

She almost laughed. How did you fight something like Valere described? It felt like they'd done more to fight the Vanguard than the Coven, albeit as ritual battle. It'd been... thrilling, though. Like the moment in the air before Malachai caught her, when the terror lived in her for a moment as she fell. She'd got some idea of Valere's and Farin's spirits herself, though she was no psychic herself. Call it trainer's intuition.

"You two remind me of my noivern partner back home," she said, starting to chuckle. "He's always telling me..." —cough, laugh— "...to have conviction. It's his favourite thing. Believe in what I'm doing, believe in my teammates, believe in the fight being worth it even if it looks unwinnable. I thought this fight was unwinnable, but..." —clear throat, sniff— "...I guess not, huh? Those lectures of his paid off."

The pain in her chest was already ebbing as the healing took effect. A second ago she'd been worried she couldn't walk away from the fight. Now, it felt like she could go another round after a proper breather...

"I don't know how we can fight the Coven as we are. So... We'll get looking for a way. We'll figure it out."

 

[Chibi Pika]

Valere gazed at the Meowth, looking almost surprised. And maybe a bit nostalgic. He then stood up and walked over to stand next to Farin before glancing back at the offworlders.

"When that day comes, I expect we might meet again."

 

[JFought]

Isidora rested her injured arm on the ground and stared at Laura's bag. Why'd she...? Is there a reviver seed in there? She almost wanted to check... but anxiety held her back. It was just easier to lie there and deal with her aches.

At Valere's explanation of the Coven, Isidora's eyes narrowed. Not that she was surprised. So it's humans trying to control everything. It made sense now, why he felt the need for all of this. The group might as well have had a giant target on their back, and it was only a matter of time before the Coven would be next to test them. Though from the way he described it, their ideals sounded almost like a warped version of what a noble might believe. Arrogance always comes in similar forms, she figured.

His response to the treecko, however, got her curious.

They have no concern for what Forlasan mon want--since their founding, they've made our nations into copies of human society in the name of progress.

Multiple things occurred to her upon hearing this. The first was how familiar it sounded, albeit for reasons far removed from anything Valere would likely understand. The second was a thought she had back when she talked with Laura in the library... You're jumping to some crazy conclusions there, Isidora. For now, what she could say for certain was that the Coven sounded big: enough to give them access to the substantial amount of political power they'd need to be able to drive that kind of project.

The last thing was a question. If human society didn't exist on Forlas, how did he know to make the comparison?

...She had the feeling there was a lot to his past he didn't want to talk about. So she didn't ask.

Isidora slowly pushed herself up, ignoring her body's complaints, and stood straight with her right arm protectively crossed over her left. There was still some wounded pride from the way the battle ended for her, but she was willing to trust Valere. "I think it's askin' a lot to expect us to fight somethin' as big as you made the Coven sound. But, thanks for telling us about it. We'll..."

She didn't have enough confidence to say 'we.' "...I'll watch out for them."

 

[Shadow Serenity]

"Even if I still feel deeply that trusting humans again is a grave mistake, it would be a worse mistake to let the Coven get to you all first. I can't know that you can be trusted. I can't share anything that might endanger those who rely on me to protect them. But I can tell you of our fight."

But their impact on the world is one that threatens our way of life. They have no concern for what Forlasan mon want--since their founding, they've made our nations into copies of human society in the name of progress

Tired as she was, Kimiko was content to sit and rest while observing the battle's aftermath. She was no politician, and these sort of... meetings weren't really her area of expertise.

She found it odd that Valere still didn't really trust them. Wasn't that the whole point of doing battle? He'd wanted to see what was in their hearts, and the team proved they could back up what they said... maybe it was more in their words, and it was the things they'd said, not their battle prowess, that had failed Valere's inspection. After Isidora's pre-fight outburst, it was a reasonable assumption.

Valere's follow-up was what caught her interest. In a world where only sentient pokemon existed and had their own thriving society, a group of humans imposing their views on how the world should be run instantly jumped to the top of the "why the hell were we summoned here in such great numbers" checklist. Nothing confirmed, of course, but given the context and lack of anything else that even came close... again, a reasonable assumption.

And even if it turned out to not be the reason they'd been summoned... well, she had a feeling a number of off-worlders wouldn't sit idly by and allow this to happen along the way, anyway.

"Use the time before that happens to ready yourselves."

"We'll be ready," Kimiko said firmly. "Just make sure you are, too."

 

[Namohysip]

Mhynt nodded along, listening to the explanation, incomplete as it was.

"I hope we can have a more thorough conversation with evidence later, then," she said flatly, with the clear underpinning of 'I will not be loyal to your cause without backing.' She figured that was a fair enough statement.

She agreed with the others, though. "Regardless, we do plan to train and prepare. That much you have nothing to worry about."

 

[Inkedust]

Farin was listening to the ongoing conversation, sporadically looking back at Valere as everyone stated their initiatives. When Valere approached her, she opened her wings, silently offering him to climb back on.

'I like the enthusiasm!' her "voice" chirped in the back of everyone's minds. 'See, Valere? I told you things were probably going to be alright. These guys act like they've jumped right out of the pages of a dramatic recounting of those human stories.' Her tail swung a few times to the left and right. 'I hope it won't be long until our next meeting and I hope you guys keep your wits about you when dealing with those Coven guys if you happen to come across them, otherwise Valere won't be so inclined to hold back the next time we meet!'

Farin then nodded at the gallade, indicating that she was ready to go, offering one final, friendly smile towards the group of offworlders.

 

[Jackie Cat]

Laura watched Valere climb back on his Noivern – but he wasn't her trainer, was he? They were two pokémon. They worked together, as partners.

Well, so did Laura and Malachai. She always called him her partner, no matter that she was human. They weren't so different from Valere and Farin – and maybe... Maybe there was no meaningful difference, if you didn't think there was one...

To be fair, this dragon and rider pair had pretty different temperaments, but they were still just two people fighting something much bigger than them, too big to just battle. Laura felt tired and afraid enough in a group of dozens. She wondered just how tired and afraid Valere might be, almost alone out here, confronting dozens of potential new recruits to the enemy he fought.

"Good luck," she called, suddenly painfully sympathetic to the cloaked Gallade. "Thanks for giving us a chance. We'll tell the others what we learned tonight."

 

[Chibi Pika]

Valere glanced at Farin and sighed. "Always optimistic," he said, shaking his head. Still, it didn't seem like he had any intention to ask her to stop. Maybe he even relied on it.

"I'll hold onto that hope that the day won't come that we meet at enemies, then," the Gallade said, drawing his cloak tighter around his shoulders as he clung to Farin's mane. Then, with one great, powerful flap, the two launched into the air, soaring off into the night sky, the moonlight glimmering off dragon wings.

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