Tenacinde Modareno Outskirts

[Jackie Cat]

Esperanza's grin widened even further, confirming that this was indeed criminal.

"You needn't worry at all, my friend. You'll have uniforms to wear, after all. You'll pass as guardias just fine so far as the soldiers at the border are concerned. And hey, if they are suspicious, maybe they'll look the other way for a pretty penny – which you'll have plenty of."

 

[JFought]

Twig would have loved to indulge in the offered wine, but to do so unfortunately would have been too incongruous with his deception. Instead he could only steal rueful glances as he ate his food. It taunts me! If only I had the foresight...

(He also noticed the red star on the horizon, but figured there must be some mundane explanation for it. Either way, it didn’t seem relevant to mention at the moment.)

He watched the map and visualised the mission as Esperanza explained it. His ears perked at the mention of 'guns' (on second look, Odette's firearm was noticeably more advanced than what he was familiar with), and he nodded to signal his understanding of the plan. It almost seems too simple, though I suppose that can be owed to the convenience of having an accomplice.

Though this was all still remarkably strange, as it sounded as if she had already planned this heist before meeting them. Had she been waiting on this road for just any impressionable strangers to whom she could foist this task upon? It occurred to him that this was precisely the type of job one would hire a zoroark for, which made Gladius' presence rather convenient for Esperanza. Am I too paranoid? She has demonstrated her trustworthiness, yet I have trouble believing this is all coincidence.

Unfortunately, he was not currently in a position to ask directly. How would I, a kitten, test these concerns?

"A uniform?" He looked over his body with performative worry. "But I’m so small." Brilliant! "I’ve never worn clothes before, what if it doesn’t fit me?" He's a genius! And for the final touch, he flicked his tail and made eye contact for only a second, as if the weight of the Thorn's trust was too much for his tiny body to bear. "And, are you not coming with us? Will it just be your friend?" How does he get away with it?!

 

[Sinderella]

Food. Shelter(?). A place to sit. A place to rinse off. All things immediately needed, and all things immediately checked. Granted, rinsing off in a stream wasn’t much better than gutter water, but this water at least looked, felt, and smelled much cleaner.

“I miss my bath,” Odette grumbled to herself while she scrubbed caked mud off her face.

“Sweetheart, you’re gonna need more than a bath. You need a whole ass exorcism,” Guzma groused as he tried to figure out how one was supposed to clean badger fur. He didn’t train any bug types that had fucking fur. It was one thing to have a lot of hair on your head, as he did (praise his super sexy Alolan genes), but it was another to have it packed in all over your fucking body.

With an annoyed grunt, he plunged his head into the water, savoring the light chill, hoping and praying it would wake him up from this shit. All he got was a dim light soaring over his head and a warbled ‘POP.’ He promptly resurfaced to see a smoking hole burnt straight through the tree directly behind him. His face tensed with a look that screamed every expletive simultaneously, and he turned in time to catch Odette shrugging and returning to whatever high-maintenance bullshit she was up to.

He really did have a type. Small and some brand of fucking deranged.

Back at camp, with the downtime to eat and be as merry as the circumstances allowed, Odette tried to get as much food into her constricting stomach as it would allow, while Guzma found interest in that distant red star.

“Huh. That bitch don’t look ominous at all,” he muttered between bites of his snack.

Esperanza announcing her plan to the group held more of Odette’s attention. She listened closely, eyeing the map with careful scrutiny while the gears in her head went to work trying to ensure what she was hearing and visualizing made sense. At some point, she had to laugh to herself.

“So, ruining the lives of corrupt ruling figures just runs in the family, huh?” she asked with genuine curiosity. “A career path I can get behind.”

She traced a finger over the path they’d be taking, carved over the crude map. “Clearly a lot of thought has gone into this, that much I’m not disputing…but were you just waiting for a group of unsuspecting travelers to come along and agree to assist? And do you have any contingencies provided something were to go wrong?”

 

[Phoenixsong]

Oh, was that all.

"And if we're not guard-y enough and payin' the real guys off doesn't work? What then?" Blue asked, glaring disapprovingly at the scratched-out map from his spot by the fire. "What's the back-up plan for when it all goes wrong and the border guards decide they don't like the wagon full of guys who're only, what, fifty percent fighters, at best?

"Look, I dunno if we've made it clear exactly how lost we are. We're not supposed to be here. We weren't supposed to be in that hell dungeon we wound up in. I have no clue what's going on, aside from none of it's got anything to do with me. I'm not even supposed to be a—" God. Where to even start. Was it worth starting at all? Were multiverses and dream brain kidnappers common knowledge on Made-Up Planet? Or, if he tried to explain where he was actually from, would it sound as insane to her as it did to him?

He sighed, gave up, and looked between Gladius and Odette. Still didn't love the idea of following either of them, but they were the only ones who knew anything about anything at all. "Where are we actually going? Can we even still get there from 'Battery' or whatever?"

 

[Jackie Cat]

"A uniform?" He looked over his body with performative worry. "But I’m so small. I’ve never worn clothes before, what if it doesn’t fit me? And, are you not coming with us? Will it just be your friend?"

Esperanza grinned at 'Twig' with naked delight.

"You, my friend, are surely underestimating yourself, 'uh? I was only your size when I first apprenticed under the Sword Saint – and younger, I expect."

The Cheshire grin grew ever-wider.

"Dioses, imagine if we could have you evolve. You could impersonate me, 'uh? Or the Thorn, rather."

“So, ruining the lives of corrupt ruling figures just runs in the family, huh?” she asked with genuine curiosity. “A career path I can get behind.”

Esperanza winked at Odette with evident satisfaction. Yes, yes it did!

“Clearly a lot of thought has gone into this, that much I’m not disputing…but were you just waiting for a group of unsuspecting travelers to come along and agree to assist? And do you have any contingencies provided something were to go wrong?”

"Nnnnot as such," she said, turning coy. "I had, you might say, a visión. A blessing from my master – I was expecting you. If it were not for you, I would have made do on my own, or waited for another opportune moment. In truth, I rather liked the odds of success as they were. If I am right to trust you, I have every confidence the plan will succeed. In any case, Don Rodrigo's attentions will be on me, not on you."

"And if we're not guard-y enough and payin' the real guys off doesn't work? What then? What's the back-up plan for when it all goes wrong and the border guards decide they don't like the wagon full of guys who're only, what, fifty percent fighters, at best?"

The Floragato put her paws up, mollifying.

"The ideal is that you aren't even stopped at the border – there isn't the manpower to stand guard at all times. Failing that, I've seen to it that the border guards on duty at this time are in on the plan, and wish to see the Baron humiliated, and they will let you pass. Failing that, guards can most certainly be bribed. Failing that, you may fight... or flee. And in the event that you are so unfortunate as to be captured, I swear on my life that I shall effect your rescue personally."

She chuckled to herself, smirking mildly.

"Of course, all this is a safer route to your destination than any alternative you're likely to find."

"Look, I dunno if we've made it clear exactly how lost we are. We're not supposed to be here. We weren't supposed to be in that hell dungeon we wound up in. I have no clue what's going on, aside from none of it's got anything to do with me. I'm not even supposed to be a— Where are we actually going? Can we even still get there from 'Battery' or whatever?"

Gladius grunted, pawing at his muzzle. "We're in the Protectorate, just south of the Commonwealth border. We need to get into the Commonwealth. If not here, then... Well, I can't say I'm too familiar with Tenacinde. But I doubt we'll get a better chance than this. I'd rather not take any risks, but the alternative to this is just. Other risks. So."

He groaned miserably. He sounded almost adolescent.

"I guess this plan has my fucking vote. For want of any better options."

 

[Phoenixsong]

The answer didn't matter, in the end. Wherever these people were going, he had to go, too. Couldn't exactly strike out on his own as a baby growlithe in a paranoid country on a fake planet full of impossible dungeons and talking pokémon with guns. Like it or not, maybe getting arrested during a silver heist with a buncha weirdos was preferable to definitely getting eaten by a wandering ghost or rogue chickenstein.

Blue sniffed at the profferred wine. A suspiciously sisterly voice in the back of his mind asked what he thought he was doing. Why, I'm saving the day for this poor, troubled town! Figure a selfless soul like me deserves a little slack.

"Fine." He pulled a swig, then pulled a face when it was even drier than the scent had prepared him for. Ngh. Never mind. "Ain't like I've never screwed over a bunch of scumbags before." Office complex full of Rockets, road full of dodgy border guards, same difference, right? His team wasn't here, they weren't here, but a kitten and a couple rejects from the world's most convoluted science-western pilot would do in a pinch. Why not? (Seemed as likely a shot as any of the other nonsense in this place. God, this was stupid.)

He set the rest of his drink aside and gave a pretty damn convincing dismissive wave. "I can do it again. Bet it'll be a total cakewalk compared to my last run-in, actually."

Maybe he wouldn't even ruin everything this time.

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Lillian quietly pumped her fist to herself when Gladius resigned himself to approving of this plan. After all, this sounded like an exciting thing to get involved with, the kind of thing she would never have been brave enough to do as a human. She trusted Esperanza’s word that it was safe enough for them. After all, she just radiated archetypical heroism down to the prophetic dreams.

“Do you have visions of the future often? Or are we…” special, somehow “Unusual? I mean, if you were pretty sure you could do it on your own and we’re not sure if we’ll see each other again, then it would be an odd thing to have revealed to you. But, I don’t know, maybe we will meet again…”

Lillian looked distant for a moment as she tried to estimate how likely it unlikely it would be for them to meet Esperanza again, before realizing there was one variable she didn’t know how to account for: Time. How long would she be here for? Gladius had been here longer than her, obviously, but how much longer? She shot him a nervous look.

“Do we, um, go home at any point?”

 

[Jackie Cat]

"Fine. Ain't like I've never screwed over a bunch of scumbags before. I can do it again. Bet it'll be a total cakewalk compared to my last run-in, actually."

The Floragato beamed at Blue, and raised her glass to him in approval.

"I think that's a majority of your group in favour, yes? I do home you make your decisions democratically, haha!"

“Do you have visions of the future often? Or are we… Unusual? I mean, if you were pretty sure you could do it on your own and we’re not sure if we’ll see each other again, then it would be an odd thing to have revealed to you. But, I don’t know, maybe we will meet again…”

The vigilante smiled warmly at her. "I couldn't say, little lady. Fate is a strange mistress, is she not? My master, she is not always plain with me about her powers – abilities that may one day be my responsibility to bear – but I sense these visions are something she has been experiencing only in the last, mm... half a month or so? They lead me to meet with some other strange 'mon a week ago, and now I have met with you, my friends. These fated meetings, the red star – these are strange times, 'uh?"

“Do we, um, go home at any point?”

Esperanza's eyes went to Gladius' face, read his expression, and narrowed inquisitively. "What does she mean, your little lady companion?" asked the cat. "I have the sense that she doesn't just mean your journey north."

Gladius shook his head, jaw tightening. "No. She means go back where we came from – from a different world."

The cat's eyes went wide. "Be you angels, then?"

"No. Just... people from somewhere else." The Zoroark glanced at Lillian, his face obviously rueful even by his standards. "You guys might have a ticket back home. I'm more of a... castaway. Jury's still out on whether there's a way back, for me."

There was something conflicted in his eyes, something he wasn't saying. Maybe it was something he was actively wrestling with, maybe it was something he wouldn't volunteer in mixed company, maybe he was just reserved about his inner demons.

 

[JFought]

"You, my friend, are surely underestimating yourself, 'uh? I was only your size when I first apprenticed under the Sword Saint – and younger, I expect."

"Gods, imagine if we could have you evolve. You could impersonate me, 'uh? Or the Thorn, rather."

Twig's tail lashed as his questions went entirely unanswered. I had almost forgotten what it was like to be dismissed and patronised. I suppose I should have expected this. Somehow, he got the impression that Esperanza could see through his facade, but he dismissed that thought for being paranoid and presently unhelpful. What he really needed was to shed 'Twig' for a more familiar mask, one without all these burdensome character traits. He was becoming increasingly frustrated with them.

He did still get answers, however. At some point he would have to thank Odette for asking his intended question on his behalf. For the most part, he could say he was satisfied with this plan.

"If we're all going, then I'll help too," he said. "When do we leave?"

That was particularly important for him to know. It would be necessary for planning Twig's exit, the ideas for which had already begun circulating in his head...

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Lillian’s eyes sought the floor as Gladius elaborated on the differing nature of their presences on Forlas.

“Oh. I’m sorry…”

For what? That he might not be able to go home? That she was going to? That they were bound to be parted again? She wasn’t sure herself, but it crossed her lips sounding more apologetic than purely sympathetic. As if it was her fault, this time, that they could not remain together.

Though she hadn’t been drinking that much wine, it also didn’t take much wine to have an effect on her as a fairy whose body weight was probably half coming from the boneyard’s rainwater in her hair. Enough of an effect to make her clingy towards Gladius for the rest of the night. Holding onto him to whatever extent he would tolerate, like she was scared her brother would slip away from her once again.

 

[Jackie Cat]

Twig's tail lashed as his questions went entirely unanswered.

"If we're all going, then I'll help too," he said. "When do we leave?"

Esperanza beamed at him. "At the crack of dawn, if you're all well for it," she replied. "I'll part ways with you once we reach the town, with you in the capable care of my associate and— Ah, the uniforms will already be there, and I suspect there will be one that fits you, my friend – the essential components are a hat and cloth armband, which you can most certainly wear. As for myself, I have other business – a personal errand concerning Don Rodrigo..."

That was Twig's questions answered, then. Perhaps Esperanza was just the type to focus on attitude and morale before such a trivial thing as practical details. Even so, it sounded like her plan did account for such things.

(That pause, though. Was there a second individual they sohuld be expecting, along with the stagecoach's hauler?)

Enough of an effect to make her clingy towards Gladius for the rest of the night. Holding onto him to whatever extent he would tolerate, like she was scared her brother would slip away from her once again.

Gladius remained his usual, broody self, but he made no attempt to deter Lillian's physical affection. His face wore a momentary confusion at first, then settled into a poignant sort of acceptance. For him, this was something as familiar and as long-lost as his own – former – body. He would not say that he had missed it (and could never say that), but he could let it be. He could let two the of them be.

It seemed that with libations of wine and the warm outdoor air of Tenacinde putting them in a drowsy state, the party would rest easily tonight. The Thorn's camp was comfortable enough, in any case. Come morning, it would be time for their mission...

 

[Shiny Phantump]

It took Lillie a moment to ground herself in the realities of her current situation when she awoke again, still in Forlas, still inhuman. But also still with her brother. She wiped at her eyes, as it sunk in that she’d volunteer to help commit a crime. And told everyone to call her ‘Lillian’ to sound more… like an actual adult, as Mother would’ve put it. (She didn’t see what was wrong with her nickname, it felt like it was practically just her name now.) Best to remember she’d said that was something she’d been calling herself for a while now so that she wouldn’t get caught out lying about it.

“Are we… doing that thing now?”

She said ‘that thing’ in a lower tone than usual, as if worried someone would overhear.

Perhaps it didn’t fit with the rugged lifestyle, but she wouldn’t mind washing her face, eating breakfast, and brushing her teeth first. Did she have teeth? Ralts had teeth, right? She ran her tongue across her gums to check. Yes, she had teeth. Although caring for them might not need to be a top priority right now given the circumstances. It sounded like she wouldn’t be in this body forever. (Assuming that returning home made her human again. She should ask Gladius if he was sure it happened that way.)

“I’m ready,” she lied. Fake it until you make it would have to be her mantra today.

 

[Jackie Cat]

Gladius grunted, rubbing his head.

"Mmnn. Guess so."

Esperanza, already up and about, chuckled at this.

"You should eat something first, 'uh? So hasty!"

It looked like she was cooking something in a saucepan over the fire.

"Having said that... Let's not take too long, either. The day won't wait for us!"

 

[Phoenixsong]

Blue had slept... okay. He was properly dry by the time he'd drifted off, at least. And it hadn't been the most uncomfortable night he'd spent sleeping on the ground outside. Except for the part where the reason it hadn't been that uncomfortable was because when he woke up he was still a dog, and not a normal human in his normal bed back home on a normal world. There went his last sensible escape route from all of this.

He hadn't missed what Gladius had said last night, either. That there "might" be a ticket back home for them. A great big round of fuck you, too, buddy to whoever'd stranded him here with the ironclad reassurance of "oh, and maybe you'll be able to leave again".

If there was anything that definitely wasn't going to solve his problem, though, it was bumming around camp any longer than they had to. It was go through with Esperanza's escapade or don't go anywhere at all. So Blue kept his sunny morning disposition—where "sunny" here meant "about ten seconds away from a solar flare"—bottled up as he scarfed down breakfast, instead distracting himself by taking mental stock of the resources he was supposed to be going into this with.

Let's see, then: he had Lillian, Twig, Gonads, Captain Optimism and Stick-'Em-Up Saloon Barbie. (Illusions were an obvious advantage, though it'd help if they knew more in advance about what they might need to fabricate. Lillian and, bafflingly considering his introduction, Guzma both seemed decent at defusing tension. Twig was babey, but a battler according to what he'd said. He wasn't keen on the gun coming into play at all if they could help it, but better pointed at the other guys than at them.) No Esperanza, but one of her "friends". (...Did the friend also have a sword? Even if it hopefully wouldn't be necessary, at this rate he'd be kinda disappointed if this place chickened out on its gonzo batshit fantasy and they didn't have a sword.) He himself could breathe fire, sort of, a little bit, maybe. (All he'd managed while testing it this morning were a couple dribbly little embers, nothing like the majestic streams of flame Arcanine could produce, at least until he'd accidentally inhaled one and the resulting coughing fit reduced his sausage to charcoal. Just... pretend any troublemakers were sausages he'd actually really been looking forward to dammit, he supposed.) The wagon itself. (Surely covered, if not armored given it was transporting silver bars. Enough to buy anyone in the back a couple seconds to move things around unseen; maybe even cover from attackers on the outside if it was really sturdy.) A guard uniform, already sized for a growlithe, apparently, as if those people who put costumes on pokémon sometimes liked to dress their puppies as gendarmes. (...Yeah, he didn't know what he was supposed to do with that one, aside from look like a puppy in a costume. Die of embarrassment, perhaps.)

He only had so long to mull it all over, unfortunately. Maybe if he hadn't been so hungry he could've bought himself more time by eating slower. (Or had more to eat by not destroying his first sausage.) Oh, well. Blue stood, shook himself, sighed. "Aight. Let's get this over with."

At least all the strategizing buzzing around in his head meant there wasn't much room left in there for fear.

 

[Sinderella]

"Be you angels, then?"

Guzma tried to nod along. He really did. He didn't know what kind of fucking angel was badger shaped, fox shaped, cat shaped, or weird humanoid chomp midget shaped, but he sure as fuck wasn't going to ask. All he wanted to do was nod along.

"I mean," he said, as straight-faced as ever, "I wouldn't exactly call myself any angel, but my dear darling mawile friend here is the most angelic person I--"

He couldn't finish. Not before a wheezing, bellowing laugh burst from the deepest pits of his stomach (his fucking badger stomach, good fucking lord) and sent him doubling over. Odette regarded him first with alarm, then with confusion, then with raw indignation. She didn't hesitate to pick up a nearby branch and beat him over his stupid head with it, which didn't seem to do much. That only made her hit him harder.

"Yeah," she spat. "Let's get a move on before a lodge a fucking bullet in this one's rectum."

 

[Jackie Cat]

Esperanza chuckled indulgently at certain Wayfarers' grumpiness. Maybe it was just her personality that made her so sanguine, or maybe it came with her pre-legendary status, or just from whatever 'visions' she'd received. Either way, she didn't seem stressed about the possibility of anything going wrong, or of fallings-out among the group.

With fast broken, and the morning quickly coming of age, the party moved to begin their mission. It was misty in town, and while plenty of local 'mon were up and about their business, the quarter they made their way to was not well-guarded or patrolled by attentive or nosy citizens. Following instructions from El Espino, they slipped past certain dozy guardias and into a courtyard where a stagecoach stood already prepared, loaded up overnight by porters.

Esperanza looked around, her face already masked, and her paw on her sword-hilt. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to her, apparently.

"One moment, please," she said, sotto voce, before walking round to the back of the coach and checking its rear compartment. She inspected its contents for several moments, then closed it back up.

"Everything is going according to plan," she declared, grinning, and hoisting guard uniforms onto the Wayfarers. An assortment of silk sashes and caps were in their arms to divvy up amongst themselves.

The coach's hauler, a Sawsdoe already wearing an appropriate silk sash and light leather barding – that is, equine armour – gave the party a professional-looking nod.

The Floragato rogue gestured over the courtyard's awnings and adjoining rooftops, towards the clock tower several streets over, above the local church.

"I'm expected elsewhere," she said, with a smile. "So this, I'm afraid, is our parting. If we aren't to meet again, our time together will have been only very brief, but I swear to you, what you do now... is of the very greatest importance. I place my trust in you, strange friends."

 

[Phoenixsong]

Just a hat and a sash, huh. Could've been worse. Could've been facing down a bunch of actual guards looking like a fresh recruit for the Paw Patrol.

Blue gave Esperanza a curt nod as she finished her final checks. "Yeah. Sure. Good luck with your thing, too, I guess." He very much just wanted to get this over with, but there was a begrudging hint of curiosity underneath. Kind of a shame to get all this elaborate setup only to never learn what she was doing, or how it was gonna turn out. (And if this baron guy really was as shitty as she'd said, a shame not to hear the story of whatever wild comeuppance was coming his way.)

Hmph. Whatever. Still wasn't his problem. Just had to keep telling himself that until this was finally behind him.

Then it was up into the back of the stagecoach, ready-ish to hit the road. He did give the lid of the rear compartment a quick tug and a peek inside, assuming it wasn't locked. Seemed like a solid idea to know for sure what was in there, how much, what they might need to lie about, how much they could get away with handing out for any bribes.

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Lillian took a sash and put it on like a scarf. Hopefully, it would still fit her when she evolved... Unless they were closely affiliated with this baron's awful regime wherever she went. She hoped that wasn't the case. It was a pretty nice scarf. The cap was, in her untrained opinion, a less elegant fashion statement but she’d just have to live with it for now. It wasn’t as if she was accustomed to a terribly high degree of choice in these matters to begin with.

“I hope we do see each other again,” she told Esperanza. “But if not, it was still nice to meet you.”

Once she’d said her goodbyes, it was (perhaps unsurprisingly) Gladius that she looked to again when she had a question: “Do you know where we should go after we’re done with this? You know, in the longer term.”

 

[Jackie Cat]

"Yeah. Sure. Good luck with your thing, too, I guess."

“I hope we do see each other again,” she told Esperanza. “But if not, it was still nice to meet you.”

The Floragato outlaw bowed low, and within moments, she'd leapt atop the awnings and was away across the rooftops, towards her mission.

Very soon, the Wayfarers had left Modareno behind them, and had the cobblestone road to the Commonwealth ahead of them...

“Do you know where we should go after we’re done with this? You know, in the longer term.”

Gladius bit back an immediate, definitive response. We'll go to the Congress, he didn't say. He couldn't clutch too tightly. He couldn't decide for her. He'd hate the same done for him, after all.

"I have people I've been working with," he said, instead. "It's a long story. But they've got a place, it's – ugh – not so different from Aether, to be honest. By this planet's standards, I mean. Point being, that's the roof I've had over my head for a while now, and it's where I've got my stuff, my contacts, my fucking paycheck, etcetera. You get it."

He sniffed, as if he was reluctant to head back. He surprised himself with how readily the feeling came. Like it were authentic.

"I've been working there, including on... on a way back. For me."

Then it was up into the back of the stagecoach, ready-ish to hit the road. He did give the lid of the rear compartment a quick tug and a peek inside, assuming it wasn't locked. Seemed like a solid idea to know for sure what was in there, how much, what they might need to lie about, how much they could get away with handing out for any bribes.

It's not that the rear compartment didn't contain plenty of silver. There was silver in there. That was expected.

What was unexpected was what else was in there. In addition to the silver, the compartment also contained the coiled-up form of a rather startled-looking Servine.

"Um! Hello!" said the unexpected stowaway. "It's, um, a pleasure to meet you?"