Frontier Town Old Town

[HelloYellow17]

Wes gave a small start when Steven suddenly exclaimed in alarm. The sudden shift in tone almost made him jump up and look around for danger, but it was quickly apparent that Steven’s panic was from an internal realization.

He blinked slowly, frowning at Steven’s voiced concerns. “Hang on, I think…I think Betel said something when we first arrived here. About time not passing in our worlds while we’re here.” The details were admittedly fuzzy—there had been a lot to process all at once, to be fair—but Wes was almost certain of this. Because if this turned out not to be true, then—gods in a howling goblet, that would mean he’d left Neo and Novo all alone, with no warning, with Rui to pick up the pieces. And she wasn’t even a trainer, and then there were all the other Pokémon they had to care for, and—

He steadied himself with a shaky breath. No. No, they were fine, and they wouldn’t notice his absence. He had to believe that, or he might never forgive himself.

“You should be fine. I remember Betel saying something like that to us, when we first passed through. They don’t seem the type to lie to us. Hell, if you’d like, we could even venture out somewhere to get a connection sometime and ask them directly?” He tried to give Steven a reassuring look, speaking with a confidence he didn’t quite feel. It was the least he could do after everything Steven had done for him in their conversation.

 

[Panoramic_Vacuum]

Wes's voice cut through Steven's frazzled realization, and he paused, blinking.

"Oh! Really? I, uh, I must have missed that little detail," said Steven, eye upturning into an apologetic look. "I didn't really see anyone when I first arrived. Except for Prim and Tyrfing. We fell out of the sky together. But that's besides the point. If what you're saying is true, and I believe you, then that's... that's good, then."

His head cocked to the side and his eye winked shut sheepishly. "Sorry about that. I just don't like to go back on my word and worry my friends. Which I realize I might have done to you just now."

He really did feel bad. The poor Lycanroc's fur had puffed up like he'd been startled, and he'd only just started to look relaxed.

"Although," he began, trying to reassure Wes after he'd gone and stressed him out again, "that's good for you, too! You can get right back to whatever you were up to in your world. In the end, it doesn't matter why you came here, because it'll be like you never left in the first place."

 

[HelloYellow17]

Wes blinked at Steven’s apology, then let out a bemused chuckle. “What? You don’t need to apologize for that. I’d have panicked, too.” Hell, he had panicked and he’d even known the answer. “It’s nice that you have people back home looking out for you. You’ve got something to look forward to when you go back.”

And, despite the tiny prickle of something in his chest—envy? Sadness?—he truly meant it. If anybody deserved a happy life to return to, Wes decided, it was someone like Steven. Steven and Archie.

He smiled a little at Steven’s next statement, too. It made sense logically, even if Wes still struggled to reconcile the notion with how he felt. Sure, getting away didn’t have any consequences for Neo and Novo back in Orre, not with this arrangement…but by the fact he’d been willing to leave them at all…didn’t that mean he would always be in danger of abandoning them, somewhere down the line?

He didn’t like to dwell on it. So he didn’t.

“Who’s Wallace, anyway?”

 

[Panoramic_Vacuum]

Steven settled in his hovering as Wes de-floofed enough to huff a laugh himself.

"Call it fair then; an unwarranted apology for each of us," he said with an upturned eye-smile. "I admit, it does help ease the soul, though."

"And, thank you. I do have plenty to look forward to when I return. My pokemon, my family and friends, and since you asked Wallace is among those, despite the challenges of being his friend sometimes." He laughed. "I'm joking, of course. But perhaps it's not so much of an exaggeration. He is a wonderful, eccentric, person who lives his life full of passion and I'm honored to call my friend."

Steven looked a little wistful at this, and perhaps slightly exasperated, too. His eye slid over to Wes. "Do you have someone you look forward to seeing again when you go back?"

 

[HelloYellow17]

It was nice to see the Beldum so at peace, happily talking about his loved ones back home. Wherever Steven had come from, it seemed he had good people behind him.

Wes felt another swell of envy, but ignored it with practiced ease and answered Steven’s question with perfect neutrality.

“I’ve got my Pokémon waiting for me, of course,” he said with a small smile. “My Espeon and Umbreon—they’re brothers, named Neo and Novo, respectively. I’m never bored with them, that’s for damn sure.” And gods, what he wouldn’t give for a moment with them right now. “Where are you from, anyway?”

 

[Panoramic_Vacuum]

"Brothers, fascinating! I bet they make quite a duo," Steven said. It was clear from the way Wes talked about them they were his cherished partners. That, and the fact that both Espeon and Umbreon only evolved when they were with trainers they truly trusted and loved. "It's funny, to think it will have been months since you've last seen them, but to them it will be like you never left. They say, 'absence makes the heart grow fonder,' but with two loyal Eeveelutions at your side, I'm not sure how much fonder you three can get."

Then Steven's head tilted to the side in thought. "You know, I don't see many Eevee and their evolutions. They're popular in many of the Gym circuits, but not so much in Hoenn. That's where I'm from. Have you ever been to Hoenn yourself?"

 

[HelloYellow17]

Almost on instinct, Wes briefly tensed at Steven’s questions and the idea that he could potentially find out what kind of life he’d lived—but then it hit him that Steven already knew. After the conversations with Seth last night and the reveal that he and Wes were some kind of alternate universe counterparts to each other…well. It was all in the open now, wasn’t it? More or less?

It was strange to think about, this secret that he’d never planned on telling anyone being so…exposed. And yet, it was remarkably freeing, in its own way. He could only hope that he reason Steven hadn’t questioned his past too much yet was because he’d truly chosen not to judge, and not because he simply hadn’t put all the pieces together yet.

He allowed himself another small grin. “Well, damn, how nice of a place can Hoenn be if Eeveelutions aren’t popular there? You’re sure missing out, I’ll tell you that much.” He actually hadn’t seen every Eeveelution in person yet, but it was a small dream of his that he hadn’t ever really voiced to anybody. Another reason to dream of escaping to Johto, maybe one day traveling to Kanto.

And on that note, he shook his head at Steven’s question. “Can’t say I’ve ever been. Haven’t really had much…opportunity to leave my region.” He spoke with a careful lightness, not wanting to leave any trace of his usual bitterness at the sentiment. “What’s it like over there? From what I’ve heard, it sounds like the complete opposite of Orre.”

 

[Panoramic_Vacuum]

"Hm, I haven't been to Orre myself, so it's hard to say. I should change that one day. Are there any interesting caves in Orre?" It was an earnest question, but Steven chuckled a bit so that Wes wouldn't see how serious he was. You're the only one who wants to go to a new region to see caves, Stone.

"From what I know, though, Orre is a little bit like here, I think. Lots of desert." His eyes swept out past the edge of the garden to the sandstone houses peeking above the hedges. "Hoenn has a desert, too. Much smaller though, more of a rain shadow desert than anything else. The rest of the region gets plenty of rainfall. Some people say almost too much. There's one route where it hardly ever stops raining..."

Here Steven caught himself, a faraway look creeping over his expression. Like he'd remembered something long since buried. He shook his head, and gave Wes a small smile.

"Ah, sorry about that, I get carried away sometimes. It really is a beautiful place. I hope you get to visit sometime."

He floated up and then back down, like a wistful sigh. It was nice chatting with Wes. He was much more amicable than his usual demeanor let on. "The world is full of amazing places. It's worth it to see them with your own two eyes. Err, well, I guess it'd be 'eye' singular in this case."

 

[HelloYellow17]

Caves? Why would Steven care about caves, of all things? Wes pondered for a second, then mentally shrugged it off; if caves were Steven’s thing, Wes sure as hell had no room or reason to judge him for it. “It’s got the odd small cave here and there, but nothing big or impressive,” he said. Really, most of the “caves” he’d experiences were closer to alcoves than anything else. “It’s got slot canyons, though, along the eastern border.” Not that he could recommend that place, either though—that was Snagem territory. “Either way, if you’re hoping for wild Pokémon, you’ll be disappointed. Orre doesn’t have much going for it in that department.”

Hoenn, though, sounded like it had a lot to offer. Rainforest and desert and ocean—it sounded more diverse than Kanto or Johto put together. Perhaps he could add a visit to Hoenn to his list of unachievable dreams.

Before Wes knew it, the morning hours slipped into early afternoon as he and Steven conversed. He was reminded again how refreshing it was, to simply sit and chat about things not related Wes’s failings, or the fate of this bizarre world, or Shadows and shady mon with dubious goals or whatever the hell else. For the first time since his arrival in Forlas, Wes felt…normal. Maybe a strange thing to say given he was still in a Pokémon’s body, but after everything else that had unfolded these last few weeks, his physical form was honestly the least of his concerns now.

As the sun reached its peak in the sky, though, Wes was reminded of the things he’d intended to do today, and he knew it was time to go. He rose from where he’d settled himself into the grass and bid Steven farewell, but not before thanking him once again. Steven had merely smiled and thanked him in return; Wes couldn’t fathom anything he’d done to warrant the gesture, but he accepted it anyway.

As he ventured back into town, Wes managed to hold his head a little higher, less afraid to make eye contact with passersby on the street. Maybe, just maybe, Steven was right: that things would turn out just fine, after all.

<><><><><>​

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Lyle wasn't really sure why his memories were drifting during the trek over to Obstinea Abbey, especially since it wasn't exactly a casual trek, but somehow, he kept thinking back to the day right before he set off with Rodion, Silver, and the others they'd gathered together...

---

Lyle hadn't realized that how much of the town he'd been overlooking since Betel had brought him to this world. It'd been weeks, if not months since his arrival and yet he was still finding himself surprised by places around town. Like this little garden or whatever it was built around the shrine to the local 'Saint of Song and Step'. Something about it felt like it ought to have been familiar to him, but yet he couldn't place it.

He wasn't really sure about why the place was so quiet. Maybe it was just the hour growing long with the shadows starting to stretch ever further from the west, or maybe this 'saint' wasn't the primary figure that more religious types around here venerated. He settled down, letting the fire idly flicker from the vents on his back, when he thought he heard footsteps approaching and turned his head with a curious glance.

 

[Ambyssin]

It was still a bit weird having better peripheral vision. Or, well, things being clearer in general. Yet as the initial surprise had worn off, Nova couldn't help but feel like there was something missing. Though he drew complete blank about just what that was.

So, he'd taken to roaming about the town. Maybe Nova would run into something that would provide a spark of inspiration or awaken some buried memory from deep down. He hadn't really gone to this part of town before and there seemed to be a little shrine of sorts?

Nova decided to investigate it further when he saw fiery flickers. A cyndaquil. There was one in their group, wasn't there? Not someone Nova had really talked to, though. And he was drawing a blank on the name. But maybe he was a patron of this particular Saint back in his home?

He looked the statue over. Saint of Song and Step? "This 'mon important to you back home?" Nova wondered aloud.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

He looked the statue over. Saint of Song and Step? "This 'mon important to you back home?" Nova wondered aloud.

Lyle briefly flared up and looked over towards the fish... dog... thing approaching him. It took him a while before he saw the legs and... right, that was Nova. Had he managed to get that helmet off of him somehow? Since he didn't realized he looked like this underneath it. Lyle didn't know what the story behind him was, other than that he could've sworn that someone mentioned that his species was created somehow.

Somehow, he didn't peg the 'mon as the type to care about some shrine. Maybe it was a sign that he ought to get to know him a bit better before dipping out of town tomorrow.

"I'm actually not sure," Lyle said. "I thought that something about the statue looked familiar, but I admittedly didn't really worry a whole lot about gods or divinities for most of my life before Betel brought me here."

He cast a glance off at the shrine in the background before shaking his head.

"I mean, I suppose I've left an offering or two at a Latios shrine for good luck before because it made a friend of mine feel more confident, and they're not bad places, but..." he said. "Whenever I go to them, I just usually don't feel like I belong there."

 

[Ambyssin]

Nova's cheek bolts turned once. Gods and divinity, huh? "So, yours is one of those worlds where divine power exists then." Or, at least, one where the people believed it.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Nova's cheek bolts turned once. Gods and divinity, huh? "So, yours is one of those worlds where divine power exists then." Or, at least, one where the people believed it.

"I guess?" Lyle replied. "I mean, if you mean that there's this subset of Pokémon that have powers like mine but strong enough to do things like flatten villages without really trying which the universe just keeps bringing back for whatever reason, I suppose that's true."

Lyle trailed off a moment, before standing up and giving a puzzled glance up at Nova.

"Though does that mean that those Pokémon don't exist in the world you come from?" he asked. "I mean, not like they used to exist but died. There just was never any beings that the Pokémon of your world called 'gods'?"

 

[Ambyssin]

Nova eyed the statue. "I don't see it as just a power thing. To me... divine means creation. Make something from basically nothing." He traced a claw through the dirt. "Or shift reality itself." He drew squiggles over the line.

"Yeah, there are 'legends' back home. Very strong 'mon. Only one could do something close. Making wormholes." Nova shrugged. "But at the end of the day, it was just a flashier teleportation."

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Nova eyed the statue. "I don't see it as just a power thing. To me... divine means creation. Make something from basically nothing." He traced a claw through the dirt. "Or shift reality itself." He drew squiggles over the line.

"Yeah, there are 'legends' back home. Very strong 'mon. Only one could do something close. Making wormholes." Nova shrugged. "But at the end of the day, it was just a flashier teleportation."

'To make something from basically nothing', huh? Lyle couldn't say that any of the gods that he knew of really fit the bill.

Or at least not ones that that he definitely knew existed.

"I... actually don't know whether or not my world has a Pokémon like that," he said. "I mean, there's certainly stories about a 'God of Creation', but of all the Pokémon that are considered gods in my world, that's the one that nobody can really find hard proof of it existing or not."

He trailed off and shook his head. He wasn't sure whether or not he believed those stories himself. On the one hand, it made sense that there would be some sort of cosmic force that set everything together, and he was definitely more reflexively skeptical after seeing some things he'd seen not long before being summoned by Betel but...

"I mean, I suppose that I've heard of things abruptly changing. There was some sort of disaster in my world over a thousand years ago where a lot of the things that we take for granted apparently didn't exist beforehand," the Cyndaquil said. "Mystery Dungeons and the like, the auroras that are in the skies at night in large parts of the place I call home. And there used to be creatures completely different from us and machines with workings that a lot of Pokémon consider magic that seemed to have been wiped out by it."

And through it all, this 'God of Creation' just didn't factor into that Great Flash at all. He couldn't wrap his head around why any sort of being with the power of creation would just allow that to happen.

"I dunno, maybe there really was a Pokémon like that in our world once," he said. "But if it really existed, it's been absent for the entire time since that disaster. Maybe from even before it. And I'm not sure what on earth it'd take to bring it back considering some of the things that happened since then."

He paused a moment, as a thought crossed his mind.

"Though wait, how do you know about this whole 'Pokémon being able to create things from nothing' thing anyways if your world doesn't have a Pokémon like this?"

 

[Ambyssin]

God of Creation.

God of... Creation.

Nova blinked a few times. He brushed dirt over his silly lines and squiggles. "A disaster? It sounds more like you're describing a cataclysm."

Lyle's question hadn't registered for Nova.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Nova blinked a few times. He brushed dirt over his silly lines and squiggles. "A disaster? It sounds more like you're describing a cataclysm."

"I mean, isn't a cataclysm just a bigger disaster?" he asked. "But I guess I've heard others call it one before, yes."

Lyle's question hadn't registered for Nova.

"Though are you alright? You seemed to be spacing out a bit at the end a bit there. Though what's the story behind how you define a god as someone being able to create something out of nothing?" the Cyndaquil asked. "I thought you said earlier that your world didn't have any Pokémon like that."

He paused briefly, before shooting an askew glance.

"Also, why do you keep talking as if you've see just about everything?" Lyle asked. "What was your world you came from like, anyways?"

 

[Ambyssin]

Nova kept his eyes on the statue of the Saint. "My world? It's..." His voice trailed off.

He'd done this song and dance before. It had won him zero favors. Alienated Wayfarers more than making for good conversation.

"Dangerous. To people living in it. With the potential for that danger to eclipse a lot more worlds."

A potential he was seeing it toward.

"The reason I know about that stuff is because the person who built me knew about it," Nova continued. "She never really explained why she knew. But she was in charge. I was following her orders... until I couldn't anymore and turned against her."

Just the basics. Simple enough. No gory details.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

"Dangerous. To people living in it. With the potential for that danger to eclipse a lot more worlds."

"Wait, dangerous?" Lyle asked. "How can a world be dangerous to others?"

"The reason I know about that stuff is because the person who built me knew about it," Nova continued. "She never really explained why she knew. But she was in charge. I was following her orders... until I couldn't anymore and turned against her."

Lyle blinked at the Silvally's reply, or as much as a Cyndaquil could blink. "Built"? Like a wagon or a boat? He got the distinct feeling that Nova wasn't shooting straight with him.

It was weird, since from what little Nova had told him, they clearly came from very different backgrounds. But from how careful Nova's words were... he got the feeling that maybe they had bit more in common than he initially thought.

"I... take it that you did some things that you regret for this person," he said. "It's alright if you don't want to get into it. Everybody's got moments from their past they don't want the world to know about."