Blaguarro Town Terminal Two Holding Cells

[Jackie Cat]

"You're alright because you can ask yourself if you are. Maybe you're not good, but if you can recognize that, then you can try to do something to change it."

Leona stared at Aige for a moment, confused, trying to work out what she meant by that.

"I can barely think and speak," she said, softly. "I'm losing my mind in here. Gods know if it's curable."

The Lycanroc whined again, the same way she kept doing when struggling to recall something.

"It oughta be. It was, before."

Calls: 2

Aige would soon find a console in one corner of the room that appeared to operate the containment unit. It looked complicated, and also unpowered...

“…I guess nobody other than yourself knows what those scumbags did to you. What kinda hell you had to endure. But… you’ll get through it, okay? You’ve survived this far, and I see you’ve still got the fight in you! So, don’t give ‘em the satisfaction! You’re stronger than those damned psychos, and you’re gonna prove that — to yourself, and eventually to ‘em!”

"The Cipher admins," blurted Leona, eyes widening. "I beat them. But they're back. They're pokémon, now. I'm one. How can that be right?? This is a trick. Nightmare, hallucination, something. This is so fucked up."

The wolf's body seized in some kind of pained spasm, and she yelped.

"They Shadowed me," she gasped. "I never did figure out how they did it. What a way to find out. Stars, but it hurt—"

Calls: 3

"When you're out of here, you'll be the one who gets to do things. You get to decide what 'all right' is. What you want it to be. It might take time, but you'll have that time. We won't let them keep taking it away from you."

Leona's face contorted with despair, and desperate hope.

"I want... not to feel like this. This pain. I can't... I can't remember feeling any other way. What if I can't, anymore??"

Again, Leona slammed the glass wall. Attentive to the box, Leaf might notice that while it was entirely secure against a breakout, the structural reinforcements wouldn't protect against an external attack...

"I want my girls back! Mistral, Marin...?? Where are they? What did you fucking do to them?"

Another frenzied attack. But Leona could remember something, now – the names of two of her pokémon, presumably. Shadow pokémon had trouble remembering anything but pain – could coaxing out more memories help Leona claw her way out of her Fevered state...?

Calls: 4

"Easy, darlin'," soothed Sonora, stepping forward from the gaggle of Wayfarers with her palms up in placating gesture. "We'll help you find yer gals. They your crew? Teammates? Y'don't strike me as a momma, if you'll forgive my assumin'. Did you come here with 'em?"

Leona's eyes screwed shut as she tried to recall.

"Wait... No. No, I never saw them since I turned up somewhere else as a goddamn dog. Maybe... Maybe they aren't here. They'll be back home..."

Leona's eyes narrowed and the growl rose again in her throat.

"Where am I? What is this place??"

Calls: 5

 

[Shadow Serenity]

"It oughta be. It was, before."

"I want my girls back! Mistral, Marin...?? Where are they? What did you fucking do to them?"

Whoever she was, the lycanroc was pretty distressed. Of course, not that Kimiko could blame her. But what could she say that the others hadn't?

She took a deep breath and focused. Her voice remained soft. "It doesn't have to hurt all the time. We know there are ways to help deal with it." She crept a little closer, just enough to see the wisps of shadow around her hand in the emergency lighting. "And I bet we could show you how."

She lowered her hand, taking a moment to will the shadows back inside again. "It's real. Fucked up, but real. You said... it used to be curable before. As if you know that for a fact. So... all we need to do is figure out how, right?"

"As for your girls... what species were they?" Kimiko had a hunch, but better get confirmation. She looked around for Steven; he was the one with the list. And maybe someone should try to check Cipher's computers, see if they had a more complete registry. "We'll see if we can find them."

Leona still looked... frazzled. She'd been wavering between coherent thought and aggression. Talking was helping, but... "I'm going to try something, okay? Something to try help with the pain. Let me know if it's working." Another moment to focus, and then her wordless melody echoed throughout the room.

 

[Phoenixsong]

She'd defeated Cipher? Was she from yet another world where Cipher was a thing, or had the Cipher here grabbed her for revenge or something? Did she know the wolf?

"You're not from here, huh. That's fine. Neither are most of us. And if we don't find Mistral and Marin here, then that must mean they're safe somewhere else. Back home, most likely," Leaf said, nodding at Kimiko. "If they're here we're not gonna leave them here, so no matter what they'll be okay." She gave Leona the most reassuring smile she could, even though smiling in this hellhole was like pulling teeth. (Focus on the light. Focus on what they were going to do.)

"This world is Forlas, and we're under Blaguarro Town, specifically—everyone here is a pokémon, so that's why you're a dog. Happened to a bunch of our group, too. Tala is from here; maybe, once we've got you out, she can show you around and see if you remember anything about how you got here. It's okay if you don't, though. There'll be other ways to figure things out and fix them. Let us worry about breaking this down first." Another attempt at a smile. "In the meantime, why don't you try and remember the last thing you did with the girls? Might help make what happened clearer, but even if it doesn't, focusing on the happy stuff helps with feeling stressed. I know thinking about my team helps me." Sometimes. Other times it just made her homesick. But even homesick had to be better than this.

To the others, Leaf gestured at the exterior of the cage. "I think it's protected from inside, but not so much from outside. Should be able to bust it open on our end with a few good attacks."

 

[Jackie Cat]

"It doesn't have to hurt all the time. We know there are ways to help deal with it. And I bet we could show you how. It's real. Fucked up, but real. You said... it used to be curable before. As if you know that for a fact. So... all we need to do is figure out how, right?"

Leona nodded, and wrung her head again with a huff, trying to clear it.

"Yeah. I've cured enough myself. Gotta be a way."

"As for your girls... what species were they? We'll see if we can find them."

"Mistral's an umbreon. Marin's an espeon. I got a bunch of other 'mon, but they're my true partners. Always with me."

Until now.

"I'm going to try something, okay? Something to try help with the pain. Let me know if it's working."

It was hard to tell just how much of a difference it made, but Leona's quivering perceptibly stilled, and her face relaxed enough to drop the mask of feral madness.

Calls: 6

"You're not from here, huh. That's fine. Neither are most of us. And if we don't find Mistral and Marin here, then that must mean they're safe somewhere else. Back home, most likely. If they're here we're not gonna leave them here, so no matter what they'll be okay."

Leona took deep, steadying breaths. That made sense. Her girls had to be okay, or would be soon.

"This world is Forlas, and we're under Blaguarro Town, specifically—everyone here is a pokémon, so that's why you're a dog. Happened to a bunch of our group, too. Tala is from here; maybe, once we've got you out, she can show you around and see if you remember anything about how you got here. It's okay if you don't, though. There'll be other ways to figure things out and fix them. Let us worry about breaking this down first. In the meantime, why don't you try and remember the last thing you did with the girls? Might help make what happened clearer, but even if it doesn't, focusing on the happy stuff helps with feeling stressed. I know thinking about my team helps me."

Leona concentrated, her hackles falling a little.

"I was... tracking down the last Cipher peons who still had Shadow 'mon. I was trying to open Khazri's heart... Bond with my Shadow tyranitar, I mean. Gotta open the heart first, to purify a Shadow. I was with Rui – my girlfriend – and Khazri, and we were at the old Snatcher Crew hideout. We'd just heard some kinda rumour about a doppelganger 'Leona' causing trouble, and we'd made camp... We were gonna head off in the mornin' and go trounce the bitch."

Leona frowned, as if confused, suffering a migraine, or both.

"I fell asleep. I woke up somewhere as a pokémon. Don't make any goddamn sense."

Calls: 7

"I think it's protected from inside, but not so much from outside. Should be able to bust it open on our end with a few good attacks."

Leona nodded, and back up against the far wall.

"Okay. You can try that. If I freak out... I'm pretty sure I'm a Rock-type. I'm strong, but not so bulky... You can take me. Sorry in advance."

"Or we can snap you out of it," countered Sonora, with sanguine confidence. "So get a grip and keep it, darlin'."

Leona smirked for a second. The snappy, no-nonsense confidence clearly resonated with her. That approach might work best if it came to it...

The Floragato adjusted her hat by its brim and pawed her chin thoughtfully.

"Y'know... Lycanroc Leona, was it? Yeah, so you already beat Cipher? We know these fellas are from some other world – I figure maybe you're from another. So what's your story? You send 'em packin'?"

Leona grinned wearily. "You bet. Me, Rui, an' a whole lotta 'mon. It was pretty fuckin' tough, but nobody beats Leona Lycas in a pokémon battle."

Lycas. As in Seth Lycas. As in Wes Lycas.

She couldn't have come through the same portal as Seth, and she wasn't summoned by Betel. So how was yet another Lycas Lycanroc here on Forlas...? Could it be coincidence? Surely not.

Calls: 8

 

[Cresselia92]

Leona grinned wearily. "You bet. Me, Rui, an' a whole lotta 'mon. It was pretty fuckin' tough, but nobody beats Leona Lycas in a pokémon battle."

That detail piqued Silver’s interest, who paused his claw-digging duty to stare at Leona, his brow raised. Lycas, huh? Lycas, Lycas, Lycas… Why did that sound so famili—Ah! Right! Weren’t those two Lycanroc also called…?

Silver rolled his eyes dramatically. Freaking multiverse nonsense! What were the odds of having a bunch of counterparts in the same world and turned into members of the same evolutionary line?

No, seriously, what was next? A dark Sneasel called Gold, Black or Kamon, maybe?

“…Hmph. If it helps, you’re gonna be in good company very soon,” he quipped as he stood up, before taking a couple of steps back while staring at the broken metal. “We know a couple of Lycas already. Heck, you might be enough folks to create your personal Orre fan club or hate club or whatever!”

He shot a few glances at his teammates and nodded, subtly sending his intent through Betel’s network, and faced the cage. An eager smirk stretched on his face, broadcasting his desire to wreak his impulses, and he held his claws at face level.

“Anyway, ladies! As fun as it is to chitchat inside a literal death trap,” he extended his claws to their maximum length and gathered shadow power into them, “we’ve got a prison to break!”

Hissing a defiant battle cry and energized by a burst of explosive weasel-y electricity, Silver assaulted the glassy prison with furious slashes, streaks of venom and darkness trailing his now-indigo claws.

Silver used Shadow Dire Claw against the cage! Fatality!!

 

[Phoenixsong]

Another Lycas. Aight, great, cool. This wasn't going to stop getting any more confusing, was it. At least Leona had half an idea how to act around other people, once she'd had a second to calm down.

"You'll be fine. We'll make sure of it." And that'd be a hell of a lot easier once she was free.

Leaf reared back and slashed with her horn as she came back down, launching a psycho cut right at the spot Silver had struck.

 

[Jackie Cat]

"Wha– A 'couple of Lycas'? The fuck—"

Leona's bafflement was interrupted by first one, then another impact against her glass prison. Its proofing being internal, the aura-charged attacks from outside chipped, then fractured, then shattered it – a few follow-up strikes would finish the job.

Leona's pupils contracted sharply and her breath caught in a pained growl as the Shadow in her responded to attacks coming right at her, or seeming to. Just as she'd expected, the frenzy surged again...

And she smashed through the weakened glass with a savage snarl.

 

[Phoenixsong]

A lycanroc, snarling, eyes red, fangs bared, lunging out of the dark—

Not the same. The protect shield flared up almost without her realizing it, but then she shook her head, stepped forward, between Leona and the others. She'd had the decency to warn them, after all. So they were just gonna have to do something about it.

(An aerodactyl scrambling out of its cage, screaming, huge jaws snapping. Tank dashing in front of them, his shell between her and Reynard and all those teeth. If he could do it, so could she.)

"Easy, Leona!" Leaf said, bracing (only a little) for the incoming strikes. Hold her off, calm her down, give the others time. "It's over! You're out! Breathe."

 

[RJr3:2]

Lycas? Some of the others have mentioned that name recently.

"What difference does it make?" Aige muttered, "Everyone else can worry about the distinction."

As Leona broke out of the cell, lunging towards those closest, the Roggenrola stared at the Lycanrock. She had told them they could take her, right? That was explicit permission to beat her down... but no one would want to try that, would they? Even if she asked for it?

"No one would even hold it against us," Aige said, sounding lost. She looked at the others expectantly, not feeling confident that she could do anything to help. At least- in an acceptable way.

 

[Cresselia92]

Before Silver could even react and get out of the way, the Lycanroc lunged forward and smashed through the glass, scattering a shower of sharp shards. He winced when the thousand tiny cuts grazed his skin and stung like a thousand tiny needles, and while that would be a mere annoyance under normal circumstances, with the shadows infesting his soul that annoyance turned to alarm.

The now-Sneasel hissed back, his eyes narrowed in alert and freshly produced venom tingling inside his claws, itching to strike back if necessary. But in a brief glimpse of clarity, a single admonishing thought broke through his self-preservation instincts.

Hey! Get a grip of yourself, Silver! Her emotions are running wild, mostly because of those cursed shadows, and so are yours! She’s not a threat… she’s just scared… you get that kinda feeling, dontcha?

That drifting thought was enough to snap Silver out of his own building frenzy, his eyes widening in shame. W-what the hell was he doing?

“I-it’s all cool. It’s cool…” he muttered amidst his uneven breaths, shaking his head to clear his mind. Following Leaf’s lead, he stared intently at Leona, his gaze unflinching. “Just… yeah, just breathe. Let the fresh air cool your mind and heart…”

Following his own words, Silver began taking deep and focused breaths. He sighed in relief when he felt his own darkness melting away, and the alarmed feelings became nothing more than simple forgettable echoes. With slow and careful movements, he sat on the floor, and just as slowly he raised his hands and sheathed his claws.

A sign of peace and surrender.

“It’s okay… You’re safe… Nobody’s gonna hurt you…”

 

[Inkedust]

Tala was quick to move into a protective position but she was careful to not make any threat display.

"Well done, girl," she complimented. "Now. Focus, take it easy, you're safe. None of us are going to attack ya, so figure out what you wanna do next, you're free to do it."

Tala turned to glance at the door. It seemed that Anite was just finishing up and was that Mav, coming down from the other end of the hall, with the keys they could hear?

"Looks like they're ready to start freeing everyone." She reached to pat the wild skorupi on her shoulder. "You guys know a thing or two about rehabilitating Witching Beasts? Err, Shadows, as yer calling them? We might need a bit of help for that."

 

[Shadow Serenity]

The snappy, no-nonsense confidence clearly resonated with her. That approach might work best if it came to it...

Leona's pupils contracted sharply and her breath caught in a pained growl as the Shadow in her responded to attacks coming right at her, or seeming to. Just as she'd expected, the frenzy surged again...

And she smashed through the weakened glass with a savage snarl.

Kimiko half-spun around to shield herself with her tail from the tiny glass shards flying her way. The second they stopped, she spun back around, making sure to stand her ground, despite Leaf and Tala taking up protective positions. She'd seen how Leona reacted to Sonora earlier... She stared into Leona's face, but made sure to avoid direct eye contact.

"Hey!" she snapped as Leona snarled at them. "You can stand down now, alright? We ain't gonna attack you. We got you out, as we said we would."

Her gaze shifted briefly towards Tala, followed by a quick nod, before returning to the lycanroc. "And now we're gonna finish releasing the rest of the prisoners. Come on, our guide knows the way outta here."

 

[canisaries]

Andre had been standing still, watching the scene unfold from the other side of the door as he did not want to overwhelm the prisoner with yet another person yelling at her, but the prisoner -- Leona -- struck out at the others, he felt the surge of adrenaline beg him to intervene. Regardless, he knew it was likely even more important now not to pile on Leona, and instead focused and sent defensive energy to one of the Wayfarers closest to the lycanroc.

 

[Jackie Cat]

Leona's eyes bulged, she bared her teeth, and her Shadows blasted all higher thought from her brain.

There was nothing left but fear.

"Easy, Leona! It's over! You're out! Breathe."

A frenzied snarl ripped from her throat, directed at the first to speak, the last to attack, the closest.

---

You'll be fine. We'll make sure of it.
​

---

But no attack came. The Lycanroc only shooed Leaf back with a snapping bark.

“I-it’s all cool. It’s cool… Just… yeah, just breathe. Let the fresh air cool your mind and heart… It’s okay… You’re safe… Nobody’s gonna hurt you…”

The wolf's Shadows surged in response to Silver's own – if a Shadow knew anything, it knew that Shadows fought. Her eyes red, her claws black, surely she'd strike.

---

You’ll get through it, okay?​

---

She only stared. As if... confused. Trying to figure something out.

"Well done, girl. Now. Focus, take it easy, you're safe. None of us are going to attack ya, so figure out what you wanna do next, you're free to do it."

Leona's stare shifted targets, trying to find her enemy, the threat that seized every vein and muscle in her, that made her mind scream with the need to fight, attack, win.

---

Just tell us what we can do to help. I promise you'll be alright.​

---

But the growl in her chest faded, giving way to a strained, agonised panting.

"Hey! You can stand down now, alright? We ain't gonna attack you. We got you out, as we said we would."

The rocky spines around Leona's neck shimmered with corrupted aura. She had to attack. She'd been attacked. There was nothing else but fighting. Only battle. Only pain.

---

Nobody belongs here. We... might be able to get you out, too.

You have a name, too.​

---

The wolf closed her eyes, and the dark energy dimmed. She took one ragged breath, and then another.

"My name... is Leona," she whispered to herself. "And I'm not going to fight you."

 

[Phoenixsong]

Breathe, she'd said, and now seemed like a decent moment to take her own advice. Drop the shields, take it just a little easier. Over. For now. The lycanroc seemed more stable now she'd had a second to think, to decompress. Stable enough, anyway. It'd have to do.

"It's good to meet you, Leona," she said, attempting another smile and managing a little better this time. "My name's Leaf. I'm sorry we startled you, but good on you for smashing the hell outta that door."

Her ears swiveled toward the sound of more footsteps outside. Huge, solid dinosaur steps and clattering bird steps. That'd be the keys along, then. (Finally.) That just left figuring out what to do about them all...

"We're still working on it," she said to Tala, watching the skorupi skitter over the dragon's scales. "With any luck, the radiance we got from the Wandering Light can help. Plus any info the others found from Cipher back there. And..." She glanced at Leona. "Doing what we can to keep 'em all calm and comfortable as possible in the meantime, I guess." How much would it take to get that permanent shadow reverb out of Leona's voice, or Reno's, or anyone's? There was still so, so, so much to do...

Nothing for it but to start, in the end. They had to get all the rest of these cages open, and then it was time to ditch this place for good.

 

[Inkedust]

Tala straightened herself and folded her arms with a satisfied nod. "Right, well I'm sure you lot will be able to come up with something In the meantime, seems our rescue here has been a success," she said. "And it sounds like Mav and Anite are starting to get the rest under control, though we should probably think on helping them out." She picked up the lantern and gestured to the table. "Take those papers too, you might find be able to glean somethin' useful from them once we get outta here."

Just beyond the door, the Wayfarers could see Mav and Anite discussing a few things. According to Anite, Mav had given directions to the most lucid prisoners to rely on their aid in helping lead each group of prisoners out, although once finished, Mav would run ahead to take the lead again. With little to stand in their way now, the party's means of soothing the prisoners with Radiance-infused moves would be enough to calm the more volatile prisoners enough to get them out with little complications.

Anite looked over Leona with a thoughtful look. "New friend, huh? Well, you lot can help us with the rest of these prisoners, then us locals can move on ahead to lead them out. You should probably catch up with the rest of your group to let them know that our side of things have been a success."

 

[Jackie Cat]

Sonora's stance relaxed – of course she'd believed the witching wolf would pull through the whole time, but she hadn't been stupid enough not to be ready to jump if Leona had attacked. It was all good, though. No problem. No fear. She breathed for the first time in a minute.

"Alright, let's get gone," she said, motioning with an upheld paw for the party to head back out.

Leona nodded, and took a few hesistant steps forward, as if not ready to trust that the ground beneath her feet was real – and of course to step lightly over the fragments of glass that littered it.

"Thank you," she said, quietly, and with a strange cadence. As if it was a struggle to understand her own words. "I'm ready to go."

 

[Inkedust]

Tala nodded. "Think we are too. Let's sort out what to do about all this on the way, aye?"

With all hands on deck and no guards or peons to further halt progress, the release of every remaining prisoner from these horrid cells was a foregone conclusion. Per Betel's messaging, the other two groups seemed to be in the process of finishing up, it seemed that this entire operation was nothing short of a resounding success.

Backup from the other Wayfarers, Rangers and Escarpa to further help with the release of the prisoners was bound to come shortly and it seemed that this team had gained several notes that may prove to be useful later down the line and a third Lycas who may be able to provide further insight on Cipher's activities once her Shadows had been sorted. For now, it was time to catch up with the others.

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