The chimes continue, the masked party goers around you slowly taking note and, with smiles and cheers, begin doffing their masks, some reluctantly others with flourishes. A few chuckle or blush after seeing the identities, suspected or not, of the other guests they were most recently chatting with.
"And I did not have a Mistress. I had a Master."
Calypso does not remove her mask.
"I don't need help. Not as much as you do."
Ducky notices it first. There's something very wrong with Calypso's mask.
Wait...
No... it couldn't be...
"What happens next is up to you," she continues, raising her hands. "But first I should show you something."
"We need help? Are we in danger here?" Elise's tone is a degree more wary, but only so much, as despite Calypso's ominous words she senses no active malice from Calypso. Perhaps if she had noticed the things her pokemon has, she'd be a lot more so.
Ducky's stare is finally interrupted as he squawks with alarm, almost losing his balance as he takes two half-waddling, half-tripping steps back. Did the mask always look like that?
I'm getting the very bad feeling that you were entirely right, Clefairy...
Elise queries further. "...what kind of pokemon was the one you served?"
Elise has no objection to being showed the thing Calypso wants to show them, perhaps out of trust, or perhaps out of confidence in the capability of her and her pokemon to get out of any mess they end up in.
Man if only Elise knew about legendary pokemon as much as everyone in this thread does. In terms of knowing there are two types of moon/dream legendaries, not about being afraid of any old legend. Cause fuck that, row row fight the power.
Looking back at Calypso's feedback I see things she hinted at and am like ok yeah, seems consistent.
I guess hindsight is 20/20 though because for her current stuff I still need to ask what are probably easily answerable questions.
Like, does she serve Darkrai or Cresselia? Does who she served even matter because she's repenting for some reason, perhaps about who she served, or are we all doomed?
Are we going to get into some kind of awesome dream world fight where we face off against our shadow, the true self?
The edges of the room you're in begin to grow dark, shadows creeping from the corners of the room and unfurling into lazy tendrils that thicken and spread, obscuring everything they touch with a black fog that closes in on the group and Calypso.
"I served... The Original One. The Almighty."
The mask hasn't changed. For Ducky, that's the problem, it's been far too real, far too lifelike since the very start.
It's her.
"Remove your masks," Calypso suggests. "We're going home."
Elise looks around at the encroaching darkness at all sides, visibly perturbed. To her, it seems like it is becoming clear that she does not have as much control over this situation as she thought she had.
Elise puts her hand on her mask, making sure it's still there. "Uh...is going to this place you want to show us a one-way trip?"
As increasingly worried as Elise is, she is still curious about the situation. It's fascinating how much power a fallen legend left behind for one of his servants!
"All trips are one way," Calypso says placidly. "Can you go back to where you were? Who you were?" She shrugs. "It would be painful. I wouldn't recommend it."
The shadows persist, gently encircling the group and this... person... to whom they are speaking. The other guests, the lavish furnishings, these are drawn away from sight, as though they never existed. Perhaps they never did.
Elise's question prompts Calypso to reach up to her face, gently brushing the crescent-adorned visage with the tips of her fingers. She hesitates, draws a slow breath.
"I wear no mask."
The darkness finally closes in, stripping away the last remnants of the Palace of Citrine, including the very stone beneath the group's feet. Rather than falling, however, they float. Adrift in an endless void.
It also strips away any lingering pretense of humanity on the part of your mysterious companion, Calypso's human form disintegrating like so many muted flashes of light, revealing the true form within. A blue and yellow creature of vaguely avian feature, long-necked, and with pawlike appendages of dark pink crossed across its chest. Behind it, arching ribbons of shimmering rose waver and glow, reminiscent of both spectral wings and the eerie rings around certain distant planets in the night sky.
"The Dream world," the Legend explains carefully. "Is a universe of possibilities. All universes. All possibilities." Hovering through some unknown means, it circles the group slowly, shedding glittering particles in its majestic wake.
"A wellspring of potential, the origin of all things. The godhead."
Distracting herself from her sudden realization of who she is talking to and her potential fate is Elise's worry of being separated from her companions. She looks to her human companions to confirm they are still there, then turns to her pokemon.
Schala
...oh no. I thought we woke her up by getting close enough.
And...
Psyduck, spinning aimlessly in space with the same vacant expression as usual. Ok.
Elise turns to the legend. She speaks very tentatively, unsure if questioning a legend's actions is at all a wise thing to do. "Why us? Aren't there...aren't there others who could use help more? War refugees displaced from Johto and other areas of conflict?"
Elise's cautious questions causes the Legendary Pokemon's serene expression to falter, as uncertainty briefly passes over the creature's features.
"You are here, not anyone else" she explains, reasserting a confident tone. "That is all that is important."
"Look."
There is a jolt, more psychological than physical, as the depths around you smear in a facsimile of drastic movement.
You suddenly find your feet on solid stone, a cheery sun shining overhead, lungfuls of crisp, cool air filling you with each breath. As 'Calypso' continues expectantly circling, you realize you are standing on a tower, above a set of city streets and cobblestone buildings. Voices and movement filter up from below, as crowds of strolling people and Pokemon go about their business.
To most of you, the sight is strangely familiar, albeit unusual. A bustling metropolis, the scale and likes of which are not to be seen in the aftermath of regional war.
To Elise, it's a punch in the gut.
This is Malachite. Maybe as it was in its glorious past, or perhaps how it could one day be once again with luck, time, and unfathomable effort. The Malachite she has imagined and seen in her dreams ever since childhood, hearing stories of magnificence lost, prodded from doting uncles and indulgent elders.
No ruins to be found here, no charred and scattered stonework and ivy-grown remnants. There are only stately towers and mighty walls, sprawling neighborhoods and cosmopolitan marketplaces. Cream-colored stone and viridian rooftops, and above it all the dozens of gorgeous, rippling flags of deepest raven black.
When the realization of where she is hits her, Elise gets very quiet.
She slowly walks around the edges of the tower, looking out at the city below. Ducky climbs on top of the parapets and follows her around, looking at the new surroundings himself.
It fully dawns on Elise that Calypso is the real deal when it comes to this dream world, with powers Elise could not possibly fathom.
Of course, there are requests Elise would want to make, clarifications Calypso could answer, special accommodations to be met. But almost surely they would all be granted.
Elise would definitely be far happier here than anywhere else, that was plain to see. In time, she'd learn to forget about those she left to their uncertain fates. She wouldn't ever be confronted with the consequences of her actions. And could anybody truly blame her for mere inaction? It's not like she actively made things worse.
Maybe they could just stay for a few weeks' vacation before trudging back out to the real world? No, she wouldn't say that, couldn't risk it.
But if one of her comrades suggested it...
"No." Elise replies weakly, shaking her head and looking sadly at the legend. "I can't stay here."
The Legendary Pokemon ceases to circle, instead gently hovering in one spot. She stares, blankly, with only the sounds of the distant crowds below and the unimpeded breeze stirring the tense quiet.
Recognizing a sparking fuse when he sees one, Fenrir begins to growl. Low and warning.
"And you will go... where?" the Pokemon asks, her voice chiming and bright. "Back to a world that hates you?" she continues, slowly moving closer to the edge of the tower.
Uh, hey? Cresselia?
"Because that is what it is. It will hurt you. Eventually it will kill you. Don't you realize you don't belong there?"
Excuse me. I need to talk to you?
"Why else would you suffer so? Why else would you have such a deep desire to see it... changed?" Her glittering wings swish and flick angrily, shedding glimmering motes that dance in the wind.
Could you stop shouting at the humans and listen, maybe?
"Everything you want is already here, and yet you think you can deny it. That you can just walk away."
Okay, I'll try again when you're done yelling.
"Why?" she demands, a long, drawn out snarl of discordance.
Elise pushes down the tears welling up as she stands her ground, then slowly advances toward the legend slowly advancing towards her.
She actually feels guilty. It's got to hurt to see someone reject the decision you've seemingly made, especially one so difficult to make. A pause, and Elise reaches out to touch the Legend on one of the crescent-shaped parts of her head.
"...based on what I want most, this is where I should be." she admits. "From what I've experienced so far, I had mostly given up hope of this ever happening, so seeing it actually exist was..." she sighs, and takes a step back.
"I guess I'm doing this... out of a sense of duty?" Elise stares upwards, trying to organize her jumbled thoughts, before turning back to face the legend. "I want to help my homeland, the people of Quartz, those we have yet to meet. I can meet this world's version of them all here, I presume, but that won't stop those back in the world we came from from meeting whatever fate they meet. And the world hating humans is troubling, so I want to see what can be done about restoring our connection to the natural world... I don't know how that works, but it worked in the past somehow. There is probably a very high chance of an early death, but I've made peace with that. At least, as much as I can."
Elise notices Ducky looking at her in what could be a questioning look, prompting her to think deeper. "That's not all of it, of course; I don't think anyone's that selfless. There's the adoration and fame that has come with our successes. If it weren't for that... moralewise, if things were going worse for us... well, thankfully they're going quite well actually. We managed to save a town!"
"Now we're heading to Cobalt Springs... mostly because aren't sure what to do next."
"Still..." Elise brightens, "because of that, we got to meet you."
Why are your cheeks emaciated, your expression desolate?
Why is your heart so wounded, your features so haggard?
Why is there such sadness deep within you?
Why do you look like one who has been traveling a long distance
So that ice and heat have seared your face?
The legendary Pokemon backs a few feet away when Elise steps back, subjecting the lady to the same blank, pink-hued stare she gave when in the guise of a noble's mask.
"Go, then," she asserts, her voice hoarse and wavering. She turns her back to the tower, wings weaving colorfully against the crisp blue sky.
Discouraged, Elise speaks in a tone possibly too meek to hear. "I'm sorry. Not staying here forever is a very hard decision to make. But... I don't want to leave just yet."
The noble goes silent, thinking through how things have gone to try to get a better understanding of the legend. (-1 Knowledge)
She said her problems were related to memories. Memories of the war? Considering the scene that played out, she was probably very involved in trying to stop it. And with how it turned out... well, her sadness seems to make a lot of sense.
Sensing the lack of activity, Shala encourages Clefairy to try speaking again.
It's almost like fighting Legendaries is easier than trying to talk to them. Almost.
While the tension continues to wind, Elise takes a moment to try and figure out exactly what's going on. Her gut intuition thus far has been pretty solid, and she was on to a good idea when she determined that the choice to stay in the Dream World was one that this Pokemon chose herself. This Legend wants to help, but she has no idea how, so she defaults to the things that she knows she wants. Escape. Distance. Safety.
If you follow that train of thought in a complete circle, it seems like she wants to help you because she needs help herself. She is not just sad, she is very afraid.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So uh, hey.
What is it that you want?
Oh! Thank goodness!
I mean... are you o-
Do you Clefairy still dance at the full moon?
Uh, well...
Yeah! Of course we do!
The moon is a barren rock. The full moon is just reflected light.
Oh...?
The world is a barren rock. Everything else is just the reflection of a dream.
"What else would it be?" the Legendary Pokemon answers Schala's question. "Reality is one potential realized, while the Dream World holds within it all potentials. Is your world still that special to you if it's only a portion of the whole?" She cringes, swinging her head as though to drive away unwholesome thoughts.
"It used to be so clear. Do you understand?" the Lunar Pokemon asserts with sudden forcefulness. "I was a part of something. I used to know what I was and what to do," she continues, fluorescent wings flashing and sparking in tune with the intensity of her outburst, the rocky stone of the tower grinding underfoot as the swift breeze strengthens to a gale. "How dare you have more purpose than me? I, who am Legend?"
Um, um, could you calm down a bit maybe?
I am calm.
Cresselia insists, in defiance of all current evidence otherwise. Nevertheless, something about the particulars of this outpouring of emotion seem strangely familiar to Ducky. A realization that all but scatters from the Psyduck's thoughts when the dire attention of the Legend turns to fall on him.
"That is the question," the Legendary answers the Water Type's quasi-query. "But perhaps you, friend-of-humans, can tell me why the Dream is deepest where humans dwell?"
Elise looks down, then back up. "Being the highest authority can be painful. Every mistake is yours to make, and there's no one to look up to when you are unsure what to do next, or to reassure that this was all worth it. You have my sympathy."
Schala rustles uncomfortably as she looks up at the Legend addressing her.
Not long ago, I wasn't sure what the point of things were either. I was alone, seperated from the other Oddish and our Gloom mother.
B-but then I met Elise. And then I met the Clefairy! So maybe things can get better for you if we all think really hard about it!
Oh! U-uh, if you really envy my purpose I mean...Elise wouldn't turn-
The dream is deepest in human settlements? I never noticed. Or. Never knew what to look for. Ducky, now finished thinking, speaks suddenly and without regard to his Oddish cohort.
Caused by masses of human will? Or the deep dream causing the masses of will?
The Legendary Pokemon regards the thus-far-unusually-silent Trainers accompanying Elise the Talkative with somewhat aghast interest. She then uses her lengthy, swan-like neck to surreptitiously lean towards the Social Knight.
What... what just happened? Just when she was coming to an idea of where to move the conversation next that Psyduck takes over and brings the legend to some cryptically hopeful resolution in mere seconds!
Oh, wait. Clefairy!
What was it you were talking about humans suddenly acting erratically after spending too long here? Could you ask Cresselia if she knows anything about that?
Elise briefly questions her place in the world, casting a sidewards glance to the Psyduck in hope to reveal something, anything.
...
Yeah, go figure.
"Tanaka! Did you... end up wandering around the dream world or something? It's good to see you two again." she returns the smile.
"I can answer any of your questions as we travel, but we really should be heading on to Cobalt Springs. Are you ready?"
Elise looks at the rest of the mostly silent group to see if anyone else has anything to say. She takes a step towards the tower stairs, pauses, and turns to face the legend again.
"How should we refer to you? Is it still Calypso, or something else?"
Despite clinging to the past all this time, this duck could no longer deny how he had changed from that simple Psyduck he once was.
Try to explain it as returning to the status quo all he might, but even when he first set off to restore the river, he could now see how it was exposure to the once alien thought patterns of humans that prompted him to begin his quest so many days ago.
With that goal now accomplished, Ducky does not desire to return to his home just yet. In this duck there now exists a will of his own. Or was the will always there, waiting to be unlocked? It encourages him to find further wrongs and set them right. To reconcile humanity with the natural world, and in doing so secure his own place in it.
A task once seemingly onerous, if not entirely impossible, but perhaps no longer. Ducky has found a legend that, with a bit of prodding, is now seemingly willing to endeavor to Set Things Right as all proper Lords and Ladies should.
Where this duck once struggled alone, interrogating rocks and watching people for malign actions against the river, now there is Cresselia, now there is a party of humans and their pokemon, with interests growing into alignment.
Onwards to Cobalt Springs, then. Whatever may be, this duck is here to investigate it.
Ducky's need changed to: Serve the Lady of Dreams!
Though her focus remains on the Psyduck, the Legendary Pokemon eventually pulls her attention away sufficiently to answer Elise's question.
"In this place, you may call me Cresselia. My oldest name. Elsewhere, it may be safest to continue using 'Calypso'."
Any further queries are stymied by a sharp, cold pain in the hollow of your chest.
"It is time to wake up."
The hues of the Dream World around you dim, and warp. Your breath escapes only with great effort, accompanied by a cloud of fluttering bubbles that burst upward into the hazy, flickering sky. In slow mimicry of your arrival, the stone beneath your feet drifts away, though this time it's because you find yourself floating up, borne on an invisible current that chills you to the bone and makes your ears clang and roar with the eerie, suffocating sensation of depth, movement and pressure.
Cresselia falls away, watching impassively as you are dragged into the greyish-blue sky, towards the wavering image of the cold, distant sun...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~Cobalt Springs~
One by one, the group surfaces, gasping and spitting. As you wipe water from your eyes and ears, the blurry, indistinct scene before you slowly takes form.
In contrast to the wet dark you just erupted from, the landscape around you is a verdant meadow, lit from above by the soothing, warm rays of the mid-day sun. Beneath you, the yawning gap of the submerged tunnel you emerged from is almost hidden among the pebbles and silt at the bottom of the pond you've found yourself in. The swift and frigid current that must have brought you here breaks on the surface of the water in a faint, gurgling fountain, the only thing besides your own movement that disturbs the otherwise mirror-like surface of the chilly water.
The slope to dry land is a gentle one and easily managed even in your half-drowned state, the edge of the pool decorated with cattails and sedge grass, while a nearby willow tree's whip-like branches droop so as to almost touch the surface of the pond. The stillness of the water is quickly explained by the presence of a cluttered pile of neatly de-branched and thoroughly gnawed logs that have converted what might otherwise been a mountain-spring-fed brook into a glassy-surfaced reservoir with its damming presence.
While the Lotad burble and paddle through the calm waters with ecstatic, albeit somewhat sluggish delight, a nearby Wild Pokemon regards your arrival with alarm, the squat, brown-and-tan-furred creature nearly dropping a newly chewed branch from the slackened grip of its oversized buckteeth.
What would you like to do?
The Bidoof drops its stick on the ground, about faces, and begins jogging across the grass, away from the pool. The lawn around the pond you're in is bare enough of obstructing flora to allow you to spot the retreating Plump Mouse Pokemon is likely heading towards a small mound of nearby turf, the base of which almost conceals the soil-strewn entrance to a Bidoof-sized tunnel.
Tanaka lifts himself out of the water, and then trudges over to somewhere private. He returns, having rid himself of most of his damp clothes, keeping only that which protects his modesty.
"Should we build a fire?" He asks Elise. Makai too, if he ever starts talking again.
Meanwhile, Gigen silently follows the Bidoof, curious about their little fort, and its little ways.
Schala's essence disappears into her apricorn as Elise trudges onto the shore.
She answers Tanaka. "Depends, how far are we from civilization? I'll go look somewhere high to ..." Elise notices the new arrival to the reservoir. "...on second thought, a fire sounds lovely."
"Cyrus, can you carry this for a bit?" Elise attempts to secure the giant pack onto the newly released rhyhorn, then rolls Alice to get her facing up, checking to ensure she is still breathing.
Ducky languidly floats on the water for a few moments before paddling over to the bidoof's dam. He dives underwater, small three-pronged limbs propelling him as he investigates the submerged structure's sides for another possible entrance connecting to the wild pokemon's lair.
The shimmering sun above is quick to curb the worst of the underground cave's clammy chill, but a fire wouldn't hurt to drive away the last dregs of the cold. Finding tinder might be a little difficult, as the nearby area has an almost garden-like lack of dead, dry or discarded plant-based detritus, and just about anything you lay eyes on seems to be hale, green, and well-watered. Dalinda did mention Cobalt Springs was a vibrant, flourishing place, but this seems a little extreme.
Of course, you do have Fire Types handy, and those tend to care little for the quality of their kindling - it all burns if you put enough effort into it.
Elise's newly-caught Rhyhorn accepts the burden with a grunt. While not quite as demonstrative as her other acquisitions, it at least seem to be even-tempered. A relief, considering the circumstances it was captured in and the lack of any major formal acquainting of its new situation (to be fair, you've been pretty busy).
Ducky finds the submerged tunnel to be smooth, if not completely uniform, which is just as well considering the underwater journey was troublesome enough without having to worry about jagged rocks and sharp edges. It only descends directly down for about 10 feet before turning westwards, ostensibly towards the nearby slopes of Mt. Meteo. The current is not so strong that he couldn't fight against it and explore further, but he would probably want a good reason to do so with the time and effort it would take.
Gigen trails the Bidoof, arriving at the entrance of the small tunnel a few moments after the rodent-like Pokemon disappears with a wiggle of its five-tufted tail and a small shower of dark dirt.
"Well." Makai states matter of factly.
"That was weird."
He fishes out his apricorn and summons Fenrir. "Sorry, more water buddy." Makai shivers. "Whip us up a fire, so we can get the chill of the caverns off us."
Fenrir snorts his assent at his trainer, his red-hued, feral sight seeking out a handy source of fuel to get things lit up around here.
Actually, there's a really big, convenient pile of sticks and branches over by the pond's edge. It's a little wet, but what isn't around here? The houndour begins trotting towards it with a fiery gleam in his eyes.
Elise shrugs at Makai's words. "Dream-controlling entities take some getting used to. I get the impression from her parting words that we should avoid bringing up our new benefactor with anybody with a connection to another pokemon of legend, unless Calypso asks us to."
Ducky emerges from the depths with little interest in exploring the tunnel. He's not sure why he remembers a bidoof digging its tunnel all the way to its dam, but at least for this one that doesn't seem to be the case.
Ducky climbs up on top of the dam to do a little sunbathing, then...
...is that...is that the ninja boy's houndour coming over? What could he possibly want?
The Sableye continues after the descending Bidoof, slipping through the tunnel as the the sound of scrabbled dirt slowly grows faint. After a few moments of pursuit, Gigen finds himself at a fork in the path.
One route smells sweet and earthy, the other like ozone and glass.
Gigen wonders when his subconscious turned into a coward baby. He takes the route that smells of glass. That is a strange thing for a dam to have in it.
Gigen takes the suspicious smelling tunnel. It doesn't take very long for the inquisitive Ghost Type to reach the end. The tunnel expands outwards into a tiny, warm room, its floor covered in soft, dry sand covered in overlapping paw prints. A brief crackle of yellow electricity arcs across the ground, filling the air with a brief puff of ozone and smoke, and fusing a few square inches worth of grains of sand into a crater of fulgurite glass.
Huddled in a pile in a corner of the room, squeaking quietly, are several very, very small yellow balls of fuzz, about a quarter Gigen's size, with black, pointy ears and vaguely lighning bolt shaped tails.
Posts
"I'm not mourning. I'm repenting."
The chimes continue, the masked party goers around you slowly taking note and, with smiles and cheers, begin doffing their masks, some reluctantly others with flourishes. A few chuckle or blush after seeing the identities, suspected or not, of the other guests they were most recently chatting with.
"And I did not have a Mistress. I had a Master."
Calypso does not remove her mask.
"I don't need help. Not as much as you do."
Ducky notices it first. There's something very wrong with Calypso's mask.
"What happens next is up to you," she continues, raising her hands. "But first I should show you something."
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~???~ :whistle:
"We need help? Are we in danger here?" Elise's tone is a degree more wary, but only so much, as despite Calypso's ominous words she senses no active malice from Calypso. Perhaps if she had noticed the things her pokemon has, she'd be a lot more so.
Ducky's stare is finally interrupted as he squawks with alarm, almost losing his balance as he takes two half-waddling, half-tripping steps back. Did the mask always look like that?
Elise queries further. "...what kind of pokemon was the one you served?"
Elise has no objection to being showed the thing Calypso wants to show them, perhaps out of trust, or perhaps out of confidence in the capability of her and her pokemon to get out of any mess they end up in.
Man if only Elise knew about legendary pokemon as much as everyone in this thread does. In terms of knowing there are two types of moon/dream legendaries, not about being afraid of any old legend. Cause fuck that, row row fight the power.
I guess hindsight is 20/20 though because for her current stuff I still need to ask what are probably easily answerable questions.
Like, does she serve Darkrai or Cresselia? Does who she served even matter because she's repenting for some reason, perhaps about who she served, or are we all doomed?
Are we going to get into some kind of awesome dream world fight where we face off against our shadow, the true self?
"There's no danger here. You're the safest you have ever been."
:whistle:
The edges of the room you're in begin to grow dark, shadows creeping from the corners of the room and unfurling into lazy tendrils that thicken and spread, obscuring everything they touch with a black fog that closes in on the group and Calypso.
"I served... The Original One. The Almighty."
The mask hasn't changed. For Ducky, that's the problem, it's been far too real, far too lifelike since the very start.
"Remove your masks," Calypso suggests. "We're going home."
Schala turns to speak to the other pokemon.
She turns back to Clefairy.
Elise Corbeau - [Social Knight] - 4/4
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~???~ :whistle:
Elise looks around at the encroaching darkness at all sides, visibly perturbed. To her, it seems like it is becoming clear that she does not have as much control over this situation as she thought she had.
Elise puts her hand on her mask, making sure it's still there. "Uh...is going to this place you want to show us a one-way trip?"
As increasingly worried as Elise is, she is still curious about the situation. It's fascinating how much power a fallen legend left behind for one of his servants!
"...and are you going to take off your mask?"
"All trips are one way," Calypso says placidly. "Can you go back to where you were? Who you were?" She shrugs. "It would be painful. I wouldn't recommend it."
The shadows persist, gently encircling the group and this... person... to whom they are speaking. The other guests, the lavish furnishings, these are drawn away from sight, as though they never existed. Perhaps they never did.
Elise's question prompts Calypso to reach up to her face, gently brushing the crescent-adorned visage with the tips of her fingers. She hesitates, draws a slow breath.
"I wear no mask."
The darkness finally closes in, stripping away the last remnants of the Palace of Citrine, including the very stone beneath the group's feet. Rather than falling, however, they float. Adrift in an endless void.
It also strips away any lingering pretense of humanity on the part of your mysterious companion, Calypso's human form disintegrating like so many muted flashes of light, revealing the true form within. A blue and yellow creature of vaguely avian feature, long-necked, and with pawlike appendages of dark pink crossed across its chest. Behind it, arching ribbons of shimmering rose waver and glow, reminiscent of both spectral wings and the eerie rings around certain distant planets in the night sky.
"The Dream world," the Legend explains carefully. "Is a universe of possibilities. All universes. All possibilities." Hovering through some unknown means, it circles the group slowly, shedding glittering particles in its majestic wake.
"A wellspring of potential, the origin of all things. The godhead."
"I'll show you."
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~???~ :whistle:
Distracting herself from her sudden realization of who she is talking to and her potential fate is Elise's worry of being separated from her companions. She looks to her human companions to confirm they are still there, then turns to her pokemon.
Schala
And...
Psyduck, spinning aimlessly in space with the same vacant expression as usual. Ok.
Elise turns to the legend. She speaks very tentatively, unsure if questioning a legend's actions is at all a wise thing to do. "Why us? Aren't there...aren't there others who could use help more? War refugees displaced from Johto and other areas of conflict?"
Elise's cautious questions causes the Legendary Pokemon's serene expression to falter, as uncertainty briefly passes over the creature's features.
"You are here, not anyone else" she explains, reasserting a confident tone. "That is all that is important."
"Look."
There is a jolt, more psychological than physical, as the depths around you smear in a facsimile of drastic movement.
You suddenly find your feet on solid stone, a cheery sun shining overhead, lungfuls of crisp, cool air filling you with each breath. As 'Calypso' continues expectantly circling, you realize you are standing on a tower, above a set of city streets and cobblestone buildings. Voices and movement filter up from below, as crowds of strolling people and Pokemon go about their business.
To most of you, the sight is strangely familiar, albeit unusual. A bustling metropolis, the scale and likes of which are not to be seen in the aftermath of regional war.
To Elise, it's a punch in the gut.
This is Malachite. Maybe as it was in its glorious past, or perhaps how it could one day be once again with luck, time, and unfathomable effort. The Malachite she has imagined and seen in her dreams ever since childhood, hearing stories of magnificence lost, prodded from doting uncles and indulgent elders.
No ruins to be found here, no charred and scattered stonework and ivy-grown remnants. There are only stately towers and mighty walls, sprawling neighborhoods and cosmopolitan marketplaces. Cream-colored stone and viridian rooftops, and above it all the dozens of gorgeous, rippling flags of deepest raven black.
"All this, and more." the Legend offers.
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~???~ :whistle:
When the realization of where she is hits her, Elise gets very quiet.
She slowly walks around the edges of the tower, looking out at the city below. Ducky climbs on top of the parapets and follows her around, looking at the new surroundings himself.
It fully dawns on Elise that Calypso is the real deal when it comes to this dream world, with powers Elise could not possibly fathom.
Of course, there are requests Elise would want to make, clarifications Calypso could answer, special accommodations to be met. But almost surely they would all be granted.
Elise would definitely be far happier here than anywhere else, that was plain to see. In time, she'd learn to forget about those she left to their uncertain fates. She wouldn't ever be confronted with the consequences of her actions. And could anybody truly blame her for mere inaction? It's not like she actively made things worse.
Maybe they could just stay for a few weeks' vacation before trudging back out to the real world? No, she wouldn't say that, couldn't risk it.
But if one of her comrades suggested it...
"No." Elise replies weakly, shaking her head and looking sadly at the legend. "I can't stay here."
~???~ :whistle:
The Legendary Pokemon ceases to circle, instead gently hovering in one spot. She stares, blankly, with only the sounds of the distant crowds below and the unimpeded breeze stirring the tense quiet.
Recognizing a sparking fuse when he sees one, Fenrir begins to growl. Low and warning.
"And you will go... where?" the Pokemon asks, her voice chiming and bright. "Back to a world that hates you?" she continues, slowly moving closer to the edge of the tower.
"Because that is what it is. It will hurt you. Eventually it will kill you. Don't you realize you don't belong there?"
"Why else would you suffer so? Why else would you have such a deep desire to see it... changed?" Her glittering wings swish and flick angrily, shedding glimmering motes that dance in the wind.
"Everything you want is already here, and yet you think you can deny it. That you can just walk away."
"Why?" she demands, a long, drawn out snarl of discordance.
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~???~ :whistle:
Elise pushes down the tears welling up as she stands her ground, then slowly advances toward the legend slowly advancing towards her.
She actually feels guilty. It's got to hurt to see someone reject the decision you've seemingly made, especially one so difficult to make. A pause, and Elise reaches out to touch the Legend on one of the crescent-shaped parts of her head.
"...based on what I want most, this is where I should be." she admits. "From what I've experienced so far, I had mostly given up hope of this ever happening, so seeing it actually exist was..." she sighs, and takes a step back.
"I guess I'm doing this... out of a sense of duty?" Elise stares upwards, trying to organize her jumbled thoughts, before turning back to face the legend. "I want to help my homeland, the people of Quartz, those we have yet to meet. I can meet this world's version of them all here, I presume, but that won't stop those back in the world we came from from meeting whatever fate they meet. And the world hating humans is troubling, so I want to see what can be done about restoring our connection to the natural world... I don't know how that works, but it worked in the past somehow. There is probably a very high chance of an early death, but I've made peace with that. At least, as much as I can."
Elise notices Ducky looking at her in what could be a questioning look, prompting her to think deeper. "That's not all of it, of course; I don't think anyone's that selfless. There's the adoration and fame that has come with our successes. If it weren't for that... moralewise, if things were going worse for us... well, thankfully they're going quite well actually. We managed to save a town!"
"Now we're heading to Cobalt Springs... mostly because aren't sure what to do next."
"Still..." Elise brightens, "because of that, we got to meet you."
Why is your heart so wounded, your features so haggard?
Why is there such sadness deep within you?
Why do you look like one who has been traveling a long distance
So that ice and heat have seared your face?
Why do you roam the wilderness?
~Dream World~ :whistle:
The legendary Pokemon backs a few feet away when Elise steps back, subjecting the lady to the same blank, pink-hued stare she gave when in the guise of a noble's mask.
"Go, then," she asserts, her voice hoarse and wavering. She turns her back to the tower, wings weaving colorfully against the crisp blue sky.
"Don't come back."
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~Dream World~
Discouraged, Elise speaks in a tone possibly too meek to hear. "I'm sorry. Not staying here forever is a very hard decision to make. But... I don't want to leave just yet."
The noble goes silent, thinking through how things have gone to try to get a better understanding of the legend. (-1 Knowledge)
She said her problems were related to memories. Memories of the war? Considering the scene that played out, she was probably very involved in trying to stop it. And with how it turned out... well, her sadness seems to make a lot of sense.
Sensing the lack of activity, Shala encourages Clefairy to try speaking again.
It's almost like fighting Legendaries is easier than trying to talk to them. Almost.
While the tension continues to wind, Elise takes a moment to try and figure out exactly what's going on. Her gut intuition thus far has been pretty solid, and she was on to a good idea when she determined that the choice to stay in the Dream World was one that this Pokemon chose herself. This Legend wants to help, but she has no idea how, so she defaults to the things that she knows she wants. Escape. Distance. Safety.
If you follow that train of thought in a complete circle, it seems like she wants to help you because she needs help herself. She is not just sad, she is very afraid.
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~Dream World~
Sitting on a crenelation, Ducky glances over to Schala, pauses, then turns to the Legend
"What else would it be?" the Legendary Pokemon answers Schala's question. "Reality is one potential realized, while the Dream World holds within it all potentials. Is your world still that special to you if it's only a portion of the whole?" She cringes, swinging her head as though to drive away unwholesome thoughts.
"It used to be so clear. Do you understand?" the Lunar Pokemon asserts with sudden forcefulness. "I was a part of something. I used to know what I was and what to do," she continues, fluorescent wings flashing and sparking in tune with the intensity of her outburst, the rocky stone of the tower grinding underfoot as the swift breeze strengthens to a gale. "How dare you have more purpose than me? I, who am Legend?"
Cresselia insists, in defiance of all current evidence otherwise. Nevertheless, something about the particulars of this outpouring of emotion seem strangely familiar to Ducky. A realization that all but scatters from the Psyduck's thoughts when the dire attention of the Legend turns to fall on him.
"That is the question," the Legendary answers the Water Type's quasi-query. "But perhaps you, friend-of-humans, can tell me why the Dream is deepest where humans dwell?"
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~Dream World~ :whistle:
Elise looks down, then back up. "Being the highest authority can be painful. Every mistake is yours to make, and there's no one to look up to when you are unsure what to do next, or to reassure that this was all worth it. You have my sympathy."
Schala rustles uncomfortably as she looks up at the Legend addressing her.
"Will," the Legend repeats, momentarily nonplussed. "No... Is that so?" The wind begins to die down, the powerful Pokemon seemingly lost in thought.
"Time is short. I need to think. Alone," she says, slowly. "You should go, but... you may come back. We will talk more."
Anything else you want to say?
[Bell Bonze] ~ [Shakuhachi] ~ [Badling of Lotad] - [Well Supplied] ~ Volt: 4
Tanaka and Gigen wander back into scene.
"I donno, Gi. It kinda looks like the party's over."
Gigen chitters.
"Then where are all the people, eh Monsiour Smartfella?"
A growl.
"I bet she did. Can never trust these blue bloods."
Both look at the blue bloods, human and Pokémon. They smile.
"Howdy! How was the rest of the party?"
Steam
The Legendary Pokemon regards the thus-far-unusually-silent Trainers accompanying Elise the Talkative with somewhat aghast interest. She then uses her lengthy, swan-like neck to surreptitiously lean towards the Social Knight.
"They're leaving too, right?"
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~Dream World~ :whistle:
What... what just happened? Just when she was coming to an idea of where to move the conversation next that Psyduck takes over and brings the legend to some cryptically hopeful resolution in mere seconds!
Elise briefly questions her place in the world, casting a sidewards glance to the Psyduck in hope to reveal something, anything.
Yeah, go figure.
"Tanaka! Did you... end up wandering around the dream world or something? It's good to see you two again." she returns the smile.
"I can answer any of your questions as we travel, but we really should be heading on to Cobalt Springs. Are you ready?"
Elise looks at the rest of the mostly silent group to see if anyone else has anything to say. She takes a step towards the tower stairs, pauses, and turns to face the legend again.
"How should we refer to you? Is it still Calypso, or something else?"
Despite clinging to the past all this time, this duck could no longer deny how he had changed from that simple Psyduck he once was.
Try to explain it as returning to the status quo all he might, but even when he first set off to restore the river, he could now see how it was exposure to the once alien thought patterns of humans that prompted him to begin his quest so many days ago.
With that goal now accomplished, Ducky does not desire to return to his home just yet. In this duck there now exists a will of his own. Or was the will always there, waiting to be unlocked? It encourages him to find further wrongs and set them right. To reconcile humanity with the natural world, and in doing so secure his own place in it.
A task once seemingly onerous, if not entirely impossible, but perhaps no longer. Ducky has found a legend that, with a bit of prodding, is now seemingly willing to endeavor to Set Things Right as all proper Lords and Ladies should.
Where this duck once struggled alone, interrogating rocks and watching people for malign actions against the river, now there is Cresselia, now there is a party of humans and their pokemon, with interests growing into alignment.
Onwards to Cobalt Springs, then. Whatever may be, this duck is here to investigate it.
[Bell Bonze] ~ [Shakuhachi] ~ [Badling of Lotad] - [Well Supplied] ~ Volt: 4
Tanaka breaks his gaze off of the Lady of Dreams, and shifts it to Elise. Gigen's stays right on the legendary. Right into their eyes.
"We went to find a bathroom. We failed." He smiles.
"I am more than ready to get out of this dumb place."
Steam
:whistle:
Though her focus remains on the Psyduck, the Legendary Pokemon eventually pulls her attention away sufficiently to answer Elise's question.
"In this place, you may call me Cresselia. My oldest name. Elsewhere, it may be safest to continue using 'Calypso'."
Any further queries are stymied by a sharp, cold pain in the hollow of your chest.
"It is time to wake up."
The hues of the Dream World around you dim, and warp. Your breath escapes only with great effort, accompanied by a cloud of fluttering bubbles that burst upward into the hazy, flickering sky. In slow mimicry of your arrival, the stone beneath your feet drifts away, though this time it's because you find yourself floating up, borne on an invisible current that chills you to the bone and makes your ears clang and roar with the eerie, suffocating sensation of depth, movement and pressure.
Cresselia falls away, watching impassively as you are dragged into the greyish-blue sky, towards the wavering image of the cold, distant sun...
~Cobalt Springs~
One by one, the group surfaces, gasping and spitting. As you wipe water from your eyes and ears, the blurry, indistinct scene before you slowly takes form.
:whistle:
In contrast to the wet dark you just erupted from, the landscape around you is a verdant meadow, lit from above by the soothing, warm rays of the mid-day sun. Beneath you, the yawning gap of the submerged tunnel you emerged from is almost hidden among the pebbles and silt at the bottom of the pond you've found yourself in. The swift and frigid current that must have brought you here breaks on the surface of the water in a faint, gurgling fountain, the only thing besides your own movement that disturbs the otherwise mirror-like surface of the chilly water.
The slope to dry land is a gentle one and easily managed even in your half-drowned state, the edge of the pool decorated with cattails and sedge grass, while a nearby willow tree's whip-like branches droop so as to almost touch the surface of the pond. The stillness of the water is quickly explained by the presence of a cluttered pile of neatly de-branched and thoroughly gnawed logs that have converted what might otherwise been a mountain-spring-fed brook into a glassy-surfaced reservoir with its damming presence.
While the Lotad burble and paddle through the calm waters with ecstatic, albeit somewhat sluggish delight, a nearby Wild Pokemon regards your arrival with alarm, the squat, brown-and-tan-furred creature nearly dropping a newly chewed branch from the slackened grip of its oversized buckteeth.
What would you like to do?
[Bell Bonze] ~ [Shakuhachi] ~ [Badling of Lotad] - [Well Supplied] ~ Volt: 4
Tanaka looks into the creature's beady black eyes.
"Uhh... Hi?"
Steam
The Bidoof drops its stick on the ground, about faces, and begins jogging across the grass, away from the pool. The lawn around the pond you're in is bare enough of obstructing flora to allow you to spot the retreating Plump Mouse Pokemon is likely heading towards a small mound of nearby turf, the base of which almost conceals the soil-strewn entrance to a Bidoof-sized tunnel.
[Bell Bonze] ~ [Shakuhachi] ~ [Badling of Lotad] - [Well Supplied] ~ Volt: 4
"Oh. Bye, then, little marmot."
Tanaka lifts himself out of the water, and then trudges over to somewhere private. He returns, having rid himself of most of his damp clothes, keeping only that which protects his modesty.
"Should we build a fire?" He asks Elise. Makai too, if he ever starts talking again.
Meanwhile, Gigen silently follows the Bidoof, curious about their little fort, and its little ways.
Steam
oh, and it appears to still be attached to Alice. Who seems to be either barely or flat out un-conscious.
It's probably fine?
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~Cobalt Springs~
Schala's essence disappears into her apricorn as Elise trudges onto the shore.
She answers Tanaka. "Depends, how far are we from civilization? I'll go look somewhere high to ..." Elise notices the new arrival to the reservoir. "...on second thought, a fire sounds lovely."
"Cyrus, can you carry this for a bit?" Elise attempts to secure the giant pack onto the newly released rhyhorn, then rolls Alice to get her facing up, checking to ensure she is still breathing.
Ducky languidly floats on the water for a few moments before paddling over to the bidoof's dam. He dives underwater, small three-pronged limbs propelling him as he investigates the submerged structure's sides for another possible entrance connecting to the wild pokemon's lair.
The shimmering sun above is quick to curb the worst of the underground cave's clammy chill, but a fire wouldn't hurt to drive away the last dregs of the cold. Finding tinder might be a little difficult, as the nearby area has an almost garden-like lack of dead, dry or discarded plant-based detritus, and just about anything you lay eyes on seems to be hale, green, and well-watered. Dalinda did mention Cobalt Springs was a vibrant, flourishing place, but this seems a little extreme.
Of course, you do have Fire Types handy, and those tend to care little for the quality of their kindling - it all burns if you put enough effort into it.
Elise's newly-caught Rhyhorn accepts the burden with a grunt. While not quite as demonstrative as her other acquisitions, it at least seem to be even-tempered. A relief, considering the circumstances it was captured in and the lack of any major formal acquainting of its new situation (to be fair, you've been pretty busy).
Ducky finds the submerged tunnel to be smooth, if not completely uniform, which is just as well considering the underwater journey was troublesome enough without having to worry about jagged rocks and sharp edges. It only descends directly down for about 10 feet before turning westwards, ostensibly towards the nearby slopes of Mt. Meteo. The current is not so strong that he couldn't fight against it and explore further, but he would probably want a good reason to do so with the time and effort it would take.
Gigen trails the Bidoof, arriving at the entrance of the small tunnel a few moments after the rodent-like Pokemon disappears with a wiggle of its five-tufted tail and a small shower of dark dirt.
:whistle:
Is it... a good idea to follow something into its nest like this?
ACRONYM="3"]P[/ACRONYM][ACRONYM="0"]K[/ACRONYM][ACRONYM="3"]M[/ACRONYM][ACRONYM="0"]N[/ACRONYM [Newly Sharpened Kunais] [Caving Kit]
Iktomi | Fenrir | Roscoe
?????
"Well." Makai states matter of factly.
"That was weird."
He fishes out his apricorn and summons Fenrir. "Sorry, more water buddy." Makai shivers. "Whip us up a fire, so we can get the chill of the caverns off us."
Fenrir snorts his assent at his trainer, his red-hued, feral sight seeking out a handy source of fuel to get things lit up around here.
Actually, there's a really big, convenient pile of sticks and branches over by the pond's edge. It's a little wet, but what isn't around here? The houndour begins trotting towards it with a fiery gleam in his eyes.
[PKMN] [Shieldmaiden] [Carapace Brigandine] [Cobalt Springs Tradition]
~Cobalt Springs~
Elise shrugs at Makai's words. "Dream-controlling entities take some getting used to. I get the impression from her parting words that we should avoid bringing up our new benefactor with anybody with a connection to another pokemon of legend, unless Calypso asks us to."
Ducky emerges from the depths with little interest in exploring the tunnel. He's not sure why he remembers a bidoof digging its tunnel all the way to its dam, but at least for this one that doesn't seem to be the case.
Ducky climbs up on top of the dam to do a little sunbathing, then...
...is that...is that the ninja boy's houndour coming over? What could he possibly want?
[Bell Bonze] ~ [Shakuhachi] ~ [Badling of Lotad] - [Well Supplied] ~ Volt: 4
Of course it is a good idea. All of Gigen's ideas are good.
He follows the bidoof into its home, his ethereal flesh slipping through cracks and holes.
Steam
Of course it is.
The Sableye continues after the descending Bidoof, slipping through the tunnel as the the sound of scrabbled dirt slowly grows faint. After a few moments of pursuit, Gigen finds himself at a fork in the path.
One route smells sweet and earthy, the other like ozone and glass.
Which would he like to take?
Or... should he turn back?
[Bell Bonze] ~ [Shakuhachi] ~ [Badling of Lotad] - [Well Supplied] ~ Volt: 4
Gigen wonders when his subconscious turned into a coward baby. He takes the route that smells of glass. That is a strange thing for a dam to have in it.
Steam
Gigen takes the suspicious smelling tunnel. It doesn't take very long for the inquisitive Ghost Type to reach the end. The tunnel expands outwards into a tiny, warm room, its floor covered in soft, dry sand covered in overlapping paw prints. A brief crackle of yellow electricity arcs across the ground, filling the air with a brief puff of ozone and smoke, and fusing a few square inches worth of grains of sand into a crater of fulgurite glass.
Huddled in a pile in a corner of the room, squeaking quietly, are several very, very small yellow balls of fuzz, about a quarter Gigen's size, with black, pointy ears and vaguely lighning bolt shaped tails.