Marowak Dojo ~ Living Quarters

[Disco]

Mellow watched as he became a true Charmander again. The process made her shiver, but she didn't look away. Instead, as soon as he was done, she spoke.

"...So, this... Radiance. How is it any different from being infected? Because it looks the same to me... ...Where did it even come from?"

 

[Namohysip]

"You weren't there?" Owen asked, frowning. "Thought they gathered everyone... Oh, that might've been Flame..." He shook his head. "It came from Maple. The same powers that Truffle and the rest of God Squad has, she gifted a weaker version to us. So it came from Arceus, and helped us have even more power than before. It's strong against that darkness we've been fighting, too, so it's more like anti-infection stuff. But it's still dangerous, so we have to be careful with how we use it..."

It seemed like talking about other things was putting Owen in a better mood; he babbled on, his flame slowly returning to a mildly pleased mood.

 

[Disco]

"...Oh."

Her own expression grew more troubled after he explained things, but she tried to hide it.

"I guess it's...useful? But if it's so dangerous...", she began, then sighed. Mellow couldn't bring herself to find anything good about any of that. Being offered so much power with no real warning felt so much like a trap. She hoped she was wrong, but it was hard to see how she could be.

 

[Namohysip]

Owen nodded. "It is, but... hey, we still need to fight them, right? So... All things considered, I think it's worth the risk. Especially since these aren't really our real bodies or anything, right? So I guess I can afford to be a little reckless!" Owen grinned, though there was something uncertain about the way he said that. "I guess... I've always been a little reckless, though. Now that I have some of my memories back..."

 

[Disco]

"...It still feels real...", she mumbled. "But you're right. We have to save the world... I just wish we knew who the bad guy really is..."

Mellow looked down and rubbed at her arm a bit before she spoke again. "Well, I should probably go. Getting your memories back all at once sounds really stressful. I just didn't want you to get hurt because of a Shug or anything... I'll leave you to yourself."

The Charmander smiled awkwardly and waved a bit, then turned and began to leave.

 

[Namohysip]

Owen smiled back, though it didn't seem to be with a hint of awkwardness this time. He sighed and looked down, thinking to himself. Mellow was a bystander in all this, more like the team chef than anything, and... he had a feeling that would be important going forward for morale. And even though she was scared and it was all overwhelming her, she was still here, fighting in her own way. He had to do the same.

"My memories..." Owen mumbled. He had been afraid to process them, but now... "Maybe there's something useful in there."

<><><>​

 

[Shiny Phantump]

Celeste stirred. He hurt all over. What had happened last nigh-

Oh right. That.

“Is... Is anyone else here? What time is it?”

 

[windskull]

"Late morning. Maybe midday. I'm not sure."

Nip sat up in his nest, looking at the recovering absol. The last couple of days had passed in a blur. Initially, he had woken up in the Guild infirmary, where he'd spent the first day of his recovery. But he had refused to spend any more time there than he needed and had returned to the living quarters the following day, where he stayed to rest since. Only now was he starting to feel normal again.

"Everyone else has already left. You were in pretty bad shape when they brought you in last night. Said Darkwhite did... that to you." He gestured to Celeste. "Decided you were safer here than you were in the Guild."

 

[Shiny Phantump]

“Yeah, that was her all right. I just wanted to get some starlight, but she beat me within an inch of my life. Dragged it out for... what felt like hours. Used me as bait to get everyone out so that she could challenge us. She’s holding a higher being hostage. Lugia... and possibly Ho-Oh, too.”

He rolled over, his joints cracking as he did. “This is... easily the most pain I’ve been in.”

 

[windskull]

"Mm." Nip shifted so that he was actually facing Celeste. "Then it's fortunate Diyem alerted everyone when he did. Perhaps, had I been able to come, we could have done something more to stop her, but..." He trailed off and decided to try changing the subject.

"I... admit that I know very little about Ho-Oh and Lugia. Or the lesser gods that are under their command. Their names — Ho-Oh and Lugia, at least — were mentioned in the stories of my people, but most of the details were lost before we began marking records of our stories." He paused, scowling. "The fact that Darkrai and Cresselia could succumb to these shade creatures was bad enough. But to know that there's someone out there that can restrain other greater gods... That, perhaps s... worries me more."

 

[Shiny Phantump]

“Lugia is one thing, but the loss of Ho-Oh is... frightening. The loss of Lugia would be disastrous, but if we lost Xerneas, Ho-Oh or Yvelatl... The cycle of life as we know it wouldn’t function. It would be as ruinous as losing one of Arceus’ Firstborn. Or Arceus themself.”

There was also the matter of the higher being in question being Ho-Oh specifically that worried him. This worlds Ho-Oh was different from his own, and he wouldn’t be making the mistake of conflating them as individuals, but the idea of a possessed Ho-Oh terrified him nonetheless.

 

[windskull]

At the mention of Yveltal, Nip perked up slightly. "Though I know little of Ho-Oh, Xerneas and Yveltal I know much more of. One of our stories claims that Yveltal, at Zygarde's request allowed Ho-Oh to escape death. Because leaving Lugia without a counterpart to balance him would have been disastrous."

He paused, letting out his gaze. "Though I know little of Ho-Oh... I know the balance that Xerneas and Yveltal provide is important. If we were to lose one or both of them... Or if one were to be turned against world, like Darkwhite seems to be doing... Well, you are right in saying it could bring the world to ruin."

 

[Shiny Phantump]

“Wait, who’s Zygarde? And what does Ho-Oh have to do with Lugia?”

Celeste stopped to think for a moment. “If they’re counterparts in your world, they could be counterparts here, too. The fact that it was the two of them together may not have been coincidence...

“Did I just say something incredibly obvious? Heh, where I’m from Ho-Oh goes alongside Xerneas as Yveltal, as the in-between the start of life under Xerneas, and its end under Yveltal. I’m quite well versed in these matters, but I’ve never heard of a “Zygarde” at all before now.”

 

[windskull]

"That seems to be the case," Nip agreed.

He tilted his head. "Curious. Zygarde is... technically one of the greater gods, as the overseer of balance, of making sure all is right in the world. Though not as powerful as the original gods — that would be the Creator of Mon, Mew, and the Creator of All, whose name was... well, their name was lost to time in my world, though I've reason to believe it is the Arceus that Maple and her team speaks of. When the two created Xerneas and Yveltal, they also created Zygarde to keep the two in balance. Over time, Zygarde's duties expanded to watching the balance of more and more things but... well that is a long, long story, and one that I am not well-versed in."

 

[Shiny Phantump]

“Ah, it’s too bad you’re not so well versed in it, I’d be fascinated to hear the stories of your world... I suppose I can hardly expect everyone from any given world to know them all, though.”

 

[windskull]

Nip sheepishly scratched at the side of his face. "Yeah. Unfortunately, a lot of stories have been obscured by time and by... the lay of the world in a sense. I recently came to realize just how much was lost when the world was split apart by the mystery dungeons. Not long before Diyem called us all together, I'd discovered that there are parts of my world that had never heard of Yveltal. Or if they had, that information had been lost or otherwise obscured. Not only that, but their societies had gone in a very different direction than those around where I lived."

This was getting into a bit of a sore spot. "I'm diverging from the discussion, though. To get back to what we were discussing... What can you tell me about Ho-Oh? And Lugia, if you know anything about them as well. I imagine anything I could learn would be valuable for the coming fight."

 

[Shiny Phantump]

“The societies had gone in-” Ah, it seemed Nip wanted to put an end to that line of discussion. Too bad, it had sounded interesting. “Oh, okay. Moving on. Lugia’s domain is sea-storms. I didn’t live anywhere near the seas, so I’m no expert on them. Ho-Oh’s domain is the in-between of hatching and death. To put it simply: Life. Ho-Oh’s sacred flames can heal any injury, or even return life to the dead, in some cases. I was a follower of the Ho-Oh of my home. They’re the source of my healing gift.”

 

[windskull]

"Sea storms sound dangerous, though not as dangerous as one with power over life and death." He let out a long breath. "If Ho-Oh does appear alongside Darkwhite and Lugia... well, it could be a losing battle, trying to defeat them while Ho-Oh continually keeps them healed and healthy."

 

[Shiny Phantump]

“If Ho-Oh is there, they absolutely must be taken down first. If Darkwhite chooses to directly fight as well... Take my word for it, we would be doomed. We can only hope that she will refrain. We would collapse from exhaustion before we could defeat her.”

 

[windskull]

Nip frowned. He could believe it. If that was true, then...

Maybe it was best not to think about it right now. "Mm. Though it's good to strategize, it won't help us much unless we can fill everyone else in." He shifted in his nest, trying to relax. "You talked about how Ho-Oh relates to Xerneas and Yveltal, did you not? As it turns out, I know a fair bit about those two. In fact, my kin..." he trailed off and smiled weakly. "Well, my is made up of those that are faithful to Yveltal."