Marowak Dojo ~ Living Quarters

[Namohysip]

Owen made a few tentative punches forward, even though his body type was not at all equipped for such attacks. Still, his muscles didn't ache like before, and that meant he was ready for action! Or at least training for the next fight.

"I heard that Kecleon Market is opening up," Owen said, stepping out of the main living area. "I've been getting some memories back and I've been thinking about something I did during the Magikarp fight. I... used to know Protect. Maybe if I can get that back, it'll reawaken something." He waved back at the others. "I'm gonna go there! See you guys later!"

 

[Adamhuarts]

"I'll be at the beach if anyone needs me. I could use some sunshine," Cynthian said, leaving with a wave.

 

[Persephone]

Being a dragon was great. Her sense of smell was so much better than it had been, she felt powerful, and this body was at least built to be blind. Cuicatl hardly even missed her gift since she spoke the same language as everyone else. Sure, she was here to save the world, but she was no hero. That sort of work could be left to more... heroic... people while she napped, explored, and waited to tackle the next threat. If this kept going forever... she could live with that. If not, at least she had fully enjoyed her time as a dragon.

Or tried to. Being a dragon was great. But it didn't fix everything.

She woke up from her nap abruptly. The contents of her nightmare were already leaving her, but she could remember the voice. Her brother's voice. Pleading with her. Was it... was it even fair to enjoy herself when he was still...

She shook her head and stood up, prepared to face the day or night or whatever time it was.

Cuicatl was a dragon and being a dragon was great.

 

[TheGOAT]

Sullen footsteps echoed off the room’s walls. A shadow extended across the floor as Astrid trod over to her bed, where she curled up and got comfortable. Or, as comfortable as she could after that business at the guild.

“Hrm… Oh, hey Cuicatl.” She turned her head towards the Deino. “Whatcha thinking about?”

 

[Persephone]

That was Astrid, wasn't it? Voices were hard to keep track of with so many introduced so quickly, but you knew what a vulpix smelled like as a human and as a deino it's much the same just, no, smellier didn't sound right. Louder. Close enough.

"Nothing, really. Just figuring out what to do now."

 

[TheGOAT]

“Me too…” Her chin hit the covers with a plop. “—Mmrph. Seems like every day we’re here, the scope of our problem keeps getting bigger and bigger.”

And she was still unable to use more than two or three attacks on the fly without getting tuckered out. She’d need to address that at some point. Having a crew of two dozen Pokémon by her side made it less of an issue, but individually, she felt so… incapable.

She shifted in place, getting comfier (maybe it was time for that nap?). Her head rested on its side, on her paw, facing Cuicatl’s bunk.

Fighting back a yawn, she asked, “How’ve you been, anyway? I’ve been meaning to hang out with you ever since the big battle.”

 

[Persephone]

"Oh. Has it? I mean, are the problems getting bigger? I've mostly been exploring the woods by myself. Haven't talked to many people. And I'm doing pretty good. Still not quite over being a pokemon. Being here. It's all a rush." And she definitely would not let her problems start to grind it to a halt. Problems? What problems?

 

[TheGOAT]

Astrid blinked. That was one way to live life. She actually respected it in an odd way. Cuicatl might be the most stable member of their team yet.

“There’s a strange sickness going around,” she explained, before backstopping. “—Er, well, it’s not like a virus or anything like that. It’s a… demon? Or maybe it is a virus, I dunno. It’s a black blob that can possess you, so be on the lookout for it.

“Also, that haze that attacked Zane the first fight showed itself earlier today. It has a form sorta like mine, but also not really. It wasn’t very friendly either, but on the bright side, a fight didn’t happen.”

 

[Persephone]

Haze? What haze? Cuicatl had definitely not seen a haze. But she did remember the plague. She had pointedly been ignoring the plague. If she died of sickness, well, it's not like she didn't have it coming. Possessory demons, though... there is a similar concept in Anahuac. Shapeshifters who appear in the dead of night and either steal or leave babies. Sometimes both. And they do, in fact, look like vulpix. (Supposedly, again, she'd never seen it.)

"Oh? Like a zorua? I'll try to keep away from strange foxes, then." But...... there was something she did need to take care of. Ideally with Astrid at her side. "Have you seen Starr? I think I offended her. Was thinking about seeking her out to apologize."

 

[TheGOAT]

“I think I saw her further down main street,“ Astrid said. “Preparing, I’m sure… hm. Which is probably what I should be doing.”

Was a nap considered preparing?

Well, yeah, she quickly reasoned. In this world, in this body, she needed to be extra cognizant of her sleep patterns—unless she wanted a repeat of the fatigue after last battle.

 

[Persephone]

Just down the road. That's... close. There's a difference between needing to apologize in theory, in some state of forever-soon, but actually walking into it...

Dragons do not shy from duty.

"I think I'm going to go talk to her. Would you like to come with me?" Astrid had been there, after all. Whether that makes it better or worse is anyone's guess.

 

[TheGOAT]

Ah, well. Astrid would love to. Problem was, Astrid couldn’t move.

“Eheh…” She nuzzled her nose under her blanket. In a voice muffled by the fabric, she continued, “I think I’ll collapse any minute if I don’t get in a quick power nap. You go on, though.”

<><><><><>

 

[windskull]

With a single training dummy set up across from him, Nip took a deep breath and flexed his claws. There was a slight glint that refracted in his forehead gem, then he darted forward, flanking the training dummy with speed that seemed almost unnatural. Frost formed on his fur, then he swung his arms forward, flinging two sets of ice shards at the dummy. They made contact.

He stopped, panting for air as he looked the dummy over, and gnashed his teeth in frustration. No, it wasn't fast enough. He had to go faster.

The encounter with Darkwhite was still weighing heavily on his mind. Not just because of her unusual appearance, but in particular because of her words. Though the name "Manaphy" was unfamiliar to him, he recognized Darkrai and Cressellia. Gods. This strange force had captured gods. How in Yveltal's name were they supposed to stop something that could do that?

He sank to the ground, still recovering from his latest round of training. After the fight with the magikarp, he was starting to look on the bright side of things. But now? Once again he wondered if Diyem was setting them up for failure.

 

[TheGOAT]

“That’s pretty cool,” Astrid chimed in from her bed, which she was still in the process of getting up from.

After a prolonged stretch, she walked over. “I usually form them by using my teeth, but I can only do so much when I’m walking on four legs—hey, something the matter?”

 

[windskull]

Looking away from the dummy, Nip turned his attention to the approaching vulpix.

He hesitated for a couple of heartbeats before relaxing slightly and standing back up, his brow still knit with worry. "Ah. Thanks. It's nothing to trouble yourself with, though. I'm just... concerned about what happened at the guild. With the haze creature, you know? The fact that she was able to capture gods as powerful as Darkrai and Cresselia. I don't know about what they're like here, but any enemy powerful enough to do something like that in my world would..." He paused, shifting his weight. "Well, even at my full strength, that's a fight I'd be wise enough to not get into."

 

[TheGOAT]

Astrid had heard of them once. More than once, actually; it was the classic grimdark childhood tale of nice versus naughty—having clear dreams or having nightmares. Karma or something like that. Point being: they were legendary Pokémon and not to be trifled with.

“Y-yeah…” Still in the process of waking up, her legs wobbled slightly. “Maybe it’s just a false alarm or something. But what no matter what, we should be prepared.”

 

[Virgil134]

"Oh! Astrid! Nip!"

If the two looked over to the living quarters' entrance they could see Cabot entering the room.

"I was just looking for you guys!"

 

[windskull]

"Agreed," Nip said, turning back to look at the training dummy. But before he could attempt another attack, the sound of Cabot entering the room caught his attention.

He turned back towards the entrance and tilted his head. "You were? Did you need something?"

 

[Virgil134]

"There was something I wanted to talk about," Cabot answered as he walked over to the two. "On my way back from the TM shop I was thinking about how we could all utilize our moves and I think I may have come up with a plan, regardless of who we'll fight next."

 

[TheGOAT]

Astrid perked up. “Oh?”