Pokémon Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Path of Valor

[Ambyssin]

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Knoxisnotdead (@knoxisnotdead.bsky.social)

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The fic’s later parts and ending were in flux for over the first two years of the fic’s life. Before I started to shift the plot’s focus and scope in 2021 and 2022, Demerzel was originally supposed to be a much more prominent antagonist. The idea was that he would be trying to play all sides in the conflict, but the reasons were much more nihilistic. Rather than self-preservation, Demerzel was just more of a generic “destroy the world” villain. In fact, there was a time where Demerzel would serve as the final main fight of the fic. But when I shifted the plot, that role ended up changing and he became more of a secondary character. Even when that happened, I did plan on giving him a boss fight where he would use the Rift Ripper to travel between various dimensions, with assorted resistance members chasing him down through Ginnungagap. It was a fight that mixed elements of N. Tropy from Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time and Dr. Nefarious from Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart. The fight would’ve ended in the outpost’s arena, where Paradox would crash the party to claim the Rift Ripper and destroy the resistance’s base. For multiple reasons, these logistics didn’t work for the fic’s plot. And I didn’t really want to dedicate two or more chapters to this boss fight. So, I decided to scrap it, and this was the replacement. I thought it was fitting that, since Demerzel was trying to undermine Paradox’s blackmailing by manipulating many different people, that Paradox ultimately outplays him and disposes of him in an incredibly humiliating fashion.

Of course, I leave it up to you guys whether or not you liked this. Let me know.

 

[Ambyssin]

An epilogue will follow.

I would like to extend my sincerest thanks to my main beta reader, Namohysip. As I mentioned in an earlier chapter, he is the one who created the Overseers and the lore behind them and the Overworld and was gracious enough to allow me to work that material into Path of Valor. Likewise, he's responsible for Top Overseer Xenon and handled Xenon's dialogue and mannerisms for the scene with Shane. A scene which he had suggested to make sure all the loose ends were tied up. I cannot thank him enough. I also snuck Owen from his fic, PMD: Hands of Creation, into the finale in a few cameo spots. Those of you who've commented have already spotted him and said hi. If you haven't read Hands of Creation already, please do. It's a wonderful fic and is the single longest complete PMD fic on the internet. It truly deserves your love and attention.

In addition to that, Namo's actively run several different PMD RPG campaigns in the PMD fic community. One of them is what gave rise to Tama. Another, which will soon wrap up, takes place in a school setting and has Shane serving as a faculty NPC. So, no, I'm not sequel baiting. It was just a friendly wink to my online friends who chose to read and support the fic to this point. My apologies if it went over a lot of folks' heads.

If you read up to this point, thank you. And to those who've left comments, I am extremely grateful for your support. It's been a rough road, but I'm happy to have made it here.

Chapter art:

Raph (@lraphl.bsky.social)

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The Lunar Swan’s Lake (@cresselia92) on Tumblr

Plenty of cute and cool Pokémon fanart. ^^

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@Cresselia92

 

[Ambyssin]

Spoiler: Chapter Art

Raph (@lraphl.bsky.social)

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lee🌱🌻 (@honeyllemon.bsky.social)

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And so it ends.

It's uncommon for massive PMD epics to end up making it to their finales. And I believe it's even rarer for a PMD author to complete TWO sprawling epics. Yet here we are.

By all accounts, this fic should never have made it to the finish line. It changed so drastically from my original plans — and, at times, real world events made it so, so difficult to write a fic about the power of hope and believing in the future — that I was sorely tempted to either outright cancel the fic or go for an early nihilistic ending and move on with my life.

But I pushed on. Maybe it's my stubbornness or maybe it's because of the friends I've made online through posting PMD fics. Or it's some combination of the two. I recognize that, for many people, this is not a fic they wanted to read. The heavy sci-fi and/or multiverse elements proved to be a very big turnoff, especially for anyone who liked the initial premise laid out in the first dozen chapters or people hoping for a traditional sequel in the Guiding Light world. It is... tough not to compare this fic's performance with its predecessor's. But this was the fic I wanted to write, and it still managed to get some positive reception.

I had originally planned to post a "making of" piece alongside the epilogue, however due to IRL circumstances, that is being delayed indefinitely. If it ever happens, I will update this author's note. However, to avoid potential issues with the rules of sites like AO3 and FFN, I will only be posting this piece on the Thousand Roads version of this fic. So, be sure to join my fic Discord server or watch my BlueSky so you'll know when it shows up.

Aside from that, there will be no extra or bonus content like Guiding Light had after its epilogue. In lieu of that, I have contributed to the expansion of Pokémon Mystery Diner's crowd-sourced visual novel, Ties of Fate. You can find Shane and Vulpix!Nikki in the game and go on (mis)adventures with them. It's available here: https://bsky.app/profile/pennio.bsky.social/post/3mogtxghws22g

I'd like to thank my beta readers: Namohysip, who I've mentioned previously, and SparklingEspeon (author of Do Psychic Cats Dream of Electric Sheep?), who was kind enough to contribute for the final third of the fic. I would also like to thank all the wonderful artists who I commissioned for the various character designs and illustrations used in the fic. You were all wonderful to work with!

Finally, I'd like to thank those who left feedback and comments on the fic... and to the person (or people) adding to the fic's TVTropes page. Your support is appreciated more than you know.

What's next for me? I'm not sure. For the immediate future, I unfortunately need to focus my efforts on... academic writing. Maybe there will be a time where I can return to this scene, but I make no promises.

Keep pushing toward the future. And remember... smiles go for miles.

~Ambyssin