Poppin' Arms Guild ~ Infirmary

[Flyg0n]

It felt nice, to actually have a real discussion about something they both liked. Though he also was a little unused to it. He'd spent so long focused on his goal that he'd almost forgotten what it felt like to think about why.

“Though, huh… Thou would not attempt to reach an agreement with a legend just for the sake of proving that such agreement would be possible, right? I do not believe a legend would be willing to accompany someone just to prove a point.” He quickly raised his paw. “Not saying that this is thy intent, but I know I would not be very amused if I were to join for that reason only.”

Koa took a long moment to think. He wanted to give Icetales a good answer, but the question was so... unsual? Unexpected, he almost wasn't sure how to collect his thoughts for a reply. Why did he want to catch a legendary so badly? Fame? No. He didn't really care about being famous that much. And he'd never want to use one for something. But why, why did it matter to him so much? How could he express that feeling inside him to Icetales?

After several seconds, he finally spoke.

"There's a lot of reasons I want to." He started slowly, but spoke with more conviction as he continued. "The challenge, the adventure... the mystery. And I want a legacy that belongs to just me and my team. Something no one has done in centuries..." He hesitated.

I want to be better. Better than him. I have to prove that I am.

"But. I also want to show the legendaries that there's good humans out there. Not too long ago in my world, people tried to... control certain legendaries." Dark thoughts crowded his mind at the thought, but he pushed them down. "I just want to meet the legendaries, do things the right way. Battle them, show them who I am and.... maybe I could be their friend. That people can be friends with legendaries, and legendaries can be friends with people." He looked away, not quite meeting Icetales gaze. Not out of shame, but out of embarrasment. It felt a little silly to admit he wanted to do it because he wanted to be their friend.

But it was true. He just wasn't sure anyone would understand.

 

[Cresselia92]

Icetales stayed silent for a while, letting Koamaru explain himself and the reasoning behind his desire to meet and catch a legend. Sure, the idea of having someone control you and your powers for their selfish purposes irked the fox, but he could tell that Koamaru wasn’t that kind of person.

There was a lot of passion in his words and a shining glimmer in his eyes as he spoke, which made Icetales smile somewhat, despite the unusual topic.

"There's a lot of reasons I want to." He started slowly, but spoke with more conviction as he continued. "The challenge, the adventure... the mystery. And I want a legacy that belongs to just me and my team. Something no one has done in centuries..." He hesitated.

[…]

"But. I also want to show the legendaries that there's good humans out there. Not too long ago in my world, people tried to... control certain legendaries." Dark thoughts crowded his mind at the thought, but he pushed them down. "I just want to meet the legendaries, do things the right way. Battle them, show them who I am and.... maybe I could be their friend. That people can be friends with legendaries, and legendaries can be friends with people."

Friends with legends by catching them… Hm. Icetales really wondered how that worked exactly. Like, how did those ‘Pokéballs’ create a connection between humans and ‘mons?

A part of him was morbidly curious to find out how that mechanism worked, maybe by studying one of those devices himself. He wondered if Chip would be willing to have an assistant, if only for a limited that.

“Becoming friends with legends… sounds like a path I would pursue, too,” mused Icetales, looking thoughtfully at the ceiling. “It is just… something that I never believed was possible in my world, thou see? There is a chasm between goodmons and legends, and not even a noble title is enough to close the gap. So,” he looked at the Manectric, “I guess… a part of me desired to become a legend myself in order to be able to confer with legends. Though, I really wonder what it takes to become
a legend. I do not believe it is only power, so…”

He trailed off, unsure of where his thoughts were going. It was such a bizarre conversation, but he liked it nonetheless. After a few seconds of thinking, he gazed curiously at Koamaru.

“Pray tell. If thou were to catch me, would we be friends?” There was another brief pause, almost as if the Ninetales himself was mystified by his own thoughts. “I am curious to find out how it works, and Sir Chip has some of those capturing devices, so…” Another pause, and Icetales looked at the floor. “Huh. All right, perhaps this is a preposterous proposal…”

 

[Flyg0n]

“Pray tell. If thou were to catch me, would we be friends?”

"Of course!" Koa replied, hardly hesitating. "I mean, I think we would be. Although... Pokemon from my world aren't like you, not exactly. They love to battle and they don't really live in castle's like that or anything. And we can't speak their language." He took a moment to muse. "Its weird though... they don't speak human but I always feel like I can understand my pokemon."

Pausing, he regarded Icetales question again. Would they be friends? He'd never given it much thought until now, but his world's pokemon really were different. They never seemed to have a desire to build castles and kingdoms and have all kinds of strange societies... by no means were they stupid, but they seemed to value different things entirely. "Pretty much everyone from my world is friends with their pokemon though, in some way. I'd like to think we'd still be friends." He said, smiling.

He let a silence fall for a brief moment. "Thanks for coming by today," he murmured.

As much as he enjoyed some solitude, he had been feeling rather lonely. It was nice to have pleasant company like Icetales.

 

[Cresselia92]

‘Mons speaking a different language from humans and yet they could understand each other just fine? Hm. If Icetales had to guess, it surely was something about how their auras and hearts could connect with each other, just like those rare tales about humans he read as a pup.

Anyway, it was obvious that Koamaru still needed to recover properly, so Icetales didn’t want to take more time than required. Time to resume with his usual routine and check on other comrades. He stood back up and stretched his tails.

“Well, it has been a pleasure to converse with thee, Sir Koamaru. I shall take my leave now.” He bowed with respect and flashed a grin. “If thou ever need anything, just send me a message with the badge, yes? We could even arrange a pleasant afternoon by the beach, just as I promised days ago.”

With those words said, he placed his forepaw on Koamaru’s shoulder and closed his eyes. A pair of golden bells appeared above them both, while some Radiance flowed within the Ninetales’s body. Words of encouragement echoed in the air around them, coming from the depth of the fox’s spirit.

‘Sir Koamaru, if there is something that is concerning thee or thou desire to vent… I shall be there, and I shall not judge thee in any way. Because… thou art a friend of mine, and I shall be always be there for thee if thou ever need my assistance. Never forget.’

Ding. The celestial sound of the Heal Bell echoed across the room, spreading a benevolent aura of healing and friendship. Icetales opened his eyes, which were glowing golden with Radiance and power, and he slowly removed the paw from the Manectric’s shoulder.

And without a word, he strode toward the exit of the room, ready to spread his hopeful light to some other soul.

<><><><>​

 

[Flyg0n]

In the darkness of the infirmary, Koa lay, drifting in and out of sleep, never quite awake, not quite properly asleep. His injuries had healed and he was set to go home tomorrow, but he could relax. The battle at the Worldcore kept flashing through his mind, and his training with Brisa. What kind of person was he? Those things he'd said... was that how he'd felt? Was that who-

Squeezing his eyes shut hard, he forced himself to press the thoughts down. A dull ache formed in his chest. He didn't want to think about all that he didn't want any of those thoughts he just wanted to go back to when things were simple to being a trainer and only worrying about the next badge or training. To not thinking all these thoughts and just ... a tiny tear trickled out of the corner of his eye. He wanted to go home. Another tear slipped out.

You're being ridiculous, he chided himself.

Yet in the quiet loniless of the night, it was hard to chase away the homesickness. Part of him knew he was being too emotional. He was still happy he'd come here, and happy to have met everyone on Team Spectrum. Brisa, Icetales, Shiron... they were good pokemon. Icetales was like... a close friend to him. But he missed home. He missed it so much it hurt.

Something gently brushed against his face, wiping a tear away. His eyes shot open and he was met with a familiar yellow gaze. His jaw went slack and his eyes widened. "E-Echo?" he stammered.

Before him, at the edge of the bed, perched a shadowy Crobat, sporting a fluffy tuft of 'fur' on his head and an eager grin. The Crobat gave a soft churr, then nuzzled Koa.

The gesture felt odd, since he seemed to be made of a soft, almost jelly-like substance, but was no less welcome. "Echo!" he said happily, nuzzling him back, then pulling him into an awkward hug. His paws sank into Echo's body slightly, and he marveled for a moment. This must be his familiar. Like Luz or Cal or Lexx. Except this was Echo.

"Is that really you?" he murmured.

'Yeah!'

The telepathic voice in his head was so strange to hear, yet... familiar. Right. Koa laughed, and a few more tears dripped down his cheeks, but this time they were not tears of sadness, but joy and reunion. He hugged Echo tighter, and Echo hugged him back, wrapping his four wings around him. In minutes, he had drifted off to a pleasant, dreamless sleep, cocooned in the comforting embrace of a friend. Morning found Koa resting peacefully, a large Crobat draped across his back.

<><><><>​

 

[Negrek]

It felt like ages since they'd pulled Giovanni's mewtwo out of the Voidlands. What all had happened since then, anyhow? Basically all the shit with the moon... Fuck, had it really been since before the Eien fight, too? And all this time Diyem had been deflecting, going on about how the mewtwo was still too weak to be seeing anyone.

Nate hadn't even gotten to see the guy when he was all fucked up in the hospital--they'd put him somewhere else while all of Team Spectrum was clogging the place up, something about being too overwhelming. Not exactly a good sign, if the mewtwo was still that weak even so far out.

But finally Diyem had said he was ready to see people, and Nate could fucking walk again, so here they were. With Rocky by his side, of course. Nate gave the familiar a suspicious look. When a shifty asshole starts acting even more shifty...

For the moment Rocky seemed entirely focused on their visit, eyes agleam with anticipation. "Do you think they'll let us give him anything?" he asked without looking down at Nate. "I have berries! And pretty rocks, too. Do you think he'd like a pretty rock?"

"Oh, sure," Nate said. "If I was like super enslaved by some asshole and then a depression parasite, a pretty rock is exactly the kind of shit I'd want in my life."

"Good!" Rocky chirped. The infirmary was just ahead. Nate wished he could share the familiar's enthusiasm. He was far more worried about what state they might find the mewtwo in.

 

[Namohysip]

Zinc was there, tending to a few patients nearby. After spotting Nate and the others, she directed them to where Mewtwo was staying, remarking that he was very healthy, even if a little strange...

Down the hall, in a low-security room--which was surprising in itself--there were infrequent growling noises. Inside a simple patient room, sitting on the side of one of the hospital beanbag beds, was something vaguely in the shape of a Mewtwo. The colors were dark and there was a black haze all around him that had no scent nor touch. His eyes glowed dimly with Radiance, while the rest of him was covered in Shadows.

Growling and flopping around him was a possessed loaf of bread, gnawing on his toes, nipping at his tail... Mewtwo did not seem to mind. When Nate and the others caught his attention, a five-sided star on his chest darkened with streaks of Blacklight, but it was brief. He stared at them, then looked back down at Toast, watching blankly. By his side was a book opened to the fifth page. It seemed to be a children's book.

 

[Negrek]

Zinc's comment that the mewtwo was healthy was reassuring, at least, but when they actually got to his room, Nate could definitely see what she meant about a little strange. He was certainly a lot hazier now than when Nate had last seen him. Like Sword, he supposed; that more or less made sense. The mewtwo was actually looking pretty good, all things considered. What Nate didn't get was what Diyem's evil bread was doing here.

Looked like the Mewtwo wasn't feeling too talkative, still. Not a big surprise, either. God, anything he said here was going to sound stupid. "Hey, what's up?" Nate asked. "Zinc says you've been doing pretty well. How are you feeling?"

 

[Namohysip]

Mewtwo stared at Nate for every word spoken. Were they registering? Toast growled at Nate and circled protectively around Mewtwo, snapping at Nate if he made any attempt to get closer. Not that it mattered; Toast's bites, while painful, did not seem to do much more than bother.

Nate and the others would get the strange impression that Mewtwo was feeling okay. After that, Mewtwo would look at the book next to him, which he thought was interesting. He never got to read a book before. Mewtwo also wondered why Nate had come here, tilting his head. And, oddly enough, it seemed that all of this had been conveyed to Nate and the others perfectly without a single word spoken.

 

[Negrek]

Nate only laughed when Diyem's bread snapped at him. "Ah, come on," he said. "You don't gotta worry about me."

The mewtwo, on the other hand, was more... strange. At first Nate thought he wasn't going to get an answer, but it felt like he was getting an answer. Even though it didn't look like the mewtwo was doing anything.

"Ohhh." Rocky's eyes widened. "It's like Red! How he talks but it's not like he's actually talking."

"Kinda," Nate murmured thoughtfully. He'd thought that was some kinda human thing. Maybe Red's weird speech was somehow psychic after all?

"You remember Red, don't you?" Rocky asked Mewtwo. "Maybe we should invite him over! He must be wondering what happened to Mewtwo. I bet they'd get along real well."

Wouldn't that be a trip, watching those two stare silently at each other for half an hour or whatever the fuck, having a deep conversation. "We came over because we wanted to see if you were all right," he said. "You weren't exactly looking too good the last time we saw you, and I don't think anybody really knew what was going to happen with the ultra stone." He gave the mewtwo another critical look. "So, uh, how is it... being a shade? Is Pop gonna work on getting you a new body or something?"

 

[Namohysip]

Mewtwo tilted his head again, looking... well, he was still expressionless. It was a little creepy.

It seemed that Mewtwo felt fine. He wasn't interested in getting a new body because he didn't think there was much of a point in it. What else did he have to worry about?

Toast growled again and hopped onto Mewtwo's lap. Mewtwo stared blankly as usual, but he rubbed at Toast's head, and he growled approvingly in response.

 

[Negrek]

"Oh? Well, that's good, then," Nate said. How was the guy doing that? At least he didn't seem literally emotionless, even if he looked it. And he'd even found a friend, abomination or not. "I don't suppose you been outside at all? Seen a bit of Destiny Village?"

"What are you reading about?" Rocky asked.

 

[Namohysip]

Mewtwo opened the book to show a classic Cibus children's book. It seemed to be about a Bagon who got too close to Xerneas and accidentally became a Salamence too early, with cute illustrations on every page showing him learning how to fly and how to help his siblings do the same.

It was called The Tiny Salamence, and Mewtwo liked it.

"Oh, Nate, Rocky." Zinc greeted from the entrance. "Good to see you two. How are things going? Checking on him?" zinc nodded at Mewtwo, who only stared.

 

[Negrek]

(( when u find a lv 10 salamence from SOS encounters ))

"Oh?" Rocky leaned closer so he could see the pictures. "I don't know that one! I only really know stories from Marshtomp's world. Like the one about giving a rattata a cookie. Or about Latios and the Mirage Kingdom! I like that one."

Nate turned to Zinc as the goodra entered the room. "Yeah, we just wanted to see how Mewtwo was doing. Seems like he's feeling a lot better. Don't suppose he's allowed out of here at all?"

 

[Namohysip]

"Well, we still want him under observation for one more day," Zinc said. "Not really for any psychological reasons... but health ones. It's a very... abnormal body, and we aren't really sure what to make of it aside from just observing for a while. Psychologically, well, he seems fine according to Breaker. She wouldn't say much more than that, though. She said..." Zinc cleared her throat, then deepened her voice to match Breaker's. "Give good influences."

 

[Negrek]

Only one more day, huh? That didn't sound so bad. "Give good influences," though... that seemed familiar.

"Oh, like for Cola!" Rocky said cheerfully. He grinned at the mewtwo. "Maybe you could hang out with him. He's learning a lot of new things, too. And he's got a lot of great books from Pop's personal library. Everything you'd want to know about Cibus and the universe and stuff!"

Personally, Nate thought the baby arceus might be a little high-energy for the mewtwo. He seemed a bit shy. "So where's he gonna go when he gets out of here?" Nate asked.

 

[Namohysip]

"Well, that's a little tricky," Zinc said. "Normally, we'd put someone under guardianship of a caretaker, but... he has nobody related to him by blood, and his former guardian was deemed, er... unfit. In fact, all things considered, the only person who applied for taking care of him was--oop! Um, I'm not supposed to say. They wanted that to be kept confidential. But... we think the person he's going to be taken to will do a good job caring for him!"

Mewtwo's tail flicked. He didn't understand why this person wanted to be kept a secret. It was strange. But he obeyed it anyway.

 

[Negrek]

"Oh, yeah?" Nate said. He eyed Diyem's evil bread contemplatively. Two options came to mind immediately. There was Karat, whose entire attitude towards the world right now appeared to be Don't Touch Me, or Diyem, probably worried about Dark Matter prejudice and people expecting he was getting up to weird shit or whatever the fuck.

Nate at least hoped the mystery caretaker wasn't Chip. The Porygon would no doubt love to get his flipper things on a specimen like this mewtwo, and if he did, it would be just the worst.

"What's with the demon bread?" Nate asked.

 

[Namohysip]

"Oh, um..." Zinc fidgeted, like it was adjacent to something she wasn't supposed to talk about. "He's visiting. Mewtwo didn't really mind, so..."

Toast rolled onto his back, presumably, and hissed at Nate, spewing ominous bread crumbs on the ground. They evaporated into nothing seconds later.

 

[Negrek]

Ah. Yeah. There it was.

Nate smirked at Toast. "Oh, yeah. You're super fucking scary. Just like your dad or whatever the fuck he counts as."

Rocky was still much more interested in Mewtwo than in Zinc. "Are you basically an ultra shade like me, then?" he asked. "I mean, you must have a core, like I used to. But can you, um, taste things? I brought some berries, but... I guess I don't know if you even eat anymore!"