The Cool Breeze Upon the Mist
A masterful feat of regeneration was occurring in the central plains of the Mist Continent. On the ridges where the small outpost of Post Town lay - a small enough town but a vital stopping point for travellers heading into the frigid northern reaches - a new settlement had cropped up seemingly overnight that its founder, Haxorus Cadmus, had called 'Paradise'. Many would have laughed at the very thought of purchasing such a stagnant, infertile piece of land with the intent to turn it into a rich haven that would attract people from afar.
But those same people weren't laughing when suddenly Cadmus and his partner, a mysterious Oshawott by the name of Noah, felled the Bittercold, an enigmatic malice made sentient that threatened to sunder the Mist. Now they were heroes, and people therefore flocked to his new settlement to see him. In many cases, the Haxorus, in his coy but eager manner, convinced them to stay and help him build Paradise into the desired haven he envisioned.
Within two years, Paradise's growth was sprawling to the point that Post Town looked to become engulfed within its sphere. The town's officials and Cadmus therefore signed a merger that allowed the two settlements to become one. Victory after victory was being scored by the Haxorus, and it was an agreement everyone seemed to be content with. Few of Paradise and Post Town's citizens could complain about being under the aegis of heroes, after all.
There were also the first citizens of Paradise, namely Cadmus and Noah's allies that had helped them in their quest to defeat the Bittercold. All had chosen to stay at their side, and two years on from that monumental victory, they had made new lives in the nascent settlement.
What goes on the lives of these people today? Let's find out…
Hydreigon
"Say, uh…I'm surprised you're still hanging around us."
"That, I am. …Is there an issue with that?"
"Oh no, not at all! It's just…I thought a Voice of Life would have better things to do than hang around me and my little vanity project."
"My duty is as an arbiter to summon humans to this world in its hour of need. But until that time comes again, I am free to do as I wish. And I must say that I have enjoyed my time in Paradise, watching this settlement flourish and become the bustling town it is today. I will certainly be staying here for a while longer, if Fate permits me."
"Well, hey - you're all too welcome, Valakai. We're happy to have you."
Hydreigon Valakai felt the morning breeze blowing gently across his fur and scales, as he sat on the roof in his house in Paradise, newly-built just for him. It was one of those days where he was glad to have a physical body again, just so he could feel the sensations of the life of the world around him. It was harder to do that as a collection of motes, like Kyurem had disintegrated him into back in Scorched Desert.
To think it has already been two years since that happened…
Years were fleeting to the Voice of Life, an eternal arbiter of the world, but not to the young souls of Noah and Cadmus, and it was pleasing to see them grow from the plucky young heroes they were to experienced veterans. Two years' worth of training and going on rescue expeditions had seen them both evolve to their final stages, and now they looked like proper heroes as opposed to young first-stage kids, like some visitors with dampened expectations had passed them off as at first.
Valakai chuckled, thinking about this. Young ones are so impatient to evolve these days. I do not remember such agitation from the Grass and Air Heroes regarding their own evolutions. Did they accept them as they came?
It was a while ago. Not too long ago - only a decade or two - but enough that Valakai couldn't quite put his maw on their own desires to evolve.
Memories seem to be eluding me. With all that's happened here, perhaps it might be worth repaying those humans a visit. Oh yes, and while I'm at it…perhaps I should see how the Hero of Water is doing. I do recall the sudden urge to visit a while back.
He narrowed his gaze, frowning at that thought. I hope that's not a sign the world's about to go through another calamity soon…Concerning. I shall have to arrange time off from my duties if this proves to be urgent.
That wouldn't be for another while, though. In the meantime, Valakai lay back and enjoyed the breeze some more, humming contentedly as he felt it blow gently across him.
He would've laid there all day, if the peace and serenity wasn't interrupted by a loud rumbling that was all too familiar to the Hydreigon.
Valakai looked down and immediately located the source of the noise.
It was his belly, voicing its displeasure at its emptiness.
Well, no matter. He could always go inside and get some foo…
Ah.
There would be food in his pantry…if he didn't have that midnight snack last night. Well, snack - it was really more of another whole course meal that would've unnerved the likes of Belka. By the Voice of Life's standards, however, it was a snack.
Valakai sighed. Looks like it'll be breakfast at Signora Ginerva's again. He got up from where he was resting, flapped his thin wings, and headed in the direction of Post Town.
Since Paradise's founding, new eateries had begun to pop up in Paradise itself. But Swanna House still remained a popular eating spot for travellers and residents of Post Town itself, and one of their most loyal customers was Valakai. The Voice of Life still found the food at Swanna House to be his all-time favourite, and the first time he'd eaten there, the meal had been sublime - so much so he ordered more food, enough that he forgot to keep track of it all and ended up with a bill that went through the roof - much to Belka's horror, who he'd accidentally left the bill with.
That was certainly a first impression to make, looking back. It had taken a lot of smoothing out over the two years since that incident, but even today, Belka still occasionally reminded the Hydreigon of it.
"Keep eating as much as you do and you're not gonna be able to fly anymore." A more recent snark from the Emolga still rang in his head.
As he entered Post Town, Valakai glanced down at his stomach. Sometimes when he thought about his portions, he did occasionally wonder…was he getting too chubby?
No, he told himself. You are fine. The amount you eat is natural for Hydreigon. The three headed dragons were known for their colossal appetites, and behind their sheer power came a need to fuel it appropriately. Valakai was no different. At least he used that power for good, like blasting apart rock faces in Paradise to clear land, back in its early days as an overgrown badland.
Valakai shook away those negative thoughts as he entered Swanna House. It was somewhat busy today, although thankfully not crammed to the brim like it was on some days. The savoury smells of Signora Ginerva's delicious cooking filled the air, and the Hydreigon began to salivate as he headed for the counter.
"Back again, are we?" A mirthful smile crossed Swanna Ginerva's beak. "Good to see you, Valakai. Although the cooks in the back won't be," she chuckled.
"I-I imagine not," the Hydreigon replied sheepishly, fluffing out his fur.
"I suppose I'll get you your usual, then." Ginerva then gestured above her. "Upstairs is fairly quiet. There's bound to be a free table you can have all for yourself."
"Many thanks, Signora," Valakai trilled, bowing his head in thanks, before heading upstairs as instructed.
Before long, the Swanna House Special - a dish of chopped berries, potatoes and vegetables, with gravy smothering the berries and potatoes and herbs on top - was brought up to Valakai. Though per his 'usual' request…four servings of it were brought up to him.
"Ah! Thank you so much!" The Hydreigon's eyes shone as Ginerva brought the food up to him.
"No problem! Enjoy." The Swanna graciously curtseyed, before heading back downstairs.
No sooner had she gone than Valakai immediately dug into the food, gobbling portion after portion with the hunger of a Hydreigon. His two smaller heads aided him in this task, eating in unison with the main head and working their way through the generous meal. Not long after, the first serving of the special had been completely wolfed down, and Valakai wasted no time moving onto the second.
Onlookers watched in wonder as he ate, some whispering in amazement that he could eat all that. The ravenous Valakai tuned out everything else as he focused on his food and eating it all up. It was a rare day that the Voice of Life didn't eat everything on his plate, and on nights where the Crossblades dined together, he was always happy to eat the leftovers of others. He wasn't a fussy eater either - be it sweets, vegetables, carbs, or berries, he ate them all.
Before even ten minutes had passed, all four plates were licked clean, and Valakai was patting his belly in satisfaction.
"Mm mm! Delicious," he remarked, before letting out a loud belch. "Pardon me," he apologised to an Indeedee couple on the nearest table to him.
Just as he was licking his lips to get any residue and leftover morsels on his maws, Ginerva came up to gather up plates.
"Done already? My, you eat fast," Ginerva commented, brushing her wings.
"It was too good to resist," Valakai said, deciding instead to take a napkin and wipe his lips with it.
"I'm glad you enjoyed it. Seeing you eat my food with such gusto is…oddly comforting. Even if your table manners could use some work," the Swanna giggled, putting her wing to her beak.
"Ah…Thank you." Valakai smiled at the praise.
"Plus, you eating as much as you do means I'm getting my fair share of money from this. Four House Specials isn't exactly what one would call 'cheap', you know." Ginerva's grin turned somewhat coy, while Valakai's smile dropped instantly once he was reminded of the dreaded bill.
"I'll see you downstairs, Valakai~" In a teasingly sweet manner, Ginerva took his finished plates and flew off towards her kitchen.
Valakai looked down at the empty table, gulping as he considered his monetary situation.
Looks like I'll have to ask Cadmus for a loan again…
Gurdurr
Gurdurr Rigiel had been feeling more motivated lately.
Over the past while, he began feeling odd aches in his arms and legs that seemed to come and go. He initially thought nothing of it, but after a few days of this strange feeling, he began to realise this was a familiar feeling to him. He'd felt this exact same way back when he was a young adolescent Timburr, ready to evolve.
The trepidation of being near evolution again had him eager to trigger it, and so he'd been putting his all into construction work lately. This suited Cadmus well, who had many building projects in mind and needed someone to facilitate them and fuel his ambitions in expanding Paradise. The Haxorus was also a generous employer, and Rigiel soon found himself raking in cash by the bagful.
Maybe I oughta take a holiday once I evolve, he thought to himself one day, while on the job building a bridge over a gully in one of the less developed parts of Paradise. That'd make a nice reward for the hard work I've been doing lately. Until then…gotta keep up the good work.
He looked at the bridge he'd been building; it was mostly wooden with rocks in mesh at the base of the bridge to keep the supports protected. The wood had been painted a bright red with star designs painted along the posts – a little too gaudy, Rigiel had to admit, but it was a concession given to Cadmus when the Gurdurr already had enough on his plate keeping the dragon's ambitious ideas down to a more realistic level.
The bridge was coming along nicely so far, but there was still much more to do before it would be finished.
"Saw some more planks, will ya, Viga?" Rigiel asked one of his Timburr apprentices.
"Yes, boss!" The Timburr saluted, before taking out his saw and beginning to cut the plank down to size. As he did that, Rigiel leaned over and picked up one of the smaller planks of wood, before moving it to the bridge. It would be another plank across the main body of the bridge itself, roughly about halfway across.
Rigiel leaned over and got ready to nail it into place, before he heard a commotion behind him. He turned around to see what it was, before a tall, yellow figure suddenly slammed into him.
"Agh!" Rigiel cried, as the force of the other Pokémon knocked him from the temporary bridge and into the gully, where he landed on his side against a rocky surface. "Ow, ow, ow…!"
He winced at the fall. Thankfully the gully was shallow, and the damage didn't appear to be anything more than a scrape that would bruise and fade with time. Still, that could've ended a lot worse, especially given the previous state of his back, and how progress on that end could reverse at any moment…
Rigiel then looked up at who had knocked into him. An Ampharos wearing a badge stared back at him, an apologetic look across his face.
"Oh dear, I didn't see you there!" They sounded like they were in their thirties; not middle-aged, but not in his absolute prime like Cadmus and Noah were. "My apologies for that." They reached out to lift Rigiel out of the gully.
"Urgh…How'd you even get down here?" grumbled Rigiel, taking his hand as he was brought back up to the half-finished bridge. This Ampharos was stronger than he would've expected, and the badge was eye-catching. Were they a part of an organisation of some kind? He had some feeling this wasn't just any old Ampharos.
"We'd like to know that too," another voice said, and looking behind the Ampharos's tall figure, Rigiel saw the familiar duo of Cadmus and Noah on the scene. The latter's frown told of his displeasure, while Cadmus's expression was more…curious?
"This part of Paradise is off limits to the general public. It's still under construction," Noah said sternly, his moustache twitching in annoyance. "We have signs to clearly let people know of this."
"They're pretty hard to miss," Cadmus added. "Even young kids know what 'DANGER, KEEP AWAY' means."
"Oh, I can certainly read," the Ampharos defended. "My literacy capabilities are second to none back home! But hmm…" He crossed his arms, racking his brains. "I don't recall seeing any such signs on my way here."
"Oi, what do you mean?" Rigiel objected. "I put those up myself a few days ago! I saw them this morning too when I came in for work." He turned to his Timburr apprentice. "You saw them too, didn't you, Viga?"
"Sure did, boss!" Viga acknowledged.
"You must have your head in the clouds if you missed warning signs like those," huffed Rigiel, folding his arms. "Good thing you didn't damage the bridge. That would've ruined my day altogether." He looked back at the bridge under construction, where luckily, the structure was still intact in spite of the Ampharos's clumsiness.
"Regardless for that…I do apologise." The Ampharos bowed his head in sorrow. "I will be more vigilant in future."
"Hmph. You better be."
"Now then…to figure the way out of here." Ampharos turned to Noah and Cadmus. "Could you gentlemon help me?"
"Uhh, sure," a mildly nonplussed Noah said. "Surprised you got lost in here, though. I thought our streets were straightforward enough? Do we need to review that at all, Cadmus?"
Cadmus didn't answer him, his focus on the Ampharos. For whatever reason, he was staring at the badge adorned on his chest.
"Cadmus?" Noah said.
"That emblem…" Cadmus gazed at the Ampharos's badge, eyes widening in recognition. "I've seen it before. Isn't that the Expedition Society's logo?"
"The Expedition Society?" Noah puzzled, his head cocked. "I've never heard of it."
"You haven't heard of it? Oh my…" The Ampharos looked to the side in mild despair. "Are we really losing our renown in these parts? Perhaps we need a renewed advertising campaign. Oh, but that'll mean more funds will need to be diverted there, and less money to be spending funding our expeditionary work and wages for our apprentices-"
"Yeah, whatever," Rigiel butted in. "You still haven't told us your name, buster."
"Ah, forgive my manners." In an instant, the despair evaporated from the Ampharos's eyes. Suddenly he looked more dashing and gallant as he straightened up, moved his body and struck a dramatic pose with his right hand in the air.
"I am Taranis, the Dashing Wanderer! Leader of the Expedition Society in Lively Town on the Water Continent! Where mystery lies, I will uncover it! There is nothing I will not do to chart the uncharted and know the unknown!"
At the mention of his name, Cadmus suddenly let out a shout of realisation.
"I knew it!" he declared. "I knew I recognised you from somewhere! Y-You're the Dashing Wanderer?!"
"That I am." Taranis took a bow of grace and poise.
"Never heard of him in my life," Rigiel huffed, as he adjusted the plank of wood he was carrying.
"How do you not know who this guy is?!" Cadmus yelled, taken aback. "He's, like, one of the most iconic people ever!"
"I haven't heard of him either, love," Noah admitted, brow furrowed in confusion.
"Hey, you at least have an excuse, Noah!" Cadmus threw his hands in the air in frustration. "I live with a bunch of squares! Squares, I tell you!"
Rigiel rolled his eyes at the dramatic display. The Haxorus could certainly be a character when discussing his passions, and he'd gotten well used to seeing that passion on display when negotiating building work with him. Often it'd be Cadmus being overambitious with a design, Rigiel telling him to scale it back, Cadmus rejecting any compromises until persuaded by Noah, and the three of them being able to move forward with a building design a bit more sensible.
(Some of Cadmus's more ludicrous ideas included tall houses made up of letters spelling PARADISE, a pub in a carved out cave, and a minecart ride that weaved through the undeveloped land. Often Rigiel knew when a plan wasn't going to get past the drawing board, and Cadmus's ambition sometimes overrode common sense, especially in Paradise's earlier days.)
"Oh!" Taranis suddenly uttered, as if remembering something. "Now I remember. I was looking for an inn in these parts before I got lost." He turned to Cadmus and Noah. "You wouldn't happen to know of a place in here where I could stay the night, would you?"
"Sure I do!" Cadmus said, that familiar eagerness to help out coming over him. "You can stay at mine and Noah's house! We just had it upgraded and gave it a few more rooms, thanks to our resident builder Rigiel here!"
He pointed a claw at Rigiel. "Without him, Paradise wouldn't be anywhere near the mega success that it is today."
"Puttin' me on the spot, are ya?" Rigiel murmured, though a little part of him was glad for the attention.
"Hm. Is that so?" Taranis studied the Gurdurr closely, a mildly impressed smile coming across his face. "The hard work of the builders to maintain our facilities is certainly one that should not go unmentioned. I have similar praise for Epithymios back home. Without his maintenance of our Pokémon Nexus, the Society could simply not function."
"Damn, you really are buttering me up here," Rigiel snarked, with a light chuckle.
"Go on, you love the praise," Cadmus teased. "Just accept it."
"F-Fine." Rigiel looked away, before his gaze caught the unfinished bridge, and he found the perfect distraction. "Oh yeah! Gotta get back to building this bridge. Can't stand around here dawdling, otherwise Paradise'll never be finished."
"Perhaps I should head too," Taranis said. "Now then…Cadmus, was it? Haxorus Cadmus, feller of the Bittercold? I had heard you were the leader of this place."
"Hey, it wasn't me who defeated the Bittercold, it was Noah!" Cadmus corrected. "But how about we tell you all about that back at our place?"
"Sounds good! It would be great to hear over some tea and biscuits."
"You're in luck, then!" An excited look came over Noah's face as the three began to walk away. "I just made a batch of homemade chocolate biscuits this morning that were absolutely delicious! Just like Ma used to make…"
His words faded out, as Rigiel watched them go.
Good employers, those two. If not for them, I'd still be running that fraud business. He cringed, thinking back to darker days, when Paradise was still a thought in Cadmus's head. Still can't believe I even…
He shook his head, batting away those bad memories.
Gotta keep moving forward. No use dwelling on the past – that'll just bring up bad feelings again. And those aren't good for anyone.
He looked back at the unfinished bridge, picking up some nails and a hammer to nail the next board down across the structure.
Life's been on the up for me lately. Let's keep it that way.
Pelipper
Larum didn't normally take trips to the Mist Continent. A native of the Grass Continent, from Capim Town, he found the frigid temperatures of the Mist Continent hard to handle. If it weren't for one of his colleagues being sick with the flu, he wouldn't be in this part of the world.
But this was an important letter from Wigglytuff's Guild, to be delivered to an address in the vicinity of Post Town. The sender was one of high prestige within the Guild, and if the Pelipper was found to be leaving their letters on hold, that wouldn't be good for anyone.
At least that was what the higher-ups in the Pelipper Post insisted. And as one of the rank-and-file of the organisation, Larum didn't really have a say in matters. He was uneasy about going too far from the Grass Continent, although the knowledge that he'd be paid a fair bit more than usual for this work, given that he was travelling all the way to somewhere called Pokémon Paradise, was one of the reasons he'd plumped for it. It was a journey far longer than his normal paper route around Capim Town, that was for sure.
Though Larum had his reservations, he didn't complain, making his way across the ocean to Noe Town and northwards towards Post Town. Apparently, there'd been a new settlement that had sprung up seemingly overnight next to it, called Pokémon Paradise. Over on the Grass Continent, it was spoken of in hushed, excited whispers about this place where one could stake a claim and forge their own destiny on the Mist, transforming barren land into a luscious, productive haven.
Sounds like a load of hot air to me, Larum thought, as he made his way towards where Paradise was supposedly located. From the air, he could make out the big tree that marked Post Town's location. And to the right of that…lay the location in question, in what looked to be a surprisingly bustling town on a set of badlands.
Larum began their descent, and within a few minutes, they were flapping their wings as they landed in front of an office-like building.
"Why, hello there!" a cheery Azumarill greeted from behind the desk. "Mail, is it? Hm, you're not our usual mailmon."
"I'm from the Grass," explained Larum. "I've a letter addressed to…What was his name again?" He checked the envelope and the name scribbled on it. "Samurott Noah."
"A letter from the Grass to Noah?" The Azumarill tilted her head in confusion. "But Noah hasn't left the Mist at all. What business would someone from the Grass have with him?"
"Not my business." Larum shrugged. "I'm just the deliverymon."
"Fair enough." The Azumarill went from behind her desk to take the letter from Larum. "I'll take this to him. Thank you very much for coming."
"No problem," Larum said, as he preened his wings. "Say, do you know of somewhere where I can stay the night? I won't be able to make it back to Capim Town before nightfall, and I'm pretty tired after a flight of that length."
"We have some inns here in Paradise!" the Azumarill said. "Come, I'll show you to one of them."
"Thanks, er…"
"You can call me Ratona!" came the upbeat reply, as the Azumarill started down the path deeper into Paradise, hopping with a spring in her step. "Paradise's Mission Manager and Under-Secretary of the Crossblades!"
"The Crossblades, huh?" Larum said, as he fluttered after Ratona. Ain't that a fearless name…Reminds me a bit of Team Auraflare back home. He kept that name in his mind as he followed the Azumarill to where the nearest inn was located.
Why is it that teams with humans on them always have the most interesting names? That is…if this Samurott Noah fellow really is a human like the rumours say.
"A letter?"
Noah looked at the letter that Ratona had handed to him before returning to guiding a Pelipper mailmon around Paradise.
The handwriting on the address looked strangely messy, as though the writer wasn't used to writing. It reminded him of his own attempts to write back when he was bipedal, trying to get to grips with having paws instead of hands. Though he'd gotten past that difficulty, his handwriting was nowhere near as neat as some other folks.
In fact, the manner in which the handwriting was messy…thinking about his own experiences, the Samurott had a mad thought occur to him. Could it be…?
Curiosity got the better of him and he began reading it.
Dear Samurott Noah of Paradise,
I do not believe I have met you in person, yet I wish to correspond with you on a matter I imagine you would want to be kept close to your heart. Alas, the rumour mill has its way, and when people over here on the Grass Continent speak of the recent calamity involving the Bittercold, one thing comes up time and again: that a human was the one to stop that menace in its tracks.
Noah froze, upon hearing mention of the word 'human'.
Therefore, by putting two and two together, I would presume you are a human. A human just like me.
'Just like me'? Another human? Noah let out a silent gasp. Are they a leftover from when Valakai summoned humans here? Yet this is from the Grass…Did a human make their way over there?
With his curiosity running overtime, the Samurott kept reading.
If we have that common thread, then we should keep in contact with each other. Someday I would like to meet the hero who felled the Bittercold. As a hero who stopped a calamity in my younger days, we also have that much in common.
Wait, a hero? Noah blinked at seeing this next part. Who stopped a calamity? Th-This is from one of the other heroes?!
Alas, I am too busy right now with explorer work at Wigglytuff's Guild to meet you in person. But that is a goal to aspire to. Until then, may we keep in contact? I would like to hear of your tales and exploits through letters like this, and I in turn will tell my own tales to you in my replies.
I wish you well.
Regards,
Lucario Robin of Team Auraflare.
Noah's breath hitched in surprise when he read that name at the end. The name Lucario Robin had been a name he'd heard in passing a good few times, as a revered hero that saved the world in its darkest hour, in a time back when he was still on Earth as a human. Cadmus idolised them, and often cited them as one of the reasons why humans were so amazing and cool – praise Noah often shrugged off. He wasn't really fond of attention.
I wonder, though… A thought occurred to Noah. Maybe they're the same way. Maybe they don't like being idolised either. We could have that much in common. And if we talk more…we might find out more about each other.
He considered the offer being given to him on the letter.
I'll definitely reply to that later. But I gotta tell Cadmus first. He's not gonna believe this. Noah chuckled, imagining the aghast reaction of his partner telling him he'd just had contact with one of the most famous Pokémon walking the planet right now.
He even knew where the Haxorus happened to be right now. The Samurott left the kitchen, walked down the hallway to their bedroom, and opened the door, where a snoozing Cadmus lay, clutching a Zekrom plush.
"Love?" Noah said, as his partner's eyes fluttered open. "You may want to hear this…"
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