Session 9, VP2

Idea after idea was volleyed between our heroes. After a few hours spent debating in circles, they resolved that action must be taken soon, lest the crew of the Onaga begin the trek to town under their own volition. With this thought pushing them onwards, the trainers asked Sigyn to have some of the crew take the party to the rocky, barren island in the chain.

Sigyn agreed, and handed over a flare gun to the party. Not willing to risk the ship's integrity in the coming battle, she explained that the Onaga would sail a short way to the North. Upon seeing the light of the flare, they would return to collect the group.

Uneasiness weighed on the party as they watched the shape of the Onaga recede. If something were to go wrong, they could easily find themselves marooned as Flugil had. Doing their best to ignore such doubts, they began trying to lure in Hylr. Bronze had Ros begin shocking the ocean waves with electricity, in the hopes of creating an alluring disturbance.

When no response made itself known, Lauren took it upon themselves to scale the rocky spire at the center of this island. Taking care to navigate the unwelcoming terrain, Lauren reached a vantage point with a wide view of the surrounding area.

To the North, the sails of the Onaga could be seen flapping in the wind as the ship lie at anchor. Due West, one large whirlpool was visible, while several smaller ones were visible to the South. After returning to the party and relaying this information, Lauren helped Flugil walk to the Southern shore, as Reinhold rolled the barrel of jambalaya along.

Setting themselves up near the coastline, the trainers got to work. Taking a cue from Ros, Lauren had Sonic stir up the sea with electric bursts. At the same time, Bronze had San create large sand plumes from the shallows. In a short amount of time, this combination of efforts bore fruit; a massive shape could be seen rippling just below the surface of the ocean, slowly heading straight towards the beach.

The wake waxed larger, and soon pale white skin shot through with toxic purple veins became visible. After recalling their Pokemon, Bronze & Lauren began to pack balls of the jambalaya together, hurling them into the sea. With a series of well-aimed throws, a small pool of spice-infused water began to grow 30 feet from shore. The end of one massive tentacle suddenly breached in the chummed water, seeming to sample the taste of the lure. Clearly, enticed, Hylr began moving his massive bulk close enough to begin his feast.

Upon reaching the shallows, Hylr lifted his head above the water, towering over our heroes. Up close, the trainers could see that his skin was bioluminescent with vivid blues and yellows. His eyes were bloodshot in a sickening blend of red and purple, and seemed to vibrate in place in his crazed state. All across his body, Mareanie & Toxapex could be seen embedded in the thick, gelatinous mass of his skin.

Realizing that the antidote wouldn't work if Hylr was continuously being poisoned, our heroes resolved to remove the urchins by any means necessary.

Reinhold flung a massive amount of the jambalaya towards Hylr, managing to knock one of the Mareanie loose. Thistle, Ros, & Olli began to fling attacks at the poisonous Pokemon, slowly whittling them down. Each time, the urchins responded with a spray of Poison Stings. Reinhold & Shadow readied themselves at the frontline, hoping to absorb some of these attacks meant for their friends.

Each time the chummed area began to fade in color & dissipate, Lauren & Bronze threw out more of the bait, slowly luring Hylr in closer to shore. Unfortunately, even at this close range, some of the urchins remained out of range due to their position on Hylr's back. After realizing this, Reinhold & Lauren worked together to have Olli Teleport himself & Shadow onto Hylr's head.

Sting after sting bounced off of Shadow's thick armor, as the party continued to slowly thin down the toxic Pokemon. Seeing Hylr so close, Flugil could not help herself from standing and calling his name in a weak voice. She took a step closer to the shore, only to stumble and fall.

Lauren quickly grabbed onto her arm, and began to help her to her feet, but it was too late: Hylr's attention had been drawn to Flugil at her call. And now, the crazed, protective kraken saw his beloved trainer weakened, weary, and in the grasp of an unknown force.

A shrill roar burst from the water like a sonic wave, as Hylr began to lash out in a blind rage. Now fighting a battle on two fronts, our heroes' situation grew dire. The leviathan before them began sweeping the coastline with bolts of electricity, and concussive waves of water. The power of each blow sent the trainers & their Pokemon reeling.

Unwilling to return fire on an innocent, beleaguered Pokemon, they chose to continue focusing on the removal of the urchins. Flugil continued to cry out to Hylr, trying to calm him to no avail. Each second, his attacks became more and more potent, and a cascade of Poison Stings continued to rain down pell-mell around them.

Pokemon after Pokemon fell, knocked unconscious by the intensity of the fight. A deep rumble sounded from beneath the waves, as Hylr called forth a massive wave. Seeing the unbridled might of nature speeding towards his friends, Reinhold had a split second to act; Thistle & Ros had both been extremely effective at removing the urchins. If both of them were to fall, the odds of success would thin dramatically. With no thought to his own wellbeing, Reinhold leapt in front of Thistle, taking the brunt of Hylr's attack.

Reinhold & Ros fell unconscious to the sands. Shadow continued to lay into the urchins still on Hylr, refusing to stop fighting for his trainer. Sylvie ran forward, and dragged Reinhold further inland, away from the battle.

Seeing Lauren still standing close to Flugil, the kraken unleashed a punishing bolt of lightning at him. Fear & fatigue began to set in amongst the group as the battle continued unabated. Sonic, Ott, & Shadow managed to extract the last of the urchins, but were now stuck atop Hylr's raging form.

With no warning, Hylr hefted the massive bulk of a tentacle high above the water. For a moment, time seemed to stop. Drops of water hung frozen in the air, falling from the sinuous limb. Hidden, serrated hooks unsheathed themselves inside every sucker on the tentacle, and the spell was broken: the arm arced down in a blur, heading directly towards Sylvie & Reinhold.

There was no time for Sylvie to dodge herself, let alone take Reinhold with her. Flugil & Lauren turned in horror, unable to do anything but watch the doom unfold before them. Cries of warning echoed forth in slow motion, too late to be of any use.

Moving faster than ever before, Thistle dashed in the direction of his partner, tears streaming from his eyes. With a cry of defiance, he leapt, launching himself headfirst into the path of the oncoming tentacle in a desperate attempt to protect the trainer he loved.

Amazingly, the small ermine halted the deadly blow for the slimmest of seconds, but even his great love could not turn back the full might of the seas. The tentacle slammed hard into the beach, sending sand rocketing skywards.

Lauren felt their heart skip a beat. Hylr's arm lay flat where once Reinhold & Sylvie had been. Hylr groaned as he began to retract his arm, leaving a huge crater in the shore. A crater filled, not with blood and remains, but an unbelievable sight; the undying desire to protect had catalyzed something inside of Thistle. To save Sylvie's life, he had grown, transformed, evolved.

Dense bark lined his head and sides as he remained standing. One eye closed, leg muscles twitching from absorbing the brunt of the attack, Thistle burst upwards with a hiss to savagely bite into Hylr's retreating tentacle. Lauren released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding, as Sylvie sat up with Reinhold from underneath where Thistle had stood over them.

Without wasting a beat, Bronze called out for Sylvie to prepare the antidote, before leaping into the frothing waves. As the remaining Pokemon ran interference, Bronze identified a suitable wound as an injection site. Struggling to stay afloat, she waved for Sylvie to make her approach.

Ott leapt from Hylr's head into the water, and helped Sylvie keep the bowl of antidote aloft. When Sylvie was within range, Sonic ran to the wound, pulling it wider from the top as Ott disengaged from Sylvie to widen the wound from the bottom.

Bronze braced her fingers before her as a step for Sylvie, who used it to launch herself upwards towards Hylr's open wound. Stretching her arms out as far as they could go, Sylvie screamed as she slammed the salve home. Almost instantly, Hylr began to slow down. His veins began to lose their purple hue as his eyes cleared from their bloodshot state.

Extremely weakened from his ordeals, Hylr seemed to see his surroundings for the first time. On shore, he could see Flugil looking up at him with a smile. She pushed herself weakly to her feet, and took a faltering few steps towards him. Hylr gently reached out a tentacle to support her as she hugged him. With the last of his strength, he climbed fully ashore, allowing the Pokemon & Trainers on him to disembark.

His eyes closed in a weary smile, as Flugil finally recalled his Pokeball. Against the odds, our heroes had succeeded. Reinhold coughed himself awake in time to see his friends all collapsed on the sands, crying tears of relieved laughter. After checking that no one was critically injured, the group sent up the flare Sigyn had given them. Slowly, the form of the Onaga began to drift in their direction.

Once they had climbed safely aboard the deck, Sigyn asked if the group had completed their objective. Smiling as they gave confirmation, she gave the eager crew orders to chart course back to Ever Dam.

Whiling away the rest of the day in well-earned rest, our heroes eventually drifted off into peaceful dreams. Excited chatter joined with the dawn's encroaching light to wake them early the next morning. Understandably leery, the group made their way topside.

Though they could feel the ship carrying them along the ocean, the trainers could see no one at the helm. It appeared that practically all of the crew lined the ship's railings, leaning over to look at something below. A piercing cry came from high above, as Flugil appeared on the deck.

Like a meteor, her Machprey streaked downwards to alight on her shoulders. Although late, it seemed her Pokemon had returned with aid after all; beneath and around the ship, a pod of Wailmer & Wailord were hauling the boat home to Ever Dam at an incredible pace.

Their hearts buoyed by the sight, our heroes held council with Flugil below decks. They rehashed what had been occurring in town when they left port, and Flugil assured them that she would stop at nothing to dissuade the townsfolk from attacking the innocent dog Pokemon.

With the help of the whales, the Onaga pulled into port a full day earlier than expected. Eerily, nothing but silence greeted their arrival. Chills ran down their spines as the party walked down the Onaga's gangplank. Stopping only to wave goodbye to the receding ship, the group made their way over to Harbormaster Hragn's cabin.

Lauren knocked on the door, and it began to swing inwards. Hragn was not visible inside, but there were no signs of violence or a hurried departure. Worry began to take root in the trainers' stomachs. They anxiously climbed their way up the stone steps to the town proper.

Upon reaching the top of the cliff, they could see that the town appeared somehow more somber & silent than before. Every door & window was lashed closed, and no sound could be heard echoing through the vast courtyards. Reasoning that Ulmar would be able to explain what had happened in their absence, the party trudged their way to his cottage.

Knocks on this door met with no different results than Hragn's had earlier. A thick layer of dust could be seen through the windows into Ulmar's home, but he was nowhere to be seen.

Without a word, Flugil took off at a brisk pace towards the Pokemon Center, with the group trailing in her wake. Falling behind slightly, they noticed that the doors to the library were in a state of disarray and damage. As they rounded the last corner, all of them skid to a halt.

Set up in ramshackle tents, lean-tos, & shacks, the entire population of the town sat camped out at the town entrance facing Varfjell Fields. The grasslands themselves were practically invisible, as the pack of Puphest & Barghound had at least tripled in size. Between the townsfolk and the Pokemon was a thin, shallow trench that appeared to have been dug out in some unnatural way.

Although Flugil wanted to talk with the people to find out what had been going on, our heroes convinced her to join them in healing their Pokemon first, just in case. Inside, the Pokemon Center was overflowing with townsfolk occupying the lobby and guest rooms.

As a nurse restored everyone's Pokemon, Flugil milled about the room to gather rumors. With everyone settled, she explained what she had learned: the night after the Onaga left port, someone had broken into the library. They had ransacked the building, looking for something unknown. When Solveig woke from the noise and investigated, the intruder struck her down with a sword, leaving her to bleed out amongst her precious books.

The murder was the last straw for the already superstitious people, and they gathered at the town entrance to keep an eye on each other & "repel an attack from those damned ghosts".

After a brief discussion, Flugil explained that she planned to talk to the folk gathered around, in hopes to convince some to return to their homes. Meanwhile, our heroes made their way back to the library.

One of the front doors lay flat on the ground, as the other lazily swung in the breeze. Swallowing their unease, Lauren stepped across the threshold. Bookshelves lay fallen across the floor, with books ancient & treasured spilled like so many tears. Thankfully, Solveig's body had been removed, but bloodstains on the carpet made it obvious where she had died.

Surrounding the spot, the group noticed three books in particular seemed damaged. One, a fragile text written in Elder Vanic, had huge portions torn out. A book on archaeological sites had a few pages removed in a section focusing on temples to the old gods. Finally, a book of children's stories & songs lay with one page half-torn from its spine.

Unfortunately unable to parse Elder Vanic, Sylvie examined the book on archaeological sites while Lauren read the damaged page in the children's book. This book, too, was faded with age. The half-torn page, marked with a bloody thumbprint, contained an ancient rhyme. The lyrics were obtuse and vaguely threatening; clearly, this was the kind of cautionary song parents might sing to misbehaving children.

Sylvie recalled that Ulmar was an unofficial scholar, and suggested that the group attempt to find him. After making their way back to the front of town, they saw that Flugil had been at least moderately successful in thinning the crowd. She hailed them as she sat wearily on a bench near the Pokemon Center.

The trainers relayed what they had discovered, and Flugil seemed extremely confused at what significance the children's rhyme could have. Hesitantly, Lauren explained that the party had recently had reason to believe that some myths may be more truth than fiction. Although she was unconvinced herself, Flugil trusted our heroes' judgement.

In turn, she explained that, evidently the townsfolk had attempted to rout the ghostly Pokemon. The only reason they had failed was an act of seemingly divine intervention: every time they tried to approach the Puphest & Barghound, lightning crashed down from the sky, accompanied by a booming voice speaking in tongues. The only discernible word was "Thor", the name of the old god associated with electricity.

With neither Flugil or the party seeing any glimpses of Donner or Ulmar, they resolved to attempt crossing the trench themselves. The second their feet began to cross the small gap, a sheet of lightning fell around them, gouging out the trench further. The electricity lanced through the air surrounding them, but never made contact.

Sylvie & Lauren froze, unsure of how to proceed as the thunderstorm ceased as quickly as it had started. Undeterred, Reinhold & Bronze calmly finished walking across the trench. Surprisingly, no further lightning fell. Emboldened by this, Lauren & Sylvie hopped across themselves.

The Puphest & Barghound, though increased in number, were no less friendly than they had been when the group had arrived in town. Bronze scrounged up a stick, throwing it to play fetch with some of the dogs. Seeing how excited and playful the Pokemon were, Bronze turned and gave the now watching townsfolk a withering look.

Lauren crouched down to join the pups in play, as Sylvie closed her eyes & entered a trance. Reaching out with her extra senses, she sought to find Donner's aura, as he had done to her before. Sure enough, she could feel his mind hidden behind a rocky outcropping 50 feet away from the town entrance.

Without a word, Sylvie took off towards the rocks. Meanwhile, emboldened by the party's undeterred passage, Hragn had gathered a small group of townsfolk who approached the trench with trepidation. Just as before, as soon as they made to cross the trench, the skies erupted with thunder. Angered & suspicious, some of the townsfolk threw small stones the party's way.

While her friends exchanged angry gestures & words with the townsfolk, Sylvie came around to the back side of the rocky outcropping, but didn't see anyone. Quietly, she called out Donner's name. In response, a small lantern came into view inside of a small cave.

Donner & Ulmar, both covered in mud and grass stains, crawled out of the opening. Happy to see that the party had been successful, they explained that they had been pretending to be Thor in order to deter the townsfolk from hurting the innocent Pokemon. Whenever someone attempted to cross the trench, Ulmar would shout in a foreign tongue as Donner had his Pokemon bring down the storm.

Chuckling at the absurdity of their plan, Sylvie asked if the two of them could meet them in town, as there was many things to discuss. Although they were worried about "abandoning their post", Sylvie convinced them to chase her and her friends back into town with as big as storm as they could, in hopes of terrifying the townsfolk.

Donner nodded, and Sylvie took off running back towards town with a scream. Thunderbolts rained down, slamming into the ground behind her. Seeing this, the rest of the party joined her as she made straight for the trench. Just as the group leapt back over it into town, a massive bolt exploded in the dirt, leaving a jagged crater behind.

Not comfortable explaining the situation with the townsfolk so close nearby, Sylvie motioned for her friends to follow her back to the library's courtyard. Once they were safely sequestered away from prying eyes, she recounted what she had learned. As the party wondered aloud how their allies could get back in town without being noticed, Donner's voice hailed to them from above.

A massive owl, sparking electricity between the twin plumicorns on its head, descended with Donner & Ulmar in its grasp. Donner introduced the group to his partner Pokemon, Duna. The two groups caught each other up on what each had experienced over the past few days. The party asked Ulmar if he would be able to help them intuit more from the books of interest they had discovered. He readily agreed, and suggested they return to his cabin for the moment.

Unwilling to leave the Puphest & Barghound undefended, Donner said he would return to the town entrance. With a hoot, Duna gripped onto his shoulders, and the two disappeared into the clouds above. Ulmar led the way as the trainers began to make their way back to his home, eager to see what they could learn with his help.