Session 45, VP1

Their first order of business was examining their surroundings. The cell had no comforts: no beds, blankets, pillows, nor any food or drink. The metal bars were not attached to a hinge, but were instead “slotted” into the rock. If they had to guess, it was likely the construction of the cell was done using psychic powers.

 

Thankfully, Gunnar had yet to meet a mind he couldn’t match with muscle. He was able to easily knock the bars to the ground. A hallway stretched out in either direction of their cell. To the right, two more cells were hewn into the tunnel before it ended abruptly. To the right, the hallway curved into a room lit by a floating, pink light. The pair chose to explore the latter.

 

Only a short way ahead, the hallway opened into a much larger room. The outline of a figure could be seen on the far wall. It appeared to be…stuck to the wall in some manner. Bergie lit his shoulders ablaze as the trainers approached.

 

Pinned in place by invisible psychic forces, Hestr hung morosely. He looked unharmed, but was clearly exhausted & thirsty. Our heroes gave him some water as Bergie released Stompy to help support Hestr’s feet.

 

It was clear that he was used to the punishment levied upon him. He explained that ever since Sylvie fled the valley, he had been kept under intense scrutiny. Unsure if he wanted to read Sylvie’s letter, he had requested the winds to hide it somewhere safe for him. His parents & Hysterig demanded it when he returned home from his post. When it was clear he couldn’t tell them its contents, he was locked away for his insubordinance.

 

Hestr used his powers to let them see the mental energies surrounding them: yellow shackles made of air kept his wrists & ankles in place, while a thin, pink string stretched from his heart to the exit of the cavern. Hysterig, he said, had bound his heart to keep him from escaping the valley. They would let him out of the cave in a day or two, but the grip on his heart…

 

Without their own resident psycho, there was little the party could do. The young man thanked them for their honest effort to help. Before they left, he apologized for how unwelcome his hometown had been.

 

The night sky greeted them as they exited the cavern back into Harbinger Valley proper. Seeing Hestr’s plight had somewhat cooled the initial anger the pair had felt upon waking: Bergie found a quiet place to release Stompy, while Gunnar trudged back to Hysterig’s steps.

 

Both man & moose were still rattled from the strange visions wrought upon them. Bergie’s chief concern was making sure that Stompy knew his trainer would never turn on him. Stompy led his friend to the small pool at the bottom of the town’s waterfall.

 

Without words, he did his best to indicate that he understood those shades had only been reflections of what could have been. Their bond could not be broken by illusory lies, now or ever. The two found a comfortable place nearby, & let sleep take away their sorrow.

 

Back at Hysterig’s offering shrine, Gunnar wrote a letter in runes. It disappeared after he dropped it into the bowl. He wasn’t sure the apology had been accepted until he began to climb the stairs; thankfully, no time loops barred his progress this time.

 

Hysterig sat near exactly where he had been earlier. Gunnar still carried a bit of hope that the Elder could offer at least some useful wisdom. Unfortunately, it quickly became apparent that the psychic had his own agendas in mind.

 

His answers were vague at best, & all seemed extremely pessimistic. A time would soon come, he claimed, when the gods would come to blows. It would be the mortals in their wake who would pay in blood unjustly. Unless, perhaps…

 

The gods had chosen several “champions”, blessing them with boons to serve when called. Yet that same power offered humanity an edge. If Gunnar & the others could see sense, they would unite under Hysterig’s banner to strike down the very gods themselves.

 

Gunnar could take no more of this heresy. Anything further he would say would only lead to blows- so he made ready to leave. Of course, the psychic could sense his disappointment. His parting words spoke of a cave high upon one of Heimdall’s Gates. Within it, perhaps Gunnar might find what he sought.

 

When morning came, both of the heroes were ready to leave. Gunnar explained what Hysterig had said to Bergie. Seeing as they were leaving anyway, they decided they may as well do so by climbing the mountain. Along the way, they disturbed a few wild Pokemon. The attackers found themselves caught or defeated in short order.

 

Only a few scant feet below the peak of the mountain they found a human-sized hole that tunneled in at a slant. At its end, they tumbled down a preternaturally smooth slope. Bergie’s flames reflected off of smooth, curved walls. The two now stood at the bottom of a large, spherical chamber. Its every angle was perfect, as if it had simply been “plucked” right out of the stone.

 

Across from the entrance, two sconces flared to life, but not in fire: what issued forth from them was a darkness, a shadowy mist that obscured the wall between them. A rumbling issued forth from the ground at their feet. Small chips of stone began to swirl in the air in a tightening mass. Glowing runes of power blazed into being, binding the rock into a vaguely humanoid shape.

 

The spirit let out a roar, & leapt into battle. Though its shape was oddly familiar, the trainer’s Pokedex could identify neither its species or Type. Blow after blow were launched in a quick fury. After a heavy amount of damage, the spirit groaned as it changed colors.

 

When it continued to fight, our heroes could tell that it almost seemed excited. Bergie guessed that someone had sealed this spirit here ages past. Perhaps defeating it might allow it to move on.

 

Three times they felled the guardian, & three times it rose. All of the its stones had been shattered into dust; all that remained were the runes, gleaming white. Rambo’s eyes gleamed to match the intensity of their glow. With a hoot of pride, he evolved into Decidueye! From his new wings, he removed a single arrow, imbued with the power to shackle souls- or set them free.

 

Feathers pulled a bowstring taut. The guardian turned to look into Rambo’s eyes. Almost imperceptibly, it nodded.

 

An arc of purple rent through the guardian’s core. The glowing runes faded away to reveal the lingering spirit of a powerful Pokemon: a Snorlax! The massive creature laid a gentle paw on Rambo’s shoulder in thanks, before dissipating into the aether. Orange light burst from the sconces as it did so, erasing the darkness clinging to the wall.

 

Something ancient was carved there…something written in Elder Vanic. Gunnar read the message aloud for Bergie to hear:

 

Fortunes will die and spirits grow cold

Time and belief make all things grow old

Scars on hands will see stories unfold.

 

Humble footsteps awaken the sea

Frigid history is shaped by the tree

Vanachrom's blood sets the monsters free.

 

Peace becomes the deadliest poison

Stories end with the birth of the heathen

Scars on hands may write the new season.

 

As the last word echoed in the chamber, our heroes found themselves with many questions. It was clear the prophecy was referencing them in some way. But the other things it spoke of seemed much more ominous. An awakening sea…might that relate to the massive beast they had spied after defeating Solgaleo? Whose blood would be shed, to free which monsters? And just what stories would be ending?

 

They furrowed their brows in silence. Much was still unknown about their strange connections to the gods. Only further study might glean new answers. Bergie boosted Gunnar up to the exit tunnel, so he could throw down a rope. The breeze that cut through them as they climbed outside was chill, in many ways.

 

Winter was on them. One season dead, another born. Which might be their last, which would be writ by their own scarred hands? Perhaps Hysterig was right about one thing after all: only time could reveal all truths. Remembering the Elder brought an unpleasant thought to mind.

 

Had he known a prophecy could be found in the cave? The presence of the guardian meant that no one else had bested it before, so he could not have read it himself. If that was the case…had he sent them to clear the way? Or…had he sent them off to break upon the stone?