Session 56, VP2

The group was largely silent as they trudged their way back to the Pokemon Center. Lauren seemed particularly affected, shocked into their emotionless state that was becoming more & more common. For unexplained reasons, they left to…work on some baking in the kitchen?

 

Sylvie & Donner worked on washing & drying the bedding provided by the Pokemon Center, while Bronze & Tallulah ensured everyone’s belongings were suitably packed & ready. The Engineer had asked if she could accompany them for a short while, until she could find some direction of her own.

 

Though he was loathe to show it, Reinhold felt more upset than he liked with the Skirlic’s “announcement”. He let the others know he would be leaving for a final walk around Hammerfest to settle his mind.

 

Whether he intended to or not, his steps took him to the outskirts of town. A small forest stood roughly 40’ away. Squinting, he was able to make out the figure of someone meditating beneath a tree- Aegson. Reinhold walked over & mirrored his “cousin” in silence. When Aegson acknowledged his presence with a nod, the Martial Artist began to voice his frustrations.

 

Aegson didn’t speak until Reinhold asked how he could become stoic like him. He warned Reinhold not to mistake “being feelingless for wisdom”. In a somewhat strained voice, Aegson explained that he often thought of his parents when life’s currents threatened to drown him. Perhaps Reinhold could find comfort in doing the same.

 

The discussion then worked its way to the topic of Gyda. Knowing that she almost certainly influenced Skirlic’s decisions infuriated Reinhold. Every time they crossed her path, she manipulated people for her own gain, not caring about the cost. The pair sat quiet for a few moments after this outburst. Awkwardly trying to comfort Reinhold, Aegson eventually offered to go kill Gyda now.

 

The poor attempt at comradery succeeded in sobering Reinhold a bit. He, at least, had already learned that a blade cannot solve all problems. Instead, they spoke of what powers she might now wield, & how to prepare for them. Aegson explained that when he tried to assess her with his extra senses, he felt only a mass of weakness: as if it were hard to pay attention to something so small & insignificant.

 

Knowing how much Gyda craved attention, this revelation caused Reinhold to smile. Maybe she would turn out to be a self-defeating problem. Hadn’t one of his uncles once told him “Never interrupt your enemy when they are making a mistake”? It could be that some burdens aren’t ours to wear, unless we choose them.

 

His shoulders felt a bit lighter as Reinhold got up to leave. He wished Aegson safe travels…& after a moment, Aegson replied in the same. As a parting gift for his “help”, Reinhold gifted Aegson one of his older fishing rods.

 

On his way back to the Pokemon Center, Lauren unexpectedly passed by him carrying a plate of lemon bars. The two locked eyes. Before Reinhold could even begin asking a question, Lauren was gone.

 

Lauren soon arrived at Aegson’s campsite. The man was examining the fishing rod with a confused look on his face, as if he’d never seen one in-person before. He seemed nonplussed at having yet another visitor in so short a time. Thankfully (In Aegson’s opinion.), Lauren had little to say; the Researcher waxed oddly poetic about examining the recipe papers, implying there was much to be learned by doing so. With that, Lauren left Aegson twice as confused as he had been.

 

Back at the Pokemon Center, the trainers were finalizing their next destination. Sylvie was clearly distraught at the news of her hometown from Party 1, but she was also worried about returning just yet. If they weren’t strong enough…

 

Earlier in their stay, Lauren & Sylvie conveyed this problem to Ilvri. She had given them the contact information for Morphada, the Gym Leader at The Hive. Ilvri wasn’t certain  exactly how Morphada could aid them but advised that she was the best person to ask. Sylvie had messaged the Bug type specialist a few days ago. From how the woman responded, the group could expect a warm welcome- thus, their next destination was set.

 

The weather was calm & comfortable. A small blessing that eased the sting of their departure slightly. A rainbow arcing through the sky promised better days to come. (Unless, of course, the legends spoke true.)

 

Shortly after setting out, Bronze spotted a man crouched in some tall grass ahead. He appeared to be hiding, though he did not appear to be aware of the group just yet. Exhausted with subterfuge, Reinhold walked towards him as he called out a greeting.

 

The group stopped in their tracks as the man spun towards them with his hand ready to draw a weapon. The air was tense until his eyes fell on Donner. Both soldiers were surprised to see each other so far from Blademill. Donner introduced Commander Valdrin to his friends: back home, Valdrin had trained Donner in weapons fighting. He was also one of the few voices that called for Donner’s discharge to be an Honorable one.

 

A few light questions were traded back & forth. One of the trainers mentioned that it was a good thing they’d bumped into him before he entered Hammerfest. When the party asked what had brought Valdrin to the mainland, he instead refocused on the previous point. Why was it a good thing he hadn’t gotten to Hammerfest?

 

Donner gave his friends a nod to indicate that they could trust Valdrin. Their explanation caused a visible amount of stress to the commander. Without saying anything, he had already begun to pack up the equipment surrounding him. Seeing that he wasn’t likely to offer anything further without prompting, our heroes reminded him that he hadn’t answered their questions.

 

He snapped his head back towards them with a frustrated expression. Tersely, he told them that he was traveling with two other soldiers. Valdrin had stayed here to guard the camp & supplies while his subordinates entered Hammerfest in civilian clothes to scope out the place. Though he had faith they wouldn’t be discovered, he didn’t want to risk it. He pulled out a small notebook once he had shouldered his baggage.

 

In turn, he pointed to- most- of the party, asking for their Pokedex numbers. He wanted to speak with them about Drillsberg but would need to do so at a later date. Before putting his notebook away, he paused.

 

“Lauren. Am I allowed to pass along your contact information?” he asked. The Researcher nodded in the affirmative. That was all the man needed to hear. Valdrin began striding quickly towards town, pausing a few feet away to look over his shoulder. “It is…good to see you healthy, Donner. Stay that way.”

 

Slightly confused & annoyed, the troop pressed on. Our heroes set up camp after fording a small river. Sylvie chose to join Lauren on the first watch of the evening, hoping to talk. She had sensed the way Lauren had become “closed up” & was naturally worried. She tried repeatedly to bridge the divide, but the Researcher proved unreachable.

 

Once Lauren retired, Sylvie spent some time talking with Donner. Both of them were worried for their friend’s health, but when Lauren got like this, they seemed…remote, almost robotic. Donner suggested that they may only be able to ready themselves to catch Lauren if they fell.

 

On other matters, Sylvie asked a bit more about Valdrin. Donner seemed to have a great amount of respect for the commander, though they had once held the same rank. He wasn’t sure what compelled Valdrin to speak on his behalf during his trial. He hoped to question him about this in the future.

 

Speaking of the past led naturally to the topic of Harbinger Valley. Even speaking the name seemed to hurt Sylvie. The group could still decide to turn elsewhere after meeting with Morphada, if Sylvie needed more time. Donner gently took her hand & gave it a squeeze.

 

“When we get there, to your hometown…I’ll be whatever you need me to be. Do whatever you need me to do,” he gently whispered. Despite the lightness of his voice, the fire underlying his words was a promise, a bond. And perhaps that helped Sylvie dream of greener climes when she lay to sleep.

 

During the last shift, Talullah joined Reinhold. It was clear the young woman was not used to spending much time in the company of others. Knowing she hailed from the same land as Bronze, the Martial Artist pulled out a shogi set. The two played a few games to pass the time; by dawn, Reinhold had given her some tips on how to stand up for herself & be assertive when it counts. For her part, Talullah seemed overjoyed when Reinhold confirmed that she could call him a friend.

 

Early the next day, the party continued their journey. Soon, they began to hear drumbeats on the wind. What could this be? Investigating it might help take their minds off the things currently haunting them.

 

In a nearby clearing, several Pokemon were dancing in a circle around a massive, fleshy boulder. They were chanting their names in rhythm to the drumbeats echoing out of the “boulder”. Sylvie & Lauren could tell that it was actually a Pokemon of some kind. Their senses couldn’t quite grasp its identity, but they could both feel it dreaming of conquest.

 

Remembering the Tsareena they had encountered before, the trainers moved to break up the ensemble. The battle that ensued was nothing noteworthy- until a chill began to worm its way down everyone’s spines. With a flush of goosebumps, the group realized that everything currently surrounding the “boulder” had turned slightly translucent- they had become Ghosts!

 

A rumbling shook the area in time with the strange drumbeats. The object of the wild’s worship slowly rotated right-side up. A dull, orange light blazed from its core, casting a ghoulish grin across the surroundings. This was no boulder: it was the largest Gourgeist our heroes had ever seen! Its long neck easily reached some 20’ into the air as it let out a shrill laugh. The drumbeats still echoing out of its pumpkin could now be heard for what they truly were: repeated cries of “BOO!”

 

Despite this shocking turn of events, our heroes made short work of the wilds. When the maestro was finally forced to take a bow, the Pokemon that hadn’t already been handled fled into the grasslands.

 

The rest of the day was much tamer in comparison. The party was able to make good headway towards The Hive; they would probably be able to reach their destination in another couple of days.

 

Around sunset the next day, they spotted a pair of extremely tall Sudowoodo nearby. The “trees” were bent towards each other, grasping their hands to make a living arch. Arranged under them, several more wild Pokemon queued opposite each other.

 

Every few moments, one Pokemon from each side of the arch would meet beneath it. The pair then took turns pulling scary faces at each other. When one of them showed fear, they retreated off to the side. The winner would then compete against a new opponent, until a winner had been decided.

 

Something about this pulled at Lauren’s memories. Back in school, they had learned a bit about Yggdrasil, the World Tree. One legend told of a pair of “splinters” from the tree who gained life. They were said to roam Vanachrom, granting the “gift of color” to those deserving of it. As the trainers watched, they noticed that every time a Pokemon won, their skin would briefly shift in hue…putting two & two together, they realized that the winner would become a Shiny!

 

Our heroes released some of their Pokemon, excited to join the competition. They whiled away a few hours as both audience & participants to the spectacle. After many rounds, the two finalists stood ready to scare. Sylvie’s Pikachu, Poppy, against a wild Ursaring.

 

Poppy tried her best, pulling every acting trick she knew…but the Ursaring was, at the end of the day, a hulking bear. The newly minted bear clapped its paws in excitement. As it gave Poppy a friendly handshake, some of the strange energies spread into the Pikachu. The black tips of her ears let out a brief flash of light- before changing to become a vivid red.

 

The group waved farewell to the wild Pokemon as they returned to their homes. Camp was set once the sun began to dip. Poppy spent some time trying to pick out the best flower to compliment her new ‘do, with Sylvie’s assistance. The others laughed each time the Pikachu would dramatically toss unworthy petals away.

 

A few days removed from Hammerfest had already done wonders for their overall mood. Lauren was still “vaulted”, true. And there was the looming matter of Harbinger Valley, Hestr, & Hysterig. Oh, and all that business with Jorgumandur yet to come. The Giants- both False & True-, the Kindling…not to mention the Rising of the Gyda Moon.

 

Still, for now their lives were more “treat” than “trick”. So they would savor these moments, for as long as they would last…