Broken Sun - The Mandate of Anarchy (PG-13)

[strategiser24]

Tariq The Archeops
Koraken Desert, Azmarax

The two strangers turned out to be a Lopunny and a Pachirisu. Both were, thankfully, not like some of the refugee on Houan Peak that had gone mad, otherwise they may have killed him. After they helped Tariq in bandaging his wounds, the Lopunny turned out to be another Seer, apparently the strange feelings Tariq had been feeling were actually his Seer's 'abilities' telling him that another of his kind was nearby. Clearly, he had much to learn, and the stone tablet rubbing he still had was bound to teach even the stranger, Jax, something new.


"Don't mind Syrat, he's my little 'helper' until he pays off his debt," Jax told Tariq.

"I suppose I owe you two something as well for helping me, though I could have done it myself," Tariq answered, flipping the hood on his cloak off and reaching into his bag to hand them water canteens as thanks, "My name is Tariq, I was attacked by a Bisharp while..."

Tariq stopped suddenly as he thought of the stone tablet he'd found. He wondered: Would Igriod, Marxis, or another Senior of the Irfan punish him for telling two strangers? Even if they had maybe saved him from death or capture?

"Xac is somewhere in Centraltel," Jax said to him, seemingly ignoring his unfinished statement, "Thankfully, he's not on the move, but that can change if we get close or make him paranoid with the clairvoyance. As you probably know, we need his blood and the blood of two others. In the meantime, you'd better come with us, but don't fly with that wing. I managed to stop the bleeding without having to resort to stitches, but if you fly and rustle the bandages, I can't promise I'll get it back together without sewing it up."

Tariq snapped out of his meditation afer hearing about him going after Xac. Such a thing for two to do alone seemed like suicide. "While I don't mean to judge you, you both seem to be...unprepared...to fight Xac, even if you are both strong," Tariq said to them, knowing that they'd ask him more questions, "Xac's legions have the ability to consumer your very soul; without our knowledge, I don't think you would be able to protect your s-"

Tariq froze suddenly; of all the things Igriod had told him since the Abyss had had appeared, it was to not reveal any of the order's secrets to ANYONE. For all they knew, these two strangers could know who he really is, and be trying to use them healing his injury as leverage for him to trust them. However in the middle of his shock, the charcoal rubbing of the stone tablet blew out of his still open bag and right into Syrat's face.

"I can explain," Tariq said hastily, grabbing the paper from Syrat's hands, "My hooded cloak is more than just something you can buy, as some of my other...friends...may have told you...Its the cloak of the...order...I belong to. Underneath its neck scarf is a necklace with a distinct symbol; the symbol of the sun. We're known as..."

Tariq stopped again; the two strangers must have thought that he had gone crazy from the injury he'd sustained. He still wondered if he should continue talking about the Irfan. I suppose Igriod won't be too upset if I tell it to a Seer, after all, we've been looking for other Seers, and now here is one who's appeared right in front of him.

"...We're known as the Irfan, maybe you've heard of us in stories," Tariq finally told them, "Most people think we're only a legend, but those who live in the villages and towns near Mount Hohua know better; we're an order of scholars that live in seclusion, and with the Abyss, our knowledge things most would never know, and our monastery, have become a sanctuary for those fleeing from the Abyss...I know this sounds absolutely crazy, but you would've said the same thing about the Abyss before it happened...If you want to head to Centraltel, I'll follow you and tell you more ion the way, there's many things you still don't know."

Tariq waited for their response, at the same time, sensing other seers nearby, as well as a...strange presence.

 

[Necros]

OOC: Moving along some plot and a bit of personal side plot in this post, hope that's okay, Neo. Also, apologies for ever so slightly bunnying you, DVB, I'm impatient ^^;

Melanthios Malachi the Sableye
Koraken Valley ---> Koraken Desert, Azmarax

After the introductions had been made and Melanthios nonchalantly pointed out the now festering, dissolving body of the scourge as his ‘opening move’, the Sableye turned and began heading in the direction of the two nearest other Seers he could sense. He wasn’t particularly paying attention as to whether the Pikachu was following him or not, or even listening to a word he said. Regardless, Melanthios had plenty to say, and he spoke freely without the slightest hesitation or sign of self consciousness, as if Diego was now his own personal audience.

“Now don’t get me wrong, okay? We could just go our own way and then surprise the others when they need our help the most. Of course, they also can sense our presence, so I doubt we’d be much of a surprise. Psychic signatures are a bit of a pain when you want to make a dramatic entrance, <don’t you agree>?”

He chuckled a bit, now twirling his amethyst shard between his fingertips, the light glinting off of it as it spun, giving it almost a mystical looking quality. Diego might or might not have mentioned something about his Fallen. Either way, Melanthios continued without missing a beat.

“This notion of us having Abyssal copies is a bit of a pain. And frankly insulting. After all, who could hope to copy me? There is only one Melanthios Malachi, and even if you took all the sins across all the games I’ve committed, you couldn’t even begin to create a being that compared with me! <Homicide, genocide, assault, theft, manslaughter, psychological abuse, animal abuse, arson, torture, blood, death, sacrificial rituals, suffocation, drowning, famine, equalizing, cleansing, defying, denying, and of course, last but not least child m….> well, I won’t bore you with the details.”

He grinned widely after that long rant in that strange accented language he used, oddly understandable yet at the same time completely alien to any other Pokémon’s ears. There was something unnerving about the way he delivered it too, his tone and pitch increasing in energy and frenzy until it was highly likely that any Seer within earshot double-checked their senses just to make sure this guy really was one of them and not a cleverly disguised Abyssal.

“Still, I did give them a lot to work with. My Fallen must be quite the impressive fellow. I’ll be counting on <you> to deal with him if he shows up. I’m rather notorious for avoiding my <issues>,” Melanthios snickered, popping the shard back in his mouth again as the ground beneath his feet slowly began turning from soft grass to warm sand. He might’ve been trying to make himself look reassuringly confident. He might’ve been trying to lessen Diego’s fears over his Fallen by describing the sheer potential his own had. He might’ve been simply talking to entertain his Master, watching the game play out from afar. It was hard to tell with Melanthios, he didn’t give much away.

As the Sableye drew closer and closer to the others’ location, he could pick out a third presence there, though it did not bear the signature of a Seer. He shrugged softly to himself, figuring more pieces meant more chances of winning.

“I wonder if they’ve got anything useful yet…”

***​

Somewhere between Centratel and Sartaras…

A small contingent of Infernal Scourge, lead by a rather dark, shadow covered Charizard were making their way to Sartaras. The Scourge members were bickering amongst themselves, sneering and comparing stories of their kills, but the Charizard was deathly silent and serious, staring ahead and frowning to himself.

“Be SiLEnt,” he commanded. The others instantly obeyed. He came to a stop. As he did so, the trail of dead, blackened ground that followed him began to expand in a small radius around his form. Grass withered, soil became dust, and water turned brackish and cold, clouding over and reeking thickly of death.

The reason this Cohort of Chaos had stopped was not immediately apparent to his subordinates. They couldn’t sense anyone nearby, and there were no obvious signs of danger.

“…wHo ArE yOu?”

It took a few moments, but suddenly the members of the Infernal Scourge realized that there was actually a Pokémon standing a few feet in front of their commander. A Pokémon that was not giving away the slightest scent or advance warning of their presence, mental or physical.

“None you need concern yourself with. I am an ally.”

The Charizard’s frown deepened. Even the Pokémon’s voice was masked, distorted by some sort of device strapped around its muzzle. However, he did know one thing.

“YoU aRe NoT a MeMBeR oF thE AbYSs. YoU aRe LiViNG.”

The other Pokémon nodded. “Correct. I am living. I am not an Abyssal. Yet I say I am your ally.”

The members of the Infernal Scourge were perplexed. Mostly because they couldn’t quite see the other around the form of their commander, but also because they couldn’t comprehend why any living Pokémon would so boldly go up to an Abyssal, a Cohort of Chaos no less, and claim to be on their side.

The Charizard studied the strange one in front of him, on his guard. He could tell its species, those fanlike ears and bolt-shaped tail were a dead giveaway. It was otherwise unrecognizable though, as it was covered from head to toe in a loose fitting cloak, bandages wrapped entirely around its feet and hands. Even its gender had been stealthily concealed, its tail half covered in beaten metal, the edges of it sharpened to a razor sheen. And of course, there was the masklike device made of some sort of thick, rubberlike material, the lower half becoming metal, wires and what looked like various types of glowing crystal.

There wasn’t a trace of any thought from it. Its mind was heavily, heavily shielded. The Cohort of Chaos could barely even get a whiff of the living soul inside of it, and he could also tell his natural corruptive influence was also having no effect on it. Perhaps that mask was protecting it? If so, this was a threat he had to address immediately. It wouldn’t do at all for the mortals to find some way to protect themselves from the Abyss’ influence.

“iF yOu aRe aN aLLy oF Us, tHeN wHy Do yOu nOt eMbRacE OuR iNfLuEnCe?” he said slowly, trying not to provoke the smaller Pokémon. He wasn’t sure what it was capable of yet.

It spoke with that same distorted voice. “My Master requires living pieces on his game board in addition to the countless legions of the damned. It is necessary in the struggle against certain members of the Indigo Seers.”

All of the Abyssal hissed softly at the mention of the Seers, and the Charizard’s eyes narrowed.

“AnD hOw dO wE kNoW yOu aRe nOt OnE oF tHeM?”

The mysterious Pokémon didn’t answer for a few moments. In fact, it seemed to be conversing to someone under its breath, if the muffled distorted sounds coming from its mask were anything to go by. This was suspicious enough for the Charizard to bare his fangs and prepare to strike at the other when it suddenly spoke:

“I guarantee that I am on your side and that you have absolutely no reason to fight me.”

Something about its words and the way they seemed to charge the entire area around them with an imperceptible energy assured the Charizard that this was the truth. Absolute and requiring no explanation whatsoever.

“SsSsS…vEry WeLL. WhAt BusInESS dO yOu HaVe wItH uS?”

“I wish to enquire about the location of all known Seers. With physical descriptions, if possible.”

The Charizard nodded, informing the other about the many Seers the Abyss already knew about, where they were last known to be, and provided a few names and descriptions in the case of where he could. However, most were unidentified, and from the way the masked Pokémon muttered darkly to itself, it clearly hadn’t found what it was looking for.

“I guess that’s why they call it a ‘game’… be too easy, otherwise…”

“WhAt Do YoU mEaN?”

It looked up at him sharply. “Nothing. Continue what you were doing. I apologize for delaying you.”

The Abyssal watched the other proceed past them, towards Centratel, tail slicing through the air as it walked. All of them felt something they hadn’t in a good long while…unease. Ally or no, something was going on they weren’t aware of, and it annoyed them.

But in the end there was nothing they could do. The Charizard motioned his contingent forward, and they resumed their journey to Sartaras, each trying to shake off that unfamiliar and unpleasant feeling as they marched onwards.

 

[Agent Tectonic]

OoC: Just a transition post here. Also, I figured that enough Seers were after the Brothers, so I'm helping citizens retake their lands.

Zix Dragontamer
Koraken Valley → Minacen

Hours passed, and I no longer had any tears to give. With that, I got up and debated on what I wanted to pursue. My Seer duties were crystal clear since the recent dreams pretty much highlighted everything that needed done; however, I also knew that even if every Seer killed the all three Brothers of Despair, the rest of the Abyss still had open access to the rest of Talandra. Debated the pros and cons between defending Talandra from the Abyss army or helping the rest of the Seers with purging the Black Prophesy, I decided on the former. During my travels and through common knowledge, I was well aware of both The Peachkeepers and The Veteran Alliance, or VA as they normally went by; however, it was also well known that The Peacekeepers were not as skillfully trained as they should be though their courage and undying loyalty was renowned. It was in this facet that I decided on rendering my services to them as they would be needed soon enough.

I set my eyes south toward where I naturally knew where Minacen was, the headquarters for The Peacekeepers. I started trudging off toward the south, moving slowly as my side was still in pain from the earlier battle. It normally would take me about half a day's worth of time to get there, but I knew that it would take longer. I didn't worry to much about it. My wound wasn't too great, but I did worry about the Dugtrio that got away. If he made it back to wherever is leader was, he'd send reinforcements. And that what sucked about being a Seer. No matter how much I tried to hide when I needed to, they always found me. I'd make a point to buy a cloak of some type to hide my appearance when I needed to be incognito. Mountains were rising in the distance, meaning that I was close to leaving the valley and about to enter enemy territory. I'd need to be extra cautious Cyan Bay had been overrun a month ago. So I trudged on, ever alert and slowly getting fatigued.

 

[Avenger Angel]

Jax the Lopunny
Koraken Desert, Azmarax

Tariq the Archeops was a little on the unusual side. In some ways, sure, paranoia wasn't always a bad thing, but it seemed to wrap around this guy like a sticky blanket.

"While I don't mean to judge you, you both seem to be...unprepared...to fight Xac, even if you are both strong," He told us, trying to warn us of the imposing danger. "Xac's legions have the ability to consume your very soul; without our knowledge, I don't think you would be able to protect your s-"

He stopped, suddenly overtaken by some thought. A paper of some sort came out of his bad, and flew into Syrat's face. The Pachirisu grabbed it and looked it over, curiously for a moment before Tariq quickly snatched it from his grasp.

"Hey, what's the big idea!?" Syrat protested, wanting to look at it some more.

"I can explain," He told us quickly, feeling quite pressured. "My hooded cloak is more than just something you can buy, as some of my other...friends...may have told you...It's the cloak of the...order...I belong to. Underneath its neck scarf is a necklace with a distinct symbol; the symbol of the sun. We're known as..."

And then he just froze again, and I couldn't help but look at him strangely. Something about an order, eh? Seemed like he belonged to some kind of sect or clan. Connecting two and two together, I could sense the paper was personal business. Couldn't say I was interested in it anyway.

"...We're known as the Irfan, maybe you've heard of us in stories," He told us, finally spilling the beans. "Most people think we're only a legend, but those who live in the villages and towns near Mount Hohua know better; we're an order of scholars that live in seclusion, and with the Abyss, our knowledge things most would never know, and our monastery, have become a sanctuary for those fleeing from the Abyss...I know this sounds absolutely crazy, but you would've said the same thing about the Abyss before it happened...If you want to head to Centraltel, I'll follow you and tell you more ion the way, there's many things you still don't know."

"Relax," I told him, showing him I meant no harm. "As for Xac, we're taking the sneaky way in. He's probably surrounded right now, so I was going to try for the assassination approach. You may be a member of the Irfan, but I was a bounty hunter and a heck of a good grave robber prior to all this. Let's just say, I've seen Xac in the visions, and he's a bit of a pussy cat."

Meanwhile, I could sense there were other Seers around, along with more incoming Scourge. At this rate, we'd never catch up. I knew if we headed north toward the peninsula, we could get closer to Centraltel without having to fight around them.

"Seems like they're trying to slow us down again," I told him, urging Syrat and Tariq to follow along. "Better not hang around and ask for another fight. They'll just keep sending them until they've covered their escape."

With that, I lead them north, heading toward Centraltel and purposely disregarding the fact we might need to swim for a little while. It was a shame about Tariq's wing, because if that wasn't wounded, he could have carried us across the strait and would have saved us from getting wet. I wasn't a fan of wet fur and I was sure Syrat wasn't either.

Toward the northern reaches of the Koraken Desert, the area hadn't changed much, but it was generally vacant of the Abyss, or at least that's what my gaze was telling me. Here, the land had gone from being nothing but smooth sand dunes toward turning into a craggy, rocky surface that was firm and quicker to travel over, but the uneven and jagged surface wasn't exactly comfort for the feet.

The wine was rather refreshing, and I was actually quite glad to have had Nyral's provisions to keep us well-fed as we traveled through the desert wastes. The sun was still relentless as we reached the high afternoon hour. Thankfully, according to the mental map I often viewed in my mind, there wasn't all that much terrain to transverse over now. We'd be able to make a beeline to Centraltel without having to fight the Abyss.

As for Centraltel itself, I had a feeling it was thoroughly consumed by the Abyss's legions that were there now. We just needed to make sure we stayed out of sight, found where that swine Xav was hiding, and destroy him.

Eventually we did make it to the strait, which meant a good several hundred feet of swimming. Thankfully most of my belongings were in containers and wouldn't be destroyed in the water, but not everything. Well, I figured since there wasn't much choice, best just do it and keep moving before the Abyss came this route as well.

"Oh man, I hate water..." Syrat moaned, realizing we were going to need to swim. "Do we really need to go this way?"

"After walking all the way here?" I asked him, finding that question funny. "Of course! Now let's go. Quit wasting time."

And we that, we plunged into the strait, heading toward Centraltel. Xac wasn't far off now, and he was probably convinced we lost track of him...

 

[Flash Sport]

Liechi the Whimsicott
Sinatel Valley > Dysan, Kanat

The ground was nothing but a green blur as Liechi’s tailwind propelled her light body through Sinatel Valley. Despite knowing she was heading towards certain danger and even her potential demise, Liehci’s blood pumped with excitement at the freedom she felt once she had cleared the tree barrier. The invisible chains that kept her confined to the grounds and the bars of an intangible prison all fell away as Lakeville rapidly disappeared from view once she kicked up the winds. Freedom, unbridled freedom! It was glorious, marvelous even. Her formerly dulled senses ran wild, frenetically bursting forth in all directions, making her aware of the unseen that lied beyond her sight. Joyousness brought about a small surge of energy that made the silky, yet strong winds push her along faster.

She hadn’t realized just how much of a prisoner she had felt while in Lakeville and blamed Thundurus for it. It was entirely that electabuzz’s fault, relegating her to the status of a lucky charm instead of an actual entity that could do beneficial work. From his perspective, she was supposed to stay in the town’s center, quiet and meek, awaiting questions from them concerning the Abyss’ movements and actions. They would depart without even a hint about their course of action because she had provided them with what they needed. A fragile spyglass, that’s all she was to him, to them and to a certain degree, even her father. Of course, Liechi couldn’t deny having contributed to that impression in some way. That event Darson had reminded her about was also played a part.

So she had to sit cooped in that settlement, trying to find something to ease that need, that desire to escape the confines of her home. Furthermore, there was always that nagging, that tug, that pull and call to seek out those like her—other Indigo Seers. She had felt it again during the meeting, like some whispering voice telling her to find her other brothers and sisters. She hadn’t tested the ability that potentially allowed her to carve a path through space and build a bridge of communication with them. There had yet to be a need to disturb them, and from the lack of communication she guessed it was mutual. Inside Lakeville she would have to sit, with all these desires and callings, fate tugging her willing spirit into action, only to have it flail against her manacles of fear. No longer. Now she was free, free to gaze upon the overcast sky she hadn’t seen in weeks because of the dense and intricately entwined canopy; made to protect Lakeville against aerial assaults. The land held her heart, but not her spirit. With a laugh, Liechi made a series of loops while continuing in an easterly, southeasterly direction.

Liechi readjusted the small stuff sack dangling from her shoulder; it’s thin rope annoyingly pressing into her skin. She discarded her tunic and accessories before departure with the exception of the anklets, which would be her trump cards in a desperate situation in more ways than one. The sack had some weight to it as well and for a small, weighed down whimsicott, she was moving impressively. She angled herself upwards, traveling fast and close to a gentle slope, which terminated against a jagged-faced vertical. Liechi turned upward sharply, still traveling close to the land, but far enough away to avoid crashing into its protrusions. More of the wind pooled beneath her body to fight against gravity and like a geyser, shot her clear of the cliff. The valley’s steep wall finally dropped away, signaling her complete ascent from the depression.

An inexplicable feeling melted warmly through her veins as she gazed upon the expansive plane dotted by farmhouses, tilled fields, cottages, and windmills. Low rock walls divided the farmers’ lands and created abstract patterns noticeable from the air. Watching the place a second longer informed her the habitations were abandoned. A familiar path stretched from the horizon and snaked its way across the field before paralleling the valley’s edge and continued onward, out of sight to a point that would allow safe descent into the valley. The whimsicott identified it as Kanat’s eastern trade route; a road that stretched from Dysan to the Emerald Coast, where it then turned into the western trade route that connected Bayoutown, Craighton City, and with the help of some bridges and boats, Kunthen. Other nameless and hidden settlements existed along the way, either on or off the beaten path, but for a variety of reasons were not placed on maps. With that in mind, Liechi fished out a piece of paper and unfolded it, revealing it to be a map of Kanat.

Liechi could easily take the trade route, but she’d be too wide open and with Dysan under the Abyss’ control, that’d be the first path they would monitor. Instead, she’d hide amongst the clouds and observe from there to see if entrance into the city was possible. Returning the map back into the bag, Liechi prepared to head off when she heard something. It was faint as though there was a great distance between her and the speakers, but the poignant wailing was unmistakable. Mixed in were susurrant whispers and pleadings for help. Orange eyes gave sympathetic attention to the sky.

“I’m sorry. I wish there was something I could do now, but I-I have to find my brother.” The voices quickly died away. She waited a moment longer to see if they would return, but only a cold breeze blew, empty of sound. Adjusting her bag once more, Liechi ascended into the clouds and continued towards Dysan.

~

Blood and decay; turmoil and rage; depression and despair; and many other inexplicable sensations were things Liechi felt when she closed in on the city. As thick as the devilry was, it could possibly pass as a ward against weak and good souls. Despite her altitude, Liechi could still smell the fetid stench that pervaded the air above and around what use to be a beautiful and bustling coastal city. It was Kanat’s pride and joy alongside its sister city Emerald Coast. The metropolis was exposed to many cultural experiences and Pokémon from all over Talanora, like many places that stood along the sea. It was an ambitious city that pursued becoming the hub of scientific exploration, but strong competition from rival cities made it a difficult task. However, Dysan did manage to make noteworthy achievements from time to time and produce equally noteworthy scientists.

Unfortunately, that was in the past. The present Dysan now lied in shambles like a crude cairn indicative of an age swept away in the course of a night. It was barely recognizable. Pillars of smoke billowed from destroyed towers and crushed stores. Skyscrapers that managed to maintain some sort of height were stripped down to their skeletal structure, broken metal beams jutting sharply and menacingly to the sky. From the numerous dark spots throughout the city, it appeared the Abyss were no strangers to cremation and somewhere amongst all that carnage was her brother. Hopefully alive.

“Here goes,” Liechi muttered, bringing her paws together and closing her eyes. The calmed energy within her began awakening, churning and swirling as it rose upward, filling her body before expelling itself. Downward plummeted her mind’s eye to the grave streets below, expanding much like an unfurling blanket as it went. A staravia flew in the intangible sphere’s path and Liechi gasped, holding her breath in preparation for the worse. Thankfully, the bird gave no indication it felt anything odd, although Liechi managed to receive a quick, yet thorough assessment of it. Upon hitting ground level, the sphere made an explosive expansion. All of Liechi’s senses were flooded with examination as her seer ability settled over the city like chiffon. The number of those infernal beasts in the area was astounding and came as a punch to the gut. Dozens upon dozens of them were scattered throughout the city. They laughed. They sneered. They snarled. They roared. Whatever their means of expression, it served to relay two things: their victory and a thirst for more.

Liechi navigated the roads and alleyways in search of that familiar outline. Nothing. She checked crumbled buildings and shattered homes. Still nothing. The docks and airship ports were next in line. Only more scourge. Liechi made an odd noise, not knowing whether to be happy or frightened that she hadn’t found anything. The only thing left to do would be to probe the bodies that weren’t turned to ashes or unidentifiably dismembered. While preparing to send her sights back to the ground something pricked at her back. The sound of a slow flap filled her ears. Her hackles rose as a cold feeling seeped into her spine and something within her screamed to flee.

“Well, well…what do we have here?” asked the voice from behind, feigning curiosity. Liechi’s heart thudded against her chest and her mouth went dry. “Appears to be a little spy…a little spy with an unusual ability yes?” From the amount of air displaced by his wings, the creature had to be of great size, although most average things were of great size in comparison to her. “What does it mean…what does it mean for a little spy to have a special ability not found amongst her kind?” Liechi took off. Wind pooled behind and underneath her much more mightily, pushing and pulling her swiftly through the air. At her speed, she felt sure enough to look back and when she did so, the shock made her snatch her head forward again. He knew tailwind!

Liechi gasped and uttered a panicked curse when a blue sphere narrowly missed her. She performed a sharp turn upward. The clouds were still thick. Maybe she could lose him there. A foolish thought that turned out to be. An alien gust of wind rushed past her, beating her to the clouds. Part of the billow before her completely disappeared. She aimed elsewhere, but the same thing happened. Another blue sphere struck her squarely in the back. Liechi released a pained shriek and felt one of the anklets break away. The attack made her flip, but she instinctively turned it into a roll as the dingy bird shot past; his neck fully extended and beak poised to strike fatally. The dark, dried stain on his beak and patches across his dulled, white feathers she managed to glimpse spoke volumes, as did the fetor of his victims that enveloped her in his wake.

The whimsicott dove. Hiding in the clouds was no longer an option. She jumped started the tailwind again and rushed earthward. A loud, malicious squawk sounded out from behind her. Not a good sign. Forms began appearing in the distance, hastily converging on them. Her situation was worsening by the minute. Something needed to be done, but her fear filled mind was in a jumble. She wanted, needed to, had to escape, but proper thoughts eluded her. Another pulse struck her from behind, but she managed to evade the two others that came after, albeit narrowly. His attacks were more accurate and he seemed to be gaining on her. Why was she moving so slow? Something, heavily saturated, slapped against her back and that gave her the answer. Out the corner of her eye, she caught sight of a dark yellow beedrill, making a beeline for her. Its conical stingers were poised and ready to deliver a fatal blow.

Feeling another potential attack coming, Liechi erected a protective barrier. She held her paws apart and concentrated on coalescing energy that turned into a bright white sphere. The water pulse smashed into the shield and dispersed. Her soaked mane was the thing that slowed her down and she needed to change that. Heat filled the protective bubble, rapidly drying her. “Come on, come on,” she chanted, willing her body to dry faster as another water pulse struck the protect. The barrier was weakening. One more attack would break it. The beedrill was closed in fast and began jabbing at her in rapid succession. Liechi dodged the best she could while trying to maintain both the protect and heated orb. “Almost there.” Using her seer ability, Liechi glanced behind her without needing to physically turn. The swan scourge wasn’t preparing for another pulse this time. Instead his wings briefly glowed dark and with a mighty flap, released his dark energy in the form of three, toothed discs. Liechi extinguished the orb between her hands as the oblivious beedrill closed in for another attack. Mostly likely they were fighting for the right to brag about killing a seer.

The air slash barreled into the weakened shield and rebounded off in opposite directions. One of which caught the beedrill. It tried dodging at the last second, but half his arm and part of its wing were caught. The bug’s body acted a shield of sorts and indirectly offset the discs’ direction away from Liechi. More flying scourge were on the way. She needed cover or a distraction and worked to get her panic under control in order to think clearly. The gears in her head were finally churning out logical suggestions instead of bombarding her with the instinctual need to escape. Her mind finally brought forth something useful and the whimsicott concentrated to execute it. She needed to level the playing field and knew just the combination of moves to use.

 

[DVB]

Diego The Pikachu
Koraken Valley ---> Koraken Desert, Azmarax

Diego looked at his new Sableye comrade with interest. He was not phased that much by the actions that he had performed to the corrupted Abra. He then had heard him began talking and listing his crimes when talking about the Fallen. Diego didn't do anything bad, but that was because he restrained and forced all of his evil thoughts and desires into a concentrated ball that DX arose from and it eventually left him and became his Fallen.

Diego nodded when Melanthios said he was expecting for him to help fight his Fallen. "Fair enough. My name is Diego," Diego told him. He ran and caught up to him. "I know where Xac the Mad Hypno is at. He is in Centraltel. In fact, my Fallen, DX, plans to confront him, being near that place. DX is... no normal Fallen. He is created from concentrated malevolent thoughts, but no evil actions. In this way, he is more unpredictable because he has less holding him back. He kills any of the Scourge, Cohorts and Fallen in his way. He is by no means an ally though," Diego says as he closed his eyes.

"Among many other moves, we know Signal Beam, so he will attempt using that as his first choice of attacking," Diego though of. "There a few of our fellow Seers ahead of us, so we have to catch up to them," Diego told him.

 

[Necros]

OOC: Post with yet another generous helping of side plot! Feel free to shout out if I'm doing too much.

Melanthios Malachi the Sableye
Koraken Desert, Azmarax

By this point in time Melanthios was almost within sight range of the other two Seers and their travelling companion, if they bothered to turn around. Of course, the point was moot, since he had no doubt they could sense him and would signal for him to join them if they wanted. Giving them a few minutes to make up their minds, the Sableye grew rather annoyed when he saw them start fording the strait between the desert and Centratel without so much as a backward glance. His teeth gnashed around his amethyst shard irritably, and his fingers crackled with dark energy, unable to resist sending a private thought to the Lopunny and Archeops.

'You know, I appreciate that time is of the essence, but you could’ve at least sent a friendly <hello!> or <How is the game faring for you, Melanthios?>. You know, since I am clearly following you closely and everything. Kyehehehehehe…'

Shrugging and smirking softly to himself, he continued to travel upon the same path they had, while still maintaining his distance. After all, if they were split apart, the Abyss would have a much harder time setting up an ambush that would catch all of them. And he could make a big dramatic entrance to tip the scales in their favor. Ledumos would like that. His Master always enjoyed turning things around at the last second.

“Well, Diego,” he said, in response to the other’s information about his Fallen. “Perhaps we could manipulate them in to destroying each other somehow. That would be <fun> yes? I do so love pitting people like that against one another. An interesting dichotomy though. One Fallen created from countless sins, but good intentions, another created from a life of virtue but evil thoughts.”

He didn’t focus too much thought on what attacks DX might use against them or Xac, but he did react to the other’s insistence that they should catch up to the others.

“I’m more inclined to let them stay a small distance ahead of us. After all, Xac is probably expecting them, despite what they might think. There will most certainly be an ambush or defenses of some kind, even if he is a total <bore> and doesn’t have anything special prepared. <Besides>, they obviously don’t want to wait for us. Oh well, it’s better to make one’s entrance on the field of battle!”

Melanthios cackled and twirled his shard as he kept walking and following and waiting for their response, if any. Centratel seemed like the place to be in any case, barring Sartaras, so regardless of whether they caught up to the others or not, that was where Melanthios intended to make his first move.

***​

Ledumos spat out a wad of mashed up popcorn, eyes bulging in surprise. He had just been surveying the area of Centratel on the gameboard when he noticed a pawn entering the city that hadn’t been there before. More importantly, it was a pawn he hadn’t placed on the board.

“Whaaaaat?~ Someone else is joining in on this?! No fair! Show yourself! Playing’s no fun if you can’t see your opponent! As the Magus of Reality, I demand you show yourself right now!”

The speech might have been intimidating if the Breloom hadn’t planted one of his feet into his dropped bucket of popcorn. Nevertheless, those red eyes of his blazed with a force that would send chills down the spine of all but the most resolute of beings.

“Grrrrrrr~! Stop ignoring me! I hate it, I hate it, I hate iiiit~!” he cried, stamping his bucket covered foot up and down, his tail crashing down onto the throne he had been sitting on, causing it to splinter and crumble into several pieces.

“…You always are rather attractive whenever you’re throwing a fit, Ledu~” drawled a voice.

Ledumos instantly froze. His eyes went wide and his mouth dropped open. He knew that voice. He’d recognize it anywhere. And there was only one person who dared to shorten his name like that…

A second chair appeared across from Ledumos’, much more severe looking and unostentatious. An acrid taste filled the air, and there was the sharp crackle of electricity as a Raichu materialized on the chair, one leg casually folded over the other, an expression of utter boredom etched across his muzzle, his eyes a darkened purple, completely devoid of light.

“Ahhhhhhhh, I love you soooooo much, Necros!” The Breloom was practically gushing over this new arrival, his eyes shining with passion as he ran over to the Raichu, leaning over him and performing a disturbing gesture of licking him slowly across one of his cheek pouches.

Necros didn’t react much, merely sparking a bit from the licked cheek and grumbling.

“You’re such a tease~! Coming here like this and interfering with my work! I knew you cared for me, my beloved…” cooed Ledumos, almost beside himself with happiness. He snapped his claws and the wreckage of his chair was wiped out of existence before reforming into a whole one again. Skipping over to it, he sat and mimicked the Raichu’s posture, grinning over at him.

“Of course, you could’ve picked a better game to be my opponent in. After all, if Melanthios succeeds, we’ll have a new Magus we can play with! Don’t you want that?”

“If he can’t beat my pawn and succeed then he won’t make a Magus worth our time,” Necros replied evenly.

“Ahhh, you’re insatiable! Can’t even spend one minute away from me, huh?~”

The Raichu allowed himself a small smirk.

“What can I say, Ledu~? You’re still the only one who can ease the pain of my boredom.”

And from the way Ledumos dissolved into a series of sighs and shivers, it was clear that there was no higher praise one Magus could give to another.

 

[strategiser24]

Tariq The Archeops
Koraken Desert, Heading to Centraltel, Azmarax

Jax seemed like a confident and quick thinking person, but he seemed too reckless, considering he was charging straight into an Abyss stronghold. Still, Jax had his own opinions about Tariq. Tariq would never say his knowledge made him paranoid, and Jax would never say his confidence made him reckless and stupid. Tariq decided nt to make a big deal about it, considering that him and Igriod had felt almost the same about each other; like father like son as they say, but Igriod was in no way Tariq's father, nor was Tariq the father of Jax.

"I'd rather we just ignore our differences and opinions, after all, we're looking for the same goal, but in different ways," Tariq replied, taking a quote that Igriod had said to him when they first met, "I can still fight like you, and you seem to know the way by ground: Lead on."

The three headed north through the desert. No doubt, the journey was tiring as any other desert trip would have been. Both Tariq and Jax seemed well equipped for such a trip, whether Jax was prepared or not, Tariq had learned to always be prepared for the worst...sort of...He at least had more water and provisions then he would've needed if he had returned to the Peak right away.

They didn't bother following the roads, as the Abyss were bound to be on or near them, so they had to cross through the sand to reach Centralten. Though this was meant to give them an easier time by not being noticed by the Xov's minions, Tariq still couldn't lose the feeling of being followed...even long after Jax and Syrat had stopped feeling anything, Tariq still could smell something familiar about.

By late afternoon, they reached the strait. Apparently, Jax's plan from the start was to swim across; Tariq would've been willing to fly the three across, but they were still unsure about the state of his wing. "Oh man, I hate water..." Syrat moaned, realizing what their next obstacle was, "Do we really need to go this way?"

"I've had worse," Tariq said, trying to keep things optimistic, "If you insist, I'll carry you on my back as we swim...but only if you're about to drown..."

Syrat let out a sigh as him and Jax jumped into the strait while Tariq lagged behind, trying to ensure that the paper, he still had, would be safe from the strait in an empty water canteen. "Give me a minute, I'll be right there," Tariq said, looking back at the desert.

Jax and Syrat swam into the strait slightly, but not far enough so that Tariq could catch up. After some time, Tariq was convinced he was ready and made his way to the water, but to his surprise, a voice rang out from behind him along with the sound of moving sand. "I leave you alone for a few hours, and this is what happens?" the, oddly familiar voice said.

Tariq looked up and turned around to find a sand-covered, hooded and cloaked Serperior standing there. "Igriod?!" Tariq said, surprised, "How'd you find-...You're the one I thought was following us?!"

"I'm impressed: You actually felt someone was following you when you're two furry friends didn't," Igriod explained, sounding slightly displeased, "If you must know, Marxis sent Amria to look for you since I couldn't help but be concerned about the Abyss, and she found you talking with those two...She brought me to you after she returned, and I've been slithering through the sand in order to follow you...The sand's deeper than you think...Although, I had to look for you again once you went over that rocky part of the desert...but you should know how I found you: The same skills I taught you; the same ones that you used to know someone was following you...You really should learn not to get surprised that often."

Tariq glanced at his injured wing, understanding exactly where he was coming from. "I know you have a reason to be upset, but these two are determined; I truly think they can defeat Xoc! They're more than just average travelers! And all we need is a sample of Xoc's blood, we don't need to fight him to the death!" Tariq explained.

"You know I'm not just concerned about you...You know you can read the ancient language, the language written with the Unown," Igriod replied, continuing to sound as if he was scolding Tariq, "You've read the writings, you know the Brothers aren't ordinary foes...You know what I'm talking about, but you're friends don't."

Tariq let out a heavy sigh and looked back at Jax and Syrat in the water, no doubt, they were probably wondering what was taking so long. "I know.." Tariq said, lowering hsi head slightly, "...Maybe our Creator wanted me to find them; you know I haven't had a vision on the location of one of the brothers yet, and I'm sure the visions I've seen Jax hasn't seen! You need to trust me, maybe I;m a seer for another reason other than luck!...Please, I need to go with them, they need me as much as I need them."

Igriod stared for a long moment at Tariq, and then let out a sigh as he looked behind him. "Your wing looks mostly healed by now. When you reach the other end of the strait, you might be able to remove the bandages and fly again," Igriod explained, catching Tariq's attention, "Centraltel should be on the other side once you reach there...Remember this: All that matters is that the blood makes it out. When you do, bring it back to the monastery, it'll be much safer there."

Tariq looked at Igriod surprised, he hadn't expected him to let him go...with his approval. "I suppose I shouldn't keep Amria waiting," Igriod said, turning away, "Don't say I haven't given a fair warning...to you and your friends...Good luck."

Igriod burrowed into the sand, leaving marks as he slithered away, but eventually, his marks faded as Tariq turned to the strait and dove in. Out in the strait, Jax and Syrat were still waiting, growing impatient. "I'll explain later, we don't have too much time, like you said," Tariq said to them, swimming ahead with his wings, "Let's get going,"

The three continued on in the strait, heading towards the Abyss's land's in Centraltel. Though Tariq was sure everything would be easier than what Igriod may have said, Tariq still couldn't lose the thought that Igriod was right about one thing...

 

[Slipomatic]

Horizon the Victini
Sylath, Hospital

Horizon was running away from something, but he couldn’t tell what it was he was running from. All he knew was that he would die if he stopped running. A maniacal laugh erupted from all over him, causing him to cry out, doubling his already exhausting pace. He continued running away from the laughing voice that seemed to follow him until his body decided that it was enough and he fell onto the ground, breathing raggedy. His vision was blurry as he looked up to see his fallen smirking down at him. He closed his eyes to wait for his death to come. After a few seconds of nothing happening, he opened his eyes to see his fallen smirking over him. His fallen chuckled evilly and said, “What fun is there in killing you when you’re this weak. There is no joy in killing a weak soul. I will find you one day and we’re going to have fun.” He smiled even bigger before bringing a fist down onto Horizon’s head.

Horizon woke up, looking around franticly before clutching his head. His head throbbed from imaginary pain that felt so real to him. A worried face popped into his vision and he slowly recognized it as Crescia and he sighed slightly and asked, “What am I doing here and where am I?”

She smiled gently and said, “You’re in the hospital and I brought you here after you fainted during the meeting. I brought you here because I worried about your health. You haven’t been the same cheerful Horizon that I remembered. While you were asleep I asked Hypno to check over your mentality as I was worried that being a seer had affected your optimism.”

Horizon frowned when he heard that his mind had been examined without his consent and was about to say it when Hypno entered the room with an amused smile on his face. He approached Crescia and said, “There is nothing wrong with Horizon here. However, as you did point out, his mentality is a bit fragile so just give him time.” He looked over at Horizon and said, “To answer your unspoken issue, I did not look into your memories. I only looked into your mind to see how stable your mental self was and seeing that you’re on shaky grounds, it would be best if you took it easy for the rest of the afternoon.”

He left the room, leaving a slightly pouting Crescia and a confused Horizon staring where he left at. Crescia quickly shook her head and sighed softly and said, “Well, since you’re fine, I can walk you home if you want me to.”

Horizon quickly shook his head, already embarrassed about this whole ordeal and squeaked out, “I’ll be fine, thanks for the offer.”

She sighed dejectedly before walking out of the room, looking at him sadly. It hurt his heart, seeing her looking that sad, but he just wanted to get home and forget this whole thing ever happened. He jumped down from the bed and walked out of the room, heading out of the hospital. He needed to give a message to the transport group that would be heading over to Emerald Coast.

 

[Avenger Angel]

Jax the Lopunny
Koraken Desert, Azmarax

We crossed while Tariq stayed behind a bit, getting himself prepped before taking the plunge. Again, it seemed like it was about that paper. True, I could have discerned what it was about, but that was being nosy, and it wasn't important.

The water was actually comfortable, and didn't even feel that cold upon the first initial plunge. Swimming across wasn't difficult either. There was no pull of a current to deal with, not like a river. As for Syrat, he was sheepish at first, but before long, both of us got to the other side. It was then that I heard a voice, a message from one of the other Seers.

You know, I appreciate that time is of the essence, but you could’ve at least sent a friendly <hello!> or <How is the game faring for you, Melanthios?>. You know, since I am clearly following you closely and everything. Kyehehehehehe…

I chuckled a tiny bit. Seemed like we were being followed, but I had figured that already. But I'm not one to slow down, not unless I really need to. And Melanthios... that name was a mouthful. Like it or not, I was calling him Mel for short.

You're slow, Mel, speed it up. Rest in peace doesn't need to apply anymore once you're a ghost, you know. Show a little more hustle.

Eventually, Tariq rejoined us, having spoken to some Serperior that had been following us this entire time. Didn't know who he was, but I figured they knew each other. With that, we headed into Centratel.

Centratel, Victakan

I didn't honestly remember heading into this town before, but even if I did, I doubted I'd remember it. The Abyss had taken the town over, turning buildings into burnt husks, scorching the ground, the streets, and oddly enough, the sky and the clouds grew dark in the areas the Abyss had... infected. Even the ground and the trees looked like they were sick, like the environment itself was rotting and diseased. Meanwhile, the Abyss's minions were prowling about, but I just focused on Xac at the moment. He was still here, although he wasn't alone. Plenty of Scourge were around, but there were a few Cohorts as well, the more elite variety. That, and I could sense a Fallen or two around the area.

With the sky dark, I suddenly felt a drop, and I thought it was rain until I looked at it closer. It was rain... but then it wasn't. It was tinted a deep red, and went I felt a few more drops, it was quick and easy to realize... it was raining blood. Literally. The Abyss was already making headway trying to turn Talandra into a place just like the Abyss.

Approach Centratel from the rear, Mel. We've got the other side covered, Xac won't have anywhere to run.

And Xac was close by, hiding in a blown out grain warehouse that he thought no one knew about. I could sense his presence within, and I knew we needed to do this silently and swiftly. Just a quick and silent assassination. Thankfully, throwing knives were quick and quiet. They were effective and lethal, more than even a bow. The Scourge didn't seem to notice me as I lurked within the shadows.

Right now, there were too many to make an initial attack. I didn't want to start taking them out until I could do it and they wouldn't notice. There were about three Scourge guards surrounding the exterior. At least those were the only ones I could see.

"I count three, how many do you see?" I whispered to Syrat and Tariq.

"You see that one on the roof?" Syrat asked me, pointing to him.

I looked at him again, taking note he was meant to be a sentry. He was a diseased Sandshrew, so I wasn't exactly sure what his vision was like. I attempted clairvoyance on him, trying to see things from his eyes. He didn't notice us because of the rain and the place we were was pretty silence. Still, if we moved out of this spot, that could all easily change.

Change in plans, Mel. We'll take care of the sentries, you do the kill on Xac. He's psychic, and you're dark. He'll see us and sense us a mile away, but he won't see you. Just let me know the second you kill him. I can get his blood, but only if you tell me when you've done the deed.

It had to be a diversion for it to work. Mel could go through the wall, which would help with the fact he didn't need to use the actual entrance to the warehouse. With me, however, he'd sense me coming and would be in for a fight. With Mel, well, he could get a knife to the throat before that happened. We just needed to make sure no sentries would be around to see Mel.

"How far away do you think the Sandshrew is?" I asked Syrat for a second opinion. "His armor's going to be a bit of an issue when it comes to making sure this knife cuts through it."

I intended to use my sharpest knife, but I wasn't too sure if it would work and deal a lethal blow to him. I estimated about a hundred feet, meaning this was going to be quite a throw.

"Uh... I'd say one-twenty, one-thirty feet away, tops," Syrat estimated, overshooting by a bit.

"Well, let's just hope this works," I told him, launching the throwing knife into action.

The curved throwing knife spun wildly through the air, dancing swiftly but silently. I looked closely and saw the knife had gotten the Sandshrew in the neck. Not lethal, or at least not immediately. He was, however, doubling over, unable to breathe, and bleeding profusely. It was at least enough to silence and incapacitate him.

Get in there, Mel. There's still guards around the perimeter, but the one on the roof should be dead and sleeping with the fishes soon enough.

And, worst case, if Mel blew this... well, I always had a backup plan in mind.

 

[Tasslehoff]

Kraxel the Bisharp
Somewhere in the wilderness north of Sartaras

As I took out the rest of the Abyssal assassins I looked at the strange phenomenon occurring in front of me. The creatures I had just destroyed was decomposing into the earth around me: the blood and the skin, and everything else. I turned around to one of the assassins that I had pinned to a tree; I smirked and walked over to the pitiful creature.

“Who sent you?” I inquired.

“HaHa, WhY sHoUlllddd I tellll YoUU??!” a hiss of words rolled out from it,

“Your pain won’t be here as long if you tell me,” I stated coldly.

“Weeeee FeEl NooooOOo PaaaIIInn.”

I grabbed the creature’s forehead and gazed into the lifeless creature’s eyes with my own. Memories filled my head; I sorted through most of the recent and tried to figure out who had sent them.

“Xac has informed me that seer’s are here on Victakan, thus I am leaving this country and going to …….. Go find the seer Kraxel and eliminate him.”

“Yes Master Delath, whatever pleases you.”

I cut the link for it had started to take its toll on me; I wasn’t trained heavily on mental connections.

“Where is Xac?”

“WhYYY woULLDDD I teelLLll YoU?”

“Because I’ll find out the information either way!”

“FiiiiNNNeee I’lllll tell you He is Inn CeeenTTraTTEeelllLL”

Centratel, I haven’t been there since my youth, as a few memories came back to me from there.

“Thank you,” I stated in a deathly manner as I decapitated the soulless Lucario. I set out eastward on my way to meet other seers and perhaps persuade them to help my cause, most people you could get to do anything as long as you pleased parts of them.

 

[Shen Sorein]

OOC: Hey guys, check this out. Sal has a theme now. Check it out!

IC: Salvista the Zangoose
Oasis, Synamax

The city was bustling with activity around the two travelers, many people always searching for someplace to be. Families walked together (or looked for one another if they got lost or separated), friends met each other on the streets, and always the presence of guards walking the streets and parapets to patrol their fair city; the guards gave everyone a feeling of safety rather than oppression, for the guards were always helpful when asked questions. Oasis lived up to its name both in climate and atmosphere.

“I’ve never seen anything like this…” Zayir murmured, his eyes wide as he looked around, obviously trying to see everything that was happening all at once.

Sal chuckled and patted the Charmeleon’s shoulder. “Settle down, you’re gonna twist your neck if you get too excited. Now, we’ve told the guards our purpose here and shown proof, so all we have to do is walk down this street to the inner circle of the city to make it to the palace.”

Zayir rubbed his neck (obviously massaging out a new crick), and glanced to his friend out of the corner of his eye. “Why the hell are you explaining that to me? I heard the guard back there at the gate too, y’know.”

The Zangoose chuckled. “Well, I couldn’t tell; honestly, you seemed so interested in everything else I doubted your attention caught what was said.”

There were many things to pass along the busy eastern road. Vendors were selling food at booths in quite a few places along the sides of the road, obviously less so than the Southern Bazaar, but still offering tourists a chance to try the unique Oasis cuisine. There were several places where different Pokémon standing on boxes or raised platforms were talking loudly, whether to try and garner attention for an entertaining act, to inform residents and guests alike of news before it was sent out on radio sets, or public speakers trying to garner a following with their views or ideas, whether political or otherwise. There were others handing out pamphlets from businesses, trying to make sale deals or to announce a new business or shop had come into being and where to find it. The eastern road was a gateway of advertisement and information for the rest of the city, much like the southern road was taken up completely by the Bazaar, and the northern road was purely used for outdoor entertainment and indoor theaters.

“So the city is shaped like a big circle, kind of like the lake and pools in the middle, right?” Zayir asked, while his head remained on a swivel to look at everything around them. “Did it grow outwards as a circle over the years?”

Sal shook his head before explaining. “Actually, the city was more cross-shaped only a decade ago, based entirely on the roads of the four cardinal directions. The buildings between the cross shape showed up as the population grew and the years went by. It wasn’t quite a circle the last time I was here, but then that was four years ago now, so things have obviously changed.”

“Y’know…” Zayir began, focusing back on the path they were walking, “I never imagined a city would function this…well, I suppose this would be normal for Oasis…with the constant threat around the world from the Abyssal forces.”

“To be honest, Oasis is a place where many people get away from the troubles of the world.” Sal smiled to his friend. “It’s a place of normalcy even in a time of world war. The place thrives on bringing in tourists and new residents in the face of crises, and easing things for them. It helps that Oasis has one of the strongest militaries on the planet to protect the city from any hostile forces. I imagine the Southern Raiders are keeping the Abyssal forces centered at Vorgoia at bay for the time being, but we’ll see if that can hold against an infinitesimal evil.”

They didn’t speak much more while they walked, finally reaching the inner circle road after about an hour, taking to the southern curve to make the final approach to the palace gates. The inner areas weren’t as heavily trafficked, but there was a larger presence of Oasis guards, obviously to protect the parts of the city that mattered most to everyone, the oasis and the palace. The sky above them had long past burning orange with sunset, the deeper blues of twilight eking out the fire of the sun’s rapid disappearance, to be replaced with the calmness of the night sky, the first twinkling stars showing in the darkening heavens.

It wasn’t much longer before the two companions stood before the palace gates, waiting for the papers they showed the gate detail to be approved so that they might enter. Sal was a lot more laid back about it than Zayir, who found this additional delay additionally irritating, causing him to pace back and forth in a growing fume. Meanwhile, Sal sat on a bench beneath an aesthetic palm tree, one of twelve along the path in front of the palace gates, with six on each side. The Zangoose merely took the opportunity to do a little further meditation, not bothering with his usual stance because meditating properly would take much more time than even how long it would take for approval for entry to be given.

It wasn’t relatively too long before a Raichu guard approached them with their papers, holding them out to the pacing Charmeleon. “Sorry for the wait, you know how politics can be in a monarchy and all the meetings and appointments they’d have. Simply go straight into the throne room for the audience with the king. He is waiting for you now.”

Zayir took the papers (making sure not to insult the guard by taking them in anger) and folded them before shaking the Raichu’s paw. “Thank you, sir.” He gestured his head to Sal, and the two of them walked through the opening gates together. The inner courtyard was simple, a long fountain flanking either side of the dirt path, and beyond the fountains grass grew, carefully trimmed and cared for, with occasional trees or patches of fragrant flowers making the view even more spectacular. The stairs to the palace were only a good hundred yards away, a few minutes’ journey further.

“That was a lot more tact than I expected out of you, Zayir,” Sal said with a smirk. “Especially with how much your irritation was obvious not two seconds beforehand.”

Zayir huffed and glanced to the Zangoose. “I can certainly do things my outward appearance wouldn’t suggest. Isn’t that right, you pacifist daredevil?”

Sal couldn’t help but laugh at that. “So I love landboarding without being a fight-loving maniac. Gotta get my adrenaline fill once in a long while, right?”

Zayir began ascending the stairs before Sal, betraying his impatience to reach this king he was so eager to meet. “I figured sparring with me regularly and running for our lives from evil, demonic zombies of the Abyss while working to save the whole world would be enough adrenaline for anyone. You’ve got serious thrill issues, my friend.”

The doors, having opened upon their approach, revealed a high-arching ceiling, everything different shades of the gold that the palace was made of. Lights were placed on either side of the hall every fifty feet. The floor was perfectly reflective not only of the ceiling and the lights, but also of Sal and Zayir as they walked, no details escaping unnoticed to the pair. Either the floor was a marvel, always able to hold its shine, or it was tirelessly cared for each and every day, and either possibility was daunting. The hallway went quite deep into the palace before the doors opening up to the throne room, but the guard had not lied or misinformed; the throne room was a completely straight shot from the palace gates. These doors were flanked by two guards holding huge, tall halberds on their sides respectively closest to the door. As Zayir and Sal approached, they lifted the hafts of their weapons before slamming it down onto the floor, creating a resounding thunk, repeating it three more times before the obviously heavy doors started slowly opening for them; obviously the announcement of their arrival. With a glance to one another, they proceeded through the opening doorway.

[Author’s Note: Recommended Listening ]

The throne room was rather large, but most of the view was taken up by a line of halberd-wielding guards lining either side of the path to the thrones. They were obviously the largest choices from the largest, strongest species of Pokémon, several Machamp and Charizard guards easily discernable at a glance. The path from the doorway was also decorated with a thick red carped lined and tasseled with gold thread. Every time the guests passed a pair of guards, they would raise their halberds up about half their height, obviously a little ceremony begetting the image royalty must uphold at all times. And standing at the thrones were the King and his Princely son, the former a strong Blastoise, and the latter a Wartortle that bore a kind and confident expression. Both nodded to the approaching visitors before walking forward to the edge of the stairs before their throne to await Sal and Zayir, who, upon reaching the bottom of the staired dais, immediately knelt down in respect to the monarch. The King made a gesture with one paw, and the two arose with a smile as King and Prince took their respective seats.

The King leaned forward. “It’s so good to see you once more, Sal. It’s been a long time since you’ve been in my palace. Look how you’ve grown!” he exclaimed, throwing his arms wide in admiration. “Truly you are your father’s son. Tell me, how have the past four years been for you and your family? Where are they?”

“I’m afraid that I am the only one able to travel now, King Boshtet,” Sal explained softly. “There was a terrible incident three years ago in Cyan Bay. Most of the family perished in a fire. My sisters, aunt, and mother are recovering, and father has retired due to paralysis from the perpetrator of the fire.”

The King’s expression fell more and more as he listened, obviously depressed over the news. “I…see…I am terribly sorry for your loss, young Salvista. No one should have to suffer through that, especially not someone as young as you…” He slumped a little in his seat for a moment, obviously lost in grievances and thought, before looking back up at Sal. “I suppose this means your family’s famous entertainment will not be making the biannual rounds anymore?”

Sal chuckled softly. “It may be some time, Your Majesty, but the spirit of my family is strong. We have fewer members now, but in another generation or two we will return to the graces we had once before, I assure you that.”

King Boshtet nodded. “I wish you and your family the best of luck on the road to recovery, young Sal. Now then, tell me, who is your friend here?” he asked, indicating Sal’s companion with his jaw.

Sal held a paw out to his Charmeleon friend. “This, sire, is my friend Zayir. We have been travelling together since the fire in Cyan Bay as travelling companions, as dictated by fate. Speaking of which…” Sal diverted, “Sire, there is a matter of grave importance that I must discuss with you.”

“You mean the terrible happenings in Vorgoia?” the Blastoise interjected. “My armies are taking care of that as we speak. There is no danger to Oasis as long as our military might remains dominant in the land.”

“That’s just it, Your Majesty…” Sal murmured. “Your forces cannot hold out forever against an infinitely respawning enemy. They are not some rising mercenaries or a coup against the nation. They are a festering sore on the planet…ripped straight out of the Abyss itself…”

King Boshtet shot straight up to his feet, eyes burrowing into Sal. “The Abyss…? You’re sure of this?”

“I have never been more sure of anything in my life, sire, and you obviously know of my visions already.”

“By the Gods…” he growled, his pupils shrinking in growing fear. “There must be something we can do to stem the flow of corruption coming from Hell…Have your visions shown you anything, young Sal? Tell me, so we may act quickly.”

“Yes, my visions have shown me a great deal…I still have to interpret a good many visions I have had, but the ones I do understand are clear.” Sal’s expression darkened. “Oasis will fall. Soon. The entire world will fall. The Abyss is manipulating Fate Itself to their design, seeking to conquer everything so that they may torture every living and dead soul for the rest of eternity like some sick game. And mere mortals are unable to do anything about it without the help of Utopia, who cannot seem to break through to the world of the living to assist us for some reason, again the fault of the Abyss.”

The Prince finally stood and spoke, his voice soft, but firm. “There must be something that can be done, we cannot simply be doomed without hope of survival…”

“I mentioned that mere mortals cannot do anything against them but run and hide, or fight and die. What the Abyss did not foresee, however, is the presence of my kind. The Indigo Seers are not merely mortal, and hold the very fabric of fate in their hands,” Sal explained. “Destiny has never been set in stone, but it did always follow a general path or pattern. The Indigo Seers can see this path, and make the future something completely different by many actions and influencing the actions of others.

“I am here because I have seen that Oasis will fall,” he continued. “That much will be impossible to avoid. However, there is a way to stop the Abyss. 108 souls are born with the Destiny to bring the world out of its darkest era and into the light of eternity. I am seeking out these souls.” Sal then lifted a claw…pointing straight at the King.

“You are the third such soul I know of, besides myself and Zayir.”

 

[Necros]

OOC: Suddenly, plot! Hope this is alright, I rushed it just a tiny bit out of excitement.

Melanthios Malachi the Sableye
Koraken Desert, Azmarax

Melanthios was mildly (only mildly, mind you) surprised by Jax’s response to his message. He hadn’t expected to be acknowledged at all, or if he had, he expected to be admonished for not catching up to them or brushed off as an irritant that was getting in the way of their plans. However, Jax sounded quite jovial, especially in his cracks about the Sableye’s form, and the way he so callously shortened his name.

Melanthios liked it.

An audience must be kept waiting to create a sensation of suspense and anticipation. I will, however, concede that it is a practice I am not overly <fond> of. So I’ll do just what you say, and slip onstage from the wings!

He turned to Diego, looking about as serious as he possibly could, grinning wildly and licking his lips.

“I believe we shall be hitting the city in a kind of <Pinsir> movement,” he explained, unable to help from cackling at the pun. “They shall slip into Centratel from one side and we will sneak in through the other, thereby cornering Xac <like a rat>. Er… no offense.”

He shrugged good naturedly and began making his way at a much quicker pace towards Centratel than he had been, half floating, half running. Being part ghost, however you looked at him, did have its advantages. He assumed Diego was keeping up, so the Sableye didn’t look back once during the whole journey.

Centratel, Victakan

Arriving at the opposite end of town, Melanthios found himself almost <at home> as he would say it. The darkness and shadows and death and decay were all weapons he himself could use, easily passing his body from one blind spot to the next, as if he were made of simple mist and illusions. He sensed many enemies, but fortunately none were ones he was overly worried about. Well, there was only one he was truly worried about in a situation like this. If his Fallen were here, it would pick him out in no time and would probably do unspeakable horrors to his soul. Luckily, that worked both ways, and as far as he could tell, his own Fallen wasn’t anywhere in the area.

It was about that time he noticed the lovely ambience of blood falling from the sky.

“<Charming>. Reminds me of when-“

But he cut the monologuing when he noticed the sentries on the prowl. It wouldn’t do to be found out just because he was overly chatty. He had to wait for his cue, like a good actor should.

And then he got it. Jax told him to go for Xac. Another surprise, but one that was just fine with him.

Alright, if you insist. But only because it’s <you>, Jax, he teased, grinning and licking his lips, eyeing his amethyst shard. It wasn’t exactly a knife…but then he wasn’t exactly intending to slit Xac’s throat with it. It had been a while since he had pulled a kill like this. He wondered if there would be any fluid…

Cautiously making his way towards the warehouse, flitting from shadow to shadow to solid object, Melanthios soon found himself directly against the wall facing Xac’s back. Just to be sure, he peeked his head in and checked his senses. All he could see or perceive was Xac. The hypno was all tensed up, slightly hunched over, looking distracted. Melanthios frowned. Was this really one of the dreaded Brothers of Despair? He seemed so…pathetic. But Melanthios was hardly one to talk. Or to judge.

With an inward, silent cackle, he slowly slipped into the warehouse through the wall, creeping through the darkness, making absolutely no noise, no disturbance in the air, not even that feeling that makes the fur on the back of your neck stand up. There was a time for a show and there was a time for a curtain. Xac was just extraneous set, needing to be cleared from the stage. It would be nice to have a change of scene.

And now that he had totally exhausted most of the theatrical references in his head, Melanthios gripped his shard tightly, licking the tip he would use, even coating it a bit with dark energy. Better to be safe than sorry.

It was time. He had to do it now, while he still had the element of surprise. He might be able to resist Xac, put up a good fight, maybe even kill him in open combat if he fought hard enough and smart enough. But there was something beautiful about silently ending him. No showdown. No final speeches. Just a coward’s death for a cowardly figure.

Wasting not a single moment’s more thought on it, Melanthios sprang, a dark shadow hidden in the obscurity of the unobserved warehouse. Oh, if only he were a Magus already, he could so use this situation to create the ultimate display of power! But no, this was part of his training. His test.

He fell upon Xac’s shoulders, wrapping his legs and an arm around his face and neck tightly. Then, without missing a beat, he plunged the shard straight into the corrupted Hypno’s eye, stabbing in and up until he could feel it lodge within his grey matter, twisting and jiggling it around. A splatter of dark blood and vitreous fluid exploded from the eye socket, and Xac let out a spluttering, muffled cry before the dark energy and crystal lodged in his brain finally separated him from the mortal plane.

It’s done, get in here, he thought quickly to Jax, keeping the shard inside of Xac’s body for now. After all, he’d lose less blood that way.

“<Well>,” he cackled softly, as he supported the corpse of the fallen Brother of Despair. “I sure am looking forward to doing that again.”

“Don’t press your luck.”

Melanthios had about a second to register the voice, realize there was someone else in the room he hadn’t been able to sense, and begin to turn his head to look at them.

Then he was caught in the back by a blast of something bright and very, very painful, slamming both him and Xac’s corpse against the opposite wall.

Out of the shadows stepped the cloaked, masked, mysterious Raichu that had so intimidated the other Abyssal on its way to Centratel. It held something resembling a modified flintlock pistol, covered in wires and crystal, just like its mask. In its other paw, was a long, thin blade.

“I wanted you to at least have some small joy of success before I crushed that and took it from you, Melanthios Malachi. Though I am disappointed it will end like this. I was looking forward to making it last…”

The cloaked Pokémon cocked the pistol, a glow beginning to emanate from the barrel, pawfinger already tightening around the trigger. Melanthios couldn’t move…too much pain…too much shock…he had to push through it, but…

“What was it you used to say? Oh yes. <Have a nice dream. See you in Hell.>"

And the sound of a second shot reverberated throughout the warehouse.

 

[Avenger Angel]

Jax the Lopunny
Centratel, Victakan

Keeping the sentries distracted would be tricky with Xac being psychic. They weren't smart, but they were still sentient, and Xac was relying off of them for surveillance. Already, taking out the Sandshrew was a bit of a risk, and it was relying on the hopes that Xac wouldn't be psychically monitoring them at all times. But then I figured he wouldn't be constantly doing that to save his energy.

The Sandshrew on the rooftop wasn't an issue. No one would notice his dead body, but on the ground level, that was a different story. I didn't want them finding dead bodies, causing alarm, and then send Xac into a running spree. He had been cowardly enough to send his minions off to die for him, I highly doubted he would have the bravado to face anyone in combat, hence the necessity for the assassination in the first place.

I checked around, and saw there were three other sentries. Xac wasn't exactly careful about who he picked on this. All three of them were Scourge, a sickly and apathetic Azumarill, a distracted Snubbull, and the only considerable threat, the Floatzel. The Floatzel was really the only one keeping a close watch out. The Azumarill looked mentally impaired, while the Snubbull was distracted by every falling drop of blood. Stupid creature.

Alright, if you insist. But only because it's <you>, Jax.

I smirked when I heard Mel's voice inside my head. I couldn't have found a better fellow Seer to pull this off.

You know you like it. You get the fun part while I get to watch these sentries. By the way, I've counted three, and the only one worth worrying about is the Floatzel. He's out watching the east side of the building, so if you move now, he'll never notice you.

Mel then decided to make his move, slipping through the wall while the nearby Snubbull couldn't even be bothered to turn around to see what was behind him. I could have killed either the Snubbul or the Azumarill and the other wouldn't have noticed. The Floatzel, however, seemed aware enough to take note of it, and I wasn't in any position to take him out. He was too far away for any throwing knife to hit him in a vital spot. I would need a sheer amount of luck to land the knife in just the right spot and not only just wound him.

So, I waited, and it wasn't long until I had gotten Mel's confirmation.

It's done, get in here.

I slipped out and grabbed the others while heading in. I knew Xac's bleeding corpse wouldn't last forever, so I needed to be quick and gather the blood. By now, it didn't matter which of these sentries were alerted. I quickly allowed a dagger to slip into my grasp, and targeted the Snubbull. Only at the last second did she suddenly look up, bewildered at the sight of me, just a moment before the sharp dagger imbedded itself between her eyes. I didn't even give the corpse a passing glance as I wrestled the dagger from her skull.

"NnnGGGg!" The Azumarill groaned.

I turned to see Syrat had actually done something useful for once. He had latched onto the Azumarill's back, and gave him a lethal electrocution, causing his body to jitter, spasm, and dance like the puppeteer controlling him had gone totally mad. With the Azumarill down, Syrat hopped off, and smiled in a cute way that glamorized the very irony of his kill. He looked back, seemingly proud of himself.

"That's... wow, that's my first kill ever." He spoke, a little taken back.

"How do you feel?" I asked him.

"Yeah... good, I guess." He said in reply, a little sheepishly.

"Outstanding," I told him, grabbing the warehouse door. "There may be hope for you yet!"

No sooner had I grabbed the door that I felt something slam besides the back wall, accompanied by a thunderous blast. I quickly rushed inside with Syrat and Tariq, not sure what exactly had happened inside, but I didn't want to lose Xac's corpse.

Stepping inside, I had seen a cloaked Raichu with a wire-laden mask standing over what must have been Mel's beaten body. It seemed like he had attempted to hide himself, but his exposed tail and his ears completely undermined that intention much to laughable irony. Along the opposite wall, there was Xac's corpse, already starting to decompose. I quickly handed an emptied wine bottle to Syrat, knowing I was going to have to deal with this interloper first. In the meantime, Syrat could make himself useful again.

"Fill the bottle with his blood, and for your own sake, don't drop it," I told Syrat. "Looks like a little something went down in the meantime..."

I then proceeded to approach the Raichu, seeing him wielding a modified flintlock pistol, and a thin blade. He wasn't a Scourge, I knew that much. His voice wasn't warped like the others either. In fact, part of me figured he may not even have been part of the Abyss. He didn't fit the role of a Cohort of Chaos either, and I was for certain he wasn't a Fallen. Who he was exactly, I wasn't sure, and delving into his mind using the power of the Seer would have been untimely in this heat of the moment.

"What was it you used to say?" He asked Mel, standing over his wounded body. "Oh yes. Have a nice dream. See you in Hell."

He then fired the flintlock pistol, causing the gunshot bang to blast throughout the entire warehouse. I didn't have the time to see exactly how much damage had been done to Mel, but I figured the shot very likely would have been lethal if the Raichu knew even the slightest thing about guns. And even if Mel had the devil's own luck, the wound, if it wasn't lethal, must have been severe. I wasn't even sure how much I could help him either. Lacerations I could bandage. But getting lead bullets out and trying to clean the wound wasn't my specialty. Instead, I decided to at least disarm this bastard before he turned the gun on me.

I wasn't a big fan of guns in the first place. Loud, unwieldly, and high maintenance. Plus even the slightest bit of damage made them useless, whereas a nick on a blade only gave it character, like a scar. I took one of my throwing knives, and managed to strike the pistol right in the hammer, and the crucial mechanism that was needed to ignite the gunpowder was suddenly dislocated and broken, and would need to be repaired before he would think of using it again. Not surprisingly, the Raichu turned to face me, and I smiled.

"Gee, did I do that?" I asked him sarcastically with a smirk. "Seems I did. Children shouldn't be running around with such things anyway."

There was no time to run a full clairvoyance or divination on him. I was going to have to work with a quick and very brief scan of his life, just to get a hint of the true nature of him. Not shutting my eyes either was only going to give me a limited insight, but I figured I could try and connect the dots and fill in the blanks later...

...Necros...

"...succeed then he won’t make a Magus worth..."

Flashes... a meeting with a few of the Abyss's emissaries. It was vague, however. An incoherent riddle hidden within the shadow labyrinth of his mind. Around one dark corner, I was only able to catch of glimpse... his idea of a chess game... a game of shadows.

"...on your side... no reason to fight me..."

Necros... Magus. Ally of the Abyss, but there was no real clue what he was or what his underlying motives were, or if he was only using them for his own intentions. I simply didn't pry long and hard enough to figure that out. Something about him wasn't normal, implying he had a little more power than usual.

He may have had a vendetta against Mel, strong enough to kill him, but obviously he hadn't met me yet. I figured it would only be right to make it an acquaintance he wouldn't forget.

 

[Necros]

Melanthios Malachi the Sableye
Centratel, Victakan

The Raichu frowned slightly as its pistol was disabled. Shrugging, it tossed it aside, regarding the prone form of Melanthios next to it, barely even paying attention to Jax. After all, Jax was just a spare piece. Didn’t matter to the outcome of the game one way or another if he was dealt with.

“I prefer the blade anyway,” it said, obviously to Jax, since it looked like Melanthios was either unconscious or dead. Its voice came out in that same layered distortion, making it impossible to identify. “But it’s notoriously difficult to use on ones like Melanthios. Like cutting the reflection of the moon on the surface of the water. You can disrupt it, but you can never destroy it for good.”

Its tail swished easily through the air, the metal tipped, scythe like bolt of it glinting malevolently as the Raichu stood perfectly at ease, its blade held calmly at the ready.

“I don’t have anything against you, Seer. But interfere with my Master’s game and I won’t hesitate to end you. This is between me and him.”

It kicked Melanthios slightly with a wrapped foot. The Sableye turned over, his eyes dim. What was odd was how the gunshot wounds were affecting him. Instead of blood, or even gaping holes in his back or chest, there appeared to be a soft glow in each damaged area. Crumbling off of them, like flower petals or flakes of paint, were small wisps of purple energy. It was as if this were Melanthos’ blood…almost beautiful, in a way.

“Still hanging in there. You always were cute that way, Melanthios. The way you pathetically clung to your life no matter what happened.”

There was a spluttering chuckle from the Sableye.

“So…won’t be too easy…after all…<Good!> <Good, good, good, good!>”

Bizarrely, he seemed to recover a little, sitting up, though it was obvious he wasn’t pulling any surprise moves anytime soon, coughing. The purple glow fell from him like a soft snow, dissolving and vanishing once it hit the ground.

“Ahahaha…I don’t know who you are…or who is sponsoring you…but you’re not good enough to beat me. Not good enough! Nowhere <near> good enough!”

Even in their dullness, those jeweled eyes burned brightly with the delight of such a challenge. It was paradoxically pathetic and impressive at the same time. The Sableye could barely stand. He had little energy left. His wounds weren’t recovering anytime soon. But he refused to die or back down.

The Raichu looked from one to the other coldly, its eyes narrowing. Clearly it was trying to determine whether it was worth getting into a fight with both Pokémon, not to mention the Pachirisu that was gathering up the blood of Xac. Its blade was kept firmly in its paw, and its stance clearly suggested it was more than ready to take on anyone that tried to surprise it.

“I guess it wouldn’t be any fun if I finished you this early. This would be too boring a victory for my Master in any case.”

“Heh…and we wouldn’t want to bore our Masters, now would we?”

There was a tense silence between the two. Truthfully, Melanthios was trying to figure out just who was backing this new pawn and why whilst struggling not to pass out again from the damage his body had taken. Ledumos obviously had to agree to the inclusion of whoever this was, or they wouldn’t have been able to harm him. Therefore he must have believed it was a challenge Melanthios should overcome.

“Alright. You lot can do as you please for now. I doubt the Abyss will let you get very far from this place anyway. Besides…I’ve already cornered you once, Melanthios. And it was laughably easy.”

It walked out calmly past both of them, paying neither of them any attention save for being prepared to defend itself if Jax or the other got the stupid idea into their head to try and stop it.

Melanthios watched them go, right until the last minute. Then he sank to his knees and pitched forward, shuddering and groaning.

 

[Tasslehoff]

Kraxel the Bisharp
Centratel, Victakan

Finally after days of walking I came to the hellish mirror of what use to be Centratel. The whole city itself had become the makings of what I had assumed to be the Abyss: a bleeding sky, burned grass, broken buildings, and the such. I enjoyed it here, blood filled streets, dark alley ways; it was as if Death strode in on a pale horse, destroying everything that he had passes upon. I looked up into the black and red-colored filled sky and noticed that it was raining, however, this wasn’t normal rain, it was to warm. Droplets hit my face and I realized what this strange phenomenon was: it was raining blood, as I smiled.

I walked into the broken down remains of what appeared to once be a market
building and I climbed to the roof to get a better view point of the city. It was quiet here, quieter than I had expected, meaning there was only two options. A: The seers beat me here and had already killed Xac (sad face), or B: Xac was aware of their presence and had already left. As I pondered this thought a feeling of great entities started to be felt around me, it was giving off the same aura I was giving meaning that option A had occurred and that multiple seers where in the area.

“Hmmm, from what I can tell, this feeling is a little greater than my own, but not to strong, perhaps at least two seers are here,” I explained to myself.

“Correct Kraxel, there are three here in fact, a Sableye, Archeops, and a Lopunny,” my mind had told me.

“Haha o great, you’re back, it’s been a few days. What are there names and is there anyone else around here, is Xac dead, and where is everyone?”

“The Sableye’s name is Melanthios, but he has been named unofficial Mel, the Archeops name is Tariq, the Lopunny is Jax. A pachirisu is with Jax and a Raichu is with them, but he appears to be hostile. Xac is not dead for the “dead” Abyss’s denizens are in fact just transported back there, at the moment though on this plane of existence he is dead, and it appears that everyone is in a warehouse just south of here.”

“Jax, Jax, that name sounds familiar, to familiar.” I questioned myself, starting to walk on the rooftops towards the general area of the warehouse.

“He hunted us years ago, he was one of the most successful bounty hunters to chase us and nearly got us, now we know being that he is a seer.”

“Haha, he probably uses his ability like we do…but he’s a softy and took up bounty hunting instead of being a criminal. It’s sad, if he was with me, he’d probably be alive after I killed my team, and he’d be too valuable,” I remembered Jax all to well, I wonder if he remembers me as another one of my signatures malicious grins came upon me.

“Do not kill him Kraxel, I know of our hatred towards all authorities, but he is a seer, we need him for this mission!”

“You’re right,” I admitted, disappointed I couldn’t end the miserable hunters life today, “but after this is all over, we have no reason to not hunt, after all, the seer’s usefulness will be unneeded after this.” Relieving myself of my short sadness.

I approached the warehouse on the rooftops across the street and noticed the Raichu, my mind had informed me of, was leaving with a broken pistol. After he had left the perimeter, I snuck around to find a quiet, unnoticeable way in. After moments of searching, I found a hole in the wall and quietly entered the warehouse. It appeared “I” was right, a Pachirisu, a Lopunny, a Sableye, and an Archeops where in the room, the sweet part of this scene, the Pachirisu was all alone, and better, was the weakest. I strode over to the little creature after it was done collecting Xac’s blood and cuffed my hands around its mouth, with my other hand, took the vial of blood, and attacked his mind.

“DO NOT MAKE A SOUND IF YOU WANT TO LIVE!” I threatened the Pachirisu. Oh, this moment was to perfect, what better way to get people to accept you than perhaps make a hostage out of the weakest link, as long as I reassured them that this little creature lives, perhaps they will allow me to tail along. They could use a skilled fighter like me in this war.

"Everyone listen up, if you want this vial of blood in your hands, and the Pachirisu to live, you best listen. Let me follow you until the other two brothers are reported to be dead. The option should be quiet clear," looking at the Lopunny, "you can keep the blood and your friend, or I keep the blood, and your friend, well lets just say he won't be around to know what happens."

 

[Flash Sport]

Liechi the Whimsicott
Dysan, Kanat

More flight enabled Pokémon had joined the fray. Talons, claws, beaks, and stingers all swiped at Liechi in rapid succession. Although the evasions were narrow, sometimes a little too narrow, she had yet to take a serious blow. They attacked hard and mindlessly because they wanted the blow to be crippling, if not decisive, should one catch her.

“Hope this works.” Liechi unlatched another power anklet, making her much lighter and faster. Applying a burst of energy to her tailwind shot her far ahead of her attackers. She flipped onto her back and gauged the distance between her and her relentless enemies. “Please let this work.” Liechi’s mane suddenly began to expand, puffing out further and further. Once large enough, Liechi twirled and the excess cotton broke free, creating an artificial, sparkling cloud that hovered between them. Righting herself, Liechi continued her descent. Utilizing the momentary distraction, she split into numerous copies of herself. One of the clones took the lead while Liechi fell back into the center of her throng.

Not impressed or even mildly intimidated by the wall of cotton, the Scourge powered through, absentmindedly swiping and knocking away the balls of fluff. The draft created by their wild swinging only attracted more spores to them, all of which innocently attached to their bodies. It took a while for realization to strike them, but by then it was too late. Most of flock felt the effects of drag created by the unassuming balls of cotton. In an effort to counteract it, some of the scourge attempted to increase their speed, but the balls of fluff continued to cling stubbornly. Others began noticing a secondary effect and those unfortunate enough to have a spore attach to their face were the first to experience the shock of total numbness. Before long, it was drizzling limp bodies.

Liechi and her clones raced alongside the standing remnants of a destroyed tower, getting closer to street level. Their grounded welcome party greeted them with an array of blasts and projectiles, vanishing stricken clones. The duplicates crisscrossed one another and flew around the opposition while Liechi quickly broke away. The clones would buy her some much-needed time. Refocusing, Liechi pooled her energy together that separated into another image of her. This one was different from her other look-a-likes, evident by its more solid appearance. Unlike her many lightweight replicas that took little to no energy to spawn, her substitute took a bit more effort to create, but that extra energy did come in handy. It could take attacks better than her illusions, which faded at the mildest of hits. While her substitute was no lairon, it could take a lot more in comparison.

Randomly selecting a street, Liechi and her sub made a hard left into a pack of graveler. The rock Pokémon wasted no time in attacking and sent a barrage of rocks their way. Not wanting to lose the sub just yet, Liechi flew ahead and used protect. The rocks shattered harmlessly against the barrier and the little whimsicott countered with the rapid firing of energy balls. Their bulk and narrowness of the street made dodging practically impossible. Her attacks struck true and produced a boom. She didn’t stop to check whether or not they survived the blast. They were stunned at worse, knocked out at best. Either way, it briefly gave her less Pokémon to worry about.

A whooshing sound entered her ears and the cause turned out to be a spinning bone. It came at her with dangerous speed, but her sub intercepted the hit, knocking the weapon away. The weapon’s thrower knelt close by, blending in with a pile of rubble. Liechi only managed to spot the creature when the bone returned to her outstretched hand. She hurriedly produced another energy ball as the cubone charged, choosing to strike head-on. They closed in much sooner than she anticipated. The cubone’s cocked arm swung forward, striking the substitute with enough force to shatter it and strike Liechi. She released a pained cry, but the whimsicott managed to drive the emerald sphere against her head. The force of it felled the cubone, fracturing her skull helmet in the process.

Liechi breathed heavily as she shoved herself to a sitting position. Her body throbbed with pain, but a quick assessment revealed nothing to be broken. The throbbing only a warned of an ugly bruise that would develop later. She thanked Arceus for her flexibility. War cries belonging to the Scourge sounded out and were drawing near. It was a harsh noise, a cacophony capable of making the air bleed if it could. Struggling to her feet, Liechi hobbled over to a pile of rubble and called upon her seer ability once behind it. Time wasn’t on her side, but she needed to see if she could find her brother. All the commotion had to have attracted him.

Her mind flew through the streets, around corners and through buildings. She lacked the energy to both perform a citywide scan and to receive visual information, relying on the sibling connection they shared. Turn after turn and building after building still revealed nothing. In desperation, she accelerated her scan knowing she could be attacked at any moment. When she still had yet to feel anything, she prepped herself to accept the idea of her brother’s death to be true. Just before she was about to reel her senses in, Liechi finally struck something familiar. Time to examine it ended when she heard something exploded dangerously close to her. She brought the sight back to herself and physically looked back to see group of Pokémon stampeding her way. Whether they knew she was there or not, she needed to go before she got trampled.

Calling forth the tailwind proved to be tougher this time around. Fatigue had begun to set in and made conjuring it much more difficult, but a spike in adrenaline helped to jump-start the wind. She darted from her hiding place, down the street, and entered through the doorway of a house. Outraged roars sounded out behind her prior to the destruction of the opening through which she entered. In and out of buildings she weaved, projecting her senses in search of that familiar outline. She found it again sped towards it. Was it Nelt? Was it her brother?

A shrill squawk destroyed the projection of Liechi’s senses. She didn’t have time to assess which of the Scourge was upon her. The fluff reactively expanded just before a body brutally smashed into hers. Webbed feet clamped onto her shoulders and its short and small, yet sharp claws dug into Liechi’s flesh. The attacker’s weight forced her to the ground; their combined momentum made her skid across the rough surface even after the weight was removed. Liechi’s head swam and pounded, causing her vision to cloud. Parts of her body burned, but figured it would’ve been worse had she not build up the cotton on instinct.

Liechi looked skyward and through her hazy vision saw a form circling around. Something told her it was that swanna from earlier. If she had to give any Scourge props, he definitely deserved one for his persistence. Without warning, the swanna nosedived, unrestrainedly speeding towards her. Liechi’s heart thudded in alarm and everything within her screamed at her to get away. It took an absurd amount of effort just to get herself to rollover. Inhaling deeply, Liechi pushed her battered body to its feet. Tailwind was no longer a viable option, leaving the work to Liechi’s short legs.

The swanna paralleled himself close to the ground without breaking speed. His surroundings were of no concern to him. He was focused on that struggling whimsicott because she was a nuisance, because she was an Indigo Seer, because she was something that unnerved his masters. When he returned to his masters with that lifeless package, they would surely reward him with increased rank and power. Fixation with his target impeded the swanna’s senses and made his reaction fatally late to a shadow that sprung from one of the alcoves.

A deep, but loud sound caught Liechi by surprise and she hastily willed her aching body to move behind a fallen slab. She peeked around the piece of stone to see a plume of dust about five yards from her position. It took awhile for the dust to settle, but when it did her breath caught in her throat. The swanna’s body lay sprawled. His wings were spread flat; his webbed feet were flopped over, but twitching; and his unseen head descended into a deep crater. Liechi’s stomach churned in protest. Another body was crouched beside the dead Scourge, its spindly arm in the crater as well. Liechi watched as the log shaped individual stood, lifting a blackened and sizzling arm from the cracked depression. From where she stood he seemed rather pleased with his handiwork.

“A pity we can’t keep their heads as trophies,” she heard him mutter. Then he looked in her direction. A jolt went through Liechi’s heart as she fully hid behind the slab.

“Please let him be friendly. Please let him be friendly,” she chanted.

“Hey, come on out,” he said in a friendly and near voice. “I’m not gonna harm ya!” He sounded really familiar. “We need to get going before more show up!”

That Pokémon wasn’t her brother, but he was definitely familiar. Taking a chance, Liechi revealed herself to the stranger whose beady eyes bulged at the sight of her. He sputtered before stuttering, “L-Liechi? I-Is that you?”

Liechi took a closer look at the sudowoodo and gave a gasp of recognition. “Montezu!” She ran…hobbled over to her brother’s friend and squad member. “Montezu!”

He met her halfway. “What the hell are you doin’ out here? Never mind that, let’s get outta here.” Placing a trefoiled hand on her back, Montezu hurriedly steered her into the recess from whence he sprung, through another hole, and into a back lane.

“M-Monetzu,” she breathed, having a hard time keeping up. “My brother-”

“Alive,” he answered quickly, scanning about them. “He’s alive. We’re heading there now.” Feeling her small body sag, Montezu scooped her up under one arm and hurried to a destination he knew about. Relief flowed through Liechi’s veins. Her brother’s alive. Her brother’s alive!

 

[rotrum]

OOC: Welp, my only options are to lag behind, or travel at insane speeds. In the words of Melanthios. Being part ghost could have its advantages.

Also, for the second part, Think Raven from Teen Titans.

Kawahira the Mismagius
IN the ocean south of Sartaras

After defeating his aggressors, he soon realized he was lagging far behind. The others were obviously going towards Xac, who was in Centraltel, and they'd be there after not-too-long a journey over land. He had to kick it up. He really hadn't gotten any real wounds, so he figured he wouldnt' have to worry about opening any as he decided to go towards Centraltel at full speeds. With a long, drawn out sigh, his jewels turned black, before his entire body faded into nothingness, invisibility was perhaps the greatest ability of a ghost. And he'd need it if he planned to take a shortcut through Abyss-captured land.

He stopped for a moment, floating above the water calmly and closing his eyes, his hat drooping over them a second later as his body folded into his equiavalent of a meditative form. He needed to have a Calm Mind and tons of focus to do what he was about to do. Sadly, he didn't know how to teleport, but it's not like he had no method of getting there quickly.

Like any sane pokemon who needed to get somewhere fast, he used Psychic on himself. On top of moving towards his goal at high speeds, he used psychic to create a massive propulsive telekinetic force behind him, sending him quickly through the air towards his goal. The high speed motion made his body ache more, but he ignored it. Everyone else was getting stuff done, and meanwhile he was in the middle of the ocean.

Then, land, and he was flying straight across the abyss-infected area around Sartaras, passing harmlessly through trees and invisibly past the minions of the Abyss. His hat was still drawn over his eyes, a visor of sorts,and the conical shpae of his hat allowed him to cut through the wind. Everything he needed for high speed movement was there.

Centraltel, Victaken

Kawahira, tired and his body aching, arrived in the infected city not too long after everyone else. Remaining invisible, but no longer moving quickly, he entered the warehouse, appearing as Kraxel declared his threat to the other seers, taking the Pachirisu as a hostage.

A hostage-taker. Lovely. Well, Kawahira wasn't entirely prepared to fight, but his senses were sharp and there was one thing he could always do. With a grin, he covered his presence, sinking into the floor.

An Ominous Wind filled the room.

A ring of blood suddenly surged out of the ground, surrounding Kraxel and the Pachirisu. He needed that blood, and while technically they all had the same purpose, he was decidedly against helping Kraxel. In order to make sure no one saw through his illusion too quickly, he released an Echoed Voice, messing with their minds as shrill shrieks filled the room at earpiercing loudness. The Ring of Blood continued to move around the two, as the warehouse became black, and all the entrances and exits were covered in black as well. It wasn't pitch dark, everyone could see eachother, but it was nearly impossible to see where the floor ended and the walls began.

The blood surged into four pillars of rising red liquid, surrounding the Bisharp, and thne taking on the shapes of four Gigantic Mismagius, which quickly gained color. Kawahira didn't bother wondering whether or not illusions would work on a seer. Thinking about it would just let them see it faster. A black cloud appeared above Kraxel, at eye-level with the four Mismagius, who were simulating a Mean Look at Kraxel from four directions. The Black Cloud coursed with electricity.

Kawahira himself remained cloaked, standing directly in front of Kraxel, his Khakkhara floated in front of him, blades pointed at Kraxel's face. After a moment, the khakkhara appeared, as if the weapon was suddenly materialized. Kawahira himself was focusing on two moves at the same time, neither one would be particularly strong. The first was a Charge Beam, hence the Cloud, which he was in the process of charging. The other was a Telekinesis, with which he grabbed the wine bottle of blood with (Not moving it, just holding it), and exerted a weak outward pressure on Kraxel's arms, trying to keep them away from Syrat.

His plan was sheer intimidation, as he lacked the energy to pull off a real psychic show. A booming voice, also made of the Echoed Voice suddenly appeared. "Drop the Wine Bottle and step away from the squirrel, or you shall see what power a True Seer has." After that message, the Ominous Wind and Echoed Voice Shrieking returned, and Kawahira, unless Kraxel had met his demands already, released the charge he'd been building at Kraxel. Not Strong, but hopefully Syrat would get the message and use his own electricity as well. And, well, if worst came to worst, Kawahira had several sharp blades pointed at Kraxel's face. That generally got the job done.

 

[DVB]

Diego The Pikachu
Koraken Desert, Azmarax --->Centraltel, Victaken

Diego had followed his new Sableeye comrade through the desert and all the way to Centraltel. Now you are probably wondering why he didn't help him out. The reason was simple. He got detained.

Big time.

As Diego felt the commotion, he began running only to nearly avoid a large black thunderbolt that destroyed some nearby Cohorts and Scourge.


Not now... not so soon... Diego though to himself as he stopped and had a look of fear on his face. It was on instinct though and he stepped on his tail to get ahold of himself.

"LoNg tImE nO sEe... DiEgO..." Said the voice of DX. Diego looked at his Fallen and he looked right back. The atmosphere grew still. It was going to be a fierce fight... Diego began charging a ball electricity and so did DX....

The battle wouldn't end here, but there would a battle nonetheless...

The balls were launched and an explosion signified the beginning of their battle.

A bit of time later...

Diego and DX were looking exhausted, chunks of Centratel were missing. None of them were damaged though. They predicted each others' moves and managed to dodge it. They weren't really trying however. They were trying to see what they could do.

Diego didn't tap into his Seer powers nor did DX any of his Fallen powers.

WhAt A gReAt WaRmUp. HoWeVeR, tHe HyPnO iS dEaD... tHaT lEaVeS tHe GrUmPiG aNd ThE gEnGaR... wE wIlL hAvE tO pUt ThIs On PaUsE, bUt WiTh A bAng!

He then launched a massive black thunderbolt at Diego and Diego launched his. The massive thunderclap could be heard from a distance and probably got the attention of the other Seers by now.

When the smoke cleared, DX was gone. "Well, at least Xac is gone. DX will probably find the other two. I know the Ill One has a bloodthirst..." Diego stated as he waited for the rest of the Seers to arrive.

 

[Necros]

Melanthios Malachi the Sableye
Centratel, Victakan

Melanthios had drifted in and out of consciousness during Kraxel’s appearance and the subsequent fighting and power play between the criminal and the other, slightly more reputable Seers. Proping himself against a wall, he breathed heavily, struggling to maintain his form. This was no easy task. It required an insane amount of willpower just to stop from dissolving, let alone remain conscious and still be aware of what was going on around him.

He wasn’t about to be acknowledged as the Magus of Misfortune for nothing though. Hissing and snarling a bit as he ground his teeth together, his eyes blazed hotly as he focused every last bit of his mind, soul, and heart on restoring his body. He would live through the pain. Time would heal the wounds. If only he had some delicious gems to consume, the process would take considerably less effort. Perhaps they could dig up some once they got out of this corrupted place.

In any case, the situation seemed to be resolving itself. The Mismagius he had sensed earlier had arrived on the scene and tipped the scales to resemble more of a status quo. Privately, Melanthios was considering Kraxel a bit of an idiot, or else someone who had never played this sort of game before. All he had to do was show them he was a Seer and they’d have no choice but to help him. It wasn’t like they’d hold any grudge against him until after the more pressing matters had been settled. After all, if they only knew the sorts of things the Sableye had done…

He clapped slowly once the dust had settled. Then he managed to let off one of his hearty, cheerfully inelegant cackles.

“Well now, <children>. If we’re all finished with the posturing, I suggest we move before the Abyssal decides to launch everything they have at this place.”

He stumbled a little as he walked, but Melanthios’ vitality, if you could call it that, was returning rapidly. He went over to Xac and retrieved the shard that was still lodged in his dissolving eyesocket.

“Eeeuch. I’m going to have to sterilize this. Next time, Jax, loan me one of your <pretty kniiives>, kyehehehe…”

He winked brightly at the bounty hunter, while smirking at the Bisharp, even going so far as to slide up to him and whisper in his ear.

“We all have our little <agendas>, Kraxel. Don’t worry about it so much. <Relax!> <Have fun!> Just play the game, and everything will work out fine…”

It wasn’t so much that he was trying to intimidate the other. He honestly didn’t care one way or another what Kraxel intended to do once they completed their mission. Talandra and this world held nothing for him, it was only a means to an end. He just wanted to loosen the tough guy up a little, and of course, make sure his Master could make full use of all of them as pieces on his gameboard…

***​

The Raichu from earlier strolled calmly through Centratel, even as it came across Diego and DX duking it out. Seeing that they were completely absorbed in one another, and not really caring which way the battle went, it continued to walk past them, barely even reacting to the huge lighting storms around it.

“You missed a spot,” it commented to one or the other of them, not turning around as it walked completely out of the corrupted town and left all the Seers behind it. There was the sound of a massive thunderclap, but other than flick its large ears irritably at the loud sound, it didn’t react. Just kept on walking and walking, putting more distance between them.

Finally, it stopped. It looked around, making sure it was unobserved. Then it glanced towards nowhere in particular.

“You wanted to speak to me, my Master?”

All of the sudden the world around the Raichu seemed to distort and shift, condensing inwards, becoming hard, man made, interior. It was in a sitting room. A rather comfortably furnished, elegantly decorated sitting room. Yet there was something off about the scene, something that just tugged at the Pokémon’s mind and screamed ‘This is wrong’. It paid the feeling no mind.

Two chairs were facing one another, a table with a board set up between them. The game and its pieces resembled something like chess, yet it was clearly very different. The number of black pieces far outmatched the number of white, yet the white was at the moment skillfully penetrating into enemy lines. Seated at the white side of the board, with several buckets of empty popcorn, candy, and other assorted junk food littering the ground around him, was Ledumos, looking quite pleased with himself. Seated across from him was…

“My master.” The Raichu kneeled down to the one surveying the black side of the board. As always, he wore no expression on his face, his eyes dark, dull, and emotionless. He didn’t even acknowledge his pawn for the first few seconds, staring over the board and considering his next move.

“I gotta say, Nec, that was kind of a cheap move you pulled there,” grinned Ledumos, wiggling his toeclaws.

“…This is coming from the one who made sure his main pawn survived two shots at point blank range.”

“Awww, come on! You know as well as I do how much it would suck if Melanthios died right there! Besides, the little guy did it all himself. Really remarkable, I haven’t seen determination like his in centuries. And you know what the best part is? I still can’t figure him out! He’s just so good at hiding behind all those masks he has! Mmmm, he’ll make such a wonderful Magus, I just know it…”

“Careful, Ledu. I might get jealous.”

“As if you ever do! Besides, it’s more of a parent child relationship, Nec. You know I’d never get tired of you. You’re the only one who could ever do those wonderful things to me with your-”

The pawn Raichu coughed loudly. Necros glanced up.

“Oh. You’re still here.”

“Yes. You requested my presence, my Master. Shall I return later?”

“No. Tell me something first.” Necros got down from his chair and moved over to his piece, his mouth set in a firm, emotionless line. “What did it feel like? To have him there, at your mercy…only to have it snatched away from you at the last second?”

Inwardly, the masked Raichu winced. It knew this was coming. “I-“

“Yes, how did you feel? Knowing you were soooo close to your revenge? How did it feel when that bounty hunter interrupted you? I bet you must have felt enraged! Oh please, tell us how you felt!”

“Yes. Tell us, you worthless double of mine.”

Ledumos and Necros both loomed over the Raichu, one grinning madly, the other glaring coldly. It could not help itself from shaking.

“I-I’m aware I should’ve finished him…but you yourself said it would be no fun, to leave it the- hrrrk!”

The Raichu’s words were cut off. Neither Necros, nor Ledumos had made any sort of perceptible gesture. Yet the Pokémon was clutching at its throat, writhing on the floor in front of the two Magi.

“That’s not what we asked you. We asked you what you felt. Being denied your retribution.”

“Of course, we know why you couldn’t finish him.”

“It’s so disgustingly obvious, it’s pathetic.”

Ledumos cackled and laughed shrilly, while Necros just watched as coldly as ever. They needed a little intermission sideshow now that the first act had ended.

After all, it really would be a shame if either of them got bored.