[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[Lord Windos]

*Meanwhile, in the shared room of Shiva and Ventus*

Hunched over his research notes/documents at the spacious rooms communial table, pen in hand scribbling away and with a seemingly calm expression on their face as he was updating/editing them, sat Ventus, as he valiantly managed to wrestle his raging stress, worry, and temper over that vile abomination's Reveal to his dearest, most blessed friend in the world. It was understandably, however, an arduous task indeed to stay focused and commited to his work and not use Extreme Speed himself (Somehow) to rush over to Shiva's rescue and make things worse than it already is, so he took a couple of precaution to prevent such impulsive actions.

That precluded to having his Black and Blue Egg on his lap as he toiled away at his work, swath in a nice and toasty blanket to pin him in place as he toiled away at his notes and offer his mind another outlet to focus his anxiety and protective/caring urges. When he was incubating Raphael's Egg so long ago, it always brought him a certain measure of comfort cradling them close him as he conducted his daily business, and this proved no less true in for this Mystery Egg as well. 'I wonder what Pokemon you will be when you hatch from your shell, little one? I'll love and nuture you all the same, regardless of type or origin, but I would be dishonest with myself if I didn't admit I am curious. Ah well, in due time we'll find out together, won't we?' the empath though, briefly looking down at his Egg with a small, tired, but genuine smile on his face as he gave it a loving carass, before he refocused his attention back document/editing his findings in Cheshire.

In addition to his odd Egg he had also let out Abaddon and Haneal to explore their surrounding and stretch their legs after remaining in their Pokeballs for such a long time (In Abaddon's case in particular). The lava cameal was lounging by her master's feet, providing a nice warmness to the air surrounding her and occasionally acting as a re-heater for the blanket to keep it within acceptable temperatures for the Egg. It had been awhile since they had the chance to really move around and spend more quality time with her new master, for now she just wanted to relaxed after the intense training he put her through just a little while ago. She also sensed that master was in a particular stress and foul mood, and simply decided the best thing to remedy that was to passively provide her support to him. After all, sometimes all a person needs to get better was the good company of friends and family.

Abaddon, meanwhile, was roaming around the room with a curious, fascinated expression on his face, letting out warbling noises as he uncovered new and (to him) strange things he never seen before. His new father had promised to take good care of him and show him the world during their travels through Cheshire, but it was still hard for him to imagine all the new sights, sounds, and Pokémon he would be accoasted by! Tempering this awe and their natural inquisitiveness, however, was his own worry about Ventus, as they clearly picked up they were not the most well off at the moment, and decided to give them space for the time being in contrast to Haneal's approach. Still, he wanted help his father with whatever was bothering him so much, but he didn't know how or where to start.... (@Iron : If you'd like, you can write a reaction for Abaddon here, or just let him explore his surroudings for now)

All in all, everybody was more or less fine right now, but the tension in the air was still ever present, as if they were all waiting for the other shoe to drop any moment....

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

Shiva just stares back. There has always been something about an Espurr's stare - some people found it eerie. Right now, she does agree to this, as she stared into her own reflection these purple eyes were mirroring. The image has been thrown back as well by her glasses, increasing the weirdness here.

There was another conflict going on in her - one that she fought completely silent while getting more and more lost in these purple eyes.What was more important to her - the feeling that she's Master of her Pokemon and decides what's good for them, or the general wellbeing of them even if it goes against her own comfort?

...
... ...
... ... ...
... ... ... ...Actually, it may be not too hard to guess which side won in the end.

When she finally looked away to end being captured by the eyes of a psychic kitten and faced Nathan again, her expression was incredibly exhausted. All this has been unnoticably powered her out, and she began to crave for rest. Rest beside the person who left his angelic Pokemon there to comfort her. "Well there, Nathan... Could you have expected such a thing from happening? Me certainly could not... I have to admit that my instant worry was pointless. You did a fine job in earning the trust of your Delta Houndour.... Keep him. By all means, keep him and go on with prooving your point... Show others that there is nothing to fear... Just, please, leave me and Ventus out of all this. We have our reasons to be concerned, after all... After all that happened. I won't be agressive or distasteful towards...Orthros, and will take care Ventus does not harm him. But, just don't force us to agree to things we actually disagree. Go on, follow your path, stop caring what me and Ventus think about it - I doubt either of us want to have anything to do you your deltadog. He's friendly and loyal to you, I see - but this does not change his background. Kyuu seems to enjoy playing with your deltadog - I'll allow this, as it'd be rude to force my Pokemon to agree to me when it clearly has a different opinion. I just don't desire to be included in this playing."

Silence followed after this. Meaningful silence - it seems to have lost the thickness though. After a while dwelling in this silence, Shiva finally got up from her place at the table, and carefully extended one arm towards Raphael, motioning him to please come over to her while she keeps Kyuu close to herself with the other arm. "You heard that, dear one - if you like, you can play with this Houndour whenever you feel like. Just let me know... It's true that I'm your Master and you shall obey me, but I'm responsible for you wellbeing... You deserve to enjoy the fun playing with this other Pokemon from the Dream World. Nightmare World. Whatever it may mean." Before she left though, she faced Nathan again from the side. "Again, I thank thee for speaking with me. We'll probably see one another again tomorrow, any time... For now, I do wish you a pleasent sleep and well dreams."



---------------
Mechanics:
Well, I certainly didn't see such an outcome happen - but it's sweet to see how the Espurr is not overly scared or such over Orthros.... Unless Nathan has anythingelse important to say, Shiva will now head directly to the room she and Ven share. He's there, isn't he, @Lord Windos? EDIT: Yes he is, lolz.

[Iron]

Just one thing to add to your description of Abaddon: he really likes seeing all the big steel stuff. He likes to look out the window at the Scrapyard, or fiddle with the knobs of the climate control (which he doesn't understand at all), or drop the steel paperweight that comes on the complimentary notebook inside every GPC room. He'll drop it over and over again.

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

All in all, everybody was more or less fine right now, but the tension in the air was still ever present, as if they were all waiting for the other shoe to drop any moment....

It took longer than normal for Shiva to arrive in the room she shared with Ven. A big part of her was just longing to see him, a small part of her was stained by the image that he had blood on his hands partly because of her own actions. He once mentioned that he already killed a few Pokemon but prefered not to speak about it... In her mind, she repeated 'He wanted to protect me' over and over again like a weird broken record. Why she was making such a big deal about this, she failed to understand either.

Finally, she stood directly in front of the room's door, Kyuu already recalled to enjoy some plasant rest and only Raphael still resting on her arm. Occassionally, he was throwing concerned glances over to her. Master seems to care for this fae person... Was she okay, he wondered?

Without saying a word or even look at Ventus, she opened the door, stepped inside the room and closed the door behind her. After a portion of hesitaton she finally FINALLY made ito face Ventus. Directly and sternly. After a few moments later, words were spoken in a tone that displayed a deep exhaustion, yet no desire for sleep yet. Not that she would get some sleep right away anyway. "Ven... I'm back... Delta Houndour... Sadness, fear, confusion, why....still a dreamdemon, but not agressive... Can we just lay down, please?" At the latter, she made stept forward - a very shaky step, displaying that she meant it and just desires to lay down, beside to him. Despite everything, it was still the oddball of reseracher she grew to like that much. Or so she told herself.


(This in-game day is not over yet, it seems...)

[Dragonstrike]

Nathan and Kirlia just watch this exchange in silence.

Nathan had said his piece.

Shiva...at least tried to understand...

...but she was still lumping him in with all the other Delta Houndour to some degree as well...

He doesn't say anything as Shiva leaves the room though.  Nathan can forgive too if it's called for.  Ventus probably wouldn't want to hear it, but he and Orthros are actually quite similar in some ways...
_________________________________________________________________________________

Once she's gone, he recalls Calam and Starmie.  He stays in the back room for a little longer.  He pulls his journal out again and takes another look at that Old Unown text he was translating...

Different letters translate to different things in different combinations, huh?  

Well, that 'K' could obviously also be 'CK.'  It was indicative more of the sound than the letter, it seems...

He looks again at some of the letters...

Wait, if that one is very obviously an 'F' in that message...does it fit in the others as well?

Maybe.

S??EER ?OR?? NI?? SLAS?

K

TO GO FORWARD KIRLIA MUST FIRST GO BACK

Filling in that blank gives him...

S??EER FOR?? NI?? SLAS?

Something's still poking at him though...that symbol is an 'E,' right?  And that one a T?  And that one's an 'S'...  If he fills those in...

S??EER FORSE NITE SLAS?

Wait...some of that looked familiar...in fact...Nathan thinks he can solve this puzzle...

SHEER FORSE NITE SLASH

So...in conclusion...it seems the Old Unown language matches sounds as often as it does actual letters...there's two different ways to write an 'H' (with either that X shaped Old Unown paired with other letters or two of the more vertical ones, meaning the H is created more from the shape of those 2 rather than the sound of their letters in that case...)...Solomon's first Hidden Power was a message concerning Daikatuna's Sheer Force ability and the move Night Slash...

He wasn't sure why Solomon had some trouble identifying that one letter as 'F' though...maybe it still has other meanings and its appearances here were all just coincidentally the same?

In any case...he was still missing concrete symbols for C, J, P, Q, V, X, Y, and Z (and technically ! and ? as well, but punctuation gets a pass for obvious reasons).  C might almost never show up by itself if S and K covered all instances of its usage, though...and there's still the one he translated to F to consider as well...and maybe even more various combinations of these letters that he had yet to record...language is a tricky, expansive topic, after all...

But this translation seemed doable now.  It wasn't nearly as daunting and impossible any more, now that someone in this modern day could actually read it.  Solomon has every right to be proud of that ability.  (Seems to me like it's a great time to put 1 more point into Lore and level it to 2 for 6 exp, no?)

Though Kirlia has to first go back before he can do what he needs to...does he need to devolve?  Would that be enough?  Does he just have to act more like a Ralts?  After reading Almanac's entires, reviewing the national pokedex's, reflecting on everything that had happened...

Yeah...that story Dagny had mentioned talked about a...Ralts.  Not a Kirlia, not a Gardevoir, not a Gallade...a Ralts.

A pokemon that cares for everyone around them equally...was it possible to teach its evolutions the same?  Or does he have no choice but to use that Neverstone earlier than he was expecting?

He'd have to do a little more reading, see if he could find anything about Kirlia and its evolutions displaying the same qualities as a Ralts...

______________________________________________________

That second look at the Old Unown text was a welcome distraction.  Nathan does a little search on his pokedex for an app that can produce white noise.  He was going to give that a try first before resorting to other methods to help him sleep...

And maybe having Orthros around would help too.  He might be scary in appearance, but there was a certain...comfort in having him around now.

He really hopes Shiva's advice helps.

And so, back to the shared room he, Kirlia, and Orthros go to try and get some sleep for the night (or what little sleep a Delta Houndour with Insomnia needs, anyways).

Fred's probably not going to be able to believe his eyes when he sees a Delta Houndour for the first time.

[Lord Windos]

Without saying a word or even look at Ventus, she opened the door, stepped inside the room and closed the door behind her. After a portion of hesitaton she finally FINALLY made ito face Ventus. Directly and sternly. After a few moments later, words were spoken in a tone that displayed a deep exhaustion, yet no desire for sleep yet. Not that she would get some sleep right away anyway. "Ven... I'm back... Delta Houndour... Sadness, fear, confusion, why....still a dreamdemon, but not agressive... Can we just lay down, please?" At the latter, she made stept forward - a very shaky step, displaying that she meant it and just desires to lay down, beside to him. Despite everything, it was still the oddball of reseracher she grew to like that much. Or so she told herself.


(This in-game day is not over yet, it seems...)

Ventus knew almost instantly the moment Shiva was coming to his room, his heightened empathy (Due to his worries squarely focused on her) informing him well in advance her arrival once she entered within the radius of his extra sense, but he opted instead to wait patiently for her. 'There is no telling whether or not she wishes to see me so soon, if the flux of negative, anxious emotions emanating from her is any indication. If she wants my support and guidance I will glady them offer them, but if she desires peace for the night instead, I will not begrudge her,' he thought, carefully packing away his research notes (Which he had made some progress on) and his Egg and Haneal to their respective storage devices, leaving Abaddon to play around with all the Steel objects in the room for the time being. Highly curious that a Psychic type of all things would have a fascination with a substance that blocks their innate powers, but then again a child Wobbuffet with its HA was hardly part of the average, all things considered.

The sociologist paitently waited in his  for his blessed friend to enter their abode, worrying eating away at him as she came closer and closer, until she arrived, swiftly opening the door and closing behind it as she marched over too him after a moment of hesitation. This close, he could see and feel the almost unimaginable level of psychological and emotional distress/conflict she was enduring as she stared into his eyes and spoke to him, her own visage haggard as if the life was drained out of it by some extreme ordeal. Silently yet most vehemently and with extreme causticness he cursed that foolish boy Nathan for reducing both their almost literally magical friend to such a wretched state, very tempted to just punch him in the face at the next opportunity for the torment they caused her. Raphael, meanwhile, had hopped off Shiva's shoulder and glided over to where their blue demon sibling was, desiring to give the two people it cared deeply about time to themselves. Their presence alone was enough to soothe the most agitated spirits, and if need be they would glide back in to assist in matter more personally, but for now they waited.

For now, though, the researcher pushed such negative thoughts away, and in a fluid, smooth motion he left his sitting position and glided over to his closet friend (his secret crush)  , and enveloped her in the gentlest, most caring hug he could conjure up. "Anything for you, my dear, anything for you. Come, let us retire for the day and await tomorrow together, and be assured that Reshirim will surely bless it to be better than this most unfortunate day. You are safe now, so rest with me..." Ventus quietly mumured in her ear, carefully guiding her over to their bed and, in a suprising move, picked her up and place them on their side, before he smoothly took his place beside them. He had millions of questions as to how the reveal went with Orthros, what unsavory details the boy divulged about it, and what underhanded actions they enacted to pretty that demon dog's loathsome image up to her, but he let those question rest for now. There would be time enough to sort of the Kyurem damn mess that the bastard kicked up with his warped sense of priorities, and get everything straightened out with the group.

Right now, what was need was just to be with Shiva.

That was all.

[Spiritmon]

Heart still behind the wall who go to the lobby. He was tired after everything and decided to sleep. He go to his bed and fell in sleep.

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

For now, though, the researcher pushed such negative thoughts away, and in a fluid, smooth motion he left his sitting position and glided over to his closet friend (his secret crush), and enveloped her in the gentlest, most caring hug he could conjure up. "Anything for you, my dear, anything for you. Come, let us retire for the day and await tomorrow together, and be assured that Reshirim will surely bless it to be better than this most unfortunate day. You are safe now, so rest with me..." Ventus quietly mumured in her ear, carefully guiding her over to their bed and, in a suprising move, picked her up and place them on their side, before he smoothly took his place beside them. He had millions of questions as to how the reveal went with Orthros, what unsavory details the boy divulged about it, and what underhanded actions they enacted to pretty that demon dog's loathsome image up to her, but he let those question rest for now. There would be time enough to sort of the Kyurem damn mess that the bastard kicked up with his warped sense of priorities, and get everything straightened out with the group.

She let Raphael almost relucantly depart from her and watched how he flew over across the room. Now, with him not physically with her, she felt a tad bit more vulnerable... That is, before the Togekiss' owner came over and enveloped her into that hug that said more than any word at the moment could speak. Ventus was waiting for her... He likely knew what would happen between her and Nathan tonight... Did he already knew about the Delta Dog in Nathan's possession? Something in her told her a clear 'yes'. It echoed for while inside her.

He knew... Still he didn't told... He did all this to protect her. That's all he wanted... Protect what he holds dear - was this so bad? If it costs the life of a few dreamdemons, which noteably are Delta Species as well (Shiva still doesn't like them), so...be it then? She wasn't sure whether this was the right viewpoint... But whatelse was left for now? Pushing him away, when he wished for nothing but her wellbeing - how rude and disrespectful that sounded. Still, she cannot forget that his hands were stained in blood, the same hands that now carefully placed her down for rest. He even understood that she, still, wished for him to join her. Despite everything, she still does, and the first thing she did was taking off her glasses to both place them onto the near table (way more comfortable!) and whipe over her eyes with her arm, to stop any faintest tears she feared may be there, before simply holding careful eye contact with Ven, here in the darkness and silence of the room. She won't even care if she'll fall asleep in the clothes she currently wore.


... It took VERY long until she even said a word, but somewhat she knew Ven was still awake to hear them. Though just to make sure, she carefully touched one of his hands with hers. They weren't stained in blood right now. She doen't have much of the singing voice Ven has, so she rather went for calmy repeating the lyrics...


If I lay here
If I just lay here
Would you lie with me and just forget the world?

"You must have a TON of questions, Ven. You likely already knew why Nathan and me met up in a backroom, did you? Sure you did... You might still be interested in how it was and why I'm so...despowered right now... I'll answer them to you."


Forget what we're told
Before we get too old
Show me a garden that's bursting into life...

"He told me everything. Everything that has happened there after I collapsed from a battle that I took a bit too serious... How he entered a nightmare, how he saw the Houndour, how he stumbled over a few corpses of them and felt sorry for them... How he was concerned about who was killing them, how he asked whether one of these dogs would like to come with him to meet this 'killer' and have the pay... And how THAT ONE EXEMPLAR agreed. Eventually, the 'killer' has been revealed... *insert a break in silence here, as well as a held back sniffle* ...That was YOU, Ven. You killed them. You stained your hands in blood... But you did all this for me, did you? You felt like I was in danger... You held me close in your arms as he said.


I don't quite know
How to say
How I feel
Those three words are said too much...

"You people continued and defeated the source of these nightmares... Finished. The threath seemed down. Now I know why the sleep issues in Corsage vanished somewhat overnights... He kept that one Delta Houndour though. Named him 'Orthros'. Told me why he kept him, wanted to tell me how he's different that his pack members... How he's friendly and loyal to him, how he's was sure he could need another friend. Do you think I bought that? Of course not. That is, until I FELT it. From the Ball the creature was contained in, came no aggression. Instead, faint happiness and hopefullness. This was so weird... Asked me whether I'd like to see that deltadog. This...HAPPINESS made me rethink for just once. Yet I don't trust that creature... Nathan was sad as he mentioned none believes him that this Pokemon is no harm. For him it may not be... But what about us? We made our own experiences, and throwing them away just because Nathan says there is nothing to fear is pure lying to ourselves. That dog didn't do anything to me in the end... I asked Nathan to please accept the way we think about Orthros. He can go on and proove his point that there is nothing to fear, I'm all down with that, As long as he doesn't force us to think his way... We have a right to disagree, have we? We are free to think on our own, have our own viewpoint formed by experiences, do we?"

After a while (where Ventus has a chance to respond something to everything that has been said until now), she answered the question on her own. "Yes, we have. I don't want to be aggressive and outright hate Orthros unless he gives me reason to do so, but neither do I want to be too close to him that i might enjoy... Respectful distance. By all means, he can keep the dog... As long as he doesn't force us care, right? Also, guess what? My Espurr, Kyuu, originates from the Dream World. He wasn't even scared of the delta dog... He assured me there is nothing to fear, actually... I wouldn't be a good Master if I'd premit him to play and interact with the dog when he likes. I left things like this."

"In the end, that is what happened... We're still here... You're still here... I never said 'Thank You' for how you saved me there in the nightmare, did I? I don't know how things came that way...Actually, you all deserve my thanks? All in all, this is a mess... A damn confusing mess... However, thank you that you've waited for me to return..."


I don't know where
Confused about how as well
Just know that these things will never change for us at all.

After reviewing all this, Shiva felt even more depowered, but at the same time relieved... Let's hope she'll find some rest eventually. She likely won't fall asleep that fast though.


(Just in case, here's the song the lyrics belong to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaKr98ktoxU)

[Dragonstrike]

Upon reaching the room and checking his pokedex to boot up that white noise app, Kirlia and Orthros both by his side, Nathan notices he got a text some time ago...

"Vivillon is mine indeed. She will be a good companion to Moran, who is now a Parasect. I also have a Voltorb, who says hi. Great job hatching that egg, all! I haven't been in touch with Mallorn at all since I sent it to Shiva...not even sure he knows she has it for sure. I'm honestly not sure I would ever be one to evolve a Pancham."

"I'm currently working back toward retirement by having lots of Pokemon battles. I saw Corporal Wake the other day, btw. He says hi too. I like to listen to his cop stories - much more relaxing than mine. Hope to see ya again someday."

'It's from Vincent...he replied...that's...that's great...'

He's quick to type out a reply.

Tell them all I said hi back.  Hearing some friendly hellos for once is...rather nice, to be frank...hatching the egg was all Shiva's doing, though.  She wouldn't even let me (nor anyone else) carry it for even a second.

What pattern does that Vivillon's wings have, if I may ask?  Something mountainous, I assume?  You encountered her in the Great Divide, right?

Nice to hear Moran evolved.  And you actually caught that Voltorb you went after?  That's...great to hear, actually.  It's not been causing too much trouble for you, has it?

And how's Winston doing?  Same friendly, active little bugger as always, right?  I'm sure he would love to meet some of our newer pokemon...

Message sent, it's time to get to try and sleep, white noise playing in the background to help blot out the sounds of the city.  He was just ready to put all this trouble with Orthros aside, finally not having to worry too much about keeping him a secret...

Kirlia falls asleep right next to him soon after, happy that Nathan found something positive to hold on to tonight...

Orthros is curled up at their feet, keeping watch.  He'd take a nap eventually, but he doesn't need much sleep.

Ready for Day 32 (Well, unless something else happens that causes Orthros to wake Nathan up in the middle of the night)

[Lord Windos]

I don't quite know
How to say
How I feel
Those three words are said too much...


After a while (where Ventus has a chance to respond something to everything that has been said until now), she answered the question on her own. "Yes, we have. I don't want to be aggressive and outright hate Orthros unless he gives me reason to do so, but neither do I want to be too close to him that i might enjoy... Respectful distance. By all means, he can keep the dog... As long as he doesn't force us to care, right? Also, guess what? My Espurr, Kyuu, originates from the Dream World. He wasn't even scared of the delta dog... He assured me there is nothing to fear, actually... I wouldn't be a good Master if I'd premit him to play and interact with the dog when he likes. I left things like this."

"In the end, that is what happened... We're still here... You're still here... I never said 'Thank You' for how you saved me there in the nightmare, did I? I don't know how things came that way...Actually, you all deserve my thanks? All in all, this is a mess... A damn confusing mess... However, thank you that you've waited for me to return..."


I don't know where
Confused about how as well
Just know that these things will never change for us at all.

After reviewing all this, Shiva felt even more depowered, but at the same time relieved... Let's hope she'll find some rest eventually. She likely won't fall asleep that fast though.


(Just in case, here's the song the lyrics belong to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaKr98ktoxU)

The empath could almost taste the restless, disjointed, mess that was mind of his dearest friend, as she struggled to cope with everything she had learn just a few moments prior to entering their room, causing him to internally frown and wince. 'Why, Nathan? Why would you do this to her, when you held all the power, all the opportunity in this world to shield her from that wretch beast of yours? Why, even after all the anguish you subjected her, do I still feel that she would still call you a friend? At this point, I hardly believe anyone should hold such affection towards you, seeing as you abuse it to no end,' Ventus thought to himself, staying straight into the eyes of Shiva while laying by their side, carefully accepting her touch as she hesitated for a moment....before she spoke of her meeting with that utter bastard of a boy. In truth, he was almost insanely curious as to what transpired between them, even if he preferred she get some rest and recount events later instead, so he let her speak without interruption for now. Hopefully talking about it would help ease her burdens....

....Even if only by sharing them with him. He listened with a hard look in his eyes, shadowed by lingering vistages of deep unhappiness and anger, before he let out a dead sounding sigh, and decided to speak, his tone calm and in control (for the most part) as he recounted the events surrounding those abominations deaths, and more...

".....It was not his place to tell you those details, Shiva, but yes, I did kill a pentad of that nightmarish abomination's ilk. One that approached us with the intent to either terrorize or hunt us for substanance, and four that came from the shadows to 'avenge' its death when I slayed it for daring to treat my own as prey for the slaughter. I warned them to stay back, to flee and learn from the example I made of their pack make for its trecheroy, but they would not be swayed and descended upon us like the twisted hounds they were. I warned them, and they did not listen, so I made them suffer for their folly. Raphael killed one with Sky Attack, Apsis devoured another, and I killed two more myself in brutal ways. All to make a point to the rest of those fiends in the shadows: that we were not to be trifled with, and that if they DARED tried to molest anyone of us, they would share the same fate as their vile ilk. It worked; I managed to keep you safe and ward of those demons while I made progress out of the hell I somehow found myself in, until I had the mixed blessing of re-uniting with Nathan there. You know the rest of the details....or most of them anyway."

"............I killed those farces of Pokémon to protect you, my dearest. To protect myself, and the rest of my Pokémon as well. I killed them to protect us all. I did what I thought at the time, and still believe today, was the right thing to do. It was right because, no matter how much Nathan denies it by claiming he has 'tamed' that loathsome dog of his, no matter how much of its Loyalty he's earned or the level of discipline he's instilled in it, it is an undeniable that thing and its ilk are all monsters. Ones that preys on both fear and flesh, that can warped and distort the dream of entire towns into horrid nightmares if it ever reaches its full potential, a beast that can slip in and out of our reality on a whim, that can strike us at anytime with no hope of defense. Ones that nearly claimed our lives in that twisted plain the species calls home, or would have driven us deeper into the world, frightening and trapping us with no hope of rescue! Its not wrong to dislike them, to despise them and everything they stand for! Its not wrong to disagree with the opinion of a foolish boy who knows not the terror they can bring, or the danger it poses if he loses control of the damnable creature for just a moment?! They are demons,  monsters, a blight on this very world, and I just can't understand WHY that blasted boy does not understand that?! "

(...)

"...Once I discovered he had somehow managed to capture one of those increadibly dangerous, I tried to reason with him to get rid of it at the soonest convenience. I brought up Dr. Mallorn and one of my own associates who's focus squarely lies in the study of Dream World/Pokémon and told them that they would be able to contain and study the damn thing without keeping it for himself, but he would not listen to my advice. The only thing I could do was ask him to keep it contained and out of sight, to not force it upon either myself or you for a few days, so that we could recover from the trauma. Until recently, I had thought he put it away forevermore or headed my advice and ridded himself of the beast, but it appears that I was terribly wrong in assuming he had that much sense left in him. Why in Reshirim's, Zekrom's, and Kyurem's name did he not god damn listen? Why....."

The sociologist went silent at that last question trailed off into the darkness, now a bit drained from dredging up those awful memories and giving life to the once more, but he would suffer such a burden if it meant that Shiva would be well informed about HIS perspective on matters. It would not do to let Nathan paint a pretty picture of that monster of his without contest, after all. Ventus was surprised, though, when Shiva choose to continue speaking, further divulging her stance with that creature that is a mockey of all dog Pokémon and coming to terms with her feelings with it. He was rather curious to hear that Kyu was from the Dream World as well, and almost scowled at hearing that fact that it was chased around by Orthros. He didn't doubt what Shiva said was true, of course, but what he did doubt was the intension of that fiend. 'It could be trying to lure her kitten into a false sense of security, building up its trust until the right opportunity comes.....and it can strike. Well, neither I or Shiva will let that happen, that is for certain,' the paranoid researcher thought to himself, before hearing the rest of Shiva's speech as she finally winded down from her emotional high. He was thankful for the darkness in the room, for his blush would be most apparent to her otherwise, but he managed to suppress it and gave his most cherished friend a tired but genuine smile.

"No, you don't have to be, my dear. Hatred is an....ugly emotion, and I do not want you staining your heart with it unless its absolutely justified, so let me be the one that bears a grudge against it. We'll both keep our distance from the wretch beast while its out, and I'll be ready to protect you should it ever lose control of itself or Nathan prove ultimately incompetent in handling it in the long run. I promise you this. I suggest you limit contact between your Pokémon and it, so as not to unduely risk them or give Nathan the wrong impression, as just because we have to tolerant his choice in Pokémon does not mean we shouldn't beware it."

"....You also do not have to thank me for what I did. I only did what anyone else would have: protect someone that cared for, no matter the cost. I'll always there for you, whether right by you side like now, or a comforting presence that you can always rely upon," Ventus whispered to her, reaching over with his other hand to fondly rubbed her hair once more, before he closed his eyes and prepared to drift away into slumber. No doubt he would hear anything else she had to say in response, but he was dead tired from all the stress and worry he's been subjected to today, so he would simply listen and hold his peace until another day. Hopefully she wouldn't begrudge him of that.

Order: Ventus has said his piece, and will be going to sleep soon. He'll listen to whatever else Shiva has to say, but he will not respond and instead file it away for later discussion, so if she has more to say, you can immediately proceed to the next day after Phantom posts it. I'm just ready to get started and move on from this...somehow or another.