[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[Dragonstrike]

*impercibly sigh* "Nathan, do allow me to help you before you freeze to death right here on the spot. Kirlia, if you allow..." Carefully, Shiva drew the first thing that felt like a sweater from Nathan's bag, then handed it to Kirlia. "There you are."

Kirlia gives Shiva a very thankful look, then carefully takes hold of the Castform egg while Nathan slips the green tweed sweater on.  After he's put it and his coat back on, he makes sure to pull his necklace out from under the sweater as well (kinda surprised nobody's commented on it yet, tbh).  Orthros comes back out again as well since he's a very warm doggie, and he's more than happy to snuggle up in Nathan's arms.  He's loving all the extra attention from Nathan lately! Kirlia carefully sets the egg (which is still wrapped in the fluffy Primal Altaria Down) in Nathan's bag.

"Th...thanks.  So...we need to h...h...head...west.  The other End is...o...ov...over there somewhere.  I...th...think.  No t...t...time to...l...lose."

He does turn to Primal Altaria before doing anything else, though.  "Th...thank y...you...for heeding...the call.  If I may ask, is th...there anyth...thing you could do to he...help Stair City while we s...search for the t...tip of the t...tusk?  And is there anything you can t...tell us that might help us f...find it more qui...quickly?"

The Great Divide: Mt. Bristle - Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky

[Iron]

Altaria just looks North. It is there that she must go...

[Spiritmon]

"Ah I dont feel much freeze." Say Heart seeing Nathan tremble in fear. "I already face some complicated places in truly tundra. Besides..." Say Heart bringing Rose with flame warm everyone. "I have a big heather to warm everyone. Dont need to thank me." Smile Heart.

[Dragonstrike]

Altaria just looks North. It is there that she must go...

Nathan bows his head in both slight disappointment and deep respect.  "...sorry for holding you up, then...be s...s...safe as you continue on your way."

Holding Orthros real close is definitely helping him warm up and stay that way a lot more quickly than just standing next to/sitting on Swiftfire had done the first time.  Nathan's quick to get on one of the three Metagross with Kirlia now that this business with the Southern Wind is done.  Now, where to specifically on the western end of the mountain range?  Hmmm...wherever they went, they couldn't stay long...only 5 days remain...they needed to travel as far and as fast as they could while the Tailwind was still guiding them...he'd have to review his notes later, see if he couldn't make an educated guess based on the information given...good thing he took a picture of that superimposed map Tandal had shown him...

He's taking the lead as usual again, but something's...different this time as well.  There's a distinct lack of confidence underneath all the raw determination and newfound hope...

So, yeah, if it wasn't clear, Orthros is staying out due to absolute necessity as much as any other reason.  Ventus and Shiva are just going to have to deal with it, as the dog's not going anywhere any time soon.  Also...we know Shiva and Ventus are definitely sharing a Metagross (why wouldn't they?), but are Valder and Heart going to share one, or is one of them going to ride with Nathan? (He'll recall Kirlia to make room if he has to)

[Spiritmon]

Heart simple go in the direction of his Metagross and go in his Metagross. He jump and Rose join with her Master. Heart thinks for a second and decided to join with Nathan. "Hey man? Can I join with you? I drive." Say Heart asking.

[Dragonstrike]

Heart simple go in the direction of his Metagross and go in his Metagross. He jump and Rose join with her Master. Heart thinks for a second and decided to join with Nathan. "Hey man? Can I join with you? I drive." Say Heart asking.

Nathan shrugs.  Neither he nor Kirlia particularly care right now, to be blunt, as long as it doesn't cause Nathan any additional stress.  Nathan hugs Orthros closer, giving him a good ol' scratch behind the ears as well.

Guess Valder gets to to be the one riding a metagross without someone else sitting next to him, then.

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

Back to get a hold on a Metagross after having helped out Kirlia drawing a sweater from bag. For a moment, she was suprised that her hand touched a familiar green tweed during that process, but the next moment she remembered that Ven has lend him that one the last time he (Nathan) was freezing so much.

Due to their increased speed Shiva had to keep a firmer hold to stay mounted on a Metagross, she quickly managed this as this wasn't the first time the group travels via these intelligent yet cold Steely Types. Speaking of cold, the Ranger's Cloak, staying close to Ventus and especially that plesant feeling she had during the flight among the Incarnate's fluff kept her warm.

During the ride, she was looking through the Guidebook as well as some of her notes. All Chreshire can be seen from the peak of Mt. Sentry, if one gets on top of it with a sturdy Pokemon or the tunnels honeycombing the mountain... Both Cress and Stair City are connected via tunnel too... She was somewhat amused how a city who kept her traditions strong and a steely city of advanced technology are directly connected. Was...was it really concidence that the vines attacked the less ancient city? Anyway, what did Tandal mentioned again? ...Ah, the other end of the earths would be the Tusk's tip - but that's a mountain, a spear, and a meeting place! Torch Sing also mentioned in 'Myth of the Southern Stars' that the indigenous people of the Swamp rarely mention the stars unique for the region, but they clearly did here... But what's with that rare chance to find a unique legend within these stars? From the tip of a mountain, stars certainly are more than visible at clear sky...! There was also that vision from Gothitelle...?



----------------
Mechanics:
Shiva lets Heart and Nathan on a Metagross lead, but I don't think her senses are strong/honed enough yet to pick up that lack of confidence from Nathan. As for Orthros, she simply ignores him with gusto. She's also more concentrated to get any hint on where they have to go now by reviewing things... @Iron, is it possible that you do a Lore(?)-Roll with that one Willpoint spent by me added here, for the sake of getting any sensation of whether this feels like the right track, whether the peak of Mt.Sentry is the place to go?

[Lord Windos]

Your skin is chapped and your hair tousled as the Incarnation, now confident in her destination, accelerates! Creshire rushes by underneath you. Swamp becomes meadow, meadow becomes mountain, mountain becomes city.


Underneath, you can see the green tide of vines questing into Stair City. They have long since overwhelmed the wall, though you see occasional red flashes there. Indeed, the vines have raced quite quickly along the major streets in the north and have climbed over all the businesses and residents in that quadrant (supposed to be the first to evacuate). Where the vines have been the longest, they pull even concrete into rubble. Steel building frame have so far not been affected, but the damage looks intense.

In a flash, you have passed over the Skull Ruins, where only one spire protrudes above the green sea, and to the edge of the vines. The Southern Wind lands on a mountainous peak west of the disaster area. The Metagross immediately clamp to it.

As you dismount, you notice that the Tailwind effect lingers, and your Pokemon spend a little time climbing up and down boulders at high speeds. The Metagross can move as fast as a train in this way, despite whatever terrain the Great Divide throws at them.

The intense breeze, the sight and majesty of Primal Alteria soaring through the open sky, the fact that everyone including himself wear actually flying along with the ancient cloudy songbird......all of this and more lead Ventus into an enthralled state quite like no other in his life (Other than the time he saw Reshirim themselves by N's side, of course!) ! His mind was also paradoxically racing too as he darted along the air currents, taking in the phenomena/S.W.I. before him with keen eyes the practically sparkled with intrigue/intense curiosity, intent on remembering every possible detail for later review/scrutiny for his research notes. Seeing the pieces on P.A. fluff around Shiva/Nathan's Eggs also made him make a mental note to self to either request some of the down himself for his own Egg in the future/as a genetic sample, or ask for a tuff from either Nathan or Shiva. Flying through the air with a bordline Legendary/Mythical Dragon Pokémon on a quest to save the city......it was like a dream come true to the Pokémon Researcher, one that he hoped would never end.......

..........The sight of Stair City being swamped and devastated by those Vines sharply curtailed such feeling of merriment/awe, sadly. It was just a testament and reaffirmal in the paranoid scientist mind how NOTHING magical/arcane could ever be trusted to be anything but evil, horrible, and destructive, spurring on those feelings of pure loathing and hatred as he now more than ever wanted to end their reign of tyranny once and for all! 'One way or another, we'll get to the root of these tenacious Vines and tear them asunder, scouring them from the earth and save everyone we can, doing everything within our power to achieve this goal! Reshirim, Zekrom, and Kyurem, hear my prayer now, and grant us all your blessing that we may succeed in our epic quest to save all of Cheshire from this threat!'

Shortly after that vow/prayer, the group and the S.W.I. landed , where upon Ventus teattered around a bit on the uneven mountain ground as he got used to such a sudden change in terrain/travel, before he whipped out his camera in his bag to take about 5-6 pictures of Primal Alteria to go along with his report. Hey, just because he was on a quest to save Stair/Cheshire doesn't mean he's forgotten the main reason he came to the region in the first place (Well, besides escaping from his authoritative gov, that is). The empath then rapidly put the camera away and gave the majestic/mighty Dragon a deep, formal bow with all the inner born grace he could muster, and solemnly said to her: "We are greatly honored for you coming to our aid in our time of need Southern Wind Incarnate, and from the bottom of my heart I deeply thank you for this boon. If it does not trouble you, could you give some of your fluff to me as well, though? I noticed you gave some to my friend and, while I currently don't have an Egg on me, one of them is carrying it for me until such a time that I must look after it myself for the rest of its gestation, so I am humbly as you for this small boon as well.... Regardless, I wish you have safe travels to where ever you need be go. May the winds prove forever favorable to you!"

After that last exchange with the living pseudo Legend, the researcher was quick to hop onto his/Shiva's Metagross mount, ready and quite willing to get a move on to their next location.......though that euthasium was severely dampered by seeing that Nathan had elected to keep that wretch demon dog of his out. Knowing the boy's STUBBORNESS and DISTINCT LACK OF CARE FOR THE SENSIBILITY/FEARS OF OTHERS at this point, he knew that voicing his objections would lead nowhere but unnecessarily raised group tensions, so he grit his teeth and stay silent for the most part with a scowl on his face. That didn't stop him from glaring at the foolish boy with a Look that Kirlia could plainly interpret as : 'Its a miracle that your relationship with the group has not been torched to the ground at this point, given your apparent lack care for such things. Is it any wonder why, then, that we have such a unreasonably difficult time trusting and/or caring about you, when you don't appear to even humor our beliefs without great effort on our parts? Hope that abomination is truly worth our lost faith and confidence in you, Nathan.'

Order: Take Pictures, request some fluff, and journey towards (Hopefully!) the Ends of The Earth, all while seething angry that Nathan decided that, instead of having Rapidash out or asking for another sweater or two, he brings out the one creature he KNOWS that roughly half the party has reason to hate or distrust. Things never are easy between our characters, eh?

[Dragonstrike]

Orthros squirming in discomfort combined with the VERY offended/annoyed look and feelings Kirlia has are enough to catch Nathan's attention.  Even he could feel the tension in the air...

Nathan doesn't even look at Ventus as he crafts a response.

"...I swear to Mutios, Ventus, you're making a FAR bigger deal of this than you should be.  He's not done ANYTHING to anyone here, and he never will.  He has his own needs and desires, just like the rest of us, and I am not neglecting him like you seem to want me to do.  Please just drop the subject.  He isn't going anywhere near you.  Ever. Just let me hold the damn dog. He's perfectly fine with staying there."

[Lord Windos]

Nathan doesn't even look at Ventus as he crafts a response.

"...I swear to Mutios, Ventus, you're making a FAR bigger deal of this than you should be.  He's not done ANYTHING to anyone here, and he never will.  He has his own needs and desires, just like the rest of us, and I am not neglecting him like you seem to want me to do.  Please just drop the subject.  He isn't going anywhere near you.  Ever.  Just let me hold the damn dog.  He's perfectly fine with staying there."

Ventus chooses to turn his glare away from Nathan and irritably ignore them entirely, since both their feelings and beliefs on the matter are so diametrically opposed that it was pointless to even dean a response. The researcher despises the mere presence/existence of Orthros and the threat that will always be associated with it, and no amount of arguing for the fell beast's case will ever change how vehemently he feels about this. As far as the empath was concerned, the boy can jolly well cuddle his domesticated demon all he wanted; expecting him to ever put up with it beyond the lowest degree of tolerance and respect their decision to keep it, however, was not happening anytime soon (or possibly ever).