[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

Slaking suddenly notices a dim light glowing above the closed marble doors. "We have visitors." He touches a panel and a one-way peephole opens. You can see an ARMY of Scimitars outside, each wearing a gauntlet. There must be fifty of the robed figures. They are examining the reinstated force field, the steps, the Apricorns, and the Guardians, careful not to touch anything. But some of the Scimitars are firing attacks with a wave of their hand - purple and red and greenish beams of power lancing out to strike the forcefield.

Eventually one knocks on the marble doors and you can see him mouthing, "Hello?"

The eldest Scimitars look like they are about to confront the Guardians.

Slaking: "Hehe, if they get your riddles wrong, they'll be sent right back into the shifting passages of Mt. Sentry. And that shifting will be hastened, and several Onix will be summoned by the vibration. Hooligans." He doesn't seem TOO worried, perhaps because his Library can't get any messier.

Rather carefree, Shiva was just browsing nearby shelves for additional information about Ginger Town's Spring Festival to add them to her freshly bound notebook of Shaymin while Luxi and Cottonee played on the table, as THAT opening from noble Slaking arrived her ears.

Instantly, she froze in shock and disbelief, dropping a promising scroll she was just picking. The casuality, joy and peacefulness she was feeling (and enjoying) here within Atheneum has been wiped from her mind in an instant, what remained were......Fear. Terror. Hate. Wrath. Disbelief how they've made it so far....

......and a pure and shining light that was nothing more than the HOPE that things will be well. That they won't enter, that their all riddles were good enough and IF they'd make their way in here anyway, it'll be swift and without huge trouble for them all.

Slaking's attitude of remaining calm for the most part did well to ease her a little, but Shiva didn't make it to make a single sound. The fear was paralyzing, and she was only half-present as she rather hasted shoved all the things about Shaymin + her personal stuff that she has spread on the table into bagpack, not leaving the tiniest hint that she and the group were residing here. "Delphox", she adressed her magical fox with a serious and blank expression, "please chant for me. For us. You, too, Chi... Let your both's Lucky Chant fill this library with blessing, that's the least we can do." Once that has been fulfilled, ALL of Shiva's Pokemon are withdrawn - except Dizzy. Mission NOT YET complete.

All she now wanted was to hide among the others at the safest place possible according to wise Slaking, enjoying Sacred Hospitality - right now, she didn't feel bad for taking the coward's course of action and play 'There's none here'. If these Scims found them all - may pure Reshiram and wishful Zekrom have the greatest amount of mercy with them.

After Ventus made his subdued inquiry to Slaking, he shuffled over to Shiva's side with that same look of tense apprehension painted across his face and quietly took one of her hands and gripped it tightly, both as an gesture of comfort to her AND himself. Right now he is avoiding directly gazing at his mi amore out of lingering unease + he didn't want her to see how vulnerable he was an invariably that feeling over to her (anymore than she is feeling right now, anyway), but its clear as day he's concerned and attentive for her sake.

'.....I wish I could do more for her, be the braver, more tolerant man that I have always inspired to become. Curse my dreadful, pitful nature...….curse my weakness and failure in my duties to her.....'

How wonderful - how ironic. Shiva has wished for Ventus' closure and assurance that he still cares for her like he did before after having succumbed to the Gauntlet's call and become more than human - she may have also wished that the circumstances were different, as she could literally feel how he was trying not to shiver when she returned his grip of his hand.

She avoided looking into his face for more than a second for the same reasons he had and remains highly tense and silent, but she very carefully wrapped her other arm around his waist to pull him close. She's relieved that he definitely understood that even the faint thought of fighting/confronting that ARMY of Scims there was plain madness - now, they could only wait and hope for the best while providing a certain sense of safety to one another.