[Game] Lord Windos' PokeRole Adventure: Celadon City Vandel

[Dragonstrike]

......Do you her whispers?

Spoiler

Weavile looks just a tad offended for a second, really.  (Which definitely interrupts any purring he'd been doing)

As does Reiner for just a moment.

...though it's soon followed by a heavy sigh with closed eyes.  "...given what nearly happened here in this very room after four years...can't say I blame you too much for not wanting to fully trust us with such a delicate mission after just one..."

Weavile quickly deflates a little himself alongside Taylor, I imagine.  Particularly since he's one of the primary reasons they got caught back at the Dragon Shrine originally...as much as he doesn't like it, there's not really any way to sugarcoat that fact right now...and the droop in his ears makes it quite obvious, really...while he is quite cocky and confident most of the time, he does feel bad about what his actions caused 4 years ago...even though you'd be hard pressed to get him to admit that most of the time...Taylor of all people implying his skills are lacking definitely takes a little spring out of his step, though...

Silence.  Painful silence.  Reiner knows he's far from the only one who didn't like what Taylor just said...he just hopes that the obvious eavesdropper that he can't do anything about doesn't think too ill of Taylor since it is rather valid reasoning...(and Reiner indeed knows that she is definitely listening in, even if it is only because Taylor mentioned her earlier...)
[......I Would Do No Harm Or Misfortune To Taylor Dragonsong, Dragonstrike. Even Though She So Sorely Deserves It So. She Is Reiner's. To Do With As He Wishes. For Better.....Or For Worse. If He Does Not Wish For Me To Punish Her.....So It Shall Be......]
Oof.

And that's probably when Reiner asks about the scars, if only for a slight topic change.

Thing is, though...while he IS concerned that a Dragonsong 'Mence munched on Taylor...he finds that...odd. Again, why was a Salamence patrolling the Secret Breeding Grounds?  As far as he knows, they aren't usually used as guard Dragons by the Elders...they're much more likely to use bulkier Dragonair, Dragonite, and Kingdra for guard duty...particularly Extreme Speed using members of the Dratini line, which can deliver quick ambushes and/or warnings much faster than most other Dragons usually can...a Salamence is hardly a subtle choice beause of its more violent tendencies...and Fly doesn't afford it many advantages over a Dragonite in the Dragon's Den, either, particularly since a Dragonite can also use the move, and the Elders definitely have access to HMs...oh, and Salamence can't swim nor use Water HMs, either, unlike Dragonite and Kingdra...

Hmmmmm...time to dig for more info.

"...why did it take you a year to find Lucy?  It was only a week after she'd been birdnapped when you started looking, and she was obviously still somewhere in Blackthorn, right?"

Watch them echo and resound......

Spoiler

For an instant, Taylor appeared completely flabbergasted at your extraordinarily mild reaction to the news, and then even more taken aback by how accepting you were about it. What? Whatwhatwhatwhat? How?! How in the Underworld can Reiner be so....so blase and chill about THAT?! She basically declared she had no faith in him at the time and left him hanging COMPLETELY, which was almost certainly responsible for them being separated for a little under half a decade and about three quarters of the Taroushit his dealt with all this time. 

She was expecting to be verbally hogtied and absolutely butchered by him due to his/his family's infamously bad temper, but.....but not this! Not this at all! Weavile's sharp decline into despondence rather vitriol also caught her off guard, as seeing him of all Pokemon get moody instead of mad was an unpleasant surprise, to say the least.

What...in the world...."......I Hardly Understand His Mercy With You Either. After All He Has Endured From You, Within And Without.... .....But That Is A Part Of What Makes Him So Wonderful. You Do Not Deserve His Grace, Yet He Gives It Anyway..... My Love.......A Dragon King Both Terrible and Kind......"
Altogether, your old partner was feeling very mixed up, confused, and arguably even worse than before. Sometimes, acceptance and understanding does not absolve one of grief, shame, or guilt, but only magnify it in their mind.

"......That's it? That's......all you have to say about that? About me keeping you in the dark, out of the loop, and practically dumpster firing you 'cause I didn't had a lick of confidence in you, Weavile, and Kingdra? ......Why? Why ain't ya madder at me? Thought you reach across the table and throttle me half to death after revealing that rotten kernel of truth, or at least kick me out of your suite and want nuthin to do with me EVER. Expected Weavile to add to my collection of scars too, even! But....not this. I know I'm not in the position to ask you anything, but.......why?"
".....I Admit, I Am Curious To Know Too. .....But She Is Also Right, In That She Deserves Nothing Good From You, My Love....."
After you answer her, she lapses into moody silence for several minutes as she did her best to re-gather her wits and regain a semblance of her former composure and swagger, and answers your next question with a ghost of a smile.

"Heh heh....so you ARE curious about that, huh? Well, I'll spill the Pokebeans. Heh.....say what you will about the Elders, but they can be - and often are - the craftiest, sneakiest, resourceful, and most secretive buggers this side of the world. Guess all that age and experience they have is good for something other than gripping, shoddy rulership, and turning them into hidebound bastards, eh? Anyway, searched for her everywhere in Blackthorn the first week, even the Dragon's Den, but like you she wasn't anywhere. Yet I knew without a shadow of a doubt she was still in the city, as I know those old bastards would sell or outsource my Lucy, not with how ludicrously precious she was. So.......I decided to switch tracks of investigating entirely. Instead of sleuthing around in the dark or out of sight, I decided to start searching right under their nose. "

"*Smiles wickidly* Heh heh.....that's right Reiner, I went undercover. Disguised myself as a lowly peasant maid, and infiltrated the Dragopolis, where all the Elders and their retainers live, right in the thick of the Blackthorn Aristocratic quarter, and Rx'yamz-zma's Doraut (Draconic for Rayquaza's Seat), where all the Elders work. Was hella risky, and slow beyond belief, but if they was anyway to suss out where the hell they Pachirisu's my girl away, then gathering information and rooting around the nerve center of Blackthorn was it. Its also part of the reason why I never got into touch with ya, since I was in deep cover, but......*Frowns*....I bet I could have managed to anyway, if I wasn't intent on shutting you out. *Shakes head, and slyly grins* Heh heh.....and you know what's the best part? They never suspect me once. Completely pulled the Mareep's wool over their eyes, and learned so many juicy things you'd think you were in a orchard of Berries, ripe for the picking, heh heh!"

"Turns out they were holding her in a place they called Forger's Firmament. Essentially, it's a black ops, super secret version of the Dragon Shrine, scaled up by a factor of umpth million. Any sensitive intel or Important Texts, any BEYOND priceless treasures, any dangerous or esoteric artifacts or weapons, and any persons or Pokemon they want vanished or out of sight? Goes right in there, and never comes out without the Elder's supervision, and not without the Head Elder's approval. Part of it includes another Secret Breeding Grounds, where they house all their super rare and dangerous Dragons and their Eggs, and conduct their most secret and.....out there breeding projects and experiments, and that's where they were keeping Lucy and......*Wrinkles nose is disgust* You know. Against her will. Yeah. Was boiling pissed when I found that out. *Voice darkens* ...Took all my restraint and then some not to quietly go on a throat slitting spree on those responsible for her treatment. "

..."......If You Had Done That, I Might Have Looked Upon You More Kindly, And With Less Reservations. For Even In Your Betrayal To Reiner, You Would Have Done A Great Service For Him, By Exacting JUDGEMENT And JUSTICE With Their Executions."

"*Coughs awkwardly, then continues in her normal voice*....All of it is located right underground of Dragopolis, and its only entrance is hidden within the heart of Rx'yamz-zma's Doraut. Its patrolled and guarded only by the most Elite Blackthorn Dragon Tamers that are sworn to secrecy and were practically raised for the job, and a bunch of tough, mean old Dragons from the Elders they rotate in and out of duty that'll maul anyone they ain't familiar with on sight. Which I guess included me, given that 'Mence that found me didn't take too kindly for my 'tour' of the place, heh..... "

...".......You Can Not Fault A Dragon, For Guarding Its Domain. Especially From Intruders And Interlopers Like You......."

"*Frowns* So.....as you can probably tell, Lucy was being held in the equivalent of a hidden ultra max security facility. Finding out about the place wasn't easy, and learning anything about it was frustrating AND dangerous like a ornery Dragon. *Rolls eyes* And don't get me started on what it took to actually break into and get out of that labyrinthine nightmare of a monster den. I've cased and robbed one of the Sterling Family Banks before, and it was even half as difficult as pulling off a stealthy heist on the Firmament. Heck, I , THE master thief extraordinaire - if I do say so myself-, almost got killed down there by freak chance. If the Dragons down their had KILL on sight orders.....well, that just says it all, eh?"

...".........The Dragon Clan Still Uphold Their Responsibility, After All These Eons........ It Would Be Admirable......Were It Not For The Nature Of Their Sacred Duty........."

"Once I learned all that - besides the murderously defensive Dragons part, of course - by that first year's end.....*Grimaces*....well, it just re-affirmed my decision to keep you out of my plans. I already doubted you enough before learning everything to just exclude you entirely, but everything I uncovered about the Forger's Firmament just screamed 'Here There Be DRAGONS, Both Metaphorically and REAL' , it would be suicidally stupid to bring a green horn thieves like you all along. *Frowns Deeper* ......Nothing was stopping me from simply coming back and training you up with me to pull of that rescue of the century, though, no matter how long it took. Its not like Lucy wasn't going anywhere and they knew about my plan, so I had all the time in the world to get us all prepared if I wanted. *Bows Head* .....But I didn't. I wanted to rescue Lucy and punish those Elders ASAP for forcing us all into a bad deal. Didn't want to waste any time doing that, or take ANY risks that sink my plans like the Titanic. Heh...didn't want to put you all in danger too, but....that was only a side concern of mine at that point, since....you know. Not going to repeat myself there. Again."
".....I Agree. You Should Not."
An uneasy silence fell upon the living room for a few seconds at that reminder, before your old partner *Sighed* and gave you a wan smile.

"Welp, since I told just about everything concerning Lucy, might as well fill out the rest of the details. *Shrugs* You know, for completeness sake, and....*Smile gets a bit brighter* heh, well, you'll see. Part of my plans for after rescuing my girl included raiding the entirety of Dragopolis and the Elders of a good chuck their valuables, both an extra 'Fuck You' to them and give them a bigger mess to distract and divide their attention. From the Firmament, I left all the treasure there alone, as I didn't know what most of it was worth, other than the fact the Elders of bygone times deemed it 'worthy' to keep it down in there, and that taking any of it would probably cause me more problems than not. Same with the artifacts or weapons I came across, as I didn't know what they did or how to use them, but did know that if I took them the Elders would definitely been more earnest in finding their thief except when they discovered my handiwork. *Chuckles* .....Weeeell, except for this cloak I'm wearing here. Bet you've already noticed its unique properties already, but just to show off a bit...."

She motions with it for a second at the table, causing it to instantly change color, texture, and appearance to match the object and everything between it as closely as possible, before within it back to her side, where it promptly resumed its mimicry of the coach.

"Heh heh....pretty sweet, eh? Its called the Keckleon's Cloak, and it not only perfectly blends into the environment, but it conceal everything I have on me flawlessly, doesn't make a sound and reduces all the noise I make to boot, and has a crapton of storage space that's easy peasy to sort through and can fit almost anything in it. Stumbled upon this baby in a remote, dusty storage room, with instructions on what it was, did and how to use it oh so helpfully in a scroll beside it, and like hell I was going to turn my nose up at a thief's wet dream like THAT! Replaced it with one of my own spare cloaks that looked like it and made it dusty to keep anyone from figuring out I nicked it, and went about on my search! This was all after I got munched on by that 'Mence, by the way. If I had it with me then, all......our troubles would have been....avoided. *Blank Face* Huh....when I think of it like that, it makes this score bittersweet, eh?"

...".......Indeed It Does. Indeed It Does......."

"*Sighs* ....Let's not think of it that way then, nope. Anywho, I of course rescued my Lucy from the Firmament's Secret Breeding Grounds, but I also took the opportunity to raid the entire hatchery of all the Eggs it had. *Smirks* That, more than anything else, was the biggest score I made that night, and one that hurt and probably still is hurting the Elder immensely to this day. What do you think of that, Reiner?"

Oh my. Oh my.

To put into perspective the sheer audaciousness and costly impact of her Egg napping, note that the breeding of Dragons: A) Is Hazardous to varying degrees (Depending on the sub-species you're working with), B) Takes a Long time to do, as Dragons don't breed all too often and seldom lay anymore than one Egg at a time for months, if not years, C) Raising Dragons takes a Looooong time and is Hazardous for patently obvious reasons, and D) Dragons with even half decent pedigrees and untrained are worth their weight in gold, and the price only balloons from that point on. Add in the fact that these were not only Blackthorn Dragon Eggs, but were the latest offspring from Top Secret and experimental breeding project personally overseen and managed by the Elders, and.....let's just say the ramifications of her theft were astronomically huge, and leave it at that. 

By the Dragon Gods......".......Despite My Animosity, I Can Not But Help Admire And Be Impressed. At The Lengths She Went Through To Rescue Her Ward......And To Also Reap Vengeance Against Those That Wrong Her and Reiner. ......This Does Not Absolve Her Of The Sins and Wrongs She Committed Against My Love........But It Shines Favorably On Her, None Of The Less."
"*Wickedly grins* Sold the Eggs off later for an nice sum later, but most of that money towards paying off old debts and......*Frowns briefly* well, searching for you. That didn't pay off so nicely, but I've already beaten on that horse enough for one night, so no more talking about it. *Waves it off* 'Sides, any Poke spent on you in Poke well spent, even if it turned out in vain-ish. And......*Raises hands* that's about it, I guess *Clasps them*. I've done for Lucy, all my plans laid out in magnificent detail, and telling ya that I didn't just straight up abandon you on purpose. Should be everything, except what I've been up to since I left ya mom's, but there are other days we can talk about that, because frankly? I'm all talked out now, and I really don't want to make anymore big speeches tonight, unless I have to. Ugh......all of them made me crappy, you crappy, and given me a parched throat. Enough is enough. *Sighs* Man, I would dig a glass of water about now......"

And with that, Taylor quiets down and straightens up from the couch, eyeing you with curiosity and uncertainty as she awaits your reaction to this latest and hopefully (to her) last tale of the night. Its been a wild and tumultuous trip down memory lane for her and for you, so perhaps its time for a rest stop for the night, like she said...

[Do forgive my skepticism, oh Queen of the Underworld.  When one is in a position such as mine, you can't help but be wary on occasion.]

"...I've spent the last four years blaming myself for a lot of the things that have happened as well, Taylor.  And while I've had my...reservations...it's good to know you never really gave up, even when it seemed you had no other choice.  It's a lot better than what I ended up doing, really...four years is a long time to think about what you could've done differently...heck, even a week can be a long time to be doing that..."

In short, he's not really sure that he really deserves such dedication from Taylor.  Yeah, she made that promise and everything, and she did her best to keep her end of it...

...but what did he do?  Up and vanished himself when he began to lose faith that she'd come back, and started pursuing his own plans on his own.  Despite all that time the two of them spent together, and even after Taylor had...

...it's funny how things work sometimes, isn't it?  Guilt is quite the funny little emotion sometimes...

...and he still hasn't told Kingdra to this day about that final event, for fear of what she might have thought of Taylor after he'd lost faith that she'd return for one reason or another...

...they say one good turn deserves another...but when neither feel they are deserving, what would you call that?  It's a question with many answers, and many potential resolutions, both good and bad...
...anyways...the next few minutes are a good opportunity for Reiner and Weavile to regain their composure too.

...which is a good thing, because the last part of Taylor's story...ooh...boy...

...what a doozy.

The breeding grounds that Salamence had been patrolling weren't the ones in the Dragon's Den, but another set hidden in the heart of the city...along with who knows what else...heck, that's probably where the Elders had also been keeping...

...tonight sure is certainly full of unexpected revelations, isn't it?  One can't help but count their blessings when details such as this come to light...

Honestly, Reiner doesn't have much to say about the finale or isn't immediately sure what to say.  He does find one part of the last portion of Taylor's story strange, though.  And it's strange enough that he can help but ask...

"...they were...but why are they that interested in a bird pokemon?  I know they don't usually have electrical abilities that strong, but...she's still only a bird pokemon, right?  Don't tell me she's actually..."  Oh yes, yes she is, Reiner.  But I know that you'll have to hear it from Lucy's trainer herself before you'll actually fully believe it...hehehe...hope she's got her sources straight.
Oh, and also...

"...ah, right....if you need a glass of water, I can let Mr. Mime know you need one.  I'm sure he'll be more than happy to help."