Double

World of Light

Word Count: 2,601
Level 8 Roxas: 28/80
Exp Gained: +3
NEW EXP Balance--- 31/80

Northeastern Skies

Roxas still had a bit of time after helping Midna with her problem, and the first thing he wanted to do was check out what would be his living quarters for the foreseeable future. His room was, ironically, Room 13. Given what these Lost Numbers seemed to know about all of them, Roxas couldn’t help but wonder if that was on purpose or not. Did they know enough about him to know how much of a connection that number actually had to him? Ah well, no sense in overthinking it.

Once there he let Scamp out of his Poke Ball so the two of them could look around the room and relax for a spell. During this time, Roxas changed out of his monochrome outfit again and back once more into his other casual outfit. He really didn’t want to look dressed for battle if the plan was merely to go down there and have some fun and celebrate. But unlike last time he was sure to stow his black outfit into the large main pocket of his trainer bag along with his gauntlets and mask. At least then they’d be handy if he happened to need them for anything.

But no sooner had he changed his clothes did he hear a knock on his door. Wondering who would possibly be visiting him, Roxas walked over and opened the door in order to answer. “Alola!” greeted the stranger standing before him. He was a man probably in his thirties and with quite the sun tan. Of course his age was hard to tell when he had platinum white hair, pulled back in what looked like some kind of bun or ponytail. Also his face was clean shaven save for the goatee on his chin, whose color was mostly white but also seemed to have bits of darker black mixed in as well. The old white lab coat he wore seemed to suggest he was a scientist, but he had to be a pretty casual one with the blue jeans, sandals, and tank top he wore underneath it.

”A…lo…la?” Roxas asked with confusion on his face.

“Oh, my apologies! Where my parents are from, ‘Alola’ is used as a way of saying hello and goodbye, you see.” The stranger clarified, “But where are my manners? My name is Koa.” He said with a big grin.

”Oh, uh, my name’s-”

“...Roxas.” Koa said, “I’ve heard. And I’ve also heard that you’ve got a Pokemon with you.” He leaned over and looked past where Roxas was standing and spotted Scamp in the living quarters. “Tell me, Roxas, have you learned much about Pokemon since meeting your Yamper, there?”

”Well,” Roxas said, ”we sort of only just met today. So… I guess I haven’t learned much yet.”

“Not to worry.” Koa said with a warm tone, “Everyone has to start somewhere. Anyway, I wanted to meet you because I’m something of an expert on Pokemon, you see. I’m a Professor, and I study Pokemon for a living. But as you can imagine, being in this world doesn’t exactly give me many chances to meet Pokemon Trainers, at least ones who aren’t under Galeem’s influence anyway. If you’d like, I’d like to share something with you that I think you’ll find most useful.”

”Sure.” said Roxas, ”If it’ll help me take better care of Scamp.”

“Of course, of course!” said Koa with some excitement in his voice, “Follow me if you will, both of you in fact.”

And so Roxas and Scamp followed Professor Koa to the ship’s Laboratory, which was only located a couple of levels down and surprisingly close by. Within the Lab, Koa showed Roxas his work area. There, the Nobody saw all kinds of sketches, diagrams and formulas related to Pokemon and their abilities. He also saw a recurring symbol that was essentially the letters “VN” in certain places. But he had no idea what any of it meant.

“Welcome to my little slice of the ship’s lab.” Professor Koa said, “As you’ve learned by now, some people in Galeem’s world were born here, and thus have no trace of his influence. Well, as it so happens, there are also Pokemon who were similarly born here to parents who were brought from their original native regions. Like your Yamper, there. See how he shows no trace of Galeem’s influence?”

”Huh?” Roxas asked, then looked closely at Scamp and finally realized it. ”Hey you’re right, he’s not Galeeming! So he’s an example of new life too?”

“Correct!” Koa confirmed, “Or, as I’ve coined it, Vita Nova! Or ‘VN’, for short.”

Oh, Roxas realized, that’s what the VN in his formulas meant. But for now, Koa continued his explanation.

“I learned everything I know about Pokemon from my mother and father, who were both Pokemon Professors with ties to the Source Engine. And so I went ahead and decided to study Pokemon just like they did.” Koa explained, then after a brief pause he continued. “I took a particular interest in studying Pokemon that were like me, born in this world as new life. I took to calling them VN Pokemon in order to distinguish them from their Source Engine counterparts. I also began to theorize that VN Pokemon may be capable of certain abilities that the normal Pokemon are not.”

”How so?” Roxas asked with piqued curiosity.

“In the world of my parents, Pokemon are able to inherit moves and abilities from their parents. And they’re also capable of evolving in certain ways based on the Regions they are native to. As such, it is likely only natural that some Pokemon born in this world likely have their own unique capabilities as well. Unfortunately, I only have so much data for my research. That’s where I’m hoping you will come in. I’d like you to try and find some other VN Pokemon out there in your travels and help me gather data on them.”

”You mean like a research assistant?”

“That’s one way of putting it. But it’s more like I’m asking you to further yourself as a Pokemon Trainer. Try to catch some of these VN Pokemon you find in the wild so that I can study them and gather more data. They’ll be well-taken care of course, so no worries about that. What do you say?”

”Sure.” Roxas said, ”Scamp could probably use some friends, anyway.”

“Excellent, that’s the right attitude to have!” Professor Koa said, “And to help you in this endeavor, I’d like to give you something.” He dug around in some drawers and eventually fished out a device that looked like some kind of phone with a touch screen, “This device is called a Rotom Phone. It’s a phone modeled after the Pokemon known as Rotom. You can use it to give me calls or send me messages. It even has a camera for taking pictures! But most importantly, it has the Pokedex feature.”

”Poke…dex?”

“That’s right. It’s sort of like an electronic encyclopedia containing all kinds of data about Pokemon that a trainer would find most useful. It will automatically record the data for Pokemon you see, and even more data for Pokemon you catch. That data is then transmitted to me for study, of course.” Koa then revealed a little bonus to the gift, “It also comes in different color cases, pick whichever one you fancy.”

”Um…” Roxas looked over the color options and then found the one he wanted. ”I like that one.” He pointed to a silver and white case.

“Nice choice.” Koa said. After attaching the case he handed the device over to Roxas, “Here you go. All yours now.”

For Roxas

Rotom Phone

After this brief little meeting, Roxas and Scamp soon found themselves in the vehicle bay where they learned of the rather scary-sounding method they would be dropped off. Thankfully Sandalphon was willing to go first to ensure safety. Once that was confirmed Roxas hesitantly climbed inside one of the frighteningly named hellpods. Scamp jumped into his lap, but Roxas decided he’d be safer in his Poke Ball and recalled him for now.

”Here goes nothing.” He told himself as the pod closed and they began to be launched one after another. When his turn came up, he couldn’t stop himself from yelping in surprise. He certainly bounced and banged around a bit in his pod as it plummeted down to the earth where Carnival Town awaited.

Carnival Town

Sandswept Sky

Roxas’ pod crashed a few doors away from where Midna’s pod had crashed. But after he got out, Roxas became a bit too enamored with fiddling with his newly acquired Rotom Phone to notice the confrontation going on between the Princess and the dark man she was talking to. But after a few moments he finally noticed her waving at him and returned the favor. Then he had the sense to let Scamp back out of his Poke Ball.

He then decided to try out the Pokedex by having it record Scamp’s data. ”Yamper, the Puppy Pokemon.” Roxas read aloud. ”This Pokemon is very popular as a herding dog in the Galar Region. As it runs, it generates electricity from the base of its tail.” Roxas then glanced up at Scamp who was looking at him with his tongue hanging out, ”Herding dog? No wonder you were in Port Meridian. There were lots of farms and stuff around that town, right?”

“Bow-wark!” Scamp answered, though obviously Roxas didn’t know exactly what he was trying to tell him.

When the Yamper barked, the familiar noise elicited another bark from just down the street, albeit one with a much ethereal timbre. When Roxas looked over, he saw the source right away: a spectral dog with rounded, blobby features and round, blazing white eyes. This Polterpup darted through the air instead of running, and the moment he reached Scamp he offered a play-bow, inviting the Pokemon to engage in a game of chase. Of course, the ghostly beast’s owner came running after him, and she looked almost as extraordinary as her pet. She appeared to be a tan catgirl, with short, fluffy white hair that hung over one eye, not one but two tails, a stylishly short dark blue jacket, shorts, and not that much else, with two handles stuffed into her belt full of pouches and a metallic case slung across her back. Of course, the most stunning thing she wore was her infectiously cheerful smile, making for an altogether lovely lady.

Nadia slowed down as she neared Roxas, sizing him up at a glance. It didn’t take catlike eyes to notice that the boy’s own lacked Galeem’s light, and if that fallen hellpod belonged to him, he sure hadn’t distanced himself from it. A unfortunately timed run-in with that rampaging pink bull, El Odio, had delayed most of her team’s arrival here, but it looked like she’d managed to catch the newcomers after all. With Chucho and Scamp helping to break the ice and get everyone’s attention, both sides were converging on this location, a relatively nondescript street dividing a row of houses and a sandlot where a shade tree hung over market tents and some jumbo cacti wandered around.

“Well hey there!” Nadia began, crossing her arms as her tails flicked back and forth. Out of everyone present, including Geralt, she only recognized one person: Blazermate. So it looked like introductions were in order. “Made some new pals, Matey? Well, welcome one and all to Carnival Town! I was half-expecting more Consuls, but if you guys are actually friendlies, we’re gonna have one serious oomfiesta on our hands!” Snickering, the feral spun her forearm around to add extra pomp and circumstance before performing a big, theatrical bow. “The name’s Ms Fortune, Seeker extraordinaire. To whom do I owe the purrleasure?”

”Huh?” Roxas was initially confused at how she introduced herself. ”Seeker? But I thought we were the Seekers?” He inquired hesitantly. But after a moment it finally hit him. ”Wait, the other team!” With the gargantuan amount of things that happened the last few days since that Rush Hour incident in the Metro, Roxas had almost forgotten all about the other team of Seekers that took a separate train than he and his group had. ”I’m Roxas.” He finally said, ”I think I met some of you back in Twilight Town before we all went down to the metro. Never thought we’d run into you guys here of all places.”

And then he heard Scamp’s familiar bark, ”Oh, over there is Scamp. He’s my Pokemon.” He explained, while also noticing that Scamp and Chucho had begun to play and chase each other around in circles. ”Looks like those two are friends already.”

Nadia paused for a moment as she wracked her brain trying to remember everyone from the rendezvous she also attended in Twilight Town. In fairness, a lot had happened over the last few days. So many new faces came and went that everything tended to blend together. Plus, any number of the people who’d briefly glimpsed could have fused into someone unrecognizable since then. Giving up, she focused on what lay in front of her. “Yeah, they’re really waising the woof,” she agreed, not-so-subtly sneaking in some terrible wordplay. She aimed her smile on Roxas. “That corg of yours is really cute, man, I wanna pet him so bad. But how crazy is it that we managed to meet back up here of all places? Guess that means we can all enjoy a day off together!”

She turned her attention to Roxas’ companions in an effort to spot any more familiar faces she might have missed. While she saw a middle-aged guy with glasses, a big old guy with glasses, a nondescript office worker, a big redhead, and a bright-eyed angel, some of her friends were definitely not here. “So where’s Sakura, Susie, Peach, and Geralt? I know I got one peeper covered, but ‘eye’ don’t see ‘em anywhere.”

”Sakura and Karin stayed behind in Midgar after we defeated the Guardian there.” Roxas explained, ”It’s kinda complicated, but the Guardian turned out to be the source of electricity for an entire city. With it gone, the city lost all its power, so Karin wanted to stay behind and do what she could to help the people there. And Sakura wanted to stay with Karin.” He paused briefly and then continued. ”Susie stayed up in the airship we all just dropped down from. Said she wanted to check out its technology. You’ll see her again when we’re ready to leave, I’m guessing. And Peach…” He trailed off into a hesitant pause here. Which was a sign that what he was about to say wouldn’t be good news.

”It’s complicated.” He finally said. ”She’s not gone or anything but… she’s… not exactly herself anymore either. And I’m not talking about spirit fusion either. There was this thing in Midgar turning people into monsters, and Peach, she… she…” He trailed off again, looking like he didn’t want to go into any more of the gory details. ”But Geralt’s still with us. Right over there, in fact!” He hurriedly said to change the subject. He gestured over to where he spotted Geralt standing, figuring the Witcher could speak for herself.

Already somewhat shocked by the news about Peach, Nadia stared, not comprehending, at the tall lady with armored but still relatively modern clothing, her white-orange hair exceptionally long and her complexion neither grizzled nor ghoulish. “Huh…?”

World of Light

Word Count: 1,031
Level 6 Ganondorf: 18/60
Exp Gained: +2
NEW EXP Balance--- 20/60

Gerudo Town

Sandswept Sky

”So, this Magog Cartel and their railroad pose another threat to the tribe?” Ganondorf asked the chief. The two were seated at a dining table in the palace that contained a spread of delicacies native to Gerudo Town. Some of these were treats that Ganondorf had not partaken of in a very long time, and so getting the chance to have some Gerudo dining was something appreciated. But the meal itself was technically secondary. There was more than just the Bandit Horde that Lady Riju wanted to inform him of, as was evident now.

“I believe they might.” The young chief responded, “Though so far they have only expanded as far as Al Mamoon, a city to the northeast of us. But if we ignore them for too long they may encroach on Gerudo Town in the future.”

”If I may be so bold,” Ganondorf said after a sip of wine, ”I believe the solution may be to extend our borders.” He suggested. He knew what this would entail and was prepared to explain himself further. ”Gerudo Town is defensible, but also a small hold compared to the foes thou art describing to me. But if you were to expand thy land and power…”

“That would require an army.” Riju countered. “We have many warriors here, but not an army on the scale you would need.”

”I hath built armies once before, I am confident that I can do so again.” Ganondorf replied. ”In my era, the Gerudo were not the only tribe inhabiting the desert. Other tribes lived in its most remote regions, back then I needed only to bring them under my banner. Perhaps I can do so again in this era? If the neighboring tribes united under thy banner, then the army we need could be raised. And then we would be able to deal with the bandits once and for all, and oppose the Magog Cartel should they challenge us in the future.”

“A bold strategy…” Riju said with a contemplative tone. “...can you pull it off?”

”Not so long as the Consuls remain in power. Any progress we make, they would likely find a way to unmake. So eliminating the Consuls who rule over the Sandswept Sky needs to be my first priority. Only after that can the tribe truly increase its strength in the region. Thou spoke to me of Consul X already, but I have no doubt there is another behind the Bandit Horde or the Cartel. Sooner or later they will have to be eliminated.”

“And that task will fall to you and your company… the Seekers, was it?” Riju asked.

”Indeed.” Ganondorf confirmed. Right around then was when he heard Nadia’s message on his linkpearl. And a few minutes after that was when Primrose arrived, having been let in by a Guard. She delivered to him the linkpearl he had requested earlier and took her leave afterward.

“Is that the gift you mentioned to me earlier when we first sat down?” Riju inquired.

”As a matter of fact, it is.” Ganondorf said and presented the linkpearl earring to her, ”This earring is called a linkpearl. The members of my company all possess one, and I as well. Simply wear it upon thy ear and squeeze it and thou will be able to speak to myself or any of my companions even when we are far apart. You may use it to communicate with me if the need arises.”

“Is that right?” Riju said as she took the earring and looked at it more closely. Then she added, “Most interesting. And useful by the sounds of it. I’ll be sure to keep it handy. You have my thanks.”

”Nay,” Ganondorf said shaking his head, ”it is I who must thank thee. For letting me spend some time in my ancestral home and for opening thy doors for my companions so that this alliance could be made. But now I believe our time in Gerudo Town hath run its course for now. We must away to our next destination, but I shall return post-haste once I am able to. I bid thee farewell.”

“Farewell and good luck to you.” Riju said in response.

With that, lunch ended and Ganondorf took his leave. He stopped at the barracks to pick up his weapons from Linore, but then after that he made his way back to the station to meet back up with the other Seekers. Once again they took the Yellow Line in order to reach their next destination.

Carnival Town

Sandswept Sky

With how lively and colorful this area was compared to everywhere else he had been, Ganondorf basically stuck out like a sore thumb with his dark armor and pitch black shade cloak. Not that he was really paying much attention to that. Similar to the Koopa Troop, he too had spotted the vaguely familiar name of Captain Falcon on the scoreboards.

It was Bowser who described the Captain in question. The description was more or less accurate, although Ganondorf was convinced his punches were stronger still than the Captain’s. Regardless, the Captain in question had been a skilled combatant nonetheless and so the warlord agreed that they should recruit him if they were able to. But seeing as Bowser neglected to provide a physical description of the man, Ganondorf decided to supply one now. ”Just look for a man in dark blue clothes and a red helmet that masks his eyes. That is what he looks like if memory serves me.”

Of course, Ganondorf was also not entirely thrilled about the idea of recruiting even more Koopas. The three they already had were already troublesome in their own right so the thought of increasing that number to five was nothing short of groan-worthy. But bolstering their ranks was unquestionably necessary, so Ganondorf would just have to grit his teeth and put up with it for the time being.

The warlord took another look around at the bright colors and heard the music playing from everywhere, ”...I miss Gerudo Town already.” he muttered with a sigh.

World of Light

Word Count: 1,530
Level 5 Captain Falcon: 0/10
Exp Gained: +3
NEW EXP Balance--- 3/10

Carnival Town

Sandswept Sky

Carnival Town offered two separate racing events on the whole, and each was very different from the other. The biggest in terms of scale was Big Blue. As its name suggested, Big Blue was a large F-Zero track suspended over the ocean waters of Carnival Town’s harbor. Its size and overall distance was much greater than the comparatively smaller scaled Kart Races held on Carnival Town’s namesake track. This was necessary because of how much faster F-Zero machines were. Big Blue’s size and scale also meant that those races couldn’t be held on a daily basis like the Kart Races could be. In fact the F-Zero race on Big Blue only took place twice a week, whereas the Kart Races could be held regularly every day.

In fact a Kart Race was being held right at the moment. The track itself was versatile and capable of having its course, terrain, and obstacles swapped around once a day so that no two races here were ever exactly alike. Both events attracted its share of colorful racers, but Kart Racers on the whole usually trended toward younger drivers, while the more dangerous and technical aspects of F-Zero machines meant they were for adult drivers only. Of course that didn’t mean there weren’t adult Kart Drivers, in fact a certain F-Zero Pilot was currently fighting to maintain his lead over the pack in that day’s Kart Races. He drove a Kart modeled after the body of his personal F-Zero machine - the Blue Falcon. And although it handled quite differently, its driver wasn’t about to let that stop him from maintaining his reputation as a skilled racer.

That racer’s name was also plastered all over the leaderboards for fastests lap times and win/loss records as well. In the few days he’d been here at Carnival Town, Captain Falcon had already begun making a name for himself. He was already famous in the F-Zero Grand Prix but now that fame and infamy was beginning to follow him into the Kart Races as well.

"Yes!" The Captain shouted out as he managed to successfully corner around a sharp turn. He was being chased down by a few opponent Karts, some of whom were even prepared to fire the items they had grabbed from the item boxes scattered around the tracks as a means to take out the competition. But Falcon himself was more accustomed to the F-Zero Grand Prix in that regard. As such, he often went out of his way to refrain from utilizing such item boxes to his advantage simply because they didn’t exist in the races he was accustomed to and therefore he was used to claiming his victories on sheer driving skill alone. And it wasn’t lost on him that this fact often tended to peeve the other kart racers currently trying to overtake him.

Also “Karts” was probably a loose term to describe the vehicles being used in these races. Some of them were indeed classic style karts, but not all of them. Some racers had their karts styled after motorcycles or four-wheel ATV’s, depending on their preference. Out of the many different racers Falcon had found himself going head to head with, there were some standouts who often gave him the most difficulty. A certain bandicoot girl with a blonde ponytail, a red-furred squirrel with a bit of a potty mouth, a white-furred critter with tiny wings and a red pom-pom on its head, a kid in lime-green clothes with his ears perpetually covered by headphones blasting music, and a large cat with purple fur. But the worst of the bunch had to be the pair of turtles, whom Falcon could only assume were related somehow given they shared a last name. These two “Koopas” had gained quite the penchant for racing aggressively and sometimes even outright playing dirty.

But this, too, was something Falcon was no stranger to. He’d had his share of rival racers in the Grand Prix who also were overly aggressive in their attempts to retire their rivals as a means of eliminating the competition. Though admittedly these two Koopa brothers were quite a bit brazen and sometimes even cartoonish in their antics. But the pack was crossing the finish line and beginning the final lap of the race. And the track for today was designed with sharp corners and at least one loop-de-loop in mind. These corners invariably made for prime spots to try and force drivers off the track or even set traps if one was smart enough to calculate where most of the racers would make the tight turns. In fact one of the first corners contained a slyly placed banana peel that someone dropped during the previous lap that Falcon narrowly managed to avoid. The foul-mouthed squirrel behind him was not so lucky and careened out of bounds. He was unhurt but this set him back irreparably and he was certainly not happy about that fact.

Unfortunately for most of the racers, Morton Koopa’s large size meant it was relatively easy for him to drive through more than one item box at a time and effectively rob racers behind him of a chance to overtake his lead over them. After breaking through some item boxes, Morton started roaring with laughter as he barrelled his way forward a few positions while supercharged by a Power Star - knocking aside Mog and Coco in the process. Meanwhile his smaller brother Larry had just fired off a red shell that homed in on poor Beat and blasted him aside for the Koopa to zoom past. So this now had them setting their sights on the Captain, who was still maintaining his lead at this point.

First the Koopalings tried getting on either side of Falcon and slammed their Karts inward against him, only for the F-Zero Pilot to slam his brakes and cause them to miss and slam into each other instead. Falcon then hit the gas and steered around the stunned Koopalings, but it wasn’t too long before they were tailing him yet again. This time Larry shot another koopa shell, but it was green and therefore wouldn’t home in on its intended target. This allowed Falcon to safely dodge the green shell, resulting in it wildly bouncing around the track barriers and eventually blasting Morton, resulting in the two beginning to bicker with one another. Moments later, Morton busted out an item of his own. This one temporarily transformed him and his Kart into a banzai bill that blasted through Larry and would have slammed into Falcon as well if he hadn’t managed to veer out of its path. But at the very least this now put Morton in the lead where he now threatened to take first place and put an end to Captain Falcon’s current win streak. That was until the Captain spotted something blue blur past him.

Yep, it was the dreaded Blue Shell. Someone farther behind must have managed to obtain one and fired it off. And since Morton was the one in the lead now… “Oh come on!” The Koopa bellowed out when the spiky blue shell circled his Kart and then slammed down on him with explosive force. This completely grinded his momentum to a halt and resulted in Captain Falcon zooming past him and eventually past the finish line as well. He may have gotten a little lucky at the end, but Falcon’s win streak still remained intact for the time being. Incidentally, Morton and Larry’s aggressive antics backfiring on them resulted in rest of the pack managing to overtake them and leave them both in dead last, and arguing with each other over whose fault this was.

The Captain, meanwhile, brought his Kart to screeching halt and watched with satisfaction as the leaderboards updated to include his latest lap time records as well as the additional points to his win/loss record. Overall a pretty good race, he thought. And he still hadn’t needed to resort to using those item boxes yet, either. Though he had to admit that particular ending did involve some good luck on his part, but as far as he was concerned that was all just as much part of the game as one’s driving skill was. Sometimes you really did need something a little extra beyond pure skill, and this definitely seemed to have been one of those races.

Ah, but the Kart Races were not the main thing that drew Falcon to Carnival Town. No, that would be Big Blue. But the next Grand Prix race scheduled for that track wasn’t until later that evening. As such, Captain Falcon still had plenty of time to kill before it was time to head over to what he considered to be the “main event”. Given the time, he decided he’d break for lunch before continuing any of his escapades on the racetrack. In fact he may just look around at what some of the other games Carnival Town had to offer as well. He had to spice things up, somehow, after all.

World of Light

Word Count: 547
Level 6 Ganondorf: 17/60
Exp Gained: +1
NEW EXP Balance--- 18/60

Gerudo Town

Sandswept Sky

The Warlord now found himself back in the royal palace. After returning from Clair de Soleil, Ganondorf didn’t have much else planned for his stay in Gerudo Town. As such, he figured the remaining time was probably best spent resting and maybe washing the dirt and grime of the Under off of himself and his equipment. To that end he was told of the Bath of Tefnut but was also advised that it was a public bath and reserving it for private use on short notice was likely not going to be possible.

But that did not mean that Ganondorf was without a means of bathing. The Bath of Tefnut was the public bath in Gerudo Town, but the royal palace also possessed its own private bathing quarters within its walls. Normally it was reserved specifically for the Chief’s private use, but Lady Riju was willing to lend its use to the Gerudo King. And so that was where he now found himself, bathing in the hot waters of the Palace Bath. His armor and cloak were being washed and laundered in the meantime, while his weapons were currently being held in the guard barracks by Linore until Ganondorf was ready to go and pick them back up.

While he bathed, Ganondorf went back over what Asgore had said in his head. About the world having multiple iterations and the people inhabiting it living out multiple reincarnations. Of course, the land he hailed from was no stranger to beliefs involving reincarnation. Even the prophesied Hero of Time was said in some legends to merely be the reincarnation of an ancient Hero hailing from an order of knights that lived in a monastery in the sky. The actual validity of those legends were still in question, but the point was, Asgore’s words about people simply reincarnating may not have been as utterly foolish as the Warlord had initially dismissed them as.

”Bah.” Ganondorf grunted in frustration, ”None of it makes a scrap of sense to me.” He muttered. As much as he hated having to admit when something was too puzzling for him, at least here he was alone in private where no one would actually hear him make such an admission. ”...Damnedable old goat.”

But after a bit longer, Ganondorf was informed that his armor and clothing were ready for him. As such, he exited the bath in order to dry off and redress himself. It certainly was nice to now be free of all the dust and muck of that accursed Under. Of course, he knew inevitably he would have to return if only to destroy the clocks located there. But even so, he imagined that wouldn’t be for a while yet, so he could enjoy the cleanliness for the time being.

“Lord Ganondorf.” one of the Gerudo Guards addressed him when he exited the bath quarters, “Lady Riju is preparing to have her afternoon lunch, and she requests that you join her. To discuss a few further details concerning the Consul and the situation with the Bandit Hordes, of course.”

”Of course.” Ganondorf answered, ”Let us not keep the Chief waiting then. You may lead the way.”

World of Light

Word Count: 870
Level 8 Roxas: 22/80
Exp Gained: +2
NEW EXP Balance--- 24/80

Skies of Dystopia

It was a relief when the Virgin Victory managed to escape above the storm clouds. That relief was very short lived, followed by a whirlwind of “Oh crap!” that was itself followed by a completely different iteration of “Oh crap!”. The first Oh Crap was when the Moebius emerged and it became clear that the ship was not going to get away from him in its current state. The second Oh Crap was when the other ship suddenly appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. No one had any idea if this was friend or foe, so there was no telling if the Seekers’ situation was improving or getting worse.

All fears were alleviated when the fighters who emerged all took on Z, meaning they were no friends of the Consul in question. All the better when they managed to route him and allow their collective escape. A few of the Seekers recognized Dante the triplets, although Roxas did not. But he then heard a voice that could easily have been a third Oh Crap, albeit a positive one in this context - as Tora came bounding out to join the others, and he wasn’t alone. Unless his eyes were playing tricks on him, Roxas also spotted the familiar form of Poppi accompanying him too!

”Tora! Poppi!” Roxas exclaimed with excitement as he pulled off his mask and clipped it to his hip. Hugs and reunions were had by all. For once, the Seekers actually did manage to catch a break after enduring a conga line of disaster after disaster. Needless to say, the fortune of Poppi’s return was very very welcomed. ”You did it, Tora! You saved her!” Roxas happily said to Tora, ”How'd you do it?”

"It thanks to Organization member, meh" Tora explained. "She retrieve Poppi spirit from valley of ruin. Friends all aware that spirits are data, yes? It seem like for artificial being like Poppi, experiences get written to spirit as well as memory. So after Tora make new body, Poppi spirit give everything needed to bring Poppi back!"

The answer gave Roxas a pause. The Organization did this? Knowing them there had to be some kind of strings attached. But frankly, he was too glad to see Poppi again to worry about that right now. If this was part of some scheme, they could cross that bridge when they got to it.

Poppi didn't know what to make of her situation herself, nor the frank discussion of her artificial nature, but she seemed every bit as grateful as Tora that things turned out for the better. "For me, it like dreamless sleep," she mentioned. "By now, whole experience in Valley of Ruin feel more like nightmare than reality. But now Poppi awake, and glad to be back."

”I’m glad you’re back, too.” Roxas told Poppi, ”Both of you!” And now, with the danger seemingly passed, Roxas figured it was safe to let Scamp out of his Poke Ball, and so that’s what he did. ”Come on back out, Scamp. You still haven’t met everyone yet.” The Yamper appeared out of the Ball’s light and barked its usual cry of “bow-wark!” then scampered around in circles, clearly energetic and excited by all the new faces around.

The happy reunions also came with some serious talk. Mostly about Alcamoth, as Midna asked about it once she returned from inside the ship. In addition she also inquired about the strangers who were accompanying Dante - the Lost Numbers, as they called themselves. And they’re explanation honestly left Roxas wondering something, a question he was certain was on everybody’s mind in some shape or form. Or if it wasn’t then his pointing it out would certainly pique people’s curiosity.

”Wait, but… if you were born here in Galeem’s world,” Roxas spoke up, unable to keep himself from asking this, ”then what happens to you when this is all over?”

Dawn and Cirrus exchanged a look, the latter wearing a sardonic expression that quickly got turned on Roxas. "Beats the hell out of me," the man told him. "Dawn here thinks we might get pulled into the world our parents came from. Of course, that wouldn't turn out well for those of us whose parents came from two different worlds, now would it?" He shrugged, his gaze listless. "Me, my bet's on ceasing to exist. But hey, what can you do."

His sister sighed, unable to sugarcoat the situation.

Their answer was… about what Roxas expected, and he looked down at his shoes. It was one thing to want to fight Galeem and put the worlds back how they were. But could he still do it if it meant some people had to disappear along with this world? Roxas was no stranger to being made to disappear in order to help another. He had to do it once himself. At the time he was angry about it, feeling like the choice was being made for him against his will - and he wondered if either Dawn and Cirrus were feeling the same.

”I’m… sorry.” Roxas finally said. ”I probably shouldn’t have brought it up.”

World of Light

@Yankee

Word Count: 1,063
Level 6 Ganondorf: 15/60
Exp Gained: +2
NEW EXP Balance--- 17/60

Gerudo Town

Sandswept Sky

Finding a weaponsmith wasn’t hard. But finding one from within the tribe proved a bit more challenging. The public smiths were vai from outside the tribe, and it quickly became apparent that they were not the ones that worked on the Gerudos’ weapons. This was likely because these smiths were outsiders and not kin to the tribe itself. But as a fellow tribesman, and especially as the king, Ganondorf had no trouble learning where a member of the tribe could have their weapons worked on.

The Gerudo had their own inhouse smith who operated within the main guard’s barracks. Her name was Linore, however her equipment and services were only available to members of the tribe itself. So it was fortunate then that Ganondorf was a tribesman himself. He had only but to ask one of the many guards and they pointed him right to where Linore could be found. He entered the smith’s workshop and saw an array of tools of the trade in addition to various weapons that were still a work in progress. And hammering away at the anvil was Linore herself. ”Well met, Kinsman.” Ganondrof said to her in greeting, ”I am told that thou art the one that I may entrust my blades to.”

Linore stopped hammering and glanced up at him. She looked surprised at first but then recognized who it was that was speaking to her. She had been too busy to gather at the audience earlier, but clearly she had already been informed of Ganondorf’s arrival. “Aye, that I am.” Linore said simply, “What kind of work do they need?”

At this, Ganondorf removed the twin swords from their scabbards and set them upon the nearby workstation table for her see, ”These blades were sealed away in an underground tomb, I know not for how long. But it is plain to see that they haven’t been touched or polished by a grindstone in some time.”

“Clearly…” Linore said as she peered closely at the weapons in question. “They were definitely forged by the tribe, but this specific design hasn't been employed in a very long time. Ancient blades like this deserve to be treated with great care.”

Meanwhile Ganondorf had counted out a few hundred Zenny that he placed on the table as payment. But the weaponsmith held up a hand and shook her head, “No need for that, Lord Ganondorf. My work is not for the coin, but for my loyalty to the tribe. Besides, I wouldn’t dare try to charge the king for my services.”

”As thou wish.” Ganondorf replied, pocketing the zenny once more, ”I hath other business to attend to. I trust I can return for my swords when that is completed?”

“Of course.” Linore said with a nod and bow, “For you, m’lord, I’ll begin the work immediately.”

”Excellent.” Ganondorf said, ”I shall leave you to it, then.” And with that he exited and began making his way toward his second destination.

---

The “temple” - Clair de Soleil - was right where Nabooru said it would be, on the northern side of Gerudo Town - incidentally the opposite side of where the train station was located. What Nabooru had conveniently forgotten to mention, however, was the massive 50 foot pit the temple itself was in, the pit’s walls even reinforced by sandstone. Not to mention the scorching hot gold dust that the structure was physically half-buried in. In fact there appeared to be other structures as well, half-buried and half-destroyed monuments of unknown origin on the outside around the temple itself. Clearly the Consul wanted her flame clock to be difficult to reach. But this alone wasn’t enough to deter the warlord. Seemingly unassailable temples was something he was quite familiar with.

Ganondorf summoned the phantom horse and rode it down toward the temple. With its ability to gallop through the air, reaching an entrance without running the risk of touching the gold dust was a simple affair. Maybe the Consul had not counted on any intruders having the ability to fly or move through the air. Either way, Ganondorf was in now. The temple’s architecture was unfamiliar to him, in fact it might as well have been completely alien. He supposed in some places it bore a slight resemblance to the Spirit Temple but that was only here and there and even then the actual resemblance seemed superficial at best. The walls of the temple appeared to be a similar sandstone that lined the walls of the outside pit. But unlike out there, these contained images and symbols inscribed into them. It had to be some kind of language, but like the rest of the temple, its meaning was completely unknown to Ganondorf.

Here and there he also saw support pillars that appeared to be made of a polished green stone. It could almost be mistaken for emerald or jade, at least until one looked more closely at it or felt it with their hand anyway. Deep in the temple, Ganondorf finally came across a spacious room with a stone staircase that led up to the top of a large central platform. And when he climbed the steps, the warlord had finally found what he was looking for. At the center of the platform stood the all-too familiar flame clock. And upon closer examination, Ganondorf noted that it was around two-thirds full. At this point, he put on the linkpearl earring so he could use it to communicate to the rest of the Seekers.

”I hath found the flame clock.” Ganondorf would be heard on all their linkpearls, ”In Clair de Soleil, as Nabooru said. The temple is at the bottom of a large pit on the northern side of the town opposite of where the train station is. And the clock itself appears to be two-thirds full. So that is one more clock whose location we confirmed.”

Ganondorf then paused as another idea came to him. Then he spoke on the linkpearls again, but this time addressing a specific Seeker, ”Ms. Azelhart?” Ganondorf asked Primrose. ”Can thou create for us another linkpearl? I would like to present one to Lady Riju, so that we may have a line of communication with Gerudo Town should the need ever arise.”

World of Light

Word Count: 757
Level 8 Roxas: 20/80
Exp Gained: +2
NEW EXP Balance--- 22/80

Port Meridian

Dystopiascape

Roxas also climbed to the top deck of the Virgin Victory along with everyone else. And when he got there, he immediately saw the deck swarming with lightning minions that the Consul had summoned. Meanwhile, the Consul himself decided to stay in his chariot and pelt them with lightning rather than actually coming down there directly. Great, a Moebius who was also a pragmatist. Just what they all needed.

Unfortunately, Roxas already knew his ranged attacks were going to be next to useless here. Apart from wasting all his MP flinging spells at the Moebius who may or may not resist them, the only other option was the RockGun which he was pretty certain would probably just do chip damage at most. Better to focus on mopping up the Zeustrikes instead and try to keep them off the other Seekers’ backs who were trying to shoot at Z. However, Roxas did put one strategy in motion by summoning Fortune, who aimed her Rail Cannon at Z’s chariot and began the process of charging her weapon.

Once that was in motion, Roxas used his phantom ruby to summon the virtual cubes and arrange them in a protective cubical shell around Fortune, while still leaving her enough room to not be harmed by them touching her. He hoped this would keep her hidden from view and if worse came to worse, protect her from all the lightning attacks long enough for her to charge her rail cannon and fire it at Z.

And that was largely why Roxas got a slightly late start in going into the fray against the Zeustrikes. Their lightning arms could be problematic, but Roxas was agile enough to mostly avoid those. He wasn’t sure what elements these things were vulnerable to, if any, so he decided to avoid using Spells for the time being. The Nobody was certainly capable enough of cutting his way through these Zeustrikes. They looked like they could hit hard but also looked like they could be taken down with hard enough hits themselves. And that mostly proved true.

After managing to deal with a trio of Zeustrikes that were coming after him directly, Roxas went on the move. Getting around, even on the deck of a moving ship was pretty easy for him thanks to flow motion. So once he was on the move, Roxas made the rounds to hit various groups of Zeustrikes that were bothering the other Seekers. He started first with Geralt, who looked like she was having some trouble with their higher numbers. Roxas put his flow motion momentum into a ground strike that sent out a shockwave that could deal some damage but also knock many of the Zeustrikes off balance and give an opening for Geralt to follow up. But Roxas didn’t stick around long enough to see what the Witcher did, instead going right back on the move again in search of another Seeker he could help out.

At this point Roxas had committed to his decision to minimize his use of magic. With all the lightning raining down on them, there was a pretty real chance he might need to step in and help Blazermate heal everyone up. So with that in mind, Roxas was sticking with his current strategy of using flow motion to dance around the ship’s deck and putting that moment into attacks that could either take out Zeustrikes outright, or leave them open for someone else to follow up on. He figured someone like Sandalphon would likely be pretty well equipped to capitalize on the openings he made among the Zeustrikes. Or if not her, someone else surely would.

His first real problem came when a stray lightning bolt threatened to hit the area where Fortune was currently hidden. Not wanting to take the chance, Roxas zoomed back over to that location and essentially let himself take the lightning bolt instead of her. Lucky for him it wasn’t a chain lightning otherwise this would have been for nothing. But it did still hurt nonetheless, and unbeknownst to Roxas also inflicted him with Charge and Jolted. But at least he kept Fortune unharmed which meant she could keep charging her weapon interrupted. And so the Nobody shook it off and then went back on the move yet again, figuring that staying put too long was just asking to get struck by more lightning or get swarmed by Zeustrikes.

World of Light

Port Meridian

Word Count: 552
Level 8 Roxas: 19/80
Exp Gained: +1
NEW EXP Balance--- 20/80

“Hello, everyone. I have urgent news.” By now Goldlewis was used to Sandalphon’s disembodied voice in his ear, but what she said turned him dead serious in an instant. “Return to the port ASAP. I just received word from Geralt that a consul has arrived in Port Meridian and plans to attack the Virgin Victory. According to the crew, this is the same consul that hounded them all the way from the Land of Adventure. Given our current situation, Commander Nelson has ordered immediate evacuation. You have two minutes.”

”C’mon, Scamp! We gotta hurry!” Roxas suddenly said after a momentary pause to take in that information. He was off in a sprint with the Yamper practically galloping behind him to keep up. Of course a Consul would have to show up and ruin their rest! And here Roxas was without his mask or gauntlets, meaning he’d be without those in the event he’d have to fight.

”Don’t panic.” Roxas told himself aloud as he and Scamp sprinted in the direction of the docks, ”Sandalphon said two minutes, so there’s still time to get out of here before he catches up to us.” By chance, Roxas’ route back to the Virgin Victory took him through the town square. And good thing, too, because while running past, Roxas spotted a woman that very much matched the description of the currently missing crew member.

She certainly stood out with her seemingly oversized coat wrapped around her and her black tail curled next to her. Between the cigarettes she was smoking and the candy wrappers thrown around her, it looked like she was on some kind of break herself. It was definitely the missing Asbestos alright. Well obviously Roxas couldn’t leave her hanging so he skidded to halt in front of her. ”You’re Asbestos, right?” He asked with heavy breaths.

“Yeah?” The lady answered with a dismissive tone, “Who’s asking?”

”I’m with the Seekers.” Roxas said, ”We just got word that that Consul guy is heading our way looking for trouble. Commander Nelson ordered everyone back to the ship for evacuation. So c’mon, we’ve got less than two minutes to make ourselves scarce!”

“Figures there’d be trouble during my break.” Asbestos said with an exasperated sigh, “Fine, I was getting bored anyway. Let’s go, blondie.”

It was lucky that Roxas was already heading back when the alert went out, since that gave him time to both find Asbestos and have the two of them be more or less the first of the Seekers to make it back to the Virgin Victory. When they did return, Roxas could only see Sandalphon, Zenkichi, Akane, and Midna. So he really was one of the first to make it back. ”Three Consuls in one day?” Roxas asked incredulously once he was regrouped. ”Can’t we ever catch a break?”

By this time he had also swung by the quarters he was given in the ship to switch back to his other outfit. Now he was once again wearing the monochrome cloak outfit as well as his gauntlets and the new bag Rui gave him earlier. Meanwhile his silver mask hung loosely on his hip, and Scamp was now resting inside of his Poke Ball.

World of Light

Return of the King I

Ganondorf’s @Double, Sectonia’s @Archmage MC, Primrose’s @Yankee, Ms Fortune
Word Count: 2,563

If he didn’t have other business to attend to, then Ganondorf could have stood out in that dry air sunlight all day. Just the mere thought of not having to go back underground was enough to keep him in a good mood. But that coupled with the air of familiarity he felt upon finding himself in what was more or less his ancestral homeland made him practically smile underneath the dark shade of his faceless helmet. Deep down he knew this wasn’t technically the actual Gerudo Desert, but rather an iteration of it that was placed here by Galeem. But still, it couldn’t help but make the Gerudo Warlord feel almost… at home being in these desert sands where - once upon a time in another world - he was born and raised.

Gerudo Town itself was a curiosity to him, though. When last he dwelled in the lands of the Gerudo, there was no civilized town built there. The tribe instead lived in a fortress built into the walls of the desert canyon, and the only other notable structures were the Desert Colossus and the Spirit Temple where Kotake and Koume resided. It wasn’t lost on him that things may well have changed since his time in the tribe.

”Keep the Orb handy.” Ganondorf suggested to Nadia, presuming she was still the one carrying it. ”Just in case I have to showeth them my real face.” His intention there was pretty obvious. He would tell them who he was, even show them the Triforce branded on his hand to serve as proof. But if that alone wasn’t convincing enough, then he was also willing to use the Orb to undo his fusions and spiritbindings in order to let them see his true face as undeniable proof of his identity.

When given instructions, Nadia gave a noncommittal grunt. She did still possess the Orb of Undoing, stashed in one of her pouches, but after the exchange with Asgore her eagerness to get to know Ganondorf better had waned. Surly, gruff, and inhospitable she could work with, but now she didn’t know what to believe about the Seekers’ most villainous member.

Approaching the gate, Ganondorf spotted the pair of Gerudo Guardswomen. Neither of them looked at all familiar to him, but they were unmistakably Gerudo nonetheless. The warlord stepped forward and they naturally moved to halt his advance to the gate. So he reached up and pulled the helmet off of his head. In spite of Igos Du Ikana making his face a bit more gaunt, Ganondorf actually did still retain most of his natural Gerudo features. ”Look upon my face, Sisters.” Ganondorf told the guards, ”Thou can surely see that I am of the tribe, just as thee. A Gerudo brother who now returns home where he belongs and to rule as spoken by our laws and traditions. Your King hath returned.”

The reveal took the two warriors by surprise, and they exchanged uncertain glances. While neither would recognize him as anyone in particular, they could not deny the strong Gerudo heritage that lent his face such a distinctively formidable visage. Of course, the fact that their visitor spoke and conducted himself with such authority helped his case. Charisma came in many forms, and one who dominated his surroundings by the mere virtue of his presence was hard to ignore. However, these women were not so easily quashed, and wary of outsiders’ subterfuge. The bandit hordes of the Aregal Salt Plain were never-ending, each vicious trickster more devious than the last. After a moment, the more senior of the two guards nodded at the younger one, then fixed Ganondorf with a stern gaze. “It could be that you speak the truth. Forgive our trepidation, but we must be cautious. We have heard of ways that allow one to steal others’ features for their own, and in this desert we have many enemies.” Her eyes briefly roved around the ragtag group of Seekers at Ganondorf’s back, none of which seemed to be Gerudo in the slightest. “If you speak truly, will you show us the Triforce of Power, birthright of the Gerudo king of legend?”

‘King of Legend’? Such choice of words indicated to Ganondorf that this town and the Gerudo inhabiting it were probably quite far removed from the era of the tribe he was from. Still, if the Triforce was what they needed to see, then that was something he could easily supply. Slowly he held up his right hand and closed it into a fist. As he did so, the fabled golden triangle glowed upon it in the usual telltale way. ”Behold, the Triforce. The golden power bestowed upon Hyrule by the goddesses themselves in ancient times. No spy or trickster could hope to fake something like this.” Ganondorf said, allowing them a moment to look at it before lowering his hand once again.

The sight of something of such mythical importance left the warriors shocked. After a moment, the younger of the two knelt down, bowing her head in respect. “Your highness!”

For another second the senior guardswoman considered the situation, wondering what this meant for the current state of affairs in Gerudo Town. She did not want to dishonor the current governess, but in the end she knelt as well. Better safe than sorry. “Your highness.”

Sectonia watched all of this unfold and was both amused and a bit concerned; mostly amused though. Ganondorf had never shown this power before so her mild concern of him being able to control others was abated almost as fast as it appeared much like the infection they had just fought. So that just left her being amused at these warrior women bowing to this ’king of evil’. Well, it seemed that his title wasn’t for show at the very least. Time would tell.

Ganondorf noted their mention of having enemies in this desert. In his time, the desert was ruled solely by the Gerudo Tribe. But in this twisted amalgamated world of Galeem’s creation, the Goddesses only knew who or what else inhabited this land. Information like this could potentially prove useful in the event that the Gerudo might need to be persuaded further to welcome Ganondorf into their fold. ”These people who accompany me are allies. It is because of them that I escaped my would-be captors and was able to return to thee.”

As he explained, the two hesitated, then awkwardly rose one after the other. “I see,” the designated speaker murmured. She cleared her throat, assuming an officious posture with the butt of her spear planted. “I assume you would like to meet with Lady Riju, chief of Gerudo Town. I can escort you myself. Though you are naturally an exception, voe are not permitted in Gerudo Town, so I would ask that your male allies kindly wait outside.”

Watching and listening in silence, Nadia pursed her lips. Just when it seemed like the team was getting somewhere, the policy Primrose alluded to came into play. Even though it didn’t affect her, she couldn’t help but feel bad for those it did. “Why’s that even a thing?” she muttered under her breath, bemused. It didn’t make sense. Primrose herself had accompanied the group while Therion had gone on to the nearby oasis, since the dancer intended to enter the city. She didn't reply to Ms. Fortune's comment, assuming it was a rhetorical question, but she smiled slightly. Though she didn't say it aloud, personally she thought it was a fine rule. It was nice to just be around other women sometimes, with no men to worry over or about.

”Such is Gerudo law.” Ganondorf said in response, ”In more ancient times, outsiders of any kind were not permitted. Obviously, times have changed since those days.” He remarked as he stepped forward further, ”Lady Riju, you say? Her name is not familiar to me. Between that and these ‘enemies’ thou speaketh of, there is much I need to catch up on.”

It did make him wonder how this Lady Riju would react to him. Convincing a pair of gate guards of his authority was one thing, but a Chief? That may prove to be another matter entirely. And if things became sour then having the Seekers split up could prove disastrous. But Ganondorf couldn’t just walk away. Not now. ”Thou should do as they say for now.” Ganondorf finally told the other male Seekers, ”My authority here must be formally recognised first before I can order an exception to be made for thee. Until then, it is what it is.”

Nadia scratched her head, then sighed with a resigned shrug. “If that’s how it is. Guess I’ll come with you.” Although she didn’t like leaving some of her friends behind, she couldn’t stand the thought of staying behind and missing out when she could get a front-row seat on the action. Plus, if the situation turned sour, she could be the first to let the guys know. “Don’t worry, fellas,” she told them. “We won’t ‘desert’ you!”

"I will come along as well," Primrose said. She undid her ponytail, shook her hair out, and quickly put it back up again to make herself a little more presentable, idly wondering if she should have taken the time to change into the Gerudo outfit she'd picked up last time and if it would even still fit her. She next spoke, it was with a teasing, slightly facetious tone. "It wouldn't do to have the king go without an entourage, hm~?"

She still considered Ganondorf an ally at the moment, despite what Asgore had told them, but she was also still hesitant to let the man take over the all female settlement. It didn't seem right, but she admitted to herself that the Gerudo were a culture unfamiliar to her, and so if their law stated that Ganondorf was their king there was little she was going to do about it. Like Ms. Fortune she was curious, but she also felt the need to be there for defense should things end up less than peaceful - though whether in defense of Ganondorf or from him she wasn't exactly sure yet.

”I wouldn’t want to miss this.” Sectonia said, clearly enjoying the awkwardness of the situation. Although unlike a few others, Sectonia didn’t see how Ganondorf acted to Asgore, so a bit of this was how he’d ‘take over’ his old kingdom. Could be some interesting insights.

The guard nodded at Ganondorf. “My name is Dorrah. If you’re ready, let’s go.”

With the other guard, Merina, remaining behind to ward off the others, Dorrah led Ganondorf and his retinue into Gerudo Town. Beyond the tall, bare walls of sandstone lay a thriving city of swaying palms, intricate tiled mosaics, and aqueducts that sparkled with flowing water. Colorful tapestries adorned the market stalls, and in their stables the sizeable, thickly-furred sand seals either lazed in the sun or barked uproariously. While this place did seem to harbor non-Gerudo citizens, the vai-only tradition was strictly and unilaterally enforced, which made the sudden and inexplicable presence of a voe all the more startling. Dozens of pairs of eyes watched Ganondorf every step of the way, even more shocked than the guards had been. Murmurs and whispers flew freely as a crowd began to assemble to either side of Gerudo Town’s main thoroughfare, and as Ganondorf drew closer to the palace, the confused and fascinated throng closed in behind him.

Though she'd only been to Gerudo Town for a short time in the grand scheme of things, Primrose liked this town. The "no males" policy was just a bonus. Obviously she wasn't the only woman that felt the same, and she was keenly aware of what the crowd must be thinking and feeling. And though she shared some of those feelings, she didn't allow herself to feel bad for unwittingly informing the Gerudo king about this place and thus drawing his attention and presence to it. She kept her head held high as she walked, though few even spared her a glance in the first place when Ganondorf walked just a few steps ahead.

Sectonia glanced at the crowd as well to gauge reaction, and the stunned silence or shock was what she expected. Still, if it wasn’t for her prim and proper form and way of carrying herself, she’d be almost giggling like a schoolgirl at just how absurd this situation was. But she kept her composure and just observed, internally enjoying herself. She did stay a bit behind Primrose so she could watch the whole scene as it was. Although the fact that almost none of the people here looked at her, instead looking at Ganondorf, irked her a bit… hm..

In sharp contrast to how Ganondorf, Primrose, and Sectonia carried themselves, calm and self-assured if not outright at home in the spotlight, Nadia slunk along behind them in a state of uneasy, uncharacteristic quiet. She offered no cordial greetings, and cracked no off-handed jokes. The presence of so many staring eyes seemed to make her uncomfortable, even if she knew that Ganondorf commanded most of the locals’ attention. It wasn’t long before the feral made herself scarce, making no excuse as she slipped away into the crowd -shortly followed by a quick climb to the aqueduct rooftops- to more freely follow along Ganondorf’s path through the town without the heavy gaze of the public eye.

Ganondorf for the most part just kept silent. While most might feel awkward or uncomfortable being surrounded by women, for Ganondorf this was just old hat. He’d lived his entire life being the only male in the tribe and so keeping his composure here was very easy. The gathering stares and murmurs was something he simply ignored. It wasn’t lost on him that he was about to shatter the town’s customs, but as far as he was concerned that was just the law of the tribe. The last thing he wanted was a war against his own people. But what would he do if the current Chief rejected his claims? Well in that scenario he would simply play politics and win her over through some form of bargain. And the information he learned about the tribe having enemies could be an avenue he could take for that end.

For now though, the main avenue he took through Gerudo Town led him through the bazaar and toward a set of stairs leading up to the palace, with its distinctive sandstone goblets. Water cascaded ceaselessly from the water sources held within, feeding the canals that flowed throughout and sustained the whole settlement. It even fell in tiered waterfalls to either side of the palace stairs, and the use of such a precious desert resource as decoration spoke to the resilience of the Gerudo. After ascending, the newcomers followed their guide Dorrah into the royal complex, first passing through a courtyard filled with tropical ferns and flowers. To the right, city guards had amassed in front of the barracks, too impressed by the strange man’s audacity to make a move. The crowd tailed Ganondorf even into the palace, and the women-at-arms joined them. It seemed like nobody wanted to miss his audience with the Gerudo chief.

World of Light

Locking Eyes

Everdream Valley ~ Port Meridian

Word Count: 1,065
Level 8 Roxas: 17/80
Exp Gained: +2
NEW EXP Balance--- 19/80

After another quick lunch with Pit, Roxas found himself wandering the port town on his own again. Well, not actually alone. Scamp was now following after him every step of the way. Of course, that begged the question of what to do now. He supposed at some point he ought to return to the Virgin Victory and introduce Scamp to everyone, but Roxas wanted to look around a little bit more before he did that.

Eventually the Nobody came across a park of some kind. It had a playground but it also curiously had a couple of areas marked by white chalk or paint drawings of rectangular battle lines. These were spots intended to be used for Pokemon or Pal battles. In fact one of the areas was occupied by a pair of kids battling with what looked like a couple of foxes. Clearly different types of foxes though, as one of them was reddish orange and it’s tail had a fiery tip while the other one was a sort of lavender color with white paws and white tips on its ears and tail - and it also looked to be wearing a dark blue cape of some kind. Unfortunately Roxas couldn’t tell if these were Pals or Pokemon, nor could he even tell who was winning between the two.

“That Foxsparks doesn’t stand a chance, if ya ask me.” Said an unfamiliar voice. Roxas looked to see a young kid had come up next to him to see the battle. He was dressed in a yellow t-shrt, blue shorts, and a blue baseball cap that he wore on his head backwards. “That Nox doesn’t go down easily, and I should know. I just got back from the Pokemon Center after losing to them.”

”Um… which one is which?” Roxas asked, having no idea which of the Pals was the Foxsparks and which one was the Nox. Although moments after asking he realized that Foxsparks was probably the one with the flame in its tail.

“Nox is the dark one with the cape.” the Youngster clarified. After that he got a look on his face and then smirked, “After losing I could use a little pick-me-up. You look weak! C’mon, let’s find out which of our Pokemon is tougher!” And without really giving Roxas the option to back down, the two trainers were now locking eyes in one of the battle zones. Youngster Joey wanted to battle.

The kid reached for his Poke Ball and threw it, releasing a small purple rat Pokemon from within it. Youngster Joey sent out Rattata! The Pokemon gave a squeaky-sounding cry and awaited for whatever command that was about to be given to it.

”Go! Scamp!” Roxas with a point of his finger toward the battlefield. Scamp leaped out from behind him and barked at the Rattata in front of him. ”Use Nuzzle!”

“Quick Attack!” Joey called in response. Unfortunately for Scamp, Rattata’s Quick Attack made it attack first and managed the first hit as a result, “Ha, too slow!” Joey taunted. But maybe he spoke too soon, since Scamp’s Nuzzle still managed to connect afterward resulting in his Rattata becoming paralyzed. “Shake it off, Rattata, you’ve got this! Use Quick Attack!”

”Go for it, Scamp!” Roxas shouted with encouragement, ”Use Spark!” Unlike the first time around, the paralysis kept Rattata from moving right away and thus he was given a solid hit by the electrified tackle that was Spark. But Roxas’ opponent didn’t look like he was giving up any time soon. In fact, if anything it almost looked like he was glad his Rattata had been afflicted with a status ailment.

“Hyper Fang!” Joey called out. This time his Rattata was able to move in for the attack, but it was still slowed somewhat by the paralysis allowing Scamp the chance to dodge out of the way of the biting attack that was coming his way. And good thing, too. Unbeknownst to Roxas, Rattata’s Guts ability made its attacks even stronger while it was afflicted with status effects.

”He’s up close now, so use Bite!” Roxas called, reasoning that a Bite would be easier to land from such close range versus a tackle-style attack like Spark. It paid off, Scamp managing to land another solid hit on Rattata and even managing to make it flinch.

“C’mon Rattata, we’ve still got a shot at this!” Joey said, not fazed by the battle turning in his opponent’s favor, “It’s all or nothing now, use Hyper Fang!”

”Meet ‘em head on with Spark, Scamp!” Roxas called, then watched as the two Pokemon barreled into each other. Both managed to land their attacks, but while the Hyper Fang was indeed quite a strong hit, the damage Rattata had already taken by this point allowed Scamp to edge him out and emerge victorious. ”Yeah! You did it, Scamp!” The pup bounded back up to his trainer and licked his face in celebration.

“Return, Rattata.” said Joey, recalling the Pokemon back to its Poke Ball. “Shoot! Lost again! Ah well, them’s the breaks I guess." Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small bit of money that he pushed into Roxas’ hand.

”Huh? You don’t have to give me this.” Roxas said with a confused look.

“Nah, it’s the rule.” Joey said with a shrug, “Battles wouldn’t be very exciting if there wasn’t anything on the line after all. Don’t worry about it, I’ll earn that back in a heartbeat - just you wait.” he said before beginning to walk away in order to get his Rattata healed again.

For Roxas

Currency: 120 Zenny

”C’mon Scamp, you should probably get healed up too.” Roxas told Scamp. They went ahead and followed Joey to the Pokemon Center where everyone was healed up. Joey then said his goodbyes and went off to no doubt train his Rattata some more.

After that it was Roxas’ turn to decide what to do next, ”Let’s head back and let you meet all others.” He suggested, beckoning for Scamp to follow him in the direction of the docks where he remembered the Virgin Victory was currently parked. The Yamper happily followed after him, proud that he won their first official battle as Trainer and Pokemon.