February 14th, First Year
"Okay, so-"
"Hey Rez! Why's the outsider look like Warden Iscan?"
"Hush, Hassun! That's quite rude of you!" Rez scolded the small boy, playfully swatting the younger boy on his back as he attempted to dodge away.
Hassun completely ignored the older caretaker and bounded right up to Jaku, rocking on the balls of his feet as he stared up at her. "Hiya! Adaman says you're new here! What's your name? Where'd you come from, outsider? You look funny! What's that thing on your shoulder?" The little boy gasped, his eyes gleaming. "Is that a pokémon? Can I touch it?"
"That's quite enough, now!" Rez ever so gently grabbed the boy by the scruff of his tunic and dragged him out of the tent, firmly closing the doors behind her. She reappeared again, hastily fixing her long black hair back into a neat ponytail. "My apologies."
Jaku shrugged. "None taken. He's just a boy. Children are naturally curious."
"All too true. Makes me glad that I don't have any of my own." Rez sat back down in front of Jaku and took up the scroll she'd been perusing before Hassun had burst in, her slim fingers sliding along the text. "Now, Adaman has tasked me with introducing you to how the Diamond Clan works and you've already been taught…"
There was a long pause. Jaku blinked when she realized that the older woman had been waiting on her. "Oh! Are you checking what I know?"
"Yes."
"Right. Ok." Jaku crossed her arms. "The Diamond Clan settled here some odd years ago and while they primarily live in the Crimson Mirelands, they have smaller tent-cities all over Hisui."
The older lady gave her an odd look. "What's a city?"
Jaku paused, smiling as the corners of her mouth twitched upwards. "I'm not entirely sure? I think it's a remnant from my amnesia. A large village, I think. Like here but bigger? Way bigger."
"…Oookay. Moving on."
Rain drummed along the roof of the tent. It had been the same schedule since Jaku had arrived a week prior. She'd received her extra set of clan duds and was now officially a part of the clan. She'd even been given the option of making her own tent, an option that only people who trained pokémon. Obviously, she'd taken it.
Dusk refused to stay in her ball, so Jaku had taken to carrying the spoiled girl around on her shoulder, earning the curious and frightened stares of the clan's children and elders alike. So far, most of the other clansfolk were scared of her. That or being unsure of Adaman's white lie he'd told to help her fit in. Jaku was just happy that Dusk kept her tent and bedding toasty at night, and more importantly, that her tent doors never froze shut.
When she wasn't listening to Rez explain the clan's history or helping sweep out the elder's tents, she was helping gather the maize, weed the small gardens, keep watch at the edge of the settlement, or just watching the children play in the square while their parents got some quiet time; busy work until the clan could find an assigned role for her.
Adaman had neglected to mention assigned roles. Some clanmates took care of the crops or helped rear children primarily. Some were experienced hunters or gatherers. Some were better scouts or advisors, assistants to Adaman or to Lise, the clan healer. For Jaku? She wasn't entirely sure where she wanted to be on that spectrum.
Adaman had told her that he'd put her experience with pokémon to good use, but she hadn't seen him since when he'd brought her to the clan. The man was the leader after all. For the time being, Adaman's second-in-command, Keiji, was the one who dictated where she would be every day. Today was another free day. Winter was apparently the time when the Diamond Clan rested in preparation for spring. They already had plenty of rations.
She hummed to herself, studying her fingernails. After this, she would most likely retreat back to her tent and stay warm in her tent. She wouldn't be due for the next foraging patrol until well after noon.
She was brought back to attention as somebody rapped on the wooden door of the tent.
"Rez? May I have a few words with you?"
"Yiska? O-of course!" Rez turned meekly back to Jaku. "I don't suppose you'd mind if we postpone this history lesson until tomorrow? I'm sorry. It's really important."
Jaku shook her head, moving to stand with a luxurious stretch. "Of course not. I'll see you tomorrow then."
Jaku left the two older clan members to talk and made her way toward her tent, cradling Dusk gently in her arms as she drew her tunic closer around her torso. Dusk twitched, gentle flames curling around her neck as it stared at the wooden walls of the gates. At least she was awake. Dusk had been dozing quite a lot since they had arrived here.
Sure, the mirelands were much warmer than the Obsidian Fieldlands. There was no snow to speak of here, but the swamps would occasionally freeze solid and it seemed to rain every single day. It had hailed the day before. And then again, as she was told by Rez during her orientation, a lot of poisonous pokémon tended to make their home here too. How fitting.
Lise, the mireland camp's healer, had given her a brief lesson about how some pokémon's poisons could be used in various medicinal ways but that it was new and that it was frowned upon by every single person in the clan. Jaku had liked working with Lise. In the very least, the medical tent was well-kept, quiet, and it made her feel more at ease than being out in the plaza.
She'd had nothing in short of regaining her memories. Just little bits and pieces of information that had no context behind them. Like knowing what cities are but not remembering what they look like. Like knowing that the potions and elixirs that were sold in Hisui were much stronger than how they used to be where she came from due to a certain ingredient in them. What that ingredient was, she wasn't sure. Just that it was probably illegal or highly regulated where she came from.
Just as she was arriving at the village square, a group of people poured through the opening in the wooden spike wall, Adaman leading the forefront at a relentless pace. Five people followed closely behind him and behind them followed a handful of guards. They all looked pensive, their boots covered in muck as they cut through the crowd. Almost all of them had their hoods drawn tightly over their face, the rain obscuring their forms as they cut through the fog.
"Lord Kleavor has gone mad, Adaman! I don't know why the Pearl Clan entrusted that child to watch over it when the noble has already culled a chunk of the Scyther population. Have you ever heard of a noble culling their own children?"
"And what's to stop it from venturing further into the fieldlands? We can hear its frenzied cries in the night and even Lord Wyrdeer is steering clear of The Heartwood. Our brethren are already asking for reinforcements to keep Lord Kleavor at bay-"
"But Lord Kleavor is guarded by the Pearl Clan. Maybe, perhaps, we should wait for them to ask for help? If we interfere-"
"Keep. Your voices. Down." Adaman had stopped in his brisk walk and with a rough gesture, urged his followers into his tent. They all filed in and though Adaman's tent was at the center of the square, Jaku heard not a peep from the inside.
Jaku narrowed her eyes at the tent before turning around. Was it a habit here to give children deadly jobs or was the first one merely joking? It wasn't a funny joke if that was the case. Whoever this Warden Lian was, she hoped he was okay. She knew what a Scyther was and also knew that they were hardy creatures. But then- she drew her eyes away from the tent and continued through the fog, putting her mind solidly away from the issue. That was none of her business.
It was nearly sundown when a firm knock sounded on her door; Adaman had called a clan meeting and from the sounds of it, it was just for news. Nothing more. Not yet, anyway. Adaman finally re-emerged from his tent looking more haggard than ever, his colorful hair frazzled and his clothes streaked with mud and sod. His followers emerged too, all of them looking tense and fearful and their clothes very much dirty like his. He whispered something to a guardsman beside him, and eventually made the call to gather.
"Diamond Clan!" Adaman called. "Your ears, please!"
Just as she'd been taught to do, Jaku lowered herself onto the woven roots of the plaza and sat, hands on her knees like everybody else as Adaman took his place on the stoop before his tent. His followers (wardens, she remembered) fanned out around him and Jaku realized with a pang of dread that one of them was only a little girl. She didn't hold the same look of dread as the others; just a childlike innocence as she peered away from the plaza, staring as all the other children fled into the surrounding tents.
Adaman cleared his throat. "It has come to my attention that something dreadful has occurred in the Obsidian Fieldlands." He gestured to a slender young lady with shiny black hair standing just behind him. "Warden Mai, if you'd please."
"Of course." She stepped up to replace him on the stoop. "Two nights ago, a bolt of lightning struck one of Almighty Sinnoh's Chosen; Lord Kleavor. We are unsure of its source, but from the reports that Warden Lian has sent to the Sandgem Encampment, Lord Kleavor has become frenzied."
From beside her, the guardsman from before shook his head. She hadn't even noticed him move amongst the group. His calloused hand wandered to the saber at his hip and he wore a grave smile.
"Is Lord Kleavor going to…" the guardsman paused, holding his helmet before him as though he'd affronted the warden, "will he die?"
Warden Mai shook her head. "No, Lord Kleavor is anything but dead-" she paused, casting an anxious glance at Adaman as she muttered something under her breath- "According to Warden Lian, Lord Kleavor has been in a rampant frenzy since the occurrence of the lightning. It seems unable to control itself and has wounded itself numerous times. We are currently unable to get close enough to tend to the Lord without putting ourselves in great danger." Mai cleared her throat. "I have done my best to ward off any travelers heading through the fieldlands, but there have already been two occurrences of travelers… disappearing near the Heartwood. There has only been one documented death at Tidewater Dam thus far."
"What about our brethren in the Sandgem Flats?" the guard called. He didn't look at all perturbed by the mentions of deaths. Rather emboldened. Compared to the other guardsmen who huddled near the back of the group, this guardsman seemed to glow in the light of the torches as if relishing the possible call to action.
"They've reinforced their encampment," Mai responded curtly, eyeing the man from above. "We are preparing for an emergency evacuation in case the Lord leaves The Heartwood. It seems unlikely, though. The guards are taking the utmost precaution in keeping an eye on the surrounding area. So far, they've reported no sightings of Lord Kleavor as far as Deertrack Heights."
"What of the Pearl Clan encampment?" Rez raised her voice. She was much closer to the front of the crowd, eyes narrowed with fear as she rose. "They are much closer to The Heartwood than our brethren."
"The Oreburrow Encampment is already evacuating," Mai responded quietly. She opened her mouth as if to speak more but quieted, instead clasping her hands before her. "They have moved closer to the highlands. That is all that I know at this moment."
"Isn't Warden Lian supposed to be calming down his Lord?" called one clan member.
"Yes, why is he allowing his Lord to go on a rampage?" Called another.
"That's enough!" Adaman held up his hands to silence the crowd before him. "The only word we've gotten from Warden Lian and the Pearl Clan is that they're trying to figure out how to restrain Lord Kleavor and bring him back to his senses. The Lord is much more vicious and unpredictable than before. They will need time to figure things out." He brought a hand to his chin and stared beyond the camp toward the wilderness of the Mirelands. "This frenzy is not like that of an alpha's but of something more… divine. Or so I've been told."
"Are we getting involved with them or not?" the guard beside her demanded. "Can't the Pearl Clan deal with their own issues? We're in the middle of winter. If they cannot tend to their Lord, then-"
"That is enough." Adaman had downright glared at the guard. "As I have previously mentioned-" he growled- "this is a meeting called to spread awareness. We will not be interfering unless directly called upon to help. It is unlikely, but it is still a possibility." Adaman finally tore his gaze away, rolling back his shoulders as he addressed the crowd. "For now, worry yourselves only with this winter." With a nod of finality, Adaman waved to dismiss his wardens. "The clan is dismissed."
The large huddle immediately dispersed in a wave of muttering and anxious glances toward the center stage. Adaman and his wardens had disappeared into his tent again and the square had an air of solemnity. Unease.
The rain had increased into a steady downpour as Jaku picked her way along the reed docks, watching as pools of rainwater gathered in the mud beneath her. She eventually found her own tent and, careful to clean the muck off of her boots, made her way to the hearth where Dusk cozied up for the evening.
She really didn't want to get involved in whatever was going on in the fieldlands. As far as she was concerned, it was none of her business. She had everything she needed here in her tent and in the Diamond Heath. Still. As she settled down into her futon and stared into the growing shadows of the swamp, she couldn't help but feel that her time floundering around like an idiot was anything but over.
