Dark 5.9: CITIZEN
Cuicatl
June 6, 2020
Dr. Karashina closes the door behind you as you step deeper into the garage. You can't hear her spiritomb yet. You can still feel his presence. Unnerving, cold, wrong. You don't feel this way around dark-types. Not even around ghosts. There's just something uniquely odd here. A feeling you get whenever you think about the spiritomb. You don't think your mother ever met one, but. It feels familiar in an awful way.
The feelings of the room unravel and spiral around you as the air grows ever colder.
{Ah, if it isn't the princess. I've been waiting for you.}
His voice echoes across your mind like a hundred different thoughts striking at once. It's more than a little creepy. Should you apologize for keeping him waiting? Will he have even noticed how long it's been? Kekoa's carbink didn't really get human timescales. Spiritomb are former humans but they're still old.
{I understand your hesitance. Psychics tend to dislike me.}
"It's not that," you reassure him. Even though, yeah, it maybe is that. "I just…"
You haven't been so busy you couldn't step into the garage. That lie won't work. The truth is that you've been scared. Even Dr. Karashina keeps him locked away. If he's too much for one of the greatest trainers in the world to handle what chance do you have?
{You need not apologize, child. I understand.}
Okay. Put that behind you. He's being kind.
"It's good to finally meet you."
Something in him flickers and the mindscape around you abruptly spirals around and shifts. What was that? Another spirit taking over?
{No, the pleasure is mine. It has been a long time since I met one of the Unovan royals. Last time would have been… 1927. My keeper took me to Korea. Your great-uncle gave me much to think about.}
And he's hoping you will be just as… entertaining. Got it.
"I wanted to talk. I was cursed recently—"
{Yes, yes, I can feel it. Death wraps around you like a second skin. No. Deeper. Death permeates your very being, like you're equally alive and dead. Then the souls of the lost cling to you. Too worn to speak, but protective all the same. The attacker's corruption is just an oily slick on top of it all.}
Equally alive and dead. That would be your brother. You're not sure who the other souls would be. Your mother, maybe, but you can't think of anyone else who would care enough to attach themselves to you.
"I had a twin. Our minds were linked."
The spiritomb's mind flutters again. It seems to… lower itself? Draw in? It's hard to describe. {My condolences. One of us was psychic. He went through something similar. A sibling, not a twin, but similar all the same. We understand how it can hurt.}
Oh. That's the first time anyone's been able to say that to you. Even the other psychics don't seem to get it. And the one person who can empathize is probably a murderer in a ghostly prison of other monsters.
"Thank you." It comes out in a whisper. You can't find more energy than that. And you'd really rather not talk about Achi. Not now. Maybe not ever? Not with a spiritomb anyway.
{I'm afraid I can't offer much advice. He did not cope with his loss in the most constructive manner.}
You don't end up in a spiritomb for doing good things; you end up in a spiritomb because someone decided even the punishments after death were too good for you. What if you hated the world more than yourself? You almost killed your father in rage. If even that had not been enough…
No. It didn't happen. No point thinking about the actions you didn't take.
"What can you tell me about the curse?"
{Not much, I'm afraid. It was made with great effort from a potent caster, but was interrupted before it could be completed. What it does I cannot say. Magic works on almost dreamlike logic. A flaw in the casting could reverse the intended effect, amplify it tenfold, negate the curse, or do something else entirely. Only the original caster could tell, and I'm told she is no longer among the living.}
Nothing helpful. Great.
"She said I would die alone. That's all she got out. Does that mean the rest of it didn't count? That the one phrase is all that matters?"
{Perhaps. Perhaps not. The words of the curse matter less than the intent.}
You don't even know what she did. Fuck.
"Can you undo it? If it didn't get very far—"
{No. She took great pains to make it irreversible. It is far from the most efficient way to cast. She must have known someone would attempt to undo it and made sure it would be impossible.}
Lunala. Pixie mentioned that Selene offered to have Lunala break the curse (and it's so, so weird the regional champion knows about you—yes, even though you're in the room with another champion it's weird that this region's has thought about you). Kalani was aiming so that even a god couldn't undo her work. A spiritomb wouldn't stand much of a chance.
"Thank you for your help."
{You need not thank me. I could do very little to assist. Now, if you would not mind, I have a question for you.}
You aren't sure you like where this is going but it can't hurt to be polite to the murderous ghost. "Go ahead."
{You will be setting out into the desert to find a golett, yes?}
"Yes?" Not sure where he's going with this. You know they're maybe sort of related. No one seemed sure from the reading you did. There's not very much on either species.
{You plan on taking one from their home and selling them without any knowledge on where they will end up. Tell me, what gives you a right to do this?}
Great. Another moralizer. Just what you needed. Well, you can at least be honest.
"I don't know if I have a right. I'm going to do it anyway."
He laughs at that. Laughter in a hundred different voices, from a hacking old man to the whimsical laughter of a young girl. {You are quite different from your family we've met in the past. They would have talked us to a second grave about justice and rights. You—you really don't care?}
"Not when it comes to my family.
{How… interesting. Yes. You're one we'll remember in the centuries to come. Tell me, may I come with you to the desert? I know a little about bound souls. I can help you find another. In exchange I wish to observe how you approach the situation. It promises to be fascinating.}
Genesis has said she wants to go with you. This wouldn't be the biggest risk you've ever taken. If this goes badly and you die, whatever. Her, though, she doesn't deserve it. Dr. Karshina must pick up on your thoughts.
"I think that's a reasonable request."
Well. As long as she's along to contain him.
"That should be fine."
{Excellent. I look forward to our adventure.}
June 12, 2020
Kekoa just had to blow up at you last night. You'd told him before that you didn't care how he got his money as long as he wasn't taking yours. Now he thinks he can argue you out of saving your family. Maybe he had a point or two. Maybe. He'd tried to say VStar would've killed the paras you sent them rather than just taking one mushroom. You looked it up. Can't find any proof they did. It would be pointless. Wasteful. They wouldn't.
…you almost texted Miss Bell to ask if they did. But you didn't. Because asking a dumb question would waste her time.
You were already dreading today as it was. Every time you think about the desert cold fear grabs your heart and won't let go. You don't know why. You barely went to the deserts in the north of Anahuac and never had a bad time there. Father took you, once, to visit the border. You aren't sure what he was expecting you to get out of it. That the Americans hate the Nahua just as much as the Nahua hate the Americans? You'd already figured that out. No one wanted you there on either side of the fence.
Lyra tries to keep you away from the websites that talk about trainers. She's right. Every time you decided to read something there you regretted it.
You're aren't sure how to feel about Lyra being back. She's nice to you, but only to a point. You get that. Everyone who has ever loved you did so within certain lines. They would keep loving you until you crossed them, then they would stop. You're sure Achi had his in the parts of his mind he kept private. You didn't for him, he could have killed you and you wouldn't really mind, but he was always easier to love.
Still. Why the fear for deserts? Is it about the dreams you've been having? You can barely remember them. You aren't really afraid of the dreams. Or sleep. They're just confusing and you wake up with bad feelings, unable to remember why.
Something from your mother? You know she got Searah in the desert. She'd set out for a darumaka or sigilyph. Made sure to stay on the concrete paths after the nurse warned her about the sand. In the end she found an injured heatmor and brought her back to the Center.
Searah had a trainer. No one had seen her in three weeks.
Mother was allowed to travel with the heatmor after another week had passed. She officially owned her after her trainer was pronounced dead a year later. They never did find the body.
Deserts were always something to be cautious about. But she had lots of places and things to be cautious about. Bears, poisonous plants, the cold, deep waters. You've never feared any of them, just known to be careful. Well, you feared the pangoro, but those were dark bears. That's different.
It probably is your mother's memories. Probably. That's what has you on edge. Or maybe it's the curse. You still don't know what it does. Dying alone, probably. Maybe.
This isn't helping. You can at least make yourself useful.
Pixie whines softly as you approach. Poor thing. You kneel down to her and hold out a hand. She sniffs it before rubbing her cheek against the side. "Ready for your stretches?"
She barks. Yes. You help her pull out her legs and tails as far as they can go before they hurt, holding it for a moment before releasing. It's supposed to help her retain movement. She doesn't like it. She likes the idea of not being able to run even less.
"You're fighting soon?" she asks.
"Another week."
Does she want to? After the last grand trial battle with her you'd be really worried. The nurse said it might be fine, that she's healing really well from the early potions and heal pulse. But. You'd be afraid every second she was out.
"I will fight." She sounds confident. Telling, not asking. You don't have the heart to tell her that the nurse shut that down. Probably forever.
"I would love you even if you didn't. And you don't have to. I think Coco, Leo, and Noci can take care of it." Truth be told you probably wouldn't even need Noci. Coco's been practicing her close combat for at least an hour a day with Genkei and Kagetora. Leo has been joining in, too, and she also has bug moves and tough armor. Noci can take physical hits all day long but dark energy can go through her metal. She could maybe still deal with one of Nanu's pokémon who can only hit up close? You're hoping she can at least weaken one of those for her allies. That should put you in a good spot. You beat three of Olivia's pokémon with two of yours.
You should also call Olivia at some point. Tell her how Coco's doing. She was very kind to give you the everstone. You need to do something back.
"Want to fight," Pixie says.
"Aren't you worried you'll get hurt?"
She growls. Touchy subject? Too bad. It needed to be said.
"I'm strong," she hisses.
"I'd love you even if you weren't."
That just earns a quiet harrumph before she goes back to her stretches. Fine. You'll figure something out. Some way to tell her. Or not. You could just save her for the end and then hopefully win before that comes to pass. But then things would get really awkward if you did lose. You love Pixie dearly. But Kalani was her last battle.
Shirona had chewed you out for that fight. Said that you should have sent out Coco and Leo, even if they probably couldn't win. It would have bought time. And if Kalani had won, she might have broken their pokéballs and killed them anyway just to hurt you. And beyond that…
"Sometimes people are willing to fight for you. You do understand that, right?"
No.
You don't know why they would. Not when their own safety is on the line. You can't protect them when it counts. Why would they stand up for you?
"I'd fight for you," she finally said.
It felt good to hear it. You're glad she said it. But it's different. She would win. That's what she does. Other people, the ones who might get hurt? No.
Well. Pixie did. But that was personal for her. Leo and Coco had never even met Kalani.
Pixie whines when you pull one of her legs a little too hard. Oh. Right. She's here. Ugh, why are you getting so distracted today? It feels worse than usual. Like you're slipping in and out of memories at a moment's notice.
You lean down and stroke Pixie's cheek. "See you tonight, okay? We can talk about this then."
She huffs and you can feel her lower herself back down into bed. You smile despite the dread in your heart. At least Pixie's back. Things are finally starting to get back on track.
You decide very quickly that you don't like the desert. Not because you're afraid of it (although you still are for gods know why). You hate it because the sand keeps dragging you down when you stay still too long. Gen and Lyra apparently having it worse since she's heavier. But since Gen's guiding you, which is a very good excuse to be holding onto your girlfriend for most of a day, you have to stop when she stops. Noci's offered to carry you but it wouldn't really be fair to the others. Also, she's hot. Normally. You can't imagine what it's like under the desert sunlight. No. She can rest in her ball for now.
At least Coco is enjoying herself. Broad feet help her move over sand to investigate all of the strange, wonderful, new things around her. Kagetora sometimes growls to reel her back in like a mother chaperoning her hatchling. Maybe Kagetora thinks that's exactly what's happening.
Dr. Karashina hasn't complained. Doesn't seem to be stumbling. You wonder if she's holding up as well as she sounds. Might be rude to ask. Lyra stumbles but doesn't complain, either. She'd sounded excited to see this place when you talked yesterday morning. Her absol also isn't complaining but her breaths are unusually shallow and fast. You're pretty sure she's the mountain subspecies rather than the desert one. This probably takes some adjusting for her, even if she's spent a lot of time at sea level.
"See the pit to the left of us," Dr. Karashina calls out. You don't. Gen says she does.
"Trapinch. Don't fall in that. There are jaws at the bottom."
Gen shivers beneath your touch. You're glad she's here. Being blind isn't usually that bad. Sometimes, though, it really is.
"How can you tell?" Lyra asks.
"Unnaturally conical. No visible rocks. Just sand."
"Dragon babies," Kagetora murmurs. "Strong bites."
"Stronger than mine?" Coco asks.
"No."
Coco huffs. To anyone else it would sound prideful but you think she's almost disappointed. Like there's not a rival for her teeth. Maybe she wanted to exchange bites. She's weird like that. In a good way.
Dr. Karashina whistles and Kagetora dives into the sand. When she resurfaces you can smell blood. Probably not hers.
"Dugtrio. Ambush predators. Same as trapinch but without the visible holes. Kagetora will keep watch for them."
How did she know it was there, then? Did Kagetora gesture to her or something? Is she just that good?
"Is everything in the desert trying to kill us?" your girlfriend asks.
"Yes." Lyra answers. "There aren't many herbivores in the valley. The hot sun and shifting sands are too much for most plants, even the desert ones. Gible eat rocks and form the base of the food chain. They're still dragons. Dangerous prey, especially if their mother is near. Most predators would rather go after the unfortunate pokémon that wander in from the mountains or the coast."
Kagetora growls out a warning to the desert itself. If it eats her baby it will die. You think her baby is Coco? How would she kill a desert, though?
…actually, if anyone can kill a desert, it's her. That was a dumb question.
"Oh," Genesis says. You'd kind of figured all that going in. She probably hadn't. Just thought this was going to be a fun trip with a picnic or something. You adore her. She still doesn't get that humans would be at the bottom of the food chain without our tools. Even with them we're only using borrowed power. Hydreigon, garchomp, even trapinch and dugtrio, they exist outside of and above us. They can do what they want. And if that's eating humans, then they'll try. The stronger ones will succeed. They don't go into the cities because they're loud and people annoy them away whenever they do. Not because they can't.
You're never really safe in life. But… it's adorable that she thinks she is. Even after everything.
Despite the rough start the trip is actually pretty boring. Dr. Karashina can usually find a hard or at least firm path to walk on. Sometimes there's only sand. Usually not for long. Kagetora is finding the best way and somehow communicating it to her trainer.
"What signals are you using with your garchomp?" Lyra asks.
"I'm not. I've just become good at finding paths in deserts. I took an eight-month sabbatical to Egypt in '16. Hoping to go to the Navajo lands soon to look into an old temple they've unearthed. Nearby pokémon are getting agitated. That's usually not a good sign."
Close to Anahuac, too. You really hope she can take care of it.
"Huh. Is that just part of your job?" Lyra asks.
"Not really. If I retired from the League those offers would probably still keep coming. There just aren't many people capable of both documenting a new archeological site and defeating whatever it was build to seal away."
Things start to blend together. Walking. Kagetora kills a dugtrio or growls at a krookodile. More walking. Stop to drink water. Lots of stops to drink water. Dr. Karashina insists that you can get dehydrated out here and not realize it. Not sure how that works. Your home could get hot but it was usually at least a little humid. Lyra asks a question or five and Dr. Karashina does her best to answer. It's not that you find them uninteresting, just that you aren't really interested in ecosystems. Just the pokémon that live there. The apex predators, anyway. Kagetora's already told you plenty about garchomp. Your thoughts drift back to the dread. If this isn't from you or mom, maybe Achi? You know he went once or twice with the other boys for survival training. The next war with the Americans would begin in the desert. It was important the next generation of soldiers knew how to fight there. He never shared too much. It seemed pretty boring, actually. Tamer than some of the stuff Alice put you through when you were ten. He was obviously keeping the worst from you and you are kind of glad for that. At least he had a weapon for it. A spear, sure, but he thought that made him safe.
It was a big deal when he got the spear. Like it was the most life changing present he'd ever received.
Birthdays were never really a celebration. Father would leave you gifts on the table and then spend most of his day drinking alone in his room or aimlessly wandering the town. Yes, you and your brother were born that day. Yes, he was glad for that.
His wife also died on that day.
He could never be truly happy on it.
You and Achi were left to keep each other company. That was normal, though.
It was your tenth birthday. An important one. When your adult duties were supposed to begin.
There was a spear on the table. Achi twirled it around a few times and you could hear it slicing through the air. He was in stunned silence, unable to fully believe it was real. That he was going to start real training soon. That he was going to become an adult.
You got a particularly big pan. One from Asia that you could cook a lot of things in at once. Father would later call it a wok when he was back down and talking the next day. It was nice. You immediately thought of several ways to use it. Just… it didn't have the same impact. Most girls were supposed to start learning their duties at your age. You'd started three years ago, taken over full time about a year and a half later. It was nice. Your world just wasn't expanding in front of you like you could feel your brother going through. You wrapped him in a mental hug, reminding him that whatever changed, you'd still be there. Would've hugged him physically but he was holding a sharp object and that sounded like a bad idea.
He got the message and came over without the spear. When you hugged you let your minds really intertwine. Renfield says you'll have to stop doing that so much as you get older so you can both develop. Maybe, hopefully, he's wrong. You're always happiest when you aren't fully you.
The moment ends and your brother pulls away, physically and mentally.
"I'm heading out for the day. The other kids all want to hang out before the nēmontēmi. You coming?"
The nēmontēmi are the cursed days at the end of the year when spirits freely walk the earth. You don't go outside. You don't do anything. You don't talk if you can help it. Nothing should be done that could catch the spirits' attention and lead to ruin.
Like cooking.
You'll need to have enough prepared to feed a growing boy and a grown man for five days. No spices are allowed, either, so cooking things well is extra hard. It will probably take you most of the day. Even if it wouldn't… your brother's friends are his friends. You're glad he overcame the stigma of being half-American. You haven't. It's only gotten harder after you were held back and all the kids you know moved on. He knows how to handle people in ways that you couldn't dream of. And you don't want to ruin his birthday by stirring up pity-disgust-fear by being there.
"I think I'll stay back. Tell me how it went?"
You look forward to it. When you look through his memories and blend your minds together you can almost imagine that you did all of that, that people like you. It's better than going yourself is. This way you can still pretend.
"You sure?"
"Yes."
He hesitates for a second. Two. You gently push him with your mind. It's not like he could help in the kitchen. He'd probably just burn or cut himself.
"I'll show you everything," he finally says. "Love you."
You press your love into him in response. He returns it. So much better than words.
Now, time to break the pot in.
You're shaken out of your thoughts by the most beautiful song you've ever heard.
There are at least ten singers, perfectly harmonized, voices echoing across the entire valley. Somehow the echoes strengthen the song like the island itself was built for it. The song is wordless. Or at least meaningless. You catch some phrases that might be Upper Draconic. You stop moving and simply listen. There's nothing else to do.
Where is this coming from?
What could sound so gorgeous?
"Flygon," Dr. Karashina says. "They're summoning a sandstorm to hunt. We need to shelter in the outcropping over there."
Dragon song. Naturally. Nothing else could sound like that. You let Genesis guide you along as you continue to listen to the perfect music. They have a range like an orchestra or a full choir. The song has no meaning but it has movements: quick, joyous steps to long, sorrowful dirges.
Once you're seated Dr. Karashina hands out food. Protein bars and dried fruit. Good. No meat. Gen doesn't even like lab meat. Aren't sure why – it's a silly rule – but it's important to her so it's important to you. Just so long as she doesn't make you follow it.
Your girlfriend sends her castform out for the first time on this trip. Deserts are too dry for them and the particles in sand mess up their bodies. She's only gong to use Count Cloudy (you've come around on the name) for emergencies. Not dying in a flygon sandstorm counts as an emergency. Even though it isn't even that bad. They must be far away because not much sand reaches your area. The winds that do reach you sound like they're singing along with their summoners.
Genesis sits down by your side and you lean in and rest your head on her shoulder. So nice. When Kekoa moved to his own tent you were never pressed against another human at night. Sometimes Kekoa would hug you in private or Lyra would give you a quick side hug. That was it for touch. Human touch. You still had your pokémon. Outside of guiding it hasn't been a daily thing since…
It hasn't been a daily thing for over a year.
Now you have someone who will hug you whenever you want without feeling weird about it. Even lets you cuddle with her at night. It's nice. Really nice. So nice you can ignore Lyra's judgment buzzing at the edge of your mind. Part of you knows that Gen's only had limited options so far. That someday she'll move on. That's… fine. You'll take what you can for now. Sitting here listening to beautiful music and cuddling with your girlfriend it's hard to think about things ever being bad again.
(Except for the weight at the bottom of your stomach that's building and building and building and)
You get a mental kick when you lower your berries to rest. You aren't hungry. You were going to offer them to Gen. She kicks you again. Doesn't quite know how much power to put into those notices. It isn't painful since she can't crack your shields. Just distracting.
{Not hungry.}
{Eat it.}
What a bully. You still lift it back up and try to finish it.
"I do not want to interrupt your moment," Solomon interrupts your moment. "Yet I am curious how the Unovan royal bloodline ended up in Anahuac. I thought your nations were not diplomatically linked."
"They aren't." You take your last bite. Do you want to talk about this? Probably not. You just want to listen to the music and your girlfriend's heartbeat and live in this perfect moment. You should answer him, though, because you're not sure Gen knows this and she probably should if you're dating. And Lyra's probably curious. She's never come out and said it but you've felt the question on the tip of her tongue. "My parents met when my mom was finishing up her final few gyms and my father was studying business. He'd come from Anahuac to learn how the Americans worked."
"A spy?" Solomon asks.
"No. Just a student. He wasn't working for the government."
…you think he wasn't working for the government. No one ever told you if he was.
"Mom wanted to explore new places so she went to Anahuac with him once he graduated and they got married. She gave birth and died." You rush over the last part as quickly as you can. "That's how it happened. Pretty boring, actually."
"I… see. And your father was nobility, yes?"
"No. Just some merchant. He was kind of poor, actually."
Solomon is quiet for a long time. "Forgive me, I must have misread the situation. Even if your bloodline is no longer in power it was royal for a reason. I thought the tlatoani had sought to shore up their power by passing the Harbor Queen's Gift to their heirs."
"Is that common?" Gen asks.
"Yes. A useful bloodliner, even a landless one, could not be ignored in marriage considerations. Alliances born of diplomatic marriage can shatter. Bloodlines endure. Almost all royal houses end up tied to a bloodline eventually."
"My uncle married one," Gen says. She sounds oddly distant when she does. "Thought his kid could take over the company with it. But he only had a daughter before his wife left him."
Solomon snickers. "Your ancestor was a king himself, however briefly. It is fitting his descendants act like squabbling nobles."
"Oh. Right. He was king for, like, five minutes? Hadn't really thought about that."
"A few days, actually," Lyra chimes in. "He waited until the American ambassador arrived before abolishing the monarchy."
"Wait. Does that mean I'm a princess?"
"No more than I am," you tell her You don't want to bring her back to earth but being royalty of a lost kingdom isn't actually being royalty.
"But you kind of are," she insists.
"That is another reason I had assumed there were grander ambitions behind your existence. You do carry yourself well when you move. I had assumed you were trained."
"What, the pivots? Walking with a straight back? Those were from my brother's military lessons."
"I see."
The last notes of the song finish up around you. The moment of rest is over and it's time to get moving.
You still sit and lean against Gen until you can't possibly justify it anymore.
Kagetora finds a group of basking krokorok a while later and threatens them with a bone-chilling growl. They keep their distance. So does everything else. The sandstorm seems to have sent almost everyone underground for now. Very few are bothering to hunt in the loose sand after the flygon or the storm swept up most of the visitors. There are fewer clear paths to walk on. Genesis is stumbling more, saying almost-swears under her breath like saying a real foul word would curse her forever. It's adorable. You hope she never stops doing that.
Lyra just says 'shit' like a normal person.
The sand is still easy enough for you and only you. It lets you get distracted. Lost in your thoughts. In the growing feeling in your chest. The winds whip up and sand strikes your face and suddenly you're not you and not here.
You're someone
else somewhere
else
You reach for your sash in the rising panic and find only four balls. Four? You should have six. You had six. Even if three don't
You had six. Why are there only four? Why are you out in the day? You'll be hunted. Maybe you are being hunted. You can hear creatures moving around you. About your size. The bugs? They struck you as scavengers but most scavengers will still kill what they can.
"Cuicatl?"
You release your first ball and nothing happens. No. No no no no no. That one workswhy is it not working?
"Let go and step away. She's having a panic attack."
"Then I can help—"
"No. She's not herself. She might hurt you."
Not. Herself? You can understand that one. How? These things—
Too much is off. Psychic attack? You scan your defenses. All in place. No gaps. Just increasingly jagged edges. You remember when they were smooth.
"The ghosts around her are moving frantically. This might be a possession."
"Ghosts around…"
Focus. Focus. Focus. Threats. Three—four?—more? threats. Damn it. You hate being blind. Um. Second ball. No, no, you can't use that one. Third?
[UD_Cuicatl's fluid valve rate is operating at 250% baseline rate;
Initiate Ramming?]
A psychic? No. No that was the second—
[Initiate Ramming]
Something warm and metallic wraps its arms around you and your thoughts stop. Aren't you organic? They shouldn't—they shouldn't be preying on you. If you stay still—
[Query: Threat]
"I don't know. Something happened—"
"—the ghosts—"
Ghosts? Daylight? It's
Daylight. There
Shouldn't
Be
Ghosts?
It's daylight. You can feel the heat. The thing grabbing you is
Familiar.
Nocitlālin.
The world shifts as a warm tide rolls inside your brain and the world becomes hazy and impossible to grasp before it fades back into focus.
"Noci?" It comes out as little more than a whisper. Something happened. You remember—something. There was. Ugh. Out of reach. No. Vanished. Like it was never there at all.
[Acknowledged.]
"What…" the words slip away before you can say them.
"I believe that something upset the ghosts you carry."
"The curse?"
"No. I do not think so."
Genesis butts in. "Were you going to tell me you were haunted?"
"I didn't think it was important?" That sounds like a terrible excuse the moment you say it. Yes, that's clearly important. You just don't like talking about unhappy things with your girlfriend. Ruins the mood. She already has enough of her own problems to deal with. Doesn't need all of yours.
"Do you remember anything?" Dr. Karashina asks. "It could be important."
"No. Just. Fear? Something was wrong. I felt like… someone else. She didn't know what was happening. Now I'm me again."
"That sounds like possession," Dr. Karashina says. "We need to get you to a safe place and—"
{GREETINGS, CITIZEN.}
What? You can hear everyone else in the group turn around and look at someone.
{GREETINGS, CITIZEN.}
"What's going on?"
{GREETINGS, CITIZEN. I HAVE COME TO ESCORT YOU TO OUR STAGING POINT.}
"Can you all hear this?"
"It's talking to you?" Lyra asks.
Question answered.
"I'm sorry. What are you?"
{SELF IS A PSIONIC RECONAISSANCE SERVANT. I HAVE COME TO ESCORT THE CITIZEN TO OUR STAGING POINT.}
Uh. "What?"
"Claydol," Lyra says.
Oh.
"They want to take me somewhere," you tell the others. Wait. Claydol and golurk are probably tied, right? "Are there golett there?"
{YES, CITIZEN.}
"They say there are golett."
"Cuciatl, we need to get you back right now."
You ignore the doctor and walk towards the place you think the message is coming from. "Take me there."
The sand hardens underneath your feet. Right. Ground-psychic type. Of course they can do that.
Dr. Karashina continues to protest but doesn't have Kagetora stop you. Someone—Lyra—hesitantly walks over and holds her arm out for you latch onto. Odd. Why is she doing that? It almost feels protective. Genesis walks behind her. The champion brings up the rear. Noci hovers nearby.
"There's something massive underground just ahead of us," Dr. Karashina says. "That what we're being taken to?"
How would she possibly know that? There's no way Kagetora communicated that through hand signals alone. Is she psychic? Or something else? There are other types of elementals, they just aren't as cool.
{THE STAGING POINT IS AHEAD.}
"I see."
Dr. Karashina must be included on these messages now.
{HALT, CITIZEN. YOU ARE BEING MOVED TO THE STAGING POINT. STAY PUT FOR 98 SECONDS.}
The sand begins to move. So much sand moves that it's very clearly audible, even a little loud, and you can feel the earth lowering down around you like a slow elevator ride. Dr. Karashina sucks in a breath and Lyra holds you tighter. Then it stops and Dr. Karashina takes a hesitant step forward.
{CITIZEN HAS ARRIVED AT THE STAGING POINT.}
"Okay," Dr. Karashina says. "Okay. Here's what we're going to do. We're going to go in and I'm going to take photos of everything. We touch nothing, get our answers, and leave as quickly as we can. I haven't forgotten what just happened, Cuicatl, and it needs addressed."
"That's fine." As long as you get your golett. That gives you something to focus on that isn't the possession and the strangeness of everything and the fear moving from your gut to your head. You can see Alice again. You're alive. Nothing else needs to matter right now. It won't do you any good to panic.
"We're coming back, right?" Lyra asks. "This is… incredible. It seems ancient yet also…"
"Untouched, yes."
You step forward after Dr. Karashina and the air cools by twenty or so degrees. Not quite a refrigerator but very well ventilated. The floor is solid. From the echoes you think the room stretches on forever but has a low ceiling.
"This is Dr. Shirona Karashina. The day is June 12, 2020, and the time is 1:48 p.m. local. I have been invited to a facility of unknown origin in the Haina Valley by a claydol."
She must be doing a video log. As a bonus you can actually follow what's happening.
"The room is made entirely of ceramics at first glance. The architectural style is purely functional with large pillars designed to hold up the weight of the sand overhead. There are various workbenches and desks scattered around. There is no dust. The facility is remarkably well maintained."
"Are there people living here?" you ask the claydol.
{NO. YOU ARE THE FIRST CITIZEN TO ARRIVE IN 31 LOCAL SOLAR CYCLES.}
Local solar cycles? Then. The people who built this place. Are they aliens?
"The claydol has suggested that the facility has been abandoned by humans for three decades. The use of 'local solar cycle' suggests an extraterrestrial origin for the facility." She continues to take delicate steps forward. "The tools resemble those uncovered on previous digs in the Kannagi Woodlands. The characters on the walls are similar, but not identical, to the Alphian script."
{SHOULD NON-CITIZEN BE RECORDING THIS INFORMATION?}
You take a moment to think through your answer. They think you're a 'citizen.' If you correct them you probably won't get a golett. You have to act like you know what you're doing while still getting answers.
"Treat her like an honorary citizen."
{ACKNOWLEDGED.}
Hopefully that helps Dr. Karashina out. And hopefully you don't end up in too much trouble.
"What is this place?" Lyra whispers beside you. "It's almost Egyptian."
{I don't know.} Lyra won't like the mental speak but it's best not to say that where the claydol can overhear. {They seem to think I'm with whoever made this place.}
Your ancestors? Reshiram didn't say anything about any of them finding their way here. But the longer Dr. Karashina drones on the more the fear turns to pain as you get a splitting headache. Ugh. Shit. What is this? You try to focus in on it and find that now it's oddly distinct. A separate room in your mental space. Like the ones you store your brother's and mother's memories behind.
"I think I found something in my head," you tell Genesis. "A third thing like my mother and brother's memories. That must be what I was feeling earlier."
"I remember something like that," she whispers back. "When you were in my head and I was in yours. I can't remember what it was. Just that it hurt when I touched it."
Who left it there, then? Renfield? Why would his memories be stirring up now? Reshiram probably would have told you if you left something. And it couldn't have been introduced when you were fighting in Gen's mind if it was already there.
Why is there another set of memories?
As Dr. Karashina begins to ask questions about the plumbing you take a deep breath and enter the mental room. As soon as you do
Everything
Falls
Away.
You stir as Ali—the dragon lands beside you. Something drops down at your feet. "Blood," she says. "And meat."
{Fine.} You haven't physically talked in
You don't know how long it's
Been
A trenca, may—
—be?
Throat too
Word
There's
A word
Par—
Dry.
Your throat is too dry.
Why are—
Why is—
Thought—
Not easy now?
You. The second ball. That's why. You can't let him out because
Break.
Break.
Break.
Break.
The edges of your mind are like shattered obsidian. They used to be so so—
Word?
Not sharp?
Not like they are now.
You hold the second ball and try to remember.
Blood fluid splash cut cut cut the bug why are you fighting the wonderful
Oh.
You don't need to worry about hurting him!
He's dead.
You giggle at the absurdity and your throat burns.
They're all dead, aren't they? Everyone. Everyone but the dragon. You wonder how long she—
They—
Something else?
Ellas!
You wonder how long ellas will last? Probably longer
Than
You.
Unless ellas tries to fight—the—worm—again.
Ellas lifts up the thing and tears it open. Blood drips into your mouth. Not as metallic as you were expecting. Way saltier, though. Everything here is too salty. Even the water. Especially the water. It killed—
—killed—
—killed—
—killed—
Fourth—ball?
—killed—someone—when they tried to drink.
The meat is almost worse. Impossibly stringy but so soft. It feels wrong. You can't really chew. Just swallow and hope you don't choke.
You stop halfway through.
Maybe you'll starve—to death—
—to death—
—to—
Maybe that's better than everything else here.
You pull yourself up off the cold floor. People are shouting around you. What—
—happened?
Why
Is
Everything
So
Slow
?
"Are you okay?" Someone—safety—touch—asks.
"Yes. Just. Why is everyone yelling?"
"Dr. Karashina's spiritomb came out. The claydol hate him. He hates the claydol. Apparently he's met the, uh, citizens, or someone like them. Doesn't matter. Are you okay?"
You—
Think so.
Who are
You?
You're. There was a room. You walked in. Everything—
—broke.
Can you walk
Out?
You pull yourself off of the cold ceramic floor.
People are screaming around you.
Dr. Karashina and Solomon are going at it with a telepathic voice. The claydol? Where are—where's Genesis? Is she safe?
"You fainted again," she says. "Are you okay?"
"Fine. Help me up."
Noci telekinetically lifts you up and puts you on your feet. You can feel her presence between you and whatever's going on between the claydol and spiritomb.
Dr. Karashina's boots strike against the floor as she approaches. "Another episode?"
"I think so? I found something in my head and poked it. Bad idea."
She takes a deep breath and exhales through her nose. "Do you remember anything?"
"Kind of?" Once your brother was downloading things for you to read. But when he tried to open the files the words were there, just drowned out by endless formatting tags and unreadable characters. You could probably pull out the right memory but it just won't load right in your head. "I was with Alice. She gave me something strange to eat. I drank its blood because I was thirsty. We were in a desert, maybe? The other dreams have been in a desert."
"And… what did you poke?"
You tell her the same thing you told Genesis about the different portals. "Does that mean anything to you?" Probably not. She isn't a psychic.
She doesn't answer at all. When you try to reach out to her mind you find surprisingly effective shields up.
"We need to go," she simply says. "I know what this place is. I think I know what's going on with you. I just need to ask some questions to the right people."
"Wait. Um. Claydol, can you send a golett with us?"
"Cuicatl, we can't just loot things from a unique archeological—"
{HOW MANY SPECTRAL SERVANTS ARE REQUIRED.}
You're tempted to ask for multiple. That's more money. Dr. Karashina doesn't sound like she's going to yield and given everything… yes, you need to go.
"The golett can answer any questions you have."
That shuts Dr. Karashina up.
"You can even buy it yourself and return it."
"Fine. Just be quick."
You turn back to the claydol. "Only one."
You leave shortly after with a golett inside of a great ball. Dr. Karashina whistles and Kagetora clatters to a halt. "Can your metang carry two people?" she asks you.
"Probably not."
"Fine. Genesis, Lyra, get on Kagetora's back. I'll go with her when she returns. Cuicatl, get on Noci. You need to fly home to save time."
No one bothers asking if she'll be fine on her own. Of course she will.
The flight back is silent. Uneventful. You get lost in thought again for an entirely different reason. What happened back there? How are the aliens tied to spiritomb and your ancestors? Was the Harbor Queen an alien herself? Does that make you one? And what on earth did you see?
Death. You remember. Thinking about death. You feel out the edges of your mind like there might be a clue there. No. Same structure. Same jagged, painful edges at the border. Everything is familiar. Everything is as you remember it.
But why does your mind feel wrong? Like it isn't supposed to be the way it's always been?
Dr. Karashina seems to know the answer. Why is she keeping it locked up away from you?
What does any of this mean?
Can you just get home already so you can hold your girlfriend and talk to your friends and try to work through all of this in safety?
Why does everything in your life have to be so damn complicated?