Week 2.

[azumods]

WEEK 2. The new week begins with new surroundings. The city you've been growing accustomed to over the past week is now well behind you as you set out on your journey proper; the terrain still seems rocky and steep here as you move downhill and to the south, dotted here and there with small ponds to the east and rocky outcroppings that you can climb on to the west. There are also large expanses of tall grass here, and the entire route is flanked with tall trees leading off into the forest a short ways. You're more than welcome to explore; just don't stray too far from the group - you wouldn't want to be left behind out here, for any reason. Wild Pokémon are abundant here, as anyone venturing into the tall grass will discover; they aren't inclined to attack you, however, simply watching with dull, dead eyes as you stumble through the area they've come to call home. The trip is difficult, and it's a lot of walking, but it's not unmanageable; fortunately enough, the route you're on should lead you directly to Valor Lakefront, assuming there are no complications along the way. From Thursday and beyond, the route takes a sharp turn west; in front of you lies what's clearly the ocean, large rocks jutting out just offshore tempering the waves. It's safe to go in the water if you so choose - assuming you can swim, that is - and the forested terrain has given way to a large beach with patches of tall grass here and there. Interestingly, there's a house located on the beach; whether it's inhabited or not is difficult to tell. Of course, exploring slightly north of the beach will reveal a path. Maybe it leads somewhere important... CURRENT LOCATION: ROUTE 213 POKEMON AVAILABLE: NEAR WATER SUNDAY | MONDAY | TUESDAY | WEDNESDAY | THURSDAY | FRIDAY [OOC: Welcome to week two of Azume; feel free to make as many top levels as you'd like and tag out to other characters! This post is for all of your interactions this week... at least until the weekend. Don't forget that a write-up is due next weekend!]

Comments

[hyruglyphics]

[ . . .She blinks at that.

Once, and then twice.

Chelsea's words echo in her head, that she's respected, because of wanting to be helpful. She doesn't... believe it per se, but she doesn't doubt it. But for Jake to up and promise that out of the blue does throw her for a moment. ]

Ah... it would. About the only reason I could see to would be the buy time for others...

[bloodspent]

[...Zelda.]

Did you see the fucking dragon Cynthia had on her? Literally the only thing we know about his Pokémon is that they are presumably slightly less badass than that dragon, which still comes down to "I don't wanna fuck with him until I know what he's carrying."

It'd be tactically stupid.

[hyruglyphics]

[ . . .

She laughs, in spite of herself. ]

True. It really would be.

[bloodspent]

I'm not too interested in getting myself killed by some guy with stupid hair and his goddamn pets. Unless this whole world is pacifistic like Cynthia is, which I'll believe when I see it, I'll try to refrain from punching him in the face.

[...Although.]

She said something like that about Cyrus, too, though. Didn't she? Something about the guy not liking violence.

[hyruglyphics]

-Now you mentioned it, she certainly did.

[ huh. ]

[bloodspent]

So maybe it just is a cultural thing around here.

[Or. Something.]

[hyruglyphics]

Or the culture of Team Galactic, despite everything.

[ which is even more creepy ]

[bloodspent]

That.

{That.]

Oh, that is a fucking ugly connotation, I don't like it.

[hyruglyphics]

I'm sorry, I don't follow...?

[ Even if she proposed it, she hasn't made the logical leap beyond "what if?" ]

[bloodspent]

Removing spirit and free will and stuff is, uh. Well, it's kind of a great way to punch the violence out of people, yeah?

[hyruglyphics]

-You're right, it would be!

[ Oh what the fuck. ]

[bloodspent]

So I guess that's one more theory for the table. As much as I don't fuckin' like it.

[hyruglyphics]

[ For such a reason...

Eeeruuughh ]

... I'm sorry, I didn't think beyond the statement.

[bloodspent]

Hey, it's not your fault they're fucked up. This entire thing is kind of..like that, I guess.

[I mean, he didn't really like what Simmons was doing, either.]

It's not the first time I've dealt with fucked up people like this, though. We'll be fine.

[hyruglyphics]

[ A soft nod. ]

I am certain we will. [ Honestly, she's not sure if this is the same as Ganon. Actually, it's probably a lesser threat, but they're in a different situation. And this is a different sort of enemy... presumably, maybe, a more human one. ] This is not the first time I have faced evil before either.

[ But is it fair to call someone who Cynthia doesn't want to kill "evil?" It sounds right to say in the moment, but looking at the horizon, it seems weird to say ]

[bloodspent]

That Calamity thing, right?

[He remembers her mentioning that.]

[hyruglyphics]

That's right, Calamity Ganon in all of its Malice.

[ Which she responds to with a weirdly conflicted tone, looking at the horizon. ]

[bloodspent]

[That gets a quiet noise out of him.]

The stuff I've dealt with has all come from people. No Malice, no Calamity - just human beings, being themselves. So I don't know if I can call them "evil" or not; it's not like they're forces of nature or anything, they're just people.

[hyruglyphics]

[ Ganon was a man once... but he's not anymore. He is so, so far from a man now. She doesn't feel the need to comment on it, and she nods all the same. ]

I confess, I have little experience in those matters. Calamity Ganon's followers are mostly monsters... the only significant traitors in its command are the Yiga clan.

[ . . . ]

It must make matters so much more complicated.

[bloodspent]

[Jake's quiet for a moment at that, just...thinking.]

What'd it want? This...Calamity Ganon thing. Is there any way to know, could it communicate that to you guys?

[hyruglyphics]

If it wanted for something more, that was lost a long, long time ago. Now... it wants only for the destruction of Hyrule.

[ Revenge. Pure Malice and hatred. ]

[bloodspent]

[He's quiet for a moment at that.]

There was this lady we were dealing with. Her name's Ada; she's a real piece of work, killed a bunch of people in the country I came from. She created this...thing, she called it Chaos. It was a monster that was supposed to inherit the world when she was done destroying it.

I think that's the closest thing I've seen to your Calamity Ganon, with the Malice and whatever. Chaos just wanted to kill as many people as possible, and rule over whatever was left of the world afterwards.

[hyruglyphics]

[ Yeah, that is disturbingly familiar. She grits her teeth a moment, tensing before she corrects herself and... ]

Were you able to best her or this Chaos?

[bloodspent]

[That's... It's a complicated question, disguised as a simple one, and he doesn't blame her for asking but it takes a little while to respond anyway.]

I'm pretty sure she died. I wasn't there, but I heard she was shot while she was standing on top of someplace high up and she...fell, I guess. If getting shot didn't kill her, she probably broke her neck when she hit the ground.

Chaos...I was there for that one, and I saw it, but my job was to protect someone else. To get her out of there alive, because she had something on her that was needed to save the world. We left two people behind to fight it, knowing they were probably going to die trying to defeat it.

They managed to kill Chaos, and one of 'em made it out alive. The other didn't.

[hyruglyphics]

[ Her green eyes don't avert the whole time, and she waits patiently for him to answer. Her frown does deepen though, and she... can't help but look with some sympathy. People left behind to fight it, some didn't survive. The woman died under strange circumstances. And all of that is...

She works out her own response slowly as well. And when she does, she does so crossing her arms at her waist. ]

Thank you for telling me, Jake. [ A pause, and... no, she should clarify that- ] ... I can better understand your weariness now, I believe.

[ "weariness" or "let's kill dudes before they are a problem" but hey, whatevs. ]

... And I do offer my condolences for your friend.