The beginning

[lowreaches]

Who: The cast

Where: The Belfry's front yard and parking lot

When: Morning

What: A bus has arrived, empty, causing quite the stir.

The storm fell over the town like a pall, and with it came the fog.  

 

It was a hungry, curious thing.  So thick and wet it licked at your clothes and skin when you stepped out into it, tasting you, and stealing sight and color from the world, leaving it slick and oily.  Shadows festered in its recesses, coiling and dancing beneath it like living things, greedy in the low light.  Above was no better:  the angry thunderheads hung mountainous over the city, spitting rain and blooming with lightning.  Storms were fierce in Sinjoh, and this was no exception, booming and growling its discontent, threatening to shake the bones from bodies.  The rain fell in heavy sheets, gutters and creeks swollen and fast with it.  Little rivers streamed across Blackbell.  It choked the city.  It blinded it.  

 

Maybe that's why no one noticed until it was too late.  

 

Out of that grey, pitiless gloom rose the old (new) crooked Belfry, and beneath it, a mass of children and their beleaguered teachers, their rain slickers and jackets shiny in the rain, whispering and sharing glances among themselves -- those who weren't transfixed on the cloudbursts of red and blues in the fog and the occasional ghostlight that meandered clumsily through it.  Police sirens chirped, sharp against the dull grey fog, and sometimes a walkie would crackle to life.  

 

Worse still were the keen wails as whoever stumbled out of their car up to the police barricade were turned aside, told the news, and lost themselves.

 

Because everyone remembered the cargo ship.

 

Everyone remembered what washed up to shore, only a short few weeks ago.  There were pictures all over the internet:  strange, pale figures.  Motionless.  Their mouths toothless gapes.  Their eyes worse.  Empty.  Nothing staring at nothing.  They were human shaped, but too slack, too soggy, too translucent.  They would burst if they tried to move.  Some had when the authorities had gone to collect them.

 

The bus was submerged in the fog, its bright yellow coloring strange and forbidding now.  Nearly twenty minutes ago it had lurched into the parking lot, and died.  It went still, lights and engines snapping off, and no one had noticed anything amiss -- the steady beat of the rain and growl of thunder drowned out everything else the fog didn't cover -- until a few minutes had gone past and no one had stepped off.  The door had remained shut.  Eventually someone investigated.  Called out and knocked on the side door, frowned into the empty inside.  They managed the door open, and a gentle rush of fetid, dark water spilled out.  Inside, the rows and rows of bus seats were empty.  Just backpacks and toys, even a few pokeballs, sat lonely and abandoned.

 

When the authorities arrived, they found the teachers trying to shoo the children away from the bus, many of them lifting on to tiptoe to try and get a glance inside at the back door, or smashing their faces into the side door.  The first cop car was soon joined by another, and another.  EMTs were called:  a child had fainted.  A barricade was constructed, and some order was restored.

 

Until the first parent arrived.  

 

And then the press.

 

The Belfry hunched over the small circus forming on its parking lot, bell toning with the start of the school day.  Its crooked arches and spindly lengths, occasionally thrown into fierce shadows from a lightning strike, were skeletal in the gloom.  School had been cancelled for the day.   Parents were being called to pick up children.  A line was queuing near the western port of the parking lot.

 

Comments

[foxfeathers]

Rhyssa was quiet in the rain, her Rowlet, Fallon, had decided to become an impromptu umbrella for all that his wings weren't remotely big enough. She let him help anyway as she dug into her bag for her umbrella. It was black, nondescript, but on its underside it was blue and populated by bird pokemon flying through a blue sky background. It was also large enough to fit a few more people once she got it open. Kali, her Eevee, had managed to carefully drape herself around Rhyssa's neck in the most impossible of ways. Honestly, it looked like she had somehow acquired an Eevee as a scarf.

She was, however, warmer.

"Come on under here where it's dry," Rhyssa called as she watched the commotion with interest, snagging elbows and hands when she could. Her mother wasn't coming, she knew that already. She'd have to walk home or get a ride. "I wonder if they'll let me walk home or if I'm going to have to beg a ride with someone. My mother's been at a conference somewhere for days. Just me in the house."

She paused for a moment to consider the scene.

"I guess that bus is probably a mess. Figures it'd come here, this place already looks like someone plucked it from a horror novel." She craned her head back toward the school and let out a huff. "It could use some new paint and someone to plant a friendly garden."

[sail_away]

She was fine in her slicker, thank you very much Rhyssa. But, when she got her arm snagged like that, she was pulled in close to the Eevee wrapped girl, her own Amaura huddling down between her legs. The pokemon shook itself 'dry,' little bits of frozen water going in every direction instead of droplets of water. The air around the fossil was just a bit colder always, not that Shizuka ever seemed to mind.

She looked over at her and shrugged before shaking her head. "I never really thought about it like that. It doesn't scare me, after all." Yeah, well, she always liked to behave like she wasn't scared of anything at all. But, something else was nagging at her more the longer that she thought about it, right up until the point that she frowned.

"You're coming over to my place for dinner tonight. You know that, right?" No, there wasn't fear there, but it seemed like a bad idea for someone to go somewhere alone tonight, not after all this.

[foxfeathers]

"Oh, you've an Amaura! That's wonderful, I've never seen one up close before. My father was always promising me a good look. Hello, there!" Rhyssa waved a little and smiled at the fossil pokemon.

With the invitation, she looked up, delighted.

"If you're sure it's alright, I'd be glad for the company. My mom does Pokemon research, so she's often pretty far afield most of the time," Rhyssa said with a slight shrug as if it didn't matter too much. "She was going to leave a Nosepass to take care of things at home but I talked her out of it."

Fallon flapped his wings and resettled on her head as she gestured. Nosepass were kinda creepy looking with all their, well, noses, but incredibly efficient. Fantastic for security reasons as well.

[sail_away]

Peanut smiled over at her with the attention. The pokemon's lower body was between her legs, but its head came almost up to their eye level. It bobbed and leaned over to let Rhyssa pet her if she wanted. Shizuka reached her hand affectionately to the back of its head and smiled in turn. She was duly proud of Peanut, not just for her rarity but the sentimental side of her.

"Peanut's a great pokemon," she said, feeling her mood lighten some to talk about her. "I like your Rowlet, too. I don't think I've seen one yet. We don't have many from the islands here after all." And she wanted to know all about it. The young girl pulled out her pokedex to capture it for her records, hearing the glean sound, but keeping the volume low. She could look him up later.

"Don't worry about it. I don't think the teachers want us to be alone right now, after all, so this is probably a good idea. My uncle can't always be at home either, so it gets pretty quiet with just me, Peanut and Gutsy. I bet a Nosepass would be helpful though." Who was Gutsy? That little imp wasn't coming out right now, no way, no how. She didn't trust him to behave at the moment, and this was not the time for his shenanigans.

[foxfeathers]

"Okay, thanks," Rhyssa offers a tilt of her head and a smile. "How'd you two decide on the name 'Peanut'? And is Gutsy another pokemon travelling with you, too?" She waves at her two and laughs. "Mine are rarely in their pokeballs, not unless they want to be there. I think they like being out so they can keep an eye on me."

Both pokemon voiced their opinion on her being correct at the same moment and she had to laugh.

"Mhm, with this new development? Yeah, mom's going to regret me talking her out of leaving it here with me. Whoops."

[sail_away]

"Oh... well, she really likes peanuts, so it seemed like a good choice," she admitted, almost a little sheepishly. It had been a silly reason to call her pokemon that, but she had wanted a cute name for her friend, and Peanut seemed to like it. "Gutsy's my Chespin. I'd have him out too, but he'll never behave himself right now. I know better than to bring an Impish pokemon out right about now. He'd just give everyone trouble."

She shook her head and sighed. She loved Gutsy, she really did, but he was a handful. "Well, as long as we're together with our friends, we should be safe. Peanut's very strong, after all. I'm not afraid." No, she wasn't going to think about the fact that the missing students had left behind pokeballs.

In fact, she didn't want to think too much about the pokemon in those balls.

[foxfeathers]

"Well, peanuts are very good," Rhyssa said with a soft laugh. "What sort of trouble does your Gutsy get into? I know my Kali sometimes steals stuff but I always give it back to the right owners. I've been trying to teach her that's rude."

Her expression settles into something serious and she nods, looking out across the rest still gathered and waiting for their parents.

"I'm not afraid, either. We can't afford to be, really. Especially now. We have to be strong, after all. It's what we're being taught, right?"

[sail_away]

"They are, aren't they?" she said, her fingers rubbing on the back of the Amaura's head, never seeming to mind the chill that it gave off. It was kind of normal for her, really. She smiled to herself, thinking about Gutsy and shaking her head. Oh, he was a trouble-maker.

"He's a prankster. And I can control him, as long as I have an eye on him, but he's always looking for an excuse to make people laugh. Right now, it wouldn't be a good thing." She frowned, looking at the bus and nodding. "Like you said, we kind of need to stay strong, not joke around or get afraid. I don't like letting things get me down. I promised my parents I wouldn't."

[foxfeathers]

"I don't know, I could use a laugh right now," Rhyssa said with a glance at the bus. "Even the strongest people in the whole wide world need laughter to keep them going when life gets too serious. Smiling is good for you but I suppose that has its place and time, too. Maybe later. I'd love to meet your Gutsy. He sounds like he has lots of energy to burn."

[sail_away]

"Oh, I think we could both probably use a laugh, just not here and now. When we get home, I'll let him out. He gets cranky if I keep him cooped up in his ball too much of the day." Honestly, he was a handful. "And you have no idea how much energy. But Peanut helps keep him in line." Ice types disciplining grass types, yep. That was a thing.

[foxfeathers]

"I'd get cranky, too," Rhyssa said as Fallon hopped onto her shoulder. "There's way too many interesting things going on outside after all. It's hard to be a partner if you're stuck inside, right?" She grinned and shifted a little, tapping at a puddle of rainwater that seemed determined to encroach on them.

"I hope the rain lifts, soon. If it keeps up like this, the ground may get too soaked."

[sail_away]

"If I could understand what he'd said clearly, I'm fairly sure he'd agree with you." After all, it was always something of a dicey thing to completely understand what a pokemon without telepathy was saying at any time. "So I like to let him out at home most of the time. It helps keep him behaved." And it gave her something to deny him if he started being a punk.

"Hmmm. I have a feeling we should get ready to get soaked. It always seems like it's raining anymore. It'd be a good day to be a Goodra."

[foxfeathers]

"I want to understand how to better listen to pokemon," Rhyssa said quietly and there was a quiet passion in her voice. "After all our training and whatever challenges we face, that's what I want to do, just...not in a lab. I want to understand pokemon, how they communicate and speak to each other. Maybe one day we'll all know what our friends are saying."

She grinned at the thought of all of that and meeting another pokemon. They were all so unique.

"I have a feeling I'll really enjoy meeting your Gutsy." Rhyssa shook her head a little as the rain fell. "You're right, it does seem like it rains an awful lot here. At least we know a Goodra would enjoy it." She looked off into the forest that surrounded them for awhile.

"What pokemon do you think are in those woods? Does anyone ever go out there?"

[sail_away]

"I don't know that anyone with a lab could tell you exactly how they speak anyway. Seems like something you'd have to feel, like the longer that you're with one, the easier it is to understand." Admittedly, she wasn't so hot at that, but it was a dream for almost any good trainer out there, to want to understand what their pokemon were thinking. Or, alternatively, to find out if porygons dreamed of electronic mareep in their sleep.

"I'm pretty sure there are Hoothoots, Pidgeys and Pidoves out there," she said a bit idly. "Though I've wondered if there's maybe a Honchkrow, with how dark some of the parts can be. That would be an interesting find, wouldn't it?" This was good. Geeking out about pokemon would take their minds off of things.

[foxfeathers]

"Mom does pokemon research," Rhyssa said with a slight wrinkle of her nose. "If it's not in a laboratory, it's at a conference. I'm pretty sure if they'd cracked the pokemon language barrier, she'd have said something. But yeah. The longer you're with anyone, the easier they are to understand."

Both of her pokemon made noises of agreement, though Kali's was sleepy. They were her best friends, her family, and she was very good with interpreting what they wanted or needed even if they hadn't been around for long.

"Mhm! That'd be excellent, really. I've always wanted to meet one and I guess I will, even if I'm not there to catch it. They seem kind of scary to some but they're pretty awesome. I like the Murkrows I've met. Some of the ghost types might be in there, too. It just...seems like a place you're find them." Some of the kids were being picked up by solemn or worried parents already. Rhyssa counted more than a few less faces around than a few minutes before.

"This place should have some books around about the area and the pokemon, too. Maybe a trip to a library or something is a good idea. I haven't had much time to do any of that," she said, her expression a little embarassed. "I've mostly been training with Kali and Fallon when I'm not studying."

[sail_away]

She nodded. "I would love to meet your mother one of these days. My parents were archaeologists, so I grew up fascinated with pokemon. It'd be interesting to see one of her lectures." Maybe she didn't know how pokemon communicated, like anyone truly did that wasn't a pokemon already, but it would be a delight.

"A honchkrow would be fun. I love unusual pokemon, ones that I've never seen before, and ones that surprise people," she said, her fingers brushing under peanut's chin. "Like Peanut here. I've heard people don't want to risk a pokemon like this, because of typing, but they can be very powerful. I love being able to surprise people like that. There has to be some very unusual ones around here for us to find."

She considered, looking over at the Eevee and smiling. "We should have a battle... some day, not today. It wouldn't be appropriate, but I think mine would love it."

[foxfeathers]

"I'm sure my mom would like it if you did come sit for a lecture. My dad is an archaeologist, too, or was," she said, her smile soft. "Wherever he is, he taught me that unusual pokemon can be some of the most incredible friends. I like them, too. I can't wait to see what we find out there, I'm sure that's going to be an adventure."

At the mention of a battle her eyes seemed to sparkle with joy. She'd never really had the chance yet. It'd be absolutely wonderful.

"I think Kali and Fallon both would love a battle. They really enjoy testing their skills. Sometimes, I'll catch them in mock battles against each other just trying to get stronger." She ruffled Fallon's feathers gently.

[sail_away]

"It's certainly one of the less well explored regions, so there's bound to be unusual pokemon here. I wonder if we'll see one that hasn't been documented yet." She nodded at the mention of the girl's missing father. She didn't pry, anymore than the other had asked about hers. It was, maybe, a talk for another time. She didn't talk about her parents' deaths that often after all.

"Then I would say that they're itching to go. Of course, I think pokemon love to battle each other in general. So, it only makes sense. I think today's going to be bad for it, but we can do it soon," she said, feeling Peanut perk up at the idea of it. Yeah, hers would love the idea of a good fight.

[foxfeathers]

"I hope we do get to find something new, that would be amazing. Especially if it hasn't seen people like us, ever. I can't imagine how exciting that would be but it'd be pretty far up there."

Another few faces disappeared and while she wasn't counting, she was very much aware of it and the bus and everything else going on around her. There was a chill in there air that had nothing to do with Peanut.

"Yeah, they are and they really do. It's natural for them to battle like that but sure, when the weather's better we totally can." Her smile, which was never really far from her lips anyway, lit her face at the thought. It really would be great and she knew they'd give their best no matter who won or who lost. It was all about learning, anyway, for trainers and pokemon.

[sail_away]

She smiled, shaking her head. The weather was less her concern than the crowds. She had a feeling that the teachers would frown greatly on them disturbing things today by having a pokemon battle right here and now. But, they would still get the chance soon enough, that much was sure. "Thanks, I'm looking forward to it," she said sincerely. She was definitely looking forward to seeing Peanut in action again.

"Do you think our field trip is going to be held up by this?" She wouldn't be surprised, and she wouldn't even doubt the teachers for doing so, but it would be a little disappointing at the same time. She'd been looking forward to it, after all.

[foxfeathers]

Rhyssa grinned, definitely excited for a pokemon battle.

"I hope not," Rhyssa said, frowning a little. "It would be just the distraction to help us all refocus on something really positive. I'm very much looking forward to that."

Kali let out a soft query from around Rhyssa's neck. She wanted to go, too, and so did Fallon. The field trip had been on her mind since the moment she learned it was on the schedule. It would probably be a chance to make a new pokemon friend, too. That was definitely distracting.

[phasephoros]

The moment Rhyssa's umbrella is out, Emme gratefully takes advantage of the refuge, stopping just long enough to wring the rain out of her hair before settling in underneath the cover. She laughs a little— a tug of envy at the Eevee soft around Rhyssa's neck, then something of sadness when she hears the other girl will likely go home to an empty house. Her own parents are on the way, probably, maybe after they've secured their plants and trees against the storm, but for now, Emme takes what comfort she can get with her classmates from school.

"More like you'll be swimming home, if the rain keeps up any longer," she says, peeking out beneath the umbrella, only to whip her head back in when she's met with nothing more unexpected than a face-full of water. "It'd probably wash away any paint or seeds we plan too— it's always like that here! Temperamental weather... Rayquaza's sure slacking!" She shakes a fist up at the sky, more theatrical than serious. "Come on up there, get it under control!"

[foxfeathers]

"It certainly isn't the best weather, much colder than in Alola," Rhyssa nods, making a face. Fallon peers down at her, his face rotating as he lets out a questioning sound. She scratches his neck with a soft laugh and shakes her head.

"Of course it has to rain," she says after a moment. "That only makes that bus even creepier. I wish they'd tell us something more but I guess that'll wait until they actually know anything. I mean, it's a bus and it was clearly moving, so where are the kids? The driver?"

She wrinkles her nose.

"...the rain stopping would be really nice." The soft, whispered pretty please was added on like maybe she thought Rayquaza just might be listening, theatrics or not.

[phasephoros]

Vacationing in Alola sounds so nice right about now... This city, as creepy as it is, is the only place Emme knows because she was born and raised here, but she can imagine that anywhere else is better. Somewhere with lots of sun and fresh air, where the only reason a bus would suddenly stop is because it's run out of gas. She peers again out to the distance where the bus sits— has been sitting for so long now— and heaves a sigh.

"Whatever happened, I don't see what that has to do with us. It's not like I'm so eager for school or anything, but at least the classroom's dry and—" She almost says 'safe,' but catches herself just in time, "—warm. Or if it'd just stop raining, I could let out my Pokemon too."

[foxfeathers]

"You should let them out anyway, then they can cuddle with you," Rhyssa says as Fallon nips at her fingers gently. "I'm sure they'd like that, too. Kali is doing a great job of keeping me warm, after all. I'd rather be in school myself or at least given homework. Something keeping me occupied rather than nothing would be great."