Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: The Secrets of Requiem Forest

[Blathers]

Lily the Ekans

Lily hesitated for a moment before replying. It was a very short pause, but anyone paying close attention could tell she chose her words carefully.
"Actually... I joined under... different, circumstances." Lily smiled in an attempt to show confidence. "I'll let the guild staff go on with their spiel; I wouldn't want to steal the wind from under the empoleon's wings. Truthfully, I was only offered a position in the guild by Sycamore a short while ago, so I'm still a bit of a rookie. Like you guys." Lily carefully avoided mentioning how she met Sycamore and what the conditions were; she didn't want to immediately taint her reputation among the group by letting them know of her thieving past.

 

[Oblivion]

A door situated near the corner of the room then opened, and out of it came a few different Pokemon. The first to emerge was a hulking Tyranitar who needed to duck a fair distance in order to make his way through the doorway. His expression was devoid of any sort of expression, and he gave almost predatory glances towards the guild members situated there. Next came an Empoleon who, while he still bore an expression of seriousness, seemed to be just a little more on the welcoming side. And finally, behind the other two, none other than Sycamore the Shiftry walked out, though he seemed somewhat...anxious.

Sycamore and the Empoleon stood near the far side of the room, where the various guild members congregated towards. The Tyranitar stood off to the side, still searching through the crowds.

"It appears that we have quite the number of new recruits into the Azurian Guild," Sycamore said in a rather gruff, yet loud and commanding voice. "To those of you who don't know me, which is likely quite a bit of you, my name is Sycamore, and I am the head of this guild. I will oversee the majority of your guild activities, be it directly or through one of my assistants.

"This is Komodo." Sycamore pointed towards the Tyranitar, who gave a grunt. "He is the main security force in the guild, and will be on the lookout for troublemakers or any other antics. You would do well not to cross him."

"And my name is Rockhopper." The Empoleon spoke in a deep, somewhat soothing voice. "I tend to serve as Sycamore's eyes and ears around the guild, and you'll generally see me around more often than him. I will also be the one who will show you around the guild once this introduction is complete."

"With that being said, there are a few rules that I need to lay down," Sycamore said. "First and foremost, do not under any circumstances go into the Forest without checking with me or Rockhopper first. This is for your own safety more than anyone else's. If you underestimate the things that are in there, the gap between realizing your mistake and your death will be quite short."

That particular statement started a few hushed whispers throughout the group, and Sycamore let his words sink in for a few moments before continuing. "Secondly, there are to be no unorganized fights between guild members. Note, however, that the operative word is 'unorganized'. If two of you truly have a problem that you think can only be settled through physical means, or if you just want to fight against one another for whatever reason, then at least have the decency to arrange a proper time and place first. And make sure to run it by an official. Rockhopper and Komodo will both oversee the duel to make sure that no one gets fatally injured.

"Also, you might have noticed that the local townspeople were on edge upon your arrival here. This is because, to put it quite frankly, we're not usually portrayed in the brightest of lights. And I don't want any of you making that reputation worse. This is less of a rule and more of a guideline I want you to follow, but try to be on your best behavior when going around town. If you cause a big accident or start an incident or, Arceus forbid, entice a brawl...trust me, I'll know. And don't think for a second that you would be able to get away with such foolhardy behavior.

"With that all being said, I believe it is about time for Rockhopper here to show you all around. Oh, and if anyone ends up showing up late, refer them to Rockhopper or me. Or, feel free to fill them in yourself if you can. Any exploration guild revolves heavily around the teamwork of its members, and I do hope that such virtues will be displayed in due time. Thank you."

Sycamore then promptly returned to his quarters, shutting the door behind him. Komodo stomped off into a nearby side door, and Rockhopper headed towards the ladder that descended further down, and signaled for the newcomers to come to him.

Falchion was reflecting on the speech that the guildmaster had given as he walked towards Rockhopper. While he did appreciate the forceful manner in which he laid down the law, there was something about him that gave the impression that he simply wanted to be done with the speech as quickly as he could. Odd, considering his status in the guild.

 

[Kyouhei!]

"Jeez, FINALLY!" Ace yelled, climbing down the ladder. He didn't really care where he was going to go, he just wanted to stand up.

"Does anyone have some oil?" Ace joked.

 

[trainer_ebony]

Hiei thought for a moment about what was said. So i need permission to explore... This was his primary thought as he followed the Empoleon and the others ahead of him.

 

[Naoto]

"Let us go." Kirlia simply said as she followed Rockhopper. Her stride long and elegant.

 

[Blathers]

Blink the Kecleon

Blink felt very glad when the Tyranitar named Komodo left the room. The pokemon was monstrous! Blink had seen some very intimidating pokemon from his time spent in Requiem forest, but very little compares to that pokemon. Blink was glad that Requiem forest was banned; the kecleon knew first hand how dangerous the forest was. Blink made his way over to Rockhopper and the ladder. Blink rather liked the empoleon; he was much more pleasant then the other staff he had met so far.

=========================

Lily The Ekans

Even though Lily was already rather familiar with the guild, she decided she would follow the others on the tour. She slithered her way over to Rockhopper to go on the tour with the others, seeing it as a chance to get to know her future guild mates.

 

[Kyouhei!]

"So, uuh, this "no exploring" thing," Ace asked Rockhopper, "Is it more of a seasonal thing?"

"No," the Empoleon replied sharply.

"Woah, that other Pawniard would love this dude..."

 

[Oblivion]

((Oh, just in case I didn't make this clear earlier: The major NPCs, including Sycamore, Rockhopper, Komodo, Daggur, Shazaam, Bruce, and any other major characters who are introduced later on...they will be solely controlled by me. Players can, however, control more minor NPCs, such as random guild members or townsfolk, as the situation commands. Terribly sorry for any confusion.

Also, there are now maps of Azuria and the Guild in the first post. Might make figuring out where things are a bit easier.))​

"Sycamore was not over-exaggerating when he was talking about underestimating the forest," Rockhopper said to Ace. "I've been in there more times than I could probably count, and there are still places in there that I would dare not tread."

Once he saw that the majority of the newcomers had assembled, he began walking. The basement of the Guild was much more plentiful in activity than the upper floor, though a particular voice rang out amongst the chatter.

"Ah, Rockhopper! Come to show the new ones around, hm?"

The voice had a particularly sharp ring to it, and Rockhopper gave an exasperated sigh as he turned to face the speaker. It was a Weavile, standing near the corner of the area, various trinkets and goods arranged in the area. "Yes, I am. And I'd prefer not get sidetracked," he responded rather sharply.

"Oh, sidetracked? Far from it," the Weavile said, a smirk on his face. "Matter of fact, I have a few things here that might as well have your name on them!"

"We're leaving." Rockhopper quickly turned away from the salesman, obviously not too happy with him.

"That was Daggur," he said to the others. "Sycamore made an agreement with him, and he stops by every now and then to sell his wares. Sure, he might have useful material, but he's a slick one. He's not above conning guild members to make a profit, and I'd prefer not finding out how he even obtains his wares. With all due respect, I don't know what the guildmaster was thinking, bringing him into here..."

Moving on, they came across a wooden board nailed to the wall opposite the entrance ladder, with multiple Pokemon investigating the assorted papers attached to it. "That's the Message Board," Rockhopper explained. "Probably the best source of information in the guild, if not most of the town. Make sure to check it every now and then. Stay in the loop."

He pointed towards a fairly spacious room to the side of the message board, with walls fashioned out of bleak stone. "That's the indoor training area. I believe a duel's going on at the present moment, so it would be best not to enter right now. In addition, the yard surrounding the guild building is also a fairly popular training place."

Finally, he stopped near the eastern edge of the floor, pointing towards an entrance. "And that leads to the dormitories. There are eight rooms in total, and it's usually two to a room. I'll leave you all to determine your rooming situation yourselves. Also, your first day here at the guild is yours to spend however you choose. Just make sure not to get into any trouble, both for my sake and yours. Any questions?"

Falchion remained silent throughout the entire tour, making sure to take in as much of the information as he could. Gaz, meanwhile, spent the majority of his time looking like he was staring into some void. Whether or not he was actually taking any of this information in was anyone's guess.

 

[Stencil]

Duster glanced over at the dorms, before looking back at Rockhopper. "Aye, I got a question. We've got places to sleep and train, but do we have anywhere to eat or are we 'xpected tae make our own arrangements on tha' fron'?" he asked, no sarcasm present in his voice at all. It seemed like a pretty legitimate question, all told.

 

[Kyouhei!]

Ace stared at the Drilbur.

"OK, so maybe not everyone is completely retarded."

"Eh, I have another question. If someone were to, and I'm just hypothetically speaking here, If someone were to, in theory, burn down my bed, where would I sleep? I mean, how can I sleep when my bed is burning?" Ace grinned, like he had made a clever joke.

 

[Blathers]

Blink the Kecleon

"Someone would set your bed on fire?" Blink asked, unsure if he was kidding. "Th-that isn't something that happens around here often, is it? I don't like the idea of my bed bursting into flames at night..." Blink wasn't sure if he sounded dumb at the moment, but he really didn't know what to expect from people inside of a guild. Would they do something like that? Maybe the entire guild pulls dirty tricks in each other's sleeps... The thoughts sent a chill up Blink's spine.

==============================

Lily the Ekans

Lily rolled her eyes, both at Ace's 'joke' and Blink's response. Does that Kecleon ever get out of the house?
"No. We do not usually light people's beds on fire. Though Ace, in the event where your bed does spontaneously burst into flames, we could prepare a bed of straw for you."

 

[Oblivion]

((Crap, I knew I had forgotten something when I was making the maps...))​

"Those kinds of antics are precisely the thing that Komodo and the other staff are here to prevent," Rockhopper said. "However, some of our members have had a bit of a mischievous streak, but we do out best to keep such things under control." Rockhopper turned his attention to the question brought up by Duster. "Ah, I had forgot to mention that. The mess hall is situation down the hallway, opposite this building.

"One more thing, and try not to spread this around. Sycamore seems to be acting rather...strange lately. More prone to losing his temper, even less willing to be out in the open than usual...so, I'd suggest keeping your distance from him. Sycamore is never pleasant to be around when he's in a bad mood, regardless of the cause. If you have any more questions, just ask me or one of the other guild members. And welcome to the guild."

With that, the Empoleon walked off and headed back up to the first floor, leaving the others to commune. Hopefully they wouldn't get into any trouble, but if previous experience was any indication...odds are something would happen anyways.

 

[Naoto]

Kanade paid vast amount of attention to Rockhopper before he left but then realized that she might have to share a room with an unfammilar boy, which would not be very lady-like, so she elegantly turned to the Ekans, Lily, and asked. "Would you mind sharing a room with me, I fear there are few ladies here such as you or I."

 

[trainer_ebony]

"Wait, please. I have a question. Ace's odd joke made me think of it. Are there any fire resistant beds? My tail could make his joke into a real accident!"

 

[Stencil]

Duster shook his head as the tomfoolery continued. "Alright, I'll jes' throw this out there - I'll share a dorm wi' anyone, if need be. Sleepin' arrangements never did bother me much." he stated as the conversation continued to swerve and pitch.

 

[Oblivion]

Rockhopper, however, was already out of earshot. At the mention of the subject, Gaz tilted his head quizzically. "But why is your tail on fire? As far as I've been able to tell, fire burns through most living tissue. And having a portion of your body on fire seems quite inconvenient," he said, once again proving his lack of knowledge concerning local Pokemon species.

 

[trainer_ebony]

Hiei looke at Gaz and tilted his head. "Youve never seen a fire type pokemon with a flame tail before?"

 

[Blathers]

Lily the Ekans

"Oh, sure. We girls have to stick together, don't we?" Lily said with a smile. Lily considered nudging the Kirlia like she would her other friends, but thought better of it. "I'm an easy roommate to get along with. I don't take up much space either." It was then she realized she really didn't know many girls inside of the guild. The only girl Lily had considered herself close friends with was her mother, but her mother wasn't as 'lady-like' as the Kirlia she had recently met. Suddenly Lily began to feel a bit out of touch herself.


==========================================

Blink the Kecleon

Blink tapped Dusten on the shoulder gently. He didn't have the courage to approach most people, but the Drillbur seemed rather laid back. And he didn't know if he could bunk with someone who was a fire hazard waiting to happen. And it would take a brave soul to approach the other, more fierce Pawniard..
"Um... excuse me... may I bunk with you? I promise I won't be a bother..." Blink drifted off while staring down at the ground.

 

[Stencil]

Duster just shrugged. " Some Pokemon have fire tails. I saw some big'uns wi' wings back at the hills. If it bothers ye that much, then I can git some local soil. Soil doesn't burn easy, so you can lie in tha' all you want."

Then Blink tapped on the Drilbur's shoulder and posed his meek little question. "Sure, whatever. Someone tae talk to at least." he replied affably enough as he mentally planned to put the young Kecleon through a brutal regime of confidence lessons.

 

[Naoto]

Kanade curtseyed and said to Lily. "Thank you, I will do my utmost to be as little of a burden as possible. My name is Kanade, and I am glad for our inevitable meeting."