A Proper Adventurer

[19-10=9]

Opal was very excited. So excited she could barely stop herself from bouncing all over the place and barking with joy! She'd met another pokemon she was unfamiliar with, an absol. He seemed nice enough, if a bit standoffish. No problem, the pup thought. If she could make friends with him, she would. Journeying across the world to see its sights was nicer when you had someone to share it with! Unaware that the dark type differed slightly in attitude, she eagerly trotted alongside him.

"So, which way are we going? I haven't been here before. This is so cool! My first mystery dungeon!"

The growlithe didn't quite remember how they'd come to this agreement. To her, though, that didn't matter. What mattered is they were now exploring the mystery dungeons of Pricklemist Hill, and that was amazing. Opal felt proud and determined to show her worth. She was a proper adventurer now, with an adventuring partner! The fiery canine couldn't wait to get started!

The Absol had been roped in to accompanying the Growlithe for a time, due to the duo having been headed the same way. Deimos had so far been mostly quiet, only speaking on rare occasion and when the situation had required it. In other words, rarely.

Unlike the Growlithe, Deimos knew the general ways of the hill well enough due to numerous prior visits. The fact that it was also his first area of arrival upon having left his old home most certainly helped. He was fond of the locale to a degree, enjoying the amount of natural camouflage came from the constant thick mist. He especially preferred the environment however as it proved easy to keep track of with his senses. Such traits proved useful to him more often than not, making it easy for the Absol to find a quiet corner to rest and relax in.

Of course, having company rendered that less than optimal. Radiant flames were an easy beacon within the ocean of white that had forever engulfed the area, one that he knew wild natives took advantage of. Nevertheless, such knowledge had to be made known publicly due to his current situation.

"I was going to go rest. For your own safety, keep your fires dimmed. Natives are typically aggressive" The Absol remarked with a single glance. Though he couldn't recall if it was so, he was hoping to resupply on a valuable item here, a certain cerulean orb that he figured would always come in useful to have around.

The Growlithe looked up to her new partner in both senses of the phrase. Here was someone older, more powerful and not a murderous psychopath. He'd been on adventures before and must surely know much. Also, he was taller, so she had to look up to see him properly. The pup constantly alternated between doing this and looking at their surroundings. When she asked which way they were going, the reply wasn't what she'd expected. Still, it was good to rest sometimes. She nodded as she listened to the Absol's advice.

"Oh, okay."

Opal had not been oblivious to the blanket of mist. She could see why the Absol had said what he did. She'd want to investigate something obvious in all this white, too, come to think of it. It looked like using Fire Spin was not a wise option, then. A mental note was made as she followed along, eager to get to where they were going. The Growlithe didn't know about orbs and whatnot, but that wasn't what drew her here. She'd just taken the opportunity to explore.

"Hey, mist means water, right? We're not going to get wet, are we?"

That thought had been bothering her for a while. Opal didn't like getting wet. Wet fur was heavy and made her cold. It wouldn't be easy to dry off if she got wet in a place like this. Passing through a place called Rainfront Town hadn't been the most appealing of ideas, but she'd agreed to it after being assured the weather wouldn't be that bad.

The Absol advanced carefully and quietly into the midst, viewing caution as a natural neccessity in a locale where one could lose their way swiftly and find themselves lost. Natural landmarks were typically harder to spot within the mist, though they did exist. The Absol recalled the rumour of a house somewhere at the top of the hill, occupied by agressive spirits.

He figured that leaving that whole debacle for a later debate once the boss returned would be the best option. Writing a report in this mist didn't sound like fun and for all he knew, it could damage the journal that Russel so carefully crafted. Deimos didn't intend to take the risk, any information required would be better to keep in memory. Memories don't grow soggy and get ruined like paper after all.

With that moment of debate out of the way, the Absol turned it's attention back to the Growlithe that had been accompanying him. From what he could tell, his advice on the flames had gone through well and clear enough. The question about water however made the Absol pause and think for a moment. His focus was primarily turned to recalling prior encountered native species.

"Possibly, though through all of my visits I have never encountered a native water type amidst the mist. Mostly just normal, poison, ghost and the occasional psychic type. Keep in mind this is just what i have encountered however, not a guarantee" Deimos spoke calmly. The more she know's the better, or so the Absol thought. Knowledge is power, after all.

Opal observed that her adventuring partner always kept his gaze ahead and looking out for things, pausing when he was responding to her questions. What a clever Absol! The Growlithe should be doing the same, she realised as she nearly tripped over a rock. Vision in the fog wasn't good, but best pay attention anyway. Getting injured in an area like this due to your own stupidity was a recipe for disaster.

Her ears drooped a little when the Absol mentioned there was indeed a possibility of getting wet. What a way to make her first exploration less exciting. The pup continued to listen, and quickly found something else to be disgusted at.

"Poison types? Eww! They're smelly!"

The young Growlithe wrinkled her nose in displeasure. Her limited experience meant she hadn't seen many poison types, but the ones she had seen left a negative association of their kind. They hadn't really been rude, but who on earth could stand the stench they brought?! It was awful! She didn't know how some pokemon managed it.

Deimos continued his quiet and calm advance through the mist, keeping his senses and claw's ready for immediate self defence if the situation dissolved and immediate action was turned neccessary. He'd never personally had issues immediately upon arrival, though that could probably be rationalised as to being due to his own natural camoflauge and careful nature of both travel and conflict. It could have also been rationalised as having been due to him having spent the majority of his life in mountainous terrain.

Regardless of his natural inclination to such terrain, he felt the need to act doubly cautious due to being accompanied by a fire type who didn't have much knowledge of the area. After the whole incident back in Shadowhue he'd grown a little bit more used to being used as a pillar of support when it came down to a worst case scenario. He wasn't expecting this trip to devolve into a similar scenario, though he figured it never hurt to be prepared.

The Growlithe's remark about poison types he personally didn't like however. Perhaps they'd had differentiating experiences but he had never personally noticed much of a difference in scent's between the types. Merely going off of his own personal experience, he shook his head. "Not all of them. Not all beings in a category are the same or similar. Who know's, one day you might find a poison type who you can barely even detect by smell or one who's scent you might appreciate." The Absol replied with the equivalent of a simple shrug.

"I have trouble imagining that. But I haven't met that many poison types..."

Deimos' declaration was fascinating to Opal. She pondered it. It was an outlandish notion to the young Growlithe, but could there really be some merit in the Absol's words? Come to think of it, she didn't know what pokemon lived here, and she didn't smell anything unpleasant as of yet. Her new partner was clever and knew the area, so maybe he was right after all. She doubted it, but acknowledged the possibility.

"Well, we're not going to get anywhere if we sit here talking about poison types all day. We want to try and find that house that's supposed to be here, right?"

The desert Opal had grown up in had some rocky parts, but a lot of it was flat, and it certainly wasn't misty. It was quite different from the forest she now found herself in. She would rely on Deimos' knowledge, but learn from it and become a better explorer. The Absol was like a mentor of sorts, and she was curious to hear what he had to say next.

Frebedor carried out 9 launched of one Pricklemist Hill :

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The Absol merely shook it's head. The structure atop the hill felt moreso like a trap to the Absol and as he had deliberated prior, it would be best to not interfere with that locale until the boss returned. It felt like a disrespectful idea, to go behind Russel's back and investigate the area without all interested parties. Not only that, Russel was naturally better at Diplomacy than the Absol. If the ghastly situation within the structure was to be resolved peacefully, he didn't trust his own lack of skill to be adequate.

"Personally i would advise against it. There is a... Situation at that locale which may require delicate handling. I would prefer not to get involved until the boss has returned. He's far better at Diplomacy than i"Deimos spoke. He didn't want to say too much as he feared that would only draw even more interest from the Growlithe. The absol intended to keep it's metahporical cards close to it's chest. The less disruptions to the supposed resident spirits, the better.

[9-13=0]

"Oh... Hey, there's something over here!"

Opal wondered who the Absol's boss was. He didn't seem to be a guild member. Maybe he was and just wasn't wearing the badge? Perhaps we was part of some secret organisation? Her mind ran wild with exciting possibilities. All sorts of questions were thought up, but remained unspoken as she caught a glittering in the corner of her eye. The young pup wandered off to investigate.

The Growlithe didn't expect to find what she did, but then again, she didn't know what she had been expecting. Certainly not a pair of strange-looking springy creatures with pearls on their heads. They were bouncing on the spot next to a small pile of items and looked quite worried. When they shot a look of suspicion at her, she remembered her partner's advice about the aggressive pokemon here, and glanced quickly over her shoulder to see if he'd followed.

Deimos tilted his head slightly as the Growlithe charged off ahead. Her enthusiasm was quite strong admittedly, though he would have preferred she didn't wander too far. Visibility issues would make it easy for one to mistake an ally for an enemy after all. Deimos didn't have to worry about it much due to his natural sensory capabilities. Opal wouldn't be in possession of them however, though she did have her sense of smell in exchange.

Quietly and Calmly the Absol advanced after Opal, keeping his eyes busy at work scanning the landscape. This terrain was well suited to ambushes, as he had experienced both sides of the coin in this region. He figured the Native's must have better developed senses from living in the mists for so long.

Upon reaching the scene, Deimos personally focused upon a certain orb amidst the pile. He couldn't tell which type of orb it was but he figured it would probably be useful regardless. That lack of knowledge he figured could even be used for bluffing against an enemy. Before he could acquire it though, he had noticed the natives, recognizing them as Psychic types. He also however felt twin disturbances, peculier gas compositions in the air. From their general shapes and past experiences he figured that they must have been ghost types.

"Spoink's, Psychic type pokemon native to the area. Please avoid antagonising them if possible. There are more natives nearby i reckon" Deimos spoke. They seemed aggressive and agitated to the degree that the Absol reckoned something was wrong. He wanted to play this one carefully.

Like the Absol, the Growlithe knew these creatures were extremely agitated. Spoink, he'd called them. An appropriate name for the springing pig creatures. She noticed they regarded her partner with suspicion as well. It hardly seemed fair, but with all the aggressive pokemon that were supposed to be around, it might be a natural reaction from the natives here. Opal didn't advance any further for fear of triggering aggression, but decided it might be worth trying to talk to them.

"Hello! Are you two al-" "You want our possessions, too, don't you?! Stay away!" "Huh?"

So these things she saw on the ground belonged to the Spoink? And someone had already tried to steal them? Who? She didn't see anyone else around.

"Are... Are you two being bullied?"

Opal could not let it stand if that was the case. Bullies were bad, and stealing was bad. The pup wanted to help, but to be able to do that, the Spoink had to be pacified. Doing that would be tricky, as they clearly didn't trust her.

"Look, we don't want to fight..."

Deimos remained cautious and paitent for the time being, allowing Opal to handle the immediate duties of communication. Deimos was focusing his attention on the gaseous entities he'd detected prior, wanting to avoid letting them catching them off guard, so to speak. Their mobility was something to be aware of and cautious about, like it or not. His offensive repertoire of attacks was effective against ghost types but only if he was able to catch them. The power of his Sucker Punch made that easier to perform than with most other moves.

Carefully, the Absol stepped forwards with little fear of being attacked. He possessed immunity to their psychic type moves after all. "Your wording indicates you're already being harrassed by others. Is it by chance the gaseous entities in the area? Would you prefer they be pacified?" Deimos calmly questioned, a set of spectral talons forming upon his frontal left foot. The move Shadow Claw, invoked specifically to show that he indeed had the tools to deal with spectral hostiles.

The Spoink let out a startled cry as Deimos stepped forward, but they held their attacks as they listened to him talk. What power this Absol must possess to form ghostly talons, ghostly like the creatures harassing them! Maybe these intruders could help after all.

"You... you will help us against the Gastlys? We found some items, but they stole them. Then we dropped our things and now they want those as well."

"That's not nice!" Opal cried, "I want to help, too! Stealing is bad!"

The bouncing pigs were uncertain of the Growlithe. What could she do against ghosts without setting their home on fire? As they pondered this, a disembodied cackling rang through the area, causing the psychic types to cower.

"Eep! The Gastlys are coming! Help us!"

Whereas the Spoink were panicking, Deimos visibly remained calm, seeing no reason to fear their spectral oppositions cackling. The Absol viewed it as a foolish move, eradicating all of the benefits of surprise they could have brought to the table. For dealing with other species however, it was somewhat understandable, breaking morale. Deimos wasn't particularly fearful of them, having dealt with Haunter's before. Couldn't be much more difficult really, or so he thought.

Closing his eyes and focusing, Deimos transitioned his focus towards trusting his sensory abilities. Though mist might obscure the eyes, his senses were able to pierce beyond the mistbound terrain with ease. Tracking the gaseous forms of their foes was a simple task. Deimos figured it was best to hide the fact that he knew the oppositions locations, wanting to draw them into striking range first. His physical repertoire would be more effective than his projectile based attack via their typing.

"Remain close and don't get seperated." Deimos spoke calmly. Splitting up would be a fools errand when one couldn't see the enemy. It would be easier to cover each other up close than from afar, as long as there was enough space of course.

Opal wasn't sure what to think. The Spoink were panicking, but Deimos remained calm, The Growlithe didn't like that she couldn't see these ghostly apparitions, but she didn't feel the same fear as the bouncing pigs. She decided to stay close to the Absol and wait for the Gastlys to appear. He was right that splitting up would be a mistake. When the ghosts appeared, the pup would leap up and bite! Would that even work? She didn't know, but even if biting didn't hurt them, she might at least distract them.

All of a sudden, a gassy ball of... something appeared right in front of the Growlithe. It stared into the fire type's eyes, trying to hypnotise her. Opal bared her fangs at the creature as she fought to resist the attack. Meanwhile, the second one appeared in front of the Spoink to terrorise them. Taking their items should be easy work, right?