Braving the Mysterious Swampland

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While Saturn was at Rainfront looking for 'the mysterious hill with a house at its center' he heard about another place nearby that also sounded exploration-worthy. A couple of Rainfron't inhabitants spoke of a huge swath of marshlands shrouded in mist as you go deeper in and a tribe of fierce natives that have made the deepest areas their territory. Saturn could only imagine what kind of rare valuables might be stashed away in such a strange environment. He headed out to the marsh's entrance, excitement and apprehension washing over him in equal amounts. "This should prove interesting." Saturn said aloud as he delved into this mysterious swampland.

The first thing he noticed was how the muddy ground would try to swallow him whole if he stood still for too long. Within minutes, Saturn was covered in a thick layer of wet mud from the knees down. He periodically took refuge on the occasional mound of solid earth he came across to wipe the mud off his body and get a good look at his surroundings. Aside from the occasional tree, the area looked pretty barren and stagnant. He could see the occasional bit of movement in the water where it was less shallow but aside from that this marsh seemed devoid of life. "Perhaps this exploration won't be as fruitful as I thought...."

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"Within the Windrose scouts, two tiers exist. You have the average, novice scouts, the tier that new members gain by default. The Windrose Library has two seperate floors for information, one for the public and one for much more sensative information that shouldn't be made public. Novice scouts only possess access to this first floor. If you were to join, that would be your immediate limit. The 'Training' you asked about it the path to entering the second tier, experienced or veteran scouts. We are those that have completed a special, customized mission handed down by the leaders of Windrose. As trusted figures in the organisation, they are permitted full access to the limited information that's locked away from the public. Joining the Novice tier is quite simple, all it requires is for you to head to fallen leaf and apply." Deimos rattled off swiftly and precisely without a second thought, admittedly happy to add another potential scout to their ranks. Russel used to have to handle new members entirely on his own so taking some pressure off the Mothim's back was a pleasant experience. He undeniably took his role as second in command seriously.

"As for what i'm doing all the way out here. I heard that some of the bug types in region often made quite a visually appealing spectacle. Even outside my role as Windrose second in command, i love exploring and seeing new things. That's why i'm here, not on official work. Though it appears i showed up at a bad time" He remarked with a soft chuckle. Sitting behind a desk, filing reports wasn't his specialty. Getting out in the field, exploring new places and seeing new things, that was the core of his life with windrose. Being able to help like minded people simultaneously only made it better!

"That sounds surprisingly simple. I'm definitely going to look into that." If there's no bar for entry, then there's no reason not to apply, as far as Saturn was concerned. But that was neither here nor there. Right now, they needed to focus on getting out of here. Of course, that was easier said than done. It takes forever and a day to make any significant amount of progress slogging through this wasteland. Deimos said he knew where he was going, and Saturn was going to hold him to that. Otherwise, they might not ever make it out of here. What they needed was a reliable way to mark where they've been in a manner that was both easy to spot and unlikely to fade away. Which, again, was easier said than done. Ah, well. The adventuring business is many things, and 'easy' is certainly not one of them. Saturn is confident that he will make many, many mistakes before he gets anywhere close to being a respectable adventurer.

southpawXlegacy carried out 1 launched of one Cattail Marsh :

"It's fairly simple yes, though there is a restriction regarding outlaws and other... less than helpful elements of society. Though in rare circumstances a reformed outlaw may be accepted, they are subject to much more scrutiny than the rest to ensure they truly are reformed individuals. It's a simple security measure considering the restricted floor. That and... Well, Experienced scouts do have a directive to immediately deal with people trying to get access to the restricted floor. No force limit was imposed however, so it's mostly up to individual discretion. Not trying to scare you off or anything, just making sure you're aware." Outlaws were once completely forbidden amongst the organization due to the potential risk some information could pose if stolen so even with restrictions relaxed a little, Deimos still took the defence of the second floor quite seriously. Though he'd never strike with murderous intent if someone tried to sneak up to the second floor, he couldn't in good conscience ignore such a breach either.

"Regardless, shall we be off?"

Deimos's whole explanation about outlaws and restricted areas totally made sense to him. Who knows what kind of havok a morally dubious pokemon could wreak if given the chance? It's definitely best to not find out. "Yes, we should get going. The faster we get out of here, the better." With that, Saturn redoubled his efforts, eager to put this place behind him. In his haste, he failed to notice a small rippling under the water near his feet. It seemed his actions roused a slumbering feral under the water. As he kept going, he got his foot tangled in some vegetation, stumbling to the side to regain his balance. In doing so, he stepped right on a wild Lotad, which used Abrob on him, thinking it was being attacked. Saturn felt his vigor being quickly drained from him, just before collapsing in the water. He was still conscious, only barely, the rugged terrain having already done a number on him. The Lotad, however, scuttled off, wanting nothing to do with the strangers encroaching on its territory.

"Ugh, Deimosss... What hhappendd...? I'm ssooo dizzzyyy...."

Replying to the Cubone's words with a curt nod, Deimos was quite ready to leave the marsh behind and take a nice soak back home in the Fallen Leaf Copse. A nice relaxing soak to get rid of filth and melt away troubles could never hurt... Unless a grumpy electric type managed to sneak in of course. Even so the lack of any electric types in the region meant that the potential issue was a non starter to begin with. Despite being the one that was supposed to be leading, the Cubone moved first without paying much attention to it's surroundings. Deimos couldn't help but watch as a small scene played out before him, drawing a soft chuckle. That kids is what happens when you don't look around. Always look before you leap!

Shaking his head in disappointment, Deimos swiftly hauled the Cubone back onto their rocky platform. "You stepped on someones head and they defended themselves. This is why you look before you leap. Now hold still" The Absol remarked as it carefully set down its improvised bag. "Lets see... Berries, berries... Here we go, Oran should do" The Absol muttered as it speared one of the berries through with his claws. Without missing a beat, he quickly and unceremoniously dumped it into the Cubone's mouth. his back was reserved for close friends only and he had no intent carrying on carrying him with his mouth. Coughing up mud and muck did not sound fun!

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As the revitalizing juices of the oran berry replaced what had been lost, Saturn realized how bad that could have been for him, especially if he was alone. "Thanks, Deimos. I promise I'll make it up to you one day." Saturn silently stood up and followed Deimos closely, going out of his way to stay as focused as possible. Deep inside, however, he was worried. He was worried that one day he would royally screw up and there would be no one to come to his rescue. He had to be ready for that, no matter what.

Because otherwise, his parents would be right about him not being capable of looking after himself, and that simply wouldn't do at all.