We both stay until the pyre burns out. We look as the villagers commemorates the departure of their guardian. Food and drinks are passed and stories are exchanged. Times when someone's grandparent were saved, others when they were forced to help take care of things for the pack. Some are funny, some are sad but most importantly they help everyone remember. Hound may be gone, but his legacy will endure. His pack joins the grim festivities and mingle around.
But tiredness slowly comes to all and, one after the other, people disperse. Still we remain. We hear the stories, share the drinks and food. Until only both of us remain before the still smoldering pyre. And still we stay. To the clear annoyance of the league detachment. But I keep them out of my mind.
At some point during the night, a gentle rain comes. It extinguishes the remaining embers. We let the rain fall upon us both. The cool feeling water a welcome change. The smell of cold smoke fills our immediate surrounding and we are alone. I look at Mewtwo and he looks at me. He nods. Go ahead. He sends, he knows what I want to do, he wants to as well.
I look at the remains of the pyre, a pile of ash and burnt pieces of wood. Nothing remains of Hound, but a memory. "I..." I start, unsure, "I never knew you Hound. Not as myself. Yet the moment I saw you, it was as if I had always lived with you. Your memories were more of a feeling, but I hope in your last moments, you saw your best friend in me, more than the stranger I am. I... I hope the next world treats you well." I finish lamely.
Hound, you are an enigma to me. When I saw you, I felt a strong shared kinship toward you, even though I had never met you. I do not know who you were, but I will find out, and I will honor your wish and memories. He may not have been your friend, but I will make sure he will thrive as you wish he would. You have my words.
I look at Mewtwo in surprise. He shrugs and turn away from me in embarrassement. From what I have heard, Aster was a great man to many. And... I also felt some sort of kinship to Hound when we met him.
I smile and nod, and we resume our watch over the dissolving ashes.
----------------------------------------
Mewtwo feels... conflicted. When he awoke, he had felt surety in his existence. He had not even questioned it. But now? Now he sees the situation from a new angle. Astra is a strange creation using a dead man's soul. Then, why is he not the same? Since coming to the village, and then the experience of Astra during his coma, this idea had grown in his mind, and the evidence is becoming more and more glaring. And, as he watches the last of the ash getting washed away, he is now sure. He too is an amalgam of souls. There are things he does not understand yet, but he will. That he promises himself.
He and Astra stay silent until the day comes. The dark grey clouds above slowly turn a later shade as the sun rises. And with the morning comes the villagers. And another group. He feels them approach more than he sees them at first. The league.
He turns around, prompting Astra to look back as well. The same groupe of people from yesterday approaches. This time they will not be deterred. The ceremony is over, neither Mewtwo nor Astra have any ways to escape this meeting. They could run, but Mewtwo knows it would just be delaying the inevitable.
The leader of the group comes forward. He is dressed with a leather jacket and pants, with what appears to be black rubber boots. The clearly handmade hood protects his thin face. But his grey eyes still peek from under the shadow, as well as a few golden bangs. If Mewtwo was to give that human an age, it would be barely thirty when compared to the group in the dormitory.
"Apologies to break your... mourning. Sadly, there are matters in this world that supersedes personal grief." He starts with a cold voice tinted with jealousy. His face appears neutral, but one can discern the man barely contained scowl. "I am Garret, and I represent a group that has decided pokemons should help us in this world and in return, we should help them. You, young man, appear to have found a legend, the first we have ever encountered. As such we are ready to integrate you within our organisation, the league and foster you until you can stand equal to your... ally here."
Astra gives the man a blank look. As does Mewtwo. He absolutely believes we are just going to agree. Astra thinks. Mewtwo snorts telepathically.
Garret's face turns annoyed at their lack of reaction. "This place is dangerous! You already fought through a raid I am sure, your next might be your last! If you do not get hunted first. Not every humans you meet will be as welcoming as us!" He rants.
"Can I ask one question?" Astra finally answers. "No scratch that, a couple questions?"
"Of course, but the faster you join us, the faster we can help you!"
"Okay, okay. First question then: does he get a say?" Astra asks, pointing at Mewtwo.
"I- Whu- What? O-of course he gets a say! Why would he not get a say?" Garret sputters and the rest of his group seems a bit taken aback by both the question and the answer.
"Then what happens if he says no?"
The entire group freezes. Oh they know what they would do, but are they ready to? the village is clearly neutral ground. That much Mewtwo can gather. He can imagine Garret has some sort of pretty powerful pokemon backing him up, but the answer also paints a sad picture of the true intent of the league. They are not 'friends' with their partners. The way most of the group reacted it is clear their pokemons are submissive to their masters. They do not truly take into account their partner's wishes. Only their own and then making them work for it, maybe even making their partner think it was also theirs to begin with. If Aster saw what became of his dream, he could be ashamed. Mewtwo catches himself thinking. He blinks internally and put that though on the 'think of it later' part of his mind. A part that is growing increasingly larger by the days.
The lack of response, this time from Garret, has Astra cross his arms and scowl at the entire league delegation. "I believe that answers that question. Thank you for the offer, but I believe the answer shall be no." And Mewtwo nods along. He has no need to state his mind to Astra. On this point, they share a similar opinion.
Some of the group start to move, but Mewtwo straightens up, making himself stand as tall as his height allows him to. And the group recoils. For Mewtwo is tall. And the dark look that comes to his face promises murder and pain to any that may try to cross him.
"Yo-you don't understand what you are about to do! We are giving you a chance to survive here. Even with a legend by your side there-" Garret tries to argue.
Is defeating a praetor on our second day not enough. Do we need to defeat an army? I have heard of your way league member, and our little talk sadly correlates what I heard. Your organization is not what we are interested in. Me more than him. Mewtwo cut Garret rebuttal, his cold and commending aura is in full strength, overriding the league members minds.
"He's the real deal..." one mutters
"Fuck, so that's legendary pressure." Another adds.
Garret tries to keep his composure but most of his group is losing heart after Mewtwo's display. "Fine! But this is not over. When you come crying to us, don't expect the kindness we offered today!" He snarls and turns around, motioning to his lackeys to follow him. All do, but some still glance back toward Mewtwo. Some with awe, some with excitement and all with fear.
If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.
Astra exhale. And a slow clapping makes the both of them jump. Leaning against the wall of a nearby house, Hans Senah looks at the both of them with a wicked smile on his face. "Bravo, I say, Bravo. Ya done them right. I would have vouched fer yer autonomy if they had pushed too much." His smile grows, "But I didn't need ta lift a finger."
He peels himself off the wall and walks toward them. "Well youngins, I presume yer about to return ta yer errands right?" He bumps Astra shoulder. "Ya got a big promise to keep too eh?"
Astra is unsure on how to react, as is Mewtwo. "Well, I'll be goin now youngins. Let's try to know each other better later eh?" He finishes as he turns around and walk away toward the Arrival plain. Mewtwo and Astra watch him go for a minutes before turning around and going back into the village.
"What the fuck was that about?" Astra asks.
Mewtwo nods but then stops. Hans was walking. Hans did not have his crutch. He was walking without any help. He was walking. He had both his legs. Mewtwo mentally blurts out. Astra stops and they both turn around. Hans is gone, no longer a figure in the distance.
"I suppose he still had some tricks up his sleeve? From what we heard, you don't get to live too long here without some." Astra offers.
Maybe... Mewtwo agrees.
They both silently agree to look through more of Aster's journal entries in the future. Hans Senah was supposed to have been a close friend to Aster, or at the very least they knew each other. But now is not the time for that.
"Okay, let's try to see what the villagers can spare for us. We need supplies, mostly food, and directions. Where do we go next?"
We should go see Cariato. he is the local cartographer. He asked to see you when you awoke.
"You already made friends in the village?" Astra asks, impressed.
Less made friends and was acquainted with most of them. Being brought in by the pack has its perks here.
Astra nods and he lets Mewtwo guide them toward Cariato's home. They reach it in minutes and it is no different than the over houses in the village. Cobbled stone walls with wood logs as support frames, with a triangular wood roof. a couple windows on the sides and back, with a door at the front. Astra gently knock with his right arm, afraid to break it with his more metallic left one.
"One moment" comes the answer, and they both wait for a couple minutes. When the door opens, Astra, for the first time, takes in the almost uncanny valley form of the villagers. This one, just like the rest, is dressed in the leather tunic. But this one a satchel hanging from his shoulder, filled with papers, feathers and ink pots. Their elongated bald head sports a monocle on their right eye. Their mouth, partly hidden by their long floppy nose open in shock. Their emerald green eyes go from Mewtwo to Astra as they take stock of who just knocked on their door.
"Oh He above I am so sorry! You should have said it was you Sir Aster! You could have come in immediately!" They apologizes, almost bowing. "Please come in, let us get you out of the rain." He adds, removing himself from the entryway.
Astra smiles politely and enters the small home. The interior is square, with what appears to be cartography table on one corner, a wooden table filled with papers, feathers and ink pots. A bed takes most of another corner and a little table with a flower pot next to a window complete the interior furnitures. "Welcome to my humble abode," the villager declares, still clearly stressed about their perceived faux-pas "What brings you to me?"
Before either Mewtwo or Astra can answer, Cariato pokes themselves on the head and laugh "Ah but of course! Just like always when you come, you must wish for the map. My great-grand ancestor kept it in good condition for you. It has the directions for her highness Princess's forest. I... My condolences Sir Aster. Even if you have little recollections of him. It must still be hard."
Astra nods along, closing his eyes for a second. The cartographer goes to his table and retrieves a decent sized wrinkled and folded piece of yellowed paper. After pushing his little flower pot, he opens the it on the table. the piece of paper reveals itself as a map of the immediate region they are in. The Arrival plain barely represent a hand sized mark on the map.
Achievement got: GPS of old
Observe a map of any sort.
Reward: unlocking the Automated Mapping System.
Mewtwo sees the pop-up and Astra slightly jumps at it. He silently dismisses it, but he will need to look at it later.
The villager, unaware of what just happened, continues. "So we are here." He points at an X on the map. The little mention next to it reads 'Hound town'. "If you want to go and meet back with lady Princess, you need to go here." He then points at a large patch of barred land representing woods. "This here are the fairy woods. Do not worry about getting lost of tricked, Princess will make sure you can get in."
The woods are east of their current positions. And by looking at the distance, at least two to three days of walk. "Thank you Mr. Cariato." Astra finally says. "This helps us more than you can think."
"Please Sir Aster, we may not go through the same harrowing process you abductees go through, but we can at least help those that treat us right. This is the least we can do! Here, take it, it will help you on your journey. Have some ink and a feather too." They gently fold the map once more and holds it for Astra to take.
"Thank you." Astra takes the map and cartography supplies and then gives the cartographer a small bow. The gesture seems to embarrass the cartographer even more. Both Mewtwo and Astra turn around and the cartographer rushes to open the door. As the rain still fall, the cartographer looks conflicted.
"Do not worry, I will keep it dry." Astra reassures the Cariato as he stores both map and supplies in his inventory. The cartographer looks impressed and nods in satisfaction.
"Safe travels," he calls after them.
Astra nods and they return to the village streets. They wander around, Mewtwo leading the both of them on a roundabout way toward the village cook, Cellok. The building the cook resides in doubles as a refectory. The style is similar to the rest, but bigger. The inside has more tables, enough to fit at least sixteen people easily. Some tables are occupied by villagers enjoying a late breakfast before going to their tasks. Children play in the large room, chasing each other. They stop to look at Astra and Mewtwo arrival, but quickly resume their games.
"Ah, the returned savior" Cellok calls out as he walks out from the kitchen. They have a stained white apron and a white headband around their head. "What can I get the both of you? We have bread and jam for this morning, with some sweet beet juice to go with." they offer.
Mewtwo and Astra look at each other and agree. Mewtwo feels a bit hungry and Astra feels like he can store more reserves for later. They both agree to the offer and take a seat. Cellok returns after a minute with two plates. Each have two slices of bread with purple jam on it, along with a glass of reddish-purple juice.
"Here you go." Cellok stays as Astra and Mewtwo eat. When they are done, they speak once more. "So, what is the real reason you two are here?"
You are quite sharp Cellok. We wish to inquire for supplies. Food mostly, but maybe cooking utensils? He looks at Astra and receives a nod.
"Ah... I may have some old things I don't use anymore, but for the food, you'll have to look for Faraan. They're the one that deal with stocks. I simply cook what he brings me. If you bring me the ingredients, I can prepare them for ya. Also, I may have a little cook book lying around for you." Cellok nods and turns back toward his kitchen. After a couple minutes, he returns with his arms full of cooking supplies. He put them down on the table and huffs. "Here, you got mostly everything for a camping trip. Remember to wash it all once you use it though."
In the pile are a couple of pans, cooking pots, spatulas and knifes as well as liquid containers and other utensils. It is quite the haul of cooking supplies. Even if some have clearly been well used, they are still in pretty good shape. Astra nods at the pile. "Thank you. This should help us tremendously." He agrees.
A smile grows on Cellok's face but then falters. "Damn it! I should get you a bag! No way you are transporting all that in your arms!"
Mewtwo and Astra both laugh. "Do not worry, we have some ways." Astra says and slowly he start storing the supplies away. Each dissolve into piles of blue pixels before getting absorbed by his left hand. Cellok stands there, awed.
He then recovers his composure and laugh as well. "You don't see that every days."
They thank Cellok and wander toward the farm at the edge of the village. After Just like the rest, Faraan welcomes the both of them with respect and after the exchange of pleasantries, he gift them enough food to hold out for two weeks. Astra tries to refuse at first, as this might be a bit much, but Faraan insists, this much represents barely a day worth of food in the village. They have enough reserves still to survive any harsh seasons that may come their way. Astra and Mewtwo gratefully thank him and then head toward the edge of the village. They look out toward their future goal. Meeting the second survivor of Aster Stradivii old party, Princess.