Stalkers RPG: Dustwoken - Main Action and Team Status [SEASON 1]

[Neo Emolga]

And I did it again. Sorry Lychee!

Here’s the results of ChiChi’s Day 2 Day Post that I accidentally skipped over. Totally wasn’t intentional! You’d think I would have seen that nice bright pink font! :P

You know the drill! Clocks turn back, sun’s back in the sky, and… action!

Even though I want to talk to Caily and the cops, I think it's probably safer if I chat to a student at night, and the police during the day.

Dantus seems to know what's up, and I might have a lead for him on the supply of Raze in the district-- at least, I can find out more or help out in their investigation?
Similarly, that was MY out of town friend who died! I've certainly got a few questions about whatevers going on here! I deserve to know! Could we all be about to die in horrible ways?Id love to find out how many serial killer signatures are out there... How many psychos?? I won't use the words demoni or stalker though.
And... Are there any upsetting-but-useless pieces of evidence they've confiscated? Maybe they should hand that stuff over to me, to placate my TERRIBLY DISTRAUGHT MOOD WAAAH

Talk to Dantus the Dragapult and use Diplomacy

You decide to head over to the Seabourne Police Station and talk to Dantus, the very sheriff of Seabourne Town. You figure he must know a lot of the details regarding what’s going on, but you figure as he’s the sheriff of this town, you’re going to need to convince him to trust you and the other Savants.

When you find him, you observe from a distance that while he’s exceedingly busy, especially considering the police force is greatly understaffed and he doesn’t have the law enforcement and detectives he needs, he doesn’t rush, he doesn’t stress out, and he seems to be a Pokémon of few words. You can’t imagine how he remains so calm and collected under such intense pressure…

“Hey there!” you call out to him, frustrated about what’s going on. “Dantus, right? I need your help!”

“You and everyone else in this town,” he replies, not even looking to face you as he continues looking over crime dossiers. “You’re going to need to get in line, unless you have a damn good reason why I should drop everything and work on your problem.”

You see he’s going to be a tough nut to crack and he may not be as easy to convince as some of the other civilians you've encountered…



#48 Dantus the Dragapult: {<Diplomacy> OR Drug Evidence}
(you can either complete the word search or give him the drug evidence)

Given your skill in speech, you find yourself needing to find the right words to convince him that you need his full cooperation despite him having his hands full with everything else he’s got going on. That, or give him something that proves your skills are something he needs to strongly consider supporting and to gain his cooperation.

You consider your next move carefully…

ChiChi the Tapu Lele (M: Psychic / Fairy)

Health: 20/20 | Sanity: 20/20 | Purity: 14/20 | 6/10 Kurosuōbā | Dodge Rate: 30%
Perk: Diplomacy
Reincarnation Forms: Corviknight, Milotic, Aurorus, Espeon, Alcremie
EQUIPMENT:

• Defense Armor: <Empty>
• Jewelry: <Empty>

[C0L0R3D]

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Well, ya know what they say! Night time is the right time to dig into religions that aren’t correct despite their sheer devotion!

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That came out very wrong. Sorry. Anyways…

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Hey there! I’ve been told to have a chat with you from somebody else, mostly about helping you and the other Eonologists out a bit. Surely won’t hurt for some divine favour from the Eons, right? Plus, any chance you’ve seen stuff that may relate to these Stalker folk? Sorry if that kinda… drags down the mood.

[Action decided: Interview 30, Jamsaki the Servine. Chat about anything I could do for some good old divine favour, as well as some hints regarding any potential Stalker sightings.]

[Chakramaster]

So the rumor of this place is there's some unexplained clicking sound. I wonder what could be causing that. Maybe this place is due to some investigating. So I'll put my detective hat on and do some sleuthing here myself!

Search: (41) Oceanwatch Condominiums

[sammy0295]

Search (59) The Slacker’s Shack

[EmeraldSky]

I will talk to Caily the Charmeleon tonight

[ARandomTool]

He attaches The Rose to his chest like a corsage. Good thing it was untrapped, the thing would flatline him easily!

"Alright, loose ends time. Equip the Security Armor from inventory, then PUT THE THING IN THE THING!

...By which I mean stab the vase at the Macro Market with this spooky rose and try not to die horribly. Full health's gotta count for something, right?"

[Neo Emolga]

He attaches The Rose to his chest like a corsage. Good thing it was untrapped, the thing would flatline him easily!

"Alright, loose ends time. Equip the Security Armor from inventory, then PUT THE THING IN THE THING!

...By which I mean stab the vase at the Macro Market with this spooky rose and try not to die horribly. Full health's gotta count for something, right?"

Knowing what you are about to do may have dark and unexpected consequences, you take the plated security armor from the storage cabinet and put it on. And then you grab the Blackened Rose, feeling at least a bit more ready for anything.

Nickelfool has equipped the +|A| Security Armor+ (2H)

Tonight, you head toward the Macro Market, letting Benni know you’re going to get to the bottom of this dark anomaly she discovered. She sighs, hoping for the best although she doesn’t know what to expect and what will come out of all this. Either way, she’s hoping the next time she goes to the Macro Market, this dark vase will be gone and no trace of it will remain. From there, only time can heal the wounds as the memories get more vague, the details decay, and the whole experience becomes forgotten.

You leave the farmstead and walk your way toward the Macro Market, intent on seeing what this dark relic might have in store. As you’ve see times before with the Stalkers, to put an end to them, it requires one to be on the offensive. And now you’re doing just that.

You make your way to the back of the store and enter the same way Sam did last night, using the broken pull-down door as your entry point. The latch still has yet to be repaired, but in the end, it makes it easier for you to get inside. The whole time, however, it reminds you of just how easy it would be for anyone to shoplift anything they wanted out of this store.

Once there, you head through the loading and storage areas and then into the main market area. And then you head toward where the home goods are, finding the same pots and vases that Sam discovered earlier. It takes a minute to find it, but you track down the location of this dark relic and while shadowed in the presence of the more colorful vases, it still has the presence of the Stalkers… a presence that normal Pokémon cannot detect.

Carefully, you place the Blacked Rose into the vase…

Nickelfool has used [The Blackened Rose].

@Deep Corruption – ROCK (6 Purity Damage)@ Trap 30% Evasion Test: 83 out of 100: Failed!

As the dark rose is inserted, the vase suddenly rattles, causing you to impulsively withdraw your hand out of shock… but in the process your wrist ma̠͍̪͚̜̗̤ke̙s̲̗̪ͅ ͉̞co̥̖̮͕̳̱̗n̥̺̻̦̼̮ta͎̥̯̜c͎͎͖t͉ ̤͕̩w̺̘̜͎̳͇i̦ṯ̯̗̻̗h̘̟͈̪̬̦ t͖̘̭̥ḫe̜͉ v̰̖̘ͅas̹e̫̪…

…your vision darkens for a moment as you feel a sudden fear and hopelessness take a firm grip on your throat…

…you’re still fighting? Why? You already know how this ends…

“I need… to save this town,” you try to remind yourself as you fight against this belittling voice.

…so it can die another day from something else. You cannot stop it from becoming dust. Does delaying
the inevitable really mean that much to you?

You clasp the prayer beads that are strung around your neck. The blessing upon them absorbs some of the darkness, allowing you to breathe…

Nickelfool’s +|J| Prayer Beads+ (2P) have absorbed 2 Purity damage.

But the relentless assault continues… far beyond what they can resist…

…you, him, her, everyone… everything you see and love is GONE. In 80 years or so, everyone you’ve ever known will be dead, buried, and forgotten under a crumbling, grime-slathered grave. These buildings will be collapsed… these plants withered… it all gets older every day and there’s nothing you can do to stop it…

“…”

…and you’re guilty of it, too. Guilty of believing you actually have any kind of control over any of this. You keep doing it, but you can’t even pretend like you understand what’s really important. It’s like trying to paddle backwards before you tumble down the waterfall. You gain nothing.

Ṉ̬͕̱̼͖͎̙͓͕̝̟̹͇ͪ͑͊̓̈́̈ͦͮͭͧ̂̀͊͛͜͠͠Ờ̷͍̩͔̰̩ͦ̀̈̈́̃̅ͮ͐͜ ̝̖ͅͅT͢͞HÎ̶̤̯̟͙̱̰͚͇̥͚̮̥̝ͩ̿͑̅̂ͣ̄̉͂͐̍̾N̴̶͘G̢͊̾̑͋ ̗͙̙̱

You only suffer longer. That’s what you gain.

Nickelfool has suffered 2 Purity damage.

D̑ͩo ̥yͥO͚̓U̺͉ ǩ̝̞̠̄̍n̖̾O͇̩̻͛̓̅W ̗͍͌̑th̫̳͚E da̗T͎̫͋̈́E͈͈͗ͤ i͆T͛ͥ̑ ̬H̤̦ͪ͌A̦̦pp͇̲͎͒ͥ̂EN̓̓͑S̲̐!͍͚̙̓́͐?͊ͮͣ ̥̑D͇͕̮̄͊ͨO yOU̝!̝͇?̱̞͋ͬ

…And to think the only thing that keeps you sane… is the fact you’re ignorant of it all. You don’t know the day you die. Or how it will happen. Or the day the world finally buries and forgets the last remaining traces of you, as if you never existed. But what if you did know?

W͔̞̓ͫH̄̈a̤̱ͩ̊T If̘̘ͥ̌ ̼ͭͬͅỴ̻ȏ̙̝̈U͈ D̋i͎͂d̦͆!̩?͕̘̊̒

And then for one dark moment, your mind is flushed with the possibilities of how many ways you could die and when it could happen. It’s the fact you truly don’t know, but it’s that incessant voice that tells you yes, it will happen in one way or another. And you don’t know when. It could be in minutes… it could be tomorrow… or years from now. And the many… many ways anyone could die. It becomes a hellish soup of how, when, why, where, by what and possibly by who… it’s the questions that leave your will feeling hollow, almost devoid of determination. But then for a second, you can comprehend them all… and it suddenly guts any bravery you might have mustered…

Nickelfool has suffered 2 Purity damage.

It ends shortly after, but it leaves your spirit feeling wounded… broken… questioning just why you’re even doing this in the first place and why the hell you’re even here… wondering what do you truly deserve for what you’ve done… or what you hope to have…

When you look up and snap out of the trance, you no longer see the vase before you. There are no dust or fragments of it anywhere as if it was only just some horrible figment of your imagination, but instead some grim, leathery paper-like material lies before you on the shelf where the vase once was. You pick it up, and feel a sense of shame and guilt in doing so…



[=1st Half of the Macabre Mantra=] has been added to the Team Inventory.

You’re not sure what it means in full and it’s only an incomplete part of something else. Something darker. But you can make out certain words and phrases… “we are all banded by evil…” … “just one among many…” …and “eat your guilt.” But the rest is vague, broken, and missing critical pieces. For a dark moment… it looks and feels almost as stripped as you do right now…

You decide to leave the store… feeling like less of yourself than how you first came in…

Nickolas "Nicklefool" Foligan the Mr. Mime (M: Psychic / Fairy)

Health: 20/20 | Sanity: 20/20 | Purity: 16/20 | Dodge Rate: 30%
Perk: Diplomacy
Reincarnation Forms: Hisuian Zoroak, Mr. Rime, Decidueye, Gardevoir, Aegislash
EQUIPMENT:

• Defense Armor: +|A| Security Armor+ (2H)
• Jewelry: +|J| Prayer Beads+ (2P)

[Scytherwolf]

I'll search (5) Jadebreeze Forest.

[Noblejanobii]

I can't say I seem to recall every attending a school before. Hm... well, regardless, I'll be attending one now, even if I doubt this is the intended way to do so. Perhaps I'll still be able to garner some knowledge from this higher institute of learning? Let's find out. Time to search (28) Beachwood University.

[Neo Emolga]

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" You know what. I hate being forced to run away and I hate leaving business unfinished even more. I'm gonna go back to those docks and check out that Silent Song Ship, and if need be I will knock some heads!! "

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" I am just staying far away from that horrifying monstrosity this time. When the sun rises I'm probably gonna take out some interviews because I'll probably have all the excitement I can handle for a while in today alone... "

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" .... Xerneas, If I die again, you had better not reincarnate me as a Latios. That'd make things real awkward with interviews... "

Gathering your bravery, you decide to head back to the Pleasant Waters Harbor, but this time to investigate the lone “Silent Song” ship. After what you experienced before, you set your mind and spirit to be ready for anything. The moon is high and it lightly illuminates the ground below with its faint glow. Rather than seeing it as eerie, you see it as hopeful, and that light can pierce through even in the darkest of places, driving back the cowardly shadows.

The journey southwest almost plays as it did before. For now, you’re not worried about the deranged clockwork door you came across earlier despite its disturbing apparatuses and the hideous noise it made. As soon as you arrive at the harbor, you head directly for the ship itself, still being pushed and buffeted by the waters. You see the moon reflecting off the waves as your blue clawed feet set foot on the wooden docks. It’s very quiet tonight, but you can still hear the waves below and all around.

You hear the creaking noise of the ship once again…

“Runnn..” the moaning sound creaks out.

No.

Despite the weathered condition of the wooden ship itself, you board it, taking care to watch your step to make sure the wood you step on looks strong and stable enough to support your weight. You imagine it’s been years since anyone has been here, but nonetheless, you keep watch on every shadow, trusting none of them. Despite your heart racing, you investigate the deck, leaving no corner of the ship overlooked.

You don’t find anything of value on the deck itself. Anything that’s made of wood is splintering and most of the metal components have become worn and rusted over. You then investigate the bow and the stern, but you don’t find anything that raises any red flags. All there is here are frayed ropes, broken tools, and splintered crates and buckets.

You then decide to head below deck to see if there’s anything here. You look around in the dark and dimply-lit corridors and see most of the ship has been stripped clean of anything useful, leaving only the broken, rusting, and splintering remains behind. You get the impression this ship was once used as a small cargo freighter, but clearly those days are long behind it now. The barrels left behind are incapable of holding anything liquid with the amount of wear they have taken and the crates look like they could easily break and collapse if anything over twenty pounds was stored within them. Clearly if there was anything salvageable on this ship, it’s been taken away.

It isn’t until you get to the back of the cargo hold that you come across something you were not expecting to see.

And you realize you’re not alone on this ship…

“Noo…” the voice moans. “Please… just let me die already…”

You remain quiet, not sure if this is some kind of illusion or trick considering what you experienced before at the harbor itself. You steel yourself, preparing for anything as your heart pounds in your chest.

“Why…?” the voice asks. “Why do this…? Haven’t I suffered enough…?”

You soon find out where the voice is coming from. You do a double take to see before you… a Starly has been crucified to the back wall of the ship’s cargo storage area with his spread wings and feet having been nailed against the wall. What strikes you as especially disturbing is the blood-soaked white and gray bird absolutely should be dead given the condition of his ravaged and broken body, but still lives… somehow.

You sense some dark, foul work has been done here. This Starly’s corpse has been seemingly reanimated, similar to a zombie, locked in an undead state between life and death. But unlike the zombies you traditionally know, the poor bird’s personality and consciousness is still there and he’s not out to devour the flesh of the living. Meanwhile, you see the poor bird has been permanently blinded on top of all the additional misery he’s been put through.

“Who… are you?” you ask.

The very sound of your voice suddenly makes him lurch. It seems as though the only visitors he’s had on this ship is the Stalker who did this to him.

“Ralon… oh help me… help me… whoever you are…” he moans. “It’s… E-Exonull… Exonull did this… to me…”

Eẍ̱͎͙̥̩̮́̽͊̑̿͑o͉̮̹̮̳n̟̥̓̔u̗̱̳̗̲̹͗ͥ̾̇͌̋l̗̳̖̉̉̄̐ͅl̯̲ ͓͇̤͉͚…

The very Stalker known to have a deep loathing for flying Pokémon. The very one that murdered Scy just last night. And what you see before you is nothing but pure, heartless cruelty. You feel pure anger gather in you, making you restless until you see justice for the heartlessness has been done here.

“What can I do?” you ask Ralon.

“Exonull… is trying to kill my whole family, using me as bait!” he cries out. “Exonull taunts me every night about it. You need to warn my dad Verio and my mom Farshira not to try and search for me. And tell my sister Kammia and my brother Krago the same! Tell them… I’m gone…”

“What about you?” you ask. “What… happened to you?”

“I… I can’t live like this, my body is in… so… much… pain…” he cries. “I shouldn’t… even be alive. I need… I need… my spirit… it’s been chained to this dead body. There’s only one way to break the link…”

“And what’s that?” you ask.

“…A stake to the heart…” Ralon tells you. “Not just any stake. It was driven through my heart before, but a dark encryption was put onto it. It locked my spirit in my body… and I can’t… die. It… has to be driven back in to cut the link… and… and allow me… to pass away.”

“What about Exonull?” You ask, hoping to get the identity of the Stalker that did this. “Who is Exonull? They need to be stopped!”

“I… wish I knew for sure, but my eyes are gone…” Ralon tells you regrettably. “Exonull’s voice… sounds feminine. Young. I… don’t know much else… I’m sorry. Everything… hurts so… much…”

“It’s fine,” you tell him, “that’s already a big help. Just don’t give Exonull any clue anyone else was here. I’ll find this encrypted stake. Do you have any idea where it might be?”

“I… I don’t know…” Ralon weeps. “She could have hidden it anywhere. Please… please hurry…”

{Crucified Starly Effigy: Stake Sacrifice} has been noted in the Team Records.

“Just hold on… I’ll be back…” you assure him.

“You’ll be home, soon.”

Home. A second chance in Afterhaven, to be born again and away from this dark, forgotten place. A chance at a new life awaits Ralon if you can find this encrypted stake… and free him from this terrible pain.

You head up and back on the docks of the Pleasant Waters Harbor, heading back to Benni’s farmstead… trying to figure out where this stake could possibly be in Seabourne…

Lyric Winterheart the Nidorina (M: Poison)

Health: 20/20 | Sanity: 20/20 | Purity: 14/20 | Dodge Rate: 30%
Perk: Diplomacy
Reincarnation Forms: Brionne, Mega Ampharos, Hisuian Goodra, Latios, Amaura
EQUIPMENT:

• Defense Armor: <Empty>
• Jewelry: <Empty>