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

[Neo Emolga]

So like I promised. I'm gonna take a chance here. I'm gonna go out and search the forest. Wish me luck!

Search: (55) The Comfort Forest

You decide to head into the Comfort Forest this rainy evening, wondering what answers you might find here in this unusual but seemingly peaceful graveyard.

As you head in deeper, you’re left feeling a bit of dread, as if maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all, especially on a night like this. But you still take a deep breath and lightly float among the trees as the raindrops lightly patter on the leaves of the trees above you and at times on your star-shaped body. Your determination is still rising stronger than your fears and anxiety, but it still feels like a tug of war at times between the two emotional forces.

…

You go in deeper and you begin to see strange engravings and markings on the trees. In the darkness of the rainy evening, they look warped, bizarre, and strange, but you feel compelled to take a closer look at them. You soon realize what was making you feel uneasy before, are just these trees are functioning like headstones, and these markings indicate names, dates of birth and death, and sometimes statements. However, overtime, the messages fade, become warped as the tree grows, and become covered up, sometimes looking more like disfigured, spidery runes.

You can see why traditional gravesites and markers don’t do this…

…

…can……t ……o b……k…

…

And then, something unusual in the forest gives you the chills as you levitate and float among the trees… as it comes from a distance… and then suddenly all around… before shifting directions in the dark… drifting… echoing… bouncing…

…

@Scream of Oblivion – PSYCHIC (4 Health Damage, 4 Purity Damage)@ Trap 40% Evasion Test: 19 out of 100: Success!

Hastily, you burst forward, rushing in as fast as you can, suddenly sensing the extreme and immediate danger that you’re in. Quickly, you cut through the air and you spot the beheaded corpse of a Gardevoir. Despite how grizzly the sight is and how traumatizing and paralyzing it would be to most Pokémon, you suddenly spray the open neck with a Life Dew, sealing the wound with healing waters. Despite the recipient being clearly dead… it closes the severed throat of the Gardevoir…

…leaving it unable to scream… that psychic scream…

The @Scream of Oblivion – PSYCHIC (4 Health Damage, 4 Purity Damage)@ trap on the {Disfigured Headless Gardevoir Corpse: Sacrifice of the Dishonored} has been disarmed.

You take a deep breath and sigh, thankful you just dodged a bullet there. You weren’t expecting to discern the mystery beyond the psychic screams so quickly, but at least you were able to do something about it…

Now that the immediate danger has vanished, you look down at the beheaded Gardevoir, trying to get a better idea of what happened here now that you have the time to look at it more closely. You’re not sure what’s going on with this corpse, but it reeks with Stalker presence and then you realize this isn’t your typical decapitation assassination. Something nefarious has been done with this Gardvoir’s corpse and you have a feeling it has something to do with the missing head and there was a reason it was removed. Maybe… just maybe putting the head back might do something…

{Disfigured Headless Gardevoir Corpse: Sacrifice of the Dishonored} has been noted in the Team Records.

You’re not sure what the full story is when it comes to this beheaded Gardevoir, but you think the answers might be revealed if and when you find the head…

You continue searching through the forest, seeing if maybe the head is nearby. However, combing through the damp trees and bushes while the rain falls all around you ends up in a futile search…

…at least in terms of finding the head.

You do, however, find s͈̣̻̜͚͖͚͛ͤ̈́ͦ͌͒ͪo̯͉ͮ͛m̓̿ͪe̪̪̖͓̮thi͇͍̮̓̅̑̆ͅn̟̏͂̈́̿͆̐̚ ̰̳̣̱͉͈g ͙͚͙̜̲e̖̮͕l̠̭ͦ̽s̭͚̜͖̳̮̰̑ͮ̂̋̊͊̾ḙ̫̬̝̳̺́ͣ̔̈́̅̈́ here and it seems to be unusual. While everyone else who was buried here were buried under trees, you find some other grave that seems to be more traditional. But there is no name or anything else on it. It doesn’t seem alarming at first, so you levitate toward it to take a closer look…

@Kiss of Death – GHOST (5 Sanity Damage, 5 Purity Damage)@ Trap 40% Evasion Test: 86 out of 100: Failed!

…

And the gaping vo̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟id of the nether appears before you in a swirling vortex, sudden̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇ly feeling as if the fä́̉ͦc̝ͩe͐̿̑̎ ͮ̇̿͒of ỷ̯̣͈̖͖̪͓̅͆͋ͯͮͭo̪̠̬͎͙̎̽ͬ̃͗u̮͓͕̦ͭͧ̾ͩr s̉͌o̟̙ͬ͆ͮͅul̺̙̜̘̰͖͒̓͐͑̒̚ ̞͎̦̜͈̠̥ͤͮ̅̆͗ͧͤi̖s̝̜̮͕̖͉͇ ̞ͅri̘̖͐̓p̰̣̲ͮ̑͌pͣ͒̾ed͚͚̙̎̽ͣ r̭̱͙̱̂̏͐̏ï̒̄g̓̈́̏͗͗h̼̞͇̣̗͇̖ͧ̃͒̾̎ͯ̾t͖͍́̃ o̮̖̗̣ͭ͒ͫ̾ff͎̲̱̱̝ͧ͑ͬ̉͋ ỏ͉̭̜̻̲̻̠ͬ̈́͗͂̑ͩf̥ ͇̙̙͚̹̮ͥ͛̽̒ͣ̎i͔̯̱̘̺̽ͦ̿̓͊t͇͚̘̄͊̎s ̠̼̈́͐f͓͕̪͕͑́ͯ̐o̓̐͐͆́͗͋u̲̻̱͚̘ṋ͍̪d͙̰̜͉a̠͖̼tio͔͚̟ͤ̒̉n ͤ͋̔̓̊̋̚s ͎͇̆͛i̒̈̄̂ͬ̚n̽͑̎̚t̼͕̤̱̼́ͨͮ̋̚o̗͉͖̱͔̭ ̖̖̘̆̉̌a ̗̻̮̾ͣ̈a͉͔̫̟̾ͨ̓̔ḱ̖̳̒͑ͅdlͭͨ;ld̯̞̬ã̯͙͎̉ͥl̻͍̞̩̂̅ͯ͑sͪ ͉̳̞̻͗͒ͣdǰ̖̠̠͓̖͗ͣ͛̂a͓̬̬̺j̥̘̫͉͓̰͕dk̙̖̩͔̝̱̃ͪ̓̈́̓ͣj̥͑k ̏ͬ̐̔̚v̩n̿

Chakra has suffe̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘red 2 damage to San̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇ity and 2 Damage to̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟ Purity (Doubled, weak to Gho̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟st (1 Sanity Damage and 1 Purity Damage absorbe̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘d by the +|J| Blessed Armband+ (1S, 1P)))

…

You’ve never felt this h̬̠̥͖̒̔̔̓o͕̮̻͇̭̭̪llo̩̦͖ͬ͂ͮ̄ͅw before, but no̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟w here you are, detached with a blee̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘ding spirit and the wo̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟rst part of it is that feeling like you’ve forgotte̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘n something. Something precio̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟us. But it’s like money you’ve b̳͚̪̘or̬̥̱͇̠r͉̱̣̻̮̮owed ̠͈̦͔͕͍̦b̪̲̙̭̫ef̻͖o̩̼͎̬̯re ̜ti̱m̹̬̯̠̳͍e̩̹̹̳ ̯̪̮̭b̰e͚̮ga̘̲͇̲͇n͎̪̪̲͈ and no̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟w you’re sitting here, a worthless spec in the universe, contemplating what you’re really worth after all the debt keeps you shacked down like the slave yo̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟u are.

They’re just memo̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟ries, Chakra. Worthless memo̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟ries. Bad! You don’t nee̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘d them.

And yet you cling to them, like you in̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇sist on being a century behind eve̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘ryone else. No̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟t good! You’re finishing last after eve̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘ryone’s gone ho̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟me and even forgot you we̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘re still in the race. But it’s like a nightmare where you’re still chasing youre̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘elf in a labyrin̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇th of your own design. Every lie, every sin, every regret is on display here, the horrible museum you’ve built fo̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟r yourself…

…you’d better try again.

Chakra has suffe̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘red 3 damage to San̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇ity and 3 Damage to Purity (Doubled, we̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘ak to Ghost)

Í̿ͦ͋̾ͫ͂t̤̻̭͙̗'̚s ̟̩̞̰͖̝̭̏ͮͤ͊̃̃ͧt̜͋î̯͕̺̰̬̟̆ͣ̈̉̀mͮͦͭ̄ͮe͊͑ t̿̍̇ͤ̍́̓ó͇̞͕̩̦ͮ̎̽́ ̱͓͎̙̉̑ͭ̎pͦ͑̊͐̊͂i̿ͨ͑̐̊͆ͧc̖̯̬ͣ̂ͦk u̞̖̓ͤp̺̞̪̬̗̓ͯͥ̈̚ t̝͈̮̏͊͆h̞̮̜̙̙̙͔͌̔ͮ̓ͯ̾̚e ̞p̫͍͙͈̫̘i͈ec͇̰ͅe͎s,͉̦͔̩͉̹̎̃ͦ͋̂̔ ͔̬̳̠̠̗̲ͯ̋ͮ̔̓͌́C͈͔̫̽ͦ͒h̖akr̬͈͍̹̙̙ä́͋ͦͨ

But you don’t want to̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟ and it’s easier to just accept the failure. It’ll take forever to put it all back together, and what would it be worth in the en̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇d? A few seco̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟nds of dopamine? What reminds you that it’s actually worth it?

Nothin̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇g reminds you. You remind yourself it’s not really worth it. So̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟ you let the pieces all just sit the̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘re. For eternity. Because it’s just so much damn easier that way to be apathetic and n̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇onchalant about the whole thing. That’s you. That’s the failed masterpiece̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘ you leave for yourself. That’s the choice you make and the legacy you left behin̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇d.

You o̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟wn that and n̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇ow you’d better be proud of it…

Chakra has suffe̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘red 4 damage to Sanity and 4 Damage to Purity (Double̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘d, weak to Ghost)

…We tried to̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟ warn you Chakra.

But it’ll be okay. Let the thoughts and dre̝͚͎̬ͧͭ͐͐͘ams settle in. Let them muck about so much that you can̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇’t even put the basic facts together and the next thing you know, you’re putting triangle pegs into square holes and the cro̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟wd goes wild because it’s all in your twisted, delusion̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇al mind and they’re just there to provide your psychosis the validation it needs to continue destro̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟ying yourself. You can shut the shades and lower the volume on everyone else. Cast the magical spell where everyone plays dead forever and you spend all day co̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟rrupting your own wishes like a masochist genie with schizophrenia.…

They’ll look up to you, Chakra! You know them! The screaming insects, Chakra. With their little mo̢̘̥̻̱̟͗̓ͣ̄̈́͜͟uths and mandibles, ṡ̀ͤcr̴͓é̳̣̐am͜in̨g̟̘ ͓̄a̳͗n͖d͕̤ͪ͑ d̲̺̩͜a̛n͉̼c̱̦̜̆ͩ͑i̠͔̝n͠g͇̯͓̒̃ͤ͞ ̴ͬͥȧ ̻̪̘͞j͛̅͗҉͇̞̱i͞g͠ while the old trõ̳͙̩̦̹̳̖͑ͩ͊ͪͦ̉mbone plays and the skies get suddenly lit aflame. Just because everyone’s dyin̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇g doesn’t mean it can’t be a good time, Chakra.

Maybe it’ll always be like this, Chakra. Maybe it’ll always cõ̳͙̩̦̹̳̖͑ͩ͊ͪͦ̉ntinue this same inan̥̝̖̬̄͗͛̇e way for years. It can be the gift that keeps on giving, Chakra.

I̅̋̚t̹̞̫̳̆ͧ̐̒̃ͅ ̺̩͖Ca̬̥ͭͦN̢̼̊ ̡̇͗͋ͥ̈́̅ͨḇ̞̱̞̓̏͆̒E͟ ̜̦̗͑̔̿́t̗̺̗͇̫̜̔̃̇̿ͯ̆h̻̻̝͓̪E̥̬ͨ̚ ͦ̉CU͘R̹ͧS̺̥̰Ḙ̣͖̰̱̉ͤ̿ͥ͐͟ ̙̦̈ͦt̫̭̠ͫ͐ͬ͜h͏̩̬̻̹̙A͓͔T̴ ̬̮̻͚͇̖̍̉̐̒ͮ͗k̭̠E̯̪͓E̖̣̦͎̫̗̅ͯ̌̽ͯ̋P̩̩̐̿s̢̽̀͊̑͛ͮ ͂̈o̅̍Ǹ͗̅ͩ̔ͪ̚͡ ̟̦̝̤͇ͭ͑̒̏̌Ta̮̟͉̤ͭͫͧ̔͘k̥̰̦̙̀ͦ̂̎̋̕ͅİ͟NG͈̝̲̮͋͋ͦͥ͆ͅ,̂ ̝̫̜̰͈͔̎ͧͯ̈́͋ C̲͖̰͒̑̚͡ha͖̫͖̯̲͕̞̐̐̾̃̓̈́̓KṚͭA̶̘̘̮̻͔̞̞ͦ̔́̈͒̔͆.̶͊͋̓̏ ̻̝̖ͅ

…

…

With your subconscious as the only thing keeping you attached to reality, you reach forward, almost in hopeless desperation…

…and you break the conduit.

The glass breaks, the hideous, spirit-destroying ether simply drifts into the atmosphere, and vanishes. Although you truly wish you hadn’t experienced that yourself…

You almost hear yourself moaning, gasping, struggling, unsure of what were motions and sounds cut and caught between the dream and the waking reality.

The @Kiss of Death – GHOST (5 Sanity Damage, 5 Purity Damage)@ trap on the {Unmarked Grave: Depiction of Death} has been disarmed.

The {Unmarked Grave: Depiction of Death} has been noted in the Team Records.

The unmarked grave stands before you. The board of rotting wood stands visible before you now and you can read it. Suddenly the words come into focus…



=The Bloodwood Message= has been noted in the Team Records.

After getting up and dusting yourself off, you decide you’ve had enough for the night and you’d rather head back and get some sleep. You’re a little anxious about a hideous nightmare coming out of this to continue to horrendous saga of psychosis you’ve experienced here, but you’re just too tired to keep going on with this.

Softly… slowly, after picking yourself up, you drift and levitate your way toward the forest’s closest exit and head back to Benni’s farmstead. It’s hard to focus, but at least it seems peaceful again. The rain still carries on around you, pattering on the leaves of the trees, easing the silence, bringing you back to what’s around you. Soon, Benni’s farmstead comes into view again, like a sanctuary… a place to call home for now…

You’re thankful the beds she has provided for you all are very comfortable. You’re looking forward to that tonight…

Chakra the Jirachi (S: Steel / Psychic)

Health: 14/16 | Sanity: 11/20 | Purity: 15/24 | 8/10 Kurosuōbā | Dodge Rate: 40%
Perk: Security
Reincarnation Forms: Pikachu, Pachirisu, Minccino, Victini, Mudkip
EQUIPMENT:

• Defense Armor: +|A| Scale Armor+ (3H)
• Jewelry: +|J| Blessed Armband+ (1S, 1P)

[Neo Emolga]

I'll question 20 Jupo the Whimsicott ♀

Interview Rapport: POSITIVE
+1 Shared Type (Grass)

After the sun has gone down, you head to the Charms and Chimes gift store to talk to Jupo. The store closed hours ago, but she’s still there and likely in her second-floor apartment.

The light rain lightly taps and trickles all around you, although it feels somewhat refreshing and rejuvenating to a grass Pokémon such as yourself. By the time you walk all the way to the gift store, you’re soaking wet, but you shake the water off of your shrub back and off of your flowers and leaves. You then lightly knock on the apartment door and shortly after, Jupo the Whimsicott opens the door and greets you.

“Oh haaiiiii there!” she happily greets you, “Nice to meet you, who might you be?”

You’re a bit surprised Jupo still lets her guard down like this, especially in a time where the Stalkers are lurking around, but you think maybe she’s just always been like this.

You politely introduce yourself, telling her you’re trying to learn more about the Stalkers and to see if she knows anything and would be willing to help. You’re also interested to know if she’s seen anything strange lately.

“Ah, Lewisia!” she smiles. “Nice name! So… Stalkers… maybe… maybe maybe… let me think for a minute, but hey, let’s get out of the rain, shall we? Not a big fan of rain, you know! I get wet and it takes practically a week to get all this cotton dried off!”

You follow her upstairs to her apartment, taking note of the surroundings. Without a doubt, Jupo seems to love colorful, cute, sweet-looking things. Her apartment has the kind of décor and theming that you think a candy store would have. You can also see she’s madly in love with Narshen the Cinccino. She has love notes and happy doodles for him in the most random of places.

“So hey Lewisia, get this,” Jupo tells you as she pours a glass of hyper-sweet cola for you and her. “There’s some out of towners stuck here because of the Coast Guard telling them to stay on land for whatever reason. You know the guys, some sailor or scavenger types and stuff like that. Velay is one of them, but there’s this other weird guy. Ohu, or something. That creepy Dehlmise, guy! Yeah, I know, they’re weird!”

“So they come into my shop and… get this,” Jupo giggles. “They think I run a pawn shop! They actually try to sell things to me! Before I can even interrupt Ohu to tell them they’re a total poofhead and got things wrong, they’re like ‘oh, this is some rare and ancient item and I’m sure someone’s gonna be interested in it’ and I’m looking at this thing and I’m like ‘no way, that can’t be it.’ It’s a piece of junk! And it’s broken! Why would I be interested in THAT!? I’m no fix-it flunky either! That was totally weird. And I guess word go around and some Mienfoo guy… Krish I think his name is, tried to sell a key with a heart insignia on it to me. Now that… I almost bought because it did look kinda cute, but I don’t want this crazy rumor going around that I’m buying random stuff. Everyone’s gonna want to dump their junk on me and I don’t want that now!”

“Right, right, you mentioned Stalkers!” Jupo corrects herself with a smile. “Ah, I’m not worried about them. I mean come now, I’m not seriously a major threat to anyone! I just sell fun little gifts! They wouldn’t come after me now, would they?”

You look off to the side, not sure how brutally honest you should be with Jupo. You know the truth is the Stalkers do not discriminate against their victims. Anyone could potentially be a target. Even Jupo, regardless of what she does for a day job. Meanwhile, she’s drinking her cola and you decide to take a sip but it’s way too sweet for you.

“One thing was a little strange, come to think of it!” Jupo tells you, looking off to the side just thinking about it. “Terron and his little daughter Betta were in here yesterday because Betta wanted a few toys and things, which we do sell if you’re interested in buying some for a kid you know! It’s cute, though, Betta spends a lot of time with her dad, though the guy should ease up and enjoy life! He always seems so worried! She likes to draw with chalk and usually I don’t carry that, but I decided to sell it mostly for her and a few of the other kids that come around.”

“Okay, okay, so I know while that’s not usual, a few days ago I sold some chalk and a few other toys to Betta and Terron paid for them,” Jupo smiles, trying to recall all the details. “And then, fifteen minutes later, they come back to the store, Betta’s rushing in with panic and she’s like ‘daddy, daddy, help me find it’ and he’s like ‘help you find what’ and she’s like ‘oh, but I can’t tell you, it’s a secret thing’ and I’m giggling because I’m just thinking ‘honey, how’s daddy supposed to find it if you don’t tell him what it is?’ But she said she left something behind and I couldn’t imagine what. I mean heck, I don’t have all my piles and piles of inventory memorized, so if a kid left a toy or a thingy on a shelf, I’d never be able to tell what was theirs versus the regular store goodies and stuff! I mean I tried to help, but we couldn’t do much. Terron just had no clue what she was talking about! She must have spent a half hour looking up and down the shelves before giving up. I just told them I’d keep an eye out for anything unusual and she giggled. The whole thing was a bit odd, but I haven’t had them come back since.”

“Anywho,” Jupo tells you, finishing up her cola. “Can’t think of anything else at the moment, but if something comes up, hey, let me know!”

Give her a friendly nod and wish her goodnight. After heading out the door and back into the light rain, you decide to head back to Benni’s, and even though Jupo told you to take the cola home with you and you do just to be polite… you don’t foresee yourself finishing this…

…

Lewisia the Shaymin (S: Grass)

Health: 16/16 | Sanity: 20/20 | Purity: 24/24 | Dodge Rate: 40%
Perk: Security
Reincarnation Forms: Gallade, Arctozolt, Galarian Rapidash, Mawile, Hisuian Typhlosion
EQUIPMENT:

• Defense Armor: +|A| Sentry Armor+ (2H)
• Jewelry: <Empty>