Oddities like these weren't foreign to Sam. He dealt with things like this often. For once, he was glad to have somebody helping him out this time around so he wasn't just going in by himself.

His infernape would be the first thing spotted. Her head of flame casting light around. Next would be himself, a hoodie zipped half way up his body revealing a bit of his tattooed and pale skin. His yellow eyes reflected orange with his infernape's flame as he looked forward toward the one he was meeting for the mission.

Glowing red eyes trailed behind Sam. His absol followed closely to his side, more visible as they approached.

"Evening." His greeting was crisp, relatively short. "You're the one sent to help with the disappearance?"

Hopefully they could get it all squared away as quickly as possible.

alexander silph

[attr="class","alex"]truthfully — the trailing pair of crimson radiance caused a shiver to creep up his spine and for a moment, he thought it was an omen lingering behind the unsuspecting approach. given how the canine didn't falter in her notion of usual calm — alex felt his shoulders drop with slight ease. "h-hello." he said shortly after, clearing his throat within the stammer that lingered in his words. the air dragged through his lungs with an evident sigh. "yeah, i'm alex!" a smile crossed over his lips, "it's nice to meet you — uh, i'm sorry, what should i call you?" concern encroached his features, considering he'd misplaced a name.

a groan abruptly came from the depth of the cavern, causing him to lurch upwards in fright. the lycanroc below seemed to be doing what was considered an amused laugh. "it doesn't help that it's night." alex muttered — partially embarrassed that the haunting beyond was making him seem so cowardly.

samuel carter mission link.

"I'm Sam Carter, the caretaker of Mt. Pyre."

The gravekeeper introduced himself with little fuss at not immediately being recognized. Sometimes he was recognized on the spot and it startled him. He was used to being the one to recognize people immediately.

Speaking of...

The groan was just another noise in the dark. Sam didn't pay it much mind, and instead focused on the youth in front of him.

"You're Alexander Silph, aren't you?"

He'd helped him in the past trying to make it through the tower. It had been quite the confusing maze once upon a time. After Alex got lost, Sam tried to put signs up. But the ghost types there in the Pokémon Tower were always pointing them in the wrong directions on purpose.

Above the absol was a floating pendulum of a red eye, moving back and forth. It had rattled when the youth jolted, scared. A duskull slowly formed as if sitting atop the absol, every once in a while, when the light from infernape's flame hit the ghostly form of the duskull just right.

alexander silph

[attr="class","alex"]"right, sam!" one index finger poised forth. as though the recognition came as further as the other. "oh, have we met before?" he'd ask, his features lessening of their jovial appeal. for a moment — he seemed scarcely concerned. alex wouldn't lie that there were some people misplaced in his memories. especially after his accident. "sorry. i have a bit of a memory problem. or — well i had one." pale digits ruffled the ashen hair sprawled across his crown.

the throat tightened with another more reticent startle as the ghost hovered over the absol. thankfully — he was quick to recognize, despite the translucent aura that wavered against the light of the fire — that it was a harmless duskull. "you have a lot of friends." alex added, managing a genuine smile towards the pokémon possibly more startled by his own inward dilemma than he was of the surrounding area. "we should get going. for some reason i'm thinking our person is hiding somewhere, scared out of their wits." he'd joke, waiting hopefully for sam to take the lead.

samuel carter mission link.

As suggested, infernape moved before Sam into the cave. Her flames would help to illuminate their pathway, though Sam did have a flashlight on his person just in case.

As he moved forward his absol walked beside him, but the duskull swayed and bobbed ahead of the infernape into the dark.

"I met you back in Kanto. I used to help my mother run the Pokémon Tower. I branched into Hoenn about two months ago. It's good to see you're doing alright."

The horrors of Kanto weren't lost on him. Even somebody with the name 'Silph' would be haunted by the war.

alexander silph

[attr="class","alex"]kanto... he thought — the mention conjuring a nostalgia that couldn't quite be described. after—all how could memories torn asunder even begin to have any clarity in such a feeling. "i was there for a little while... i think." alex had heard plenty about the war and the travesty it had caused. how it may have affected the other — was a complete mystery to him. "i'm — glad you're doing alright too." a soft smile graced his lips and he leaned forth, observing the other.

"your tattoos," he starts, the momentary pause a wonder that it was a frequent mention, "they must have hurt." deep blue eyes trail over the markings till they are no longer visible. his posture straightens, "is there any meaning behind them?" alex walks alongside sam, opposite to the beast on the other side. the lycanroc mirrors the absol. her route settled on sidelines near her trainer. it wasn't as if there needed to be something of depth hidden behind the pattern that remained.

still his curiosity proceeded him.

samuel carter  mission link.

It was rare that anybody asked him if his tattoos meant anything, but he was pleased that Alex had asked.

"It was my way of coping with the war."

Instead of allowing himself to have the memories haunt him, he let the tattoo needle scar his skin over and over again. With each new scar, each new piece of art along his body, more memories and emotions were faced and conquered.

"They took a great amount of time and a great deal of pain. It helped me to really go inside myself, find something to distract myself with. I was able to compartmentalize the horrors presented back then, face my fears, store my problems, triumph over the influx of emotions that came with that time."

Then, it dawned on him maybe Alex meant the design.

"I designed them myself. They're based off of the primal markings found on most of the 'legendary' pokémon of myth and legend. A bit of a call to the idea that anybody can be a god of their own lives. No horror, no obstacle, can control you unless you let it."

alexander silph

[attr="class","alex"]his eyes flicker with sympathy in the light that wavers from the infernape. however — it is a scarce recognition from the tone that lingers in his eventual words. "it must have been hard." alex says — somewhat — wishing he could recall though half wondering if it would've done him any good. "you've replaced your pain with something beautiful." he compliments — a smile following with, "i couldn't do it to be honest." — i'd just run. the thought remains within the chambers of his mind.

"that's a pretty cool reason." he adds after a moment, "how neat would it be to actually come across one with such markings?" there is a harmless charm to the idea, "i bet they'd be staring down on you. amazed." although alex had nearly encountered a legendary — he hadn't managed to meet one face—to—face. surely the day would come and for sam — he'd hoped it would come sooner. "so you work here then?" the voice remains light despite the oncoming subject, "doesn't it ever... get hard?" tragedy had after—all tormented hoenn. or did the subject of death not matter to one that handled it so often? sure he wouldn't be surprised but hardly as bothered.

suddenly close by — a cry resounded into the surrounding area. some place high above.
one sob quivering behind.

samuel carter  mission link.

Sam had of course considered the fact that a legendary pokémon was his inspiration, but the notion that he'd ever meet one seemed ... well, since moving to Hoenn, not so out of reach. Considering they had a plethora of avatars 'blessed' by legendaries just roaming around.

Like it was no big deal.

Like they weren't demi-gods themselves.

Sam's thoughts were pulled away at the sound of a cry. He looked up, brows furrowing as he pointed up.

"Duskull."

All the duskull needed was her attention snagged and she was obeying the unspoken order. Her ability, LEVITATE, allowed her to move her body up and up, slowly using the glow of her orb to illuminate whatever was above them that had been crying.

Absol and infernape stayed alert. Absol at Sam's side, infernape just below the duskull. Just in case this was a ghost problem in need of some extermination.

alexander silph

[attr="class","alex"]

"ahahehehe!"

discomforting laughter erupts. the booming delight rushing further into the abyss of darkness. with it — a person seems to be crying. the beast aside alex lets out a low growl and while she seems to be greatly receded by this unknown danger — alex is drawn towards its potential. "lets go." he says, presuming their source of light would join with. prominent footfall within the silence is an evident approach. eventually, they reach the outermost of pt.pyre. above them, the moon shines brilliantly. the sprawl of graves alit by the fog that settles around the rise of engraved stone.

"how much more eerie does this have to get?" alex says, his tone light but his features twisted into likely hesitation. again the laughter comes from all angles within the veil. with it — the crying follows behind. this time it didn't seem as human as it had before. "something is playing with us." he regards, passing a glance towards sam, "do you usually get troublemakers like this?" the radiance of the moon provoked a shadow within the possible form that hid within the mist. one that couldn't have been possible.

"h—hey..." a gesture was made towards the shape that took on what seemed to be darkrai. given the potential ghosts wielded over illusions — it was quite possibly a farce within the wavering layer that hided its true identity. the lycanroc let out another low growl before the thrumming noise reached further beyond into a loud bark. she lurched forward and with her motion, blue luminous stones emerged a few lengths ahead. with it — the coverage fell apart and left behind nothing. stone edge struck nothing more than a distraction. before they knew it...

the gengar was rising behind them.

samuel carter  mission link.

That cackle had Sam tensing. Luckily, his absol's DETECT saved him. She whipped around and let out a small howl to alert the rest. Infernape reacted next, using the cave and her ACROBATICS to push the gengar back and away from the group.

Duskull just slowly levitated back down, and suddenly a hint of ghost energy came out of the shadows and hit the gengar, an ASTONISHing move, to cause the gengar to flinch.

Well, hopefully.

"Keep your guard up, it's behind us. It lured that civilian in here, it's cunning." Sam warned.

//NOTES
ABSOL used DETECT
INFERNAPE used ACROBATICS
DUSKULL used ASTONISH

alexander silph

[attr="class","alex"]"go figure." he jokes, their encirclement still dancing with mist. "iz." their gazes cross.

the beast daringly dives into the viel.

she finds the flinched! gengar and bares her teeth. one prominent crunch causes the ghost to cry — unpleasantly — in pain. it rattles left then right, her restraint not giving room for recovery. eventually, the lycanroc is sent tumbling towards the group. with it the coverage wears away to reveal the damaged culprit.

however — the battle seems far from over.

the luminous violet aura is seen only momentarily within the large eyes of the gengar. unfortunately for alex who stands somewhat closer — hypnosis reaches him first. stumbling forward the quickly rising lycanroc sends another torrent of stone edge in its direction. "don't!" alex orders, "d—don't damage the graves." pale digits endeavor to keep his head steady but gradually he draws closer to the ground.

samuel carter  mission link.

"Thank you." Respect for the dead over all else, something that could very well get him killed one day. "Infernape, keep it in the same spot, try and disrupt its line of sight. Absol, get a hit in while it's cornered."

Infernape let loose a blazing vortex of fire from her mouth, forming a FIRE SPIN around the gengar mainly to keep it in one spot. As the vortex gave a small opening, abosl gathered energy into her horn and sent it flying toward the gengar with a flick of her head, a NIGHT SLASH cutting through the cave toward the gengar.

Sam moved over to his duskull, scooping up the small sleeping form. Apparently that hypnosis had gotten her too.

alexander silph