LABYRINTH

POSTDORMITUM

DREAMS ARE NOTHING MORE THAN FRAGMENTS OF OUR DISILLUSIONED HOPES. a collective pool of our failures—a substance given life in the imagination of unbound psyches. a crutch fernando has long learned to ignore. for reality gives no quarter to the ‘should’s and ‘could have been’s.

“…”

reality is often disappointing. grounded in the limitations of the human body. bound by the physics of laws and rules. no matter how much he dreams for a greater tomorrow, the reality is that he cannot attain it alone. the warmth will leave his body well before his dream finds enough heat to sustain itself.

dried blood cracks when his jaw unhinges for a deep breath. his lung inflates, he muscles tense, and a soreness wrings him back into consciousness.

when he awakes, he awakes in a land of dreams.

the INTERDREAM ZONE surrounds him. gives him new life. and in exchange? it extracts the fragments of his hopes and failures, and gives it new life. twisted concoctions that transcend the rules and laws of reality.

this is his kingdom.

and in its deepest dungeon are abominations that should never exist.

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Elisabeth Fiorelli

+10 MP per IC post

= 10 MP total

LABYRINTH

POSTDORMITUM

“GAAAAAOOOOOOOO!”

the INTERDREAM ZONE parts enough for a single pokemon to breakthrough. a ROARING MOON slices through the mist, barely visible as its primal speed creates a vacuum in its wake. a SONIC BOOM explodes as its many feathers ruffles through space and time. its beady set of red eyes dissipate into the recoiling mist.

she is alone once more.

“i have done everything for you,” speaks a familiar voice.

it has no form. just the sound that spirals out from a bittersweet concoction of reality and skewered perception.

“what? eaten my food? slept in my housing? live a life you wanted to throw away?”

the response comes from a voice she knows well. it’s distinct. one of a kind. something unique to hoenn.

yet.

there is something different.

she remembers it, not from his lips, but from the voice of her favorite otome.

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Elisabeth Fiorelli

+10 MP per IC post x2
+10 MP for incorporating the realm's mutations

= 30 MP total

LABYRINTH

POSTDORMITUM

AN OPENING PRESENTS ITSELF. just the smallest slit, where the mist parts enough for a single body to pass through. but, before she can venture into the would be opening, the sound of the mist drawing apart warns against proceeding.

swoosh!

a pink blade comes down in her place, clearing another section of the mist to reveal a PARADOX GALLADE. a grey, metallic body peers back at her, before surging forward. it pays her little concern, overall, but its simple and forward movement insinuates she can either move or be bulldozed through.

it too disappears back into the INTERDREAM MIST.

“sorry to hear about your loss.” this time, the voice is familiar but impossible to pin onto a particular person. it’s someone she’s probably heard on the television, or in passing when the news is on the background, but there’s no definite association.

“the ruins would not let us pass so freely,” he states. the lack of grief in his voice is almost expected. “i knew better than to anticipate anything but.”

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Elisabeth Fiorelli

+10 MP per IC post x3
+10 MP for incorporating the realm's mutations

= 40 MP total

LABYRINTH

POSTDORMITUM

THE SCATTERBANG DISRUPTS HER DREAM. in its place comes the appearance of two floating pokeballs. except, they’re much too large to be the actual devices. the seedy pearls of a PARADOX AMOONGUSS surface among the INTERDREAM mist.

“mum said if i can keep a houseplant alive by myself for a year, she’ll let me get a second pokemon.”

a limber shake of its arms causes a waft of RAGE POWDER to float between them. the crimson color pollen sticks to pokemon and fabric alike, clinging for dear life.

“you can just have one of mine.”

the careless whispers of children surround them. both dote on a softness that only innocence knows. one male. one female.

a boy and girl.

“chit, chit, chit!”

and with the memory, the PARADOX AMOONGUSS retreats back into a plane of imagination and non-existence.

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Elisabeth Fiorelli

+10 MP per IC post x4
+10 MP for incorporating the realm's mutations

= 50 MP total

LABYRINTH

POSTDORMITUM

THE MIST STARTS TO PART. the manifestation of so many dreams crowds out its own lifespan. with so many people entering ULTRA SPACE, their own spiraling thoughts pull the subliminal space into different pockets.

the last pokemon to appear is a PARADOX MISDREAVUS. is does not hide or flounder within the INTERDREAM ZONE. no, it seeks elisabeth out. it sits out in the open, honing in on her with a knowing look.

when its mouth opens, a PERISH SONG soothes the clammiest of nerves.

what she hears though is something else entirely.

"i can't be the one to say it, fernando. it has to be you. your choice."

the mist starts to dissipate.

"i choose you."

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Elisabeth Fiorelli

+10 MP per IC post x5
+10 MP for incorporating the realm's mutations

= 60 MP total

LABYRINTH

POSTDORMITUM

“…!”

this time, there is no pokemon left to haunt these hallowed grounds. the swift sound of a small projectile flies through the air just a moment before the POISON BARB strikes. on the other end, fernando breaches the clearing, left hand drooping and bleeding.

a weary night of back-to-back battles carry their toll. elisabeth should know well, for she has exacted her own profit from his demise. his eye narrows at her, unable to recognize her with the still hazy swirls of purple mist.

“ah!”

but the fact her shape is humanoid elicits a sound of surprise from him.

for she is not the only one hunted by these PARADOX abominations. or, at least, was.

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Elisabeth Fiorelli

+10 MP per IC post x5
+10 MP for incorporating the realm's mutations
+10 MP for using a poison barb

= 70 MP total

LABYRINTH

POSTDORMITUM

“I DIDN’T REALIZE THERE WAS SOMEONE ELSE,” he opens with. there’s an equal chance whoever this is, is hostile as well, but without a forthcoming action, fernando doubles down on the chance he can converse his energy.

like elisabeth, fernando silently has his pokeball in the palm of his hand, ready to go. his main roster is pretty much expended at this point, but better them than him.

“what are you doing this far out?”

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Elisabeth Fiorelli

+10 MP per IC post x6
+10 MP for incorporating the realm's mutations
+10 MP for using a poison barb

= 80 MP total