#sosta plays pla

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (9/?)

Day 59

On my way to the Icelands, I ran into a messenger from the Pearl Clan, who informed me that Irida wanted to speak with me and was waiting in their Settlement. Deciding that Mai could wait a little while as we’d made could time and the sun still cresting the horizon this far north, I headed to the Pearl Settlement first.

As Irida started into her spheal, it sounded eerily reminiscent of when Adamand had given me the Adamant Crystal. Unsurpsingly, she also challenged me to battle. While I didn’t have Palkia with me to give her the same sort of respect I did Adaman, I also chose not to use Dialga against her. It was a fun challenge and we both had a good time.

Afterwards, she did indeed give me a prized possession of her Clan, the Lustrous Globe, which likewise looks quite similar to the gems on Palkia’s shoulders.

With that out of the way, I made my way to Secret Hollow, an interesting cave near the base of the Waterfall that flows from Lake Acuity. I still managed to arrive before Mai, but even in the short time I was waiting it got bitterly cold.

Mai seemed a bit off, but she was also extremely enthusiastic, so I handed off the mushroom cakes she wanted and made my way up the cliff to Lake Acuity itelf, and from there into the caven where Uxie was waiting for me.

Uxie proved easier to deal with than Azelf, though their boosting of their defense was a bit troublesome. I’m a bit worn out, since I’m not as used to the cold as the native of Hisui, but I still have more to do up here, so I’ve made my way back down to the camp at the foot of the falls, where a Supply Corps member I’d gifted an Infernape was keeping the tents nice and toasty.

As I settled down to rest for the evening, I though about the final possibility Cogita had presented me.

The Snowpoint temple was right there next to Lake Acuity. But still, that’s a task for tomorrow.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (4/?)

Day 54

As I set out for the Fieldlands to help Mai investigate the strange outbreaks, I thought back to one of the threads I could pursue in the hunt for plates.

When I arrived, I decided to head for the Heights Camp immediately to check in with Mai. It started to rain as I made the climb up Deertrack Heights.

We pondered the question of how to search for these outbreaks for only a moment before my Arc Phone reacted and showed me where all of the outbreaks were occurring. Strangely, it didn’t inform me what Pokémon were present in each location. Still, Arceus is helping, and I’m not turning down the help.

The Pokémon in these outbreaks are far stronger and far more aggressive than is usual, both for the region and for the species involved. I hit several locations thoroughly, until new Pokémon stopped arriving, while several others I simply flew by to observe. Most of the Pokémon I ran into this time were Pokémon I would expect here in the Fieldlands, though not always WHERE I would expect them.

On the way back to Mai, I ran into Wanda again. I feel sorry for her, honestly; she keeps getting lost and wandering in dangerous situations. While I was checking in with Mai, Warden Calaba came by and suggested that Arezu might have some theories. I guess we’ll check in with her when I return to the village. For now, I should visit Mespirit

Mespirit teleported in as I arrived. I could feel their gratitude for my efforts before it became a sense of challenge to prove my worth. After I caught Mespirit, I felt a sense of satisfaction, but also the pull to challenge the other Lake Guardians. I guess I’ll have to prove myself to all 3 before I earn anything this time.

Arriving back in town, I was informed at the gate that Professor Laventon wanted to speak to me.

I was quite moved that he trusted me enough to gift me the remaining Pokémon I first met on Prelude beach on my arrival. I promise you Professor, I will take great care of them. Afterwards, I headed to the Salon to meet up with Mai and Calaba.

I’m not sure I completely agree with Arezu’s theory, but it is clear that the outbreaks are connected to the storms; new Pokémon stopped appearing sooner than I was expecting at the last outbreak I had investigated, coinciding with the end of the storm.

Since the storms had been headed east, We quickly headed back out again to the Mirelands. The storms were starting to build as we arrived, and had a conversation with Melli. Mai gave me a bit more information about why he is the way he is, but the more interesting thing was the Aguav berries he gave me.

Munchlax immediately stole a few of them, and as he was eating them, my Arc Phone started reacting to the outbreaks, but this time, it revealed the types of Pokémon appearing. Even more interesting were the strange icons that appeared on certain outbreaks.

The shape I had assumed was some sort of droplet turned out to be a representation of an Aguav berry, since every Pokémon in those outbreaks was carrying one; guess that’s another piece of the puzzle…but what does it mean? The star icon was a bit more dangerous; after I reached the point I expected the outbreak to clear, another wave of Pokémon started appearing. And this time, it was entirely Alpha Pokémon, which fits with a rumor we had heard earlier. curiouser and curiouser as they say.

I’m really glad to see that the Clans have put aside their differences and started working together. It seems Irida will be joining us during our investigation of the Coastlands. I’ll be heading there tomorrow, but since I’m here in the Mirelands and the sun is set, I really should head up to the Shrouded Ruins and see what I need to do with the Odd Keystone.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (2/?)

Day 52

Volo was waiting behind the camp, in front of an ancient, weathered drawing, similar to several I’ve seen around Hisui.

Well, maybe “letters” isn’t the right term; these seem more to represent ideas or words and “letters” implies more sounds. I would say these are “ideograms”, but I get your point. And this story you’re telling—a valiant soul working together with Pokémon—that sounds like the ancient Hero of Hisui; but why would he be seeking the fragements of Arceus?

I tried to act like the name Arceus was unfamiliar, but Volo is sharp and people talk too much.

Luckily, he brushed past that and got to his original point. Namely that the fragments he keeps mentioning are the plates I’ve been collecting. The first plate I received from Wyrdeer more than a month ago mentioning “The Original One” would seem to support that.

I’ve got 10 Plates so far, and Volo thinks he’s got a lead at the Grueling Grove of all places. I’ll meet him there soon, but I should check out Ramanas Island first to find out what was bothering Mai’s Muchlax.

So it turns out that there was a small outbreak of Zorua on the island. All evidence the Team had collected up to this point said they were only found in the Icelands, and when I told Mai what I had found, she seemed just as shocked. But not as shocked as we both were when it turns out one of the Zorua had followed me and started impersonating Mai’s Muchlax. I should report this to Captain Cyllene when I return to the village, but let’s go see what Volo’s lead turns up first.

Just as I was about to start interrogating him for his sources, an Alpha Vespiquen attacked. I managed to drive it off easily enough, and it dropped another Plate! Something about this whole scenario and Volo’s reaction to it seems off, but I’m not going to press it right now.

Volo acts like he doesn’t know how many Plates we’re looking for and so I’m not going to say anything to him, but given the nature of the plates I’ve received so far, they seem tied to Pokémon types, which means that there are 18 total, 7 of which we haven’t found.

And now he suggests the very course of action I was getting ready to take BEFORE he showed up in the Captain’s office. I’ll meet him there tomorrow. I should head back to town and report in to Captain Cyllene about the unusual outbreak and then get some rest.

Day 53

Captain Cyllene had been worried, of course, when I reported in the strange outbreak yesterday, but there wasn’t much we could do. She did as me to stop by this morning to see her once she’d had some time to think, and while I was there, Mai arrived with news that the strange phenomenon was growing more severe.

Seems I’ve got multiple mysteries to track down. I told Mai that I had another situation that I needed to deal with and that I would meet her at the heights came later today. First I need to visit Cogita.

[sostanotes]

I'm on a Mission from godArceus (4/4)

Day 4/5

I've slept in a tent here for the first time. Definitely a different experience than I'm used to…why is everything DAMP???

Rei woke me up on the my first day as an actual ranking member of the team. Seems he had a bit of a problem.

I wanted to poke around a bit more first, and when I arrived he didn't seem in any pressing hurry, so took a wander to do some research and get my mind off the OTHER thing that happened when I arrived in the Fieldlands.

Fricking jerk. Good advice about surprising pokémon (boy is it fun to reverse the usual dynamic with them), but there's something…off about him. Maybe I'm just judging him too harshly for scaring me.

Anyway, on towards evening, I noticed Rei's guest had finally appeared. She wanted to battle. Seems my estimation of my new team wasn't completely off-base.

She was a bit tough, but only because rollout is a good counter to a fire-type like my cyndaquil. Still, a lucky burn out of the gate made it easier than it would have been.

But this is were things got…weird.

Seems these people think "Sinnoh" is a god-like pokémon, but the one she's describing…oh I wish I'd spent more time studying foreign legendaries; I know the Unovan myths inside out, but I can't remember which pokémon her description reminds me of.

Still, after the history lesson she got to the root of the problem.

While the pokémon so far have been a bit more skittish than the ones I'm used to, these *Alpha* pokémon seem to be the true dangers that I've been hearing about. And it's encroaching on new territory… I wonder if there's something behind that.

Yeah, after fighting that Alpha Kricketune, I understand why the people here are terrified of pokémon; it tore through half my team!

And you sir were no help at all! Still, Mai thinks the problem was solved. She was—amazingly—okay with us setting up a second base camp in her area. We got set up and I passed right out, unusual for me, especially given how unfamiliar it was.

The actual pokémon she takes care of showing up the next morning means Mai was probably right about the issue being fixed. She said he looked at me with kindness…I though he sort of looked like Grumpy the Dwarf, but she know him better than me.

I got some good research in and we headed back to town for another dinner.

That's a problem for tomorrow, after I get myself another promotion.

And that's a wrap for the introductory arc of the story. Next time we start with investigating the frenzy of the noble Kleavor… or rather I probably do a lot of pokédex research in the newly opened up Obsidian Fieldlands.

State of the Dex will be coming later this evening.

[sostanotes]

I'm on a Mission from godArceus (3/?)

Day 3

This is going to be short because I. am... EXHAUSTED. I don't know what these folks are complaining about, this catching and research stuff is easy!

All in a day's work!

[sostanotes]

State of the Dex (9/?)

And that gets us through the Battle with Volo; the end of the second major section of the story. All that’s left plot wise is tracking down the Pokémon I haven’t seen to get them registered and facing Arceus himself. That is going to take a bit of time, and even with more free time now than I had when I started this, I don’t think I can keep a daily update schedule; the next (and final plot) arc of this adventure will probably average about 2 updates a week as I play enough to get a post’s worth of content.

But leaving the Let’s Play housekeeping aside, let’s look at how the Sample Dex is doing.

Regular Pokémon: Complete Shiny Pokémon: 125 (I was focused on story and didn’t run into any random shinies). Alpha Pokémon: 240 > 247 (I managed a few more Alphas, mostly specific genders of regular spawns, on my way to and from story events).

We’re done with catching regular Pokémon for samples. Now they’re just Pokédex research and money. Alphas are up to 85 and a half percent, only 8 are specific genders of regular spawns, and the remaining 34 are going to be random as will the Shinies.

But what about the in-game ‘dex?

Complete (Research Level 10): 145 > 148 Perfect (All Tasks Complete): 9 > 10 (Drifloon).

I finally beat enough Drifloon to reach perfection on their research, so that’s another entry. I’m up to 77 hours of play, though some of that has been hunting through the Pokédex as I update my personal tracking spreadsheet.

I’m inching ever closer to the last Galaxy Star, even as my personal tracking spreadsheet gets more out of whack with the game. When it first got off by 10 points I wasn’t too worried. After it got off by another 10, I scoured the spreadsheet for errors; I found a couple and the total shifted back to only being 10 off, so I clearly missed a few. I spent this morning working through it much more methodically to fix the error (and add all of the data from the Massive Mass Outbreak Hunting that happened during this previous arc); I found what I believe to have been the source of the 10 point error that remained after the last pass…but I’m now off by 30 points. Clearly, I’m making some stupid oversight as I look at these numbers.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (15/15)

Day 66

I opened the battle with my Overqwil, figuring the single weakness to Ground would give me a good base to start from; I was surprised to see that Volo started with a damn SPIRITOMB. Where did he find that? I had to do that whole weird quest with the creepy ghost girl and he just…found another one?

Of course, my weakness to Ground baited him into sending in a Garchomp. That obviously didn’t go well for Overqwil, but that just gave me the chance to bring in one of my secret weapons. While he’s a bit Slow to get Started, Regigigas is both a Powerhouse and a Tank, so with the careful application of one of the Max Potions I’d received a while back and brought with me, he managed to sweep the rest of Volo’s team using a combination of Zen Headbutts, Iron Heads, and the Ice Punch I had Zisu teach him before I left town.

There’s a difference between worship and obsession. You want control, and that is the very opposite of faith.

Oh. So now you’re going to sic the Pokémon banished for being too violent on me. I’m down one Pokémon and scrambled for a Pokéball before Giratina could reach me. My trusty start was the one that entered battle; he’s quite powerful, but the type match is dangerous. I managed to do some good damage with my own Ghost move, but being weak to HIS ghost move was a double edged sword.

I switched back to Regigigas and a single Ice Punch was enough to put down the threat—

—until he transformed and seeming restored his health in the process. Despite the Aura Sphere’s he could launch, Regigigas was able to tank his way to victory. And if he HAD fallen, I still had Darkrai to bring up the slack.

I really think it’s your attitude that’s the problem Volo. Have you considered that Arceus just might not LIKE you? And yes, I don’t think the world needs to be me remade; just because you’ve had a hard life doesn’t mean the world is a failure. You are not deserving of a perfect life just because of your heritage—ACTUALLY, if there is anything that needs changing in the world, it’s people like you feeling entitled due to their heritage.

That’s the end of dealing with Volo, thank Arceus. He had some more ranting about Fate to do, but I’m done listening. He handed over the last Plate, and that suddenly caused the Celestica flute given to me so long ago by Adaman to transform. Volo called it the Azure Flute, and he recognized it as a sign of Arceus’ favor.

Arceus’ voice whispered in my mind that I wasn’t yet ready to meet him. I guess there are still Pokémon for me to find here in Hisui.

On my return to Jubilife Village, the guard Ress stopped the Professor and I to inform us of a strange sighting in the Coastlands. The professor asked me recount what happened with Volo on top of Spear Pillar.

After I talked through everything again with him, the Professor came to much the same conclusion that I had; that the shadow was Giratina. Seems the work never ends.

Before making my way to bed, Captain Cyllene invited me up to the roof of Galaxy Headquarters, where Kamado explained to me the reason for the Team’s name. He’s a poetic soul, I’ll give him that. A Galaxy of brilliant minds working together…it’s a nice thought and I’m glad to be a part of it.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (14/?)

Day 66

I awoke the next morning to a pressing sense of dread. After a moment, I realized that the feeling was not my own; it seems that Dialga, Palkia, and the Lake Guardians are worried about something. So I took some time to ready myself more thoroughly this morning before setting out. A couple of the Pokémon I caught recently should be a nasty surprise for whatever has my Legendaries worried—especially with the preperations I’ve put them through.

I arrived at the Highlands and made my way up towards the Celestica ruins. Volo wasn’t down with the statues of Dialga and Palkia down in the main part of the ruins, so I made my way up towards the Sacred Plaza that connected the Ruins to Moonview Arena. As I expected, Volo was waiting for me in front of the destroyed third Statue—if only I could remember this Pokémon’s name.

Volo knew the name and legend of the Pokémon depicted by the destroyed statue: Giratina, a Pokémon banished to the Distortion World for its violence. I don’t like the way he talks about it though. He calls it “great”, and “has lain” makes it sound like it ISN’T trapped anymore.

He believes that Giratina must be making its way to the top of Mt. Coronet, to the very place where the Space-Time Rift first opened.

He gave the creepiest laugh I’ve heard in my life before he started explaining the reason hes so obsessed with myths and ruins.

I’m sad to hear he’s had such a rough life, but the way he talks about reshaping the world…I don’t think he’s just talking about revolutionizing our understanding of history or Pokémon. He made his way up to the ruins of the Temple of Sinnoh and I followed a short time later, after stopping by the camp still set up outside the Moonview Arena and making sure all of my supplies were in order.

It seems Volo was finally ready to drop his pretense and explain to me what his real motives have been this entire time. It turns out it’s…meeting Arceus, something he’s already told me, so why the crazy eyes?

Oh FUCK. He’s the one responsible for the Space-Time rift in the first place? He unleashed Giratina, which drove Palkia into a rage. But instead of calling forth Arceus directly, all that happened was Arceus sending ME here to fix things. He realized that and started trying earn my trust so he could send me on this mission to find the plates. It still doesn’t explain why that one random Alpha Vespiquen had one and was hiding in a spot of no major mythical significance; but Volo knew to look there anyway, so I’m just going to assume he plated the plate.

He then did a dramatic quick change reveal, whipping off the uniform of the Gingko Guild to reveal some sort of ancient looking get-up.

Its clear he’s gone FULLY off the deep end. Let’s hope the surprises I’ve brought are enough to fend him off.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (13/?)

Day 64

Mai told me that things were calm for the moment in the Icelands and given how hard I’d been pushing myself the last few days, I took it easy around town. At the break of dawn the next day, I found Mai waiting at the gate; seems the outbreaks have reached the north as well. When we arrived, both Lian and Melli were waiting for us.

They both wanted to warn us that, unlike the rest of Hisui, the strange outbreaks up here in the Icelands seemed to be associated with blizzards, rather than rain. Maybe this is part of the strange mystery of the phenomenon, but I’ve never seen it rain up here, so it might just be the climate. Mai seems to think the two’s bickering is actually friendly; if it is, I wish they’d leave me out of it.

The Pokémon I encountered up here in the Icelands were interesting, all fairly rair, and two not commonly found in the region at all. For all the theories we have about the causes and circumstances, we seem no closer to answers as to what is causing everything. Best report back to Mai.

Adaman and Irida arrived together, and we reviewed what we had learned. Turns out, it’s not much. We’ll keep research going as a background thing, but it looks like we won’t be finding answers anytime soon. We all agreed to start spreading the word on methods of avoiding such outbreaks so that if they persisted, they wouldn’t cause any harm to people unable to defend themselves.

Day 65

Then the two of them told us they had a surprise for us and basically dragged us off across the region. We traveled through the night and arrived in the Fieldlands just before dawn.

I will say that is one of the prettiest sunrises I’ve ever seen in my life, but come on guys, stop making me pull 24+ hour days.

We had a fairly deep discussion about the way times were changing, how to merge tradition and progress, and other such thoughts. I think, at least int eh short term, there’s nothing to worry about here in Hisui, with leaders like Adaman and Irida guiding the way. Something about Adaman’s worry about those that don’t want to change struck something inside me, but I’m not sure what.

I tried to lighten the mood by telling them about the Gym Challenge of my time, but it mostly just confused them; Irida seemed intrigued though.

I think Mai’s right, we may be able to figure out more about how, when, and where these mass outbreaks occur, but the why is simple: Arceus wills it, as a test and testament to my time here. I think I’ll take another easy day back in the village for the rest of the day and set out for the Highlands first thing tomorrow. Let’s see what Volo’s uncovered.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (12/?)

Day 63

Bright and early the next morning, I made my way back to Cogita, three logs of wood in tow.

This time Volo was waiting for me outside. We went in together and I handed over the wood. But it turns out this had nothing to do with the plates, and Cogita was just using me as cheap labor. Not that I mind, she’s done a lot for me, but I was expecting more.

And she does reward me for my help—

HOLY FUCKING SHIT! She had a Plate this entire time?!

She didn’t even know she had a Plate? Or is she just messing with us?

I still feel like we’re missing a plate, but Volo does raise a good point about figuring out what to DO with them. So I’ll agree with his plan for now. And in addition to the Dialga and Palkia statues at the ruins, I think I remember seeing a pedestal for what could have been a third statue. But the statue itself was gone, and the pedestal heavily damaged. Is this why Arceus was forgotten, or is there a third primal creation dragon I’m forgetting about?

Seems the next step in the Plate hunt is set. I’ll check in with Mai to see if anything has arisen in the Icelands, and deal with that if it has; I think Volo can afford to wait a day or two if it comes to it.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (11/?)

Day 61

At the gate, Mai told me that, the last she’d heard, things were still calm in the Highlands this morning. After talking with the Security Corps, I convinced them to escort me from Cogita’s home to the Highlands, so we didn’t waste extra time, and I headed to see her first.

Volo arrived shortly after I did; is it just good timing or is he watching me? Either way, Cogita, while glad to see we’d tracked down all the Plates she had hinted at, wasn’t ready to tell us any more information. And since I don’t currently have access to three logs of wood, I’ll have to come back later. Luckily the Highlands are quite heavily wooded and it won’t be that hard to pick up a few logs for Cogita during my investigation of the outbreaks.

Sabi was also in the Highlands, and reported that there was an outbreak of all Alphas, like the Ursaring I encountered in the Mirelands.

Despite Sabi’s warning, I didn’t encounter any Alpha Pokémon during my investigation, which took most of the day. However, with the sun setting on my way back to report in to Mai, a Space-Time Distortion began to form. Checking my map, I realized that it was centered exactly over one of the places that there had been an outbreak; perhaps this a point in favor of the the Professor’s theory.

There was an Alpha in the distortion at one point, an Octillery. I also encountered the first Rowlett I’ve seen outside of the one the Professor recently gifted me with. By the time I cleared the distortion, it was morning again. I’m going to check in with Mai and sleep until the afternoon; Cogita can wait until tomorrow.

Day 62

While I was debriefing Mai, Adaman stopped by. Seems he’s feeling left out of all the cooperation going on in the investigations and wanted to step up. I do quite appreciate all the crafting material for Sticky Globs he brought by, as they should keep me well supplied for a while.

Always nice to learn a bit more about my friends, and the banter between Adaman and Mai was a goldmine of information. Mai made clear here what I was already suspecting, she’s basically the big sister of everyone in the Diamond Clan.

Adaman asked a question that feels like another piece of the puzzle.The professor theorized that the locations of the outbreaks were somehow connected to the Space-Time Distortions, and as Dialga and Palkia and the rulers of Time and Space, they may be involved in both. But if anyone is setting this challenge, it’s probably Arceus, since this is massively helping me reach his stated goal for me: “Seek out All Pokémon”. Still, I’m exhausted. I’ll see what Cogita has to say tomorrow.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (10/?)

Day 60

As I was getting ready to head back up to Snowpoint Temple, Lian walked into camp.

Melli’s been telling tales it seems. Glad to see Lian doesn’t believe a word he saya,, but he needs to learn to ignore him like I do. Still, I appreciate the extra Aguav berries, they’ll be helpful when I start hunting these outbreaks again. Still, its strange that he says Mai’s been looking for me…didn’t I see her yesterday?

Either way, I let him know to send word to her that I had a few things to take care of here in the Icelands first, and that I’d be back in the Village later today. For now, the temple.

Adaman and Sabi met me at the the other sealed door. While they didn’t know how to open it, something Adaman said caught my attention. He talked about a powerful Pokémon that “moved the continents to the south”. I’m may not remember all my Pokémon legends, but I’ve always had an interest in the Hoenn region.

Given the statues scattered EVERYWHERE in this temple, each carved to be holding a plate with either the Rock, Ice, or Steel type symbol, I’d say the sealed Pokémon is Regigigas. And given the “plate” motif, I tried pulling out the corresponding plates. Lo and behold, as soon as they were out of my bag, they started glowing and the door unlocked. From there, it was easy enough to make my way through to where the Titan slumbered.

Regigigas was an absolute behemoth and hit like a truck, but I managed to wear him down and catch him eventually. Seems the good Professor is developing fans. Still, I’ve found all the Pokémon Cogita sent me after and I only have 16 Plates, so I’m still missing 2. I’ll check in with Mai back in Jubilife Village and then visit Cogita first thing tomorrow to see if she or Volo have turned up any more leads.

Interestingly, as I was leaving the Temple, the guard informed me that a swarm of Zorua had been spotted nearby. That raises my suspicions about what was happening with Mai. I took a moment to hunt down the Zorua before heading back to town. Mai was waiting by the gate when I got back.

So it wasn’t Mai who sent me on that errand to the Icelands; and it seems she was away on an errand for Irida, who was with me in the Icelands. We’ve already seen a Zorua pretend to be her Munchlax, so this is probably something similar.

It seems the Outbreaks have come to the Highlands now as well. Since there are more storms sweeping across the region, it’ll be safe to wait until tomorrow to go investigate. I guess I’ll visit Cogita after we return from that investigation.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (8/?)

Day 58

Mai was nowhere to be found this morning, but I decided to head out to Highlands anyway. On my way there, I thought back to another of the places Cogita had suggested I investigate.

She had wanted me to investigate a “crescent moon” Pokémon associated with the Moonview Arena. Loath as I am to deal with Melli again, I’ll need to check that out.

Warden Calaba was also present outside the arena when I arrived. The Pokémon I’m looking for is Cresselia, whose name does ring a bell. Melli was his typical self, upset that the Pokémon his arena is NAMED for dared to show up.

But hearing the name Cresselia and the word “nightmare” so close together reminded me of something. I remember hearing of another Pokémon associated with Cresselia, this one associated with Bad Dreams: Darkrai. AndtThere have been rumors of a shadowy Pokémon terrorizes travelers here in the Highlands; I’ll have to check that out tonight.

Approaching Cresselia was a bit of a pain. As soon as she noticed me, she created some sort of psychic energy field in the arena and surrounded herself in some sort of shield; I’m not sure what it was meant to do, but two of the magical charms I’d been buying from an old woman in town cracked in rapid succession while I was attempting to break the shield with sticky globs.

The fact that she was guarding the Dread Plate, the power of which reminded me of my Overqwil’s Dark Pulse, only confirmed to me that she is connected to Darkrai, who must also be nearby.

I spent the rest of the day hunting down a Nosepass and helping one of the villagers from Jubilife use it to navigate the Wayward Cave. As night fell, I made my way to the Clamberclaw Cliffs. I arrived just before sundown and drove of the bandit Charm, who was lurking on a plateau nearby.

As I expected, it was Darkrai that had been causing the rumors. He seemed reluctant to meet me in a straight battle, but I eventually managed to corner him and trap him into battle. After the battle was over I hoped that I would find another plate, but I wasn’t too surprised when I did not. With the night still young, I headed back to the Village to rest.

Day 59

The next morning, I was surprised to see Mai waiting over in front of the Galaxy Hall, next to Ginter’s wagon; she typically waits for me near the gates, passing time by chatting with Tsumugi.

Strangely, she wanted to skip the Highlands and head to the Icelands. Since I’d already done several of the things I needed to do in the Highlands, I’m fine with that. So I gathered the mushroom cakes she wanted and headed out.

[sostanotes]

Random Detail

So, I found a mistake in the dialogue of PLA

Notice the double "with". It took me a minute to notice this when I was reviewing the screenshots and I thought I was going crazy. We'll get to this conversation in a couple of days.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (7/?)

Day 56

Since it was only just past noon, I healed up my Pokémon from the battle with Rei and made my way to Firespit Island. Irida was waiting for me next to the arena field with Iscan.

It seems there’s still some tension between Irida and Warden Palina; I’m staying out of it. Luckily, Iscan seems to agree and we headed into the cavern within the Volcano, which is apparently called the Lava Dome Sanctum.

Waiting for us within was the legendary Pokémon Heatran. After a quick battle, I caught Heatran and found the Iron Plate waiting for me. It definitely cooled off significantly as soon as that happened.

As Iscan was getting ready to leave, I caught up with him because I wanted to catch up with him about an old issue that hadn’t made much progress.

Back after I had first surveyed the Coastlands and was re-exploring the previous regions with Basculegion, I was called into the Professor’s lab about a strange Pokémon the professor had seen. Iscan had given us some hints about some old legends, but we haven’t been able to find anything else.

Luckily, Iscan had remembered some more details and I set out with a specific set of Pokémon.

As soon as I past through the stones, I heard the sound of a distant Pokémon cry and shifting stone. After sailing around for a bit, I managed to find the source.

Despite their low levels, a 4-on-1 against Manaphy and their trio of Phione followers was quite difficult.  But I fought through the night and managed to catch all 4 of them. I was a bit disappointed that I didn’t get a Plate for the effort, but this wasn’t one of the Pokémon that Cogita had hinted at.

Day 57

I checked in with the professor as soon as I got back to camp and headed back to the village. I’m going to rest up today and head out to the Highlands tomorrow.

[sostanotes]

Myth Hunters (6/?)

Day 55

After Battling Adaman, and considering I’d worked through the night, I decided to head back to the Village and get some rest. Mai and Irida wanted to head to the Coastlands next, so I decided to put my facing of the Lake Guardians on hold for now. I set out again in the late afternoon; given the heavy rains across Hisui recently, the going was slow, and the sun had set by the time I arrived.

Irida was waiting for me, along with Warden Palina. They were worried about something strange occurring on Firespit Island. That fits with another one of the Legendary clues given to me by Cogita.

There must be some legendary that makes its home in the Volcano and its stirring. I’ll deal with that tomorrow; the trip here was tiring and I’m still exhausted from yesterday.

Day 56

Between the early start to my night, and the storm, it was still dark when I got up the next morning. Mai was waiting for me, looks like it’s time to hunt some more outbreaks.

I ran into some interesting Pokémon during the hunt: I finally encountered the Baby Pokémon Magby, though they was quite far from the Volcano where the Magmar usually reside; I also found a whole bunch of Piplup hanging out on top of a cliff; and the swarm of Qwilfish was about where I would expect to find them, but the arrival of a bunch of Overqwil right before the end of the storm did catch me off guard.

While checking in with Mai, Rei came over to tease that he had some insights to share, but he wants a battle first. That sounds like a lot of fun before the stress of facing down a legendary, so let’s go!

Rei has improved a lot since our first fight; honestly, he was a tougher opponent than the Commander. And it seems he and his Pikachu are getting along much better as well.

After the fight he explained his and the Professor’s theory, that the massive mass outbreaks are connected in some way to the Space-Time Rift. That would explain why Arceus is so invested in me knowing about them through my Arc Phone. And I have encountered Distortions in roughly the same area as some of these outbreaks. But distortions never appear when its raining, so why the difference in weather preference?

Mai mentioned that she wants to head to the Highlands next, even though no massive outbreaks have been reported there yet. Still, that means I can take some time here and investigate the Legendaries.