skypxllar

[skypxllar]

[Second Checkpoint]

Heidi, Hera, and their Arceus equal all sat together at the table. They had been catching up for some time, talking about the differences between Heidi's and Hera's world, while also learning a little more about their Arceus equivalent.

"You know," Hera chuckled. "Doesn't surprise me that Rayquaza still loved Zygarde to some extent. He's always been a bit of a flirt, especially before we were married."

"Yeah." Heidi nodded. "I'm happy for them, and for the relationship that they have going on with Rachel." She smiled. "Even if I was worried for Rachel's part when she was leaving."

"I'm happy for them, too," The Arceus agreed, "but I'm also happy for you and Nergal, Heidi."

"Huh? What do you mean by that, Lacey?"

"Well…" Arceus got up and grabbed a bagel from the bagel container. "I know that you've been struggling with dealing with the divorce and Izanami's passing, but you've learned to move on in a healthy way, and with someone that you really seem to like. The relationship's kinda cute, too~"

Hera rolled her eyes. "...Despite the fact that she's kind of a jerk."

Heidi leaned back. "She's an asshole, but she's my asshole~"

"...."

"...."

Heidi glared. "...not like that, you heathens. Get your minds out of the damn gutter!" She rolled her eyes. "I know that everyone's worried about me considering that she's so egotistical, but Nergal genuinely cares about me and I care about her. Beneath that power trip of hers, Nergal is a great woman and an even better mother. Watch, when everything with Friede is behind us and when Nergal decides that she wants to settle down, everyone's going to be shocked when she turns out to be an amazing wife and coruler here."

Hera and Arceus looked at each other, looked past Heidi, and then looked at Heidi. They didn't know what to say.

"....I spoke too confidently about her, didn't I?"

They nodded.

"...And she's right behind me, isn't she?"

The duo nodded again.

Nergal giggled and leaned down. She kissed her girlfriend on the cheek before walking over to grab a bagel of her own. "Thinking about marriage already, hm? How flattering~"

Heidi rolled her eyes. "Even if we were married, I'd still kick your ass if you tried me, Nergal."

"I wouldn't expect any less from you~" Nergal walked back over to Heidi and whispered in her ear. "...But let's wait until after you defeat Friede to discuss that, hm?"

Heidi turned to Nergal and gave her a small kiss on the lips. "Whatever."

Nergal left.

Hera looked at Heidi. "Some keeper."

Heidi laughed. "I'll say."

Arceus smiled at both of them. "Anyway, the reason why I wanted to visit you both in-person today is because I wanted to give you both a checkpoint at the same time."

Heidi tilted her head. "Wait. Didn't you say that you were waiting until after we settle things with Friede for the next checkpoint?"

"I did… but something came up, and I feel like it's better for the three of us to talk together in-person about this," Arceus shrugged. "So, I guess I get to do everything earlier than I expected. Heidi seems to be producing a habit of that."

Hera chuckled and looked at Heidi. "Guess Izanami rubbed off on you."

Heidi snickered. "If only accidentally, I guess."

Arceus looked between the other two versions of herself. "Anyway--" She snapped her fingers, refilling each of their teacups instantly and serving some Poké Puffs. "I hope you don't mind if I don't do anything fancy today. I promised you both that I would tell you all the real reason for my appearance to the two of you the next time I gave you a checkpoint. Not only that, but Hera, since you said that Yukin was off the table for you, you wanted me to be the one to answer about Hel and Melony's true form. As for you, Heidi, you… wanted me to help you with Leah's final lesson that she gave to you about Resurrection via Reconstruction for your mom. Did I get all of that right?"

Hera nodded. "Yeah. You're the only one of your uh… caliber… that any of us back home trusts, so it would be nice to get some answers."

Heidi nodded. "And… it would be nice to see mama have a chance to see the world a bit more… even to interact with more of the family."

Arceus nodded, too. "Sounds good! So, tell me, which do you wanna start with?"

#muse lacey #mxstball #pokecheckpoint #plot: second checkpoint

[skypxllar]

#ooc #mod #skye does music #self promo #// still on hiatus but #// posting here too :3

[skypxllar]

// Hey! Heads up! I'm going to be going on a hiatus for a little while. Nothing bad's going on or anything, just that I want to recenter and restructure myself a little while also plan out some plotting things that I have cooking up. I'll try to get to replies, but don't expect much activity otherwise.

// No real set time period for this hiatus, but I am shooting for about a week or so away. Just want to take as much time as I need, though.

// If you want to talk OOC and you don't have my Discord already, feel free to message me to ask for it. Anyway, see ya later~

#ooc #mod #// applies for this blog as well

[skypxllar]

Hera and Rayquaza weren't having Thanksgiving this year. They instead wanted to rest together with the family.

Helen was also there, but this was moreso to check in on Tristana than anything. "It is good to meet you, Tristana." Helen was giving Tristana a hug. "Hera and Zinnia told me everything than transpired. I am so happy to know that you are safe."

"Mom..." Tristana was returning the hug. Her eyes were watery, even though she's already cried twice. "It--It's so good to meet you--"

"Shhh. Shhhh. It's okay." Helen started petting the child's hair. "You've been through so much between your father and your siblings. Rest assured, you will be safe with Rayquaza and Hera."

Tristana nodded, but then hugged tighter. For so long, she's wanted to hug her mother like this. For so long, the Celesteela dreamt of one day meeting Helen and spending time with her. She's endured so much and risked her life in so many occasions. Yet, here she is, doing exactly that.

"Come. Rayquaza allowed for me to rest in one of the guest rooms for the night. Let us catch up there, okay little one?"

"Y--yes , mom." Tristana didn't move, however. Instead, she was smiling ear-to-ear with tears rolling down her face.

....

....

"....Uh, Tristana, dear? You know... we cannot go to the room if we just continue hugging like this."

!!! Tristana quickly let go. "S--sorry! Sorry, mom"

Helen laughed and petted the child's head. "No need for apologies." She then took her child's hand and started walking to Helen's guest room. "This way."

#muse arceus #tristana

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Rayquaza and Hera nodded at each other as Heidi sat with Aesen as well. The two of them listened to Aesen and nodded as they gave his questions some thought.

"Well, a venue such as the Hall of Origin is prime for an extravagant wedding. After all, it is but the most sacred location in the Sinnoh Region, if not the entire world."

Hera nodded. "Though, how comfortable are each of you when it comes to hosting a large wedding crowd? Sure, money and resources aren't a problem, but there's still the sheer scale of it all, the planning, ensuring everything stays in order in case there's drama, and other things."

"That... is a factor that comes into play, yes. Hera and I opted for a small wedding in a mirage island for this very reason. There has been enough publicity with us for once, and thus preferred to only host for a few close family members."

Heidi looked to the sky to think. "As for the colors... do you have a base theme that you can match the colors around? We can start with that."

"I don't mind at all, and if she wants to speak up with her own suggestions, I'll happily take them into consideration." Aesen would have a seat in front of Rayquaza before grabbing his pencil and opening the notebook.

"So, Hisao and I have been discussing the overall color scheme for the wedding, and we've decided that we want to incorporate three colors that work well together--we've both agreed that white should be one of those colors, but we're... kinda stuck on the other two. We're also trying to figure out how many people to invite, since it's going to be held in Dad's Hall of Origin, right in the gardens."

#oflegendariesandtrainers #muse rayquaza #muse lacey

[skypxllar]

// hey, now that I'm here, let's do a starter call :3

// like / reply for a starter. if you want someone in particular, lmk!

#starter call #open starter #// one more round lol

[skypxllar]

Hel dashed towards Melony, but wasn't able to get out of the way of the Shadow Ball.

It's super effective!

Once she was right in front of Melony, Hel shook her head. ".... No one to interrupt."

Hel decided to go for another attack.

Hel used Shadow Force! Hel is obscured!

Melony's Distortion World.

Ever since Melony was hand-escorted out of her Distortion World, she was now able to venture in and out of it at will. As long as the Griseous Core remained intact, she didn't need to rely on Heidi to travel between the two worlds... just as long as at least one of her siblings were in Elysium, of course.

So, she was in her Distortion World, casually taking a stroll within the area. She thought of simply venturing aimlessly in the nothingness, gathering her thoughts. She considered returning to meditating and honing her fortitude. She considered checking on her little one. maybe it misses he--

--wait.

Something was compelling her forward. She felt this feeling before. She continued to walk as the path illuminated in front of her. Could it be...?

....

!!!!

Melony noticed the torii gates approaching from the other side of the horizon, but, by the sense of it, it couldn't have been her little one. Who was in here, and how did they--

--wait.

Melony saw the individual approaching her and attack! Melony just barely managed to leap out of the way.

Melony dodged the attack!

The ground below them transformed once more. The torii gates disappeared and the ground changed into a circular arena. The two ghost dragons leapt backwards to opposite sides of the arena and started to circle around it, keeping eye contact with each other the entire time.

"... Hel. It is nice to see you. If you would like to continue our Exchange, then you have chosen the perfect location to do so." Melony got ready for battle. "No one will interrupt us here."

Melony shot an attack towards Hel.

Melony used Shadow Ball on Hel!

#hel #mxstball

[skypxllar]

"Indeed, although it is in hopes of diplomacy. We need not cause additional strife, after all."

Rayquaza did notice the change in tone from Koko, but, either way, he was right. There was not much either of them could do until Hera returned.

"It is funny that you mentioned that. Names have already been determined for these worlds due to the increase in interactions between worlds. Starting with this world, Mother has determined to call it 'Ecumene' after the name of a land long ago. Heidi's domain is called 'Elysium' after the paradise of a culture once lost. As for the domain of the Golden One and the former home of Heidi and her siblings, it is called 'The Ruined Kingdom', after the state in which it was left after their apocalyptic event."

Technically, there are two Ruined Kingdoms, but Hera and Heidi were going to try to split the difference on their own.

"So she's basically on a scouting and reconnaissance mission, huh?" Hmm, seems like Koko was already in war mode if he was wording things like that. As Rayquaza said, slim didn't mean there was no chance of war breaking out. Hmmm, but how do we fight an Arceus?

"Guess, there's not much we can do until she comes back with information. Hmmm, in the meantime, maybe we should give the different worlds names. Considering we have to deal with three of them, it probably is best to name them so we don't get confused. How about we name the one with the golden one the gold world?"

Well, hopefully the golden one was an Arceus and not something different entirely.

#muse rayquaza #melemeleguardian

[skypxllar]

"Please let Dagomet be the last one that I meet before I encounter mom."

#tristana #dash commentary #the poke nebula

[skypxllar]

Takes a LARGE sip.

Guess Yukin's good for something after all.

#muse lacey #dash commentary #mxstball

[skypxllar]

Assimilation and Combat Exchange

Hel's Distortion World.

Hel had returned to her Distortion World. Something there was calling to her... as if there was someone else here.

Strange. Ever since that short fight with Melony, she felt different... connected in some way. Even stranger, the feeling only intensified as she started to walk. The torii gates and shrines lit up and guided her to her intended direction. For once within her own domain, she decided to walk as a traveler, and not as if she didn't already have full dominion over this place.... She thought of the various travelers that ventured here, of the various times that she guided others to what they were looking for, or of those that she led to their doom.

And yet, for once, she felt as though she wanted to be guided just like that.

Hel continued to walk, but, in the distance, there was something that she saw. Another set of lights in the distance was approaching from the horizon. Someone else was here, her... but not just anyone....

...Melony.

The urge to continue what they started arose. She wished to fight, not out of intruding, no. Melony was always welcome to come in her domain, but to finish the Assimilation & Combat Exchange. It was custom... they must fight each other to the best of their ability. It was the way that they would understand each other... for them to exchange the knowledge they accumulated over the course of thousands, no, millions of years. It was a way for them to assimilate to one another -- to link their lives to each other.

...and a way to truly understand if they were just as similar as they thought.

Hel lunged quickly. If Melony felt the same thought, then it was best to be the first to strike while she had the chance.

Melony used Shadow Claw!

@mxstball

#mxstball #hel #// time for a fight thread with myself

[skypxllar]

Rayquaza definitely understood how Tapu Koko was feeling. This was something that he's had to take time to grasp as well. Here he thought that after Freya's defeat, he and Hera would finally have time to spend an extended amount of time in peace, and now there are so many more things to take into consideration.

"In truth, the reason why my dear ventures to the other land is precisely for the answers to some of these questions. Heidi has sought us out to learn of our findings and understand our experiences with The Golden One so that she may have a better chance at becoming victorious. At the same time, we wish to also know of what is to occur should she fail. Hera has told me that she has no doubt in her mind that Heidi will win, and that the likelihood of us being the Arceus' next target is slim, but we all must make precautions. 'Slim' is not the same as 'none', after all."

"Indeed, another world similar to our own."

Rayquaza took a moment to consider the major differences between the two worlds.

"In broad strokes, the Arceus of that world is different. While the Arceus of this world continues to live alongside us to guide us, the Arceus of Heidi's realm... she perished in a duel against Friede. As such, while Hera remains a Latias as an apprentice to our Arceus, it is Heidi who is the Arceus of her world. In addition, while Freya, the Arceus of Hera who threatened this world, has been defeated by Hera's hand, Friede, Heidi's world's equivalent, still lives and still threatens that world. There are... other differences, but these are the major points."

Rayquaza shook his head when he was asked about the dream manipulation.

"The situation with the phenomenon is... stranger than that. These dream manipulations are not altering memories, but simply recalling them to cause the target to reflecting on that. However, the reason why Hera and Heidi are meeting is twofold. Firstly, this phenomenon occurs within both worlds... however, secondly, the creature that is causing the dream phenomenon is known. She... is another Arceus, one that claims to be another version of both Hera and Heidi and seem to have a link to them in some way. Such is all I know, however."

#muse rayquaza #melemeleguardian #// ray vc: mood

[skypxllar]

Heidi cracked her knuckles.

"Oh, trust me. If he steps foot in your world, he's gonna wish I got a hold of him.... He and I have an unfinished score to settle."

Rayquaza butted in the conversation.

"Remember, Aesen, Hera. If it is true that Xibalba has returned to this realm, it is important that he is to remain alive. Not only does Mother wish an audience with him, but he is still in possession of Ixcel. We cannot endanger the Lunala as she has done nothing wrong."

Heidi let out a sigh. He was right. "Alright, but that doesn't mean that I don't get to kick his ass." Heidi turned to Aesen. "Anyway, that's everything that I wanted to show you today. You still wanted to talk wedding plans, though?"

Rayquaza perked up.

"Wedding? Why I am quite interested in learning of these plans! Although, if so, is it okay if Tristana can continue to rest here while we discuss? She will not mind our conversations while she recovers."

"I was afraid you were going to say that the minute you said 'disguised Celesteela', Sis." Aesen shook his head. "It also helps that I could sense she wasn't entirely human to begin with."

Still, to hear that the Ultra Necrozma was back meant that there was going to be a lot of fighting in the near future. Good thing he was skilled with that sort of stuff.

"If I see any of them myself, I'll be sure to deal with them according to the type of situation. I'll leave Xibalba to Mom unless he decides he's going to enter Dad's realm to start something for any reason--especially if he learns of Dad's connection to Mom. If he enters Arcanis, he's a fair target and he's not going to like what happens to him."

Aesen wasn't even trying to hide the implications--he knew that everyone in Ecumene knew about who Gene truly was.

#muse lacey #muse rayquaza #tristana #oflegendariesandtrainers

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"Oh, out of the ones from my home world? Just three." Hera nodded. "There's Hel who's my Giratina, Loki who's my Zygarde, Jörmungandr who's my Rayquaza, and Icathia who's my Dialga. Sadly, we're still working on figuring out who else could have survived, but we've come up short in much of the journey in that world."

It was interesting to Hera that there was a mixture of familiarity with the given names. Some names like Icathia and Jörmungandr were the same names as her world. Some names such as Leifi were different but also survived. Then, there were others that survived in Heidi's world that didn't seem to in Hera's. She wondered if there were survivors in her world that Heidi didn't have.

"Hel and I are extremely close sisters, especially. We have a psychic link together, and we worked together a lot with training. Her Griseous Core was destroyed when Freya destroyed our world, but I was able to help her gather the pieces of her Core and bring it back together." Hera smiled.

"Honestly, ever since we opened up our world to other worlds, we kinda use this world as a place for refugees like Hel to stay here and have a stable place to live as long as they don't cause trouble. It's really nice."

Heidi nodded and walked over to Rayquaza and rested with the trio. Usually, she wouldn't feel comfortable, but all things considered...

"I wouldn't mind resting for a bit. Honestly, it brings a little nostalgia, since I haven't done anything like this in Sky Pillar since the divorce started." Heidi let out a sigh.

"Sooo...." Heidi looked at the three of them. "If you don't mind, do you have any Pokémon from your home world that are still alive? I have my Giratina Melony, my Zygarde Leifi, a Latias named Tor, my Mespirit Morgan, my Rayquaza Jörmungandr, my Ho-oh Eir, my Lugia XD001, my Celebi Naresa, my Dialga Icathia, and my Eternatus Nergal... though Nergal is... kinda on Friede's side? It's hard to tell anymore."

#muse zinnia #muse lacey #mxstball

[skypxllar]

"Indeed, another world similar to our own."

Rayquaza took a moment to consider the major differences between the two worlds.

"In broad strokes, the Arceus of that world is different. While the Arceus of this world continues to live alongside us to guide us, the Arceus of Heidi's realm... she perished in a duel against Friede. As such, while Hera remains a Latias as an apprentice to our Arceus, it is Heidi who is the Arceus of her world. In addition, while Freya, the Arceus of Hera who threatened this world, has been defeated by Hera's hand, Friede, Heidi's world's equivalent, still lives and still threatens that world. There are... other differences, but these are the major points."

Rayquaza shook his head when he was asked about the dream manipulation.

"The situation with the phenomenon is... stranger than that. These dream manipulations are not altering memories, but simply recalling them to cause the target to reflecting on that. However, the reason why Hera and Heidi are meeting is twofold. Firstly, this phenomenon occurs within both worlds... however, secondly, the creature that is causing the dream phenomenon is known. She... is another Arceus, one that claims to be another version of both Hera and Heidi and seem to have a link to them in some way. Such is all I know, however."

Koko just blinked and nodded back when Rayquaza talked about peace. Man, that was a saccharine response. Was Ray the secret writer of some kid's show? Hmmm, Koko didn't bother to say anything though as it might just be how the other legend coped with the world always being doomed or something. It wasn't like he was wrong either, in fact, Koko probably said the same thing in dark times before.

"Another world similar to our own, huh? So I was right..." They were talking about different time layers before, and now she was in the middle of a situation with one. What were the chances? Actually pretty high considering what happened with Rainbow Rocket.

"Ray, please tell me, how much about this otherworld. Like what makes that world different from ours." Koko had no idea what answer he would get from this, but somehow he knew that he probably would like what he was going to hear. Lacey, please be alright.

"Also, why would that dream manipulation be tied to the other world? Don't tell me you think that someone from the other world is trying to manipulate people's memories so that it's the same as in the other world."

#muse rayquaza #melemeleguardian

[skypxllar]

"...Actually, speaking to a therapist would be nice. There are... many things that I would need to unpack about myself."

#hel #dash commentary

[skypxllar]

Tristana was resting on the top of Dragonhark Altar. The Heal Pulse was good enough for her to stabilize, but getting hit that hard still did a number on her directly.

Zinnia, Rayquaza, and Hera each looked at each other confusingly. Hera was able to determine that this "person" was actually a Celesteela in disguise, but they didn't know much of who she was, where she came from, or why she was attacked.

"We really have some of the weirdest luck when it comes to otherworldly things, huh?" Zinnia shook her head. "First, that weird Arceus, then another parallel world comes to contact us, and now this." She sighed. "Well, at least this kid's safe."

"I concur."

Rayquaza flew over and checked on the creature himself. She was stable, but she definitely needed the rest.

"And you guys said that you think that you fought a Xurkitree?"

Zinnia nodded. "Something like that. He gave off that vibe. Though, didn't expect for him to go down like that."

"Unfortunately, we were unable to secure the body, as we wished not make any additional risks."

"Mmm." Hera walked over to Tristane and knelt down. She held her hand on top of Tristana's head and went back to healing again.

"..." Hera continued with her healing. "She's going to need some more rest, but I can take it from here."

"M--m--mom.... D--Dagomet--" Tristana was talking in her sleep.

"Shhh. Shhh. You're safe, now, kid." Hera spoke softly. "You're safe with us."

#muse zinnia #muse rayquaza #muse lacey #tristana