On the Edge

[Shilling]

An artificial breeze wafted lazily through the cliff dome, drifting over the rocky outcrops that gave the dome its name. A few flying Pokémon swerved spirals beneath the glass ceiling, and the small, simulated peaks and crags jutted up and down the visible landscape, obscuring the vision of the creature who clung to the side of a ledge.

Her name was Shilling, a rather strange Aron whose shell melted near room temperature. She wasn't proud of the fact, that much was certain. It was what had brought her up here, to the highest point she could manage to get to, sheltered by the rock face that leaned over her. There was something of a path up here, though it was thin and haphazard. The only absolutely stable part of the cliff face was the part she was settled on now, though there was plenty of room for other Pokémon. Still, she hadn't met another who had come up here, and it was something of her peace and quiet spot. Nobody ever bothered her with silly politics here.

She turned her pockmarked face to the breeze, which started to pick up slightly. It did that every now and then, and it hadn't taken Shilling long to figure out that they were timed. Certain gusts blew every other day at certain times, and soon it would whistle across the rocks, the dull hum of the machine that caused it echoing across the glass. The thought made her shudder a bit; as much as she loved how the cold kept her armour intact, the wind made her nervous. It reminded her too much of the atmosphere whipping across her thin skin when it began to melt - unnatural, uncomfortable, and vulnerable. Sometimes she could hardly tell between when she was perfectly fine and when she was in danger of losing her only means of protection, at least when the wind was blowing.

As the air began to gain momentum, the blue orbs set in her face returned to face the cliff side. She didn't particularly like looking down - at least not when there was wind, as the combined uneasiness made her feel sick - even if it was at the sacrifice of not knowing if anyone was approaching. No one ever came here anyways, right?

[griffvulkit]

    The breeze kicked up from what could be called the east. convincing though it may seem, the figure on top of the cliff knew better. Having lived here all his life, he and his partner would have had to be naive to be convinced. Instead, a smirk climbed its way on top of the figure's face.

"Ha, I knew we could do it before those phony winds kicked up! How could you have ever had a doubt, Mara?" The figure appeared to be talking to someone behind him, but no one could possibly be there, unless he meant to speak to a ghost or one of the bird Pokemon drifting almost lazily above him. No answer seemed to come, but he burst out laughing anyway. "Heheh, always the worrywart, eh? Don't worry; I won't let us fail! And if I for some reason do, you will be there to help me, right? Right." The figure gazed at the sun for a second, widening his stance for slightly better purchase on the rocks as the winds hit a particularly strong point. It turned out to be a Zorua, just a plain Zorua, wearing a scarf with some kind of tag on it. Resting on his back appeared to be a blade. However, this blade was different somehow as well. A ribbon that appeared to have a greyish hand at its end protruded from its scabbard, and the point just beneath the crossguard had two sapphires that appeared to glitter too brightly to be simple gems. The Zorua's eyes flashed grey for a second as he looked straight in a random direction, where he knew a piece of one way glass could be found, then returned to its normal blue color. The Zorua shook his head rapidly, nearly losing his balance in the process.

"Geeze, Mara! Don't do that to me like that; at least warn me!" Just then a gust of wind pushed him from behind, and this time he really did lose his balance. as he tumbled down, he twisted and turned, a calm look on his face. His eyes flashed grey at a point when the twists hit a critical point, and the foot-long blade slid from its sheath, the Zorua grabbing the handle between his teeth. He then turned his head, whipping the blade around, and jammed it into the cliff wall. This slowed down his descent, but the force yanked the blade from his teeth. As he yelled out in frustration, the ribbon suddenly flung out and the handlike appendage grabbed onto the handle itself, stabbing it into the cliffside once more. This brought the both of them to a full stop, just inches from a narrow ledge.

The tricky fox pokemon sighed in relief, then smirked at the sheath on his back. "See? What'd I tell you? We make a killer team!" The sword pulled free of the cliff wall, dropping the now revealed duo onto the narrow ledge. The blade resheathed itself in its scabbard, and the Zorua shook itself down. "Now, I wonder where this leads..."

[Shilling]

For a moment, all was still beyond the inquisitive whisper of the wind and the twirl of Pokémon in flight above. Shilling stared aimlessly at the wall, her mind lost in thoughts that only she knew. Silence hung over her like a cloud, raining contemplation on the cold rock that pressed against her iron stomach.

However, it was not long before that moment was shattered. She hadn't expected it, but all signs pointed otherwise, and her immediate response was to glance lazily at the entrance to the overhang. There was no change in expression and zero movement besides her head, but eventually she hoisted herself up, arching her back in a stretch as best as she could, and meandered towards the beaten path. Her apathetically blue gaze rested calmly on the empty rocks, invisible confusion forming in her mind, and she shifted around in order to find the source. Surely the wind wasn't so strong as to carry distant sounds yet?

However, it didn't take her long to witness the fall. A Zorua and some other sword freak tumbled from somewhere above, somewhere she hadn't noticed and probably wouldn't be able to reach with her awkward frame. The two tumbled down together, helping each other to not die a terrible death on the rocks below, and Shilling herself made no move to help. She couldn't have done anything anyways. Once upon a time it fascinated her how totally indifferent she was in the face of death, but now it was so common a phenomenon that she didn't bother anymore. If they fell, they fell, but if not, there was just one more life that would live to see tomorrow. Two? She wasn't entirely sure.

Regardless, either the sword freak was alive or the Zorua was just mad, (though she didn't entirely doubt the latter, considering what went on in this building) as the tricky fox Pokémon spoke to nobody she could see, unless he had noticed her, which seemed highly unlikely in light of the words themselves. Indeed, she remained unseen, tucked neatly behind the corner of the ledge so as to allow her to observe them without being noticed by anything less than a careful eye. She supposed she should introduce herself after a few moments, but wasn't quite certain. The final decision was a bit hasty and she doubted it a bit, rightly so considering her contemplative nature.

"Excuse me, but what do you mean by being here?" A bit awkward perhaps, but it was the nature of the beast. She spoke no further but instead watched intently, staying in her half-hidden location behind the corner. Perhaps they would notice her, or perhaps she would remain a disembodied voice to them. Only time would tell.

[griffvulkit]

The Zorua stopped for a second. "Did you hear something, Mara? I swear I heard something...." The pair listened for a second, then the tricky fox shrugged. "Must've been nothing." He continued down the path a little further. As he rounded a corner, however, he nearly slipped off the edge trying to avoid slamming into the Pokemon hiding behind it. "WAUGH!"
After regaining his balance, he looked closer at the 'Mon. "Wha- who are you? What are you doing here?" The little illusion fox cocked an ear at an unheard sound, then looked back at the Aron. "This isn't exactly the place for one of your type! We were sent here on a series of simple tasks, but TRUST me this wasn't so simple!" the Zorua paused for a second again. "But I digress. Seriously, you don't look like one who should hang around here..." Indeed, on closer inspection, the Aron looked to be made of a dark metal of a frailer make in comparison to the normal iron armor. "More importantly, what is your name? I must appear terribly rude; the name is Gryph, and this here," he indicated the blade on his back,"is Marasune, but you can call him Mara for short. So, you are?"

[Shilling]

Shilling cracked a smile at the Zorua's surprise, though it was hidden beneath the Gallium plate that shielded the upper side of her face. The smile continued as he nearly reeled off the face of the cliff, and again the nagging part of her mind scolded her for being so apathetic. It was a bit of a futile effort, considering the fact that it was her apathy that made her not care about that nagging part. The seconds seemed to pass in slow motion as the Pokémon regained his balance and then turned to face her. Arceus, he talked a lot... but then, he wasn't the only one.

It took her a moment to process all of what he was saying, and it took her another moment to feel like responding. "My name is Shilling," she mused. Indeed, it seemed less of a statement and more of a decision. "You are more polite than the others, at least. This is my ledge, you might say. I come up here so that my skin doesn't melt." No gestures, no explanation, nothing. It was as if she expected everyone to know her alteration, although it was more likely true that she just didn't care whether they did or not.

Her gaze shifted lazily to the sword freak - Mara, was it? - and one of her eyelids raised. "Your friend," she ventured, "is he alive?"

[griffvulkit]

The Zorua had no doubt this little Aron was the voice he had heard earlier. It seemed cold and uncaring, but also as if it didn’t want to be. So its armor… melted? Strange. Now that the illusion fox looked, he could see the armor was warped in places he imagined she would try to hold the armor on when it started melting. Oh wait, it asked a question! It seemed to doubt the reality of Mara being alive… this question certainly took the Zorua aback. “Of course he’s alive! He’s just not much of a talker, that’s all-” Just then the tricky fox ’Mon blinked and his face became more passive. His eyes had also become a stormy shade of grey as well. When he spoke again, it was a more cold and calculating voice that seemed to have an echo to it.
“I am usually averse to talking due to how I must use this body as a vessel for my eyes and mouth. I could not speak without him, nor can I see. I would gladly speak further with you, but I see you are as averse to speech as I am. So, fare thee well, O Shilling of the Liquid Armor. We may speak again.” The seemingly possessed Pokemon blinked and shook his head; when he opened his eyes again they were back to their normal blue color, and his expression was annoyed.
“Geez, Mara, didn’t I ask you warn me before doing tha- holy Smoke of Reshiram he came OUT for you? He must really like and respect you already! I’m sure he told you how little he talks and why… anyway, in case you were wondering, we are kinda joined at the hip so to speak; it’s kinda…. complicated…” The Zorua looked down, for once uncertain. Why was he telling her these things? Perhaps he thought she was in a similar boat, and would understand? “…Anyhow, why would your armor melt? I thought most Aron had iron shells…” At least he could make some sense out of that.

[Shilling]

Now, the change in voice and eye color was indeed a bit surprising. She'd seen a possessed Pokémon once or twice, but this was... a bit bizarre, even for RPEPB. The scientists just got crazier and crazier... the dispute had ended in her mind now, at least. For a moment she entertained the common "Ghost-types are dead" myth, wondering if he was really alive in the sense, but quickly shoved it away. Both of the two said he was alive, so alive he was.

Shilling of the Liquid Armour... yes, she quite liked the sound of that. Perhaps it would be of use to her someday. Before she could make a comment, though, Mara was gone. She didn't blame him, and indeed, she understood what it was like to be averse to speech.

"Respect... well, I suppose that can be mutual." She made no note to point out that he hadn't said why, though she did listen intently as the Zorua explained their situation. Interesting... so the scientists really were going a bit wild in their spare time. For a moment she wished she could see more of what they were up to, but that was a bit much. No iron, no exploration. It was a simple enough concept.

"They do like to make it convoluted, don't they?" She paused for a moment, processing the question and coming with the best course of explanation. "Most of us do, yes, as it's a very abundant metal and it's the kind that most of us like the best. Unfortunately, I don't have the liberty of choice. They feed me... Gallium, was it? Some bizarre metal. It melts just above what's considered an average temperature, and as such, it's dangerous for me to venture into areas without low temperature." Her head tilted to one side wistfully. "Ledges like these are about the only places I can go when they release me into the garden, at least without ceaseless chaos. One might say I don't play well with others, more often than not. I'm surprised that someone's found this particular spot; what brings you up here?"

[griffvulkit]

The Zorua heard Shilling’s explanation on her melting armor, while he knew his partner pondered the meaning of her immediate first comment on respect. Gallium… that was a new metal to him… but if she says it is what she had for armor, it definitely explained a lot about why she was up here and not in the Caverns with their ore deposits guarded by fierce Pokemon or the normal area to find Arons here, in the lower section of the dome…

He looked up at her again from his frozen stare that had rested upon the ledge the whole time. “Oh, remember, how I said I had to do a series of ‘simple tasks’?” one of them was reaching the top of an outcropping. It wasn’t easy, we nearly fell a couple times on the way up, but we eventually made it… of course then we fell and so here we are, thanks to not dying! Something about it displaying how he affects my balance and also demonstrating our teamwork skills…? I dunno, humans are weird, though mine is rather nice I have to say!” Just then the tag on the Zorua’s scarf flashed and started beeping. The Zorua looked down at it then sheepishly back up at the Aron.

“Sorry, I guess they want me back… I’m afraid we will have to get moving and get back to the garden… I must’ve really scared them back there with my fall. Talk with you again sometime?” The adventurous Zorua turned to look for a safe path down the cliffside. He hoped he could get down safely; it was difficult enough getting up but down was always a different story. Looking up, he grinned sheepishly. “Uhm, heheheh, do you happen to know the easiest way down that won’t kill us? We’re kinda lost now…”

[Shilling]

Weird indeed. The scientists did have weird missions, judging by the few she'd met who had them; fortunately for her, she'd never had to deal with such things. The scientists were content to observe, with the occasional harmless experiment or status check. Of course, she had to ask for their help when transferring from the domes to her own little room - some fancied calling it a cell, but she had never seen a real problem with it and indeed was happier there than anywhere else - although this was usually up to the scientists anyways. Had she it her way she'd always stay in there, but of course, the scientists were a bit concerned for her health when she stayed cooped up in there. It was part of the reason she was so passive when it came to escaping or reinventing RPEPB.

She made no move to say goodbye besides a simple nod, but then picked herself up when Gryph asked for her help. "It's this way," she said simply, picking her way past the two and clambering back up onto the battered path. "Watch your step; it's a little unstable in portions." She began clambering quickly down the slope, not bothering to look back and check if the duo was following, although a little ways ahead she stopped and turned around, waiting before scrambling off again.

[griffvulkit]

As the liquid-metal armored Aron led Gryph and Marasune down the cliffside at an amazing clip considering the conditions and her state, the Zorua decided he liked her, and would definitely like to meet again. He was steadily learning human, as per training for his illusions; maybe he could request it during some of his free time. It’s not like he was being researched with these strange requests all the time…the duo had plenty of time between, it could be as simple as a request to visit the cliff dome a couple times a month… the pair agreed that they would do it, if at all possible. By then, they had reached the bottom, thanks to the strange Aron’s adept guiding. “Thanks. I can take it from here… shall we meet again sometime? I know I would much enjoy it…” they came to a stop at the entrance to the garden dome. The Zorua looked uncomfortable, uncertain again. “I’m not that good at good-byes, but I know you can’t leave here for too long… we’ll meet again, I’m sure of it!” and with that he bounded down the halls to the garden.