What's Gone is Gone [Mod/Open]

[Jay]

It had been forever since he had been there, and yet at the same time, it felt like days to Orion. There were obvious reasons he had avoided coming into the capital: it was simply not safe for a kicked out Prince to come back to the ruins of his home, but Orion would be lying if he didn't admit there was more to it than that. In all honesty, he was afraid, afraid to see what it had become after being licked by those flames that still haunted his dreams sometimes, afraid that he wouldn't be able to keep his cool upon seeing it, afraid that he would feel that helpless feeling again that intoxicated his being on that day when all he could do was run.

However, he had grown up since then, or at least he was trying to grow up. He'd put aside what fears were still in him and had come back to the castle that had been his home, no, that was still his home. "It's been too long.." Orion mumbled slowly as his eyes slowly scaled over the large castle's exterior. The burns, dirt, and grime that had been left on her was disgusting. Why hadn't anyone bothered to clean it up? Why hadn't anyone at least done something to make it look nicer? Where were all those knights that been supposed to defend the castle?

Orion didn't even realize his heart had sped up and his muscles had tensed in a few short minutes, but when he actually did realize this, he breathed inwards quietly and tried to force himself to calm down again. He had to stay calm right? Even if he was angry... there wasn't anything he could do now right? He just... had to deal... deal and then remember that someday he would fix the castle up. Someday his old home would be cleaned up again, and it would really be home. Slowly taking a few steps forwards, Orion walked towards the castle.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

At first he thought it was his steps, but Orion realized that it was his heart once again roaring in his ears. This nervousness that was overtaking him and setting him more on edge than a Deerling who was sensing an attacker was slowly ripping Orion apart. Calm down. Calm down damn it.

Smack. Orion blinked and found himself standing there blinking at the door that he had just walked into. Bringing a few finger up to his temple, Orion groaned and wondered what the heck his problem was. Shaking said head, he reached forwards and pulled open the door, stepping back so that he could enter, and slowly closed the door behind himself.

Well, he was home....

[Chaotix010]

The inside of the castle wasn't exactly what Alia had expected. Sure, she knew the rebellion came and laid waste to the royal family and everything inside this palace, but she expected more to be intact. More that she could learn from. If she wanted to further convince people of their place in this war, she needed the knowledge of it to back her words. The few that listened to her before was indeed willing to listen, but not obviously convinced. She needed more... ammunition.

She entered the main hall once again, the first place one would enter inside the castle, and looked over the remains of a statue. The crafted stone was now ruined, not even retaining the name plate of who the work of art was modeled after. The statue was covered in old ash, only most of the torso being held up by thin slits that were once legs. To be totally honest, it looked ready to fall over any moment.

Then she heard the entrance being opened. She turned her head, but not her body, only allowing her to see the guest out of the corner of her eye. Then again, once she noticed who it was, would it really be a guest? No... She knew exactly who he was. She studied too hard to not notice a face of royalty.

She turned her head back at the statue, but her attention was fully on the new presence. "So, the prodigal son, Orion Wyrnn, has finally returned to his home, and after all this time too." Finally, she turned around and faced the so-called prince. "I'm touched. Truely, I am." Her soft voice was flowing with the tone of sarcasm. It was about time she met with a royal escapee, and she wasn't about to let this opprotunity slip by her. To speak with him would be both an honor and progress for her goals.

[Jay]

Upon coming in, Orion found someone was already there. Someone was in his home. What the hell was anyone doing here? Somewhere in the back of his mind, he hissed swearing that anyone thought they had the right to enter his home, but his face remained rather flat having been forced in that way for too long to arguably have been forced up so quickly. Green eyes focused in on the girl and just stared there for a moment.

The sudden accusation was enough to cause Orion to quite literally blink for a few seconds as this woman suddenly started talking. What. He looked nothing like he did before. He'd recreated himself over time and time again making careful progress to avoid anyone recognize him. His hair was short. He had grown tall. His fair skin had been tanned, and his muscles were bulky far from his skinny form when he had left...... and suddenly out of nowhere this random girl had jumped to the conclusion that he was the prince?

Despite all his logic and forced doubt and thoughts that he could just deny it, just like that, Orion's heart thumped a little. He feared being killed. Death was not on his list of things to get done today, but this was just one girl... one accusing and obnoxious girl, apparently. After a moment, a slightly cocky smirk came to his face. "Pft, thanks for the insult, babe," he smirked abrasively and with an almost mocking tone. "Or did I just walk into some fairy tale of yours?" he asked as his face continued to smirk upright. "I'll be your prince, if you want, m'lady~" he taunted a little more. "But the name's Noah.. ya know with the ark and all?" he jived. Even his voice had dropped when it was all said and done.

[Chaotix010]

Alia rolled her eyes at his sharp tongue. Obviously, he has taken to a life outside a castle rather well. His attitude is even much different than what was stated in history books. It may be titled 'Recent History', but a lot can happen in a person's life within a few short years. This is obviously proof of that.

"Please, don't insult me," she plainly stated. "If I were in a fairy tale, as you say, why would I come to a place where reality hits most? It would certainly drown a girl's perfect fantasy to be in a place that is so dark and unnerving. Even a five year old would beg her mother to leave such a place."

She started to walk towards Orion... or should she say 'Noah'? True, his appearance was much different than in the illustrations of history books. He was further built in muscle, different clothes, hair and eye color was a darker shade, but there is one thing that no human could ever change, and Alia always studied it. "Sure, you may look different overall," she said as she stopped a couple of steps away, "but there's one thing I always look for. Don't take this the wrong way, but your face resembles your father."

She studied this for too long to not notice the similarity. As a child, she may not have taken pride in so much study, but now she could thank her father for keeping her in the books. "I would hardly call having the face of royalty a coincidence."

[Jay]

The comment on the castle was enough to make Orion mentally sigh and physically frown a little. Green eyes raised and scaled the tall ceiling above him, and for a brief moment, Orion seemed to forget that there was another presence there. Instead, memories had slowly come to the surface as he found himself thinking what had been there. Damn that bitch... she let all this happen... he mentally swore harshly at Alice for even existing in the first place but for all this internal strife, what could only be seen on the surface was a mildly bleak look.

As the sounds of motion coming towards him hit the air, Orion slowly looked back down again. Heh. His father? That was a joke. Maybe a little in face, possibly, but from what he had heard other people say about the mother he never knew, he resembled her more. After a few seconds, he found himself laughing earnestly. "The face of royalty? Should I take that as a compliment or an insult now a days?" he smirked a little still keeping his teasing manner. "I think you're just imagining it now......But hey, if you want me to be prince that badly dear, I'll put on a crown for you.. and then you can be my princess and some magic fairy will make the entire world perfect," he snarked. That mocking tone was bleeding through even as he continued to speak, but after a moment, he slowly breathed in and brushed past the girl before starting deeper into the castle. "You think there's any treasure left" he called even as he walked. "My mom really needs some money, so I'm gonna loot what's left of the place, tch."

[Chaotix010]

'This man is almost beyond help,' Alia mentally sighed. What makes him so bent on keeping a civilian persona? The only people in this castle was her and him, as far as she knew, so what was the problem? Maybe he was afraid of someone knowing his identity? She didn't have any intention on letting his existence be known to the public...

She mentally slapped herself. That was it. She was too brash. She should have been more subtle on the subject. Like before, a lot of things could happen to someone in a short time, so who knows what he went through. However, it would help her a lot if she could talk to Orion, but this 'Noah' persona won't back down. Perhaps if she went along with it for now, she can show this man what her intentions truly are. Maybe then he will be more open to her.

"If by treasure, you mean items of financial value, I'm not entirely sure," she said, going with the change of subject. "I'm only here for the historical value, trying to understand the origin of this 'war' we're in." She kept her voice clear, trying to let him know that she was speaking the truth. With this she turned around and walked towards the entrace to another hall. "Since we have two different goals, you may find things that I might look over. You can have your 'treasure', but I would like to look at it before hand to find any leads for my own purposes."

Once she reached the next hall, she looked back at 'Noah', her face back to it's normally stoic looking appearance. "Are you coming or not, because if I find treasure, I may not tell you were it is by the time I leave."

[Jay]

As the chick spoke, Orion quite literally rolled his eyes -though possibly not for the reason one would expect. Shit... An eyelid twitched, and the dark haired young man nearly face/palmed mentally reminding himself that he'd just screw up his contacts if he kept doing that. Stopping for only a moment and looking sideways at the hallway that the girl was starting to head down, he recognized where it led to and actually didn't want to bother with that just yet. No, that would lead down towards where that bitch Alice had taken up residence when his father died. Eyes shifted forwards again, and Orion started to walk down the same path he had been headed down. "Nope," he answered back with a surprising lightness in words though it was cut out rather quickly as if someone had somehow chopped it. "I'm headed down this way. It looks more interesting." And with that, he continued on again.

Was it interesting? Well that was somewhat true. However, Orion wasn't heading down that way for that reason alone. No. The hallway he was currently walking down would lead him somewhere rather important to him, when it was all said and done. Though he was sure it had been robbed and looted, Orion couldn't help hoping if only a little that there might be something left in that special place... Even something small... not even worth real value... If something was there, Orion would be happy. Thus, he continued to walk.

[Chaotix010]

Alia just shrugged as 'Noah' walked away. If he wanted to search the castle himself, who was she to argue? If he was the prince, it may take a while for him to leave, so perhaps she would still have a chance. However, how long such a window is open is completely unknown to her.

As she started walked down the hallway she chose, there was a familiar purr in a corner. Turning around, she saw Ellie, her Purrloin, with something in her mouth. "What do you have, Ellie?" Alia asked in a whisper, making the pokemon walk over and drop the item into her trainer's hand. Looking closer, it was a gold ring. Not very big, but obviously expensive. It seemed like something only royals would wear.

"Where did you find this?" Alia asked again. Ellie replied with a call before dashing down the hall and stopping in front of a door near the end. Alia followed and opened the door to the room, finding it to be a treasury. The room was obviously looted, seeing signs of missing items all over. However, Ellie then entered the room and stopped near a bunch of torn books, pointing her paw at something.

Alia walked over and looked, notcing a jewlery box with an opened secret compartment. She then closed it, noticing how hard it was to even find an outline of the hidden storage. Obviously, only the creator should have known about something like this. But then Alia closed the lid, finding an engraving to the box.

Alice Reid

"The queen?" She wasn't entirely surprised, but why keep one ring in a hidden compartment? What kind of value does it hold compared to everything else she could have? Looking at the ring again, she noticed an engraving. It was hard to read, but it streched around almost four-fifths of the ring. Alice's name wasn't that long, so it couldn't have been that. The only thing Alia could make out was a J-E-N at the beginning.

Looking over the room once more, Alia and Ellie exited back out to the hall, wondering what to do next. Then Alia started to wonder about 'Noah' again, curious to what he was up to. 'If nothing else, I could ask him about the ring,' she thought, looking over the item again. Whatever it was, if Queen Alice thought it was important, maybe the prince would know what it was. 'Well, here's to hoping...'

[Jay]

Orion walked down the hallway rather slowly. Stopping a moment, he looked back as making sure that he wasn't being followed before continuing to walk on. Green eyes scaled over the castle walls, and a frown slowly came to his features. It's... all gone... everything... He refused to speak it. His pride wouldn't let him accept it as it was. Thus, he refused to say what was on his mind. All the tapestries and... No. He wouldn't allow himself to keep thinking on it. Slowly lowering his gaze, the dark haired green eyed man walked a bit faster down the hallway. Taking a quick and too familiar turn down another corridor, he walked down that before taking yet another turn and finally coming to what he had been headed towards in the very beginning: his old room.

Stopping in front of the door, Orion stared at it for a few seconds silently. He hadn't left much in the room when he had moved out upon Alice moving into the castle, yet there had been furniture in it the last time he saw it. I'll... have to check the beach house after this.... came the thought. Orion smirked weakly at that thought. Though he had traveled all over Era in the time after the fall, he hadn't even gone back to his beach house. He doubted there was anything left there either. A part of him was sure that the rebels had destroyed it shortly after they burned his castle.

Shaking his head slowly, Orion slowly pushed open the door of the room that creaked slightly at his force. Green eyes scanned over the room but found nothing. Absolutely nothing. Where there had been at least a bit of furniture here and there when he had left, the room was completely cleared out now. Whether this happened as soon as he had moved out or during the rebellion, Orion wouldn't know, but seeing it that way.... Orion hadn't even realized he was shaking before his shoulder knocked into the archway. Startled, he stepped sideways and then finally stepped into the room.

Walking slowly around the room, Orion stared into the air taking it what should have been there... On that wall his surf board collection ..... on that wall his desk .... the bed pushed up there but sticking out there. Slowly, Orion pulled out a pokeball and released a Lucario from inside. Rigel formed and looked around before tensing. 'Orion... What are you doing?' the Lucario telepathically directed his thoughts solely at his trainer. 'This place isn't safe! We need to get out-'

"It makes me sad....." Orion sighed flatly causing Rigel to stop speaking completely. The Lucario's ears twitched slightly as if they would have set down if he were a normal dog / jackal. Looking around the room, the Lucario sighed unable to continue ridiculing his trainer for coming back to this place when he knew too damn well what it meant to him.

"She let this happen..." Orion growled quietly causing Rigel to look sideways at his trainer. He already knew who the 'she' in question was but didn't need to say it. Instead, the Lucario looked forwards and slowly started to walk around the room much like his best friend had done. Orion had slowly stepped back and leaned against one of the bare walls closing his eyes as he did so. Caught between anger and sorrow, his face ended up being unnaturally flat.

After finishing his look about, Rigel looked back towards his trainer and shook his head slowly. 'There's nothing here...' he stated before suddenly perking and looking sideways. Staring all but through the walls, the Lucario frowned before looking back at Orion. 'Someone's here...' he growled.

"She's just a girl..." was the comment back that caused Rigel to look towards his trainer questioningly. Upon noticing the actual aura of Orion at that moment, the Lucario frowned. "She thinks I'm the prince... funny hu?" he asked forcing a smile. Rigel's eyes narrowed, but Orion just shook his head. "Come on... we'll go see the rest of the castle..." Orion stated before slowly walking out of the room. Rigel hesitated a moment but followed rather quickly after his trainer.

Walking down the hallway, Orion slowly started up a set of stairs and began to head upwards. He wasn't sure where else he wanted to go, having see what he already wanted to see, but Orion didn't feel like leaving just yet.

[Chaotix010]

Alia got up to a small jog as she tried to catch up with 'Noah'. She entered the hall he chose and kept jogging until she noticed a shadow going up the stairs. 'What is he up to?' She asked herself before feeling Ellie climb up onto her shoulder. However, all Alia did was keep jogging until she reached the strais, then tried her best to follow the rythm of the... two sets of footsteps?

Okay, when did another person come into the picture? But she only saw one shadow... Maybe Alia wasn't as quick as she thought? Either way, she decided to use this to her advantage and climbed a little faster, but she stopped dead in her tracks as she noticed the shape of a Lucario in one of the shadows.

She then suddenly threw her back up against the wall, her Purrloin a little shaken from the action, but remained quiet. 'An aura pokemon,' she thought to herself. 'Of all pokemon, it had to be aura, and of all aura, it had to be Lucario!' She just stood there, praying it didn't use it's aura senses to rat her out.

[Jay]

Orion continued ascending the stairs silently. However, he did become aware of the sounds of footsteps coming up the stairs as well. "Rigel..." was the quiet name that was stated. The Lucario didn't need to be told twice and stopped walking even as his trainer continued up the stairs as short ways. Turning his head, the Lucario stared down the stairs. His aura sensing organs were extended outwards on either side of his head, as if he needed them to know that someone was there. Sound was enough in this silent castle. That was for sure.

'And you are?' came the Aura imposed telepathic thought that vibrated through the stairwell to the point that even Orion, who was a good ten steps above now, could hear it well enough. Though strong-sounding, Rigel's thoughts came in a controlled manner, as a high-ranking soldier might have sounded. Smirking slightly to himself, Orion stopped his trek upwards and ended up leaning on the wall that he had just been using as a perpetual railing on his trek up. Green eyes moved downwards, and though he couldn't see Rigel from the bend in the turn, Orion had ha pretty good idea where his pokemon was.

[Chaotix010]

Alia gritted her teeth when that telepathic voice entered her mind. 'Drat,' she thought before showing herself to the pokemon. His trainer wasn't in sight, however, but even so she had a feeling he was nearby. Ellie, though, jumped off of her trainer's shoulder and landed in front of her, looking up at the Lucario before them.

"My name's Alia Yashi," she introduced herself. "I'm here to search for a way to end this war... by myself." The hesitation was actually because she wondered if that bit of information at the end is necessary. However, if she wanted to gain trust from others, she needed to be honest... Fully honest. Since this pokemon was intelligent, maybe it could speak with its trainer, whether it knew its trainer's true identity or not.

[Jay]

The Lucario stared at Alia far more than the pokemon with her and simply stood there silently as though he were thinking over the information that had just been given. In effect, he was actually wondering if Orion had heard that as well, and, in truth, Orion had. The young man made no voice to say that he heard, but his mind was already working over the name and the statement after. So she wished to end the war by herself? Orion's eyes narrowed a little before closing. She hadn't said what side she was on for one thing. For another, there was no way that one single person could fix Era's state. Orion was sure of that. If she thought she could change everything just like that, then she wasn't worth his time. With that, the dark haired trainer turned and continued up the stairs.

Upon hearing his trainer's footsteps begin again, Rigel sighed a little mentally but kept a straight face towards Alia. 'And how do you think looking through a castle would somehow help the war effort?' the jackal pokemon asked slowly turning his head to one side and staring ever still. Though it seemed Orion was done with the situation, Rigel still had a few questions at the very least.

[Chaotix010]

The Lucario asked a very good question, and Alia knew very well how to answer it. "Knowledge," she replied. "I need to be able to understand the origins of this war in order to take the right steps. Books and documents can only take one so far, plus it is said that history is only written by the victor. I'm here because the people who lived here were not the victors, but the defeated. To know both sides of the story is essential to influence others."

Before she let the Lucario speak again, she added, "I know I said I wanted to end this war by myself, but the meaning behind that is different. I don't want to be affiliated with any group, for each group holds certain ideals." Alia then held her head up high, a sense of pride and reslove showing in her eyes. "Humanity cannot follow one set of standards, likewise for pokemon. We don't need to grit our teeth and follow some twisted rulers. We don't need to use violence in order to make our message heard. What everyone in Era needs to learn... is acceptance. To accept our differences and allow each other to live our lives as we each see fit."

Alia looked down at Ellie, who returned the glance. "I'm sure everyone knows this, but few actually acknowledge this as an option. I believe most pokemon see this the same way." Ellie then jumped down to Alia's step, rubbing her head against Alia's leg. Anyone would notice the bond that they share. "That's why I'm traveling, to tell everyone that the option is there. That if we just accept our differences and gave each other some respect, this war will end in the most peaceful manner possible."

[Jay]

Rigel said nothing as Alia spoke. His visage reflected nothing but a calm that he had picked up mostly from Orion over the years, and yet he physically sighed when she talked about the royalty. In truth, he cared very little for Alice or Nolan for that matter. Their loss was not truly something that bothered him when it came down to it. No, it was his Orion that he cared for and watched after.

As Alia continued, the Lucario said nothing ever still. He was never one to interrupt another person despite what comments he had stored up in himself. However, as she continued on, he mentally sighed again. There was so much he could say to that. Acceptance was all good and well up to a point. When someone started to accept the way Era was now, then there was a problem. Bandits reigned. Gang members hassled people. Violence was everywhere, and anarchy was king when no one else was. One could accept the times and accept the people, but it made no difference when one was accepting the suffering.

Then there was the matter of money, which, from what he understood now a days, was purely what started the conflict to begin with. No matter what level of acceptance people showed, the battle between the strong and the weak wasn't about to cease. Those without money would hate those with it, and though they may accept those with it, that didn't mean they couldn't simply take it and proclaim some sort of fairness for it. No, there needed to be order. There needed to be balance, and that was what was going to settle this war. And Orion needs to restore it.... came the last thought that Rigel would never admit to having.

Looking up the stairs, the Lucario closed his eyes a moment before opening them again and looking back down at Alia. 'Your heart is idealistic, both a positive and negative trait when it comes down to it'' he stated before starting up the stairs and after his prince once more.

Orion was already at the top of the stairs and part way down the hallway by then.

[Chaotix010]

Alia was actually happy that the Lucario was sensible to understand her. However, he didn't exactly seem convinced, even though he was a pokemon. Then again, she had to consider his trainer. Everything he went through means that this Lucario went through it as well. Actually, speaking of trainers...

Before Alia could speak, the Lucario was already going up the stairs. "Wait!" she called out, wanting to ask a small favor. "Could you please take me to your trainer? I have something that may interest him." At this, she pulled out the ring Ellie found, holding it carefully while showing it in full.

[Jay]

The Lucario had stopped walking again at the 'wait' and looked back. She wanted to see Orion? Looking up the stairs, Rigel didn't move. He could sense Orion already on the move through the hallway up the stairs but wasn't sure if he wanted to be bothered by this young woman especially from what Rigel had already heard.

Looking back Alia after a moment, Rigel found himself staring at the ring that was held outwards. He didn't recognize it but then again didn't actively associate with human jewelry. 'I doubt he wants to talk to you' was all the Lucario stated, but as he started walking again, he didn't seem to be impeding the young woman from following him as he walked back towards Orion.

Meanwhile, Orion had turned down into a room and disappeared within. Coming into one of the servant quarters, he didn't do much but stand there looking at the lack of things in the room. This is just becoming irritating... he scowled a little but said nothing still.

[Chaotix010]

So what if he didn't want to talk to her? What she had didn't need to be discussed. It only needed to be looked at. If the prince wanted to see what the queen had hidden from the rest of the world, Alia was sure he would take time to at least look the jewelery over. If he was still persistent in keeping up appearances, then she would at least let him keep the ring. Of all things Alia knew of the royals, she didn't know much about the prince's relations to Queen Alice.

She followed the Lucario closely, Ellie keeping a steady pace behind Alia. Examining the ring even closer, Alia found some alian substance to the jewelery, taking the loose part of her sleeve and whiping it off. Now she saw more to that J-E-N than she read before. "Jennifer?" She announced aloud, something she does from time to time. 'Who's Jennifer?' Queen Alice kept other people's jewelery? Was it a friend of hers? Whatever the case, it was something new she could go on. After searching the castle, at least she found some kind of lead.

[Jay]

The name caused Rigel to look backwards for a moment in confusion. However, after that, he looked forwards again, and it was questionable as to if he had actually made the motion or not. Was that... was that not Orion's mother's name? Yes, he was very sure it was. The woman had disappeared when Orion was young, or so the Lucario had been told. As they finally came to the top hallway, Rigel continued to lead and eventually pushed open the door to which Orion was standing behind. The dark haired young man looked up and stared off to his pokemon only to notice the young woman behind.

"What do you want?" he snapped a bit more harshly than previously intended. He had expected her to at least leave him alone, but it didn't seem to hold up. Rigel simply made his way over towards Orion and stood beside him silently.

[Chaotix010]

Alia's face became totally stoic at this form of greeting, although she was mildly annoyed by the rude behavior. "Good to see you, too." Her monotonous voice was more than enough to express her sarcasm. "I came here to uphold my end of the bargain, even if we didn't go the same route. You see I found--"

Alia was interrupted by a loud meow, coming from Ellie. Obviously, she was telling Alia to give her more credit. "Okay, okay. Ellie found this item in a jewelery box that I confirmed to be from Queen Alice." Alia held up the ring, showing it to the man before her. "The name engraved obviously doesn't belong to her. Instead it has the name 'Jennifer' on it. I was curious if you knew anything about this since this name is new to me." Alia held her hand out, willing to part with the jewelery. After all, she promised any treasure she found she would give to 'Noah.'