Corrupted in Aegis Mountain: Chapter 1
#2 of Corrupted in Aegis Mountain
Good news! I've finished the 1st arc of my Ry'ken stories! This means I'm now free start posting it along with my other backlog hehe~. I have a lot more stories planned and I can't wait to write them for y'all!
This Chapter is ~4.7k words.
Description: Aegis Mountain has always been an eerie anomaly in the region, and the town at the mountain's base, Stonehaven, is just as strange. When a Rescue Team Explorer is sent to investigate the anomaly, they soon find themselves exposed to the true evils and corruption the mountain has to offer.
Founder's Trail, Morning
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Corruption in Aegis Mountain
Rank** :**B
From** :** Guildmaster Pyre
Goal** :**Explore and Investigate Aegis Mountain's Interior Dungeon
Reward** :**25,000p
Info** :**After extensive exploration by our guild's Investigation Teams, we have discovered signs of a Corrupted Mystery Dungeon.
Frost grumbled as he rolled the request back up and shoved it into his bag. It was so fucking annoying. Why was he the one being punished with this? He should be with his team right now doing actual missions.
The Weavile walked along the trail to Stoneaegis alone. After an embarrassing exploration mission going badly, their Guildmaster thought the most suitable punishment for his team was downgrading them to a lower-class Rescue Team and barring them from taking any requests above B Rank. However, Frost would get the shortest end of the stick. His own team blamed HIM for the fuck up and forced him to have to take these boring, archaic Investigation requests.
If there was one thing Frost was glad the modern world had mostly done away with, it was these types of requests. Investigation requests were pretty much redundant since they only focus on investigating the supernatural. Mystery Dungeons were already supernatural already and Investigation teams suck at fighting, completely negating their existence! A lot of these Investigation requests have now devolved into running minor errands and performing busy work for other pokemon. And he expected this to be no different. Outside of mystery dungeons, no actual supernatural thing exists! At the very least, the reward was very good for a B Rank request, and he would be working directly under the Guildmaster of Stoneaegis.
Frost had only met Pyre about once or twice in his whole time as an Explorer. The old Typhlosion was eccentric but well-meaning. He was also incredibly powerful as well. Of course, that was seasons ago, back when the Weavile and his team were much weaker themselves. Now things are different.
After walking for a bit longer, Frost would pass by a sign stating "WELCOME TO STONEAEGIS! A HAVEN FOR INVESTIGATING THE UNKNOWN". He gave the sign a chuckle and turned back to press onwards. However, he would be stopped by hearing the sound of rustling grass near the sign.
The Weavile felt his combative instincts trigger, his claws becoming sharper, and a chilled breath seeped from his mouth. "Who's there!?"
The rustling would cease in response. After a few seconds of silence, a figure would emerge from it. Sporting white fur and a distinct horn, Frost concluded the figure to be an Absol.
Frost's demeanor softened at the pokemon. It eyed him curiously but was noticeably non-threatening. "... Oh. Apologies... I thought you were a bad pokemon or something."
The Absol didn't respond. Instead, he slowly began to saunter up to the Weavile. There was a few seconds of awkward silence as the pokemon examined Frost. Silence that would be broken when the Absol began to sniff near his crotch.
Frost quickly backstepped, surprising the stranger. "Whoa! That's not happening. I'm here on business. Not for pleasure."
The Absol tilted his head slightly in confusion, annoying Frost. "Look. I don't even know your name. We just met each other."
The Absol seemed to ignore the frown Frost was giving and began to pad closer to him. This time, the Weavile began to feel something more ominous surrounding the pokemon. His instincts kicked in again and he tensed with every step the dark type made towards him.
Frost couldn't help but ready an Ice Punch in his claw. The closer the Absol got to him the more wrong with them everything seemed to be. "H-Hey buddy. Back up... I'm a part of an S Rank Exploration Team, you don't want to test me."
Once again, the Absol ignored his warning, choosing to smile strangely at him. Frost didn't like it... He hated it.
He waited for the pokemon to get closer to him. At this range, his Ice Punch would come out too fast for his assailant to dodge. He gulped quietly as the Absol stepped into the range and reared back his fist to strike-
"SQUAWK! LOTUS! THERE YOU ARE!"
Frost jumped in surprise as a flying pokemon deftly landed in front of him and faced the Absol. His face held both relief and anger. "What are you doing out here you dummy!? You're missing Rollcall!"
The Absol, Lotus, looked down at the new pokemon. Upon closer inspection, Frost should have known it was a Chatot. It gave the bird pokemon the same confused look it had given Frost before. However, the difference here was that Lotus responded. "Buuuh... Miiinnneee~?"
The odd response caused Frost to raise an eyebrow, but the Chatot seemed to understand. "No, you idiot. The mine isn't this way. Where do you think mines are built?"
Lotus looked up from the Chatot and gazed at the mountain in the distance. It took a few seconds for the dark type's eyes to widen in realization. He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by the Chatot.
"You see!? Now hurry up before you don't get any credit for the workday today!"
The Absol wasted no more time. He bounded down the trail heading toward Stoneaegis and the mountain. Soon the bird and Frost would be left alone.
An air of silence would wash over both of them for a few seconds before the Chatot spun around to face the Weavile. The speed he turned to face Frost seemed too fast to be natural.
"Hooo! You have my sincerest apologies for that!" the bird squawked. "Lotus isn't the brightest Absol around. He has no sense of direction at all! I hope he didn't make things too awkward or uncomfortable for you."
Frost couldn't really be mad at the face the bird was making. It was filled with sadness and guilt and seemed too genuine to not be in good faith. He gave the Chatot a smile. "Ah, don't sweat it. I have some dumb friends too. They can make things very awkward at times."
The Chatot fluttered happily. "Hah! Great! I'm glad that's settled!" He walked closer to Frost and gasped when he saw the Weavile's bag. "SQUAWK! Y-You're a REAL EXPLORATION TEAM MEMBER!"
Frost couldn't help but chuckle at the reaction. "Heh, yeah, I am. I'm actually traveling for a job in Stoneaegis."
The Chatot tilted his head in slight confusion. "Stone... aegis?"
"Yeah, Stoneaegis? The town built at the base of Aegis Mountain?"
The bird pokemon's eyes widened. "OHHH! Right! Stonehaven is Stoneaegis! I'm an idiot!"
"Wh-What?" Frost gave the Chatot a confused look.
"I apologize dear Weavile. I actually live in Stoneaegis. Locally, we call it Stonehaven and many of us only know our town by that name."
Frost gave a slow nod at the explanation. "Uhh, makes sense. Well, I need to get to Stonehaven or Stoneaegis for my job request. I need to speak to the town's Guildmaster."
"Ahh! You mean Guildmaster Pyre! Of course, I can lead you to the town, it's not too far from here!"
Frost gave the Chatot a toothy grin. "That would be nice if you could."
The Chatot fluttered again and lifted himself into the air. "YAY! Just follow me please!" However, just before the Chatot could zip away, he turned incredibly fast back towards Frost. "Oh! And before I forget, the name's Sharp by the way!"
"You can call me Frost."
"Frost... That's a nice name!"
Sharp said nothing else, choosing to fly down the path instead. Frost would follow close behind, engaging himself a little with a light jog to keep up with the bird.
In time... Aegis Mountain's view became closer and more visible...
Stoneaegis, Morning
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Frost lightly panted as Sharp softly landed on the ground. The two were standing in front of two rocks that sat parallel to each other. The old stones formed something of an entrance to Stoneaegis and was in no doubt, the key sign that you were about to enter the town.
Sharp quickly turned to the slightly tired Weavile and spread his wings with pride. "Welcome to Stonehaven! Home of the Eccentric and Unknown! Hope you enjoy your stay Frost! Err... However long that will be for you."
Frost smiled as the Chatot gave him a wink. He watched as the bird flew deeper into the town. Lotus, the Absol, didn't seem to be found anywhere. He hoped that weird pokemon found his way to wherever his work was supposed to be.
He took a step past the entrance and gazed at the rocks. The rocks seemed to radiate a strange allure and power, giving the Weavile a feeling as if he was walking into a place of the supernatural. There seemed to be faded writings on the stones, but it all looked far legible now.
As Frost walked deeper into the town, he had to note how empty the town seemed to be. Huts and houses filled the area but not a single pokemon laid in them. Sharp couldn't even be found. The silence was heavily unnerving for him. Never has a town made him feel weirder. Perhaps it was the fact that he was taking on this request alone and the toll was weighing down on him finally. He didn't really know. What he did know was that hearing the sound of other pokemon talking was a good thing.
Frost practically darted in the direction the voices seemed to be coming from, hope rising within him as he heard them get exponentially louder.
A smile formed on the Weavile's face as a crowd of pokemon came into view. They were all huddled in the center of the small town, looking at an elevated platform. "Yeah! There's where they are!" he whispered.
No one from the crowd paid him any attention as he sauntered and remained at the very back of the crowd. The audience wasn't too big at least, 20-30 pokemon was roughly the size of a small guild and Frost could estimate the number of pokemon in the crowd to be the same.
The crowd was busying itself. Various residents of the town were quietly conversing with one another. Frost could even spot a certain Chatot in the midst of it. Sharp would meet his gaze out of the corner of his eye and flapped happily.
"Ahh! Frost~!" The bird politely nodded to the pokemon he was talking to and turned to flap over to the Weavile. "It's very nice of you to make it! Rollcall just ended and a small meeting was about to start~!"
Frost gave him a smile. "Glad I could! I thought this place was a ghost town. I didn't realize you all were going to have a town meeting."
"Oh! We have one every day after Rollcall ends and the Workers leave for the day."
Frost tilted his head. "Workers?"
Sharp didn't answer, instead, he shushed the curious Weavile as the rest of the crowd quieted down too. Frost gave the suddenly silent Chatot a confused look as the bird trained his eyes on the stage. As Frost followed the bird's gaze his eyes would widen.
On the stage stood a well-matured Typhlosion wearing a scarf with a guild insignia on it. He was followed by an Emolga which seemed to be charged with excessive amounts of electricity that was leaking out of him. Thirdly was a smiling Kecleon who was holding something between his hands.
After a few seconds, Pyre would step forwards and give everyone a wave. The air surrounding Frost seemed to become light-hearted and jovial at the motion. The Typhlosion would clear his throat before speaking. "Ahem... I'll keep the news brief today, especially because I don't want to hold my Assistants here for too long..." The Emogla would roll his eyes a bit and the Kecleon smiled wider. Pyre ignored his assistants' reactions and continued, "... So, good news first! Charon here has been in contact with his merchant network recently and has managed to pull a few extra strings. We'll be getting more wares within the coming days. Every more than we normally get!"
Pyre gestured to the Kecleon as he stepped forwards and revealed that he was holding a peculiar piece of parchment. Upon showcasing it, the crowd began cheering. Sharp flapped his wings in happiness and cheered along with them. The positivity was infectious, and Frost also found himself absorbed into the crowd, clapping in satisfaction.
Pyre waited for the noise to die down before giving Charon a nod. The Kecleon returned it and hid the parchment again before stepping back. At the same time, the overcharged Emolga began to step up. He seemed to give the old Typhlosion an annoyed look before addressing the crowd directly. "Now then! On to the bad news..."
Frost couldn't help but feel the happy air shift into one of sadness and frustration. From the corner of his eye, he could see Sharp's cheerful demeanor turn into blatant frown.
The Emolga seemed uncaring at the feelings. "... We have still not found any more Corruption within Aegis Mountain. Outside of the deposit that was found recently, the Overseers have not reported any more sources..." The Emolga paused to gaze at the crowd's reactions. They seemed to get ominously more bitter. "... Also, by fault of myself, the deposit that was found by our hardworking Overseers managed to make a Mystery Dungeon for it to hide within..." He sighed deeply, "Just goes to show how a moment of carelessness is all it takes for things to go to shit..."
Frost swallowed heavily at that, the images of his own team's fuck up that put him here flashed in his mind. He instinctively looked away from the Emolga and Pyre as he heard the speech continue by the words of Pyre.
"... Alas, it was only a minor slipup Spark. I know that you have your hands full, and some things just slip through the cracks. No pokemon is perfect!"
Frost could once again hear the Typhlosion clear his throat. "Ahem... So! In order to lead us back on the path to success, our guild has sent out an Investigation Request to our neighboring guilds! Soon, we'll be sent a strong team of Pokemon to investigate an anomaly once again!"
A noticeably different voice began speaking. Frost managed to turn himself back around to see a frowning Toxtricity raising their hand. "But why can't we investigate it ourselves Guildmaster? It's a supernatural problem not an Exploration problem."
"Good question Bass. If it wasn't for the fact that the Corruption Stone turned into a Mystery Dungeon, I definitely would have sent your team for the experience."
Bass reluctantly nodded at the Typhlosion. Frost couldn't help but feel a little bad. He may have decried Investigation Requests, but they were still important work for those teams. The Weavile felt a small pit form in his stomach at the notion that he was ripping a job away from a team that deserved it. Perhaps he could share a bit of the reward he got with them? That may be a fair trade.
Pyre then turned back to the crowd and continued, "Overall, this hardship we face is just any other common anomaly we face in our town. We'll make it through all the same. Plus, something tell me..."
Frost shivered as he suddenly felt eyes peering at him. Pyre seemed to be staring right at him as he spoke. "... our success much closer than we think. Cheers to the day."
"CHEERS TO THE DAY!"
Frost slowly began backing up as the crowd began to disperse. The tone of Pyre's voice was... ominous. Sharp certainly didn't help as he quickly grabbed the Weavile and wordlessly pulled him towards the Guildmaster. "W-Wait! Sharp! What are you doing!?"
"Well? It's obvious you're the Pokemon Guildmaster Pyre sent for! The sooner you meet, the sooner our town goes back to normal~!"
Frost couldn't really argue with that, but his mind circled back to the Typhlosion's tone and his eyes. They seemed... unnatural. Just like Sharp's speed, or Spark's leaking electricity. It all just felt... off.
The Weavile couldn't protest anything else as he felt the bird pokemon pull him near the stone the Pyre stood on for the meeting. Rounding the corner, there the old Guildmaster stood, quietly conversing with his Assistants. Spark was seemingly in the process of putting on a different colored scarf while Charon still held onto his parchment. The only addition was a coin the Kecleon was busying himself flipping.
Frost could only catch part of the three's conversation before Sharp revealed their presence. Whatever they were previously talking about it was involving something else with Corruption. "Guildmaster Pyre! Chief Sparks! Chief Charon! I've brought you someone important~!" The Chatot beamed out his positivity unapologetically.
Frost gulped deeply as the three pokemon trained their eyes on him. At the very least, Pyre's eyes didn't have the ominousness they previously had. "H-Hello Guildmaster Pyre, I'm Frost from the S Rank Team Signis. I'm here on behalf of my team solve your Investigation request."
Pyre began slowly approaching the Weavile. Each step made him more and more uneasy. The Typhlosion stopped in front of him. "Frost, you say...?"
"Y-Yes sir. Me and my team are from Bandhollow Guild."
"Bandhollow..." Pyre turned to side in contemplation. After a few minutes in thought, he shot back up. "Ah! Bandhollow! Your team was so new Frost!"
Frost cracked an embarrassed smile. "Y-Yes sir. We've long since improved since you last met us."
The Typhlosion chuckled. "Hahaha! That's true! I thought you were an entirely new pokemon!"
Spark would step up to interrupt Pyre's antics. "It is certainly nice to see you again Frost. I'm happy your team took this job... Or rather... you did at least." The Emogla kept a neutral and bored face, but his tone did sound genuine.
"Y-Yeah. It's only just me. Internal team issues. Nothing to worry about."
Sparks gave him a nod. "Good. And since we know that you were in the crowd, I'm sure you're already caught up to speed, right?"
"Err... For the most part, yes. So, this Corruption stone thing morphed itself into a whole Mystery Dungeon?"
"Correct. It's kind of like a defense mechanism, one that can easily be dealt with but Stonehaven's pokemon are not built to be explorers."
Charon would chime in, flipping his coin so that it bounced off of Frost's nose and back to his hand. Strangely, it didn't hurt. "Yeah! All of us are investigators of the supernatural. Because there's things that was even more unexplainable than one might believe."
The Kecleon would strut unnaturally close to Frost, causing him to shift towards Pyre and Spark. "So... Our town needs a well-ventured Explorer Pokemon to clear the path so we can do our jobs~"
Frost was at a loss for words. "I... I think I get it now."
The flames on Pyre's back would light up in excitement. "Awesome! Sparky here was just about to head up to the mountain, just follow him and do exactly what he says!"
The Emogla just sighed and finished tying the last knot in his scarf before walking towards the mountain. Frost raised an eyebrow as Pyre gave him a reassuring nudge. "Nah don't worry~ He just hates being called "Sparky" he's really cool when he's in the field! Make sure to enjoy yourself~!"
Frost hesitantly nodded and walked behind the Emogla. He would take one last look at the Guildmaster, Charon, and Sharp. All of them were giving him an uplifting wave and send off. He smiled lightly and checked his bag to make sure he had everything before turning back to face the mountain he was traveling to...
Aegis Mountain B1, Late Morning
The walk to Aegis Mountain ended up being pretty quiet. Spark said basically nothing to Frost, instead choosing to occasionally check and make sure the Weavile was keeping pace with him. However, his whole outlook would change as soon as the two entered a large entrance carved out of the mountain.
Frost obeyed the Emogla hand sign to stop. The stone made the leaking electricity the Emogla was producing hum in a low tone. Spark would turn around and look Frost deeply in the eyes. "As soon as we walk through here, there are 3 rules you must follow. Rule 1: No talking to the Workers during their Shift. Rule 2: No staring at the Workers during their Shift. Rule 3: Obey and respect the Overseers of each floor. Understand?"
Frost put on a serious face and nodded.
"Good... Thankfully, we don't have to go far. The issue happened in B2."
The two would cross into a cavern, seeing many pokemon cautiously mining at the stones in the area. What amazed Frost was the variation of pokemon working. The Workers ranged from big to small, some were bipedal, and others were quadruped. There was even...
"Hey Lotus!" The Absol seemed to ignore his greeting. Frost tried waving at him, but the Absol wasn't listening. He couldn't help but have his eyes follow the Absol.
Lotus was sauntering into a corner with a Watchog. The two stared deeply at each other before smiling. The Absol would lower himself and lick at the Watchog's crotch. He would let out a moan as Lotus lapped at his member.
The foreplay would happen for a few more seconds before Frost saw the Absol turn around and raise his haunches. The Watchog quickly obliged, inserting his member into the pokemon. The two moaned loudly at the feeling. Lotus pressed down and coaxed the rat pokemon's cock deeper into him. The Watchog would mount the dark-type harder, thrusting his cock deeper.
Frost felt his own member peek out of its sheath. It all looked so alluring to him. He wanted a piece of that Absol's ass too. He wanted to see how that Watchog's cock really felt. The thoughts of the many things he could do if he joined them... It was perfect...
The Weavile didn't realize how close he was getting to the two occupied pokemon until he felt a sharp jolt in his shoulder. He shook his head and snapped out of his stupor to see an annoyed Emolga looking at him. "Uhh... W-What happened?"
"You ignored rules 1 and 2..." Sparks crossed his arms and side-eyed the Absol and Watchog.
Frost trailed his eyes over to them to see that they had stopped mid-sex and were gazing at him and Spark curiously. He couldn't help but feel that Lotus and the Watchog were feeling a bit disappointed he wasn't fully sucked into their sexual activity. "Oh... Right... Sorry, I won't do it again."
"You better not. I'm not saving you if you end up getting engrossed in what they do and forget everything."
Frost gave the Emogla a confused look. "What do you mean by "forget everything"?"
Sparks just shook his head and sighed. "... Nevermind. Come on, B2 is close."
Frost was forced to wordlessly follow the electric type. He gave Lotus and the Watchog one final look before moving on, the two had continued on with their sex. Frost could even hear the sounds of them climaxing as he left the cavern...
Aegis Mountain B2, Late Morning
_ _
The first thing Frost noted was the wide-open space B2 was. It was a lot more open than B1 and seemed to have much taller rocks for the Workers to tunnel through.
Spark's pace had quickened on this floor for obvious reasons. Frost could sense the mystical aura of a Mystery Dungeon nearby and, sure enough, his instincts would flare to the highest degree when the two would walk into a peculiar cavern. Within stood Zoroark and Lycanroc-Midnight conversing with each other. However, unlike the normal Worker pokemon, these two seemed to show more obvious emotions.
Their conversation would end prematurely as Sparks would walk up to the two. "Morning Chief!" Their faces were enthusiastic while talking with him.
Sparks gave the two a nod and then turned to Frost. "Frost, these two are Zendus and Kollack. They're the Overseers of B2..." He then turned back to the Overseers. "Zendus, Kollack, this is Frost from Team Signis. He's an S Rank Explorer from an S Rank Team. You'll be taking care of him and making sure nothing bad happens, understand?"
The two nodded at the Emogla, getting an odd smile from him. Frost couldn't really describe it. It was mysterious and a bit unsettling.
Frost didn't get the chance to say anything before Spark turned away and began heading deeper into Aegis Mountain. "H-Hey wait! Spark sir you haven't shown me where the Dungeon is..."
The Weavile tensed a bit as he felt a clawed hand pat his shoulder. Turning his head to the source, he found a polite-looking Zoroark. "Ahh~ No need to worry Frost! Me and Kol oversee the area. We know exactly what you're looking for."
"Hmm... I assume you must be Zendus then?"
"Correct! But I have everyone call me Zen. Zendus is only for my parents or the Chief to say."
"Same here!"
Frost's eyes widened as he felt another paw rest on his other shoulder. The Lycanroc was giving him a nice smile. "My full name is Kollack, but everyone should call me Kol."
The Weavile could only muster an awkward laugh. "Hehe... U-Understood... So, where's the dungeon?"
The two Overseers would lift their paws off of Frost. Kol began walking in a direction and Zen would gesture to follow the two. Frost, took heed to not look at the Workers for long. The variety of pokemon still amazed him but he knew for sure that getting sucked into their antics was more than likely a bad idea.
After a minute of traversing the caverns, Frost would find himself in front of an ominous entrance. His Mystery Dungeon senses screamed at him. Yes, this was certainly the dungeon.
Kol turned the Weavile and gave him a shudder. "Ugh... H-Here it is... I have no idea how you explorers and rescue team pokemon get over that bad feeling, but I envy you. The Corrupted Stone is located within. According to Guildmaster and Chief, the dungeon is only about 4 floors but they're very difficult..."
Before Frost could comment, Zen would speak for him. "Well~ It's obvious Kol! He's an S Rank Explorer. He has nerves of steel. I'd say he's just as strong as us! He'll do fine!"
Frost chuckled at the praise. "Heh, thank you for the words, Zen. I won't let you two down!"
"Hah~! I know you won't! You're perfect Icy!"
Frost rolled his eyes at the Zoroark's "nickname" for him. He gave the two a wave before disappearing into the Mystery Dungeon...
Aegis Mountain, Corrupted Cavern Clearing, ???
_ _
Frost had to give the dungeon some credit, the many hidden Traps and Monster Houses weren't fun at all. The whole Dungeon being only 4 floors helped heavily mitigate the problem too. Overall, the Dungeon itself was easy for Frost's caliber but was still a strategic struggle. Truly a mission fitting of its B Rank.
As Frost entered the Corrupted Cavern's clearing, a purplish light began to fill the room. Floating in the center was a medium sized ore that seemed to whisper to the Weavile.
He slowly approached the source, feeling a mix of emotions with every step. Some part of him told him this was a bad idea, it wanted him to exit the Dungeon right now and forget the whole request. But that side was being beaten by his curious side. He needed this Stone, for the sake of his Team's reputation, the safety of these Workers, and for all of the pokemon living within Stoneaegis, he had to interact with the stone.
As Frost inched closer, he felt a voice in his head become louder. His crotch region became hot. He couldn't stop himself from moaning at the feeling... What was happening to him?
The Weavile checked his claws to see if there was any issues. It all seemed quite normal. "I... I just n-need the..."
Purple would envelop Frost's vision. He felt his whole body become heavier and hotter... He felt... He needed to take a mental brake...