ersatz alliance

Jenny: I haven't got a clue. This is my first time here, as you can probably tell.

Ersatz Alliance

Jonathan: Curious. This isn't usually my thing, but I do love a good mystery. I'll be looking around for a bit. Plus I need to do a bit of shopping. Gee, I'm wondering if their department store sells [Vans].

Walter: You don't even skate.

Jonathan: Eh, what do you know about the need for shoes, Walter.

ersatz alliance

Jenny: Hmm, I think I saw some clothing stuff over there when I came in.

-She points over to another aisle.-

Kai's Room — Stormchaser

-It's a tradition for Kai to spend their birthday watching movies of varying quality with the people they care about.-

-This time, they're curled up with Brie, about to watch D.E.B.S., in a much needed moment of calm without danger or secrets looming over them.-

-Things are good.

Stormchaser, Kai's Room - Earlier Today

*Wuh-Thoomp!*

-SUDDENLY A CLEFABLE COMES FLYING INTO THE ROOM, SPINNING END OVER END-

-WHAM-

Selene: <Hello, Kai.>

-She slowly slides down the wall with a slow, skidding sound.-

Selene: <Ow.>

-She's gently cradling a present in her hands.-

Edited by DuneTheWanderer on Aug 21st 2019 at 4:47:11 AM

Edited by Umbramatic on Aug 21st 2019 at 6:48:11 AM

Denali grinned, "Oh? Arthur needs a favor?"

Arthur suddenly found himself in the store, confused as all hell, "Okay what in the- Denali."

"Sup Mountain Man."

"Denali why am I here?"

"Oh I finally figured out how to summon you Fae style."

"Denali that shouldn't work, I'm not fae."

Denali was seen holding a burning scroll and tossing it aside, if one read closely before it burned it said "Summon" on it, "I know."

Arthur looked over and saw Lita, "Hello there. I am Arthur Grant, how can I help?"

Silas and Hacks sat outside, Silas scrolling through his phone, Bishop getting ready to get into a [Twitter] spat over something, only to be stopped by Hacks.

~So... what do you expect to find on the body?~

"Well it's more that the evidence is also here and I need to look over it, apparently something about bureaucracy slowing down the process."

Bishop looked over, "I could enter the system, the phone is still connected to your pDroid and the Wing, one use of the OPS would-"

"Bishop no. We're investigating a mystery not getting in trouble with the police."

"Detectives frequently do both."

"I don't got anyone to back me up here I can't fight over 100 Police in broad daylight."

Bishop sighed, "Of course Captain."

~Still, it's weird... where did his pokeballs go? Why was he stabbed, why was there no sign of any mons there?~

"Now that, is the question."

Out stepped the Tech who waved to Silas and walked off, followed by Terrence, "Hey PI, the place is good to go, it seems relatively open shut to me but if you find anything let me know."

Silas nodded, "Of course, also inform your friend that eating only sweets is bad for your health."

"I do, but I think his body is too acclimatized to them, so if he ever stops, he dies."

"That's worrying."

Terrence nodded and walked off, leaving Silas free to enter the room, and feel the drop in temperature. He zipped up his coat and looked over the evidence bag and body.

They had cleaned up Kent and marked his wounds, a autopsy report (thankfully updated) sat on a table along with a bunch of bags of evidence. On another table was Kevin McGreggor who had smaller bags of evidence, as well as one more table with the murder weapons, two knives, kitchen knives from the looks of it. Silas thought back to the gift Arthur ha- not the time, murder had happened and there needed to be answers.

Silas read the autopsy reports and grunted, "Kent was clean, nothing in his system, he died from bleeding out. Shame."

Hacks sighed, ~Got no- oh wait nevermind. Listen to this.~

Silas stepped over raising a brow quizzically as Hacks began to read aloud, ~Trace elements of a adrenaline booster made with traces of Lansat berry, known to be highly addictive and render subjects immune to pain.~

Silas nodded, "So Kevin here... illegal drug user, what does his report say about his history?"

~Former athlete, banned from professional work in MMA due to discovery of enhancement usage.~

Silas tabbed a finger to his chin, "Which means the next question is, where does a washout like him get the boost?"

~Better question is... why did he kill Kent? It can't be for money alone.~

Silas resisted the urge to ask where the hell MMA matches were held in Unova and if they made use of Black Belts, and instead opted to say, "It never is..."

Bishop spoke up, "Captain observe his notebook."

Silas looked over at the evidence bag, a blood stained page in a small notebook sat before him, on it was what appeared to be a drawing of a statue, it seemed oddly shaped and if he couldn't tell any better, resembled a Lati. Silas pulled out his phone and snapped a copy of the statue.

Hacks blinked, ~Hey the blood stained clothes of Kevin, they got a button on the underside of his jacket. I can smell trace amounts of gold here.~

"You can smell gold?"

~You'd learn that metals all have distinct smells if you embraced your lucario nose more.~

"I'd rather not, it's still too strong for my tastes. But-"

~Not as weird as a tail, I get it.~

Silas blinked before shrugging, he documented what he could, scanning the autopsy report with his pDroid, stepped out and thanked the BCPD for their time and walked out the door.

He looked over the drawing of the Lati statue and noticed, on the stand appeared to be a crescent of sorts, "That's... unusual."

~Well we know who to ask when it comes to the unusual.~

Silas nodded and sent a quick text.

Stormchaser

-When Kai is available they might find a couple packages outside their room-

Edited by Umbramatic on Aug 21st 2019 at 9:07:50 AM

-Megan sends a wide, wide smile back her way-

Megan: I've learned a thing or two about close combat! ^_^

It's gross. u_u

always go for ranged attacks

Oh no don't insult your capability that's a thing that's. A thing

-...-

...I learned to stab from. A farm fish man.

-she's a bit delirious-

Megan: -giggling- I am!

Luxor: -growls, but doesn't pull away- <In a bit.>

Addie: <Well, it's fairly limited in its application. Just the one thing—without mods, that is.>

-she scoots to get a closer look at Des's Styler, trying to take stock of its general state-

Logan: -drawing a circle- That is actually the basic function—take some of your friendliness and desire to help and link it to that of a willing mon. Helps with communication, specifically asking for aid—and back home, where everymon knows what it means, it's pretty dang quick and easy. It's the culmination of the version of the Vow we have—I'd call it a communal thing, where humans and Pokémon answer the call in general to help each other, with Rangers in the middle handling the messy bits.

-drawing a bigger circle around the first, completing neither- That's not all there is to it, though—and there are more advanced techniques.

Megan: Oh! Oh...

-hugging tighter- Tagg told me about that. I'm glad you survived.

...you're planning on eating enough, right? Not eating doesn't. Turn out well.

-still hugging- uh, you're a vampire researcher I think, so you'd know, but. Hero person, you are.

-Chrom sheathes one sword, and pulls out a Pokéball-

-and a country-accented Gyarados pops out, hurling a Hurricane at some approaching fliers-

-packages, free time, etcetera-

-from an unfamiliar sender, at that-

PEFE HQ — Earlier Today

-Kai only just had barely enough time to pick up the various packages left for them when Selene came crashing through.-

Kai: Aah! Selene! Hello! Hi!

-They fumble to avoid dropping the gifts, and set them down carefully.-

PEFE HQ, Kai's Vicinity

Selene: <Okay so that was way more violent than I thought it would be. I think I hit a bit of teleportation turbulence.>

-She rolls over, having slid to the floor head-first.-

Selene: <Dune and Deziree are dealing with things, so Dezi's employees - henchwomen? Minions? - made this for you.>

-Still laying on her side, she holds up the box.-

PEFE HQ — Earlier

-Kai tilts their head, takes the box, and gingerly opens it.-

PEFE HQ

-Inside is what at first appears to be a thick cylinder, far wider than it is tall. However, moving one's fingers over the sides reveals that it is two discs piled on top of one another, rather than just a fat, giant pringles can.-

Selene: <They said to twist the top.>

-Should one do so, they will find that the discs slide on a pivot point anchored at one end. The top disc slides away, revealing that inside is what can only be described as a pair of angel's slippers. That's a metaphor. They're actually super-sleek running shoes. On them is a card.-

Stormchaser, DEBS

-Brie is curled up next to Kai, with a bowl of popcorn roughly the size of Atlantis-

Brie: —see, the thing about this movie? Is it should be terrible. But it's not. And you'll love it. And I know this to be true.

PEFE HQ — Earlier

-Kai blinks in surprise, but smiles-

Kai: Heh. Not the sort of gift I'd have expected, but I like it.

-They close the package back up, and glance at Selene-

Kai: Hey, uh, before you go off to do... whatever it is that you do nowadays, could you just give me a huge hug real quick? There's been so much that's gone on in, like, the past couple weeks.

Stormchaser — Now

-Kai grins-

Kai: With that sort of confidence, I've got no choice but to believe you. But, the question is, is it terribly good enough that I'll come out of this with a brand new favorite movie? That's the real test of taste.

-They snag a piece of popcorn.-

Stormchaser, DEBS

Brie: Hmmmmmmmmm.....

-she peers at Kai closely, taking their chin and conducting an elaborate inspection of their face-

Brie: No. It's a terrible movie. But you'll love it anyway.

-and she starts it-

PEFE HQ

Selene: <Yep, one sec.>

-She stumbles to her feet, taps her moonstone, and then gives Kai a massive human hug that might also be partly Selene trying to not fall over again.-

Selene: You feel different, by the way.

PEFE HQ — Earlier

-Kai just sorta melts into the hug.-

Kai: Thank you. Uh, right, about that. I... pretty much had all my aura eaten and then had to steal it back? Which had the side effect of me becoming a vampire? Don't worry, I'm not planning on biting you any time soon, that's not even a necessary part of aura vampirism anyway.

Stormchaser — DEBS

-Kai tries so hard to keep their composure when Brie takes their chin, but quickly it becomes apparent that a straight face is among the many straight things Kai cannot do, and they burst out into insuppressible giggles.-

Kai: We'll just have to see, then, you dork.

-They kiss her cheek and snuggle up to her as the movie starts.-

PEFE HQ

Selene: Oh. That's neat. Maybe you can help Ludmilla with her mental static. I'll let her know to visit. Or I'll let Satele know. Whichever I tumble into first.

-She wobbles out of the hug a little.-

Selene: Hate to cut the visit short, but Dune needs me for some information collecting, and if the return trip is like the first one...

-She steps back, gives a little wave, transforms back into a Clefable, then charges at the wall before disappearing in a loud, oddly static-filled *Wuh-thoomp!*-

J-Team Textspace

Kanto Route 6 (present)

Me: Y'know, this route reminds me of when I first met Milagros.

Piku-chan: <He almost ran you over with his motorcycle, if I recall correctly.>

Me: Funny you should mention that, Piku-chan. I wouldn't have met 'im if he hadn't almost run me over that day...

Raru: <Ah, memories... I'll bet you anything that Oshawittle is still in love with that Vespiquen of his.>

Me: I'm sure of that. And so is he.

-Oshawittle's Poké Ball opens and he appears-

Oshawittle: <If it be the lovely Dot that you speak of, I know in my heart that our love is true and nothing can change it!>

Me: I certainly hope you're right about that last part.

-Suddenly, my Xtransceiver receives a text-

Me: Huh?

J-Team Textspace

Kanto Route 6

Piku-chan: <What was that text about?>

Me: I dunno... Something about someone named Lati with a crescent and a possible connection to the Moon Tribe... Whatever that is...

Raru: <Well, it's a tribe that lived on the moon... if that's any help...>

Me: It is, and yet, it leaves some questions unanswered...

Piku-chan and Oshawittle: <Like what?>

Me: Well... If I knew what those questions were, I'd be asking the person at the Newsstand on Route... 7! Piku-chan, Raru, Oshawittle! Let's go!

Raru: <We're all with you!>

Piku-chan: <Aye!>

Oshawittle: <What dost thou wait for? An engraved invitation? Let us away!>

PEFE HQ — Yesterday

-Kai just sorta waves as Selene vanishes, then goes back to checking the other gifts.-

Stormchaser — Today

Kai: Zzzz...

-Kai is asleep, curled up with Brie. It's probably the least restless sleep they've had in a long while.-

The Walking Mountain, Deziree's Lab

-Zhu Li watches in silence as Deziree assembles what she can only assume is the massive frame of a... boat?-

Deziree: The keel is connected to the, hull plate, the hull plate's connected to the, gunwale, the gunwale's connected to the, transom, the transom's connected to the, engine, the engine's connected to the, power supply, the power supply's connected to the, main console, the main console's connected to the, he~elm, the helm is connected to the, cockpit...

-She takes down a quick note, though she's not sure what good "she's making a boat" will be. Whatever. At least she doesn't have to work her fingers to the bone for this one.-

The Walking Mountain, Bottom Stratum

*Wuh-Thoomp!*

-Selene comes flying through the wall before slamming into the other.-

Selene: <Yep, that hurt a LOT more the second time.>

Garuda: <Selene. You are hurt. What happened?>

Selene: <This place doesn't like Teleporting in or out. I think my moonstone's the only reason I didn't get turned into atoms on the return trip.>

Garuda: <Troubling. I had hopes of acquiring reinforcements from the house, but your analysis puts teleporting with passengers in severe peril.>

Selene: <Can I get a Super Potion now?>

Garuda: <... Yes. Let me go get Dune.>

Selene: <Okay. Not going anywhere.>

Phenac City

Liz Morton: Hey, squirt! How you doin'!

Ludmilla: Hi, Grant Liz!

Liz Morton: Okay kiddo, "Gruncle" is one thing, but I don't think "Grant" really works.

Ludmilla: Oh. I'll think of something else.

-They both take a seat at the Oasis Cafe, with Doomsday acting guard, as intimidating as a Blissey can be.-

Ludmilla: So, Auntie Liz, Dad and Mom are taking care of... J-Team stuff, so I can't really ask them, but...

Liz Morton: Oh, is it your first "time of the month"?

Ludmilla: ... What? No.

Liz Morton: Oh, woops! Never mind then. Continue.

Ludmilla: Well, I was wondering... who's "Claire Morton"?

-Liz's eyebrows almost spring off of her forehead.-

Liz Morton: And where did this come up from?

Ludmilla: It was on Great-Grandpa Ed's memorial.

-At that Liz let's out a bark of laughter.-

Liz Morton: Of course he'd have that put on there, and of course you'd make your way there eventually.

-She shifts in her seat to lean forward across the table a bit farther.-

Liz Morton: To be honest, my nephew - your dad - probably doesn't know. My brother did a lot of things during the divorce proceedings, not a lot of which was well hidden, but a few things were.

-Ludmilla twists her head in a confused side-eye.-

Liz Morton: Tell you what. Let's head back to my house so we can have this discussion in private.

Edited by DuneTheWanderer on Aug 22nd 2019 at 2:11:59 AM

Kai Gift Zone

-Inside one box is a note:-

-And a copy of Blazing Sigil Academy Triad-

-In the other box is another note:-

-And also a book of vampire and vampire hunter lore. Kai's author can determine the exact contents-

Former Safari Zone

-The Ice Beam takes out a few flyers, but Laegjarn manages to dodge.-

Laegjarn: <Grrrr... Retreat!>

-She flies back to camp, as do the remaining troops-

Zippy the Delivery Emolga: <Yo.>

-inside the yellow wrapping, there's an elegant, collapsible purple umbrella and a note, in rather pretty curly handwriting-

-and in the corner of the note there's a chibi print of that Ranger Kai met in Ersatz, grinning and making a thumbs-up-

-inside the blue envelope, there's...a gift card-

-for ₽50,000 of ice cream-

-and another note beside it-

-Chrom and Donnel watch them go-

Donnel: <...we should get Robin.>

Chrom: -tired sigh- We should...

Edited by Asterisk395 on Aug 22nd 2019 at 5:11:57 AM