Motostoke Stadium

Hoops walks out onto the field and scoops up Sal.

<Sorry... I lost...> the small pokemon says.

"It's okay," Hoops assures him. "You lost your battle, but you managed to bring your opponent down as well. That's enough."

They return him to his pokeball.

"Impressive," Kabu says. "You're more of a complex trainer than I initially took you for."

He throws another pokeball, revealing his Ninetales. It roars its arrival.

Hoops looks at Led. "Ready?" they ask.

Led nods. <Ready. Once I've seen everything, I'll be good to go.>

"Right. Get out there."

They fist bump, and Led flies out onto the field.

Kabu frowns. "A bug type? Are you sure that's the best choice."

"Of course!" Hoops says defiantly. "If I beat you when I have a type advantage, who's to say who's actually stronger. If I can win from a lower starting point, it proves that I deserved to win."

Kabu shrugs. "If you insist. Use Flamethrower!"

"Light Screen!"

Ninetales releases a burst of flames towards Led, who responds by throwing up a shimmering wall of light. The fire passes through the wall, but about half of it is left behind so the attack that gets through does little damage.

"You okay, Led?" Hoops asks.

Led shakes off the pain. <All good> she reassures them.

Edited by theoncominghoop on Nov 13th 2020 at 7:42:39 PM

Motostoke Stadium

Me: So, Hoops is going with Led...

Evelyn: And Kabu with Ninetales...

Piku-chan: <If there's any move that Hoops has to worry about in this round, it's Ninetales' Hypnosis...>

Glimwood Test

Muninn: <...>

<Motherfucker!>

-one of his limbs withdraws from the shadows as he scratches at himself in a panic, rolling around on the forest floor to try and dislodge the Infestation-

<Hell and also fuck!>

-faint scratches are torn into the rag, and the camera f̢rit̵z҉ȩs-

Ever: Muninn, considering how oft͝e҉ń ͡y͠óu'̧v͘e im͟pl̷ìed̀ that I'm basically a mite to you, I want you to really wrestle with how embarrassing it would be to lose to ḁ̘͙c̯̲̪̭̺t̤̳̠u͓̮̩͙a̱̪͕l̤͖̻ ̲̗͈̫̬ͅm̤̠͕ͅi̹̼̟ͅtẹ͕s̙.

Muninn: <I don't see you putting up with this!>

Ever: Hm. I've been Leech Seeded before. Anyway, N̴̡̢̺͙̜o̡͚͔v̸̛̯̱̳̻̞͍̬̕o̗͍̲c̵̨͍a̶̷̖̤̘̫i̤̠͍̫̹͜n͕͔͎̫̪̳̮̭e̶͏̤͍̫̪͉̘̘͕̲.

Muninn: <Yeah, trust me, I feel it.>

-from the shadows, the three limbs lunge out again-

-while the fourth coils up under Muninn, disappearing into a shadow-

-and rearing up in the dark, getting ready to strike once Pollen tries to attack-

PEFE HQ — Amarin Residence

-As the power goes out, Skye and Diane blink.-

Skye: ...Adventure??????

Diane: Or weird coincidence?

Skye: Also, is your laptop battery unable to hold a charge???

Diane: I'll have to check that out later.

-They unsnuggle, and Diane goes to check on whatever else might have shut off spontaneously despite theoretically having battery backups, while Skye goes to check the hallway to see how localized the phenomenon is.-

Oblivion Wing

Taipan: So, we're really going all out on this one. Full disguises. Another set of secret identities. But from what I know from you, Alice, you really could pull that off. Pity that Jack wouldn't be dressing up though. That's just part of the fun.

Murphy: Oh, ye of little faith.

Taipan: I expect proof before any big leap of faith. Have the guys turn the Mighty Glacier Jackal into some lithe and fabulous phantom thief and pull off the fab part, and we might be going somewhere. This is an espionage mission, not a siege.

Murphy: I'm more worried about you wanting it to be a siege.

Taipan: Pish-posh. This takes a bit more finesse. You act like you haven't seen me in formal events before.

Murphy: You do hate overly formal events.

Taipan: I don't mind the fancy. I can't stand the people who attend them. Yeah, most people already expect me to be some sort of vapid little spoiled brat like all those rich twats who dated Henry. Speak of Giratina, I do have to warn you about him specifically.

Murphy: No, he's not dangerous if you don't do anything that makes him want to sue you.

Taipan: All we need to get him off my radar is tell him that I've been dragged off to the casinos by a bunch of friends. Bluster your way through an overblown disguise and anyone could go under Henry's radar. He's just very annoying.

Murphy: All sorts of obnoxious. A real piece of work. He and his twin assistants.

Taipan: Henry has a very low opinion of anyone either I or my cousin Scott befriend, even if they were rich. You're going to want to restrain yourselves.

Mach Motors

Phineas: My companion can't help but feel a bit homesick. Since the rifts closed, we've otherwise been consigned to settle down. The thought of going back is quite daunting. Though we may as well come clean as to the nature of the universe we hail from.

Upton: You fellas are from PEFE, right? The organization that took down Pokefutures in this reality?

Phineas: Never thought it'd be possible for it to happen back where we're from. I used to work for Pokefutures. I was a very different man before. And quite different from the man I was here.

Ba'al, casting another illusion that makes him seem like he's talking: Yeah, real shady mad scientist shit. Also, I'm apparently some sort of rug in the Pokefutures CEO's new office in this universe.

Upton: I hate that company with every fiber of my being.

Ba'al: Real mess of issues whenever it comes up, I'm afraid. Which one of you would want to tell her?

Phineas: This was my doing. I should—

Upton: I'm a glitch.

Phineas: Chimera. We've been through this, Adonis. You were a fusion of human and Zapdos cellular lines.

Upton: It doesn't change the fact that I'm an aberration. I'm not a natural thing!

Ba'al: Doctor Braun, stop. It makes him upset.

Phineas: A fallacy!

Upton: A weapon.

Phineas: A breakthrough. But not one that deserved to live in servitude to a soulless corporation driven by greed and hubristic anthropocentrism. It was my idea to stabilize the cells in what I then believed would've been the best organism to contain the DNA of a god among Pokémon. I used some of my own cells and that of my most trusted colleague. Of course, down here I was apparently overruled and my work was instead turned into a tissue culture contained in a human-shaped suit.

Upton: I'm currently mummified in the Orren desert after some superheroes came in and finally ended the Dr. Braun that lived here.

Phineas: Meanwhile, I was murdered by Pokefutures security personnel.

Upton: I don't belong where I come from. I don't think I belong here, either, but I want to belong somewhere. Do I go back? Do I stay and start a new life? Back when I didn't have a choice I could ignore that. But now, I'm not sure I should take up that offer.

Haunted House

Tommy: Okay, what's with all of that static. Arceus, it's like one of those old movies that you had to watch in really degraded tape.

Jane: I know right— wait, you still watch VHS?

Tommy: And Betamax.

Jane: Wow, you're this close to out-hipstering Gavin.

Tommy: Probably already did. He gets a new camera rig every time his mom and dad have to cancel one of their promised trips with him.

Jane: That's gonna leave anyone a chip on their shoulder. I kind of get why he's always so touchy when the matter of his parents are brought up

Tommy: Well, he still has his parents and one of mine so I'd think he'd be a touch more appreciative of what he— seriously. It's like that static that follows Upton around. Only everywhere.

Jane: Oh, so that's what it was.

Tommy: Yeah, I figured you all knew.

Jane: To be fair, it was rude to point it out.

Tommy: Yep. Now, where do we go, navigatrix?

Jane: I could if we could figure out where the heck we are. We may have walked into some sort of anomaly. Oh, Arceus, Shutter's gonna be so jealous that I beat him to a paranormal story.

Tommy: Oh, hey a medallion.

Yoink.

They notice the curve.

Fred: ~Due north is our way out.~

Tommy: Lead the way, Jane.

The trio proceed.

Edited by MasterJayAM on Nov 14th 2020 at 9:23:23 PM

Oblivion Ring, Meeting Room

-Alice chuckles at Taipan's remarks.-

Alice: You flatter me, Taipan. And based on everything you've said, I'll be sure to watch myself during any encounter with Henry, though somehow I doubt I need to worry about getting attached on that front. He sounds very much like a certain someone I used to know.

-The smile on her face fades as Gio appears on screen.-

Alice: ...Ah. Hello. Silas, would you care to explain the situation?

PEFE HQ, Amarin Residential Module

-Diane's investigation would reveal that pretty much everything in the room that relies on electricity has gone dead, even including battery-powered devices such as her laptop. Skye, however, would notice a faint red light out in the corridor... and beneath the gaze of the still-watchful security camera, the intercom crackles into life.-

???: Oh? Hi there! This is a liiiiittle awkward. I'll be honest, I didn't think anyone would be home. Then again, I suppose this wouldn't be nearly as fun without an audience~

Edited by Herbert40k on Nov 14th 2020 at 1:19:17 PM

Silas nodded at Alice, before looking back to Gio. "We need funding for a project, more specifically we need a base-"

Gio's grin widened, "Say no more. I want in!"

Silas stared in shock, "Wait seriously?"

"Absolutely! Silas let me tell you why I came here, for a challenge, I was already a tycoon back home and good at it, so I came to your universe to test my skills and so far I'm successful. But success is boring!"

Silas scratched at his neck a bit, he could get the idea, "Soo... you want to be more involved in this?"

"Completely. Anything you want, just ask."

Silas leaned back, and smirked, "Think you could help us set up a dummy company with stocks and lots of funds for people to waste gambling? As well as a Base in Orre not too far off from the Brimstone?"

Gio smirked, "Give me some time and I'll grab something," and with that the call cut.

Silas took a deep sigh, "Man... he is excitable."

~Well he's useful, he wants to help and he can give us the funds needed for the Floor Team's undercover work. We keep him at an arm's length and he'll more than justify his presence,~ Hacks commented.

"Agreed."

Pollen: -as someone acc̶͙͑̐͝u̸̯͑̊͗s̸͔͌̃t̴̢̖́ó̵̭̓m̵̡̱̎̓̉e̶̲̥̯̓d̷̢̪͎̏ ̴̧̪̂s̴̥̉ņ̵̗͈͒ò̴̰̰̼r̸̨̓͝t̶̰̏í̴̡̞̼͊n̷̙̣̓g̴͚͂͠ ̵̘͖̃͐̂ţ̸͎̗̽̌̑h̶̬͇́ḛ̵̼͈̐ ̴̢̩͎̅̋͊n̸̦̺̥̎̇͠o̴̰̽͛̎o̵̮̼͆d̷͔̳̖̾̿͠l̴͙̳̅͊ḙ̷̣̔ ̶̼̠̆f̷͖̩̰̈l̶͔̰̬̀̿̌a̴̩̅̒v̷͚̤̦̇̑͋ọ̶̕r̶̥̎̔ ̷̢̛̯̙̅̽p̸̧͔̱͆̍̊a̶̻̭̕c̸̣͆̋̀k̵̠̼͔̐e̵̠̅̇̚t̵̛̪͛ ̸̲͋̈ŏ̴̝̹̍f̵͎͎͈͋͋ ̶̘̪̖̀̿̊r̸̟̫̍̐ͅe̸͗̅͜á̷͍̺l̷̡̝͊̎͝ị̴͓̞̊͆t̸̨̯̬̍ÿ̷͕́ ̸͎̋r̸̛͚̲a̴͇̒ẅ̴̼́̋-̵͈̏͌ ̵̝̇̈͆<̶͈͇́͠a̷͇͛͒͝ ̸̡̩̺͌̂̇u̴͓̮͋͆̍ ̷̳͈͗͐͌g̶̛̠͈̉ ̴͙́́̚h̸̩͎͙̐̓̑≯̟̋͝

-̵̤̲̂͐o̶̰͖̐͋̅h̴͐́̄͜ ̷̜͎̳̐g̷̪͍̐͜ǫ̸̤̳̇̓o̶̤͉̍̋̐ḓ̶͙͛͠͝ͅn̵͓̹͕͌̊͝e̸̘͔͑ͅṣ̵̹̘͂s̸̱͠,̸͙̻͒͗ ̸͎͐͒̓l̷̪͋e̸͕̊̎̓t's turn the lens somewhere more hospitable-

Megan: Uh, no more shadows.

-she's halfway through the Z-Move dance already, light from the Z-Crystal^* Pollen: <Koko why would you illuminate t̶̨̅̑ḧ̵͖́͗ȃ̵̱̠̈͜ț̸͖͊͝ fu̶̹̗̓͜rther> suffusing the cle̷͕̭̒͂a̷̢̢͔̚͠ring with Illumisesque bioluminescence-

Pollen: <!>

-managing to cast M̸̟͘͝u̵͕̚ǹ̴̝͖̒̉i̷͉̤̙͊̔n̴͓͋͊n̶̳̎́͊'̸̻͙̃͘s̸̤̔̚ ̸̤̤̚c̷̫͚͆l̶͓̪̀̍à̷̮͇́͋w̷̠̝͛̈͠s̶̫̠͐͐̈ in ś̸̡̭̐ṭ̶̌͌̍a̶̺͔͘r̷̮̖̬͐̏ḱ̷̡͕,̶̼̅ ̵̘̉̎h̴̺̪̐į̷̰̊̇͌g̶̦̾́̂ḥ̸̺̈l̸̘̓̂y̴̳͊ ̵̞̽̋p̵̠͆̉ê̴̡̝̥ȓ̸͙͎͕͒c̴̟̑e̵̺̤̬̊̽̕p̶̟̅̂ť̶͎͓̬̋͐i̵̗̾́ble relief-

-she swoops down and snatches up the hair tied around the crystal, threading it through her weapon, and-

Pollen: <Huh.>

-well, she's got a needle and she's got thread-

-she's got re̷̡͖̗͐̑̅a̴͇̠̝͠ṃ̶͍̀̅͝s̴̜͊͂̕ ̴͕̽ò̴̼͐̅f̵̦̍̉̊ ̵̳̤̔̆̀w̸̛͙̫̭͑ọ̷̪̠̍̓̔rn cloth ahė̴͎̪̰̿͝a̵̭̺͌͝d of her-

-the auxiliary crystal unspools with the light fed into it, its lattice unfolding into strands and streams of gleaming protein-analogue, precipitating around the strand presented—more than she-

Pollen:

-and that's when that one cl̵̛̼̪̟͐̾a̸̠̞͚̋w held in reserve snaps right through the tangle, spearing Pollen down-

-she collapses, twitching, atop the slowly dissolving mess of silk-

Megan: .

Megan: . .

Megan: -frowning at the ground- .. .

PEFE HQ — Amarin Residence

Skye: Ah, shit.

Diane: Damn it, we moved deeper so we wouldn't have to deal with this. Uh, Sua, you there?

-One device does crackle to life, as if by a non-electrical power source. A Gameboy with a GB Camera, specifically.-

Sua: I'm okay! Everything else, I can't give the same promise. I'm cut off from DU network.

Diane: Fuck. Okay, okay, we'll fix that later.

Skye: Guess we're falling back on classic Team Icarus. Wanna drag Kai into this for the full good-old-days experience?

Diane: Nah, they've got too much to stress over already. This is our thing. Sua, keep trying to turn stuff on and access the DU network? Or at least make sure we don't end up losing any major data.

Sua: Aye-aye, captain!

-The screen turns off. Skye and Diane rush out into the hallway.-

Skye: Alright, what are you playing at?

Oblivion Wing, Meeting Room

-Alice blinks, then smiles.-

Alice: Well, that was refreshingly direct. I would have offered up the Faction offices for us to use as a staging point, but this helps avoid the risk of implicating ourselves, as well as giving us a base of operations closer to the target. I can be on the ground as soon as the location is ready.

PEFE HQ, Amarin Residential Module

-The light on the security camera blinks almost teasingly.-

???: Aww, you want me to tell you now? That'd just ruin the surprise. But I have been just itching to spill the tea about my little scheme for aaaaaaaages, so... I'll let you in on the secret. I want out. And I brought in some assistance to help me get out. Unfortunately, your little love nest just so happens to be right in the middle of my escape route, sooooo...

-There's a distant rumbling noise, almost as if the entire module is shaking, and then from the adjacent module there comes the sound of a loud metallic buzzing that seems to be drawing rapidly closer.-

Motostoke Stadium

"Okay then, if you can handle a Flamethrower then try Fire Blast!" yells Kabu.

Ninetales builds the flames in its body and launches the five pointed attack at Led.

Hoops doesn't react, just stands there with their arms folded and a confident smile on their face. At the last possible second they say: "Led, Air Slash!"

Led spins as air gathers around her. Her spinning allows her to slip past the Fire Blast that had been weakened by Light Screen, and she launches a number of blades at Ninetales who has no time to dodge. The attack hits and Ninetales bows its head, but raises it when it realises the attacks aren't doing much damage.

"It's true, Led doesn't have that much attack power," Hoops explains confidently. "But here's how this is going to go. Once Ninetales has used all of its moves, it's going to lose. Sorry."

Led winks at her trainer. <Don't blow the suspense.>

Kabu strokes his chin thoughtfully. "Well, let's see how you deal with this. Hypnosis!"

Ninetales raises its tails and waves them back and forth in a hypnotic pattern.

Hoops shakes their head. "I watched the last battle. You thought I wouldn't have a counter? Safeguard!"

Led raises her arms and a translucent veil spreads from her head to the rest of her body. Ninetales continues its move, but it has no effect.

"Now, get in close while using Air Slash!"

Led flies across the arena towards her opponent, the beating of her wings creating blades of air that fly along with her. At the last second she pulls up and the attacks hurtle past her, slamming into the Ninetales who was unable to react in time.

Motostoke Stadium

(Kim muses to herself.)

Kim: "Safeguard... very interesting counterattack... it's a shame I don't have a Pokemon that can learn it, as far as I know..."

Circhester, Mach Motors

-PEFE!Every looks as though she's run into something well above her pay grade, and is clinging very tightly to Cervantes-

PEFE!Every: Well, that's...a lot. To deal with.

I don't really think that it's possible for something to be unnatural. But I'm sorry that that was done to you. It wasn't okay.

-it sounds as though she's quoting from something-

Nadia: <Isn't Pokefutures supposed to be dead?>

PEFE!Every: Um...

Nadia: (to Phineas) <Maybe we should exchange contact info.>

Glimwood Tangle

-Ever lets out an audible sigh of relief, and tosses down a toque over Muninn to cover him up-

-specifically, a Tropius-patterned toque-

Muninn: <...This is humiliating.>

Ever: This is karma at its purest, actually.

Muninn: <Ugh.> (to Pollen) <Are you alright?>

Ever: So. Okay. You lost.

You'll notice that Pollen is alive and well. That no lightning has come down to strike you off the face of the earth. And that Pollen, for all your self-admonishments, trusts you enough to listen when it's time to get out of the way of a good hit.

How's that knowledge feel?

Mach Motors

Phineas: Well, where we come from, it's certainly not dead at all. That corporation had continued to expand until it had de facto control over much of the civilized world. We ended up with one of several growing resistance groups.

Upton: The resistance was happy to have us around, but even then I didn't quite fit in. They try, though.

Phineas: The people here are more "weird tolerant." Which is why the whole "returning" thing feels a bit heavy for him specifically. This place... it isn't a perfect fit for him, but it fit better than the last place we were in.

Upton: It feels like a coward's way out to just stay here and live out my life while my home world suffers.

Phineas: I'm no stranger to PEFE and I've heard a lot about their work putting down the Pokefutures of your world. Maybe perhaps you and your superiors can help us.

Upton: They've a lot on their plate right now—

Phineas: True. Be that as it may, we'd love to keep in touch. Have you a cellphone number we can receive. E-business card with our details on it will be available. We mostly work in Wyndon now.

Upton: If you're ever there, just give us a call.

Pollen: <aaaaaAAAAUGH>

-she wraps herself up into an extremely pouty cocoon right there, on the forest floor-

-that Megan seems to be having a very hard time looking at-

Megan: -...mumble-

Abilene: ...what?

Pollen: -muffled- <it would've been so cool and it would've sucked so hard for you specifi[mutter mutter]>

Sorbus: -at length, blithe- <Oh my. This reminds me of my companion, a Tropius about as close to a dragon as they come.>

-chewing some grass- <Fearsome! But life seems easier without the pride of a drake to worry about. Don't you agree you little snookum-wookums?>

Pollen: -shrieks uncutely-

Sorbus: -laying down- <Fairies are adorable.> uwu

-...-

Megan: -looking up- ...bad?

-she says, looking less bad-

Megan: I mean. Okay maybe not, no. It still feels like I'm waiting around for a lightningrod. Y'know, if Logan wasn't up a tree right now with all of those.

Logan: -playing paddleball, laying across the highest branch- Hey, Ever's pretty good at this.

-a little jolt descends from the heavens, but the ball is made of rubber and Logan pays it no mind-

Megan: And, uh. I don't know why she—

Megan: -okay no- I mean, she really shouldn't—

-no. no no no.-

Megan: -covering her face- -Mesprit, I have to deal with that. I definitely have to deal with that at some point. Frick. Ley in a lake.

-it's about that time-

Megan: -aaaaa- She still trusts me and I barely did anything and we still lost hhhhh

Motostoke Stadium

Me: Safeguard, huh...

Evelyn: I wonder... can our Pokémon do that, Ian?

Me: I think it's something Raru can learn...

Circhester, Mach Motors

PEFE!Every: Right, um, yes...

-she writes down her number on a card and hands it over-

Hopefully, I will, um...see you around...

Glimwood Tangle

Muninn: <Yes, it certainly— would have. Can you please call off these parasites?>

-he glares at Sorbus with all the efficacy of an 8-inch-tall puppet-

Ever: Right, okay, uh. Let's assess the situation with a rational eye.

You lost. But, uh, at the risk of bragging, I'm kind of pretty good at this sort of thing?

Muninn: <And I'm a ten thousand-year-old genius who's battled Pokemon of every species you know and most you don't.>

Ever: Hey, do you have any like, assets or anything for your millennia of life? Are we millionaires?

Muninn: <I made a few unfortunate investment decisions after our first battle. I actually have some major debts to the Pidgey and X families.>

Ever: Right, that figures. Anyway, Muninn's egocentrism aside, it was a close match. I had a hunch about how you might approach things, and it panned out, because I've had about a thousand hunches about how people might approach things by now and I've gotten a pretty good sense of which way to go with that sort of thing.

-they tap their left hand absently-

You gave good directions. Pollen, you had good instincts. As you get more on the same page, you'll find that the disconnect between those things becomes more minimal. Eventually, as with Vee and Pippy, you'll reach a point where you can give broad directions using your perspective on the battlefield, and Pollen will feel comfortable improvising within that space.

But the really big lesson to take away here, right? Is that the worst that can happen is you lose. It's annoying, but you're both fine, and there will always be another shot.

Mach Motors, Past

Upton receives the card and takes a picture of it. Phineas, within the phone, does the rest. Every should receive a new contact on her phone as well.

Phineas: Well met. We bid you farewell until we meet again.

Upton: Keep in touch. And thank you for everything.

Upton calls back his Pokémon save for Ba'al, who resumes a human disguise. The trio wave goodbye and leave.

Roxy stood outside of the Arcade, wearing a set of shorts, a light blue T-shirt and a bubblegum pink hoodie, her brown curly hair tied into a neat ponytail, while wearing a set of blue trimmed shades.

She stood outside waiting, with Dimitri and Snakeye.

<The boss'll be fine,> Snakeye noted, <We're just gonna have to wait for him.>

Dimitri just looked over the area, <Quite the choice to fortify ourselves, we await troubles here quite easily.>

Orre, Dusty Road

-On a dusty road, somewhere in the Orre region, a girl with raven hair and deep blue eyes and a purple dress walks along, carrying a duffel bag. It is clear that she is not comfortable with the heat, and is not entirely sure that travelling to Orre was such a good idea...-

Raven-haired Girl: Oof... this heat is oppressive! Why did I think coming here was a good idea?

-She takes a Poké Ball off her bag and sighs.-

Raven-haired Girl: If I were to send you out, Gus, you'd most likely say something along the lines of "I told you so.", wouldn't you?

Gus: -from within his Poké Ball.- <Of course I would, Emilie... It's only natural for a Pokémon to alert their trainer to when they are in over their head...>

Emilie: -sigh- Of course you would. But this trip was my idea and now I gotta see it through... Si Arceus le veut.^{French Translation}  Arceus willing.

-Emilie puts Gus' Poké Ball back on her bag and continues to trudge along the path.-

Wherever the Wing was last time

Priscilla: Hey Henry, it's Pris.

Henry, from the other line: Prissy! How's my favorite sister.

Priscilla: Flattery will get you nowhere, Henroid.

Henry: Awww. Little sister wants to ask me for help.

Priscilla: I'm older.

Henry: I'm taller than you.

Priscilla: Whatever. So, a few friends of mine are looking for a 5-star casino to take this one filthy rich guy they know over for a night of high-stakes gaming. You seem like the type to not care about fiscal prudence. Where's this ultra-superdeluxe casino you go to again?

Henry: You? Out gambling? Get out. We haven't seen you gamble since that one place in [Macau]. Your card-counting game still on point? Sure you won't try to clean this one out like you did at the Alto Marean.

Priscilla: I will make no such promises.

Henry: How rich are we talking about, here? Like, Dad-level rich?

Priscilla: His business connections are richer than dad. Dude's totally loaded.

Henry: Ah. I see what this is. You wanna butter up an investor for that little science club of yours for extra funding.

Priscilla: Nothing gets past you.

Henry: Let me know when your bigshot financier is willing to go out and I'll have my private jet ready.

Priscilla: And Henry. Let me do the talking. The last thing I need is having to report to the doctors that their financier got scared off because you kept marketing smoothies to them. And don't even think about bringing that one prick in your marketing team with you.

Henry: Oh, Arceus, Priscilla, I would never do that to you. Even I don't invite Mr. Smith to social functions. That's shooting ourselves in the foot.

Priscilla: Whatever. That place better be worth every penny.

Henry: Oh, you have no idea.

Edited by MasterJayAM on Nov 15th 2020 at 1:42:49 AM

Orre Arcade

-Jessica and Shaun stride up hand-in-hand.-

-Jess is wearing a bright red crop top and denim short shorts to match, along with some red sneakers. She peers at Roxy through her rosy glasses.-

Jessica: "Nice jacket, fox."

-Shaun's wearing some good ol' cowboy wear - jeans, black cowboy boots, a black t-shirt, a gray duster - a new one, not one of the other 7 - and a gray ten-gallon hat, and his aviators.-

-Shaun's got an aesthetic. If he'll wear a trenchcoat on tropical islands, he'll wear black in the dessert.-

-Shaun lift his glasses and winks with yellow eyes.-

Shaun: "Fido's not here yet, huh?"

Megan: …

Pollen: <...>

-absently, Pollen gestures—the mites all dry up, turn to pollen, and drift away on the wind-

Abilene: mmm. Immortal or no, you don't cross those families and emerge with your livelihood.

Addie: <Are they really that bad?>

Abilene: A ravenous bunch. I made bread once, and…

-she tsks, lost in bitter reminiscence of a loaf whose time was gone too soon-

-like, it was right out of the oven, it couldn't've been comfortable scarfing it down-

Megan: ...true…

Pollen: <...yeah.>

Megan: -still processing- You are...good at what you do.

Pollen: -absently- <Er, how are you not some kind of archfey by now? Uh, scratch that, do you have like everything in the Pokédex? Pokémon seen…>

-they chew the words over, letting meaning override the emotional roil in their heads for once-

-second chances and first developments and third-party perspectives on their two-person trial-

-...-

Pollen: <...hey. Hey Megan.>

Megan: ...?

Pollen: -buggy…grin...?- <We just lost to a Champion.>

Megan: .

-Megan looks at her, Pollen looks back-

-the dragging weight of their relationship hangs in the intersection of their gazes, stuffy in its age-

-...Megan's expression cracks first-

Megan: !

-she emits a wheezy, high-pitched laugh, one she doesn't hesitate to clamp her hands over-

-but it's visible in the way it nearly knocks her off her feet, shaking with the breaking dam-

Pollen: <Hehehehehe…> :D

-until the whole blasted thing bursts wide open-

Megan: -tears in her eyes- Hahahahahahaha!

Pollen: <Ahahahahaha!>

-they laugh and they laugh and they laugh until they cry-

Megan: -gasping- It's just—what we've been doing all along!

Pollen: -cackling- <Literally what I asked for, holy shit—>

-the words float up to their brains' forefront, carrying clarity-

Megan: -almost weeping- What am I—why did I get so—

Pollen: -on the verge of bawling- <—impress you with the most ridiculous—>

-one look at each others' absurd new un-doleful expressions and they lose it all over again-

Megan & Pollen: -faces in their hands, cry-grinning like gawky Gengar- Ahahahahahahaha!>

Edited by Asterisk395 on Nov 15th 2020 at 3:00:35 PM

Motostoke Party

Tommy: Say, Mr. Grant. When can our new friend expect that meeting? Think you've got room for one more?

Upton: Oh, you know other kid heroes?

Tommy: Yeah, you could say that.

Upton: Well, that's great then. If you need someone to vouch for her, I'd be happy to do so.

Phineas: Well, here's your chance to apply for a superhero team.

Upton: Naw, this opening is for kid heroes. Apparently crime-fighters tend to work freelance if they're over 18.

Tommy: Usually the only thing needed are supplies. I've a feeling she'd do well. I certainly hope the Jackal approves of her skills.

Upton: Indeed. Besides, where will this meeting be held?

"That's highly classified," Silas responded.

Roxy smirked behind her helmet, "The Jackal doesn't do out in the open after all. Give us some contact info and we can forward it on to him."