J-Con '21

<Terrible as this may sound,> Sunny started. <they didn't care enough about you to be mad at you.>

J-Con Mess Hall

"Anything that isn't what," Kendall demanded.

Somewhere, Probably A School Base

Cesium and Bismuth both sneezed.

"Close the window, dammit!" Their caretaker demanded.

J-Con

Kim: (eyes going slightly wide) "Oh... oh dear... I- I see..."

(She blinks and looks down, tears still in her eyes.)

J-Con Mess Hall

Aurelia: Thank you.

-Aurelia sits down next to Kal and smiles.-

Aurelia: Just wondering, what are you lot talking about?

Edited by AnimeboyIanpower on Jul 24th 2021 at 6:20:35 AM

J-con mess hall

Kal gives Radium a death glare then turns back to the group.

Kal: We were just talking about... What were we talking about again?

Radium: <We were talking about what a ghost type like me eats, and I was saying I'll eat just about anything.>

J-Con '21

<Well, in their defense,> Roy started. <They had barely met you. Their first impression for the most part was you hollering something just outside of the room,> he reasoned. <I don't see the current Kim doing that, so...> he shrugged.

J-Con Lunch

"And one o' ya said something about paste. I... do I want to know?" He asked, looking down at the rest of his can of lemonade, slightly offput.

J-con food hall

Radium: <Yeah, you probably don't.>

Kal stares at Radium in a "please shut up" sort of way.

J-Con, Kim's Section

(Kim grows more relieved.)

Kim: "That... that's good, I suppose..." (beat) "So anyways... how has Rever been? How have you been, for that matter?"

Galar Mountains

Alyesha: "No need to be sorry, pal~"

Alyesha answered, adjusting her backpack once more while smiling

Alyesha: "And sure, let's continue climbing."

Having said that, she turned around, walking back on the path before looking over to emer, waiting for her to follow. Krasnaya meanwhile would remain on Alyesha's shoulder, dangling her legs there.

Alyesha: "Soon we'll be actually climbing, so, get ready~"

And indeed, it would not take that long until the path would slowly peter out, instead forcing the two to go through the wilderness, ending in a steep wall in front of them about 20 meters high.

Alyesha: "Alright, ready to begin the actual climb, Emer~?"

Stormchaser, Kitchen - A While Ago

Megan: wh wh wh

-catching her hands- Are—are you okay??

Fraidy: <I don't know!! Ever since I evolved, everyone thinks I'm cool?? I'm not cool??>

Megan: I-I do think you're cool??

Fraidy: -high-pitched- <I'm not?? I have no idea what I'm doing??>

<I just stand here and make my face do the thing and point my finger and I guess I win fights now?? I don't know!! I'm faking it!!>

Megan: - •_•; -

Fraidy: <even in the wild area i just stood way off and shot things and just fell over when everyone was getting maaaimed>

<aaaaa I'm so unqualified to be on this team>

Megan: I've always thought you're cool.

-...-

Fraidy: <...huh?>

Stormchaser, Megan's Room - Yesterday

Megan: ...huh.

-so very, very delicately—she retrieves what's inside and examines the contents, little papers first-

-...-

Megan: -pivoting- ...do you mind?

Pippy & Vee & Fraidy & Pollen: -crowded a few inches behind her to see what's inside- <...>

Pippy: -blinks innocently- <Not at all.>

Vee: -breathing on her neck- <Please, continue.>

Megan: -rolls her eyes-

Wyndon Hospital

Abilene: Damn.

-Hiro makes a face like he just got burned, but isn't quite sure if it...happened, or not-

Hiro: ...technically speaking, we're all in a hospital right now.

Logan: -making a face- ...pedantry?

Hiro: I'm also doing a bit.

Addie: -to Ever- <Oh, big same.>

Logan: ...you do?

Addie: -headtilt- <Where did you think our early-warning stuff came from?>

Logan: I thought Ditty just messaged us whenever something came up on the news.

Addie: <Well, yes, but.>

Abilene: -dour, to Ever- Just swell.

Hiro: -opens mouth- A—

Abilene: I am aware I very narrowly avoided a tragedy of [Shakespearean] f u c k i n g proportions, thank you

Hiro: -mild- Just asking if you wanted more pudding.

Abilene: …

Abilene: yes please

-he goes to retrieve one, and Abilene sighs-

Logan: -resting their chin on their hand- Instead of singlehandedly assaulting whole teams of innocent superheroes, maybe...don't do that.

Abilene: -mutter- Maybe they shouldn't franchise themselves through a TV show with "Aura" in the name.

Logan: Abilene.

Abilene: Logan.

Logan: …

Abilene: ...

Abilene: -...groan- Someone in Pokefutures had a heavily Auric-Spectrum-Type experiment, and someone double-crossed them and wiped the memories of the people they didn't outright disappear—

Addie: <...oh?>

Abilene: -back of her head against the wall- ...I thought I had found our erstwhile traitor's corruptor.

Logan: -examining her- ...and a team who's known in criminal circuits to have fought said futures shows up in the region just in time for the investigation to be scuttled by one of its members?

Abilene: Got it in fucking one.

Logan: -neutrally- Rip.

Lanatus: -eyes Ever-

Lanatus: -wags vine-

Studio Palace

-To Silas-

I don't think that's possible, not without killing him, and as loathsome as he is we probably don't want that. Now, if we had a way of getting our client to see through their distortions, the Palace would collapse and he'd be unable to access this place any longer.

Stormchaser

-Looking around the halls-

It's been cleaner as of late...

Borrowing JG's character with his permission.

The Brimstone, Head Office

Rosie arrives in the office. As always she took the time to envelop herself in the surroundings and appreciate the fact that it was hers. After so long working under that overbearing sorcerer, she finally has that comfy chair to herself. The personal effects she decked out around the room all marked it as hers. She didn't do a lot of redecorating; just swapped all of Smith's effects with her own, down to the nameplate. Appreciating it all never got old.

Waiting at her side was a rather content-looking Kadabra with his hands behind him. The Kadabra sends her a telepathic message, with an almost human look of snark in his face.

Rosie: Yeah, yeah. I really shouldn't put my office phone in silent mode.

Urie: ~I believe that this call will amuse you. It's from the superhero we hired who had attempted to stop the Argent Claws when they decided to rob us. It's a long distance call, so you really shouldn't keep her waiting.~

Rosie: Ah, the event that got Smith fired. I owe a lot to that young woman. Remind me to accept the charges of that call. Least I could do.

She answers.

Rosie: Hello, Rosie Tran, General Manager of Brimstone by King Entertainment. How may I help you?

Emilie: Um... Hi. This is Emilie. Remember me? I worked as a janitor at your casino.

Rosie: Oh, yes. I remember it well. If you're here to call in a favor, say no more. I have the ear of Mr. King himself. If there's anything we can do for you, King Entertainment is willing to do it. And don't worry about the costs of this call. We'll cover that, too.

Emilie: Oh. Thanks a bunch. I would like to ask you to sponsor me for the Gym Challenge in the Galar Region...

Rosie: That's it? Say no more. It's done. Send us your current location and we'll have a King Entertainment uniform sent to your location. Obviously, as a minor we can't have you representing the Brimstone specifically, but the King Entertainment brand is quite broad. We will throw in a lifetime free pass and fast pass to any King's Keep location across the globe.

Emilie: Thank you very kindly, Rosie. I'm in Wyndon right now with a friend and I’ll be waiting here. I think I'm somewhere near the Stadium.

Rosie: Say no more. And good thing, too. They're opening a new coaster at King's Keep Wyndon. I highly recommend it. Welcome aboard!

Emilie: Thank you again, Rosie.

Battle Outside Hammerlocke, VS Hoops

-The impact of Sud's Head Smash meeting with Pol's Liquidation knocks Evelyn off her feet. Led also gets blown backwards by the impact.-

Evelyn: Led, use Bug Buzz on Api!

-Ledian beats her wings and unleashes an irritating sound in Api's direction. Sud continues to push against Pol, standing firm in her defense.-

J-Con Mess Hall

Aurelia: I see... Well, it's nice to meet you. My name is Aurelia. What are your names?

Studio Palace of the Maiden's Heart

Joybringer: I agree with Kingfish. Even if there was a way to remove Daniel's persona, I wouldn't want to have him on my conscience should it fail.

J-Con '21

The trio of fire-types shrugged in practiced unison. "Doing whatever, for the most part," Kamui summarized.

J-Con Lunch

"Call me Kendall," he nodded, taking another drink.

Stormchaser, Megan's Room, Past

The looseleaf scrap has several lines of scribbly text written on it, crossed out in frustration. It was... clearly not intended to be seen.

The note reads:

The cardstock is a pleasant blue color and was clearly cut out with more care than the looseleaf scrap.

It reads (in significantly nicer handwriting):

The canvas, when unrolled, reveals itself to be the aforementioned painting.

It's of the Wild Area- one very specific area of the Wild Area- rendered in acrylic paint. One with suspiciously familiar pillars arranged around something just out of sight. The surrounding area is grassy and sunny, and in the far background are rows of mountains that direct the eye towards the middle of the image.

In front of the largest pillar, centered in frame, is a slightly stubby Vaporeon with one eye.

Daydre's Room, Stormchaser, Past

Daydre is rummaging through the stuff in her room.

"... Hey Rowan have you seen that paper I was drafting stuff on?"

Rowan: <You're gonna have to be more specific, you have a lot of draft papers.>

"The one I was using for the gift for Megan?"

Rowan: <Oh, that. You put it in the poster tube with the other thing when you were rushing out.>

"I w h a t ?"

Rowan: <I was gonna stop you but I didn't feel like running after you.>

"..."

"aaaaaaa"

Studio Palace

"... Yeah, hard agree with the others. Getting rid of this guy's Persona is probably not a good idea. If we want to keep him from causing trouble maybe we could just let him live with the knowledge that if he starts any other shit we're going to come along and break his kneecaps?"

"..."

"... I welcome any other suggestions. Any at all-"

J-Con, Kim's Section

Kim: "That's good, I suppose. I, um... I played this game called Bond or Break and won a Mega Stone... just in case you want to know what I had been up to. Even though I assume you don't."

Edited by OPALGARNET16 on Jul 24th 2021 at 9:28:43 AM

Wyndon Hospital

Ever: Hiro? I support your bit. -hand on heart- Thank you.

-they eye Lanatus back, and give them a wink-

It's true, though, I cannot recommend fucking with superheroes. It's not an activity known for its life extension properties, and you seem uncomfortable enough with death to view that as a genuine downside.

I am admittedly compelled by your story of traitors. Catch me up on on the hot goss, s'il vous plait.

J-con mess hall

Radium: <I'm Radium, and this is Kal! Nice to meet you!>

Silas and Roxy were still here, open for interaction. They were now joined by a third figure, a tall cylindrical robot of sorts.

"Bishop did you really have to wear that?" Roxy asked.

"Yes," Bishop responded, "You are Mandalorians. I am also a Bounty Hunter."

"This is J-Con," Roxy pointed out, "Is cosplay not relat-"

"Yes."

Roxy sighed, "Silas?"

"I don't think we can exactly stop him," Silas responded.

J-Con '21

"I think Kendall was the first ever contestant," Kamui recalled. "Maybe. I don't keep tabs on that stuff."

J-Con Lunch Area

He looked between the two of them, something crossing his mind. "Are you two familiar with each other?"

J-Con- Kim's Section

Kim: "Oh, that's rather intere—" (she pauses) "Wait... 'Kendall'? Well. This is... a new development on me."

J-Con Mess Hall

-Aurelia smiles warmly at Kendall, Kal and Radium. It's always nice to meet new people.-

Aurelia: Nice to meet you both.

-Aurelia then hears Kendall's question and answers.-

Aurelia: With all due honesty, Kendall, this is the first time we've met.

J-con mess hall

Kal: Yeah, we've never met before.

Battle Outside Hammerlocke [TS]

The Bug Buzz attack from Led blows past all of Api's Pin Missiles and strikes the Drapion right in the chest. At the same time, Pol falters against Sud's invincible wall and is pushed back by Head Smash. She is thrown back, then suddenly changes direction in mid-air and lands on top of Api.

Hoops: What was that?

They scan the air where Pol changed direction, and spot it right before it disappears: a small, errant Pin Missile that survived the Bug Buzz. And they get an idea.

Hoops: Api, use Pin Missile!

Api: <Right.>

Hoops: But use it on Pol.

Api and Pol: <What?>

Hoops: Trust me. Pol, use Liquidation again and Api use Pin Missile.

For a moment neither pokemon reacts. Then Api laughs.

Api: <You are insane, young one. That special kind of insanity that might just work.>

Pol: <Do it. I can take it. And if not, I'll take that fake tree down with me.>

Pol begins to charge up her Liquidation once more, the water creating a huge vortex around him. At the instant she moves, Api releases another barrage of Pin Missiles that slam into Pol's back and carry her forwwards, giving her a huge boost in speed and momentum. Together they push forwards, towards the unshakeable figure that is Sud.

J-Con '21

"Wait, you... didn't see the message?" Kamui asked. "That's a bit startling."

<He wants to go by his middle name,> Sunny summarized. <for reasons unknown.>

J-Con foooood

"Okay, fair enough," he allowed. "It's just... well, I've not seen many with purple eyes before, save for Neon. Sure, illusions exist, but why change eye color when you can instead just-"

he interrupted himself by nodding rigidly, opening his eyes to reveal something of a solid red glow he blinked away. "and be much more intimidating? I mean, if you have those eyes, but can't do that, well, there's only one explanation."

Defiled Wing

Rogue: Wh— yes, Bolts included! Seriously, did you not do any research? Gaia's identity's been known for half a decade, did you not learn anything before you cosplayed her?!

Vinjcafex: <Rogue! The plan?>

Rogue: I'm coming, I'm coming! By the fucking Torn, this is why I don't deal with the Aurabolts anymore.

Exyremetieis: <^{no crimes are ever forgotten...}_{YOU WILL PAY FOR YOURS SOON}>

Rogue: All of you, find areas on the ship where a lot of the mass is focused to orient your Trick Rooms. The more momentum we can counteract with this plan, the better, even if we only have a few spots to work with. Hopefully it won't just rip the entire thing apart.

-Vinjcafex and Exyremetieis split off to do exactly that. In moments, balance-shifting areas of twisted time rock the ship as they're established.-

J-Con— Kim's Section

Kim: "No, I did not see the message; why is that a bit— hang on..."

(She takes out her phone, and sure enough, she sees one missed message from Kendall. She clicks on it, and:)

Kim: "Well. I must have been so distracted by J-Con that I missed the message. I do apologize. Hang on for one moment."

(She opens up her text chat and sends a message out:)

Textspace

J-Con— Kim's Section

Kim: "Anyways." (She puts her phone away.) "Why is it a bit startling that I didn't see the message initially? After all, I didn't see 9-Volt's message until a few weeks after New Year's."

Edited by OPALGARNET16 on Jul 25th 2021 at 3:26:12 PM