The Underground:

The moment the cubone emerged from the ground, Tricky would immediately get in front of Travis, take a defensive stance and begin snarling, <You so much as brush a hair on my trainer trying to hit him, I'll have to decide whether to snap your bones or your neck first!> The manectric's fur would stand up, occasionally arcing and sparking in random places without really going anywhere for added effect, prompting Travis to say almost as if he understood her, “Woah woah Tricky, take it easy! This is just a wild pokemon encounter, which is like yeah pretty dangerous...but we got this!”

<Did what? All we did was some digging and found a Full Heal, nothing wrong with that...unless that was your home? If it was we're sorry, we didn't know!> Chopper tried to reassure the angry cubone. Mark, being no stranger to anger or aggression, was completely unphased as he would then ask in the best Monese he could muster, <You have no idea who we are, and you're coming at us like we killed your ma...unaware that we've dealt with worse? You see why that's a bad plan? Obviously we're not with them or we'd have already decked you hard enough to crack your skull...and who's them anyways?>

The Hamlet, Crossroads

There is a very awkward silence in the crossroads for a solid 10-20 seconds.

Duke Heartgrave: I do know a bit about the surrounding area and local history if that would help. Or are you content to just stumble blindly through whichever of these gates seems to have the right... What is the word, vibe?

Meat Palace

-Rakash nods and brings up a proper mapping screen and begins panning and zooming all over the place-

The Face: Well then, I suppose we're fighting. Persona!

-As per usual, Shift is lost and Mimic takes its place and charges in to begin chomping-

-The Shadow blobs, at least those initially struck, recoil and retreat enough to reveal the Demons within: Another Full-Moon Bear flanked by two of those moth-like creatures. Behind them some of the Shadow forms into another cyst, this one bone-white and covered in bumps almost like a white blood cell-

-Rakash fumbles a bit to get out the bestiary while still examining the map. In the process he notices Flamel's words that seem to be in reply to some unheard entity and gives him a look-

Monkey? If you're about to Awaken, now's an excellent time to do it.

Lavender Town

-Gale rolls her shoulders, makes sure her pen is settled nicely behind her ear and follows Olivia in-

PEFE Testing Bunker

-Gale laughs a bit at the trailed-off implication before summoning a little ball of obscura in her hand-

Captain got the looks, I got the powers.

PEFE Depths

-Pent tries his best to keep a stoic expression through Whitt's explanation of what the School had on file. Everything until the words "Gale Knight" was obvious to anyone paying attention at least, but the connection being drawn causes him to momentarily scowl-

Yes I'm quite aware of your Templars. Whichever one you made with my genetics has been trying to kill me for the past few years to no success.

PEFE Laser Arena

Textspaxe

Reality

"Y'know, that actually kind of reminds me of a couple of Schoolkids I met," Kendall recalled. "They looked vaguely familiar, though I will admit one was a bit of a dead ringer for someone famous. Lot of clout and fame," he considered.

"Wait, didn't the School give up on Obscurics like you and I because they were harder to control? I guess a Templar going rogue to chase you down like that is Exhibit A," he chuckled.

Hamlet, Past

The blood leaves Kamui's face for a moment, as she's a little ashamed to be called out.

"Ata - etto^note I- er-... yeah," she eventually sighed. "Some pointers would be much appreciated," she admitted, ashamed.

Edited by AbsentCoder on Sep 14th 2022 at 1:44:32 AM

The GM House

-Deziree flipped through page after page of the consolidated PDF that Wuffles had compiled from the giant USB sword that she'd once borrowed.-

Wuffles: <We are looking over the data a second time. Making sure there are no patterns or codes that we may have missed.>

Deziree: Wait, something tipped you off that their might be?

Wuffles: <We noticed a particular turn of phrase used at complicated, but consistent, intervals. Using this as a cypher key, we uncovered a macro-puzzle that was hidden among different data entries. The summary of our findings is at the end of the report.>

Deziree: ... Is any of this stuff I'm flipping through now connected to that, or...?

Wuffles: <Negative.>

Deziree: Okay good, if I had to read through another list of historic Kalosian Almanac printing mistakes I think my brain would melt.

-She skips to the last chapter of the PDF and reads the title.-

Deziree: ... "Flesh-Steel Conversion"?

Wuffles: <We determined that the wording used in this text we uncovered was too similar to the workings of your bracelet to be mere coincidence.>

Deziree: Yeah, but, the way this is listed, it almost sounds like you're implying that any robot, even with the most rudimentary of intelligence, could be converted in a human. Or the other way around.

-Wuffles says nothing, just tilting his head and spinning his tail in an elliptical circle.-

Deziree: ... Oh that is very interesting.

-Something then occurs to her.-

Deziree: By the way, what was the "turn of phrase" you mentioned earlier?

Wuffles: <"The Confluence of Two Rivers".>

Deziree: Oh. Well, that does make some sense, at least, despite how foreboding that feels.

The Underground (Owen)

CW: death

For a few moments, the Cubone paused— before glaring up at Mark.

<"Them" are the people who killed my parents,> she said simply. <Once they were done with it, they took my father's skull. They didn't take my mother's, though. I'm wearing it right now, as you can probably guess.>

Stipax's face instantly fell.

<Oh... oh dear... I'm terribly sorry about your parents...> he said.

<Don't give me sympathy,> said the Cubone sharply. <I'm not here for pity. I'm not here for anybody to feel sorry for me because my parents died. I'm here for justice. I'm here for revenge.>

<Revenge?> asked Stipax. <On who?>

The Cubone looked down at the floor.

<Team Lightning,> she said.

At the mention of the team's name, Stipax's blood ran cold.

<T-Team Lightning?!> he cried.

Owen blinked. "What was that about Team Lightning?"

Stipax glanced up at him. <They killed her parents.>

Owen's eyes widened as anger started surging through his body.

"They did WHAT?!"

The Cubone nodded. Owen instantly knelt down beside her.

"Oh my word... that's horrible..." he muttered. "We've fought Team Lightning before in the past."

The Cubone's eyes widened.

<Wait, what?!> she cried.

Owen nodded. "...Do you have a name, by the way?"

The Cubone glanced down at the bone in her hand.

<...Gwana,> she said after a bit.

Veilstone City (Owen, post-Gwana)

Owen and Stipax emerged out of the ground to find themselves in Veilstone City.

Which was perfect, because now that Owen had a new team member he could show off her battling skills against Maylene.

Of course, he had other plans for Maylene, too— he knew for a fact he would also use Stipax, Cephalo, and especially Saura, since he had a feeling that that last one was really close to evolving.

And if she did evolve, that would mean that Mark and Travis would get to see the Pottery Wheel Method directly in front of their eyes.

On cue, Owen turned to face them.

"Alright, we're here," he said. "Let's go. I have a Gym Leader to take on."

Oreburgh Gym- vs. Roark (Laurie)

After a few moments, Roark and Laurie both returned their respective Pokemon. Roark grinned.

"Well!" he said. "For someone who's taking on their first Gym, you're pretty strong! If I didn't know any better I'd guess you'd have taken on a whole League with that Magnezone of yours!"

Laurie glanced down.

"I wasn't lying about this being my first Gym battle and first League," they said. "But this is far from my first ever battle."

"I can tell," said Roark, pulling out a PokeBall. "In that case... it looks like I'm going to have to send this one out against you! Go, Cranidos!"

The ball opened up, and in a flash of light, Roark's Cranidos emerged.

<Aww yeah!> he cried. <Let's do this thing!>

Laurie smirked, pulling out their final PokeBall.

"I'm terribly sorry about this, Roark," they said, before throwing the ball out. "Go! D'Autry!"

The ball opened up, and D'Autry the Sandslash landed from it in a flash of light. Upon seeing the Cranidos in front of him, he waved.

<Well, howdy!> he said. <Hope you don't mind if I just make the ground shake for a bit...>

And with that said, he slammed his foot down onto the ground. The resulting Bulldoze hit— and hit hard.

Really hard.

It hit so hard, in fact, that Cranidos was promptly knocked backwards into the wall. By the time the resulting dust faded, Roark's Cranidos was lying on its side with swirls in its eyes.

Everyone— D'Autry and Laurie especially— stopped dead in their tracks.

"...Well," said Laurie. "I... uh... I think D'Autry was too strong for him, heh..."

<Whoops!> said D'Autry. <Sorry 'bout that!>

"...I... guess this means we won?" asked Laurie.

<I guess so,> said D'Autry.

LAURIE HITOKI HAS DEFEATED ROARK'S CRANIDOS

ROARK HAS NO POKEMON LEFT

WINNER: LAURIE HITOKI

Hulbury Stadium- vs. Nessa (Ingrid)

Ingrid paused for a few moments, before eventually deciding to return Amity back to her PokeBall. Nessa, meanwhile, glanced over at her.

"...Well," she said. "I'm... terribly sorry for your loss."

Ingrid smiled.

"Thank you," she responded. "In all honesty, I'm just happy that I can see Amity again, even if she's become a Drifloon due to her death and the whole Spirit Games thing."

Nessa nodded. "I understand. Now... let's get back to the battle, shall we?"

She reached in and took out a PokeBall. "I have someone new I want to send out, and I'm not going to go down easily! Go, Barraskewda!"

She threw the ball out, and in a flash of light a Barraskewda appeared from it, glancing over at Ingrid.

<Well,> she said. <You seem... nice.>

Ingrid gulped a bit, then glanced down at her PokeBalls before taking one out, knowing there was really only one option she could use here.

"Alright, let's do this thing," she said eventually. "Go, Benny!"

The ball opened up, and in a flash, Benny the Breloom appeared, saluting his Trainer.

<You need not worry, General,> he said. <I am willing to serve.>

Ananpi, of course, went on:

<Aaand Battle #2 has started, folks! It's Nessa's Barraskewda vs. Benny, and I'm almost 100% confident that Benny's gonna win this one, chuu~!>

^note  <Psst! Barraskewda has Ice Fang, chuu~!>

<Wait, wha— oh. Oh no... Never mind, folks, I think I spoke too soon.>

Benny rolled his eyes at Ananpi's commentary, before he turned to face the Barraskewda, then smirked.

<As the Lieutenant told me,> he said. <Well. You should be an easy target.>

The Barraskewda just laughed.

<So you'd think,> she said. <Remember, a Gym Leader never goes into battle without covering for any weaknesses.>

And with that said, she jumped up into the air, her teeth suddenly becoming covered in ice as she began heading towards Benny.

Benny, for his part, didn't even flinch. Instead, he just smirked.

<And a general never goes into battle without covering for any traps made by the opponent,> he said.

With barely any hesitation, his fist turned bright orange, and he immediately struck the Barraskewda from above, knocking her backwards.

<OHHHH-!> cried Ananpi. <And Benny uses Sky Uppercut to smash the Ice Fang to bits, chuu~! Talk about strategy, chuu~!>

^note  <Benny always comes through on that end, doesn't he, chuu~?>

<...on what end?>

Meanwhile, the Barraskewda was knocked into the wall, but refused to go down and immediately got back up, glaring over at Benny.

<...you're just going to do that every time I use Ice Fang, aren't you,> she said.

Benny smirked. <Yep. But first... I'm going to do this.>

Seconds later, he sent out vines towards Nessa's Barraskewda, who promptly found herself surrounded as said vines began to glow green.

<GAH!> she cried. <What have you done?!>

<He's used Leech Seed, chuu~!> Ananpi piped up.

The Grand Underground- Heracles Battle Aftermath (Braker)

After a few moments, Walter, Cuddles, and Caboose all glanced at each other.

<Well, he's down,> said Walter.

"I can see that," said Braker. "That means the game is over, then."

<The answer was defenestration, by the way~!> said Cuddles.

<Yep,> said Snoop. <Wonder what'll happen now.>

<Is he still going to be caught?> asked Caboose.

Beat.

Heracles promptly groaned, before pushing himself up to his feet. Seconds later, he looked over at Braker, before walking over to him and holding out his hand.

<That was an excellent battle game,> he said. <The one known as Heracles thoroughly enjoyed it. If it pleases him, he would like to allow the one they refer to as Braker to catch him, regardless of the loss.>

Braker smiled.

"Alright, then," he said.

Cuddles squealed with delight.

Braker, meanwhile, reached into his pocket and pulled out a Great Ball, which Heracles looked over before nodding and punching the button. In an instant, he found himself sucked inside. Braker looked down at his hand and watched as the ball shook three times before the center promptly glowed yellow, signifying capture.

<Yay~!> cried Caboose.

<That's number 15!> said Cuddles.

Braker nodded and smiled.

"Indeed it is," he said. "Now... I think we've spent enough time down here, don't you?"

<Yeah, that game was fun, but now that we have a new mon on the team, I've got a few more game shows to introduce him to,> said Snoop.

<Let me guess,> said Walter. <Gamecube, Only Connect, and Pointless?>

<Among others, but definitely those three,> said Snoop.

Braker nodded. "Alright, then. Let's get ourselves out of here."

And with that said, he motioned for the rest of the group to follow him out of the Grand Underground.

THE HASSLEMON INTERWEBS

laboriousHeroics (LH) joined the chat.

ZL: Oooh, look! There'ss a new one! :P

RM: I—CAN—ONLY—HOPE—IT'S—NOT—AN—ANNOYANCE.

ET: We Shall See If They Are, In Fact, Like That.

GF: Would 4nyone c4re if I introduced them to this H4sslemon system?

CB: I wouldn'7 mind.

LH: ...

NC: DaNg, he's NOt sayiNg Much Of aNythiNg.

ET: I Wonder What His Typing Quirk Will Be?

LH: Grεετιηgs.

CB: Holy cr4p! He us3s Gr33k l3773rs?!

RM: YOU—HAVE—GOT—TO—BE—KIDDING—mE.

ZL: That'ss a neat quirk!

PJ: HeLlO ThErE! WhAt Is YoUr NaMe?

LH: I αm τhε οηε τhεγ rεfεr τo αs Hεrαςlεs.

ET: As In The Mythological Figure?

MC: i wOuLd assume sO

ZL: Hi there! My name'ss Juless!

RM: I'm—rOmEA.

MC: gReeTings

MC: yOu may RefeR TO me as serkis

PJ: I'm PaNtO!

ET: Charonus Tritonalichus III. You May Refer To Me As Just Charon.

CB: H3y 7h3r3! N4m3's Li7hium.

NC: I'M Buffy!

GF: ''4nd my n4me is Chernobog. It is wonderful to meet you, Her4cles. Though I do wonder where Scr4mble 4nd KL-RY went to...

chimeraSaurus (CS) and m0drenMan (MM) joined the chat.

CS: I'm heer... waht did I msis?

ZL: A new mon named Heracless joined Braker'ss team! :P

CS: Oh. Yay.

MM: K0-N-N1-CH1-WA HE-RA-KU-R1-SU-SAN

MM: J1-BU-N WA K1-RU-R0-1 DE-SU

MM: J1-BU-N WA ~N1-N-GE-N~ DE-SU

LH: Thε οηε τhεγ rεfεr τo αs Hεrαςlεs ιs αfrαιδ hε δoεs ηoτ κηoω ωhατ ιs hαρρεηιηg.

RM: IT'S—JAPANESE.

RM: BASICALLY—HE—THINKS—HE'S—HUmAN.

ZL: Don't worry! We'll introducce you more to everyone later.

Mauville City, 2021 (Axis)

From the audience, Axis, Axollo, and Letina all glanced at one another in confusion. The director, who evidently had no clue how to react to their star not responding, tried again.

"Viscor?" he asked. "Come on, don't be shy! You have a full audience here tonight!"

No response.

The director peeked behind the curtain for a few moments— only for his eyes to suddenly widen.

"H-he's gone!" he cried.

Immediately, the audience went into a bit of a fervor. The only exceptions were Axis, Letina, and Axollo, all of whom glanced at each other in concern.

"H-he's gone?" asked Axis. "What do you think could have happened?"

"The most likely scenario is that he developed stage fright and ran off," said Letina.

<T-that's awful!> cried Axollo. <Poor thing...>

On stage, the director tried his best to calm down the rampant crowd.

"Now, now," he said, "let's not get too worked up here. I'm sure someone here will be able to find our rising star eventually."

Axis promptly turned to face their two mons.

"We gotta find them," they said.

"Agreed," said Letina.

<But... where in the world could a Goomy have run off to in Mauville?> asked Axollo.

<I don't know, you figure it out,> said Letina.

Axollo thought for a few moments, and glanced around the room— before all of a sudden he jumped up in excitement.

<Hang on!> he cried. <I have an idea!>

Axis blinked.

"You do?" they asked.

<Yep!> said Axollo. <But I won't tell you about it until the next post hits. Just know that it's gonna be a good one~!>

And with that said, Axollo promptly went back inside his PokeBall.

Axis and Letina turned to face each other and blinked.

Textspace, June 2022

THE HASSLEMON INTERWEBS

Everyone joined the chat.

MP: (She's thinking of going to Ultra Space?)<

WB: [Wait, What? Ultra Space? H^H! Now That's Somewhere I Wouldn't Have Even Thought of Going To! Wonder What She's Planning to Do There.]

EL: I +hink i+'s for research purposes. Or! Maybe she could be ge++ing a new member?!

WM: YeAh, I doubt it.

UR: zammechat~!

IA: hmmm...

EL: Well, wha+ever she's doing +here, i+'s the perfec+ las+ +hing for Gilmour +o do before 'e ge+s +raded off!

   DT: zz Hey has she found anyone she wants to do that with yet? zz   

UF: I do not believe that she has.

CV: Awww... that's a shame...

PEFE Depths

"Sorry about that." Whitt shrugs. "We templars tend to like killing people who look like us. I admit, it's not the healthiest outlet but what are you gonna do."

"Anyway, I'm getting bored of you. I thought someone with your reputation would be more impressive somehow, but all you've done is come in here and given me stoicism and muted facial expressions. Slam my head into the table or something, for Arceus' sake. And then I'll tell you who the spy -."

He stops suddenly, as though realising that he said something he shouldn't have. His mental guards slip for just a second, revealing him internally chastising himself, before the looping image of a snacking Ferrum returns, and his expression moves back to its neutral base.

Canalave City

"This is the place," Xaster mutters. It feels weird for him to go to a gym without Hoops, but they didn't want to come today. He wanted to stay with them, but Hoops insisted that he continue his gym challenge.

<Azu?> asks RiRi.

Xaster nods. "Yeah, I know, I'm going in. I just need a second."

<Ma.>

"If no-one else is coming in then I'm not blocking the door, am I?"

Someone clears his throat behind him. Xaster turns around and sees a middle-aged with spiked hair standing behind him. He wears a sleeveless white shirt and has a cape draped loosely over his shoulders.

"You're blocking the door," the man says. Xaster ignores the side eye from RiRi.

"Sorry," he says, stepping to the side. "I just got lost in my own thoughts."

"I see," the man says. "Tell me, are you a challenger of this gym?"

Xaster nods. "Yeah. But I was just thinking that usually I have my friend here for my gym battles."

The man nods. "I see. Well, you're welcome to go and bring them back if you need them. I'm Byron by the way, this gym's leader."

Xaster feels the sudden urge to bow, which he quickly suppresses. "Nice to meet you sir. I'm Xaster De Mille. And I don't think my friend is coming. They're kind of depressed right now."

"So why are you here then?" Byron asks.

"Because..." Xaster clenches his fists. "Ever since I met Hoops, they've been guiding me and raising me into someone stronger than I was before. I feel like if I can show them how much they've helped me grow, it might help them."

Byron laughs. "Well, that's good enough for me. Come inside, Xaster De Mille."

The Underground (Pre-Gwana):

Mark, Travis, and their pokemon were briefly taken aback once the Cubone mentioned her parents being killed. Whatever sense of curiosity Chopper had at the time would be instantly replaced with concern while Tricky would briefly temper her anger before growling and charging even louder in response to the mention of Team Lightning. Travis would seemingly wake up from his lackadaisical state upon hearing about Team Lightning being brought up, commenting, “Crashing The Techspo wasn't enough huh, they gotta just merc random pokemon too? These guys sound worse than trainers who look for weak pokemon to one-hit for fun while pretending it's training.”

Mark meanwhile felt a switch flip in the back of his brain and if one looked carefully it almost seemed like his eyes were beginning to turn a hint of red, at least partially. He had been scouring across the west end of Sinnoh for what seemed like forever with barely a trace of Team Lightning's existence, and now he finally had a potential lead, context be damned. Like a sharpedo after a drop of blood in the water, Mark's focus shifted almost exclusively on finding Team Lightning, with everything appearing to briefly fade away with the exception of the the Cubone known as Gwana.

<Listen kid, I've been looking for these bastards to settle my own score. I need to know if you've seen them recently and where they're hiding,> Mark would mutter with enough surprisingly subdued hostility to sound almost more like growling than any real form of speech. <You help me find them, I'll let you have your revenge.>

<Revenge?! We should be helping Gwana for the sake of justice, not revenge! What's gotten into you brother?!> Chopper protested, surprised in his trainer's tone who would coldly reply while waiting on Gwana's response, <What's the difference?>

Veilstone City (Post-Gwana):

Mark and especially Travis would be relieved to be free from the underground, noticing there was still plenty of daylight to go around. “Well that was fun while it lasted, but unless we're going straight to a crystal cave or gold mine I think I'm fine keeping my feet above ground,” Travis would remark before noticing Tricky violently shake herself free of dirt and rubble. <For once I actually agree with you,> She muttered.

“You sure it's a good idea to walk straight into a gym without stopping by a Pokemon Center or at least using some recovery items?” Mark would point out, wanting to ensure his new friend started his next battle off on the right foot.

Kalos

-Abilene Macraul sits in her garden, a look of stoic contemplation etched across her features-

Abilene: It is the birthday of the girlfriend of my girlfriend.

-her look of implacable disdain is infamous, chilling, and a hallmark of her presentation-

-...that rarely includes the smallest bead of sweat trickling slowly down her temple-

Abilene: I do not know the...protocol, for this.

-her Pokémon counsel mulls this over, bemused-

Abilene: On the face of it, it seems simple enough! Get her a gift card, it worked for our mutual associate.

-steepling her fingers, low- But that fails to account for the...implications.

-she holds that word with the distance and delicacy she would a bare knife-

-her Pokémon largely regard knives as quaint human things, like metaphors or romantic subtlety-

Abilene: I have read that for a polycule to "work", it is crucial that everyone is on the same "page".

Sorbus: <Where did you read this?>

Abilene: Internet. Now, the relationships need not be equal, or uniform, but it is of dire importance that no one in the network objects to any of the others.

Castanea: -rumbling- <Is there the least indication that anyone does?>

Abilene: There may be, if I do not approach this delicately.

-she cannot see the way he lays his face in his hands-

-so he makes sure to thump it a few times-

Abilene: After the way I—barged my way into this relationship, I cannot afford anything that may parse as a snub, intentional or otherwise.

-she folds her hands in her lap, regal-

Abilene: ...but what...?

-she murmurs to herself-

Abilene: Berries—what if she doesn't like the flavor? Stakes...? Am I implying she should pick a fight with a vampire and die? We were onto something with the bouquet—

-the rest of her party looks at Castanea-

Abilene: —a clear message in flower language, indicating a deep and abiding respect for the romantic relationship that might include me—

-he's just massaging his temples-

Abilene: But flower language is so subjective!

-Castanea, despairing, indicates the most recent size of the floral arrangement with his hands-

Abilene: Include a translation guide with the bouquet? Fie, what an insult to her intelligence! She's not even Kalosian!

Sorbus: <(oh my gods, she's not even kalosian)>

-Abilene takes a moment to regain her composure, finger-combing her curls-

Castanea. <You've. met. once. And in that time you've bandaged her wounds, fed her Pokémon, let her sleep in your bed—>

Abilene: -waving it off- Any of her friends would do that.

Sapinda: <For her birthday, have you considered hunting her for sport?> :?

Abilene: -fussed- That's coming on a little strong, Sapinda. And where would I find a fletcher's mitt on such short notice?

Sapinda: <What?>

Castanea: -fatigued- <Just. let her wear herself out.>

-she's drawn herself up at her Pokémon's muttering, alight with intent-

Abilene: ...no!! I am Abilene Macraul!! Thief of the Entrawyld, Gardener of Souls, Champion of Kalos and Heiress to the misfortune of Redacted Macraul! I will not be defeated by the hypothetical opinions of a spooky artist halfway across the Palkia-blasted planet!

-a terrible calm settles over her person-

Abilene: -rapping a fist on a table- A gift. Thoughtful yet understated, displaying an overall positive inclination toward her person while skirting presumptive romantic overtones or its inverse expectation. Something that conveys the warmth of my character, satisfaction at her presence, and a firm handshake to a long and fruitful co-partnership—

Stormchaser

-a box may sit on Daydre's doorstep-

The Underground (Owen)

Gwana grimaced.

<That's the thing,> she said. <They're not here. I haven't seen them for years.>

Owen and Stipax glanced at each other in concern.

<That's horrible...> muttered Stipax. <You must have nothing else to do and nowhere else to go...>

Gwana nodded. <But that's okay. I'm fine with that.>

Stipax paused. <You sure you don't want to come and join us?>

Gwana paused.

<Well... I do have nowhere to go...> she muttered. <You sure you're not a part of that Team Lightning group? I saw they had a Galvantula.>

<Oh, no! You don't need to worry about that at all!> said Stipax. <We're not Team Lightning members at all!> He turned to face his Trainer. <Right, Owen?>

Owen blinked. "Huh...?"

<We're not Team Lightning members, are we?> he asked.

Owen shook his head. "No. No, we're not. Matter of fact, we're actively fighting against them. So... what do you say? Wanna join our team?"

Gwana looked down for a few moments, then eventually looked back up at Stipax and Owen.

<Only if you battle me and have me faint first,> she said.

<You're on!> cried Stipax.

"...what did she say?" asked Owen.

<She wants to battle first,> said Stipax.

Owen grinned. "Alright, then! You're on!"

Veilstone City (Owen)

Owen paused for a few moments, remembering what had happened in the Eterna battle. Even if he knew Maylene had Fighting-type Pokemon, he knew for a fact that he didn't want what happened with Nautilu to happen again.

He nodded. "Right. I'll be back."

And with that said, he ran straight towards the PokeMart.

5 MINUTES LATER...

5 minutes later, Owen emerged from the Mart, now with multiple Full Restores, Max Potions, and Full Heals in his bag. He nodded.

"Alright, I got lots of healing items," he said. "Let's head off to the Gym."

And with that said, he started in the direction of Veilstone.

Edited by OPALGARNET16 on Sep 14th 2022 at 6:47:04 AM

The GM Household

-Dune is sitting on the couch, flipping through his various reports on the newly introduced Pokemon populations to Orre while the channel the TV is on reports something or another about how a particular international racing team had their bus catch on fire or something.-

Dune: Am I forgetting anyone? I checked the Magnemite who are now over by the base of Mt. Battle... I checked in on the Aron over in the canyon... I checked the Drilbur who are now scattering around the desert... I checked on the few Onyx that are now going through the sand dunes...

Selene: Klink?

-Selene barely looks up from the massive, fifth attempt at trying to summarize a message for Pent that she just can't seem to word right. She huffs and backspaces all the way before starting over again.-

Dune: Oh, right, some went with the Magnemite, some went into the underground...

-Oh, right!-

Dune: Oh, and the Pawniard all scattered about the cities! And then there were trace populations of various other Steel-types, and other than that I think we're good...

-Deziree kicks open the door, causing Selene to lose her train of thought and restart her message and Dune to nearly throw all his paperwork into the air.-

Deziree: It arriiiiiiiived~

-Dune gives a very earnest and very internal sigh.-

Dune: What did, dear?

Deziree: My Galarian starter!

-Now that got his attention.-

Dune: Oh? What is it?

Deziree: Dunno! I asked one of our breeder friends to send me the Galar Pokemon they thought I'd appreciate the most! And thiiiiiis is it!

-She shakes an incubation chamber in front of him, holding a yellow and white speckled egg.-

-At least, until Doomsday snatches it out of her hands.-

Doomsday: <I see you shaking an egg like that again and I'm removing the joints in your arms so you can't do it again!>

Deziree: Don't worry, Doomsday, it's already almost to term! A lot of that shaking was coming from it, not me!

-Doomsday holds the incubator up and stares at it. It doesn't even take a second for it to jump up and down off of the padding twice.-

Doomsday: <Oh. STILL! You always treat a gun like it's loaded, a needle you don't know like it's used, and an egg you just got like its just laid!>

Deziree: Yes, ma'am~

-Doomsday stomps back off. Her negative aura throws off Selene's train of thought, and at this point she just drops her phone onto the rug and groans into her hands.-

The Underground:

<Years? You're telling me Team Lightning killed your parents years ago, and you've just been taking it out on everyone you see?> Mark asked incredulously, returning to his usual demeanor before adding, <Those bastards wrecked my dojo, my monastery and my home. There's no way in Hell I'd ever join them, and once I find them I'm gonna do the same to them or worse!>

“Dude can you like, fill me in on half the shit you've been saying?” Travis would try to ask, completely out of the loop as the only human there who didn't understand Monese. His question would initially go unanswered though as Gwana would begin challenging Stipax to a battle.

“I don't get why you're fighting this pokemon until they faint, but if she needs to get it out of her system so be it. Just make sure you've got a revive and max potion ready, if this cubone has any sort of possible lead we need to follow it!” Mark would almost dismissively tell Owen, trying to bury his disappointment with the slightest hope that he would continue his pursuit of vengeance against Team Lightning.

Veilstone City:

Neither Mark nor Travis felt the need to purchase anything, the former already heavily stocked on full restores, revives, and full heals as if he were preparing for a Pokemon League and the latter not really giving a damn. The two would loiter around outside, waiting for their friend to finish shopping.

“Dude, when did you learn to speak Pokemon? Is there like a school for talking Pokemon or something?” Travis would ask while reclining on a lamppost with his hands resting on the back of his head.

“Not really. Started picking up on Monese with all the time Chopper and I spent at the Machastery. Learned a bit more from him, other people who know Monese and any other pokemon willing to teach it. I'm still not like super fluent, but I'm usually able to say what I mean even if what I think I say sometimes turns into growling or nonsense,” Mark would explain, looking at Travis from a side glance while unconsciously crossing his arms before recommending, “You should totally pick it up whenever you can. It's pretty useful,”

“Yeah you're right...I'll look into it when I get the chance. Would be nice to know what Tricky was actually thinking,” Travis conceded with Tricky chiming in, <That makes two of us,>. Soon enough Mark and Travis would see Owen emerge from the Pokemart with the latter remarking, “At least you got to save a bit of money needing one less Full Heal than you would have bought yeah?”

Regardless of his response, Mark and Travis would follow Owen through Veilstone City with their pokemon right alongside them, taking in the scenery of the cityscape around them on the way towards the gym with Mark thinking aloud, “Parts of it remind me of Pewter City and Mauville, at least a little bit,”

“It's alright I guess, sure are a lot of rocks and hills though,” Travis said offhandedly, getting tired of all the walking the group had been doing lately.

Hoenn, Long Ago

-Shaun de Vaughn treks through the forest looking for a Mightyena pack-

Hoothoot: -insistent tweeting-

Shaun: None of the guys believe me, Hooty. Just one look.

Hoothoot: -derisive tweet-

Shaun: You've got Protect! And Whirlwind! You'll be fine, I just want to see—

-he yelps—predictably, his expensive loafers slip on wet leaves, sending him a-tumbling into a small gully-

Shaun: owowow...

-...and the thick of the wolf pack he was trying to find-

Vigoroth: -bleeding- <Haha! Never catch me, you mutt—>

-there's a blur, and a crunch, and it's dead-

Mightyena: -distraction aside, turns on Shaun, snarling-

-his Hoothoot, as instructed, raises a Protect barrier for the first of the six seconds it's meant to last for, and hopes to be killed quickly-

Shaun: -backing against the wall, hurried-

-he glances around, looking for a way out-

-...and there it is-

Shaun: ...

-there...she is?-

-in the middle of the pack, glowing fangs and face matted with blood, rising from the Vigoroth she freshly killed, is a girl with purple eyes-

Hoothoot: -exhausted squawk...-

-the shield falters-

-hunt. fight. kill-

-the rhythm of Rhodium's days stretches never-ending, surrounded by creatures whose mind she mercifully cannot touch-

-...the pack is disturbed. she turns with her infiltrated family cohorts to see-

Rhodium: ...!!!

- —human-

-Rhodium bares her teeth, terrified—the Protect falls, leaving one less barrier between him and her- -she drags her power from her teeth to fuel her Eyes and pins him under her gaze-

-his mental defenses are shit-

-rather than an agent of the School, she looks through the life of the son of a wealthy speck of middle management, who insists "Devon" is in his lineage and his son is more intelligent than a raisin- -hunt. fight. kill. he's worse than a threat, he's useless, and in that uselessness represents vulnerability-

Mightyena: -growls-

-he's another human born from humans, without the sense to realize how fortunate he is-

-he's just another moron blundering from crisis to crisis, bailed out by the powers that be-

-he's...thinking she looks emaciated?-

Rhodium: ...

Shaun: -gulps- ...

-this may be the most naïve idiot she's encountered in a world of naïve idiots-

-but he's reaching for her, and in the tide of raw panic she turns hand to claw and slashes away his hand-

Sinnoh, Safe House

-PEFE!Every can easily see the processes that spin to death, smothering Molybdenum's impulse to reach through the link and deflect that hand-

-then pride, raw and immense-

Molybdenum: ~They were not understated!~

-she brushes back her hair to show PEFE!Every the electrode scars that aren't there any more, because she healed them herself-

-then she sees them, because Molybdenum's making a point-

Molybdenum: ~I was useless. I can't show you how useless because I don't remember. But that's the way it is!! Potential's wasted every testing cycle because it's better than wasting the time and effort gone into working with that!~

-she snorts, thinking of her own waste-

Molybdenum: ~Hey, I'm only alive because instead of something important, someone took me and—~

-PEFE!Every's last line registers, and Molybdenum flushes from neck to ears-

Molybdenum: —


-...she needs to focus-

-the person she's talking to is very intelligent and lapses in conversation have already become devastating rhetorical losses, but...-

(-she's imagining...-)

(-...many things, that get wiped away nearly as fast as they form-)

Molybdenum: You can't. You can't expect I'll be there to patch it up. I can't keep a kid alive forever.

(-some part of her screams to take back control, but the thought doesn't exactly slow anything-)

Hearthome Apartment

Rhoda: -sardonic- ~If you can't keep your precious lobes away from a Dropout's greasy fingers, you didn't deserve to Graduate.~

-...but she's not projecting her life story into Tellurium's head-

-she doesn't want any part of it in the School's hands-

-Haru just thinks very, very loudly-

Rhoda: ~But yeah, you should be impressed.~

-sneers, needle in hand- ~For one, I dress him, and he actually loves me back.~

We dress each other, Bounsweet...

-Lady's envisioned a moment like this for years-

-she's pictured sinking her teeth through Templar in so many ways-

Lady: -yowls-

-in none of those was there a Schoolkid who could breathe dragonfire from her hands-

Rhoda: Go for the eyes! Play!

-but what is she, a puppy?-

-she shakes off the embarrassing sound that came out of her mouth, and:-

Murkrow: -blink blink- Weeee're in trouble! -awk!-

-and she tries to see what Thuban's aiming for-

Haru: I-I'm not leaving you.

Rhoda: What part of 'slowly and painfully' didn't sink in? You have your whole life ahead of you!

-he's not articulate enough to express he'd be dying every moment of that life if he missed these few in hers-

Haru: I-it won't come to that.

Rhoda: -voice cracking- Still a silly optimist, after all these years!

-once, she was a collection of body parts optimized for one move and one move only-

-her fingers are too brittle for Psycho Cut, her gums unforgiving with Psychic Fangs, her corneas burnt out from Miracle Eye-

-so she rummages for another Pokéball while Haru grips the handles on her wheelchair-

Haru: Yeah.

Edited by Asterisk395 on Sep 15th 2022 at 9:54:37 AM

The GM House

-Deziree, Ludmilla, and Dune are all at the dinner table, watching the little egg squirm and jump.-

Deziree: It's almost tiiiiime!

Ludmilla: I wonder what kind of place Galar is.

Dune: Rainy, drizzly, and cold most months out of the year, if I remember correctly.

Ludmilla: ... Oh.

-The egg cracks.-

Deziree: It's happeniiiiiiiiiing~

-Crack-

-Crack-crack-

-Pop!-

-Popping out of the egg, with bits of shell flying everywhere, is a small... blob of butter?-

Deziree: ...?

-A little lightning bolt tail pops out from it.-

Ludmilla: ... Huh?

-Two short legs kick out, breaking more egg. The egg, and its occupant, tilt over, shattering the egg and revealing its contents.-

Yamper: Yamp yamp!

-Laying on his back, eggshell still in his fur, looking up at Deziree, is a little butterball of a canine.-

-Almost every neuron in Deziree's brain fires off the same thought.-

Deziree: HE'S SO CUUUUUUTE!

Yamper: Yamp yamp!

-Deziree picks up the Yamper and cuddles him in her arms. He starts licking her face.-

-Ludmilla's eyes are big and happy.-

Ludmilla: Puppy! :D

-Dune smiles, reminding himself to send Joseph a thank you note later.-

Deziree: Oh who's a good boy? Who's' a good boy?

Yamper: Yamp yamp!

Ludmilla: He's so round!

Deziree: And those big ol' ears!

Ludmilla: He's like a huggable pillow!

Deziree: I'm naming you Gizmo!

Gizmo: Yamp yamp!

Veilstone Warehouse

-Alex perks up-

Alex: "Great! I can hyperfocus on something PRODUCTIVE for once!"

"...I better get my airship. It's parked. Somewhere in these warehouses."

Meat Palace

Lead Monkey: <Awaken? What do you mean?>

Don't even try. You'll never accomplish anythi-

Lead Monkey: <SHUT. UP!>

-rips off his goggles-

Lavender Tower

-it's eerily quiet in here-

-there are strange pits and drawings everywhere-

Olivia: <Woah, look at the size of those mushrooms! And that banana, that could feed an army! Wait, there's something off about them, isn't there... Oh, they're just drawings. Flat as paper. Sorry if I got your mouth watering there guys.>

Jackie: "Great now I'm hungry."

-there is an elevator nearby but a hole is in the way-

Sinnoh, Safe House

-Neodymium looks up in confusion as Molybdenum speaks out loud-

PEFE!Every: You think you can't. I think you're wrong.

Hearthome Apartment

Tellurium: Ugh.

-she flings up mental walls, shutting off communication-

-which means she's not paying attention, and gets bodied by Lady a second time-

-followed by Hooty-

Tellurium: Augh, fuck!

-she tries to grab the Mightyena by the collar and pull her away-

-and then decides that this is a losing proposition-

Tellurium: Damn it, Eltanin, fix this!

-Pokeball flash-

-and Eltanin announces himself with a Dragon Claw to Lady-

-while Thuban simply focuses-

-the attack is going for Rhoda, and will arrive shortly-

-there's a knocking on the door, as might be expected from a neighbor hearing a Pokemon battle next door-

Snowpoint

"I'm never prepared for anything, but that's besides the point. I sure hope there's not some kind of nasty thing waiting for us, but knowing how these things go there probably is and I guess I won't die if that's the case?"

Stormchaser Probably

Daydre approaches the box. She inspects it a little, decides she's reasonably sure she's not famous enough that someone would send her a pipe bomb and takes it back inside her room- Whereupon she opens it.

Solaceon Town, paaaaaaaaaaaast

Channah: Like. They're jerks who do Unit 731 type shit on kids, basically? I dunno, it's all been explained to me before but I never remember the fine details.

Channah's Mindscape, now

A small figure picks her way across the beachside ruins, shielding her face from strong gusts of wind whipped up by a storm that darkens the skies. She runs into a dilapidated temple to take shelter.

Ten: Hunter? You didn't blow away, did you?

A shiny Gastly materializes nearby. He's so young, he has baby teeth.

Hunter: <I'm alright. I'd worry more about Vaida...>

Ten looks down to see her Houndoom puppy shivering, and quickly bends down to wrap her up in a warm hug.

Vaida: <I-I'm fine, I d-d-don't need that! W-We don't have t-t-time, Dioh needs-needs us!>

Ten: (stands with Vaida in her arms) But we've looked everywhere... And the others aren't answering my calls. What do I do?

She looks up. Atop the mountain range in the heart of the region, a black and purple viscous substance is sluggishly crawling over the peaks and rock faces, transforming their three-dimensional shapes into formless matte gaps in reality.

Ten: Eeek...

Veilstone Department Store, today

Kamon is inspecting some TMs on an aisle end display when a crash shakes the whole thing and it topples.

Kamon: Eeek!

Security Guy: (comes tearing around the corner) GOT you! (dives into the wreckage)

Kamon: ...

Security Guy: (stands up, revealing a struggling Riolu he's holding by the scruff of its neck) Sorry about that. This little fellow has been freeloading here for the last week. Caused us a lot of trouble these past few days, eating food out of displays and ripping up accessories...

Kamon: What'll you do with him?

Security Guy: Probably send it to the local Pokemon shelter. How it got here, I've no idea.

Male Riolu: <Lemme go!>

Kamon: Hmm. You know what, I'm a trainer, I can take him off your hands.

Security Guy: Will you, really? Saves me a trip.

Kamon: Of course! I'll take good care of him! (holds out hands, smiling) Come here, little buddy!

Security Guy: Careful, man.

The Riolu snarls as the employee hands him over, but just before his teeth can close around Kamon's manicured finger, he stuffs a Poffin into his mouth. The Riolu blinks, then starts chewing.

Rockstar: <Yer getting better at thet.>

Kamon: What a cutie. Too bad we didn't meet when I played Silas Grant. I'll name you... Uh, Luke!

Kiro: (sighs) <Could've been worse.>

Meat Palace

-Staring at Lead Monkey-

He's awakening his Persona, give him some space!

-Has Azumi-no-isora use Surf on some of the Shadows-

Solaceon Town, the halcyon days of yore

Chloe: -Lets out a humorless laugh- Okay, that's not a bad analogy.

-Shifting back to the lack of a smile-

Alright then, listen here Channah.

The School? They've been around as far as anyone can remember, making us in Batches for their fucked up experiments. Some of us, to my understanding, they even purposely make wrong so that they'll get certain powers of whatever. They call us whatever our number of creation is on the periodic table, Chiyo's #77 Iridium, I was #17 Chlorine, we were part of 2001's School Batch. Destined to be either be tested to destruction, or killed by Templars, or having the "honor" of being an Alumni.

-Chloe then... it's not quite the same as a teleportation form Channah would recognize, but more like she dissipates into the wind itself before forming behind her, as her words echo through Channah's ears like she's stuck in a wind tunnel-

What I can do? Chiyo here does the barriers and flames, Osmium now Abe's a master telekenetic, me? I'm stealth, I become wind, among other properties. I keep away from the Templars by making sure they don't know I'm there.

-Forming back to normal-

To keep a long story short, our facility on Poni was pretty terrible even by School standards, we all decided that sucked and staged a breakout. Boron was too afraid to leave and Gallium, Gallium...

-Rounding on Chiyo-

Gallium gave his life so we could all have the chance to live, we decided it was better to stay apart so that it'd be harder for the School to find us, and now you want to throw it all away in some damned fool crusade that'll leave you captured again at best or liquidated at worst?

Chiyo: -Deep breath- Things will be different this time, we're all even better with our powers than we were back then, and we have the J-Team now. There'll be no more Galliums, or Borons, or.... Curiums when Tagg and I are through with them.

Chloe: -Eyebrow raise- This Tagg guy's just putting dumb thoughts in your head, what's a born human like him or Channah here understand about our situation as Schoolchildren? Doesn't matter how strong they are when we're going up against a whole institution going back centuries if not millennia, I think I'd rather continue to hold onto how many years I have left. There's no point in risking our continued survival pointlessly, squandering the freedom that Gallium sacrificed himself to give us.

Chiyo: -Arms crossed- Surviving, yes, but not living. I want our fellow escapees, those who aren't as strong or stealthy as us, to know what it's like to live.

Vana most especially...

-Eyes narrowing-

That's why we're gonna figure out a cure for the Curse, and take the fight to the School. And to do that, I need all of us together, they can't beat our combined strength with the J-Team's.

Chloe: -Snorts- You know what Chiyo, maybe if you manage to get Zee out of her log cabin in the middle of the ass end of nowhere and get this cure done or whatever, maybe I'll join. But for now, I'm afraid the answer's no.

Chiyo: Chloe...

Chloe: -Staring away from Chiyo as she speaks- Just... don't die out there Chiyo, even if I think you're doomed to failure I don't need to lose a fourth Batchmate.

-To the Whimsicott next to her-

Alright, let's get out of here. It was nice seeing you Chiyo again, meeting you Channah, but the longer we stay like this the easier it is for the Templars to pinpoint our position. Goodbye, for now at least.

-They then disappear in a gust of wind-

Chiyo: ....

-Clenching her fists with her head down-

Chloe's wrong... I'll show her just how wrong she is about all of this, she'll see things our way eventually. Let's... just head to that café, I think I'm gonna nurse all this over some milk.

Veilstone Town, past

-To Alex-

Yeah, best to get on that.

Edited by rmctagg09 on Sep 15th 2022 at 12:06:05 PM

Random Marsh ~ Present Day

Great Mystery at the Great Marsh!! (2)

"...Yes, indeed I am receiving a message from my great oracle. It appears as though... a great beast of the skies, clad in green armor..."

Is the response Aislinn would get from Andrea, as they point their finger to the approximate location they have been told the wind was coming from by their 'mon.
They nod, apparently in response to some unheard and unseen communication.

"A Yanmega... such is the name of the mastermind of this mysterious gale."

They then point a finger to their temple in a very classical thinking pose, perhaps a bit of an exhaggerated one in fact.

"Though... I do not understand why, still. O lady Aislinn, what thinks you? Shall we go confront the perpetrator?"

Edited by DarknessAwaits on Sep 16th 2022 at 11:19:37 AM

Rory walked through sands, hand raised to his face to handle the blistering bite of the winds. "Why the fuck is this place so sandy?!"

"Calm down there Skywalker," came Nico's voice over a radio. "I'm fine."

"You're in my van with the AC turned up!"

"Well not my fault Dante and Vergil wanted out."

"I'll see them again eventually, but they've got stuff to do."

"You really need a better team."

"I'll look into it," Rory said as he approached the area. It was a grated vent, humming along, no doubt pumping air through a big complex. He gave the vent a heavy kick and booted the grating right off. He questioned how this work but didn't think about it too hard.

Down he went, crawling through the ducts as he observed the base below. "The hell is this place?"

Around he saw people in stark white armor, what looked to be grunts and menials, and large tubes with what looked to be people in them. "Does Gabriel have a cloning program?"

textspace

Circhester, Jess's house

Jess is sitting at a dining table. Their mum puts a large bowl of salad on the table, along with a portion for their pokemon.

Jess's mum: It's so nice to have you home again for a while! You should come back more often. Have you been eating well? I hope you haven't just been stuffing yourself with awful deep fried fast food.

Jess: I couldn't even if I wanted to.

Jess's mum raises her eyebrows.

Jess's mum: Oh really? Why's that?

Jess: I'm banned from just about everywhere for some reason. Apparently I look like a thief or something.

Jess's mum: Oh no. I'm sure someone will deal with that soon. In the meantime, at least it keeps you fit and healthy! How are your teleporting skills coming along?

Jess: They're going pretty well.

Jess's mum pulls out a notepad. Jess sighs.

Jess's mum: Rose, you know I need something more quantifiable than that. How far have you been able to get? How long did it take?

Jess: I dunno. I do a lot of it with Robin so I can't tell how much of it is me and how much is them.

Jess's mum: I guess we'll have to run some tests of our own after dinner then!

Jess groans.

Edited by QuantumMelody29 on Sep 16th 2022 at 6:07:27 PM

Solaceon Town, past

Channah shrugs and follows Chiyo to That Cafe.

Channah: It's understandable, what she says. I wouldn't be too enthusiastic either. Uh. Are you... really gonna order plain milk to drink?

Pyrite Town

-Dune wanders through the Duel Square, just watching the matches around him.-

-He muses to himself at how there so much less stress here than there was ten years ago. In the aftermath of the Cipher Incidents, most of Orre was pretty stressed, but Pyrite - and especially Duking - held on to that stress for far longer than the others.-

-Now, though, between things being cleaned up, Duking's new policies, and the windmill now being refurbished via funds from the Mt. Battle Master's Office (he still had to remind himself that technically that's his office, now), the fights in the square had less of an edge to them.-

-Except... one.-

-Dune craned his neck over to see a Skarmory get hit by a Charmeleon's Flamethrower.-

Lon: Ha ha! Knew that would work!

-Dune rolls his eyes as Lon takes another win simply by having Fire-Types on his team. Where his eyes roll to, though, happens to be the Trainer of the Skarmory. A fiery redhead with a stern gaze.-

-Dune tilts his head. He recognizes something about her.-

-Not her outfit or her face - the former were obvious hand-me-downs, and the latter doesn't elicit a bit of recognition - but in her look. The stern, angry, indignant-at-the-world glare.-

-Sensing an impending incident if Lon keeps up his shenanigans, Dune walks over.-

Dune: This girl is gonna try and punch me if I put my hand on her shoulder. Hey now, don't feel too bad. Lon's the only one around here who-

-Dune puts a hand on her shoulder, and surely enough a haymaker comes flying at Dune's temple. He catches it in his hand.-

Dune: Ah hah. So you are angry.

-Despite her fist being firmly planted in Dune's palm, she keeps pushing it towards its destination. Taking a closer look, Dune realizes, this girl is only about twelve to thirteen years old.-

Hostile Girl: Fuck you.

-Dune, humoring her, pushes the fist back a respectable distance.-

Dune: If you want an avenue to vent your frustrations, I can think of some better than throwing your Skarmory into a losing matchup.

-Dune tried to make his tone as accommodating as possible, but apparently something still set the girl off as she swung a leg up towards Dune's junk.-

-Between the leverage he already had from holding her fist, as well as his general reflexes, he spins her around while she swings her leg off balance and pins her against the ground.-

Dune: That anger of yours is a lot like mine.

Hostile Girl: Bullshit.

-Dune rolls his eyes. Is this what it felt like, getting old?-

Dune: ... When was the last time you had a good meal?

Hostile Girl: Fuck you.

Dune: ... When was the last time you went home?

Hostile Girl: What are you, my dad?

-Dune sensed the venom there. A familiar taste creeps into his mouth.-

Dune: No, I'm not. And that's why I want to take you over to Johnny's.

Hostile Girl: The diner?

Dune: Foods on me, if you promise not to try kicking me in the junk again.

Hostile Girl: ... Fine.

Pyrite Town, Johnny Hydraulic's Cafe

Waitress: Well, look who the Persian dragged in! If it ain't Mr. I Climbed A Volcano And All I Got Was This Lousy Title himself!

Dune: C'mon Marlene, I got a Cyndaquil, too!

-The hostile girl gives perplexed looks to both the adult across the booth from her and the one waiting at the end of the table.-

Waitress: And who's the little rascal with you? Don't tell me you and the Missus already...?

Dune: No, no, not yet, just figured I'd help pick her up after a bad loss down at Duel Square.

Waitress: Oh, was it Lon again?

Dune: Yep.

Waitress: Well, don't worry, sweetheart, once yer team's more rounded, one or two lousy Fire-Types won't give you no trouble at all!

-She pulls a pen out of the bun her hair is tied up in.-

Waitress: So, y'all ready to order?

Dune: My regular, please.

Waitress: Dune Special, two waffles stacked with bacon and sausage in between with a side of scrambled eggs! And you, lil' missy?

-The girl realizes she hasn't actually taken a look at the menu. Her eyes drop to it and begin scanning. Dune just smiles and lets her take her time.-

Hostile Hungry Girl: Um... the "Kalos Slammer", I guess?

Waitress: Kalos Slammer, toast fresh off the griddle covered in fruit, powdered sugar, butter, and a whole side o' bacon, coming right up!

-Dune gives her a quick wave as she waddles off back to the kitchen, shouting at the kitchen staff. He pointedly tries not to hear when she says that "Mr. Battle" is back and to give half-again portions.-

-The girl fidgets.-

-Dune just sits back and listens to the jukebox cycle through the same playlist it's had since 1998.-

-The girl fidgets some more.-

-Dune absolutely refuses to say anything about it.-

-If she wants to talk, she'll have to start the conversation.-

Hungry Girl: Are you really the Mt. Battle Master?

Dune: That's what people tell me. Still kind of a surreal thing to imagine, though.

Hungry Girl: That means you're Dune.

Dune: Yep.

Hungry Girl: That means you're the strongest trainer in Orre.

Dune: Until someone comes up to Mt. Battle and proves it otherwise, I guess.

Hungry Girl: Yeah but nobody's done that in three years!

-Dune muses if his team on the Mt. Battle Climb had perhaps taken their jobs a bit too seriously while he was away in a dimensional time bubble.-

Dune: Not for lack of trying.

-That was a bluff. He didn't know if that was true or not - he had been avoiding having to open the mountain of challenge summaries that had filled his inbox.-

Hungry Girl: So why...?

-The question dangled for a second as qualifiers to that question all collided in the doorway, trying to get behind that one predominant question.-

Dune: Few things for a few different reasons.

-He leans forward, and moves his goggles off of his eyes.-

Dune: First off, I saw how your fight with Lon ended. One on one. Which means you went up against a Duel Square vet with just one Pokemon to your name. So you had something to prove.

-The girl's eyes drop and look to the left.-

Dune: Secondly... When I said your anger's a lot like mine, I meant it.

-Her eyes dart back to Dune, filled with conflicting anger and confusion.-

Dune: And thirdly...

Waitress: Grub's up!

-Dune leans back out of the way as the waitress drops a plate the width of his torso onto the table in front of him.-

Waitress: Dune Special for you, Kalos Slam for you!

-The girl's mouth waters and eyes go wide at the sight of all of the food in front of her. Dune suspects that "half-again" portions might have been ignored in favor of "double" portions. He'd have to leave a pretty good tip this time around.-

Dune: Thanks, Marlene!

Waitress: Ain't no trouble, hun! Gimme a shout if'n you need anything!

Dune: Will do!

-Dune looks over at the girl who, after slathering the Kalos Toast and fruit in syrup, is now chowing down like... well, a Snorlax wouldn't be a polite comparison, she's at least using utensils.-

-The girl pats her stomach, groaning slightly as Dune pays for the meal.-

Dune: So...

-She tilts her head slightly forward to look at him.-

Dune: You got a name?

-Girl sighs, thinks about it for a moment, before patting her full belly and being reminded that she has just been fed.-

Satiated Girl: Xavier.

Dune: Interesting name.

-The girl's mood takes a downward turn.-

Xavier: Dad wanted a boy.

-Yep, okay, that scans.-

Xavier: Question for you, now.

Dune: Yeah?

Xavier: ... What was the third thing?

-Dune purses his lips.-

Dune: ... You remind me of my daughter.

-Her brow furrows.-

Xavier: You're married?

-Deziree would have thrown a fit over that question were she around to hear it.-

Dune: Yes. But my daughter's adopted. She came from... a bad place.

-Xavier's eyes begin to look very sad.-

Xavier: ... I gotta go.

-She's up out of the booth and gone before Dune can muster a counterargument more persuasive than just grappling her, so he lets her go.-

Dune: ...

Pyrite Town, Fateen's Fortune Telling

-The front door bell jingles.-

Fateen: We're closed!

Dune: Even for a friend?

-Fateen nearly jumps out of her skin before remembering that she knew he'd be coming by today.-

Fateen: Derek, I swear... You're going to give this old woman the last scare of her life, I tell you!

Dune: If it were that easy, I don't think you'd have lived long enough for me to meet you.

Fateen: Still got that smart mouth your grandfather had, too... Good to see you either way, I suppose.

Dune: Unfortunately, not just a wave-by visit, either.

Fateen: It's after hours, you know. These old bones can't tell fortunes in every hour of the day, now.

Dune: This question is important.

-Fateen knew what that sort of tone meant.-

Fateen: Very well then, take a seat...

-Dune sits down across from Fateen, a massive crystal ball sitting between them.-

Fateen: And what question do you have for Fateen today?

Dune: Where resides the source of my ire?

-Fateen blinks.-

Fateen: I see it. Clearly, very clearly. To the west, working at the docks. Not a man of labor, but one of business. His arm is not as strong as his inferiors, nor is his mind as sharp as his superiors. He frustrates as his ambitions outreach his capabilities.

-Dune's brow furrows.-

Fateen: That's... all I can see.

-Dune stands.-

Dune: Thank you, Fateen. I know it isn't easy.

Fateen: It is far easier than most. You know what you're asking for - a trait shared by few. Most have as much trouble asking the right question as they do finding the right answer.

Dune: Well, now I have both. Thank you.

-Dune steps back out into the streets, the sun setting on the horizon.-

Fateen: Hm...

-She looks back at her crystal ball.-

Fateen: Show me... is he the one from whom I shall find my apprentice-to-be?

-The crystal ball refracts.-

Canalave Gym, Battle

Xaster and Byron stand at opposite ends of a large, rocky field. Byron slams the end of his shovel into the ground and puts his hands on his waste. Xaster looks at RiRi, who is next to him, and they both shrug.

"Since this is your fifth gym badge, we'll make this a three on three battle," Byron says, before nodding to his referee, a woman wearing weathered digging clothes.

She clears her throat. "This will be a three on three battle. It will be over when all of one trainer's pokémon are unable to continue. Furthermore, only the challenger will be allowed to substitute their pokémon."

Byron grabs one of his pokéballs. "I think I'll start with this. Bronzor, I choose you!"

He throws the ball into the air. It opens in a flash of light, which forms itself into the flat metal pokémon inside. It spins slowly in the air.

Xaster hesitates. "Bronzor. That's a steel and psychic type. In that case..." he grabs a pokéball. "ChuChu, I choose you!"

He releases his pokémon, and ChuChu, who has recently evolved into a Pikachu, takes the field. He rubs his cheeks, and a few sparks of electricity jump from the small pads there.

"Battle begin!"

Xaster goes first. "ChuChu, use Thunderbolt!" ChuChu slaps his tail on the ground, and generates a great deal of electricity that he shoots towards Bronzor. Byron has no reaction, and Bronzor takes the attack head on. It winces in pain, but as the electricity fades away it doesn't seem to have taken a great deal of damage.

"Mega Punch!" Xaster yells. ChuChu runs forwards, before jumping into the air and slamming one of his fists into Bronzor. Once again, it appears to do very little damage.

"Use Metal Sound!" Byron commands. Bronzor releases a clanging noise that strikes ChuChu and makes him shiver as his defense is lowered.

"Double Team!" Xaster shouts. ChuChu runs backwards and forwards, creating numerous clones of himself that flood the battlefield.

"Now, Thunderbolt again!" As one, all of the ChuChus leap into the air and charge their electrical attacks.

Byron smiles. "Use Trick Room." Bronzor's eyes flash, and four walls of psychic energy spread from his body. ChuChu's movements suddenly become more sluggish, and he seems to float through the air. His doubles, however, are not affected by the effects of the room and still move at normal speed.

"Gotcha," Byron says, then calls to Bronzor. "Use Gyro Ball!" Bronzor begins to spin in a complicated motion that makes it seem like less of a plate and more of a sphere. In this form, it flies towards ChuChu, suddenly moving very fast. ChuChu releases his Thunderbolt attack, but it moves slowly and Bronzor easily avoids it before slamming into ChuChu, throwing him into the ground.

"ChuChu!" Xaster yells. When the dust settles, ChuChu is struggling to his feet, but it's clear he took a lot of damage. Xaster grimaces, and remembers the rule that he can switch freely. "Return," he calls, bringing ChuChu back to the pokéball. "Get some rest," he says. "No, go, ChiChi!"

He sends out his Chingling, which chirps happily at being used. "Now," Xaster thinks. "What next?"

Route 210, Café Cabin - past

Chiyo: -To Channah- I don't think this place serves anything else besides water to be honest drinkwise.

-Looking around-

Something feels... wrong.

Waitress: -Looking at a menu- I'd go for sugar personally.

-She looks up so that Chiyo and Channah can see her purple eyes-

Wouldn't you agree, Iridium?

Chiyo: -Eyes widening as a death disc starts forming behind her back- Templar!

Waitress (?): -Holding her hands up, but in a rather smug way- Oh I'm not here to fight you, Iridium, I'm not that great a fighter and I'm not dumb enough to end up like all the other people you've crushed, burned, and sliced up who thought they could kill you. I'm just here to talk.

Chiyo: -Eyebrow raise- About?