Metal Gear Minun

IC: Miriam Shields - Vermilion Rocket branch He was leading the way without knowing where he was going? She should've expected that, but still. "Just... follow behind me," she muttered running in front of him. She could lead them down the most efficient route to the hatchery. IC: Guinevere/Natalie/Slimer - Hotel The Grimer returned to the pair just as Natalie and Guinevere finished cleaning the bathroom. Guinevere returned the Grimer to the Poke Ball she had brought, before she and Natalie returned the equipment they asked to borrow to the guard waiting outside. Natalie had managed to convince the guard, who convinced the warden, not to charge them for the damages Guinevere had caused. In exchange, they agreed to clean up the bathroom, and the Gardevoir apologized. Guinevere couldn’t convey to Natalie why she had done what she did until they were away from the prison. Nor why a Grimer popped out of the toilet while they were working. After they returned the equipment, the left the premises as soon as they were able to. They made their way to the hotel that they were staying at. The hotel they decided to stay at wasn’t exactly five star. They were a Pokemon and a waitress, they didn’t exactly have huge amounts of spending money between the two of them. When Guinevere was able to take a seat, she dropped the Poke Ball on the floor of the room, releasing the Grimer. Well, did you find anything? she asked. Yeah, just give me a sec. You might want to hold your breath, the Grimer said as he began to pick at his tooth. Guinevere wasn’t exactly familiar with Grimer that had teeth, but she went to the window and opened it. She then made a very large display of holding her breath, to signal Natalie to hold her breath too. As the Grimer pulled out the copy he had made from his tooth, small bits of gas popped out. They waited for the gas to dissipate and fresh air to come in before the Grimer handed the note to Guinevere. Grateful, Guinevere returned the Grimer to his Poke Ball, while she began to read the note. Natalie peered at the note as she continued to hold her nose just in case. It looked like the note had been rather sufficiently blacked out at parts by accident due to the Grimer's copy method, but there was enough to go by because of how it had been randomly blacked out. She read about how Gerald seemed to have died to a gunshot wound to the head, then about how a guard was found unconscious and initially suspected of being the perpetrator. As she continued to read, she froze for a moment with a gasp. "Wait, what…?" Natalie re-read the line in question - this felt extremely weird to her. The guard - whose name was Bobby Tables - had once been an employee at Leavanny Strauss. She knew that it could very well have been a coincidence, but at the same time… it was suspicious enough to her that the eye witness just so happened to be involved with the company, with the CEO of the company dying not a few days apart. "What do you make of this, Guin?" Natalie asked with an uneasy look on her face as she turned to the Gardevoir. The Gardevoir hopped over to the bed and lay down on it. She had to get some thoughts in order. She rubbed her temple as she reached for her bag. It was just out of reach, so she had to lean over to get it. Guinevere pulled out the whiteboard in it. She began to think about what exactly to say. In both cases, the victims were instantly killed. In addition, if they assumed that the current suspects were innocent, then efforts were made to frame both of them. They didn’t have the evidence yet to prove that Bobby Tables wasn’t in Celadon on the time of Stacy’s murder, but Guinevere doubted it would be hard to come by. There was a similar MO to both cases. In addition to that, there was the note that had been left in the kitchen. The page that had said “Revenge?” on it. There were already a number of victims, it was possible that they all had the same culprit. Following that, there was now some credence to the idea that it was for revenge. Both victims, and both frame-up targets had connections. Until they proved both cases had the same culprit, it would remain a theory. However, it was one worth investigating. Stacy had been killed instantly. That was the conclusion she reached from the lack of a struggle and the position of the knife. The culprit had successfully infiltrated a well staffed prison and murdered someone inside. And lastly there was the nature of the crimes themselves. There had to be easier ways for a professional to kill someone. They had managed to break into two populated complexes without being identified. Not an easy feat. Someone who would be willing to break into places for the satisfaction of getting their revenge in person, was likely confident in their abilities. Confident that all the evidence would point towards their target for framing. And yet, they took some of the pages of the file. Not all of them, only some. If Cassie had been the one to take the pages, wouldn’t she have just taken the file with her? The missing pages would be a sign, not decisive evidence but a sign, that the crime scene had been tampered with. The culprit thought it was important to take those pages, but leave the file there. Perhaps to implicate Cassie. If that was true, then on those pages… Natalie listened in silence, but nodded. It all was starting to piece together, but there were still so many big questions raised here. "I see," The woman said finally, as she glanced toward the wall to try and think about this more. "The biggest problem is that one of them is dead, and the other is on the wind, suspected of being the killer…" Natalie chewed on her lip for a moment. "We should try to find Bobby Tables." She finally said, as she scanned through the file. "This says that he's on house arrest, I think. If we find out where he lives, then we could go pay him a visit. We need to get on the same page as Cassie was, just in case we can't track her down." The woman didn't add that she suddenly wondered if there were pieces that no-one knew yet, even as she glanced back to the mention of Leavanny Strauss. Guinevere nodded. It would be a hassle to come back to Unova if they left. After meeting him though, she decided they would need to look more into their other principal actors. She might need other sources looking into this. However, the only person she knew a phone number for was someone she didn’t want to speak to right now… Well that wasn’t quite true. Jamie had been with that girl who was looking after her. She was related to Stacy or Cassie. Maybe she had some insights. Might be worth calling her. The bed was comfy, cheap as the hotel may have been. Guinevere was starting to fall asleep. She pushed herself to the head of the bed, and slipped under the covers. It all still felt weird, yet also exhilarating in a way. To be going her own way, chasing leads across the world. She felt terrible that she was getting such enjoyment from such tragedy. She needed some sleep.

IC: James Arthur - Heahea Beach James leaned on an iron railing looking over the beach. The sun was setting, the beach was sparsely populated. It had been a few hours since he had parted ways with Evan and Jenny. The six Pokemon that James had brought with him were on the beach itself, excluding Celebi who was who knows where. James let her out but she declined to go on the beach. She vaguely mentioned the forests on the island. She would be back when she was back. And perhaps someone seeing her might distract people from the news that a Scizor had been seen using his moves earlier. James observed how his Pokemon were acting when he had given them free rein. Gawain was lying down in the shallow water, allowing waves to rush over him. He seemed comfortable. James couldn’t tell from where he was if the Swampert had fallen asleep. Lancelot was sitting near him. He seemed to be concentrating. Was he trying to figure out the transformation? James could only guess. Agravain was picking up pieces of shell and rock off the shore. He seemed very particular about the value of each individual item. How the bug came to its conclusions was anyone’s guess. Percival looked to be admiring a sand castle, but a second glance revealed it was actually a Pokemon made out of sand. He wasn’t too familiar with what kind it was. Maybe he’d look it up, or ask Percival about it. It seemed they had found something they had in common. Galahad was floating up and down the beach, always watching the sunset. James couldn’t see the expression on his face. It was always hard to tell what he was thinking. That last thought stung slightly. After his conversation with Colress, it had been bothering him for some time. How much did he truly know about his Pokemon? How much had he truly bonded with his Pokemon? It was a question that he had been trying to avoid answering, ever since his encounter with Greed. His mind turned to those who weren’t there. Guinevere, who he had known for so long, still hadn’t forgiven him for his actions with Greed. Mordred still hadn’t bonded with him much either. He had seemed almost happy for the chance to get away. Had he become that terrible? The Executive turned away for a moment. Could Team Liberty really afford him to be wallowing in self-pity like this? Could the world? He couldn’t afford to waste time, like this. He needed that transformation’s power in order to help Team Liberty. He faced his Pokemon again, his face heavy and his eyes clouded. If he used the justification that they needed Colress on their side, then it wouldn’t really be bonding. Bonding was something just between him and them, wasn’t it? James looked at all his Pokemon again. They were spread out over the beach. How much did they even like each other? Lancelot and Guinevere were an amazing pair. Agravain practically worshipped Mordred when they were together. But the rest? He couldn’t tell how much they liked each other. Maybe he was overthinking it. He shook his head. It would be easier if this was just about battling. ...James covered his mouth as his brain started running. That actually wasn’t a bad idea. Battling was the one thing they all understood. But he needed to think of it fundamentally differently. He had treated each member of his team as a tool to get him victory. That had to change. “How do they help each other?” he began to mutter. Lancelot stood up, catching James’s attention. Lancelot and Gawain were fighters. In any formation, they should be at the front, dealing the most damage, and protecting their allies. So what could he do to help them do that? James followed a path down to the beach proper. He hesitated for a moment, annoyed that sand was gonna get on his shoe. He forced himself to get over it, and stepped onto the beach. With a different angle, he noticed there was a Pokemon Battle that Lancelot had gotten up to watch. There were two trainers, one looking a bit older than the other. One had an owl Pokemon, Decidueye was it? The other had a Passimian. Neither was able to use moves, but they weren’t just recklessly rushing into each other either. The Decidueye was using its wings to keep just off the sandy terrain, as it shot feathers at the Passimian. The Passimian was using simple movements to compensate for the bad footing of the sands. He picked up feathers that missed him, and flung them back at the Decidueye. The sight made James realize something they were lacking. Ranged physical damage. Range was an issue. Especially right now when Lancelot was their main source of power. If Lancelot was to use his strength to protect the others, he would to be able to engage any opponent. Lancelot noticed James watching the battle and walked over near him. It was a good battle, but he didn’t think it was good enough to make James sink as deep into thought as he was now. They stood there watching the battle until it was over and the trainers left. Even for some time after, they were quiet. “It is no use,” James said at last. “No matter how much I think on it, I keep coming back to what I want.” Lancelot waited in silence. “I keep trying to think of ways for us to bond. All of us. To work better as a team. But I keep thinking about how it benefits me. How it will help me win.” He still didn’t get it. “So how about it? Other than… what I did during our fight with Ross. What else have I done out of shortsightedness?” Lancelot thought about that for a moment. He could probably start counting, but the first thing that came to mind was a move. He lowered his gauntlet so as to not draw attention to the fact that his claw was glowing blue. Superpower. It took a good amount of searching to find a decent tutor for that move. It was a tremendous amount of power. Flashy, with a certain amount of prestige. But it so far proved not to mesh with the rest of Lancelot. It sapped his strength. It would either end a fight too quickly for the Scizor’s liking, or the threat of being less able to sustain a fight would render it useless. James rubbed his chin a bit. “I am going to go take a look at the TM shops around here. Would you mind watching the others?” Lancelot nodded and James started to walk away. He began to think about Lancelot himself. What move actually fit his personality? IC: Slimer - Chroma County Penitentiary The spy squeezed his body down the drain, trying to ignore the chlorinated water, until he got into the filth of the pipes. The hope was that wherever the priss was sending him, there would be a private bathroom. If there wasn’t a toilet in there, then she was out of luck. That suited him fine. He had no investment in her investigation. But if he went back empty-handed, he probably wasn’t gonna be popular back in Celadon. Meaning he’d have to go on the run again. When he felt a path that lead upwards he squeezed himself into it and rose up. The hole grew very tight. He really wished Minimize was working right about now. He deformed enough of his slime out of the hole to realize it was a fountain he found himself in. He sank back down before anyone came near. It took him a few tries to find the right exit. He didn’t exactly have a good map of the complex. He assumed it was the right room, because it was by far fancier than any of the bathrooms he had found before, though that was a low bar to clear. He stuck one eye out of the sink. Through a crack in the doorway, he could see someone. That was a problem, as the priss told him not to be seen. The woman inside was looking through a file cabinet before taking out a piece of paper. If the spy had to guess, the earlier conversation the priss had with her had bothered her. She was trying to look up something about it. Maybe she was trying to figure out who the priss and the other girl were. A noise came out of a box on the warden’s desk, trying to alert her. She pressed the button and barked out “What is it?” “Warden Savage, there is a fight breaking out in the yard,” the voice on the other side of the phone said. The warden muttered a curse, before hurrying out the door. In her hurry, she forgot to place the document back into the cabinet. She did, however, lock the door to prevent anyone from coming in. Ironically, that was more of a boon to the thief already in the room than it was a hindrance. He could at least be assured that he would have warning before someone came into the room. He turned on the sink very lightly and climbed into the basin of the sink. It wasn’t pleasant, but a trail of water would evaporate. If his slime stuck to the ground, that wasn’t coming out anytime soon. He turned off the sink before climbing to the ground. He thinned his body as best he could without Minimize and slinked over to the warden’s desk. With the care needed to not drip his slime on the desk, he reached up and grabbed the paper off of the warden’s desk. There was the man the in the picture that Guinevere had showed him. There was a picture of another man beneath Gerald’s. He looked over it a bit more but there was a problem. He couldn’t read. Couldn’t steal the paper either, that would cause problems. The spy could remember the face easily. It was the words that he needed to find a way to copy down. Hopefully he had some time before the warden came back. He had an idea of how to do it if he had enough time. He looked around for a trash bin. It was time for a snack anyway. Rummaging through a bin beneath the desk, he pulled out crumpled up pieces of paper. He looked to make sure they had printing on them, and then ate them. He felt the paper dissolve into his body. Eosin, carbon black, and other pigments.. Stabilizing agents. These and other chemicals began to separate into individual elements. His body began to recycle material found in the paper, and added some of his own biomass to it. The results were two chemicals. Both were near perfect replicas of the ink, with a different exception for each. The spy took two blank pieces of paper from the warden’s desk. He placed one on the ground, coated it in a very fine layer of the first ink he created. It didn’t bind to the paper beneath it. If he lifted the paper now, it would fall off. He took the second piece of paper and placed it underneath the file, and placed them both on top of the layer of ink he had made on the first. Finally, he brought the second ink substance into his hands until they were fully made of it. He began to run his hand across the file. The ink repelled from the blank paper but lightly bonded to the places with printer ink on them. The combination of repulsion and binded, deformed the shape of the tips of his hand into a perfect stamp. He stamped down like a makeshift typewriter, putting pressure on the layer of ink above the first page. The pressure caused ink to bind in the shapes of the ink letters that the spy was pressing down on. When he had finished, he placed the first paper on the table and took the others with him. Taking care not to let the rest of ink drop until he made it to the toilet. He poured the ink down the drain. He stuck the papers into one of his ‘teeth’. He wouldn’t advise the priss breathing too closely near it, but he could keep it dry without dissolving it, so long as he found a good path. His mission accomplished, he flushed himself down the drain, to get back to Guinevere.

IC: James Arthur - Akala Island "Well... that was a thing," James said between deep breaths. Lancelot was nowhere near as tired as James was. He was used to running much more than James was. So much so, that at some point, Lancelot had to start carrying him. James’s exhaustion barely won out over the potential for his embarrassment. The pair had given the small crowd that had followed them the slip. They ran outside the city and cut through the forest to try and get to the Pokemon Center without being spotted. He needed to a place to inconspicuously loiter for a little while. Hopefully the excitement would die down. Or maybe powers would come back and people would stop bothering him. Of course, James’s deal with Colress relied on that not happening too quickly, so he didn’t wish that last one too hard. James had Lancelot set him down right as they arrived behind the Pokemon Center. The coast seemed to be clear, until James heard a commotion out in front. At first, James thought his chasers were still grouped up there, but when he took a look, he saw it not be the case. Instead, it was the two Plasma agents he had traveled with, engaging in a Pokemon battle with a trainer he hadn’t seen before. James chuckled for a moment, holding up Celebi’s Ultra Ball. “This is not the first time I have ended up spying on that man fight with his Garchomp, is it?”

IC: Guinevere/Natalie - Chroma County Penitentiary With her warning given, she got up and started walking with her crutch towards the jail. She doubted that the Yuki disguise would be needed, but did not tell Natalie that fact. It was still better to have it on hand, just in case. The pair entered the front doors of the jail. The atmosphere at the jail was darker than it had been at Celadon. The lights were dimmer, and the walls were a muted shade of dark green. It was depressing, perhaps fitting for a prison. The reception was equally dim compared to Celadon’s. There was a police officer sitting at the desk, looking thoroughly uninvested in her job. "Hello, I would like to visit Gerald Hikari." Natalie said to the officer after the duo approached the desk. The woman sitting at the desk kept chewing a piece of gum that she’d been chewing since before the pair arrived. She looked at the both of them and blew a bubble from the gum. After popping the bubble, she spat it into the garbage. “The dead guy?” The words so casually uttered hit the pair like a truck. Natalie looked to Guinevere with a slightly baffled expression because of the casual mention of Gerald being dead. The Gardevoir’s eyes were disturbed, but not surprised. A part of her didn’t want to be correct about her hunch, but there it was. She looked back towards Natalie, and with her free hand tapped her on the shoulder and pointed her towards the police officer. They needed information badly. "Wait, what do you mean, dead?" Natalie repeated, a frown on her face. "How did that happen? When did it happen?" Something felt wrong to her, but she knew what Guinevere had tapped her for. There was something they needed to find out, and that would only happen if they asked the right questions. “A few days ago, maybe a week,” the officer said offhandedly. Her face began to sport of devilish grin before she spoke again, “Way I hear it, he took a bullet straight the head. Little bitty chunks of his brain went flying everywhere. Stuck to the walls as I hear it. They had to clean up with left of it with a mop. And don’t get me started on his eyes…” "Could you stop?" Natalie narrowed her eyes at the officer. "In fact, can I talk with your supervisor?" “Yeah, yeah,” she said as she picked up a phone. “She’ll be down in a moment." The pair waited for a few minutes before another woman entered into the room. She was a tall individual, who looked built to break Natalie and Guinevere in half. “I’m the warden of this establishment,” the woman said in a deep voice. “My name is Maxine Savage. A pleasure to meet you, Miss?” "Yuki Hikari." Natalie responded as she tried her best not to feel intimidated by the complete opposite of the officer that she had just been talking to. “Hikari…” she said trailing off, her face falling into a grumpy pout. “You’re here about Gerald then.” She seemed quite put off by the idea. “Come with me. We’ll talk in my office,” she said turning around and walking without waiting for the pair to follow. The pair followed the warden after being cleared by the prison’s security. They did not enter deeply into the compound before the found the office of the warden. Warden Savage opened the door and let the others in first. “First, let me apologize about Ms. Ciel’s behavior,” the warden said as she took her seat. If it was possible, she seemed larger sitting down. “Second, let me offer my condolences about your relative,” she said before mouthing some words. Guinevere could swear she just barely heard “no matter how much he deserved it.” Natalie seemed intrigued about the words the warden said, but decided to not show the curiosity there. She instead gave a nod as she took a seat as well. "I just found out about him, thank you for the condolences." She said, not wanting to seem rude to her. “While you have my sympathies, the fact is that the investigation is still ongoing. Until we have formally charged a suspect, we can’t let any details leak. I can’t tell you any details about what happened.” "I see…" Natalie nodded and tried to keep the worry to a minimum. "Do you have any suspects in mind…?" The warden sat there for a bit. She looked away slightly. She seemed to be deep in thought. “All details are classified until we’ve charged a suspect. I can’t say anything more.” Guinevere looked at the warden with a look of slight frustration. The answer was clearly right on the top of the warden’s mind. Maybe she was letting her guard down around the psychic because of the Pokemon power situation, but Guin could tell she could have stolen the information from the warden if she just had telepathy. "Alright." Natalie couldn't help but feel a little frustrated as well, but felt that pushing the issue would get nowhere like this. "Even still, thank you." Guinevere would have to admit that she couldn’t think of a way to prod further information from the warden. The warden nodded. “You have our word that we will try to get into contact as soon as we’re able. Unless there is anything else I can do for you, then I suppose our conversation is over.” "Alright, I can't think of anything else for right now, so thank you for your time." Natalie gave a smile to the warden as she stood up. "I hope you have a nice day." She walked out of the office with Guinevere, trying to think about what the next move would be. Guinevere kept an eye out on the doors she passed. After several doors, she tugged on Natalie’s shirt with her free hand. When Natalie turned towards her, she pointed towards a bathroom and began to walk over to it. She entered the room and locked the door behind her. Guinevere dropped the backpack onto the sink. She opened the pocket of the backpack and pulled out a Poke Ball. She slammed the Poke Ball on the ground causing the Grimer to come out. What do -you- want? the Grimer asked with a tone of irritation. Guinevere didn’t respond for a moment, as she was digging in her backpack for something. At last she pulled out a photo and showed it to the Grimer. This is Gerald Hikari, she explained. I need you to pop over to a room five doors down and try to find anything you can on him. Without being seen. The Grimer chuckled slightly. And why should I do anything you say? Your old man ain’t here to help you. The Gardevoir looked at the Grimer unimpressed. Leaning on the sink for support, she pulled out the hose faucet of the sink, and broke the soap dispenser off its hinge. Hey.. What are you- the Grimer was interrupted by the sound of running water as Guinevere poured the soap into the stream, and let the water get ever closer to the Grimer. The Grimer started backing up to the wall, flattening as best he could as the soap got ever closer. Take it easy, seriously- I- okay fine, You win. Just keep the soap away from me! Guinevere smiled and pointed towards the toilet. Jeez. Fine I’m going already, the Grimer said as he climbed into the toilet bowl and began to descend its depths. Still smiling, she wrote a message on her white board, took her crutch and walked over to the door. Peaking out just slightly, she showed a message to Natalie who was waiting out side.

IC: Miriam Shields - Vermilion Rocket branch "What in-" she paused as she took a look around the scenery in the room in the picture. "The hatchery." She finished typing her message and sent it to the executive in charge of the branch. "I've requested reinforcements. Let's get down to the hatchery, immediately."

IC: Miriam Shields - Vermilion branch "W-what?" Miriam said, surprised by Ryan's words and movements. She picked up two Luxury Balls that were on the table then began to type a message on her tablet as she began to follow after Ryan. "Agent Hikari, where are we going?" Miriam shouted after Ryan. IC: Claus Diamond - Four Island Claus took a moment to get his thoughts together. He hadn't actually planned so far ahead. He'd have to get permission first, and check Zack's schedule. And yet that didn't stop him from saying, "The day after tomorrow." If he had a day, he could figure it out, Claus reasoned. "Yeah, don't worry. They'll probably be annoyed we went through the effort for nothing."

IC: Claus Diamond - Four Island "Hi Taylor..." Claus said as he nursed his own new bump. "New rule: we shout the instant we see each other so we don't bump into each other deal?" Claus shook his head to shake away the pain. He had something important to talk about. "I got a lead about my father, actually. I was looking for you right now. Would you come to Sinnoh with me." IC: Miriam Shields - Vermilion branch "I'll send you the address, but we've rented out a shipyard and turned it into an impromptu set. We want to use imagery that would bring to mind your actions at One Island," she said as she sent the address to Ryan's phone. "I will meet you there. I made someone else wait so I could speak to you. I suppose I owe them hearing them out at least."

IC: Jamie Arthur - Lumiose hospital Someone who knew more about Dahlia's current mastery of her abilities might have chalked up the removal of pain to the placebo effect, but Jamie did not have that knowledge. When she stopped hurting, she completely ascribed credit to Dahlia. "Whoa. That's so cool, Dahlia," she said gratefully. "That's totally hero."

IC: Jamie Arthur - The ground Jamie looked away, her lip quivering. She didn't want to appear weak in front of her rival. But it hurt. Who made the ground that hard? Her cheeks were flush with embarrassment. The heroine nodded weakly to Dahlia's request. The little part of her that wasn't affected by the pain, told her it would be really cool to see her fellow heroine's abilities up close. But she mostly just wanted her leg to stop hurting.

IC: Jamie Arthur - Lumiose City Jamie's distraction caused her to completely overlook the Turtwig coming over to headbutt her. So when Nutmeg hit, she completely fell over. Jamie held tight to both her gym badge, and the pendant she received from Evan. The two things on her that she didn't want to get hurt. But she was able to take no action to mitigate her fall. She hit her leg hard upon impact with the ground. Not as hard as her face now implied, but pretty hard. Jamie tried to hold back the tears, while slowly turning her head toward's Lucia. "Lucia, it huuurts," she whined, bringing down one arm to hold her leg.

IC: Guinevere - Black City Chroma County Penitentiary. That was the name of the prison that Gerald Hikari had found himself thrown in. Not the most comfortable place to be standing in front of if you’ve aided and abetted some crimes. Or sitting. She wanted to tell Natalie something before entering the jail. She rummaged through her backpack for the marker for her whiteboard. She moved her hand past the Poke Ball that housed the green Grimer. Funny story about that Grimer. Leodegrance didn’t want the Grimer running off before paying his debt to the family, so he had wanted him kept in a Poke Ball for the time being. Now Guinevere hadn’t been sure of whether she was technically qualified to use Poke Balls on other Pokemon. It was a niche issue. So she had asked Natalie to catch the Grimer on her behalf and let Guinever hold his Poke Ball. That exposition out of the way, she pulled out the marker. She recalled the document one more time before writing a message. She would tell Natalie about the document if this visit confirmed her suspicions. IC: Miriam Shields - Vermilion Branch "I'd like to get started today, honestly," Miriam said. "The crew has already been assembled. To be honest, I was assembling them before the events at One Island. But your actions were such a perfect opportunity, I couldn't resist bringing you into this." "We set up a studio here in Vermilion. And the longer this takes, the more it's gonna cost Team Rocket," Miriam said. IC: Claus Diamond - Four Island Zack and Claus parted amicably. They had agreed to get into contact again when they knew they'd be ready for a mission to Sinnoh. Claus was smiling. He was closer to finding his parents than he had been in years. And if he could find his father, he was certain he could help find Barry if he was truly missing as well. All that he had to do was go find Taylor. Wait a second, isn't that her right- *Thud!!* This was gonna be a recurring thing, wasn't it?

IC: Miriam Shields - Vermilion Branch Miriam smiled in response to the ease with which Ryan agreed. "We've created a studio where a... patriotic video is being made," Miriam said, trying to avoid the word 'propaganda'. "All I need from you and your transforming Tyranitar is for the both of you to be there and follow a few directions. At most make an appearance at a recruitment drive." IC: Claus Diamond - Alamo “I asked to be assigned to look for your father around when R.A.L.L.Y. started,” Zack started. “He had dropped out of communication, so I volunteered to make sure he wasn’t MIA. I had a personal reason for going though.” “Really? Did you know my father?” Claus said, looking at Zack quizzically. Zack shook his head, “Not personally. At least, not at the time. I grouped up with a couple of trainers, and went to your mother who was in Floaroma town at the time. With their help, I managed to track him down in Veilstone. He was undercover at the time, so meeting with him discreetly took some time to arrange. But I was able to ask him about my uncle.” “Your uncle?” Claus asked, looking shocked. “I heard that your parents were present when my uncle disappeared. So I asked him what he knew. He offered to help.” Claus looked at the file he had given again. “And you found him, right?” his finger on the last paragraph of his father’s file. Zack nodded. “We did. I offered for him to join us. He declined. Last I saw him, he decided to wander the Sinnoh region for a while. Revisit places that were important to him.” Zack seemed pensive for a while. Not speaking for a while. Claus felt that Zack hadn’t finished, so he patiently waited for him to speak again. “Your parents and I split up not long after. I asked if I could help them on their missions in return for their help. Your father refused however...” “However?” Claus asked. “He spoke with my uncle for some time. I didn’t play close enough attention to what, but my uncle seemed concerned by what your father asked. My uncle is not an easy man to shock.” Claus was silent, he didn’t know what that could possibly be. Maybe that was the point of all this. “And do you know where they are now?” Claus asked. “No.” Claus lowered his head. He knew he shouldn’t have expected much but… “But maybe my uncle would.” Claus looked towards Zack with a small hope left in his eyes. “He’s still in Sinnoh now, I can help you find him. If nothing else, I can guarantee he would be able to give you a hint.” Claus started breathing deeply. Another lead. Another step on the path that lead to his parents. “Why would you do that for me?” Claus asked, curiously. The older man leaned back in his seat. “Your father’s mission seemed really important to him, but he was willing to put it aside to help me. I can’t tell you what that means to me.” A moment passed in complete silence. Then Claus opened his mouth and started laughing. Zack looked at him confused. “Don’t worry, I get the feeling,” Claus said. Zack looked at Claus for another moment and then cracked the first smile Claus had seen on the older man’s face. “Heh, good point.”

IC: Miriam Shields - Vermilion Branch "So much to do, so little time," Miriam sing-songed as she walked over to her desk. "I know you saw that mess outside right now. The people are lashing out when we can ill afford it," Miriam continued. "We need to increase recruitment and revenue to Team Rocket in order to combat M0. And we need to convince the public that Team Rocket has a plan." She picked up her tablet and turned it toward's Ryan. It showed an image of him in his armor along with his Tyranitar in its transformed state. "I want to make you and your Tyranitar the center of a new promotional campaign."

IC: Jamie Arthur - Lumiose City Jamie pulled out the Voltage badge again and began rubbing it right in Dahlia's face. It's really the only thing she especially cared too much about when they showed up. The badge was the best sight she'd seen. IC: Miriam Shields - Vermilion Branch offices Finally, Miriam thought as Ryan finally showed up. First bit of good news she'd heard all day. "Welcome to Vermilion, Agent Hikari," Miriam said in a voice that felt a bit too sweet. "We've got a lot to talk about. Why don't you step into my office," she said gesturing to the room behind her.

IC: Jamie Arthur - Lumiose City "Okay, let's do this!" Jamie shouted. More to pump herself up more than anything else. She put Xander out of her mind. They were gonna do this to help Dahlia and the others. It was 'Time' to spring into action.

IC: Lohe Mahina - Alamo "Coming," Lohe said simply. Hopefully, this would go well and he could leave. Probably not. IC: Jamie Arthur - Lumiose City "That sounds..." Jamie muttered her eyes beginning to light. "You sure you don't mind? I thought we came here to get away from things like this?"

IC: Lohe Mahina - Blackskull's Office The sunset progressed outside of the building's walls. Night was fast approaching. Lohe sat in front of Blackskull and yawned for a moment. He was given a cover story about being a diplomat. But frankly it was a stupid story. He was a slouching jerk perennially on the verge of falling asleep. Who would pick -him- to be a diplomat? "I'm a spy working for one of Alola's top intelligence agencies," he said without a drop of hesitation. "The big shots are bickering their heads off on what to do. Pokemon and their abilities are central to our culture, but the world is literally ending. Different factions formed about what to prioritize and what needs to be done." Lohe casually stretched his neck from side to side. "The specific faction I represent in the government would be quite useful in getting the rest of the Alola's democratic government along with the program for fighting M0 and humanitarian work needed to evacuate. Problem is, they're also the biggest hardliners when it comes to dealing with the Pokemon issue first. So they sent me to investigate the disappearance of Pokemon powers and M0. In that order." As if Lohe had just been talking about the weather for the past minute, he observed his coffee with greater interest than he had shown to the fate of the world. "You know the beans you used to make this don't smell terrible. Better than what I have had to work with here. Mind telling me your supplier?" IC: Jamie Arthur - Lumiose City "Well, I mean, of course I would like to do the hero thing and help, but..." Jamie said looking back towards the group. "They're here because of someone... I do not like very well. I like most of them, but... not the guy who sent them."

IC: Miriam Shields - Vermilion Branch "Wherever you can find a seat," Miriam said. "Unless you want to go open the backdoor for me. I have an important guest that's trying to enter through the back to avoid the mess out front. If not, I really need to be going." IC: Jamie Arthur - Lumiose City "I mean, if you want to go with them, I will go, but..." Jamie's gave a sort of sad smile. "Well, I'll go with you no matter what. That is why I'm here after all."

IC: Jamie Arthur - Lumiose City "Hey," Jamie said simply when Lucia spoke to her. "I was just thinking about what you wanted to do next."

IC: Lohe Mahina - Blackskull's Office Lohe held the cup of coffee in his hand. He brought the cup up to his lips and tilted it. He smelled the coffee. After holding it there for a couple moments, he placed it back down. "It's a bit too bitter. The beans have been too finely ground up. I'd suggest a slightly coarser grind for this kind of coffee." He shook his head slightly, turning towards the machine. "Never liked coffee prepared by a machine. It's one of the few things worth taking pride working to make yourself." Lohe turned back to Blackskull, remembering the reason why he was here. "Sorry, I got carried away. Basically, you got it." IC: Jamie Arthur - Looker Detective Agency "Uhh..." Jamie said as Dahlia left. The news that Xander was the one organizing their group, made it sound less appealing. The hero in her said that fighting 'Team Flare' (whoever they were) was a much better use of her time than having some silly vacation. A different part told her to stay away because of the one who organized. The last part of her was the part that was trying to figure out what her relationship with Lucia was. "I think I'll see what Lucia wants," she said to no one in particular and started walking to Lucia. IC: Miriam Shields - Vermilion Branch offices Miriam sat in the office provided to her for her time in Vermilion. She was reading Ryan's message and a report on the chaos outside with a look of disdain on her face. "Spent all that time preparing resources for a mass influx of ingrates..." she complained right before she heard a knock on the door. Miriam hastily wrote a message to Ryan and responded. She partially wished that she could just bulldoze the crowd of ingrates into dispersing. It was foolish fantasy of course. They couldn't afford an incident making people lose faith in the government right now. Well lose more faith, at any rate. Miriam got up and walked over to the door. She'd have to find somebody to go open the inconspicuous fire door after dealing with whoever this was. She opened the door to the office to see Dack. "Agent Majors was it? I'm rather busy at the moment, can this wait?"

IC: Jamie Arthur - Looker Detective Agency "What sort of gym would do something like that?" Jamie asked, before growing pensive. "Though, with Time Will Freeze..." Jamie considered for a moment. "No, Pelleas and Gothara fought his Magnezone and Luxray. No powers, no problem," Jamie said giving the other hero a thumbs-up. "Still, what are you all doing here in Kalos?"

IC: Jamie Arthur - Looker Detective Agency Jamie paid attention to Emma's story. It was sad, but also a little hard to follow. A bunch of people and names she hadn't heard before. Lucia's dad had just left. Jamie would've wondered if they should follow, but... "Dahlia!" she shouted running over to the other heroine. She pulled out the Volty and shoved it in her fellow's face. "Behold, my fated rival! I have conquered the gym of this great city, and obtained the Voltage Badge," she said before breaking into a chuckle. "Isn't it cool?"

IC: James Arthur - Heahea City James walked through the streets of Heahea City with Lancelot following him. He attempted to take in the sights of the city around him. But the beauty of Alola was lost on him in his state. One of his hands was fiddling with Celebi’s Ultra Ball. He wasn’t thinking of using the poor legend as a bargaining chip, but he was thinking of she might make Team Liberty seem more… attractive. He stopped in front of the building which contained his destination and looked a sign slightly to his right. Dimensional Research Lab… Professor Burnet… It was next door to the building he needed to enter. It would be worth looking into later. One potential alliance at a time. James and Lancelot entered the building and started climbing the stairs at a slow pace. He still had a bit of time before his meeting started. He tried to force himself to read the signs of offices he passed. One read, “GAME…” something or other. He walked by but couldn’t bring himself to read it. At the door to his destination, James shook his head. He needed to snap out of this. “Lancelot,” James said, catching the Scizor’s attention. James’s back was still turned. “Right now, you are the most powerful Pokemon in the world. And we are going to sell that. To protect Team Liberty and the world, we need that reputation. Are you ready?” Lancelot rested a claw on James’s shoulder. He could see straight through the dramatic words to the worry beneath. James took a deep breath and opened the door, “Let us get going then.” The room that awaited them was almost painfully white. The decor from the paintings down to the house plants seemed tailor picked to shout “Trust us. We’re very friendly.” James took a look around the lobby. They agreed to meet there. He would recognize such a figure if he saw him, James reasoned. “So you’ve finally arrived.” The source of the voice came from a bespectacled man dressed in a grey coat, consoles on both sleeves of it, while the man himself had blond hair, save for several blue locks styled to go behind and to the right of the man’s head. “I am Colress.” The scholarly-looking man greeted James. “I recognized you from the video stream from One Island, Mr…….?” “Arthur. Executive James Arthur,” James said, offering a hand and a smile as if he wasn’t completely terrified a minute ago. “I messaged you about meeting here today. I have a proposal for you.” Lancelot shifted slightly behind James. Another scientist type. Considering his main source of knowledge of how they acted was Vert, Lancelot was none too trusting of this strange looking man. Colress shook James’s hand, and looked at the Executive with interest. “Oh, and what might this proposal be?” The Scientist asked James, his tone laced with curiosity. “With Pokemon stripped of their abilities, I have been a very busy man trying to figure this mystery out…” James nodded and smiled as he let go of the other man’s hand. So far so good. “I am offering a position in Team Liberty’s Research and Development department. More specifically, I am offering leadership of the department.” Lancelot resisted the urge to stare at James. “Our biggest project lies squarely in your area of expertise.” “That being bringing out the power of Pokemon?” Colress remarked, smiling at James. “While it’s true that my studies bore fruit, at the current moment, the power is lost, minus the Pokemon who transformed at One Island.” Colress adjusted his glasses, giving them an ominous shine. “One of which is present with us……” Lancelot sighed. He already knew that he was here as a selling point as much as he was as James’s companion. “It was a rather unique phenomena. Would you want to meet the others? I can make those arrangements,” James said. Colress shook his head. “Your Scizor will do for now, Executive Arthur.” The scientist said kindly. “But tell me, do you have any idea what triggered the change in your pokemon?” James made a concerted effort to appear thoughtful. Stroking his chin and closing his eyes. “Some ideas come to mind, but the shock of not being dead kept me from fully registering his transformation until the shock had worn off. Lancelot protected me from an explosion during the moment, that is all I could register at the time." James thought more of the moments after he had rejoined the battle. “I saw one of the others transform, however. The trainer did not seem to be in the same immediate danger I was in when his Tyranitar transformed.” Colress pondered the information. “So if it wasn’t triggered by danger to you, then perhaps…..” The Scientist said, sounding intrigued. “Tell me, Executive Arthur, how close are you to your Scizor?” James looked towards Lancelot for a bit. Lancelot stared back. The Scizor was curious as to what James had to say. “He stood by me when nobody else would and I deserved nobody.” Colress considered what James had to say about his relationship with his Scizor and a smile etched itself on the scientist’s face. “James Arthur, my studies have lead me to believe that Pokemon get more powerful when they are with people.” The man said, still smiling. “What I am lead to believe is…..your bond with your Scizor was made manifest in that transformation.” James didn’t know how to register that. He always took stock in him and his team’s combined strength and skill to overcome whatever obstacle was in his way. Yet, all of their combined ability proved fruitless this afternoon. But how does one ‘have a bond’ when they needed it? On command? “Is… is that qualifiable?” James stumbled out. “That’s what I wish to know.” Colress replied, smiling. “I want to see this phenomenon for myself. If you can show me, I’ll skip my consideration of your offer, and join right away. Does that sound fair?” James stood there for a moment in thought. He crossed his arms and closed his eyes. The offer was straightforward. Straightforward, but not easy. “Give me two days. I can master this ability in two days.” Lancelot wanted to chime in that they still had no idea what they were doing, but he couldn’t speak human. And for what it’s worth, he wanted to try. He created a sword via Swords Dance to remind himself of his resolve. The Aether Foundation receptionist looked at the Scizor with a slight bit of annoyance. “Please don’t use moves in the lob-” he said cutting himself short. It hit him suddenly that the normal situation he found in front of him was an abnormal in its normalcy. “Don’t use… moves…” Several others turned in the room. Some gasped, a couple threw Poke Balls on the ground to try out moves of their own. All had their attention on James and Lancelot at the moment. “It seems you have attracted some attention Lancelot. We may have to go now, is my offer sufficient?” Colress nodded, smiling at the Executive. “It is, Executive Arthur.” The man said, sounding as excited as he could without breaking his facade of calmness. “I’ve waited a long time to see further proof of my studies. Two days mean absolutely nothing compared to that.” “In that case,” James said, Lancelot already starting to move. People were starting to close in and James had a deadline now. They needed to leave before they got caught up in people’s questions. Such was the reason the pair bolted from the room, and began jumping down the stairs to get away from people chasing them from the room.

IC: Guinevere - Stacy’s Mansion Don Leodegrance and Guinevere were hugging in the entrance hall to Stacy’s mansion. One of Stacy’s employees was chasing out some of the Grimer that had come with Guinevere and Natalie back to the mansion. The smell was only bearble by those who had lived in a sewer. I will be back soon, Papa, Guinevere said breaking of the hug. Leodegrance had a sad smile on his face. It had been nice to be able to visit Guin, even if it was just for a little while. His smile faded after a bit, and he started to talk again. Hey, princess, I got a favor to ask. Guinevere looked at the Muk quizzically, What is it, Papa? The Muk’s slimy hand rubbed the top of the mound of filth he called a head. Y’see, right around when you showed up here, a fellow washed up here and we’ve been integrating him into our gang. It’s not going so well. He… well… here I’ll bring him here, he said sending one of the remaining Grimer into the sewers. A minute passed with some small talk, before the Grimer returned, a second one following him. The second fellow was green, with a yellow lip. The green Grimer had a small bit of scowl on his face. You’re sending me with her? he said, with a tone of disbelief. She looks like such a priss. Leodegrance glared at the Grimer who backed down. He could use some manners. Do you think you could help? Guinevere looked at the Grimer for a moment before smiling. Do not worry, I do not think he will be a problem? He reminds me of… I think we will get along fine. Leodegrance looked straight Guin for a moment before nodding. Thanks, I wouldn’t ask you if I didn’t think you could do it. Oh! By the way, got you a gift. The other Grimer who had arrived with the green Grimer, revealed a pink backpack. It’s secondhand and could use some love, but I think you could use something to hold stuff if well… It’s just a good thing to have, alright? She didn’t like how it looked. It was way too pink, the Skitty head that made up the top pocket was tacky and the paint was faded and peeling and yet… I love it, thank you Papa.

IC: Jamie Arthur - Prism Tower Jamie didn’t wait for Clemont to finish talking before pulling out a Poke Ball and slamming it to the ground. Pelleas stretched his body. He didn’t feel his powers, but he could recognize when Jamie wanted to fight. If she wanted him to fight, she only need point him in the right direction. “I was waiting for you to ask,” Jamie said, sporting a happy grin on her face. “I do not know much about all that stuff, but I am always ready for a battle.”