Konuju

IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton - Keturi City, Four Island "Olive." Dahlia laughed. "Don't say that to her face, or the only olives you'll be seeing are the ones on my sister's premium knuckle sandwich." The middle Seaton left Xander to his shame and fell into step next to Lachina. "You said we'd be buying potions and such. But our Pokémon can't fight like they used to, can they? With all the powered humans in our group, don't you think it'd make more sense to invest in a first aid kit or human medicines?" While the others laughed over Xander's trouble at remembering names, Ryan and Chloe lagged a few paces behind. If the girl was still flustered about her previous mishap with directions, she didn't show it. Ryan looked over at her. "Thanks for what you did for Ellen back there," he said quietly. "She really needed that. I . . . I don't think I ever realized just how bad you had it in Unova. I mean, you had always seemed so confident before, I guess I just assumed you'd shrug it off. Jumping to the wrong conclusion seems to be my forte lately. But having seen Ellen shut herself out and take on so much pain and guilt . . ." Silence lingered in the air for a moment as Ryan stared off into the distance. "I guess you could say there's a bit of that lost and broken child in all of us. We just try to cope with it in different ways." He let out a long, steady breath and started to retreat back into his own thoughts. Before he could get too far, a question sprung to his lips. "How were you able to recover from everything that happened with your father?" He looked over at her for a moment before turning away. "Sorry, I don't mean to pry. I understand if you'd rather not talk about it." IC: Zoe Llyan - Forest, Four Island Zoe was not about to let herself be left behind in a dense forest. Esmeralda and Merida followed closely as Zoe ran to catch up to the definitely-not-sick Space Princess. The young girl had enough on her mind already without worrying about some little cough. Like her next encounter with Collie. In spite of Jenny's infallible optimism, Zoe knew her reunion with her sister would be wrought with awkward tension and lots of tears. A lesser being would balk at the thought of having that conversation. But it was thanks to the heroic Space Princess that Zoe found the confidence to do what needed to be done. Wait for me, Collie. She gripped her chest where her locket should have been, her reddened eyes drained of tears yet filled with a newfound determination. I'll make this right.

IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton - Keturi City, Four Island Ryan couldn't believe his ears. "We're already here, I don't think we should be wasting time on a shopping spree." He turned to Jared, Chloe, and Dahlia for support. "There's being cautious, and there's being paranoid. We don't need to justify our reasoning if we've caught the perpetrators." "Normally I'd agree with you, Ryan." Dahlia frowned. "But Xander and Lachina are right; if things go south we don't want to be caught without an alibi, nor would we want to risk divulging Kyle's involvement. Besides," the gardener put on a grin. "I could use some shopping." That was half the human members of the group. Ryan looked at Sylph. "Do you agree with Xander?" he asked desperately. IC: Zoe Llyan - Forest, Four Island "If you have a cold, we should get you some medicine." While Jenny had managed to calm Zoe's initial fright, the young girl was still shaken. It slowly dawned on her that if the older girl got too sick to continue, Zoe had no idea where they were or how to get help. Ignoring her panicked thoughts, she carefully tried to lead Jenny in the direction the Scizor had gone. "My mom has some medicine she always gives me when I have a bad cough. It should help. You'll be alright." Her words were to assure herself as much as the unsteady Space Princess.

IC: Zoe Llyan - Forest, Four Island "The aftermath of everything . . ." Zoe pondered those words for a long moment. Sounds of the forest filled the silence -- the rustling of the wind through the trees before fluttering through the girls' hair, the distant song of a chorus of Pidgey, the soft crinkling of a fallen leaf Esmeralda had started to chew on. The sounds of nature helped clear her mind in a way that provided a comforting peace Zoe had not felt in a very long time. At long last she looked up at the brave, mysterious, and kind Space Princess. She who presented herself in a bombastic flair worthy of the Shooting-Star Dragon she rode, and yet had suddenly revealed herself to be more down to earth than anyone Zoe knew. She wasn't some infallible goddess from the stars -- she was a mere human, like Zoe, with her own problems and moments of weakness. And so was Collie. Perhaps, Zoe realized, she had held her sister up on an impossible pedestal. "If I apologize . . . do you think Collie will forgive me?" Zoe shook her head. "No, even if she doesn't, I have to tell her I'm sorry. I said some terrible things to her, and she doesn't deserve my . . ." Her breath caught in her throat and she stopped walking as she felt a knot form in her chest. "She doesn't deserve me." IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton - Keturi City Following the map on his Pokégear, Ryan led the group into the city before heading west to the industrial district. Flashing advertisements and bustling businesses gave way to warehouses and factories, and Dahlia quickly realized that most of the people in this area were workers. It was by no means a tourist attraction, and she feared six teenagers and a one-armed Gardevoir looked incredibly out of place. Ryan seemed to be leading them with enough purpose, for nobody stopped to ask the group if they were lost. Nevertheless, the knowledge that the poachers could be anywhere made Dahlia view everyone with an ounce of suspicion. It was unsettling for the middle Seaton, who was used to seeing the good in everybody, to suddenly find herself focusing on the bad. "So, um . . . what's the plan when we find these poachers?" she asked no one in particular. "Like Xander said, we're not really here on Liberty business, and half of us aren't even with Liberty, so do we even have the authority to place them under arrest?"

IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton - En Route to Keturi City, Four Island "I'm doing fine," Dahlia said. "Olivia would have come along with us, but she stayed back to talk to some Alolan government guy that showed up in the cafeteria. We all agree there was something weird about him, but Liv can handle herself." As they walked, Ryan quickened his pace to move next to Xander. "Any idea where we'll start looking, oh fearless leader?" he asked with a light chuckle. "If it was any other settlement on the island I'd suggest starting at the port, but Keturi sits pretty much dead center. Maybe we should check shipment logs at the airport?" IC: Ellen Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "You shouldn't be afraid to cry," Ellen said softly. She stepped toward Levi and looked into his puffy eyes. Hers, while not quite as bad, still carried residual redness. "You saw my breakdown earlier. Even with Chloe and Evan and everyone else trying to make me feel better, I can't help but cry. I'm still terrified, I'm worried sick, and I still feel guilt for the part I played in everything. I don't know if we'll ever recover from this. But within the sadness, within the pain, you have to remember one thing, Levi." Ellen reached out and placed both hands on the boy's shoulders and offered him a melancholy smile. "You are not alone." Her eyes glistened as she repeated herself with stronger conviction. "You are not alone. I know it's hard. I know you'd rather not think about it. But if you ever want to talk -- or if you need a shoulder to cry on -- know that I'm here for you." IC: Lyre Play/Moment Record - Theodore Willows/Ava Willows/Dack Majors/Madison Morrow/Jayron Aaron vs. Maulice (x2)/Leopyred/Harpreak/Minotore (x2)/Fraygrins/Phantashade - Kotahi Village, Beach "Distraction. I can do that." Theodore ran down the beach, waving his arms wildly to draw the Fraygrins away from the rest of the group. "Hey, Rosebud! What's with the freaky circle dance? You won't be grinning like that when I'm through with you!" "Theo, what do you think you're--" Ava gasped as the Harpreak's Air Slash slammed into her, knocking her down into the sand. "Don't worry, honey!" Theodore called out as he continued to egg the Fraygrins on. "I've got everything under control; you just worry about yourself." Ava groaned as she sat up, cursing her husband for his reckless strategy. Finding herself winded but relatively unharmed, she quickly scanned the rest of the battlefield. Jayron's Dragon-Dance-boosted speed had allowed him to dodge the Harpreak's attack and the executive was now responding with a Dragon Pulse aimed at the flying Instance. The Maulice were blinded, Apollo had been ordered to handle the Leopyred, and Goldhawk had paralyzed a Minotore. That left the other Minotore that had avoided paralysis. Placing one hand in the sand behind her to steady herself, Ava took aim at the second Minotore and fired a Toxic blast at the beast. Dack took a cautious step backward. "Be on your guard," he said. "There's no telling when or where that thing will pop out of whatever shadow realm it went into." "Or is there?" Madison scanned through her suit's list of protocols. When she found what she was looking for, she turned off her cloaking and reappeared at Dack's side. "There's no telling if this will work, but it's worth a try. I'll be back in a jiffy." Before Dack could protest, Madison's suit glowed with a ghostly power and she dropped down into her own shadow much like the Phantashade. An instant later the Ghost-Type suit's marker blinked out of his HUD. "Madison, come in!" Dack said through the comms. "Madison!" He took another step backward, casting a wary eye on the tiny shadows formed by the lumps of sand at his feet. He was not content to just stand there and wait for Madison or the Phantashade to emerge. Directing his attention to the rest of the battlefield, Dack noticed a hand full of Icicle Spears arcing through the air toward the Entry Guard and Valley Watch units positioned back in the city. That, he could handle. Turning around to take aim, he shot off a Flame Burst. With any luck the wide-ranging attack would take out a majority of the icicles before they reached their targets. IC: Madison Morrow - Phantom Plane She emerged in what appeared to be the same place. Her first thought was that the suit had malfunctioned. Then she noticed that the sixteen other suits displayed in her HUD had gone offline. Dack appeared to be yelling at her feet, but nothing came through the comms, and with his helmet on his words were too muffled to make out. That was when she realized the entire world had significantly dimmed, as if someone had set the sun on half-power. Colors were muted, shadows more intense. The sounds of battle reached her ears muted like Dack's voice, as if she were listening from the other side of a thick wall. A chill ran down her spine as she came to the conclusion that the Phantom Force protocol had worked after all. She was in another plane of existence. She had become a ghost. Madison's wonder at this dark, eerie world came to a halt when she spotted the Phantashade taking up a position behind Dack like a grim reaper about to strike. A shadowy tendril tethered the Instance back to the Missing Zero's core. "Dack, behind you!" Madison yelled. At first it looked like Dack had heard her. He turned around as if to face his ghostly assailant, but looked past it into the sky before shooting out bursts of flame. The fire contained no warmth and provided only minimal light as it sailed through the air. With a sinking feeling Madison realized she was all alone with the ghostly creature in this grim world. The Phantashade was already repositioning itself behind its target. Madison grit her teeth. "Not on my watch." Fear gave way to resolve, and Madison charged toward the Instance with all her might. Dark claws erupted out of her clenched fists -- courtesy of the Shadow Claw protocol -- and with a vicious scream she dove at the Phantashade with every intent to impale it. OOC: Theodore: "taunt" -> Fraygrins Ava (+1 Atk, +1 Def, +1 Accuracy +1 Sp. Def): Toxic -> Minotore 2 Jayron: (+1 Atk, +1 Spd): Dragon Pulse -> Harpreak Dack: Flame Burst -> Icicle Spears Madison (in Phantom Plane): Phantom Force -> enter Phantom Plane; Shadow Claw -> Phantashade

IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton - The Alamo, Four Island "Are all your friends like this?" Dahlia was about to remark on Xander's stunningly accurate Evan Tierra impersonation, but the arrival of a certain Ranger pushed all thoughts of Xander from her mind. "Lachina! How've you been? I bet arresting poachers and saving the day is all second nature to you, huh? Maybe you could give us some tips." Ryan studied the new arrival currently chatting it up with Dahlia. She seemed awfully young to be an official Ranger, but he felt a dissenting opinion from him would not be taken kindly. Besides, she was clearly friends with Dahlia, and Jared seemed confident enough in her abilities. He shrugged and glanced over at Chloe. "I'm fine with it if you are."

IC: Zoe Llyan - Forest, Four Island Zoe took the woman's hand and let her lead her through the trees. Esmeralda and Merida trailed closely behind, keeping just enough distance to give their trainer the space they felt she needed. Zoe retreated into her own thoughts for a time, and they had traveled a fair distance in silence before she spoke up. "Do you ever get into fights with any of your siblings?" The moment the question left her lips, Zoe realized that she didn't know if the Space Princess even had any brothers or sisters. She quickly added an addendum. "Or with Mr. Ex-Hero Space Guy?" IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton - Hallway, The Alamo Dahlia giggled at Jared's reaction to Sylph speaking. "I agree," she said as the conversation turned back to Lohe. "It's out of our hands now. We can ask the others if they noticed anything suspicious when we get back, but until then there's no point in worrying over it." Ryan kept quiet, his eyes trained on Jared. The aura wielder was just trying to raise his concerns, and Ryan had turned it into an opportunity to find dirt on the guy. It felt like his quarrel with Ray all over again. Was he really that petty? Ryan stared down at his feet and let the others continue their conversation without him. He had already proven he had nothing constructive to add.

IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton - Hallway, The Alamo "Rather quick to judge him, aren't you, Jared?" The words were already out of Ryan's mouth before he realized what he'd said, and he quickly bit his tongue before he could continue down that train of thought. "I-I mean, I'll admit he was unusual, but let's not go leaping to conclusions here." The Liberty agent fell silent as he mulled over the irony of his own words. "I didn't say anything at the time, but Asriel seemed nervous of him," Dahlia said, looking down at the Absol's Pokéball in her hand. "It could just be paranoia, but I certainly hope Liv, Sonja, and Mr. Burks don't get into any trouble with him." IC: Zoe Llyan - Forest, The Alamo "I don't know how I feel," Zoe said after a long silence. "I don't know what to think. Collie's the one who can read emotions; I can't even read my own. Is it possible to love someone so much you hate them, or to hate them so much you love them? It hurts me when she pushes me away, yet just now I pushed her away without a second thought." She looked up at Jenny. "I bet if she was feeling better, I just made things worse, didn't I?"

IC: Zoe Llyan - Forest, Four Island "W-well . . . not exactly . . ." she stammered, turning slightly defensive at the insinuation that the entire argument had been nothing but a misunderstanding on her part. "Still, Collie knew I had been trying to talk with her ever since she came back, she could've at least told me she was feeling better. I-it's like she didn't want anything to do with me!" Defensiveness led to anger. Zoe felt better having someone to blame, even if that someone was her own sister. IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo Dahlia nodded to her sister, then turned back to Ryan. "I appreciate the offer, but if Olivia's staying behind, that frees me up to go on with you guys. Besides, you were hoping to see me use my powers in the field, weren't you?" Her giggle threw Ryan off guard, and she left him fumbling for words and unable to find any before she had walked past him. "Alright then, Jared. Xander. We'd better hurry before Chloe leaves us all in the dust." Paul ignored the man's words and looked to Sonja to lead them. She was one who likely knew where the conference room was, after all.

IC: Zoe Llyan - Forest, Four Island "I don't know . . ." Zoe continued to grip the space her locket should have been. "I'd say things got pretty bad." She let out a sigh and looked up at the Space Princess. "You were on that mission with Collie, weren't you? Did you stay in your room for days afterwards? Cause that's what Collie did. And then when she did get better, she totally ignored me and went to go hang out with her new friends instead. I-is it wrong for me to be jealous of them? Is it wrong to hate them for stealing Collie away . . . and to hate Collie for ignoring me?" IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo Levi's panic explained why Ryan hated the idea of leaving Ellen and the others better than any words could have. But he trusted Kyle enough to handle Levi, and he trusted Sonja enough to handle this Alolan government official. "Alright then, we'll leave you to it. Come on, Dahlia. You don't have to worry about Kyle and Sonja." "They're not the ones I'm worried about . . ." Dahlia muttered under her breath. Ever since Lohe had appeared, Asriel had appeared tense, like he usually did when sensing upcoming disasters. Dahlia knew that was impossible now, her Absol's clairvoyance gone with the rest of Pokémon powers, but it was enough to give her second thoughts about just leaving Sonja to keep Paul's anger under control. "Chloe?" Ryan said. "You still up for joining us? We're ready when you are." "Same goes for you, 'Liv." Dahlia recalled Asriel to his Pokéball and cast aside her doubts to extend a smile to her older sister. She knew she couldn't help out everywhere at once, so she would have to defer to Ryan's judgement. "You're welcome to stay back if you want, but if you want to join our little investigation, I can explain everything on the way." Ellen had been sure of her decision to speak with Lohe, but Levi's outburst made her hesitate. She silently watched the boy cry into Kyle's arms, barely paying attention to the others deciding on what they would do. Unlike herself, Levi didn't have the strong support network she did. Even the exuberant Evan Tierra had terrified the boy upon introducing himself. Ellen had Evan, Xander, Chloe, and pretty much everyone else at the table lending her their support, wanting to help her get through this. Levi only had Kyle, and two distant parents more concerned with running their country (or in this case, saving it) than comforting their own son. Ellen had faced Unovan Legends, Ancient Darkrai, and the destruction of Sootopolis, and the Missing Zero still traumatized her. She couldn't begin to imagine how badly it had affected Levi. The girl looked over at Sonja. "I don't think there's much I can tell Mr. Mahina that you couldn't already," she said quietly. She looked back toward Kyle. "If you don't mind . . . I'd like to stay with Levi. He needs me more than you do." Paul glanced from Kyle to Lohe. As much as he hated to admit it, there was nothing he could do to help the boy. "I'll go with Sonja, then," he said, casting a hard look on the Alolan. "No offense, but until we know we can trust you, I don't think we should leave you alone with anyone." Dahlia tugged on Ryan's shirt. "That leaves Sonja as the only one standing between Paul and this Lohe guy," she said in a low voice. "Are you sure we shouldn't have someone else stay back?" Ryan turned and met Dahlia's deep blue eyes. He held her gaze and let out a sigh. "If it's really bothering you that much, then you can stay back." He knew better than to tell her what she could or couldn't do. "The rest of us can manage without you." IC: Lyre Play/Moment Record - Theodore Willows/Ava Willows/Dack Majors/Madison Morrow/Jayron Aaron vs. Maulice (x2)/Leopyred/Harpreak/Minotore (x2)/Fraygrins/Phantashade - Kotahi Village, Beach Dack swore at the sight of the wall of red. "That blob from the egg -- the Missing Zero's core -- I thought it had just sent its Instances here." "That's what you faced in that egg?" Madison asked. She stared up at the gelatinous mass, trying very hard not to tremble. "It looks unstoppable . . ." "Focus on the Instances for now." Jayron pointed to the eight new creatures emerging from the core. "And the fact Tier Climb and Echo Order are down. We don't know what happened to them, and until we do we cannot let these things leave the beach." "Man, cut off one Instance and two more take its place." Theodore let out a low whistle. "What are we looking at here? Two killer snowmen, a fire cat, a flying-type, grass-type, ghost-type, and I'm not sure about those other two." He glanced down the beach where Moment Record had gathered. "Eight of them, seven of us. Something tells me we don't want to take these guys out quickly." "Then you keep the overgrown Roserade busy," Ava said. "I'll make sure Birdman here stays grounded." Taking aim with the cartridges on her gauntlet, Ava fired a Gunk Shot up at the Harpreak before it could fly into the city. Theodore stepped towards the monster plant, his hands glowing with the power of a Moonblast. "Fairy versus Flower," he said as he waited for the creature to make a move. "Looks like it's time to mow the lawn." "Madison, stay away from the Grim Creeper over there," Dack warned as he approached the ghostly Instance. "We'll see how much it likes playing with fire." He activated the Will-O-Wisp protocol and sent a handful of flames toward the creature's long billowing cloak. "Don't worry, Dack. It won't even know I'm here." Madison reactivated her cloaking module and carefully stepped around Dack to fire a Confuse Ray at his foe. "Careful, Madison," Jayron said. "Don't forget your footprints are still clearly visible in the sand." The executive scanned the new instances, and noticed someone from Lyre Play had fired what looked like a poison move on the Harpreak. He scanned his HUD for the poison suit user's name. "Ms. Willows, I'll assist with the Harpreak," he said through the comms. The Twister protocol created a draconic whirlwind beneath the flying Instance that would hopefully throw it further off balance after Ava's attack. OOC: Previous stat boosts from this post. Ava (+1 Atk, +1 Def, +1 Accuracy, +1 Sp. Def): Gunk Shot -> Harpreak Theodore: Moonblast charging, approaching Fraygrins Dack: Will-O-Wisp -> Phantashade Madison (cloaking module activated): Confuse Ray -> Phantashade Jayron (+1 Atk, +1 Spd): Twister -> Harpreak

IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "Well here's a solution for you," Paul said. "If you're Alolan government, maybe you'd have more luck speaking to the Rocket government or Liberty leaders, not lurking around a cafeteria spying on people!" The man's tired, dismissive attitude toward the whole situation irritated Paul to no end, and were it not for the others keeping him at bay he would have grabbed Ellen and left then and there. Much to his surprise, it was his daughter's voice that rose above the growing tension. "Stop fighting, everyone!" she cried. Paul looked at her. "Ellen, we're not--" "I'm the one you want, Mr. Mahina." The girl stepped forward; any apprehension she felt was masked by the grim look on her face. "I'll tell you everything you want to know . . . everyone deserves to know what's coming." "Ellen, you don't have to do this if you don't want to." Ryan looked at the young girl with concern. Moments ago she had been in a fit of tears. Was recounting her trauma really the best idea right now? "The rest of us can fill this Mahina guy in on the present situation. You should go with your father and start packing for your return to Unova." "Don't you have a poaching situation to look into?" Ellen's tone was not rude, but her words stung nonetheless. "He's looking for answers, and I have an intimate knowledge of what happened. You don't have to worry about me." Ryan glanced around at Chloe, Xander, and Dahlia, silently asking if they were okay with leaving the others with this Alolan government official. Dahlia appeared hesitant to leave. "Are you sure we can trust them to not just start arguing as soon as we leave?" she asked quietly.

IC: Zoe Llyan - Forest, Four Island "O-oh. You, uh, heard that?" Zoe clutched at her locket out of instinct, as she always did when she was nervous, but her hand gripped thin air. She brought her empty fist to her chest and felt the rapid drumming of her heart. Her head hung in shame, and tears threatened to flood her eyes once more. "C-Collie, she . . ." Her voice caught in her throat. "Do you think she hates me now . . . ?" IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "You most certainly may not." Paul stood up and looked about ready to vault over the table should he need to place himself between this newcomer and his daughter. "Don't you know it's rude to eavesdrop on other people's conversations?" A quick glance at the man's exhausted demeanor gave Paul reason to question how he had managed to overhear Ellen in the first place, but he wasn't in the mood to ponder such trivialities. "You're right, this isn't the best time. So why don't you back off and keep your nose out of other people's business?!" Ryan swiftly moved to place himself between Paul and the strange, unkempt-looking man, and extended an arm to prevent Ellen's father from doing something he'd regret. "Hey, now. Let's not lose our heads." Even as he spoke, Ryan cast a wary glance at the newcomer. He was well aware of the dangers of acting on heightened emotions, but he had also faced too many crises in the past few days to warrant trusting this guy. Up until now, the knowledge of exactly how Pokémon had lost their power had been limited to those who had been at the egg, their close friends, and the higher ups at Rocket and Liberty. If word spread to the public that Ellen, Levi, Sonja and the other Children were partially responsible, the outpouring of hatred that would ensue would likely cause more emotional trauma than the Missing Zero itself. The memory of Executive Arthur threatening to lock up Sonja was still fresh in Ryan's mind. Ellen and Levi for sure did not need the public blaming them for McKinley's treachery. Innocent though his query may be, this newcomer set Ryan on edge, and despite his words of caution to Paul it was all the Liberty agent could do to not let his fears get the best of him. It seemed to Dahlia that one emotional conflict couldn't be stamped out without another taking its place. She stepped forward with Ryan and Paul to try and prevent the newcomer from undoing what Evan, Xander, and Chloe had done to help Ellen. But her eyes darted past the hunching man toward a streak of flaming red hair. The gardener's mouth dropped open. "Olivia?" she called out as her sister approached the table. "Do you know this guy?"

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Cafeteria, The Alamo Dahlia smiled back, a smile that failed to hide her concern. She didn't like Aspen just ducking out on her like that, but she knew the others were waiting on her. "Take care, Aspen. I'll see you soon." As the siblings went their separate ways, Dahlia pulled out her device to send a short message to Olivia. She briefly explained that Aspen was out of the hospital but that she was busy at the moment, and then asked Olivia if she could check in on Aspen in her stead. Once the message was sent, she looked back up at the group. "Sorry about that, Aspen needed some fresh air. It looks like we're about ready to go?" Ryan nodded. "Chloe will be joining us too." He cast a glance at Sonja and Kyle. "Anyone else?" IC: Zoe Llyan - A Dark Forest, Not So Alone Zoe nodded slowly, still trying to decide how she knew this girl. "I-I'll be fine . . . I think." The moment she was free from the vines, Esmeralda crawled into her lap and began searching Zoe for any obvious signs of injury. Zoe looked down at her hands, covered in dirt from her fall, and realized her face probably didn't look any better. Wiping her face on her sleeve produced a disturbingly potent collection of dirt, sweat, and tears. Zoe hadn't broken anything in the fall, but her muscles still ached from running, so she slowly scooted over to a nearby tree and propped herself up against it. Now that she was up, she had a better look at the girl with the Scizor. ". . . You're the Space Princess, aren't you? What are you doing all the way out here?"

IC: Zoe Llyan - A Dark Forest, All Alone Zoe would have screamed, but her breath caught in her throat. Her leg was stuck, her heart was pounding, and her muscles were weak. There was no getting out of this. The universe had sent a demon from the netherworld to punish her for being a horrible sister, nay, a horrible person. She closed her eyes and waited for the inevitable end. Esmeralda would have none of it. Baring her fangs, the Fennekin charged forward and bit down on the hand outstretched toward her trainer. She might not have had her usual firepower, but Esmeralda was about to prove her bite was still worse than her bark. Digging her tiny paws into the dirt, she tried to drag the hand away before it could harm Zoe.

IC: Ryan Sanders/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo The moment seemed to stretch into eternity. It was as if Ellen didn't want to let go of Chloe for fear that the moment she did her hopelessness would return. Everyone at the table seemed to be deep in thought, if not focused on Ellen's plight, than on the battle raging on Kyle's laptop. For his part, Paul reflected on just how many friends his daughter had amassed and just how much they cared about her. Way back in Fortree he had been moved by the overwhelming response to rescue Ellen. But to see their interactions in action, to see them do everything in their power to comfort a girl who seemed broken beyond healing . . . it was enough to bring a tear to the burly blacksmith's eye. He had initially berated the Hero of Space for speaking of battle, but Paul Burks found himself hoping Evan's conviction would prove fruitful, that they would be able to defeat this Missing Zero. Paul looked forward to the day he could bring his entire family to Four Island and reunite Ellen with her wonderful friends. At long last Ellen pulled back from the embrace. She smiled softly at Chloe through glistening eyes. Ryan chose that moment to break the silence. "Um . . . so Xander and I were going to go look into that Pokémon trafficking thing in Keturi. Any of you interested in tagging along? We've already got Jared and . . ." He looked around the group. "Where's Dahlia?" IC: Dahlia Seaton - Cafeteria, The Alamo The middle Seaton had slipped away from the group the moment she saw Aspen making his leave. It wasn't that hard to catch up to a kid on crutches. "Hey." She spoke softly, placing a hand on her brother's shoulder. "Don't blame yourself for setting Ellen on edge. She's been through a lot, and you had no idea. I'm sorry I didn't tell you everything earlier, I just . . . well, to be honest I've had a rough time sifting through everything myself." For a moment her hand clenched on Aspen's shoulder as she flashed back to her shattered reflection in a broken mirror, but the moment passed and she relaxed. "I'm glad to see they let you out of the hospital." She smiled. "How are you feeling?" IC: Theodore Willows/Ava Willows - One Island Beach "This will make a good stage," Richard remarked. "I don't know about that," Ava said. "I prefer to fight on solid ground. This sand will hinder our mobility." Theodore stepped forward, looking out across the red-tinted ocean. His eyes narrowed. "Still, better to fight off the Instances here where they're only coming from one direction than further inland where they can surround us." He looked over to Goldhawk. "What's the plan of attack, sir? Just hold down the beach for as long as possible?" IC: Dack Majors/Madison Morrow/Jayron Aaron - Kotahi Village, One Island "Oh, thank goodness," Madison said when she saw the new display in her HUD. "It was a nightmare trying to keep track of PS-2 and T-9000. Dack, I don't know how you survived all those years with Team Rocket." "I knew a girl once who followed protocols to a T," Dack muttered. "She ended up going crazy and attacking Sootopolis and Celadon. Moral of the story, protocols make you lose your mind." "Less chatting, you two, more running!" Jayron called back as he led the way through the abandoned street. "You sure they don't need backup?" Dack asked. "I'm itching to melt some killer snowmen." "They've got it covered." Jayron did not slow his pace, sparing only a glance behind them to make sure they weren't being followed. "Our job is to rout the enemy at the beach and prevent any reinforcements from getting into the city." "So we can't let them breach the beach." Madison grinned. "Mission accepted." The trio arrived on the sandy shore unhindered. Goldhawk's team was already in position further west. Jayron activated his comms. "Jayron to Goldhawk. Moment Record is in position and ready to assist." IC: Zoe Llyan - Four Island Zoe burst out of the Alamo and ran into the woods. Her vision blurred with tears and thorny undergrowth tore at her arms and legs. Rage fueled her muscles and agony directed her steps toward some unknown destination. Perhaps she could outrun the pain that tore at her aching heart. Why was it that everything she did ended in disaster? First Ellen, now her own sister. It was a vicious cycle of anger and regret, and it seemed she could only sink further into despair. Her feet became tangled, whether in themselves or over a thick root she couldn't be sure, and her stomach lurched as she crashed to the ground. She lay there, stunned. All of her energy had been spent running, and she found she didn't have the strength or motivation to pick herself up. The dirt on her face turned to salty mud as she sobbed uncontrollably. Esmeralda and Merida had barely been able to keep up with their trainer, and it was only when she became incapacitated that they were able to catch up to her side. She ignored their every attempt to comfort her, so they positioned themselves on either side of her, acting as ever-faithful guardians. It was the Fennekin who first realized they weren't alone. Her ears picked up the sound of snapping twigs. She peered through the trees and tensed, ready to defend Zoe if necessary.

IC: Zoe Llyan - Hallway, The Alamo Esmeralda gave a timid whimper, but the Llyans' frustration was terribly contagious. Just like how in the past, one sister's silliness would egg on the other, now both of their raised voices only fueled each other's rage. "Why should you care what I was up to last night?" Zoe shot back. "Maybe you'd know if you'd actually been there for me instead of playing with all your little boat friends! You can't just abandon me whenever you feel like it and then act like everything's perfectly fine between us!" Zoe's face burned red with anger and her hand instinctively gripped the locket she wore around her neck. Heavy breaths pierced the would-be silence before her voice turned icily cold. "But I guess you always were an aura wielder before you were a sister." The thin metal chain snapped under the strain, and for a brief moment time slowed to a crawl. Zoe felt the broken halves snake their way across opposite sides of her neck, clinging to her for as long as they could before falling away into oblivion. Then she tore her eyes away from her sister's, threw the locket to the ground, and stormed off before she could succumb to tears. IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo The Missing Zero was still out there, bent on consuming the world. Nothing had actually changed. And yet between Xander, Evan, and Chloe (and the infallible cheerfulness of Ellen the Eevee), Ellen felt as if a small part of a great burden had been lifted from her shoulders. It still hurt. All her pain, anger, guilt, and sorrow remained. Yet for the first time since that terrible day on Two Island, Ellen didn't feel alone. The Eevee tumbled from her lap as Ellen got up and threw her arms around Chloe. Words could not do her flood of emotions justice, so she simply sobbed into the older girl's shoulder and held her tight. Ryan, having now recovered from his post-teleportation disorientation, looked over at Chloe with a newfound admiration. This was a new vulnerable side of her he wasn't used to seeing. He had never fully realized just how hard the events in Unova had hit her. Chloe's burden, while greater in scale, seemed shockingly similar to his own. He made a mental note to talk to her about that sometime. It seemed foolish now that they had wasted so much time butting heads over something as petty as team leader.

IC: Zoe Llyan - Hallway, The Alamo "What's my problem?!" Zoe shot back with a tone sharper than her sister's. "What's your problem? You spend days cooped up in your room refusing to talk to anyone, then the moment you feel better you leave to go hang out with your new friends and show off your new clothes! I know you're trying to catch someone's eye. Why else would you wear something so . . . so . . ." She made a vague gesture at the skirt. "so girly?" IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo The Eevee grinned at Evan's enthusiasm and Xander's compliments, and she crawled up to lick away Ellen's tears. "So," the girl said with a soft smile as the Eevee's tongue tickled her cheeks. "Your name is Ellen?" Paul had watched the heated exchange in silence, his eyes fixated on his daughter's tears. Even as he spoke, his gaze never wavered. "I appreciate what you're trying to do, Evan. But my daughter doesn't need a constant reminder of what's out there. Only time can heal her scars, and even then . . ." Still stroking the Eevee's fur, Ellen looked up at Xander then across the table at Evan, the latter still holding his dynamically inspirational pose. "You've always had such great confidence, Evan." A wry smile formed at her lips. "Sophia would call you a fool for clinging to such hope. Xander's right . . . I do care about you all. Which is why it pains me so much to see you risk your lives fighting a monster I helped bring into this world."

IC: Zoe Llyan - Hallway, The Alamo Esmeralda barked happily when she spotted Colette. Merida tugged on Zoe's shirt to draw her attention to her sister. But Zoe, in a manner about as uncharacteristic as her sister's more casual style choice, was decidedly not happy to see her. She clenched a fist and scowled. "Shouldn't you be hanging out with your new friends?" she asked, refusing to turn around and face her sister. "I'm sure you're eager to hear them complement you on your fancy new clothes. Well you'll get no praise from me, so you might as well just leave me alone!"

IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo The moment Ryan appeared he stumbled into the side of the table and clutched it with a grimace while he waited for the world to stop spinning, all the while trying not to hurl his breakfast over everyone else's. Ellen the Eevee gave a small yelp as her body hit the ground, but Ryan didn't seem to notice. When at last the nauseous feeling subsided, Ryan jerked his head toward his companion. "A little warning next time?" The sudden appearance of Ryan and Xander took Dahlia by surprise, but Aspen's question demanded her attention. She chewed her lip as she tried to think of the best way to explain the events on Two Island. "McKinley happened," she said simply. It was like the breath had been drawn out of the room. Dahlia hesitantly continued, choosing her words carefully so as to not upset Ellen or Levi. "You see, we all went on the mission trying to stop Ford, but it was really McKinley who we should've been trying to stop. He betrayed Ford, and brought about the very thing Ford had been trying to prevent." Ellen slammed her fork down on her plate. "Stop sugarcoating it!" she yelled angrily. "You're acting like you just had a minor mishap. You want to know what really happened? Tyler turned himself into a monster and made Ford drain all Pokémon of their abilities! Then in the moment we were most vulnerable he summoned a massive, shapeless, horrific creature that will not rest until it has devoured this world entirely! And don't forget the most important part: I helped him do it! Now people are risking their lives trying to delay the inevitable. Is that enough detail for you?" A stunned silence filled the table. Ellen pretended to stare at the video feed but in reality she was fighting back bitter tears. A soft yip sounded from below the table at Ellen's feet. With some hesitation she looked down and a fluffy Eevee smiled up at her. Then without warning the furball tried to leap into Ellen's lap, but evidently forgot she was under a table and wound up banging her head on the table's hard underside, eliciting a pathetic whine as she fell back to the ground. Against her better judgement, Ellen leaned down to pick up the Eevee, cradling it in her arms. At first she thought it was Saya, but this Eevee was far less scrawny than the one she and Aspen had found in Sootopolis. She mulled it over as she quietly stroked the Eevee's fur, forgetting the pain from Two Island for the moment. IC: Zoe Llyan - Four Island As far as lazy Saturday mornings went, this was by far the laziest. By the time Zoe had woken up, her sister and parents were already gone, probably on important Liberty stuff. She sleepily shuffled down the stairs to fix herself some breakfast, only to find that they were out of milk. Not desperate enough to attempt cooking an omelet without burning the kitchen down, Zoe instead retired to the living room couch, where she curled up with a blanket and flipped on the television. Nothing grabbed her attention. With a sigh, she turned the television off and sat in silence, listening to the rhythmic ticking of the clock. Her mind kept going back to that girl in the cafeteria. She had looked so defeated, as if she deserved the beating Zoe had given her. It would have been better if she'd resisted or fought back. But by doing nothing, Ellen had wounded Zoe far more than any physical blow would have done. Guilt pained her like a kick to the stomach, sapping away her motivation. Esmeralda and Merida tugged at the hem of her pajamas, begging Zoe to play with them. In a cruel twist of irony Zoe saw herself in them, begging a lethargic Collie to play. With a belabored sigh, the girl went upstairs to change, then led her Pokémon outside. Zoe's feet wandered in one direction, her mind in another. Esmeralda and Merida frolicked behind her, happy to be out of the house, but she paid them no mind. It should have been a beautiful day, but Zoe's spirits remained dampened. It felt like the entire world had more important things to worry about than the wants of a twelve-year-old girl, for when she reached the Alamo the only people she found within the fortress' empty halls seemed to be racing from one end of the compound to the other as if their lives depended on it. Her earlier decision to leave the kitchen untarnished at the expense of breakfast now reared its ugly head in the form of a different kind of pain in her stomach. She made her way to the Alamo's cafeteria and began to load up a tray with food. She was going to find an isolated corner to enjoy breakfast with her Pokémon when she saw them. Ellen Burks sat at the center of a large crowd of people, sporting her blackened eye for the sole purpose of taunting Zoe. The girl's father was among the crowd, his Papa Beartic nature concealed behind a friendly smile. Last, but far from least, Zoe spotted her sister in an uncharacteristically cute outfit, her trademark Dog Ears hairstyle abandoned for a common Ponyta-inspired one. There they were, an unrecognizable Collie and the girl that had stolen her from Zoe, crowding around a table like nothing was wrong. Zoe abruptly turned around and dumped her food in the nearest trashcan, much to Merida's dismay. Quick as a Ninjask, she slipped out of the cafeteria before anyone could notice her. Once again, she had lost her appetite. OOC: It feels really awkward to say this here, but Happy Birthday Zoe.

IC: Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "A success," Ellen said bitterly. "That's one way of putting it." Dahlia could feel the tension rising, and knew she had to act. Meditation was still new to her, but mediation was something she was all too familiar with, especially when it came to her brother. "We got Ellen back," she said in a seemingly pleasant tone that carried a stern warning. "And Sonja, and the others. That's what matters." Ellen stared back down at her food, having no desire to continue this conversation. Dahlia sighed and looked back to Jared. "Meet my little brother Aspen. Aspen, this is my friend Jared. I promise he wasn't trying to belittle you by carrying your food. He only wanted to help."

IC: Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo While Dahlia spoke with Levi, the gardener's Absol padded around the table to peer at Ellen. The girl turned in her seat to stare back at the dark furred Pokémon. "You . . ." she muttered. "You're the Absol from Lilycove and Sootopolis." The creature somberly bowed his head. "You tried to warn me . . . you knew this would happen." Asriel's eyes narrowed and his teeth bared, but his anger seemed mostly directed at himself. "I understand," Ellen said softly. "You see disasters coming, but find yourself powerless to stop them. Many would call your gift a curse. And now you really are powerless . . ." The Absol glanced over at Dahlia, then back to Ellen. The girl furrowed her brow. "I don't understand. What are you--" Asriel gently raised his paw and rested a sharp claw on Ellen's chest. Their eyes met, his filled with an immense sadness and resignation borne from years of precognition, hers clouded with confusion. "A-are you trying to tell me . . . the disaster you saw wasn't that creature, but--" A familiar sent wafted through the cafeteria, and Asriel turned his attention from Ellen to stare past the crowded table. Ellen followed his gaze. "Um, Dahlia?" she spoke up. "When did your brother get crutches?" "What?" The gardener was forced to pull her attention away from Levi. She saw Aspen in the guise of a typical brooding teenager refusing to interact with his peers, and she would not stand for it. "Aspen!" she gave her brother a friendly wave, although her voice carried a hint of authority. "Why didn't you tell me you were out of the hospital? Stop sulking over there and come join us!"

IC: Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "I don't think Team Liberty has any interest in your book, even if it did belong to Miss Adams." Dahlia took a seat across from Levi and extended a warm smile to the timid boy. She could tell Levi was anxious, so she did her best to speak gently with the same tender care she used when replanting young saplings. "I'm Dahlia, by the way. Nice to meet you. That book must remind you a lot of Miss Adams, huh? What was it about, if you don't mind me asking?" IC: Dack Majors/Madison Morrow/Jayron Aaron/Theodore Willows/Ava Willows - Kotahi Village, One Island "Moment Record, head further east. We'll take one street further down than EP-3." Jayron began to lead the way, but paused when he only saw Dack following him. "Where's your girlfriend?" "I'm here!" a voice called out on the comms. "This is MR-something-or-other . . . uh . . . this is Agent Morrow. I've got cloaking turned on but you should be able to detect my location with your suit." "Agent?" The incredulous look on Dack's face went unseen behind his visor. A quick scan of the suit -- or a quick scan of aura in Jayron's case -- revealed Madison had never left Dack's side. "Alright then, keep close, Morrow." Jayron turned and continued to lead the way to the designated street. "While cloaking is certainly advantageous, it will also make it harder for us to help you should you find yourself in trouble. Also keep in mind that constant cloaking will drain your suit's power faster than normal." Madison flickered into view. "Yeah, I didn't think of that. Sorry. I'll stay visible until we actually get into a fight." "Man, who comes up with these names?" Theodore muttered through the comms as he scanned through the updated index. "You'd almost believe these were real Pokémon if it weren't for those umbilical power cables." "Just be glad we don't have to keep calling them Thing 1 and Thing 2," Ava snapped. "We've got enough of that as it is." She turned her attention to Goldhawk. "This is LP-1 and LP-2, we're right behind you, sir. LP-4, do you copy? What's your position?"

IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "I'm Jared, Dahlia's . . ." Boyfriend? The thought had invaded his mind and taken root before Ryan could stop it. He clenched a fist, and made a point of staring at the laptop to try and distract himself. Here he stood, with all his fllaws, and in walks Mr. Perfect. An aura wielder, an excellent teacher, someone he couldn't hate no matter how badly he wanted to. He was only barely aware of Evan joining the conversation and suggesting a less controversial word to describe Jared's relationship to Dahlia: trainer. A role that had once belonged to Ryan. He knew it wasn't Jared's fault, but he still saw the aura wielder as a petty if unwitting thief. It was an unhealthy viewpoint for sure. Memories of his argument with Ray over Sonja still burned fresh in his mind. He refused to go down that path a second time. And so when Xander told him he was going to go grab his team, Ryan hastily agreed to join him. "I could do to stretch my legs," he said, averting his eyes from both Dahlia and Jared. "Let's go."

IC: Ryan Sanders/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks/Dahlia Seaton - Cafeteria, The Alamo Ryan felt his face redden slightly as it seemed everyone who had been at the briefing last night knew exactly why Chloe had recalled Les Contes de Fées Classiques. Thankfully the psychic seemed more interested in playing with a Pokéball than pointing out how much Ryan had made a fool of himself. He dug Ford's list out of his pocket, doing his best to ignore the mishap. "Yes . . . what Chloe said. It means Classic Fairy Tales. Ford also told us about the Grimoire des . . . um, here, you can just read it." He quickly passed the paper to Sonja. "It's a book that's supposed to be at Ford's headquarters at the base of Mt. Silver. He also mentioned a mage from the Signs, his old mentor, who might be able to help us." He let the information sink in for a moment. "Oh yeah, one other thing: we're going to need Bounty's cane." Dahlia chose that moment to make her presence known. "I'm sorry, did you just say you need Bounty's cane?" It was obvious Ryan hadn't seen Dahlia come in. To his credit he spent only a brief moment in fluster before composing himself. "Well, either Bounty's or Ford's. And given that Liberty has Ford's cane under lock and key, Bounty's our best bet. It's a Symbol of the Signs, something that'll win us favor with that high mage guy." IC: Dack Majors/Madison Morrow/Jayron Aaron/Theodore Willows/Ava Willows - Kotahi Village, One Island "I bet I could make quick work of that zombie snowman," Dack said. Even as he summoned a nimbus of fire around one hand, Amanda voiced her suggestion of managing how much force to use. Dack ignored her, aiming his hand at the oncoming ice-type. "These things are ready to destroy the city and you want us to hold back?" Jayron weighed their severely limited knowledge. "Zarth has a point. If these new Instances are in response to the felled Magnemite-things then we can't afford to take them out too quickly. Stand down, MR-1. That's an order." Dack glared through his visor. "You're not the one calling the shots here, Aura-Man." "Acting rashly will get us nowhere," Jayron insisted. "Dack, please." An unseen hand rested on his shoulder as Madison spoke into his ear. "This isn't the time." With a curse, Dack extinguished the flame. "Alright, what do you propose we do? Sit around like Psyduck until those things reach the city?" "LP-2 here, I could try to take on the fire-types with my fairy moves," Theodore suggested. "I might need backup if they overwhelm me, but using ineffective attacks would prolong the fight and I know how to keep them distracted." "The first thing we need is a defined chain of command." Ava looked around at the assembled group. "You all took way too long debating whether to come here or keep going to Three Island, and you're doing the same thing now. We need one plan, not eighteen. Otherwise I can assure you this mission will end in failure."

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Hallway, The Alamo The gardener nodded. "They said they'd be in the cafeteria, right? We wouldn't want to keep them waiting." IC: Ryan Sanders/Paul Burks/Ellen Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "One second, Xander." Ryan looked over at Sonja. "Did you get my message about our mission to Ford's base? Xander says we're leaving tomorrow. And, more importantly, were you able to get any information out of your sister or Mewtwo?" Evan Tierra, meanwhile, had since abandoned his attempts to speak to Levi and instead approached Paul. "Hello, Mr. Burks. It'd be stupid to say that it's been sunshine and rainbows the past few days, for the both of us. How have you two been doing?" "We've been managing." Paul glanced over at Ellen, who was still absorbed in the feed from Kyle's laptop. She turned only to glance at Sonja as the latter took a seat, and in turning her head she inadvertently gave the Hero of Space a good look at her black eye. Paul breathed sharply, knowing an injury like that would not go unnoticed. "It's been a rough couple of days," he admitted. "But I honestly think that going back to Village Bridge will do some good. How about yourself? It's strange to see you without your girlfriend. She still sleeping?" IC: Dack Majors/Madison Morrow/Jayron Aaron/Theodore Willows/Ava Willows - Kotahi Village, One Island Jayron, Dack, and the still-invisible Madison were the first to reach Esen and the others, thanks to Jayron being able to track her aura. This provided them an up-close look at the Magnemite-style Instances. "Creepy," Dack commented. "It's like mad science gone horribly wrong." Jayron only gave the Instances a brief glance before turning to Esen. "How hard were they to take down?" he asked. "Easy enough that it looks like she didn't need our help." Theodore Willows came running up out of the trees, followed shortly by Ava. "Where are the citizens? They need to be our top priority." "I have to agree," Ava said. "Coming here was a waste if we don't get to saving those people."

IC: Ryan Sanders/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "We'll be flying together, then?" Paul hadn't paid much heed to the mission talk, but at the mention of his name he perked up. "That should give us an adequate goodbye." Ellen did not respond. She had watched the tense conversation between Kyle and his father with silent intrigue, then devoted her attention back to the feed on Kyle's laptop. Ryan frowned at Ellen before looking back at Xander. "Running back-end here must suck if you're that desperate. I think a preliminary investigation in Keturi would be good." He turned back to Kyle who seemed to be as focused on the footage from the power suits as Ellen was. "I understand if you'd rather stay here, but we could really use your help on this mission. Both to Keturi and our mission tomorrow." He could feel Chloe's eyes burning into his skull with an incredulous look. He ignored it. Sure, the Signs were probably the last group Kyle wanted to deal with right now, but he had clearly recovered enough to go on the Two Island mission. "It's your choice." IC: Theodore Willows/Ava Willows - BRV3-AR "Lyre Play," One Island The moment they touched down, Theodore deployed one of his decoy modules. Ava stepped out of the chopper alongside her husband and began implementing the Coil protocol. "Let's fan out," she said. "We don't want to risk the choppers getting hit in the crossfire." "Already ahead of you." A duplicate of Theodore ran off into the woods while the real Theodore created an Aromatic Mist to help further boost his wife's defenses. "Let's get going. I can't effectively control that decoy if I can't see it." IC: Dack Majors/Madison Morrow/Jayron Aaron - BRV3-AR "Moment Record," One Island At Ryan's report on the pseudo-Magnemite's typing, Dack cursed under his breath. "I'd hoped it would've maintained its Steel typing." "Steel or not, I bet it'll still burn." Jayron had hopped to the ground and initiated a Dragon Dance. As the suit boosted his speed and power, he closed his eyes and scanned for Esen's aura. "Come on," he said, beckoning the others to follow. "She's this way." "Madison, you coming?" Dack waved a hand through Madison's seat, but unless the Ghost Suit allowed her to turn ethereal, she had already left. "As if she wasn't already hard enough to keep up with." "Your suit can track me, you know." Madison appeared behind Dack, causing the latter to jump and bang his head on the helicopter's roof. "Ow . . . good to know." The Rocket lowered his helmet and activated his HUD. Even as Madison vanished from view, a notification popped up in his HUD showing her rough location. What the suit couldn't do was warn him that she was about to grab his hand and pull him off into the woods after Jayron. Madison had truly taken the executive's words to heart. Her top priority right now, after Dack's safety, was rescuing Esen from the faux Magnemite. OOC: Theodore: Aromatic Mist -> Ava; 1 decoy module deployed Ava (+1 Atk, +1 Def, +1 Accuracy, +1 Sp. Def): Coil -> Self Jayron (+1 Atk, +1 Spd): Dragon Dance -> Self; using aura to sense Esen's location Madison: cloak module activated