Konuju

IC: Ryan Sanders/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo Ryan had heard Kyle's story once before, but with Ford's mission in mind he listened intensely for anything that could be useful. Sending Pokémon back into their balls? Not likely to be a problem with Pokémon power still out. Hallucinogenic fear? That was worrisome but nothing they couldn't take measures to prepare for. But Kyle's last piece of information was something he didn't recall hearing previously. "Keturi City?" He glanced at Xander. "When were you planning on having us leave? Some of us could make a trip to Keturi today and see what we can find on those poached Pokémon." He looked back to Kyle. "How could something like that be happening right under our nose?" IC: Dack Majors/Madison Morrow/Jayron Aaron - BRV3-AR "Moment Record," Approaching One Island Although she had done her best to appear confident so far, Madison found herself gripped with fear when she made the mistake of looking down out the helicopter window. It wasn't the height that scared her but the sheer alienness of their otherworldly foe. She had previously only seen the Missing Zero in low-quality video feeds from Two Island. But the crimson ocean, the gelatinous mass, the drone-like Instances . . . "What have we gotten ourselves into?" she muttered. "Are you alright?" Dack looked at her in concern, placing a hand on her armored shoulder. Madison tore her eyes away from the window and stared at her feet. She could feel her entire body shaking in her armor. "I-I'll be fine, it's just . . . it's a lot to take in." Dack squeezed her shoulder, a gesture that probably went unnoticed through her armor. The two had kept silent throughout the debate on whether to continue on course to Three Island or divert to One Island. While they both agreed that rescuing One Island was the ideal solution, the knowledge of the added dangers that came with their task had plagued them for the rest of the trip. Dack thought back to his first encounter with the Missing Zero. Back on Two Island the only option had been to run. And from what they heard of Esen's battle through the comms, her minor victory had been very short lived. That only stressed the fact that they had no idea what they were dealing with. "It's a little late to be having second thoughts." Jayron eyed the nervous couple with a deep frown. In a perfect world they would have recruited more experienced agents like Sanders or Tierra or Eston. But this world was far from perfect, and he'd have to play with the hand he'd been dealt. "If it helps, don't think of it as fighting a monster. Think of it as saving as many lives as we can. All of us feel ill equipped, but just remember your training from last night. Work together as a team, and we'll make it through this." I hope, he added silently. As the helicopter descended toward the landing site, Madison took a deep breath. "You're right. We still have the advantage that this thing won't be expecting power suits. Although our first priority needs to be backing up that girl, Esen." Dack frowned. He knew the skier's resolve was shaky at best. It seemed everyone was on edge and just doing their best to hide it. Which was fine, but they couldn't afford to have someone lose their wits once they actually got out on the field. "Are you sure you're okay?" he leaned closer. "Your face looks as white as a--" Madison suddenly vanished before his eyes. "As a ghost?" Behind the cloaking of her suit's invisibility module, Madison grinned. "Don't worry, I've got a few tricks up my sleeve. It's just like skiing, it's nerve-wracking until you take that first step, then the adrenaline kicks in and you just act. Just promise me one thing . . ." Still invisible, she leaned in and gave Dack a kiss. "Don't die out there, alright?" Dack found her invisible hand and held it tight. "I could say the same to you."

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Hallway, The Alamo Her anger melted away at Jared's heartfelt plea. His eyes were filled with such genuine remorse that she had to look away for shame of her own petty actions. "You're right." Dahlia absentmindedly stroked a hand through her Absol's fur to keep the Disaster Pokémon at bay. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have blown up on you like that. I don't know what came over me. I guess I don't have as much control as I'd like to think." She forced herself to look Jared in the eye, his regret stabbing into her heart deeper than any dagger could. "I-I guess it goes to show that we all make mistakes sometimes. So, let bygones be bygones?" She smiled weakly and held out a hand for him to shake. Her own words echoed in her mind: I don't have as much control as I'd like to think. This little outburst hadn't involved her powers . . . but what if the next one did? It wasn't like her to get angry like that, and yet that was the second time in one day that she'd acted out of character. She shuddered at the thought that the next time, she might hurt someone more than just emotionally. She needed Jared's help more than she realized.

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Hallway, The Alamo It was Asriel who realized they were not alone. The Absol snarled a warning. Part of Dahlia wanted to run and hope she could shake Jared off her tail, but she knew he would just continue to pursue her. She halted, staring straight ahead. "Stop following me," she said with a bitter edge to her voice. "You can read my aura. Can't you see I want to be left alone?"

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena, The Alamo She flushed angrily and got to her feet. "What do you think you're doing?" she demanded. "Just because you can read the emotions in people's auras, it doesn't give you the right to just go poking around in things that aren't your business!" Without waiting for a response, Dahlia slung her bag over her shoulder and stormed off toward the exit. Her once-stoic Absol growled menacingly at Jared. The scythe on his head gleamed as he leveled a glare at the aura wielder before turning and following his trainer. IC: Ryan Sanders/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "She did what?" Ryan moved around behind Kyle to look at the screen. All he could see was what looked like the ocean moving far below the camera. He shook his head. "I hope they know what they're getting themselves into. Actually, that sort of relates to what Xander and I came to talk to you about." Paul frowned as his gaze shifted from Kyle and the laptop to the two kids. "Finish your breakfast, Ellen," he said. "We should start packing." "I want to see this." Ellen's plate went untouched as she leaned over the diminished Levi to get a better look at the laptop screen. Paul got to his feet, trying is best not to make a scene. "I really don't think that's a good--" "I have to know what happens." The girl's eyes met her father's in a look a look of somber defiance. "I need to know. Besides, Levi's watching it."

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena, The Alamo Her eyes shot open. "H-how did you--?" She shook her head with a sigh. "Was it that obvious? Well, I guess there's no skirting around it now." The gardener shifted into a less uncomfortable position and silently stroked her Absol's fur as she tried to think of how best to approach a subject she'd been trying to avoid. "It's . . . about Ryan. I haven't told you this yet, but he's the one who was training me before. When I lost control, he wanted me to stop training altogether. I think when he showed up today, I just wanted to . . . well, to impress him. To prove to him that I wasn't a lost cause." She let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding, followed by a nervous laugh. "It's kind of silly, really. I mean, when I think about it, there's really nothing to gain from proving myself; he even admitted you're a better trainer for me. But I think that's the real reason for my lapse in judgement. It was more than just showing off. It was . . ." She closed her eyes and thought back to her conversation with Ryan the night before. This was a discussion she should be having with herself or with Ryan. Not with Jared. She bit her lip and silently tried to rationalize her thoughts and emotions.

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena, The Alamo "N-nothing much . . ." Dahlia felt the color rise in her cheeks, but remained locked in her meditative pose. Her muscles had tensed, and she knew Jared would have to be a fool to believe her blatant lie. She took a shaky breath. There was that thought again, clawing its way back to the forefront of her mind. For the moment, Dahlia was thankful Jared could only read auras and not minds. Still, she couldn't just keep silent after that pathetic excuse for an answer. "I just . . . It's, um, hard to focus on meditation when I keep thinking back to that demonstration. W-was it . . . wrong of me to want to show off like that . . . ?"

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena, The Alamo "Yeah, I guess I can see how turning meditation into naptime would be frowned upon." The gardener pushed herself up into a sitting position. Her Absol came to sit beside her, acting as a silent guardian as she closed her eyes and reflected on her botched demonstration. Confidence was a good thing to have, but overconfidence would just lead to defeat. That wasn't like her; she had always been modest about her abilities, both as a gardener and as a Pokémon trainer. So what had prompted her to suddenly show off like that? It must have had something to do with-- She inhaled sharply and pushed the thought away. Meditation was about relaxing her mind, and she couldn't allow herself to focus on any one thing for too long. It took some time for her pulse to slow back to a normal rate. Still she wore a troubled look on her face. Eyes still closed, she asked, "How can you tell when someone is meditating properly, versus just going through the motions? Or, you know, napping?"

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena, The Alamo "I'd like that." She smiled back at him. "Let's just both agree to pace ourselves. As exciting as this all is, we wouldn't want things to move too fast." She downed the last of her sports drink, then leaned back on the arena floor with a sigh. "Maybe going back to our meditation would help me recover. Well, either that or a nap. Have you ever fallen asleep while meditating? Seems like an easy thing to do."

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena Dahlia took a long sip from her sports drink, then looked squarely at the aura wielder sitting beside her. "Need I remind you of how you found me bleeding in agony in a pool of my own tears? I was so overwhelmed by my failures that I couldn't see a way forward. You helped me out of that. You gave me hope. How can you say this isn't a good idea?" The gardener sighed as she hugged her legs, resting her chin on her knees. "If anything, I'm the one who got carried away. I knew it was a bad idea to skip the meditation and punches, but I was just so excited to show off what I could do. It's my own fault, not yours. Please, Jared." Her eyes glistened. "Don't give up on me. I . . . I need you." IC: Ryan Sanders/Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo It was as if everyone had decided to come all at once. First Chloe, then Xander and Ryan, then Evan. If any more came, they would need a bigger table. "You're all welcome to sit with us," Paul said, gesturing to the remaining empty seats. Ellen looked up from Torith to silently greet the newcomers. Her eyes lingered on Evan as the Hero of Space introduced himself to Levi. "So is that the feed?" Ryan asked with a glance at Kyle's laptop. "How're things going over there?" "Feed?" From his questioning look it was clear that Paul hadn't paid much attention to the computer sitting on the table. The only 'feed' Paul was aware of was the breakfast on his plate. His inquiry got Ellen's attention, however, and the girl looked past Levi at Kyle's screen, trying to decipher what she was looking at. IC: Ava Willows/Theodore Willows - BRV3-AR "Lyre Play" "This is LP-1." Outside of the shortness of her voice, Ava betrayed no emotion. "It seems you're all dead set on One Island. I can't say I like it, but TC-1's plan will at least ensure we don't all get slaughtered before even making it to the island. EP-3, you have anything to add? Over."

IC: Dahlia Seaton/Ryan Sanders - Training Arena, The Alamo Dahlia nodded her agreement to Jared's decision while gulping down her sports drink. For a fleeting moment, Ryan looked like he wanted to say something to the pair. Instead he turned away. "Let's get going, then." As he led Xander out of the arena, he pulled out his Pokégear to message Chloe and let her know they were on their way.

IC: Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "I understand." Paul glanced over at Levi. "You know, on the news we tend to just hear Sleight this, Goldhawk that . . . they become synonymous with their organizations, and you tend to forget that they have families too . . ." He turned around to face the new arrival. "Hey, Chloe. Care to join us?" IC: Dahlia Seaton/Ryan Sanders - Training Arena, The Alamo Dahlia still felt woozy, like she stood up too fast, and she had to lean on Jared for support. "I, um . . . there's a sports drink in my bag . . . I think the electrolytes would help." Ryan continued to stare at Jared and Dahlia. It wasn't until Xander repeated his question that Ryan tore his eyes away and came back to reality. "That's right, Kyle had messaged some of us about watching that emergency mission with him in the cafeteria. Chloe and I got to thinking that Kyle would make a valuable asset on our mission. Not only has he been to Kalos before, but he's fought with the Signs. We thought you might want to be there to explain your half of the mission and to help get all the logistics ironed out."

OOC: Permission to bunny Jared granted by Mercury. IC: Dahlia Seaton/Ryan Sanders - Training Arena, The Alamo "Refill it. Right." Dahlia watched Jared pour the water out onto the ground. Refilling a container wasn't something she had ever done before. It wasn't like fixing something that was broken. If anything, she felt this fell more under Evan's specialty: moving the space the water occupied into the bottle. Still, she had to try. She couldn't back down, not when she had an expectant audience. Jared set the empty bottle on the ground in front of her and stepped back. Dahlia took several deep breaths and tried to find that mental state she'd had just a few minutes earlier. She stared at the puddle of water and tried to will it back into the bottle. Nothing happened. Seconds turned to minutes and still Dahlia was no closer to accomplishing her task. She feared the puddle would evaporate before she could refill the bottle. Perhaps she was going about it all wrong. She thought back to the image of Jared pouring out the water. That was the action she was trying to reverse. With great effort, the puddle slowly coalesced into what looked like a miniature fountain. A steady stream of water "fell" upward, arcing into the mouth of the bottle. Dahlia let out a laugh of amazement at the sight. Then the world spun before her and she collapsed to her hands and knees. Ryan started forward, but Jared was already at her side, helping her up. "S-sorry about that," the gardener muttered with a glance at the small amount of water she'd managed to get in the bottle. "That took way more energy than I thought."

IC: Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "Hey there, Torith . . ." A small smile made its way onto Ellen's face as she reached out to pet the Houndour that had situated itself in Levi's lap. The wide, curious eyes, the cheerful demeanor, and the sense of reckless adventure all felt achingly familiar. "He's like a baby Terry," she said. In truth, Terry had always been older than her. If anything, Torith's boundless energy reminded her of herself. Before McKinley, before the Ancient Darkrai, before all of her adventures. Paul smiled at the kids, then moved over to the seat across from Kyle so he could speak without disturbing Ellen and Levi. "You certainly know how to get through to children," he said with a chuckle. "How'd you end up babysitting Sleight's kid, anyway? Some sort of new peace initiative between Rocket and Liberty?" IC: Dahlia Seaton/Ryan Sanders - Training Arena, The Alamo "We can start with reversing damage, but if you've got a challenge for me, I'm up for it." Dahlia grabbed a water bottle and a Pokéball out of her tote bag. The former she opened up and took a sip out of. The latter she opened up to reveal her Absol, who stood stoically beside her. "Imagine this is one of our teammates." She screwed on the cap and held the bottle out for Ryan and Xander to see. "Fighting alongside us in the middle of danger. Suddenly, they take a hit. Asriel?" The Absol bowed its head, pressing its scythe against the bottle. A small slit in the plastic was all it took for water to come spurting out. "If I'd had more time to prepare I would've used red food coloring, but imagine that's blood." The gardener sheepishly set the leaking bottle on the ground and took a few steps back. Taking a deep breath, Dahlia extended her hands and tried to focus like she had the day before. Nervous energy built up inside her; she could feel Ryan's, Xander's, and Jared's eyes all watching her movements. Where was that power she had felt yesterday? They'd skipped over meditation and punching; what if ignoring those fundamentals would cause her to fail with everyone watching? No. She couldn't let her doubts take over. She took another breath and closed her eyes. She pictured Aspen's leg, and the gash in the water bottle. She had to channel her fears into fixing that bottle. One of the others let out a gasp, prompting Dahlia to open her eyes. The bottle still sat in a puddle of its own water, but the plastic had mended itself, and the cap had resealed itself as if it had never been opened. Trying not to look too exhausted, Dahlia picked up the bottle and held it out again. "It's . . . not perfect . . ." She panted as she tried to catch her breath. "I couldn't do anything about the blood lost, but the bottle itself is as good as new." A wide grin broke out on her face. Ryan had to admit he was impressed. He took the bottle and turned it over in his hands. There wasn't even a mark where the Absol had struck. "That's amazing. It's far more advanced than anything I had you doing." He spoke the truth. Dahlia had improved tremendously and she seemed a lot more confident in her abilities. So why was he unhappy? He pushed the troubled thought aside and put on a smile. "Keep this up and you'll be an expert on Reverse in no time!"

IC: Dahlia Seaton/Ryan Sanders - Training Arena, The Alamo Jared's question took Dahlia by surprise. "Oh, well, I guess you can watch if you want. Just know that we're taking things slow, so it might not be the most interesting thing to--" "There you are, Xander. What brings you to--" Ryan Sanders froze at the entrance to the arena, his dumbfounded expression making it evident that he had only expected to find Xander here. It took several moments for him to regain his composure. "Dahlia. Um, hi. Imagine seeing you here. And . . . this must be your . . . new training partner." Dahlia smiled as the Liberty agent approached. So this was who Xander had been talking about. "Yep, this is Jared, the aura wielder I mentioned last night. Jared, this is my friend Ryan Sanders. Ryan'll be meeting us in Kalos after he and a few others go on a different mission." "Nice to meet you, Jared." Ryan put on a smile as he held out a hand for the aura wielder to shake. "I take it Dahlia's been learning a lot from you. About her powers, that is." "Actually, we were about to give Xander a little demonstration." Dahlia grinned. "You should watch, too. We're technically still supposed to be meditating, but I bet Jared will let us skip ahead to something more exciting." She gave the aura wielder a subtle nudge. "A demonstration would be good." Ryan eyed the man standing across from him, doing his best to maintain a pleasant smile. "Let's see what you've been teaching her."

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena, The Alamo Dahlia finally gave up on any chance of meditation. She stood up with a smile. "Jared, this is Xander Cruise. He's the one organizing our mission. Xander, this is Jared. He's the aura wielder I told you about. So, what brings you here? Any news on the mission? When do we leave?" IC: Ryan Sanders - Barracks, The Alamo Sunlight filtered through the window as Ryan rested against the headboard of his bed, typing away on his Pokétch. Kyle's message had prompted a lengthy string of texts between Ryan and Chloe. Even behind the emotionless veil of words on a lighted screen, Ryan felt the psychic was still bitter about his leadership qualities. At least they both agreed that Kyle would be a useful asset on their mission, given his previous encounter with the Signs. What they didn't agree on was going straight to Kyle. Chloe was quick to remind Ryan that Xander was overseeing at least half of the joint mission. It would be wise to bring the Kalosian in on this and try to finalize their plans rather than just recruiting Kyle themselves. After a small debate that was far less intense than it would have been face-to-face, Ryan agreed to ask Xander to meet them in the cafeteria. "Xander seemed pretty on-edge last night," Chloe's response read. "You should go talk to him about it in person." Ryan gave a heavy sigh as he fought the urge to send a snarky response. He then opened a new message to Xander asking him where he was and asking if they could meet. The reply was a mere four words: "at the training arenas." Training? Ryan mused to himself. He must be really eager to get back into the field. Filling Chloe in on his plan, Ryan rolled out of bed, changed out of his pajamas, made sure his hair was at least halfway decent, and stepped out into the hallway.

IC: Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo Ellen brought two fingers under her eye and slid them over the bruised skin. Her gaze looked past Kyle, toward a seemingly random empty table. "I made a terrible mistake . . ." she muttered. "This is just one of the less painful consequences." "It's not your fault, Ellen." Paul placed a comforting hand on his daughter's shoulder, then looked up at Kyle. "Some snot-nosed girl started beating her last night," he explained, failing to keep the venom out of his voice. "For no good reason at all." "There was a perfectly good reason." Ellen looked back down at her place, but Paul thought he saw the glisten of tears in her eyes. "Her sister was part of your group on Two Island. She was . . . scared by what happened. Won't talk to her sister at all. She needs time to . . ." she glanced at Levi. "To recoup. And it wouldn't have h-happened if I hadn't . . ." Unable to continue without breaking down in front of everybody, Ellen turned her full attention to her breakfast. She slowly chewed on a biscuit while turning her fork over in the scrambled egg. The shapeless breakfast entrée met with a pile of ketchup and slowly turned blood-red as the condiment oozed over it.

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena, The Alamo The gardener tried and failed to suppress a smile. Apparently she wasn't the only one having trouble focusing on meditation. "That shouldn't be a problem," she said. "Xander was pretty open to you joining, so I think one more will be fine." There was a pause as she tried and failed to get back into her meditative 'groove'. Then, "I should probably see if Olivia wants to come as well. If Chloe hasn't already invited her, that is . . ." IC: Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo Ellen took a seat next to Levi and looked past the boy at Kyle. "I'm . . . managing." She didn't have it in her to give her default answer of 'fine' while in Levi's presence. A sad smile played on her lips and her eyes lingered for a moment on Kyle's computer screen before she looked down at her food. "We're both managing." Paul took the seat on Ellen's other side. He gave the two kids a concerned look, the exhaustion evident in his face, before looking over at Kyle. "Ellen and I are headed back to Unova tomorrow. I'm hoping a bit of normalcy will be good for the both of us." IC: Theodore Willows/Ava Willows - BRV3-AR "Lyre Play" Ava looked directly at Goldhawk and brought a finger to her ear. "All due respect, sir, but One Island's already lost." Her voice crackled through the comm. "By the time we get there the Missing Zero will have already taken over a large chunk of the island. We'd be fighting an uphill battle and sacrificing our greatest asset, the element of surprise. It would see us coming and attack before we could even deploy -- and only one of our Suits is prepped for aerial combat." Theodore raised his visor and turned in his seat to face his wife. "Are you mad?!" he yelled over the roar of the chopper blades, choosing to keep his words off of the comm system. "We can't just leave those people to die! They're completely helpless out here!" Ava raised her visor as well, abandoning her comm. "It's a hard call, Theo. Maybe if we had a better idea of what we were fighting, we could defend One Island. But we're basically walking into a blind battle. We need every advantage we can get. It's imperative we gather intelligence so that we'll actually have a strategy when that thing hits mainland!" "The goal of this mission was to learn about our enemy." Executive Aaron's voice sounded over the comms. "We can learn from it just as well on One Island as we can on Three Island. I agree with Zarth, those people need our help. We may be at a disadvantage, but we were never planning to save Three Island anyway. If we can just hold off the Instances until One Island is evacuated then we can ensure that at least some people get to safety. We don't need to be on Three Island to gather intel." "We do if we want to have a fighting chance," Ava shot back. "Answer me this, what's stopping the Instances on One Island from shooting down our choppers before we even reach land?"

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena, The Alamo "R-right. Sorry . . ." Dahlia shut her eyes, her mind still processing Jared's words. From what she had seen of the Ranger yesterday, Lachina didn't seem to outright hate him, so she had to wonder what exactly he had done. Whatever it was, Jared didn't want to talk about it. She made a mental note to ask Lachina about it later, then began the long process of trying to clear her cluttered mind.

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena, The Alamo "Who, Xander?" Both of Dahlia's eyes were now open, all thoughts of meditation lost in favor of conversation. "I've known him for maybe a month now. I met him in Lilycove when I joined his group to rescue the people McKinley had taken. So it's not like we've known each other that long or anything . . . but I guess facing multiple life-threatening situations with someone tends to forge your friendship pretty quickly, you know?" She unfolded her legs and pulled them close, resting her chin on her knees, a smile dancing on her face. "What about you and Lachina? Are you two close?" IC: Ellen Burks/Paul Burks - Cafeteria, The Alamo "You sure you're okay?" Paul knelt down to look at the black eye his daughter had received the day before. "It doesn't hurt," Ellen insisted. In fact her eye looked much better after a good night's sleep. Still, Paul couldn't help but feel apprehensive about returning to the scene of the crime. "Alright, just stick close to me, okay? Just one more day here and we'll be going home." Ellen didn't respond, but dutifully stayed by her father's side. The two made their way to the cafeteria in the familiar silence that had haunted them these past few days. Paul kept a close eye on his daughter, glancing suspiciously around the cafeteria for any sign of the impish girl that had attacked her yesterday. Thankfully he did not see her. The two loaded their trays with a suitable breakfast and moved toward a quiet corner of the cafeteria to eat in silence. Paul had taken several steps before he realized Ellen was no longer at his side. Panicked, he turned around and saw her staring off into the distance. "Ellen, come on," he urged. She continued to stare. "What's wrong?" With two hands on her breakfast tray, Ellen could only nod with her head. "I want to sit there," she said quietly. Paul followed her gaze. Kyle Eston was sitting at a table with a young boy -- it was a few seconds before Paul recognized him as one of the Children Ford had recruited. He bit his lip. The last thing he wanted right now was a reminder of what Ellen had been through. "They look busy," he said, eyeing the laptop in front of Kyle. "We'd better not disturb them." Ellen shook her head. "I want to sit with them," she repeated. It was the first time since rescuing her from Two Island that Ellen had initiated a desire for anything. Although Paul would much rather have eaten quietly in a corner before retiring back to their room, he had to admit that perhaps it would be good for Ellen to talk with someone who had gone through what she had gone through. "Alright," he said, leading the way up to the table. He cleared his throat to get Kyle's attention. "Sorry, um . . . do you mind if we sit here?"

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Training Arena, The Alamo "Close your eyes and focus." That was the direction Jared had given her. The two had agreed upon a morning training session so that the rest of the day could be spent making whatever plans were necessary for their trip to Kalos. For their mission to Kalos, that is. Between Xander's briefing and Ryan's worry, Dahlia was well aware they weren't traveling overseas for a sightseeing vacation. Still, she couldn't help but feel like a giddy schoolgirl at the thought of actually seeing the Kalos Region. Such thoughts made it impossible for Dahlia to focus on the meditation Jared had tasked her with. She peeked an eye open. "You ever been to Kalos?" she asked the aura wielder. "I know Lumiose is the big tourist destination, but I really hope we get a chance to see Coumarine City. I hear the Gym Leader there is a gardener. My family owns a garden, you know, so I'd love to be able to meet someone like him. I mean, I already met Erika back when I was in Celadon, and she gardens too, but I'm sure Kalos has their own unique way of doing things. I might learn a thing or two."

IC: Dack Majors/Madison Morrow/Theodore Willows/Ava Willows/Jayron Aaron - Hangar, The Alamo "Stop acting so worried, Dack!" "I-I'm not worried, I'm just . . . this is kind of my first, um, Liberty mission and all. I'm just used to taking orders from the other side, that's all." "Now's not the time to be getting cold feet, kid." Ava walked past the couple with a cold look in her eyes. "It's do or die time." The woman left to haul whatever cargo she was holding onto the copter. "Don't let her get under your skin." Theodore quickly rushed up and apologized for his wife. "We're all a little on edge. Let me guess, didn't sleep well?" Dack shook his head, noting the dark circles under Theodore's eyes. "Neither did I. Never could sleep well the night before a big exam. And, well, this is pretty much the deadliest exam anyone's ever had to take." He clapped a hand on Dack's shoulder. "Good luck." "You, too . . ." Dack muttered as he watched the man walk off to join his wife. "He's not wrong." Jayron approached Dack and Madison, carrying his helmet under his arm and wearing his fedora on his head. "Every person here is just as scared as you." The aura wielder chose not to divulge exactly how he knew that information. "This is unlike anything we've ever faced before. But we'll face it as a team. We have to. Liberty, Rocket, everyone here is willing to put aside their differences -- and their fears -- for the greater good. Are you?" Dack took a deep breath and looked over at Madion before turning back to the executive. "I'm sorry, sir. I let my fears get to me. You're right, I'm more scared than I've ever been in my life. But that fear is driving me to fight. After all . . ." He squeezed Madison's hand. "I've got something worth fighting for." With a nod of thanks to the Liberty executive, Dack and Madison walked onto the helicopter, hand in hand.

IC: Ryan Sanders - Outside Conference Room, The Alamo Ryan nodded. He wasn't sure Chloe seemed entirely convinced, but she seemed ready to move on. "Well, um, Sonja hasn't responded yet . . ." He held up his Pokégear. "So, do you want to maybe try and find her and Ethan?"

IC: Ryan Sanders - Outside Conference Room, The Alamo Ryan stood a little ways off, his hands in his pockets and a tired look on his face. "Look, I'm sorry about earlier," he said. "The fact is, I know how important Ford's mission is, and I don't want to let everyone down, so I guess I just started taking matters into my own hands without consulting you all. You're probably a more qualified leader than me anyway. Either way, I don't want this becoming a problem, especially if we're going to Ford's hideout together." He looked straight at Chloe and braced for the verbal lashing he probably deserved.

IC: Ryan Sanders/Dahlia Seaton - Conference Room, The Alamo Ryan had sent his message to Sonja, but continued to fiddle with his Pokégear as an excuse to avoid eye contact with Chloe until the door opened and Evan walked out. Standing up, Ryan pocketed his device and quietly slipped into the conference room, closing the door behind him. Once inside, he let out a heavy sigh. Dahlia had been busy admiring a yellow stone, which she slipped into her pocket when she heard the door close. For a moment the two just stared at each other in silence. Dahlia shifted uncomfortably. "So, um, you wanted to talk . . . ?" Ryan nodded. He had hoped to use the waiting time to gather his thoughts, but thanks to a certain psychic that hadn't happened. Now here he stood with no idea where to begin. He drummed his fingers on the back of a chair. "Well, I guess I should start by asking how you've been. I haven't seen you since the day you went to check on Aspen, and we didn't exactly leave off on the best of terms." "No," Dahlia said flatly. "We didn't." The earlier tension seemed to drift back into the room, and neither party quite knew what to say. "First you say you'll help me train, then you tell me to stop training. Then you say I can train again but you start avoiding me, and you won't even listen to me talk about Two Island." The gardener's words were not harsh, but they stung Ryan all the same. "I'm sorry about that," he said. "I promise to do better. Which brings me to my second point: I'd like to start training you again. I never should have stopped, and I think we can make our rendezvous in Kalos a good spot to resume your training regimen." The offer took the gardener by surprise. "Oh, um, well I'd love to, but I kind of found someone else to train me. He's really good, and I've made a ton of progress in just a short while. He's planning on coming to Kalos with me, so you're welcome to join our training sessions if you'd like, but I don't think I'd have the energy to train separately with you." Ryan scratched his head awkwardly. "Oh. Well, um, that's great. No problem at all, I'm glad you found someone." He put on a smile, but felt his disappointment seeping through. "I'm really sorry about that." Dahlia's sincerity only made Ryan's remark feel even more fake. He struggled to change the subject. "So, um, the third thing I wanted to talk about. I, uh, wanted to make sure you were aware of the danger we're about to face." The moment the words were out of his mouth Ryan knew they sounded stupid. "I mean, I can't speak for Team Flare, but Xander was definitely worried about them, and Kyle nearly died when he encountered the Signs. I know you have trouble controlling your powers--" Dahlia frowned. "You don't think I'm ready." "N-no, that's not it--" "Yes, it is. Don't lie to me." The gardener took a threatening step forward. "If you came here wanting to train me and remind me of the times I've lost control, then you don't think I'm ready for this. I know I'm still learning my powers, but you have no idea what I've been through these past few days. You have no right to tell me I can't do this!" Ryan reached out and grabbed her by the shoulders. "Just promise me you'll be safe!" The two stared at each other in stunned silence, Ryan just as shocked by his reaction as Dahlia was. He quickly pulled back and turned away. "Sorry," he muttered, bringing a hand to his temple. "I'm just worried; there's been a lot of stress lately." Now that she understood the situation, Dahlia felt her anger melt away. She moved forward and gently wrapped her arms around Ryan. "Of course I'll be safe," she said. "Stop worrying yourself over me; you've got enough on your mind as it is." Ryan returned the hug and tried to focus his scattered thoughts. "I'm just trying to do the right thing, but it feels like every step is a wrong turn. Now Chloe seems to think I'm full of myself, you think I don't trust your abilities, and Executive Arthur thinks I'm untrustworthy. Even with Sonja, I made a fool of myself worrying over nothing. I just can't win." "Not to mention your dreadful attempt at Kalosian." Dahlia suppressed a giggle. "Thanks," Ryan muttered, feeling the color rush to his cheeks. "It's good to worry about things." Dahlia let go of Ryan and stepped back to look straight into his eyes. "It shows that you care. But you also have to keep in mind that you can't control everything. When we first met, you were burdened by your past mistakes. Now I see you putting the weight of the entire world on your shoulders. That's too much for one person. So stop trying to do everything yourself." Ryan gave a light chuckle. "How do you always know exactly what I need to hear?" Dahlia absentmindedly ran a thumb across the bandage on her hand, an accessory Ryan hadn't noticed until now. "Because I went through a similar crisis not too long ago . . ." She seemed lost in her own thoughts for a moment before smiling back at Ryan. "And because that's what friends are for." "Well, I'm lucky to have friends who can put up with me," Ryan said with a laugh. A peaceful silence settled around the two, the complete opposite of the earlier tension. Ryan slipped his hands into his pockets. "Well, speaking of friends, I think I owe Chloe an apology." Dahlia nodded and walked past him toward the door. "I'll leave you to that, then." She turned to give him one last smile before heading out.

IC: Dahlia Seaton - Conference Room, The Alamo "Wow, you say this belonged to the previous Hero of Reverse?" Dahlia turned the stone over in her hands. It felt simultaneously heavy and light, and its jagged edge produced a kaleidoscopic yellow glow on its surroundings. For an uncomfortable moment, Dahlia was reminded of the mirror she had shattered. The moment passed, and the gardener looked back up at Evan with a warm smile. "I can't thank you enough. It's a beautiful symbol of my legacy; a reminder that other Heroes have come before me." A curious thought crossed her mind. "My predecessor, Kinali . . . did he ever struggle with using his power? Did he ever . . . lose control?"