Although he wears his composure well, rather like a suit, a ship captain such as Skyler Dross is intimately aware of inexperience when it comes aboard her ship. Or, well, speed boat as the case may be. While her own feet have learned the subtle shifts and sways of the tides beneath them, there is a delay in FERNANDO SILPH 's posture that betrays him - just enough to be noticeable.

She has to commend him, however, for bringing appropriate clothing. The shorts are a bit much though. As is the legendary at his back - which the blonde keeps sneaking looks at.

Captain Dross knows the man by surname only, but that knowledge is enough for her to measure the kind of person she’s dealing with - at least on a surface level. A vague sense of mistrust coats her tongue (not unlike what she’d felt with Remiel Calcifet ), tempered only by a rising curiosity that has painted a criss-cross of scars across her sun-kissed skin.

Skyler can’t bring herself to regret a single one of them.

"Captaining? Four to five years, give or take a couple of months. Sailing? Since I could barely walk." Pride slips easily from her tongue along with her words, wholly unashamed.

"So, Mr Silph." The high seas open up before them. While still at the helm, Skyler motions to its all-encompassing immensity, teeth flashing with the beginnings of a sharp smile. Expectant. Eager. Hungry. "What, exactly, are we looking for?"

FERNANDO SILPH

The speedboat's engine slows and then sputters off to make way for the screech of nearby Wingulls. Without the forward momentum, the vessel is at the mercy of undulating surface waves, rocking the boat back and forth in a motion that does nothing to deter or slow down Captain Dross's ground-eating steps as she approaches Mr Silph.

"Bit of a general answer, no? There are many things in the ocean, Mr Silph. If I were to search for them all, the endeavor would probably take me at least several lifetimes. And I'm afraid, generous as you were, that proper payment would have to be renegotiated." 

Amusement writes itself across the lopsided curve of her smile, a calloused fingertip reaching for the phone's screen and tapping on it. Once. Twice. "Let's see it then." 

While the more theoretical explanation goes over Skyler's head, the map that is laid out before her eyes sharpens her interest. "When were these energy readings taken?"

It quickly becomes clear that her gaze is following a path on the screen, quickly mirrored by her fingers as they pause on a single spot somewhere close to Sootopolis. "Fairly recently I was asked to participate in a League sanctioned mission around this area. We were to retrieve quartz-like objects." If those were the reason for the readings, then going back to the area would be a waste of time.

"I can't say that I've seen red crystals." The ones she's become worryingly possessive of are of another nature. "But this seems like a good bet." Closer to their location, a single spike of this supposed energy. 

Right in the middle of the deep ocean. 

"I take it you don't get seasick, Mr Silph?"

FERNANDO SILPH

The pearly bark of laughter that slips out of her mouth, bold and unapologetic in its candor, surprises her. "I'm inclined to agree with your friend." When she turns to him, her smile is a fraction wider, wilder. "And have you, Mr Silph? Built character, I mean?" Even relaxed as he appears in this scenario, the captain is hard pressed to imagine the man hurtling through the skies on the back of a dragon. Or, apparently, being kicked from it.

Amusement fades at Tapu Fini’s awakening.

The ocean deity’s unrelenting focus sinks into Skyler’s skin like barbed fish hooks. It garners her attention in the same way an ocean storm does: all-encompassing in its terrible demand. Fragments of divinity reflected in glittering waves, threatening to pull her under.

Skyler meets the stare with one of her own, not out of pride or sheer stubbornness, but because it is her nature as a ship captain to withstand storms. Because she’s lived with ocean salt in her veins and the tides under her feet long enough to recognize and respect their temper.

Which only made their challenge all the more intoxicating.

"Rest assured, Mr Silph," her voice asserts itself in the brief compass of silence while her attention returns to the other human on board, "I have no intentions of kicking you overboard today." There are few reasons which would lead her to leave him - or anyone - to the waves' tender mercies, and most of them the captain keeps close to her chest.

Literally.

FERNANDO SILPH

"I take it you aren't fond of living dangerously?" Curiosity is an insidious thing. It trickles into one's actions in whatever guise most befits the wearer. Captain Dross feels its pull in the shape the words spilling past her lips, and in the insolent quirking of one eyebrow. Even Tapu Fini's stare pressing into her skin does not detract from her inquiry or from her bold demeanour.

For a brief sliver of time the captain even seems to bask in it, teeth flashing out in instinctual challenge.

While Fernando busies himself with his wetsuit, Captain Dross takes a second look at the area highlighted in spikes of energy. The mental map is soon replaced by a physical one, which translates into an array of skilled motions as Skyler charts their course - their fluidity having less to do with one's natural gracefulness and more with an efficiency polished by repeated practise.

Her own wetsuit fits like a second skin, pulling tight over scarred muscle and sun-kissed skin. 

The sea anchor retracts and silver eyes look over her shoulder at the man, nodding in apparent satisfaction at the wetsuit he's sporting. "I know you brought along your own equipment, Mr Silph, but you'll excuse me if I stick to my own."

There is no apology in her voice.

The purr of the engine drowns out the rest of her words, though she motions first to the cabin under their feet, and then to the empty space in the helm where she's standing - clearly giving Fernando a choice.

FERNANDO SILPH

CAPTAIN

A TANGO WITH THE LOST SISTER OF SOOTOPOLIS

“MY LIFE REVOLVES AROUND RISK MANAGEMENT.”

And the goal is to always zero out the bottom line. To remove risk entirely is an impossible task. But squeezing out the highest possible ratio for risk versus reward is it’s own satisfaction. It becomes more a hobby than occupation. People of numbers seek out the profession out of a need for precision and efficiency. The fact it proves lucrative is just a nicely seated bonus wrapped up in gaudy ribbon.

When they complete their own, independent, ensembles, Fernando flirts her a daring smile. “I expect nothing less.” What comes next leaves him perplexed.

Fernando’s success hinges on relying on others. He takes the professional opinion of those better versed than him and adds it to his repertoire. It’s one of the few reason he despises micromanagement. So when given a choice—at least that’s how he interprets the gesture—regarding a practice he knows little about, he’s clueless.

“I follow your lead.”

The coinflip rests in her hands.

skyler dross

Assessing risks, Captain Dross thinks, isn't quite the same as feeling them brushing over your skin with tantalizing care. It isn't like dancing on the razor-sharp edge of danger, not knowing where the next moment will take you, and not really caring either. It isn't like flirting with the odds and baring your teeth in challenge when luck or fate turn against you.

But Fernando Silph is in possession of a comparatively vast amount of common sense that Captain Skyler Dross could never hope of achieving. And so she doesn't comment on his statement, restless fingers tapping over the rounded edge of the steering wheel.

In the absense of any sort of reaction from FERNANDO SILPH, the captain is all too willing to take matters into her own hands.

Calloused fingertips wrap around the man's wrist, bold and unyielding as Captain Dross tugs him close to where she's standing. "You'll find that the cabin is more comfortable, Mr Silph, but not nearly as enjoyable." Sea spray rides the air as the boat begins to pick up speed again, cresting over deep sea waves and making for a bumpy ride.

Skyler seems to relish in every little jolt of the boat.

The bright glow of silver eyes hides something resembling a dare when she turns them to Fernando. "Do you base your every decision," a feline grin curls her lips as she pauses for a breath of time, "on risk management?"

FERNANDO SILPH

CAPTAIN

A TANGO WITH THE LOST SISTER OF SOOTOPOLIS

THERE IS NO OPPOSITION TO HER PULL. Who is he to contest the sailor that so expertly shepherds him through the ocean’s whimsical waves? He finds his spot beside her, rattled as their ride continues to beckon under churning waters.

“Enjoyable indeed,” he comments with a much more muted expression. Much like the anecdote from before, Fernando finds little enjoyment from situations riddled in danger. Man versus Nature brings no sense of accomplishment to him. It is unnecessary; a testament as old as time.

What stimulus he derives from peril stems from Man versus Man—the thrill of the hunt.

“Only the sound ones. The ones that matter.”

Her smile is met with a raise to her challenge. He’s oblivious to her intent, for the reason behind such vigor, but he knows when to stand tall.

“Decisions made without proper thought should be reserved for those that only affect yourself.”

And for Fernando, those decisions are rarer than the artifacts they seek.

skyler dross

Deep sea waves push against them, licking at the sides of the boat as it cuts throught increasingly darker waters that give way to impenetrable darkness further below. Skyler seems undaunted by the depths, peering at the dot that signals their destination and doing small adjustments to their route.

Fernando's answer prompts a quirking of an eyebrow. "That so? Can't say I agree. Then again, I'm no politician and hardly bear the responsibilities of one." Thank Arceus. "And out here the ocean hardly cares 'bout your decisions - long as you've got what it takes to return to port at the day's end." 

It was a simplistic view on matters, but an effective one, as the scars that dotted sun-kissed skin could attest to. While Skyler was no stranger to the thrill of pitting herself against someone else, she'd yet to find something that could rival the ocean's fury. 

"Have you ever been caught in a sea storm, Mr Silph?"

The wind stalls against their ears as the speedboat's motor stumbles to a stop, leaving them to glide over the choppy surface. With a racket of steel clashing against steel, the anchor drops into cobalt blue.

 "We're here."

FERNANDO SILPH

CAPTAIN

A TANGO WITH THE LOST SISTER OF SOOTOPOLIS

THE FACT SHE DISAGREES PROVES SHE’S A HOENN NATIVE. Not that he knows that but the circumstances behind their contrasting ideologies bears its foundation from their respective homes. One ravaged by war while the other staves it off amid surging tides.

“Can’t say that I have.” His hand jiggles a Pokeball off his waist for good measure. As long as he has them on them, he’s confident he ‘has what it takes’.

“Between land, sea, and sky, I fashion myself more of a city boy.”

The plunging splash of their anchor being cast turns his attention to the edge of the boat. Eyes peer into the deep blue, unable to discern whether or not it holds what he’s looking for. The best he can do is trust their GPS and map, as well as Skyler’s expertise.

It helps that Tapu Fini suddenly comes alive. Much to his surprise, the Pokemon folds in on itself. Black shell clamps with a resounding thud before the Pokemon plunges into the water with a flashy arc. MISTY TERRAIN trails after its diminishing figure in a bubbly jetstream, rising to the surface and popping with a fragrant perfume.

skyler dross