INTO THE UNOWN

DISCOVERIES IN THIS WORLD AND THE NEXT

FERNANDO IS NO STRANGER to having his schedule occupied by others. rare is his input considered. so long as there is an opening on the canvas of his weekday, so too will someone steal what blocks they can.

when his phone dings thirty minutes before their supposed meeting, fernando makes his way through corners of league headquarter he seldom visits. with zenji jabami’s refocus on the EVOL INSTITUTION, there’s no reason to except to visit his plant, illeana reyes.

“good afternoon, dr. morales.”

unlike her, fernando’s appearance is clean cut. slick back hair, neatly organized with dry clay, and a suit that’s been spotlessly cleaned well beyond perfection. it serves up the sharp image of hoenn’s most successful businessman, the personification that money makes the man.

curious eyes glance between the unown in her lab. he never lingers on one too long before his attention settles on her brush.

“to what do i owe the pleasure?”

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Eva Morales

The echo of his footsteps down the sleek corridor would have given away his approach – if she was listening.

Instead, she’s too caught up in the task at hand. It’s taken quite some time to carefully collect the dust off of Unown F. Her attention is drawn up from her work at the mention of her name. Her body reels back at the sudden change of focus as she peers through the loupes at the blurry figure of the councilman.

“Mister Silph!” she smiles as her head tilts back to peer beneath the device, “Right on time!” she expects nothing less from the businessman.

The bottle is carefully corked and set into a rack beside a few others filled with a similar dust, “Ohhh I just wanted to sit and have a chat – pick you brain,” as she stands, she flicks the loupe to the top of her head, “I don’t think we’ve ever had a chance to, after all,” it wasn’t like Fern was someone MATIAS SILPH wanted to invite over to dinner like Yui Fujin Silph.

“We can gooooo that way,” she points towards a door on the Western wall that leads into a break room. It's nothing fancy, but it has some refreshments and a place to sit.

FERNANDO SILPH

INTO THE UNOWN

DISCOVERIES IN THIS WORLD AND THE NEXT

HAD IT BEEN SOMEONE ELSE, fernando would’ve resented the fact that such a conversation could’ve happened virtually, or via e-mail. to take up his time, in person, for something as whimsical as a chat, is reserved for people of status or importance. as HEAD SCIENTIST, dr. morales is granted such clemency.

“ah. the pleasure is all mine, doctor.”

for all his feelings and judgements, fernando wears the guise of a well-mannered man as clean any socialite. the white of his smile sticks out against the fine red dust she’s gathered, a stark contrast to the demeanor required to be in a silph-sibling rivalry.

“i take it you’ve been busy, lately?”

small talk to occupy their short walk to the western hall.

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Eva Morales

“Please, just call me Eva,” she waves off the formalities of Doctor and Doctor Morales with a flick of her wrist as they walk across the lab, “Oh yes, very busy,” she admits with a small sigh, “There are always more questions than answers, I’m afraid,” the true disappointment of science – but it’s what kept her working. The Unown do not follow, instead they hover closely to the red dust. Drawn to it? Guarding it? Eva hadn’t quite figured that out yet.

The break room is small, a single round table with three chairs to the right, a small desk with a computer and RotomPad charging station dead ahead, and a small kitchen to the left. The room smells of freshly brewed coffee. Like the caffeine addict she is, that’s where she heads, “Would you like anything to drink? Coffee? Water? Errr orange soda?” she stocked that for priam conrad.

FERNANDO SILPH

INTO THE UNOWN

DISCOVERIES IN THIS WORLD AND THE NEXT

DOCTOR EVA is not the first to make such a request and she will not be the last. however, to ask fernando to change a habit built up over the decade of his life does not come easy. she will soon come to learn, she is not that special. like everyone else, fernando will continue to address her as such. as per the course.

“indeed.” he chimes in, silently pleased by her answer. “and always more to discover.”

the dabble in the break room is none to impressive but the quaintness of it appeals to him. such rooms should be barebones and free of distractions. those can come from what they bring along, such as their phone.

“coffee is fine,” he entertains, unwilling to chance that refusal will devolve into a game of insistence.

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Eva Morales

“There sure is,” Eva laughs, shaking her head. With the emergence of portals to new worlds, time and space now seems so limitless. Learning to control such threats feels impossible. With confirmation, she reaches for two mugs out of the small cabinet. One has an official League Logo, the other is from the AQUA Initiative’s Avatar line of merchandise. This one sports a picture of Zac Ramsay with the beastly Tapu Bulu.

The coffee is fresh, hot, and dark. A white steam rises from both cups as she brings them over to the table, encouraging Fernando to sit across from her. She doesn’t offer cream or sugar, mostly out of habit. She sips the strong coffee gently before glancing towards him, ”You don’t seem like the kinda guy to enjoy small talk, so I’ll get right to it,” Safe assumption? Probably.

“I’m trying to better understand the link between these Unown, Primal Energy, and these portals,” it’s all associated – that much is clear, “They first started showing up around the time of Mt. Chimney and after my examination of Piggy Smalls. I mean, Unown F was covered in residual Primal Energy,” she’s referring to the vials she’s collected off the pokemon, “It’s also been trying to create a portal with no success,” a sip of coffee breaks her thoughts.

“I’ve read the reports, but I didn’t see those people on Mt. Chimney and then again at the Soiree. . . But you did. They had Unown, correct?”

FERNANDO SILPH

INTO THE UNOWN

DISCOVERIES IN THIS WORLD AND THE NEXT

HE READS HER CUE well enough. a seat is taken but his posture is rigid. his spine perks up to create a perfect angle with the way his legs jut forward. he is both prim and proper.

“…”

he doesn’t correct her because she’s right on some accounts. small talk without substance is meaningless to those he cares little for. even people with purpose don’t account for good ‘small talk’. it is the odd but useful that he doesn’t mind. kyle lopez, on occasion, is a good fit. and other introverts, such as Razz Kingsman, can make good one-liners here and there.

at this point in their relationship, she is correct. but that doesn’t mean he won’t fake it for appearances and perceived companionship.

“they did,” he answers sharply. the passing mention of even trying to recreate these portals is alarming but he stomachs it well. the putrid bitterness of black coffee makes it easier.

“hard to say i had a real good look at them but there is no doubt that they possessed several unown.”

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Eva Morales

Creating the portals isn’t her ultimate goal. Understanding them is. Being able to recognizes triggers or even close them off would be valuable to the overall security of the region. Unown F has tried and tried on its own accord, but still has not been successful. After everything they’ve seen and been though, Eva is relieved it doesn’t seem that easy.

“Did they seem . . . human?” odd question, but considering fish people and megalopolans, a fair one.

FERNANDO SILPH

INTO THE UNOWN

DISCOVERIES IN THIS WORLD AND THE NEXT

A SIMPLE YES would suffice. but fernando is rarely simple when it comes to word play. there is a time and place, sure, but where better in a ‘casual conversation’ between colleagues?

“if they weren’t, do you think i’d still call them people?”

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Eva Morales

Hmph. She frowns, a brow twitching up as her gaze locks with his, “Haven’t heard you describe them . . . or really anyone describe them,” she shrugs her shoulders, taking another sip of the bitter coffee, “They could be anything really,” The Sea!Hoennians had fooled them at first.

“They seem particularly interested in avatars which is . . . interesting,” her thoughts turn towards Stormy Silph and her missing Moltres. A flash of HIDDEN POWER teleported the legendary to Arceus knows where, not unsimilar to effect Primal Energy seems to have when it is ignited.

FERNANDO SILPH

INTO THE UNOWN

DISCOVERIES IN THIS WORLD AND THE NEXT

“THEY’RE HUMANOID.” he smiles in good humor. confident, poking fun between sips of hot, black coffee.

“they’re here to neutralize us,” he states plainly as fact. “where that ends is up to debate. the ability to ‘disappear’ our legendaries seems satisfactory to them for now.”

but death is certainly not off the table. while he never divulged Razz Kingsman as the source about his warning, his claim of the SYNDICATE SYMBOL predates both the STAR SOIREE and the DESOLATE LAND operation.

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Eva Morales

“Humanoid,” she nods, “Accurate,” what she’s heard about them doe describe them as such. She wonders if they have some sort of ‘catalyst” like the Sea Hoennians that allowed them to control their powers, “Regardless of how dangerous it may sound, I think it’s important we learn how they control these portals. Can was seal them? Stop them? Can we find what has been lost?” She leans back, her gaze drifting past him towards the wall where she knows a few Unwon hover on the other side. Fernando had to know more. He discovered the warning prior to this, after all, “Any help in the endeavor is greatly appreciated, Mr. Silph,” Eva’ snot above asking for help, requesting collaboration. Many minds are better than one.

FERNANDO SILPH

INTO THE UNOWN

DISCOVERIES IN THIS WORLD AND THE NEXT

“NOT REGARDLESS,” he points out with a stern interjection.

“indeed, it is important to understand how to close and prevent these portals but not at any costs.”

it’s a sore subject that still weighs fresh off the heels of the THREE DAY WAR. like eva, there had been another who presumed the same ideology—no matter the dangers. however, that recklessness is what led the MEGALOPOLANS into invading in the first place.

they won but it costed them more than it should of. a war that could’ve been prevented is one that’s wasted despite the spoils.

“ever risk we take bears possible consequences. it is important not to lose sight of when risk outweighs reward.”

[attr="class","spiralpee"]
Eva Morales