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POSTED ON Nov 30, 2022 16:39:18 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","skullhover"]

[attr="class","skullimg"]

[attr="class","skulltitle"]導通抵抗

[attr="class","skulloverlap"]BUT HOLD YOUR BREATH, GUESS WHO'S RUNNING THE SHOW?

[attr="class","skullbody"]Back when they were both just rank and file, this would have all been so much simpler. But political ambitions had a way of complicating things. It'd be a trivial matter to find Annalise Henderson, Ranger Rando for a quick little chat. Annalise Henderson, Head of the Whole Enchilada? Not so simple.[break][break]

Yet she wasn't the only head Isaac would be seeking out. Head scientists. Head professors. Silph ambassadors. An Elite 4 member, for crying out loud! Between his own experiences on Mt. Pyre and Rosmontis' connections (which ran startlingly deep, for someone who was both a minor league gym leader and a literal child), there were a lot of VIPs that Isaac needed to seek out.[break][break]

If he was being honest, the quest was a little intimidating. He, some random crook, was about to Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives his way through the Hoenn who's who. And all because somewhere in this messy, fucked-up region, Eris Halla deserved better. And so did all of his friends, though it was up to them to choose whether to take it. And maybe, dare he even imply, he did too, even as he knew he would refuse to accept it.[break][break]

It was intimudating indeed. Perhaps that was why he wanted to start with Anna. Even as she rose above, boldly proclaiming herself as making rules instead of following them, she was still the same thoughtful, big-hearted ranger he had tag teamed with at the lighthouse all those months ago. In some ways, that made her safer. In others, that made her all the more dangerous. But as Isaac prepared for this new chapter, bringing things full circle just felt right.[break][break]

That just left one question. How to get in touch with a head ranger?[break][break]

The direct approach was no longer possible. Simple went out the window. If Isaac was going to pull this off, he was going to need to get creative. Good thing creative was his middle name. He'd sent in an anonymous tip laced in code; a message and a reason to meet, all in one.[break][break]

After all, how often were Ampharos sighted off the coast of Mt. Pyre?

[break][break]

[break]

[attr="class","skullinfo"]MOBILE POST / annalise henderson

[attr="class","skullcredits"]TAIKO!

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TAG WITH @annalise

POSTED ON Dec 5, 2022 9:53:17 GMT

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[attr="class","annal"]

[attr="class","annalluck"]

[attr="class","annalpostbody"]not long after the battle at mt. pyre, annalise receives an anonymous tip that prompts her to return to the area. the tip itself is rather strange, so she spends most of the flight there thinking about it. [break][break]it could be the masked man, harkening back to their first meeting. or it could just as easily be an ampharos' spirit, lost outside the spatial rift at mt. pyre's peak. things are strange these days.
[break][break]
her altaria hovers in the air over the alleged place the ampharos was sighted, not yet committed to landing.
[break][break]

[attr="class","annalooc"] + Isaac Merlo

[attr="class","annalaccent"]
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[attr="class","annallyrics"]
@ annalise henderson

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The Liberator

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April 10

Lavaridge Town

Figuring it Out

Penitent

Renegade

949 height

Turned on my friends and brought them pain. I have no right to show I can change. But I gotta try!

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TAG WITH @isaacmerlo

POSTED ON Dec 5, 2022 14:23:53 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","skullhover"]

[attr="class","skullimg"]

[attr="class","skulltitle"]導通抵抗

[attr="class","skulloverlap"]BUT HOLD YOUR BREATH, GUESS WHO'S RUNNING THE SHOW?

[attr="class","skullbody"]The longer Isaac waited, the more he started to wonder if his plan had been silly from the start. Other than the oddly specific combination of species and location, it was a very tame anonymous tip. Surely the rank and file would've been dispatched to check it out instead. Maybe it'd just be disregarded as some dumb prank call, or a vision from the rift. Arceus, of course, tbe rift. Why wouldn't an Ampharos genuinely be among the spirits?[break][break]

Yet for the time being, Isaac laid back on his Mantine and watched the skies. Any stars paled in comparison to the shimmering vortex that hung above Mt. Pyre. Was it always such a breathtaking swirl of color and motion? Or did it take the night sky to really bring out its subtleties. Perhaps even in devastation, there was beauty to be found.[break][break]

He raised a hand to his dace, unconsciously tracing the length of an eyepatch.[break][break]

Then a shape filled the air. Large. Puffy. Approachable. That was Cotton Candy, alright. Come to think of it, he'd picked an appropriate choice for his own mount, hadn't he? Flapjack was such an Annalise name. Maybe in another world, where they weren't enemies, they'd have more time to bond over that kind of thing. Alas.[break][break]

For the time being, Isaac was content to release his Litwick, Viola. "Mind shooting our friend there a signal, Vi?" he asked, the Litwick quietly nodding. Will-o-Wisps rose around her, casting them in a soothing purple glow, nefore rising up towards the sky.[break][break]

Four balls of flame in quick succession. A pause. Two more. Morse code for "HI", expressed in quite the unorthodox manner. How interesting.

[break][break]

[break]

[attr="class","skullinfo"]MOBILE POST / annalise henderson

[attr="class","skullcredits"]TAIKO!

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anna, annie

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july 4

mauville city

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student

ex-head ranger

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TAG WITH @annalise

POSTED ON Dec 8, 2022 13:58:57 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","annal"]

[attr="class","annalluck"]

[attr="class","annalpostbody"]
purple flames rise up into the air below her, blinking in and out of view. annalise tilts her head, feeling equal parts intrigued and apprehensive about the message. she's only really familiar with sos signals from search-and-rescue work, but it feels similar.
[break][break]
eventually, her curiosity wins out.
[break][break]
"let's get down there."
[break][break]
cotton candy flutters lower until annalise can feel the briny spray of the endless expanse of ocean. until she can see a shape buoyed above the water, solid against the shimmer of waves.
[break][break]
"you're so extra," is her way of greeting.
[break][break]

[attr="class","annalooc"] + Isaac Merlo

[attr="class","annalaccent"]
[attr="class","fas fa-bookmark"]

[attr="class","annallyrics"]
@ annalise henderson

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played by

Wanderer

The Liberator

he/him/his

April 10

Lavaridge Town

Figuring it Out

Penitent

Renegade

949 height

Turned on my friends and brought them pain. I have no right to show I can change. But I gotta try!

awards

4,329 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @isaacmerlo

POSTED ON Dec 8, 2022 14:46:37 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","skullhover"]

[attr="class","skullimg"]

[attr="class","skulltitle"]導通抵抗

[attr="class","skulloverlap"]BUT HOLD YOUR BREATH, GUESS WHO'S RUNNING THE SHOW?

[attr="class","skullbody"]"In a better world, I'd be an actor."[break][break]

It felt weird to admit that so starkly. But with an entire-ass eye missing from his face, there was more than a sub six foot height standing between him and his dream nowadays. It was easier to be bold when the door on "what if" had been slammed shut harder than ever before.[break][break]

Annalise was backed by the pale moonlight. Isaac was cast in the purple glow of Litwick's flame. Had an onlooker not known any better, they would think that Isaac was some sort of ghost. Maybe things would be easier if he had been. But Kiryu and Annalise alike had given him his life. That meant he just had to keep on keeping on, one shaky step after the other.[break][break]

He adjusted his position, figuring it'd be rude to just keep rambling on while lying down. Maybe from this angle, Anna would be able to better see the damage he had suffered. But even as the purple glow illuminating his face called attention to it, he spoke as if nothing had happened.[break][break]

"You holding up alright? After all of that . . ."[break][break]

The silence summed up how Much happened better than any words could.

[break][break]

[break]

[attr="class","skullinfo"]MOBILE POST / annalise henderson

[attr="class","skullcredits"]TAIKO!

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anna, annie

she/her

july 4

mauville city

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TAG WITH @annalise

POSTED ON Dec 10, 2022 14:52:54 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","annal"]

[attr="class","annalluck"]

[attr="class","annalpostbody"]
annalise scoffs. maybe he should go off and become an actor — at least then he'd have an audience that appreciates his monologuing. he shifts atop his mantine, casting purplish light from the will-o-wisps across his face. the eyepatch draws her attention, draining any amusement from her eyes.[break][break] she thinks back to mt. pyre, to the bloodied seaweed that had once been wadded up in that same place.[break][break]
"i'm fine," comes her dismissive answer, hot at the heels of where he trailed off. she redirects the conversation elsewhere. "what happened to you? is it — "
[break][break]
gone? she wants to ask, but the word catches in her throat.
[break][break]

[attr="class","annalooc"] + Isaac Merlo

[attr="class","annalaccent"]
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[attr="class","annallyrics"]
@ annalise henderson

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played by

Wanderer

The Liberator

he/him/his

April 10

Lavaridge Town

Figuring it Out

Penitent

Renegade

949 height

Turned on my friends and brought them pain. I have no right to show I can change. But I gotta try!

awards

4,329 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @isaacmerlo

POSTED ON Dec 10, 2022 18:26:52 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","skullhover"]

[attr="class","skullimg"]

[attr="class","skulltitle"]導通抵抗

[attr="class","skulloverlap"]BUT HOLD YOUR BREATH, GUESS WHO'S RUNNING THE SHOW?

[attr="class","skullbody"]Isaac's eye narrowed suspiciously. When she meant fine, did she mean fine-fine? Or did she mean the type of fine ana fell meant when she was feeling anything but fine?[break][break]

Anna gave him no time to ask. The look in her eyes and tone in her voice changed as soon as the Litwick's flame called attention to his eye.
It was a reaction that Isaac should've been used to by now, And Yet. "Ah, c'mon, this old thing?" he asked, fully aware that both he and Anna knew it wasn't it. "It's . . . I mean, I'm . . . c'mon, you know . . ." He sighed. The smile on his face took a turn for the pained.[break][break]

"Don't look at me like that," he protested. He tried to sound lighthearted, but he only sounded tired.[break][break]

"Yeah. It's gone. Part of me thinks if I got my ass off the mountain ASAP, I could've saved it. But, c'mon. Do I look like the type to go running off when the region needs me?" Maybe he should have been. But that was another one of those questions that was just too big for him. "If anything, I'm glad I stayed. I got to give those Triad fucks their just desserts. I got to lead a friend out of a really dark place."[break][break]

"I got to say goodbye."[break][break]

He looked towards the rift, its shimmering colors like an Aurora Borealis from another world. Could he still see Kiryu's soul intertwined within its facets? By now, surely she had finished crossing over to the other side. Nonetheless, looking towards the rift brought him an undeniable sense of peace. Isaac had the feeling he knew where his spot would be whenever he needed to clear his head.[break][break]

He didn't even know where to begin with telling Annalise about what happened. He didn't even know if he wanted to. The Mountain Pact still held strong in his mind, and dancing a topic that big was always difficult. Instead, he let his mind roll back to the moments just before, where things could have gotten even worse and instead took a turn for the better. When he turned back towards Anna, there was softness in his eye and warmth in his smile.[break][break]

"Thank you, by the way. For saving my life."

[break][break]

[break]

[attr="class","skullinfo"]MOBILE POST / annalise henderson

[attr="class","skullcredits"]TAIKO!

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played by

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anna, annie

she/her

july 4

mauville city

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ex-head ranger

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i used to dream in the dark of palisades park.

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TAG WITH @annalise

POSTED ON Dec 21, 2022 19:27:00 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","annal"]

[attr="class","annalluck"]

[attr="class","annalpostbody"]
annalise doesn't know who's beneath the mask, but she feels like she knows him better each time she encounters him. his personality, his motivations — they bleed out against the gravel of that forced voice he's always putting on.
[break][break]
she lets him talk, piecing together his time on mt. pyre through his mostly-optimistic retelling of it. it irritates her, momentarily, as he tells her that the region needed him to be there, but even that is quickly overpowered by the pity she feels for him. the mountain took its pound of flesh that day, she thinks as her gaze finds the hollow of his mask again, and for what?
[break][break]
he thanks her for saving his life, but it doesn't feel like she did. he lost his eye, lost his pokemon, and no matter how much kindness she shows him (whether an inch or a mile), he shows no signs of reconsidering his allegiances. as far as she's concerned, his life still hangs by a thinning thread.
[break][break]
"look — if you really want to thank me," she says, drawing her altaria closer still. "then promise me you'll, like, keep your goodness, whoever you are."
[break][break]
in the back of her mind, she knows he can't keep that promise, not as long as team rocket remains a prevailing influence over his life, but —[break][break]
she wants to hear it.
[break][break]

[attr="class","annalooc"] + Isaac Merlo

[attr="class","annalaccent"]
[attr="class","fas fa-bookmark"]

[attr="class","annallyrics"]
@ annalise henderson

[attr="class","milkcredit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cookie-bite"]

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played by

Wanderer

The Liberator

he/him/his

April 10

Lavaridge Town

Figuring it Out

Penitent

Renegade

949 height

Turned on my friends and brought them pain. I have no right to show I can change. But I gotta try!

awards

4,329 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @isaacmerlo

POSTED ON Dec 22, 2022 1:56:54 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","skullhover"]

[attr="class","skullimg"]

[attr="class","skulltitle"]導通抵抗

[attr="class","skulloverlap"]BUT HOLD YOUR BREATH, GUESS WHO'S RUNNING THE SHOW?

[attr="class","skullbody"]Keep your goodness.[break][break]

Isaac couldn't hold back anymore. In the face of Annalise's statement, he burst into laughter. How could he not? This situation was so absurd! A Ranger, no, the Head Ranger, had just asked a Rocket to hold onto his goodness. Surely she should've known better! And not just any Rocket. Him! That cowardly little runaway who blew through people's lives like a hurricane and spread misfortune in his wake.[break][break]

His laughter barely lasted before taking on a ragged, strained edge. She'd seen the wreck he had been reduced to on Mt. Pyre, ready to cause problems on purpose before being put out of his misery. Was that what she was putting her faith and trust in? Out of all the people in the region? Was she just asking to join the chorus of people who had let down?[break][break]

His shoulders shuddered, clearly from the mirth he was struggling to hold back. His eyes were starting to water, because he was laughing so hard that it hurt. He looked towards the moon, the stars, the ever-expanding rift in the sky. The last one to believe in him with all of her heart and soul lived within that rift now. Annalise was the first person he'd ever told about her. Did she really want to follow in her tremendous iron footsteps?[break][break]

He couldn't contain it anymore. He sank to his knees, a few left gasps escaping his body along the way. Were they a few final snickers? Or were they bitter sobs, the aftershocks of a laugh that had long stopped being one. When he turned to face Annalise, the smile on his face looked faker than the mask that sat atop it.[break][break]

"Goodness? C'mon, you remember who you're talking to, right?"[break][break]

Isaac was a lot of things. There were good points and bad points. Triumphs and failures. Flaws aplenty, and a few things to celebrate dotted between. But he was not, and never would be, a good person.[break][break]

If he tried to be, he knew he'd only disappoint.

[break][break]

[break]

[attr="class","skullinfo"]MOBILE POST / annalise henderson

[attr="class","skullcredits"]TAIKO!

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played by

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anna, annie

she/her

july 4

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TAG WITH @annalise

POSTED ON Jan 1, 2023 20:51:45 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","annal"]

[attr="class","annalluck"]

[attr="class","annalpostbody"]
annalise persists, even as Isaac Merlo laughs in her face. he might not believe in it, but she does. somewhere underneath the team rocket front he puts on is someone who antithetically cares about other people and pokemon.
[break][break]
his laughter brings him to his knees. he looks up at her, but his smile seems different this time.
[break][break]
"i do. you helped me save that ampharos and you spared my volcarona during a battle — isn't that good to you? any other rocket would have tried to kill me and my pokemon." [break][break] she looks up at mt. pyre's obscured peak and swallows, throat tight at the thought. [break][break] "some have tried."[break][break]
annalise looks back down at him.
[break][break]
"so, like, if you feel like i've given you your second or third or whatever chance at life, then promise me you'll use it for good. there's not many people like you left in the world."
[break][break]

[attr="class","annalooc"] + hehe

[attr="class","annalaccent"]
[attr="class","fas fa-bookmark"]

[attr="class","annallyrics"]
@ annalise henderson

[attr="class","milkcredit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cookie-bite"]

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played by

Wanderer

The Liberator

he/him/his

April 10

Lavaridge Town

Figuring it Out

Penitent

Renegade

949 height

Turned on my friends and brought them pain. I have no right to show I can change. But I gotta try!

awards

4,329 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @isaacmerlo