thanks to the incredible efforts of kyle lopez, they have most of the nearby landmarks mapped out, making it easy for them to navigate toward the NORTH. there, they approach the base of the mountain, coming across a familiar BROKEN SEAL as they have done before.[break][break]

curiously, matias' shadow has yet to return.[break][break]

"glad you could join us this time."[break][break]

he bumps his shoulder against Eva Morales's as they walk.[break][break]

"i trust you to keep us out of trouble."

[attr="class","ooc"]kyle lopez Melody Miro PENELOPE LIVY Eva Morales[break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-mr-mime"]

The Mechanical Kingdom was strange, but The Border was straight spooky. The unsettling chill in the air penetrated through the Professor’s Sygna Suit and a shiver ran up her spine. The small hand gripping PENELOPE LIVY’s tightened, “Sorry,” she smiled apologetically, giving her friend’s hand another small squeeze for reassurance. It must be difficult returning somewhere you died.

“Hmph, I don’t know how much help I’ll be,” her gaze shifted towards the map, “Seems like you guys already have this place pretty well mapped out,” She was probably more of a liability at this point. Eva’s hand slipped out of Penny’s as a few quick steps drew her closer to the BROKEN SEAL of the ruin. Her fingertips traced the strange markings on the cracked stone.

---

MATIAS SILPH & PENELOPE LIVY & kyle lopez & Melody Miro

This was the second time she'd been forced to visit the very place that fought to claim her spirit. There, deep behind the waterfall, The Borders had become her early grave.
[break][break]
"I'll be fine," she murmured back to Eva, voice soft enough to be kept between their ears alone. Like her trauma was a secret worth protecting. Still, despite her words, the tight squeeze she gave was welcomed with a bittersweet smile.
[break][break]
"Thanks to kyle lopez."
[break][break]
An appreciative nod was offered the champion's way -- without him and sygna suit, they might've been stuck roaming around these isolated isles for weeks on end. Which would've just served to eat away time better spent venturing further into the unlimited abnormalities that awaited them inside.
[break][break]
"Weird, right," she called out to Eva Morales, who'd moved toward the broken seal they had found hidden beneath the mountain's side. It looked similar to the others, symbols highlighted in a bright flash of color. "We found one of the jade pebbles in one of those."
[break][break]
Tinges of ENVY still stung her tongue from that expedition.
[break][break]
"Do you have any idea what the inscription means?"
[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] Eva Morales kyle lopez MATIAS SILPH Melody Miro[break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-ditto"]

matias appreciates kyle lopez's company and more so the fact that they're holding hands. it makes him feel less left out and more included. with his other hand free, he debates taking Melody Miro's but decides against it, perhaps worried that she might yell at him again.[break][break]

the spell tag on Melody Miro's garganacl does more than intended but for now, he focuses on the BROKEN SEAL, remaining alert just in case anything comes out at them like the first time.[break][break]

if only Melody Miro had been more perceptive back then. PENELOPE LIVY less of a martyr trying to prove herself. kyle lopez less aloof and distracted. then maybe they would've been able to stop PENELOPE LIVY from sacrificing herself like an idiot.[break][break]

slowly, but surely, GRUDGES form. his hand slips out of kyle lopez's.[break][break]

"there's nothing here."[break][break]

01 examine the broken seal to the north, found against the base of a mountain.[break][break]

08 experience immense grudgefulness, fear, envy, or hatred.

[attr="class","ooc"]kyle lopez Melody Miro PENELOPE LIVY Eva Morales[break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-mr-mime"]

Like water being poured into a glass, Penelope felt the tingling sensation of GRUDGE fill her body, leaving her tongue sour and her lips taut. Had it not been for Matias' selfish actions, maybe their previous expedition would've gone more smoothly; maybe, instead of waking up in cold sweats and stinging tears, she would still be able to sleep at night without issue.
[break][break]

"Maybe."
[break][break]

Voice growing cold, she offered the broken seal one last long look. It glowered back at her, inscription blazed in a dingy gold, and for as long as she stared at its intricate curvatures, the grudge festered further into the system.
[break][break]

"You're right," she echoed back MATIAS SILPH 's sentiment.
[break][break]



"Let's see if we--"
[break][break]

When she turned to move in the next direction, in the corner of her eye Penelope caught a flicker of molten red. Like dancing lights fluttering beneath the sun's golden glow, they frolicked eagerly in circles, drawing her attention before moving forward, further into the spirals of sepia-coated sand.

"Did you all see that," she asked aloud, though her legs didn't dare wait long enough for a response to find its way back to her. Quickening her step, Penelope's burning red ponytail pounced in the air as she followed the trickle of lights down the path of the mountainscape. Fingers idly traced the outline of her belt, searching ever-so-long to find the exact shape of two particular pokeballs: one belonging to her newly added Charizard, and the other belonging to her Pelipper, which took flight overhead.
[break][break]

Occasionally, she'd peek a glance over her shoulder, ensuring the others were at least following her, but to say her attention wasn't completely enraptured by the dangling piece of information would be a lie.
[break][break]

"Why are these so familiar..."
[break][break]

The flicker, this sense of longing, the mixture of golden yellow and a valorant red -- it all called upon a name she hadn't thought of in more than a week.
[break][break]

Moltres.
[break][break]

But, before she could confirm these thoughts, the small splashes of red and yellow twisted back toward her, their flames now enriched by a sudden vigor she hadn't seen up until then. It reminded of a similar incident, back behind that waterfall. Only those spirits were tied to another lost soul.
[break][break]

"wha--"
[break][break]

Flames burst at the seams, sputtering out a brazen attack directly aimed at the councilwoman. She just barely managed to duck in time to dodge its path.
[break][break]

"Pelipper, quick, Water Pulse!"

[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] kyle lopez Eva Morales MATIAS SILPH Melody Miro[break]


[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-Pelipper"]

Ah, so that’s what they needed her for – another suit. Not her brains, not her companionship. A lesser person would have enacted on the ENVY she felt when she heard they went galivanting through The Border without her, but she did wind up with her own adventure through the mechanical world – one she was curious to visit again. The Border was intriguing, they all were, “Oh? Uh, sure,” she’s too polite to say no.

After taking a mental picture of the inscriptions for later deliberation, Eva stands and takes a step back to view the shattered seal as one whole piece, “I can’t read the inscriptions, they appear to be quite old but the shattered stone appears fresh,” sharp edges untouched by the caress of time, “Hopefully we can find one willing,” she lifts her gaze to smile at Melody Miro, approving of the idea. She briefly wonders if they ever discovered what shattered the seal.

“See what?” Eva’s quick to follow Penny as she dashes off after the crimson lights, “Wait up!” The Professor nimbly hoped across the rocky terrain, also occasionally stealing a glance back at the remainder of the party. A flash of light releases Eva’s rusty Gallade. The dual-type falls in stride beside her. The familiar tingleof infinity energy tickles across her skin, activating the SYGNA SUIT and bonding with the Gallade.

A flash of fire spurts towards their fearless leader. Penelope manages to duck in time but Eva was blind to it before the councilwoman’s dodge, “Whoa!” heat flashes across her skin but the Gallade’s PROTECT keeps her from getting burned.

She feels an urgency to keep moving. Down the path they go, following what seem to be angry spirits spitting fire at them every now and then. Blade unleashes the occasional PSYCHO CUT which only seems to amuse the spirits. As they descend, the air grows thick with moisture, the unmistakable roar of a waterfall can be heard rumbling in the distance.

---

MATIAS SILPH & PENELOPE LIVY & kyle lopez & Melody Miro

Eva followed after Penelope first, then Melody, then Kyle and Matias -- until the entire group had found themselves chasing the ominous spirits back to the unmistakable sounds of crashing water.
[break] [break]
The waterfall.
[break] [break]
Dread twisted Penelope's heart, drawing out a breath from her squeezed lungs. This was where her spirit nearly carried forward. Where the idea of eternal rest had almost vanquish all thoughts of anxiety or stress.
[break] [break]
"This is it," she murmured, speaking more toward Eva Morales than the others, as they would've already been able to recognize it without her reminding. Gravel crumble beneath her tromping steps, documenting each inch gained toward the endless dark pit that laid in front of them. The teeth of the cavern's entrance wetted with excitement.
[break] [break]
Had it not been for the sound of her own heart pounding loudly into her ears, the councilwoman might've caught whiff of the guilt kyle lopez had been admitting to just a few steps behind, but alas, when brought back to one's own resting place, it'd take more than a whimper to shatter her tightened attention.
[break] [break]
Her Charizard and Pelipper clung close to her sides. Their nerves were just as heighten as their trainer's, especially given the fact that these malicious wisps had all but disappeared at the HOWL of kyle lopez's mightyena, fading off from sight. Penelope figured they'd just gone to hide within the cave, but even with that solution in mind, her lips were taut from the stress pulsating throughout her entire body.
[break] [break]
It wasn't until her hand naturally reached for Melody Miro's or Eva Morales's did Penelope notice just how much she'd been shaking.
[break] [break]
When the group had finally entered, there wasn't much to be seen. The seal was tucked away, far from the entrance of the cavern, emptied of any jade beads or pokemon. There were no Victini wisps to be distracted by, nor pokemon near their immediate area. Just the sound of dripping water, crackling gravel, and the occasional echo of their own voices.
[break] [break]
"Where do you guys think it went?"
[break] [break]
The more the councilwoman trawled through the emptied pocket of rock and trailing water, the more the unease had drained from her face, leaving behind the muddled expression of frustration boiling into weakened desperation. There was no way they had just disappeared out of sight. They had to be there with them, hidden behind the rock, or dangling from the ceiling.
[break] [break]
Moltres -- was it there with them?
[break] [break]
Or, maybe, the flicker of hope had drawn her mad enough to consider a reality where it'd appear before them, in the same way she'd thought it would during her visit to Mt chimney with MATIAS SILPH. How foolish.
[break] [break]
"Fuck."

With a heavy thud, Penelope struck her foot down onto the ground.
[break] [break]
"Sorry-- I guess it's gone," She muttered ruefully, "We can go back. There's nothing here for us."
[break] [break]
But, before she could turn back toward the path in which they came, the gruff roar of her charizard broke the silence, and fire plumed out from his opened jaws. There, inches from her face, she could feel the warmth of his FLAMETHROWER pushing back into a similar incoming spiral of flames. It cusped her cheeks like a pair of rough hands.
[break] [break]
Behind the flash of burning glory, two large wings flapped, their ends coated in a sheen of iridescent reds.
[break] [break]
Widened eyes stared back at the phoenix redoient of the League's history. Honestly, when Penelope originally reached out to MATIAS SILPH those weeks ago, she hadn't known what to expect. But when placed fact-to-face with a legendary beast, what else is there to do than stare?

[break] [break]
Fortunately, her Pokémon made their decisions for her, because while Penelope remained still the malevolent spirit did not. It immediately moved to cast forth another array of attacks.
[break] [break]
"It's attacking us...?!"
[break] [break]
With a trilling cry, the bird sent forth a HEAT WAVE toward the group, clear in it's intentions to incinerate them. During the time in which Penelope's Pelipper aimed to combat against the heat with another series of elongated WATER PULSES, Charizard kept to it's trainer's defenses, forcing her onto his back before taking immediate flight. [break] [break]
[break] [break]
"Why is it attacking us??" From her position above, she called out at the others, voice cracking faster than any whip. She stared back down at kyle lopez and MATIAS SILPH. "Weren't you two close with it's previous patron?? Why would it...?"
[break][break]

[attr="class","ooc"] Eva Morales kyle lopez Melody Miro MATIAS SILPH[break]
TLDR;
- Penelope gets to the waterfall, followed by Eva, then melody, then THE boys [break]
- Penelope is scward and tries to hold eva or melody's hand. She's shaking a lot. [break]
- Inside, there are no spirits to be seen. Penny tries to call it off, saying they can go back [break]
- POG? there WAS something inside and it's MOLTRES!!!!! AND IT ATTACKAS!! :o [break]
- MOLTRES uses HEAT WAVE onto the party. [break]
- Pelipper fights against the heat wave w water pulse, Charizard takes flight with Penny ontop [break]
- Penny is questioning why it would attack them, when they have kyle and matias, two of Stormy Silph's old friends [break]

"the fuck?"[break][break]

in all honesty, had it been anyone but kyle lopez holding the position of champion, matias would've said yes. but out of the three swords of justice, he knows kyle is the most fitting for the position simply because of everything he has been through. how he has fought for hoenn, fought for others, and survived.[break][break]

the roar of moltres' HEAT WAVE fades into the background as a pokeball flashes open. his heatran's FLASH FIRE draws the attack in, defending the rest of the party from being incinerated.[break][break]

the drawn firearm is noticed. he takes a step towards kyle lopez before throwing a punch across his jaw.[break][break]

"snap the fuck out of it, kyle!"[break][break]

moltres' HURRICANE whips through them. still, he stands his ground, repeating the same words he had done during their first expedition.[break][break]

"we need you!"

[attr="class","ooc"]kyle lopez Melody Miro PENELOPE LIVY Eva Morales[break]

[attr="class","pkspr pkmn-heatran"]

Eva sticks close to Melody Miro and PENELOPE LIVY as they approached the area where the wisps disappeared, “Here?” she repeats, her lips drawing into a tight line as she examines the rather intimidating abyss. Worry for Penelope wouldn’t do them much good, so Eva finds an inner peace, a CALM fueled by the need for stability and a clear head. It protects her from the invasive emotions impressing themselves upon the party. Her SYGNA SUIT sparkles alongside the sheen surrounding the Gallade.

Emerald hues critically peer through the darkness but are blinded by the sudden flash of fire. The ethereal Moltres emerged with a vengeance, spewing flames combated by the powerful Charizard. Eva is too distracted by the presence of Moltres to realize Kyle had drawn out his pistol and Matias had clocked him in the face. The situation was getting out of control.

The powerful winds of a HURRICANE ripped around them, and with her SYGNA SUIT on, Eva’s powers were suppressed, “That’s not Moltres,” Eva responds to PENELOPE LIVY. The lifeless gaze, the dulled colors, the tattered wings – it was the birds spirit. Blade increased EVASIVENESS helps the dual-type slide out of the way of the spirits next HEAT WAVE.

“Springtide Storm!” Eva’s hand pushes towards the Moltres, a motion mirrored by the Gallade. A vicious rush of fae energy combats the pokemon’s HURRICANE and pushes the Moltres back towards the abyss.

---

MATIAS SILPH & PENELOPE LIVY & kyle lopez & Melody Miro