El felt it as much as they heard it - the ground thudding as something large was charging in what they thought to be in their direction. Their gaze snapped up from their belt to try and identify what they were hearing -- just in time to see the third nihilego creeping up on them..! Before El could so much as jolt away or the nihilego could reach them though, a large torterra slammed into the ultra beast - the characteristic spikes of the ground-type stabbing into its soft body.

The nihilego let out a bloodchilling shriek as it was impaled against the wall, tentacles writhing wildly. Luminescent blood(?) flowed from the wounds inflicted - and it would attempt to strike its tentacles against Ceres' shell, as if searching for any soft bits that it could try and inject its toxin into. This search would prove to be in vain though, with the awkward placement putting it well out of reach of the unprotected parts of Ceres' body.

El, meanwhile, stumbled back and away from the torterra - their back pressing against Bibidi's own, alarm clear in their expression. "A-Augustus..?!" The name escaped their lips unbidden, as they initially mistook Ceres for their father's torterra. But it took but a blink for them to realize that this torterra was different - younger, less battleworn, with fewer sharp angles to her shape. This was not a brutish juggernaut of a beast, but a steady and stalwart defender.

A warning voice would ring out, though - snapping El from their thoughts. Not wanting to wait to ask any why's, what's, or how's, they'd immediately duck downwards - dropping to their good knee. Bibidi, too, would react quick - ducking downwards, but also pushing the two nihilego upwards with Telekinesis to give Duster a clearer shot.

And overheads, the two could hear the whistle of a Bonemerang flying through the air. It slammed into one Nihilego, before ricocheting into the other - sending both ultra beasts reeling back. One of the beasts seemed to decide it had enough - backing away from the group, though it didn't dare turn its back on them. The other, however, stood its ground - glimmering lights forming as it prepared a Power Gem--

-- Only to earn a strike to its cap for its efforts, from a leaping Isaac. Stunned and perhaps bewildered, it would reel back - the Power Gem fading - before the two decided to cut their losses and leave. The third nihilego, meanwhile, would decide to fire off an Acid Spray at Ceres in an attempt to force her back, so that it could pull itself off of her spikes - making its retreat...

Only when the three ultra beasts had disappeared into the dark of the Ultra Deep Sea, did El and Bibidi finally relax - the trainer slumping back against their Alakazam with a heavy sigh of relief. "Th-thanks, that... That was something..." They murmured - glancing to their savior, before carefully pushing themself back up to their feet. A young man with a black skull mask covering their face - though it was a bit tricky to make out the exact details, given the low light conditions of the tunnels. They initially weren't sure what to make of him - initially wondering if the mask was some sort of cosplay or vigilante thing...

... But then their thoughts drifted to that of Rocket - a group of people who were no strangers to hiding their own identities. This thought prompted a sense of alarm and unease, which made their heart skip a beat (though, it was hard to say how much of it could be blamed on Rocket, and not on the Deep Sea itself.) Unsure of what to make of this other person, El's grip on their cane tensed slightly, as they asked "Who... Are you?"

Bibidi, however, had a better idea of things. The other person's mind - the feel of it was unmistakably familiar, especially as she reached out her mental presence to brush up against Isaac's own mind. She wouldn't - couldn't - ever forget her former trainer, and would express as much in the form of a sense of recognition, greeting, and thanks all conveyed upon his mind.

Isaac Merlo

Bibidi took the emotions that welled up from Isaac in stride - the bitterness, the panic... She did not intrude upon his mind any further than necessary, however. She did not have to delve deep simply to greet and give thanks... Yet, he had something to ask of her. A request - though more a plea - to not say anything, presumably to El. The Alakazam studied Isaac for a few moments - both visually and mentally - as if considering...

... Before she quietly nodded to him, agreeing.

Though, she would impress a sense of caution upon him - expressing her protective desire - before she backed away from his mind. She embraced the role that Isaac had given her wholly - and that meant that if he went too far in whatever he may be planning, she'd protect them from him, too. But for the meantime, she was simply content to watch over the two siblings.

El, meanwhile, perked up at the question offered to them, before nodding. "Y-yeah, I'm unhurt," They responded quickly, putting on a smile as they took a second to brush themself off. To say they were unhurt was the truth, of course - besides maybe a minor bruise/scrape or two from the 'fall' through the rift that brought them here. But 'okay' was hard to quantify when... Well... This place was pretty spooky. Something about it was weighing on their mind like an ever-present pressure - and they kept feeling as though they were seeing things out of the corner of their eyes.

But, they didn't want to dwell on that. Instead, as Blackjack introduced himself and declared his intentions to get El out of here, the young adult blinked, before nodding. Between the stated intentions - and a soothing brush against their mind from Bibidi, who seemed willing to trust him - some of the prior tension leaked out of them as they offered him a smile. "It's - uhm - nice to meet you, Blackjack." They responded. "My name's El, I'll follow your lead."

Though, they'd cast a glance to Ceres and Duster both - El's curiosity clearly piqued by the presence of other pokemon. "You've got some cool pokemon - what're their names?" They'd ask - approaching Ceres, and extending a hand in a quiet offer to pet her. Such a big torterra - what Yggy would think of her?

Isaac Merlo

At Blackjack's retort in seeing past their half-truth, El blinked a second, before scratching the back of their head. "I-It's nothing, really." They'd speak - though it was somehow even more obvious than before, that it wasn't really nothing.

When Bibidi impressed a sense of urging upon them though - encouraging them to tell the truth - El would make a face and try to push back against the Alakazam's mental presence (even if that was essentially like trying to push back a brick wall.) They didn't want to trouble him!

Though Blackjack would hear nothing of the two's interactions - given it was all mental - he'd likely spot the way the two kept glancing and making faces at one another. Mostly El, really - even now, they wore their heart on their sleeve, even when having a conversation with their psychic-type. It didn't take long for El to relent under Bibidi's stare, though - murmuring to her "Ok, ok..." with a sigh, as they glanced back to Blackjack.

Briefly, they fidgeted - as if still reluctant to speak up... But they'd soon confess. "There's, uhm... S-something about this place that, well, really creeps me out... I keep feeling like something's watching me. But every time I mentioned it to Bibidi - my Alakazam - she hadn't sensed anything else out here... I just can't shake the feeling, though." Maybe the nerves of being in such an unfamiliar place was getting to them, that was probably it.

Introductions were met with a firm warning and distant reception from Blackjack, though - and El blinked, before nodding. "R-right..." They murmured in response, fidgeting.

Ceres' warmer approach helped to put a smile back on El's face though - and after giving a wave to Duster in response to the nod, they'd begin petting Ceres. "You both have nice names, Ceres, Duster." They spoke - adding "Thank you two, too, for helping us."

Though, with that, things would fall quiet - El content to mingle with the pokemon as the group walked. They weren't sure what to make of Blackjack, but he at least seemed kind enough, to be helping them out of here. They were willing to try and push aside that ever-present unease to trust him, if Bibidi trusted him too. Still - sometimes, they couldn't help but glance over their shoulder, as if expecting to see something...

... Blackjack's voice suddenly breaking the silence would make them jump a little. They blinked owlishly, glancing to the young man, before realizing that he had asked them something - namely, why they were here. "W-well..." They initially began - wondering where to start. "I didn't mean to come here - really. I had been visiting Dewford, before things started going crazy... But when Rocket showed up, and everyone started evacuating, I stuck around to help people get out."

El paused - both to gather their thoughts, and to scratch their cheek a little. "A little kid - her Zigzagoon had gotten spooked and ran off, but she couldn't stay to look for him. So I offered to try and find him." They offered a somewhat sheepish smile to Blackjack and Bibidi both with this. They knew it wasn't exactly the safest thing to do, but well... They couldn't say no to requests for help. Besides, it was a preferable compromise to, say, trying to help on the frontlines or something.

"When I couldn't find him in town though, I thought the lil guy might've hidden in some bushes, or some nook or cranny - somewhere quiet. So I started searching along the outskirts of Dewford - but..." El paused, brows furrowing in thought as they tried to think back to when they had fallen into the rift. "It had happened so suddenly - it felt like everything around me had just. Twisted. And then I was falling, things went dark..."

"... And when I opened my eyes, I was here. I couldn't see any clear way back, so I just... Started walking, with Bibidi." They had figured if they just kept following a wall, it'd eventually lead them somewhere - and in a way, it did. But which way the exit was was still a mystery to them.

Isaac Merlo

A good kid. Being told that would make El's expression twist a little - the barest flicker of frustration, hidden behind general discomfort. "I'm an adult..." They couldn't help but murmur, their voice barely above a whisper. But beyond that, they felt somewhat talked down to. As if they hadn't been taking care of themself just fine, before the expanding rift's influence came along and threw them for a loop. Really, it was something that no average person should have to expect needing to deal with. How were they supposed to know that this was going to happen, when they weren't even in Granite when it did?

Taking in a deep breath though, they'd speak a bit more openly, stating "I'm not trying to play hero - I'm just trying to be a Ranger. I know I'm still in training, but..." ... But they weren't some fragile doll, either. They'd been just fine, up to now. They didn't need to feel like there was a child leash being put on them by a stranger.

But then came the question of where they were - and El blinked, before beginning to think. The top of their head answer would be 'no' - and yet... At the same time, it seemed pretty obvious, even if they didn't have a name to put to this place. "... This is beyond the rift, right?" They questioned, glancing to Blackjack. Beyond the rift that both League and Rocket seemed so interested in.

But then that raised the question - why hadn't they run into other people yet? Why were there no signs of fighting here? Did they somehow end up going to some whole other part of this weird place? Or had the people here already moved on?

His vision..? El blinked, glancing back over to Blackjack to try and figure out what he meant - having to study the grunt for a few moments, with the dim light making picking out the details tricky. And yet, it wasn't hard to notice the stitches that overlaid Blackjack's mask - a line that crossed over one of the eyeholes of the mask. And it didn't take long to notice the absence of an eye, in that gap, either...

... El's expression soon became one of clear sympathy, in noticing these little details. The both of them had been injured in different ways - although El felt like losing one's eye had to be worse than just having a bad leg... "... I'm sorry," They murmured - though they weren't wholly sure whether they were apologizing for staring, for having him bring up his vision, or what.

Though, Blackjack had something to say to them being a ranger-in-training, and well... El frowned - both at the tone in the grunt's voice, and at what he said. Briefly, they opened their mouth to respond - but then they closed it, mulling over what to say. Their expression furrowed with thought, glancing at the path ahead of them, before they'd finally respond "It's not like I wanted to come here, or wanted to charge to fight the first Rocket I see. I just wanted to help someone find their best buddy - help a pokemon that's probably lost, confused, and scared find their family." It wasn't their fault that things had gone awry faster than they could blink.

But, soon came the answer to their question - as to where the group was now. Ultra Deep Sea, a world between worlds, and one of the territories that the Ultra Beasts called home. El sucked in a breath and nodded as they took in the information provided - finding themself more aware than ever just how much trouble being here, even at the fringes, was. They really were some of the lucky ones, weren't they...

... Just standing here made El feel like they were getting into something so much bigger than themself. Briefly squeezing the grip of their cane, they'd pick up the pace a hair - eager to get back to more familiar pastures.

Isaac Merlo

And yet, here they are. Even if El never meant to end up here, they still had to figure out getting out of this mess. This mess that - much like Blackjack stated - was much bigger than one could fathom, especially when other dimensions were getting involved, especially if Arceus truly was a part it (or at least, going to be a part of it.) It was a little mindboggling to think about for too long - and paired with the ever-present paranoia of the Deep Sea...--

But, Bibidi's mental presence would wash over El - cradling, gentle, reassuring... And as she did - she would impress knowledge upon them. She couldn't teleport directly out of Ultra Deep Sea - but within it, well... That seemed a little more doable.

And as El wrapped themself in the warmth that was Bibidi's mind and thought it over, they realized she was right. Maybe once they found a proper exit, then they'd be okay. Bibidi's teleportation didn't work between worlds - but within the same world would work. So as long as she knew where an exit was, they could ideally be able to Teleport to it if this all happened again, right? And beyond that...

Taking in a deep breath then, El would glance to Blackjack once more - a little steadier than before. "... Even if... Even if things are as big as you say, I can't just sit by and do nothing. People already try to take my choice away because they're worried about me." They spoke, briefly gesturing with their cane to convey their point. "But... I'm not fragile. And I want to help. Even if it's a drop in the bucket to everything else going on, I still want to help others where I can."

That was their choice, they decided, meeting Blackjack's gaze where they could.

Isaac Merlo