It felt as though she was caught in a fever dream. The world spun around her much like the conversation orbited a finite topic when there’s so much more at stake. Familiar voices melded together until he couldn’t discern one from the other. Accusation flew freely and the sharp sting of a looming presence invaded her mind. Her palm pressed to her temple to mitigate the pressure as she slowly sank back down into her chair. The drone of The League’s most notable voices disappeared, and only one remained. The words were never clear, but the impression left was enough to parse through her patron’s own musings.

THESE ARE THE ONES WITH WHICH WE ARE TO DEFEND HOENN?!

Irritation forced on her by her god crept up her throat until she could taste bile on her tongue.

MORTALS ARE HINDERED BY THE INSIGNIFICANCE OF THEIR LIFESPAN. THE WORLD, THE UNIVERSE, AS WE KNOW IT IS THREATENED AND THEY SQUABBLE OVER AN ISLAND OCCUPIED BY RATTATA.

Rats that counter them at their every move - but even the most insignificant pokemon can be of use. They have knowledge the League needs, and resources that could help defend their world.

This is all so much bigger than them.

Rocket either needs to be eliminated swiftly or used to their advantage so that they may focus on the larger threats at hand, “It’s not hard to turn people against Rocket,” she finally spoke up in regards to the concern about Rocket sympathizers, “An Arbok doesn’t change its color. Back them into a corner where they're forced to show their true self and they will do the rest for us. Worked well enough in Kanto recently,” she was referring to her report and the unrest as a result of Rocket’s actions in response to it, “But don’t think for a moment Kanto Rocket won’t come to their aid -unless they already have,” her goal to distract Kanto Rocket with more to do across the sea had worked for a little but it wouldn’t work indefinitely, “If we warn them, I’m fairly certain they’ll put the protection of themselves and their resources over the safety of Sootopolis’ residents.”

Eva waved her hand in irritation, “If we are doing this, we must do it swiftly. Every second we waste focused on Rocket, the more time we lose focusing on what really matters,” the pause she leaves is heavy with caution, “What can actually destroy the world as we know it.”

“If we must focus on Sootopolis then my patron and I are at your disposal. We will happily rid Hoenn of this plague,” they did it in Petalburg Woods, they could do it again, “Of course, this would hinder me from focusing on other duties,” she briefly glanced towards illeana reyes and FERNANDO SILPH. She had spoken about an excursion to The Cave of Origin with Illeana before and would love to accompany them, but Eva would do her duty to Hoenn where she was needed most.

---

@aquapt4

Penelope heeds for caution were outright dismissed by the table as a whole. It made sense - all but one were not privy to the information that loosened the binds around her tongue, and that one was none other than an angel who saw no evil, no wrong, in a man maddened by his own wax wings. But the councilwoman could never see the same.
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She heard the way he spoke of the lives forgotten in the invasion, the disregard in which he offered their memory. She saw how, in the face of further power, he turned his head, readied to accept whatever role now fitted his newfound desires.
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A long, held-in breath bellowed out from her nostrils.
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The battle had been won - a plan, once weighed down by the threat of volatility , had been discarded. Waved away with a simple shrug of the commissioner's shoulders. But it wasn't enough. Far from it.
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Whether it be the spite that still lingered within her heart, or the deep beating envy that now flooded her veins, the councilwoman couldn't move past the slight still wet off the perpetrator's lips. For a moment, while the conversation continued to ebb and flow around, no different from rippling waves just outside her first Lilycove Apartment, Penelope's eyes found freya morningstar's.
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And, it was in that moment, a decision had been made.
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The flittering of opinions continued to pingpong across the table, carrying the topic of conversation from the original take of the invasion onto the method itself. There weren't many militaristic matters in which the councilwoman felt comfortable in involving herself in opinion-wise, but for this one, she made an effort. [break][break]


"It's not hard to turn the people against us as well," She glanced at Eva Morales, brow raised. "Even if we give the citizens a proper warning to evacuate, Rocket will have all the leverage they need to create a new onslaught of propaganda."
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Even if they guarantee a slice of victory with this siege, there'll be years worth of embedded distrust left to unravel. Distrust that's moldable to any cause. New or old.
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"Not to say I'm in a disagreeance to the proposed plan. But Greyson Connors's right. We should be aware of the facts: hundreds of innocent families will be caught in the crossfire of this. Homes will be lost, lives displaced all over again, all in a very public manner. There will be no avoiding the anger this attack will ensue, and if Rocket is left equipped, there is no doubt this event will become a centerpiece to their future message."
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A pause nestled the finality of her words.
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"If we follow through with this, we'll need to be prepared with the consequences. Even if we fund a rehousing plan for the effected families, which I suggest we do, it'll take years to repair what we'll be losing with this decision."
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[attr="class","ooc"] @charname [break]


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

“I wholeheartedly agree, Councilwoman,” Eva’s eyes smile at PENELOPE LIVY, though it doesn’t seem friendly, “Sounds like our PR team needs some alone time to sort through that mess . . . and whatever mess we plan to make attacking Rocket in Sootopolis,” it won’t be hard for any logical human to deduce where an unexpected natural disaster came from. The allegiance of the weather trio is no secret.

In truth, she hadn’t really paid MATIAS SILPH much attention until this point, but when a familiar, volatile voice lunges like a dagger, her sharp gaze snaps towards him, parrying the attack with a twitch of her pink lips, “I’m advocating to deal with Rocket - one way or the other so we can focus on what matters. I’d rather not stoop to their level and attack a city but it seems the esteemed council has made up their mind and I’m obligated by contract to do what’s asked of me,” the faintest hint of disdain lingers. Eva is ultimately a peacemaker, but sometimes peace means war it seems and she’s playing the end game.

“Peace or war it doesn’t matter,” her voice drops, an ethereal power resonating in it as the influence of her patron slips through the cracks, “WE WILL NOT ALLOW THEM TO THREATEN THE SAFETY OF THIS REGION AGAIN.”

---

@aquapt4

they squabble over each other like children and freya is once again shocked that matias' words resonate with her the most. but she has to believe he's postulating about damage control. his state of mind is made up of ever-shifting fractals and she knows what sort of man he is on the battlefield. 

how the war cries and spilled blood sing to him. 

it's PENELOPE LIVY 's words that finally make her falter. she drags a tired hand over her face and sighs. Eva Morales 's voice takes on a rough quality and freya looks at her out of the corner of her eye - concern, admiration, pride, all of it there and gone in a flicker. 

"we must be tactical. calculated. we must know restraint. our ethics, laws, morals - these are ideals meant to set us apart from rocket. plans will go awry. hard decisions will be made. we know this."

she grits her teeth. "but we cannot resort to razing the entire city. resources aside, sootopolis is an epicenter of hoenn's cultural significance. those bluffs are centuries old; the cave of origin is inextricably tied to kyogre and groudon. we destroy this, we lose answers."

she looks to John Sullivan . "you fear giving them legitimacy over sootopolis when they already have it. it's no secret kanto is rocket-controlled. the league failed sootopolis once before. its people know that. if there is even a chance we can work our negotiations, we can put more time and effort into other areas that require our attention - like the distortions, like the dark triad."

her brows furrow. "and if they do not parlay, we follow through with our threats."

AQUA ASSEMBLY

✦ letting a bit of her personal bias get in the way; abhors the idea of razing sootopolis

✦ pushes again for negotiation tactics as a first step before the planned disaster

☉