she has not, for a moment, let her guard down. watching fernando this entire time would give her nothing. she has had to wait, nerves skittering, to see his method of attack. and so he deems to rip away her credibility, shape her a traitor, and a callous, bitter part of her yearns to embrace the monster he's making her out to be. 

“but having your mobility, your autonomy, stripped from you, changes a person.”

words that have been at the forefront of her mind for days now, pink and hazy around the edges. fernando's calculating gaze, looking indifferently on a creation he thought his. memories of a shell she lived in, robbed of her own skin.

her gaze flickers over to him, finally, when he mentions wo-chien's avatar. tell them. tell them everything. your hurt. his betrayal.

but it will not make a difference.

the region still needs him. 

"i am not involved with an active rocket member, much less romantically," she says. "though i will shed some light on two discussions i've had with rocket underboss THEO BECKETT. he made himself known to me in january, following the aftermath of littleroot." her gaze slides to matias. 

"groudon's wrath lay waste to both rockets and civilians that day; he made a point to use this as an argument that i should ally myself with rocket's cause." she stands, palms on the table, looking around the room. "he offered me my home returned. he offered me the chance to hurt someone who has hurt the people of hoenn." a nod, again, at the elite four member.

"and yet i stand here before you, the offer declined with a vehemence FERNANDO SILPH seems to think me incapable. make no mistake my loyalties. there are many within rocket's ranks that are beyond saving, of that i've no doubt, and in any other circumstance, i would see them burned before extending an olive branch."

AQUA

☉

[attr="class","icon"]

The Commissioner nods in response to Doug and Greyson's reservations. Her head dips with the weight of understanding and a blonde curl unfurls past her ear.[break][break]

"unfortunately, much of our counterintelligence has already been nullified. much of the knowledge surrounding the phenomenon and its related artifacts come from experiences remembered from that memory of galar."[break][break]

She raises a thin finger.[break][break]

"however, we do have one advantage. you can only dynamax by close proximity to a power spot. rocket only has sootopolis. we have everywhere else. the creation of a power spot is conspicuous and can not easily be concealed."

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]the commissioner takes the reins and for a moment, tension simmers like a pot left behind on a still hot burner. it exists in the background, persistent in the way it lingers.

"dynamaxing could aid with fending off our enemies..."

her eyes are almost hungry as they pour over the information laid out before them. they flitter about, mental gears clearly churning through possibilities.

"i do believe, however, i would be concerned with enemies trying to take this energy for themselves."

a light frown has settled, creasing her lips into worry.

"not necessarily rocket as much as entities like kyurem, necrozma, even the megalopolans still among us or the drk triad. with this energy in their hands, it could do more harm than good."

too much harm, actually...

"each power spot requires the ore recovered from ultra deep sea in order to function for dynamaxing, though, correct? we could increase security around dewford's rift to limit access to the dynamax ore in an attempt to stall our enemies from using this to their advantage?"

it's not sound, surely, but it can buy time - the flow of which needs to be on their side if they're to survive each item on dahlia goode's list.

aqua assembly.

tl;dr |

- doesn't mind the idea of dynamax & power spots
- worried about the possibility a new energy can bring: more enemies coming in to get it
- not as concerned about rocket getting it, but things like kyurem, necrozma, etc.
- suggests increased security at ultra deep sea rift to protect dynamax ore

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]she flashes a small, warm smile toward Greyson Connors. while he sees some logistics issues with her idea, he does not outright refuse it. and for such a thing, she is grateful.

"interdimensional threats are a big feat even for our aqua members, but i do like the idea of utilizing the legendary pokemon we have on our side for added security. tapu koko, in particular, could possibly set up some sort of electrical barrier maybe?"

it's sound logic, something she wholeheartedly agrees with as far as placing faith in a solid stance. between them, perhaps a plan can even be found...

which brings about her next point. for this, her eyes stray from Greyson Connors to find the familiar gold of freya morningstar. there, they hold firm.

"the commissioner mentioned terastal caverns appearing beneath much of hoenn. if there are any that connect to sootopolis, we could utilize those to strike from underground. sea forces like nautica and skyler dross with kyogre as well as aerial forces like Eva Morales and rayquaza could surround to apply pressure while land forces approach from the terastal caverns."

she flashes teeth - more encouraging than aggressive in nature.

"we would need to map the terastal caverns prior, as well as remove anything that might lurk within them, but it's a possibility."

aqua assembly.

tl;dr |

- agrees no one would be able to handle interdimensional threats
- also agrees with using the legendaries (tapus) in custody to aid in defending deep sea rift
- suggests using the terastal caves dahlia mentioned to attack sootopolis from underground

she rode with them into battle - the likes of Cillian Quinn and Tempest Quinn  - on the backs of pokemon made larger than life. her roaring moon, a paradoxical anomaly grown to an impossible size, dwarfed still by the shape of Eva Morales 's patron snaking through the sky. 

rocket has their own patrons that, if granted access to this power, could shatter the world. in galar, it hadn't mattered. that place had never been theirs.

"i agree with Greyson Connors and illeana reyes in that we limit access to the rift and provide additional security to dewford's entrance. Michael Navidson is a reliable gym leader and i'm sure he can suggest some gym trainers that may be able to take their share of watches."

when she meets illeana reyes 's eyes, her own are glittering. hungry for a war she's wanted for well over a year. 

"the morningstar estate is built into the very rock of sootopolis itself. there's a chance some of those tera tunnels have broken into it." there's a chance, then, that her estate has crumbled from the inside. her fingers curl. "i support this plan of action, if we're truly discussing the possibility of taking back sootopolis." 

"but i must remind the council that most in sootopolis are still civilian. if we're employing the use of legendaries, we need a plan. we need protocol. kyogre and skyler dross can focus their attack on the sub and engage with declan walsh and darkrai if they make an appearance. rayquaza and Eva Morales , kyle lopez and ho-oh can handle Cillian Quinn and shadow lugia with angelo vestri and latios' support."

her gaze moves to each in turn. "John Sullivan and tapu lele, Laurence Anderson and articuno, can work on containment. be the eyes while we're in combat. if forces need redirecting per bryan delarosa 's xerneas or Elisabeth Fiorelli 's wo-chien making an appearance, they can make the call."

her gaze rests hesitantly on PENELOPE LIVY . and then flickers to MATIAS SILPH . her jaw tightens. "MATIAS SILPH can help illeana reyes and i in the tunnels with his ability to manipulate earth."

she shifts. "that is the rough draft of a hastily spun plan pitting our avatars against theirs. i would appreciate the council's input - specifically those i didn't mention, as i'm less familiar with their backgrounds and...abilities. and from the rest of the faction heads to suggest where we need fill in the gaps."

the thin line of her lips falls into a grimace. "and i oppose the suggestion of creating our own power spots. we take sootopolis from them and the first thing they'll do is target cities where we establish these power spots."

AQUA

on creating our own power spots: 'that's a no from me, dog'
hell yeah let's get sootopolis but pls!! a plan!!
notably suggests she work with matias :D

☉