Manju fired, and Howard followed Tsubaki's advice. He started to think on his feet. He ducked, pulling Tsubaki down with him as a laser blasted over their heads.

"Shit!" Howard cursed as he felt the heat of Manju's blasts annihilate its foes. It shot indiscriminately, using its power as a being of Ultra Space—as an alien fundamentally opposed to humanity—to destroy entities that served the whims of its former god. All Howard could do as Tsubaki dragged him towards the submarine was marvel at Tsubaki and Manju's power.

So this was the authority of an Ultra Beast.

Howard would remembered that next time he visited Ultra Space. It was best to forget what these beasts were capable of, given Howard's ownership of one. They were strange and alien. No matter what, they couldn't comprehend the hearts of men.

BANG BANG! Howard slammed on the door to the sub, before nodding. Armaldos could punch through several inches of reinforced steel without breaking a sweat. Hopefully Midori could fulfill its end of the bargain. Howard didn't want to explain to Navy in the afterlife that he had died because Tsubaki had cracked a window in their submarine.

Celpho punched through the bulkhead with minimal effort. "This is stupid. Seriously stupid! If this kills us, I'll be super pissed!"

Entering the sub with Tsubaki in tow, Howard returned Celpho to his Pokeball and sat himself in the driving seat. It didn't matter that this was an entirely different dimension. There wasn't a Eiscue's chance in hell that Howard was going to let a child drive. Besides, he was familiar with submarines from his time with the Slateport Oceanic Museum.

Tapping at several buttons on the console, the submarine blinked to life.

"Seal it. We're good to launch!" Howard shouted as the submarine's power system whirred to life.

---

Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki
PROMPT: 36, Encounter and use a submarine

"You knew this thing was down here?" Howard hissed as he maneuvered the submarine into the water. As they descended, Howard frowned in thought. Wait, why were they going into the water that those monsters had come out of? What if there were more of them down here? Were they about to die?

Famous last thoughts.

Howard wasn't particularly versed in technology, but a submarine was something he could control. If he could change the channel, he could operate an alien submarine. What was the difference? Besides, the controls for this thing were childishly simple. Tsubaki could likely control this if Howard had a nervous breakdown, which was good for both of them.

"Ugh." Howard's head thumped against the controls as he sighed. "We can go a little deeper, I suppose." The archaeologist said reluctantly as he waved at the Nihilego outside the submarine. These things were childlike, weren't they? Maybe Eris Halla was a Nihilego. They gave off similar vibes. "For science. Plus, if I don't take you, you'll probably just go yourself."

For science. He should get that on his tombstone.

"Hard to say. It's lasted this long, but who knows what'll happen if we meet any serious resistance." Howard maneuvered the submarine deeper into the Ultra Deep Sea, into the darkening ooze. It really was similar to that swamp. What if the two were connected?

"Is there an ocean at the bottom of the sea?" Howard asked her, surprised. "Sounds like a riddle."

---

Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

"Yes, that's true. I also want to make it back to where I've gone before." Howard said pointedly. "Knowledge is meaningless if it cannot be shared, and becoming Eternatus's kidney stone doesn't help anybody."

Envisioning himself and Tsubaki as tiny Eternatus kidney stones made the archaeologist want to hurl. He desperately tried to avoid thinking of the Ultra Deep Sea as the inside of a massive monster, but it was difficult to do so. This entire place was too biological. Too alive. In order to view it as anything else but the fleshy interior of a monster, you'd have to be blind.

Good thing Howard was halfway there.

Following Manju into the depths, Howard gave the creature a salute as Tsubaki poured tea. The overall stench of the Ultra Deep Sea mixed poorly with freshly brewed tea, but breathing through the mouth was second nature at this point.

"I sea. See." Howard corrected himself. He was silent for a moment, before shaking his head. "I think I'd weep, knowing there's an end. That means there's nothing left to chart. Nothing left to explore. It's an odd comfort, though. Knowing this monster specifically has an end. If it's not infinite, it can be beaten."

Accepting his tea gratefully, Howard leaned back slightly. It'd take them a little while to descend and ascend without risking decompression, so he would chillax and drink some tea. After a passing glance at Midori, Howard stopped and stared at it, eye unblinking for a grand total of three seconds.

"Is this,.." Howard sipped his tea, then immediately brightened. "Delicious! What a magnificent specimen! What a masterpiece! What an incredible piece of history! Is this teacup from Rikyū, the famed Kitakami teamaster himself?"

Turning to Tsubaki, he immediately reappraised her. She wasn't just a child with an addiction to dangerous situations. No! Nay! She was cultured.

---

Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

"The oldest thing Navy has is his truck." Howard snorted with a faint smile. Navy was someone who valued practicality, even if he was old-fashioned. If Howard gave him a funeral urn, the sheriff would likely end up using it as a paperweight. "Though I do think that might be an ancient relic..."

The tea is good. Excellent, even. There were definitely people out there that were more into tea than Howard was. He was definitely more of a coffee mixed with an energy drink kind of guy. His heart had exploded years ago, and his body was still trying to catch up. He could appreciate a fine tea, though. He was poor, not uncultured.

Plus it was likely best to not insult Midori, given it was the only thing keeping them alive right now.

"Kintsugi." He suddenly said, sipping his tea and nudging the controls with his foot. They were steadily decreasing now, and the Deep Sea was slowly turning as red as blood. Not good for Howard's appetite. "It's a process used in Kitakami where molten gold is used to fill cracks. You've probably heard of it, it's a pretty popular concept."

Funny that he was mentioning this concept again. The first time was when he mentioned it to Eris during the war north of Dewford. Now, he was explaining it to a girl who was only a few years her senior. Both were cracked by past experiences, and Tsubaki was perfectly willing to see how many cracks she could take before shattering.

"Everything dies twice. First is a natural death, and the second is when something is forgotten and wiped from history." Howard frowned and drained his cup, passing it to Midori for a refill. "Archaeology isn't about entirely pristine pieces of history. History as a concept is pristine, but its component parts, like you and me? We're not. Rikyū was a great teamaster, but he's hardly remembered outside fringe circles. What happens when nobody remembers him? Death."

Howard's voice was soft.

"This chipped cup? It could've broken into pieces, and people would've forgotten that it was ever a cup. Instead, it continued to exist, like you. Like your old man. It's beautiful because it retained its shape, which let us learn about the past." Howard continued, maneuvering into the trenches of the Ultra Deep Sea.

"That's what makes it special. Rikyū is dead, but his memory isn't. His works aren't. I admire that." Howard frowned. "That sounds vain, I realize."

---

Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki
Prompt: 38, explore funky blood trench of despair

"From my perspective as a historian, yes. Fake it 'till you make it." Howard nodded enthusiastically at Tsubaki's interpretation, before paling. "Don't do that, actually. Bad use of language. Just... don't forget who you are."

As it grew darker, Howard ended up frowning over the controls. Manju made for an excellent guide, but the Ultra Beast didn't make maneuvering the submarine any easier. Some trenches were cramped, with the sub almost scratching fleshy boulders as it hummed past. Several were so open that it was disconcerting. They had to keep a sharp eye on the power, as well. Howard didn't want to get stuck down here.

"That past will never vanish. It shouldn't vanish. If you want to change, feel free to, but be aware that what you were will always exist, and you shouldn't forget about it." Howard shrugged, though his brow furrowed as if he remembered something unpleasant.

Something unpleasant named Team Rocket.

He wanted to preserve and understand as much of history as he could, but that didn't change the fact that he was a member of Team Rocket. Even if he left, that wouldn't matter. He would always have that dragging him down. He was, by definition, 'shit outta luck'.

Just as Tsubaki would always return to this place. This terrible, cruel place that was the antithesis to all that was good would mark her forever, even if she moved past it.

"For example, yo—GAH!" The submarine lurched slightly as if something had pushed against it. Howard's tea spilt all over the controls, and Howard hissed out break. Please be waterproof please be waterproof please be waterproof he prayed to the powers that be.

The console sparked. Fuck.

SLAM! A tentacle slammed into the ship's window, sending the pod spiraling. "Fuck we're gonna dieeeeeeee!"

---

Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

"If you vomit, I'll kick your ass. This hat was not cheap." Howard hissed at her as he began to hyperventilate. The controls were fried. They didn't work. They didn't work. They were so dead. So so so dead. Even if Manju could fight off a gigantic Octillery, where did that leave Howard and Tsubaki? As Eternatus's kidney stones?

No way. Zero way. Absolutely note.

How did that Pokemon get so big? It wasn't natural. Was it related to the Dynamax phenomenon? If anything, it gave Howard a flashback to the toxic chains that had mutated onto people under Route 119. Could they...? No, they weren't related. This was simply the result of being bathed in horrendous energies that nothing should experience.

Click. Click. Clickclickclickclick... Howard continued to prod the controls, but they were completely fried. Great. They could just die down here. Howard held his head in his hands as he continued to breath heavily. Come on. Be calm! He thought desperately, even though his body refused to comply.

Then, he saw something on the ground by his foot. He grabbed at instinctively. It looked like... a game controller?

Howard wanted to laugh. This wasn't Varoom Cart 8 Deluxe. This was a submarine. Surely it couldn't just...

The submarine moved as Howard touched a knob. It really was that easy. Howard was going to punt the next blue person he saw. Were none of their pieces of tech childproof? Didn't a kid fly them back to Fortree after the 119 Incident?

"I see a path. We're getting out of here. Don't vomit—don't distract me—do make sure that thing doesn't follow us. Tell your angel, I don't care." Howard leaned over the controller and floored it. The submarine immediately responded.

Maybe it was like Varoom Cart after all.

---

Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

Yeah, Tsubaki was broken all right. She was broken because Howard was going to kick her ass once they got out of this alive. If they didn't, he would make sure they fought as spirits until they were dragged down to whatever hell existed.

His hat. She had vomited in his hat. That hat was sacrosanct to him! It was his greatest treasure. He had it for years, and it meant more to him than anything that he owned. If artifacts were the treasures of history, than that hat was the treasure of Howard Slayte. It was what he wanted to be left behind when he was gone.

And Tsubaki just threw up in it.

Arceus was cruel. Eternatus, even moreso.

"You stop! That's my HAT!" Howard screamed as they ascended rapidly. The bloody water was fading away, and it was being replaced by a strange yellow liquid. Howard's eye narrowed as a crevice appeared through the murk. Whatever was chasing them couldn't fit through that!

There was nothing stopping it from waiting, either. Howard elected to ignore that, much like he elected to ignore tossing Tsubaki out of the submarine.

"Who cares if he does? Do you know about each bacteria living inside your body? Mythology has proven this time and time again: gods can be fooled." Howard glanced at her, expression unreadable in the light. "And I'm gonna fool this one."

The submarine slipped through the crack, and the Octillery bellowed with rage behind them. The walls shook, and Howard kept pushing forward until the noise and vibration subsided.

"..." Howard crossed his arms, before glaring at Tsubaki.

---

Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki