[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]At the sound of the bell chiming as someone came through the door, Aurelie quickly glanced up from where she was sitting behind the counter of the Iron Lady Forge. She'd been absorbed in reading an encrypted message that had recently come through Rocket's internal messaging system, and the ringing of the bell brought her out of her uneasy reverie.

The sight of the unfamiliar man caused the anxious frown on her face to be replaced automatically with a warm, friendly smile—the one she reserved specifically for new customers. As he browsed the glass display cases, Aurelie hastily closed the encrypted message and stood up to welcome him.

"Hello, sir," she greeted him politely, assuming the helpful and gracious manner that had taken her years to perfect. "Is there anything I can help you find? Or are you just planning to browse and see if there's anything you like?"

A movement behind him alerted the red-haired smith to the presence of the Obstagoon accompanying him. She watched the Pokemon warily, but thankfully, it didn't upset or knock anything over as it moved through aisles between shelves and cases. Aurelie looked back toward his trainer.

Wait, isn't it around the time Zev was saying in his message that he would stop by the shop? she thought, peeking toward the clock on the wall out of the corner of her eye. If anything, he'd be a few minutes late by now. That's not like him. Usually, he's so punctual you could set your watch by him.

Yet, no one else was coming through the door after this strange man now approaching the counter. She frowned in puzzlement. The man didn't look anything like Zev. And while she would assume that a normal person might just be running late or have gotten into an accident—well, the Rocket Beast and avatar of Necrozma wasn't anything close to normal.

If anything, he's an accident waiting to happen to other people, she thought wryly. Or more likely, manslaughter or straight-up murder, if anything.

Cautiously, Aurelie ventured to say in a diffident tone, "By the way, sir, I have somewhat of an odd question to ask you. I have an appointment coming up soon with someone who should be here soon. Did you, uh, happen to see a tall, lean man with dark hair and cold blue eyes walking behind you while you came into the shop, by any chance?"

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT

[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]When the man shook his head, Aurelie initially took it as him indicating that no, he hadn't seen anyone matching Zev's description. Her conflicting twinges of both relief and disappointment were short-lived, though. When he spoke, she jerked her head up in sudden recognition and gaped at him.

"Wait! Zev? Is that you?" the redhead demanded, her eye wide and bewildered. "I didn't...I mean... Well, wow. Huh. Okay."

Clearing her throat, she crossed her arms and leaned back against the edge of a glass display case as she found her voice again. "Well, I suppose that explains the timing, at least. But wow, that's a hell of a disguise, Zev. You look nothing like yourself."

She was intensely curious about why he needed such an elaborate disguise. And how he managed it too, of course. Had he gotten in so much trouble with the League that he could no longer show his true face in public? Was this disguise Necrozma's doing, or another Pokemon, or just extremely clever use of wigs, makeup, and possibly plastic surgery? Was he imitating someone in particular with this face?

It was a testament to Aurelie's increased self-control that she forbore to ask these things aloud. Instead, she remarked, "Well, if it's a private talk, then let's head into my workshop. A little farther away from prying eyes."

Heading first to the front door, she locked it up and flipped the sign to Closed. Then she beckoned for him to follow her into her workshop, where she began turning on extractor fans and other ventilation appliances to create a wall of white noise. Then Aurelie turned to Zev and raised her eyebrow.

"So, what's up?" she asked. "Was there something in particular you wanted to discuss with me? I suppose a lot has happened since the last time you came by my shop."

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT

[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]Aurelie drew a sharp, startled beath when Zev suddenly released his disguise and it melted away like ice cream on a hot summer afternoon to reveal his true, familiar features. At least, she did learn how he'd managed it when his Obstagoon's disguise also dissolved, showing its true form as a Zoroark.

But she still didn't know why he wanted to look like someone other than himself. Was he a wanted man now? Had the League become aware of his crimes or his identity as either—or both—a Rocket Beast and Necrozma's avatar?

Or...is he just doing this for fun? Does he do things for fun that don't involve stabbing or gutting someone like a fish? she wondered. Could it be that he likes surprising people with his disguise and seeing their reactions? Is he developing—Arceus help us all—a sense of humor?

The half-serious thought distracted Aurelie so much that she jerked a little in surprise at the sound of his voice when he spoke. She sucked in her breath again, nervously this time, at his mention of upcoming operations. Especially when it involved arming a lot of grunts with combat knives.

The smile that had begun forming at the corners of her lips quickly faded. Numbly, Aurelie accepted the piece of paper he handed her and looked at the list. She let out the breath she'd been holding in a long, incredulous whistle.

"Zev, I run a specialty shop here, not a factory," the redhead exclaimed without thinking. "I can make this many, but it would take me a solid month of work. And that's with me ignoring this shop and my other commissions!"

Finally, her curiosity got the best of her. "Besides, what's this all for? What kind of operations requires so many people to have a weapon? Is Rocket planning to send all its grunts into battle or something? And in that case, wouldn't it make more sense to give them all Pokeballs with offensive Pokemon?"

Unless this is all a prank because Zev's suddenly sprouted a sense of humor, and he's actually just planning a fun Rocket-wide camping trip or something like that...

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT

[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]Unsurprisingly, Zev's assurance that Rocket would be issuing Pokeballs as well as combat knives to its lower ranks proved less than reassuring to Aurelie. A shiver of foreboding traveled down her spine as she quickly grasped the ramifications. For whatever reason, Rocket was preparing for war again.

Why are we like this? she thought bitterly, staring at the paper in her hand unseeingly. Why are we the way that we are? We're not a crime syndicate, no matter what we claim, no matter what our propaganda says. Crime syndicates want money and power, not conquest. Not domination.

Not for the first time, she wished she had any idea how to change Rocket's direction. But now wasn't the time to gripe or grieve over her own ignorance and helplessness. Lifting her gaze to meet Zev's eyes, the red-haired smith didn't try to hide her unhappiness, but she kept her voice calm and steady.

"Okay, that makes sense," she sighed. "It's too bad that we don't have much advance warning of any conflicts that might come up. I don't suppose this time we'll get to vote on targets, like we did at the summit before the meteoroid strike, will we?" A grim chuckle escaped the redhead at the memory of that sham of a democratic vote.

She breathed a visible sigh of relief when Zev agreed to reduce the order, with an unexpected offhand compliment for the quality of her work. Surprised and flattered, Aurelie flushed with pleasure, despite her misgivings.

"Thank you for understanding," she said more cheerfully. Pursing her lips, Aurelie perused the list with renewed intensity. "I think...I should be able to make half of these without compromising my normal workload or raising any suspicions.

"And I can give you the names of a few bespoke blacksmiths and bladesmiths in Hoenn that you can go to," she added generously. "Some of them are League-aligned, I think, like Gwyar Wledig, so...on one hand, I suppose you'd be enriching a League member, but you'd also be using their resources to empower Rocket. Maybe that balances out, I don't know. It's up to you."

All's fair in love and war, after all, right? she thought, the bitter taste of discontentment flooding her mouth again.

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT

[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]Though Zev's comment about the quality of her work was flattering—and all the more so because she knew he didn't perceive her as someone worth lying to—she felt no qualms about referring him to other smiths. After all, Aurelie knew very well what her best, most productive working pace was. If she forced herself to do more, she knew from experience that accidents would happen, things would get missed, and the quality he'd praised would degrade.

She wasn't going to force herself to go to such lengths. She had no need to prove herself and no desire to compromise her high standards of craftmanship. It wasn't worth it for him, Rocket, or her.

So, when he asked her to write down some names to look into, the red-haired smith simply nodded and reached for the nearest piece of paper and pencil. Some of the smiths she listed were very, very good, better than she was in some aspects. Others were at least passable enough to make simple, functional knives on request.

"Here you are, ranked in order of experience and skill," she said at last, sliding the sheet over to him. "At least, by my estimation, anyway. I'm willing to take on the Pyroar's share of the work, of course, but I can't do everything."

Unlike you, I still need to eat, sleep, and pay my bills, Aurelie thought, looking up at him. Fleetingly, she wondered how much such human needs still concerned him. Do you even get tired anymore, Zev? Do you ever feel ill, or hurt, or weak now?

Her gaze sharpened when he then shifted the conversation to her commission from Calyrex. As tempted as she was to make wisecracks about how popular she'd gotten since the mysterious King Pokemon had turned to her and asked for a saddle and shield, though, she decided against it. Aurelie's sense of humor had never landed well with Zev, much to her disappointment.

"The commission for Calyrex is going well," she reported crisply, her eye brightening with enthusiasm. "It took a long time to figure out a workable design for a metal saddle, which I've never made before in my life. I still can't imagine why it requested such a thing, when 99% of saddles are leather and that last 1% is usually wood."

Aurelie chattered on happily, "As for the shield, I've undergone testing with one of Rocket's other avatars to find a strong, durable alloy that's still be light enough to be maneuverable. It won't be as strong as whatever Zamazenta's shield was made up of, but then—what is? My design should be usable for ground and mounted combat and even maybe for a little bit of offense as well as defense."

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT

[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]Considering the intense interest that Zev used to take in the make and material of his knives, Aurelie was surprised to see his decided lack of concern for the design and construction of Calyrex's saddle and shield. Was it just because the saddle and shield weren't his? Did he only care about weapons? Or was it yet another change wrought by his alliance with Necrozma?

Whatever the reason, he clearly doesn't care, she mentally grumbled. What else is new?

Instead, what he seemed to care about was Calyrex itself. Again, though, what else was new? Since the mysterious High King Pokemon unexpectedly appeared in the real world, everyone was curious to know what it wanted or what it'd do next. Aurelie only wished she had more insight to offer in that regard.

"No, Calyrex hasn't spoken a word to me since," she answered, sighing. "Sometimes, it suddenly appears in the workshop while I'm working, as if it were supervising or monitoring my progress.

"But when it does..." She narrowed her eye and smiled humorlessly. "It never gives any sign of listening to me or responding to me if I try to ask it questions. Then it disappears or leaves just as abruptly."

Aurelie hesitated, before admitting, "It's by far the strangest customer-craftsman relationship I've ever been part of. But that's all it is. Calyrex really just feels like a very snoopy, nosy, yet unresponsive customer."

Crossing her arms, the red-haired smith tilted her head inquisitively toward Zev and raised an eyebrow. "Why do you ask? Are you volunteering to be possessed by the Calyrex so it can use you as a mouthpiece, by any chance?"

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT

[attr="class","aurelie"]

[attr="class","aurelie_body"]Though Aurelie didn't realize that Zev assumed her question about Calyrex using him as a mouthpiece had been in jest, rather than in at least partial earnest—inspired by Cillian Quinn's thoughts and queries on the matter—his response seemed pretty much right for Zev. He'd never seemed like the type who would allow anyone power over him, either.

When he spoke about motivations, though, particularly those of the powerful Legendary Pokemon, her eye widened. Everything he said made sense, even if she'd never put it that way in her own mind before. But to have it be Zev talking to her like this...

Is he actually explaining his whole thought process to me? Or thinking aloud in front of me? Aurelie wondered. Or, even weirder still, is he trying to educate me? Help me?

Shaking off the unsettling thought, the red-haired smith sighed and spread her hands wide in a gesture of perplexity. "I wish I knew! I have no idea why it wants a saddle or shield. I would assume it wants to use them, but it's never spoken to me again, let alone offered any clarification on the issue."

Thinking back to the last words that she'd actually heard the King Pokemon say to her, Aurelie mused, "Calyrex did speak of a 'familiar, ominous force' drawing near, so we must prepare for...umm, I think for...'the impending clash of war.'" She curved her fingers in air quotes.

"So, it seemed like it wanted to be ready for war. The familiar, ominous force... The first thing I thought of was Eternatus, of course, because we saw it in the..."

Abruptly, Aurelie trailed off, her brow creasing in a frown as she looked at Zev. "I should ask first, I guess. Do you still not remember the dream we all...well, dreamed together in front of the Ancient Tomb, almost a year ago? The dream that this Calyrex came from?"

[attr="class","cred"]VEL OF PIXEL PERFECT