Velmos had wasted his last few breaths on stating the obvious: calling the man that stood before her a monster. Nomi, however, did not see much use in dwelling on the fact, or even paying it much attention at all. Whether or not Necrozma would see fit to destroy their world when it was done with the Triad was a bridge to be crossed in the future.[break][break]
First, they needed to secure a future.[break][break]
"It was an attempt at temporary unification."[break][break]
She snatched his bullet out of midair, her own words as bluntly stated. He had not come here to threaten or reprimand her, that much was clear. He had the hungry look of a beast - as he often did - but today, he craved information over blood.[break][break]
"We share a common enemy. If we want to annihilate the DRK Triad, a combined force significantly increases our chance of success."

TAGS – Zev Harcourt[break]
NOTES – Mission

[attr="class","pkmn"]

Nomi's bluntness was new. Something about her had changed—not her hair, but an intrinsic quality that had defined her personhood. Confidence had suffused her words on the Megalopolan ship when Zev and illeana reyes stood together against Pecharunt and its puppets. [break][break]

But now, a bitterness underscored the Head Scientist's response instead. [break][break]

"Now you know better," he said. It wasn't a question. [break][break]

And perhaps he knew better, too. After all, his attempt at recruiting the Megalopolans to his side only reinforced their fears and traumas. A pity. [break][break]

"What will you do next, then?" Zev asked, not truly caring about her foolish game of peacemaking. Instead, he preferred to see her spend her time and resources on what truly mattered: finding the DRK Triad.

TAGS – Naomi Sato[break]
NOTES – mission

[attr="class","pkmn"]

"Now I know better," she agreed.[break][break]
It did little good to wallow on her mistakes. She'd wasted enough time already doing just that. Acceptance was the path forward, and if ever there was a creature capable of reminding her of that fact, it was the Devourer. She'd never known him to get overly deterred by failure; he simply crushed what obstacles he could beneath black crystal-encrusted palms.[break][break]
"Because of that, my plan has shifted slightly. I still want to find the DRK Triad, interrogate them, and destroy them." She knew he approved of that last part, merely tolerating her desire to learn from them - to make use of them. "But instead of fight them here, on Hoenn soil, I want to intercept them elsewhere - and cut off their access to our world."[break][break]
She'd been thinking about this.[break][break]
"There's no stopping the faction conflict, so it will remain a pointless distraction," She continued, resignation coloring her otherwise straightforward tone. "I will not be able to convince either side to stand down. So I will protect our world by ensuring the DRK Triad can't infiltrate it anymore."[break][break]
She smiled, then, and it wasn't kind.[break][break]
"Instead, we'll be the ones taking them by surprise."

TAGS – Zev Harcourt[break]
NOTES – Mission

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"And how exactly do you plan to do that?" Zev asked, raising an eyebrow. He found it difficult to imagine Nomi at the head of one, despite her participation in clashes over the recent years. [break][break]

After all, it was her naïveté that led to her face on wanted posters. [break][break]

"As you said, the war between Team Rocket and the League is a pointless distraction, one that consumes a lot of time and resources that could otherwise be used for finding the DRK Triad," he continued. [break][break]

From his perspective, an alternative means involved technology and power that neither the League nor Team Rocket were using yet. [break][break]

"Have you discovered something new in your research?"

TAGS – Naomi Sato[break]
NOTES – mission

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"Sort of."[break][break]
It wasn't that she had made any new discoveries; moreso, she had new ideas in regards to what her research had already uncovered. What was the point of being a visionary, if she could not innovate on what she had seen?[break][break]
"There are a few ways the DRK Triad seem to consistently enter Hoenn," she continued. "The Unown that are still in their possession and the RKS Machine." She suspected they had access to other technologies, such as spacecrafts capable of traversing Ultra Space, but could not confirm that hunch as of yet.[break][break]
The Unown hummed in invisible, collective unison at the mention of their lost kin, a complex note that felt like sorrow - and, perhaps, frustration.[break][break]
"I hope to recruit several of my scientific peers within Rocket to the cause of investigating the RKS Machine, and other virtual means of entry into Hoenn." She paused. "As for the Unown...the Triad are no longer the only ones with access to the Unown Dimension. I am going to attempt to use it to achieve interdimensional travel, as well as see if I can figure out a way to prevent them from entering it."[break][break]
An idea surfaced, then, a memory of two Gods standing side-by-side, scions of destruction.[break][break]
"There is another Avatar potentially capable of interdimensional travel. Someone who could help us against the DRK Triad. I already have something of a tentative alliance with her...and it seems you do, too."

TAGS – Zev Harcourt[break]
NOTES – Mission

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Perhaps Nomi had learned her lesson after all, Zev thought, recalling his conversation with THEO BECKETT over a chess game that neither man had cared for. She had switched tactics, discarding the naïve notion of an alliance bound to produce bitter fruit. A science-focused approach suited the girl's skillset. [break][break]

"Let me know if you find a way to stop their infiltration," the Rocket Beast said, the gears of his mind already turning with ideas. "We can lay a trap for them." [break][break]

At the mention of illeana reyes, his eyes narrowed and his frown deepened. [break][break]

"The Alchemist and I don't have an alliance. We fought at the Great Chasm months ago, though she managed to hold her own against me well enough." It was as close to a compliment as Zev would give.

TAGS – Naomi Sato[break]
NOTES – mission

[attr="class","pkmn"]

Ah.[break][break]
Not an alliance, an understanding. One world-ending god acknowledging another, with the respect deserved for being on equal footing in terms of power.[break][break]
Nomi took note of that. Not so much because she did not trust Zev and Necrozma to uphold their agreement - to hunt the DRK Triad with her - but because it was simply logical to have mitigations in place for whatever might come next, in terms of escalation...should Necrozma prove dangerous to Hoenn, in the end.[break][break]
And of course, the same could be said of Palkia.[break][break]
"I would advise an alliance, then," she urged. "I am confident she will help us - help you - destroy the DRK Triad. Palkia was once chained by them, too, after all."[break][break]
The song of vengeance ran through the veins of all those the Triad has attempted to control: the Unown, Necrozma, Palkia. Dialga, too, wherever it was.[break][break]
"In any case, laying a trap would be ideal. I will make it my top priority to figure out the best method of doing so."[break][break]
She sighed, then, clearly vexed.[break][break]
"If only we did not have to pour so much of our time and energy into this upcoming war," she lamented, not her first technically treasonous sentiment in regards to the Rocket agenda. "We cannot let it distract us, or hold us back, or delay us. Deal with the League quickly and efficiently, if we must."[break][break]

TAGS – Zev Harcourt[break]
NOTES – Mission

[attr="class","pkmn"]

Zev took Nomi's advice with the same regard he took any other unsolicited advice: with cold, stony silence. She wasn't wrong, necessarily. He would simply never accept that someone could be wiser or could know better than he did. Such a thing wasn't possible, in his mind. [break][break]

"The war is what we signed up for when we agreed to use Team Rocket's resources for our own needs," he said instead, allowing her to change the topic. "I expect you'll do your part, if you still want access to them. I'll do the same, for now." [break][break]

Until the crime syndicate could no longer provide what he needed. [break][break]

"But I agree it can't be a prolonged event. We'll let the humans play in the sand for a little while, but then we'll put an end to it. One way or another." Zev's tone was detached and clinical, as if said humans were merely insects crawling across the ground.

TAGS – Naomi Sato[break]
NOTES – mission

[attr="class","pkmn"]

She would do her part - for the reasons he stated, and others. She couldn't help but think of her home, in Sootopolis, the one she and Parker had recently purchased. She'd admitted to KING WAYLAND that she didn't care if freya morningstar took back her beloved city, and she'd meant it. She just wasn't entirely sure that was an outcome she could abide, if it involved losing the domestic life she and Parker were now building together.[break][break]
But Zev was not the sort of man to grasp such a concept. Or so she guessed. He was, however, married.[break][break]
Which reminded her of something.[break][break]
"I suppose we will find out soon enough, but if Walsh wants to take Mossdeep, I would very much like to ensure the Space Center survives the assault," Nomi declared. "And if it can't? Then I will steal its secrets before we destroy it."[break][break]
A thoughtful expression came over her, eyes distant as she considered the possibilities.[break][break]
"It's possible there's research in there that could help us traverse Ultra Space." She paused. "Perhaps Nenet will be able to help me make sense of it."[break][break]
He would not want his wife close to a warzone, she suspected - but surely he could admit that her expertise would benefit them.

TAGS – Zev Harcourt[break]
NOTES – Mission

[attr="class","pkmn"]

Mossdeep. In past meetings, the greater body of Team Rocket had chosen it as a site of a future attack. Not only was it an advantageous location, but its Space Center was a valuable resource. Zev knew it was only a matter of time before declan walsh ordered a takeover of the city. [break][break]

"Our goals there align, too," the Beast said, mentally noting how Nomi already knew his wife. Were they already working together, then? "I have a contingency plan for the data, in case something happens to the building." [break][break]

In the days and weeks to come, he had a server room built deep in the recesses of the New Mauville power plant. There, one of many backups of the Space Center's data could be housed for safekeeping. [break][break]

"I'll keep you updated about its progress," Zev said as he moved to leave Nomi's laboratory. At the door, he glanced over his shoulder at the young scientist. "I expect to hear from you about yours."

TAGS – Naomi Sato[break]
NOTES – mission

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