[attr="class","angelotag"] angelo vestri

[attr="class","angelomain"]skyler dross ’s glance is met with a subtle, amused wink in response. An 'enjoy the show' that they both knew was coming. 

Angelo casually wiping his fingers off on his jacket sleeve, sticky from the hondew berry cube he’d just smuggled to Salem, sat with Razz Kingsman .

“Well, if closing the rifts can kill two birds with one stone, then that sounds like it makes sense to prioritise. We’ve got enough pests crawling around the place without Sea Hoenn and Kyurem inviting themselves in, too.”

Personally, Angelo quite enjoyed the plunder that came from beyond the rifts illeana reyes so wished to cut them off from. However The Calamity Latios had warned him of may very well come from an alternative dimension.

He'd be willing to abandon his resources in The Wilds, if it meant keeping his life.

“But if we ignore Team Rocket they won't hesitate to screw us over while our backs are turned, and then they will be of consequence to whatever plan you cook up. They'll stick their noses in, can guarantee that much after the whole meteor business.” Angelo’s eyes rest on Illeana, he’d known a long time of her resolve to stitch the dimensional tears back together. She wasn't going to change her mind, he bet.

So, instead, he turns his attention to the newest councilwoman, freya morningstar . Leaning forward, his voice is smooth, confident and just the slightest sweet like honeyed whiskey. Tossing forward a proposal, ever hungry for a Nautica deal.

“Even if we're not ready to take back Sootopolis yet, we should put more pressure on Rocket. Keep 'em busy until we are. Like Sky said, Nautica is more than equipped to help with that, if you're interested in discussing ideas together sometime.”

Reclining, with one elbow propped against the backrest of his chair, Angelo takes a sip of coffee and drawls his next words as if asking the table's opinion on the underwhelming taste.   

“By the way, anyone else's legendary warned them of an incoming calamity lately?”

► agrees that closing the rifts should probably be the league's focus, but disagreeing about not focusing on rocket. proposing plans. also a calamity warning?? 

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[attr="class","wownewtag"] Gunner Graves GIDEON GRAVES

[attr="class","wownewmain"]Peering beneath the shelter of his arm that he held in front of his face, Angelo watches alongside the brother's as the mega pidgeot ascends. Disappearing straight towards the glittering eye of the storm.

Whatever she had done out there, amongst the ripping wind and slicing debris, it had worked. Gradually the howling, emerald tempest begins to subside. Vortex slowing until it all but vanishes, calmness settling over the surface of the moon as if it had been sucked up into a hungry storm drain.

Angelo lowers his arm, looking out towards the exposed crater curiously as heavy silence takes over. Whatever the green gem had been, it no longer twinkled in the distance. Likely destroyed. Shame.

But that wasn't all... 

Silhouettes stand like statues on the grey, barren field. Too far out to make out.    

“Well, that doesn't look suspicious, does it?” An eyebrow is arched, glancing towards his friends in mirth before, naturally, taking a step forward. 

Slicing wind stops Angelo before he goes into the crater. Glancing over his shoulder, a blizzard of white paper figures swarm towards them. Sharp edges whistling through the air like an angry group of beedrill.

It's just like their last visit.  

“Here we go again,” he mumbles under his breath, unaware of his unwilling kartana kidnapping as he slaps an encouraging hand against Gunner Graves and GIDEON GRAVES's back. “Let's go!”

It's more like a push, really. 

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[attr="class","angelotag"] angelo vestri

[attr="class","angelomain"]Gradually the meeting room gets livelier. More faces file into the chamber one by one, all of whom Angelo finds he’s become acquainted with over the years. Though friendships, to random run-ins or partners made via Nautica business.

One of the latter cheerfully pops up by his side just as he’s pouring a second mug of coffee.

“Professor illeana reyes ,” he returns the greeting, offering the fair haired scientist an effortless smile. “We’ve been good. Busy. Sky’s been looking forward to getting together with everyone.” The lie is said in earshot of his wife, although the delivery is convincingly sincere.

It’s during their exchange that Laurence Anderson breezes past them to help himself to coffee. No words are shared. Angelo spares him only a brief side-eye.

ollie morales however, ever the unstoppable chatterbox, is the opposite. They could probably hear him in the hallway outside. “In the flesh. Good to see you, man.”

When the Breakfast Club disperses, their treat and coffee run successfully complete, Angelo doesn’t need to search far to locate a familiar blonde captain. He discovers that Greyson Connors  had seemed to have found her, too.

“Connors.” Angelo returns the smile with an unabashed grin, confident the new elite four had yet to spill the beans on a certain boating misadventure. His secrecy had earned him some trust points.

“Congrats on the new title. How’s it feel?”

Placing down the coffee in front of skyler dross , he then slides a plate with a generous selection of treats between them. A plump pecha berry, tiny golden grepa berries still on their stalk and hondew cubes sit beside a pair of freshly baked breakfast muffins.

It was truly a successful pilfering.

A hand falls to rest on Skyler’s shoulder then, squeezing fondly. “Move over, Dross. Gonna have to put your legs somewhere else.”

Once she vacates her boots from his reserved seat, Angelo finally takes a seat and leans back. Time to put the coffee to the test.

► chatting & chatting & chatting

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[attr="class","angelotag"] John Sullivan

[attr="class","angelomain"]Locking the office door behind them, Angelo resists the urge to reach behind him and sling Doug’s neck into a choke hold. He can almost taste the wish for a knuckle sandwich in the teenager’s shitty tone.

Wouldn’t that be funny, indeed.

“I thought you didn’t want my late stage capitalism?” He grins, giving his colleague a firm slap between the shoulder blades as they set out onto Lilycove’s harbourfront.

It would be about a ten minute walk along the docks for them to reach Angelo’s hangar, perched on the edge of the water. During which he prods him for more information about Hoenn locations he was looking to visit, chiming in with suggestions of his own. Requested or not.

“Lavaridge is alright but if you go out to route 112 and towards Jagged Pass, there’s some natural hot springs hidden there. Can skip the entrance fees that way. Mountain trails are good, too,” he says as they reach his large metal box of a converted warehouse, reaching for the jangle of his keys again.

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[attr="class","wownewtag"] John Sullivan Elisabeth Fiorelli

[attr="class","wownewmain"]Doug’s words fall on deaf ears.

After leaning back against the laboratory table, Angelo’s attention had become drawn into the book as swiftly as his veins had taken poison some months ago.

He stills much like he had then, too. Frozen on a particular page inked in elegant penmanship, seized by the cold tingle of paralysis.

Toxel venom.

Angelo knew for certain it hadn’t been Elisabeth Fiorelli who he’d encountered at the base of Meteor Falls that day. When the scent of burning flesh and scorched earth had been left following a violent struggle, blade carving a path against his neck before both men had fled.

But she had been there, he begins to realise then. Her greeting card had been left in his blood.

Closing the book after thumbing through a few pages, committing the toxel venom to memory, Angelo stands. That little vial feels heavy in his pocket - albeit not with guilt. With resolve.

“Good idea. Doubt we’ll be the last who finds this place.”

It mattered little whether Doug cleared out the abandoned basement. She’d simply done a little relocating. Her roots had spread further beyond this abandoned cottage, pot too small to contain her.

“How’d you hear Elisabeth went missin’ anyway?” An innocent enough question.

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[attr="class","angelotag"] angelo vestri

[attr="class","angelomain"]It was hard to distinguish on sight whether this was Angelo’s maiden voyage into an AQUA conference or his hundredth, for the pilot walks into the room alongside skyler dross with all the relaxed confidence of a seasoned skydiver before the jump.

Unconcerned he was casually dressed compared to the growing crowd in a t-shirt and jacket, a patch of Nautica’s gyarados logo stitched proudly onto the arm, he greets the familiar faces already gathered. “Mornin’.”

Beyond that, he doesn't hover making small talk. Keen sights set on a carefully spread selection at the back of the room.

“Gonna see what their coffee is all about. Want one?” He asks Skyler, gesturing somewhere opposite the reserved seat before he slips off. “Save me a spot.”

Leaving her to commandeer them a good place at the table, he goes about taking advantage of the complimentary beverages. Priorities.

FERNANDO SILPH is already at the refreshment table, drowning his bagel in cream cheese. He had the right idea. Not about the choice in topping mind you, just the resource exploitation.

Soon the scent of (acceptable, he supposed) coffee fills the space as Angelo fills a cup.

► enters with skyler, gets coffee & seats opposite dahlia

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[attr="class","angelotag"] Shalin Nariya

[attr="class","angelomain"]Screams crack through the poisonous atmosphere, someone’s name overflowing with anguish and pain.

When Angelo whirls around to see the source of the pooling grief, his chest gripped in anticipation of a fight or a mauling, he half expects to see the other explorer crumpled and broken.

Half expects to see something at her feet - bloody.

Instead, as Zulu 2 snakes protectively in front of him, he witnesses dark shapes shrink back. A Pyroar and dragon’s form craft of shade dissipating, leaving Shalin standing simply standing amongst her pokemon.

“You alright?”

Tension doesn’t completely leave his shoulders. Eyes begin to stare in a cavern that continues to feel suffocating and increasingly small.

Breath feels more difficult to process.

He doesn’t feel he can rely on Shalin after that outburst.

“Let’s call it quits for now. Go get some fresh air.” Gathering up what he could, unfortunately leaving some of his mined crystals behind, Angelo throws his pack over his shoulder.

As he passes by Shalin of Nariya Expeditions, his hand gives an encouraging pat on her back. “There's always more to discover another day, right?”

LESSEN THE LOAD AND ESCAPE
+100 RKS POINTS

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[attr="class","angelotag"] Remiel Calcifet

[attr="class","angelomain"]It had been a long time.

“Its been a chaotic year,” he says, not quite an excuse when it was seeped in mostly truth. Nautica had swallowed up a generous position of his time since its birth last summer.

Not like Angelo was yet wise to just how upheaving Remiel’s last few months had been.

Ironic though, that after all this time they found themselves in the dark maze of caverns, once again. Its for that reason, for nostalgia of former exploits, that Angelo steps forward alongside the Galarian as their respective pickaxes are drawn - to equally share the poison’s malice.

The pilot hoists the handle to rest over his broad shoulder, an easy grin on his lips. “Alright, I'll bite. That's what I'd call some good motivation.”

Whatever treasure he could get his paws on was reason enough to bring him back down to this place. Adding the bonus of a cold one after an afternoon of hard manual labour however, was near equally as desirable.

As they make to action, from his pocket a small ribombee emerges. It eyes the excited falinks in intrigue before its attention is enraptured on the edges of the gemstones, catching the light and drawing it close. Midge would be his little helper today.

“I know a good place in Dewford, down on the docks. Could do with the business after,” cue an explanatory handwave at the realm. “As you elegantly put it - this shit.”

Didn’t really need to say any more, did he?

TAKE THE BRUNT EQUALLY
+50 RKS POINTS

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[attr="class","angelotag"] dahlia goode

[attr="class","angelomain"]While she catalogues the aspects and functions of the seaplane, Angelo in turn catalogues her.

As he watches dahlia goode fidget and make wondrous comments, the pilot feels very much a sense he’s taking a fish out of water and into a stretch of endless blue - a sea of sky.

Turning over pebbles to see the hidden underside may be fascinating to him but Angelo knew not to lose sight of incoming storms, just because the horizon was clear. Dahlia was still the League’s head honcho, after all.

“Let's push off, then.” He confirms with a tilt of his head up the ladder, inviting her to scramble into the cockpit first. “Hoenn’s waiting for us.”

Once Dahlia had got herself buckled up into her seat and Angelo had routinely fiddled with the controls some, it’s time for take-off.

It’s just a hop, skip and a roar of acceleration from the engine, before they’re leaving the swell of the waves behind for smooth skies.

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[attr="class","angelotag"] Shalin Nariya

[attr="class","angelomain"]While Angelo focuses on striking the pickaxe down over, and over, and over again, Zulu 2 keeps watch over him. His sygna suit, powered by the bond that ran between them, may have staved off some of the worst of the poison but it had still seeped into his mind. Infecting his perception. 

She watches over the battle with observantly sharp, golden eyes. His sentry.

It made ignoring the crushing weight of a Ultra Deep Sea's darkness, closing in on him, just that slightest part easier to bear. 

At the sound of a warning hiss vibrating out of Zulu's throat however, Angelo peers over his shoulder. "Everythin' alright?" He calls out.

Something was forming in the cavern, something he couldn't quite yet make out. His dragapult wasn't keen to wait and see what shape it formed, twin dragon darts exploding from her horns in a warning - although more like a pre-emptive - shot. 

BATTLE A MANIFESTED TRAUMA/MEMORY
+50 RKS POINTS

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