The sights from on high appear worse for there clarity, though Derek can do nothing to help those caught in the struggle below. The distance is too great, and the sound of LEECH SEEDS bursting in the distance distracts him. Staring for too long with the false hope of seeing just what it was they ensnared, Derek is one of the last to realize everyone has decided to take the plunge.

Given the inkling they knew something he didn't, the ranger's Flygon is encouraged to divebomb straight for the water. Gradually catching up with the rest, he emerges onto the scene to find them protecting the bear.

Soaked and pissed off for it, Derek scoops up the Flygon with a pokeball before quickly wringing out his jacket.

With everyone preoccupied, and attacks flying about, one might figure it best to stand back and observe. Oh, and give those who could spare the attention to address what was probably on it's way. "So uh. There's probably another horde headed here." Whether anyone had actually listened was beyond him. "Just thought you guys ought to know before everything goes to shit...again." Until then, he'd allow his Grimmsnarl out to project a LIGHT SCREEN ahead of the 'security detail'.

cZEmfNdf

---

tl;dr
- follows after everyone instead of checking what's behind
- explains that there are more megalopolans/etc likely to arrive
- stands idly by ursaluna/entrance, summoning his grimmsnarl & using LIGHT SCREEN

BLOOD, MUD & IRON

☉

Words coming from inside the room cause Derek's attention to turn, flashing a smile towards Anna while considering how to answer. "You mean during the jailbreak? One of my pokemon got hurt pretty bad."

Being that it was the truth, it was easy enough to hide behind those words without betraying how Derek really felt. Though it only made him think even harder on his other pokemon. "I did want to come see you, but..."

The ranger's fuck up put her there in the first place. He didn't deserve to be affiliated with her liberation from that cell. "I was afraid to face you in front of anyone." It was impossible to know how she would react.

annalise henderson

☉

[attr="class","icon"]

The one who took her said something similar. It was starting to become funny, how rockets were always trying to offer some kind of warning before battle.
[break]
[break]
...Does he not realize it yet?
[break]
[break]
The desperation in his head ranger's outburst brings Derek back to the mission. Rallying the subordinate to commit further, even with the strength of his Metagross waning. Growing tired of all these threats feeling so empty, his index finger singles out the unknown rocket. The steel behemoth recognizes the order, offering the remainder of it's power to strike them down with the LIGHT OF RUIN.

"..."

Derek turns, dark hues residing upon the familiar figure.

He's still hiding away like some rocket.

The observation is mulled over in quiet. Speculating whether Rowan should be the one he trusted. But it was better this way. The League couldn't know about this. Not even annalise henderson or PENELOPE LIVY.

Eventually the ranger breaks his silence. "Yeah."

A hand reaches for his phone, tapping the screen until it reveals a drawing of a man (dorian westcliff). It's been rendered by a forensics artist, though the face is hardly unique. "But more importantly I am looking for this guy." With so much riding on Rowan's answer, he can't help but tighten his grip on the device.

Rowan Wrynn

☉

Listening in as he moves for the very front of the vanguard, Derek overhears talk about all the corpses and bones. He would have even remained idly by to discover more of their findings, had he not watched DESIREE BLOOMS flitting across the landscape so recklessly.

These people are fucking crazy.

If they weren't blitzing towards the very thing that was leaving a sea of corpses, then they were struggling to wade through the waist-high mudland. The risk of getting stuck, or being too slow to avoid the bear if it charged... They were both quite the gamble.

Derek instead switches out pokemon, choosing to FLY upon the dragon to keep a close watch over it's behavior. Oh, and for a better look at the mud-covered species.

JqDWtgSc

---

tl;dr
- hears about corpses & bones
- watches desiree glide away recklessly towards bear
- switches pokemon to FLY, following/observing the bear
- wonders what the hecc this muddy bear thing is

BLOOD, MUD & IRON

☉

Many were here for Anna in her hour of need. Finding time to visit alone had been difficult, and it made not visiting at all easier as the days went by. Derek made no great showing until almost a week later, coming in the dead of night when she was expected to be sleeping.

He wasn't sure if he should wake her.

For once Derek was able to imagine a peaceful picture with Anna in mind. He never laid eyes on the cage she called home for so long. Only heard of it in the report.

Everything she suffered behind those bars was on him.

So why wake her now? She deserved a little more rest.

annalise henderson

☉

Maybe he was wrong to expect help. The guy must've watched him make every mistake in the book. The golden rule was to keep quiet, lessen the footprint, and well... he didn't.

Derek shares a quiet look of defeat with his Zeraora before getting back into gear. A stealthier approach this time lead him around this ruined district of Lesser Megalopolis. He saw more than just the dead bodies Blackburn was inspecting upon their visit.

Large gusts of an ebon shade tore through a section of the cityscape up ahead. Had he carelessly moved too fast, they might've been swept up with it. Gone in an instant.

But there is still no sign of Blackburn. As the hours draw on he loses hope. Maybe Derek was the one who got off easy? It was impossible to say, but he wonders anyway.

Eventually the prospect of dying here outweighs the search and (potential) rescue. In other situations, such as underwater cave diving, there was a cardinal rule. Don't save anyone. Getting yourself home was all that mattered. Maybe there was a little more nuance than that, but there seemed to be no point wasting anymore time looking for his "partner".

It takes another couple hours to navigate through this disaster, but Derek soon finds himself staring back at this hellish place before stepping through to his world...

He could always look into Blackburn on the other side.

bEsGGXaZ

---

tl;dr
-spends hours looking for "JONATHAN BLACKBURN"

- escapes through the rift many, many hours later

LESSER MEGALOPOLIS: DD

☉

At least a week had passed since his mission into lesser megalopolis. Derek had lost track of time with all of his...indulgences. But there was much he'd learned since coming back to this side of the rift. Just nothing he could act upon so soon.

Memories from another life revealed a great deal about how he'd treated some of his pokemon. The incident compounded them as failures. There was no doubt Jonesy had done well under Ollie's reign. That Derek might actually be willing to trade this life for the one he was so soon to discard in that unfamiliar place. In the end, it didn't matter.

The journey to the tombs of pokemon at rest upon Mt. Pyre is considered perilous to those who've never experienced such a passing. Though nothing is so treacherous to stop him.

But it doesn't feel right to go it alone. He wants to share the moment. The burden. Part of why he's bringing Jonesy here instead of Petalburg Woods is that there might be more friends for him here. And Ollie, though alive and well, was one of Jonesy's friends.

He waits quietly, staring at the black-and-yellow orb with a dull look on his face...

ollie morales

☉

[attr="class","icon"]

"I don't have one neither." Derek confirms with the group, wondering just how much of an impact that might have on them getting out unscathed. Or at all. "But I want to try something anyway." Without a sygna suit or better means, the heat was beginning to cause him quite the grief. And now they were headed right for the lake...
[break][break]

Deciding on something a little impromptu, a brief exchange with his Grimmsnarl sees to a LIGHT SCREEN being erected along the floor, as opposed to scaling towards the ceiling.
[break][break]

"Can't walk on it, but... Maybe it reduces the heat a little?" Or maybe not. He was just trying to be helpful in some imaginable way.
[break][break]

[break]
tl;dr[break]
admits he doesn't have a psychic type pokemon[break]
improvises via a light screen (grimmsnarl) along the ground[break]

[attr="class","bottom"]THE CICATRICE[break]

"...Yeah, we are." The response comes as a bit callous, but upon picking up on her lack of experience (or awareness), his features gradually soften. It wasn't like he started out much different. "Maybe even a little more than that, if you're game." And if the situation allowed it.

Providing two Beldum to roam freely, Derek averts his gaze as he thinks of how to navigate the conversation without coming off worse than he already had. Though he's in no mood for it, he is very keen of first impressions.

It doesn't take long for the duo he released to begin whirring excitedly, leading them towards some tracks ahead. Closer inspection reveals they seemed to be headed closer to the island's center, which gave their alleged targets the advantage. Nobody would be able to get close without being seen. "But if you're not so sure about what you're doing, stick close and do as I say." It didn't sound any better, and he wonders if he should toss away the idea of trying to be nice. Now wasn't the time.

---

tl;dr
- 10 MP per IC post in a RT Battle/Mission.
- 50 MP for participation in a RT Battle/Mission.
- Total: 60 MP

Neffatari Nzingha

☉

"...Uh, a little help here?" The ranger calls out, appealing to the fact he wasn't supposed to be alone in all this. But as the horde closes in, even with all their eyes, nothing comes of it. This silence of his partner stings. Isn't he going to help me?"

"HELLO!? BLACKBURN?!" Even louder this time, but the only thing it incites is a swifter pace from the megalopolans who take it as aggression. Why won't he just come out already?

Breaking out in a run, Derek herds the zombies, bobbing and weaving around rubble alongside his Zeraora. Eventually he realizes there is no losing them. Not without a distraction. The sound and bright lights from the explosions seemed to work well enough.

Turning down the next avenue, Derek finds a dead end in the form of rubble. As he turns, a distinct pose conveys the message to his pokemon. Harnessing enormous sums of power, it's energy manifests in the form of a GIGAVOLT HAVOC.

Radiant currents ripple along the ground and up along half-toppled walls, stunning this horde and shocking many electrical circuits and lights running through the cityscape. It was enough to power everything in the area. Some flickered, though a few circuits blew up from the excess power, shooting sparks across the road and igniting some kind of fuel pooling on the road.

As the horde trips over itself, Derek is able to escape into the building. Though some zombies are not far behind, the Zeraora takes hold of it's trainer and covers the distance to the rooftops. From there they are able to push past the obstructed avenue, leaving the danger behind for now. But seeing now that it could be done, why was Blackburn too scared to act?

---

tl;dr
🗺️ utilize a mythical pokemon in an advantageous way. (2/2)

13 use a light source in some way to distract a swarm of mad megalopolans.

LESSER MEGALOPOLIS: DD

☉