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As soon as the poison dart falls, Luka's feeble squirming becomes a more determined thrash. She winces as her rib throbs and the wound on her stomach threatens to open again, but she can bear a little pain if it means breaking free from Lulu and her misguided ideals.[break][break]

"Needs to be done for who, exactly? For you? F-for Rocket? There's no way I'm going to let that happen. Dreams are something that deserve to be protected, not twisted into some kind of nightmare!"[break][break]

It's a dramatic sentiment, but she'd rather the lunar wing be destroyed than end up in Rocket hands. She has no idea what Lulu intends to do with it, but she can only assume that it's nothing good. A prickle of curiousity teases the corners of her mind but she shoves it down, unwilling to follow the same dark path. Hers, she hopes, will be one filled with light.[break][break]

Though now, that light seems rather dim, clouded by the shadows that Lulu commands. Her thrashing becomes more desperate once Darkrai and Marshadow break free of Sylveon's ribbons, but it does no good. Her Sylveon and Musharna, already pushed beyond their limits, both fall to Darkrai's attack. Luka bites back a yelp as she watches their small bodies crumple onto the rift floor, and knows it's her fault that they've all ended up like this.[break][break]

She strains in Lulu's grasp again, nails digging into the other woman's arm as she attempts to pry it away from her neck. "You're wrong," she manages to bite out, her voice choked and strained. "I-I'm sorry for whatever made you view the world like this, but it's not as cruel a place as you claim! I think you just assume that everyone is full of the same darkness that you feel."[break][break]

Her legs swing back as she tries to free herself with a kick, but the erratic jerk of her limbs meets nothing but empty air. Luka falls to the ground when Lulu disappears— though perhaps floats is a better way to put it. The pressure around her neck is lifted, though a bruise remains. Like the mark of a lover, it seems to promise that the two women will meet again.[break][break]

Perhaps next time, she'll be ready for it.[break][break]

"Ugh...wh...w-what just happened?"[break][break]

Luka slowly staggers to her feet, disoriented and confused. Lulu had simply vanished, as if she'd never been there at all. But she doesn't dwell on the disappearance for long, instead hurrying to the fallen bodies of her teammates. After several moments of fussing and ensuring that they're still alive, she turns to face the dragon-costumed girl.[break][break]

"A-are you okay?" she asks Andrea, concern settling into the lines of her face even though she's the one faring far worse. "I-I can't thank you enough for helping me, really. T-this woman is dangerous...I don't know what would have happened if you weren't here."[break][break]

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"M-more talking? Okay..."[break][break]

Luka leans back against the walls of her makeshift enclosure with a wince. There's some kind of alien seaweed growing in here with her, glowing a greenish-blue hue that bounces strangely off the crystal around her. She watches it for a moment, almost entranced, before remembering Razz's request.[break][break]

"Hey, now that you're head ranger, don't you think you should get, like...s-some kinda new outfit, or something?" It's a bizarre thing to bring up in context, but at least it keeps her talking. "You know, something cool! Like, uhmm...sharp, yeah. Oh, I bet I could help—"[break][break]

She's cut off by what sounds like footsteps outside of her crystal palace, and the vaguely distorted shape of something outside. Her Pokemon huddle around her defensively, and panic starts to prick at the back of her neck. "Umm...Monsieur? I-I think there's definitely something here..."

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"Oh, okay! Yaaaay...."[break][break]

Razz's attempt at levity falls a little flat, but Luka appreciates it nonetheless. Frankly, just hearing another voice is helping to keep her a bit calmer; it's very reassuring to know there's someone on the way.[break][break]

"I...kind of." There's a lumbering shape in the distance. Even though it's far off and the sun doesn't penetrate down here, a chrome exterior seems to glint in her direction.[break][break]

"It's big...d-do you think it's coming this way?" More panic starts to settle into her voice and bleeds through the comm device. "I-I can't...ugh..."[break][break]

She can't run. What she can do is try to protect herself from whatever lurks in the dream zone. Luka feebly manages to wrap her hands around one of the mysterious ores in her bag, but her palms are slick with blood and she nearly drops it. Eventually she holds it firmly enough that she can smash it against one of the small cracks that litter the rift, causing it to burst into a dome of crystal that partially surrounds her body.[break][break]

It's the best form of protection she can think of for now. Though on Razz's end, the sounds of smashing ore and expanding crystal must certainly be bizarre.

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"Nn...m-my head is fine, I think. I don't know. I-I feel kinda dizzy, but that might just be the dream zone..."[break][break]

Or the blood loss.[break][break]

"A-and, um. Sorry but...c-could you hurry? There's so many creepy things in the dream zone. If something finds me, I..."[break][break]

Luka shudders. She doesn't want to think about what might happen. She's no more than a sitting duck in a situation like this— she's used to feeling helpless and useless, but being helpless and useless and bleeding is worse.[break][break]

There comes the sound of rumbling; a cold, metallic sound. "Oh no," she mutters, glancing around wildly. But there's no telling if the sound has actually reverberated around the dream zone, or if it just exists in her own head.

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"I can hear you."[break][break]

Her voice is slightly muffled by the sound of air rushing past as Helios sprints the two of them to safety. But then again, the sound from Remiel's device is about the same. She can still make out what he's saying however, and nods even though he can't see it.[break][break]

"I'll meet you there. And, um..."[break][break]

After everything that's happened, being cordial with the prince feels strange and familiar, all at once. She can't decide if she likes it or not.[break][break]

"B-be careful, okay?"

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And just like that, the easygoing bubble they'd been existing in bursts.[break][break]

"Is that— o-oh my gosh, Captain. I'm so sorry! I didn't realize..." Luka instinctively checks herself for vines or flowers, but her skin is clear. It's all because of the suit, she realizes with a pang of guilt. Someone like Ollie is far more deserving of being protected— he's actually worth something to the League, after all.[break][break]

"Y-you're right, we should go. Um..."[break][break]

Her Furret is back, having been unsucessful in locating anything of value. Luka glances at the vines encircling Ollie, then back down at Berry. "Can you, um...t-try biting through some of those?" she ask the little ferret. "Just be careful!"[break][break]

A wag of her pink-and-white striped tail serves as a 'yes'. Berry crawls swiftly up Ollie's leg and settles on his shoulder, then starts to bite through one of the vines near his neck.

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"Eh? Really?"[break][break]

The look Luka pierces him with is buring with curiousity. "What was it like? What happened? You have to tell me, because I just told you!"[break][break]

Hers is a playground kind of logic, but it's irrefutable nonetheless. Luka hadn't played Ollie's route, but she'd played several others and had a suspician that her own face had been present in the game. She's very curious about what Macro Cosmos had done with her identity— hopefully nothing too embarassing.

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"Noooo! You'll just make fun of me! A-and it's silly anyways!"[break][break]

Luka huffs, lips pursed in a dramatic pout. But Ollie's laughter is pleasant— such a relief to hear in a place like this. She'd like to hear it again, so she relents.[break][break]

"I, erm...p-played a game last month, and he was in it..." There's really no need to elaborate further, is there?

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"Ah, umm..." Her voice is laced with pain— she winces into the line but it comes out as a crackle of static. "L-last I checked, we were around sector, um....3A? The kelp fields. B-but my partner and I got separated in..." Another hiss of pain, "I-in the dream zone, and..."[break][break]

From the other side, Razz might be able to hear the worried squeaks of Luka's Audino as she tries to help her trainer. Her Lopunny is also present, keeping a vigilent watch over the pair.[break][break]

"I g-got shot," Luka continues. "By an arrow...t-thingy. It's not that deep, but it's bleeding a lot..."[break][break]

She's an idiot. This is what her sygna suit is for— to protect her from things like this. But her Sylveon had been too weakened in battle to sustain it any longer. Perhaps if she had prioritized the fairy's health better, she wouldn't be in this situation.

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"Are you sure? Seriously, it's okay if you'd like to keep her..."[break][break]

But Luka's hands close around the ball anyways. She's a girl that loves a project— and befriending this aggressive little thing certainly promises that.[break][break]

"GIDEON GRAVES?"[break][break]

She blinks.[break][break]

"Oh! The hot photographer guy? I played his rou-"[break][break]

Her mouth snaps closed as a deep blush stains her cheeks. What a silly thing to admit!

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And just like that, Luka's already fragile heart shatters.[break][break]

She might as well be staring at herself from ten years ago. All that rage and pain, the desperation to find answers, to do anything other than sit around and let others tell you that it'll be okay, that it'll pass, that there's nothing she can do. She knows how it feels for grief to eat at you until there's nothing but bones left.[break][break]

"I don't want to fight you," she says desperately, almost pleading. "Please, you have to understand! If Team Rocket wasn't there, i-it might be a different story. But if they find you, there's no telling what might happen!"[break][break]

She steps forwards and tries to lay a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder.[break][break]

"I care, I do. I promise. I-I know it doesn't sound like much coming from a stranger, but I understand you!"[break][break] Her free hand balls into a fist— not with anger, but the remnants of her own frustration and the ghosts that still linger in her patchwork heart.[break][break]

"Team Rocket killed my father. I was probably just around your age. This was in Kalos, back when th- a-actually, that doesn't matter. The point is, I would do anything in the world to get him back. And I'm still looking for answers about what happened. It's so frustrating, isn't it? It makes you feel lonely and scared, a-and useless."[break][break]

She takes a deep, shuddering breath, and presses on. "But it also means I know how dangerous Rocket is. A-and that's why I can't let you through. The people that love you will be devastated if you get hurt, a-and I'd never be able to forgive myself either. And if you'd like...m-maybe once all of this is over, I can take you into the rifts? You shouldn't have to take on this search alone."

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To his credit, Greyson Connors had done all he could to help Luka after their battle with mint frost and Calpurnia Kubrick. The wound on her stomach is dressed as best it can be, and she's hopefully applying enough pressure to keep it from bleeding as much. Frantic healing from her Audino has kept the pain from becoming unbearable, but she's still unable to move quickly.[break][break]

Perhaps that's why she'd gotten separated from Greyson in the interdream zone. He certainly doesn't seem like the kind of man to simply abandon someone in need. But she can't stay alone out her for long; injured and vulnerable, she makes easy pickings for any Rockets or paradox Pokemon that might come by.[break][break]

Trembling fingers click on her comms headset, and she speaks into it breathily. "H-hello? Um...t-this is Luka Chene. Is anyone there? I...I-I need help."

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"Yeah, it did!"[break][break]

Luka beams as her own hands fall away from her ears, and she reaches over to give Ollie a high-five. "This dumb dream zone has nothing on us, see?"[break][break]

She's spoken too soon, but who cares? The euphoria from their success is almost enough to make her forget how dreadful this place is.[break][break]

Carefully, she walks over to the love ball and picks it up. She's dumb, but she's not an idiot— she's not going to release the aggressive Pokemon inside of it now. But after a moment of consideraton, she holds the ball out to Ollie.[break][break]

"It was your idea that let me catch it in the first place, so...i-it feels like this should be yours. Do you want it?"

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