Andrea noticed a Stunky running through the tall grass. Taking out that poor thing with her Hydreigon would have been borderline bullying, so she left it to its own devices.

"Guess you have the lead for now!" She said with a smile, sitting at the sidelines and letting Elinor do her thing.

Elinor Anderson //skipping

☉

In a fight-or-flight scenario, the Rocket Beast proved why he was worthy of the title. Paralysis slowed down Guzzlord significantly, providing the perfect window to escape. Now, if only it could also get the obnoxious Ultra Beast to shut up.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"I'm tired of running away! You can do what you want, but I'll stay here and fight!" Andrea declared, glaring defiantly at the gluttonous titan. Infinity Energy flowed through her Sygna Suit, amplifying her voice. "So you like screaming, huh? Well, here's a scream for you! RAWR~!"

The young woman's BRAVERY combined with her resounding Dragon Cheer gave Chomper a tremendous power boost. Bathed in a formidable aura of raw draconic spirit, the green-scaled Hydreigon barreled towards the enemy like a six-winged freight train.

"Hit 'em with an Outrage! And another! And another!"

"AAAAaaAaAAaAAAaaAAaaaAaaaAAAaaAAaaaa...?!"

Guzzlord's stubby legs gave away, causing it to fall on its side with an earthshaking thud. The monstrous crab dug its pincers into the hard soil, trying to lift itself back up. Panicking, Andrea pulled an Ultra Ball out of somewhere, hurling it towards the struggling beast.

The ball shook once, then twice, and finally thrice.

*Click*

"It's over..." The trainer of dragons exhaled in relief, picking the ball off the ground.

What now? They still needed to get out of this tunnel, or risk running into a second Guzzlord. Luckily for them, a portion of the cave's wall had collapsed during the battle, revealing part of a dilapidated basement with a rusted staircase that only went up.

"Bingo! See? We found our way out after all!" The flamboyant cosplayer beamed.

Shred

☉

Andrea blinked at the good doctor, confused by his query. "Me, an avatar? No, I don't think I am. Unless you count Sygna Suits, in which case I'm an avatar of Chomper!" She replied, the shiny Hydreigon beaming with pride at her words.

Speaking of Sygna Suits, her costume was laid out on a nearby armchair, torn to ribbons and still smeared with her own blood. "Oh, right... I'm gonna need to fix this at some point." The cosplay aficionado pouted.

"I'm OK, I think. My back feels kinda numb." She replied to the surgeon's next question, wincing ever so slightly. "How long do I have to stay here?"

John Sullivan //mission thread

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Andrea's Hydreigon landed back on the rooftop, snorting in discontent. "I know you wanted to battle him, Chomper, but I've made up my mind." The girl tried to console her grumpy dragon.

The Galarian blue blood proceeded to explain that pride was not the only reason those two gods were sparring. "It's not?" Andrea quizzically gazed up at the sky. Although barely noticeable from that distance, it almost looked like Zekrom was smiling. Thundurus, likewise, could be heard laughing heartily.

"They're... enjoying themselves?" Pokémon could enjoy battling, she supposed. Most of her dragons certainly did. "That's nice and all, but they didn't have to catch up over a city. People could get hurt!" The draconic cosplayer pointed out.

Remiel Calcifet //sygna drip

☉

"Oh..." Andrea was stunned by his bluntness. She had never thought that legendaries could harbor such enmity for one another, even ones that were known to be bitter rivals.

"I'm sorry..." The girl muttered, not entirely sure what exactly she felt sorry about. That he was burdened with such a brutal patron? That he was trapped in a vicious cycle of violence?

Avatars, it seemed, were as much enviable as they were pitiable.

MATIAS SILPH //skipping

☉

With her Sygna Suit, the draconic cosplayer Flew straight into the waterfall, which got her outfit all wet much to her dismay. "I didn't really think this through... Achoo!" She sneezed.

On the other side of the waterfall, an expansive cavern laid out before their eyes. The gleaming Terastal Crystals embeded on the ground and in the walls of the cave gave it an otherworldly feel. "Wow, there's so much to explore in here! They should've called this place Area Dozen instead!"

Chomper wrapped his wings around Andrea to warm her up, while the girl addressed Josh's question. "Maybe Aleph looks calm because he's waiting to pounce on some Paradox Pokémon. Type: Null are born hunters, after all." The young PokéManiac theorized.

Josh Devlin //sygna drip

☉

What may lurk, indeed. Wind-flapping sounds could be picked by canine ears. A swarm of dragons swooped down on the gigantic crater; Hydreigon, Salamence, Iron Jugulis, and Roaring Moon.

The latter two being paradoxes would be concerning if those were wild ones, but they all followed a trainer clad in a Sygna Suit, who appeared to be able to... Fly?!

"Hi there!" The flying woman landed near the wild child and her retinue of canid Pokémon. "Hey, I remember you! You were at Josh Devlin's birthday party, weren't you? Are you here to explore?"

Ettie //sygna drip

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She was late once again. At this rate, she’d never get a chance to share all the cool stories inside her head with the self-proclaimed King of Bountiful Harvests. Landing upon the hill where the towering Dyna Tree stood, Andrea clasped her kneecaps, taking a moment to catch her breath before addressing a very patient Calyrex.

“Wow, your head is HUGE! I mean… greetings, Your Highness!” The dragon-costumed woman bowed. “My name is Andrea Vaneau, and I’m here to tell you a story of dreams. You see, my dream is to become a Pokémon!”

“Cro rown?”

“Why, you ask? Well, it all started when I was a little girl. My parents are professional Breeders, so I was practically raised around Pokémon. They also did cosplay as a hobby, and I took after them, because what child doesn’t love playing dress up? I quickly found out that the Pokémon in the ranch were friendlier towards me when I dressed up as one of them.”

“Little kids are usually afraid of Pokémon--especially the more monstrous-looking ones, like Rhydon or Tyranitar--but I never had that issue. To them, I was like a little sister. They loved playing with me, and I loved them back. Over time, this idea got stuck in my head: Wouldn’t it be great if, instead of having to wear a costume, I actually was a Pokémon?”

“One day, a lost Deino stumbled into the ranch. The poor thing was starving, but every time my parents tried to feed it, it would get really agitated and start biting them. It was only when I dressed up as a Dragon Pokémon that I won its trust. We never found the Deino’s mother… I became his new family and named him Chomper because he liked to bite so much.”

The Hydreigon next to her growled with pride, affectionately licking its trainer’s face.

“This is Chomper now, in case you couldn’t tell! Since then, I’ve made up my mind that I wanna live alongside Pokémon as one of them! People keep telling me I’m crazy or that it’s impossible, but weirder things have happened in Hoenn, right? So, that’s my dream: To one day wake up in a new body with claws, fangs, wings, a tail, and who knows, maybe even a big head like yours!”

“Cro rown!”

//a story of dreams

☉

The young cosplayer looked back at him with a bewildered expression. Before she could even question the man’s motives, a wild Golem jumped them, forcing her back into fight-or-flight mode. “Barron, use Earthquake!”

Her Aggron obliged, stomping the ground with its heavy feet to create violent tremors. Although it was super effective, the Golem was sturdier than it seemed, hanging to life by a thread. Impressed by its resilience, Andrea tried to capture it in a ball.

“Does Groudon really want that?” The girl then asked, turning back towards the Volatile.

MATIAS SILPH //attempting to catch golem

☉

Andrea had slept like a Snorlax. The hotel’s beds were very comfy, and Josh was an impeccable roommate, letting her wake up at her own leisure. “Morning, Josh… What time is it?” The girl groggily asked, letting out a big, open-mouthed yawn.

Thankfully, her Fuecoco Sygna Suit doubled as pajamas, so she was already dressed for outdoor activities. It was just a matter of getting her lazy butt out of bed now, and she wasn’t alone there. Had she gotten Jalapeño out of the Pokémon Storage System just to snuggle with him? You betcha!

The onesie-clad woman sat up, holding the little red crocodile in her arms. “Hmmm, what to do…” She pondered Josh’s question, while wagging her head to and fro. “How about the arcade?” A wide smile accompanied her proposal.

Josh Devlin //sygna drip

☉