She takes a swig, and it's just awful. Parker likes this stuff all glitzed up with fruit and sugar, but Nomi isn't sure anything could hide this brand's ethanol-forward flavor profile.[break][break]
His laughter isn't mockery so much as incredulous disbelief. But he misunderstands, and that's both expected and utterly exhausting. She swings her feet in agitation.[break][break]
"It's not because I'm an Avatar," she explains. "Sure, people fear Avatars. But this recent development has surfaced because Councilwoman PENELOPE LIVY is so blinded by her hatred of Rocket, she refuses to accept the wisdom in a temporary alliance against a far greater threat."[break][break]
She sucks in a breath through her teeth.[break][break]
"But Freya isn't like her. At least, I don't think she is. She might hate Rocket as an entity, but she believes in granting second chances, for individuals. She believes in redemption."[break][break]
She looks him up and down, as if seeing him for the very first time.[break][break]
"But Livy herself is an Avatar too, one with powers far more dangerous than mine. She can influence the emotions of those around her, and not for the better. I haven't pissed Freya off, any more or less than I might already have simply by complicating her life, but do you have any sense of how close she is with the other Councilwoman?"
[break]

TAGS – KING WAYLAND[break]
NOTES – Social[break]

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She extends her senses, searching for signs of the Councilwoman. The rafters are full of beady eyes, peering down at her from their nests. Kallistatus floats upwards, until it is level with a shiny Dragonaire coiled between wooden beams, his belly drooping down like a living decorative garland. The Unown stares at him enigmatically, and does not mind when the dragon stares back.[break][break]
Not here, confirms the Collective. She'd checked before coming, of course, but the certainty is a relief.[break][break]
"A member of the League's council wants me dead," she begins, as hands that haven't stopped trembling since the chasm, since the hospital, reach for the bottle. "I need to understand how close yours is to feeling the same."[break][break]

TAGS – KING WAYLAND[break]
NOTES – Social[break]

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Gids? Gids. Gids...[break][break]
It should mean something. It does mean something. She thinks - but he can't fix this, not this time - at the same time that she realizes - I'm going to have to miss class for a while.[break][break]
"Professor Graves won't understand," she sighs sadly, exhaustion picking apart her sanity, one jumbled half-reconstructed memory at a time.[break][break]
Parker's breathing slows. And though Nomi can feel the rising and the falling of her chest, for a moment, she panics, because what if the doctors missed something, what if there's internal bleeding, what if she's dying, what if - until she realizes that Parker is merely drifting off to sleep. A heavily drug-induced sleep.[break][break]
There's a lump in her throat that she can't quite swallow away. There's a tremor in her hands that won't quit no matter how hard she focuses on stillness.[break][break]
"You're already strong," she insists.

TAGS – parker jones[break]
NOTES – SOCIAL

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The sudden breeze blows back her hair, but the Visionary does not flinch. She stands her ground as the Lucario skids to a halt before her, its chagrined expression mirroring the way KING WAYLAND scoffs at her unceremonious arrival.[break][break]
"I don't have time for warnings," she tells him, and it is not quite an apology, not quite an explanation. It is, however, a testament to how accustomed she has grown to the prospect of being attacked, that she does not seem at all rattled by his casual observation of her near-annihilation.[break][break]
She glides over to the bar, and hops up on a barstool, feet dangling almost a foot off the ground. A part of her - the part that remembers Isaac Merlo's kindness, in another lifetime - hopes he will offer her a drink.[break][break]

TAGS – KING WAYLAND[break]
NOTES – Social[break]

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Nomi stared coldly at the crushed Okidogi, the bisected Munkidori, and the snapped neck of the Fezandipiti. Ignorant of the Ogerpon's grief, and unaffected by the gruesome brutality of the scene before her, she merely felt relief.[break][break]
"Good riddance," she murmured, turning away. They would become distant memories of pain and suffering, and she had no intention of giving them even a second more of her time.[break][break]
You've made this personal! You've allied yourself with that monster?![break][break]
She had, hadn't she. All of Rocket had. And they ought not take that alliance for granted - for Necrozma and her Unown shared a common purpose: bring the DRK Triad to justice.[break][break]
But Holo and her people were not responsible for the prison, the TOXIC CHAINS, nor the poisonous mochi. Nomi was sure of it now, as all of the puzzle pieces began to fall neatly into place. This was a nightmare built upon a hopeful dream; such things often became twisted, as zealousness overwhelmed reason, obsession overcame altruism. Cyllora had made themself a villainous martyr for their people, and now they were paying the ultimate price.[break][break]
For even the Megalopolians, led by the recognizable face of Velmos, were attacking them, the cloned Pokemon aiding them as they halted the DYNAMAX attempt of the sinister Pecharunt. Victory seemed imminent, but then - [break][break]
Starlight and the scent of cedar. A flash of green. And then: a great, momentous crash.
[break][break]
Realizing what was about to happen, Nomi teleported briefly into the Unown Dimension, its swirling galaxies a welcoming, familiar sight. The transfer allowed her to avoid grievous injury, but only for an instant. She returned within seconds, wobbling on shaky knees, taking in the sheer scale of destruction around her: the crumpled ship now in various states of rubble and debris.[break][break]
Deja-vu rocked her senses as she realized where they had landed. The ruins of Ultra Megalopolis. They'd really done it: the Megalopolians had returned home.[break][break]
Out of the corner of her eye, Nomi noticed Yuina Higashi awash in the glow of time's sacred spirit. Didn't Underboss Fiorelli kill Celebi? Nomi thought, momentarily confused. Perhaps this one came from another universe. She'd have to look into it later.[break][break]
For now, she turned her attention towards her fellow Rockets - Cillian Quinn, THEO BECKETT, and the newly inducted Neffatari Nzingha were nearby. Cyllora was wailing some new plea - realizing their defeat, they begged for the former prisoners to stand down and leave the Megalopolians to their own fate.[break][break]
Many began to attack anyway, but the living void stood stoically before the masses, and Nomi understood from the moment they began to speak, what their intention was.[break][break]
Clever! All this time, she had been keen on uniting Rocket and League against the DRK Triad, but why not the Megalopolians, too? Zev Harcourt was wise to make use of them, and at least for the time being, Necrozma and her Unown were on the same side.[break][break]
Blue crystal shimmered around Nomi, an ethereal echo of Zev's own armor.[break][break]
[break]
[break][break]
As the Devourer addressed their would-be followers, the ruined city began to rebuild itself. Skyscrapers sprouted out of the ground like massive, metallic flowers, shattered windows and broken doors re-knit, and all the various establishments in the surrounding area were restored to their former glory. Neon blue lights flashed, as a long-dormant beast of progress and innovation began to stir once more.[break][break]
Let them see the power of this promise, the potential of such a leader. Let them believe their doom could also be their salvation.[break][break]
Kallistatus turned its singular eye on Cyllora and the Pecharunt. Perhaps because it had some semblance of divine foresight, or perhaps because it simply wanted revenge for its capture - same as its mistress - it began to glow. A dome of cosmic possibility sprung up around the Megalopolian and their toxic companion, trapping them within.[break][break]
[break]
For Hoenn, Nomi and Kallistatus resonated as one.[break][break]

[break][break][break][break][break]

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Nomi stared after Lulu's retreating form, watching her fade into the crowd of Megalopolians. Her entire body felt frozen in place. She'd never experienced such vitriol from Lulu before, and it left an awful sense of foreboding in its wake.[break][break]
She doesn't understand, Nomi tried to tell herself. Once you explain everything better, she will understand.[break][break]
But they were trapped in a cursed prison in an unknown location. Nomi had bigger, more immediate issues to deal with than trying to understand what, exactly, was going on with Lulu. The repairing of their relationship would have to wait.[break][break]
Which was logical, of course. But without the Unown, without Lulu, without Parker, without anyone familiar...Nomi couldn't help but feel utterly, insurmountably alone.[break][break]
Sometime later, when she woke, cold and shivering, upon the uncomfortable cot, she realized there were tears streaking her cheeks.

Tempest Quinn[break]
NOTES – SOCIAL[break][break]

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Lulu's sudden flash of hatred caught Nomi off guard. And then the other woman's expression darkened, eyes narrowing in suspicion. It reminded Nomi of the way she used to look at the Unown, at least to some degree. Distrustful, perhaps even disgusted. Except this time, the revulsion was directed at Nomi. Or rather, her words regarding Greyson Connors.[break][break]
He really did try and kill her, Nomi realized. Why hadn't she believed it at first? PENELOPE LIVY had tried to kill her. The League was full of hypocrites and murderers, no different than Rocket, at the end of the day.[break][break]
But she needed them. She needed all of them. League, Rocket, civilians. If they didn't stand united, then their world would be destroyed.[break][break]
"Lulu..."[break][break]
How could she explain this? Did they even have time?[break][break]
"I won't let him hurt you again."[break][break]
She meant it, but there was a pleading note to her voice. A please-believe-me false promise, hidden beneath the sincerity of her sisterly affections. If Greyson Connors agreed to turn his resources, attention, and battle prowess on the DRK Triad, she would let him. She would not allow harm to come to him, either.[break][break]
Not yet. Not until he'd played his part.[break][break]
But do you feel the same about Livy?[break][break]
A shadow fell upon her heart, then. A sick, twisting feeling of betrayal and uncertainty. In the midst of their shared, waking dream, she held onto the only scrap she could.[break][break]
"But let's try and get out of this terrible place first."

Not feasible? What made him so sure? He spoke with such firm conviction. Was it based in factual evidence or merely his own unwavering biases?[break][break]
"And if the circumstances changed?"[break][break]
She cocked her head, newly shorn blue hair framing her delicate jawline. She began moving towards the exit, feeling a tugging on her subconscious as Kallistatus beckoned for her.[break][break]
"There won't be a Hoenn to rule if the DRK Triad destroys it. We could successfully enact a takeover in this region, just as we did in Kanto, only to lose everything we've gained in the blink of an eye. It is short-sided, don't you think?"[break][break]
She poked her head outside the space craft, curiously surveying the surrounding area. Was that a flash of...red energy, nearby?

TAGS – THEO BECKETT[break]
NOTES – ULTRA PLANT #1[break]

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Andrea Vaneau[break]
NOTES – Mission[break][break]

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Something nameless ought to be harder to find.[break][break]
But Nomi knows this bar, because Parker knows this bar. Nomi's tended to the cuts and scrapes and cracked knuckles, pressing ice to her girlfriend's black eye with tender fingers. She doesn't like the fighting, but she knows Parker needs it. Pent-up anger, restless energy, and a competitive spirit: these are core traits that Nomi wouldn't trade, because without them, Parker wouldn't be Parker.[break][break]
She teleports in after hours, appearing right next to the recently locked door in a flash of crystalline energy. She doesn't want to scare him, but she does want to get his attention.[break][break]
Odd how they look like they could be siblings now, what with the matching shocks of blue hair.[break][break]
"Hi King," she greets, and though her tone is pleasant, her eyes are a distant iceberg of red resistance.[break][break]
Kallistatus drifts idly towards an open bottle of whisky.[break][break]
"We need to talk."

TAGS – KING WAYLAND[break]
NOTES – Social[break]

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