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The process seemed straightforward enough to Soyeon, enough so that she was ready to go then and there. The key detail of where the memory went once it was out of her head was what caused her to stop and consider what she was getting herself into. Would it be some kind of mistake to admit what this was for? Ana could still run, tell the cops about the admission and off she was, one arrest of a Rocket scientist later. No doubt her employers would be too happy about her capture, and Arceus knows what they would do as a result. But at the same time, Ms. Fell deserved to know what she was in for. The human inside of her clashed against the desire to avoid confrontation like this, but in the end, she relented. [break][break]

”I…You've been honest with me, so the least I could do is to return the favor.” Soyeon's eyes went to the barrier around them, granting them privacy, then to the Ninetails just around Ms. Fell's legs. Her eyes fell to the table as she kept her voice low. A moment passed of no response, hesitation setting in. Was she really going to do this to herself? To break the view she had made Rocket? She had to. There was no going back. [break][break]

”I killed somebody I knew.” Soeyon's fingers clutched the empty coffee cup as her soft voice lost its previous charm. What remained was a serious tone with a healthy dose of ”I was given an ultimatum. It was them or me, and I ended their life…w-with my own hands. I wrapped my hands around their throat and just…” She paused, chewing on her bottom lip. The grip on the coffee cup had caused the cup to suddenly pop, sending the white plastic lid onto the floors below. Vancouver had taken notice and moved to nuzzle against Soyeon's arm while she kept her gaze low. ”I didn't see their face, but I heard their cries, the air leaving their throat, even feeling their pulse slow down. It's haunted me ever since.” [break][break]

She took a moment to compose herself, slowly reaching down to collect the lid that had popped off and placing it back onto the counter. ”Are you sure you're willing to experience this yourself?” [break][break]

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"I can't say I understand why you created such a thing..." Soyeon didn't appear too thrilled by that last comment about Ms. Fell's own reasons for creating such a frightening yet useful contraption such as this. She had a hunch that nobody would wake up and just create something like this in the spur of the moment. There would always be a reason behind everything, and the mere mention of such was something that did unnerve her more often than not. Maybe it was the concept of an end to her own natural life and not just everything, but it did cause her some anxiety. [break][break]

"Regardless, I'm happy that you're here now with me. As both a customer and a fellow human." Soyeon said, slowly sliding her hand to poke at Ms. Fell's. She did her best to try and support her, as the scientist offered a warm smile. "I think you're also not giving yourself enough credit for something like this. It was done for a personal reason, but not everybody is going to just be able to figure out how to do this by just waking up one day. So don't try and sell yourself short." It really was a truly marvelous thing Ms. Fell had created on her own, and Soyeon wanted to ensure that she'd continue to think of it was such respect on its namesake. [break][break]

"The day after tomorrow will work for me. I'll be able to take a day off from my duties and get what I'll want to replace the memory with in that time. It shouldn't be too hard to find things that we'll be able to replace it with. But I did have one other question..." Soyeon said, hesitating somewhat. Her right thumb gently slid down the side of the cup in worry. "Will you be able to see the memory yourself?" [break][break]

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Soyeon took a long sip as Ms. Fell explained in great detail about how the procedure would go. It was a nice overview, although some part of her was anxious about the entire idea. She would effectively have to go through that same scenario again in order to rid herself of it. That same nightmarish day that she had vowed to never experience again. The news was enough for her to nearly pop the cap of her mocha off by exhibiting enough force behind her grip. But it would be worth it. [break][break]

When Ms. Fell finished, Soyeon put down her now finished drink on the counter top, tongue twisting around her mouth to savor the precious lingering taste of bitter chocolate. [break][break]

"You seem to be knowledgeable about technology such as this, Ms. Fell." Soyeon smiled at the blonde, leaning back into her seat after some moment of hesitation. Vacoule had noted his trainer's emotional state and slowly wrapped a growing vine around her upper right arm. It was enough to help reign her mind. Some part of her hesitated to face her fears again, but the other was desperate to get over her fear of being seen as a rock for the higher ups to kick around. [break][break]

"Then it's settled, I'll do it the moment that you're available." The scientist looked at Ms. Fell for some kind of reassurance but forced herself to looked at least somewhat helpful. "I'll give you my consent. Do whatever it takes. I don't care what gets chopped off, I just need the memory gone." [break][break]

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Eating chocolate was good for you? That explained the delicious taste! She shoveled another wide bite of chocolate cookie into her mouth while taking a small piece of PokeSnack for Vacoule and letting him have some as well. The Vulpix Ana brought with her cast a shield for any wandering ears for their added benefit. Soyeon fully knew the risks of a service like this, and was willing to go through with it. Anything to get a decent night's sleep at this point. [break][break]

The thought of the cold, steel room, the sudden, piercing pain, even the face of him was terrifying to go through, even after a month. Fear began to swell and cause Soyeon to grip her drink a little tighter. EVen her eyes showcase the brief dip in primal fear that had resurfaced for all but a few seconds, then exhale with her brows furrowed together. [break][break]

"I'll take whatever I can get. From what I've heard, I was expecting something akin to a complete brain transfer." Soyeon tried to joke while messing about in her seat. "It's an awful feeling, just...not being able to function at times. In my line of work, I can't really afford to make mistakes if they're reoccurring. A scientist needs a clear mind, y'know?" [break][break]

Sure, Soyeon did leave off the part about who she was a scientist for, but such was her duty as a (unwilling) member of Rocket. [break][break]

"How soon can you perform this? I'd rather do it sooner rather than later. Money and time isn't an issue for me." [break][break]

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Soyeon grit her teeth, taking a sharp inhale as she steeled herself for the discomfort of the burned skin. It wasn't as serious as a severe burn, but she was feeling extra crispy from how sharp the smoke was from the Celesteela. The Aggron put up a protective barrier around them as Elinor kneeled to tend to her burn markings. The scientist winced as she forced herself back up onto her knees. Shockwaves of pain receptors alarmed her to the unwise decision, though the adrenaline was what kept her upright for the time being. "You...weren't kidding. I feel like a piece of meat in one of those hotpots." [break][break]

The other woman kneeled and approached her slowly. Soyeon was in too much pain to register the foreign touch, and allowed Elinor to treat her. The redden marks showed significant burns, but nothing beyond a minor-medium burn. She was steamed, if anything. "Your Aggron is strong to defend against these Kartana." she attempted some kind of idle chat while the burn heal was being applied to her. "You've trained him exceptionally well. They can cut through buildings as if they were paper." [break][break]

Soeyon tried a smile at Elinor, though her eyes went elsewhere, towards the crying Celesteela that were still in an uproar. The sight of it confused her, causing her to perk her head to the side. [break][break]

"Strange, I only tripped over one. A Celesteela's sleep patterns, even as infants, are heavy sleepers. What could have caused so many to wake up so suddenly?" [break][break]

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It was only when Soyeon was running through dirty sewer water that the realization hit her. Ignis was far too large to fit down inside of the sewer hole that he had made. No doubt, he was desperately trying to anticipation the direction she would have gone inside of. Look like it was going to have to be smaller Pokémon from here on out! She continued her run through the sewers with her phone on speaker as she pushed through the sludge and dirty water. Hopefully there weren't any Feraligator living in here... [break][break]

"Damn, I'm not seeing anything either. Hang on..." She stopped by the opening into the sewers to find her location. The distance had made most of the landmarks outside of the sewers rather difficult to work with. But one red roof in particular was a dead giveaway of their location. "I'm by the PokéCenter right now. But there's no sign of-" She paused speaking as a faint voice from nearby echoed through the canals of the sewer. [break][break]

A certain younger, high pitched voice, crying out for her mother! Followed by a deep grunt of a Pokémon. [break][break]

"Calpunia, I hear her. Come quick. I'm running after her!" Soyeon lifted her head to shout into the tunnels ahead. [break][break]

"ZINNIA! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" she called out. "I'M WITH YOUR MOTHER! TELL ME IF YOU'RE OKAY!" [break][break]

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"Well, if it's your treat, I think I'll just get a small something." [break][break]

Soyeon sat back down with a dark mocha roast in her hand and munching on two chocolate cookies with a pleased expression painted on her face. She was in heaven, the best cafe brand of her favorite treat, all for her! It was almost hard to believe that Ms. Fell here was willing to treat her to this kind of thing on a first meeting, especially when she was a potential customer. Maybe they did this in marketing and sales? Free food was always appreciated. [break][break]

Vacoule was resting in her arms once again, the baby Bulbasaur having been munching on some food of his own. He was still small enough to be in his "older child" years in terms of maturity, and Soyeon did also tend to baby him. After being seated at the table along Ms. Fell, the scientist set the Bulbasaur on the countertop alongside her drink and cookies. [break][break]

"Thank you for the treats, Ms. Fell." Soyeon sat, already halfway finished with her mocha drink. "I've been eating a lot more than usual lately. Just because of what happened..." she offered, opting not to go too much into detail about why exactly she had been interested in that strange little machine that the woman had offered so freely. [break][break]

"WHich leads me to my request. I was hoping it could help..." [break][break]

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Hmph. Everybody always said they were ready for anything in this world. But what if it didn't go the way they had expected it to! Maybe it was just her being the paranoid little noodle she was, but Soyeon found it fairly worrying about how many people just had that gung ho attitude. Even if it was pretty cool, especially on some people like Mrs. Flint or- [break][break]

Gah! Stupid brain! [break][break]

Some minor cheek flushing aside, the discovery of the baby Celesteela was a discovery that she would have preferred to read about rather than this live demonstration. She ducked underneath another Kartana rolling straight for her head, and another currently who had been on a collision course for her torso. There were far too many to realistically fight and the crying would only draw more out. She heard the Aggron and Elinor running behind her as she marched forward with her head down. Elinor began with a warning about a white-ish gas that SOyeon turned around for. [break][break]

"White gas?" Soyeon asked before turning straight into a misty looking cloud and... [break][break]

She let out a shriek in pain. The high temperatures had scalded her completely, as she doved out of the cloud and onto the ground, grunting in pain. By some miracle, Soyeon hadn't boiled herself to death, but her face was red and her hands appeared to have taken the brunt of the gas as they had moved the most to absorb the high temperatures. [break][break]

The Kartana attack continued, though she was a bit safely sprawled out like this, though in a great deal of pain. [break][break]

"I...found the white cloud..." [break][break]

06. suffer the status condition, "burn".

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"Ah, a fresh mind." Soyeon said, beaming towards Fenelle as the grunt less experienced than her was having der first outing in Ultra Space. The threat of a painful and sometimes quick death was cause for one to be fairly on edge, but the worlds here had a certain charm to them that very few other sights could compare. "Well, to begin, there's not a whole lot of history for most of Ultra Space. Many worlds, such as this one, just...exist. What little evidence there was of how this world came to be isn't really known. I checked the records and what little things we've found don't exactly paint a wide picture. Maybe one day, though." Soyeon flashed a smile at Fenelle. She knew exactly how it felt to wonder such things, and a curious mind was always indicative of a bright one! Dey continued on while the scientist would sometimes keep an eye on the Metagross. [break][break]

When asked about her history with Ultra Space, she was more than happy to ramble on about her credentials. The many programs and internships to famous astrology labs across the world, and all around, talking for hours about things. But Fenelle likely wasn't asking for an impromptu lecture on the history of the stars. Soyeon took a moment to collect her thoughts before allowing the floodgates to open. [break][break]

"Well, granted, my college career didn't encompass all of Ultra Space. At the time, it was a recently found thing, so at most, it was briefly mentioned. But after...starting in Rocket, I learned pretty quickly. There's a specific type of energy that wormholes into Ultra Space emit which can be used to track how far away they are, or for how long they've existed. It works sort of like terastal energy, if you've ever heard of that. I can give you the full history of Ultra Space in general, but the short version is that we're in worlds where Pokémon and Ultra Beasts remain undisturbed by humans for likely hundreds, if not thousands, of years." [break][break]

To break up her little history lesson, Soyeon looked at the zip line as Fenelle offered to go first, up until something had scared der off. Soyeon pursed her lips in thought to what it could be and took stance in front of the younger grunt. "Follow my lead and be ready to drop if I say so. I have a flying-type, so he'll be able to catch us if you don't have one." Her hand clutched the handle of the zipline while Soyeon took a moment to collect herself and then... [break][break]

She was off. Soyeon zipped down the mountain and towards whatever figure was coming up on them... [break][break]

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The harsh and humid weather of the jungles in Ultra Space made Soyeon wonder if her Bulbasaur would have liked to tag along. Vacoule remained back at her lab to remain safe due to his young age and out of fear that he might get stuck out here. Perhaps one day, he could join them, but until then, he'd remain safe back home. Soyeon moved right behind Elinor as her Agron cleared the way for them through the thick treeline of the Crater. In her hands was a tablet, busy taking readings about the energies here. [break][break]

"I know you probably have already heard it before..." The woman said while ducking under a sudden branch to follow Elinor's path. "B-But these Ultra Beasts aren't toys meant for normal Pokémon battles. These are beings capable of destroying entire ecosystems if we're not careful." Whether or not the warning was taken in full, she would have at least tried to find some way to gently remind the other woman about these creatures. It wasn't any of her business but as a member of the scientific community, it would be remiss to not prod Elinor about her desires. [break][break]

Other than that, it was a fairly uneventful tour through the Crater as of late. Nobody around to bother them, but oddly enough, the readings of energy levels were high, rather alarmingly so. Yet in the abundance of it, there weren't any signs of rampant growth or increased aggression in the life here. "Regardless, Ah-I'm pleased to make the trek here with you." [break][break]

Soyeon continued along until something caught her foot, forcing the woman to faceplant onto the ground. A fierce whining sound came from behind her as Soyeon looked back to see an infant Celesteela embedded in the ground, crying. "Sorry, I'm sorry! Let me-" [break][break]

FWSSSH! [break][break]

A blur of steel rushed by her head in the blink of an eye. Had the woman not of heard the sound beforehand and moved back, it would have probably decapitated her then and there. But for now, all it took was a strand of hair, alongside a cut on her forehead. "Augh!" Soyeon moved back in a collapsed mess, startled by such a discovery. But it wasn't long before the high pitched whining sounds continued again, just as other baby Celesteela had been upset from her presence. [break][break]

"We have to move!" Soyeon said to Elinor, keeping her head down and rushing into the forest ahead of them. [break][break]

04. encounter baby celesteela in the ground as obstacles. if they are touched, they will summon kartana to attack you.

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Soyeon wasn't one to call hauling 2 heavy loads of crystals with her down a flooding cavern structure a good work out, but at least it was a nice workout to burn off the chocolate she tended to binge. Barnaby joined her in the sudden sprint to get away from whatever that stuff was behind them. Her feet hit the ground to an unheard beat while Soyeon was huffed and puffing with both bags over her shoulder. The man's Moltres wasn't as impeded in its path because of the goop chasing them. The residual energy in the caves was begin to affect her as week, likely due to being within vicinity of its effective radius. Humanoid bodies formed up from the gelatinous mass. [break][break]

"Waugh!" she yelped, feel a pair of hands clutching onto her from the goo behind them that wouldn't let go. She squirmed to free herself, twisting her shoulders around in an attempt to break the hold on her. The arm only increased their grip at her movements and formed the demented, smiling figure of a vague human sized form of mass. Its mouth dribbled out the rest of its blackened mass onto the ground while it continued to pull the scientist in. "Get off!" she said, only for it to be gulped into the bird's maw. [break][break]

Barnaby pushed her to continue moving forward as she bounced along. She breathed a sigh of relief before nodding over to the other man. "Thank you, sir." Their journey out of the cave came to an abrupt stop when a strange amalgamation rose up from the corrupted crystals. The two legendaries fused into one, aberration-laced body that almost appeared inhuman. "Impossible..." she said to herself, gazing up in front of the Pokémon blocking them. "We can't go around it. We'll have to punch through it." Moltres was quick to follow up afterwards, and began its attack on its opponent. [break][break]

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The woman cursed under her breath at the slip up in front of a superior. It was one thing if she had accidentally done it with Ms. Flint or somebody else, but to do it in front of a mother who had been frantic over the disappearance of a child was in its own league entirely. Would she be furious once her daughter was found? Or was this going to be an awkward little footnote of their existence? "Ugh, me and my big mouth..." she said to herself, keeping her eyes stuck to the roads of Mauville. "I hope I don't have a type." [break][break]

Freudian slip aside, Soyeon wasn't having much luck with finding young Zinnia. No sign of a child matching the description that she had been given. She was huffing out of frustration and bounced all around the upper parts of the rich city. Her Charizard didn't have much success either, with no sign of it roaring down to her with the location of the missing child. The scientist exhaled as she was running out of places to look. She stood over one of the grates leading into the sewer while kicking a rock down the street. [break][break]

"Damn it. Where the hell would a kid go?" Soyeon looked up to the sky to check on Ignis once again for the fourth time in five minutes. A thought crossed her mind. What if she had left the city limits? A lot could happen in the twenty minutes that had passed, and each one that entered her mind was worst than the last. She closed her eyes as her eyes went down to the sewer grate out of desperation. [break][break]

Only to then catch sound of hushed talking from inside. It was harsh and a tad threatening, but more importantly, a pink blur passed through the passageways nearby. One that looked eerily familiar... [break][break]

Soyeon let out a sharp whistle for her Charizard, the fire-type soaring back down towards the street. He landed with an audible thud as the woman pointed at the grate. "Tear it off." One swing of its claws later, Soyeon jumped into the opening below as the scent of fermented excrement and Arceus knows what else. But she took off her heels and set her stocking clad feet on the solid pathway before sprinting in the direction that the shape had taken. [break][break]

She opened her phone and went to call Calpurnia, listening to it ring while she continued her run. "Come on, come on..." Once the call had been received, Soyeon would turn a corner and push herself to go faster. "Ms. Kubrick? I saw something in the sewers that could be a clue. Where are you? Have you found anything?" [break][break]

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"Here we are, once again." Soyeon stepped out to the massive marvel of technology that stood before the two Rocket members. Metal skyscrapers towering over the many denizens of the Plant area. Overhead, the buzzing of wings could just barely be made out from the amalgamation of wire and iron that surrounded the pair. Had this not been dystopian in nature, SOyeon would have been more than happy to take a detour and explore around. [break][break]

She turned back to her partner for this outing into Ultra Space, glancing back down at the message that had been received from der while keeping her eyes peeled dover the horizon every so often. One never could be too careful when out in these areas considering the numerous fractures of physics and logic there were here. "I've been meaning to return to Ultra Space. Thank you for giving me the excuse to." Soyeon smiled at Fenelle and began to walk in the direction of the abandoned facility. "Make sure to be on guard. The Pokémon here aren't normally hostile unless something disturbs them. But you can never be too careful." [break][break]

She reached onto her belt and tossed out one Pokémon of her own. In a flash of light, her Porygon2 hovered in front of the two of dem. The normal-type chirped at being called to the field and took the chance to bob over to the Metagross in interest. It would be enough to bypass anything that could get in their way, barring an actual Pokémon. For now, all dey could do was to walk the beaten path leading towards their goal. [break][break]

"Is this your first time to Ultra Space? Or have you been in one of the fields before?" Soyeon asked, with an attempt and remaining more conversational than Zev Harcourt . He made for good company, even if not the most ideal chatterbox. "If you can imagine, I went to school for this. Maybe not Ultra Space exactly, but science has a way of being rather open ended." [break][break]

Their journey slowly took them into the end of a massive cliff face going across the neighboring iron mountain-like structures. Without a bridge across, venturing further would mean finding a path down to the ground level and making the long trek upwards to get back on track. But opportunity had provided a respite for their hike, in the form of a makeshift zipline, leading to the other side. The ravine below was deep, and a fall would surley result in a painful death. [break][break]

"Well, only one way across." Soyeon smiled at Fen, then stepped towards the zipline while tying her hair into a ponytail as to not get in the way. "Would you like to go first or should I? This looks sturdy enough to hold up, but just keep an eye out." [break][break]

07 balance on or zipline down wires that stretch from canyon to canyon.

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