At least he was compliant. Laurence had a history of dealing with those who were the most noncompliant people...So, this was a sort of refreshing thing. The sheriff's offhand comment about the pills had also made Laurence let a breathy laugh, shaking his head at the thought of it, but the laugh was over when the man began to recount his encounter with Tempest Quinn. He must have been lucky to have gotten such a thing from a member of Rocket...

"Well, from what I see...you're in no condition right now to do much, so unless it's to recover...you're pretty stuck."

Laurence put his head to his neck, awkwardly breaking the news that the man would need at least give himself time before he could even think about going back to whatever he did. As Navy stares at the television, the doctor follows his gaze, trying to piece what even the man could have drawn from a bunch of commercials that played about...

"They fucked with everyone pretty bad. Many survived, but many suffered horrible effects of them. Be lucky you are the ones who died. But, also, make sure that you look out for yourself so that you don't die in the future from such. Now...The next question, why were you and Tempest Quinn fighting...I don't know about you, but you being someone from the League in Rocket territory isn't the safest option."

Navy

"On it...Just let me know when this is all starting. I'll make sure a friend of mine can watch her."

And well, that was it...He had signed himself up for something that he truly couldn't avoid, while the admin clapped his shoulder in approval for his only choice, Laurence shook his head. Now he wanted to smoke...The only issue was, he didn't trust being in the damn submarine to do such, no matter how comfortable Howard was with it. The small affirmation Howard had said had been something that broke through his small trance he was on. 

"For Sophia...For the good of all mankind..."

The doctor moved, letting the man's hand fall from him, before Howard would be left alone in the greenhouse. 

---

howard slayte 

Even when he was away from the office, duty still seemed to call. People were sick…they always were sick. Some said they were dying, but it was almost never true. The doctor looked at the patients that lined the ship’s infirmary, his eyes rolling over each one that lie asleep on the cots.



He let out a small breath. They were almost to Dewford. If anything, these people needed to rest for the upcoming battle that would be had simply. Rocket hadn’t planned on turning Dewford into a base of operations, but it would need to be sieged for the moment, to deal with the looming threat of Eternatus slumbering under it. That…That had been on his mind most of all.



Laurence would be in his mind for quite a bit, his attention zoning in and out enough that he’d not hear the knock at the door, likely another person complaining of their sickness or something else. But, regardless, had they entered or not without permission, they’d find the doctor in a pensive position, his brows knit together as he muttered something to himself absently.

walter delmar

They…weren’t going to take it over. They weren’t going to take it over. It took a moment to have his mind wrap his mind around it, to keep that guilt of a possibility from strangling him. It wasn’t going to end up like Sootopolis, trapping people there to their fates. That wasn’t to happen.



The Admin’s plan had been simple, though too close for comfort. It relied on the sheriffs to get people to safety, something that was never so easy. He’d seen how it had resulted in his own home, how he’d not noticed the change until it was too late.



“We are just getting in and getting out then…Fine, fine. But, I will not harm anyone from this, even if there’s a ticking bomb under them, I am just going to treat them, I’m no monster.”



He had said the last part more as a reassurance to himself, to keep the idea of this down. He’d not be on the frontlines, no, he couldn’t bring himself to be on the frontlines, he knew it’d eat him more than just participating in this already. But, that didn’t matter to the admin, he just needed members.



“I know that. I know that, Howard…I get it.”



He couldn’t even respond to the chastising that the man administered, of course, he knew words wouldn’t have saved this if it had been done. But closed mouths never seemed fed, and he needed to explore whatever avenue could have worked. But it had seemed the easy way had been detoured, there was no other option but to go on and do it. Say yes.



“I understand. I’ll be there.”

howard slayte

He laughed to no joke, a sick thing to do when the gravity of the situation had changed so drastically, and had taken a turn much further south than had been expected. His laugh was sickening, and with the way his sickly body looked, he could have hacked up a lung soon enough. Laurence waited a moment, and let Howard finish his guffaw.

“Nobody is hurt? You’re going to spare the civilians? And where will they go when you take the damn place? Are you going to make another version of Sootopolis?”


He hadn’t gotten to the part of hearing that a beast had slumbered under the island…Rather, the idea that he was to save and displace thousands had weighed on him almost enough to cut it out, however, once hearing it the doctor nearly choked on his breath.

“Eternatus? That thing is under them?”


He took a shaken breath, his eyes almost accusatory of such, as if the man had been known for lying. Eternatus had been talked about sparingly between the two of Laurence asking what it had been, why it had been around, and what destruction it had wrecked on the city. The former, however, had spared no detail on Rocket's agenda and of its plan to at least attempt to contain it... And in a sick way of trying to minimize the destruction that it could have raised, Howard offered a flower, the blue a gloomy color, Laurence could feel something tug at him, likely his conscience. 

“So, are you going to move them somewhere before it starts? What would a war on Dewford accomplish that explanation wouldn’t?”

The question was dumb, likely naive for the doctor to have asked, but regardless Howard would know exactly why he had asked such. 

howard slayte

“Is that so huh?”


The times that he had decided to look up and glance, he could see just how haggard the archeologist was. For a second, he debated on bringing it up, wanting to go and ask due to how unsettling his look had been. He’d been fine weeks before, in that grocery store, but now…He looked damn near like a walking corpse.

I brought you here for a reminder.

He hadn’t needed to guess on what he was going to remind him of. There was a war. He’d have to fight, less he, and his daughter, and the people of Sootopolis would die. It was a war—It was always a war with Howard. But whatever war he spoke of, he had yet to bear witness to it…Until now.

Dewford. They'd be going to Dewford City.

“Prepared a ship? I thought I’d be a doctor, you’re going to have me fight on the frontlines? Howard we did not talk about this.”

He tried not to sound so accusatory, to not sound disgusted that the idea of this war slowly coming into view. Laurence paled for a moment, though he’d never let the doctor know it yet.

howard slayte

He hated the constricting feeling that the sub gave him, the idea of being in such a matchbox ship in the middle of an hoennite sea unnerved him more than it should. He tried to distract himself, focusing rather on the smoke that the Admin breathed out.

“Or you continue to beat your ideals until something gives in, not caring about the laws of nature. Same results. Different methods and reasonings."

The doctor said it under his breath, his eyes on the flowers but not truly focusing on them. He itched for his own pack of cigarettes but was smart enough to not bring them aboard. He cared for the inhabitants…Something Howard hadn’t fully done. When the man asked about his daughter though, he flinched. The man had grown too casual about saying her name, as he noted before, and Laurence would never get over it. But Howard wouldn’t stop if he knew how much it made him squirm.

“Fine. She’s living without an idea of what transpires here and only needs to focus on herself. That’s all a father can ask for. But you’re not one for idle chit-chat, what do you want Howard? Why are we on the submarine and not in the offices?”

howard slayte

He’d saved a few people a few times from the assaults from the Munkidori, the grasp he held on some of the prisoners just enough to get them in the middle of the platform. As the group crowded down, Laurence watched as they slowly made it towards the other wards, trying to find a familiar face than the ones he’d already seen. Finally…he’d have a way to find Sophia.

But…The young girl didn’t seem to be around no matter how hard he looked—a blessing. Thank Arceus.

Their destination was the feeding pits, that dank and dark location that had held the evergreen beast below them, and the mochi. Whatever had been calling to them all had been below them, and there was little but to follow it. Once the platform had finally reached its destination, the beast greeted them with thick and fearful fire, the sugary mochi melting on the ground into gelatinous puddles. Laurence was the first to get off.

His eyes tried to adjust to the darkness, the source coming from the dim lights above and the fiery glow of the mask the orge wore, but what he did see unnerved him. Several of the beasts he’d seen in the ultra sea floated, their astrological bodies beside the Ogrepon.

They could kill a man if they were callous. If the other Pokemon hadn’t done such before.

His attention would have to be taken from the threat in the meantime though, Howard’s commanding voice directed him towards the spiraling partner he had beforehand, Laurence lunged forward, trying to bound the giant’s arms, trying to still them. He didn’t know who this June was, but he did know that there was no need to add another distraction to an already stressful situation. It’d only delay the growing issues…

“Dammit Sokolov, we don’t need this now. Snap the hell out of it!”

The man would be a hell of a problem to hold back, the feeling of the toxic chains ruining his system as such truly took a strain out of his body. For a second, as his chain weakly wrapped around Grigori’s, he tried to weaken the effect of jayden cross ability, though even then, it would only do so much in his weakened state.

---

|Pu_EKi6

He could feel the heat of the Dragon Pulse, its power as it had nearly struck him but missed only by a few feet and went crashing into the wall. He’d be dead had it not been for the darkness being the only thing that truly kept him and his partner hardly in sight. The damage to the cavern walls, however, still unnerved the man.

The Naganadel had gone back onto the offensive, a glint of its stinger shined as if it were of precious metal as it sped towards the duo, aiming to pierce its target and kill it instantly, but Gregori’s swift movement had given him the chance to live another day, the beast’s only course left it in the way of the sappy solution that it had created. It splatted the contents everywhere, coating the floor in the adhesive, creating a field dangerous to ignorantly tread. But it also gave them an opportunity.

The Ultra-Beast struggled in its trap, from the thick foam that covered it, and the few injuries it sustained, as it roared and cried out for its brethren, Laurence tried his best to silence it. He prepared his Shinx to try to take it out, however, Gregori’s advice had given them a different choice of action. He’d wish for the Ursaluna to take it on.

“Got it, Shinx, hit it with Thunder and try to collapse the entrance on it.”

He’d command the Pokemon before him, a bright yellow light coming from its fur erupting with the start of the command. It’d brightened the cavern for a brief second, showing a beautiful array of crystals and markings when the Shinx had released a burst of its power on the stuck Naganadel, the sound of crackling electricity loud enough to drown out any potential calls to its brood. The Entrance creaked as well, rocks shifting under the tremor of force the Shinx had, before it gave way, its heavy rock falling and collapsing it in on itself, locking the Nagandel inside. Laurence wouldn’t hesitate to begin his sprint, hoping the others would come with him.

“We need to go, just in case there are others. Do you remember the way we came through?”

Grigori Sokolov

His pity. Laurence couldn’t believe it, he had gotten pity from the man who had signed him up for this. Howard had the nerve. His shifting of blame wouldn’t have him be absolved in the doctor’s gaze, no matter how much he continued to shift the blame onto the organization that had caused such. Howard was a part of Rocket. A cog in that well-oiled, destructive machine that continued to run amok, that continued to be shown as much more of a problem that the league would have to deal with.

“You speak a lot for someone who keeps running errands for them. Yeah, they took me. But I won’t them take anything else of mine.”

Finality. He said it in various ways, and it would never change for him. He was determined, headstrong, and bravely ignorant of the storm that was Rocket, but he’d continue to fight it if it meant for Sophia’s safety. If it meant Diana would rest peacefully. He had turned to go when Howard began to say his goodbyes, his seeming acceptance of the man’s wishes having got to him luckily. Yet, when the man asked if Laurence would be returning to work on Monday, he simply sighed in reply.

“I’ll be in my office Monday. You’ll see me there. Goodbye, Howard.”

And continued to walk, not facing the man as he left him there to stand in the dried fruits, rather, when Laurence got back to Sophia, he said something inaudibly which made the young girl jump for joy, quick to grab hold of the basket and run towards the next isle to grab something else to fill the basket with. To enjoy with her father on his day off.

howard slayte

“January, huh? That is pretty long ago…You’ve gotta take much better care of yourself, especially if you don’t like ending up in these scenarios.”

He wrote something back down on his clipboard, recording something with those swift movements of his pen. However, while he wrote, his brow had raised as if he awaited to answer his previous question. He could tell that Navy had wanted to be set from those restraints, but until he’d give confirmation on not trying to run, then truly there was little he could do for him. So, when he finally agreed to the stipulations of it, Laurence got from his chair, letting out a breath of relief. Okay then, he’d be released.

The restraints were easy to undo for the man, the cloth strips unraveling from his limbs as the doctor rummaged around the bed, trying to keep the man as comfortable as he could. Once Laurence had finished, the doctor rolled the small table towards the patient, on its surface being the cup of water he had and some other things that could have only been for him as well. Once he finished, he’d find his rolling chair, plop himself right back down on it, and got ready to ask his question before it’d already been brought up.

What can I do for you?

“Well, what you can first tell me, is how exactly you got here. I am serious about not taking care of your health, but there are other reasons that brought you here, to Sootopolis. Especially since you can tell this is Rocket territory.”

Of course, this was important. The idea of what had brought him here was needed yes, but there was much more than his medical problem that needed to be addressed. Navy had been known in the league, he’d been on television, and surely he knew that. His ending up in Rocket’s clutches had to have been for a reason…No one just willingly threw themselves at their enemy.

“Ah, I should apologize, try to drink some water before you speak again, and have that with the red pill. It’ll help with the inflammation and dehydration you have. I’ll be patient.”

Navy

“We don’t need Rocket’s pity.”

And he meant it. What would Rocket’s transactive pity do for him but ask for something in return? He’d rather Howard had been realistic, told him he’d wish the best of luck and that there was a bomb planted on his chest, that would have been much more like the Rocket way.

But in true Howard-like fashion, he reneged on his word, the idea of Laurence ever keeping much time with his daughter only a way to rope the doctor in until the time would come that it’d be taken away. The idea of it almost choked Laurence in his rebuttal, he could feel the agitation and anger rise, but he wouldn’t make a scene. Not here of all places.

“And until it comes, I plan on keeping my time with her. The war will come, and I said I’d join, like a man to my word. But until then, I expect you to remain one to your own. You already have me chained to this place, but I won’t let you chain Sophia’s hopes of having me here. When it comes, I’ll make sure that I send her off…Boarding School someone far from the place. But until that time comes, I’ll keep her safe. I’ll keep her happy.”

He hadn’t wanted to hear Howard speak on the man’s past beloved as if he had known her. He didn’t know anything of the Whateleys as yet here he spoke as if he were an uncle or family friend.

“My promise to her mother, and myself, will be done…That, you don’t have to tell me about. Now, I want to spend time with my child, Howard. If there is nothing else you came to inform me about in this conversation, I suggest you say your final goodbyes to Sophia and leave us be. The breakrooms need refilling today, anyways.”

howard slayte