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He had no answer for her. It was a stupid question to ask though. Probably better to ask a doctor at that hospital, or a scientist. She wondered if they would test everything another time. The thought was miserable, but at least she'd know what exactly the test was for! [break][break]

"The tree? Maybe?" She shrugged, "I never saw this happen before, but a little weird that a giant tree appears and I come to life again very close to each other. Maybe. We'll figure it out." She had the presence of mind to pull away from Alexei at this point, crossing her arms in an attempt to occupy them. He seemed to calm down a little, she didn't want to overstay her welcome. "Did anybody realize anything about the tree in the end? I wasn't...around." She understood Illeana and Fernando were present, so perhaps they had actually managed a breakthrough, or at least gathered some kind of information.


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"Ah." Kaida's face twisted bitterly, "He'll make me say something stupid. A trap." He seemed to be good at words, she didn't doubt he'd succeed. So much for his Gym battle for now, an innocent thought for today's circumstances. [break][break]

"I'll be careful with Selena, it's going to be hard to talk about how I'm alive anyway, she was there when my death happened." Hopefully the news hit her at some point, with how long the hospital had her, and how the video had entered the public eye, there was no way a resurrection wasn't becoming known.

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Another Pokemon, a little better than before, but not quite. If anything, she was looking for another instance of the fierce buzzing. Such a strong Pokemon, one that naturally coregrated when young. Given she only had one more Safari Ball, she didn't want to waste it on a Pokemon she would have to learn how it even fought. [break][break]

She waved as the young monkey waved childishly, and moved on.

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Shit. Who was Lars talking about? Panic flashed in her eyes until the words "Councilman Silph" finally was uttered. "So he does not like me." She stated it like it wasn't obvious, a simple fact for her to observe. They had battled once, and she both thought he was skilled and unskilled. Perhaps it was the same way a Pyroar hide its intent to hunt until it actually intended to hunt. A terrifying thought. [break][break]

In any case, as Kaida took the paper, she thanked whatever instinct had told her to capture a Charmander, now the impressive Muspel frolicking outside. If she were to be unseen, being able to fly was a huge help. I'm sorry Muspel, it looks like I might need you now. [break][break]

She took the paper hurriedly and looked over it. Faces might evade her, but she considered herself good at this. If she lost it, there would be no doubt she would have it memorized by then. "What do you think they will do, if they see me? Just...an example." She was always aware she was the smaller, the assumed to be cruel, cold, simple, savage. They were at least right about the savage part. She needed no home, and hiding from predators was her pack's specialty. There was only so many ways a small creature with only fangs could defend itself. Hiding and ambush were their true forms of action. "I'll be sure to let you know, instinct is what helps us survive." There were mistakes made by instinct, but they were negligible. The alternative was ignoring the instinctual "gut feeling", and being wrong on ignoring typically meant injury or death. She didn't plan on ignoring instinct, espicially on the part of a leader. [break][break]

"Her name is Selena Desmarais." She brought up quickly, still staring at the paper as she spoke, "Journalist...I don't think she is hard to find, she didn't seem like she would be quiet about the tree...but I don't know how to contact her. Didn't think we'd ever need her like this."

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"We can't waste our energy hunting if we will fail." She agreed easily with Alexei, lots of a hunt was knowing what exactly you were looking for, and the habits of the prey. They also needed to know exactly how dangerous it would be...until that point, Kaida assumed maximum danger, engage only when certain. It was the only logical action. [break][break]

He looks like Hema. Alexei's distress only became more and more apparent, flowing through the room along with his words like a wave rapidly filling the room. [break][break]

Kaida deigned to try and not touch others, on a certain principle of hers. Not that she disliked it. If she never could read a room properly, how could she ever figure out when a touch was inappropriate? She saved it for Pokemon, who she could read. [break][break]

That principle did nothing to stop her from starting forward and attempting to place a hand at Alexei's shoulder, ready to cringe away if repulsed. Comforting people was foreign to her, but she found a sympathetic touch usually worked on Pokemon. "Stop. I heard enough." Extreme blood loss, burns, and healing moves did not work, so she could assume her heart stopped...that, didn't sound survivable...and she had waken in a morgue...[break][break]

"H-Hema...what he said, it's correct?" The Seviper startled, nodding after a moment, staring as the surreal words filled the air, "Blood loss, alot?" Her hands twitched in movement, spelling out a brief message: Fatal? Hema nodded. "At least 5 minutes?" She nodded, now Kaida's breath caught in her throat, a wild fear falling into place as the burning sensation snaked across her sides. Heart, spine, lungs. She had woken in a morgue. "I died...really died." Even if she survived, she wouldn't be walking like this, it would be hard to imagine her mind would still be unbroken. [break][break]

As if to fill in the blanks Alexei couldn't know, she spoke unbelievably, "I woke up at the morgue in the morning. Why-how did I wake up?"


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"I'm probably not as lucky as you." Kaida sighed, "The only way I could have been more obvious is if I brought my Ekans." Scaled, poisonous creatures might as well have screamed that Kaida was here. [break][break]

"I know about Selena, we put out a cave fire together, I think she was there to report it." Her voice rose as if the memory was a fond one, a reporter actually there to help and see what was happening, who would have thought? "She has to know too, I don't exactly know, um, news or people that well." The more help from people she actually trusted, the better. [break][break]

Kaida's stomach churned as Alexei spoke of her dying, the familiar nauseousness that accompanied her pain in her memories. Still, while she quieted and her face started to drain of color, her next words displayed a lack of understanding, even now. "So I died, my heart stopped? Who revived me?" She couldn't think of her actual death like it actually happened, even with it right in front of her face. Even with the memory of waking in what she knew was a morgue, she wouldn't pick the most obvious conclusion, that her death had been intended to be permanent, unshakable. [break][break]

Because this wasn't a story like she enjoyed, a monstrous change that was impossible. Besides, if that was the case, why hadn't the Pokemon revived? It couldn't possibly be her life was any more important.


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"I'm...I'm sorry." Kaida managed to speak, lowering her head, "You don't need to be anywhere, we'll do it instead." Coming back to life felt almost like a joke on her end. Yes, her team was traumatized, but that death would stick, and she already felt she had to ease a burden somehow. If she had to arrange a funeral, it would be for family. For the sake of empathy, she assumed the same. [break][break]

Out of control just because of a video? Without thinking, she provided her own opinion in one spilling of words, "What does it matter of the videos? Those people are also the same to think we can just tell when something will happen." Typically by "evil" looking Pokemon and the like, what was this, a story!? [break][break]

She deflated with a small, "I apologize...I didn't manage to find anything out about it, but I might say, there was an...ally, of mine there." She was loath to say friend or family without reason, "She saved me, but she might have managed to find out more than me." Kaida remembered she was a reporter, hopefully not on the side of the "shitshow" video. If she managed to get even a picture, they might be able to hunt more efficiently, for the secrets of the tree or otherwise

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"Probably not...either people who didn't want to be hurt by their faces being recognized, or people who didn't want anyone to know they were there." Both could either be their enemies or allies, so that was useless. "If you need another disguise, that one was very good...I don't think there's a reason for me to tell anybody." A burst of whimsy guided her next words, "You looked just fine in that disguise, it would be a shame to not use it again." [break][break]

She shrugged, as if the concept of being harmed for digging deeper was a small side-effect of this conversation, "It'll be a little different from a Ranger job, I'll be hurt if I fail...just a little bit more dangerous, I suppose, we'll be hunting a human, not a Pokemon." [break][break]

"You care very much for someone I never met. They hurt me, but you're treating it like they did something awful to me. Why?" An attack on a Ranger showed quite a bit of boldness, but it wasn't like they had done something unforgivable to her, right?


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They had a Charizard now, Muspel, she didn't stick around here too often. She was their newest transport. If Kaida had no way of bringing them with the wonders of technology (speaking of wonders, today Bragi had learned to keep a hitstun going!), then it was Muspel's duty to bring them ASAP. [break][break]

She was pretty friendly, Bragi thought, but she didn't seem to fly well. Maybe living among those who crawled and slithered wasn't doing wonders for the winged one. Kaida would fix it, she surely would.

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"Yes, the tree grew rapidly. Several times without obvious reason." Her voice stayed low, however, doubting that there had been no trigger, "I didn't see it being fed or watered...but some Pokemon eat dreams, or emotions, so maybe all the people around it were feeding it something." She shrugged, nothing but her opinion, "I did notice after the Sludge Wave I used, some time passed, and then it grew and attacked. Maybe growing was a defense to it." [break][break]

She pointed down, as if to provide a better image, "It had to do with the roots, wouldn't it? The tree did not attack until they were at the roots, it didn't mind us or the contest until then." If the tree was violent, then there would be no way it would accept the presence of the contest, it felt only logical explanation that something at the roots made it feel threatened.

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Kaida's eyes didn't rove, not out of an awkwardness or anything like that, but lack of desire to. She didnt doubt she could be attracted to a person, but it didn't seem to be based on appearance. As such, she made no attempt to hide herself or even notice where Asher was looking. It wasn't a problem either way. [break][break]

"Good." She smiled, toothless and genuine, "It would be really bad to lose something when it was ruined so...thoughroughly, surprisingly." She scrambled over words, sinking deeper into the waters, "I'm here over the contest...are you here to rest from something bad, or just taking a break?"

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That was something she could remember, "One. There was also a Pokemon." With how fast the situation had gone down, she didn't actually get a chance to identify the Pokemon, not enough time. As the questions continued, she tilted her head, shrugging momentarily, "It felt big in a way that was strong, I'm not even sure it was that much bigger than others. It carried the others without issue, and broke through the ceiling like it was nothing...that didn't feel that normal, but I thought it was strong, so I tried to jump on." She had seen the Braviary outside, and added her own opinion, "I haven't seen Braivery often, but they didn't feel as strong as that one...sorry, I'm sure they're powerful too." [break][break]

She briefly deflated as well, only offering a small hope, though clearly one she didn't believe in, "I think it was a man...but that might have been a disguise, so couldn't tell you apart from tour disguise." All she had was recognition of Pokemon and voices, and that wasn't truly helpful if they could hide Pokemon in Pokeballs.



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Something he should know about? "Well, I thought whoever was also running in, and going to the roots, wanted something. I didn't think they'd take the tree down, but I did have ideas the tree would be harmed. It felt like a special thing, I thought it would be a good idea to protect it...a big tree like that could even be a habitat if it wasn't special, I'd imagine." She continued on, casually laying the oddity of the tree down on the ground, "It seemed special then, with the tree branches moving to attack everything around it...the tree grew spontaneously as well. More alive than I expected." She dared think it felt similar to a Pokemon in that way, but left it unsaid, there wasn't much of evidence for that besides moving. [break][break]

She shook her head at the mention of videos, already sighing as she imagined what normal people would easily think, "They make us look like we're...crazy, don't they?" She hissed, teeth grinding together.

Lars didn't have a family either, leaving Kaida feeling much less seperate in that moment, "My only family's been my team for forever." She replied, "But you're right, fighting together is always the better of options. Poochyena are better as a pack, right?" Never thought she'd see the day of someone declaring her family, rather than the other way around.

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