Galarian Stories | IC Thread

[Marlowe]

MENTIONS:​

Context Post

In the middle of an empty field covered in fake, bright green grass, a tall, suited man stood to meet the roaring crowd. His brown hair had been combed back, revealing the salt and pepper that coated the underside of some of the locks of chestnut. Gray eyes peered upwards towards the cheering fans who chanted and cried out with excitement as a frown twisted beneath his mustache and beard. He raised a hand to his beard and twisted a finger around one of the ends of his mustache as a blond boy raced from the sidelines to meet him.

"C-chairman Amaranth! I..." panted the young one. "I got everyone together... haa, any sign of Victoria yet?"

Amaranth hummed as he stroked his beard. "Not a single one, unfortunately." He kept his eyes glued to the black sky.

Cereus suddenly took a deep breath and straightened up, his brows furrowing together in what seemed like juvenile determination. "Well, we can't leave them hanging forever, eh?" he asked as he handed Amaranth a mic.

"Suppose we can't," Amaranth murmured to himself as he took the microphone. After a few more moments of pensive thought and a longing glance back up at the sky, he flicked it on and put it to his lips as he turned to face the crowd. With a flourish of his free arm, he opened his mouth to speak. "Ladies and gentlemen! As you probably know, I am Amaranth, chairman of the Pokemon League. I know that everyone here, and everyone watching from home, has been waiting for this grand moment. It is my pleasure to announce that finally, the Galar region Gym Challenge will now begin!"

The roar the crowd emitted almost deafened him. Arceus, if he hadn't had any tact, he could have lowered the sensitivity in his hearing aids... "Yes, the Gym Challenge! Participants must defeat the eight Gym Leaders and gather the eight Gym Badges in order to prove themselves as a Trainer. Only the most worthy will have the honor of challenging Madame Victoria for her title of Champion of Galar! Now, I would like the Gym Leaders to show themselves!"

The giant flatscreen televisions that had previously been focusing on his face (and had made the crinkles around his eyes and the gray in his beard blatantly obvious) now zoomed onto the entrance of the field. At the sight of the seven shadows that emerged from the depths of the tunnel, he shared a surprised glance with Cereus. Not only were they missing the Champion, but he had to keep his cool in front of the onslaught of fans. Amazing.

"We might be missing our Champion," Amaranth continued pointedly. "But please say hello to Clorin Esbeau, the cool-headed Water-type Gym Leader from the Isle of Armor! Lynn Cuwell, our curious Bug-type Gym Leader from Spikemuth! Thomas Tyrell, the calm-minded Grass-type Gym Leader from Turffield! Nordrin Yasmar, our sweet-toothed Fairy-type Gym Leader from Hulbury! Fraye Armstrong, the feisty Fighting-type Gym Leader from Stow-on-Side! Hestia Quintell, our fiery Fire-type Gym Leader at Circhester! Next, Fiona MacConnell, our Flying-type Gym Leader who makes her roost here in Motostoke! And finally, Silas Griffith, the fierce Dragon tamer from Hammerlocke!"

As he announced their names, the cameras panned from each of their faces, which made the crowd grow even more wild. Amaranth noticed that several of them had noticed Victoria's absence, though it was for the best that they kept up their charade. Now wasn't the time to worry. They had a region to bolster. Nevertheless, he raised his eyes to the sky again. I really, really wish she were here...

"These are the Gym Leaders that we in the Galar region are proud to call our own!" Amaranth motioned to the Gym Leaders once again, and the crowd's cheers, screams, and chants seemed to make the ground tremble beneath his very feet.

TWO MORNINGS LATER...
​

The morning was crisp and chilly; Hestia could tell from the frost that filmed her window panes. Circhester mornings were some of the darkest among Galarian cities and towns, only dwarfed by the ones that were found in the deep south. The pink-haired lass yawned as she pulled herself from bed and tousled her wild locks. Despite the nippy climate, her sleepwear consisted of a tanktop and some gym shorts, and she slept barefoot. She liked the cold weather here-- she didn't understand why people complained about it. Sure, it was cold, but that didn't mean that people had to bury themselves underneath layers and layers of clothes. If one trained their bodies to withstand the cold and moderate their body heat, they'd be able to withstand subzero temperatures! At least, she thought so.

Hestia brushed her teeth and sat down at her kitchen table. The drip-drip of her espresso machine rang through the silence of the room as she switched on the televison screen only a room away. Even though she couldn't see the television, she could hear its mindless droning about the weather. It was due to rain later in the day... that was something she couldn't stand: wet weather. She sighed as she walked over to the half-full cup sitting below the machine's spout, leaning against her dark marble countertop as she peered over at the television. Ugh, it wasn't even only going to rain in Circhester-- the storm system was going to wash over most of the cities in Galar. Great. That meant she had to pull out the raincoat if she went outside. Ugh. Maybe this was a day to stay at home.

A small, black form wriggled out from under the kitchen table and leaped up onto the counter. Hestia's souring mood suddenly halted as she looked down at big, blue eyes. "Hey, Sirus. What's up, bud?" Hestia greeted the Zorua as she ran her hand over the longer tuft of fur upon his head. The small Dark-type Pokemon let out a little chirup of happiness as he bumped his forehead against her palm. "Sleep well 'nough? There's storms a'coming, so maybe it's best if we stay inside for today..."

"Ra..." Sirus whimpered, shuddering. Of course the very furry Pokemon would hate to get wet; the water would definitely weigh the poor thing down.

"IN REGARDS TO THE SEARCH FOR THE REIGNING CHAMPION OF GALAR," the newswoman continued, "THE POLICE FORCE HAS RETURNED TO WYNDON EMPTY HANDED. AUTHORITIES CLAIM THAT VICTORIA ACTON HAS BEEN MISSING SINCE THREE DAYS AGO, WHEN SHE DID NOT ATTEND A PRE-PRESENTATION PRESS CONFERENCE. IF YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ABOUT HER POSSIBLE WHEREABOUTS, PLEASE CALL YOUR LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENT."

"Huh? They still haven't found her?" Hestia thought aloud. If she was really okay, Victoria should have reached out to Chairman Amaranth already, either through text, phone, or email. And it wasn't like her to suddenly up and run away from responsibilities. Concern began to bubble up in her as her mind raced. Maybe she actually had enough of the whole champion thing and eloped with someone? Or maybe a wild Pokemon attacked her out of the blue? She reached for her phone, beginning to dial Amaranth's number before she stopped. Wait. Maybe this whole ordeal was better off spoken about in person. But a trip to Wyndon, in this weather? Hestia's heart dropped when she glanced outside; the clouds were already darkening. Looks like I'm going to have to break out the raincoat after all...

 

[Psyker Landshark]

Mentions:​

"Wahoo!"

A whoop cut through the skies as a Corviknight soared above Galar at ridiculous speeds, the poncho-clad rider atop the Steel-type having the time of her life. Sure, it was raining like hell, but that was Galar for you. Shit weather was the order of the day, and while she'd be a bit wet on landing, at least the rain poncho stopped the worst of it.

An amused hum left her mouth as she listened to the morning news, wireless earbuds connected to her phone.

"Still ain't found ol' Vicky, huh?" Fiona chuckled, enjoying the wind and rain breezing against her face as they flew. "Hell, they ever thought she ran outta th' region or something? What a buncha stupid fockin' pricks. If I decided tae drop off th' grid, sure as shite wouldn't stay in th' region where everyone knows me." She shook her head, patting her mount's metallic feathers.

"We ain't had a good vacation inna while, eh, girlie?" She murmured apologetically to Raptor, who simply squaked briefly. "Once this Ponyta-shite's sorted out an' challenge season's over, might pop across th' channel tae Kalos. Or maybe somewhere farther, ain't seen Alola since we took this stinkin' gig."

Several minutes later, the airspace above Wyndon boomed briefly as one of the fastest Corviknights in the region zipped through the sky, reaching Amaranth Tower before starting to circle around its apex, burning speed as it landed. Fiona and Raptor touched down on the helipad, with the Motostoke leader waving off any alarmed security staff already scrambling to see who the intruder was.

"Unpucker yer arseholes, lads, it's just me." Fiona yawned, returning Raptor to her ball as she simply brushed past the frustrated security staff, making her way towards the elevators. "Ain't like I've done this a dozen times before or nothing, ya know how it goes by now. Sooner I get this meeting done, sooner I'm outta yer hair, outta th' Chairman's hair, an' I can go back tae doing what I wanna."

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Mentions: Chairman Amaranth (@Luminosity )​

"Well, isn't this a fine mess? And to think I gave up my morning workout for this." The senior Trainer remarked dryly as he sat in Chairman Amaranth's office in the aptly named Amaranth Tower, taking a sip of tea as both he and his old friend watched the news report together.

"Congratulations, Peyton. I think this sets some sort of record. Losing a Champion of all things on the eve of the League Challenge." Charles shook his head, shifting slightly in his seat. He'd come to the League headquarters first thing in the morning today to check up on Chairman Amaranth and the search for Victoria ahead of the scheduled meeting, only to wind up watching the latest news report regarding the situation and the public reaction.

All joking aside, however, Charles set his cup down as he looked over one of his oldest remaining friends.

"In all seriousness, though, nothing? Victoria simply up and disappeared without so much as a word? Unbelievable." The aging Gym Leader sighed. "I'd ask if it was at all possible that she simply decided to take a quick vacation in Kalos and forgot to inform anyone, but that's more of MacConnell's style than our Champion's." A pause.

"The social media and the youngsters are already up in a near-frenzy about this. Hell, my daughter called in last night to ask me if this wasn't some elaborate publicity stunt. Whatever the case, let me know if you need anything in specific from me. We've known each other for...what, forty, nearly fifty years? I have your back, Peyton." He rose from his seat as the time for the scheduled meeting approached, clapping a sympathetic hand on his friend's shoulder before turning to leave the office.

​

 

[Nim]

Mentions: Silas (@PrankFox )​

Jogging as the sun was slowly rising, Lynn kept her breath in check. The feeling of the rain slowly hitting her body felt cold, but nice. But today she didn't have too much time for herself, even if she woke up early as she always did. Lynn gently bit her lip as the Scizor next to her glanced towards her. "Ciz." he said, and Lynn glanced towards it, coming to a halt. They were over halfway on the route leading towards Hammerlocke. The gym was set to be closed for the day, so she could afford to do a run to Hammerlocke. But at the same time, the events of the past couple of days were bothering her, and she knew they were also bothering Aron.

"Ciz." Zaz said, gesturing to the water bottle on Lynn's hip "Good idea. You can drink first." She said, handing him the bottle before looking up at the sky. It looked like it was going to be a cloudy and rainy day, all day, and it felt like there was some sort of cloud over the region. Almost fitting. The media was going crazy with speculations over what happened to the Champ Victoria. And that certainly didn't help calm things down. After being handed the bottle, Lynn took a few healthy gulps of water, before hanging the bottle onto her pants again, and then nodded to Zaz. After seeing him nod back, they both resumed jogging towards Hammerlocke.

After a bit more time passed, Lynn arrived at Hammerlocke, and made her way to the gym. She figured if there was anywhere Silas would be, it would be there, at least at this hour. Before entering the gym, she quickly glanced at her phone. They made yet another news announcement. Apparently, the regional police has found nothing regarding the whereabouts of Victoria. It felt really off to her. Looking at the Gym door, she decided to text Silas.

"I think we should head to Wyndon. Talk to the Chairman. Something feels off. I'm outside the gym."

Sending the message, she took a step back from the gym door and started waiting for Silas, only to think of someone else.
"We should head to Wyndon, talk to the chairman. Agreed?"
"Agreed."
After the response arrived, Lynn put her phone away before looking at Zaz "We might not get to exercise as much as we normally do today Zaz, I'm sorry." She told him, and while she could see the disappointment in his eyes, Zaz nodded. Looking back at the gym doors, Lynn hoped Silas would also agree that they should go talk to the chairman.

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Mentions:​

As he was brewing his cup of coffee, Aron let out a long yawn. Lynn always caused him to wake up early, but he always tried to stay in bed a bit longer, even after she woke up. At least until the sun started showing up. Today was no different. He took out his phone and glanced at it. There was an update regarding the police investigation into the disappearance of the Champion, and he also had two texts from volunteers at the Pokemon Shelter. The whole place was being run by volunteers, so Aron felt incredibly lucky that people kept coming and helping him out. He first opened the texts to see what they were. Both were bi-hourly updates that the nocturnal pokemon were awake, but everything was being calm. At least he could feel calm about that.

Opening the news announcement, Aron's expression turned more grim. The police had found nothing, and they announced that Victoria had been missing for 3 days now. Not only was this bad, but there was a good chance this will cause an increase in panic and worry. If the Champion has vanished, then who can be safe? No one, that is what most people will likely think. Pocketing his phone, Aron poured himself the coffee and drank quickly from it. He had a feeling that it would be best if he didn't open the gym today, at least not at the usual hour. Chairman Amaranth might already have some kind of plan in motion regarding this. And he wanted to go and hear directly from him. No need to let civilians nearby a chance at becoming even more worried by talking about it over the phone.

As he left the Cuwell household, Aron ordered a taxi to come pick him up. He didn't know where Lynn was at the moment, and he felt like the quicker he got there, the better. But he did want a few minutes to go check things at the Shelter himself. On his way, he recieved a text from Lynn.
"We should head to Wyndon, talk to the chairman. Agreed?"
"Agreed." He texted back, before pocketing the phone once more. So Lynn was thinking the same thing. He was glad to see that.

Entering the shelter, Aron stopped and looked around. The pokemon in the main entry room, which was rather spacious and comfy looking, were all still asleep. He waved over one of the volunteers, who approached Aron as silently as he could, before the two quietly made their way to the volunteer's rest room "Everything good here Dale? I might not be in the gym for the next few hours." Aron asked.

"Yeah, everything is quiet for now. Most of the nocturnal pokemon went to sleep about thirty minutes ago, so I figure we have a bit before the early risers start waking up." Dale said, grabbing a cup of water and drinking from it a bit. His expression shifted to a concerned one as he lowered the cup "Are you going to find out about the Champion Victoria? Will everything be alright?" He asked.

Looking at Dale, Aron offered a firm nod "I'll go help make sure everything is fine. But I need you to promise me that if anything happens here, you'll let me know via text. Even if I am away from Spikemuth, I want to be kept in the loop. And to know you'll do your best for all the pokemon here." Aron watched as Dale's expression turned a bit more confident and he gave a nod as a response "Good. Now-" Before he could continue, he recieved a text. Looking at his phone, he saw the taxi was now waiting outside "Now I have to go. Counting on you and the rest here, let them know that." Aron watched Dale nod once again, before Aron headed out, once more as quietly as he could walk.
Once outside, he went to the air taxi and entered it "Good morning. I'm headed to Wyndon, please." He said, and heard a brief morning back to him, before feeling the taxi take off. This way, he wouldn't take long to arrive at Wyndon.

 

[Jessica]

Interacting: Fraye | @Demon Shinobi
Mentions:
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To say that freezing temperatures didn't bother Iris was an understatement. It was usual for her to wake up to her room being near sub zero temperatures thanks to her Gengars' heat sink of a body taking away the warmth. As a result, Iris had learned to sleep through the chilly winds, much to the dismay of Boo and Smiles, who loved to wake her up in the most uncomfortable way possible. Sometimes, Mismagius's incantations would be what woke her up, and the headaches she received would work well enough as an alarm clock.

Thankfully for her, the treatment has gotten a lot better over the years.

Now, instead of her pokemon seemingly trying to kill her, they cared about her enough that they only focused minor spooks and pranks on her whereas other trainers and civilians had become their source of entertainment.

Iris got out of her chilly bed to head towards the bathroom, performing her morning routine before stepping out to head to the kitchen.

Pictures' eyes followed her as she moved through the hallway, the temperature becoming colder as the Gengars and other lingering pokemon followed her. Precious (her Mimikyu) quickly approached her, jumping at her; A sign he wanted his trainer to pick him up. Iris reached down, taking the small pokemon into her hands and setting him on her shoulder, much to his delight.

"Good morning, sweethearts~"

She greeted them all, earning names and other noises in return.


Entering the kitchen, Iris would see all of her smaller electrical appliances, pots, pans, utensils, and silverware floating around the kitchen. How many pokemon were doing this? She wasn't sure, but she knew Rotom had to be one of them.

She casually picked out her pan, her spatula, and the microwave from the air to get started on a large helping of breakfast for her children.



As she cooked, her mind lingered to Victoria Action and the mystery surrounding her sudden disappearance. It made no sense to her... A woman like Victoria didn't seem the type to drop everything she worked so hard for and run away. Did the stress get to her? But why would she leave everything behind if she wanted to run away? She would take things with her. And what about her pokemon? Victoria certainly didn't leave her pokemon behind, did she? If this was something simple like a vacation, then why didn't she just tell someone?

There was no logical reason for Victoria to run away... so was it a kidnapping? By a pokemon or by a person?

If by person, then wouldn't they try to hold her for ransom? Was there even a ransom note, or did the police decide not to share it with the public to control the panic?

Was Victoria a target of obsession? It would explain the silence, but then someone would be labeled as suspicious, wouldn't they?

Iris picked out the salt and pepper as they floated by her.

She could imagine a pokemon doing something like this... particularly a ghost type. It was entirely possible that Victoria had gone into a cave, been beckoned by a Haunter, and was now deceased due to the pokemon's lick.

But was that really what happened? Someone would have found her by now, right?


Iris sighed. Concerns for the Galar champion was becoming widespread at this point. What would they do if they couldn't find her?

She wasn't a Major trainer, but going to Wyndon to speak to the chairman about this would be the best idea, wouldn't it? It'd ease her worries to hear what they were doing about the case... Until she knew what they were doing, she'd keep thinking about it.

'Hmmm, how many Major trainers will be there?' She thought briefly. Fraye had more contact with them; maybe he'd know?


After serving everyone their breakfast and drank a serving of tea from Polteageist with her own meal, Iris dressed in a white turtleneck, dark pink pants, black shoes, and her black laced umbrella specially made to work in heavy duty rain. She placed her pokemon into their pokeballs and set out for a trip to Fraye's gym, with Precious sitting on her shoulder.

The rain seemed to be picking up~ Made for a nice scenery.


Upon arrival to the large doors, she'd knock a few times before peeking inside. "Fraye, are you here?" She called out.

 

[PrankFox]

Mentions: ​

Ballonlea was not his first choice of location to set up a gym, but he had to admit it had it's positives. The tall canopies provided cover from the rain that he knew was falling and the abundance of fairy types to train against didn't hurt either. The gym also happened to be positioned near the back of the city, so he could practice at pretty much all hours and not be bothering anyone nearby. Ezran sighed in exasperation as he plucked the strings of his guitar attempting to retune it as the damp weather had completely ruined the work of the previous night. Minuet let out a staticky chuckle from where she stood nearby, next to his second Toxtricity, her yellow mohawk flickering and crackling. "Oh be quiet," he sent a less than heated glare towards her, "Like you could do any better, you've only got three fingers."

He hummed in approval as he finally got the instrument tuned properly and strummed through a few riffs of a new song he had in the works. It was getting there, but he wasn't happy with it quite yet. The others didn't seem too pleased either as they strummed through their own cords. He'd have to work on it a bit more when they got back from Amaranth Tower. He might not be in the Major Leagues, but that didn't mean he wanted to be out of the loop in regards to what was going on with their champion.

He figured it was probably about time to call a taxi and head up to Wyndon, so he set his guitar on it's stand before shutting down the amp and grabbing whatever he might need for the trip. He didn't need much that he couldn't get in the city, but he still pulled his headphones up and listened to the chatter of a newscaster speaking about the investigation while he got stuff together.

"Never thought it'd be Victoria to up and disappear. Arceus knows there's a few of us who'd love to skip out on all the meetings that are needed to keep all this up and running." He pulled his headphones back down around his neck as the program skipped to some ad break, he was pretty sure it was something by the PMZ and rolled his eyes.

He turned his attention to the rest of the team. Everyone was safely stowed away except for the members of his travel team and Forte. "Alright enough practice for the morning. We got places to be." He pulled Forte into his Pokeball and settled it in one of the slots carved into the nearby wall for those who stayed at the gym.

Everyone else was lazing about the gym as they normally did when there were no challengers around, but all began to stir as they sensed a trip on the horizon. It was easy enough to get all of them stowed onto his belt, minus Minuet who crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes when he ever suggested she go into her Pokeball, and head out into the glowing lights of Ballonlea proper. He pulled out his phone and called a taxi, chatting with one of the few other people who was out and about to kill time.

As the taxi landed he hoped into the cab and requested a swift flight to Wyndon. Hopefully the Chairman would have some idea of what was going on with all of this.

Mentions: Lynn (@Nim)​

Silas rolled out of bed just as the sun would've been seen coming up over the horizon if the steady rainfall he'd heard mentioned on the weather last night wasn't obscuring the sky. He carefully stepped over the coiled blue form of Sly who had settled herself comfortably on the rug at the foot of his bed along with Rebel, the newest member of the beginner team and a growing pain in the neck. He knew Deino were stubborn and rash, but he was a special one. Most of his team had to make do with either sleeping in their Pokeballs, or outside in his backyard, as they were much too big to fit inside his house. He took the moment of silence the morning afforded him before everyone began to wake up to drink his coffee and listen to the news as he meandered around the kitchen.

"Still haven't found her then. Damn." He'd been a gym leader for awhile and had gotten to know Victoria reasonably well, and she certainly wasn't the type to just not show up to the opening ceremony. Especially without calling or texting someone first. It was possible the chairman knew something more. He planned on heading up towards Wyndon to, hopefully, get some answers.

He left the news running, only half listening, as the resident dragons around the house began to stir. He finished his morning routine quickly, easily maneuvering around each and every one of his various teams. He made for the back door pulling on a stylish coat over his usual attire and grabbing an umbrella. He switched off the news, "You're in charge Aurora," he called to the pillow of white fluff that was his Altaria, "Keep this rabble under wraps would ya? Don't want another complaint from the neighbors." He heard a sleepy trill in response as he shut the door and already found his main team up and moving underneath the covered space he'd had built so they could stay dry in more inclement weather.

"Morning everyone!" At his call each member of his main team scrambled to their feet to come tromping over to greet him in a cacophony of happy roars and cries. He rolled his eyes as Admiral snapped and shoved his way to the front of the pack to be the first to morning snacks. "You'd think you woulda mellowed out by now, but no." He gave the Garchomp a pat on his snout.

He greeted each of the team before pulling them into their Pokeballs leaving only his Dragapult, Oliana, free from it's confines. He planned on getting to the gym early and it wasn't that long of a walk so it couldn't hurt to let her follow behind since she wouldn't be in anyone's way.

He unlocked the doors to the gym and shook off his umbrella as he went inside. No harm in checking in on everything before he made the journey to Amaranth Tower.

It wasn't long before he heard a chime from his phone and saw the text Lynn had sent him. He sent a quick response: I agree. Be there in a sec. Everything seemed to be in order around the gym so he headed for the front and stepped outside.

"Morning. How was the run?" he greeted both Lynn, and Zaz who stood next to her, as Oliana drifted out from behind him with a happy trill at the sight of the pair. "Ready to head off?"

 

[Demon Shinobi]

Location: Stow-on-Side
Interacting: Iris (@Jessica2477 )
Mentions: kinda everyone, but not really lol​

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Fraye had been up since- wait... how long had he been up?

"Next round, let's go!" He shouted as he led his Pokémon in a bit of early morning training. Once a week, every week, always on schedule, he let everyone out and ran though some basic training and exercises for the fun of working together. It helped the Pokémon bond, and gave them something to look forward to. "Oi oi, Aurelia, give us a little more oomph in that jab'a yers, ya! Squad, make sure ya each takin a turn!" His voice seemed to carry to each Pokémon with relative ease, despite the ongoing sounds of battle.

Still, maybe keeping with this tradition was more for him than the Pokémon. He was worried. Much as he wouldn't want to admit, never one to give into nerves until there was no other choice, he wanted to know what was up.

Watching his Pokémon though, settled with training dummies of all shapes and sizes throughout the gym, helped calm his mind. That didn't make the sounds of each individual strike filling the air any less impactful as the Pokémon mimicked his moves as best they could.

In fact, the founds of battle were practically deafening. Enough so that had he not notice the gym door opening, he might not have noticed Iris at all. "Iris?" He questioned, tilting his head to get a better look. Yeah, it was her. He stopped moving.

"ALRIGHT! THAT'S ENOUGH"A THAT!" His voices boomed through the stadium, bring almost all other activities to a halt, silence befalling the gym almost immediately. "Time to clean up. Get the place all together, get back to yer stations, take a breath, pick up some food and water as ya need." He called out much to the delight of the Pokémon. This would give him a moment to greet his fellow Gym leader properly. He smiled, grabbing a towel from one of his Snorlax's paws, throwing it around his shoulders. He's worked up a decent sweat. It was only natural when you were going strong and leading Pokémon in a good work out.

"What can I do ya for, Iris? Ya fancy a pint? Takin me up on the offer for a little solo trainin?" He grinned, using to towel to dry some of the extra sweat from his hair, and face. It didn't stop the muscle shirt he was sporting from clinging to his body, of course. Stopping just before the doors, he motioned for her to enter. "Well don't be a stranger, come on," he said calmly, though the energy would never leave his voice given the speed of his words made that much more notable by the Irish accent.

Obviously he could tell that this was more a business visit than a personal one. "Or can I assume yer as worried as everyone else about the ongoings'a the last few days?"

"Feeer," Vulcan, Fraye's Infernape, chirped as he came up beside the blue haired trainer with a fresh bottle of water.

"Aye, thanks bud," Fraye said as he took the bottle.

"FER!" Infernape cheered before retreating to continue helping in the clean up efforts.

Fraye glanced back at Hestia. "Some'a the other leaders were plannin on visitin Wyndon. I figured I might too. Ya thinkin the same?" he asked as he popped the top off the bottle to take a hearty sip from it. He sighed. "Ya ask me, I might be needin the pint anyway to get through this."

"Vicky's a tough nut, but if'n she's missin in action, we might have bigger problems on our hands. Course, there's always the chance she shacked up with some lucky bloke for a fun little getaway." He couldn't help laughing a little. "Now isn't that a training camp ya'd wanna be apart'a?" he joked, giving the girl a little eyebrow waggle. "Eitha way, if ya did feel like takin a trip, I wouldn't mind the company after a quick dip to wash away some of the grime. Well... that and the worries. What do ya say?"

 

[Nim]

Mentions: Silas (@PrankFox )​

After recieving the text from Silas, Lynn nodded slightly. The rain kept dripping over her as she waited a bit longer, but it didn't bother her much. Zaz moved a bit closer to her as there was some movement around the street. Other early risers beginning to head out. Seeing the gym door open and Silas stepping outside, Lynn smiled and offered him a small wave "It was good. Rain actually helped a bit with cooling me down while I kept warming myself up." She answered.

After he asked if she was ready, Lynn nodded "I am. Aron will also be heading there too. Also makes me wonder how many others from the league will come, if any at all. I imagine that most of us are thinking along a similar line, right?" She spoke as she spun on the spot, before beginning to walk to the nearest air taxi parking spot. It was pretty close to the Hammerlocke gym so it was a short walk to the taxi. Looking at the driver, she waved at him "Hello! We need to get to Amaranth tower in Wyndon please! As fast as possible!" She told the driver, before opening the door taxi door.

Letting Zaz climb in first, Lynn climbed in afterwards and looked towards Silas. Once they were both inside the taxi and the door closed, Lynn's expression turned sadder "So, I've been trying to keep things calm in Spikemuth, but I can feel that people are being distracted and worried. Any luck in keeping the peace and quiet in Hammerlocke?"" She said, clearly hoping to hear some good news "And the police making that announcement. I imagine the public and the media are both going to go wild after that."

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Mentions:​

As the taxi was flying through the air towards Wyndon, Aron looked out of the window. The dark, cloudy skies and the rain drops over the window were the most of what he could see. It was a dark day, and with the announcement the police had made, it felt like it might become only darker. If the Champion was gone and there was no track of her, and even the police couldn't find anything, then what sense of security is left for the public? The Champion and the police were the top two forces the public could stand behind.

"Sir, anywhere in Wyndon?"

This will probably lead to chaos. Even if it won't be immediate, the trust in the police will wane, and then in the Amaranth corporation, and in the league. The public will look for someone to accuse for the disappearance of their beloved champion. And who better than others in the league, or the one who is the most major contribiutor of the league? There goes the trust in them. And the trust in the police will go because they couldn't uncover anything about the disappearance, and this is a case that is by now, at least 3 days old. Heck, if anyone else finds anything in the future, then the police will look even worse for having missed what could serve as evidence. Either way, trust in the police goes down.

"Sir?"

People in Spikemuth are already showing signs of such thoughts. Worry can grow into anger if it can't be calmed down efficently. And then they will look for the first outlet they can find for that anger. Which will most likely be Lynn and him in Spikemuth. And after all the work Lynn put in too. The thought was unacceptable for him. He imagined it would wreck Lynn if it happened.

"Sir, can you hear me?"

Finally hearing the driver's voice via the intercom in the taxi cabin, Aron looked at it for a moment "Y-yeah, I hear you. What was the question?"

"Anywhere specific in Wyndon?"
"Amaranth tower, please. And if possible, make haste."
"Understood sir. It may get bumpy."

As Aron leaned back onto the seat, he let out a brief sigh. Once again, he let himself drift into thought due to thinking he was completely alone. He already had a reputation of having his head in the sky. Hoping the driver won't share what happened here with anyone else, he turned his gaze back to the window. Somehow, he felt like this was going to be a long day.

 

[Jessica]

Interacting: Fraye | @Demon Shinobi
Mentions:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
​

Iris folded in her umbrella and stepped inside of the gym when ushered to, using the leg of her pants to dry off some of the water. Being greeted with the usual smell of sweat and the warmth of the collective body heat was still something so unusual to her no matter how many times she visited her friend. A chilly environment and jump scares would always be what she considered

And yes, she did notice the muscle shirt; which took some willpower and self-discipline to not stare (even though she wanted to).

Before she could even begin to express her concerns, Fraye had already managed to not only guess exactly what was on her mind, but answer the question that she was going to ask him. It earned him a smile.

"Am I that much of an open book or are you just that perceptive?" She asked him with a smile. "But yes, I'm so worried about Victoria that I wanted to pay Wyndon a visit. I was going to ask you if any of the Major trainers were heading there too, you included. But you answered my question before I could ask it."

His joke and eyebrow waggle earned him a laugh. "For everyone's sakes, I hope that's what happened. But I'm sure you'll get that drink if we run into Fiona."

She gave him a nod, "Okay! I'll wait for you here, or with your Pokemon. Oh, and don't forget a coat or the rain will make you sick." Iris added the last part in case Fraye got the idea of trying to challenge his immune system.

 

[Yankee]

_ _ _______________________________ _ _
mentions: --​​

Knock knock.

Indeedee stood diligently outside his master's door, a newspaper folded over his arm. The Hulbury gym wasn't anything out of the order as far as gyms in Galar went, or even the gyms of other regions. It was a large building that hosted an arena on it's first floor, as well as a lavish restaurant that stretch around the outside of the stadium. Thick, fracture proof glass separated the trainers from the diners, allowing any patrons to enjoy dinner and show when league season was in full swing. Having just started a few days ago, the High Steaks Gym was already beginning to run out of reservations. It meant early days and long nights for all of the staff, including the gym's leader.

Nordrin stepped out of his room. The whole of the second floor was living space. Though Nordrin's flat took up most of it, there were separate spare rooms for staff to crash in. The chef was already dressed, buttoning up the last of his uniform as the city of Hulbury slowly woke up. Indeedee's held out the newspaper to Nordrin, it's blank and slightly irritated looking resting face a mirror of Nordrin's own.

[ CHAMPION STILL MISSING ] was the headline that screamed out from the newspaper, and Nordrin sighed. Missing the opening ceremony was already way out of character for Victoria, but not to contact anyone for days after the fact? It was worrisome. Nordrin flipped through the rest of the paper quickly, though any small interest stories were vastly overshadowed by the champion's disappearance. Folding the paper, he handed it back to Indeedee, and the pokémon traded him for a small envelope. He raised a brow and accepted the letter, turning it over to reveal a mark on the back of it.

"I expected this sooner or later," Nordrin said, mostly to himself. He opened it up, reading the chairman's summons. He'd better get a move on if he wanted to finish the day's prep work before heading to Wyndon.

_ _______________________ _​​

"There's our sweet tooth leader!"

The morning shift staff made their way inside, the gym's back doors rattling closed behind them. Some snickered to themselves, but wisely quit it when the head chef looked up and met their eyes with a scowl.

"It's been days, give it a rest," he scoffed. At the mention of sweet Alcremie and several Milcery rounded the corner, looking up at Nordrin expectantly. It didn't help his case at all. He didn't have a sweet tooth per se, but sweets and deserts took a master's touch to perfect. If he focused a little harder on these aspects of cooking, who could really blame him?

Nordrin pulled his hands from the sink, shaking them dry. The entire kitchen was spread with raw food in various states of being chopped, diced, or ground. "Finish that," Nordrin motioned to the cutting board he'd been working with most recently, and the Scyther at the next station chirped an affirmative.

"Heading somewhere?" The first of Nordrin's sous chefs was a short woman, with dark hair that barely reached her chin. She was tying her apron as she questioned the gym leader, who was pulling his off.

"Wyndon. League business," he told her, already starting to make his way toward the front of the house. "There's bread going in the first oven and another set of dough resting, keep an eye on them."

"Yessir," she said. As the kitchen doors swung closed, she called after him, "Looks like rain, bring an umbrella!"

_ _______________________ _​​

Nordrin did not bring an umbrella. He did, however, don a long dark trench to combat the rain and cold. He'd kept his hair tied into the ponytail he wore in the kitchen, his long silver hair reaching down his back. He'd opted to take the train in, and when he arrived in the city the sky overhead was crowded with pokémon and flying taxis. The flying-types of news crews circled the clouds with cameras strapped to them, all of them looking like hungry Mandibuzz. It was ridiculous, swarming Wyndon instead of spreading out across Galar and putting their story hunting noses to use in finding the champ.

A brisk walk saw Nordrin arriving at the tower that served as the Pokémon League's base of operations in the region. With a nod to the security and desk staff, the chef made his way over to the elevators. Honestly he didn't see this meeting with Amaranth going on that long, they usually didn't, but given the unusual circumstances he couldn't say.

_ _______________________ _​​

 

[Solace]

Mentions: Aron Nim
​

Inclement weather made it almost difficult for Malik Harvey to ferry the Flying Taxi through the skies from the back of his Corviknight. A bit of rainfall wasn't usually too problematic, but the dark clouds hanging over them was what initially raised his concerns; if it turned into a thunderstorm, then they were in for quite the turbulent trip. Fortunately, there was no indication of such through the weather forecast, and he was enough of a seasoned cabbie to make it a smooth ride for his client. He was always up quite early in comparison to his peers so that he could figure out his plan for the day, and on this particular morning, he opted to throw on his cabbie uniform and complete a few rounds on the Flying Taxi. His aviator cap and sunglasses covered up his saffron eyes and golden hair entirely, and it was usually enough to conceal his identity from any fans that would potentially recognize him, but he sometimes opted to throw on a fake brown beard to totally sell the bill of an average cabbie.

Malik had accepted his last client for the day only to realize that he would need to don the aforementioned disguise, chuckling to himself when he'd seen that it was one Aron Cuwell from the Spikemuth Pokemon Shelter. Being a fellow gym leader among the Minor League, he'd only managed to familiarize himself with the redhead on a few occasions, as he was way more acquainted with the boy's twin sister, Lynn, who was a bit different in comparison. Still, the man admired Aron greatly for the latter's initiatives; he was fully supportive with the opening of the Pokemon Shelter's second branch in his hometown, and volunteered to help maintain the facility however and whenever possible.

Though, it often occurred to Malik that the red-haired boy seemed aloof or despondent at times; that much was certain when he dropped off in Spikemuth and ushered Aron into the Flying Taxi. "G'mornin'," the cabbie spoke in a slightly gruffer tone from beneath his disguise of the fake beard, committing to his small prank and hoping that it would lighten up the other gym leader a bit. Taking off into the gloomy, overcast atmosphere, it had taken a few attempts to rouse a response from Aron on a specific destination, finding it quite convenient that it was the Amaranth Tower. Malik had been in and out of the place over the last few days, frequently summoned by the Chairman between his search for Victoria. He figured that Aron, like the rest of them within the Pokemon League, was very concerned about her absence from the opening ceremony in Motostoke. He'd rode far and wide, to each of her known training spots all over the Galar region, and yet his search still amounted to nothing so far.

Malik had hope that his friend was safe and sound, and that they would find her soon. For now, all he could do was keep looking; he was lucky to be afforded the time to do so for the time being, with his gym being situated last in the Minor League. Eventually, their retinue approached the city limits of Wyndon, passing by all of the lights and the large stadium before touching down outside of the Amaranth Tower. Just before he leapt off the back of his Corvknight, he removed the fake beard and tossed it into one of the saddlebags, deciding to allow his Espeon out of her Pokeball. Lady chimed quietly as she immediately clung around the back of his neck like a scarf, trying to hide from the bit of rainfall.

Climbing down, Malik opened the cabin door, removing his aviator cap and sunglasses to unveil his appearance. "Your destination, sir," he now spoke in his normal voice, his hand rising to give the seated boy a playful salute as he smiled warmly towards Aron. "I'll accept your payment, now," Malik placed the cap over Lady's head, his other hand reaching out to offer Aron a helping hand from the cabin. "One smile, please."

 

[PrankFox]

Mentions: Malik (@Solace) Aron (@Nim)​

Ezran leaned back in the seat of the cab enjoying the steady rhythm of the rain that pattered on the roof as the Glimwood Tangle vanished below them. He kept one eye on Minuet as she sat in the cab next to him. It'd taken him longer than he'd like to admit to train her to relax for long enough to be out of her Pokeball in a cab, but he appreciated the company, especially with the concerns that were swirling around the region as a whole.

He pulled his headphones back up and tuned back into the news; listening for any new details that may have come up. He didn't really expect much but he hoped there would be some sort of break in the case. Beyond just having to find someone to serve as champion for the League during this seasons challenge Victoria was also a friend. With any luck the chairman would at least have something they could go off of. When it was evident there were no breaks in the case he switched over to the music on his phone and partially drowned out the wind whipping around the cab.

"Sit still would ya," his attention pulled back to Minuet who had pressed her face up against the window of the cab and was tapping out a rhythm on the seat, "We're almost there."

Thankfully Ballonlea was a fairly short flight from Wyndon and even the rain wasn't slowing them down much. He could see the bright lights of the city, both the stadium and the tower, that pushed through the clouds and cast shadows across the city. As the cab descended he sat up and looked out the window, catching sight of the second cab on the ground and instantly recognizing the golden hair of Malik.

He hopped from the cab, Minuet directly after him, paid the cabbie, and jogged towards where Malik, and now that he could see better, Aron were getting ready to head towards the tower.

"Hey Malik, Aron!" he stopped next to the cab as Minuet let out a pleased trill at the sight of the psychic type trainer, "Here to see the chairman about Victoria? I imagine a lot of us are comin' around right now."

Mentions: Lynn (@Nim)​

A slight grin spread across Silas' face at the ever enthusiastic response from Lynn. She could even find something positive about running all the way to Hammerlocke in the rain, it was rather incredible really. He followed after her towards the taxi nodding in acknowledgement to the fact that her brother would be meeting them in Wyndon. "I imagine so. This isn't like Victoria at all," from what he remembered of the Champion she took every opportunity to make a showy entrance to the opening ceremony, much like himself in that regard, "In all the years I've been a gym leader I don't think I've ever seen her miss a single event."

He pulled Oliana into her Pokeball, there was absolutely no way she was fitting to a taxi, and joined Lynn inside before shutting the door. He turned his attention to her frowning a bit at her downtrodden expression. "It isn't easy. People expect the gym leaders to have the solutions to everything, but we really don't." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, trying to shake some of the water free, "That being said everyone in Hammerlocke tends to take what I say to heart, so I've told them that all of us are doing everything we can and that we'll find her, so that'll at least keep their hopes up for a little while longer."

Being a gym leader was not easy. That was something he learned very quickly, both on his own and from the previous dragon type gym leader that he trained under. People looked up to them and expected them to have the solutions to everything. It wasn't an easy position to be in, but it certainly felt much more difficult when he'd had much less experience. Lynn has been a gym leader half as long as him and already the people in Spikemuth were looking to her for reassurance.

He put a hand on her arm to get her attention and gave her a bright grin, "You're really doing a great job in Spikemuth. It's a big task to be both a gym leader and try to build the city up better. If you ever need any help with anything there let me know ok."

He turned to look out the window of the cab as they quickly approached the city of Wyndon and the tower. He didn't know what he'd tell the people of Hammerlocke if the Chairman didn't have any ideas about where there Champion had gone, so hopefully he had something for them.

 

[Marlowe]

MENTIONS:
​

It was a little too early.

As soon as Rai woke up, she felt the aches and pains of a good night run up and down her body. Cloaked in downy cushions and blankets, she stretched in the shadowy little den she had made under the covers. What was unusual to her was the sheer warmth that cloaked her, even under the bedsheets. She rubbed her eye as she shifted, feeling someone let out a little whine from on top of her. Oh, right. She had coupled with a young lad last night, one with hair bright as fire and eyes as vivid as the sun. He was rather spunky when she found him in the bar, but he lacked stamina and didn't entertain her well. She sighed as she shoved him off of her, which drew another drowsy complaint from the stranger, before she rolled out of her bed and pulled on her jeans.

"Where ya goin'?" the boy sounded out sleepily behind her.

"Out for a smoke," she answered as plainly as she could. After slipping on her shirt, she gave another yawn and lifted herself the rest of the way out of the boy's bed. Rai pulled out a box of cigarettes as she trotted through the small apartment and out into the crisp morning air of Hammerlocke. The taste of tobacco fresh on her lips, she lit the end of the paper cigarette and pulled out her phone. Her lockscreen picture, a photo of Watts and Amperian curled together as they slept on a fluffy pillow, shone brightly at her. She had never uploaded the picture, though perhaps it was way too important to have everyone gawk and swoon over it. Rai gave a little smile as she took a draft, then blew out a puff of bluish smoke. Her finger unlocked her phone and she began to scroll through the headlines. The biggest one, written in black, bold letters, read out: GALAR CHAMP STILL MISSING.

Huh, did they really not find her yet? Rai thought that Victoria might have needed a break or something and ran off to have a day to herself. The headline was honestly a little bit disquieting. Was the Chairman doing something about it? He must be, right? Concern and curiosity began to tug at her as she took another long draft from her cig. Its embers smoldered and burned as she sucked, and the next puff she released was larger than the last. Well, only one way to find out.

The boy was sitting up on the bed when she strode back into his bedroom. A look of alarm flashed across his expression when he saw the urgency behind the act of Rai's slipping on of her riding boots. "H-huh? Wha' is it? Did I do somethin' wrong..?"

"I need ta head to Wyndon."

"Oh. M'kay. Maybe we can meet up later, then..?"

Oh boy. She should have expected something like this. Rai watched him closely as she zipped up her jacket and folded in her collar. "No." She muttered, turning away from him. Bending down to grab her discarded purse, she slung it over her shoulder and walked out from his bedroom without another word. As she once again made her way out of the apartment, she ran her hands up and down her torso to make sure that there weren't any wrinkles in the jacket before she paused. Even though she wasn't into the boy as much as she would have liked to be, she couldn't help but feel a little guilty for abandoning him. Rai took out her wallet and slapped down a ten pokedollar bill on his kitchen table. There. He could get breakfast with that.

Rai would have opted to take her bike to Wyndon, but it would take more than an hour to do so. Not to mention, she would have to walk back home and grab her bike so she could start the trip. It would be better if she could take a cab. Luckily enough, that was easy to do in Hammerlocke. She jogged to the corner where one of the taxis rested and tipped her head to the waiting cabby.

"Wyndon, Amaranth Tower," she told him. "And quick, too."

The cabby laughed. "We'll get you there in no time."

And they were off. The cabby's Corviknight was fast, she had to admit, but the rainstorm made the cab rattle and shake. Watts, who had probably sensed Rai's discomfort and worry, took it upon herself to release herself from her Pokeball and leaped onto her lap. Unlike other times, the Raichu didn't fidget around and pull her hair and try to make Rai laugh. This time the lightning mouse was rather calm, sitting upon her trainer as Rai wrapped her arms around the Pokemon's warm tawny fur. Watts let out a little trill as she pressed the top of her head against Rai's chin, with her rubbing the Pokemon's belly in turn. At least the feel of something warm against her made her calm down a little.

They were at Wyndon within the hour, and Rai was delighted to see that people were only just arriving. She stepped out of the cab and paid the driver. "Thanks. Here," she added a hefty tip at the end. The cabby blinked in surprise at the sight of his pay, but before he could say anything, she was already walking off toward the tower with Watts perched on her shoulders. Since she was rather early... she might as well have another smoke before people started to show up. She pulled out another cigarette and leaned against the wall, flicking it alight.

 

[Demon Shinobi]

A Quick Trip to Wyndon

Collab with @Jessica2477
Interaction: Says hi to Nordrin (@Yankee )
Mentions: Kinda the rest out front.​

Fraye took another sip of water, drinking as the girl responded. "Heh, maybe ya are. After all, according to the media I'm somethin of a daft cunt," he said laughing. "Either way though, I'm not sure exactly who's going or not. Best t' just wait an' see."

He shrugged off the worry of Victoria. Worrying wouldn't help him, her, or anyone else. If this was serious though, they would have to do something about it. "Glad to have ya along Iris. I'll be out in a bit and then we can head out," he added before turned to go bathe and change.

In the mean time, the Pokémon finished cleaning up. Vulcan and Aurelia, Fraye's Infernape and Lucario, made sure everything was where it belong, with the others cleaning up the remaining food as necessary. Soon, the place was spic and span, or as much as one would expect from a fighting gym maintained primarily by Pokémon. Meanwhile, Fraye's Breloom, Bloom, came to Iris's side offering bottled water which had been skillfully balanced on her head.

Iris waved him off, having been ready to stand by and wait however long necessary. However, his Breloom had come to offer her a drink of water, which she smiled gratefully and took from the Pokémon's head. However she wasn't done yet.

"Thank you~" She gave the Pokémon some headpats with her free hand before kneeling down. "Aren't you just the cutest~ Here," Iris reached into her bag and pulled out a berry, offering it to Bloom. "As a treat from me."

"Loooooom~" The Breloom cooed as it took the berry from Iris's hands. Her eyes closed in delight as she chomped on the tasty morsel, nuzzling it's head into the headpat.

Fraye, meanwhile, had made it to the room outfitted to be a home away from home. It wasn't like he could always live at the gym, although the living quarters he'd create for himself were quite nice for those nights when he didn't wanna go home. He'd stripped down and hopped into the shower. It was nice to feel the water run over his skin after a long, and pretty good, work out. Unfortunately, he didn't have a lot of time. He had to get the lead out.

While he was busy though, the other members of his teams had made sure the Pokémon went where they were supposed to and were now huddling around Iris. They'd wait for their master together with the Ghost-type Gym Leader until it was time for them to go into their respective Pokeballs.

Iris was delighted to see the rest of Fraye's team, feeling her motherly heart swell at the sight of them. Though Ghost Pokémon always held a special place in her heart, she still adored the other types as well, since they were all special in their own way.

"You've all grown so strong, haven't you?" She asked them, reaching into her bag again and taking out more berries, giving one and head pats to each Pokémon except for Infernape, who would receive chin scratches instead.

"So adorable and well behaved~ Fraye raised all of you so well."

Fraye's Pokémon took great joy in greeting Iris, receiving the treats she bestowed upon them, and earning her praises and pets. In the few years he'd come to know her, Fraye had grown close to Iris, and so did his Pokémon. She was practically part of the family. So of course, even the shiest of his team, its leader Vulcan, took to her charms. Even so, every pleasant moment came to an end, eventually.

Fraye returned wearing a pair of loose fitting black pants, a plain blue t-shirt, a hooded white vest who's sleeves appeared to have been torn off rather than coming like that with spike-like silver protrusions dotting the shoulders and lining, and a gray bandana with light blue trim as well as a darker blue design in the form of the fighting gym insignia. He grinned as he began to call his Pokémon back to their Pokéballs and gave Iris a little shout.

"Dontcha worry about the jacket, I've got a hood. Besides, I called us a taxi to save time. Should be right outside," he said he gave her a little nudge. "Sorry for the wait," he said as he finally joined her at the entrance, his hair still a bit damp from the shower. He smelled somewhat citrus-y from the shower. But nevertheless, he was ready to go with his team in their Pokéballs and fastened at his waist.

Soon the two were in the Corviknight Taxi and on their way to Wyndon. "Saw ya givin the gang some treats. Trynna fatten up my pals to give the trainers who face me a better chance?" he asked with a little laugh and a teasing grin.

Iris gave the hoodie a look, because well, this isn't what she meant by "jacket." Then again, this was Fraye; something she should have expected from him. Nonetheless she sighed and smiled at him. "Don't be complaining when you catch a cold and become too sick to train." She tells him, following him into the air taxi.

As she seated, she laughed at Fraye's question. "Oh shush, it's natural sugar. Besides, your training will burn those calories off in no time."

It was then Iris noticed her Mimikyu had gone silent with his back to his trainer, staring out the window.

Considering this wasn't the first time this happened, Iris's smile grew bigger.

"Aww, Precious~ Are you jealous I gave the other team treats and attention?"

She earned a little grumble.

With a giggle, Iris took her pokemon into her hands and cradled him, giving Precious some love while she herself paid attention to her conversation with Fraye.

"Besides, She continued, feeding Mimikyu a berry much like one would to a child. No complaints from the pokemon, of course. "Even with a few pounds on them, your team would still be amazing. Plus they'd have a bit of cushion for defense, and be just a bit cuter than usual~"


Fraye couldn't help laughing. "When've ya eva known me to complain about the consequences of m'own decisions?" he asked wryly. Either way you split it, Fraye wasn't all the worried. He shook his head, the smile ever present on his face as he settled into his spot. "As for the sugar, I don't mind it. But ya better be bringin along a snack for me next time too," he joked, giving her a little nudge as she turned her attention to Mimikyu. It was a cute display.

"Ah don't worry lil guy," he added, "we ain't trynna steal her from ya." Fraye enjoyed the company now. It could have been a boring ride on his own. The added ego boost from his friend wasn't so bad either. "Aye, I've got some pretty amazin Pokemon makin me look good. Oughta treat'em to a vacation soon," he mused as though he had nothing to do with his Pokemons' performances.

"I'll bring you and your pokemon lunch next time. Maybe something greasy and fattening to make your life just a bit harder~" She joked with him. Of course she wouldn't do that… unless Fraye upset her or pulled a prank on her, but when was the last time that happened?

"Where would you go if you took them on one?" She asked him.

Fraye shook his head. "Imma hold ya to that Iris," he said grinning cheekily. "Ya know how much we love ya cookin." He took a little reach out, placing a hand on Mimikyu's head. "I hope you'll join us too little guy," he mused before looking up to think about where he would go. "Maybe Alola? I think they could use a trip somewhere warm. Besides, who wouldn't wanna visit a tropical island?"

"I'd offer to have my Pokemon eat with yours, but... Well, I don't know if you'd want to risk it."

The last time Iris tried to do a Pokemon play date, her Pokemon had been rather determined to prank and scare the others, trainer included. She, of course, tried to get them to knock it off and even punished them for it, but mischief was in a Ghost type's nature. They wouldn't change. But at least nowadays they listened to her much better than in the past. She was willing to try again if Fraye and his Pokemon wanted to take the risk.

"Oh, Alola is beautiful. Your Pokemon would love it there~ I went there to get one of mine." The Marowak in her secondary team was the one she was referring to.

"I doubt my team'd mind, long as they got to eat," he laughed, shaking his head at the thought of the utter chaos. "Although… We'd likely be lookin at an all out war if things got outta hand. Fightin-types are pretty quick to throw down. And they know more than just fightin-type moves." Fraye nodded along. "But aye, I think Alola'd do 'em wonders," he said, before takin a moment to think. "'Sides, the more diggin I've done, the more it seems that Pokemon I've been chasin may have originated from that region. Wouldn't hurt to learn a lil more 'bout the scrappy ghoul." He had no idea what the little thing they dubbed Marshadow was doing all the way in Galar, or if it was even still here, but he knew his search was far from over.

"Ah, it's lookin like we're just about here," he said, looking up as the taxi seemed to begin its descent.

If Fraye seemed happy to try, then Iris supposed she could put her pokemon through some manners and behavioral training. Not for her sake, but for the sake of an all out war not starting. She'd run them through the basics at the least.

Her attention was caught by "the scrappy ghoul" Fraye was interested in. Though she wouldn't be able to ask more since they'd just arrived.

"Tell me more about the "scrappy ghoul" at another time, okay? I happen to be searching for a legendary ghost myself, and I might have a book or two that can give insight." She told him, readying her umbrella when they stepped out.

"Curious lil thing, ain'cha Iris?" Fraye questioned teasingly as the taxi landed and he opened his door, pulling his hood up before hopping out. "Here ya go Cap'n," he said paying their fare along with a nice tip. "Keep the change, will ya?" he added with a little wink. That out of the way, he grinned, walking around to the other side to open the door for Iris and help her out. "Well, I like that about ya," he said as though he'd never finished talking to her before taking a moment to scan the area. They weren't the first to arrive, and something told him that those that were just arriving now weren't necessarily the first either. "Don't ya worry, I'd be happy t' tell ya more 'bout the lil twerp later."

With that, Fraye turned giving a small wave to the others he saw. "Ooooooooooi~!" He called out, raising his voice perhaps a bit more than he needed to. "If'n I knew the party was gonna be this big, I woulda brought snacks," he bellowed, laughing a little. Though the circumstances were by no means a laughing matter, it stood to reason that they could all use a little lightening up. "Assumin we're all here for the same thin, I'd say we oughta get a move on and head up. Ya know, let the cabbies be on their way. Well, 'cept for one o'course," he cheered merrily.

Fraye took a deep breath. Of course, this wasn't really a social visit now was it, despite the sizable group forming just out front of Amaranth Tower. Even so, despite how easily Fraye seemed to be making merry, he clearly understood how serious everything once since he wasn't stopping, or trying, to greet everyone he could lay his eyes on. There'd be time for that later. "Anyway Iris, if ya wanna come with, I'm always happy t'have the company. If ya lookin to give everyone a little hello, I'm gonna head up first," he said giving the girl a little wave as he walked forward into the building, heading for the lift to get himself to the chairman's office.

With a quick nod and a wave to the security guard on staff he was already on his way when he noticed somethin down the way. "Oi Nord!" Fraye called out, chuckling lightly at the sight, his voice chipper as ever. "Hold the door for the lift, mate! Got a feelin we're headin to the same place," he said with another small laugh.

 

[Nim]

Interactions: Silas (@PrankFox )
Mentions: Everyone else who already arrived​

Listening to Silas, Lynn silently nodded. It really wasn't easy being a gym leader at a time like this, and especially when they were expected to have answers to so many questions. She glanced towards the cab window, and saw Zaz looking out of it, seemingly captivated by the view, even if it was cloudy and not the best today.

Feeling a hand on her arm, Lynn turned to look at Silas, who just encouraged her about her work in Spikemuth. Smiling, she nodded once more, this time with more confidence "Thanks. I am getting a bit of help in the background from my dad, thanks to his reputation as the previous major gym leader. And Aron's work in the Pokemon Shelter is also helping a bit. But I'll be sure to remember that I can rely on your if need be." She put her hand on his hand.

It didn't take much longer, and the taxi landed next to a couple of others, all parked next to the Amaranth Tower. Opening the door, she looked around and saw several other gym leaders were already present. Some were already heading to the tower, some were discussing things among themselve. Spotting Aron come out of one, she waved to him as she exited the taxi. Before doing anything further, she turned towards Zaz, who exited the taxi after her, staying close. Taking out his pokeball, she offered him a sad smile "Probably be best if you went back and rested for the time being. A lot of serious topics that I'm sure you'll just be bored from." She told him, and watched as Zaz just looked at her, seemingly understanding but not fully approving.

Returning him to his pokeball, she turned to look towards Aron again, and the others who were present "I'm sure everyone wants to catch up, but we should head inside!" She called out to everyone, before looking at Silas, winking and ran inside the Amaranth tower, aiming to make her way to the chairman's office as quickly as possible.

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Interactions: Malik (@Solace ), Ezran (@PrankFox )
Mentions: Others in the area​

As the taxi landed next to Amaranth Tower, Aron moved towards the door, only for the taxi driver to open the door, declare they arrived and reveal himself to be one of his fellow minor gym leaders, Malik. Surprised, Aron took his hand as Malik helped him get off the taxi "I don't think now is the best time to pretend to be someone you're not. Especially considering the current circumstances. But," Aron offered a nod towards Malik "It is good to see you are well. And I see we are not the only ones to have arrived." He told him, without offering any smile like Malik asked for.

Looking to the side, Aron saw Ezran come and stop by them "Yes, I came here to speak to the chairman. And it certainly looks like many of us have gathered to do the exact same thing. I also know Lynn should be headed here soon." Aron nodded towards Ezran "I would've prefered seeing everyone else under better circumstances, but let us just hope that we can resolve this quickly." He said.

Another taxi landed nearby, and Aron watched as the familiar figure of Lynn came out, called out to them about not waiting around too long, and then ran quickly made her way inside the tower. Even after that jog, she still had so much energy "I think Lynn is right, we should at least head inside the tower. Staying out here in the rain is only gonna end up with us getting an unneeded cold." He said, before beginning to walk towards the tower.

 

[Marlowe]

MENTIONS: Everyone ​

The number of gym leaders were eventually ushered into the building and into a long room with a view of the city of Wyndon. It had begun to rain by the time everyone was in the room, and from behind the window pane she could see gray skies for miles and miles. Even though she was inside, she could feel the humidity gather within the meeting room. Or was it just because there were so many people there? She caught sight of several friendly faces, waving and smiling at Fiona, Fraye, and several others as well, before she took a seat at the long table that stretched the length of the room itself. She even caught sight of Rai who took a seat close to the back of the room, her Raichu comfortably snug in her lap as she pet its fluffy head. It surprised her to see her there. Rai didn't show up for the presentation at Hammerlocke, and she hardly ever did. Hestia knew that it wasn't because she didn't care, but because the blonde was a timid person. For her to show up here, in Wyndon... she must be as worried as all of them.

They hardly had enough time to settle down before Amaranth and his assistant, Cereus, entered the room behind them. "First of, I'd like to thank you all for coming," his voice commanded silence and respect, which was very different than how he had appeared at the stadium a few days prior. He watched them all behind thick spectacles, his face serious, but his eyes betrayed a great amount of worry and concern. "It warms my heart to see all of you gather together to lend a hand. It truly does."

"However, I have to admit that the news channels aren't revealing everything that's going on. I've told the League staff and police force to keep certain details under wraps," Amaranth continued. "I did this in order to prevent panic among the general population. That's why I've called you all here. I've spoken with officials and we discovered that Victoria's house was left an absolute wreck. Not only that, but her phone had been abandoned, along with the rest of her personal belongings. We've grown to believe that Victoria didn't elope with a lover or took a vacation out of the blue. We believe that she's been kidnapped."

Hestia, who had been somewhat blanking out during the Chairman's monologue, suddenly snapped to attention. "Kidnapped?"

The Chairman nodded solemnly. "There's no other explanation. Victoria isn't the type to abandon her house out of the blue, not if she can help it. Unfortunately, we have no leads on who might have taken her."

"There's a reason we called you here, though," Cereus suddenly spoke up in a matter-of-fact voice as he scribbled something down on a clipboard.

"Yes," Amaranth sighed. "I gathered you all to tell you that I don't want any of you to stick your noses where they don't belong. Remember that you're gym leaders who have a job to do, not novice detectives. I understand that you're all worried about the Champion, as am I, but I'm doing this for your own safety. We don't know who we're dealing with and I don't want anyone else to disappear, get hurt, or worse. Understood?"

 

[PrankFox]

Mentions:​

A few others showed up before they were all ushered inside into the meeting room, someplace Ezran had been several times before over the years, and each time the room felt stuffy despite the windows. From what he could see most of the leaders were here minus a few of the other minor leaguers and, more surprisingly, a couple of their major league leaders. "Make sure to keep quiet please." He directed softly towards Minuet who took up a position behind his chair. The electricity around her head flared for a moment before she crossed her arms and stood still staring out the window to the storm clouds outside.

The Chairman was a fairly serious man in general, expect when he was posturing for the crowds, but he didn't think he'd ever seen this much concern on his face even when things got dicey during challenges.

The explanation for that worry hit like a rampaging Mamoswine and he stared in shock at the Chairman, but couldn't find his voice to say anything. Which never happened to him. Who in Galar was capable of kidnapping their champion. It's not like she, or her pokemon, would go down without a fight. Not to mention what reason they had for doing it.

He frowned at both Cereus and the Chairman at his request for them to not get involved; leaning back in his chair mimicking Minuet's pose. Amaranth had to know that at least some of them wouldn't be inclined to follow that rule, especially if the police hadn't found anything. Beyond Victoria being the Champion, she was their friend, and if there was someone going around and kidnapping the members of the league, or potentially something worse, there was no way he was going to sit around and let that happen to anyone else.

He kept quiet looking between Amaranth, his assistant, and the rest of the gym leaders trying to gage their reactions to this statement and any that might follow. Something about all of this didn't feel right.

Mentions: The Chairman, Lynn (@Nim)-briefly​

Silas shook his head fondly and followed after Lynn just before they were all ushered into the meeting room. He watched as everyone got settled into their seats; looking out the window as the miles of gray sky slowly moved closer and closer to Wyndon bringing the frigid rain with it. He had to admit that the weather suited the particular mood of this meeting. He turned full attention to the Chairman as he walked in clocking the worry and concern on his face. That couldn't be good.

He frowned at the Chairman and glanced across the table to make brief eye contact with Lynn. They'd talked about the problems they'd had keeping the peace. Not only were they keeping information from the public, for what he supposed was a good reason, but now they couldn't do anything to help. It seemed rather unfair to them. Having come all this way only to be told to do home and sit on their hands until the police came up with something. "So you're telling us that the police don't have any ideas about where she might be? At all?" the whole reason they were here was to get some good news and instead they got what might be some of the worst beyond finding out that she'd been killed.

Of course they had jobs to do, but wasn't this more important? The gym challenge couldn't be properly be completed if they didn't have their champion. They couldn't sit by and do nothing, but it seemed like that was exactly what the Chairman wanted them to do. His reasoning made sense, sure, but there had to be something to find. Something that the police missed or hadn't looked close enough into

"What about her pokemon? Did they take them as well because there's no way they'd let anything happen to her." She was the champion for a reason; her team wasn't one that could be easily taken down. so she was either taken by surprise or something more was going on here. Normally he'd listen to the Amaranth, but he wasn't sure sitting around and waiting for something else to happen, or a break in the case, was the best idea.

 

[Jessica]

Interacting:
Mentions: Victoria, the Chairman
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​

Iris sat at the long table with the other trainers after saying hello, happy to see them all here despite the unfortunate reason. They all shared a genuine concern for Victoria, and they were all anxious about what happened to her. All Iris wanted was reassurance. Anything. Even if Victoria had suddenly dropped everything to go on vacation and not said anything, iris would not be upset. If anything, she'd be completely relieved. She and everyone else...

Unfortunately, that was not the case.

Hearing Cereus and the chairman discuss what had happened, iris felt herself hug her Mimikyu, her eyes wide. A kidnapping?! But, how? How could anyone kidnap the reigning champion? And who would be capable of pulling such a thing off? Her house was a complete wreck, so clearly there was a struggle. But wouldn't someone have heard a struggle like that occur and reported it to police? Especially if there was pokemon involved?

She decided to stay quiet, hugging her pokemon just a bit tighter. It was clear she was uncertain, so she would listen to them answer questions.




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Interacting: Malik | @Solace
Mentions:
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She was late.

She was so late and she knew it...

But she wasn't going to say anything. The poor Corviknight was doing his damn best to get her across Galar, and in a hail storm no less.

Guinevere fed the Corviknight a few berries from her hand as the cabbie cared for the Pokemon by spraying a Full Restore over the wounds just outside of Crown Tundra. The hail storm had been a bit brutal, to the point that Gwen felt really terrible about not taking the train. She thought the air taxi would be faster, and hadn't anticipated that the storm would get so bad... Oh the poor thing.

Gwen sighed and looked at her phone, looking at the time. Yeah, she was 100% late.

She opened her messenger app and tapped on Malik's name, writing up her text.

'I'm on my way to Wyndon but my taxi got caught in a bad storm

The Corviknight is okay but he needs a break

I'll be there asap'

After pressing send, Guinevere's attention was caught by the cabbie.

"He's lookin' bout good as new now. A little shooken, but he's fine. Let's get ya to Wyndon."

She nodded once, "Yeah. I'll tip you good if you hurry."

The cabbie grinned, "Just 'old on tight an' be ready for a bumpy ride."

 

[Psyker Landshark]

Mentions: Silas (@PrankFox )​

Well...shit. Now the authorities running around with their heads up their arses was a lot less funny, in retrospect. She could even say it was mildly worrying. The Champion kidnapped in her own home, out of the blue? And the Chairman was just telling them to just go about their business? For the love of...

"Boss-man, wit' all due respect, we do our jobs right, we're all gonna be lookin' like right idiots at the end of th' League. We don't find Vickie by then, how tae fock're we gonna explain away not havin' a Champ tae battle against? If it's one of us winnin' the Cup at th' end, maybe we could fudge it. Maybe. If it's a Challenger, we're right focked up shite creek without a paddle. Mind ye, I don't really care about how we look either way. Just figured ya did."

She reached for a bottle of water on the table and uncapped it, taking a quick swig before continuing on.

"Nae, Silas," Fiona turned to the only Leader that was higher up in the pecking order than her. "Probably got her an' her Mons in their sleep. An' kept 'em asleep. Either way, Boss-man's gotta point in that I dunno shite about investigatin'. Doubt any of us really do, either. Just...call us in if they do find anything, yeah? I know from experience th' International Police already can't battle their fockin' way out a paper bag, an' I doubt our local coppers're gonna do any better."

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Mentions:
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Hell. No wonder Peyton had stonewalled him when he'd arrived in the first place. Charles wouldn't have wanted to have explained that twice either. Or to have delivered that warning again. Still, just sitting here going about his business didn't sit right with him. Back in his Champion days, if someone in the League administration had been kidnapped, he would have been the first one on the search.

As for the coverup...oh, that just didn't sit right with him. Damn it, Peyton.

"Fiona does bring up a good point, Chairman." Charles grunted, already on his second cup of tea for the morning. "This isn't sustainable. I know you're hoping this all gets resolved and blows over by the Cup, but if it doesn't, the backlash will be massive. There's already enough bad press from Victoria going missing that I'd highly suggest we at least delay the Challenge this year, if not cancel it outright. Of course, there's another option we could take..."

And it was one that he didn't particularly want to bring up, considering the effect it would have on some of the Leaders gathered here. Still, it was better than the alternative disaster if Peyton stuck to his guns and continued on like everything was normal.

"Appoint an interim Champion. If you're that intent on making sure the Challenge continues, promote someone immediately. When Victoria returns, give them a fast-track shot at the title. She'll understand."

 

[Nim]

Mentions: ​

As they all made their way into the meeting room, Lynn made sure to wave to everyone she hadn't already seen before. Even if they all came here for a serious topic, they should still keep being civil and friendly towards one another. They were all part of the same regional league, after all. She could even spot the rare sight that was Rai, who had kept her Raichu out. It made Lynn wonder for a moment if she should've kept Zaz out, but figured it was for the best.

Sitting down next to Silas, she watched as the chairman and his assistant came in pretty shortly after everyone had entered. It didn't take him long to begin speaking to everyone. Listening intently, Lynn's eyes slowly widened as he kept on speaking and revealed the details that were concealed to the wider public. When he gave his request for everyone to stay out of the investigation, her gaze turned down towards her feet. She kept listening as Silas, Fiona and Charles all spoke up, asking questions and giving their own suggestions. Once Charles was finished, she looked toward the elder.

"With all due respect, I don't think that would be wise. Putting up an interm champion, that is. Part of the reason the champions are so well respected is because the people saw them fight their way to the top. So just selecting someone like that won't get anyone to believe they are worthy of being a Champion, let alone get them their respect." Lynn spoke up, her expression being rather rather grim, before turning to look at the chairman "I do agree, however, that it will be tough for the league to continue on without locating her first. She's not just the civilians champion. She's our champion too."
Lynn turned her gaze back down towards her legs, having said her piece. She wanted to burst at what he asked of them, but she could also understand why he asked it.

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Mentions:​

With everyone present in the meeting room, Aron went and leaned on the wall behind of Lynn. He offered a nod towards the others, before chairman Amaranth and his assistant came into the room.
He listened quietly, making no indications of what was going through his mind as the different people spoke up. Silas gave good questions, which were promptly answered by Fiona. It would make sense to also grab the pokemon. Otherwise, there would be witnesses to the kidnapping. And he certain agreed with the notion that everyone would end up looking like fools should they continued with the league and end up without finding her by the end. Even if it wasn't a challenger that made it to the final match, the civilians would surely worry even more if they were to just see one of the gym leaders declared winner without a match.

Charles gave a couple of good suggestions, one of which Lynn decided to respond to. Aron wasn't surprised by what she said up. He knew Lynn had a ton of respect to Victoria. To the whole notion of a champion being the champion of everyone. When she saw done, Aron turned his gaze towards Amaranth "Even if you ask us not to get involved, we already are. Someone took one of our own. I understand you don't want us to investigate, chairman, and I agree we should not investigate on our own. But standing idly on the side won't give any reassurance to the people either. As long as Victoria's missing, the people will be worried. So if I may be so bold, but what if we tried working quietly alongside the police?"

Aron looked over the rest before continuing to speak "We don't know what the culprits endgame is. So working with the police could serve two purposes. Both allow us to contribiute to the investigation, and allow the Police to protect the rest of us." Aron said, before leaning back against the wall "And regardless of what suggestions end up being accepted or not, we all need to think on how we could help reassure the people more. The volunteers in the Spikemuth shelter are already plenty worried." Aron said, before closing his eyes, waiting to hear out the next person to speak up.

 

[Yankee]

_ _ _______________________________ _ _
mentions: --​​

Nordrin was halfway into the elevator when he heard a certain voice call out to him. He paused and his brow furrowed slightly. That sounded like... with his hand holding the lift open, he slowly peeked back out towards the lobby to see Fraye and Iris making their way towards him. Nordrin didn't return Fraye's smile, quickly stepping back into the elevator, but he did at the very least hold the door for the both of them. These two leaders were always so... chipper that in any other circumstance Nordrin would be loathe to share an elevator with them. At arm's length they were fine, but in that small space he would usually be nursing a headache by the end of the ride. However, given what they were probably all there for, the notoriously tempered chef figured he would cut them some slack. For now.

"If you two are here, all the others will be too," Nordrin said as the pair joined him in the lift and it began it's ascent. "I'm sure we all know that the Chairman wants to discuss."

A rather awkward elevator ride to the Chairman's office later, and they were gathered in the room with the rest of Galar's gym leaders, both major and minor. Like he'd expected, there must have been something important on Amaranth's mind - and what else could it be but Victoria's disappearance?

Nordrin listened to the man talk, about the working theory on what happened and his advice on not to get involved. Frankly that was tauros shit, they were already involved by way of their Champion being abducted. The scowl on the fairy-leader's face deepened, and he crossed his arms, keeping quiet for now, though just barely. He listened as Silas and Fiona went over what might have happened without so much as a peep (though perhaps a soft snort at Fiona's jab at the lawmen's battle prowess). However, once Charles made his suggestion Nordrin couldn't help but bite out a bitter laugh.

"Gone fooking senile have you?" he said, meeting the old man's eye. Then, he turned to Amaranth and the rest of the group at large. "The siblings are right. We're already involved, and stronger than any copper in Galar. If you put someone else on the Champion's pedestal, the whole region will implode. They'll demand explanations, they won't accept it."

Nordrin uncrossed his arms and shoved his hands into the pockets of his coat rather roughly, frustrated with the older men's thought processes. "May as well come clean about the whole thing if you want to set up a new Champion, and if you do that you'll send every man, woman, and fooking child on a manhunt across Galar anyway.

Really, what are you going to do Chairman? Give us all personal bodyguards? You don't think that will be a little suspicious?" Nordrin jerked his head to the side, indicating the windows overlooking Wyndon. "And there's press everywhere and I'm sure they've already seen all of us gym leaders arrive, the media already knows something is wrong."

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