Dashed Expectations

"Just giving her a few tips." Hundin replied to Roger, her face staring forward as they continued on, but her eyes looking around somewhat frantically.



"Uh... yeah, thanks, Garn, sure." Elby said, still a bit unsure how to react. Regardless, he lead the group forward. TO FORETAG.

And thus, on their journey, many things happened. The group would realize things about themselves that would change their outlook on life forever, and stories would be written about their legendary exploits that saved millions. BUT AT WHAT COST? They had discovered the secrets of the reality that would leave them scarred for all time, unsure of what's even right or wrong anymore.

Or maybe not. I dunno.

As the group would finally reach Foretag, they'd be surrounded by busy streets and buildings littering the area, even having its own skyscraper. If one didn't know better, one could mistake this for a city from a region not filled full of hicks and hobos.

As Elby approached a rather attention-grabbing fixture, though, he couldn't help but be a bit confused. It was a large, golden statue of what appeared to be a Milotic, dramatically pointing its head into the sky, peering into the sun with its eyes, covered by a slick mask, akin to one a superhero might wear. "In honor of the Masked Beauty, protector of the weak and savior of Foretag City." the plaque underneath it read.

Elby simply stared at it, only managing to mutter "What..." under his breath.

"As long as you don't hurt the girl in any way. Or anyone else for that matter." said Roger, looking around to see where he could find Giovanni. As his eyes wandered, they stopped at the Pokemon Center. A light-bulb flashed over his head! "Well the guy I'm supposed to meet here...isn't here, apparently. So since you've done a marvelous job today, how about you take the rest of the day off? I think you deserve it!" Roger said with an extra chipper tone as he went in the direction of the Center. An odd smile formed on his face as he walked. "You can just relax in here, and I'll look for my person."

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"See, their morals, their code, it's a bad joke. When the chips are down, these civilized people, they'll eat each other. Dropped at the first sign of trouble. I'm not a monster. I'm just ahead of the curve."

Hundin rolled her eyes. "Still worried about whether I hurt others... you clearly have longer than I thought to go." she grumbled out, followed by a deep sigh, "No, I think I'll be coming with you. I can't let any opportunities for training slip by." Darting her eyes to the side, squinting them sheepishly as she seemed to be looking for something, she clenched her teeth slightly, lowering her voice as she went on, "And I can't let any catty individuals sink their claws into you." After a moment of staring, she relented, moving on to closely follow behind Roger, refusing to let him get away so easily.

As the light bulb above Roger's head broke, his smiled faded. "But, you're probably tired from looking for me, likely didn't get enough sleep, and.." As he continued, he caught wind of Hundin's remark about catty individuals. Instead of trying to get rid of Hundin, he grew curious about something. "About that...what else was there to that girl? Why associate her with cats?"

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"See, their morals, their code, it's a bad joke. When the chips are down, these civilized people, they'll eat each other. Dropped at the first sign of trouble. I'm not a monster. I'm just ahead of the curve."

"My god..." Abel stared at the majestic statue that the group had gathered around in awe he could not disguise. "This is...magnificent. Truly, the fifth...no...perhaps even the fourth most beautiful and wondrous landmark to ever exist on this earth." He shook his head, a few stray sparkles flying off of it. "I have to consult with myself, but...the lithe, serpentine figure... The mask... The luminescent scales that catch the light in so many different ways..." The man raised a finger to his chin, but it paused midway and started twitching at the air. "Certainly it is at least somewhat tacky and more than a little ridiculous, but to bear that sort of tackiness with such pride... That is most certainly some fragment of the meaning of beauty. I mean...wow."

His hand continued to twitch ever-closer to his chin as he rambled on and on at the statue and how absolutely remarkable it was. Truly, the Pokemon in question - if one could impugn such a majestic animal with such a tawdry classification - had to be among the most lovely of nature's creatures. It deserved to be in books - nay, songs - nay...epics written in the most powerful language that the times could produce. In one breath he claimed he would certainly have to own this wondrous beast, but in another he decried the idea because ownership would perhaps sully the majesty and poise that marked this golden serpent, as rust is wont to wear away at even the most priceless and enthrallingly gorgeous of metals. It absolutely defied description in every way, shape, and form how each curve on its back was worth at least a thousand words, although no lexicon had nearly enough words to lavish upon this monument and the creature it depicted and

he was not about to stop praising it any time soon. The distance between the finger that was supposed to signify his deep thought and the chin that would complete the gesture seemed infinite.

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The police station of !#%$ Town - known in some circles as Maripatchu - was less a police station and more of a dinky looking concrete cube that had three cells - four if you counted the bathroom that had a lock on the outside - as well as a few rooms to accommodate Snacks and whoever else was a part of the department. Mayor Pontleboon had declared that he wanted to project a no-nonsense vibe that would discourage criminals and all of their horrific criminal crimes that they criminally committed for the sake of wanton crime. And by god nothing was more no-nonsense than the type of Wild Unova sheriff encampments that littered such famous films as Woo Grit, Loudred River, Delcatty Ballou, and so on and so forth. Nothing spoke to civic duty and justice quite like one guy, a jug of moonshine, and a six-shooter.

Granted, the city couldn't really afford to smuggle Snacks a jug of moonshine or a six-shooter. It was definitely on the list of civic improvements though.

"Look, I don't know what you want me to tell you, but I don't exactly have time to kill." Corey grimaced as he kicked back, as much as he was able, at the interrogation table in the interrogation room - which was admittedly just an old wooden table with two broken legs in an otherwise empty room that didn't even have a door, labeled "Interrogation Room" with Sharpie on some duct tape. "If you think I had anything to do with what happened out there, well...then you're dumber than you look."