Pokemon Umbral: Renny's Sidequest Part 2

[Dracorion]

Pierce and Chizuru were just finishing with the dishes, and Pierce was just picking up the few dirty plates left in the party room when he overheard Impact's and Charlotte's conversation. He gathered from what Impact was saying that Charlotte was offering him the Latios she got from the mansion.

"Well, for one, you may be a Slayer, but you're pretty good at giving orders and knowledgeable about pokemon. That's most of the job, right there, so you'd be pretty effective with it. And besides you wouldn't have to use it all the time." He interjected, approaching while holding a few dishes. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but Charlotte's giving it away because she's a murderous bitch and Latios doesn't really suit her style. No offense." He added toward Charlotte.

"And you're smart enough that you know all this, so why are you really turning it down? You afraid of Pokemon or something? I asked you the same question back at the party, but you probably forgot about it because we were in the middle of a battle."

[Menarker]

Renny was struck dumb. He never realized such a huge side effect was present within the procedure. He felt a pang inside his chest as he thought of her potentially throwing herself at the wrong person because her body said yes when her mind said no... Jealously welled up, but also fear for her being taken advantaged of. There was a preganant silence...

"I never knew there was something like that. Lola, can we share our phone numbers? If you ever end up needing help, or if you get caught in this situation and you're not ready, I want to be able to do whatever I can to help you during those months. When I think of the possibility of someone taking advantage of you, I get worried... and feel angry. If you find someone whom you really care for, that would be amazing, but if someone would try to hurt you... no, I won't let them. I'll help you, so you won't have to worry about that... if you let me."

Renny pulled out his cell phone, having it at the ready to share his number. While thinking what he could possibly promise. A hiding place? Do her outdoor errands? She would have to come to work still and somehow, keeping her locked up didn't sit well with him. He felt twisted inside, as if this sort of situation should never have to happen and he felt powerless...

[DanteFalcon]

Alright then it gives me a starting point. One more favor Rayleen. If you could make it a rumor among the higher ups that we had this conversation that would be fantastic. Thank you.

With that he walked off towards his room. The next course of action would be to see if that rumor made anyone nervous but he doubted it. Then he'd have to do some background checking. Things could become a lot more interesting rather quickly.

Or he could be wrong. Either way was a victory in his book.

[Astral Harmony]

Lola shrugged and took out her scouter. "You can use these pretty much like Instant Messengers and cellphones. They even save dialogue and video, of course."

She pressed a few buttons on the scouter and Renny's cellphone picked up her phone number and her scouter ID, which allowed them to have a dedicated and private line. "Don't worry about mating season. We're not helpless when it happens, it's just...well, it's difficult to think about anything else."

Lola looked thoughtful. "Y'know, I'll bet Evangaleen has the whole Moon and Shannon exchange from the start to the finish. She must've gone ahead and put it on a computer or something by now."

Why was Lola talking about that? Wait, did she want to see it?

-----

Rayleen left Matthias to himself and went about her way. Now there was just going to be a whole bunch of waiting until someone came up that they would want to look into.

[Bard The 5th LW]

"Accusations aside," Charlotte said, referring to Pierce's astonishing accurate use of the term 'murderous bitch', "Pierce makes many a valid point. I have no use or interest in Latios. It would be much better for someone to carry it around though, and you would be lying if you said you wouldn't be any good as a trainer. The thing is practically trained as it stands, it just needs someone to shout commands."

"In fact," Charlotte said as she reached into her coat pocket, "I have it with me. All it would take is some paperwork to make it yours. Nothing wrong about carrying it around on your belt or whatever, it would be just like having another gun with you. Remember when you were injured at Renny's party and were briefly out of the battle? If you had a pokemon with you, you could have called him out and have him take your place while you waited to be healed. It can hve 4 attacks, thus offering you more variety in firepower."

"Besides," Charlotte said with a bit of a grin. "Do you really want the 'murderous bitch', as Pierce puts it, to carry around a legendary? What if I happened to just snap someday? That would offer a bit of danger."

[Geminex]

Impact paused for a moment, cocked his head, staring into the middle distance. Time seemed to slow, again... This moment was crucial, he realized. Make-it-or-break-it. Whatever his response, it would have... consequences. Far-reaching consequences. Beneficial? Detrimental? No way to tell ahead of time. So what to do? How to react? He'd been cornered, whether by luck or by intention, he was aware. It was up to him to get out of it...
So how to react? However he wanted to, of course.

Impact's hand flicked out, grasped the proffered pokeball. He spun away from Charlotte, pressed the ball's release button, barely managed to avoid flinching as the legendary monster appeared in front of him, its head on a level with his, regarding him with calm, blue eyes. Its head was about two feet away, and, stepping minutely closer, he raised a hand (it seemed ever-so-slow to him, but was it really? Time was still... strange), raised it, until his fingertips touched Latios' snout. He spoke, the words coming slowly. "Scared, Pierce? No. No fear. Question my motives as much as you want, but fear? No... none."

And, he realized, right now there really was no fear. He was acutely aware of the power that rested beneath those calm, blue eyes, those soft feathers. Power to break minds and flood continents and rule the skies. And was aware of his own power as well, not enough to, but possibly, possibly, just enough to kill this legendary monster. They were... close. Equal, in fact. And no amount of fear could help him now. Powerless, really. Not in the sense that he was incapable of surviving, should conflict erupt, but powerless to control the result of that conflict. Victory, defeat, it'd be up to training and instinct and primal strength. Slaying could only bring him so far, and here he was, at its limit.

But there was something else, wasn't there? An alcohol-inspired dream suffused by deathly cold. Of not destroying, but controlling? Not learning of opponent's weakpoints, but of their uses? The path of control... it seemed an easy jump, from here. Make enemies your tools, make their potential yours. Make their will yours. Gain Control.

So... how to react?
A grin spread across his face. This was it. Whatever decision he made now, it would have consequences. Far-reaching consequences. And possibly harmful ones, at that. But he had considered control, and in a second of consideration, he had seen so much potential. Potential for power, for destruction. But above all for control. Consequences, possibly harmful, but far more likely to be beneficial. And he liked those odds.

"In fact... y'know, what, you're both right. I'd be a fool to pass up this opportunity. I may not be able to use pokemon that well, but I can still learn, yes? And perhaps the two of you can help me. And even if I don't use this... magnificent beast in battle, it's sure to be useful elsewhere. So thank you, Pierce, Charlotte. You've helped me a lot. Good night to you."
And with a few quick motions, he tossed the ball, recalled the pokemon, pocketed it, and made his way off, into the night. He'd need to do some thinking, now...