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Frontier Town The Wanderin' Zera

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Gladion spaced out for a moment, thinking something unpleasant before snapping back to reality with a shiver.

“Ah. So it’s like that. I shouldn’t be surprised people would rule a bunch of abnormal kids are scarier than a cult of people who’d like to kill, uh, whole demographics of people.” (He’d stumbled over his words as he changed his plan for how to finish that sentence at the last second.)

“Augh. Fucking people.”
 
Dave nodded. "Fucking people."

He downed another chug of whiskey. Goddamn it.

"Like I said, just have to stay afloat anyway. And if you can actually make something better, for a few weird kids or for your Type: Null or whatever, grab that chance while you have it."
 
“Yeah. Guess so.”

Gladion quite liked Dave. The guy reminded him of Nanu, which probably meant ill for the state of Dave’s mental health, but was nonetheless familiar to him in a welcome way. Dave reminded him of home in a number of ways, really.

“Not looking to drink anything that’ll push the boundaries of chimeric neuroscience today, so I’ll probably head out. That was… a tiring conversation. But a worthwhile one. Thanks for hearing me out.”
 
Dave snorted at the joke and threw Gladion a salute as he stood up. "Enjoy the rest of your night. Hope you find, uh, some alternative drinks."

Honestly as far as Dave was concerned it was one of the more interesting conversations he'd had since he'd gotten here. Another bonkers universe out there, but at least someone else here was interested in genetics.

He watched Gladion leave through the door and then returned to his drink.

<><><><><>​
 
[Ch06] Mhynt & Nova ~ And Dawn Comes Once More
  • Threadmarks
    • As he suspected, the ultra ball could not keep Nova completely safe from ending up sore the next morning. This wasn't back home, where his creator could just hook his ball up to a machine that would reinvigorate him. His back and head fared worse than his legs, thanks no doubt to the giant meteor Owen had squished him with. Though the dumb look on his face when Nova wasn't just squashed to death was almost worth it. Almost.

    If Mhynt was going to be anywhere, it would either be the Haus or the Zera. But by the time Nova rallied the troops enough to drag himself into town from the cabin, he figured Mhynt was already out. So, Zera it was. And to the bar he'd managed to drag himself after a good deal of effort, slouching against the door until it opened and he stumbled inside. Between his slow gait and his haggard appearance — the void ash and rocky meteor chunks had left a dusty coating on his pelt, dulling his white fur and smudging up his metal parts — he could've passed for a drunk.

    He was still a pokémon. He'd shrug this off eventually. For now, though, his muscles hated him.

    But, hey, at least he wasn't skipping leg day.
     
  • Threadmarks
    • Mhynt was indeed there, having ordered a simple drink, impossible to tell if it was water or alcohol or some soft drink. When Nova entered, she spared a glance, looked away, but then stared more intently. Nova's appearance was apparently enough to warrant getting out of her seat.

    "...Did you not even take a dust bath?" Mhynt said, thinking of the bare minimum required to clean up after such a fight.
     
    Mhynt frowned, glancing at her drink, and then nodded to herself. "Come," she said. "We're washing you down."

    She quickly put some coin on the counter before gesturing for Nova to approach. Her right palm had the telltale signs of a prepared Teleport.
     
    Nova walked toward her, head hung shamefully like a kid caught with their hand in a cookie jar.
     
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    They vanished in a flash, reappearing in a shaded area--for this time of day--near the buildings. There was a bucket of water nearby that was oddly familiar. Perhaps Mhynt couldn't get any buyers yet.

    "Wait a moment," she said, and disappeared again. Seconds later, she was back with a cloth. "We can at least wash you down so you don't track Void dust everywhere..."

    Her general demeanor was... different than before. She still wore the same frown and resting scowl, but her movements had more energy. Even her leaves seemed less withered.
     
    "That's fair," Nova said. His cheek bolts turn. "I haven't really... thought about this stuff. It's like a reflex... from being homeless before ending up here."

    He shook himself, but it didn't spread dust anywhere. "How are you doing? You seem a bit... less stressed than you were before."
     
    "Oh, have I?" Mhynt said with a thoughtful frown. "Hm. Well... I suppose I slept well yesterday. Even if Giovanni's lair is... less than cozy, something about it let me fall asleep a lot easier anyway. And for the whole night."

    She ran the cloth along Nova's thighs, first, where she spotted the worst of the grime that was at least easiest to remove. Or, so she hoped.

    "Maybe I was so tired I refused to wake up," she theorized.
     
    The cloth got... some of the dirt and ash. This stuff really clung to his fur. Nova's legs twitched. His right hind leg kicked out, thankfully missing Mhynt.

    "Ah, sorry." His tail and eyes flickered. "Sensitive spot." He shook his head. "That's a funny way of saying you got a good night's sleep. Have you... really been sleeping that badly here?"
     
    Mhynt mentally noted to not wash Nova while in kicking positions and tried to more thoroughly clean out the blotched spots anyway.

    "Only once I learned about Owen's situation," Mhynt said quietly. "There are... a lot of feelings I'm trying to grapple with there. It's not an easy situation... especially considering our... prior status."
     
    "Your... prior status." Nova blinked several times. His fish tail twitched a bit but Nova managed to stop it from moving around too much. Mhynt made... some progress. At least the void ash was coming off, if not the dirt from the previous few months.

    "You said you two were friends at some point, right?" the chimera said. "Maybe I'm misremembering. Did take a meteor to the head." He shook his upper half. The grimy white fur swished back and forth. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want. I know you've... been keeping things close. Could've probably learned from you in that regard."

    He gave a dry laugh. "Might've told Powehi the other day my mate was like him." A beat passed. "He took it... about how the embodiment of the world's negativity would. Maybe a twinge better."
     
    "Hmph. I wouldn't expect something like him to do well with that," she remarked. "But... I could see Owen having a conversation like that."

    There was a brief silence while Mhynt worked the dust out of Nova's fur as well as she could, at least for this patch.

    "We were mates a thousand years ago," Mhynt said, her voice quieter than before. The softness of the day's wind was quiet enough that Nova could still hear her. "We had a child together. But... that's all the past now. We both changed when we took separate paths. Tragedy tore our family apart... It can't be whole again. I have to accept this."
     
    "Oh." Nova's crest drooped. His triangular ears folded a bit. As much as they could. "Those separate paths... Alexander's related to them, I take it?"
     
    "...You could say that," Mhynt said with a hint of venom in her voice, though not directed at Nova. "It's... complicated, but what matters is, Owen and I were on opposite sides of a conflict. Alexander was... also there, but he was operating only for himself in the end. The result was, the one I loved was killed, and I was imprisoned.

    "The Owen today--well, if you take out the Shadow corruption--may have the same spirit as the Owen I knew... but he isn't the same one. He's moved on from me. Found... someone else. And I, to no fault of his own, was... left behind in the Voidlands while he recovered. Worked under Alexander under threat of losing myself if I didn't."

    She chuckled bitterly.

    "And before all this happened? Owen was coming to rescue me and a few others from Alexander. Funny how it flipped here."
     
    "He changed, then," Nova said, his cheek bolts turning. "But it sounds like he had the freedom to do so. If you were a prisoner — his prisoner — then I'll bet you didn't have that luxury."

    He looked down. Some bits of ash drifted off his white fur onto his grimy talons. "I'm not sure... if the others would really get it. Maybe some of the Saints would?" Nova clicked his tongue.
     
    Mhynt seemed displeased with the prospect, though she didn't rule it out. "I haven't gotten along with the Saints too well, considering I threatened the life of one and I heard some unfortunate things about another," she remarked. "The Saints here seem to be away, busy, or useless. Or worse than useless. I'm not sure if they were unable to change by choice, or by nature."

    Satisfied enough with this side for now, she moved to his other flank.
     
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