Frontier Town Founder's Square

[Jackie Cat]

<><><><><>​

Their chance meeting – if it had been chance – had been fairly brief, in the end. Sonora had said to loop in a few more people. This late in the evening, it was too dark to be anywhere there weren't streetlamps, and Founder's Square seemed like a... not unreasonable place to talk? Anyone coming or going from a saloon or wherever would happen across them, given how central it was. And you could sit. And it was warm enough, on a late summer night, to be comfortable.

Mostly, Laura just didn't feel right talking about something like this around local waitstaff that could report them, and heading out into the middle of nowhere was suspicious and dangerous, so... this was her best attempt at somewhere to talk. She still felt kinda dumb. She wished she had the cash for a private room at Sun Stone or something. Damnit.

Still, somehow, she saw to letting anyone she could find at the Haus know what she was doing, left notes for others she could think of, and headed out, hoping that she'd catch the attention of anyone else in the nexus group while she was there. No need to cause a scene, just a quick "Hey, there's a mission offer for us we'd better talk about. Gonna head to the square."

 

[MintyMimix]

A certain Misdreavus hadn't even seen any notes; he had just been out and about due to losing track of time at Drungfield's. Even if she had insisted otherwise, he had volunteered to stay and keep things organized. It just felt right to do.

His sense of direction wasn't the greatest, but even he could see a few people standing out in the middle of the square this late at night as spooky. His kind of crowd! "Howdy there," Ghaspius greeted with a wave of a tassel. "What's going on over here, groovy dudes? I— Hey, I think I've seen y'all! You're the other otherworlders hanging around the Haus, right?"

 

[JFought]

Normally there wouldn't any particular reason why Isidora would be up on any given night. She simply felt the need to walk around and stretch her limbs every so often. And nights here felt... better. Not good, but the temperature was tolerable without the sun to make things worse.

But tonight there was a different reason. A note left on her door led her to Founder's Square, where she met with a dark-furred meowth who she remembered seeing in the library on multiple occasions. She asked what the note was for, and when she learned what Sonora had done behind their backs... it wasn't surprising, honestly. Hope she has a good plan for more than four...

Eventually, a small crowd of 'mon from the Haus had gathered.

"Howdy there," Ghaspius greeted with a wave of a tassel. "What's going on over here, groovy dudes? I— Hey, I think I've seen y'all! You're the other otherworlders hanging around the Haus, right?"

"Yup, and you're just in time," said Isidora. "We're just about to discuss a certain request. One that's being made of all of us."

She explained the gist: a certain outlaw going by Sonora needed to infiltrate the gala. The mayor was planning to use it as a way to attract the rich elite to Frontier Town, in the hopes of expanding both it and his influence. Sonora's goal: to sabotage the mayor and ruin his standing so as to prevent that from happening. To make this possible, she needed a trustworthy group to use the gala invitations she stole in order to create an opening her and her gang could use to get in. The goal wasn't to hurt anyone, just sabotage, though the exact details of what she needed out of them wouldn't be revealed until later. For now, all that mattered was that they agree to show up.

"As for reward, things are a bit unclear, but she says she'll owe us. She also says we shouldn't worry too much about potential blowback, especially if things go well, but that's up to you to decide if it's worth the risk."

 

[MintyMimix]

Ghaspius slowly blinked at the explanation. "You wanna run that by me again?" The Misdreavus asked with a slight chuckle. "It ain't even been that long and y'all are already roping yourselves in with outlaws and conspiracies?" He did a bit of a twirl in mid-air as though to process his thoughts through motion.

After a few seconds, his time his flight of fancy ended as he hovered a bit closer to Isidora. "So how was this Sonora gal, anyhow?" He tilted his head from side-to-side. "I ain't one to judge by whether or not someone follows what's put down on a piece of paper. Laws come and go. I'm more interested in what she thinks of other real, honest-to-god 'mon."

He circled around the Sneasel at a leisurely pace. "Is she planning on goin' out of her way to injure folks to 'prove a point'? She more the 'knock em out but don't knock em dead' type? What'd y'all read from her?" He hummed. "And what do y'all make of this, anyways?"

 

[Jackie Cat]

Laura shook her head.

"Sounds like she told the Isidora and the rest at Nina's Place that she's not planning on hurting anyone."

Well, battle hurt a bit. But pokémon battled for almost any reason at all, didn't they? It wasn't like humans beating each other up. It didn't count as assault, did it?

"She said she promised nobody would get injured," she clarified. "The impression I got from her..."

They hadn't spoken for long. Sonora had asked if Laura was human, which had shocked her. The Floragato had been all wild grins and winks and grand ideals. She'd seemed hopeful.

"She's putting herself in a lot of danger and she's not exactly gonna make any money out of it, from what I can tell. I don't think she doing this for selfish reasons," said Laura, fidgeting with her scarf.

 

[MintyMimix]

The Misdreavus had decided that being upside down was a more fun way to put on his thinking cap. "Groovy. Least she sounds like a class act as far as thieves go from what y'all are tellin' me. But I ain't seen her much myself, personally, and I'm not so sure the folks that hadn't seen her will be so willin' to go along on just word."

His body fluttered in the gentle wind as he floated in silence. "Doesn't sound all that selfish to me though. Kind as the mayor's been with the Haus, I think we're all gettin' to the point where we could pay for ourselves, right?" He tried to adjust his scarf, but gravity worked against him. "I could see if I could make some spooky drinks, if that'll help. Just little poofs of fun to liven up the party and keep eyes off of anyone sneakin' their way in."

He huffed as he was forced to right himself. His scarf wouldn't be in the right place otherwise. "But before any of that, did y'all hear anythin' in the rumor mill about any of these folks? Whether it's this Sonora gal or the rich folk comin' in." A pensive frown encroached his lips. "Teachers always said you keep your ear to the streets for really happenin'. I ain't heard nothin' myself, personally."

 

[Ambyssin]

Nova was not expecting to run into more of the summoned crowd on his way to the night shift. And he really didn't have the time to commiserate with them, either. Just a quick stop, then he'd be on his way. "What are you all doing out here?" Even at night, the mask muffled Nova's voice. "People are going to find it suspicious."

 

[Jackie Cat]

Laura eyed the RKS Chimera. She still hadn't really processed that he was a real goddamn RKS unit, walking around in a place straight outta the nineteenth century wild west, like that made an iota of sense. She kinda wanted to talk to him, or that other RKS guy, or both of them, some time. He seemed busy as hell though.

"We're being suspicious," she quipped, with a nervous laugh. "Local outlaw turned up at the Haus and asked me to help with some kind of party crashing plan. Said some of the team have already agreed to it. We're trying to figure out what to, uh, do about it."

She tried to catch the Misdreavus' eyes.

"I've heard a little bit about Las Picaras. Apparently, uh, Floragato Sonora and her gang have been targeting merchant wagons on the highway for the last few years. Only certain wagons, though – I haven't figured out the pattern yet..."

She adjusted her scarf and tried to keep her tail from whipping back and forth anxiously.

"And the Gala, right – I've seen some posters for that. It looks like there's gonna be an open-air party with a broader attendance, but what really matters is that some rich 'mon from the eastern Commonwealth will be at the mayor's private residence. It's, ah, one of the bigger, mansion-type buildings south-east of here."

She gestured towards Frontier Hall, which was in the same direction.

 

[Ambyssin]

As usual, Nova's expression was unreadable. Though now that he had some details about the gala, a few gears were turning in his helmeted head. Mainly the warnings Poochy — he hadn't gotten the pupguy's name — had passed along to him. "Sounds like something to stay as far away from as possible, then."

He slowly walked forward, intending to continue to the railyard. "Besides, I'd be chased out of an event like that before I could get anywhere close."

 

[Tetra]

A strange note under his door left by someone Koa thought had to be one of their group directed him toward the square. Finally! One of them probably found something, like a clue or a lead. A way to actually help this world. After their little mission with Nico, he was ready for more.

His spirits were high as he entered the square, doing his best to look casual. By the time he arrived he saw quite a few other pokemon around. Another Meowth, except this one looked like a darker furred one (Alolan?), and a Misdreavus he didn't recognize as well as- oh, Isidora! They were talking amongst themselves in low voices. The Meowth was saying something to the strange chimera pokemon, and Koa siddled closer to listen...

"We're being suspicious," she quipped, with a nervous laugh. "Local outlaw turned up at the Haus and asked me to help with some kind of party crashing plan. Said some of the team have already agreed to it. We're trying to figure out what to, uh, do about it."

She tried to catch the Misdreavus' eyes.

"I've heard a little bit about Las Picaras. Apparently, uh, Floragato Sonora and her gang have been targeting merchant wagons on the highway for the last few years. Only certain wagons, though – I haven't figured out the pattern yet..."

She adjusted her scarf and tried to keep her tail from whipping back and forth anxiously.

"And the Gala, right – I've seen some posters for that. It looks like there's gonna be an open-air party with a broader attendance, but what really matters is that some rich 'mon from the eastern Commonwealth will be at the mayor's private residence. It's, ah, one of the bigger, mansion-type buildings south-east of here."

"What?" he hissed, at the last moment reigning himself in from literally yelping in shock. "What do you mean what to do about it?" he stared around the group, barely able to contain his confusion and disdain. They had come here to be heroes and save this world from something, not debate about helping the bad guys.

"You're seriously be trying to help a bunch of filthy criminals?" A growl slipped into his voice as he glared at the group. How could they be so flippant? What kind of people had been summoned here? "We're here to save this world, not join a bunch of bandits and make things worse." He didn't realize it, but his hackles were raised and he was tense.

 

[Jackie Cat]

Laura's tail shot up, puffed out like a feather duster.

"Howls afar," she hissed, "were you a cop before this or something?"

Nah, he sounded like a kid. 'Filthy criminals' was either teenage boy or blustering middle-aged adult. He was definitely that first thing. How to handle that, though? Howls, her hackles were up. Had to calm down.

"Look... I don't know exactly what they're planning, but my first assumption was some kinda 'rob the rich, save the poor' kinda thing. Their mark at the gala is the guy who literally has a statue of himself in the centre of town. I'm pretty sure he's not, like, getting reelected every five years or whatever. There's a lot we don't know yet, including whether this is gonna help make things better or worse around here."

 

[Ambyssin]

Nova stared at the tiny electrike and blinked. "Quite the moral compass you have there." He looked ahead into the night. Nova could've— should've excused himself. But even if he didn't want any part of this, the null could at least pass on what he had heard. The others shouldn't be making secretive decisions without the proper information.

"You should know that some folks have already agreed to help the mayor capture this person who wants you in on her party-crashing." He paused. "And, unless they're blowing smoke, he wants to put her to death. Ol' zero tolerance style."

 

[MintyMimix]

The Misdreavus had hung upside down once more, but this time it was out of confusion. "Hey man, chill out," he said as a sassy lost child had walked in on the group. "Judge a 'mon by their character, not their career, I always say. Ain't nothin' folks can do 'bout the situation they start in, but there's a lot we can say about ourselves by how we treat 'em."

Ghaspius righted himself once more as he looked to Laura. "Well, do let us know which ones they've got. Lots of heads are better at figuring things out than one!" He hummed. "Okay, so maybe no-go on the brew plan then. Only want the rich folk to be spooked, not the others. Least it sounds like this gal knows what she wants, at least. I can respect that. Maybe not fully on board as an accomplice, but a light nudge here and there wouldn't hurt, right?"

He opened his mouth to muse a bit more, but his hair rose straight up at Nova's words. "That's un-cool, dude. You don't make ghosts outta someone for petty grudges. Do these other guys know about this too?" His voice sounded a bit rougher as a hint of an offended tone rose. "Now I know I'm gonna give a nudge or two. At the very least to make sure she don't get slashed."

 

[Jackie Cat]

Laura shivered. It wasn't shocking that the death penalty was a thing here... Pokémon could kill, humans could kill, pokémon behaving like humans would be no different, right? Still felt weird though, going from twenty-first century Galar to this.

"I haven't exactly, aha, studied the local legal code or anything... But I'm pretty sure that says more about this Mayor Voclain than it does about these outlaws. I've seen a few wanted posters by now, and the violent, murderous bandit types fetch several times as high a bounty as Sonora has. Like, five or ten times as much."

 

[Ambyssin]

"In my experience, there are very specific reasons people use death to maintain order," Nova said, going his best to stand as tall and rigid as possible. "None of us are in a position to make an enemy of someone like that." He lowered his head slightly. "Unless you're throwing in the towel and wanting to return home."

That assumed their summoner was telling the truth about leaving, of course.

 

[JFought]

He circled around the Sneasel at a leisurely pace. "Is she planning on goin' out of her way to injure folks to 'prove a point'? She more the 'knock em out but don't knock em dead' type? What'd y'all read from her?" He hummed. "And what do y'all make of this, anyways?"

Isidora stepped back and fanned out her tail feathers as the misdreavus started circling around her head. “U-uh...” Luckily, Laura's answer seemed to call him off and she was able to think again. She sighed in relief and whispered: "Thanks for the save..."

When the chimera-with-unknown-name came just to state his desire to not take part, she gave him a deadpan look. "It's not like we're forcing you," she mumbled.

Then Koamaru walked up to them, and...

"You're seriously be trying to help a bunch of filthy criminals?" A growl slipped into his voice as he glared at the group. How could they be so flippant? What kind of people had been summoned here? "We're here to save this world, not join a bunch of bandits and make things worse."

"Wha-" The accusation of criminal set her mind racing and made her fur stand on end. "I'm not-! We're not just-! You think we're doing this for no reason?!" She held her arm and flexed her claws around it, trying to calm down as the other's did a much better job of keeping their cool than her.

"You should know that some folks have already agreed to help the mayor capture this person who wants you in on her party-crashing." He paused. "And, unless they're blowing smoke, he wants to put her to death. Ol' zero tolerance style."

Wait now we have to deal with bounty hunters too?!

 

[Tetra]

How were they trying to defend their plan? This had to be a joke, except the others were looking at him like he was the crazy the one. For suggesting they not help criminals.

"Howls afar," she hissed, "were you a cop before this or something?"

Nah, he sounded like a kid. 'Filthy criminals' was either teenage boy or blustering middle-aged adult. He was definitely that first thing. How to handle that, though? Howls, her hackles were up. Had to calm down.

"Look... I don't know exactly what they're planning, but my first assumption was some kinda 'rob the rich, save the poor' kinda thing. Their mark at the gala is the guy who literally has a statue of himself in the centre of town. I'm pretty sure he's not, like, getting reelected every five years or whatever. There's a lot we don't know yet, including whether this is gonna help make things better or worse around here."

"Quite the moral compass you have there." He looked ahead into the night. Nova could've— should've excused himself. But even if he didn't want any part of this, the null could at least pass on what he had heard. The others shouldn't be making secretive decisions without the proper information.

"You should know that some folks have already agreed to help the mayor capture this person who wants you in on her party-crashing." He paused. "And, unless they're blowing smoke, he wants to put her to death. Ol' zero tolerance style."

"You don't do bad things to get something good," he growled. How many times had so many people done that, leading evil teams with the promise of some so called 'better world'? "I don't know what the mayor wants, but just because he's too extreme doesn't mean helping criminals is right."

. "Judge a 'mon by their character, not their career, I always say. Ain't nothin' folks can do 'bout the situation they start in, but there's a lot we can say about ourselves by how we treat 'em."

Koa turned to face the Misdreavus. "So what, a career in kidnapping pokemon is okay if they're nice? If someone is nice enough about doing something bad it excuses them?" Koa snapped.

He huffed, and shook his head. A swirl of emotions boiled inside him, but as he looked around, he suddenly felt... alone again. Just like trying to convince people about legendaries. Nobody was listening, and nobody would listen. Fine. He'd figure something out his way. "I'm not gonna join a bunch of criminals and bandits. Not sure why thats such an absurd concept."

Bristling with annoyance, he turned and walked away. There was no point in fighting this fight.

 

[MintyMimix]

"None of us are in a position to make an enemy of someone like that."

"Think what you will, but I can make an enemy of whoever I want if it means standing up against what's completely wrong however I please," Ghaspius remarked with a shrug of his tassels, "Not gonna drag anyone else into this though. If anyone asks, I'm just actin' on my own. The Meowth here's got the right idea."

Koa turned to face the Misdreavus. "So what, a career in kidnapping pokemon is okay if they're nice? If someone is nice enough about doing something bad it excuses them?" Koa snapped.
...
Bristling with annoyance, he turned and walked away. There was no point in fighting this fight.

The Misdreavus had slowly turned to facing the barking pup, but it seemed that he had already trotted off. "Ain't no one said anything 'bout kidnappers," he noted aloud more to the others than the trailing Electrike.

"Boy's got a lot to prove. Reminds me of Roya," he mused with a slight smirk before looking back towards the others. "Looks like this might 'cause a bit of in-fighting no matter what we try to do then. Ah well."

He cleared his throat. "All I wanna do is spare a life. Whether that's by discouraging this Sonora gal from goin' at all or agreeing to her plan. I don't mind flyin' solo here though. It ain't your fight, and that's groovy. I'm choosin' to make it mine." Ghaspius rubbed the back of his head. "And I especially don't want to be givin' a bump on anyone's head that got summoned, but I ain't lettin' some slick suited son-of-a-guin send anyone to death that don't deserve nothin' of the sort."

 

[Ambyssin]

"You want to convince her not to go after she asked for your help in disrupting the event?" Nova rolled his eyes. A gesture mostly lost due to the mask. "Sounds like you'll be wasting your breath. If I had to guess, she didn't even offer any solid reasoning for why she wants to do this in the first place. 'Stick it to the man' is all fine and dandy, but I'm quite confident that right now we're very weak. Like 'getting winded fighting feral runts' weak. Frankly, the mayor allegedly asking some of us to try and catch her in the first place reeks of a setup. I doubt he's all that fond of there being so many new arrivals and if he can get us out of the picture and pin the blame on outlaws, then he's getting a two-for-one special."

He'd said more than enough. "Do whatever you want, I guess. But the whole place sounds like bad news. I'm not built for stealth, and I'm not going to demean myself to being paraded around as a freak to attend." Nova turned away from them. "Now, I've got a night shift to attend to. Because the extra money can serve me well."

The null started off down the dirt road.

 

[Jackie Cat]

Laura rubbed her temple and tried to flatten her fur down again. That dog put her on edge something crazy.

"I think whatever he's upset about, it's pretty... specific. Hope he cools off, I guess."

She thought about the invites Sonora had been giving out. How was that going to go, exactly? The outlaw had told her she'd send word closer to time. What if one of the 'mon she'd trusted just... turned on her? How could things go wrong if they helped her?

Some of them had already agreed to do the exact opposite. Fuck. Fuck.

"Wish we had a fucking groupchat," she muttered.