“Well! I guess this proves that this world is far more durable than it looks like! And, um, it’s good that Betey is still in one piece…? Like, I dunno them very well yet, but they sound like a genuinely sweet soul who only wants to help this world.”
A genuine smile crossed Jade's face in response. "Yeah, they are." That'd been one of the first things she was sure of when they'd met.
“Gotta play devil’s advocate here, but if we didn’t know Betel personally, wouldn’t the other option have looked akin to shutting down a computer?” He quirked a brow. “Not unlike how we destroyed the files in that Rocket HQ?”
Starr glanced his way, her expression hard to read. "Pretty much," she replied. The Incineroar stretched her arms over her head. "Alright, all in favor of getting the fuck out of here?"
Jade perked up. "Oh, right, we should be able to go back the way we came. Through that facility back there, um..." Her words trailed off as she realized that the facility was way up on the main level of the dungeon, past the sheer cliff. Now that the adrenaline of battle had worn off, the idea of climbing back up there... didn't sound too appealing. And something told her
Starr wouldn't be too enthusiastic about it either.
"We could, um... go around," she finished lamely.
Starr grunted. "Lead the way."
Despite her rudimentary knowledge in Corvisquire’s anatomy, Lyra had seen way more injured birds and broken appendages than she would’ve wished to behold or treat, courtesy of her training as a Junior Breeder. So, even though checking wounds was never a pleasant task, first aid know-how was basically her fourth or fifth nature at that point, and having magical healing hands surely helped, too!
Virga was reasonably certain that every part of this miserable body she'd been saddled with was broken. She had never felt anything close to this level of catastrophic damage in her true form, and some part of her hoped that if this one was ruined beyond use, then she might receive a new one. Of course that was too much to hope for.
As much as she would have preferred otherwise, the Corvisquire found herself slowly regaining consciousness, forced to experience sensory feedback once more. As her vision came into focus, she saw the face of a concerned Persian looking down at her.
"Uh, hey... How're you feeling?"
"Never better," Virga muttered without moving. Admittedly, the pain had been dulled considerably, reduced to a mere body-wide throb from the thousand shards of agony that it had been.
Jade let out a sigh, rubbing the back of her head. She opened her mouth to speak, fought with her words for a long moment, and then said, "Thanks for the save, back there."
Virga squinted at her, attempting to sit up. "Have you always had such a death wish?"
Jade averted her eyes. "Well... I probably wouldn't have gotten involved with fighting the Rockets if I hadn't."
Virga snorted. That was true. Her chosen had never been one for good judgment.
"Oh, and um... Lyra's the one who patched you up."
Virga looked down at her body, which was notably less mangled than she'd been expecting, before glancing over at the Buneary (now a Lopunny... when had that happened? Her own chosen had changed as well.) She sighed and lowered her head. Much as she hated needing to be in that position to begin with, "It is... appreciated."
