Destiny Village ~ Central Crossroads

[Dragonfree]

"Owen barely even left this room," Cal said firmly. "The guy left for water and, like, that's it."

Mia looked up with interest, cocking her head. "That's not true. He took you with him once, and then wasn't here when the explosions started. I was there, and so were you."

 

[Virgil134]

"One would think," Nip responded bluntly. "But a mon can do terrible things when under stress or under some sort of threat."

"But, there's no way that's the case here," Cabot protested. "That Charizard showed powers that Owen doesn't have, meaning either Owen got corrupted and was controlled by someone else, or it was a different Pokémon entirely."

"You could be turned against us at any moment."

"We're jumping to conclusions way too fast on this. If Owen was under someone's control, why would they break him free of it and put him back to sleep instead of, say, keeping him under their control?" she said, looking Maple in the eye.

"Owen isn't under anyone's control, and I won't let him be accused of it for no reason."

"And, Vix is right!" Cabot chimed in. "Shouldn't we investigate this more before assuming that Owen can just turn on us at any moment?"

 

[Ambyssin]

"Maybe Owen needs to see a paranormal specialist?" Esper was going to keep flinging around completely unhelpful suggestions until something stuck. It was fun! "If he got possessed or whatever, then we might be able to exorcise the daemon!"

He floated up to Owen and poked his side. "Hey, evil spirit? If you're in there, give us a sign."

 

[Chibi Pika]

A scowl crossed Starr's face at the accusatory tone in several of the comments flying around. Mostly Maple. "Okay look, I was one of the ones saying it was probably him, yeah, but you don't have to treat him like he's a fucking suspect," she growled. "It's pretty damn obvious he didn't want anything to do with this."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa listened to everyone, keeping between Owen and the rest.

"We can speculate all we like about Owen," she said, at last, "but the real question is our incomplete understandin' of the blacklight. Y'all have been assumin' that charizard teleported. What if it ceased existin'? What if the whole darn thing was a conjuration of some kind, given form from Owen's dreamin' mind?"

She glanced back at Owen with concern, and chewed her cheek.

"Plenty of us in Team Spectrum have had... painful experiences in our lives. Owen more'n many of us. If what we jus' witnessed was a kind of sleepwalkin' made possible by radiance and shadow, and that aggression a result of nightmares, then Owen is neither controlled nor voluntarily doin' harm. This is somethin' fer the much-praised psychological physicians of Cibus to investigate, if'n ya want my view."

She met Maple's gaze evenly.

"It's like Starr says. Owen's done as much as anyone on our posse to protect yer world. You oughta give him the benefit of the doubt, and a chance to look into the truth of this."

She put out a reassuring paw to steady the charmeleon by his shoulder. "Hey, partner? Would you be willin' to let a mental doc take a look at yer memories of the night?"

 

[Dragonfree]

"We can speculate all we like about Owen," she said, at last, "but the real question is our incomplete understandin' of the blacklight. Y'all have been assumin' that charizard teleported. What if it ceased existin'? What if the whole darn thing was a conjuration of some kind, given form from Owen's dreamin' mind?"

"He wasn't dreaming because he wasn't here," Mia said. Her gaze was still fixed on Cal. "He left in the night. He was still gone when the tower was being attacked. Like I said. And Cal just lied about it."

 

[windskull]

"And, Vix is right!" Cabot chimed in. "Shouldn't we investigate this more before assuming that Owen can just turn on us at any moment?"

"You're right," Nip agreed. "But... there's something else that concerns me. Something we should be concerned about, if it really was Owen we saw." He paused, taking a deep breath. "If this... is something to do with the blacklight like Brisa suggested, what's stopping the same from happening to any of the rest of us?"

 

[Virgil134]

"You're right," Nip agreed. "But... there's something else that concerns me. Something we should be concerned about, if it really was Owen we saw." He paused, taking a deep breath. "If this... is something to do with the blacklight like Brisa suggested, what's stopping the same from happening to any of the rest of us?"

"But, what if this did happen because of something that shadowy creature did?" Pleo asked. "It only attacked Owen, so if that's the case then this can't happen to the rest of us, right?"

 

[Namohysip]

"Assuming you're innocent, can you explain how you got that leg injury?"

"I... I don't know," Owen said. "There's... I don't know how. I woke up because I had a nightmare about Sword, that's all, okay? It wasn't about fighting or anything, just, just looking at her, and--and I don't know, it was just a nightmare I needed to get water for. I didn't... there's no way I--"

"We're jumping to conclusions way too fast on this. If Owen was under someone's control, why would they break him free of it and put him back to sleep instead of, say, keeping him under their control?"

"Shouldn't we investigate this more before assuming that Owen can just turn on us at any moment?"

"If Owen is under someone's control, a skilled Psychic would be able to detect something like that," Maple said flatly. "And this debate about where he was is just as easy to resolve. Poppin' Arms has security footage that we can review. S'more, can you recover all footage from last night?"

"Gladly. This won't take long to acquire, but it may take time to analyze." S'more produced his badge and spoke into it after calling for someone.

"That's not true. He took you with him once, and then wasn't here when the explosions started. I was there, and so were you."

"That's why I know," Cal said firmly. "He took me for a little while, he got water, we talked a little, Owen cried a little"--Owen flinched at this, glaring at her--"and then we were back in bed. C'mon, if you saw us getting out of the room, you totally should have seen us come back to bed!"

"If he got possessed or whatever, then we might be able to exorcise the daemon!"

He floated up to Owen and poked his side. "Hey, evil spirit? If you're in there, give us a sign."

Wishkeeper emerged from Owen's back and stared at Esper, pushing him away with the blunt of his wing.

"Okay look, I was one of the ones saying it was probably him, yeah, but you don't have to treat him like he's a fucking suspect," she growled. "It's pretty damn obvious he didn't want anything to do with this."

"He could still be an instrument of Giovanni for all we know," Maple said. "What's to say he won't assume control of him in the middle of a battle, like Darkwhite?"

Owen looked ill.

"It's like Starr says. Owen's done as much as anyone on our posse to protect yer world. You oughta give him the benefit of the doubt, and a chance to look into the truth of this."

Maple glared back at Brisa, though she didn't dispute her immediately. The way she glared, it was clear she was trying to think of an angle to go against what Brisa was saying. Finally, though, she shook her head. "Then despite this, you're still willing to allow him with you? I do not know if we should allow him in the Isle of Light investigation, or the Diyem rescue, if he could be under someone else's control so easily."

"I wasn't... controlled," Owen said. Despite his attempt to be firm, he was on the verge of tears.

This is somethin' fer the much-praised psychological physicians of Cibus to investigate, if'n ya want my view.

"Hey, partner? Would you be willin' to let a mental doc take a look at yer memories of the night?"

Owen seemed apprehensive, but after everything that was being thrown at him... He nodded.

"He left in the night. He was still gone when the tower was being attacked. Like I said. And Cal just lied about it."

"You calling me a liar?" Cal said, her golden embers growing. "I'd know if something like this happened. I'm practically part of Owen in some way, y'know? There's no way he was the one who did this attack. I don't know what Mia's talking about. I literally had Owen carry me back to bed, hold me for a while, and then I went to my usual spot when he fell back asleep. Fuck you."

"If this... is something to do with the blacklight like Brisa suggested, what's stopping the same from happening to any of the rest of us?"

And to this, the others seemed to glance at one another uncertainly. Maple eyed Team Spectrum, then Shield, who had claimed they were instruments for the Blacklight long ago. Could that actually be true?

"But, what if this did happen because of something that shadowy creature did?" Pleo asked. "It only attacked Owen, so if that's the case then this can't happen to the rest of us, right?"

"Then I will call for someone," Maple said, producing her own badge. "You might be familiar with her--Breaker, one of our most skilled Psychics of the mind. She will be able to delve into his mind and find anything peculiar. And as for corruption in the aura... Shield. Do you sense anything strange in them? Anything in Owen specifically?"

Shield looked like he wanted to say one thing, but then relented. "I don't," he admitted. "They all have that strange tinge to them. There's nothing peculiar about Owen's."

--

"...What do you mean?" S'more said into his badge. "Wiped? How? When?"

"Wiped?" Maple asked, turning.

S'more listened for a little while longer, then sighed. "Thank you. That will be all." After ending communications, he announced to the others. "All security footage of tonight has been completely deleted from not only our cameras, but also our storage and backups. There is no way to recover it... Whoever did it, they were very thorough."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"He could still be an instrument of Giovanni for all we know. What's to say he won't assume control of him in the middle of a battle, like Darkwhite? Despite this, you're still willing to allow him with you?"

Brisa stood firm. "Giovanni has shown he can kidnap and control the gods of this world. Anyone on the planet is at risk of that . . . even members of God Squad. That's no reason fer us to turn on our own. I nearly started down that road after we lost Sword, and I won't make that mistake again."

"All security footage of tonight has been completely deleted from not only our cameras, but also our storage and backups. There is no way to recover it... Whoever did it, they were very thorough."

What in tarnation was security footage?

"I don't know what yer 'footage' is, but that sure suggests t'me there was an outside actor involved... or that somethin' unrelated has gone wrong and this is a coincidence or distraction. Marshadow S'more, y'might wanna investigate yer secure holdings fer anythin' untoward that coulda happened while yer technological contraptions were disabled."

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

"Then I will call for someone," Maple said, producing her own badge. "You might be familiar with her--Breaker, one of our most skilled Psychics of the mind. She will be able to delve into his mind and find anything peculiar. And as for corruption in the aura... Shield. Do you sense anything strange in them? Anything in Owen specifically?"

Shield looked like he wanted to say one thing, but then relented. "I don't," he admitted. "They all have that strange tinge to them. There's nothing peculiar about Owen's."

--

"...What do you mean?" S'more said into his badge. "Wiped? How? When?"

"Wiped?" Maple asked, turning.

S'more listened for a little while longer, then sighed. "Thank you. That will be all." After ending communications, he announced to the others. "All security footage of tonight has been completely deleted from not only our cameras, but also our storage and backups. There is no way to recover it... Whoever did it, they were very thorough."

"... I'm a bit lost here," Kate admitted. "What exactly is a 'security footage' and why would it be important here? I get that obviously this 'Giovanni' felt that screwing with Owen would help whatever he's up to, but what'd make Owen so special to be singled out for 'corruption' or whatever it is that happened to him?"

The Sneasel blinked, before giving a wary look around and having her mind turn back to her homeworld. Back in Varhyde, a constant fear among Outlaws was infiltration and getting sold out by another who'd been trusted for a job, and Pokémon caught doing so usually paid a hefty price for their treachery. Even if this wasn't a band of Outlaws, was it really all that protected from the same dynamics?

"... Unless the lack of specialness is the point," she said. "To say that he's able to turn any of the 'mons on the team into an enemy as he pleases so that way we can't trust each other. It wouldn't be the first time I've heard of someone pulling that card."

 

[Namohysip]

I don't know what yer 'footage' is, but that sure suggests t'me there was an outside actor involved...

"Footage... It's, um..." Owen tried to keep calm. Stating facts always helped him stay calm. "It's like the video recording that our badges can do, remember? That, but for a building and what's happening inside of it. So, it would have shown where I went and what happened at night. But if the footage is done, then someone deleted it. Like ripping pages from a journal and burning it."

"... Unless the lack of specialness is the point," she said. "To say that he's able to turn any of the 'mons on the team into an enemy as he pleases so that way we can't trust each other. It wouldn't be the first time I've heard of someone pulling that card.

"What do you mean?" Owen said. "That... that he can control any of us at any time? Why doesn't he do that from th-the start, then? And--and, no! I still don't remember any of this! I wasn't... out doing this! I wasn't!" His leg was aching from putting too much weight on it. "I don't know how I got this injury... What if it's different? What if it's from someone other than who hit the Charizard?"

 

[Dragonfree]

"You calling me a liar?" Cal said, her golden embers growing. "I'd know if something like this happened. I'm practically part of Owen in some way, y'know? There's no way he was the one who did this attack. I don't know what Mia's talking about. I literally had Owen carry me back to bed, hold me for a while, and then I went to my usual spot when he fell back asleep. Fuck you."

Mia stared at Cal, unblinking. "I woke up twice. First, he was tossing and turning, and he left and took you with him. I fell asleep again and woke up at the explosion. You there were, but Owen wasn't."

 

[Virgil134]

After ending communications, he announced to the others. "All security footage of tonight has been completely deleted from not only our cameras, but also our storage and backups. There is no way to recover it... Whoever did it, they were very thorough."

"Isn't that all the more reason to believe that Owen was framed?" Cabot asked. "Since I really don't think that would have happened if there wasn't someone else directly involved in this as well. Someone trying to cover up what really happened."

"... Unless the lack of specialness is the point," she said. "To say that he's able to turn any of the 'mons on the team into an enemy as he pleases so that way we can't trust each other. It wouldn't be the first time I've heard of someone pulling that card.

"And Kate's right!" Cabot added. "What if one of those spies Giovanni mentioned is behind all of this and is trying to get us to turn on each other?"

 

[Chibi Pika]

"Then despite this, you're still willing to allow him with you? I do not know if we should allow him in the Isle of Light investigation, or the Diyem rescue, if he could be under someone else's control so easily."

Starr let out a huff. "We're not gonna be idiots about this, alright? Yeah, it happened, and we gotta deal with it and make sure it doesn't happen again, but that's no reason to treat him like he's a threat. God. Let's just check the damn--"

Aaaaand the footage was gone. Fucking great. Starr shoved a balled-up paw through a chunk of broken wall.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa scowled. "We have a plan. Hatterene Breaker will investigate Owen. The sooner the better, so we can learn the truth of it, and maybe figure out how to prevent this sorta shit happenin' again. There's still a lot we don't know, and we oughtn't to make rash decisions that reduce our fightin' strength based on assumptions."

"... Unless the lack of specialness is the point. To say that he's able to turn any of the 'mons on the team into an enemy as he pleases so that way we can't trust each other. It wouldn't be the first time I've heard of someone pulling that card."

"Kate's right. Giovanni obviously has some reason not to just wipe us all out, or else he doesn't wanna take the risk of tryin', but what he sure is doin' is tryin' to weaken us and our resolve ahead of whatever throwdown he has planned fer us next. If we turn on our own, he's gettin' exactly the return on investment he wanted."

She drew a little closer to Owen.

"I... I trust Owen. No, I have faith in him. I ain't about to quit on him."

 

[Fusion]

Vix let out a relieved sigh; they managed to calm things down before someone get wrongfully accused. Still, this was sort of a tight spot to be in. No footage, a rough alibi, evidence of him being attacked... At the very least, no one was gunning to get rid of Owen. Nobody had said it, but it certainly felt like someone wanted to.

Mia stared at Cal, unblinking. "I woke up twice. First, he was tossing and turning, and he left and took you with him. I fell asleep again and woke up at the explosion. You there were, but Owen wasn't."

"Basically, if we can find out what happened the second time Mia showed up, then we can clear Owen of this whole thing," Vix hummed, turning to the Charmeleon. "Do you remember anything at all from then?"

"On another note, with all that energy that S'more had when he decked that 'Zard in the thigh, would any of it have been left on whoever it hit? Actually... I mean, I don't know how likely it is for wax to stick onto things if you hit it with another thing, but is there any of Vix's wax on him? Like... anywhere?" Puddle asked.

Vix's flame burst slightly and she smiled for a moment, then furrowed her brow and hummed. "I don't know, actually. Never really messed around with that idea, but I feel like if there was any wax, it might've been melted off after the fact..."

"Wouldn't hurt to look, anyway," Puddle blipped. "But I won't do it. Someone else can, I don't feel like finding out if I can melt twice."

 

[Namohysip]

Mia stared at Cal, unblinking. "I woke up twice. First, he was tossing and turning, and he left and took you with him. I fell asleep again and woke up at the explosion. You there were, but Owen wasn't."

"I don't remember that at all," Cal said. "And Owen doesn't, either. So when he came back, that was it. I didn't wake up to an explosion and Owen was right there. You would have woken up to him coming back, wouldn't you?"

"What if one of those spies Giovanni mentioned is behind all of this and is trying to get us to turn on each other?"

"Then you're suggesting this is yet another ploy to disrupt us?" Maple asked. "He went through all this trouble to have a Charizard... impostor of Owen, or a controlled Owen, or anything like that, attack Destiny Tower, and then frame it on Owen? To what end?"

"If you guys try to bar Owen from things, he's your scout," Cal pointed out. "Good luck fighting someone without Owen babbling about what the enemy's doing. Is that what you want?"

"Owen could turn against you again," Maple said, though her gaze softened at Brisa's remarks. "...Can we really be sure?"

"I... I trust Owen. No, I have faith in him. I ain't about to quit on him."

"Brisa..." Owen sniffed, but then steeled himself. "I'll--Breaker will find something or nothing. And then, I'll... We can figure it out. But I don't... I don't think I did this. I always remember this sort of thing, I... I know what it feels like. I-I've had it before..." He didn't like admitting that, but he had to.

"Then you have a history of being controlled?" Maple asked carefully.

Owen froze up.

"Isn't it possible that..." And to this, she wavered. That fearful look in Owen's eyes... "...But you said that with your experience, you know how it feels."

Owen nodded stiffly.

"Mm." Maple looked away. "Then it could be different. But with that, it also means your past experience wouldn't matter one way or another. That shouldn't be used against you, then."

"Thank you," Owen said quietly, looking down.

Maple, shaking off any guilt she may have been feeling, said, "Then this is what we know. A Charizard struck Destiny Tower and badly injured Toffee, Balm, and several others. He flew away and disappeared, and appeared to be surprised by it, from an unknown figure able to Teleport. The Charizard was attacked by S'more. Owen has an injury in the same location. Owen has no memory of it. Mia saw Owen leave, and did not see Owen return, and when the explosions took place, did not see Owen in bed. Owen also had the Harmony Scarf that could have allowed him to evolve for all of this to happen... But the sheer power behind Charizard's attacks don't line up with what Owen is capable of now..."

"On another note, with all that energy that S'more had when he decked that 'Zard in the thigh, would any of it have been left on whoever it hit?

"Hmm..." Maple paced. "I can detect such things. Buffet would be able to verify, but I don't think he's around. I have a strong sense of residual energy like that. Arceus could also tell." She looked to Destiny Tower, where Arceus was focused on inspecting the structure's integrity. "Owen, come here."

Owen hesitantly obeyed, then turned so Maple could inspect his thigh.

"...There are weak, residual signs off spectral energy," Maple said. "A physical punch and spectral energy. I'd expect the same signature from S'more's attacks."

As if he'd been assigned a death sentence, Owen just barely suppressed his whimper. "B-but how?" he asked. "I didn't... I c-couldn't... I'm not..."

S'more watched silently, studying Owen. It was hard to tell what he was thinking, but whatever it was, he was in deep thought.

 

[Ambyssin]

"Aww, snap!" Esper smooshed his cheeks. "Another plot twist!"

It was undoubtedly a good thing Bahamut was not here.

 

[Fusion]

"...There are weak, residual signs off spectral energy," Maple said. "A physical punch and spectral energy. I'd expect the same signature from S'more's attacks."

Vix blinked. "Did... did my radiance or wax not leave any residual energy?"