Destiny Village ~ Sundae Park

[Namohysip]

It wasn't long until she arrived, flying as she always did. She was quite fast, too, and landed with an excited grace. With pep, she waved Koa down and glided the rest of the way to him.

"Koa! Good to see you made it!" She grinned. "I'm Pansit--you agreed to an interview here, right? Oh, there's so much to ask! But I won't take up too much of your time." She already had a notebook ready.

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa returned her grin with a friendly smile. She seemed nice, at least. "Yeah, I did. I'm ready I guess." He eyed the notebook thoughtfully, still debating on how much to say. He guessed it didn't really matter, since he'd be leaving soon anyway.

 

[Namohysip]

"Well, at this point we know a whole lot about you from other interviews and talks from your team, but! We never got to ask you directly about things, have we? For example, things that you truly strive for, here and in your home! You're someone who used to be human, right? What do you value the most? Does it differ from what Pokemon value?"

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa took a moment to think, then answered. "I mean, a lot of humans like money or power. I just want... to build a good legacy I guess. To do something great and maybe make the world better too. In my world, legendaries stay hidden and some people fear them. I want to fight one back home, with my team. And then maybe catch one."

Oh wait, that probably sounded terrible on paper. "I know that might sound bad, but catching pokemon on my world is really different! Its a way of being friends with them. I want to show people and legendaries there's good people still on my world. Strong ones too. Then everyone would see how strong my team and I are."

 

[Namohysip]

"Capturing Legendary Pokemon to befriend them? We've heard about things like capturing Pokemon, such an odd term to us here. But in a way, that's not too different from recruiting team members on expeditions and rescue operations for Guilds, isn't it?" Pansit tilted her head. "Yes, there were a few Legends who were recruited in that way, especially by Omen Heroes. When you put it that way, it makes a lot of sense!"

She scribbled her notes down, apparently understanding quite well what Koa was talking about. Then, with a nod, she said, "And that's your goal back home... If there was anything you could tell yourself when you return... what would it be? Would it have to do with that goal, and all your experiences with Legends here?"

 

[Flyg0n]

Even though he knew the answer almost immediately, Koa chewed on his words long and hard before answering. "I would tell myself to stop trying to be perfect. To learn from my mistakes and accept them. And that... I can't change who I am, but I can still choose what I want to do."

He grinned a little. "And I'd tell myself that catching a legendary is definitely possible."

 

[Namohysip]

Pansit smiled at that, jotting it down. "It really sounds like you have high sights for yourself in your world," she remarked. "Not to be perfect, but striving toward it... Befriending a Legend... It sounds to me like you want to be a hero in your world, too!" She laughed a little, nodding. "Actually, that leads to another question, doesn't it? What do you think made you a hero? Here, and in your world?"

 

[Flyg0n]

"Well, a hero is someone who uses their power to help people." Koa did his best to keep his voice steady, even though the somewhat odd question caught him off guard. "Someone who's willing to sacrifice to try and save someone, and never give up, like Team Spectrum. So I guess that's what makes us heroes in this world, you know?" He frowned as he contemplated the other part of Pansit's question.

"But I.. I wouldn't really say I'm much of a hero back home. I don't think I've really done anything special." He wasn't even sure if he could be anything like that back home. Especially since he'd forget everything that happened to him. Cynthia's words came to mind again. "I hope I can be though, or at least just... keep being a good trainer. Someone once told me that even the small responsibilities are important to do right."

 

[Namohysip]

"There are different ways to be a hero," Pansit agreed, nodding. Her antennae twitched as she wrote, and then she said, "You know, I do think that in some small way, everyone can be a hero, even if it's not the kind that you'd see in the headlines of papers. I think it's important to highlight those kinds of people in the world, too. It's what makes the world a better place all the time." Scribble, scribble. "...I can tell that you'll be a good trainer, as you call it. If humans were meant for leadership roles in your world, then I think everything you've done here, even if you'll forget it, shows what you can do."

 

[Flyg0n]

Koa nodded. That was true, he supposed. At the very least, the fact that they'd done so much here showed he was capable of doing the same thing back home, if the oppostunity arose.

"Oh, thank you," he said, slightly surprised. "I guess I hadn't thought of it from that angle before. I guess if I had the chance to say anything else, it would be that. People idolize us, and we're the heroes of Cibus, but... People here shouldn't overlook the little things. Those small responsibilities. Even you guys, writing stories so everyone knows whats going on. You don't need crazy powers to be a hero," he said with a chuckle.

 

[Namohysip]

Pansit nodded, and then went on with the rest of the interview without much incident. She seemed to be most interested in Koa's relationship with his Pokemon back home, and how that translated to Echo. Koa's interview went to the tabloids, of course, but it was perhaps one of the few tabloids in Cibus that tended to give things a positive spin.

By the time it was over and Pansit bid farewell to Koa, it seemed like she had three full pages of notes on the interview. "Thanks for everything!" she said with a bow. "And good luck with your Legend Befriending!"

<><><>​

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

The city park was an ideal place to cool Brisa's head, in theory. Despite all the incidents she'd borne there – Owen in a frenzy, Cynthian in a rage, and that goddamn gardevoir – it was still a vast space perfect for both running until exhausted, and settling down for a peaceful meditation. And it was, still, the place where she'd had that moment with Astrid. So here she was, loping along the perimeter, maintaining a steady state of being just-barely Blacklit, nodding at the now-familiar recovery workers tending to the park as she passed them.

A couple hours of this, and she'd feel better for sure. Hell, she already did.

 

[Magyk]

The unfortunate thing about his Diyem being weakened here was that everything still hurt from that fight. He tried to ignore the phantom pain but Team Spectrum had really done a number on him, and he'd been at his best, too...

The park had been on his list of things to visit for a while now, especially now that training was no longer required. He wondered what happened to the place—was it Mergo? He had a habit of pulling out trees and destroying land. ...Nah, he would have heard about about it, right?

Then she caught his eye, the luxray.

Oh, he absolutely recognised Brisa.

"Hey!" he called as he jogged over as quick as he could, grimacing lightly. "You had some pretty damn good moves back there and I just had to come over and say hi. I'm Ben! Glad to have fought against an opponent like you."

He had a big grin on his face as he shakily extended a paw to shake.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

The sour mood vanished like bad moonshine down a drain.

"How d'you do," said Brisa, returning a grin and an extended paw of her own. The fella had a good shake on him. Nice.

She kept walking, easing off the lope a little to accommodate Ben's aching limbs. "I'm Brisa, an' it's a pleasure t'meet ya. Y'had some damn good moves yerself, I gotta say. It's a hell of a thing t'make acquaintances with another offworlder with that attitude 'bout combat sport, y'know. What kinda world y'from, Ben?"

 

[Magyk]

Ben chuckled. That was a question he was bound to be asked several times, and now that the battle was over, there weren't any secrets he had to keep. He felt much better about not having to hide things about himself—in case his battle style was gleaned from his words.

He listened hard, making sure he understood every word Brisa said. Her voice was a little funny—he was grateful that he was a good listener. "It's nothing like this," he answered simply. "Nothing similar about it at all. No whomans, no funny powers, no legends all over the place—they're myths to us!"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa nodded at what sounded like a pretty typical 'mon world. 'Funny powers' was a relative term. She doubted there were any worlds with 'mon that had no powers.

"Mine's more like yers than Cibus, I'd guess," she mused. "My pa was human, once, like the Omen heroes here. But nah, no gods as public figures or anythin'."

She cocked her head at Ben, and tried to get the measure of him. The Miracle Matters had been pretty busy training, as had she, so she hadn't run into the guy before... Even so, he seemed a lot more cheerful than the couple times she'd spotted him before. Had he been pleased about the fight, or just subdued beforehand? Maybe she'd ask him about whatever contrivance had been dealt to them later.

"So, do you'n yers fight fer fun and sport back home?" she asked, genuinely curious. "Sure seemed like y'were comfortable in front of a crowd."

 

[Magyk]

The arcanine blinked in surprise. "Oh? Nah, I was actually super nervous I'd screw up or something, glad it didn't come off that way," he replied, sounding relieved. "Been in a lot of battles and I'm kind of a big name back home, not for sport, though. Or an audience. Just good at staying focused, I suppose."

He remembered seeing Brisa a lot when his team had studied footage of all the previous battles the stadium had held. She had looked really strong then, and now he knew first hand. He still ached.

"You've got hyoomins?" Ben then asked with a grimace. "I...um...am I saying that right...?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa chuckled. "Humans. Sorta. Only my pa fer a hundredmile around where I grew up, an' he mostly kept it pretty quiet. Everyone knew, of course, but nobody really talked 'bout it. I'm told yer team ain't got humans on it. Peculiar, that. Most of my posse is either human, part-human, or were close to humankind in their lives."

She sniffed. Part-humans were so rare. Vanishingly so. And the ones she knew had such different experiences to her, thank the winds. In some ways, wasn't she still apart from the rest? Maybe it didn't matter.

 

[Magyk]

"Hummans...Hiyumans..." Ben winced. It never sounded right from him. Just what was that word?

"We had a small one once but they left real early, it sounded like his home was...really rough. Couldn't stay," he said quietly, then his voice picked up again. "I don't think it matters what you are or where you came from, just as long as you fight with your heart, like we all did back there. I think you'll all do super well in this final fight."

There was no malice behind his words, just pure honesty.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa smiled at the sentiment, and at Ben's earnest expression. He really believed that, didn't he? Well, so did Brisa, but Ben actually seemed happy and confident when he said it. She would have given her tail to have someone with that kind of positivity on-team during the dark months of the mission.

"I always fight with my heart," she said, grinning, "but with my head, too. I appreciate that, Ben. After comin' so close t'the wire with you'n yers, I can say I believe it. No way is that motherfucker as tough as you guys, goddamn."

She flexed her claws. "That technique of yers... Extremespeed, right? Aria used it too. I've had my eye on it since we fought Rayquaza. Would be a helluva thing to have that kinda strikin' speed..."