Destiny Village ~ Central Crossroads

[Namohysip]

"Ohh, yes! That, I am," Zekrom replied with a smile as she sat down next to the pair with a small smile. "I suppose I'm not an authority just by my role, but because of how much time I had spent studying it and looking into things. Ethics can... change, in small ways, as a society changes, but I make sure to keep to a more universal standard when possible."

Owen nodded quietly, and Wishkeeper was also silent for now.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa settled into her seated position and reminded herself that she wasn't on trial.

She could see herself making small talk or asking Zekrom about herself for a while. She could see herself failing to adress the issue, or letting Owen do it for her. She'd feel like shit if it came to that.

"I guess there's not much point sidlin' up to the issue. The team's in a spell of strife lately 'cause of a decision by a handful of us, myself and Owen here among 'em, to conceal information from much of the team t'prevent it leakin' where it shouldn't. I believed I was keepin' the team safe and ensurin' success, but in doin' so, folks who I consider my friends were hurt by bein' left outta the loop."

She furrowed her brow. She could see the heart of this, now that she'd talked around it.

"How d'you know if y'made the right call, when unexpected pain comes of it all the same?"

 

[Namohysip]

"Hmm, I see... I've heard about this." Zekrom frowned, taking a seat in a truly oversized beanbag chair that sank under her weight and crackled softly to her tail-motor. "For this exercise, let's ignore anything to do with Soda's deception. I don't think that will be very helpful for trying to sort through your own feelings on how you reacted to it."

"That's sound. Brisa is wrestling with her reaction, not at how much Soda outsmarted us. We can handle that later with strength."

"That seems okay," Owen translated, nodding.

"Hmmhh... well... Your team felt betrayed because you chose to withhold information from them that pertained to something that affected everyone. But the reason it was done was because some on the team were at risk of disclosing that information to others, and from there, it can then go to people who could use that information against you."

"We feared that those more talkative and less careful would speak to Maple and possibly set her off. Or tip off whatever other nebulous force we're fighting that we know, too."

"That's basically it," Owen agreed.

Zekrom nodded. "This sounds like a case... in an informal way... of something that many, if not all, governments and power systems employ. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean it is ethical, but we do have an example to work off of. Brisa, Owen, are you familiar with concepts of classified information, and secret clearance?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

The way Zekrom spoke... It was both structured, and considerate. Kindness and intelligence taken together sure were a pleasant panacea for an unsteady heart. This was promising.

"More or less. Information security at the state level ain't much concern where I'm from, but it still matters fer everythin' from financial or judicial matters to my pa's investigative work. Rangers have to keep their leads to 'emselves if'n spillin' information could tiip off their mark. That's, ah, why I had the sense to do the same in this case."

That, and the matter of some team members flatly refusing to consider anything but the ideal outcome as possible...

 

[Namohysip]

Zekrom nodded. "That seems to be the principle that was followed here. Keeping certain information secret until a certain time, for the security of everyone involved. You deemed that some people had secret clearance while others did not." Zekrom crossed her arms and brought her head down, eyes closed. "Here is a question to consider. As a team, who do you suppose has the right to determine who has these clearance rights, and why?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa had an answer for that one already.

"Normally I'd trust a decision like that to Diyem, what with him bein' the leader an' all. I have done in the past, in fact, when he first confided in me that Eien was in the Tree. But on this occasion, the fella was incapacitated by Xerneas. In lieu of that, I felt the burden fell on me due to my even knowin' in the first instance. And the only person I let in on it was someone I'd have been hard-pressed to keep the secret from in practical terms. Owen is spectacularly perceptive. Entrustin' anyone else with the knowledge... It woulda been a risk every time, an' fer no benefit, an' involved a decision to trust 'em over any other person. Didn't feel more right'n keepin' it as locked down as possible."

 

[Namohysip]

Zekrom nodded. "Your leader wasn't able to make any proper calls on your behalf," she repeated. "In the end, you were leaderless for a time. Maple was the suspect; Diyem was unavailable. Everyone else would have been a risk, perhaps even Pop to you?"

"Pop... might have been an okay person to ask..." Owen trailed off.

"But our mistrust of gods from our personal experiences steered us away," Wishkeeper pointed out. "Because what god would ever act in benefit of others?"

"Do you think we could have asked Pop?" Owen asked, glancing at Brisa.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa considered it.

"Yeah. We could've asked Pop. He's shown moral character I consider unimpeachable. But I didn't even consider the possibility durin' the events, bein' too caught up in my concern with information leak."

She sighed. It wasn't even delegation, it was just appeal to the most appropriate authority. Why hadn't she...?

"This might sound strange, but it's a relief to realise my mistake," she said, quietly.

 

[Namohysip]

Zekrom nodded gently. "It was a mistake," she said, "but I do not think you would be seen as unethical for it. What's important now is following up and rectifying what can be fixed. From what I've heard, you already did so. You gave the information to everyone and now everyone is at the same page again. Perhaps now, you can work in-step as a team."

"Until they demonstrate they can't handle themselves. One of us already got blown up by the moon. Others are constantly taken over by their Blacklight, either by exploding or lashing out. Bahamut is right, you know. Diyem should have been more selective. Brisa was still right to keep this from the likes of them."

"Having some thoughts?" Zekrom asked.

"Oh, sorry--just listening to Wishkeeper. He says that it's hard to judge how dangerous information can be in the wrong hands, even your own teammates."

"That's true. Even in official organizations, there is a hierarchy of trust levels where deeper and deeper secrets are kept and divulged more exclusively."

"There are a lot of people that we withheld information from who would be rejected outright from any kind of clearance."

"Yeah..." Owen nodded at Zekrom. "Soda really--I mean, we really lost our leadership back there. We were kind of running without a head the past moon or so..."

"And yet everyone blames Diyem anyway for every time he messes up, as opposed to acknowledging every time he helps. He may feed off of the negativity, but we know it hurts his feelings anyway. When are you going to tell Brisa that one, Owen? Or are you worried she'll hurt Diyem with that info?"

Once again, Owen ignored it. "I can't imagine what it's like to be in Diyem's position."

"It's..." Zekrom paused for the words. "...It's hard to relate to someone with his upbringing."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

There was so much to balance in her head all at once. Responding to what was said, processing what she was hearing from Wishkeeper, maintaining her composure... So much effort.

"Diyem's very nature ain't just that of a Dark Matter, which would be strange enough, but one that's been altered over decades to be somethin' unprecedented, and he's all alone in that," mused Brisa. "I respect him. I trust him, appreciate him, I'm even pretty fond of him . . . but it's hard to know how to act on or express any of that safely when positivity is downright nauseatin' to him. I do what I can."

She sighed, curling one paw and pressing a claw into her pad. "We oughta have had formal provisional leadership in place. This is the second time our communication with Diyem has been disrupted, and we were rudderless back then, too. Let's not let it happen a third time. I'll speak with him about that soon, I think."

Voicing her feelings on Diyem gave her space to think about the rest of it. Owen's apparent, suppressed distrust and resentment of others... Was that why he'd come here? She could talk about that while linking it back to her last point.

"The truth is, Team Spectrum's apparent practical strength belies its lack of underlyin' structure," she said, momentarily startled by how like Jesse she sounded, "and its dysfunctional membership. I'm halfway done patchin' things up with those members most offended at bein' left out, but those same members have demonstrated, in their fits of pique and fancy followin' the fight, exactly the reasons we didn't make all the info public at first."

Zekrom was listening intently. Brisa didn't need to look at Owen to know how he'd be reacting.

"Don't get me wrong, I know my teammates fer the extraordinary folks they are, but there's no gettin' around the fact that many of 'em – or their familiars – are naive, impulsive, contrarian, an' so on. Under the conditions we've been grapplin' with, traits like that are a liability."

 

[Namohysip]

"Hmph. At least she has some sense," Wishkeeper commented, glaring at Owen. "Why won't you ever say the same?"

"...Brisa's right. What just happened was... basically the reason behind why we didn't go out of our way to tell everyone right away. It could have blown up all at once..."

"Have some courage to say it first next time," Wishkeeper chided, but his stance remained neutral so as not to give anyone else the wrong idea. Owen, too, did not react.

Zekrom nodded. "There was not a rigorous selection process for your team. That does complicate things. I do not think that was up to you, and perhaps not even up to Diyem, if what I'd learned myself is true."

"He was desperate and rushed. He would have taken anyone. I wouldn't doubt if he'd quietly reclaimed the less successful ones so he could focus his powers into the rest of us. Perhaps for the better."

"I think so," Owen said. "I guess that means... even if we ignore the Pop thing... our misstep is the way we took it upon ourselves to decide who was... worthy of it. Who deserved to know." Owen looked off. "I don't really feel good saying that..."

"Liar. You liked admitting it. You're just trying to look nice in front of Brisa, but you hate how unfocused they all are. You want to scream at them. Tell them to shape up or die in the Voidlands so their energy can be more useful."

"I just..." Owen sighed.

"But if you did, you'll be just like Bahamut. Ridiculed. Ostracized. They all love the positive, cheerful Charizard who would never say a bad thing to them. If you drop the act now, how will they see you? A liar. Just like you are now."

"Owen? Are you okay?" Zekrom asked.

"Admit it. Admit it."

"Yeah, sorry," Owen said with a titter. "Wishkeeper has a lot to say about the team. He wished we were a little more focused.

"Stop silencing me. I AM you. You've been lied to all your life and now you're lying to everyone back."

"I think it's just been getting to me," Owen admitted. "Vix dying shook me up."

"No it didn't. You weren't even surprised. You were annoyed."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa bit her cheek. How to handle this...? Certainly not by letting on that Wishkeeper was audible. It wasn't the time. But even so, she had to let Owen know he didn't have to hide his frustrations around her...

"I just got done makin' things right with Vix before her moonshot," she said, carefully. "Then I found out she'd got herself offed after bein' warned a dozen times not to take the risk. If I'm shaken up, it's with frustration. The world's been at risk of endin', half a dozen of us died in one of our fights, and the spyin' business ain't a closed case. It ain't right that folks on the team haven't learned to take things more serious. Sometimes I just wanna let 'em have an earful."

She cocked her head at Owen, and wondered what he really needed right now. From her. From Zekrom.

"Our teammates have power, sure. But not all of 'em are half as responsible with it as they oughta be."

 

[Namohysip]

For just an instant, Owen's flame crackled, the first sign that something actually bothered him. Brisa had hit her mark. "We have to keep it together," Owen said. "That's... what we told ourselves when we were deciding who should know and who shouldn't. And maybe we were too cautious in the end... but..."

"And now, they're offended you did not trust them with that information," Zekrom said.

"And what right did they ever have to it?" Wishkeeper scowled.

"Yeah, they were," Owen replied.

"When this power was tossed onto their laps and all they do is squander it and play around as if it's a simple toy. As if they aren't eroding at their very minds by misusing it. Astrid risking her very composition with her self-destructive power. Icetales flirting with some mirror of his own hellish powers. Dave abusing his other half and berating him as if that would somehow make him feel better when they're the same. And after Moonlit Forest, don't even get me started on Saltriv--"

As Wishkeeper spoke, Zekrom was also talking. "Oh, the cake's done! One second. But, while I'm readying the frosting... I think we've already covered the ethics behind it. There was an obvious misstep... but I wouldn't blame you for it when there wasn't any process established. The most ethical thing to do now would be creating one in case it happens again. As for what to tell them..." Zekrom sighed. "It's not really going to be an easy thing to do. And they may claim you have no right to make that decision."

"They gave up theirs when they proved irresponsible with their powers."

"Yeah," Owen said, wings drooping. "Brisa, do you think there's anything we can do to, like... convince them to shape up or..."

"Some of them don't even pay attention, you know. And then they get mad when they aren't included in decision making. Please. We have a cake right by us, I don't need to say the phrase. Stop humoring them."

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa directed her gaze at the cake as she listened to Wishkeeper rant. None of it was particularly unfair or unjustified. Repressed dark thoughts needn't be irrational nonsense, of course. Sombra was evidence enough of that if Wishkeeper wasn't already. Why was Owen's shadow so agitated now? Too long spent quietly tolerating nonsense from the team? Maybe. Perhaps when they were done speaking to Zekrom, she'd take Owen to the Park – no, the underground training facility – and get him to let loose. And talk honestly with her. And her with him.

"Convince them to shape up, huh?" she said, drily. "We can give it a go. I'm in decent enough mental shape to try."

She scratched her chin, and huffed softly. They needed a real plan, not just to ask for more from their teammates.

"We gotta bring these concerns to Diyem. I have this intuition like he doesn't make more fuss 'cause he feels insufficiently supported to press the matter. If you and I and a couple others put our credibility behind a push fer more organisation in the team, maybe we'll get somewhere. Starr might be amenable t'that, she understands the value of best practice policy. And... Yer close with Bahamut, right?"

Owen nodded, making a face like he already knew what Brisa was about to say.

"Bahamut's wrong in the head, but he's got some sense. I've heard him castigate our more foolish members by means of mental sendin'. There're others I can think of, too."

It was a start. It might, at least, make Owen feel like he wasn't alone in wanting things to be better than they were.

And to think she'd been drawn in by Wishkeeper talking about dating advice...

 

[Namohysip]

"Bahamut is such an interesting Pokemon," Zekrom said. "I can sense that he's done terrible things in the world he's from in the name of a greater good... but he is also practical. And, at least here on Cibus, he is certainly on our side. It's a but of a... ahem, gray area, but thankfully he is not under my jurisdiction!" She laughed a little loudly, and then finished the frosting on her simple, white cake with pink frills. It smelled of strawberries and was as big as Owen's gut.

"...I do like cake," Wishkeeper murmured.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"Cibus has the most remarkable culinary tradition," said Brisa, smiling. If Owen was hungry and underindulged, this would help.

"If'n y'all don't mind, I'd like to shelve that one 'til Owen and I take our concerns to the chief. Might be wise to have Pop join us fer that one, and perhaps a representative from God Squad... Truffle would be my pick."

She wondered whether it was presumptuous to assume that Zekrom would offer them any cake. It sure seemed like a staple of Cibusean culture to provide guests with freshly baked food all the damn time, though...

"If y'ain't sick of us yet, Zekrom, I had somethin' a li'l lighter on my mind I'd be interested in hearin' yer take on."

And a hundred other things. Good fuckin' grief, what an opportunity. Y'can't possibly ask everythin' you want to.

 

[Namohysip]

"Oh, of course," Zekrom said, and she seemed to form what looked like a knife out of electricity with one of her claws. Then, with a startling CRACK, there were four of them surrounding one side of the cake. They sliced through the center, creating eight even wedges, and two more thunderclaps circled around the cake's interior, forming subsections of the wedges... And suddenly, they had twenty four pieces of cake, at three sizes depending on the body type. Zekrom, of course, took an outer edge, which was the largest, and she gestured to them to get some as well.

"What did you want to ask, hm?" she sat back down on her seat as Wishkeeper withdrew into Owen to enjoy the cake as well. Owen took a medium center piece.

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

"Impressive trick y'got there," said Brisa, with a low whistle. "Wonder if y'could teach me a thing or two 'bout electricity manipulation."

Oh, yeah. Advice. Brisa took a smaller centre piece and enjoyed its smell and warmth for a moment while she spoke.

"My apologies if'n this sounds a li'l inconsequential given the sober nature of our previous discussion, but . . . I've been takin' opportunity to try developin' more intimate relationships than I have any chance at back home, seein' as how my friendships on Cibus are a dream come true an' all..."

Oh gods, she sounded absurd. Nothing for it but to push on.

"...The thing is, I ain't had much success. I dunno if I'm just no good at pickin' 'em, or I come on too strong, or not strong enough, or what it is, but it's mighty disappointin'. I don't know where t'go from here or if'n I shoulda thrown in the towel already. I only mention 'cause I already heard somethin' about you givin' advice on these matters to someone."

From Wishkeeper. Hopefully that was public knowledge.

 

[Namohysip]

Wishkeeper was gone and not speaking, though Owen gave Brisa a curious look. "...Dating... advice?" he asked before taking his first bite. Light and fluffy, practically like a very soft and delicate sponge cake than anything. The frosting was just as light, almost like solidified whipped cream with a hint of strawberry scent mixed into the inner layers. Small, chewy pieces of the fruit were between the layers.

"Oh, goodness. Dating advice, for mortals? I suppose I have some experience..." Zekrom tapped her chin, glancing at Owen, then saying, "Owen, have you been looking for anything similar?"

"Oh, uh, no, I'm--you know, back home, things, uh, stuff."

"I see, I see." Zekrom seemed to understand perfectly. "Well, Brisa, I suppose the main complicating factor in all this is... simply the fact that everyone seems to know that your time on Cibus is temporary. And even less so than the average mortal. The only relationship one could hope for here would be one for..." Zekrom searched for the right word. "...Practice?"

 

[unrepentantAuthor]

Brisa winced a little, but the cake took the edge off it, and she knew a comment like that would be inevitable.

"It's a fair point, ma'am. But even temporarily, even if I forget it after, I wanna have somethin' like that at least once in my life." She hummed, and tapped a claw against her plate. "My thanks fer the cake, by the way. It's exquisite."

Brisa glanced at Owen and wondered what turmoil he was expecting to go home to, and if it had much to do with Cal's source. She'd heard a little, guessed a little. The fella could probably use a wise perspective on his familial and relationship concerns.

"Sometimes I fantasise about never havin' t'go back," she remarked, evenly. "That I can browbeat Diyem into leavin' me here. Or that even should this body prove temporary, that Joule or someone like him could help me make a more permanent arrangement."