{RP} The S.S. Wishmaker - Tides of Witchcraft

[Neo Emolga]

Cassandra Silvers
Battling Arena Waiting Room
Affected RPers: @Desolate Divine @Chakramaster

Like Jon, Cassandra was a bit surprised to see Jimmy Kendo arrive in the battling arena waiting room, just only a minute after Violet and Jarena had left to sit in a supervised booth. Still, Jimmy seemed to be doing well, though Cassandra found it a bit comical he was wearing some kind of Jirachi cap or plush doll atop his head, which at first she assumed it was probably from one of the S.S. Wishmaker novelty souvenir shops, the kind that sold water bottles, t-shirts, tote bags, and all kinds of other miscellaneous gifts guests bought to remember the trip.

And then she did a double-take and realized the Jirachi atop Jimmy’s head was actually moving… blinking… breathing. As if alive…

It can’t be… …can it?

“Cuddles…” Jon said to Jimmy, still calling him by his Pachirisu nickname. “Have you been holding out on us this entire time…?”

And then Jirachi introduced himself, flying before Jon and communicating to him through telepathy. He had mentioned the mishaps that had occurred from Jon’s Latios, as well as mentioning that he had befriended Jimmy and wanted more friends.

“Yay!” he had spoken to Cassandra. “Your magic is kinda like mine! Can you grant wishes too? Do they make you sleepy like me when you grant too many?”

Cassandra couldn’t help but put her hands over her open, gawking mouth in absolute spellbound surprise. She had heard of the mythical Pokémon before, of course the entire cruise ship was named in reference to Jirachi and even the whole marketing campaign behind promoting the cruise ship was based on wishes coming true in terms of entertainment and vacations, but she never suspected THE ACTUAL JIRACHI would be on this very ship.

I can’t believe it!

“So many people I can call friends!” Jirachi cheered as he flew around the room.

Before Cassandra could even respond, Jon had cautioned Jimmy, trying to keep everything about the Shadowcraft covered up and letting him know if Jirachi mentioned it to the wrong person, it could compromise the League’s mission even further and make an already difficult task harder to accomplish. While the Diamond Ladies still had their doubts it would be possible at this point, they at least wanted to help Jon try. The Zoroark idea was all they had and while it was a longshot, there was nothing else besides hoping people would dismiss recorded footage as special effects or video editing.

“He’s…!?” Cassandra gasped.

“Oh yes, the real deal!” Victini smiled to Cassandra. “Say hello!”

“Uh, yeah…” Cassandra replied, her heart still racing upon realizing she was in the very presence of Jirachi himself. “Nice to meet you, Jirachi!”

And yet, despite all that had transpired, no one on the S.S. Wishmaker was unfamiliar with Jirachi, and Cassandra herself knew what this Pokémon was capable of.

Wishes…

Most people and Pokémon never got to see Jirachi. Standing before this mythical Pokémon was clearly the chance of a lifetime. Any other person might wish for riches, true love, power, strength, or any number of things, things that might have seemed good at the time, but could prove to be problematic later on. And so went the phrase… be careful what you wish for.

And yet she recalled just a few hours before, when she was still an Eevee so overwhelmed and sunken with despair…

As she looked up and saw the depiction of Jirachi, the mythical Pokémon of wishes, on the S.S. Wishmaker’s hull, she made a wish of her own, hoping she could have that all back again, being okay with the idea of being broke but happy, even if all it meant was being a free and wandering tomorrow’s nobody.

She had changed. Where just days before she might have asked for more fame, power, materialistic things, or possibly more legendary Pokémon… no. No, she had pushed out those baseless and pretentious desires.

“I just wish to be happy…” she whispered to herself, “…wherever… whatever I’m supposed to be...”

She didn’t even care whether she would be rich or poor, victorious or defeated, human or Eevee, famous or forgotten. Her happiness, her friendship with her Pokémon and with Jarena and Violet… that’s what mattered far, far more than anything else. Because it was happiness that no materialistic thing, no battle victory, no rush of dopamine could provide.

Even if it wasn’t right away, wasn’t this very instant, she would be okay with that. But in the end, she wanted to be at peace, enjoy laughter, and not worry about the future, but instead have something to look forward to with guaranteed certainty. Something that said everything would be okay, and there was something waiting for her that she could look forward to. It was the one wish she could think of that she’d never regret, the one thing that would never deteriorate over time, become a responsibility she couldn’t handle, or bear the risk of being something that wasn’t what she thought it would be but now had to struggle to handle. Happiness… it was simple, elegant, and sincere…

…if it was something Jirachi could provide…

[Chakramaster]

Jimmy Kendo
Waiting Room
Affected RP'ers: @Neo Emolga @Desolate Divine

Jon moves to let Jimmy in. Telling him he might wanna handle this quickly. Jimmy nods and walks in. "Yeah, no problem."

Cassandra looked so shocked. Almost stunned as Jirachi was near her.

He’s…!?” Cassandra gasped.

“Oh yes, the real deal!” Victini smiled to Cassandra. “Say hello!”

“Uh, yeah…. “Nice to meet you, Jirachi!”

Jimmy stands by Jirachi and gives him a quick pat before shaking his head and keeping his voice down.

"It's alright Jirachi. Another time. We cannot go speaking about this with anyone. We're trying to hide this and make it so no one believes in it. That it was all just something else. We cannot let this out. Anyone outside this room you know wasn't involved well....they can't hear about this. So please don't go speaking about this too loudly. Alright buddy?" Jimmy said as Jirachi looked a little down.

"Alright Jimmy. I can still play with our friends here right?" He says perking back up like a sugar rush and pure excitement kicked back in. "I heard your wish lady! Cass is it? That's what I heard from everyone earlier." Jirachi closed his eyes. Floating closely to Cassandra. Jimmy keeping a close eye on both.

"Remember Jirachi. Be nice and she's got to stay with us. Like I told you on the way here." Jimmy said to Jirachi

Jirachi nodded. "I remember Jimmy. Don't worry." Jirachi said opening back his eyes. "I heard your wish just now, Cass. I even felt it earlier when you were so distraught. If that's truly what you wish for. Then consider it done." Jirachi says with a snap of his fingers. "You may not see the change yourself. It may not be today, tomorrow, or this year, but I promise you. The change you're looking for will come to you. If me granting this wish doesn't help. Then Victini can guide your path toward victory in a way you may not see at first. I should know. He's a good friend of mine after all. Oh I even added a little nice present for your other friends too! I didn't forget." Jirachi says laughing and letting out a small yawn, but still quite active and happy.

"Mr. Jon?" Jirachi says to him as he flys back up to him. "I'll be good now. I promise. Can we still be friends?" He says looking a bit saddened bouncing back and forth while playing with two of his fingers just hoping Jon would say yes. "I can feel it too. You have a desire deep within you too. Everyone does. If you're a friend of Jimmy's and a friend of mine. We can all have fun! Fun with friends is the best! I'm sure your friend Latios would agree. It's nice to have fun with friends!" Jirachi said floating around Jon then back to Jimmy. Flopping on his head and making his already spiky hair look like more of a mess.

[[Desolate Divine]]

Jon Drake
Waiting Room
Affected RPers: @Neo Emolga @Chakramaster

Jon chuckled at Jirachi's comments about Latios liking to have fun.

"Latios would definitely agree with you, almost to a fault." Jon explained, "Training him really keeps me on my toes."

However, Jon's mind was elsewhere, thinking about what Jirachi said, about what he desired most. He wasn't even sure what that was. Whilst if given the chance to change it, having his Dad not go down a bad path, or having his Mum not stay with his Dad would have made his childhood somewhat normal, he wouldn't be where he was now. He wouldn't be strong from years of suffering. He wouldn't be battling competitively, not having had his grandfather training him like he did, and he probably wouldn't have met Alyssa. Jon had made peace with this long ago.

Really, only one thought was on Jon's mind...

I wish that this plan of ours would work. That anybody who would try to reveal the truth about the Diamond Ladies, or who would try and do the same things they did, would believe the cover up completely, and be incapable of believing the truth. That the only people who could believe the truth, are those who are willing to keep it a secret no matter what.

Jon was pulled by his thoughts as he noticed the time on the clock on the wall.

"Avery is cutting it fine..." Jon muttered, looking at his watch to check the time was correct...

[Chakramaster]

Jimmy Kendo
Waiting Room
Affected RP'ers: @Neo Emolga @Desolate Divine

Jirachi perks his head up and floats over to Jon. "Don't worry. Wishes like that are simple! Illusions more so. I can make things look so realistic you can't tell the difference! I once made this huge illusion of Groudon too." Jirachi chuckles a little before winking at Jon and beginning to tug on his shirt. "That's not all you want though is it? I know your heart says that you want more. Though I can't promise the world to those you love. I can promise that things will get better. Those who have done wrong will soon see straight. As things happened today. More than three lives can be saved from those who have done wrong. The road to dawn is always a path in between light and darkness. No matter what you go through in life. Family will always be your one and only family. Cherish them as you do your friends." Jirachi says to him before poking his nose and giggling and giving Jon a smile. "I'm so glad to finally have friends." Jirachi floats quickly over onto one of the soft chairs in the room and lays down.

"Jimmy when are we gonna play?" Jirachi calls out to him.

Jimmy laughs a bit before saying to Jon in a quiet voice. "Jirachi acts so carefree. I've never met a Pokémon like it. You guys have been lucky to have the mythical and legendaries you have. It's a tough job. Don't worry. I'll keep a close eye on Jirachi here. Make sure he stays quiet on the cover we're making. And I'm sure if the plan doesn't work too well. We can always have Jirachi step in and turn things around. It is the mythical Pokémon said to grant wishes after all." Jimmy says as he picks Jirachi up, sits down, and rests Jirachi on his lap. "Soon Jirachi. Once the event is over. We will have as much fun as you want." Jimmy tells Jirachi giving him a light pat on the head.

"Soon Avery will be here. Then, we will be that much closer to the grand battles about to take place. You'd love to see those wouldn't you?"

Jirachi had fallen asleep in his lap. "Just...a few minutes of sleep. I'm sleepy." Jirachi said in a tired and hushed voice.

[Neo Emolga]

Jarena Farrell and Violet Radcliffe
Battle Stadium Spectator Booth

It wasn’t long until Jarena and Violet had arrived at the spectator booth, accompanied by three operatives to make sure they wouldn’t break their side of the deal, though at this point, neither of them had intentions to. They already had a fairly good idea of what would happen and Jarena didn’t want to imagine such a horde of Pokémon pummeling her all at once.

The booth, while comfortable, didn’t offer a window to allow for live viewing of the battles. Everything they saw would only be on television, as if they were simply watching at home in their own living room. Jarena was a bit disappointed about the accommodation though she knew why they were doing it. She could tell they weren’t quite taking their word yet, despite the fact Cassandra had returned all of the transformed operatives back into humans. If they could only watch the event on a television screen, there was absolutely no way they could interfere with it directly.

“Yeah, guess they still don’t trust us,” Jarena shrugged, disappointed they wouldn’t be watching the event in person. “Guess there’s no point in cheering. Ugh, this is the pits.”

“Most of these people won’t ever trust us,” Violet confirmed, expecting something like this. “Expect to see this same thing tomorrow. They’re still watching us. I guarantee they’ll be watching even while we sleep tonight.”

Jarena wasn’t thrilled about it, but it still felt like there wasn’t much she could do from a privacy standpoint. The League still wanted to keep Shadowcraft hidden at all costs, with no imitators, no sympathizers, and as few people thinking about it as possible. But it made her wonder if they would still be trailed and watched long after they stepped off the ship.

“How should we go about this early retirement thing?” Jarena asked Violet, wondering what her thoughts were. “I mean, usually I’m next up for tournament duty after Cass has had her fun.”

“Just keep stalling,” Violet told her in a straightforward tone, “There won’t be any new tournaments for a while, at least none of these major ones. Say you’re waiting for a better one. If they ask you about a particular one, say you’ll ‘think about it’ but never sign up. That’s it. Repeat as necessary. We’ll do it for a while and then announce we’re retiring.”

“Eh, still think people are going to suspect something in time, you know?” Jarena asked, shrugging. “It’s not like we’re old. Who retires at nineteen?”

“Yes, we’ll lose our fan following in time,” Violet replied, looking like it didn’t concern her too much. “Although people will wonder why we’re selling everything off. God, I hope they don’t start asking questions. The lack of money and the debt to the League is the main issue.”

The way Violet saw it, they needed another plan to get the money. And fast. Liquidating all their assets might only cover some of the bill, and they’d have to do it quietly without it attracting too much media attention. She couldn’t help but wonder if there was another possible way to leverage the reputation they had now…

If Jon was able to pull off the trick with the Zoroark, the League might be able to keep Shadowcraft as a myth provided everyone that was on the ship cooperated. But in order for it to work best, Jon had mentioned they couldn’t make the retirement permanent, else it might prompt fans and followers to wonder what had happened on the S.S. Wishmaker for them to suddenly change their minds so drastically.

“We need a Plan B in case Jon’s plan for dealing with the debt doesn’t work,” Violet mentioned. “There’s a chance it may still cause us to go broke even with the payment plan. We also need to keep it quiet. Jon doesn’t want any attention being brought back to this cruise.”

“Just seems… you know, impossible,” Jarena sheepishly smiled with a shrug. “Pay off the debt but not make drastic decisions? How do I explain me suddenly selling my Ferrari after telling everyone and their mother I love that car?”

She could understand why she was being made to do it, but like Violet said, it might prove difficult to explain why they were selling their assets and where that money was going.

She was almost thinking… maybe it was time to turn Plan B into Plan A…

---

Cassandra Silvers
Battling Arena Waiting Room
Affected RPers: @Desolate Divine @Chakramaster

Cassandra was emotionally touched. In a way she had never been before.

“You may not see the change yourself. IT may not be today, tomorrow, or this year, but I promise you.”

“Thank you…” Cassandra smiled, a feeling of comforting warmth coming over her. “Thank you so much, Jirachi.”

Cassandra had to admire the mythical Pokémon, seemingly always happy and carefree, just wanting friends to play with. When she looked to Jimmy, it seemed clear he would be a great trainer for him. But she had seen that granting wishes made the small star-shaped Pokémon sleepy despite wanting to play.

“He’s a sweetheart,” Cassandra smiled at him.

[Noblejanobii]

Avery Miller (They/Them)
Battling Arena Waiting Room
Affected RP'ers: @Neo Emolga @Desolate Divine @Chakramaster

Following changing back into human, Avery had taken the several hours of time to collect themself and plan with their team. They were very grateful for the fact that they would still have a chance to battle Cassandra, and even if they didn't win, ending up in the top 4 wasn't too shabby in its own right. Still, unlike before where Avery was assured they were going to lose, now without the witchcraft element in it, plus the confidence their team had, Avery felt like there was a chance they might go all the way on this. Maybe, just maybe, they could win the High Seas tournament!

Still, they had to wait and pass the time. And so they did. Exhausted from the day's events, Avery ended up passing out in their guest room, waking up up a bit later than they would have preferred. Thankfully, their hair and outfit were still mostly battle ready from when they had gotten changed back so a quick touch up for their hair, makeup, and clothes, and they were good to go. Ensuring they had all their belongings and everything they needed, Avery made their way to the Battling Arena Waiting Room.

"You're going to be late," Gloria chided.

"It's fine," Avery responded quietly. She was right though, and Avery wasn't fond of holding people up much longer. They checked their watch and winced. Yeah they were cutting it right close. Thankfully though, they reached their destination shortly thereafter. Opening the door and stepping inside, Avery smiled and waved at the others. "Sorry for the delay," they said, "but I've arrived." Avery yawned a little and stretched. "What all did I miss?"

[Chakramaster]

Jimmy Kendo
Waiting Room
Affected RP'ers: @Noblejanobii @Desolate Divine @Neo Emolga

Cassandra had thanked Jirachi. She smiled at him as Jimmy sat down after picking up Jirachi who had started to rest on a chair in the room. Jimmy places Jirachi on his lap and Cassandra smiled at him saying, "he's such a sweetheart."

Jimmy's Pikachu jumper beside them and gave Jirachi a light pat on the head. "Piii-ka. Pikachu. Pikapi" (he's gonna be an amazing friend. Right now, he's just tired from watching us today).

"Yeah, he's said to be able to grant wishes. Maybe he just grant some?" Jimmy said as he looks to Cassandra and then to Jon.

Just then Avery made it to then room.

"Sorry for the delay," they said, "but I've arrived." Avery yawned a little and stretched. "What all did I miss?"

Jimmy looked to Avery as they stepped inside. Not much. We've just settled down while we wait. Our new little friend here is just taking a quick nap." He said as he gives Jirachi another light pat on the head. "You can say hello if you'd like to Avery. I'm sure he won't mind. He was so eager to meet everyone he saw earlier today. Besides. He just wanted a few minutes of sleep and it's been just that. Care to say hi?" Jimmy said looking down at Jirachi. Giving him a small shake. "Jirachi. Avery is here. Want to say hi or sleep a bit longer?"

"I waft ta s-see." Jirachi says half asleep and slightly drooling a little before going wide-eyed again. "Ahh! Yay another friend hahaha!" Jirachi says eagerly getting up and floating over to Avery. "Hi! I'm Jirachi!" Giving a friendly wink to them.

[Neo Emolga]

Jarena Farrell and Violet Radcliffe
Battle Stadium Spectator Booth

As spectators were gathering in the arena grandstands and taking their seats, thoughts were coming to Jarena’s mind, but she was quietly keeping them to herself, not even sharing them with Violet. At least not at first. As her mind kept thinking of the whole situation, her fingers couldn’t help but fidget.

She almost impulsively reached into the pocket of her jeans, once again making sure that zip bag was still there and she hadn’t lost it.

Ugh, this sucks… wish we didn’t have to change back. Being a Buneary was so much dang fun! I mean, minus the whole getting chased around and totally outnumbered thing, but it was really cool! Meanwhile, I got really bad feelings about this battle. It’s been six years since we battled without using witchcraft, I know that’s going to do a number on Cass’s Pokémon! They haven’t practiced one bit without it and they’re in a high stakes tournament battle! Oh my god, I know this is going to go badly…

“You’ve been fidgety lately,” Violet told Jarena, noticing Jarena’s fingers fiddling with her zipper pulls and pockets. “I would think it would be Cass that would be nervous, not you.”

“I got a baaaad bad feeling…” Jarena replied to her, trying to sugarcoat her thoughts with an anxious smile. “What if Cass loses this like… really badly? I mean, things might have been okay if she could have gotten some fun casual battles in before this one to get her team readjusted and warmed up, but now…”

“Doesn’t matter,” Violet replied, not sure why Jarena was worried about it. “Even if she bombs, we’re retiring for a while anyway. Truthfully, that makes it easier. Gives Cass an excuse to take some time off to think over a new strategy and train more.”

“It’ll look suspicious as hell!” Jarena warned her. “How does a superstar like her go from Pokémon Battle Queen to total wipeout in one match? Overnight, no less! Sure, the League may keep Shadowcraft under wraps, but we’ll still get hounded about that!”

Violet could see Jarena’s point, but she figured it might play as one really bad fluke. Things like that could happen. Maybe even the rumor about Cass being sick could hold more potential.

“Maybe a little commotion,” Violet replied. “Let the media think it was just one bad battle. Just think more about how you would leverage it.”

“You know Cynthia, Steven, and Lance would want to take her on to get their Champion titles back,” Jarena mentioned. “What happens if she loses all of those as well? And then they’ll want ours! And we lose! Because of all that… you know… stuff! All I’m saying is… League may be safe. But we’re sure not, you know what I’m saying? I don’t want to get ridiculed by the media about this! It’s going to be ungodly embarrassing!”

What Jarena said made sense to Violet and she started thinking it over herself. It would look rather odd if suddenly overnight, it would seem as though Cassandra can’t win anything and neither could the two of them. How would they try to explain that in interviews and on social media? Suddenly they win seemingly countless tournaments, get Champion titles, only to lose all of them immediately after like they were only just starting off again? The sudden disastrous turnout would likely get fans, the media, and the sponsors to start really probing the issue and withdrawing their support for disappointment. Where before Violet was worried more about the debt, she could see this being a problem as well, and as much as she wanted to tell them to just go to hell, they wouldn’t stop nagging them. Not to mention her relations with her family were already in hot water, and this would make things horrendous.

“Jon said we just need Cassandra to play out these battles,” Jarena whispered to Violet. “If Cass loses bad, we… really need to disappear. For good.”

“That’s not part of the deal, Jarena…” Violet whispered back to her with a voice of caution. “I know it’s probably bound to go badly and I hate this, also, but we have to give Cynthia, Steven, and Lance chances to win their titles back from all three of us. They and Jon will be pissed if we don’t follow through.”

“But what if… something were to happen…?” Jarena asked, whispering quietly. “Cass loses, ship docks, we get off and clock’s ticking. What if there’s some kind of… accident before those Champion defender title battles and suddenly…”

“You want to do that fake our own deaths plan, don’t you?” Violet asked, quite sure that’s what she was referring to. “Jon said…”

“He just doesn’t want Shadowcraft to go public,” Jarena replied quietly. “That’s all, and ok, that’s fair. But for us, it can be so simple! We go on a hiking trip around Lake of Rage, ski trip to Snowpoint, anywhere we could get… lost and never found again. We don’t need to blow up a car or crash a plane or anything like that. Just go missing, you know? Save some humiliation and dignity, eh?”

Violet hated to admit it but she was actually gravitating toward Jarena’s plan, especially with her concerns about the debt and having the League garnish her salaries and possibly being unreasonable despite Jon’s claim they would try to go easy. She knew their fame would die. Given the circumstances, it had to, one way or another, but it all came down to how painful it would be and what it would turn into. While the League would aid them in making sure the truth about their cheating was carefully concealed to prevent Shadowcraft imitators, they would not be there for them when their losses became constant and tragic or they suddenly shunned trainer battles entirely to hide the terrible weakness amidst the high expectations they now had. The situation with their disappointed fans would get ugly, especially in the wake of what were likely going to be disastrous Champion title defense battles. They wouldn’t be condemned as cheaters, but they would be terribly condemned as losers.

But if they took a casual adventure trip and made it look like they went missing and were never found again, the results would be different. Rescue teams would come up empty-handed, searches would be called off after some time, and their fans would sooner make a memorial for them instead and close their story on a much better, more respectful note. In terms of paying off the debt, instead of giving it all back to the League, they could give it to charity in their will. They could donate it to good cause like a Pokémon welfare and rescue organization and while the League would not be thrilled they wouldn’t see their money back, it sure wouldn’t be a sob story.

“We do this, there’s absolutely no going back…” Violet carefully whispered to Jarena. “Jon wins, they won’t go back to investigate this cruise or even find out about the witchcraft if everyone thinks it was just one bad battle before we ‘died’ after just wanting to take a vacation for Cass to get her mind off her loss to Avery. That’s a story people will buy. More than they’ll accept us going on a sudden losing streak and we get awful media publicity with harassment every day. But you had better be damn sure about this, Jarena.”

“Sure as buttons, chief,” Jarena whispered back to her. “Plus… really speaking honestly here. You don’t want to give up the Shadowcraft either, do you? Seems unfair to have to toss it all away after we spent six years learning it… you know?”

“We’d better talk this over with Cass before we go any further,” Violet told her quietly. “First, we see how this battle plays out and what the reaction will be. But if it really does go to hell…”

“…I’m listening.”

---

Cassandra Silvers
Battling Arena Waiting Room
Affected RPers: @Desolate Divine @Chakramaster @Noblejanobii

“Sorry for the delay, but I’ve arrived,” Avery apologized after arriving. “What did I miss?”

Cassandra had curiously checked the time and saw they were cutting it pretty close, but still, they had arrived. Jimmy was more than happy to introduce Avery to Jirachi, and of course Jirachi was more than happy to introduce himself to Avery, already regarding them as a friend.

“All battlers have been accounted for,” one of the stern, older male operatives had approached Cassandra. “We’re ordered to now escort you to the arena itself. We request that you fully cooperate.”

“Yeah, I know,” Cassandra sighed, realizing they still didn’t trust anything about her. “Guess we’d better get this show moving.”

Cassandra saw she had four operatives around her, almost feeling a bit like a prisoner again. Still, before she left the waiting room, she turned back to Avery.

“See you on the battlefield, Avery!” Cassandra told them with a confident smile as she and Victini waved. “Good luck, I’m not going to make this easy for you!”

And with that, she left the arena waiting room, taking the long walk to the arena itself.

---

Cassandra Silvers
Battling Arena

After being escorted to the waiting area just before the arena, Cassandra realized she had a few minutes to spare as the audience was almost fully seated to spectate tonight’s battle from the stadium grandstands. By no means was it enough time to prepare a whole new strategy, but it would give her a moment to have a few words with her Pokémon. The hired operatives still stood around her, carefully keeping watch, but for the time being, Cassandra pretended they weren’t there.

Once she had let out her Ninetales, Espeon, and Hatterene, there wasn’t enough time to fill them in on all the details, but she had to make them aware. While Victini was already very well acquainted with the situation, the others were completely uninformed.

“First off, I want to thank you,” Cassandra told all four of her Pokémon. “I wouldn’t even be here if it weren’t for you. I’m proud of all of you and we make an awesome team together.”

Usually, Cassandra didn’t give pep talks like this before battles. In her moments of pride and her conceited nature, she never thought it was necessary, always thinking she had it all worked out in her favor. So when this came to pass, it struck her team as unusual, and her tone of voice implied something had happened. Her Espeon blinked twice, tilting her head to look at Cassandra’s Ninetales in curious thought.

“Espee…?” (“Seems unusual, don’t you think?”) Her Espeon asked, tilting her cat-like head and blinking her two ruby eyes. “Espee…” (“I wonder what’s going on…”)

“I know, I don’t always do this before a battle,” Cassandra smiled, hiding the fact she could understand her Espeon for the very first time. “Let’s just say a lot happened today. We need to change things, take on a whole new approach this time.”

It caused her Espeon and her Ninetales to look curiously at her. It was almost as if…

“Niiinnneee…” (“I wonder what this new approach is about.”) Her Ninetales spoke to her Espeon as the white nine-tailed kitsune Pokémon showed some concern they were changing their strategy at the last minute.

“We’re not using witchcraft,” Cassandra confirmed, looking at them with determination. “That’s the approach. We’re battling the same way everyone else does. The way we should have been battling since the very beginning.”

“Hat-tteee…” (“Ohh… this might be trouble…”) her Hatterene muttered, looking away.

“No, we can do this, Hatterene,” Cassandra told her, trying to encourage her. “I know you, you’re strong. You’re all strong enough to do this without Jarena, Violet, and myself interfering.”

The three of them looked very strangely at Cassandra. All the coincidences were becoming confirmations. How was it that her responses connected with theirs when for many previous years, it was as though she couldn’t understand them?

“Espeee…?” (“Cassandra, did… something happen today?”) her Espeon asked.

“Yes,” Cassandra told her, nodding. “A lot happened today, actually, but I’ll tell you all later.”

The thee of them were suddenly spellbound and their eyes went wide. That was more than enough confirmation, she could understand them! Instantly all kinds of questions about the situation were coming to them, like how it happened and when. They had never heard of anything like this happening before!

“Vic-ti-tini!” (“Oh, it’s an amazing story!”) Victini laughed at what they were just realizing. “Victi-ni-nii!” (“One of peril, suspense, and adventure, but like she said, later! We’ve got a battle to win tonight! And if we win, I’ll let you know of all the really good funny parts! Otherwise, you only get the basic summary, which isn’t nearly as fun! So win out there!”)

“Espeee… on…” (“You’re one funny Pokémon, Victini.) her Espeon remarked, almost smirking.

“Yeah, and he’s darn proud of that,” Cassandra sighed, but with a smile this time.

There were only mere minutes left before the battle would start now. And her Pokémon had that feeling as well, even if they didn’t know what the “7:27” on Cassandra’s watch meant.

“Nineee…” (“She’s right, though, we can do this.”) her Ninetales told Espeon and Hatterene.

“Espee…” (“You know, I think I actually like it.”) her Espeon smiled to the other two. “Esp-pee…” (“Been a while since we’ve done things this way. The other day I was wondering how I’d do on my own in a battle.”)

“Hatt-tee…” (“Maybe we’re ready, maybe we’re not, but I think you’re right, this is how it should be done…”) her Hatterene replied, now knowing why the strategy had to be changed. “Hatteee…” (“Still, either way, I always liked how you battled by our side, Cassandra.”)

“And that part never needs to change,” Cassandra told her with a proud smile. “I will always be standing besides all of you in every battle, even without the witchcraft. We’ve always been in it together, before and after that.”)

“Victi-ni!” (“Always!”) Victini cheered with a smile. “Victini-ni!” (“Now let’s get out there! Go team! Hurrah!”)

It was time. After recalling her Pokémon, she stood ready behind the metal door that led to the arena, Victini on her shoulder, just as it was before the fall, before the deformation. When she had lost all hope and expected to spend the rest of her days defamed in the darkest of places, things had changed. A transformation out of the deformation.

“Welcome ladies and gentlemen to tonight’s semifinal match of the world’s first Pokémon High Seas Tournament! Please welcome our first contender, Cassandra Silvers!”

The door opened, light filling the hallway where Cassandra and Victini stood. But as Cassandra walked toward the center of the arena, both Victini and her wearing a proud and determined smile, what the cheering crowds and spectators excited for tonight’s battle didn’t know was this wasn’t the old Cassandra Silvers, even if she looked the same. She knew there would be speculation and rumors regarding today’s events, but none of that mattered now. Each step she took toward the arena’s center was a new step toward rediscovering who she was and who she was meant to be. She didn’t know what precisely the answer would be, but she wanted it more than anything right now. The spotlight was on her, all eyes watching, TV cameras rolling.

And after she had arrived at the center, she stood ready, waiting and gladly anticipating Avery’s arrival. They would be here soon, and win or lose, they would both take something from this and learn more about who they really were on that never-ending journey of self-discovery…

[Noblejanobii]

Avery Miller (They/Them)
Battling Arena Waiting Room
Affected RP'ers: @Neo Emolga @Desolate Divine @Chakramaster

Jimmy's new friend was quick to introduce himself to Avery, much to the coordinator's surprise. They hadn't been expecting that of all things. Avery looked at Jimmy. "A Jirachi? How long have you had one of these?" They crossed their arms. "We could've wished ourselves back human with this little guy's help." Avery watched as Jirachi flew around them and introduced himself. They offered a smile and nodded. "Pleasure to meet you, Jirachi. I'm Avery Miller." As the coordinator exchanged their greeting with the wishgranter, they noticed Cassandra start to be escorted off towards the battlefield. Guess it was time for them to get a move on too.

“See you on the battlefield, Avery!” Cassandra said with a confident smile as she and Victini waved. “Good luck, I’m not going to make this easy for you!”

Avery laughed and waved back. "The same goes for you!" they called back. Looking at Jimmy, Avery shrugged a little. "You'll have to elaborate on your little secret wishmaker later. I've got to get on the battlefield." Following after another attendant, Avery was escorted towards the arena down a different hallway.

---

Avery Miller (They/Them)
Battling Arena

Avery waited at the end of the hallway where the large metal doors stood shut, waiting for the audience to get seated before the battle began. By now, Avery had released their team to discuss strategy with them. Even without her witchcraft, Cassandra was still a formidable foe, that much they wouldn't doubt. This was doubly so due to Avery's overall lack of any sort of advantage against her team.

"We're going to have to brute force this," Avery explained as they leaned up against the hallway wall. "Only one of you has any sort of advantage on Cassandra's team just by sheer coverage moves, and that's assuming we even make it to that Pokémon." They sighed and began to count down on their fingers. "Mint, I'm going to have you take on Espeon. Espeon isn't a very defensive Pokémon if my memory is correct, so the combination of Body Slam and Mega Kick from you should hopefully make sure work of it. You'll just have to take advantage of your rolling to ensure you can close distance between you and the Espeon, since they're known to be ranged attackers."

The dubwool looked uncertain and shrunk down a little. "Dubwool dub dub?" (You really think I can do it?) she asked meekly. "Dubwool dubwool. Dubwool dub wool?" (I don't have much battling experience. What if I mess it up?)

Avery knelt down and gently pet Mint. "Don't you worry about it," they responded, "Just do the best you can. If you lose, then we'll make due. But if you win, then go as far as you can. I'd love to use you against Hatterene too but if she sends out Ninetales against you it's going to be a very difficult fight for you. Your ability makes any attack from her pretty much an assured knock out. But that's okay, because I have a plan for that too. So just focus on winning against Espeon okay? And if you lose, we'll still love you regardless."

Mint grew a bit teary eyed and bleating, unable to produce any real words due to how touched she felt at Avery's words of encouragement. The coordinator chuckled before looking at Knautia. "I plan to have you go up against her Ninetales. Other than Acacia, you're the only member of the team without a weakness to Ninetales' fire type attacks, and since you're more of a physical attacker, I figure that'll be better against Ninetales."

"Zeb. Zebstrika!" (Right, boss. You can count on me!) he said confidently.

Avery then looked at Daybreak. "You're the best shot against the Hatterne, assuming we make it that far. Plus you'll have some resistance to Ninetales' attacks if Knautia goes down before we can finish her off. If anyone can clench the victory, it'll be you."

Daybreak snorted and held his head high in the air. "Rapidash. Ra ra ra rapidash," (Naturally. I'll ensure we are victorious,) he responded.

Avery nodded before hearing the announcer give the mark that the battle was about to start. "Well, it's almost time. Let's do this." They quickly returned all of their team except for Gloria to their Pokéballs. Helping the Shaymin onto their shoulder, Avery watched as the doors swung open. Avery strode out with a smile on their face, waving along with Gloria to all the people in the arena. They weren't sure if that meant anything in the battling scene, but it was very typical in the contest circuits. As they made their way to their mark on the battlefield, Avery looked across and spotted Cassandra. They waved before giving a slight bow towards her, as if to indicate that this was an honor, and it was to many degrees.

This battle meant a change in fate for them both. For Cassandra it was something of self discovery, while for Avery, it was tested to see if the battle circuit was something they really wanted to do long term. This was a new beginning for them both.

[Neo Emolga]

Jarena Farrell and Violet Radcliffe
Battle Stadium Spectator Booth
Affected RPers: @Desolate Divine @Chakramaster

“Well, she’s actually not doing half-bad!” Jarena remarked with a bit more of an optimistic smile.

Though Avery’s Dubwool had taken out Cassandra’s Espeon with a Body Slam attack followed by a nasty Mega Kick strike to Espeon’s head after she had been thrown off following a Psychic Fangs attack, it didn’t spell instant doom for Cassandra’s team. Her Ninetales was able to take out the sheep Pokémon with a Flamethrower attack, but now it was down to see who would prevail between Avery’s Zebstrika and Cassandra’s Ninetales. It was still anyone’s battle and Jarena had to admit, it was quite exciting.

Both Jarena and Violet had been watching pretty intently until suddenly door was thrown open with a harsh slamming sound when it hit the wall. The two Ladies nearly jumped when they turned around and saw Lance standing by the doorway, right besides one of his Dragonites. There was no mistaking the former Indigo League Champion and his navy blue uniform, maroon-colored cape, and spikey red hair. Meanwhile, his tall and pudgy orange-colored Dragonite looked ready to unleash whatever nastiness his trainer commanded of him.

“Son of a…” Violet remarked, irked about the suddenly intrusion. “Hell of a way to knock, Lance.”

“I wasn’t trying to be polite,” Lance replied to her with a scowl on his face, crossing his arms as he stared down at her. “I don’t know what your friend Jon told you, but I’ve decided to take matters into my own hands. His concern is your deplorable Shadowcraft going public, but he’s being paranoid of a magic that’s been buried for centuries. We’re going to eliminate it and destroy every last trace of it easily to ensure it goes right back to being forgotten. And not just for fair battling’s sake, either.”

“Hey, look, buddy,” Jarena told him, thinking they were being more than fair with him. “We stopped, we’re trying to clean up now, you gotta give us a chance here. We said we were sorry and we agreed to stop doing the witchcraft thing. Cass did change back all your hired friends after all. We’re trying to follow Jon’s arrangement and-“

“I don’t give a damn about Jon’s arrangement!” Lance shouted back at her in anger. “You cheated the League, you stole from the League, you robbed me blind of my Champion title, and you won the hearts and minds of millions with your deception! You three utterly disgust me.”

Violet was expecting an attack at any moment. She knew it was the only reason why Lance would have his Dragonite already out of his Pokéball. Meanwhile, the four operatives were at the ready in case Lance needed backup, although they were confident the former Champion had things more than under control by himself.

“Lance, give it a rest, you’ll get them back,” Violet told him, still readying herself for any trace of aggressive action. “I can’t liquidate my assets and investments from here to start paying back the debt, which you still haven’t told me how much we owe anyway.”

“Sixty million,” Lance told her in a strong, aggressive tone. “And forget what Jon told you, he doesn’t write the rules. We do. We want that money now.”

Violet knew even among the three of them, making up sixty million was going to take a lifetime even after they sold everything. She didn’t know how Lance even managed to get that number, but given how much they had earned over the years, it likely wasn’t far off.

“Despite how I’m going to demand you show us an itemized list of how you got to that amount so my legal council can review it, we can’t pay you back sixty million right here,” Violet told him, thinking he was being terribly unrealistic and unreasonable. “I wish I had the money to just instantly fork it all over, but I don’t, so back off.”

I wish I had the money…

…I wish I had the money…

Unrealized by Violet, Jimmy’s Jirachi had bestowed a wish to both her and Jarena. As Violet said those words, suddenly the value of Violet’s investments increased exponentially. Though Violet’s stock portfolio was wide and diverse, Jirachi’s power had allowed those exact investments to go up just enough to boost her asset and investment value to reach the sixty million she wished to have, but without so much drastic change in any one stock that there would be a sudden cause for alarm in the market that would be far beyond normalcy.

Had she been able to get an opportunity to view her stock and investment portfolio on her phone, she would have jumped…

“Look, what more do you want out of us?” Jarena asked him, shrugging. “We already admitted we screwed up, we’ll do what we can to get your darn money back once we’re off this ship. And if you want your title back, that’s going to need to wait, too, buddy, we can’t have a battle since we don’t have our Pokémon on us and we’re not getting them back until after the ship docks. So stop getting your Dratini undies in a knot.”

To the both of them, it was completely absurd for Lance to even come in here like this.

“That still doesn’t undo the massive damage you’ve done,” Lance growled at them. “You three are even worse than Team Rocket when it comes to your crimes. I’m going to do the world a favor and make it my personal mission destroy every last trace of this Shadowcraft, starting with you.”

Their hearts were racing when he told them that. Without their Pokémon, they had virtually very little way to defend themselves… unless they broke their promise with Jon. And they could tell Lance waited for this moment when they were separated and away from Jon to make his move, confident he could cover this up in his own way… a way that would eliminate them completely and keep the truth about it hushed…

“We don’t want any more trouble!” Jarena screamed back at him. “How many times do we need to tell you that!? This is probably the millionth time by now!”

“Save your breath,” Lance told her in a dark tone, taking a glace toward his Dragonite. “You’ll soon be savoring every last one you have left to take.”

“Fine, we’ll never battle again if that’s what you want!” Jarena shouted in desperation, ready to surrender everything she had. “Heck, I don’t even want anything to do with the League after this, because you guys are bouncing bonkers out of your minds! And the money and stuff? Just take it all, money, titles, whatever! Even my plushie collection, I don’t care! Heck, I wish we could just go back to the Pokémon we were before so we could just leave this place for a life of peace and quiet and never have to deal with you rotten people ever again!”

“Jarena…” Violet whispered, having never seen her this fired up before.

Violet hadn’t realized just how passionate Jarena had become about Cassandra’s “Suicide Pact Plan B,” but now she could see it and see exactly why. She was tired of fighting this endless pressure and wanted an escape. Despite Jon’s best efforts and sacrifices, there were people in the League that would never forgive, never forget, never let go, and never trust them no matter how much money they handed back, no matter how much they tried to make amends, and no matter how many promises they made and did their best to fulfill. To Lance and the others, their lives were forfeit and beyond redemption. Despite Jon’s attempts to keep the witchcraft hidden instead of attempting to destroy it, Lance and operatives like Nathan, Doug, and many others weren’t going to settle for anything less than completely eradicating every last trace of Shadowcraft. Their books, their reagents, and the Diamond Ladies themselves as well… intending to keep it all hidden while making their tragic deaths look like an accident.

…I wish we could just go back to the Pokémon we were before…

In the meantime, her wish was heard. Ever since Cassandra had proposed it in her moments of desperation and Jarena had let the idea sink in and resonate within her heart, she could picture it all in her imagination, and to her, it was euphoric. Herself as a Buneary with her two best friends as a Furret and Eevee, exploring nature, traveling the world and its many hidden wonders across scenic valleys, rolling plains, lush forests, captivating mountains, and raging rivers in an unending wonderous adventure, learning more about Pokémon as Pokémon, and using their witchcraft powers to help Pokémon in need of rescue and help instead of cheating. It would prove they weren’t all bad, even if the societies of humanity that Jarena had gotten so sick of believed otherwise.

Cassandra’s wish for happiness, Violet’s wish for financial freedom and release from the League’s demands, and Jarena’s wish for the three of them to have a fresh start with new lives as Pokémon were starting to weave together…

“Replace the security tape feed,” Lance spoke into his radio and to the operatives around him. “When they find the remains, you tell them that bastard’s Latios did it.”

“Copy that, sir.”

“You monster!” Violet shouted at him. “Jon is just trying to help and set things right!”

“Dragonite…” Lance told his orange dragon companion, “…eliminate them with a Dragon Rush attack.”

But just before the orange dragon Pokémon charged in with draconic fury, a soft white glow had surrounded Jarena and Violet…

---

Cassandra Silvers
Battling Arena
Affected RPers: @Noblejanobii

It was coming down to the wire.

Where Cassandra was worried her Pokémon would be out of practice and unprepared for this tournament battle, they were holding their own against Avery’s Pokémon. It was still clearly anyone’s battle, and for the first time, there was a feeling of fulfillment and legitimacy for Cassandra. It was clear, they didn’t need the witchcraft. They weren’t weak, they weren’t unprepared…

It was the way it should have been from the start…

Ninetales had fought hard, finishing off the work that Espeon started with taking out Avery’s Dubwool, and was now locked in a ferocious battle with Knautia, Avery’s Zebstrika. Both of them were scuffed and beaten from the battle, barely able to hang on while Cassandra and Victini led them on. But in the end, no matter who won, Cassandra was proud of her Pokémon, and she admired Avery for coming this far against so much, especially with everything that happened today.

And just a moment after Cassandra had ordered Ninetales to strike Knautia with an Extrasensory attack, suddenly Cassandra was surrounded by a strange, white glow.

“What’s… this…?” Cassandra asked as she looked at her glowing hands, never seeing anything like this before.

“Vi-tii…” (“Uh… oh…”) Victini muttered, having a bad feeling he knew what this was about. “Vic-ti-NINI!” (“Bad timing, Jirachi, VERY, VERY BAD TIMING!!”)

The next thing Cassandra knew, everything went black and she found herself waking up from a sleepy, hazy feeling, as if from a very surreal dream that she couldn’t understand and didn’t get the answers to before the dream ended. She could hear gasping, murmurs, and suddenly everyone in the crowds was standing up out of their seats, all looking at her with shock and awe.

“Eee…” (“Wha… what happened?”) she asked, looking up.

And then she felt that familiar feeling as her smiling but bashful Victini and curious Ninetales appeared before her, now eye-to-eye with her much smaller self. Once again she was on all fours, covered with Eevee fur with long ears, foxlike tail, and that familiar fluffy beige fur collar around her neck. It was exactly how she felt and remembered it from earlier that day…

“Ee-vee-vee…!” (“Oh no…!”) Cassandra panicked, realizing she had returned to being an Eevee again. “Ee-vee-vee!” (“I can’t believe it, the Affliction Reversal Spell wears off!?”)

But then she looked up to Avery and saw nothing had happened to them. They were still human and showed no trace of returning to Buizel, so suddenly she realized that wasn’t the cause. And then she made the connection with what Victini said about Jirachi’s bad timing before everything suddenly went black. This had nothing to do with Shadowcraft. This was the wish that Jirachi had given to Jarena… and she could easily recall how much she wanted that escape into the life of a Pokémon… for all three of them…

“Victi-ni…” (“We don’t need keep going if you’re not up for it!”) Victini told her like a coach trying to help an injured player to their feet. “Victini-ni! Vic-tini!” (“They’ll understand, I’m sure! This is crazy! Silly Jirachi just doesn’t understand trainers aren’t supposed to get turned into Pokémon in the middle of a major semifinal tournament battle!!”)

“Eee…” (“No…”) Cassandra got up off the ground from her pile of clothes. “Ee-vee-vee!” (“I’m fine, we’re going to finish this, all the way to the end! We’re all in this together!”)

“Nineee…” (“That’s our girl.”) Ninetales smiled despite the harsh pain she was fighting off from Knautia’s Wild Charge attacks.

“Vi-tini!” (“You bet that’s our girl!”) Victini cheered. “Victini-ni!” (“You heard her, no one’s backing down now!”)

She didn’t care what the audience thought, what anyone watching thought, or what the announcers were likely squawking about amidst the commotion of her sudden and abrupt transformation. She wanted to have this battle in its full entirety. Both her and Avery had come too far to pull the plug on it now, and she wasn’t about to let a very ill-timed transformation stop her. The whole ship could go flying to the moon, spin upside down, and turn into chocolate goop for all she cared, they would find a way to work around it until the final knock-out was declared. She had already learned so much from this battle that almost didn’t happen. It told her that her Pokémon could battle without her witchcraft, that they were strong and determined, and that they could go all the way. She was battling like a true trainer now and it meant everything to her, even if she would have to finish it as an Eevee.

“Ee-vee!” (“Come on, we’ve got a battle to win!”) Cassandra told Victini and Ninetales with a determined smile.

And she would keep her promise. To always be standing besides all of them in every battle, before and after that, no matter who tried to stand in their way or what tried to stop them. And no one’s doubts, no one’s confusion, and no force in the world was going to deny her of it…