Aphelli

I'll grant you that I really didn't think of A). There are drawbacks though. Dragonite probably can't accelerate to supersonic speed on such short distances, needs several trips back and forth (and they don't even know where it's safe), and clearly can't fly even near supersonic speed without the wind/sonic bang horrifically mauling a human body (you know, like why you shouldn't stay outside in a hurricane, even if nothing fell on you, but at least three times worse). Maybe the other flying dragons could help, but does Saphira have her full team on her? B) seems to me like a losing proposition though. First, Sirius is in a boat and Saphira is in the air, so they'll have to find a (literal) common ground (which may, or may not be closer than the boat to the house). So added risk. Second, Sirius can seriously mess Saphira up without fighting (have the Seviper slither around, unnoticed, until it has sneaked behind her and... or Chandelure if you want to get more horrific), and has enough grunts and other Pokemon to keep her overwhelmed until it is too late. So in her value system, high risk, not high reward. Also a note: the Belrose sisters' home burnt when they were young. That probably explains such a fierce attachment to it (and why they didn't think of fleeing it with the Dragonite).

I beg to disagree with your comparison. Yureyu and WTC are, when you think of it, rather mirroring each other, while Tanzan Cove is different. In Yureyu/WTC, we are teamed with another character to reclaim people Team Meteor abducted. In Yureyu, the Team Meteor members are antagonistic and callous, yet are defeated bloodlessly, while Team Meteor members "staffing" the WTC aren't like this at all, but many are stabbed to death. In Yureyu, neither the MC, nor Cain, nor anyone else want blood to come out. It's even dubious whether they would be capable of it. Also, if Cain/MC started harming Meteors to get the children back, violence would escalate, the hostage children would get hurt (at best), and Sirius would win in the end, because he's unquestionably way more ruthless than anyone else there. But Saphira is defending her home and family (not trying to abide by "common-sense morality") in Tanzan Cove, so (although I don't really like to admit it) what other option does she have? She's outnumbered, so her only option to take them down is sinking the boat. Stalling has no point because our faction is, in effect, trapped in the house. She could negotiate or plead, but that is, in effect, taking a risk with her family -- she would be trading increased odds against her family to retain the hope to keep her hands clean (remember, time works against her and her ability to be a threat, hence against her bargaining power). Would you trust someone willing to make that trade to protect you? (PS: Despite the rather edgy talk, I'm speaking about story morality here. I probably couldn't apply it in real life, even in similarly unambiguous circumstances. Although I'm definitely glad I don't actually know.)

I haven't re-read all that you made Saphira do, but I don't remember anything that was like a cold-blooded murder. I do remember an unambiguous full-blown assault launched against her home by terrorists who had already abducted her sister and are twice as many as there are battlers defending the house. Honestly, I feel that at this level we're mostly talking self-defence. (Not to say that the needless Meteor deaths weren't sad, but I feel that calling Saphira a murderer for this is a bit too much. Also, most of the blame lies with Sirius. Had he been a competent squad leader, he'd have made sure his subordinates could swim, and then given them safety vests anyway). Now I really want to see her go to Aevium. Who wants to bet on how many hours she'd hold before her first kill? (I admit, that is being cheap)

Given how developed your story is, it's probably happening more often than you think! I'm quite worried about how badly Devon will mess everyone up (and hoping against hope the answer is: "not too much"). Also who is Violetta?

Hello! The hiatus is finally over. I expected it to last two or three weeks but actually it went for five weeks. Time does slip by. Shameful confession: I used to judge fanfiction authors doing that kind of stuff. Couldn't they manage their schedules, plan ahead, or something? But, well... Now, I know better. Anyway, the second part of the story is starting... It should be faster-paced than the first part, in my outline the Shelly fight is in "only" five chapters! I hope you enjoy. Also, I noticed that we're almost at 3200 views now! That's great! Part 2: Taking Responsibility "Man's motive power is his moral code." A controversial, yet influential, American best-seller from the 1950s Chapter 27: No Rest for the Wretched Character ratings:

Great! A new story! That's an interesting prologue. I wonder if the Pokemon's behavior, and that "rage" mode were natural (whatever the word might mean in a Pokemon story), or if they had to do with Rejuv's, um, specificities... But they could be a way to follow the game's plot with Pokemon you like more instead of the more common encounters. I'm very interested to see what comes next!

I don't have any other information than the dev blog about Rejuv's dev pace, but I don't think V13 can be coming before at least three months. I'm saying '"three" because I really don't want to be wrong, seeing as how dev started last August and the progress bar isn't half done yet (of course there's been unexpected stuff, progression isn't linear, they had to wait for Gen 8, Jan's been ill, and so on). You very likely will not get any estimate for the release date from the dev team, because it's hard to predict and quite a bit is unexpected. (and if you actually got one, well, it would probably be so visible that you wouldn't need to ask the question).

Nice catch about the Mega Pokemon. Although, I can't really bring myself to see Erin as a traitor. She's found friends, which she lacked her whole life... I can't find plausible a genuine betrayal. However, there could definitely be a more convoluted scheme where a smart enough opponent impersonates an obviously corruptive character, whom Erin wouldn't trust, that suggests bad decisions, and a few very good ones. (spoilers for Star Wars 3) Or Erin pretends to betray the group at a smart opponent's (pretending to be dumb) request; except that the seemingly innocuous action he asked her to take was really damaging. Or she starts going in way over her head trying that and it gets almost impossible to bail out.

Very true, but at some point he has to get an unlucky battle. (Then again, I thought the same when watching this very series, so perhaps I'm just jealous of how he manages to win while I struggle.)

I am not sure about the first one, but Venam should be in the sewers.

I'd suggest marketing it as a revolution in protective gear -- both stylish (for some definition of "style" at least) and inconspicuous (there's no way anyone saw the character art and thought "oh, she's wearing armor").

Just a random fact that I don't think anyone has pointed out in this thread yet (but I can't be the only one to wonder). Remember, we have rather solid evidence that Comet, Cosmia and Nim, under Crescent's orders, are conspiring to turn people to stone. The note that lured Talon to his (?) doom was in a red envelope. Yet, another streak of red envelopes appears in the lore: (spoilers WLL) This raises several issues: Crescent does not really act as an antagonist -- her most hostile action is her going out of her way to withhold information from us. And she wants us to smile, which is, well... not really villanous. Or she could be a smart Big Bad capable at least to feign some form of empathy, which is at least a useful way to deter questions. She imprisons Jenner and Zetta once, without bothering to go after them when they break out until we die. She may still be working for the Stormchasers at that point, and so she works towards Jenner's planned elimination. But the keystone of that plot is clearly Geara, and he doesn't interact at all with Crescent until Mt. Valor, so that's dubious. So perhaps instead Crescent is trying to derail that plan, as she's becoming rogue?

Unconditional support for the second line. The first line is a bit less clear to me: she was, but it was because it was a dumb plan executed idiotically that, moreover, endangered the main plan (Geara and Zetta trading Nim for Melia atop Valor Mountain). (1) I don't know, you're only paranoid if you're wrong. I'm not too sure about talking styles, and Erick is still a third choice for a Leader so I don't think he holds too much sway over West Gearen (it's supposed to be Blakeory territory iirc). (2) Perhaps. And we already have a new (or perhaps not, who knows) evil group coming to light (Robot Amanda), and two incoming threats: Isha's "baby" rising, and the Xenpurgis. Also, we do know a few things about Celine -- spoilers for a sidequest

I don't think I have commented on this thread before, as I'm more of a lurker, but I wanted to express my delight at seeing that your run, which I immensely enjoy, wasn't dead. I loved your recap, even though finding the exact correspondance took me a while. What's your Madame X theory again? I look forward to your analysis about Crescent too.

I've got a really stupid idea... (atop Eclysia Pyramid) Ren: Stop talking as if you've already won! We're still here and we will stop you! Flora: But... I've already won? There's nothing else for you. As I speak, the Judicial building is being taken over by my loyal followers. It won't be long until Grand Dream City is completely under my control. Perhaps, if you sacrificed your three friends you desperately tried to save and stayed in the city... Things would have been different. Ren: I don't even know what to say to you... I've never met someone so far gone... So disconnected of her humanity. MC: As you met Nastasia and Madame X, he's saying something. Ren: MC, it's not really the moment. Flora: Whatever, it doesn't matter. MC: It totally does! Just because you're worse than Madame X doesn't mean you can't be reasoned with. You just need the right chips. Flora: Always a pain in the neck, MC. You and Erin. Thank the heavens that bitch actually blew up with the Ball. Aelita, threateningly: What did you just say? MC: Whoa, everyone calm down, I'm sure we can find a compromise. Or kick Flora's ass through proxy, whatever. Huey: Can we do that in fifteen minutes? Ren: Sure we can. Reina, got my back? MC: Guys, it's Flora we're talking about. She has a contingency plan even if we win. I'd rather we bargained. Flora: I don't care, I already won. MC: Hear out my offer, still. Flora: Fine, it suits me to see you waste time. MC: You relent within thirty seconds, and I don't blow you up. Flora: Don't try to bluff, it looks pathetic. MC: Fine. (Heavy silence, then ephemeral boom through the loudspeakers in Ryland's mouth -- The Forgotten Prince falls limp) There goes Bladestar HQ. Aelita, mind guiding Ryland to the panel? He looks kinda out of it. Ren: What exactly happened? MC: We set up bombs at the Bladestar HQ. After I patiently explained Erin that wanting to take Flora down by herself was idiotically self-indulgent, she came up with amazing plans to smuggle explosives. It was actually so easy I kind of pity Flora. Her grunts really were morons.

Are you sure we see actual bodies? It looks rather like armor (although, it could still be an artificial body underneath)... I didn't think of androids for Nancy, I always assumed "doll" referred to maids. But indeed, why would a maid be able to program? It makes more sense indeed if Nancy is an android. Though I do wonder how come the MC didn't notice, if such is the case. A random question though: is it confirmed that maids are Garufan? Aren't they more ancient, as Indriad is supposed to be way older than that? That notion is a bit tricky when you realize that Madame X has a Time Diamond. Basically, she's able to go anywhere in time, which is... tricky. About Madame X's Soul Stone (I don't find anyone to quote): Yveltal is pretty far away at that point, why would its Soul Stone gain precedence over ours?

You also have solutions written out in the following forum thread: https://www.rebornevo.com/forums/topic/49017-reborn-maps-puzzle-solutions/

But Crescent (or any alter ego) doesn’t show up either in the bad future when we get Decimated.

I also wondered about that. I thought of several explanations: 1) There are several people, related or not, taking Madame X’s armor (the Madame X we had atop Eclysia Pyramid wasn’t really consistent with every other encounter we had). Can be explained by the “armor factory” in Amethyst Cave. 2) The Madame X in Eclysia Pyramid has had her memory rewritten as well. 3) It’s a much younger Madame X which we meet at Eclysia (hence maybe why she insists to lock Aelita and us up). 4) The alliance between the Surfer Duo and Madame X is only circumstancial. They have an agreement stating that some targets and objectives are off limits (to limit the potential for infighting or treachery).

No, I'd suggest working with them towards a "spot the impersonator" show. Better money this way (and you can keep tabs on them more effectively).

That's a good and clear summary (and yes, your conclusion is sound), but it doesn't explain everything, far from it... Here are a few questions: 1) What kind of "danger zone" are we speaking about? Apart from being obviously working with the culprit behind the stone phenomenon and impersonating someone who is actually around? What exactly is a bigger threat? And how are they getting out of it? 1 bis: Aren't they attracting exactly the attention of any agent who could be after them? 1 ter: Or are they cooperating under threat of petrification? If so, how do you qualify this mess as "getting out of the danger zone" instead of "staying alive"? 2) How exactly can Cosmia (who is going out of her way to cover up Madame X's identity) ally with Crescent, or simply take her orders, instead of getting pushed off a cliff? (2 bis: Is Cosmia Madame X?) (2 ter: Is Crescent indeed going out of her way to keep information from the cast?) (2 quater: Was Crescent another alias for Cosmia, or conversely? [combine with 2 bis]) 3) Why of all people impersonate Nancy and the MC? 4) How is "turning Axis High students to stone" any relevant to whatever "big danger the Universe is in"? (4 bis: is Crescent thinking small-scale when she says she wants to see the MC smile because there's so little time left?) (4 ter: Is Crescent the craftedly deceptive Big Bad?)

This sounds like the stupidest plan in the entire game, including Team Anti-Assist's antics and the policemen's attempt at striking it rich. Seriously, no one is better than the entire cast at failing to come up with useful information. Isha has some sort of connection with Team Xen, of course, but you make a point. If the vaccines were behind the Xenpurgis, what exactly could we do? What could Flora do? I have a couple of possibilities in mind, but none seem very plausible: 1) the Xenpurgis needs some sort of specific activation sequence (for instance, set the GDC dome to radiate at some eldritch frequency to activate whichever nasty stuff could be in the vaccines -- or in the water, the food, and so on...) 2) Flora knows she can't do anything about it but needs something to motivate her troops after she sent a lot of grunts to be slaughtered. Something is a bit strange though -- Flora refers to the Xenpurgis as something that every Bladestar grunt knows, and yet nobody seems to treat it as something serious? Is "Xenpurgis" the GDC equivalent of a real conspiracy theory? Why didn't she release (even anonymously) the information, spread the rumor, since she gains from every loss of face from the GDC authorities?

I haven't seen anyone make this point, but Elias can't use Snorlax or Slaking, because sloth and gluttony are deadly sins. These Pokemon would even have to be curbed on a Holy Field...