route_1065 | APPARENTLY THIS GAME HAS A LOGS COMM?

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APPARENTLY THIS GAME HAS A LOGS COMM?

Who: Emmy Altava (

snapandscoot) and Solf J. Kimblee (

explosivecombat). SOMETHING DIFFERENT, I KNOW...............
Where: Lake of Rage
When: Forward dated about a week or two!
Summary: Emmy cashs in on that promise Kimblee made to take her away for a few days or two; also, a chat about his past which may or may not end rather badly.
Rating: PG at most, again.
Log:

It hadn't taken very long for Emmy to make it to Mahogany town, all things considered; the combination of Fly, her bike and Surf cut the travel time down quite significantly. Throughout the journey, the information Descole had given her played through her mind constantly. Could it really be true?

There was only one way she was going to find out properly; asking the man himself. But she dreaded the thought of that conversation. Her and Kimblee had had some difficult conversations in the past, but this...this would be the hardest.

She didn't want to risk hurting him. What if it was just a very cruel rumour? What if he was badly upset by it? She'd been a mess the last time they'd nearly said good-bye to each other for good, and that time he had apologized, brought her back....would he do the same this time, if things went badly?

But she pushed that to the back of her mind as she laughed and grabbed his arm, working to keep her balance on top of Nagara, his Steelix. He had kept his promise and was taking her to the Lake of Rage, north of Mahogany town. Her gym battle could wait; the gym wasn't going anywhere, after all.

"Ah, I can see it, Mr Kimblee! Look, it's beautiful!"

Her camera is out in seconds, snapping photographs of the lovely view Nagara is giving her of the lake. She takes some time to snap one of her charming companion, and the Steelix itself. It makes her think of the gift she's got in her bag for him, and she smiles to herself.

With any luck, he'll love it.

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Once Emmy sinks back into her chair, Kimblee busies himself with his gloves, sliding them back on to cover the arrays. He's more comfortable with them on than the other way around; the thought disgusts him somewhat.

"It was, yes. I imagine this also explains those thousands of deaths you were asking about."

"....it does, yes."

She turns to look out the window, then, searching for something to momentarily take her mind off everything. She sees Magik in the distance, splashing around with another Gyarados, and Nida and AJ in front of the window, the Nidoqueen happily feeding the baby Abra berries. Abbie is invisible behind her, inside the restaurant, and Emmy can sense her concern. A lot of her Pokemon were concerned, really, when they found out the truth about her friend.

Emmy is trying her hardest not to judge him, but she's never...well. One doesn't usually tend to converse with people who have killed even one person, let alone....thousands. But he's still Mr Kimblee, isn't he? He's still her friend, the one she enjoys spending so much time with. Does this have to change everything?

"...it must have been a terrible war."

She's never seen war outside novels, and does that even count? How could she possibly judge him for what he's done when she has no idea what sort of stress a person could be under in that horrible sort of situation?

"Mr Kimblee, can I...."

The civilian deaths, as horrible as it sounds, are explainable; Descole said it himself. It was a war situation. Kimblee is a soldier.

...an incredibly good soldier, by the sounds of it.

"....can I ask why you...the superior officers...why you killed them."

Kimblee nods a bit at the assertion about the war - his own thoughts regarding anything that happened there aside, objectively speaking yes, it was terrible; there's no sense in denying that. An entire group of people was annihilated; he supposes it's a shame.

As for her next question...well. He'd expected that eventually; he keeps his gaze downcast, continuing to fuss with his gloves, while he answers her.

"Well, first of all, given what I've told you about alchemy, I wouldn't be surprised if you found it to be a horrible craft; that's far from the case. Those of us who join the military are looked down upon in society - considered freaks, called the 'dogs of the military;' one of the basic tenets upheld by alchemists is that of 'Be Thou For The People," meaning that alchemy is to be used for the benefit of mankind. Most alchemists interpret this as requiring a pacifistic - or at least nonaggressive - standpoint. Those in the military see it differently; they see no reason why using alchemy to defend their own shouldn't be considered as valid a means of service as anything else.

With that in mind, there are certain things that are considered unforgivable, even among those of us who have chosen to serve the military. Unfortunately, the first law binding State Alchemists is that we must obey the military at all costs, regardless of how repulsive we find their orders or actions."

And all of that is true. It's perfectly true; just misleading as hell. This is what Kimblee does, what he's good at; not necessarily lying, just presenting things in a way that's favorable.

"The men I killed had ordered and taken part in one of the acts considered an abomination, both against nature and against humanity. When the war broke out, there were soldiers of Ishvalan heritage among our ranks; they had sworn loyalty to Amestris, yet they were sequestered by the Amestrian military anyway - they were imprisoned deep in Ishval and, as it turns out, subjected to horrifying human experimentation while locked behind bars or tied down like dogs. Several of these experiments involved using alchemy in ways that I won't describe unless asked; should you choose to do so, bear in mind that these are things that human weapons consider unforgivable.

Again, having joined the military in the first place, it was no longer my place to judge or speak out against such things. However, these people had committed sins against nature; from an alchemist's standpoint, they had forfeited their right to even be considered human, the things they had done were that hideous."

He leaves it there for now; he imagines the implications will do the rest for him.

Emmy listens quietly to his story, shuddering slightly. His world...it sounds so violent and terrible. She misses London. Even if Johto really isn't that bad of a place, it just can't compare to home. Especially not with all this Team Rocket business driving her crazy. So she focuses on what Kimblee is saying to her, trying to block out such thoughts. She can't go home right now, so it's pointless dwelling on it.

As his explanation continues, she begins to see him in a different light. Or rather, it's closer to how she saw him before Descole informed her of his past.

"So you....you killed them because they were evil people, Mr Kimblee."

She knew it would be worth talking to him about this! Emmy relaxes slightly in her chair, a small, relieved smile coming across her face. He's practically a hero of justice!

"Well, I don't see why that's anything too bad! I mean, if what you said is true and they were doing all those horrible things, I....w-well I don't condone murder, per say, but your world sounds so violent and terrible, I mean, what else could you do to get rid of them?"

...as she continues, however, that smile fades, and she picks up her teacup out of habit.

"...it's just a shame that you had to suffer for it. Seven years, that's....quite a long time."

"It's fine now; the leader of our country reviewed my case eventually. I suppose he found it sympathetic, though I don't know for sure; I was told not to ask questions upon my release. But the point is that I was pardoned several months ago, in Amestris' time; obviously, it's been longer for me what with the time that's passed here - a bit over a year."

He pauses for a moment, finally making eye contact with her again properly. "It wasn't too horrible, all things considered. I was never mistreated or deprived. Looked down upon, surely, but that was to be expected, given what I'd done.

That's why I don't do terribly well in caves here, by the way. Small, dark spaces, combined with the lack of stimulus outside of the constantly repeating music, aren't terribly kind to me. It wasn't exactly an issue in Amestris; I think it's the music that's doing it somehow. But it does some unpleasant things to my head."

"...you're...quite something, Mr Kimblee."

Emmy leans back in her chair again, returning her gaze to the Pokemon playing outside her window, smiling softly.

"Your world sounds like a dreadfully dark place, but if it can produce something as incredible as alchemy, real alchemy...I think that's rather magical, too. I suppose I'll never really understand that sort of thing, being from London, but I....I'm enjoying hearing about it. Even if it is horribly creepy at times."

She returns her eyes to his, that smile still on her face.

"...thank you. For talking about it with me, I...I didn't mean to bring up any horrible memories, especially on our little trip away. I just wanted to get it out in the open. I didn't think it would be fair on you to let it fester inside my head."

Emmy still has many questions, too many questions, but for now she's had enough of this grim topic. They can be saved for later, perhaps when they're in a more serious setting. After all, Kimblee is a hero! And he certainly doesn't look like a mass murderer, sitting there like a gentleman, having tea with her. Besides, he was in a war, and people are forced to do all sorts of horrible things in a war that they would never do if they didn't-

'However, when he's in front of those who know, he acts as though it's some sort of achievement.

-Descole's voice cuts through her thoughts like a knife, and she blinks sharply, surprise flitting over her face. No. She can't...she can't ask him about that. Not when things have ended so well, no....

"We'll speak no more of it while we're here, if you like. I don't want to ruin our trip."

"If you have any questions, I would prefer you ask them. It might be best to not have things like that hanging over our heads like the Sword of Damocles; it's your choice, however, as I know this is greatly unpleasant and it must be rather difficult for you."

Kimblee studies her for a moment; the sudden flickering of her expression had caught his attention, surely, but he leaves it for the moment - he clearly has something else to address first.

"But whether we discuss it further or not, Miss Altava, I do need to point out that you heard some horrible things about me. Even if you couldn't be sure that what you'd heard was true, those were incredibly serious accusations regarding mass murder and genocide, and yet you came up here alone with me.

Suppose I actually had been some sort of serial-killing maniac, and I was displeased that you found out about my past? There's a lake right over there, full of massive serpents with far too many teeth; due to our arrangement, you wouldn't be missed for at least three days, and that's assuming that you told anyone where you went in the first place. I don't want to sound ungrateful, because I certainly appreciate that you trust me as much as you do, but what have I told you about engaging potentially dangerous people in situations where you're alone?"

Despite his wording and the sense of hardness in his tone, his expression isn't entirely unkind; just rather serious.

"Bluntly put, I'm honored that you trust me so much, but Miss Altava, you're going to do my head in one day."

Emmy has always been an 'act first, think later' sort of girl. She's never hesitated to rush into all sorts of situations, regardless of how dangerous they could be. Three massive thugs are threatening you and your friends? Run in and try to beat them all up! Your new boss is driving away? Speed like a maniac to try and catch up with him! He's not stopping? Merge right in front of his car, that'll make him stop! Said boss and your other friends are on a deserted island with some sort of lunatic gamemaster? Where the hell did she put her seaplane, let's go-

"....hm. Well, I suppose I never really thought of it that way!"

Over in her invisible corner, Abbie the Alakazam is facepalming. With both hands.

"Besides, you hate Gyarados'!"

Kimblee is trying so hard not to join you, Abbie. So very hard.

"Well, yes, I do, but that's entirely beside the point."

"Mr Kimblee."

Alright Emmy, time to...pretend you actually were prepared for this situation! Maybe she really should start thinking about things before leaping right on in...but it's so much more fun this way...

"Ever since that list came out, I've been heeding your advice and being more careful. See?"

And Abbie the Alakazam materialises behind her, trying her very best to look professional and serious. Because she is a serious Pokemon with a serious trainer. Yes.

"Abbie follows me wherever I go, hiding away! And she's level 100 now, so I depend on her quite a lot!

Besides, if we're going to get technical, I believe I could take you! My Pokemon are a lot stronger now, after all! Plus, I've never been one to shy away from a good physical fight, and I think I could take you on!"

That's her story and she's sticking to it, Mr Kimblee!!

"Sorry for worrying you and all that!"

"And yet you had to ask me whether I had any water Pokémon when we first arrived. You don't know the entirety of what I raise, what level my Pokémon are, or what I have on me. And you've shown me that you have at least one member of your team on you that's horrendously underleveled."

He's smirking a bit, however, despite his words. "You don't have to justify anything to me, Miss Altava, and as you've said, you're not a soldier. And I suppose it's possible that I'm too suspicious. Just allow me to implore you to be more careful and we can move on, all right?"

"....I suppose I could take your advice, Mr Kimblee."

But she too is smiling, leaning back in her chair with her hands behind her head.

"But why worry when I have AJ to defend me?"

"Ah, well, I certainly wouldn't want to doubt the almighty powers of AJ."

He glances out the window for a moment before continuing. "I really do appreciate your asking me about all this, and trusting me to come out here with you in the first place. It's incredibly kind of you."

"A true lady should always act with kindness, Mr Kimblee~"

But it's clear his words have had an effect on her; her smile goes from cheeky to warm, and she places her hands neatly on the table, her gaze on his.

"There was no way I could judge you until I'd heard your side of the story, Mr Kimblee. I owed you that."

You know what? Nevermind his face, this crockery is absolutely fascinating! Let her just examine her teacup thoroughly, yes. Goodness, this pretty pattern....he doesn't mind if she just stares at it a bit, does he?

"You mean a lot to me, you know. Why else would I take so many pictures of you?"

.....um.

"My...goodness that sounded incredibly creepy, that wasn't....that didn't quite come out right. What I meant was, you're a very dear friend of mine and I love taking photos of my friends; ask the Professor, I've got tons of him!

....should I just...stop talking?"

"...Miss...Altava..."

For a moment, Kimblee doesn't seem sure of what to say other than...well, that; he simply stares at her as though trying to get the words to leave his head in the form of more or less coherent sentences.

...and then he laughs softly, the sound light.

"I don't find it creepy at all, you know. As I said when you showed the album to me in the first place, it's incredibly flattering."

"I hope so!"

Back to beaming, then!

"I'll have to ensure that I take plenty more of you, then, especially if I'm going to be able to make another album's worth!"

Emmy stands up, then, brushing the creases out of her coat and running her fingers through her hair. They've spent enough time in this cafe, and by the looks of what's going on outside, AJ is going to burst if Nida forces any more berries down her throat. And what on earth is Magik doing with that other Gyarados? The last thing she needs are more eggs...

"Since the tea has gone cold, did you want to go for another walk around the lake?"

....wait wait wait, let her pause, a look of mock seriousness coming over her face as she goes into a casual fighting stance.

"Or should I be wary of doing such a thing with you? See, I did listen! I can take you, Mr Kimblee!!"

Oh, how dare you amuse him like this, Emmy -

"No, between you and AJ I think you'll be rather safe."

He stands as well, slipping that photo album into that bag with the rest of his belongings. "Shall we, then?"

"We shall!"

And as Emmy walks over to happily take his arm again, said baby Abra promptly teleports onto her head, nestling into her hair. She sighs, trying not to smile too hard.

"Between all of you, I must admit; I feel very safe, Mr Kimblee."

Those other questions will have to wait until another time...if ever. Pushing the thoughts to the back of her mind, she links her arm in his, wondering how it could be possible that such a lovely man could be responsible for such things.

It's a puzzle she isn't sure she ever wants to solve.

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APPARENTLY THIS GAME HAS A LOGS COMM?

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