@Ambra @Psyker LandsharkTechno music blared through the room, growing steadily louder.
"Uuuuuugggghhhh..." Astrid winced and rolled over. Every beat made her head pulse in pain. She sat up and fumbled at the snooze button on her phone, which for some reason wouldn't work, the alarm only increasing in volume. A giggle sounded from the device. With bleary vision, she saw a familiar pair of blue eyes appear on the screen as the phone lifted and floated across the room.
"Nnngghhclipse!" The Rotom's name came out as an incoherent grumble. Astrid made to clamber out of bed, only to topple and thud to the floor in an unceremonious tangle of sheets. The hotel room lurched around her. Eclipse, with a taken-aback yelp, hopped out of the now silent phone and left it on the desk, floating over to make sure Astrid was alright.
"Ugh... crash landing damage appears to be minimal..." Astrid put on that over-technical voice, to reassure Eclipse.
"Although an urgent refuel is necessary." She took several deep breaths, rubbing her eyes, her knuckles coming away covered in sparkly blue eyeshadow. Looking down, she saw she was still in a rather crumpled party dress. Just how drunk had she been? Once sure she could stand without either collapsing or puking, she staggered upright and slumped into the desk chair, starting up the coffee machine. This was as torturous as it was embarrassing, although it was nothing coffee wouldn't fix. Isaiah would probably roll his eyes at her later during the ceremony, or tell her all that caffeine wasn't good for her, but he should know a cure was a cure...
The ceremony.
"Oh crap!" This was the worst day to have slept through her alarm. She jabbed at her phone, and breathed a huge sigh of relief. Only 9:20 am.
"Whew, got to thank you Eclipse. It might take some turbo mode on my part, but we'll get back on our preplanned course..." She frowned at the message that popped up.
"Uh, change of plan. We're meeting at the office for some reason?" With clumsy fingers, she checked her other notifications. Her stomach tightened, which this time had nothing to do with the hangover. The ceremony, the news announced, was cancelled.
Her still-foggy mind raced. Had something happened to one of the other gym leaders on the way back? Wyndon could be rough, and although the gym leaders could handle themselves, bad things could happen to anyone. She hurriedly breakfasted, showered and dressed, trying not to assume the worst, which was easier said than done when so much rested on the gym challenge. Whatever had gotten such a monumental event cancelled could be nothing short of dire.
Despite her groggy state, she arrived at the office with time to spare. Plopping herself down in the nearest seat, she sipped at her coffee flask, waiting for Hyacinth to arrive. When he did, Astrid's heart sank even further. She could tell from the chairman's appearance how serious this was. The lines in his face looked deeper, and more grey than before peppered his hair.
She stared as he spoke, the news sinking in like a leaden weight. Ryker was missing. Kidnapped. Even though just yesterday, he'd been chatting and drinking with everyone, sharing his excitement about the upcoming challenge. Fiona broke the silence that followed, asking about a plan. Astrid nodded, leaning forward.
"Fiona's right. Is there anything we can do to help? We're gym leaders, we've got to do something!" From what she'd read, Elesa and the other Unova gym leaders didn't just sit around doing nothing when trouble arose. This was the time to take their example.
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