DNA Melonvolve

Having just secured the prisoners that had attempted to kidnap Mirai, Melanie sulks in her room. She alternates between quiet, depressed mumbling to herself and enraged, incoherent yelling, varying to such a degree any passersby may think there are two distinct people in the room. It isn't long before she slams open the door, all traces of her Ululane persona removed. With a brief stop at a PC, she heads to the deck of the ship and approaches the railing to look out towards the sea. She holds up the pokeball and looks at it with a huff. And then a sigh.

"You really are gone, right?" The words echo in Melanie's mind as if waiting for a response. "As insane as you were, it was nice to have...someone else...not like I'm completely alone anymore, it's just...the only other one that would even remotely have an existential crisis seems to have accepted her role with no problems." She laughs a bit, louder than she'd intended. "Y'know, I'd always wanted a little brother or sister...but you made it clear that I'm...not really cut out to be the older sibling, right? I think I've brought my insecurities to everyone on the ship...some multiple times." She waits a few minutes for an answer with a growing frown. They'd merged, hadn't they? Why did she still feel so...incomplete? She holds the pokeball to her head. Well I think I do know why, I just...hoped it was something else. Too bad this glitchy existential shit isn't an exact science. Or really a science at all. Lecia would probably know something if her imaginary friend didn't seem completely opposed to the very existence of it. Huh, does that make me the expert on the subject?

Melanie carefully removes her normal wear and sets it aside, revealing a Melkini beneath. With a running start, she dives off of the side of the boat, releasing her serpentine pal as she hits the water. Having not seen the old boy in some time, it takes more than a little effort to get Reeve to stop licking her while also not drowning. "Hey, Reevey. Wanna go for a swim?" The skeletal Gyarados could be mistaken for a Lillipup with how excited he is. Mel puts her rebreather on and finds a spot to get a solid grip on Reeve. Within moments it's like an underwater rollercoaster and it takes every fiber of Melanie's being to avoid having a massive panic attack. After what seems like an eternity, Reeve pulls back up to the surface, carefully coiling himself to face his trainer, the pale yellow light that resides within his skull turns blue briefly with concern. Melanie is barely able to pull herself into a seated position; if she wasn't sore from the fight earlier, she's damn sore now. She flashes him a smile, putting the light at ease.

"Remember when you used to be this big?" She holds her hands out to the approximate size of a Magikarp. "Almost killed me even!" She frowns as she recounts today's battle. "I...am too reckless too often...you'd think I'd have learned by now..." She opens a capsule, revealing some sort of tar-like ink, left over from a previous ritual. "And you're not any better!" She teases. The serpent gives its trainer a curious look. "We're similar, right? I'm just going to make us even more similar..." She begins painting on Reeve's bones, drawing larger versions of her own tattoos where applicable. "Well, you don't really have armpits...or legs...but what the hell, I can just pick somewhere, right? Like pin the ass on the Gyarados!" From the star on the forehead to the tramp stamp, Melanie paints her pokemon. Once she's finished, she looks up at Reeve. "Hey...have you ever seen my...other form? I can't remember...but I think I've got a game we can both play without worrying about you crushing me."

Mel dives into the water, and a second later, another abyssal titan rises up, with Melanie comfortably seated in its mouth. She stares at Reeve with a sad smile for a few minutes before beckoning him over for a quick lick and a nuzzle. "Seriously, you must have been a cat in a previous life...you...you know how to play tag right? The one who's it has to chase the other. And Reeve..." She plants a kiss on his cheekbone. "...you're it!" With that, the bone worm closes its mouth around Melanie and dives, Reeve quick to give pursuit. They dart back and forth in the water, with Melanie leading Reeve in patterns that seem to be simultaneously erratic and deliberate. It could almost be some strange aquatic dance. Each time Reeve is just about close enough to nudge the doppelganger's tail, it veers in a new direction. Eventually, it's able to lead Reeve in a loop that draws tighter and tighter. They move faster and faster, a small whirlpool forming above the pair. Reeve starts closing the distance, he can see the tail again, and it's getting closer and closer. His mouth opens, and just as he can feel it close around the tail of his rival...he feels something close around his own tail. Confused, he tries to look over as far as he can without letting go himself.

It's hard for him to get a read on Melanie as she pokes out from the eye socket of the other serpent, what with being in an underwater vortex. But she seems to be trying to mouth something to him. He tries to focus on her, but it gets difficult as the skeletal ouroboros spins faster and faster. It doesn't take too long until...or wait has it, how long has he been spinning? Reeve tries to remember what the hell he was doing, but it's just so fuzzy. He can catch a few glimpses of some glowing patterns forming on his counterpart, but he's distracted by the fact that the serpent loop even now continues to draw tighter. The only thing that seems to stick out clear in his mind is that he really does love Melanie, he's glad she still had time to play with him.

The whirlpool begins to fade, and a lone skeletal serpent emerges from the center. Its jaw hangs loose, revealing a young girl sitting with her knees pulled up to her chest on its tongue. The warm salty water alongside the cold is an odd sensation for the girl as she lets out a few more sniffles, looking up to see a blue light patrolling the eye sockets of the beast. As she stares at it, she begins to wipe away the tears. "...you were right though...I need to enjoy things...people more. And to do that...I need to protect them. You and Reeve actually had a lot in common, huh? Oh, and no giving me shit about the Ululane thing. It helps me act like you more...and still retain some of my individuality by separating it. But I guess what I meant to say was...thank you...weird extradimensional thing...and Reeve. I'll make sure neither of you is ever lonely again." The light shifts to a vibrant yellow and the undead Gyarados makes its way back to the Mutiny.