[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/S4wTL3X.png[/img]
[color=SandyBrown][b]Mentions:[/b][/color] Chairman Hyacinth [@Ambra], Everybody Else[/center]

The thrill and excitement that was originally meant to be the morning of the Galar League's Opening Ceremony had turned into a rude awakening for Mika and the inner circle. He had awoken hours prior to the event for an arrange with his media manager in Motostoke, overseeing the final editing process after finalizing all of the footage for a special program of [i]Earth Power[/i] to debut alongside the day's peak of social media activity. Afterwards, he'd shown up to the venue early in order to prepare his surprise to the onlookers-- it was in the midst of creating his camouflage on the turf that the news suddenly broke out all over that the Opening Ceremony was cancelled. On his phone, beyond the outrage across the networks, a familiar face in the Chairman beckoned in a lone notification. [i]Half-past ten o'clock, Hyacinth Tower.[/i]

Mika had arrived in Wyndon on the back of Ariete, who needed a reassuring prate after sensing the distress in her trainer. Through the pacing in the hallway to the silence of the meeting room, he'd twiddled his thumbs and listened quietly to the tic of an imaginary clock hand, the stress in his brow not ceasing as the meeting proceeded. The cancellation of the Opening Ceremony roused too many questions-- what would become of the Gym Challenge proper? What was so unprecedented that it warranted such a state of emergency? At the very least, the revelation would quickly put the latter to rest.

A case of kidnapping where Ryker was nowhere to be found.

It all just didn't seem real to Mika, who was fairly acquainted with the Champion. [color=SandyBrown][i]Surely, he wouldn't have gone without protest![/i][/color] With the signs of a human struggle, it was entirely possible that Ryker had been caught unawares and ill afforded the opportunity to resist. The Champion's assailants even had the forethought to take their victim's Pokemon, making it an obvious premeditated crime.

Having remained silent for the delivery of the minute details, the Chairman's intention to proceed with the overall Gym Challenge caused Mika to jump from his seat and angrily crumple the crown of his safari hat on the table. [color=SandyBrown][b]"That's utterly ridiculous and you know it. Cover it up and put on a smile for Galar?"[/b][/color] the shorter leader quipped in uncharacteristic fury, turning towards Chairman Hyacinth. [color=SandyBrown][b]"What happens if we're next? You want us to wait, but the ones who took Ryker won't. Fuck the finances, we need to find him and deal with this."[/b][/color]