A small noise could be heard outside, followed by the sudden appearance of the Porygon-Z from earlier, who came sailing through the door accompanied by shards of glass and wood. The Pokemon bounced several times on the table, settling in Rebeca’s food, for which [i]everyone[/i] at the table flinched. Landing in that pool of burning hell must have been painful, at least if the Porygon’s eyes worked like ours. Tantalus was unclear on this matter. 

A man stood in the newly formed hole, definitely an Avatar. Tantalus stood, taken aback by the utter chaos which had just erupted. A cold fury gripped him tightly, so much so he found it hard to breathe. The woman who arrived first, Tantalus noting he could no longer call [i]her[/i] an intruder, followed by the man who had arrived shortly after and now this stranger who seems to believe that throwing Pokemon through doors is the best way to make an entrance. To make matters worse not a single one had [i]actually[/i] introduced themselves properly. [color=00aeef]What kind of zoo did these [i]animals[/i] escape from?[/color] Tantalus screamed mentally, directed at Apate, who jumped as she heard the bubbling rage seething out of him, being nervous anyway. His hand gripped the scepter tightly enough to draw blood as it slowly trickled down the length of the shaft. 

Afterwards, Hope spilled forth yet more nonsense before wishing Lugia the best, and vanishing in the night… Tantalus gazed down at the scepter still in his hand, and waited. It didn’t vanish, and a few drops of blood splashed to the floor. 

As Justine spoke to the offender, making her stance on the matter crystal clear - somewhat like the glass littering Tantalus’s dinner - the rage with him shattered, replaced by a hollow indignation. He gave a small sigh.

An icy glare was directed briefly towards the source of the most carnage, before he turned his attention to Porygon-Z. It didn’t look like the Pokemon would be injured badly, if at all, but Tantalus saw a way to salvage some of his bruised reputation. Walking around the table a little more forcefully than intended, he approached Rebeca’s plate. “Our host makes a perfectly eloquent argument. There is no civilized society in this [i]world[/i] that acts with such reckless abandon as you have shown here.” Tantalus proclaimed, bitterly. “Something tells me that the food might get a tad cold due to the [i]gaping hole[/i] now present, no? Forgive me, Rebeca.” Reaching down, he plucked Porygon out of the food, and cradled it within his arms, the scepter pointed out of the way. 

“Fret not, little one. if you are in pain, I shall remedy that.” As he spoke, Tantalus began to glow softly, light dancing around him in a myriad of colours. It began to diffract through the spikes on his shoulders, which in turn began to shimmer. He place a hand, softly, on the top of Porygon’s head, just below the spike. Turning to Kaze, he smiled at the boy, before the light began to ebb. Walking around the table, he place Porygon down next to Justine. 

Tantalus stood straight, speaking to those at the table. “However, I am aware that my prior outburst may have come across a little more harsh than anticipated. My wish is to learn more about those like me, something I have developed a deep interest in, although my enthusiasm has been known to be a tad... [i] strong[/i] at times.”

Looking down, he twirled the scepter Hope had left behind. “So I would ask that any further conversations can be continued civility between us Avatars as [i]equals[/i], rather than the squabbling children some of us, myself included, have acted like tonight. I apologize if I have caused offense in anyway.” 

Offering an apology bruised his ego, but it was a hit he could take under the circumstances. It had been a brute force approach, and showing one’s cards too early during a game of poker was never wise. The same could be said for the politics of the world at large. A game Tantalus played often, and one he always aspired to win.

“That being said, I’m starting to doubt whether or not that woman was actually an Avatar and not just a very talented street performer. I thought psychics were able to read minds? That one couldn’t even listen. A word of advice to anyone who wishes to hear it, when calling out a weakness in someone, it saturates the point to run away afterwards.” Tantalus offered a strained laugh. Dealing with people on this scale was exhausting. He returned to sit with his Mawile, handing her the shiny, hard-earned prize, and see what everyone else planned to do.