“C’mon Savage, do one! One cartwheel!”

  Hoshi watched the lickitung flop over with a gurgle of protest, and at his side Casca tilted her head. “Hm. Form leaves something to be desired.”

  Bubbles, meanwhile, was turning lazy circles around the whole kerfuffle. The sandshrew had indeed learned Rollout sometime during their frantic trip through the wilderness, though teaching the disobedient salamander the move was proving to be an uphill battle even with a physical demonstration. “No,” Hoshi agreed. “No, it really isn't. Hey Kenny!”

  “Yeah?!”

  “How long’ve you been trying this?”

  The muscular grunt’s frown was like a great canyon across the face of the moon. “‘Bout an hour?” Woof… “He'll get it. Just gotta keep goin’ at it!”

  Hoshi considered intervening – there had to be a better way to motivate Savage than what Kenny was doing – but he'd spent two days now coaching the rabble, and he didn't want that to encroach on his break time. I've got enough on my plate without helping Kenny evolve his Pokémon. I haven't even trained my own monsters since… Hmm. Actually, that wasn't a bad idea.

  “Hey Casca, wanna spar? Candy against Champ, we'll see whose evolution put them on top.”

  While his girlfriend hadn't discovered a secret love for Pokémon battling over the last few days, the prospect still drew out a competitive smile. “Oh? For what stakes?”

  “How about…” Winner gets to draw something on the loser's face? No, I might want to de-stress but that's a little too juvenile. “Loser takes the winner's team around for a few battles?” There we go, that's better. Practical and fun.

  The tilt of her chin revealed the answer even before she'd opened her mouth. “Hmm… deal! I did a bit with Candy earlier, but nothing serious. C’mon, I wanna see you try and win with just Scuttlebutt!”

  The enthusiasm drew a smile of his own across Hoshi’s face, and with a spring in his step he turned away from Kenny's efforts. Casca was already clearing a circle, and his hand went down to Champion’s ball – where the different shape of the Rocket-made tool caused his brain to briefly short-circuit. Guh… that's gonna take some getting used to. Unlike the ‘mon’s previous Indigo Ball his new home was smooth, the only friction being that added by the raised sections along the top and bottom. These things are definitely a downgrade in terms of ergonomics… but if what Neek said is true, then it's worth it and then some.

  And then, as he drew the ball and expanded it, a related thought occurred. You know, since he is in a Rocket Ball now… “One sec! I wanna check a thing!”

  The good old standbys of Sand Attack, Sandstorm, and Bulldoze, but… With an increasingly wide grin Hoshi tapped away at the Rocket-Dex’s minimalistic layout, revealing that Champion’s evolution had indeed brought more benefits than just physical power. Dragon Breath! The same move Ryan had needed a Technical Machine to learn, Hoshi had achieved with good old-fashioned persistence. “Fuck yeah,” he muttered aloud.

  The knock-off Pokédex was pulled free, and he restrained the urge to check the rest of his Pokémon. Later. Instead, Hoshi made his way back to the cleared area – only to see his girlfriend conversing with the man he'd spent a good chunk of his morning searching for. “Kiribo!” the enforcer called, somehow not surprised. “What's up? You look like shit.”

  The harshness of his own statement – redoubled given the likely circumstance behind the dishevelment – only reached his ears a second later, and Hoshi winced internally. Oh yeah, great way to word that. But the Psychic Hunter's incredible social density was for once working in his favour, because Kiribo seemed to not’ve heard him at all. “Mutsu!” the swordsman cried. “Where have you been? I've been looking for you for hours!”

  The urge to retort sarcastically was wrestled down, followed swiftly by the annoyance of having his own fruitless search sent back at him. Instead, Hoshi did his best to recapture his earlier smile. “Nobody told you? I'm in the doghouse ‘cause I got pushy about the thing. I've got to babysit an entirely new group of grunts – but putting that aside, where have you been?”

  “Training!” the hunter replied with a touch more zeal, only to be undercut by a bland-toned Casca.

  “Really? You look like you lost a fight with a wood chipper.”

  It was true, though again Hoshi winced at it just being said straight-out without frills; Kiribo’s greatcoat was torn and slashed, and the hem even looked burnt. His complexion, which had just started to recover, was similarly ragged, and while the enforcer’s empathy never showed much of the Psychic Hunter's actual mood – likely because he was sporting some kind of defence – the sparkles in his eyes were absent. If this is from training, I think it's safe to say he overdid it.

  The woman’s comment hit the way Hoshi's hadn't, and Kiribo grimaced. “In order to prevent further losses, I have rededicated myself to the blade! It is a path that requires sacrifice – though I am not surprised by your ignorance, seeing as you are a mere Rocket Grunt despite-”

  “Okay,” Hoshi interrupted. “Let's take it down a couple notches. You wanted to talk to me?” I don't like the glint I just saw in Casca's eye – if this goes any further Kiribo's ego is going home in a closed casket. While her charisma was most often turned to the task of drawing people in, a few encounters while walking around town back… back in the normal- in the civilian world had shown him that it was equally effective at pushing them down.

  The heavyset man huffed, but turned his way. “It is as you say. If my great uncle is indeed… that is to say, given that he is in no state to continue your education, then it falls to me!”

  “Kiribo, I-”

  “Do not be concerned! While I am admittedly less knowledgeable concerning the academic side of things, my practical experience overflows its cup twice over!” What… What is the cup, in that metaphor? It doesn't even make- “Furthermore, my partner will assist as well!” He gestured, over-animate, and Hoshi blew out a sigh.

  “Okay. Tomorrow’s Harvest Day, so I should be able to argue some… well, time off isn't exactly right, but I can't think of a better phrase. Unless something happens, I'll meet you-”

  “Right now, on the field of psychic battle!”

  “-At like eight or something, in the morning, Arcus fuck. And you should sleep anyway, you really do look beat.”

  For a moment Kiribo only continued to grimace, sour, but then he shook his head – or more accurately his entire upper body – and turned away. “Very well!” he sent back, not facing either of them as he left. “I shall give you a period to rest your body. I await the morrow!” He continued to trot away – then abruptly made a turn. Must have realised he was going away from the beds. Damn drama queen…

  Hoshi let the strange tension of the exchange slide off his shoulders as he got his girlfriend's attention with a grunt. “Hm?” she grunted back.

  “The battle?”

  Her eyes continued to follow the Psychic Hunter for a moment, squinted and just a touch hostile – then the expression broke, and Casca gave him a shrug. “Yeah, I guess. It really killed the mood though, you know?”

  Hah, a little. “Not at all – you're not scared, are you?”

  That brought her smile back. “No way in hell!”

  Minimal effort found a willing referee, and within a minute they were staring each other down, Pokéballs in hand. For whatever reason the change in texture was bothering him less; as he brought the gabite’s ball up and whispered, Hoshi had to work to restrain a savage grin. “Okay Champ, let's see what you can really do. No Sandstorm right now; open with Sand Attack and then give ‘em the biggest blast you’re capable of.” He won't associate ‘Dragon Breath’ with the move right away, but that should be a good enough order. Do I test out Sand Tomb? It was displayed as partially learned, and this is a safe place to experiment a bit… Next time; no reason to get too fancy with it.

  The scientist extended his hand straight up and the enforcer listened with half an ear as he set out the rules. “This will be a one-on-one, winner-takes-all match! Switches are not allowed, use of items is not allowed! The winner will be decided via knockout or surrender! Rockets, are you ready?”

  “Yeah.” “You know it!”

  “Very well! Begin on my mark! Three! Two! One-!”

  Hoshi underhanded the ball as the ref chopped his hand down, aiming no more than a meter from his own feet. Usually I'd want to get into melee to make use of Sandstorm and Bulldoze – and to avoid getting sniped by water moves. But today, it's gonna be us doing the sniping! “Go, Champion!”

  “Candy, show off your skills!”

  As he'd desired, Champion hit the field first; Casca’d gone for a high toss that would bounce and give her ‘mon a bit of air, and because of that he knew that the opening move would be Rapid Spin. “Change of plans, skip the sand!” It'd just get scattered. The gabite roared as he was released, the sound tilting with confusion as no enemy monster made themselves known – but then he spied the descending Rocket Ball, and Hoshi could feel his focus zeroing in.

  The ball bounced, opened, and just like the trainer had predicted the starmie came out in the air. But it wasn't Rapid Spin that Candy used – or at least, not Rapid Spin alone. As Champion’s maw first reverberated with the beginnings of Dragon Rage and then filled with blue fire, the bifurcated starfish’s two bodies rotated in opposite directions. Brilliant glowing bubbles were expelled from all ten limbs, and with a snap the rotation halted – Hoshi blinked against the sound, and when his eyes re-focused Candy's arms were all pointed forward. The starmie hung in the air for a heavy moment as her opponent's own attack built… and then both monsters released.

  Despite one side getting a head start the two moves came out simultaneously, Champion’s evolved Dragon Rage matched by the similarly evolved form of the common Bubble: Bubblebeam. The attacks met and exploded with concussive force, and Hoshi felt his dyed-brown hair trying to straighten up from the power of it. Fuck yes! Now this is real power – I know I've thought it before, but we would own a fifth-badge challenge! The exhilaration of it pounded through his veins, and at that moment his body couldn't have cared less about how many hours he'd spent on his feet.

  “Close in! Fire on the move!”

  “Holy-! Candy, Harden into Rapid Spin!”

  The gabite lunged into a sprint, obviously steady on his feet in a way Hoshi's first three Pokémon would have been if they'd evolved at the proper time. When seen in motion his strange body plan coalesced into perfect sense; the clawed, fingerless forelimbs, the shark-fin crest that had migrated to his back, the horns, the tooth-like protrusions, all of it was built for speed, for power, for helping the dragon’s powerful legs propel him forward. For a moment Candy visibly hesitated, a shock of fear colouring the air – but then her newly-enlarged body once more began to spin. It took on an enamel sheen, and as the starmie descended with weightless psychic grace she proved her speed was just as impressive – if not more so.

  Another blast of cold blue flame, and then they met. Candy was injured, but as adrenaline heightened his perception Hoshi could see the wounds healing before his eyes. Her hardened limbs cut the air, Champion responded with an open maw, and despite his teeth lacking the power of a structured attack it was the gabite that came off the better; his head was wrenched to the side from the force of catching the starmie, and then hit one, two, three times by her counter-rotating back half – but with that the momentum was exhausted, and Candy was caught out.

  Blue fire erupted, and Casca cried “Bubblebeam!”

  But the victor had already been decided.

  “Scuttlebutt, Double Hit!”

  It turned out there’d been a slight flaw in the victory condition he'd chosen – namely, that watching someone else battle with your own Pokémon was kind of infuriating. Casca wasn't a terrible tactician by any means – especially when held up next to the grunts he'd been interacting with the past couple days – but her unfamiliarity with his monster’s moves and personal strengths made looking at it grating.

  And so, after watching her take a couple wins, Hoshi’d decided to be a good sport and share the ‘punishment.’ Which brought him to the present moment: fighting it out against an agent’s persian – the second in a row – using his girlfriend's ridiculously-named corphish.

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  Which was, truth be told, a startlingly good ‘mon; it had a fighting type move, solid defences, and a ranged option in Bubblebeam. Which isn't nearly as powerful as Candy's, granted, but it's still a good move.

  It would've been fairer if the opponent had Pay Day or Power Gem like that horrible wild behemoth they'd fought several times across the forested countryside, but it seemed like their opponent had trained his ‘mons to be pure physical powerhouses – as evidenced by the way the concrete cracked under Scuttlebutt’s splayed-out legs as it blocked a Slash with its forehead. Then the attack he'd ordered finally came out – despite its many strengths the crawfish monster was slower than pouring lukewarm tar, at least compared to what Hoshi was used to – and the cat was punched away with a heavy-sounding tha-thwack.

  “Penny!” the agent cried, and a second later the persian disappeared into its Pokéball. His blue- and red-streaked green hair trembled in rage, and Hoshi replied with a grin. There we go. Great matchup for us; I don't like how slow the thing is, but it hits pretty okay. It wasn't all that different from a krabby, which the Vermilion native was more than familiar with.

  “Good match, though having two-”

  “Not so fast! We aren't done yet!” Drawing a third ball from down the front of his shirt – why? – the Rocket released, to Hoshi's increasing bafflement, a third persian. The large cat yowled as it returned to flesh and blood, its master pointing defiantly. “You may have beaten Nick and Penny, but my ace, Lucky Dime, is on a different level! Witness his unstoppable determination!”

  Arc, I may’ve said it a hundred times but it's still true: everyone in Team Rocket is insane. Hoshi had fought a couple other agents, reasoning that they’d be better opponents than the scientists, and while none of them held a candle to Kiribo or the instructors they were all to a man weird fucks. Though this one was, points for originality, the first time he'd fought a team of three of the same Pokémon.

  I understand specialising in a type, but this is taking a strategy too far. “Scuttlebutt, use Bubblebeam! Close the distance!”

  “Dime, Guaranteed Payday!”

  When it was over he shook the not-quite-rainbow-haired man’s hand with actual respect. “Good match.”

  The sore loser forced out a begrudging “You too,” and quickly absconded, though not fast enough Hoshi failed to catch the “Damn enforcers,” lobbed out under his breath.

  Hah. Wonder what he'd say if he knew it was my first time using those Pokémon… Probably nothing good, though in the end the agent had been a legit trainer; while the first two persian had been pretty average his Lucky Dime had been damn wily, with a full suite of moves and the power to back them up. And I think that Payday was a combined move – it tracked my team pretty damn well. Scuttlebutt had gone down quickly with the accumulated damage of the first couple battles, but to Hoshi's surprise it’d been followed by Squeegee the ludicolo. He'd needed to close things out with Casca's cloyster, Big Mam, to avoid a reversal. I didn't know persian could even learn Swords Dance.

  It was a bittersweet victory, given that it marked the end of the night's training, but a victory nonetheless. His fingers brushed the unfamiliar balls, marking their little quirks and micro-abrasions with care. Well, no sense in just standing here… “Good hustle guys, let's get you back to your actual trainer.”

  He found Casca where he’d been expecting, and they acknowledged each other with matching nods. “Hey stud. Finally done?”

  “Yup. Gotta apologise though, I got surprised and let Squeegee faint.” Sharp tugs loosed each of his girlfriend's Pokéballs, which were quickly exchanged with his own. “Also, your Pokémon have weird as shit names.”

  That drew a laugh. “Ha, like you're any better. Venus? I didn't wanna say anything, but you totally cribbed Ryan's naming scheme.”

  “Yeah, well,” Hoshi began, but no retort presented itself. “…Okay, fair cop.” Though at least when I pick a foreign legend, it's one whose name is pronounceable. He sat after safely securing Junior to his belt, and for a moment simply enjoyed the ambiance. Hoshi Mutsu may not have been a people person by even the loosest of definitions, but over the past days the hideout’s dormitory had grown on him. It's like being in a barracks, almost. Bob had a hundred stupid stories about what him and Dad and the other young soldiers got up to in their off-hours, and…

  And it wasn't the same thing, obviously it wasn't, but there was a shadow of that legacy draped around his shoulders. Yet again, the thought occurred: We're really doing this.

  I was supposed to be up in Pewter by now – or no, to have been in Pewter for a few days. We would've had things halfway packed up and ready to head down to Viridian the moment the Harvest Festival wound down… A trip through the forest, then the Nationals…

  Hoshi didn't visit his aunt and uncle every year, or even most years, but this time they'd reached out with a letter – and here he was, getting ready to crash the whole party. Hah… It was easy to imagine it in a melancholy light, but he was actually feeling good. I've got… something to get out of bed for, Hoshi thought as his hand found Casca's. She gave him a little tilted half-smirk like she could read his mind – which was probably closer to true than not; he wasn't exactly hiding his expression – and, unbidden, the two shared a quick kiss. Something in the present, I mean. Not a dream, but just something that is.

  “Penny for your thoughts, stud?”

  “Just thinking about how this'll all play out. Do you think we have a shot? A real one?”

  To his dismay her expression clouded. “Maybe? I mean, it's a little too late to back out now…”

  “We have the professors’ stuff. And apparently we might not even need it, since the Goldenrod Rockets took down an Elite on their own”

  “While getting mostly wiped out,” Casca countered, following the sentence with a sigh. “Sorry, I'm just feeling weird.”

  For just a tiny sliver of a moment, Hoshi was caught in a different time – in the ancient past of a week and change ago, when Meowth had caught them contemplating desertion. But a surreptitious look revealed no fourth persian of the hour, nor any lurking senior executive; there was only the cozy atmosphere of the room insulating each of the many conversations from each other, safe by way of the alchemy of overlapping sound. A sum greater than its constituents. “You're not thinking of jumping ship again, are you?”

  Casca’s face remained blank – and then her head shook, softly and subtly but still enough to make her still-blue hair bob with the motion. “Nah, that ship's sailed. If we get our ass kicked then obviously all bets are off, but I'll have your back as long as there's a fighting chance.” The previous soft smile gradually crept back. “But if we do lose, I better not hear a single word about any glorious last stands, got it?”

  Well, obviously. “Deal,” he said, and with shared amusement they shook on it. “It’s a nice boat, but I don't feel like going down with it.”

  She giggled. “Heh, I think I used that one already.”

  “Someone did, anyway.”

  For a time they enjoyed each other's company, but then Hoshi sobered. “Sorry,” he said as he stood up to leave. “Gotta talk to the instructors about Kiribo's thing. I'll be back in…”

  He trailed off, and after a moment Casca shot him a wryly raised brow. “You don't know where they are, do you?” she asked, and his face colored a touch as he nodded. They always seem to come to me. His girlfriend stood as well and, with a put-on eye-roll, began to lead him out of the room. Hoshi followed.

  “You know the way?”

  “What do you think I've been doing these last couple days? I know everything, Hoshi.”

  “You have the reports from Mahogany?”

  Jessie replied to her partner's question by fishing in a drawer, and James, seeing her doing so, was content to keep reading his own reports for a span. Then she found the elusive thing, and with a flourish presented it. “Here we are! Straight from Special Executive Proton!” James accepted it was a thankful sound, and for several minutes the two worked without speaking.

  The day’s work was very nearly complete-

  Then, a knock on the door. “Ugh,” she grunted, barely audible even to herself – but of course James picked up on the annoyance anyway, and took initiative to answer the door himself. Don't do that. Recovering or not, you took a bullet less than a fortnight ago!

  A contrite tilt of his eyes, and then it was showtime; as the door opened the exhaustion of keeping their little enterprise running was concealed by enthusiasm, a white sheet over furniture to keep the dust off. When she'd been young, a little girl whose only possessions had been her bike, a length of chain, and whatever she could extort by way of those things, her armour had been rage. Her friends had been just as vicious, and the position of leader was something to be kept through intimidation.

  But trapezing across the world had required a different tack, and like her James had similarly discarded his haughtier-than-thou demeanor in favour of something a little sweeter. It wasn't a mask or an act, not for either of them, but it was a deliberate affectation.

  One that took effort, and as the curtain opened and their audience was revealed to be Cascade and Hoshi that effort redoubled – again, for both of them.

  They were miffed at Hoshi Mutsu.

  “Enforcer Mutsu!” she projected at the same time James said “Grunt Kichi!” and with the barest of glances they determined the order of things.

  “What brings you to our door so late at night?” James led in.

  “Please don't tell us there's a problem with the grunts,” she followed. “Things are behind schedule as it is.” Not even an exaggeration; Proton’s report wasn't good. If Ariana had just-!

  The reflexive anger went under the sheet as Hoshi answered. Jessie could already tell the enforcer had bad news by the way his teeth grit, but not the exact magnitude of it – the man's natural scowl made reading him uncommonly difficult. One of the reasons we were wary of infiltration. Silly in hindsight – Mutsu wears his loyalties on his sleeve – but better a silly delay than a silly mistake. Except now; now they were out of time, and any delay might send the entire performance crashing down regardless of how wise it was.

  “Er… I wanted to know if I could skip training the grunts tomorrow?”

  “Absolutely not,” came her reflexive response. “Every single Rocket is absolutely vital.”

  “Yes, every professional trainer worth the name will be standing between us and sweet, sweet vengeance for the League's treachery against the Boss. Mega Evolution will make even the average grunt their equals, in theory…”

  “But we still need numbers. This isn't just a punishment detail, Enforcer, this is a vital job.”

  Their words caused the man to cringe, though the actual expression on his face was closer to a grimace. “Okay, but…” Then Cascade put a hand on his back, and Hoshi rallied. “Kiribo asked me to train with him. And while I agree that every body we can get on the field is important, my psychic shi- stuff makes me better. Without it I wouldn't have beaten Tsuyu – either time.”

  Jessie shared another subtle look with her partner of over twenty years. ‘Let’s give him a little more rope,’ James communicated. ‘It is training, after all.’

  She didn't like it, and said as much with a wrinkle of her nose… but while letting the enforcer off the hook after the chaos he'd made of their strategy meeting grated, she couldn't deny that- Wait. Kiribo. Kimigawa. Hypno. Sync Stones. By the widening of his eyes she could tell that James had started going through the same chain of association. ‘Mutsu wasn't at the supplementary meeting,’ she ‘said.’

  ‘Because he disrupted the last one, yes.’

  ‘And neither was the Psychic Hunter.’

  ‘No, that Barrier Abratwo put up was impenetrable – unless we wanted to collapse the ceiling.’

  ‘So neither of them got…’

  ‘Their stones, no.’

  Two mental face-palms metaphorically sounded out, though as Jessie's attention returned to the young couple her smirk was still in place. “You know James, a thought occurs…”

  “I think I follow, Jessie. If we're giving him the day off for training…”

  “We may as well make it maximally worthwhile!” Twin nods punctuated the exclamation, and Hoshi began to develop a worried look.

  “Does that mean-?”

  “Mutsu,” rumbled a stately voice from behind his back, and both the enforcer and his lover jumped as Meowth padded between them. Ooh, good work opening the door silently – that's the world's top cat burglar for you! “Morning. Come here. With Ki-mi-ga-wa.”

  It took two breaths for him to regain his poise, but it was regained; when he spoke Hoshi's voice was steady. “Yes sir.”

  Then, something unexpected. “Can I come?” Cascade asked, and Jessie blinked together with both her partners. The woman, who was only recognisable via general face and body shape – ooh, good work with the spray tan especially – didn't show it overtly like her beau, but Jessie could tell – she was annoyed at being all but unacknowledged.

  Another lightning-quick communication with James, which was probably the last one they could chance during the present conversation; flash the cue cards too many times, and even the best performance would come off as tacky. “Well,” he started. “That depends.”

  “Do you feel you can handle a stone?” There was no point trying to conceal it; the fact that they'd be using Mega Evolution to attack the Nationals had been leaked beyond the Senior Executives’ ability to plug up. I'd love to get my hands on whoever started it, but unfortunately we have bigger fish to fry.

  “We're fairly certain dugtrio isn't on the dud list, so it isn't impossible-”

  “What about starmie?” Cascade interrupted, causing James to fall silent – but luckily Meowth was there to provide backup.

  “Meow.”

  “That's right!” Good save! “Starmie is definitely viable! So feel free to tag along… Though fair warning…”

  “The first time's a doozy!” James finished off, and to her relief the next minute was just aligning the details to fit their busy schedule.

  …Though to her chagrin the relief didn't last long. Jessie all but poured herself down into the cheap swivel chair the lowlifes who'd had the place before them had left behind, a groan of frustration on her lips. “I can't believe we forgot we didn't already give him a stone!” The cracks are starting to show. One more Fissure, and that might be that.

  “Meow.”

  “It doesn't count if you don't speak up!” James retorted with a groan of his own, though his edged a little closer to pain than frustration. “This is starting to remind me of that debacle with the pink rhyhorn…”

  A beat, and then the three let out a collective sigh. “The radio team?” Meowth said, his Kantonese slightly smoother than it had been months ago – the results of ongoing practice.

  James replied with a head-shake. “Barely workable. If we could pull an extra three days out of thin air everything would be just about certain, but…” He didn't need to finish the sentence, given how obvious it was. It was Hypno who did it the first time, but given that this is our ace in the hole against those devious Dexists… No, they couldn't rely on him, not even with Malamar’s coercion.

  “Meow,” Meowth sent out into the grown-thick silence, and Jessie sighed again.

  “Of course you're right…”

  “Nothing to do but soldier on…”

  And so they did. Her earlier hope that the work was nearly done proved a touch naive, as it was only after midnight that things were actually complete. And of course, the moment we wake up there will be new problems to solve… But despite that, when Jessie Oakley’s head hit the pillow there was satisfaction warming it from within.