Crackle. Crackle.

The Rocket Admin stood, cape billowing as he did so. A skewer of Yeggo waffles clattered to the ground, tarnished. If Eris Halla had seen such a thing, she would've wept at the loss of such a great treasure. Admin Fox, meanwhile, stared down the legendary beast.

Admin Fox did that. Howard Slayte wanted to cry. He wanted to run and hide in the deepest, darkest crack he could find and wait for this to be over. Howard had never met Solgaleo, but he had heard tales of Solgaleo and a man named Balder who had once held it in defense of Hoenn. Kyle also had a Solgaleo, if Rocket's reports were accurate.

Why, then, was one here? Howard had no connection to Solgaleo, and his knowledge of Alolan legend was supplemented entirely by his fear of Necrozma's Avatar. It had no reason to be here. So again, why?

"OOOOOOAHHHHHHHHH!"

Immediately, Howard scrambled back several steps. He reached for a Pokeball and threw out his Claydol, Crumble. Regice was back at base, recovering from its heavy wounds. Without it, how the hell was Howard going to fight this thing?

Crumble's antique lights beeped, before the doll manifested an Earth Power underneath the Solgaleo. When the attack concluded, it barely looked like the lion had been scratched.

"Shit." Howard scrambled back, hugging the wall. "Shit shit shit."

---

Kazimir Wynter

"Yes. Didn't you know? Our recruitment drive extends down to hell itself. Long time no see, Kazimir."

It had only been a few days, but still. The last Howard had seen of Kazimir, he had used a Z-move to ruin Howard's life. After the battle, he presumed that Kazimir had retreated to Ever Grande or Oldale to lick his wounds. Instead, it seemed like he had ended up in the Giant Chasm.

How fortunate to end up in this crystalline hell, swarming with shadows of the past.

"The Solgaleos are yours, then?" They had to be. Howard had never met a man with Solgaleo, nor had he ever met the genuine article. He knew that the Top Champion had one, but Howard had never seen it in action. To think that Kazimir could vanquish one so easily was awe-inspiring. Judging from his figure, he had struck down several already.

That was the power of a former member of the Elite Four.

"I'm doing a field study to map the chasm. It's my punishment. You were more of an... accidental find." It was like finding a rare statue in a pawn shop. "I won't complain, though. You saved me."

Howard tapped his helmet, then pointed at Kazimir. "Thanks for that."

He looked towards the Melmetal. Strong Pokémon. It reminded Howard of a certain Rocket Beast's Meltan, constantly sneaking into Howard's office to devour his staplers. Unfortunately, that Rocket Beast was comatose. It killed the mood, unfortunately.

Still, Howard regarded Kazimir. After a moment, he shrugged and gestured towards the fire pit.

"Waffles?"

---

Kazimir Wynter

"Did I?" Howard blinked and scratched his chin thoughtfully. He paled under his helmet, remembering his battle at the Island Cave with FERNANDO SILPH . "Heh. I guess I did."

That battle was a farce and a mockery. Howard had only won because he had caught Fernando on the back foot, and because he was using a Natu. If Howard couldn't kill a Natu, it was probably best for him to jump off a cliff and end his life then and there. He didn't take pride in that fight, but

"I made an error on the battlefield." He didn't want to talk about how he had almost killed Shred Zeppelin . "So I got shunted off to map this cave system. I'm one of the best people to do it, admittedly, but..."

He shrugged again. This had been going fine until Kazimir and his Solgaleos had intervened. The Tera Crystals never interfaced with Howard, because his wishes weren't something they could manifest. He had no desires that they could tap into, and thus he delved deeper than most. It was for the best. If the crystals started to manifest Regices, it wouldn't be fun for him.

"You're a good trainer. Anything you fight will break apart." There was no syrup in Howard's pack, so he simply shrugged again. "What's with the Solgaleos? If they're yours, you must know something about it. Wasn't there a Solgaleo during the Three Days War? You're a veteran of that, right?"

He hadn't fought in that war, but Howard was a historian. He made it his point to know about past events, especially after he had fought the Megalopolans under Route 119.

---

Kazimir Wynter

The helmet gave nothing away. The only thing it gave was a distorted reflection of Kazimir's face in its surface. It was a solemn mockery of everything that Kazimir stood for. The League had abandoned him, the world had forsaken him, Rocket had stolen his friend, and there was nothing left but a smear of shit on the tapestry that was Pokkenger's legacy.

What was there to fight for, anymore? Justice? Justice only mattered to those who held power. They were the ones who dictated justice, and that was something that Howard knew well from the histories. The League wrote the history book, but if Rocket won...

That book could be revised. Kazimir's failures could be washed away. The wise studied history, but the strong wrote it. Kazimir could change everything.

"The League is the better group to be on. They'll likely win this war." Howard shrugged, honest. It was one of his defining features in his position. Whenever he spoke, he spoke truly. He didn't revel in lies like his colleagues. A historian could misdirect and evade, but lie? No. "We're simply treading water, hoping for a miracle. If you all put your full weight on Sootopolis, Rocket would be crushed."

"But you won't. The casualties will mar this region for centuries after. That's the morality of the Pokémon League. My colleagues would kill every single citizen in that city if it would let us win. You will find no justice there. Only death."

If he knew about Baldur, his face didn't mention it. Rocket had many important members, after all. It was unfortunate that Solgaleo's Avatar had departed from the battlefield, but there was little to be done besides keep moving forward. That was all that mattered; that extra step forward.

The Three Days War, though. He understood that. He studied it. It'd be written into history's annals and remembered until the sun went out.

Then Shred was mentioned. If his helmet was off, Kazimir would've seen a flash of utter misery. As is, there was only the helmet.

"He's dying from my own strike. We have our best people on it, but his life is a candle in the wind. I regret it, but I don't." The helmet flashed. Howard frowned underneath, pleased to know that him chasing Shred hadn't been forgotten. Someone had noticed. Someone had cared. "I simply didn't want his dream to go out. That's all we're left with. A dream is all each of us can hold. This war will make us into pragmatic machines, but as soon as we let go of what makes us human..."

His fist clenched as he looked at the man sitting next to him. He didn't jump away.

"That is when we lose. As long as there's the option to choose, there is hope for you."

---

Kazimir Wynter