Temp had been thrilled when he saw Cillian Quinn's fake name on the registry. And first no less!

He's less shy about the kiss, soaking in the affection like a flower did water, but a passing scientist did offer up a small giggle.

"I hope you're ready to get down and dirty then, hot-stuff." He wiggled a brow before stepping back out of Gavin's reach. A metal cabinet that had been fixed to the outer wall was opened up, revealing all sizes and diving gear inside.

"Unless you got a pokemon that can keep you underwater for a long time, you'll need one of these." He chewed on his lip some, deflating a little to look a bit more sheepish about the whole thing.

"I'm actually pretty nervous about all this. Would you be my test dummy for my non-battle challenge?"

"How very unprofessional. Do you flirt with all your challengers?"

There's a twinkle in his eyes to offset the scorn in his tone. He's grinning as Tempest Quinn steps away, unashamed even when a passing scientist giggles at their antics.

"I think she could manage," he says of Lugia, sure Temp will understand what he means, "but I won't delegate her to it."

He reaches for some of the diving equipment, glancing back and tilting his head at his boyfriend's sheepish tone. It's sweet, to see the normally confident Temp so uncertain and flustered.

"You're gonna do great, love," he soothes, warm, then, "Course I will. Just tell me what to do."

"Only the really handsome ones." Is flirted back, just as easy. No shame, Temp is already stripping off his shirt to pull on the wetsuit. It gets cold down there and this will keep him warm, even if he doesn't need one of the re-breathers.

"We realized pretty quick, a bunch of stuff gets called in and we can't do it all kind of deal... figured that letting challengers figure it out and I assessed them could kill two birds with one stone!"

A phone is plucked from his shorts, on the ground, this one shiny and new; a work phone.

"Hmm... There's a pod of Mantine that one of the guys here have been tracking for a while. They suddenly stopped not too far from here and we don't know why. Think you can figure it out?"

Then the phone was slid back into his shorts as he collected his things; it would be safe to leave here.

"We'll have to dive pretty deep to do it."

A small, last warning. Temp knew Cillian Quinn wasn't the biggest fan of the water, even if he did a good job hiding it.

"Flatterer."

But he can't deny the giddy swoop in the pit of his stomach.

Amber eyes shine with undisguised curiosity as Tempest Quinn describes the process of his non-traditional challenge. It's nice to see him get excited about work, like a puppy wagging its tail as it presents you with its toys.

"I'm no marine biologist, but I could give it a shot."

It wouldn't be the first time he'd had to tackle odd problems. He's already thinking about Mantine, if he can remember anything about the species from the books he'd purchased on Hoenn's marine life — he can't — and it's only Temp's warning that draws him out of his thoughts.

Gavin's expression softens before shifting back.

"Best we leave sooner rather than later then, hm?"

Casual, confident, as if the thought of deep water didn't still make his heart pound — but the knowledge of the leviathan that patrolled the ocean's depth offers enough reassurance to keep his fingers steady.

Temp looks both pleased and proud. He's happy that Cillian Quinn is willing to do this, both for him and for himself. Maybe someday he'd love to be under the water as much as he did.

"The ladder's over here!" It's cut into the side of the ship, all the way down to the water. There's at least four of them that Temp had seen, in case someone fell off the boat, but this one was closest. However, instead of taking it like a normal person, Temp took a running go and leaped off the side with a whoop.

It was a long fall before the splash.

The motor's weren't on right now or he wouldn't have done that. He had decided it would be best to only take challengers when the ship was idle just in case.

Whenever Gavin would get to the water, he would find that Temp was using a Relicanth as something like a floaty in the water, a special vest put on the ancient fish so it could swim and him grip onto handles without bothering his pokemon.

Gavin watches Temp take a running leap off the side of the ship with an expression that lingers between amusement and fond exasperation. But he's not about to let his boyfriend show him up, so after ensuring the other was safely out of the landing zone, he follows suit.

When he leaps off the side, he transitions into a dive that barely makes a splash as he cuts through the water. He surfaces with his arm wrapped around his Dhelmise's anchor, the seaweed curling around his arm in return.

"You have a Relicanth!" Gavin grins. "I love these things, but they're super rare. Where'd ya get it?"

Once they're clear of potential onlookers, Lugia would emerge from the ocean's depths to swim beneath them, a dark shadow with bone-white spines.

"The rescue!" A vague motion is made towards the ship itself. Temp gives his Relicanth a pat and the pokemon starts to dive under the water- a bubble of air forming around Temp's head and upper body from a Dive the fish used as they did. Temp continued to speak after, his voice a little wobbly and muffled from the water but still legible.

"Coco was part of their breeding program before he got too old. So they gave him to me! He's still got a lot of fire in him, just gets tired since he's an older fella'." Temp have the fish another fond pat. When he noticed Lugia, Temp gave the legend a smile and wave before he balanced himself on Coco again.

"Oh, a Dhelmise! Those things are cool! One used to hang around my mom's ship, but I haven't seen it in a long time." Which made Temp a bit sad. The Dhelmise had been angry and territorial, but they had reached a kind of agreement to not bother one another when he came to visit his mom and sister's grave. He hoped it was doing alright.

Cillian Quinn

"Yeah, most Relicanth are ancient."

Though it was unlikely Tempest Quinn could see the fire in his eyes for all the diving gear, the fervor is in Gavin's voice as well. While Relicanth wasn't a fossil Pokemon by official classification, it was referred to as a living fossil by many Galarian scientists.

Dhelmise, while not a fossil in any sense of the word, provokes equal excitement.

"Do you know if there are still whales in that area? They like to hunt bigger prey; might be that it has to go further out for food, now."

Naturally, Gavin revered anything that would hunt a fucking whale for sport, as long as it left Lugia alone. His own had an understanding with the corrupt legend, and they seem to coexist peacefully during the descent. Lugia's tail cuts through the water in a gesture that could be understood as a return of Temp's wave, if he took notice.

Once they're low enough that visibility becomes an issue, Gavin's Lanturn ILLUMINATES the ocean's depths.

"I haven't been out there in a while, so that could be it?" The wreck wasn't too far from Pacifidlog but he had never noticed too many of the local Wailmer and Wailord population missing from the area. Well, it would be one thing to look into next time he went out. Actually, not that he thought about it....

"Hey, it's almost my sister's birthday. Want to come with me when I go visit her?" For this, he did sound a bit vulnerable and nervous, keeping his eyes straight ahead.

Before Cillian Quinn would have a chance to answer, the group of Mantine they had been looking for started to circle around the two of them and their pokemon. While normally docile, the three dozen or so of the pokemon looked angry, making upset noises and clearly trying to ward them off. Before they could move any further to find out why they were so up, they'd have to calm the pokemon down.

Gavin doesn't miss the soft note of vulnerability in the other's tone.

He'd never pried much but knew that his friend had lost both his mother and sister to a tragic storm. If Temp wanted him to be there, whether it be for emotional support or simply for company, he'd make sure to find the time.

He nods, about to say as much when the Mantine appear around them.

Gavin swims back a bit, lifting his hands in a placating gesture he's not sure the Pokemon will understand. A gesture of his hand causes the Lanturn to CHARGE her light, further ILLUMINATING their surroundings.

"Is it their spawning season or anything? Am I allowed to ask you stuff like that?"

A quizzical glance toward Tempest Quinn.

"I'm as much as resource as anything else, dude!" Some might see asking the Gym Leader of tips or hints as cheating but Temp sure didn't. Why would you keep yourself from knowing an answer based on pride alone? It was better to use all you had available, and Temp was as available as anything else around here.

"Spawning.... hmm... I don't think so. That should have been a few weeks, ago, actually. Babies are probably already hatched up by now."

Squinting, Temp didn't see any Mantyke, but that wasn't too unusual. The adults wouldn't put the babies in danger.

The Charge powered Illumination did light up the area, showing that there were more Mantine than first anticipated, circling more slowly outside the main vortex, as well as some type of opening into the ground. It was sketchy and jagged, twisted spikes of rusted metal and pipes sticking out in places, but it was something other than the smooth hills of sand that lined this particular area.

Yelping, Temp kicked violently but found himself starting to spin; Cillian Quinn and his pokemon would feel the same effects, eventually. "Brah, they're all using Whirlpool! We have to get out of here!"

Gavin doesn't have to request Lugia's assistance; the moment they begin to feel the effects of the whirlpool's drag, the dark-winged leviathan surges forth to shove Gavin out of its path and toward safety. She glances back toward Temp as if to affirm that the other, too, would make it out all right.

Lanturn and Dhelmise follow, the former chittering anxiously as her light dims.

"Did you see that thing they were swarming? Some kind of opening with a bunch of pipes, but I didn't get the best look at it before we had to back up."

He thinks about it more, focuses on what details he remembers.

"Some kind of sunken craft, maybe? It was rusted up, like it's been here a while. But then why would they be protecting it?" He's thinking aloud, running a hand along his Lanturn's flank as if to reassure. "Were they trying to pull us in, or push us out?"

With Lugia, it was easy to bust apart the Mantine long enough for them to escape- for now.

This did not come without consequence. With the faint illumination, even if dimmed, they might catch a glimpse of something... moving. Sand churned below them as five massive shapes rose from the depths. Dhelmise. If one looked closely, you could see the differences of the ships they had taken hold of. Different wood, designs, signs of age... except one, which gleamed with shiny metal, a mix of wood and technology. More modern.

It was quick, all of them, surging to surround and try to attack Lugia. Intent on a meal.

"Ah, shit. This isn't good." Grabbing for his hip, a floodlight was turned on, faintly showing off the wreckage from below. The sand had been covering various ships of all sizes and shapes and ages, some type of graveyard under their feet. "This is a Dhelmise spawning ground, man."

Which raised more questions than it answered. Why were the Mantine here and all stirred up? And the twisted metal hole they had spotted... Temp could take guesses at what it was now, but it hadn't been uncovered like the other wrecks.

"If we stay here too long, the Mantine will swarm us again. Plus, those Dhelmise... Lugia can take them, right? But... hmm... that might not be good.... If we can find out why the Mantine are here we can go.... any ideas, dude?" Since Cillian Quinn was leading this mission.