"I really enjoy operating out of the Fortree office. It's great as long as you don't mind bug pokemon," the Ranger replies as she responds to Jack. They both laugh but her expression soon turns serious as she says, "You really need to pick a home office at some point, Jack."

Instead of responding, Jack adjusts the red Ranger Cadet armband fastened around his left bicep and looks down at his watch. "Oops, looks like I'd better get started. Who am I partnered with?" Jack changes the topic smoothly. The other Ranger sighs but checks her clipboard before stating, "Marshall Connor. One of the outside contractors we are using since half the senior rangers are tied up with all those wailords washing up on the beaches. The rookies you two'll be practicing with are Rollins and Barker."

Jack nods his thanks and strides off toward the two rookies, leaving Watts at the command post. Their small talk drifts to a natural close as the two rookies notice a blonde man striding toward their corner of the sports field. Following their gaze, Jack offers a friendly wave as the man comes nearer.

"Oy, the name's Jack, and this here's Rangers Rollins and Barker," he nods in turn to the two rookies wearing green armbands and badges. You must be Connor. We're ready to get started whenever you are," he grins as he extends his hand in greeting.

Marshall Slade

Marshall waved back as the man named Jack introduced himself and the two other cadets. "Nice meetin' ya. Just call me Marshall," the blonde man said. "I'm ready to start, too."

The four of them spaced out across their allotted corner of the field, Jack and Marshall facing Rollins and Barker with several yards between them. The two cadets already had Pokémon at their sides: a Deino and a Vibrava. Marshall selected a Pokéball from his belt and tossed it forward. "Let's fucking go, Bogie!"

A female Noibat emerged in a flash of light and immediately took flight, chirping with excitement upon seeing her opponents.

"Don't go easy on 'em, Bogie! But it's just training, so keep it cool, all right?" Marshall called up to her. Turning to Jack, he asked, "Whatcha got up your sleeve?"

jack wainwright

Squaring off in their corner of the field, Jack suddenly feels a rush of exhilaration; it isn't often he engages in pokemon battles, even just for practice. He belts out a laugh at Marshall's exhortation as he pulls a pokeball from his belt. "Awesome Noibat, mate," he calls to the blonde man, "looks like we're serious from the get-go."

"Wotcher, Borealis!" Jack nearly shouts as the enormous pokemon bursts from the pokeball in a stream of red light, rearing up over their corner of the field. Even focused on the impending battle, he could feel the ripple of heads turning in their direction. His cheeks flushed at the sudden attention, but man, did he love it.

"Hey mate, let's give 'em a show," he grins at Marshall. "Go on then, wrap 'im up," Jack calls out to the Dragonair while pointing at the Deino. In a flash, the serpentine pokemon darts forward and wraps herself around the black-furred dragon. Without thinking, the Deino begins biting voraciously at Borealis, even as the Dragonair squeezes down on it with her body.

Marshall Slade

"Sick Dragonair!" Marshall exclaimed in awe upon seeing the Pokémon that emerged from his ball. "We can't let 'em show us up, Bogie," he said to his Noibat.

With the Deino occupied by Jack's Dragonair, Bogie's opponent was none other than the Vibrava scuttling back and forth in place, eager to fight. Marshall knew he had an edge over the Ground-type Pokémon: Bogie's ability to fly. Whatever same-type attacks it used would be totally useless. It was the perfect matchup for him.

"Bogie, get that Vibrava! AIR SLASH!"

With a determined chirp, the Noibat beat her wings once, twice. A tearing gust cut straight through the space between the two Pokémon and tore at the Vibrava. Its little claws clung to the grass of the field to resist the pushback. Then, in retaliation, it let loose a SUPERSONIC aimed straight at Bogie. Luckily, as a bat, she recognized the attack immediately and dodged its trajectory.

"Good job, Bogie!" Marshall whooped. Then he turned to his battle partner. "So what made you decide to be a Ranger, Jack? You the outdoorsy type, I'm guessing?"

jack wainwright

"Yeah, I like being out in the world. Becoming a ranger lines up with that and still lets me do my other hobbies. I write about and take pictures of the different places I go, so... perfect match," Jack replies to Marshall while keeping an eye on his Dragonair wrapped tightly around the struggling Deino. Borealis is unphased by the other pokemon's incessant biting and continued to constrict around it. He continues, "Hoenn's been a great place for me since I moved here from Galar, so being a Ranger is my way of giving back for that."

"Okay, Borealis, let 'im go," Jack calls to the Dragonair and it sinuously ravels from the Deino and returns to his side of the pitch. He sizes up the struggling Deino and the concerned-looking rookie across from him. "Pull it together, Rollins," he calls, "Think about your strengths and my weaknesses and what you can do to tip things in your favor."

"What about you, are you one of those nomads who just picks up odd jobs for work?" Jack asks the blond man as the Deino begins to work up to something, with Ranger Rollins hyping it up for a big attack. Jack nods to his Dragonair and twirls his finger. With a casual flick of her tail, Borealis sends a twister across the field. The rush of wind blows Jack's hair back and Rollins is knocked on his ass as the whirlwind slams into the Deino, causing it to flinch.

Marshall Slade

Marshall found himself nodding along as Jack spoke. Traveling, writing, taking photos, giving back to the people of Hoenn — all of that sounded quite agreeable, he thought. Maybe in another life he would have done the same: joined the Rangers and traveled around, helping people. They seemed determined to do good by the country, as evidenced by faces of Barker and Rollins as they shouted commands to their Pokémon. Marshall had to admit, the Rangers' dedication was admirable to witness.

"Oh, nah, nothing like that," Marshall replied to Jack's question. "I signed up for this because I love Dragon-type Pokémon and thought my guys and gals might enjoy the exercise. I'm actually a motocross racer. Not sure if you follow the pro leagues since motorsports are more niche, but I'm in Hoenn for a championship race later this year."

The opposing Vibrava lunged at Bogie with a DRAGON RUSH, knocking the bat to the ground. They wrestled as the Noibat tried to return to the air.

"Nice move, Barker!" Marshall called to the other man, giving him a thumbs up.

jack wainwright

"Motocross racing? I don't follow it but that's pretty awesome," Jack grins to Marshall. "Dragon-type pokemon are pretty difficult to train and you're doing the motocross pro circuit too. That's pretty impressive, mate," he says to his partner after thinking for a moment. "I appreciate you taking the time to come help us with this training. I'm sure the other rookies are going to be jealous of Rollins and Barker. You doing any races here before the championship?" he beams as he asks Marshall before turning back to his opponent.

"That didn't work last time, Rollins. Try a different tack this time," Jack calls to the rookie facing him as the Deino beings to work up another attack by stomping its feet aggressively. With a quick command, Jack's Dragonair sends another twister into the opposing team, interrupting whatever they were building up to.

"Give 'im the aqua tail, Borealis," Jack says. The Dragonair darts forward, whipping her tail into the Deino like a breaking ocean wave. The move makes contact, though doesn't do much other than knocking the Deino slightly to one side. Instinctually, the Deino latches onto Borealis with his mouth, biting ineffectively at the pokemon. Jack sighs, giving Rollins a plaintive look across the pitch.

Marshall Slade

On Barker's command, the Vibrava swiped at Bogie with a DRAGON TAIL, knocking the Noibat several feet backward across the field. Adroitly, she managed to flip herself up into the air to escape a follow-up attack. Flapping her wings furiously, Bogie conjured a WHIRLWIND and sent the Vibrava flying and crashing right into Barker. Both rookie Ranger and Pokémon crashed onto the ground in a disheveled pile.

Bogie descended and perched on Marshall's shoulder as he turned to watch the Deino struggle against Jack's Dragonair. "It's no big deal to come here, really," the blonde man insisted, grinning but also feeling the blush in his ears from the praise. "It's a fun thing to do in what little free time I have. Plus, it's cool meeting new people!"

Borealis, seemingly tired of his opponent's antics, put an end to the battle with a well placed HYPER BEAM. Rollins collected the unconscious Deino with a heavy sigh.

"Damn," Marshall said to Jack, chuckling at the outcome of that duel. "I guess these kids have a lot more to learn about Dragon-types. You, on the other hand, seem like you know what you're doing. Listen, I am actually racing in a qualifier this weekend. You wanna come watch? I can text you the info." He takes out his phone and starts thumbing through it. "What's your number?"

jack wainwright

Christopher Rollins was a good guy, with a good heart, but awful sense in pokemon battles. Jacked hated to end it with a hyper beam but the man had to learn at some point, and at least the stakes were low here. Even Borealis looked a little embarrassed for the man.

With a triumphant bark, Watts races past the chagrined rookie and circles Jack twice before running toward Marshall and butting the man gently with his head. "Looks like Watts approves so count us in for the race," Jack laughs as he pulls out his phone and makes a jabbing motion toward Marshall. He hears the phone notification buzz and Jack nods as his contact information appears on the other man's screen.

Casting a dubious glance at Rollins and Barker, he nods to Marshall and says, "I'll keep an eye out for your text, but I should spend some time giving these two pointers before the lunch break. It was great partnering with you!"

Marshall Slade