He can’t stop the smile that comes at the sight of the Charmander. It’s the telltale smile of a man who likes babies. Severe as this situation is, a man and a woman meeting alone in the woods on the brink of night, he can’t stop that smile. He sees it as his mission to make sure they don’t get hurt.[break][break]
“Oh, that fierce fella right there? He’s a start. Hold on a second.” He slowly reaches into his pocket and pulls out a badge. The star marks him as Dewford’s Sheriff. There’s a number at the bottom, if she cares to scrutinize it, along with a name. ‘Michael Navidson’.[break][break]
“Just so you don’t think I’m some random weirdo. The name’s Navidson. Michael Navidson. You can call me Navy. There have been a string of disappearances and unexplained phenomena in these woods, Ma’am. I’ve been called up here to investigate.”[break][break]
He hopes that it will placate the Charmander and the woman. The little lizard looks fierce, as all members of his species do. Raise that one right and he’ll grow up to be a force to be reckoned with.[break][break]
“May I ask what you’re doing out here?”

[break][break]

+ Kara Li

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Red. She named the Charmander Red. Something about that choice makes the good Sheriff uneasy. There was a sports film about a young trainer called Red and Blue. It ruined an entire generation of Pokemon Trainers. Navy tries not to let it show how much that name bothers him. The creature couldn’t pick its own name. Seldom few things are afforded that privilege.[break][break]
“Before I transferred down to Dewford, I was working on this case. I still help Petalburg PD and the local rangers.” That’s an explanation, offered freely. It doesn’t address what Navy sees as the core of this issue. Thankfully, confusion overrides any other emotion that might make itself evident on his face.[break][break]
“You…just sort of woke up here? What’s your name, ma’am?” He had a short list of missing persons related to the woods memorized. She didn’t match any physical descriptions, but he still wanted to hear a name.[break][break]
“I’d like to offer you and Red a ride back to town. This place is scary at night.” That’s the least he can do, bring her back to civilization. Its lights are second to none for keeping this primordial darkness at bay.

[break][break]

+ Kara Li

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Kara. Not much to go off of. Just a first name. It’s framed like she’s telling herself that information as much as she’s telling him. Realization is followed by recognition. This just gets stranger by the minute.[break][break]
Red seems to bristle at that word. Stranger. It’s a fair word. Were their positions reversed, he’d feel much the same. Looking back at his truck, there’s nothing denoting it as a police vehicle. Truth be told, he hates cops. He’s spent his whole life dodging the responsibility of being one until just last month. Were their positions reversed, even if she was telling the truth and was an officer of the law, he still wouldn’t go anywhere with a cop.[break][break]
“Look, that’s fair. If you have any Pokemon big enough to ride, I’ll just escort you. Otherwise, I can hand you my pokeballs. You can sit l’il Red in your lap. If I get weird or I turn off on any weird roads, just have him burn me to a crisp.” It’s a pragmatic approach, but it beats letting her wander off into the woods.[break][break]
“…I can’t just leave you out here at night by yourself, Kara.” He states, not unkindly.

[break][break]

+ Kara Li

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

He has to admit, she has the makings of a great team. Maybe that says something about him, that that’s where his mind jumps to upon inspecting her Pokemon. Yet for now, they’re nothing but babies. Powerful compared to humans, yes, but no match for some of the things that go bump in the night. He questions what paths could have led someone like her to this spot. She looks like a novice trainer. Acts like one, too. There’s a certain spark he sees in her.[break][break]
“Not a bad team.” He rubs a hand along his chin, musing to himself as much to her. Were he a crueler man, he would let Vortigern out of his ball. It would serve as an admirable demonstration of the sort of tricks people around here can pull. Yet he would not subject her to his black dragon. Once a bell is rung, it cannot be unrung.[break][break]
“But they’re still just kids. There are wild Pokemon out there that could take them on. Hmm, tell ya what. Answer a couple of questions and I’ll leave you be.” He goes right for the throat with the first one, wanting to make his point.[break][break]
“Where are you from, Kara?”

[break][break]

+ Kara Li

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

“Thought so.” There’s nothing accusatory in his tone. He’s not judging her, nor condescending her. He has simply deduced a fact and had that fact confirmed for him, although in truth it seems self-evident.[break][break]
“Alright, how ‘bout this, then? Let’s walk and talk. We’re not that far from the nearest town.” He pulls out one of his own pokeballs – an ultra ball, and lets out a bear Pokemon almost as tall as he is. Shuwen regards Kara, then the litter that follows her.[break][break]
“Pull my truck off the road and grab the keys, big guy.” Shuwen snorts, wondering where Navy gets off asking one such as him to do a task so menial. Kindness binds them, and he sees an extraordinary circumstance for what it is. With no further complaint, he goes to comply.[break][break]
“C’mon. I’m not gonna hurt you.” He starts walking back towards town, speaking words that he thinks she needs to hear.[break][break]
“You’re in the Hoenn region. You might not think it when you look at the region, but it’s at war.” That’s a fine, pleasant note to start things on. He’s not going to sugar coat things for her.

[break][break]

+ Kara Li

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

He turns to look at her, cocking his head in confusion. Amnesia, in his experience, doesn’t usually take away a person’s education or understanding of concepts outside themselves. Then again, he’s no psychologist. Maybe one of the eggheads up at the League can figure out what exactly is wrong with her, or maybe they’ll be just as puzzled.[break][break]
Or maybe, whoever Kara was before she woke up in her new life, here in the woods, was an innocent person. Someone that only saw the good things in the world. The sort of girl who’d see no harm in taking a moonlit stroll through the woods with an army of baby Pokemon.[break][break]
Gabe would like her. Hell, Gabe would be tripping over himself trying to play the proper hero for her.[break][break]
Gabe, innocent as this girl, died. He resolves to tell her the stern truths.[break][break]
“The big players in Hoenn are the Pokemon League and Team Rocket. Both think they know what’s best for the region. Team Rocket are bad business. They tried to take over Slateport about five years ago. They got repelled. In August of 2021, they managed to successfully take over Sootopolis.” When they get to that point, he sounds wounded. He remembers his brother, laid out on a morgue slab.[break][break]
“…lots of good people got hurt by them.”

[break][break]

+ Kara Li

[attr="class","pokeclass"]