“Different kinds of smoke burn different. Looks more industrial than, say, a Charizard’s fire.” If he takes any offense to what the girl has to say, he doesn’t let it show. They’re beyond offense now. Whether in dreams or lived experience, they have shared a life together. He watched her grow into a woman once and beamed with pride at the person she became.[break][break]
There was never some delusion that she would be wholly normal. What’s the point of being here in Hoenn if you’re just going to be normal? But she was adjusted enough.[break][break]
“And that looks like it started at some secret spot I got told about by some kids at the arcade. Arceus…let’s make sure we stop it before it gets to town.” A quick, simple, easy mission. In and out, no problem.[break][break]
Their truck eventually pulls to the side of the road. They’re close to the fire now. Hattori, Shuwen, and his unnamed Kingdra all burst from their balls. Hattori and Kingdra shoot off bursts of water. Shuwen, crazy as the man who helped find him down beneath these waves, starts punching the flames.[break][break]
A film of water appears over his fists, and the fire begins losing ground.[break][break]
“You wanna handle the rescue, since I’m sure there’s some kids around, or you want me to do it?”

[break][break]

+ Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

The child runs like a beast through the wilderness. Stark fear lives in his eyes. One of a few scattered souls now lost in this beach. The child of a couple too old to be having children, a hanger-on for a cabal of teenagers huddled like prey animals upon the sand.[break][break]
Sheriff Michael Navidson fades into the background. His good works are done while Tsubaki conducts her rescue. He is fighting the fire from one end with bear and claw and frog and fish. He’ll grant these young sinners their deepest wish, keep them alive through this. Already this fire is scorching. The inferno rises.[break][break]
One of the teenagers on the beach is holding exactly what Navy described: a flare gun. Beside him and his fellows are open beer cans. An act of rebellion has spiraled out of control, turned into this. The boy runs in fear, away from the flames, away from Tsubaki, away from everything. He runs in plain, simple terror.[break][break]
He only stops when something crawls out of the flames. It seems the Sheriff and his Deputy are both correct. It’s a Cyndaquill – was a Cyndaquill. This creature has its stomach torn open. Inside are exposed ribs and a heart beating dead blood into an organ that churns fire. It looks up with closed eyes at the child and invites him under the waves in a torrent of flames.

[break][break]

+ Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Shuwen raises his head from his work. The flames, which once threatened to spread all along the coast, are but embers now. It will take time for nature to reclaim this patch of beach, return errant bush and grass to the interspersed land beside the sea, but the fire is almost contained. It opens a path for this bear. He hears the screech of a creature about to lose itself to the throes of rage.[break][break]
Navy and his Pokemon look at one another. Shuwen asks a silent question. As he fights Vortigern every week, so too he takes it upon himself to combat this leviathan. Balling his hand into a fist, Navy turns the dial on his broken watch. The mega stone surges with power and Shuwen emerges changed. He is the massive dynamaxed version of himself cast in miniature. Rolling blue clouds disperse from his frame. His height has doubled, but he is but a dwarf compared to his likeness in Galar.[break][break]
Charging through the woods, the whale song is met by the sound of a crashing fist. Shuwen slams his open palm into the baby. This creature was but a newborn, once upon a time. It had its whole life before it. And now, it is nothing but a monster to be killed. Shuwen knows he will have to put down Shion once this creature is dealt with, a dragon's rage is a mighty thing indeed.

[break][break]

+ Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Like a triumphant hero, he soars down. In the midst of the battle and the beatdown, Navy keeps his calm. Ironsides is simply too old and too done with everything to care about the heat. Reaching down, Navy grabs the children. Tsubaki and all the other children are pulled up. Shuwen and Shion put their beatdown on the little monster. They tear it apart until it is well and truly dead.[break][break]
“You kids…are in a lot of trouble.” He says through the residual heat. The flames have died, the Cyndaquil falls dead. The rangers will collect the body, try and identify it, return it to its trainer. The sight of him calms them down enough for them to transport the children back to the truck. Shuwen turns his attention on Shion, subduing her if she needs to be subdued. Otherwise, they’re back on the road to Dewford.[break][break]
The children are crying. Navy’s making phone calls. As the teenagers realize Navy might well hold their fate in his hands, their eyes go as wide as dinnerplates.[break][break]
“You were right, Dave. It was a Pokemon.” Relief spreads across his face.[break][break]
It’s just another day in Dewford. Now, it’s the fire department and the ranger’s problem.

[break][break]

+ Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki

[attr="class","pokeclass"]