Braviary's Nest had history. A lot of it was ancient, but some of it was definitely more recent than others. Personally, Howard stopped viewing things as historical artifacts once a period of modernity was reached. For fossils, it was a few hundred thousand years or so. For civilizations, six thousand years was the cutoff. For curiosities, it depended on Howard's mood. The more recent stories of Braviary's Nest? That fell a little out of Howard Slayte's purview.

That, and history became a whole lot less appealing once you lived through it. A flood that destroyed an entire civilization? Fascinating! Living through that flood? Unpleasant! Shalin could keep her AVIAN ARROWS, Howard would unearth evidence of them in a few centuries.

With that in mind, Howard loved Fortree. Nestled in the jungle, in touch with its roots, both literal and metaphorical? Novel! Exciting! Plus, ruin hunting was far more dynamic in this area. Plus, he loved running up and down the bridges. He considered doing it, before realizing that Shalin would likely judge him.

Raising a hand to proclaim his arrival, Howard's team consisted of a mixture of fossils and other oddities. When put next to Shalin and her army of bugs, the duo looked absolutely bizarre. "I have good news, Shalin!" He beamed towards his guide, before straightening his hat. Wait, there was something... new about it.

A black cord.

"I got a wire cord to stop it from flying off! I took your advice!" Howard seemed genuinely pleased with himself. "You ready to boogie? How're we getting there? Vine rope? Bark climbing? Catapult? Something so positively deranged that only you would think of it?"

The archaeologist positively buzzed with excitement. He was pumped!

---

NAME	SPECIES
Shirley	Aerodactyl
Ayer	Nosepass
Celpho	Anorith
Crumble	Baltoy

Shalin Nariya

Shalin smiled when she heard Howard had taken her advice. "Awesome! Now your hat shouldn't ever blow off in the wind again. You'll need it, too; the only way we can get to the Braviary's Nest is by air." As Flit warmed up his wings, the girl heard an unusual whistling sound coming from them. "Flit, stop! Your wings are still hurt!" she cried, reaching toward the Yanmega and withdrawing him. She sent out a Flygon in his place; while the large dragon wouldn't be ideal for navigating the rough terrain beneath the canopy, it would have to do.

"We'll be traveling by giant bug Pokémon!" Shalin answered, gesturing toward her Beedrill and Flygon. "I know Flygon aren't bug-type Pokémon, but they look like and fly like one. No offense to your Aerodactyl, but their flight won't be precise enough to make it to the entrance. It's really well hidden and tucked away. Whichever you'd be more comfortable with," she offered. "Hop on either my Beedrill or Flygon, and I'll take the other there!" The friendly, docile Shiny Beedrill's eyes flashed varying shades of blue, spreading her stings wide like she wanted to give Howard a hug.

Glancing at the Yanmega, Howard swallowed. With all those eyes, who knew where the dragonfly was looking? He couldn't tell that it was wounded, but he wasn't going to complain much. Flying a bug-type with all the wing flapping would make him nauseous. As Shalin released her Flygon, Howard's soul died slightly.

Flygon wasn't a Yanmega, true, but it still had fast-beating wings. Steeling himself, the archaeologist looked at Shalin, then back at the dragon. At least it would manuever better, right? The more wing-flappy you were, the more maneuverable you were! Probably.

"Wait, Flygon aren't bug-type?" Howard blinked, and then shook his head and grinned. "I'm joshing around. I'll take the Flygon, if you don't mind. I'm afraid that if I take your Beedrill for a spin, I'll be inconsolable by the top." Howard ran towards the Flygon and looked up at it.

Shirley wiggled in her pokeball slightly, and Howard looked down at it. Riding Shirley would be like riding a train with no brakes. Fast. Dangerous. Destructive. Shirley was good at biting things, crawling onto his back, and eating crackers. Flying was not her strong suit, even when Howard encouraged her to try it. He elected to trust in the person who rode every Pokémon under the sun. 

"Alright, let's boogie." Howard scampered up and locked himself in with the saddle. He gave a nervous thumbs-up. "What's your Flygon's name, Shalin? You know, in case I fall off and have to scream for my life.

---

NAME	SPECIES
Shirley	Aerodactyl
Ayer	Nosepass
Celpho	Anorith
Crumble	Baltoy

Shalin Nariya

As Howard took a seat on the Flygon, Shalin thought of one important thing. "Oh! If you have sensitive hearing, you might want to put these in your ears," she suggested, offering the archaeologist a pair of earplugs. "The buzzing isn't that loud, not compared to Queen Zing's at least." Whether Howard would use them or not, the dragon-type would churn her wings for a second or two to give him a taste of what flight would feel like. The vibration would be noticeable but likely not overwhelming.

Queen Zing crouched to let Shalin aboard right when Howard asked for the green-scaled Pokémon's name. "Her name's Sandy! If I forgot to introduce her to you, I'm sorry!" Once Shalin put her earplugs in, the two would leap skyward, darting about with precision far greater than that of a seasoned helicopter pilot. Riding Sandy had very little difference than riding on a giant bug.

The first twenty miles of the trip were relaxing and uneventful as the canopy flew below them. Unable to communicate with Howard aurally due to how loud her mount's wings buzzed, she was left with hand signals, directing the two beneath the wildly uneven canopy. The ride got a lot more intense, Sandy and Queen Zing whizzing past trees and some of the roughest terrain Howard had likely ever seen. Rock formations at extremely odd angles were indicative of a battle of deadly proportions sometime in Hoenn's ancient past. The two may have felt themselves be yanked about in the saddle as their agile mounts weaved around the many obstacles that made a ground approach completely impossible.

On the west side of the main spire, the top of which was covered in thick, perpetual cloud cover that made seeing beyond impossible, there was a large cave entrance that appeared to be well-maintained at some point in the past, with how smooth it was compared to the jagged rock surrounding it. There was also a 1/3 scale statue of a Pidgeot, surprisingly well preserved, at the end of the platform the cave entrance was on. It was difficult to locate even if one knew where to look.

"We're here," Shalin said to Howard, not thinking about the Pokémon's wings still going while they were swooping in to land. He might not have heard her.

It was a relaxing flight.

Twenty miles in the air was nothing, even if most of it was spent going up. It wasn't the longest trip Howard had ever been on, not by a long shot. It was the highest he had spent going up, however. Any expedition that required extreme vertical movement was often extravagant in price, and Shirley Airlines wasn't always reliable. Plus, the in-flight snacks were really bad, courtesy of the pilot constantly eating them.

Staying behind Shalin, Howard maneuvered into the cloud-covered entrance. An intentional design choice? If an entrance was hidden, it was typically for a good reason. Most defense systems only lasted as long as the ancient mechanisms would allow. Once a rope frayed, or a switch stopped turning, a sturdy defense system because an archaic hunk of junk.

But this...

...was spectacular! It was rare to see an ancient site use the terrain to its advantage in such a way. There would always be clouds in the sky, so the only way anyone would know to enter is to know where the entrance was to begin with. Splendid! Simply splendid! It made Howard want to gush.

As they landed, Howard took off his earpads. He patted Sandy in thanks. He hadn't heard Shalin, but for a different reason. His artifact sense was tingling.

"Oh my! Aren't you something spectacular! Howard shouted loudly as he sprinted towards the Pidgeot statue at a speed that made him almost a blur. He was almost inhumanly fast! "Marvelous. Spectacular! Extraordinary! In such good condition, too~" Howard stared at the statue with awe and a professional eye.

"So splendidly preserved despite the air pressure and water vapor! The only way this statue has lasted so long is..." Howard gasped and beamed. "It was carved by a master artisan! Any dowels holding it together would've eroded centuries prior! It's amazing!"

...so much for training. Shalin would have to drag Howard away if they wanted to get anything done.

---

NAME	SPECIES
Shirley	Aerodactyl
Ayer	Nosepass
Celpho	Anorith
Crumble	Baltoy

Shalin Nariya

Shalin only noticed Howard swooning over the Pidgeot statue when she turned to face him. Taking full advantage of her suit, she slid down the giant, green insect's wing after it had become still. It was only the power of her suit, the discharge of her Flygon's SYNC STONE making the bug-like dragon glow green as her trainer sat near the end of the Beedrill's wing. There was a huge grin beneath her suit's headpiece as she felt the wing began to vibrate idly, as if she, too, was waiting for Howard to turn around. "It really is something, isn't it?" Shalin called out to him, barely able to hear her own voice from how powerful her ear protection was.

If Howard were to turn around, he would catch a glimpse of Shalin sitting on the wing before it would start buzzing with her on it. The drone would be louder than it was before, his adventuring partner disappearing into a green blur for the few seconds the wild ride lasted. Every hair beneath her suit stood on end as she went flying up and down faster than the eye could see, Sandy's green glow growing brighter when the wingbeat rate peaked. The girl looked dazed and dizzy when the wings came to a rest, but she otherwise looked okay. "Whooooo-hoooooo!!" she exhaled.

"I'm gonna take so many photos... So many angles..." Howard produced a simple camera and began snapping shots of the statue. "Its make is so interesting! Why would anyone carve it entirely out of stone when wooden dowels are simply so viable? Fortree's wood is exceptional! Does this mean old civilizations in Eastern Hoenn omitted woodworking? Or, that the jungle is more recent than we suspected? That contradicts everything we know! Therefore..."

Notes. Notes. Gotta take notes. Howard produced a journal and made sketches and small chunks of notes in a leather journal. "I gotta write an article about this! Think about the funds... The grants! This specimen is simply too gorgeous..."

BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!! A loud droning assaulted Howard's ears, and he instinctively turned around to tell at whoever was making such an accursed noise. Then, his head cleared.

Shalin.

He was here with Shalin.

Hm. That was probably important. He looked up. Oh, Shalin was on her Beedrill. No, not on her Beedrill. On her Bedrill's wings.

Howard wasn't a professional, but didn't those beat really really really fast? That wasn't safe, but from what he had heard, wasn't unexpected from Shalin Nariya. Hopefully she didn't pass out. She was his guide and he couldn't get back to Fortree without her.

"Shalin! Shalin! Don't vomit! There's no trash cans anywhere, and if you defecate on these ruins, you'll... ruin them!" Howard sputtered as he grabbed Shalin's shoulders and shook her slightly. "Oh, that's probably not helping. Are you okay?"

---

NAME	SPECIES
Shirley	Aerodactyl
Ayer	Nosepass
Celpho	Anorith
Crumble	Baltoy

Shalin Nariya

Howard didn't need to be an expert to see how fast Queen Zing's wings were beating up and down. That was the very source of the droning noise. Without her suit, Shalin would have been reduced to jelly. With it, though, she could subject herself to an incomprehensible thrill ride that any Pokémon she had could offer. One of these days, she was going to have to film herself under a high speed camera.

"I'll be okay!" Shalin insisted, remaining silent about the aftermath of potential motion sickness. There was no getting motion sick as long as she wore her suit; that was one of her suit's powers she figured out very quickly. "It just makes me a bit dizzy is all!" She took several minutes to recover her senses before dismounting from her Beedrill's wing, stumbling but otherwise okay. "Let's head in!"

It was a rarity to see Shalin not seated on a Pokémon; instead, she had her Yanmega at her side, the grounded dragonfly carefully maneuvering around a dozen bird Pokémon statues carefully lined up in the entrance hallway. On one side appeared to be a training hall with many combat dummies in disrepair, as well as many empty weapon racks. The other was similar in size and shape, though instead of there being training dummies everywhere, there were many arrow slits carved into the walls. It seemed that the people who once lived here used this room to ward off would-be intruders trying to climb up from the ground.

The way into the fortress proper was barred by a portcullis. "There's two levers, one in the training hall and one in the archers' parapet," Shalin explained. "If we pull them at the same time, the gate will open and we'll be able to head into the Nest proper."

"Oh, you're not dead! Thank goodness. You're my ride home, y'know. I am not in the mood to go rock climbing down, thank you very much!" Howard followed her in. As they entered the domain proper, Howard seemingly grew more confident with every step. This was his element. He had been exploring ruins for years.

Combined with Shalin, the duo would be practically unstoppable.

Unless Shalin decided to breach terminal velocity again. In which case, Howard would likely just cry in the corner. Yet that wouldn't happen. If it did, Howard would throttle her. He was confident he could get one good throttle in before Shalin's menagerie tossed him off the Nest.

"Got it. I'll take the one in the training hall. I want to resea-I mean... pull the lever!" Howard nodded. "Don't get shot by any arrows, Shalin." Howard joked. He began walking towards the training hall, before stopping. It was best to bring out something if he was going solo, even if it was a bit. "Alright, let's get going Crumble." Howard tossed out his Baltoy. Combined with Shalin's Yanmega, the two would make a powerful duo.

"Marvelous. Spectacular condition." Howard said as he and Crumble skirted past the various statues and training dummies. "This place is a treasure. It's a shame so few people will ever get to see it." Howard wouldn't let himself get distracted (much). On his own, maybe. Yet letting Shalin wait would be the epitome of rudeness, especially when she was his ride.

"Lever!" Howard tapped one jutting out of the wall. His voice echoed as it bounced off stone. "You ready, Shalin?"

---

NAME	SPECIES
Shirley	Aerodactyl
Ayer	Nosepass
Celpho	Anorith
Crumble	Baltoy

Shalin Nariya

Shalin laughed, guffawed even, at the archaeologist's remark about her being "not dead". If she were in a loopier mood, she may have started laughing hysterically. "It takes a buzz way faster than that to knock me out!" It was one she could expose herself to, if she really wanted. All she had to do was sit on her Flygon's wing and order her to use Boomburst. In the middle of a move like that, Sandy's wings would shriek. She knew from her Galarian experience that she couldn't do something like that lightly, though; even with her suit, riding vibration that fast would cause her serious musculoskeletal problems when she grew up. While the suit was powerful in that it could make the impossible possible, it had its limits - ones Shalin would respect.

The Baltoy was a welcome companion for Flit, the grounded Yanmega crawling alongside the ground-type, keeping an eye out for nasties occupying the fortress. There were some very large wild bird Pokémon that made their homes here, and one could attack at any moment without warning. "It really is," Shalin lamented aloud. "This place dates three thousand years back. It's marvelous how far ahead of their time these bird users were. Could you imagine taming and riding a bird Pokémon without the use of Poké Balls?"

Shalin took her place in the opposite room that Howard stood on, both their hands on their respective levers. "Yep! On three! One... two... three!" Assuming their timing was in sync, when the two operated the devices at the same time, they would be able to hear a mechanical click, followed by the grinding sound of the portcullis receding into the floor.

Beyond the portcullis was a short hall with a moderate upward grade to it. It gave way to an almost castle-like grand hall, several paintings depicting large bird Pokémon alongside humans wearing unusual garb. Light filtering in from balcony entrances at the top of the stairs on the west and east sides kept the room well lit. Dusty candlesticks populated the room, half still standing and half on the floor haphazardly.

Near the top of the east staircase was a mural depicting two royal figures that appeared to be hand-feeding quite large Braviary. If Howard were to approach the staircase, he would be able to feel a draft as it split to the two balcony entrances. "Incredible, isn't it? It's like a whole civilization of bird trainers lived here thousands of years ago."

"It's truly marvelous." Howard breathed as the two entered the next room. Immediately, Howard ran over to the mural and got close to it, all while avoiding touching it. The mural was in remarkable quality for its age, and it didn't seem to originate from Smeargle paint. The only way a paint like this could last so long in such an environment was if...

"Pigmented stones, fitted together to create a mural more immune to time than anything else. I'll be damned." Howard took a step back. If that was the case, there was no worry of a flash camera disrupting the quality of the mural. It would never lose its color. Stone was immoveable, and it made for an excellent mural tool. The one issue was that it was expensive, and required master stoneworking.

"This culture had something special, Shalin. Flying Pokémon to travel anywhere. They could've gathered the greatest artisans in the land. People from Sootopolis and Rustboro and from even further. All without leaving trade routes behind. Of course they would expend such resources here... These are people of importance in this society. Kings, princes, priests. There are some cultures where even farmers are dressed so royally."

Howard pulled out a camera. Snap! Snap! Snap! Howard took several photos.

"Shalin!" Howard turned towards his guide and grabbed her shoulders. "We need to go further! How much do you know about this particular culture? But first..." Howard pointed towards where the draft originated—the balcony entrances. "We need to make sure we miss nothing! Come!"

Without taking much of a breath, Howard ran off to the entrance to the left. He was just as committed as Shalin was, he just expressed it in an academic way. This was his element. He was far more composed and active compared to the ride to Fortree City. Crumble continued to follow him.

---

NAME	SPECIES
Shirley	Aerodactyl
Ayer	Nosepass
Celpho	Anorith
Crumble	Baltoy

Shalin Nariya

Howard's excitement brought Shalin back to her first trip to the Braviary's Nest, discovering this long lost civilization for herself. "Not to mention a lot of Pokémon-related privileges we take for granted today," she added. "Taming Pokémon without Poké Balls is something I could not fathom... especially riding on the backs of bird Pokémon more than capable of flinging you off at any moment. To do that takes trust. Without the effects of Poké Balls to aid in that process... it sure is something else."

Before Shalin could answer, Howard was already dashing to the left staircase and past a balcony entrance. "Wait, there's--" It was too late; the sound of a murder of gawking Murkrow assaulted the explorers' ears, black feathers and beaks looking to pound Howard and Crumble with PECKS and WING ATTACKS.

Unable to vibrate his wings, Flit was left with one means of attack, and that was the rising rocks fueling his ANCIENT POWER. While the Rock-type attacks incapacitated one line of the small birds, there were still quite a few looking to beat up the intrepid travelers!

"Guh! Crumble!" Howard shouted as he dodged one of Flit's stray Ancient Powers. With all the Murkrows running (flying) around, Flit couldn't be expected to hit them all, especially when there were two friendly targets hidden somewhere in the swarm of birds. "Keep off the hat, you brutes!" Howard shouted bombastically as he swatted at a few with his hat.

With such a poor type matchup against the Dark and Flying-type Pokémon, Crumble was left with a move that was typically used to clear fossil sites for excavation: RAPID SPIN! The Baltoy danced between the remaining Murkrows like a possessed top, braining several of the remaining birds as it danced between them.

Donk! Clonk! Bonk! The remaining Murkrows not struck by Flit were bounced out of range, Howard scampered into the connecting room that was yet unexplored. He nodded to Crumble, giving the Baltoy a thumbs up in thanks. "Rookie mistake. Stupid mistake. Should've expected it. Should've been looking for traps. You and Shalin did a bit of bailing. Ouch." Howard grunted as he felt the angry scratches that had originated from the Murkrow attack.

Always come prepared. Howard packed antiseptic. As he leaned in the doorway, he peered into the next room. "We're clear, Shalin. You okay back there?

---

NAME	SPECIES
Shirley	Aerodactyl
Ayer	Nosepass
Celpho	Anorith
Crumble	Baltoy

Shalin Nariya