Eddie had heard of the concept of 'exposure therapy' years ago from some sort of documentary his mom had been watching. It was the idea that the more you threw yourself at something that frightened you, the more you'd become accustomed to it. That was his own personal purpose for this next expedition, he reasoned. There was still a knot of tension and fear that coiled in his gut like an angry Ekans. [break][break]

A little levity certainly went a long way to help undo the anxious knot, though. A familiar voice and a brilliant smile greeted him as he broke away from the group of other civilian volunteers. Cian, he remembered, from his very first VCT match. The kid with the Froakie that absolutely stomped him. Eddie grinned at the memory, [break][break]

“Fancy meetin' you here!” he called pleasantly. Eddie noted the younger man's relaxed stride; it was weirdly comforting, an unspoken reassurance that this venture might not be as harrowing as some of his previous. [break][break]

“It's-” he paused. Too much to unpack at the moment, give the kid an easy answer. “-going. How about you? This your first time out to these parts?” [break][break]

_klXOXzO

[attr="class","ooc"] CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Huh, maybe Eddie should have expected that. This guy was a strong trainer with some unique tricks up his sleeve; running around the Giant Chasm was probably just a walk in the park for him. But he paused at Cian's use of the word “civvie”. That implied that this kid was probably part of the League proper, then. Maybe Eddie should have expected that, too, but he supposed that's what he got for still being relatively new to Hoenn and largely ignorant of it's celebrity culture, [break][break]

“Out here to lend some muscle,” Eddie replied with a casual shrug. He hoped the gesture made him look more nonchalant than he felt, “Heard there was a need for half-way decent trainers to help clear some'a these critters out.” [break][break]

As if to emphasize his point, Eddie fished out a Poke Ball and gently tossed it into the air. A Lucario emerged from the resulting beam of red light, landing onto the grass with practiced grace, [break][break]

“This is my buddy, Batou. Hits hard, but he's real good at runnin' support, too.”[break][break]

UMmx8FX|

[attr="class","ooc"] CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Eddie grinned wide at the compliment, “You're just flatterin' me; that Froakie of yours was somethin' else!”[break][break]

Perhaps Cian's words were just baseless flattery, but it made Eddie feel good either way. He nodded in acknowledgment of the little Kubfu upon their introduction, and Batou crouched down to meet the cub at eye level, [break][break]

“He's real cute! Went up against someone in the VCT with a big one'a them; guy really packed a punch, too.” [break][break]

Eddie had half a mind to ask where he could befriend his own Kubfu, until he noticed the group of volunteers started to move out. Looks like they had their marching orders, then.[break][break]

tp00Uuxe

[attr="class","ooc"] CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Cian's potential concerns went unnoticed by Eddie, along with any qualms the Kubfu may or may not have had with such descriptions of it's appearance. The older man mostly found himself caught up again in a little nervous trepidation as the group mobilized. He'd almost forgotten the whole reason he was here; the realization that yes, there will be fighting ahead, gave him a moment of pause. [break][break]

That was, until Cian spoke up again. [break][break]

'Do you want to be friends?' [break][break]

The question was posed so casually, as if the bonds of friendship could be readily established with little more than easy conversation. It reminded Eddie of being back in grade school, of bonding with kids on the playground with little more than trading cards and shared classes in common. It was deeply endearing; how could Eddie say no to a question like that? [break][break]

“Hell yeah! Could use some friends out in these parts.”[break][break]

He marched with his new friend towards the metaphorical Pyroar's den. Maybe this venture wouldn't be as horrific as he first imagined. [break][break]

du1F5EWw

[attr="class","ooc"] CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

The trek was surprisingly easy as they passed through wide rolling fields and across a shallow creek. The Giant Chasm was breathtaking, really; Eddie would have been tempted to explore the the idyllic place further, were it not for what waited them over the crest of the next rocky outcropping. [break][break]

The group stopped as a member at the forefront produced a pair of binoculars, gesticulating towards the expanse below. Eddie peered over, to see a small group of... weird-looking Donphan? At least, he thought they were Donphan, but they looked pointier, somehow, [break][break]

“Huh,” he mused, turning back to Cian, “Ain't see one'a them before. Kinda cool lookin', but I bet those tusks hurt like hell.”[break][break]

Bp9Surga

[attr="class","ooc"] CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Cian's enthusiasm was infectious. While Eddie's first encounter with “paradox Pokemon” was far from ideal, he couldn't help but smile as he watched the prehistoric pachyderms amble along, peacefully munching on ancient ferns and bits of grass, [break][break]

“Great Tusk, huh? Think we're gonna hafta fight 'em? Hate to piss 'em off, if we can get away with avoidin' 'em instead.” [break][break]

He watched as a smaller, less pointy Great Tusk slipped on a slick patch of mud, letting out a small cry as it fell. Another larger Great Tusk quickly trotted over, gently patting the apparent child with it's trunk in an effort to comfort it. It was far cuter than these strange Pokemon had any right to be. Eddie idly wondered if the Iron Tusk variants were just as weirdly adorable.[break][break]

u9eomoz4

[attr="class","ooc"] CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","pokeclass"]

Persistent, huh? Unsurprising, but something about it made Eddie feel an increasing fondness for these ancient creatures. Couldn't blame them for defending what was theirs, [break][break]

“Nah, I've only been down here a couple'a times. Mostly just seen these big, dinosaur-lookin' Pokemon that look like bizzaro versions of Entei and Suicune. They ain't too sociable, either.” [break][break]

But maybe they had a right to be, after all. This was their home, after all, and Eddie was just some oaf stumbling into it. It was a fact he was coming to appreciate more and more as he watched the herd of Great Tusk below, living their lives without any concern for the little hairless apes watching them from above.[break][break]

_Yda5dK0

[attr="class","ooc"] CIAN MAHER

[attr="class","pokeclass"]