“Sect? What the fuck is– oh, you mean like the town? New Mauville,” she said. “And the name’s June. I mostly do deliveries, but I’ve started doing contract work for the rangers there. Under Annalise.”

annalise henderson hadn’t fired her yet, so she couldn’t be doing that poorly of a job. Despite her performance here in the new area– but in her defense, she was a delivery girl. Not an actual Ranger. Or Pokémon Fighter. Or Team Rocket fighter. But Arceus be damned if she wouldn’t be that much closer to the qualification by the end of this.

Speaking of, June gave the area a quick once-over. Still no visual sign of the thing, but they must be getting close. That dirt looked fresh. She squinted at it to double-check. Then triple-check. She tilted her head and leaned closer. “That track is recent, right? I have no clue.”

But she could swear she heard it nearby. The smaller ones moved without that much noise, but the bigger ones rattled the earth with their footsteps. At least, the fire one did. Water and electric one? Not as much.

The track gave them the bare minimum in terms of direction, though. As evidenced by the way the ‘toes’ pointed and the very clear disturbance in the foliage. In the distance, the sound of movement and rustle of leaves signaled a presence. “I’m not crazy, right? You hear that too?”

Just a touch further, and they'd be in range to start a fight. With any luck, this super cool 'Freya' could handle most of it on her own and she'd just be a cheerleader. Based on her Salamence pins, that'd likely be what she chose to fight with. Looked like June picked the right super-deadly creature to bring along for the ride. 

---

freya morningstar

June gave a mock salute, “Aye aye, Captain. I’m glad we’re on the same page.”

Had anyone else respected June’s total lack of experience in the field before Freya? Not that she could recall. Maybe when she’d been forced to give that one kid Eris Halla lunch, that didn’t feel like something you gave someone important. But a ‘rookie’ comedically out of place? Perfect for the job.

But it did spark a few embers of annoyance and her eyebrows narrowed. It was too late to save face, though. She just had to accept she’d been called a liability and move on with her life.

Like they moved on further into the brush. She tried to watch her step, but it was rather hard with the tall grass, the stupid bushes, and the occasional low-hung branch. Yet she didn’t feel bad when she considered that the strange noise got louder and louder. It blocked out her relatively clumsy movement perfectly.

And then, there it was. Just past where the foliage ended and a narrow strip of dirt began. It leaded into a small pond area, where a few Yanma foraged for seeds among the reeds. A few meters away, totally distracted by the water, was a massive beast.

She’d seen them a couple times before, but always from afar. This one made pinpricks erupt on her skin, and she nervously clenched the Poke Ball in her pocket. “That’s the… the thing. Y’know? I don’t remember its name.”

Walking Fire? Raging Wake? Gouging Bolt? She groaned. “Whichever one it is– if you wanna do your thing. I’ll throw my Pokemon out to assist and hide here. Sound like a plan?"

---

freya morningstar

June tried not to notice the red splatters on some of the greenery around the Gouging Fire. Probably for the better that way. She really didn’t want to add to the tapestry or environmental story-telling going on there. Instead, she lurked back and pulled out her own Poke ball. Finally, she could release the damn thing.

It’s no surprise that Freya released something like a Salamence. As it bit into the leg of the Paradoxical beast, she tossed her own ball out and put forth a combination of the two creatures already present. Salamence, but clearly not from this time. With wings much more feathery, more primal, it roared loudly and unfurled its wings to full mass.

“Arceus,” she covered her ears and pointed at the Gouging Fire, “help… neutralize? Kill? Attack– attack that thing!”

It tried, in a sense. With another roar to ripple the water, the sun began to shine down much more intensely. Rays of light burned into the earth, and the water shimmered from the heat. The Sunny Day changed the landscape into a much hotter one, one that the Roaring Moon much more preferred than the weather of the current day.

Unfortunately for Freya, though, the Gouging Fire also preferred the hot climate. Blood flowed from its fresh wound, but the hot sun invigorated its bones. It slammed itself backward with a surprise Flare Blitz, attempting to 252+ Atk Protosynthesis Gouging Fire Flare Blitz vs. 0 HP / 4 Def Salamence in Sun: 229-270 (69.1 - 81.5%) -- guaranteed 2HKO the Salamence for its transgression. The force splashed water clear over to where June was and absolutely soaked her to the bone.

“Gah,” she yelped. Despite the newfound heat, she shivered against the grass. “Alright, uh, is the Sunny Day a bad thing for you? Or good? I’m not an expert in Pokemon-Battle-ology!”

---

freya morningstar

Midnight’s head cranked back, the kind that was more done out of shock at Freya’s ability to speak its language more than her order itself. Not that the Paradox liked it, but it was more willing to listen if done the right way. June looked at Freya in surprise too, but in the crazy person way. “What the fuck was that? You speak gibberish?”

Sure enough, her massive Roaring Moon flapped its wings heavily and Flew into the air. Not where its present form did, but somewhere off to the side. June couldn’t even see where the Gouging Fire and Salamence fucked off to. It hurt her eyes to look up. At least she was already dry, though.

But, hey, they had a few moments for themselves. No threat of imminent death, no Pokémon around due to the commotion. If she were stupid, she’d say this was the safest place to be in this entire forsaken chasm.

And she almost qualified. “Well, whatever it was, it worked. So… can you teach me how to speak that? Midnight never listens to me on command. Causes a lot of problems.”

How many threats of legal repercussions had there been from angry parents, whose children the Roaring Moon scared? Or just in general? Not that June blamed them. She was pretty fuckin’ scared when she first met it too.

“Do you think I should step back a little, or?”

---

freya morningstar

“Tame it? You make it sound like it’s a Boltund or something,” she said. June could only imagine the belly rubs and treats for a high five, and she giggled. “Don’t think I can train that thing to claw at the door when it needs to shit.”

But the prospect was a good one. Midnight not being as free-spirited could only be a good thing, that was for damn sure. Hell, she could even turn it into a business expense for tax purposes!

“But I’m down. My work schedule is… uh.”

All day, every day. Hell, sometimes even overnights. Didn’t she owe Matchstick another visit to Josh Devlin ’s flying class sometime soon? No, that was two months ago. She frowned, “I might have to get back to you on that.”

Meanwhile, Midnight simply followed along with its future-current self. As they reached the top, and then started to descend down. Faster, faster, faster, with gravity in control and its wings knives that cut through the wind resistance.

“Hey, do you hear that? Like a piano falling.”

---

freya morningstar

June followed along, but still couldn’t see the figures get closer. Only the noise, which got progressively louder and louder. “Are they getting close? I can't see them–”

First, the Salamence and Gouging Fire slammed into the ground. Its impact rocked the area and sent the rest of the contents of the pond all over the place. For the second time, June is soaked to the bone– not that noticed immediately. She was too busy recoiling from the raw sound of the attack.

Next, Midnight jetted down like the ballistic missile it was. It swooped in and immediately went in for its Fly attack. She slid right along the top of the paradoxical Pokémon, and the air that couldn’t hope to keep up slammed into the large dinosaur. At least she had her ears covered for that one.

She saw Freya reach for a Poke Ball but stop herself. Oh, did she want to catch it? Fair enough; a big shot like her probably wanted as many as these fucks as possible. The woman radiated Dragon Girl energy as was. June reached into her sling backpack and pulled out an unused Poke Ball.

“I’ll put in on your tab,” she said.

---

freya morningstar