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Caleb was tired. Overworked, really. On top of all the other bizarre anomalies taking place in Hoenn, poisonous gas and swamps had started cropping up all over the region. The Rangers were run ragged, scrambling to evacuate civilians and Pokemon from the corrupted areas. It reminded him all too much of the toxic sludge that had plagued Motostoke when he'd been...king?[break][break]
Nox clicked a warning, and Caleb shook himself from his reverie. Expecting to see a patch of poisonous bog in front of them, instead he saw...a girl? A girl laying in the grass. A girl laying in the grass unmoving.[break][break]
He didn't think twice: he began sprinting. Within seconds, the Ranger and his Lokix were crouched beside the girl. Caleb gently turned her over - was she dead!? No...no wait, she was breathing. He let out a sigh of relief, glad he wouldn't need to test his CPR skills.[break][break]
She was alive, but what the hell had happened to her? Examining her a bit closer, he could see that she had a nasty bump on her head, but that seemed to be her only injury. Concern coloring his expression, he turned to Nox, who shrugged, pointing at three figures nearby: Pokemon, Caleb realized. The girl's Pokemon?[break][break]
"What happened here?" He asked the trio, looking between them with obvious anxiety. He glanced back down at the girl, gently shaking her by the shoulders.[break][break]
"Hey! Can you hear me?"[break][break]

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When the man suddenly showed up, the Wigglytuff started to try to recover from her laughing, standing to look at him as he approached Thea. But as soon as she noticed the panicking expression on his face, she fell off and laughed again, wiggling her feet. It seemed like a nice person at least, so she wasn't worried.[break][break]

The Primeape, on another hand, stood and looked at the guy, still teary eyes as it oinked and huffed, gesturing as if he was trying to explain the situation. He threw a couple punches in the air, and then dropped himself on the ground, hitting it a couple times while the Minccino took a single step back as the man approached the girl.[break][break]

After a bit of shaking, Thea's eyebrows twitched, and her eyelids trembled as she slowly opened her narrowed eyes. "Hnnngh..." The girl slipped a strained moan as she struggled to focus her vision... That eventually got used to the light beaming on her face and making the strange and blurry silhouette in front of her turn into a more detailed face of a person. She blinked a couple times, still a bit disoriented.[break][break]

But as soon as she snapped back to reality— "Huh?! AH?!" She abruptly tried to stand up, only for a pang of headache make her groan and squeeze her hands against her skull. "O-Ooow..!" Thea winced.[break][break]

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Caleb stared, slack-jawed, at the trio of Pokemon. They were attempting to explain the situation, he knew, but it wasn't making a ton of sense. Was the girl's Wigglytuff laughing?[break][break]
Nox hopped over to the Primeape, chittering animatedly and gesturing with his thin arms. As they tried to communicate, Caleb glanced back down at the girl - only to see that she was starting to move.[break][break]
She was clearly disoriented - and in pain - so the last thing he wanted to do was startle her further. He backed up slightly, trying to look totally unassuming, like there was no way he could have been involved in her "accident" - or worse, like someone trying to rob a defenseless, passed-out child.[break][break]
"Hi there," he said, keeping his tone friendly. "My name's Caleb, and I'm a Ranger."[break][break]
Seeing her try - and fail - to stand, Caleb took out another Pokeball, releasing Comet. The Lucario, keen as he was, immediately sensed the need for aid. Lowering his head, he generated a HEAL PULSE, directing it towards the girl and hoping it would make some kind of difference.[break][break]
"I, uh, found you laying on the ground while I was passing through this area. How did that happen, exactly? Do you remember?"

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The Healing Pulse was a godsend that quickly eased Thea's headache, making her relax and feel her senses actually returning to her. Blinking a couple times, she looked at the man that was introducing himself while tossing questions. "My name is Thea— Ah! It is nice to meet you, Mr. Caleb." She took a moment, trying to stand and this time succeeding without much effort. [break][break]

"Ah, it feels much better. Thank you so much!" She grinned, then pondered about his question, trying to remember the last memories she had before everything was blank.[break][break]

"Zeus..." She muttered for a moment, then clasped her hands. "Right! Zeus punched me! I asked him to—" She gestured at the Primeape, that finally noticing Thea was awake, rushed toward the hug to hug her. "Ahaha, there, there... It isn't your fault, Zeus. I thought I could take it."[break][break]

Her eyes then shifted to the man a few times, with her cheeks reddening in embarrassment as she slowly realized she was admitting something incredibly stupid in front of a stranger. "A-Ah, you see... It was, uhh... A training matter. I'm a martial artist and I thought I could block his punch, but I've failed." She half-lied. The truth is that she actually wanted to endure the punch rather than block it. But Caleb didn't need to know that.[break][break]

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Caleb looked between the girl and her Primeape, obviously still bemused.[break][break]
"He...punched you," he echoed, making sure he'd heard that right.[break][break]
But then she continued on with her explanation, and the title martial artist finally set things straight. She was training with her Pokemon, and it had gone too far. That made sense, he supposed.[break][break]
He was relieved to hear she hadn't encountered anything dangerous in these woods, at least. Not yet, anyway.[break][break]
Which, actually, gave him an idea.[break][break]
"If you're looking to train, maybe you can help me out with something," he offered.[break][break]
Technically, he wasn't supposed to let civilians get involved in Ranger business, but she was already here and if he walked away, what if she did end up getting attacked? At least this way, he could keep an eye on her.[break][break]
"There are supposedly poisonous crystablooms growing in this forest, causing toxic swamps and gas to ruin the ecosystem. Might even be rampaging poison Pokemon about. I'm supposed to clear the area."[break][break]
He shrugged, glancing at her trio of Pokemon. Nox clicked, as if in support of Caleb's idea.[break][break]
"Would probably go faster if you and your Pokemon tagged along."

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Thea's face flared up when the man echoed her reveal. "Y-Yeaaah." It didn't stop her from confirming it, even if her eyes couldn't met the man's, certain that he thought she was ridiculous right now. She cleared her throat, rubbing her nape with eyes still averted until he mentioned helping him out.[break][break]

"Oh, I mean! Of course, anything you need, Mr. Caleb!" She grinned. He had helped her, after all, she couldn't reject helping him out.[break][break]

"So there has been some Pokémons causing havoc... Hmmm..." Thea rubbed her chin. "I can totally help out, it would be bad if someone was passing by and got attacked by them. I was completely unaware of it myself—" Thea shuddered at the thought of those Poison Pokémons showing up exactly when she was fainted.[break][break]

Which was when something clicked in her mind. "Wait, are you a ranger or something?" Unless he was some sort of odd-jobber, or someone particularly altruistic, she couldn't think of another reason for him to aim to clear the area.[break][break]

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