Diana Cavendish had an interesting history. The former fiancée of none other than Remiel Calcifet, she had as much potential to be a liability for Team Rocket as an asset. The outcome depended entirely on how much animosity she held for Remiel and his family, as her loyalty to Team Rocket was conditional at best. [break][break]

At least, that was what Zev had gathered from reading her dossier. But it was not his responsibility to manage that situation. Instead, he had been chosen to evaluate her battling ability, in the event Team Rocket needed to call upon her to uphold her end of their deal. [break][break]

After all, Remiel was still an Avatar of Zekrom. And should Diana find herself caught in the crossfire between The Exacting and The Cursed, the show of her allegiance could be the difference between success or failure for the crime syndicate. [break][break]

"Cavendish," Zev said by way of greeting when the woman entered the training facility. He stood in the center of a small Pokémon arena, built for practice bouts between grunts. "Do you know why we're meeting here today?" [break][break]

His expression was neutral, his tone cold. And when he looked at her, his gaze was critical, as if assessing her for flaws.

TAGS – Diana Cavendish[break]
NOTES – mission

[attr="class","pkmn"]

"Then today, you'll learn how," Zev said, unsurprised by her total lack of experience. The rich and elite tended to prefer watching battles and betting on them, not participating themselves. [break][break]

He launched into a brief explanation of battling basics: type advantages and disadvantages, offensive and defensive moves, expectations of fairness from the League, and how to catch them off guard with underhanded tactics. [break][break]

"We'll do a practice round today, just to familiarize you with how fights tend to go." Selecting two Pokéballs from his belt, Zev opened them to reveal an Espeon and an Ambipom. "Choose two of yours to face off against mine. These two have been trained for public matches, so they'll be good sparring partners for yours." [break][break]

Then he fell silent, waiting to see what Diana would summon.

TAGS – Diana Cavendish[break]
NOTES – mission

[attr="class","pkmn"]

The two Pokémon that Diana summoned seemed, at first glance, perfectly advantaged against Zev's own. But the same could be said of the opposite, should he order them to target the other opponent. [break][break]

"Let's begin, then. We battle until one person's team is unable to continue, whether that means they surrender, are knocked unconscious, or are incapacitated by sleep or some other condition." [break][break]

He backed up to one end of the arena, while his Espeon and Ambipom remained close to the center. Then he waited until Diana had taken up a similar position before shouting, "Begin!" [break][break]

At once, his Pokémon leaped forward. The air shimmered in front of both of them as Espeon used REFLECT. Meanwhile, a SHADOW CLAW from Ambipom raked at the Dragapult.

TAGS – Diana Cavendish[break]
NOTES – mission[break]
– Espeon uses REFLECT[break]
– Ambipon uses SHADOW CLAW on Dragapult

[attr="class","pkmn"]

BRICK BREAK smashed through Espeon's REFLECT but did little to slow down the purple feline. He retaliated with a PSYCHIC aimed directly at the Galarian Farfetch'd, only to be thrown aside by the advantageous PHANTOM FORCE. [break][break]

"Good choices so far," Zev commented to Diana, watching the battle closely. "But can you keep it up?" [break][break]

As Espeon struggled to his feet, Ambipom leaped high into the air. She descended with alarming speed, attempting to strike the Farfetch'd with AERIAL ACE.

TAGS – Diana Cavendish[break]
NOTES – mission[break]
– Espeon is hit by BRICK BREAK and PHANTOM FORCE; uses PSYCHIC on Galarian Farfetch'd[break]
– Ambipon uses AERIAL ACE on Galarian Farfetch'd

[attr="class","pkmn"]

Zev's expression did not change as the Galarian Farfetch'd collapsed to the floor in a daze. His eyes merely flickered to the Dragapult moments before the Ghost-type disappeared with PHANTOM FORCE. [break][break]

It was enough time for Espeon to save himself with ALLY SWITCH. Instantly, he swapped places with Ambipom. When Dragapult rematerialized to land a blow, the dragon instead phased right through the monkey, who giggled, unharmed. [break][break]

Then Ambipom raked a SHADOW CLAW through the air in retaliation.

TAGS – Diana Cavendish[break]
NOTES – mission[break]
– Espeon uses ALLY SWITCH with Ambipom; PHANTOM FORCE "hits" Ambipon instead, but deals no damage[break]
– Ambipom uses SHADOW CLAW on Dragapult

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Upon Diana's declaration of surrender, both Espeon and Ambipom stepped back, acknowledging the end of the battle. Zev crossed his arms over his chest, turning the brief fight over in his mind for a proper assessment. [break][break]

"You showed you understood the basic concepts, but your inexperience was your downfall. Knowing theory is good, but there'll always be situations that contradict what's taught in books," he said. "So practice regularly, with a lot of different people. Do the gym challenge, if you want." [break][break]

Finally, he recalled his Pokémon. [break][break]

"Do you have any final questions for me?"

TAGS – Diana Cavendish[break]
NOTES – mission

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"You could stand to incorporate more defensive moves into your tactics," Zev confirmed, nodding. "Even a simple PROTECT could save your Pokémon's hide in the thick of battle. Your own, too," he added as an afterthought, a warning. [break][break]

The Beast checked his watch. He had other tasks to complete, and Diana had enough advice to contemplate for the time being. [break][break]

"That's all for today," he told her before turning to leave the practice arena. "The next time we meet, I expect to see improvements." [break][break]

Whether that meant fighting alongside each other in the coming war or against each other as enemies.

TAGS – Diana Cavendish[break]
NOTES – mission

[attr="class","pkmn"]