Of course this would happen his first day back at work.

The brisk autumn air does nothing to soothe Locke's burning lungs, gasping in time with each hurried, aching step. De-De didn't seem to be fairing much better, if the frantic chirping beside him was anything to go by. You'd think they'd both have better form by now.

Dirt kicks out from under him in clumps as he leads his Delibird down a sharp right, reveling in the sound of buzzing shooting past behind them. It's only a brief respite, he can already hear the Beedrill course correcting back in his direction, but now he should have enough time to reach in his bag and-

It takes a moment after falling to register they'd run into someone, and it takes watching the person get skewered by the stinger aiming for them to notice it was straw spilling from the wound instead of blood.

De-De bravely positions herself in front of her trainer as they dive for their scattered Pokeballs, desperately searching for one that would save them before the Mega Pokemon could remove itself from the scarecrow...

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the mighty mega beedrill whirs loudly as its venom tip is lodged in the straw-stuffed scarecrow, and nick reacts quickly. a plan forms within nick's racing mind, and he hopes that this'll give him enough time to go ahead with it.[break][break]

"solomon, air slash!"[break][break]

as solomon the braviary unfurls his wings wide, he sends a gust of wind carrying razor-sharp blades aimed at the mega beedrill. the air slashes whip against the creature's body with tremendous force, sending it careening back, freeing the scarecrow, which had kept locke and his delibird safe. nick does not know why he had been given the gift of pokemon, but he silently thanks whoever or whatever that he has one such as solomon.[break][break]

while the beedrill is momentarily weakened, nick swoops down in an agile dive and lands gracefully just a short distance from locke. he approaches the disheveled trainer with a swift gait, having to adjust the glasses perched on his face in an effort to truly make out this man who appeared out of nowhere, who was luckily spared.[break][break]

"i'd like to assist you," nick says in a tone that is meant to be comforting, yet cannot hide the urgency embedded within, a response to the monster buzzing somewhere nearby, getting ready to strike once again. "are you alright?"

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Locke's search becomes increasingly frantic, every beat of the Beedrill's wings counting another second towards doom, and even the wind seems to pick up around them, kicking up dirt and straw in a cyclone around them until they can longer see the-

There! They lunge for the Pokeball they'd been seeking before it rolls away with the rest, thumb tracing over the smiley face stickers adorning its surface as they hold it close and peer up at the new arrival.

It's a Braviary that's come to his rescue, and for a split second he imagines angelo vestri or Alexei Ivanov grinning down at him, but the flash of a Ranger uniform is a good second best.

"Y-Yes, thank you!" he wheezes as he scrambles back to his feet, Pokeball outstretched. An Aipom appears in a flash of red next to him, and she immediately begins racing circles around the clearing, building up her Agility until the monkey matches the buzzing beat for beat.

"I'm not much for battling, but we'll try not to get in the way!"

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nick's eyes flick over to the monkey pokemon, surprised at the sudden appearance of locke's aipom. they meet his gaze for a split second, and nick can see the determination reflected within those beady eyes. the aipom may not be much of a battler, but she's quick on her feet, nimble, and ready to dodge the impending attack.[break][break]

"if you can't fight directly," nick begins, raising his voice to be heard over the intense whirring sounds of the approaching mega beedrill and the wind his own companion is churning up, "then assist with your speed! aim to distract and evade!"[break][break]

nick focuses back on his own companion, solomon, whose thrashing wings are quick enough to send powerful air slashes. nick locks eyes with the beedrill, now getting back on the offensive, the venom on its stinger tip still glistening as it refocuses on the ranger and the braviary, deadly intent written in its red compound eyes.[break][break]

nick steels himself, his mind racing about what to do next. he must help locke, a trainer caught in circumstances beyond his control, and yet, nick also feels a duty to protect the crops these farmers have dedicated themselves to. even if the mega beedrill is wild and erratic, that does not mean that he is its enemy. this is just another living creature of arceus that nick must strive to understand and coexist with, even as it attempts to take his life.[break][break]

but how?

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"You heard em Pom-Pom!" Locke orders, pointing at the reapproaching Beedrill. "Keep it busy!"

The Aipom wastes no time, clambering up the nearest stalk to reach a ripe, green cob and Fling it at the giant insect. She screeches in delight as it bounces off the Beedrill's head, though her amusement is short-lived as it retaliates with a furious slash she only just manages to leap away from. Her previous perch falls just as reaches the next, which she just as quickly has to move on from as it too is cut down by her pursuer.

As Locke feared, the mega Pokemon was just too fast for someone with their experience to fight head-on. But they didn't need to fight.

"Pom-Pom! Here!" they shout, quickly picking up and tossing the deceased scarecrow's hat in the direction of their Pokemon.

The stetson is snatched from the air as the monkey soars overhead and firmly stuffed over the Beedrill's eyes before she even lands, chittering gleefully as it struggles to remove the blinding object.

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that's it!

nick watches as the aipom's resourcefulness pays off with the clever use of the scarecrow's hat, momentarily blinding the massive mega beedrill that's clearly becoming more agitated by the second. distracted, it's guard lowers. a plan forms in nick's head.[break][break]


"now, solomon!"[break][break]

at nick's command, solomon the braviary spreads his wings wide and begins to flap them powerfully, generating a massive whirlwind that engulfs the area around the blinded, thrashing beedrill. leaves, dirt, and straw are swept up in the air, obscuring vision of the struggle. nick's arms clutch around the bird, winding tight to keep from falling off and down to the ground below.[break][break]

suddenly, nick feels solomon pull himself toward the mega beedrill as the whirlwind tightens, intensifying its force, and then, with a mighty gust, the whirlwind launches the beedrill high into the air and away from them. nick watches its silhouette become smaller and smaller against the sky, eventually vanishing completely.[break][break]

as the whirlwind dissipates, nick finds locke and the aipom through the settling dust and detritus. nick exhales, his breath shaky and unsteady, feeling the adrenaline of battle slowly begin to fade. he'd done it. against a mega beedrill no less. nick shakes his head as he directs solomon to lower down, down, until he can step off of the bird pokemon's back to approach locke and the aipom, a wry, exhausted smile tugging at the corners of his mouth despite himself.[break][break]

"smart move with the hat," he says, voice rough with the remnants of the fear that had clawed its way up his throat only moments prior. "you alright?"

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Pom-Pom dances on three limbs in sheer jubilation while her trainer melts away with the adrenaline. Shit like this didn't happen in Alola…

"Th-Thank you!" the courier exclaims as the ranger approaches, more in response to having their life saved than any compliment to themselves. "I'm alright now, but my-ah!"

De-De returns at that moment, pulling her trainer's scattered items from her tail as she pushes through the stalks towards him. She passes the various pokeballs and letters to Locke with a triumphant chirp, and he inspects each item before replacing them in his bag until he's finally relieved, turning back to his savior with an apologetic smile.

"Thank you again," he repeats for what must have been the millionth time. "Normally I can outrun stuff like that, but it was just too fast…

"I really owe you one Mister…?"

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a polite, albeit tired chuckle escapes nick's lips as he listens to locke's profuse gratitude. he reassures the young trainer with a soft pat on the shoulder, trying to ease the nerves the kid so clearly exhibits.[break][break]

"no debt incurred. it's what rangers do," he explains with a shrug of his shoulders. "my name's nick. and you?"[break][break]

nick takes note of the pokemon returning to her trainer, the assorted pokeballs and letters she salvaged from wherever she had found them. obviously, this trainer is trustworthy enough to have his pokemon's loyalty, especially in dire situations. that counts for something.[break][break]

he tilts his head and poses a question towards the other trainer. "that's a lotta letters you got there," nick observes with a shift of his stance. "are you delivering them?"

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"Yes sir!" he answers with a beaming smile and a salute. "Locke Jamison, Delibird Deliveries! Through rain, sleet, or wormhole, we'll deliver anywhere the post office won't!"

De-De, too, puffs her feathers out with pride, distractedly dropping a Pokeball from the cluster in her arms as she does so. It rolls off and bumps into the base of Pom-Pom's tail, and the Aipom cuts her celebration short to retrieve it, bounding over to climb onto her trainer's shoulder and hand it to him before giving Nick's Braviary a cheeky grin.

[attr="class","wizzcred"]❤ wizz