[attr="class","icon"]

Lydia did not believe man held dominion over Pokemon. Such power belonged solely to Father Arceus and his children. The idea of forcing Pokemon into servitude and subservience struck her as a grievous sin. Every Pokemon she owned had joined her willingly. The Iron Valiant had been impressed by her fortitude. Her Druddigon joined after she had cleared a rock slide from around it. [break][break]

The fact that she was in the Safari Zone may seem counterproductive to her beliefs. But the woman felt compelled to purchase a ticket. She had seen the ball of a whale and felt her heart fill with uncharacteristic joy. It was one of the most perfect creatures she had ever seen. Its toothy smile was light incarnate. Its trunk-like feet were sturdy and resilient. Lydia just hoped one would willingly join her squad. The bait in her pocket, far outside her normal budget, was designed to help with that.[break][break]


At her side, her Iron Violent let out a series of beeps. She recognized this particular trill as a noise of intrusion. Metal fingers tightened reflexively around its spear. “Beep. Brrzzzt.” LED panels shifted toward its shorter trainer. “Hold.” Lydia’s hands locked around her Pokeball as she waited for something to come waddling out of the nearby bush.

[attr="class","icon"]

The blonde did not seem amused. Icy eyes fixated on their destination, her jaw tightening into a bar of steel. “I am no longer your—or anyone’s—Captain.” She finally managed to grit out. A hand tugged her shirt lower, displaying signs of a surgery long past. The result of an ambush that had almost eradicated her squad. “I survived the bombing.” A stiff nod of thanks followed. Then, with a sigh, the veteran shook her head. “My career did not.” They had not thought she would walk again. And, yet, here she stood.[break][break]

But reenlisting had seemed like such a strange decision. Then, of course, those mysterious letters began to arrive. Dozens of cards—supposedly from her father—begging for a reunion. One that had left her in much the same pain as the earlier ambush. Fortunately, they did not talk of her current status—a sore point. Instead, their chatter turned to Axel’s allegiances.[break][break]

Lydia knew what sort of person availed themselves of Axel’s services. A person who would buy a soldier—instead of drawing them to a worthy cause—rarely fell on the moral side of the law. “I do not care who your master is, just that your fangs will not be bared at me.” A bald-faced lie. Again, she seemed unimpressed. “At least not today.” This place was dangerous enough without factoring in betrayal and treachery.[break][break]
The thump earned an icy glare in return. That mitten of a hand was almost enough to make her stumble. “I believe I should be saying that to you, Mister Steele.” Though pretending not to care about the taunting, she was soon leaping across the sands after him with the grace of a small gazelle.

As they neared their destination, Lydia slowed. She brushed sandy bangs from her face. She did not enjoy hot sand it seems. "Is this your first desert mission?" Her Pokemon moved to adopt flanking positions, their eyes kept peeled on the sand before them.[break][break]

[attr="class","icon"]

‘Its seismic abilities warn the Lycanroc as the shaking erupts. But the world shifts before Minerva can find the threat. Thick claws dig ruts into the wooden boards. Splash! “Sir!” When she looks up, her trainer is poised on the edge of the floating platform. Her shirt has been discarded to show a criss-crossed bra underneath. The gun drops beside it. “Watch him!” [break][break]

Then, wondering if this act of avatar in his waters violates Lord Kyogre's domain, the blonde dives into the water.[break][break]

With an irritable snarl, the wolf does as directed. The man’s comfortable seat is now surrounded by rings of pointed stone. The remote detonator now smashed beneath the faithful lupine’s foot. Why do humans not just kill the sick ones and be done with it? Any noises surrounding them—panicked citizens bucked from the city’s walkways—are ignored in favor of a singular focus.[break][break]


Beneath the azure waves, Lydia does not take long to find Matias. As she approaches, she moves as if to loop a muscled bicep under his shoulders. She does not know if he can swim, but she knows how surprising a sudden submersion can be. As she nears, she notices a shadow in the water. If she'd been thinking, she might have thought this attack an astute metaphor for the region itself.[break][break]


All the confusion and screaming have drawn the attention of underwater predators. "Shar!" A Sharpedo, a Carvana, and a Veluza appear from the deep waters beneath them. A few platforms away, her Kingdra surges to intersect. An Aqua Jet allows him to knock the leading Pokemon into a support pillar. But that's just one of their many toothy problems.[break][break]

With a free hand, Lydia draws a vicious knife from the side of her pants. She allows her eyes to drift up toward the light-speckled surface above. Getting there was possible, but there are risks. Blue eyes shift to the drenched man next to her: Are you ready?

[attr="class","icon"]

The woman expected a scolding or a burst of fear. What she did not expect was Raphael’s strange sense of curiosity. For a moment, she stuttered like a dial-up connection. Big blue eyes blinked a few times as Lydia tried to process what he was asking. “I—I do not believe so, no.” The noises increased in volume at the word ‘beast,’ its digital eyes shiting into something displeased. “Nor is it...wi-fi enabled.” Or, at least, she did not believe it was. It was not as if she had tried to connect to it.[break][break]




Thin lips pursed into a tight line. If this was an attempt at minimizing the situation, it seemed strangely flippant. “Does that not…concern you?” It reminded her of a similar conversation she had with her cousin. Somehow she doubted his reasons for being targeted were as noble as those of Thomas Benoit . At the acknowledgment of her name, she returned a small smile of acknowledgment. She no longer wish she had waited to call the Paradox Pokemon back.[break][break]





“I did.” The woman responded. Though she was not certain chip was the proper word for it. It was merely something she did not wish to seem like a big deal. “The surgeons had to take the bullet out.” Fortunately, after her previous discharge, she had grown experienced with medical stays. Though maddening—leaving her pacing like a caged Arcanine—she could now tolerate the boredom. In her sling, muscular fingers flexed at the edge. Almost as if to prove they were working.[break][break]


Then, her nose wrinkled. Cigarettes were a nasty habit. “I do not believe I caught your name, Mister—?” She slid her gaze over to her Gallade and Iron Valiant. She really needed to come up with a name for the strange creature. It made meetings like this much more awkward.

[attr="class","blbqimg"]

[attr="class","bisc"]Lydia’s mask trembled at the name. A chuckle wormed its way out between her lips. A hint of her accent snuck through her normally neutral tones. "It truly is quite cute, monsieur.” Her own Pokemon’s names were boring in comparison. Certainly as childish as Lam’s own—a silly exercise in hero worship. “I am only worried it will not fit him as he grows.” A large hulking ghost owl certainly did not resemble an artichoke.

The blonde nodded. After all this time—lost and rudderless—she still thought of herself in uniform. A useful piece of a bigger, more functional whole. “I served in Kanto and Johto.” She turned in what she perceived was the right direction. “And those habits die hard.” There was still sometimes an urge to check for attackers behind doorways.

At the talk of the islands, the woman imagined the salty sting of the ocean air. While Hoenn itself was tropical, its size somehow made it less stunning. She doubted those islands were as devastated as this place or Galar. The darkest day they likely had was a night without little drink umbrellas. “I am wondering how much you are paid for these referrals.” Even his general attitude—so much less stiff than her own—seemed to beckon her toward the islands.

The Psychic blew the snake back a few yards. It hissed, the crown sliding back and forth on its head. Before it could retaliate, Lydia’s wolf smashed into its side with a ground-type move. As it shook off the dust, the snake followed up with a full magazine of Seed Bombs. These seemed stronger than usual, the vines glowing with a strange power as they burst forth.

lam logan

☉

[attr="class","icon"]

‘Any interest in joining the fight here?’ It’s like a lightning strike. For an instant, she looks like a starving man who’s had a steak tossed before them. Her tongue probes at her lips. A single word—a yes--threatens to spill out. But she pauses. [break][break]

The prisoner takes the opportunity to snort. “Just looking for more blood for the gears, eh?” He pulls against his chains, the wiggling having a purpose. One he finally accomplishes as he finds his way to a secret compartment at his belt. One that the metal detectors had missed. “Leave it to a fucking Silph.” [break][break]

Lydia’s voice is like a whip crack. “Quiet.” But, even if alone, his words stop her from being too impulsive. She remembers the day Axel Steele had found her. A leg twisted into a mess of bone and sinew. The majority of her squad a victim of a rescue attempt turned ambush. But she made it. [break][break]

All the looks of pity the doctors threw her way. All those hushed whispers about her never walking again. But here she stood. [break][break]

And, now, she could have a chance to make up for it. “And how would you—” At her side, Anne’s ears prick up. The cuffed man's laugh is barely audible to the humans. But the explosion that rocked the platform was hard to miss. “Shit!” Lydia stumbles as the platform rocks beneath them. [break][break]

Instantly, her eyes snap to the captive. She should have let him drown.

[attr="class","icon"]

The woman watched as the Salamence swooped toward the beetles. She shook her head. Again, a small smile hovered just beneath the surface. “I see some things never change.” With a cry of alarm, the bug-types spread up their rolling. One went so far as to clamber onto its ball. Little psychic bursts erupted toward the potential predator—likely doing more than taunting it. [break][break]


A mirror of her trainer’s own robin’s egg gaze, the wolf turned to face the hyena. The look shared between them was respectful. A simple acknowledgment of equality. With that greeting complete, the canid returned to observing the shifting sands around them. Her twin ears twisted toward each potential threat.[break][break]



To have her greeting ignored was a bit grating. It made her want to turn to glare at him—something that would just play into the mercenary’s claws. Finally, he spoke. Of course, it was not even with the proper title. Her teeth gritted as she took her first few steps down the dune. “Captain.” A small smirk played at her lips—the irritation quickly replaced by a bit of banter. “Who holds your leash these days, sir?”
[break][break]


With her Pokemon splayed out around her—the Iron Valiant taking up the rear—the woman’s eyes caught on a silhouette in the distance. It looked like a more complex obelisk than the ones surrounding them. Its top was trident shape and its base was more squat. The size indicated it had a core of some kind.[break][break]



Lowering her binoculars to her chest, Lydia nodded in the direction of the tower. “We should set up base.”

[attr="class","icon"]

Her first expedition to this desert scape had been accidental. A wormhole opened up while she was on her jog, sending her and Heimdall plummeting into a sand dune. [break][break]


At the time, she had been dressed for a workout and not the dangers encountered inside of an ultra wormhole. Fortunately, none of her co-patriots had paid her sports bra and leggings any mind. [break][break]


Today, however, was different. The expedition was planned on the part of a local research group. Not much for combat themselves, they hired her to collect some samples and pictures of the various ruins of this land. [break][break]


This time, she was prepared. Her bag was filled with water, and snacks in case they became trapped. Strep to her back we're all so a pair of shoes designed to make walking over the quicksand of the area much less difficult. [break][break]


And, as always, an amulet to Lugia and Arceus gleamed against her neck. Something she believed would provide far more protection than the gun at her side. "May Arceus protect us on this journey. Amen." A simple prayer said to the dune.
[break][break]

Beside her, three Pokemon stop. Two of them join her in silent prayer. A nameless metallic creature that resembled a Gallade. It was currently playing with the sand. The ever suspicious-looking Lycanroc. Between the pair, a Lucario stood. [break][break]


The stone platform beneath them seems to be the only solid footing for miles. [break][break]


"The expedition begins at 14:00 sharp." She spoke to no one in particular. There were still 5 minutes before her company-assigned partner would be here. "If he is not here by 14:15, we leave." Lydia had never quite mastered the art of sitting still. [break][break]


In front of them, a trio of Rabsca floated by. If they recognized her presence, they did not show a sign. Something, however, spooked them. With a strange glowing and panicked expression, the psychic bugs took off down a nearby dune. [break][break]


Her voice is ice, though a smile plays at her lips. "Steele."