Eternatus. A second leviathan in the oceans? The captain had narrowly survived an encounter with the one they called Kyogre. Yet the sea basin Pokemon was on a wild rampage. Walter couldn't fathom what another rampaging leviathan could do. The captain rose out of his chair and paced around the room. Questions blew around his mind in a flurry.

Walter stroked his beard, his eyes grey like storm clouds. What the heck was going on in this region? The waves hid so much from him. He turned back to his friend and finally released a hurricane of questions.

"Now this...thing. Why are we the ones who need to check on it? Is the League not doing anything about it? I am willing to sail over, raid the shores, and do whatever it takes to keep the beast at bay. I just want to know why. Why must Rocket be the ones to do it?"

The more questions he asked, the less it started to make sense. Raiding Dewford? Makes sense. Rocket is a criminal organization that sounds par for the course. Saving the world though? Hard to buy it. Isn't that the League's job?

Why was the League not doing anything about it? What is going on? What happened to that aspiring archaeologist he once knew all those years ago?

---

howard slayte

Those words rang through Walter's head. Raid Dewford? To save the world? A baffling statement produced by one of the most rational speakers in Walter's life.

Raiding Dewford. What did he mean by "raid?" What was Rocket after? What was Howard not telling him. Walter chuckled nervously but managed to give Howard a big sailor smile.

"Aye, matey. How exactly does raiding Dewford save the world? What are we plundering for? If I'm going to sail you, I'll need to know what we're up against and what we're after."

The captain was unsure how many questions he'd have to ask or even if Howard would tell him the truth. Regardless, he needed at least something to go off of in order to plan for the mission ahead. This wasn't going to be some simple smuggling job. This was real.

He looked at Howard with storming eyes. "Howard. You can be honest with me. What do you want from Dewford?"

---

howard slayte

"Aye, ambassador, I've sailed through these waters a few times. No waves are too dangerous for me and my crew." The captain gave a hearty chuckle as he steered the course.

Sootopolis was a dangerous place to bring a League ambassador, especially for a mercenary on both sides. He could maybe get away with having her on board as long as they sailed towards the outskirts of the city. While Walter wasn't exactly loyal to Rocket, he didn't want trouble from them either.

However, a good pirate cannot resist the promise of adventure and treasure. The ghostly princess gave him both. She hired him to sail out here to observe the local ghost type Pokemon. Sailors in Sootopolis told eerie stories about encountering spirits at night. Walter was eager to be one of them.

The hull creaked to the touch of gentle waves. Waves curled round the side of the vessel as it sliced its way through the water. This was the captain's favorite sound: the melody of the tides. Perfect harmony between ship and sea. Walter gave a look towards the two mysterious Pokemon as they contemplated the waves.

He had never seen anything like them before. The captain turned to the ambassador with a puzzled look, stroking his beard while he sailed.

"Say, matey. Your Pokemon look quite...exotic. What kind of Pokemon are they, if you don't mind me asking?"

---

Elise Calcifet

"Aye, matey. She could sail much faster than this. But every sailor, no matter how adventurous, knows when to listen to the sea." The captain gave a nod towards the clouds behind him.

Storm clouds rolled over them in a vicious squall. Drizzle turned to downpour, gusts turned to gales, and waves turned into foes. "Storm's rolling in, lads! Aipom and Gino, port side! Afonso and Marcos, starboard side! Furl the sails half way! Not a single Pokemon is allowed in the air!"

He looked back at the swordsman. "Save me one of those cigarettes. I'll need one after we get through this."

Waves crashed onto the deck, drenching the crew at their stations. Gale winds rattled the hull with a resounding creek. Cold hands cut by wind and dashed with salt tugged hard at the lines. With the sails unfurled, the ship would be blown away by the storm or even capsize.

The hearty sailors pulled tighter and tighter in attempt to reduce the sails. With all their might, they gave one big "Yo ho!" and the sails shrunk.

Yet the sea was not satisfied. More waves towered over the ship, ending with a violent thud onto the deck. Once hearty sailors were now flat on their backs coughing up water. The captain shouted with a stern fear. "Everyone off the main deck!"

He turned to Hitoshi. "If my hands come off the wheel, we're all lost to the sea. We need to get them off the deck and fast. Any ideas, matey?"

---

Hitoshi Inoue

Some things are best left alone. Ignorance is bliss, after all. But the captain was never one to let sleeping maschiffs lay. A mystery was an adventure after all. Besides, the more dangerous the mission the more fun it will be! Not to mention how much it'll pay!

"Howard, matey, you're always looking out for me. But you know who I am. I'm the pirate who sailed from Paldea to Hoenn in search of adventure and plunder. You've given me plunder. I'm ready for a real adventure now.

Walter slammed his fist on the table, his eyes darkened like storm clouds. The rookie captain never felt more anxious in his life. Working with Rocket was always going to lead him down a dark path. No matter what answer Howard could give, this job would cement Walter as a core operative for Rocket.

His mind kept racing like the ocean's currents. But he wouldn't show it. Walter, no, Captain Walter Delmar was the fiercest pirate in the ocean blue. No wind too strong. No storm to great. No Pokemon too monstrous. No treasure too hidden. He was going to be the greatest pirate in the world.

A wide grin dripped onto his face. "I want to know everything. Let's chart our course together, old friend."


He was sailing straight into the eye of the storm. And he relished it.

---

howard slayte

Walter had, in fact, not hit a book for a few weeks. The last book he read was a book about ancient Hoennian sailors Howard had lent to him. He did, however, know what would do damage to a ship. A big hefty Pokemon skull would do the trick.

"Nay, matey. I'm not as studious as you are. I just noticed he had a big dome on his ol' skull." The captain let out a hearty chuckle and took a seat.

This was the best seat he's sit on for weeks.

"Dewford, eh? " The last time he went to Dewford a tracker wound up on his ship. Ship security has been tight ever since. Yet even with new protocols, the captain was wary about visiting that dreaded harbor.

"Aye, matey, you remember the last time I went to Dewford? Cunning folk over there. Security will no doubt be top notch after my last haul."

Walter stroked his beard in contemplation "Why do you need to sail there? What are you and the rest of Rocket plotting?"

Walter met Howard with serious eyes. The once friendly grin on his face had dissolved. This could be big.

---

howard slayte

Walter stared at the behemoth. It was a menacing beast for sure, a creature of legend even. He surveyed the rest of the treasures. The amount of wealth concentrated in that room was well more than Walter could make in his current position.

A better pirate than him would've taken the most expensive looking loot at made a run for the docks. But he's a new captain who still held on to ideas like trust and friendship.

The captain took one more look at the Rampardos skeleton. "I think this would make an excellent ship ram! Yo ho ho ho! Get me a few of these bad boys and no merchant ship would be safe. Ho ho ho!"


Walter was excited to learn what Howard had in store for him. A private meeting with the boss himself? His mind churned with endless possibilities. Maybe it was an even bigger smuggling job. Or maybe he'd finally go on a proper treasure hunt! Afterall, Howard was an archaeologist.

Walter let out a loud chuckle that rolled like thunder. "Anyways, enough of my jokes. You called me here for business. Talk to me, matey, what's this important job you have for me?"

---

howard slayte

A curtain of marigold shown gently above the open blue sea. As the sun continued to descend, more and more crew bustled out onto the deck. Soon, almost the entire ship was together. On deck the crew stood, united as one clan, and stared out at the glowing fireball softly descending into the calm blue blanket.


Captains, medical officers, researchers, deckhands, their ranks did not matter. In that moment, the crew was one. One family gently cradled by the great ocean. The wind blew softly over the ship, greeting the crew with a refreshing breeze.


This was not just the open ocean. This was the Paldean sea. Warm and calm waters that hugged the coast of their homeland. As they sailed onward to Galar, they would face rough chilling waters. The waves they would face would be over 3 meters tall. The once friendly breeze would turn into aggressive horrible squalls. But that was not known yet. For now, they were safe in their maiden waters, enthralled by the setting sun.



Walter looked out at the sunset awestruck. His dark hair and sailor's shirt moved gently in the wind. Wattrel stood on his shoulder and basked in the wind. As the deckhand stared out, a large grin crawled its way onto his face. The young deckhand was reminded this is where he belonged. The sea was his true home.


Walter, turned to the research student next to him. With a chuckle, he said "Beautiful isn't it? No matter how many voyages you go on, you will never get tired of seeing the sunset. Never."

---

Cain Stille

"Aye aye, matey. You can trust ol' Captain Walt. This ship is as secure as an octillery's tentacles round its prey!"
Walter cracked a smile as he took the magikarp. It was time to make amends.

The Captain strode back to his ship and climbed aboard. "Attention, Team Cove! This is your captain speaking. Good news! We are still working for Howard and Team Rocket!" the crew let out a mighty "Yo ho!"

"Marcos, did you finish extracting the tracker?" Walter looked over with a confident look at his top mechanic.

"Aye aye, captain! Here you are!" Marcos handed the tracker to his captain. "Excellent work, Marcos!" The Captain held the tracker in one hand, the magikarp in the other.

"Down the hatch!" Walter thrust the tracker deep into the magikarp's mouth. He gave deckhand Gino a pat on the shoulder, hand still covered in magikarp slime.

"Keep this in a barrel full of water. We're gonna release it when we set sail again."

Gino tried to wipe the slime from his shoulder with little success. He grabbed the poor fish Pokemon and quickly ran off to put it in water.

"Now, everyone. Let's start unloading our goods and chart our course for our next big adventure!"

"Yo ho! Yo ho! Aye aye, Captain!" rang out from the crew.

It was good to be the captain. It was even better to be friends with a Rocket admin.

---

howard slayte

"Aye, mateys, put your backs into it! We're trying to make a sand ship not a sand slide!" Captain Walter roared as he pushed hi back against mounds of falling sand.

"Yo ho!" the crew yelled! Every human and Pokemon was putting their all into making the magnificent sand ship. Aipom grabbed sand with his paws and patted it down with his tail. Murkrow scoured over the beach hunting for shiny shells and sea glass to adorn the sandy hull. Wattrel pecked out small details like a fine Paldean artist. Tauros used blasts of water to wet the sand down. The crew moved as if they were in a sea storm. Marcos, Gino, and Afonso helped Aipom with the building and patting.

After several hours, the crew stepped back to witness their creation; a 2 meter pirate ship made completely out of sand, shells, and sea glass.

"Good work, mateys! Drinks are on me tonight!"

Suddenly, the ship began to shake. The ship exploded and reformed into a ghastly Pokemon.

"Avast, mateys! Our hull has been blown! Prepare for battle!"

Walter somberly climbed down from his ship. He went to the edge of the dock and stared out at the sea. This was his domain, his home. Yet now it looked darker and angrier to him. The waves lapped at the dock with a newfound hostility. The once gentle breeze now tugged at Walter's clothes. He had failed as a captain.

Walter reminisced the first time he boarded his ship. On that bright sunny day he remembered looking out on the Paldean sea with newly united his crew. He made a promise to them. A promise that they would become sailors of legend and all lands from Unova to Sinnoh would know the name Team Cove.

He made another promise. He promised to be their unyielding captain who would never lead them astray. When the storms blew in, he would maneuver the ship to save his crew. When they were blown off course, he would be the one to make sure everyone made it to land. He made a promise and he broke it.

A rookie mistake wrought upon his crew because of his arrogance. He was no great captain. He was a boy playing pirate.


Walter turned around, his lips didn't dare curl into his usual smile. He looked into Howard's eyes and stated "Howard, my old friend. I apologize for my recklessness. I made a promise to you and to my crew that I would lead this operation to success. I have failed you both. As captain of this vessel and crew, I take full responsibility for letting this happen. If you allow me to continue sailing for Team Rocket, I will make sure this never happens again. I will station more regimented ship watch rotations. Furthermore, I will make sure everyone and every part of my ship is accounted for at all times during a mission. Howard, will you let us continue to sail for you?"

---

howard slayte

"Aye, sir. Orders are orders. Murkrow, give the 'trouble' back to Marcos." The Captain stood attentively arms clasped behind his back. Murkrow looked back at his captain with a blank stare.

Wattrel leapt from Walter's shoulder and swooped down towards Murkrow's treasure nest. The two gave each other a vacant stare for a few seconds before Wattrel made its move. Slowly, Wattrel inched his way to the top of the nest and plucked the nut with his beak.

Murkrow hopped on top of the nest with Wattrel. Slowly, Murkrow reached their beak out towards Wattrel. With a spark of electricity, Wattrel shot into the air. Murkrow fell off of the nest, stuck in a daze for a few moments.

Wattrel plopped the nut into his captain's hand. "Thank you, Wattrel. This is why you're the first mate." He turned towards Murkrow.

"Don't worry, Murkrow will be fine. They're a good scout and treasurer hunter, but sometimes they can be a bit clingy with their loot. They make a fine pirate but we're working on making them a better crew mate."

The Captain reached down to give Marcos the nut. "Marcos, take this and listen to every instruction Mr. Slayte gives you. He'd never betray us." with this order, the captain rose up and stared into his superior's eyes.

While the two were close friends, business is business and trackers are trackers. It didn't take a criminal mastermind to tell Walter that a tracker would be trouble. But it did require one to tell him how to deal with it.

"As for the fish Pokemon, sir. We have a few magikarp in the storage barrels but none that'll be lively swimmers." The Captain gave a small chuckle as he said the final sentence.

"Tell me, sir, what're you cooking up in that genius head of yours?"

---

howard slayte