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As the Dragalge goes down with a horrible sound, the thick underwater smokescreen begins to fade. Nephelai's light pierces through the darkness and Orion breathes a sigh of relief, kicking his fins to swim closer to his Lanturn.[break][break]

This also puts him closer to the Kingdra, however, and the ranger doesn't miss how territorial it seems to be over their fallen prey. As best as he can underwater, Orion mimes a gesture of surrender with his hands, attempting to convey to the Kingdra that they'll have no trouble from him nor his Pokemon when it came to the incapacitated Pokemon.[break][break]

He turns to check on Stormy and realises with horror that she's breathing heavily, clearly panicking. Ignoring the mouth of the cave for now, he swims close and puts a hand on her arm.[break][break]

"You're OK," he says, muffled but firm. "It's OK. We're safe. Try and steady your breathing; you don't want to burn through your air supply. But if you think you need to swim back up, I can go in alone, all right?"[break][break]

He knows the cold claws of fear only too well, and wouldn't want to subject her to them any further.

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Orion is the first to arrive at his next table, and he settles anxiously into his chair. His catch-up with Hannah had been a nice reprieve from the dating aspect of speed-dating, but now it was back to the usual fare.[break][break]

An Absol sits at his side, silent and still as a statue save for the red eyes that blink on occasion.[break][break]

On the approach of Rex, the councilman offers a smile that's as brief as it is nervous.[break][break]

"Hey," he greets, and intermediately his cheeks flush red. Too casual? Not casual enough? His heart hammers. "Um, I'm Orion. It's nice to meet you, um...?"

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Arceus above, it's been a long time since Orion's genuinely wanted to punch someone. He remembers his discussion with evan fader about being the bigger man, about resisting such urges, and their agreement that such a stance wasn't always satisfying resonates with him in that moment.[break][break]

But he doesn't want to lose either of his jobs, and so his nostrils flare with a deep intake of breath.[break][break]

This kid looks like he's fresh out of high-school, the sort of cocky punk that Orion's older brothers had been. Such unpleasant associations do nothing to better the councilman's mood.[break][break]

"If you do well, you prove your point," he repeats, nodding his agreement. Nova makes to follow the kid and his Pokemon, then hesitates and trots back to her trainer when she realises he hasn't moved. "If you do shit, I clean up your mess and don't mention you in my report as anything other than an arrogant civilian who got in the way of an important operation. I get the credit and the reward, you get blacklisted from future jobs. Who do you think they'll believe?"[break][break]

Orion now counts himself among the ranks of the elite rangers, to say nothing of his camaraderie with the Head Ranger, Laurence Anderson. Petty as it was to use such things as leverage or blackmail, this little shit was really pissing him off.

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"You're a long way from the warm shallows."[break][break]

Orion eyes a Luvdisc with a mixture of surprise and concern, but doesn't move to disturb its peaceful swim. It doesn't seem bothered, and it's not being threatened, though he has to wonder what's happened to the rest of its colony. Maybe it was an outcast?[break][break]

Alexei speaks, drawing his attention, and the ranger looks over his shoulder at the yawning darkness of a half-sunken corridor.[break][break]

"Doesn't matter to me where we go," he shrugs. "Just give me a sec, I'll get us some light."[break][break]

Administering some basic first-aid to his Litwick, he instructs the ghost-type to light their way. Schism lumbers ahead beneath the hovering candle, and Orion follows more cautiously.

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Ken seems to be a man of few words beyond those that are necessary; Orion respects this, immediately feeling more relaxed in his fellow ranger's company once the pressure of exchanging pleasantries is off.[break][break]

"Got it. My Lanturn, Nephelai, will give us light."[break][break]

He pulls the breathing apparatus down and gives Ken a curt nod. "Ready."[break][break]

Tentacruel takes the cue, its boneless body pulsating as it slips out from underneath him and sinks below the waves. Orion treads water for a moment, getting his bearings and ensuring his Slowpoke is still following, then dives.[break][break]

Lanturn's light lures them in like a will-o-wisp, a beacon in the depths. It never seems to get closer; Nephalai, too, is swimming further down, leading them toward magnificent underwater geography. There are many places for a frightened colony to hide, canyons and caverns and clusters of underwater vegetation. Something brushes his leg and Orion tenses, glancing down to see only harmless seaweed.[break][break]

Breathing slow and steady, he looks around for Ken.

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Relieved that Selena is willing to go along with the plan, Orion lies in wait for his Haunter as she and her Umbreon take the spotlight.[break][break]

The taunt from Lucifer draws the Beheeyem's attention immediately, and the councilman finds himself impressed by the way that the dark-type manages to keep that attention — a delicate dance occurs between the two, and though the Umbreon is at a disadvantage with its typing, it defends itself against the assault with admirable skill.[break][break]

"Already on it!"[break][break]

Should Selena look over to where Orion and his Haunter had hidden themselves away, she'd spot only the ranger peering out from behind a bale of hay. Haunter has vanished. It reappears directly behind the Beheeyem, cackling and tapping the alien creature with one of its ghostly 'hands'. When the psychic-type whirls to face its new threat, it finds itself paralyzed with fear under the Haunter's mean look.[break][break]

Satisfied, Orion stands up from his cover. Time to fight![break][break]

"Now, Haunter!"[break][break]

Not wanting to alert the potentially intelligent lifeform to his plan, he'd whispered his commands when they'd still been lying in wait. True to these orders, the Haunter wiggles its ethereal fingers and puts the Beheeyem to sleep with hypnosis, following up with an empowered hex.[break][break]

"It's all yours if you want to try and catch it," Orion calls over to Selena, when he's sure it's still asleep. "We'll cover you if it wakes up and tries to attack."

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Orion is at least glad that 'Hannah' has her Sylveon for company; her social anxiety seems worse than his own. He's understanding as a result of his own discomforts, patient as she stumbles over the words.[break][break]

"Yeah, it's the studying I'm not too great with," he admits, sheepish. "Guess I never developed the right habits."[break][break]

Still, he's happy as a ranger.[break][break]

The bell rings, and Orion's gaze flicks toward the sound before settling back on Hannah. He smiles, standing. "It was nice seeing you again, Hannah. Enjoy your evening!"

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[break]PERSIM - ABILITY CHANGE[break][break]

Florian Laurel's Eevee changes ability. Anticipation → Adaptability.[break][break]

[break]CHESTO - EVOLVE STAGE 1-2 or 2-3[break][break]

Orion Lykos's Duosion → Reuniclus.[break]
Orion Lykos's Haunter → Gengar.[break][break]

[break]SITRUS - APPLICABLE MOVE[break][break]

Cillian Quinn's Tyrunt learns an egg move, Fire Fang.
[break][break]

[break]LEPPA - TM/TR MOVE[break][break]

Cillian Quinn's A. Sandslash learns Ice Ball.[break][break]

[break]TEACHER'S APPLE - SHINY/POSSIBLE GENDER SWAP[break][break]

Cillian Quinn's Greninja becomes shiny, and remains female.[break][break]

[break]ASPEAR - LEVEL-UP MOVE[break][break]

Cillian Quinn's Klinklang learns Lock-On.[break]
Cillian Quinn's Arctovish replaces Icicle Crash → Ancient Power.[break][break]

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[break]

"I don't know," Orion answers truthfully, in response to Pierce's question about protection. "Never been where we're going." He watches the armor-clad man approach Solgaleo, and says of him, "He was really brave during the New Years incident, though."[break][break]

He had seen Pokkenger leap toward the Ultra Beast with swords in hand to rescue Olivia. He didn't know why the man dressed like a superhero from a kid's movie, but he was glad to be on his same side.[break][break]

As they leap through the portal, Orion closes his eyes against the blur of distorted imagery. It's too overwhelming and it makes him feel nauseous, though he does force himself to open them again when Pierce speaks. He thinks about replying, but forfeits in favour of letting his stomach settle. There are three paths ahead, and the others voice their opinions.[break][break]

"Just as long as it isn't acid rain, like during Slateport." He grimaces at the unpleasant memory. "I'm a ranger, I'd feel most comfortable in a natural environment, but even the city sounds better than the desert. I don't fancy the idea of going through any desert, let alone that one."[break][break]

After he says it, he wonders if a desert here would even resemble those on earth. His skin prickles at the thought of the unknown, but he swallows down his anxieties and does not voice them.

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A muffled scream pierces through the darkness and Orion whirls toward the sound, seeing nothing. Panic grips him in its cold claws as he hears pulsing through the water nearby, unsure of what they were or what had fired them.[break][break]

Grasping at his pokeball belt, he releases a random member of the team he'd brought: all suitable for the underwater environment they'd expected to face.[break][break]

The Malamar is quick to fire off a blast of psychic energy toward the Dragalge, its somewhat familiar shriek of pain alerting the ranger to the potential threat. The squid then camouflages itself in the smokescreen, adopting the water as its type.[break][break]

Though Orion doesn't see it through the smoke, Malamar also sets up a shimmering light screen between the kelp-dragon and its allies.

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As he glances over his shoulder, Orion witnesses the chaos that Kyle had promised. He feels a pang of sympathy for the Pokemon caught in the attack, though not their riders. He keeps his gaze on the pile-up long enough to see some of them get to their feet and attempt to rejoin the race, though it's doubtful they'll be able to catch up to the pack. They soon become little but specks left in the Arcanine's dust.[break][break]

With the speed at which they move, Orion can only make out some sort of hand signal from his partner.[break][break]

"Take it easy," Orion tells his Arcanine, not wanting it to tire out before the finish. "Give us some sun."[break][break]

Slowing its extreme pace, fur streaming in the wind, Apollo tosses his head back and howls at the skies. Overhead, an already sunny day becomes hotter, brighter, and several racers slow down as their Pokemon struggle in the heat. Arcanine thrives where others falter, picking up speed once more as he drinks in the unnatural light of a morning sun.

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First impressions don't get any sweeter. If anything, Orion's opinion of Jet sours the more time they spend together.[break][break]

"I'm not implying you don't know your match-ups," he says, ire creeping into his tone. "I'm asking a question, because communication is important in a team."[break][break]

Of course, as was quickly made clear, Jet had little intention to work as a team. Unlike their Pokemon, Nova returning the Arcanine's greeting with a friendly growl of her own, the two were not of like mind and Jet insisted that he could handle everything just fine.[break][break]

Orion's a ranger, it's his job to make sure these things get done right, but the temperamental part of him wins out.[break][break]

"Is that so? You want to go in there alone, then?"[break][break]

He leans against a supporting pillar set up in the cave, folding his arms as he gazes at Jet.

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