6:56 P.M June 26, Friday, 106 PH (Post Hoopa Event)

Events: The Preliminaries for the Joint Kanto and Johto Indigo Summer League have concluded; 105 Trainers and their Pokemon have advanced from Bronze to Silver. The celebrations finish tomorrow when the Summer Round Robin Cup will begin, to crown the best of each Tier among those that advanced. Rhea started her journey on the 9th of June—she’s been a Trainer for 18 Days (17 Officially;18 since getting Maya and Nova).

Sabin grinned as Rovane, his Aerodactyl, soared through the air at accelerated speed, wind rushing past him; Katelin was pressed against her Noctowl’s body, twelve meters behind them.

Through his red-tinted goggles, he saw the towering visage of Mt. Moon in the northwest and the winding beauty of Kayak Gorge in the distance, Apple City blocked by the mountainous range of the Greylan Highlands.

The vibrant greenery mixed with the gray, rocky hills and pools of water provided a perfect view of the desert-like plain a bit north of the gorge Rhea and her team were currently on—the area was on full display at their altitude.

Their destination was a small clearing just south of the peak of a hill that gave a perfect view of the central half of Clefairy Valley; a small log cabin was built among the grass, just beside a small creek.

It was a Summer home that one of the Rangers they’d become friends with had built to live in the area. He’d grown close to many of the wild highland Pokemon, helping them to form a positive community to grow and support one another.

He opened the cottage to close friends that he knew would be respectful of the environment and the items inside—given it was a Gold-tier zone, few humans would ever stumble across it.

Breaking the dive, Rovane’s large wings unfurled, shifting into a sharp sweep just above ground until they’d mitigated enough of their momentum to slow to a stop.

Landing atop the moist, grassy field that had seen a spotted shower earlier that day, Sabin ran his hand through his light brown hair, shooting a grin as Katelin soared overhead—she’d only lagged behind twelve meters near the end of their race. Jace was improving, which was good considering he was a newer addition to Kate’s team.

Milina, her Fearow, had found a new purpose and home in the Rage Island Protected Area in Johto. It was a heartbreaking time for Kate and her team but she didn’t want to tear apart the love Milina had garnered from a handsome male Fearow in the area. The Beak Pokemon wasn’t the only friend she’d bonded to along their journeys that she’d encouraged to pursue their own path.

Kate had a big heart, finding Pokemon that felt out of sorts in their current place in life, offering to help them find purpose elsewhere. It hurt her team overall, but also forced her to adapt.

He supported her outlook on Training, and even if it was hard for all parties, given the addictive nature of the bond between human and Pokemon, parting on a positive note helped greatly. He just had to be there to comfort his girlfriend when her emotions got the best of her after the departures—they stopped by to visit, of course, but it was very different having an active bond and meeting without it.

Nice job, Rovane. You didn’t make it look like we were going easy on her … Yeah, Jace’s having a rough time trying to adapt to how strong everyone is. Kate’s building him up, though.

Kate landed beside him as he dismounted, puffing out a long puff of air. “Dude, Jace, that was way better than last time … We were so close!”

Her Noctowl’s chest was pumping, head lowered and showing the strain the race had proven to be for him. He gave a disappointed chirp that Rovane made a few comments to, encouraging the Owl Pokemon.

Sabin gave them a grinning salute. “Yeah, you’re growing stronger, bud. I saw you use that Sky Attack to follow our Fly!”

Kate forced a smile, carefully getting off the Pokemon’s settled back to rub the side of his beak. “Yeah … I know it took a lot out of you, but you came up with it on your own! You knew you couldn’t match his speed without using a faster Move, which got us up into the faster currents before they got too far ahead.”

He nuzzled her cheek, grateful they weren’t berating him like the others in his previous flock.

Sabin removed his red-tinted goggles and shook out his hair with Kate. “For real, and the Agility was huge!” He smirked at his smiling girlfriend. “Caught Rovane and I off-guard. When did you find the time and credits to purchase the TM?”

Throwing her hands behind her back to play with her goggles, she gave him an innocent smile as Jace shot a worried glance back at her—he knew it—the Pokemon was far easier to read than the dark blue-haired girl.

“Why do you think it was me that gave him that TM? He could have gotten Agility from someone else he met; lots of older Flying Pokemon so happen to find TMs all the time! You know that.”

“Mhm…” Sabin folded his arms and shifted his hips to the side, glancing at Rovane, who shook his head. His other five Pokemon that were currently with him gave their own hot takes on the revealed Move on her new teammate—he had his full main crew on-hand. “So, bumming off me for food and hotels for the past two weeks has nothing to do with bad financial management?”

“Pfft! Me? C’mon, babe,” Katelin skipped forward to throw her hands around his shoulders and pull him down for a kiss—her soft, warm lips were like candy with the lip gloss coating them. “Aren’t you just being nice to me?”

Pulling back, her shining amber irises pulled his gaze as he folded his fingers together behind her arched lower back. “How much?” he asked, giving her a wry grin.

Her vision darted to the left, eyebrows falling when a short sigh shot through her nose; Jace hid his face with his wing, likely being reminded how much she’d spent on him, causing Rovane to chuckle.

“Okay, yeah—I saw it was on sale, and well … I was thinking we’d have another race soon, so … You were MIA for so long, so... ”

“Mmh,” silent laughter shook his chest as he leaned down to kiss her again. “I missed you, too. You know, the first thought on my mind when that Steelix almost crushed me back in those caves was how you’d kill me if I didn’t say goodbye.”

He winced as she jabbed him in the gut. “No goodbyes with me, Sabin!”

She pulled him down and connected their lips again; a little rougher this time, he tasted blood as her teeth punctured skin—his Pokemon gasped, everyone but Luna and Jace knowing where this led.

After releasing him, she danced back two steps and winked, tongue sliding out to sample the flavor. “Honey, I’ll break you a hundred different ways before you leave me like that! Next time, you better bring me with you—I’m not gonna lose you to some Mt. Silver Steelix—was it a girl?”

Sabin pressed his thumb against the wound, heartbeat rising; Luna was up in arms at Kate’s rowdy behavior, but she’d been holding it in for a while now, and he knew it—his other Pokemon were waiting with bated breath in the hopes it would escalate. Even wild Pokemon were pausing as they sensed the atmosphere shifting.

Vision flicking up to appraise his girlfriend, Sabin felt the chemicals kicking in. Katelin’s black and blue-themed tailored romper with her yellow and cream blazer always highlighted the best parts in his mind. Here we go again. “Heh—I don’t doubt it. What if it was?”

Dropping her goggles, Katelin put her arm behind her back to grip her elbow, amber eyes narrowing seductively; she was drawing his attention to her curves by the way her hips shifted and puffing out her chest. “Well … I’ve heard another girl is vying for your heart at the moment—I can’t have that.”

Luna sniffed from inside her pokeball, commenting that she was the one that was bonded to him, unlike her. Sabin figured over the past two weeks, Missy, her Alcremie, had been trying to instigate Luna—Missy was staunchly for Kate and his relationship, seeing as it was a driving factor in her actually joining Katelin on their Galar journey—the Mismagius did not like the impish Cream Pokemon.

Sabin loved the playful games Kate started, though. Seeing her flirtatious posture tempting him, he jumped forward, making her squeak and fall back with an apprehensive giggle. His arm closed around her tight shoulders, guiding her to the ground to pin her to the grass.

Kate’s smiling cheeks flushed, and her heart was pounding against her ribcage, considering her hot breath pumping through her parted lips. “What are you waiting for?”

Grip tightening around her raised arms, her black tight covered legs between his, he stared into her wild eyes—searching his face while trying to predict his next move. However, his deep, teasing words made her blink with momentary confusion. “You haven’t answered me yet, Kate.”

“Hmm? I … Umm … What?”

Sabin put his weight forward, knees sinking further into the soft soil as Kate’s legs spread to press against them. “How much did you spend on Agility, babe? How long are you under my thumb?”

An Impidimp-like gleam twisted her cheeks. “What would you do to me if I don’t tell you?”

Head lowering to whisper into her left ear, he felt a quiver run through her muscles as the hot air brushed against her skin. “I’d…”

She tensed as his teeth lightly pressed on the tip of her ear, nibbling a little while tightening his grip against her arms—he knew her mind was going crazy at this point, her thighs snapping together. “S-Sabin! Heh—okay! Okay! It was 175,000 credits! Now stop teasing me and really kiss me!”

Laughing, he pulled her to the side to straddle him. “Really … Shouldn’t you take responsibility for my bloody lip? C’mon, Kate … You’re in the position of power. What’s gonna satisfy you?”

Brushing back her blue locks, she worked her lower half atop his chest with a mischievous grin, shooting a thrilled leer down at him—pushing her weight on him as she took the reins. “You’re the worst! You’re going to make me work for it, huh?”

Tilting her slender neck to the side, she tucked her lower lip under while sliding her fingers through her bound hair to pull the ribbon out. Shaking her thick locks out, they fell across his half-exposed stomach, tickling his abs—Luna was practically paralyzed by this point, totally innocent to the kind of emotions rushing through Sabin’s veins as his other Pokemon settled in for the game’s escalation.

“Mmh.” Kate leaned forward, coming inches away from his face and allowing her long hair to drape over him like a veil—Kate was a cannibal, reaching in to pull out and take a bite of his heart. “Tell me you want it again.”

The world was blocked out by her locks; she wouldn’t give up at this pace, and he could feel his own body heat rising—the pressure of her on top of him, fingernails slowly sinking into the skin of his shoulders—Katelin had been purposefully holding herself back over the past two weeks to savor the rush when the two of them could be alone.

Staring into the woman’s glinting eyes, a smirk lifted the corner of his lips—he wanted a bit more from her. “Make…”

The tense atmosphere popped as his phone lit up the hot atmosphere.

Katelin’s seductive eyes turned pleading in an instant, yet it was her that groaned and rolled to the side after the fourth ring. “No fair … You really know how to make me cry, Sabin!”

“It’s not my fault,” he sighed, giving her a reassuring grin while she pouted next to him. “Just wait for the sequel.”

“Oh?” Her curious tone returned, shifting to her elbow to give him a vicious smile. “Bold words … What are you going to do to satisfy my disappointment? I’m not cheap.”

“Do I know it,” Sabin snickered, holding his tongue against his cut lip. “It’s my dad,” he muttered, reaching into his pocket to pull out the device.

Of course, everyone booed, from the wild Pokemon that had stopped to watch to all of his own bonded Pokemon—with the exception of Luna, who was still somewhat in a daze from the transfer of emotion between Kate and him.

She was jealous of Kate pulling away all the attention he’d been showering her with since bonding to the Ghost Pokemon in the Mt. Silver caves—he was the bad guy to everyone at this moment.

“I know your dad’s ringtone,” Kate grumbled, expression dulling. “Don’t make me sleep alone tonight … Look! I’m shaking! My hand’s shaking, Sabin!” she said, letting him know she’d been really in the mood, and it had better be good.

Rovane had one of his three-fingered wings pressed against his head, eyes closed and shaking it in disappointment as Sabin answered the call in voice-only mode. “Ahem—yo, Dad, what’s up?”

“Huh? No video … Eh, am I interrupting somethin’? Sounds like I’m interruptin’ somethin’.”

Katelin’s tone brightened in an instant. “Not at all! Something up?”

“Ah, Kate, still with Sabin, huh … Hmm. Eh, I’ll be quick then, heh, it’s getting late, after all. Your mom’s worried that Rhea might be mad at her after letting her in on the whole Clef alien thing.”

Sabin groaned, releasing a puff of air through his nose. “What about the alien stuff … Why’d Mom even bring that up with her? You know Rhea’s been worried about her being taken by all the terrorist organizations she’d worked with in the past and now adding aliens to the mix.”

Kate’s lips pulled in as she resituated herself. “Yeah, Rhea’s tough, but she’s always had a soft spot when it comes to your mom’s safety—I remember she went on a hunger strike when she was eleven until your mom came home.”

Keith hissed out an audible stream from his lungs that was picked up by the phone. “Right, the hunger strike … She got that from an online video—had me worried sick for her health. Umm, yeah, I think Christie just thought it would be cool—she usually loves sharing things with Rhea she thinks will be cool.”

“Scatterbrained Mom,” Sabin mumbled, rubbing his forehead. “How can she be one of the most intelligent people on the planet and be so dumb when it comes to Rhea.”

His dad forced a laugh. “Yeah, eh … I love her, but things can go right over her head at times. Has she talked to you?”

“Rhea?” Sabin asked. “Naa, she hasn’t talked to me since she posted those pictures of her new Buneary. I’m guessing you’ve reached out before calling me?”

“Mhm…” His tone saddened. “I know I’m probably overthinking it, but do you think she’s also mad at me? When Malva ratted your mother out to Flare … She said some stuff—like why wasn’t I there to get her out, and I’m wondering if the possibility of aliens snatching up her mother’s brought back some of those memories.”

Kate scratched her forehead, coming to the conclusion that this wasn’t just a simple check-in call. “Maybe she just needs some time to process it. How long has she known about the whole Clef thing—I don’t know much about the place myself.”

Keith paused, pondering her words. “Some time to think about it? Possibly … Christie is concerned she might have soured her journey by introducing too many new things—she hasn’t had the smoothest start.”

“How long, Dad?” Sabin pressed, abs tightening as he lifted himself up.

“Eh … somethin’ like a day or two, I think. Christie wasn’t entirely clear on it.”

Sabin spread his legs to stabilize himself and stretched out his neck; his team talked to one another about the best option to approach the subject if they did contact Rhea. “Let me guess, Mom thought Rhea would call her back that night, hyped and looking to share what she learned … Ugh, she hasn’t slept yet, has she?”

“Doubt it,” his dad replied, sounding tired. “You know your mom; she used to talk to me well into the night when you two were kids, and she had some free time.”

Sabin’s eyes lifted to the slowly dimming sky as the sun descended across the sky, shaking his head. “You mean when the two of you were actually home—there were months you two were off doing things during the war. Of course, Rhea’s scared to death of losing you both … Anyways, yeah, I’ll give her a call and see what’s up.”

“Thanks, son … Sorry your parents are such a pain,” he laughed. “Umm, yeah, I know it’s probably not as bad as we think.”

A smile lifted Sabin’s cheeks. “I know—she’s your little Swablu—your fluffy, innocent cloud in the sky. You know, even if she’s mad, she doesn’t have the heart to hold a grudge.”

“True,” Katelin giggled. “I mean, she’s even warming up to me! You know, she had Franky stick mud in my shoes once because you dropped info that you two planned to help me train. I’m probably the biggest black mark there is in her book, but look at us now!”

Atreyu snorted inside his pokeball, asking what berries she was smoking because, to him, Rhea was just tolerating her at this point. Luna was quick to back him up.

“Mhm,” Sabin mused, fingers through his hair; the women in his life were always trouble. Still, he couldn’t live without them. “I’ll call you back when I get in contact with her. Later, Dad.”

“Later!”

The call ended, and Sabin groaned, falling to his back while stretching out his arms. Katelin stirred her shoulders against the ground to position her head on his bicep, watching their two riding Pokemon talk amongst themselves a bit away as the sound of the brook intensified.

Sabin blankly stared up at the heavens, tracing the few clouds to their south as they moved across the sky; Bird Pokemon were taking flight and continuing on their way after staying to see the unusual human behavior.

He could feel the small rumbles underneath his feet from the network of tunnels that were the colossal network called the Diglett's Caves, which ran all the way from Pewter City to Vermilion City. The diverted underground rivers and springs that they maneuvered caused the highlands to be so green.

Katelin’s tight muscles eased against his arm as she laid next to him, hands folded atop her belly; this would probably content her for now, but there was a reckoning hidden within her pretty face that he’d have to answer.

Reaching over, he found her fingers and intertwined them while using his free hand to hold up his crystal-like phone; he pressed the combination to activate voice command. “Call Rhea.”

Snuggling closer on the wet grass, Katelin prepared a smile to greet Rhea. “You wanna make a bet that she’s just having so much fun with her team she’s just been too … Huh?”

The call dropped, unable to connect, which was unusual, given the location they should have been.

“That’s … odd,” Sabin muttered.

Katelin lifted her head to pull her long blue locks across her front; he had no doubts she’d want to use the brook to get clean after this, which was why she wasn’t making a fuss—in fact, the dirtier they got, the more fun it would be for her. “You don’t think she turned off her phone. Right? Wait, no, even then the radio tower would recognize it wasn’t sent and redirect it to the database to be stored in the cloud.”

“Right.” Sabin sniffed, bringing it down to use his chest as a prop to get a better grip. “No, that’s odd—one sec, let me check Silph’s Pikabook to see if they’re doing some maintenance since something went wrong … It’s showing there are some issues that are being investigated…”

Hoisting herself up, Katelin turned her attention to the north. “Don’t they have a secondary tower that can be used at a weaker capacity if something like that happens? We should be able to at least send a message … Both towers are down?”

Swapping to his contacts, Sabin called his Ranger buddy working a section of the Clefairy Valley route; it went through.

“Uh, yo, Sabin! What’s goin’ on? I heard from Britney that you’re up at Ragan’s place!”

“Warren,” he muttered, glancing over at Kate. “Hey, so, is the tower working there or not? I saw there were some issues.”

Hesitating for a moment, his tone became confused. “Tower … Oh, yeah! I saw that we had to swap to the backup, but there are problems with that one, too. Only Rangers and emergency personnel can make calls at the moment, but it should be solved in a bit, and texts are still going through.”

Kate’s eyebrows knitted together; as Platinum-tier Trainers, they were labeled under emergency personnel. “We should still be able to call into other people then.”

All the issues lining up with the threat of Plasma and Skull in the region put an edge of worry against Sabin’s chest. “Hey, Warren, could you check on a few Trainers for me to see if they’re good?”

“Eh, sure, man. What’s up?”

“Nothing,” he cleared his throat, “just trying to confirm some things.”

“Umm, so what’s the team ID, or do you got some names I can search by?”

Sabin’s muscles tightened; he hadn’t experienced this anxiety before, but neither had he fully realized that his little sister was exposed to the world now—Kate’s eyes creased with concern, noticing the shift in his voice. “It’s one of the new Oak Starter teams; the members are Rhea, Amira Rocket, and Mallory, that Unova party girl.”

Warren made a note in his throat. “Mmh, right, right—the team that made waves in Pewter. Come to think of it, I thought I saw a news article about you showing them some favor or something just before their match. Did ya give them some pointers or something?”

Kate jumped in. “Oh, no, no—we just saw they were pretty talented, and their Pokemon were adorable!”

“Hold up, is that Katelin? Yo, girl! Man, that fire you helped the west branch with was awesome! I had a buddy that said you saved a little girl’s life!”

“Yeah,” she giggled, “it was a pretty big mess in Johto, but it worked out—about the team?”

“Uh … yeah, so … I show them on the river—tons of other Trainers are showing in their area. You want to get in contact with them … Hold up, that’s strange…”

Sabin’s gut loosened and tightened in the next second; their Pokemon came closer, listening to the conversation. “What?”

“It’s just … It’s showing their devices are experiencing issues with connecting, but everyone else around them shows their’s is fine.”

It was enough to get Sabin off the ground. “If you could send the coordinates to me, Warren, it’d help a lot. Kate and I are going to go check it out—maybe everything will be fine, but I’m just worried since there’s been so much trouble recently.”

Warren popped his tongue before letting out a hiss. “No joke—word down the Ranger vine says Unova’s Champion, Iris, went at it with Gold and blew up some invisible airbase or something insane. If it wasn’t from guys and Pokemon I trust, then—”

He cut off, mumbling to himself. “Yo … I can’t get in touch with the Ranger on duty covering that section this week … Everything’s messed up over here. Gah, I mean, this is weird…”

Katelin got up, shifting left and right as she stretched, readying herself to get back in the saddle. “Warren, the data?”

“Right … Yeah, seriously, tell me what you find, man, because some shifty things are goin’ on now that I’m looking at it. The technician recently posted an update that there’s seemingly nothing wrong with the tower itself—he’s double-checking, but it might be an external force disrupting the main frequency.”

Receiving the advanced access to his Ranger Assistant App, Sabin’s grip tightened around the device as it projected the pings on the map. “Thanks, Warren. I’ll update you in a bit.”

Kate was already jumping on Jace’s saddle as he hung up. “You think the data’s being manipulated?”

“Possible,” Sabin muttered, sharing his internal thoughts with his team while expanding the map to give Rovane a comprehensive understanding of their route. “If it is false, how are we going to find them?”

“Backtrack,” Kate replied, preparing her hair and goggles. “The data’s recorded up to 24 hours—it’s possible they didn’t have time to change the logs.”

Following her suggestion, ice flooded Sabin’s veins. “Rhea—she went into a Platinum-tier area … her team’s markers just instantly change locations after a few minutes. Yeah, let’s go!”

Snatching his goggles off the ground, Sabin hopped onto Rovane’s back as his Pokemon sharpened their minds for what was to come—they’d seen enough of the world and combat to know when something didn’t sit right, and a storm was brewing inside Sabin’s breast.

Katelin's expression tightened. “It could be a glitch—should we call your dad or the Rangers in the area—your aunt?”

Sabin shook his head. “We’ll make sure first, but if it is dangerous, he won’t be able to get here fast enough—even my Aunt Cynthia couldn’t travel from Sinnoh at the speed we’d need help. If it looks really bad—if it is an actual organization and not some random trouble, I want you to call him to get Lyra involved—if anyone in the region can move across long distances, it’s her.”

She slowly nodded as they lifted into the air. “Amira is her daughter, after all.”

He felt Atreyu’s growls transfer to his spirit; he’d make sure Rhea was safe if it came down to a fight. Putting his faith in his Houndoom, Sabin took to the skies with Katelin—the tricky part was conserving energy for a battle while getting to the location as fast as possible.

The highlands passed below them—the first destination would be the Platinum-tier area since it was the most deadly.

Jace wasn’t in the best condition after the exhausting race they had before, and even if Kate would have hated it, Sabin was glad she accepted the task of getting help if it looked bad—he didn’t want two girls he loved to be in harm's way.

He trusted Katelin's skills, but she’d given her most powerful Pokemon vacation time, which was really just relationship time. She wasn’t at peak combat potential while he had his whole team ready to go.

His eyes narrowed as Katelin waved at him to his left, pointing forward; she was sharper at long-distance Aura detection than he was, but he felt it soon enough—a battle was up ahead, and it wasn’t amateur hour.

Entering the winding canyon riverways, Sabin scanned the area with Kate; he didn’t know why the Pidgeot and Cloyster were fighting, but it soon became clear both had no intention of letting them hang around.

The Cloyster teleported to their back, sending spikes of ice in their direction, but Rovane maneuvered between them—the Pokemon was strong, and it was thanks to their practice trying to predict Sabrina’s Gym’s teleport tactics that his Aerodactyl wasn’t caught off-guard.

Pulling Luna’s pokeball from his belt as the Pidgeot swooped in, sending bright blades of wind at Kate—she didn’t have any Pokemon that could keep up with the powerful Flying-Type Pokemon. She should have retreated, but instead, she flew toward him, Jace using Protect to defend against the back attack.

Luna popped out of her pokeball, giggling as she floated back to release a light green aura; a wind whipped up around her as leaves formed out of the energy, rushing past the Ghost to engage the Cloyster.

The Cloyster’s smile faded upon seeing Saban next release Snee-Kee, his Klefki; he was the weakest on his team but was mainly there for support, building up their defenses by closing around Sabin’s wrist.

His only priority was discovering what happened to his sister, so Luna would keep the Cloyster busy while they investigated. Rovane wasn’t about to let the Pidgeot have his way, either. If they wanted to battle, they weren’t going to pull punches.

A dark brown light shone around the Aerodactyl as Sabin funneled energy through his three Pokemon, generating twenty-five head-sized rocks; the Pidgeot was clearly enhanced by Agility, but Aerodactyl were naturally among the fastest Pokemon as an apex predator in their time.

The hail of stones launched forward at a flap of his wings, forcing the Pokemon to retreat from the super effective Move that could flinch. It was shockingly mobile and experienced in dealing with air-based Rock Moves, which made Sabin conclude it was likely a bonded Pokemon.

Every calculated observation he made collapsed the moment Katelin was able to make it to his side, shouting past the wind. “Jace sees Rhea’s supplies below! Sabin, there’s a gun on the ground outside their campsite—he saw someone jump into the whirlpool as we were arriving!”

A gun? No, we need to…

Allowing his Pokemon to do what they did best, he pulled out his phone, slipping the wrist strap on the opposite wrist for security. Katelin's voice stopped him before he even brought it out of sleep. “We’re being jammed! It’s just like the stuff we saw in Unova!” she hollered past the wind, voice cracking a bit—Jace didn’t look too hot after their swift flight.

A jammer and gun—it has to be an organization to get their hands on that kind of tech. Plasma seems to be picking a fight with Giovanni on the low, considering how the League’s been moving … Did they send a hit team after Amira? If he went after them … No, Rhea’s life is in danger!

Connecting the dots in a few seconds, he decided it wasn’t worth taking any chances at this point—two strong Platinum-tier Pokemon and one with Teleport—the limiters came off. “Kate!”

“I’m going! Save Rhea!” Kate returned, urging Jace to head back the way they’d come to escape the jammer.

The Pidgeot zipped around in a long arc, outpacing the attack but a few strong flaps of his wings brought him back to Kate; he wasn’t going to let her escape without a fight, and Jace wasn’t in a state to defend against a Pokemon that was slightly stronger than him at his best.

Sabin was done playing around, though—as far as he was concerned, the two Pokemon were attempting to kill his little sister.

A radiance formed around the small sphere around Rovane’s leg as Sabin’s body began to illuminate a light red, calling on their shared bond to crush anyone who stood in their way to save Rhea—he jumped into open space.

A shrill roar erupted out of the Mega Aerodactyl’s throat as rocks shot out of his body, and he grew in size, causing the straps holding the saddle in place to pop and fall below. Speed accelerating, Sabin felt the raging flood between them—each Pokemon close to his spirit rattling to have their own shot at their new opponents.

A gale of strong wind whipped into a whirlwind, moving at a sharp angle that only settled around his allies, allowing Jace to barely dodge the Pidgeot’s shimmering wings. The added speed allowed the Noctowl to break away from the primary fight, giving Sabin the ability to solely focus on what they needed to do.

Snee-Kee had finished setting up their defenses. A pink honeycomb shell surrounded each of his Pokemon, including himself, as the Klefki was attached to his wrist. He used the Pokemon as a parachute, gripping the ring as he slowed their descent to the island below.

His hard blue eyes darted to the Cloyster as he teleported nearby, sending more icicles to cut him in half, yet Klefki finished his next Move, creating a large box with blue square walls and a deep purple floor and ceiling around them.

Sabin smirked as the lances slowed, allowing him time to find the right angle to harmlessly pass by his tilted body, surprising the trapped Cloyster.

Inside any of the Room-Type Moves, Teleportation-Type Moves and escape, in general, required a significant amount of energy to run, needed the creator’s permission to leave or the controlled area had to be destroyed, which wasn’t easy given the amount of energy Snee-Kee used.

Luna floated inside with a mischievous song. The wind at their backs dissipated as he had Rovane cut the Move since it had run its course.

Three rings of water surrounded the Cloyster, expecting a long fight; he jumped away as white rays wrapped Luna in light and the Ghost Pokemon swapped their Abilities—the Cloyster’s eyes widened in shock as it lost its critical hit protection, Luna spinning in the air while gaining a glossy coat.

The Mismagius lost her ability to fly more than a few feet off the ground but took away the Pokemon’s primary shell. It managed to increase its defensive stats while facing the Pidgeot, but he wasn’t concerned.

Atreyu burst out of his pokeball when the shield went up.

Vision narrowing, Sabin sucked on his cut lip, reopening the wound. Protect my sister, Atreyu.

The Houndoom didn’t need a prompt; he was already darting to the wall, exiting before the Cloyster knew what was happening. He could tell the Pokemon was getting flustered; he wasn't able to teleport away, which clearly had never happened before. The Cloyster awkwardly floated into the air as he got used to his new, temporary Ability.

Mismagius could smell blood, having grown up in Mt. Silver’s caves, hesitating to take advantage of your enemies’ weaknesses meant death. Another whirlwind of Grass-Type energy circled the Ghost as she ruthlessly assaulted the panicking Pokemon in the death box, and Sabin exited the barrier to look into the sky.

A ferocious purple aura and frenzy surrounded the ancient predator as he took the battered Pidgeot out of the sky. Claws around its neck and body, Rovane rode the fallen Pidgeot across the rocky ground.

His large mouth opened as the bird helplessly struggled to get the Mega Aerodactyl off, releasing frightened squeaks when seeing the dark force leaking out of the Fossil Pokemon’s colossal jaws—they came down without mercy, breaking its defensive matrix.

It wasn’t even a contest when they decided to get serious; he was prepared to face the Encrusted Platinum Challenge—battles like this couldn’t even be called that when using his primary team.

Rovane crushed the Pidgeot’s wing, forcing it awake and making it scream in pain. He wasn’t going to take any chances for a comeback. The Cloyster was trying to use some scary human he knew as a threat to keep Luna from breaking its shield as she toyed with him, but he wasn’t taking the bait.

He took a deep breath as Atreyu confirmed that he’d subdued the man and that Rhea had only a minor gash that would heal—still, the fact he’d hurt her put murder in his heart. Good work. Keep her safe; we’re wrapping things up. Keep sharp everyone, we don’t know when others might show up. This was far too easy for a Plasma OP.

Conserving energy, Rovane reverted back to his original form, hopping off of the crying Pidgeot before sending it tumbling across the stone with its tail—unprotected by its secondary defensive matrix at this point, it felt every hard collision against the rough rock.

His Kangaskhan and Heracross were itching for their own turns, but they were in reserve; they needed to have a hand to play if anyone else showed up.

Trick Room vanished, showing the Cloyster inside, outer layers cracked in various places as it trembled inside its fractured shell. He talked a lot of Muk to Luna until he’d been locked down.

Sabin rolled around his shoulders with agitation as the silence stretched; Snee-Kee hugged his wrist, telling him it looked like things were over.

No … Sending one low Platinum-tier grunt—maybe it was supposed to be covert, but it just seems wrong.

He ran his hands through his hair, releasing a frustrated hiss through his teeth; Melira, his Kangaskhan, agreed, saying the last time they fought some Plasma thugs, there were at least three, even if only Silver-tier.

Why were they here … What? An ice egg?

Atreyu was sending him information, but all thoughts of danger vanished as a small woman appeared in front of him with Katelin—Lyra appraised the field with narrowed eyes, Zelri, her Polygon-Z beside her.

“S-Sabin,” Kate mumbled, stumbling forward in a daze. “She like—she showed up like, instantly!”

Lyra’s lower lip tucked under, vision scanning various places her Pokemon likely directed her toward. “You brought things under control pretty fast, Sabin … Thank you. Zelri found the jammer and destroyed it, and there aren’t any more people in the area—it seemed like a solo attempt, which makes sense given the objective.”

Her soft voice hardened when the gun thirty meters away floated up to meet him. “Your Houndoom protected Amira, Mallory, and your sister?”

Sabin cleared his throat, nodding—it was something else, sensing the raw power the Polygon-Z boasted, which was similar to many of his aunt’s Pokemon. “Yeah, they’re down in some ice cave; he’s making sure they’re warm—my sister was hurt, though.”

She hummed, light brown eyes not giving anything away while staring at the gun. In the next second, Zelri vanished in bars of color, returning the same way with everyone, including the assailant.

Atreyu’s head shifted left and right in a temporary panic; it was so fast he couldn’t even react, which was insane given the long build-up Teleport typically took. The Cloyster was simple enough to track when he’d use the Move, but Zelri’s was instantaneous and without a hint of warning like every other Pokemon, confusing him.

Amira burst into tears upon seeing her mother; she ran forward, falling into her welcoming arms.

“Hey. Hey … I’m here…”

Likewise, Sabin found the world spinning as Rhea tackled him. “Sabin! I was so scared! He—he had a gun, and he shot at Amira!”

He caught Lyra’s expression as she flinched at the news, her arms tightening around her daughter while focused vision on Rhea’s bleeding shoulder. “I’m here, Amira … He shot at you?”

Mallory nodded, tentatively stepping forward as Amira buried her face in her mother’s breasts. “Umm … Yeah. Rhea tackled her out of the way—she got nicked in the neck. He’s from Plasma—he asked us to join him or die…”

Lyra’s arms trembled a little as she pulled her daughter away with a reassuring smile; Zelri floated beside her, unmoving in her broken state. “You’re safe now … Are you girls okay?”

Amira’s throat seemed to catch. “No—Rhea almost died protecting me … she could have been shot—and it’s all my fault!”

Her mother’s nose reddened, tears coming to her own eyes. “It’s okay now—okay? I’ll make it all okay…”

Sabin silently held his sister, taking a deep, calming breath, allowing her to cry into his chest; all of his Pokemon exited their pokeballs to huddle around them, comforting Rhea as Katelin glared at their assailant.

Lyra took a few calming breaths, her eyes moved to the right, where the passed out man was lying unconscious, knocked out by whatever Zelri did to him; for a moment, Sabin felt a threatening aura more terrifying than anything he’d experienced—nothing he’d met in Mt. Silver could compare to the look in her light brown eyes.

Pulling away, Lyra brushed back her daughter’s damp red locks. “I’m going to bring you all to Rifure Town and grab your dad—I’ll only be a second. Is that okay?”

Taking several deep puffs of air, Amira tried to compose herself and nodded. “Y-Yeah … Mom, what are you going to do?”

A chill ran down Sabin’s spine as Lyra spoke in a sweet voice that didn’t match her words. “I’m going to end this Plasma stuff! What else, my little Mew … Hmm-hmm, someone tried to take you away from me.”