"You're taking too long," the guard growled as he scanned the area. The water was tragically touristy, full of swimmers and fishermen only passing through the area so nobody would think a moment about a new face. While it made it easy for them to do their job, that same luxury was available to any enemies they might have.
"I'm taking exactly as long as the job needs," he said, firmly. "And I can't imagine they're paying you to talk."
"No, they're paying me to make sure your scrawny ass makes it back to base intact and stocked with those samples. And I can't do that if you won't stop dragging your feet!"
He gritted his teeth as he scooped another soil sample into a jar. "Fine. I only need one more."
It'd barely been a week since Maxie had been recruited from the university campus. Representatives had sat down beside him at lunch and offered a part-time position. There was a great deal of talk about creating a new world, he hadn't really listened. but far more importantly there'd be a great deal of chemistry and analysis that'd look fantastic on a resume. That he'd get a much needed infusion of cash made it even better.
He'd come in fully expecting to do grunt work for a long while. What he hadn't anticipated was to be mandated to do it in beachwear to blend in with the tourists, and he'd certainly never thought about a guard beyond perhaps a doorman or night watchman. Maxie had to wonder if this would have bothered him anywhere near as much if his guard would button his shirt properly or just shut up a few minutes.
"You know, I don't need to be watched like this" he said, against his better judgment, as he analyzed for the best place to dig. "I do have a Numel right here. I could defend myself just-"
The guard snorted. "That fat little pet? You two would get killed by a Magikarp in a minute flat. There's no way you'd stand a chance against a trainer with half a brain, even if they didn't know what you were here for."
The Sharpedo who'd brought them, and now calmly patrolled the water around the tiny island, had been raised from day one to fight. It was sleek and disciplined, especially compared to the Numel who lazily ambled after Maxie with the sample case. It'd been born and bred to be a pet, and had never once seen a session that could rightfully be called 'training'. The Zubat and Poochyena he'd been granted upon hire had likewise become rather lax in their Poke Balls. They reflected their trainers, really. Despite being roughly the same age, the guard was carved by surf and sun while Maxie was blindingly pale from so long indoors. The little he'd ventured outside had left him riddled with freckles he usually did a much better job at hiding. It was all he could do not to grumble.
"There's someone headed over," the guard said with his jaw clenched. "Might be nothing, but we need to split now."
"Alright, I'm done." He twisted on the last lid and recalled his Numel.
"Perfect."
Within a moment he was dragged onto the Sharpedo. The guard was almost twitchy as he steered and tried to move as quickly as possible, with a wide berth to swimmers, without drawing attention. All Maxie could do was clutch the bag to his chest and try to focus on the slap of the water spray to distract from the arm that held him just a bit too tightly around the waist.
As soon as they were on dry land, he'd be back into his uniform and lab coat. The guard would go back to whatever he did exactly, and neither one would be forced to be this close again. They could forget about the entire thing, which would be lovely since Maxie really only had one take-away. The burliness of that arm compared to his own, the state of his Pokemon compared to battle-ready ones, simply wouldn't do.
The next day he'd begin their training.