"President Aboma said in his address to the United Nations today that peace talks in the Kanto and Johto regions have fallen through, and that if key delegates from the Kalos region do not step up we may be entering another period of war..."

"Name?"

"Galahad."

"Go right in, he's waiting for you."

Galahad, a Gallade dressed in a military uniform, took one last look at the television in the corner of the room before opening the door and stepping into a large room. He closed the door behind him and took a moment to scope out the room. Tall bookshelves lined the walls on either side, all the way down to the wide single pane of glass at the far end. The purpose behind the endless books contained in the room eluded him, but he didn't mind. It was at the other end of the room, seated at a heavy wooden desk, that his appointment waited for him.

He walked the length of the room, stopping right in front of the desk, and saluted. "General, reporting as ordered."

The General, an aged Garchomp, looked up at him and squinted. "Major, I've heard good things about you. Have a seat." Galahad did as he was told, and the General continued. "Your record is spotless, top of your class, and highly decorated. You're just the 'mon I need."

"Sir?" This was starting to sound like he was being given a mission of some sort.

"I know what you're thinking, and it's not far off, but this isn't a mission. You've been recommended for a special assignment. I'm not going to pull you in without you first signing the papers, so I need you to understand what the deal is beforehand. Without giving out anything top secret, that is." The General sat back in his chair and took a deep breath. "Okay, so the deal is that we want you to lead an elite team, a multi-regional special task force. The Hoenn, Unova, and Kalos regions have all signed off on this and will be contributing some of their best to the team. Two from Hoenn and two from Unova. We had to give up a second spot for Sinnoh just for you to be in charge, so don't complain when you're outnumbered. Kalos also has only one joining, and I'm not aware of why they agreed to that so don't even ask."

When the explanation stopped there, Galahad figured there was nothing left but for him to ask if there was nothing left. "Sir, is that it?"

"Yes."

"You want me to lead a special operations team."

The General nodded. "Exactly. Further details will be made available the minute you agree and sign the non-disclosure agreement."

There was genuinely no reason to decline in Galahad's mind. "Do you have the paper with you, sir?"

He was handed the paper quite readily, and quickly read over it to make sure. There was nothing outside of the usual wording he would expect, telling him that if he gave away any secrets to anyone the government would not be liable for any disappearances that may befall him, stuff like that. He found the line where he had to sign his name. He reached into his uniform and took out his pen, signing his full name on the line. It was much longer than just 'Galahad' of course, but no one used their full name outside of legal documents anymore.

He handed the paper back to the General, who looked over it for a moment before filing it away in his desk. "Good choice, Major. Now to explain. This is an anti-terrorism task force, and you will be taking missions into the heart of active live fire zones as well as more covert operations inside population centers, even friendly ones. Your goal, in the long run, is to take out a network of the highest ranking leaders of the terrorist world. All of them are a special kind of dangerous. The public at large is only aware of them as legends and myths. Take them out or bring them in, that's your call in the moment. For now, though, you need to go get your team together. After that, you'll be given missions as they come up. You're booked for a flight to Hoenn in fifteen minutes. Don't miss it."

"Drink! Drink! Drink! Drink!"

This was embarrassing. Galahad had followed directions to where he would find the first member of his team, who he was quite pleased to hear was a Gardevoir. A female Gardevoir, in fact. The place and state in which he found her completely reversed his optimism. She sat at a table in a bar, across from a smashed-looking Shiftry, downing glass after glass of some drink that he wouldn't touch if his life depended on it. It was probably made from one of the less-than-helpful types of berries. He waited through another drink, which the Shiftry couldn't finish, then approached the Gardevoir as she was receiving the benefits of her victory.

He leaned down beside her. "Is your name Gwenevere?"

She took notice of him very suddenly. "Oh... maybe." Swaying back and forth in her seat and slurring her words together were about all the hints he needed.

"Okay, you're confused. Why don't we step outside a moment." He helped her up and supported her out of the building, and she went along with it. Once they were outside, he asked again. "You are Gwenevere, right? That's your name?"

She sighed. "Yes, that's me. And you can let go now." He let go, watching her standing just fine on her own. She wasn't even swaying anymore. "And I don't get confused that easy." She turned and eyed him more closely. "A Gallade in a Sinnoh Major's uniform. This is about that, uh... that task force thing?"

He nodded. "I'm here to take you back to the base, and then I need to get the other Hoenn member. After that, we're headed to Unova. Hopefully, we can be out of here by tonight."

"Sounds good." She squinted up at the sky. "Yeah... in the base sounds good. It's too bright out here. You got a car or something?"

Galahad looked over at the black government issue vehicle right beside them. "Yes." He opened the back door for her. "Seriously, it's too bright? You're the one drinking in the middle of the day."

"Is it?" She looked up at the sky again, searching for the sun. "Oh well. That's what happens on leave."

"Get in the car."

"Okay, okay." She complied, sitting down in the back of the car. He went around and got in the front. She leaned forward as he was starting the vehicle up. "And it's just Gwen. Gwenevere takes longer to say, it's weird to spell, and sounds pretentious."