The bee stops moving, buzzing quietly. "Vespiquen." it replies. "Are you sure you aren't hurt? I've never seen a human take on a Pokemon like that. They always use Pokemon of their own to fight."

This was a Vespiquen? A creature dangerous enough that stumbling across one of it's hives by accident is deadly? It's worrying over me like a mother hen!

"I'm not from around these parts." I roll the beetle over, and begin working my knife out of it's eye. "Why did these beetles attack you, anyway?"

Vespiquen is watching me with fascination. "The Heracross? They were after my hive's honey. They-" her voice drops, taking on a sorrowful tone. "Well, it doesn't matter anymore. We might have won the fight, but the hive is as good as dead."

I manage to pry the knife from the beetle and it comes free with a wet squelch. "What do you mean? Why wouldn't you be able to rebuild?" I begin wiping the blade on a tuft of grass. The viscera is sticky and doesn't clean easily.

She lands on the ground next to me, her buzzing trailing off. "...Too many of my Combee died. The ones that are left will all be pressured into other hives by the other Vespiquen." Her shoulders slump, and she curls her arms around herself. "I'm… a failed queen. I'll never lead another hive… It's just the way things go."

Combee? She must be talking about the honeycomb insects. ...Shit - this must be a tragedy for her. For just a moment, I'm paralyzed by indecision. Would it be appropriate to comfort her? I slide my barely clean knife back into its sheath, convinced that I wouldn't be able to do any better for now.

Tentative, I kneel down and reach out to put my hand on her shoulder. She doesn't move away, and least seems comforted by the gesture. "Look… Shit, I'm no good at this. But, you're still alive, aren't you? Your Combee died for you and your hive. What would they have wanted you to do with the rest of your life?"

Her arms tighten around her body. The soft hum of her bees starts back up, a wavering murmur coming from her abdomen. "The Combee… They died doing their duty. I've proven I'm not strong enough to lead a hive anymore. I failed my duty. They wouldn't want me dead… but they wouldn't follow me anymore, either."

That… wasn't what I was going for. "Well then, what do you want to do with the rest of your life?"

She shakes her head. "...Taylor... You're powerful. A worthier queen than me. Would you have me as part of your… What do you humans call it? Team? I-" she pauses, her expression conflicted. "Failed queens don't live long in this forest. You'd…" She trails off, uncertain. "Well, you'd be helping me far more than I deserve."

This wasn't how I wanted this to go at all - but, I suppose there's no helping it now. "I've got to be honest with you, I'd only intervened in the fight because I had hoped to recruit you. I didn't think that your only option would be to follow me or to die - I don't want to do that to anybody. You sure you want to join up?"

Immediately, she perks up. "Yes! Absolutely!" She lifts off from the ground once more, and I stand with her. She dithers in place for a moment, before moving in and wrapping her arms around me in a quick hug. "Thank you." she says quietly. I stiffen, surprised by the move, and she breaks the embrace before I can think to reciprocate.

I nod, a genuine smile on my face despite myself. "It's decided, then. Welcome to the team." I cast my eyes around the clearing. My gaze settles on the hive. "We'll talk more later - we should get a move on soon. I don't think either of us want to be around when scavengers start showing up."

Vespiquen's posture slumps once more. "Yeah… I suppose that would be wise." She turns around, looking pensively at the remains of her hive. "Say… other humans have tried to steal my honey before - do you have something to carry it in? It'll go to waste otherwise."

My mind snaps to the mason jars that Contessa had left me - her power had planned this! I'm… hardly surprised, actually.

...How many of my actions were coerced by her power? Did I even have a choice in matters?

I shake the thoughts from my head. Notions like those would give me nothing but grief.

"Yeah - that's a good idea. I've got some containers in my bag that we can use." I grab my bag from where I had left it at the edge of the clearing. We work in silence, Vespiquen filling each jar in turn with deft hands

Before long, I was packed up and ready to go. I was faced with a choice, however: did I continue south, towards the road, or retreat back north? "Vespiquen, how hurt are you? I was planning to push on further south-" I gesture in the direction I was talking about. "-but if you're injured it would probably be wisest to back off and take a safer route."

She wrings her hands. "I'm not… I took a few bad hits. I'll be back into fighting shape with the right diet and a day or two, though."

My brow rises, confused. "Diet? What do you mean?"

"The right berries will speed my healing. I know how to find them, so it won't be an issue."

Berries with healing properties? That's… useful. Did it work for everybody, or just Vespiquen? I can find out later, I guess. "Alright then, lets head back north and find somewhere to rest for the day."

She turns away, giving the clearing one last look before moving to follow me.

Our walk through the forest had been quiet. Both of us had paid careful attention to our surroundings, but it seemed to not have been necessary. All of the animals - Pokemon, Vespiquen had called them - stayed well away from the pair of us.

Along the way, Vespiquen had flitted from bush to bush, picking particular types of berries and ignoring others. We had stored them in my bag for her to eat later. By the time we made it to a suitable place to camp it was nearly full.

I sat down on a rock, looking across the small clearing where Vespiquen was eating. Should I tell her about my past? She's bound to figure it out sooner or later - she's smarter than I had been expecting: human level, maybe. We're a team now, too - trust is important.

"Hey, Vespiquen. We need to talk." I begin fumbling with the clasps of my mask.

A worried expression crosses her face as she looks up from her meal. "What about?"

"Me." My mask comes free, falling into my lap. Nobody's nearby, so there's no particular risk. Doing this face to face is more appropriate, given the topic. "You might have guessed, but I'm not exactly like the other people you may have seen."

She lets out something that sounds like a guffaw. Was that a laugh? "Taylor, all the other people that I've seen have all ran screaming in terror from my swarm. You just killed a Heracross practically all by yourself."

I shake my head, a wry smile on my face. "Not what I was getting at. I'm not from this dimension - where I'm from, we don't have any Pokemon. I'm probably going to be stuck here forever, though. I doubt I'll ever be welcome back home. I arrived here a couple of days ago."

Her eyes widen in astonishment, her food forgotten. "...You certainly act and look the part, I suppose." She shakes her head, as if to dispel wayward thoughts. "There was no Pokemon, though? How? Why? What- what was it like?"

"Very different, I'd say. I don't know enough about this would to say how exactly, though. I was hoping you could help me out with that."

She nods, understanding. "Sure, no problem. I don't know much about humans, but I'd be happy to tell you about what I do know." She finishes the berry she had started earlier quickly, putting the rest back into the bag. "Well, some of them live in cities. Others, from what I've heard, travel a lot. I know that most stick to the paths and roads, but every now and then one makes its way deeper into the wilderness."

She stops, considering her words. "From what I know, most people have teams of Pokemon. At least, every human that I've ever seen has had at least one. They use strange red and white spheres to capture wild Pokemon and to carry the ones that are on their team - from what I've heard, being inside one is like being in a dream."

Every single one? That's… concerning. Despite myself, I begin bouncing my leg. That means that potentially every single person in this world could be considered a Master. "Do you know why they have teams?" Was it a cultural tradition? Or something else? A job? I force myself to stop fidgeting, sitting still.

She shakes her head. "No, I don't know. What I do know is that Pokemon that get trained by a human are usually much more powerful than ones that live out in the wild. I've lost a few Combee with delusions of grandeur to passing humans before. It is…Was a serious transgression. Looked down on - the ones that left were putting their own power before the good of the hive. Any Combee that went with a trainer gave up their right to ever lead a hive of their own." Her voice is introspective. There's sadness, but it isn't the only emotion.

Something about what she said catches my attention, though. "A Combee could lead a hive? They don't look nearly as capable as a Vespiquen."

She cocks her head. "...You don't know about evolution, do you? No - of course not. A Pokemon that is experienced enough generally goes through an… event that we call evolution. It's fast - over the course of seconds they will transform permanently into a more powerful form. Vespiquen evolve from female Combee."

She smiles, seemingly remembering something. "I only evolved a few months ago. It was one of the happiest days of my life - I'd finally earnt the right to lead a hive of my own, after all." her expression soured. "Evolving is usually one of the reasons Pokemon seek out a trainer."

Was it a permanent Changer form? No… from what she's saying it sounds like a superpowered version of metamorphosis. I frown. "Can all Pokemon evolve, or only the bugs?"

"Not all of them - Heracross doesn't, for example. But it's not limited to bugs, either. Have you seen the monkeys that live up in the trees?" I nod "They also evolve, from what I've heard."

"Interesting…" I trail off, fiddling with my mask idly. An experienced Pokemon trainer would be much more dangerous than a novice one, in that case. "Do humans in this world have abilities like that attack you were using against the Heracross? Or maybe the one that the Heracross hit me with?" I don't suspect it to be the case - she had said that she hadn't ever seen humans do any fighting themselves, but better to ask anyway.

"No - not at all. At least, I've never heard of someone that can, anyway." She blinks, seeming to come to a realization. "Why? Did humans in your world?"

I nod. "Not all of them, but enough that it was a big part of our culture. I had powers, too. Still do, technically." I hold my mask back up to my face. "We're called Capes. We wore costumes, kept our identities and faces secret - one name for our civilian life, another for our Cape life. I go by Weaver when I'm in costume." I lower my mask once again, returning it to my lap.

She leans forward, engrossed. "Powers? Like what?"

"I controlled bugs. It was absolute - indomitable. As many that fit inside my range - a radius about the length from here to the river. I had complete awareness of their position and their senses. I could multitask - command every single one at once. There was a time when my swarms blotted out the sun." Her face was locked into an expression of horror, justifiably, I'd say.

I quickly continue, not wanting to scare her off. "Not anymore, though - now, my range is barely the size of this clearing, and I only know the positions of the insects. No more control, no more hijacking senses."

"Oh… Could you have controlled me, if your power still worked?"

I nod, but say nothing.

"That's…" She trails off. Abruptly, her expression changes from horror to wonder. "So awesome! Is that why you can understand me?"

I blink, surprised at the sudden shift. "Probably. Nobody understands how powers work, but it seems to me that's the most likely explanation."