Freddie drummed his finger on the cluttered metal work desk impatiently.

"Okay, Mr. Seno. Let's go over your statement one more time," sighed Detective Gato. "About what time was it when the bullet entered your home?"

"9:00 pm."

"And you, your daughter, and your single pokémon, a Weavile, were the only ones home at the time?"

"Yes. I live alone."

"And you didn't see your attacker at any point during the home invasion?"

Freddie gave an exasperated sigh.

"No. For the last time, no one entered into my home. The person shot at me through my front window. I sent Weavile out to look for them and she couldn't find them. Do you have everything you need now?"

Detective Gato put down his paper and looked Freddie in his eyes.

"Mr. Seno, there were no footprints anywhere surrounding your home. No tire marks. No skid marks. No indentations or damage to the land or any evidence to suggest that anyone was ever at your house."

Freddie leaned forward.

"Obliviously someone was there. They tried to execute me in front of my daughter. You have the bullet."

"The bullet used was an expanding bullet, a special hollow bullet. When it made impact with the window, it expanded and exploded, bursting into many fragments. You usually see these kinds of bullets in hunting and in some police departments."

"So, you see that I was nearly killed?"

Detective Gato shook his head.

"In order to kill you, a hallow-point bullet would have had to be used. It wouldn't expand until it entered your body. The bullet used was a soft-point bullet. It exploded the moment it made impact with the window. It was most likely used with the intention to intimidate you."

Freddie slammed his fists on the table.

"That's bullshit!"

"You need to calm down."

"I was nearly killed last night and you know it! My daughter was with me! She could have been shot!"

"I'm not going to ask you again, Mr. Seno. Calm yourself now."

"What about the note? I gave you the wrapper that said 'Burn in Hell' on it. That's incriminating evidence."

"You gave us a crumpled up torn up piece of trash with nothing to link it to."

"You know who did this! My junkie of an ex-girlfriend tried to kill me!"

"There is no evidence connecting Anya Lopez to the attack last night."

Freddie again angrily slammed his hand on the table as he stood up.

"This is ludicrous! If I was a woman complaining that my crackhead ex-boyfriend attacked me, you all would be on his ass in two seconds. But a man can't be harassed by a woman, right?"

Detective Gato stood up as well.

"That is enough, Mr. Seno."

"No, I've had it up to here with you officers. This woman has been harassing me for months. I filed complaints, detailed accounts, gave you all of her information. I did what I was supposed to do. Now you need to catch this woman before I do."

Detective Gato evened his eyes.

"Is that a threat? Are you making a threat against someone?"

Freddie picked up his pack and slung it over his arm before storming towards the police station's entrance.

"I'm strongly advising you to do your job. Or I'll have your name and badge number on the record."


Solana barely got out of her bed when the aroma coming from her downstairs kitchen reached her nose. She had already gotten used to Lunick letting himself in early in the morning to cook for them before they headed for work.

Wiping the sleep from her eyes, Solana headed over for her dresser to take out her underwear and then walked across the hall into her bathroom. She returned to her bedroom ten minutes later and was just about to take her clothes out from her closet when she caught a glimpse of herself in her full length mirror.

She unwrapped her towel, and for a long while Solana continued to stare at herself, analyzing and scrutinizing the various parts of her body.

"Plah Pla?"

Solana glanced slowly to her left. Plusle was standing in the corner by the door, looking at Solana curiously.

"Plah Pla?"

Solana looked back at herself in the full length mirror for another moment, then wrapped her towel around herself and held it with one arm. She then took her uniform out of her closet and walked over to her bed.

Plusle frowned slightly as she ran over to her.


Lunick rested the tray on the cooling rack. Taking the pepper shaker out of Solana's cabinet, he starting grinding coarse black pepper over the early meal.

Minun hopped on the counter, holding a star-shaped pokémon treat between his paws. Before he could take a bite, Lunick swiped it away, thoroughly angering the little mouse pokémon.

"MaiMai Mai! Mai!"

"Sorry, buddy. It's too early for snacks. You know better. Go eat your Pokéfood."

Minun crossed his tiny arms.

Lunick heard footsteps and turned to see Solana stepping into the kitchen finishing buttoning up her blouse. Plusle was walking beside her.

Lunick smiled. He wiped his hands with the small blue towel on the towel rack by the sink and walked up to her.

"Good morning, my love," he gave her a quick peck on the cheek.

"Good morning." she replied quietly.

Lunick walked over to the counter and placed two bowls containing pokémon food on the floor by the kitchen table. Plusle quickly ran to her purple bowl and started to eat, while Minun stood there glaring at his green bowl with crossed arms.

Lunick narrowed his gaze at his pokémon.

"Minun…"

Groaning irritatedly, Minun uncrossed his tiny arms and started to eat. Once he tasted the sweet flavor, he quickly started scarfing down his Pokéfood.

Grinning satisfied, Lunick then walked back over to the counter. He took up two ramekin bowls that were on the tray and placed one in front of Solana on the table.

"You made breakfast," Solana commented as if she didn't already know. She slowly took her seat in front of the bowl.

Lunick rested the second ramekin bowl on the other side of the table and sat down.

"Yep. Shirred egg in a crushed tomato and basil sauce, seasoned lightly with garlic, accompanied with sliced sautéed onions and bell peppers, topped with parmesan cheese, black pepper, and a hint of red pepper flakes, all with a nice warm slice of toasted brioche bread."

"Wow…Feeling fancy this morning, are we?" Solana asked with a raised eyebrow.

Lunick's smile widened as he took up his slice of toast and spread a coat of margarine on it.

"It's a nice change from omelets. Sure, it takes a little longer to bake the egg but I had the time to go all out this morning and I thought, why not?"

"Mhmm…Well, it certainly looks like you did a lot of work?"

"Nah, it was actually quite simple. Cooking is relaxing."

Lunick took a scoop from his bowl and placed it on his slice of toast. He brought it up to his mouth and was just about to take a bite when he noticed Solana was just sitting there staring at her dish.

"Something wrong?"

"Huh?…Oh, no…Why do you say that?"

"Because it doesn't look like you're very pleased with what I made."

Solana shook her eat.

"No, Lunick. Breakfast looks exquisite. I'm sure it tastes even better than it is fragrant…I guess…I'm just not very hungry right now."

Lunick rested down his open sandwich.

"You can't just not eat, Solana. With our workload, you know how important it is to keep energized."

Solana sighed. "You're right…I'm being silly…I had a weird night."

"Wanna talk about it?"

"It's not important. Just give me a minute. I'll eat it."

Lunick nodded. He brought his open-faced sandwich up for a bite and as soon as he bit into it, a portion of the tomato sauce fell onto his white shirt.

"Aww, man," Lunick cried as he chewed and swallowed what was in his mouth. He picked up a paper towel and carefully wiped the crushed tomatoes with it, leaving a bright red stain on his shirt.

"Shoulda known that wouldn't work," he sighed as he wiped his mouth and crumpled the paper towel in his hand.

"Solana, mind if I go upstairs and change? I still got some spares here, right?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

Lunick stood up and threw the used paper towel in the trash. He was just about to walk through her doorframe when he turned back around to face her.

"You don't have any of your…unmentionables laying around up there, do yah?"

Solana gave him a slightly shocked and irritated look.

"No, of course not."

"I have to ask. You've done it before…You have some…interesting underwear."

"Lunick!"

"I'm asking out of respect for you." He said quickly as he held up his hands. "You remember what I found in your locker at the base –"

"Okay…"

"And then you just bought some lingerie –"

"Lunick, okay! There's nothing out of place for you to see. Go change already."

Nodding, Lunick turned to look at his pokémon.

"Minun, you come with me. It's time for me to give you your Pokémites prevention."

Minun stopped eating and flailed his tiny arms.

"Mai Mai!"

"You're gonna get it one way or another, Minun. It's either gonna be the topical ointment or the chewable tablets. We both know what's gonna make it easier for you."

Grumbling, Minun walked away from his bowl and passed Lunick. Lunick then walked out and headed upstairs.

Solana continued to stare at the breakfast Lunick had prepared for her for several minutes. It was like she was transfixed. Lunick always made a beautiful breakfast. Anything he made just about made her melt, he was such an amazingly good cook!…But looking at the gourmet dish…she just felt….guilty…

She stared at it for several more tense moments, then making her decision, she found herself doing something she never thought she would do.

Getting up from the table, Solana took up the ramekin bowl and plate of bread.

Munching on her Pokéfood, Plusle watched as Solana stood up and walked over to her silver step-on trash can. Pressing her pedal with her foot, the Beautifly lid opened and separated from the center, and Solana turned over the tiny bowl. The seasoned eggs, spinach, chives, minced garlic, sautéed onions and bell peppers, partly melted parmesan cheese, and tomato and basil sauce all slowly poured out of the ramekin bowl and into the stainless steel dry waste matter container.

Plusle gasped and opened her mouth in shock, pellets of the Pokéfood falling to the tiled floor.

Solana then turned over her plate and the two prettily sliced toasted breads dropped into the 45-liter disposable can as well.

Taking her foot off of the pedal, resealing the lid, Solana walked over to her kitchen sink and rinsed out the ramekin bowl and plate. When she was done, she placed the small bowl and plate onto the 2-tier steel dish rack, washing her hands and wiping them dry with a paper towel. She then walked back over to her trash can, pressed the pedal to open the lid, and discarded the used paper towel, covering the food she just threw away.

Plusle could not believe what she just saw.

"Plah Pla?"

Lunick and Minun reentered the kitchen. Lunick was zipping up his outwear white vest while Minun took his spot right back beside Plusle and starting devouring his Pokéfood again.

"Didn't find the button-up shirt?" Solana asked.

Lunick put his arms in the sleeves of his red uniform jacket.

"Yeah, but I think it's supposed to be a little chillier today so I opted for the vest. I'm wearing the short-sleeve underneath it in case I get too hot."

As Lunick pulled at his collar he noticed the ramekin bowl and plate on Solana's dish rack.

"You…finished eating already?"

"Huh?" Solana said before she caught on, "Oh, yeah. I guess I was actually hungrier than I thought once I got to eating. That was an excellent breakfast, Lunick. Pure perfection," she said resting her hands on his chest.

Lunick smiled weakly. "Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it so much. You wolfed that down faster than I think I ever have any food."

"Well, I'm glad I have a BF that can cook so well," she said warmly. She traced circles on his chest, "Now, I'm gonna go pack my things and gear up. You just focus on finishing that beautiful meal. Wouldn't want you to get a crummy tummy now, would we?"

He hugged her waist. "No, we wouldn't. I should be done by the time you finish getting ready."

Solana nodded. They shared a tender kiss before they let go of each other and separated. Lunick sat back down in his seat at her table and tied a dining blanket around his neck before he started eating his open sandwich again. Solana smiled softly at him as she walked out of the kitchen.

Plusle quickly got up from her spot beside the gluttony Minun and ran out to follow her. She caught her just as she was about to mount the staircase.

"Plah Pla! Plah Plah!" she called out to her.

Solana turned back around and approached her.

"Is something wrong, Plusle?"

"Plah Plah!" She pointed to the kitchen, then flailed her tiny arms. "Plah Pla Pla! Plah Pla!"

Solana looked passed her back to the doorframe of her kitchen then looked back down at her Partner Pokémon. She crouched down to meet her on eye level.

"Eveything's fine, Plusle."

"Plah Pla!" She stomped her foot on the ground, trying to reenact Solana putting her foot on the garbage pedal.

Solana crinkled her brow.

"Everything's fine, Plusle," she repeated, a little more sternly.

"Plah Plah Pla!"

"I didn't lie. I just let Lunick fill in the blanks."

"Plah Plah! Plah Pla!"

"Plusle, I don't need breakfast right now. I can work fine without eating."

Plusle's ears flopped downward.

"And we're not gonna tell Lunick and Minun about this either."

Her ears slightly perked back up, though bent at the tips.

"Pla Plah?"

"Promise me, Plusle. Promise me."

Plusle's brown eyes shimmered slightly, then she bowed her head and gave a soft nod, her ears drooping back down.

Solana nodded. She petted her pokémon lightly on her head.

"It's not a big deal. Don't worry, okay? Now, I'm going to go finish getting ready."

Solana stopped assuring her pokémon and turned back around and mounted the steps. She headed into her bedroom.

"Mai Mai?" asked a muffled cry.

Plusle turned slightly and saw Minun standing next to her with a mouth full of Pokéfood.

He chewed some more and swallowed what was in his mouth before asking his friend again what was wrong.

"Mai Mai?"

"Plah…" she answered very silently and shook her head slowly.

Minun frowned.

"Mai Mai?"

Plusle gazed at him slightly, shook her head once more and scurried back into the kitchen.

Minun watched her go, looked back at the staircase, then turned back around and scurried back to the kitchen to join Plusle and Lunick.


Murph gave a heavy sigh as he closed his textbook shut. Finally, he had managed to make a dent in the work Professor Hastings had given him. He was finally caught up to speed with all the Union regulations and policies. Now all that was left was for him to pass Professor Hastings' test…Well, Exam #1 to be exact. Professor Hastings had compiled four semester loads of course material for him to go through for preparation, as if he were teaching him at the University rather than just certifying him himself. Knowing that an even greater workload was upon him, Murph tried to relish in his peace with the fact that he had just this short moment to breathe being shoveled right back in to the grueling reading and trips.

He wiped his forehead and eyes before going into the kitchenette to retrieve a sandwich. He returned just in time to see Solana and Lunick enter the Ringtown Ranger Base. Their Partner Pokémon were perched on their shoulders.

Spenser didn't look up from the form he was signing as he sensed them approach his desk.

"Good Morning, Solana. Lunick."

"Good Morning, Leader," they replied in unison.

"I hope you both got a good night's rest because mission requests have been pooling in since late last night. You'll likely have a full schedule today with very little time to relax. Are you ready to start your work?"

"Yes, Leader. We are fully prepared for our missions." Answered Solana.

"Alright then," Spenser rested his pen down and picked up a blue binder. Several folders containing job requests and forms were inside. Spenser flipped through a few of them before finally pulling out one manila folder.

"Your first mission is in the Jungle Relic. Some of the forest pokémon have gotten trapped inside a couple of grottos and it looks like the lava flowing within the relic is beginning to flow out of control from the unsettled pokémon. Your mission is to evacuate the forest pokémon from the Jungle Relic and deviate the flow of lava from the Relic's center. Calm the feuding and frantic pokémon and get everyone out of there safely. Think you can handle this first thing in the morning?"

He handed the folder to Solana and she briefly read over the case file.

"Yes, Leader. Solana and I will take care of it. Right, Solana?"

"Right," she closed the manila folder and handed it back to her Area Leader.

Spenser nodded.

"Alright. Hop to it you two. We have a lot of cases to get through today and everyone is giving it their all, even Thomas. Pull this rescue mission off quickly with aplomb."

"We won't let you down, Sir." Answered Lunick.

Again, Spenser nodded. "You're dismissed."

As Spenser turned around to go back to his desk, Solana and Lunick turned around to grab a few supplies from the storage room. As they were stocking up on potions and healing items, they saw Murph enter the room.

"Good Morning, you guys," he said cheerily.

"Hey, Murph" said Lunick as he put a few Hyper Potions into his pack, "What's up? We haven't seen you around the base in a long time."

"That's because the Professor has me traveling doing all kinds of stuff and taking notes on the Union's activities. I somehow by some miracle managed to catch up with all this work and can finally catch my breath, even if just for a moment."

Solana smiled.

"That's great to hear, Murph. Sounds like we may very well have a new Union rep soon."

Murph smiled weakly and rubbed the nape of his neck. "Oh, I wouldn't say that. I still have an immense amount of work to do. I've got my first Exam coming up for the Professor real soon."

Lunick clipped his pack on his waist.

"Well, with Pamur being the leader of the biggest research team in Almia, I'm sure he'll help you ace that test, no problem."

"I haven't spoken to my Dad in weeks. Been too busy with the Professor and this Union stuff. Truth be told, I think he missed the boat on this one. I mean, why didn't the Professor choose someone else for his replacement? I'm not nearly as fast or a critical thinker like he is. And why now? When I've done so little so often already as my career as a ranger?"

"You're not replacing him, Murph." Solana answered. "You're just taking over the PR position for him so he can focus on his research. You can't argue Professor Hastings is getting up there. He needs a load taken off of him so he doesn't push himself over the edge into oblivion."

"And instead of thinking of who else you think would be better suited for this job, try to think about why Professor Hastings did choose you to be the Union head. And stop talking down to yourself, discrediting what you do. You are a major asset to the team, I've told you that before. You're a lot stronger and qualified than you think you are." Lunick followed.

Murph lowered his eyes slightly. "Pretty words, guys. But I just don't get it. I haven't done anything standoutish like you two have."

"Maybe it's not about standing out. Maybe it's about what you do in the mist of it all."

Slowking nodded his head in agreement with Lunick with a wide smile.

Lunick stood up from kneeling on the floor and walked over to his locker and strapped his canteen to his belt.

"You ready, Solana?"

"Mhmm," she finished packing the warm blanket in her pack, zipped it up and quickly stood up. Then her eyes fluttered and she stumbled forward.

"Solana!"

"Plah Pla!"

Lunick quickly ran and caught her halfway. Plusle and Minun were at their side in an instant.

"Solana?" Lunick said, his voice tinted with worry.

"I just got really lightheaded." She said, holding her forehead.

"Are you okay?"

Solana smiled weakly and nodded, lowering her hand, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just may have been a little quick getting up, is all."

"Maybe you should drink Hydroade. Get some electrolytes in your system." Murph added.

Solana stood up. "Really guys, I'm fine. I just lost my balance for a moment."

"Okay, but maybe we should get a ride to Summerland so you don't get overheated walking or dizzy flying."

"I'm perfectly fine to take the Dragonite Bus, Lunick. I'm okay, really."

Plusle frowned.

"I heard that mission Leader gave you," said Murph, "That sounds like a colossal rescue mission."

"Nothing Solana and I haven't handled before." Lunick let go of Solana, "You going out on a mission too, Murph?"

"Who me? No way. You know how freaked out I get in the field. I'm sure every other ranger out there is doing their best and can handle everything. Besides, I want to enjoy what little free time I have before the Professor's test."

"Right. Well, we'll be seeing you, Murph." Lunick said as he waved his friend.

"Good luck on your exam. I'm sure you'll do great."

"Yeah, thanks. Don't do anything crazy on your mission, you hear?"

"No promises," Lunick cried back.

Murph shook his head knowingly. He went inside the storage room's bathroom to wash up before coming back outside to the lobby. He saw Aria in the center, apparently having just delivered a package to Spenser.

As Spenser went to the base's elevator, Murph went up to greet her.

"Aria!"

Aria looked up and saw Murph approaching her. She tried to hide her scowl.

"Murph."

Murph panted as he reached her side.

"I'm so glad you're here!" he cried excitedly. "I have some great news! I'm finally caught up with my work for Professor Hastings."

"Is that so?" she replied, nonchalantly.

Murph nodded frantically.

"I just have my first exam for him coming up. After that, I'll of course have even more work to do. But at least, for the moment, I'm free!"

Aria nodded her head slowly.

"And you're telling me this because?…"

Murph quickly reached inside his pocket and pulled out two tickets.

"The People of the Water Family Circus are in town as a part of their end season tour and they're performing one of their shows in the Summerland tonight. I got us tickets! We can watch their water show and even be a part of the act!"

Aria rolled her tongue in her mouth and snuggly crossed her arms.

"And, why would I want to do that?"

Murph's smile slowly got smaller.

"Because…We can finally go out…I got us tickets?"

"And why did you think I would be interested in going to see a circus?"

"It's not just a circus. It's the famed People of the Water descendants from Samiya. Lizabeth, Meredith, Kyle, and Ship…They're legendary performers and the last surviving members of the ancient tribal society…Their water circus is described as a breathtaking and a beautiful spectacle to behold. I thought…I thought you would like it…"

Aria's unmoved expression felt as cold as ever.

"…You were wrong…"

She turned around to exit the base.

Murph quickly ran in front of her.

"Wait!"

"I don't want to see some water circus performers, Murph."

"Okay, we don't have to go to the People of the Water circus. How about we just go out to see a movie?"

"What are we, fourteen?"

"Dinner?"

"At where? Bo's Grill? Trainer Dee's?"

Murph frowned deeply.

"Aria…I'm finally free to go out with you…"

"I don't care. You should have been free the last time I wanted to go out."

Murph felt his heart sinking.

"Aria…I'm trying really hard…"

Aria leaned forward and looked him hard in his eyes.

"Try harder," she said coolly.

And with that, she exited the base.

Slowking watched in stunned silence. He looked up at his ranger, his anguished face strained and contorted in brutal heartbreak.

"Slowking?"

Murph continued to stare at the double doors that had just moments ago closed after Aria departed. He drew in his lower lip as he felt tears welling in his eyes.

Spenser came out of the base's elevator doors holding a stack of papers when he saw Murph standing transfixed at the base's entrance.

"Murph?" he called "Is something wrong?"

Murph didn't answer as the tears flowed from his cheeks onto the floor. He turned around and walked into the base's kitchenette and out the back door. His Slowking followed behind him.

"Slowking!"

"Murph," Spenser called again, when his eyes caught a glimpse of something off of the floor.

He rested the stack of papers on his desk and walked over to where Murph was standing. He knelt down and picked up two tickets titled 'PotW Circus' off the floor. He looked them over, then looked back to where Murph had left.

Sighing, Spenser walked over to his desk and put the tickets in his drawer before sitting back down behind his desk and resuming his work.


Bill rubbed his head as the sound of the metal sliding doors clanging together startled him and caused him to ram his head on the metal railing. His nerves had been on edge for the past three weeks since his capture.

"Greetings, Mr. Sonezaki," said a mature female voice.

Bill looked up to see the sharply dressed woman in a form-fitting navy blue skirt-suit who had been holding him prisoner.

"You look tired? Have you been working hard?"

"You're not really giving me much of a choice." He retorted.

She smiled smugly. She shifted her gaze above him.

"Has he been a good boy, Dusknoir dear?"

The menacing ghost-type pokémon towered over him with crossed arms.

"Dusknoir…"

"I'm glad to hear it."

Bill growled.

"Come on, lady! You have me working like a slave here! I haven't eaten in three days! I kept my end of the bargain! Now, it's time to let me go!"

"Hush you!" she scolded sharply. "I am a virtuous woman of my word. When I feel that you've lived up to your part of our agreement, only then will you go back to your ostentatious lifestyle. Now, get up."

Bill sighed disdainfully.

She kicked Bill hard in his gut and he cried out and doubled-over in pain.

"I said, get up. Now. Or you and your pokémon will suffer."

Grunting, Bill laboriously picked himself up off the ground and wobbly and unsteadily stood to his feet.

"Come now, are you really so weak?"

Bill breathed heavily, "You're starving me, keeping me locked up and confined in this humid cell…depriving me of the most basic of human essentials. How do you expect me to be under these conditions?"

"I thought scientists worked well under pressure. Are you saying the great Bill Sonezaki is all talk and no steam?"

Bill glared threateningly at the woman.

"Keep that scornful expression if it'll motivate you to keep working and move faster. But you so even try to touch me, you will know the meaning of true terror."

She turned her attention to Bill's Cell Splicer machine.

"Show me."

Still grunting in pain, Bill knelt down and pulled the second lever installed on the floor. The doors on all six new pods slid opened and a thick haze pooled out of all of them. After it cleared, six distinct pokémon were seen inside of them.

The woman smiled.

"Very nice. The specimens are improving. These are even better than the last batch you made."

Bill slowly stood back up.

"I moderated the radiation levels and models for each pokémon. I intermixed the genes that were most compatible and sound together to the Pokémon's overall structure and combined elements that would vastly improve their durability, endurance, stamina, power, and give them the optimum battle physique and tolerance in combat."

"Very good. You've earned your next meal."

"But there's still the problem of instability if their power was to be unleashed. I haven't yet figured out the absolutes, the right alleles to extract, which compounds I should still leave in. And the amount of radiation the pokémon are being exposed to is unfathomable."

"Release them."

Bill gawked at the woman.

"Did you not just hear what I said? These pokémon are extremely dangerous! Both to themselves and the general public. There are too many unknown and outstanding variables to simply –"

"Release them, I said!" she shouted at him, "There will always be room to improve in the eyes of you scientists. But what I see are creatures with untapped potential that don't need to be scrapped like the rest. Release them at once and get started on the next set. These are enough to get seeds of my vision planted in the earth. Do it now!"

Grimacing, Bill pressed a few buttons on the keypad on the electronic table beside the lever. The doors to the pods closed shut and the six pokémon were lowered to the lower part of lair.

"Keep this up and you might be back in Kanto yet, Mr. Sonezaki."

The woman turned around to leave and started to walk away before stopping suddenly.

"Oh, I almost forgot."

She walked back up to Bill and handed him a plastic bag containing a blob of grayish gruel that appeared to have several different kinds of nuts and seeds in them.

She then opened her large bag and took out a Styrofoam plate that was heavily wrapped in plastic wrap. Steamed sticky rice appeared to be inside of it.

She carefully rested it on the floor, along with a can of XS energy drink.

"You've got fifteen minutes to finish eating and get back to work. I'm expecting the next set of pokémon to be even better than the last."

And with that, she walked out of the room.

The Dusknoir peered down at Bill and ordered him to hurry and get on with it.

Sighing exasperatedly, Bill sat down on the floor and unwrapped the plate, dumping the mysterious gray gruel on top of the rice afterwards.

At this point, Bill didn't care if this strange food ended up killing him. After all of the horrific sins he committed with this woman, he deserved to perish to her poison.


Iyori entered the Ringtown Ranger Base holding a file and a Vacutainer in her hands.

"Hello?" she called out. The Ringtown Ranger Base was strangely empty. Usually there at least one person there to man the front desk if the Area Leader was out but it didn't seem like anyone was there.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" she called out again. She heard what sounded like muffled thumping coming from below her feet and determined that someone must have been on the lower level.

She entered the base's elevator and rode it down to its lowest level. When she stepped out, she found herself in a corridor. Those muffled thumping sounds, now sounded like loud clanging and pounding sounds emanating from one of the rooms.

Hesitantly, Iyori approached the open doorway a few rooms down the fall.

"H-Hello?" she said timidly as she stepped inside.

Iyori shrieked as two flying yellow discs were sent towards her and she instantly dropped to the ground in fear. The two medium-sized discs wedged themselves in the wall behind her as the papers from her folder scattered on the floor around her and the sterile glass tube with the vacuum seal blue-colored rubber stopper clanged on the floor.

"Oh my goodness!" she heard a voice cry.

The other person in the room quickly ran towards Iyori and held her.

"Are you okay?"

Iyori uncovered her head from her duck and peered up to see Lunick kneeling beside her, shirtless and dripping with sweat.

A faint blush appeared on her cheeks as she blinked.

"Lunick-sama?"

Lunick started gathering the papers on the floor.

"I'm so sorry. Sometimes Minun and I go a little overboard with our training sessions."

Iyori sat up on her knees and saw Minun standing in the center of the room. His tail was glowing brilliantly.

"Training?" Iyori looked back above her and saw the two yellow discs wedged in the side of the wall where she stood just seconds ago.

Lunick handed her back the folder with the papers inside.

"Yeah, I was deflecting those hollow flying discs when you came in. Forgot to concentrate on where I was aiming."

Lunick looked up to where the discs were wedged in the wall as well.

"Yeah, that's gonna cost me monthly dips into my paycheck. Aw, man…"

Standing to his feet, Lunick extended his hand to Iyori to help her up. She carefully took it, and weakly stood to her feet.

"You…often have your Pokémon attack you?"

"Attack? We're just training. Sparring is a great way to improve our combat skills and work on coordination and defense as well."

"But couldn't you hurt yourself? At those fast speeds, one disc could have easily decapitated you. And what of Minun's attacks? Won't they scar your body?"

Lunick smiled and waved it off.

"Nah, that's why I'm wearing these babies," He raised his fists, showing the fingerless work gloves he usually wore on missions, "These gloves are more hardy and protective than they appear. The purposes of these spars are to work on our defense and counter-maneuvers. And I've been struck by Minun's Thunderbolt more times than I can count. Trust me, we've had our fair share of squabbles."

He glanced over at Minun, who just shrugged and powered down his Iron Tail before joining his ranger beside Iyori.

"Pardon my asking, but what are you doing down here training anyway, Lunick-sama? Are you not on a mission with Solana-san?"

Lunick shook his head.

"We completed three missions already since this morning. But the fourth one required more of a female-oriented approach. It was best Solana go that one alone. Minun and I decided to train for a bit before she returned and we went out on our next mission."

"Oh." She replied quietly. Seeing Lunick's lean, moderately muscular glistening body underneath the brilliant glow of the physical fitness training room's florescent lights was leaving Iyori flustered and making her more hot and aware of her body than she was comfortable feeling.

"Hey, what are you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you be back at the lab?" Lunick asked.

Iyori was snapped back into reality and a slightly deeper blush appeared on her cheeks.

"O-Oh. W-Well…I came to deliver my report to Spenser-sensei but he was not here. But it is just as well that you are here instead as it was intended for you."

"Me?"

Iyori nodded. She handed the folder back to Lunick.

"Those are the results of the latest analysis scans by the forensics team from the Ranger Union back at headquarters. After fully extracting and breaking down the DNA into its most basic modules, they found the genetic makeup of several different pokémon."

"But every pokémon's DNA is completely unique," Lunick said as he flipped through the research papers.

"That is what I am saying. They say the DNA is not of one pokémon but seven."

"Seven?!"

Iyori nodded.

"So far, only two pokémon's independent genetic fingerprints have been identified. A Beartic and a Magcargo."

Lunick looked back at her. "What?"

"That is what they have concluded thus far. This Vacutainer contains the blood sample which holds its DNA."

Lunick shook his head and closed the folder.

"Why are you giving this to me? I told you, I'm not Area Leader anymore. Spenser and Professor Hastings should be the one you're sharing this information with."

"That is what I thought. But since you were the one in command at the time and the one to give the order to perform the extended analysis, you have to be the one to make the decision on what to do next."

Lunick ran one hand through his slightly wet hair.

"Man, these are way more complications than I need right now. I don't think like a researcher or analyst. If this is all the information they were able to get from their analysis, I can't say what to do next? Not to mention that I don't even know how to process all the information we have already."

"I am sorry, Lunick-sama, but my hands are tied. You have to be the one to make the next decision. Should we abstain from any further analysis? We await your instruction."

Lunick closed his eyes. He inhaled deeply and exhaled. After thinking for a moment, he took his right hand off of his head and handed the folder back to Iyori.

"No, I need you guys to stay on top of this. We need to figure out how the DNA of all these pokémon became so intertwined. And we need to find out where those pokémon are located now. Have the research team do a thorough geographical background of all the pokémon in this sample once they've all been identified. Check to see if there have been any reports of pokémon missing from enclosures or missing pokémon reports from Trainers and owners, and if they've been any strange or unusual sightings, whether it be a pokémon in a habitat it shouldn't be, or a pokémon that appeared to behave or look strangely. See if any of the pokémon were microchipped, look for their unique paw prints and footprints in the ground if we can identify them. Run another analysis, check for anything we may have missed the first few times. We're not closing this case. If there's anything I've learned from being a Pokémon Ranger it is that things don't just happen for no reason. There's always an origin and chain-of-events for everything that takes place, so we need to backtrack and make the connections in all of this."

Iyori stared dumbfoundedly at Lunick, her eyes wide, and her mouth slightly ajar.

Lunick looked back at her and shrugged.

"What?"

Iyori smiled weakly.

"Forgive me, Lunick-sama…It's just you spoke with such confidence and authority just now with sure direction and a plan. I cannot believe you were so nervous to figure out what to do next or that you are not already seated behind the Leader's chair."

Lunick chuckled slightly.

"Well, I appreciate that, Iyori. But believe me, I still have a long ways to go before I am certified to be an Area Leader."

"But you have been an Area Leader before?"

"That was only temporary."

"But you did it. And you did it well…You may be closer to achieving your dream than you may think." She said with a wide smile.

Lunick blinked twice as he stared at Iyori in her face.

Iyori suddenly became uncomfortable again. Standing there in silence, watching her hero's near naked body glistening in front of her…And his unwavering stare was just…just!…

A deep blush appeared on Iyori's cheeks as she stammered.

"W-Well, I should go give your orders to the Union and get back to the lab before they think I've forgotten about them," she breathed.

She slowly backed away.

"Iyori…"

Iyori suddenly stopped and bit her lower lip.

"You should smile more often."

Iyori chuckled nervously and continued to back away from Lunick. She bumped her head on one of the yellow flying discs edged in the wall.

"Are you –"

"Fine!" she shouted as she held her head. "Just fine! Hehe…hee…"

She backed out of the room and quickly ran to the base's elevator.

Lunick's pursed his lips in confusion.

"What was that all about?"

"Mai Mai?"

Minun pointed above him and Lunick looked back at the flying discs wedged in the wall.

"Yeah, buddy…Don't remind me. Let's just hit the showers and wait for Solana upstairs. I may need her help explaining this to Leader."

"Mai."