"Easy there, Solana. Easy," Lunick soothed as they slowly entered the Ringtown Ranger Base.

Amie, the base's receptionist, gasped as her hands instantly flew to her mouth in shock.

"Oh my goodness! Are you are all right? Are your Pokémon all right?"

"Solana's a bit hurt. She just needs some rest and maybe some bandage wraps from the back. I'm taking her to the storage room to take a closer look and evaluate her."

Amie nodded, "Okay."

"We'll be here waiting for you when you've recovered, Solana," Spenser said as he walked behind the counter to his desk.

Lunick helped an exhausted Solana to the storage area where the spare beds were kept. He led Solana to one of the beds and gently lowered her down onto it. Solana crumpled into a fetal position as she sat and Plusle hopped on the bed and crawled up beside her.

"How's your sleep been?" Lunick asked as he got a bottle of water from the mini fridge in the back of the room.

"Great. I'm getting the best sleep I've ever had, thanks to you," Solana replied without opening her eyes or sitting up.

"Fatigue and exhaustion are no joke in this line of work. Our workload requires us to stay on top of things."

"I just overexerted myself today, no bigee."

"Yes, bigee," Lunick said as he walked back over to her with the bottle of water and a cool washcloth he had run under cold water in the storage room's bathroom. "You can get seriously hurt and be out of commission for weeks doing things like that."

He brushed her bangs to the side and placed the cool washcloth on her forehead.

Solana flinched. "That's cold."

"Good. You need to cool your body down," he said handing her the bottle of water, "Here."

Solana took it from him with her right hand, took a small sip, and recapped it and placed it on the nightstand beside the bed.

"You never should have took on that mission alone without Aria's help."

"She wasn't very keen on helping me."

"That doesn't mean you should have tackled it alone. We're a team here, Solana. Best thing for you to do would have been to call the base and report Aria for not cooperating with you and obeying a direct order from our Area Leader. That's insubordination."

Solana sighed heavily. "I am so not trying to get caught up in any workplace drama right now. Aria didn't wanna help, I was given the mission, so I did what I was told anyway. My success and work shouldn't be dependent on someone else's caliber or failure."

Lunick sighed too and shook his head. "You're not getting what I am saying at all."

"I understand. I just don't agree with you is all."

"You gotta stop that restrictive all-or-nothing thinking. I will emphasize again that we are a team. We work together as one unit."

"So says the partner that never shows," Solana mumbled.

Lunick's eyes widened ever so slightly, then they fell to the floor.

"I'm sorry I'm not available to help you all the time. We're just at too different levels right now to work as a cohesive team. You're still a rookie, there's still a lot for you to learn and grow from."

Solana grabbed the pillow beneath her and smooshed it on either side of her face. "When are people going to stop referring to me as a rookie and stop bringing that up? I've more than proven myself skilled enough. I'm half my ranks and have moved up them in an astounding amount of time. I wouldn't say I'm so much a novice now."

"Your thinking proves you are still thinking like one, which is why I still call you rookie. Intelligence, skills, abilities - that's all great. But you're still new to this profession and you're still learning about how we do things here. We're not Pokémon Trainers. We don't work alone. Even when we go on solo missions, we work as a team and report back to our Area Leader. If you need backup, you need to have the nerve to call it in and have someone or a team of us deployed to help you. Do you understand? White-knuckling it won't cut it as a ranger. That's how bad things happen."

Silence passed between the two rangers for several long moments before Solana sighed and spoke again.

"I hear you, Lunick."

"But are you listening?"

"Yes, I am," she replied, slightly annoyed. "Give me some grace here. I'm trying my best."

"I am giving you grace, because you're still new and don't know everything like you pontificate to. Also, it would be wise to get into an exercise regimen. We need to maintain good physical health. Your body probably isn't used to all this strenuous activity. Find a workout regimen that works best for you, whether it's running, yoga, any kind of physical activity you can commit to and do on a daily basis. It'll help with your stamina and endurance in the field, and help reduce the physical stress you feel from overdoing it. It'll also help reduce that fatigue and exhaustion."

"Yeah, I do yoga. Not everyday but enough that I feel good. Maybe I'll add some other workout later."

Lunick nodded. "It's a start. That's all I can ask."

Sighing once more, Solana sat up. She took the washcloth from her forehead and placed it on the nightstand beside the water bottle.

"You're getting up already?"

"I'm feeling better now. We don't have time to dawdle. The Go-Rock Squad is on the move again and we have to track them down before they actually do some real damage." She said, standing up.

"Let the Professor and Area Leaders worry about the Go-Rock Squad. That's not your prerogative or burden to bear."

"You haven't dealt with them like I have. Sure, the grunts are a bunch of dolts who don't know what they're doing. But the admins, the Go-Rock Quad siblings? They're a bit smarter and they're following direct orders from whoever their leader is. Not only that, the Pokémon they capture can get seriously hurt. We have got to stop them before they make anymore advancements to their stylers."

"Believe me, no one wants to stop these baddies more than me for what they're putting those Pokémon through. But we have our ranks and we have our orders. We must follow them."

"That's not fair! I'm the one who's been dealing with them from Day One! I should be allowed to tail them."

"Solana, don't be so hasty. All haste and no speed gets you nowhere, trust me. I've been where you've been. I've gotten caught up in catching a criminal and almost compromised a major mission because of that zeal. I get it. You wanna bring them to justice. You feel righteous indignation for what they are doing. But remember what I said: we are a team. We will tackle this and defeat them as one. Okay?"

Again, Solana sighed heavily and raised her hands in defeat. "Fine. Okay."

Lunick smiled weakly before standing up himself. "Come on, let's get back to the lobby to hear what Leader has to say."

After getting cleaned up, the two rangers and their Partner Pokémon headed out of the storage room and back into the lobby. Spenser was seated behind the counter at his desk.

"Are you feeling recuperated, Solana? That was a very short resting period."

"Yes, Leader. I am ready to continue with my work."

Spenser stood up from behind his desk. "All right then. I'll begin. Thanks to you, Solana, the Krokka Tunnel has been reopened. You've accomplished your mission without flinching from either the Go-Rock Squad's interference or Aria's disappearance. I hereby certify you as Rank 6, Solana. Congratulations."

"Thank you, Leader."

"I'm sure it feels good to be back home in Ringtown after all that running around chasing the Go-Rock Squad."

"Yes, Leader. Though I do admit, I'm am still uneasy about the situation."

"As we all are. But you let us come up with a plan on how to best deal with them. Solana, it's your first time back in Ringtown in quite some time. You should unwind and relax a bit."

"Relax? But, Leader, my mission?"

"That is your mission, Solana. Though you've rested, I still think you could do with some more R&R. That being said, there's no telling when a new mission or threat will arise, so do not leave Ringtown."

Solana turned to face Lunick. "Lunick?"

Lunick smiled and nodded. "You know, Solana…you're looking more and more like a proper Ranger. Sure, I can accompany you, so long as Leader says I can."

"Go ahead, Lunick. I think it'll do you both well to spend some good quality time together. I'll call you if I need anything."

Lunick nodded. "Yes, Leader. Well, all right then. Shall we?"

The two student rangers exited the Ringtown base with their Pokémon.

Lunick stretched just as they exited.

"Ah, it feels good to be back home," he mused as he and Solana started walking around town.

"Have you lived in Ringtown your entire life?" Asked Solana.

"Yup. Born and raised. Never been away from the region. Always wanted to travel and see what other places were like outside of Fiore. What about you? Orre native your entire life before moving here to become a Ranger?"

Solana nodded. "It's the only home I've ever known. But I have to admit, it's grown dull after the successes of our beloved heroes."

"Leilani told me about them. Wes and Michael. They sound like quite the elite Trainers."

"They are incredible. Especially Wes. I mean, he came from a little podunk, backwater little town in the middle of nowhere and set off on a journey as a seven-year-old to help his ailing mother. He got lost many times and met both his Eevee on his travels before he was ultimately snatched up by Team Snagem and became their chief snagger, stealing and capturing Pokémon for them while suffering their leader's horrendous physical abuse for years. It wasn't until many years later as a late teen that he was able to escape and undue the wrongs he committed."

"Wait, he was one of the bad guys?"

"No, he was never actually a bad guy. He was forced into it. And abused heavily into obedience. Think of it like a child soldier forced into a war they never wanted to be a part of. The amount of trauma he suffered and currently has from that experience alone is staggering."

"Oh, I see. Man, that absolutely sucks. I hope he got vindicated, maybe even retribution for all the ill he suffered at their hands."

Solana shrugged. "Well, Snagem disbanded for a while but none of them were ever truly arrested."

"What?!" Lunick exclaimed. "Are you kidding me?"

"No, I'm not. All Wes wanted to do was get out and then absolve himself of his sins. He didn't care about taking down Team Snagem. Not initially I guess. But he did blow up their hideout and prevented them from stealing anymore Pokémon from anyone by stealing their only prototype Snag Machine to get all the stolen Pokémon back. So, in a way, he dealt with them the best way he knew how at the time. It's not his fault they were never arrested. Crime in Orre was at an all time high and the police absolutely sucked. It took a few years for someone competent like Duking to take over as Sheriff from Sherles and actually do something about the crime rate, but back then, there were only two officers in the entire region. People used to think Orre was untouchable, that we were just this peaceful region far away separated from the mainlands. But no one knew the evil that was brewing underground, in the desert, on an island…We took our safety for granted. Had it not been for Wes stepping up initially to deal with Orre's threats, we may not have survived the first round."

Lunick shook his head in awe. "Wow. That's absolutely insane. It sounds like this really impacted you."

"Honestly, I was too young to even remember most of what happened. But I'll never forget that camera shot of Wes at the tournament, facing who he thought was the big boss, taking him down, and then being blessed by the presence of Almighty Ho-Oh."

"Ho-Oh?! For real?"

Solana nodded. "It was incredible. Unbelievable. I admire Wes so much, moreso than our second hero Michael. No offense to him, but Wes really had the worst odds with everything stacked against him - his poor upbringing, being enslaved as a child and beaten pretty much daily into submission and compliance, being forced to steal Pokémon for a number of years. I mean, it's a miracle not only that he survived all that but that he even escaped at all. I'm pretty sure he almost died a couple times. But he wouldn't let the region suffer anymore at the hands of his captors. He stepped out and took down every crime syndicate, every underground ring, every common thug, in the entire region almost single-handily. He brought peace to Orre again. He used his trauma to help others. That's what I wanna do. I wanna help heal people. I wanna keep people and Pokémon safe. No one should have to endure that kind of thing."

Lunick stopped walking and paused. Solana soon stopped slightly ahead of him.

"What's wrong?" She asked. Lunick was frowning deeply.

"You…you have some kind of trauma, Solana?" He asked hesitantly.

Solana's eyes went wide suddenly and she immediately turned away.

"I…I…" she stammered in a hushed tone.

"Eh, yo kids!"

Solana and Lunick turned to the right to see that they had walked all the way northeast of the town where Ringtown's Capture Arena was located. A man in an orange jumpsuit wearing shades was standing outside the entrance to the arena.

"Yo! Yo! Yo! Hold up, yo!" He exclaimed. "You can't go in unless you're in the Capture Challenge, yo, or watching the action from the bleachers."

"Sorry, MC Fielder," Lunick apologized. "We weren't really paying attention to where we were going."

"Capture Challenge?" Solana questioned.

"It's basically a game for us rangers. A way for us to kill time, hang out, socialize, or improve our stamina and skills." Answered Lunick.

"Want to get astride a Doduo and take part in our capture challenge, yo?" Asked MC Fielder to Solana. "Remember, even if you have a Partner Pokémon, you can't tap their PokéAssist."

"I can't?"

"This training is for us to increase our individual skills. Using our Pokémon would count as a disqualification." Answered Lunick. "Remember some rangers don't even have Partner Pokémon. It keeps the event fair for everyone."

"Oh, I see."

"So what do you think? Is this something you wanna do?" Asked Lunick.

Solana put her hand to her chin in thought for a moment. "I guess I could use the endurance training considering how wiped I was from my last mission. I'm game to play."

Lunick smiled. "All right then. Plusle, you can come with me and Minun. We can watch Solana from the bleachers."

"Plah Pla!" She cried as she hopped from Solana's shoulder to Lunick's exposed one.

Solana turned to face MC Fielder. "I'm taking the challenge."

"Short, quick, and to the point. I like it!" he commented. "The reigning record holder is Spenser with 5000 points."

"Spenser?" Solana gasped.

"Of course. You didn't think only us students participated in the game," snarked Lunick. "Spenser's the best there is. No one's been able to top his score, but you can give it a hearty shot."

"Gee, thanks," Solana groaned as MC Fielder brought out a Doduo and presented it in front of Solana.

Solana carefully climbed atop it as it cried out and ran speedily off to the field.

"We'll be cheering for you!" Lunick shouted as he waved her off.

Solana looked around the arena. The crowd turnout was massive. Even for a newbie like her, the townsfolk came out to support her. Or it could be as simple as spectating a sport event between athletes and nothing particularly to do with her specifically. Still, it was a little intimidating to see so many people watching her make captures. It made her feel like she needed to put on some kind of spectacular performance so that they wouldn't be disappointed.

Her eyes found Lunick in the crowd. Plusle and Minun were standing on the railing in front of him, bouncing up and down, cheering her on before she even started.

MC Fielder took the stage with a mic'd headset and waved to the crowd.

"Are you ready to watch some captures this evening?"

The crowd cheered boisterously.

"Alrighty then. Coming up, we have a newcomer to the field. She may just be a Fletchling but she's proving her worth as she's quickly climbing her ranks. Give it up for Pokémon Ranger Solana!"

The crowd again cheered as the Doduo Solana was riding stamped its feet, preparing itself to charge.

"You have three minutes to beat Spenser's all time record, Solana. Let's start the clock!"

3!…2…1…GO!

The pipe atop the arena building whistled loudly and the Duduo dashed forward down the path that let to the open field.

Solana held on nervously as she looked around the grassland. She tried to search for any wild Pokémon but the Doduo was sprinting so far she could hardly see anything. Everything was blurred streaks of various colors.

She closed her eyes and tried to collected herself and calm down. From what she knew about them, Doduo can run over 60 miles per hour; the two heads communicated in unison as both brains are identical. So she had to communicate with the Duduo in a way that both heads would understand and follow her instructions and gain control over its fast pace.

"O-Okay, Doduo. I'm gonna need your help here. Can you listen to me for a moment please?"

The two heads glanced back at her with four wide concentrated eyes and squawked, confirming to her that she held their attention, before one head turned back to face the other in front of them.

"Okay. This is a very big arena with large grassland. I know there are Pokémon nesting here or contracted here for this event. I know you know we need to seek them out so I can capture them and score points. This is what I need from you: I need for the more dominant or leader of you two to always be on focused on running where I tell you to run. Conversely, I need the other more passive of you to act as surveyor to locate the arena's Pokémon and alert us when you spot one. Or perhaps alert the leader so that it changes course and runs toward the Pokémon you have spotted. I will take it from there. You think you can do it, Doduo?"

The two-headed Pokémon squawked in affirmation as the passive head that was facing Solana turned around and started surveying the area. She spotted a Spearow to the south. The dominant head noticed as well and before Solana could give an order to direct it where to go, the two-headed bird Pokémon went dashing towards it.

Solana pulled her styler from her hip and released a capture disc, encircling the Spearow with the capture line loop, successfully capturing it moments later.

The Doduo continued to zip around the field as Solana captured one Pokémon after another - five Tauros and a Donphan. Unfortunately, the ornery bull Pokémon and armored Proboscidea Pokémon were all she was able to capture within the three-minute time limit. At the blare of the horn through the arena speakers indicating Time's Up, the Doduo stopped rushing around the field and ran back to the side of the arena near the entrance as it was trained to do.

"Time's up, Ranger!" MC Fielder announced from center field. "That was some mighty fine capturing. I know everyone here's itching to know the results, so let's turn to the big screen and see what the numbers say! Let's check it out! Solana's results, yo!"

The crowd cheered boisterously as the billboard in the arena winked to life. Solana looked up as well from the arena's entrance. The number of completed captures revealed 7 Pokémon and under total score read 2700 points.

Solana's heart sank.

"Oooh! Too bad, Ranger. No records fell this time. Everyone give it up one more time for our newest challenger, Solana!"

The crowd again cheered. Solana saw Lunick clapping for her from the front row, wearing a wide smile, flashing those pearly white teeth as Plusle and Minun hopped up and down on the railing cheering.

Solana petted the Doduo on its heads, indicating to it she was ready to leave, and it trotted off the field. It ran over to the corral where it was kept and Solana climbed off of it, opening the gate and letting it walk back into the corral before closing the gate shut and locking it. She petted it once more on both of its head.

Solana sighed as she gazed up at the violet sky filled with golden orange clouds. The nocturnal Pokémon started to chip and hum as the day had quickly turned into early evening.

"Hey," she heard a voice call to her gently.

She turned around to see Lunick walking towards her with Plusle and Minun walking beside him.

"Hey," she responded quietly.

"You were awesome out there."

Solana sighed. "Was I really? I mean…I didn't even break the record?"

"Did you really expect to on your first try?"

"I dunno. You got me all hyped. I guess, I thought I could stand out."

"I'd say you made quite the impression," Lunick replied, crossing his arms. "You caught five Tauros, Solana. Do you know how hard it is to tame that Pokémon? And Donphan's not an easy capture either. Didn't you hear how loud and frenzied the audience was? You most def entertained the crowd. Hell, you had me all pumped. I wanted to get out there and make a couple captures myself."

"Really?"

Lunick walked up to her and wrapped one arm around her shoulders. "Remember what I said the purpose of the event was? Yeah, it's to hone your skills, but there's a reason it's a source of entertainment in this region. Citizens are proud of us rangers. They want to show their support and appreciation for the work that we do. So you didn't break Spenser's record. I mean, he's Spenser, our Area Leader for God's sake. But the excitement of the game, the buzz and anticipation surging through the crowd. It's a sport and a form of training for us but it also gets civilians involved. Try not to get too down about it. I mean, didn't you enjoy yourself out there? Even a little bit?"

Solana chuckled lightly. "Well, it was kinda fun. The rush I felt while riding that Doduo was invigorating. I mean, my adrenaline was pumping for sure."

"Exactly!" Lunick exclaimed while shaking her shoulders lightly and playfully. "So don't stress about the record. You'll have another opportunity to try to surpass it. Seriously, you did great out there, 'Lana."

Solana smiled weakly. He was starting to call her that more and more.

Lunick let go of her shoulders and placed his hands on his hips. "Gee, the Capture Challenge really takes a lot out of you. All that running around. I wasn't even participating and I'm tired. How 'bout we hit up Trainer Dee's and chill with a couple of corn dogs and curly fries?"

"Mai Mai!"

"Trainer Dee's?" questioned Solana.

"You've never been?"

"Can't say I have. Never heard of it."

Lunick gasped, holding his heart as if that statement caused him excruciating pain. "You've never heard of Trainer Dee's? It is literally God's gift to man. Heaven on earth. Paradise in a bottle. The center of the cheese and fried bread universe. If you haven't downed a Trainer Dee's corn dog, you haven't experienced life. We much rectify this travesty at once!"

Solana rolled her eyes slightly as Lunick's styler began to ring. He took it from its holder and answered.

"Lunick, here…Uh huh…Yeah…She is…Sure thing. I'll be on my way now."

He disconnected the call and placed his styler back on its holder.

"Leader's looking for you. I've been ordered to head to Summerland for a mission. If we cross paths there, let's hit the field together."

"Yeah, sure. I'd like to actually work with my partner for once."

Lunick nodded. "Let's head out, Minun."

"Mai Mai!" The little mouse Pokémon cried as he scurried up his ranger's shoulder.

Lunick started to walk away but stopped abruptly to turn and face Solana.

"Don't despair, Solana. We'll have you in deep fried cornmeal batter bliss in no time."

"Thanks, but I think I'll stay away from greasy fried foods for right now."

"You don't know what you're missing, ma'am. You'll learn soon enough," he replied smugly before running off in the direction of the Lyra Forest.

Solana couldn't hide the smile that spread across her lips as she watched him leave. There was just something about this boy that made her feel warm inside. His presence was so comforting. She almost felt sad to see him go.

"Plah Plah?"

Solana shook her head to try to refocus. "Come on, Plusle. Let's see what Leader wants."