September 16th, First Year

"You."

Emmet immediately leaned forward in his seat, his eyes narrowing at the acidity in the much older man's tone. He glanced first at Akari who had turned to the intrusion, confusion sparking in her wide eyes. He then glanced at Ingo, surprise bubbling in his throat as he saw the apprehensive dismay in his brother's eyes. It wasn't often that his brother was surprised by things.

Akari was on her feet in an instant. "Commander Kamado!" she spoke up. "I can explain-"

"Silence!" the commander thundered. His eyes, beady pricks of light in the dim lighting of the headquarters, twinkled with barely disguised fury as he marched forward, seized Akari by the arm, and yanked her forward so that the two were nearly nose-to-nose. "I send you to do a simple task and instead, you directly kill the totem of a neighboring clan! A clan the Galaxy Team was once at war with! Do you have any idea of what you've done?"

"Commander-" Ingo spoke up. The warden was immediately met with the wrathful gazes of the accompanying scouts who, at that point, had surrounded his bedside. Ingo did not so much as flinch. "Please unhand my fellow passenger," Ingo demanded. "I understand that she has done wrong, but there is no just reason to mishandle a child-"

"You are of the Pearl Clan!" Kamado hissed back. "Do not presume to tell me what to do in my own stronghold! It is our resources that you are currently dependent on. You'd be wise to keep your mouth shut if you don't plan on dying of infection in the wilderness."

Emmet instinctively moved to rise- nobody was going to talk to his brother like that! But he then faltered when a familiar calloused hand circled around his wrist and held him in place. Hard. Strong enough that Emmet knew it was going to leave a bruise. Ingo had not lost his trademark grip; Emmet remembered all too well his brother's inescapable holds. Carefully, he steadied himself back in his seat and waited for his brother to take the lead again.

Instead, Ingo begrudgingly relented. "…Very well." Ingo reclined back in his cot. He muttered something under his breath and folded his fingers in his lap, but his eyes glittered with malice; a look Emmet was unaccustomed to seeing. One glance at Emmet told him everything he needed to know; Ingo was planning something.

More scouts streamed into the room. Emmet watched as Akari had her hands bound in rope before she was practically dragged screaming out of the room. The galaxy scouts followed in precise lines out of the medical wing, leaving the two brothers alone. The young girl's cries of frustration and anger rang out in the hallway for what seemed like hours before finally, there was nothing but silence in the corridors. Emmet immediately whipped around to stare at Ingo.

"What was that? Why didn't you let me intervene?... What are you planning?"

Ingo sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers as he sat up in his cot. "I… greatly dislike Kamado but I cannot speak out against him to his face. I do not have that kind of authority here."

"You are a warden."

"That I am," Ingo admitted proudly, "But the power differences between a commander and a warden are similar to that of a freight train versus a tram car…" Ingo paused, looking to Emmet. "There is a difference, is there not? I am not using a made-up metaphor, am I?"

Emmet hummed. "Freight trains are much heavier. Yup. Kamado is the freight train. You are the passenger train." Emmet nodded to himself. Both were powerful but in classes of weight, tram cars would get crushed to tiny, little pieces in a collision. "It is a good metaphor. I understand what you mean. But. I do not like that man- Kamado."

Ingo laughed weakly. "You share the sentiment of both the clans then." Ingo leaned back against his headrest, combing his fingers through his hair. His usually raucous voice softened as Ingo leaned in closer. "Emmet, you asked me why I did not intervene."

"You could have," Emmet commented, a hint of annoyance in his voice. "You have strong pokémon. We both do." Out of the two of them, only Emmet had memories of their upcoming all the way until where they both stood. Emmet knew of how illustrious their titles were. Of how hard the two had worked to get there. Of how much people sought to fight the two of them back in Unova. The corners of Emmet's smile began to lift up with mischief. "We could force the commander to let Akari go. I do not like Akari. Not really. But- "

"No, Emmet," Ingo grumbled. "Doing so would get us both killed. That is not what I have planned."

"Our pokémon- "

"No. There are numerous scouts in the Galaxy Team's regime. There are only two of us."

Emmet gave a theatrical sigh, crossing his ankles as he tapped one foot against the ground in a fast rhythm. "Ingo, we were- are- battle frontier heads. We are two of the strongest trainers where we come from. We are famous for that. Not many win against us. Nope. We can handle under-leveled, untrained trainers no matter how many. It would not be hard."

"I realize that, but we are only a two-car train, Emmet. And I am not in such a state as you are. You retain most of the knowledge and skills from our past." As Ingo spoke, his brother didn't dare look at Emmet but the corners of his mouth were twisted into an ugly frown. "Perhaps things would be different if I too had my memories and all of my partners coupled to me." Ingo then sighed deeply. "But I do not have that luxury. And beside that point, you must know that strength is only half the battle. One must also account for strategy. You fought alongside myself and Miss Akari during Lady Lilligant's frenzy so you must be aware of how devastating her frenzy was to the people of the Crimson Mirelands. You must imagine that same fury directed at us if we do not act in the interest of the clans or the Galaxy Team. I do not wish to turn us against the inhabitants of Hisui." Ingo turned his eyes to his weathered hands, his scowl deepening. He shut his eyes and sighed. "I have found myself on those tracks when I first arrived here… I do not wish to return to them, and I do not wish for you to experience what I have. I would prefer to spare you from that."

Emmet silently reached out and clasped his brother's hands with his own. I was not there with you that day, his mind grumbled. I was not with you to inspect the tunnels. I was not there to board the train car back to the station. I was not there. And now… now? Ingo was a different man. Not so different that Emmet couldn't recognize him, no. No, his Ingo was still in there, but it was hidden behind many, many layers of thorns. Emmet wanted to reach out and ease his brother's worries. To make them vanish like how Emmet often did when his elder twin had had a bad day on his line and so Emmet would order takeout for the two to share after hours. Or like the days following the resignation of Ingo's long-standing battle assistant. Emmet wasn't clueless. He knew his brother fancied them.

But Emmet could only give his brother space and attempt to piece apart what his brother's social cues had become. They were only then getting used to being so close to one another. Both of them would have their silent hours and tireless little arguments. Emmet would have his nightmares about the day Ingo would disappear and when he awoke in a cold panic, Ingo would be sitting nearby, fumbling with a glass of water and a patient frown. But with Ingo's nightmares? Ingo had mentioned briefly what his first two weeks in Hisui were like and in the times where Emmet had attempted to comfort Ingo after one of his many night terrors, Emmet had learned to keep his hands to himself and wait with water. It is a good thing our salaries pay us verrry well, Emmet's inner thoughts chuckled. We will both have to pay a lot for decent therapy after we arrive back at our home station... Elesa will be verrry concerned.

"We cannot act because we put ourselves at risk of being decoupled from the clans," Emmet eventually concluded, dragging himself out of his head. "We put ourselves at risk of being attacked by the clans as well."

"That is correct."

Emmet tapped one finger against his arm. "You are a warden. I am not. I do not have to play by your rules. The question is whether Akari's predicament is urgent or not."

That set Ingo into thinking. "I do not believe so," was what the warden landed on. "Lady Irida is a fair leader. She will listen to what Akari has to say and make her best judgement alongside the people of the Pearl Clan. I have not known Lady Irida to use harsh punishments and I cannot envision her putting our young friend to death over killing a noble in self-defense. It is Kamado I worry about. I must rest my cab," Ingo rasped. "But while I am here, perhaps it would be useful to gain some information as to what Kamado is planning…?"

Emmet immediately brightened, instinctively reaching out to pat Ingo's shoulder. When his brother did not flinch away, Emmet's smile widened. There it was. The plan. "You want me to spy on him."

"Yes, and if possible, find a way to free her. I do not trust Kamado's fury. Do what you must but try to remain unseen and unheard."


It paid to be friends with bug-types. It had been his Galvantula's idea to sneak into the interwalls connecting the rooms of the Galaxy Headquarters to one another and figure out where Kamado and his scouts had taken Akari to. Much to Emmet's chagrin, they had gone beyond the basement level under the earth. He had carefully crept through the halls, following after the line of scouts from afar until he had found a hiding point in what looked like a janitorial closet and had watched as the line proceeded to a large mahogany door with a keyhole. In the front, Kamado quickly unlocked the door, grabbed Akari by her restraints and then proceeded alone into the darkened space. Only two of the many scouts remained behind to stand guard near the door.

Easy enough, his mind supplied. He worked in underground tunnels. Making a new one would just be a matter of gauging wall stability and most importantly, materials. With his Rhyhorn's help in tunneling below just a few feet short of the door, Emmet quickly found himself in a stairway tunnel facing a wide, hastily dug out chamber that dripped with excess rainwater. Crude walls of bricks separated sections of the prison and in the center of the hollow were the two people Emmet had been looking for. He hid behind a column just as the shouting match was starting to pick up.

"Enough out of you! I should have never let you into the Galaxy Team to begin with!"

"Excuse me?" Akari bellowed, fighting to free herself from the heavy ropes encumbering her slight frame. "Without me, the nobles would still be frenzied! Without me, your ragtag team wouldn't even have cleared past Lord Kleavor- you had to send some man from an enemy clan and a teenager to do your job! You've got pokémon- I know you do! How come you didn't do it, you coward?"

"Silence!" Kamado howled, shoving Akari forward into an unsealed chamber. "You ungrateful child- I am the commander of this expedition team- not a lowly grunt like you. If I order you to do something, you do it! No questions!"

"I have the right to ask questions!" Akari protested. She writhed in her restraints, faltering when the commander placed himself squarely in the center of the cage. "I did what you asked me to do! I do what you tell me-"

"No, what you did made the Pearl Clan livid! You killed one of their precious pet pokémon! Who do you believe has to deal with the consequences of your actions?" Kamado demanded, his hands curling into fists.

Emmet frowned. The commander had a point. What Akari had done was bad. He shook himself out of those thoughts. Ingo preferred that Akari was free and his brother knew far more about the current time and politics then he did. He carefully readied a pokéball in his hand. He'd need to somehow knock out Kamado without kicking up a fuss.

"I can!" Akari protested. "Just let me deal with the Pearl Clan! They're mad at me despite the fact that I've helped them several times over already."

And then Kamado began to chuckle. Emmet shivered. He did not like the sound of the commander's slow, crackling laugh.

"You naïve little girl-"

"I am not a little-"

"Silence!" Kamado's voice had gone from just barely audible to deafening. It would rival Ingo's voice on a good day first thing in the morning at the station. He grabbed the slack of Akari's restraints and began looping it around a rusted iron ring in the cave floor. "You work for me- the Galaxy Team. Anything you do becomes my responsibility to deal with!" With a final tug, Kamado pulled the restraints tight which forced Akari onto her knees in the small cell. "You will be quiet-"

"No! I'm tired of-"

Kamado, seemingly reaching the end of his patience, seized Akari by her long black hair and yanked her forward to crush her head into the muddy jail floors. "You insolent brat," he snarled, increasing the pressure on the back of her head. He jerked her head upwards, kneeling down so as to grab her by the scruff of her neck with his large hands. "I oughta drag you outta my headquarters and drown you in the surf like a rat! You listen to me girl, and you listen well. The only reason you've got clothes on your back is because of me- don't you ever forget that." Kamado slammed Akari's head back into the mud and then fished her back out by her scalp, his expression unflinching as she squealed in pain. "If not for my men, you would've frozen to death or starved out in the wilderness. The only reason I let you stay is because you've got a debt to me- a debt to Laventon too."

When Akari's face had been wrenched out again, the girl spat out the mud in her mouth directly into Kamado's face. "I don't owe you anything, you disgusting old man- "

Crack! In the span of a second, Kamado had reeled back his hand and struck Akari so violently that the force had sent her spinning into the wall. Before she could tumble away, Kamado reached and pulled her back by her hair forcing her face-first onto the cave floor once more. "You don't listen, do you?" Kamado grunted. With one hand, he held her by the throat, keeping the lower half of her face in the dirt. With the other, he ripped apart the latch keeping Akari's satchel tied to her waist.

"You're gonna owe me in one way or another. Your little stunt-" he locked his leg underneath him, pining Akari's back to the ground with his other knee- "is gonna backfire one way or another on my men. So I'm gonna get even before I can't." After tossing Akari's satchel out of the cell, the commander then began to tear at the girl's clothes.

Emmet immediately marched out of his hiding position, grabbing the commander by the collar of his kimono and hoisting him off, disgust and fury making his hands tremble. "Pin him." He stepped cleanly out of the range of the commander, remaining behind the man as his Galvantula made quick work of sticking the commander to the floor with a thick web.

"Ingo?" Akari whimpered, her eyes full of mud and dirt.

"Ingo?" thundered Kamado. "Guards!"

Well, there went that approach. Emmet made a shushing gesture at Akari. "I am Emmet," he stated matter-of-factly. His borrowed Mandibuzz burst out of its pokéball, using its long taloned feet to keep the man pinned to the floor. It turned back around to face Emmet, its eyes narrowed as it clicked its sharpened beak. "Silence him-"

The sound of approaching footsteps filled the room. Emmet hardly had time to react before the two guards from the door were standing before him, swords brandished as they cornered Emmet. One of them, upon sighting their leader prone on the floor, released a large Parasect. The other, a Golduck. "Step away, Warden Ingo!"

"I am not Ingo," Emmet began. Ground-flying and electric-bug up against a grass-poison and water type; not great matchups at all. "I am not here to fight."

The guard with the Parasect moved closer, their eyes trained on Emmet as they beckoned their pokémon forward. "Commander, give us your orders-"

"Detain him!" the man hissed. "Get him and his pokémon out of this village at once!"

"I will leave if you release Akari," Emmet retorted. "We- I do not trust you with her."

Kamado snarled. "You are just as egotistical as your brother, thinking yourself more powerful than I!" In another tone, he commanded, "Get this web offa me!"

"Take off the web," the second guard threatened. "Do it or I'll drown you and your friend. Golduck? Looks like it's time for Rain Dance again."

Emmet froze, remembering that the ceiling had been dripping with water steadily. It hasn't rained recently… right? Suddenly, the guard's threat became all the more chilling. And yet he didn't back down. Not yet. "Battle me," is what he responded with.

Now it was Kamado's turn to freeze. "Excuse me?"

"Battle me. When I win, I will take Akari and my brother out of the village in peace. We will deal with the Pearl Clan."

"You mean 'if'?" the first scout jeered.

Emmet grinned. "I am Emmet. I said 'when'. You have pokémon. Akari had a point. If you did not wish to get yourself into this situation, then you should have done your safety checks and performed the task yourself. You are a pitiful conductor."

"And if I win?"

"You won't," Emmet snapped back.

"If I win," Kamado continued, cutting through Emmet's retort- "then I'll have you and your brother's head severed and mounted on my mantle. That seems like a fair trade, does it not?"

Emmet rolled back his shoulders. "It is not a fair trade. But. I will accept your 'trade'. It will be fun to see you lose." And to embarrass you in front of your subordinates and the other clans, Emmet silently tacked on. He was a battle frontier head. One of the best in Unova! "Oh, and I will set the challenge. It. Will be. A double battle. Two against two. Winner takes all," he finished pleasantly.

"Deal."


September 17th, First Year

At sunrise, Emmet stood ready to battle. He faced away from the crudely prepared battling arena, idly tapping his fingers against Galvantula's dinged-up pokéball. They had given him two hours to prepare and that would prove to be their downfall as during his time in the village, he had sought out Zisu's help to train his pokémon into learning special moves.

He saw the shadows of the other approaching party and once they were long enough to reach him, Emmet turned his head over his shoulder to glare at the man opposite him. "Ah. You are finally here. Verrry good. Now we can battle."

Kamado only huffed. "As you dictated, this will be a two-on-two battle. Two at a time. I've got four so you can only use four. You got that?"

Emmet fully turned himself around, crossing his arms as he deftly snatched up his first combination. "I am Emmet. I am a Subway Boss. I like Double Battles. I like combinations of two pokémon. And I like winning more than anything else. So let's start a great battle in which every pokémon uses various moves." Once his familiar mantra stopped on its tracks, Emmet gave the man a devious smile, snapping up his chosen two partners for the first round. "Your move."

"You and your brother don't know when to shut your mouths, do you? This'll be quick. Braviary! Golem!"

Sloppy entrance, Emmet noted. "Galvantula and Rhyhorn, onto the platform please!" He knew his usual tactics. And besides. It would serve as a fun learning experience for his newest passengers that would be taking part in that battle. If Kamado lasts that long, that is.

"Braviary, Air Slash! Snorlax, Fire Punch!"

He must be aiming for Galvantula. "Cross Poison up high! Rhyhorn, bar the way! Endure!"Galvantula moved without so much as a word, using its teammate as a springboard as it leaped straight for the large psychic bird pokémon. The Braviary fluttered downward with its Air Slash, Galvantula catching on with a thread from up high as it tore into the Braviary with its mandibles before ducking neatly away under the belly of Rhyhorn who bore down protectively into the earth. The Snorlax slowly tottered forward. "Too slow! Thunder Wave on the tracks! Rhyhorn, Rock Blast!"

When the Snorlax finally hammered its fist into Emmet's Rhyhorn, Galvantula met it face-to-face, dispelling a massive wave of electrical power throughout the goliath's body. Rhyhorn tanked the hit and neatly stepped aside, using the rubble at the Snorlax's feat to send careening toward the circling Braviary.

"Don't just stand there!" Kamado cried in frustration. "Esper Wing!"

With great effort, the Braviary ducked low and caught Emmet's Rhyhorn at a standstill, blasting the ground-type with multiple psychic blasts in a fraction of a second. His Rhyhorn was sent tottering backwards.

"Endure!" Emmet called, his smile widening. The commander was starting to get angry; a good sign that things weren't going the way he wanted them to go. "Wild Charge up high!"

This time, Galvantula skittered around the fallen Snorlax's feet, dodging every wild gust of air that the enemy Braviary tossed forward until it could hop aboard Rhyhorn's back and lunge at the faltering bird. A bright terrible light filled the clearing. Galvantula skittered back to Emmet, its dense yellow fur crackling with sparks of static. On the other side of the clearing, Braviary crumpled to the ground, its wings fried.

"Enough with that bug of yours! Golem! Get the hell out here!"

"Verrry predictable! Rhyhorn, Reversal on the new car!"

As the large ground and rock type pokémon thudded into the ring, Rhyhorn charged forward and bore upon the beast, using its horns and claws to tear apart the pokémon's rocky outer shell and skin. A devastating blow, Emmet supposed, his theory correct when, with one last swipe from his Rhyhorn, the enemy Golem was left in pieces in the dirt, clearly unconscious. A one-hit knock out! Verrry good!

Kamado said nothing as he tossed out his last pokémon, a Clefable. "Calm Mind and hurry up with it!"

That would pose an issue for Emmet. He needed to get that thing out of the arena before it built up a ridiculous defense against his team. "Cross Poison on the caboose!"

"Snorlax, High Horsepower!"

Up until that point, Kamado's Snorlax had been struggling to get out of the dirt, its limbs failing to move on account of the Thunder Wave. In a show of annoyance from the pokémon itself, the Snorlax heaved itself off of the ground and began beating the ground with its fists and feet. The territory within the arena began to shatter and fall apart underfoot. Immediately, Rhyhorn faltered and grew trapped by the collapsing arena, a spare piece of rubble striking it in the face causing it to faint. Galvantula faltered on her own legs but gradually withstood the quake.

If Emmet tossed out his Electabuzz, he'd have two electric-types on the field. Galvantula can only take maybe two more of those before she faints. Emmet readied the last pokéball on his belt, swallowing. He wasn't as sure of the moves Burr's Zoroark would know but it was better than nothing. "Zoroark, to the platform!" In a flash, the black fox peeled out of its pokéball and readied itself just in front of Galvantula, its jaws split in a coy grin. "Let's see what you can do!" Emmet thought for only a moment. "Low Sweep!"

Emmet hadn't given the intended target but wordlessly, the Zoroark drifted in the direction of the lumbering Snorlax. With its sickled claws, it tore through the Snorlax's legs and brought it crashing to the ground. It's not nearly enough to faint a Snorlax but it's something. The Clefable had performed Calm Mind as it had been ordered, now standing firmly at the very edge of the clearing. "Zoroark, Swords Dance! Wild Charge on the tracks!"

Zoroark was off on its move in an instant, sharpening its claws against one another and gnashing its teeth as it stood defiantly poised in front of Emmet. Galvantula crashed into the Snorlax's back and once again dispatched a nasty wave of electrical energy into its opponent.

"Clefable, Psychic! Snorlax, Giga Impact!"

To Emmet's horror, Galvantula had been caught midair as it prepared to leap free of Snorlax's range. The Snorlax turned, its massive claws splayed as it swung downward. Against his own control, Emmet's Electabuzz had emerged from its pokéball, managing to clear the arena and throw Galvantula out of the way before it was caught in the attack instead. A blood-curdling crack rang out in the arena as the turf directly beneath the Snorlax shattered like thin glass.

When it lifted its paw, Emmet could only stare, petrified, at the mess of what his Electabuzz once was. It lay deathly still, blood pooling on the earth around it, its bones broken and its limbs twisted at odd angles. "...Electabuzz?"

His pokémon did not stir. Kamado did.

"Didn't say there were any breaks allowed. Kill that spider, you two."

Galvantula once again attempted to skitter away from the two but was stopped by an errant Psychic. Zoroark intercepted the goliath and with its large claws, tore apart the Snorlax's feet, legs, and then made a beeline straight for the Clefable. In one swift motion, it used its claws to tear through the Clefable's eyes, sending the tubby pokémon into the dirt. Retaliate.

Emmet attempted to recover his nerves. "Cross Poison on the tracks! Low Sweep on the caboose!"

Slow but steady. With Kamado's Snorlax down and his Clefable hindered to the point of a permanent handicap, Emmet had won. The moment the refereeing scout had declared the match over, Emmet sprinted over to his fallen pokémon, doing his best not to gag as he took in his mortally injured teammate. He swallowed. "Electabuzz, return." With a flash of light, the mauled carcass of his companion was recalled into its pokéball leaving Emmet to stare down the withering man across from him. Emmet carefully got back to his feet, standing at his full height as he towered over the commander. "I have won. Now, you must uphold your end of the deal."

Kamado recoiled as though Emmet had spat in his face. With his eyebrows furrowed and his hands clenched into fists, Kamado bodily turned away, venom in his voice as he surrendered. "Fine. You won. You can take your brother and the brat with you."

"Or maybe perhaps, you should've left that decision until I arrived."

Emmet paused, annoyance twisting his frown into a nasty scowl as he turned to stare at the newcomer.

A short but sturdy woman slowly proceeded up the steps toward the arena, her lavender and silver kimono trailing like a cloud behind her. The ornate beads of pearls around her neck, ankles, wrists, and headpiece jangled as she approached and in her pale eyes shone contempt the likes of which Emmet could never hope to replicate. "It is my job to dish out punishment when it involves my clan," the woman growled. She stopped short of Kamado, looking up and down the arena with disgust. "And of course, I should find you fighting like a barbarian this early in the day. Do I even want to know what it was you were just doing here with-" she turned to glance at Emmet- "my warden?" She sighed. "I don't. I really don't. Warden Ingo, please collect your things and follow me into the headquarters." The lady then stared idly at Kamado. "Why don't you go and get yourself ready while my warden and I wait? We've got plenty of time."

Woah. He followed when the shorter woman waved for him, taking care to give her plenty of space after a few Galaxy Scout had come to collect his injured pokémon. He cleared his throat. "Pardon me."

"Ingo, you don't have to ask for permission to speak," Irida chided him, a hint of irritation in her tone. "I don't know what that excuse of a leader told you. Did he ask you for a battle?"

"Well, yes. And. I. Am not Ingo."

Irida paused to stare back at him, her eyes narrowed and her arms crossed. "Not funny. Now is not the time for mind… games…?" She made a thoughtful hum, tapping her fingers against her covered arms as she fully took in the sight of him. "Or maybe you're the other one? How did you phrase it in the letter?"

"Emmet."

Irida nodded. "You're Emmet. Ingo sent me a letter quite some time ago about your appearance, though I thought he was joking. You do look different though. You smile. Ingo doesn't. I wonder what else is different." The woman than shook her head. "Nevermind that. I don't have the current luxury of telling you two apart. Where is my warden- your brother?"

"In the medical wing. He's injured."

"Lead the way then."

Upon their arrival at the headquarters building, Emmet led the way into the medical wing where Ingo was on his feet pacing beside the window. At the sight of Emmet, Ingo quickly wrapped Emmet into a bone-crushing hug. "You fool," he croaked. "Why on earth would you challenge the commander to a fight?"

"Got caught in the act," Emmet replied nervously, his heart beating faster at the sudden closeness. I guess he trusts me a bit more now. "Had to think of something to protect us and free Akari."

"I think I'm starting to see the similarities between you two," the woman spoke up again.

Ingo immediately turned and bowed, a weary smile creeping onto his face. "Lady Irida, it is a pleasure to see you. I trust your journey here has not been difficult?"

The woman- Irida- nodded. "It was fine, Ingo. It always is." She then gestured to Emmet. "This must be your twin that you were talking about. Now that I can see you two shoulder-to-shoulder, I realize that if I am to accept you-" she pointed to Emmet- "into the Pearl Clan, I'm going to have to get something to visually make you two distinct."

"We already do that," Emmet replied evenly. "Different colors. Ingo wears black. I wear white."

At that, Irida chuckled. "Well, that certainly makes things easy. Alright then. If you two would excuse me, I must go and have a… nice, long chat with the commander. You two remain here in the medical wing. Two of our scouts will be outside if you two need anything. Under no circumstances do you two leave this room until I come and grab you myself."

"Will there be actual grabbing?" Emmet retorted cheekily.

"Not unless that's what you want," Irida replied, rolling up her sleeves to reveal a pair of muscular arms. "No more cheek out of you. Stay put. I'll be back." In a flash, Irida was gone out of the medical wing.

"I like her," Emmet commented aloud. He turned to Ingo. "You picked the better clan."

"Emmet!" Ingo grumbled, his face flushing. "Please keep your voice down!"

"I heard that!" Irida laughed out in the hallway.

The two brothers sat in hushed silence for an hour, listening as activity ranged about the headquarters. Scouts ran up and down the stairs chatting about this and that and about Irida. Two scouts had entered the medical wing bearing Emmet's fully restored pokémon. All but one. Supposedly recovering from a mortal wound was what the young teenagers had muttered to Emmet. Then they were off. Emmet did his best to ignore the stabbing sense of guilt and unease as his new partner's absence became ever more apparent as the minutes dragged by.

Then came the sound of jangling chains. Emmet helped Ingo scoot his cot closer to the door adjoining the medical wing to the meeting room next door as he and his brother eavesdropped on the discussion.

"Are we all here?" came Captain Cyllene's stern tone.

"Here," Irida announced.

"Here," Kamado enunciated, albeit quietly.

"Here," sounded a new voice, one that -with Emmet's questioning- was one even Ingo didn't recognize.

Captain Cyllene cleared her voice. "Then let this meeting begin. We are here to discuss the death of Lord Ursaluna caused directly by a junior member of the Galaxy Expedition Team. Namely, of Scout Akari. I have only two testimonials presented on Akari's behalf; one from Professor Laventon of the Galaxy Research Corps and another from a Mr. Volo who aligns with the Gingko Guild Merchants."

"A merchant? Miss Akari, was it? What is your relationship with this 'Volo' character?" Irida asked aloud.

"He's a really good friend of mine," Akari's voice responded in earnest. "He helped me fight Lord Ursaluna when we were deep underground."

"Continuing on," Cyllene droned. "Professor Laventon wrote in his report that one of Volo's pokémon approached the secondary base of operations for the Galaxy Expedition Team in the Crimson Mirelands. That pokémon then led a group of mixed clan scouts to a set of ruins where Akari and Volo were incapacitated and were sheltering the body of Warden Calaba."

Beside him, Emmet felt Ingo stiffen.

"Not a body," Irida chimed in quickly. "Warden Calaba is still alive and she is undergoing multiple treatments to preserve her life. You may continue, Captain Cyllene."

"Very well. The scouts within the encampment were told explicitly by Scout Akari and Volo that the noble had been drowned in a combination of moves that had knocked the noble into an underground pool. It has been determined by both Scout Akari's report and by the testimonies given by Professor Laventon, Volo, and the members of the scouting party that found Lord Ursaluna's remains that this death happened via circumstances of self-defense." There was an audible pause. "Scout Akari. Seeing as how only yourself and this 'Volo' character were present at the incident, please recount the happenings of the night. Only recount what is necessary."

"…Yes, Captain," Akari sighed. "I… I wanted to quell Lord Ursaluna's frenzy and I felt that the Diamond Clan was taking too long to help. I ran into Warden Calaba's Bibarel who led me into a sunken cathedral and into a cave where Lord Ursaluna was keeping Warden Calaba hostage. I tried to fight the noble on my own but I… I was quickly overwhelmed. Luckily, my friend- Volo- he happened to be nearby and he helped me. One of my pokémon dealt the last blow and accidentally knocked Lord Ursaluna off of a ledge and into a river below where Lord Ursaluna was caught in some kind of current and drowned. I didn't mean to kill it," Akari tacked on at the last moment.

Once again, a very long silence followed before Irida spoke again. "I see. Very well. Only you and your friend were present. There isn't much else I can make of this situation as terrible as it is. A crisis has been averted in the mirelands, but now the Pearl Clan is out one noble, and if all goes wrong, a warden as well." Irida sat heavily upon something, her pearls jangling noisily. "Akari. Your punishment is under my jurisdiction and so I will be the one to decide what happens to you now."

"She is my scout," Kamado argued. "I suppose the Pearl Clan will demand reparations from the Galaxy Team. State your demands."

"The Pearl Clan will be taking Scout Akari to do two months of forced manual labor in the icelands," Irida declared. "She will also be assisting in helping Warden Calaba's potential replacement, Scout Nilke, in preparation for the crowning of the new noble. As a result of the Galaxy Team's affiliation with Scout Akari, the Pearl Clan will be demanding a cut of all agriculture produced by the Galaxy Team only excluding byproducts of cattle or livestock. The Pearl Clan has no use for butchered pokémon. I will be following up with a more accurate detailing, Commander Kamado, but for the time being, the first cut will be expected by the end of this month, Hearthfire."

Kamado hummed. "Very well. I have only one last question of you. Your warden."

"Warden Calaba or Warden Ingo?"

"Ingo. He and his brother will be banished from my settlement."

At his words, Irida's laughter filled the room. "For what reason? Don't tell me you were so embarrassed by your loss that you feel the need to kick your feet and exacerbate your loss by being a sore loser? I find pokémon battles disgusting but even I can recognize that you are only adding this term because you are disgruntled by your defeat."

"I am within my rights as a leader within Hisui. Your warden's brother assaulted me in my own stronghold-"

"Appoint better guards," Irida replied snippily. "You can set whatever restrictions you'd like upon Warden Ingo's brother, but Warden Ingo himself is innocent until proven guilty. As I was told by Captain Cyllene, the terms of the battle were that of peacefully allowing my warden, his charge, and Scout Akari to leave the village peacefully. I am anticipating that you plan on keeping your word?"

"I will let them leave peacefully," Kamado agreed, a snarl in his voice. "But neither will be allowed back into the village should you leave with them."

"And that is supposed to be a threat? One has readily proven themself to be a capable scout and the other has handily bested you in a competition in your own home. If those are your terms then I shall accept both into the Pearl Clan and then perhaps, I will not have to teleport across a continent with the help of a pokémon to settle a dispute. That is all I have to say."