Solana entered the Fall City Pokémon Ranger Base. It seemed to be about the same size and had a what seemed like the exact same design as the Ringtown Ranger Base. As with the Ringtown base, there was a large counter that stretched along the back of the room that wrapped around into an ''S' shape. A woman was sitting on the far-right side next to a small control panel. In the center was a large monitor stationed above multiple control panels, and on the left side was a smaller desktop computer. On the far-left rear of the lobby was an elevator that led to its upper and lower levels. As with the Ringtown Base on her first day, the lobby of the Fall City base was vacant aside from the receptionist and two boys who appeared to be other student rangers a little bit older than her.

Professor Hastings and Joel stood in the center of the lobby in front of the large monitor.

Joel spoke first. "Good job on escorting the professor, Solana. I've heard about you from Spenser. For a Rank 1 Ranger, you've done a commendable job. Solana, I'm officially promoting you to Ranger Rank 2."

Solana was stunned. "R-Really? I didn't know someone other than my Area Leader could promote my rank."

"Of course we can. All Area Leaders have this authority. I may not be your designated Area Leader, but we all have a responsibility to you students as your surrogate guardians while you work under us. We all share the same command and power when it comes to our students and bases."

"Understood. Thank you so very kindly, Leader Joel!"

Joel nodded. He then turned to Professor Hastings. "Professor…There's something I need to discuss with you. It's too sensitive to discuss here, so let's take it upstairs."

"Of course, lad."

Joel turned back to face Solana. "Solana, please wait down here."

"Yes, Leader."

Joel and Professor Hastings then walked to the west of the base and entered the elevator that led to the other levels of the base.

Solana walked over to the boys standing near the base's entrance.

"Hello there, my name's Solana. And this is my Partner Pokémon Plusle."

"Plah Plah!" Plusle said cheerily standing beside Solana.

"Hiya, the name's Keith," said the first student. "It'd be nice if you remembered my name."

"Keith, don't be rude!" scolded the other boy.

"But I mean you must be some kind of impressive. I mean, you must be to get the job of escorting the professor."

"What's so impressive about that?" asked Solana.

"Hah? It just so happens Professor Hastings is the Ranger Union's chief of technology. That capture styler you're using? That's just one of the professor's inventions."

"Oh." Solana kept it to herself that she already knew who Professor Hastings was.

"Not to mention Leader Spenser doesn't let just anyone escort the professor. He's really protective of him, what with the professor being like a father figure to him. So you must be impressive for a rookie."

"Thanks," Solana uttered, trying not to let her irritation at always being called a rookie show.

The other student then spoke. "Hiya, I'm Lind. Nice to meet you. I'm Keith's twin brother. Our Leaders, Spenser and Joel, used to be on the same team together back in the old days. They used to clash as rivals when they were young, but nowadays they have nothing but respect for each other. They're famous in Fiore to this day as 'Spenser, the Fearow Master,' and 'Joel, the Dodrio Rider.'"

"They can still be pretty competitive with one another though," added Keith.

The base's double doors opened and a girl with blonde spiraling twintails entered. She wore a long-sleeved purple and white jacket and long white pants.

"Hey! Welcome back, Aria!" Lind shouted.

The girl known as Aria flicked her hair and walked further into the base when she took note of Solana.

"Oh? That uniform…Are you maybe a ranger from Ringtown? But I don't remember seeing your face before…"

"That's because I'm new. My name's Solana and this is my partner, Plusle."

"Pla Plah!"

Her face was aloof. "I'm Aria. I'm a Ranger here in Fall City. But I'm sure you've already heard about me."

"I actually…haven't."

Aria's facial expression morphed into one of annoyance. "You've never heard of me? You really don't know anything, do you? Oh well, that's fine."

"Excuse me?" Solana was starting to get irked herself.

"And who might you be?"

Is this girl for real? Solana thought. "My name's Solana." Solana repeated, irritated that this girl didn't seem to recognize when she introduced herself before.

"Okay, I see. It's not a very inspired name, but I'll make an effort to remember it."

"Gee…Thanks," Solana replied flatly. She really didn't like Aria's attitude.

The elevator doors parted and Professor Hastings and Joel returned to the base's lobby.

"Listen up, please!" Joel began. "I have bad news. Professor Hastings was set upon by criminals who claimed to be the Go-Rock Squad. Worse, they made off with the professor's invaluable Super Styler, the latest version of the capture styler. I can't discuss it in detail because it's still in development. However, in criminal hands, its potential for wrongdoing is frightening. Recover the stolen Super Styler at any cost. That is the mission for every ranger in Fall City."

Professor Hastings spoke up. "This is no usual mission. This is not a problem that can be solved by the Fall City rangers alone. I've just had the Ranger Union issue alerts to all Ranger Bases under its command. Every ranger in Fiore will be informed that the recovery of the Super Styler is the top-priority mission. I ask all of you to fully cooperate with rangers across the region to complete this mission. I'm sorry that my carelessness has led to this…"

"Professor…" Joel uttered quietly. It was clear this robbery was weighing heavily on him. "Okay, everyone, you heard! Please give this mission your best effort for the professor's sake too. Our first task is to gather intelligence on the Go-rock Squad. We need to know everything there is to know. Investigations should fan out from the Krokka Tunnel where the Super Styler was snatched. Don't forget – I expect to be kept constantly informed. That's all. Everyone dismissed."

The three Fall City student rangers all quickly exited the base, leaving Solana standing there alone. She walked up to Joel.

"Um, excuse me. Leader Joel?"

"Yes?"

"Um, I just wanted to say I'd like to work alongside Fall City's rangers, if that's alright."

Joel shook his head gently. "I'm afraid not. I appreciate your offer, but Solana, I'm afraid this mission is too much for you at your Ranger Rank."

"Oh…okay," she said sadly, very disheartened.

"Also, there is something else that I would like to entrust you with."

"There is?"

"Because of this mission, Fall City will be without its regular rangers. While our rangers are absent, I would like you to handle this city's Ranger activities. I am asking you to help our citizens in need. That will be your newest mission, Solana."

"Yes, Leader."

Bowing her head in respect, Solana then exited the Fall City Ranger base with Plusle.

"Plah Pla?"

"Yeah, I was really hoping to take on an important mission like that one and help with the investigation. I mean, if it's as important as they say, why wouldn't they want me to help out? Why does my rank even matter if this is a high priority mission?"

"Plah Plah Pla. Pla Plah."

"I know I'm not as experienced. I just want to help more. I mean, I am partially responsible for the robbery. It was my mission to protect the professor and I couldn't even stop him from being jumped by some thugs. What kind of ranger am I?"

"Pla Plah…"

"I'm sorry, Plusle. I know you're trying to make me feel better. I'm just really in low spirits, I guess."

Solana's styler then started vibrating. She took it off its holder on her hip and looked at the monitor. She could see it was a text message from Spenser.

From: Spenser

Tio: Solana

Re: Message from Joel

I know that you're in an unfamiliar place, so I know things can't be easy for you. But hang in there. Help out the citizens of Fall City in need. I'm counting on you.

"I shouldn't be feeling sorry for myself," Solana said as she put her styler back on its holder. "I was given a mission after all, and even if it's not what I was hoping for, it's still really important. I have to trust my Area Leaders. They know what they're doing."

"Oh, excuse me!" called a woman's voice to the east.

Solana saw a woman with blonde hair and a pink dress waving her down. She quickly walked over to her.

"Yes, is something wrong, ma'am?"

"Hello, ranger. Can I get you to come to my apartment building? There's been a mix-up there, and I'm stuck because of it."

"Of course, ma'am."

"Thank you so very kindly."

Solana followed the young woman east until they came across a brick apartment building.

"Pretty nice building, isn't it? My suite is over here."

She led Solana inside on the first floor and to the first door on the right. There was a large box positioned in front of the door.

"See, ranger? This big crate is in the way. I think the mover's forgot to take it. Please do something. I can't get into my suite with that heavy crate in my way."

"I'll see what I can do, ma'am."

"Thank you, ranger. The crate is very heavy, so I think you'll need a strong pokémon to move it."

"Understood. I'll be right back.

Solana exited the apartment building and searched around the city for a strong-looking pokémon. After about ten minutes, she came across a Makuhita not far from the apartment complex. She quickly caught it and returned to the apartment. The Makuhita was able to use Strength to move the crate out of the way. Solana then released it once its task was complete.

"Oh, thank you! You've made my day. I can finally go inside. Won't you come in for a snack?"

"Oh, um, sure. Thank you, ma'am," Solana said as the young woman unlocked her apartment door.

Inside there was a Venonat bouncing around her living room.

"Aiyeeeeh! What is this thing?!" she shrieked. "Please, ranger, catch it!"

"Don't worry, ma'am!" Solana said as she took out her styler. She made a fast capture of the Venonat and it was soon under her control and calmed down.

The young woman sighed. "Finally, oh, finally, I can begin living my dream of living in the city. Thank you…I'm sorry, but I'm just not good at all with that pokémon. Can you let it go please?"

Nodding, Solana released the Venonat and it hopped out of the window back into the wild.

Again, the young woman sighed. "I didn't expect anything like this just as soon as I moved here…But I'm not going to let that get me down. I'm keeping my head up with a positive attitude. What is your name ranger?"

"Solana, ma'am."

"Solana. Okay, I'll remember it. Thank you so much again! Please take some cookies with you."

"Thank you."

Solana exited the apartment building eating a chocolate chip cookie.

"Where should be we go next, Plusle?"

"Plah Plah Pla!"

"East? All right. There we go."

As Solana continued eastward she found Lind standing in front of a gated factory.

"We haven't had any success finding the whereabouts of the Go-Rock Squad." Lind noticed Solana standing a few short feet away. "Huh? What are you doing here?"

"Joel asked me to keep watch over Fall City."

Lind crinkled his brow. "Let me get this straight. You're a Ringtown ranger, but you're patrolling Fall City?"

"Looks like." Solana shrugged.

"Well, that's uh…Awesome! That really helps us out a ton!" he said with a wide smile. "We'll find that Go-Rock Squad somehow, so yeah, we'll be counting on you to take care of things in Fall City."

"Oh. Well, I'll do my very best, Lind."

"I know you will," he said as he exited the area.

"Looks like this is as far east as we can go from this part of the city. Let's head back."

"Pla Plah!"

As Solana walked back, she saw an older woman searching around intently. When they locked eyes, she called out to her.

"Yoo-hoo! Yes you, the ranger there! My name is Teresa. My adorable and oh-so-loveable Skitty have run away from mumsy-wumsy. Please oh pretty please round up my little pretties right away."

"Of course, ma'am. I'd be happy to help."

"Oh thank you! You know Skitty, don't you? You can solve this lickety-split?"

A pink feline pokémon the walked up beside the older woman.

"Mair Mair!" it cried cheerfully.

"Oh, what a pretty Skitty! Ohh it's so cutesy-wutsey!" cooed Teresa. "Yes, yes, it's this pokémon. My little pretties are just like this. Now shoo-shoo, rung along now! Pretty please, bring my love. You have to do it now! Bring me my love-dovey Skitty! If you don't know where my sweet little-wittle Skitty are, you can come get me. I'll wait for you near the Ranger Base. Don't you dare fail!"

And with that she walked away to the Pokémon Ranger base with one of her Skitty.

"Sheesh! And I thought Larry was bad," said Solana. She walked north where she found a small house. She knocked on the door asking the residents if they saw a Skitty anywhere nearby.

"A Skitty? Oh yes, is that his pokémon here?" the man led them to a bed of plushies where a Snubull and Torchic plush rested. "I don't remember buying this one in the middle but it looks like what you just described."

As Solana walked up to the Skitty plush it came alive and started running around the living room. Solana quickly caught it and calmed it down. She then left and found Teresa standing to the left of the Ringtown Ranger Base. The Skitty immediately ran up to her.

"Mair!"

"Oh where were you?! My pretty-witty Skitty! Your mumsy-wumsy was so lonely!

"Mair!"

"I must say, you're doing much better than I thought you would. I'm still missing four Skitty though. Please oh please keep looking!"

4?!

"No worries, Ms. Teresa. I'll find them.

As Solana searched through Fall City for the missing Skitty, she stopped and asked a civil engineer working in front of a sewer if he'd seen one.

"Nope, can't say I have. Sorry miss."

"Do you mind if I take a look down there to see if one maybe passed through and got stuck?"

"The waterworks is under inspection, so it's closed to the public for now," said the civil engineer. "We've been getting a lot of complaints about poor water quality lately. We're stumped as to why though."

"Okay. Thank you anyway."

Solana scoured nearly all of the Fall City for the lost Skitty. She found one of the roof of the apartment building she was at earlier, one in a trashcan, and one near the city's fountain. She saw the last one behind a gated fence which she then followed into a small park east of the city. While there, she saw a man dressed in a white jumpsuit with a Machoke.

"Gwo gwooh…" cried the Machoke.

"Tch! Keep that noise down, Machoke! What a useless pokémon!" he then took note that he wasn't alone and threateningly approached Solana. "Hey, you! What do you think you're doing here? Get lost if you're not authorized!'

"I'm looking for a pokémon that scampered in here to take back to its owner."

"Is that so? Well, hurry it up then. You're interfering with my work."

Solana cut her eyes slightly at the man. "I feel sorry for that Machoke. You should really treat your pokémon more kindly."

"Plah Plah!"

"What's it to you? What we do with our pokémon is none of your stinking business!"

"Actually it is," she took out her badge and flashed it to him. "You see, I'm a pokémon ranger and it is my duty to protect the pokémon of this region. So, if you want to keep that Machoke of yours, you better start treating it better."

The man scoffed. "You're a pokémon ranger? You look like you don't know your hand from your ass."

"Excuse me, sir –"

"I'm not abusing my pokémon. I told you once already. Get lost if you're not authorized! You're an eyesore. Please do what you came here to do and be one your merry way."

Though Solana didn't want to leave the Machoke in this situation, she was on another mission already and had to capture that Skitty for Teresa.

"I'm letting you off with a warning, Sir," Solana said as she left to continue looking in the park for the lost Skitty. When she found it, she quickly made her capture and returned to Teresa by the Fall City Ranger Base.

"One, two, three, four, five, and six! Ohh, my lovely-wubbly Skitty are all back with mumsy-wumsy!" she turned to face Solana. "Now aren't you good! Mumsy-wumsy is very much impressed. Thank you, sweetie!"

"No…problem…ma'am," Solana uttered uneasily.

"Ooh, my precious-precious Skitty! You mustn't give mumsy-wumsy a scare like that again! Now, now, let's go home! Line up, single file!"

All the Skitty lined up in a single row behind Teresa and together they followed their owner back to her home.

Solana let out an exasperated sigh. "Oh man. She's definitely worse than Larry."

"Plah!'

"Let's go see who else needs our help."

"Excuse me." A young woman with long black hair and blue glasses called out to Solana. "You're Solana, right? I'm one of Professor Hasting's assistants. My name is Crysta. I know you're very busy but we need your help at the lab. Could you come with me, please?"

"Certainly," Solana said, finally hoping to have a more exciting mission.

"The lab is this way." Solana followed Crysta northwest the Professor Hastings lab. The outside was well kept but inside was pretty cluttered and messy for a research lab.

"Sorry about the mess. When the professor gets to tinkling it'll often look like this. I plan on cleaning it up today. Solana, please may I asked for your help? I need to find something in the basement but it's pitch-black down there. It's impossible to look for anything. I asked the professor for some advice, and he told me that I should look you up, Solana."

"He did?" Solana asked. She didn't realize he thought so highly of her, especially with everyone constantly emphasizing her rookie status. Then again, it could be because she was the only available ranger to help out.

"He did. Please help me. Could you please do something to light up the inky darkness of the basement?"

"Yes of course. Happy to help, Crysta."

"That's great! Thank you so much! By the way, the professor asked me to pass on a message to you. These are his exact words. 'In the lighthouse's basement live some pokémon named Staryu. Get the help of the Staryu to illuminate wherever it's too dark to see.' That was the professor's message. Please, capture a Staryu and bring it here."

"Yes, of course, Crysta." Solana said before she and Plusle exited the lab. She walked back to the docks where she first arrived in Fiore. After letting he lighthouse keeper know she had was on a mission, he let her through to the basement. She quickly found and captured a Staryu that was near the entrance and brought it back to Crysta. She walked into the lower floor of the lab and instructed the Staryu to illuminate the basement with Flash and the area was immediately lit.

"Oh, my goodness! It's almost too bright now. It will be easy to find things. Solana, thank you so much for helping," she said as she walked over to a shelf containing many storage bins and boxes.

"No worries, Crysta. Staryu, if you can please stay here until Crysta is finished and then you can go on back home."

The Staryu cried happily in response.

"It's wonderful that it's bright in here, but now I'm overwhelmed by the sheer volume of paperwork down here, haha!"

"Do you need help sorting through them?"

"No, no, no. I couldn't trouble you for something like that. Besides, this is part of my work. I'll be fine. Please. You can go and do whatever else you need to."

"Alright. I'll see you some other time then."

"Yes, yes. Thank you so much again."

Solana walked back upstairs and exited the lab. She met Aria outside.

Aria started at her quizzically. "Huh? What do you suppose you're doing here?"

"I'm patrolling the city since everyone is either out of town or busy with locating the Go-Rock Squad."

"I get it. There's a state of emergency on now because of that Go-Rock Squad. And a rookie like you would be too inexperienced for a tough mission like investigating the Go-Rock Squad."

Solana couldn't hide the annoyance in her face from Aria's remark, earning a smirk from the other ranger.

"Oh, did I say something rude? Don't let it bother you, Sabrina."

"It's Solana."

"Oh, right. Okay. Don't take it personally. We can't all have special memorable names."

Solana wanted so bad to sock it to this girl for her blatant disrespect.

Just then, there way a loud cry coming north from where they were.

"That sounded like it came from the clock tower! Don't just stand there! Come with me!" Aria cried as she sprinted north. Solana and Plusle quickly followed behind her.

As they entered the park with the clock tower, they could see a Machoke rampaging in the area. Many citizens were hiding taking shelter from the disgruntled pokémon.

"Why is that Machoke rampaging?" asked Aria.

"I recognize that Machoke. It was being treated unkindly by a man earlier today."

"And you didn't seize it then?"

"I let him off with a warning."

"Uh! You are such a rookie!" Aria facepalmed. "Look, since this is your fault, you can go and capture the Machoke! Plus, I wanna see how good you are."

Scowling slightly, Solana walked up to the rampaging Machoke. It kept punching the ground fervidly. Knowing this wasn't going to be as easy as her earlier captures, Solana's wasted no time calling on the help of her Partner Pokémon.

"Go, Plusle! Use Thunder Wave!"

"Plah Plah!"

Plusle released a stream of light blue electricity from her body towards the rampaging Machoke. It was instantly paralyzed from Plusle's attack.

"Load Capture!" Solana said as she loaded her capture discs. "Capture On!"

She released the capture disc from the styler and looped it around the paralyzed Machoke several times. After about ten minutes, Solana was able to successfully capture the irate Machoke. She then immediately walked up to it after it calmed down and crouched down as she treated it wounds and paralysis.

A little girl came out from her hiding place and approached Solana.

"You did it! Thank you, ranger!"

"That was fantastic!" said a tourist. "That was the first time I'd ever seen a capture! That Machoke quieted down completely from its out-of-control rampage. Wow, am I lucky to have seen that!"

"Ah, ranger! Well done!" exclaimed an old man. "They city's symbol was in peril."

Aria flicked her hair nonchalantly as she approached Solana. "That was a so-so capture."

Solana inhaled deeply. She really did not like this girl.

"But I can't figure out why that Machoke would go wild like that. It obviously got away from its abusive Trainer."

"Well, maybe that man wasn't its Trainer," Solana said as she stood back up. "I mean, I assumed he was but perhaps he was just some guy making mischief and hurting this Machoke."

"Whatever the case may be, Machoke is free now and now that it's settled down, it should be returned to its familiar habitat. You should release it now."

"I was about to do that," Solana muttered as she pressed the release button on her styler. The Machoke now free from her control ran east of the clock tower.

"Why don't you go back to the Ranger Base for the time being? Unlike you, I have to investigate the Go-Rock Squad, so I'll leave you here."

And with another flick of her hair, Aria turned around and left Solana standing there fuming.

"What is her deal?!" Solan exclaimed.

"Plah Pla…"

"I really do not like her at all, Plusle. Where does she get off ordering me around and talking down to me like I'm some underling of hers!"

As Solana and Plusle left the clock tower park, a man in a white jumpsuit eyed her from a distance.

"That ranger…She's the same snoop who was sniffing around the factory earlier…But that damn Machoke…Damn thing ran off without paying attention to me! Plus, it couldn't even wreck that creaky old clock tower. How pathetic is that?…Anyway, better keep an eye on this ranger…She's more than just an eyesore…Something tells me she'll spell trouble for us if we don't deal with her soon."