There was still the Snorlax in the room. Kyurem's Pokeball. He had no intention of keeping the legendary for himself or letting it near his team. Arceus forbid something happened and it would not be pretty. The league didn't seem all that bothered about that. Their complete silence on the matter unnerved him.
With a sigh, he collapsed on his new bed. It was smaller, less comfortable, and didn't adjust to his form. Just like great-grandmother's house. The rest of his team took different spots inside the house. Lily shared a room with Elizabeth, both on the same bed. Mothra slept on the attic with Casper, each in their own corner. Gamera and Rodan both had to sleep outside because of their sizes, but it didn't bother them that much.
His first night was not great. Dreams and visions of the future plagued him. Of him provoking the great incursions. Aidan being killed by Anarchy. His team abandoning him… When R2 sounded the alarm for 07:00 AM, he didn't feel that rested.
"Fuck…"
Daniel whispered as he slowly made his way to the kitchen. Bags were visible below his eyes, and his pink hair was disheveled. His joints reminded him of his age with his steps, making small popping sounds.
Elizabeth was already up, dancing in the backyard and firing moves from time to time. Rodan watched over her from his tree, making sure she didn't injure herself or destroyed anything.
The kitchen was a mess. Berry juice and crumbs on the floor, the fridge's door completely open, half eaten food on the counter. If he squinted, he could see a Dreepy's silhouette hovering just out of reach.
With an exasperated sigh, he radiated his Fairy aura outward, cancelling Jack's invisibility.
"Jack." He said gravely, already feeling a headache coming. "We spoke about making a mess in the past. Yeah?"
The Dreepy lowered to the counter and laid completely still, looking at him with a fearful expression.
"Start cleaning and go back to your mother."
Jack frantically nodded and zipped towards the half-eaten berries to clean everything up.
The trick with dragons, especially with species as powerful as the Dragapult line, is establishing a chain of command. Having the right temperament and knowing when to punish them was vital to have their loyalty. Push too hard and they'll rebel. Don't push enough and they'll rebel, too. It was a delicate balance he had to maintain since they were young and even more so after they aged.
Casper made even more horrible messes when she was just a Dreepy. She also tried to attack him several times and didn't listen to him when she evolved the first time. He thanked Arceus his Aura was Fairy, or it would have been almost impossible to manage her, even less a flock.
He wondered if they missed their cousins and uncles back in the future. He hoped the separation didn't hit them as hard as it did to him. "Eventually, it will. Best to get ahead of that."
He prepared a cup of coffee while overlooking the young Dreepy's work. The young dragon carefully held the fruit in his mouth, returning the intact ones to the fridge. "Don't forget to clean the juice. It'll stain." Jack looked at him with a betrayed expression. "Go on."
With a defeated sigh, He used a low-powered surf to take care of the juices. It was shoddy work, but Daniel knew he tried his best.
"Back to your mother. Next time you do this, you'll clean without moves."
The dragon nodded and left defeated towards the attic, phasing through the ceiling. When he was out of sight, he grabbed a mop and properly cleaned the floor.
"He and Wally need some playmates, too." He left the mop down and grabbed a towel to clean the counter. "R2, leave a message to Iris. Say I want to talk."
[ACKNOWLEDGED]
This time, R2's voice came from tiny speakers hidden inside the house. Progress on modernizing their abode was going relatively well. However, they didn't have materials for the truly advanced electronics, gems to make droids, space to put machines. "It's a matter of time."
[YOU HAVE (3) UNREAD MESSAGES FROM "CHAMPION IRIS".]
"That was quick."
The TV lit up and displayed the messages.
[Hi Daniel.]
[I should have time for a brief visit in about 30 minutes.]
[Me and Drayden need to speak with you too. Can he come with me?]
"Say that I'll be waiting for them."
[ACKNOWLEDGED]
Her quick response surprised him a bit. He was prepared to wait several hours at least, if he was honest. "Won't look into the Zebstrika's mouth."
He shared breakfast with the rest of his team as usual, minus Jack. The young dragon was sulking inside his mother's horn. He didn't make a comment, as that could lower Casper's standing in their flock. Granted, there were only three right now, but that won't last long.
Just as Daniel was putting the dishes away, he heard a knock from the door. He washed his hands and opened it.
"Mr. Mystery man." The young woman said with a bright smile.
She was wearing a loose dress like the one she used when they met. Although she lacked her tiara. Drayden followed closely behind, wearing his usual formal clothing, barely restraining his muscles. He wondered if the rumors that he wrestled with his Pokemon were true.
"Welcome, Champion Iris, Leader Drayden." He bowed towards them and led them inside.
Iris didn't know what to think after receiving Daniel's message. She had a lot of things she wanted to talk about with him, but also didn't want to spook him.
"Just accept. I'll be coming with you." Luckily, Drayden was with her.
Both were in Drayden's office in Opelucid. Daniel did them a big favor by shooting down the frigate, but disposing of the thing was a nightmare. Dealing with the injured turned out to be a pain. Dismantling and disposing of the thing itself even more so. The destruction of property was giving them both a headache. All wrapped up by trying to spin this into a positive.
She thanked Arceus for Clay and Braycen. Both went hard on publicity and trying to grab people's attention on short notice. And Roxie for the idea, even if she crumbled like a cookie after giving it.
"Let's go then."
The way to the Joy clan was silent and tense. She thought that Drayden didn't like Daniel that much, and it was understandable. The man beat him and had a strange aura to him from the supposed "18th Type." She had read notes about it from Professor Juniper and the man's Pokedex, but still found it hard to swallow.
A type that completely nullifies dragons. She felt a shiver down her spine just thinking about it.
"We're here."
Before she realized it, she had already dismounted from Hydra and was standing in front of the man's house. It looked ordinary from the outside, but something inside her gut twisted. She felt watched by a predator.
Grrrr…
And Hydra felt it too.
"Return him from now, Iris." Drayden drew her attention. "We don't want trouble here."
She looked around, seeing curious gazes from other members of the Joy clan. Some holding contempt, others were indifferent. With a sigh, she returned to her Hydreigon and rapped her knuckles on the door.
The inside of the home was mostly normal. Mostly. She noticed that the locks looked like they were pulled from a movie. There was a strange machine that looked like a box. The TV didn't look like anything she ever saw on the market. Overall, something she expected.
The man himself seemed a bit more relaxed. He still had an edge to him, but he appeared less wound up and ready to strike. His Pokemon also seemed more jovial and less tense.
"So, I wanted to talk about a few things." The man said, holding a tray with some Oran berry juice. "But first. Juice?"
"Thanks." Both said, but Drayden didn't take a glass. Iris took a sip, noting that it was a bit low on sugar.
"The first is that Casper, my Dragapult, is a social creature." The man waved his fingers, and the dragon suddenly appeared, hovering behind him.
It was a majestic specimen. She could feel the power emanating from it. Eyes that pierced into her soul and found her wanting. A presence even heavier than a lot of dragons she ever encountered in the past. Her Pokeballs rocked back and forth, as if trying to answer the challenge in front of them. However, just as suddenly as the aura came, it went away.
The Dragapult let her trainer scratch her chin, letting out some happy warbles. The contrast was quite striking, but she decided to not say anything.
"They tend to form flocks lead by the eldest Dragapult, and since part of their strength comes from their young, it's almost a necessity."
A pair of young dragons slipped from the Dragapult's horns. They looked at her curiously. One of them tried to challenge her with their aura, but a flex of her much superior one scared them. Both floated back to their mother and returned to their holes.
"I have a proposition." He nodded in gratitude at her. Likely for putting the small dragon in their place. "I plan to rear a new flock, and I can part with some of the young. I don't want to use a Ditto and dilute their genes, so I thought of asking you. And Drayden as well, quite convenient that you came too, Leader Drayden."
Drayden had been silent since they arrived, content with just staring at the time traveler. He took a deep breath and examined the Dragapult with narrowed eyes.
"I'm interested." He broke up the silence. "I can pair her with my Elite Salamence."
"Wonderful." Daniel smiled and stretched out his hand. "I can part with one egg from the first clutch. They usually have them in pairs."
Both men shook their hands and nodded their heads at each other.
"How big is a flock usually?" Iris asked with a tilt of her head. "And I'm also interested. I think my Haxorus or Hydra would be excellent partners!".
"In the wild they can get big. I found one on ruins of Old Opelucid that was near 45 in total." Drayden tensed when he heard that but didn't otherwise react. "For competitions, between 6 and 8 members would maintain them happy and leave enough for reserves."
"Reserves?" Iris downed her juice.
"Yeah, Dragapults use their young to empower their attacks. Sometimes, they get injured or… worse, Arceus forbid."
"That's…"
"Doesn't sound that good saying it aloud, but let me assure you, Galarians used them for centuries and there was no drama that I know of." He thought about it for a moment. "Well, there was some drama, but nothing major."
"Uh huh." Iris didn't look convinced, but decided to press on that. "Anything else?"
"I need to plant my emitters to recharge my bracer." He showed them the pitch-black bracer on his right arm. It flashed in orange light before a digital screen appeared on top. "My Terastal and Dynamax energy are depleted. Can't go all out without them. The problem is those emitters affect their environment. If I use them, eventually there's going to be wild Dynamaxed or Terastalized Pokemon roaming around."
"Is there any way to prevent that?" Drayden answered this time, a scowl deepening.
"Building dampeners, but I don't have the materials for the machines necessary to build them."
This gave her an idea.
"What if I give you those materials… if you accept a duel with one of the Elite? Marshal, to be exact."
"If you accept that I won't go fully all out, then yes. I don't see why not." Daniel shrugged.
"Perfect!" Iris clapped with a cheerful expression. "We'll contact you in a few days with a date, then."
"Great." Daniel's face went from a smile to a frown quickly after that. "Finally, what should I do with Kyurem?"
"I mean… He's your Pokemon now?" Iris asked, unsure.
"That was a containment Pokeball, not meant for captures." He shook his heads. "Having a Legendary is strictly forbidden on my time. There are even safeguards against that. I can only release Kyurem."
"That complicates things." Iris sighed, defeated, and slumped. "We'll deliberate on that and get you an answer soon…" Her emphasis on deliberate painted an excellent picture: Politics didn't change in 300 years.
"My condolences." He whispered to the girl, who quirked a smile. "And that would be all for my concerns. Do you need me for anything?"
"No, that's all on our end, too." She shook her head, whipping her hair around. "We'll be in touch."
Just as both were getting out, Drayden suddenly looked at Daniel directly in the eyes. Pride and defiance burning deep inside them. Draconid aura radiating from his body and muscled tensed as he crossed his arms.
"I want a rematch."
"Gladly. Tell me when and where."
He could see the sparks flashing in the air as both trainers stared at each other. He remembers that old saying that 'When trainers' eyes met, they'll have a Pokemon fight.' That couldn't be even more true now than ever. She could object, throw her weight around and prevent them from fighting unnecessarily. Yet, her boiling blood didn't let her. That fire that burned inside her chest that said she was a trainer was saying this was inevitable.