TRAINER ID
Name: Daniel Ingram
Badges: 3
Account: 34,014 credits
Location: Lavaridge Town

DANIEL'S TEAM
Ralts (Apollo) - Male
Corphish (Duran) - Male
Eevee (Orion) - Male
Trapinch - Female

OWEN'S TEAM
Makuhita (Bronson) - Male
Graveler (Roxy) - Female
Shroomish (Misha) - Female
Slakoth (Omar) - Male
Machop (Bruno) - Male

When I approached the Pokécenter, the effects of the lockdown announcement were quite apparent. Although I wouldn't quite describe it as everyone being in a state of panic, it wasn't too far off either. I sensed a lot of agitation and worry, bordering on anger and fear.

People were flocking to the Pokécenter en masse – some walking briskly, some running, and some with the assistance of travel-capable Pokémon that they would recall the moment they laid eyes on the Pokécenter or reached Lavaridge's borders. I saw a couple of people popping into existence along the outskirts of town as they arrived with Teleport, and in the skies there was a steady trickle of people arriving on larger Pokémon capable of Fly, descending wherever they could find a secluded spot to land. A young woman rode a Ponyta, an older man traveled by Ryhorn, and there was even what appeared to be a grandmother being carried by a Machoke.

It was a reminder that a fair number of people preferred to live away from civilization, and that even if I didn't often run into people traveling on routes that didn't mean there weren't hidden campsites, training grounds, or homesteads. After all, the majority of houses I could remember finding in plain sight were those that offered some sort of service, such as the old sailor with the ferry, the berry lady, and the old couple who ran Mauville's famous Pokémon daycare. For farms, family homes like the Winstrate family, or people like me who were camping, it only made sense to choose a spot near the main route but not immediately noticeable.

But more than anything, seeing so many people converging on the Pokécenter was evidence of just how many people had Pokémon, even those who didn't make a career of it or typically carry Pokéballs on their person. Though only registered trainers could have multiple Pokémon or a member of a restricted species, there was still a surprising amount of civilians who had a partner of their own. Some were surely for the sake of safety or convenience, but most would best be classified as household companions.

And of those who were registered trainers and able to have multiple, many weren't what you would consider a 'trainer' in the classical sense, at least not anymore. Some likely did work that related to or worked alongside Pokémon in some way, such as farmers, breeders, or laborers, while others simply had Pokémon that were leftover remnants of their youth as an aspiring trainer or coordinator that didn't pan out.

As I stood across the street to take in the once-in-a-lifetime scene, I could see Officer Jenny standing guard at the Pokécenter entrance with a Growlithe sitting loyally beside her, watching closely for any who would dare defy Jenny's authoritative commands for people to walk and form an orderly line. She got especially snippy when she saw anybody who had a Pokémon out, demanding that they instantly recall them, though few people were making that particular mistake.

One poor fool had the audacity to ask why she could have her Growlithe out but nobody else could have their partner accompany them. Needless to say, not even a minute later they walked into the Pokécenter with their head hung and their Seedot returned. I couldn't quite decide if Officer Jenny was scarier than Nurse Joy when she got angry, since she always seemed mildly intimidating whereas Nurse Joy getting mad seemed wholly unnatural for the otherwise sweet, gentle woman. Regardless, seeing the tirade she unleashed on that young idiot made me want to never find myself on the receiving end of Officer Jenny's scorn.

Just based on what I could see through the window of the Pokécenter, the lobby looked crowded and chaotic, and I was not looking forward to immersing myself in the madness. The haphazard line was nearly out the door, and it appeared that those who had already made their way to the counter were now waiting anxiously to see if they would be getting their Pokémon back while discussing the details of the regional advisory.

I could occasionally get a glimpse of Nurse Joy running back and forth like a Pidgey with its head cut off, collecting Pokéballs on a tray, logging out in her computer and printing out an identifier before taking them to the back room, sprinting to return to the front desk and repeat the process. She was clearly stressed and overworked, and I couldn't help but notice the distinct lack of any Chansey helping her.

I initially assumed that Chansey was in the back room doing the testing, but was soon proven wrong when some people began leaving the Pokécenter grumbling or ranting about how ridiculous it was that their Pokémon were to be held overnight for testing, and how it was a sign of how bad things were that Nurse Joy's own Chansey had to be quarantined after testing positive.

That particular bit of information deeply disturbed me. It made me wonder just how long Chansey might have been infected before it was noticed, and how many Pokémon she might have possibly spread it to during that time.

From what I could tell, it was mostly locals that were leaving the Pokécenter. Nearly everyone with a backpack or riding goggles stood around in the lobby, likely waiting to see if they would be able to rent a room for the night.

In that moment, I realized just how overcrowded the Pokécenter was likely to be that night. I had no doubt that every room was going to be occupied, likely where multiple people when at all feasible, and I could just imagine people having to sleep in the lobby after every available room in Lavaridge was taken, Pokécenter and resort hotel alike.

Tempted as I was to just check out of my room and camp on the outskirts of town, if my Pokémon were to be held overnight I wasn't sure I'd feel comfortable doing that. In fact, the thought of spending a night without my team by my side in general made me feel uneasy, regardless of whether it was a Pokécenter room or tent.

Just thinking about it was enough to make my blood boil. How was it acceptable for the League to mandate trainers submit their teams for screening, then hold them overnight because they weren't prepared to handle things efficiently? That's not even considering what happens if they tested positive – just how long would the quarantine be, and was it even truly necessary? If humans couldn't get infected, why couldn't trainers just keep them away from other Pokémon until the infection went away? Why take such a hardline approach, couldn't they just inform us of what to do and trust us to follow their instructions?

Then, a truly horrifying thought struck me. Was this even something that would eventually pass, or was an infected Pokémon incurably terminal? Perhaps this was deadly, and Pokémon that got sick would continue to deteriorate beyond what was being reported.

I realized how much information I lacked, and wish I knew a lot more about it. Yet based on the conversations I'd had about the virus with Ana, Samantha, and Owen, I suspected that I wasn't alone in feeling that way. From the agitated murmurings I was picking up from others passing by, it seemed like everyone was desperately seeking answers.

I flinched as an Alakazam and two people suddenly appeared with a pop just a few paces away from me, and almost instantly I recognized one of them as Vito Winstrate. Unlike the last time I'd met him though, he was wearing the orange and black Ranger uniform that signified he was currently on duty.

Not all that surprising, considering everything that was going on. I imagined that every Ranger in the region would be putting in a lot of overtime for however long the lockdown lasted, even those still in training or on reserve like Vito.

"Here we are ma'am," I heard Vito say as he bowed his head slightly and gestured toward the Pokécenter for the elderly woman he had just Teleported. "It looks like there's a bit of a line now, but Nurse Joy will check on Meowsy just as soon as she can."

"Thank you, young man," the woman said graciously as she clasped his hands. "I'm not as young as I used to be, it would have been hard on these old bones if I'd had to walk here."

"No problem at all, just doing my job," Vito said with a smile as she released him and slowly made her way to the Pokécenter with the aid of her cane.

I stepped beside Vito, wanting to say hello and deciding that he was about as good of a resource for more information as I could hope for. "Fancy seeing you here Vito. Working hard, I see."

He glanced at me before giving a wide grin, "Hey! Daniel, right? Glad to see you made it here in one piece. Here all alone? I remember your sister was going to Fallarbor for a contest, but where's Owen?"

I shrugged, turning my attention to the Pokécenter. "Probably in that mess somewhere, if I had to guess. We were off doing our own thing when the alert went out, I just got here a minute ago."

Vito sighed, following his now meditating Alakazam's lead and sitting down for a quick break with his back leaned against a stone flowerbed. "Yeah, things are pretty crazy right now. I've been temporarily assigned to Lavaridge, but since the League's Teleport systems are completely overburdened, I've been helping with nearby transport requests."

"This whole thing doesn't seem very well thought out," I commented, gesturing at the Pokécenter. "It looks like Nurse Joy is the only one working, and she's started sending people home without their Pokémon because they need time to run the tests overnight. I can't help but wonder what people like that woman you just Teleported in are supposed to do in the meantime. Looks like the Pokécenter is going to be booked full, and likely every room for rent in the town too. It's not like you're going to take that woman home, then bring her back tomorrow right?"

Vito grimaced, "It's a mess, I'll grant you that. I'm not sure how things are going in other places, but I've been told it's one way, at least for today. A few people have just been sending their Pokémon with me and staying home, with the promise they'd be returned as soon as possible. Naturally, most people want to stick with their partners so they know what's going on with them, so between that and Nurse Joy's Chansey being out of commission things are a little hectic. Lavaridge isn't exactly equipped to deal with the amount of people I imagine might be here by the end of the day."

At that point, Owen emerged from the Pokécenter looking rather glum, and I waved him over. He instantly perked up when he saw me and Vito though, and jogged over to join us.

"Vito! Hey dude, great to see you! Guess you got called in to help?"

"Yeah, I've been stationed here for the time being. Right now I'm mostly just running transportation. We're taking a quick break until I inevitably get another ping. Poor Alakazam here is starting to get pretty worn out, we've been going hard ever since the alert went out," Vito said sympathetically as he patted Alakazam's shoulder, who didn't even react as they continued meditating.

"I assume your team already got tested? Aren't you worried about getting infected?" Owen asked curiously.

"My team was cleared when we were getting briefed on the situation and what to expect. I'm not too worried though, we've been reassured that it can only be transmitted on direct contact. So long as we keep our distance we should be relatively safe, plus League employees are getting routine, priority testing."

I took the opportunity to prod for answers to some of the burning questions I had. "So what happens if a Pokémon does get infected? They just have to be isolated from others until it runs its course? I've heard about the aggression and confusion, but can a Pokémon… die?"

Vito hesitated, "That's not exactly clear yet. From what I know, the earliest verified case of it happened almost a week ago and they're still monitoring them closely. It's only been the last couple of days that the virus has started getting enough attention for people to know what to look for. The official word we were given on it during our briefing was that as of this morning Pokécenters can perform the screenings, and that even if a Pokémon doesn't yet exhibit the symptoms that doesn't mean they aren't infected or contagious. It takes a day or two for the more obvious and nasty symptoms to start to show, so it–"

A chime rang out, and Vito groaned as he stood up and reached into his pocket to procure his Pokédex.

"Guess that's all the break we get for now, Alakazam. Sorry bud."

Alakazam opened its eyes and gracefully transitioned from levitating meditation to standing upright, and it dawned on me just how impressive it was that it could meditate in the presence of so many noises nearby, least of all us talking right next to it. Then again, that's essentially what Apollo could do when using Calm Mind, so perhaps for a psychic-type it was easy to delve into your mind while still being vaguely aware of what was going on around you. For me though, I knew I was a long way off from being able to meditate with so many distractions around, and wouldn't be surprised if I was never able to do it.

"Say, did you two get the chance to challenge the gym before the lockdown went into effect?" Vito asked as he played with his Pokédex, likely figuring out where they were supposed to go.

I hesitated, not wanting to mention the fact that I'd earned my badge while Owen had fallen victim to Vito's warning. Before I could come up with a vague and neutral answer though, Owen beat me to the punch.

"Daniel won, but I didn't quite manage it. I accidentally did the one thing you warned me not to and rubbed her the wrong way – she wasn't a fan of me battling with the Machop I captured on the way here," Owen said as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

Vito grimaced, putting a hand on Owen's shoulder in consolation. "Sorry to hear that. Even the most talented trainers very rarely make it through the circuit without any losses, and for people like me who have more ambition than natural talent, it's a rarity to beat a gym on your first attempt. So long as you learn, keep your chin up, and have the balls to show up again for what could very well be another humbling beatdown, that's what matters. Remember, dedication and perseverance are the proof of a good trainer, not how many badges they have. Losing doesn't happen on the battlefield, but in the mind."

"I have no plans on giving up, I promise you that," Owen said resolutely.

"Good. You two take care, maybe I'll see you around if you're going to ride out the lockdown here in Lavaridge. Alakazam, we're going to zone H-7 and looking for a middle-aged man with a Sandslash. Let's get to it."

And with that, Vito gave us a salute and a grin before disappearing with a subtle pop.

"So cool! Man, I can't wait until I partner up with a Medicham so I can do that," Owen swooned.

"Hate to break it to you, but I'm pretty sure Medicham don't Teleport. Their psychic abilities enhance their already impressive physical prowess. For psychics like Ralts or Abra, they Teleport out of necessity to substitute their lack of physical mobility," I recited, remembering a snippet from some of the research I'd done in Petalburg before my journey.

I could see Owen's face momentarily drop, but he quickly rebounded. "They might not learn it naturally, but I'm sure I could teach it. It is part psychic-type, after all. No matter how mobile a Pokémon is, you'd have to be insane not to take the time to learn Teleport."

"I've had this exact conversation with Sammy about Stella learning Teleport, and she claims that it's usually not worth the time and effort you'd have to put into learning something that doesn't come naturally. It's multitudes harder to learn, produces a sub-optimal result, and it's better to spend that time honing things they could excel in. Not sure I agree though – Duran may be the only one on my team who Protect came naturally to, but it's proved useful for my other members as well, even if they aren't as good."

"Even if it took months to learn, being able to instantly appear behind your opponent is invaluable."

"I'll be the first to tell you how useful it is, at least in terms of battling," I admitted. "I'm just saying, don't be too disappointed if a Medicham is never able to take you long distances like an Alakazam. Psychics come in different flavors and disciplines, and training outside your specialty is an uphill battle. Just look at Apollo – he's been practicing telekinesis for days now, and he's just starting to get a single leaf off the ground for a brief moment. We've got a long way to go before he'll be using Magical Leaf anywhere near as well as Stella can. The same goes for Stella learning telepathy, she's been practicing it ever since becoming an Espeon, which was probably before Apollo was ever even born, and Apollo already dwarfs what she's likely to ever be able to accomplish. I wouldn't be surprised if a Medicham was incapable of learning Teleport, it might be so far detached from what they're familiar with that it's a lost cause."

"Well you better bet I'm going to try. I can accept I might never get to Teleport across the region, but in a battle–"

"Hey you, boy with the hoodie and Pokéballs on your belt!" Officer Jenny's authoritative voice rang out, grabbing my attention. I tilted my head questioningly after realizing she was indeed talking to me, and she beckoned me over.

"The line is dying down, haven't you dawdled enough? I hope you aren't getting any funny ideas about leaving. You'll get your team back, don't worry."

"Not today though, right?" I asked as evenly as I could, though I think some of my true feelings on the matter leaked through if her eyes suddenly boring into mine were any indicator.

"In case you haven't noticed, there are a lot of screenings that need to be done and unfortunately, we're understaffed. Help should be arriving soon and supposedly there's a nearly instant test in the works, but yes – they likely won't be available for pickup until sometime tomorrow, assuming none of them are infected."

"And if they are, I'll get them back… when?" I asked, unable to help myself.

I felt Owen nudge me subtly, and realized I was probably being a bit too confrontational despite my best efforts. Thankfully, that particular question seemed to strike a soft-spot for Officer Jenny, and she gave me a sympathetic look before answering carefully.

"When it's deemed safe. Believe me kid, nobody wants to separate people from their Pokémon, but you have to look at the big picture here. If this were to become a full-on pandemic, which it looks like it easily could if left unchecked, then we'd all end up living in paranoia and fear. Whenever you took a leisurely stroll, any Taillow or Zigzagoon you came across could suddenly attack with deadly intent. When you're having a friendly battle, lunch with your friend here and his team, or even when you're fast asleep cuddling with your trusted partner, there would always be a chance that you were killed in a moment of lost senses and rational. Surely you can understand and appreciate why it's necessary to get ahead of this, even if it means taking extreme measures."

While that all made perfect sense to me, there was still something that wasn't adding up. "I guess I just don't understand how having all captured Pokémon screened and quarantined helps matters if it's already spreading in the wild."

"Sounds like you should read the full announcement. It's not as prevalent in the wild as you might think, at least not yet. There's a reason the routes are closed, beyond simply limiting dangers and infection. As soon as the new screening method is rolled out, the League will be combing every nook and cranny of the region to check the wild Pokémon. Once they're satisfied that the situation isn't spiraling and an update can get pushed to trainer Pokédexes so they can check for Pokérus with a quick scan, then the routes will open back up and the effort can be crowdsourced, in a manner of speaking."

"What happens when they find a Pokémon that's infected? Can it be cured, or is infection only a temporary thing?"

"You're asking questions way above my pay grade, kid. For now, we simply trust them to sort this out as soon as possible, and we all do our part to make this as painless as possible. I'm supposed to keep the peace, and you are supposed to report to the Pokécenter for screening," she said with a nod of her head toward the door, informing me she was done humoring me.

I sighed but nodded, stepping towards the door before turning to Owen.

"You already turned your team in, right? Did you talk to them before?" I asked, suddenly realizing that I really wanted to explain to my team what was happening since I wouldn't get to see them until tomorrow, perhaps far longer if they tested positive, which I felt reasonably certain was unlikely.

"Sort of. I just told them we had to go to the Pokécenter for a quick checkup," he muttered, looking decidedly sour.

"I think I'm going to head to my room for a few minutes. That'll hopefully let the line die down a little more while I give my team a heads-up, even if it's just an overnight thing. Especially considering there's a chance they get held beyond that… I need to explain what's going on," I said resolutely, eliciting a nod from Owen.

"That's smart. I wish I had done that, given how things turned out. I was just outside of town spending time with my team before evening training when the alert went out, and my dumb ass sprinted to the Pokécenter almost immediately hoping we wouldn't have to skip training. I wasn't exactly first in line, but I turned them in well before it was announced they'd need to be held overnight."

"That's if we're lucky," I reminded him. "From what Vito was saying, they could already be infected and we might not even know."

Owen shrugged, "We've hardly done any battling since Fiery Path, and that was days ago. If we'd picked something up, we would have realized it by now. I know this sucks but try not to worry so much, it won't help anything. Giving your team a heads-up is a good idea, though. I'm going to head to my room where it's quiet and make a quick call to my parents, then wanna try to find someplace to grab some dinner? Might not exactly be an easy task with all that's going on, but not sure what else there is to do."

I agreed, and we made our way into the still relatively crowded Pokécenter towards the housing wing. Though many had left after realizing they were unlikely to get their teams back anytime soon, there were still quite a few people discussing the lockdown restrictions, making phone calls in an attempt to figure out their immediate plans for the future, or criticizing the League's handling of the situation.

It was obvious that some people saw the lockdown and mandatory screening as a massive overreaction, and while I was largely withholding judgment on that particular view there were two points of frustration that I found myself in full agreement of.

The first was the lack of adequate staff being dispatched to each Pokécenter to perform the tests in a timely manner. Asking people to hand in their partners for a day was a big ask on its own, and the fact that there was no choice in the matter left an especially sour taste in many people's mouths, mine included. In fairness, this was an unprecedented event and the League surely hadn't had much time to prepare and plan. Still, I couldn't help but wonder if the League had grossly underestimated how many non-trainers had Pokémon, or if they had considered just how debilitating it would be if Chansey were unable to assist as usual. It made me wonder if other cities were having the same issue that Lavaridge was, and why the League hadn't waited until they had the more streamlined tests that Officer Jenny had mentioned were being worked on.

The second frustration I shared with many was the overall lack of information shared by the League. How long was the quarantine of a Pokémon that failed the screening? Did they even know, since the first infections reported were apparently almost a week ago and we had no word on the lifecycle of the virus? I heard one person question if they would ever get their Pokémon back, dead or alive, and that was a truly hair-raising prospect that unfortunately couldn't be discounted given what was known.

Though I was far from an expert on the matter, I got the sense that I actually knew more than most people thanks to my conversations with Ana, Vito, and Officer Jenny. That made the tragic state of affairs quite apparent, since I still felt like I knew almost nothing.

I went to my room and released my team, which led to a very awkward introduction to the topic of conversation after instructing them to sit far apart from one another, just in case.

It was easy enough to explain things in general terms, although I suspected they didn't quite understand the full implications of what I told them. No, the hard part was realizing that Officer Jenny was right – the persistent fear of accidental transmission would be absolutely crippling to maintaining a strong bond. Though I knew I couldn't get infected, I was less sure that there wasn't some risk I could carelessly spread it by doing something like petting Orion and then rubbing Apollo's helmet. I vowed not to let thoughts like that prevent me from being affectionate with my team as soon as I was certain that none of them were infected, but for the time being I didn't want to take unnecessary risks.

As startling as that realization was, there was something even more upsetting that came to mind when I noticed Duran being slightly more fidgety than normal. If he somehow ended up getting quarantined, I'd almost surely miss the most important moment in his life, and the biggest dream he'd had since the day we first met – his evolution.

With that fear firmly rooted in my mind and the growing agitation of knowing I wouldn't be able to put it to rest until I got his results tomorrow, I quickly concluded the meeting and recalled my team to make my way to the lobby, not wanting to let my team see how worried I was beginning to get, although Apollo had surely picked up on some of my thoughts. I was starting to understand just how bad this situation actually was, although I was about to be shown once again that things could always be worse.

By the time I finally got in line it was much shorter than it had been previously, but it was still moving relatively slowly. Now within earshot of the front desk, I found out that the main reasons for this were people asking endless questions about when they would get their team back, what would happen if they tested positive, and other similar questions that I could tell Nurse Joy was surely tired of fielding. She was doing her absolute best to be polite and understanding, but her nerves were frayed and she would get increasingly snippy with people who refused to accept that it was an evolving situation she didn't have all the answers to, and that they would need to be patient and trust that they were doing their best.

Not feeling particularly comfortable with so many people in my proximity or the tense atmosphere, I decided to spend my time in line reading the League's webpage that had been linked in the lockdown announcement. It was mostly what I had expected – a formal announcement of a new virus they'd dubbed 'Pokérus' that had been first spotted nearly a week ago, a graph showing how verified reports had risen from single to triple digits in a matter of days, with a projection that today would bring that number into the thousands. It went on to describe the symptoms and noted that it was highly unique not only due to the fact that all species seemed to be vulnerable, but in the way it provoked behavioral changes.

A lot of their description of the virus was relatively vague, and they reiterated that they were still gathering information and closely monitoring the situation. However, there was one thing that they were very specific about and seemed absolutely confident in, and that was regarding transmission.

They were able to confirm that it not only required direct contact for transmission, but that it was completely harmless to humans. Interestingly, it noted that the virus could only be transferred through direct contact with a living Pokémon to survive, and that there was no need to worry about things such as contaminated surfaces or other indirect contact. Although I imagined that it was drastically simplified and a bit more complicated than they were letting on, that bit of information still served to largely put me at ease fromo the fears I'd had while having my impromptu team meeting only minutes ago.

The travel restrictions were strict. Routes were closed for all but the most essential of travel, air and sea travel by way of Pokémon was forbidden unless you were reporting to a Pokécenter, and people were expected to remain in a settlement or at home until restrictions were lifted. The only acceptable form of transportation was Teleport, and even then you had to be able to make it to your destination in one go, with the only allowed destinations being private residences or the outskirts of a human settlement, where you were expected to immediately recall your Pokémon upon arrival. It explained that chain-teleportion, similar to other methods of travel via Pokémon, wasn't allowed because it would leave you exposed to contact with other Pokémon, which was what most restrictions were aimed at avoiding. It also recommended using the League Teleport services or contacting the Rangers if you needed assistance of any kind, such as buying supplies or transport for medical care when you didn't live in a settlement, but noted that these services were sure to be overburdened and should not only be given as much advanced notice as possible but also utilized only when absolutely necessary.

Travel to and from other regions was only acceptable via non-Pokémon modes of transport, such as boat or airplane, and you were not allowed to bring Pokémon across Hoenn's borders unless they passed a screening and got a special seal of verification on the ball that couldn't be broken until you reached your destination.

Battling was forbidden in all but the most extreme circumstances of self-defense against wild Pokémon. There was no valid excuse for having a trainer battle, and they'd even temporarily shut down the battle logging and wager systems for Hoenn Pokédexes.

Most Pokémon-related business was put on hold, both by licensed businesses as well as private individuals such as myself. Everything that involved multiple Pokémon sharing the same space such as breeders, farms, and daycares were mandated to find a way to keep Pokémon separated for the time being, and if that wasn't possible then they must be recalled and cared for individually until guidelines were slowly lifted in 'the coming days'. They noted services that only necessitated one Pokémon to be in a space at a time to function could continue to do so, such as groomers, training services, and contest halls, so long as they remained out of eyesight of other Pokémon. For some services, such as mail couriers and labor work, special exceptions could be granted by the League on an individual basis provided they performed daily testing.

Reading between the lines, it was obvious that they were trying to minimize all possibilities of exposure, even accidental, while not bringing the Pokéconomy to a complete standstill. They noted that they planned on loosening these restrictions as the situation was contained and testing improved, which they were working diligently towards.

They hinted at a couple of things in the works that would allow them to ease restrictions and slowly return to normality. The first was an improved testing method that was in the final stages of development that would allow for instant screening results simply by scanning the Pokémon with a Pokédex. They anticipated that the update would become available for Pokecenters and Rangers within the next forty-eight hours, and that the update would be pushed out to everyone in the days following. I didn't quite get how a Pokédex would be able to do that, but I did know that the scanners on Pokédex were wildly sophisticated, so perhaps there was some sort of marker the virus left on Pokémon they could pick up on, not too dissimilar from how it could detect gender or their ability.

The announcement went on to note that the primary focus was to contain the spread of the virus – not only with the restrictions and screenings of captured Pokémon at both the start and end of lockdown, but by continually combing the region to temporarily isolate wild Pokémon identified as infectious. I couldn't help but scoff as I read that, since it felt like an impossible task especially if you considered flying and water-type Pokémon. If the virus had already reached the ocean, I doubted there was any hope of containing it, especially if their only way of identifying it was to find and test Pokémon individually.

The League surely had the same thought, because the next section noted that they were working diligently alongside the Devon Corporation to create a scanner that would be able to detect and locate nearby infected Pokémon. Just as Officer Jenny had mentioned, it went on to say that once travel restrictions began to be lifted and trainers had the new Pokédex update, it would essentially open-source the initiative, allowing the League to track its prevalence and know which locations needed special attention.

That was followed by what I found to be by far the most interesting portion of the entire announcement. It stated that they believed there to be fewer wild Pokémon with the virus than captured, at least for now, and that after tracing the earliest findings of Pokérus they strongly suspected that it started at the Mauville Daycare, which was shut down and being thoroughly investigated.

It didn't say anything more on the topic, but it both clarified some things as well as raised more questions. If the daycare was the proverbial 'ground zero', that meant the virus was likely scattered across the region, since people from all over Hoenn flocked to the location. Given its popularity and how expensive it is for even a single day, I suspected the majority of its patrons would travel by Teleport when their turn came. In a matter of days, the virus could spread to quite a few different cities, and it would also explain how the virus was more prevalent among trained Pokémon than in the wild. But that surely wouldn't last for long, and likely explained why they were taking such a hard stance to make sure it didn't get the opportunity to flourish in natural habitats.

The announcement ended with words of encouragement and fluff, stating that although the measures might seem drastic they were nothing compared to what could happen if the virus was left unchecked. It talked about how this was a region-wide effort, and how we all needed to do our part in order to bring things back to normal – which we were assured would happen despite not being given a definitive timeline.

"Just now getting around to reading the announcement?" Owen's voice startled me as I realized he was looking over my shoulder. I was finally near the front of the line, and the lobby was beginning to get less crowded as people figured out their plans for the evening, although there were still plenty who seemed at a loss for what to do.

"The part about there being more infected captured than wild Pokémon is strange, isn't it? If that's true, it makes sense why they would want to get ahead of it to stop it from running rampant in the wild. I wonder how much trouble the Mauville Daycare will be in – if they really are the place the virus began from, surely it developed as a result of unsanitary conditions or something, right?"

"You're asking the wrong dude," Owen shrugged. "If you think about it though, that daycare might be the place in the region that has the most diverse range of Pokémon interacting with one another. Even the farms for sponsored trainers are primarily Hoenn species. I'd bet at any given time, that daycare has a ton of rare and exotic Pokémon from a ton of different regions, considering how much it costs to get a spot."

"I suppose so. I still think–"

A scream rang out from behind me, and as I whipped around I was greeted by the sight of people beginning to panic and scatter. The few people who were in line behind me slowly and cautiously parted the way, a look of fear on their faces.

It didn't take long for me to see why. Stepping into the Pokécenter were two stoic men and a disturbingly giddy woman waving around a knife who all wore the unmistakable uniform of Team Rocket, accompanied by an intimidating group of Pokémon that did not look friendly.

Even worse, I was able to see Officer Jenny slumped against the window with her Growlithe by her side, both completely incapacitated. I didn't see any blood and dearly hoped they were simply knocked out, but I didn't have a very good view and couldn't be certain either way.

Just when I thought things with the lockdown couldn't get much worse, I was of course proven wrong – Team Rocket had finally decided to make their reappearance, and I suddenly found myself caught up in the middle of something much bigger than I could have ever anticipated.

A/N: This chapter is a bit more of a lore dump than I would have liked, particularly considering the last chapter, but it was somewhat necessary to show the difference between what is known behind the scenes and what's being given to the general public, as well as to dive into Daniel's interpretation of what is happening. Things are coming to a crescendo with the Rockets making their move, and I'm exceedingly happy with the next few chapters we've got coming up. The next one is sitting at 11k words right now, and I might end up adding to that, so please forgive me if I decide to split it up into two parts. I hate to do a cliffhanger in the middle of a tense scene, but I can't keep to my goal of a weekly schedule while pushing out chapters that long, and my queue could really use a week to recover. It's not a sure thing, but thought I'd warn you that I'm leaning that direction.

Happy Fourth of July, and thanks for reading – see you next week!

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