Chapter 40: Ritual

  Even though Ian was sore all over and plenty tired, sleep didn't come easy to him inside Po Town's Pokemon Center. The constant barrage of raindrops and clanger of debris hitting the outer walls kept his mind on high alert, not to mention the harsh tiles he had to sleep on never let him get comfortable for too long.

  Ian wasn't sure how much time passed, or how much he'd actually slept, but he forced himself up from his dreary state when he heard enough commotion going on to pique his interest. Dozens of people had gathered around the main lobby's front door, and then he realized he couldn't hear the wind's howl or the storm pelting rain on the building. Looks like it's over, thank goodness.

  Minutes later the doors opened, and Ian followed the mass of Pearl Clan members and Po Town residents that had taken up shelter in the Pokemon Center and began checking out the damage. The sky had cleared up for the most part, with a slight breeze being the only natural evidence a terrible storm had rolled through. Ian noticed multiple puddles and pools of water dotted around The Spine. The real damage was to the houses. Rooftops had lost large portions of their shingles, any window that hadn't been boarded up was now completely shattered. Garbage and debris laid around everywhere, with lighter stuff being picked up by the slight breeze.

  "We truly owe Guzma," Irida said as she crept up next to him. "Even Gaeric's Avalugg would have only been able to do so much to hold down our dwellings."

  Ian nodded. "Yeah…"

  Irida turned to Ian, drawing his attention easily. "A sign of our gratitude would be to assist in cleaning up and helping restore Po Town to its former glory."

  Ian smirked. "I don't know how glorious it was before I got here, but that question goes above me. Maybe even above Plumeria."

  "Understandable," Irida said, taking her leave and beckoning Pearl Clan members to assemble at Po Town's gate.

  When Ian caught sight of Hyde, he begrudgingly approached. "Hey dude, any idea where Plumeria went? The Pearl Clan's offering to help clean up the damage from the storm, but that goes above me."

  "Yeah it does," Hyde sneered. "So your second girlfriend is already side-stepping Guzma and asking you questions above your level?"

  "What?" Ian asked, completely blindsided.

  "Irida, asshat," Hyde spat. "While you were showing off how much of a fucking hero you are, Irida told me everything."

  "Dude, what the fuck are you talking about?" Ian said. "I thought we were cool-"

  "We were, but you just had to have everything, you greedy fucking Unovan!" Hyde accused before turning away.

  "Dude, what the fuck are you talking about?" Ian demanded.

  Hyde laughed a sinister, hateful laugh as he turned back around. "Irida told me the only reason she even talked to me was to make you jealous."

  Ian shook his head. "Dude, I'm with Mina-"

  "Well have fun with 'em both you greedy bastard!" Hyde spat before his eyes narrowed on Ian and he lowered his voice. "One day soon you're gonna slip up. This act you've been putting on will be revealed to the whole town, and you'll be with all of Sinclair's goons in a basement cell. Mark my fuckin' words, asshole!"

  "Hey man, I didn't know shit about Irida's-"

  "Have fun with 'em both! Hope you get herpes!" Hyde said, turning around and flipping Ian the bird as he made his way up to Shady House.

  Ian sighed, his heart rate still drumming from Hyde's sudden confrontation. He clenched his fists, realizing the carefully managed peace he'd had with Hyde since their return from the expedition had fallen apart. Probably permanently too. Dammit, Irida.

  Ian decided to head to the wall and check the damage to their crop fields and Elk Grove. The gate wasn't open so he couldn't go out with Sawsbuck and bless Elk Grove, and going around the secret back door facing the sea was probably a no go since it would reveal to the Pearl Clan there was a secret entrance.

  As Ian ascended the stairs, dread filled him. Considering how severe the weather had been, there was no telling how the largely unprotected crops had fared. That and the resurrection of the beef with Hyde had him on edge. Upon reaching the top, Ian was relieved to see most of the crops were still there. A lot of the wheat stalks were bent over, and he noticed pools of water scattered around the crop fields. Oh wait, that's probably seawater… I remember Pearl Clan members working the field talking about keeping salt away from the crops. Fuck. Upon further inspection, Ian noticed slight soil discoloration near the beach. Sand… Double fuck.

  Ian heard footsteps from a nearby stairway and noticed Gaeric making his way up, walking gingerly. "Hey there," Ian greeted.

  "How are the fields looking?" Gaeric asked grimly.

  "Better than I thought," Ian said as Gaeric got to the top and looked out over the crop field.

  "Saltwater and sand. It may not look bad now, but there will be large crop failures until the soil has been purified," Gaeric stated.

  "You guys know how to do that?" Ian asked.

  "Gypsum, which Lian should be able to find rather easily," Gaeric said. "In addition to digging drainage of course. Lots of it, and soon."

  Ian nodded. "Fair… How many workers you gonna need?"

  "Every hand available," Gaeric said. "The usual number of workers we send here will maybe save two of every five individual plants."

  Ian grimaced. Definitely gonna have to talk to Guzma.

  "Gaeric, Irida needs you down there," Lian said as his footsteps approached from the stairway. "Ian, you're up here too? Probably best if you join them too."

  Dammit Irida. "What for?" Ian asked.

  "Your boss is coming, Irida wants to offer assistance," Lian said.

  "It will be sorely needed," Gaeric said, pointing to the crop fields.

  Lian recoiled. "Yeah. I take it we'll need more of that gypsum stuff than I've ever seen, right?"

  "Right," Gaeric said.

  "I'll get on it," Lian croaked defeatedly.

  Ian followed Gaeric down the stairs and when he got to the assembled Pearl Clan members at the gate, he grimaced when Irida smiled at him.

  Guzma, flanked by Plumeria and Rook, made his way to the assembled Pearl Clan members, his head moving like a swivel as he took in all of the town's damage. Ian stood off to the area where he figured the Team Skull cadre would stop.

  Irida stood out in front of the Pearl Clan's members with a dazzling smile Ian found he was beginning to resent more and more. "Greetings Guzma, Team Skull!" Irida called out as they got within earshot. "Seeing the damage, we must express our undying gratitude to all of Po Town!"

  A proud smirk sprouted across Guzma's face as he got in position, making the two other cadre members with him stop instantly.

  "We are extremely grateful for the unprompted risk you have taken, and lives you saved out of the kindness of your heart, Guzma," Irida said, bowing her head reverently. "Now that the storm is over, the least we can do would be to offer our assistance in repairing the damage done in any ways that we can."

  Guzma nodded. "Not a bad idea." The boss then turned to Ian. "Hey Prince of Po Town, how are the fields and Elk Grove?"

  Ian grimaced. "Could've been a lot worse, but there's a lot of seawater and probably salt in the soil now."

  "Meaning?" Guzma demanded.

  "Crop failures if not treated quickly," Gaeric said quickly.

  Guzma turned to Gaeric and gave him a sour look but shook his head. "Okay, I take it you guys know how to do that?"

  Gaeric and Irida nodded. "Yes…"

  Guzma pondered something, finally relenting. "But you'll need more than just the workers that come up here usually, right?"

  "Unfortunately yes," Irida said.

  Guzma shook his head. "You know what? Fuck it. Keep the whole clan at your camp in front of the crop fields," Guzma said. Rook shot Guzma a bewildered glance, and Plumeria's face stayed emotionless, which might as well have been a smile. "I do want some people down at Fort Acuity for the radio network which we gotta get back up and running…"

  "Of course," Irida said, bowing her head once more. "This will make things much easier and bring our two groups closer together. We will not take this opportunity lightly, Guzma."

  "Good," Guzma croaked. "If you're whole clan's gonna be around, I'll tell you how we do things around here, starting with our alarm. It's a really deep, really loud thing. Basically the old foghorn. One blow is for emergency, two sounds is suspicious enemy,"

  "Foghorn?" Irida asked.

  "It's just stupid loud…" Guzma began explaining as he began leading Irida to the gate house..

  It didn't take long for the gates to open and the Pearl Clan began diligently digging through the crop fields. Ian noticed they were digging drainage ditches throughout the fields, damaging plants as they did, but he figured the Pearl Clan wasn't destroying part of the potential crop yield without good reason.

  "Hey Ian!" Plumeria called out as she emerged from the gate, her Poipole hovering around her head, staying close to its trainer for protection. "How are things going out here?"

  "The Pearl Clan's doing its thing… Lian led a few members out to find that gypsum substance or whatever," Ian answered.

  "You been to Elk Grove yet?" Plumeria asked.

  "No…" Ian turned his head around, seeing a few large branches from trees had fallen and gotten caught in the grove.

  "Give it a good blessing then meet Poipole and I back here," Plumeria ordered.

  "Okay…" Ian began, realizing he hadn't seen Mina since before the storm. "What for, exactly?"

  "Training," Plumeria said, pointing at Ian's Z-Ring. "Z-Move training."

  ***

  Ian and Plumeria with Poipole flying beside them biked south down The Straightaway for a good fifteen minutes before she stopped on the side of the road and pointed inland to an exposed wall of a hill, looking like it had been under heavy construction in the past few years but had since been abandoned. Puddles of water dotted the flat space, with sand and gravel covering the rest as Poipole floated out to get a better look around.

  "So this is where you do your training?" Ian asked.

  Plumeria nodded. "Yeah. Only place where the poison from Acid Downpour wouldn't destroy the environment."

  "I see…"

  "This wasn't here when my dad started showing me how it was done. We had to drive down near Haina Town to some old quarry," Plumeria explained.

  "Oh…" Ian said, careful with his words as Plumeria rarely ever brought up her dad. "Can I ask how long ago that was?"

  "Six or seven years ago?" Plumeria pondered. "You're not supposed to be given Pokemon until you're old enough to go on your Island Challenge, but when his friend's Salazzle had a female Salandit, he bought her off them and kept it around the house, waiting until I was old enough." Plumeria then held up her own Z-Ring with the dark purple Poisonium-Z Crystal locked in. "This was his as well."

  "He knew you'd be a Poison Type trainer?" Ian asked.

  Plumeria smirked. "He knew I looked up to him and my favorite Pokemon of his was Crobat. Apparently he bought this Z-Crystal not long after he got Salandit for me. He'd been waiting to reveal it until I actually got to go on my Island Challenge. The other Poison Type Pokemon just kinda… fit."

  Ian nodded. "Makes sense… Did you ever go on your Island Challenge?"

  Plumeria shook her head. "After dad was taken away in the wormhole, my mom and I got into it pretty bad. She left one night, never came back. Figured Po Town was the only place she'd never come back to, so I stayed."

  "I'm sorry to hear that…" Ian said.

  Plumeria grunted, shaking the thoughts from her mind, her signature scowl coming over her face. "So Z-Moves… How'd they work in your weird little video games?"

  Ian shrugged. "You activated the Z-Crystal and chose the move the Pokemon would use, do some funky pose, then it'd use it. Pretty simple."

  Plumeria snickered. "Good thing I'm here. So the process is a bit complicated. You have to build up to it, you can't just send your Pokemon out and yell 'Acid Downpour!'" Plumeria said, holding her hand with her Z-Ring up now. "It'd be a lot easier if you could."

  "So how do you build up to it?" Ian asked.

  "Your Pokemon and you really need to be confident in each other," Plumeria said.

  "Okay…" Ian said dismissively. Sandslash and I get along great, don't we? She's basically been the second strongest Pokemon on my team at this point.

  Plumeria rolled her eyes impatiently. "I meant in battle. Think of a sequence like using a stat buff or status move, then ordering a good maneuver to dodge the incoming attack, then following that into a successful hit. You and your Pokemon will be feeling really in sync. This should be perfect for you and Sandslash, since you already start off most of your fights with Snowscape, skate around the terrain, then hit 'em with Icicle Spear or something."

  Ian nodded.

  "There's no rigid way to do it, but using Snowscape, doing a dodge, and then landing an Ice Shard or Icicle Spear should be easy to get down," Plumeria said. "Oh and it usually helps if the preceding move is the type of Z-Move you're using. Doesn't always have to be, but that really depends on how back and forth the fight is."

  "Understood," Ian said seriously.

  "So the Z-Crystal will start glowing with Z-Power, then…" Plumeria continued. "...you have to come in contact with it."

  "What?" Ian asked.

  Plumeria rolled her eyes. "Like rub it, breathe on it. I save time by whispering the move I want to use the base of the Z-Move onto the crystal itself."

  "O-okay?"

  "So I usually have Sludge Wave be the base of Salazzle's Acid Downpour," Plumeria said. "So I'll raise my glowing Z-Ring up to my lips, then whisper 'Sludge Wave.' That'll get the Z-Power to amplify Salazzle's own power. Then I'll shout out 'Acid Downpour and…" Plumeria paused. "Out it comes."

  Ian nodded. "Doesn't sound too difficult…"

  "That's not just it though. Sure your Pokemon's channeling this insane attack, but landing it's hard. The opponent's not just gonna sit back and let you charge up your big move, They're going to try to get out of the way or disrupt the attack, so you have to keep the same momentum you had."

  Ian nodded. "Okay now it sounds hard."

  "It's worth it if you can land it though. I'm gonna get Salazzle out and demonstrate," Plumeria said as she recalled her curious Poipole from the battlefield then turned to him expectantly. "Gonna need a punching bag from you…"

  Ian grimaced. "One of my Pokemon's just gonna get poisoned and blasted with a Z-Move?"

  Plumeria shrugged. "It'll need to be an actual battle for Z-Power to start energizing the crystal. Plus one of my team members will get knocked out by helping your Sandslash practice. This is part of the process."

  Ian nodded resolutely. "Okay… Who should I send out?"

  "Since this is a demonstration, preferably an easy target," Plumeria said.

  Ian begrudgingly reached for Wartortle's Poke Ball. "Sorry bud," he whispered lowly to it before releasing his reclusive turtle. Wartortle manifested with an annoyed croak before taking a look around and glaring daggers at Ian. You're way more perceptive than I give you credit for.

  Ian saw a flash of light in his peripherals, and Plumeria's long, thin, black lizard manifested, standing on its hind legs before its tongue stuck out to sense the air before going back down on all fours.

  "Take your spot over there, it's gotta be like a real battle!" Plumeria barked as she made her way to what Ian realized worked out to be a makeshift battlefield.

  Ian did as ordered, Wartortle begrudgingly waddling behind him. He then knelt down to Wartortle's level. "We gotta battle Salazzle, but it's not life or death for you, okay?"

  Wartortle croaked, folding his arms disapprovingly. "We can go all out, her Salazzle isn't a pushover," Ian said assuringly. Wartortle croaked with a different tone, almost like a laugh.

  "Okay, you ready?" Plumeria asked.

  "Bring it!" Ian fired back.

  "Salazzle, Toxic!" Plumeria commanded.

  "Rapid Spin!" Ian called out with a defiant grin.

  Wartortle managed to retreat into its shell as the purple missiles of Toxic made contact, and Ian thought his turtle was safe until he heard a certain sizzle coming from Wartortle's shell. Oh yeah, Salazzle's Ability is Corrosion right? It's supposed to be able to even poison Steel Types. Ugh. Wartortle's shell began spinning, launching itself at Salazzle who dodged the oncoming assailant with ease before unloading a spat a glowing ball of purple energy at Wartortle, colliding with Wartortle in a burst of Poison Type Energy as Wartortle emerged from its shell.

  "Sorry Ian!" Plumeria taunted gleefully as her Z-Ring began glowing with white and purple energies.

  "Protect!" Ian called out, praying for mercy for his turtle.

  "Not gonna save you!" Plumeria shouted before raising her glowing right hand. "Acid, Downpour!"

  Pumeria became engulfed in dark purple light before it dissipated as quickly as it came, now swelling around Salazzle. The lithe lizard Pokemon leapt in the air, awash in a blur of Poison TE before the world seemed to stop in front of Ian. Salazzle's narrow mouth unleashed impossible amounts of purple energy below the sheltering turtle. Dozens of individual streams of Poison TE all converged on Wartortle, exploding in an even larger cloud of purple energy. Ian covered his eyes, realizing the poison emitting from Salazzle could easily get to him. Being poisoned out here sounds AWFUL.

  Ian opened his eyes slowly, seeing Wartortle still encased in his shell, motionless. Sorry bud. I'll make it up to you. "Did you use Sludge Wave on that one?" Ian called out.

  "Maybe," Plumeria teased.

  Ian rolled his eyes.

  "I fully expect you to take your revenge when it's your turn," Plumeria said.

  Ian recalled Wartortle, whose limbs had started to emerge, his turtle had a rather sour look on his face. You managed to tank it. I'm impressed.

  ***

  "Now, go!" Plumeria ordered, standing well behind her Alolan Muk on the battlefield.

  "Snowscape!" Ian ordered his Alolan Sandslash.

  "Mud Bomb!" Plumeria shouted.

  Ian didn't even need to give an order as Sandslash was already speedskating across the newly frozen terrain. Sandslash weaved through the brown blobs of mud with practiced deftness before leaving the ground and spinning in the air, unleashing four Icicle Spears at the enemy. The projectiles hit their target, causing the opposing Muk to groan lowly. It fired another Mud Bomb instinctively, which Sandslash adeptly veered away from, circling around from Plumeria's side of the battlefield.

  Ian felt an odd sensation around his wrist, and he looked down to see a swirling mass of white and light blue energy. The sensations were odd, flickering between ice cold and surging with warmth.

  "Now! Go for it!" Plumeria called out.

  Ian lifted his hand to his mouth and whispered "Icicle Crash."

  Sandslash suddenly yelped as a Mud Bomb connected, sending Sandslash sliding across her Snowscape, and the icy-hot sensations around his wrist faded into a shiny cloud. Dammit.

  "Gotta stay focused!" Plumeria called out.

  Ian grimaced. I didn't try to disrupt Salazzle that much. "Sandslash, let's get that skating back!" Sandslash got its balance back and launched itself back at the multicolor Muk.

  "Mud Bomb some more!" Plumeria shouted excitedly.

  Stay focused. Sandslash took to the air once more, putting enough distance between the blobby masses charging her, then fired off another round of Icicle Spears, this time only two landing. Ian glanced down at his Z-Ring and noticed the Icium-Z was beginning to manifest energies, but not nearly to the level it had earlier. We got this, Sandslash.

  "Not enough!" Plumeria warned.

  "Ice Shard!" Ian called out. Sandslash fired off a high speed chunk of ice, smacking Muk right in one of its teeth, causing the sludge monster to groan even more deeply. That's like one of its few solid spots. Muk fired off another round of Mud Bombs, which Ian watched more closely but remained aware of the icy-hot sensation on his wrist. While still watching the battle, he held his wrist up. "Okay Sandslash, let's do this!" Ian whispered to his Z-Ring, making sure his breath made full contact. "Subzero Slammer!" Ian roared.

  The sensation quickly faded and Alolan Sandslash became engulfed in light blue energy as it leapt into the air. A chill came over the battlefield, and a block of ice manifested around Sandslash. The icy mass launched itself like a missile at Muk, crashing into the sludge monster as Ian's ears were filled with the roar of ice cracking and the ground shook underneath. Ian felt another chill come over his body as cold air swept over him, thankfully harmlessly.

  When the dust settled, Ian observed Sandslash squeaking triumphantly, a laugh he hadn't heard since he'd stopped letting Sandslash bully Tyrunt. Ian was more surprised to see Muk bounce back, its eyes wide open.

  "Wasn't as big as I've seen before," Plumeria called out as she recalled Muk.

  "Really?" Ian asked as he recalled Sandslash.

  "Did you remember to order Icicle Crash?" Plumeria asked.

  Ian facepalmed. "Dammit, I forgot to specify. I did it the first time but..."

  Plumeria gave him a knowing smirk. "It takes intense focus from Pokemon and trainer. Judging by how well you've picked up Grimsley's teachings I'm sure it's just a matter of time before you nail it down."

  Ian nodded. "Thanks…"

  "Only problem is it takes a while for the crystal to channel that much Z-Power again, so you won't be able to practice for another few hours," Plumeria explained.

  "Makes sense," Ian grumbled, turning back to the training field.

  "Ian, you coming back to Po Town with me?" Plumeria asked.

  Ian shook his head. "This seems like a good training spot for Tyrunt, this way there won't be a bunch of boulders all over Elk Grove."

  Plumeria scoffed. "The boulders created from Rock Type attacks don't last long."

  "Still, it messes with the trees and we lost some branches in the storm," Ian said.

  Plumeria giggled as she came up alongside him, a proud smile on her face. "Berry farmer Ian… Never thought I'd see the day."

  "You better hope I don't get too ambitious. Apparently mushroom farmers would pay out the nose to have Sawsbuck bless their fungi," Ian explained.

  "Where'd you hear that?" Plumeria asked curiously.

  "I had to do guard duty in The Basement. Guy kept asking who 'the Sawsbuck guy' was and mentioned it," Ian answered. "I told him the 'Sawsbuck guy' was a weirdo."

  "At least you're aware of it," Plumeria teased.

  Ian rolled his eyes. "Very funny…"

  "But you know…" Plumeria began. "...that's not such a bad idea. If this Ultra Rift nonsense ever ends, Po Town's gonna need a way to make money. We're not exactly the most tourist friendly place."

  Ian shook his head. "Aw c'mon, we got the most luxurious outhouses this side of the island!"

  Plumeria stifled a laugh, giving Ian a knowing smirk that froze him for a second. "You're so dumb," she teased. "I'll head back. Don't get injured or anything, cuz no one's coming down this way for a while."

  Ian nodded. "Yeah, I figured." Ian watched as Plumeria made her way to her bike and released Poipole from its ball before zooming off back up the road. Now's as good a time as any. Ian reached for his Ultra Ball, sending Tyrunt out. Tyrunt's eyes glowed a menacing red as it gave a proud roar, announcing its arrival. Considering I haven't let Tyrunt out to roam in nature, I'm surprised she still has the red eyes. Not complaining about it though.

  Ian thought back to Grimsley's advice on creating Variant Moves, basically trying to cross the wires between the moves you want to combine in some form, so he started ordering Tyrunt to use Rock Slide, followed by a quick Bite. After Tyrunt was starting to tire after a good ten minutes of practice with no discernable progress, he decided to give her a rest and recalled her, switching to Morgrem to train instead.

  During all of the hurricane prep, Ian hadn't been able to get much time with his still newly evolved team member. Morgrem manifested from its ball and promptly hissed at Ian. "I know it's been a while, Morgrem," Ian began. "Couldn't be helped. Are you ready to get loose?"

  Morgrem yawned loudly, closing both of its eyes as it did. Ian rolled his eyes. "C'mon, we had a hurricane-" Ian gasped as in the blink of an eye, Morgrem now stood directly in front of him, holding the long ponytail of its black like a spear pointing directly at Ian's torso, the hair glowing with Dark Type Energy.

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  "What the-" Ian said in disbelief as he staggered backwards. Morgrem chuckled wickedly as Ian fell on his back. "That's awfully quick Morgrem, nice job."

  Morgrem hissed some more, pointing its hair-spear at Ian menacingly. "Alright, you got me. You happy?" Ian demanded, now getting a tad frustrated.

  Morgrem grunted and turned around sassily, walking away casually. Mina was right, Morgrems are jerks. A pang of regret hit Ian as he remembered how sad Rylee would be with former friend's attitude adjustment.

  Once Morgrem got into the swing of using its moves, Ian noticed a couple unexpected things. First off, Morgrem was fast. Not over long distances, but it had a short range burst of speed that Ian could barely keep track of. It reminded him of how Impidimp would use Prankster, and got Ian considering it could use it to dodge attacks. Just barely? The other thing Ian noticed was Morgrem had some potent Special Attacks. He'd remembered Grimmsnarl being a slow, frail, mixed attacker with an emphasis for physical moves in the games, but Morgrem's Special Attacks seemed to hit harder, whether it was Draining Kiss or Dark Pulse compared to Play Rough and False Surrender. When Morgrem used what he recognized to be Nasty Plot, Ian's jaw dropped. I'm definitely going to need to work on Special Attacks since he can use them, even if it's just Dark Pulse and Draining Kiss for now.

  After another round of Tyrunt attack training, Ian made his way back to Po Town. As he strolled to the front gate, he noticed an odd sight he had a hard time believing. "What's a truck doing here?" The red pickup truck parked casually next to Po Town's front gate felt so out of place to Ian he couldn't stop looking at it until a familiar feminine voice called his name.

  Ian turned his head and grimaced as his eyes met Irida's. He came to a stop on his bike and felt tension taking root in his body. "You owe me an apology."

  "I do," Irida affirmed. "Unfortunately until the Pearl Clan is settled in our new home, I will not be able to accompany you to Adaman's Point."

  Ian snorted. "That's whatever. I heard you spoke to Hyde."

  "Oh?" Irida asked innocently before the realization hit her. "Yes, I did. I could no longer continue the act. It felt unworthy of an adherent of Almighty Palkia."

  Ian shook his head. "You don't understand what you did."

  Irida looked him up and down curiously. "Apparently not…"

  "Hyde and I have been feuding since I arrived. If it's not my accent, it's how everyone likes me, or he thinks I'm some traitor to Po Town," Ian explained. "It also didn't help that him and Mina dated for a bit when things started going to shit."

  "Oh…" Irida said, putting her hand over her mouth.

  "He got the hots for you the moment he laid eyes on you in the guest house. He even said you were so beautiful you put Mina to shame… So after we got back from Palmer's Ranch with the seeds and everything was okay, Hyde took me aside and he said we'd never be friends, but he'd stop antagonizing me. We could at least work together for the betterment of Po Town," Ian continued. "You using him to make me jealous and then telling him about it was probably the worst possible thing you could've done."

  "I see…" Irida said, her eyes drifting to the ground. "Although we did not speak much of you, I knew he held some enmity toward you. But you must forgive me, as I was not aware of the state that I disrupted-"

  Ian shook his head. "Ignorance isn't gonna make this go away for me, Irida," Ian spat before turning away and cursing as he got back on his bike and rode past the pickup truck.

  Once he'd put his bike against the inner wall, Ian saw Tupp deep in conversation with a uniformed Team Skull member Ian wasn't sure he'd seen before. The man was a little shorter than Ian, but had a muscular build and a native Alolan complexion with long black hair. Not seeing him before is weird since I've been here for two months.

  "Yo, bro! There you are!" Tupp called out, flagging Ian down. "Trickz here was looking for you."

  Trickz? Oh yeah, he's one of the squad leaders who wasn't at the strategy meeting. His squad guards the eastern borders with Outrigger and Surge. From what little I've heard about him, he's one of the top squad leaders in Team Skull. Second only to Plumeria. "You were looking for me?" Ian asked, slightly puzzled.

  "I heard about your battle with the Trevenant colony," Trickz said, extending his hand. "Among a few other things. It's nice to finally meet you."

  Ian gave a nod of respect and fist bumped the squad leader. "Same. Haven't heard much about your squad, but what I've heard is good."

  "Well we try," Trickz said. "Hearing the play-by-play, it sounded like you weren't using berries in your battle?"

  Ian shook his head. "No. Considering we sell 'em to Surge and we eat the rest, I figured it wasn't right."

  "Understandable," Trickz said. "But considering you can just grow 'em with your Sawsbuck, I don't think Guzma's gonna give you too much grief if you sneak some berries away for strategic use. Especially with all of the trouble you seem to get into."

  Ian chuckled. "That makes sense."

  "Now that we're not starving, I've had my squad start keeping some berries in reserve for any fights we get into, whether it's wild Pokemon or some of Surge's goons trying to test us again," Trickz said before offering Ian his fist to bump. Ian did, but Trickz leaned close to Ian's ear and began to whisper. "And watch out for Rook, I've been hearing some weird chatter about you from him."

  "Thanks, I've heard it too," Ian said lowly.

  "Alright, I gotta go round up my squad and get back up the hills!" Trickz said enthusiastically as made his way up The Spine. "Good luck down here Tupp, Ian!"

  "You too bro!" Tupp waved back.

  Ian turned to Tupp and gave him a playful jab. "Yo dude, any idea what's up with the truck out front?"

  Tupp nodded. "Boat mechanic's here."

  Oh yeah, Rook's idea of using the boats to mess with Sinclair's boats… Ian pondered the idea for a moment. I mean, it sounded stupid earlier, but if his boats are severely damaged from the storm, we might actually have the upper hand for a bit. If we can end this war, it'll help normalize things and we'll be able to sniff out whatever Rook's up to. "Okay, makes sense. I just wasn't used to seeing a vehicle around here."

  Tupp chuckled. "Yeah, kinda tripped me out too when I first saw it. Been a long time since we had cars and shit actually movin' around here, yo."

  ***

  In the following couple days, Ian continued his work on building up consistency with Sandslash and using Subzero Slammer, as well as working on the Rock Type move-Bite move combo with Tyrunt that had yet to make any progress. Morgrem remained unruly as ever, but Ian had yet to work up the guts to tell Rylee what had happened to her and Plusle's favorite playmate. Ian also started tinkering with what berries would work with each of his Pokemon. After automatically defaulting to Sitrus Berries and Lum Berries for his team, his down time when not with Mina became dedicated to ruminating over what battling styles and types would be the biggest counter to his specific Pokemon, and if any berries matched up.

  As far as the Pearl Clan's new settlement was concerned, over a dozen tents had been set up outside of Po Town's crop fields, not to mention the massive undertaking draining all of the salt from the fields they worked on simultaneously.

  Midmorning of the third day since the storm passed, Ian sat atop Sawsbuck with his blessed stag's grassy reins in his hands. He grunted as he looked out at all of the irrigation ditches lining the crop field.

  "What's bothering you, Prince of Po Town?" Palina asked smugly as she made her way over to him.

  "All the irrigation ditches are annoying as hell to cross on Sawsbuck," Ian complained bitterly.

  "They won't be up much longer, we just need the crops yields to go back to what they were and we'll refill them," Palina countered.

  "Yeah, but it takes a lot longer than it used to," Ian grumbled as he nudged Sawsbuck forward. The drainage ditches lining the crop fields that stretched all of the way to the beach weren't too wide, but they were spaced out unevenly so Sawsbuck couldn't get a consistent stride down, something to do with the level of salt content in the soils.

  After the tedious process of blessing the fields, Ian noticed Plumeria leaning back against the wall by the front gate, and he could tell she was waiting for him. He directed Sawsbuck to his squad leader. "Good morning Plumeria, what's up?"

  "Just got out of a strategy meeting," Plumeria said. "Squad's heading out to Fort Acuity this afternoon."

  "How long will we be out there?" Ian asked as he started shifting on his grassy seat on Sawsbuck's back.

  "Should be there just for tonight," Plumeria said. "You're not supposed to be there though."

  "Really? Is this because of Hyde?" Ian asked, slightly perplexed.

  "No. Guzma was saying something about you being too valuable now that the Pearl Clan's here," Plumeria explained. "So it'll be my squad and Trickz's squad-"

  "Trickz? The eastern border guard?" Ian asked.

  "Yeah…"

  "That's very specific…" Ian said, sensing something wrong afoot.

  "Why do you think that? Guzma and Rook were saying it'd be best to have our top squads on this mission since we're likely the only ones that can pull it off safely," Plumeria said.

  "You two are the only ones that can pull it off? Is it risky?" Ian asked.

  Plumeria looked around to make sure no eavesdroppers were near and she signaled Ian to come in close. "The mechanic got the boats up and running again, and since the radio network hasn't spotted one of Rook's boats since the storm, there's a good chance they're badly damaged. We knock them out, they're fucked and we win."

  "I understand the significance. But did Guzma or Rook come up with this plan?" Ian said more seriously.

  "Guzma said they worked on it together," Plumeria said. "So likely it was Rook and he wants Guzma to take the credit."

  Ian grimaced, Trickz's words about Rook being suspicious coming back to him. "You and Trickz being sent on this is a big red flag."

  "Why's that?"

  "I met Trickz the day after the storm and he told me to watch out for Rook as he'd been hearing some strange chatter about me," Ian said.

  Plumeria grimaced. "Ugh… Trickz and Rook haven't gotten along since the early days of Team Skull. It's the main reason Trickz watches a border. Couldn't keep those two under the same roof for long."

  Ian shook his head. "This is sounding more and more like a trap."

  Plumeria sighed. "I thought that at first too, but as far as we know, their boats aren't working. What trap could they be pulling anyways?"

  "When we were at Aether Camp you said something about not swimming in the water?" Ian asked.

  "There are Huntail and Gorebyss in the bay," Plumeria said. "But since we're not swimming and we're not sticking around long, it's worth taking a shot at ending the war."

  Ian grimaced. My heart's telling me it's worth it, my head's saying this is a trap…

  "Well, whatever misgivings you have, it doesn't matter since you're not going on the operation," Plumeria said.

  Ian shook his head. That's probably the biggest red flag of it all. I, almost singlehandedly keep the town fed. If this is a trap, of course they don't want me involved. "Plumeria, I think I need to be there."

  Plumeria eyed him curiously. "Why do you say that?"

  "If this ends up being some sort of trap, they can't risk losing Sawsbuck and I," Ian explained dramatically. "My presence there could lessen whatever damage might happen."

  "They?" Plumeria asked.

  "Rook. Rook and whoever he's conspiring with…" Ian said.

  Plumeria sighed. "I'm not against it cuz the longer I talk with you the more suspicious it gets…" Plumeria got lost in thought for a few moments. "Come down with us, but is there a way you can make it down without me getting shit for disobeying orders?"

  Ian bounced Plumeria's words around his head before he came to a dread-inducing conclusion. "There is."

  "You don't sound too happy about it," Plumeria noted.

  "It involves Irida and Adaman's Point," Ian said. "It's likely a message from her long lost love that died like a hundred years ago. It could get pretty emotional."

  Plumeria sighed. "I think it's kind of a pointless distraction, but if it's a reason for you to go down there, I'll take it."

  "Okay, good…" Ian then smiled at Plumeria nervously. "Can you ask her though?"

  Plumeria rolled her eyes. "Pussy."

  ***

  After Plumeria told him what time to be at the Pearl Clan's camp, Ian took refuge with Mina during her guard shift. He didn't say much since his mind had become a maelstrom of dread, whether it was the likely emotional conversation with Irida looming over the day or the risky mission he'd be covertly joining the following day. He was grateful Mina didn't pry, she'd gotten uncannily good at sensing his moods. As the time to leave drew near, the two shared a long, heartfelt kiss. Ian stared into her dark eyes and he smiled at how simply she'd made him forget about everything bothering him for that moment.

  "You make it back in one piece now, okay?" Mina said with a smile.

  "Only cuz you told me to," Ian teased before leaning in and kissing her forehead.

  Pulling away was a temporary agony, but he gave her a wave goodbye when he got down the western wall's stairs, the mid-afternoon sun shining above her. Okay, time to take care of business. As he made his way to The Spine, something nagged at his mind. The EXP Candy, or Ultra Candy as I'm calling it. Might not be a bad idea to grab some and give them to my Pokemon before the operation tomorrow. Oh wait, I'd have to go to Shady House and get the key in my pillow. It might take too long. We do have to get to Adaman's Point before sunset. Ian grunted and turned to Po Town's gate, remembering he'd at least gotten berries for his Pokemon in their balls thanks to Trickz's advice.

  He tried to inconspicuously grab a bike, and while he noticed a couple grunts watching him, Rook wasn't around so he quickly sped off to the rudimentary Pearl Clan settlement outside of the crop fields.

  The settlement was off the road, so Ian parked his bike and waited, and it didn't take long before Irida and a small group of followers approached, walking their recently received bikes across the still muddy terrain to the main road.

  "Greetings Ian Cougar!" Irida called out happily. "Thank you for agreeing to go down to the point with me, this is long overdue."

  Ian nodded. "Of course," he grumbled.

  As Irida and her escort of Pearl Clan warriors decked out in their sweaters got to the road, Irida made her way right up to Ian and began whispering. "I am yet to tell my comrades whose point this is. I would not want to give false expectations to them."

  "Understood," Ian said.

  "Does anyone else find it funny that right after we were gifted bicycles, we had little need for them?" Irida asked with amusement, drawing light chuckles from the onlooking escort.

  "Yeah, funny…" Ian said.

  The ride in the late afternoon sun wasn't too bad, although Ian tried to keep a slight distance from Irida and her escorts. He remained quiet until the group parked their bikes on the road next to the Team Skull squads' bikes. Just off the road sat the two boats on low, long trailers. They look in decent enough condition, but they aren't very big.

  Ian stepped off the road to get to the lightly garrisoned Fort Acuity before Irida's voice stopped him.

  "Where are you going, Ian?" Irida asked.

  "I was just gonna check in with Plumeria and Trickz real quick," Ian answered.

  Irida shook her head. "Follow me, we have a more pressing matter."

  Ian felt all of the escorts' eyes on him and begrudgingly relented. "Okay then."

  Irida took off without her escort, and Ian followed close behind. I sure hope Hyde isn't watching, it'll just rile him up even more.

  Getting through the Akua Jungle on their bikes was a tad difficult thanks to months of overgrowth Ian realized would need to be cleared to get the boats through if they were in fact going to launch the boats from the beach in front of Aether Camp. Ian was thankful Irida remained silent, but he could tell the Pearl Clan leader was more uneasy about what the message from Adaman could be. If it is in fact, his message.

  They parked their bikes wordlessly and got on a lightly beaten path used by the radio network watchers to get to the point along the cliffs of Cape Pupuhi.

  "You my relief?" The uniformed Team Skull member sitting on a foldable lawn chair asked.

  "Unforutnately not," Ian said.

  "Well what's the Prince of Po Town doing all of the way down here then?" He asked.

  "Official Pearl Clan business," Irida said firmly. "I must ask you to leave for the time being."

  "Uh, no can do, lady," the young man said.

  "What is your name?" Irida asked.

  "Spitter," the grunt responded.

  A look of disgust crossed Irida's face for a moment before she recovered her decorum. "Must I tell Guzma of your interference with our affairs?"

  "Uh…" Spitter said, unsure of what to do and looking to Ian.

  "Look, just go down the trail a hundred steps. If we see or hear anything, I'll come tell you, okay?" Ian said.

  "Okay," Spitter said, getting up from the foldable lawn chair and scampering down the trail quickly.

  Irida's focus immediately shifted to the altar near the cliff's edge and she marched over hastily. "This stone is old…" Irida commented.

  Ian chose to remain silent as he watched Irida run her hands over the weathered stone. The sun had started to set in the distance, and the burgeoning twilight combined with Irida's simple elegance made Ian's stomach contort itself into knots. If I wasn't dating Mina, I'd probably have folded by now. Irida then leaned over a bit, focusing on the symbols carved into the altar's surface and gasped like she'd suddenly been pinched. The Pearl Clan leader lowered her head and whispered something under breath, and Ian took a step closer.

  "It is to me…" Irida said, a teardrop falling onto the stone.

  Damn, that's rough.

  Irida began running her eyes over the symbols carved into stone, and every few moments another tear fell. When she finished, she put her head into her hands and whispered something Ian could not hear, but knew meant something significant. He waited for some time, letting the emotion wash over Irida until she pulled her head from her hands and turned to face him.

  "Thank you for telling me of this," Irida said, tears falling down her face.

  "You're welcome," Ian said.

  "I take it you are curious about what it says?" Irida asked.

  "Yeah but that's just my curiosity. I'm sure it means far more to you than it'll ever mean to me," Ian said.

  Irida nodded. "Here, let me show you…"

  Ian made his way over to Irida, who put her arm around him. He debated protesting, but figured this was such an emotional moment for the Pearl Clan leader it would be rude to do so. Just don't let it escalate. Ian then focused on the table's engravings, seeing letters that resembled the Unown and followed Irida's free hand to the top.

  "It says 'Irida," she explained, then began reading off as her finger followed the symbols.

  Irida

  Following the Call of Azure brought me here

  Long have I grieved for my denial in the ritual

  If I had agreed, the sky may yet have opened

  Perhaps it would not, the answer torments me

  I beg you, do not bind yourself to what is lost

  I have time yet, and my wishes of joy for you

  Shall echo in eternity, though not as we hoped

  I am whole now but not as I was, shaped by you

  Having reforged my heart from the Shards of Azure

  Ian paused, letting the weight of the words weigh on him. Azure said in the first and last lines seems significant. Why is "azure" such a big deal? I remember it was something important in the Legends Arceus game. Ian tensed as he realized why it had been familiar. The Azure Flute connects the player in this world to Arceus… Shit, I should've brought something to write this down.

  Irida's sapphire eyes continued forming tears as she re-read the words once more, letting out a light sob.

  "I can give you some time," Ian said.

  "Time!" Irida sobbed, squeezing her head into his chest. Very poor choice of words on my part. "Long did he wait, long did he mourn…" Irida said, releasing Ian from her embrace. "I apologize for this emotional showing, Ian."

  Ian shook his head. "No need to apologize. I figured it'd be pretty heavy emotionally for you…"

  Irida nodded. "It is." Irdia sighed, turning once more to the altar. "Which island is the Pearl Isle?"

  "The big one," Ian said, pointing out to the horizon.

  A light grin showed through her tear-adorned face as she rested her gaze on the island in the growing twilight. "Thank you again, Ian."

  "Of course," Ian said softly.

  "Although I did not want to share the story of our cataclysmic ritual with you, I believe you are owed it for this," Irida began.

  Ian instinctively felt like he should protest, but decided against it.

  "And resurrecting the feud between yourself and Hyde is not something I have redeemed myself for either," Irida said.

  Ian took a step back, but nodded.

  "Promise me you will not share this tale with anyone, as it is sacred knowledge to my people," Irida ordered.

  "I promise," Ian said solemnly.

  "The ritual…" Irida said as if suddenly in pain. "Some years after the cataclysm atop Mount Coronet was quelled by the hero Rei and the combined forces of Hisui, I sensed Almighty Palkia's cries of pain calling to me. There must have been some disturbance in space and time, as Adaman sensed the cries too. It was something unfamiliar to us, not like the prior crisis."

  Ian nodded.

  "I felt it was our duty to quell the disturbance, but Adaman was unsure and rejected my plea. I seeked out Rei and asked him to join us in summoning Almighty Palkia and performing the ritual for it to take its Origin Forme. He agreed…" Irida paused, sighing as the words weighed heavily upon her.

  "We left the elderly and our children in our settlement by Lake Acuity and made for Spear Pillar. There, I played my Celestica Flute, and the air calmed. Rei then played his own to follow mine, and suddenly the sky opened above us. It happened in such haste we began to panic. A shock wave from the sky forced us to the ground, and our respective flutes shattered."

  Adaman was saying something about the "Shards of Azure" wasn't he?

  "And then we began to rise from the ground, helpless and out of our control…" Irida said, a shiver of fear coming over her. "The rift in the sky took us up and sent us hurtling through the divine tunnel. Rei disappeared from us in the chaos, and when we reached ground once more, we were underneath this island's Ultra Rift."

  Ian nodded. "That's intense," he said seriously. "I'm sorry that happened to you and your people."

  "It happened because of me," Irida said tearfully. "If I had heeded Adaman's words, if I had just…" Irida stopped as she broke down into sobs.

  "Irida, you couldn't have known what would happen," Ian pleaded.

  "And then we were on the verge of starvation for months, all because of my choices!" Irida exclaimed through the sobs.

  Ian grimaced, unsure of how to comfort the hurting Pearl Clan leader.

  Irida suddenly paused, turning away and making her way to the cliff. "And all of these failures of mine are why I have been so desperate in my pursuit of your hand in marriage, Ian."

  Ian froze up nervously.

  "With you and Sawsbuck in our clan, our people would be safe. We would not starve, and if we were threatened, we would be able to negotiate. All of my horrible decisions would be redeemed," Irida pleaded desperately.

  Ian grimaced. "Irida, it's not fair to you that you've been carrying this guilt with you since you arrived in Alola. But you're safe with Team Skull now, you don't need to carry that burden with you any longer."

  Irida sniffled, looking to the ground. "I suppose you are right… But our safety is only as long as we remain on good terms. Only as long as the status quo holds…"

  Ian sighed. "Fair, but I don't see that changing anytime soon. And the longer Team Skull and the Pearl Clan get to know each other, the closer we'll become."

  Irida lowered her head, defeated. "I pray you are right, Ian. For both our sakes."