Chapter Text
“Give it back!”
The Yungoos leaps onto a pile of crates stacked on the side of the small alley, turning to look at his younger Totodile pursuer.
“Nah. It was left alone on the ground when I found it.” Yungoos speaks through clamped teeth, holding a red scarf in his mouth. “Finders keepers, y’know the rules.”
“B-but it’s mine! The wind blew it away!”
Yungoos leaps to the ground, easily dodging a Water Gun aimed at where he stood a moment ago.
The crates spill their contents, a variety of berries now rolling across the ground. He makes a mental note to come back here later, to scavenge whatever remained in a few hours.
Totodile is charging him now, Dark energy seeping from their fangs as they close the distance between them. Yungoos channels one of his own Dark moves, waiting to slip past their attack before counterattacking, slamming his head against their side and launching them away.
They hit the wall hard, Totodile slumping to the ground and clutching their head. Blood trickles from their snout.
Weak.
Yungoos takes a minute to tie the scarf around his neck, admiring his reflection in a nearby puddle.
He looks back up at the crumpled Totodile, giving them a twisted smile.
“Gehehe, what do ya think? I’d say it looks good on m-”
THUNK!
Yungoos stumbles to the side, a now-smashed Oran falling to the cobblestones at his feet.
“I’ve seen enough.” A new voice speaks.
Yungoos rubs his temple where the berry had struck, staring at the remains on the ground with sheer bafflement, before raising his guard and turning toward this uninvited guest.
A short distance away stands a Riolu, absentmindedly tossing and catching another berry with one hand. His eyes aren’t even on him.
“A shame.” Riolu sighs, studying the berry in his hand, “These would’ve probably sold for a good price, too.”
Yungoos looks him up and down. Riolu wore nothing but a bored expression; no scarf or band, and certainly no badge. But that confidence…
Yungoos scowls, stepping into the middle of the alley without taking his eyes off of Riolu. It’s fine. He’ll put this runt in his place, too. But just to be sure…
“What, ya think yer an Enforcer or something?” Yungoos barks, standing on his hind legs in an effort to appear more intimidating.
Riolu laughs, taking a step toward him. “Nah, but I should be.”
Yungoos drops to all fours, preparing for a fight…
…but his tail bumps into something solid behind him.
There wasn’t a wall there a moment ago.
He turns around, finding himself face-to-face with the towering figure of a Milotic. The periwinkle ribbons and orange antennae denote her as a Shiny. Beside her stands a stern-faced Umbreon, with an amused Salandit perched on her head.
Riolu continues. “Them, on the other hand…”
The trio don matching purple scarves, each with a copper badge fastened to it.
Yungoos barely has time to gulp before a hand grabs him by the tail, swinging him around and tossing him a short distance away.
“Let me take this one.” Riolu raises his fists, tail twitching. “Mol; help the kid. Tsuki, Pyre; block the exits. This guy’s not going anywhere.”
ACT I: Silence Before the Storms
[Alexander]
Alexander raises his guard, the Riolu eager to get this over with.
Yungoos scrambles to his feet. Instead of attacking, he lunges for the berries, devouring two Orans in one bite each. In a moment, the scrapes and bruises he had accumulated disappear without a trace.
Alexander should have probably done something to stop that.
Yungoos glares up at him, Leering with a sick grin. Oran juice is splattered on his face, and Alexander almost laughs at the sight, before a familiar sinking feeling sets in, and his guard is forcibly lowered.
Shaking his head, he takes a breath and exhales to clear his thoughts. His opponent has Payback, so why not try letting them strike first?
Alexander draws upon one of his four moves, channeling Work Up as he hops in place. Almost immediately, energy surges through his body like electricity, causing his aura to flare in excitement.
He clenches his fist. Aura coils around it, and it glows red.
Alexander feels great, like he could take a lap of the city without breaking a sweat.
But that would have to come later.
Yungoos spins to the left, dragging his tail across the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust that obscures part of the alley and threatens to blind Alexander.
Alexander reflexively brings an arm up to shield his face, blocking the worst of the cloud. He knows where this is going. Lowering his guard, blocking his vision, that likely means that his opponent’s about to-
Dropping his arm, Alexander finds Yungoos right in front of him, charging for a full-body Tackle.
He expected an attack, but… How did he get there so quickly?
With no time to dodge, Alexander prepares another move.
Yungoos slams his head into Alexander’s chest, knocking the wind out of him and forcing him to slide a few steps back.
Despite this, Alexander smiles through gritted teeth.
It’s over.
Storing the energy from the blow, Alexander wraps his arms around Yungoos’ neck and side, his aura hardening into jagged spikes that dig into Yungoos’ skin. He picks Yungoos up, holding him vertically, then falls backward, slamming Yungoos’ back against the ground with a devastating Counter.
Alexander winces with pain, but he’s certain that Yungoos is faring far worse.
He’s enjoying this.
Alexander recovers quickly, rolling onto his chest, but Yungoos was already limping past him, leaping over the tail of a distracted Milotic by the time he gets to his feet.
Did he get faster?
Cursing to himself, Alexander gives chase, causing Mol to tense up as he swings over her tail. He mutters an apology, sparing a glance at the Totodile as he runs past.
They still had some blood and a few bruises on their face, but Mol had healed the worst of it with Life Dew already. Good.
Yungoos nears the end of the alley, but there’s one last obstacle in his way.
Tsuki stands ready, the Umbreon’s rings glowing yellow. She and Alexander lock eyes. She’s preparing an attack, but he can’t tell what it is.
It doesn’t matter. He won’t let her finish Yungoos off. This is his fight, blast it.
Thinking back to an attack his mother used to wield, Alexander stops, shuts his eyes, and draws from his power within. Not calling upon one of his readied moves, but instead his very aura.
The sea of red energy lashes out at his attempt to reach for it, but he seizes a tendril of the power after a momentary struggle.
He’s never tried this before, but surely it’ll work. It has to.
Alexander places his paws together, focusing his aura into the space between them. Molding the energy into a haphazard sphere, he grabs it with one hand and hurls it at his escaping opponent.
The volatile red orb soars halfway between them before erupting into energy, cracking the walls of the alley and sending both Alexander and Yungoos flying.
Alexander hits the ground hard, the world spinning around him. He rolls over onto his chest, and the dizziness only worsens. Trying to push himself to his feet leads to his arms buckling.
He isn’t sure when it happens, but someone rolls him back over. He finds himself staring up at Tsuki.
“Stay down, Riolu.” The Umbreon orders sternly, before looking up at something in the distance. “Mol, get over here!”
Not like he could get up right now. Everything hurts.
In response, his aura writhes. It yearns to be unleashed, to lash out in revenge and tear the enemy apart. But there’s nothing to destroy.
Alexander fights back a wave of nausea, trying to calm himself.
In a moment, Mol is beside them. The Milotic looks terrified, but her being here is enough to bring him some small comfort.
Tsuki looks up at her, expression grim. “Think you can patch him up? Or are we calling the Guild and getting in trouble?”
Did he hurt himself that badly?
“I… I should be able to.” She stammers. “Alexander, can you speak?”
“Y-yeah.” He groans. “How bad is it?”
“Hard to say. You singed your fur pretty badly. Both of you were hit hard. The Yungoos got knocked unconscious.”
Alexander winces. At least he got him.
“Beyond that, I need to know what symptoms you are experiencing.”
“Well, the world's spinning, to start.” He tries to sit up, but Mol gently pins him down with a ribbon placed on his chest. “Fine. And I know the battle’s over, but I still feel like I have to get up and keep fighting.”
“Burn injuries, dizziness, and temporary Battleheart.” Mol makes a mental checklist, rummaging through a bag fastened to her side. She looks more focused now that she has work to do. “I can heal your wounds with Life Dew, and give you a Heal Seed to eat. That should quell your dizziness until you can get proper rest.”
“As for your Battleheart, I should be able to soothe that myself, but let me know if you want a Sleep Seed to nibble on.”
He does not want a Sleep Seed.
Mol moves to hand him a Heal Seed, but holds it back at the last second, realizing something. “Wait, are you able to crack it? We can go look for a vial of the oil if your jaw’s-“
“I can handle it, MOM.” Alexander snaps back sarcastically, swiping the nut from her ribbon. “Look, watch.”
He pops it into his mouth. The shell is tough, but he bites through it easily enough, only hurting a little. The meat of the seed is surprisingly sweet, and he already feels his headache fading, his vision returning to normal, as he chews and swallows.
“Dizziness gone?” Mol asks, visibly flustered.
“Yeah.”
“Good. Hold out your arm now, please.”
Alexander does, and Mol wraps a coil gently around it. She closes her eyes, and her body begins to glow a faint blue as she prepares to use Life Dew.
Suddenly, Pyre climbs up her back, causing the Milotic to squawk and lose focus as the Salandit finds a perch on her head, settling between her antennae.
Mol stops glowing and glares up at him. “Pyre? But you’re not hurt.”
“Oh yes I am!” He points at Yungoos. “I got scared half to death when he decided to make a break for it!”
“I thought I told you to look after Totodile.”
Pyre meets her stare. “I did. They’re healed up. Probably gonna be back on their feet soon, too.”
“You…okay, fine.” She sighs. “Just don’t interrupt me this time.”
Mol closes her eyes and tries again, her body glowing blue once more. A wave of energy passes through her, washing over her companions.
It… stings a little, but only for a moment, and when Alexander looks down at himself, he finds that the worst of his injuries are healed.
His aura seems to have been calmed, too; the raging fire within him dwindling to a small but steady flame.
Mol looks him over once more.
“Not my greatest work, but it'll do for now.” She releases her hold on his arm, turning away. “I have to go take care of the Yungoos now. Let me know if you need anything else.”
Mol slithers off, leaving Alexander and Pyre alone.
“Hey. Punch Puppy.” Pyre pokes his leg.
“Excuse me?” He gently nudges him back with a foot before getting up.
“Block the exits?” Pyre repeats his command from earlier. “What were you expecting me to do if that guy charged at me? I’m tiny!”
“I dunno. Nibble on his toes, maybe?” Alexander says, waving a paw. “I’m sure you would’ve figured something out.”
“Yeah, I’d bite down on the end of his tail and hold on for dear life!”
They both laugh at the thought.
“Not that it would’ve mattered in the end, anyway.” Pyre continues. “I didn’t know Riolu learned Explosion until now.”
Alexander scoffs. “That was supposed to be an Aura Spher-“
“Um, excuse me?” A voice calls from behind, cutting him off.
Turning around, the duo find the Totodile from before approaching. They’re a bit bruised up, with a bandage wrapped around their forehead, but they’re walking alright.
They look at Alexander. “You said you weren’t with the Guild. If you don’t mind me asking, why are you here, then?”
“I came here to prove someone wrong.” He says, looking around him at the damaged walls. “I suppose I failed.”
“Oh. Well, I just wanted to thank you all for stepping in and helping me.”
Pyre chuckles. “I didn’t do anything, that was all Alexander and Mol.”
“You guys humored me by letting me fight the guy on my own.” Alexander retorts. “The three of you could’ve taken the guy on, easy.”
“If you say so…”
“Pyre, do not degrade yourself.” Tsuki walks over to the group, a slightly singed scarf draped over the Umbreon’s shoulders. “You may be new to this, but that is no reason to put yourself down.”
“R-right.” The Salandit replies sheepishly.
“Now, I believe this belongs to you.” She offers the scarf to Totodile. “My apologies for its condition. Alexander and I will have a discussion later regarding his… newfound powers.”
“Thank you!” Totodile takes the scarf, wrapping it around their neck. “I don’t mind the condition, as long as it still works. In fact, I think it looks cooler this way!”
Still… works?
“What does it do?” Alexander asks.
Their eyes light up.
“It’s a Speed Scarf that I bought a few days ago!” They beam. “Unfortunately it isn’t of much use if I end up dropping it, though…”
Alexander facepalms. Of course it was a magic item. Why didn’t he think of that?
The other two seem to be equally fuming.
At least the hard part of the job is done.
…
They spend some time tidying up after that.
Mol takes a few minutes to check Totodile for any injuries she might have missed, before giving them the all-clear to head home.
Any berries that could be salvaged are placed back in the crate, with Tsuki writing a note apologizing for the situation. Whoever the crates belonged to could go to the Guild for proper compensation later.
The Umbreon also slips in a small bag of Poké. For the inconvenience.
With all the work going on, Alexander finds himself sitting off to the side. As much as he wants to be involved, he isn’t supposed to engage in Enforcer activities, and he most certainly can’t come with them to put the criminal in custody.
But all of this certainly beats sitting around at home. His father doesn’t approve, but why should he care? He’s nearly an adult.
To avoid getting his friends in trouble, Alexander decides to leave early.
He waves to Pyre, and gives Tsuki a nod as he passes by, but Mol gets his attention, coiling up nervously as he walks by.
“Hey.”
“Hey.” He pauses.
“Can we, um…would you like to…maybe later we could…” She stammers, her face reddening.
“You okay, Mol?” Alexander asks, confused.
“Um, yeah. Yes, I’m fine.”
There was a long pause.
“Ookay. I’ll head out, then.”
Behind them, Pyre begrudgingly passes Tsuki a pouch of coin.
Alexander goes to leave, but his path is blocked by three newcomers.
In the middle, an Inteleon stands shocked, glancing around at the damage that was caused. Behind her, a black-furred Tauros argues with a Skarmory, neither of them paying attention to the scene before them. On their varied accessories, the three of them wear golden badges.
She finally locks eyes with Alexander, then sighs.
“I should have known you were somehow involved, Riolu.”
Caught. Again. Guess he’ll see how things play out this time.
“You know my name, Ana.” Alexander responds dryly.
“Of course, because we always end up being the ones dealing with the aftermath of your shenanigans.” Ana groans. “The Guild receives reports of an explosion in the city, we get dispatched to find out what’s going on, and, like clockwork, we find you here, trying to play hero.”
“Since I’m this fast, why don’t you give me a spot in the ranks?”
She takes a moment to respond.
“You know why that cannot happen. Because of stunts like these, for example.” She waves at the destruction. “How much of this was your doing, Alexander?”
Tsuki comes to his defense. “The crates were already broken before we intervened, but we worked to salvage what we could, and offered compensation for what we could not. As per Guild policy.”
Pyre speaks up, too. “The damage on the walls was on accident, we swear. Alexander tried using some Aura Sphere technique, but it went out of control and exploded!”
Alexander winces.
“Another reason why we cannot allow him to join.” Ana shakes her head. “For someone trying to solve petty crime behind our backs, he causes quite a sum of collateral damage.”
Mol finally approaches, holding Yungoos in her ribbons. “Ana, please listen-”
“Who’s the Yungoos?” The Inteleon interrupts.
“A criminal.” She replies. “He tried stealing a Speed Scarf from a Totodile. We stepped in.”
Ana did not look pleased. “And that led to all of this. Very well, then. Team Darktide, the Guild expects a report upon your return. Tell us what happened, and we’ll act as if you weren’t encouraging this vigilante’s behavior while on the job.
“As for you,” She turns to Alexander, “You’ll be coming back to the Guild with us.”
“For what reason?”
“Your father is looking for you.”