---

Tristan glared at Robbie as he spouted crap of a man who practically already gave up. He had indeed been naive to not notice this beforehand or he would have known any attempts to help such a person to be wasted effort. But a part of him still thought that Robbie wasn't a bad person, just an idiot who made a particularly stupid decision, so he didn't regret the peaceful approach he chose to go about this.

That is until he had the absolute audacity to insult and insinuate his family to be the same as him on top of spitting in the face of his olive branch." How dare you! Don't go tossing bullshit at my family who has nothing to do with your fucking moronic mistakes." He spat out vehemently at the man; any dwindling kindness or pity he had for the man was gone as he thought nothing of making him suffer and handing him over. For a moment he even thought to just let the mob have and do as they will with him; nearly losing himself in such dark thoughts and anger born from and directed at Robbie. Until he heard Princess's pained cry from getting knocked back from the clashing quick attack.

An encounter that proved one thing; this ditto was slightly stronger if it was able to knock Princess back as he witnessed the way the ditto kicked up a cloud of dust to jump its way back to its trainer. The rich teen was still very much angry but seeing Princess shaking off the blow reminded him of his abysmal battle with Freya having him glance to King who was glaring at the transformed mon waiting for the next order.

He couldn't go at this recklessly if this ditto was indeed stronger though it didn't seem to be all that much stronger. And he was battling with two; so long as he went at this smart and had the two work together with teamwork then victory was possible as he simply could not allow Robbie win for a multitude of reasons. Having already suffered a painful defeat not too long ago and to lose to this thief even after using both his pokemon... would be crushingly humiliating.

Seeing that Robbie ordered the ditto to transform, Tristan took this chance to take a deep breath to soothe his anger. Not completely, mind as he wanted to keep some of it as motivation as he observed what his opponent ordered the dit-krow to do.

Now that his head had cooled down from Robbie's horrid insults, Tristan was able to think clearly, and an idea came to mind." Princess! Use quick attack to grab King out of the way of the feather dance! Once safe, King wait till the ditto draws close and hit it with a feather dance of your own. Once its distracted or thrown off by the feathers I want both of you to attack with a peck and feint from both sides!"

Amelia smiled as she noticed that the Yamask seemed to be curious about her. In fact, it seemed she had drawn the attention of several Yamask and Golets. Taking a seat on the ground, she let them come close and gather around her. She felt much more comfortable this way, surrounded by ghostly companions, even if it was in the middle of a dangerous area. But these things were not just pokemon to her but also possible friends. She would be more than happy to take one of them along.
"So, how're you all doing?" She asked them, as if they were old friends and even humans, reaching out to touch a Golet out of curiousity. Was it actually solid like the stone it appeared to be?

Once everyone was healed up, Jason set out to wander and get a feel for the city's Entertainment District. The restaurants with the trainers and their partners were nice and definitely appealed to Jason for later, but for the time being, he made mental note of the ones that looked more affordable and kept going. Approaching the gym, the aspiring champion simply stood outside and listened to the sounds coming from within and smirked. He wasn't sure he was ready to take on the gym just yet, but he knew that when he felt ready, he'd bring the gym leader back down to earth with his team. Until then, he kept moving. The various gambling dens made sense, as did the arcades and other structures. Overall, as he approached the contest hall, he decided that when the time came to decide if he was staying in Evig or going home to Hoenn, he would probably stay in Evig and get a place here in Starbor.

The Contest Hall wasn't nearly as hard to get into and as he stood and looked over the crowd, the Scraggy waving at him drew his attention. "Huh, that Scraggy...wait, that's Connor's! Then where...?" It took him a few moments to realize that the usually rough and tumble cowboy had traded in the denim for a fancy three-piece suit and when he realized that Jason was looking at him, he desperately tried to pass it off as if they hadn't made any kind of eye contact. Oh no, you don't get off that easily. Jason took his time approaching the cowboy, making sure he thought his ploy had worked before tapping the man on his shoulder, a grin on his face. "Who you tryin' to impress there, cowboy?"

@samreaper

Yeah, that vitriol was exactly what he was expecting. Well, as he said earlier, it would only be easier if Tristan hated him.

"I am merely asking you a question. What does it make you when the ivory tower that you've lived in was built on the back of broken lives and dreams your family smashed? Or do you think you're above it?", said Robbie. This man was not denying that he had made a terrible mistake that he could not come back from again. He was bitter, yes, but even as he insulted Tristan's own family, Robbie did not hold any anger towards the boy himself. If anything, there was pity in his tone.

Back to the fight, with great speed and timing Princess grabbed King out of the way of the projectile feathers that just stuck in the ground. Ironically enough, Princess was doing a princess carry for the magenta crow. As the fake Murkrow followed the Riolu to use Peck on the bipedal blue Pokemon only to receive a barrage of feathers that stuck to it, even on its beak that would act as a cushion for all attacks unless they were somehow removed.

"Come on Ditto, you gotta move!" Robbie implored, but the Ditto was completely taken aback from being tarred and feathered sans tar and was now pincered between King and Princess, proceeding to get its shit kicked in from both sides as they both somehow got critical hits. The impact from both of their attacks at the same time dealt a great amount of damage, causing the mimic Pokemon to stumble from the impact though because of its level advantage, it still was able to just hold on and looked like it could still take more hits. However, both critical impacts collided against its head from both sides, discombobulating to the point that both of Tristan's Pokemon could get a free attack off.

What are Tristan's orders?

---

@Joshua Tamashii

To her pleasant surprise, the Goletts felt pleasantly smooth not like stone, but like freshly glazed clay pottery. The spectral nature of them compared to her Phantump or Mimikyu or the wild Yamasks had to be different given that they were manmade rather than naturally occurring. It was a mystery as to why Golett had the properties of a ghost-type and Amelia probably did not have much of a clue either besides the idea because they were Pokemon that existed since ancient times though that would create a few implications of their nature if that was the case.

It's not like it particularly mattered now. What was more important was making friends with the local ghosts! Well, it would've been like that except they were not exactly sure how to react. They were not used to people being around them, let alone being nice so they were just looking at each other wondering what they were supposed to do. The one that she touched didn't really object to being touched either though it poked back at her stomach not too hard. It was more out of a childlike curiosity than anything though once it felt its finger poke against the malleable softness of her belly, it just kept repeatedly poking her. Somehow it was fun?

The Yamask that she was interacting with earlier puffed its cheeks up and smacked the Golett's hand away and began to tell it off. However, it was pretty obvious that it was acting like this because it did not like having Amelia's attention pulled away from it. Looked like that this one Yamask was a bit of an attention hog and perhaps a bit of a diva. Other Yamask and Golett were rolling their eyes at the sight as if this was a common occurrence between those two specific Pokemon.

While they were bickering, she would sense that the ruins seemed to emit a ghostly aura. Originally, one would assume that it's because of the ghost-types though the longer she remained around them, the more she would realize that the ruins themselves were emitting this.

What does Amelia do?

---

@Zarkun

Jason would see Connor jolt up and his muscles stiffen into a board. He turned around and his movements were so stiff as well that one would have thought they heard the sound of rusted metal creaking and moaning to see the full glory of this young man dressed to the nines. Now before, Connor did have this rugged, yet almost Hollywood Wild West handsomeness when dressed in his rancher's attire, but now he just looked like he belonged on the red carpet for some award show or a premiere for a movie that would be nominated for those award shows. His typical Stetson hat was nowhere to be seen and it revealed this neatly combed back brown, chestnut hair that was probably being held together by gel. The suit that he wore was a dark charcoal gray teetering into black with a matching vest, shoes, tie, and even elegant leather gloves that was all tied together by a white collared shirt and a white pocket square. He oozed with style and before was drawing quite a bit of attention with his looks because prior to Jason arriving, he was this neatly packaged together image of confidence, coolness, and fashion sense. The key word in that sentence was 'was.'

As soon as he turned around, Jason would see that the cowboy had now broken out in a nervous cold sweat. He refused to look him in the eyes and just had this very forced smile. "I, uh, nobody in particular. Just standing around... in a suit... by a contest hall for no reason. Absolutely no reason at all." said Connor, fiddling with his suit's cufflinks nervously.

This man was a terrible liar.

The thing is, Connor wasn't alone in being dressed up. There were others wearing fashionable suits and dresses waiting around. Well, arguably fashionable. Some were dressed up in clothes that many would consider would be flashy and tasteless and some had makeup so thickly applied to their face that one would question where their face was. Growing up in Hoenn, the birthplace of Pokemon Contests, Jason would know that people would dress up for these events.

"Yeah, and I'm the champion of the Hoenn League. Connor, I'm from the birthplace of Pokemon Contests. You don't need to hide that you're an aspiring Coordinator. I won't judge you for it." He joined the man in watching the current contest happening. "Take it you've been tryin' to hide this from Kapoc?"

---

Just what was this guy's deal? Having already betrayed him and said enough to piss him off to battle him and still Robbie kept spouting hurtful things. It was as if he was jabbing at an open wound with continued jabs directed at his family whom had nothing to do with any of this.

It was almost as if Robbie was going out of his way and actively trying to get him to hate the guy." Enough of your prattling! I have no reason to explain or defend my family to a thieving ranch half-wit! So shut your fucking mouth and battle me." He spat out in rebuke, the rich teen done listening and letting the rancher's words and sob stories get to him anymore.

His focus was now on the battle going on and for once his call actually worked out and far better than he hoped with Princess not only saving King from the feather dance but both landing their hits on the ditto. And to his surprise they struck ditkrow with such force they had left the poor thing discombobulated.

" This is what you wanted, isn't it Robbie?! This..all of this is on you." He spoke vehemently; anger at him for his insults and betrayal but most of all for forcing him to have his pokemon have their first team battle bullying this innocent ditto. He wanted Princess's first battle be an official one and give himself a chance to redeem himself for King after failing him so horribly against Freya.

Tristan exhaled slowly and with it felt some of his anger exude from him; tired of being angry and frustrated. Just wanting this whole farce be over with. But the bitter truth? Regardless of the results of this battle, it wouldn't be over for looming outside all this was the mafia.

" If you really are the bad person you try to be then prove it right here, right now. King! Princess! Both of you go at the ditto with a peck and feint with all your strength!" He gave the order hearing the two give a determined cry before charging at the dazed ditto once more. Yet, Tristan kept his attention on Robbie observing him looking for any signs that he might surrender.

If Robbie chose to do so Tristan would quickly shout for the two to stop, otherwise he let whatever happened take its course.

Faye wasn't sure Mr. Anderson was going to accept her offer. He was right. Just walking onto the ranch gave a much larger scale than she was expecting. She'd gone to farms with her father, but they were far smaller; hell, she was starting to question whether they were actual farms or just homesteads just big enough to run as ranches. He was right. Without knowing where the priss might have run off to, there was no proper way to track him down aside from showing Tilia and Sage his picture, and hoping they could find him in a search.

But then he seemed to think of something. The young trainer blinked and watched him thud off to the house. He was in favor of her helping, so while he was gone, she knelt and dug through her backpack to fetch her flashlight. It wouldn't do to go tromping off and not be able to see if it got even darker before she could find him. Next she called Sage and Tilia from their pokeballs. "Alright you two. I know you're both probably still a bit tired, but I don't think we'll need to do much fighting. I just need you guys to help me find someone that may be a bit lost." She stood and fixed her pack back on as the mountain of a man came back out with fancy looking shoes.

At least her hunch was right. Unlike everyone else that had worn sensible footwear to go trekking off on foot from town to town and through the forests and mountains between - the boy from out of region had worn shoes barely fitting for walking around a mall in much less going hunting problems on a ranch. She'd stepped in Tauros patties before, it would suck but these were not new sneakers and she could clean them with a bit of elbow grease if need be.

Faye offered Mr Anderson a confident smile. "Now I'm more than sure we can." She pulled out her phone and scrolled back a few pictures before zooming in on a picture and showing it to Tilia. "This is the guy we're looking for - he has a shiny Murkrow so if you see signs of purple feathers we may know we're on the right track too. See if you can spot him from overhead. You'll be able to see further ahead of us but can follow Sage where he leads." She stood, then looked to Sage who had already gotten a good smell of the shoes. "Ready?"

Sage yipped and started smelling around to catch where the wayward trainer had gone. "We'll help make sure he isn't lost out there and help him finish what he's started. This is in good hands." The young trainer waved to the rancher as she started to follow her Eevee. Tilia flew up into the sky to help follow along overhead while watching for signs of the silver-haired trainer or his Murkrow.

@Zarkun

Connor arched his brow at the idea that the professor would have had an issue with his interest in Pokemon Contests as if the thought was never even a twinkle in his eye. He just looked at Jason with a puzzled look as he questioned how one of his rivals jumped to such a conclusion because sure, the professor wasn't exactly the nicest kind of person alive, but he never showed any disdain towards Contests though it would be fair to imagine that they were not his scene. Besides, the professor was not the one who recruited Connor anyway; it was Adriane.

The very cleaned up cowboy said, "Kapoc? No, I don't think he'd particularly care to be honest. I mean, I still want to take the gym challenge, so it's not like I'd be troubling Kapoc or the League..."

Connor exhaled and ran his fingers back through his hair. He was just standing around with a bit of a slouch not looking Jason in the eye. It was a bit strange to look at compared to the bright, confident young man that he had just met the other day. He looked more like a demure dog that had been just caught lifting its leg up and pissing all over the rug that tied the room together.

"Look, when you grow up around people that tell you how a man should act and the expectations that are crushingly placed upon your shoulders, you don't really shake that off in a couple weeks. By their definition, Pokemon Contests are not something that 'men' take part in. Really, most of what I want to do would be considered that." said Connor with a chuckle albeit forced as if to make light of what was mentioned.

---

@Sanguine Rose

Moments later, they are now walking through a field with the Eevee taking lead. It was really easy to actually follow Tristan's scent, which was mainly just expensive fruity smelling lotions, moisturizers, and expensive shoe polish. It would be concerning if Sage would not have been able to smell such strong scents, but the little genetically unstable cat-dog thing was able to find it. The more they walked, the more the sun began to set below the hills and fields.

From above, Tilia definitely saw something of interest; far off there seemed to be a ditch of some sort where she could see a magenta-colored bird, actually, two magenta-colored birds fighting each other along with some blue bipedal dog. This would help spur them to move quickly seeing as there seemed to be a confrontation out in the distance.

---

@samreaper

The panic on his face said everything. He was not a trainer; he was not someone who can bear to watch his Pokemon get hurt. The man did not have the stomach for battling like someone even like Tristan had, so when he was about to watch his Ditto to become the past tense, he yelled out, "Stop!"

The farmhand's posture slumped, and his head hung low in defeat.

"Enough, you win."



Robbie returned his Ditto into its Pokeball and sighed, shaking his head just at the mess he was in. He lifted his head up and looked at Tristan again and said, "For the record. I didn't even want to battle you. I was hoping that you'd be scared off, but you actually fought me. Who would've thought that the rich kid actually had balls?"

While he was still somewhat demeaning, at least he was not trying to put up any resistance. Instead, he was giving Tristan this serious look as his eyes were now focused on the folder that the fledgling trainer was holding.

"Before you bring me back, I need to tell you this for your sake; that folder you're holding is going to cause you a whole lot of trouble if you keep it. If you give it to the police, the family will more than likely leave you alone. They don't really go after kids; they'd just chalk it up to you playing hero and just be annoyed by a minor inconvenience but giving it to the police means that the Lunds will find a way to make sure that the contents in that folder never see the light of day." Explained the very soon be to ex-farm hand.

"Still, if for some god forsaken reason you want to see this through to the end, you need to head to Frostford. I have a friend named Edward Hanes, a programmer, who will be able to help you with the contents in the folder, but I warn you, once the Lund's figure out that you have that folder, all hell is gonna break loose. They will do anything, and I mean anything to get that folder back. I can't tell you what's in it though; you need whatever plausible deniability you can get if you get caught with the folder until you get to Frostford. Again, this is all a very big if, if you decide to go through with it."

@Sanguine Rose

The two of them would soon hear the footsteps of someone approaching until, much to Tristan's dismay, it was one of the trainer's he met at Kapoc's lab in the morning and the same person who took a very incriminating image of the rich boy being dragged out by the scientist's murder dragon.

Robbie chuckled at the amount of overkill it was to have now two trainers on his back. "Seems like you got some backup. Too bad they wasted their time. It has been resolved already."

What do they do now?

@Sanguine Rose

---

Up until the moment Robbie yelled out for them to stop Tristan had remained tense and anxious. Both King and Princess halted stopping short of assaulting the dazed ditto with another round of attacks and with the end of the battle came a relieved sigh from their trainer's lips. The two looked at each other than towards Tristan with faces showing obvious uncertainty to which he would give a nod of the head to show they chose right to stop. This was a battle he never wanted to begin with, and he certainly did not want to bully the poor dazed ditto who was innocent in all this.

Seeing Robbie slumped down looking defeated and tired, the rich teen took this chance to kneel down to offer King and Princess who had made their way back over to him some pets." You two did great out there." In fact, if not for the two of them Tristan doubted that he could have solved this case at all." I'll be sure to reward the two of you properly once this is all properly finished." He promised with a nod earning a happy chirp and yip from the two.

This victory helped to uplift his mood if a little, but hearing Robbie speak up had his elated rush melted away as his gaze lifted to the man with a sharp glare. He was still very much pissed at being lied to and his family name insulted. Standing up and placing his hands on his hips as he glowered at the farmhand stating not wanting this battle either." Then it was a mistake on your part to assume me a coward. And your timing also proved unfortunate for prior to coming to this ranch I had a... rather unsavory experience." One that he preferred not to elaborate to a stranger and a thief and something he needed to amend for both his and King's wounded pride." An experience I have no intention of explaining to you but know that I've been humiliated enough today with no intention of letting some oafish farm hand scare me off." Scoffing with an air of indignant; ready for this whole thing to be over with.

Thinking on how to proceed from here when Robbie began speaking again. This time regarding the mob and for a moment thought he might be able to get out of this with little trouble from them after all. A hope only possible, however, if he gave the folder to the police otherwise, they would seemingly hunt him down to get it back. Whatever it was the folder held in its content; it seemed incredibly important or at the very least incriminating to this mob which had him questioning how it ended up in Robbie's hands.

A question he thought to ask but decided against it thinking it probably best to know little as possible, at least for the time being for in case he found himself captured.

While upset, Tristan made sure to listen to everything he said as he had a feeling there was more to all this than it first seemed. And upon being told information he had taken out his pokedex to take digital notes on the Lunds,town name, Frostward and this programmer, Edward. This wasn't to say Tristan had decided to keep the folder but better to be safe lest he forget and could simply delete the file whenever.

One thing was certain. Choosing to hold onto the folder would make the journey much more dangerous both him and his pokemon. A difficult decision to make indeed.

His attention grabbed again before he could ponder over his options after hearing mention of back-up." Pardon? I never.." Trailing off as he lifted his head to see the figure mentioned standing at the top of the ditch.

A face he struggled to recall at first until he saw the girl's horrid attire bringing an unpleasant memory of the frumpy girl he passed by about to battle children. A look of cringe formed on his face when he took notice of a shadow having him look up to catch sight of something flying high up in the air but of what he could not properly make out from this distance and the sun that was slowly moving towards setting.* If that bird shits on me I swear I will roast it over a fire while making its trainer watch.* He thought darkly with a smirk.

" Hmph.. a wasted endeavor. But if she wishes to take on the effort of helping you get out of this ditch then who am I to stop her. I've already done enough on my part." Folding his arms across his chest with a smug grin finally allowing himself the chance to savor the capture of the thief that had stumped everyone and avoided capture for weeks. After the day he had he deserved this small victory even if most of the legwork was from his pokemon.

Turning his attention to Robbie who he wanted to hate yet only felt pity as he let out a weary sigh." And for future reference if you want to try and come off as a bad guy... know when to stop pushing it otherwise you make it too obvious. You better make sure that ditto is well taken care of too." Pointing a finger at him in warning with a stern gaze before giving him a small smile.

" And... thank you." He muttered the last words before stepping back towards King and Princess wanting to check on them more properly to make sure they were ok.

Amelia smiled as she ran a hand over the Golett's smooth surface. When the pokemon began poking her in the stomach, causing the young girl to begin giggling. For some reason, the action made her feel ticklish and she couldn't help but laugh as the Golett continued to poke her. Sadly, the moment didn't last as the Yamask she had been talking to earlier seemed to desire her attention more. Amelia watched as the Yamask and Golett began fighting, as she considered her options. She would like to take a Yamask and a Golett with her on her journey but personality was a big concern for her. The Yamask in front of her would likely want to be pampered and given the most attention of any pokemon in her party. It would be difficult to do so when she had others she needed to give attention to as well.

As the two continued to fight, Amelia turned her attention to the ruins once again. She could still feel energy emanating from them, which made the young girl curious and eager to explore. But she knew that going in recklessly would be. Looking around, she would speak out loud to the ghosts around her in general.
"Um... would anyone be willing to be a guide through the ruins for me?" She asked.

Overhead, Tilia hooted to let them know she saw something. Faye could vaguely see two people squaring off in what looked like a two on one fight, but she couldn't tell who was the aggressor or not. At the end of the day - as a figure of speech given it was the end of the day - it didn't matter so long as the culprit was apprehended and the stolen eggs returned. There was also the other side of the fact she was mostly just making sure the city boy didn't get himself lost on the ranch trying to help the Andersons, too. If he didn't need help in battling, she wasn't planning to get involved; Sage and Tilia weren't healed from their match and would need to rest before she could be comfortable in actually getting them into a fight. It was just good to know she had made the right assumptions and hadn't led her Pokémon astray on any of the information she provided them.

Sage and Faye slowed to a walk as they approached the edge of the ditch to really get a good view of what was happening. Tilia flew down and landed on Faye's shoulder when she put a hand on her hip. "Well, I wasn't exactly coming to get into a fight, but I certainly will end one if you aim to start back up." Faye kept an even, matter-of-fact tone and a straight face as she spoke. It was the honest truth. She didn't want to fight, but she'd aim to end it quickly if she had to get involved.

Now that she had a better look at the situation - and the fact the two Pokémon she could still see clearly belonged to Tristan while the other one was gone - she realized it was kind of a waste to come find him aside from just making sure they both got back to the main part of the ranch. Though it also gave her a chance to see what other Pokémon he had with him now. He caught a riolu? Maybe she underestimated how good a trainer he might actually be. He'd come off as a pompous ass, but if he could catch a riolu his first outing, perhaps that was all just a show. Whatever the case - she supposed it was wrong to let her base a lot of assumptions about him as a trainer on his little speech in the lab.

She pulled out a piece of paper and a pen from her pocket and wrote a quick note: Tristan caught the thief. On our way back. She offered the paper to Tilia. "Bring this to Rosa's dad; he'll likely appreciate the update. We'll catch up shortly," she whispered to the green owl looking Pokémon still seated on her shoulder. The rowlet hooted again and took the paper in her mouth before flying off.

Faye's attention turned back to the pair in the ditch after Tilia was safely on her way back to the farmhouse. "Now, then - if you need help out I'll give you both a hand. Otherwise, climb on out. It's about time you two head back to full put this matter to rest." She even offered her hand out as a sign she meant what she said, but was cautious enough to make sure she properly braced her feet as to not so readily get pulled off balance in case either decided to be jerks about it. Sage, much for not having anything to do in this particular situation, just kept an eye on their surroundings to make sure no danger came upon them while the group worked to get moving.

Jason listened to Connor speak as he watched the contest himself, clapping when appropriate but otherwise just enjoying the change of scenery from traditional battles. When Connor finished, he took a moment to reply so he didn't say anything that wouldn't come across as he intended. "Well, for the record, I see nothing wrong with you wanting to do contests or anything else you want to. Hell, I grew up in Hoenn, the birthplace of Pokemon Contests, where people from all walks of life came to take part. Without prying, as that isn't my place, I will say at some point, mate, you have to do what makes you happy and fuck the rest, even if they're close to you."

@Sanguine Rose

---

With the battle over and Robbie's compliance Tristan was given time to let his temper alleviate. He took notice of the fact Faye was still standing at the top of the ditch scribbling something down but paid her no mind at the moment. As his focus was checking Princess and King to make sure they were alright since the two have aided him quite a bit in this case then had to do a battle; granted the battle had gone mostly in his favor so they turned out fine, just a bit tired.

A victory won through good teamwork, but not one any of them could be proud over as King gave an angry caw and pecked at Tristan's hand when he tried to pet him." Ow! Hey watch it! I just got my hand manicured this morning." He grumbled in warning while blowing over his fingers making sure the bird didn't damage them." Mur Mur! Krow Murkrow!" The shiny bird crowed angrily while pointing towards the pokeball on his belt with one of its wing before looking away with a sharp clack of its beak. The rich teen blinked down at the bird throwing a fit then at his belt." What are you blathering on abo-..is this about what happened back in the tunnel?" Tristan asked and received another angry beak clack as if confirming it as Princess gave the bird a comforting pat on the back." Rioulu riou lu." The bipedal canine spoke in a soothing manner that got King to look at both of them with a small glare.

" Come on King, there's no need to get your feathers ruffled. I made a gamble to try and settle things peacefully which of course failed." Turing to give Robbie a small dirty look as he said this before turning back." And couldn't risk having a fight breaking out in that tunnel. Things didn't turn out like I hoped but everything ended...well enough." Tristan reached once more to try and pet the magenta bird who looked at the hand still glaring but made no move to peck at him again." And if it helps, I apologize and won't do it again I promise." Held his hand just above his head as he said this as King glared up at his trainer for a few seconds." Krow Mur!" The bird said as if telling him he better then flapped his wings to fly up onto his shoulder signaling the matter was settled with a happy jump from Princess." And if you peck my hand like that again I will withhold feeding you today." Said with a smile as if joking but the underlying cold hint to his playful tone said otherwise.

Standing up dusting off his hands then turned around to face Robbie once more placing his hands on his hips." Right. Let us be rid of this place as I've had enough of this dusty ditch, and I wish to be freed of these... filthy boots." He glanced down at them his face cringing in distaste.

Robbie's injured leg would of course make just climbing up out of the ditch difficult leaving them to have to find a portion that was less steep. After a fair bit of effort and some help from Tristan but mostly from Princess pushing against the man's back and leg with the last stretch aided by Faye to get him up, the group were finally on level ground once more where Tristan took his first proper look at Faye and much like with the boots cringed at the sight of her horrid sense of fashion or more like lack of." If you're here then I take it you've finished beating those kids. I do hope you're not intending to try and swoop in and take credit for *our* work." Leering at the girl suspiciously while grabbing the handkerchief from his back pocket dabbing the sweat from his face then with a pat to Robbie's back to signal to start making for the ranch house.

Glancing once more at Faye where he let out a scoff before setting off.

With the wingull finally in a ball, Steph just let out a sigh as she spun the device on her finger before tossing it up and pocketing it. This trainer stuff was harder than it looked huh? She knew it wouldn't be as easy as the league trainers back home made it seem, but as she looked over at Jack who seemed to be quite ginger after that fall, she took a moment to think. To think on the events of the day before sighing again as she returned her Sneasal and assuming Freya was still nearby she would meet up with her before heading to the pokecenter to deal with her once more hurt pokemon.

After that little trip, Steph would make her way to the nearest public entrance to the sewers and go to enter to see what was going on inside.

@Joshua Tamashii

To no one's surprise, the Galarian Yamask quickly floated towards Amelia to volunteer with the automaton lumbering not too far behind to guide her through the ruins. The rest of the ghosts' attention began to wane and simply went back to what they were doing and left the impromptu tour of the ruins. Well, it was hard to call it a tour given that they could not actually communicate to Amelia in any way that would convey the history of the ruins. Then again, they knew even less than her. They were leading her through the ruins along the river, heading upstream.

What Amelia did know about these ruins was less specific towards the ruins there specifically and more about the general knowledge of the ruins that she learned in school, given that she was twelve years old and more than likely had very little knowledge of the ruins beyond her education. Evig was not always a unified region; it was once many petty kingdoms that would pillage other regions as scourge of the seas for a few centuries until they were unified into a single kingdom that has lasted into the modern age. Well, existing in a capacity where they served more as cultural ambassadors and a symbol rather than political leaders. This was the Sigmond Royal Family. This was something that Evig Natives would know even as small children.

There was no way for Amelia to tell from what time period the ruins here specifically were from other than just old. The remains of the ruins were mainly stone constructs such as moss-covered arches, intricately carved grand gates that were now partially freestanding with some connected to walls, pillars in various states of disrepair with the remains of some laying on their sides, and various places that may have once been buildings. Of course, there were the aforementioned free-standing walls that looked like they were part of something once, but now confuse people with their strange markings where the occasional Yamask would pop out from one of the walls though the ghostly energy that came from the ghosts differed to what was in the ruins. It would have been fair to assume that this was perhaps once a great city built that took advantage of the river for various uses such as transporting goods and irrigation though eventually fell.

It would become very clear that not all of the ruins emitted that energy that she sensed earlier; it was the walls with the markings on them. There was also something else; one would expect Pokemon to roam around the ruins. Nature had reclaimed these ruins and save for the occasional ghost-type that roamed around, the only living things in the area were Amelia and the Pokemon with her. Not a single soul, living or otherwise could be seen or sensed. Just the sound of the wind rustled leaves and the running river could be heard. This was more evident the further upstream they went.

What does Amelia do?

---

@Sanguine Rose@samreaper

Robbie held his hands up and said, "Hey, hey I said I'm done. I know when I'm beat. I'm not picking a fight with two trainers at the same time." He was keeping his hands up to show that he was not going to be a threat as he limped towards the edge of the ditch where Faye was and with the help of her, Princess, and a minor contribution from Tristan, they got the farmhand out. He thanked them and watched Tristan just being the absolute worst to the newly arrived trainer.

"You know, kid, if you keep that haughty attitude up, you're never gonna have friends. Well, not someone who wants to be with you for you at least." said the farmhand before he continued to limp his way back to the farm with the other two. There were red and blue lights off in the distance that got brighter and brighter the closer they were to the farm. When they did arrive, the entirety of the farm save for the two daughters were present where Faye would assume that Rosa was watching her little sister.

Neil, the massive Ursaring of a man approached the farmhand being escorted by the two trainers with a look a great sadness. "So, it really was you." He said with a disappointment akin to that of a parent rather than anger. "You remember what I told you when you first started to work here. This was your second chance. That was the deal."

Robbie smiled at him though it was obviously one of regret, yet gratefulness towards the large man to have at least been given a second chance. "Yeah, I remember. Sorry, I guess there are some things that just don't change." he clasped his hands around Neil's hands and when released, there was a Pokeball in his former employer's hands. "Take it. Use it to help make up for the damage I've done. Thanks for everything, boss." Gently pushing Neil out of the way, Robbie limped his way to the police and held his hands out towards them. "Alright, take me away."

If Tristan wanted to give the police the folder, now was the chance. Either way, what happens afterwards plays out the same way anyway.

Minutes later, the police and Robbie were gone. The rest of the employees dispersed to go finish up what they were doing previously before they dropped it to do the mad search. The only ones left were Neil, his wife Frida, and the two trainers. Neil just stood there, and the poor man just looked exhausted while his wife, this very short, physically strong looking blonde woman just rubbing his back like he was a kicked puppy. He turned to two trainers and took a very deep breath and then a long exhale.

"Well, this has been a day." He said tiredly and then suggested, "How about you two go inside and relax? I can get your reward ready, Tristan, in the meanwhile." Neil turned to his wife and asked, "Honey, could you take them to the house while I do that?"

In her ever-thick Galarian/Scottish, Frida said, "Sure thing love. C'moan ye two, ye baith keek lik' ye'v hud a day." She would lead the two to a large farm style house with a luxuriously large wooden deck decorated with wooden chairs with soft cushions of high quality as well as various other bits of outdoor furniture. They would be led inside to a fashionably furnished house filled with modern, yet rustic chic furniture until they reached what was the living room with a pretty blonde braided girl with sharp eyes and denim overalls that Faye would recognize was Rosa and a pre-school aged girl with brown hair, Lisa, who she beat earlier.

Rosa was reclined on a brown leather sofa with her feet resting on the armrest watching her little sister play with dolls when the two and her mother walked in.

"Heya ma, Faye, I saw it all from inside. That's some crazy stuff." She arched her brow when she noticed the rich boy next to her. "So you're the hero of the day, huh? I guess I should thank you, so thanks I guess."

"Rosa, whit hae ah tellt ye aboot putting yer feet oan th' couch?" Her mother said with a stern tone and then turned to the two trainers. "Ye two git comfy. A'm aff tae mak' dinner."

Frida went off to the kitchen and now they were left alone to their own devices.

Oh, and Tristan was given his shoes back earlier, so those worn old boots were now retired.

---

@Zarkun

Connor just stared at him with a look of exhaustion and annoyance in response to Jason's well meaning, but unsolicited advice. "What do you think I'm doing outside a Contest Hall wearing a suit that costs around the down payment of a used car?" The cowboy asked rhetorically. It was a bit cold though it was clear that the last thing that he wanted was advice, especially if it was something that he already knew though quickly realized that what he said came out as much ruder than he intended to. Especially since his Scraggy was looking up at its partner with disappointment.

"Sorry, uh, that was uncalled for. I'm... I'm just gonna head inside. If you want to watch, you can probably get a ticket at the reception desk. I'll see you later."

Jason would watch the cowboy and his Scraggy walk away and into the hall.

What does Jason do?

---

@Lunarlord34

A quick heal later, Steph was back out and accompanied by a curious Freya because Steph did not tell her what her plan was. Now here's the thing; sewers were not places where people went to hang out. There was not a public entrance per se where people could go through legally like they would for the entrance of a theater or an amusement park. In fact, sewers were not places where people generally wanted to go at all. Not even the people who build and maintain them want to be down there! So, the 'public' entrance that Steph would find was a manhole cover.

Realizing what was about to happen, Freya stepped backwards and with disgust painted clearly on her face she said, "Oh, hell no. There's a lot that I'll do, but sewer crawling isn't one of them. If you want to meet up later, just text me, but I am not going down there."

If Steph did not find a way to convince her, the bogan girl would find herself climbing down the latter to the sewers by herself. It wasn't a long climb down and the further down she went, the damper it became and the worse the smell became. She would eventually touch ground.

@samreaper

Well, those hopes that she was wrong about the haughty pretty boy were quite swiftly dashed. Faye wasn't sure if she was disappointed she was right, or disappointed he seemed so eager to prove her reassessment wrong. It made the fact he had a riolu already all the more confounding to her. This had to be a show then. That was the only way it made sense. But, if this was all just a show, then why - ugh. She had to stop trying to riddle him out right now or her brain would melt. Right now the point was just getting these two dolts back to the farmhouse.

She rolled her eyes at Tristan's snide remark. Sage growled softly at him before Faye scooped him up in her arms and stroked behind his ear. "Don't let him get to you. You remember his speech from the lab." Sage calmed at that, and turned a bit to lick Faye's cheek. She let him jump down, and let Sage take the lead. Faye followed alongside Robbie in case he needed to lean on someone to help him navigate the uneven terrain back to the farmhouse.

Her flashlight certainly came in handy before long. It was already dark enough the lights in the distance helped light some of the day - so having the readily available light to keep the shadows from dancing too much and hiding potholes. She stopped Robbie once, navigating him around a spot that would likely cause the limb to get worse, on their walk back. Bad guy or not, he didn't deserve a twisted ankle to go along with a prison cell. When they got close enough, she saw Tilia perched on a fence post not far off. Whether the rowlet delivered the note or not, at least she was waiting for them to return. That certainly made it easier than hunting the grass bird down.

While the scene played out between the farmhand and the rancher, Faye turned her attention to the rowlet. She whistled and held out her arm. Tilia flew over and took a perch on the offered appendage. "Thank you for your help. Want to stay out? There's a little girl inside that would like to meet you." Tilia brustled in what looked like a shrug with an impartial hoot.

She returned as it all seemed to wrap up and the officers were departing with the thieving ranch hand. While the giant of a man didn't seem too pleased with how everything turned out, Faye offered him a gentle smile. "Thank you for your hospitality." She didn't give Tristan much of a second glance and headed off after the woman - Frida - with Sage at her side. She had told Rosa she'd catch up in a bit. This was more than a bit but at least she was keeping her word at returning. Upon entering the home, Faye's smile brightened as she looked to the woman. "You have a very lovely home, Mrs. Andersen."

Sage trotted over and sat next to Lisa to watch her playing with dolls. Faye's attention turned to Rosa when the teen spoke up. "Yes, kinda crazy. But helpful this guy wears such strong perfumes that even Tilia could have tracked him down. I'm sure the absolute last thing you guys need is some trainer and a thief twisting an ankle or worse on the walk across your pastures. Oh, hey, you said you had a printer I could borrow, right? I should print those pictures off for you guys before I completely forget. Do you mind showing me where it is? Otherwise, like I said, we can exchange some info and I can just forward you a digital copy or mail you a professional print when I stop home in King's Cross."

Sighing as Connor headed in, Jason decides to let the man have some peace of mind and heads out and away from the Contest Hall. He hums to himself as he walks around, noting each new Pokemon but not really looking to catch any of them as he goes. Eventually, he comes to a platform with a view of the lake and just stands, thoughtful about the journey ahead of him.

@Sanguine Rose

---

Tristan simply scoffed at Robbie's comment. He was a trainer now who was not in the business of making friends and certainly not with some girl who looked as if she was dressed in clothes she stole from a thrift store from the side glance he gave her. Paying Faye and her growling eevee no attention, the teen had moved to start walking. Princess hesitated at first as she was looking between his trainer then to the girl with a look of concern. The small canine gave a friendly wave to her in greeting and almost as if trying to apologize for Tristan before Running off after Tristan.

The walk along the unsteady dirt path was made more difficult with the sun having set leaving it up to Tristan and Faye to use their pokedex flashlights to illuminate the way forward. And seeing as Faye was handling Robbie, he saw to keep his up to keep the path revealed in distant allowing her to be used to watch their immediate paths for any rocks or holes that might trip them off. The ground being perilous enough that even Princess had a bit of trouble and nearly tripped a few times until Tristan stopped and knelt down to pick her up and placed her on his left shoulder where she could rest safely having deserved it while King nestled on his right shoulder gave a friendly caw.

Eventually they would reach the house and without any injuries as they found the huge Ursaring of a man, Neil out and waiting for them as Robbie was handed over. Tristan folded his arms observing as the two talked and from their expressions as well as their body language seemed to one between two old friends which made deeply exhale with a bitter taste left on his tongue. This case was settled and taken care of with no casualties, but that didn't mean he was satisfied or pleased with the end result; yes, Robbie made stupid choices, yet the guy was inherently a good person, his surrendering to spare the ditto unnecessary suffering proved that.

The authorities appeared and with their appearance came the reminder of the folder currently hidden with his bag. He had been mulling it over; a back-and-forth battle on why he should and shouldn't give up the folder. As parts of him saw no need to bother taking on all the danger and risk to get this folder to said location which could hit or aid in bringing an end to this mafia group. He was no hero and had no intention to pretend, not when the safety of his pokemon and his own were at risk. All he had to do was hand it over to the police and he would be freed of their future ire but doing so would of course have the folder eventually ending back in their hands as they likely had members in the force. And with it meant they would be free to continue their vile schemes unopposed. The thought of being the one person that would be viewed as a threat; someone that they feared could put an end to everything was what battled back against the fear of danger. Tristan couldn't remember the last time he was given a chance to feel so important, that he could actually do something to help people.

Then there was the curiosity. What could some papers possibly hold that could be such a danger or important for them to chase some teenaged trainers? Or for that matter how Robbie got hold of it or who this person he mentioned to hand it over to? For all he know this guy could just be part of a rival gang. There were many unknown variables and plenty of risks involved and not just for him. The question Tristan needed to ask himself was if he truly could live with the knowledge his pokemon could get hurt and for what? So he could feel important? To finally get an achievement that he got through his own efforts and not just because of his family name.

It was then that he noticed he was chewing on his right thumb's fingernail having not even noticing doing so as his face was showing conflicting expressions. He was on the verge of making his decision to hand it over when he felt two soft pats from Princess patting the side of his head and King tapping his taloned foot against his shoulder. He glanced at each of them to see them smiling as if telling him whatever he decided would be accepted. A quick sniff and rub of his nose, Tristan turned away from the cops but not before giving Robbie one last wave, his mons following suit. A decision made that would either have him come to regret it or be grateful or even possibly both. Only time would tell.

He still had much to think on this but chose to shelve it at least for now as he turned his attention now to Neil who looked sad and disappointed. If there was anyone he felt bad for it was this man. He stepped over to the huge, exhausted bear of a man hearing him speak of going inside to make themselves comfortable. As well as a reminder of his reward though even he knew it to be in poor taste to mention or request it right now.

Instead the rich teen craned his head back to look up into Neil's sad face." I'm... sorry that this whole thing became such a mess and I apologize for not being able to get the eggs back." He frowned legitimately feeling bad, almost as if he failed them in a way.

" It... can't be easy, the fact it was someone you probably trusted well." He spoke, his tone uncertain not used to trying to console someone and certainly not a man twice his size. One that was intimidatingly strong he imagined but not even he could stand up against the threat of the mafia, at least not without any forewarning and preparation as he imagined them to be paying this ranch a visit before long. So, while he wasn't handing the folder over, he felt to at least give warning and thought it best just to tell him for now as he did not want to have his family panicking.

A motion of his hand for him to bend closer then shifting up onto his tippy toes to cover the last bit of distance to press his lips close to his ear. Here he whispered the details surrounding Robbie with mentions of the mafia.

" I hope we were able to put a stop to the thieving before the damage became too much. And..." As loathed as he was to say this after having stepped back as if what he just whispered to him never took place." Due to circumstances, I must ask a request to keep the identity of who captured the thief for your case anonymous." He hated having to pass up this perfect opportunity for recognition but at this way he would get some more time to prep before the mafia learned and caught onto him or at least he hoped." With that, whatever other business we have left can wait till a better time. Take care of whatever you need. I shall be inside then." A curt nod with a comforting smile from Princess.

Moving his way inside to find Faye already having entered and his first glimpse of her feathered owl who he surmised to have been the bird he saw flying overheard back at the ditch. Also, where he heard Faye commenting about his smell being very present while the manner said implied it to be an insult.* Hmph, you should be honored to have gotten the chance to have a whiff of my perfumes that are worth more than whatever hovel you lived in alone.* He thought, annoyed at the indirect jab at him.

Soon taking notice of Rosa and the little sister of which, he kept his distance from." Hm, yes I suppose you could say that. I'm glad I could help." But he did not feel like a hero and his mood seemed to drop by the second. Hardly pleased with the whole ordeal and tired from such an aggravating and taxing day. Without another word, Tristan sulked his way to the chair in the corner where he sat; wasting no time getting the boots off ridding himself of such filthy footwear in order to get his cherished loafers back on though not before a quick hug having greatly missed them.

From then on Tristan kept to himself wanting to be left alone for the moment as he had much to think. While both King and Princess had hopped down wanting to meet and interact with Sage and Tillia if they were still out and about after a quick nudge for permission which he saw no reason to deny. Right now he wanting nothing more than to be alone and unwind while working out his thoughts.

Communication. It was such a simple, basic tool humans have used for centuries-nay, Millenium. From helping each other in hunting and gathering, to something as simple as explaining the need to go into the sewers to investigate reports of a strange pokemon sighting, communication between individuals was key. Yet, Steph was far too engrossed in her own keeness and seemed to be under the assumption that Freya had also overheard the rumour, and thus hadn't felt the need to explain even as she was opening up the manhole currently beneath her.

Not even when the other girl showed her disgust, Steph didn't really explain and just shrugged.

"Suih' yoahsself Freya, guess Oy'll say whaht's bayn causin a fuss daown theah boy myself." With that said and a brief wave good-bye, the red-head made her way down below into Grand Glory city's sewers.

Now, most people would be put off by such a stench, and it isn't like Steph was completely immune or anything. She still made a bit of a face, but honestly, this was about what she had expected. It was a sewer after all. But honestly, it wasn't that much worse than the fields back home now was it? Lots of Taurus and Miltank dung and whatnot lying around, and guess who was one of the lucky ones in charge of cleaning it up? Plus cleaning their stalls...

Anyway, such a disgusting stench was only mildly offputting for someone of Steph's upbringing and tolerable for the most part. Dusk on the other hand? The Litwick certainly didn't seem happy....but also didn't seem to have a nose so maybe it was fine? And honestly, who knew? Well the DM might but that was a problem for him to sort out.

At any rate, Steph would just look to her partner on her shoulder and at the plethora of slimy Grimer and scattered about ratatata and trubbish and well...while they were down here, it wouldn't hurt to do a little training now would it? Nothing was really in the way down here, so she would look to battle a few mons down here and get some levels into Dusk and Jack in particular, and Glory if she could. He seemed the weakest, so getting some training into him would be invaluable when she could.

All the while, as she explored and trained, she would keep an eye out for any signs of what she was originally down here for. Whether that was odd noises, maybe some strange markings, hell maybe even if an area seemed oddly quiet or lacking in pokemon to other areas. Even if it didn't lead her to the mystery pokemon in question, she might find something else down here if she lucked out.

@Zarkun

Jason just stands there, taking a moment of respite thinking about his journey while taking in the view. From where he was standing, he could see two towns across the lake; one was a more traditional town with many flowers coloring it, enough that it could be seen from all the way from Starbor and then there was a town that was surrounded by high, imposing stone walls. Beyond that, there was the beginning of a valley that spanned for miles and at the very cusp was a blanket of white. There was still so much that Jason had to do, so much that he had to explore.

His life had really taken a sharp turn. One day he is in Hoenn with his uncle and the next he is selected by the most powerful trainer in the world to take part in her league and travel the healing region of Evig. He'd already had a wild couple of first days; taking on a poacher, leaning about the Night Touches, a person falling from the sky, bad happenings in the Marsh, and then nearly being wiped off the census by a Scyther. The crazy thing is that he knew this was only the beginning. The more he travels, the more experiences that he will have. Some good, some bad because that's just life.

Of course, all of this could amount to nothing. Jason wasn't the only trainer taking the gym challenge. He was just of the handful of new trainers that the champion personally selected to just even have the chance of taking her title and this is not even considering about the other experienced trainers that signed up to challenge the league. This whole adventure could just amount to nothing, but then again, he would not know until he tried.

The land awaits him.

What does Jason do?

---

@samreaper@Sanguine Rose

Rosa's eyes narrowed at the sulking mass of snark and vanity that was Tristan. Who would've thought that the person who helped them with the egg thief situation was this dweeb."Jeez, aren't you just a ray of sunshine."

Though then we have the actual ray of sunshine asking about the printer that Rosa had mentioned earlier. "Ah, yeah it's in my dad's office." She hopped off the sofa and to her feet though she realized that if she left the room, she'd leave her little sister unsupervised. The farm girl turned to Tristan and said, not asked, said "Just keep an eye on my sister for bit. We'll be back in a few." Whether or not Tristan wanted to comply, he simply was not given the option to reject because she was already leading Faye out of the room and any protest he had would've been soundly ignored.

Faye was led down a hallway for less than a minute until she walked into a room with Rosa that was obviously someone's office. It had a desk covered in folders, papers, and a laptop. There were shelves and filing cabinets filled with more books and files, and of course, there was the printer. Rosa walked over to the computer and with a few clacking of the keys she was logged in. "Okay, whenever you're ready."

Meanwhile, the little girl was staring at Tristan silently, rarely blinking as if she was trying to get a read on this guy then without warning she asked, "Why do you look like the boys on the magazines my sister reads?"

---

@Lunarlord34

Oh no, Dusk would've definitely been able to smell the sewers and he would not like it one bloody bit.

Okay, so here was the interesting thing about using fire-type moves in the sewers; nothing happened. These sewers were really just storm drains, the things used to carry off things like rainwater and melted snow from the streets though would typically have things like oil and various forms of trash come down this way. The Grimer that made their home here were responsible for cleaning that up, not eating shit. The sanitary sewers were a completely different thing where one would need special equipment to actually survive to noxious fumes that would pollute one's lungs among other things.

Having Dusk go against an Alolan-Grimer would typically be a terrible idea, but they were not a high enough level to know a dark-type move so the Litwick was able to fight these things with relative ease. Jack was able to just easily run down the sewer mons in a fight because it was a fucking Sneasel throwing hands against a literal trash bag and rats with only the Grimers being able to take more than one hit. Glory didn't struggle as much as one would've expected. The Wimpodd was able to outmaneuver all the of wild Pokemon and faired the best against the Rattatas with Struggle Bug and picked off whatever weakened Pokemon that Dusk and Jack left. Overall, it went well though they all seemed to have taken just a minor bit of damage.



While walking around training her mons and exploring the sewers like it was something a sane person does, she did notice something odd. There were scorch marks on the concrete walls and floors variously placed about the corridors of the sewers though there was one mark that was recently made, as in she could still smell the smell of smoke. Whatever made that, it was still nearby.

What does Steph do?