Chapter 1 - The Quest

The call that night had gone pretty well, all things considered. Lena spoke with Clare, who from the sound of it was in the process of finishing her day, and was surprised a Ranger had gotten her Quest so quickly. In a quick phone call born out of a desire to not work during off hours, Clare scheduled a time for Lena to visit the Accumula Boarding Home the next day at 9:30 AM. Thankfully, it wasn't located too far from the Pokémon Center; she confirmed from the address it was just down the road.

The next day, after excusing herself from standard patrol to handle the Quest, Lena called Clare to let her know she was on her way before she took flight on an Unfezant. Feeling the air on her face was always a joy to Lena as she watched the Unova Region below pass by, seeing the Pokémon and people pass by living their lives…

It was a beautiful reminder of why she became a Pokémon Ranger.

Still, her thoughts nagged at her about this Quest. It felt odd to head to Accumula Town, one of the quietest places in Unova. Located in the southeastern peninsula, with Striaton to the north and Nuevma to the south. The only notable thing about the town was its music scene, being the birthplace of many jazz bands like 'The Accumula Beats' or the 'Unovan Underground Orchestra'. Lena frowned thinking about the phone call from the night before. Clare didn't provide many details, but specified that it was concerning a specific child in the system, and it was private…. Either that or she was hiding something; she seemed nervous over the call.

'We're coming down soon anyway, not like I need to wait long… ' she mused to herself as she saw the city come into view. One gentle pat and a squawk later, the Unfezant shifted his wings slowly making for the Pokémon Center. Landing away in an open spot, Lena gently hopped off and stroked the Pokémon's back. She smiled at him as she pulled out a couple of berries from a pouch in her uniform and held them out for the Pokémon.

"Thank you for helping me, here, as a treat." She said as the Unfezant let out a happy trill before gently taking the berry from her hands, making another happy squawk in thanks before flying off. Lena's Styler made a beep on her side to signify that the Pokémon had been 'released' from the Styler's influence.

Lena felt her own Poké Balls gently wiggle on her belt, particularly Arthur's. A light chuckle slipped out as she glanced down at them and passed her finger over them. "I know, I know… I'll let you out after the meeting, okay?"

At her soft tone the wiggling stopped, but she felt Arthur's Aura whimper through the capsule but tapered off in understanding. Lena rolled her eyes, but still held a grin on her face.

Occasionally checking the GPS on her Styler for directions, she headed towards the boarding home, smiling and waving to the people and Pokémon around. Some looked on with surprise, others in a bit of awe, and others still in suspicion; Lena supposed it made sense since Rangers are so rarely seen around here due to the lack of activity.

'Though, with not just one, but technically three former Gym Leaders in the area, that's probably another reason…' Lena mused to herself for a moment before glancing back at her Styler, taking a right from the street the Pokémon Center was at and glancing to the park across the street. Her mind paused for a moment as something about it felt familiar, but she couldn't recall why. Discarding the echo of the memory for now, she turned left on Carlyle St. and continued on towards her destination.

To Lena's surprise, the outside of Accumula Boarding Home didn't look as she originally envisioned; it was… clean and maintained. The building, while clearly old, had a clean coat of paint that was inviting and bright, with windows in seemingly every room for the residence. A waist-high fence was on the outside with an electronic gate leading to a sidewalk path at the entrance. Some kids outside were playing with toys, or even a small Pokémon such as a Lillipup and a Skitty. Another kid sat in the corner of the yard with a Purrloin sleeping in his lap, reading a book away from the rambunctious younger children. It really befitted the overall energy of Accumula Town, peaceful and uneventful.

Off to the side was an Audino supervising the children and tidying up some scattered toys. Lena noticed he had a lanyard with a laminated badge on it, designating that he was a certified 'Helper Pokémon' for the Accumula Boarding Home.

The Audino's ears twitched slightly as Lena walked up to the gate. Turning around, the Pokémon perked up with a smile as he recognized the Ranger uniform, prompting him to stand up and dust himself off before walking over. Some children looked over with curiosity as Lena smiled at them before turning to the Audino, glancing down at his badge to get his name. "Hello, Jiro! I'm here to meet with Clare Ranton concerning a Quest?" She greeted as she quickly navigated her Styler to the message about the meeting, before turning to show Jiro to verify.

Jiro took a moment to squint at the screen before perking up, letting out a happy noise and moving his badge to something at the side of the gate. A clicking noise was heard as it swung open slowly. The Audino motioned Lena to follow, but not before he made a noise and pointed to one of the older kids who perked up excitedly. Some of the younger ones groaned "Why does she get to be in charge again?" and "She always spoils our fun…"

Lena did her best to hide her chuckle, and followed Jiro closely as they walked into the building. "Active kiddos aren't they?" She asked, Jiro chuckled slightly and nodded in response. "Audi… dino." He said with a sigh. Lena wished she had Arthur out at the moment, but she could still understand the "Yes, very active" from the tone alone.

Jiro quickly guided her to an office in the corner of the main lobby. To the left straight across was a cafeteria, allowing whoever was in the office to monitor the children. Lena could tell there was something sweet cooking up inside the kitchen, possibly Pecha Berries as an ingredient?

Jiro opened the door, and Lena followed in thereafter. The office was an amusing mish-mash between a professional administrative area and a cozy, happy environment for children. On one side were bookshelves, a large wooden desk, a whiteboard, a calendar with too many meeting dates listed, and a few filing cabinets that looked ready to topple over from how full they were. The other side had some sofas, picture books, a few plushies, and one of those wire toy mazes with beads on a small coffee table.

Complementing the two-tone office was a lady who simultaneously looked like she was always full of energy and eternally needed another cup of coffee. Clare Ranton wore a white and gold striped summer dress with her gray hair in a bun, like a caring grandmother baking cookies. Behind round glasses were a pair of eyes with weight to them which couldn't be conveyed over the video call, which was sadly expected in her line of work…; however, she still had an energy to her posture despite it all.

"Ah, Ranger Lena, yes? It's good to see you in person! I apologize for the… obtuseness of this Quest." Clare said politely, Lena nodded, smiled, and raised her hand out to shake, with Clare returning the gesture and smiling at Jiro. "Thank you so much for guiding her here, I know how much you have your hands full with the little ones out there…" She said gratefully. Audino waved her off and made a noise as if to say 'please, it's my pleasure'. Bidding them both farewell, he turned to head back outside, and Lena shifted her attention back to Clare.

"Thank you again so much for agreeing to meet with me so soon about this. Please, have a seat." Clare's eyes seemed to age even more as she spoke.

"That's what Rangers are here for… what can I help with? There wasn't a lot of information over the phone, so forgive me if I'm going to have to ask a few questions." Lena asked kindly. A gentle smile formed on her face as Clare took a deep breath and sighed. Leaning to the side of her desk and opening a drawer, she grabbed what looked like a couple folders; two of them were nearly the size of the width of her thumb.

"The reason for this Quest is one of our wards, William. He's been in the system for about… two and a half, almost three years now? I'm his... fifth? sixth? case worker assigned to him.... Dragons above, even I've lost count." She said with a sigh, leaving Lena looking a bit shocked and prompting a delicate follow up.

"Is he… ah, troubled?" She said as she looked at the tiles of the files… recognizing two police reports, and a psychological evaluation. However, Clare shook her head, but looked concerned still.

"No, William..." she exhaled slightly in exasperation. "He's not a problem child, if that's what you're asking. No doubt he's troubled given what he's gone through, but he's always open to helping others. He's quick to pick up things in school, and most teachers have had nothing but compliments, but he's been described as…." Clare rambled for a moment before she bit her lip, struggling with her words for a moment.

"He's been displaying some tendencies that are concerning." She finally placated, grabbing one of the thicker manilla folders on the table and opening it up, shifting it closer to Lena. A picture paper-clipped to the top corner of a brown-haired pale kid in a yellow sweatshirt that was a size or two too big. His closed-mouth smile at the camera didn't look… genuine. Lena hummed as she scanned the page, noting a couple of details.

'Date of birth, July 6th, year unknown… estimated to be four or five years old when he entered the system... found off the side of Route 2 alone and brought to a nearby Pokémon Center... no belongings other than the clothes on him... huh…' Lena hummed as she scanned through the page, her posture shifting slightly into something more serious and her face drooping in sympathy as she turned back to Clare. "Yeah, I can see a kid struggling after experiencing that… were his parents... um... not a good fit? Is that why he didn't return to them?"

"No signs of abuse, if that's what you're asking, but no, we couldn't find them. Anywhere."

Lena looked shocked for a moment, before quickly recovering and asking a follow up question. "In Unova?"

Clare sighing as the weight hanging over her intensified before elaborating. "Nowhere. Not in Unova, Wimuno, Orre, Indigo, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Galar, Kalos, Paldea, Zdarova, and Novograd. Fiore and Almia didn't have any records either. I even had a friend check in Alola despite not having a League. It's possible they could live somewhere else but…" Clare pinched her nose and sighed heavily. "He's been a ward of the state ever since, making it clear in absolutely no uncertain terms he doesn't want to be a part of any foster family. Early on we just thought it was… you know, it was him missing his family, not wanting to replace them. Something that counseling, partner therapy, and most importantly, time, could fix."

"That's… understandable, if… sad." Lena said softly, pity rolling in her chest as Clare nodded with a barely audible hum.

"One of the first things we noticed early on was how independent he was. He knew how to do his own laundry, make his own food, studies on his own, but he never really interacted with the other children." Clare said with a more pointed tone, now leaning forward. "I may be new to his case, but if we ask him to join in on an activity, he'll do so with no issue, but always prefers to keep to himself and blend into the background."

"What about partner therapy? Did he get an assigned Pokémon through the school instead?" Lena asked.

Clare chuckled without amusement and shook her head. "No, he outright refused both . Multiple times." Clare breathed out before refocusing. "And he doesn't have a phobia, far from it. He's honestly great with all the Pokémon here, better than most of the other kids I'd say… Poor Jiro sometimes has marker stains on him after dealing with the younger ones drawing, and William's always been more than happy to help scrub them off, no hesitation whatsoever. He's great at cleaning actually…" she said with a hum as if considering something, before shaking her head at the thought and continuing on.

"On top of that, from what teachers have told me, he's like an encyclopedia for Pokémon, naming even those they didn't know until they searched online… which is a bit… odd considering other notes on his file, but, well… I guess he did fix the computer a few times, so maybe he —I'm getting distracted, sorry."

"No, no, it's fine, any information you can give me is greatly appreciated." 'I still don't know what the 'matter' is, but regardless,' Lena mused to herself for a moment before continuing. "Could it be attachment, like why he doesn't want a foster family? There's a couple Rangers who refuse to have a new partner after an old one passes away..." She suggested softly.

Clare shook her head. "Sadly, no. He's claimed that his family owned no Pokémon, and never interacted with Pokémon before he was in the system… saying his home was 'similar to Orre', though I've heard that's changed in the past couple years." Lena nodded as she recalled reports from the Ranger Union about Pokémon returning to Orre after Cipher was dealt with the second time.... Something nagged at her, though....

"He's really good with Pokémon? That doesn't…"

"Make sense? No, I agree. By all accounts, William's an anomaly. Maybe it's a part of his upbringing? Some people just have a knack for it, I suppose..." Clare said with a half shrug, but shook her head, refocusing her thoughts as she stared at Lena. "The biggest concern right now, however, is his tendency to go off Route without supervision, or even a partner to defend himself."

Lena inhaled sharply and her eyes shot open in alarm. Arthur and Lena's Poké Balls wiggled on her belt, and Lena had to discreetly pat them down to soothe them. She didn't say anything but motioned with her other hand for Clare to continue. Clare glanced out of the window for a moment and sighed, where the treeline for the forest could be seen in the distance.

"It started a bit after he was found, when leads were drying up for where to search for his family and place of origin…" Clare started off while looking thoughtful, as if organizing the information mentally before speaking. "He has a habit of… vanishing, wandering off and showing up just walking down the road in town, or closer to Route 2's Gate." Clare said with a sigh, rubbing her face slightly.

"Then one night, he didn't show up, and a search was put out. It was reported they found him wandering back from the outer bounds of Route 2, where even more experienced Trainers wouldn't dare go."

With a slightly despondent sigh, Clare continued. "At first they thought he was retracing his steps to find his way home, like most kids would do… They explained to him what most kids know before even going to kindergarten: never go off Routes, and if you do, stay where you are, don't move, and don't have any food on you…" She said with a slightly shaky tone.

Lena glanced away for a moment as she ran through her own history lessons before and during Ranger School.

It's one thing to read about it, or watch information videos you can disconnect your mind from, but in person? In front of you? To experience it during a rescue or 'recovery' mission?

It's sobering.

"And even then, he still goes? Knowing how dangerous it is off Route?" Lena asked with her arms crossed now. Clare nodded seriously.

"He knows better than to do so. Not too long after the first time he snuck out, there was a report of two children planning on wandering off as well, and he apparently was cursing up a storm that would make Drake from Hoenn blush. These two kids are older than him and they were nearly in tears at the scolding… And yet, somehow, he always slips away. Sometimes he returns late at night before it's considered lights out. Other times, he slips away until the next morning, and we don't realize it until Jiro lets him in through the front." She said with a reluctant breath at the end, Lena getting a clearer picture of what this Quest was about, but new questions formed in her mind now.

"Why does he do it, though?" 'There's almost always a reason behind someone's actions' ; Lena's mind tried to break it down, still staring at Clare to see if she had any insight, but she just frowned.

"Frustratingly, he's been silent about that, even in therapy and counseling. He's really perceptive about when adults want information from him, and we don't want to force anything out of him."

"So, I'm guessing you want me to trail him and try to figure it out?" Lena asked. Clare sighed and nodded in response.

"Yes. The local police know about this as well, and even put up a notice at the gate for Route 2, but he still slips around it somehow. When they tried finding him with their Herdier, they weren't able to find him until he came into the outer bounds of the Route, never any further." At this, however, an angry expression started to form on her face as she continued. "In the reports, the police considered doing a Psychic interrogation during their initial investigation when he was first found. However, my predecessor stamped that out thankfully." She said with an aggressive 'tsk,' from her mouth. Even Lena failed to hide her scowl as Clare spoke now with a frown.

"As a result though, the police have… given up following him, especially since he always comes back. Saying there's nothing else they can do without further 'information'."

Lena hummed at Clare's response, a curse forming in her mind about the usefulness of police in… any damn Region at this point. She pushed that aside however, and thought for a moment on what to ask next, wanting to get more clues to prepare herself and her partners on what they may encounter. "Is there anything else noticeable…? Things off about William on his way back?"

Clare grabbed a file near the middle of the pile and opened a police report, flipping through it for a specific section. "No injuries, which is a miracle. However, there was… one thing that previous case workers overlooked, but—ah, here." She said as she pointed at a specific section, Lena looking over it now.

Child was found unharmed at 23:43, wandering back from the forest. No injuries sustained, and no evidence of latent psychic energy or manipulation found, however clothes showed a very faint trace amount of ash on it. Child refused to speak about the ash, simply stating 'I tripped', which lines up with a faint dirt patch on his pants. As the child is a minor and under Unova state care, no further psychic investigation was conducted due to the insistence of the current case worker.

"Ash… there's no Fire Types in the area, at least on record." Lena muttered, her mind running through Pokémon that may have been able to use a Fire Type move… though, without clear information it was all just speculation, something to be aware of. 'The only other source I can think of is if someone was training a Tepig or Pansear, but no rookie Trainer would go off-route like that...'

"Thank you, this helps show he encountered some type of Pokémon… if I can ask, where is he now?" Lena questioned. Clare grabbed a sticky note in response and quickly wrote an address.

"He takes classes at a different schedule as he actually was able to jump ahead in most subjects, but seems to struggle in others, so a volunteer teacher, Mr. Davidson, made him a specific curriculum. Lovely man, kind, and tried to push for William to get a partner through the school program but… he refused that as well." She sighed, writing Mr. Davidson's name, email, and Xtransceiver number on a sticky note before handing it to Lena.

"You'd have to ask him more about what William's like in school, but I'll email him and let him know that you're working with William now, if that's alright with you." Lena nodded in confirmation. "Anyway, the school's just around the block on Adams Rd., so William walks on his own since we don't have enough staff to chaperone him between places… blame that on the shifting budget and Team Plasma." She lamented bitterly. Lena nodded in understanding and started typing the address into her Styler as Clare continued. "The time he wraps up varies depending on his schedule, but he's also been known to stay at school later to study. Now that I think about it, he might be doing that intentionally...."

"Thank you, I'll probably give Mr. Davidson a call sometime in the next day or two, and I'll stop by the school and see if he's getting out of class soon. Is there anything else about William I should keep in mind? Habits? Traits… personality?" Lena asked as she navigated instead to the notes app on her Styler for Quests.

Clare sat back in her chair, clearly having something more to add, but unable to formulate it. Her eyes narrowed in contemplation before finally speaking. "Do not go expecting a lost child. He can read the room like an adult, and can tell when someone is trying to pry information out of him. I worry about him, you know... no kid should have to go through what he's been through, and I worry he feels like he's had to grow up fast, but… that's a concern for me at another time." Lena hummed thoughtfully, but nodded as she put the sticky note in her pocket and glanced at the picture on the top of the first folder. "May I take a copy of the photo, actually?"

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"Oh—Yes, of course! Sorry—I should have made a copy." Clare said with a faint curse, but Lena waved her off and switched the mode on her Styler and moved it over the photo, an almost green barcode light appearing over the file as she scanned the photo. Lena then looked at her Styler's screen and nodded as it came in perfect.

"Thank you, I'll head out now, and I'll contact you if anything comes up?"

"Yes, thank you again so much… I just hope it's nothing major, I feel that William's already got enough on his plate…" She said with a slight sigh, but smiled at Lena who nodded, turned, and headed out the door.

Duty calls.

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"We're going to need to focus on this one." She said with an iron tone, making both Arthur and Rina look at her seriously and nod. Both of them already understood the situation having listened in through their balls.

Lena started to run through possible difficulties they may run into as they walked, showing them both the picture of William she scanned. Arthur hummed and a frown made its way onto his face for a moment.

"The fact that he returns uninjured indicates another Pokémon watching over him… there have been cases before in my pack's history where they assisted a human child to get back home, but to return multiple times suggests some… familiarity, to an extent." Arthur muttered. Lena hummed as well for a moment to think….

'That's what I was thinking too… but for William to go so deep, and for the police to be unable to locate where he is going, despite my misgivings on what their methods are, is… odd.'

"Floatzel-ZelFloat?" (And he wore a yellow sweatshirt that looked a bit too big for him? Brown hair?) Rina asked, calling Lena from her own musings as the Floatzel looked down the street.

"Ah… hold on—yes. Why?" Lena asked with a confused expression. Rina pointed without another word as Lena's eyes followed. At the far end of the street next to the school was the fence lining the forests of Route 2; people and Pokémon were walking by like a colorful mess. Lena focused past the crowd, spotting someone who wore the same bright, eye-catching yellow sweatshirt and had the same brown hair in the photo walking towards the edge of town. She glanced down for a moment at the photo on the Styler, before she glanced back up, as if to make sure she wasn't seeing things.

Yep, that was William.

He looked around warily in both directions, before he ducked under the fence and disappeared into the treeline of Route 2. No one else gave him a second look.

The three stared for a minute before Lena swore and broke into a sprint as he vanished from sight. Arthur read her Aura's intent and ran ahead, swinging on streetlights and soaring with Extreme Speed; Rina ran on all fours and weaved between people's legs like a needle through a thread. People turned and looked shocked at the commotion.

'Just our luck that he started off ahead of us, I hope Arthur can memorize his Aura at least… ' Lena thought to herself as she pushed her body to run, Rina clearing the crowd ahead of her.

Arthur was waiting for the two of them at the edge of town, focused with a mix of concern on his face. " I was able to glimpse his Aura signature… we can… we should be able to track his path through the forest. " He said, though not as confidently as he normally would with other Quests or Missions Lena picked up.

She ignored that, however, trusting her partner to do his thing. "Show me then. No time to waste." She said, no hesitation in her tone. Arthur nodded and gently closed his eyes, a faint blue Aura shimmering around him as he reached one paw forward. Lena took his paw, and the world turned blue and black.

Aura, the life-force of every living thing… Lena had to admit, when it was mentioned as a topic in school, she thought she understood it since she studied like a madwoman.

Oh, how arrogantly naïve she was.

When Arthur, a Riolu at the time, had shown her what he saw the world as, it was like a veil had come undone, as if Lena herself could see for the first time. It was overwhelming, beautiful, and… in some aspects, terrifying. It showed how little Lena had truly known and understood the world around her.

To a Lucario, Aura was almost like the essence of life giving form. They could see and sense the ebb and flow of life itself around them at all times, washing around them and swirling like a beautiful painting…

The only catch was that Lena had to keep her eyes closed to see it. Aura is such an overwhelming sense that Lena's only way of managing it is to replace her sense of sight with Aura detection. Lena tried keeping her eyes open once... the headache after wasn't fun.

With her eyes closed, however, she could see the outlines of the trees, the blades of grass, the lichens and mosses, the mushrooms, and all the plants that made the forest alive. Arthur was a deep blue fire of tenacity, passion, and fighting spirit, controlled and cool, whereas Rina was a gentle river flowing into a tumultuous waterfall, churning water into a fine mist. Other Pokémon around her flared in different moods, energies, and feelings, in a manner difficult to describe in words alone.

Lena glanced forward to the forest, turning her head to where she last saw William. Her eyes flicked back and forth as she felt Arthur's own Aura guide her gently on where to focus… a bit to the right, further into where Route 2's general area would be.

'That would explain how he kept getting past any guards or Trainers — he would just sneak outside town when no one was looking....'

Suddenly, she felt what Arthur was directing her towards. A faint Aura slowly shrank into the distance.... It looked like a dark, compressed mess of Aura at his center, but with no defining traits, it felt paradoxically hollow. It was also dim, far dimmer than any child she had seen before, almost as if she could see through it — but it was there; just barely echoing in between the trees and bushes, like a spark for a fire not yet started or even smoldered out.

If she didn't know any better, she'd have thought William was dying.

The sight, combined with the passing thought was enough to make her let go of Arthur. "That's… William?" Lena worriedly asked as Arthur simply nodded. Breathing deeply, she recollected her own thoughts. "Alright, okay. Arthur, guide us, but keep some distance so he doesn't know we're here. We're right behind you." Arthur nodded and walked forward, Rina and Lena following closely behind as they headed deeper into the trees.

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"How far is he going…?" Lena muttered to herself as she took in her surroundings. It had been some time since they started trailing William, and the darkness of the leaves above almost made her mistake it for night. They were truly far enough away from the Route that she felt isolated from society.

Rina stayed close to her, eyes scanning the surrounding forest… until she stopped and began sniffing the air, with a troubled expression on her face. Lena glanced back, about to ask what was going on, before noticing that Arthur had stopped as well, with his eyes closed even tighter. A barely audible growl left the Aura Pokémon as his face fell into a mix of confusion, frustration, and trepidation as he spoke. "Something isn't right… he's vanished."

Lena paused to look around at the trees and thick bushes around them. All of her senses screamed at her that something was wrong, but only the faint breeze of the wind echoing around the forest responded… Rina looked around with a concerned expression.

"Float… Floatzel." (Not just him… every single Pokémon, it's like they avoid this area....) She whispered. Her fur stood on end as the three of them looked around… Lena held her hand out again, wanting to see for herself.

"Arthur, let me see again. I want to confirm a couple things." She said as she closed her eyes… Arthur gasped her hand with his paw; Lena's closed eyes suddenly filled with the faint outline of the surrounding Aura…

Lena turned her head around them and noticed that Rina was right, when before there was always at least a couple Pokémon either in the trees, or hidden away in the bushes, there was nothing. No Pidoves, or Venipedes, no scurrying Patrats. It was silent, almost as if all the surrounding lights had been snuffed out.

Lena felt her blood go cold as she ran down the list of what this could be. She had seen reports of these instances, where there was a Pokémon so strong that others avoided its territory. However, she paused… there were no clear signs of Pokémon marking its domain — no claw marks on trees, no clear footprints in the ground, and no clearly disturbed foliage. Neither Rina nor Arthur made any sign of sensing a powerful Aura or scent of a strong Pokémon… to simply vanish like that didn't have good implications as she started to think it over further…

'Maybe a Psychic has been teleporting him away? No, the police report indicated there was no psychic tampering or energy. There would have been multiple Aura signatures or a distorted field, even for just a moment which Arthur didn't signify he saw, so what else could it be…'

"Come on, he couldn't have vanished… or…—" Lena didn't finish her sentence, cutting off that stray thought like Cut on a small bush. Letting go of Arthur, she bit the inside of her lip and subconsciously moved her left hand to her Styler. Too absorbed in scanning the forest trying to find any trace of either William or a Pokémon, she didn't notice when Rina put her paws on Lena's arm and gently squeezed, making her jump out of her own skin.

"Floatzel-Float… Floatzell…" (Lena, breathe with me okay? We'll find him, he couldn't have gotten far.) Rina said, taking a deep breath which Lena mirrored. Her nerves were still flayed, but she straightened herself out and recentered herself.

"Okay… okay." Lena breathed out, and shot Rina a grateful smile.

'What could we be missing then…' Lena said, looking at the surroundings more closely. There were only trees and bushes around them, with shadows casting around them. Lena watched the shadow of the leaves wave for a moment as a wind washed over the top of the trees, creating a crashing sound that sounded like a gentle, ghostly noise…

Lena paused, her thoughts starting to turn. It… may have been a stretch, but… "Arthur, can you… try using Foresight while using Aura?"

Arthur looked at her with a puzzled expression, but nodded, closing his eyes again as his tassels floated in the air. His blue Aura had a film of gray over the surface as he looked around, and then flinched, suddenly losing focus. Looking shocked, he opened his eyes and he pointed off in the distance. "He's there. Deeper in... just barely. There's a field, similar to ones found in Relic Castle or Celestial Tower, masking him... as if the spirit of this place wishes for no one else to sense him. Lena, there weren't any… wars here? " He asked gently. Lena stared at where Arthur sensed William as she mentally ran through her Unovan history courses she had to take before transferring here, with a frown finding its way on her face as she shook her head.

Places of conflict and burial sites are excellent at gathering latent Ghost Type Energy, attracting Ghosts like Yanmas to Combee honey.

All the more concerning that Arthur said there was something similar here.

"No, not here." She said firmly. Rina and Arthur steeled themselves as they walked forward, Arthur guiding them through…

They followed William's signature hastily, trying to make up for lost time. As the trees started to thin out, the three of them had to be careful not to trip on roots or fallen branches. Arthur stopped and kneeled on the ground, making a motion to stay quiet before grasping both Lena's hand and Rina's paw.

Lena nearly gasped, but held her mouth shut as she was instantly surrounded in a sea of purple ghost energy, unnaturally flowing around them all as she felt a chill run down her spine…

'This no doubt is caused by a Pokémon, I want to say a Ghost Type but… it's uncomfortable, almost sticking to me.' Arthur's inner voice echoed in her head as he mentally trailed off… an uncomfortable feeling ran through the Aura link, causing Lena to shift slightly….

'I don't feel that at all, it's almost as if it's pushing away from me.' Rina countered. Lena glanced at her and noticed the ghostly energy struggling to stick to Rina or weigh her down.

'Is this is why the police couldn't find anything? They would use Normal Types, but the ghostly Aura would just phase right through them… but why was it affecting Arthur more than Rina… was a Pokémon who was dual typed causing this?'

'Stay alert… I don't know what's going on, but I don't like it…' Lena thought out, her intentions understood by Arthur and Rina who had turned to face forward. Lena made out the faint outline of William through the rock face, realizing that he had something on his back from how he shifted before sitting down. He seemed relaxed, his faint Aura already wavering and looked to halt entirely, as if completely at home. Lena sent a brief message to her partners that she was about to let go for a moment, curious about something as the warm, ghostly sensation around her and her link to Arthur and Rina vanished in an instant. This left her with… nothing.

It was jarring, for her senses to feel everything and more with Aura, akin to a controlled sensory overload, only for everything to be disconnected like a headphone jack pulled away from its device. She could only hear the trees' leaves gently wave in the wind, the temperature of the air almost perfect for the spring. A sweatshirt would be all one would need just in case, as the sun's rays gently beamed into the clearing in front of them provided a comfortable, but not overbearing warmth. While Lena couldn't see everything, it was clear there were no other Pokémon, no other humans. Absolutely nothing except the tranquility of nature and solitude.

'I suppose I can understand why he would want to be here, away from it all.' Lena mused to herself as she took a slow deep breath…. Closing her eyes for a moment,she let herself relax… it was almost hard not to.

She forced herself to focus though, grasping Arthur and Rina's paws before turning her head forward. William was looking around with a faint feeling of confusion emanating from him, almost unnoticeable with how small his Aura was…

'Who is he looking for? ' Rina's thoughts bounced through the link, her head focused forward as she stared at William's form. Lena frowned and glanced at Arthur, who shook his head.

'Whoever is causing this field, most likely…' Arthur thought with a twinge of anxiety he usually didn't have. Lena bit her lip as she scanned back and forth between the openings behind closed eyes, but didn't see any fluctuations or changes in the purple miasma.

'Then… where are they? ' Lena thought rhetorically, a feeling echoed by her partners.

And then, suddenly, without warning, Lena was yanked by the collar of her uniform from behind and hurled forward with force. Lena screamed, flailing through the air as similar cries came from Rina and Arthur right after. All of them sailed before landing in the clearing in front of them, painful noises leaving all of them from the impact of the hard soil.

'Dammit, of course we forget to check behind us… ' Lena, berating herself, tried to push herself up quickly but fell right back down as the ground shook. Arthur and Rina quickly stood up protectively in front of her, with Arthur summoning his Aura staff and assuming a battle-ready position, while the air frosted around Rina's jaw, a snarl echoing in her throat.

In front of them, where they had just knelt before, a cream-colored body emerged from the shadows. With glowing red eyes piercing the darkness as it approached, the seven-foot-tall behemoth paralyzed Lena with a haunting gaze. Pushing her fear down, she quickly began to run her eyes up and down the body of the approaching Pokémon to identify it. It had a faint wispy tail, matching their fur, waving in a nonexistent wind with ethereal energy; only now did Lena notice that the breeze, which had flowed through the clearing before, had stopped entirely.

It looked similar to a Typhlosion at first glance, however the non-cream colored fur differed in pattern and went around the front under its neck with three slightly discolored spots across it. Something poked at her memory…, a memory she had to ignore as she focused on the moment.

She remembered her training. When approached by a territorial Pokémon, first, identify the threat level. For now, it was medium. The Typhlosion had thrown them out in the open and was clearly displeased but wasn't outwardly aggressive. Good, she could work with that.

Second, state your reason for being there to the Pokémon clearly and directly. With her thoughts running a thousand miles an hour, she introduced herself with a shaky voice. "I'm sorry for intruding. I was sent to see w-why William was going to the forest alone without a partner."

At this, the Typhlosion's red eyes seemed to narrow, but nothing outwardly changed. Arthur and Rina quickly spoke up in her defense.

"She's a Pokémon Ranger, and we're her partners! It's our mission to protect and help Pokémon and people, like you and young William! There isn't any need for conflict, we simply wish to assist others and uphold our duty!" Arthur spoke with a noble, if placating tone. This didn't please the ghost, making him snort as he read through Arthur's words for the attempted de-escalation it was, narrowing his glare further. Rina spoke up next however, an almost defensive edge in her tone.

"Floatzel-FloatzelFloat!" (She's helped save so many people, and we're her partners because of that, and we simply want to help because that's who we are! That's it! Even if we're trespassing, you didn't need to throw her like a brute…)

Typhlosion's gaze relaxed slightly at Rina's words, and seemed… pleased? Amused? Either way, the badger still didn't fully back down however and instead looked forward past the three of them. Lena soon saw a shadow loom over her, turning around to see William clearly annoyed at being followed. His yellow sweatshirt was too big for him and ended just above his lower thigh, and the sleeves were bunched to cover his hands.

William stared at her for a moment in disapproval, before sighing and giving a soft nod to Typhlosion in reluctance. The Typhlosion's eyes flickered for a moment between the three intruders, leaving Lena fearing for a moment that he would not heed William's silent command.

With a soft trill, the ghostly energy surrounding them intensified, lighting the clearing in a deathly, ethereal glow. The temperature plunged several degrees, sending a shiver of swanna-bumps down Lena's limbs. It felt unsettling — wrong, even, as if her very soul was shaken to its core. Lena looked over and saw even Arthur quaking in fear, the ghostly energy corrupting his Aura sensing.

And then the old monster stood up to his full height as the ghost energy condensed into Will-o-Wisps and converged into Typhlosion, lighting his collar into a pale violet. The sunlight returned, filtering through the trees, and the rest of the forest was visible again. And at the sight of the purple flames on the collar, Lena remembered.

She remembered visiting the Hisui Archival Museum in Canalave City, which had a section on the original Pokedex with some of the scanned surviving records on display… one of them being a Typhlosion with this exact collar. It was labeled as one of the 'Lost Pokémon of Hisui', as no Quilava had ever evolved into the ghostly variant in modern history. Scientists speculated they died out due to changing environmental factors, despite attempts from both Johto and Sinnoh to find any remaining populations.

Lena supposed they didn't look hard enough if a kid was able to find one.

As the tension dissipated, with the sunlight filtering through the trees again and the ghostly flames dying, William spoke for the first time, looking frustrated and exhausted.

"Who the hell are you?"

Lena felt a migraine building, with Arthur and Rina looking equally exhausted as they realized what was about to happen within the next couple hours.

'This report is going to be a nightmare.'

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Beta Readers/Editors:

David "TheBlizWiz" R

Tempest

Garmfild

HerdingDog1

Multiple Anonymous Readers