Metchi looked up at the shapes of the massive buildings growing in the distance, and had to squint to protect her eyes.

Sunyshore, the city that was bright like the sun… because it was powered by the sun, and was also close to a shore. As much as she appreciated the straightforwardness of the Sinnohan language –as Barry and Inyssa had shown her time and time again with their stupid attack names– she couldn't help but think that this one was a little too on the nose. Not to mention that what little she could see of the architecture, the buildings… it reminded her a bit too much of Mauville back home. All the pomp and brightness in the world, concealing within a sea of dull grey and metal.

"Look at that!" Barry exclaimed, eyes wide with awe. "It looks so different from the last time I visited! And it's only been a couple years."

A tiny smile formed on Metchi's lips. At least he seemed impressed enough with the place, which was to be expected of someone his age. Barry had been unusually quiet and pensive during the entirety of their trip, which was completely understandable given the circumstances, so it was nice to see a smile on his face again.

"Well, that's SEZs for you. You take your eyes off them for a second and they turn into a different city entirely."

There was a hint of bitterness in her voice, which luckily Barry failed to notice. He just knit his brows and turned to look at her.

"S… EZ? What's that?"

Really? thought Metchi. What the hell do they teach kids in school nowadays?

"It stands for Special Economic Zone," she explained. "It's, er… kind of a way to designate areas in a region that are under… different economic regulations than the rest."

"What, like tax breaks?"

"Yeah, exactly. It's supposed to be a way to attract foreign capital and promote economic growth," she recited from memory, from what she'd learned long ago. "Most regions have at least one of them, I think. Cinnabar and the Sevii Islands in Kanto, Black City in Unova…"

"Oh! Mauville too, right?" asked Barry. "I remember now, mom told me about those before, but she used a different name I think. I was really interested in how taxes worked so I kept bugging her about it until she explained it to me, and she used Mauville as an example of an exception to the usual rule."

Again, Metchi was surprised. The last thing she would've ever expected from someone like Barry was for him to be interested in a topic such as taxes. And yet he didn't know what SEZs were.

"You have… a really weird collection of knowledge, don't you?"

He just shrugged. "Always loved math. Niss hates it though, she's always saying that she can't believe her boyfriend's a nerd."

"She's one to talk," muttered Metchi. "But yeah, that's about it. Mauville actually got turned into an SEZ shortly before I left for Sinnoh… last I heard the city was doing pretty good. Barely recognizable from what it was before, though."

Again, that bitterness imbued her voice if only for a second. This time Barry noticed something was odd, frowning, but didn't comment on it.

"There'd been plans to turn it into one before, with the New Mauville project, but… a few complications arose, so it got delayed for a few years," she explained. "Though it makes sense. Normally you turn an area into an SEZ as negotiation and compensation for annexing it into your territory. That's what Kanto did with the Sevii Islands, and it's what Sinnoh did with Sunyshore and Stark Island. Hoenn was the first region to try it on a piece of land they already owned."

Barry nodded, though judging from his expression there was something he didn't understand.

"Why would that be a problem?"

Metchi smiled curtly, but didn't reply. She figured someone like Barry, a kid who grew up in a wealthy, beautiful paradise like Twinleaf, wouldn't understand. She didn't think less of him for it, of course, But she didn't quite have the energy to get into the topic right now.

It hit too close to home. Or whatever was left of the memory of the place she once called home.

"It doesn't matter," she waved the matter away. "Man, look at us. Heading toward a city of glamour and hedonism, on our path to save the world, and yet here we are talking about taxes like a couple of old farts."

"I… well…"

She gave him a strong, reassuring pat on the shoulder, and luckily he didn't crumple and almost fall to his knees like Inyssa had every time she'd tried it on her.

"Come on, we're almost there, see?" She pointed toward the city's entrance, only a few minutes away. "You just focus on getting us to the Gym and beating the leader's ass for that badge, alright? Then we can celebrate in one of the fancy bars nearby. Drinks are on me."

Barry didn't look entirely convinced, but he gave her a shaky nod nonetheless, one of his hands unconsciously hovering over his belt full of Pokeballs.

"Right," he muttered, looking away. "I'll… try my best."

Sunyshore was, indeed, quite close by now. They could see a good number of trainers and Association personnel patrolling around the western entrance, as well as a large vehicle parked just before the city gate. A check of sorts? Though of course, their gazes kept sliding away from, that spot and slowly drifting upward to the massive shapes in the distance.

Three spots were easily recognizable, even amidst the mess of differently shaped buildings trying to camouflage them. First was the famous labyrinth of translucent pathways connecting different parts of the city; the solar bridges, a necessity for a place built on a shore amidst a bunch of cliffs. Second was the bright red of the lighthouse in the distance, built on the very edge of the city. And third was, of course, their destination. The skyscraper which stood at the very center of it all; a marvel of glass and steel built into the shape of an upside-down cone with two sharp protrusions coming out the side.

The Sunyshore institute of technology. According to Cynthia, that's where Volkner spent most of his time in when he wasn't in the Gym. And considering the entire League had been ground to a halt, she doubted there was any other place where they could find him.

Metchi looked down again at the checkpoint next to the city gates, and pursed her lips. She just hoped Volkner had warned these people in advance that they were coming; otherwise she would have very little fun explaining to these Association people why she didn't have any kind of document or ID on her.

"Uh, y-yeah, you two! Right over here, if you could."

It was a much younger voice than she expected coming from inside the vehicle, calling them the small window on the side. Behind it sat a pale guy with glasses who couldn't have been much older than Barry, sporting a simple hoodie and a badly grown beard that most definitely didn't fit someone with his facial structure.

Metchi didn't need to look at him for more than a second to know he was some sort of programmer or engineer. He had the look down pat.

"Hello! Is everything okay? We just wanted to pass through," said Barry, forming a sweet smile. "I'm Barry, and this is Metchi."

The guy smiled back, then glanced at Metchi for a little bit longer than would have been normal, a look on his face that she knew very well. He then cleared his throat and looked down at the computer screen in front of him.

"Hi, yes! I'm Martin, just… give me a second. I have to check your identities before I let you through," he explained, grabbing something from under his desk. "Orders from the Association, you know how it is."

Metchi felt her face scrunch up unconsciously, even as Barry just smiled and nodded absentmindedly.

"Yeah, of c–"

"We're here on behalf of the League," she interrupted him. "Volkner is actually waiting for us."

The man gave her a polite smile. "It won't be more than a second, I promise."

"That's not the problem, I–"

"Ah, here! Step up, please."

The device the man had retrieved from under his desk looked like a barcode reader, only slightly bigger. He held it up to show it to them, then pointed it down at their faces.

"Oh! What's that?" Barry asked excitedly.

"It's–"

"A facial scanner? Are you serious?" Metchi asked with a bit more bite in her voice than she'd intended. "You're making this stuff mandatory for anyone who wants to get in or out of the city?"

Clearly Martin failed to pick up on her disapproving tone, judging by that proud nod and the happy tone of his voice as he replied.

"Yeah, isn't it much easier than needing to have all your IDs on you at all times?" he asked. "We just got these ones, actually. We originally got a batch of them from Unova, but Volkner wanted to modify them for easier use and portability, so the S.I.T. got to work and here we are! I helped a bit with the software," he pointed out with a cocky smile. "The plan is to have them all over the region by the end of the year. Should definitely help with problems like Team Galactic and the such."

Next to her, Barry kept nodding and listening, fascinated, while Metchi gawked as though she'd just heard a joke in really bad taste.

"That's really cool," muttered the boy. "I didn't know technology like that existed."

Metchi scoffed. "Trust me, we're better off without it."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Metchi ignored him, and instead took a step closer toward the truck, folding her arms under her chest as she glared up at Martin. The look she got in return was one she was used to from most guys. That paper-thin smile that almost did its job well enough to hide the small crease on the bridge of his nose. She supposed it was slightly more polite than flat out aggression, but that didn't mean she had to like it.

"Martin, you said you worked on the software, right? What kind of facial recognition does that thing work with, then?"

The man blinked a couple times before talking. "Well… It's kind of hard to put it in simple terms, but facial recognition is when you use a program t–"

"I know what it fucking is, don't treat me like an idiot," she snarled. "I'm asking what type is it. Does it discard the bio-metric info after comparing it to the database or does it keep it?"

Martin was taken aback by the sudden bite in her voice, but even moreso by the question. He let out a little laugh, as though the answer were obvious. Metchi wanted to punch him in the face.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"Well… obviously it keeps it," he said. "It helps build up a bigger database to compare each new scan to, so why wouldn't it?"

"Aha," she said. "And tell me, who gets access to that information?"

"Hm?"

"The database where all these bio-metric scans are stored in," she clarified. "Who can see it?"

Martin furrowed his brow. "Well… the S.I.T., of course. The Association too, if they put down a request for it. Oh, and Jubilife Electronics, the company who pays for the servers we store all the data in. But no one other than that."

"Other than that?" asked Metchi, letting out a sardonic laugh. "Right, only the most famous technological institute, the biggest electronics company in the region and also the government; just them! Don't you wanna sell it off overseas to the other regions too? Since you know, so few people have access to it as it is!"

This time her sarcasm was not lost on Martin, which was good because she would've been worried for him if it had flown over his head, considering it was thicker than jam at that point. Barry picked up on it too, and turned to look at her with something like worry. The silence that extended from there was an awkward one, the kind she was most used to.

"…Metchi?"

"Er… I'm sorry, but I don't really see the… problem," muttered Martin, trying to sound non-confrontational. "Like I said, I'm afraid these scans are mandatory, so…"

"So I guess we have a problem," Metchi confirmed. "Because I'm not putting my face in that database."

The heat and tone of finality in her voice only served to make the air more tense around them. Martin opened his mouth then closed it, unsure of how to reply. She never took her eyes off him, glaring like a Persian, until he had to look down at his screen, clearly thinking over what to say.

"I…" Barry took a step closer to her, frowning. "Is… there something wrong? I don't get why it's a bad thing."

Metchi looked back at him, her expression softening. "It's… complicated. Devon tried implementing this stuff back in Hoenn too, shortly after the Aqua-Magma incident," she explained. "They ended up regulating the hell out of it after a while, but by then the other companies had gotten all the data they needed. You have no idea the kind of trouble that shit caused me back in the day."

Barry frowned, confused. "I don't…"

"Well, I'm sorry… Metchi." Martin said the name with some delay, indicating that he might've been about to say 'ma'am' but was unsure if it was correct. Metchi's expression immediately hardened again. "But identification is mandatory to enter the city. If you try to go in without complying I… I'm afraid I'll have to ask the gentlemen over there to resolve this."

Metchi didn't need to look over her shoulder to know he meant the Association agents behind them. She felt Barry tense up next to her. Judging by the fake niceness on Martin's voice, his customer service voice one might call it, she figured he wasn't bluffing. This could turn ugly.

When does it not?

She shone Martin her best smile, not moving an inch, arms still folded.

"That's fine by me; have them try to stop me. I could use a good laugh."

Martin was not expecting that. He leaned back, mouth open in surprise, and it took him a few moments to come back to himself and reach for the device on top of his desk, some sort of microphone or communicator.

"H-hi, yes? We have a problem here, I think," he said nervously, leaning away from the window. "Could you…?"

Still smiling, Metchi turned around and placed her hands on her hips as a few of the Association goons patrolling around the entrance turned sharply toward them, only studying them for a second before starting to approach. Next to her Barry yelped, panicked, and unconsciously reached for one of his Pokeballs.

"Metchi!? I don't… think this is a good idea," he said, voice getting thinner. "We can just explain what's going on! If we tell them Volkner's waiting for us…"

"Oh, don't you worry, I'm great at de-escalation." She placed her hands around her mouth and yelled out. "Oi', dickheads! Why don't you go back to Jubilife!? I heard there's some more government dick you can choke on there!"

The three agents that were approaching stopped for an instant, processing what they'd just heard. Then the middle one, the girl, got out a baton. The other two guys produced Pokeballs on their hands, a furious look behind the visor on their helmets.

Barry sighed, shoulders dropping. "It's like being with Niss but somehow twice as worse," he muttered. "Metchi…"

"Excuse me, you two…" said the woman in the middle as she approached, not a hint of politeness in her voice. "I'm gonna have to ask you to come with me."

Metchi raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.

"I'm sure you're a looker underneath that helmet, but I'm not desperate enough to go for Association members yet," she replied.

The woman's eyes narrowed behind her visor. "This is your last warning; if you don't comply peacefully we'll be forced to–"

"So anyway, coming back to the previous topic," Metchi cut her off. "How much money would the Association have to give someone to turn them into obedient pets like you guys? I mean I know some people have lower standards than others but come o–"

"That's it. I warned you," she spat out, pointing with the baton at them. "You're under arrest. Get them."

Everything happened in a second. The two men with Pokeballs wound back their arms as they prepared to throw them while Metchi quickly reached for the knives hidden in her clothes, eyes narrowing and knees lowering in preparation for the fight. Barry stumbled back, eyes wide, frozen.

"W-wait, we don't have to…!"

They were but a second away from all hell breaking loose when a booming voice rang through the air, getting everyone's attention.

"Woah, woah, hold on! What the hell is going on? Put those Pokeballs down for fuck's sake!"

The three Association agents stopped in their tracks, immediately obeying and taking a step back, falling into formation. Metchi, meanwhile, just stood there. Unable to move. The familiarity of that voice hit her like a punch to the gut, flooding her with memories that were neither pleasant nor welcomed.

No… no fucking way.

"Who…?" Barry looked over his shoulder, then let out a gasp. "N-no way!"

Metchi knew he was here in Sinnoh. Of course she knew; she'd seen it all over the news back home when she still lived in Hoenn. Lavaridge's prodigy, the young trainer who had somehow gotten a seat as an Elite Four in a foreign region. Yes, she knew he was here… but never in a million years did she expect she'd actually run into him.

She turned around slowly, and that bright red afro of his was confirmation enough that she hadn't confused his voice for anyone else's. Flint approached from the other side of the gate, hands in the pockets of his pants, a crossed look on his face. He stopped a few inches from her and Barry, but his gaze was still set on the agents behind them.

"Well?" he demanded. "What do you numbskulls think you're doing causing a ruckus on the entrance of town? Didn't Volkner tell you that's the last thing we need right now!?"

The agents were quick to give the man a salute, and the woman in the middle spluttered out a response as best she could.

"S-sir, I'm sorry! But these two apparently tried to get in without identifying themselves and then provoked us by–"

Flint scoffed. "Provoked!? You're supposed to de-escalate these types of situations you idiots! And didn't I tell you that Volkner was expecting guests today? What do you think the psychic Pokemon patrolling the border are for? They would've notified you already if these two were suspicious!"

"Well… yes of course, but we can just ignore suspicious activity and…"

Rolling his eyes, Flint turned around, completely ignoring them and instead turning toward the man inside the vehicle.

"And you… still trying out that shady shit with the face scanners?" he asked. "Didn't I tell you to cut that out?"

Martin gulped. "B-but I was ordered by Volkner to–"

"Volkner's always asking for stupid shit, you gotta ignore half the things he says," Flint said with a wave of his hand. "Besides, everyone carries their ID with them nowadays, so it's completely useless. Put it back in the shelf, would you?"

"Y-yes sir, I'm sorry."

Once that was dealt with and the agents walked back to their posts, scared of more reprimand, Flint placed his hands on his hips and let out a tired sigh, shaking his head.

"I swear, Sinnohan idiocy is so much more dangerous than ours," he muttered to himself. "Aaaanyway…"

Flint turned to look at Metchi and Barry, who were still just standing there, too shocked to speak, and shone them a warm smile that was nothing like what he'd shown Martin and the Association agents.

"Sorry for the trouble there, you know how these knuckleheads can be like sometimes," he said with a gesture of the hand. "Nice to see you again, Metchi. You really shot up like a bean-stalk since last time, eh?"

----------------------------------------

As Flint walked them from the outer rings of the city toward the center, Barry felt as though he were a kid inside a candy store, only instead of sweets it was a bunch of really tall and shiny and weirdly-shaped buildings. It was a city designed to keep one looking up, not down. And judging by what he found when he did look down, that was probably by design.

Most of the really impressive buildings and landmarks were build on top of the multitude of plateaus that rose from the shore inland, and were connected by the famous light bridges. They were incredibly wide and made entirely out solar panels, and there were just so many of them. Every time Barry took a step, the square pane under him would light up, indicating that said step had contributed somewhat to powering up the city itself. He felt a rush of excitement every time he did it. It was amazing; like he'd been transported to the far future or something.

But then he looked down, and that illusion was shattered.

There were buildings down there too, in the cracks and crevices between each plateau. Warehouses, factories, residential areas full of identical houses; the types of construction that didn't make for as good eye candy, and so he figured, they'd been relegated to the lower portion of the city. Not that it looked ugly, though. A glimpse down showed Barry more wildlife and Pokemon than his entire time looking at the upper part of the city.

I guess it's just different ways of living, he thought, pensive. Still… kinda leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Yes, Sunyshore was very nice and shiny and impressive, but would he have wanted to live here? It was hard to say no at first sight. But a city with so little green, so few Pokemon… after an entire childhood spent in Twinleaf, surrounded by nothing but thriving nature, he would probably lose his mind.

To each their own, I guess.

"…sounds kinda bullshit, yeah."

Barry came back to reality. He'd been so lost in thought that he'd missed the other two's conversation.

"I know, right?" asked Flint, laughing in disbelief. "So then I'm about to call customer service, but then it dawns on me. I'm about to ask the assholes that run the Galar Fantasy League if their Dynamax Subscription includes an actual subscription to the service I'm trying to pay for! Just think about that. That's the kind of fucking world we're living in."

Metchi chuckled. "Yeah, those are the worst. I don't think I've ever paid for a subscription… except back in Lavaridge to that group of girl scouts, remember them? The ones that sent you a box of lava cookies each week if you subscribed to them?"

"Oh god, fuck you for making me remember that," frowned Flint, placing a hand over his stomach. "Man, I'd seriously kill for a lava cookie. Doesn't have to be anyone evil, I'm not particular or anything. Just give me a lava cookie and I'll kill someone for you."

"Sorry man, I'm all out," she said. "You can learn to make them yourself, y'know? That shit's all on the internet now."

"Ha. With how everything's gone to shit lately do you really think I've got the time to bake cookies?" he asked. "I honestly can't remember the last time I cooked for myself."

Barry couldn't help but be amazed at how… easily these two had started shooting the breeze as though the last time they'd met had been yesterday and not a bunch of years ago. He didn't think he'd ever seen Metchi talk to someone that casually before. And to a member of the Elite Four, no less; one of the highest-ranking members in the organization she despised. The thought was enough to send a shiver of nervousness down his spine. If he hadn't been a bit desensitized by meeting Lucian and Cynthia already, he might've started freaking out.

"So…" Barry cleared his throat, getting the other two's attention. "How do you know each other? I mean I heard you're both from Hoenn but…"

Metchi blinked a couple times, surprised, as though she'd entirely forgotten that he was there. Flint just let out one of his laughs.

"I see, she hasn't mentioned me, then?" he asked. "Can't really blame her. It has been a while. You could say I'm an… old flame of hers." He winked. "Pun one-hundred percent intended."

Metchi scoffed. "In the sense that you always make me wanna set myself on fire when I'm near you, maybe," she said, then looked at Barry. "We ran into each other a few times back in Hoenn, when I was… doing work." There was an odd emphasis on those last two words, which she must've realized because she hurried to continue. "He's the dumbest asshole you'll ever meet, but he's handy to have around sometimes."

"Yeowch," cringed Flint, although he didn't sound hurt. "And here I thought Volkner was cold. What happened to friends being nice and supportive to each other?"

"Your damn fault for picking friends like this," Metchi shot back. "Maybe you're a masochist, ever think of that?"

"That… wouldn't surprise me one bit, considering my history," sighed Flint. "So yeah, as you can see, Barry, we're just the best of pals. How 'bout you? How did you meet her?"

Barry and Metchi exchanged a quick glance, the same memory running through their heads.

"It was… complicated," he smiled. "I might've had my Prinplup hold her at… knifepoint? Finpoint?"

Metchi laughed to herself. "Oh yeah, I'd almost forgotten about that."

"Can't ever meet people without putting yourself in danger, huh."

She just shrugged, but Barry still felt curious, still wanted more answers. Unfortunately, the shape of the SIU was getting closer the more they walked; there wouldn't be much time for questions at the moment. Still…

"When you said you met him while you were doing work…" said Barry, tone careful. "What kind of work…?"

He knew he'd screwed up as soon as he saw the look on Metchi's face. Flint, however, wasn't affected by it in the slightest; he just laughed again and shook his head.

"Oh, she hasn't told you?" he asked. "Back then, she–"

"Flint."

The man raised his hands protectively, though that smile was still pasted onto his face. He mimicked zipping his mouth shut and looked away.

"I…"

"It's fine," said Metchi, forcing a smile. "I guess I… do owe you the story at this point, but…" She looked away toward the approaching building. "…Later, alright? After we deal with this."

"Yeah… yeah, that's fine," said Barry, forming a smile of his own.

It wasn't long before they finally reached the foot of the massive skyscraper, the gleam of the sun against its thousands of panel-like windows making it look as though the entire building were bathed in sunlight. It was enough to force Barry to squint.

"Welp, here we are," said Flint, turning around to face them, hands still in his pockets. "What d'you say? Ready to meet the rudest nerd and introvert in the universe?"

Barry nodded enthusiastically, but next to him Metchi just sighed.

"I'm gonna fucking hate him, aren't I?"

"Probably!" Flint said cheerily. "Try not to cause a ruckus like you did back there though, yeah? I doubt I could sweep that one under the rug."

"I make no promises."