Bitter Work 3.7
November 5th, 2022.
I woke up feeling utterly shit, unable to even crawl out of bed as I lounged around under the covers like the useless person I really was.
I rubbed my face, feeling slightly grimey and groggy from how poorly I had slept. I had not dealt with my loss well, I had basically shut down in reaction and had needed a good day just to lay down. I hadn’t put on pants which meant I was wearing nothing but plain boxers and a black t-shirt… no bra either but then I didn’t have much to go around so far.
Though talks with my doctor mentioned I should account for a lot of growth, as it was a process that required at bare minimum six months but tended to drag on for a further three years, little refinements and what not.
Looking in the mirror every day was one of the reasons I got up in the morning, that small hint of improvement every day was just… good. On my second day of feeling like garbage, I thought deeply about what I had done wrong.
I had rushed in like an idiot, thinking that a third badge challenge couldn’t be that difficult, and hadn’t taken the time I had promised. Just a few days in Goruden, then straight to the Fireside Woods… and our plan to travel had been cut short by the attack. I had opted for the earliest slot possible instead of giving my team an extra week or two to adjust.
And hadn’t bothered looking deeper into the leader of the Gyms outside their names, some basic info, and what kind of Type Specialist they were. I sort of skimmed it, focusing more on getting my pokémon nice and strong but leaving out a vital piece of research.
Information gathering on the enemy.
Yesterday I had managed to step out of my funk for a few hours on midnight research, taking a look at the recordings and battle records of the Gym Leaders, and the people doing the Gym Circuit this year. People from age sixteen and up, along with a ton of Youngsters. And what I had learned was that besides the use of abilities, Tohoku were pioneers and revolutionary thinkers when it came to the use of field effects, more specifically Terrains in battle.
In the games, there were four kinds of Terrains. Electric, Grassy, Misty and Psychic. Electric Terrain boosted electric types, and prevented sleep… but Mikron’s Eelektross used Levitate to avoid the effect, and used it as a massive well of power instead. Grassy Terrain increases the power of grass-type moves and heals any pokémon on the field, and keeps the ground more solid against attacks like Earthquake and Magnitude. Misty Terrain halves the damage from dragon-type energies and prevents status effects and confusion. Psychic Terrain strengthens psychic energies and prevents strikes from priority moves.
Well… Tohoku had developed a total of fourteen new Terrain moves, and pioneered the development/discovery of numerous Terrain abilities. Though it was something largely local to the region like the Weathergy of the Kaskade region, though their use of Terrain moves had spread out to other regions in the past… three years or so?
Also I’m 100% sure the Kaskade region is very familiar somehow.
That entire battle against the alpha heatmor had scared me… and the sudden shift had left me paranoid and… stressed the hell out. I should have taken my time, should have done more research, instead of just throwing my pokémon out there and hoping for the best. It didn’t help that I panicked and stopped making decisions. I was still a trainer, while my pokémon were trained well, giving them reminders and using my perspective to help them was part of my job.
I had failed in that.
I rubbed my face, and cleared my throat. “Hey… I know you’re all out of your balls.” My pokémon slid out from behind a coach somehow, and I winced at their emotions. Llayda looked ashamed, her usual peppy attitude had taken a notable downturn, like a cloud of gloom had washed over her. Mirko looked pissed instead, arms crossed over her chest, and foot thumping on the ground.
Jericho didn’t look too bad, but he was a bit droopy, his body language lord closed off. Fennekin didn’t seem to care but I know she was glancing at me with concern and suspicion, like she was waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Ouch.
“So… we can agree that battle sucked ass am I right?”
Mirko snorted, Jericho just tilted his head and added a hesitant snicker, Llayda sighed and Fennekin rolled her eyes but didn’t disagree with the assessment. So that was good.
“So… I think we’re overdue for a break from challenging Gyms, two weeks should be more than enough to get trained up and decompress.” I clasped my hands together with a delicate smile, hoping none of them took it badly. “I haven’t really planned if we’re going to stick to the city or look for a request that’ll keep us busy.” I know there are expeditions we can join for a good chunk of change, but last I had checked there was nothing we qualified for at the moment. “Plus I can get to know our newest member… I think that battle with Heatmor rattled me more than I thought.”
“Bwa!” To my surprise, Mirko jumped onto my bed, practically climbing over me. And I was suddenly wrapped up in a tight hug by the strong ass rabbit, she muttered soft murmurs, and I blinked away what were totally not tears.
Not at all…
I held my first pokémon tightly, tension unraveling in my stomach as the warm hut brought comfort. I rubbed my eyes, and took a deep, deep breath. In and out.
Shake it out, breathe it out.
“Thank you, and sorry for being a mess all of yesterday. I just needed… space you know? Mirko’s sympathetic face told me she did understand, and that made me feel far less lonely than I usually did.
I hummed aloud and thought about something.
“How about we watch a few movies? Keep our minds off that battle, and do something fun?” I felt awkward at their gazes, I really need to keep in mind that social interaction is very stressful for me.
But they were my friends… and that mattered.
To my surprise all of them including Fennekin agreed with me on a movie morning.
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We spent the next few hours just goofing off by watching movies. Mirko enjoyed action movies, Jericho of course liked space movies, while Llayda loved animated films and nature documentaries while Fennekin surprisingly enjoyed anime, especially the more combat-oriented ones.
We had watched a good mix of movies for humans and pokémon, which was a bit like watching an anime in terms of having no idea what they’re saying at least.
I had taken a shower, and put on acceptable clothing. Which involved a bulky sweater two sizes too large, and thick but surprisingly flexible chino pants. Along with my strange collar necklace, with a stone of unidentified element and composition. Sojourner the Porygon (they needed a name), had been a very helpful little sapient computer program, operating as a system administrator, analysis engine and data compiler, search engine, and cybersecurity.
It was solid-state infinity energy just like the elemental minerals. Though it was different in structure and frequency pattern. The gems, and dusts specifically, evolution stones seemed to be… a different allotrope, if gems and dust are graphite, evolution stones would be diamond, and mega stones and keystones would be lonsdaleite.
This gem on my neck had a wavelength structure similar to a keystone, but it wasn't one, the pattern was distinct, and likely wouldn't respond to a mega stone without modifications or combination with a keystone. It wasn't dangerous either, hell Akari seemed downright envious once I had figured out I could use it to practice aura.
The way it conducted aura was fascinating, able to take in different kinds of aura with no problem, which I had tested with all my pokémon. It gave me samples of normal, poison, water, fairy, and fire energies to study. Which made a good alternative to Akari’s aura gloves. I hadn't figured out any specific techniques, but the character of the five kinds of energies were all… unique.
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Normal energy was balanced and relatively stationary, easy to wrestle into shape whereas poison was acidic, flowing like a complex chemical soup, almost like molasses. Water flowed far more clearly, an endless push and pull of energies. Fairy energy was chaotic and disruptive and energizing, flowing like a liquid crystal, ordered and yet disordered. Fire energy felt like… well, fire… it was power and passion and light and destruction.
I watched Mirko clean up the mess the team had made of the bed, using a variant of Tidy Up. The move in some form was universal, used to help with the cleaning of nests, burrows, and homes. But it was only a single species from Paldea that had enhanced the weak move into one that could boost strength, speed and remove entry hazards and substitutes.
Goddamn bullshit ass mice critters.
I placed my hands on my hips when I heard Akari knock. “Come in.”
Akari stepped in, and looked surprised at the cleanliness of the room. “The team helped me out… sorry about not talking to you… I had a bit of a meltdown and needed some space and alone time.”
Atari shook her head. “It's fine, and you're doing better than I expected,” she blushed. “Not that I think less of you, I just mean…”
“I know I’m a hot mess Akari, no need to worry,” I replied. “I was mostly trying to figure out what I should do before I rechallenge the gym in a couple weeks.”
Akari perked up. “Oh! There was a request at the Pokémon Center that I'm thinking will offer a good distraction.” She shoved her phone in my face, displaying the local Center’s section on the League website, and found the job she was excited about.
And couldn't read it because it was shoved right into my eyeball.
“Sorry!” She pulled back her phone with an apology in her voice. “It’s a mining operation by the Devon Corporation.”
“Mining operation? Doesn't that usually use vast industrial machinery or very powerful pokémon?” I asked.
“Oh. I suppose it would be… more accurate to call it a mineral prospecting mission with some mining on the side?” Atari explained, her hands waving about and her expressive face twitching into a new face every so often. “Aside from agriculture, Tohoku is incredibly rich in certain mineral resources and energy sources.”
“Like uranium or thorium?” Was my question as Nihoh was not a rich oil supplier.
Atari grimaced. “We wouldn't be able to apply then so no, since pokémon can sometimes incorporate it into their bodies, and well…”
A uranium steelix sounded like a goddamn nightmare.
“So what kind of discovery mission is this?”
“Type Energy deposits, stones, gems, and dust. They’re an incredibly potent and ethical source of infinity energy, and discovery teams like this often hire trainers for protection, help with mining, and an increased likelihood of finding high-quality deposits.”
“And what do the trainers get in exchange?”
She answered with a knowing expression. “They get paid about two hundred fifty thousand pokédollars a week, along with their share of what gets found, whether it's stones, gems or if we’re lucky orbs, since those are rare as hell.”
“How long is this discovery mission?”
“Two weeks, so about five hundred thousand pokédollars.” I… Jesus that was five thousand dollars in terms of purchasing value. “They’ve got a few spots available, we just need to head to where they're reviewing candidates, and it’ll involve some moving around to different surveyed areas.”
“I think I can manage that.”
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The entire request was labeled as the Devon Discovery and Survey Mission, with a preference for trainers that qualify with at least a two-star ranking. The one convenient factor about Gym Trials was that they served as a good assessment when it comes to how strong you are. This is why in other regions like Hoenn, you can earn badges through Trials. I think that also applied to Kalos, Galar, and Paldea and several minor regions.
Kanto, Johto, Tohoku, and Sinnoh accepted Trials as a form for increasing your star rating… but not as a way to earn badges. Anyways as a three-star Lab Trainer with two earned badges, Akari and I had a good chance of getting in.
Devon didn't use a nice office space for the interview process, instead, they had set up a nice huge tent for the interview with the recruiter. I walked into the tent and found myself in front of the Devon employee, a gruff boulder of a man who practically radiated rock-type energy, a cowl of stony brown simmering around him. He stood up from his computer with a wide smile.
“Hello there! You must be here to apply for our little operation, am I right!” His voice was loud and bounced around the four corners of the tent.
“I-I am.” I replied confidently but stuttered anyway.
“Excellent! How many badges do you have, and what kind of pokémon are you bringing?” He paused for a second then started back up again. “And name as well and Trainer ID!”
“Brandy, two badges, and a buneary, nidorino, azumarill, and fennekin.” I flashed my ID at him, he gave it a quick scan with a little scan gun.
“Hmm. A Lab Trainer ahh, with three trials under your belt… couldn't take this city’s rather controversial Gym Leader?”
I frowned. “No, I could not. My team and I need a break and to rethink some things and a job like this might be just the thing we need.” Plus if we were lucky, we might be able to find a moonstone so Jericho can evolve. “We can handle the job, Mirko… my buneary is strong, fast, and has a good sense of hearing. My nidorino knows a few ground moves, and has a good sense of smell and a big range of useful moves. My azumarill can handle anything with her sheer strength and endurance and my fennekin is clever and has low-light vision for overnight surveys.”
He just smiled. “I ain't doubting ya kid, just getting context. While being a Lab Trainer alone doesn't guarantee you’ll be hyper-competent, you seem bright and eager to help. Plus you're a three-star trainer, the bare minimum here is two-star, and you’re a cut above that.”
“So… are you saying I'm in?”
“You just need to fill out some paperwork, and a work ID, show up at the meeting place, if you see a small fleet of big trucks on wheels that's where you need to go.”
I beamed.
That was so easy.
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November 6th, 2022.
I've made a terrible mistake and regret everything.
I held on tight as the truck lurched and lurched and bumped without end as it went off-road, and turned out to be an amphibious vehicle. Each truck could hold five passengers including the driver, with a total of six of them, adding up to thirty people plus ten others riding on their pokémon. So it was about twenty-five trainers and fifteen Devon employees split between a few scientists, geologists, and people able to operate various machinery and scanners.
The entire truck bounced two meters in the air, and I let out a pathetic squeak.
ALL OF MY HATE!
“Hey, try to uhh… relax girl, it ain't gonna be too bad.” I glared at the Ace Trainer who was considered the leader of the group, a Steel Type Specialist who had to be at least a nine-star ranked trainer. Most of the larger missions tended to have at least one such trainer just in case. She had an excadrill that served as her ace and starter, who was riding on the outside of the truck like a maniac. His aura was enormous, but it was not quite as insanely dense and vast as Izumi’s monster of a lucario.
“No.”
We continued the nightmare for the next hour until we had reached a series of bare hills, rocks, and vast maws of stone and rock plunging into the earth. I felt a lot of a tingle like I was suddenly struck by a heat wave and wondered what that was about.
The Ace Trainer Lillian pulled out a techy-looking phone, and it used some type of radio to speak up to everyone onboard for the job. “Hello, hello! I'm the Ace Trainer that is helping all you wonderful trainers out with this little prospecting mission. We've got four sites we’re going to be inspecting, guarding, and opening up if we find something good! It's a pretty important job, which is why we have some miners to guide you on some of the more specialized work here. Listen well, and we will get our fair share!”
I fidgeted as we approached the site, it was enormous, with dozens of hills, some of them bare spires of rock half a kilometer high, and surrounded by pristine forest. Part of the Devon employee's job was also environmental assessment, most infinity energy deposit mining tended to be pretty clean, and the impact was kept to a minimum.
Mainly because work was placed into protecting and guarding seed crystals, as they could be used to provide a simple molecular interface for the creation of more elemental items… using ambient aura projectors to fill them with the necessary infinity energy.
It was a slow process, slower than mining, but it did reduce the strain several fold. Doing so also tended to increase the health of the environment for miles but again, environmental assessments were necessary.
We slammed against something, and all I felt was PAIN as I smacked my head against the roof of the truck.
This was not an auspicious start to my break.