From behind the cover of a metal trash can, Quinn and Phanpy looked at a duct-taped X placed around 50 feet away as they went over the plan one more time. “Okay Phanpy, Stunky’s [Poison Gas] shouldn’t be able to travel this far, but they may know another move with more range, so be ready to duck and cover.”

The planning session had gone well with Lauren and Tyler. Conveniently, Lauren had brought the A-frame whiteboard sign that the Metronome Mart used to advertise sales for Quinn to borrow for the opening of the Royal Gym. It allowed the trio to write out all their ideas during a brainstorming session on how best to release Stunky and try and convince them to stick around.

To release a Pokemon from a Pokeball, all a trainer would need to do is push the button on the ball and let the Pokeball open. The Pokemon would then materialize on the ground directly under the Pokeball. If there weren’t enough room under the Pokeball, then it would appear in the closest available space. The Pokemon would then be facing whichever way the Pokeball is facing. Most of the time these details were insignificant as Pokemon take time to reorient themselves to the world after being released from a stasis where they don’t experience time. It could be dangerous when a Pokemon was returned in the act of an attack because then a trainer needed to create a safe space for the Pokemon to release them.

Because Quinn knew Stunky was aiming their [Poison Gas] behind them, he initially thought he could simply hold the Pokeball towards himself and release Stunky. Tyler quickly shot down that plan as Stunky’s disorientation would provide a second of confusion but then Stunky would quickly search out Quinn as their target. To avoid the [Poison Gas], Quinn would need to release Stunky at a distance.

A trainer could delay the release by holding down the button on the Pokeball — the delay in release equaled how long the trainer held the button down. After the Pokemon was released, the ball would then take the same flight path back to where the trainer released the button. These nuances meant that experienced trainers were able to release a Pokemon wherever they could throw a ball.

Lauren had let Quinn practice releasing and returning Spoink with her ball to get used to the timing and feel. He had seen Pokemon released from Pokeballs countless times, but it was a different beast to do it himself. Quinn was able to get the timing down where he could release Spoink 50 feet away, but he couldn’t throw the ball to get Spoink to point in the way he wanted.

With no way to contain the spray, Tyler suggested using a dead-end alley on the same block of the Royal Gym. The alley was surrounded by two-story abandoned buildings and a 10-foot-tall chain-link fence that bordered a junkyard. Quinn didn’t feel great about trapping Stunky, but it was the best idea they could come up with. Lauren had the good idea to have food ready for Stunky when they were released. Quinn had put two bowls of food on both sides of the alley in hopes that at least one of the bowls avoided the imminent [Poison Gas].

Quinn looked over the setup once again with him and Phanpy blocking the only exit from about 50 feet away. Lauren and Tyler were happy to plan but were not willing to risk getting bathed in Stunky’s spray so they stayed behind to clean.

“Now or never,” Quinn said as he shook off the nerves and held down the button on Stunky’s Pokeball. Seconds later, he threw the ball and it sailed through the air. The throw was on target, but he had held the button down slightly too long. The ball hit the ground and bounced up before ultimately opening and releasing Stunky about five feet past the duct tape.

In a white flash, Stunky was released with their butt facing the fence and the [Poison Gas] was immediately released harmlessly through the fence, coating the side of a rusted-out sedan. While Stunky sprayed the car, the Pokeball bounced back off the ground and flew back to Quinn.

As Tyler predicted, Stunky quickly noticed what had happened and looked around to find their true target. Even at a distance, Quinn’s stature made him easy to find and Stunky let out a hiss at him.

Seeing that Stunky didn’t follow up their [Poison Gas] with another range attack, Quinn moved out from behind the trash can and gingerly moved closer to Stunky after catching the Pokeball. “Hey, Stunky. I just want to talk.”

Stunky listened to Quinn’s voice with a scowl on their face.

“I can explain who I am and what’s going on.”

Stunky then looked around to see that there were no exits behind them and a hint of uncertainty came onto Stunky’s fierce demeanor.

“Sorry for releasing you like this, but that spray from earlier smelled worse than a Trubbish and I would rather not experience it twice,” Quinn half-joked to break the tension.

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With Quinn talking, Stunky sprung into action by first running to the wall opposite the junkyard and then wall-jumping around the alley and over to the junkyard fence. Quinn had been ready to return Stunky, but he hadn’t expected Stunky to climb the walls. Quinn shot a red beam out of Stunky’s ball but aimed too low.

Stunky gained elevation as they ran across the back wall and leaped to freedom over the junkyard fence. The leap was partially successful — Stunky didn’t clear the fence entirely but got their forelegs over the top of the fence. As Stunky squirmed to get the rest of their body over the fence, Quinn tried again and was able to hit the stationary target.

He let out a breath that he hadn’t known he had been holding when the beam fully retracted back into the Pokeball. “So much for our plan. Who’d have guessed Stunky was into parkour?”

Phanpy let out an airy whistle while he used his trunk to wipe the brow of his forehead just under his hard hat.

“Okay, I don’t think there’s any way for us to muddy up the ground to slow down Stunky since your trunk is out of commission, so I’ll just need to get closer and be quicker on the return in case Stunky bolts again.” Phanpy gave a determined nod and walked up with Quinn to a spot that he guessed was the edge of Stunky’s [Poison Gas] range.

At closer range, Quinn was able to release Stunky with more accuracy, but Stunky was now fully aware of the situation they were in. Release, return, release, return, release, return. Stunky didn’t give Quinn a second to even talk as they tried to escape. Stunky only tried the wall jump one more time, and mainly attempted to dart past Quinn and Phanpy. The most ingenious attempt was when Stunky used [Smokescreen] immediately after being released and then let out a piercing [Screech] as they sprinted out of the cover of the smoke. Fortunately for Quinn, Stunky couldn’t see through the [Smokescreen] either so they ran into a cardboard box. After several failed attempts, Stunky relented and sat on their butt after being released.

“You done? If you are, then the bowls of now-cold food are for you to eat if you want. Although you did knock one over in one of your escapes.” Quinn pointed with both hands to each bowl of food.

Stunky looked at the bowl that was not knocked over and tentatively went over to sniff it. Stunky’s eyes got wide when they understood it was a proper meal, but didn’t take a bite until Phanpy trumpeted out some assurances that it was good.

While Stunky dug into the food, Quinn finally got his chance to explain and he decided to just rip the band-aid off. “Stunky, Paul isn’t around anymore. He died a couple of months ago.”

Stunky stopped eating their food at the word “died” and looked up. Quinn expected Stunky to be saddened by the news, but Stunky just gave a look like the food in their mouth had suddenly spoiled before giving out a huff and returning to their meal.

“I never knew Paul, but I didn’t like him either. He abandoned me and my mom before I was born. But because he didn’t have a will, I became the owner of the Royal Gym.”

At this Stunky stopped eating again and looked at Quinn with confusion. Phanpy then interjected and spent the next few minutes talking with Stunky. Quinn and Phanpy had planned on Stunky not being able to understand everything that Quinn would say and so they had agreed beforehand that Phanpy would explain the situation and answer any of Stunky’s questions. Quinn was grateful that a language barrier wouldn’t get in the way of this important conversation. When the two stopped talking, Phanpy turned to Quinn and gave him a nod.

“Stunky, I know I just found your Pokeball and you have no obligation to me or the gym. If you want, we can go to a government building and unsync you from this ball, and you can be free to do whatever you want. But, if you give me a chance, I can promise you that I will be a great trainer for you. I’m restoring the gym and will make every inch of it as clean as the men’s locker room. We can find you a better place for all your shiny knick-knacks and you get food like that every day.” Quinn paused to allow Phanpy to translate the nuances. As Phanpy translated, Stunky’s eyes got wide and Quinn could see excitement creeping in.

When Phanpy stopped, Quinn continued, “I want to be a gym leader, but you don’t even need to battle if you don’t want to.”

Stunky didn’t need a translation for that sentence and immediately Stunky barred their teeth and growled.

Quinn caught himself. “Or you can battle all the time! Did you battle for Paul? Did you like it?”

Stunky gave two distinct nods with their head, then held their head high, and elegantly waved their tail.

“That is fantastic news! We would love to have you as a part of the Royal Gym team. It’s going to take a lot of work, but if we pull it off then we will be adding trophies to the Royal Gym trophy case.” Quinn put a bravado in his voice that he wasn’t sure he could back up, but knew he couldn’t show doubt. Phanpy matched the bravado with a trumpet.

“So what do you say, you wanna join the team?”

Stunky had finished the food in their bowl by this point and walked up to Quinn and Phanpy until they were only a few feet away. They paused and looked Quinn dead in the eyes. The anticipation was palpable and Stunky broke it by twisting around with their tail held high, poised to spray.

Quinn and Phanpy had both let their guard down and could only hope to cover their mouths in time. However, the spray never came. Stunky turned back around and chuckled to themselves.

Phanpy was quick to get angry at the trick, but Quinn’s immediate laughter after he understood dissipated any anger the elephant had. The three laughed together in a random dirty alleyway until their stomachs ached.