Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon and Harry Potter

BloodyKitsune1997: First League Mission, I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I did writing it. Okay a lot of names have been coming in. I did list in the chapter what species and gender everyone is. Just to let you guys know, Eevee doesn't have a name just yet, so I am looking for his name. Also anyone that sends in More or Please Update, I will no longer respond to your reviews. Updates are once a month, it is simply that. I might do an extra one occasionally, but nothing more than that.

Eevee, Houndour, Litwick, Seel, and Litleo are nameless as of right now. Next chapter, we will see one or two of them gain a name. Or all of them, I have yet to decide, it depends on the timeskips.

Words: 12,901

Review:

AyameKitsune: Here you are.

gemava: I was thinking of having Litleo be a female, but a male just seemed to call to me. Hope you enjoy this chapter as well, I'm doing good.

Silviaxl17: I'm so happy to read any reviews and I'm so glad you're enjoying it! Thank you for the names. Litwick is female.

Jostanos: You'll find out in this chapter, Jos.

KyuubiChild717: Always happy to keep yous guys enthralled.

frankieu: Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for the names.

gabyvu87: So glad you enjoyed it and I'm taking care of myself.

Lucky Guard: For the most part, I could be swayed to another like I was for Balto, so if someone has a good reason for a name and why it fits the pokemon in question I'm willing to listen.

Pattou59: Once a month.

yachiru-chan92: Glad you enjoyed it.

yukicrewger2: I meant to put Yawn.

Acolyte of the Blood Moon: I hope you enjoy this chapter.

EternalKnight219: I do too.

Sakihinata: No problem.

Poseidon93: Glad you think so.

comodo50: Hit it right on the spot there.

ThunderClaw03: We'll have to see.

Nightfire k' Vala: Thank you for the names.

Gracie15Trowa: We'll see.

BioHazard82: Thanks.

Cali Michaelis: Thank you for the names.

Zelshia: thank you.

666Neko: No problem.

Mirra: Thanks for the review and the names.

Korin Dragoon: Thanks for the names

mdaws: Thank you for the names

Ether02: Indeed.

Guest: Something that has been mentioned multiple times and will be mentioned again in this chapter.

Sn: No idea, I can't really say.

eldiar: Steven didn't tell Vali before. He only eluded to it before, but not outright said it. Thank you for the name.

Random-translator: Thank you for the names.

Savanna Lea: Once a month.

Guest: Thank you for the names and I'm a little hurt that you'd send a review without reading the chapter.

917brat: Only time will tell.

nikkali44: I'm glad to hear it! Here's the next chapter.

Past Shadow's Sin: Thank you for the names, I cannot answer that question though she won't get the Legendaries.

cerezo .dulce11: Thank you for reading the chapter.

Chapter 26

Amity walked in as Vali worked her way through Blaine's list while inwardly cursing the old man out for not telling her about having a 'To-Go bag' earlier. Amity spotted her as she was tossing some clothes onto the bed from her dresser, "You're leaving, Vali?"

"League Business with Blaine," Vali closed her dresser after she'd grabbed enough changes of clothes, "Sudden as hell since the old man hadn't been expecting them to ask me to come along, I'm apparently trained up enough to come with him,"

"That's insane," Amity stared at her with wide eyes.

Vali shrugged lightly as Elrond floated past the wheel chair bound girl with a package of supplies for the trip that he'd been sent to grab, "But I can't help it, I'm just going with the flow," She looked at Amity curiously as Elrond set the package on her bed, "So what's up? You're normally busy working with Nemu and your Slowpoke around now."

"Nemu's taking a rest and George is currently having a staring contest with another Slowpoke," Amity answered with a slight flush and a disappointed look in her eyes, "I was hoping you'd have time to talk today about that thing from the day we met, but it looks like you're busy,"

Vali's eyes widened in realization and she inwardly cursed. It was true that she'd been busy since Amity had come to stay at the gym, but that didn't mean she couldn't offer some information. With a slight smile as she continued to work on packing her travel bag, she told Amity, "I might be packing for some League Business, but that doesn't mean I can't talk with you. Besides it's better if you get some form of information now rather than later, it isn't fun to wade through the dark alone," She folded her clothes carefully into the pack and added in the supplies, "Though make sure you don't tell anyone at the gym what I'm going to say. Trust me when I say that this something that is only on an absolutely need to know basis thing, okay?"

"Okay," Amity nodded as she reached up to grip her feather and Elrond closed the door.

"We are what's known as Bearers. Why? It's due to the elements we hold within ourselves," Vali tapped her heart and Amity pressed a hand to her own, "My inner fire,"

"And the water I've got," Amity looked a bit confused, "But how do we have these powers?"

Vali shook her head, "I don't know yet. All I know is that there are specific circumstances needed for our powers to activate which is why there are so few of us. We are also touched by legendaries," Amity's eyes widened, "No idea who, but we'll find out someday."

"What do you mean?" Amity gained a look of confusion.

"Each of us will one day be called by our specific Legendary to their home or somewhere close to it," Vali explained as she turned back to her packing, "They'll answer our questions and train us in our powers. But they'll also inform us about our duties then,"

"Duties?" Amity looked at her in confusion, "What duties?"

"We have these powers for a reason, Amity," Vali looked at her with a slight frown, "They're going to train us for a reason. It's only natural we'd have to do something for them in return. Think about it this way, Nemu and George will very likely have the best teacher in existence which will ensure they'll never willingly leave you. All you'll have to do in exchange is some kind of job for a Legendary,"

"True," Amity looked a bit dubious.

Vali shook her head, "It's years in the future, Amity. Don't both thinking about it now, you've got time to enjoy life and spend time with your pokemon before then."

"I've got to get to walking first," Amity looking down at her legs, "D-do you think the Legendary might be able to help me run dance again?"

"They're not all-powerful beings, Amity," Vali told her as she put her potion supplies away and walked over to place a hand on Amity's shoulder, "But if anyone can ensure you'll be able to dance again, it's you. We haven't known each other long, but I know that you're a determined girl who can do anything she's put her mind to. First though, you'll have to work on walking again,"

"Right," Amity smiled at Vali, "Thanks, Vali,"

"No problem," Vali took her hand away and headed back over to her bed where she returned to packing, "We've got to look out for each other. Besides you need to experience what its like to go on a journey with your pokemon, its a feeling like no other,"

Blaine nodded to her as she walked outside the gym, "Good, you're a few minutes early. Did you get everything on the list?"

"Yeah," Vali shifted the bag on her shoulder as Eevee peered at the gym leader from her other one, "Once we get back, I'll make sure to get everything on the list and keep it ready,"

Blaine smirked a bit and Vali could see what looked like the beginning of pride flicker in his eyes, "Great. Let's get going, we'll be meeting up with Surge to get more information on the situation. Other than greeting Surge, you're to stay quiet and listen to everything that's said. I want to see what you get from the information we're given."

"I can do that," Vali watched Blaine release a Delphox only to be caught off guard as the feeling of teleportation overtook her, "The hell?"

The energy was far more comfortable than most and Vali found herself standing completely relaxed where she'd usually be fighting the urge to puke at the unexpected action. Blaine gave her a confused look that he quickly hide while saying, "Delphi here has been specifically trained to use Teleport. You'll find that the League has many psychic-type pokemon usually unable to use the ability capable of it. Once we're past a certain point in our training, I'll see about getting you one if only to ensure Delphi won't be strained. Of course, you'll have to prove yourself and not show off their ability willy-nilly."

"Understood," Vali looked at Delphi with a soft smile and bowed slightly, "Thank you, Delphi,"

Delphi nodded to her before returning to its pokeball. Blaine shook his head as Vali began looking around them. They seemed to be in a forested area with a handful of bunker-like buildings and four watch towers. They were painted to look like the surrounding foliage and it was only standing in the center of them that she could tell the difference. Blaine noticed her confused expression and chuckled as he began to walk, "Welcome to Base Delco 2. One of 3 Ranger/Ace bases in this specific region of Kanto."

Vali quickly caught up to him, "So there are members of both here?"

"Yup," Blaine nodded as he released Ninetales, "Given that this area presides over one of the more wilder and unknown parts of Kanto, its best to have a mixture," Ninetales flexed her tails and let some flames leak from her muzzle, "While Kanto doesn't have jungle like Hoenn, our wild lands are just as bad with the mix of mountains, grasslands, forests, lakes, and that area just by the border with Johto that remains untamed to this day," Vali released Aragorn who fell in step with her when he took note of the new surroundings just as he was taught, "Now, Surge will be in the building we're heading to. I want you to listen to him if I'm not around or someone that we tell you to."

"I understand. I'm pretty much the weakest and most inexperienced person here," Vali told him earning a nod.

They entered the building ahead of them which was the largest of them and found Surge at the head of it looking over a map. Surge was the only one inside which Vali found a bit odd, but Blaine didn't seem to be. Blaine walked towards Surge who's head snapped up with a snarl. Jolteon and Raichu appeared from under the table snarling only to stop as Surge snorted and his scowl dropped, "About time you fucking show up, Blaine. I kicked out those damn pussies when they started whining too much. They'll be back soon enough," Surge looked at her and grinned, "Hey, Brat. Strong enough to join us already?"

"Apparently," Vali smiled a bit weakly, "Considering we've been getting our asses kicked day in and day out, I'm not so sure. We beat the old man's Magmar all together the first night we got there, but haven't managed to do it since. I have a feeling it was going easy on us,"

"Magmar got cocky," Blaine agreed with a chuckle, "You brats will just have to try harder. Now Surge, the situation,"

"We've got a bunch of asswipe poachers," Surge replied as he gestured to the pictures on the map, "Singerly is sure the shits are part of the train that are bringing pokemon the illegal rings. But the poachers keep slipping away, they're like Shellos when it comes to getting out of traps. We've made sure everyone assigned to this base and the various others in the region are clean,"

"So how the hell are they getting out of the traps?" Blaine asked as he peered at the map, "None of them are centralized either when it comes to catching pokemon save for the region. No one could be that good. Have we captured any of theirs?"

"Two, but both ended up dead within an hour," Surge scowled at that, "One shit to a suicide pill and the other to a dark-type hidden nearby that slit their throat,"

"Damn it," Blaine grimaced at that, "We're basically working from square one to two on this,"

"Pretty much," Surge ran a hand through his hair, "The Ace's are keeping them from using any weather based attacks which help and the Rangers are keeping the wild pokemon from getting too pissed off. It isn't easy since the poachers are starting to pick off too many,"

Vali got a bit closer and looked at the map curiously. Surge saw her looking it over and said, "The red marks are where the poachers struck, the blue are where the pokemon ended up getting taken from, the purple are where we confronted them, and the black is where the poachers died."

Vali scanned over the map and called out Elrond. Elrond appeared and looked at her curiously, "Yes, Vali?"

"Look over the map, I need it memorized," Vali told him as Blaine and Surge continued to discuss tentative plans.

Elrond nodded as he began scanning the map, "No patterns what so ever. It makes sense to avoid capture, but soon that will fail."

"But what if there is a pattern?" Vali murmured softly earning a gentle hum.

"Maybe, but the question is what kind of pattern would there be?" Elrond replied as he leaned against her shoulder carefully once he finished memorizing it.

Vali hummed a bit, "That would be the question."

"What are you humming about?" Blaine asked as he and Surge turned towards her.

Vali was startled by the question, but quickly answered, "What if there is a pattern, but its masked to make it look like it isn't one?" She cringed a bit at the disbelief, "Like what types of pokemon where poached? What days did they strike? How many days in a row did they strike before stopping? What time of day? The strength of the pokemon they're aiming to poach should be considered too. And even more, I mean if you consider that kind of stuff, you could pick up a pattern."

Surge stared at her a few a moments before letting out a low chuckle, "Well, I'll be damned. You're right, Kid. There might just be a pattern within this mess and we're missing it, I'll get those pussies to start searching for one."

Blaine grinned a bit, "Looks like we were right to bring you alone, Brat."

Vali flushed a bit, "I was only making a suggestion."

"Suggestion or not, it'll still help keep us from sitting around and wasting massive amounts of time," Surge replied as he grabbed walkie-talkie, "I'll call Singerly and Brown. Get them to hurry their asses back, we've got work to do. You two should get settled, we're bunking together. Raichu, go show them our bunk,"

Raichu let out a soft cry and lept down from the table. Blaine shook his head, "I'll stay here and listen for a bit more. Brat, you get our shit settled and come back."

"No problem," Vali took the bag Blaine offered and grunted at the weight.

Blaine grinned at her, "We'll be working on your own training when we get back."

"Joy," Vali was not looking forward to whatever hell he was going to unleash on her.

Raichu led her towards one of the smaller bunkers which held a group of bunk beds. The mouse gestured to two of them and Vali dropped Blaine's bag onto one before setting her own onto another. She hugged Raichu once relieved of her burdens as Elrond commented, "We will not have room for everyone."

"Unfortunately," Vali agreed as she glanced towards the bunk she'd be using with a slight sigh, "Hello, Raichu. I've missed you greatly,"

Raichu hugged her back with a gentle coo.

While the Rangers and Ace were grateful for the two Gym Leader's help, they were less than happy about the eleven year old being present. Vali didn't recognize any of the Rangers and knew that it was unlikely they knew Sirius personally. From one of the grumpy Rangers, she learned that Delco 2 was stationed close to a nearby mountain not far from Vermilion. The pokemon in the area were a lot stronger than the ones she was used to dealing with according to one snarky Ace. Blaine explained it was due to the pokemon being 'Off Route' as was what most in the League referred to them as. Whenever a pokemon within the route became too-strong for normal trainers to deal with, they were either captured by an Ace to be trained or driven 'Off Route' which inevitably caused the local pokemon population to gain strength over generations.

It explained why certain parts of the Routes were 'Badge locked' as it was called. Vali was glad that she'd finally gotten that straightened out, but it made her wonder how many trainer deaths were caused by people going 'Off Route' looking for strong pokemon once they knew this stuff. Once Blaine had decided on a course of action with Surge, they set to work with the commanders of the base. Rather than sticking with Blaine or at the base like most suspected, she was planted with a squad of Ace much to everyone shock and told to do her best.

Vali looked over the Ace squad noting that they were missing the fourth member and had a feeling it was a likely a sore point. She decided not to bring it up and instead decided to say, "As Surge said, my name is Valkyrie Potter-Black. I am not exactly sure how I'll be able to help, but I'm going to do my best."

The leader of the team, a man by the name of Anthony Dyre, merely offered her a semi cold look, "What pokemon have you got?"

"A male Arcanine, a male Charizard, a female Pidgeot, a male Alolan Raichu, a female Sandslash, a female Ponyta, a male Eevee, a female Larvitar, a female Shelgon, a male Luxray, a female Numel, a male Vulpix, a female Houndour, a female Litwick, a male Seel, and a male Litleo," Vali listed earning a look of recognition from all save for the leader of the team, "My Litleo was given to me not even a few days ago while my Houndour just began light physical training as per Nurse Joy's allowance. My Seel is somewhat new to my team, but is proving to be competent,"

"Has your Arcanine ever tracked anyone before?" Anthony asked with a slight scowl.

Vali shook her head, "No as the League never ended up calling upon any trainers for such a thing when I was in the area."

Anthony's scowl deepened, "Damn it, what the hell is Surge thinking about giving us a Newbie like you?" Vali kept her face straight while inwardly glad she'd returned her pokemon, "Your Arcanine will be working with mine to learn how to scent and track our prey, got it?"

"Yes, sir," Vali nodded to him while mentally planning to have Balto teach Houndour these skills at a later date.

"We'll start now since there's only a limited amount of time," Anthony told her as he released a rather large Arcanine that had clearly seen many battles due to the scars that decorated its striped fur, "Alisa, you're going to train this girl's Arcanine in how to scent and track the Poachers. We don't have much time, so we're going to be doing a lot of it on the fly. Do your best,"

Alisa the Arcanine barked softly and nuzzled her trainer before peering at Vali. Vali released Balto and the two Arcanine peered at one another. Vali touched Balto's side and spoke softly, "Alisa is going to teach you how to scent and track. Learn well, okay? It's a skill we'll need for the future."

Balto let out a soft bark of agreement and nuzzled her before the two Arcanine took off into the nearby forest. Anthony spoke once they'd gone, "To be frank, I don't trust in your abilities. I don't trust you. But with the gym leaders and League pushing for you to be here, I can't argue. We're stuck with you, Potter-Black. All I can say is don't die and don't get my men killed."

With that, Anthony turned on his heel and began walking off, "Meet up here in two hours, I don't care what you do before then."

Two of the other Ace's disappeared immediately towards a nearby bunker, Vali found herself left alone with a female Ace. The female Ace smiled at her, "Don't feel too bad, Anthony isn't dealing well with Jess' hospitalization after our last interaction with the Poachers and Surge placing you with us. He'll ease up soon enough, Valkyrie. He's a good man."

Vali looked at the Ace a bit dubious, but wasn't willing to argue, "He didn't seem to recognize my name or pokemon. Your teammates and you did though."

"Anthony is pretty much out here most of the year while the rest of us rotate," The female Ace explained, "Our squad save for Anthony chose to go for the Conference and ended up staying through till the end thanks to Moltres. Anthony was peeved at not getting to see the fire-bird up close too, but it was his own choice," She grinned a bit, "Names Stella. Stella Bradley. Want to go get something to eat and drink? We'll be out there for awhile once we finally leave,"

"Sure," Vali decided it wouldn't hurt and followed the woman to the Cafeteria where they both grabbed something to eat.

"Man, I still can't believe you managed to destroy those fields," Stella grinned broadly once they got their food and found a table to sit at, "I mean that Numel of yours will be scary when she evolves. Pele was her name, right?"

"Yeah," Vali nodded as she dropped a hand to her pokeballs, "She's getting stronger every day. We all are even if Blaine continues to kick our asses,"

"Man, I can't believe you're being apprenticed to Blaine of all people," Stella looked at her with wide blue eyes, "How'd you manage it?"

Vali offered Stella an awkward smile, "Professor Oak had me writing a research paper. And I was writing detailed notes on my journey for Professor Oak, he ended up passing those to Blaine for whatever reason. Deciding he like what he'd seen, Blaine offered me a compromise, I'd document my pokemon's growth among other things in a journal and if I did well enough during the Conference, he'd take me on. As you can see, everything worked out in the end."

"I've also seen the photos you take," Stella told her earning a surprised look, "I saw you sometimes during the Conference and during my downtime I've recently come across a website. You're selling pictures, right?"

"It's a small side job," Vali confirmed as she picked up her drink, "I can't really do as much with it just yet. Not so soon into my Apprenticeship, I can only do so much at a time,"

"I get it," Stella picked up her burger, "Your pictures are beautiful. I absolutely love that one with the two Butterfree in that field of flowers and the Bellossom,"

Vali was a bit surprised since that had been one of her earlier ones, "Really? I'd only put that one up to show the difference between what I could do with a professional camera and a regular one. I took that one back before I got my newest one."

"I'm sure," Stella nodded with a grin, "How much would you be willing to sell it for?"

"You'd have to talk with my adoptive mother about getting it since I don't have that specific photo," Vali warned her earning a nod, "150 poke sound fair?"

Stella blinked a bit at the price, "You sure? That's a bit low. I'd be willing to pay more. Around 500."

"Think of it as a comrade and kindness discount," Vali smiled warmly, "We're about to be working together for the foreseeable future and you've been nicer than the others in this place. I'm not giving it to you for free, but I won't charge you full price,"

Stella grinned at that, "Awesome! Let's exchange contact info, I'll swing by the Cinnabar gym the next time I'm off and pick up the photo. Sound good?"

"Yeah, but you could easily get it from the website," Vali told her earning a shrug.

"True, but I think we're going to be good friends, Vali," Stella told her while brushing back a couple strands of bright silver hair.

After exchanging numbers and Stella being surprised at Vali having a Pokenav rather than a Pokegear, Stella told Vali about herself. She was from Viridian city and twenty years old. She came from a mixed region family with a Sinnoan mother and a Kantoian father which is where her hair color came from. She started out with a Snover and Snorunt which started her onto the journey of becoming an Ice-type specialist though she was beginning to stretch out into Water-types since so many shared the same typing. She'd joined Ace after her second Conference upon being approached by a recruiter not long after the Conference was over and hadn't regretted it since. Whenever she had a long period of time off, she went over to Sinnoh and spent time with her younger brother who was working as an Archaeologist.

Vali ended up introducing Stella to Seel who began giving her some tips after receiving the customary greeting much to Stella's amusement. Stella released her Dewgong who looked upon the younger member of its evolutionary line with amusement before gently spraying some water at him. By the time they were due back at the meeting point, Vali felt a lot better about everything in general and knew more about raising Seel up thanks to Stella who didn't mind being emailed whenever she was struggling.

Vali rode on Balto's back feeling a bit awkward at having to wear the armor many Ace and Rangers did. The fact it was ill-fitting and far too big too made the entire thing more uncomfortable than it needed to be. Even the smallest piece of human armor they had was too big for Vali and it would take too long for them to commission anything for her to actually use, they also felt it would be worthless to do so since she was a growing girl. Once she stopped growing, the League would commission actual armor for her, but until then they'd leave it be. Though Vali was hesitant to remind them it was only until Blaine's apprenticeship was done that she'd be working with them, Anthony had commented that both gym leaders had seemed thoroughly angry at the Leagues actions.

Currently they were tracking some of the poachers, a team of Rangers had managed to stop some of the Poachers from catching a small pack of Arcanine and Growlithe not too long ago. They'd come across evidence of it and Alisa had caught the scent with Balto not following her not too long afterward. Balto was following his elder's cues with careful eyes and keeping pace with her. The Ranger team would be going back to base and getting more Ace to cover them since there was no telling what the Poachers would do now. At least one or two humans were injured with their pokemon in various states of injury not to mention consciousness, it was unknown if they'd try to attack or teleport back to their base.

An electric crackle buzzed unfamiliarity in her ear. She jumped a bit, but easily brushed off Balto's concern with a pat on his back. It was the comm-unit she'd been given. Stella's voice sounded from the ear-piece, 'We can just barely pick out movement ahead that isn't wild pokemon.'

Another voice sounded, a male with a soft tone, 'They're erratic. Sypher says their minds are filled with pain.'

A second male voice called out, a grin could be heard even through the comm, 'Fear and pain, I don't need to be a pokemon to smell blood in the air.'

"Hold yourself together, Marcus," Anthony barked with a shake of his head, "Cullen, Sypher is sure its them?"

'Their psychic signatures match up with those we continue to encounter, Anthony,' The now named Cullen replied, 'Shall we engage them now?'

Anthony was quiet for a moment as he considered his options. Stella spoke up, 'Anthony, it'll be the three of us against them. From what the Rangers told us, the group was only six strong and they ended up with most of their pokemon knocked out. All of ours are at full strength, they're healthy and haven't seen battle in awhile. You'll be meeting up with us in a couple of minutes with the kid. Think of it as us buying you time to catch up, ya know?'

Anthony grunted softly, "Very well, you'll go ahead, but do not make me regret this."

'Aye, Captain!' They chorused before the comm went dead.

Vali looked at Anthony as they raced through the slightly darkened forest. Anthony kept his eyes forward not even giving her a glance. The silence reigned for a couple of moments before he finally spoke, "Once we get there, I want you to stay out of it. My team and I can handle ourselves. I don't have any idea why the Gym Leaders stuck you with us and I don't give two shits. Keep out of our way and I'll be happy, got it?"

"Got it," Vali replied feeling a bit bitter even if Stella's words from earlier repeated in her mind.

Vali watched the fighting going on with Elrond while also keeping an eye out for anyone approaching. It was carnage in a pure and simple way with the Ace operatives ruthlessly operating to take down their enemies. Marcus took seemed to take after his dark-types in the worst way with the way how easily readily he took each life. Cullen was more reserved and cold as the battle progressed though no less ruthless. Stella coated the battlefield in ice and froze her enemies until their movements were almost completely still while the others tore through them. But Anthony took the cake, he seemed to dance through the Poachers as if they were merely stand-ins and leave them withering on the ground.

The wounded Poachers managed to meet up with a small group of fresh ones, but with the Ace, it wasn't difficult to work through them in small numbers. Vali reached up to scratch Elrond behind the ear as he commented, "Strong. They're strong."

"Very," Vali murmured in a soft barely audible voice, "We'll reach this level one day,"

Vali just hoped that she wouldn't become like Marcus or Cullen when it came to taking lives. Elrond leaned into her shoulder slightly before stiffening. She glanced at him and was about to ask what the problem was when he spoke, "A void and a human are circling the fight towards us. Based on the fact I'm actually able to sense the void, my guess its some kind of mix like a Houndour or something. The Human is aware we're here, but not what. He has no idea that you're not an Ace or I'm here. What should we do?"

Vali felt her anxiety kick up at that information and glanced towards the fight. They wouldn't be able to get anyone's attention since the group of Ace was still in the thick of it. The Void would need to be taken care of. The human would be a problem. Vali looked at Elrond, "I'm going to move away from the fight. If they continue to follow, we're going to set things up to capture this one."

"Is that a good idea?" Elrond asked as Vali started on her plan.

Vali moved while making sure to keep out of view of the fight, "They need someone alive, right? We need to prove ourselves somehow to these guys and I want to be useful. Besides Anthony said to stay out of their fight."

"True," Elrond hummed softly, "They're continuing to follow us and the void is a Houndour. It's curious of you, but that's hidden beneath a high level of aggression. It's ready to kill the one beside it,"

Vali grimaced at that and shook her head, "I feel sorry for the poor thing. Please inform the others of our situation, I'll be needing their help."

Once Vali deemed they were far enough, she quickly released Pele and had the Numel set up a trap. She had Pele settle down underground where the Numel would be protected and easily be able to set things off when Elrond gave the signal. Elrond spoke as she began fiddling with her pokenav, "They're approaching. Is Pele the only one you'll call on?"

"Tell Smaug and Terra to be ready to release themselves," Vali replied while pushing an image of what she wanted the two to do upon their release through the connection earning a hum of approval, "Elrond, have Celina release herself once the trap is done. She'll need to clear everything away,"

"Right," Elrond nodded as his body grew a bit stiff, "They're here,"

Vali was given no sign of it, but she took Elrond's word. She let out a soft hum and put away her pokenav. She spoke into the trees, "You know, Poacher. You should've picked a diffrent occupation. I'm not saying this out of self-righteousness or any childish reasoning like it's bad. You do know that the pokemon you're sending off are going to be in hell, right? They'll never lead regular lives again. Forever bearing scars both mental and physical, they're probably never going to recover even if the League manages to save them."

Elrond's head shifted towards the right, "He's annoyed."

"I'd much rather we not fight," Vali said to the empty air in front of her while rubbing the pokeballs on her waist, "We can end things peacefully here. You come in without any fighting and they won't take your legally captured pokemon,"

"Bullshit," An unknown male voice snarled, "Poachers don't get that right, Kid. They'll take everything I've got just because they can. You can talk like the best, but you know nothing,"

"I know more than you apparently," Vali replied with an eye roll.

There was another snarl though this time it was pokemon in nature and the human male shouted, "Houndour, don't!"

A black, red/orange, and white shape came hurtling out of the right side of the clearing. Two of her pokeballs split open just as a loud rumble sounded, a loud yelp echoed through the air as black smoke and gritty sand filled the air. Vali had a feeling that neither of her pokemon were responsible for the yelp based on the flesh against stone sound that preceded the yelp. Terra's cool body leaned against her as Smaug engaged the Houndour. The human man let out a shout of surprise and Elrond spoke to her, "Pele has successfully captured him."

"Have her grab his pokeballs," Vali said as she rubbed Terra's head noting that the Larvitar had grown a tiny bit.

Pele appeared next to Vali holding a belt in her mouth. Giggling a bit, she patted Pele on the head before taking the belt and scanning the pokeballs carefully. She found the only one that felt cold to the touch and aimed it into the cloud around her where the sounds of fighting was coming from. Almost immediately the sounds stopped as the pokeball became warm in her hands, it shook slightly and with a careful touch, she locked it. She locked each pokeball as Celina released herself and cleared away the clouds. The Poacher gaped at her, "How? You're just a kid."

"I'm a bit more than that," Vali replied with a slight grin before looking at Pele, "Yawn on him,"

Elrond was quick to protect them as Pele Yawned at the Poacher. The Poacher scowled at her, "I'm going to escape this. When I do, I'll ensure you're going to the first person we g-go after..."

The Poacher's eyes drooped and he yawned. She snorted softly, "Good luck with that."

Once Vali was sure the Poacher was asleep, she used her comm-unit, "Anyone there?"

'Kid?!' Vali flinched at Anthony's voice, 'Where the hell are you?'

"I'm not exactly sure of my co-ordinates, but I can have my Charizard or Pidgeot fly up for you guys to see," Vali replied as she ran her fingers over Terra's head, "I'm currently babysitting one captured Poacher and his locked pokeballs while some of my pokemon are patrolling to make sure that no one is coming to kill him,"

There was silence over the comm before Stella burst out, 'You captured a Poacher by yourself?'

"He only had a Houndour out and didn't expect much of me," Vali replied while switching to Pele, "To be honest, it's a little insulting,"

'Shit, Kid,' Marcus laughed loudly, 'You've got balls,'

'Send up your Pidgeot,' Anthony grunted through the Comm.

"Yes, Sir," Vali called over Celina and gave her orders.

Celina took off and quickly ascended over the trees until she was circling the clearing. Anthony spoke again, 'We can see her. Stay there and don't move.'

Elrond spoke as Vali ended the call, "He did not seem pleased."

"No, he didn't," Vali shook her head lightly.

Vali had a feeling that things were likely not going to go very well at first even if they'd be able to prove themselves useful to the Aces. Stella appeared first on the back of her Swanna and quickly began checking over Vali with wide concerned eyes, "Are you okay?"

"He didn't even touch me," Vali told the silver haired Ace, "The only one who actually engaged them was Smaug and he's barely even got a scratch on him," The Houndour had likely been trained to track people down leaving everything else up to the Poachers real team, "I'm fine, Stella,"

"Thank Mew," Stella surprised Vali with a hug, "When you didn't come out after the fighting was done and we couldn't find you around the battlefield, everyone assumed the worse. You proved us wrong not even five fucking minutes after that,"

Vali slowly hugged Stella back just as Elrond protected them as Pele used Yawn again earning a surprise gasp. She smiled a bit as Stella pulled away with a confused look, "I don't have any better moves to use on humans at the moment. Yawn doesn't do any damage and will keep him asleep without me needing to physically act."

"Nice," Stella smiled in understanding, "Once the boys get here, you'll need to explain what all happened. Will you be okay with doing that?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine," Vali nodded as she bent down to rub Terra's head again, "By the way, I want you to meet some of my pack members," Vali gestured to Terra, "This little lady is Terra," Terra gave a soft cry and waved, "Elrond is the Raichu," Elrond nodded and based on the slight jump Stella gave had likely greeted her, "The Numel is my dear Pele," Pele let out a gentle coo and moved to nuzzle Stella earning a laugh, "The smug looking Charizard is Smaug my official starter and the beta of my pack. Celina is the beauty flying above us. You met Balto my pack's Alpha earlier on,"

"It's nice to meet you all," Stella told everyone honestly, "The handsome devil with me is Darry. He's my wings for most distances,"

The Swanna let out a deep cry and Vali noted he was bigger than the one she'd seen at the Conference. The next to arrive in the clearing were Marcus and Cullen with Anthony on their tails. All three took in the clearing rather quickly, Marcus was the first to react by letting out a dark laugh, "You could easily crush his body like that or have the earth swallow him whole leaving nothing behind."

Vali grimaced a bit at that and Stella scowled at Marcus, "The Poacher needs to be kept alive. He can be used to gather information, Marcus."

"Enough," Anthony cut in with his eyes trained on Vali, "You captured him. How?"

Vali looked into Anthony's eyes noting the harsh unforgiving coldness within them. She knew that whatever answer that came out of her mouth would effect how the rest of their relationship would go. Steeling her spine, she spoke while keeping her eyes locked with his, "I stayed in the spot you'd left me in with Elrond to watch my back while observing alongside me. It was a chance to further our knowledge while gaining an understanding of just how far out of our depths we were. As we were doing so, Elrond sensed that someone was approaching with a void that we later discovered was a Houndour."

"How is that possible?" Cullen asked with a frown.

"It's due to Elrond's unique biology as an Alolan Raichu that allows him to sense dark-types so long as their mixed with another-type and he has familiarity with their species," Vali replied before continuing her report, "The Poacher had realized we were there thanks to his Houndour and wanted to investigate. I realized that things were about to get bad and began attempting to think of a plan. I immediately discarded the option of bringing this to your attention as you were busy with the other Poachers and more were likely arriving. Going into the fight with the Poacher on my tail would immediately cause things to get even worse, I decided to move away from the fight. If the Poached didn't follow, I would get close enough for Elrond to keep an eye on the fight while staying out of range to prevent a repeat. If he followed, I'd create a trap," She waved a hand at the clearing, "As you can see, he followed me and I set the trap,"

Vali explained her trap as thoroughly as possible. Anthony continued to stare at her with those cold eyes, "And if that plan failed? What would you have done? We were at least a mile away."

"Balto knows Teleport and can use it with some success," Vali replied as her hand dropped to rubbed Terra's head, "I would've called for help and explained the situation immediately after returning my pokemon which is why I had a limited number out. We'd head back to the battlefield and meet up with you guys. You probably would've been done with the Poachers by then and would be ready to deal with that guy,"

"And if we weren't?" Anthony asked in a tone that was probably meant to make Vali angry or annoyed.

"I'd do my best to hold him off until you were," Vali replied in as calm a tone as possible, "My pokemon might not be up to Ace standards yet, but Blaine has been putting us through training every day since we came to Cinnabar after the Conference. It should be enough to ensure we'll make it until you're able to take over,"

"And if it isn't?" Anthony asked once more using that tone that was meant to make her angry.

"Considering the fact that my pokemon would be out of commission, I would have to run, but that isn't the answer you're looking for, is it?" Vali asked and was met with silence as a small smile formed on her face, "I already know that these Poachers would probably try to kill me. Will try to kill me considering what some of my pokemon are, I don't need anyone to sugar coat it for me," She barely kept herself from touching the bullet graze scar from Vermilion, "I'm not scared of that, Anthony. I know the risks. I was in Lavender Town and the Vermilion City wild fire. I know how dangerous and life threatening things can get. My pokemon and I know that this is not a game, Anthony. My life has been in danger more than one since my journey has begun. Don't assume that I'm some privileged kid here for kicks, I actually know what the cost is,"

"Have you ever had a pokemon die on you?" Anthony asked making Vali's heart grow cold.

Vali swallowed harshly, "Not one of my own, no, but one I was close to. A Flareon back at the ranch. Two months before my Journey there was a break-in at the lab while I was there, Balto, Flareon, and I were spending time in one of the rooms playing with the baby pokemon. The robber came to steal the baby pokemon and some research and decided to come for the pokemon first since they weren't as heavily guarded at the time. Flareon killed him, but took three bullets. One of which to protect me," Vali's fist clenched as her eyes stung at the memory and by Arceus did she miss Flareon, "I tried to stop the bleeding and keep her alive long enough for them to save her. I did everything I could, but it wasn't enough," Balto curled his body against her and she realized she'd begun shaking a bit, "I know what it's like to have a pokemon die on me, Anthony. I never want to lose another pokemon. I'm not so foolish as to assume it won't eventually happen to me, but that's why we train so damn hard,"

Elrond once more protect everyone from Pele's Yawn jolting them a bit. Anthony's eyes lost their coldness as he spoke, "Get the Poacher out, I want to head back to base."

They began moving immediately with Pele carefully pulling the Poacher up with Terra assisting. Marcus and Cullen secured him before attaching the man to Marcus' Hydreigon. Stella patted Vali on the back with a sad look, "Sorry about Flareon, Vali."

"Don't be, Stella," Vali shook her head lightly, "Flareon was protecting me even when she didn't have to. I still have a piece of her with me," She grinned a bit at Stella's confused look, "A bit of Flareon's ash's are in a Flareon toy that I keep with me. The only time I parted with it was back when I found my Eevee and realized he needed it more," Stella looked a bit speechless, "He doesn't know and I haven't told him the story just yet. I figured it wasn't time for it. Perhaps I will soon,"

"He'd probably like to know," Stella finally replied with a shake of her head.

Vali got onto Balto's back after returning her pokemon save for him. Anthony spoke as they began their return to Delco 2, "We had you pegged wrong, Kid."

Rather than show the surprise she felt, Vali merely said, "So long as we can work together properly from now on, I'll be happy to forget about it."

A rough chuckle left the man, "Sounds like a plan, Kid. I'll see if we can get that Arcanine of yours up to speed and maybe train your Houndour a bit."

Vali perked up at that, "Really? That sounds good, I was planning on doing it after we went back to Cinnabar."

"I'll show you how to train them," Anthony offered with a slight smile, "Heard from the Stella you've got a Luxray too, we'll see about working with it as well. But it'll depend on time. Balto first then the other two,"

"No problem," Vali hugged Balto who's tail wagged softly.

For all that everyone was glad that they made it back with a live Poacher, Vali was chewed out about leaving the group. She took it with a straight face and kept her mouth shut even if every part of her wanted to shout at the commanders of this place that there hadn't really been another option. When she left the tent, she'd been marched over to the bunk after having her pokemon confiscated to be checked over and held until Blaine or Surge returned from their own missions which pissed her off. She continued to keep her mouth shut even if it made her even angrier. She sat down on her bunk and immediately began making notes about what she'd learned through the mission since it was better to stay occupied. Stella came in with two trays of food two hours after she'd been essentially grounded and placed one down beside her, "It sucks that they're doing this to you, Vali."

"Especially when I didn't have another option," Vali replied as she set down her notes and dug into the food, "Thank you,"

"No problem," Stella looked at the notes, "You're working?"

"Half keeping busy," Vali replied with a shrug, "I learned a lot while out there with you guys, so I'm making notes on it," She missed the food back on Cinnabar since this stuff didn't taste very good even if it was made to be very nutritious, "I'll use this to create the basis for new techniques and tactics for my pokemon. I'm also partially working on ideas for my next research paper mostly due to something Cullen said. By the time we get back to Cinnabar, I'll probably be fielding my idea to Professor Oak. With any luck, I'll be working on the second paper needed for my mastery and only have to do the third later on,"

"To have one done already is a surprise," Stella commented as she picked up her mug, "But why the rush for your next one?"

"The idea popped in my head and I can't get rid of it," Vali stated with a wry smile, "When it comes to my photos, I just take a picture. When it comes to things like this, I need to go through with writing it. Professor Oak will probably be happy since he's been having quite a few people call him about my last paper wishing to talk with me,"

Stella looked a bit stunned, "I'm kind of glad I never wanted to become a Master."

Vali snorted softly as she took a bite of her sandwich. If becoming a Master was all research papers, a lot of scientists could call themselves such. The door opened again allowing Surge to enter. The blonde man looked amused, "So you go out on a mission, are told to observe, lead a Poacher on a chase, and trap him, Vali?"

"In my defense, I didn't have a lot of options short of letting all the other Poachers in the area know I was there," Vali replied as Raichu jumped off his shoulder and ran over to her bunk, "I solved the problem of not catching one alive, didn't I?"

Surge let out a booming laugh as Raichu began snuggling into her side, "You did, Kid. Sent the Commanders into a tizzy, they can't believe some upstart kid managed to do what their Ace and Rangers couldn't. Nice job."

"I'm just glad Anthony and the others aren't so cold anymore," Vali replied earning an amused look, "So my pokemon?"

Surge walked over with her belt, "Here you go, Singerly in particular didn't want you to get them back until Blaine returned, but I reminded him you're under my charge as well."

"Thank you," Vali quickly secured her belt after gently moving Raichu away and felt whole, "So I take it they're not going to be letting me out of here willingly?"

"Eh, I'm going to be dragging you with me for a training session in an hour," Surge told her, "Finish eating, I've got some stuff to do before we start," He reached over and patted her head, "I really did mean it, Vali. You did a good job considering how briefly you've been trained. We'll be working with you on situations and scenarios like this later on,"

Vali swatted at his hand, "Thanks, Surge. I was really just trying to keep my pokemon and I from getting too badly hurt while also staying out of the majorities attention."

"A good idea. You basically took a classic hunting tactic and twisted it to your advantage," Surge nodded his head as he moved away, "We'll have to see what other ideas your pretty head has and if they can be worked into this situation,"

While Surge repeated what Blaine usually did with her pokemon, he also drilled her in hand-to-hand though carefully shifted it down to her age-level. Age level or not, Vali was still getting thrown around just like her pokemon much to the enjoyment of those that didn't like her. She still got up each time her body was sent to the ground and went right back into the lesson. By the time Blaine returned and went looking for her after finding everything out, she was a giant bruise alongside her pokemon. Blaine took one look at her and let out a deep sigh, "Surge, she wasn't supposed to start hand-to-hand for another three weeks."

"Getting an early start isn't a bad thing, Blaine," Surge replied as Vali shifted slightly on her feet trying very hard to keep from falling over, "Vali, you can relax now,"

Vali promptly collapsed into the pile her pokemon had made earning a groan from Balto, but merely began to cuddle into him. Blaine shook his head slightly, "Beating her senseless is not a good foundation."

"You have your ways of doing things and I have mine," Surge replied with a shrug, "So anything on your end?"

"Nothing concrete. Vali's prisoner will be helpful," Blaine looked at Vali with a small smirk, "All things considered, Surge's training is enough of a punishment,"

Vali rolled her eyes with a slight huff, "So what now?"

"Now we work out a plan once we break that Poacher," Surge answered as he grabbed a water bottle and held it out to Vali, "Drink it, Kid," Vali took the water bottle and slowly sipped it earning an approving look from both gym leaders, "It'll be slow going even with the Poacher in our hands. They'll most likely assume he's dead, but we can't really bet on that. The patrols will continue on as normal to make it seem like the Poachers had been killed off,"

Vali looked between them, "So what am I going to do?"

"Train," Blaine stated rather bluntly, "You'll go on some patrols, but a majority of the time will be spent training. You're not at the level for us to do much else,"

Vali nodded in understanding, "I get it."

"For now, you're going to get your ass back to the bunker and shower," Surge told her, "I'll get your pokemon healed up. We'll be going over scenarios like I said in an hour,"

Vali nodded as she slowly pulled herself up with a small huff of exhaustion.

Vali's days at Delco 2 were slightly rough even with the team of Ace's she'd been stuck with coming to like her. With Surge pummeling her team into the ground or working on various scenarios with her, Vali was often dead tired when stuck at the base even when the blonde Gym Leader needed to leave and she was given a break. When running patrols with Anthony and the others, she learned a lot and was exposed to much violence due to Marcus' bloodthirsty side starting a battle with the Poachers almost immediately even if he managed to sneak up on them. Sometimes these patrols were overnight and she was often forced to be up the entire next day, the other Ace and Ranger Teams seemed intent on targeting her team for battles during those times. Despite the tiredness she felt, Vali managed to pull off unexpected wins due to surprising combinations and bad pairings though those were outweighed by the amount elder trainers managed to pull.

Through a surprisingly willing Surge, Vali gained permission from the League to take pictures. It came with stipulations mainly to avoid the base or anything confidential. Stella was quite happy to help Vali out with finding good places to take pictures and dragged Anthony along for reasons to eluded Vali. It was while they were out that Vali managed to spot something that made her pause and do a double take. She quickly called over Anthony and Stella while motioning them to be quiet. They were on a cliff side looking over a large valley. Anthony dropped down to her level alongside Stella, "What is it, Vali?"

"Look through my spare camera," Vali handed it to him.

Vali had brought it on a whim today even if she hadn't used it since Sirius had bought her the one she current used. Anthony used the camera and let out a soft sound that was half a growl, "I see. Vali, do you mind-"

"I barely use it," Vali cut him off, "Take the picture, we'll need to mark the area on our Dexs,"

Stella looked between them in confusion as Anthony took the picture and they quickly began moving backwards. After each of them marked it on their dex, Stella asked, "What was that?"

"A Poacher base. With any hope, it'll be the one we're looking for," Anthony answered with a grin, "Thanks to Vali, we've managed to find it,"

Chaos pretty much ensued the moment Anthony brought back the camera and gave it to Blaine, Vali decided to do the smart thing and parked it in the bunker she'd been given with the two gym leaders until something was decided. Surge eventually appeared with a fierce grin on his face that said a lot of people were getting their skulls busted in and she asked, "So did they stop fighting with each other and finally make a plan?"

Surge let out a booming laugh as Raichu chittered in amusement, "Yup. We're going to be circling the base and hitting them tomorrow night. You're going to be part of it, Vali."

Vali's eyes widened at that, "Wait, what?! How the fuck is that smart?"

"Kid, you'll be hanging back and only need to knock out anyone trying to run," Surge waved off her concern with a chuckle, "Just do what you did in the clearing,"

"There are so many ways this can go wrong," Vali pointed out feeling her heart race, "Surge, haven't you all been saying I wasn't ready to be involved in anything more than patrols?"

"We've been training you up more since you got here, Vali," Surge told her as he gained a serious look, "Vali, I wouldn't have said anything if I wasn't sure you'd be okay out there. If something happens, I take responsibility, but I doubt anything will. You're a strong kid whose got a kick ass team looking after her. Not to mention that Ace squad is probably going to be keeping an eye on you somehow, I would bet my prized racing Zebstrika on it,"

Vali let out a soft snort at that and felt a bit touched at the belief Surge felt in her. She knew that things might go wrong, but hoped they wouldn't. With that in mind, she nodded towards Surge, "Alright."

Surge's grin returned and he clapped her shoulder, "Good. Now, we're going to be going over the plan soon enough. You'll have your own spot and someone will be dropping you off in it. I or Blaine one will be that person. All you'll have to do is keep the Poachers from running off as best you can. My best suggestion is having Pele dig pit traps and various other things like that."

Vali nodded lightly, "I'll think on it and come up with something."

"You can do it, Vali," Surge told her.

The meeting was an hour after Surge's meeting with Vali and the Cafeteria Bunker was hotter than she could ever remember feeling it. Granted it wasn't magma area in the Cinnabar gym hot, it was still hotter than usual and far more uncomfortable for the fire-type trainer. She sat beside Stella with Litwick on the table in front of her and Litleo curled up by her feet taking a nap. She occasionally dropped a hand down low enough to scratch his head while looking around the meeting room. Litwick was cheerfully absorbing the heat within the room and enjoying the attention Stella was giving her. Stella giggled as Litwick cooed at her, "She's adorable."

"She is," Vali agreed with a chuckle, "She's not much of a battler. If I ever get into contests, she'd shine, but I think she's pretty much a companion pokemon though she'll train if I ask,"

"I have a Popplio like that," Stella revealed with a chuckle, "He just likes playing around with his bubbles though he'll battle if need be. Since I've got my other pokemon, I tend to let him play,"

Vali nodded in understanding, "They're such a cute pokemon too. I love their final evolution."

"Oh, I absolutely adore Primarina," Stella sighed softly, "One day, I hope Popplio will become one,"

"He will eventually. Give him time," Vali patted her shoulder, "Battle isn't the only thing that causes evolution after all,"

A boom sounded from the front of the room as the lights turned low caused all beings within to focus on it. Commanders Singerly and Brown stood together on one side of a projection screen. Gym Leaders Surge and Blaine stood on the other side. Commander Singerly spoke as her Marowak picked up its bone, "Alright, ya shits. You know why we're here. Thanks to," The woman looked like she'd sucked on a lemon, "Valkyrie Potter-Black and her hobby, we have managed to find a valid location of the Poacher base," A few whispers broke out at that but quickly fell silent at the woman's glare, "Tomorrow night, we will attack the Poacher's base."

With that announcement, Brown began going over the plan with Blaine and Surge adding their own Two cents. At the end of the meeting, Someone finally brought up Vali's presence. Brown spoke looking far more at ease with the situation, "Valkyrie Potter-Black has shown herself to be a valued member of this operation. She will not be part of the main attack force, but rather be placed away from the action around the board much like the others that have been chosen. As has been shown with the captured Poacher, she has pokemon capable of capturing them alive."

There were a few protests, Vali kept herself sitting tall despite the urge to sink into her seat. Singerly finally snapped at everyone, "The decision is final. Now this meeting is over, I want all those that will be going on patrols soon to stay, but the rest are free to leave."

Vali woke up Litleo as Litwick slipped into her shadow. Stella walked with her to the Bunker, "You going to be okay?"

"Yeah," Vali shrugged lightly as Litleo padded beside her, "I guess,"

"First mission like this is always the worst and the best," Stella warned her with a grin, "You'll be just fine,"

Vali smiled weakly back at her, but said nothing in return. Stella patted her shoulder as they reached the bunker before splitting off likely to go get her own preparations for tomorrow ready. She entered the bunker and headed to her bunk. Taking a seat, she sat down and Litleo jumped onto the bed beside her. She felt her smile become real as her eyes scanned him, "Take a nap, Litleo. I'm going to meditate for a bit. My nerves are a bit shot right now."

Litleo nodded while eyeing her a bit. Vali got comfortable and began to mediate as her eyes closed.

Clouds rolled across the sky as distant thunder boomed, it seemed almost fitting to Vali that the night was moonless with a storm waiting to break. She sat with Elrond waiting for any sign of people coming as he got ready to tell Pele, Terra, and Idril to turn the ground into the minefield of body breaking traps. She would release Smaug when needed, but for now she'd only have those four pokemon out of their balls. Idril poked her head from the ground right by her knee and she reached out to laid a hand carefully against the Sandslash's spikes, "Elrond, anything?"

"Everything is focused on the base," Elrond answered after a moment, "Chaotic bursts and sudden stalls, they're sweeping them under. It seems that not all the Poachers were there,"

"Probably," Vali agreed as she leaned against the mound of dirt Idril had pulled up for her earlier to help hide them, "But it won't be long until someone decides to escape,"

"No it won't," Elrond inclined his head as he leaned into her side.

Idril slipped back into the dirt as Terra took her place. Vali smiled as Terra snuggled into her leg though the Larvitar made sure not to press too hard which was much appreciated. She rubbed against the base of Terra's horn earning a coo of pleasure as her eyes returned to the base. It was then that her prediction proved true and someone chose to leave the Poacher base via the sky. It proved to be a deadly mistake as Surge's anti-aerial maneuvers snapped into place in a visible electrical net. The sky bound Poacher and those that had begun following him promptly began careening towards the ground as their transport was shocked to shit and back. She spoke as her eyes tracked the falling forms, "If the fall doesn't kill them, the Aces and Rangers on the ground probably will."

"Indeed," Elrond looked at the net with some awe, "I wish to learn how to make something of that form,"

"We'll figure it out," Vali promised with a slight grin as she forced away her thoughts of those deaths that'd be occurring that night, "Anyone coming?"

Elrond was quiet as his eyes flashed slightly, "Some are starting to flee the base, we might see some soon."

Vali nodded in acknowledgement, "Let the two below and those in their balls know," Elrond nodded lightly as she turned to Terra, "We might be engaging some Poachers soon. Be ready, Terra. I need you guys to keep them away from us, okay?" Terra nodded with a determined look and hugged Vali's knee, "When Elrond tells you they're approaching, you guys to set things off," Terra nodded with a determined look on her face, "I know you can do it, Sweet heart. Now go join the others, I don't want them to know about our pack members beneath the earth."

Terra nodded as her grip tightened for a moment before she released Vali and disappeared into the ground. Vali watched her go until the hole disappeared. Elrond spoke as she returned to observing the base and the attacks that were beginning to become visible, "Poachers have started to flee on foot. Some have already begun to engage the forces stationed away from the Base. A small amount is headed in this direction."

Vali's heart started beating faster at that, "How many?"

"Five-No four now, one has gone off in another direction," Elrond replied in a calm tone, "Two others have split off and are going west towards the river together. The two approaching are still a mile off and might move in another direction,"

Vali nodded as she made some calculations in her mind, "Mental states?"

"Fury and agitation, they're angry about not being able to sell anymore pokemon off," Elrond answered with a bit of anger, "But also desperation, they can't believe their base was found. Someone had assured them that it wouldn't be for some reason. But that's all I can get from passive scans, I can't dig any deeper without them feeling it,"

"Are either injured?" Vali knew that neither Poacher would care about fighting dirty when it came to getting away meaning she had to do the same.

"One of them. It doesn't seem to be serious, but the pain seem to be worsening as time goes on," Elrond replied earning a soft hum of acknowledgement, "They're spitting up. The injured one is coming this way while the other is veering off,"

"Alright," Vali nodded more to herself than to Elrond, "Tell the others,"

Elrond nodded and closed his eyes while Vali focused on the area around them. There was a pained shriek echoed through the air from somewhere below Vali, it belong to a human rather than a pokemon meaning the Poacher had finally reached the first layer of traps her pokemon had laid which were cleverly disguised as natural holes in the ground. Elrond mentally chuckled as he revealed, "Terra is giggling at her 'prank' being fallen for."

"Just remind her that this is only for enemies," Vali replied earning a nod.

The shriek was followed by a loud curse and Vali was able to tell that the Poacher was female. She smirked slightly though said nothing out loud as more traps were triggered then quickly covered back up as the woman slowly made her way up the cliff-side. She wondered for a moment when the woman didn't use her pokemon, but pushed that thought away as it didn't quite matter. Eventually the woman reached a certain point on the cliff-side only to find Pele waiting for her, Pele immediately used Yawn much to the woman's annoyance. Pele disappeared with the woman once she'd passed out as Elrond said, "They're putting her into a chamber. Idril is getting her pokeballs."

"Good," Vali relaxed again.

Elrond stiffened slightly, "She doesn't have pokeballs."

"She doesn't have pokeballs?" Vali asked with a raised eyebrow, "What the hell?"

Vali didn't understand why the woman wouldn't have pokeballs. She frowned as the thought ran through her mind until it suddenly clicked just as Elrond began to say, "When the other Poacher veered off..."

"He took her pokeballs," Vali finished only to stiffen as she heard someone say from nearby.

"And I'm going to take yours as well, Little Ace," A male called out, "You seem to have strong pokemon which means they'll fetch a good price for the Battle Ring,"

Vali stiffened alongside Elrond as he pressed against her. He growled softly, "Damn it, I didn't even sense him approaching."

"We need to figure out something quick," Vali said as she swallowed heavily, "This guy won't be an easy take down like the other one. Tell the other's what's going on, we're going to need their help,"

Elrond nodded against her side just as a stick snapped to their left. They both moved with Vali scrambling towards her feet and spinning to look at her opponent. He was mostly shadowed by the trees, but she got a glimpse of bright blue hair before a pokeball opened allowing a snarling Raticate to form. Elrond immediately began to defend her as the Poacher spoke, "Going to fight, Little Ace? Such a shame though I suppose it will give me a chance to see your pokemon in action before I take them from your cold dead hands."

Vali's eyes narrowed and she clenched her fingers slightly. It didn't take long to take down the Raticate and the man recalled it with a chuckle before sending out a Houndour earning an inward curse from Elrond. Pele quickly began drowning it in dirt with the help of Idril much to the amusement of the Poacher, "Now that isn't fair."

"Poachers don't play fair, why should I?" Vali replied in a cold tone.

"So true," A cold grin filled with teeth became visible.

Vali wondered at it for barely a second before her side seemed to ignite with flames of ice that coiled against a bed of fiery heat. She fell to her knees clutching at the wound that had appeared as a Weavile appeared in the clearing snickering as it licked its gleaming claws. Multiple pokeballs opened at once, a group of roars echoed through the air as her pack appeared no doubt responding to the wound Elrond no doubt felt her gain. She put pressure on her side as her pokemon focused on the enemies within the clearing with murderous intent though it was difficult since everything was a bit fuzzy. When the enemy Poacher spoke again, Vali found him to be much closer to her and a knife was against her throat, "Well this is quite an array of pokemon, Little Ace. I didn't expect this when I came across you, but this is definitely something I can work with."

"You're not getting any of them," Vali hissed at them as she pulled against her magic to protect her throat.

"And why is that? I have you by the throat quite literally and will kill you before they can do anything," The man asked as he pressed the knife closer and Vali felt it hit the warm barrier of her magic.

"Because they're my pack and I'll do anything to ensure they won't be enslaved by the likes of you," Vali used Surge's lesson's to get out of the man's grip and knock the knife out of his hand.

Vali ended up with a long scratch down her right arm that was stung badly though she was able to ignore it. She quickly moved towards the battling pokemon after grabbing the knife and took shelter with Balto. The Poacher's pokemon had all but been knocked out with the last falling in moments. The Poacher looked at the odds as he gripped his bloody nose and surprisingly let out a chuckle, "Well, it looks like I've lost this round, Little Ace. See you around."

"Not on my watch," Vali told him with growl, "Grab him,"

The man was quickly caged and Pele began the process of using Yawn on him. Vali slowly began falling to her knees as her vision began to turn grey and her pokemon let out cries of alarm. She spoke as the Poacher was placed into the cell they had under ground, "Smaug or Celina, g-get Surge or B-Blaine. I-i need help. I'm going to end up bleeding out before too long. Elrond, y-you need to go with them."

Elrond looked like he wanted to protest, but Vali silenced him as she mentally explained why. He nodded as Balto lowered himself to the ground, "We'll hurry."

Vali watched as Celina took off with Elrond on her back in the direction of the Base. She had her pokemon help keep pressure on both wounds since they were on opposite side of her body. She struggled to stay awake despite knowing the dangers she'd face. Balto's barking jarred her from drifting off and she found Surge approaching with Elrond while Celina stood behind him. She smiled weakly up at the man from where she rested against Balto, "H-hey, Surge. I-I'm tired."

"You can't sleep yet, Kid," Surge told her with a weak grin as he reached her side, "We need to get you out of here. I'm going to bind your wounds and get your teleported over to a hospital. You okay with that?"

"Kay," Vali nodded as Surge took a pack off of his back, "Guy snuck up on us. Your training saved my life. Would've gotten my throat cut, I wasn't about to let him take my pack from me,"

"I know you wouldn't, Vali," Surge told her as he quickly set to work on her arm and she hissed at whatever he was doing, "You did a good job. Captured two of the shits according to Elrond, you're going to get a bounty for them,"

"Am I?" Vali asked as she closed her eyes for a moment.

Vali opened them to Surge tying off the bandages on her side with a worried look on his face. Surge spoke as he started pulling her up, "Kid, we need you to stay awake."

"It's hard, Surge," Vali stumbled and ended up resting against him, "I'm so tired,"

"I know, but right now, you've got to stay awake," Surge told her with a frown, "Let's return your pokemon, a Ranger Team is on its way,"

"Kay," Vali slowly reached towards her belt only to stop as her arm protested the movement, "I can't movement arm well,"

"I'll help you, Kid," Surge replied with a soft chuckle.

Once everyone was returned, Surge released an Alakazam and they teleported. Vali saw the slightly familiar hall of Vermilion City Hospital just as her vision went completely black. She murmured, "Sorry, Surge. I can't stay awake any longer."