Rolling his sleeves up, Arven decres, “Alright! Now it’s my turn to show off what I can do. You’re about to get a taste of my cooking!”

  A few minutes of culinary chaos ter, and Arven presents his efforts proudly. “Here you go! And Arven-original sandwich packed full of herbs! And I’ll even give you a badge-y’know, as a thank-you for taking on that Titan Pokémon. I call it a Titan Badge. Made it myself, using a replica of the Gym Badges, see?”

  As the aroma of the sandwich fills the air, I find myself starting to salivate. Smells… so… GOOD! As I prepare to take my first bite, a fre of light fills the dim cave, and Koraidon appears, staring at me hopefully. “Agia!”

  Arven folds his arms. “Argh! What’s up with that thing?! It just comes out of its ball on its own whenever it wants!”

  Koraidon approaches me, sniffing the air.

  Arven huffs. “Hey now. No. that’s not for you.”

  Koraidon looks as downcast as a giant reptile can. “Grrrrrrr…..”

  I smile. “It’s okay. Here, you must be hungry, Rairai.”

  As Arven splutters, “Rairai? Wait, what are you-!”

  I hold out the Sweet Herba Mystica sandwich to Koraidon.

  It disappears into the huge jaws. “*chomp-chomp snarf chomp*”

  Arven looks gobsmacked. “Hey! I went to all the trouble of making that for you, and you just… give it away?!”

  As Koraidon licks its chops, Arven sighs, approaching. “I hope you realise that’s all there was, so now there’s none left for you…”

  I shrug and smile, reaching out and petting Koraidon. “That’s totally fine. I can’t regret it if I don’t know what I’m missing.”

  Arven grumbles, “Aw, come on! Now you’re making me feel like I’m the selfish jerk here!”

  There’s a soft tearing sound, and he hands something to me. “Here, you can have half of mine. But you’d better savour every st bite!”

  Koraidon looks at me again. “Gia! Giaaaw!”

  Arven looks stunned. “Huh? You already ate that whole thing?”

  Suddenly, bright golden-pink light erupts from Koraidon, and it rears up, pawing at the air, before shaking itself.

  “Wha-?! Hey, is it me, or has this thing sort of… powered up somehow?” Arven gasps, as he stares at Koraidon.

  “Agia!”

  Arven whoops, celebrating something. “Whoa! I can’t believe it! The power of these herbs really is worth guarding!”

  He steps away, deep in thought. “If they had that big an effect on your Pokémon, then I bet-Uhh…. I bet it’ll come in super handy for that Treasure Hunt assignment we got! Yup! That’s what I bet!” He turns to me as I shove the st bite into my mouth. Sho… freakin’… good!

  I wash down the st mouthful with a bottle of water, taking my pills as I do.

  Arven coughs. “Well, you’ve both filled your bellies with some of my legendary sandwiches! Guess it’s time to tidy everything up…”

  I move to help, but Arven shakes his head. “Oh, don’t you worry about helping! After battling the Titan, you’ve earned a break! Just leave all this to me! Though, I’d be much obliged if you’d get a start on searching out the remaining four Herba Mystica for us.”

  I nod. “If they’re anywhere near as good as this one was, I’m definitely looking forward to what you’re going to whip up from them! See ya!”

  I turn to leave, and just about hear Arven’s parting remark. “I really owe you…”

  Outside the cave, I receive a call from… Professor Sada.

  “Hello, Carmina. This is Sada. I detect that Koraidon has regained some of its original power. It seems that it will now be able to dash at high speeds while you’re riding upon it. I hope you will continue to explore Paldea with Koraidon, as you have done here. Your route is not fixed, but open before you. Seek out your own path, using your map and the tools you have at hand. Whenever you find your curiosity piqued, you should go and explore as your heart desires. All that you experience will help you grow in some way, great or small. Go forth on your journey… and take good care of Koraidon for me.”

  Sada hangs up, and I smile. “Let’s go, Rairai. I think it’s time we go and give one of these Team Star bases a visit…”

  “Agias!”

  Koraidon lets me mount up, and we rocket off. “Whoa! So fast!”

  The ground disappears beneath us as Koraidon’s cws dig in and speed us onward, and I feel the wind pushing against me. I lean forward, reducing the drag. A journey that would’ve taken a day, maybe two, is covered in a few hours. Passing through Cortondo, we stop for a bite to eat, and keep heading West, up into the mountains, before changing to a North-Westerly direction, towards Cascarrafa. It’s getting te, and I don’t want to push my team too much. We’re getting stronger, but there’s still no point in working ourselves half to death. The next morning, I take my pills and have a quick breakfast, before heading out of town. Just outside of Cascarrafa, I find the Segin Squad base, home to Team Star’s Dark Crew, led by Giacomo. Approaching the base, I get a call from a non-existent number.

  “Hello, Carmina. It’s Cassiopeia. I can see you’re getting close to one of Team Star’s bases. There are some rules that each of these crews follow. First, they’ve got a whole bunch of Pokémon running around the base. You’ll need to battle as many as you can in order to clear your way to the leader. Second, if a challenge is issued, the leader MUST accept. And third, if the leader is defeated… the crew must disband for good, no exceptions. As such, I have issued challenges to each crew leader in your name. It’s basically a decration of war.”

  Another voice chimes in, “Well, this sounds interesting. Mind if I cut in for a moment?”

  A student I’ve never seen before, one of the older ones by his little chin-beard and the massive pompadour he’s sporting, approaches. His uniform seems a little mismatched, like it was thrown together out of the lost-property box or something. However, there’s something vaguely familiar about him.

  Wh-what-?! Who are you?!”

  “My name is Clive. And I believe you said your name was… Cassiopeia, correct? I’m acquainted with our mutual friend Carmina here, isn’t that right?”

  I blink. It couldn’t be… could it?

  I shrug. “I guess we know each other.”

  Clive nods. “And, if I can, I’d like to be involved in this. I have… unfinished business with Team Star, as it happens.”

  His face darkens a little. I swallow. “Cassiopeia, I… I think we should accept his help. He seems serious about wanting to settle his score with them.”

  “…..Alright. Clive, if you want in, I’d like you to provide support for Carmina. I don’t trust you yet, so this will allow me to get a feel for your true motives. And Carmina, your job remains unchanged. Enter the base, defeat any grunts and Pokémon in your way, and challenge the leader. I’ll be observing from a distance. Good luck.”

  Cassiopeia hangs up, and Clive nods, adjusting his ridiculous pompadour. “Well, I’ll leave you to it. I’ll scout the perimeter and make sure you don’t get interrupted. Good luck, and don’t get careless.”

  As he turns to leave, I ask, “Wait, aren’t you… someone I know? You seem familiar…”

  He chuckles. “I’m just Clive, a normal student. See ya.”

  As he departs, I shrug. Well, regardless of his motives, I guess I have a job to do. Approaching the front gate, I’m greeted by two grunts, one male and one female.

  The girl shouts, “Whoa, whoa! Hold it, you!”

  Her partner adds, “Up ahead’s the base of operations for Team Star’s Dark Crew. You may know us as the Segin Squad! And we don’t take too kindly to random people sniffing around our turf!”

  The girl adds, “Sorry, but if you don’t turn yourself around here and walk away, amiga, we’ll have to send you packing!”

  I point. “I’m here to challenge your boss; you can get out of my way.”

  They look at each other, and then back at me. “Just… going off a hunch, here, but… are you that Carmina person? You know, that piece of work we’re out to crush for decring war on Team Star?”

  “Yep, that’s right. Now, let me pass, or I’ll make you move.”

  The pair of grunts exchange a look. “You know, honesty isn’t always the best policy… anyway, doesn’t matter who you are. You’re not gettin’ through. Buzz off, or get thrashed by me in battle. What’ll it be?”

  I simply pull a Pokéball out of my bag.

  “Alright, have it your way! Prepare to get stomped into the dirt!” The female grunt deploys a Murkrow, and I make use of a Primeape I’d trained up in preparation for the next Gym. Fire-types won’t get me through everything, after all.

  “Fury Swipes!”

  A fairly one-sided beating ter, the Murkrow drops from the sky, and I heal up Primeape. While the female grunt compins about losing, her partner steps up to cover her while she runs inside to alert the Segin Squad to my commenced assault. He follows, without trying to battle me, and I follow, ready to kick all the butts I need to. Ringing the bell to let them know I’m coming in, I run into Clive.

  “Good work! I kept the perimeter secure, now it’s time for the main event!”

  “Yeah, thanks Clive. Now, I have to deal with the grunts inside, before their boss shows himself?”

  “Yeah. See, Team Star has a unique way of battling. They call it a Star Barrage. You’ll have to send out multiple of your Pokémon at once to fend off wave after wave of grunts. They’ll be throwing their teams at you en masse, so simply beat them through attrition until you can take on Giacomo!”

  I nod, as the first wave of Pokémon approach. A mix of Murkrow, Sandile, Zorua, and Stunky. The next ten minutes are filled with a whirlwind of battle after battle, but my partners stand victorious. Thumping rock-and-roll music starts bsting, as a car revs out of a covered tent, speakers and LED lighting festooning it.

  The boss of the Segin Squad, arriving in style. Giacomo stands on a podium built onto the roof of the vehicle. “You’ve done a real number on us, party crasher! Carmina, was it? I’m Giacomo! At the deck, I go by DJ Vice! Call me whichever- it’s a vibe either way. Nice to meet you and all… but how ‘bout we skip straight to your outro? Don’t worry- I’ll py you a sick requiem as you crash and burn. LET’S GET THIS PARTY STAAAARTEEED!!”

  DJ Vice? What the actual fruitcake.

  I send out my Primeape, as Giacomo lets his Pawniard out. In two Seismic Toss moves, his first Pokémon goes down, and… the car starts trying to kill me.

  “WHAT THE HIFL?!”

  The ‘car’ is actually a group of other Pokémon, a Revavroom and two Varoom, acting as the chassis. Well, this was NOT what I expected. At least the pumping music is really cool!

  In three moves, though, Primeape brings the ‘car’ screeching to a halt. Its Cross Chop is super effective against the Dark-type, and Giacomo sags.

  “Guess that’s that… I did the best I could. I wrote the damn rules, the code, for Team Star, and there’s no goin’ back on it now. My days as a boss are over. So, here. Take my Star Badge, would ya?”

  He presses a small metal disk into my hand, enamelled with a dark eye. I take it, and pin it to my bag. “Thanks, Giacomo. And… I’m sorry it came to this. Your music is awesome! Did you compose it all yourself?”

  He chuckles. “Heh, yeah. Each boss has a theme, and I did ‘em all. But, anyway. Let’s talk about those Pokémon of yours! They’re crazy strong! You learn those Trainer chops at the academy? Like, what moves you should use ‘n’ stuff?”

  I nod. “Sure did. I like it there! No-one cares about my past, and I’ve made friends there…”

  Clive arrives on the scene. “Sorry to interrupt, but are you Giacomo?”

  Giacomo cackles for a moment. “Whoa-ho! Wasn’t expecting a giant pompadour to make a guest appearance today! You get a Quaxwell to style that up for ya?”

  Clive brushes his hair, almost on reflex. “I’m just after a quick word. Would you mind?”

  Giacomo shrugs. “Eh, sure. I can tell it’s gonna be somethin’ annoying, but I guess I’m newly freed up for time.”

  “Thanks. I’ll get right to it. It seems all of you in Team Star are heading for expulsion if you keep up your current activities. So… why wouldn’t you just break the team up and start attending css at the academy again?”

  Giacomo snorts. “That’s what you wanna know? As it happens, we’re actually waitin’ on a pal… though we don’t actually know if they’ll be coming back.”

  Clive frowns. “A pal…? A close friend of yours, are they?”

  Giacomo grins. “They’re only the strongest boss in all of Team Star! Like how there’s a Top Champion who’s the absolute number-one Trainer, y’know? They’re the one who invited us other bosses to form the team. We call ‘em the ‘Big Boss’.”

  Clive nods thoughtfully. “And where is this Big Boss of yours now?”

  Giacomo shrugs. “Wouldn’t we like to know. We haven’t heard from them in… I dunno… a year and a half now. We thought that if we kept Team Star going, then they’d get back in touch one day… but the teachers keep pressin’ us to call it quits, and then we get party crashers like you two…”

  Clive looks at his feet, and Giacomo sighs, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Maybe the Big Boss did ditch us… they were talkin’ about breaking the team up before, and all.”

  Clive’s eyes glimmer behind his dorky gsses. “So, Team Star and this Big Boss of yours… they’re really that important to you?”

  Giacomo grins, giving a thumbs-up. “Heh. Is the sky blue? Let me put it in words you eggheads at the academy might understand… they’re my greatest treasure.”

  The pair of them walk away, still talking, and I smile, rexing. “That wasn’t so bad.” My phone rings, and I answer out of habit. Cassiopeia’s artificial voice comes from the speaker.

  “Carmina… It’s me. It seems Giacomo no longer carries his Star Badge, the symbol of his status as a boss… he gave it to you, didn’t he?”

  “Yes, I’ve got it on my bag.”

  “I see… with its boss out of the picture, the Segin Squad is pretty much done for….. Oh, Giacomo… sorry. Got caught up in my thoughts for a second. Now, about your reward. I’ll transfer some League Points over to your phone, as promised.”

  I get a notification from my Pokémon Trainer account. 5,000 LP has been added to it!

  “I also took the liberty of adding some new entries to the range of TMs you can make at TM Machines. These new TMs should help you improve your Pokémon’s battle capabilities even further. In any case… you did some solid work. So much so that you deserve an extra reward. Someone from my supply unit will be there soon to give you some materials for making TMs.”

  About ten minutes ter, someone appears. It’s the pretty girl from Mesagoza! The red-and-blue two-toned girl with the Eevee backpack!

  “H-hello…” she mumbles shyly. “I’m Penny… from the supply unit. You might not remember-”

  I gasp. “You’re the one I helped on the stairs! Hi! It was my pleasure, I was gd to help!”

  “Oh… so you do remember… But, um. I’m helping out with Operation Starfall as part of my independent study… you know, the Treasure Hunt. I’m good with machines and hacking and stuff, so I’ll be working behind the scenes. So… here you go. Your bonus reward from Cassiopeia.”

  She hands me a case with a series of different materials. “You should be able to make a ton of TMs with those. And Cassiopeia said you’ll get more rewards each time you take out one of Team Star’s bases. Also, um… I heard all about how you had your Pokémon charge into battle… seems you were pretty amazing. With a Trainer as strong as you on our side, I’m sure the operation will go just fine. There are four more squad bosses left, so, um… good luck…”

  Penny waves shyly and turns, leaving. I watch her, curiously. Strange young woman, but… cute.

  Now that I’m done with the Segin Squad, I should probably think about going for the next Gym, or maybe another Titan. Heading back towards the mountains, I spot boulders that weren’t there before. Was there a rockslide or something?

  Looking up towards the peak, I see something flying around. Every so often, it drops … MORE BOULDERS?!

  If it’s big enough to see, it’s gotta be pretty huge. Maybe even a Titan! Time to check it out. At the very least, I might be able to put a stop to this.

  Staying back, I observe the path. The boulders don’t seem to be falling in any kind of pattern. There’s consistent timing, though. However, if I tried to go on foot, I’d be a transgender pancake in minutes. There’s only one way I’m getting my happy arse up that mountain. “Rairai!”

  “Agia?” Koraidon pops out of its Pokéball, as if it was listening.

  “I need you to help me, buddy. We need to get up this big mountain, yeah? Think you can carry me on your back again?”

  Koraidon nuzzles my head. “Agiagias! Giaaaw!”

  “Thanks, buddy. Let’s go, okay?”

  Climbing aboard, I take a deep breath. “Now!”

  “GIAS!”

  Koraidon’s legs tense as it crouches slightly, before powering up the slope, gaining speed with every single step, picking up the pace as boulders rain down around us. In a fsh, Koraidon’s powerful legs bring me to a higher point on the mountain. As the massive bird Pokémon descends to engage, I recall Koraidon and send out my Gible, whose training has paid on, evolving into a powerful Gabite. The little ndshark has now grown, becoming taller and developing a more bipedal form, with a fin on its back and a powerful tail.

  “Gabite, use Dragon Breath!” A purple beam of light nces out of Gabite’s maw, striking the Titan in the chest as it squawks in fury, raining a trio of boulders down on us. Gabite smashes them to pieces with fearsome strikes, before firing a second beam. The Titan Pokémon buffets us with its wings, but Gabite unches a final assault, bringing the bird down. However, it’s not done yet, breaking open a chunk of the cliffside and revealing a glowing pnt, just like the st time, starting to gulp it down greedily. Arven arrives, panting from his run all the way up the mountainside.

  “Thanks for stopping the boulders! Now… You managed to get to the Titan, yeah? I was able to sneak up here because it had all its attention on you, Carmina! It looks like it’s trying to power itself up, so we’d better be ready to go all out!”

  The Open Sky Titan rounds on us, seriously miffed that we’re ganging up on us. Gabite roars at it, as Arven sends out his Pokémon.

  “Trying to drop rocks on people is dangerous! Let’s give this thing a taste of defeat!”

  His Pokémon uses Smack Down, knocking the giant Titan from the sky with a well-aimed shot. My Gabite bsts it with Dragon Breath again. The beam of energy causes the Titan’s muscles to lock up. It’s paralyzed!

  “Arven! Take advantage. It’s suffering from paralysis!”

  “On it!”

  While we hold the upper hand, Arven and I bombard the Titan until it falls limp, out cold, with a final cry. Arven hollers in victory.

  “Yesss! Way to go, Carmina! Looks like we don’t have to worry about anymore boulders falling on us now, huh? And there has to be more of that Herba Mystica it ate in here. Let’s hurry and find it before it can come back for another go!”

  He points towards the cave the Titan opened up. I follow him as he rushes into the darkness.

  “If we’re lucky, there’ll be another herb here…”

  I point. “There! It’s there! Look!”

  Up ahead, another glowing pnt sprouts from the rocky ground, shimmering in the gloomy cave.

  “I knew it!” Arven charges towards it, kneeling and tugging his book out. “It really is here! This is one of the herbs, make no mistake!”

  Flipping the pages, Arven muses, “Now, what does the book have to say…? Bitter Herba Mystica’s great for your circution! It really gets the blood flowing! And that warms you right up, nice and toasty, even boosting the immune system!”

  He tucks the book away, folding his arms and muttering. “If I can just slip this into a tasty sandwich and get him to eat some…”

  I look at him curiously, but don’t press the issue. We all have secrets, after all.

  Arven snaps out of his reverie, and rolls his sleeves up. “Well, what are we waiting for, Carmina? It’s time to dig in! Let me whip something up for us!”

  Gastronomic pandemonium ensues again, as Arven dispys his culinary chops again. I stare in something approaching awe. Arven’s really good! He could be a chef, if he wanted to be!

  “… And Bob’s your uncle!” Arven announces.

  “Actually, his name is Andrew,” I reply, before smirking at Arven. He chuckles. “Here we go! My special, whimsical, herb-filled super sandwich!”

  He hands me something else. “And it comes with a side of… Titan Badge! As a token of my gratitude, of course!”

  I pin it next to the first Titan Badge, then sit on a rock, as Arven hands me a sandwich. It has a bitter scent to it, but not unpleasant. It’s a very… fresh smell, and, as I prepare to take my first bite, a fsh of light fills the dark surroundings.

  “Agias!”

  I giggle. “I saw this coming! Naughty, Rairai!”

  Arven protests, “Oh, COME ON! You again?!”

  Koraidon leans in, sniffing at my sandwich, drool starting to run down its jaws. I smile, holding out the sandwich. Instead of digging in, Koraidon turns, looking toward Arven. “Gians!”

  He shakes his head in exasperation. “Hmph. Is it trying to say thanks or something? Well, good thing I made extra.” He holds out a sandwich.

  “You’re helping me out a whole bunch with the hard stuff, so it’s only fair you get more. I definitely, absolutely did NOT make extra so that Koraidon could have a sandwich, ok?!” Arven huffs.

  I hand over the sandwich, and Koraidon snaffles it gently. “*chomp, chomp, snarf, chomp*”

  Light pours from Koraidon’s whole body, and it looks more… full of life, primed to do anything!

  Arven furrows his brow. “Did it get stronger again?”

  “Agia!”

  Arven grins. “Man, these Herba Mystica really pack a punch, don’t they?” he walks away a few paces. “I mean, they’d better… or else I’m really up the creek.”

  Koraidon sniffs at the remaining sandwich. I snap my fingers. “No! that’s not for you, Rairai, you’ve had yours already!” It backs off, and Arven whirls, before calming.

  He colours. “Uh… thanks for that. I… I guess I should at least tell you the full story, Carmina.”

  He kneels, pulling out a Pokéball. “Come on out, bud…”

  A Pokémon appears, and I gasp. A huge canine Pokémon appears, but… it’s weakened. Instead of looking ready for battle or eager to explore, it’s slumped and struggling to breathe, wheezing heavily. Its eyes are dull and lightless, and it looks on the brink of… death…