The more I think about it, the more I feel a bit envious of the Rangers. Although… I guess I shouldn’t be, I’m kind of one of them now. Still, this feels like it would have been a dream job when I was alive.

  Well, this part, at least. Ignoring the emergency responder part.

  Onaga and I are patrolling south of the city, and while she hasn’t tried pulling me into conversation too often, I know she wants to after how successful she felt earlier. I’m… a bit ambivalent about that. The few times she’s tried, they’ve all petered out rather fast.

  Not having Weaver here is messing with both of us, I think. Although, strangely, I think it’s affecting Onaga more than it is me. She keeps glancing at spots around us before feeling mildly chagrined, I think it’s because she keeps expecting Weaver to be there.

  For my part, this is mostly the same as the last time, just without a conversation partner. A full one, that is. Generally, I’ve just been following Onaga around over the last however long and occasionally scouting things for her.

  At least the scientists aren’t here right now. I’d bet they’re probably too tired to keep up at the moment.

  It’s all farms around us at the moment, and people are hard at work repairing equipment, fixing pipes, digging out irrigation trenches, and having semi-friendly arguments over random things. There are fences being fixed, too, but from what I’ve seen now, the pokemon are there by choice, and the fences are for humans.

  The ground shakes—not for the first time—and Onaga pauses again to look around. “…That has to be a mudsdale,” She mutters to herself, standing still for a moment longer. Shaking her head, she continues walking down the dirt road we’re on.

  Apparently, there isn’t much happening today. And after yesterday morning, that’s fine by me.

  We stop at a seemingly arbitrary spot, Onaga looking at me before asking the same thing she has a few times already, “Could you check around, make sure there aren’t any issues?”

  I nod, flying up and out before starting to circle. What we’re doing would have been fairly obvious even if Onaga hadn’t explained it to me the first time I joined her on duty. We’re… keeping an eye on things. The Rangers are something between most emergency response, as in fire, medical, and police, as well as negotiators, and actual park rangers, so they, or we, should be present and visible, as well as nearby.

  And thus, patrolling while having me use my better senses to regularly check for anything. She’d sent Weaver off to do the same the previous time we did this. And explained that part to me then as well.

  Still, this is all farmland, and the most concerning thing I see is two tauros trying to woo several miltank and a– I know I’ve seen that pokemon before, but I don’t think I ever bothered to remember its name. It looks like a buffalo. Anyway, those two aren’t having much luck, it seems. Most of their audience is amused, more than anything.

  There isn’t a lot of excess emotion around, come to think of it. Everyone nearby seems pretty content with how things are at the moment, with only the occasional taste of frustration or joy to change things up.

  I return to where Onaga is, and, at her questioning eyebrow, shake my head.

  “That’s good,” She comments before looking past me and giving a single, sharp wave. I glance back in time to see another ranger wave back. “We’ll be headed East from here,” The woman informs me, gesturing before turning around and heading North.

  …We do need to find an actual road that goes East, first. I assume she has them memorized. I do too, as it happens.

  I taste Onaga resolving to do something, and glance at her. She’s about to try starting a conversation again. “You haven’t been as…” She pauses, looking for the right word, “Standoffish recently.”

  It’s a leading statement, and I know she want’s me to respond, but what am I supposed to do? I can’t exactly say anything back. I shrug, then do my best to look overly-happy, trying to get the point across.

  “Is that really it?” She asks, skepticism plain both on her face and to my taste buds… That phrasing doesn’t work with emotions, does it?

  Back on track. “No,” I sigh, deciding she won’t accept a deflection right now.

  Onaga doesn’t react to the harsh sound, though she does get the message. “Then…. what changed?”

  She’s not going to let this one go with some kind of real answer now, is she? “Well,” I begin, putting my thoughts in order, “I’d kind of been waiting for the other shoe to drop, and settling into my old pattern. Which is a bad thing, honestly. And I don’t think Weaver knew what to do other than keep me from spiraling when she could, since she wasn’t going to do something you’d apparently told her not to. But then Oak and Rowan got here and disrupted things, and Katie… gave me a bit of a necessary push.” I sigh again, “Not that it changed all that much since you still can’t actually understand me, and that’s most of the reason I’d been ‘standoffish’ since it felt like a waste of effort. It’s just that I’m trying not to let that stop me anymore. Of course, it doesn’t help with the complicated things like this that you won’t understand without translation. And I know neither of us wants to put Weaver through what we both know would be an excruciatingly long process unless absolutely needed. Not to mention that I don’t have any good explanations for a bunch of things yet,” I end my rant, finishing by throwing a flat look Onaga’s way.

  She’s giving me a wide-eyed stare, genuinely surprised. “I think that’s the most you’ve ever said to me at once,” She says. Then she frowns, “Well, you have made it clear that it’s complicated. There’s nothing you can easily get across?”

  I bob a few arms up and down before pointing back and forth between us with two of them, “This. You can’t understand me,” I say, slowly.

  Onaga’s quiet for a moment. “…And you can’t easily write, despite theoretically being capable of it.” She shakes her head, “That’s why you didn’t want to get into a conversation with any of us. It felt like too much hassle for you.”

  She keeps walking, silently thinking for a few moments before continuing, “That isn’t all of it, though.” She glances at me for confirmation, so I nod. “Everything yesterday distracted me, but Espeon had let me know…” She trails off. I taste realization again, “You don’t have a high opinion of yourself, do you?” I… don’t know how to answer that.

  I think Onaga knows that, too, as the woman takes a slow breath before speaking, “I know you joined for Weaver, not me, but I should have made more time. And I’m glad Katie got you to reach out. I’m also hoping you understand that, even if Weaver pressed you into joining, I do consider you one of my partners.”

  Mmm, something’s changed in the way she feels about me in the last two days, and she’s also been doing something to make her emotions more apparent. There’s a bit of guilt, some pride, contrition, and, as she’d said, hope.

  I sigh. “You know, I’m well aware I was the problem,” I say, rubbing my head with four arms. “I’m self-aware enough to recognize that.” I let myself fall slack, trying to untense as much as possible, “But yes, I know. And I’m glad, I guess.” Even if I’m still uncertain how long-term I want my partnership to be.

  The ranger watches me for a moment longer before slowly nodding and turning her eyes back to the road in front of us. “I’ve been thinking about trying to find the time to get everyone together, as a team,” She says, thankfully changing the subject. She re-centers her flat-topped cap, now a bit apprehensive, “To be honest, I’m a bit unsure what to really do. Yesterday was all work, so it doesn’t count. Weaver would be ecstatic if it’s food or an arcade, but you and Espeon…” She shakes her head, “Espeon’s doing his best to not seem opinionated most of the time. So, what about you? Would you mind pointing out anything that catches your eye when we get back into town?” She asks. “Just remember that it might be a while before we end up doing anything.”

  That does sound like a good idea. I nod distractedly, already thinking back through all the places I’ve seen around the small city.

  Onaga chuckles ruefully, “You know, normally the whole base holds a little party when a new partner joins. But,” She sighs, “We went from eleven rangers to four, and our operators are living at base now.”

  Eleven? Trying to picture eleven people living in that small building is… I can see it, but I wouldn’t want to be one of them. I suppose it would be ten in that case, though, as I imagine Karlos would like to sleep in his home. …Maybe they’re all living there just because of the staffing issues, and normally only sleep there while on duty? It would make sense, I’ll have to ask Weaver about it.

  The rangers are dedicated, I have to give them that.

  Silence stretches for an unknown length of time. I think… I think Onaga and I have enough of an understanding of each other, now. At least the woman doesn’t feel uncertain when she looks at me anymore.

  “Do you know if Espeon is healing properly?” The ranger asks, apropos of nothing. “Emotionally, I mean.”

  I give her a glance. She’s the one with a psychic link to the cat, after all. But I suppose he might be hiding stuff from her, and he can’t really do that with me.

  “I don’t know about ‘properly,’” I hedge, waggling a few arms. “He isn’t as… choked as he was, though,” I slowly nod, hoping she gets the idea.

  “How was he this morning? He seemed a little calmer than usual, to me.”

  “Oh, he was,” I confirm, nodding. “Whatever you were trying last night helped.”

  That makes Onaga feel complicated. Resolve, frustration, joy, resignation… Yeah, complicated. “That’s good,” She eventually says, rather neutrally. “I wasn’t prepared to have a psychic as a partner, and there isn’t enough reliable information to guide me. It’s the same with you, really,” She admits. “I wouldn’t even know where to start on checking your health, and I spent too long–” She shakes her head, “Never mind.”

  Once more, we settle into silence.

  “Could you scout around again?” Onaga eventually asks.

  ***

  Francois’ voice continues to sound from the small speaker. I suppose things would necessarily pick up as more people start their days.

  What time even is it? I steal a glance at Onaga’s watch and… Eight AM. Damn.

  “Great,” Onaga mutters before bringing her radio back up, “Did Pete sound worried?” What I’m near certain is denial comes through the speaker, and the taste of relief hits me, “Okay, we’re on our way.”

  Orienting herself, the ranger begins speaking to me, “We’re checking on a magneton. They arc flashed while charging a property’s batteries.” She starts power-walking instead of sprinting, so I assume it isn’t that bad.

  Also, I think I just learned something interesting about the electrical systems here. I’ve known that they’re different from the first time I saw the city, but now I have a better idea about the differences. Obviously you can source power from pokemon, and now I’m even more curious how the electrical grid works here.

  I’m betting it’s fairly fault-tolerant, actually, with what I just heard about it. How much power is sourced from pokemon? It can’t be all of it, likely only a fraction, even. Or maybe it’s mostly in places like out here where there isn’t a grid. Onaga did say ‘charging a property’s batteries,’ after all.

  I don’t think it takes us that long to reach where we’re going. I’ve actually flown over this place before, too. It’s a set of long, low buildings with a stable not far off that has a large fenceless area behind it. This is where a lot of the doduo and dodrio that work as transport around the city seem to live. Not all of them, of course, and I know the rangers tend to ride pokemon from the forest instead. …Probably because wild dodrio don’t have business hours. Still, there are a lot of birds here.

  Onaga obviously knows where she’s going, angling toward one of the smaller buildings. I can smell ozone and burnt metal as we reach the door to the cinder-block construction. The woman still isn’t that worried, so I’m guessing this happens often enough.

  Entering, we’re greeted by the sight of two men and, as Onaga had said, a magneton. The… five? The five of them seem to be trying to unweld two of the magneton’s sections from each other. One man is trying to pry the sections apart while the other has a welding hood on and is keeping what looks like an oxygen-acetylene torch pointed at the weld.

  Magneton looks slightly different from what I was expecting, which is to be expected. I remember magneton supposedly being made of three magnemite, and it looks like it’s true, but these three appear to all be made of slightly different materials. They even have different styles of bolts and magnets.

  As I’m taking all that in, two sets of magnets swap bodies, horseshoes being traded for crescents.

  I have several questions.

  “You really should take them to a clinic when this happens,” Onaga says, approaching the group.

  I take another look at the situation, and it’s clear that what Onaga had said happened has happened before. This building looks like it’s used to store power in several racks of large batteries, and there are obvious terminals for something to hook up to the system right by where everyone’s gathering.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  There are also burn scars on the concrete floor and on the terminals.

  “I’d agree with ya,” The man with the pry-bar grunts, pulling harder, “Except, you know, ol’ Maggie don’t like going there so much. Do ya, Maggie?”

  “WE WOULD PREFER NOT,” The magneton, apparently, ‘Maggie,’ buzzes. The one free section turns back and forth, a hint of revulsion in the air.

  I… have even more questions.

  “How bad is it this time?” Onaga asks, gesturing for the pry-bar’s handle

  Given the most prominent emotions I can taste are exasperation and a slight amount of amusement, I think I already know. There isn’t even any pain, which is quite something given the torch currently heating a small section of Maggie’s skin to a red glow.

  “Not the worst, far as I can tell,” The second man says. “Should be fine in a few days. Quicker, maybe.”

  Onaga, unsurprisingly, manages to separate the pokemon– or the pokemon’s sections? Relatively quickly. And the magneton slowly rises as their magnets begin spinning in sync.

  “Thanks,” The man who’d been trying to separate the parts says. “We’ll let ya do your thing, and then tell ya what ya want after.” Onaga nods at the two as they back off, going to stand near one of the racks.

  “Could you show me the wounds?” The ranger asks Maggie, spinning a finger around.

  The triple pokemon does so, two sections spinning to show the rough, blackened spots where they’d been joined. “THERMAL-REGULATION ACCELERATED,” They buzz, “SURFACES ARE SAFE.”

  Onaga obviously doesn’t understand the words, but it’s again clear she’s done this before as she shows no sign of hesitation, ghosting her fingers across the uneven sections. “No pain? Was it through your shells?”

  “NO,” Comes the mechanical sound, all three sections spinning on-axis. “ARCING WAS A RESULT OF INTERNAL RESERVE IMBALANCE. CORE TEMPERATURES DID NOT DEVIATE FROM AVERAGE.”

  “Have you still not figured out how to solve the load imbalance?” Yeah, this has definitely happened before.

  “WE HAVE COME CLOSER. WE SUSPECT IT WILL NOT BE AN ISSUE WITHIN THE NEAR FUTURE,” The three buzz and crackle, now rotating the middle section up and down.

  “I’m going to recommend you go to a clinic. Again,” Onaga tells them. “I’m only qualified for basic medical, and I’m certainly not specialized in steel-types.”

  “WE WILL THINK ON IT,” The pokemon state, wobbling in the air as all the magnets start spinning faster. There’s some fear and disgust before, “WE HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT IT. THE CONSENSUS IS NO.” They—very obviously, to me—don’t give any physical cues.

  …You know what, I won’t judge. They’re afraid for some reason, and that’s entirely fair. Hell, I know I could have been more proactive with my health once upon a time.

  Onaga narrows her eyes, but after a moment, she turns and starts talking to the two men.

  “…I’ve been wondering,” I say, catching Maggie’s attention, “How do you… work? I mean, you were three different pokemon at one point, right?”

  Three eyes turn to look at me for a moment, curiosity permeating the air. “WE ARE THREE. THIS CONTRADICTION DOES NOT PREVENT US FROM BEING ONE,” They buzz at me. “WE HAVE SELECTED THOSE WE PREFER TO JOIN WITH, AND WILL NOT SEPARATE. EVEN IF OUR CONFIGURATION IS SUB-OPTIMAL.”

  “I was about to ask about your different… designs.”

  “AVAILABLE MATERIALS CONSTRAIN GROWTH PATTERNS,” One says.

  “I AM HAPPY WITH OUR APPEARANCE,” Another adds. “AND MY OWN.”

  “REGARDLESS,” They all speak, “OUR BODILY CONFIGURATIONS ARE NO LONGER SUBJECT TO SUCH CHANGES.”

  Well… neat, I guess. And I’m suddenly realizing how many pokemon I remember that won’t be just one person. It’s only a handful, but that’s still a lot. Doduo, dodrio, meta… something? Metagross, that’s it. Slowbro, that egg pokemon, vespiquen apparently, wheezing, that two-headed dragon…

  Huh. I kind of want to meet a dugtrio now.

  ***

  Today has been… overall fun, so far. Even if it is barely noon. I think. My prediction about things picking up turned out to be right, and we’ve only had a few minutes between either getting flagged down for something or being radioed.

  Turns out the tourists that, according to both Weaver and Onaga, will continue to be a headache, are a lot braver in the city than in the forest now. Which, uh, I guess makes sense, but damn some people are idiots.

  What are they expecting? They came to a place that probably advertises itself as extremely pokemon friendly, and they think the pokemon here are all exhibits?

  Yes, apparently. That’s exactly what some people are thinking.

  I will admit to a moment of disbelief earlier when Onaga asked me to be loud for a moment, but it did get all their attention on us, and gave the exasperated groomer a moment to shepherd all the eevee out of sight. It also meant a bunch of cameras got pointed my way, although Onaga put a stop to that after the first flash went off.

  Not sure how to feel about the offer of a free visit I got afterward. I think the groomer just wanted a chance to try and work on my hair. Still, I don’t know if I’ll ever need something like that, my hair tends to stay how I want it, being my arms and all.

  I glance down to see the ranger also glancing down. “We’re making a detour for lunch,” She states. Well, she’s been tasting like she’s hungry for a bit now, so that isn’t surprising. “Are you…” She stops, considers, and continues, “Are you going to want anything?”

  I’m not exactly hungry, but at the same time, I won’t complain about anything tasty. I shrug, but shift it into a tentative nod, “Depends on what it is.” I’m still not actually certain if physical food fills me up. I know berries do stuff, but I think that’s magic.

  Onaga gets the gist of what I meant, though. “It won’t be anything fancy. Just let me know,” She tells me. And, having said that, she changes course.

  We aren’t rushing—the only times she’s started sprinting were when we were responding to calls—so it will probably be a bit before we get to town. I’m fine with that.

  “I’ve been wondering since yesterday,” Onaga begins, turning her head to me, “And now seems like a good time to ask. So, do you not like eating certain emotions?”

  I am no longer fine with taking our time, but I suppose there’s no avoiding it. “Eh,” I equivocate. “It’s not that I don’t like eating them, it’s that I don’t like the implications,” I tell her, making a chomping motion before smiling, then putting on a concerned expression and spreading my many arms.

  “You do like fear, then,” Onaga nods. “I’d been a bit confused yesterday when Weaver’s note said things had tasted better than normal. You don’t like the thought of frightening people for it, though?”

  I have to blink at that. She doesn’t have the full reason, but that’s… definitely a part of it.

  My answer is apparently written on my face. “Do you need fear and pain? Or rather, do you feel better when you consume them?” Onaga asks, still watching me. “I’m sorry that asking makes you uncomfortable, and I know you didn’t want anyone to know, but I do. And I’d prefer learning more before you end up malnourished.”

  Yeah, well, I don’t know either, but, “I don’t think so,” I say, shrugging. “I was starving at one point, and I felt better after eating something. That doesn’t really answer the question, though…” I don’t feel malnourished, at least.

  Makes me go back to the question of ‘why,’ of course. Which will just take me down the path of wondering what misdreavus are meant to do, normally. Maybe we really are some kind of ghostly vultures, but then why fear? And if we aren’t meant to scavenge an area, why the massive net?

  I’m almost as clueless as everyone else when it comes to this, it’s just that I have a better perspective. I’m pretty sure Onaga understands that. I assume, anyway, given that she’s now nodding and I taste understanding.

  “That’s unfortunate,” She comments, “But about what I expected.”

  The pattern that’s developed over the day once again repeats. Onaga and I talk for a moment, then fall into silence. Not awkward or cold silence, although I wouldn’t call it friendly yet either. Maybe ‘contemplative’ is the right word?

  I once again find myself glancing at the ranger’s watch just to keep any kind of idea about the passage of time. You know, I should really see about getting myself a watch. Although then I’d need to figure out how to take things with me when I phase out.

  Hmm. Well, in any case, it’s been about ten minutes and twenty-three seconds since I last checked.

  Eventually, we end up at some form of cafe-slash-bakery with a few outdoor tables. Dammit, I can already tell that I’ll want something. Already tasting hunger, I float through the glass front window as Onaga heads through the door, bells sounding behind us. It’s not quite busy in here, but there’s a small line at the counter, and I see several people behind it by a series of ovens, cooking appliances, and sinks. Two of them pokemon.

  A charmeleon and a breloom. The large lizard is unsurprisingly handling the hot things, while the raptor-like mushroom is kneading dough. It’s the first time I’m seeing a charmeleon, and I’m a bit surprised at how tall she is. Nearly four feet, I think.

  Looking around, it seems like there’s a combination of ready to eat pastries and bread on a few covered shelves, but I can also smell and see fresh things being made. A large cinnamon roll like thing particularly catches my eye.

  And so, that’s what I point at when Onaga asks if I want anything.

  We end up needing to wait a few minutes for Onaga’s food, some flaky rolls stuffed with what looks like onions, mushrooms, and potatoes, along with a small cup of fragrant tea. Soon enough we’re outside again, though we don’t stop, the ranger pointing herself back the way we came and walking, having passed me all the food to suspend in the air.

  I don’t mind. All I’m doing is holding a large area still. Although Onaga reaching into it is an odd sensation.

  Eating physical food feels almost oddly nostalgic, doubly so as it hasn’t really been that long since I still needed to. There’s no longer a part of me that wants to get the food down as fast as possible, or any satiation to go with it, and it almost feels like I can enjoy the experience more for absence.

  Regardless, Onaga and I enjoy our food in silence as we near the edge of town again. The woman was starving, if how satisfied she feels now is any indication.

  We end up stopping as someone calls for our attention. “Anything for me?” Maya asks, jogging up to us. She has Lerp, her turtwig partner, on her shoulder.

  Onaga glances at the two of her pastries I’m still holding consideringly, “…You can have one of my stuffs, if you want. I wouldn’t try to take Misdreavus’ roll, if I were you.”

  Yeah, I’m not willing to share this right now. It’s pretty tasty. Also sticky, but that’s not an issue for me. Maybe I really should be looking for things to enjoy more often.

  “I’m looking for lunch anyway, not sugar,” The dark-skinned woman shrugs, glancing at me before reaching for one of the stuffed rolls. “How’s it been going?”

  “Rather well,” Onaga replies, sipping the last of her tea. She flicks her gaze to me for a moment, “Finally taking the time I needed with Misdreavus. Everything else is fairly standard. You?”

  “About the same,” Maya nods, holding her food up so the turtwig on her shoulder can take a bite. “Pretty quiet–” Both women wince as Maya cuts herself off, looking apologetic, “…Crap. Um, oops? I might be a bit too hungry.”

  Well, our impending doom aside—and boy, do they both taste like they’re mentally preparing for exactly that—I still have half a snack that was almost the size of my head to enjoy.

  I end up focusing on the last of my sweet treat until I hear Maya addressing me. “Say, Misdreavus, do you know what’s up with Leaf? He’s seemed a bit off lately.”

  Uh… How do I answer that? Mmm… I nod.

  Onaga chuckles, “I think I can tell you, Maya. Or part of it, at least. He propositioned Misdreavus, and it wasn’t a total denial, I think, but…”

  “Ah,” Maya says, pursing her lips before taking her own bite of Onaga’s food. “Leafy’s sensitive, though. It sounds bad to say, but I wouldn’t have expected him to take that well. You didn’t tell me, though?”

  “Maya,” Onaga says, deadpan, “If you’re that concerned for the leafeon, you should just ask him to move nearer to base. Or see if he’d want to be a companion.” The woman lets the statement sit there for a moment before sighing, “But, since you asked, it was while I was escorting Rowan and his assistant so they could watch Misdreavus. And no, Leaf didn’t take it well. At first. Misdreavus calmed him down, and they spent a while talking after that.” There’s the briefest taste of… respect, as she says that.

  Maya gives me a long look for a moment. “Why’d you turn him down? If you don’t mind my asking,” She says, finishing her borrowed snack.

  Not really knowing how to answer that in an intelligible way, I use the gesture I’ve settled on for complex things, wiggling my arms in random ways.

  When Maya gives Onaga a questioning look, she replies, “That means it’s complicated. A lot of things are with them.”

  Ouch. But not inaccurate.

  “…Actually, aren’t leafeon in the mammalian and pollinator groups?” Maya slowly asks, turning her gaze back on me.

  “I think it was median mammalian, and with the specific pollinator group based on environment, yeah,” Onaga confirms. “Believe me, the two researchers were asking themselves the same thing.”

  Maya nods, “That sounds right. I’d bet you’ve been asked about that a few times since?” She asks me.

  All I can really say to that is ‘yes,’ so I nod, rolling my eyes.

  “Yeah,” She nods back. “Well, thanks for the snack. I’ll let you two get back to your route,” She says, craning her head to look at the tortoise on her shoulder before looking down the road we’re on. “Well, hopefully whatever happens isn’t too bad. Sorry in advance.”

  ▲▲▲

  ▼▼▼

  Maya’s going to be buying the base dinner and drinks, these next few nights.

  My radio whines. I was expecting it too. I’ve already enlisted a dodrio, having been the one to call the issue in, and they’re carrying me north through the city.

  “All rangers in the Vien Forest area respond,” Barry’s voice says from my hip, “Uncontrolled forest fire confirmed in central Vien Forest, this is not a drill. Cause unknown, likely unnatural. Fire response ETA seven minutes. Evacuate the area, assist in containment, and identify the cause. Repeating, all rangers–”

  I tune the radio out. We haven’t done a fire drill in two months, but one alert is enough to jog everything. Glancing back, I see Misdreavus’ eyes struggling to keep up with the breakneck pace we’re on, only managing by taking a direct path through obstacles. They were the one to point out the smoke to me while scouting. Before it was visible from the ground.

  They’re the reason we’re reacting this fast, thankfully. But the fire is evidently spreading fast. Too fast.

  We whip by the team of men and water-types assembling just outside the fire station. They’re in top form today, at least. They’ve even pulled the engine out. That ETA might actually be accurate.

  Small fires happen. Many pokemon can ignite things with ease, after all. They typically extinguish any fires quickly, however, for the obvious reason. Even during territorial disputes, they’ll take the time to keep things under control. A blaze as large as this one though… Maybe an angry dragon? There’s a salamance living north-east of the city, but my instincts are telling me they didn’t do this.

  Possibly a camper or tourist, then. It wouldn’t be the first time someone did something stupid out there. Except no guide called it in, and anyone camping needs to have shown competence to receive their tags.

  I have a sinking feeling telling me it’s not that either, though. This is going to end up connected to the last two recent incidents somehow. I just know it.

  Discord, if only because I love interacting with you all.