Cole, Crown Tundra Preserve employee

  —

  I scanned the wide, sloping field in front of me with a lazy eye, seeing only the usual. Snow, trees, snow, and more trees. The occasional shifting drift of snow really shook things up, thankfully. Can't have it too monotonous up here.

  It was always rough getting the South Gate shift. Almost nothing ever happened, other than the total tally of missing trainers increasing as suicidal idiots fresh off the Circuit flooded in. It was still three weeks until the next Circuit started, and the last wave had already been eaten by now, so the posting was just boring.

  Not to mention depressing.

  I just couldn't understand why so many bright young trainers decided to test themselves in one of the deadliest places in the known world. Why risk your life for nothing? Statistically, unless you were a Champion or Elite Four level trainer, maybe Gym Leader ranked, you only had a 7% chance of making it out alive if you entered the Lowlands of the Crown Tundra Preserve.

  We made sure to drive this point home, requiring trainers to take a week-long course and sign a variety of waivers before they were permitted entry. Thankfully there was an age limit, but it was only eighteen! That is a stupid kid, still!

  Stick to the northern mountains! There's still a lot of dangerous Pokemon, of course, but that gave trainers a massive 76% chance of making it back! Yes, you missed out on the vast majority of the Preserve, but you wouldn't run into one of the Terrors and be eaten!

  Those Alphas were bad news, and had probably caused the majority of losses, the Water Lord far less than most. Very few were dumb enough to try and go near that damn tree, even for the caliber of idiot we received. The Winged Terror was next on the list, but he preferred to eat the trainers' Pokemon instead.

  Usually.

  The Tyrant Queen, however…

  She scared people. She scared people high up, and I had been told to issue a settlement-wide alert if she was ever sighted beyond the border wall that divided the Preserve. Even if she was just passing by, and I'd had to do that exact thing a few times.

  She liked to come up here to hunt Mamoswine and Aurorus, but every time was still a tense affair as the entirety of Freezington got ready to defend against her, or to evacuate. She had never actually attacked, none of the Terror's had, but the possibility was a constant fear in residents minds. It would never happen, of course.

  Right?

  Her last confirmed kill count was forty three, forty three human deaths actually witnessed and catalogued. Grieving trainers tearfully explaining why they're alone now, traumatized Pokemon that required not only a mind reader to translate, to explain why their partner was gone, but also therapists. One caught on surveillance video when they were just barely in sight of the gates. It had been fast, at least.

  The Tyrant Queen never played with her food.

  Forty three people we know for a fact she devoured. Her estimated kill count was over a hundred, however. She was the most aggressive Alpha in the Preserve, and the entirety of the lands beyond the large walls I stood on were her domain.

  I frowned a bit as another gust of icy wind hit my face, glancing at my partner Lucario. He was meditating next to my station, ignoring the cold as snow settled on him. He took any chance he could to do so, the harsher the environment the better, and he looked like a particularly bad snowman as he sat there.

  He was going to smell like a wet Yamper tonight, I just knew it.

  One of his eyes opened to glare at me before he closed it, my thought apparently loud enough to feel. I barked out a laugh as I tightened my jacket. A cold front had moved in last night along with some rapidly-falling snow, making it one of the more miserable shifts I had endured this month. At least it wasn't a blizzard. Those were nasty up here.

  Lucario suddenly jumped to his feet, looking at me in sheer terror. His eyes were panicked, his body rigid with fear. He was actually shaking a bit!

  "Two Alphas! They're coming in fast!"

  I was sounding the alarm before he finished, pulling binoculars from my waist before I looked up. I didn't need them, however.

  She was already clearing the treeline as the low, piercing sirens began to screech.

  The Tyrant Queen.

  The gigantic Pokemon began to rapidly slow her loping gait, and within moments had come to a slow halt in front of the gate. I noticed a large, battered-looking Weavile corpse, or maybe just the skin, dangling from her mouth and felt dread. Did the little shits actually eat her Eggs? Is she demanding something? Does she want revenge on us for something?

  Wait, were those knots?!

  Before my mind could come up with more crazy theories, something even crazier happened.

  A human popped her head out of the gaping hole where the head should have been, eyes scanning around. I looked around for the second Alpha, but saw nothing. I turned back to Lucario, only to freeze. His eyes were wide as he stared, not at the giant man-eating Alpha, but at the girl poking her head out of the corpse.

  She couldn't have been more than fifteen at the most under all that blood and dirt, but my partner's expression was one of fear instead of concern. I turned my attention downwards just as the insane vision in front of me began to speak.

  "Hello! I would l-love to explain all of this, but I would r-really enjoy not getting f-frostbite even more! Is there a place w-we could all g-go to talk, please?"

  She seemed to barely be able to stop herself from chattering her teeth, and as I looked closer I thought I could see honest to Arceus pelts wrapped around her in the shadowed interior of the… skin. Just what the fuck was going on? I turned to my frozen partner.

  "Is that real? Or are we under an illusion attack or something?" I asked him seriously.

  What. The. Fuck!

  "They are… They are both real. That little girl feels exactly like the Tyrant. It is like seeing two things at once, mirrors of each other different in only the slightest of ways. My sight sees a young girl, scared and cold, but my aura sight sees the Tyrant Queen. There is almost no difference in their auras whatsoever. It is… impossible, but neither sight lies..." His eyes were wide in disbelief. I cleared my throat.

  I guess this was real, then? Somehow? Still… I raised my voice to call down to the insane girl.

  "There is no way that the Tyrant Queen can be allowed inside these walls! She couldn't even get in! Leave her here and you can come inside!"

  Instead of accepting my generous terms, she frowned. Her eyes were a shade of light purple, but they seemed to glow a shade deeper as she spoke. Excuse me?

  What the fuck!

  "So I've got six Pokemon w-with me, including her, and we're just freezing to d-death out here while we t-talk, so how about this?" Her frown, along with the glowing eyes, dropped as she gave me a wide smile, and it looked excited and feral all at the same time.

  "Can you lend me a Pokeball? If I catch her, s-she can fit through the checkpoint! I'll pay you b-back soon, p-promise!" She was insane! I was about to watch a child die! The Tyrant would never submit to a Pokeball, or even the mere suggestion!

  Yet somehow, against all odds, all the beast did was give a huge, long-suffering sigh before nodding, sending the girl's head bobbing back and forth, her wild green hair swaying. Were those Sneasel skins and feathers she was wearing? Was that a fucking necklace on the Tyrant Queen!?

  How the hell had she convinced the Tyrant to go into a Pokeball?! Multiple Champions had tried before, though never together. Each attempt had ended in failure, ball after ball broken instantly. A Champion's team could put her down, easily. Not even she could fight that.

  She was smart, however, and even the Tyrant Queen knew when to run. She also knew when to call in reinforcements, and the day after the last attempt she had led every Tyrantrum in the preserve past the gates in a blatant show of force.

  Attempts had stopped after that.

  She was… It was hard to really rank them, but in her 'natural' habitat here she was one of the most dangerous Pokemon in the world. Her total numbers of kills was meagre in comparison to other Alpha dragons that flew around the world itself, however, not to mention the aquatic species that preyed on ships, simply because even with my earlier griping in mind, not a lot of people were brave or stupid enough to go down there to die.

  I fumbled at my waist as my mouth gaped open in disbelief at the entire situation right now. I always kept a few spares on me, and I pulled a Great Ball out, enlarging it as my heart pounded. I tossed it down to the wild young girl with disbelief in my eyes, glancing down to make sure the security cameras were capturing this.

  They were.

  The morbid pouch was lowered to the ground, the Tyrant growling as she raised back to her full height, the giant Pokemon rotating her apparently stiff neck as a series of loud cracks rang out from it. She wasn't looking in my direction when she did, but I felt myself freeze as her snout rose higher, and thus closer, during the action. The girl crawled out of the morbid pouch and I had to do a double take.

  She looked like some sort of cavewoman, with a sort of skirt and chestwrap made from entire Sneasel skins, a hairband with three Sneasel feathers in it keeping her wild, filthy green hair back, and another Sneasel skin tied to her neck and arm like a half cloak.

  What the fuck…

  She looked like she came straight out of a bad movie, but as she shivered and beckoned the giant head down in the falling snow I felt my heart begin to race even faster. I should be trying to stop this like a rational adult.

  But how?

  The girl was clearly insane! She was speaking softly, but the Tyrantrum began to growl, a low sound that grew louder and louder as her head ducked down to the child, and then I heard the unthinkable.

  Arceus, our Creator above, please hear my humble prayer. Please let the camera's audio pick this up, too. Nobody will ever believe me if not.

  "It's like when I rode in y-your mouth those times! That is just a faster, more convenient way of moving s-someone, right?! It's the same thing, just w-with a lot less slobber! We've t-talked about this and you agreed, come on now!" I felt my jaw open as she jumped onto the giant head, hands grasping the crown.

  You were never supposed to touch a Tyrantrum's crown, not even the few trainers of those caught or revived! They were too wild of a species to ever be fully trusted, and the common wisdom was to only have a Tyrantrum if it was hatched from a rare Egg, or if it was the weakest member of your party. Not an easy prospect for most trainers, as they usually had more than a full team by the time they were that strong.

  Instead of tearing her apart like she should have, the dragon merely glared at her. I couldn't hear the following words from the girl, but after a single devastating stomp that lifted the girl into the air the Tyrant Queen nodded. The insane girl then kissed her on the snout before letting herself fall back to the ground.

  Smiling widely, she held the Pokeball out to the giant and tapped her on the nose. With a tremendous red flash, one that lasted far longer than any I had ever seen before, the Pokeball shut. It shook a few times, then clicked in the girl's hand. Wait, was she missing a finger?

  This little girl just caught the Tyrant Queen!

  What was happening?!

  "Who are you?" I called out, voice disbelieving.

  She stared back up at me, a wild smile still plastered across her bloody, dirty face, unruly green hair sticking every which way, Sneasel feathers swaying. She looked like she had just won the lottery as she answered.

  "I'm Erin!"

  Maybe she had.

  —

  Erin

  —

  The next couple hours were excruciating. I had watched all of my Pokemon be quickly examined by a Nurse Joy, other than my new self-adopted mother of course, but now we sat in a small room off to the side in the local Pokemon Center seemingly designed for small meetings like this.

  It had tickled me pink seeing the iconic building, and I had been pleasantly surprised to see it was huge, serving as a lodge for trainer's as well. They had hot water, showers, free food, hot water, rooms and some clothes for me. And showers. With hot water.

  I'd had none of that yet.

  Especially not a shower.

  I was lucky to get drinking water.

  The room was quickly becoming rancid as the furs continued the gradual and inevitable process of decomposing in the highly overheated room I had required and demanded, and my Pokemon were growing more and more irritable as this dragged on. The Tyrantrum's Pokeball, my first Pokeball, was on the table in between us. She had refused to be separated from me, and was apparently perfectly capable of sensing the outside world to ensure she wouldn't be.

  I held the poor Hatenna as I talked, her sobs having reduced to mild sniffles that never stopped by this point. Deino had come over and licked her a few times, resulting in a very adorable giggle before the crying started once again. It hurt my heart. I wanted to get her a Pokeball, hopeful that it would at least be quiet in there, but had been refused more unauthorized catching. Technically I had 'poached' the Alpha, in their eyes.

  To say I was pissed was an understatement. I kinda got it, but the traumatized child crying in my lap kinda set my teeth on edge, too!

  The Pokemon Ranger across from me put down the PokeNav he had just answered, giving me a strange look. He stared at my Pokemon for a long minute before turning back to me, expression confused. Not to mention a little relieved.

  "Well kid, I'm not sure what a Zacian is, but you got what you wanted. Expect to see the agent in a few days. Until then you've been given a discretionary budget of a hundred thousand, which should last you a month and let you get some, uhh, clothes." His eyes traced the stinking skins tied to my body with clear sympathy before meeting my eyes again.

  "If they're not happy with you in the end, expect to pay that back. Any questions?" I sighed in relief before I looked up at him with a hopeful, slightly pleading expression.

  I did not beg.

  "Is there a room that would fit this little lady here?" I tapped the Pokeball, getting a few shakes from it. His face made several interesting expressions at that, but I kept my smile on as he thought. He actually nodded, and I almost squealed in joy.

  "There's two rooms that would fit her, but I'm reminding you again, if she-" I cut him off with a snarl, practically growling at him. Again.

  "For the fiftieth time, she won't! She's my Pokemon, my new mom, and the last thing she wants is for us to be separated over something stupid like that!" His mouth dropped open at that, and he sputtered for a second before he abruptly stood up, face red.

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

  "Nurse Joy will be able to help you with anything you need, so I would go talk to her first if I were you. Take a shower, get some real clothes on, and get a good night's rest." He glanced down at me and got a glint in his eyes briefly.

  "Actually, for today… There's a good tanner here in town that usually works with the Piloswine and Mamoswine we sometimes cull, so if you want to keep those pelts, I'll wait downstairs for you to shower and change." His face grew queasy. "They're holding that… thing you made at the gate, as well."

  My eyes went wide at that, but I didn't have to debate for long. Sneasels were soft, and they were already dead. I nodded eagerly, smile wide and just a tad vicious. I was tempted to turn the one who ate my finger into something stupid just out of spite. A diaper for the baby? Nah, that was stupid…

  "That would be great! I'm ready for a shower first, though, that's for damn sure!" He winced at my language, but I was already out the door, practically sprinting towards the front desk. There stood the healer from my childhood years in all her pink glory.

  Large pink hair forming loops on either side of her head, a pink nurse uniform, and a beautiful, gentle face with a wide smile that looked a little forced as she took in my appearance. I couldn't blame her. Especially not when her nose wrinkled up.

  "So sorry about the smell, can I actually do something about that? I heard there's a few ultra large rooms or something? That have showers? And maybe some real clothes? And soap? And a toothbrush?" I said, my voice almost begging by the end. I was almost hopping in place as I waited to shower.

  I'd do something with the skins, but it wouldn't be wearing them like this. I felt rancid and disgusting, and I had to admire Ranger Bird's fortitude to stay in that room with me. My nose was like half dead at this point, and even I was feeling sick near the end. And now.

  I was finally warm, though…

  Her eyes shone with sympathy as she passed me a room key, pointing down the hallway.

  "First door on the left, dear, and I'll have someone bring you some clothing while you shower. There won't be any problems with that, will there?" She said, eyeing the ball I held in my left hand as I shook my head. Her eyes sprang open in shock before she came running around the counter, hands rushing for my hand.

  The Tyrant Queen's Pokeball shook (and how awesome was that nickname?), but I tightened my grip and it stopped. I slipped her ball into my right hand as I let the Nurse fuss over me. I knew what she had seen.

  "Why is this the first time I'm hearing of such a horrible injury young lady!?" Her pink eyes drilled into me, and I felt inexplicable guilt well up in me before I frowned slightly. Was that some Nurse Joy voodoo, or just the look of disappointment? Because it was fierce.

  "I've been in an interrogation room for the past couple hours thawing out." She shook her head at my attempt at sarcasm.

  "Why didn't you tell Bird? Judging from his expression right now, you didn't say anything! This has to hurt terribly!" She looked horrified, and kept glancing behind her towards the healing wing.

  Nope, shower! Now!

  I shrugged at them both, though Bird did look horrendously guilty now. Oops? Sorry? I'd feel like shit too, in his situation… I just didn't care right now!

  "It's really not a big deal. I was going to tell you after I got a shower and clothes, honest." I held up the Pokeball. "She got me an Oran Berry and it scabbed over, and I just… got used to the pain, made myself ignore it. I didn't have another choice, Nurse Joy. It'll be fine for another hour." Her face fell at that and she reluctantly stepped out of my way.

  I gave her a small, kind smile before I dashed down the hall with a yelp of glee, my Pokemon following close behind me. Those not hanging off of me, that was. Skrelp and Salandit had been giving some good stink eyes to Ranger Bird the entire time, the poor guy. He was just doing his job, and I had barely answered any of his questions after 'poaching'.

  He wouldn't have believed me anyways.

  The room was huge, easily twenty feet tall or more and almost half the size of a basketball court, with plain beige walls. Next to the door was a bed, a large tv, a couch, and a walled off area that had to be the glorious shower, the rest of the room being completely plain and empty. I unleashed my adoptive mother, watching as the flash of red grew larger and larger. She fit, easily too, although she couldn't really move more than spinning in a circle. Her expression was one of surprise as she took in her surroundings, and I gave her a quick smile.

  "Listen, I'm going to shower. Someone will bring me new clothes, so when they do be nice, okay? Let them drop stuff off in the bathroom, too, okay?" She glared at me before nodding, but I could see the smile on her face at my excitement. I ignored it in favor of stripping myself of the skins. They were beginning to get a little stiff, and I left the rancid pile next to the door before sprinting towards my salvation.

  An hour later, two bars of soap, two hand towels reduced to rags, and an entire bottle of cheap shampooconditioner, I was feeling refreshed, my skin scrubbed almost raw. And pruney. I looked like a bright red raisin and I felt amazing as I finally stepped out of the steaming shower.

  As I began to brush my teeth with some freshly-delivered supplies I paused, taking in my appearance in the foggy mirror. I found that I looked to be around late thirteen, maybe early fourteen, and I looked a little like the twin sister I never had, just short! I was like, five-two! That was bullshit! I better grow!

  It was honestly a bit eerie, but I'd take that. I was glad I hadn't gotten any younger, however. I would not be a nice ten year old. I probably wasn't a very nice adult at this point, either. Or kid, as it seemed… Damnit…

  I had already known my hair was green, but now I saw that my eyes were a light purple color. They honestly looked kind of badass, and as I grinned at the thought I noticed that my canines were larger than before. Not inhuman fangs, thankfully, but bordering very close on it. There was a kid in high school with canines like this, I vaguely remembered. Always had corny jokes when it was noticed and brought up. Maybe I should try and keep a few of those handy…

  Do they have vampires here?

  Even as I looked at my new face in fascination I could see the hard, dangerous cast to it, however. The thin, angry scar on my face certainly didn't help.

  Fuck it. That hard look was just the price I had paid to survive.

  Plus… I thought I looked kind of badass, even if I was a badass kid. The realization made me squirm in utter embarrassment, but it was true nonetheless.

  I stepped out of the bathroom, finding a set of underwear, including a blessedly well-fitting bra, a thick pair of blue sweatpants, black long sleeve shirt, and a black hoodie with a Pokeball logo across the middle. Thick wool socks (are those Dubwool fibers?) and a cheap pair of white sneakers completed the outfit. I eagerly put on my first clothes in this world, and I almost cried from the familiar feeling.

  No more fur on bare skin for me! No more rancid smell! No more chafing as the knots dug into my skin!

  I walked over and sat on the couch, having to push Deino out of the way. He snorted and rolled over, fast asleep already. I idly scratched his belly as I grabbed the remote, leaning back. Just for a moment. The second the TV turned on all of my Pokemon, including the poor little Hatenna, snapped their heads towards it.

  There was an odd ad playing, with what appeared to be an Espurr staring blankly at the camera before the program came back. It was a Pokemon match, and I saw a large Feraligatr facing off against a Garchomp on the plain earth field, the earth dragon unintimidated by the huge blue crocodile as they clashed in an explosion of water vapor and torn earth.

  I saw my team's faces light up in fascination, but my new adopted mother had the best reaction. Her eyes lit up as though there was actually fire behind them as she watched the packed stadium, her pupils contracting to fierce pinpricks as she stared. There had to be a few thousand people there, and the banner underneath said that this was a small local off-Circuit tournament in Motostoke. When I told her that her eyes flashed with interest. After a moment I turned towards her, wondering how she would react to this.

  Would she let me out of her sight?

  "You can stay here and watch this if you want? That goes for all of you, I know we're all tired. It's also too cold outside for most of you." My younger Pokemon all occupied the couch as I stood up, but the Alpha had a conflicted look on her face. I reached up and patted her knee and she dropped her head to meet mine. I stroked the side of her face as I spoke.

  "I will be fine, this is a safe city and I'll have a Pokemon Ranger with me. I bet you know those guys aren't weak. Neither am I, right?" She grunted before reluctantly laying down and I sighed in relief. She was a comforting presence to me at this point, but not to anyone else, and I didn't want to give this tanner a heart attack before he got my work done.

  "They might try and come in to help heal you, so be good if they're brave enough." I kissed her on the nose, eliciting a surprised snort, before I tossed my Sneasel skins onto a towel and tied it into a bundle.

  Nurse Joy had helpfully supplied me with a sweatband, so I still had my Sneasel feathers behind my left ear for fashion. I was quickly growing to love my morbid war trophies, and I thought their color contrasted nicely with my new hair and eye colors.

  When I opened the door I heard the last snippets of a conversation.

  "-and I swear on my life she just booped her on the snout and bam! Not to mention Lucario couldn't believe what he was seeing!" As I locked my door and stepped out the man went silent, eyes wide as he stared at me.

  Oh! I gave him a wide smile.

  "Hey Cole! I hope you're not in too much trouble for letting her in?" The Rangers had NOT been happy to find the Tyrant Queen inside the settlement, to say the least. He smiled at me, but it was a weak, shaky thing.

  "I'll be fine, but they aren't happy with me, no. I hope I never meet her again, no offense, but I'm glad to see you're not too banged up under all that blood and dirt." He turned and walked away as I turned to Bird.

  He gestured to the counter, and Nurse Joy met me with a warm smile and some objects. I smiled in genuine happiness as I grasped the dark purple PokeNav, followed by my temporary trainer card. It had a big red Warning stamped on it, which I felt was kind of rude, but oh well.

  I smiled at Nurse joy as I stuck them in my pockets.

  "Thank you so much, Nurse Joy! Clothes are so good! Showers, soap, PokeNav, technology, civilization, woo!" I felt slightly manic as my mood soared and she giggled at my reaction. It was finally sinking in that I was out of there. Clothed. Warm.

  Mostly intact.

  PokeNav's were already at the level of basic smartphones in this world, and with a shiny new bank account I could go out and buy some real clothes! Although, I'd probably want to do that wherever I'm going instead of this tiny settlement. First things first, though.

  "By the way, all my Pokemon are watching TV, so I'd stay out if I were you. I locked the door, but if you want to try and heal her I would love you for it. She won't attack you, I promise. She's too damn stubborn to admit she might not be at a hundred percent, though." I watched as both of their eyes got wide before walking towards the door outside. Bird scrambled to catch up with me, eyes darting toward my room door in concern.

  When I stepped outside I took a moment to appreciate the view. The settlement up here was tiny, hardly more than five buildings, but each one was built like a fortress, each a large, self-contained area. Large steel doors, high walls, and small windows all spoke to defensive measures, but I caught a whiff of our eventual destination along the massive wall that quarantined off the Lowlands and began to walk towards it.

  There was no mistaking the smell of raw leather, not after my little adventure.

  Bird caught up to me halfway there, still throwing glances back at the Pokemon Center. I reached out and nudged him in the side with my elbow, looking up at him. I wasn't exactly tall anymore, and Bird was a very large man, so hopefully my neck could handle the strain.

  "She's fine, you know? I mean, she didn't eat whoever dropped off my clothes and toothbrush, right? That's a good start."

  He laughed, but it wasn't a happy laugh. His voice was harsh as he spoke. The harshest he had spoken to me yet, in fact. He probably thought I would be more cooperative without my adoptive mother hovering over me, that I would be intimidated by the large man.

  He was very much mistaken.

  "That poor Nurse Assistant came out of your room traumatized and covered in saliva." My eyes widened briefly before he sighed. "Your Deino is a very restrained and happy example of his species, but from what I understand she wasn't in danger. Maybe traumatized by that monster watching her every move, though."

  I felt my temper flare and I spun, using my left hand to forcefully drive my right elbow into his kidneys. I hope I hit his kidneys. I certainly hit something delicate as he gasped and bent over, only to find my snarling face directly in front of his.

  "Thats my adopted mother you fuck! She's not a monster! I've seen a real monster! You sit up here in civilization and judge her? You dare?" He tried to pull away, his eyes wide, but I grabbed his collar to pull his face back in.

  "You don't get to judge her for her actions before today! I don't care how many people she ate! She saved me! Comforted me!"

  Bright, soulless eyes staring into my mind next to a bonfire-

  "She never tortured them for fun, toyed with them like a cat with a mouse, took pleasure in their pain! She just ate them! So did all the Terrors! That isn't a monster, that's life!" I released his coat and turned away, now stomping through the snow in my cheap sneakers, towards the smell in the air.

  He slowly caught back up to me, but I noticed he positioned himself slightly behind and to the side of me this time. He was wary now.

  Good.

  After a few awkward moments he coughed into his hand, turning to look at me with an awkward expression on his face.

  "I'm… Sorry? For insulting her?" I scoffed at the weak attempt. After almost a minute of silent walking he spoke up again.

  "What's a cat? Like a Meowth?"

  Silence.

  "...Terrors?"

  I was silent.

  "You… saw a real monster?"

  I scowled at him and picked up my pace. Nope, Interpol was coming, you can get answers then. Insulting her right to my fuckin' face, the absolute audacity…

  The tanners shop was a small affair, but the smell was almost overpowering, even from the front gate. I went to open the gate to the large fenced yard filled with tubs of foul-smelling chemicals, but Bird grabbed my shoulder first, releasing me like I was a hot pan when I glared at his hand.

  He reached out and rang some sort of intercom before stepping back, hand covering his nose. I couldn't blame him for that, but at this point I was so desensitized to the smell of rotten flesh that nothing really got to me anymore. The intercom crackled to life, and Bird leaned forward to speak into it.

  "Hey Larry, it's Bird! Got a special rush order for you out here!" There was a reply, and the speaker was obviously busted based on the distorted warbles we heard, but it sounded like a positive reply at least?

  A few minutes later an older man came walking out. My eyebrows rose at the sight of him. It was a very bold fashion choice, wearing an Ursaring onesie, but as he got close I saw that it wasn't a onesie, it was just the entire damn skin of a Ursaring trimmed into pants and a jacket, with the empty head thrown over his his skull like a hood.

  That's one way to advertise your skills, I guess.

  Probably super warm up here in the snow, too.

  The man barely spared me a glance as he walked up to Bird, hands stuffed into his armpits. He didn't extend a hand to shake, either, just glared up at Bird. Bird coughed lightly, glancing at me before he began to speak.

  "So, Larry, I've got a bit of a rush job for you. Do you think you can cure these in two days?" He gestured for me to unwrap my package and I did, not even blinking as the smell fully escaped the cheap towel.

  Larry looked at the Sneasel skins for a few moments, before looking up at Bird with a single nod. I frowned a bit at that. He was ignoring me. I wasn't a fan of being ignored, so I took a step forward.

  "My name's Erin. Larry, right?" I stuck my hand out and held it there as he stared at my hand in apparent surprise. I wiggled my fingers back and forth before his hand slowly rose to give me a hesitant handshake. I smiled viciously as I pulled him in.

  "Thanks for taking care of these for me, but could you add one more skin? It's huge though, an Alpha Weavile. Well, most of it. It's still at the southern gate." I asked nonchalantly, savoring the expression of surprise on his face as his grip tightened. He looked to Bird for confirmation before receiving a nod. I smiled at the silent man.

  "You can keep the ribcage if you want, however. It was a pretty shitty floor, to be honest." His mouth fell open and he finally spoke, his voice sounding raspy with age and apparent disuse.

  "Floor…? Bird, who the hell is this?" I cut Bird off before he could speak, smile still wide. And pointed. I had pretty sharp canines now, so most of my smiles were pointed anyway.

  "I just told you, the name's Erin! I hope your as good as Bird claims, because other than the Alpha Weavile I killed all these fucks, and I'd rather keep the memories, if you know what I mean." Both of their eyes turned towards me in shock. Oh yeah, I hadn't told Bird that I was the one to kill the Sneasels.

  Larry led us to his workshop and pointed at a table before quickly scurrying off. I dropped my bundle there, and as we waited I pulled the Sneasels skins out, looking at their condition. Bird was eyeing me warily until he saw my first kill. The dirty, headless skin of the first Sneasel almost shone in the artificial lighting, and I carefully traced where its head would have been.

  I spoke softly into the silence.

  "This was the first person here that ever tried to kill me. It ate my pinky right in front of me with a smile. I beat its head into pulp with a rock with the baby's help for the offense. It tasted pretty good, honestly." Bird inhaled sharply as I continued to move down to the others.

  "These assholes came with the Alpha for revenge, but jokes on them. I had Skrelp at that point, and I almost died… at least twice that I can count, but we got them. Knife to the spine for both. Got lucky with a Pawniard skull at the Alpha's nest... Me and Skrelp killed this one together, and this one…" My grin grew vicious as I traced the outline where the last Sneasels forearms would be.

  "This little shit got tag-teamed by me, the Skrelp, and the baby Tyrunt. She managed to snag its hands like she did for that first fight, and I stomped on her jaws to amputate those dangerous little claws." Bird had taken a step back at this point, but I continued.

  "The Alpha Weavile almost got me, but my Alpha ended up biting her head off." I grinned at the memory. "She thought I was stealing her kill at first when I began skinning it. She was pissed!"

  A whine behind my back made me spin. Larry stood there, somehow already carrying the Weavile contraption as he stared at me with wide eyes. He dropped the horrific 'handbag' as his voice trembled.

  "Bird, what Alpha is she talking about?" Oh goodie, he heard all that. Bird froze, probably not wanting to start a panic, but I had no such reservations.

  I loved her already, and she was awesome. People should know, right?

  "Oh, my adoptive mother? She's great, really. Gave me rides in her mouth before I made that horror show right there, and she even healed me with an Oran berry after I lost the finger." I raised my left hand and wiggled my fingers, watching Larry's eyes widen even further as he saw my still-unbandaged stump.

  "I think you people call her the Tyrant Queen?"

  —

  A half hour later, after we finally managed to calm Larry down, I found myself walking back to the Pokemon center with a bit of a skip in my step. Two days and I should have some beautiful, soft skins to work with. Bird had informed me there was a small department store in the settlement, but I wasn't going to buy good clothes up here in a resort town. Preserve, whatever. I might not be thrifty, but I wasn't going to clothe myself in the equivalent of a gift shop.

  We were almost back when I felt a surge of irritation, and I felt more than heard the low growl from my room, still standing a hundred feet from the entrance. I was sprinting before I even had the chance to think.

  Someone was fucking with the Alpha. With my Pokemon! My adopted mother!

  I burst through the automatic doors, knocking one right off its hinges as it failed to open fast enough. As I charged towards my door my growl only grew louder. The tall, dark-skinned man standing in my open door barely had time to react as I shoulder checked him, sending him sprawling as I slammed into the doorway. A quick look inside showed me every Pokemon, including the little Hatenna on top of the baby's head, crouched warily behind the Alpha Tyrantrum.

  She looked pissed.

  So was I.

  "Whoa, calm down, girl! You're a bit young for me! I know I have a lot of fans, but now isn't the best ti-"

  The stupid man cut off as I kicked him in his side, and his eyes widened when he saw me raise both of my hands above my head, clasping them together tightly. I was just beginning to bring them down when I felt myself rudely lifted off the ground by my armpits. Bird had caught up, and he was pale-faced as he stopped me from further assaulting the man below me.

  I growled in irritation, but released my hands and took a deep breath.

  "Bird, I get what your doing, and I'm sorry, but if you dont let me go right fucking now, you're going to die." He dropped me like I was a hot pan and I stood in my doorway, momentarily staring down at the Magikarp-brained fool in front of me.

  "You are a fool, an idiot, and a flat-out bad trainer if you thought walking into a Tyrantrum's den was a good idea without permission! An Alpha Tyrantrum! An Alpha Tyrantrum with a baby! You should apologise to your dragons the next time you let them out, you no-brain selfie addict!" I roared at the (admittedly very handsome) idiot staring at me from the floor.

  Raihan, the strongest Gym Leader in Galar, Dragon Master, and social-media legend, finally noticed my sweatband with the Sneasel feathers and went pale from his spot on the floor as I slammed the door closed.