Chương 34: Chapter 28

It had now been three hours since the sun had set, and in spite of an off-color joke from Janine about child-labor laws, I was still here, defending my array. I didn't technically need my parents' permission to stay out on the assignment since it was related to my job, but I sent Mom a message anyway so she wouldn't worry. She wasn't happy about the situation, but my explanation mollified her to an extent. The simple truth of the matter was that I couldn't be spared.

And even if I wanted to leave, my coworkers wouldn't have been able to escort me back. So with my mom's reluctant blessing, I continued to hold the line, keeping the array safe while Donna rampaged among the horde. Unfortunately, our progress had stalled out hours ago, and we'd been forced to confront the reality that our current forces weren't enough. We were wearing out. Worse, our Pokémon were wearing out. So the call for reinforcements had gone out, but those additional forces were hours away yet.

Oh, we had gotten a couple of additional helpers, teleported in by a Psychic-type, but no more supplies or equipment. Those had to wait for ride Pokémon or vehicles to carry them out here. So until then, we stood our ground. The appeal of participation in this mission had long worn thin, along with the setting sun, and at this point, I was eagerly awaiting our relief team.

Judging by the way Donna sagged whenever she retreated to the array for a break, or how the continuous lights and explosions from hours ago had faded into the occasional tremor or howl, my coworkers and their teams were feeling much the same. Naive desire had been replaced with a better motivator, however. Responsibility. The thought of losing control of the array and letting all those hours of effort go down the drain was spine-chilling.

Because, in spite of our current stalemate, we had been making progress earlier, and to some extent, we still were now. The small collection of fuzzy bodies stuffed into the machine, peacefully napping away, were proof enough of that. So my team, Clover, and I kept up our vigil. The Skiddo had joined us a couple of hours ago, retiring along with most of her herd for guard duty, unable to keep up with the constant fighting.

The night was dark, our floodlights set to low-power hours ago to conserve energy, and the constant, skittering horde permeating the clearing took on a more ominous hue in the low-light. Though their numbers were reduced, the formerly spread-out horde of mauses had condensed, gathering together into a single roiling mass. Their sheer numbers made it hard to isolate individuals, and the turbulent waves of bodies evoked images of dark waters in my mind.

It was all too easy to imagine the dangers that might lurk underneath those churning depths. One thing my coworkers had explained, but I hadn't internalized until now, was the sheer stress that guard duty entailed. When action could break out at any moment, but refused to do so, the tension pulled you taught, like an overstrung wire. We started getting jumpier, the unsteady beam of my torch or the unearthly glow from Mana's eyes illuminating every little stir of the wind near our protective cordon.

Eventually, after I'd almost snapped at my poor innocent fishy partner from stress, I realized that we weren't going to make it through the next few hours, so I decided to take advantage of our superior numbers. Between the nine of us, we could keep an eye on each cardinal direction and then some while still letting half of our team rest. Lance, Percy, and Kay made up the first group, along with me. Our second watch consisted of Clover, Tristan, Bers, Galad, and Mana.

The Skiddo gave my poor, tired Yowashi a perch of vines so she could concentrate her energy on keeping herself oxygenated, but her spotlight eyes were too valuable to give up on in the low-light. Every thirty-minutes, Janine checked in with everyone, making sure nothing had gone wrong. Tired voices reported their status in sequence, and I fought to keep similar exhaustion out of my tone when it came to my turn. As it turned out, our opponents had been waiting for that moment of distraction.

"Tellur two here, all's… hold on." One of the Tellur rangers covering their first array broke off his call-in. A few moments of silence followed, and then an alarmed shout.

"We've got movement! Head's up everyone!" I immediately flashed my torch up, tracing it over my surroundings, even as more warnings blared out of my radio's tinny speakers. Kay echoed the resounding alarms, bristling in a direction that got both my and Mana's attention. Three beams of light collapsed on a patch of trembling ground, moments before two white heads peaked up out of the earth, blinking under the sudden luminous assault.

A beat passed, and then another two heads emerged, and then two more, for six in total. The six huge heads of the rodent-like Normal-types made them look cute and off-balanced, but neither I nor my Pokémon were fooled. We'd all witnessed the ferocity of the maus horde's defenders plenty of times this evening, and we were on full alert in an instant. As one of the Normal-types fully pulled themself from the ground and then turned to aid their fellows, I found an opening to call in my own warning.

"Techne six here, I've got Tandemaus here at Techne array three. They're coming from underground. Over." My warning was followed by a loud beep coming from the radio, signaling for silence. A second later, Janine's voice came through the device.

"Field teams, fall back to the arrays and hold ground there." A round of acknowledgements followed, but I didn't have the space to pay attention to them anymore. The six mauses had distributed themselves into two discrete groups, informing me what I was facing. Two of them had paired up, a Tandemaus by the looks, and the other four were moving to flank us, moving so closely I knew they must have been a Maushold. Both sets of Pokémon were bearing their huge incisors in a surprisingly impressive threat display.

Those huge heads had commensurately huge mouths, and I'd already seen what the teeth on a regular maus could do to stone and bark. Imagining what a Super Fang from these Pokémon might be capable of had me shuffling protectively in front of the array.

"Knights, engage the Maushold, keep them back. Clover, you're on the Tandemaus. Mana, keep your beams on Clover's fight, make sure she can see. I'll illuminate the Maushold." A chorus of chirrups and calls made up my team's acknowledgement, and then our prep time was over. Maybe tired of waiting for us to make the first move, or just positioned well enough for their intentions, the two Normal-types we were facing moved, charging forwards in tandem.

Trusting Clover to handle the presumably weaker Tandemaus, I focused on my knights and their battle.

"Stand and fight!" I called out to my knights, the abbreviated instructions telling them to hold their ground and hit their opponents with a Rock Smash when the Normal-type came in range. Unfortunately for our plans, the Maushold had other ideas, all four of them skidding to a stop in eerie lockstep, before taking huge, gasping breaths. Their already-huge heads swelled up even further, as they inflated their cheeks like balloons. I wasn't sure what was coming, but it couldn't be good.

"Defend!" I shouted, just in time for a deafening clarion to erupt from the four rodents. The Hyper Voice attack washed over us unhindered for a second or two before Lance got his brothers to put up a proper Protect, insulating us and the device from the noise. My ears rang unpleasantly as I peeled my hands away from them, and my own voice sounded like it was coming from underwater as I shouted my next command. Luckily, my knights' hearing was hardier than my own, and my orders made it through to them.

As the Protect went down and the deafening cry pierced our ears yet again, Kay, Galad, and Percy hefted up Bers, lifting him on their shields, and then hurling him forwards at the crowing Maushold. All the while, Tristan shouted encouragement, using Helping Hand to power up his brothers while Lance called out the commands necessary to enact the complicated maneuver.

My most stalwart knight oriented himself horn-first, and the telltale sheen of Normal-type energy surrounded him as his boosted Headbutt scattered the Maushold like nine-pins. The 'cannon' as it had been dubbed, was a relatively new move in our arsenal, but one we'd been practicing extensively so we'd have some sort of quasi-ranged option. Unfortunately, it came with the innate drawback of stranding one of my knights in enemy territory.

The Maushold regrouped quickly, gnawing teeth already sinking into Bers', but we weren't idle either. With another trumpeting cry, the 'cannon' fired again, this time rocketing Galad into the mix as Tristan took his place among the throwers. Without his Helping Hand, there was a little less oomph to the attack, but the subsequent impact still sent two members of the Maushold sprawling, which bought Bers the time required to make some additional space.

A third launch went out as Lance commanded his brothers to fire him forwards, but his opponents had scurried back to the edges of my torch's effective light. Unwilling to let my knight pursue the wild Pokémon into the darkness, I sounded the retreat. My knights heeded me, covering one another as they fell back to the arry, avoiding or shrugging off streams of gleaming, verdant seeds from the regrouping Maushold.

The Bullet Seeds weren't particularly effective, clanging off of my knights with more volume than force, but the chip would certainly add up as the fight wore on. I sounded the call to ready the 'cannon' once more, but didn't order it fired, as the Maushold took precautionary action, scattering momentarily to avoid a projectile that wasn't coming. While they were in cover, I took the opportunity to check on Clover and Mana.

The Yowashi was faithfully following orders, keeping her spotlight-eyes trained on the ongoing scuffle. For her part, Clover was a constant barrage of lashing vines and weaponized seeds, keeping the Tandemaus back. The Normal-type kept trying to maneuver around her, obviously intent on getting at the pacification array, but my loyal steed was having none of it, interspersing herself between them and the machine at every turn.

I ran out of time to observe as streams of Bullet Seeds began churning out once more, this time coming from several directions at once. However, the attacks weren't targeted at my knights, or even me as I might have expected. Instead, the seeds plinked off of the shimmering walls erected by the pacification array, thankfully missing any of the machinery actually making up the device, but still causing the barrier to wobble alarmingly.

"Cannon and brawl!" I shouted, and Bers flew once more, followed by Galad and Lance. The three of them flew towards one seed source each, landing and silencing the attackers with a Headbutt or a follow-up Rock Smash. For the last member of the Maushold, I took over, holding my torch in my mouth as I snatched up Percy and hurled him at the Normal-type. He fell a bit short, but charged forwards in good order to interrupt the steam of Bullet Seeds coming from his foe.

The fight quickly devolved into four one-on-ones, and while I might have been able to keep track of each of the duels if I could see them, the lack of light meant I only got snapshots of each battle as my torch's beam tracked the vague shapes fighting in the darkness.. Kay and Tristan weren't idle either, using Helping Hands to empower their brothers as I desperately checked each skirmish in turn, trying to make sure that none of them were going too badly.

On the one hand, Lance and Bers were more than holding their own, the former smacking his opponent around with successive Rock Smashes and the latter enduring one of the little mauses' hits well, before retaliating in turn. Percy and Galad, on the other, were both having a harder time.

Galad's opponent was one of the smaller mauses, which kept his battle reasonable, but Percy had a full-sized rodent to deal with, and unfortunately, while none of my knights followed commands or learned orders faster than the formation's second, he was also the one who struggled the most when we did sparring exercises. Independent action just wasn't his strong suit, which meant we needed to do something to help him. I made an executive decision, scooping up Tristan and launching him into the fray.

I knew my littlest knight was better at giving orders than all of his brother bar Lance, and he quickly took over the fight, coordinating with Percy to suppress their opponent. I definitely got the impression that the average Maushold was not used to being on the outnumbered side, and the pair quickly began overwhelming the Normal-type. I considered throwing Kay into the fray as well, but thought better of it after a moment.

If one of the tricky mauses slipped my knights' cordon, it'd be bad if I didn't have someone with me to hold them off. Tense minutes passed like that. Super Fangs and Double Hits were met by Rock Smashes and Heabutts, but the side effect of the split battles was that none of the participants could really muster up the ability to do significant damage to one another. I'd had a sneaking suspicion about the cause, and the way the fights were dragging out all but confirmed it for me.

Just like my knights, the Maushold probably relied on successive hits to amplify the power of their attacks, meaning that when acting together, they were far stronger than the sum of their abilities. They'd actually done us a favor, separating themselves out, since the longer things went, the more time Donna had to return to the array. Clover was also more than holding her own. The Tandemaus wasn't nearly as dangerous as the Maushold, and seemed even more reluctant to fully engage.

Its main form of attack came from Hyper Voices that were quickly growing more and more distant as the Mount Pokémon pushed them away from the array. Some small part of me was annoyed that we couldn't decisively defeat these interlopers on our own, but the humming of the device behind me helped me restored my confidence in my prioritization. We didn't need to win, we just hold out until help arrived.

I thought we were making good progress towards that goal, when a cry of alarm dragged my torch beam to one of the ongoing battles. The flash of light revealed Bers, horn stuck in one of the trees at the edge of the clearing. He was struggling to free himself, while the Normal-type next to him finished a small jig that was clearly some sort of move.

My earlier prescience at leaving a reserve proved invaluable as, with my stalwart knight unable to free himself, the member of the Maushold turned their attention towards the array, bounding forwards on all four limbs.

"Kay, block them off!" I ordered, pointing at the oncoming threat. No sooner had the order come out than my reserve force was charging forwards. He skidded to a halt a few meters in front of the approaching Pokémon and set himself, ready to dive to either side to block their progress. With a chirrup of frustration, the Normal-type aborted their charge to face my knight.

"Maus, Maushold!" They let loose several chittering cries. I couldn't exactly get a sense of what they were trying to say, but they definitely sounded upset. Crisis temporarily aborted, I scanned the rest of the ongoing battles again, eyes peeled for any other emerging problems. It was sheer luck that, as I was turning to look over at Clover's fight, I noticed a patch of ground shifting unnaturally, a couple of meters away from the array.

I focused my torch's light on the spot, just in time to dazzle an emerging, grey-furred head. The maus squinted against the light, but didn't stop moving, hauling itself free from the earth's embrace.

"Knights, fall back!" I shouted over the din of battle as I moved to interpose myself between the new threat and the array. I was so focused on keeping my eyes peeled on the hole for the rest of the rodents that I almost didn't notice when the lone maus began rushing forwards. With a start, I realized that my knights weren't the only ones capable of splitting up when strictly necessary. My foe was apparently on a solo mission.

The rushing maus was small, which made me think that perhaps the 'Tandemaus' fighting Clover wasn't a Tandemaus at all. Maybe it was a Maushold, currently down a member acting under enemy lines. The small maus wasn't fast but it certainly had a headstart on anyone else. My mind raced, trying to think of ways to stop the diminutive Pokémon. I could recall and then release my knights, but that would give the other Maushold time to fire off a Hyper Voice, or even worse, Bullet Seed.

Either one might have enough power to destroy the array. My next couple of options were even more desperate, but before my thoughts could get any further, two luminous beams of light joined my torch's, casting the dirt-stained body of the rodent in stark relief. A moment later a fourth beam struck the Maushold, this one composed not of light, but of water.

"Yowashi!" Mana's guzzling cry came, modulated by the small stream of pale blue liquid erupting from her mouth. The 'attack' didn't do much more than soak the Maus and force them to slow down, but it was enough for my fishy partner to interpose herself between me and the furious Family Pokémon.

"Washi, wash!" my partner cried, her voice strident with determination.

"Maushold!" our foe answered, their chirps no less intent. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. I wanted to tell Mana to back off. She wasn't ready for a battle like this. Or for any battle, really. But for the next thirty seconds, she was the only thing keeping this wild Pokémon away from me, and from the array behind me.

"Try to keep them back with Water Gun," I told her, just in time, as the doused rodent began its approach once more. Another stream of water flew forth, plowing into the Maushold, but this time, the little white Normal-type was undaunted, pushing through the flow as a corona of gleaming energy surrounded them. They whipped their huge head, deflecting the majority of the force of Mana's attack, and then jumped up, quickly getting above my floating partner.

"Watch out!" I called out in vain. Mana's hydrokinesis wasn't nearly strong enough yet for her to dodge out of the way in time. The second part of Double-Hit crashed into her, sending her diminutive body crashing to the loamy ground.

"Mana!" I watched her slam to the earth with my heart in my throat. I knew she was fine for now, but another hit like that could be dangerous.

"Leave her alone!" I ordered the wild Maushold, distracting their attention from my downed partner. In the small opening I had, I whipped her Poké Ball off of my belt, recalling the weakened Water-type in a flash of light. The sudden burst of illumination gave me a view of the little rodent's beady black eyes as they rose up, peering at me for a brief moment, before sliding past me, to the humming machine I was tasked with defending.

Their white cheeks pulled back as their relatively huge face twisted in an enraged snarl. Massive, gleaming incisors glinted in the light of my torch's beam as a rumbling growl, somehow now much more threatening now that I didn't have any help on my side, came from the tiny Pokémon's throat. My eyes dipped from the Maushold for a second, looking out for reinforcements.

My knights were coming, but now it was our foe's turn to fight a delaying action, throwing themselves heedlessly forwards to buy their infiltrator just a little more time. Perhaps noticing my distraction, perhaps just appreciating the time constraint, the Maushold didn't wait any longer, barreling forwards, head glowing. I didn't think, I just acted, weeks of training with Donna informing my reaction.

The Pokémon was focused on the array, not me, so they were clearly surprised when my foot collided with their body as I tried to punt them away into the forest. There was zero chance that the diminutive rodent weighed more than a kilogram. Physics dictated that if I struck an object that small with the strongest kick I could muster, said object would be meters away from me in less than a second.

Unfortunately, I wasn't striking an object, I was attacking a Pokémon, and when a Pokémon gets involved, the laws of physics become… complicated. Instead of flying away, my hit made the Maushold stagger out of their charge, their syn almost entirely cushioning the physical impact from my strike. It was clear that the Normal-type was at least a little bit affected by the kick, but as they shook their head, it was equally clear that they were hardly out of the fight.

Those beady black eyes turned away from the array, focusing back on me. I could see it in their gaze, that I was no longer an obstacle to be avoided in pursuit of their goal. Instead, I'd become an opponent to defeat. WIth a wild cry, the Maushold barreled towards me, head aglow once more. Desperately, I dodged back, avoiding the first part of the Double-hit. The second strike came up, and I got my arm in the way just in time.

The attack barreled into me like I'd been hit by a cudgel, strong enough that my syn couldn't cushion it completely. I was sent sprawling, landing on the loamy earth with a crash. My whole arm hurt, but not enough that I thought it was broken. I didn't have time to worry about it though, as I desperately threw myself into a roll. Dirt and dust went flying as the Maushold's Pound attack pulverized the ground where I'd been, moments prior.

I staggered upright, and retaliated with another kick that the enraged Pokémon barely seemed to feel, before throwing myself to the side again to avoid another Double HIt. I heard a rumbling, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw MItt's enormous form charging towards the array, his trainer perched atop his back. The Copperajah could move deceptively fast when he had time to build up speed. I just needed to hold on a little bit longer. I wasn't the only one who noticed the incoming reinforcements, however.

The Maushold's dark eyes turned from me, to the mountainous Steel-type, and then to the array. With one last desperate cry, the Pokémon surged forwards. I dove, instinct taking over once again. My arms came down on the Maushold's tiny back, slamming them into the dirt. They rolled around, snarling visage turned towards me, and I saw those white cheeks swell. Knowing what was coming, I threw myself forwards, but I couldn't close the distance in time.

I felt pain blossom in my stomach as hard, projectile seeds slammed into me, repelled by my syn, but only just. The stream wasn't stopping, however, and I could feel my head growing faint as the projectiles drained my syn. My desperate lunge turned into an embrace as I wrapped the diminutive rodent in a crushing hug, stifling their ability to hit me with Bullet Seed. Their range attack stymied, the rodent turned instead to frantic struggles, trying with all of their not inconsiderable might to free themselves.

I pulled every last scrap of strength and focus I had remaining into a tight ball in my chest, trying with all of my being to contain the struggling Maushold. Frenetic impacts rocked my arms and chest as the Normal-type squirmed and writhed. Eruptions of uncontained energy and aborted attacks made my whole body ache, but if I let go now, all our hard work these past few hours go to waste. In the end, the clock was against the Pokémon, and they knew it.

Gradually, the Normal-type's attempts to free themself slowed, and then, as the rumbling stopped, and a huge shadow loomed over both of us, they ceased entirely. With a wince of mingled pain and relief, I let go of the now catatonic rodent, sliding away from the wild Pokémon on protesting arms even as Donna dismounted from Mitt's back, Poké Ball in hand. Grinder hauled himself into the light cast by my fallen torch, my knights trailing behind him.

The massive Ferrothorn had the Maushold my partners had been fighting wrapped up in his thorny vines, apparently unconscious. From the other side of the array, Clover emerged, the remaining two members of the Maushold infiltrator's family similarly captured. The weakened Pokémon let out a cry of dismay as their glistening eyes alighted on their disabled companions, and with a start, I realized they were crying. Sobbing even, massive globules curving furrows down their dirt-encrusted fur.

The arms of my red coat were wet with their tears, and covered in matted hair and dirt. I felt something wet on my cheeks, and raised one screaming arm up to feel my face, finding it somehow similarly wet. We'd been fighting so hard, and so frantically, and now it was over. And for what? I could see the longing, and the desire, and the crushed hope in the Maushold's gaze as they stared vainly at the pacification array, the machine humming peacefully away along with dozens of unconscious mauses.

For me, the machine represented hours of work and a successful mission. For my opponent, it was literally a cruel prison locking away their friends and loved ones. I'd just spent the last ten minutes struggling so desperately to keep this sad, desperate Pokémon away from their family. With a stifled groan of pain, I staggered to my feet, my throbbing hands pushing off the loam.

"Donna," I called out, coughing a bit as my chest ached.

"Let me?" The green-haired ranger turned to me, concern writ on her expression. She didn't hesitate though, freely handing me the Poké Ball she'd been about to use. I clicked the thumb button, and the device swelled in my hand until I could barely hold it. I didn't trust my ability to throw the ball, so I knelt next to the weeping Maushold, gently pressing the button against their fuzzy head. With a snap, and a hiss, the sphere cracked open, sucking in the white rodent and their two companions.

I dropped the ball, letting it roll on the ground a couple of times, before it let loose an affirmative capture signal. I stared at the sphere for a few moments, waiting for the ball to disappear, but it stubbornly refused, sitting serenely on the churned ground. With a groan, I realized what happened. Normally the ball would have locked and been automatically transferred, but unlike most rangers, I still had an open slot on my team.

I stooped over and picked up the specialized Poké Ball, which must have registered to me when I expanded it. With a sigh, I clamped it to my belt. I'd have to hold onto it until we could get things sorted out. With a snap and a hiss, I heard Donna capturing the other Maushold behind me. I walked a few meters to retrieve my fallen torch, and when I stood back up again, it was to find the green-haired ranger looming over me.

For a second, I was worried she was upset, but when she opened her mouth, the only thing I could hear was concern.

"What happened here Fe? Are you alright?" - Explaining the ordeal probably took longer than the actual action itself. Donna helped me treat my partners as I told the story, my knights and Clover helpfully chiming in occasionally to add some flavor to my retelling. Mana was sullenly silent, and I could tell she was feeling bad after her defeat, but it was something we'd have to address later.

After making sure my Pokémon were okay, my coworker did the same for me, checking the rapidly-worsening collection of bruises made by the struggling Maushold. I tried to play it off, but the green-haired ranger wasn't having any of it, giving me a few very bitter herbal concoctions and poultices that made the swelling recede a bit. For the first time, as the burning sensation from the herbs assaulted my tongue and tender skin, I wondered if maybe Ditto-cell treatments weren't such a bad idea after all.

At least the chaser was pleasant, a creamy, sweet concoction mainly created from Chansey eggs. The potent medicine would help me convalesce faster, hopefully reducing my recovery time from weeks to days. Everything still hurt, but it was more of a dull ache than a roaring pain at this point. Donna chastened me for being reckless, but her heart wasn't in it. If anything, my stunt might have put a glimmer of respect into her eyes that I hadn't seen before.

After everything was explained to Janine, the sergeant let me off with a warning to be more careful, and a thanks for working hard to protect my position. Unfortunately, mine hadn't been the only array under attack, and Mark's had actually gotten overrun. Luckily, the tech-savvy ranger and his partnered Arctibax were okay, but there just hadn't been any way for him to stand up to the group that had assaulted his position.

At least five Maushold had struck, forcing Mark and Icebox away before destroying the pacification array, freeing the captured mauses. The groups then rallied however much of the horde they could, before then fleeing into the forest. The churning horde in the clearing milled about, apparently directionless. Janine was pretty sure that the leadership had scattered, either directing the various attacks, or escaping with the group that attacked Mark.

Either way, the rest of the night passed much more peacefully, as we gradually cleared out the remaining constructs and captured what few mauses were left in the clearing. One day rolled into another, but none of us were leaving until this was totally done. There was some talk about going after the escapees, but none of us had the energy left for it. A couple hours later, when our relief effort arrived, we sent them right off on their way, chasing after the fleeing horde. And then, it was truly over.

The first rays of dawn began cresting the horizon on an empty clearing, populated no longer by an unseemly, teaming mass of gray. Instead, in their wake was a churned wasteland of dirt and loam. A kilometers wide swath of ravaged landscape scarring the middle of Cesnine forest. I sat with my back against a tree, somewhere between dozing and wakefulness. My knights were arrayed around me, equally bleary, while Clover the Skiddo fully napped in the leafy shade behind us, and Mana slept in her ball.

Chirrups and squawks filled the air as the forest came awake with the dawn, but I barely noticed, my mind blank as I stared out at the blasted landscape. I'm not sure how long I would have sat like that, but I didn't get a chance to find out. With a crack, one of the balls on my waste split open, the sound overpoweringly loud in the peaceful morning dawn. Three shapes materialized in moments, forms heaving from clear exhaustion.

My knights leapt to attention, interposing themselves between me and the confused Maushold. The Normal-type closed ranks, the three of them huddling together as they looked around, obviously confused. Some part of me knew I should be alarmed. We'd just been fighting these Pokémon. They might still be upset, might try to hurt me. And yet, I couldn't work up any alarm. They seemed confused, and concerned, but not dangerous.

"It's all over," I told them, my voice scratchy from the long hours.

"The others are all captured, or fled." The three of them wheeled to face me at the explanation. The littlest one chirped something that had my knights bristling. I still couldn't exactly understand the question, but the implication was clear enough.

'Why? Why did you come and destroy our home?' I opened my mouth, and then closed it. Tried again, but nothing came out. My exhaustion-addled mind didn't have an answer. Not one that would satisfy these Pokémon.

'Because it was my mission' had been enough for me hours ago. Now, it seemed woefully inadequate. Luckily, someone else had an answer for both of us. A grief-stricken howl came from behind me, and the group of us turned on instinct to find the source of the sound. A small group of Poochyena and Mightyena came out of the trees, blundering their way into the blasted clearing. Normally, a group of dangerous predators like this might have had anyone in our group concerned, but it was obvious just looking at them.

These Pokémon weren't a threat to us. Not right now. The same hollowness in the gazes of the Maushold. The confusion. The horror. The grief. The, 'How could this have happened?' It sat heavily in their eyes, as they stared at the ravaged remains of their hole. Slowly, in ones and twos, or in small groups, more and more Pokémon emerged from the trees. We watched as they observed the clearing, witnessed the results of our struggle. Some had the same hollow eyes of the Maushold and Poochyena.

Others might wince in sympathy, and a few curious onlookers simply saw, and then left, unbothered by the destruction. But the Pokémon that had lived here, in the heart of the forest, the ones who found themselves without a place to return to, they were distinctive. Here, a group of sagging Bellsprout, clustered around a hole in the earth. There, a Swellow, nest clutched protectively in its talons, staring at an empty patch of ruined ground. They all shared the same look, the same disbelieving grief.

"This is why," I found my voice, still scratchy, but more confident.

"We did it for them, and the others who live in this forest." A few seconds of silence, and then the littlest one, speaking again for the group.

"Maus, Ma, Hold Maus." Plaintive. Questioning, I intuited the question.

'What about us?'

"I'm sorry that it happened like this, but you were out of control. You would have destroyed the whole forest. Stripped it until there was nothing left." The Maushold opened its wide maw, as if to object, and then closed it, as another howl of grief tore out of one of the gathered Pokémon. Now, the Normal-types had grief and guilt plain on their features.

"We'll find another home for you." The Pokémon I was talking to looked up, expressions unsure. Maybe even disbelieving. In the face of their doubt, I put as much conviction into my voice as I could muster.

"That's why we captured the mauses. We didn't want to hurt you, just bring you somewhere you wouldn't harm others." My explanation was met with silence. Slowly, the rodents turned away, facing back towards the ruined clearing, watching the emerging Pokémon in contemplative silence. My family and I joined their's, staring at the ugly scar in the landscape. Minutes passed. Maybe an hour. Eventually, Donna joined us. The green-haired ranger was covered in sweat and dirt, her uniform stretched and torn.

There were dark circles under her eyes, and a far-off expression on her face, so different from her usual, carefree grin. I'm sure that if I saw myself in the mirror, I'd look much the same. With a groan, she sat down next to me, Grinder the Ferrothorn joining her. Mitt and Saber were nowhere to be seen, probably recalled into their balls to get some rest.

"Who are you new friends?" My coworker asked with a nod at the silent Maushold.

"When I caught them last night, I still had a slot on my team, so the ball didn't transfer them into the system. I'll have to get them sent with the others later."

"This morning," the other woman replied.

"What?" I asked, confused by the non-sequitur.

"You captured them this morning. It was around one, if I remember right." I had no idea how the woman had the presence of mind to track the time. I'd long since lost track in the frantic action.

"If you say so." A few moments of companionable silence passed, and then Donna broke it again.

"Family of three, huh? Those are pretty rare." My eyes went to the Normal-types, who'd all stiffened up. Clearly, they could hear us talking about them. Donna probably noticed as well, but she didn't let it stop her.

"Sometimes, they don't always get treated the best by the colony." Now, the Maushold was shaking a little bit, but with their backs turned towards us, I couldn't tell with what emotion.

"See, a Tandemaus is formed when two mauses find one another in the horde, and a Maushold is made when two strong enough Tandemaus group up again. Sometimes though, a maus can't find a partner in time."

"And then they don't make it," I said quietly, remembering from the explanation I'd gotten earlier.

"Right," Donna confirmed grimly. The two larger members of the Maushold rested their paws on the little one's head, rubbing it in a way that made a painful lance shoot through my heart. For a moment, I saw my own parents, trying to reassure me that all was not lost, when my own world had come crashing down.

"But sometimes," Donna went on, "if the maus is very, very lucky, a Tandemaus might adopt them anyway, joining together to make a family of three. Usually they don't do it. Most hordes see it as a weakness, so it hurts their social standing." The Maushold were shaking again, all three of them, huddled together.

"So you see, it takes a very, very compassionate Tandemaus to make the decision to rescue an orphaned maus. And their reward for their generosity is scorn from their peers. They're seen as weaker, so they'll often get left behind by the horde, or sent on dangerous assignments. Like being used as distractions while the rest of the group flees." The last sentence made the Maushold stiffen, but they didn't turn around, didn't acknowledge Donna's words.

They just stared, blankly forwards at the once-abandoned clearing, now full of grieving Pokémon.

"Just something to think about," Donna said, before standing up with a groan.

"Fifteen minute warning Fe, before we all head back. Quick debrief at the station, and then we all get to go home. Almost there." The older ranger wandered off, leaving the group of us underneath the rising autumn sun. A cold wind whipped through the trees, sending their leaves scattering out, a small bit of green landing on the ground. Someday, the forest would reclaim this place. For now though, that was a small comfort for the dozens of Pokémon wandering listlessly through the shattered landscape.

Now that Donna had brought up the idea. I couldn't wait to get out of here. The desire, the burning need to be away from this wretched place ached in my chest. The oozing wound in the landscape felt as if it had made its way into my body, leaking all of my being into the environs. It was long past due, that we leave this place. I struggled to my feet.

"Are you ready to go?" I asked my team, and the silent Maushold. My knights chirruped an affirmative, and Kay ran off to go wake up Clover. The Family Pokémon started ahead for a few moments longer before the three of them turned to face my family. Their black, beady eyes were unreadable, but they nodded decisively, large heads bobbing in perfect tandem. I recalled the Normal-type, and then my knights. I stared down at the balls in my hands for a few moments, before stowing them both on my belt.

The magnetic clasps locked them in place with a distinctive click, and I worked myself up into the saddle on Clover's back. With a bleat, the Skiddo took off into the clearing, unerringly dodging the milling Pokémon to regroup with her herd and my comrades. It was time to go home.