Eevee Therapy for Little Magi Interlude: League Conference; Dark Days Ahead

International League conferences were not uncommon affairs; both bureaucratic and combative meetups had been a mainstay of Garde since the League’s founding. That being said, those conferences were typically scheduled well in advance, and were positioned in or near major cities, allowing their guests or contestants time to schedule flights, make arrangements, and other travel concerns while having civilian comforts and infrastructure in place.

Misora had been very surprised when she’d received a priority request for her to attend a conference in the Johto region; and she wasn’t alone in her confusion. While the League preferred discretion for such events, they’d not bothered to block the Pokenet speculation as hundreds of Gym Leaders, Ace Trainers, Elite Four, and Top Rangers cancelled engagements, caught flights, and otherwise made tracks for the Silver Range, and the Conference Center a few miles north of Maroon Town. Misora and Mana themselves had quickly packed their bags and made tracks from their vacationing in Sunyshore City to the nearest airport.

The fact that they’d had an infant to take care of the entire time was… trying. Nor was the fact that both of them knew they wouldn’t be called up like this without reason.

While the partners vaguely recognized a few of the trainers making their way into the building, there was one in particular which stood out to them. Dressed in a simple coat and slacks, most people ignored Immortal Akari as she lounged on the short grass outside the door, the Spiritomb at her side drawing more attention than the seemingly young trainer.

“Yo, Akari!” Mana chirped, raising a paw in a vague imitation of a handwave before she strolled towards the immortal at a leisurely clip. “How was your… experience?” 

Akari gave a wry smile, coming to her knees to offer the Primeon a paw shake, one the ‘mon eagerly accepted. “Well, the Boss did have words for me after my little blunder with you and those kids. According to him, I need to remind myself I’m still human, and that means getting involved in current events.” She brushed off her knees as she stood, Spirtomb helping clean the grass off the back of her legs. “I can sense you managed to make a very good impression on the folks I sent you to find. How’s the little one doing?”

“Irritated,” Misora reported, giving a fondly exasperated look towards the ball on her belt. “Thankfully, she seems to understand the necessity of obscurity despite being young as she is, and is content to remain in her ball for the moment.”

“I’ll have to meet them later.” Akari returned her Spiritomb, walking towards the doors. “Now, I’m here under another name, so if anyone asks, I’m Tasogare.”

Misora simply nodded, Mana snickering slightly at the woman calling herself ‘Twilight’ as they made their way inside. Unlike a normal convention, every one of the guests were being herded into a single hall, the massive ballroom set up with chairs and a stage. Misora’s eyes passed over the room, blinking as she fixed on the people sitting behind the podium; an older man in a brown jacket, a stern-faced woman in a uniform with silver hair, a ranger with blue-gray hair, and two Champions; the red-haired Lance, and the elegant Diantha, the two trainers talking to each other as the people settled in.

Casting her gaze around the room, Misora took in the other leaders present in the room; elite four members were the most prominent, with Lorelei, Agatha, Malva, Glacia, Drake, Lucian, Marshal, Wikstrom, and Hassel with seats near the stage. Closer to the front, gym leaders from multiple regions took prime spots, Misora recognizing Pryce, Olympia, Wulfric, Ramos, Giovanni, Chuck, Morty, and someone she thought might be Wattson. There were others in that group, but seeing as Gym Leaders rotated more often than Elite Four members, she wasn’t surprised she didn’t recognize some of the fresh faces.

“Wouldn’t be shocked if some of them were moles,” Mana grumbled. Wincing, Misora nodded in agreement. It was always a risk. Being powerful didn’t always mean you were the best person ever, after all. And the League was often more accepting of those with… not ideal mentalities than they probably should be. They took their seats, watching the crowd as the last few people straggled in, the doors shutting behind them.

The gathered trainers slowly quieted as the unfamiliar man stood up and took the podium. “Good morning, everyone, and thank you for your quick response to our summons. I am Gerald Forester, Director of the International Pokemon League’s Intelligence and Security service.” He waited a moment as a quiet series of whispers rose from the crowd before he raised one hand. “I will get directly to the point; as of now, the League is quietly escalating our state of readiness to a pre-disaster footing, where it will remain for the next five years. All forecasters and consulted experts agree; we are entering a Time of Troubles.”

“No shit,” Mana grumbled under her breath as most of the crowd either murmured in confusion or let out cries of shock.

“Yeah, but we’re also way more plugged into this than most of the people are, idiot.” Misora shot back, rolling her eyes at her starter.

“It’s been easy enough for most people to ignore; since hardly anyone’s been impacted up until the last two months,” Akari said softly. “I knew, of course, but then it’s hard to miss the Chosen One becoming active.”

Director Forester waited for the hubbub to die down before he continued. “This is not an overreaction, or a power play. Our ability to hide Legendaries from the attention of the wider public is fading quickly, and there is significant evidence showing that multiple prophecies and portents are about to trigger. And, unfortunately, the League did not realize this until others began to move on things first. Multiple criminal and terrorist organizations, Teams both region-local and disparate, have begun moving, and there is evidence they are attempting to capture, enslave, or manipulate Legends to do their bidding. To go into more detail on some of these threats, I will cede the stage to our host, Lance of Clan Blackthorn.” The director turned and took a seat, one of the people behind him standing and moving to replace him at the podium, the Dragon Master of Kanto and Johto clearing his throat.

“When I came to my position two years ago, Kanto and Johto had obvious but small problems–” Lance’s speech was cut off as one of the people behind him coughed, and the dragon master shook his head. “Right, no politics.” He folded his hands in front of him. “Two weeks ago, the international criminal syndicate known as Team Rocket attacked a major city and took control of the headquarters of Silph Co. I know the attack and the response by locals have made international headlines, but what was not published was the primary goal of the organization, and the hole card they deployed to escape capture. To wit, Team Rocket was seeking both extant Master Balls, and the methods of their manufacture; to aid their takeover, they deployed an unknown Pokemon, believed to be a high-level artificial Legendary.” The projector behind Lance displayed a single image, a still of a humanoid Pokemon garbed in black armor, casually tossing aside a Venusaur. The crowd burst into furious exclamations, Lance silencing them by pulsing his Presence a few times.

“He’s right. That tail… it’s like a Mew, but much larger. Someone’s been playing with the Gods’ toolbox,” Akari said breathlessly. “...and if this is a Time, the Boss is going to have to leave it to mortals to deal with any consequences.”

“That is not good,” Mana stated flatly, her tone devoid of anything. “When the Boss can’t intervene, it usually means the Boss has fires to put out.”

“I… do not like the sound of that,” Misora added her two cents, before holding up her hand. “Lance is continuing.”

Lance swept his gaze over the room. “There is evidence that a Chosen One, or multiple Chosen Ones, will arise to deal with the direct impacts of such transgression. But make no mistake, there is always a chance for them to fail, and even if they succeed, the shockwaves from such events can be catastrophic.” The man began to pace, his voice reaching out even as he left his podium behind. “The League, unfortunately, is stretched thin. Team Rocket is the most immediate problem, but there are other stirrings around the world. Hoenn has recently become aware of two radical environmentalist groups, Teams Aqua and Magma, which have styled themselves after the Legendaries of Sea and Land. Unova and Kalos are both embodied in conflicts, with more mundane issues flaring up in Sinnoh and Oblivia. I refuse to believe, however, that the League alone can handle these threats, and I am the one who proposed this gathering.”

He turned and braced himself on the podium. “This is a call to arms. I have proposed a group called the G-Men to fight against evil; but that program focused on League Elites, which has proven too limiting. We will be going into more detail on the threats we face, but our goal in bringing you all here is to search for trustworthy trainers to commit themselves to action outside of the standard League response system.” 

To the shock of the crowd, the man stepped to one side of the podium and bowed to the crowd. “After all of this, you will receive dossiers and signup information to join our ranks for the duration of this crisis. To any of you who are willing to fight, knowing the risks and responsibilities; thank you. I cannot blame those of you who choose not to join any of the expeditionary groups, but we need your help.” He straightened, returning to the podium. “Hoenn has not entered crisis mode yet, but my friend Champion Stone has agreed to accept pre-registrations for their expedition. As for us, our efforts here in Kanto and Johto will consist of investigation, counter-corruption, and police action against Team Rocket, in order to cut off their resources and prevent the capture or manufacture of more Legends.” He looked across the room. “I look forward to any help you can offer.”

“... A Dragon just bowed.” Mana blinked, looking rather baffled by the very thought. Not that many could blame her. Dragons were prideful beings. And while bowing was polite and expected in the culture Lance came from, the depth he had offered was certainly not. A good way to depict his sincerity and the desperation the League was facing.

“Yeah, but I’m more worried about Diantha. Let’s see what shit Kalos is facing,” Misora muttered back as Lance took his seat, the aforementioned Champion taking her own place at the podium.

The elegant woman adjusted the microphone. “I’m sure most of you recognize me, but to those who do not– bonjour, I am Diantha, Champion of the Kalos league.” She turned and gave Lance a nod. “While we do not have any confirmed cases of Legendaries in Kalos captured as our hosts do, Kalos is currently beset by a Team which has made such a capture a priority; Team Flare.” Diantha clicked a button on the podium, a series of video clips and images flashing on the projector behind her. “Team Flare is a domestic terrorist group which has operated in the shadows of Kalos for many years, to the point of having established bases and moles within our League ranks. They have been confirmed to have attempted to capture the Mythical pokemon Hoopa and a Moltres in the last two months alone. They are armed, well-funded, and fanatical enough to do anything in pursuit of their goals.” She took a deep breath. “And as best we can tell, those goals are a mix of genocide and ascension.”

“Wat.” Misora blinked. “Genocide and ascension? Seriously?!”

“Not particularly surprising,” Mana stated near instantly. “People are just like that, sometimes. Especially the cults. Gotta watch out for them damned cults.”

“Is now really the time for humor, starter mine?”

“Says you.”

“Touché.”

“Flare’s leadership, organization, and methodology remain opaque, but we have confirmed their infiltration, or perhaps patronage, of the equestrian and noble classes within Kalos. One of their captured leaders was a former lord, and evidently knew much about their operations; rather than allow himself to be interrogated, he took his own life.” Diantha gripped the podium. “While local law enforcement and League assets are already responding to the threat, Flare has released documents and information tying up our people in corruption investigations and uprising suppression, allowing their elites and leaders to continue to work unopposed while they sacrifice their pawns and mercenaries to buy time.”

Diantha continued. “I am seeking no grand army, but a core of dedicated men and women to join the Kalos Expedition to assist in rooting out Flare. Make no mistake, this is a counter-terrorism operation, not a battle against criminals or the misguided. Those who join our cause must be willing to take lives and defend their own, deal with entrenched foes, and fight alongside unconventional allies.” She rapped her knuckles on the podium. “Flare is an existential threat, and Kalos is committed to driving them to extinction. We will only be capable of mercy if we can present a strength exceeding their own.” Her words were cold.

“We should probably go back to Kalos, shouldn’t we,” Misora sighed, attention raptly fixed on the Champion of her adopted home. “We can’t in good conscience not. We want to be an Elite of that Region, and that means we have a certain responsibility to it.”

“I’ll start whipping the team into shape,” Mana declared, and that was answer enough for anyone who knew her. “We’ve let ourselves go slightly. Not enough strong trainers to hone ourselves on. At least none that we could battle without leaving our “vacation”, anyway.”

Diantha returned to her seat, passed by the silver-haired woman, Misora frowning as she studied the tall trainer. She wore what looked like a police uniform, though the cut and make were finer than normal, as best she could tell from this distance. The woman came to attention behind the podium. “Good morning. I am Captain Selvaria Bles, of the Unovan Regional Police force… and, as of three days ago, a probationary member of the Unovan Elite Four,” she said crisply. “I do not know how many of you have participated in the Unovan League in the last five years, but you are likely familiar with the current state of the League there. That has not been a problem until now, as you may have heard.” She paused, letting the crowd settle down from the muttering she’d provoked.

“To be blunt; Unova’s problem is more endemic than those of Kalos or the Indigo League. Right now, our problems are home-grown criminal groups which are being handled; the issue comes with the slow rise of Team Plasma, which up until now has mostly appeared as a home-grown activist group, with the majority of its members being law-abiding and well-meaning citizens. We only recently learned that their inner circle is far more ruthless, militant, and devoted than their public face. Worse, like the other groups mentioned, Plasma’s ultimate goal appears to hinge upon the local legends, with aims to gain a monopoly on Pokemon interaction in the Unova region, and perhaps the world.”

“Like that’ll happen,” Misora grumbled, before pausing for a moment. “Wait, no, it’s Unova. It might happen but if it does it’ll only be because the ‘MUH RIGHTS’ crowd did more than yell about their rights online.”

“Now, their original plan is being dismantled, but there are signs that this will only radicalize the group if things continue as they are,” Selvaria continued. “To that end, the volunteers we are requesting for the Unovan expedition are not expected to act as soldiers or special forces, but as examples and agents of outreach. While there may be clashes with the core of Team Plasma, there is still time to deescalate and deradicalize the majority of the movement. Team Plasma has the potential to become a massive threat to the world order, but their membership is not yet hardened into an army.” She placed her hands on the podium. “That being said, any members who come with the first wave may become involved in dealing with the current gang war and rooting out those elements. So there will still be fighting; but there will be no glory and little reward for joining our group.” She inclined her head. “Thank you for your time.” She turned and stepped back to her seat.

A muffled sound drew Misora’s eyes to Akari, the immortal shaking her head. “...so much pain to bring us together, and someone wants to rip it all apart for power. We forget the lessons of the past so easily… though at least this time it seems to be coming from good intentions.”

The last figure stood up, the red-haired ranger approaching the podium nervously. “Um, hello.” She raised a hand with a small wave. “I’m Ranger Yamazoe Mason, Silver Range Reservation.” She coughed. “I’m just a normal ranger, even if the Silver Range reserve is pretty important… I was sent here because I’m close, I have experience with ornery Legends, and the Top Rangers are busy, and getting busier.” She pulled out a device and set it on the podium. “Listen, everyone here is talking about dealing with Teams, trying to handle the human element. But even if all of these groups go down in a matter of weeks, they’re already stirring up local populations, causing ecosystem disruption, and provoking Legendaries. The Ranger Union and their regions know how to handle that sort of issue in their own territories, but it won’t be enough. I’ve been read in on what happened in Kalos, where Flare tried to catch a Moltres in her nest. The resulting weather disruptions have potential to cause a three-month drought, and that’s just one knock-on effect from a single, resolved incident. To be blunt, there’s not enough Rangers in the world to deal with all the issues that are going to crop up.”

“So, I’m here to make a different offer from the rest of these good folks. Starting in two weeks, the Ranger Union is officially declaring a partnership program with the Pokemon League, allowing trainers to join as auxiliary and assistant Rangers, without giving up their Pokemon.” Mason said, clasping her hands behind her back. “This isn’t going to be a short mission, this is a lifelong commitment. Spread the word to any trainer who you think could handle the dangers and responsibilities of the Ranger lifestyle.”

“That’s… not shocking, but it feels like it should be,” Mana blinked, giving Misora a significant look.

“If it were anything other than a global disaster, I’d agree, yeah,” the aforementioned girl replied immediately. “But the Ranger Union has always been pragmatic about this stuff. Their first priority is making sure the ecosystems don’t break because of angry Legends and/or Pokemon, after all.”

Akari nodded. “Mason might not be a Top Ranger, but she’s better suited for this than she thinks. I wonder if she’s being groomed to take on Regional responsibility?” she mused.

As they chatted quietly, Forester took the space at the podium, looking over the crowd. “Within the next few weeks, the League will be placing a general bulletin outlining the possibility of trouble to all League Affiliates, trainers of fourth-badge rating or above, and selected news agencies. We will be emphasizing that there is nothing to fear in the upcoming years, but that there might be disruptions to the world as we know it.” He stood straighter, many in the audience following his lead. “We will be working to make that statement true. It is my hope that many of you will do the same. Garde has made it through troubled times before, and emerged stronger for the trials. The upcoming events we face should be no different.” He bowed. “Thank you for coming here today. Every attendee is welcome to join us in the dining rooms for a luncheon, to talk with each other and take time to look over the documents and information you’ve been provided.”

As the rest of the trainers and attendees began to disperse, Misora stood, her starter and partner doing so in sync. “We’re going to go find Diantha, Tasogare. If you wanna follow us, be our guest, but otherwise we’ll see you outside.”

“I’m going to go mingle, actually. There’s a few people that caught my interest in the crowd, and I do want to give Lance a wave.” Akari nodded at Misora before ducking into the crowd, her presence restrained enough for her to blend in without issue.

Misora turned and walked over to the stage, catching Diantha as the movie star moved to head towards the dining room. “Champion Diantha, a word?”

“Hmm?” Diantha stopped, then brightened as she saw Mana. “Bonjour, Mana. And Misora, how nice to see you two.” She gave a starlet’s smile, the only strain showing in the tightness around her eyes. “If only it was under better circumstances.”

“I hadn’t realized Flare had become such a problem,” the Ace trainer admitted with a frown, shaking her head in self-deprecation. “I’d have never left for my vacation if I’d known.”

“It’s been a slow realization, Misora. We are handling it, just not quickly, and the longer our response takes, the more time they have to stir up trouble. Will you be joining the expedition?” she asked, going down on one knee to give Mana scratches. 

Amusement flickering through her eyes as Mana melted into the Champion’s scritches, Misora nodded. “Of course. Kalos is my home, after all. Even if it’s not my homeland, it’s the home I chose.”

Dainath smiled up at the trainer. “Thank you.” She stood, leaving the puddle below to reform back into a Primeon, looking regretfully at the Indigo Champion standing near the doors. “I need to go and speak with the other officials, and go around scouting other potential trainers. Will you be joining us for lunch?”

“Of course. I do intend to challenge your Elites again at some point, when this all concludes,” Misora stated, more out of amusement than anything. “And that requires that I know how to be sociable with the ‘upper crust’ as it were.”

Diantha chuckled. “I had an advantage in that realm, to be sure. And considering how much of the ‘upper crust’ are being implicated in Flare, you may not need to learn. I think you already know most of what you’ll need to know.”

“Are the nobles really going to need us to teach them that lesson again?” Misora rolled her eyes. “It’s like they forget sometimes that Kalos is Kalos.”

Diantha laughed as they walked towards Lance, the small knot of people leaving the room as another woman watched behind red sunglasses. The woman turned and walked out the back of the room, heading towards the many empty hallways of the complex, snapping out a phone.

Malva stopped as she heard someone talking, peeking around the corner to see a suited man – Giovanni, a Kanto Gym Leader, if she recalled right – speaking into his own phone. “...could disrupt everything, yes. Nothing to be done about the ground-level employees, but we need to make sure our core businesses…” He stopped as he saw Malva. “Do you mind?” He asked icily.

“Apologies, I’ll find a different spot,” Malva said, waving her own phone, before turning and heading the other way down the empty hallway. Things would be heating up, and Lysandre should probably learn about this sooner, rather than later.