Borne of Caution

Act 2: Chapter 19

Act 2: Chapter 19

Basics of Mounted Air Transportation in Hoenn

Article 1: Definitions

1.1. "Flying Mount" refers to any living creature, pokemon or otherwise, capable of carrying human passengers or cargo through the air.

1.2. "Private Citizen" refers to any individual not operating a flying mount as part of a commercial, government, or military operation.

1.3. "Flight Zone" refers to the airspace designated for the use of flying mounts, which is separate from airspace designated for conventional aircraft.

Article 2: Licensing and Registration

2.1. All private citizens operating a flying mount must possess a valid Flying Mount Operator's License (henceforth known as FMOL).

2.2. The FMOL may be obtained after passing a written and practical examination issued by the Hoenn Pokemon League Air Authority (Henceforth known as HPLAA), which includes both theory and actual flight experience. Click here for more info.

2.3. Each flying mount must be registered with the HPLAA, and a unique identification code must be broadcast from the mount at all times during flight.

Seated against his bed headboard, Lee looks away from his laptop filled with government jargon and rubs his eyes. Lifting his hand, he looks around the near-silent hotel room.

Sitting on Brendan's bed are Brendan himself, Zinnia, a black-and-blue Marshtomp, and Goomy. All four sit close together, comfortable and at ease. Brendan, Marshtomp, and Goomy are distracted by a colorful anime starring an Emolga on the TV, while Zinnia is impassively scrolling through her phone, occasionally stroking Goomy, who is in her lap.

It's been a week since the disaster of a mission at the top of Mount Chimney, and the entire time, he's been studying and planning as he waits for Ninetales to be released from the Pokemon Center.

Octillery was released after only two days with a several-day light duty advisory. The octopus pokemon has been in a quiet mood ever since, his cheery disposition replaced with something brooding and contemplative. He often stares into space with his eyes narrowed, and Lee can see the cephalopod's powerful brain turning, thinking of something. When asked, Octillery waves Lee off.

Grovyle

Lee bites his lip.

Grovyle is in little better condition than Ninetales. Camerupt's lethal Flamethrower burned away an enormous portion of his frontal scales and even damaged the nerves and muscles beneath. After five days in the care of the Pokemon Center, he was released with hair-raising scarring. On his chest, where the brunt of the attack struck him, is a starburst-like burn scar of pale, discolored scales. His neck, legs, and left arm were likewise burned, but not as badly as his chest. Regardless, he kept his head held high and insisted he walk out of the burn ward on his own power, no matter how much each step obviously pained him.

According to Nurse Joy, it's going to be weeks before he regains full mobility and nerve sensitivity, and even then, he'll need either specialist treatment or evolution to undo the worst of the scarring. As Lee expected, Grovyle rejected the notion of waiting around for an available specialist, even at Lee's urging. He did, however, allow Lee to restrict him to rest for the next week.

'You really are a legend in the making, Grovyle.' Lee's fingers brush the gecko's pokeball, and the ball wiggles in reply. 'Please don't overdo it, though.'

Finally, Ninetales

The fox was rushed into surgery upon arrival, as the Pokemon Center's usual healing machines simply couldn't deal with such extensive damage in a reasonable timeframe. Her first two days in the ICU were sleepless nights for Lee, as she was stuck on a ventilator and everything was still touch and go. On day three, the Center declared the worst had passed and took her off the ventilator as she began breathing on her own again. Ever since, Ninetales has spent most of each day resting, her thoughts a jumbled mess as she gradually recovers. Each time she regained a short few seconds of semi-lucidity, she reached her mind out to him, desperately asking 'Are you okay, Lee?' over and over.

'Am I okay?' he answered back the first time. 'I should be asking you that.'

Ninetales' Flamethrower is thin and beam-like, slicing through the air like a hot wire, and each falling orb of lava that meets it explodes into smoke, practically vaporized. The Flamethrower greedily sucks down Ninetales' already flagging stamina, but she doesn't seem to notice at all, instead shooting down everything as fast as she can. The single-minded fervor leaves Lee awed and just a bit frightened.

Try as she might, though, Ninetales is but one pokemon facing down hundreds of falling projectiles. She destroys a hundred, then another hundred, cutting their numbers by nearly two-thirds, but by then, the remainders are just too close.

One slips by, and Lee, so overloaded, doesn't realize it's bearing down on him until the flaming meteor is only fifty feet away. He looks up, his eyes wide.

A gold blur slams into his chest, throwing him away, but he scrambles to his feet a second later. That could only be!

The meteor strikes his savior, exploding into a cloud of sharp, superheated stones and choking ash, but the explosion does nothing to drown out the tortured cry that follows.

Ninetales saved his life, and in doing so, took a spear of superheated stone to her chest, piercing one of her lungs and nearly striking her heart. If the stone had been an inch to the left, Ninetales would have been struck in the heart and killed.

She would have died.

The thought alone fills Lee with equal parts cold dread and burning fury. 'Maxie, your days as a free man are numbered. That's a promise.'

They got no rest after the ordeal, as the police barged in soon after, demanding an explanation. Over the next two days, he, Brendan, and Zinnia would be interviewed no less than four times by the police, the Rangers, and by League agents. Each party got the same story, one approved by Lee's lawyer beforehand.

Strangely, and perhaps a bit worryingly, the expected interrogation from Steven Stone never came. The one from Nigel

As Lee finishes explaining the volcano fiasco to Professor Birch, the other man is understandably silent over the phone line for a few seconds. The seconds stretch into an agonizing, nerve-wracking minute, and just as Lee opens his mouth to ask if Nigel is still there, a sigh answers him.

"Lee" Nigel stops himself short. "This is" Again, he stops, sounding frustrated. "Arceus damnit, I know the last thing you want on your plate is more shit to worry over, but if I'm being honest with myself, Lee, then I'm more than disappointed with how you handled this. You knew that Magma would be there in force, and you didn't call for backup? You could have been killed. Your pokemon could have been killed! Brendan could have been killed!" He is almost screaming at this point. "What if he was killed, Lee?! Do you know what that would do to me? His mother? That's not even getting into what would happen to the laboratory if our only Lab Trainers died mid-journey! How could you make such a stupid decision?!"

Never before has Lee heard Nigel sound so scathing, and the words hurt all the more for it. Try as he might, Lee can't help but physically flinch at the professor's palpable anger, drawing a few stares from the people and gaggle of officers in the Pokemon Center.

Tucking himself a little further into the corner he has claimed for himself, Lee clears his throat. "I I don't have an excuse, Nigel. Zinnia and Brendan look to me as the leader of our little party, and I okayed all of this. I was overconfident in our abilities, and didn't want to be questioned as to why I know all that I know. Neither did I expect Magma to be so willing to use lethal force. Deciding to go in at all was stupid, let alone with so little preparation." Leaning his head back against the wall, Lee begins to consider his options for a new job, which makes his pounding migraine even worse. "The blame here rightfully falls to me. If this results in my termination, and our group being broken up, I understand," he concludes, the words falling from his mouth as guilty as they are reluctant. "I know I'm overstepping my bounds here, but if you decide you don't want me around Brendan anymore, can I ask you to consider not calling him home? His journey shouldn't be cut short because of something I Hey!"

Before Lee can finish, his cell phone is abruptly snatched from him by a tanned hand.

"Professor Birch, Brendan's dad and Lee's boss, right?" Zinnia holds the phone up to her ear and turns her back to Lee so he can't easily retake the device. "I'm Zinnia Draconid, the third member of our merry little band. Don't give Lee the third degree, because none of this is his fault; I'm actually the shitty influence here. Fighting Magma was my idea, bringing Brendan included." She speaks too fast for Birch to get a word in, scowling the entire time. "Lee is just being the fall guy because he's too stupid to not blame everything on himself."

"Zinnia, what the hell are you doing?!" Lee reaches for his phone, but Zinnia's free hand shoots out and grabs his wrist, halting him with infuriating ease. "Give that back!"

"You want me to leave Lee and Brendan alone? Say the word and I'll fuck off, just don't try anything with them, because they don't deserve it. If you fire Lee or drag Brendan home, I know you'll regret it. You know you'll regret it." Her piece said, Zinnia thrusts the cell phone back into Lee's hand and stalks off, returning to the distant lobby seats where Brendan pensively watches.

With a sigh, Lee raises his phone back to his ear and leans against the wall. "I'm sorry about that, Professor. Zinnia can be impulsive at the best of times."

"Was there any truth to what she said?" Nigel's anger seems to have abated, replaced with a weariness that drips from each word.

Lee's first instinct is to answer with "No", but he pauses. "It's It's complicated. She knows what Aqua and Magma are really up to"he stresses this, hoping Nigel understands"and has taken it upon herself to try and stop them. She insisted on confronting Magma on the volcano, but things still went sideways because of my negligence. The fault still belongs to me."

The sound of a hand tiredly rubbing an unshaven face is barely audible over the phone. "I see" Nigel mutters. "You know, from the moment he could walk, I did my best to instill the value of family in my son."

Lee blinks in confusion at the seeming non sequitur. "Nigel?"

"I like to think I did pretty well, considering he always makes time to call home when he can," the regional professor continues. "You know he talks about you two? You and your friend Zinnia?"

"He does?" Lee asks, mildly surprised. Brendan's calls home are usually private, so he had no idea. He cuts his eyes over to the boy in question.

Liberated of his injured pokemon and sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Zinnia, Brendan looks so small and vulnerable. It's unsettling to look at.

"You and her are his favorite subjects outside of pokemon and battling," Nigel confirms. "He tells me about clever little tricks he's learned from Zinnia, and all the lessons he gets from you, and how much fun you all have traveling together. To him, it's never about what he does alone, but what you all do as a group," the professor reveals. "I can hear it in his voice; for better or worse, Brendan looks at you two like family, perhaps like the siblings he has never had."

Even after all the trials of the day, a spot in Lee's chest musters some warmth at hearing that.

"If I call Brendan and tell him to come home immediately, do you know what his answer is going to be?"

Lee doesn't even need to answer. Brendan's determination for excellence in all things pokemon makes it clear what he would say.

"I'm not going to let you go or call Brendan home, Lee," Nigel finally says, lifting a weight off of Lee's shoulders. "Your pokemon are strong, and you're a good trainer, but I don't think you realize just how high the peaks can get in pokemon battling. Don't play it fast and loose with Magma and Aqua any more. If things begin to look sketchy, you have plenty of resources to call on. For the sake of everybody in your group, use those resources. Heck, call me if you need to. I know this won't happen again, correct?"

"It will not," Lee promises quietly.

"Good." Nigel sighs once more, this time sounding relieved. "Now, if you will please excuse me, I have to call my son and bite his head off."

The call from Nigel could have been worse. Much worse. Lee was certain that he was about to lose his job and likely be blacklisted from every pokemon academic institution in Hoenn. After the worst parts of the conversation had passed, Lee was informed by Nigel that he had talked with a psychic expert about meeting Lee and Ninetales to aid in the mediation of their telepathy, and that the expert was making plans to meet them in Fallarbor. The news left him with a touch of apprehension, but with bigger worries afoot, Lee moved those concerns to the back burner.

Thankfully, it looks like everything is on the upswing for once. The Pokemon Rangers locked down teleportation in and out of Lavaridge for the duration of their investigation, so Lee hasn't been able to meet with Mable this week. In lieu of that, preparation for his team's overhauled training regime took center stage.

Article 3: Flight Operation and Safety

3.1. Flying mounts may only be operated within designated flight zones.

3.2. Operators must maintain a minimum safe distance of 500 feet from buildings, structures, and other flying mounts outside of the Operator's formation, unless for takeoff or landing.

3.3. Flying mounts must be equipped with proper lighting and signaling equipment for night flights.

3.4. Operators must be equipped with proper radio and IFF transceiver equipment.

3.5. Operators must follow all traffic control instructions issued by Air Traffic Control (henceforth known as ATC).

3.6. Operators must not fly under the influence of alcohol or any mind-altering substances.

3.7. Operators are required to carry a first-aid kit, redundant communication devices, and emergency signaling equipment during flights.

Article 4: Maintenance and Health of Flying Mounts

4.1. Flying mounts must undergo regular health checkups to ensure safe flight capability.

4.2. Operators must maintain a record of their flying mount's health and maintenance history, which must be presented upon request by relevant Pokemon League and civil government officers.

4.3. Operators must ensure that their flying mounts are well-rested and well-fed prior to flights.

Article 5: Prohibited Activities

5.1. Flying mounts may not be used for illegal activities or to facilitate the commission of crimes.

5.2. Private citizens may not use flying mounts to carry hazardous materials or engage in mounted aerial combat without express Pokemon League permission.

5.3. Operators may not fly in restricted airspace or near sensitive infrastructure, such as military installations or power plants, without proper authorization.

First among that? Get a flying license.

Of course, one can't just hop on the back of a flying pokemon and go wherever they want; it has to be mired down in regulations. Many of the regulations are sensible and even agreeable, but it's still annoying.

The test is simple enough, almost as simple as getting a driver's license. A written test, an inspection of the pokmon you intend to fly on, and a practical test. If you can prove sufficient competence in one go, Hoenn will issue a same-day license, and if not, then you're stuck with a two-week-long course. With the license in hand, Lee will be able to fly anywhere he wishes, which will facilitate the gathering of training supplies, ease of travel, and will significantly shorten any hunts for the sixth team member that Lee is still deciding on.

The sound of steel sliding across steel makes Lee smile. Looking away from his laptop again, he takes in the huge, avian form swallowing a significant fraction of the room with his darkened bulk.

Out of his ball and sitting on the floor, Corvisq Corviknight cuts an intimidating figure. With his obsidian armor and razor-edged wings, the massive raven is practically the living embodiment of the word ferocious, even if his temperament isn't totally matching anymore.

With the rest of Lee's team sans Shinx all in states of recovery, Corviknight has steadfastly refused to leave Lee's side. Be it sleeping, out and about outside, or anything else, none of it seems beneath him, and he'll dutifully follow. With his evolution, Corviknight's foul temperament and constant fury have seemingly been abandoned, replaced with a brooding, yet patient giant of a bird. Lee still catches sneers and rolled eyes on Corviknight's face, but now they are few and far between, and never directed at Lee himself.

'Big guy has grown up a lot, hasn't he?' Lee muses.

Though big guy is an understatement for Corviknight. The raven is absolutely enormous, and it scratches Lee's kaiju itch just right. To the zoologist's delight, Corvi finally submitted to a physical without a fuss, and Lee had to stand on a park bench to measure Corvi's unreal nine-foot-ten height.

Fucking nine-foot-ten. Practically three meters even. Corvi is over two-and-a-half feet taller than his species' average. Hell, they had to take him to the Pokemon Center and ask to use one of their scales, which showed a whopping three hundred and fifty-one kilograms, or just under seven hundred and seventy-four pounds.

Lee can say that he is the proud trainer of a behemoth. Sadly, Corvi isn't the largest Corviknight ever, but he did snatch third-place from a wild flock leader recorded to be living in Galar, who is said to be about nine-foot-eight.

Not to say that Corviknight's evolution is all upsides. For one, the raven is now so massive that he has to duck his head and angle his body to fit through doorways, which is saying something considering architects often take large pokemon into account when designing interior spaces. Battling in any confined space is going to be a chore.

There is also the matter of his food intake. Lee ran the math, considered as many variables as possible, and overhauled Corvi's meals. The raven's supernatural musculature and the thick, natural armor he lugs around made exact numbers a pain, but after all is said and done, Lee came to a staggering twenty-five thousand calories per day simply for Corvi's daily upkeep. A bulk of these calories need to come from protein, iron, and carbohydrates, and the sheer amount necessitated Lee to burn close to five thousand credits on a pokeblock maker.

Using the same space-bending tech as their bags, Silph Co's pokeblock maker lets trainers condense food down into dense cubes, essentially giving pokemon a one-bite meal for quick energy and nutrition. For large pokemon with serious dietary requirements, it can turn industrial amounts of food into a portable bowl full of cubes. Lee naturally splurged for the top model, which retains the texture, moisture, and taste of the food, and even has separated compartments so different meal components like meat and vegetables aren't homogenized into unappetizing-looking kibble.

Now, preparing all the food to dump into the briefcase-sized device is a multi-hour spectacle, so Lee dedicated an entire day to just preparing two weeks worth of meals for Corvi.

Without warning, Lee feels Ninetales begin to stir all the way over in the Pokmon Center, and his train of thought is cut off.

Slowly, blearily, the distant fox begins to regain consciousness, and unlike the previous panicked spikes of awareness, this time it's slow and deliberate. Her mind reaches out to his with a telepathic hand on instinct, and Lee quickly meets her halfway with a wave of love and concern.

'Nine? How are you feeling, love?'

The vixen takes her time responding, her thoughts sluggish. 'Like I was impaled through the chest,' she says dryly.

Lee smiles even if the joke is rather grim. 'I'm glad to see that your sense of humor is still okay.'

'Considering the oxygen mask on my face and how numb I feel, no doubt from painkillers, I believe my sense of humor is the only thing I have that is functional.' Ninetales gives the mental equivalent of a sigh and goes quiet. Within her, a mixture of deep, existential despair and near-blinding fury begin to build, like hot and cold water that refuse to mix. Most of all though, there is raw HATE, so burning and hideous that Ninetales is almost quivering. HATE aimed squarely at Maxie for nearly taking Lee away and HATE at herself for failing, something Lee is all too familiar with.

'Lee.' Ninetales' lips are pulled back into a snarl. Through her eyes, he can see her hot breath begin to warp her plastic breathing mask. 'Beloved, you almost '

'Let's not worry about 'almost' right now,' Lee gently interrupts, shutting his laptop and closing his eyes before leaning back into the headboard of his bed. He doesn't let his Ace's overwhelming emotions rattle him. 'I nearly died. You nearly died. All of us nearly died. I'm just as furious at what that son of a bitch Maxie did, but what's done is done, and we'll simply be better next time.'

Lee feels phantom fur on his neck shift as Ninetales physically recoils in surprise, her rage abating. 'Lee?'

'When the nurses were rushing you into the operating room and wheeling off everyone else, I was left with some time to think,' Lee continues. 'And you know what I think? I think I'm tired of being scared, for myself and for all of you. We've been without any kind of direction because I've been too afraid to commit to a path, one that will inevitably lead us into the spotlight. I did you and the rest of the team a disservice by doing that.'

Ninetales is silent as Lee telepathically speaks. In the meantime, she peruses Lee's memories of what has transpired while she has been unconscious.

'Well, no more. If the world wants to play hardball, we're going to show them that they aren't ready for what we have. I'm drawing up plans to up everyone's training, to fill our last spot, and to take plenty of safety measures. We aren't going to get mad, we're going to get better. If Magma wants to mess around, then we'll take the opportunity to get even.'

On the other end of the telepathic bond, Ninetales' anger isn't extinguished, but has dipped into a cool simmer, fueled by the implication that they won't be actively pursuing Magma. Slowly, though, a proud warmth thrums through the ethereal band connecting them. 'Although I hate that an event like the disaster upon the volcano was the catalyst, it heartens me to see you more confident, beloved,' Ninetales says, smiling. 'I still want nothing more than to chase down that redheaded, human-shaped filth and make him pay, though.'

'Maxie will get his when the time is right,' Lee sends back. 'For now, let's all recover and put this behind us.'

'Of course, of course.' Ninetales' mind reaches out, and even with painkillers dulling her thoughts, she still wraps Lee in a tight mental embrace. 'I love you, Lee.'

Lee wraps his being around her in-turn, smiling. 'Same to you.'

Their serious conversation over, Ninetales' thoughts begin to drift, whisked away by the drugs in her bloodstream. She looks at the IV bag hooked to her foreleg with annoyance, silently wishing to trade the nutrient drip for something substantial to eat.

'I'll get you something big and tasty as soon as I get the all-clear from the Center,' Lee promises.

As Ninetales shuts her eyes for some real sleep, Lee is given a front-row seat to her vivid imagination going wild. Just before she conks out, Lee is treated to the image of a hungry Nine biting into an entirely-too-big burger, one he recalls eating at some hipster joint in college.

Returning back to the real world, Lee looks at the clock on the wall, noting that it's nearly 1 PM. Shoving his laptop off his lap, he stands and stretches, drawing curious looks from the rest of the room. "Corvi and I need to go take that flying license exam. We'll be back in a few hours."

"Where is it being held at?" Zinnia questions, putting her phone down.

"The Ranger station on the edge of town. Town Hall only does tests if you schedule two weeks in advance." Lee answers. "I need to stop by the Pokemart and pick up the saddle I ordered first, though. The supplier had to custom-build one for Corvi's size."

The massive raven just a handful of feet away scowls, miffed about how undignified wearing a saddle is going to be.

"The practical part should be at 3PM or so, if you guys want to come watch," Lee continues. "Well, 3 PM assuming there aren't any delays. There are only two other people taking the exam today, but you never know."

"I know I'll be there." Zinnia smirks. "Just remember to clench your legs and your butt when they run you through the high-G turn portion, or you'll black out."

Lee raises an eyebrow. "Do you already have a license?"

"Pretty much every Draconid does," Zinnia confirms. "I took my test in Fallarbor on one of the Flygon who live with the tribe, just like every other tribal kid. You don't actually have to have a flying Pokmon to have a flying license."

"Huh"

"Sounds like fun! Count me in!" Brendan chimes in, Marshtomp nodding beside him. "Say, Lee? If you and Corviknight are okay with it, can I borrow Corviknight to take the test with? I may as well get it now."

Corviknight shrugs, uncaring.

"If Corvi is okay with it, I don't see why not." Lee smiles when Brendan cheers. "Better study up and book your test now if you want to get it done before we leave Lavaridge. I want to start making tracks north as soon as Nine is well enough to travel."

Without delaying another second, Brendan digs his cell phone from his pocket and opens up the browser, making himself busy.

"Ready?" Lee asks Corviknight.

The raven stands, accidentally bonking his head on the ceiling.

"Here's your special order!" The cheery woman behind the Pokemart counter slides a large box to Lee, one that requires both hands to pick up. "I don't think I've ever seen a delivery from Westwind Solutions this large before. Do you ride a Dragon?" she asks, badly hiding the curious look at Lee's scars.

"He's got the temper of one," Lee jokes, lifting the hefty cube of cardboard and turning towards the door. "Thank you!"

"No problem! Have a nice day!" The clerk waves goodbye.

Stepping through the automatic doors and into the tiny parking lot of the Mart, Lee, followed by Corvi, who has been loitering outside, head off to a bench around the corner of the building.

"Phew" Lee drops the box on the ground and wipes his forehead. "Jeez, this thing is heavy. I hope it doesn't add too much weight for you, Corvi."

Red eyes blink as the titanic bird gives Lee an incredulous stare. Corvi then croaks mockingly, as if challenging the notion that the contents of the box would even be noticeable on his back.

"Sure sure, I get it." Lee rolls his eyes. "Let's not go overboard, though. Every ounce matters."

Corvi clicks his tongue, but doesn't protest further. Bringing a wing forward, his steel feathers slice through the tape and metal staples holding the box together with no resistance, letting the top pop open.

Lee peers inside, then reaches in and pulls out the heavy bundle within. Setting it on his lap, he pulls away the covering of waxed paper around it, pausing when a letter falls out. Picking up the paper letter, he quickly scans the contents.

Westwind Solutions

Custom Products for Flying Pokemon

Est. 198X, Proudly in Violet City, Johto

Dear Mr. Lee Henson

Congratulations! Your package from Westwind Solutions has arrived, and within it lies a crowning jewel of our craftsmanshipa custom saddle designed exclusively for your magnificent Corviknight companion. We extend our heartfelt gratitude for choosing us as your trusted supplier of bespoke products for flight-capable pokemon.

At Westwind Solutions, we take great pride in our ability to blend innovation, functionality, and artistry into every creation. Our team of skilled artisans and engineers has poured their passion and expertise into crafting a saddle that not only enhances the comfort and performance of your majestic Corviknight but also showcases our commitment to excellence. We

The letter is rather self-aggrandizing, and quite frankly goes on for too long, so Lee skips to the end.

Fly high and forge new horizons, knowing that Westwind Solutions is your ally in the skies.

Order Details:

Saddle (including selected options) 4,209.50c

Expert Traveler Equipment Pack 2,550.00c 1,550.00c (special promotion)

Custom Size XXXL 1,109.50c

Custom Folding Mechanism 1,088.70c

Rush Interregional Shipping 581.71c

Sales Tax 426.97c

Wisdom in picking Westwind Priceless

Total Amount: 8,966.38c

Payment Due By: [PREPAID]

Thank you for choosing Westwind Solutions for your custom flight product needs. We greatly appreciate your business.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this invoice, please don't hesitate to contact our customer service by phone at (2100)-9887-1302 or email us at [email protected] We are here to assist you! Be sure to follow our BattleNet page for new products and special promotions!

"Windbag Solutions is more like it." Lee snorts. "Here I am spending money like I'm made of it. Maybe we'll head back to Mauville after this and give Aarons a new TM to copy. How does a business trip sound, bud? Care to menace sleazy businessmen for me?" he asks Corviknight.

The raven smirks, eyes literally flashing in cruel anticipation.

Lee finishes unwrapping the saddle and hefts it up on his shoulder. "Alrighty, let's get this thing on."

Corviknight sighs, but bends down so Lee can toss the saddle on his back.

The exorbitant amount of manufacturer bluster might actually be justified, because the saddle truly is superbly made. The whole thing folds into rectangular fourths for storage, giving it just barely enough clearance to be dropped into Lee's backpack. The contact surface intended for Corvi's metallic back is fitted with soft, yet durable rubber, and when the leather straps around Corvi's chest are fastened, the saddle is rock-solid secure.

The seat is split in half along the middle folding point and is made up of two separate, leather-wrapped cushions, each one shaped to slot into the other. When unfolded, the cushions mesh together, providing a comfortable seat. The stirrups are fitted with leg-securing straps, and through some feat of mechanical engineering that Lee has trouble wrapping his head around, the leg straps apparently auto-squeeze during high G maneuvers, aiding the rider in preventing blackouts.

Near the rubber-coated handholds on the saddle and molded into the leather are a number of mechanical instruments, namely an altimeter, a compass, and a speedometer. Around those are a number of different pouches for equipment. One for an IFF transceiver, another one for a radio, a large one for an emergency oxygen tank, a holster for a flare gun, and several other miscellaneous pouches for whatever the rider might need. Since Lee ordered all the accessories mandated by law and then some, all of the pouches are already filled with their equipment. Likewise, the slots in the saddle for safety reflectors and signaling lights are already populated. Powering it all is a pair of enclosed, cylindrical wind turbines mounted above the saddle bags, which feed into a battery bank.

Finally, the handholds are fitted with a number of pressure-sensitive buttons that activate vibrating motors in the saddle, the intensity and location of which are used for different instructions, like increasing or lowering altitude, increasing or decreasing speed, turning, and maneuvering. Theoretically, a rider can give accurate instructions to their pokemon without ever saying a word.

"That should do it." Lee nods and steps back, inspecting his work. "How does it feel?"

Corviknight grumbles in his throat and struts in a large circle, moving his wings about and testing his mobility. The frown on the raven's face eases some, but doesn't totally go away.

"Comfortable?" Lee probes. "Give me your honest opinion. I won't hesitate to send it back if it's not."

After mulling over his answer, Corviknight nods once, though he still seems sour. His displeased face melts when Lee steps closer and reaches up, scratching the great avian beneath his beak.

"I don't think it looks undignified," Lee soothes him with a small smile. "In fact, you make it look good."

Corviknight is too busy leaning into the scratching fingers to reply.

After they toss the box into the dumpster behind the Pokemart, man and 'mon make the walk to the Pokemon Ranger station out on the edge of town, cutting through the midday streets with the same ease Corviknight's wing did the cardboard box a few minutes prior.

Where Ninetales parts crowds slowly, everyone trying to linger and peer at her as long as they can, Corvi is more akin to a landslide, in that no one has any choice but to move, and they do so with haste. Besides the buildings on either side of the road, Corviknight is the tallest thing around, and thus everyone is given plenty of forewarning to step aside and to occasionally snap a photo on their phones. Lee's raven has no reaction to the attention, and his cold indifference seems to spur more admiration from onlookers than it does resentment.

Upon arriving at the Pokmon Ranger station, which has a door large enough for Corvi, the pair walk inside.

The Ranger station is sparse, as to be expected. Other than the front desk, there are a couple of seats along the wall, a water fountain, and a small shelf with a handful of recruiting pamphlets. Lee and Corviknight ignore everything but the front desk and approach the bored teenager manning it.

"Welcome to the Lavaridge Ranger station, what can I" The teen scratches a zit on his chin and looks up, double taking when he sees the gigantic raven looming behind Lee. "Uhh"

"Lee Henson and Corviknight, here for the flying license exam." Lee smiles and makes it as kind as he can, all too aware of how Corvi is probably pinning this kid in place with his red-eyed stare. "I called and scheduled a couple days ago?"

"Oh, uhh, sure." The teen regains his bearings and puts his phone down. He then brings up a spreadsheet on his computer and looks at it. "Uh, the test begins in about ten minutes. In the meantime, my supervisor will inspect your pokemon. Do you have a vaccination and preventative care manifest from the Pokmon Center?"

Lee produces the requested form from his back pocket and unfolds it, handing it off to the teenage attendant.

The teenager takes the paper and photocopies it with a small copier on his desk before handing it back. "Ranger Wanda will be with you in a couple of minutes."

Just as the front desk attendant said, a young woman in a Pokemon Ranger uniform comes and leads everyone off to a small classroom promptly before handing out a thick packet of paper to each test-taker. At the same time, another Ranger takes everyone's pokemon out back to be inspected. Corviknight's company in that regard ends up being a Pidgeot and a Skarmory.

The written test, for which Lee and the other two trainers are given an hour and a half to finish a hundred questions, is thorough but not overly hard. It covers a wide variety of subjects, from local laws, international laws, exceptions to specific clauses and rules, identifying weather patterns, radio use and radio lingo, night flight safety, some common sense problems, and just about every subject imaginable. However, it's no big deal if one has studied an hour or two a night a week beforehand as Lee did.

When the test concludes and the Ranger overseeing everything collects the test packets, everyone is dismissed for half an hour as the tests are graded. The passing criteria is rather strict at 95% or higher, and if one fails to achieve a satisfactory score, they're forced to take a longer, more thorough course lasting two weeks. When the Ranger returns, she gladly announces that all three of the prospective flyers passed, and their pokemon passed inspection as well, finally leading to the practical portion. For that, all of them are led to a spacious clearing behind the station, where their pokmon are waiting.

"Okay, everyone!" The lady Ranger before them calls out with a positively booming voice. "We'll be going over equipment checks, communication with air traffic control, maneuverability, and defensive flying to start out. Go ahead and approach your pokemon and begin making your initial checks. I'll be walking around and observing," she says, folding her arms behind her back. Beside her, her saddled Fearow looks as bored as can be, having probably heard all these lines a million times already. "Once we get into the air, remember to listen closely to our instructions! Flying with your pokemon is an incredible, liberating experience and one of the best bonding exercises around, but don't get carried away!"

'Yeesh,' Lee quells the urge to pick his ear with his pinky as he walks over to Corviknight. 'And I thought Zinnia had a big mouth. I guess the instructor needs to be loud in case someone's radio fails or something.'

One of the other two trainers, a fourteen-year-old boy, has to drag his infatuated Skarmory's attention away from Corviknight, who in turn seems exasperated.

The other one is a middle-aged woman who leads a Pidgeot. The Pidgeot unfortunately doesn't seem to respect his trainer, and behaves passive-aggressively throughout the entire process of having his saddle mounted.

"Here goes nothing" Lee sighs, a tad nervous as Corvi leans down to let Lee mount. Lee has to bring his leg high, step into the stirrup, and with a grunt, throw his other leg over Corvi's wide back. "There we goooo shit!"

Corviknight stands to his full height again, his back tilted forward so Lee doesn't fall off, and all of a sudden the ground is a damn sight farther away than he'd been expecting. Corviknight turns his head, his red, luminescent eye questioning.

"I'm fine, Corvi." Lee takes a deep breath and pats the raven on his neck. "It's no slight to you, I've just never flown before. Back on the volcano, I was too distracted to really have it sink in that we were flying."

Corvi nods, his gaze sharpening. A deep croak reverberates in his throat, and Lee doesn't need telepathy to understand the dark bird. 'I will not allow harm to come to you,' the croak says.

"I know you won't." He smiles, and Lee can't help but be heartened when Corvi's beak twitches up, nearly forming a smile.

Lee then busies himself with checking over all the equipment in the saddle, watching from the corner of his eye as the instructor has to help the flustered woman beside them with her uncooperative Pidgeot. He inputs the temporary IFF code the instructor provided into the IFF transceiver and sets the encryption to 'none', then moves on to the radio. Westwind provided a rather nice unit, fitted with a wind-noise canceling headset, and a small magnet-fitted speaker that Lee attaches to Corvi's helmet so he doesn't have to scream instructions over the wind.

Lee taps the microphone on his headset. "Corvi? Is the volume okay?"

The raven flinches at the noise, so Lee twists the knob labeled Output #2 on the radio down to half power and tries again. "Better?"

Corvi's wings slump in relief.

Lee tests the buttons on the saddle handholds, and after Corvi confirms that he can feel each motor vibrating, Lee straps his legs into the stirrups and watches the other license hopefuls.

The boy trainer and his Skarmory are ready a few minutes later, but unfortunately for the third trainer, she and her Pidgeot are failed and dismissed by the instructor due to Pidgeot's foul attitude, forcing the poor woman to recall Pidgeot and leave, dejected.

The flying instructor clears her throat. "Okay boys "

The Skarmory trills in her throat.

"and girl," the ranger corrects, "equipment checks have been completed, so let's get to the fun part! Mister Lee and Mister Corviknight, let's have you guys go first."

Corviknight, with Lee astride his back, steps forward and stares down at the smiling instructor.

"Your temporary call sign is going to be BC-Zero One, and I'm going to play the part of air traffic control. You can refer to me as 'Ranger Ground'. Remember to use phonetics on the radio! Tune your radio to reserve frequency number seven," the instructor takes a pair of pokeballs from her pocket and enlarges them out of their travel size. Both balls pop open, and on either side of her, a pair of Tropius materialize. Each of the dino-like pokemon are wearing green, visored helmets. "My friends here will be acting as backup in case something goes wrong, so if they grab you guys, don't resist and make their job harder."

In response to the Ranger's words, each Tropius extends four thick Vine Whips, one from under each of their wings.

"Kwah!" Corvi croaks, openly offended at the notion of needing help. Lee once more pats his neck, and the crow tones down his annoyance.

Lee adjusts the microphone of his headset once more and hits the 'transmit' button on the left earcup. "Bravo Charlie Zero One, ready."

Smiling, the instructor takes the handheld radio from her belt and holds it to her mouth. "Bravo Charlie Zero One, this is Ranger Ground. Permission granted for vertical takeoff at the Lavaridge Ranger station. For the duration of your sortie, attempt to use nonverbal controls where possible. Winds are two-seven-zero at five. Maintain altitude at one-thousand feet, then take a holding pattern over the ranger station and await further instructions, over."

Shit. They're actually about to fly. Lee's nerves clash with his excitement, and for a moment he forgets what two-seven-zero at five means, then it comes back to him. 'Wind is coming in from the west at five knots, right. Phew. You got this, Lee. Corvi won't let you down'

"Cleared for vertical takeoff at Lavaridge Ranger station. Will maintain one-thousand feet and prioritize nonverbal controls, Ranger Ground. Bravo Charlie Zero One, out." Lee takes his hand off his headset and grips both handholds. Taking a deep breath, he taps the buttons under his index fingers twice.

Corvi spreads his wings, and in a single flap, the ground falls away, dragging Lee's stomach right into his toes.

"Oh shit!" The zoologist gasps, his stomach rolling. He takes a deep gulp of air, which zips into his mouth without needing much aid from his lungs. The rushing winds try to yank him off of the saddle, only for the straps on his legs to hold tight.

Hazarding a look at the ground, everyone below are already little more than dots, and the buildings are dollhouse-sized. The only people he can make out are Brendan and Zinnia, who must've shown up when he wasn't looking. Then the instinctual surge of panic is tossed aside. He's got a license to get, and if he messes up now, he and his friends will be stuck here for weeks of remedial classes.

Pulling his eyes away from the ground, Lee instead focuses on the cluster of instruments just above his hands, which grip the saddle handles with white knuckles. The altimeter is rising fast, and before he knows it, they've already cleared nine hundred feet. He grips both middle finger buttons harshly, and Corviknight begins to level out, stopping his ascension at just a hair above a thousand feet.

"Hot damn," Lee breathes harshly, struggling to keep the tremor out of his voice. He squints his eyes into the wind, wishing that he'd had the foresight to bring goggles. "Hot damn, Corvi," he repeats, holding the secondary transmit button on his headset. "You are fast."

The crow lets out a gravelly chuckle that crackles in Lee's headset.

Without needing any instructions, Corvi gently yaws to the side, taking a wide, continuous turn over the ranger station. A moment later, the pair of Tropius catch up, flying on Corviknight's flanks.

There aren't immediately more instructions over the radio, giving Lee plenty of time to catch his breath and once more send a tentative glance down at the ground. "You know? It's not so bad the second time" He says to himself.

With the reassuring hulk of a bird beneath him, the height, the speed, and the whipping winds aren't so daunting. Lee loosens his tight grip on the saddle, his churning stomach beginning to calm, and his nausea transforming into something light and excited. He can't help the grin that forms on his face. He is a thousand feet in the air flying on the back of his pokemon! This is unreal! Lee is so caught up, that he almost doesn't see Corvi turning his neck to peer back at him. When he notices, the man is dumbfounded for a moment.

Corviknight is smiling. It's no smirk, no vicious grin, nothing of the sort, it's genuine happiness. It's the first time Corvi has ever worn such an expression with him. The fact that the smile made its emergence here, during their first time flying together, isn't lost upon Lee.

The radio crackles. "Bravo Charlie Zero One, this is Ranger Ground."

Lee composes himself and touches the transmit button on his headset. "This is Bravo Charlie Zero One, go ahead, Ranger Ground."

"Bravo Charlie Zero One, good work on maneuver one. You will notice a tall tree at bearing one-eight-zero with a red ribbon affixed to the tallest branch. Increase altitude to fifteen-hundred feet and make a pass over the tree. Return to ranger station airspace and resume holding pattern after. Confirm receipt, over."

"Roger, Ranger Ground. Changing altitude to fifteen-hundred, course to one-eight-zero, and will make a pass over the red-marked tree. Bravo Charlie Zero One, out." Lee lets the transmit button go and grips the saddle controls again. "Okay, Corvi. Let's ace this."

Corviknight lets out a screech and zooms toward their objective.

An hour later finds a jittery Lee and a content Corviknight on the ground again and back inside the ranger station, standing before the front desk. A little ways behind them, Brendan and Zinnia stand, both wearing identical smiles.

As Lee hoped, they passed the test with flying colors, and now they just need to wait for Lee's license to be printed.

The instructor was merciless. After the first few exercises, she began to mix everything up, telling Lee to adjust his IFF transceiver on the fly, pull high-G maneuvers that made the edges of his vision grow dark, suddenly changing her instructions, and even had her Tropius helpers use Whirlwind to simulate inclement weather among other things. However, neither Lee nor Corviknight faltered throughout the various challenges, and they got their prize for it.

With a final whine, the card printer behind the front desk goes silent and spits out a laminated card. The teen manning the desk takes the card, along with a number of printed registration documents, and hands them to Lee with a smile. "Here you go, sir. Remember to keep those on you at all times."

"Will do," Lee grins, holding the bit of plastic up to the light. It's practically identical to a driver's license, and the man can't help but feel the same giddy excitement he felt at sixteen when he got his first car. Actually, he's more excited.

Corviknight is infinitely cooler and way faster than a beat-up Honda his parents bought for a pittance.

Zinnia walks around the raven blocking off a chunk of the room and drops her hand onto Lee's shoulder. "Look at you, Dolittle. You've got that flier's high going on," she smirks. "I remember my first time in the air, too. It's something, isn't it?"

Lee gives the Dragon tamer a grin. "Yeah. Yeah it is. I admit I was kind of nervous at first, but looking back, it's kind of silly since Corvi had my back the entire time," he sends Corviknight a smile over his shoulder.

The great raven visibly preens under the praise, his metallic feathers puffing up.

"Ugh, I can't wait for Shelgon to evolve" Zinnia groans. "What about you, little hero?" She turns to Brendan. "Are you eager to try out flying?"

Brendan hides how nervous he is admirably, coughing once into his fist. "I guess Dad took me flying on his Flygon once, but I was really young and don't remember most of it."

"That's the spirit!" Zinnia claps him on the back, either not noticing or not caring about his hesitation.

Turning the license in his fingers over once more, Lee sends a look up to Corviknight. "Say, Corvi?" He begins slowly and a touch unsurely. "How about we go practice flying? We still have plenty of daylight left, and the more we learn now, the better we'll be later, right?"

The corvid's eyes light up in joy. He nods his head eagerly and shifts on his feet, clearly eager to go back outside.

"We'll be back later, guys," Lee addresses Zinnia and Brendan. "Now that we've jumped through the hoops, I want to get some practice in."

"You mean you want to go have fun," Zinnia asserts with a smile. "No judgment here, Dolittle. There's nothing quite like being in the air on pokemon-back. It's the ultimate kind of freedom, and once you have a taste, you never want to do without again."

Lee scratches the back of his head and looks away sheepishly. "Yeah, I admit I had a lot of fun."

"We'll let you know where we're getting dinner and save you some if you aren't back by then," Brendan joins in. "You might want to go. Corviknight looks about ready to drag you out."

And indeed, the corvid is tapping the talons of one foot on the ground impatiently.

"Right, see you then!" Lee turns and waves over his shoulder, Corviknight following him eagerly.

Once outside, Corvi hunches over and lets Lee mount up. Once the leg straps are in place, the IFF transceiver is turned on, and the radio is tuned, Corviknight spreads his wings and shoots into the sky.

As they rise higher and higher, the wind pulls at Lee's hair, face, and clothes with cold, hooked claws, but he can't keep the grin off of his face. 'I really hope I'm not turning into an adrenaline junkie.'

Corvi pulls back even further once they are high in the sky, pulling a full inside loop. For a single moment, the ground is above them, then the raven comes back down and levels out, leaving Lee with a hammering heart.

'Oops, I was supposed to radio before leaving the ground. I've only had this license for ten minutes and I'm already breaking the rules,' Lee smacks his forehead and tunes in to Lavaridge air traffic control. "ATC, this is HLC, I mean-! This is Hotel Lima Charlie Zero Two, over."

This is a bit more nerve-racking than the exam.

It takes a moment for air traffic control to reply, and the radio sounds considerably worse than the one the Ranger instructor was using. "Hotel Lima Charlie Zero Two, this is Lavaridge Control, go ahead."

"Lavaridge Control, Hotel Lima Charlie Zero Two conducting" What's the acronym for personal flight? Lee blanks out for a moment. He's using visual flight rules, so that's what the acronym is, right? "VFR flight of locale. IFF is transmitting. Requesting traffic advisories and restrictions."

"Hotel Lima Charlie Zero Two, we read your IFF. Current altitude restriction is ten-thousand feet. Be advised, Mount Chimney airspace is currently restricted. No other advisories. Enjoy your flight and remember to radio before takeoff next time."

'Fuck' Lee twitches and takes his finger off his radio so no one hears his muffled curse. "Thanks, Lavaridge Control. Hotel Lima Charlie Zero Two, out."

With business out of the way, Lee takes the saddle handholds in his hands and grips them tight. "Okay, Corvi! Show me what you can do!"

Corviknight screeches and flares his wings, shooting forward so fast that Lee's whole body is jolted. Each flap carries them faster and faster through the air, which fights them every step of the way. Corviknight then rises, taking them higher and higher, far higher than what the exam mandated. They roll, dip, and dive with such intensity that gasps and yells of sheer exhilaration are forced from Lee's lungs. For almost an hour, Corviknight flies as extremely as he dares with a passenger, which is still pretty extreme, and when he's done all that he can, Corviknight surrenders control to Lee, flying strictly by the inputs from the saddle controls. More than once, Corviknight looks back, mystified as a grinning Lee goads him into death-defying stunts.

"What are you looking at me like that for?" Lee asks through the crackling radio. "I trust you to not let us get hurt."

Corviknight's eyes flash in joy, and the raven really lets Lee have it after that.

Before long though, perhaps after only an hour and some change, fatigue begins to set in for Lee, and Corvi levels out for a calm, relaxing cruise.

Taking a deep breath, Lee looks up at the clouds above, which are so close it's as if he could touch them. If they fly a little higher, he probably can touch them.

Zinnia was right. There is nothing that compares to this.

"Say, Corvi?" Lee begins, a thought striking him. "When the league year is over, do you want to fly to Galar?"

The raven looks back, a question in his eyes.

"Well, have you been back since" Lee can't quite say it. 'Since your first trainer died?'

Corvi's mood instantly goes sour, and he shakes his head in the negative.

Lee nods slowly and licks his lips. They're wind burned, just like the rest of his face. "I was thinking that we could go to Galar. I promised Ninetales a visit to Kanto, so why don't we make it a big trip? I'd like to go to To his grave, so we can pay respects. Maybe I could thank him, as well."

His hostility dying down, Corviknight makes an inquisitive trill in his throat, sending Lee a curious glance.

"Why else?" Lee smiles gently. "I want to thank him for how magnificently he raised you. You're amazing, you know that?"

Corviknight falters, buffeting Lee with turbulence. He turns his head away, and then nods stiffly. Turning away however, does nothing to hide the knightly raven's watery smile.