Momo rapped sharply on the doorframe before entering the Pokemon Lab. "I'm coming in," she called briskly, then stepped inside. Her eyes swept the strange equipment, the bookshelves, and finally Professor Ash before she approached.

She approached respectfully, leading a Pokemon behind her at the end of a short rein. It had been fitted with a saddle already, and its two heads looked around curiously before fixating on the silver-haired Professor.

"I, ah, didn't see this Pokemon on your list for Route 3," she said shortly. She took an awkward step away from the Doduo and sort of gestured to it. "It's a Doduo," the teen said, then blushed. I'm sure she can already tell, she thought. "Her name is Hiyoko. I hope this was useful," she finished awkwardly.

Momo shows Doduo!

Momo has been transferred 25 bytes!

Another day, another cup of coffee, another new Pokemon for the Asper Sampling survey. And, it seems, another unique and insightful report by the one and only orioncayge.

"I've heard of Seta," Ash says, musing. "The Everworld's Gatekeeper. Something about the name seems familiar, but I can't quite recall from which legend it originates." She reads over the dispatch silently as Orion extrapolates, her eyes occasionally lifting from the page to meet his.

A spark of genuine surprise kindles in her face. It's strangely human, strangely subtle, strangely realistic. Or perhaps not strange at all— simply real.

"You're asking for my opinion?" She hesitates, then her lips curve, shaping a wry smile. "Very well."

"Theoretically, there's no problem. Pokemon are born and bred for fighting other Pokemon— it's in their DNA. Were there no people, Pokemon would still be battling in the wild over resources like food and shelter. Many see humankind's relationship with Pokemon as a trade-off— we offer care and companionship in exchange for harnessing their natural instincts." She takes a sip of the coffee Orion brought her, looking thoughtful.

"But morally, of course not. A Pokemon can not consent. We can extrapolate things like loyalty, desire to fight, perhaps even enjoyment in battling— and those things may be true." She swivels in her chair. "But there is no proof a Pokemon understands consequences. A Pokemon may consent to fight— but can they consent to die?"

The Professor raises her eyebrows.

"They say humankind is the only species which understands mortality. We alone are cursed, or blessed, with the knowledge that some day our lives will end. With that in mind, we must take responsibility for those in our care who lack such insight."

She directs her words to the little Nidoran on the table, reaching out to scratch its chin. "How about you, little one? Do you know what you're risking, when you fight alongside your teammates?" Her tone is gentle, and she withdraws her hand. "Trust, camaraderie, love— all those things are real, for both people and Pokemon. But so is loss. Especially out here in Asper, with all its unique dangers. Loss of life, loss of limb, even loss of spirit, sanity, and self. Can a Pokemon really understand that?"

Professor Ash lives in a different world from Orion Cayge. In her world, Pokemon are speechless. In her world, Pokemon have no HP bar— only the resources their body affords them. In her world, there is no 'Enter the Everworld' popup when a trainer 'whites out.' There is only consequences. Hard decisions. And times when you have to make a choice.

"Achilles is fortunate to have a trainer who would go to hell and back for him," she says, fitting Orion's report into a category marked 'Everworld.' The filing cabinet closes with a dull clunk. "Not every Pokemon is so lucky."

She sighs, then looks back at the blond man. "But this is merely my opinion. Morality is relative. Others might call what you do, orioncayge— fighting Pokemon with your own two hands— a kind of abuse. Personally, I find it rather noble." She gives him another small smile.

"Pokemon Battling is well-entrenched in our society. A necessary evil in the name of progress— and, if we are honest, a buffer between ourselves and forces we do not understand. Perhaps we cannot know their minds, but if we have remarkable courage, we can share in their fate."

orioncayge has been transferred 25 bytes!

She saw the male Nidoran on the list of Pokemon that could be shown to the professor but not the female one. Perhaps they were different? Did that make any difference at all? Well, she wasn't about to lose out on helping out and potentially getting a reward just because of it. So she took both of them in her arms at the same time. It was quite a feat considering how they wiggled around in her arms. But she wasn't going to let that stop her either.

"I've got both of these. They're the same but different, correct?"

She wasn't sure what was so great about them but at least she had the matching set. Which meant a matching set of tanks.

showing off nidoranM from the bounties and nidoranF

Of all the people to breast boobily into Ash's office, Allotta Bambooga hadn't seen her in a long while. Tuesday was also probably rolling in a ditch somewhere. The very pokemon the catwoman had been searching for had been in Allotta's grip for ages by this point.

"Hi, Prof!" She started. But whatever she had came here for originally was forgotten as she looked at the board behind Ash.

"Oh, shit! Are we doing another one of those?" Allotta had not paid attention during the Asper Opening and was always quick to banish any notifications to the Everworld.

"I got, uh... Okay, some my guys aren't on this list, um... hey! Okay!"

So the procession of stupidity would start.

Allotta took the time to show the Professor every one of her pokemon.

"This is... this is Blue! You gave him to me!" The Sobble nodded to Ash before scaling his Trainer. He would stay on her head the rest of her rambling.

"This is GUN. I got him from Old Bethany." The Wurmple laid prone on the ground, as per usual.

"Big Bang I got from the tower with all the Patrat." The Meowth trilled, galaxy coating reflecting up at Ash before she tried to rub on her legs.

"I got Peachy here in a forest!" The Pichu lumbered behind his Trainer, massive due to a graphical glitch.

"I actually traded Finnegan Fjord for Sparkler..." The Litten sniffed at a paper wad next to the trash can.

"Feathers came from Old Bethany, too!" The Galarian Farfetch'd yawn, clinging to his leek like the duckling he was.

"Fluffnut came from.... hmm... I think the Tower? I forgot." The Shinx had stolen the paper wad from Sparkler; the two cats were engaged in a rug of war.

"Lesse... Riki... also came from Bethany! You know, a lot of my pokemon came from her... hmm...." The Sensu Oricorio swayed in place on Ash's desk.

It was becoming quite crowded.

Yet Allotta wasn't done.

"Freezer I got from fighting a giant pokemon! Fireass I actually caught when C0D13 was destroying Beta Island... Pokey I hatched from an egg! And then... hmm... you know, I haven't named this guy yet. I saved him from some poachers." The pokemon mentioned were a Glaceon, Charmander, Nidoran Male, and finally a Timburr.

All crowded into the right space of the tent.

Allotta looked quite proud of herself.

ALOTTA SHOWS OFF EVERY POKEMON IN HER PC TO ASH!

"Ah, more rescues from the poachers," Ash says to Momo and Tuesday , scanning the Doduo and Ponyta. The band of thieves is no new news for her, so she just sighs and marks down another note on her checklist. "By my standards, it seems many Pokemon adapted to the plains would make excellent Ride Pokemon. One can have a Saddle crafted here in town, I believe." She transfers both girls their compensation, thanking them for their effort.

Tuesday has been transferred 25 bytes!

For diva , Professor Ash carefully looks over the two Nidoran, taking out an instrument and gently inspecting the inside of their large, sensitive ears. "As you're surely aware, Nidoran and Nidoran used to be classified as entirely separate species," she says, now measuring the length of the male Nidoran's teeth. "Early biologists didn't know what to make of physical gender differences. Pokemon Breeding was only a hypothesis at the time." She releases the measuring tape with a snap and straightens up, brushing off her pristine lab coat. "These days, however, we do consider both male and female Nidoran to be the same species. I appreciate your commitment to the survey, however." She does not mention the female Nidoran in the lineup shows none of the typical wear and tear of a life in the wild, and was almost certainly hatched from an egg in captivity.

Alice! 's Gothita seems to amuse the Pokemon Professor, who kneels down to scan her into the system. "This explains a great deal," she says as the psychic-type's silhouette appears on screen. "I've been hearing far too many reports of settlers being haunted by the visage of a victorian child to dismiss them entirely, but the behavior doesn't line up with that typical for ghost-types. It'll be a weight off their minds to know it's merely Gothita." Ash transfers Alice her BYTES, still looking amused. "The settlement in its current state is ideal for humanoid Pokemon. I wouldn't be surprised if Gothita becomes a permanent resident."

Alice! has been transferred 25 bytes!

Ash patiently suffers through meeting each and every one of Allotta Bambooga 's Pokemon as the large-breasted trainer shows them off (the Pokemon) with enthusiasm. Unlike Dr. Bunya, who knows Allotta much more intimately from Beta Island, this is largely Ash's first impression of the fiery Kindler.

"I remember Blue well, thank you. I can see he's well cared for," she says, inclining her head to the Sobble on the dragon girl's head. Looking over the rest of the pack, she hesitates before offering a word of advice. "I'd also advise caution with releasing your Litten so casually. I'm not sure if you're aware, but they're... well, we'll say restricted due to their destructive effect on local wildlife. I'd advise getting him microchipped as soon as possible, and possibly evolving him to Torracat for the built-in bell and collar."

Ash is so focused on the Litten she gives a little start when she realizes one of Allotta's insane number of Pokemon is something she hasn't actually seen before. "You've found a Timburr!" She brightens, bending down to scan it quickly before any more Pokemon come out. "Excellent, I was worried the poachers had caught them all. Misty Timberlands, correct?" She marks it down on her list.

Allotta Bambooga has been transferred 25 bytes!

"Excellent. It's good to see native Pokemon returning to Unova," Ash said, scanning in the Pidove Beau Briggs had released on her desk. "Pidove are quite hardy— they'll likely fit in well in an urban environment. They're normally quite docile."

She transfers over 25 BYTES for the information and turns to the next person who walks through the door— a white-haired young man with something unexpected: a Magnemite. "In the Surge Steppes? That makes twelve Pokemon exactly," Ash says. Never has it been so satisfying to see the little ping as the steel-type is registered into the system. "An excellent catch, and very illuminating."

Beau Briggs and prince have been transferred 25 bytes!

"Hello, Furrlicity."

Something is different.

Ash senses it in the catman's demeanor. A quietness, a strangeness. Perhaps it's her honed sense of the supernatural. Perhaps it's merely familiarity with the blonde after seeing him so many times, collecting all kinds of Birchwild Pokemon from the mundane to the mysterious. Talking about all kinds of things, from relationships to the nature of evil. The bite still missing from her desk. The sample she took from his soot-stained hands.

Her expression changes from inquisitive to serious and she stands, approaching him immediately.

"Are you all right?"

The Cottonee, the final Pokemon of the Birchwild survey, would have excited her so much only a day ago. Now she keeps one eye on Furrlicity even as she scans it in, noting its malnourished appearance. "So they're still out there," she murmurs. The subject is unclear.

"Corruption..." Ash trails off after she finishes registering the grass-type. "Is not something well understood, though its effects are well documented. This won't sound terribly scientific, but I think of it as a curse."

Ash continues after a few seconds. "Some call it a disease. A darkness. A twisting in the way the world should work. As a ghost-type specialist, I might akin it to possession— the Corruption takes over a place, and the more it takes, the more powerful it grows. It takes the form of fear, and taints all it touches.

A person taken by the Corruption may do things they never wanted to do— or worse, they may not hesitate do the things they did want. That is if they remained human at all."

She's quiet for a moment.

"However, unlike previously thought, it is not incurable. Since the events on Beta Island, we are on the leading edge of scientific progress to drive back this blight, and reclaim UNOVR." There's determination in her tone, though when she looks at Furrlicity, her expression is... searching.

"But progress does not equal victory. As the sample from the Noonlight Shrine shows, some traces still remain. The survey is not worth risking your own well-being— be careful, Furrlicity."

Furrlicity Purrfection has been transferred 25 bytes!