Chapter 3: Makings of a Team

“Alright! We’re starting everyone!” the volbeat at the front of class called. 

“This is Teamwork 101! Nobody in the wrong place?” the illumise next to him asked. 

“Well, seems we are good to go. I’m Beat,”

“And I’m Muse. We’re twins.”

“We grew up together, so we’re already great at working together.”

“But that doesn’t mean you can’t work together like we can.”

“The key to working together,” Beat began, “is knowing your team. The basis for teamwork is understanding. Once you know how someone thinks, you can collaborate effortlessly.”

“Beyond that, we can’t really teach you too much. Knowing when to combine an attack or use an item to help another can be very situational. So most of this class will be team building exercises, designed to improve your ability to cooperate. It sounds simple, but even the best teams struggle to work as a group. But once you can, your power increases exponentially!” 

“So, for our first exercise, get into small groups of three or four. If you already have a team, you can work with them if you like.” Team Union had already gathered, all four members sitting together at the start. “Alright, now, come up and get a list. You and your group are going on a scavenger hunt. On the front are the items, on the back are hints to help with finding them. We meet back here in three hours.”

“I’ll get it!” Anko volunteered before running up and getting one. He held it in his mouth as he trotted back to them. 

“Gimme, before you slobber on it,” Nina said, taking it from him. “Alright... One berry that restores energy, one apple, a reviver seed, an escape orb, a blast wand, and a set of 10 throwing weapons. So basic supplies.”

“Easy. Let’s get this done,” Lee said, already standing up. 

The others quickly packed their things and followed her. She led the way from the clearing the class took place in and out into the forest, away from the other groups. Nina sat down and took out the sheet again before ripping it in half. 

“Alright, let’s split up, groups of two. Anko, Lee, this half’s yours, Fusion and I will handle the others.”

“Why do I have to go with him?! He’s a pain in the ass.” Lee pointed angrily at Anko, making his ears droop. 

“You could learn a thing or two from his optimism.”

Lee frowned as Nina and Fusion walked off into the forest. “Ugh. Fine. Let’s move.”

“Why don’t you like me?” Anko asked as he moved next to her.

“You’re annoying, like I said.” She looked down at their list. “Escape orb, blast wand and ten throwing weapons.” She flipped the sheet over. “For the first two, it says ‘shop around’ and for the last it says ‘try digging in volcanic soil’. We’ll go to the shop, then to the Volcano den. You might actually be useful for digging, rock type.” She started walking back towards the ramp without even looking at Anko.

“Hey! Wait up!” He chased after her. “What about me is annoying?” 

“You talk too much for one,” she told him without turning or slowing. “You get excited about nothing and you’re always too happy.”

“Well... I’m sorry for being me.”

“You should be,” she said angrily. “Now shut up and let’s get this over. I’m bailing on this dumb team soon. Should have been put in Volcano den,” she muttered. 

Anko did shut his mouth, but that was only so he could think. There had to be a reason she was being such a jerk. He hadn’t done anything to her. Could one or two little issues really make someone so cold? 

They returned into the treetops to Santana’s shop. There was already a line of other students there, likely for their own gear. Lee looked up at the bird when she arrived at the counter. “I need an escape orb and a blast wand.”

“For your class, yes? Santana has what you need.” He knelt behind the counter and returned with a blue orb and a carved stick. “These ones are free of charge, but next time you’ll have to pay. And don’t forget...” before he could continue his speech, Lee took the items and left in the middle of his sentence. 

“There, two down. Volcano den then we’re done, rockruff.” 

“Anko.” She didn’t respond to his correction and kept moving to go back down. 

+++

“Berries, berries, berries...” Nina muttered as they both wandered through the woods off the path. “Fruit is common in the lush forests. That’s what it said. So where are they? Maybe you could smell them?”

“It doesn’t work that way. Berries don’t have enough scent to track. Just look for- There's one!” He ran off towards a shrub. Among it’s leaves were some pink berries. 

“No, these aren’t what we’re looking for. Pecha berries. Cures poison. Still, wouldn’t hurt to grab a few.” She picked some of them carefully and stored them in her bag. 

“Sorry, I don’t really know my berries. My mom did all the cooking.”

“Geez, you really are hopele... sorry,” she caught herself. “Oran berries are common, blue and round, they’re our best bet. Sitrus berries are rarer, but are packed with nutrition, even better for reenergizing. Those are fat and yellow.”

“It’s okay to joke. I know you’re just kidding around now. But blue and yellow, got it.” He nodded as they started walking again. 

As they aimlessly wandered, they could hear other groups roaming nearby as well. They eventually came across a large tree, with fallen apples around it and ripe ones hanging from its branches.

“Look apples!” Fusion called out. 

“Score.” Nina walked up to the base and rolled over a few fallen apples. “Hmm, we should really get a fresh one. It’ll keep for about a week.”

Fusion looked up at the hanging fruit. “Maybe if I tackle the tree?” 

“I got a better idea, stand back.” Nina looked up and spotted a branch with a few apples on it hanging lower than the rest. She took a deep breath. “Here we go.” The air in front of her face darkened as black streams of energy flowed off her body and formed together into a ball. 

“Is that shadow ball?” 

She didn’t respond, focused on the attack. The pitch-black orb rounded out before it launched out and exploded in a small inky cloud on the branch. It did a small amount of damage, just enough to crack the branch and cause it to buckle before dropping to the ground. “Kinda, more of a dark type version, I guess. I’ll call it... Dark shot.”

“Oh, is that the move you’re working on for battle training?” 

“Nope. Just a little piece of it. First time I tried it though. Could use a little more power,” Nina explained as she walked over to her spoils. “Here, two for the boys, two for the girls.” She packed her two away, one to give to Lee later. “Let’s move towards the east. We’ll have to go there for seeds. Those grow best in nutrient rich soil.”

It just so happened that they ran straight into an oran berry tree. “Look, blue berries,” Fusion called out.

“Yep, those are orans. Lucky break. One bite of these juicy things will give you plenty of energy.”

“Actually,” Fusion plucked one from the tree and ate it. “I’m still pretty stiff from training yesterday.” His mouth was filled with juices as he bit into it. It had a pleasant, mild taste. As he swallowed, he felt rejuvenated, his stiff and sore body feeling much better. He stretched out forwards, arcing his back. “Ahh, that’s much better.”

“Yeah, grab a bunch of these.”

+++

“This looks like a good spot,” Lee said, looking over the rocky field near the base of the Volcano Den’s mountain. “I did the last one, so get digging.” Lee sat down, motioning for Anko to get to work. 

“Fine.” He stepped forward and concentrated for a bit. If he ripped up a big chunk of ground, he could split it into plenty of nice throwing rocks. His energy flowed from his paws and forward through the dirt and rock. The ground cracked before a giant boulder, easily big enough to crush either of them, lifted out. Anko moved it aside and set it down, leaving a big hole in the ground. He then started to use his energy to move the parts of it around, pushing the dirt out and molding small stones before setting them aside.

“Wait, wait, wait, stop,” Lee ordered angrily, stamping a foot. “Are you trying to show off or something? Think you can impress me, you little jerk?” 

“I was just doing what you asked...” Anko whined, ears falling back.

“I didn’t ask you to go all out,” she pointed at the boulder. “Only an amateur tries to show off how tough he is like that.”

“I wasn’t showing off. I’ve always just been super strong, even before I started training. It’s almost a curse. Just yesterday I hurt Nina.”

“A curse?! Strength is a curse?” she growled, showing her fangs. “I wish I was you,” she grunted and looked up and away. 

“Why, what happened to you?” he asked. 

She looked back at him and frowned. “Why should I tell you?”

“I’ll do anything you want if you do. Please?” Anko begged. 

She thought about it for a moment. “Fine. You’ll help with training whenever I want it.”

“Deal,” he nodded happily, tail starting to wag again.

“I hatched prematurely, half the size I should have been. My mom said it’s a miracle I survived. But I was still frail. My family was big and I was the weakest. Everyone, family and the locals, bullied me about it. So I’ve worked my ass off, every day of my life, just to prove them wrong. I get so mad with the others because I can see they don’t measure up. Nina has some talent, but she’s so obsessed with her sister, Fusion hasn’t pushed himself before, and you’re just so...”

“Everything you wish you had? Happy and powerful?”

Her eyes widened for a second. “You’re right. I haven’t had time to be happy.”

“I can’t teach you to be strong, but I do know how to be happy. Friends are the best. It feels good to spend time with others.”

“Hmph, friends,” she chuckled. “Yeah, I don’t think I can say I’ve ever had those.”

“Why not try? We all have the same dream here; we should work together to make them come true.”

“I can’t just change out of nowhere; it’s been just me since day one. But if you all are willing to try and keep up... I think I can give it a try. But you better pull your own weight.”

“That’s all I want.”

“Good, now let’s wrap this up. Fusion and Nina are probably done by now.”

+++

“So how are we supposed to find seeds out here? It’s a pretty big place, we can’t just dig until we find them,” Fusion asked as they neared the Ocean den, the sound of surf audible in the distance. The forest had cleared of the really tall trees, more reasonably sized ones around them and growing sparser as they walked. 

“Yeah, seeds can be hard to find. Usually, they’re gathered in mass from dungeons. But they’re worth the effort, even more than berries. My sis taught me a good trick. Dig around healthy trees in rich soil.”

“Yeah, I’ll let you spot those. All trees look the same to me.”

“Right... This one looks good.” She leaned over and started digging. “Come on, put those paws to work.”

Fusion came forward and joined her in moving dirt. As he dug, he found a small seed in the ground. “Hey, is this it?” he asked, holding it up. 

Nina reached over and took it, brushed the dirt off then gave it a lick. “Ugh, no. Here, give it a lick, but don’t eat it,” she held out her paw, offering the seed back.

“Eww, no, not after you licked it,” he complained. 

“Your loss. It’s not a reviver seed. Those make your tongue tingle. That one is sweet, so it probably has a positive effect. But the only way to know for sure is to eat it and see what happens.”

“Then how are we supposed to know when to use them?”

“Either you figure it out, or get a professional to identify them. You’re supposed to make a mark on them. Like a leaf for reviver seeds, fire for blasts, lightning bolt for quicks... But like I said, when you get knocked out in a dungeon and a seed saves your butt, it’s worth the effort.”

“I think I’d rather just buy all this stuff from the shop. Seems a lot easier,” Fusion complained.

“Nothing beats free in my opinion.” She stowed the seed and got back to digging. 

As Fusion pushed loose dirt out of the way, he felt something in it. He brushed it clean and discovered another seed. “Got one.” 

“Well, give it a lick.”

He picked it up, blew on it, brushed it against his fur, then raised it to his mouth. His big tongue peeked out and gave the brown seed a taste. His tongue immediately started to tingle, as if it was going numb. “Ugh,” he complained, scraping his tongue on his teeth. 

“What, bad taste? That usually means a status effect one.”

“No, my thunge is numm,” he slurred with his tongue still out. 

“Good, that’s a reviver seed. We’re done then, so let’s head on back.”

+++

“Fusion! Nina!” Anko called out, standing on his hindlegs to get extra height as he waved. 

“Sit down, you’re making a scene,” Lee scolded.

Fusion and Nina had just come up the ramp to Santana’s shop. They came over and joined the pair. “Good timing,” Nina said as she sat down on the short wooden bench. “We were just talking about getting some lunch. We still have time before class meets again.”

“Same here,” Anko told her. “We were waiting on you.” They all got up and moved into line and ordered food. Before they left the counter once they placed their order, Anko spoke up. “Oh, I have some stuff to sell. Where can I do that?”

“Right here. Santana will take care of everything.”

Anko took some gravelerock out and set it on the counter. 

“One poke per stone,” Santana told him, counting it out. “Twenty poke is your total. Santana will transfer it to your account.”

“And then could I get a big chocolate miltank drink?”

“Will do, Trevor will bring it to your table.”

“And four straws please,” Anko added before leaving.

“Weren’t those the rocks you were supposed to collect?” Nina asked.

“No, we got a bunch extra,” Anko told her as they went back to sit down. 

“Hey,” Lee said once they sat back down. “Nina, Fusion... I just wanted to...” Her ears fell back and she looked away with a blush. “Sorry for being such a bitch.”

“Kay,” Nina said casually. 

“Yeah, what’s this about?” Fusion asked.

Lee’s muzzle twisted into a grimace. “Hey, I’m trying to apologize to you, you could at least be a little more receptive!” she growled.

“Wait, let me guess. Did Anko get to you?”

His question turned her anger into surprise. “How did you know?”

“He’s a motivational speaker or something. Got me out of a bad mood too,” Fusion explained.

“Number three?” Trevor the pansear asked as he came up holding a tray.

“That’s us,” Anko responded.

“Enjoy.” Trevor set down the tray, took the order marker and returned to the shop. 

Besides each of their meals, there was a big chocolate milk in a glass jug, four straws of shaped metal sticking out of it. “This is to celebrate the official start of Team Union,” Anko told the group.

 “To the team!” Nina cheered, leaning in to drink. 

“Yeah, together.” Fusion leaned forward and wrapped his lips around the straw and sucked, getting a mouthful of the rich chocolate liquid.

Lee just nodded before going for a drink as well.

+++

“Alright, welcome back everyone,” Muse announced,

“Just hang on to those items, they’ll come in handy,” Beat told the students.

“So now, we’ll do a team building game to help you get to know each other.” 

“With the same group as before, you’ll play two truths one lie. Tell your partners three things, two true and one that’s a lie, then they have to guess which one it is.”

“Sounds fun,” Anko said, “I’ll go first!” “So, I’m from the mist continent, Nina has a sister and Lee is a guy,” he said, looking at the others expectantly.

“Uh, I think you’re missing the point,” Fusion said. 

“Yeah, let me,” Nina offered. She thought for a moment. “Alright, my nature is sassy, I’ve got really good accuracy with iron thorns, and my dad is a water type.”

“Well, you told me already that you’re sassy, so,” Fusion said.

“Ah crap, I forgot about that...”

“I bet you’re bad at throwing. That stuff’s hard,” Anko guessed.

After a moment of silence, Nina looked to Lee. “What do you think?”

“Oh, uh... Your dad probably isn’t a water type. Most water types stay in the ocean, so the odds of your dad being one of the few land-dwelling species instead of any other field group pokemon is low,” Lee reasoned.

“Little more in depth than I thought, but you’re right. My dad’s an espeon, psychic. My sister taught me how to throw thorns good. I bet I could throw one over your head and hit an enemy. But not rocks. I suck with those.”

“A psychic and a dark type? How’d that happen?” Lee asked.

“I dunno. Never asked,” Nina shrugged.

“Okay, my turn,” Fusion said. “I came up with a killer move, I have a rare item, and I have a crush.”

“Oh, now that’s a challenge,” Nina said.

“They’re all lies,” Lee said.

“Nope, I followed the rules.”

Anko frowned in thought. “I wish they were all true...”

“It’s gotta be the item. No way you got your paws on something rare,” Nina said.

“Wrong. I don’t have a secret move yet,” Fusion revealed.

“So spill then. Item and crush,” Nina demanded. 

“Well, my parents bought this bracelet-”

“A looplet? Keep that, they’re strong,” Lee told him.

“I’m more interested in the crush,” Nina said, looking at him expectantly.

He blushed a bit. “I met this cute riolu on the boat over here. Don’t really know her much, but... I think she likes me too.”

“That’s nice,” Anko said. “Okay, my turn. I’ve been in a dungeon before, Uhh... Uhm...Nope, nevermind, I got nothing.”

“Wait, have your really been into a dungeon?” Fusion asked. Anko nodded. “What’s it like?”

“Mysterious. You always feel lost, turned around. I ended up wandering into a cave. I eventually found my way out, but I don’t really know how I managed it. It’s kinda scary, but exciting too.”

“Can’t wait to see it for myself,” Lee said.

“Yeah, hey Nina, did your sister tell you when we get badges?” Fusion turned to her and asked.

“Pretty early, if I remember, but no specifics. Well, one left,” Nina looked at Lee.

“Alright... Let me think... I know machine moves, I don’t want to evolve and... I can’t swim, 

“No TMs, easy,” Nina said. 

“How did you know?” Lee asked. 

“TMs are super expensive. The only reason I know any is cause my sister taught me.” 

“I can’t swim either, water sucks,” Fusion admitted.

“Wait, why don’t you want to evolve?” Anko asked.

“It’s about what I told you. Evolving would just be admitting I'm not good enough like this. It’s not happening until I know I’m strong.”

“Everyone!” Muse called out.

“We’re out of time. You’re welcome to stay and keep playing if you like, otherwise you can leave,” Beat explained. 

“Can’t wait to see you all next week!” the insect pair cheered in unison.

“I’m gonna go,” Fusion said. “I still need to train today.” 

“I think I’ll join you,” Lee told him.

“Anko, you got any plans?” Nina asked.

“Nope, nothing.”

“Then we’ll just have to find something to do.”

Together, Lee and Fusion went back towards the ramp that led to their rooms, stopping at the training field just nearby. It was the same one they had been using yesterday, but it had no signs of the damage. The torn ground had been patched up and smoothed over and all the dummies and targets were brand new. 

Lee looked over at Fusion as he picked out a dummy and started stretching. She’d never trained with anyone before. It was a secret affair, something to be done away from judging eyes. She brushed it aside. She was stronger than him, so if anyone was going to judge, it would be her. He took a few steps back and made a lousy tackle against the dummy. He didn’t put enough follow-through in and fell back to the ground. 

She sighed and looked around the field, taking stock of targets and formulating a plan. Yesterday had been mostly physical, so today would be special. And that move the others mentioned... “Hey, Fusion.”

“Yeah?”

“What was that move thing you and Nina mentioned?”

“Have you had battle class yet? The first assignment is to come up with your own move.”

“Good to know.” She turned back to her targets, already thinking. A fireball began to form in front of her. It began to swirl faster and faster until it formed a tornado shape. Instead of launching the fire spin, she let it hang in the air. Her eyes flashed and the cyclone was wrapped in purple psychic energy. With it now wrapped in her control, it unraveled like a snake, darting out and lashing at the dummy. The flame left scorch marks where it struck, including the ground as it flailed in the air. 

“Woah!” Fusion called out as the attack faded away. “Did you come up with that just now?”

“Yeah, it was easy.”

“Hey, uhm, do you think you could help me? We’re both fire types, so...” 

“So I owe you or something?” She asked sharply without thinking.

“No, I just thought...” he whined.

“Sorry,” she caught herself. “Yeah, I guess I can give you a few pointers. Take a few more swings.” She walked over to watch him. He did so, the dummy either bouncing him back to the ground or him falling down after a tackle. “Use your claws and teeth. You can’t just throw your weight around. Get in there.” 

He picked himself up and leaped forward again, slamming his shoulder into the dummy. This time, before gravity took over, he dug into the dummy with his claws. This time, he hung onto it, suspended on its chest about a foot off the ground. Pulling his claws out carefully, he was able to land on the ground on his feet instead of falling. “Hey, that was a lot better.”

“Gimmie a few more. Try using those fangs. Bite is a good simple move. Your claws probably aren’t long enough for a good scratch, so bite, tackle, and... you use flame wheel, right? Those three can make a solid foundation of basic moves.”

Fusion stepped back and braced his legs before pouncing forward, opening his jaws and clamping them around the dummies head. His sharp canine teeth easily sank through the cloth skin and he got some straw in his mouth. He dismounted and spat, trying to get the taste out of his mouth. 

“And you’re a fire type; act like it. Put some heat into everything. Not enough to make flames, but, if you’re in battle, just let your temperature run wild.”

“Alright, thanks. You gave me a lot to think about.”

“You’re welcome. Now let’s get back to work.” 

+++

“Are you sure this is safe?” Anko asked.

“Of course it’s safe. They wouldn’t live here if it wasn’t,” Nina told him.

“But it’s a volcano.”

“That's just a name. They wouldn’t settle an island if the mountain could blow the whole thing up.”

“I guess you’re right, but...” 

“I’m obviously right, now come on slowpoke.”

They were currently scaling the side of the mountain that made up the Volcano Den. It was the tallest thing on the island, roughly twice as high as the biggest trees of the deep forest. They were about three-fourths of the way up, following an already made path. As they got close to the peak, the ground suddenly shook. 

“AHHHHH!” Anko screamed, ducking down and covering his head with his paws. After a few moments he opened his eyes and looked around. “Are we still alive?”

“Quit freaking out, I think I know what that was.” 

Nina ran off ahead, cresting the path to the summit. 

“H-hey, wait for me!” Anko stood and ran to catch up.

The top of the mountain was flattened out to a decently sized plateau. There was a training field built there, as well as a trio using it.

“Again,” the gible ordered. The bagon across from him growled and charged forward headfirst. The gible raised his stumpy legs and stomped, causing the ground to shake. The bagon lost his footing as he charged, stumbled and lost momentum, before righting himself to leap forward. Just before he made impact, the gible vanished in a puff of dirt into the ground, before bursting out again and headbutting the bagon in the gut as he passed over. Bagon fell to the ground and clutched his stomach. 

“Aren’t you pushing a little too hard Tremor?” a goomy sitting to the side asked. 

“Smushy, Team Titan is all about pushing our limits. Ready to go again Rex?”

“Yeah,” Rex stood up again, but looked right at Nina. “Who there?”

“Oh, uh, hi,” Nina said. Anko came up beside her and into view. “We’re just exploring.”

“You’re not from the Volcano Den, are you?” Tremor asked. 

“No, we’re from Forest,” Anko told him.

“Forest weak. Ocean weakest,” Rex grunted. 

“Don’t be so rude,” Smushy complained.

“I am sure they are all trying in their own ways, Rex,” Tremor told him. “Either way, you are both free to watch us train, or join us, if you prefer.”

“Thanks but no,” Nina responded. “I just wanted to see the view from up here.” 

“It is pretty, isn’t it?” Smushy asked.

“Yeah, you can see everything from up here,” Anko said, walking around the edge as he looked around. 

“Well, our business is done here. Good luck with your, uh, training,” Nina said, ushering Anko to follow her back down the mountain.

“But I wanna-” He stopped and ran to follow when she shot him a serious look. “What’s wrong?” he asked as they descended. 

“I just... got a bad feeling about those guys. I dunno, just felt weird,” she explained. “Come on, let’s go home.”