Iris had watched groups form and dissolve all her life. Most were temporary, built around circumstance, held by convenience. Friendships born from proximity. Alliances anchored in shared fear.
She never expected anything different for herself. That was the way the world worked; you drifted until someone let you anchor. And in the same vein, once they started pushing you away, you detached and started drifting.
"Again!" Lyra shouted with exasperation during their formation training. "What the hell are you girls doing? You were supposed to switch places after your Pokémon was taken down!"
"It wasn't my fault!" one of them shouted back. "I wanted to switch, but Iris was in the way."
Iris wanted to voice a complaint, but the one shouting back was one of the queen bees. She was a de facto leader among them who Morgan often relied on. Even if the sky was falling, if she said it was only rain, then it was rain.
"Sorry," was all Iris could reply.
"Forget it!" Lyra shouted. "Get back into formation and do it again!"
They returned to formation and conducted another mock battle, reacting to every scenario according to the bounty hunter handbook to ensure minimal casualties. This drill required swapping in bounty hunters whenever one ran out of Pokémon, maintaining defense as teammates fell one by one.
Blunders piled up, most of the blame landing on Iris, and after hours of mistakes and mounting frustration, Lyra finally called an end to the training.
Afterward came Iris's favorite part of the day, meditation. Just a month of daily hour-long sessions had noticeably improved their control over energy, making that energy more docile. It also allowed them to bond with additional Pokémon, enough to get the girls already thinking about which Pokémon to add next.
"I want a Rhydon!" the queen bee said.
"Aren't they kinda slow?"
"Sure, but good luck trying to get through her defense. And maybe when I take down a few bounties, I can afford a Protector to evolve her into a Rhyperior."
'A special attack would melt them despite a mismatch in typing,' Iris wanted to contribute, but kept it to herself.
She normally had a more neutral position in the group that allowed her to voice this exact advice, but she had been in hot water ever since formation training started. She would admit she wasn't suited to physical labor, but she was trying her best, damn it.
Soon, they made it to the meditation room and began meditating.
Iris immediately got into the zone and started churning her energy with her Aura by circulating it around her circulatory system. She was doing quite well given that she had an average amount of Aura, which was apparently a good thing.
Time flew by as an hour passed, and Iris was ushered into another room with a different instructor.
They sat on mats and began circulating their energies around their bodies, with a focus on specific parts depending on their typing.
As a Bug type specialist, Iris focused on her uterus, which was apparently the most compatible part for Bug type energy. In her case, it allowed her to tap into the bugs' communication method.
It was a special ability that sometimes came up for Bug types, considered a kind of hivemind ability. She loved it, as it allowed her to talk with her Pokémon from a distance. The stronger the energy she invested, the greater the reach.
"Great job, Iris," Sable, their instructor, complimented. "You're on your way to getting your seventh Pokémon. Have you thought about which one to pick yet?"
"I have an easier time bonding with moth and butterfly type Pokémon, so maybe another Butterfree since they're cheap and easy to raise."
"You're building a powder team?"
"Yes."
"That's good. Let me know if you need any help."
"Thank you," she replied happily. The instructors under the Champion were always so nice.
She wandered to the elevator to reach her designated room, a lavish hotel suite if she was being honest. And mindlessly pressed a button on the elevator.
When it opened, she was greeted with the sight of a much more lavish room than the hallway she was expecting.
She looked at the screen and noticed it had brought her to the 10th floor where the Champion typically stayed. She hurriedly pressed the close button, but before it could close, a beautiful woman with blonde hair approached, carrying a small child who looked almost exactly like her.
"Oh? Is the elevator acting up again?" Vera said with a slight smile. "Why don't you come inside? It tends to get stuck for a while once it gets like that."
"Um… okay. Sorry to intrude."
"It's fine. You're Iris, right? Sable told us all about you. You have an amazing talent for Bug type energy."
"Y-yes…"
"Don't be nervous, dear. I'm not going to eat you. Right, Alvera?"
"We only eat what Auntie Lina cooks," she declared adorably.
Iris smiled, appreciating the child's innocence before replying, "What if… Lina cooks me?"
"Then we eat you!" Alvera declared proudly, opening her mouth and chomping in Iris's direction.
Vera chuckled as she led them to a lavish living room, where a few girls were already present.
"We have a guest," Vera announced as she entered.
Iris looked around nervously and spotted the 'special girls' of the base. They were basically the Champion's harem, women who had given themselves to him while simultaneously holding some of the most important jobs.
"This is Iris, and she's stuck here for a while."
"Oh? Elevator acting up again?" Rhea said, holding back laughter.
Nyx narrowed her eyes at the little munchkin before turning to Iris with a smile.
"You're welcome to join us for dinner."
"I couldn't," Iris said. "I should get back to eating downstairs with the others."
"The stairway is behind the elevator on the other side. You'd have to circle around. Are you sure you don't want to join us? We have Champion ranked Miltank Mousse."
Iris's eyes widened at the offer. Miltank Mousse was a delicious mousse made from Miltank milk. The higher the rank, the creamier, more flavorful, and healthier it was. She would be a fool to deny the offer, as it was a significant boost to her overall power. Plus, it was too delicious to pass up.
"Well… I guess I can stay for a bite."
"Great! That's how you should enjoy life," Rhea declared. "Take any benefits being offered and worry about any traps later."
Nyx elbowed Rhea on the side while Iris just smiled at the comment.
They enjoyed their dessert and then dinner while making small talk, with Iris doing most of the talking. She shared her experiences as a prostitute while the other girls shared theirs at the Velvet Reflections, of course speaking in code since there was a child in the room.
"So, um… what's it like? All of you sleeping with him?" Iris suddenly asked.
"Horrible!" Kaia almost shouted. "Ever since Alex reached Champion rank, he's been insatiable. It takes two of us to put him to sleep, sometimes even three."
"Yeah," Alvera agreed. "I have to sing for a long time so Daddy falls asleep."
"It's a necessity," Vera added. "The stronger the rank, the more they have to give, so we end up with a strict rotation that wears us down. The only girls who can still keep up with him are Sable and Nyx. Sable because she's close to Champion rank, and Nyx because she doesn't mind being overused."
"I don't know what you're all complaining about," Nyx said. "I get the best sleep of my life when putting Alex to sleep."
Iris nodded and accepted the reasoning. Even she had noticed how much more effort it took to satisfy herself. It was a whole ritual that took hours once it started. She wondered if she could save time by sleeping with Alex and blushed slightly.
"You're welcome to join us," Vera offered, noticing her blushing. "It would be a huge help. Just let any one of us know and we'll schedule you in."
Iris's eyes widened before she replied, "I'll… think about it."
They continued with more intimate details before a lull in the conversation allowed Iris to ask.
"So, what's the real reason I was brought here?" she said, suspicion sharpening her gaze. "Don't make up excuses either, because I'm not a fool. I can tell when someone is working me."
All the girls turned to Vera, who had a defeated smile as she answered.
"Alex noticed you didn't want to be a bounty hunter when he conducted the psychic evaluation. Coupled with your poor performance during more strenuous exercises, we think it's better for you to consider other options."
Iris's eyes widened. They were firing her? She was getting kicked out? Where would she go? What would she do with her life?
"So, we were wondering if you wanted to join the support staff instead," Vera added, noticing Iris beginning to spiral.
"Support staff?" Iris asked, grabbing onto a bit of hope.
"We are currently in the process of recruiting staff for the base. Their jobs will be to take care of all the bounty hunters and ensure this place remains completely self-sufficient. Given your roster of powder users, we could use what you produce to make massage oils for our masseuses. There are other applications, of course, but you can work as our farmer, with Butterfree as your focus."
"I… I'll have to think about it."
"Of course. Take your time."
As Iris was about to get up and leave, she turned back to ask, "Was all of this really necessary? You could have just sat me down rather than this elaborate scheme."
"It was an interview to see what kind of person you were," Vera answered. "I don't know if you noticed, but we've been trying to ask you about your group, and you've managed to stay clear of answering. We take secrecy very seriously here. It isn't enough that you passed a psychic evaluation. We also needed to see that you were loyal and consistent. And I am happy to say you have passed with flying colors. We would be more than happy to have you join us."
"Thank you for answering my questions and for the very expensive mousse," Iris said before taking her leave via the elevator.
Once she left, Rhea turned to Vera, impressed.
"Wow, she ate that up."
"I keep forgetting you got your position as bartender precisely because you can spin people in circles as you please," Nyx added.
"Stop it," Vera said, trying not to smile. "People tend to forget to dig deeper once they feel like they've won."
"I still can't believe you got Lyra to isolate her like that. How'd you manage it?" Kaia asked.
"I told her the truth. We needed a loyal teleporter and she agreed. She also doesn't have the best impression of Morgan, since Morgan always questions authority. Understandable, but still."
"What's the plan now?" Rhea asked, practically vibrating with excitement.
"Now we wait for her to settle into her new nest."
-----
Support me on Patreon
patreon/babywrath