Iris mulled over the decision and ultimately chose to accept. She was being treated like shit by her own group, and it was only getting worse. If she stuck around, it would likely continue and even worsen as time passed, turning her into the butt of every joke. Better to dip out now while she had a way out than put her life in the hands of her so-called sisters.
Understandably, Morgan was shocked by her sudden request to leave the group and grilled her for details.
"What exactly did they tell you?" Morgan asked.
"They wanted me to start a Butterfree farm to harvest powder," Iris answered.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes," Iris replied, unsure why Morgan was being so insistent.
"What else did you talk about?"
"Their history as prostitutes like us, their lifestyle since then, their sex life with Alex," she listed.
Morgan furrowed her brows in thought. Something didn't sit right with her. On one hand, it seemed they were being considerate toward Iris. On the other, it looked suspiciously like poaching talent from her team. She knew about Iris's gift for bonding with Bug type Pokémon, and while it was impressive, it wasn't something an earpiece couldn't replicate. Why go out of their way for her specifically? It stumped her.
Ultimately, there was nothing she could do. Iris wanted to leave on her own.
"Fine, you're out. I hope you don't regret your decision," Morgan said before walking back to the training grounds.
Iris let out a breath of relief. She didn't know why Morgan was being weirdly particular about her, especially when plenty of girls had left before for one reason or another and Morgan never reacted like this.
Either way, it was time to report to Vera, who was in charge of taking care of all the pokemon, and officially begin her new life as a Butterfree farmer.
"Hey, Iris. I'm glad you decided to join us. I promise you won't regret your decision," Vera said with a warm smile.
"The pay is significantly lower compared to bounty hunting, but at least I won't have to train anymore. Though, I'm going to keep meditating to bond with as many Butterfree as possible."
"That's good. The more Butterfree you have, the better," Vera said before getting down to business. "I've taken a look at your Pokémon, and so far you have four Butterfree and two Venomoth. All of them are at Expert rank, and even with an Elite rank diet, it will still take a few years before they reach Elite rank, which is our ideal powder quality."
"I wanted to diversify into other butterfly and moth Pokémon, but it's hard getting the other species in Kanto without paying an arm and a leg," Iris said as she gently patted her Butterfree. "I also haven't been lucky enough to encounter them in the wild, so I settled for these two species."
"We actually prefer Butterfree because they have Poison Powder, Stun Spore, Sleep Powder, and Rage Powder. Venomoth works as well since they only lack Rage Powder, but that can be bred into them. Your job is to have them hatch eggs to build a nest while collecting their powder daily. We've set up a zone just for you where you can raise your nest," Vera said as they walked out of the Pokémon rooms behind the hub and made their way toward the twin walls, where a passage led into the northern section of the property.
"This is where we regularly conduct battles against the flood," Vera explained. "It's also where most of the Pokémon nests are kept. We keep the ones who are bonded in the main hub for convenience, but their nests usually stay out here."
They continued to the eastern stretch of the forest, where Vera showed Iris a comfortable nesting area for raising Caterpie. The trees had hollowed pockets for them to burrow into, and there was plenty of vegetation for them to feed on.
Once Iris familiarized herself with the spot, they returned to the main hub. She wouldn't truly start her work until there were Caterpie to care for, so for now her only responsibility was harvesting powder a few times a day.
Over the next few weeks, Iris settled into her new routine and spent most of her free time with the girls. They made an effort to include her, and she grew more at ease around them. There was a sense of familiarity from the time they'd spent together and their similar pasts, so it felt like she had found a group much like her previous one to slip into.
Morgan noticed as well. She wasn't sure why, but the situation continued to bother her. Nothing seemed wrong, yet something about it didn't sit right.
This continued right up until the day their new staff was scheduled to arrive.
At the crack of dawn, Alex, Gardevoir, and Arcanine teleported from one city to another, ferrying groups of people to the base by the dozens. In total, he moved over five hundred people in a single day across twenty trips. If not for Gardevoir and Arcanine being deep into the Elite rank, as well as their Teleport proficiency being at Expert rank, it would have taken anywhere from a few days to a week to bring everyone in.
Once they arrived, Celise took charge of the general staff and managers while the girls oversaw their personal hires, which ranged between ten to twenty each depending on the role. Lina and Vera, for example, each took twenty since they were responsible for feeding hundreds of mouths, while the others took ten assistants each.
The bounty hunters took a rest day during this time to help usher the family members around and make sure no one got lost or started snooping. By the end, everyone was tired of answering questions, including Iris, who had acted as Vera's personal assistant.
They ended the day with a welcoming dinner, hosted by Metagross since none of the staff had started working yet.
"Man, that sucked!" Kaia said as the girls entered Alex's living room after dinner. "They kept bugging me to start up farms in the northern section, even though I keep telling them it'll just get flooded with Pokémon every year."
"Yeah, and they keep asking stupid questions like, 'Where's the equipment? Am I the only geneticist here? Where are the lab assistants?' Gah!" Rhea complained.
"It wasn't so bad," Vera said. "Alvera managed to make a few friends."
"Easy for you to say," Kaia replied. "You have Iris to push your work onto."
Iris joined them in the living room, having grown used to hanging out after dinner. Her relationship with them grew less professional and more familiar over the weeks, until the base no longer felt like a workplace. She was living a stress-free life, being paid to spend time with her Pokémon.
As they were relaxing, Alex stepped out of his room shirtless and made his way to the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of Moomoo Milk to drink.
Iris had already gotten used to appreciating, ahem, seeing Alex walk around half-naked most of the time. This was their private area after all, and she was simply someone who had been welcomed into it.
"Oh, good, you're here," he said, looking at Vera as he joined them on the couch. "We need to talk."
Rather than leaving to give them privacy, the girls leaned in, eager for potential gossip. Perks of being in a harem, Iris guessed. As for why she stayed, if this was something truly private, they wouldn't be having it in front of her.
"What about?" Vera asked.
"So, I was teleporting the new employees today and realized it would be a hassle if they wanted extended leave. We put restrictions in the contract, sure, but we can't cage them here. They will resent it if we keep them like prisoners."
"And?"
"I was wondering if I could poach your assistant and train her to be a teleporter," Alex said, turning to Iris, who suddenly found herself the center of attention.
"No," Vera said immediately. "I need her to help with the new breeders, not go gallivanting all over Kanto."
"Come on. She has a bunch of Butterfree, right? They can learn Teleport and handle transportation for our people and supplies. Fresher ingredients, actual vacation days, and no more scheduling pickup runs."
"No. And she is only at Expert rank. She needs to be Elite to apply for certification."
"I'm a Champion now, remember?" Alex countered. "I can file as her guarantor and get her certified in no time. A quick visit to the Psychic Gym and all her Pokémon would learn Teleport. She doesn't even have to do it full time, only when it's requested. Also, she doesn't have to do anything extra. She just needs to send out her Pokémon after I show them the routes. It's only a bit of extra responsibility, and she stays your assistant. I will even pay her in credits, like Sable."
Vera frowned, thinking it over while Iris sat quietly, considering it too. From her perspective, it was all benefits with no drawbacks. Her Pokémon would learn Teleport and she would earn credits, a meaningful step toward eventually affording Champion rank meat and reaching Champion rank herself someday once she saved enough.
She had too much free time as it was, so adding a bit of responsibility should be fine.
"What do you think?" Vera asked Iris.
"Teleporters would have full access to the base, right? What makes you think you can trust me?" Iris asked Alex.
"Vera trusts you," he said with certainty.
"What about Morgan? What if she asks me to betray you?"
"What could she possibly offer you that I can't?" Alex asked, brow raised.
Iris considered it and agreed. There was nothing Morgan could give her that Alex couldn't match or surpass. Maybe someone could try offering an absurd amount of resources, but anyone who could waste that much would be better off building an army to fight Alex instead.
And she wasn't naive enough to think she could take that kind of offer and just walk away. She would be dead the moment the deal was done.
"Alright."
"Great!"
Vera visibly sighed, reluctant to have her personal assistant poached.
Inside, however, she quietly checked off another box on her Iris to-do list. All that remained was to deliver her to the wolf and secure her loyalty for good.
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