Pokemon: Bounty Hunter Alex

Nani, their tour guide, led Alex and the group into the rear section of the enclosure separated from the public space where people lined up for their turn. Instead, they were taken through the back halls past nutrient tanks filled with fluorescent fluid, humming life-support consoles, genomic sequencers, and banks of monitor arrays while scientists hurried between workstations.

Rhea immediately took an interest, far more fascinated by the equipment than the chance to obtain a new fossil Pokémon.

“Hey!” Rhea called out, pointing toward one of the large glass cylindrical tanks filled with fluids lined up along the wall. “How much for one of these? No, wait. How much for a full restoration suite? I think I want three of them.”

Nani blinked. “You… want the full fossil revival equipment?”

“Of course I do,” Rhea replied as she stepped closer to the machinery. “That’s a Class-IV Biomatter Suspension Tank beside a genomic lattice compiler. Those racks behind it are adaptive neural imprint processors, probably for behavioral stabilization after cellular reconstruction. Honestly, your synchronization latency looks terrible. Are those restoration cradles running on outdated Kanto firmware?”

Several nearby researchers abruptly looked in her direction.

“I don’t think these technologies are for sale,” Nani replied carefully. “They’re covered under proprietary patents and heavily protected trade technology.”

Rhea frowned at one of the machines. “Your amino reconstruction throughput is bottlenecked too. You’re wasting power cycling the cellular accelerators separately instead of parallelizing them.”

One of the scientists nearly dropped his clipboard in realization.

“Alex!” Rhea continued excitedly. “Why don’t we just buy a few restoration suites for the base? We already have a geneticist on payroll who isn’t doing much anyway, so we can dump the responsibility on him. Don’t we also have a stockpile of fossils from Sinnoh? Plus, Sable keeps bringing back more fossils every month.”

“Celise?” Alex asked.

“Simone is currently handling fossil distribution for the bounty hunters, so I’m not well-informed on it,” Celise explained. “But I can confirm our inventory moves poorly. I also know they need to spend money to claim fossils and then pay even more to have them revived. It’s easier and cheaper to choose one of the Pokémon already waiting in the nesting grounds instead. Also, our geneticist and his assistants haven’t really justified their salaries since we hired them to research the mutated humans.”

“Sable, do you think you can maintain a steady fossil supply?” Alex asked next.

“The obvious answer is no,” Sable replied flatly. “How exactly am I supposed to guarantee millions-of-years-old corpses on demand? Realistically though? Based on how often I stumble onto them while digging around, yeah, I can probably keep a steady flow going.”

Alex nodded after listening to the girls. He agreed that it would be great if they could just revive their own fossils. It was clear, however, that Nani wouldn’t be able to help him since she was just a tour guide without the authority.

“Let the people in charge know I’m interested in purchasing several complete restoration suites,” Alex said. “Ten minimum to start, with more once additional bases are established. I’m willing to pay a premium for the entire package, including the reconstruction software, operating systems, and licensing rights for private use.”

Nani stared at him for a moment before recovering. “I’ll… forward your request to management.”

“Good,” Alex replied.

The tour continued until they reached another room where the newly revived fossil Pokémon were being tended to. The space was divided into three sections, each reinforced differently depending on the innate ferocity of the revived species.

The first section was heavily fortified. Inside were Tyrunt, Aerodactyl, Cranidos, and Dracovish. The containment field shimmered constantly as they snapped and lunged at anything within reach. Cranidos in particular repeatedly drove its head into the barrier with enough force to make the reinforced plating vibrate, while the others tested restraints with sharp, sudden bursts of aggression.

The second section was far calmer. Handlers moved at an easy pace, occasionally tossing out nutrient pellets. Kabuto and Anorith shifted restlessly, alert but not fully aggressive. Shieldon stayed firmly planted, defensive rather than active, while Tirtouga alternated between bursts of movement and long periods of stillness. At the far end, Dracozolt, Arctozolt, and Arctovish moved in unpredictable patterns that kept the nearby handlers constantly attentive.

The third section was the calmest, with only a single handler assigned to watch over the most docile Pokémon. Lileep remained mostly still, gently swaying as it absorbed nutrients. Amaura stood quietly, observing its surroundings without stress, while Omanyte drifted in slow circles. Above them, Archen perched calmly, more curious than hostile, watching the movement of people below.

“Here we are,” Nani said. “You’re free to move around and interact with the Pokémon. Just be careful with the aggressive ones over there, and be sure to listen to the handlers’ instructions.”

The kids immediately bolted from their mother’s sides as they began exploring the space, touching everything within reach. The teens were more reserved, though just as eager at the prospect of adding a new Pokémon to their teams. The adults simply watched on, largely uninterested in acquiring another Pokémon. Alex, however, considered his options.

He was still missing a sixth attack team of three to complete his set. It wasn’t strictly necessary, but it was worth considering. Then again, did he really need a sixth team with his current lineup? It felt excessive, especially since he could always deploy his defense team against a sixth Master ranked Pokémon if needed.

At this point, it couldn’t just be any Pokémon given his current level or power. He was already at Champion rank, with Pokémon on the cusp of reaching Master. Perhaps it was better to simply let fate decide from here on out.

He walked around, trying to see if any Pokémon here showed interest, but didn’t find any. None of the docile ones caught his attention, while the aggressive ones grew quiet as he passed. Even the most violent Aerodactyl calmed down and turned unusually meek under his presence. Clearly, none of these Pokémon wanted anything to do with him. The same couldn’t be said for the children, though.

Koa, Malia, and Nohea headed for the shallow pond and began interacting with the Water type Pokémon. Their parents had a Water affinity, so it stood to reason they did as well, which was evident in how receptive the Pokémon were to their touch.

Kai zeroed in on the Lileep, the only Grass type Pokémon, which slowly inched closer to him. It seemed he had a similar gift with Grass types as Kaia, his mother.

Micah, on the other hand, far more shy and reserved, simply stood near a group of Amaura, who found his peaceful nature calming as they surrounded him and settled in quietly.

Lila, on the other hand, started picking fights with the most aggressive Pokémon, who allowed her to do as she pleased. It wasn’t that she was dominant; rather, Alex was nearby, and their instincts screamed at them to calm down unless they wanted to die.

Lastly, Alvera was getting electrocuted by Dracozolt and Arctozolt, while the latter seemed to take on a more sophisticated look, as if she were taste-testing the sheer intensity of electricity they were sending through her body.

By the end, Koa returned with a Tirtouga clutched to his chest, a wide smile on his face. Lily was somehow riding a Tyrunt despite it being less than half her size. Kai had a Lileep sitting quietly on his head, while Micah had an Amaura walking gracefully beside him.

Alvera was being held protectively by an Arctozolt that towered behind her, while Malia and Nohea were clutching an Omanyte and Kabuto in their arms respectively. Overall, it seemed all the kids had been able to find a match.

“Congratulations on getting your very first Pokémon,” Nani said to the children, before handing over complimentary Poké Balls for them to store their partners in. “Now, after you finish storing them, we’ll head over to the gift shop to finish the tour.”

They exited the enclosure and made their way back through the facility, passing crowds of visitors happily carrying their own newly obtained Pokémon. From there, they entered a spacious gift shop filled with displays of fossil-themed merchandise, including plushies, keychains, apparel, and small memorabilia showcasing revived species and excavation motifs.

The group split up inside, while Alex, with Rhea and Celise by his side, followed Nani up to the upper floors to meet with the facility’s business managers.

There, they drafted an agreement for the transfer of decommissioned revival equipment, units that were outdated for commercial use but still fully functional with minor adjustments. Rhea didn’t mind the older technology and, in fact, preferred it, as it gave her room to implement her own modifications and improve performance. They also negotiated supply terms for essential restoration materials, including preservation fluids, nutrient compounds, and proprietary revival catalysts used in the fossil reconstruction process.

By the end, the discussions concluded on favorable terms for both sides, and Alex and the girls rejoined the rest of the family in the gift shop. They left with satisfied expressions, arms filled with plush Pokémon, and bags containing keychains, printed shirts featuring fossil species, hats, and assorted souvenirs.

They eventually returned to their portable home to settle in for the evening. Tomorrow, they were scheduled for another excursion, as Marlo had arranged for them to visit the Paniola Ranch.