As the group moved past her towards the water, one stopped and troubled around. Her chosen Staryu, with its bright, pulsing red core, managed to wobble its way towards her, stopping at her feet. It looked up at her, a feeling of gratitude and immense relief washing over her mind.
Although the Pokémon didn't have eyes, Eliana could feel the Staryu inspecting her. Apparently it like what it saw because it tapped the PokéBall with a fin and let itself be captured with no issue at all. One shake, two, and the PokéBall clicked shut. Eliana reached down to pick the PokéBall up, Good, it didn't case any trouble. I would've had Ralts take it out if it tried to resist.
Speaking of Ralts, where'd he go? Eliana blinked, pausing as she felt the missing weight from her shoulders. She looked around to see the mentioned Pokémon in front of one of the other cages using Confusion to mess with a captured Poliwag. She walked up just as the tadpole Pokémon let out out soft squeal of pain and backed away from a laughing Ralts.
"Alright, alright, that's enough," Eliana said taking Ralts and putting him in her arms, "I want to get Staryu checked out at the PokéCenter."
Ralts huffed, turning to give the Pokiwag a menacing stare as Eliana walked back to her covered bike. Getting on it she hesitated slightly before leaving. Making up her mind she decided to free the rest of the Pokémon. After destroying the locks on the cages she headed out. Whether they lived or died wasn't her concern but they should get a chance to escape now that the thugs were dead.
The Poliwag Ralts had been messing with looked at the open door of its cage and fled quickly into the water, not sparing its saviors a single glance. Other Pokémon followed suit, at least the ones that could. Some were either already dead or too injured to move, those would be picked off by predators before the sun rose.
With that done Eliana left the scene, biking back to the Pokémon Center under the cover of darkness. Ralts happily looking at the city lights as they road through the streets.
…
Back in the pristine, sterile environment of the Pokémon Center, Eliana's earlier aggression melted away, replaced by the cool, calculating focus of a trainer assessing a new asset. She placed the Staryu's PokéBall on the counter, the pristine white surface a stark contrast to the gritty, sand-caked ball.
Nurse Joy, her ever-present smile a perfect mask of professional cheerfulness, accepted the ball. "Oh a Staryu, what a lovely catch! Was it feeling alright? I detected a bit of weakness in its energy signature."
"Nothing a little rest won't fix, I'm sure," Eliana replied, her voice a sweet, innocent melody. "It had a bit of a run-in with some wild Pokémon near the beach. Poor thing was terrified." She expertly layered the lie with a faint projection of concern, a subtle push that Nurse Joy wouldn't even notice.
"Oh, you poor dear! And poor Staryu!" Nurse Joy's expression softened with manufactured sympathy. "Don't you worry, we'll have it feeling brand new in no time. It should be ready by morning."
"Thank you so much, Nurse Joy," Eliana gushed, giving the nurse her most disarming smile.
"Of course you sweet girl!" Nurse Joy complemented Eliana before looking towards Ralts, "And what about this little one, would you also like me to take a look?"
Ralts gave an adorable blink, he obviously took after he trainer's acting skills, and hugged Eliana tightly. Hiding his face in Eliana's neck with false shyness.
Eliana giggled softly, smiling up at the nurse, "Oh no ma'am, he's fine! We just did a little treasure hunting on the beach, nothing too strenuous. Just covered in a bunch of sand."
"Alright dearie, you and your Pokémon are a perfect pair! Just make sure to take a nice long shower tonight." Nurse Joy chirped, placing Staryu's PokéBall on the healing module and letting Chansey roll the cart to the back area.
"Of course Nurse Joy, goodnight I'll see you and Staryu in the morning!" Eliana gave a small wave as she headed to the dorming area of the PokéCenter.
"Goodnight dear, have a good rest." Nurse Joy said gently, already moving on the the next trainer in line. Eliana distantly wondered how much sleep a Nurse Joy actually got. She knew some locations had multiple members of the family working but that didn't seem to be the case here.
As she walked to the guest room, Eliana's mind was already whirring. She'd felt the raw power in that Staryu, a spark of something more than just water and instinct. A psychic echo, most Staryu only had then when they were close to evolution. But based on its size this Staryu had only recently hatched. It was imperfect, untrained, but it was there. A seed waiting for the right kind of gardener, and Eliana was that gardener.
The guest room was clean, impersonal. Eliana locked the door, and the moment the latch clicked, the transformation was complete. The sweet, vulnerable girl vanished, replaced by the cold, sharp mind that had just dumped the bodies of gag members into the sea without a second thought.
(๑•̀ㅂ•́)و✧, Ralts preened, puffing out his chest. He was more than a pretty face, after all.
If it was possible Ralts somehow looked even more smug than he just looked.
Ralts gave an affirmative chirps as he settled in to sleep beside her. Eliana gave a small smirk looking at him before closing her eyes to sleep. Tomorrow would be a very interesting day.