The fortress lights scanned the ocean looking for signs of the horde. Leon gazed upon the night sky filled with an infinite number of stars that illuminated the vast ocean. He stood on top of the fortress with the rest of his platoon.

He was nervous. He felt the cool ocean breeze caress his skin as it turned cold and clammy. His inside was a mess and he felt like taking a crap. Luckily his Calm Mind activated and gave him the clarity he needed.

This was going to be his first actual battle between life and death. Even though the Monarchs trained him well, when he killed his first Pokemon and was repeatedly pushed to death, the Monarch's presence provided him with a "safety net". He was not afraid of death. Leon felt that he was already blessed enough to get a second chance at life in this beautiful world. However, what he feared most was that one of his partners would get severely injured and die. He was afraid of losing them. But he knew that in this world they had to fight to survive. The only way to be completely safe in this world is to be stupidly strong, so Leon and his pokemon made this their ultimate goal. Leon already told his pokemon that if ever they get seriously injured, he would return them to their pokeballs immediately so they could recuperate in their Pokemon Habitat.

The pokeballs had an emergency function built in that would automatically withdraw the Pokemon when its health reaches a dangerously low level. However, sometimes even with this function some Pokemon still get killed. Leon temporarily removed all his partners' access to the system preventing them from stepping out on their own just to be sure. He was met with heavy protests but this time Leon was unwavering, leaving the others no choice but to comply.

EC patted Leon’s shoulder “Let’s share a meal with AS… I mean Arvin after all this, okay? He is expecting his first child, so let’s celebrate!”

“My wife just called me a couple of hours ago and she said that we were going to have a healthy baby boy; I’ll have to stop being a pokemon trainer for a while after this mission so that I can take care of him. I’ll name him Hektor so he will grow strong and big," Arvin said with a proud smile.

Leon’s eyes widened as he looked at EC and Arvin. Do these people have to say something so cliché?!? Death Flags, Death Flags everywhere, he thought inwardly.

As Leon was about to reply, “We have visual" their platoon leader informed them. Everyone tensed as they all faced the ocean. Hundreds of Barbaracles and Carracostas emerged from the shore, slowly walking towards the fortress walls. The scene was creepy. It was like looking at a horde of water zombies. Leon appraised them one by one and the lowest stage he saw was B rank. This was going to be a long night they all thought.

Only two energy-based turrets could be used as the rest did not face the enemy. As the group of Barbaracle and Carracosta reached the one-hundred-meter mark from the fortress walls, The two turrets opened fired and targeted dense groups of enemy pokemon. Leon noticed that the turrets used hundreds of low-grade Leaf Stones per shot. The turrets were able to change their attack type depending on the energy source.

While the group of enemy pokemon was being blasted by the turrets a sudden low octave bellow was heard from the ocean. The Pokemon Horde suddenly paused and spread their numbers, limiting the turret's effectiveness.

When the group of Barbaracle and Carracosta reached the fifty-meter mark, the command tower ordered the Shield team to open fire. A dazzling collection of beams decorated the night sky as they rained upon the Pokemon Horde. To survive the attacks, Barbaracles and Carracostas made defensive moves, trying to get closer to the fortress walls. When the turrets finished recharging, they fired at the leading group again pushing them back. The group of Barbaracle and Carracosta were not able to push through the fifty-meter mark and this continued for a while as the night was filled with the sound of explosions.

“The Horde Leader is going to move, be ready” Blaine instructed everyone through the defense badge as he sensed the battle had become a stalemate. The enemy leader would not be foolish to ignore the threat these turrets present.

Suddenly the sky began to darken, the clouds slowly turned red and a vortex-like phenomenon manifested above the sea. A hundred-meter-high fog started to form from the ocean limiting visibility. Everyone felt an enormous surge of energy.

“Son of a!” before Blaine could finish his sentence or send out a pokemon, two huge energy beams came out of the fog. The beams blasted the two turrets destroying them together with the walls opening up the fortress on two sides. Thankfully the Pokemon General was able to detect the upcoming attack. Therefore, it teleported the trainers and pokemon stationed at the turrets out of harm’s way in the nick of time.

The sonic boom that followed after the attack disoriented the rest of the personnel. Leon’s ears were ringing as he tried to maintain his balance, he tried to look around, but his view was blocked by the dust cloud that brewed after the sonic boom, as the dust cloud started to settle, he saw many pokemon and trainers on the ground trying to get up and shake off the effects.

They all heard the low octave bellow again. Leon saw a trainer kneeling facing the ocean. The trainer’s face was white as snow and his lips turned pale. His eyes refused to focus. He lost his grip and dropped the pokeball in his hand. He murmured under his breath… “M... Mon... Monster”.