The Unova region was best known as a melting pot, where different cultures, peoples, and architectural styles came together in a cohesive whole. Time only deepened this complexity, filling the region with cities that represented every facet of human development, from the glass and steel expansion of Opelucid's modern core to the older districts that were deliberately preserved alongside it.
That contrast was present across the region. Virbank City's refineries and shipyards operated within sight of residential blocks and concert venues, while Village Bridge favored low-impact construction, green spaces, and careful integration with its surroundings. In the central desert, the Relic Castle remained standing beneath shifting sands, maintained as a historical site rather than cleared away, even as Castelia City and Nimbasa City rose nearby with their dense skylines, elevated walkways, and nonstop commercial traffic.
Unova's growth never followed a single direction. Ancient structures, industrial centers, planned green communities, and megacities all existed within practical reach of one another. The result was a region that felt less like a unified aesthetic and more like a record of every stage of human development.
In exchange for human progress, urbanization, and architectural conservation, much of the wilderness was encroached upon, subduing wild lands and domesticating Pokémon habitats across most of the region. Only the northern and western borders remained true danger zones.
In Alex's opinion, this was as close to the Pokémon world he knew as it would get, since most local wilderness areas were relatively tame compared to his experiences in Kanto, where expansion was less of a concern and maintaining balance with nature was a greater priority. It made him understand why Team Dominion would concentrate their forces in this more urbanized region rather than the wilder areas elsewhere.
Alex, Lyra, Mika, Rhea, and, surprisingly, Iris stepped out of the police station in the heart of Castelia City after teleporting in through Interpol, their minds still occupied with the past week of planning. Since Rhea's meeting, they had been coordinating every detail of their operation to take down Argent Solutions.
One problem that came up repeatedly while dividing targets, mapping routes, and setting schedules was the sheer distance between the various bases they were meant to attack. They were scattered fairly evenly throughout Unova.
To solve this, Iris was brought in as their personal teleporter, responsible for mapping all of the region before the operation could even begin. Lyra and Mika would accompany her for protection, while Rhea stayed with Alex to stake out Argent Solutions' executives in Castelia and Virbank City.
Rhea's presence had to remain hidden, so Alex's Zoroark used its illusion to disguise her appearance and keep her identity secret. She was made taller, with a light skin tone, blonde hair, and blue eyes, making her look like Alex's sister. At the same time, the two of them were identifying specific locations that Rhea would personally target once Alex, Lyra, and Mika began their raids.
Rhea rushed out of the police station, placed her hands on her hips, and took a deep breath. With exaggerated flair, she exhaled and smiled brightly.
"Haaa, home sweet home. There's nothing like the pollution, urban crowds, and concrete sprawl to let you know you're back where you belong."
"It's like Saffron City, only bigger and more crowded," Mika commented, looking around.
"I've never seen so many people before," Iris added.
Castelia City was the beating heart of Unova's business and economy, a massive megacity that never truly slowed down. Crowds flooded the sidewalks at all hours, office workers, couriers, and trainers, each moving with purpose, eyes forward, absorbed in their own routines. Traffic clogged the multilayered roads as lines of cars inched forward beneath towering skyscrapers that rose so high they blotted out the sun and cast the streets below in permanent shade. Steam and smoke billowed from underground vents, carrying the smell of heat, oil, and industry, a constant reminder of the machinery churning beneath the city's skin.
Money, influence, and information flowed through Castelia in a constant current. Corporate districts dominated the skyline, their scale and density reinforcing the city's role as a center of commerce and decision-making. The city's sheer size was underscored by the fact that it housed five Pokémon Gyms, each standardized in structure and function to serve different sectors of the metropolis. Among them was Burgh's Bug type Gym, operating within the same regulated framework as the others while drawing challengers from across Unova.
In Castelia, everything felt bigger, louder, faster, and heavier. It was a city that rewarded momentum and punished hesitation, where deals were made, power was consolidated, and anyone without a clear purpose risked being swallowed by the endless flow of people.
As can be expected, where there were those who benefited from this system, there were also those who were snubbed by it. In the narrow, shadowed alleyways, the forgotten of Castelia huddled against walls streaked with grime, their possessions stuffed into threadbare bags or cardboard boxes. The smell of smoke, damp concrete, and decay mingled with the faint tang of discarded food, a constant reminder of a city that devoured the weak.
Homeless scavengers rummaged through refuse, their eyes wary, their movements hurried, mirroring the survival instincts of the wild Pokémon that lingered nearby. These Pokémon had grown cautious and domesticated; they no longer hunted humans openly or gave in to raw, untamed instincts. Those who had failed to adapt, aggressive, uncontrolled, or reckless, were swiftly captured and taken away, leaving only the clever, the nimble, and the wary to navigate the concrete labyrinth.
It was a delicate, unspoken balance. Humans and Pokémon alike learned when to flee, when to hide, and when to fight. The alleyways were a harsh education in survival, a place where strength was measured not in power, but in cunning, timing, and restraint.
It reminded Alex that whether it was in this world or his old one, humans were all the same, capable of both cruelty and resilience, thriving where they could and struggling where the system had left them behind.
'This is probably the real reason Team Dominion has focused on this region,' Alex thought. 'There are so many homeless people to recruit from the streets, feed for a pittance, and train into an army.'
"We'd better get going," Lyra said, pulling Mika and Iris along. "Cya, Alex. Take care of the munchkin for us."
They were dressed as trainers this time, wearing skirts, running shoes, shirts, and jackets, and carrying simple bags, rather than their intimidating bounty hunter armor. Their objective was to sightsee across the region, allowing Iris's army of Butterfree to set up teleportation points for faster travel between targets. As such, it was best that they acted as regular veteran trainers to gain easy access to the wilds.
"Hey!" Rhea shouted in protest. "I am a beautiful, tall, blonde-haired, buxom woman, I'll have you know."
"Come on," Alex said as he took Rhea's hand and led her through the crowd. "We'd better go as well."
The pair made their way north of the city with the crowd, walking alongside a busy road that stretched toward the outskirts. At first, the streets were densely packed with office workers hurrying in every direction, their briefcases and tablets clutched tightly as they navigated the throngs.
Gradually, the crowd thinned, giving way to couriers weaving between pedestrians and trainers moving at a more measured pace, their Pokémon at their sides. The noise of honking cars and shouting vendors accompanied them as they progressed, a constant reminder of the city's unending activity.
Finally, they reached the massive city wall, passed through its gates, and emerged onto Route 4, a wide expanse of road that reminded Alex of an interstate. The road cut straight north through a barren desert on either side, stretching relentlessly toward Nimbasa City. Sparse shrubs and rocky outcrops dotted the landscape, the heat radiating from the sand blurring the horizon. Traffic and travelers moved steadily along the asphalt, a thin ribbon of civilization threading its way through the harsh, empty wilderness beyond Castelia.
Alex released Ditto and had it use Transform into a common Fearow, then flew northwest toward Desert Resort. He didn't want to attract too much attention, and although an Elite ranked Ditto was rare, releasing a Champion to fly on would draw too many eyes. To remain as low-key as possible, he limited his aura to Elite at most.
As for the reason they were heading to Desert Resort, it was to meet their contact from Umbraline, who was supposedly the head of the region. Alex knew they were meant to coordinate plans, but he didn't know why the meeting had to be in person. It struck him as suspicious, but he didn't consider it much of a threat given his strength, so he went along with it.
They continued their flight over the barren desert landscape until they reached their destination. From their vantage point above, they could see thousands of Maractus basking freely in the desert sun, dotting the landscape like a living forest.
Alex, with Rhea clinging to him from behind, dove down, targeting a woman riding a Mudsdale. She was the only person in sight for miles, so it seemed she was their contact.
Once they landed, they took in the sight of a cowgirl wearing a white bikini, chaps, a cowboy hat, leather gloves, and cowboy boots. The outfit looked more suited for a swim, yet there wasn't a watering hole for miles. Her long blonde hair, dark skin, and light blue eyes stood out against the harsh desert sun. Her figure was undeniably sexy, toned and curvaceous, commanding attention even from a distance. A pair of pistols were holstered at her waist, and a longneck rifle was secured along the Mudsdale's saddle.
"Howdy, partner," she greeted with an infectious smile.
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