A month after Clarissa's return, during which she'd spent nearly every day having nonstop wilderness sex with Alex, she brought him straight back to the base and led him directly to Talia. He was given supplements to replenish his severely depleted nutrition and bombarded with Heal Pulses from Talia's Chimecho to mend the microfractures in his bones, the bruises covering his skin, and the muscle contusions throughout his body.

After a day of rest and well wishes, he was back on his feet, walking with a slight limp he tried, and failed, to hide. He made his way to the command center, where he called a meeting with Clarissa and the girls to discuss her situation as well as his own future plans.

"Wow! She really did a number on you," Rhea commented as she took in Alex's condition.

Beside her, Nyx slurped up the drool slipping from her lips, imagining herself in the same state. Perhaps it wasn't so bad staying at Champion rank for a while once Alex reached Master rank. Being able to keep up with him was one thing, but being so thoroughly fucked that she needed medical attention afterward seemed to have its own merits.

"I called this meeting today to get some information out of Clarissa," Alex said. "I'm sure she's already filled you in on some of what she learned as a Master ranked trainer, but we'll be making this discussion available to the others so we can all get up to speed."

"Can't we just collect all the recordings from around the base and compile them into a video?" Rhea asked.

"I'm sure some of you thought of questions you never had the chance to ask. Rather than risk missing anything, we might as well go over everything one topic at a time," Alex said, turning to Clarissa. "Clarissa, if you will."

"Okay, so first of all, I'll only be sharing information that's permitted to be shared with friends and family. I won't be going into Master ranked secrets such as danger zones, responsibilities, limitations, taxes, and the like. The focus of this discussion will instead be Lumiose City in Kalos," Clarissa said as she began explaining.

“Like the International Police Headquarters, Lumiose City also has residency restrictions. Only Master ranked trainers may officially live there because the city sits atop an unusually weak dimensional barrier. Much like Alola's connection to Ultra Space, it provides stable access to countless other dimensions.”

“Before we get to that, though, let's start with a bit of history. Five years after Team Flare nearly wiped out all life on the planet, Quasartico Inc. launched a massive redevelopment project centered on Lumiose City. Jett, the company's CEO at the time, envisioned transforming it into a place where humans and Pokémon could coexist more naturally.”

“Progress continued until mysterious outbreaks of uncontrollable Mega Evolved Pokémon, some of them at Master rank, began ravaging the city. The destruction forced a full evacuation while powerful trainers were brought in to contain the crisis. It ultimately took Team MZ, countless Master ranked trainers, and Ansha with her Mythical Pokémon Hoopa to bring the situation under control.”

“With support from the League and the Master ranked trainers eager to explore them, scientists eventually replicated Hoopa's dimensional abilities into a stable transportation network. Master ranked trainers could now travel to other worlds to gather resources, grow stronger, and explore places humanity had never reached. Lumiose City was redesigned once again around this new dimensional transit system.”

“When redevelopment was complete, Master ranked trainers began venturing into those dimensions. Many never returned, but those who did brought back immense wealth, rare resources, Legendary Pokémon, and knowledge that advanced both themselves and the League. Over time, Lumiose City became an exclusive community reserved for Master ranked trainers and their families.”

“Now that I've reached Master rank, I've earned the right to live there and participate. If I marry Alex, I'll be allowed to bring him and his family with me,” Clarissa concluded.

“We’re moving to Lumiose City?” Celise asked, tilting her head. “I thought your goal had always been to become the Champion of Kanto or Johto.”

“Oh, I get a few years to relax,” Clarissa replied. “I just got out of a 15-year seclusion, and once I begin working as a Champion, I'll barely have any time to myself, so I was granted some time to prepare. Think of it as a vacation to broaden my horizons as a Master ranked trainer before committing to a Champion’s life for the long haul. Unless they decide to replace me somewhere down the line, or I find a suitable replacement myself.”

“Also, no,” Alex answered. “We’re not moving to Lumiose City. I’ll be marrying Clarissa so I can go take a look around. Apparently, they have plenty of resources there for Champion ranked trainers trying to take that final step to Master rank, so I wanted to check it out. If any of you want to come along and explore with us, you’re welcome to. Just keep in mind that the place is filled with powerful trainers and their privileged family members, some of whom might decide they want you as their maid and won’t take no for an answer.”

“That’s a no, then,” Maris said with a relieved sigh.

Neither she nor Celise, and in fact most of the other girls, wanted to go. They were more than comfortable with their current lifestyles. The only ones showing any interest were Rhea, for the technology, Sable, for the mining potential, and perhaps Lyra and Mika, purely for exploration purposes.

“What do you think, Mika?” Lyra asked. “Should we go check it out?”

“I think we should focus on the Kalos region for now instead of a place our bounty hunters won't normally have access to,” Mika replied. “We can always go check it out ourselves once we reach Master rank.”

“Then I guess we're staying put,” Lyra said with a nod before turning to Alex. “We'll keep working on establishing a branch in Kalos while getting to know the region. At least if we run into any trouble, you'll only be a Teleport away.”

“Can I join expeditions into other dimensions?” Sable asked. “You know, as hired help to mine for resources?”

“No,” Clarisa replied. “That is purely reserved for Master ranked trainers while family members can at most enjoy the city’s amenities.”

“Should I go?” Rhea asked. “I mean, is their technology any better than what the League has, for example?”

“I... don't actually know,” Clarissa admitted. “I've heard they have access to advanced technology from other dimensions, but the Master ranked trainers who bring it back usually keep it within their own families, only sharing a little with the League. From what I've read, traveling between dimensions is somewhat random, so even if they know how a piece of technology works and have a sample of it, they might not have access to the specific materials needed to reproduce it on a large scale.”

“Oh... I guess I'll just wait until you or Alex bring me a toy to play with,” Rhea said with a shrug. “I'd drive myself crazy if I found an interesting piece of technology only to be told there was absolutely no way for me to get my hands on it. Honestly, I don't trust myself not to obsess over it, so I'll be right here if you need me.”

“Anyone else?” Alex asked, but no one answered. “Alright then, moving on. I plan on accelerating my progress toward Master rank.”

The girls' heads all immediately turned toward Clarissa, who blushed, clearly feeling guilty over her lack of self-control with Alex. There was little doubt she had become his biggest motivation for actively pursuing Master ranked resources. It seemed she had really gone overboard.

“Anyway, that’s basically it,” Alex said awkwardly, having expected at least a few questions about his motivation, though apparently it had been a bit too obvious. “Clarissa and I will be getting married online without any fanfare before heading to Lumiose City to explore the place. I probably won’t be available during that time except for emergencies.”

“Vera,” Alex continued. “I’ll be bringing Guzzlord with me since I’d like to avoid it rampaging when it suddenly wakes up expecting my Dark type energy for breakfast. Is there anything I need to know?”

“Only that it shouldn't be long before it wakes up,” she answered. “I don't know what to expect, though, since I still don't know how it's using all the energy it's been digesting. Just be patient with it when it wakes up.”

“Got it. Is there anything else I need to know before I disappear for who knows how long?”

Receiving only silence, Alex nodded with a smile. He loved that each of his girls was largely independent. As long as they had each other, they could keep the base running on their own.

With the plan set, Alex went to work preparing for his trip. He let his Pokémon know they were likely in for battles against Master ranked trainers and Pokémon. He spent some time recuperating and getting back into shape. He also topped up his personal bank account, withdrawing more than usual from the Silver Network to fund the journey. Finally, Rhea outfitted him with a fresh batch of gadgets.

A week later, once everything was ready, he and Clarissa were married online. After burying the paper trail beneath the League's restricted information, they teleported to Lumiose City via Interpol's teleportation network.

Alex had expected another futuristic, sci-fi city. What he found instead was the closest thing humanity had ever built to a gateway between worlds.