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He glanced at her and Aster. "We're here." A stroke of sunlight hit his face and he stepped out into a large valley. Thousands of PokeHumans were training, battling each other and testing their reflexes. Fishtail started spinning faster and faster until she tumbled down the slope at an extremely fast speed. Jesse watched her, smiling slightly and then went down the slope after her, signaling for Shay to follow him. "Speed training, jump abilities, special weaponry, power testing, battling, healing. Oh and of course Guardians. Those are for the most experienced soldiers, who train the Guardians and command them. It might take a while to find your spot, there are so many places," he explained. "Fishtail and Aster should report to the Guardian Arena. Pokemon with no healing abilities go there. Millay, Glow's Guardian goes to the healing station, because she knows special healing moves."

Shay took in everything, deep green eyes widening slightly. All of this at once was a bit overwhelming. Aster seemed to be pleased with all the activity, and leapt lightly off her shoulder, glancing at her inquisitively. "...Can I go?" he asked. Already, despite their short time together, they had formed a bond, and he acted concerned about the thought of leaving her alone with Jesse.

She gave a small smile. "I'll be fine," she reassured him. Touching her lightly with his tail as a brief farewell, Aster dashed off to join Fishtail. Shay turned to look at Jesse again. "Where do we go?" she asked, a slight bit of hesitation edging her voice.

He smiled. "You...are a natural bonder..." he said thoughtfully. "Indeed...where?" Jesse amusedly. "Someone like you...you may fit in at the Guardian section. That's where I work as well. Come. You may work with Aster there, or another Pokemon."

He walked silently to the field, each footstep quiet, ruffling the grass around his boots. "Trainer Azuria." He bowed to the trainer in front of him, who was wearing a hood. "Shay. Azuria. Azuria. Shay." Jesse said simply, smiling. "She is a new recruit. And she's special with Pokemon..."

Shay's cheeks flushed a gentle red as a wave of awkward self-consciousness swept over her. She fidgeted with the hem of her shirt, glad her dark hair was somewhat obscuring her face, a protective layer from those around her. Unused to praise, she was also unsure how to accept it.

Some might call her anti-social. That, however, wasn't necessarily true. She just hadn't been introduced into many social situations, and had a hard time trusting new people. Shay would easily open up more to someone she trusted...those people were just hard to come by.

"Uh...nice to, uh...meet you, I guess," she replied falteringly, cheeks flushing a bit brighter as she stumbled hesitantly over the words. Once again, she hadn't been introduced into many social situations. This polite greeting was something she apparently had trouble with.

Azuria, a tall girl of about twenty years of age, and was apparently mixed with a Blaziken. "She'd better be. So, who's her guardian? A Pikachu, huh? Common ones, those are, all scattered over the place. My guardian's Sasha. She'd be somewhere roaming around this field." She said in one breath.

Jesse raised his eyebrows at Shay. "What do you think? Be able to stay here well enough, kid? Meet all the guardians. I say you stick with the Electric Grounds. They'll do better with you." He walked off towards the Grass Pokemon area, his long white cloak swishing in the wind behind him.

Shay gave a small nod, unwilling to show how apprehensive she was; there were so many people, so many areas...it was all a bit overwhelming. Why things couldn't just be 'whelming', she wasn't sure. She slowly made her way to the grounds where a bunch of electric Pokemon were, hoping it was the right place. She stood awkwardly on the fringes, unsure of what to do.

A young boy with two small Pichu ears and a tail was training alongside with a little Pikachu. With silent commands, the Pikachu sent off jolts of lightning to electrify special targets. Jesse, who was nearby the Electric Fields, was making signals to control a large and muscular Leafeon. Razor Leaf went flying everywhere, slicing trees and sticks.

Fortunately for Shay, Aster came bounding up then, leading her cheerfully farther into the training grounds. "So, uh, do we just practice communicating and training and stuff?" she asked.
"It looks like that's what everyone else is doing," the Pikachu replied nonchalantly, seemingly unflustered by all the activity.
"Uh, ok. Well, uh, why don't you do a quick Thunderbolt on the left target, just to uh, warm up, I guess," Shay replied falteringly.

Sparks flickered around his cheeks as Aster's body vented the stored electricity. A powerful bolt of electricity crackled as it ripped through the air, striking the target and leaving a dark, sooty black spot where it hit. Shay grinned. "Okay, I want to try something," she communicated. Reading her intentions, Aster leapt onto her shoulder. Her hand lightly touching his tail, Shay mentally counted to three, then the two of them released a Thunderbolt together, their power mingling to create a much more powerful release.

Jesse watched the young hybrid, his face unfaltering. That's good. A promising recruit. Fishtail noted, and leapt up onto Jesse's shoulder. Why are you in the Grass Pokemon section anyway?

Jesse rolled his eyes. Because, you should know I can talk to any Pokemon. And I'm the leader of the rebellion. Shay doesn't know that. Fishtail stared at him. Why? Jesse shook his head. Recruits don't and won't recognize me until they're entirely loyal. Which sucks, but The Lab Council insisted.

He walked over to Aster and Shay, his smile back on. "You make a promising recruit, Soldier Shay." Fishtail waved his paw at Aster.

Shay once again shifted her feet uncertainly, feeling self-conscious. "Uh, thanks," she mumbled, then words barely audible. Aster pressed closer to her comfortably, and she scratched him behind his ears thankfully.

He smiled faintly and walked away, with Fishtail bounding happily along at the side.