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MATURE: Journey

Chapter 17: Shinobi
Shinobi


Artemis banked softly after Harding's fearow. We circled over the small clearing in the trees, easily spotting the abandoned bedrolls and scattered equipment.

I tapped my comm unit. "That clearing is too small for me to land at." I glanced around, looking for a suitable place to land. "Crest of the hill, four o'clock."

I saw her head turn and watched her nod to Reyes behind her. "Copy that," she replied. "Lead us in."

I gripped tightly to Artemis as she gently banked away from the camp. We carefully swung low, landing deftly atop the hill.

Harding landed beside me, dismounting her fearow as I returned Artemis. Reyes flung himself off the fearow, practically hugging the ground as he raised his monferno's ball.

I raised Luna and Vector's balls as Harding released her persian. My pokemon would cover our approach to the camp, watching for any sign of traps while Raxus and Aro actively scouted the camp.

We moved through the forest as quietly as we could manage, carefully following my pokemon's steps. Twice I stepped over a deviously placed tripwires. I couldn't trace what the wires would trigger, but I had no doubt that there were wooden spikes waiting to impale me somewhere.

Harding took point after the second wire, refusing to put me at risk over herself. She kept us clear of the rest of the traps, carefully marking each of the tripwires for us.

It took nearly half an hour of creeping through the trees until we reached the camp. Reyes and I took positions at Harding's sides, both of us crouching in the brush.

"Spores," I said, pointing to the ground. The entire camp was covered in a thin dusting of silvery-yellow spores. "Probably a nasty cocktail of paralytic and soporific. We walk in there and we'll start stirring it all up." I grimaced as I realized what that meant. "Which means that whoever did this is still watching."

I listened carefully for a moment. The normally raucous reverie of the Safari Zone was gone, replaced by a deafening silence. It was as though someone had flipped a giant switch and shut it all off.

Harding raised a ball, seemingly weighing our options. "I'll clear the hazard. Both of you get back."

She released her fearow beside her as Reyes and I retreated into the trees a short distance.

I heard Harding order her fearow to create a whirlwind and watched the pokemon take off deftly through a small gap in the trees.

A furious gust of wind whipped through the camp a moment later, kicking up a storm of spores. I gasped, realizing that the dusting was thicker than I had realized as the whirlwind tore through the camp.

The ten-foot tall cloud of dust and spores spun through the camp, gathering more of the trap that had been laid for us. It rose into the air, the tornado carrying the cloud of spores away with supernatural skill. I watched it rise above the trees and disappear off to the west.

It was another ten minutes until Harding's fearow cawed loudly overhead. Reyes and I crept back towards the Captain, taking great care to avoid the marked tripwire.

Harding was standing behind a tree, peering through the foliage. She heard us coming and turned her head. "Does Luna have anything?"

I turned to my Ninetales. We hadn't had much practice at it, but theoretically Luna could use her newfound telepathy to locate any potential threats. In practice, it had left both of us with splitting headaches. I suspected that was due to my apparent lack of any latent psychic talent myself, forcing Luna to overextend herself to communicate with me at the same time.

"Luna, search for threats. Don't bring me along this time. Just relay what you find back to me when you're done."

She nodded, her eyes faintly glowing with psychic light. Her tails flared, seemingly floating as my ninetales flared with unseen power. She stayed locked in position for more than five minutes, the three of us waiting in near silence. Then her body sagged in exhaustion and I saw the glowing light fade from her eyes.

"It's alright, girl. Did you find anything?"

She nodded and I felt her mind brush up against mine. I saw the clearing in my mind, dozens of tiny points of light scurrying through the underbrush. Luna was a supernova of light, nearly eclipsing out entire group of smaller stars.

There was a sole point of light in the camp, too large to be a small wild pokemon. The light was muted though, as if the being was weakened. I retreated from Luna's shared vision and patted her gently on the head.

I turned towards Harding, rubbing my temples. I still could barely tolerate sustained contact with Luna's mind. "It almost looks like something down there, alive. It's weak though."

"Any traps that you could find?"

I shook my head. "I can't honestly see all that much like that. Mostly just dots of light." I shrugged. "I dunno, it's all really weird since I'm not psychic myself."

She looked back down at the camp, determination set on her face. "On me, then."

We fanned out into the clearing, Luna and Raxus taking point in front of Captain Harding. Vector and Aro followed us in, my heracross and Reyes' monferno keeping nervous eyes on the trees.

We moved through the camp quickly, only pausing to note the signs of battle. One of the tents had a gaping hole burnt through it, and scorch marks littered the terrain. We continued on, towards the small depression that Luna had detected life from.

We hit the lip of the depression and I sucked in sharply. Corporal Lori Warrick was splayed out on the ground, expression slack and eyes blank. Her neck was bent at an awkward angle. Her machoke was in a crumpled heap beside her, body covered in thin gashes. A fat raticate was laying atop what looked like the dented corpse of Warrick's magneton, both of them still and silent. I couldn't help the shudder that ran down my spine. Lori had been the closest to my training ability in the unit. To see her brought down chilled me to my core.

"Fuck," Harding spat. She turned towards me, frustration clear in her voice. "I thought you said someone was alive, Rook?"

"I never said I was certain," I retorted. "Just that something might be alive."

"Look," Reyes interrupted, pointing into the depression. "Her machoke."

I followed his finger, watching the pokémon's chest rise almost imperceptibly. It was weak and barely breathing, but it was alive. I fought back the nerves. "We should leave," I said carefully. "Something is watching us. I can feel it."

I saw Harding glance towards the trees. She hadn't heard the voice say that the forest was watching, but I had filled her in. I knew she had the same pit in her stomach that I did.

"Hold on," Reyes said. He carefully picked his way through the bodies, kneeling beside Corporal Warrick. He took her machoke's ball from her hand, returning the ailing pokemon. He moved to get back up, but a paper went fluttering out of Warrick's hand.

He grabbed up the paper, scanning it quickly. His eyes widened and he glanced up at the Captain. "Harding," he said quickly. "I got something."

Luna howled at the same time as Raxus flattened her ears against her head. The wind had shifted, blowing back in our faces from the forest. Our pokemon had caught the scent of something. Something that they did not like.

"Mount up," Harding ordered. "Or get ready to fight."

I released Artemis. "I say fly. We'll have a better chance if we can see them coming to engage."

She whistled once and her fearow swooped down into the clearing. Her pokemon expertly flared her wings at the perfect moment, fluttering to a halt directly in front of the Captain.

I mounted Artemis as Harding and Reyes mounted her fearow. With one smooth movement, I returned Luna as Artemis flung herself into the air.

My aerodactyl struggled to gain altitude, growling in frustration as Harding's fearow effortlessly flapped past her. She poured on the speed, surging through the gap in the canopy that Harding had disappeared through.

We hit the open sky with speed, rising above the treetops. Harding was already high above us, her fearow casually climbing even with two passengers. Artemis angled upwards, gradually closing with the Captain.

I tapped my comm unit. "What did we get?" I asked. I didn't know what it was, but that piece of paper must have had something important on it.

"Meeting time and place," Harding replied. "Seems like Warrick made contact with some kind of informant. Assuming that Warrick received the note after last check-in, we still have a day to make the meeting."

I nodded as I drew level with them. "We heading to this meeting?"

She looked back at me, weighing her options for a long moment. She tapped her comm unit, turning it off and shouting over the wind. Reyes and I did the same. "I don't trust that our comms aren't compromised. It could be a trap."

"It could also be legitimate," Reyes suggested. "That note might have been what triggered the attack on squad three." He shrugged noncommittally. "We haven't seen any evidence of shinobi outside of this attack. Maybe Koga's got a leak that he's desperate to plug, and our Rangers were just in the way."

"It's possible," Harding said. "But I'm not willing to risk the entire expedition on a maybe." She looked out across the savannah and went silent for a moment. "We'll rendezvous with team two first, then make a decision then."

I felt Artemis tense up, and heard Harding's fearow shriek in warning. Three winged shadows were rising from the trees, riders on each of the golbat. Their intentions were clear, small blades bared in the mid-morning sun.

I flipped on my comm unit as Harding's fearow flapped to gain altitude. The Captain pulled away, rising far faster than I could hope to follow. I heard a crackle over the radio and Harding's voice follow. "Keep out of their path, Rook. They're after the note. Ready for intercept on my mark."

I angled Artemis to the side, veering out of the three newcomers path to Harding. They made no adjustments, bee-lining for the Captain and Reyes.

My heart pounded in my chest. This was my first real action against hostile trainers. I'd participated in a poacher raid to the east of Vermillion a couple weeks ago, but I hadn't actually faced any trained pokemon. My battle against the mutated dragon was the first time I'd actually deployed my pokemon in battle as a Ranger.

Our typical tactics called for non-lethal takedowns and debilitating status effects. Rangers, for the most part, did not fight to kill. We weren't the Army. However, all that went out the window while we were in flight. Any airborne battle was lethal, simply due to the speeds and altitude involved. Like it or not, we were fighting to kill.

I glanced up, waiting for the signal as Harding kept rising above me. The three riders were still rising, drawing closer to my altitude with every wingbeat. The moment was coming. I tensed up, preparing for a sharp turn into a dive.

"Now!"

I wrenched Artemis to the side, throwing her into a sudden dive. The golbat tried to scatter, but I was too close.

Artemis hit one of the golbat slightly off-centre. Her jaws clamped down on the golbat's wing, easily tearing it off with our momentum. I heard the golbat shriek in pain and the man on its back panic as we zipped past them.

I pulled Artemis out of the dive, swivelling around in my seat to watch as Harding's fearow skewered a second golbat through with her beak. It died almost instantly, the rider soaring helplessly off into the air as he was flung from his mount.

The golbat that Artemis had savaged flapped madly with its remaining wing, the man on its back flailing in panic. I didn't watch him plummet past me. I couldn't. I pushed the doomed men from my mind and focused solely on the battle at hand as Artemis banked around towards Harding.

The third golbat cut its flight suddenly, looping back into a sudden, steep dive. Harding hadn't recovered from her opening attack yet. She was completely open and there was nothing I could do. Artemis wasn't fast enough in flight yet and she had no ranged abilities of her own.

"Captain, above you!"

Harding pulled her fearow to the side, trying to bank hard and get out from under the remaining attacker. She was never going to be fast enough. The golbat hit them with a glancing blow, throwing them into a wild spin.

A single figure separated from Harding's fearow, arms flailing wildly.

"Reyes!" I shouted immediately. I pointed up at him, squeezing Artemis' flanks with my ankles. "Catch him!"

Artemis poured on the speed. Her wings beat furiously, racing towards Reyes with every heartbeat. He plummeted past us as Artemis threw herself into a steep dive. We had maybe two-hundred meters to the ground, hardly enough for any safe maneuvers.

I could see him looking up at me in terror. We were closing, but not fast enough. Artemis reached, stretching out with her neck as we gained on Reyes. The ground rushed up to meet us as Artemis closed her jaws on Reyes' ball bandolier. I strained, reaching down in a desperate attempt to grab his outstretched hand.

Our fingertips brushed momentarily, then slipped away. Artemis pulled her head back closer to her body and I locked hands with him.

His eyes met mine, already resigned to his fate. I felt him forcing a crumpled paper into my hand and saw him mouth a final message. "Use it."

Artemis' wings snapped out, catching on the wind. My fist closed on the paper as Reyes' bandolier snapped from the strain. I closed my eyes as he plummeted through the canopy, refusing to listen to the sickening crunch of his body hitting the ground.

We soared just above the treetops, slowly rising as the speed of our dive carried us back skyward. My radio crackled to life as I searched the sky for the Captain. I found her half a moment later, in pursuit of the fleeing golbat.

"Rook," she started. "I have the paper. I'm going to the meeting with Lori's informant."

I glanced down at the crumpled paper in my fist. She was lying over the radio. Our comms were compromised, she knew that. I smirked, realizing that she was intentionally misleading whoever was listening.

"You are to rendezvous with team two and continue on to Fucshia Ranger Command." There was a long pause as she waited for me to answer. "I will rejoin you as soon as I am able. Do you understand?"

I looked down at the paper in my hand. "Yes, ma'am. I understand." I looked back up at her, knowing that she had reversed the roles. With any luck, by the time our stalkers realized what had happened, I'd already be long gone. I pushed away the pain in my chest and angled Artemis to the south.

I didn't look back for Reyes. I couldn't.


Wertz's death had hurt. I'd watched her die in front of me, watched the life fade from her eyes. I'd stopped the beast that had killed her though.

Warrick's death had been a pure gut-punch. A reminder that none of us were invincible. Even if we'd stopped the three shinobi that had ambushed us, they were following somebody's orders. We'd accomplished nothing more than silencing a few henchmen.

Reyes was my friend. He was the closest friend I had made in the Rangers, my consummate training partner. He hadn't finished his gym challenge, but he'd trained under Surge for more than half a decade. His death was a hammer blow to the chest, a raw mark on my psyche.

He was more than a match for me, even with his unevolved team. His team that now sat in their balls at the bottom of my bag, attached to a broken bandolier. Standard Ranger procedure was to reassign the deceased's pokemon to other Rangers, but that felt wrong the more I thought about it. Reyes had caught most of them himself, only buying Aro after saving almost every scrap of money his sponsor could spare. They were his family, not tools to be shuffled around at will.

I stared blankly at the paper for what felt like the hundredth time, pushing away the unpleasant thoughts. It hadn't been the first time my mind had dwelled on Reyes, on the people we'd lost, and I doubted it would be the last. I still had a mission though. A mission that would bring me back up against the people that had caused those deaths.

Lori,

Meet me when the sun sets tomorrow, where the west river bends back upon itself, in the house under the hill. Fucshia's corruption runs deep. You'll need my help if you want to stop my father.

We were friends once. I can't change what I did, but maybe I can help you save your friends. A debt must be paid, and I owe you.

-Janie


I looked away again, half tempted to tear the paper in half and throw it away. This was what Reyes had died for. A scrap of paper with a personal message to a dead woman. I had no doubt that this was what the shinobi had been after. Still, I was no closer to this informant than I had been when I had found the bend in the river earlier in the day.

I pocketed the paper, scowling to myself as I traipsed along the shore. I was missing something. I'd found where the river bent back upon itself, and found the hill that the message likely referred to. However, the hill didn't seem to have any houses on or under it. There wasn't a door that I could find, no trapdoor, no secret boulder to roll out of the way. It was a smooth, treeless hill nestled in the bend of the river. If it had any secrets, I couldn't find them.

Luna's mind touched mine and I caught a flash of concern. She appeared at my side, sharing the memories of her fruitless search. She'd happened upon the scent of a human at one point, but lost it at the river where it mysteriously disappeared. We'd even attempted a psychic search, which had proved less than useless and only brought more confusion.

I sat unceremoniously at the riverside, ignoring Luna's whining. I knew I was in the right spot. I was just missing something. I stared down into the water, wracking my brain for something, anything.

A flash of orange scales appeared from nowhere, the magikarp scarpering off into deeper water in seconds. I stood up in shock as it hit me. More magikarp came swimming out of the tunnel, as if to punctuate the point.

"The entrance to the house under the hill is underwater!" I exclaimed. "That's why we can't find it. We're looking in the wrong place."

Luna peered into the water, then looked at me and whined.

I chuckled. "I'm not making you go in there," I said with a smile. "I can swim pretty good, you know."

I peeled off my jacket and shirt and dropped my pack onto the shore beside Luna. I pulled off my boots and dropped my pants, leaving me in just my undershirt and underwear.

"I'll be back in a minute," I said. "keep watch for me."

She sat in the sand, looking at me. I felt concern touch my mind and fear gnawing at my gut.

I stopped and looked at her. "Luna, I'll be right back. I promise."

She crossed her paws and lay down. I felt her mind retreat, but knew that she was still worried.

I dropped into the river without a second thought. The flow was soft here, a gentle current that pushed me against the river bank. I swam along the bottom, searching for the tunnel that I had seen. I found it half a moment later, a hole cut into the riverbed nearly six feet around.

I swam back up to the surface, looking back at Luna as I caught my breath. "I found it," I said excitedly. "I found the tunnel. I'm gonna check it out."

I sucked down a breath and went back under the water. In hindsight, this was a terrible plan. I was attempting to swim through an underwater tunnel, with no clue what was on the other end.

My vision went to nearly nothing as I entered the tunnel. Only a small light from deeper in the tunnel offered any small comfort.

I pushed onward, swimming up towards the light. The tunnel began to brighten slightly and it became clear that it was not a natural formation. It sloped upward gently, leading me up to the surface of the water.

My head broke the water's surface and I breathed deeply. The air was cold, damp and stale, but it was still air. I stumbled to my feet, clambering up the small incline to the burning oil lamp mounted on the wall.

I wiped the water from my face and held my hands near the lamp for warmth.

"Now," I started as I lifted the lantern off the mount, half-expecting an answer from deeper into the cave. "What secret lair did I just stumble into?"

No answer came. I followed the incline of the tunnel, emerging into a small, cluttered room. Another oil lamp was burning on the table in the centre of the room, a plate of half-eaten food sitting in front of the lamp.

I felt the blade on my throat before I heard her move. I felt another point jabbing me in the small of my back and I knew that any struggle would only end in my death.

"Who the fuck are you," she hissed, pressing the blade against my throat so hard that I felt blood trickle down my neck.

"A Ranger," I replied curtly. "We recovered your message off the body of Corporal Warrick." I slowly raised my hands as the blade lifted slightly off my throat.

"Lori's gone?" she asked. Her voice was soft with pained concern. I heard a sharp breath, but my assailant bit it back before I could be sure.

I felt the point of her other blade move off my back and carefully stepped away. I turned, not knowing what to expect of my attacker.

She was small and lithe, clad in form-fitting black robes. A magenta scarf wrapped around her neck, trailing down her back. A black hood obscured her face, but I could see her eyes reflecting purple in the light of the lamp.

"What happened?" she asked. Her voice wavered, as though she were suppressing tears. I saw her eyes harden in the dim light and watched her lower her hood.

Her hair was a deep purple, matching the colour of her eyes. The barest traces of tears were at the edges of her eyes. She lowered her twin daggers and her expression softened slightly.

"She was killed by your father's men," I replied. I didn't know exactly who I was dealing with, but I had pieces of the puzzle. I just had to put them into place. "Who killed a friend of mine to get to you."

"Rocket's men," she replied, spitting out the words as if they were vile on her tongue. "They're all Rocket now."

I sighed. "We should have known Koga's tip was too good to be true. We had nothing for months, then all of a sudden he had exactly what we were looking for."

"And you idiots bought it without a second thought. You walked right into their trap." She looked down. "I expected more out of the famed Zapdos Squad. I had hope when I heard that you were coming to Fuchsia, hope that you could stop my father from selling us out to Rocket."

I grimaced. "We're still in this fight. All we have to do is alert Fucshia Command and they-"

"They'll do nothing," she replied. She crossed her arms, looking at me with a scowl. "Koga has Fucshia's leadership in a vice. They do what he wants, or someone who will is chosen as their replacement."

I shook my head. "The Ranger Corps would never allow that. We're an independent branch of Indigo's military, we act for the public good." I folded my arms across my chest. "They'll be able to help us."

"You aren't that naïve," she said in a stunned tone. "Your precious Rangers are still run by people. They are as susceptible as any others to corruption."

I frowned deeply. "So it's six Rangers and a rogue shinobi against an entire city." I scowled, running the chances over in my head. My mind went back to the battle against Giovanni and my scowl softened slightly. "I've had worse odds."

"Who said we were together?" she replied. "Why should I trust you?"

"You don't have much of a choice," I replied. "We're moving on Fuchsia either way. Your best chance is to go with us. Better to work as a group than all alone." I shrugged. "Thanks for the intel at the very least. Helps to know that we're completely on our own."

She stepped in front of the door before I could move, her blade whipping up towards my throat. "You know where I am now. I can't let you leave."

I raised an eyebrow. "So, what now?" I asked. "You kill me?" I shook my head. "You won't kill a Ranger."

She scowled at me, hard eyes studying my unfazed expression. "What makes you think I haven't already killed Rangers?"

I smirked as I saw her blade waver ever so slightly. She didn't want to kill me, she was scared. I didn't doubt that she'd killed before, but she didn't want to. "I bet none of them offered to help you."

She looked into my eyes and her scowl softened. She lowered the blade and stepped back. "No," she said. "They didn't..." Her voice trailed off and I saw the hurt on her face. She wanted to trust me, but couldn't let herself. "Fuchsia is a complicated place," she started. "We naturally distrust outsiders. They'll kill you the moment you make your move. You don't have a chance without me."

I nodded solemnly. "I know that," I said. "All Rangers know the risks. But we're going in anyways. Our mission was to find and stop Rocket. We found them. We aren't going to quit now."

We stared at each other for a long moment. She was studying me, probably still looking for a reason to kill me and be done with it.

"I'll help you," she said suddenly. "But you follow my orders. You listen to me and maybe, just maybe we can pull this off."

"So you have a plan?" I asked.

"It's complicated," she said. "Like I said, Fuchsia is a complex place. We can't just charge in, pokemon attacking like something out of an action flick. This requires nuance." She looked down at me, seeking to suddenly realize that I wasn't wearing any pants. "Oh, umm…" Her voice trailed off suddenly. "I can offer you some spare clothes. They might be a bit small, but-."

"These will dry relatively quickly. The rest of my clothes are still topside with my pokemon."

She pointed at the door opposite the tunnel I had come in through. "That leads back up to the surface." She sat heavily in her chair and sighed heavily with relief. "I'll fix you something to eat if you'd like?"

I stopped for a moment as my stomach loudly answered. I hadn't eaten anything since late evening the night before and it was catching up to me. I smiled weakly. "I'd like that very much. Thank you."


I leaned back, putting my bowl down on the table beside me. My host had a bowl of thin soup waiting when I had returned. It wasn't much, just some boiled roots and wild grown vegetables, but to someone who'd spent months on Ranger fare it was tolerable. Hell, it was probably better than most Ranger meals.

"So?" I started, glancing over at the woman. She'd hardly said a word since I returned, just sitting quietly by the small fireplace carved into the wall. "What brings Koga's heir all the way out here?" I gestured at the room around us. "As cozy as this is, I doubt that this is your first choice of accommodations."

"It was a hideout when I needed one," she answered sharply. "I found it years ago, when I was still in the middle of my League challenge."

I looked at her closer, trying to match her face to my memories. Then it clicked. "I knew I recognized you," I started. "You're Janine Ayõ. You placed top eight in your first Indigo Conference, then dropped off the map." I wrinkled my brow. "You were quite the controversy. I remember watching your elimination match. You were good. Too good to just disappear like that."

She furrowed her brow. "Not Janine Ayõ," she started with a scowl. I watched her spit out the words as if they were poison on her tongue. "I am a daughter of the Anzu Clan and heir to Clan Ayõ's seat at the head of the Fourteen Families. I am not an Ayõ, despite what you may have seen."

I raised an eyebrow. "Fourteen Families?" I asked.

She sighed. "I forget sometimes, that Fuchsia is so closed off from the world. We do not share our ways with outsiders, even in the most dire of times." She shook her head. "The Fourteen Families share Fucshia between ourselves. Rule is rotated amongst the clans, or rather, it was." She crossed her arms. "I was to be the next Leader, trained to replace Koga upon his death. I was the product of two clans, as is the tradition for succession."

"I guess Koga changed that?"

I caught her furious glare. "He robbed me of that. Clan Ayõ presented a champion to challenge me for the rite of succession, something that had never before been done in Fuchsia." She tightened her fists and a cold chill crept into her voice. "They sabotaged my preparation for the battle and injured several of my pokemon before the challenge."

I sat back. "What did you do?"

Janine hung her head and I could tell she was ashamed. "I ran," she said quietly. "My father sent his men after me, and I've been on the run ever since."

I narrowed my eyes. "How long ago was that?"

She cast her eyes upwards. "Two winters ago," she said. "My Clan believes me to be dead. I haven't seen a friendly face since then, at least I hadn't until I intercepted orders to ambush an incoming Ranger force. A Ranger force that I knew an old friend was serving on."

"Lori," I said quietly.

"Lori," she repeated. "We travelled together during our challenge. She was a good person." Her eyes dropped to the floor and her voice dropped to nearly a whisper. "She was a good friend."

I nodded slowly. "She was," I said. "We weren't close, I can't lie. But she wanted to help people." I swallowed the lump in my throat and forced myself to meet Janine's eyes. "She was a good Ranger."

"I told her that the Rangers would get her killed," she said solemnly. "Last time I talked to her. It was right after the Indigo Conference. I'd just been eliminated and she was thinking about joining the Rangers rather than enrolling in the next year's League."

I met her eyes and saw the pain. She blamed herself, she had to. I'd seen that pain before, felt the guilt that came with losing a friend. "It isn't your fault," I said. I leaned forward, knowing that we were feeling much the same at the moment. "Reyes fell to his death because I couldn't hold onto him." I tightened my fists, trying to control myself. "But I can't blame myself for his death. I can't let the people who really caused his death off like that." I took a breath as she met my eyes. "You're angry and sad about what happened to Lori. I get that. Use it, don't let them get away with it."

She sighed and sat forward in her chair. She buried her face in her hands and refused to meet my eyes. "You make it sound so easy."

"It isn't," I replied. "I wish that I had the time to break down and mourn my friend. I wish that I didn't have to push past that pain." I took a chance and reached out. My mind went to Pride, to the dead weighing on my conscience. I put my hand on her shoulder. I couldn't let grief rule me forever. "It's up to us to make their deaths mean something. To make those sacrifices worth it."

She looked up and I caught the twinkle of tears at the corners of her eyes. They were gone before I could be sure, but Janine was hurting bad. That wasn't the first time I thought I'd caught tears. "Rocket did this," she said coldly.

I rubbed my temples and leaned back. "How does Rocket play into this? You haven't mentioned them yet."

She smirked lightly and wiped the traces of tears away. "I discovered them by accident, watching the Ayõ Clan's compound. They were moving these massive crates off a ship, loading them all onto Safari Zone trucks."

I perked up. "The evolution machines," I said suddenly. "We found one of them."

She nodded. "I followed one of the trucks into the Safari Zone and ambushed them when they began to unload the device." She frowned. "I didn't know what the device was until a horde of weird half evolved rhydon came at me."

"So you don't know how long Koga has been involved with Rocket?" I asked.

She shook her head. "I only learned about their involvement when I intercepted the truck. But according to the driver, Rocket has always been here. He called Fuchsia Rocket's birthplace."

I frowned. "Then we're about to kick the damn beedrill nest," I said. "With not a hope in hell at getting any meaningful backup."

Janine's eyes flashed as she grinned mischievously at me. "I never said that." She leaned in closer to me. "We're going to need a distraction," she said. "Something big enough to draw the Fucshian Rangers and the clans out of their compounds."

I went pale. "That's a hell of a distraction," I said. "You'd need a large scale attack on a civilian population. Something like that isn't easy to fake."

"I never said anything about faking it," she replied. "It just so happens that I know where a very aggressive herd of half evolved rhydon are."

I sat back in stunned silence. She wanted us to goad a horde of mutated pokemon into an attack on a civilian population. Rangers dedicated ourselves to protecting innocents from dangerous wild pokemon whenever possible. What Janine wanted to do went against everything that the Corps held dear. Of course, it would draw every damn Ranger and probably most of the Clans' trainers out into the field. It was exactly what we needed.

I gritted my teeth, frustrated that I found myself agreeing with the cold logic of it all. "You're asking a lot," I said. "A lot of people could get hurt if the rhydon are too much."

She frowned. "That's a risk we'll just have to take. You wanted my plan, well here it is."

I sighed and got to my feet. "Then where do we begin?"

She grinned and I felt my stomach sink. This mission had already cost too many lives. I had a terrible feeling that it was going to cost a lot more before it was done.


Pokédex Entry #42 – Golbat

This grey-blue mammalian is a notoriously difficult mount. Many a trainer has captured and evolved a zubat only to fall when their golbat proved too difficult to fly atop.

It drinks blood, reportedly in amounts up to ten ounces at a time. There are some stories of golbat sharing their meals with weaker zubat, sparking debate about this mostly nocturnal, cave dweller's intelligence.



Intermediate Trainer KT#07996101

Indigo Ranger Corps, Special Task Group, "Zapdos" Squad,

Private First-Class SN# 109-512-6591, Marcus Wright, current team:

Luna, Ninetales

Acolyte, Marowak

Vector, Heracross

Curie, Chansey

Artemis, Aerodactyl
 
Eternal War
Eternal War


Every day, Farmer Dan started his day by taking his customary stroll through his berry patch. He checked on those precious little moneymakers every single morning, watching for any early ripening and checking for any impurities that might affect the value of his crop. His other products all sold well enough, but none of them could even put a dent into the profit margins of his berry patch.

Battle-crazed trainers were positively starved for high-quality berries and would pay through the nose for competition quality items. It had been the latest business boom, taking his old family farm from a local produce farm to an international business recognized across the world. He'd had visitors from Kanto and Sinnoh in the last week, to go along with his usual local buyers from Hoenn's League. Business was absolutely booming and he couldn't be happier.

He wiped the sweat from his balding head and moved on to the next patch of berries, satisfied by the progress his lum berries were making. Already, the morning sun was beaming down and scorching him with its gaze. It wouldn't be long before he'd be able to start the harvest, plucking the sitrus berries before they ripened too much. He dropped to one knee as he reached the first sitrus plant and lifted up the leafy foliage. His jaw dropped, and the stream of obscenities erupting from his lips would have made his mother blush brighter than even the brightest razz berry.

He lifted the mangled corpse of the sitrus berry, mourning it and lamenting the loss of profit. The sour little fruit had been half-eaten and left to rot on the ground. Small paw prints surrounded the plant and led off towards the fence line. Dan rose to his feet, scanning the rest of the sitrus patch with a keen eye. More berries littered the ground under the leaves, their profits leaking into the dirt along with Dan's untarnished reputation.

He swore under his breath, following the trail to the fence line. It wound its way through several other berry patches, circling the pecha patch multiple times. He followed it up to the fence and scowled at the discovery. Something had dug a hole under the fence and pilfered a significant portion of his stock. Something, not someone.

"Ave some troubles now, boy?"

Dan rose to his feet. His hand dropped to his belt, to the one ball that still sat there. He looked up the small hill at the two figures standing in the trees. "Clear off now, Wilkersons."

Jeb and Donny Wilkerson sauntered from the tree line. Dan couldn't see their blasted swampert, but he knew it was out there watching the two brothers. Jeb began to jog down the slight hill. "Somethin' get into yer berries, Danny boy?"

He relaxed slightly, but kept his hand on Lena's ball. The old linoone wouldn't be much help in an all out brawl, but she was an effective deterrent if nothing else. "None of your business, Wilkersons." He looked up at Donny, watching the pudgy man struggle down the hill "Best clear off. Before one of you has an accident."

Jeb wheeled around, spinning back to his brother. "City boy has attitude, Donny."

"Ought'ta teach 'im a lesson," Donny replied, his voice far higher and softer than a man his size would be expected to have. "Maybe the 'vipers in them woods ought'ta pay him a visit."

He froze, his hand clenching Lena's ball tighter. "Seviper?" He asked in a low tone. Just the thought of the serpentine pokemon brought back memories that Dan wanted to leave buried. Memories of a war that his family had barely survived the first time. "Thought they cleared off years ago."

"Ah they're back every so often. Got a few o' dens round our property this year. They don't bother us too much," Jeb replied, clearly enjoying Dan's discomfort. "Course, you ought'ta know that seein' as yer Pa bought it last time they came round these parts." Jeb leaned on the fence, his stupid smirk burning into Daniel's mind. "Ain't that why yer just a farmer like us instead of yer fancy trainin' job? Ain't that why you came on back?"

Dan clenched his fists and remained silent. The Wilkersons were a threat to his business, but only like a magikarp was a threat to a dragon. They were little more than a petty nuisance, jealous at his success while their farming business lagged behind in a changing world. Dan had poured almost everything he'd made in his training career into the family farm, leaving less successful neighbours like the Wilkersons far behind. The seviper were the real threat. Just like last time. Just like when dad died.

"Shame yer not back in the city no more-"

"I said buzz off now, Wilkersons."

Jeb nodded and stopped leaning on the fence. "A'right, don' say we nev'r warned ya." He turned, pausing only to spit a large glob of snot and hork into the dirt.

The two Wilkersons slunk off, back to the swampy hellhole they called home. Dan watched them go until they disappeared in the trees. He stayed there for another half hour, watching the trees for any sign of movement. None came. Satisfied that the two yokels were gone, he turned back and headed for the farmhouse up on the hill.


Dan pulled the battered old rifle from the display case above the fireplace. He hadn't needed to use it since his Pa had died fifteen years back, not since the seviper in the hills had come down to the forest and overrun their farm in search of food. His mind flashed back to the day he had helped his father drive the serpents away. He gripped the rifle just a little tighter and tested the sights cautiously, praying he still had the strength to defend his family.

He closed his eyes and he was back at the edge of the farm, a scared little boy calling out for his father. A chorus of hissing sang at him from the woods, mocking him for his fear. Then he heard the screams. His father was crying out for him, screaming in pain as the seviper found him.

He moved through the forest like a ghost, losing all sense of direction in the woods. Their old linoone stood faithfully at his side. It had the same striped pattern as Lena, but was faded and grey. The pokemon barked and bounded into the darkness, leaving Dan behind in its hurry. He dashed after it, following the eruption of noise deeper in the woods. Lena ran with him, just a zigzagoon back in this memory.

Dan burst into a clearing, tripping over an upturned root and smashing his face off the ground. He groaned and forced himself up to a scene straight from a horror movie. Dan lifted the rifle and sighted the target, shaking uncontrollably. He closed one eye and squeezed the trigger.

"Hun?"

The memory came crashing down on him. He'd shot the seviper just in time. His father had nearly died that day. He had nearly died that day. He hadn't been there when the Seviper had returned, off on his trainer's journey like a selfish fool, and his father had paid the price.

Joanne's voice brought him back to the present day. She must have come in through the back, where he couldn't hear. He picked up the gun cleaning kit and frowned. "Sorry darlin'. Just a bad memory." He turned and slung the rifle over his shoulder. "Wilkersons came round this morning. Threatened me with Seviper again."

She dropped the load of groceries on the floor by the fridge and crossed into the living room. "Jeb again?" She asked. She knew the answer by the scowl on Dan's face. "I'll call Riley,"

"No," Dan replied harshly. He crossed his arms and his scowl seemed to deepen. "Lena and I can handle it."

Joanne brushed her auburn hair out of her face and smiled softly. Dan looked into her warm brown eyes and felt his frustration start to fade. She kissed him gently on the cheek and whispered into his ear. "I love you, Farmer Murphy. And it's because I love you that I'm calling my brother anyways." She pulled back and smiled at him. "You aren't a trainer anymore, Dan. Your team... they aren't around anymore. Riley finished top ten in the last conference, let him help you."

Dan sighed. "I know, I know." He turned away and shook his head slowly. "Getting old now, aren't I? I haven't been a young man for a long while."

Joanne smirked mischievously and kissed him on the cheek. She grabbed him by the beard and pulled him in close. "I prefer you with the experience," she said with a wink. She glanced over at the stairs and then back at her husband.

"And the groceries?" he asked knowingly. Try as he might, he couldn't hide the grin spreading across his face.

"They'll still be there when we're done."


Dan woke the next morning to more carnage in the berry fields. He'd still make a decent profit from his other berries, but the sitrus and pecha fields had been almost completely wiped out at night. The scarecrows hadn't worked evidently, and Lena hadn't woken to any intruders. They'd bypassed his expensive electric fence like it hadn't even been there

He'd spent the entire day reinforcing the fence and building a small bunker of soil to hide behind. He didn't know if the thief would be back again, but he wasn't taking any chances. He needed some profit on the crop, at least enough to tide them over for the winter. He could probably afford a loan if necessary, but he was loathe to do so. He'd lived that life when he was younger.

Joanne had appeared around dusk, carrying a plate of dinner for him. She told him Riley would likely arrive around dusk the next day and asked him to come inside for the night. Dan simply refused. He had a thief to catch. He would not leave his post tonight. Not for anything.


She prowled through the forest, her nose low to the ground as she followed the same path she had the night before. The pack was dwindling, losing more and more of their number each day. There were less than a dozen left, and half of those were gravely injured themselves. She'd even taken a seviper's tail blade to her shoulder that day, a cut that ran down to the bone and ached horribly even after the last of the berries.

The berries she'd managed to find at the new patch had stemmed some of their losses, but only for a night. She needed more, more even than the strange fenced patch she found had possessed. Still, it was the only source for eons around that was not guarded by the serpents.

She peeked out from the tree line, looking down at the fields. No movement caught her eye. She scampered down the hill, nose raised and ears perked for any sign of danger. A glorious smell greeted her, vegetable and berry scents mixing together in a heavenly aroma. It was faint, but evidently there. She put it out of her mind as her stomach protested with a growl. The pack needed her more than she needed to eat. She'd take whatever berry scraps were left after the pack was done.

She found her hole easily enough. Or rather, the loosely packed dirt where she had filled the hole. She shovelled aside the dirt effortlessly, remembering skills that her trainer had taught her a lifetime ago. It took mere minutes, the dirt still loosely packed from her last heist. She emerged on the other side of the fence and sniffed the air cautiously.

Something felt different tonight. The hole had been patched, hard dirt packed down at the end. A strange pile of soil blocked the path deeper into the berry fields. She sniffed again and caught the same savoury scent as before. Cautiously, she crept forward as her ears strained for any sign of danger. She froze as a human rose from the wall. She'd seen the strange device in its hands before. She knew what would happen to her if it went off. The hair on her back began to raise and she growled a deep warning.

Dan shouldered the rifle as silently as possible. He pulled back the bolt and chambered a round as a vague shape illuminated only by the light of the moon excavated the hole he had spent the entire day filling with rocks and dirt. The pokemon disappeared into the hole and Dan readied himself to pull the trigger.

Its head poked out from the hole and Dan felt his heart skip a beat. The thief was back. He rose from his makeshift barricade, lined up the shot and froze. The thing was looking right at him.

It was a sorry mess, blood matting its fur and staining it a mottled red-brown. One eye was gone, an empty patch of skin looking at him from where the eye should have been. A fresh gash on its shoulder was still leaking blood and every movement seemed to bring fresh pain in its step. It growled deeply, but even the growl seemed to be through gritted teeth.

Dan lowered the rifle. He glanced down at Lena and gently woke the aging linoone. "Go up to the house. Get the potions." He glanced back at the beaten and bloodied pokemon. "Quietly."

Lena disappeared into the night, casting a wayward glance at the intruder. She listened to her old trainer and disappeared up the hill towards the house.

Dan clambered over his barricade slowly. He moved carefully, taking great care not to spook the injured pokemon. He gently laid his rifle down against the barricade and slowly crossed to one of the sitrus plants. He picked a pair of berries and glanced over at the thief. "You know," he started. "I was a trainer once. Do you know what a trainer is?"

The pokemon made no move. She looked at him warily, teeth bared.

Dan inched closer. "I can tell you're in a lot of pain. I can help you, but you have to let me." He stepped closer, holding out the first sitrus berry.

The pokemon raised its head, sniffing cautiously at the tantalizing berry. It took a step closer and Dan saw truly how injured it was. It was a zangoose, her usually sparkling white fur matted with dark splotches of bloody brown. She approached the berry cautiously and took the fruit with a single paw.

Dan smiled. He crept closer, dropping down to one knee. He carefully reached out one hand, showing the zangoose he was no threat.

She looked away from the berry as Lena emerged from the darkness with a small sack clutched in her mouth. Her teeth bared and she growled a warning as her paw covered her berry.

Dan took the bag and dismissed Lena to her ball. He pulled out one of the potions and shook the small spray bottle. "This might sting a little bit, but your shoulder needs something a little stronger than some berry juice."

The zangoose lowered her shoulder and turned slightly as Dan dropped the second sitrus berry in front of her. She braced herself unconsciously as Dan began to spray the wound with the healing liquid.

The wound began to harden and seal before his eyes, skin knitting itself back together as the potion began its work. Dan slowly worked his way down the zangoose. Every scratch got a spray, every patch of bloodied fur was soaked thoroughly in the healing spray.

He leaned back, cocking his head to the side with a smile. "That feel better?"

The zangoose met his gaze with her good eye. They held there, man and mon studying the intentions in the other's eyes. The moment passed. The zangoose lowered her head and gently nudged her nose against his hand.

Dan smiled and rose to his feet slowly. "Look, I can't have you stealing my whole crop. I understand that you're hurt, but this is my livelihood." He leaned back against his barricade as his smile faded. "You gotta stop coming round here now."

The zangoose lowered her head. She glanced from side to side, looking at the waiting sitrus plants. She turned around and slunk back to the hole without a backwards glance.

Dan watched her go, waiting until the zangoose's shadow disappeared into the trees. He reached down and lifted his rifle. He slung it over his shoulder and began the hike back up to the old farmhouse.


The sun was barely up before Dan rose from the bed. He departed from the house with Lena at his side, shovel already slung over his shoulder. After a quick inspection of his crop, he made his way over to the hole. Lena lounged happily in the sun while he set to work filling in the hole and shoring up the base of the fence. It might not keep out a determined zangoose, but it might slow one down. He mentally kicked himself for not upgrading the fencing last season, resolving to fortify the earth beneath the fence however he could.

Joanne appeared from the house, two absurd oversized drinks in her hands. Slices of berries filled the glass of cold ice water, glistening in the afternoon sun. "Finished up with the pecha jelly and the last of the lum cream. Think there'll be enough of this crop left over for another batch each?"

Dan wiped away the sweat and shook his head. "Doubt it. We barely have enough to cover the existing contracts, let alone any local customers." He grunted in thanks and took the oversized drink. "I met our thief last night. Looks like a zangoose has been using the patch as an infirmary."

"Any idea how to stop it?" She asked.

Dan shrugged. "Figure I'd ask nicely. I'll keep the barricade up another night and stay out here just in case." His smile returned and he took the drink from his wife. "Maybe I should catch her. I was a trainer back in my day."

She shook her head, the ghost of a smile on her face. "It's not back in the day anymore, Dan. You think you can handle something like that?"

Again, he shrugged. "No way to know until it happens." He turned and looked off at the cloud front moving inland. "Storm's coming. Better call Riley and have him get his butt here before the road floods."

"He won't be coming by road," Joanne replied. "Was coming from Kanto, Saffron, I think." She looked off at the clouds. "He can handle a storm. Told me Oberon once flew him through a hurricane. A little rain won't stop that flygon if Riley asks him."

Movement from the trees drew their gaze. They came in twos and threes, most of them injured, most of them barely limping into view before collapsing. Then he saw her. Dan met her eye with his own. Then the one-eyed zangoose collapsed into the dirt.


Dan had considered half a hundred careers when he'd retired from training. None of them held the same lustre that training had held, but he liked the simplicity of berry farming. Even if it was forced, he enjoyed the calm retirement into farming. The memories of his training career and the twin tragedies that had ended it were never far from his mind. They came rushing back now, the deaths of his old team rushing back to the forefront of his mind as he patched each wound and injected each of the injured zangoose with antidotes.

They were ancient enemies of the seviper, foes locked in some terrible eternal war. They were losing. The zangoose were losing. Half the zangoose that had managed to crawl to the farm would likely never battle again, the other half was covered in more wounds that Dan had ever thought possible.

The one-eyed zangoose had been the worst. Dozens of fresh wounds covered her body and two deep punctures on one of her legs told him all he needed to know. She'd led her pack here, to him, hoping beyond reason that he would harbour them. He didn't refuse. He couldn't.

He picked the last of his spare sitrus berries and burned through his potions like he was an elite trainer. Each and every wound found at least some treatment, whether it be a natural poultice Joanne had made or one of his dwindling supply of potions. The sun was beginning to set by the time they finished with the pack.

"When's Riley getting here," Dan asked. "Could use his help with all this." He dunked his arms in the wash bucket, scrubbing at the bloody viscera. "Makes me nervous, darlin. Zangoose aren't usually scared of nothing. They're the type to fight to the end, especially against a seviper."

She shrugged. "Riley said he'd be here today," she said. "Nothin' we can do but help them. Seeing as you're too soft to drive them away and I've got a bleeding heart, this is what we're doing."

Dan nodded and dried his hands off on the towel beside them. He'd still need to shower later, but he was no longer covered in bloody fur. He sat heavily on the stool he had been sitting on, groaning in exhaustion.

She cast her eyes over to the one-eyed zangoose. "I think she's the mama," she started. "She's been protective of each of these zangoose, she led them here. It's like she's in charge."

"The pack mother?" Dan replied. "She seems too comfortable with us, too quick to respond to my questions. It's like she's used to humans."

"Think she was trained?" Joanne asked. "It would make sense."

He paused for a moment, deep in thought. "I think she was. She dug through the ground like it was nothing. Zangoose don't typically learn to do that in the wild."

"What do you think happened to them?" Joanne asked.

Dan shrugged. "Battle, most likely. I'd bet anything that it was the seviper that the Wilkersons were threatening me with." He got to his feet, looking up at the storm. "They're going to come here," he said. "The seviper."

Joanne nodded. "I figured as much."

Dan looked over at her. "I have to do something. These zangoose… they're practically half-dead already. The Wilkersons will be back and they'll bring the Seviper to do what they won't. They'll kill both of us and the zangoose and be done with it."

Joanne nodded again. "You know what you have to do," she said. She looked away, fighting tears. "But I don't want you to do it."

He saw the tears at the edges of her eyes and brushed them away. "I'll be alright, love. I've got Lena."

She nodded. "I know, I know," she said slowly. She looked at him reluctantly, the air heavy with tension. "Don't die," she said, her eyes pleading. "Don't make me a widow."

Dan pulled her in close. "I'm always gonna be here, darlin'. Don't you doubt that." He held her close for a long moment. "I'll be back before sundown, I promise. I'm going to end this stupid feud."

They embraced for a long moment. Then the moment ended and the rain began to fall.

"I'll be back," said Dan. "Stay in the house."

She left, her arms up to shield herself from the rain. Dan looked down at Lena. He still had one pokemon left, still had his loyal starter. He lifted her ball, returning her. He pocketed the ball, slinging his father's old rifle over his shoulder and marched to meet an ancient enemy, a trainer once more.


The Wilkersons and the Murphys had feuded for centuries. Generations of farmers had warred over their speck of northern Hoenn, uncounted lives lost over decades of petty squabbles. He didn't know when it had begun, he didn't know what started it, all he knew was that it had to stop.

Dan had only been to the Wilkersons farm once, when his grandfather had made a trip over as a peace offering. The Wilkersons had accused him of poisoning the pie he had brought as an offering and thrown them off the farm. Two weeks later, his grandfather had disappeared from the fields. They'd found him after two nights, beaten to death in the woods.

He stepped through the dilapidated gates, avoiding the muddy swamp on either side of the road. The Wilkersons farm was not much better than he remembered it. The barn was still leaning dangerously and the swamp encroached on the little spit of arable land on each side.

"Hello?" He called. "Wilkersons?"

His voice trailed off and he turned his head. The trees were alive. The air was filled with the sound of hissing. The seviper were here. They were here, watching his every step.

The door of the small house swung open. "City-boy?" asked a surprised Jeb. "Whatcha doin out here?"

Dan clenched his fists, standing as proud as he could with the rifle slung over his shoulder. The seviper were coming, but he stood tall. He wouldn't give the Wilkersons the satisfaction of seeing his fear, wouldn't let them see what they'd done to him. "I want this feud over," he said. "It's gone on far too long."

The door swung open, Donny Wilkerson's muscled frame squeezing through. "Wot is it, Jeb?"

"Danny-boy wants a truce," Jeb said. "Wants our feud over."

"It's been long enough," Dan said loudly, interrupting the brothers. He kept his eyes on them, ignoring the serpents creeping closer. "Do you even remember why we're fighting? I don't!"

Jeb grinned coldly. "Wilkersons and Murphys always fight. Our Pa killed your grandpa. Your Pa killed our Pa, we killed your Pa for it. Now we're gon' kill you," he said. "It's in the blood, city boy. You can't change it no more than the 'viper can change." He leaned over the porch railing, the savage grin on his face widening. "It's our own war, just like the 'goose and the 'viper. 'Cept this time, the 'viper are gonna win."

"It doesn't have to be this way," Dan said. His hand lowered to Lena's ball, eying the seviper creeping towards him. He could see the Wilkersons swampert, watching from the water and even more serpents cutting lithely forwards. "We don't have to be like our fathers, not anymore."

Jeb stepped off the porch, regarding the seviper advancing on me curiously. "The 'viper don't like you, city boy. They really don't like you." He cracked his knuckles, looking up at me with a knowing smirk.

Dan's eyes widened and he realized that he was in mortal danger. "We don't have to like each other," he said. He unslung the rifle, holding it at his shoulder. "We don't need to kill each other, either. But I'll do what I have to to protect my family."

Jeb stopped in his tracks, curiously regarding the old farmer and his rifle. "You think you got the balls to shoot me?" Jeb asked. "You ain't never shot-"

Dan swivelled, sighting one of the encroaching serpents through the sights. He squeezed the trigger, painting the ground around the seviper with bits of brain and bone. Dan set the sights back on Jeb as the horde of serpents hissed furiously. "Try me," he said. "I've got plenty of practice killing seviper from the last time."

Jeb stepped back, raising his hands as Dan pointed the rifle in his face. "We'll leave you be," he said quickly. "No more shootin'."

Dan stepped backwards slowly, keeping his rifle trained on Jeb. "Good," he said, relief creeping into his voice. "Don't make me come back here." He kept moving backwards, feet carefully tracing the steps he had taken on the way in. He didn't turn away or lower the rifle until long after he had retreated through the gate and left the swamp far behind.


He trudged out of the forest, rifle slung heavily over his shoulder. His boots were covered in mud and his shoulders sagged with exhaustion. The zangoose looked up the hill at him, tired heads turning and pointing up at him. He stepped down that hill, tired feet tracing the steps back through the gate and up the hill towards the house.

Dan stopped in front of the pack of zangoose, looking down at the pack mother. "I don't know what happened out there, but you're safe here." He dropped down to one knee, putting himself level with the pokemon. "We been on the same side of a war that we didn't know about. We been fighting alone for too long." He smiled softly, thinking about his team. It'd be good for them to have some pokemon around. "We could stay together," he said with a calm smile. "One big pack." He looked up at the house, Joanne smiling at him though the window. "One big family, like I used to have."

Mama looked up at him, remaining eye searching his face for some hint that he was lying. She couldn't find one. The zangoose reached up at him, extending her claws and holding her paw out.

Dan reached down, gently brushing his hand against the zangoose's outstretched paw. She closed her paw and looked up at him, blinking slowly.

"Dan?"

The old farmer got to his feet, turning towards his wife as she came down the steps of the porch. "It's done, darlin. Wilkersons won't bother us no more."

She ran to him, wrapping herself around him in a fierce embrace. They were together, just like they should be. They were together and all was right with the world.


He rose at dawn, like he always did. Riley had arrived at some point in the night, half ragged atop his heaving flygon. They were exhausted after flying through the rainstorm. Dan crept past the door, sure to keep quiet.

He stepped outside, smiling at the morning sun. Movement from the fields drew his gaze, zangoose cubs frolicking through his remaining crops. Mama rose from where she had curled herself on the porch of the house, regarding him curiously.

"Sleep well?" Dan asked. "You certainly look like you're feeling better."

The zangoose growled, pointing down at her mottled brown-red fur. She pointed at the zangoose club closest to them, growling again and combing her claws through the cub's hair.

"You'd like to wash?" Dan asked. "I can fill the tub again."

He trudged over to the washtub he'd dragged out for the zangoose the night before. He filled it with fresh water from the well and stepped back.

The zangoose dipped a paw into the water, splashing it over herself. Dan turned, smiling happily as a trio of zangoose cubs bounded through his legs to play with the tub of water.

Joanne appeared in the doorway, a coffee mug clutched in her hands. "You missed this," she said with a smile. "having pokemon around. You're a trainer again, Farmer Murphy."

Dan grinned, climbing the stairs up the porch. "I did miss it," he said. He looked down at the zangoose. "We've got that big happy family that we always wanted."

Her cheeks went a bright red. "Yeah…" she started, trailing off. "About that…" Joanne's hand went into her robe, pulling out a small plastic rectangle. "I had to pee really bad, so I got up. And I remembered reading that these were more accurate if you used them first thing in the morning…"

Dan looked down, his eyes fixating on the little red plus sign. He glanced back up at his wife before a dumbfounded grin crossed his face. "You're pregnant," he said dumbly. "You're actually…"

She nodded, wrapping her arms around him. "Now it's the family I always wanted," she said.

He hugged her back, holding back the sobs of joy as he held her close. The tears fell freely, joyous emotion overwhelming him. He would be a father. He would not be the last of his line.


A week passed, a week of blissful happiness. His profit was practically a write-off this season, but they'd survive the loss of a single harvest with little difficulty. Dan found that even the prospect of financial hardship couldn't get him down.

Riley lifted the buckets of mulch, picking up the last of the fertilizer.

"Put that up by the tractor," Dan said, wiping sweat from his brow. "I still gotta fertilize the cheri fields, but we're just about done for the day."

Riley perked up, his shaggy black hair drenched in sweat. "Does that mean I finally get to try some of Joanne's farm fresh iced berry juice?"

Dan smirked. "I think I could go for that right about now."

Riley dropped the buckets beside the tractor and turned back to Dan. "I'm gonna wash up then, if you don't mind?"

The old farmer nodded, waving his brother in law away absentmindedly. He traipsed down to the fence, chuckling under his breath. A pair of the zangoose cubs were feinting at the electric fence, trying to see who could be the last one to move out of the way.

"That ain't too safe," Dan said with a grin. He knelt down beside them, scratching one of the cubs under his waiting chin. "Could get real hurt out here."

"Dan?"

He turned his head, smiling as he waved up at the house. "Yes, darlin'?"

"Riley says you sent him for juice?"

Dan couldn't help rolling his eyes as he chuckled. "Yes," he replied. "I sent him up there."

Joanne shook her head, a grin clear on her face. It died as she raised her arm, a look of utter horror on her face.

Dan heard the hiss as the world seemed to fall silent. All the other noise just seemed to fade away, leaving just the angry, hateful hissing.

He felt the blood drain from his face and followed his wife's finger. The hill leading down from the trees was alive, hundreds of serpents slowly advancing on his farm. The Wilkersons had arrived.

"Call Riley out here." He turned back to the trees as Joanne dashed off towards the house. He glanced back over his shoulder. "Get the rifle and cover me!"

Dan turned, two zangoose cubs and himself the only thing between the swarm and his family.

A man sauntered from the tree line, a malevolent grin plastered on his face. "Sounds like the 'vipers are angry," Jeb Wilkerson said, malevolence dripping from every word. "They been looking for those 'goose all day. Looks like they found 'em now and they found me a prize to go with 'em."

Dan's hands closed into fists. The rifle was up at the house. Lena was in her ball, also up at the house. Joanne was gone to get Riley, again up at the house. It was him against an army. Him and two little cubs.

The one eyed zangoose stepped out beside him, growling and glaring up the hill. Her eyes were fixated on Jeb, on the man who seemed to command the seviper. The rest of the pack fanned out behind him, all eight of the remaining fighters prowling back and forth in anticipation of the coming battle. The cubs retreated behind them, a few more of the young retreating towards the house with them.

"Well, they found 'em, Jebediah." Dan called. He crossed his arms, glancing over at the zangoose. He looked back up at Jeb. "We had words. You best leave them be now."

Jeb continued down the hill, larger serpents beginning to follow him out from the trees. "That ain't how this works, city boy. The 'vipers ain't gonna rest 'till all those 'goose are dead." He cracked his knuckles and rolled his shoulders. "You stand with them and the 'vipers look at you like one of them."

Dan locked eyes with Jeb, scowling deeply. "The 'vipers or you?"

Jeb's smile seemed to deepen. He shrugged. "Ain't no difference no more, city boy." He smirked, cracking his knuckles. "I told you. Feud has to end in blood. It always ends in blood."

The hill was alive, dozens of serpents slithering down towards the farm. There were dozens, from small hatchlings to the pair of massive seviper as thick around as some of the tree trunks.

Dan glanced back, eying his makeshift army. The one-eyed zangoose met his eyes. He had been a trainer once. She'd had a trainer once. Dan wasn't much for fate, but he couldn't help but feel like their meeting had been the work of something greater. She nodded and turned back to face the horde.

"Alright," Dan roared, his voice coming to life as adrenaline pumped through his body. He grabbed a flat spade, holding it up as a makeshift weapon. "Keep an eye on the ground! They're gonna burrow through and come up at us from beneath."

He looked at Jeb as the Wilkerson lifted a ball from his belt. "Mama," he started.

She glanced at him, vengeful fire in her eyes.

"You're with me."

Then the world seemed to end. The seviper surged forward as Dan walked out to meet Jeb. The sea of serpents disappeared into the earth, burrowing their way under his newly reinforced fence. The fence toppled as the horde of seviper passed underneath. They burst from the ground and battle began.

Serpent and beast clashed with finality, both sides seeming to sense that the end of an eternal war was close to its end. Mama forged a path through for her new trainer, claws flashing as she cut her way through the serpents.

He heard the crack of rifle fire and watched a seviper that had been leaping for him shrink back.

Dan charged through the gap, ducking under the fangs of a lunging seviper as he swung his spade at another. Even a single bite from those fangs and he would be dead. One of the zangoose pack leapt from the fray to intercept the seviper, rolling away as he tangled with the serpent. Dan forged on, following the trail of carnage that Mama had carved. Jeb was the target, Jeb was the one controlling all of this.

He came to an abrupt halt. Mama was still, the shredded length of a seviper laying at her feet. Her chest was heaving and there were half a dozen new wounds marring her fur.

Jeb was staring at them with near glee. "City boy finally grew a pair. Took you long enough. I had to rile up every damn 'viper in the forest to get a rise outta you." He smirked and shook his head. "This is gonna be real fun, city boy." He lifted his ball, releasing the swampert inside.

Dan cracked his knuckles. Mama looked at him with a confident nod. It might have been years since he was a trainer, but the instincts never really left. A grin spread across his face. "Yeah, it is gonna be fun, Jeb."

He glanced down at Mama. "Taunt him. Keep that swampert on the offensive and stay out of its way until I say."

He looked back up at Jeb. "What say we settle this little feud once and for all?"

The Wilkerson's smirk faded and a scowl crossed his face. "Aro, take down!"

Mama bounded forward as the swampert lowered its shoulder. She ducked to the side, raking the swampert with her claws as it barrelled past. It skidded to a halt, trying to compensate and turn on a dime. Mama darted in and raked the swampert's rough hide with her claws again, barely drawing blood.

"Hammer arm!"

Dan glanced up, reading Jeb's body language in an instant. Not yet, it wasn't time yet. "Detect!" He shouted. He didn't know how he knew, but he knew that Mama knew what he wanted.

Mama looked impossibly small as Aro rose up on his hind legs. Her eyes flashed with anticipation. Then the hammer fell. Two fists slammed into the dirt where the zangoose had been standing an instant before. She moved in a flash, always a hair away from being crushed by the hammer arms. She ducked away one last time, the swampert overextending in frustration.

"Now, close combat!" Dan roared, seizing on the opening.

Mama struck back with all the pent up force and fury of a trapped animal. Aro withered under the assault, shrinking back as Mama pounded him into submission.

"Hydro pump!" Jeb spat, panicking.

His swampert reeled around, swinging wildly to clear himself some room. He opened his mouth, blasting a jet of water harmlessly into the side of the hill. Mud and water splashed high, splattering the field of battle in brown water.

Mama leapt away as a second hydro pump sailed into the sky over the farm. He didn't see it land, didn't care so long as it didn't hit the house.

The two pokemon glared at each other, both of them exhausted and battered though Aro had taken the worst of the exchange.

Dan stepped forward, ready to give the order to end the battle. He felt something prick his thigh and felt the instant seizure as his muscles contracted in shock.

"Dan!" Joanne called, her voice seeming to be far off in the distance. "Lena, go!"

The linoone was at his side, tearing the infant seviper off his leg in an instant. Dan felt his leg give out, felt himself crash to the ground as he toppled over. Lena crouched over him, growling at Jeb and protecting her old trainer.

"Dan!" Joanne shouted desperately. "Dan!"

Her voice seemed further and further away. He laid his head back as a strange floating sensation seemed to take over his body.

Mama was there, standing over him protectively as well. She growled a warning at Jeb and the swampert, joining Lena in protecting her new trainer.

A wave of earth rolled across the field. Berry plants went soaring through the air, fence pieces thrown into the air by the earthen attack. Riley's flygon swooped down, tearing a triumphant seviper away from a prone zangoose.

Dan closed his eyes. His leg seemed to stop burning. He let go of the pain and felt nothing at all. "Mama," he croaked, his voice failing. "Take care of 'em for me. Take care of her." He felt something nudge his hand. He knew she accepted. He felt himself slipping away. He heard the last rifle shot and saw Jeb fall to the ground. He didn't fight the end.


She looked up at the sky, watching the sun pass behind a cloud. The cold was coming soon, but there would be enough time for the man-cubs to finish the harvest. She turned back to the house, a pair of her own cubs prowling along the fence line.

It had been near ten winters since she had found the patch. Ten winters since she had found and lost her last trainer. Her pack was strong now, stronger than it had been when they had called the forest their home.

The woman emerged from the house, calling for the two man-cubs. They ignored her, as they usually did. They were brazen, reckless cubs much like her own. These humans and her young were more alike than they had ever realized.

The pack mother turned and trotted off into the berry fields in search of the man-cubs. She'd made a promise to a trainer once. She'd promised a dying man that his pack would be hers. She'd promised that she would keep them safe. She would keep that promise, no matter what.
 
Death of Duty, Chapter 18: Soul
Soul


"Harding," I said, tapping on my comm unit as Artemis cleared the last of the trees. The savanna stretched out before me and the sea sparkled on the horizon. I glanced down at the small camp below, finally comfortable to break radio silence with the rest of Zapdos squad in sight. "I'm coming in. I've got a guest with me, so I need everyone to stay calm."

I glanced back at the colossal bug floating ethereally behind me. I waved for her attention and pointed down at the camp below. She nodded and her venomoth began to descend.

I pulled Artemis into a steep dive, overtaking her and guiding her in to the edge of the camp. We landed in a flutter of wings as Janine gracefully touched down behind us.

Harding was waiting at the edge of the camp, McCulloch standing implacably at her side. Harding's expression was hard and grim, a harsh contrast with McCulloch's affable grin.

"Private," Harding said, greeting me with a nod. She looked over at Janine and I saw judgement in her eyes. "This is your guest, I presume?"

I nodded emphatically as Janine slipped off her venomoth and looked impatiently at the senior Rangers. "Yes, ma'am. This is Janine of the Anzu clan, one of Koga's rival clans among the fourteen families that rule Fuchsia." I turned, waving the young shinobi forward. "She has some intel that you need to hear."

Harding's gaze shifted ever so slightly, falling on Janine. I could see the judgement in her eyes and hoped that the captain was in an agreeable mood.

Janine, for her part, hardly missed a beat. She stepped forward, bowing her head curtly in a show of respect. "Hello, ma'am. My condolences and apologies for the losses that you've suffered. My father seems to have deceived your superior and your men have paid the price."

Harding glanced at me, raising an eyebrow.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, hoping that Harding wouldn't object to my next words. "Janine is Koga's daughter," I said quickly. "She was cheated of her inheritance and she wants our help to get it back."

Harding looked back at Janine, scowl seeming to deepen with every passing moment. She didn't like surprises, and the presumptive heir to Fuchsia falling into her lap was a big one. She cleared her throat, studying Janine for any sign of weakness. "And what would you give us in return?"

"A reliable ally against Rocket," Janine replied. She smirked, knowing that the Ranger captain had very few realistic paths to completing the mission. Janine knew that we had to rescue Surge. She knew that we could not do it alone. She knew that we needed her. "And one less place for Rocket to hide once I am in power. I have no love for scum who traffick the pokemon in my backyard."

Harding nodded slightly and I saw her frown soften slightly. "You have something to tell me?"

Janine planted her feet, crossing both arms behind her back. "You're walking towards a trap. My father means to draw you into a trap with assurances from Ranger Command. He wants to hit you when you think you're safe and end your search for Rocket quietly."

"How can you be sure?" Harding asked. "Ranger Command wouldn't arrange the deaths of service members."

Janine frowned. "I know because it's what I would do if I were in my father's position." She cocked her head to the side. "He taught me everything he knew, trained me to be his replacement my whole life. He owns Fuchsia, down to the last man." She frowned, knowing she was bearing devastating news to the Captain. "Those Rangers are not on your side."

Harding nodded, stoic as ever. Her expression did not change, not even a single crack showing in her impenetrable façade. "We have to rescue Surge, if nothing else. He can bring this to the League, take this up to Lance himself."

Janine nodded, knowing that she had Harding in a place no options. She had to make a move no matter what, and Janine held all of the cards. "Surge is being held inside the Ayõ clan compound outside of Fuchsia proper. You'll need a distraction to empty the compound and give you even a fighting chance at sneaking a few men inside."

Harding cocked her head to the side. "That sounds like a big distraction," she started.

"You would need something large enough to warrant a full deployment of the Clans and the Rangers. Something that threatened the safety of Fuchsia itself."

I saw Harding's expression changed as she contemplated the implications of Janine's claim. "Say that I agree to stage a distraction," she started. "What would that look like?"

Janine smirked mischievously. "I have the perfect horde of mutations in mind."

Harding's face fell and her eyes widened. "I'm not going to like this, am I?"

I shook my head ominously. "No," I said. "You really won't."

"There's a large herd of Rocket's test subjects not far south of here. I want you to drive them towards Fuchsia and force my father to gather his strength and meet them in the field."

Harding scowled, slowly turning to look at me. "This is what you bring me?" she asked coldly. "This isn't an option, Marcus. The number of people that we'd be directly risking with this plan is unacceptable."

"I know that," I replied. "That's why I brought the decision to you. This is above my rank. I can't make this call."

Janine raised a hand. "If I may, I believe that Fucshia is more than capable of defending this attack, particularly if we are to drive the herd towards a particularly rough part of the terrain. I know a place that would force the creatures through a treacherous path down a steep cliffside over the coastal plain. The terrain is ideal for a mobile defence."

Harding looked at McCulloch. "Is there anywhere that could work?"

He smoothed his goatee quietly, contemplating the idea. "There are some rapid elevation changes to the west of the city. It's possible that there's a place we could stage this, but I don't know enough about the terrain personally."

"I do know the terrain," Janine replied. "I was raised here. I know my father, I know where he will place the defence." She folded her arms once more. "If we are to do this, then we must move quickly. My father's men will notice my presence here if they haven't already. We have precious little time before the opportunity passes and Surge is moved to a new location and you lose him." She stepped closer, her voice growing desperate. "Please, I beg you. This is the only way to rescue your friends and stop Rocket in its tracks."

Harding scowled, her expression mixed. She shook her head slowly as she looked between McCulloch and myself. "I can't believe that I'm saying this." She folded her arms across her chest and glanced over at McCulloch. "Break camp," she ordered. "If she's here, then then we are out of time. We need to move now."


I crouched over the spike on Artemis' neck, glancing over at Harding. Her fearow quivered slightly, tense and waiting for a signal to take off. Janine and Captain Harding waited patiently, Janine clad in spare Ranger fatigues. She had a cap pulled over her head, hiding most of her purple hair underneath.

The radio suddenly crackled to life, breaking the silence. "Fuchsia Command, this is Sergeant Ian McCulloch with Zapdos squad. We're under attack by a horde of mutated pokemon, over."

There was a small delay, then the radio crackled back in response. "Confirm again, Ranger McCulloch, over."

"I repeat, we are under attack and en route south. The herd shows no sign of slowing. It numbers in the hundreds, command. We can't even slow them down." He paused for a small moment. "We have multiple casualties and have been separated from our commanding officer, requesting immediate assistance, over."

"Confirm location, Ranger McCulloch, over."

"Grid six, sector twelve. We are moving south and will likely spill onto the coastal plain by the end of the day. We will not be able to steer them off our tail if this chase continues, over."

There was a longer delay, leaving the three of us in silence for over a minute. "Roger that," the voice replied. "Continue due south and await further commands." There was a small pause again. "Help is on the way, Rangers. Stay safe, over."

Harding clicked off the radio. "Alright, let's move."

Her fearow took off the top of the cliff, rising back up and keeping just north of the edge of the cliffside. Artemis and I followed a dozen meters behind her, keeping doubly sure that we skimmed just above the ground to keep ourselves out of view. We followed the cliffs to the east, checking for movement every hour or so. It wasn't until we had already flown three hours towards Fuchsia that we spotted a half dozen convoys of trucks racing to the west. They soared along the flat coastal plain, at least thirty to forty trucks in all. They drove in small groups, flyers racing ahead to provide advance support to McCulloch and the rest of Zapdos squad.

"They bought it," I said, returning Artemis to her ball. With Fuchsia mounting a response, we had to stay out of sight. Harding turned and did the same with her fearow. "We should hunker down until they've passed."

"Agreed," Harding said. She crept back from the edge of the cliff, retreating into the copse of trees atop the cliff as she gazed down at the convoy racing to help McCulloch. "Keep out of sight. It won't do for us to be noticed before we make our move."

I retreated to the trees with Harding, sitting against a tree and groaning slightly. My body was sore, but my mind was exhausted. It had been a violent slog, a brutal baptism into the ranks. Friends that I'd made over the past few months were gone, like they had hardly even existed in the first place. Sleep had been hard enough to come by, with the terrifying radio message haunting me every time I had closed my eyes.

I looked over at the Captain, realizing that she'd dealt with this experience before. I didn't know if it was appropriate, but I needed to talk to someone. "You holding up alright, Captain?"

Harding scowled as she leaned against the tree behind her. I saw her silent groan as she lowered herself to the floor, watched the twinge in her left knee and the unconscious wince that she probably didn't even know she'd made. "I'm fine, Marcus." She glanced up at me. "I'm the one that should be asking you that. You've had to do more than a rookie should ever be asked to. I'm impressed."

I offered my best smile. I didn't feel impressive, but a compliment from a superior officer had a way of easing your concerns.

"Did you tell her about how I almost killed you in your underwear?" Janine asked. "Seemed very impressive to me."

Harding shook her head, ignoring Janine. "I'm serious," she said. "You've had a nightmare of a mission. Taking down that dragon, that radio call, then getting separated from the squad?" She smiled softly. "You've done well, Marcus."

I frowned. "It doesn't feel like it. First Wertz, then squad three, and then Reyes…" my voice trailed off and my gaze fell to the ground. "I don't know how you can say that's a job well done."

Harding frowned. "You're too hard on yourself, kid. You didn't kill Wertz. You didn't kill Reyes. Hell, you damn near actually caught him." She shook her head and sat forward slightly. "Most of Zapdos squad are hardened soldiers. Members are usually selected after over a dozen missions and require a commendation from high command. You skipped the required service time because Surge likes you and thought you could handle yourself, so maybe you didn't get this lesson." She paused, studying my pained expression. "Rangers die. It's a part of the service. Everyone here knew the risks. Everyone here knew what could possibly happen. Every single one of them would not hesitate to give their life in pursuit of the mission."

I felt something snap inside of me. "I don't want to die," I said, my fists tightening. "I just wanted to stop more people from getting hurt by Rocket." A shade of Wertz clutching at her throat flashed in my mind. "I made friends, real friends…" Lori was splayed out in front of us, body long cold. "I've watched them die," I said as Reyes' bandolier snapped and he plummeted through the trees. "So much death, and for what? What was it all even for?" I threw my hands in the air in frustration and stared blankly at the ground.

A melancholic smile crossed my captain's face. "I've watched friends that I've known for years die. It never gets easier, Rook. That's the burden a Ranger bears. We fight and die so that the ones we love don't have to." She glanced over at Janine as the shinobi looked away. "It's a burden that I'm glad to bear." Her smile faded and I saw only concern. "Sometimes, people aren't cut out for this."

"I can handle it," I said suddenly. "I'm a Ranger."

Harding smiled sweetly. "You don't have to be," she said. "I can talk to Surge after the mission. We can review your fitness for Ranger duty and you can make a decision then. As I recall, fitness for duty is determined by your commanding officer."

"But-" I started, but she silenced me with a glare.

"Look, kid. I've seen a lot of people wash out of Ranger duty. It's never been a black mark on those people. This is a tough job. It takes a certain person to look death in the face as often as we do and come out the other side."

I sighed as I felt my frustration reaching a boil. It wouldn't do me any good to lose my cool, only cast doubt on my continued membership of Zapdos Squad. I got to my feet, mumbling a hurried apology as I walked away from the pair of women.

I didn't go far, simply walking until I was out of earshot. I was still hidden in the trees atop the cliff, with a perfect view of the convoys kicking up a dust storm behind them. I sat against a tree, closing my eyes and calming my breathing as I listened to a Ranger's boots crunching along the plateau behind me.

"What was that really about?" Harding asked. She didn't waste time. Straight to the point, no bullshit to her at all.

"The pokemon," I said. "What happens to my pokemon if I die?"

She frowned and crouched in front of me. "Why are you thinking about that?" she asked.

I glanced up and met her gaze for my real question. I pulled the broken bandolier out of my pack, looking mournfully down at the four balls on it. "And Reyes'?"

I saw her expression falter and her eyes harden suddenly. I'd struck a nerve, something that I hadn't expected. "Corporal Reyes' pokemon will be remanded to Ranger custody and reassigned to other Rangers." Her voice was stiff, almost robotic in nature. "Their new trainers are selected on an as-needed basis, meaning that most deceased trainers see their teams spend years in long-term storage."

I took a breath, calm clarity taking over. I pulled back the belt and slipped it back into my bag, noticing that she made no move to take it from me. "I don't like that," I said. "My team is my family. I caught them all. I trained them all myself."

"You and everyone else," she said bitterly. "A Ranger gives that up when they join. You become a part of something bigger than just yourself." She shook her head. "It's a sacrifice that not everyone is capable of. That's why I offered you an out."

"I don't need an out," I said quickly. "I'm a Ranger."

She smiled sadly again and put a hand on my shoulder. "Marcus, you're a good kid. You've got a good heart and you're a decent trainer. But you aren't a Ranger." She crouched down to my level, smiling softly. "You're young. You're still just a kid. Go live your dream. Be a trainer, not a martyr."

I looked up at her, trying to control my breathing. "I can't quit," I said meekly. "I finally have something that I can be proud of, something I can show my father and be proud of."

She smirked. "Parent trouble?" she asked.

I let my scowl spread as I stared down at the ground. "He never supported me training, thought that pokemon were just a waste of time. And then, after my sis disappeared... I just thought that joining the Rangers…" I glanced up at her. "I thought it would be something that I could show my father and be proud of. Something that would show him I could make some change in the world. That being a trainer was something good." I shrugged. "But I don't know anymore. People are dying, my friends are dying. I've killed a man and I hardly spared it a second thought. I don't know how any of this is going to end and I'm afraid. I'm afraid of what it's turning me into. I'm afraid of watching more of my family die."

Harding nodded knowingly. She sat in dirt beside me, just smiling out at the sea. "Rangers are a family, kid. If you're set on being a Ranger, then I'm sure we could work something out." She turned her head to face me again. "Do me a favour though."

I raised an eyebrow. "What would that be?"

Her smile died and a serious scowl crossed her face. "This is gonna be a high-risk operation. I won't sugar coat things. There's a good chance that we can't rescue Surge and this is all for naught."

"Great pep-talk," I interjected.

"Don't get yourself killed," she continued unperturbed. "Don't be a martyr." Her scowl softened and I saw the smile tugging at the sides of her mouth. "Stay alive and we can have a long talk about your future with the Rangers after the mission."

I nodded solemnly. "I'll do my best," I said.

Harding smiled. A real smile, one that I could tell was genuine by the look in her eyes. "That's all we ask, kid. That's all we ask."


We took off as soon as the dust clouds began to recede to the west. Harding led me along the cliffs again, flying another ten to fifteen miles before touching down on the edge of the cliff.

I guided Artemis down beside her. My aerodactyl was heaving ragged breaths and her wingbeats were growing sloppy. She was growing rapidly and getting stronger in the air every day, but she still had a ways to go until I would be satisfied with her endurance. Still, I was proud. She was performing admirably, even if she'd be too tired for any significant battling once we arrived at our destination.

Janine pointed at the faint glow on the coast. "There's Fuchsia," she said. Her arm followed the coast west, moving until she was pointing out at a rocky crag that extended out to the ocean. "Which means my father's compound is right there."

Harding pulled a set of binoculars from her pack and raised them up to her eyes. "I see it," she said. "Can't tell if there's any movement from this distance."

"Seven or eight trainers at a maximum. There may also be some non-combatants, so check your targets." Janine pulled her cap off, letting her purple hair fall free. "Surge will be in the holding cells, which are underneath the main hall." She pulled off the jacket and pants, revealing her tight-cut robes. "There may be other prisoners as well." She turned to face us, pulling her hood up over her head. "Follow my lead and stay close."

She raised a ball, releasing her venomoth onto the cliff beside her. She mounted her pokemon as Harding and I did the same. We shared a glance at each other, and then flung ourselves from the cliff. Harding soared ahead, pressed nearly flat against her fearow's back. I tucked myself against the spike on Artemis' back, whizzing past Janine on her venomoth.

Harding pulled out of her dive under a hundred feet to the ground. She rocketed away from the cliff as Artemis pulled out of her dive and soared after the captain. We skimmed over the open plains with speed, Janine lagging behind us.

We touched down on the outskirts of the forest, taking the last few miles on foot. We needed the element of surprise, and Artemis was anything but stealthy. I sent Luna and Vector ahead, to scout the road ahead with Raxus.

We followed the road, not coming across a single guard. The checkpoints sat empty and no patrols crossed our path. The forest seemed strangely silent, but Luna could sense nothing when asked to search telepathically. We couldn't even find any wild pokemon on the route in, something that baffled me to no end.

We reached the walled compound just as the sun began to set. Harding had given McCulloch her long-range radio so we were out of contact and in the dark about the battle that had no doubt already started to the west. We could do nothing but continue the mission.


Janine crept up to the gatehouse, peering cautiously around the corner. She glanced back at Harding and I. "It's empty," she hissed. "On me." She turned and cracked the door open ever so slightly.

Harding returned her pokemon and slipped through after her. I followed a step behind them, my pokemon returned to their balls. The gatehouse was empty, screens darkened and lights shut.

"Did they actually send everyone?" I asked suspiciously.

Janine shook her head. "They wouldn't have. There's got to be someone still in the security station, or something…" she glanced over at the map of the complex dominating the rear wall of the gatehouse. She studied it for a moment, before tapping on a room on the opposite side of the complex. "Security room is here. You could watch the entire compound on the cameras from there if there's anybody here, they'll be there."

"Where are the holding cells?" Harding asked, approaching the map.

Janine tapped on the large rectangular structure in the centre of the complex. "Under this building."

Harding lifted Raxus' ball and looked over at me. "Rook, on me."

"Wait," Janine protested. "We have to make sure that this isn't a trick first."

"No," Harding said, turning to Janine. "We're here to rescue Surge. Every moment spent here is a risk. We split up, we can hit both the holding cells and the security station at the same time." She pointed at the gatehouse. "We regroup here once we're clear of the hall."

"It's a risk," Janine said. "One we can't afford to take if this is a trap."

Harding cracked her knuckles and glanced over at me. "Everything about this has been a risk. There's no way to change that now." She released Raxus beside her. "Move fast and move quiet. Only break radio silence in the event of an emergency."

Janine nodded, glancing out the door at the darkened inner courtyard. The compound was dark, all the lights shut off. She slipped through the door, practically disappearing into the night.

Harding and I followed her out into the courtyard, losing sight of the shinobi in moments. I tried to track her movement, but it was a hopeless gesture. "Lost her," I whispered as I shrank back into cover beside the captain.

Harding snorted quietly. "You were never going to be able to follow her in the dark."

I shrugged. "Was worth a shot. I don't entirely trust her motive."

The captain shook her head. "If anything, I trust her motive implicitly. Personal gain is a powerful motivator." She popped up, surveying the courtyard. "Stay on my ass," she hissed. "Move quickly."

She vaulted over the barrier, dashing quickly across the darkened courtyard. I followed her, scanning the buildings as I ran. The pale light of the moon was brighter than I expected, and we were clearly visible in the open. I hit the wall beside Harding, watching carefully for any signs of movement.

"I don't like this," she whispered. "Where are the guards? Why are all the lights out?" She grumbled and cracked the door to the hall open. "This is all too easy."

I crept into the hall after her. The building was dark, just like the gatehouse had been. She stopped dead, crouching against the inside of the door. "Get Luna out, do a mental scan."

I raised my ninetales' ball and released her beside me. The flash of light illuminated the room for a moment and I held my breath hoping that it hadn't been noticed. A long few moments passed with heavy silence as the only answer. I let out the breath, satisfied that we hadn't been noticed. "Find Surge," I ordered.

She nodded to me, eyes flaring with light. Her tails seemed to float out behind her aimlessly. There was a long, eerie moment where the only light in the room was from Luna's glowing eyes. Then my ninetales let the light die and I felt my vision swimming.

Luna took me into her memory, sharing the experience with me easier than she had before. I didn't dwell on it, though I let my pride be known to my starter.

Luna again was a supernova of light, reaching out into the darkness. A pair of smaller lights shining at Luna's side represented Harding and I. Another cluster of lights seemingly below us were the only visible points of life in the compound.

"I think I have them," I said, pulling myself back from the shared memory. "At least half a dozen people in a chamber below the main hall."

"Anything else at all?" Harding asked.

I shook my head. "It's like the complex is completely dead aside from that. Not even any sign of Janine either."

Harding faltered. "That's concerning," she said bluntly. She glanced into the dark, hand hovering over her ball belt. "Assume hostiles are present. This is too easy. We're walking right into a trap."

"What's our next step?" I asked.

She grimaced as she opened the door to the main hall. "We spring the trap." She slipped through the open door, keeping low as she crept along the wall.

Luna and I followed her through the darkness, keeping low to the ground. I checked every corner as we went, half expecting to spring an ambush at every step. Nobody greeted us though, and the hall was strangely quiet.

Harding led us up to the raised dias at the head of the room. She pulled back a curtain against the wall, revealing the hidden stairwell leading down. "They must be down there," she said. "If there's anybody in here, they're down there with Surge."

A loud screech of pain and a thunderous crash drew our attention. Raxus bounced into the room, hissing furiously. She righted herself, tearing deep furrows in the wooden floor with her claws.

A thick purple serpent slithered into the room, hissing and flaring its hood at Raxus. Luna leapt to Raxus' side, tails floating with psychic power.

"Go," Harding ordered. "This is a distraction. Get to Surge!" She turned, shouting orders to Raxus as the arbok snapped its bladed tail like a whip.

"On me!" I shouted, beckoning to Luna as I made for the stairs. Harding was buying me time, something Surge now had none of. If there was anyone in that room with him, they could start executing prisoners.

I bounded down the stairs in three steps, bashing down the door with my shoulder. I rolled with the momentum, coming up and glancing around the room.

Eight prisoners were strung up, hanging by their wrists from chains suspended from the ceiling. Each of them were gagged. Surge was in the middle, suspended limply with his head hanging.

Something hit me hard from the side, tossing me like a rag doll across the room. I hit the floor and bounced, rolling to a halt against the wall.

"Did you really think it would be that easy?" A man's voice taunted. "Did you think you'd just be allowed to walk in here with no resistance at all?"

I rolled over and clambered to my feet. A thin, wiry man stood in the doorway. He had a dark, simplistic outfit with a stylized crimson R emblazoned on the chest. His victreebell stood in front of him, vines at the ready.

I smirked. "I was wondering when you'd show up," I said. "Was beginning to think I wouldn't get a chance to kick you out of Fuchsia myself."

A high pitched whine filled the room. The man covered his ears, spinning around to look for the source. His victreebell was smarter, leaping out of the way as a telekinetic snap ripped across the room. The man sailed across the basement, smashing through the wall at the end of the room.

"No fire!" I shouted, remembering the disaster at the Game Corner. I didn't know if there was another way out of this basement, and there were prisoners involved.

Luna didn't even need the order, psychic power ripping across the room and seizing the victreebell. It raised the grass type off the ground and slammed it back down onto the floor.

A cone of purple spores erupted from the victreebell, painting Luna's face with the poisonous dust. She dropped the grass-type, hacking and coughing wildly. I clamped my sleeve over my mouth, backpedaling away from the cloud of poison powder.

The victreebell sensed weakness, vines whipping towards me as I beat a hasty retreat. My hand dropped to my belt, releasing Vector in front of me.

"Horn attack!" I shouted.

My heracross' wings snapped out and I realized that I'd made a terrible mistake. He usually used his wings to boost his mobility, adding speed and helping him corner with a surprising amount of agility. However, in a small room like this it would kick up one hell of a windstorm. A windstorm that would scatter the poison powder the victreebell had just spewed.

"No wings!" I roared, too late to stop the lungful of purple dust that I sucked in. I doubled over, clamping my sleeve back over my mouth.

Vector hit the victreebell centre mass, tossing it over him with a flick of his mighty horn. The grass-type slammed off the ceiling, bouncing to a halt several feet behind my heracross.

"Close combat!" I ordered, moving so that the victreebell was on the other side of Vector.

My heracross remembered to stow his wings this time, bounding forwards clumsily. He slammed a fist into the victreebell's gut, whining as the pokemon wrapped a vine around his arm.

Flashbacks of Ronin entangling Vector's limbs ran in my mind. I turned to Luna. "Tear it off him. Finish it!"

Luna's eyes flared with violet light. She lifted the pokemon again, snapping the vines wrapping eagerly around Vector with a quick jerk. She raised the victreeball slowly, watching it flail with stubby little vines. Then Luna's eyes flashed and she smashed it back down over and over until the victreebell was limp. She lifted the pokemon one last time, throwing it through the gaping hole in the wall that its trainer had made.

"Keep an eye on that hole," I ordered. Luna padded over to the hole, growling tentatively as I returned Vector and released Acolyte beside me.

Harding bounded down the stairs, her hair crazed and unkempt. "Rook!" she said in a surprised tone. "You're alright." She glanced at the hole in the wall. "The trap?" She asked.

I nodded. "Sprung," I replied. "Let's get out of here before someone shows up to investigate."

She approached Surge, pointing up at the chains holding him to the ceiling. Raxus leapt up, swiping at the chains with a flash of his claw.

Acolyte followed me over to the first captive, intuiting what he was needed for. I ordered him to tear the chains from the ceiling as I supported the first prisoner beside Surge. She was a slender woman, with wiry muscles that had to have been built through hard exercise. She slumped against me in exhaustion, grunting thanks as I took the weight off of her wrists and Acolyte smashed the chain.

Surge slumped against the captain as I caught the captive and laid her up against the wall. I pulled out her gag and dug into my bag. I pulled out the corked bottle of clear liquid. "This is a cocktail of antivenom and high-grade antibiotics." I swigged back a sip, savouring the cooling sensation running down my burning throat and handed it to the woman. "Split that amongst yourselves. I don't know how many spores you all breathed in, but that will help." I watched her take a small sip before moving to the next prisoner.

"Harding," I heard Surge say, sounding somewhat confused as he came to. "What are you doing here?"

I moved to the next prisoner, a shinobi with bloodied robes. I pointed up at the chains again as I supported the man from below. Acolyte wound his bone club in the chain and tore them free with one smooth movement.

"Rescuing you," Harding replied curtly. "Did you think we'd leave you behind?"

Surge coughed, ragged breaths struggling free of his heaving chest. "Koga..." he started. "Betrayed us, working with Rocket."

I moved to the next prisoner, a Ranger whose face was swollen and contorted in pain. I supported his weight while Acolyte freed my colleague. I had no clue who this Ranger was, but he didn't deserve this.

"We know" Harding said. "We have to move," she said. "Where are your pokemon?"

Surge shrugged as I freed the next prisoner. "Maybe with Koga, maybe in a safe somewhere." I heard Surge struggling to his feet as I freed the fifth captive. "How did you get here?" Surge asked. "Koga told me he'd killed you all. Picked you all off out in the Safari Zone."

Harding grimaced. "He tried," she retorted. "I guess you trained us well."

I let down the sixth prisoner and turned towards the last.

"The rest of Zapdos?" Surge asked. "Any casualties?"

"Wertz, Reyes and all of Squad three," she replied. "They didn't make it." She slipped one of Surge's arms over her shoulder, supporting his weight. "We gotta get out of here. Before Koga comes back."

I'd never seen the massive man so hobbled, and the concept of such unbearable pain terrified me. I turned towards the last captive, supporting his legs as Acolyte reached up with his club. Acolyte snapped the chain easily, dropping the man onto my shoulder.

I let the man down against the wall, turning away to face Surge and Harding. I sidled up beside Harding, keeping my voice low. "Captain, we can't carry this many prisoners. Artemis can probably hardly even carry me out of here right now."

"The chopper," Surge grunted stubbornly. He seemed to stand a little straighter, tossing the captain's arm off him. "I can fly it out."

Harding glanced at me, then back at Surge. "Alright, but if you need me to take over then I am. I'm not having you crash because you're beat to shit."

Surge shrugged. "Wouldn't be the first time I've had to escape death, darling."

I turned to the captives, raising my voice slightly. "Alright everyone, we're moving. Support one of the others if you are able, but do not endanger yourself for any unnecessary reason. Above all, stay behind us. We'll lead you all to the helipad for extraction."

Harding patted me on the shoulder. "Good job, Rook. I'll take lead." Raxus slipped up the stairs and out of sight as I stepped back.

I herded the captives up the stairs after them. Four of them were capable of standing on their own strength, two needed the help of another and the beaten Ranger wasn't even conscious. I helped the remaining pair sling the disabled Ranger between them and took up the rear with Acolyte and Luna.

We moved as quickly as our injured rescuees would allow, and not half as quietly as I felt comfortable with. I kept my eyes on the shadows as we moved through the main hall. Scars marred the once grand room, deep claw marks gouging into the wood. Several places were sizzling with a deep purple liquid, a terrible stench rising off the puddles of venom.

Harding moved quickly and with purpose, leading us directly to the main doors. She didn't spare the corpse at the end of the hall a second look. I followed her without a second thought, ignoring the vivisected serpent that Raxus proudly stepped over.

Surge took cover beside her, crouching against the wall. "Helipad should be roughly fifty feet out, on the right."

I slid into cover beside Harding, glancing over at Luna as she followed me. "Make sure the coast is clear," I ordered. The Rockets had fooled her senses once already, so I wasn't entirely confident in the results of the scan.

Luna's eyes flared for a brief moment, before the light faded and she nodded at me. I caught the doubt in her eyes, but it was gone before I could remark on it.

I glanced back at Harding. "Be ready for anything," I said. "Those Rockets fooled Luna once already."

She nodded, moving for the door. She swung it open, slipping through with Surge at her back. I slipped through third, waiting half a moment for Raxus to follow her trainer.

I charged out after them, Acolyte and Luna herding the rest of the group behind us. I made it three steps before I skidded to a halt.

We were surrounded. At least twelve men that I could see, all of them armed with slim blades that glinted brightly in the faint light of the moon. Koga, head of the Ayõ Clan and Leader of the Fuchsia Gym, stood in our path. He drew his own blade with a lithe fluidity that belied his size.

His dark purple robes seemed to burst with muscle, yet his movement seemed graceful for a man of his physique. He was tall and stocky, built with muscle that had seen a lifetime of training. Perhaps Surge could have taken him on in a fair fight, but he was in no shape to fight.

Harding and I moved as one, drawing our combat knives and stepping in front of the prisoners. A Ranger's blade was nearly ten inches long, forged out of hardened steel to hold up to the punishment they needed to take in order to harm wild pokemon. However, up against the thin, single edged katana that Koga's men wielded, they were practically useless. We simply didn't have the reach to effectively combat the shinobi's longer blades.

Luna growled and Acolyte stepped into place behind me, Raxus taking his place at Harding's side. I saw her hand drop to her ball belt, resting nervously on the last ball.

"I would advise against that, Captain." Koga stepped forward, his blade raised. "It will only prolong your suffering."

Harding cocked her head to the side. "Good thing I never took advice well." She tossed her ball into the air, releasing the only true brawler on her team. Harding's fourth pokemon was her ace, a monster in the most literal sense of the word. I'd only ever seen her once before, when Harding had deployed her as an intimidation tactic against some poachers.

A titanic serpent rose into the sky, stretching up to her full size. Steel plates ground against each other, screeching loudly over the rumbling earth. Titania had been deployed.

Captain Harding's steelix was the most physically imposing pokemon in the entire Ranger Corps. She outclassed Lieutenant Rhodes of Viridian Command's rhydon in defensive prowess, and easily dwarfed Major Byram of Cinnabar Command's machamp in pure strength. She was a true physical bastion, capable of standing against onslaughts that could decimate my entire team.

Koga scowled and I felt my heart skip several beats. His gaze was cold and cruel, boring into Harding with ruthless malice. "Your ruse has been foiled. Your friends are dead in battle, and for what? A fleeting chance at delaying the inevitable? You were never going to be allowed to leave Fuchsia." He shook his head solemnly. "You were doomed before you even left Vermillion. Rocket allowed your pathetic little manhunt for a time, but you've become a thorn in our side that I can no longer abide by." Koga smirked and raised his blade to level with us. "Now die, like the vermin that you are."

A terrible stench filled the air, rotting corpses mixing with month old manure and invading my brain. I gagged on the stench and fought back the urge to empty the paltry contents of my stomach. Then I saw them. They rose above the twelve shinobi, more than thirty or forty of the floating gas cans looming ominously over the main hall.

"Bathe them in fire," Koga ordered, not an ounce of hesitation in his voice.

Titania moved fast, but the horde of koffing and weezing were so many that she couldn't possibly hope to stop them all.

It seemed as if the sun itself was igniting above the compound. Dozens of flamethrowers rained down, splashing against Titania's steel carapace and superheating the metal serpent. Stray flames leapt past her, painting the front of Koga's main hall with flames. One jet of flame snuck through a gap in Titania's coils, catching a pair of the prisoners with the fire.

I pressed myself against Titania, turning to Harding. Her steelix groaned as the flames licked at her side, but we were trapped. More flames licked at the front of the building, scorching the wooden façade and igniting the banners hanging from the hall.

Another one of the prisoners shrieked as flamethrowers began to spew from the koffing that were starting to creep around Titania. Our cover was rapidly losing its effectiveness and Titania could hardly hope to withstand the molten assault for much longer.

"Luna," I started, shouting over the roar of flame. "Draw their fire!"

She tensed up for a moment before leaping atop Titania. The horde of wheezing and koffing adjusted their aim for the sudden new target, doing exactly what I had hoped they would. I knew that Luna had the ability to absorb flame from the environment around her and repurpose that energy into her own fire type attacks.

We'd begun experimenting with it at the Ranger compound in Vermilion after accidentally discovering the ability against Reyes and Aro. However, I was not sure she would be able withstand that much power at once. Our tests had been limited compared to this.

I felt the heat intensify above me, and could hear panicked shouting from the other side of the steelix. "Get back inside!" I roared, turning to Surge and the captives. "Acolyte, get them inside!"

He herded them towards the door as I turned to Harding. She nodded at me and turned as the inferno above us spluttered out and died. We dashed out together, seizing on the slight opening that Luna had created for us. The captain was roaring orders to her pokemon, Raxus already leaping forward and Titania shrinking back as the maelstrom of flame finally abated.

"Fire spin!" I roared, watching Luna dash towards Koga. She was glowing red-hot, stray flames clawing their way out of her maw. She'd absorbed so much fire that her paw prints left burning divots with each step. I could see the heat shimmering off of her and even from this distance could feel my skin burning.

I saw a winged shadow swoop down towards Luna and felt the mental pressure of the bug's presence. I turned and shielded my face as my starter tossed back her head and loosed a spinning inferno of scarlet fire. I watched her tails flare and her eyes light up as she projected the tornado of flame upwards.

The venomoth was descending on her, silver dust already shimmering off of her extended wings. I could feel the air bending under the psychic pressure and could see the ripples of reality bending. The fire spin engulfed the bug entirely, spinning columns of flame swirling around the courtyard and tearing into the swarm of floating pokemon.

I heard screaming and felt the tornado of fire lick at the back of my neck as I curled into a ball on the ground. I heard what sounded like a row of firecrackers popping off and felt the earth rumble beneath me.

An explosion at my feet sparked me into action. I scrambled on my hands and knees, crawling away from the chaotic rhythm of explosions behind me. I had no clue where anybody was, no clue where my pokemon were. Smoke and flame filled the air and more explosions rocked the compound.

I heard a terrifying crack and groan of straining wood and looked up at the front wall of Koga's main hall. It was burning, flames already chewing up the wooden beams of the building. I could hardly see through the smoke and flame spinning overhead, but a small gap cleared for a half a moment. I saw a wheezing listing to the side as it floated desperately away from the fire.

It hit the hall and I felt a trio of deafening explosions shake the whole world. A huge section of the front wall was thrown inwards by the force of the blast. Parts of the side walls crumbled and a large section of the roof dipped dangerously towards me. The front wall groaned and I watched in abject terror as the burning building began to collapse towards me.

Someone threw themselves into the dirt beside me, curling into my side as Titania's metal body coiled over us. A thunderous impact slammed down onto the steelix, shaking loose a shower of dirt and dust into my face.

I rolled to my side, hacking up a lung of dust and smoke. Harding was there beside me, eyes looking around wildly. Her blade was gone and her hair was singed black. "You're absolutely insane," she started, coughing wildly. "I take it back, you're a Ranger at heart. Nobody else would dare to pull off something so insane." She thumped on Titania's side twice, drawing a rumble from the massive serpent.

Her steelix rose back to her full height, dropping the debris covering her coils into the dirt. One side of the serpent was still glowing slightly from the heat. I saw Harding's eyes linger on the sagging parts of Titania's jaw and thought for a moment I saw tears. Then the captain's eyes hardened and she looked out at the carnage.

The courtyard was bombed to near ruin. Half the buildings ringing the formerly pristine courtyard were burning, the other half were pockmarked with smoking craters. The ground itself was an uneven minefield, dozens of holes blasted deep into the earth. I found one of Koga's men laying in tatters and averted my eyes, unable to stomach the sight of him.

My heart sank as I found Luna, laying up against a ruined building. Her chest was still heaving and I could see her still struggling to move. One of her legs was splayed out at a strange angle and I knew that it was broken. I raised her ball without a second thought, returning her before she could get hurt even worse. I had no clue what kind of punishment she had actually taken, but I wasn't taking the risk. She was hardly moving and that was all the excuse I needed. I raised Vector's ball as Koga clambered to his feet.

He glared at me with murderous intent. I saw the smoking husk of the venomoth behind him, wings burnt down to nothing from the force of the fire spin. I didn't know where his blade was, but I doubted that he'd need it. He raised a pair of balls, releasing his muk and his ariados onto the field. "You are going to die for that," he said. He waved off his men, who I only just realized were regaining their footing. "I raised her from an egg myself. I have trained her for nigh on fifteen years…" he trailed off, murderous glare directly on me.

I tossed Vector's ball and released him in front of me as Raxus stepped in front of Harding. Her persian was still strong and lithe, growling low and angry. Titania rumbled behind us, shaking the earth. I didn't know where Acolyte was, but I figured the odds were close to even enough as long as none of his men intervened.

Harding stepped forward, taking control of the interaction. "This ends now, Koga. This has gone far enough."

He shook his head. "Not anymore." He drew a second small blade from the short scabbard on his belt. "You've taken something from me," he turned his gaze to me. "I'm going to show you what that's really like."

He took a step towards us, his pokemon starting to charge. He stumbled suddenly, clutching at his neck. Koga dropped to his knees, choking and hacking up a lung as he struggled for air. Both his muk and ariados turned, looking at their trainer with confusion and concern.

One of his men burst out at us. "What have you done?" he shouted.

Titania rumbled and glared down at the man, who shrunk back in fear. "Nothing," Harding said. "It wasn't us!"

She glanced at me, a knowing look on her face. She looked over at the figure standing on the side of the battlefield, a blowpipe hanging in her hand. "It was her," she said, a tinge of relief slipping into her voice.

Janine walked with purpose, ignoring the outbursts of her father's men. She slipped the blowpipe back into a loop on her belt, drawing a short blade of her own. "I am here, father. Here to claim the place that you denied me."

Koga fell back on his knees, weakly holding up an arm in resistance. He gurgled a faint response as blood leaked slowly from the edge of his mouth. A long feathered dart was embedded deep in his throat, his other hand clamped desperately over the dart.

"I challenge you, Koga of Clan Ayõ, for leadership of the fourteen families." She stopped not more than ten feet from Koga's surprised pokemon. They looked down at her curiously, watching the familiar girl defy their master. "You attempted to kill your own flesh and blood. You sold our city to a pack of rabid thugs. You have dishonoured Fuchsia and your clan beyond reproach. What say you to these charges?"

Koga looked up at her, the life fading from his face. "What are you doing?" he choked out, raw disbelief colouring his pained words.

Janine lowered her hood, looking her father dead in the face. "What you taught me to do," she said, fighting back the emotion in her voice. "Go for the kill."

"No," he gurgled. He looked up at his pokemon, begging with his eyes. Then the light faded in them and he toppled backwards.

There was silence for a long moment. Janine stood there impassively, looking down at the body. Koga's pokemon shifted, his ariados bowing his head to Janine. The muk beside it copied the gesture. Koga's men started to approach her and I tensed up for a moment, preparing to order Vector into action. Harding shot me a sideways glance, silencing me before I could speak.

The first man to reach her drew his blade and dropped down to one knee, offering the blade up to her. I could not hear his words, but the reverent tone was clear as day. Each of the other men dropped as they approached, their blades bare and raised to their new leader.

"Will you bear witness to what happened here?" I heard Janine ask.

The men nodded in unison.

Janine turned to us, sheathing her short blade. "It's over," she said in a weary tone. I could see the pain in her face, much as she tried to hide it. She was hurting inside, torn apart by the terrible deed she had just committed. "Fuchsia is mine."


It was not a happy ceremony, which was to be expected. The somber tone of the funeral preceding Janine's official coronation coloured the mood of the day, and the gloomy, overcast weather did nothing to help. Nobody seemed overly enthused by Janine's speech to the gathered clans, which I surmised might have been because of our presence.

Janine had invited Zapdos Squad to join the ceremony, in a first in Fuchsian history. No outsiders had ever been allowed at the ceremony in all of Fuchsia's history. From the furious glares and tense atmosphere, I could tell that it was not a particularly popular decision. Even if only four of us had been fit enough to attend, it was four more than were welcome.

Janine's speech wrapped up with a long-winded promise to bring Fuchsia into the modern world as a force for good, rather than continue to allow evil to foster in their ranks. There was a small smattering of applause, more than I had actually anticipated for what had been a rather dull speech. Janine nodded in thanks before disappearing into the Anzu compound with the woman that we had rescued alongside Surge.

Harding marched us out first, into the Ranger truck waiting for us. We boarded without a word, not giving the watching Clans anything to judge us by.


I sat back on the bench in the back of the truck as the engine roared to life. My throat burned with every breath and I fought the urge to hack out my lungs. I pulled out my water, drinking heavily from the bottle until the burning sensation eased. The poison dust had taken a toll on me, one that was proving stubborn to heal.

It was almost an hour's drive back to the hospital in Fuchsia proper. We passed the scenery in in almost complete silence, only small talk from McCulloch breaking the silence. I stared blankly out the truck, watching the untamed coastal plain slip into rural roads, and then into suburban communities as we arrived in Fuchsia proper.

I rose along with McCulloch when we arrived, following him into the hospital without a word. I turned off from the group, heading down towards the pokemon ward.

I opened the door to the observation room, slipping in and glancing nervously down at my Ninetales on the bed. Her chest was rising slowly, faintly breathing in her deep slumber.

"Mr. Wright," said the doctor as he opened the door. He stepped in, glancing down at his clipboard. "Good to see you again. She's a tough girl."

"Any progress?" I asked.

The doctor sighed. "I'm afraid that her condition hasn't changed much, if at all. Her body is still fighting the poison, and multiple concussive blasts at short range can cause a multitude of problems in a pokemon's nervous system on a good day." He folded his arms. "Her broken leg is healing well, and the contusions along her sides are seemingly showing signs of shrinking, but we won't know more until she wakes up."

I turned, putting my hand up on the observation room's glass. "When do you think that'll be, doc?"

He shrugged, and I caught the exasperated expression. "You know my estimates, Mr Wright. I'll have the staff notify you if anything changes."

I nodded solemnly. "Thanks," I said quietly.

"How's your breathing been?" he asked, changing the subject away from my starter. "You told the nurse that you breathed in a large amount of the poison as well." He lowered his clipboard. "Have you been prescribed anything to help with the tissue damage?"

I shook my head. "It's been a busy week," I said.

"Here," he continued, scrawling at the pad of post-it notes on his board. He tore the note off and handed it to me. "Take that to one of the nurses at the desk in the Ranger ward. They'll be able to give you a steroid cocktail that'll help your throat heal." He smirked. "Tastes like shit though, so fair warning."

I nodded, taking the paper. "Thank you, Doctor Braun."

He nodded and turned to leave, leaving me alone in the room.

I sat down in the chair, the same one I had spent almost an entire week sitting in. I smiled softly, watching Luna's chest rise and fall slowly. She was still alive. She was still alive and that was what mattered.


Janine arrived some point before sunrise. Harding appeared in the doorway alongside her, waking me with a quiet knock. I followed them out, pausing for a long moment to watch Luna breathe deeply.

She led me through the hospital, into a conference room that had been hastily rearranged to accommodate Surge on his hospital bed. The other standing members of Zapdos Squad, Surge, and Janine were already waiting when Harding and I walked into the room.

"Good," Surge said. "That's everyone who'll be joining us."

Janine nodded, laying down a massive binder that she produced from the floor. "I had my attendants draw up this report. It details everything Rocket has touched coming through Fuchsia."

Surge looked up from his bed. "Harding, McCulloch, get to work."

The two Rangers got up, walking over and poring over the binder as Janine stepped aside. "Everything from drugs, to guns, to exotic pokemon they captured in the Safari Zone." She frowned and looked over at Surge. "They shipped almost everything off once you arrived, so we don't have their cargo itself." Her frown softened and she broke into a smirk. "But we do have shipping locations, travel logs, personnel lists… Everything we need to dismantle every part of Rocket's operation."

McCulloch glanced up at the table. "It looks legit to me," he said. "There's addresses all across Kanto and as far as Johto and the Sevii Isles."

Surge shifted on his bed, swinging his legs off the side. "Then we have new leads." He slipped off the bed, wheezing slightly. "Somebody get me a sat-phone."

Harding rose from the report, tossing her phone over to him before looking back down at the ledger. Surge flipped open the phone, dialing a number by memory.

"Marcus," Janine said, walking around the table to my side. "Would I be able to borrow you for a few moments?"

I glanced around, realizing that nobody was paying me any attention. I nodded quietly and followed her from the room. She led me up to the roof, away from all the bustling noise of the hospital. It was truly quiet for the first time in a week. No beeping machines, no muffled voices.

Janine sat on the edge of the roof, looking down at the sleepy city with an unreadable expression.

"Is it everything you hoped for?" I asked, taking a seat beside her.

"No," she said. She sighed and looked up at me. "It's more than I anticipated." She shrugged and offered a weak smile. "Though, I suppose that I did ask for it."

I turned back to look out at Fuchsia. The city was starting to stir in the early morning, the faint light of the sun lending some life to the sleepy streets. "Was it worth it?" I asked.

"No," she said with a scowl. "But this isn't why I brought you up here." Her hand went into her robes and pulled out a small pink heart. "I wanted to give you this."

I took the little heart in my hand, admiring the vibrant pink stone. "The soul badge," I said calmly. I glanced up at her. "I didn't earn this."

"Yes you did," she replied. "For services rendered to the new Leader of Fuchsia, and the valiant defeat of her previous Gym Leader, I see fit to grant you the soul badge." She smiled honestly at me. "You risked your life and the lives of your pokemon in a situation that I put you in. I won't have the time to hold any league matches for a while, and I figured that you'd done more than enough to prove yourself worthy of this badge."

I stared dumbstruck down at the stone. I closed my hand, savouring the moment. Five badges. Only three more, then I was eligible to compete in the Indigo Conference. "Thank you," I said. "I don't know what to do to thank you."

She smirked. "I have an idea," she said. "I've already cleared it with Surge, if you're interested. It'll last as long as you're laid up in Fuchsia for."

I slipped out my badge case and opened it. I put the pink heart into the custom fitted slot, beside Erika's rainbow badge. "What did you have in mind?" I asked.

"I'm sure that you saw the cold reception you got at my ceremony."

I nodded. "The clans clearly didn't want us there," I said. "If looks could kill, the four of us wouldn't have walked out of there alive."

She sighed and I saw the frustration in her face. "Then you see my problem," she said. "The clans don't trust the Rangers, they never have. Koga kept you at an arm's length. They won't unless I can force them to work with your organization." She looked back out at the city, almost seeming to expect me to refuse her proposal before she even asked. "I need a liaison to work with me, preferably someone off of Zapdos Squad itself. There are still plenty of Rocket black sites around Fuchsia and pulling in a Ranger to help would do plenty to foster goodwill between Fuchsia and the Rangers."

"And you want me?" I asked. "I don't know if I have the kind of experience you're looking for."

"You were my third choice," Janine said, a wry smile on her face. "I wanted either Harding or McCulloch, but both of them turned me down."

I smirked at the feigned slight. "Nice to know that I'm needed," I said with a grin.

Janine smiled easily back at me. "So?" she asked. "What do you say?"

I nodded, turning to look out at Fuchsia with her. The early morning sun painted the city a warm gold that brought a smile to my face. "I'd be honoured to help."


"Koga was not supposed to die," the short man said. "This failure is yours as much as his. Fuchsia is lost to us now, along with everything she brought. Funds, weapons, fresh recruits, all lost to Surge."

The tall man shook his head. "I'm afraid that while this is a loss, it is not total. Archer and Gideon have escaped with the remaining Project Catalyst prototypes. With the data they gathered in the Safari Zone, I am confident that they will be operational within the month."

"That matters very little if the Ranger Corps unearths how far our reach extends. They, and by extension Surge, are one of the few forces that could challenge our plans." The short man shook his head. "You have been careless and the cost has yet to come due."
"Perhaps we could stave off the payment?" the tall man suggested. "Give them Kanto to save Johto?"

There was silence for a long moment. "It could work. Though, our operations around Lavender remain essential."

"Then I will ensure they are spared the Rangers' gaze."

Silence again.

"And the other boy? The one that joined the Rangers? He was working with the boys in Celadon as well, and then again he surfaces in Fuchsia."

The tall man shook his head. "Irrelevant. He is adrift on an ocean of our own making. He will fall, Gideon will see to that."

"I hope you're right," the short man replied. "Else your plans will fall to pieces, just like the prisoner said it would."

The tall man got to his feet. "Perhaps," he said as he departed the small, windowless room. "But I do not believe that it will. After all, it is our plan. We've never failed before."

"True enough," the short man said as the doors closed and left him in solitude once more. "But you don't know those boys like I do."



Pokédex Entry #208 – Steelix

There are only a few known living specimen, most of those hidden deep under the Argent Mountains. The few captured steelix have proven to have immense dietary requirements that have bankrupted several of these would be trainers.

These pokemon are capable of withstanding a tremendous amount of heat and pressure. They were originally theorized to inhabit the earth's core before their true habitat was found.

It is thought that these pokemon are the result of onix that have eaten through particularly metal rich mineral deposits. However, no record of an evolution have ever been found.



Intermediate Trainer KT#07996101

Indigo Ranger Corps, Special Task Group, "Zapdos" Squad,

Private First-Class SN# 109-512-6591, Marcus Wright, current team:

Luna, Ninetales

Acolyte, Marowak

Vector, Heracross

Curie, Chansey

Artemis, Aerodactyl
 
A Second Chance
A Second Chance


Ilex forest was old when I was young. She was a proud beauty, unbroken despite man's attempts to tame her. Here among the trees, amidst the wild call of nature, was a different kind of life. It's simpler place, a more peaceful place. It was my home, the place of my people. It was the only home I had ever known.

Ilex forest was strong, her pious trunks standing strong and tall. Her canopy was thick, defying attempts to map her from above. Of course, that hadn't stopped the logging companies from trying anyways.

They came as they always do, bearing fancy contracts full of words that simpler folks could never hope to fully understand. When we didn't leave, they came back with money. Most folks took that offer, selling the homes and land that our families had lived on as far back as we can remember. A few stayed, mostly old bats like myself. We're stubborn, and we remember what this forest means to the land.

Without Ilex, Johto dies. Without Ilex, we all die. The forest protects our people, just as it protects our planet. I just wish that somebody else would help me protect it. Either way, I will do what I must. I am the last storyteller of my people, the last person who holds onto hundreds of years in oral history. I will protect my home.


I woke before dawn on the day they came. I could hear them, driving along the worn dirt path that led into Arborville. Their mechanical monstrosities shook the earth as they closed, flattening and widening the winding forest path as they came.

The trees along that path were old when I was a boy. I silently raged at the injustice as I sat on my balcony, watching and waiting while I boiled the kettle. I finished my last journal entry. I'd make my move when I got that chance.

It wasn't long before they came into view, bright yellow machinery trawling through the forest on great tracks. Men in bright reflective vests rushed forward, the sounds of chainsaws roaring over the forest's quiet voice. A hulking machamp walked ahead of the great machine, clearing away the logs that had fallen in its path.

I grimaced. The machamp was a problem. Terra could destroy the machines easily enough, but my aging meganium would have trouble with a machamp. I didn't have the rest of my pokemon anymore. They were all lost to time. I'd have to be clever to take out the massive fighting type.

Towa appeared from the walkway deeper into Arborville. Every house in our village was connected, just like the forest itself. Towa was one of the few who remained, one of the few who still cared about the forest. There were so few of us left.

"They're here to stay this time," she started. She sat down in the seat beside me, in Natasha's seat and not the guest seat. "Diana read me the last letter they sent. It said it was the final notice. We can't fight this one and win."

"I don't care," I replied, letting my scowl fade. Towa meant no disrespect and I couldn't stay cross with one of the few remaining residents. "The forest is our home, it is my home. It has been for generations. I will not leave this place." I clenched my fists. She was wrong. Someone had to fight them.

Towa sighed heavily as she leaned back in the chair. She sipped on her tea and looked at me pensively. "Y'know, you've been in a bad way since Tasha pass-"

"Don't you dare. She loved this place more than any of us." I turned away and scowled back at the encroaching loggers. "Don't go putting words into a dead woman's mouth."

"I wouldn't dare, old friend. I know she'd be fighting these bastards tooth and nail, right at your side." She sipped cautiously on her tea again. "My words are my own. Tasha's passing hurt you. More than you've ever been hurt before." She smiled softly. "Even more than when the boys disappeared."

I stared at the machine, stonewalling her. "And your point?" I asked. I knew I was being rude. I was too wrapped up in myself and my defiance to care. "This place is all I have left of her. They… they can't… they're gonna take it away."

"I lost Don almost fifteen years ago," she continued, unperturbed. Towa was good like that. It didn't matter that I was in a bad place. She was there for me all the same. "It was hell for a long time. I threw myself into my work."

"Our harvest was never better," I remarked. "We sold the surplus and-"

"You're doing the same damn thing," she said. "Arborville is dead. Stop clinging to old memories. Go enjoy what time you have left with your family. Your sister perhaps…"

I clenched my fists, desperately trying not to lose my cool with Towa. "They moved on. They left this place behind. They don't care-"

Towa cut me off with a stern glare and a heavy hand on my shoulder. "They don't help you because you won't let them. You cut them off for daring to leave home. Your brothers, your sister, everyone. They never stopped trying to help you." She rose from her seat and sighed heavily. "Diana is almost done packing up our things. I'll have her come by once she's done. I'm sure she'd love to help you pack."

I sighed heavily and hung my head. "No," I said quietly. "I have something I have to do."

She disappeared without another word. I glanced down the walkway, eyes painfully lingering on each of the hasty repairs I'd made over the years. She was right. Arborville was dying. The trees were struggling under the weight of the village, and even the hundreds of repairs I had made couldn't hide that.

"Hello up there!" shouted a voice. "Is a Mister Jameson home?"

I rose and leaned up against my balcony. "Leave my home," I started, summoning up the strength to project my voice. "This forest is not yours."

A younger man slipped down off the massive machine, pokeballs worn on a bandolier that wrapped over one shoulder. He was a trainer, probably employed by the logging company to deal with stubborn old Arborville.

He smiled up at me, a genuine smile that took me off-guard. "Would you mind if I came up there to speak with you?" He gestured around at the loggers. "It's quite loud out here, as you can see."

I nodded slowly. Without another word, I returned to my seat. I heard the roar of machinery grind to a halt as the engine died. A small smirk came to my face. One last warning before they tried to drive me from my home. I would show them who they were dealing with.


It was maybe another twenty minutes before Diana appeared with the trainer. He was tall, powerfully built. Broad across at the shoulders. He had a strong beard, flecked with grey hairs in the dark brown mane. More than a match for frail old me. I knew I'd need surprise on my side to take him down.

"Mister Jameson, I presume?" He asked politely as Diana slipped away. "My name is Byram, I represent the Johtan Interior Resource Commission."

He stepped through the doorway into my home, not bothering to knock. I looked up at him, sipping gently at my tea. "So the League is getting involved?" I asked calmly.

"We were from the beginning, Mister Jameson. The League takes the stewardship of our natural resources very seriously." Byram looked down at Tasha's chair. "Do you mind if I sit?"

"I do." I growled.

He sighed, studying my stoic old gaze. "Very well." He crossed his arms. "You have to leave, Mister Jameson. This place isn't safe anymore."

I sipped my tea. "I keep it standing," I said. "Arborville ain't moving. And neither am I."

"That's going to be a problem," he replied. "Because this area has been designated as a prime logging area. Plenty of perfect trees to use as lumber." He lowered his gaze to me. "I'm sure you understand the current lumber shortage has made our need dire."

I rolled my eyes. "You mean, you think the old trees in this area will fetch a pretty price right now."

He shrugged. "Ilex Forest is massive," he started. "We've been stonewalled around Azalea and Johto National Park. We need wood, Mister Jameson. I'm sorry that it includes your village, but to be honest it's falling apart anyways. This place isn't fit for human habitation anymore."

"I keep her standing," I spat. I placed my tea safely on the table beside me and rose to my feet. "You need to leave my home."

He sighed and shook his head. "Everyone else has agreed to leave. It's only you left."

I closed my eyes, trying to control my breathing. "You need to leave my home."

He turned to leave and sighed. "You have until the end of the day," he said calmly. "After that, the loggers have to keep going." He stepped out of my home and pulled a cigarette from his pocket. "For now, they'll get started around here." He lit the cigarette and walked away.

I let him go without following. I had something else I needed to do. More than ever, I needed help. I needed the voice of the forest. I needed Ilex's guardian spirit. I was out of time. I needed a Celebi.


My tired old feet trudged the weathered stone path, finding the well-worn footprints that I had worn into the stones over the years. Not once had I fallen. Not once had I so much as faltered on my way up to the old shrine at the lake.

But I was not the young man I had once been. Time had ravaged my life, reduced my once young and powerful physique to a frail shell. Most of my friends had passed or left Arborville years ago, joined almost a year ago by my dearly beloved. Even my pokemon had begun to succumb to father time's inevitable pull. Only Terra was left, and the aging meganium was not what she had once been.

Still, I climbed. I had made the climb up to the old lake for decades, leaving Arborville's offerings to the guardian at the shrine that stood on the small islet on the lake. I would not fail to make the climb one last time for one last offering. The guardian was my last hope, and my last offering would hopefully be enough to gain its attention.

The sharp, piercing sound of laughter echoed through the trees, breaking nature's reverie. I heard voices clamouring over each other and then the distant roar of a chainsaw. I scanned the forest carefully. I did not trust that the loggers hadn't followed me out here to dispose of me far from any prying eyes. It would not have been the first time that loggers had tried.

I heard the laugh again and hunkered down on the side of the trail when the chainsaw roared again, abandoning my sack of offerings. My hand hovered over Terra's ball, waiting for any sign of danger. I waited a long time, but none came. The voices faded and the chainsaws moved further and further away. I carefully got to my feet, watching for any signs of movement through the forest.

I decided that I could wait no longer. I scooped up my sack and slung it back over my shoulder. I didn't look back. I was out of time, but that could be fixed if she was willing.


I ran as far as I could, my old bones aching with every footfall. I ran until my lungs might burst and my back might break. I ran until my feet could carry me no further and then continued further.

Finally, when my feet were sore and blistered and my lungs could heave no more, I broke through the dense forest and splashed into the shallows of the lake. The guardian's shrine stood benevolent, watching over me like a statue.

I fell to my knees, the sores on my feet knitting shut and my burning lungs breathing deep with relief. This was the secret that Arborville had been founded to protect, the treasure that our ancestors had sworn to defend. I bathed myself in the healing waters of the lake, letting the pure water wash my bloody feet clean of sores.

Goldeen went flashing deeper into the lake, scattered by my splashing. An ursaring and a pair of teddiursa cubs watched me carefully from the far shore of the lake. I rose, my strength returned. I had only bathed in the lake like this once before, and my wounds had been far worse then.

I turned to the berry bush growing at the shore. I picked a handful of the small red berries and popped several into my mouth. The sweet fruit of the lake practically melted in my mouth, and the memories of sweet evening walks with my Natasha came back to my mind.

I hefted the sack and waded the rest of the way to the small island in the shallows of the lake. The small wooden hut sat silently, the doors shut as they always were. I pulled them open, smiling at the simple wooden carving as I always did. The little fey smiled back at me, huge oval eyes gazing into my soul.

"Greetings, guardian. I bring you the last offering my people can muster." I hung my head in shame, letting the forest's protector see my true feelings.. "I only ask that you stop these loggers before they go too far. They threaten the lake itself. The lake gives this forest life, it gives Ilex her strength. Ilex must stand else Johto will wither on the vine. It must be protected." I looked at the carving of the fey, unsure of what more to say.

I got to my feet and spilled my sack of offerings into the shrine. Vegetables from Towa's garden went rolling, spoils from Darrick's last hunt landed in the shrine, an embroidered blanket that Towa and Diana had made landed on top. My last few cans of preserved food landed among the offerings and I slung the empty sack over my shoulder.

I closed the doors of the shrine and closed my eyes. "Please, spirit. This is all we have left. Please save our forest. Please save this lake." I placed a hand on the shrine, praying that the forest spirit would hear me. "Please, Ilex needs you…"

I paused, wrestling with my faith in a guardian that had not once made itself known to me. I'd believed on blind faith, on old stories that my father had told me. It was a long time until I found the strength to move. I looked up at the shrine and cleared my throat. "Please, Celebi…" my voice trailed off and died for a moment. "I need you," I said with desperate reverence. "My story is about to end. My people's story will end with it. I am alone… I cannot protect this place without your help."

I turned and waded back to shore, leaving the shrine behind. I picked another handful of the sweet berries as I left, ready to begin my long walk home.


True to Byram's word, Arborville was still standing. But the trees around her were gone. Arborville had been located on the side of a small slope that led down towards the river that emptied from the sacred lake. The small hill was bare, stumps the only clue that the hill had been deep forest. Arborville stood implacably, the rickety old village standing strong on the few remaining trees.

I slipped up the ladder into the village. All was quiet save for the creaking of wood straining under my weight. Towa's hut was cold and dark and I knew that she and Diana had gone. I was alone now. Alone in a cold, dead village.

I crept through Arborville, careful with every step. The removal of most of the trees on the hill had robbed the trees our village was built upon of precious support. She was dead, creaking to a collapse upon aging bones. I couldn't help but chuckle at the similarity to myself.

I stepped into my home, looking out my grand window at what had once been lush forest. The trees were gone, reduced to stumps, and the yellow light of the evening sun painted the scene in a harsher red light than I had ever seen.

"Mister Jameson, it's not safe up there!" Byram shouted. He jogged up through the stumps, his hands cupped over his mouth. "It's not stable anymore!"

Arborville shifted precariously as if on cue and groaned as the trees strained desperately. I knew that the old village had reached her end. She was stumbling to her death now. Falling down under her own weight, or rather mine.

"What have you done?" I roared. I braced myself against the wall, leaning out at him and shaking my fist in anger. "You have destroyed my home!"

A loud crack ripped through the village and splinters of wood spun through the air as support beams snapped. My house dropped several feet, catching upon the large branch beneath it and lurching dangerously. The tree groaned and my house tilted to the side as the branch bowed.

I stumbled and fell back, my home tipping dangerously to the side. I hit the thin wall of my home and grabbed tight to the support beam. My home dropped again and more of Arborville slipped from its supports. Half the village crashed down, crashing through the roof of my home. Towa's hut crushed mine and Tasha's chairs, before Darrick's hut crashed through on top of it.

Another earthshaking crack jolted my house as the branch supporting me finally snapped. It pitched backward and I saw the whole of Arborville shaking free of her aging bones through the destroyed ceiling.

I watched my village strain to hold, my makeshift repairs holding the rickety walkways and creaking shacks up for a half a moment. Then they broke with a terrible groan and pop of snapping wood. I felt my stomach drop as my home fell from the tree, the ground rushing up to meet me.

Time ground to a halt. I fell slower and slower, nearly suspended in the air. Arborville slowed down, until the village hung almost motionless in the air above me.

'Bowen,' said a calm voice. I strained my ears, but I knew that the voice had not been spoken. 'The forest speaks for you. It has called me here in your time of need.'

I felt a gentle touch on the back of my calf. Time grabbed hold of me again and I suddenly slammed down onto the motionless wall of my home. I rolled onto my back, looking down my old hooked nose at the little fey staring at me.

It was uncannily similar to the wooden carving in the shrine, pale, oval eyes meeting mine. 'I have come, as you have asked. What do you request of me?'

"Stop these loggers," I said, reverence deep in my mind. I bowed my head in awestruck respect. "They threaten the sacred lake. They devour the forest with their machines. My home and my people are gone, and they will soon find your shrine."

The little fey stared into my eyes. I felt an overwhelming calmness overcome me and an odd sensation that my mind was no longer alone. A musical presence surrounded me, pushing against my thoughts and brushing them away with ease. It pressed and confined me, trapping me in a small corner of my mind.

I felt strange, my ability to concentrate all but gone. Arborville righted herself, my home simply returning to existence as we floated back up into the tree. I looked closer as the village seemed to age backwards before my eyes. Cracked, rotten wood became strong again, support beams disappeared as the trees became younger again and could support Arborville once more.

My home was remade, returned to her glory days by some awesome power. The little fey levitated off the floor, glowing with psychic energy. Something seized me, lifting me off the ground. I felt a strange sensation as the strength began to flow in my limbs once more.

My creaking bones stiffened, sagging skin became tight over finely toned muscles. My hair grew back, braiding long and thick down my back like it had been in my youth. I was young again, moved through time by the awesome power of the forest spirit. It was amazing and terrifying at the same time.

'Come with me,' the fey said. 'We must fix this. Your stewardship of the lake has put it at risk. Loggers cannot be allowed to desecrate my home.' It lifted off the ground and moved towards the door. 'You cannot do this alone.'

I tightened my fists. "Do you not think I tried? I lost my sons, and none of the others care to remain. I am the last of our tribe, the last protector of the lake. Do not disrespect my devotion, spirit. The world was not kind to me."

The little fey turned back to me. Its gaze was cold and calculating, like its was studying my entire life in a flash. 'I have seen your whole life. Every moment, every decision is but a glance through time.' It narrowed its large oval eyes and floated closer to me ominously. 'We must fix your error.'

I relaxed my fists. I was struck with shame. The creature knew something, some terrible truth about my life that I could not even fathom. "What have I done wrong, spirit?"

Impossibly familiar laughter filled the air. The joyous exclamations of happy children sprinted past my home. I could hear the happy grunting of Terra as the bayleef bounded after my twins, a squealing baby Diana strapped to her back. The chorus of laughs chilled me to the bone. I knew what day it was. I knew what would happen later in the day.

"Why have you brought me here?" I growled. I did not want to relive this day, this terrible of all terrible days.

'To fix your mistake. You are alone because of your failure.' the fey intoned, overt annoyance creeping into its voice. 'You would do well to hurry. You do not have much time.'

I stared at the Celebi, intently studying the mystical pokemon. It was fickle, as all the stories said they were. "Can I change it?" I asked. "Can I save them?"

The stories were never clear. Sometimes the forest spirit allowed changes to be made, small differences that did not disrupt the proper flow of time. Others, the fey held firm, demanding that great tragedies remain and only small changes around the edges be made.

The fey did not answer. It just gazed at me, awful oval eyes staring deeply into my own. I turned and ran, determined to change what had happened to my children. I had to stop their disappearance. That had to be the reason I had been brought back.

I stepped out of my home, holding up an arm to shield my eyes from the sun. I thought I saw Terra's leaf disappear down one of the walkways and I dashed after the young bayleef.

Arborville was young again, full of life and movement. Towa and Donald walked arm in arm, joined in happy bliss. Their home, carved freshly from a tree the season before, stood proud and happy behind them.

"Boys!" I shouted as I ran. "Daniel, Thomas!"

The twins did not come. I came to a halt in the middle of the walkway, wracking my brain for any clues from that terrible day. They'd disappeared into the forest around mid-day. Tasha had been at home the whole day, and I had been out foraging until almost sunset.

I stopped as a stunning realization came over me. Tasha was at home. My Tasha was dead, passed on from old age. But Tasha was here and I could see her once more. I could hear her voice again, smell the sweet scent of flower petals soft in her hair.

I turned back towards home. I could see her in the window, smiling at the summer breeze. Her silky brown hair flew in the wind, obscuring her face for a half-moment. She spotted me and her face lit up with joy and life.

I was drawn back to my home, tracing the path I had run through the walkways. Every step felt wrong, like something was in my mind, screaming for me to go. I could not tear myself from my path, could not turn away from my beloved.

I stepped through the door, caution in my heart. "Natasha?"

"Bowen," she said as she rose from her chair. Her hand was draped over her bulging belly and she strained to rise with a smile. "I thought you wouldn't be back until dark?" She shuffled toward me, a happy smile on her face. "The baby's been so active today. She won't stop kicking!"

I stepped closer, putting my hand over her pregnant belly. All the worry in my mind faded and all I could think about was the future my family had been robbed of. "I've had a vision," I started. "A terrible omen. Our children are in danger."

The baby kicked and I saw my dear wife beam at the little outburst. The stress of losing our twins had wasted my Tasha away until she had lost the baby. I pulled my hand away and a flicker of hope grew in my chest. This was what I had been taken back for, the mistake I had made. My family had crumbled under the loss we suffered on this day.

I clenched my fists. "The boys are not here," I said calmly. I knew that I had to find them, that had been my mistake. "The spirit must have brought me back for them." I looked up at her. "Where are the boys?"

"They were off running with Terra. I think Towa had trusted them with the baby." She paused for a moment. "Should I be worried?" She asked. I could hear the nerves creeping into her voice, the same nerves that I wrestled with myself. She should be worried, as our lived had forever dimmed because of this terrible day, but she didn't have to know that. She didn't have to experience any of that.

I relaxed again. I was scaring Tasha now. "Diana will be fine," I started. "Terra will be fine," I recounted, remembering how we'd found the bayleef trapped under some branches less than a half mile from the village. "The boys will be fine." I refused to let my voice waver. I would find them and keep them safe.

I turned to leave but found myself rooted to the spot. Tasha's beautiful brown eyes were flecked with lines of red and gold that shone in the afternoon sunlight. "Tasha…" I started, but my voice died in my throat. There was so much I wanted to say, so much that I had never said to her when she was still with me.

She held my gaze, concern and fear etched into her soft features. "I know you'll find them," she said, her voice wobbly. "I love you, Bowen."

I nearly broke at my name, my chest constricting as I tried and failed to breathe in. I had not heard her say my name in nearly an entire year. It was intoxicating, intolerably holding me on the spot. This day had weighed heavily on my dear Tasha. "I will find them. By my love for you, I swear that I will find them." I turned away, forcing away the tears that threatened at the edges of my eyes. "If it is the last thing I do, I will find them."

"You're scaring me, darling."

I clenched my fists, my heart dying at those words. I wanted to take that pain, cut it out at the source. "Don't be afraid," I replied, choking out the words. They hurt, like they were a desperate lie to the last person I wanted to lie to. But she didn't deserve the pain of the truth. "I'll keep them safe."


We never found the boys when they disappeared. Not even bones or any signs of struggle. It was as if they'd simply disappeared. Once, near the sacred lake, I had happened across a scrap of bloody leather that might have belonged to one of their attire, but I had no way to know for sure.

So I went to the only place I could. The only place where I knew the trail might still be warm. The only clue of the direction they might have gone.

The thicket of trees was far less ominous than it had appeared to me at night. With warm sunlight beaming down through the trees, I breathed a sigh of relief. Terra was here, trapped inside the thicket with Diana still strapped to her back.

I tore a section of tangled branches away and forced my way into the small space that Terra had been trapped in. Without a word, I pulled Diana off my bayleef and held her close to my chest. "You're safe now, little one. Uncle Bowen is here."

She squealed adorably and tugged sharply on my beard. My eyes watered, but I couldn't help the goofy grin on my face. Diana had been wailing miserably when I'd found her the last time and she'd caught a terrible fever that refused to break for nearly an entire week. As far as I could tell, things were already better than they had been the first time.

I slipped Diana's harness off of Terra and pulled it over my arms. It wasn't meant for a human, but I could tie it tight enough at least to support Diana's weight. With the baby safely secured to my chest, I cleared a large enough space for my bayleef to crawl through. Terra wormed her way through the opening behind me, cooing and grunting excitedly at me.

Terra nuzzled her nose against me. I smiled and patted her happily on the back of her head.

"Lead the way," I said. "Find me the boys."

Terra put her nose to the ground, sniffing intently. She looked up at me and I saw the determination in her face. She had the scent. She would lead me to my boys.


We forged through the forest and along a familiar footpath. I knew where we were going, I had been down this path more times than I cared to count. The lake lay at the end of the path, shrouded in a late evening mist.

I had always suspected that they had gone to the lake, exploring in places where I had forbidden them go alone. I hadn't trusted them with knowledge of the lake yet. Ilex was dangerous, and I knew that they had never truly believed me.

I ran on legs that throbbed with every step. My back ached with each impact and my chest burned with every breath. I was hot on a trail that must have been washed away by the torrential rains that had started to fall at sunset. However, I was running out of time.

The sun was dipping closer towards the horizon, and the ominous clouds were gathering as the storm pushed inland from the sea. I ran faster, my every fibre of my being begging me to stop running and rest. My weak willed self nearly gave in, but the fading memory of my my sons' faces lent me resolve.

Then I heard it. The deep, throaty bellow of an angry ursaring. It was loud and clear, maybe twenty feet ahead of me. A terrified shriek followed a half-moment later, accompanied by a thunderous crack of lightning as the rain started to fall.

My heart leapt into my throat. I poured on what speed I had left and burst down the path. I broke through the tree line and onto the small beach in full sprint, covering the distance between myself and the ursaring in only a few powerful strides.

I didn't stop to think about my suicidal charge, nor the baby strapped to my chest. I didn't stop to formulate a plan. I caught a glance of my boys, half shrouded in the shadow of the massive pokemon. I had to save them. The ursaring reared back on its hind legs and I saw a flash of claws as it raised a paw.

I leapt with everything I had, vaulting myself onto the slick back of the furious ursaring as Diana shrieked. My lead arm hooked around the pokemon's head and my momentum dragged the unsuspecting pokemon down to the ground with me.

I rolled away with my arms wrapped tightly around Diana before the ursaring could gut me with his claws, putting myself in between my boys and the pokemon. I spread my stance, standing wide and tall in an effort to make myself as large as possible. With slow, deliberate movements, I unstrapped Diana and carefully handed the baby off to my twins without so much as a word.

There were stories among our tribe, stories of boastful warriors bragging that they could wrestle with an ursaring. They were usually little more than cautionary tales that ended in tragedy as the boastful warrior fell to the ursaring, but there was one that resonated in my racing mind.

A brave wood carver, a father whose name is lost to time, had stood between an ursaring and his children when they ventured too far from the village. He stood against the pokemon with nothing but his wits and the strength of his own body. He protected his family with sheer force of will. He fell in battle with the beast, but the tribe survived thanks to his bravery.

I had a lot more than just my will behind me. I had Terra. I had the strength of my youth. And I had the hand of a powerful forest spirit on my side. I would not lose. I would save my family.

The ursaring lumbered back to her feet as she shook the rain from her face, growling in primal fury. The guttural growl of the beast sent a shiver down my spine, but I stood tall. I grabbed up a fallen branch from the muddy ground and held it like a club. I saw the terrified teddiursa cub retreating behind his mother and prayed that the ursaring would be satisfied for both of us to escape with our families intact.

I had no such luck. In a split second, the mother ursaring was on me. I swung the branch as she swiped at me with a massive paw, snapping the branch in half on the side of the pokemon's head. She stared at me dumbstruck for a moment, as if in disbelief that I had actually fought back.

Terra was there before the ursaring could regain her senses. My brave bayleef, loyal to a fault, slammed into the ursaring's side. She thrashed at the larger pokemon with furious vines, battering it and forcing it off balance. The advantage lasted only a moment though, and Terra's momentum ground to a halt as the ursaring planted her hind feet in the mud and stood firm.

I threw myself into the pokemon's left leg, driving a heel into the back of the ursaring's knee and buckling the joint. Terra shoved again with all her might, even as the ursaring dug five inch long claws into her bloody flanks.

The ursaring bellowed in frustration and surprise as Terra toppled her over backwards. She tipped over her buckled knee, trapping and crushing my ankle in a vice grip. I swore in agony as I went down, beating on the ursaring's side with my fists as I felt my bones splinter and snap.

I heard my boys screaming in terror and caught Terra's whimper of fear. Diana shrieked madly, and the rain poured down in torrents. I screamed and shouted desperately as the ursaring moved and released the pressure on my ankle. I dropped back, panting in quick ragged breaths. I felt my chest aching as blood steadily leaked down my bare chest.

She loomed over me, looking down at me as I hauled myself up, managing to balance all my weight on my good leg. I hobbled in front of the boys, standing as tall as I could manage while the rain drenched me down to my core. I felt cold and weak, but Terra was there to prop me up while she growled protectively at the ursaring.

The mother ursaring reared back on her hind legs again, but this time there was no hostile urgency of movement. She sniffed cautiously at me, looking back behind me at the boys and sniffing in the air.

We stood there, Terra and I practically daring the ursaring to try again. She mirrored us, her cub stealing peeks at us from the tree line. We looked at each other for a long time, matriarch to patriarch. I felt an acknowledgment from the beast, her black eyes met mine and I felt an intelligence behind them. She bowed her head slightly in respect, and I did the same.

Without so much as a backwards glance, the ursaring turned and lumbered off, her cub playfully jumping onto his mother's back as if he were pouncing on prey.

I watched them go, standing still and silent as I respectfully waited for the matriarch to take her leave. Only when she had disappeared into the trees and the sounds of her making her way through the soaked forest faded away did I dare to relax.

It took me a moment, but the next breath brought burning, searing pain to my chest. I gingerly poked at the ragged strips of bloody flesh hanging from my chest, struggling desperately to draw in a breath.

I turned and looked at the boys, my heart in my throat. I had no clue what to say, what to tell them. It would be a disservice to lie, and pretend that I was their true father, so I would do the only thing I could. I would tell them the story. My story. A future that would no longer exist because of what I had done today. I might die, but my story would live on through them. Perhaps this time's version of me could learn something.

I hobbled into the shallows of the lake, my ankle burning as it attempted to heal. The shards of bone inside my ankle were too far gone though, and they refused to do much more than ache something fierce. I sat unceremoniously in the shallows, my boys taking up spots on each side of me. The water lapped at my chest, barely even dulling the pain. The skin refused to knit shut, and I knew that my time was up.

I looked up at the clouds, holding a hand up to feel the rain. The storm was loud, almost overpoweringly so, but I spoke loud enough to be heard. "Something terrible could have happened today." I paused for a long moment as I caught my breath and the boys stayed silent. "And once upon a time it did." I smiled softly and looked over at the small shrine on the island. I had been a poor teacher, a poor storyteller indeed. "Help me over to the shrine boys," I started. "It's time that you learned something."

Thomas took my left side, supporting my mangled ankle with Terra's help. Daniel held my right arm while he carried Diana, leading me clear of any underwater branches or rocks. Both of them were ragged messes, their hair tangled with dirt and twigs and matted down against their heads by the rain. I smiled despite the pain, my heart fluttering in my chest. They were safe. I was dying, but they were safe.

Terra helped me out of the water, Daniel maneuvering her so that I could easily lean against the side of the shrine. They helped me against the side of the shrine and then sat close at my sides.

Daniel on my left studied my face, with bright and inquisitive eyes. He eyed the shrine warily and I could see the questions dancing on the top of his tongue.

"This shrine is a holy place for our people," I started. I had to start somewhere, and the beginning of our people's story was as good a place as any. "Here, we met with the Voice of the Forest, and entered into a compact."

My eyes met curious, inquisitive eyes and I knew that I had them hooked. They knew the stories, knew the legends that I had imparted upon them. To live them yourself, was something else entirely. They could tell that something strange was happening, some strange power was afoot.

I felt the twins draw closer to me and smirked softly despite the pain. It was peaceful, some small measure of happiness here at the end of my life. "I did not understand what this covenant entailed until I had failed it utterly."

Daniel looked up at me, huddling Diana close to me for warmth. "Father, is something wrong? You seem different."

I met his eyes and felt my own begin to water. "I was not a good father," I began. "I pushed away my responsibility to the next generation, to my own children and in doing so lost you. I did not prepare you for the world, just lamented a world that changed around me." I wiped away my forming tears, trying to pass them off as the rain on my face. "Don't let me shirk my duty to you boys. Demand that I be better," I said with solemn duty. "Our family faltered and crumbled once before because I didn't save you on this terrible night. It will not happen again, but it's up to you two to carry on once I have passed." I hung my head in shame. "I cannot say that I have been a good father to this point. Know though, that I love you boys both. Take care of each other, and your mother too."

Thomas looked at me with eyes that threatened to fill with tears. His gaze fell to my shredded chest and the tears fell freely. "I don't understand," he half-cried.

I lifted his chin, strength fading. The lake could work miracles, but even its power had limits. I had precious little time left. "Let me tell you a story, my sons." I looked over at Daniel, pulling my other son closer to me. "About a future that could have been, but will not be. About a man who failed in his duty to his family, but was gifted one last chance to set things right."

"Father?" Daniel asked, his voice wavering. He inches closer to me, Diana cooing happily in his arms. "What is happening?"

I reached out to him. My arm was frail, weak in old age. My long braided hair was gone, lost to the ravages of time. I was old again. The Celebi's power was fading. "I am dying, child. Now hush, and let an old man tell you one last story."


I ran harder and faster than I had ever run before. My legs were aching, my lungs burning. My arms and legs were covered with scratches and cuts, but I could not stop. I ran along the muddy footpath, body pushed long past the point of utter exhaustion. I couldn't stop, I had to find the boys.

The clouds were beginning to clear now, and I could see the moonlight reflecting off the still surface of the lake. I splashed into the shallows, letting the sacred water wash me clean of a multitude of miniscule wounds.

I rose, a stirring motion from a figure leaning against the shrine drawing my eye. I removed the bow from my back and tied the string taut. I carefully nocked a single arrow and crept across the shallows of the lake as quietly as I could.

Twin figures rose from the side of the shrine, letting a third lean back against the wall of the shrine. I swore and abandoned my bow as my boys came splashing into the shallows at me. I caught Thomas in a crushing mid-air hug as the boy leapt up into my arms. Daniel hit me in the midsection, sending me toppling over into the water with my boys.

I broke the surface of the water, tears running freely down my face. I sat up, pulling my twins closer and ruffling the now soaked mops of dark brown hair on their heads.

"I found you," I started, my voice breaking as I forced words out of my ragged throat. "I found you," I repeated.

Daniel pulled back, smiling up at me. "Yes, you did." He let go of me and looked back at the shrine. "He wants to talk to you," he said quietly. My son looked as though he might cry, the words nervously dying on his tongue.

"Who wants to speak to me?" I asked cautiously.

Thomas looked up at me, a knowing look on his face. "You do," he replied cryptically.

I looked over at the figure slumped against the shrine. "Stay here," I ordered.

The boys stood side by side, knee deep in the waters of the sacred lake. I stepped onto the islet, cautiously looking down at the figure slumped in the dirt.

Terra raised her head, blinking sleepily at me. A bundle of blankets shifted and I breathed a second sigh of relief as Diana whined at the interruption of her peaceful slumber.

"You got here faster than I did the first time," growled a hoarse voice. The figure on the ground grunted and forced himself up against the shrine. "Still wouldn't have been fast enough."

"Excuse me?" I asked in strained confusion.

"And what were you doing?" he continued, unperturbed. "Sitting around watching some forestry workers prune dead branches?"

I crossed my arms. "I was doing no such thing!" I spat indignantly. "I was-"

He cut me off with a withering glare. "I would know," he said with open derision. "I was there after all."

I stepped back, studying his weathered face. "You are me," I said, realization dawning on me. I looked down at the old man and saw the gaping wound in his chest. "What happened?" I asked cautiously. "Are you real?"

"I am," he coughed. "Or I was." He shrugged, coughing up a glob of blood that dribbled down into his grey beard. "That hardly matters anymore. Nothing that happened matters anymore." He looked up at me with a satisfied grin. "That's the point, I think."

I glanced over at my boys. They were standing dutifully in the shallows, not an inch from where I had left them. "You made a mistake?" I asked cautiously.

He forced himself up higher, grunting in pain. "We both did. And I lived the consequences."

I studied him carefully. "What do I do?" I asked. He was me, a future me. A possible future me that had averted his own future to save mine. "How do I do better?"

The older me seemed to be seized with a sudden fit of coughing. He leaned precariously to the side, clutching at his chest. He hacked and coughed, but no more words were coming. Only blood.

I knelt down in front of him, solemn respect filling my mind. I reached out and took a wrinkled and sagging hand in my own. The coughing subsided for a moment, and he looked at me with tired resignation. "I know that we never wanted the responsibility of children. I know that we saw it as a duty to be fulfilled while we toiled away to preserve the future of the tribe."

He tightened his grip and his hard stare seemed to bore down into the very essence of my being. "Never have I regretted anything more. Your father treated you like a duty, not a child. I did the same." He pulled me in with a sharp jerk of his arm, bringing my face mere inches from his. "Don't become your father," he whispered. "Be theirs."

He looked at me for a long moment, his breaths growing more shallow and ragged by the moment. He held my gaze like that, forcing me to watch as his breathing finally slowed and stopped.

I let go of the dead man's hand as the sun finally rose. Dawn hit us and the sunlight glittered on the surface of the lake.

I turned away from the old man, looking back at my boys. Daniel had picked up Diana and was cradling her in the crook of his elbow. Thomas was sitting patiently in the shallow water, stacking small rocks in a pyramid.

"Boys," I said, my voice hoarse. I had been running most of the night. I had no clue how I was even awake, let alone filled with determined purpose. "Walk with me. We have a lot to talk about."
 
Fate’s Design
This story was heavily inspired by Wolflyn's Final Gambit. I was inspired by the "no player character" feel of that work, and wanted to put my own spin on a story like that. Consider this an homage, to a fantastic writer. Sorry that I originally didn't have a disclaimer here, Pano!


Fate's Design


Sootopolis City, Hoenn

The city was gone. The crater it had been housed in was shattered, one of the walls obliterated by the primordial Sea God's escape. Kyogre itself was gone, but Steven knew where it was heading. Mount Chimney had exploded the day before, wiping out Lavaridge in an explosion that had been clearly visible from the lip of Sootopolis' crater. Groudon was slowly working his way towards the coast, Flannery harassing the God every step of the way. It would never be enough to stop it. The two ancient Gods were fated to meet in battle, humanity be damned.

The angular crest of a gyarados breached the waves above the sunken city. A pair of waterlogged kids clung desperately to the ferocious pokemon, fear and despair etched on their faces. Their world was gone, erased by the fury of a caged god and the rush of cold seawater.

Delicate feelers broke the surface beside the gyarados, Wallace and his milotic appearing from the deep. Wallace's chest was heaving and blood was slowly leaking down the side of his head. He pulled himself onto the lip of the crater beside the waiting champion.

"Kyogre goes to meet Groudon," Steven started breathlessly. His skarmory stood on the lip of the crater, breaths sharp and ragged. "They appear to be moving towards Lilycove. We have to stop this madness."

Wallace looked longingly back down at the water. "There are still people trapped down there. I can't leave my city like this."

"Sootopolis is gone," Steven retorted. "All of Hoenn will be next if we don't stop this madness." He put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "The League will do what they can for those still buried, but we are needed right now."

Wallace finally turned and looked back at the champion. "What can we do against that thing? It destroyed my home without even trying. Groudon wiped out Lavaridge with a yawn. With all due respect, we're dealing with something beyond even you."

Steven raised a pair of pokeballs and showed them to his friend. "I may have something," he replied. "Titans from a long dead age. But I'll need your help to raise them. I have the relicanth. I have the wailord." He opened his hand, showing Wallace the pale scar carved into his palm. "I have the anchor."

"The Regi trio?" Wallace gasped. "They're a myth. They aren't actually real, are they?" He had learned much since he had met Steven three years prior. He had learned of Kyogre's slumber under the city and of the ancient myths of Hoenn's people. Still, knowing of a God's existence was much different than watching it destroy your home.

Steven sighed. He gestured over his shoulder at the drowned city. "Neither was Kyogre before today. Groudon was but a myth before it levelled Lavaridge. The Gods are real and they are here." He sighed and massaged his temples. "I have nothing left but this. Nothing I can do, but this."

"What about Rayquaza? The legends say that it stopped the fighting before." He folded his arms across his chest. "You can't possibly hope to control all three Golems alone."

A sad frown crossed his face. "I have tried, Wallace. I am no draconid. The Sky God does not answer my pleas. I am out of options and we are out of time." He looked back at the raging storm as it followed Kyogre out to sea. "If Hoenn has any chance, we must go now."

Wallace looked back at his gyarados, at the half-drowned children on her back. "My pokemon will stay here to help the rescue efforts."

Steven raised a strange flute to his lips. He blew into the flute, a long and haunting note echoing clearly out over the choppy water. Though the storm was still roaring in the distance, the wind seemed to calm ever so slightly.

Steven pulled the flute away, a far off look on his face. Wallace stepped back, perturbed by the distant stare in his friend's eyes. "Steven, what are you doing?"

The silver haired champion sagged on his feet, slumping against Wallace before he could catch himself. "They will aid us," he started hopefully. "They have to." Though his voice threatened to crack with exhaustion, he maintained the hopeful tone as best he could.

"Hoenn's guardians will aid us," Steven continued, forcing himself to his feet as the glowing scar on his pal throbbed with pain. He needed to be strong. His home was counting on him. "The Eon Duo will help us."

Wallace gasped as a flash of blue in the distance drew his gaze. A second flash of pink light confirmed his suspicions. Wallace turned back to his friend as a pair of stars burned their way through the sky towards them. "Let's go save our home, then."


Lilycove City, Hoenn

They were losing. That much was clear. Humanity was losing a war that they weren't even a part of. Lilycove was practically gone, just a few grievously damaged skyscrapers the only reminder that this had once been the largest city in Hoenn.

Sidney and Phoebe were gone, lost in the chaos of the dying city. Glacia had been with him at some point, but the ice trainer had been swept away by the storm. The remaining gym leaders had been there to help evacuate the city, but Drake hadn't seen a single one since Kyogre had arrived and flooded the city. He was, as far as he could tell, the only one left.

Steven had asked him to buy time, contain the battle as much as he could. The champion had promised that he would arrive with aid, but the old sailor didn't know how much more time he had left. He didn't see how Steven could stop this either, but Drake kept that doubt to himself. He'd learned long ago to discount Steven Stone at his own peril.

Groudon roared as a colossal wave bowled over it. The ancient God of the Earth crushed through one of the few remaining skyscrapers, sending the remains of the steel superstructure crashing down on the city.

Drake roared alongside his salamance as a hyper beam glanced off Groudon's shoulder. The God slipped under Drake's assault as another hyper beam from his altaria carved a burning furrow into its leg. One of his flygon darted in, glowing with draconic energy as he charged the falling God.

A spear of rock shot from the earth, impaling a building as Groudon willed it forth. Drake's flygon was swatted from the sky with barely an afterthought, tumbling lifelessly away from the stone spear.

The Sea God pressed its advantage, seizing on Groudon's weakness. What seemed like half the ocean seemed to empty from Lilycove's harbour as Kyogre swept out to sea. Drake had been a sailor nearly his whole life. He had practically lived on the water. He could see water types thrashing on the dry ocean floor and he knew what was coming.

"Climb," he growled to his salamance. He turned his head. "Climb!" he roared to the rest of his dragons.

His altaria shrieked an answer through the storm, and he heard the telltale hum of his remaining flygon's wings. His salamance roared and beat his wings, carrying them higher into the sky.

They had to get higher, he'd seen tsunamis in his day. He had no doubt that a tsunami summoned by the ocean god would dwarf anything he'd ever seen.

Then he saw it. He gasped in terror, looking out at what seemed like half the ocean rising up to meet him. It was two, maybe three-hundred meters tall, a wave that would wash across Hoenn's mainland and leave nothing behind it but death. Kyogre itself rode the wave, bellowing a cry that shook Drake's weary old bones.

"Climb!" He roared, straining to be heard over the deafening wave.

His salamance redoubled his efforts, wings beating madly in a desperate effort to gain height. But they were going too slowly, they would never be able to get above the Ocean God's vengeance.

"Brace!" He roared as he held fast to his dragon's back. There was nothing he could do, nothing anyone could do.

A rush of cold air cut Drake down to the bone, but the crushing power of the wave never hit him. He opened his eyes as the titanic wall of water froze solid in moments. He could hear the ice cracking, rumbling as Kyogre's momentum ground to an icy halt.

Kyogre crashed through the frozen tsunami, a pair of steel fists battering it through the wave. A metal Titan followed, hammering into the fallen God with wordless fury. A stone Golem was already there, hammering the deity with a spear of stone that thrusted from the earth.

"Drake!" shouted a familiar voice. "Rally to me!"

Drake spun on the air, his salamance expertly pivoting on blood-red wings. The champion was here, silver hair streaming astride a bolt of blue light. A maelstrom of green power swirled around his outstretched fist, linking each of the legendary golems back to the Champion. The blue dragon beneath him roared their arrival, his pink-hued sister echoing him a half-moment later.

"The Eon Duon," Drake muttered as the Champion and his friend soared past him. "And the Regi trio… Hoenn's guardians come to save us all." He bowed his head with instinctive respect, watching atop his dragon as Registeel pounded Kyogre across the face.

He locked eyes on Kyogre, watching the Sea God crash to the earth and plow through half of Lilycove. One of the few remaining skyscrapers toppled over, crashing heavily into the frozen surf. Drake cursed for all he was worth, mourning the lives of those who had still been trapped in the building.

"For Hoenn!" he roared. He was the last Elite, one of Hoenn's greatest defenders. So long as the champion still stood, so did he. His remaining dragons followed his lead, altaria and flygon taking their places at his side and echoing a deafening roar.

The stone Titan leapt up and landed on Kyogre's back, crushing a grunt of pain out of the god. It wailed mournfully, willing the ocean to aid it. The tide stormed forward, but a blizzard that stretched further than Drake dared to imagine roared to life as Regice landed at its side. The ocean froze solid in moments, adding to the ice wall that Kyogre's tsunami had formed.

"Hyper beam!" Drake roared over the titanic snap-crack of the ice breaking up. They had an opening now, one glorious opportunity to rip the damned Ocean God from the sea and trap it inland. Hoenn was not especially densely populated west of Lilycove, mostly just disparate wilderness pockmarked by stretches of farmland. They could force it westward, keep it away from what was left of the city. Maybe they could isolate Kyogre inland and kill the beast.

His salamance opened his maw, a brilliant ball of swirling energy gathering in the dragon's razor-toothed jaws. It erupted with violent screaming light, another hyper beam joining him from each side. Steven and Wallace were there with him, psychic light surging from their mounts.

They smote Kyogre from above, driving it back into the earth. A chasm opened up beneath the Ocean God, the bedrock literally tearing itself apart as Groudon reshaped the earth at will. Drake could see the hellish glow of molten rock bubbling in the deep and could not help the reverent awe that he felt. Their plans meant nothing, less than nothing to these primal beings.

They were battling Gods, creatures with enough immense power to literally reshape the planet. The chasm slammed shut as Regirock leapt away, swallowing the Ocean God whole as it shrieked in godly panic.

Drake warily glanced back at Groudon. The God of the Earth was unconcerned with an old man and his dragons. It turned towards the Regis, massive footfalls leaving puddles of liquid fire in the God's wake. Steven sat tall atop Latios, his silver hair shining brightly as harsh sunlight began to clear the storm clouds.

"Get over there!" Drake shouted.

His salamance roared, crimson wings pumping desperately for speed. He could hear his flygon's wings buzzing behind him, could see his altaria effortlessly keeping pace alongside him.

The earth shook below him. Drake glance down, worried that Groudon was bringing some fresh hell up to the surface. The ocean surged forward, putting that idea to rest as the ruined city was washed away by a swell of water. Storm clouds began to gather once again, swirling around one spot in particular.

He sucked in a breath. The fissure had sealed, leaving a gargantuan scar through the earth. Drake watched in abject horror as the earth bucked violently and the fissure widened ever so slightly. Water rushed down through the crack and his eyes widened in terror.

Drake looked up, shouting across the ruined city with all the strength he had left. "GET AWAY! GET AWA-"


The earth simply exploded. Thousands upon thousands of tons of molten rock were thrown into the air, steam exploding out of the fissure and flattening what little of Lilycove was still standing. The last remaining skyscraper twisted and toppled down onto Groudon's shoulder, the God shrugging it off effortlessly. Wallace held desperately to Latias as the wall of ash and steam slammed into them, knowing that losing his grip meant certain death.

Drake was gone, lost in the violent plume of steam and ash as the ocean boiled on contact with the molten earth. Kyogre rose from the maelstrom like a demon from the deep, letting out a long and furious cry as its eternal foe turned to face it.

"Steven!" he shouted, straining to be heard over the eruption. Latias drew closer to her brother, nervously letting out a whimper. "What do we do?"

The silver haired champion turned atop the blue dragon, his expression grim. He looked like he had aged a decade since the start of the battle. His eyes were ragged and sunken. Dark circles had appeared under his eyes and his cheeks had none of their usual meat to them. "Protect Hoenn," he said calmly. Steven stone met his eyes and Wallace saw the pain in them. He knew what he was doing. "Promise me you'll carry on when it's done. Someone has to rebuild after this all."

Wallace shook his head. "There's got to be another way!" He couldn't allow the Champion to do this, couldn't allow his closest friend to die.

"There isn't," Steven replied. He pointed at the kaiju as Groudon raised a sheer wall of earth that blunted a titanic wave of water. "Their battle will consume the whole world unless they are stopped. Someone has to do something."

"You'll die," Wallace said simply.

A strange calm seemed to come over Steven. He nodded slowly. "Then I die in service to Hoenn," he replied. "There is no greater cause than service to others. I want you to remember that, Wallace." He smiled and Wallace thought for a moment that he saw tears starting to form in Steven's eyes. "You'll need to remember that when you're Champion."

Wallace opened his mouth, whether to protest or demand that he stay and help Steven, he couldn't tell. Steven reached across the distance between them, touching his friend's hand as Kyogre raised another wave of titanic proportion. Green light shone from Steven's palm, sucking the life from him to fuel the Regis covenant with humanity.

"It's ok, Wallace. I want this," Steven looked away, down at the three Titans awaiting his command. He closed his hand, doing nothing to dim the anchor's light. "I need to do this."

Wallace found himself nodding. "You wouldn't be you if you didn't." He grabbed hold of Steven's hand. "Go then," he said weakly. "Go save the world."

Steven looked back at him, stormy grey eyes churning with conflict. His cheeks we thin and sallow, and the colour seemed to drain from his face. "I… I never told you," he stammered. "Now I'm out of time."

"It's ok," Wallace replied, trying to hold in a sob. "I already know… I love you too."

They sat there for a long moment, hands clasped in a desperate vision of what might have been. Ancient gods reshaped what had once been a thriving city before them, but nothing could break their embrace.

Steven pulled his hand away, a stern expression crossing his face. "Latias," he started, looking down at the pink dragon. "Take him somewhere safe."

Wallace opened his mouth to protest, but the dragon rocketed away. He twisted around, trying to get one last look at the man he loved. He caught a glimpse as he soared away, green power swirling around the grey-haired trainer atop a bolt of blue light.

Latias swung low over the ruined slope of Mount Chimney, slowing only long enough for Wallace to slip gracefully off her back. He looked back up at the sky as she rocketed away, watching the streak of pink light tear across the sky.

Then the earth shook with fury and Wallace watched armageddon come to Hoenn.


He was as close to a God as any human could ever claim to be. The legendary Golems were his. The Eon twins were his. He had more raw power at his disposal than even Grand Champion Shirona could have ever dreamed of. And yet, it still was not enough. He could feel his strength flowing through the anchor on his hand, keeping the legendary Titans tethered to him. He was growing weaker by the moment, his life fading away to fuel the terrible power in his hands.

Regirock led with its fists, but Kyogre's ire brought the wrath of the ocean down upon it. Its frozen kin was there, encasing the Ocean God in a frozen casket before it could end the stone Golem. Regirock burst from the ice as its frozen kin sealed the Sea God away, charging towards Groudon at Steven's urging.

Groudon batted aside Registeel like it was nothing more than a nuisance. The steel Titan skidded to a halt in the frozen muck, carving deep furrows as it tried to stop itself. Deep dents covered its armoured shell, green light leaking haphazardly from inside the Golem.

Regirock was there, leaping atop a spear of stone spear aimed at Groudon's heart. Steven felt his strength flagging as yet more of his life flew through the anchor, and he knew that he didn't have long left. He had to end this now.

Latios surged forward, a blast of psychic fire carving into the earth God's jaw. A pink bubble streaked through the battlefield as Regirock impaled the earth god with its final act, painting Groudon's throat with psychic fire.

The stone Titan buried itself deep in Groudon's chest, spearing it through with a suicidal stone edge. Groudon shrieked as it doubled over the stone spear, white-hot fury rolling off the wounded God in waves.

The ocean flash froze as Regice whipped a howling blizzard into existence. Groudon toppled backwards, snow and ice piling up as the Earth God roared in frustration. Registeel landed atop Groudon's chest, pounding metal fists into the toppled God.

The snow began to melt, sloughing off the earth God's body in great streams. Steven's eyes widened as Groudon's baleful golden eyes seemed to settle on him. Fire danced in the God's gaze and Steven knew that he had lost.

The earth opened beneath Groudon, a geyser of molten lava spewing into the sky. Regice simply ceased to be, boiling into steam as the lava engulfed it. Registeel stumbled backwards, legs bending under its weight as the heat began to melt them. Groudon righted itself on the lava floe, swinging around to face the melting Titan.

Steven reached out, tossing out a ball. A shining silver shell appeared, four limbs stretching out from his metagross. The steel-type shone with psychic light, powerful barriers springing into place around it.

"Meteor mash!" Steven roared as the anchor went dark, Registeel melting into nothing as the lava overtook it. He felt the strength returning to him and knew that the Golems had failed. It was down to him.

His metagross fell like a stone, fist outstretched and wreathed in power. He followed it down, Latios wreathing itself in a psychic aura. The dragon's sister surged ahead of him, encased in her protective psychic bubble.

His metagross landed a blow on Groudon's jaw. Latias slammed into the Earth God's chest, forcing it back off balance. Steven and Latios drove directly into Groudon's chest, sending it tumbling back into the lava.

A thunderous crash tore through the air as Kyogre burst through the weakened ice, a vengeful cry erupting across the ruined city.

Steven's eyes widened as a wave larger than either of the other ones that Regice had frozen swelled to life behind the massive Sea God. He had nothing to stop this.

His metagross leapt up, fists glowing as it rocketed towards Kyogre. It defended him without thought, his starter's loyalty bringing a tear to his eyes.

Kyogre opened its maw, spewing a torrent of water that blasted his metagross into the earth. The levitating tank bounced through the ruined city and Steven lost his starter in the rubble.

He held tightly to Latios, praying for a miracle.

His eyes shut as he heard Groudon rise to its feet behind him. He'd failed. Both Gods would tear the world apart in their endless war. Then the wave crashed over him as Kyogre smote Hoenn's stubborn Champion under an ocean's worth of water.

Steven held on for dear life, the wave smashing Latios off the ground. A shimmering barrier held strong over them, though Latios could do nothing to stop them from being tossed upon the wave along with half of Lilycove.

They broke the surface of the water for a single moment and it was all that the dragon needed. He soared into the air, Steven throwing up an arm to shield himself from the salty spray beneath them. A pink stream of light tore through the spray, splashing harmlessly against Kyogre's side.

Latias spun off a clumsy attempt at retaliation, almost effortlessly avoiding Kyogre's hydro pump. She carved a bloody path along the God's side, a roaring pulse of purple energy piercing into blubber.

Latios swooped low to aid her sister, Steven still clutching desperately to his back. He saw it too late to do anything, watched Groudon open its maw and the fire boiling in its throat.

Latios pulled a psychic barrier up at the last moment, throwing everything he had into a last ditch effort. Steven felt the air grow thin and the searing heat seeping through the barrier as Latios whined in effort.

Then the flames ended and Groudon's tail was hurtling up to meet him. He sucked in sharply and the earth god made contact. He heard a high pitched psychic pop, and his world spun to pieces.

Latios desperately tried to right himself, but the dragon was wounded now and Steven was far too heavy a burden. They hit the ground, bouncing twice before Latios lost consciousness and Steven was thrown hurtling from the dragon's back.

He skidded to a halt, rolling uncontrollably and smashing violently off of rubble strewn across the field. Steven Stone came to a halt in the frozen muck, trying and failing to draw a breath.

He lay there in awe of the duelling Gods, limbs stubbornly refusing to move. He could see Latias still harassing the primordial foes, but knew that she was doomed like everyone else had been. She couldn't defeat these two alone, not where their best efforts had fallen short.

A spear of golden light tore through the storm, driving Kyogre into the earth with practiced ease. A twisting, writhing dragon rose from the crumpled body of the Sea God and Steven felt his heartbeat quicken in his chest. Rayquaza was here.

Groudon roared fearfully, scrambling backwards as the Sky God slowly advanced upon it. Then the flying dragon began to glow with golden light. Steven's eyes widened as he watched Hoenn's saviour drive relentlessly into Groudon's heart.

He felt the rumble of the earth as Groudon smashed off the ground. The earth rumbled and protested, but Rayquaza was stronger than the Earth God could ever hope to be. Hoenn's ancient protector reared back and Steven knew that it was over.

His vision began to fade, dark shadows starting to creep in at the edges of his sight. He felt a solemn presence touch his mind and realized that his metagross was still alive.

Tears streamed freely down his face. He had known that he was sending his starter into an impossible situation. Knowing that his stubborn old metagross had survived anyways was all the peace that his body needed.

He felt something lumber over him, and blankly watched his Metagross lift him off the ground with its mind. He tried to turn his head to watch Rayquaza savage the rising Kyogre, but found that his head refused to turn.

Calm acceptance washed over him as his metagross confirmed his suspicions. He was broken. There would be no miracles for him. Not even Jirachi's wish would have been able to save him now. He felt himself fall to the ground and looked helplessly up at the sky.

Steven Stone faded away. He didn't fight the end. Hoenn was safe. The world was safe. Wallace was safe. That was all that mattered to him.
 
Death of Duty, Chapter 19: Mission
Mission


Two weeks and she stayed comatose. Two weeks and she wouldn't budge. She was breathing, but she wouldn't wake. The doctors assured me that she was physically fine, but there was no way to tell when she might wake up. Our only option was to wait.

I sat at her side every night, watching my ninetales sleep. She looked peaceful, like she hadn't nearly blown herself to pieces in saving all our lives. But most of all, she looked fragile. More than once, I found tears in my eyes as I watched her breathe.

Janine kept me busy, seeming to sense my budding depression. She had me working with a crew of handpicked Fuchsians, keeping us busy with raids on Rocket sites in the Fucshia area. There were dozens, most of them unmanned supply depots or resting stations. However we came across more than a few manned outposts. I deferred to Janine's men during those battles, letting them use their superior knowledge of local conditions. We operated well together, even if I was completely outclassed by the Fuchsian shinobi.

The partnership seemed amicable enough, though I still would catch the odd cold glare from the shinobi. Janine's inclusion of the Rangers rubbed a lot of the clans the wrong way, though none of them had dared to say anything yet. I suspected that Janine had only chosen people who she knew wouldn't question her command for this squad and I resolved to represent the Rangers the best I could.

It wasn't until the first day of the third week that I spoke to Janine again. She knocked on the door to mine and Luna's room, entering before I even looked up at the door.

"Marcus," she said in greeting. "Any change?"

I shook my head. "Still nothing. Doctors don't even have an estimate for me anymore." I didn't look up, remaining at Luna's side with her hair brush clutched in my hands.

"I'm very sorry to hear that," Janine said in a diplomatic tone. She put a hand on my shoulder. "She proved herself to be a formidable pokemon. I was very much hoping to have a friendly battle against her before you left."

I shrugged. "I don't know if Luna would be ready for that, even if she woke today. Surge seems about ready to head back to Vermilion any day now."

I glanced up at her. "Two days," I replied. "Zapdos Squad departs in two days." I looked down at Luna. "Surge says I'm here with Luna as long as he doesn't need me."

"Good," she said as a grin spread across her face. "I have something big and I wanted you on it."

I leaned back, putting Luna's brush on the bed beside her. "What do you have?"

She handed me a folder that was heavy with thick, grainy photographs. I lifted one up to the light, peering at the fuzzy picture. It was hard to make out, but I thought I could see a gray slab of concrete rising from the sea against the backdrop of rocky crags.

"I found where they've been offloading their secret cargo." She reached into the folder, pulling out a shipping manifest. "A cargo ship owned by some Johtan shipping magnate departed Fuchsia the day before I took power. Almost a hundred tons of sensitive equipment and high-tech materials were missing from the cargo liner Delibird's Dream. Rangers seized the ship upon its arrival in Olivine and found the hold full of Rocket property, with the exception of these materials."

I glanced up at her, then back down at the shipping manifest she had handed me. The missing materials were underlined and a second page full of jumbled maps was stapled to the back.

"These particular missing materials happen to be much the same as those required for the construction of their experimental evolution machines, something that we only know thanks to the work of Zapdos squad in capturing one of the devices tested in the Safari Zone."

"They never got to Olivine," I said. "Which means that these devices are being constructed off-shore. Probably somewhere relatively close to Kanto since every encounter with one of these devices has been in Kanto itself."

"Which doesn't narrow it down," she replied with a knowing grin. "Unless you've got the GPS data on every ship that has passed through Fuchsia in the past ten years."

I flipped the page, glancing down at the countless maps that Janine had overlaid onto the single page. It was madness, random noise with no clear pattern. No pattern, but one commonality.

I pointed at the map, at the same stretch of sea that each voyage seemed to casually pass through. "They always make the same approach and departure from Fuchsia. They're hugging the straits between these islands and the coast. Straits that are filled with sharp rocks and uneven sea floor."

Janine smirked. "Sailing right past the Seafoam Island chain, through one of the more dangerous stretches of ocean rather than taking the safer open sea lanes further south." She smirked. "Well that's suspicious enough to warrant a little visit, don't you think?"

I lifted up the blurry, ill-defined photos. "It's something. Rocket's gotta be scrambling with half their cells getting shut down and their smuggling operations taking a serious blow. Who knows how long this facility will stay operational, even if it was off the books." I looked past the photo, back at Janine. "You want me to bring Surge in on this?"

She shook her head. "Just keep him notified. He's got enough on his plate coordinating strikes around Vermillion. I wouldn't want to keep him here any longer."

I nodded and got to my feet, sparing a longing gaze for Luna. I pet her side absentmindedly, praying that she would show me some sign of life. "When do we move out?" I asked.

"Two hours," she replied. "The Anzu Clan has a ship in the harbour that can have us there by tomorrow morning. Meet us there in one hour."

I nodded as she turned and left the room. I spared Luna one last glance. She remained stubbornly still. I laid her brush down beside her head and left her alone in the room.


I knocked loudly as I entered. Surge glanced up at me, nodding and raising a single finger as he barked orders into the satellite phone in his hand. I sat heavily in his chair, glancing through the mess of documents spread out across his bed.

Surge ended the call and glanced up at me. "Wright," he said. "How's your ninetales?"

I shrugged. "The same," I replied. I dropped the dossier Janine had given me in front of him. "But that's not why I'm here. Janine found something big that she's pulling me in on."

He nodded, flipping through the folder and glancing over the pictures. "Is her intel good?"

I nodded. "For the most part. I have my doubts that it's as large of a site as Janine thinks, but all signs point to a Rocket presence."

"Potential threat analysis?" He asked. I watched him flip through the pages, knowing that he wouldn't find what he was looking for. Janine hadn't been able to surmise what kind of response we'd be greeted with.

I crossed my arms. "Unknown. Could be anything from a few grunts to high level executives if we're lucky."

"We haven't been lately," Surge said. "Someone broke Petrel and Proton out in Johto. We're leaning towards Archer being responsible, but there aren't any solid leads at the moment." He glanced up at me. "This place was off the books for a reason. Find us that reason and leave nothing behind for Rocket to salvage."

I nodded. "Yes sir," I got to my feet, snapping a salute. "Anything further?"

He nodded. "There is, actually." His usual scowl softened slightly and he sat up a little straighter. "Please, sit down."

I sat back down in the chair. I had a sinking feeling in my stomach that I knew what Surge was going to ask me. I sat forward, heart pounding a hole in my chest as Surge just smiled.

"Harding told me about your outburst during the rescue op. She told me you wanted out, even if you wouldn't admit it," he said in a calm, collected tone. "However, I wanted to ask how you were myself. You did come to me and ask to help bring Rocket down."

I shrugged. "I'm alright," I answered quickly. I felt myself force the words out, knowing that they sounded stilted and forced. I couldn't help but grimace in embarrassment.

Surge smirked, chuckling slightly. "Because that's convincing," he said with the same wry smile. "Don't lie to me, kid. I've been around too long and seen far too much to swallow a load like that." He straightened his spine and closed the folder I'd given him. "I know pain when I see it. Tell me what I can do to help."

The tension broke like a dam. I couldn't help it. Tears fell freely, painful sobs wracking my body. I held my face in my hands, trying to hide from the shame.

"I told you before that this life was a hard one," Surge started. "I told you that the price a Ranger pays is far more than most are willing to pay."

I felt a hand on my shoulder and glanced up. I didn't know when Harding had gotten here, but there she was. The good captain was here to help.

"You've already paid that price, more than once. You know what loss is. You know what it's like to lose a friend," Surge continued. He swung his legs off the side of the bed, ignoring the fact that a cast covered him hip to heel. "You know what it's like to have those close to you taken away."

"I had him," I said suddenly. "I had his hand in mine. I just couldn't hold on…" I trailed off and I knew that they were looking at me. "He… Rey…" I trailed off again, unable to even say his name. "He told me to use it. He wanted his death to mean something." I looked up at them, gesturing around. "This is what it was for? Another mission with hardly a glance backwards? People, our friends, are dead because of what we did." I looked back down. "I don't know how I'm supposed to handle that. I don't know what I'm supposed to do, or how I'm supposed to feel."

Harding didn't move her hand. She just squeezed me on the shoulder and nodded solemnly. I put my hand on hers and faked a weak smile.

"I remember the names of every man and woman that has died under my command." Surge struggled to his feet, reaching for my chair as a crutch. The captain caught his hand, steadying our commanding officer. "Remember them," he said forcefully. "Remember the ones who didn't make it. Remember them and use that fire. Janine told me what you said to her."

I looked up. My heart skipped a beat, thinking back to the desperate arguments I'd made to Janine. I didn't feel like a hero, but these real heroes were acting like I was.

"She told me that you helped her push past Corporal Warrick's death. That you pushed her to make her death mean something." He put a hand on my other shoulder. "You made Reyes's death mean something. He gave his life to help bring down corruption within the League and shut down Rocket operations across Kanto. Wertz, Warrick, Blake, Kravtsov, Thompson… they all gave themselves to the service, just like Reyes."

Harding squeezed my shoulder. "You did good, kid. I know it's tough when you've got nothing but time to think about what happened. You did what you could. You did your best and you helped deal a massive blow to Rocket. You made those sacrifices worth it. You made their deaths have meaning."

I didn't say anything, just glanced back and forth between the two. I swallowed the lump in my throat and dried my tears with one of my sleeves.

Surge sat back on his bed, groaning and clutching at his hip. "In recognition of your stellar work for the Rangers thus far and the positively glowing recommendations that Janine keeps sending me, I have seen fit to waive service requirements for your promotion. Congratulations, Corporal Wright."

My jaw dropped and I stared in shock. "Wait, what?" I looked over at Harding, who was a stoic wall. "Why?"

"Because we see potential," Surge said. He folded his arms and looked me up and down. "You toasted an elite level venomoth in a single move. You took out a horde of koffing and turned the battle on its head. You deserve a pay raise if you ask me."

"That was a lucky break," I protested. "And it nearly killed my pokemon. That's failure, not success."

"Let's go further back," Harding interrupted. "You infiltrated a Rocket facility, battled Giovanni himself and survived to shut down operations in Celadon." She shook her head, a knowing grin on her face. "Even as much as you outnumbered him, he should have wiped the floor with you."

"I lost Pride, and got a friend's pokemon killed. I couldn't stop him, I lost."

Surge cleared his throat, drawing my gaze. "Even further back," he started. "I have a commendation on your trainer profile from a pair of Rangers during the tenta-swarm attack on Vermillion." He smirked at me. "Trainer Wright demonstrated an excellent understanding of battle tactics and clear situational awareness. Trainer Wright also led a more senior trainer into a dangerous situation, handling an impromptu leadership role with some matter of proficiency."

I sat there, in awe again. I didn't know what to say. Praise of any kind was awkward to me. "But… I just tried to help."

Surge nodded. "That's the point. You're a good kid. You've got a good head on your shoulders. We think you could do great things and we want to help you."

I slowly nodded, looking at Surge with a weight lifting off my shoulder. "During the mission, I didn't know if I really wanted to be a Ranger. I didn't see the point to staying on. Maybe I don't see a point to it anymore. But I'm not a quitter. I don't like giving up." I smiled over my shoulder at Harding. "Thank you for believing in me," I said. "Thank you both."

I didn't know if things were going to be alright. I didn't know if I was going to be a great trainer. I didn't even know if my starter was going to be ok. But these two believed in me. I might not believe in myself, but someone did. That was enough for me.


Fuchsia's harbour was downright gorgeous in the evening light. The sun was starting to set, painting the clouds with a soft golden glow. Several cargo ships were docked at the port, people milling around the commercial dock as massive cranes loaded and unloaded the ships.

Janine's ship sat at the end of one pier. It was a sleek, deadly looking machine; forty feet of dark metal and sharp angles. A single turret sat on the deck, a large cannon mounted atop the turret. Two lithe speedboats sat mounted on racks at the rear of the ship, a half dozen crew members slaving over the final checks.

Janine was on the deck, deep in conversation with an older woman. Her violet hair shone bright in the evening sunlight. I felt my heart skip a beat and quickly looked away as I made my way aboard.

One of the shinobi I had been working with was leaning against the side of the ship, looking out at Fuchsia. "Private Wright," he said blankly, turning to look at me. "Welcome aboard the Poison Fang."

I took a spot beside him, trying and failing to suppress the stupid grin on my face. "Actually, it's Corporal Wright now, Leopold."

He raised an eyebrow. "Congratulations then," he said, bowing his head in respect. "A well deserved promotion."

"You're just saying that, mister roboto," I said, trying to draw a grin out of the stoic shinobi. "I thought you were going to gut me in my sleep?"

"I still may," he replied, a smile tugging at his lips. "Just haven't found a good enough excuse yet."

Janine appeared from behind us, smirking as she wrapped an arm around Leopold's broad shoulders. "Do you mind if I borrow Marcus for a few?" she asked.

"I welcome it," he deadpanned as Janine led me away. "A reprieve from this dreary conversation."

"So," I started, trying desperately not to notice the way her violet eyes caught the sun. "You never told me that you had such a nice ship."

She grinned wildly. "The Fang is fast and quiet. She'll do well by us." She paused for a moment, her mood seeming to dampen. "She was my father's personal transport."

I hesitated for a moment. "Are you alright?" I asked, sensing that she was waiting for me to say something.

She shook her head as she led me across the deck to the woman she had been talking to when I boarded. "Marcus, I want to formally introduce you to my mother."

I bowed my head in respect, my eyes widening in surprise as she turned to face me. She looked almost exactly like Janine, save for the beginnings of some wrinkles starting to form around her eyes.

The woman that I had rescued alongside Surge smiled back at me. "I believe that we've already met. Though I don't think that I caught your name until Janine here honoured you and your compatriots at her coronation." She smiled softly. "I must thank you, young master Wright. I shudder to think what could have happened had you not rescued me from my husband."

I stood respectfully, my spine automatically stiffening. I'd had no clue to her identity and my response was immediate. "My pleasure, Lady Anzu. I only regret that I could not have acted sooner."

She smiled softly. "Please, such flattery is not necessary. I understand the good you have done for my clan and I am in your debt for it." Lady Anzu glanced over at Janine and then back at me. "Now, if I may, I must take my leave. I am needed below deck and we must make ready for our journey."

"Thank you, mother," Janine said in a hushed tone. I caught a pointed glance between the two before Lady Anzu turned and departed.

Janine looked at me, an expression that I couldn't decipher on her face. "Follow me to the crew quarters," she started. "We'll be aboard for a few days, so we've set a bunk aside for you."

I followed her into the ship. The hot, damp smell of gasoline and sweat were oppressive. They invaded your nose while the cramped corridors forced you into the space of passers by. More than once I found myself uncomfortably close to Janine, trying and failing to ignore the bead of sweat trailing down her neck. I tried to push the image from my mind and failed miserably.

"Centre bunk," she said, propping the door open for me as I passed her. Our chests brushed together and I sweltered internally. "Last one on the left. We'll be shoving off soon enough."

I dropped my gear onto my bunk, only pausing to grab my pokemon. I turned back to her, desperate to get away from the oppressive heat of the ship's interior. "So," I started, lifting my pokeballs. "You did offer to train me. Fancy showing me the ropes?"

She grinned mercilessly. I saw something mischievous flash in her eyes and suppressed a flutter in my chest. She was a gym leader, above mere peons like myself. "Why, Marcus, I thought you'd never ask."


It turned out, that tropical sun out on the ocean was just as hot as the interior of the Fang had been. There was simply no respite from the evening sun. It hung low in the sky, heating everything up to an uncomfortably hot temperature.

The Ranger fatigues I had been given were designed for operations in tropical environments. The pants were light and breathable, the long-sleeved shirt designed to keep me cool and dry. Fucshia's afternoon sun thwarted every effort to keep cool.

Still, training had been offered. Training that I had no business declining. So there I stood, sweat drenching my back as I endured the oppressive heat.

Janine had ordered the deck cleared, giving us a large space to train towards the bow of the ship. The deck was slick with spray from the waves and the rhythmic sway of the ship gave me some pause. I was a farmer's son, not a sailor. I'd never set foot on a dingy, let alone a warship like this.

Janine stepped forward, beckoning me over. Lady Anzu was at her side, arms folded behind her back and expression unreadable.

"One thing you must understand is that training with our pokemon involves a large amount of poison." Lady Anzu stepped forward, raising a pokeball. She tapped the button, releasing her pokemon out onto the deck. "It is simply an inevitability when training with poison types."

The bipedal amphibian dropped into a crouch, croaking loudly as his bulbous red vocal sack swelled up. Its yellow, reptilian eyes settled on me, blinking blankly.

"Neither you nor your pokemon are in any danger when training with us. We have plenty of antidotes on hand and Marius will refrain from making any lethal strikes."

I nodded. I knew the Fuchsian shinobi were a step above the Rangers, but the possibility of one of my pokemon being seriously hurt in training was not something that had been at the forefront of my mind. "Thank you, Lady Anzu."

Janine stepped forward, raising her ball. "By my observations and Surge's reports, you have a half-decent eye for tactics. But you severely lack in both strength and durability." She smirked mischievously. "We are going to have to fix that."

She tapped the button, releasing a hulking figure that towered above me. I gasped at the indomitable figure of a pokemon I'd only seen during Janine's League Conference run. Brutus the drapion glared down at me, radiating pure malice through his piercing gaze.

"Release your heracross and marowak," Lady Anzu barked, rousing me from my stupor.

I lifted their balls, releasing them onto the deck in front of me. Vector caught his footing easily, but Acolyte stumbled and dropped to one knee as a wave rocked the ship's deck. He glanced back at me, utter betrayal written in his eyes as he realized where we were.

Lady Anzu was there, correcting Acolyte's stance with a wooden pole she produced from her sleeve. "Sloppy!" she criticized. "Terrible footwork!"

I winced as Acolyte drew back to his feet, warily clutching at his club. He was terribly uncomfortable with the movement of the ship's deck and kept nervously glancing back at me.

I finally released Curie beside me. She might not be ready for combat, but her training was progressing rapidly. The experience of sitting in on a training session like this would do her good.

Lady Anzu paced back and forth in front of my pokemon, criticizing every aspect of their training thus far. Their muscles were underdeveloped, their reflexes slow and sluggish. It hurt to hear the many ways that I'd failed my pokemon, although she did remark positively on their technical skills as they demonstrated them.

She had me demonstrate our usual training routine, seeming thoroughly disappointed throughout. She did not hold back, tearing apart our routine and building it back up from scratch. Only our dodge and counter drills remained, modified with the addition of practice blocking or deflecting attacks. Marius and Brutus demonstrated, putting my pokemon to shame with their superior ability.

Strength training regimens were added, with Acolyte and Vector moving large weights back and forth across the deck. Brutus and Marius demonstrated for us again while Curie watched on, shaming me with their ease of movement. The same exercises could easily be replicated in the wild with large rocks or felled trees. Lady Anzu had me join them and I realized just how weak I was compared to those who regularly trained. I resolved right then and there to become as strong as I could. I was an embarrassment to my team like this, something that bothered me deeply.

Our agility training became more focused, with added emphasis on efficient footwork. Acolyte especially had trouble with this part of the workout as his agility was nowhere close to Vector's or even my own. Lady Anzu made sure to follow up with additional instructions for his future training.

They had me release Artemis onto the rear of the ship. Leopold had a crobat that could fly circles around her, and assured me that he had trained with pseudo dragons in the past. He took Artemis into the air, working on basic aerial maneuvers. I could see by a quick observation just how little confidence she had in the air.

Janine took me aside once we had got the pokemon started and tested me in basic fitness. I was moderately adequate when it came to long-term endurance, but lacked substantial strength. She began teaching me basic strength training exercises, things that I really should have known to be doing. Most of it was basic body weight exercises, things that I could do without any additional equipment carried with me.

By the time we were done, the sun was starting to dip in the sky and the oppressive heat was starting to break. My pokemon were retired to their balls and handed over to the ship's medical team. I was skeptical, but Janine assured me that they would be ready for any action when we arrived at our destination.

I retired to my bunk, only stopping off at the showers before collapsing exhausted into the tiny bed. The dank smell and heat was not enough to stop me from passing out in moments.


"Wake up, Ranger."

I jumped awake. The rhythmic rocking of the ship was timed perfectly, rolling me off the bed and dropping me heavily on the floor. I groaned heavily and opened my eyes to the grinning face of a sardonic shinobi.

Leopold looked down at me, his face obscured by shadow. His hood was pulled up and I could barely see the glint of a grin. "We have arrived. You are needed on the deck."

I groaned and sat up with no small amount of difficulty. My muscles were aching from the intense workout the day before and I realized just how weak I was. I clambered your my feet, gently massaging my arms and ignoring the exhausted protest of my brain. "We're already there?"

Leopold nodded, already turning to lead me up to the deck. I followed him without a word, rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I shouldered my ruck. The sky was still dark, but the barest traces of blue were beginning to brighten on the horizon.

Janine was waiting on the edge of the deck, the rest of the shinobi waiting patiently for orders. Leopold stepped into line and I filed in beside him.

"Good," Janine said. "Now that everyone's here, we'll begin." She turned, gesturing at the vague outline of the island behind her. "Thermal imaging shows a ship docked at the Rocket facility, with half a dozen crew working through the night. They're unloading something from the ship and they're in a hurry." I caught a smirk as she turned back to us. "We don't know how many men are in the facility, but it looks like we've caught them with their pants down. Let's go nail the bastards."

A small cheer went up before ending abruptly. Lady Anzu boomed over us, directing the shinobi as she turned towards the pair of speedboats mounted on racks at the rear of the ship.

Janine brushed up beside me, holding a trio of pokeballs. "Your pokemon passed their medicals. They're ready."

I took the balls back, slipping them into the open slots on my belt. "Thanks again for doing this."

She shrugged. "I didn't really do much," she said. "Just showed you what taking that next step looks like. Trainers often plateau around the novice-intermediate level because their training is not sufficient. They focus on technique and new moves rather than improving on their pokemon's raw skills."

"No," I said. "I mean it. This life is the only thing I really have. My team is my family and I don't like feeling that I failed them." I shrugged. "It's in the past now, all I can do is do better for them in the future." I smiled despite the early hour. "Honestly, thank you."

Janine smiled honestly. "Always a pleasure," she started. "Trainers help each other."

I looked at her shrewdly. There was that phrase again, popping up everywhere. "That we do," I said. "That we do."

I followed the group of shinobi, watching Janine clamber into the other speedboat and take her place at the head of the boat. I climbed into the other and sat beside Leopold near the rear of the vehicle, glancing over at the shinobi.

"Are you ready, Corporal Wright?" Leopold asked. "Blood waits to be spilled."

"You're always such a joy, Leopold."

The speedboats slid off the racks, dropping smoothly into the water with hardly a splash. Both engines roared to life and the pair of boats began to cut through the waves. The Fang began to recede behind us and the indistinct shape of the rocky island began to take form. I could see the angular shape of the ship rising from the water and the small pier jutting out from the stoney shore.

We drew closer, the roar of our engines lost in the waves crashing against the rocky shore. The herds of dewgong and seel on the shore raised their heads to look at us, but we drew no other attention as we approached the docked ship.

"Cut the engine." Leopold whisper-shouted.

The droning of our speedboat's engine spluttered and died. I glanced over at the other boat and watched as it cut its own engine and slowly drifted the rest of the way in. Two of the shinobi at the bow began lashing lines to the side of the ship, securing our speedboat at the bottom of a ladder that lead up to the deck.

I was second up the ladder, sandwiched in between two shinobi that I hadn't worked with yet. We slipped up the ladder and onto the deck silently, taking up positions overlooking the cargo hole that the dozen or so figures were milling around as they unloaded the ship. I peered down into the hold, but shadows cast by the scant light of the moon obscured the loaded cargo.

Janine whistled softly, raising a fist as she stepped away from the edge. "Tag the ship for GPS," she ordered. "Ranger, Leopold, you're with me." She glanced around. "The rest of you are to set your explosive charges on the pier, then return to the Fang and await further orders. It is imperative that we remain unnoticed."

"We're letting them go?" asked one of the shinobi. "We can end their little operation right now."

"We're going to inform Blaine about the cargo vessel. He'll have the sea lanes past Cinnabar swarming with ships to intercept," Janine retorted. "Our mission is to find whatever secrets this place holds, not chase down cargo ships."

The shinobi seemed cowed by the response, and no further protests were made. Lady Anzu silently ushered most of the shinobi back towards the ladder, only following them once the last of the shinobi had crept over the side of the ship.

Janine crept back to her feet, peering down into the cargo hold. She produced a small set of binoculars from her pack. "Eleven visible crew." She pointed the binoculars up towards the pier. "Two guards at the end of the pier."

Leopold was beside her, pointing to where the pier met the shore. "Looks like an entrance there."

She aimed the binoculars where he was pointing. "Two more guards," she said quietly. "And a big-ass door."

"What's the plan?" I asked. I kept a nervous eye on the workers unloading the ship, waiting for any sign that we'd been noticed. "We can't stay here. The sun's coming up and we don't exactly have an abundance of cover."

Janine grinned wildly and I had a sinking feeling that I wasn't going to enjoy her plan. "Fancy a swim, Ranger?"


We spent the next several hours at the base of the pier, perched on the rocks just above the shoreline. The rocks were with slick with the salty spray of the sea and my foot nearly slipped on a patch of green algae more than once.

The cargo ship departed just after the sun cleared the horizon. Janine contacted the Fang, ordering Lady Anzu to keep the ship well away to avoid arousing any suspicion. We remained there for another hour at least, waiting for the guards at the door to change.

Janine and Leopold free climbed up the rocky shore, once again putting me to shame. I marvelled at the sheer physical talent the two shinobi possessed and resolved yet again to push myself until I could keep up.

I lost the two of them as they made their way onto the rock face that overlooked the pier. Another ten minutes passed before I heard a loud grunt and watched the two Rocket guards splash into the surf.

Janine's head appeared over the side of the pier. "Get up here," she ordered. "I need your help with the door."

I swung myself onto the ladder on one of the pier supports. I clambered up and glanced up at the hulking form of Janine's drapion. "What do you need?"

She turned away from the heavy stone double doors, frustration written on her face. "It's on a biometric lock. We'll have to force it open."

I raised Vector's ball, releasing my heracross onto the pier in front of me.

"Brutus," Janine started. "Open the door."

I pointed at the door as Janine's drapion wedged his pincers into the crack. "Help him open it," I ordered.

Vector ducked under Brutus' pincers and grabbed hold of one of the double doors. His wings unfurled and a loud buzz filled the air as he wrenched on the door as hard as he could.

A hint of a crack appeared between the double doors as Brutus wedged his pincers deeper into the opening. I could hear the groan of heavy machinery and the grinding of stone on stone.

My hand dropped to my belt, releasing Acolyte beside the two pokemon. I didn't even need to give the order before he grabbed hold of the door opposite Vector and added his strength to theirs.

The door ground open, slowly and hesitantly. Brutus groaned, forcing the doors apart until there was a space large enough for us to slip through. Leopold slipped through, followed a moment later by Janine and myself.

I returned my pokemon to their balls as Janine returned Brutus. The doors ground shut in moments, locking us into a dark tunnel that sloped gently downwards. Janine produced a small red-tinted headlamp and donned it, prompting Leopold and myself to do the same.

"Alright, there's something down here for us to find," Janine said calmly. "Stay quiet, move quickly, and for Mew's sake don't get caught alone."

The infectious calm in her voice resonated in my mind. I'd never done anything like this, save for the trap I'd walked into in Fuchsia. I was terrified, my heart pounding a mile a minute in my chest. But her calm, collected demeanour slowed down my racing thoughts. I took a breath and swallowed the nervous lump in my throat.

I was a Ranger. I was an accomplished trainer. I was not out of my depth. I fell in behind Janine silently, trying desperately not to stare at the way her outfit hugged her curves.

I failed in that regard. Miserably.


"Hold," Janine whispered. She clicked off her headlamp, and Leopold and I did the same. "I hear movement up ahead."

Leopold crept past us. He was the quietest of us, making nearly no noise at all when he moved. He disappeared into the gloom, following along the tunnel with his hand on the left wall.

I crouched beside Janine, nearly losing her in almost complete darkness. I brushed up against her by accident and stepped back before she could say anything. The temperature was practically near-freezing, despite the sweltering temperatures above-ground. I shivered, but I pushed the concern away, warming my hands up by stuffing them into my armpits.

Leopold reappeared in front of us a few minutes later, shushing us with one hand and beckoning us to follow him with the other. We followed him, creeping through the darkness as carefully as we could.

The darkness slowly receded as we passed several chambers that branched off from the tunnel. We could hear voices from some of the tunnels and I tried to count the number of unique voices I could hear. I stopped once I got to about fifteen, realizing that we were badly outnumbered should a battle break out.

Leopold stopped us at a tunnel that cut sharply into some kind of sterile white surface. It was a hallway, constructed who knows how deep below the surface of the island. "The other branches seem to be living quarters and cargo storage, hewn straight from the rock. This is the only branch constructed like this. Nowhere else have they taken the care they showed here."

"Almost like a lab," I said in a hushed tone. "Like there's something important in there."

Janine turned to me, contemplating what I'd said for a moment. She looked back at Leopold. "Lead us in," she said. Her hand dropped to the balls on her belt. "Be ready for anything."

As one, we crept forward. No alarm greeted us, no storm of boots or roar of pokemon met us. The hallway went on for several dozen meters before we came to a sealed metal door.

Janine looked over the panel for a moment, intently staring at the buttons. "I have to open it," she said. "And it's gonna make a lot of noise."

Leopold slid his blade free of its sheathe. "Then do it. Our objective lies on the other side."

I nodded in agreement. My hand rested on Acolyte's ball, waiting for a sign of danger. "Let's do it," I said, attempting quiet confidence in my tone.

Janine tapped a command into the panel and stepped back, her hand dropping to her belt.

An alarm blared twice, echoing up the tunnel we had come down. The door slowly began to slide into the wall, revealing a lily-white chamber before us. There were two levels, with a stairwell on the left side of the chamber leading up the second level.

Half a dozen men in lab coats stared blankly at us from around the room. There was a long pause as the three of us stared at them, while the door slid shut behind us.

"Alright," Janine started. She tapped one of her balls, releasing Brutus in front of us. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way."

Acolyte and Vector were out a moment later, glowering at the scientists and doing their best to look intimidating.

Janine grinned mischievously. "I'd really really like for someone to pick the hard way."

Silence was our only greeting.

I stared up at the scientists, watching for any kind of reaction. Then I saw it. A bead of sweat rolling down the brow of a scientist, his stance not fearful but poised and waiting. I followed his gaze, stopping on a cruel face I knew well. I'd never forget him for as long as I lived. I'd seen a million pictures, but I could never forget that cold, calculating stare.

I pointed up at him, cutting off Janine before she could speak. "Archer," I said calmly. My hand curled into a fist as I let it fall to my side. "You're under arrest."

His mouth curled into a cruel grin. "Well, my dear. It looks like you're going to get your wish after all." He raised a ball, cracking his knuckles and looking down on us from the platform. "I choose the hard way."


Pokédex Entry #49 – Venomoth

This insectoid pokemon is mainly nocturnal, making its home in many of the forests crossing Kan-Jo. They are typically solitary creatures, however they come together in great swarms when migrating back to their traditional mating grounds in Fucshia's Safari Zone. Great care must be taken by Indigo Rangers to steer these swarms around human settlements.

The dust scales that shear off this pokemon during flight are highly toxic. Great care must be taken when training a venomoth, as even small doses of their poison can be deadly in minutes. Study of these pokemon and the toxins they emit have led to great advancements in medical care in recent years.



Intermediate Trainer KT#07996101

Indigo Ranger Corps, Special Task Group, "Zapdos" Squad,

Corporal SN# 109-512-6591, Marcus Wright, current team:

Luna, Ninetales

Acolyte, Marowak

Vector, Heracross

Curie, Chansey

Artemis, Aerodactyl
 
Nightmare
Nightmare


The night was black. That was not unusual. The night was always black in Alamos Town. Nestled atop an isolated mesa to the north of the Oreburgh Valley, it was shielded from the radiant light of Jubilife and Hearthome by the small peaks of the Ravaged Path in the west and by the indomitable Coronet Highlands to the east. On top of that, the light from Oreburgh city was hidden by the valley walls and Eterna was shrouded by the outskirts of the forest. So, night was always darker in Alamos. Darker than it was in most of Sinnoh.

Of course, tonight's particular brand of darkness had a strange quality to it. It shifted and undulated, morphing in the scant light cast by the sleepy rural town. Sinister shadow crept into Alamos on the wind, visible against the backdrop of the stars.

Tobias rose from his chair on the porch of his small home on the edge of the cemetery. He sat out in the dark every night the weather permitted it. He liked the simplicity of the night and appreciated the constellations as he watched the sky. He even liked the clouds at night, though he privately dismayed that they blocked out the stars.

Tobias did not like this strange darkness that slunk through the sky and blotted out the night. He scowled at the unnatural darkness and knew that something terrible had come to Alamos.

A shadowed figure sat perched upon the roof of his home, watching the moon disappear behind the darkness of an all-consuming night. Tobias felt unease as a cold shiver ran down his spine.

"Now, now," Tobias said quietly. "It's just the dark. We aren't afraid of the dark."


Morning brought the sun, and with it the shadows that plagued Alamos' sky overnight retreated. Tobias could still feel the unease in the air. It persisted in the fog that rose onto the mesa from the valleys below. It persisted in the chill that froze the morning few to the windows of his home.

He set the kettle to boil and stepped outside again, noting a small group of people solemnly marching towards his home. They were dressed in all black and a casket was sat upon their shoulders. A small procession walked behind them, all clad in black with their faces covered.

Tobias frowned. It wasn't the Hubbard family. He'd been expecting old Mama Hubbard to pass soon, but it seemed that this was someone else entirely.

"Hail, Tobias." The man at the head of the procession removed his black hood. Baron Alberto's bright red hair greeted the day. "I bring grave news."

"Hail," he replied, stepping off his porch. "It is grave tidings for a grave to be dug." He looked over at the blonde woman with her hand on the casket. He did not recognize her, but Tobias was hardly familiar with most of the townspeople. He preferred the solitude the cemetery gave him. "Who has passed?"

Tobias had never been fond of the Baron, most of Alamos had never warmed up to him after his appointment to the lordship. There had been rumours of impropriety in his selection, and the untimely death of the old Lord Godey had done nothing to quell those rumours.

"Tonio," Alberto said quietly. He caught the look of suspicion Tobias cast at him and furrowed his brow. "He was found in the gardens at sunrise."

"Fortuitous that Lord Godey's last descendent should pass shortly after he presented his claim to the Royal Congress of Sinnoh."

Baron Alberto shook his head. "No, Tobias. We are not fortunate at all." He turned back to face the casket and folded his arms. "I would have words in private, about our town's resident shade. Is there anywhere away from these chattel we can speak?"

The dour grave keeper cracked a small smile for the first of the day. The kettle screamed and Tobias gestured over his shoulder. "Come in, your lordship. We'll have a cup of tea and you can tell me all about what you think Darkrai has done this time."


Tobias walked back to his creaking chair by the window in the front room, a pair of large tea mugs held cupped in his hands. He leaned forward, pushing one of the mugs towards the Baron, himself already seated at the small table. "Much better," Tobias "I find that a nice tea often helps clear my mind and your mind seems especially troubled today."

"Thank you," Alberto replied. He lifted the mug and gently tested it. "You seemed unconcerned when I mentioned Darkrai. Might I ask why that is?"

Tobias placed his mug beside him and looked out at the sunny morning. "I saw it in the sky last night," he replied. "It covered the stars. A shame, it was a beautiful night."

The Baron put his tea on the table. "Why must you speak in riddle, Tobias?" He shook his head. "A man was found dead, drained of colour and his face contorted in terror. This has happened before, by your own admission to the Champion."

Tobias' eyes found the lone picture of himself with the Champion, sitting upon the fireplace mantle. They were younger then, more irresponsible. They hadn't known what Darkrai was capable of back then.

"And you think that Darkrai is responsible for this incident." Tobias frowned into his tea. He looked up at the Baron with a solemn expression. "I speak for the shade. He is not responsible for this."

"You will forgive me, but I cannot accept that on faith alone." The Baron Alberto leaned back and lifted his tea once more. "I require proof."

Tobias shook his head. "You know that not to be possible." He glanced down at the Baron's tea and then back up at him. "He does not answer to demands. Not even mine."

Baron Alberto's expression went rigid as his brow furrowed. "You are not above the law, Tobias. A man is dead and your pet shade is responsible." He rose from the chair. "I will see justice delivered. I will see Tonio avenged." He glanced around, his eyes settling on the picture of Tobias and Cynthia sitting atop the fireplace mantle. "Not even your history with our dearest Champion will protect you."

A malignant shadow emerged from the wall behind Tobias. The lamp dimmed and flickered as a living shade materialized in the small kitchen.

The Baron shrank back as Darkrai melted off of the wall, dragging long inky shadows with him. "I will protect Tobias," it said. The shadow spoke in a gravelly baritone, vibrations of darkness seeming to echo the words. "You will leave."

Alberto finally lost his stomach for bravery in the face of the Shade of Alamos. He did not shriek or yell, but the Baron retreated from Tobias' table with a quiet terror. Tobias watched him open the front door of the house and retreat without a further word.

"He will be back," Tobias said in soft amusement as his expression lightened. "Of that I am certain."

The shadows seemed to soften as the shade melted back into the floor. The lamp returned to its previous shine and the sunny morning was sunny once more. Only a small splotch of inky blackness on the floor gave any clue to the presence of the strongest ghost in Sinnoh.

Tobias felt the ancient shade's mind touch his. He felt the vastness of immortality's experience and the vague agreement of an entity shrouded in darkness. "He will be back," the presence agreed.

The grave keeper nodded in solemn agreement. "And we had better be ready when he does."


Two more nights passed. Two more nights of inky splotches descending on Alamos and shutting off the stars. The Baron did not return, but Darkrai could sense the fear radiating from Alamos proper. Something terrible was truly happening.

It was the third night when it finally came. Tobias had hoped that his isolation from the town might give him some protection from whatever was afflicting the town. He had clearly been wrong.

The inky void seemed to descend from the sky like a midnight rain. It soaked into the ground, permeating and drowning any remaining light from Alamos. Even the moon disappeared behind the shadow. Only the small lantern sitting in the front room of his home offered any scant light, and even that flickered as if the darkness might reach out and extinguish it.

Tobias retreated indoors. He calmly lifted the lantern and cast his gaze around the room. The oppressive blackness seeped through his front windows and under the door. Tobias glanced over his shoulder, at the encroaching night that swept across his kitchen and lingered at the edge of his lantern's light.

"Darkrai," Tobias started. "Is this you?"

The shade rose from the floor behind him, melting into the shadows cast by Tobias' lantern. "No," intoned the ghost. "This darkness is not mine…"

Darkrai crept over Tobias' shoulder, gently reaching out with his own whispy darkness. He brushed against the wall of night and recoiled as though it had stung.

"This darkness is not of this world…" Darkrai said in an ominous whisper. "Something here is—"

The door knocked three times in short succession, silencing the shade. Tobias heard the door open, heard the heavy footfalls in the dark. He raised his lantern, trying to peer into the shadow.

It crashed down onto him without warning, dragging him down into the embrace of tartarus and blinding him utterly. But Tobias was brave. He had seen Darkrai's trick before, had known the shade when it was still a vengeful revenant. He did not feel the ghost's presence, but he would not begrudge the shade a little bit of fun.

Tobias' shoulders relaxed slightly. The darkness felt no different than it normally did to him, felt just like Darkrai's embrace always did. It was calming and peaceful and isolated from the rest of the world, just like he liked.

"Darkrai, I tire of this game." He placed the lantern down on the table at his side, a small smile crossing his face. "Enough of this."

A figure loomed from the darkness, alive with twisting tendrils of shadow. A figure that he knew well. Darkrai stepped out of the pitch black room and snuffed out the dim light of his lantern.

"Tricky little gravekeep," intoned Darkrai's grave voice. It served to make his skin crawl and the hairs on the back of his neck to raise. It was a reaction he hadn't had towards Darkrai in years. "Thought you'd stay hidden forever?"

The voice seemed to shift and alter. Tobias heard his own distinct cadence mirrored in the shade's words, as if Darkrai were making a mockery of his own voice. A new trick for the ghost.

"But I have never hidden," Tobias replied. He frowned, unsure of where the shade was taking his joke. "You know that, Darkrai. This is our home, it has been our home for years."

Darkrai's figure solidified and Tobias got a glimpse of the ghost through the unnatural darkness. Its figure was thicker at the waist than normal, a midnight shroud draped from its form.

A tendril of darkness reached up for the black hood pulled over its face. Tobias tensed up. Darkrai had never pulled its hood off before. Something was—

Darkrai was there. His Darkrai. It slid out of his shadow and forced its way in between the other shade and Tobias.

"You will leave!" Darkrai growled. The ghost radiated fury with a guttural growl. "This is our home!"

Darkness swelled before Tobias' eyes, flowing off of his shadow like a great river. He instinctively stepped in front of the lantern, casting a yet larger shadow for Darkrai to draw from.

He closed his eyes as the unnatural wall of unlight surrounded them and pressed in. He felt it prodding and reaching and shut out the world. He trusted Darkrai to see him through, no matter what this was.

A guttural, archaic howl tore through the small cabin. Tobias heard a terrible bout of thrashing and violence and dropped to his knees. A terrible wind tore through his home, and he felt the foundations shake as the two shades mauled each other.

A thunderous crack and cry of anguish forced his eyes open. Darkrai was pinned up against the front wall of his home. His Darkrai. A sea of darkness boiled and raged, drowning his friend in its own element.

He turned and crawled desperately through the pitch black. It was dark, but he knew his home and his friend needed his help. He stumbled to his feet, feeling his way into the kitchen. He felt his way to the counter, his hand brushing against the knife block. He grabbed a gleaming chef's knife as his eyes slowly adjusted to the near-total darkness.

Tobias returned to the front room, knife held outstretched before him. Indistinct shapes tore across his home, tangling and writhing with each other. He slipped through the melee, well versed in the patterns of Darkrai's usual attacks and counters. The opponent's own attacks seemed to mirror their own, their own counters reminiscent of the same strategies that Tobias had used in his league battles.

But this was no League sanctioned battle. This was an all out struggle for survival, a violent outburst that could only be sated by blood. He leapt up, spotting an opening through the thrashing maelstrom of darkness.

The other shade caught him by the throat, effortlessly halting his surprise attack. He felt only a crushing cold grip around his throat.

It turned to look at him and he saw under the black hood. He saw a face that could not, should not have been there. He saw a face twisted and corrupted by dark power that had tempted him once before.

Then it laughed. High and staccato, almost barking as it spoke in a cruel mockery of his and Darkrai's voices. "Do you understand yet, Tobias?"

It released him, dropping Tobias unceremoniously to the floor. His knife went clattering away, spirited by a shadowy wave. He scrambled to his feet, looking up at the shade that had pinned his friend to the wall.

"What are you?" he asked desperately. He backed away in fear as the creature turned towards him.

It reached up, grasping the top of its hood with a free hand and tearing it down. Tobias' own face, infested and writhing with living shadow, stared down at him in utter contempt.

It spoke, in that same twisted mockery of Tobias and Darkrai's voices. "Is that not obvious, Tobias?"

It turned and lifted his Darkrai off of the wall and Tobias saw how grievous the damage was. The shadow cloak that hung loosely around Darkrai's physical form was in tatters. Darkness leaked from spectral tears in the cloak, ebbing away what little strength Darkrai possessed.

"I am you, Tobias. A better you. A perfect you." The shade with his face leaned closer, floating down towards him. He saw the corruption rotting in the abomination's eyes. He saw the truth told by the pain contained within them. "I know you, Tobias. You long for glory. You hunger for power. You searched out this old poltergeist in search of it."

Tobias shook his head. "I don't know who you think I am, foul spirit. But I am not glory fiend. I seek no violence."

"I'm afraid that the violence found you," the spirit growled. It lifted Darkrai, savaging it with a glowing spectral claw and spraying Tobias' home with ectoplasm before it looked down at him. "You'll be coming with me, Tobias. We have much to do."

It dropped the shade on the floor and descended on Tobias. Darkness and shadow consumed the pair and surged back out the doors and window. Flickering light and warmth spilled out into the small home once more.

The dim flame of Tobias' lantern illuminated the empty cabin. Empty, save for the crumpled and oozing shade that lay motionless on the floor.


The sun had never held much lustre for him. He was a creature of the night, an instrument of darkness that prowled on the night of the new moon. The sun that woke him now held none of the power that his preferred celestial body did.

He rose from the floor, nursing the tattered fabric of shadows that he cloaked himself in. They had been damaged, torn from him by claws that mimicked his own. He cast his gaze about, drawing in the meagre shadows of the day and spinning them into the remnants of his cloak. It was not much, practically translucent and possessing none of the power he had meticulously stored in his previous cloak. But still, it would serve until he could destroy the other shade and reclaim his stolen shadow.

Then it hit him with the crushing recognition of his failure. It had gone. The revenant that wore Tobias' face and commanded its own cloak of darkness had gone. It had taken his friend. It had taken Tobias.

Darkrai mentally chastised himself for not warning Tobias sooner. The strange darkness in the sky, the sense of unease filling him, the putrid Baron's fearful warning, he had ignored the signs of danger until it had been too late. He had ignored his instincts and it had cost him.

Angry shouting approached the small house, snapping Darkrai from his failure. He floated towards the front of the house, drawing up what scant power he could gather during the day. Darkrai floated through the wall and stared malevolently down at the rabble marching up the hill.

The Baron marched at the head of the procession. His attendants trailed behind him, an armed retinue marching along in a sturdy column behind the noble. More men marched behind them, a rabble of common folk that easily numbered in the hundreds.

Darkrai growled and drew upon what scant shadow he could muster. "I warned you to leave our home!"

"Where is Tobias?" answered the Baron. "I would have words with him, ghost."

Darkrai gauged the collection of souls before him. All of them burned in anger. All of them felt tainted by fear of the shade's unnatural darkness.

"He is…" he trailed off, watching a half dozen pokemon spring from their balls and swell the ranks of the mob. "Not present," finished Darkrai.

Baron Alberto set his jaw. He met Darkrai's gaze and refused to waver. "Ghost, I will not ask you again."

He released a lickiliky beside him, a fat pink blob that stared hard at Darkrai's malevolent form.

"You and your master stand accused of murder," Baron Alberto spat. He seemed emboldened by the mob at his back and Tobias' absence. He stepped forward, away from the safety of the group for a moment. "What say you, ghost?"

Darkrai felt righteous fury swell through him. Tobias was gone and this imbecile had the gall to accuse the quiet grave keep of a crime.

Darkrai drew up what darkness he had gathered into his cloak and dimmed the mid-morning sky. He was weakened and injured, but Sinnoh's shade still had fight left yet. "I said, STAY AWAY FROM OUR HOME!"

Darkrai did not wait for the Baron to order an attack. He could feel the terror and anger, the blinding fear that blocked out all reason. Darkrai felt it all and realized a simple truth. He did not care. These people despised Tobias because of him. They despised him because he was not human. Darkrai felt that realization snap into place and knew what he had to do.

Baron Alberto's mouth was open, no doubt shouting some insult or verbal jab. Darkrai reached through the man's shadow, wreathing himself in the scant darkness. It was not as effective or as quick as it would have been at night, but it was deadly nonetheless.

Darkrai burst from the shadow on the Baron's throat. His claw tore a wide gash in the man's jugular and Darkrai separated the head from the body with a savage tear.

He heard screaming, a vapid useless outburst that only divided his attention. He focused on the pokemon already moving to defend the living, driving a spectral claw into the lickiliky's gut and tearing an irreparable rend in the normal type.

A pachirisu attempted to loose a bolt of lightning upon him, but Darkrai spun on a dime and loosed a ball of crackling shadow that smote the pachirisu completely. Chaos and shadow tore across the small hill leading to their home. Chaos and shadow was loosed for the first time in years.

He did not know when the attacks stopped coming. He did not know when the mob stopped fighting back. But, once the corpses lay still and cold, he knew that he had gone too far.

Tobias would be furious and sad and disappointed. Darkrai was not a creature of hate, but of shadow and night. Darkrai was not supposed to delight in violence and yet he had. Darkrai looked to the sky, to the mid-day sun that cut through and dispelled his shadow.

Tobias had liked the sky. That much he had always made clear to Darkrai. He taught Darkrai about the phases of the moon, though he already knew them by instinct, and about the sun and the stars. He taught Darkrai about the constellations and stories told by the night's sky and the lessons imparted by those stories.

Darkrai saw himself now in one of those stories, in an old tale about Hisui's nightmare. He knew now that the tale told of Darkrai at his darkest, spreading terror and death across the region until a brave hero captured him and taught him kindness. He remembered now, the old man slipping away after so many years and him returning to the ways of shadow and death.

He did not want to return to the shade.

Darkrai knew at once that he had to rescue his friend. He knew that he would fall back into shadow and death without Tobias and he did not want to. He looked back at the small house, ignoring the corpses strewn about the path. He would save his friend. Darkrai would not fall. Not now, not ever again. He had a friend once more. He would save his friend.

The Shadow of Sinnoh melted into the small shadow cast by the house and disappeared from sight.

Slowly and carefully, it rose from the shadows cast by the hill itself. It descended on the scene of the slaughter, puppeting the empty vessels that had been left behind for its own purposes. The shade knew that Darkrai would return for Tobias. The shade would be ready when he did.


Tobias woke to the greeting of endless darkness. He blinked in surprise and scowled when the darkness did not abate. He knew what that had to have meant. He was alive, a prisoner of a shade that reflected the worst of his potential.

He listened carefully, gently testing the bonds that held his wrists. He felt the restraints tighten at the test and decided against forcing them until he knew more.

"It won't work," said a woman's voice.

Tobias jumped, startled by the sudden sound.

"It can feel the darkness," she continued. "It knew the moment you woke up."

Tobias stopped moving and sat up. He could see nothing, but that was by design. "We have to stop it," he started. "Whatever it's here for, we can't let it take it."

He neglected to mention that the shade had apparently been searching for him. And that now that it had him, he had no clue what was going to happen.

The woman snorted derisively. "Tonio said the same thing," she started. "Tonio is—"

"Dead," Tobias finished.

The woman swallowed the lump that had formed. "He is dead, then?"

Tobias cursed himself for his carelessness. "Yes," he replied solemnly. "He was found in the gardens…"

He heard a muffled sob and fell silent. He had never enjoyed interaction with other people, much less guiding another through a traumatic loss. "I am sorry," he said quietly. "The Baron brought him to be buried. I performed the last rites myself."

She fell silent as well. "Tobias, then…" she asked ominously.

He grunted an affirmation. She did not respond immediately and Tobias feared the worst. That she believed he was the shade.

"It wears your face," she said apprehensively, confirming his fears. "Claims to be you as well."

Tobias grimaced. "It may well be me," he said quietly. "I don't understand how myself." He shook his head. "It claimed to be me, perfected. I cannot claim to understand. I suspect that it is beyond even our dear Champion's understanding."

He heard the woman sigh heavily. "My apologies then, grave keeper."

"It is of no import," he said. "My face or not, some corrupted reflection or not, we must escape. The Royal Congress must be—"

"They will burn," said the dark mockery of his voice. "Pompous fools, one and all. This universe is filled with them."

Tobias looked out through the darkness, trying to pierce the veil and see anything. But the blackout was total and not a single mote of light reached his eyes.

"You will all burn in time. That much is certain." The voice drifted and echoed around the room, seemingly emanating from everywhere and nowhere at once. "Once I have Oracion and your evolution is complete, we will scour this world of life together!"

He grimaced. "Begone, foul spirit. My resolve is—"

It had him by the throat, dragging him through the darkness. He kicked out helplessly, his boots uselessly smacking against the floor. Then he felt it lift him, felt the cold breath of death brush against his skin.

As soon as it had come, it was gone. He was falling backwards through the void. He hit the ground hard, the wind driving from his lungs.

He heard another struggling shout, and the slow scraping of someone being dragged across the floor from above. Then she screamed as she plummeted down towards him. Tobias scrambled to move, but she landed hard on his chest and crushed him back down to the ground.

"Do you think that your resolve matters?" the voice asked cruelly. "Do you think that you can somehow stop this?"

The darkness seemed to abate slightly and Tobias caught a glimpse of an empty nights sky. Tendrils of billowing shadow streamed out of the tower and blocked out the quiet night.

There was still some scant light though, provided by the few residents that had yet to abandon Alamos. Either that, or the shade had simply left them on to offer some fake hope to the few still left alive.

He saw them through the dim light, shambling towards them with arms outstretched.

"Get off!" Tobias coughed, shoving the woman off him.

She scrambled to her feet and looked towards the figures. Tobias heard the sharp intake of breath. Then she screamed and ran, bowling him over as she disappeared into the dark.

Tobias forced himself up. He had to move, he knew what the figures were before they even drew close to him. He had seen what Darkrai could do. He'd seen it puppet corpses and parade them around in a macabre imitation before. He knew that save for striking at the shade itself, he had no recourse.

So Tobias did the only thing he could. He ran headlong into the dark and prayed that he was faster than the monster hunting him.


Writhing, twisting shadow crept across the face of the crescent moon. The small, uninhabited island below rippled as though it protested to the obstruction of the moonlight. Then the blanket of night expanded and spread as it blocked out the rest of the moon.

A beam of solid moonlight carved through his unnatural darkness, illuminating the island once more. A glittering creature coalesced from the moonlight, glowing bands of rainbow light spinning around his sibling's vaguely avian body. Her indistinct shape shifted and blurred behind the rainbows obscuring her true form.

Darkrai gathered what shadow he still possessed and pulled it close to him, leaving only his form as a silhouette against the pale background of the moon. He pulled the cloak over himself and swept back into the night. It was dark here, darker even than sleepy Alamos. While he would have preferred a new moon, the night's sky was a comfort during any of the lunar phases. The shade disappeared into the darkness and rose anew from the shadows cast upon Crescent Isle.

The shade lifted his head to look at the creature borne of glimmering light. "Dear sister," he began in his grim, gravelly tone. "You are radiant as ever."

The moonlight seemed to dance and shimmer around her. "Why have you come, Darkrai?" She floated forward and banished the remainder of his cloak with a warm glow. "Has the human perished yet?"

Darkrai felt a dagger of pain drive into his chest. Tobias couldn't be dead. Not yet. He would know. He cast the pain aside and hardened his heart. "There is another," he began. "Another human, another Darkrai."

"Impossible,"
she replied. The bands of rainbow light spun around her and Darkrai could sense her disbelief. "You are Darkrai. There is no other."

"It is not of this world. It is a foul, unholy abomination of the night. They had merged. Become one being, one whole."
Darkrai shook his head and could feel frustration building. "It plans the same for us. It took him."

"Your human?"
Cresselia replied. Her disdain was clear in her tone. "Find another. There are many."

Darkrai growled. "There is no other like Tobias." He felt the darkness swirl around him as he drew what he could into Cresselia's light. "I must rescue him. If only to banish that…" Darkrai trailed off.

"This creature… it bothers you?" she asked.

He raised his head and looked upon the shifting mirage around her. "It does. Tobias and I… we have—"

"Hmph"
Cresselia interrupted. "You joined with him, didn't you?"

Darkrai nodded. "He has served as my vessel once before. It was… a powerful experience."

Cresselia seemed to retreat from him for a brief moment. "Creator forbade that," she began. "Forbade us from joining with a human. They have no right to your power, brother."

"I had no choice before,"
he replied. "What I did saved Tobias and defeated a man who sought to remake this world and supplant Creator." He shook his head, knowing that his suggestion was a long shot. "There was another—"

"I will not allow that meddlesome woman to serve as my vessel,"
Cresselia answered. "She is—"

"The most powerful human on the planet,"
Darkrai interrupted back. "Champion Queen of Sinnoh, Grand Champion of the Pokemon League and bearing blood blessed by Creator itself. She is a worthy vessel, perhaps one meant for one greater than yourself."

Cresselia narrowed her gaze and Darkrai could feel her displeasure at being outshone by Giratina, or even Creator itself. She did not respond for a long while, forcing Darkrai to wait and feel the intensity of her displeasure.

She was not one to be forced into decisions, but he had no choice. He leaned forward. "I must—"

"I will do it,"
Cresselia responded. "but not for you or the human. I do this only to claim her as my Vessel."

Darkrai's cold, baleful eyes met hers. "Then we have a Champion to speak with."

Cresselia did not answer and simply disappeared on a beam of moonlight. Darkrai's summoned what darkness the trees on the island cast and melted into the blackness of the night's sky.


Tobias had decided that he was supremely sick of the dark. He stumbled over something, the step up to the Baron's long hall, and scrambled back to his feet. The corpses that lumbered after him in the night were not quick but they were persistent.

He kept moving as he navigated Alamos by memory. He cursed himself more than once for not spending more time in town, losing his bearings as he passed the long hall and walked into one of the market stalls.

"I can see you, Tobias!"

The voice was taunting him now. He refused to give the creature an inch of satisfaction. An opponent refusing to engage in his banter, refusing to engage at all, set him on edge and infuriated him to no end. If it really was him, he knew exactly how to push his own buttons.

A powerful beam of light cut through the darkness. It swept across the market square as a half dozen townsfolk wandered into the market bearing lanterns and flashlights.

Tobias ran for them headlong. He waved his arms as a half dozen beams of light painted him. "Run!" he shouted. "Return to your homes!"

A nervous murmur spread across the crowd. Then one of the flashlights swept across the shambling corpses crossing the market and panic seized hold. The crowd scattered as horrified shrieks echoed across the market.

Tobias felt fear ripple through the air as the townsfolk rushed and ran in every direction. He could hear the guttural groans of the walking corpses and the terrifying screech of a townsperson that strayed too close to one of the dead.

The woman's scream shocked him into motion. He moved with purpose, grabbing up the half finished shaft of a spear that sat beside the blacksmith's cart. He didn't wait for the dead to force his hand and dove into the madness.

Baron Alberto's corpse shambled towards him out of the dark. A beam from one of the flashlights shone in Tobias' face for a half moment, but he struck true.

The spear sank deep and tore through the Baron's core, dropping the puppeted corpse to the dirt where it continued to struggle. Tobias wrenched it free, ignoring the pained grunt that the creature emitted. He didn't have time for sentiment. These people were dead, already tainted by shadow. He could not afford the sentimentality, if he had possessed any for them in the first place.

His spear burst through the chest of the puppet. The woman struggling in its grasp screamed and bolted as the corpse's grip slackened. Tobias didn't take the time to keep track of her in the dark. He couldn't spare her even a moment.

Tobias ripped the spear free and bashed the spinning corpse with the butt end. It fell to the ground where it still attempted to rise as through it hadn't just been impaled. Tobias drove the spear into the ground, trapping the corpse to the dirt.

More shouting reached Tobias' ears. The din of battle rang through the small, sleepy town of Alamos and a warm orange glow sprang up at his back.

Fire. A fire was growing, engulfing one of the market stalls as it hungrily reached up into the darkness. The creatures shambled towards the sudden flame as encroaching shadows descended on Alamos' survivors.

They had taken up weapons. A few of the men had grabbed up some of the blacksmith's half finished work. One of them brandished a hammer that was too large for his body, and another held one of the few mostly completed blades in a useless and shaking hand.

Tobias looked up to the sky, at the ominous figure that floated in the encroaching shadow. He saw where the shade's attention lay and saw his chance. The townsfolk would never make it, not with the shade actively hunting them. But he could make a difference if he could just get a call for help out.

Tobias ran. He ran and he didn't look back. Not even when he heard the dead descend on what remained of Alamos. He ran and ran until his lungs could take no more and he had very nearly left Alamos itself.

He burst into the small home and cast his gaze around desperately. A single lantern was dimly shining under the table, obscured by a large tablecloth that hung down to the floor. The small face of a child appeared from under the cloth, looking up at him in terror.

"They went out looking for the monster," the child started. "I don't know—"

"Where is your phone, child?"

The boy pointed over at the small cabinet, and Tobias saw the old rotary phone sitting and waiting. He lifted the handset and began dialling the only number he had ever bothered to commit to memory.


The picture was a hellish reminder of the life they had once held. It sat there on her mantle, as if it mocked her with the possibilities of what could have been. He was smiling back at the camera, an arm draped around her shoulder while she smiled absently at him. Their teams were happily frolicking in the background, like half of them wouldn't be dead by the end of that year

Cynthia shook her head and walked over to the picture. She placed it face down and frowned. Tobias wouldn't have liked her moping around as if he had gone and gotten himself killed. That was why he went to live in a sleepy little hamlet where nothing ever happened. So that he could be bored and alive for as long as he had left. And so that Darkrai stopped terrorizing the more antagonistic half the Royal Congress, though he refused to admit that part to Cynthia.

Her cellphone lit up on the table, a furious guitar riff announcing its anger to the world. She turned and froze on the spot. A murky shade was lurking in the window, casting an impossibly dark shadow that did nothing to dim the brilliant light shining through.

Cynthia did not speak, mentally gauging the threat. Darkrai had never been outright hostile towards her before, but shades were unpredictable at the best of times. Legion, her wily and irritable spiritomb, was evidence enough of that.

"Why have you come, spirit?" she crossed to her small bar and sat, pulling out a bottle of amber liquid and a glass. "I take it that Tobias has not deigned to make the trip along with you?"

Darkrai floated in through the window, an errant breeze silencing the candles she had burning there. "I was unsure of what to do, your grace. I am rather unused to making my own decisions of this magnitude."

Cynthia almost snorted at the shade's words. "You were a ruthless savage last we met. Does Tobias have you observing the pleasantries now?"

Darkrai nodded slowly and Cynthia felt pride radiate from the shade. "He teaches me of your ways well. Though, that is not why I have come." The shade moved aside and the brilliant beam of light he had been obscuring took form in Cynthia's study.

Rainbow beams of moonlight refracted off of her mirror. They swirled back around an indistinct form until they solidified into a corporeal body. The creature emitted a soft tone and loomed over the woman.

Cynthia gasped and bowed her head in reverence. She fell to her knees and lowered her voice in reverence. "Lady Cresselia," she began.

"Child," replied the moon goddess. "The world is endangered. You have served Creator well and saved the world before. Fate would demand that you join me now and do so once more."

Cynthia glanced up at the pair of obscenely powerful pokemon that had invaded the privacy of her home. The Royal Congress thought of pokemon like these as gods. She did not know what to think of them as, but her past dealings with Sinnoh's legends had challenged the idea of these creatures as divine.

"Forgive me for my ignorance," Cynthia said in a quiet voice. "But I was unaware that the world was presently in danger."

Cresselia rounded on her, rainbow mist shifting into vague and indistinct images. For a brief moment she caught the unmistakable silhouette of a trapped god, before the light shifted and replaced it with something far more sinister.

She saw twisting shadows dance among the rainbow light, the laughing face of a man that she had loved puppeting the dark tendrils. Thousands of shambling figures lurched towards the unmistakable gothic spires of Sinnoh's Royal Congress.

"Tobias plans this?" Cynthia asked incredulously. "Gentle Tobias who laid down Darkrai's power by his own choosing?"

It was Darkrai's turn to float forwards and join the conversation. "Not my Tobias," the shade said grimly. He remembered the treasured photo that Tobias had kept on his mantle. "Not our Tobias," the shade corrected. "Something worse, corrupted by darkness."

Cynthia narrowed her eyes. "Then tell me, shade. What are we dealing with here?"

"A visitor," Cresselia answered. "From a world other than our own."

"It wishes to create more abominable unions like itself."


She felt her heart sank. "Just like the way you two defeated Cyrus and Giratina."

Darkrai took pause for a moment. "Yes," he answered. "This is what Tobias and I would have been had he not broken the link and separated us."

"Then we can assume that it is as powerful as the two of you were." Cynthia shifted her gaze to the moon goddess. "Then I suppose it is safe to say that is why you are here."

Pleasant satisfaction radiated from Cresselia. "You are quite correct," she said. "We must—"

Cynthia's phone rang again, loud and aggressive guitar notes breaking into a raucous solo. She turned and knew before she even reached for it who was calling.

"Hello?" Cynthia answered as she picked up the call.

Heavy, laboured breathing came through the phone speaker. "Cyn," said a solemn voice.

Darkrai reacted as though he had been electrified by the man's voice. The cloak of darkness wrapping around him seemed to deepen and expand, reaching out from around the shade to snuff out the light.

"Toby," she replied with all the pain of years lost to them both. "It's been a long time."

"You don't sound surprised."

She had to bite back the chuckle. "I had a visitor," she said as she glanced over at Darkrai. "He filled me in on the situation. Brought some help with him too."

He sighed heavily over the phone. "Thank goodness for that." He paused for a moment and she could hear other voices. Then he was back. "I don't know how much you know. But it's me. It is me."

"I know," she replied. She swallowed the lump in her throat. "how long do you have?"

"I don't know," he answered. "He's looking for something called Oracion. Toying with me by picking off Alamos Town until I give it up."

She raised an eyebrow. "What's Oracion?"

"I have no clue, and I don't know what he's going to do if he figures that out." Tobias paused for a breath and she could hear the exhaustion in his voice. "He's massacred half the—"

She sighed and opened her mouth.

A terrified shriek ripped through the call. It went dead and static crackled before the call dropped entirely.

Darkrai howled as a spectral wind ripped through the Queen Champion's spire. He disappeared on the wind, the night's sky swallowing him entirely.

Cynthia stared out the window for a moment, searching for the shade. "How am I supposed to follow that?"

Cresselia floated closer to her, a beam of rainbow moonlight enveloping the champion.

"Darkrai may use the darkened sky to travel, but there are other means to traverse the night."

The moonlight swallowed Cynthia whole, filling her with such warmth and light that she never felt as though she would be cold again.

Cresselia looked over at her. "It is time that you learned how to travel in true style. Darkrai's shadow travel may be efficient, but traveling by moonbeam is an experience like no other."

The beam of rainbow light erupted from her spire and retreated to the heavens from whence it came. Cynthia's darkened room lay empty, only an upturned picture of two old friends leaving any clue to where she had gone.


The phone rang. Tobias stood there in quiet silence as the boy looked up at him from a place beside him.

"You've reached Cynthia," her answering machine began. "Leave a message."

He sighed and put the phone back down. Perhaps it had been too much to expect her to be awake at this hour. Perhaps he had been foolish to expect her to answer.

"W-w-was that the Queen Champion?" asked the boy in a meek voice.

Tobias nodded, reminiscing of his time journeying with the Champion. "She was… an old friend."

"Can't you try her again?" the boy asked. "She can save us, I know she can."

Tobias looked back at him. A solemn expression overcame him and he felt the exhaustion in his bones. "Can anyone?" he mused quietly.

"Stop it," ordered the boy. "I don't like it. She can help us. She has to."

Tobias looked back at the boy again. He was young, an unremarkable face. Tobias had no clue who the boy even was. And yet the boy held out hope that Cynthia could come and save them if he only called again.

He lifted the phone again, dialling the number again on the rotary. It rang twice and then was picked up.

"Hello?" said the voice of a woman Tobias thought he'd never see again.

He breathed deeply and forced the exhaustion wracking his bones away for a few more moments.

"Cyn," he said in a solemn voice.

The boy's eyes lit up as he registered that she had answered Tobias' call.

"Toby," she replied, her voice wavering almost imperceptibly. "It's been a long time."

He felt a smile come back to his face. "You don't sound surprised."

"I had a visitor," she said with a measure of amusement. Tobias knew instantly that Darkrai had gone to her for help himself. "He filled me in on the situation. Brought some help with him too."

He sighed heavily and glanced down at the boy. "Thank goodness for that—"

"Get her to—"

Tobias leered over at the boy and hushed him. "Go keep a lookout for movement. Stay quiet and only make a noise to alert me if it looks like they're coming for this house." He got down on one knee. "If they do come, you stay hidden and out of sight.

The boy nodded excitedly and dashed off, bounding up the stairs louder than Tobias was happy with.

He lifted the phone and prepared himself mentally for Cynthia's reaction. "I don't know how much you know," he started ominously. "But it's me. It is me."

"I know," she replied. He could hear the wavet in her voice again. "how long do you have?"

"I don't know," he answered. "He's looking for something called Oracion. Toying with me by picking off Alamos Town until I give it up." He leaned against the wall, feeling exhaustion come again in a wave.

"What's Oracion?" Cynthia asked.

Tobias sighed in frustration. "I have no clue, and I don't know what he's going to do if he figures that out." He paused for a breath, fighting to keep himself awake. "He's massacred half the—"

The house came apart on a gale of shadow. Tobias saw a brief glimpse of light as the lantern tumbled off the table and then was snuffed out completely. The cacophony of wooden beams snapping and bricks crumbling was all around him but no debris touched him.

Tobias clicked on his flashlight and he was there. Draped in a cloak of living darkness and standing on limbs that were never human, Tobias grinned back at him from a void that swallowed all the light.

"So," Tobias started. He knew he had to stall for time, but he wasn't sure how long he would give himself. "Let me guess, you never separated from Darkrai when you merged to stop Cyrus and Giratina."

The alternate him nodded his head slowly. Twisting lines of shadow ran along his face, corrupting and marring Tobias' own face. "An astute guess," the alter replied in a cruel mockery of Darkrai's gravelly undertone. "I presume that you did?"

Tobias nodded slowly. "I knew what remaining merged with Darkrai would do to me."

"And you still refused it?"

He fell silent for a moment and swallowed the lump in his throat. He hadn't wanted to separate from Darkrai. He'd wanted to stay together, to drown a cruel world in darkness together.

"No," he replied. "I just chose someone else over giving in to the darkness."

The shade smiled in a cruel replication of Tobias' own. "You chose the Champion," he stated plainly.

Tobias raised an eyebrow. "And you did not?"

It was the shade's turn to dwell on a memory now. Tobias saw the pain there and knew that he had struck something. "She was already gone. Cyrus took her with him and sacrificed her to that… thing." The shade looked back at him and he saw the pain in his corrupted eyes. "I never had that choice."

"My condolences," Tobias said quietly. "But the darkness you dwell in… it is not necessary. You can be more. You and Darkrai both. You can both be whole once more."

The alter closed his eyes. His shoulders bobbed once, then twice. Then the alter broke into laughter, tossing his head backwards. He laughed madly as his shadows echoed and rippled with Darkrai's own laughter underlying the man's.

"Did you believe that you could talk me down?"

The alter bore down on him, wrapping him in shadow and pinning his arms to his sides. Only the scantest amount of light peeked through the cloak of darkness, leaving only glowing and corrupted eyes in the blackness.

"I have become a god, greater than you could ever imagine being. I am made perfect. And I am merely just a soldier in his army."

The shadows squeezed him tighter as they rocketed through the air. Tobias bit back a sob of terror and dismay as the shade carried him into the sky above the sleepy hamlet.

Alamos town was burning. Raging flames tore through the market, casting shadows that danced with glee at the destruction. A path of flames traced back and forth across the town, leading back towards the Baron's home and the tower that stood there.

The base of the tower was aflame, the gardens illuminating the figures gathered and waiting for them.

The shadows released them as they swooped over the garden courtyard. Tobias plummeted the ten feet to the ground and landed hard. He groaned and forced himself up to his knees as the shade landed in front of the tower.

"I will ask again," the alter began. "Hand over Oracion. Hand it over and I will relinquish my hold on Alamos. You may bury the dead in peace and be allowed to live out the rest of your pathetic existence."

The Tobias alter grinned monstrously and Tobias knew what was next before he even started talking. "Or," it continued, pausing for dramatic effect. "Hand over Oracion and join with Darkrai once more. We could rule this universe along with my own, even challenge him once we gain our strength."

Tobias swallowed the lump in his throat. "No," he said calmly.

Shadow swooped from above and drowned out the light of the fires. All he could see was a faint hellish glow and the vague outline of his own face.

"You heard me!" Tobias shouted as he struggled up to his feet. "I don't know what Oracion is, nor where to find it! I am useless to you, just a pathetic man who refused power."

He felt a cold grasp on his throat and fought for breath, trying desperately to get one last snide insult out before his copy throttled him to death.

"Then die no—"

Darkrai hit the Tobias alter like a frenzied beast, claws glowing with a violet light. The alter shrank back, it's cloak of darkness being shredded by the sudden assault. It drew shadows in from every source, dancing flames casting a thousand shadows at once.

It was a flood against an arrow. Darkrai had the advantage of sudden surprise, but against a tide of shadow that Darkrai could not control, an arrow was useless.

Then the cavalry arrived. The moon pulsed with soft cleansing light, banishing the writhing shadows cast by the fires. The Tobias alter drew up what it could but the moon shone brighter than the midday sun. A beam of light descended from the heavens, wiping away the corpses that shambled clumsily towards them. It hit the earth and Tobias saw nothing except the flash of light.

Cynthia was there, standing astride a living rainbow. Tobias felt a warmth in his chest, felt his heart pounding in the presence of Sinnoh's Champion Queen.

He got to his feet. "You came," he said quietly. "Thank you, my lad—"

"Did you actually think I wasn't coming?"

Tobias paused for a moment. "I knew you could never resist a battle like this."

Cynthia wrinkled her nose. "Well one of us has to save the world." She glanced around, seemingly mourning the burning gardens and tower. "And you seem to be doing a fantastic job of it."

Darkrai crashed to the ground in front of them, growling as he retreated towards the pair.

"Ah, to remember the love we shared…"

Cynthia knew what Tobias had said, but her jaws dropped. "You weren't kidding. It's you."

Tobias shot her an annoyed glare.

"You will join me Tobias. Whether I have to force the merger myself or not, you will join me."

Shadows swelled and roared off the tower in streams. They rose into the sky, joining with all the darkness of the night.

Cynthia tensed up, glowing as she allowed Cresselia's power to flow through her. The moon seemed to pulse in unison as the Champion Queen erupted with divine light.

A moon beam smote Cynthia and the moon goddess, supercharging their light as the entire night's sky crashed down upon them.

Tobias felt the weight of the darkness bearing down on them, felt the unbearable pressure suck the very breath from his lungs. Gods were doing battle now. Powers never intended to be used upon the mortal plane clashed and swirled, ripping the ground itself with the violence of their meeting.

He felt his stomach spinning, felt reality losing its hold on him. He reached out for Cynthia, calling out to her as the air was sucked from his lungs.

The void itself descended on the Champion Queen's light. Rainbow beams and burning energy beat back the night but it advanced all the same. He felt exhaustion returning to cloud his mind and fought against the urge to fall asleep.

Then the clash was over as quickly as it had begun. The two gods separated, their light and shadow retreating towards their forms. Darkrai landed in front of Tobias protectively, growling at the alter.

Slowly, painfully, the ancient tower that stood in Alamos' gardens for hundreds of years bent backwards and collapsed. Dust and ash blew up in a huge cloud, smoke and flame leaping eagerly to swallow more of the structure.

"You are more formidable than my own Cynthia was."

Cynthia sneered at the alter's words. "Did she think you were as insufferable as I do?"

The Tobias alter screwed up his face in anger. He raised his arms, drawing up a thousand spear points of darkness. He cast his arms forward in anger and Tobias knew that Cynthia could never stop them all.

He knew what the only option was. He knew what he had to do to save the woman he loved.

He forced himself up, reaching out for Darkrai. He opened himself up to the shade, drawing the lonely pokemon in for something they had both long craved.

Darkrai's shadow touched Tobias' hand and the two halves became one.

He moved effortlessly across the shadow, drawing upon every scrap of darkness he could reach. He threw up everything he had, desperate to blunt his reflection's attack.

Darkness met darkness. Shadow wrestled with shadow. Then moonlight erupted once more, annihilating the night for a brief moment.

Tobias felt inspiration strike him like a bolt of lightning. He knew what he had to do. He knew what had to happen.

He reformed his cloak, stealing the darkness he could from his alter's grasp. Tobias-Darkrai launched himself at the copy before he could gain a chance to recover.

They collided in mid-air, two shades wrestling under the cover of impenetrable darkness. Cynthia drew up what light she could, pulsing the moon in response as she readied Cresselia's moonlight once more.

They hit the earth, tainting the very ground with sinister shadow. Cynthia held back for a moment as the cloak of darkness cleared slightly.

The copy struggled and writhed under the claws of Tobias. His face was flecked with shadow, complexion ghostly white. He struggled to hold the copy in place but his eyes never left Cynthia's.

"Do it," he ordered in a voice that was no longer his own. A voice that Cynthia had only heard once before. "Kill us," he begged in a defeated tone that she knew was his.

She hesitated, the light fading slightly. "I can't do that, Toby."

Tobias snarled at her and she saw the corrupted visage of his reflection peek through. "I won't separate from Darkrai this time," he said solemnly. "I won't make that choice again."

"Maybe you don't have to," Cynthia replied. "I'm different now too. I'm powerful… like you."

Tobias shook his head with the knowledge of a cursed soul. "You aren't like me, Cyn. You aren't like him." He looked down at the copy and sneered again. "I can feel his line of thinking in my own head. I can feel the urge to be what he is, to do what he does." He shook his head slowly. "I don't want that."

She shook her head as she held back the tears. "I… How would I…"

Cresselia turned her head to look at the Champion Queen. "It is my brother's wish as well," the moon goddess said. "They wish to do this as penance for what happened to Alamos."

She shook her head. "I cannot kill them. I cannot—"

"You will," replied Cresselia. "It is our duty."

Cynthia raised an arm. The moon goddess lit up along with her, a beam of moonlight supercharging their power.

Cynthia met his eyes. She saw the shadows dancing behind his pupils. She saw that Tobias believed he was right. She knew what she had to do.

"I'm sorry, Toby."

Cresselia's light flowed through them both. It lit up the burning remnants of the gardens, wiping away shadows with the intensity of a star. She didn't let up until the sun rose and a new day began.

She didn't say anything as Cresselia returned them to her spire. She didn't say anything when her servants entered her quarters to rouse her for the day. She simply mourned the loss, lamenting a love that could no longer be.


Unknown Location, Unknown Universe

"The Shade failed, just as you predicted."

Giovanni turned to the speaker, looking away from the display screen for a moment. "Just as I predicted that he would also plan to betray me at the first opportunity."

Another voice piped up. "Do we plan to try again? Is this particular version of Oracion not what we require?"

Giovanni shook his head. "Unfortunately, with the tower destroyed, Oracion would be useless to us." He scowled and turned his attention back to the display. "There are other ways to bend Arceus to our will, my friends. It is but a pokemon. Rainbow Rocket will find a way." He turned out, smiling at his recruits from across every corner of the multiverse. "We always do."
 
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