¤Game¤ Dragon Tamers Battle Range v.24

[Lady Vulpix]

Version 24 is finally here! Link to version 23.

Here are the rules. Please read them in order to avoid posting invalid battles and/or asking questions which are already answered here. Have fun!

GENERAL RULES

¤ Everyone will describe the battles (or whatever is required), stating the levels of their pokemon before and after the event.

¤ Unless the scenario states otherwise, each trainer can battle 2 pokemon per scenario, and may use 1 or 2 pokemon per battle.

¤ All pokemon must battle opponents that are in the same level range as they are. If two pokemon battle together, they must both be in the same level range.

¤ You can use pokemon from the Dragon Tamers Adoption Center, PokeZoo Adoption Center, Pocket Monsters Breeding Center, adopted pokemon tournaments and old adoption centers.

¤ All trainers who use pokemon from Adoption Centers other than Dragon Tamers must tell us where they got their pokemon (on the pokemon's first battle). That's to make sure you're not making them up.

¤ Unevolved pokemon learn the level-up same moves as in the games (learnt at whatever level they learn them first among all the GameBoy/GBC/GBA/DS games; in other words, moves are learnt as soon as the Pokemon reach the right level to learn them in any of the games).

¤ Pokemon evolve just like in the games, except for trading/happiness-evolving pokemon, who can evolve with a Genetic Accelerator.

¤ Evolved pokemon learn the same moves as their unevolved versions, plus the new ones. Example, Metapod can't learn Confusion, but Butterfree can. For moves only unevolved pokemon can learn, evolved pokemon will learn them at the same levels as their pre-evolutions.

¤ A pokemon can learn a free TM, HM or Move Tutor move every 10 levels (that is, every multiple of 10).

¤ Bred-On moves are allowed (1 per pokemon), but you must choose them before your pokemon battle for the first time. Once your pokemon has battled, their bred-on move can't be changed (nor added if you hadn't chosen one).

¤ Hidden Power is allowed just like other TMs. But at the moment your pokemon learns it, you must say what type it will be and not change it.

¤ If you use 2 pokemon in a battle (or more, in the case of random battles), the experience (levels) will be split evenly among them.

¤ Stamps can be earned for writing interesting and descriptive battles. You can exchange them for Stones, Genetic Accelerators and other items at the Dragon Tamers Reward Center.

¤ If your battle goes unrated for over 7 days, you will get an additional stamp for each extra day (from the 8th on) until the battle is rated.

¤ Remember: no killing your opponents (human or pokemon).

RANDOM BATTLE RULES

¤ You can use the Random Battle Generator once a week, and it costs 7 stamps to use it. You can request a random pokemon from any of the following sections: Caledor's Nature Protection Agency, Antarctic Survivor Recovery Agency, Jungle Deforestation Recovery Agency, Professional Sports Breeding System, Electric Shutdown Retirement System, Free Range Corral, Universal Adoption Center. Your opponent will be the same level as your pokemon, and each random opponent defeated gives 1 level.

You need to choose a section to get your opponent from. Sections determine the possible types of the opponents.

• Caledor's Nature Protection Agency: 80% Fire, 15% Dragon, 5% Ground.
• Antarctic Survivor Recovery Agency: 60% Water, 40% Ice.
• Jungle Deforestation Recovery Agency: 35% Grass, 25% Bug, 25% Poison, 15% Flying.
• Professional Sports Breeding System: 85% Fighting, 15% Rock.
• Electric Shutdown Retirement System: 95% Electric, 5% Steel.
• Free Range Corral: 85% Normal, 15% Fairy.
• Universal Adoption Center: 20% Psychic, 20% Ghost, 15% Rock, 15% Ground, 15% Steel, 15% Dark.

Dual types have a higher chance of turning up, as they can be selected by either of their types.

¤ You can also request a random battle with 2 or 3 opponents (for 2 or 3 Pokemon respectively). In that case, it will cost 7 stamps per opponent, and you will have to wait 2 or 3 weeks respectively before requesting another random battle.

CURRENT SCENARIO POINTER: *.

[Lady Vulpix]

The time has finally come. We took too long to track down the Black Dragon and decide on a course of action, and the consequences of our delay are already being felt. We have reports of strange happenings around the area of the Forbidden Mountains; not only of Pokemon and farm animals going missing, but also of people falling sick with unusual ailments, crops sprouting oddly-shaped vegetables, rocks changing colors and other weird events. After our latest recon mission, we have located the final piece in the puzzle, and - during a meeting that involved most of the current Dragon Tamer authorities and some members of the Dragon Guild's Pokemon Research and Training Department - we have laid out a plan. It is risky, but it is our best hope.

To all new members, I apologize if what I've just said has confused you. You may have heard of the Black Dragon: he escaped from his prison in Templa Taure around 10 years ago, and has since been seeking ways to become more powerful. He has killed at least 3 humans and several Pokemon in the process, has ravaged Templa Taure and the Tower of Fire, and has once tried to release the equally dangerous dragon known as Yssera in an attempt to settle an old score with her. He is also suspected of being responsible for the disappearance of the old Dragon Master, Scott McHenry, who went missing around the same time as the Black Dragon escaped from Templa Taure. We have found that he is currently trying to break through the magical barrier at the Forbidden Mountains. If he manages to release all the chaos magic trapped within the barrier, there is the risk of a second Sundering - most of the population of Ulthuan may be wiped out again -, and it will be beyond our power to stop it. Therefore it is vital that we stop him before the barrier is completely broken, and that we find a way to restore it.

I know this sounds like a lot. It is, but we have a plan. A small group of trainers and Pokemon will try to make their way to the location we have pinpointed and will try to restore the seal to imprison the Black Dragon, while others will work on diverting his attention away from this group. The rest of us will do our best to ensure their safety, fighting off the Black Dragon's demons who may get in the way. Yes, you heard right, demons. As far as we know, these demons are powerless on their own, and can only manifest themselves as clouds of black smoke. However, they have the ability to possess Pokemon and force them to do their bidding. In the past, they used to do this with the help of special pendants, but the Black Dragon has since found ways to help them possess a host even without them. We suspect that corrupted evolution stones are involved, but reports say that not all possessed Pokemon are stone-evolved; from previous reports, it seems that crossing the barrier may also make Pokemon liable to being possessed. This risk is low since very few Pokemon and even fewer humans are able to cross the barrier, but in case there is some other means of possession, please be careful.

We will meet at the southern border of Sector Alpha and make our way to the mountains from there. Once we have reached the base of the mountains, we will split up to cover as much terrain as possible and defeat the demons. Please try to cause minimum damage to the possessed Pokemon, as they are not responsible for their actions. We will gather back at our starting point at the base of the mountains when each of us runs out of opponents.

Some things to take into account:
-The demons have spotted several members of our group during the last recon mission, so do not count on the surprise factor. It is our hope that the Black Dragon hasn't figured out what our scouts were looking for, but they will be expecting an attack.
-Watch out for any magic that may filter out of the breach in the barrier.
-Avoid facing the Black Dragon directly at all costs.
-If you find an opponent that's too much for you, please avoid it and call for help: other trainers will be around, so if you make a visible signal, someone will come to your aid.
-The Black Dragon can hide within the shadows, so stick to well-lit areas to minimize your chances of encountering him. We should be able to finish our mission before dusk but if that is not the case, then by all means retreat to Sector Alpha or any safe place from where you can contact the rest of us.
-If you already have an assigned task, please do your best to complete it and, if you need any help, make a signal immediately.

OOC: since this is a big showdown scenario, you may battle up to 3 opponents rather than 2. All your Pokemon can help, but there's a limit to the number of full battles you can have. That is, you can have 2 or 3 Pokemon battle against one opponent and share the experience among them, you can have 1-on-1, 2-on-2 or 3-on-3 battles, you can have some Pokemon offering a little help without attacking directly, you can have any number of your Pokemon faint and that will not count towards the limit, and/or you can find creative ways to get rid of some enemies without fully engaging them in battle. A 15 vs. 3 battle would be impractical in any case, since the 15 Pokemon would likely be getting in each other's way.
Additionally, this scenario takes place during January, in case you would like to make any references to the season or time of year. The reason for this is that... well, we really did take too long to wrap this up. >_<
All the possessed Pokemon on the list below are stone-evolved, that doesn't mean our reports are wrong, it only means other cases are very rare.
Here is the trusty map of Ulthuan, for all your geographical needs.

And here are the opponents you can find:

(up to level 15)
Clefable LV8 +1 level
Musharna LV8 +1 level
Raichu LV15 +2 levels
Starmie LV15 +2 levels

(level 15.5-25)
Chansey LV19 +1 level
Cinccino LV19 +1 level
Vaporeon LV25 +2 levels
Jolteon LV25 +2 levels

(level 25.5-35)
Exeggutor LV28 +1 level
Sunflora LV28 +1 level
Blissey LV35 +2 levels
Shiftry LV35 +2 levels

(level 35.5-45)
Whimsicott LV38 +1 level
Ludicolo LV38 +1 level
Froslass LV45 +2 levels
Togekiss LV45 +2 levels

(level 45.5-55)
Bellossom LV49 +1 level
Lilligant LV49 +1 level
Nidoqueen LV55 +2 levels
Nidoking LV55 +2 levels

(level 55.5-70)
Vileplume LV62 +1 level
Arcanine LV62 +1 level
Gallade LV70 +2 levels
Honchkrow LV70 +2 levels

(level 70.5-85)
Flareon LV76 +1 level
Ninetales LV76 +1 level
Chandelure LV85 +2 levels
Eelektross LV85 +2 levels

[classy_cat18]

Asking for an extension for the last scenario.

[Lady Vulpix]

This must be the first time someone asks after the new scenario has been posted, but I'm pretty sure you had one already.

[DarkestLight]

First of all, you know how to build suspense.
The end of the first battle was a bit confusing... who was invisible and who was visible, and what did Zent do to end it? And how did her burn heal?
I was glad to see the word 'who' appear in the story, but all those 'whom' should have been 'who' as well (when in doubt, try replacing the word by a pronoun: he or she => who; him or her => whom).
The concept of a team of two being named Mary and Sue was funny, as was the way May commented on Sue's "gown". Back to her normal self when a moment of peace comes, right?
Zent's reaction to Sue's telepathy was interesting to see.
And I chuckled a bit at the "pairs of 2". What other kind of pair is there?
Camerupt Chamomile... do I want to know what that's made of?
The inflatable pies were very original.
I can imagine how frustrating it must have been to listen to a long story which provided no useful information, while Mossy was likely to be in trouble.
And the skeleton puzzle reminded me of MSPA.

Ok. In review of your comments.
At the end of the first battle, Zent and the Jellicent were invisible from Mossy, May and Wyrm because of the strength of the Sandstorm.

I had to re-read the rules on something here in AC/CC, so I had to modify the ending of that battle a bit. Zent just threw that fishie fishie back in the water for AC/CC liability. But you'll notice a slight....change in her habits which will crop up moreso.

Pairs of 2...its really funny because SO many people say it around here, and I say the same thing every time.

"Cause pairs of 9 is just too radical." LOL

MSPA? I know not what this is.

Book 2 and then this scenario coming in the next week...

[The Blue Avenger]

MSPA? I know not what this is.

This must be rectified.

MSPA is MS Paint Adventures, a series of webcomics. The one Gabi is referring to is, I think, Problem Sleuth, a parody of oldschool adventure games, while the most well-known one is Homestuck, which is completely awesome and you should read it.

[Lady Vulpix]

I was afraid she might have tried to eat it. >.> I did noticed she's switched to eating actual food recently.

And both Problem Sleuth and Homestuck have skeleton puzzles, although they featured more prominently in Problem Sleuth, where the main characters had to open a lock using their own skulls from lost lives as keys.

Here's a story explaining a few things about the recon mission. Apologies in advance for Sol's ramblings, she would do it herself if she knew you were reading this. I'm not reporting the levels gained by the twins or Sol, because they're not in my team. And the one who is doesn't gain any levels because he's about the same level as his opponent in a 4-on-1 battle and it was the other 3 who did most of the work, he served more as a distraction than anything else. And also because this is neither a scenario battle nor an RBG.

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Astronomical rescue

<Sol's POV>

I can't say I trusted the day to remain quiet, because unexpected things tended to happen on quiet days. To myself, I called them "days when I don't know what to expect". Still, there had been days when the most unexpected thing to happen had been some strange creature approaching me and attempting conversation. I tried to be positive - something which didn't come easy to me - and kept telling myself that someday I'd get the hang of socializing. As a part of my campaign to get a new outlook on life, and following the trainer Eshree's recommendation, I had shortened my name to Sol - the name of the star around which my home world orbited - because my old name was stigmatizing (you could always count on the old Scorch and Flame to come up with terrible names, unless you were their child or were amazingly lucky and talented like Tracker). But I was still no good at making friends, and as a result I was still lonely. No matter how far you travel, your flaws will follow you.

There was always Harims, the strange woman in the cottage, who seemed to understand me better than most. The problem was that I had trouble understanding her. Talking to her was like having a prolonged vision, minus the visuals. I always made an effort to memorize her words, because anything I missed was bound to come back to bite me; and I had even understood a few phrases on the spot, but some others I was still trying to figure out.

The sky became filled with colors as the sun known as Shir began to hide behind the hills on the west, and suddenly the hills turned into mountains and a new sun began its ascent while the other was still setting. That was impossible, even in Bei; but my mind's eyes had seen two suns together before, over a decade earlier. It had been a confusing night back then, but also the eve of the greatest day in my life: the day when I'd found and rescued two little orphan Vulpixes, who had since brought more joy to my life than I had ever thought possible. The meaning was clear now: Sunrise and Sunset, it couldn't be more obvious. I felt a tear of nostalgia slide down my cheek... But then, the vision took a turn for the worse.

There was a Fire Stone, but there was something wrong about it... again. No, not again, this one was far worse than the one I'd been warned about before. Hero should count his blessings for having found that one and not this one: there was an evil presence inside it.

The stone somehow launched itself at the rising sun and penetrated its core. The sun grew bigger and brighter, but a black spot appeared on its center and began to spread through the light, drowning it... leaving nothing but darkness in its wake. Soon, the rising sun was a large mass of blackness. It stopped its ascent and instead hurled itself at the setting sun. The two suns began to struggle...

...And I screamed. I couldn't take it anymore. Whatever the vision meant, I couldn't let it happen. It might sound hypocritical considering how long we'd been apart, but the twins meant more to me than my own life. They were the only ones who had ever made me feel needed and - now I realized it - even loved. I wouldn't let any harm come to them.

As the echoes of my scream faded away, I realized my eyes were closed. I opened them and saw the mountains again, but there was only one sun and it looked normal. In fact, I had to look away from it because it was hurting my eyes - a reliable sign that it was a real sun rather than a vision. The earth beneath my paws felt real as well, and there was some sort of... crackling in the air. I realized I had suddenly made another very long journey, and I felt I was starting to understand what Harims had meant by "you are where your mind is". I wondered if I would learn to teleport at will someday, and made a mental note to thank her for the tip, but I still didn't know were exactly I was, nor where the twins were... until the wind brought me the sound of their very familiar voices... shouting at each other: not a wise thing to do at a place that screams 'danger' on every corner, but in this case it just might have saved them... provided there was a way. And then the old question came back to haunt me: was the future set in stone, or was there a way to change it? Was I a pawn of fate, entitled to occasional spoilers but condemned to play my part in a script that was already written? Or did I have a say in the outcome? I didn't think I could take it if I had to watch the girls die helplessly. It would shatter me completely. But if there was any chance that I could save them, then I'd take it no matter what.

All this, of course, I thought while running in the direction of their voices, sliding down a few times but quickly regaining balance and getting back up in order to reach them as fast as I could. By the time I caught up with them, they were still bickering like little kits. I suppose that's what sisters do.

"Rise, pleeease!" Sunset cried.
"Please what?" her sister responded. "We've already taken so many breaks that I've lost count. You can't possibly be tired again. Why don't you tell me what's really bugging you?"
"It's... it's..."
"Go ahead, tell me."
"It's Solitude!"
"What?! OK, now you've lost your mind. What does Solitude have to do with any of this?"
"No, I mean she's here! Look!"
"Huh?"

Sunrise turned to look at me and her eyes opened wide in amazement and... yes, joy. It looked like joy. Both twins hurled themselves at me, nearly making me fall again.

"Oh, come on, girls, you're adults now, you should know better than to assault me like that!" I complained, however I was glad to have found them safe and sound.
"You had it coming for leaving like you did!" Sunrise countered. "But never mind that, I'm so glad to see you! Where have you been all this time? We have so many stories to tell you, but I'm sure yours must be even more interesting!"
"If it's stories you want, I do have plenty, but I will only tell them once we've reached a safe place, far away from here and, if possible, on flat ground."
"Why? What's wrong with this place?" asked Sunrise.
"You mean... you can't feel it?" I asked.
"We've been feeling something," Sunset admitted. "The thing is, we can't agree on what it is. Rise says it's a good thing, and I feel like it's a bad thing, but she says we can't know unless we see for ourselves."
"Believe me, some things are better left unseen," I warned them. "Sunset's right this time, it's definitely a bad thing. We must get away from here soon before anything bad happens."
"But... this thing I've been feeling..." said Sunrise. "Would it be right to leave and never know what it is? It feels like something I have to do... to find out the truth about ourselves. What if it's like one of your visions? What if it's the only way to find out where we come from?"
"Have you ever had any visions before?" I asked her.
"Not really, but..."
"But nothing," I interrupted her. "Unless you've recently had some strange and enlightening experience, we can safely assume that this is nothing like one of my visions. And trust me, you don't want to have one of those. You two were born in Caledor Forest. Your mother was a Vulpix. I never got to meet her, but I know that much from the scent Tracker picked up when we found you. Now, I've heard some stories about these mountains and what you're telling me leads me to believe that some of your ancestors may have fought in a war centuries ago, which doesn't really say anything about who you are. You already know who you are. This place has nothing to offer you. Let's please leave before things get bad because, trust me on this one, they will if we stay."
"You mean you had a vision?" asked Sunset.
"Yes," I replied. "A really nasty one. So let's get moving now. Don't get close to the barrier, and don't touch anything that glows. I mean it!"
"OK, I get it!" said Sunrise. "We'll go down and talk. Now please calm down, I'd never seen you like this before!"
"I've never been this scared before," I said as I began my descent, glad that the girls had listened to reason.
"That must have been one heck of a vision!" Sunrise remarked. "What did you see?"

I thought for a moment, unsure of what to say.

"It's hard to explain," I told her. "But I knew you were in danger, and... you could be forced to hurt each other."
"What?!" came the reply, in unison.
"There's something very wrong with this place. And... what's that noise?" I asked as I heard the sound of stones rolling down above us.
"Huh?" asked Sunrise as we all turned to look.

I didn't like what I saw: a large Houndoom was looking down at us, menacingly.

"Was that in your vision?" asked Sunset.
"Not exactly, but close enough. Come on, girls, we still have a chance of outrunning him... or her."

We all did our best to escape, but the Houndoom was both well trained and familiar with the territory. She - I could now see it was a she - caught up with us in no time. She sank her teeth into my right hind leg and it hurt like hell... but I was still glad she hadn't gone for one of the girls instead: at least I'd had a trainer for a while... two if I counted that day I spent with Jeff of the Dragon's Guild. I knew I needed to act fast, but I wasn't sure of what to do. Fire type moves were unlikely to be of any help, and Extrasensory was out of the question. I could try Dig, but that would leave the girls open to attack. There was nothing I could do that wasn't risky, so I decided to at least make it harder for the Houndoom to hurt us. I hit her square in the face with a Confuse Ray. I'd always heard others say I was confusing even when I wasn't trying to be, so I hoped I could do it well when I needed it.

I saw the twins try to do their part... Sunrise whipped the Houndoom with her tails while Sunset called out to her and sealed her with a paw on her forehead. Imprison, I realized. Not a bad idea, but how many non-fire-type moves did Sunset know?... At least Quick Attack, which became evident when both girls hit our attacker at a high speed. It didn't seem to do much harm, however: the Houndoom was much stronger than they were.

The Dark Pokemon raised her head to look at the sky and howled. Her voice echoed throughout the whole mountain range. I could feel myself shaking, knowing that I wouldn't be able to resist another attack. Luckily, a most unexpected sight came to our rescue. It made its way to us through the mountains, floating weightless in the air. Its shape was roughly that of a Ninetales, but it was dark purple in color, and quite clearly ethereal. The Houndoom, still confused, gave the figure a puzzled look, and I took my chance to go underground, knowing that help was on the way.

I didn't see what happened while I was under the earth, but I was able to make out the girls' voices above me.

"What's that?"
"I don't know. Is it with her?"
"No, look, she's attacking it!"
"Wait, does that mean it's on our side?"
"Oh, no! It... It blew up?! Where is it now?"

Still hoping that the owner of that projection would show up soon, but not holding my breath in the meantime, I dug my way upwards and hit the Houndoom with all my strength and all the earth I could bring with me. That, at least, seemed to hurt her, as she let out a sort of shriek. The twins seemed to be consulting each other.

"Whip her again, then use Quick Attack!" I told them. "We need to buy some time."
"Time for what?" ask Sunset.
"For this!" the long-awaited voice was finally heard, as the Houndoom was hit by a fierce... Quick Attack?
"Thanks for coming to help," I told my old friend. "But for someone so proud of his speed, you took a while to get here."
"Forgive me, I was far away and using Spooky to scout the area. I sent him here as soon as I heard the Howl, and then came right away when I could make out was going on. Umm... confused Houndoom? Wha? Wait a second, that's Selene!"
"You know her?" I asked, even though it was obvious that he did.
"Do I know her?! She's been missing for months! She's a member of the MTU, her trainer's name is Ian. Have you seen a Flareon nearby?"
"No. Only her. She came out of nowhere and attacked us. And I haven't found the corrupted Fire Stone yet."
"What?! There's yet another corrupted Fi-ow! Watch where you put those teeth!"

Hero was clearly hurt by the Crunch, even though he tried to hide it. Luckily, the Tail Whips and Quick Attacks from the girls were enough to finish the job, and Selene collapsed.

"Now what's that about finishing a battle with a Quick Attack?" Hero complained. "That's my signature."
"Well, sorry if we needed to save our lives!" Sunrise retorted. "We're not the only ones to do that anyway. Our friend Speedy did it all the time."
"Ahem... he is Speedy," I revealed.
"Wha? Really?!" Sunrise exclaimed.

Both twins examined him critically, while he made a point of saying that his name was Hero now.

"Which is a good thing," he added, "not only because it's an infinitely better name, but also because otherwise everyone here would have a name beginning with an S. Hey, you, look me in the eyes, please! Nice to see you too, by the way."
"Oh, sorry," Sunset apologized. "It's just..."
"I know," Hero said. "Yes, I have seven tails. Been like this ever since I evolved, but I'm still super fast and fierce in battle, and you probably wouldn't be able to stare at anything now if I hadn't shown up."
"Yep, it's him alright," said Sunrise.
"We're all grateful for your help," I told him. "It means more than you think."
"OK, I'm not going to ask you what you mean by that because I'm sure the answer would be even more confusing. What I am going to ask is: what are you all doing here? This place is dangerous!"
"I came here to help the girls," I explained. "They were about to get in serious trouble. There's a corrupted Fire Stone somewhere... one far worse than the one you found."
"The two I found, you mean. There was also the one with the illusion trap near the Tower of Hoeth. If I find this one, I'm sure I'll set a new world record for the most corrupted Fire Stones found!"
"I think it's best to leave it alone," I warned him. "We shouldn't go anywhere near it, I've seen how terrible it can be and I'm not taking the chance of letting it come true. You can teleport... Please get us all out of here. Her too... whatever's in the stone is also in her. She needs help."
"That makes no sense," said Hero. "Houndoom are not stone-evolved."
I sighed. "I never said she evolved with a stone. I said what's in the stone is in her too. It makes perfect sense. Sometimes I feel you don't even try to understand what I say."
"OK, OK, don't get mad at me. You know what? I'll take you all to the meeting point we have set. We'll meet other Pokemon there, including your friends Glyph and Maza, and some friends of mine whose trainer may have the means to help Selene. After that, you can all do whatever you want. Is that OK?"
I looked at the twins, who didn't seem to have anything against that idea. "OK, I guess. I'd rather be as far away from here as possible, but there are some things I'd like to discuss with Glyph. We'll take your offer. Thank you."
"That's what friends are for," said Hero.
"Right... friends. Interesting, it doesn't hurt so much now."
"What doesn't hurt so much?" Hero asked.

Only then did I realize that I had said that out loud. I couldn't be more embarrassed! Luckily, I could count on Hero being as oblivious as ever.

"My leg," I said. "Your friend Selene gave it a nasty Crunch. It hurt a lot at first, but I don't feel it so much now."
"I'll make sure you get to a Pokemon Center and have that leg looked at," Hero promised. "As soon as we're all accounted for. Wouldn't want anyone to get lost in these mountains."
"So... you're here on some kind of mission?" Sunrise asked.
"Yeah... I'm not telling you the details here in case anyone hears me, but yes, we're here on a mission. But as it turns out, I've stumbled into someone else's mission this time. I'm sure Ian and his team will appreciate getting Selene back. Too bad we couldn't find Helios too."
"Helios?" I asked.
"Selene's teammate, who is also missing. He's a Flareon. Their trainer specializes in Fire Pokemon and they're all named after Greek Gods. But only Helios, Selene and Ian himself have the ability to walk through the barrier. We have speculated that's the reason why Selene and Helios were possessed and their teammates weren't."
"You mean..." Sunrise began.
"I think he means we'd be screwed whether we'd found the stone or walked through the barrier," Sunset concluded.
"I don't think you'd be able to walk through the barrier," Hero told her. "The only Pokemon who can do it are the descendants of those who fought in the war that led to the Sundering."
"And I suppose you know all about the girls' ancestry?" I pointed out.
"Huh? No, not really, but... We found them in the forest. The same forest were we and so many other Vulpixes were born. What are the odds that they descend from one of those Pokemon?"
"Considering it's been hundreds of years," I pointed out, "I'd say the chances of any of their descendants having a fling that went unrecorded are pretty high. There could be many of them in the forest and we wouldn't know it."
"If that is the case, we need to make sure that none of them starts searching for their roots at this time," Hero decided.
"We could start by going back to the forest and telling everyone not to get close to this place," Sunrise suggested.
"We should tell Lake everything," added Sunset. "Pokemon from all over the forest often visit her to listen to her stories. She'll make sure everyone knows."
"Good idea," said Hero. "And while you're at it, make sure to let her know she's a grandmother, if she doesn't know yet."
"She is? Wait, have you seen Kid?" asked Sunset.
"I have. He's living in a place called the Pridelands. As far as I know he and Blessing are still together. They're calling themselves Ray and Firestar now. They've both evolved, and they have at least one son, named Swift. He's still a bit naughty, though. The father, I mean. Haven't met the son."
Sunrise chuckled. "I couldn't expect any less of him. Do you remember the time when he stole the pearl from that Murkrow's nest?"
"Yes, he won the contest with that one!" Sunset reminisced. "I wonder where the Murkrow got a pearl in the first place."
"It could have been anywhere," said Sunrise. "They have an eye for shiny things. I'm glad we never played against them, they would have had a big advantage."
"Like Tracker didn't," Hero chuckled. "But it was fun to try to think of ways to beat her."
"Are you two still together?" I asked him.
"Yes, we are," he replied. "That doesn't mean we can't have a little competition every now and then."
"She's starting to stir," Sunset warned us, pointing at the Houndoom.
"Oh! Right," said Hero. "Let's finish catching up later. Now everyone hold on to me, we're going on a little trip."

Hero wrapped his mouth around Selene's leg, while the rest of us grabbed whatever parts of his body were closest to us. A moment later, we were standing on flat ground, the mountains still visible in the distance. Glyph was already there. He looked quite worn out. Next to him was an Arcanine I was sure I'd seen before, but whose name I couldn't remember. Glyph claimed to be happy to see me: a feeling I'd love to get used to. I let Hero deal with everything related to his mission, and sat next to Glyph and away from the crowd.

"I've been to your homeland," I told him. "Beautiful place, but it had the same problem as this one."
"What problem?" he asked.
"Me."
"Oh... Sol, please! When will you stop being so hard on yourself? You're a kind soul, and from what I've just heard you've saved those two Vulpixes twice. Give yourself a break."
"I tried. But... I can't even have a conversation without the other party giving me an odd look."
"Am I giving you an odd look now?"

I looked at his face. He was smiling. I wished I could smile like that.

"You're not," I sighed. "And that's really comforting. But you're even weirder than I am... no offense meant."
"None taken. There's nothing wrong with being weird."
"So you said before. But I used to live with a pack where almost everyone was weird one way or another... and I was still too weird for them. Look at Hero... Everyone notices his tails when they first see him, but after knowing him for a while they seem to forget about them or they just don't care. I, on the other paw, spent years with the old pack and no one could ever treat me like an equal. I think Tracker tried to understand me, but... there were things I just couldn't share with her."
"It sounds to me like you were shutting yourself away from everyone. Give yourself a chance: I promise your friends won't judge you as severely as you do."
"I don't know..."
"I can show you. I have an idea, why don't you come back with us? Be a part of the team."
"Shouldn't your trainer be the one to make that offer?"
"He's always agreed with my choices before. That's how we work: I find new members for our family, and he helps them realize their potential and find a direction in life."
"Family?"
"That's how I see us. We're a really weird family, admittedly, but what makes a family isn't blood ties: it's being there for each other and doing our best to make the others' lives better. It's helping each other grow and overcome our obstacles. And... I'm ranting, sorry."
"It's OK, I do it all the time," I admitted.
"I think you'd fit in perfectly," Glyph insisted. "You were a great guide for us when we arrived, and I understand that you needed to go and find your own path. But it looks like your path has led you back here. Perhaps this is where you should be after all."
"I'm starting to stop believing in destiny," I told him, still relieved that my vision hadn't come true.
"I never said anything about destiny."
"What, then? What's this path you were talking about?"
"Your path... The trail you blaze with your actions and decisions. You can choose where to go... and you chose to come back here. Why?"
"The girls needed me."
"Oh, I see now," Glyph said as he looked at Sunrise and Sunset, who were listening to the other Pokemon but turned to look my way every now and then. "There's only one thing I can't understand."
"What is it?" I asked him.
"How could you ever believe that you were alone?"

I looked at him, puzzled. His words sounded simple, but they were even more confusing that Harims's riddles. I decided not to insult him by asking what he meant. I watched him as he kept looking at the girls. Was she talking about them? It sounded too obvious when I thought about it. Yes, they had always been there for me, but they'd been little kits... little orphans... they had needed me more than I'd needed them. Or was that not so? And they were all grown up now. Still a bit childish in their manners, but I could see they had matured a lot. And they had fought side by side with me.

As I thought about the battle and the inner strength the girls had shown, Sunrise came trotting my way.

"Are you OK?" she asked me. "How's your leg?"
"It's been better, but I'll be fine. I'm sure it will stop hurting soon."
"We're almost ready to leave," she told me. "Many of them had to battle today, so we'll be going to a Pokemon Center, and Circe - the Ralts - will take Selene to see if her team can help her. I think you two should come with us. And then you can come with me and Set back to the forest to see Lake."

I looked at Glyph, then back at Sunrise, then Glyph again.

"It looks like you have two offers now," Glyph said. "You've become popular. You can decide where you want to go."
"I'm not popular," I shook my head. "You're all just too nice. I'll consider your offer, Glyph. I really will. But now I realize that I do have a family, and it's not my biological parents who thought I was crazy and must still be glad I left. I have some catching up to do with these girls... and I suppose seeing Lake could be nice too; we never talked much, but at least she was never rude to me. We're all going to the Pokemon Center first, of course, but then I'm going back to the forest for a while. Say... Sunrise... Are Scorch and Flame still leading the pack?"
"Well, it hasn't been much of a pack since you all left, some Vulpixes have come and gone, and a few were born, but the numbers are never stable. Lake is the only Beta and she ignores Scorch and Flame most of the time. Dash acts like a Beta sometimes, but he's a Golduck, so I'm not sure he counts. Anyway, yes, they're still leading the 'pack' or whatever that can be called."
"OK, then... I'll go back to the forest for a while and then go back to Sector Alpha. Don't leave this world without me."
"I wasn't going to," Glyph assured.

Sunrise laughed, although I'm sure she didn't know what we were talking about.

"They're not really that bad," she said. "But I can see why you wouldn't like them. They never did try to understand you. And they named you Solitude. That's..."
"A horrible name," I completed the sentence. "Yes, I'm going by Sol now."
"Sol? Yes, that sounds much better. But wait, doesn't that mean 'sun'?"
"It means 'sun' or the name of this planet's sun," said Glyph. "Yes, you're a nice solar family."
"I... kind of like how that sounds," I said. "I can't promise I won't mess everything up, but I'll do my best. It feels good to have a say in my future for a change."
"You've always had a say in it," Glyph assured.
I shook my head. "Some things had to happen the way they did. It's probably for the best, but it was hard. It took me years to stop missing the things I left behind... and I never stopped missing..." I turned to look at Sunrise. "I never stopped missing you two."
"We missed you too, Sol. But you found us today, even though we were far from the forest. I have the feeling that whenever you want to find us again, you'll know where we are."
"I'm not quite sure about that, but that would be a nice use for my abilities. I might even stop complaining about them if they had that benefit."
"Have you ever tried training them?" Glyph asked me.
"I've been training myself to understand them," I answered. "I don't think I could ever control them."
"You can't know unless you try. If and when you do come with us, GG can try to help you with that."

At that moment Sunset came to fetch us.

"We're all going to the Pokemon Center now," she announced. "You're all coming, right?"
Glyph stood up and nodded. "We are."
I stood up after him, and expressed my gratitude. "Thanks for everything, Glyph."
"Anytime," he said as we rejoined the group, and we all teleported away.

[Skye]

omg, I hit writer's block for the first time today xD I hope my writing didn't suffer too much. Swapped in the correct E for Pokemon, not going to bold speech text in this one... Hope it's creative enough.

A Heart of Fire...

A couple of days of rest later and Shadow felt better. Much better, in fact. Though his leg would remain in a cast for a while longer yet, he felt as if he would be able to fight sooner rather than later. Skye had come into his room and told him about another Pokémon she had encountered in the Lava Room, a Ponyta that hadn't fit in, but due to the raw size of a Ponyta, he hadn't been able to meet her, yet. It was a bit disappointing, and he couldn't imagine what the young horse must be thinking after having spent time with Skye without a proper Pokémon's introduction.

At long last, however, his trainer was there to pick him up and bring him back out into the wonderful outdoors. Quite happy to be set down upon the grass, some distance from the towers, he stretched out while enjoying the feeling of sunlight against his dark coat, the fresh breeze and all of the wonderful and not so wonderful scents it carried. Still, it beat being cooped up in the intensive care at the Pokémon Center. Since serious injuries like breaks weren't as common in Pokémon as they were in humans, he had been treated quite well, and knew his body would heal rapidly, but it still felt good to be outside again.

"Better?" Skye asked the obvious, as she usually seemed to do.

"Much," Shadow answered with a wide smile.

"Alright, then. Let me introduce you to Eclipse," carefully, Skye selected the Ponyta's Pokéball, though Shadow tensed even with the obvious care that was being taken. The wrong choice would let that psycho fish out. Thankfully, Skye seemed to have it together more than usual, and the strangest mare the feline had seen in his years of travel with Skye appeared.

"Hello there. And a belated welcome to the team," Shadow's ears perked as he observed her strange coloring, not unlike his own. Eclipse seemed downright baffled after she came fully to her senses and caught sight of Shadow.

"Skye never said you were... different..." the Ponyta spoke slowly, almost nervous, though she stepped forward with a curious gleam in her eyes.

"She doesn't exactly care that much about what we look like, despite the stupid grin she gets on her face whenever people comment on my appearance. Collector's pride, I suppose, but I was born this way..." the Ponyta turned her head slightly once she was closer, keeping one eye specifically on the Meowth as they spoke.

"In any event, I'm sorry about Skye. I'm certain you've had a rough time with her..." he laughed at that, knowing his trainer wasn't the most intuitive when it came to Pokémon. "She sees the big picture, but very little else."

"I... suppose I can see that..." Eclipse spoke softly, her hesitation reminding Shadow far too much about Shandar and the path that had lead down. Almost as if sensing Shadow's thoughts, Eclipse spoke up again in a hurried tone, "Not that there's anything wrong with it! I suppose I can get used to being called Eclipse, though my name was Ashes..."

"Mine was Sir Twinkletoes..." Shadow wrinkled his nose as Eclipse began to giggle. "Shadow is much more plain and I'm grateful for that... Shandar only has a strange name because that's what people were calling him when Skye took him in. And I suppose she thought that Shadow and Shandar were a cute set of names...."

"Shandar..." all mirth drained quickly from her at the mention of the Gyarados. "He scares me."

"I've always had my eye on that damn fish..." Shadow sighed. "What's done is done. Hopefully Skye gets rid of him before something else happens..."

"Did he...?" her gaze dropped to the cast on his foreleg.

"Yeah..."

"Why the somber tone?" Skye had to be dying to know what they were talking about, but Shadow only gave a smile to her. Eclipse shook her mane out in answer, probably trying to figure out how to communicate with the woman, still. "Alright, then. We're heading to the Blizzard Room today. Shadow, you just stay with me and relax, it'll be a few more days before your cast can even come off. Eclipse, I thought you'd like something..."

"Hm?" the Ponyta turned to face the human. A TM box was produced, its contents sprinkled onto the fire horse, giving her the knowledge of a new technique. Shadow tilted his head curiously, wondering what strange technique was being given to the young mare. Soon enough, Skye had produced a second box, this one for Shadow. Though the contents, once given to the feline, were beyond strange, something he had never fathomed before.

"Of course I wouldn't forget my Shadow," Skye smiled to him. "For you, Amnesia. It will bolster your defense in battle, help you forget. You should practice it over the next couple of days for your upcoming battle. Just one, no pushing yourself," she took on a warning tone. "But, you should be ready just before the training grounds close. You're lucky that Pokémon recover extremely fast. And for Eclipse, have you figured out what it is?"

"Ember!" the Ponyta exhaled a small dose of flame into the air, thrilled to be given a simple technique. Though, if she hadn't been given a fire-based attack yet, it was probably best that she was starting off small. Or, at least that's what Shadow figured.

"Mhm. Now, then. I'm going to bring you both into the Blizzard Room, see if we can't hurry and get some battles underway."

"Wait," Shadow began as a thought occurred. "Just how many TMs do you have in your bag?"

He wouldn't get an answer as Eclipse was recalled and Skye proceeded to pick the Meowth up and carry him.

***

It wasn't long before Shadow began to wonder if he was no more than a cloak for the woman. Though she had done her best to dress warm and held Shadow under her thick coat, it was still freezing nonetheless. Though, he soon found that the Amnesia technique was helping, allowing him to forget the bite of the cold, even as his body continued to instinctively shiver. It was better than nothing, and he found it quite good practice for maintaining the technique.

A shadowy figure began to approach them, perhaps the first to spot the trembling pair, drawing closer out of curiosity. A black creature which captivated Skye's interest, eyeing uneven ears and wicked curved blades, one on either hand. The Sneasel looked curiously at the trainer, only to grin wickedly at the sight of the shivering Meowth whose head only just poked out of her coat.

"Looking for a battle?" Skye's words almost seemed to be swallowed within the raging conditions created within this room, freezing lips and cheeks numbed to the point where her question nearly came out as indiscernible babbling.

"Always. Are you going to send that pathetic Meowth at me?" the Pokémon's question was ignored, however, as Skye pulled a familiar scratch of paper from her coat pocket to see what would do well against an Ice type. Noticing that a good fighting-based attack would have struck well, she clicked her tongue with annoyance. Shadow could only speculate it was because his Hidden Power would have been the ace in the hole in here, not that he wanted to be out in the freezing temperatures. The eager Meowth had already had his share of cold and ice for the week.

"Eclipse!" Skye selected the proper Pokéball once again, sending it forward. From its depths, the dark Ponyta emerged with an eager cheer, rearing up to paw the air. Startled, the Sneasel drew back, raising her claws defensively.

Eclipse Lv.8 vs. Sneasel Lv.15

"Start out with Toxic to wear it down!" Skye commanded, shouting with quite a bit of vigor, trying to get her point across. Though the effort was probably appreciated on the Ponyta's part, Shadow sank a bit lower, ears flattening as he tried to ignore the ringing in his skull her shout had caused.

Eclipse settled down, her body starting to shiver before she enhanced the heat of her flames, causing them to blaze even brighter. Shadow wondered how the creature, who looked so fierce and impure, could create such a noxious concoction. Perhaps Skye was wrong with the mare's attacks? But, no. As if to prove him wrong, the Ponyta charged forward, hooves digging into snow as she closed the gap to spew a sickeningly thick chunk of poison in Sneasel's face, causing her to open her mouth and screech in response.

Reeling in pain from the sharp sound, Eclipse backed away quickly, staggering through heaps of snow not meant for hooves. Seeing her chance, Sneasel launched forward, slashing rapidly at Eclipse, leaving more than one mark. Eclipse cried out in pain, even as Skye tried to shout for the next strike. Even Shadow couldn't hear what she was trying to say, however, ears ringing from the terrible sound that the Sneasel had uttered. Another sound escaped, then, a lower sound escaping the Ponyta at full force, enough to make her enemy back off her strikes and leave her some breathing space.

"Ember!" Skye finally managed to get her command through. Any thoughts of hesitation were gone from Eclipse as her lavender flames blazed hotly, the Ponyta launching a small fireball at the Sneasel. Already shrinking back from the effects of Eclipse's growling, the ball of fire hit hard and true. She let out her own cry of pain before moving forward to attack again, teeth grit as if she could already feel the effects of the poison taking hold of her.

"Again, don't stop! Fight against the cold and your opponent!" Skye's words seemed to make little sense to Shadow, but he wasn't the one battling. If he had been, though, he could just imagine how the blizzard would be knocking him this way and that. Eclipse seemed to grasp the concept of fighting against the storm, however, as her blaze grew brighter in response, like a beacon within the blinding white as she shot a close range fireball at Sneasel, pushing the creature back.

"Once more, keep it at bay! If it can't get close, it can't strike!" Skye pushed the Ponyta onward quite viciously, which surprised Shadow. Usually, she was the one pulling the Pokémon out of their instinctual desires and making certain they stayed focused and didn't lose sight of the fight. All voice of reason seemed to be lost as flame and toxin took Sneasel down, leaving her to recover as her system shut down. Not that Shadow would know, gazing at the seemingly lifeless body, but he had once heard tails that a Pokémon's fainting was like a reset for their entire system. Toxins, burns, damages to the nervous system in the form of paralysis would be diminished, if not completely cured by the time a Pokémon came too.

Eclipse won and grew to level 10!
She learned Iron Tail! (Free level 10 attack)

Much to Shadow's surprise, Skye recalled Eclipse shortly after the battle and turned away, leaving the Sneasel to recover. She seemed to be in some type of hurry, staggering quickly through the snow without once offering congratulations to Eclipse on her battle, or savoring the feeling of victory. Her course seemed pre-determined, feet dragging as she approached a distant cabin in the room before nudging it open and slipping inside. Thankfully, someone else seemed to have been there recently, that or the door was greased to prevent it from freezing shut.

"Ow… ow…" Skye moved to take a seat in the spacious cabin, finding a warm spot to settle before trying to force her shoes and socks off. Shadow then realized exactly why Skye had hurried the end of the battle, the obvious early signs of frostbite having set in. It would be a while before Skye could get up and walk again. Not long after she had settled, she pulled out Eclipse's Pokéball and let the victorious Pokémon free. Shadow was in for another surprise as he noticed the young mare shivering, the snow having melted on her body to create an uncomfortable steam.

"Good work out there… Another round and you'll be set for your return to the Lava Room, actually…" Skye unzipped her coat and forced herself to stand, wincing openly with pain as she shrugged out of the extra layers and set them on the chair, then set Shadow down on top of them. "There's nowhere else to train that would help get your flames this strong this fast…" she slid her feet against the ground as she moved to find some towels before returning to the injured Ponyta and started drying her off.

"So… cold…" Eclipse stammered, her flames not seeming to burn as brightly as they had before. A white towel was soon placed on slick black fur as Skye began to tend to the shaken mare. Shadow curled up on the clothes, finding them too warm to leave behind. Soaking in the silence to follow, a nice, relaxing break was to be had among the group as Eclipse settled down and soon dried herself. Between the low burning hearth kept behind a metal fence to prevent stray coals from setting fire and the Ponyta, the cabin was soon almost unbearably warm, a harsh contrast to the cold outside.

"Do you think she's right?" Shadow spoke up after a good, long silence. Eclipse flicked lavender eyes towards him. "Will the cold make your fire stronger?"

"I don't know… I feel weak out there. My legs get cold quickly. When I try to warm myself, it just gets worse. The heat of my flames makes the snow melt against my fur, which freezes over again and again. And the wind just feels like it's piercing straight through me…" Eclipse answered in a soft tone, sounding weary and uncertain.

"At least you're taking your opponents down quickly, even if Skye did rush that battle a bit…"

"I'm glad she did… I think I'd freeze out there if I didn't keep attacking…" her eyes closed, her head lowering as she tried to rest.

Shadow began to wonder, then, just how much the Amnesia made him oblivious. He felt just fine, though he had been in Skye's coat the entire time. Both trainer and Ponyta seemed to have felt and suffered in a similar way, and that made him uncomfortable that he was so blind to what was happening. He realized the drawback to this technique and began to clean his fur, only to find that his nose was far more numb than he had thought it would be, the tips of his ears too cool when pressed back to his head as he groomed.

Not long after Eclipse and Skye had stopped to rest, there was a sharp series of knocks on the cabin door. Shadow glanced to trainer and Pokémon, both appearing to need quite a bit more rest before they could go on. Eclipse's cuts bled slowly, but wrapped with cloth, it seemed that the wounds were shallow and wouldn't cause a problem. Skye was still nursing hands and feet, so the Meowth leapt up and made his way with a wobbling limp to the door.

"Who is it?"

"It's me…" spoke a rather angry Sneasel, the same who Eclipse had bested earlier. Though she didn't sound as if she had recovered at all, either. Skye stepped forward, then, to open the door and frown at the Sneasel.

"What?" the human asked.

"I want… a rematch. I came here to show my strength… not to get tossed around by a Fire type…" she spat at Skye's feet. "I'll beat her…"

"The hell…?" Skye wondered, taking a step back. "It hasn't even been a few hours. Go away…"

Eclipse Lv.10 vs. Sneasel Lv.15

Eclipse came barreling by, then, hooves thundering against the floor until she knocked the Sneasel out of the doorframe while shoving Shadow and Skye aside. The cloth clinging to the cuts on her chest fell to the floor as both Pokémon, dark beacons in the eternal storm, rushed recklessly into battle. Shadow glanced at the ruined towels, then back out to the two figures as they stared each other down, wondering how such a soft spoken Ponyta could be so careless and eager when it came to fighting. Truly, it made no sense.

"It's still weak from the earlier battle. Ember!" Skye called out before running back into the cabin to force coat and shoes on, socks abandoned in her haste. Shadow was already creeping outside, dragging his leg in the snow. Only now could he appreciate the toll the environment took on his body, something he was quick to discard once again with his Amnesia technique. Even as Skye hurried, the fight was underway as Eclipse gathered and shot a ball of fire from deep within herself. But it only hit snow as Sneasel seemed to vanish.

With a startled outcry, Eclipse was struck hard, the Sneasel using the familiar terrain to her advantage as she successfully moved with startling speed through snow and ice. Desperate, Eclipse shot another Ember, only to have it fail once again as the Quick Attack was repeated. Staggering, Eclipse came down onto her knees in the snow, hooves sinking through snow as the strikes began to build up. But, surely, if she was still so weak after the last fight, Sneasel should go down with a good hit. At least, that was what Shadow suspected. Shivering in the snow, he looked up to his trainer when Skye returned.

"Shoot the Ember up and into the wind," Skye shouted for Eclipse to hear. The Ponyta forced herself up before glancing back at Skye with a very open 'what the fuck?' expression. This was truly the oddest thing to escape the woman's mouth in a long while, leaving Shadow to wonder what the human saw, what she thought was possible and what could happen. The Sneasel began to laugh before fading away into the darkness and snow once again, taking advantage of the terrain once again, preparing to land a finishing blow.

Eclipse turned away, facing into the wind before lifting her head slightly, as had been instructed before shooting that Ember off. It flew upright, spun chaotically in the wind, before dying out. Skye called for a repeat, and it was given. The ball of fire was given more strength this time, the strength to survive the storm, and it was brought back down to earth with a crashing thud, just missing Sneasel. Startled by being revealed by the fire striking like a meteor, the creature vanished into the storm as quickly as she could. Perhaps Skye sought to create a barrage and keep the Sneasel moving? Shadow thought it clever, but the Embers looked weaker when they weren't directly striking a target. Even with Eclipse giving it her all, the wind and ice took a lot of heat out of the blaze.

That was when it happened. Perhaps Skye thought it would happen this way. Perhaps it was raw luck, but one of those Embers shot into the wind came crashing back into Eclipse and was swallowed by her flames. With such a fire proof coat, it was apparent that the Ponyta was merely startled by what happened, not injured, though her flames began to burn with increasing vigor and strength. At least, until Sneasel struck from the darkness, having finally been given a direct opening. That opening cost her, however, as the flames burned brighter and hotter than ever before, she took a good bit of pain for her efforts, and escaped, just as shaken by the impact as Eclipse was.

Sneasel then rose her claws, crossing them before herself as an ominous glow surrounded her. The storm began to grow in power and strength as the creature apparently sought to burry trainer and Pokémon alike in the snow. Skye closed the door, then and gathered Shadow up into her coat. Trembling, Skye tried to issue her command, a shout to fire, but Eclipse didn't even budge. The already furious weather advanced to the next level as Sneasel took direct control of it and began turning it against the Pokémon, making certain that she could no longer use the wind. Eclipse didn't need it, however, her flames grander than ever before. With the flecks of snow whipping past her enlarged mane and tail, Shadow could have sworn they were more like stars in the night sky.

Rearing up in defiance, Eclipse charged a new Ember, this one far greater than the last ones. Even at full strength, this one nearly seemed double the size in comparison. Fed by air and flame, it swelled threateningly before the mare's gaping jaws and when she released it, it flew true. Sneasel, who had to focus to control the Blizzard, was unable to escape her state of focus in time, and was struck, hard, by the enhanced Ember. She fell back, the glow fading as she was brought down a second time, Eclipse the victor once again. Yet, the battle took its toll on her health, her blaze fading as she sank into the snow, but not before screaming her defiance to all challengers into the wind.

Eclipse won and grew to level 12! Barely…

... Cannot be Cooled by the Wind

[Lady Vulpix]

Nice story, Skye! I liked the conversation between Eclise and Shadow, and it was nice to see Skye's attempts at figuring things out. She seems to be on the right track, but still a long way away from her goals. I like Eclipse's personality too. I'm sorry that she had such a hard time at the Blizzard Room. Maybe someday her flames will be strong enough to keep the cold at bay. But the way she managed it this time was great! Interesting use of Amnesia, too!

That Sneasel was just too stubborn.

Just a little detail: I'm sure Shadow must have heard tales, not tails. (If you find any typos in any of my stories and it's not too much trouble, please let me know too, I'd like to fix them in the archive).

Take 21 stamps! ¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢

[Skye]

.//. At least my boyfriend caught my typo of clever. Apparently Shadow was thinking about cleavers in my first take. But yes, tales indeed. And thank you :3 I have a lot of fun writing about them. I do need to take some notes on them for a quick character sheet sometime, but I should have my next battle up today or tomorrow, if writer's block doesn't come attack me. But, will do, I'll let you know if I see any typos!

I'd also like an RGB for Shadow my level 8 Meowth from the Universal Adoption Center, please. *pays 7 Stamps*

[classy_cat18]

Your Meowth will battle a Cyndaquil. Good luck!

Gabi, take eight stamps for your story. I kinda liked the name Solitude but Sol is cool too.

[Lady Vulpix]

Thanks. I've just fixed some typos.

Solitude used to be a suitable name for her, but she felt it as a punishment, so it was only natural that she would change it as soon as she realized she didn't deserve to be punished. Now she has kept a part of the name but changed the meaning, which is what bothered her the most.

I'm glad you remember her, though. It's been so long since she last showed up that I was wondering if anyone would.

[DarkestLight]

That's a BAD VB! Not posting my post!

Here's part 1 of Book 2


Today

The emergence of the sun over the horizon was never a sight to be missed by the habitual photosynthesizer. With a fragrant aroma wafting from its cup, and its body squarely planted against a wall facing the outside world; Mossy seemed to be at peace with the world. The suns' rays peeled across the horizon, causing the ocean to glisten. The sounds of early morning feeders were overhead, their cries animating the mornings' silent arrival. The swiveling dais of light swept across the ocean, possibly on one of its last revolutions. Fish swam in a scattered school as Wingulls dove from above to scoop up a meal. Hissing in the distance, Mossy watched as a slithering creature shot across the rocky coast, possibly woken up from the tide's chilling touch. He leaned over a bit, to get a better look at the ground below, to spy that helpful fellow Jake leaving the lighthouse, and heading toward the open sea.

The morning was invigorating to his body, as he stretched out during his walk. Wiggling his fingers as he kept his hands above his head, Jake quietly scaled a few of the rocky outcrops proliferating the coast of the lighthouse. Once he found a perch he was content with, he sat there, one knee pulled up to his chest so his chin could rest upon it. His thoughts were not as quiet, as he began to review everything that happened in the last week. It all started when those Pokemon came to the door of the lighthouse. In no time at all, he remembered finding that boy, having him brought into the lighthouse and putting him in a bed to rest.

Then that little lizard, she found a pie. Of all things, this started because he wanted to know where a pie came from! He audibly laughed about that fact, before staring out at the sea blankly. His thoughts scattered though the fragments of memory he still held onto about the hours that followed. The exploration and utter decimation of his body by the powers of a beast he had never laid eyes on before. The Pokemon that came from somewhere across the sea; they tried their best, and were almost overwhelmed until they started acting like a team. Then bearing witness to that secret passageway, it opened up into a massive catacomb with a relic inside that was claimed by a sea creature of sorts! It was just too surreal!

He rotated his shoulder, still feeling how sore it was after those hits he received. Relaxing again, the man lazily looked around, feeling that his presence was not the sole one around. His instincts were right, as footsteps came up behind him. He didn't recognize them, and that left him with one answer.

"Back from training with the lady, are ya?" he coyly stated, as the birchwood vested fellow slowly climbed up on an adjacent rock. Perching at the precipice of the stone, Rapp stared out over the water, visibly exhausted.

"Yes. That was good though. I'm glad to have taken the time to finally sit with them and actually help in their fighting abilities. With me down and incapacitated, they should not be so limited. Its more so my fault, we've been running through the world so fast, and they're still so young..."

"I told you before, earlier today. You could not have known, so stop beating yourself over it. Your group is glad you are back. Heck, they're more excited to be around you than I've seen anyone about anything in a long time. You been gone with each one for a whole day-sans the grass one who doesn't seem to have much to say."

Rapp lowered his gaze at the mention of Mossy. Things were moving at such an uneven pace that he never really had the chance to talk with Mossy since he woke up 5 days ago...

5 Days ago.

Breathing was a pained labor, and at times, Rapp wanted to quit. He continually rubbed his chest as he lied in the bed, quietly drinking water that was hand fed to him by Mary. Resting his body on the bed, he shook his head in disbelief.

"As I stated before. I woke up here in this strange bed, and aside from yesterday, I do not recall much of what occurred the days before. I--I honestly do no have any recollection of any dais. I've never seen one. Nor do I know any other languages. Unless you call the accent of some of the elders in my village another language, it sure sounds like it." Rapp stopped his speech, and continued to stare up at the ceiling, Johnson looking down at him.

"Well. Your vitals are fine. You don't seem to be hyperaware, I'd say the Awakening is over."

"What "Awakening?"" Rapp inquired, leaning his body up against the back of the bed in order to position himself better. Mary looked to the elder as well, while the Pokemon edged closer, eager to learn more about what the old man was saying.

"Well, when I was but a boy-I was fortunate enough to read much literature on the theories of Ulthuan's existence, about the magic inherent in this land and how it affects the world. It fueled me to learn the health sciences-so I could find a way to meld those realms together. I read of the races that live or lived here on Ulthuan, from dwarves to man. Of course, there was many a section on elven culture, but I bypassed it because-well, how many of you have seen an elf?"

Everyone shook their head in answer in the inquiry.

"They were all wiped out, right?" Mary asked, as Jake now peered into the room from the doorway.

"That is how the story goes. But that would not explain why there is still magic in this world. And if magic does exist in this land, than we must also accept that there are elves. I'm not saying that the cause of the elves is magic, but the two are symbiotic, for with one will appear the other." As he took a break from his own speech, Rapp quickly spoke.

"I don't know about any of this. I think that-before I go any farther, that some education into the past of Ulthuan is necessary." Rapp nodded, while crossing his arms, pleased with his choice of action. "I don't know what I am supposed to be doing anymore. I was first looking for my mom, and now I'm here ready to learn about elves! All In know is that I don't feel like I've been making the smartest choices when it comes to this journey. Maybe-in order to find the answers I seek, taking a detour is necessary."

"Well, I'd like it if someone else was here for a while." Mary chimed. Everyone turned to her, confused as to her intentions. "I realize he needs to recuperate, and these 4 are more than helpful when it comes down to it. Maybe we can help them as much as they could help us. I for one, am curious as to what happened to Mossy that led him to that passageway."

All eyes shifted to the plant, whom was preoccupied; stuffing one of his vines into a small space. Unnoticed, the stares faded into their own paths, and Rapp sighed. "We'll figure that out soon enough. I don't think I'm up for moving much."

"I wouldn't recommend it." At the sound of Jake's voice, the humans in the room turned their heads to the door frame where he stood. Hands were still wrapped around his sides, as he spoke softly.

"Look. We all took a beating down there. The truth of the matter is that something is STILL down there. We knocked it out, and took out the water, but what's stopping it from sliding its way up here and causing damage? I shut the door, but that thing could blast through it if it wanted. We got lucky with numbers, but that may not happen again."

"We can also ask that thing why its there and why did it attack us?"

Mary looked up, as the others scanned the room for the location of the voice.

"Nope, she's not in here everyone. Sue-that's a great idea, but what makes you think it would talk to us?"

There was silence in the air, and everyone pondered the possibility. If it didn't cooperate, they could escape, but sealing it away could only work for so long. Not to mention how long it must have lived down there.

"Not to mention the "woman" that you saw, Jake. This might be a whole different cat in the box."

"Well, the whole thing stinks to high heaven, if you ask me." Jake stated, before storming out. As he stomped down the stairs, the rest could hear him muttering about bad luck and omens of the sea.

"I'm sorry you had to endure that, Rapp. He's usually not like that. It's just been a long few days for us." Rapp shook his head, and looked to Mossy as he spoke. "It's not your fault. For as long as Mossy and I have started this journey, we never tried to take anyone's help for granted, or put anyone in a precarious situation. This goes for you three as well. I tried my best to shield you all from the pressures and dangers of the world-and now I see that's not right. We're going to stay here, as I said. We're going to learn from our mistakes, and we're going to leave a better group than before...that is of course... if you'll have us."

Mary and Johnson nodded, as Rapp slid back down to rest. He kept his eyes closed, a signal for Johnson to start shuffling people out of the room. As the door closed, and the light turned off, Rapp rolled over to his left side, back to the bedroom door. He bit his lower lip and clenched the covers tight, feeling the emotion start to overwhelm him. He buried his head in the pillow, and he stifled the sobs that began to echo from his heart. In one day, he felt his world go from supremely small and manageable, to supremely large and overwhelming-and he did not know how to react to it. His body began to shake, and his sobs grew in volume.

"Grandma, why did you send me on this journey? I didn't want to leave. I didn't want to learn any of this. I'm not an elf, so why does this matter? What does this all mean? I'm scared...and I'm lost and I'm confused and..." The questions stopped, replaced only by deep sounds too hard to distinguish from yells or cries.

Outside the bedroom near to the staircase, Mossy stood silently. He had stepped aside when ushered out and was passed by everyone except Johnson. The others made their way downstairs, obviously tired from their escape. Mossy and Johnson stared at each other, then to the shut door down the hall from them.

"Don't worry about him too much, Mossy." Johnson said, as he knelt down. "This is going to be a trying time for you and him. Give him time, and he will serve you better, as you have come to serve him." The planimal stared at him, unsure whether to run past and push the door open and snuggle with Rapp, or to stay his ground and let his friend deal with these demons alone. In the end, Mossy turned and headed down the stairs. Hearing Rapp's cries made it too hard for even him to be around. Johnson kept a solemn face as he closed the hallway door, sealing Rapp from the world just for a little while longer.

"I'll be heading to the Tower of Hoeth tomorrow. It will be a work's week before I return. If you and your party are here by the time I return, I shall have knowledge about Ulthuan that I'm sure you will find interesting and useful." Mossy nodded, keeping his pace as he made his way down the stairs. He had to meet with the others to make the best use of their time. Something Rapp had said made sense...and he had an idea on how to help.

3 days ago

Blurred vision was the start to his mornings. A silent yawn came out of his mouth, as his blearyness tried to fade away. Slow motions were always key to him not bumping his round nose into anything painful or cold. Mary made him a bed on the lower level, and he was plenty thankful for receiving his own small slice of comfort. However, this morning, there was nothing but a strange haze of bluish green in front of him. Not to mention a strange rubbing along his backside. He turned, to spy more bluish green haze around him, and he lashed out his tail, curious to see if this was his mind, or if it was real.

The counter strike to his face was real enough, and Wyrm hissed in retaliation. His vision began to sharpen, and the colors melded to that of a greenish hue, the blurs tightening into vines. He leaned back to get a better look at Mossy, whom was sitting no more than 4 inches from his own face.

"Mornin'. Why the vested interest in me?" the serpent noted, slithering backwards so as to reclaim some personal space.

"Because...we have training to accomplish."

Wyrm whipped his head around, to spy Sue floating overhead. She descended to the floor and knelt to be on more of an even keel with the shorter Pokemon. "Mossy and Rapp share a link that is stronger than most bonds between a standard Trainer and Pokemon. They both seem to share the same goals and pursuits. Right now, Rapp wants to train you all so you all will be better equipped for the world, should something befall him and you all are left to your own devices. But, in his own weakened state, he is not ready to do so. So Mossjito has decided to lead the charge, going out with everyone for a set of training exercises."

"He said all that?" Wyrm asked, looking at the plant.

"Haha, no. His expression was all I needed to see in order to make that out."

Wyrm stared at Sue, and then to Mossy again, perplexed. "What kind of expression gave you all of that information?"

"It's not so much the face, as the intensity and emotion that I can sense, being attuned to energy realms within the mind."

Wyrm gave up on understanding Sue, and turned toward Mossy. "So, am I the first?" he asked, curious as to if he was an afterthought or a frontrunner. Mossy nodded, and pointed with one appendage to the door that led outside the lighthouse. Wyrm nodded back, and headed for it. Upon reaching the entrance way, Wyrm coiled up and waited patiently as Mossy and Sue headed to May's sanctuary.

The pair covered the distance to the living area readily, making a beeline for a small set of pillows underneath the windows on the northwest side of the room. There, draped in a baby blue comforter was the female diva, snoring soundly. Mossy relentlessly whipped at her face, startling her out of sleep and forcing her to groggily push her self out of bed. Her face beamed with sleep deprivation, muscles apparently not willing to give a smile. Sue looked to Mossy, but he shook his head. She had to wake up now.

May yawned, and dragged her feet over to where Wyrm was coiled up. She leaned against him and stretched again, Wyrm having to brace his muscles to deal with the added weight. "Well, you aren't a morning person."

May gave him no response. It was possible she had not even heard him, as she teetered and tottered back and forth. Wyrm huffed and looked as Sue floated toward them, reaching the door handle.

"I believe Mossy will meet us there with Zent, since she will be a handful." May groggily followed as Sue opened the door-immediately straightening up as the cool air of the sea slapped her in the face. She stomped her foot and grumbled some incoherent words, before marching into the world. Wyrm followed, shivering a tad as the chill ran through his spine. It was nothing extreme, and within moments he was feeling pretty good about being up right now.

The trio began their march, heading over to a rocky outcropping where Sue pointed toward as they started their trip. It was in full view of the lighthouse, so anyone at the top of the lighthouse could watch their backs if something or someone was to sneak up from the higher caves that existed in the area. May scanned the skyline, spying nothing suspicious. She lolled her head back down and kept marching, still refusing to believe that plant woke her up this early. And for what? The more she thought about it, the more infuriated she got. There was no explanation, and again, he was not around to explain himself. As if he would explain himself, he couldn't even talk!

"UUGH! NO! I'm going back to sleep! There's no reason to--" May's sentence was cut off by a sharp pain to her backside. She fell flat on her face, tongue sprawled out in front of her.

Coughing, she pushed herself up and wiped the sand out of her eyes and mouth. As she turned, Wyrm made sure to get out of the way so she could see the true culprit for that hit.

Mossy stood there, vines spinning. Behind him was the smallest member of their troupe, idly eating sand clumps. Seeing that he had her full attention, Mossy once again swung his whiplike vines, knocking May flat on her back. May rocked back up, and stared at Mossy.

"Why are you hitting me!" she yelled, stamping her foot a third time. Sue backed away and elevated herself onto a rock to watch, as Mossy responded with a third Vine whip that left the girl spinning on her feet. She barely steadied herself, and Wyrm spoke up for her.

"Mossy, what are you getting at? We're here because of you, no need to take out your temperament on her." Mossy looked over to Wyrm, and lightly tapped Zent with his back foot. Zent looked up from her eating, and looked back at Mossy. He nodded, and pointed to Wyrm. All at once, Zent's focus turned from gleeful to adamant, and she roared. Wyrm slithered back a bit, unsure what the heck was going on.

With Wyrm preoccupied, Mossy charged May. Unsure what to think, May raised both hands up and pleaded.

"Mossy! Stop hitting me and te--" Her words were lost in a sea of powder as Mossy propelled a plume of poisonous spores onto her. May coughed and fell to her knees, feeling her muscles tighten up. Instinctively, May curled up and defended herself from the next set of vines that lashed against her back. Mossy felt the musculature change and hid a smirk, she was finally getting serious. He learned how serious, when one of his vines was grabbed by that fabulous tongue. She yanked it back, Mossy hard pressed to wrap another vine around it. She pulled with all her might, but Mossy's strength over the past few weeks had grown to a level she did not take into account. Their tug of war was brief as her body weight did nothing to alleviate the pull that Mossy achieved. She found herself flying toward Mossy, and the plant jumped up as she flew at him. May stared blankly as Mossy slammed down on her chest, standing atop her as if she was one of these rocks on the beach. Coughing, May struggled to get her bearings. This rush of activity had warmed her up, and she was no longer taking this silent approach. If he wanted a fight, he'd get it. She felt a bit under the weather, but that was probably the cold. Her tongue doubled back over Mossy, catching the plant off guard. She made sure to slap him in the face with it as she licked him off. Moss rolled back, and felt his body shiver. Impressed with that move, he made his next move. May rolled over and decided to meet Mossy head on. The two Pokemon met-a collision of energies crackling in the morning air. Sand flew up from their collision, and Mossy landed on his feet, vines raised to his sides. May lied on the ground, patting her head as she forced her self to get up.

"Geez, how strong ARE you?" May asked, as she stood up, flexing again. Mossy knew that her flexing was causing her to deal with the damage he was dealing, but that only allowed him to work harder with her. Finished with her for the moment, he turned to Wyrm, whom was in his own dilemma. As he marched over to Wyrm, May charged at him.

"Oh this is not over between us! Get back here and finish this fight!" She whipped her hand back and slapped him across the top, actually causing him to trip over his feet. As Mossy regained his footing, Wyrm zipped around him and shot himself at Zent. The little girl clapped and stepped sideways a few times, doing that strange dance that seemed to help her movements. But he landed that blow, knocking Zent back. The little girl got back up though, not phased as much as Wyrm would have liked. He growled, unsure why she was not taking as much as she should. That would change, as he watched her dance around again.

"I don't know why you and Mossy are double teaming May and I, but I really have no reason to NOT fight you. You are quite annoying, and you both can't speak." Zent hissed at that remark, standing her ground.

"Pwant beat May! I beat YOU! BEAT BEAT BEAT STINKY SNAKE!"

He cared not for her tantrum, and fired off a thin pulse of electricity. Zent grinned and idly opened her mouth, actually EATING the bolt as it reached her. It worked though her body, seemingly having its effect like it always did, as she stayed still and looked at her body. Wyrm smirked, and slithered closer.

"Can't eat everything Zent. Specially not something that paralyzes you."

Wyrm suddenly found himself in her grasp, and her canines protruded from her mouth in a maniacal manner. She bit down on his side, and did not let go. The pain shot through his body and he squirmed for dear life as she pulled and shook her head. He freaked and cried out, before he was thrown to the side by the little monster. He slithered back from her and looked at his side, now imbued with the indentations of her complete jawline!

"What in the world, why didn't that hur--." His mind swiftly put together exactly what this whole charade was, and he sucked up the pain.

"I get it now. May he--" Before the realization made it to May, the Dratini found himself bound and gagged in vines. Mossy held him up and began to spin in place, dragging Wyrm with him. May was still hot on his heels, but did not see the plan Mossy had in mind until it was too late and there was a blue battering ram in her face. Letting Wyrm go at the right moment made for a collision of pink and blue and sand. The pair stayed down-and Mossy looked to Sue, vines whipping left and right. The Psychic merely pointed behind him and he nodded. Vines slammed into the sand and Mossy floated upward, but felt that he could not get as high as he needed. It worked for now, as Wyrm shot right under him, upset that his speed tackle missed. May however, threw her tongue at the plant in the sky. The pink mass fell short as a pain shot through her back. She winced and saw that Zent had jumped in, biting her tail fervently. Energies turned to the little one, and she swung her fist over her head. Zent looked up, and barely had enough time to back away as the fist pounded hard into the sand-creating a deep indentation of her fingers. May growled, knowing that thing could hurt a lot more if she wasn't ready for external attacks of that sort.

Zent snarled, and lunged again, but May was ready this time. As Zent tried to bite her midsection, her arms rose up and came down atop Zent in a double fisted strike. The sound of fist hitting rock was unmistakeable, but her positioning helped to enhance the power. Zent's face went straight into sand, her body inverted from the norm. With the little girl incapacitated, May turned to her first focus. She coughed again, and pushed away the feelings of sickness.

As she watched, Mossy was making a fool of Wyrm. The snake was fast, as he zipped left and right, but Mossy seemed to know where the snake was going to strike from all the time. It didn't help that Wyrm used the same atta--

"Wyrm, change it up!" She shouted as she ran for Mossy's backside. Wyrm skidded to a stop; breathing hard. He HAD been zipping around way too much, and his foe for the moment wasn't even winded. Why hadn't he thought of that? He turned and instead of using that speed he was known for, he switched gears. Mossy turned and backed up a step so he could see both May and Wyrm at the edges of his vision. May came in first, and he used one vine to wrap around her as she charged in. Her fist slammed into the ground, and tossed up a bevy of sand in front of Mossy. He let her go, making sure to leave a small present on the tip of her tail, as he staggered backward, partially blinded from that hammering miss.

The next hit did not miss. As he was distracted, Wyrm quit playing nice. He opened his mouth and flung out a bevy of flames that scoured the sand it flew across and alighted the viney leader. Mossy jumped up in pain and dashed for the ocean. May and Wyrm gave chase, knowing this was possibly their best chance to take him down. Mossy wasn't faster than Wyrm, and he was counting on it. The Dratini zipped across the sands, eager to put the Tangela down.

May however, slowed up, realizing she would not catch them.

“Even Mossy is faster than me. But I don't know anything that can hit from from way back here.” She realized then her need for something long range, everything she knew was up close. But she also knew Mossy's knack for having tricks up his sleeve. As she watched, the plant stopped and whirled around, as Wyrm slithered past him, aiming to strike from an angle that Mossy could not compensate for.

The ocean put that plan on hold. Wyrm shot out a swift set of flames, only to have them and Mossy be doused by the waves. Wyrm shook off the water, seeing Mossy standing there, grinning? Wyrm didn't understand, as he readied himself to fire off a new set of fire-when suddenly Mossy began to glisten. As May slowly caught up to them, she also witnessed Mossy's near instantaneous healing. She also began to feel light headed, this sickness ripping her energy out of her.\

"What? You can HEAL TOO? How is that fair? How are we supposed to beat something like that?" Wyrm said, before flinging fire at Mossy. This time, Mossy dove and rolled out of the way, before firing off a set of electricity that honed in on May. May saw the incoming blast, and tried to dive out of the way, but the electricity bent and slammed into her midsection. She fell down and wheezed for air, but there was so little left in her.

"No...that's what you did. You poisoned me. You poisoned ME!" She got back up, and heaved, throwing her tongue as far as she could. It flew out to almost three times her body length, barely missing the plant. As she stood there, feeling so slow and bulky from all those strong arm attacks, the pins and needles in her tail came back. She whirled around, to see that Zent was back to biting. She raised her hand again, and then paused. Something else was the culprit, because Zent's bites actually hurt. This was a different feeling, like a..suction! She managed to shake Zent off with a foot instead-and stood on her back to keep her pinned for a moment. May examined her tail again, now noticing something wriggling on it. Sure enough, there was a small vine wrapped on her tail, with a tiny seed on it. She leered at it, before pulling it off and crushing it. The decimation of the link between his seed caused Mossy to pause for a split second. He smirked again, as Wyrm missed a rattail slap with his tail.

"You know far too many moves-I understand the need for this...but I can't say I feel this is anywhere near fair." Wyrm bobbed his head left and right, as Mossy whipped at the snake in retaliation, not giving any quarter. After a minutes of colliding whips and tails, both Pokemon stopped, breathing faster than usual. Just then, May came flying in, pinning Mossy under her weight.

"Now you are going to stay RIGHT UNDER ME until you explain why you are fighting us!" Mossy, caught off guard, fell flat on his face. He used his vines to swipe some sand away so he could see and breathe. Wyrm was moving closer to him, and his mouth was full of fire-nasty, hot, unrelenting, forestkilling fire.

One last gambit. As May lied on him, he watched, and true to his instincts, Zent came roaring up. The little girl managed to spy Wyrm about to set Mossy on fire, and she made a beeline for the snake.

"NO FIRE ON MOTHY!"

"Oh don't worry Zent, this won't hurt you a bit. Can't say the same for Ol' Grassy here!" Wyrm stated, as he raised his head back--and felt a rocky hand shove his head upward and to the left.

The shove caused the Flamethrower to fly wide, Sue watching it shoot off target. Zent grabbed Wyrm's midsection, and laid in for a bite again, but Wyrm wriggled free and Slammed her backwards before slithering behind May.

"She's faster! Is it that weird dance she does?"

"I think so! I never thought about it before, but every time she does it, she can keep up." May replied, as she squirmed to keep Mossy under. With Wyrm preoccupied for the moment, Mossy decided to test out his new move. He kept calm and took the time to remember what the folks in that room told him. To calm down and think of the element, and then let it grow in your body, and the move would come naturally.

Wyrm turned back to Mossy, seeing the plant not struggling anymore. May was visibly sweating, her arms buckling. "Hurry Wyrm! Burn him so we can figure out what is going on!" Obviously, as Wyrm readied a Flamethrower-May did not get what was going on.

"Hrm. Beauty before brains...proven again."

"What? What did you say?" May shouted, loosening her grip on Mossy-exactly what he needed. He shoved himself up, tossing May on her back and swung around to face Wyrm. The Dratini smirked, and just opened his mouth, letting loose a slew of flames. His flamethrower reached Mossy, but the plant began to steam instead of alight! All of a sudden, everything around Wyrm faded to white, and he felt his body freeze over so fast that it felt like it was burned! The cold was excruciating and the Dratini immediately shriveled up into a tight set of coils, to try and endure the strike.

May winced as she barely sat up, spying Mossy's use of his prize for making it to second place in the Tournament. She had heard earlier that he knew a new Ice Move, but she had never saw it. She DID know it tired Mossy out, and true to her knowledge, the plant did seem to breathe heavier from using it. But she also saw that he backed away from Wyrm, telling her that despite his efforts, he wasn't trying to overpower them all.

"You're holding back....this isn't real?! THIS IS YOUR IDEA OF A JOKE?" May was furious. "This your way of showing off? How dare you!" But before she could yell anymore, a final surge of energy left her body, and she fell over, barely able to stand. Zent ran over, eager to sink her teeth into May one last time. However, she received a severe whip to the back from Mossy, and that left her pretty stunted. Wyrm barely raised his head as Mossy kept one vine up, and looked to Sue.

"So. You are the strongest of them-and they managed this long without the little one's Sandstorm-creation. I see." Sue slowly lowered off of the rock and floated over to Wyrm, resting her hands on him. Using her uncanny powers, she was able to restore Wyrm a good size portion of health. The Dratini unfurled, still shivering.

"I--Im--Impressive." was all he managed, before recoiling around himself. Mossy's eyes diverted to May and Zent, as Sue slowly went over and healed each of them of their ills. May stayed lying down for a moment, as Zent hopped up and walked slowly to Mossy. She didn't know what to think for the moment, he hit her once and it hurt...alot.

"Zent do bad? Why Mothy hit her?"

Mossy looked to Sue, and Sue nodded, taking over. "No Zent. You did very well, as far as I can tell. Mossy held back, but I believe that was the point he was trying to make. You three are just as important to Rapp as he is, and he wants any one of you three to be able to take him on. Wyrm and May, I observed this battle to see how well you two could work together, and for the most part, I believe you both saw your shortcomings."

Wyrm nodded, as May still had a look of confusion on her face. "So...this was training? But when are we ever going to have to fight some super strong creatu--oh. Yeah. The thing under the lighthouse. But Mossy we--oh. You were gone. OHHH! To help us!"

Wyrm shook his head, amazed at how long it took her to put that together. "Caught up Blondie? Good."

His face received a comet speed slap, and he went rolling aways down the beach. "Knock it off, Icicle-tini!" she shouted, hand still raised across her chest. "I was asleep! No one has to fight when they're asleep unless they---OH! Oh god Mossy, why couldn't you just say all this. Its too EARLY to train for the unexpected."

Zent looked to May, perplexed. May's lack of finishing sentences left the girl confused as to what she was realizing. Not only that, but no one was fighting anymore. She looked to Sue and Mossy one more time, before turning away and stumbling down the beach toward where Wyrm laid. The glistening rocks-wet from the ocean waves seemed to be her target, unless an unsuspecting mollusk poked its shell out of the sand. It turned to be a seafood smorgasbord for the little lizard.

Wyrm recovered, and slithered past Zent to get back within earshot of the others. Mossy welcomed his return, stepping aside so Wyrm could fit right back into the makeshift circle. Attention turned to Sue, who took a moment to look back at the lighthouse. "We should get back. But I wanted to tell you all that for the moment, your survival is dependant on Mossy more often than not. I can tell he hates having that pressure on him as well. As we learned last night, we need more than to rely on your strongest member."

"No. Not true. We have had our own battles as well. We don't rely on Mossy for everything! We just knew he could help a lot last night."

"Not what she means; May."

May sucked her teeth, and looked to Wyrm. "Alright. What does he mean, since he can't even talk to explain himself."

"I understand what Mossy wants from us. He wants us to be able to expect the unexpected. I think that's why he doesn't talk. He watches. He studies. He investigates before making a move. And he never lets anyone know how well he can battle. Mossy knows more than I thought Tangelas could know. While we can do well with evasive maneuvers, fighting Mossy today showed just how bad we can't defend ourselves against even him! That monster prolly knew alot more moves, and we have to go back down there again! We don't know what to expect! All he wants is for us is not necessarily to be as strong as him, but to know what we each can do so we can work together better."

May retracted her tongue, realizing she had spoken too soon. What the Dratini said made perfect sense, and it did help to know what each other could do. She turned to the plant and raised her hand again. Mossy watched her arm as it tensed up, aiming to backhand him. He kept his eyes on her hand, until it lowered.

"Don't ever attack me in the morning again. I'm going back inside to take my beauty rest." She marched past them all, and headed toward the lighthouse, yawning and holding her tail. "Oh and Zent! You bite too hard!"

Zent roared in reply, as she crunched on a shell. Watching her munch away carefree, Sue and Wyrm both felt hunger pains onset. "Well shall we? I'm now hungry after that workout. I think this afternoon, I'll take you on, one on one Mossy?" Wyrm asked. Mossy nodded, and then crossed a pair of vines in front of him as they headed back.

"X? "X" to what?" Wyrm inquired. Mossy wriggled one of his head curls, showing it was crumpled and black. Wyrm smirked. "Sure. No fire. But no Ice from you then!" Mossy nodded, and turned back to see if Zent was following. Sure enough, she was, but she stopped to pick up a shell and toss it in her mouth.

"She eats them like they're potato chips." Sue stared, as Mossy shrugged. Wyrm chuckled, amused at how fast this morning moved compared to the last few weeks. "Come on Zent, let's go."

She replied with a muffled roar, spewing bits of shell and shards of rock and began plodding back, catching up after a few moments of shellchip harvesting. Once she reached the group, the four of them headed back into the lighthouse, eager to get the rest of the day started.

As they vanished out of view into the lighthouse, a pair of tired wayward eyes leaned back into seclusion. His room was now fully lit with the sun bearing into his room. A good thing, as he was able to watch it all from his bedroom. A smile was on his face as he slowly sat on the bed, fingers resting on his knees.

"They're starting to work as a team, for me. I can't sit here and let them go at it alone. I have to get better at this Pokemon business. But...I don't even know half of their attacks, let alone what Zent is! Maybe Jake and Mary can help..."

Rapp pondered his next course of action as he lumbered toward the small door to the west of the bed, where a small bathroom was.

"Yeah, I need to learn more about myself and about them, before we move on together."

***

As Mossy and Sue went inside to refuel, Wyrm thought it better to gear himself for the upcoming match he had just asked for. The plant may have had a plethora of moves to utilize, but he was faster, and he knew that could work in his favor. That-and he did not have to worry about the ice move that nearly wiped him off the map not a half hour before. Knowing Mossy had a move of that magnitude gave Wyrm a true reason to excel himself now. He turned around and slithered inside, knowing he needed to eat.

As the trio ate, May stayed asleep, determined to reclaim the missing beauty she lost. As she wrapped up under the covers, the trio made sure to quietly gather some food and head back outside. When everything silenced, May huffed and rolled over, only to hear a new set of footsteps shuffling into the main living area. She turned over and popped her head out of the covers, determined to tongue lash whomever was making noise. That elastic like muscle flew out, but was paused in mid flight by her once she focused on the individual leaning against the counter.

Rapp had managed to make it downstairs, but his head was still throbbing. Rubbing his forehead where a gauze bandage was wrapped, he winced. The cut was still pretty pained there, and there was going to be a pretty nice scar there for a little bit. He turned and noticed May and her tongue, prompting a laugh.

"What, you never seen me groggy before?"

May gleefully rolled out of the makeshift bed and ran over, hugging his leg. Rapp knelt down and reciprocated the hug, before looking down at her. "Hey there beautiful."

"Hey there yourself!" came another voice from behind Rapp. Both May and Rapp swiveled to see Mary standing by the base of the stairs, a fresh gauze on her left arm, ready to be wrapped. "You almost gave me a heart attack. Come sit down here so I can redress that nasty harpoon hit."

Rapp nodded and held May's hand as he sat down in a chair. Mary grabbed a bowl and went over to the sink to fill it with some fresh water. Putting everything on the table next to the chair, she slowly cut off the old gauze, making sure to pick it up just in case Zent was around. While she took care in doing this, May spoke-infinitely glad that Sue was able to translate the speech patterns so they all could communicate-even when she was not in the immediate vicinity.

"How do you feel? Better yet? I hope so. I need you to yell at Wyrm, he's so snippish..."

"No. Not better. In fact, as I said, we'll have to stay for a while. We have to go back downstairs at some point, and that won't be safe until I know that you all can handle yourselves. But that also goes for me. I can't just have you do what you think its right, I have to be better at knowing what you all are capable of. That's where you come in, Mary,"

"Me?" Mary asked, as she rinsed her hands. She grabbed a sponge and tilted Rapp's head back, to get a better idea of how to wipe the caked up blood off of his forehead. "Why me? Jake's much better at battling-if that's what you mean."

"Not necessarily. I was wondering if there was some way for me to learn more about them. I've merely been letting them do their own thing, and recalling what I've seen them do. But I also know they have moves I never seen before-because they never attempted them."

Mary nodded and looked outside the window. From her position, she could not see where the others were, and she turned back to May. "Ok May. I need you to go to the bookcase in the small bedroom. Jake might still be asleep. I don't know. But in there, there will be a book labeled Pokemon arrivals-432 AD. It'll have a list of all the Pokemon documented in Ulthuan so far. We have a resource like that here because of all the ones that come on ships and then hang around the lighthouse. Its not complete, its just a list of the ones most common around this area of Eataine."

Rapp quietly waited as he felt the new gauze wrapped around his head. It was pulled taut, and then her hands left his scalp. Feeling his head, the gauze didn't shift annoyingly, nor hung over his vision. Perfect.

"Thank you Mary, for both taking care of this wound and for this literature. This will help alot." Mary nodded and grabbed all the soiled materials. "I'll go throw this out, and then find Jake. Maybe he'll know of a better source of information."

As she left the room, Rapp's eyes lingered on her. He had no way to thank these people-and that was unacceptable in his mind. Attention was broken by May's tug on his leg. Looking down, she held up the book for Rapp to take.

"Huh? Oh you found it. Ok." He grabbed it and kept it low so May could peruse it as well. The book itself was thin and pointed out attacks for a large group of water based Pokemon. As they perused it, Rapp shook his head. "This doesn’t help. This area would need to know the types of water dwellers, but I need information on you all. Maybe we should find Jake."

Rapp got up and slowly headed toward the door. He barely opened the door before it flew open. Instinct kicked in, and Rapp knelt down to block May as well as look for the fastest route to dodge whatever might be outside. He peeked outside, to see Sue standing there, with a look of shock on her face. Mossy was yards away, running up to the lighthouse. Rapp unfurled over May and went to take a step. His foot tapped something below him, and he looked down. To his surprise, Wyrm lied there, twitching. The Dratini was obviously beaten, and Rapp picked him up, petting his back.

"Egad, what happened?"

"Perhaps I should explain. Mossy and Wyrm were training. But the disparity between Mossy and Wyrm was far too much for the little one to take, and he found himself flying toward the door at a speed he did not anticipate for." Rapp looked over to Sue, who placed her gaze on the little grasser as he stopped in front of Rapp.

"You've been training, and I am happy that you've taken the initiative." Rapp said calmly, as Mossy raised his vines in happiness to see Rapp on his feet. Rapp looked to Wyrm, and noted that the poor guy was knocked out cold. "But, you willingly went all out on him? That's irresponsible, Mossy! We need to train to deal with attacks, not just take whatever comes at us!" Slightly disappointed with his friends' judgment, Rapp sauntered back inside, carrying Wyrm. May and Mossy looked to each other, before they looked back in the lighthouse, watching Rapp lie Wyrm on the table.

"Is...he mad at you?" May asked, looking back at Mossy. Mossy shrugged, unsure what that outburst was about. He didn't seem to let it bother him, as Sue floated in the house. What the rest of the Pokemon could not tell was what Sue was now intrigued about.

"You worry you are not going to be able to train with them, that they'll get hurt as bad as you?"

"Stop reading my mind please."

"I did not. Your emotions told me."

Rapp turned to look at her, as Wyrm 's breathing was labored. He took a moment to think and then looked at the door, where May and Mossy stood just out of earshot. "You might be right. I would never forgive myself. But to see this occur just now, I don't even know what they're truly capable of."

"This is why Mossy started today. He knew this, and he wanted them to know what they could do together. There is nothing to be mad about. In fact, I believe that I can help you in your current dilemma."

"Oh?" Rapp asked, curious as to what she was referring to.

"I am a Psychic Pokemon, a Gardevoir. I can tell you their species, as well as the attacks that they are utilizing-including new ones they learn. I know that the little rock one knows at least one attack that she has not done because she has not tried."

Rapp turned and looked around. In the midst of the morning hecticness, he had not heard Zent at all. The others realized she was not somewhere snacking and immediately looked to the hallway. The door fortunately was still shut, heavy metal plates that were replacements for the sides of the light fixture upstairs now piled atop it. May calmly walked over to where she remembered Zent was sleeping the night before and peered under the staircase.

"Yeap. She's asleep." May affirmed, relieving Rapp for the time being. Rapp looked over the table to where May stood and nodded, remembering that location.

"Fine. I'll work with her later today. You two, I want to get rest. Sue, would you help me with them all?"

Sue nodded and then vanished, apparently called to a different part of the lighthouse. Mossy meanwhile, plodded toward the stairs. With Rapp up and acting funny, he had a feeling that he was acting out of some place that was never apparent before. Before he could get far, Rapp called for him.
"Hey Moss. Let me get those two TM's we were gonna give May and Zent. Or, better yet. I'll take the one for Zent. You bestow the one on May when you feel she can use it. I know Zent could use hers almost immediately..." Moss nodded and fished out the two boxes, flicking them over to Rapp. He caught both of them in turn and stuffed the thin boxes into his inside pocket.

"May, when she wakes up, tell me? I'm going...to go for a walk."

May nodded and went back to her own bed to lay down. Wyrm lied still on the table, still sleeping shallowly. Mary and Sue were entering the lighthouse from a side door, and immediately Mary sauntered over to Rapp, resting a hand on his shoulder before he left. "Hey you. Go easy on your buddy up there. He's just as worried as you."

"Its not him I'm worried about." Rapp stated, as he turned to face the red haired, freckle faced green eyed mistress of the tower. "It's myself."

Rapp left her with those words and headed out to take in the day on the sands.

The rest of the day passed without incident. Wyrm woke up after a few hours, fully energized. May noted Zent's awakening and gave a raspberry that alerted Rapp. Rapp quickly went back in the house and was greeted by an overeager lizard. Smirking at her exuberance, he then told her his plan, and she idly went along, glad to play with Rapp for a little. Sue followed, leaving the others to wonder just what this one on one would yield.

Sue, Zent and Rapp headed east, away from the water. The little dinosaur began to skip-or at least a version of it, and a song came out of her jaws. As she sang, Rapp and Sue began to chat, Rapp learning that her species was only the base for a much more powerful species. Sadly, Sue told Rapp that not many Larvitars make it to the final stage, and their Trainers leave them to stay in their vulnerable second stage.
"While just as varied in attack prowess as their larva stage, Pupitars-as they are called-lack the ability to move readily. This make them very hard to train. You have to make sure you can move her when she reaches that point. Its also why she's eating so much, she'll one day gestate and transform into her pupa stage."

"Wow. I never would have guessed." Rapp stated, looking down as Zent continued to sing. Sue smiled at her innocence, and stopped after a moment. "Well, I believe this is far enough. I can Teleport us back to the lighthouse when you are done."

"Alright. Sue, whatever happens now, do not interfere until I say we're done."
Sue obliged, backing away, as Zent smelt the mood change in the air. She turned to look at Rapp, unsure what was happening.

"Ok Zent. Here's the game. You have to hit me. Once. Using any move you can-except the sandy one. If you don't hit me in a few minutes, I'm going to hit you." Zent looked at him oddly, and then to Sue. Knowing she was helping him understand her, she spoke slowly.

"Why...hit..Zent? Zent do bad?"

"You aren't being disciplined, no. I'm training you. I want you to hit me, so we can make you stronger, like Mossy, May and Wyrm."

"ZENT STWONGA THAN STINKYSNAKE!" She emphasized, and ran at Rapp. Rapp quickly backpedaled, leaving Zent to stop and rethink her charge. The boy was not running until she got close. She sneered and roared, causing her body to release a deluge of sands. Rapp crossed his arms over his face and knelt down as the Sandstorm engulfed him.

"Good! Good Zent! Now try to hit me!" Rapp yelled through the storm. He knew this move at least, and it was the best move she had at her disposal for helping her lack of motion. The lack of motion that was notably lessened as Zent ran in from the left. Rapp cartwheeled away from her small grasp, and watched barely as Zent disappeared into the sands again.

Rapp listened through the winds, and was able to pick out a different set of sounds, which he assumed to be her moving around. Her feet were pounding the ground, leading him to believe that she was dancing. "Sue-what is it that makes her faster after she dances?"

"It's called a Dragon Dance. It allows the user to move quicker and attack stronger."

"Really?" Rapp replied, jumping over her as she dashed in again, trying to bite him. He heard her fall on her face and grunt.

"Come on, I know you can do it. You already made it hard for me to see you!" He switched back to talking to Sue as he backpedaled to avoid her incoming footsteps. "So she gets faster each time she dances. That's why she does it twice. It puts her on an even playing field."

"Zent, where are you? Can't always bite your opponent, we're gonna get you something new soon, I promise." he called out as he began to walk around a small area again. Zent didn't answer, but instead leered onto the position of where his voice came from. She knew he was faster than her still, much like that worm, and dancing all the time would just make her tired after a while. But with his location guessed, maybe she could do that other thing. After that fight with the slimewhipper, she felt a strange surge of energy come up from her belleh. It ruptured from her before, and knocked it back into the sea. Since then, she had been thinking about how to do it, and right now, she nodded to herself, coaxing herself to do it.

She stayed put and opened her mouth. Instead of a roar, her mouth began to gather sand. The sand then began to swirl on its own, and then blast away as a new form of energy appeared. Zent clenched her fists and closed her eyes, focusing only the bevy of energy in her body.

Rapp stopped moving, noting that his ears did not pick up Zent. Rather, he felt a deep pit of earthern energy coming from the east. He couldn't see Sue, and as such, was unsure of its source. As he walked closer, something clicked in his head and and he instinctively ducked. As he crouched, he noted the winds began to die down. Still bleary eyed from all the sands, he dared not try to see what was creating this feeling in his stomach. That all changed when his body was blasted with a massive ball of energy that threw him across the area. He crashed on the ground and rolled a few times before his body gained lift once more. He landed on his feet and coughed, shocked from the power of that energy!

"Sue, what was that? And where's Zent?" he shouted, as the sands finally fell. Sue waited until Rapp stopped wheezing for air, before pointing over to the east where the energy source originated. To his surprise, the energy signature that he felt came from the little beast! He stared in amazement, and realized that was the power Sue had mentioned earlier. He nodded and stayed kneeling, laughing. "Alright. You got me. You win."

The Larvitar grunted, rearing her head back once more. Rapp noted her demeanor and raised one hand. "No Zent. Don't fire it. Save that energy. You've just learned this attack, don't go wasting it--" But it was too late. The opening up of this type of power had a drawback-her young body was not used to it and as such, she did not know how to shut if off. A second blast ripped out of her, and Rapp heaved himself to the east to avoid it. Zent waved her arms around rapidly, trying to cover her own mouth. As she did so, she inadvertently fired another blast to the sky. She looked down at her feet, and released another blast, throwing her skyward. Rapp and Sue both watched that occur, and Rapp dashed to catch her. But that was a bad idea. As she rotated in the air, Rapp dashed right under her. He jumped up to intercept her flight, but wound up right in the crosshairs of a lizard with another blast ready to fire. He barely crossed his arms before the blast slammed into his forearms and knocked him to the ground. Sue stepped in, using her powers to slow Zent's landing. As Zent fell to the ground, she buried her head into the harder ground and forced herself to bite down. She crunched through a few rocks, and then looked back up.

No blast! She clapped and then made her way back over to Rapp. The boy was on his back, staring at the sky. As she walked into his vision, Rapp looked over to her, and weakly raised a hand to pet her. "You--you did good. We're good for right now. Sue...what was that?"

"That is a Earthern Power. I think the name speaks for itself." she replied, floating over to see if he needed assistance. Rapp nodded and closed his eyes, one hand lightly resting on his now bleeding scar. "Mary's gonna be mad, hehehe." Zent giggled and patted Rapp on the head twice, causing the boy to wince in pain. Sue smirked, shocked that he would even attempt such a endeavor as taking an Earth Power head on.

As Rapp lied there, Sue was quick to notice that the blast left not a mark on his body. She quickly scanned him, and -aside from knocking the wind out of him from its force-and agitating his already open wound, there were no other lacerations from any of it. She pondered the explanation of that, as Rapp finally sat up. Zent had found interest in some dirt and began to eat it, as Rapp staggered to his feet."

"K...Sue...we're done. Need to get back...feel light headed." Sue nodded and floated over to Zent. The little girl noted her arrival, and looked back to Rapp. Seeing his wobbling stance made the little girl worry for his safety and she ran right over obediently. Holding onto his leg, Rapp weakly smiled and peered down as Sue wrapped them in a warm light. In a moment's passing they all stood in the upstairs bedroom-where Mary was busy fixing up the bed.

"Oh! You are back! That wa--what did you do!?!?"

"Oh uhh..Zent used Sandstorm! It was super effective.." he joked as he pointed to the gauze, now a nice brownish red color. Mary didn't find it funny at all, as she shoved Rapp onto the bed and attacked his gauze, tearing it off. The scar was heavily slashed by the sand grains, and needed immediate attention.

"You can't go infecting yourself or it'll never heal!" she stated, as she ran to fetch gauze from the small bathroom. "Sue, Zent, can you excuse me?" Mary asked as she pulled out scissors and alcohol and all sorts of ointments that Rapp was altogether leery about once he saw their quantities. Sue nodded and began to walk out, calling to Zent's overeating nature. "How about some late lunch, hrm?"

"Sure! Wait! What Wapp give Zent?" she cried out before leaving.

"Once I come back down, I'll give you a new move! It'll help you against Wyrm." Rapp replied, before Mary clasped her hand over his mouth. In her free hand was a bottle of alcohol, the lid conveniently removed. "Hold still. This will be Super Effective as well!" Rapp 's eyes opened wide, and he tried vehemently to sit up. His tired state and Mary's purposeful sitting on his stomach made for a very pinned situation. As Zent closed the door, the screams that came from closed doors sounded unnatural. Though muffled, Sue could hear them arguing over the validity of her nurse methods-and then more screaming from Rapp.

"Wapp ok?" Zent asked, as Sue mentally lifted Zent and herself, floating down to the lower level of the lighthouse in seconds. Sue nodded, reassuring her. "They're fine, they have their own issues to sort out. Now, about that lunch..."


2 days ago

Waking up early was easy for Wyrm. He found that the morning was the best time to accomplish a few introspective things about himself. For one-he could slither around and find his way into a box of food, eat his fill and leave before anyone noticed. The planimal was always up earlier than him, and that was fine, there was really no clashing of ideals between them. Today was different.

Wyrm yawned, unfurling a little in order to look around. He was still in the lighthouse, comfortable under those covers. But, instead of the possible sound of steam from that teapot, or the scent of some sort of exotic tea-there was only the sharp breeze of the ocean. He shivered and turned toward the front door. It was wide open, blowing in the wake of the sea's gusts. Slithering to the opening, he looked outside, and witnessed a strange sight.

The ocean was vast and with its vastness came many a mysterious event. Today was one of those days. Sometime during the night, a boat had docked on the rocks near the lighthouse, obviously seeking shelter. It was a sailboat, but the sails were down. Wyrm slithered over to the boat's hull, and poked it with his tail. Nothing. He slithered up the side and peered in the boat. All he could see was a box. Feeling a bad sensation about the box, Wyrm backed out of the boat, and slithered to a rock, just in case something was watching. Turning to look at the lighthouse, he spied Rapp looking over the edge of the balcony. The boy had not spied the boat, as he was looking the wrong way. Wyrm groaned and hung his head, amazed at how oblivious to the world he could be. Instead of simply shouting his name, he did the theoretical smart thing, and raised up as high as he could. Pointing his mouth straight up, he released a small but powerful set of flames.

The scent of the fire turned Rapp's gaze and he immediately focused on the firestream. Knowing that Wyrm didn't use attacks arbitrarily, he noted it as something wrong. The boat caught his attention next, and that was enough for Rapp to take action. He ran out the room holding his head as he still felt woosy. He took the steps two at a time, and reached the bottom of the stairs. He looked in the living area, and saw May still snoozing under her blanket. Turning around, he saw the green shading of Zent in her hidey hole. Jake's door was slightly ajar, so he still did not return from wherever it was he disappeared to. Running back to the stairwell, he looked up to the swiveling light. He couldn't tell if Mary and Sue were up there-and he had not seen Mossy around either. Unsure where they were, Rapp dashed outside, and waved his hand. Wyrm ceased fire, and slithered to meet him halfway. Rapp knelt down, rubbing his arms to warm up. "When did that ship get here?"

"Don't know. I just got up. I figured you or Mossy would know."

"Don't know. Haven't seen Mossy since yesterday." Rapp replied, looking around the area. Something about the ship bothered him, since it was docked perfectly, and no one was in it waiting for assistance.

"Yeah. The lighthouse door was open." Wyrm pointed out, pointing to the lighthouse. Rapp turned back to look at the Dratini, whom shook his head-anticipating the next question before it was even asked. Rapp stood up, and looked to the lighthouse, and around it. Something near the lighthouse caught his eye, and he began to trot over. "Come on Wyrm. I think we have a problem."

The pair dashed over to a spot a ways west from the lighthouse entrance. On the spot lied a cloth strip, pinned down by a stone. Rapp and Wyrm curiously spied the spot and then each other. It was evident someone had been digging there, and Wyrm now turned to look at the ship.

"There was a box in the boat..." Wyrm murmured. Rapp caught his train of thought, and looked around. "..but where is the owner of the ship?"

"Right here, matey!" a voice called out. Rapp and Wyrm turned around to see a lone figure standing next to the lighthouse. He leaned on it ever so casually-as the wind blew his long tattered locks in the breeze. The white tunic hung loosely on his arms as he half walked-half sauntered over, boots kicking sand in Wyrm's face as he reached them. His breath smelt of rum and sour fruit, and his mouth gleaned of gold and silver caps where teeth should have gone.

"Are you the proprietors of said beacon of hope and perpetual sailing under safe conditions?" he asked, looking up at the lighthouse.

"Wha-um no. Who are you?" Rapp asked, confused. The man turned around, and looked Rapp up and down, before looking at the big nosed Dratini. Wyrm moved a little closer to the man, and the man backed up a step. Wyrm wriggled a little closer still, and the man backed up with two prancing steps

"Err, what is that, bloody worm of worms?"

"He's a Dratini." Rapp stated, puzzled at the man's demeanor. He seemed calm, aloof even, but for what reason? And why was he snooping around the lighthouse? The man walked past the pair of them, and pointed to the caves aways down the coast. "Boy-have you seen anyone come out of those caves?"

"No. Who are you and why are you here?"

"That doesn't matter yet. I only need to know what I now know and so now you know that you don't need to know what I know, savvy?"

Rapp barely followed the man's speech and gesticulations, as he fixed his awkwardly three pointed hat and made his way back to the boat. Rapp and Wyrm followed briskly after, overtaking him in a few strides.

"Whoa wait. Why are you here, and what did you dig up?"

"Dig? I did nothing of the sort. Jack Jack did."

"Who's Jack Jack?" Rapp asked, looking around. Wyrm sniffed the air, but picked up no scent. The man stared at Rapp, and pointed at him, his ringed finger swirling -as if it had difficulty pointing at him.

"Boy, Jack Jack is the most unscrupulous, erratically annoying Mankey you have ever met."

"Mankey? Rapp asked. His answer would be confirmed as Wyrm suddenly went whipping past them, evidently thrown. Rapp looked down, and was welcomed with angry red eyes-deepset in a roundish body. Long appendages and tail-all tan complected-completed the ensemble of this figure, and it stomped around Rapp, before jumping in place.

"That...is Jack Jack I presume?"

"The one and only. Well then, I think he wants to stay, so I will bequeath possession of him to you." the fellow stated, and made off toward the boat.

"Oh hey no WAIT!" Rapp countered, and gave chase. As the two figures chased each other down the beach, Wyrm recovered from his sneak attack. He turned to see the two humans running, and following them was a strange shape Pokemon. Wyrm's eyes slitted, and he blazed after, determined to beat the snot of something this morning. No one sneak attacks him and escapes!

[Wyrm Lv 10 vs Mankey Lv 10]

"You do not have a reason to engage me in this chase sir!" cried the wily fellow as he ran left and right. Rapp skidded around a rock and sped up; cutting the fellow off before he got any closer to the boat.

"Look. I don't know why you are here, but you being here means you needed something. Why are you here?" Rapp asked.

Before the man could speak, Jack Jack landed on his back next to them. Both men looked down and then to Wyrm, who was glaring daggers at the Mankey. Jack Jack sprung up,and immediately began throwing a tantrum-the flamboyant fellow backing up a step or two.

"Oh. your Worm has done it now. Now Jack's going to be aggravated. Terrible sight, seen him beat a one armed man with his own arm."

"So he just hits hard?" Rapp asked

"No. The fellow has no arms now." the man replied, before turning to see Jack Jack approach Wyrm. "Beat 'im up so I can set sail, JackJack!"

"Hey Hey whoa! Wyrm, Thunder Wave it! No need to take anymore hits!"

Wyrm nodded in response to the tip and watched as the apeish Pokemon ran at him; ready to lay hands on him again. The worm quickly shivered, releasing a thin wave of energy across his body to the immediate area. Jack Jack ran in, and punched Wyrm a few times, making the Dratini kink up in response. Backing away, Jack Jack felt his body itch all over, and he seemed ticked off about it. Rapp spied the onset of the paralysis and issued new orders.

"Oh, do that speed tackle thing twice--hey get BACK here!" He called out as he turned to see the fellow stepping into the boat. Upon being spotted, the man quickly pulled the rope that anchored the boat to the mainland up, causing the rope to conduct a ripple. Somehow, Rapp noted the rope wrapped around his left ankle, and that caused him to trip and fall on his back. As he rolled over, the man called out. "Jack Jack. Low Kick it again! We're done here-no elf evidence here."

Rapp rolled over, confused. Did he say "elf"? As he kipped up, Wyrm shot across the sands, ramming his body into Jack. Jack raised his hands and held his ground, but it was evident the pigmonkey was hurting. Wyrm however, did not have a chance to unfurl from his ball like state before he felt his form kicked HARD. He went rolling backwards and slammed into a rock. Unfurling from the impact, Wyrm groaned and watched as Jack Jack twitched and ticked in anguish. That was why Rapp said to do it twice-to amount for the possible onset of paralysis. This time, Wyrm knocked Jack Jack right to the head of the ship. Rapp meanwhile, had managed to hold onto the ship, stopping the man from sailing away.

"What do you know about elves!" Rapp asked, breathing heavily. The man seemingly didn't hear him, and went back to searching for something in his boat. Rapp stepped in the boat and asked again, as Jack Jack pushed off the hull. "What...do you know...about elves?"

The man turned around, noting Rapp's voice had attained a gutteral component. Swiftly, the man reached for his belt, picking up a small box. Opening the box revealed to Rapp a compass. Looking at it, Rapp noted the arrow turning toward his general direction. The man seemed surprised at that heading and looked to Rapp. He shook the compass and looked at it again.

"Excuse me. Could you stand over there? I want to make sure you aren't some sort of elf."

Rapp stepped to the right as instructed-though he did not know why, shouting blindly. "Wyrm. Wrap it! I know you can do that. Then set it on fire!" The man looked back to the battle, surprised about hearing fire.

"JackJack, if you get set on fire, don't come near my ship!"

Wyrm nodded, and swiftly slithered around the Mankey. The apemon had a nasty temper and showed it with a set of scratches to Wyrm's body as he wrapped around his midsection tighter. The ape pushed on Wyrm, trying to get him off, but it seemed to be of no use.

Wyrm smirked,and opened his mouth, ready to scorch the ape into the next century. But Jack Jack was just as odd as its master. In one motion, both Wyrm and ape were tossed into the brink. The flames were washed out with the salt water, and Wyrm uncoiled. The seawater got down his throat and he surfaced, coughing heavily.

"Hey! I thought you didn't LIKE water!" the man shouted at Jack. A angry screech was his reply, and the fellow looked to Rapp. "Damn cretin. Drives me mad. Are you sure you don't want 'im. He's a lively party guest, or an even better hat!"

A second glance at the compass, and the arrow pointed to Rapp. Looking at Rapp again, the man asked a single question.

"Boy, you sure you not an elf?"

"I'm not. Why do you ask?"

"Because. You have pointy ears. See my ears?" He lifted up his braids, revealing an ear. "Its small, miniature even, compared to yours. Yours even move. I can barely move mine." He tried to wiggle his ear, but only managed to smile really hard before his ear even minorly shifted. Rapp shook his head, confused. "Wait, you're saying that because I have pointy ears, I'm an elf?"

"No, I'm saying that because of your pointy ears, you're an elf. Anyone can have pointy ears. I knew a gal with large ears. Lovely lady. May have to pay her a visit..." The man trailed off and went back to rummaging in the boat, looking back at the water. "Are you done yet?"

Rapp turned back to the battle, to see Wyrm reattached to Jack Jack, and Jack Jack scratching and dunking himself underwater so Wyrm was unable to use his flamethrower. It didn't help that paralysis didn't seem to help too much, other than piss it off. Rapp quickly looked around, and decided it was better to end this.

"Wyrm, you can swim. Do a swimming speed tackle and get him in this boat!" Wyrm nodded and unfurled from the Mankey. The animal bobbed back up, seeing the worm swim underwater. Thinking it was fleeing, the Mankey slapped the water and seemingly cheered its victory. It celebrated too soon as the blue bullet shot up at a incredible speed, and slammed the ape hard. Both went skyward,and the Dratini whipped Jack Jack again as they sailed, knocking the beast with speed into the boat. That impact disloged the boat and the man turned to see that he was slowly drifting in the water. Rapp quickly hopped out the boat, and kicked off the top to make sure the boat began sailing away.

"Thank ya mate...and thank ya for knocking him out!" he yelled, waving his hat in appreciation. "Kind elves such as you are a blessing. Be seeing you again!"

[Wyrm wins. Wyrm reaches lvl 11]

"I'M NOT AN ELF!" Rapp yelled back as Wyrm slithered to the beach, tired from that surprise battle. Rapp kneeled to check Wyrm. The Dratini gave him a half smirk, glad that was over. It was pretty sunny now-they had managed to waste the early morning. As the fellow sailed away over the horizon, Rapp pondered the man's statements. Could he really be an elf? That would not make sense. No one told him. Why would no one tell him this? And if there were no more elves left, then how could he be one? It was evident that man knew more than he let on.

"I have a feeling we're going to meet that odd sailor again...but I don't even know his name!"

Wyrm spat out salt water as a reply, disgusted with its taste. "This...has to be the strangest morning." Wyrm replied, breathing at a slower rate due to his lungs not being filled with the rancid seawater anymore. Rapp looked down, nodding.

"Let's get cleaned up and then start your real stuff today. Unlike the others, I know most of your attacks. Its just fine tuning them that I need to work on with you."

Wyrm nodded and slowly slithered toward the lighthouse. Rapp followed suit, but stopped at the lighthouse door. He looked over to that cloth with a rock on it-where something was dug up. But he remembered the man was standing by the lighthouse, and the area where they were standing was in the vicinity of that door. Knowing that was going to take investigating, Rapp headed inside-and to the kitchen area to get some food. He had to hurry and learn all he could, before that fellow came back and wanted more than to know if he was an elf.

The rest of the day went as Rapp planned, with Wyrm's skills being honed to a degree, and his knowledge of Dratini as a species expanded upon by Sue. As the day wound down to mere slivers of light across an ever expansive sea and sky, the weary battlers made their way home. Mary had cooked up a elaborate dinner of seafood and rice-and Jake had finally returned sometime throughout the day. After ensuring Zent had a plentiful amount of food scraps and seashells after her main meal, Rapp quickly joined the others in eating.

As the table discussion revolved around Jake and Sue, Rapp was intent on learning where Jake went, as well as what happened to Johnson. But the answers never came. As he listened, he found it became increasingly hard for him to focus on their voices. The room was slowly becoming more and more muffled, and he could not understand why. He turned from the table for a moment-and allowed his ears to pick up the sounds that he could hear. It first sounded like water splashing-but it was very far away.

Turning back to the table, Rapp politely excused himself-making up some excuse about early training session tomorrow. He quickly walked toward the stairwell, but his ears continued to shut everyone's voice out aside from the sounds of water splashing nearby. It wasn't the ocean, this sounded like as if May found a puddle and was stamping all around it. "Maybe there is water still in my ear?" he told himself, but he knew that could not be the case, because he barely heard himself.

"Its gotta be exhaustion." he convincingly stated, and began to march up the stairs. "I better get rest, I need to learn with May tomorrow, and she's not an early riser." He quickly dashed up the remaining stairs and flung himself in the spare bedroom, going to sleep almost immediately after hitting the sheets.

TBC

[Lady Vulpix]

Here's Book 2. Don't worry, I'll reach the scenario soon enough

Where is it?

Anyway, Amy, sorry I missed your battle before. Thanks for pointing it out. It was funny how the Sandile caught herself. She reminds me of a few cats I know. I wonder what will happen when she's found out.

And poor Kovu, that was a nasty Gligar.

Take 11 stamps! ¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢

[Knight of Time]

Hi, uh, can I get an extension to this scenario please? Also, is it too late to ask for an extension for the previous scenario, or can I have an extension for that one too?

I'm feeling some intense training is in the cards for a couple of my Fire types.

[Lady Vulpix]

You can have an extension for this scenario, although it's bound to be up for months.

We don't normally give extensions for previous scenarios, but... we need more activity. I suppose we can do it this time.

[Skye]

While going through my old items, I found a TM that I never used. A nice useful Double Kick TM. I also have a Blast Burn TM from the old tournament, but I still don't know who I'm going to give that one to... anyway, after trying to get this out for about 4 days, here's the next part...

Revenge...

Skye always made certain that the Pokémon could rest well between each venture into the rooms. Particularly with Eclipse's scrapes and Shadow having gotten his cast wet from standing in the snow, quite a bit of rest had been required. That was why she had insisted so many days ago that the training grounds would soon close, for even with planned breaks between them, they would end up in one room on the very last day that it was open. Thankfully, both rooms left were within one tower, so Skye wouldn't have to run back and forth at this point.

Still, coming into the Lava Room again was a suffocating ordeal. The heat rose from the waves of lava beneath, trying to suffocate the woman and the Meowth she kept by her side. Soon enough, however, Shadow leapt from her arms and hit the ground with his one leg raised. Pokémon didn't seem to stay wounded for that long, though she didn't want to let him have a battle right away. But, what she wanted and what might happen could become two very different things. Shaking her head, she simply let Shadow try to waddle around on the proper feet.

"You're lucky you're a Pokémon. It takes humans months to recover from that kind of damage…" she shot at Shadow, only to earn a sour look. It wasn't as if Skye needed to be reminded that without him, she would be Gyarados chow. Smiling in response, she knelt down to kiss the top of his head. "Thank you," she whispered softly for him before standing and letting Eclipse free of her Pokéball.

A delighted whiney escaped the dark Pokémon as she erupted into an enthusiastic little dance, her head tossing as she gazed about the familiar room. Skye couldn't help at laugh as the mare's obvious eagerness to prove herself a much stronger opponent. Of course, fighting against Pokémon she had the advantage against probably didn't seem like much of an advantage, but considering the trails Eclipse had gone through (or put herself through), it was clear enough that the Ponyta had something to prove to someone in here.

"So, shall we? Or are they going to come to us?" Skye hadn't a clue, honestly. Though they had sought out opponents in the other rooms, Eclipse had come to her for some reason. Maybe Fire types were just attracted to trouble. The question earned her an 'are you kidding me?' glance from both Pokémon, however, causing her to let out a sheepish little laugh. "And to think that I like Pokémon more than people because they aren't supposed to judge you… lead on, then…"

The heat was soon getting to her, however. Walking mere feet away from a deathly plunge was enough to make her heart pound, even as the heat and fumes made her head spin. Glancing up and around, she spotted what appeared to be distant vents, perhaps to keep people from inhaling a deadly amount of the stuff. Noticing Shadow cough a bit, she realized that it was the same for any Pokémon who wasn't of a fiery or poisonous nature. Growing dizzy herself, Skye pulled the collar of her shirt up to cover her nose and mouth, but when she reached to grab Shadow, the Meowth shied away from her touch. Apparently he wanted to go through this on his own.

They didn't have to walk far, however, before Eclipse stopped and looked down at the ground. Lowering her own gaze, Skye saw a small pile of obsidian, gathered from somewhere else and brought here specifically. The ground looked worn through, as if the pathway had been used good and hard. Soon enough, the sound of hooves echoed within the air, and glancing up, Skye finally knew why her Ponyta had been soaked through with stained fur when they had first met. A small group of other Ponyta were racing there way, and closing in fast. Nostrils flaring, she could hear them breathing, could hear their desperate racing, and wondered if Eclipse had been head of the herd or was one of those who always got caught in the middle.

Glancing towards Eclipse, she noticed the mare's head remained lowered as they came threateningly close to knocking them off, but the pathway split and she seemed to know that they were safe. They raced past the rocks and onto a different route, leaving Shadow clawing at the ground lightly as Skye leaned back instinctively, not wanting to get hit by a stray fleck of rock that those diamond hard hooves cut into. Soon enough, the group dropped into a trot, their breathing still heavy as the leaders of the group whirled about and started back up the path, pushing through the racing group to approach the strange trio.

Soft sounds escaped them, nickering which soon turned to bickering as Eclipse's ears flattened. Whatever they were 'talking' about didn't sit well with the mare. Even Shadow threw in his two cents, hissing and spitting at the naturally colored Ponyta. Teeth snapped in the air as Eclipse began to paw angrily into the ground, but before she could rush headlong into this fight as she did every fight, Skye pulled out another box of her endless bag of tricks. When, in reality, she was getting low on her TM supplies. Really, she had brought half of these here for trading and haggling, but since she had acquired a Ponyta, they fit her team now.

"Hey, now. Why don't we settle this in a fight. A fair one on one battle, hm?" she doused the Double Kick attack over Eclipse's back, letting the powder within do its magic. The other Ponyta backed off at a human's approach, and Shadow settled, seeming somewhat satisfied with it. Even Eclipse looked sheepishly delighted at the intervention. "Nothing in the Pokémon world can't be solved with a good physical clash."

One of the Ponyta to the side stepped forward, then. The way that the opponent moved, Skye could only guess that the mare in the middle, the one who had been doing the most bickering and snapping, had declined to fight personally. The groups sorted themselves out on the pathway, giving Eclipse and the lower ranking mare plenty of room to move on the already narrow stone pathway. Shadow leapt up to perch on Skye's shoulder, grumbling to himself. Skye got the faint impression that he didn't quite like the other Ponyta, and so grinned quite confidently as she turned to whisper into his ear, "She'll win. She has us on her side…"

Eclipse Lv.12 vs. Ponyta Lv.15

"Toxic, Eclipse. Wear it down!" Skye called out. Fire against fire, their attack arsenal would be limited to begin with. Thankfully, for Eclipse, they had fought a good mix of battles with and without flames, giving her the edge. Or, at least that's what Skye would have hoped would be the case. Catching her words, Eclipse drew upon the toxins quite rapidly this time, perhaps because of the fumes. The nasty spew wouldn't be escaped, even if the other Ponyta tried to hastily back away from the battle. The pathway was too narrow to hide. It would be a full on battle.

Still, the opponent continued to back away. She kept shaking her head, as if trying to escape the nasty effects, but the poison had set in and wouldn't be leaving her system anytime soon. Still, once some space had been given, she began to paw the ground, striking sparks. Each shower grew more prominent until the electricity seemed to catch over the Ponyta. Bewildered, Skye could only watch as the electricity swelled and enveloped the Ponyta before she reared and crashed forward into an equally bewildered Eclipse.

Sparks flew everywhere, striking along the path and into the lava below as Eclipse's hooves dragged against the stone. Still, the Ponyta was quite stubborn as she locked against the other Ponyta defiantly. Legs were straining, locked, as Eclipse attempted to push the other Ponyta back, yet didn't possess the strength to do so, and was steadily being pressed back. Despite all of the battles, her physical prowess wasn't enough yet to give her the power to openly match her opponent.

"Don't give up…" Skye seemed almost at a loss, watching the obvious overpowering of one of her Pokémon. But it was inevitable that Eclipse's luck would run out sooner or later. And, for a moment, it looked as of Eclipse caught on to the sense of desperation in Skye's tone, for she slid back a few more inches before twisting away and beginning to make an escape, abandoning all hope. Feeding on this fear, the opponent began to bite at her shoulder when she turned, snapping at side, flank, and haunches as Eclipse situated herself before launching hooves outward in open defiance. Each strike landed powerfully and with a lot more pressure than simple forward pushing could have given.

Startled, the opponent staggered backwards before rearing up, readying herself to bring full weight down upon Eclipse, though the Ponyta followed her strike with yet another new technique, one unveiled quite recently with her increasing power. Violet and blue flames seemed to freeze into liquid metal, which quickly solidified. Tail moved, then, lashing like a whip combined with a long flail, striking true and hard. Though it wasn't effective in itself, it was enough to knock the opponent from her feet in her unbalanced state and bring her down. The toxins, as they usually did, managed to seal the deal, though Eclipse's fur was quite the mess from suffering such a Wild Charge.

Eclipse won and grew to level 14!

"A natural fighter…" Skye laughed in open disbelief as Eclipse had acted faster than the human tongue could follow. For a moment, it seemed as if Eclipse was basking in her victory, breathing heavily as the room seemed to grow even more heated. It didn't take her long to realize that the Ponyta was recycling the use of her healing technique, just like before, to keep up with the fighting. That could only mean one thing… she was going to fight again, and quite quickly. Skye reached out to grab Eclipse's Pokéball, fingers wrapping around the sphere. One easy gesture and it would stop and Eclipse could rest. And yet, the woman hesitated.

Her eyes lifted to gaze at the Ponyta, her head lowered as she breathed heavily, her strange light purple eyes fixated upon the Ponyta who milled nervously, pawing at the ground and nickering to their fainted companion. There was no hesitation to be seen in her body, she seemed certain and quite set on her ways, a dangerous and destructive nature brewing as Skye continued to try to calm her passions and help her fight with a level head. So, why not recall the Pokémon before she ruined herself before she even reached her prime?

Skye's fingers fell away from the Pokéball, her gaze drifting down to the Meowth who had taken to sitting on her feet as Eclipse recovered. He wasn't focusing on her, simply on what was happening between the Ponyta. Envy struck Skye, then, as she realized just how locked out of the Pokémon's world she was. She couldn't hear them, couldn't understand them, couldn't communicate more than they were willing to listen. It was a lonely feeling as she realized that she could only speculate why Shadow supported Eclipse so much, and yet always seemed to have hated Shandar. Shandar, who wanted to attack her at every chance, and yet she didn't understand why he and Eclipse had taken on a trainer's touch so willingly. And Eclipse who was facing something important, but Skye couldn't understand why she was so reckless in her pursuit of power.

"Bring out your strongest or walk away!" Skye crowed suddenly. Shadow began to call loudly from her feet, backing up her words, even as Eclipse finished catching her breath and screamed her challenges along with the original human and Pokémon team. It was a unifying moment, one which left a good feeling in Skye's heart and mind, even if her stomach was all in knots from the previous battle and the one yet to come. The trainer worried for her Pokémon, but truly believed that Eclipse wanted this fight, felt justified to have her battles and her revenge. And, believing this, truly felt that the best way to help Eclipse now was not to stop her, but to support her.

Eclipse Lv.14 vs. Ponyta Lv.15

With a body blocking the current path, the Ponyta who stood in the middle stepped forward and leapt onto an adjacent pathway. Eclipse was quick to follow suit, leaping over with an amazing power that Skye hadn't believed the small horse had possessed. Upon landing, she was first to launch her attack, charging headlong into the opponent, tackling her down. Inspiration at taking down one opponent seemed to be fueling the young mare as she took charge, and yet… the opponent reared up, bringing herself down, hooves scraping flesh and fur as Eclipse retreated.

"Double Kick!" Skye wondered if such would be possible on the narrow pathways, but she was quite pleasantly surprised as Eclipse turned on a dime, back legs kicking, lashing out with powerful strikes. The opponent could only retreat in response as Eclipse twisted to face her once again, soft sounds escaping each Ponyta. Perhaps they were talking, or simply breathing strangely, Skye couldn't tell from her vantage. Whatever was going on, Eclipse seemed to lose heart as she began to back away, her head lowering in submission. Shadow began to hiss once again, obviously displeased with whatever was going on between the two of them.

"Eclipse," Skye called her name out. That alone seemed to shake the Ponyta out of whatever spell the other mare had put her under. She charged and spun herself, pivoting cleanly on her fore-hooves as she brought her hind quarters around once again. The other Ponyta openly flinched, retreating ever so slightly to avoid being struck with a metallic tail, yet the only thing which would brush against her would be a flaming tail which did no damage. Skye couldn't help at laugh at the shock tactic that was Tail Whip, but it did its job. With the older mare obviously shaken up from what could have been a strike, Eclipse lashed out with her hooves once again.

"Now attack once again, push her back!" Skye was beyond delighted at this turn of events. Taking charge of the battle, Eclipse struck once again, back legs lashing out in another two-point strike. Apparently the other Ponyta had taken Eclipse for granted, at least that's all Skye could figure. A psychological warfare which might have once held sway over Eclipse no longer kept its spell over the Ponyta who had fought without flames and had burned her way through a blizzard. Shadow began to call out encouragingly as Eclipse spun and rammed aggressively into the opponent once again, though the enemy rose to challenge the strike and began to push back.

Once again, Eclipse was locked in a head on head confrontation, though it didn't last for long before the other mare retreated, backing away quickly. Though she soon returned, ramming forward with her own strike, this one landing with far more power, though the way in which she rammed her shoulder into Eclipse directly must have been damaging to her as well, as she let out a pained sound at the strike. It still wasn't enough to stop Eclipse, however, even as the mare staggered back in pain. Once again, she summoned the healing effects of the artificial lights which were set up to replicate the sunlight to recover, though with the way that her legs were shaking. Skye knew that she was coming close to her limit.

"One last attack, don't stop now, don't back away…" Skye frowned. Even though she was happy that Eclipse was growing enough to mix her own attacks with following Skye's commands, the trainer knew that stopping now could result in unfavorable outcomes. Her health would be restored, but her endurance wasn't guaranteed to be boosted. Thankfully, Eclipse seemed to snap out of it quite quickly, having gained enough of a recovery to keep pushing herself, she rammed into the opponent hard enough to send the female down and take her out without the help of Toxic.

Eclipse won and grew to level 16!

Finally. Skye let out a heavy breath, though she couldn't help at laugh as Eclipse declared her victory in her normal, loud fashion. The other Ponyta seemed to mill nervously before retreating. The first one she had battled rose and walked away, the group leaving their fallen leader to recover on her own. Shadow also seemed to let out a heavy breath before he got up and began to walk back to the entrance. Skye glanced between the two oddly colored Pokémon before turning and following. Soon enough, the pathways merged, though standing by the door was a lone Cyndaquil.

The mouse Pokémon stepped forward, then, and began to squeak demandingly at the trio, leaving Skye quite confused. Though, soon enough, Eclipse began to paw angrily at the ground, setting her sights on the Pokémon, only to stop when Skye reached out and placed a hand on her side. The wear and tear of the battles was showing once again, it would be a while before they advanced to the final battling grounds and took on the Desert Room.

"Could we pass, please? We're done here…" Skye began, but the Pokémon shook his head rapidly, openly refusing their exit. He began to chatter once again, now pointing at Shadow demandingly. "I'm not going to let him…" she began, only to have Shadow step forward, placing weight carefully on his recently mended leg. Though Skye had let Eclipse battle to settle whatever score she had with her past, this was just asking too much. Though when she reached out for Shadow, he let out a warning growl.

"You guys don't even need a trainer, do you? You'll just do whatever you want…" she shook her head, giving up.

Shadow Lv.8 vs. Cyndaquil Lv.8

"Use Amnesia to bolster your defenses," Skye began, not that she thought it would protect him completely from damage. Shadow seemed to stop moving for a moment, leaving him fully open to the Ember attack coming his way, though when it landed, he hardly even flinched. Cyndaquil looked rather surprised by this, leaving Skye to imagine that he was quite fresh when it came to training. Perhaps someone who was participating in the battle grounds owned this Pokémon who had wandered off to get some training of his own in?

"Hidden Power," was her next command. Unlike Eclipse who filled the gaps in, Shadow and Skye were in sync and the combat style was more fluid for the two of them without any gaps to be filled. Shadow's fur gave off a faint glow before the orbs appeared once again, circling as the energies within struggled for release. Cyndaquil attempted to rush forward, a poor choice on its part as Skye winced, feeling that this was more like bullying than battling. Pity came as the three orbs launched in rapid succession, striking at close range with little chance of escape even possible.

"Use Scratch," Skye began, only to pause as the fire Pokémon spewed a mouthful of smoke into the air, causing it to become quite hard to see. Shadow, who had just moved to strike, paused, hesitating as the opponent faded into the smoke. Though, Shadow faded away into the darkness as well. With a coat black as night and the smoke thick enough to cut down on the glare given by eyes and coin, the Cyndaquil would soon find that while he had helped himself, he wouldn't be able to find Shadow quite so easily.

"Strike when he strikes," Skye spoke calmly as she watched as either Shadow began to stalk silently through the smoke, paw pads stifling any sound he could have made, or a wisp of smoke looking like Shadow began to move patiently. And, it was a good thing that he had, for the smoke spun and swirled as a ball of fire shot forward once again. Cyndaquil, who had begun with an ignited flame, was only giving his position away without an ambush technique to back the Smokescreen up. A pained squeak soon sounded as Shadow struck, clawing the opponent up as he had been instructed.

"Hold onto it so it can't escape and finish it with Hidden Power," Skye called out in an even tone. Another pained sound escaped, though Skye could envision Shadow digging his claws in. A faint glow escaped through the smoke as it began to clear, the ventilation system working perfectly, though just enough to see that Shadow had grabbed the wrong end in the heat of the battle. Claws on either side of the Cyndaquil's shoulders, the fire creature realized that he could perfectly fire off an Ember, doing quite a bit of damage with the close proximity, though Shadow hardly reacted. Instead, he fired off his own strikes, claws ripping through fur as Cyndaquil was blasted away quite forcefully. Skye winced once again as Cyndaquil hit the wall beside the door.

Shadow won grew to level 9! He learned Fake Out!

"That collar gives you quite the nasty boost…" Skye looked at the Cyndaquil sadly. If his trainer had been here, the battle would have been quite a bit better. She only then realized just how well the training room Pokémon held up on their own without someone to command them. A new respect grew in her, not only for the work of those who had set up this event, but for the Pokémon they had selected and the trainers who had raised such Pokémon.

Stepping forward, then, she checked Shadow over first, worried that the battle had stressed his body, but the Meowth looked just fine, if a little singed. The Amnesia was a good technique. Almost too good. She shook her head at him before approaching the Cyndaquil and giving him a light pat on the head. He flinched and looked up at the woman, almost seeming confused.

"You'll get there. Don't rush too much… you too, Shadow. No more battles until you're fully healed. Next time, I'll just put you in your Pokéball and walk away, no matter who's challenging you…" her tone went from reassuring to stern as she heard Shadow let out a low purr, far too pleased with himself. Shaking her head at the hopelessness of her situation, she recalled her Pokémon and left the room, wondering who they thought was the one to get yelled at when they were close to collapsing when she handed them to whoever was working there at the time. Skye was. How selfish could these creatures be?

... Is a Universal Language

[Skye]

Sorry for the double post, but I'd like to request my week's RBG. I'd like it for Darker my level 5 Houndour please. *pays 7 Stamps* Universal Adoption Center please :3

[DarkestLight]

End of Book II.

Yesterday

The beams of sunlight that broke through the horizon first never seemed to reach the bedside of the pink femme fatale. She made sure of this with a layer of obscuring fabric. This way, she could sleep undisturbed.

Today was not that day. For the second time in a week, May's world was flipped upside down as the covers were torn off of her. She mumbled something about being a dangerous tongue lasher, but did not stir. She then felt the sting of icy morning air, and opened her eyes, irritated. But, instead of seeing a mass of green staring begrudgingly at her, it was a brown face with slightly pronounced canines.

"R--rapp? W-wha*yawn* why so early..." She barely managed to sputter out, half between bliss and regret.

"Up. It's your day." he replied, holding one ear as he stepped outside the lighthouse. May rolled over, mumbling before half crawling, half walking outside. When she reached the chilling world, she looked up, to see Sue and Jake sitting outside. Apparently she was the last one. Yawning again, she pointed at Sue, confused.

"Wha- wait what's happening now?"

"She sleeps hard, doesn't she?" Jake commented, as he stood up and began to head east. Sue followed alongside Rapp, leaving May confused and disoriented. She willingly followed, thinking that maybe they just wanted to take a walk.

It turned out to be a long walk. May slowly began to realize this was no ordinary outing, as the group trudged on, making their way up the coast a fair ways. As they marched, May noted that there were small patches of grass here, along with a few trees. The trees were nice and have dense canopy cover, and probably tolerable to sleep under.

"Hey!" She finally yelled out, tired of this silent treatment.

Everyone stopped to look at her. She was surprised at the immediate attention she received and stepped back. Sue stepped forward, and raised her arms, striking a strange pose. In the top of her left hand, a ball of energy began to form.

"Are you ready?" she asked, lowering her arms until the glowing ball was pointed directly at May. May looked to Rapp, whom merely nodded his head.

"It's time I learned what you can really do. Instead of me actually being the target, like I did with Zent, you're going to battle Sue. This way, we can figure out what we need to work on with you."

May groaned, displeased with how this day seemed to be turning out. She placed her hands on her hips and scowled at Sue. "I'm not fighting her. We're ladies. We don not engage in fighting! She's not going to actually atta--"

May's words were cut off as she felt a shot of energy strike her in the midsection. She doubled over, confused by the smell of grass all around. The elegant Gardevoir was floating toward her; her intentions now loud and clear. May tried to suck up her pain but even as she righted herself, she felt pains all over her body from that single strike. Jake yelled out something about a Psychic move, and then she heard Rapp almost immediately.

"Get in close May, and Lick her."

Having no real choice, May halfheartedly trudged forward two steps, before flinging her tongue out. The massive muscle slapped against a mental wall of power, and was deftly deflected. She reeled her head back and used her hands to help swing that extended muscle around, trying again. Sue raised her hand once more and use some sort of invisible blast to throw that tongue back at May. May got a faceful of her own weapon and fell flat on her back. Sucking her tongue back in, she got up and complained.

"You hit me with my own tongue. Disrespectful!"

"Stop complaining May." Rapp stared as he began thinking about how to hit Sue. Sue was not stopping, as per Jake's orders, and Rapp saw that he needed to keep up with the bevy of moves that would be coming at him.

"Sue, Hit her with a Thunderbolt, then move to a Confusion." Jake commanded, smiling a little too much for May's taste.

"Oh, May! Do that one move. Umm the yelling one!"

Sue was unsure what he meant by that, but she had her orders. She kept that one arm extended and now pure electricity poured from her arm. May ran to the side, avoiding the first blast of that-and recalled what Rapp was speaking off. She curled her tongue and blew into it, creating a high pitched squeak that seemed to attack Sue's mind. Sue shook her head in discomfort, arms lowering from offensive positions.

"Now, while she's open! Lick and Wrap her up!" Rapp shouted, seeing this as a prime opportunity.

"Huh. Didn't think she knew Supersonic. Jake, what should I do?" Sue asked, shaking her head.

"Hrm, that's a pretty nice trick. Focus up and Calm yourself, she won't get too far." Jake replied.

Sue nodded, but found that her body was not listening to her mind. She tried to overpower her desire to just throw a powerful bolt at May, but that was now compounded by the fact that there was a tongue slathering her face. Sue pushed off the muscle, only to have it rewrap around her tighter. Sue winced in anguish, as May held her up of the ground...only to realize she didn't know what to do with her.

"Ok May, we got her. Try that heavy..Hammer thing you do." May looked back at Rapp, confused. What was he talking about? Sue wriggled a bit as May tried to think of what Rapp meant, and Jake quickly took advantage.

"Calm down Sue, and then we'll hit her with a Disable."

Sue nodded and closed her eyes. Utilizing her mental powers, she broke the confusion state she was in with an act of sheer will. The Gardevoir then began to reclaim her naturally serene state, achieving a simple peace within herself. While all this occurred, May raised her arms up in frustration, still confused as to what Rapp was talking about. What Hammer attack could be thinking of? When she lowered her right arm to her side, the motion instantly clicked.

"THO! THE PHAMA!" She replied and balled her left fist up. With that arm still poised and flexed, May let it fall with all the power she could muster without letting go of Sue.

Sue's eyes opened from her zen life trance, only to watch as the bludgeon came down upon her. May slammed her arm down onto Sue's chest, using her body weight to enforce the blow. It stung, but for some reason, Sue seemed partially unphased by it, and used that invisible skill set to pull at May's tongue and unravel it from her body. May found that her whole body was stunted by some sort of Disabling maneuver, and she looked to Rapp for help.

"Did you just hit Sue with a Hammer Arm?” Jake asked, laughing a bit. Rapp nodded, not quite sure what was so funny.

"I don't follow." Rapp said, as May was tossed aside. May recovered from the throw, as Jake explained.

"Sue, end this charade with a second Calm Mind, followed with a true Psychic attack. As for you Rapp, its time you learned your type advantages and disadvantages."

"May, Body Slam her! I know you can do that. And type advantages? Like how fire hurts Mossy alot? I know...some of them..." Rapp admitted as he turned toward the battle at hand.


May gave in on trying to simply endure this match. Sue was hitting harder and harder with every blow, and she was barely getting any damage in. She didn't understand, were they actually that weak? They won battles in the past, but maybe their opponents were not that great after all. May began to doubt her effectiveness, when she saw Sue had finished her stance and was now raising both hands. Knowing something was coming, she charged and heaved her rotund mass at the Gardevoir. All at once, Sue released a powerful force, one that stopped May in mid-air and threw her back with a resounding speed. May rolled on the sands, coming to a stop meters away from the battle.


"May!" Rapp shouted, as he dashed over to try and help her. He reached her side, only to hear a comment that made him freeze. "


Hey! You can't always be near them! They gotta get up on their own too! Besides, Sue can teleport. No matter how fast you are, she cold have been over there and ended this battle before you reached the halfway point. Speaking of. Sue, Teleport, grab May-and bring her here, then Energy Ball her. That should do it."


"What? May-don't let her grab you!"



May was a bit sunk in the ground when she felt the arrival of Sue. Before she could muster up the strength to fight back, she was gone from Rapp's side and now back to where she was before. Sue knelt down, and showed May what looked to be her final move, a glowing sphere starting to materialize from nothing at all. May did the one thing she could think of.


A speeding backhand streaked across Sue's face and sent the Gardevoir on a half spin. May quickly followed up with a second backhand, and Sue pirouetted back to deal with the blow. May ran in and tried to deliver a third backhand, but Sue vanished, leaving May to trip over her own momentum. Before May could recover, a blast struck her from the back-and left her horizontal. May stayed down as Sue walked over, rubbing her cheek. Rapp ran over, slowing down as he knew May had lost.


"What was that last attack called? It seemed to bother Sue." Rapp noted, as he knelt down to help May stand. May quickly wrapped her arms around Rapp's neck-and he patted her head.



Jake sighed and nodded to Sue. "Good work there Sue. As for your question. That attack, I believe is called Knock Off.



"It's a nasty attack that I don't approve of." Sue stated, which earned another hearty laugh from Jake.



"Hey now, just because you're weak against Dark attacks doesn't make it any less useful. That was a wicked backhand delivery there May, I like that!"



May sheepishly looked up at Jake, before Rapp hoisted her up. "She'll pass out any moment. You were saying something about type effectiveness before?"


Sue and Jake nodded, as they began to walk back. Sue offered to teleport, but Rapp and Jake shook their heads-the walk would give them time to talk. Sue shrugged and floated beside them, as Jake began.



"When I first received Sue, she was a small little thing. Called a Ralts. Didn't know much of anything. When I learned she was a Psychic type, I quickly went to figure out what she was weak to, and strong against. Pokemon have this sort of internal checks and balances, so no one type is stronger than others. I could rattle off all the type weaknesses and strengths, but I'll focus on what you have, so you can have a starting point..."


Rapp nodded, but stopped walking and raised his hand as Jake trailed off. Both Jake and Sue stopped and looked behind him. Rapp's ears twitched, and he looked toward the brush a few meters away. Shifting May to the left shoulder, he turned and pointed with his right arm.


"Something's watching us. Its in there." he said, calmly taking a step aside as Sue floated forth. Jake looked at the brush, and then to Sue. "What do you think?"



"I think its something I don't like." she stated, backing up a tad herself. Jake smiled and looked to Rapp. "Hey, you think May could take on whatever is in that brush?" Rapp looked back to Jake and shook his head.



"No! She's tuckered out!"


"Not NOW! I mean, later. That thing's been in there for years, never comes out. Sue says its a bug, but I never seen bug tracks here on the beach."



Rapp nodded, and turned back to Jake.



"I know. I'll come back here with Mossy tomorrow. He'll flush it out."



Jake looked to Sue, who put her hands up to the whole idea.



"I don't care. I just don't like bugs."


"Heh. Which brings me back to the whole type thing. Let's see..." Jake turned and began heading to the lighthouse, ignoring the rustling. Rapp and Sue stared at the bush, hoping to catch a glimpse of the invisible quarry, but none was revealed to them.



As they left, the brush parted, and out skittered a small insect. It watched the 4 figures leave its area. However, the one figure carrying the pretty pink mass...she was sure she was looking at her! All at once, the strange bug felt a rage all over her. Something about that pink...monstrosity...it just really rubbed her the wrong way. She dove in the bush and scampered off, keeping up with them from a distance.


***


"Ok. So May is a Normal type. That means that if she is hit with a Fighting type move, then she's really going to feel the hurt." Jake explained, as they crossed a small ridge on the way back to the lighthouse. The towering building was in full view-as the sun shone overhead. "But she can learn alot of moves, so she can put the hurt on many types."


"I see. So, Mossy-being grass-is weak to fire and ...possibly Ice. Which is why he probably wanted to learn that Ice move-which does not make sense...he would have been better off learning a...Fire move." Rapp stated, when Jake slowed him down.


"Whoa whoa whoa. Ice move? Grass Pokemon in general don't learn Ice Moves. Explain that."


"Well....we happened to win a Tournament. The Dragon Games. We took second place and they allowed us to learn a mov-"


"You won second at the Dragon Games? Seriously? And you're asking ME for advice?" Jake stated, completely shocked.



"It really wasn't easy. I think I lucked out with having Mossy, he's pretty versatile." Rapp countered as they continued on "Anyway, as a prize, you got to teach your Pokemon a move from some select moves. Mossy picked Ice Burn."


"Why in the heck did it pick an Ice move? Oh, maybe for flying types."


"Oh yeah. He is weak to flying. Poison too, now that I think about it. He never liked going near angry Tentacools..."


"Grass has alot of weaknesses, but you know this. Flying, Fire, Ice, Poison....oh and Bug. That's the other one."


"Oh yeah. Alot of bugs at home. But they don't seem to bother Mossy much. Maybe because they were still little and not dishing out powerful moves." Rapp started, reflecting on his quiet little treehut back in a land far far away. Jake nodded and continued with explaining, looking to Sue for this one.


"Wyrm is it? Dragon type. Only weak to two things. Resists the base elements pretty well. Gander to take a guess?"


"Ok. Umm...well I know he does not like the cold...so I'm going to suspect Ice. As for the other....I haven't the faintest." Rapp shrugged as he stopped to shift May again. When she was situated, Jake replied.


"Themselves. Dragon type moves hurt dragons. Same goes for Ghosts. Ghost type move hurt Ghosts. " Rapp looked at Jake, puzzled. "Well now that's weird. I would have never thought that. Wonder why they balance out that way."


"Haven't the faintest. But that's the way it is. Now, your little trash compactor...Zent? She's what we called a two for one."


"Two for one?"


"Yeah. She's a dual type. I'm sure you've encountered a bunch of them-alot of the flying Pokemon are dual types. But obviously she's not flying."


"That's for sure!" Rapp laughed as they reached the lighthouse finally. Jake opened the door for him and he quickly strode in, setting May down on her bed and then running to the sink to get her some water. " Thank you for holding the door. Now as for Zent. She's...part Rock because that girl is heavy! But, as for being a second type...I'm not sure."


"Think ground." Jake said, as he leaned against the wall, Sue departing to another area of the lighthouse. "She's Rock/Ground, which compounds a few weaknesses. Especially water and grass. Pretty sure one or two of those types of hits will knock her out cold. So be careful, we have Jellicents along the coast that love to snag their prey and drag them into the ocean."
"If they could drag her, I'd be amazed." Rapp retorted, which Jake nodded at. He did have a point.



"So ok. Zent is really weak to Grass and Water. I can understand that. I watched her take a few strikes of poison though with little to no effect."


"Yeah. Ground resists poison. So she would be ok from anything throwing a poisonous attack at her. Just as long as she doesn't get poisoned." Rapp nodded, understanding the difference in the two.



"Well, I think that'll do it for now. I'm sure there's more, but for now, I think I'm pooped."


"Yeah, no prob. I got some things to do for the lighthouse anyway. But umm, are you serious about going back down there? I talked to Mary about it, and she said you are gun ho. I just don't want any ill will to befall this place, its truly needed by the fishermen and sailors of Ulthuan."


"This place was built with positive intentions. I intent to simply find out what attacked you all and what's down there so I can also move on with my journey. As well as answer some questions about myself."


"If ya want my opinion-you are who you are." Jake said confidently. He patted Rapp on the shoulder and headed to his quarters. "Let me know when we're going bug hunting, I wanna see the thing that's been bugging Sue for years."


Rapp nodded and turned back to the now sleeping May as Jake began rummaging in his room for something. The day was only halfway over, and Rapp stood up, feeling as if he accomplished a great deal. So why not some fun in the sun? Rapp made sure to grab a bottle of water before heading out, just in case his feet got him moving to a far place.


***


The caves that littered the interior of the area seemed to be a closed network. His curiosity peaked, Rapp took the time to fix his head gauze before stepping into the nearest one. He had not seen any wild Pokemon on the land here aside from the wayward crab. Still, he erred on the side of caution. With no Pokemon to help him, he made sure to keep an eye on all his turns, so he could make a perfect escape.


The cave was small, and it was windy, and before long, Rapp found himself exiting the tunnels and ending up on a second tier. From this vantage point, he could look with ease into the upper levels of the lighthouse. There was nothing of interest, just Mary fixing the bed. Turning away, Rapp's view now swept to the ocean. Today there were no ships heading this way. No sparkling over the sea, just plain ocean waves sweeping onto the shore.


The breeze blew then, giving Rapp a strong whiff of lands far away. The air smelt superfresh, as if it was breathed out by the green fields he used to tend. Sitting down on the small patch of grass outside this exit, Rapp calmly took a moment to just reflect on himself. The boy began to meditate, taking his thoughts and internalizing them until he could safely let them go.
It was in this state that his ears began to fog up again. He first began to lose the sound of the ocean...then the winds that blew by. All at once, it left him on the brink of total deafness, and he hastily opened his eyes. His ears twitched all over the place, but he hardly heard anything! Standing up, he tried to speak, but found his voice sounded far away, as if he had left his body. Fearing that he might lose control of his body, the boy turned and began to run back into the tunnels. His turns were erratic, but he was able to make his way out of a different exit, throwing him right into the ocean. He turned to the left and saw the lighthouse, a bit farther away than he would have liked.


He wasted no time in trying to run through the ocean water. It made for a moment of clarity, him fighting to get somewhere. As he highstepped and breathed, his hearing began to return. Once he reached the door of the lighthouse, his hearing was just about back fully. He could not understand the reasoning for his inherent deafness, but he hoped it was temporary.


"Take a nap. Its this injury. It hurt your head Rapp..." he told himself, as he stumbled upstairs, feeling exhausted once again. As he climbed the stairs, the small lizard watched him ascend, a bit irritated that something wet dripped on her. As she watched, she began to growl, as the water that dripped off of Rapp hit the ground in front of her...and then began to wriggle away...down the hallway. It made a conscious effort to keep itself together before reaching the now covered and locked doorway. Zent righted herself and watched as the water seeped into the space below the door, where she couldn't follow. So she did the next best thing. She lied down right there, and placed her ear to the ground. At first, nothing came through the door. Then, softly, a song serenaded its way up. Zent backed away from the door, startled. That thing was up and moving! She turned around, unsure whom to tell...




Rapp woke up with a start. He stood up and looked out at the darkened sky, feeling a nasty chill down his back. He looked around and closed his eyes, trying to lose the feeling of loneliness out of his system. But these feelings were way too sharp, too clear. It was all he could feel, it was all that consumed him. Knowing this was something more than just a coincidence, he ran downstairs and called for help.


Within moments, May, Wyrm, Mary and Jake were in the living room at his behest. Rapp took center stage as Zent found a bag of potato chips to start eating.



"Ok. I can't explain it, but I am having these weird feelings. I can't hear very well, my voice hurts and I swear my eyes are attaining this strange haze around them." Jake and Mary stood up and looked at his eyes, not able to tell him anything. Sue reappeared, eager to see what the hubbub was about.


"Can't see huh? Is the gauze too tight?" She asked, gentle fingers reaching up to touch his head. He quickly grabbed her hand and shook his head, indicating his wrappings were ok. "It's not the gauze. I went for a hike earlier today...it was invigorating until the symptoms took over and almost left me lying on the hill over there."


"Hrm. It seems that you still are under some sort of trance like affect? You think it has anything to do with what Johnson was calling the Awakening? Like some sort of residual effect?" Jake inquired.



Rapp shrugged, looking at the small worm as it rocked back and forth. "No clue. I still don't know the first thing about what that means or anything." He casually looked around, before staring at a blank spot on the windowsill. A second point flooded to the forefront, and he quickly turned around to face everyone.


"Also-I haven't seen Mossy for days. Have any of you?" At the realization that the plant was missing again, everyone looked to Zent. The chomping beast continued her chips, until the eerie feeling of eyes on her every move caught up to her. She rolled her head backwards to look at everyone, and gave them a critical glare.



"Zent. Mossy. You smell him?" Rapp asked.


The Pokemon quietly set the bag of chips down and took a deep breath. She exhaled, and looked around, obviously confused. She did it again, and then looked to Rapp.



"Mothy far 'way. Wapp smell Mossy bedda than Zent."


"Say wha?" Jake said. May and Wyrm stifled a giggle, thinking Zent had made a funny. Rapp looked around himself, taking a whiff of his own scent. There seemed to be no noticeable odor coming from him that smelt remotely like a plant. "Um, you have a better nose than I, Zent. I don't understand what you mean."


The small rocklizard stood up and waddled over to the boy. She tugged on his leg once and then waddled toward the doorway. Her eyes were glaring at the doorknob, obviously not happy it was so far from her reach. Rapp trotted over and opened the door to let her out. As the door swung open, Rapp immediately began to feel woozy. He instinctively grabbed the door frame and leaned against it to avoid falling.


The cool air that blew over the ocean at night seemed to invigorate Jake, whom stood up to spy what was being watched by the pair. He reached the doorway, to see Zent and Rapp looking east. Zent was happily pointing toward some low-lying bushes and making gnashing sounds with her mouth, as Rapp stared off into the vastness of the open land ahead of him.



"Hey man. You alright?" Jake reached out one hand to place on Rapp's shoulder, bringing Rapp back to focus on where he was.


"No...I'm not alright. There's something out there...and Mossy's by himself out there. I just felt this chilling feeling of desertion, and I think...I think it's coming from Mossy." Rapp held his words as he spoke, taking their full meaning in. His mind rewound the memories he still had-and recalled when he shouted at Mossy only a few days before. "I wonder if, as with I, he was experiencing something-and my rash actions made him feel insecure..."


"Naa, can't be that bad, He's a Tangela, they're pretty patient creatures.." Jake chimed in, walking outside so he could shut the door. Zent and Rapp moved forward, walking around the entranceway to the left side of the lighthouse. Before Jake could shut the door immediately, May sauntered out, curious as to what the baby was doing.


"Ah, the lady's up and about now. Good to see." Jake retorted, only to receive a raspberry. May walked over to Zent, whom gave her a once over before allowing May to pat her. Finished with making sure Zent was ok, May now directed her attention to Rapp, Hopefully he would be able to find Mossy soon, the team needed him. He was the founding member, and he made it easy for her to integrate in their team.



She plodded over to Rapp and Jake, whom seemed to be having a conversation that was meant to be out of earshot. She didn't intrude-rather her path took her through their lines of vision, toward the coast to the east of the lighthouse. There were some small patches of grass there, close to where the waves were striking the rocky beach. She barely reached the water when she heard a strange sound behind her.


Turning around, she could see Jake and Rapp, both within earshot. But they were sitting next to the lighthouse, so it wasn't them. She looked to the small rocky area up from their location...but saw nothing watching her. She shook off the shivers and focused on having an enjoyable night with a little seawatching. She sat down, inches from the water, and just stared at the sea as it seemed to roll on into the sky.


When the sound of skittering flooded her ear once more, May only gave a halfhearted look around, thinking it to be the effect of the wind blowing by. Her gaze mainly just checked for Rapp and Jake. They were still there, still talking about something, and now looking for something around that part of the lighthouse. All that was there were rocks. She turned back toward the sea, and leaned against a rock, completely relaxed. Her hands rested against her belly as she examined the coastline...and all its wonderfully dark colored rocks.



So, imagine her surprise when a pink worm wriggled itself atop of one of those purple rocks!


She blinked casually, thinking it was nothing. But after a few moments, she was positive that the pink worm was moving the rock! She sat up from her half slouched position, and stared at this strange worm. It stayed put on the rock it was on. She watched it for the better part of a minute before turning away. The worm stayed put still, hanging off of the rock as if it was a leaf of some sort. Her attention was broken by the skittering sound, and she whipped around.
She stood up and looked to Rapp and Jake.



Of course, their backs were to her, and they were shifting large rocks around the base of the lighthouse. She huffed and looked to the rocky grove...and then slid her gaze down to the few grassy patches not that far from her. None seemed to move. Her eyes glanced up to the sky, and there was not a cloud in it. She was seeing fairly well for it being night, and so she couldn't understand why in the world she couldn't see what was skittering around. Swallowing any emergence of fear in herself, she strode forward and stopped at the grass patch. She parted the tall dry stalks aside...and saw nothing. She pulled back, and turned to head toward her spot on the beach, but stopped.


In front of her, where she was sitting, there was something moving. She was positive of it. It looked small, and it was wriggling. She couldn't tell what it was, but it looked blue. Growling under her breath, she instantly put the whole charade together. "Wyrm...I'm gonna hurt you! Making me think they're monsters out here. You gotta learn how to coil you ta--"


May's explanation fell apart as she reached out with one hand to grab the "blue"object. The light reflecting off of its wet surface masked its true color, which was probably brown. Its form lunged forward and tackled May to the ground, using one brown luring pincer to hold her mouth shut. She waved her arms and tried to flick her tongue, but that beast had her pinned.


The creature flapped its membranic wings and then smirked. May looked over to where it was staring, and spied only rocks..and that pink worm. Only now, there were 5 of those worms, and they were moving closer. Her eyes grew wide as the rope like worms wrapped around her arms and mouth, effectively creating a binding trap and gag. As she lied there incapacitated, the smaller creature began to skitter back to the place where these worms were growing from. The worms began to retract, and May slowly felt herself be tugged by the worms. She wriggled in place, determined not to be taken away by no strange annnelid group and what looked to be a bug.


"Nowmakesureyoudonthurther,wehavetogetherbacktothe cliffsinorderfortheMoongoddesstoshineherblessingup onus!" The creature skittered back and forth, obviously hyperexcited about this. It then pointed to the bluffs and ran a few feet ahead, eager to get to its hiding spot.


"DFGJ?" was all May could muster while muffled as the worms began to lift her up over the rock. In one swift motion, she felt her body fly forward and her face speed right into the very rock she leaned on to enjoy the night.


***


The consistent sound of dripping was the first indication to her that she was still alive. She tilted her head sideways, noting the darkness everywhere. It was cold and damp here, as she moved her feet slowly. She lolled her head again, but the sharp pain that ran through her body jolted her up.


Her breathing sped up and she looked around hastily, unsure what that agonizing pain was. There was something poking her neck, and she could not turn around to see what it was.


The darkness of the area slowly began to recede, as a moonbeam stretched into what was possibly an opening to the area. May tried to move, but found that she was strapped with new bonds, and her mouth was still tied shut. She shook her head and tried to pull on her bonds, only to have them stay put. Her ears heard labored breathing very close, and she tried to turn her head to see whom was doing this.


She didn't have to look very far, as she noticed a puddle of water in the area. The puddle was surrounded by rocks. They all seemed to be bluish purple. The rock she was tied to wasn't-and that reason was revealed when a new moonbeam poured light into the cave.


The "rocks" began to twitch and move, and from their tops sprung many of those pink worms. Her eyes expanded at this sight, and she began to struggle to free herself. 1 to 5 worms, fine. Not hundreds! She was officially grossed out as all these creatures seemed to reach for the light. May quit her pulling after a moment, glaring as the creatures seemed not to move toward her. They were more interested in the light. She watched as their strange rocky bodies rose up on thin stalks! Now, with their thin stem like bodies holding up the rocky looking portion with the worms hanging out, they looked like some sort of..rocky plant? She was completely confused.


The ancient cave that May inadvertently was stuck in had many a mural on its wall. These murals however, were not made by paint. Rather, they were the fossilized bodies of Lileep that stayed dormant for who knows how long. However, when the moonlight struck the interior of the cave, a strange occurrence happened-where rock became flesh, pictures came alive. The creatures once knew a life of seawater-and now were docked in a bluff overlooking their precious water. They didn't seem too taken by it, as May watched them stretch their worm like feelers out. They grabbed onto a rock, and then pulled themselves to that rock from their feelers, covering a good distance using this method. May once again felt that strange pain on her back, and sat straight up as much as possible. The pain subsided, and she huffed. She was stuck, with no way to call for help.


Unfortunately, things seemed to have a way of compounding. As May struggled, the small creature that tackled her skittered into the cave, making its way past some of the exiting Lileep. The moonlight seemed to invigorate them, as some literally cartwheeled toward the water by scaling the side of the cliff and letting their massive bottoms fly over their heads with every pull. Some of the plant like rocks stayed in the caves, and the creature that seemed to walk amongst them stopped in front of May. There was a strange look in its eyes, and May leaned her head back to keep from that creature from breathing in her face. It seemed to examine her and then smiled with glee, before speaking.


"OhI'msohappyforthisday. Its...its as if the moon herself let you walk these sands...andIwasabletosnagyouupbeforeyouflewbackintothes ky.Youarethelinktothepuzzleathand,yes!"


..."MAHHHH" was all she could say under muffled anguish, and the creature raised a pincer in a taunting manner. "NononoNoobjectinguntilafterwehavefinishedoursoire etogether. I've seen what that tongue can do..." It jumped in place rapidly three times, before skittering over to the left, looking around slowly. May watched as this...awkward...bug run around, seemingly waiting on something. She knew she couldn't stay here much longer. But she had no way of fighting her way out, especially with all of the strange resurrected monsters crawling all over the place. She tilted her back and looked up at the ceiling of the cave. Oddly enough, the top of the cave here was flat. If she didn't know better, this place had a carved ceiling. Looking back down, her attention went straight to the skittering bug, whom was by her feet, checking her bonds. Pleased, the creature skittered backwards and looked to its left. May looked over to spy one of those strange creatures just hanging out, keeping watch over her.


"Makesuresheortheotherdoesnotleave. I doubt they could break those bonds, but you never know." The creature gave no visible sign of comprehending the bug, but it stayed put as the bug skittered over a plethora of the moving rocks and dashed into the open world. May tried once more to pull herself free, and groaned as she knew it was futile. She had nothing right now. Nothing she knew could cut herself free. As she looked to the plants that were returning, they seemed less interested in her and more about just making it back from the water. As they returned, they seemed to sift water out of their tentacles and add to that puddle. She watched as they returned by the tens, each squeezing water out of their bodies. But for what purpose?
As she watched the creatures, the small bug skittered back in on the ceiling. It calmly walked over to the center of the ceiling and looked down at the now very large puddle. Nodding at its growth, the bug let go and used its small wings to barely flutter over to a safe spot away from the water. It landed on a rock a few spots behind May-eyes on the water. As the moonbeam swept over the water, a strange bubbling occurred.



May's eyes opened wide as she watched the water. In the wake of the bubbles, the liquid began to form and stretch, rising up until it reached an adequate level. The creatures kept coming and going in droves, keeping the water funneling into this large puddle, that was now touching her toes. She tried to move, but those bonds truly had her pinned to this rock-and her hurt back and neck didn't help. She was stuck watching as this uprising of water began to form and twist, until she could make out the upper half of a woman. The form scanned the room, as the Lileeps all leaned toward her, half canted as if they were bowing to her presence. The solitary bug watched from its perch, as the head and shoulders swiveled around.


"Thank you for waiting, children of the ancients. I fear that my end may soon be coming. This is not to fear, as you all will remember my contribution to the world. But it seems we have a pair of guests in the vicinity that will assist us in our final mission."



Her form then turned and stared directly at May. "Let's begin with this female that has our little spy..agitated. I haven't seen this level of agitation from another female in a very long time, you must have a very good grip on your femininity, you pink pimple."



May blinked, realizing they were referring to her. But she said "spy." Whom was she referring to? It all clicked when the small bug landed in front of her, and raised its pincers. May's eyes went from shock to desperation...this darned elegance of hers was ALWAYS getting her into sticky situations. Her eyes dropped, and she stared at the water below the water nymph's form. She watched it bubble as it reached her feet, reflecting images all around. As the nymph talked, May swept her gaze left and right, disillusioned. She never thought she could bring harm to anyone with her being attractive. Maybe she should be like the rest of her species...


She began to spiral in a deep pit of depression about her latent ability, as the bug walked up to her. The sadness on her face put the bug in a fit of glee, and she skittered over to the water nymph's form. The bug waited until she finished speaking before talking.


"Ohpleasedon'tspareher. I do think she likes this type of attention." The creature looked up as the piercing yellow eyes of the being stared it down. The area grew silent, Lileeps standing straight up to widen the area. May looked over to spy the bug that was now trying to swiftly execute her.
The yellow eyed form looked May up and down, before turning to the small bug, and started to rise in height in stature. What was once head and shoulders was now the size of a full grown woman. She walked atop the water, barely causing ripples with her feet as she knelt to pet the bug. In one motion, she grabbed the bug in both hands and squeezed, causing the insect intense pain.



"Now you listen to me. You puny insignificant spastic insect! You WILL not listen to your own delusional schizophrenic whims! You will follow my orders to the letter. You've done so well in paying attention to their fighters that we have their strongest fighter incapacitated, and we have their heart. We will lay siege to their small resistance so we can once again remain unnoticed. But I don't think you care about our grand mission, like your father used to. You need to follow in his footsteps in order to prove yourself to me. But...to show you what losing truly feels like, I'll hold you here while you watch your beloved lose his good friend completely. This way, he'll only have you to blame for it."


She turned her gaze to the Lileep that was standing guard, and the plantrock shifted to life. Pink vines shot and grappled the rock May was affixed to. May's eyes opened wide, knowing what was going to happen, and she tried to move. The bug squirmed as she was forced to watch, the woman smiling with a sinister sneer.


The Lileep pulled until its vines were taut, before relieving the tension. Its body flew forward and crashed into the Lickitung, causing her a large amount of pain. She didn't faint, her mouth slightly drooling from the impact. Panting, May knew she couldn't take anything else like that. She flexed and tried to pull those cords as much as possible, but she was stuck in place. Fearing what might happen if she was struck once more, she pulled as hard as possible, and fell limp. The sounds of cords becoming taut caught her ears, and she saw the Lileep-as slow as it was, was almost ready for another slam to her front. She looked to the bug, whom now canted its eyes away, powerless to do anything.


The plant shifted backwards a few more inches, feeling its feelers grow tighter. When the tautness was achieved, the Lileep flung its body up and the feelers did the rest! The tension reeled the massive creature into May once more, and May screamed, a muffled sound that seemed to hurt the bug's heart. The nymph smirked, and petted the bug.



"It's alright. I went through this many a time. You'll become stronger because of this. Once more, that should do it for her. Teach you to willingly try and consume the hearts of others."


"Pleasesgetitoverquicklythen, Icantstandtowatchthis--"



"You still hold on to your false attraction for him? Then you really have not been paying attention. Keep still and watch, you'll feel for yourself the freedom of detachment."



The bug, seeing its pleas were unnoticed, solemnly looked to her, as the Lileep cords began to tighten. May barely seemed able to focus, let alone take another one of those impacts...


The nymph sniffed, and looked around. There was a strong scent emanating from the entrance of the cave, but she could not make it out. Holding that bug, she whirled around and walked atop the water up until the edge of the pool that was created for her. From her vantage point, she saw nothing at the sea's edge, now climbing the path that led to this cave. She turned around, and lifted the bug up her eye level.


"Where is the plant?"


"R-R-R-R-ightwhereyoutoldmetotieitup, outofrangeofthepsychicinthebackofthecave! Tieditupwithvinesjustlikeyousaid"


"With...vines? You tied a GRASS pokemon up with vines, and not the leather straps I provided?"


She quickly pointed toward the back of the area, and within seconds, the mass of Lileeps began to lurch forth, passing May. May barely lolled her head up, but she managed to hear their conversation. She had a split second of clarity in thinking it might be their lost compatriot; a positive confirmation of that though was realized when a few Lileeps came flying backwards, followed by a mass of green that landed right atop the rock she was affixed too. Two vines shot down and sliced through the leather binds that pinned her. At the appearance of the green fighter, the Lileep that was bashing May released the tension in its feelers and flung itself. May finally ducked, though it was more of a fainting action.



The beast slammed into the stone. Mossy jumped, allowing the beast to crash solely into the rock and go tumbling through it. May and Mossy landed together a meter away, May on her chest. Mossy looked to her back, and noticed the nasty set of grooves on her back, possibly from being slammed into rocks as she was dragged here by the Lileep.


Assessing the situation, the battered Tangela looked around. The waterwoman was once again blocking his way, and there was a moonbeam right behind her. He looked to May, and then to the incoming Lileeps. The water nymph raised one hand, tightly gripping the struggling bug in the other hand. "You are so resilient, and so aggravating at the same time. But you have nothing that can sweep through all of these ancient denizens!"


Mossy took a step back as the plants slid closer, starting to surround them. He grabbed May, and held her up, using her as a shield. May wheezed for breath, feeling that Mossy's vines were moving around hastily.



"What are you doing, Mossy!" May pleaded, fearing for her safety.



All at once, Mossy flicked a vine past her, holding an object. He slapped the object on her head and held her still as the disc began to glow. In only a few seconds, May felt her hands tighten and she instantly was released from Mossy's grasp. Falling to her knees, May coughed, unsure what just happened. All she knew was that something was different about her.



"Oh, so you also give your friends boosts?" The waternymph said, angered by his ingenuity. She looked to the bug and released her crushing grip on her. As the bug landed on the ground, the Nymph shriveled down and stared right into its eyes. "We need to incapacitate them before they can reach them. Take care of them. I'll need to strike now..."



Mossy, panting and kneeling, barely watched as the water nymph vanished into the pool. The pool began to drain, seeping somewhere.


"Yougottagetupsuperplant! You have to get back to the lighthouse..." said the bug as the water receded. It skittered through the mass of Lileeps and stood aside both Mossy and May. Mossy's eyes were glazed over, and it seemed he was at the end of his rope. May forced herself onto her butt, staring as the Lileeps stood watch over them, inching closer still. She looked over to Mossy, who was now just about face down. Her eyes darted over to the bug and she closed her eyes, knowing this was going to be a field day for Wyrm.


"Darling. Please help my friend."


At the utterance of the affectionate term, the bug whirled around, its eyes unmistakably blotted over with anger. She grinned and turned to the plant, and then looked to the Lileeps.



"Dontevercallmedarlingagain, but forhissakeI'llhelpyou. What do you suggest?"


May realized that she didn't know how to help Mossy. He had been gone for days, so the best that she could think was that he had no sunlight. She turned to look at the entrance to the cave, and nodded.



"It's night, but maybe he can do that healing thing with the moonlight! Get him to the moonlight, I'll clear a path."


[Lv 14 May vs Lv 14 Lileep]


May immediately curled up into a ball, feeling her muscles finally tense up in the right ways. Her back was still rubbed raw, and she winced. But they didn't need to know that. With no fear showing, she unfurled and clenched both fists. She felt a chill run though her body as she looked to the east, where there was the least amount of Lileeps to charge though. She took a deep breath and Slammed her way through the first few ones. The rest of the grove mobilized, starting to fling themselves in her general direction. May moved in an erratic manner, slamming her way through in a zig zag pattern, throwing the plants off. As Lileeps crashed all around her, the small bug grabbed one of Mossy's vines and began to drag him through the path, over the crumpled bodies of post launched Lileeps.


May got up, coughing loud as she held her side. That one defensive measure probably saved her, but her eyes looked for that specific collider. She spied it as it rose up, and she nodded That was the same one that was slamming her before. Now it was the only one stopping her from getting Mossy to the sunlight. That was unacceptable. She stepped forward, and turned her walk into a run, hands up. The plant Pokemon was not sure about the encroaching Pokemon, and took a defensive measure. It covered her in a glow as she collided her hands into its base. The plant fell forward, that force almost hammering its base into the ground! The slight offset was completely washed out as May slammed it down again, furious about those strikes that it affected her with earlier.



May fell to her knees after the second Hammer Arm, winded from moving so much so fast after those types of hits. The Lileep however, seemed determined to follow orders and rose back up. Vines wrapped around her, and in retaliation, May flung her tongue out to wrap that Lileep right back. They both began to Constrict each other, and for a moment, it seemed that they were at a even matchup for coils. May turned to see the bug barely climbing over a few Lileep bodies, Mossy in tow. But the Lileeps were targetting the plant, and as much as the bug tried to fight, it didn't seem to know anything that could really help Mossy. The plantcreatures, meanwhile, kept throwing everything they had at the Nincada.



May grunted and tried to lift the Lileep with her tongue, in order to toss it aside. The constriction around her midsection made it so that was a no no. They both fought for supremacy, and the Lileep seemed to be winning. The hits from before were taking their toll on May and she succumbed, falling to her knees. She curled into a ball as the Lileep retracted its vines and now sent those vines into the ground. Rocks began to be unearthed and raised up, as May unfurled. She looked under herself to see that Mossy was still, face down in the ground inches from the light. The bug was pinned under a few Lileeps which now made a web of tentacles to solidify their place atop of it.


Grunting, the Lickitung shook her head. How were they ever going to get out of this, not to mention they had to get back and warn the others? Remembering Zent and Wyrm, May forced herself back up, to the Lileep's apparent expressionless face. The stones in the air fell down atop her, and May curled up once again to cope. As the Rock Slide finished, the Lileep flipped itself to a different position, and watched. There seemed to be no movement, as the dust billowed away in even flows.



The plants seemed to have everything under control, until a fist burst out from the rocks. Before any retaliatory measure could be taken, May burst out of the rocks, bruised beyond compare. But she was still conscious. She had to be, that was no longer just about Mossy. This was about their whole reason for being here! This was about finding their purpose here and now. What Rapp had said earlier began to finally resonate in her, and she felt a second chill around her body. She focused that chill into her arms and yelled. Recklessly, she flung her fist at the plant, its sheer volume now coated in a thick layer of ice. The plant was struck head on and bounced back and forth on its stalk like a speed bag. The ice's effect staggered the plant, and allowed May to roll toward Mossy. With a half hearted kick, she punted Mossy face side up into the moonbeam.


"Hurry up Mossy! I need that Ice power of yours right now! Thanks for the new attack!"



She whipped around, and looked to the pile of Lileeps that were now gearing up for her attack. Underneath them was that poor bug that really helped her out. May felt horrible that it came to this, and she was determined to at least cure that bug of its issues with her.


"Get off of it!" She demanded, clenching both fists.



The plants barely moved, and she took a step forward. A thud right next to her made her jump to the west, and she looked to see that Lileep back to battle. She felt the halo around her body again, and she quickly dove at it. A hefty punch set the Lileep back more than it wished, as it wilted over. With that plant seemingly not fighting for the moment, she could focus on freeing the bug.



[May wins. May reaches lv 15]


She looked at her odds, and realized that no matter what, it was an impossible battle, at least 100 to 1. She took a deep breath, feeling exhaustion take over her. The Lileeps were perched all over, tentacles taut to use as launching cords. They were waiting for her to finish her battle with that one, a martyr of sorts. Relinquishing any signs of offense, she let her hands fall to her sides. She smirked and looked to the bug under the web of Lileep, and smiled.


"It's ok. I hope you like cold, if not, I apologize."


"I'lllikeanythingyoudo!" May was a bit weirded out by the fact that it responded with that in this near death scenario, but she wasn't too worried. The next statement made the Nincada nervous.


"Wait...why did you ask if I like cold?"


"Because, its about to get chilly...really chilly."



May curled up once more as green vines flung out from behind her. They hooked themselves into the rocks and allowed the Icy winds to build around their nexus. Acting as the focal point for the ice, Mossy struggled with the imbalance of elemental forces he was dealing with. He still didn't have complete control of the force this power could emit, but with himself grounded he would have a better shot of focusing it. The Lileeps all released their tension and flew at the green mass, just as the room turned a heightened shade of white. May shielded her eyes and waited it out, feeling chilling winds whip around, following a thunderous series of rocks falling from the sky.




It took a few minutes before the massive tongue dug her way out of the ice that built up in the cave. She looked around, to see crippled Lileep lying everywhere. Ice was formed where water used to stand, and the moonbeam was gone. Standing where he released the energy was the creator himself, still stuck to the ground. May ran over to him and gave him a great big hug, which was reciprocated.



"Mossy, we didn't know if you left or what? You just vanished! We gotta get back so we can have Sue tell us what happened!" Mossy nodded, and then pointed to a large pile of frozen Lileep.



May turned, unsure what he was referring too, until the small bug poked her head out. May and Mossy turned to watch as the bug pulled itself free, and then stare at them both. May looked to Mossy, and gave her a smile.


"I hate bugs, but this one seems to like you alot. I'll tolerate her as long as she doesn't do weird buggy things like...look at me."


Mossy looked to her, not expecting that answer. But the moment of ease was drowned out by the sounds that were carried over the wind. The first was a blood-curdling scream, followed by a matched roar.


"That was Zent! Oh no, that water beast attacked!" May cried. The bug skittered forward, visibly shivering. She kept her gaze on May, shrinking back from Mossy.



"ImsorryimsorryimsorryIdidntwanttokidnapyoutwoshet oldmeto! But your friends are in grave danger, Shimmer is not the nicest customer."


"Shimmer?" May stated. Mossy shared her gaze, and then looked to the cave window. He was exhausted, but they had to make it back. That moonbeam healing was adequate, but he needed more energy. Maybe on the way back, he would be able to gather some. But for the moment, any extra help would be great. He began to march back, and May turned to see that his vines were slowly retracting from their anchor points in the rock.


"Hey you. Thanks alot for your help. If you want to come, we won't stop you. You might know a way to help that we don't, so any help is appreciated."


"I'llgladlyhelphim." she stated in her erratically fast heartfelt manner, before stating another line in her lowered speech "We should follow the plant, he's taking the direct route."



May let the bug take the lead, before limping after. After that battle, she didn't think she could help much either, but she had to try. Not to mention she owed the bug at least a tongue slap, since she wasn't the nicest female...

[DarkestLight]

***

The night seemed to pass without incident at the lighthouse. When May, Rapp and Jake exited and shut the door, Mary slid off the couch and patted Wyrm. "Well now. What should we do to pass the time?"

"Wawa go in hoole." Zent stated, remembering her urgent message after emptying the bag of chips on the floor and chomping through them like some sort of shark.

"Yes Zent, Water goes in a hole." Wyrm replied.

He looked to her and noted she was giving him a glare. He hissed back, unsure what that was for, and then looked to Mary. Mary was focused on her statement, and looked to Wyrm. "Hey. I'm not double teaming on you Wyrm, but ...its hard to disregard her. Every time she's said something we didn't understand, bad things happened. Maybe we should pay attention."

"I'll concede to that. But should we worry about water in general? I don't know what she could mean."

"Wait, remember Jake said they saw a water nymph? You think she saw it? Up here?"

Wyrm turned toward Zent, whom nodded at their conversation. At the affirmation, both Mary and Wyrm looked toward the hallway, and dashed over. Zent finished eating the chips as the pair walked back to the living area, with concerned looks on their faces.

"It's dry over there" Mary stated, Wyrm nodding in agreement. Zent looked at them both, and growled. She had been used to Wyrm not listening to her, but the girl was trying. She then turned toward the door, and just stared at it.

"Wapp?"

"Oh yeah. Let's ask those two. What are they doing outside anyway?" The three of them hustled over to the door, quickly shuttling outside. "Hey Jake? Rapp? You around?" Mary shouted.

"Yeah, over here. Why the shouting?" Jake said, causing the three of them to turn to the right. Jake raised his hand to reveal their position, and Mary walked around the entranceway to hike on the rocks around the base of the lighthouse. "What are you two doing down here?"

"Well, Rapp said that we had a visitor that was snooping around here, and talking about elves. We're trying to see if he left anything behind." Jake said as he pointed to Rapp over his shoulder.

Zent had managed to climb across the rocks, eating any interesting ones as she made her way to Rapp. He was quietly looking at the rocks, flicking pebbles aside. At her approach, he reached over and patted her head. The little girl roared softly and lifted a rock to help Rapp.

"Heh, just a worker aren't you?" he chuckled, as he leaned against the lighthouse. "Hey Jake. I'm positive he was around here. But I can't for the life of me figure out why?"

"Well, maybe he wasn't digging here? Maybe he took something from here?" Jake said. You said there was a hole over there?" He pointed, over to where Wyrm and Rapp spotted that tarp from a few days ago. Wyrm nodded and slithered over, reaching the exact spot where the hole used to be. From this point, Wyrm looked down the slight slope to where Rapp and Zent stood. An idea emerged in his head, and he stuck his head in the ground. His body whipped around back and forth, slithering into the sand. It took a few moments for the worm to reach down, and then reemerge with something. Rapp and Jake had taken the time to note the worms sudden interest in the hole and watched as it came back up.

"You should come this way...because I think I found something."

The group walked over to the hole, Wyrm slithering out of the sands. The sands meanwhile, began to slide backwards. Zent walked forward a bit to identify the motion, and found herself losing traction against the ever increasing flow rate. Rapp picked her up as the sand finally fell away to reveal a small hole. The hole was bordered by wood, and resembled..

"A crawlspace?" Jake asked, crouching down to see the wooden beams that made the structure still hold some form. The curiosity got the best of him, and he jumped down into the structure. He slowly sank into the sandy pit until his feet hit stone. Jake tested this with a few hard stomps. He nodded at its sturdiness and curled on his hands and knees. Wiping away some sand, he stuck his hands around to feel which way was actually the passageway. Pushing each wall, his hand finally went through one that was all sand. Plunging his hands into the wall, he began to shovel out handful after handful of sand.

"Hey, I could use some help down here!"

Wyrm shot down the hole as Rapp and Mary crouched over the sides, watching the pair of them work. Being of a more slender form of creature, Wyrm began to wriggle himself through the sands faster than Jake could dig. Jake slowed and watched as the Dratini blindly shuffled through the sand. Zent roared and jumped into the hole right after, eagerly chomping on piles and clumps of sand. Jake turned to look at Rapp, whom shrugged.

"I don't know. She eats anything."

Meanwhile, Wyrm continued into the crevasse, and his body came across something. Unable to tell what it was in this dark setting, he wrapped himself around it a bit, and moved backwards, until his tail poked out the sand hill. Jake reached in, calling out to Wyrm. "Hey, I'm going to pull you out, ok!"

Jake grabbed ahold of the blue tail wriggling in front of him and pulled slowly, aiding Wyrm in his endeavor to bring whatever it was that he found to light. Wyrm quit pulling the object when he was almost fully free of the darkness, and unraveled from it. Jake pulled the serpent out, and then looked back at the space, noting there was something there. He reached back down after setting Wyrm down, and stuffed his hands into the sands. His fingers ran across the object Wyrm was dragging and he made sure to get a good grip on it before pulling it.

"Hey, what do you feel?" Rapp asked, as Wyrm and Zent watched. Rapp looked around, noticing May was nowhere in sight. Thinking she went back inside, he turned his gaze to Jake. Jake grunted as his fingers pulled on the strange object, feeling it give ever so slightly. It took a few hard yanks before Jake's yield was released from its prison. He held it high, and in the gaze of the passing light, the others looked on at the object reaching its own digits into the sky.
Jake's eyes widened and he hurriedly threw the item down as he jumped out of the hole. The others also backed away, shocked at the bleached skeletal remains that fell in the hole. Jake wiped his hand on his chest in a fervent manner, trying to remain calm. "Sue! Need you out here. Now!"

In a flash the Gardevoir appeared. Jake turned to her and pointed to the skeletal hand, now being waved around by Zent.

"Put that down Zent. Don't play with dead bodies." Rapp asked in a most nonchalant manner. Zent nodded and set the hand down, still fascinated by it. Jake turned to Mary and Sue, already thinking up a plan.

"Ok. As I see it, there's a skeleton down there in that crawlspace. Meaning that there might be more. In any event, I think we may need to go back down into the basement tonight. I want you and her to stay up here, just in case things go sour."

"No. We had originally came out here to tell you that Zent said she saw water go down into the basement maybe a few hours ago."

Jake turned to Rapp and the two Pokemon that were next to him. "This is getting real serious real fast. Skeletons, water nymphs, and just the who...the whole situation stinks!" Rapp nodded, holding his head slightly as he looked to the crawlspace. He stared at the hole, wondering where the tunnel led. He looked to Wyrm, and the Dratini felt the eyes on his back. He turned to look at Rapp, whom flicked his chin forward. Wyrm turned to look at the hole, and then shot his glare back to Rapp.

"No."

"Come on! You're the thinnest one! You can get down there, and we'll go down the other entrance. That way we can have the element of surprise."

"No! What if I get stuck? I don't want to!"

Rapp sighed. It was a big risk, and if they were split up, he'd only have Zent at his side, since May was still not around for some reason. He nodded and pointed back to the lighthouse. "Well, if we are going back down, we should get it done fast. If there is something down there that can help us, I would really like the chance to talk to this creature."

"You can talk. But I'm sure I'm going to be ready to move once that thing sees us again. Let's go get moving. I want this mystery solved." Jake nodded as he headed back. The others followed in suit, steeling themselves for what was to come. As he opened the door to enter the lighthouse, he turned back to look at Rapp. A solemn gaze met Jake's eyes, and for the first time, Jake finally saw the woodland boy that Rapp claimed to be. A person out of place in the world, thrust into its strange mechanics with some strange semblance of fate guiding his heartstrings. Jake eased his temperament and held the door open for them. As Rapp passed him, the man extended his hand. Rapp stopped, and looked at him.

"Look. Whatever happens, I still think you're you. If it gets hairy, we get out of there and leave, ok?"

"But you-this is your prospective livelihood! I can't let this evict you!"

"It was never about being evicted. That's just Jake and his foolish pride."

Both men turned their gaze back to spy Mary approaching them, sliding between them and making a left. Her path took her into the den, where she stopped and turned to face. "Jake loves his job, but its not worth risking his life. Not to mention we need help anyway, this may be bigger than us. So I'm staying outside of this place, just in case you need to get help. I'll have a head start on anything."

Jake nodded and turned to Rapp, looking at him with a new confidence. "I don't know where your Lickitung is, but do you want to go there now, or wait?"

Rapp considered the benefits versus the cons and shrugged. "No. We can go. Mary might see her and tell her what's going on. Besides. I'm sure these two and I can think up a way to get through this without fighting. I just wish..." he sighed and looked to the ground.

"Wish what?

"I just wish Mossy was here too. I really could use his silent reassurance as well. But just like you all, I can't rely on him for everything. Let's go."

Jake nodded, as Mary hoisted her belongings on their wheels, and began to push them out of the lighthouse. The quartet made their way to the back where that hidden door lay. It took a few moments for Jake and Rapp to move the metal plates off of the door, but they finally got it off and let it clang to the side. The olden door beckoned to Rapp as he reached for its side, helping Jake hoist it up and prop it open.

Wyrm noticed the mood change almost instantly. As the stale air floated up into the lighthouse, no one spoke. Wyrm looked to each of them, and noticed their vision was focused, almost as if they wore blinders. One by one, they headed down the stairs. Even Zent seemed transfixed, her adamant mood now transfixed over her eyes. As even she disappeared into the darkness, he looked around once more. The lighthouse seemed to lose its warmth, and to escape the oncoming chill, Wyrm sped into the darkness as well.

Thee darkness would have been overwhelming if Jake had not thought ahead of time. This time he held up a thick branch, its free end coiled with a cloth. Jake quietly pulled a match from his pocket, and struck it against the rocky ceiling, causing the flint to spark and attain a flame. He lit the cloth, watching as the matrix caught fire, staying lit upon the torch. With light now illuminating their way, Jake led the charge.

By now, they knew the way. Zent and Jake stayed up front, with Rapp right behind. Wyrm moved backwards, watching their rear, just in case. Nothing seemed to be different, but Wyrm just had a bad feeling. With no one talking, he did not want to be the one to break the silence. Fortunately, he would not have to endure it much longer. As he kept up, the soft song of a serenade wafted into the vicinity. Although the melody was intrinsically peaceful, Rapp seemed to undergo an adverse effect of the music on his inner peace. His teeth bared and he leaned forward, placing his hand on Jake's back to support his weight.

"No. I won't leave. You will give me an answer."

The song began again and Jake continued forward, Zent stopping to let Rapp past. The boy took the time to slowly remove his gauze off of his head. The scarred forehead was safe for the moment, as he kept one hand hovering around it. Blinking, Rapp adjusted his eyes to the lessened weight and blood flow in his head, as the song reached a new pitch. Wyrm slithered up and looked to Jake, whom stopped and looked at Rapp.

"Can you understand it?"

"Yeah. Can't you?"

"No. Sue's gone with Mary. The speech link is gone for now. Is it a Pokemon?"

"I can't tell. I just know its telling us to leave, that this world is not for me to know. I'm getting tired of people telling me what I should and should not know!" Rapp snarled as he released his last sentence, an audible warning that resounded greatly against the walls of this underwater tunnel.

The song seemed to fade off, and Jake made that eventful left turn, breaking into a sprint. Wyrm blazed right after, with Rapp following in third place. Zent kept her steady pace, stopping only a few feet away.

Jake skidded to a stop, catching the eyes of the beast, as it stared at the arrival of the four figures. The darker of the two humans stepped forward, while the blue worms' mouth seemed to crackle with electricity. Then there was that green rock that seemed to have some sort of semblance of battling. The beast slid back, and started to attain a hue reminiscent of a icy wind, only to pause as the darker figure raised his hand.

"Hold still you! No attacking until I know what you know! Why are you here?"

The beast turned to Rapp, and stared him down. It did not seem to be put off by its song-maybe there was the problem of misunderstanding. It tried again, singing a warning that Wyrm and Zent acknowledged, but Rapp seemed turned off by the statement.

"I'm not running away. Not anymore. Something happened to me, and now I'm here!" Rapp's emotion started to heighten, and Zent noticed a scent change from Rapp...a thick grass like smell.

"In the last week, I get injured, I start hearing and feeling and seeing strange things; I can't keep track of two of my friends; the only clue to my past is hidden in a hidden catacomb under the basement of a lighthouse on the other side of the world from me; guarded by a maniacal water dragon and some strange sort of living water?! I'm sure of it now, its your fault I went through what I went though while I was unconscious. So I'm only going to ask this once! Where is my mother?"

---

Mary and Sue sat at the edge of the hole, diligently looking around for any signs of life approaching them. It did not take long for them to be greeted, as a surge of water splashed onto Sue. Sue immediately teleported and reappeared high above Mary, whom stepped back from the hole so she didn't accidentally stumble into it. Sue pointed to the ground, and yelled.

"Mary move! That's not natural water!"

Mary looked around, and saw water falling from all sides of her. No, it was...rising? She broke out into a run, heading north from the lighthouse, but found herself on the receiving end of a ball of water at a high speed. She fell backwards as the water reformed and attained that familiar structure. Sue flashed in front of May and raised her hands to her sides, prohibiting anything from attacking them both. The water creature stared at them both and then splashed into the sand, vanishing. Sue tried to use her mental prowess to try and congeal the water drops, but it proved to be too powerful for her. She screamed, a psychic resonance that ran through everyone's mind she was in range with. The water sped away, seeping into the ground and into the crevasse that was just unearthed.

Mary looked to the lighthouse, and pointed. "Sue, we gotta warm them. Sue?" Mary turned to note Sue struggling to get up. Mary knelt next to her and petted her. "No, rest. Take a few minutes to relax. Break communication with everyone if you already haven't." The Psychic quit struggling, but kept her eyes open. Mary looked around, slightly worried about her safety right now.

The soft thuds in the sands ahead were a cause of concern. With Sue still not up, Mary knew she had to be able to fend off any would be assailants. What she didn't expect, was the surge of rocks that came ...walking toward her. She stood up on her knees, noting the rocks tumbling down the side of the cliff and heading for the lighthouse. She freaked out a bit, but then noted a pink blob running ahead of them, followed by a green ball. She hopped up and waved at them, hoping they could see her.

"May! Mossy! Over here! Quick!"

The pair of Pokemon noted the jumping figure and made a sharp right, as the stones tumbled and turned in their chase. May turned, noting Mossy was falling behind, his body still not recuperated from the earlier fight.

"Mossy, we have to stop, or you're going to drop. We need help!"

"IwishIcouldhelpbutIdon'tknowhowtostoptheserockpla ntswhentheygetrolling! They don't really listen to any other orders, they just flee when they're hurt."

"That really does not help us!" May said as she stops, halfway to Mary. May waved back as Mossy flopped next to her, breathing hard. The stones were getting closer to them, and there seemed to be nothing they could do except fight.

"I guess I'm gonna have to punch them all out."

"That won't be necessary!" A voice said over them. All three Pokemon looked up to see a familiar green haired form hanging over them. In a flash, they vanished from sight, reappearing in front of Mary. It was a start for Mary, having the sudden appearance of not only Sue, but of the two missing Pokemon, and a third! Sue did not notice the little creature tethered to Mossy, as she was focused on the incoming swarm of rolling rocks.

"Any plans would be welcome."

Mossy, glad to have been picked up and dropped near the lighthouse, began heading toward the ocean coast. May and Sue looked at him, and Sue quickly linked her mind just to him. Reading his train of though, she blinked.

"It CAN'T be that simple, can it?" Sue inquired. May and Mary followed hastily, eager to know what was just shared.

"Hey! It would be nice to share with the group!" May shouted as the thundering grew in volume. May however, gave her faith to the little plant, and looked to Sue. "Sue. Try it. It might give us some cover."

Sue turned and then began to float up, as Mossy then pulled May to his side. The little bug seemed offput by that, but held her feelings in for the moment. She bared her small claws, and Mossy whipped out his vines-as the rock barrage came rolling right for them. Sue shouted and raised her arms up, a wave of energy flowing behind her, before surging forth.

"Hold on! It's gonna get real wet and wild!"

---

The quartet waited for an answer from the singing beast. When it seemed that there would be no choice but to attack, a strong sensation ran though the four of them. Everyone fell to the ground, holding their heads in agony. It felt like pins and needles scarring their brains, and Zent bellowed, a terrifying sound in close quarters

As the pain flushed out of Rapp's brain, a gushing of water sprang into the previously drained area. It flooded from the mural itself, as if that back area had been flooded. In no time at all, the mural began to crack, and more water pushed out, filling the emptied resevior once more. With both distractions, the water beast pushed itself backwards, ready to cripple the weakened group even more. Its first target was that worm. Wyrm barely looked up to spy the beast, and the wave of ice heading right for him! The dragon was quick, slithering forward to travel under it. As the beam froze the ground instantly, Jake began waving his torch and running closer to the sea beast. Zent roared and stomped her feet, before Rapp noted the sands starting to pick up.

"Zent! No, hold on. You! Stop attacking us!" Rapp held his head, which began to bleed again. The creature spied this, and tried to sing once more, but Rapp would have no more of it.

"NO! You remove yourself from my presence! I am here because I am told to be." The singing beast switched gears, moving forward to try and slam into Rapp. The boy moved backward, as Zent raised her arms and stepped in front of Rapp. Wyrm immediately switched to a fire tactic to join Jake, and both added their flames together as Wyrm blew it forward. The fire caught the beasts' attention and it turned its head. As its attention was turned, a new surge of water flew over its shell and collided with Rapp, knocking him backwards.

As Rapp fell, he could feel the water transforming. What was water now turned into fingernails-natural force into form. His back hit the ground and atop of him was a woman, her eyes yellow and soulless in the midst of her being made of only water. The woman glared at him and softly struck his cheek. Rapp stared carefully at her, and it seemed for a moment that there was a understanding between the two.

"Rapp! I'm coming!" Jake cried as a bolt flew over his head. He dove for cover, crawling toward Rapp. Upon the name entering the airwaves, the woman turned to look at him, and then back to Rapp. She stood up, keeping her foot on his chest as she assessed the situation. The water beast was still tangling with the small snake, and the green rock lizard was standing alongside Rapp. The incoming male, well that was a nuisance she could not deal with. With one hand, she flexed her ability.

Jake rolled and got back on his feet, only to feel the ground shake. All of a sudden, water began to seep in from the underground. It began to flood the lagoon, giving the beast more maneuverability. Wyrm was fine, swimming in ease, but Zent was backing up from the onset of the water. Rapp sat up and pushed her foot off, growling.

"What are you, and why do you torment my Pokemon and I so much?"

"I...torment you? It's you that seek ME!" the water form stated, before raising her right hand to join her left. With that motion, a massive wave crashed onto the land behind her, slamming into Jake. His scream was muffled by sounds of gurgling water, and in a flash he was gone from sight. Rapp screamed in disapproval, and dashed forward, tackling the water controller. The pair fell into the water, where she quickly dispersed. Rapp spun in the water, and resurfaced, deadly serious.

"Zent! Sandstorm! I'm gonna look for Jake!" At least that was the plan, until a beam of Ice struck Rapp and encased his body in freezing temperatures. With Wyrm otherwise preoccupied, the creature had time to set its sights of Rapp and pin him down. Rapp barely crawled to shore, before he realized this beast was going to freeze him solid! The small pieces of sands scratching against his idea were the only things saving him from not feeling anything at all. In the midst of these two attacks however, Rapp was able to cancel out both sounds, and heard something else. His body seeped into a strange state where he could hear his heartbeat, and that of one other. He knew the pattern, he knew the smell-but most of all, he could hear its proximity. He took a deep breath, and shouted a command that seemed very abstract.

"I need a Hammer ARM RIGHT NOW!"

Zent, whom stood right in front of Rapp, did not understand. She looked up as the beast lurched within bodyslamming range. Suddenly there was a thud in front of her, followed by a grunting sound and a splash of water. The beast lurched forward in response, and knocked something in front of Zent out of the way. But that left its underbelly exposed. Zent ran in and landed her teeth into soft flesh. The beast bellowed, but that was suddenly muffled.

Rapp crawled forward, and barely rolled over before noting the Sandstorm was ending. Zent's body went rolling east, as a shot of water continually pressed into her. Rapp got up and charged for the water, hoping to give Zent some relief for a moment. Before he dove in the way, the gushing geyser changed course and slammed into him, pausing his motion. He stood his ground, grounding his feet and looking over the water pump. As he thought, the watery female was using both hands, tossing water at him continuously. But to the right was the large sea beast, entangled in a sea of vines. All of a sudden, something tackled him down. As Rapp looked up, the water pump suddenly turned white, as it froze over. The massive ice sledgehammer slammed into the backwall, shattering upon impact. Both Rapp and his tackler look toward the water nymph, whom now slid over to them, hands wielding small spheres of water.

"Leave here! You who would desecrate a holy burial ruin of the elves! So says my master, Veronica Laster!"

Rapp's eyes opened wide, before a wave of electricity flew over him, splicing the nymph in half. The scream she released tore through Rapp's soul as she fell over. Rapp rolled out of the grasp of his apparent savior-whom he realized was Jake.

Jake nodded and coughed, apparently still recovering from his disappearance. Looking for the beast of the water, Rapp spied that green mass of vines and the pink puff holding their own. There was also some small bug atop of Mossy, jumping and scratching at the beast. Before the water nymph could recover fully, Rapp slid to its side and tried to pin her down. That was a failed notion as she pinned him down by his back. Rapp quickly pushed up and screamed out the only words that would come to mind.

"Explain your conection to my mom! Now before I end that beast!" Rapp pointed behind him, and the nymph looked up. Unlike last time, the beast did not have the element of surprise. The green plant, the pink mass and that strange bug were working together. The bug was religiously tossing sand in its face, while the green rock was tossing large blasts of brown energy atop it. The viney one used its vines to latch its mouth shut and the pink one was hittng it over and over with heavy handed attacks. All to culminate in a sea of flames as a blue worm shout out of the water and unleashed a Flamethrower atop the back of the beast. The beast mumbled a groan and fell over, visibly exhausted, and still hampered by Mossy.

"Your...mother? I know not this term."

"Veronica Laster. My mom. Explain!" Rapp was losing his paitence and his grip on the situation. The more he thought about it, the more absurd it got! Things attacking him, fine. But water nymphs. Magic beings? Him being called an elf? It was almost too much to handle again. He closed his fist, and the nymph felt the wave of anger that Rapp seemed to exude.

"She lives to relive the high days of the elves. She wishes to rejoin her heritage-a link that you have just begun to share."

"Is she an elf?"

"I do not know. I only know we are here to guard the talisman of the low winds. Your appearance beseeches me-as she will be notified that you dare call yourself her son." The nymph shot backward, and slammed its watery mass onto Mossy. The plant, to the nymph's surprise, held its ground. The look given to the nymph was mirrored by both man and plant.



"This fighting needlesly ends now! What is this place?" Rapp shouted, as he raised back up on his feet.

"A shrine to worship the dying land. Those that feared the ancient spells hid here, only to pass away in a horrible side effect of their own brilliance. Nature overturning the land."

"Nature overturning the land?" Jake asked as he stood up, glad to see they were actually getting answers. The nymph reformed, moving to the pinned creatures side. It struggled and she petted its neck.

"Shimmer, do not struggle. We are outwitted, and we are here until we can be removed. The same reason we can't leave is the reason why they were stuck here-the land shifted and rocks littered the top of this temple. It sealed them away. The underground passages were accessible, but there was no surface. That was aeons ago."

"So...Elves died here?" Rapp asked, spitting out water as May walked back to his side. The strange bug skittered to the left, before shaking its head and skittering over to his left side. May glared at the encroaching bug, but the bug seemed to ignore her looks and stared at him.

"To find your mother is to converse with the spirits of the past. Once you find a guide to that realm, then we will meet again. Until then, head east." With that, Mossy's vines found that their grip was weakened, and the beast slithered backwards. Wyrm swam ashore in a rapid manner as the beast whirled around and sunk into the still refilling lagoon. Rapp stood there, watching as the nymph walked into the water as if she was descending a flight of stairs.

"Am I an elf?" Rapp shouted, stomping his foot in frustration.

"Are you? I cannot answer. But I see you have been Awakened, a trait most ethereal users share. Whether you are elven or have elven blood, that is a question only you can answer. Head east. Only when you can answer-will we tolerate your presence down here again." With that, the soulless eyes vanished. Her disappearance left the group with a moment of silence. They looked around at each other, Zent particularly interested in the newcomer. Jake also noted the new bug and pointed.

"Hey! Where'd the Nincada come from?"

"What's a Nincada?" Rapp said coldly. He turned away from them all and stomped over to the wall, holding his forehead. "I can't make heads or tails of this..."

Jake watched as the bug walked like a crab for a minute, before heading in a straight line. It stopped aside Rapp again, and Jake made its presence known. "Hey, Rapp. I think the bug is trying to tell you something."

"What?" Rapp looked back at Jake, and then down to the small form by his feet. She backed up as Rapp kneeled down to take a better look at her. Instinctively, he looked to May and Mossy.

"No, she's actually helpful. We would have never got there this fast if not for her." May said, rubbing her temple. Upon hearing her words, Jake pressed his fingers against his temple.

"Hey Sue, what was that earlier!"

"Sue?" Mary asked, listening as well for a response.

"We might need to get topside, I don't trust that water nymph." Wyrm noted, looking to Rapp. Rapp was still focused on what it seemed to learn. That this was a burial chamber. But it looked nothing like a burial chamber. It didn't make sense...

"Yes, we have to get upstairs now. I'd like to ask Sue something as well."

"Zent eat bug?" Her statement snapped Rapp into the present, and he looked as Zent reached for the bug. The bug skittered away, waving its pincers menacingly.

"Uhhh..no. No Zent. I'm usure abou its reasoning for being here, but if it wants to come with me, I don't have a problem with it. It seems May and Mossy seem fine with it. I think that I might need another Pokemon-one that that helped me understand what the ...ethereal realm is."

Jake nodded and limped over to Rapp. He pointed to Wyrm and gave the dragon a thumbs up. "Man, I'm glad your dragon saw me get sucked under. I thought I was going to drown, but he swam down and got me. I didn't know what to do-but I'm sorry you didn't get any answers."

"On the contrary. I got 2 answers. I know that my mom can be communicated with - as that water beast was following her orders. Meaning that was a Pokemon."

"Yeah. Looked like a Lapras, but it was so...skinny and serpentine. Probably malnourished down here." Jake stated, as he headed toward the entrance down the catacombs. "Which we will be if we don't get out of here and seal off this door again." Rapp nodded and the Pokemon followed eagerly. That strange bug skittered into a rock and hit its head against it a few times, before following the group naturally. Rapp noted the strange behavior, realizing something was wrong with that bug...but as to what...he wasn't sure.

However, watching Mossy and May walk away, Rapp smiled. They found their way back to him, and Mossy seemed more than eager to aid him. Maybe they both just needed time apart. He took a deep breath and felt his fingers tingle. Rubbing his fingers, he noticed a strange precipitation on the tips of his fingers. He shook his hands dry, thinking it was the water from the attacks.

Looking across the lagoon once more, he spotted a pair of yellow lights near the back wall where the mural was painted. He nodded and spoke softly.

"When I commune with the ethereal realm, I'll know all about you, and what you reasoning for being here is. If I find out I'm an elf, I'll make sure to remove you from this world-because its creatures like you that keep me from knowing the truth about who I am."

End Book 2.

[Lady Vulpix]

Sorry, DL, I've only just noticed you edited your previous post. I will read and archive your Book II, but if anyone wants to rate any part of it, they're more than welcome.

Edit: archived in one page for the reader's convenience.

Umm... Today comes before yesterday?

Skye gets 29 stamps for her battles! ¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢

"Nothing in the Pokémon world can't be solved with a good physical clash." <- Interesting form of sarcasm.

I especially liked the last 2 paragraphs before Eclipse's 2nd battle. Skye's efforts to understand what was going on during the battle were also interesting to read about.

And yes many of the MTU Pokemon are quite commendable, as are their trainers.

And Darker will battle a Yamask.

[DarkestLight]

When you read it straight through (stupid text limits) it will make sense, as its a "recap" of the previous week prior to the intro. onward to Book three and getting him back to Caledor...

[Lady Vulpix]

Umm... Did Wyrm use Thunder Wave on Zent? That shouldn't affect her, since she's a ground-type.

[DarkestLight]

It didn't. She ate it lol. It kinda took her by surprise

[Skye]

Ah. I can have multiple RBGs out at once, right? xD I would like one for Shadow, my level 10 Meowth at the Universal Adoption Center please. *pays 7 Stamps*

[Lady Vulpix]

Shadow will battle a Bronzor.

I'm still trying to figure out how anyone can even attempt to eat electricity... and trying to read the story while also doing too many other things. >_<

[DarkestLight]

The same way carnivorous balls of fluff can eat anything and hold it internally, lol.

To be clear. She was hit by the attack. It crackled around her for a moment, and she bit at it. It disappeared when she bit at it. So it was funnier to say she ate it, to accentuate her hunger knowing no bounds, and that she wasn't affected by the waste of energy.

Also need a few battles. How many can I buy in advance?

Also..could I buy some to cover previous weeks that passed...Think I need about ...9..lol.

[Lady Vulpix]

You can buy up to 3 at a time, and to be honest reading more than that in one post isn't fun.

Your Book 2 is very interesting, by the way, but things keep coming up and I've only just finished reading part 1.

I'll rate that part now:

-The raspberry was a funny way for May to alert Rapp.
-The details about the Larvitar line were interesting.
-I liked the description of Earth Power.
-I laughed at Mary's "this will be super effective as well", and I could also argue on the validity of her nurse methods.
-The box on the empty sailboat reminded me of the D&D game I'm playing.
-"Beacon of hope and perpetual sailing under safe conditions" is an interesting definition for a lighthouse.
-It's also nice to see Rapp begin to learn more about elves.
-No wonder the man and Jack Jack don't get along, that guy has no regard for the Mankey at all.
-Who asked "Are you done yet?" Dialogues are hard to follow when you write 2 different characters' speeches on the same line.

Take 47 stamps for part 1, plus another 8 for the delayed rating, for a total of 55 stamps! ¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢ ¢¢¢¢¢

[DarkestLight]

Take your time . It'll be there. Also, thats why I broke it up, because that one wall of text is daunting.

As for who said that line, that was still the pirate shouting at the Mankey! I tried to keep all the speech lines for one char within their own block. Sorry for the confusion.

[Lady Vulpix]

Thanks. Umm... What's a gun ho?

And why do you always use "whom" inatead of "who", "alot" instead of "a lot" and "its" instead of "it's"? I always have to read those words twice.

[DarkestLight]

Alot and its are typos most of the time, I never really remember to separate it. When people speak, I never hear alot as two words, its always one, and that's how I remember it. Same with It's. I forget it has an apostrophe, and I think its possessive some of the time so my mind adds it in arbitrarily.

Whom though, I tend to use because I think of it as the past tense of who. I know its objective, but I tend to think most of my sentences in this story that use whom aren't relating to a person, but to an objective statement. But then I read it over and lot of those could probably be better suited for who....

and Gun ho? Its a typo, should be gung ho.

[Lady Vulpix]

Only verbs have past tenses.

On the bright side, when you said "unsure whom to tell", that one was right.

There's another thing that confused me. May saw Rapp and Jake, then concluded it couldn't be them, and decided to relax?

[Skye]

Finally. The last of the training room battles. Sorry for dragging my feet over the last two rooms, but... I've been having serious writer's block. The ending and the lead up is just blah, but I managed to turn out decent battles in comparison, mostly due to writing the segments at different points in time. But with this, we're halfway to a Rapidash!

The Hardest Lesson of All...

The final day. Everyone was starting to pack up. The busses and trucks carting trainers between towers and the train station were far more plentiful today than they had been before, though that wasn't of concern to Skye. Her own bus would be here soon enough, but until then, she had plenty of training to get done with Eclipse and Shadow. With her Meowth recently out of recovery, he could practice more techniques than just Amnesia, though he would have to settle for simple beginning practices. She wouldn't let him take part in full on trainer battles quiet yet, but his time would soon come. In the meanwhile, she had met quite a few trainers who were happy enough to talk about the places they had been to and would go next.

As for Skye, she had only a few plans. Being an immigrant of a trainer, she wasn't quite aware of the current situation, though the Dragon Tamers and the Guild would be happy to know that some of their exploits reached the far corners of the world. Just how useful a trainer who preferred to roam would be to the group, she hadn't a clue, but if summons were sent out, she wouldn't run from the conflict. It would be nice to make a difference in the world, and feeling that she was a decent trainer, and perhaps a fresh perspective could be useful to them. Perhaps not. She wasn't certain, but the desire to do more was strong within her. She just didn't want to voice it.

Watching the busses and people shuffle about soon wore on the woman, though she knew that they had a while yet before they were even close to being pressed for time. It seemed too early to do anything, but there was little else to be done. Shadow had found a comfortable perch on Eclipse's haunches and was set to grooming himself, as if he hadn't a care in the world. Eclipse was looking just as placid, her eyes half-closed. A fly drifted a bit too close to the mare and was singed out of the air. Silently, Skye wondered if she ought to be worried about flies this early in the year, only to remember that this place wasn't like the other lands, where snow and ice and blizzards could happen in the winter months. No, it was quite pleasant out.

"I forgot it's winter…" she tugged at her clothing which suited the nice weather. "Almost spring…" though it seemed as if it was going on summer and just coming out of spring. Luckily, they hadn't come across much rain, or it would be hard to let Eclipse and Shadow enjoy the good weather. Her hand drifted to the third Pokéball, scarcely opened except on midnight walks to a local stream. Shandar wouldn't fit in a fish tank in the Pokémon Center, not that Skye dared to let him lose. Even alone, he was terrifying, though the later at night she let him free, the calmer he seemed. Sleepy to be more accurate, leaving Skye to come to the conclusion that time still passed within Pokéballs and still affected a Pokémon.

Shadow added his input, breaking into her thoughts and earning a glance from his trainer. Skye grinned slightly as he talked in his own language, though the grin was short lived as those comments earned a nicker of laughter from the mare he sat upon. It was good that they were close, a sign that she could expand the team and not be left to worry over what might come of it. As long as she got some Pokémon which were more sane than a Gyarados, everything would be alright. Though, all things considered, she should have seen it coming.

"You know what? I feel like knocking this last room out of the way. Shall we?" she gestured towards the remaining tower. Perhaps she would get a bite to eat as well before leaving. Shadow leapt down to the ground gingerly, leaving both Pokémon to gaze up at her, expecting her to lead the way. Her jealousy eased at that moment as the woman recalled the fact that she was their trainer. Even if she couldn't understand them, she was there to help make them stronger. Raising Eclipse's Pokéball, her lingering uncertainties faded, for now.

***

Not long after Skye's words about heading inside, Eclipse found herself within an incredibly dry room. Sand was everywhere, though she didn't exactly mind it. Glancing back to the woman, she saw that beads of sweat were already forming on her skin. Shadow didn't look as if he was doing any better, though he stubbornly insisted on walking, as if worried he would lose all that he had been working for if he took a day off. Rolling her eyes towards the ceiling at the sight of the Meowth glaring angrily up at the ceiling, she quietly began to muse.

"I wonder if the heat will make my fire stronger…"

"It won't do you any good if you sweat your own flames out…" the poor Meowth grumbled.

"That… doesn't happen…" she turned her head slightly to eye him, somewhat confused as to why he thought that was even possible.

"Come on guys… I'm going to cook in here if we stand around all day," Skye called, dragging her feet through the sand as she searched for a challenger.

"You don't even have black fur!" Shadow leapt back onto Eclipse's back, not that the mare minded offering him a ride. If Skye wanted, she might get a lift as well. Eclipse could have handled both of their weights just fine, seeing as Shadow didn't weigh that much to begin with, and Skye was a tiny specimen as far as human females went. But their trainer kept walking, and the mare kept her comments to herself.

"You know… You guys sleep pretty well at night…" Skye began, though she sounded a bit out of breath, her speech soft and weary.

"Do we…?" Eclipse wondered.

"That, or I've gotten fairly good at sneaking away without disturbing either of you. Not that it… does me any good…" she stopped soon, glancing back the way they had come. Eclipse and Shadow both turned their heads to glance back to the door, which didn't seem that far away. Still, Shadow began to grumble to himself, and Eclipse soon learned why as Skye continued, "I can't even begin to figure out why Shandar is so… crazy."

"Because he's a psycho," Shadow shook his head slowly. "You could see it in his eyes before he even evolved…"

"Do you guys mind that I keep trying, though?" Skye asked suddenly. Eclipse turned her head slightly to fix the woman in her sight before looking away, feeling that she wasn't even capable of commenting. Shadow grumbled a bit more, though there was no outright 'no' on his part.

"Eclipse?" the Ponyta who had once been named Ashes looked back to Skye, though she had no way to indicate her thoughts on the matter. So, she simply sighed and looked away once again, looking for an opponent. Skye's restlessness to keep moving had caught on, and Eclipse now found herself wanting to see why their trainer was so anxious to get home… wherever that was.

"Well, if you guys don't care, I will keep trying. I mean… There's no reason not to, right?"

"He could only eat us all."

"Plus, I'll be working with both of you to make sure that you have an Electric-based attack soon. So…"

Shadow let out a thoughtful sound at that. Skye had been reading over her cheat sheet once again, something that didn't inspire much confidence in Eclipse. If the woman needed a type chart, how could she begin to make certain that she was doing the right thing with their battles? And, if that type chart was correct, how come her trainer hadn't given her Double Kick when Eclipse had been fighting against those two Sneasel? The mare snorted.

"What? I'm not going to be teaching him any new attacks. Just you two. Actually, that brings me to another point. I think that we'll only take a ride part of the way there and walk the rest of the way. Some… quality time?" Skye tried to make it sound appealing, though as they continued to stand there, Eclipse wondered why this hadn't been brought up when they weren't waiting around for a fight to happen. "Finish polishing up some techniques, learn new ones, sleep under the stars."

"Could be good," Shadow spoke, his earlier agitation about Shandar fading as he sounded somewhat optimistic.

"Reminds me a bit much about being a wild Pokémon…" Eclipse finally spoke up.

"That's the point, actually," the Meowth purred out. "It's much better than always being in your Pokéball. No buildings, no rules to abide by. Just getting food, traveling, and doing whatever comes to mind."

"It sounds… interesting…" Eclipse let out a soft sigh, unimpressed. She had always thought that belonging to someone would feel different. She thought that she would become different. And yet, at moments such as then, when they stood there patiently waiting for a fight to come to them, she felt as if progress was going backwards.

"I've seen some Pokémon with broken spirits. They're brought out to fight, they're brought out to be healed, they're brought out to be fed, they're brought out to fight…" Shadow's claws dug in a bit as he let his words trail off, his optimistic tone darkening. A shudder traveled along the mare's skin, partially due to the prickling claws, and partially due to the thought of only seeing the light of day for those few reasons. "I don't suspect that you thought a lot into being someone's Pokémon, but Skye and I have traveled for years. We've met people. We've seen things. Don't regret having someone as strange as her, it could be worse."

Eclipse returned her attention to the horizon once again, her doubts and partial regrets silenced easily by the golden-eyed Meowth. Even though he ran his mouth as often as he thought, he had been given a long time to think. He knew this woman, and it could be seen in their fighting style. He listened when Skye instructed, and it turned out amazingly well for them. Even though Eclipse had grown to trust in Skye's judgment in battle, she still preferred her own fighting style.

"Oh hey. Hey! Rhyhorn!" Skye began to jump a little, waving a hand, though that behavior was soon stopped as she sank down to sit on the ground. The Rhyhorn, a pair by the looks of it, turned their giant heads to face the small group before approaching. Shadow leapt down as they made their approach in a steady, incredibly slow pace.

"Looking for a fight?" one of them, a male asked. Eclipse nodded slowly.

"I'm… Looking for a fight," she forced herself to speak, even as she felt her heart begin to race. Her mind began to race as she pawed at the ground, ready to rush into the battle the moment it started.

"Would you two mind giving Eclipse a work out? She's already rearing to go… almost literally," Skye laughed at that from her spot on the ground, reminding the Ponyta that the woman was present. Turning her head slightly, she eyed the woman, waiting for her to reach into her bag of infinite goodies, but the human stayed on the ground, making no effort to raise, much less teach Eclipse a last minute attack.

"One at a time, if you don't mind. No offense, but I don't think she can take two opponents on at once," a simple suggestion, which the Rhyhorn politely abided by. It amazed Eclipse, who had been used to the Lava Room being a battle of fiery temperaments. The residents of this room seemed fairly calm, almost orderly as the male stepped up first, leaving his partner, a female, to wait patiently, though she looked fairly disinterested.

"You're not going to watch?" Eclipse wondered, her head lowering.

"There's no need. You're a low level of a Fire type. This will be over quickly," the Rhyhorn reasoned.

Eclipse Lv.16 Vs. Rhyhorn Lv.25

"So why does your trainer even think you have a chance?" he asked in a casual enough of a tone, his head lowering before launching himself from standing to a rapid charge within only a few steps. Eclipse let out a startled sound as she twisted about in the dirt and proceeded to run just ahead of her opponent. Though he was fast, she was faster, at least for now. Glancing back at him, her tail lost its brilliant coloration as the flames turned to solid metal before swiping the Rhyhorn's head. The first strike fell just high as he lowered his head, but the first hit home when he tried to bring it back up. A jolt of victory shot through the mare as she thought that if she kept just a few steps ahead of him, she could wear him down easily.

"Eclipse, you're getting too far away!" her ears faintly heard Skye's call and, looking up, noticed that they were leaving the group behind. Turning quickly, she shot past the Rhyhorn, though in one grand movement, he caught her in passing with the side of his head, throwing her delicate balance and causing her to first stumble, then fall. Coming down hurt, though her shoulder was what smarted most of all. Dazed and startled, she pulled herself upright, her head glancing about for her opponent, who had severely overshot his turn.

"Double Kick!" but why? She shook her head, gathering her wits before pursuing the Rhyhorn who had just come to a stop as he tried to turn to face her. Upon completing his basic maneuver, he would find himself being pounded be the mare's hind hooves. Whereas his hide was a thousand time stronger than human bone, her hooves were vastly superior when compared to diamonds. It still smarted to kick something as hard and as well armored as he was, however, but she didn't stick around to complain, darting away once again. Her speed advantage was something that she was relishing in, and it showed.

"Get ahead of him and use a Tail Whip this time!" Skye called out. That was easier said than done, however, as the Rhyhorn reared up before bringing stubby forelegs down into the ground. Apparently he wasn't up to playing a game of chase any longer, leaving Eclipse to turn about and waste energy returning to him.

"Stop!" Skye seemed to change her mind within a matter of seconds, though Eclipse questioned just why she was supposed to halt. That answer soon became apparent as she watched the earth seem to part, sand sinking into the hole. Sliding to a stop, she held her breath, waiting for the floor to give way to the ground below, waiting to fall through. And yet, it didn't. Though it was obviously an Earthquake attack, it didn't seem powerful enough to reach down more than a layer or two of dirt, destroying the fake ground, but not disturbing the Pokémon Center resting just below her hooves.

"Swift little brat, now you can't run freely or the sand will sink you," the Rhyhorn, a creature who was renowned to be slow in the head, gave a nasty grin. A battle worthy opponent, Eclipse realized that this fight was far above her head.

"I can't believe it…" even Skye sounded as if she was about to give in. "A Pokémon strong enough to control the depth of its Earthquake… That is so… cool!" her trainer was laughing. Was she an idiot? Eclipse pawed nervously at the ground, digging at the sand as it finally settled. "Ember and jump, Eclipse!"

Jump over it? Eclipse threw her head once again before realizing that it was foolish to keep questioning the insanity of this battle. She reared up, gathering internal heat rapidly within her before shooting it forward in a condensed ball of flame, an Ember attack aimed at the Rhyhorn. He shrugged it off for the most part, though he had to close his eyes. In that time, Eclipse gathered the space she needed to complete the leap, her other physical strength when it came to combat.

Though she wasn't quite certain where the ground was weak, she managed to land close to the Rhyhorn, who had just shaken the fireball off completely. Her tail smacked into his face, causing him to flinch once again. Then, recalling the attack she had not been able to follow through yet, the mare twisted away from him, hind legs smacking into the side of his head and causing the Rhyhorn to topple.

Eclipse won and grew to level 18!

"Don't even think you're getting away with that!" came a distant cry. Panting softly, Eclipse realized that she had completely forgotten about the next opponent.

Eclipse Lv.18 Vs. Rhyhorn Lv.25

Eclipse turned to glance at the Rhyhorn who had shouted at her, but found her face meeting flying stone as a few other shards struck along her shoulder and side, causing her to stagger and nearly fall onto her knees. Each pelt stung painfully, though she now gave the female Rhyhorn her complete attention. A few stones buried within the ground had risen to encircle the creature, dancing about her as she fired the last of them at Eclipse. Wiser now to the pains of the rock-based attack, she found it within her best interest to evade the incoming barrage, which was done with ease due to the vast distance between the two of them.

"Retreat!" despite what the Rhyhorn wanted, Skye seemed to desire Eclipse to make certain that she was ready for the next fight. And, without hesitation, the mare whirled away to put even more distance between herself and the Rhyhorn. With such a large gap between them in the ground, she didn't have to retreat very far before the Rhyhorn was completely out of range. Her head lowering the mare drew in each breath heavily, watching as the opponent dug at the ground with one short foreleg before she began to charge after the Ponyta.

Watching her, Eclipse noticed the heavy creature began to run around the sunken in portion of the ground, turning slowly so that it seemed to take quite some time to close the gap. But this gave her quite the opportunity as she spun and began to run once again. This time, the Rhyhorn seemed faster, or perhaps Eclipse had gotten slower. Either way, her legs were beginning to burn as she found the opponent was preparing to ram her just as the other had done. Though Eclipse had managed to escape being jabbed by the horn the first time, the power of the attack alone had toppled her. A successful attack could lead to her falling and being trampled. Instinctively, she lashed her tail out at her, trying to blind her with each strike of her flaming tail.

To her relief, the Rhyhorn slowed down, and so did she, each Pokémon coming to a standstill before facing each other for a proper battle. Skye and Shadow had taken that time during the chase to close the gap between them so that the human could lend her voice to the battle. For the time being Eclipse waited patiently to hear the woman's call, but none came. Was Skye waiting for Eclipse to strike out? The mare shook her head once again, staring down the opponent, even as the Rhyhorn stared right back, waiting for an opening.

"Double Kick!" finally, Skye's words came through. Eclipse rushed forward so that she could pivot quickly just before her opponent and strike at her with both hooves. In retaliation, after absorbing the shock of the blow, the Rhyhorn bellowed in her rage and slammed into Eclipse, her horn finding her mark this time. Letting out a sound of pain, the mare staggered away, shivering as she wondered how to strike her opponent without taking another powerful hit like that.

"Iron Tail, spin, and Double Kick while facing it!" of all the things, Skye had to say something crazy again. But, it made sense to the mare. She backed away, her tail flicking to and fro as she readied it for the strike. The Rhyhorn wouldn't let her get the distance needed to build up a good speed, however, and rushed forward once again. Eclipse stood still this time, waiting, watching her opponent before spinning to swipe her head with a metallic tail, hard enough to stun the creature momentarily as Eclipse's entire weight had been behind this strike. Continuing to spin as Skye had ordered, the mare rose up onto hind legs as she finished the circle and brought her forelegs down onto her opponent's head, hard enough to drop her, forcing her head into the ground.

Eclipse won and grew to level 20! She learned:
Stomp (Level 19)
Wild Charge (Free level 20 attack)

Eclipse let out a heated snort before turning away from the fallen Pokémon. Already, the first had begun to raise, coming around. His partner would be following him soon enough. Skye looked overly delighted, and Shadow wore a silly grin on his face. The trio made their way out of the room, though upon reaching the stairs, Skye recalled her once again. Perhaps a trip would be nice, after all. It was tiresome to be recalled to her Pokéball over and over just to bypass the problem of hooves and stairs.

... Is Learning to Trust

[DarkestLight]

Only verbs have past tenses.

On the bright side, when you said "unsure whom to tell", that one was right.

There's another thing that confused me. May saw Rapp and Jake, then concluded it couldn't be them, and decided to relax?

Yeah. She looked around. She saw Rapp and Jake away from her. They couldn't have been the cause of the sound. But with them in the vicinity, she was sure they would have heard it too. Since they didn't hear it, she thought that a)it was her imagination or b) it wasn't something to worry about. So she just relaxed.

[Skye]

Ask…

The best part about the province of Caledor was the quiet of the lands where little development had taken place. An entire forest was free for a girl, her Ponyta, and her Meowth to explore and take their time on their way back to Sector Alpha, the city where the Dragon Tamers and the Dragon's Guild could be found. As far as Skye knew, there was no real hurry to get back. Nothing new was going on, no one was getting killed, no mischief, no insanity. So now was a good place to develop her team through training and expansion.

Where she had come from, the general rule of six Pokémon at a time was in place, with a lot of trading out through storage, letting one's Pokémon take a vacation while being cycled out for others who would be trained for specific tasks and purposes. In the land of Ulthuan, however, fifteen was the maximum limit for Pokémon who were both owned and the maximum limit of Pokémon that could be on one's person. Just trying to imagine having all of those Pokéballs on her made her head spin, but she imagined most people only brought a few Pokémon with them and kept the others out somewhere.

"Let's see…" Skye paused in thought. "I think we should try to catch some Pokémon. Maybe three or four more to make an even six active Pokémon. That, or just keep training the two of you until the end of time, or at least until you both evolve… but…" she gave pause at that, looking to her Ponyta and Meowth. According to her estimations, it would take a good chunk of time to evolve either, and who knew what would happen if either of them suffered a serious injury, or worse, both were hurt. If they had to rely on Shandar as their back up, Skye would probably get deported for using a dangerous and untrained Pokémon. Or worse, have her license revoked completely.

Shadow let out a soft mumbling in response. Walking evenly on all fours, Skye was pleased to see that he wasn't favoring his leg anymore. Ah, the wonders of being a Pokémon. Eclipse let out a snort which Skye interpreted as a sign of disinterest in the topic. Over the past few days that they had been wandering, the woman felt she was getting closer to unlocking the barrier between herself and her Pokémon.

"You know, what happens to the team impacts you too, Eclipse. So go ahead and give your opinion, even if you're just going to be as snarky as Shadow is about newcomers," the pair of oddly colored Pokémon looked at each other, then to her with blank looks. Okay, perhaps she was wrong about being able to understand them better, but eventually she would get it. Looking away from them sheepishly, she felt her face coloring at their stares, her own gaze traveling along the land.

Just then, she heard loud, snarling barks echoing throughout the woods, causing her heart to leap into her throat. Glancing around, she wondered exactly what was going on, though the only clue was a sudden explosion of electric energy. Did she know any Electric-type dog Pokémon? Frowning, she hurried forward, followed closely by Shadow and Eclipse, only to come across the sight of a trainer facing off against a pair of wild Pokémon. At least, Skye could only assume they were wild, seeing as the trainer had the strangest little creature floating before him and a fallen Pidgey and battered Houndour as his opponents.

"Hey, are you making a catch?" Skye called out to the other trainer.

"Naw, just some training," he replied vaguely. The ghostly creature before him, sporting a mask beneath the majority of its body, didn't even shift its red gaze away from its opponents as it observed its next opponent, a rather angry looking Houndour. "Yamask needs some experience, though that Pidgey was too weak to give my Bronzor many levels. This Houndour should be around its level and give Yamask some experience," he rationalized. Though, in Skye's opinion, the Houndour didn't look as if she was going to go down without a fight.

Darker Lv.5 vs. Yamask Lv.5

"Yamask, go for an Astonish!" he called out. The strange floating creature seemed to fade nearly out of existence, save for its bronze mask, which hovered and began to move in a hypnotic circle. Entranced, the Houndour hesitated to attack, her eyes following the mask as her ears perked, listening for sounds of an attack. The strike came as the Yamask appeared in a swirl of black and red energies before smacking into the Houndour. The strike didn't seem to do a whole lot of damage in itself, as could be seen as the Houndour lowered her head to let Yamask ram into the dome of her skull armor.

Next came the Houndour's turn as her eyes closed, almost as if she was going to ignore the opponent and all that came her way. Her eyes opened once again soon enough, a strange, pale blue glow radiating from her eyes as multiple balls of blue fire materialized in a circle around her. Baring fangs, she let each orb fly at the opponent, one after another, each chasing down the poor Yamask who attempted to float away in sheer terror of the spiritual attack. Perhaps he, being a ghost, could recognize a Will-O-Wisp on sight and knew what a pain it was. The first few orbs were successfully dodged and flicked out of existence, but his luck soon ran out as one of the orbs managed to make contact, leaving behind a rather nasty looking burn.

"Shake it off and lock it down with a Disable. Then follow up with a Nasty Plot," the trainer commanded. Despite suffering in his wound, the Yamask focused intense red eyes upon the Houndour, forcing the intensity of her gaze to fade, her body locking up as faint pulses of energy escaped the ghost type and fed into the wild Pokémon. This certainly stopped the opponent as Yamask began to take on a new, dark red aura into itself, apparently planning something nasty, though the stronger that glow became, the more the Houndour regained control of her own body. And, much to Skye's surprise, the young canine bolted the moment that she could with an astonishing speed.

"Don't let it get away! Use a Shadow Ball!" he commanded. Drawing in the darkness of the surrounding forests, Yamask let out a low groan as he charged up his attack, mouth open as his focal point for the assault. The Houndour kept running, closing the distance as she opened her own maw, releasing a beam of purple and black energy herself, a pulsing wave of dark circles bound within each other in a stunning display, enough to knock the Yamask down, his Shadow Ball failing as he flinched terribly from the potent attack.

"She's quick," Skye commented to Shadow and Eclipse quietly, not wanting to interrupt an interesting battle. Both Pokémon uttered their agreement.

"Go for another Shadow Ball!" the trainer was being backed into a corner by a wild Pokémon. The dark canine seemed to be keeping and maintaining the advantage as she lifted her head, drawing on her fire element once again. Even as the Yamask attempted to gather his shadows, it was obvious that he was severely pained by the burns received earlier, something which lead to the canine's advantage as she launched her Ember, scoring a direct hit from close range. The Yamask had taken enough damage as the poor thing drifted to the ground, down and out.

Darker won and grew to level 6!

"Shoddy luck," Skye offered as the trainer recalled his Pokémon.

"Yeah, I should have figured that the Houndour would have good attacks. The Pidgey wasn't half bad, just not much of a match for my main Pokémon. Bronzor, finish this one off with a Heavy Slam too," he sent out his next Pokémon, a floating disk the color of bronze which had spent too much time in the open air. Though Skye doubted that the power difference of the two Pokémon wouldn't be enough to take the fiery canine down, she was soon proven wrong. One Ember was all that was offered before the small disk crashed painfully into the poor thing, taking her down without much of a fight at all.

"Ouch…" she stepped forward to look at the two collapsed Pokémon. Sometimes sheer brute strength was enough to handle such things, and though she felt sorry for the Pidgey and Houndour, it was a sight she had grown accustomed to in her time as a trainer. The Bronzor began to float around, looking rather emotionless all the while. "Do you train here often?"

"Naw, just passing through, honestly. How about you? Perhaps you'd be interested in a battle?" he eyed her two Pokémon. "They look like they could use some work."

"We've been working," she wrinkled her nose. "You'd be surprised just how much. I'm pretty sure Eclipse would just ruin your Bronzor, and don't get me started on the Gyarados… Perhaps Shadow would be a better match?" though she doubted he had meant anything by his words, they still surfaced the haunting reminder that she hadn't been having the easiest time as a Pokémon trainer.

"Hah! Confident, are we? Alright, I suppose that would be your Meowth?" the feline padded forward at his words, confirming that he was quite ready for battle, his tail raised high in the air as yellow eyes fixated on the trainer. His Bronzor soon drifted between them, however, wide, emotionless eyes setting upon the pair, focused and ready to battle.

Shadow Lv.10 vs. Bronzor Lv.10

"Heavy Slam!" the opposing trainer called, and the Bronzor began to drift upward, raising before dropping itself rapidly towards the waiting feline.

"Evade with Faint Attack!" a new technique, and a useful one, Shadow seemed to vanish just as Bronzor was close to impact, leaping straight up into the air as the creature narrowly missed, only to land upon it. Claws tried to dig at the creature's body, but its steely skin was far too thick to damage with such attacks. It wasn't possible to even hold on, apparently, as Shadow soon slipped away and fell back to the ground, letting out a frustrated hiss.

"Give it a Shockwave, Shadow!"

"Go for a Signal Beam!"

Perhaps this attack would hit a bit better. Shadow's fur, already standing on end, began to glow and crackle with quickly building electricity, leading one to wonder exactly how many exciting new techniques the Meowth had been given. At the same time, the Bronzor began to gather a new energy, starting at the bump between its eyes. The orb formed as a ball of multi-colored energy, much like an Aurora Beam, before shooting out towards Shadow. The Meowth, in the meanwhile, had released his own attack, a jagged bolt of electricity which struck the metallic Bronzor quite nicely, though he took the Signal Beam in return, letting out a sound of surprise at just how strong of an attack it was.

"Try another Heavy Slam, Bronzor!"

"Icy Wind to slow it up, then give it one last Shockwave!"

Shadow began to inhale slowly, though his exhale came quickly enough, just as the Bronzor began to rush towards him once again. A misty wind escaped with his breath sprinkled with flecks of ice and snow which glittered brilliantly in the hints of sunlight shining through the canopy. Just as Skye had hoped, the Heavy Slam attack began to slow down as the metal Pokémon began to freeze up slowly. Ending the exhale, Shadow's fur began to illuminate once again with a neon light, a Shockwave escaping him soon enough and jolting through the temporarily halted Bronzor, finishing the battle.

Shadow won and grew to level 11! He learned Bite!

While their battles didn't last too long, it was obvious enough that Shadow was worn out, sitting down as he panted for breath. It was still quite impressive, and Skye was quite pleased at the Meowth's mastery of his new attacks, though he had displayed only a handful during that brief encounter. The Bronzor was recalled as its trainer let out a soft laugh.

"I guess I was wrong about that Meowth needing any work. Mastering all of those techniques… and here I thought I had the upper hand the whole time," he shook his head. "Anyway, I'm heading back to Sector Alpha. See you around, uhm…" he gave pause, realizing that neither trainer had introduced themselves to the other. Names were exchanged before the other trainer departed. About then, Skye noticed that the Houndour and Pidgey were coming around.

Approaching them, she offered a faint smile, though the Houndour only let out a warning growl in response, as if uninterested in anything Skye had to say. The Pidgey, though he had collapsed first, was only just now coming around. His wing looked a bit off, causing Skye to wonder if he had been injured severely during that fight. Unlike with Eclipse, when she had spoken kind words to Eclipse to gain her trust, she hadn't a clue what to say to the pair of Pokémon at first. So, she instead pulled out a pair of Pokéballs and set them in front of the pair.

"I'll help you two get healed up, get that wing looked a-aah!" she fell back, only just missing taking a fireball to the face. The Houndour continued to growl, even as the Pidgey clambered tiredly onto delicate, bird-like legs. Shadow began to hiss angrily, and even Eclipse had a word or two to say, if tossing her head and pawing eagerly at the ground could be counted as speech. The Pidgey tilted awkwardly to one side before settling on the ground as the Houndour ceased her aggressive displays. The pair looked at each other and, seeming to be persuaded by whatever Shadow and Eclipse had to say, allowed themselves to be captured. For now.

Darker and Duo joined the team!
Would you like to give your Pokémon a new nickname?
Yes >No

Wisely, Skye decided to put off giving either Pokémon names, instead opting to follow the other trainer to get everyone a checkup.

… And You Shall Receive

[Skye]

And. I'm sorry to double post again -.- But I'd like to buy an RGB for my level 20 Ponyta from the Professional Sports Breeding System. If you don't mind. *pays 7 Stamps*

[Lady Vulpix]

Eclipse will battle a Scraggy.

OK, I'm overwhelmed now, so I'm begging for help. Perhaps I shouldn't, I'm not the only worker here, but it seems that I end up rating all the battles by default and... I just can't. I have too much work to do outside TPM, and I can't do this alone. Can someone please rate Skye's battles?

DL, I'm still reading your story. Some parts are quite confusing, especially the part where Jake seemed to talk about himself and his pride in 3rd person and told Rapp that he would stay while he also led the way?

Something similar happened earlier with the Nincada (who sounds surprisingly similar to CrystalMaster Mike's Nincada). At first it seemed to be a male Nincada who was in love with May, then a female in love with Mossy? Were there two Nincadas all along? It was all hard to follow.

The moment when Jake looked at Rapp and thought about him was touching for some reason, but was that Jake or... whoever stayed behind when Jake headed on with Rapp?

This line didn't make much sense: "Hey! It would be nice to share with the group!" May shouted as the thundering grew in volume. May however, gave her faith to the little plant, and looked to Sue. "Sue. Try it. It might give us some cover." I imagine that the 2nd one was not May, but who was it?

And Sue hates bugs? That's weird considering how calm and caring she normally is. And later May said she hated bugs too... Although I'd say it fits her character.

In any case, Jake did make a good point about Rapp asking him for advice after his performance in the Dragon Games.

I liked the image of the air being breathed out by green fields.

The dripping water scene and the 'worms' scene were both creepy, but in a good way.

And the battle between Sue and the water was very well described.

I only have the last part left to read now... I'll do my best to finish it soon. Sorry again for the delay, it's been a complicated... year.

Edit: With one hand, she flexed her ability. How can an ability be flexed?
Same with: The small pieces of sands scratching against his idea.

Edit again: at long last, I've managed to finish reading it! And rating it! It was hard, but - despite the multiple causes of confusion - it was a really enjoyable story. I'm still left wondering what Jake is... and how he can apparently perform elemental attacks and be in 2 places at the same time. And also what the mystery man was looking for and who's the pointy-eared lady he knows, but I suppose that will all be told in due time. Take 50 stamps for your story, plus 7 more for the delay, totalling 57 stamps! ¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢¢ ¢¢¢¢¢¢¢

[DarkestLight]

o.O oooooh IT WORKED!

Now I'll give you some help. Before I acquired Skitzo, I was writing up the tale and I quickly glanced at the Pokemon available for me to adopt. I liked the prospect of Nincada, it helped with the nature of the story. So I wrote it up and made it male.

Lo and behold, when I finally get to adopting it, and its female. So I had to go back, erase a huge chunk of text and rewrite it. But I didn't really, I just went line by line and tried to remove the crush focus from May to Mossy. So I'm sure I missed specific lines that made it seem ambiguous. Hence, the obvious excuse I'm going to use is the schizophrenia makes Skitzo have, well, different personalities at different times. As we go on they'll boil down to a general two...

I'm gonna look up the parts that you've mentioned here-mainly because I want to fix them so other people won't be confused if they ever read my story.

I can't locate the pride part, do you recall where it takes place?--EDIT: OH NO! That 's Mary talking. I believe you mean this part.

"Look. Whatever happens, I still think you're you. If it gets hairy, we get out of there and leave, ok?" <--Jake

"But you-this is your prospective livelihood! I can't let this evict you!" <--Rapp

"It was never about being evicted. That's just Jake and his foolish pride." Both men turned their gaze back to spy Mary approaching them, sliding between them and making a left. Her path took her into the den, where she stopped and turned to face them. "Jake loves his job, but its not worth risking his life. Not to mention we need help anyway, this may be bigger than us. So I'm staying outside of this place, just in case you need to get help. I'll have a head start on anything."

Mary states the dialogue at the beginning and the end of the short paragraph here. I see why that could be misleading. I wrote it like that as a cut in. Maybe I should have put something in like "Mary interjected-as she slid between them to enter the enter the lighthouse."

That was Jake thinking about Rapp when they exchanged glances before heading back into the lighthouse to enter the cellar

Jake didn't throw the electricity. He tackled Rapp becasue he saw the water being frozen and got him out of the way of it. I ...am 80% sure that was Mossy that used Shock Wave at the nymph. I see where that part makes NO sense. LOL.

As for the two lines used, they're metaphors. Flexing ones ability in this case was the nymph using her control over water-hence her ability.

The other line...I hate autocorrect. That should be skin. NO idea where "idea" came from. In fact, "skin and wound" are the words that goes there.

As for the mystery man and his connection to all of this, well, Book III will answer that-and also bring up a slew of questions as we head back to the Forbidden Mountains.

And yay, now I'll add them to my bank!

[Lady Vulpix]

Umm... What worked?

Nice battles, Skye! I have just read them, not rated them because I've also been working on many other things. But I liked the whole "new in Ulthuan" perspective, and how Skye learnedfrom experience and decided to wait before naming the newcomers. The dialog box was funny too.

As for what trainers in Caledor usually do with their Pokemon... here's some information.

Edit: I've just edited that page because I remembered a part about pokeballs which used to be in the old version (the one that got lost) and hadn't made it to the new one. It's fixed now.

[DarkestLight]

Ok. Need RBG's.

I'll try to buy them ever Sunday.

I need one for Wyrm [Lvl 10] to start, from the Nature Protection Agency. Yeap yeap. ::Tosses 7 their way::