Through the Eyes of a Flareon [PG] (Chapter 31 FINALLY up)

[Suicune's Fire]

Chapter Eleven: Attempted Murder

I made effort to delay myself as I sprang into action, starting off by firing a toxic purple splatter which first fizzed almost uncomfortably in my throat. The disgusting liquid bubbled once landing on the three pokémon; one – the golbat – painlessly shook it off as if she had a poison-resistant down coating her deep blue body. The other two, thankfully, became victims to my poison type move, and looked already a smidgeon weaker. But I was surprised when a sudden swift human-looking boxing glove met my jaw, and I felt a crunch as I was plunged backwards—mostly by shock. I tensed up and rubbed the side of my jaw against my available shoulder, knowing no internal damage was done. It was only a mach punch, after all. Although the pain would haunt me for a while.

I sprang back up, biting down and feeling aching in my mouth, and lowered my head. I felt my body stiffen and prepare itself for any oncoming attacks. My mane seemed to become denser, as did my tail. I let myself feel where to strike next, subconsciously taking precise aim. In the meantime, a pay day struck my forehead, a consistent stream of loose coins being cast out of the meowth’s peculiar oval-shaped headpiece. Nevertheless, I stood my ground and kept my body steady.

Feeling like I’d charged up enough energy, I bent all four of my legs and flicked my head so I could see my attackers. Aimed at the meowth, I charged forward without warning, and slammed head-first into the feline pokémon, flinging us both in the same direction – although he travelled backwards – and colliding with the gligar clinging to the floor who was undoubtedly oblivious of the act. Tumbling over two pokémon, I somehow landed near to my friend, who was considerably stunned. But I didn’t blame him—sudden randoms coming into his personal space like that? I knew I’d be confused!

I looked up, nearly smiling. “Hi, there!”

“Dusty! ...I’m, uh, glad you came,” he replied slowly, watching me spring off the two figures beneath my paws. I came down on the floor space next to his almost shell-like build. I eyed the two fallen frames that would remain so only momentarily, making sure that’s what they weren’t doing.

“So, you know my name,” I began, “but what’s yours?”

The grotle blinked before replying with, “Chance. I’m a friend of Reaver’s.”

“Oh, you are? I didn’t know that,” I remarked, swaying slowly. As the grass type continued speaking, I happened to notice a pink curled ear expose itself from behind his leg. A single round eye which was mostly white also revealed itself, distressed fright as its core element. I furrowed the fur above my eyes, closing them lightly. I side-stepped to my right, noticing the body huddle closer to Chance’s behind.

“Dusty!” Chance barked suddenly. I slapped my head in his direction, frowning harder. I knew the tone present in his voice to be one not of annoyance, but urgency with a hint of anxiousness.

Soon leaning why, I drove myself into the dress-wearing fighting type closing in on us. The hitmonchan looked as if he was barely enraged as he neared, holding two red gloves to his chest. Unfortunately, those balls of padding were what prevented me from knocking him backwards, but that changed as I used a quick attack at his unsuspecting frail legs.
He toppled forward, coming down on my back and unfortunately squashing me until Chance launched a number of rounded green buds my way, which all planted themselves onto the hitmonchan covering my body. I only managed to slip out after he jumped up, shocked by the sudden attack. However, getting back up only led me to two deep-lilac coloured plump stems. I followed their trail, and found myself staring at the high bodies of two arbok, who in return hissed, flaunting their forked, reddened tongues.

I squealed, bowling myself out of harm’s course as their heads plunged into the floor. “Heh, heh, heh,” I chuckled under my breath. “They went to hurt me, but got themselves injured instead!” I sat on my rump in the dark, forelegs outstretched before me as I realised that I was sitting and not battling.

As it occurred to me, I received a painful blow in my side, knocking the wind clean out of my chest. A look of worry filled my face as I noted just how close the two arbok were, and how long their tails could extend to. The two snake pokémon hissed quietly, tasting the salty air with their split tongues.

As I was sprawled on the ground, another tail sped towards my muzzle, purple colouring fuzzy in front of my eyes. But before it struck, I cranked open my jowl, hoping for a tail-in-the-face prevention, and without warning, a thick mound of flat scales filled my mouth. I blinked in succession, somewhat stunned. I found it sensible to clench my teeth, and as I proceeded to do so, an ear-splitting squeal told me that I had done what I had planned.

The purple pokémon made a desperate attempt to withdraw his tail, yanking it from my claim. I held on until I regained my breath from being winded, and it was then when the poison type followed through with his tail, flying me along with it to the other side of his body. My body shuddered as it crashed against the hard floor, but I was barely injured by the rough landing. I had finally released my grip and I shook off, but was then bothered by a swooping figure that flaunted her harmful tail’s purple tip. I ducked momentarily, next poking my head back up and turning around to blow fire onto the passing attacker. However, my flames were losing their effectiveness, as I could only disperse a certain amount before I had to recover. ‘Time for a power boost before my flame sac loses its flames!’ I thought without having to get my own permission.

I twisted my neck up at the two arbok not three metres away, and the hitmonchan battling Chance. There was no sign of the meowth, however, so I assumed Chance had either defeated it, it left and went to another battle...or it was right behind me. Checking to make sure, I peered over my shoulder. Thankfully, the assumption was merely my suspicion and sense of humour, and I could return to focusing.

My ‘focus session’ was cut short as something suddenly began to burn my skin. I instinctively knew that fire type moves couldn’t harm me much at all due to an apparent ‘ability’ that most flareon had, so it couldn’t be flames. I felt instantaneously uncomfortable, and I flung my head to my back, about to lick my burning patch. However, I was stopped straight away, seeing that it was clear bubbling acid. Whilst I hadn’t been paying attention, one of those arbok had regurgitated acid and spewed it onto my pelt! “How dare you?!” I wretched, scrunching my face at both the sight and in anger. “You vomited on my coat! MY COAT!” If they had known how much I hated my fur being messed up, perhaps they wouldn’t have dared an attack like that one. “RAAGH!” I viciously screeched, using my legs to push off and ascended into the closest arbok’s chest with a quick attack, and in my favour, the attack felt stronger than usual.

Proving my hypothesis, the great cobra pokémon slammed to the ground with me standing on his outspread skin. As soon as we landed, I growled louder, bounding off his head in time to fly at the other poison type’s shocked face. Having prepared, I shot a shadow ball – while still suspended – in his direction and watched its black almost electricity-looking effects send him back. Ill-equipped, he tried to fight it, but when he broke off, the pokémon belonging to Team Rocket plunged into the floor with a black sphere the size of his chest following, only to explode on his exposed skin as it dealt more damage. It made me narrow my eyes with satisfaction, but I was too late once I crashed into an incoming ‘ally’.

A squeal reminded me that I had still been airborne from having jumped, and I knew as soon as I opened my eyes again that I had made a mistake. “YOU!” snarled the blue idiot I had rammed into.

“Not again...” I bellowed, slightly afraid of how the situation was going to pan out, and what would happen next.
I got a face full of ice, that’s what. Followed by my neck muscles automatically drawing my head back as a reaction. I opened my large eyes, narrowed them, and got to my feet. Flamethrower would have happily been my next move – and on Azure – but I needed to conserve my fire, which bugged me. “Grow up,” I simply spat before turning tail. Of course...there was the tush in her face again. That made me giggle mockingly to myself as I loped towards the hitmonchan about ten metres in front of me busily attacking Chance—who appeared to be protecting someone...the pink someone I had seen behind him before. “Hey, you—hitmonchan!” And the last thing he would have remembered was turning around and being winded by a quick attack, next having a rather big shadow ball fired at his gut. It had whirled around, charging with the night, and plummeted into the attacking pokémon. He collapsed in a crumpled heap, and I grinned greasily. The toxic attack had done its job, and the fighting type had slowly become prey to the process of his decreasing health. I grunted with satisfaction, flinging my head to the pokémon behind me.

Azure seemed to simply huff at my three-in-a-row pokémon defeat, but I could tell she was hiding her impressed thoughts. Her tail swung from side to side as I turned to displayed my proud smirk, the pointed tip cutting through the air. “I think you’re the one who needs growing up,” she sneered. I breathed a loud, irritated and agitated sigh in response, eying her afterward. “Defeating a mere three pokémon in some poor attempt to impress your superiors? I would have thought more highly of you than that... Oh, wait... No, I wouldn’t have.”

“Would you just leave me alone?! What makes you think I’d need to impress you?! You already hate me for no reason, and clearly you’re not going to change your stupid, precious mind! So just get away from me!” I exclaimed. I knew she was only trying to stir me up and get me back for leaving the fight, but why did she have to keep pressing like she did? But to that, the glaceon said nothing. Possibly because I pointed out that she apparently hated me, she drew back a few centimetres. “Is it that you have a grudge against me? Do you hate fire types? Or maybe it’s just flareon! You hate us because we can melt your sorry **** in battle. Or maybe you’re too selfish to have appreciation for strangers you don’t know! Who knows?! Why would I want to know?” Silence overcame us both for a matter of moments, my frowning, snarling face being the only sign that I was lecturing her. “Look—I don’t know what’s up your ****, but it’s got nothing to do with me! And if it has—I’m sorry for offending you!” I barked at her with a hint of sarcasm, my left paw forward. Again, silence fell upon us, and a sharp intake of breath came from the ice type. I was breathing normally, on the contrary, but through my gritted teeth.

“Do you know...what it’s like...to trust someone and have them deceive you?” she hissed, her voice wavering as if she were holding back tears. “Someone close to you?” At the sight of her weak form, I nearly felt sorry for her... What could she be talking about? Someone close hurt her...

‘It’s fairly obvious, numbskull,’ I told myself, and I would’ve rolled my eyes if I hadn’t woken up and realised the broken glaceon seeming emotionally troubled. “Uh...no,” I answered firmly, an eyebrow raised. “But what's that got to do with—”
“Then why would you understand...?” She narrowed her eyes in the process of shaking her head while speaking the sentence, her words directed more so at herself than me as she averted her eyes. She looked...disappointed, as if almost having picked me for someone who would have understood.

I didn’t know what to do at that moment until an incoming blur widened my eyes, and I obeyed my initial reaction. This time it was me gasping, and like a great fire burning fiercely bright, I hurled myself into who I was just talking to. We tumbled after and I cried aloud, my leg muscle enduring a puncture. The glaceon, her tears now free, roared in my ears. I responded with a cry equally as loud, my leg leaking scarlet liquid. I glanced at it without acknowledging the glaceon, and she herself moved her head toward it. She looked at me, brow furrowed, only just becoming aware of my sacrifice. “MOVE!” I shouted, and she scrambled with an open mouth from underneath me before another bang sounded, chipping my left ear this time. I knew it was intended for her, and I was relieved for a second that she had followed my orders. But still, even after the second shot, she stood watching. Her face was almost soaked in bewilderment, but also confusion. I could tell she wanted to speak, but couldn’t bring herself to. “Why are you—” I started, stopping to groan, “—just standing there?! ...Get away!”

This time, with a frightened look but hidden thankfulness, the blue eeveelution tore herself away from me, leaving my helpless self sprawled in the middle of a battle scene.

A body came close to landing on me before I moved again, using all but my left back leg to propel myself. Another gunshot whizzed through my tail, striking the fallen pokémon I had dodged square in the side of its head. I whimpered, attempting to lope away from the scene. My attempts proved feeble as another gunshot sounded, the bullet issuing a round hole at my tail’s start.

Another body thudded before me, its consciousness – and life, presumably – absent. I was forced to stop, and my immediate reaction was to stare at a human wielding his gun around fifteen metres away. He cast a preying grin before gripping the gun with his other hand, and my heart could only beat at the speed of sound as I waited for the final blow. He was going to shoot; I was sure of it. His eyes glimmered with hate, burning with the desire to kill innocents such as myself.

It would take a miracle to save me now.

Before accepting my fate, a specific scene popped into my head quickly—back when Izante and I had gone hunting a few months back...

***

“Dusty, we’re going to go and get something to eat for dinner from the market in the nearby town,” my master informed, her legs bent at the leg joint as much as possible so she was at my level. “I can get you some fish, but you can hunt around here in the meantime if you like. Or you can come with me.” Despite my urge to follow and protect her, I took Master’s first suggestion after being persuaded by Izante. The leafeon seemed keen on hunting, and though I first rejected her, I thought that maybe sharpening my skills wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

I nodded understandingly, my tail swaying gently as I raised my head for my master to pat it. While doing so, Izante nodded at the same time, her master miming something to her.

“Bye!” Master sung sweetly, drawing my attention and giving a brisk wave before wandering off with Izante’s master. Instead of questioning her, I padded through a number of trees beside my best friend, noticing her shy smile broaden.

“What’s that for?” I asked, grinning a little bit myself.

“Nothing. I can smile, can’t I?” she responded, trying to sound entertaining but actually sounding rude. My own smile lessened, and I cleared my throat. I listened to the jingle of my chingling bell, the joyous sounds ringing in my large orange ears.

“I don’t think wearing my collar is a good idea for hunting. The noise’ll give me away.”

“M-kay,” Izante mumbled. We kept padding, the trees stretching taller as we progressed, and the sound of birdsong shimmered through the air. “Pokémon that aren’t yet a month old are best,” she told me, not making eye contact. “Pokémon mate all year ‘round, so we can still find them now.”

I gave her a raised-eyebrow expression. “Izante...I was the one who told you that.” She denied it, telling me she already knew.

However, I ignored her, focusing on a particular flying type’s calls. I laid eyes on a pokémon with an enormous wingspan. She was mostly brown from what I could see, and her wing feathers were tipped with cream. Her head held a red crest which was spiky, and an elongated creamy-pink beak was pointed in the direction of her nest. She fluttered before landing, her clawed toes hooking into the home made from twigs and dried grass. Cheeping told me that offspring were waiting to be fed. If I was correct, around four or five, by the sounds of it, were there.

“Food! Food!” they cried, demanding nourishment just as all baby pokémon did. I turned my head to Izante, who had kept walking, not noticing my absence.

“They’re all so far up,” I commented. The grass type swung her head.

“What?” She clearly hadn’t heard me.

“All the bird pokémon are too far up.”

“Look closer to the ground,” she advised. I continued forward, glancing about. There were no low nests. None. If we had any chance of catching prey, it’d be prey on the ground or fish in a river.

“Do you wanna go and fish instead? There aren’t any nests close enough to the ground.”

Izante grumbled before agreeing, and we both raised our noses into the air. Smelling the lingering freshness, I caught the scent of a few things. ‘Plants, trees, bird pokémon, Izante, human...water!’ I took off in the direction my nose led me, Izante following sluggishly. My paws picked up squashed dirt and leaves as I ran, but I tried my best to avoid any droppings that could possibly appear along my path. I heard different insects about: flies, crickets, cicadas...

I ended my travel at a rushing river, the lovely, peaceful hum of the water flowing to my ears. Salmon tails flicked the water’s surface as they were washed downstream. I placed my paws at the water’s edge, bringing my rump down to sit. I licked my lips hungrily as I heard my stomach rumble.

With a bound and a grunt, Izante flew across the stream. She landed on a large rock, printing its silver surface with the mud from her paws. I landed closely behind, repeating her colour-changing actions. “Do you wanna use your tail? Mine’s a little too fluffy,” I suggested, gesturing with my head at the river.

“Hmm,” she started. Turning around, she laid her butt on the cold surface before dipping her tail into the rushing water. She almost pulled it out, probably not expecting a cold temperature. “It won’t work without bait.”

I didn’t need more than a moment to think. “I’ll find us a worm.” I bounded into the bracken, frail branches moving on my command. The ground was soft and moist—just what was sufficient for digging. I knew my nose wouldn’t give me an reading of a worm’s whereabouts—and neither would any of my other senses. Nevertheless, I ploughed into the ground, dirt flying about. ‘I used to know dig,’ I thought sourly, thinking it would come in handy after all. ‘I should’ve kept using it...I’d need a TM to learn it again.’

Neglecting the thought and moving on, I sighed as my hole failed to expand once I hit hard earth. ‘What is this?!’ I growled, eyes narrowing. As I moved on to another spot, it then occurred to me that perhaps ground prey was a good idea. ‘I could probably find a newt around here somewhere...’ But before I could begin considering it, my ears unexpectedly twitched. I pulled my paws from the ground. Another noise sounded. With curiosity my prime thought, I very carefully slinked back to the bushes I had come from. I spotted Izante’s figure off to my far right, standing before a cluster of trees. I discovered another pokémon, but they were obscured by the bushes. I wanted to creep closer, but I was in no way inclined to expose myself to this odd situation. But could barely make out Izante’s voice...let alone her company’s... I strained my ears, shutting my eyes as if to focus my sight’s energy on their chatting. The other voice was whispering, but I could tell it was female. Izante’s voice was also hushed, overrun by the river’s rushing and the insects’ buzzing. Although...I could make out a few sounds.

“He...qu.....” I think it was Izante. “W...”

The other one kept quiet long enough for me to assume they changed the topic. “Do....ow.” There was a pause before the other pokémon continued. “A... you ...lo...”

Izante shuffled her paws, and I drew myself close to the tree beside me, staying silent until I felt her gaze flick back to that of her company’s. “No.”

“W... s... have...th...sk. Th...ins...w... b... rel... to...s...”

“...D...st...d. I ...ve t... ...o.” Replacing herself by the rocks where she stood before, I swore, scuttling back to where I had been digging. Thin twig-like branches hung low to the ground, inviting me through them as I sought out my spot. I arrived, diving into the clay. I rolled all four paws into it, staining them all the more. I wiped my muzzle in a pile of mud and managed to flick up pawfuls of earth in the direction behind me, listening to the faint patter as it met the ground. Shortly after, rustling of bushes and another voice turned me around.

“Are you having any luck?” the leafeon asked, only making eye contact between her sections of looking away.

“It’s not luck,” I corrected, twisting back to my ‘hole’. “It’s whether my skills are high enough for me to recover a worm or not.” I emphasised the word ‘worm’ just for fun, and I heard her approach me. “...Care to help?”

She moaned, clearly not inclined. “...Do I have to?”

I flicked a mud-stained snout at her, a sarcastic expression etched into my face. “I’m not going to do all your dirty work. So...yep!”

She heaved a sigh, acting similar to a mother espeon when her eevee won’t do as she says. Regardless, she dug in, darkening her naturally brown paws. Within no time, we came up with a few tiny grubs and those weird little jumpy bugs, but no worms.

“That’s strange...and annoying,” I commented, hauling myself out of the ground. “Must just be looking in the wrong—” Izante on the ground kneeling before a tree caught my attention. “Uhh...what are you doing?” But the response I got was a twitch of a tail and a muffled bunch of words which weren’t even directed at me. The grass type continued mumbling, her face level with the tree’s base on the ground. I stared at her behind, eyes squashed with confusion and a frown. “Izante, what ar—”

“Shh!” she hissed curtly. I blinked repeatedly, not sure what to do next. So I watched her. Her tail caught my eye as it swept the ground, rolling pieces of dirt and crumpled leaves. The swaying became faster, and soon my friend was up on all fours, her head craning to a papery branch far up above; it must have been around two rhyperior high!

What startled me was what happened next! After speaking the words ‘like a rocket’, Izante shot up into the sky, firing herself onto a peeling branch at least a metre off the ground. The tree’s limb bounced, and she crouched herself again only to then spring higher. “Izante!” I called, having no idea what she was doing. All was soon revealed when the leafeon landed on the branch she was previously dedicated about reaching and dug her head into a nest. I heard cheeping, and felt sorry for the prey, and then plodding as Izante landed branch by branch to the ground. She strode over to me, plopping the two baby pidgey on the ground. ‘They’re all too young to defend themselves...’ I thought sadly, my jaws fitting around one’s head. I bit through the tendons, its chirping turning to silence immediately. Izante did the same.

I had gone fishing with my tail afterwards, Izante having found some worms. I managed to lure one using the bait, and my leafeon friend leapt into the river and snatched it up. We would have caught another one had she not let it slip, but the one we snagged was large enough for us both. “Hey...Izante,” I started, my brain still turning. We had been sitting by the rushing river, but I insisted that we moved into the brush a little more so that I wasn’t taunted by the rushing flow of sickening water. We were back at the digging spot. “How did...how did you, uh...” I wasn’t comfortable finishing my sentence, and instead shifted my gaze to the tree.

At first she didn’t get where I was at, but after another gestural nod to the birch, she muttered, “Oh,” carrying the word on a little with acknowledgment. “I, uh...” As if to change the subject, she pulled her half of the salmon corpse toward her with a paw, sniffing it. “Is it edible?”

I frowned. “Of course it’s edible.” She sniffed it again, licked it and eventually stole a bite before coming back for more. “But...” She pretended not to be interested, munching on her fish. “That’s dumb... Why ‘like a rocket’?” To that she nearly choked, coughing, and following the mistake was half of the salmon’s spine. “Don’t eat the carcass!” I yelled as a reaction, but then figured it to be an accident. She didn’t meet my glare, but instead eyed what remained of the fish. “Why not ‘like a spoink’?” Clearly not wanting to be disturbed, she stayed seated, the two of us silent and frozen in our different poses. Crickets and cicadas were, again, the only sound besides the nearby stream. Izante was sitting, her front legs appearing long as they supported her front. She was looking away, fur shaggy over her eyes.

My two shoulder flareon who I spoke rarely to both appeared again. The red one sighed. “...Great. You insulted her. Now she’s not gonna answer.”

The light flareon repeated the sighing motion and murmured, “Neither have done anything wrong.” To that the red flareon exposed her tongue and squeezed her eyes, but the other and I ignored her.

Izante eventually got up and began to leave, what she didn’t eat of her salmon lying before me. I quickly slid a mouthful off, leaving the bones. “We should head back,” she suggested, moving her head only slightly while my eyes fell to her rump. “Our masters will be getting back soon.” She disappeared through the bushes, and I heard her leap over the river as I gathered myself. I was about to scamper after her when I remembered the two mouthfuls of deceased marine animal that would go to waste if I left it. I speedily snatched the salmon piece in my mouth and sped after her.

“Hey! Wai’ u’!”

***

He put his second hand to the trigger, daring to press on it. I cringed, trying to recall more memories with Izante. However, one was all fate allowed me.

His cheeks compressed, rising to make room for his mouth. I guessed that he knew I was the one running the operation, otherwise he would have already fired. I was breathing heavily, remembering the bullet my muscles caught. It stung, but somehow didn’t seem to bother me as much as the deafening roar that pulsed through my body, my eyes forcing themselves shut. My toes stiffened, separating. My ears bent downwards, hoping to drown out some of the sound. This was it. The blood slipped in and out of my brain, flushing through the rest of my body. It screamed inside my head like a staraptor about to close in on its prey and slashed at my mind like a vigoroth whose claws were far from blunt. I began to ride the wave of death, feeling its cold embrace as it washed me downstream...

***

“Dusty,” a deep voice lulled. I stirred a little, feeling large arms cradling me. My eyelids made way for my pupils, which looked fuzzily at the darkened brown and yellow face staring down at me. ...But that didn’t make sense. I was dead, wasn’t I? “You were unconscious,” he stated solemnly. “It was lucky I had been there.”

The form morphed into none other than Luck, my large and reliable ursaring friend. “...R-really? So, I’m not dead?” I moaned through a presumably unwell face.

“Haha,” he chuckled, setting me upright onto my paws, “no. I hope you’re not disappointed.” He pointed to a corpse about fifteen metres away and looked stern. “I slayed the human. You fainted – assuming it was from fright – just before I stepped in. I saw you collapse and thought he may have fired the lethal shot. I was glad to have been proven wrong.” I listened to all of this, trying to absorb the information. My mind wandered; I considered the possibility of this human not shooting me and felt the need to search my body for gunshot wounds. I then snapped back into reality, crouching as pokémon attacks were cast to my left and right. I was surprised not to have been attacked then and there.

I observed the carcass after creeping up to it unsteadily, firing a toxic on my way at a bronze raticate who came too close while preparing her buck-teeth’s strike. She screeched and scurried away, running into another predator that knocked her overboard with a single blow. I barely noticed as I crept closer, taking in the deep claw gashes that ran slashed across the human’s neck. His metal gun sat alone and separated from his hand. Cerise blood stained his uniform, and a dense pool soaking his black hair and hat had formed from the wound’s leakage. I let a frown lick the corners of my face. ‘Looks like it’s kill or be killed.’

***

“Do we have a report on the sides?” I questioned Luck, limping with him and two others, not making eye contact while on the watch.

“What do you mean?”

“Do we know if someone’s winning or not? How many of us have been...killed?”

“That haunter’s got the information, I believe. He has lain low to note the observations,” Luck explained, probably not looking at me either.

“He’s really proved himself, hasn’t he?” I grinned, obviously happy with the ghost type. He had provided me with great information, along with the awesome powers he had shown in being able to release pokémon when nobody else could...apart from the blast seeds, of course.

“Yes, I agree,” Luck nodded.

“Dusty.” I turned my head. “I just wanted to thank you for before. I couldn’t fight them all off.” Chance bowed his head while we were travelling, concealing ourselves in the shadows on one side of the ship. The thin railing lining the sea vessel would apparently help prevent people falling into the ocean. But then again, people, not pokémon.

Crates passed by slowly as we made our ways while scrutinising the battles through gaps between the wooden prisons. Following me was Luck, Chance and Reaver. I suspected that the little pink being I saw with Chance before had also tagged along, but I couldn’t be sure—until I asked.

“Ohh, no worries,” I sighed. “Hey, Chance? Was there someone—” I halted, witnessing a Rocket man being tossed over the side a few metres up ahead. He yelled all the way down, being silenced by a splash. The wind whipped around our small group, almost chilling me. I barely had time to process this before distraction fell upon me again.

“Oh,” a familiar tone rang, “Dusty.” He was panting, blood probably from humans grazed across his face and cream side—however, it wasn’t fresh and there was barely any.

“Raiys!” I beamed, “It-it’s good to see that you’re...alive!”

“Heh, same with you.” His gaze shifted to my paws. “Getting into it?”

“Yes, uh...” I subtly tried to wipe off the blood I had stepped in. I noticed his paws were blood-free. I assumed it was a good thing that I was facing the wrong way for him to see my bullet wounds. At least, the one in my upper left hind leg. “So, what’s your number?”

Raiys cleared his throat. “Twenty-three.” Before I could widen my eyes, he had bounced away, coming down onto the back of an arbok not too far away.

I was silent for a few seconds, thoughts busily carrying themselves around in my mind. I wasn’t sure what to do next, but a call for my name once again changed my course. “D-Dusty!” A darkened frame zipped up to my nose after pushing through the small group of pokémon standing behind me.

“Yes?” I answered in a simple, wondering voice while blinking twice.

“You need to see something!” The urgency in Zhol’s voice almost startled me. She was also very rushed, and didn’t wait for me to ask before continuing. “There’s another crate of pokémon down below in the cargo hold on another floor.”

“WHAT?!” I blurted, my legs instantly spreading and my mane and tail bristling. “Well, I need to get them out!” I turned to my surrounding comrades. “I want you guys to get an overview of the battle,” I mentioned. “I want you to help anyone in danger and drive the humans off the ship. If we can, we should hijack it. We could steer it back to land and rescue everyone who hasn’t escaped yet.” I almost bounded away, but Luck stuck one of his massive paws out to stop me. I followed it up his body to his face.

“You can’t run. There’s a bullet in your leg.” Although I tried to deny it, he was right. “Please, let me pull it out for you.”

“What?! Uhh—” I wanted to tell him ‘no’, but I knew it was best. He hesitated before I sighed, rolled my eyes and silently granted him permission. The great bear-like pokémon bent down, his thick and terrifying claws withdrawing each time they touched my skin as if being burned, but I knew it was because he was trying his best not to hurt me.

“Sorry,” he apologised, sincere truth in both his eyes and voice. His claws finally found their place, and one of them poked into my wound hole. I grunted, forcing shut my eyes and automatically tensing my leg. Luck pulled his paw away. “My claw is too thick,” he sighed. “It won’t fit properly.”

“...May I try?” an almost-dopey voice asked. For a moment, thoughts like a flock of pidgey streamed in one ear and out the other as I tried to work out whose voice the sound belonged to. My question soon answered itself as Chance revealed a pink pokémon who came out from cowering secretively. His ears were curled back onto his head; he was rather plump and stood on four stumpy legs all ending with white hoof-like nails; his long, white-tipped tail was suspended over his body.

‘Oh! That was the pokémon Chance was trying to protect before!’ My mind flashed images for only me to see as I recalled the few pieces of the pokémon I previously spotted.

Everybody watched him as he – very leisurely – made his way to me. “You helped us before,” he stated slowly—the complete opposite to the rate of Zhol’s speech and actions. “I will help you in return.” It was hard to estimate his age—I could tell he wasn’t a child, but neither an adult. He was in the middle, perhaps?

“O-okay.” But when I looked down at his useless paws, I wanted to question him about how he was going to do it. The pokémon stared at me, and I had to blink to avoid fuzziness clouding my vision. When I looked back at him, I noticed the dramatic colour change in his eyes and the fact that he had changed his focus to the bullet wound. Radiating from his eyeballs was mysterious red colouring. That same redness was glowing from the bullet that appeared before me in a matter of seconds. “Woah...”

The bullet clinked against the floor as it landed, snapping me from my confusion-induced trance. ‘He used his mind, not his paws.’ I beamed, happy to see the bloody human ammunition out of me. “Thank you!” I wasted no time in nudging the slowpoke’s tan muzzle before turning to Zhol and flying away with her.

***

“Through here,” the sneasel directed, pointing a claw at a minuscule opening in the ship’s floor. “You can smell them.”
I bent down, daring a sniff with my nose. My nostrils widened, inhaling with the sound of breathing. ‘Materials—metal, meat—for food, and—ah huh!’ I recognised the last smell as a pokémon’s scent. It was so familiar, yet...somehow it didn’t feel one hundred percent ‘okay’. ‘Maybe they’re just sick. Or the food is interfering with their scent.’ I doubted the latter, but it could have been that way. “Good work,” I complimented, and Zhol nodded briefly, blinking at the same time. “We have to get them out—come on!” I sprang off, hearing the patter of pawsteps racing after me. She reached me in no time.

“Just you and me?”

“Either of us can break the lock. We don’t need more pokémon.” She agreed, her legs slowing for me. “We’re tough,” I added, noticing her subtle toothy smile. I smiled back, and we continued on in the direction I was headed.

We needed to travel to the other end of the ship, where the humans’ ‘hang out place’ was, where the Rockets served each other food. Further on, in the last few metres of the ship, was the captain in a small cabin, surrounded by three body guards, gripping his huge wheel. To access his company, the Rockets would walk from their food-eating area through a way in the wood and up a small flight of steps. However, I knew that none of it was relevant. Access to the captain’s cabin was only step one of the operation to gain control over the vessel, and it hardly needed planning.

We crept past battles raging to our right, and the crates gradually passed us by while sticking to the outside of the ship where the wind blew our faces and the waves licked the ship’s sides. In a hurry, Zhol’s arms flew behind her and my tail soared through the rippling breeze.

I nearly had a heart attack when a loud bang caught me off guard, throwing me into Zhol, who was on my left and beside the ship’s railing. She squawked before our tumble commenced, and we halted in a crumpled mess with limbs in different directions. I growled inwardly. A fat frown ruffled its feathers, shook its behind, and plonked itself onto my brow, joining the sarcastic eyes. ‘Great,’ I thought sourly. I heaved myself up, straining my ankles as Zhol slipped off my back. She shook her head, putting a paw to it while her other arm propped her up from behind. “Sorry,” I muttered, then decided to investigate the murmuring going on a few metres away between two crates. I stepped over a random body, peering ‘round the crate’s corner. I immediately retreated to avoid detection as soon as I recognised the chatting beings as two Team Rocket men. One was slumped against the crate I wasn’t touching, and the one on my side was facing the other way, looking down the end of the narrow ‘alley’ as he spied fights.

The one against the wooden wall was also standing, his eyes closed as if he was relieved and/or tired. He let out a sigh, and his acquaintance turned to him. They were both gruff and not yet middle-aged, I guessed. The one leaning had short, thick, black hair under his hat, and he had a dense moustache sitting between his nose and mouth. The rest of his facial hair consisted of tiny little spikes dotting his chin.

“I fink we lost ‘em,” the man facing away stated. His pronounced his words rather sloppily, I noticed. “You fink we’re safe ‘ere?”

“Yeah,” the other one breathed after moments of pause.

They both stared through the break of crates to watch something while I scuttled across the floor to my dark and ice type friend. “Let’s go—before they look again!” Before she had time to question me, she followed as I crept past the gap where they both stood looking the opposite way. We made it successfully, and I was glad to find that we were about half-way up the ship. Just as I was about to shoot off, I heard them start to talk again, but this time louder. My curiosity got the better of me, and I dragged myself back to the two. This time, I didn’t bother looking around. Instead, I pressed my side against the box while sitting, listening to their words.

“What should we do?” questioned one of them, clearly unsure.

“Shoot it!” the other insisted frantically, and a brief shriek echoed through the gap between the crates as I heard a thump.

My eyes were wide and my heart began racing as I recalled my previous encounter with a human and his gun. I was sure these men had just sentenced a pokémon to their death, but I couldn’t be sure until I checked.

A duo of claws touched my shoulder, and I snapped my head around to find Zhol standing before me with a modest expression. “Z-Zhol...” I stuttered, momentarily frozen.

“Yes?”

“...We should kill them first.”

Zhol’s brow furrowed and her feet remained planted. “...No,” she responded firmly.

“W-what?” I was shocked—until I realised she wouldn’t have known about the fallen pokémon. “They just killed someone!”

The sneasel’s expression became solid and serious, but she still needed convincing. Although she hesitated, she seemed rather curious as she zipped back and ‘round the corner. Haughty talk met me before screams and thumps. Then, trotting out with a tinge of resentment etched between her features, Zhol stopped in front of me to wipe the blood from her front with the side of her arm. Her claws were dripping with the same substance, and she quickly scraped half of it off on the crate’s corner. I wasn’t sure what to think. “...That was quick.” However, I couldn't help but to think that we may have done the wrong thing...even though they were our enemy... Was killing those Rockets when they didn’t threaten us first being as bad as them? My face grew reassurance as I told myself that they deserved it; we were merely paying them back. If they hadn’t killed that pokémon, I wouldn’t have insisted on their deaths...

As I restrained myself from looking back at them, Zhol and I nodded to each other before springing away.

***

We came to the stairs that would lead us down below. There was a strange smell wafting from beneath the deck, but we ignored it as we left behind the floor of lifeless humans and pokémon.

“Coast is clear,” I mentioned to Zhol, who was at the top of the stairs while I was at the bottom. She whizzed down, and we both slunk past several rooms. The first was to our right with a door closed. I sensed something sinister lurking behind the walls, and I crinkled my nose. Zhol probably sensed it too, since she did the same.

We crept past door after door, weaving through corridors and making our ways past labs that had shuffling and mumbling emitting from inside. Several of the labs had their doors open and...smelled like banana petrol?

“Zhol...” I finished my scan of a two-way passage. She turned from my right. “We should split up to find that crate. It’s either at the end of that corridor—” I gestured to the left hallway, “—or that one,” then to the right.

“I’ll go this way,” she said, deciding for us.

“Okay.” The weavile pre-evolution whizzed down the right hall, disappearing as she turned a left corner. I stuck with what I had been given and dashed down my allocated path, feeling the scratchy carpet under my paws. I came to the same corner that Zhol had – mine being a right turn – and I thought that maybe we would join up once turning a second time. So, trusting that theory, I bolted down the corridor heedless of the pokémon who rounded the next corner and smacked into me. I whined in response, picking myself up at the sound of another pokémon’s snarls. I leaped backwards, a fire blast burning its way just out of my reach and onto a wall to my right.

I widely eyed the smoking black crustiness that was left in a metal wall after the fire attack dissipated, and trailed it back to an orange bill. Two eyes sat above the mouth, and above them were red lumps that formed into yellow flame-like fur. Her whole body resembled fire in some way or another, whether it was in colour or pattern, and she even sheltered a naked flame on the tip of her lemon-coloured tail.

“State your business,” she demanded, assuming a defensive pose while making her claws apparent.

I held my breath. ‘Should I tell her? ...I guess I should... She’ll attack me no matter what, probably.’ “I’m here to free the pokémon,” I declared, not feeling overly confident about what I had just said. I suddenly felt like a fool for telling her. But at the same time, I felt uneasy at the thought of a battle with her. When I faced fire types...I just...I didn’t feel comfortable. As if I would have trouble beating them because our elements would cancel each other out.

“What?” the magmar spat. She, instead of continuing to act defensive, almost seemed sceptical. Like she couldn’t imagine I was capable of it or something. “Uhh...you don’t look like a Team Rocket pokémon...”

“W-what?” ‘Is she stupid or something? Maybe she doesn’t know about what’s going on outside...’ I was considering attacking, when I decided to play along... “Uh—well, I am.” But to that, the magmar stiffened again.

“I-I don’t see your trainer.”

“I...uhh... Master sent me down here on my own,” I lied. I always was a horrible liar.

“And he asked you to release those...pokémon?” She raised an ‘eyebrow’.

“Well, yeah. One of the Rockets needs, uh...another pokémon to help him train. And I was asked to get one from this cargo hold...thing.”

“I find that a little odd... They’ll easily be able to kill him and his pokémon.” She considered what I’d said before adding, “And you’d better make sure you have their remotes.” She brushed past me as I stood on the spot.

‘Remotes?’ I thought with wonder. ‘She must mean for a remote controlled door or something. If these pokémon can kill others so easily, it’s possible they lock them down here behind remote controlled doors or something.’ I considered her words and thought, ‘They’re probably all the highest evolutions of the caught pokémon—which is why they were kept here and not with the rest of us!’ I checked to see if the magmar was leaving – and she was – and turned back to where I needed to go. As I walked further, my pace evolved into a jog. I passed more doors, all of which weren’t the right one. I kept my nose high and my senses sharp...

“Here!” I told myself after going around another corner and finding a wall before me. “...Wait...” I looked to my right, but no entrances were present. I poked my head back around the corner to see if I had missed the door and managed to pick up the scent I had previously missed, but what I smelled wasn’t close enough for its whereabouts to be near. The smell of a forest lingered behind the wall that dead-ended me, and the one that a door should be planted in. I scowled. ‘Zhol got the right way. This way was the wrong one.’ I reared back, taking off down the hall. After the long stretch – presumably the width of the ship itself – I zoomed around another bend, then my last one which I knew would’ve connected up to the part with the wall blocking me. However, the wall was probably thin and the room’s door was at the end of the way, which meant I had to wear myself out that extra bit more. ‘I should’ve just blasted my way through the wall!’ I scowled. But my good side used its brain. ‘That wall could’ve meant the difference between sinking the ship and staying afloat. Soaking yourself or keeping your fur dry.’

I came to a halt before I ran my way into the hard surface, and craned my neck. The door loomed over me; it was bigger than a usual one. The door had a sign with human language on it, and a black skull against a yellow background. There was a dried maroon human handprint on the door to top it all off, smears and a splatter of matching colour. I frowned, wondering what could have happened.

I blew a flamethrower on the door...but to no avail. I was rather shocked. I charged up a toxic, vomiting it up onto the entrance’s metal surface. The poison didn’t even stick to it, let alone make a hole. Instead, it slid slowly down the impenetrable surface and dissolved through the floor. I shrugged, peering down through the hole it made, and figured that it would disappear before it could corrode the bottom’s hull and what other layers the ship had.

I looked back to the door. How on earth could I open it? ‘Hang on...Zhol’s not here, which means she has to have been able to get inside.’ I sat and pondered. “Hmm...” My eyes wandered to a paw-sized, camouflaged button on the wall. I smiled ‘evilly’, as Izante would call it, and pawed at it till it did something. However, it was only a sliver of blackness that told me that I had opened the door.

I decided to wait. No noise at all was coming from inside, which concerned me. “Zhol!” I called. The sole response reaching my ear was my echo, so I paused before repeating myself. “Zh—”

The door swung widely open, and cold claws snapped me up. I almost screamed, but they were shoved over my mouth to silence me. Lights came on, blinding me in the instant, and the door was slammed shut before I had a chance to breathe.

[Suicune's Fire]

Chapter Thirteen: Washed Up

The ship had exploded into shards and splinters, incinerating anybody or anything that happened to be on board at the time. Raiys had explained to Zhol (who then explained to me) how – and I don’t know how he knew it all – that if all of the evil pokémon onboard weren’t killed because of the impact, then they would have drowned as a result of their incapacity to swim.

When I awoke on land, I was pleased to find that my sneasel friend was with me. I had asked her about everyone else’s whereabouts, but she told me that we had all become separated in the force of the explosion. The seas were rough and the pokémon we were riding on were weak from past events. I had lowered my head at the news, wallowing in the remembrance of three lost friends. However, I was glad to have Zhol around, as I certainly didn’t know these lands—nor did I have anywhere to go or want to be on my own. Master was who I longed deeply for, but knowing that...Izante was now suspected to be a Rocket pokémon, her trainer most likely was too. And our masters were together...

I would find her one day. One day when I would construct sufficient courage to track my human down and sniff her out. At the moment, I would have not the slightest inkling of which way to go, or what I might encounter along the way. I wasn’t inclined to drag Zhol along with me, and neither did I have the desire to traverse unfamiliar lands alone, so until I recovered, found the right companion and discovered the way home, I would set out to find her again. I continuously questioned my reasons for not returning immediately, but splitting away from Zhol would mean I ran the risk of coming across uninvited Rocket pokémon, and she had the same problem.

Zhol had explained that her home colony would happily accept me – or, at least, they would let me stay with them for a while – so following her back would be desirable. I was extremely grateful to hear so, but showing my happiness wasn’t something that was easy to do. I couldn’t act friendly to anyone in my current state even if I tried, and for an understandable reason, I’d assumed. But I was somewhat confident that having something to eat and drink – and also resting – would help me recover...physically, anyway. My mental side would need more time and effort to heal. My current sights were set on chasing after any pokémon I knew from the ship—Raiys, Chance, that slowpoke... I had to know where they were.

“No. Wait till tomorrow,” the ice and dark type had advised, but I was reluctant to listen. “It’s dark, and you need food and rest.”

“I want to find him—any of them!” I had growled, my paws digging themselves into the familiar dirt. I was angry and torn...and I knew I was wrongly taking it out on Zhol. I hadn’t thought it thoroughly through, and the sneasel knew that.

“...Be careful,” she had said at last, and I silently thanked her for understanding—or deciding not to argue.

My trekking had taken me along the water’s edge and away from Zhol. I had not the slightest clue of which way we had come on the ship, and chances were that I was going in the complete opposite direction. I didn’t care though, as I just wanted to know that my friends were alright. If they weren’t, I wouldn’t know what to do. I had lost nearly everything precious to me...Master, Izante, my old, brilliant life where nothing was wrong... I missed the sweet sensation life had been stroking me with prior to the great mess I had become tangled in.

‘You’re not going to find them,’ my thoughts teased. ‘They were all split up because of you.’

I trudged through thick weeds, changing my ways and heading into the forest rather than trailing the sea’s border. I continued to cringe as my two bullet wounds coursed pain through me again, just as they had been since I had awoken. Although the bullets themselves had been taken out by that slowpoke, the wounds didn’t disappear with them. I hadn’t expected them to, especially as the salt water stung, but at least it would have purged the germs. And the blood matting my coat had thankfully washed off...

The weeds were tall and plentiful, and I had to keep my head held high to see through them. Their slimy touch slithered along my fur as I brushed past them, and it was almost as if they began to taunt me as well as my thoughts.

‘You were the one who ran off to chase a lost cause and made them wait for you.’

A cold breeze swooped into my face, jolting me back and forcing me to close my eyes. My ears and tuft also flew back, and I fought it, pushing my legs and opposing the wind. I made it out of the reeds, and the wind subsided.

‘If they had gone when you were about to jump the first time, they wouldn’t have been blown back by the blast of the bomb.’

I tumbled into a hole in the ground, whamming numerous body parts as I rolled clumsily. I came to a halt on my front, my head set out straight as the pressure was put on my jaw. I took a moment to jack myself up with my legs and climb effortlessly out of the ditch.

‘For all you know, they could be injured...they could even be dead.’

I shook my head, becoming more tired with each and every breath. Hoothoot hooted; eyes flashed off the surrounding shrubs. My heart pounded as I suddenly realised I didn’t know where I was. My head was becoming clogged, my chest feeling heavy and my lungs filling with a gas that weighed me down.

‘If you weren’t around...Roarake and Luck wouldn’t have had to die.’ The thoughts became louder, their jeering piercing what remained of my confidence. ‘For a WORTHLESS EXCUSE FOR A FLAREON!’

“JUST STOP IT!” I screamed, shutting my eyes and tossing myself violently.

Voices cackled in my head, and rustling made my eyelids snap open again. I was extremely tense, and I directed my insane glare where I thought the noise was. I shivered wildly, a wicked chill edging on a spasm as my fur still dripped with saltiness. The world spun before me, the trees growing toothy grins and evil stares. More hoots taunted me, and my recurring thoughts brought tears to my eyes. I was so confused...so scared.

I screamed one last time before I completely freaked out, failing to control my fear and spiralling into a hollow hole of confusion and blackness.

***

“...Hhhr...” I groaned, my eyes revealing the world to me as I apparently awoke again. I was quick to observe my surroundings and figure it was still nighttime. I could smell a salty tang, knowing the ocean accompanied me. The sweet saltiness drew my mind from insanity to food, and I groaned, my stomach probably about to leap out of my body to satisfy itself. I heaved myself off my side, shifting into a sitting position. “...Zhol...?” I murmured, coughing a few times in a row while she realised I was conscious and turned. She was sitting about a metre in front of me, preparing a spread of sticks she had gathered while I was busy being zonked out.

“You’re awake,” she said in a curt manner.

“W-what happened to me?” I asked groggily. The sneasel explained how she had heard me screaming in the woods nearby and raced to my rescue. And a good thing too, because she said I had passed out by the time she reached me, and I could have been stalked by unkindly predators or frozen to death. Well, not death, but something uncomfortably close. “Thank you. I don’t know what would’ve happened if you hadn’t brought me here.”

The sneasel didn’t really know how to take the compliment, and blinked. “It’s only fair. I’m forever in your debt,” she reminded me, and I shook my head lightly as she tended to the twigs again. “The wood requires a small flame.”

I exchanged a stare with her before I shrugged and padded forward. I took a deep breath and exhaled with a fiery spice, lighting the shreds firewood and prongs of sticks. The bonfire shuddered to life and quickly brightened. Satisfied, I was about to cast my glace at Zhol for approval before I noticed the trio of fish laying on a bed of sand. My stomach once again rumbled, tossing restlessly and growling repeatedly at me. I almost drooled, but restrained myself from taking further action, saliva collecting between my cheeks, and I placed my rump on the damp dirt below.

A small noise sounded in a tree to my right, and my head shot up, alert. Focusing on the woods reminded me of the little episode I lived the last time I was conscious. The feeling poked at my stomach and rose to my chest, almost returning, and it felt terrible... But I forced the imagery from my head and filled my nostrils with the scent of fish again.

Grass surrounded one half of the area along with countless tall-stretching trees reaching for the sky, and the ocean was nearby to our other side – on account of how we barely walked a few metres from the shore – and there was a constant breeze eddying around the both of us, mingling with smoke from the fire in graceful wisps. The water didn’t bother me, however, nor did it provide comfort. It was just...there.

I didn’t know why cooking the fish would be necessary, as I usually ate meat raw, so I mentioned to Zhol that, in contrary to how she preferred her fish, I would humbly eat mine straight off the sand. Without consideration, she permitted me two of the three, which I gobbled up without a second thought. There was plenty of meat on each fish, and they were fresh, salty enough and altogether filling. She had to wait at least five minutes before she could stick her claws out to the skewer her fish resided to remove the stick from over the flames. She blew on the fish prior to biting at it as she held the stick at each ends with her paws. During that time, I sat watching contentedly.

I thanked Zhol once more before curling up and nodding off, and the sneasel did the same as we were warmed by the bonfire.

***

I backed up, my hind paws feeling the edge of the ground as sections of dirt crumbled. I turned to see them fall hopelessly into the lava lighting me from behind. I whimpered, knowing that being a flareon didn’t mean I could withstand lava temperatures. In fact, there were only a few species of pokémon I knew of who wouldn’t be killed instantly upon contact with the bubbling liquid.

My ears were down away and I held great fear in my heart as two silhouettes closed in on me, their daunting, single-coloured eyes boring into me. Grins were pasted on their maws, and they didn’t bother to exchange speech with each other to know what the other was thinking. One was significantly larger than the other; however, I couldn’t distinguish between the two pokémon’s species.

In the background lay many lifeless bodies. I could hear shouting coming from somewhere else. My dark and gloomy surroundings told me I was in an unfamiliar place—one I didn’t want to know about. I didn’t dare think about trying to escape—first, there was nowhere for me to run, and second, even if I did I knew it wouldn’t end well...

But what really got to me were the strange feelings I had—one being the sense of bitter hatred and disgust flowing through me which was greater than the fear that lingered about. My head was lowered, and I began gritting my jaws together with such strain that my teeth gained hairline cracks and my eyes watered. I felt betrayed...and in more ways than one. I was so very angry, my energy focused solely on one creature...and I knew it wasn’t directed towards one of the figures closing the distance between me and them, despite the seething rage I had for those creatures as well.

“Dusty,” one of them sneered, the smaller of the two evil beings approaching. The following speech was jumbled, and I couldn’t make it out.

However, I replied, growling, “No... Get away from me,” with a cold tone. The figure grinned wider, moving closer. It asked me something next that I couldn’t make out again, yet somehow I devised a reply. From what I could understand, the creature was asking me if I would join it in committing hideous deeds. “I would rather die!”

The creature laughed a silent laugh, and screech from a distance in its place made me cringe. “That was the sound...of torture.”

“You disgust me,” I spat. The form stopped grinning and stood upright.

“What’s the matter? Don’t you like the sound of suffering?!”

“Of course not!” I roared, careful not to get too distracted and slip backwards.

The creature glanced at my back toes, lowering its head. “Careful. Wouldn’t want to slip.” It released a chuckle. “Join us or suffer the same fate as those fallen rocks.”

I emitted a growl. “I would choose death over you in a heartbeat.”

The smaller figure stepped back upon the larger one’s request in time for something in the background to lunge at the two opposing me, and I watched in awe. Someone was coming to my rescue! I was unable to identify my saviour until the second I focused properly. I recoiled in shock. I recognised who it was.

Thump.

“Ahh, what?!” I spoke, flinging myself into a sitting position. My tuft swayed as I glanced left and right, finally resting as my head stilled. I sat my paws on the ground to prop myself up and looked down past my mane to see a feathered pokémon who appeared to no longer be living. I blinked, silently questioning what I was viewing. I looked up, having to blink again to clear my vision. “Hey, Zhol—did you catch this?” I asked. However, she just huffed and spun around, pouring sand onto the firewood as it rushed between her claws. I glimpsed an angry expression before she turned away, which puzzled me. ‘I wonder why she’s in such a bad mood...’

***

Zhol was venturing back through the forest, brushing past leaves and bushes. She was headed back in the direction of where she and Dusty had slept, and used her tongue to pick the last scraps of meat left between her teeth. She brushed the tiny white flakes left by bird feathers from her chest – where they had dropped – with a paw, and rose the other one, holding a second starly. The flying type had a brown head and a grey body, with its wings being half tipped with brown on the end feathers.

“I was lucky to get two.” She smiled weakly to herself, having spotted the duo still asleep on a branch. “The early sneasel gets the starly.”

She stared to the east to view the dim light that shone just above the horizon. The beautiful amber illumination of the world was quite a sight to see. But it also meant more pokémon would be waking—which was bad news if the area belonged to aggressive pokémon. Zhol had to pack up her act and get out of the premises with Dusty soon. She was glad she managed to catch a meal before having to head out—and catching something for Dusty as well. She would certainly be thankful for it and happy to eat!

Catching the scent of ocean and nearing the sandy dirt, Zhol was happy to see that Dusty was waking up. She was moving her limbs as Zhol approached—a sign of her presumably stretching. She couldn’t see the flareon’s face, however, as she was lying with her back to the dark and ice type. “Dusty...?” she began, just to ensure her theory was correct. “Are you awake?”

“No,” she replied darkly, and Zhol was surprised. “Get away from me.”

Zhol stood on the spot after her smile vanished. She pretended she didn’t hear the last bit. “We need to leave soon. But first, you must eat,” she said, holding the starly out.

“I would rather die!” Dusty exclaimed, and Zhol frowned, confused and taken aback.

“What?” she demanded, distaste in her tone. But the flareon didn’t reply, her back still turned as she lay on the sand. “I caught you a starly.”

“You disgust me.”

Zhol recoiled, wondering why in the world her friend – if she was – was acting weird. “You...don’t like them...?”

“Of course not!” she yelped.

The sneasel sighed, forgetting the fire type’s strange attitude. “...If you won’t eat, then get up. We have to leave. This isn’t our territory.” She kicked a twig aside and watched it meet with the ash-covered ones used in the fire. “Staying here with unknown pokémon could be dangerous.”

“I would choose death over you in a heartbeat.”

Zhol flinched, astonished. She was frozen with confusion. What in the name of Arceus would make the flareon make a comment like that? They had only met a number of days ago, but Zhol had hoped they could be friends. If this fire type preferred to be apart from her, she wouldn’t object. She had no idea why the flareon was reacting so strangely, or even why she hadn’t gotten up to talk to her properly, but the sneasel needn’t concern herself. She narrowed her eyes, trying not to let newfound contempt control her. She rested her eyes for a collection of seconds. Abruptly she turned and threw the dead prey behind her and onto the eevee evolution’s body. Her legs began to carry her to the fire’s remains as she mulled over the past couple of days, frustration tinting her face.

Suddenly the flareon shot up. “Ahh, what?!” she questioned, throwing her head about. Zhol was leaning down by the burned pile of logs, dumping pawfuls of sand in some attempt to cover them. Dusty seemed to wait a moment before inquiring, “Hey, Zhol, did you catch this?” The sneasel flashed a completely unimpressed expression before going back to the fire, and then stood up. She zipped out of sight and into the forest, rounding a tree and continuing past it.

“Zhol? W-what—wait! Where’re you going?” Dusty called after her, and the shuffling of feathers and paws indicated that she was coming up behind the tree. She arrived, found Zhol leaning against a trunk further up, and walked a few paces forward to take a seat. She placed the bird pokémon on the ground, not taking her eyes of the sneasel, and then raised her head again. “Everything okay?” she queried, and Zhol threw her a stern glare. The flareon made herself appear submissive and puzzled. It was also part of her plan in sitting down—to make herself smaller and somewhat innocent. “Zhol?”

Dusty cocked her head as the sneasel moved off. Dusty sighed, figuring her for the silent type who generally kept to herself. She furrowed the fur above her brow, scooped the flying type into her mouth again, and bounded away in hot pursuit of the zippy sneasel.

***

It had been days since I had been near a forest, and the change of atmosphere – smell, sounds, scenery and even the texture of the undergrowth – were all fantastic! I loved forests. I wasn’t sure what Zhol was thinking—she’d been rather grouchy since the start of the day and I hadn’t had a proper chance to talk to her. We had been on the move for a few hours, stopping every once in a while and thankfully coming across rivers we could drown ourselves in (figuratively), and then continuing. It was such an overwhelming relief when we found our first batch of water. Zhol smiled for the first time in the day, and I was so happy that I almost felt like swimming in it! However, such a concept was ruled immediately out.

We had spent a good half an hour by it, and I couldn’t stop lapping up the cool, fresh water that felt so good washing over my tongue and flowing down my throat. I must have swallowed a few mouthfuls of seawater while I was unconscious, because otherwise I don’t know how I would have survived...or, at least, I don’t know how I wasn’t unbearably thirsty the previous night. Being a fire type certainly didn’t help when water was scarce...like on the ship. Koi had been generous enough to share his...body fluid...with me and the others on the three-day trip in the human transportation vehicle, and aside from that I think they gave us a few mouthfuls. I was not surprised to find that some of the pokémon in the cages on the ship...had died even before they were freed...simply because they were dehydrated. It was mainly young pokémon...

“You know what?” I began while Zhol and I raced through shrubs and trees. “Those Rockets killed so many pokémon that day...” I trailed off as a firm frown began to plaster itself onto my face. “Malnutrition and dehydration was one cause, and then how many of us were lost on the battle against imprisonment...” Our paws thudded against the ground as we went, kicking up dirt and crunching leaves. Zhol could run much faster – I could tell – but she was running my pace on purpose. Her arms were flying behind her as she raced, and it was simply amazing how rapidly her legs switched places with each other to propel her forward. I had always loved speed, and being able to run the speed of a sneasel sounded exciting...

I kept my eyes up ahead as I weaved between trees and jumped over burrows and stumps, and avoided ekans if I happened to spot any hidden under the foliage, waiting for prey to wander by. Luckily I was too big.

“I’m glad I was there, though,” I admitted, narrowing my eyes as I extended my four legs while clearing a log. “Fighting for others in need...it just seems like the right thing to do.” I could sense Zhol considering my statement, and I could only imagine that she agreed. After all, what kind of pokémon would think otherwise?

***

A man in a black uniform paced himself as he made his way down a corridor, a collection of three pokémon following him. His black hat that consistently slipped forward on account of how it was too large for his smaller head fell over his eyes yet again as he glanced down at his fidgeting fingers. Everyone had been deliberately laughing at him for being chosen to see the boss... They constantly mentioned the dangers of angering the boss, or even having to deal with him when his temper dictated his thoughts, and the newly-joined Team Rocket minion was not looking forward to facing him.

He kept up his pace until reaching the boss’ door, which he stopped before and took several deep breaths. He muttered reassuring words to himself under his breath, his eyes closed, and looked as if he was counting things on his fingers. He finally mustered the courage to take another step, but hesitated before turning the knob on the closed door. Once he entered, he swallowed hard, ushering the three assorted pokémon into the room and directed them to the desk situated near the back of the small room. He cowardly followed.

Behind the plain desk sat a tall black chair that widened out at the top. On the desk was a phone, along with stationery, papers and blueprints, and a white mug with various stains. The desk itself had probably been one of great value when it was new, but the varnish had been scraped off in places and dirtied with marks. Around the room were a few things: a bookshelf (that looked as if it hadn’t been sorted through in a while) to the left, several cabinets to the right, and a screen fixed to the back wall—the one he and his boss were both facing.

“B-boss?” started the young man, “I’ve brought th-the three el-eligible pokémon...sir.” The chair didn’t move, and as the screen on the wall flashed with different images, the man waiting assumed that he was busy. Fearing he didn’t hear him, he spoke again. “...Boss?”

The screen’s image shrunk to nothing as a tink sounded. The man held his breath as he realised he may have upset his superior, and he waited in angst with a straightened back to be acknowledged. The chair creaked slowly around, and a man with smooth, dark hair and a shady face showed himself to his follower. He was wearing a suit with a black tie, and his eyes were barely visible under the shadow clouding his face. He placed his elbows on the desk, his five fingers meeting with each other as they straightened. The Rocket grunt seemed to shake almost noticeably as he stared past his boss with vertical arms. The boss seemed not to move his head as his hidden eyes scanned over the pokémon choices, and a gruff sigh escaped his lips. He inhaled, and the minion prepared himself.

“Who chose these?” he questioned, his voice low and serious. The man stuttered.

“Uh—uh, the Beta Admin, sir.”

“Is that a fact or an assumption?”

“U-um...fact?”

“I didn’t choose him to pick a mere YOUNGLING!” he raged, getting to his feet and tossing an arm to the right. His other hand slammed against the solidness below him as he yelled his last word. The young Rocket breathed uneasily as he continued to stand as straight as he could, fear surging through him. He tried his best not to fall backwards.

“I-it’s a very good fighter, s—”

“How could one of THOSE be a GOOD FIGHTER?!” he exclaimed, flecks of his saliva spraying onto the desk’s surface.

The Rocket cringed, his eyes closed. “They were all tested,” he informed, fighting the instincts that told him to flee. “It’s only young, but there’s something amiss with its—its...with how it grew.” The boss appeared to stop his heavy breathing, his teeth becoming unclenched and his arms lowering to his side. He stood tall and broad as his minion continued. “It was...trained very hard by its trainer...and has the mental c-capacity of an adult po-pokémon.” The boss maintained his frown, not easily convinced. “His trainer was killed on—on the 700-T, and another trainer brought him back, s-so now he doesn’t belongs to any, anyone...e-except you, sir.”

To this the Rocket’s superior ran a hand across his stubble. He lifted an eyebrow in disbelief. “Demonstrate.”

Not ten seconds later, a stout pokémon was brought in held inside a cage. It had its hands wrapped around the cage’s bars, and its angry eyes showed its fury. It was thrashing about in the cage, unable to free itself, and seemed barely tame if tame at all. The Rocket carrying it didn’t stop to shock it with a Rocket taser he pulled from his pocket, a device that emitted an electrical shock current to be sent throughout the subject’s body, thereafter incapacitating them. They were specially designed for Team Rocket’s use: silver hand-held weapons with a button in the centre of the top. They were small and convenient to carry in pockets, and were constructed of mainly metal-like plastics and bamboo, and could not be recognised by a metal detector. It was a powerful tool that was easy to store, carry and use.

The purple pokémon’s body locked up in a seizure, and it shook uncontrollably afterward on the floor of the cage, its limbs having given in. The cage was set in the middle of the room and the door was opened. The man holding the cage lifted it up, tilting the pokémon out and onto the floor, still paralysed.

One of the three pokémon who were brought in by the timid Rocket member was told to approach the newly-placed pokémon, and he complied without thinking twice. His one-foot tall body gave his opponent the impression that he was weak and helpless, but the small, rounded pokémon had a menacing grin. His opponent finally got to his feet, still feeling the lasting pain from the electric surge, and stared at the pokémon a third of his size.

The pokémon appearing to still be half in his shell took a deep breath, his eyes altered by the frown accompanying the grin he wore. He analysed the normal type before him. He was mostly bluey-purple, with the exception of his closed mouth that would usually be open, which was maize-coloured. A duo of round twitching ears extended from the sides of his head. Four blunt teeth were revealed as the loudred opened his mouth. He appeared overtaken by rage, and he let out a deep rumble from within his throat—the one that was connected directly to his torso. He stamped his feet repeatedly, sneering at the minor threat which he had a difficult time finding intimidation for.

However, the first of three specifically chosen pokémon barely had to ready himself. The six cream spikes standing erect on his head did not waver with effects of timidness.

“Metronome,” commanded the boss out of concern, the pokémon leisurely swayed his tiny cream paws, neutral sparks dancing between them. A gust of wind erupted from the two limbs, and a miniature tornado was sent spinning horizontally forward. It swept past the loudred as he braced himself in the centre, the sharp wind currents buffeting him and scraping at his skin. The attack was cut off, and the normal type lunged toward the smaller pokémon, his feet out in front. He came down onto the togepi, but the younger pokémon seemed anything but fazed.

“You’re willing to fight for them?” spat the loudred, his stomp attack having hit his opposition head-on. The togepi only smiled, his unusual blood-red eyes coming into effect and washing over the loudred’s astounded face.

“Metronome again,” the boss said, both arms outstretched as he braced himself against the desk’s surface.

The togepi’s arms waggled back and forth under the pressure of another pokémon on top of him and magnificent light flashed, illuminating the whole room and causing everyone looking to shriek and protect their eyes—including the loudred, who stumbled backwards and held his two paws to his eyes. Again the egg-like pokémon leisurely moved his paws, and this time he was shot forward and he slammed into his advisory, streaks of light in his wake.

The swift move was one unable to be evaded, and due to the blindness the loudred’s eyes currently withstood, he was condemned to miss his following attacks and was hit by his enemy’s. He attempted to lunge, but his legs weaved and a thud rang out as his face was planted into the carpet. He seemed to get all the more frustrated, but had no time to express it as the togepi instantaneously became encased with sharp rocks suddenly summoned, and they flung forward onto the loudred, the pokémon reacting with a sharp cry of pain. The togepi didn’t seem to sympathise with his foe, and instead swung his paws back and forth. This time, a wicked sphere of cerulean energy formed between them, and it crackled as white colour mixed in. The sphere acquired ebony tinges before it grew to be nearly the size of the pokémon wielding it, and with a grunt, the tiny pokémon jerked backwards as he released the ball. The loudred was witnessed getting to his feet and having not a second to bellow in fright before an aura sphere pounded into him. The boss’ eyes were wide as light exploded and the unconscious pokémon stayed airborne until it whammed into the front of the desk.

A heinous smirk slithered onto the boss’ face, his eyes becoming darker once more. For now, he was pleasantly glad to have been initially wrong about the chosen pokémon...

***

I had been lucky to avoid discovering Zhol’s temper. Angering the sneasel seemed like the worst mistake I could make—even though I could only guess how scornful she would act. She had been withdrawn and quiet ever since I had woken, and I still hadn’t figured out why.

Her prey-catching skills were very sharp, and she was particularly good with catching fish. I knew that humans use a long line of fine, tough plastic attached to some sort of flexible pole as well as simple spears (which were only really used when their technology hadn’t begun to bloom). I learned that Zhol didn’t need a spear—her claws were so sharp that she could pierce a solid rock if she really tried. And all she had to do to capture prey was focus, aim and plunge her fist into the rushing river. I had taken a seat on the bank to watch, not even thinking about venturing into the water or even onto the steppingstones Zhol squatted on to score our food. I was also glad to have had her sharing the fish with me—a lot of pokémon would probably keep it all for themselves on account of how they caught it, which, although practical, could also be seen as selfish. Especially when with another whose skills for hunting were unsharpened. Nevertheless, Master had always encouraged me to catch my own meals. Although...Izante usually did the majority of the hunting. This was, after sitting next to the river and simply watching my sneasel friend catch dinner, specifically why Zhol instructed me to collect (by what means I wasn’t sure) any berries that happened to be growing anywhere in the area. So, compliantly, I had wandered off.

I hummed quietly to myself while scanning shrubbery for any signs of juicy fruit I could possibly lug back, but spied nothing useful. The forest we were venturing through was a repeated scene as far as the eye could see, and for an hour I had been looking for fruit without success. The underlay was composed mostly of dry pine needles – which had turned a copper colour – along with other extremely tall trees’ leaves which happened to drop. The trees themselves stretched up for ages before they stopped, giving the impression that they were still growing. Their branches obscured any patch of sky, and as a result the forest was constantly darker than a normal day would be. It was also colder, but being a fire type, I didn’t feel it as much as other pokémon may have been able to.

I proceeded forwards, coming to a stop when I scented something. It was extremely faint, but as I lifted my muzzle and put my nose to work, I caught a whiff of another type of plantation. Excited, I raced up the growing hilly forest, passing tree after tree as the scent began to strengthen. Once atop the slope, I needed not to glance about for long before laying eyes on a row of berry bushes at the foot of the small hill. The forest still stretched on for kilometres each way, looking the same, although there was a row of shrubs lining the hill’s bottom that went off left and right.

The path was thicker beyond the bushes of fruit, and shrubs were more abundant. It was a better environment for stalking prey due to more coverage and the opportunity for hiding behind just about every plant and tree. If I happened to spy a bird pokémon or something along the lines of small, vulnerable prey, I might just have had a chance to snag it. It would most likely boost Zhol’s mood, and I would feel more useful. But if I was unable to find food with meat, I would have to return to my friend with what the bushes provided, which, although less desirable, was my original intent anyway.

I wasn’t sure if sneasel generally ate berries. I wasn’t too fond of them myself, but I did enjoy some sweetness on my tastebuds once in a while, and they were that satisfying that I would certainly eat them or any other fruit if there was nothing else available.

I only had to run about twenty metres before tumbling into a bush growing nose-sized red berries, and I got to my paws and shook off so I could encase one in my mouth before tugging it off the stalk it was connected to. I bit down – regretting it as soon as I discovered the pip – and chewed the flesh, ejecting the hard centre. The odd flavour filled my mouth, making me raise my cheek muscles in response to its sourness. I decided the particular one I was testing was unripe, but I finished it regardless and swallowed. My eyes squinted and I stuck out my tongue, shaking my head speedily, while widening my mouth. “Eulegh.”

Once the odd taste passed I began searching for a better piece of fruit to taste. I moved on to a bush to my right, padding slowly and assessing the plant’s berry from where I stood. I made a noise of acknowledgement and happily slipped my fangs into the fruit’s skin. I didn’t expect it to be so soft and passive, but apparently it was. I tugged on it, hoping to rip it off the branch it was attached to, but it proved to be an annoying task. The first attempt ended with a bite of the berry in my mouth, the sweetness rushing over my tongue, and I chewed and swallowed, satisfied with the taste if not pleased by it.

The berry itself was shaped like two spheres stuck together—the bottom one larger. At its top was where it connected to the short branch, and the leaves surrounding the stalk attached to the berry were frayed. It was a rich, pinky-purple colour from what I could tell and it was about as tall as my head—but only about half the width. I had taken a chunk from its bottom, and the rest of the berry was still resting in the bush. I moved my mouth to the other side of my face as my brow burrowed, and tried again. This time I bit the thick stalk, and thankfully the fruit dropped and thudded against the earth. It acquired dirt and broken leaves on its exposed flesh wound, but I barely noticed as I snipped another two berries from their stalks and they dinted themselves upon meeting the ground.

The sudden feeling of being watched swept over me like a harmless surf attack. My fur stiffened and I whirled around immediately to catch whatever was spying on me. Peculiar shuffling and fluttering sounded nearby, and something materialised before me, a battle-ready cry being blurted beforehand. I jumped backwards as a frightened reflex before my eyes could focus and, being as clumsy as I was, I stumbled as my paws caught on each other. Being on an angle, I happened to topple into the bushes I had just been pruning and became mangled in the thin twig-branches and leaves.

I released a noise of discomfort and fright as the event occurred, and I felt many prodding ends spike into my skin. I heard a troubled gasp and another flurry of rustling as whatever it was zoomed away before I could weave myself out of the bush and onto the ground properly again. I made haste as I collected myself and stood on all-fours, my chest protruding more than usual and my head high as I scanned for predators. Thankfully nobody was there, but I was on my guard for the next twenty or so seconds while keeping dead silent. I waited longer to make sure, and when I realised the only things I could hear were the buzz of crickets and whisper of trees, I began to breathe again.

“What on Earth...was that?” I asked myself. Whatever it was, it had gone. My best bet would be that it became frightened of how strong I looked and fled.

Reconsidering as I glanced to the bushes again, I gave a small smile. My imagination was amusing.

***

I was still puzzled by the strange semi-encounter with a creature. I decided to try to narrow it down. It had to be something light, perhaps, because it managed to creep up on me so silently, but it could’ve been anything to have scuttled away at the speed it did. Judging by how it sounded, it zipped away faster than I could run, but then again I hadn’t seen it go—my face was buried somewhere deep within leaves and branches at the time. I hadn’t even had a look at it before I had my little accident, so in terms of appearance, I had nothing to go off. Even the creature’s colour had been undeterminable in the lack of light, let alone other sorts of detail.

I guessed that it didn’t matter all that much since it had come and gone without causing me harm. I just hoped it wasn’t going to come back for me...with its friends. But then again, how threatening could it really be? I could surely defeat it. Many of them if not all. I was totally strong enough to overcome a pokémon who escaped before I could get to my paws and fight it. ‘Coward,’ I thought sourly. ‘And if it was something small enough for me and Zhol to eat, I could’ve caught it for us!’

I padded through fluffy dirt, sure that I was reaching the site we were resting at. Grains of dirt flew as I kicked with each step, as they would with anyone’s movement, and pattered back down again harmlessly. I stretched my jaws open to yawn sleepily, involuntary and unexplained tears gathering as I repeated the process a number of times in a row. I had stopped exerting energy to support my tail, so the bushy bunch of fur was being dragged behind me. The sleepier I got...the more my thoughts cast me into solemn territory, where thoughts of things I otherwise resisted thinking of lurked in wait. With the tiniest spec of dread, I reminded myself of Izante.

‘I wonder what she’d be doing right now...’ I shook my head furiously, trying to force myself not to think of her in that moment...but it was so hard. To have this friend for years upon years...and to have her suddenly disappear like a flamethrower into the ocean? The mist of what once was? It tore me apart...and thinking about reasons she had to betray me like she did made my nostrils flare with the scrapings of sorrow.

Why did she do it? Wasn’t I her most treasured life-long friend? Wasn’t I the one she could count on until we both no longer drew breath? The progressing thoughts brought that worthless, arrogant persian she was glued to into the picture, and I snorted as soon as he entered my head. Losing my best friend to a disgusting pokémon like that was distasteful, unbelievable and...heartbreaking.

In the midst of my whirring thoughts, I had to drop the four stalks connected to berries that my teeth held in place and shake my head. I clenched my eyes and forced my clawed toes into the earth below. My ears straightened like spikes out of both sides of my head. My muscles locked up as I began to shiver and my nose fizzled. I let out a breath that had built up, the first of my tears following drip by drip.

I tried my hardest not to think about such things as I opened my eyes after having them closed and collected in my mouth the berries by their stalks. I pressed on, knowing that dwelling in my own sorrow wasn’t going to do me any good. ‘But...I don’t understand!’ I yelled silently. ‘Why would she leave if she seemed so at peace?! She could have told me what was wrong, and maybe I could’ve solved it! Friends talk to each other... They sort things out...’ I froze, releasing the fruit, and stared through the darkness. My eyes didn’t waver as I felt a tingle between my shoulder blades. “What if...what if I was never a good friend...?” The breeze drifted by, blowing my tuft lightly to the right. “What if...what if I was too unreliable to talk to about her problems?” I frowned, searching my mind for more answers. I blinked continuously, a frown etching itself onto my face. “Was I even...her friend...at all?”

Panic flooded me from the tip of my ears to the end of my tail, and I was rendered suddenly helpless. My body was still as my eyes began to quiver. They welled with more tears, my vision blurring as the light I could see from the corner of my eye stretched in fuzzy extensions. A droopy, worthless feeling began to stab me with its sharpened point. Maybe...maybe I deserved betrayal. Maybe it was a just punishment for some kind of heightened inadequacy.

‘But better yet...’ my mind began, and I listened quietly. ‘Maybe she only pretended to like you this whole time.’

A fake friendship. Only for it to end with me realising...how it felts to have been played...and eventually abandoned without hesitation. The game was won and I was not the winner.

I felt like I was taking a beating. A truth-awakening beating I should have had a long time ago. To have believed she was a true friend all these years was so foolish. It proved how blind I had been—how caught up in some wonderful adventure I was, only to run head-on into a wall and wake from the dream. And to seriously think that there would be someone who could take her place only ended with another assumption of an inevitable betrayal. Friends, enemies... I was beginning to doubt there was much a difference if the former could become the latter in the flick of an ear, or perhaps was for a long time...longer than anyone had known. And what was the point of a friend when you’re clearly not worthy, or when in the end they’re going to leave with no explanation, only for you to sit on the spot and blame yourself...?

I hung my head, listening to the many thoughts and theories convince me of the truth... I began to feel like something was eating away at me, as if I was some sort of enticing platter for negativity. I dropped onto the ground, weakened eyes gazing emptily at the soil...

...and just wept.

***

I felt ripples down my spine as I heard running water nearby. I hadn’t noticed it before, but there was the faint rushing of a current in the near distance. I suddenly felt cold – something I didn’t often feel – and I warily lifted my eyelids. The woods had become even quieter, and it seemed gloomier all of a sudden. I blinked a few times, noticing the stiffness of the fur under my eyes.

‘Did I...did I doze off?’ I questioned, my head rising to scan the area. I was in the same place I had broken down in, but this time it felt different thanks to the increased surrounding creepiness. I felt my tail keeping my back left leg company, and the berries I was taking back to Zhol were scattered around my muzzle. I couldn’t have dozed off for too long; it seemed like only minutes ago when I slumped down on the spot, and the berries could have been stolen if they were unattended for long—if anyone had the heart to steal from a hungry flareon, that was.
I hauled myself upwards, stretching my legs and feeling heavy afterwards. I lazily moved my head in the direction I sensed the river was in and began to follow my ears as soon as I had collected the fruit. It was an effort, but I managed to do so fairly easily. The wounds in my leg and ear had both become scabs, and I could no longer feel my leg muscles aching when I walked on it, which was good. And they were healing quickly, too.

I travelled for at least a few minutes before crossing paths with a wide and deep river snaking between trees and through the forest. The branches above were more spaced out, and I could see the sky, bluey black and dotted with stars. I set the food by my side and sat down. I lowered my head to the running water and began to lap it into my mouth. The iciness must have cooled my systems and put out some internal flames, and I had to stop drinking to allow my brain to unfreeze. My throat also ached, but I was too thirsty to stop straight away.

“Hi, there. Are you lost?”

I jumped out of my fur, literally almost toppling into the stream and onto the creature before me. I saved myself with a flareon’s agility, luckily, and my heart thumped like a speedy suicune in my chest. I almost let loose a stream of fire in someone’s half-submerged face, but I stopped myself before it left my jaws. At first I hadn’t the slightest idea of what this thing was, but the familiarity of the species hopped into my head. I stared as the creature’s face turned to a frown, and I took a moment to process the situation.

“What do you think you’re doing?” I questioned, rather incredulous. I knew my heart would need time to calm itself, and in the meantime, I planned to find out exactly what this pokémon wanted.

The water type smirked. “A fire type, ‘ey?” I blinked a few times, wondering what he meant. But by his unimpressed expression, he wasn’t too happy about the fact. “Alright, waddaya want?” His eyelids lowered to rest at half-mast, and he climbed out of the water easily despite the current. His whole figure was steel blue and arched, his eyes large with red irises. I watched as he stretched, the single blue curl sprouting from his head bouncing a little, and then hung over his face. His two red cheeks rose with amusement, making me narrow my eyes a little in response. His body appeared slimy and wet – which made sense – and I had to wonder if he was cold or not. Although I was a fire type, being in water for too long – or any cold place for that matter – was a terrible mistake.

“Uh,” I started, flicking my head once or so to rid myself of the sleepiness still lingering. “I was—I was just getting a drink.”

“From this river?” He shook his head. “You’ll be killed; this stuff’s deadly.”

Shivers erupted along my spine, and I couldn’t do anything but stare. I would... I would die? “W-what?!”

“Geez, you scare easy. I’m only pulling your leg!” he laughed. “Lemme cool you off.”

With no warning other than the ambiguous words which sprouted from his mouth, a jet of chilly mud pushed through the air and onto my face, and I cringed and drew back as soon as it hit. I yelped in objection, scrambling backwards and holding up a foreleg in front of my face in some poor attempt to protect it. “Stl-l-l-l-l-l-lpp!” I gurgled through the sloppy grit. The attack was called off, and I spluttered and forced up a hunk of mud, beginning a coughing fit and keeping my eyes squeezed shut. I could imagine him stifling his cruel laughs as I stumbled to the river without opening my eyes, dipping a paw in brusquely to make sure it was there.

I went to slam my face into the water, only to discover rocks just below the surface, and a splitting pain erupted in my head after a collision with one. I let out a loud screech underwater, but unfortunately that used up my breath and I had to rise out of the despicable substance. I sucked in a breath with a wide-open mouth, releasing a cry afterward which was louder than the sound of the river itself. Knowing I still had mud on my face, I dunked it back in carefully this time, and shook it from side to side with the hopes of it washing away.

After what seemed like minutes, I pulled myself from the stream and slumped by its edge, panting repeatedly. I could hear chuckling nearby, and as soon as I had swallowed in mid-pant, I threw my head is his direction, glaring with annoyance. “You idiot!” I roared, but suddenly my anger paused, drawn to something nearby.

“What the hell was he thinking?!” chirped a shoulder flareon—the black one with a blood red mane, horns and little wings. She suddenly appeared hovering to my left, her anger directed at the politoed before me. I was surprised; I hadn’t seen her in a while besides the momentary encounter back on the ship. She always happened to show up, as well as the angelic one, after a bump to the head. Not that THAT affected anything at all!

“He was only trying to help,” insisted the white and gold one with little wings and a halo above her head. She floated by my right, looking at me with an innocent but matured expression.

“Help?! Hah!” spat the demon-like one. “I didn’t know you were so funny!”

“It wasn’t a joke, you simple-minded, rage-driven flareon.” The angel-like one just sat in mid air, her anger controlled if not absent. The other growled, her head lowering and her fur puffing up.

“Uhh...” I butted in, and the two looked at me. I moved my head to each of them at a time. I didn’t really know what to say...so I didn’t.

“What?” insisted the one to my left, but I just shrugged.

“You must have a view of your own,” the angelic one mentioned.

“Well...I do have to agree with you,” I decided, pointing my muzzle at the demonic flareon.

“HAH!” she yelled, crossing to the other one. “She agrees with me and not you.”

“Dusty,” the other one spoke, coming out in front of my muzzle with the other one following. “Don’t let Miss Grumpy here dictate your thoughts. She doesn’t set a good example for anyone to follow.” By this point, the demonic one was fuming again. “Letting scorn control you like you’re its puppet is not the way to go.”

“Hatred is powerful! More powerful than your stupid ‘calm and happiness’ crap.” While speaking part of the sentence, the black and red one danced around and used a silly voice to show her disapproval. “Oh, look at me, Miss I-Know-Everything! Don’t be angry! Don’t seek revenge! Don’t do anything that could possibly hurt anyone.”

The calm shoulder-flareon sighed. “You are so immature...”

“You’re not seriously going to listen to her drabble, are you?” the ash-coloured one questioned.

“Uh—uhh... Well, you gotta be angry and seek revenge sometimes. Bottling up the anger isn’t going to cure anyone,” I admitted.

“Hah! Told ya. My way’s better,” jeered the darker one, reclaiming the left shoulder again with a smug grin and a flaunty gait.

“Dusty, just please don’t make a fool of yourself like my negative counterpart here. Remember to see things from others’ points of view. It’s important for success.” She slowly faded away until she was but nothing. The other one had her tongue poking out as her opposite vanished, but shortly after, she too began to disappear. She had a grin on her face, and as she was seated, her tail flicked back and forth beside her as it rested against the non-existent ground. She still held the naughty smile as she faded completely, and afterwards I took a breath.

I turned to the politoed, noting his perplexed face. It was essentially a frown with an open mouth and confused eyes. “Uhh...are you okay?” he asked with caution. I snorted in a laughing fashion, knowing it wouldn’t make sense to him even if I explained.

I shifted my paws around and paced backwards, then bent my neck down to collect the berries. I glanced back over my shoulder with the stalks through my teeth before I padded away, following the river back through the forest. I imagined he would have sat there for about twenty or so seconds before deciding to splash into the water – as that’s what I heard not too long after – and thankfully he didn’t follow.

[Suicune's Fire]

Chapter Fourteen: Travelling Just Drags On

Zhol and I had made our way north for two or so days since I had met up with her after the politoed incident. At certain stages we would come across various pokémon who attacked us for territorial among other reasons, avoiding other unwelcome parties, but we were still a while away from her home. And despite my great skill, I, for some reason, was unable to catch any prey at all...and Zhol had been getting all our food instead. For variety we ate some of the berries I managed to bring back nearly most nights. Eventually we had covered a wide expanse of land and we were both somewhat confident we would reach her colony within several days if we stuck to the right path – and with my sense of direction it was likely – and didn’t take too long when we stopped for breaks.

“Ugh...hungryyy...” I complained as we sat down, belly rumbling. Zhol was probably hungry as well, but knowing her, she’d be the last pokémon to complain. I tore a leaf from nearby off its twig and began to chew, but I spat it out straight afterwards, shaking my head as if in an attempt to rid my tastebuds of the bitter flavour. “Lehck,” I reacted, pulling a paw up to my face and licking it to kill the taste. “Even my fur tastes better...”

The sneasel let out a barely audible sigh as she sat with her paws set in front of her with her legs spread lazily, her back straight against the boulder behind her. Apparently she wasn’t hungry, or if she was, she wasn’t letting the world know...unlike me. She closed her eyes and lay down, noting that the shaded sky was a good indication of the time. I knew that was how it was supposed to be as well, but without food...it would take me forever to fall into an unconscious state. ‘Who goes to bed on an empty stomach?’

As a result, I forced myself to get up and search for something to satisfy myself with. “Zhol...I’m just gonna go for a stroll,” I notified, and she responded by sliding her eyelids up about two centimetres and then returning them. “Heh, heh,” I began, “I just rhymed unintentionally.”

***

It hadn’t been long when I stopped for a break. Kicking up soil in a frustrated manner, I slumped myself onto the earth and huffed. Why was there nothing to eat around here? No prey, no bushes with fruit... All I could do was nibble on leaves... LEAVES! ‘This is getting ridiculous...’ I thought angrily. ‘There’s always a bush with some sort of fruit...’ However, complaining wasn’t going to get me anywhere... “But still!”

I got to my paws again and began to make my way agitatedly back to where Zhol was, knowing – but still secretly hoping otherwise – that on my path back there wouldn’t be any food sources I had missed the first time I walked past them.

I could hear hoots and crickets as I continued through the darkness. Although I liked it, it was better when there was someone with me... But I pushed aside the thought. Or I tried. My mind wandered back to when Izante would accompany me wherever I padded... She’d be right beside me, laughing at one of my jokes and calling me crazy while our trainers were dawdling behind with each other.

I halted. It suddenly dawned on me. “Our masters were together... Izante’s master and mine...together... But if...if Izante’s a Rocket pokémon, then doesn’t that mean...her trainer is too?” My eyes grew wider and I clenched my jaws. “They might still be together now...” I began to ponder another possibility, as well... A possibility that I hadn’t come across before. “What if she...” I muttered, looking down. “What if her trainer wasn’t a Rocket? Maybe she... She could have joined Team Rocket while on the ship so she could escape. That...that stupid cat could have persuaded her... And it makes sense as to why she couldn’t...help me.” I cringed at the memory as I let my eyes twinkle across the ground’s surface, reconsidering. “No,” I grunted, “impossible. There’s no way they would have let her join so suddenly. Surely they would have to undergo some sort of test or training or whatever...” The plausibility of her master not being on the Rocket’s side seemed minimal, which only led me to believe he was the one who started it and Izante was forced into it as a pup. “Holy Moltres...” I visualised several images of my trainer in multiple situations where she was at the mercy of my ex-friend’s master, each predicament twisting painfully in my mind. “No!” I shouted, stressing my toes. However, I stopped to think. Master was smart. If she had raised me to be as smart as I was, then obviously she had to be responsible for some if not all of it. But...but what if she had been fooled? What if he led her into an alleyway in a dreary city on a blackened night and...and...

Catching me off guard, crunching leaves echoed from behind—to the west. I threw my gaze about, unable to spot whatever was making the noise, but it was obviously something distant which was drawing nearer. It was too far away and obscured by the trees between us for me to spot it – let alone identify it – and through the scattered, branchless-until-high-up trees, one would assume that it would be an easy task. And yet the darkness was lowering my sight’s accuracy for one and there were many slopes throughout the forest which happened to be skilled at concealment.

I felt the need to hide, but without much cover whatsoever, it was hard to find a spot. Any shrubs – which were less than common – were not plentiful enough to provide protection and the trees were too thin for me to dart behind. They were also too spaced out for me to use more than one at the same time, so unless I could divide myself into two, a skill I was sure would be handy at times, there wasn’t much of a hope. ‘Even though it would be cool...’ I shook my head, thinking that it wasn’t the time to be fantasising about things I was unable to do, and kept trying to come up with a solution. With the presumable pokémon closing in, I didn’t have much time. ‘I could run,’ I thought, but reconsidered once I confirmed that I was keen on finding out what it was. By the sounds of its pawsteps it was large, but then again I couldn’t be sure.

Figuring I would be kept at a safe distance but I would still be able to see it, I dashed behind a tall trunk and barely had to wait until something furry came over a slope. It was taking enormous strides and it reached my place within seconds of when it was slipped into my view. I couldn’t make out what it was because of its pace and the blurred darkness, but whatever its species...it was far larger than me.

The quadruped raced past with blinding speed, and I was amazed (and thankful it didn’t bother to stop and...injure or eat me). However, I widened my eyes at something I caught a glimpse of before it passed... There was something...on its back...that was pointing at me. ‘Pointing,’ I repeated in my head, ‘like humans do.’ It took me another second to consider the thought of, even though I found it confusing and strange, a human actually being what was on its back. But by that time the pokémon was gone and the alleged passenger was no longer visible. It had disappeared as quickly as it had come.

“Oh well. I’m too tired to worry about it,” I muttered, trotting back to Zhol’s sleeping spot a while later. “I should get some sleep...” I walked to the rock behind Zhol and climbed on top of it. It was smooth and had few spots of moss in little patches. I sat down, drawing my four legs in towards my body and wrapping my tail around my back two. I set my head on my paws, but my ears remained rather erect. I gave a sigh and shut my eyes, letting my mind settle in preparation for a long, well-deserved sleep.

***

“Where are we supposed to start looking?” asked a figure that sighed with agitation. The tiny light coloured pokémon seemed to avoid being touched by slimy reeds leaning over next to him.

“I don’t know...” another one replied, looking disappointed and almost sad about the fact.

“Is this the place?” questioned the first form. A third pokémon bent over and skimmed a white glove-like hand over pawprints.

“It’s where we were told they were,” the one who had spoken second – a stout green pokémon walking on four legs – confirmed. He too glanced about, scanning the area with his triangular eyes. Two fangs stuck out from below the two nostrils he used once lifting his head to scent the air. Leaves and a closed bud on his sloping body wobbled as he zipped between nearby trees; he was sure he spotted a lead. “This way,” he suggested, and the other two pokémon followed. They passed many trees on their way through, stamping marks in the dirt as they went, and finally spotted a collection of small charred logs. As the trio approached the remains of a resting place, two of them smirked. Ash sprinkled the wood, and four feathers with traces of blood on one were on the ground near their feet. Pawprints dotted the sandy dirt, and there were bigger circles where pokémon would have once sat as well as a faint scent.

“It appears we’ve found their campsite,” the tallest of them all pointed out. He neared the collection of logs and bent his thin pink, white knee-capped legs to touch the coals. He wasn’t expecting them to be hot at all, and his assumption was confirmed as he held one easily in his white gloved hand. He inclined his pink head to the left and then his right, addressing both his colleagues, and grinned maliciously.

***

“Dusty,” whispered Zhol, “wake up.”

“Mrmh-hurm-hurm,” I uttered, eyes still closed.

“Get up,” she hissed with impatience.

Lazily I opened my eyes as I realised my head was hanging off the rock. The moment I gained sight, a sharp nose – and glare – was staring down at me. “WAHH!” I squealed, scrambling from my awkward sleeping position to a seated one with my defences raised. It must only have been an hour or two later than when I had fallen asleep because it was still dark. We had company this time. “Uh, wh—...” I leaned closer to Zhol, my grogginess nearly causing me to tip. She stood right in front of the rock I had slept on and seemed to be looking sternly at a shaggy figure. She didn’t move, but since I had my muzzle inches from her right ear, I knew she could hear me. “Who are they?” I began gazing around with my eyes as my head remained close to the sneasel’s face, breathing slowly. By the way they had us surrounded, I was sure they weren’t sticking around to play.

“Why,” murmured a grass type double my height, “do you trespass?”

“...We do not trespass to cause trouble,” Zhol calmly replied, her eyes serious and firm. “We are passing through.”

“Nonsense!” snapped the pokémon, reacting with his whole body. “Too common is that response! And too often does it prove to be a lie!” His blanket-like mane of grey settled on his back after being tossed about while the three leaves on the end of each arm also calmed.

I expected Zhol to react with a yelled sentence of her own, but she inhaled and held her steady gaze. “Excuse me, mister shiftry,” I intervened, and his piercing glare almost threw me off the rock. I took a moment to continue... “We were just leaving, so...” I dropped from the rock and flashed a phoney smile and a quick stretch. “Thanks for the hospitality. It was a pleasure to meet you all!” I strode over-gleefully off in the direction we’d be heading, but two nuzleaf stepped in my way, closing off the space between them. I kept a small, pretend smile. “‘Scuse me!” But the grass and dark types narrowed their eyes and held up a hand each in an offensive stance with their other hand drawn back. Zhol shook her head disapprovingly while the shiftry stared intently at me. “Okay! Sorry!” I said in an annoyed fashion. I could have been talking to either the shiftry and his crew or Zhol—both, I figured.

“Sneasel,” began the shiftry in a rusty voice, dragging on the word. Zhol’s eyes switched to his. “Your kind does not live in these areas,” he mused, suspicion written all over his face. “Are you not an outsider? Do you wish to pass through for a valid reason? Or is it you come here as spies?!”

“We’re going t—”

Zhol snapped her head in my direction, her eyes wide and her message clear—she definitely wanted me to shut up. I submitted willingly, folding my lips in. The dark and ice type’s head slowly moved back to the direction her body was facing. The shiftry only seemed more impatient. “I, Zhol, sneasel of the Usster Colony to the north, am journeying home.”

‘...Usster Colony, hey? Hmm... I wonder what kind of pokémon she lives with...’

“Where is it you come from? Hunting? You are not north enough to be on a simple hunting trip!”

I first thought he was asking where she was from again right after he had already asked. ‘Uhh, she just said, ding-dong,’ I had thought with sarcasm, but when I realised what he meant, I was the one sounding dumb.

“You must be Rokont spies!” he howled, and his gang of nuzleaf tensed and became both uneasy and angered.
I drew my head back, my face encompassed with a frown. ‘...Ro...kont?’ But that became the least of my worries as I realised these pokémon could spring any second and take us out. Due to that, I readied myself in case I needed to loose a stream of fire.

“A ship,” Zhol stated coldly. “We came from...a human ship.” Several blinks of surprise flashed on each nuzleaf’s face, and I scanned their group, noticing how shocked they all were. It was odd to see the sudden change in their attitudes.

The shiftry growled. Obviously he didn’t like the sound of that. “A human ship, you say?”

Zhol responded first with a nod. “Team Rocket’s ship.”

Sharp breath intakes made me aware of these pokémon’s familiarity with the organisation, and I had to wonder how popular they were. I heard two to three names being exchanged between members of the nuzleaf gang, and the shiftry’s posture weakened a little.

But suddenly he perked up again, catching our attention. “I have had kin who were pokénapped by those vile monsters and never returned!” The pokémon stepped forward a pace. “If you are lying, I will show you no mercy. What is your proof?!”

“Shiftry,” I started, stepping beside Zhol as if to back her up. I swallowed. “Have you seen a Rocket up close?”

He narrowed his eyes. “Zhol – sneasel of the Usster Colony to the north – who is this?”

Zhol was stumped at this according to her reaction – or lack-there-of – and I realised I was the only one besides Izante who knew about my history. Despite this though, she had a go. “She is...Dusty, flareon of another land.” To ‘another land’ the shiftry appeared uneasy, but Zhol didn’t allow him to get a word in. “She was the rescuer of every captured pokémon...on that vessel. Had it not been for her, many pokémon would not have escaped and many more of them would be dead.”

I shrugged, holding an “oh, shucks” look on my face. The nuzleaf evolution looked more convinced, but I could tell he wasn’t going to stop there.

“She also fought off a possessed beast for the safety of other pokémon.”

“As I have asked, what is your proof?” he shouted to silence his minions as they began quietly muttering after Zhol’s explanation. “You,” – he looked at me – “were asking me this why?”

“Oh!” I realised I hadn’t finished. “Well...have you seen one up close?” He sneered and answered in the affirmative. “Then did you happen to see...what they’re equipped with?” I asked in a serious manner. The shiftry obviously had seen what they carried, because he flinched as soon as I mentioned it. The wicked image of when I had first seen Zhol returned to my head, and it hurt me to let it resurface on purpose. “Well, if you want proof—!”

I bent my head down at Zhol’s right hip, pointing with my nose to a mark on her body where something had singed her fur and left a burn on her skin. The shiftry gasped, staggering backward. He gathered that a pokémon couldn’t have done this—especially in the shape it was, and it looked more like an electricity wound than one caused by fire.

“The Team Rocket taser is a handheld weapon carried by humans who do the bidding of Team Rocket’s leader. This device shoots electrical currents through the subject’s bodies to make them seize up and become incapacitated via two prongs of metal—hence the two-dotted mark it left. This was used on poor Zhol because she was trying to fight for her freedom!” I almost became angry with all the motivation my explanation was gathering. “And if that’s not proof enough, then...well, surely you would know of guns.” I turned so my left side was facing the grass and dark type so he could see, and it must have only then set in that we were telling the truth. “I was shot by a human for finding freedom and helping other pokémon.” I bent my head down, letting my wounded ear come into view to clarify it again. I waited a pawful of seconds before returning myself, and I began to analyse the shiftry, who seemed more believing.

“Hm,” he grumbled, looking away. “...Do not underestimate the forest as you may have done your freedom task.” He changed his position, standing with his back to us. He turned his head so we could see the side of it. “May your journey be safe.” I knew he was trying to be nice, or perhaps even sympathetic, and I appreciated the effort.

In a matter of seconds the long-nosed pokémon and his gang were bounding between branches off in the direction I was facing, and I smiled. We had been able to convince a pokémon of the forest—a nice change from the pokémon we had been running into lately who wanted to challenge us without reason.

“We should get going,” she mentioned, and I blinked at her, a little dumbfounded.

“Why?” I glanced to the rock I had slept on. “We barely slept!”

The sneasel closed her eyes and took a moment to breathe. “We are not well tolerated in this area. I would advise that we keep moving so we don’t overstay the little welcome we have.”

“Alright...” I grew a look of exhaustion as she walked in front of me, her right side in my face before she took off. “W-wait! Slow down, will ya?” I had to catch up, so I began sprinting after her. But, being so early in the morning, I couldn’t quite get a grip on a proper speed and my limbs failed to move properly after a stiff sleep. “But wait! What about my sleep? I get cranky if I don’t get enough sleep!” However, she didn’t seem to care much for that. “Hey—will you wait up?” I growled, slowing down to a stop with a grouchy expression. “Fine,” I said under my breath, huffing a wisp of fire. “Stupid nocturnal...partly.” I eyed a spot of grass at the base of a common tree since rocks were less than abundant and strode over to it with slow steps. I was tired and hungry. ...And annoyed. ‘Why can’t she just agree for once and listen to me?’ But as soon as I sat down, a sudden hoot made me jump. I froze in the instant and began feeling...a little lonely.

“Hoo, hoo...”

I skimmed the leaves visually, trying to filter out any pokémon that would explain the sounds, but all I captured was rustling clumps of canopy and the noise of fluttering wings. My breathing’s pace increased, and I began swallowing frequently. My fur fluffed and I became completely still while my ears awaited the next sound. Suspicious hooting and chuckling rang in the small space I had created around me, and I finally regretted having not followed that darn sneasel. I also came to realise that only then, when I was alone, I started to be freaked out by this common and harmless audio...

I squeaked as something sharp poked the back of my leg, and I leapt forward and spun around. However, I identified the predator as...a stick. “Great. Now the twigs are preying on me...”

“HOOO!”

“Eep!” I seemed to shrink as I tried not to listen to the taunting pokémon around me, but I knew I couldn’t stay frozen and cowering for long. “...Okay, alright,” I sighed quietly, “I’m coming already...” I bravely uncurled and turned around, unable to see far into the dark distance—meaning I couldn’t see Zhol. I didn’t hear her footsteps, either, which made me bite my lip. “D’aw,” I whined, finding the courage to bolt through the darkness the same way Zhol vanished. ‘Funny,’ I mentioned to myself. ‘You can stand up to a possessed garchomp several times your height, but you can’t confront the darkness on your own with a straight face?’

I travelled for only a few minutes, zooming through the scenery with multiple thoughts on my mind. “Zhol!” I exclaimed, targeting the dark silhouette standing on what looked like the end of the path. My paws trampled hundreds of twigs and leaves as I continued to run, and the ice and dark type whirled around, slipping a claw to her lips vertically. I was aware of the rushing current I could hear a short ways away, and since she was standing on the edge of a padded (because of the thick blanket of foliage) cliff, I assumed that there was a wide river resting far below.

She seemed to be annoyed with me, and at a guess I assumed it was because I hadn’t been able to keep up and chose to remain behind. But it wasn’t my fault! She shouldn’t have run off on me when I was still tired.

I exhaustedly padded towards her once my pace faded into a tired hobble, and every breath was a pant. “Thanks...for waiting...” I managed to sarcastically say before collapsing onto the forest’s floor in front of her, several multi-shaped leaves rising and floating back down again. I could have drifted off within mere minutes had Zhol let me, but she signalled silently for me to stand beside her. I rolled my eyes and slipped out a sigh backed with agitation, stepping next to her.

“I wasn’t smart to leave you by yourself,” she admitted straight off, and I flattened my mouth.

“True, true,” I said while nodding, my eyelids only half open.

She turned back to what was in front of her, and only then did I see it. A river as wide as I had imagined was running downstream in a rightward direction down below, and in a few places it snaked into different ways. The land that continued stretched into the distance was on the same level as the river—therefore making the cliff we were standing on the highest ground for many kilometres. Of course, there were cloud-reaching mountains in the distance that looked like they would take weeks more to reach that were far taller than the land we had been travelling on, but that didn’t count.

Off to our left was the same cliff that we were on which extended until it curved around and kept going in the direction we had been heading, and I could see that not too far away it began sloping down and probably stopped doing so as it reached the rest of the land’s level. The cliff had created a waterfall which fell to keep the river from stopping, bouncing and rolling off the giant stones jutting from the cliff face. One of the ways the river after the waterfall turned off in was in the direction we were headed, toward the mountains, and it basically followed the land that began slanting a few metres away from it. I might have been able to pick out more detail had it been lighter, but it was bright enough (courtesy of the glimmering stars which stroked the world with their shining touch) to make out the path ahead.

“That’s lovely and all,” I began, turning my head to the left, “but...can we sleep now, please? I’ll promise to admire it properly in the morning and give you a melodramatic reaction.”

Zhol took a breath, running her claws laxly down a tree’s trunk her right paw was on and met my gaze as she faced me. She was about to comment, but nodded instead, holding back a smile I knew would have come if she hadn’t been as aware of it.

“Score!” I whispered, slumping down immediately and curling up.

The sneasel turned and wandered to a tree a few metres back with a rather wide trunk and I watched as she, her back to me and on the other side of the tree, took a seat and crossed her arms. It was smart to be on watch; she was facing the forest where the more likely source of predators would come... Plus, bigger trunks meant more width which led to more comfort. It also looked like a great place for me to curl up at, and...the water nearby began to get to me. And although I could still hear it after I got to my legs and wearily walked paces back, I was happier to be right next to my travelling buddy. And besides, it was further away from the liquid. I rested my head on my paws and wrapped my fluffy tail around my side. ‘...Zhol nearly smiled. That’s both a good and rare sight.’ I relaxed myself, happy to be allowed more sleep. But the thought of the dark and ice pokémon wanting to rise and shine early made me groan on the inside. That could wait till it actually happened.

***

I woke to a start as a leaf split in two. My ears flew directly up and I shot to my paws. A pokémon’s eyes darted to mine, and I sleepily squinted. ‘Just a pidgey,’ I thought. ‘Wait... Breakfast!’ I bolted towards it under the direction of my stomach as they took to the air after cooing uncomfortably. “Come back! I just wanna eat you!” I taunted. I found it very convenient that the bird pokémon didn’t fly through the roof-like leaves protecting me from the sun’s rays, but along an obvious path of straight ahead. Luckily the way we were moving wasn’t the way to the edge of the cliff, but in the direction it ran—towards the waterfall. I almost began drooling as I neared it, and I could feel my teeth about to nip its wings, but I could tell the flying type was petrified.

At first a spot appeared wherever my eyes looked, but rapidly my vision began to darken. I was alarmed and immediately tumbled over my paws, collecting droppings and dirt as I rolled. I shrieked, confused as I could no longer see. ‘A pokémon attack?!’ I suspected, but my thoughts temporarily disbanded as I skidded to a stop in a strange position, my body aching of scratches from stones. Something had reopened my leg muscle wound by the feel of it, but I was unable to confirm since I was blinded! “Z-Zhol!” I called awkwardly, staying completely still in fear of something happening. Although it didn’t hurt, my head felt like it was spinning and being squeezed. I blinked several times, panting heavily...and the blackness slowly leaked from my head. I blinked three more times, finding that by the end of the period my sight was almost completely clear. I waited a moment before slowly untangling myself. My head cautiously patrolled my surroundings, but nothing was out of the ordinary. I could no longer hear the pidgey’s flapping wings, but food was off my mind. Sensing everything was fine, I lifted myself up, looking around another time.

“Dusty!” a frantic voice hissed, and I whipped my head around as a speedy sneasel entered from behind me.

“Z-Zhol! Stop!” I ordered, and I noticed her concerned expression as she abruptly followed my request, a fair distance between us. She obviously wanted answers, as anyone would, but I took a few seconds to keep talking. “There’s...” I continued, glancing around again. “There’s something out here.” Zhol’s head cocked to one side, and I imitated her as she tossed her gaze about to confirm my words. She scented the air as I watched her for a response, but once she finished she returned her eyes to me.

“I smell forest, you and me, and river,” she said. “Bird scents linger, and several other pokémon’s, but that is all besides other natural wild smells. Can you not smell for yourself?” she asked with wonder to her tone.

“Yeah, but...” I hastily trotted over to her, suspiciously checking all directions as I went. “I was blinded!” I whispered in a serious manner, her response multiple blinks. “Something fogged my vision with darkness!”

She didn’t need long to have a change of expression, and the perplexity in her face subsided. “Tell me what you did,” she asked. I understood why; if I made too much noise or something I could have woken up a grumpy forest resident. One who could have felt an obligation to punish me.

“Well, I woke up to a pidgey nearby which made me jump. At first I didn’t care, but then I thought that it might have been a good menu item and so I chased after it, but not long into my run, black colouring suddenly crept into my view and I couldn’t see! ...And then I fell over.” I remembered my injury and turned my head over my left shoulder to see its damage. The scab had been removed, so it was bleeding and it hurt. I looked back to her as she crossed her arms and spoke again.

“You...got up the moment after you woke up and began running?” she confirmed, and I paused, then nodded. “Was it painful?”

“Yes!” I replied straight away, and she grew a light frown. However, it vanished after she heard my next comment. “Well...not that much since it was only stones and sticks, but...” I met her eyes again, and realised she was asking about the sight thing. “Oh—the blindness didn’t hurt, but my head went all weird...but that didn’t hurt either. Just felt strange.”

Zhol sighed, beginning to walk past me in the same direction I had been chasing the pidgey—the way we needed to go. I shouted after her, asking her what her she thought it was and where she was going, and she stopped to turn her head as I caught up. “Blood.”

“...Blood?” I wondered.

“Yes. As you lie, your blood pools in certain places in your body and doesn’t circulate as effectively as if you’re standing, so when you get up too quickly after being in a lying position for long enough, the blood rushes to your head, causing dizziness and blackened vision,” she explained. I nodded, taking it all in.

“So...it wasn’t a pokémon attacking me?”

Zhol probably wondered why I had thought that in the first place, but she shook her head. “Be more careful next time. Okay?” She waited a moment and then continued ahead. I followed, leaping twice to catch up.

“Well, come to think of it, it’s happened to me a few times before. I never really got a chance to ask anyone about it.” Interested, I wanted to know more. “But, Zhol—it doesn’t happen often.”

She sighed, probably presumed we were done with the topic, and said, “It’s due to low blood pressure. And since you haven’t eaten properly in more than two days, that would also be a cause.”

“Uurgh, don’t remind me,” I complained, feeling my stomach whine at me. I told it to shut up.

I heard several screeches and other bird-like calls waver as they weaved through the air, filling all ears listening in nearby. Accompanying it was the soft swaying of the leaves and the rushing current of the river—all natural sounds. Unlike when we were on the ship; the audio there was the humming of the vessel’s engine, the mournful cries of pokémon distraught or dying, the crashing waves keeping the ship afloat and the noise of pure fear. Cold, hard fear. A fear that I had never sensed or witnessed before...

The ongoing current nearby recaptured my attention. I widened my eyes. “...HOLY MILTANK!” I yelped, bounding across to the cliff’s face and looking out at the scenery first before staring down. The water sparkled under the sunlight and the view spanning for kilometres was fantastic. The assorted trees danced as their branches reached for the high flying bird pokémon, the clouds watching down from the turquoise sky. It was truly a sight to behold. “ZHOL! This is magical... I can’t believe a place like this exists!” I was half serious and half acting, as I promised her a proper reaction when I woke up, but it was true that this place looked better when it was light.

Zhol nodded, leaning against a trunk with her arms crossed. Even though she wasn’t a happy and bouncy pokémon, she was appreciative of things worthwhile. Not that the two were obviously connected, but it was nice to see her in a situation that she was content about. And seeing her reaction, I wondered if she lived in a place like where we were and what we could see. It was either that or, being a sneasel, she lived in a frosty area cold and ice type-like and rarely got to see sights such as this one.

Reminding me of something I had been meaning to ask her regarding her living environment, once we were back on track I cleared my throat. “Hey, Zhol,” I began, not waiting for a reply, “you never told me what your colony was like.” She kept her eyes on our path as we stepped around holes and the occasional branch, seeming to think. Specifying, I continued, “Like...what kind of pokémon are part of it? Species, I mean. Is it mixed? Or...”

She craned her neck, swaying her arms subtly as her claws met and then parted. “The Usster Colony is a clan of pokémon from around the lands... Some came there for specific reasons and for others, it was random.”
“How did you wind up living with them? Don’t sneasel usually reside in icy plains...or something?”

From the moment I asked the question I knew I had chosen the wrong questions. Zhol’s fists curled and tensed and her legs froze. Her face turned to that of a hurt and sorrowful expression—one I didn’t often see from not only her, but anyone. She kept her glare fixed on a twig as I first thought to meet her eyes but quickly decided that would prove troublesome, so instead I stayed where I was, a step ahead of her, my gaze at the ground as well. The sneasel took a breath but didn’t remove her stare. “Dusty...have I been fair and willing to talk to you whenever you asked something?”

I broke from where I was looking to change locations, but she didn’t rise to meet me. “Uh-uh...yeah?”

“Then it should be reasonable to say I can’t talk on behalf of this one particular matter,” she uttered, a tinge of hostility to her words. I feared it was directed at me and lowered my tone.

“O...okay. Y-uhh...” I was unsure of what to say, but Zhol stepped forward and continued walking, so it was clear that all I had to do was follow. “Hey...Zhol,” I started. I expected her to stop, but she kept going. “...Sorry. I didn’t know it was...something you’d—”

“Dusty.” She halted, this time allowing me to grab her eyes. “...It’s alright.” She shuffled through the leaves as I stayed on the spot for a moment and frowned.

‘...It... It is?’

Eventually we reached the end of the cliff before it turned to our right. The waterfall’s before-river had a rapid flow prior to tumbling off the edge, creating the very plentiful cascade. It was loud and threatening—I don’t know how so many pokémon could think that the sound was soothing. A beautiful sight? It spat on me and beckoned for me to fall and have my head hammered in under the might of its crushing weight. Refreshing? To jump in there would wreck my coat as well as extinguish any brewing fire. ‘I’ll never understand the fascination with water...’

We crossed it with a few precautions by using rocks lodged in the bottom of the water as stepping stones. I almost slipped at one point and accidentally dipped my tail into it, so the end of it was wet. Yay. But after that it was pretty simple: we moved on down the slope accompanying one of the rivers that branched off from the main one and continued to follow it through more forest.

That part of the forest was much less dry than where we had previously been, and moss was rather copious and grew almost everywhere it could. We saw more pokémon—a few more water types like goldeen and remoraid in the waters and spotted a cluster of combee buzzing about an enormous oak tree with probably enough space for a giant hive. Pachirisu were common amongst large tree and were often able to be spotted in groups of three before scurrying out of sight again. Other insect-like pokémon such as caterpie and weedle popped up in places as well, often using the same method as the pachirisu. It wasn’t very welcoming that nobody was there to even give us a warm ‘hello’. Sneasel and flareon never normally eat bug types! So why would either of us? And catching a pachirisu was another matter entirely and by the looks of their speed and flexibility, I would surely lose them in a chase that wouldn’t last long.

Neither of us really said anything for the next few hours. The same thing repeated itself as we trekked closer to the mountains, and we both (Zhol rather reluctantly) ate a few berries we happened to pass. Water was freely available, being only metres away from us the whole time, which, although unnerving, was quite convenient.

A day had passed before we managed to snag some fish from a small pond we crossed paths with, and I was finally satisfied as I had a decent-sized one to myself. We had also covered significant ground since the day before at the waterfall, and I was confident Zhol knew where she was going. ...And hopefully she was too.

Evening fell yet again as it always did near the same time each day, the Sun hinting that soon it would submerge beyond the horizon as it shone its last rays. Zhol and I were still trekking up a hill that seemed to go on for a while—a sign that the mountains were drawing nearer. The trees were thinning out and becoming less abundant and the temperature – although at a leisurely rate – was increasingly dropping. She told me that once we were at the top of the hill we would stop and rest, and depending on how tired we were by the end we would either sleep or keep moving.

It seemed like another fifteen or so minutes before we would reach the hill’s peak, and that seemed to pass painfully slowly. My legs ached by the end, but at least there was relief to aid me as I slumped against the ground and let my eyelids slide down and meet. “Zhol,” I panted, listening as she must have leaned against a tree. “We are not going on.” I waited about five seconds for a reply, but I decided I wouldn’t get one. “Come on—let’s go to sleep.”

I could only imagine her frown. “It’s too early for that,” she muttered. “And, Dusty—there’s no shelter here.”

I growled with annoyance, dragging on a frustrated noise while opening my eyes to look at her. “Whyyyyyy?” But I knew why. In fact, she had already said why. “Well...can we at least rest for a while?”

“...Yes,” she agreed, sitting against the tree. “With the progress we’re making, we should be there by tomorrow afternoon.”

I blinked with surprise, a frown of my own weaving across my face. “Umm...what?” I questioned with disbelief. Was she crazy? I moved my head to the tall mountains situated still a fair while away. I became disappointed as I realised how close I thought they were compared to the reality. They hadn’t been within my view for the whole day because of trees and that enormous slope, so I had pictured them not to be far. “How do we get to the mountains – let alone climb to the other side of them – in less than one day?” I asked cynically.

Zhol looked surprised. She glanced to the same formations I had been referring to and then back to me. “You...plan on passing the mountains?”

I nodded slowly. “Yeah...” I waited for her to give me an answer to my question, but when I gave her the time to, she didn’t. I then thought of something. “Wait... Your colony...is on the other side of those mountains, right?”

“No... Was that what you assumed?”

I let my thoughts figure it out, pulling myself up so I was sitting. “Hah,” I chuckled, clearing my face of negative expression. “I never actually asked where it was! For some odd reason the impression I had was that it was...” I sank into a laying position, facing the direction we would head off in. “...So, does that mean the clan lives close to them?”

“Relatively. It’s a few days from the foot of the closest mountain,” the sneasel told me. She rose to her feet and shifted her eyes to mine. “...When is it you want to continue?” she wondered.

I met her soft stare. “Oh, soon...” I answered. “...Come on,” I offered shortly after, brushing the grass beside me with my fluffy tail, smiling with a friendly tone, “take a seat.” I nodded as if gesturing to the spot and telling her to sit. “We’ll wait for the Sun to go down and then we’ll head off. ‘Kay?” I increased my smile and closed my eyes gleefully, and after she hesitated but complied, I began to sway the puff ball on my rear end. She gave somewhat of a smile of her own and bent her knees so her feet were touching and laid her arms so her paws were in the gap between them. “Great view, huh?”

“Mm,” the dark and ice type nodded, and soon after, she stretched out her legs and leant on her arms before extending them behind her. “It’s...pretty.”

***

“...So, is it possible? Can you help us?”

I stared at the pokémon before me with the same confused and sceptical face as before, trying to understand why these creatures were so boneheaded! And I was still upset with them for their apprehension method. My head hurt. “Wh— Look, I’m sorry, but we have problems of our own right now, and to sto—”

“Please! We’re begging you! We need your help!” pleaded one—the leader, it seemed.

“But you don’t even know if I’m your ally or your foe at this stage! You can’t just gra—” I explained in a what-the-hell-is-wrong-with-you manner, but I was interrupted yet again.

“But please! We can see you’re a good pokémon!” the head of his colony tried to convince, his speech impediment getting on my nerves.

“But that doesn’t even—!”

“We’ll give you a reward...” an accomplice – the pre-evolution of the pokémon in charge – cut in hopefully.

I sighed, glancing behind me. My two abductors stood on guard—well, sat on guard at the entrance. They were, too, looking worriedly towards me, their heads lowered to make them look almost as if they had done something wrong, but I knew they were concerned about my answer. “...How long will it take?” I asked after sighing and looking at my toes. I kept my eyes on him with a non-impressed expression, agitated and impatient. My tail flicked with irritation.

“N...not long,” said the supposed superior, looking to his side to the smaller pokémon, and I assumed he began to wonder if I was, in fact, going to agree. By the look on his face, I assumed he was more convinced I would help out.

“No, I want a figure. Minutes? Hours? If you ca—”

“A figure? Oh, no, no. It could be a while before they come back, or it could be in seconds! And the dams usually take most of the night to build,” interjected who must have been second in charge.

I gave her a forced, very light smile as I twitched with annoyance, my hostile eyes getting in the way of my appearance of a calm flareon. But I stopped, going over her words in my mind. “Dam?” I glanced between the two pokémon, a tad eager for more answers. “What dam...?”

Fifteen minutes earlier...

Like I had promised, we rested for around ten minutes before getting up, stretching and clearing the other side of the hill. It had been a while since I had gone downhill, and I was forced to lope down it awkwardly, unable to own control over my ability to stop. Zhol looked as if she had similar problems, but she wasn’t the one who ended up tripping and landing face-first into a tree trunk...

I redeemed myself by picking up my body as if nothing had happened and shaking off. I had become distracted and pounced on a cricket hoping to hop from harm’s way, making sure I didn’t crush it. Zhol watched, looking as if her plan was to press on, but I leapt after the small insect, swiping with my paws and keeping my back end raised.
We stopped moving, and Zhol explained that she was going to go ahead while I remained behind. When I asked why, she said it was to survey the coming area after claiming to have heard chatter. She aimed to keep my mind one-tracked by telling me to keep on my guard before she raced away, swerving behind a mass of bushes.

Every time I spotted a cicada or a beetle to distract myself with, I automatically switched back on task and recited the sneasel’s words to remind myself of my purpose. There were only few as opposed to the many I found earlier, but the answer stumped my toe as I screwed up my face. “Ow,” I whispered quickly, vengeful of the root that had disturbed me and eying it with my slit-like glare. I hadn’t noticed it because of the sly darkness, and it only then occurred to me how dark it had grown. ‘Oh. Well that explains the vanishing bugs.’

“Pick a fight with that root,” someone – or something – began, “and it’ll become obvious who’ll win.”

I jumped and froze on the spot, the hairs on my body standing on end as if guarding something themselves. I found it rather ironic that Zhol had kept me here to protect me in case whatever was up ahead was harmful when back where I remained was where someone else lurked. And I had no idea what their intentions were! After all that had happened, it could have been anything. I chanced a breath, keeping immobile so I could rake the suspect out of the bushes that had been appearing much more frequently. My front and right side were bushed off, giving plenty of room for a predator of any sort to slip into and conceal themselves. I swallowed, unable to spot even the slightest sign of movement.

“Seriously,” they said again, and I recognised the voice to be male, “you really don’t stand a chance against it.”

I whirled around, the voice reaching my ear from diagonally to my right and back, where the bushes continued to stretch. There was no face...not even a claw I could see. And if I took it upon myself to release fire, it could cause a problem for the forest – as would using toxic – and attacking by using my body wasn’t smart because—

“Wait... What?” I questioned, all fear ridding itself of my body before I acquired an insulted feeling. “Hey! I might look like a regular flareon, but I spurt a mean flamethrower,” I huffed, throwing my head back and to the side whilst fluffing my mane even more. “...That root wouldn’t last five seconds.”

“Neither would I if you burned down me and my home,” he chuckled, having moved a few paces ahead but still to the right. I frowned, drawing my head back.

‘How could he...move? When I was listening for movement the whole time...?’ “I wouldn’t attack a root,” I confirmed, not so sure about the accuracy of the comment when I spoke it.

“You positive? You’re pretty feisty!”

“Ye-ah. Comes with my attitude. Now how about showing yourself?”

“I’d argue that it comes with your hot temper, you fiery flareon, you,” he teased.

“Wh-what?” I blurted in disbelief, waiting a moment before shaking my head and stuttering in a frustrated attempt to find words and express my angry confusion. “H-h—how can you even say that?!” I exclaimed, my emotions rising.

“Well, quite easily. And I’d say, since you have a flair for flaring up so quickly...your ideal nickname would be Flair.”

“But you don’t even know me!” I boiled, offended he thought he could be so quick to judge me—even if I was hot-headed! “And I don’t even know you, so how about you just step out—” I squeezed through the shrubs difficultly, barely noticing as thin branches prodded my skin, and came into view of a river. It flowed down a hill to my left, in the same direction Zhol had followed, but disappeared as bushes covered the view further down.

I glanced around, puzzled about the fact that my stalker was not present, and scowled. But at the same time I noticed that the forest had changed. What I was staring out into was a large plain with only few trees. Bordering the plain was the normal forest, but I found it rather odd that there should be such a vast glade when we had seen none till this moment.

The trees and smaller plantation held their posts like troops along my right and turned to stand as a wall far in front of me and continued down the left for a while whilst bordering the exposed area. I knew I was standing in a corner, but something told me that after the part of the forest I had just been before appearing here was more of this open grassland, and since Zhol headed straight forward, she was probably there. I could hear faint noises in the distance and I wondered if perhaps there was any pokémon living further down, but at the moment, I could only see that the river turned into the area further down in a large expanse...

All too fast I was dragged back into the bushes and slammed on my side, and I immediately fired a stream of fire, but it was cut horribly short as I blacked out before I could even feel the adrenaline rush.

***

A silhouette observed as the flareon was knocked out and restrained, nodding as he imagined he had done a satisfiable job. A section of his lips parted so many fangs glinted as he grunted in a humoured fashion. “Wonder how this’ll end...” With another chuckle, the creature rose and flicked a slim tail. “May fate draw us together again in the near future.” He grinned, looking back another time. “...Now that would be interesting...Flair.”

[Suicune's Fire]

Chapter Fifteen: A Wet Quest (Oh, Dam!)

The present:

I basically had no choice but to accept the offer. I could say no, but until I knew the power of this colony I didn’t want to risk doing anything stupid. But at the same time...these pokémon were often known to humans, from what I remember whilst travelling with Master, as dopey and annoying as well as easygoing, so maybe I did stand a chance. But since they were part water, it posed another issue. But regardless, the only thing I was interested in was to keep moving and find somewhere to sleep—not battle or build any dams!

“I understand why you need my help for fighting off your enemies, but in case you haven’t noticed, I’m a fire type! I hate water,” I reminded, hoping to jolt some form of memory in the brown, chunky pokémon’s presumably shrivelled mind.

“...Oh. But you could still help us,” the bibarel shrugged, clearly not absorbing the information through his thick skull.

“Uhh—how? If I’m not going near any water, th—”

“Carry the logs!” the bidoof side-kick suggested, and in response, I rolled my eyes.

“Once again, how? I’m no machoke! I can’t carry some half-eaten tree on my back or in my mouth!” I growled, my anger reaching boiling point. I knew I didn’t have to get all steamy over a couple of dumb water types, but they really pushed the wrong buttons. “How about I help you fend off...whatever you need fending off—”

“They’re strong!” the leader intervened, and I had no idea why. I was in the middle of a sentence.

“...And after that you can build the dam ON YOUR OWN!”

“No, no! We need your help! You can carry the logs!” the bidoof insisted, her buck teeth and goofy eyes racking me off.

“I already told you I CAN’T!” I yelled, fire leaking between my bared fangs as smoke fogged the air.

“Guards!” yipped the leader, his lardy form edging away from mine.

“H-hey!” I struggled as two bibarel came down on me like a ton of firewood. “G-get off me!” I exclaimed, unable to breathe properly. The crushing feeling spread throughout my body and I cringed, emitting a string of growls before giving in. “O-okay! SO...rry.”

The two pokémon stared at me indifferently before the bidoof motioned with her head for them to un-pile. “Off.” And once they did, it was a great relief to know I could feel the air circulating once again.

“Geez...” I mumbled disdainfully, eying all four pokémon with annoyance. The two in charge seemed to want me to say something else, and I sighed, blinking for longer than normal. “Look... I’ll just do what I can, and then I’m outta—”

“OH, GOODY!” exclaimed the leader and his side-kick too enthusiastically, their goofy grins expanding like a jigglypuff’s body inflating. I rolled my eyes, thinking something about them being overly eager while the duo of body guards appeared at my side. They apprehended me before I knew it, pressing against my shoulders as they attempted to gain grip and dragging me so my back paws were not touching the ground and my tail scraped the floor.

Soon enough I was outside in the dim light, staring at a small dome constructed of half-chewed logs I realised I had just been sighing in. “Oof,” I breathed as I was released and I lay on my back for only a second before rolling to my right and onto my paws again. “Where even...” Before I could ask myself the question, my whereabouts became clear to me. I surveyed the area, taking in the sight of several domes scattered about, some made poorly and some very well. Channels of water streamed through, and for a fair while, each direction was filled with rivers branching like streets in a human city, only more randomised. I was standing on the rightmost edge of the territory, in the only log structure that was the only one on its ‘street’—however, it was more like an inlet that a street, as it was a circular pool of water the house was situated in. Even though I doubted the bidoof and bibarel’s abilities in the first place, I knew that something about their dens was wrong. And as I squinted my eyes to view homes in the near distance, I finally discovered the reason—they were all too high up. Usually they would be on a really small hill so that they would have to swim under to enter and inside they would be on land, but every single den I could see has their ground floor exposed. The water needed to be at least twice the level it was currently in order to submerge the appropriate amount of the huts for grounding purposes, and I began to wonder if that was the reason needed for the dam.

“D-Dusty?” asked a voice, and I spun around to spot my dark and ice friend across a shallow waterway a few metres wide. I got a shock, but at the same time a bolt of relief surged through me.

“They got you too?” I blurted, completely not expecting her to be here. I then recalled her dashing away after instructing that I should not go anywhere—a wise piece of advice. The conversations she had heard must have been the pokémon living in the area, and when they saw her, perhaps more body guards had sprung her and tied her up as well. Until she escaped.

“...‘Got me’?” she questioned, and to that I gave a tiny frown. “Dusty, what are you doing here?”

“Yeah...um... You know how you told me not to move...from that place? Well, I did.” I gave a sheepish smile before I caught her questioning expression. “It wasn’t my decision. Some stupid pokémon started yappin’ about how I was weaker than a root. A root, Zhol! Anyway, he lured me outside the bushed off area, and then the next thing I knew I was seeing stars and being dragged into that house thing made of trees,” I growled, motioning to the ‘boss’ office’ behind me where I had been imprisoned. “I’m not here ‘cause I wanna be. Those bozos captured me against my will. And—and get this: now they want me to help.”

“Dusty, these pokémon are vague friends of my colony,” Zhol told me, and I blinked repeatedly.

“W-wh...they are?” I asked, surprised in a negative kind of way. ‘Why would they want to be?!’

“Yes. They raised one of our members as their own despite him being neither a bidoof nor bibarel.”

“Right... So, do you have any idea why they need me to help them fend off...‘invaders’?” I wondered, hoping she could fill me in. She only returned my question with a blank stare, and apparently it was me who needed to fill her in. “Well...according to them a group o’ pokémon have a problem with them,” I started, muttering that I didn’t blame them, and continued, “and the pokémon here are worried that they’re goin’ to attack.”

Zhol seemed to consider the piece of information I set in front of her, and she looked crowded with thoughts as I interrupted.

“We don’t have to stay...do we? It’s really not something I’m keen on doing...” She opened her mouth, but I couldn’t resist throwing more out there. “It’s not even our fight!”

“You shouldn’t be so hasty,” she advised, and I looked at her again. “It is true the battle does not concern either of us, but I cannot turn my back on the colony’s friends. In turn I guarantee they will help us when we’re in need of it.”

“Great, so it’s an ‘even if you’re not part of it, you should still care’ kinda thing?” I questioned, frustrated by the idea.

“...Please understand,” Zhol told me, and I assumed since she would have seen me sit, she took it upon herself to cross the stream. About halfway I gasped, nearly getting up as she looked about to be forced over. However, her balance was restored and she made it across alive.

“Welcome...” I neared her face, standing again, and spoke quietly and deeply. “To the dark side.” She almost looked amused, but her confusion got the better of her and she gave a tiny frown.

“Excusing me now, please,” interrupted a voice, and I whirled around and stared strangely at a bidoof slightly bigger than the one that had been inside the log enclosure. She was standing on her hind legs and waved with one of her front ones, and I had to wonder why she was doing such a thing.

We continued to look at her oddly as she waved. “Uhh... I am...excusing you now, please?” I answered, finding her way of speaking odd.

“You are coming with me now, please,” she insisted, and lowered herself.

I shrugged and neared her, but what I didn’t expect was for her to turn around and begin to lead me. “W-Wait,” I called, and she turned around—thankfully. I caught up to her in three leaps while Zhol appeared beside me. “Where’re we going?”

The bidoof tilted back her head to think, and it was a full few seconds before she came up with a reply. “I am taking you now to have the battle plan for tonight explained to you, flareon.”

She turned back on course and waddled away. I followed closely. “Battle plan?” I asked with a rather monotone voice. I felt like face-pawing.

We were led through the area and to a large dome. The problem was that it was surrounded by water...and I assumed it was deep water. “We are here now,” mentioned the duel type, bringing us to the edge of the part of land we were on. As I scanned the dome, I realised that it had no entrances and cocked my brow.

“Uhh...yeah. How exactly do we get in? I don’t even see a way through,” I huffed.

The bidoof made a sloppy dive into the water, drops flying through the air at us. I jumped back, still unintentionally catching some of them, and her head appeared shortly after, having emerged. “We are going underwater now, please, where the entrance is.”

“Wa-wh-WHAT?!” I yelled, my eyes large and unbelieving.

“Is there a problem?” asked our tour guide.

“Uhh, yeah! I’m a fire type!” I answered, thinking I’d have to spell it out for her. I nearly laughed at the sheer stupidity, my temper rising. “Fire types hate water!”

“Dusty, you have to comply,” the sneasel beside me mentioned.

I FELT BETRAYED...well, to a non-serious extent, but I was still reluctant. “But, Zhol!” I whined, reluctantly chancing a glance at the icky substance so plentiful around the bidoof/bibarel camp. “I can’t even swim properly...and my fur takes forever to dry! Why are you making me do this?”

“It can’t be helped,” she added, her expression tinged with minor empathy. “I’m not too fond of water myself.”

I cocked my head, wondering what she meant. “But you’re part ice,” I replied absent-mindedly.

Zhol didn’t give me that look I know some pokémon like Azure would give me, telling me I’m an idiot for not knowing. “Ice and water are two separate elements, even though one is created from the other.”

“Oh yeah...”

“We will not dawdle for any longer!” grumped the bidoof, her tone still plain but slightly impatient. “Be following me now!”

I sighed heavily. It had to be water. Walking though fire I’d be fine with, even if I was burned. I would have even crossed a clearing with poisonous gas and sludge trails, risking death by inhalation. But going into water? “Ugh...”

That horrid, daunting sound of a body hitting liquid made my ears curl, and I shuddered. Zhol didn’t surface for a few seconds, and I was almost worried. When she did, she seemed considerably uncomfortable. She turned to me, her arms swaying in the water to keep herself afloat. She looked expectantly at me, as if silently telling me that if she could do it then so could I, but she didn’t understand the loathing-with-a-passion I had for water...

“Quickly!” snapped the bidoof, and I eyed her with an angry glare and a scrunched nose.

I breathed in and out again, staring at the water. I held my chest high and met its edge, and it seemed to jeer at me as I contemplated the consequences. I narrowed my eyes. “I’ll show you... Stupid water...” I dipped my paw in, recoiling instantly. “Bleh-bl-bleh-bl-bleh!” I babbled, showing my disgust with an end whine. “There’s no way I’m going in there!” I backed away and met the bidoof’s agitated eyes, adamant about my decision. “Put me through fire, chuck me into a pit of snakes, but do not expect me to swim for you.”

***

Dripping wet and slouching in the cold, a look of scorn was written all over my face. I threw my glower at Zhol for the umpteenth time, finally catching her neutral glance, and hissed under my breath, “This is stupid.” She nearly smirked in response, her eyes flicking to the main bibarel speaker up the front of the room. I was glad we hadn’t arrived when they were setting up—even though the audience filled up most of the large space and therefore the setting was not complicated, pokémon would have taken aaaaages to get in line. Especially knowing these species...

“Commencing battle plan!” The bibarel up front attempted a walk on his hind legs, and though it was shaky and looked rather pointless to try, he was doing fairly well. He had a stick in his maw he used to point to certain marked areas with on the mud-board he had behind him. It was completely dried and had unwanted cracks in certain spots, but when it was still wet someone had drawn...something...up. There were chewed leaves mounted in selected places to show specific landmarks or areas—like the start of their territory and presumably, on the edge of the board, the start of the attacking pokémon’s territory.

At one point the clumsy normal and water type nearly knocked over the large slab, which made me smile with harmless amusement, but at the same time I thought a bit about it. Was this kind of accidental behaviour common among these creatures? It seemed worrisome that it would, and I would hate to have been born as someone who couldn’t help making those unfortunate mistakes all the time. Shortly after, the bibarel tilted his head and released his grip on the twig by accident and nearly choked on it. And as opposed to anyone laughing or rolling their eyes, all the pokémon in the room panicked and stood up, all ready to help their fellow colony-mate. I found that heart-warming...even if it wasn’t necessary for them all to get up since only two or three were needed to assist him. Even if these weren’t the smartest pokémon I had met, they were all friendly (although strangely antisocial) and thought it to be natural to look out for everyone—family, a friend or a stranger.

Half way through the battle plan meeting, I noticed that I had no idea who we were going to be up against. So far the whole discussion had been based around soldier arrangement and the huts to flee to where the young would shelter with a pawful of guards and supervisors. I was unsure of their numbers, as well, and even this colony’s was a mystery. It only occurred to me then that I could ask.

“E...excuse me,” I interjected, and bidoof and bibarel around me met my eyes. “Uhh...hi.” Some turned back around while others kept staring, and I decided to try again, my ears standing tall to be more noticed. “Excuse me!” This time every member in the whole room had their sights on me, including the instructor...or whatever he was.
“...Oh. Are you and the one next to you the foreign pokémon I was told about who are here to help us?” he questioned, the stick having dropped from his mouth.

With all eyes on me I felt a little uncomfortable (even though back in the giant crates it didn’t bother me...probably because I was angry or something), and I took a moment to reply. “W-well...‘here to help us’ is...” I shook my head briefly, deciding not to dwell on the terminology that didn’t quite agree with me. “Um—who exactly are we fighting? And how large is their army?”

All heads turned to the front again in sync. “...I do expect you all to know that we are going up against our regular enemies—the Narrawu Colony.”

They all swung back to me. “How was I supposed to know...?” I muttered, but looked at him again. “Uhh...and they would be...?”

And they turned again. “Our enemy colony,” responded the bibarel.

I sighed heavily, rolling my eyes. “I figured that...”

“What?”

“N-nothing...um... That’s all.”

The pokémon twirled around, collecting his stick and holding it in place with his large teeth, and began talking again as if I hadn’t even addressed him. I glanced to my left, catching Zhol’s gaze. I raised my brow, silently communicating, and she seemed to understand I was referring to the lack of communication between me and the brown pokémon up front.

We emerged from the dome near an hour later (as much as I did and didn’t want to), and I brushed off the many brown hairs that chose my pelt as their home after leaving those around me, shaking at the same time to fling the pools of water from between each fur strand. “Zhol, thank you,” I muttered as the sneasel shook off by my side. She directed her gaze at me.


“For what?” she queried after waiting for me to give a reason.

“For not being part of this colony,” I answered, nibbling at a knot on my right shoulder. I saw the dark type smirk from the corner of my eye.

“Get ready!” called that head lecturer bibarel after hobbling onto land from the water. More of his kind scurried around like lost rattata, looking determined but going nowhere as they would pause and turn around, only then discovering they chose the wrong way. “We should expect them...” The normal and water type looked about to give a time frame in which they would arrive; however, his expression told me that he did not know when, so he left his sentence where it was.

“Hey, Zhol, we should expect them,” I mocked.

“Yes...” Zhol responded, and instantaneously rocketed away. She followed the waterline downstream, heading in the toward the end of the colony’s territory. I was shocked, wondering why she had fled so rashly and without even consulting me. Did she plan to escape? But surely she would not abandon a fellow colony in need...not that I wouldn’t, but it was against Zhol’s nature to do something like that—especially since she told me herself earlier. I wiped that choice off the possibilities list.

“Zhol!” I called out, but she didn’t reply as she became smaller the further away she sprinted. “Where on Earth...?” I rolled my eyes and looked ahead, charting my course as I chose to run along sections that weren’t close to the many watery paths. I readied myself and pushed off the ground—only to be yelled at from behind. It sounded like one of the colony members, and they were shouting out ‘flareon’ repeatedly. I groaned, forcing myself to come to a halt. I watched as Zhol kept running near to the edge of the steeply-sloping cliff that was to the side of the normally-sloping land, and I dearly hoped she was going to stop before reaching it. Just to ensure she did, I stayed facing her for as long as I could, but it was cut short as the pokémon who had been trying to address me came closer. I spun around, disapproving of a sneaky approach, and looked the bibarel in the eyes. “What?” I quickly asked.

A little caught off guard by my turning and speech, the pokémon took a moment. “...What are you doing?” Her face seemed clouded with something close to worry and concern. “You weren’t leaving us, were you?”

“What?” It then clicked that that would be an appropriate assumption, on account of how I probably looked about to escape. “No, I was, um, following my friend. I didn’t know where she was headed.”

The water and normal type cocked her head and stared past me. She must have spotted the sneasel in the distance, and as I turned around to see her myself, the pokémon spoke again, recapturing my attention. “She’s the look-out now.” I was marginally confused, but before I could question her statement, she interrupted. “She was assigned as the new look-out for the war to spot the enemy.”

“W-what?!” I spat, taken aback. “...War? What war? What do you mean by ‘war’?!” I began shaking my head in denial. “I didn’t sign up to be a soldier! I thought this was only a stupid feud!” Images of what happened on the ship leaked into my mind, the blood staining my brain’s walls and those pain-filled cries echoing from one side of my head to the other. I blinked, trying to rid my mind of the image.

“War is what we refer to battle as,” mentioned the bibarel. I slid my fretting to the side, meeting her gaze with near-disgust.

“...You refer to battle...as war?” I hissed, my face tinted with disdain. “Do you know...what war’s really like? What war is? You use the term as if it means nothing but a pointless tussle!”

The pokémon seemed to not know exactly what I was talking about, and calling something so minor ‘war’ was probably normal for her...as misinformed as that was. She stayed silent for a few moments before saying, “Come on,” and began to lead me away.

“Huh?” And when I realised she was trying to separate me from Zhol, I stood my ground. “No! Where—where do you even want to take me?”

“Leave the look-out by herself and follow.”

“Why? And what gives you the authority to boss me around?”

“Flareon, all outsiders are to stay in an allocated area until they can go after the w—...battle.” I was slightly encouraged by her term replacement, but it didn’t alter my state of mind. I was in a foreign place with strange pokémon who forced me into helping them when I did not volunteer, and I had no idea what the end result of the whole experience would be or what to expect. So defying orders was fairly high on my agenda and as part of my defence, as well.

I looked away reluctantly. “...But why? ...Why can’t I stay with Zhol? ...Why do I have to stay in a hut until the battle?”

The pokémon stared at me with a hint of sympathy. “It is so you don’t do anything you aren’t permitted to beforehand.”

“Like what?” I snapped, capturing her attention. I secretly knew taking my anger out on this random colony member wasn’t going to achieve anything, but it wasn’t fair. “You don’t even have a right to keep me here. I could leave now.”

“Flareon, please... If we don’t get back, the battle plan may be sabotaged.”

I scoffed. “What battle plan?” I shook my head. “Aren’t we just gonna storm ‘em when they get here or something?”

“...Come on,” she urged, beginning to throw her glance in assorted directions. “You want to be prepared for when they attack...and so do I.” She stood firm, her mind nearly as made up as mine.

As stubborn as I felt, and although I was convinced my paws that had been planted into the ground were not going to move unless I got my own way, I began to contemplate my decisions. I didn’t want to dwell on them too much, as I knew those two shoulder flareon would pop up. One of my thoughts whispered about the fact that that the faster I followed the bibarel and got to the hut, the sooner I would learn how to kick the enemies’ butt. But on the other paw, I didn’t want to be parted with my only friend.

“Flareon...” The bibarel looked me in the eyes. “Let’s go.” She whirled around after bounding a few metres forward, glancing over her shoulder to make sure I was tailing her. I gritted my teeth...and ripped my paws from the ground, the scent of dirt and the rushing currents surrounding me suffocating as I sprinted after the bibarel. As much as I didn’t want to leave Zhol...I knew she would be fine on her own.

We arrived at the den after half a minute of running. To my relief it was not another underwater entrance one, so all I had to do was waltz in as opposed to getting myself completely drenched in order to be inside a place I hardly wanted to be. I still hadn’t dried from the previous encounter with the awful river, and I certainly didn’t want the process to begin again.

The bibarel led me through a small hole on the far right of a mud wall we encountered as soon as we came in. It opened into the main room. Pokémon filled the entire hut, chatting and going over plans while others itched for the battle to begin. The place was lit up by fire at the end of the room. Since I didn’t light it, my guess was that they had another pokémon able to control fire or it had been lit long ago and was kept alive by constant fuel. A musky smell occupied the air, and I felt a tad uncomfortable having it waft up my nostrils. In the midst of searching for somewhere to sit down to wait, I suddenly stopped. I blinked.

There was a face.

One that had stuck with me through our capture...through arguments and battles for freedom...and against each other that the contempt we shared. That intense dislike that sparked between us from the moment I laid eyes on her.

“Azure?” I stared with a blank expression that could easily have been mistaken for a light frown. She looked terribly dumbfounded and returned my stare as if she was surprised to see me...to see me alive. Her bottom jaw separated from the top one slowly, and I was sure she was about to say something. I didn’t know what she could possibly say at such a time, but I wasn’t about to find out.

I heard scuttling from behind, and even though I felt so distracted by the glaceon, I whirled around to view someone I was glad to see. On the contrary, she hardly looked interested in having a little chit-chat.

“They’re coming.”

***

I barely had any idea what was happening as the soldiers of the colony formed in a long line, some sitting in water. The enemy clan turned out to be another bunch of bibarel and bidoof, and they lived downstream from this one. They appeared steaming mad, and all were in fits of rage as they faced us in their line. I watched as their leader and this colony’s leader were talking it out in the section between the two colonies. They discussed an issue I couldn’t quite grasp, standing tall on their hind legs.

“You’re selfish—selfish, I tell you!” yelped the opposing side’s leader, growing madder and madder by the moment.

“Am not! You’re selfish,” retorted this side’s leader.

“It’s your fault! You’re at fault here because you live upstream.”

“If you didn’t live down there then there would be no problem! We need water too,” the dual type huffed.

“See, see—selfish! We can live wherever we want.”

Noticing they were not getting anywhere, I tapped the bidoof beside me with my front paw. “What are they talking about?” I whispered, shaking my head as I watched their pathetic argument. She seemed to be too enthralled in their babbling, so I rolled my eyes and stepped forward. The second I did so, claws gripped my back left leg. I whipped my head back to find Zhol. I tilted my head, wondering what she had to say.

“Bibarel are known for their goofiness...but also their tempers. Among other things.”

I nodded and she let go. I turned and progressed towards them, and as I did, all eyes fell onto me. I tried to ignore the many stares as I approached this colony’s leader. “Hey,” I began in order to get their attention, interrupting their conversation. Their gazes drew to mine, and I shrugged.

“...Who is this?” questioned the other leader.

“Dusty,” I answered.

The two bibarel exchanged looks. “What does she want?”

“I want to know, um, what you’re fighting about.” I threw my head over my shoulder to spot Zhol, who looked alert. She stared at me expectantly and I span back to the two pokémon. “Uhh, uhh... Because...I could help?” I continued, spinning back ‘round to check if I had done the right thing or not. Zhol became less tense, and I sighed. I would have thought bibarel were supposed to only be known for being laid-back, not for their attitudes as well.

“You don’t know?” questioned the other bibarel.

“Would I be asking if I didn’t?” I mumbled, and after he asked what I said, I stuttered, “Uhh—no, I don’t.”

“For years our colonies have been at war,” – I cringed at the term – “because of our disagreement.” The two pokémon laid disdainful eyes upon one another and I was certain they would start up another argument soon.

“Well...what’s the disagreement?” I queried. At first the army pokémon who were able to hear us clearly looked from face to face as if they were unsure themselves, and then the two leaders seemed to chuckle. I raised an eyebrow and glanced about. “Am I...missing something?”

“The disagreement is...” began the leader who had held me hostage. “It’s, uh...about...the dam.”

“The dam...yeah...” I waited for them to proceed. “What about it?”

“Well...years ago, the dam...was built...a dam was built between our territories,” explained the other leader.

“Uh huh,” I pressed, not understanding the oh-so-dire problem that sprouted from a dam.

The leader from the colony behind me then spoke. “Our land slopes down...and downwards lives them,” he sneered. “And they have a problem with our dam.”

“The problem!” intervened the opposing normal and water type. “The problem is that when that dam is up...my colony gets no water.”

“Oh, that’s tauros cr—”

“IT’S the problem, Boon,” growled the other bibarel.

“Right...” I mused, going over it in my head. “So...” I stepped between them. “You’re willing to sacrifice your time and, more importantly, lives over this...this...petty dilemma?”

“Petty dilemma?!” spat both bidoof evolutions, and I puffed my chest and tail to show that I wouldn’t be overthrown or challenged by either of them.

“Well, this stupid indecision, then. Why can’t you—”

“Because he’s too stubborn!” shouted both pokémon simultaneously, and I felt like folding down my ears and gluing them to the fur on the sides of my head.

“Well then, be unstubborn and work this out before anyone gets hurt, or worse!” I demanded, taking turns to look both pokémon in the eye. They were completely against the idea...I could tell. But what was the point in fighting when they could have just sorted everything out? I didn’t understand how it could have been that hard. “You may not think it’s my place, but you,” – I glared at Boon – “forced me to help with the battle between the two colonies, so how about you listen?”

The two bibarel flashed glowers at each other and at me. However, they seemed to calm down a notch. “Fine. But only if he apologises,” reasoned the other pokémon, and Boon raised his voice and the two were quick to begin arguing again.

I rolled my eyes and clenched my jaws, unsure of what to do. “Guys,” I started, but their attention was on each other. I twirled around as a reflex, as if to ask someone to help. I laid my sights on Zhol and widened my eyes, jerking my head towards the pair of water and normal types. “A little help?”

In the blink of an eye Zhol had appeared beside me, and soon stood between the bibarel. They seemed somewhat offended and again the other bibarel questioned her identity. “Zhol,” the sneasel quickly replied.

“Look, will you guys just quit it and sort this out instead?” I intervened. “Don’t let this turn into a physical fight.”

Zhol stepped back, stopping on my right. “Please,” she started, the two falling silent. “...It’s in the best interest of bother of your colonies.”

At this the dual types blinked in unison. They made no move to speak as they considered it. “She’s right,” I admitted.

“...Yes,” agreed Boon’s right-hand bidoof. “They are right.” She turned to Boon as all other colony members listened in. “If talking doesn’t work, we’ll do it how it’s always been,” suggested the smaller pokémon, and the two leaders nodded.

“What? N—” I began, but Zhol held up an arm. She turned her head to catch me with one eye, and I gave in.
The many bidoof and bibarel in the armies conversed quietly, wondering what their leaders would choose. Some I heard thought the new plan was a better idea, but others were more interested in a battle. Luckily it wasn’t up to them.

“...Very well,” Boon decided, his threatening tone disappearing. He and the other bibarel dropped to all-fours. “Tu and I will have a private meeting with this flareon—”

“And Zhol,” I added.

“...Yes. And the decision will be made then.”

“Wait...” I began, meeting Boon’s gaze. “Do we get to go after that?”

He asked himself before saying, “Only if it’s resolved.”

At that I gaped, beginning to growl. Zhol tried calming me down with her piercing eyes, but I wouldn’t back down. It was completely unjust to keep us with them when we had nothing to do with their situation. If they made the choice to brawl instead of talk, why was that our problem? If it was up to us, we’d have them figure it out by using words, because such a stupid reason to spend energy and shed tears was...well...stupid! But rather than taking this any further, I made up my mind. If they were too stubborn to resolve the issue peacefully, I was going to escape. With or without Zhol.

***

An hour later we – Tu, Boon, Zhol and I, as well as the leaders’ side-kicks – sat in an isolated lodge on the edge of one colony’s land. I found it challenging not to fall asleep, since it had to be almost midnight and it had been a day packed with travelling, and since the room was dim it hardly prevented tiredness. We were seated on long logs that, if two more were present opposite the ones already there, would make a diamond shape.

“So, what is it you were thinking, flareon?” wondered Tu, repeating himself after I asked him to.

“Oh, um... Well, so...this whole thing’s about the dam...” I looked to Boon. “When you guys build it, Tu’s colony pays the price because they don’t get a good flow?”

“Yep,” Tu confirmed, but Boon only sighed.

“Well, in my opinion, you shouldn’t have the dam.”

“Uh-huh! Uh-huh,” supported Tu. The other bibarel was staggered.

“But we can’t do that! The dam has to stay,” the pokémon protested, his voice raised. His assistant held the same opinion, and Zhol looked to be against the idea as well.

“Why do you need it?” I asked, not sure of what it even did.

“Without the dam, our water levels drop because our land is on a slope. So we have to have it!”

“And when you do have one up...Tu’s territory suffers the consequences,” I muttered, finding the situation to be an inconvenient one. “Well, that’s annoying.”

“Have you...tried to make a deal before?” Zhol questioned, possibly thinking up a solution.
“We were never interested,” Boon’s bidoof answered, “because they tear the dam down after we spend all night making it.”

“You...you do?” I faced Tu.

“That was after you refused to negotiate!” Tu yelped in his defence.

“Alright, okay!” I shouted, feeling the tension rise. “Well...looks like we need to figure something out.”

“Indeed,” Zhol nodded. “I suggest...” We all turned to her as she gazed at the floor. “Perhaps if two dams were put up it would solve the problems.”

I tilted my head. “...Go on. I think you’re onto something.” She nodded.

“One would be between the colonies, and the second would be after Tu’s.” She slid off the log she was on (the one diagonally across from the one Tu, Tu’s bidoof and I) and drew a wonky square in the dirt with one of her powerful claws. A few centimetres after it she drew a small line, and then repeated the two shapes. “This square represents the first colony, and,” – she directed out attention to the second square – “this square is the second colony. If the dams are between the two and after Tu’s, the water will stay in place and neither colony will have shortages.” She circled each part as she spoke, and sense began to squeeze past the impossible walls – or dams – in the bibarel’s minds. “The dam after the second colony will be built first, so the water can build up, and after that the second dam will be built to fill the first colony’s space. When too much water builds up or you simply want a fresh supply, remove the dams and later you can put them back into place.”

All five of us nodded, impressed by Zhol’s smarts. “...Nice going,” I mentioned, and she gave me a weak smile. “...Cool!” I grinned as I dropped from the log. “So it’s all good? Good!” I triumphantly fluffed up, happy to finally have this worked out...even though it hadn’t been too long. But who knows how much longer we would have had to stay had Zhol not have come up with such a brilliant idea? ‘Sleep time, sleep time!’ I cheered inside my head, and the thought of freedom teased me as I imagined sleeping at the foot of a tree again once away from all this!

As I danced a little jig, Boon and Tu nodded to each other. “Your dam, then mine,” Boon checked, and the other pokémon concurred. “Let us...get to work.”

“Huh?” I slurred, stretching. “Work?”

Stares piled on top of me. “Yes, the dams. They must be built.”

“Mm, great,” I mumbled. “When?” My eyelids felt heavy, and hopefully I could get a few hours of rest before they made me do anything.

“...Half an hour, maybe?” suggested Tu. Boon was content with that.

“HALF—half an hour?!” I spluttered, choking on my own yawn. “But, but—it’s nighttime! I am so ditching you.”

“Dusty,” Zhol whispered, her back to them. “Bibarel and bidoof can be nocturnal or diurnal. I think this colony is nocturnal.”

“Well, flareon can’t be! The only thing we’re hard at work doing during the night is sleeping!” I howled. After the statement was made, I realised that it was perfectly normal for any flareon to be nocturnal as well, but ignored that fact and stuck to my words. “Besides...how can they not be woken up by the Sun?” Although straight after the question I felt stupid, as I noticed the only source of light there could be in one of the domes was fire. “Maybe...maybe light’s not a problem, but still! If they expect me to do anything starting from in half an hour’s time...they’re dreamin’!”

***

“Roll it down!” a bidoof called to me, and vengefully I gave a giant log a forceful push with two front legs. It tumbled down the hillside until a team of the beaver pokémon stopped it (looking kinda funny since they were so small compared to the log). I had been at it for ages now, and it was always a few minutes before they asked me to do it again. Several times I had come close to dozing off, but not long after I was caught in the act and woken up. But those bidoof and bibarel would never understand...they were nocturnal! They were used to busying themselves this time of the day...or night. I wasn’t.

“Okay!” chanted a nearby water and normal type, gleefully grinning at me. “Log movement is complete!” He looked about to pass on some sort of congratulatory gesture – such as a pat on the back – but his actions weren’t going to commence after he noted the fiery glare I thrust in his direction. Instead he chuckled sheepishly and plodded down the hill in order to see how else he could be of assistance to...someone else.

With a frustrated sigh, I whirled around, unsure of what to do next. I took a step forward, tripping on a small rock and planting my face into the dirt. Grumbling, I swished around to see what could be so strong as to make me fall, but I never got the chance as I slipped on a patch of stray mud and tumbled backwards. I expected to stop within a second of beginning, but the hill on that side – where nobody happened to be at the bottom of – dropped rapidly and before I knew it, I was on a roll—literally!

“Waaaah!” I screamed, unable to navigate my way down or view my path. Sharp twigs and protruding rocks stabbed me as I continued, and it was less than comfortable.

All of a sudden, my stop was softened...and I had no idea why. I had slowed near the foot of the small hill, but I halted altogether as I clonked into what definitely didn’t feel like a boulder or a tree. Dazed, I hoisted myself up, only to find I was facing the hill. Curious, I turned around and saw...and saw nothing but more ground. I blinked repeatedly, confused. To my left shrubs and taller plants grew, but nothing that would have cushioned my fall like it did, and nothing in the right spot! Causing my thoughts to stray, my ears flickered. I padded forward several metres before the sound become louder, and on the other side of tall grass I overlooked a river. It was a reasonable drop downwards, and I instantly found myself to be...extremely lucky to have been stopped when I was, because at the rate I was going I could have rolled off the edge and been carried all the way to the nearest ocean. The thought lingered until a rustle from those bushes caught me off guard. I leaped away from the short cliff and faced the plantation suspiciously, my eyes fixed on them and my stance became that of a defensive one.

“Who’s...who’s there?” I wondered, my voice low despite my wishes against a battle at this hour. I waited in angst for another noise, but I didn’t hear another one until it was my own voice. “If...you were the one who saved me...”

“Hey, you!” called someone from atop the hill.

“Ahh!” I screeched, nearly suffering a heart attack.

“What do you think you’re doing down there?” It was a random I didn’t know, and she looked grumpy.

“You gave me a—”

“There’s work to do! So come back,” she demanded, not looking about to give up her post until I followed her order.

Cautiously I strode past the clump of greenery and eyed it, ready to spot any trace of movement. However, the first rustle must have been my imagination because not another breath was heard from that direction. And even if there was someone there, my eyesight wasn’t powerful enough to spot them in the darkness.

After slogging up the hill and being told by the bibarel to run along and find another task, I was instructed to be the director of the placement of the logs for the dam along with whoever else wasn’t moving and swimming with the branches and trunks. It was tiring and not overly calming, and frankly I wanted to slap those pokémon silly. They were painfully bad listeners, even though I could admit they were hard workers, so it made it all the more frustrating to tell them what to do.

But at last it was done...and I felt free. Free to go and free to sl—

“Now for the second dam,” mentioned one of the bidoof who had been directing with me and began waddling away. I stood with perplexity written all over my face before it clicked.

‘The second one,’ I thought with contempt, my eye twitching. ‘Just...another few hours of work... Just...just some more hours...’ In a fit of anger, I released a stream of fire on a nearby log, barely caring as I left and it blazed away.

***

Exhaling, the pokémon who nearly had himself revealed backed out from the shrubs. “...Lucky I was here... She would have fallen head over heels for that river down there.” He nearly chuckled at his own joke as he peered over the cliff, his thin tail flickering to show his dislike for the gushing...stuff. “She’s thankful,” he muttered, turning left to face the direction in which he knew the flareon was headed. Nearly as quickly as he came, the pokémon loped away, having a feeling that the eevee evolution wouldn’t need his assistance another time that night. ‘Until next time...Flair.’

***

Stirring and stretching my limbs, I felt grogginess beginning to bathe me. My mouth grew into a gaping hole and I exhaled shortly after. What a good sleep I’d had! We worked all night...and till an hour or two before the Sun would have risen – which I was furious about – but it meant that I had slept like a slakoth. I waited a few moments before recalling where I was and what I needed to do, and it became clear fairly quickly. Deciding I should get up, I hauled myself to my feet and glanced about as I tried to identify something – anything – in the blackness. A muddy smell fogged my nostrils, and I cringed, thinking some cleaner air would have been nice. I noticed an opening to the left of the far side of the room and attempted to avoid tails and heads as I weaved between several pokémon. Once I appeared before the hole, I slipped through to come into an enclosed room where the entrance to the dome led me outside into the morning air. It still smelled of mud, but looking upwards, I—

My eyes widened. The Sun was positioned in the centre of the sky—no, it was further west! “Oh no!” I raced back inside, hoping that Zhol would appear before me. However, I was engulfed in darkness and couldn’t see a thing. I panicked, trying to catch her scent. “...Zhol,” I whispered, “Zhol!” I heard movement, but after waiting several seconds I thought it must not have been her. I scowled, scampering back outside. In all honesty, I had no idea where to look. I thought to stick with the scent idea, but thinking again, I found it to be a futile means of finding her. There were far too many scents intermingled in the surrounding area.

“Dusty!” I heard, and my relief returned, my ears flicking up.

“Saved by the sneasel,” I chuckled, sighing. She appeared outside one of the lodges and dashed beside me. “Hey, Zhol! I didn’t know which hut they put you in.”

She nodded, looking somewhat impatient. “I’ve spoken to Boon about our...”

“Release?”

She flashed an amused smile. “Duty relief. We’re allowed to go.”

“Yes!” I chirped, bouncing on the spot. I grinned at her, and she nodded once. I sprinted away from the collection of homes, my excitement giving me an extra energy boost. “Good riddance!” I called once tilting my head skyward. I heard Zhol as she materialised beside me, and my happiness showed as I ‘woohoo’ed my way down a slope.

***

“Hey, Zhol,” I began, panting after being on the move for an hour or so. We had stopped by a stream and the sneasel was slurping up water she cradled in her paws. She stopped, giving them a flick to shake the remaining droplets free from her skin. I slumped off the tree stump I had climbed on top of and stood at the stream’s edge. “You know yesterday how you said that we’d reach your home by the next afternoon?”

“Yes,” she answered as I lapped up the cool liquid.

“...Well, because we slept in, do you think that’s now an inaccurate estimate?”

Zhol puffed out a long breath, searching for the mountains in the near distance. “I do.”

“In that case...how long do you think it’ll take to get there? Nighttime, perhaps?” I wondered, trying to calculate judging by what she had said the day before and keeping in mind how early she thought we would have woken.

“Yeah,” she agreed. “Late.” She took my spot on the stump.

I went back to drinking, but when I had stopped I turned to her again. “You know... I saw Azure yesterday.” But to my remark my friend only frowned. “...Oh, right,” I chuckled, not having realised until then. She hadn’t been present for any of my encounters with the ice type. “You don’t know who she is... Well, she’s a glaceon that was on the ship.” Zhol seemed to flinch nearly undetectably at the mention of the ship, but other than that there was no physical reaction. “She... I met her as...a consequence of being friends with Raiys. She has something against me, but...I sense something unsettling about her. I don’t know what...maybe it’s just that I don’t like her.”

“That may be it,” Zhol guessed, and I nodded without meeting her gaze.

“Mm...”

Just as we had predicted, the two of us arrived on her colony’s land after midnight. I didn’t get a good look at the community, but I was excited to do so in the morning. And since it was so late, all I wanted to do was snooze. Zhol had disappeared, probably after telling me where she was going and where I could stay, but I couldn’t remember... I was too tired! So, drowsily I hobbled along the outskirts of the premises until I wandered in, hardly paying attention to my course. I made my way to some sort of sweet-smelling cave and brushed past a slimy boulder until I collapsed, burying myself in the soft squishiness below me. I became comfortable almost instantly, and the whisper-like cooing hoothoot lulled me to sleep, the peaceful hum of insects helping.

[Suicune's Fire]

Chapter Sixteen: The What-sters?

“A-are you sure...?”

“Yeah; how could she get past Splash? We all know he’s challenged, but...he should have stopped her.”

“Well...she looks nothing like a threat. I don’t th—”

“Huh?” I murmured, inhaling deeply to fuel my lazy self and stand up. My eyes were presenting blurs to me, and I hardly knew what was going on. “I may be small,” I started, sounding like I had trouble speaking for one odd reason or another, “but I’m tough!” I had raised my head for the few words, plonking it back down and feeling liquid squirt onto my face. I then licked it from my nose. “Mmm...oran berry.”

“S-see?” panicked a soft voice, although I wasn’t sure why she sounded that way.

“She looks kinda...out of it...to me,” mentioned another, certain scepticism about her tone.

A few moments passed...and then I snapped open my eyes.

“Waah!” I yelped, startled by the sudden appearance of a group of pokémon, and I hopped to my feet. “Wh—who are you?” I swallowed, my eyes darting between a navy blue pokémon whose body looked plated with armour, a large bird pokémon with puffy, snow-white wings and a tall, and a hovering white thing with blue, purple and red in certain areas. “And where...?” My mind turned as I remembered the night before...when I had not been paying attention to where I crashed...

“The—”

“Usster Colony!” I blurted, and I received surprised glances. I heard only the sound of birds chirping outside and other expected sounds as I waited for someone to reply.

The dark coloured one with an elongated horn protruding from his forehead raised one of his strangely shaped arms, looking about to talk, but the flying type, not noticing his gesture, spoke before he could. “What are you doing here?” She sounded defensive and stern, but I really had nothing to hide or be afraid of. And if need be I could totally take on these three pokémon...possibly.

“Uh...well, see, I—” I felt a fruit squash under my front paw, and I looked down. Then I realised something. The strange shack I had taken shelter in looked to be some sort of storage room for berries. And rotten ones, it looked like.

“You’ve been eating our stash!” the altaria accused, and I flinched in astonishment.

“What?” I questioned. ‘And a stash of rotten berries? Seriously?’

“It would make sense,” the heracross mused, a claw on his chin.

“What? N-no!” I wiped my face against my mane – as best I could – to rid it of false evidence. I had only stepped in some; I didn’t eat any of it. “I think you’ve got the wrong idea.”

“I know a thief when I see one,” snapped the flying and dragon type, and I narrowed my eyes at her.

“Well if you did, you’d know I wasn’t one.” We engaged in a stare-down before my ears twitched.

Rustling could be heard shortly before a voice began saying, “Yukra, where are those—” A bronze figure appeared at the entrance to the room I resided in, her head nearly touching the doorway’s top. As soon as she laid eyes on me, she let out a roar, but to my surprise it was a completely frightened one. She backed away, and a certain fire in her eyes told me that she wasn’t prepared to be friendly to a stranger. “Intruder!” she exclaimed, her eyes wide and her body frozen up. I had no idea what to do or even if I should have done anything, but I knew throwing myself at the wall instead of her doing it for me was an appropriate action. The instant I did, she struck the now-recognisable mound of rotten berries with her enormous claws. For the first time in a few days I was somewhat scared, and I was unable to regain my attention as she dislodged her massive paws from the berries and stormed towards me in a scatter of growls and grunts.

I screamed as I attempted to flee between her legs, ending up being kicked on my way through, and she rebounded off the wall to stomp after me. I zipped out of the room and into the wilderness before the heracross wrapped me in his strong arms and brought me to a stop. I whined as I realised I was restricted and began kicking and struggling. “G-get off! Let me go!” I was desperate to get away, and being held back didn’t do any good.

“Wynore! Stop!” the cloud-bird pokémon protested, spreading her wings to work as visual barriers. I heard a bellow, and presumably the ursaring had halted upon the flying type’s request. “We don’t think she’s a threat,” she continued, attempting to calm the pokémon.

“Yes—please settle down!” the white, red and blue pokémon added. She used a soft and worried tone, much like the first voice I had heard when I woke up. It was probably the same one.

I heard a reluctant snort before I hesitantly edged my eyes into view of the great bear pokémon and the other two. I was relieved to find that her sanity had returned and she seemed to snap out of her frenzy reasonably quickly. She glanced at me and I was too concerned to look away, but then she switched to the altaria’s eyes, a look of uncertainty and suspicion spread across her face. “Are you sure?” she questioned incredulously, her gaze flicking to mine to coat me in a veil of accusatory suspicion. I swallowed again, wondering quietly to myself what would happen next.

“We’re workin’ on it,” the pokémon tightly grasping me answered, no particular harshness about his voice.

“Uh,” I uttered, “can you...can you, uh, loosen your grip, please? It’s a little...um...” The pokémon obeyed and relaxed his hand. “...Tight. Thanks.”

Silence fell upon the five of us before the delicate upright one (whose species I’d never seen before) asked, “What should we do?”

The altaria needed no longer than a moment to decide. “We’ll take her to Habib.”

***

‘Habib?!’ I criticised internally, thinking the name was rather ridiculous—and from what I had guessed, he was a decision maker and intruder-labeller (hence these pokémon taking me to him). Which possibly meant a leader of some kind. Personally I found it a...strange name for an authority figure. But then again, I could be wrong. This ‘Habib’ could be their pet rock for all I knew.

Whispers and gasps echoed around me as I was dragged through a strange village-like setting. I found it odd that such a place could exist deep into the wild, but then again, judging the many pokémon I spotted, this community of creatures was pretty large, and they looked relatively capable of building huts such as the ones I spotted around. Master had once told me of humans using strong and muscular pokémon such as machamp and aggron to shift heavy luggage and/or to help construct homes and labour-intensive structures. They were extremely useful for those kinds of things, so I figured it was possible that they had helped with the structures in this clan.
I nearly tripped over a head-sized rock as I was transported towards the place the three pokémon (the ursaring had gone back to what she was doing before her little crazed attack on me) were taking me. “Ow!” I snapped, eying off the two pokémon beside me as they didn’t show a shred of concern. The altaria was in front of me, leading the way, while the heracross and the other pokémon walked either side of me. Running back the way I came would result in a capture by the bug type, with the help of the other one – who looked like a possible ice type – so that wasn’t an option.

It was strange how the one on my right hovered—was she part psychic or flying? Her body was somewhat flimsy and slim and her arms, connecting to her head, were strangely proportioned with blocky cyan at their ends, almost looking like fins, and a red ribbon-like appendage was wrapped around her waist. I had to wonder what the purpose of the two icicle-horns on her head were for, and how she could ever walk with a body that came to a random end before feet could be introduced; although, I came to the conclusion that it was the reason she hovered. I wanted to ask her what kind of pokémon she was, but at the moment she wasn’t exactly a friend.

“Um,” I began, attracting the attention of both pokémon on my sides. I quickly licked my lips. “Where are you taking me? And who’s Habib?”

The heracross only chuckled harmlessly, and the mystery pokémon smiled. “Our colony’s mayor,” he mentioned.

“...Right.” I continued glancing about, observing the ways of these pokémon and how they lived. We only walked through the housing area, however, but I knew there was more to the clan than just that—in the way of facilities. On the way past a few homes, I shuddered as I couldn’t help but notice a giant lake at least the size of the one I had been in when I was abducted, and patches of dense trees around the joint. As we passed near the lake and the far end of the column of huts, lone trees watched as we moved past them, their branches signalling the direction I was headed.

Finally we arrived. The place was pretty large—one of the bigger homes around. It was made mostly of tree trunks and other natural materials, but it looked nothing like the bibarel and bidoof enclosures I had seen. This was properly and professionally constructed, and my guess was that my theory about strong pokémon building places like these for colonies was considerably correct. One would also have to have a knack for designing to form plans one would follow.

We stopped a couple of metres away from the entrance, which was blocked by a slab of firm but moveable stone. ‘If this ‘Habib’ is the leader of the colony, how come his house is shut off?’ I wondered, frowning lightly. But I had to wonder no more as a voice from inside seemed to give permission, and the heracross left his place beside me, along with a random granbull and floatzel who had appeared without me realising.

They all assumed a position around the boulder and the heracross instructed, “On three. One...two...” The two other pokémon prepared themselves before ‘three’ was said, and then at once they all put their muscles to work.

“Heave, ho...” I muttered, and the two females nearby gave me a glance each. I shrugged, wanting to say ‘what?’, and looked back to the working pokémon. The heracross, due to the length of his horn, was slightly taller than the other two pokémon, but they were all nearly level. The floatzel was the smallest, since they were naturally rather little for strong-looking pokémon, but he wasn’t far off. When they had managed to shift the stone all the way across, I forgot my doubt in them and instead acknowledged the butterflies in my stomach which fluttered and bounced off rounded walls.

I wasn’t entirely sure why I was nervous, but I had a feeling I was about to find out as a pokémon stepped forward. “Habib, we’re in need of your judgement,” the bug pokémon stated, standing under the doorway once swinging open a frail wooden door. A voice from inside accepted the request and the heracross nodded, moving back for the altaria to usher me inside with an impatient look on her face. I nearly scowled at her but I was distracted by the inside. Grass coated the entire floor; some was deliberately planted while the rest of it was naturally there. Regular wooden panels making up the ceiling were interrupted by numerous windows to allow insects, warmth and light. A large batch of hay, moss and fresh grass lay at the far end of the hut, and two smaller ones were near the big one against the walls to the left and right. A wooden table composed of more logs (which I didn’t find surprising) was in the centre, where hardened bark and a carved bowl of berries sat.

Waddling steadily with the help of a thick cane, a hefty pink pokémon with small charcoal eyes and a few lemon coloured belly markings appeared before me and gave a soft smile. He bobbed his head leisurely at the heracross, saying, “Thank you, Yukra,” and the dual type pokémon closed the door with care.

Another fuchsia form strode forward—she was smaller and had a grey implement holding a rounded red ruby on her head. Around her neck was a frill streaked with white and blue and she had a very strong resemblance to a slowpoke. I recognised her as a slowking—and a different-to-normal coloured one at that. Perhaps she was shiny!
I waited in silence as the two pokémon wore neutral expressions. I was left to stand there and feel as my eyes darted between the two pokémon. “Uh...h-hi.”

The female regarded me with a nod and a smile while the lickitung placed himself in a seated position at the opposite end of the table. “Have a seat,” he insisted, the slowking also standing at the other end.

“O...kay,” I agreed, cautiously pacing forward a number of steps before sitting. Surprisingly the table was low enough so that I was able to even rest my front paws on its surface if I wanted to. Maybe the table was designed that way for small visitors such as myself.

“Miss Flareon.” I turned. “I will ask you a number of questions, as is my duty.”

“Uhh...alright,” I answered. He had probably figured I was not a threat by this point, as I failed to show any kind of hostility. Truthfully I was a little intimidated by him, being huge compared to me, and since he was the leader of a seemly powerful colony. I figured that if a heracross, a crazed ursaring, Zhol and all the other strong-looking pokémon I spotted were under his rule, he must have had a considerable amount of power and respect from his followers.

The lickitung asked something as I was distracted, and I only caught the last word. When I asked him to repeat, he followed up with, “Are you a traveller?”

“Well...kind of.” I thought the normal type might have been waiting for me to justify my hazy reply, but when I didn’t he continued.

“Do you have reason to come through here?” he questioned. He was friendly...but naturally suspicious.

“Well, I...um.” I paused to scratch my belly with my back leg, however awkward it was to reach. “I travelled here with Zhol. She said I could stay here for a while. She’s...a part of your colony...?”

“Ahh!” responded the pokémon, sparking up at the mention of the sneasel’s name. “Yes, Zhol! She has returned then?” After I nodded, he brightened up. “Excellent!”

“She, um,” I interrupted, not meaning to. When I felt it was okay to continue I did. “Zhol and I were on the same vessel after being captured.”

Suddenly the lickitung’s face clouded over with stern interest and concern. By the looks of things, he had no idea what I was talking about. Instead of questioning my words, he listened further. But when I was unsure of what to say next, silence tapped the air around us.

“The, uh...the vessel that we were being stored on for transportation. We were, uh...we were also in the same...prison, if you like.” I spoke with a calm tone, and Habib and the slowking gasped, the part psychic type resting one of her paws on the other pokémon’s shoulder. They exchanged a worried glace and then met mine. “Is something...?”

The slowking wore a forlorn expression as she hesitated to open her mouth. “Our son and three other members of our colony suddenly disappeared at least two weeks ago. We hadn’t heard from them since.”

At this I was only mildly surprised—Team Rocket had captured many pokémon, and I doubt witnesses of any kind would exist to let anyone know where their friends would have gone. They would either have been caught or...disposed of. “So...Zhol was one of those other three?” I wondered, and Habib replied with a yes. I hadn’t met any other pokémon from their colony on the ship, so it was possible they were in a separate crate or I simply didn’t get a chance to know them. But then I suddenly thought of something. “Wait...” I attracted their attention again as I went over things in my mind. “You said your son disappeared... What’s his name?”

The two flashed looks onto each other before the slowking turned to me again. “His name’s Larse.”

“Larse?” I confirmed, perking up. “Larse! I know Larse! I met him on the ship!”

A hushed cry of joy seeped from between the psychic and water type’s muzzle. “Wonderful!” A relieved and joyous expression painted itself onto both parents’ faces, and I couldn’t help but smile. If only I knew my master was okay...

“Did he return with you?” the slowking inquired hopefully, and I felt sympathy twinge within me as I took a moment.

“Uhh...um...no. I’m...sorry,” I replied, and the shiny pokémon seemed to deflate as she absorbed the information.
“Oh...”

“Is he well?” asked Habib, and I nodded, wanting to lift their spirits.

“He actually helped me a few times. He even saved me at some point.” I glanced at my left side, noting the hole that had been healing for a number of days now. It still hurt, but nothing could get in or out—thankfully. “Yeah. I was shot in the leg by a human,” I explained, standing and facing my body in a way so that the wound could be seen. The slowking nearly gasped as she saw it, and her eyes flicked to mine as I went on. “And when no-one else could, your son used his powers to remove the bullet.” Their expressions relaxed, and a sense of subtle pride tickled their faces. “After that, when I was battling...” I swallowed, averting my gaze. “Um, a...well, someone, he really helped me out. I was actually, uhh...really surprised at how fast he could run,” I chuckled, and the slowking’s smile broadened, her eyes soft and amused. “You’re son’s a...great pokémon.”

Habib nodded, knowing well what I meant. “He is.”

Before I let a silence fall upon us for the second time, I cleared my throat. “So, um... Is it...alright if I stay a while?” The two pokémon blinked a few times in a row, and I acted casual as I shifted about on the spot. “Heh, well, I mean, I could gather berries or...or hunt! I-I can hunt... Or, um...look after anyone who needs babysitting.” I shrugged, putting forward the idea even if I was less than keen on the latter.

The two pokémon seemed to consider it, but it didn’t take them long before coming up with an answer. “Of course,” Habib answered, and for a moment I was stunned.

“R-really?” I gave a hearty chuckle. “I can?”

“Of course, dear,” the slowking repeated. As I gave off grateful grin, she added, “We can tell you aren’t a bad pokémon. For bringing Zhol safely here we are thankful.” I nearly laughed at the comment, since Zhol was basically the one who brought me as opposed to it being the other way around, but I concealed my amused thoughts.

Footsteps pattered the grass outside and my ears fluttered to catch the sound. I flung my head around my shoulder as the flimsy door creaked open and a head with fangs, a snout and three spikes at the back popped in. A lime green body followed, and two elongated feet with three claws on each seemed to grip the floor lightly as the pokémon came fully into view. However, as I suspected that he was going to speak, he froze, and I was unsure why. The two dangerous-looking blades that acted as arms hung suspended in midair as I watched for movement. Wings were attached to his back, looking like those of a dragonfly. His torso didn’t, though—it looked armoured with a yellow undercoat, and a striped abdomen rested as his lower half, which was what the legs were linked to.
After analysing this creature, I identified him as a scyther—a bug and flying type. And by the looks of things, he was analysing me too. “‘Sup,” I stated to break the silence, smiling in a friendly manner.

The mantis pokémon just stared, his eyes wary and his body stilled. He looked about to strike if I went too near, which was mildly concerning. I elected to remain seated.

“Yes?” Habib asked, the scyther’s attention switching. “What is it?”

“...Your son’s returned,” he replied, distracted by my presence. “And another member.”

“Larse?” questioned the slowking, her face completely brightening. Habib stood, surprised and silently gleeful. The pink pokémon hurried past me, slipping in an, “Excuse me,” and disappearing through the door. The scyther held the door open as she went, and looked to Habib. At that point I followed his gaze to the lickitung. He bobbed his head once at the bug and flying type and then turned to me.

“We will organise an escort to show you around later. Right now you will have to excuse me, though. You are free to go as well.” He gave a friendly nod and waddled past me. He murmured to the scyther something about holding the door open for me and that naturally I wasn’t allowed to be in the room by myself, and the pokémon hesitated before agreeing.

Eager to greet Larse again and the other colony member who had returned (possibly from the ship as well), I too stood and approached the exit. The scyther narrowed his eyes slightly as I brushed past him, and I wanted to ask him what his problem was. But those sharp scythes prevented my questioning. After all, I didn’t want to end up like that famous glameow who was supposedly killed by curiosity.

I heard the door clunk after I emerged from it and spotted a crowd of pokémon in the distance. Habib was leisurely walking towards it with his mate in front, having nearly reached the mob, and I was about to bound up to him as a blur rushed by, and I realised the scyther had taken the place by Habib’s side. I huffed, thinking he was somewhat of a show off, and made the decision not to catch up.

Then something caught my eye. While passing the lake, two orange blobs managed to distract me before their eyes quickly closed and the heads submerged. I found my legs holding me on the spot before I scanned the rest of the lake’s surface with my eyes before deciding they wouldn’t surface again. ‘Someone was spying on me...’ I thought, but after I recalled the fact that there was more than one head. ‘Well...two someones.’

***

A duo of bodies weaved away from the constant noise, slipping into a stony passageway. An eerie breeze drifted through, chilling both figures as they padded onwards. Small indents in the walls imprisoned flames behind metal grates to light the path, and condensation caused by the fire and wet environment clouded the space between the walls; breaths were exhaled as mist. Drops falling sounded from somewhere in the passage, and every pawstep echoed off the occasional stalactite threatening to fall at any second. Sometimes the floor would feel slippery, and the occasional paw would slip, clunking into a bump on the less than flat surface.

One of the pokémon scowled, stumping her paw on a protruding rock. “Ow!” she yelped angrily, the light purr of the pokémon beside her floating about her ears in a soft laughter. She only grumbled, pausing for a second to rub a toe or two against her other leg in some kind of pointless attempt to make it feel better.

“Look where you step,” advised a pale pokémon, his body slinky and somewhat graceful.

“You can see better than me—you’re a persian. You can see in the dark,” the other pokémon – also a pale one – stated. She coughed as the fog entered her lungs, swallowing afterwards. “So, what do you think he wants to see me for?”

“How would I know?” questioned the persian, shrugging. “I don’t know—to get you to do more dirty work? Your rank has been rising...”

“Mm,” nodded the second pokémon, her partly green tail hanging behind her.

“You’re nearly as good as me,” mentioned the persian with pride. By the sounds of things he liked being of a higher status.

“Pff, I’m better than you,” retorted the leafeon, the odd leaf or two hanging from her body twitching. “I was here before you, Talyn.”

“Hah,” snorted the normal type. “Doesn’t make you better,” he smirked, flicking his tail with annoyance. Moments later, the two came across a stone doorway. “Oh, look. We’re here.” After a click, the persian slid his paw with a block in the wall forward, and it seemed to melt into the thick mass before another click sounded. With a heave and a shuffle, the door clunked and a split between two sections of it grew until an opening grinned at the newcomers. An eerie silence crept through the two pokémon’s ears, and a shiver overcame the leafeon.

She dared a peek inside, quickly scanning the area. She hadn’t entered the room before her in a long time...

“Hmph,” grunted Talyn, turning to walk away. “Try not to get yourself injured, Izante.” He padded forward a few steps before the leafeon stopped him.

“Can you...come with me?” she pleaded, her eyes round and convincing.

“Nope.”

“Oh, come on. Please?”

He contemplated this for a few moments. “Can’t you survive without me?”

Izante shook her head, only keen on not having to enter alone. “Apparently not.”

The persian took a breath and exhaled in triumph. “I wouldn’t have thought so,” snicked the classy cat pokémon, pushing his chest out proudly as he walked through the gap between the two rock slabs. The grass type smiled with relief, knowing who – or what – she would face was someone she didn’t want to see alone, and perhaps wouldn’t have to.

***

Izante clambered lazily from the rather large fearow she had been riding for the past three days. She’d been flying back and forth from the headquarters and the mainland, running errands and checking up on members of the syndicate. She had only been back from the Rocket Marine Vessel for half a day before she was selected – or more like forced – to commence the chores; she had been asked to gather any lost associate who had wandered in the wrong direction. This, she had known, would take more than just a few hours—and it had.

During the period she was away, nothing particularly exciting happened, but only a day ago she arrived back at headquarters in the landing port—a section of the headquarters that had walls reaching higher than the tallest trees. A visible ceiling was missing, but in its place was a disguise. A barrier had been stably holding its place for years, and from the outside it looked like a normal rocky landscape, but on the inside it was transparent. It provided a good means of separating intruders from fellow members, and it was another defence and disguise mechanism.

As the female grass type took less than three steps forward, she was approached by a pokémon. She recognised him as no more than one of their slaves and simply ignored him, but as he seemed about to spit something out, the leafeon stopped. He was cone shaped and dark grey with a yellow overcoat-like covering. Orange bordered the yellow around his face and pupil-less eyes stared timidly at the grass eevee evolution, hesitating to speak. But when her eyes grew impatient, he decided that staying quiet would do him nothing more than a disservice. “The Director...wants to see you.” He swallowed, nearly flinching as Izante scowled.

“I see,” she muttered to herself, pushing past the cowering snorunt. She was consumed by the crowd of sinister and uncouth creatures clogging entrances to the landing port, eventually squeezing between each pokémon and appearing in a connecting room. It was another open passage with pokémon scattered about, and channels leading to other rooms gaped at her, causing her to choose which one she would travel through.

After navigating herself around and getting lost once or twice, Izante came across the rocky passage leading to where she was required to be. She felt great hesitation as she stepped forward, wishing her companion was with her. She pressed on, her head low between her shoulders as she imagined why she would be called to the Director’s cavern.

However, as she approached, she could hear murmuring echoing from inside. She was relieved as she took that as an excuse not to go in as of yet, and placed herself at the entrance instead. After a minute of tapping her back paw and wiping her tail against the wall behind her as an act of nervousness, her ears pricked. A figure appeared at the other end of the rock corridor, where she had come in from.

“Izante,” a pokémon called, getting the leafeon’s attention. As she looked, she recognised the creature as a spinda—a two legged bear-like pokémon with longer ears, swirls for eyes and random polka dots of a pinky red blotched on her face. She curled her paw in towards her, signalling for Izante to come her way, and the leafeon, still hearing the chatter which seemed to be between two males, leaped down the hall and stopped before the normal type.

“What?” she hastily asked, squeezing past the spinda to be away from the path that led to danger and into the room she came from.

“Talyn needs you in the interrogation room. We have some...suspects.”

Izante gave a brief nod before hurrying off, the spinda following. ‘Anything to get away from...him.’

***

After she went to help deal with the prisoners, she had been assigned to fly back out on a suitable pokémon to gather the other captured creatures who had been apprehended after they were spotted fleeing from the ship area. They were violently arrested and forced to come to the sinister hideout where some still had yet to arrive, and where only two or three had been tossed into the prisoner cavern already—two of which had been the ones she and her had colleague questioned. So she had flown out and arrived back the next day, which she currently was living.

Izante had been lucky to have been distracted yesterday. But today’s appointment was real. Now she couldn’t escape, and she was staring his somewhat secluded cave right in its grinning face. She swallowed again, glancing to Talyn for mental – and physical if she needed it – support.

She skulked through the ‘doors’ herself, trailing the meowth evolution stealthily as she glanced warily about. ‘He could be anywhere...’

“The persian...” hissed an echoing voice, stabbing shivers down Izante’s spine, “...can leave.”

The leafeon threw her head dramatically to the left, her pleading eyes reaching out to her companion. But the normal type shrugged with slight helplessness and he turned to leave. “Ta—” the grass type began, letting her shoulders flop. “...Bye, Talyn.”

He nodded before striding out, the tip of his tail a hair away from being jammed in the concrete slabs’ grip as they clamped shut. He got a mild shock as the noise snapped at his ears, and he shook off, thinking of his leader’s manners to be poor. Before he retraced his steps back down the hallway, he set his eyes on the room he was in for only moments, hoping the one he cared for so much would not be shaken up from whatever the Director would do to her.

“Forgive me for my rudeness,” hummed a shady voice again, his form still hidden. “I cannot have...Talyn...interfering or...hindering your ability to speak the truth.”

The leafeon began shaking in plain sight, her attempt to conceal her fear failing. ‘Surely I’ve been a...good member of the team; I haven’t screwed up! So...so he has no reason to deal with me poorly. I’m...far too valuable to lose,’ she told herself, standing upright as she tried to compose herself. ‘...Aw, who am I kidding? He’ll find some excuse to—’

A chuckle rippled the surface of the large lake situated in the middle of the huge cavern which reached to its end. All around were stalactites and boulders of many sizes—some of them shattered or cracked in assorted places. Columns of rock thinned in the middle but thickened where they connected to the floor and the ground, and a spooky dripping noise rang every once in a while. As the leafeon continued to scan the area, she noted the scaly walls and the many indents to shape them strangely. The lake occupied much of the space in the room, and off to the sides at the far end were separate cave areas where the Director would keep...personal detainees to possibly torture. It was also rumoured to be the place that he held other, different pokémon.

“Now, Izante,” the voice followed up after chuckling, “you look so afraid. There is no reason to be.”

As the leafeon crept forward, hoping to catch a glimpse of something to indicate the leader’s whereabouts, she flinched and swerved around after sensing a shadow dart behind her. The dully-lit cavern made it hard to make out proper forms and cast whoever lay in wait unidentifiable. As another silhouette made her look frantically to her right, she panicked. More seemed to appear in assorted places, their eyes gleaming as they flashed and faded. It was only seconds before they began to surround Izante, and she cowered while watching as they closed in...

“Don’t be frightened by my guards,” he advised, and somehow Izante could tell he was grinning. The darkened figures crept about, coming to halts on top of boulders and in other places surrounding the grass type, and she exhaled deeply, keeping an eye on each of them. She couldn’t help but tremble.

“D-Director...” Izante gulped, “you need me?” She tried standing up straight and still, but couldn’t help scanning the room for any signs of who she hoped but hoped not to spot.

“Of course,” he replied, his calm tone more creepy than reassuring. “Come forward...to the lake.”

Figuring she had no choice, the leafeon paced forward a number of steps forward before coming close to the water’s edge. Once she arrived, she briefly gazed into its impossible depths, her uncertain and nervous reflection staring helplessly back at her. “A-am I...” she began, trailing off.

“...Yes?”

“Am...I here for punishment?”

The voice chuckled once again. “Not unless you want to be.” Suddenly yellow eyes revealed themselves on a dry island against the back wall of the cave where there was a circular break in the water. It was an area large enough to hold more than ten leafeon, so the leader fit easily in the space. Shortly after the eyes brightened, illuminating the darkness around him, a body became dimly visible, and it was clear that a rather big pokémon sat staring at Izante. That was where the source of the voice was.

Izante looked uneasy, and she cleared her throat before rephrasing her question. “Master, what...why was I... What did you call me for?”

“The report, my young apprentice.” The mysterious pokémon did not move, but his tail flickered, as if he was partially disappointed one of his best agents may have forgotten. “While on the Rocket vessel we discussed that you would provide me with a report on what happened.” She nodded slowly, and as if to prompt her, the so called ‘master’ spoke again—this time more firmly. “The casualties, the survivors, the number of prisoners who escaped...”

Izante seemed to get the picture by this stage and tried to sound confident. “The—the casualties...were large. On a grand scale, we lost more than...they did.” At this the pokémon tensed, but the leafeon quickly threw in, “But in all fairness, their numbers were ours tripled! Maybe more...” He relaxed slightly, but Izante still sensed his annoyance. “At a guess, we determined that...seventy-five percent of the prisoners made it out alive. The Rockets and their pokémon...only forty percent escaped without being killed...or less.” The grass pokémon knew her leader would be glaring by this point, and she could certainly class that as fact as his lips curled into a snarl and he scratched his claws back and forth on the steel-hard rock below his paws. She hesitated to go on until he told her that she should continue. “Uhh...by the end of it, most Rockets had decided the fight was pointless because they knew they couldn’t win, and at that stage all of...almost all of the prisoners had fled. Then me and Talyn left with a few Rocket minions on some fearows.” She closed her eyes for a moment before finishing. “We were out of range when we witnessed the ship blow.”

“Out of range when what?” boomed the leader, smearing disdain throughout his use of the sentence’s last word. His eyes were suddenly steady with docked rage.

“U—um...uh... When—when it...blew up, Master,” Izante confirmed, lowering herself with subtlety.

“Blew up?!” the Director exploded, his mood taking a hideous bend in the wrong direction.

The eevee evolution drew back in the instant, an immediate warning bell sounding in her head. She cowered and, in the midst of her fear, made the hasty decision to attempt to scramble away, but didn’t get far. With one astounding leap driven by negative surprise and hatred for what he was hearing, the leader scaled the lake with no trouble. Izante’s jaw would have come loose had it been able to, but instead it dropped to its possible extent. She was quick to close it as her eyes shook with sheer fear. It was almost as if her eyelids no longer existed as she watched her master with the widest eyes she could have produced.

“Explain to me,” the pokémon demanded in a fierce, dangerous whisper, “how this happened!”

With a frightening super-pokémon literally in her face and hissing guards on the watch nearby, the grass type could hardly breathe, let alone talk. Her heart was pounding too fast for her to know it wasn’t just a vibrating mess, and she could have sworn she was drenched in sweat and adrenaline. She let a breath ease out through her nose before drawing one back in at the same pace. “I-I-I-I d-don’t...kn—”

“Do NOT tell me you don’t know!” he warned, spitting his words with clear ferocity.

“It—it must have been a pokémon who escaped! I swear on Talyn’s life!” she cried. Her face muscles stressed her expression into that of desperation and emotional agony as her eyes kept themselves bound and her jaws interlocked. She forced them back open. “Please, I...I’d tell you if I knew...”

Several seconds passed while Izante stayed frozen in her cowering position, the dominant pokémon slowly edging away and returning to a normal seated pose, the contempt still printed on his face but otherwise he displayed a calm expression and stilled himself. “I believe you,” he informed, but that didn’t seem to mean much. At least, she thought, it meant that he wasn’t going to express his anger her way.

Silence wavered in the air, circling through the leafeon’s ears as she dared not to move. She had never seen the Director react so violently before, and she knew it was out of his general nature to snap so easily. Surely what happened didn’t matter too much. The Rockets who lived fled, but the ones who were dead or unconscious were left on the ship—who would probably have been useless after what they’d been through anyway. Other than that, all that was destroyed was... ‘Oh,’ the leafeon thought, her heart racing as she realised something: the only reason why her master would become so utterly infuriated.

Izante was distracted from her thoughts as the pokémon rose, a lengthy breath escaping his nostrils. He took a cluster of moments to regain his calm, and when he did, his head turned so the side of it was being watched by his follower. “...You are... You are free to go,” he explained, making an odd noise to presumably tell his guards it was fine to allow the leafeon to leave. The Director strode forward, stopping as his ears picked up no sound of shuffling. “Leave, leafeon.”

“Y-yes, Master,” the pokémon obeyed, scuttling backwards. She turned around and hurried to the exit, repeating to herself silently that she was nearly out of there. However, she didn’t get all the way before she was addressed again.

“Izante,” she heard, and she cringed as she heaved her eyes back in his direction. “...Who...initiated the release of all the prisoner pokémon?”

Her heart sank. She hoped she didn’t have to answer that question. “...Uhh... There’re only...rumours—”

“Don’t,” he started, raising his voice to interrupt her, “stall.” His eye glinted with calm amusement as he rotated his head, his body still facing away. “...I know...you know.”

Vibrations skimmed her back again; she hated it when he pierced her eyes with the deadly spears in his. She swallowed hard, taking a breath. “The...the flareon,” she admitted, feeling her ears droop. He seemed momentarily interested, obviously waiting for proper details. Izante contemplated her options before she gave a sigh.

“Say it,” he hissed, a tiny smile present.

“It...it was...”

***

“Dusty!”

“Larse!” I bounded to the slowpoke surrounded by other colony pokémon who were just as pleased and excited to greet him as I was. “You made it!” I nudged his face as he radiated a gleeful smile.

“Yes, I did.” He looked me up and down. “And so did you, I see.”

“I sure did!” I felt my tail beat furiously from side to side before answering the question I knew he was dying to ask. “Oh, and if you’re wondering why I’m here, it’s ‘cause I’m officially a temporary member of your colony!”

“Oh, are you? Good to hear,” he replied, and I was about to continue the conversation as he was addressed by another pokémon who just arrived in the circle—an ursaring. The ursaring. The one that attacked me!

“Young one!” she shouted out of desperation, a small teddiursa following.

“Hello, Wynore. Good to s—”

“I need to know,” she interrupted, and Larse seemed somewhat surprised she had done so. “Please, I need you to tell me something.”

“Yes, of course. And...what is it?” he inquired.

The normal type looked deeply into his eyes, as if holding them still for her question. She had dropped to her knees and her paws rested awkwardly on his narrow shoulders. “...Lakane... Did you...did you see him? Was he...was he with you?”

Whoever ‘Lakane’ was, I was certain the ursaring had some connection to him.

“L...Lakane... Yes, I did. I was w—” he began, but again was spoken over.

“Is he alright?” she pressed, her emotion overcoming her. She was certainly more than just concerned.

“I...I was unconscious for the time I was carried off the ship, and only awoke when I touched the ocean. So...I don’t know if he safely escaped the ship...” He looked down, unable to hold his gaze upon Wynore. Sympathy stroked my heart as I watched the female bear pokémon remove her paws and trace the dirt with her eyes. She slowly got to her feet, the sadness tugging at her face. The slowpoke mulled over a thought or two and became hopeful. “But the majority of us escaped healthily, so the chances of him being alive and well are high.”

The tiny teddy pokémon beside her looked curiously at who I guessed was her mother and wore a curious expression, the crescent moon pattern on her forehead brightening under the sunlight. “Where’s Daddy?” she questioned, and the ursaring just squeezed her eyes closed, clenching her jaws.

“I...I don’t know,” she answered, avoidant of the question. “He’s...he’s coming home later.” She barely made eye contact with the cub before turning and leaving, the small normal type with a button-like nose following with one claw wedged between her lips. I watched as they pushed between more pokémon who stared at them with sympathetic gazes and turned away.

I felt my tail sag as I plonked my tush on the ground. That battle on the ship... It affected countless pokémon on the spot, but when I thought about families, friends, trainers, packs...it was awful. I felt as if a tauros had hurled himself at me, and I struggled to endure the impact. Just witnessing what happened to two pokémon was reason enough for me to not want to remember. And all those pokémon I killed? And the humans I...slaughtered... Was it all really worth it? Worth...this? All the pokémon currently surrounding me had been changed by this event. That ursaring...she may as well have lost a mate. And Larse? His parents were living proof that he was cared for deeply, as well as the rest of the colony.

I was delving too deeply into these thoughts as a voice brought me back to the spot I was standing. “Poor Wynore,” one of the pokémon pitied—a bellossom. Her voice was swimming in sadness and remorse. “To think she might have lost someone so close to us...”

“So close to us all,” the scyther spoke up, and my eyes wandered to meet his before I lowered my head. He rotated eyes, catching everyone’s glance. “He is a good pokémon...and a great friend.” A smile flickered across his face. “He will return. I think it’s fair to say that we all know Luck well enough to say that he will return!”

I nearly gagged.

The oxygen was blocked from my nostrils. I flicked my head back up, my eyes seizing his. “What?!” I blurted. He seemed shocked that I had moved so suddenly, and more so that I had intervened so obnoxiously.

He gave me a bewildered frown and a cautious flicker of his confidence seemed to waver through his eyes. “...I said he was a great pokémon.”

I was practically having a heart attack. It couldn’t be him. Yet now that I assessed it, I was shocked almost to the extent of disgust at my failure to connect Luck with the female ursaring’s mentioning of a mate before the scyther spoke. I blinked, his eyes still on mine. “Luck...as in...ursaring Luck?”

“Y-yes...” he mentioned, seemingly annoyed I had sounded so abrupt and impolite. The rest of the pokémon exchanged confused looks, some of the shrugging and some muttering, while I just stared ahead at nothing specific.

“Oh...crap.”

[Suicune's Fire]

Chapter Seventeen: A Tour

“Do you know him?” wondered a raticate. Her huge teeth were concealed inside her mouth as she eyed me curiously.

I stared into nothingness, looking at her, but...seeing straight through her. “...Yes,” I stated after silence, unhappy and my displeasure on display. I clenched my teeth, both reluctant and disbelieving. This was going to break my heart.

I saw the scyther who was a tiny bit darker green than usual move from the corner of my eye, and it looked as if he was about to say something, but he stopped himself as another pokémon spoke up. “Where was he?” asked the bellossom, and I barely made an effort to look at her to reply.

“On...um... On—on a ship.”

“Mummy...” began a rattata between the raticate who had spoken before and a male raticate, “what’s a ship?” The female normal type glanced down at her young one, but she gave him a look of uncertainty and unknowing.

“The ship,” began the scyther, Shard, “is a human transport.” He caught the eyes of many pokémon, including mine, and seemed comfortable with it.

Having had time or...whatever I needed to assess his detail properly since I’d seen him, I almost gasped. I hadn’t seen the left side of his body until I stared at it presently, scanning the many burn marks and faded scars that were scattered along his abdomen and thorax, as well as on his shoulder. It nearly shocked me; seeing such disturbing injuries made me think about what kind of fight he must have been involved in. It wasn’t often that I saw pokémon with long-residing injuries, so it made me wonder how he got them.

“It is a place for storage and a human’s way to carry whatever is being stored across a body of water.” He stood tall and knowledgeable as he spoke, obviously knowing what he was talking about. But while he spoke, I tilted my head. If all these other pokémon didn’t know, how come he did?

“Ooh. Why were you on that thing?” queried the heracross with a soft look, and I took a breath.

“...It was involuntary,” I mentioned quietly. My mind wound back as I eyed the ground. “All the pokémon on that ship were captured.”

A cluster of gasps rang throughout the group of pokémon, just as I had expected, and they exchanged concerned glances. Whispers floated between each of them, and I could hear scepticism trailing through some sentences.

“So you escaped,” stated the altaria bluntly, raising an eyebrow. It was as if she didn’t believe me.

I pierced her eyes with my serious expression. “Yes,” I answered, a solid quality to my tone.

“Well...what happened?” questioned a rather surprised and seemingly impatient sunflora.

I turned to him, twisting my head to a titled position. But before I could reply (if I was going to), a familiar face materialised at the end of the crowd. I nearly relaxed when I noticed who it was. “Leave her be,” she instructed, pokémon parting as she brushed along the path. “Upfront questions like this take time to be answered.”

“Zhol,” I whispered, grateful to be staring straight at her.

“Well, welcome back!” exclaimed a male raticate, scurrying forward and nodding as his eyes connected with that of the sneasel’s. His friendliness was warming, but the chill of my knowledge was not to be overcome.

Zhol bobbed her head, muttering, “Thanks,” and addressed me with her glance. I attempted a smile, but my muscles refused to be pulled, leaving my expression unchanged. The half dark type appeared before Habib, greeting the giant lickitung and his mate, who was beside Larse, with a curt bow. “We will give you a full report later.”

“Okay,” Habib agreed, looking less than expectant of the comment.

“Right now, Dusty needs some space.” She flashed a smile at me as I sighed inwardly with relief.

“Wait... What about Luck?” asked the scyther with a stern expression. I had to wonder how close he was to my ursaring friend, because he seemed keen to find out about him.

“Later,” persisted Zhol, her eyes widening as she said so. She tapped me with her hefty claws and signalled for me to follow her, and I rained one last look on the large group of pokémon gathered in front of me before turning and walking with the sneasel in the opposite direction.

“Th...thanks,” I muttered, managing half a smile of appreciation. “It’s hard...y’ know?”

“Mm,” nodded the sneasel understandingly, taking me past the end of a street of huts, the large lake and a home similarly built to one of the bidoof/bibarel’s lodges that was half in the water and half on land. I didn’t think much of it, as I was focused on Zhol.

“Where are we going?” I wondered, my ears folding back.

“I want to show you something,” explained the sneasel, stepping from Usster soil and through the gates of the forest. I followed across the border and padded beside her, noting the thick rocky wall to my right that surrounded the north and west sides of the land. Since the wall didn’t complete its half-lap around the premises, we were able to have just exited through the west.

We walked in silence for roughly a minute, the forest staying the same. Some things that stayed far from ‘the same’ were my thoughts. They whizzed, bounced and zipped around inside, prodding me and provoking the miserable feeling so abundant now that I was faced with a serious dilemma. Did I have to be the one to reveal the truth to everyone? Was it my burden to bear until dropping the bomb on everybody? And as unfair as it seemed, I reminded myself that there was nothing that seemed just in the past two or so weeks. It’d been one large boot up the backside.

“Dusty?” wondered Zhol, plucking me from my internal debate and placing me out in the open. I tuned in with a look. “I can listen...if you want me to.”

I smiled on the inside. “...Thanks, Zhol.” I was happy to see her smile back.

We proceeded forward, the calm but continuous pace repeating itself. I craned my neck at giant trees looming like guardians over their vast sanctuary, their limbs blocking paths but creating opportunities for homes and shelter at the same time. The flapping of wings sounded nearby, and my eyes followed a spearow who perched upon the edge of a nest in a forked branch. A worm dropped from her mouth and into the tiny beak belonging to one of her chicks.

Suddenly my mind leaped back in time to the spot near that tall birch tree Izante had so easily bounded up. I remembered her ability to spring so very high, and balancing on those branches was something no leafeon could easily accomplish. She’d never done such a thing before me prior to that one moment...and somehow it bugged me. And those bizarre words she’d uttered—the thing that she said right before she jumped up those branches...

“Like a rocket...” I snapped my head to Zhol. “Like a rocket; like a rocket!” I babbled, capturing her gaze. Her eyes were as round as oran berries. “A rocket! You know... Rocket? Team Rocket? She was chanting!”

Zhol’s eyebrows climbed up her face, her mouth a small triangle below her nose. Clearly she had no idea what I was talking about. She kept quiet until she realised I was going to keep my eyes fixed on hers.

“Look,” I began, twirling around and leaping into a tree, thudding with a solid impact. With a groan I fell on my butt. “Ouch... That didn’t work...” I spun ‘round and weaved between tree trunks until I found one with branches somewhat close to the ground. I threw my glance over my shoulder to ensure Zhol was still in my space, and sure enough, she came to be behind me in moments. With a waggle of my tail-end and a spring in my step, I leapt, clambering clumsily onto a decently-sized branch. My front paws tried desperately to attain some form of grip as my back legs did the same, but they slipped uselessly. In the next heartbeat, I lay on my back, an upside down Zhol glaring with concern and perplexity. The shot of pain up my spine intensified as I rolled onto my paws again, standing up. “See?”

Her look was only magnified. “That you...fell?” she guessed.

“Exactly,” I sighed, sitting in front of her. “Normal trainers don’t train their pokémon in the art of tree climbing.” I hooked my bottom lip around my teeth, taking a second to think. I shook my head repetitively. “...Do you know what this means?” The sneasel shook her head slowly. “It means that she learnt that from someone other than her master. Someone like Team Rocket.” I wandered off in thought, Zhol trailing. “I bet Team Rocket has some sort of ability training the pokémon have to go through to make them stronger—otherwise there’d be no difference between them and ordinary trainer or wild pokémon.” I searched my mind for more examples, stumbling across a single simple one. “It must be how that Mr. Mime held up that barrier and light screen attack for so long! And it was really strong!” I whirled around. “Remember? Back on the ship? Zhol?”

“Y-yes,” she answered uncomfortably, and I could see that she was wondering where I was headed with all of this. “Dusty, what...”

I felt about to talk, but my teeth clicked together...and my jaws relaxed into a motionless state. I slumped my body against a tree, narrowly avoiding a splinter as I slid down to be seated. “She is a Rocket pokémon... I know she is...” My stare was aimless until it locked onto a flake of bark half buried in the taupe soil.

I barely noticed as Zhol came down to my level in a crouch. “...Who?” she asked in a simple tone, her eyes fixed on me.

My eyes swivelled after waiting for the right moment. An expression contorted with misery and disappointment radiated from my face before finding the dark and ice type’s gaze. “...Izante.”

***

A series of wing-beats echoed around, two pairs of talons seeping into the ground with a doomp. A dark bird-like pokémon shook himself off, glancing about. The curved feather bunch on his head swayed as the wind blew through his grey and white tail feathers. His orange and brown beak pointed towards his company, his frustration clouding his face of jagged white. His smallish eyes of brown and charcoal surveyed the area, spotting a swaying leaf and a fallen log. The undergrowth was plentiful and constantly flew and settled shortly after. A pidgey on watch hopped into her nest, a mouse scuttled for shelter under an arch of thick bark, and other than that, a few crickets hummed in the near distance. A warm light latched onto the staravia’s left wing from above and another breeze charged through to cause ruffling feathers. “Where on Earth are they?” huffed the flying type in a gruff voice. “They do understand we have other charges, I hope.”

“I think they’re new,” commented the second pokémon, her tone much softer. However, an indifferent edge to it was present. “They should be here soon.” She waddled with her coral-red legs to a branch a wing’s stretch above her head, tilting her sepia neck. The feathers bordering the tops of her eyes and resting on her head, which were the same colour as her legs, hung more freely as they dangled due to their unusual angle, and a curled pink beak directed orange eyes to an empty home of bent twigs. “Pidgey,” stated the flying type, a short-feathered bird pokémon showing herself after a moment of hesitation. She side-stepped from behind the cluster of leaves she was previously peeking through and bounced onto her nest’s edge, puffing up protectively. “Have you seen a small group of pokémon pass through here?” she asked in a mellow manner. Her deep pink and yellow fan of a tail swayed gently while her yellow-tinted cream underside rose and fell subtly, all signs of a threat absent.

In seeing this, the flying type flattened her coat slightly and eyed the bird duo. After another session of analysis, the pidgey stepped into her nest and made herself comfortable. “Why, no. No, I have not.”
“Damn it!” cursed the starling pokémon, pounding the air with his wings.

The startled pidgey retreated into herself suddenly, squeaking with unsureness.

“Stop it!” chirped the pidgeotto, her stern expression slicing into the staravia’s behaviour and temporarily removing any trace of choleric attitude. She returned her glance to a member of her pre-evolutionary species. “Pay him no attention,” she requested, noticing the pidgey had no positive reaction. “Thank you.” She glided in the opposite direction, her partner following, and once they were no longer within earshot of the pidgey, the pidgeotto landed, whipping around to end up face to face with the male bird pokémon. “You fool!” she screeched. “What’s the good of scaring off the locals when we’re not supposed to bother them? He can’t build a successful empire when no pokémon will want to oblige! If they all think like that pidgey, they will know him as irrational and frightening, and likely disagree with him!”

The staravia just snorted. “Let them cower! Who cares?”

“He does,” hissed the bird pokémon, her voice hushed and her watchful eye frantic as if she expected someone to leap at her and tear her to pieces.

“Hey, you,” an ominous voice rang, giving the flying duo a start. They glanced about, unable to detect anything with their eyes. The pidgeotto swallowed, sensing something nearby but still seeing nothing out of the ordinary.

The staravia and his partner were not expecting a togepi to step out of thin air and appear before them. A malicious grin crept onto his face, and he hopped to the side as his illuminated red irises glowed with excitement. Next an ivysaur hobbled from where the egg pokémon came, his timid expression not fully confident. He shook off, loose leaves falling from his body. His gait formed into a limp, blood creeping from where one of his claws was attached on his hind leg.

The last to become visible was a Mr. Mime, who side-stepped from behind his seemingly invisible wall. The navy blue hair sprouting from either side of his head was frayed and messy, and his glove-like hands were stained with brown and maroon. “Are you the messengers?” he questioned, a creepy tint to his tone.

“Y-yes,” confirmed the pidgeotto, her partner a bit too shocked to reply. “Wh—what’s your position?”

“Standing,” the togepi answered amusedly.

The staravia gathered himself and sneered with narrowed eyes at the small cream pokémon. “Get serious and cut the games.”

“That’s my job,” the Mr. Mime intervened, a neutral look about his face. “We’re in pursuit.” He looked down at the two pokémon beside him. “How far do you think, boys?”

“Um,” began the grass type, “three days...behind? I think?” he guessed, and received a generous nod of approval from the Mr. Mime. The dark-coloured bird pokémon didn’t look as impressed.

“Can you give a precise answer?” he growled, exhaling impatiently. But when the green pokémon didn’t say anything, he added, “Well? Ivysaur?”

“...M...my name—”

“No-one cares about your name in this biz, kid,” the grouch of a pokémon informed. “Now, can you give me an accurate position or not?”

“You could use a smile or two once in a while,” interrupted the tall white and pink pokémon, something off about his general vibe.

The staravia was moderately confused at the remark and merely drew his head back in slight disgust. “...What?” he mumbled to his partner, and she shrugged, clearly unfazed by it.

The ivysaur glanced helplessly to the pidgeotto and then back to the barrier pokémon beside him. “Th...three days,” he decided on his own. “If...if we hurry, we can catch up soon.”

“Good,” the female flying type nodded, extending a wing out in front of her colleague. “We will report back to headquarters with your status.” She made a head gesture before taking to the skies with the staravia, their multicoloured tails soaring with the wind as they used the current to their advantage.

“...Messengers are so stupid,” commented the foot-tall normal type. He chuckled and took a seat to rest his sore feet.

“Funny,” grinned the Mr. Mime toothily, his creepy gaze meeting that of the togepi’s, “I’ve never liked them either.”

The togepi smirked, rolling backwards and into a stalk strong enough to prop him up. “At least we’ll get what we came for soon.” He gave an open yawn. “I’m looking forward to it.”

***

I had barely talked for a few minutes before a call echoed, a name bouncing between tree trunks. “Zhol!” We both flung ourselves up and waited until a tall figure invaded my vision. “You need to—”

As if having forgotten Zhol had walked off with me about five minutes before, the scyther shot understated daggers into my eyes. “Ouch,” I mumbled to myself, surprised with how harsh this pokémon was. He was probably suspicious of me, though, because I was new and unknown. I experienced a moment of reasoning before shrugging.

“Habib would like to see you,” he continued, keeping his scythes suspended at his waist. I hadn’t seen scyther very often, so I wasn’t sure where they normally held their sword-like arms, but where they were on this dude sure did look defensive to me.

The sneasel turned to me, tilting her head. “Yeah, I’ll come,” I decided, and she perked up before striding in the direction of the colony. I noticed Shard hesitate a moment longer before zipping in front. With a sidewards mouth, I pulled myself towards Zhol and followed her through the bracken. “Does this mean you won’t get to show me whatever it was you...wanted to show me?”

“It’s fine,” she replied quickly. “I’ll show you to it later.”

Within no time we were back at the entrance to the colony’s grounds, and I waited a few minutes as Zhol vanished through the near doorway of Habib’s home. I had been unsure whether or not I really wanted to re-enter the colony’s land. ‘I have nothing else to do and nowhere else to go,’ I admitted to myself hopelessly, knowing that initiating a search for my trainer at this point was useless for multiple reasons. But another Luck question and I decided that I’d disappear again. I just don’t know how I would take it. It was so tough to lose a friend. And even tougher to have to break the news to a bunch of pokémon who were closely acquainted with the same pokémon, and who, on top of that, knew him for a much broader duration of time... It was bad enough watching him fall to the deathly depths below the ship’s edge, and having to retell the information to someone who would react in a manner similar to how I reacted just made it so unfair. I knew it was my responsibility to reveal the horrible news. I just didn’t want it to be.

“Flareon!” demanded a somewhat gravelly but annoyingly-pitched voice. My gaze presented me with a stout pokémon whose head was masked nearly entirely by a skull. The object he clutched within his paw that was directed in a straight line right at me was also a bone, and I began to wonder how cubone get to obtain their precious external body parts. “Come here.” I didn’t fancy taking orders from a little squirt such as himself, and what bugged me even more was the fact that he seemed to believe he had disturbingly high authority. I trotted reluctantly in his direction, the only real reason I obeyed being that Zhol took her place beside him as they conversed, and when I arrived, I snatched their last few words about some sort of ‘tour’. “Hi, Zhol.” I turned to the cubone only when he cleared his throat. “Oh...hi.”

“Yes, greetings,” he hastily muttered, completely uninterested in me. I wasn’t fazed though. Not like I cared who he was.

“Dusty,” Zhol began, and my attention was completely drawn to her.

“Yes, Zhol?” I responded overenthusiastically, nearing her suddenly. “My very helpful friend who I value greatly—what is it you want to inquire? A request? Would you like to...inform me of something?” I spun around, and for no reason twirled, turning back. “Enlighten me with your words oh-so-wise, friend! My ears welcome your words.”

The sneasel’s face was clouded with nothing but bewilderment as she stared, and the cubone just eyed me with disgust mingled with confusion. Silence increased our distance and began playing with my fur until I sighed and sent it scurrying off.

“Yes, I’m that strange. Anyway,” I continued, adjusting my tongue and sweeping the ground with my tail. “You were saying?”

“U-uhh...” Zhol glanced to her left at the cubone, then back to me. “Habib thinks that a tour would be a good idea for you,” she explained, and I nodded understandingly. A tour sounded good to me!

“Alright.” I took a breath, a smile crossing my face. “Okay! So where are you taking me first?” I inquired.
The two pokémon exchanged a silent sentence during their little eye contact session which I was completely excluded from, and before I could say anything, Zhol cleared her throat, her gaze choosing the ground before me. “Well...to get you accustomed to living with the other residents of the colony, he thought that...someone else could take you.”

“Cupborn, you can call me,” the cubone insisted deliberately, “and I will be your guide.”

The awkward silence slipped between us once again, blushing and looking in the opposite direction so it, too, didn’t have to look the odd pause in the face. Our eyes flicked to one another, and I hardly knew what to think. I was just waiting for that convenient tumbleweed to roll right on by and trip up on a rock or two.
“This...is Dusty,” Zhol stated, holding out a paw in my direction.

“Zhol!” called the scyther suddenly from Habib’s home—which rested nearby.

“Coming,” the sneasel replied with less volume than the oversized bug had, and I blinked several times, finally realising she wouldn’t be accompanying me.

“W-wait! Zhol, where’re you going?”

“I’ve got to hunt with Shardclaw,” she informed, and my expression turned into a bitter sneer. She had to leave. Right now. I wasn’t exactly in the best mood, having just talked about my best friend who, only days ago, betrayed me, and having just found out that I would be shown around my new home by a haughty ground type. He had to be a ground type!

“Come on, flareon,” pushed the marowak pre-evolution, but I snorted at him.

“Zhol! They shouldn’t expect you to hunt when you only just got back!”

“Well, they do,” the dark and ice type answered, shrugging. She turned to leave, but stopped herself in time to draw her face close to mine. With a slightly pleading but amused look, she added, “And, Dusty... Play nice,” before she left in a blur that was no more than a dark figure zipping across the dirt.

“Was that supposed to be advice?” I asked myself, chuckling through my nose.

“Flareon!” snapped the small, brown pokémon.

“What?!” I snapped right back.

He narrowed his eyes and drew backwards. “We don’t have all day,” he growled.

“Thanks for the info,” I remarked with sarcasm that evidently stung. I trotted past him, watching as what I could see of his face grew a reddish tinge. It made me smirk.

“Immature fire type,” Cupborn uttered under his breath—but clearly too loudly.

“Over-confident cubone,” I retorted. Boy, it felt good to play his game.

“Shut up and follow me.” The agitated pokémon marched past me, and I rolled my eyes as I trailed.

My head hung as my tuft masked part of my face. My shoulders protruded with every step that pressed my paws against the ground, my tail hanging feebly. I wore embarrassment on my forehead as I passed a sunflora carrying hay walking ahead of one of the raticate who spoke to me earlier. Although the rat-like pokémon nodded as a friendly gesture, I could only wince half-heartedly in return and hope it looked somewhat comfortable.

“Greech; Hyso,” my tour guide named clearly (in the order I saw them, I imagine). He led me down and in the direction of that lake I avoided before, but he turned so the water was behind us. As I padded, I glanced ahead, noticing a vast plain where the pokémon had gathered to greet Larse. The fruit shed where I had crashed and woken up in not long ago was across the other side, near many trees. However, before we came near it, Cupborn halted abruptly and faced me. “This is the Den Row.”

After scowling as I nearly thudded into him, I threw my glance down the wide path to my left that bore assorted pokémon all with assorted intentions. There were only about five, but they were almost all of a different species. To both sides of the path were homes of different sizes and builds. Some resembled ones I saw back at the bibarel colony, and others looked totally different. I imagined that they were built with the type of the pokémon whose home it was in mind. For instance, normal and flying types would probably need more insulation than ice or fire types when it came to the cold; fire, rock and ground pokémon would have thicker rooves in case of rain, and so on. But I hadn’t ever seen a colony like this one which actually had houses. They greatly reminded me of human houses, although much less refined, and I’d always thought most wild pokémon (or from what I’d seen, anyway) would live in simple dens, hollows or nests. Turned out I was wrong.

He pointed out that to our right was the home belonging to Hyso and his family, and the one that started further up but on the left was where Greech and his family lived. Back to the right side again, nearly in line with Greech and his family’s house, was apparently a home which ‘Rentana’ and ‘Etire’ occupied...whoever they were. As we went on, he pointed out his house, and houses belonging to other assorted pokémon with random names.

I tuned out as I marvelled at the largest house of them all...which didn’t look much like a house. On ‘Den Row,’ I counted five homes in total running up the left side, and behind the two furthest away lay a rather big building. It appeared to have the strongest tree trunks and slabs of stone sewn into the walls, and by the looks of the outside, it had no windows...or entrances. Its west and north walls were not built, as they were instead the thick rock that bordered the west and north ends of the colony’s land. Once the left and right sides of the houses met at the end of the path where two connected dens sat, that was as far as the homes reached. Behind the connected dens was that stretching rock that continued off to the side, past a dense patch of trees which separated about a third of the colony’s land from the rest of it. I was in the larger part, from what I’d glimpsed, and the side containing the busiest pokémon and structures.

“Zhol,” he pointed out once we’d ventured to the end of the path. The homes this far up surrounded a small waterhole that stretched to my left, under someone’s hut, and onward under the huge building I had noticed before, the one with no windows. Zhol’s was one up from the house with the trail of water snaking underneath, and to the right of it, my right, was the direction Cupborn pointed his bone. “Aemara, her clinic, Tarla.” He began going down the right side now, mentioning who lived in the three homes before he would have repeated to tell me where ‘Renta’...or something...and Et...something lived—an early house mentioned on the tour.

“Uh-huh.” I blurted flatly. I threw him a look with my eyelids at half-mast. “You know I’m not gonna remember all this, or any of this, right?”

“Follow me through here,” he demanded without so much as a grunt in reply beforehand.

We walked back around the waterhole to brush between two homes on the right strip, leaving the large half of the land behind, and excused ourselves past some random trees, walking alongside the north rock bordering the territory and heading east, before edging the start of a sort of long grove of trees. They stretched on behind the right side of houses and then dipped in and stood guard at the entrance side of the fruit shack. Not that all this was important or anything. We avoided the trees, coming closer to the bordering rocky wall, but in front of it sat another two homes. One had been slightly out of my general line of sight where we had been standing previously (next to the waterhole), so I was almost surprised to see that, but the bigger one, which popped up right as we left the waterhole, was totally visible the whole time.

The cubone released three names, and then moved on to the one next door (with its entrance dipped into the trees). “This hut belongs to Yukra and Mosst,” he told me, as if expecting me to know who those pokémon were, and suddenly break out with an acknowledging noise which would tell him I just recalled their entire pasts and could present them to him on a silver platter.

‘This guy is unbelievable,’ I thought with a sour twist, huffing inwardly. But I went over the name, remembering that the heracross had been called ‘Yukra’ when he opened Habib’s door for him. “Ohh,” I muttered, a certain acknowledging tone to it. I then paused. ‘Huh. This guy’s good,’ I thought with a laugh.

We rounded the back of the house, and I tried to walk on my hind paws in order to see through a dislodged part of a log. I had no luck, my front paws thudding onto the earth. “Stupid...inconvenient...incapacitated...legs !” After passing the short side of the long stream of forest material, another site scurried into view. A rather...long and unexpected one.

A playground. A log that was propped onto a specially-carved stump creaked endlessly as a duo of pokémon – one on each end – weighed down one side at a time. As I was led towards it, I spotted mankey bars made from strong branches and tied together with what looked like rope, and other climbing structures of similar materials. A section of the playground was fenced off to hold a smallish pool barely my height in depth, and in a corner at the other end was a pit containing gritty sand.

Other features were incorporated into the long space in the land, but I became side-tracked as a large figure emerged from the home that resided a few metres from the long side of the playground (the one that didn’t have the random tree expanse behind it). “This den belongs to Wynore, Bibi and Luck,” explained the cubone up-front, and I flinched, a spike tearing through my stomach and twisting three times. I then identified the newly-appeared figure, and I couldn’t help but tense up for more than one reason upon seeing the apparent ursaring invade my line of sight. I hesitated in following Cupborn as he neared and looked about to greet her. “Come on, flareon!”

“Dusty,” I replied bitterly, keeping my head low and my body alert as I padded up by his side.

The female ursaring eyed me warily as I did the same, but our staring contest was interrupted. “Wynore, Flar—”

“Dusty!”

“...Wynore,” he restated, glaring at me. “She runs the kindergarten. Or, more respectively, daycare.”

‘They have a daycare here?’ I wondered, not expecting something like that. “H...hi.”

“We have met,” Wynore uttered to Cupborn, taking her eyes from mine. “Nice...to meet you,” she admitted awkwardly.

“Yeah...you too,” I replied, discomfort wagging its tail in my face.

“Wynore!” someone from inside the house called, and soon a dirty-cream coloured slender pokémon loped from the entrance and landed behind the ursaring. “...Oh.” Her gaze touched on my face before fixing itself on the cubone beside me. “Company!” she sung, her bright blue eyes a nice change of atmosphere.
“I’m Dusty,” I introduced, wearing a smile while hoping she’d reflect it. However, there was nothing to hope for as I realised she already was.

The brown-striped pokémon sat down on her hind legs, her form becoming much taller and still as sleek. Her front leg with two noticeable claws on it came up to rest on her front as she said, “That is a lovely name. Mine is Mynk.”

“Tha—” Suddenly I noticed something—something I should have picked up on the moment she bounded from the shack. Her head was uneven. And in saying that, I meant...she only had one ear. The left one was less than a stump. It was as if something had sliced through its base and left not a trace of one ever being there...except for the minimally exposed but completely healed skin with a thin layer of fur covering it. By the looks of it, it had happened a long time ago. So, not focusing my energy on something so distracting, my eyes returned to hers. “That’s a...nice...name too.”

“Thank you.” She swivelled her head and addressed the other normal type, and I drew a sigh. She hadn’t noticed I had been staring at her missing ear. If one of mine was gone, I’d hate to have others watch it intently too, as if they were trying to work out the mystery behind it when I could so easily just tell them.
“Moving on,” the cubone began, plodding back in the direction we came.

“Oh, see you, Cubbs!” Mynk began waving a paw, the ground type freezing on the spot and whirling around immediately.

“Cubbs?!” he spat, hardly believing what he heard. “Where did you hear that stupid nickname?” he demanded, marching forward several paces to meet the linoone’s nose. “Tell me!”

“Oh, I’m sorry...” she apologised, her tone shrinking in volume. “I wasn’t aware that—”

“Just tell me why you called me that,” he growled, clenching his bone tighter.

“Hey, would you calm down?” I requested, squeezing between the two pokémon. “She was just having a play around.”

“I don’t have time for playing around,” snapped the clearly-grumpy tour guide. He almost stabbed his eyes back into Mynk’s before I intervened once more.

“Give ‘er some space! Sheesh!”

“Dusty.” I was quick to meet her. “...It’s...it’s okay,” the normal type reassured, and I cocked my head. It was? “Yukra and I were discussing everybody’s roles, and—”

“Yukra?!” exclaimed the marowak pre-evolution, resentment flooding his tone. I nearly chuckled.

Without warning, the adorable, innocent little teddiursa I had seen not long ago peered at us from inside the doorway of the permanently split-up family’s house, her tiny paws gripping the wood. “Mummy?”

“C-coming, Bibi,” Wynore stated, barely excusing herself before she swept up her child and disappeared inside the home. In the meantime, Cupborn was seething as he stomped back and forth, muttering indecipherable words under his breath as he apparently forgot about my tour.

“Cubbs...‘ey?” I whispered amusedly into, embarrassingly, the non-ear-holding side of Mynk’s noggin. I heard her blow a chuckle through her nostrils as she shrunk to my height.

“...I guess he doesn’t take unauthorised nicknames well,” she theorised, and I nodded.

“I gathered that too!” I exclaimed, meaning to sound silly.

“Mummy!” The sound of a small pokémon yelping caught my attention, and I rotated my head into the direction it came from. A tiny asparagus coloured head appeared behind two of many beams of wood: the fence around the daycare. Small paws rested on the bottom railing, which was waist-height for the pokémon.

“Oh, excuse me,” the linoone quickly uttered, loping to the fence with needless effort. She peered over it once on her hind legs, resting her forelegs on to top beam. The small pokémon below her stared up with red triangle eyes, black marks coming to a point right below them. A long sort of spike with a red tip was planted on the creature’s head, and a maroon belly held horizontal lines. Stubby arms reached pleadingly at Mynk’s looming form, and the normal type dipped her head for it to be held in the green pokémon’s embrace.

“...‘Mummy’?” I whispered disbelievingly, rather perplexed. Mynk was the evolutionary species of a zigzagoon. And a larvitar was claiming to be her daughter? “Is that even possible?” I wondered in an awkward giggle. My gaze jumped about restlessly as I searched for somewhere to look, and Cupborn happened to fall into my sight. However, he was...leaving. For some odd reason, the cubone was waddling with stiff arms around the trees, slowly becoming smaller as he gained more distance. “C-Cupborn!” I yelled, taking a step forward with my left leg. He continued stomping for about a metre more before turning and causing me to dodge the spears his enraged eyes spat. I shook off, opening my mouth again. “Where are you going? Aren’t we gonna finish—”


“There’s nothing else I need to show you!” boomed the cubone, and I was taken slightly aback. He then whipped himself around and disappeared behind the trees.

“...Fine,” I mumbled, trotting over to Mynk. At least she was showing some manners.

“Dusty,” she said after noticing me. I stopped and responded. “Can you please watch the pokémon for a moment? I need to get something; I’ll only be a minute!”

A frown stroked my face and ran off, and I blinked a few times in a row. “Uh...o...kay?”

“Thank you,” she mentioned, placing a paw on my shoulder before dashing into the vegetation collection.
I faced the long, rectangle playground, flashing a glance up and down it. At least twelve or so pokémon frolicked about, throwing things, racing, climbing, blabbering, rolling, digging, swimming, gliding and wearing grins that should by all rights not fit on their faces. Some sat in groups and others sat in pairs or by themselves. I caught sight of a lone scrawny charmander placed in a corner to my right where the grass grew tall. Surprisingly her tail flame avoided all contact with any plantation, but at the same time, it seemed unlikely anyway considering how dimly it burned. Her face was almost expressionless. Dare I say, it was...hollow. As if all positive emotion had been drained and stored in some hole mountains away. She stared at the dirt in a small mound before her body, her paws occasionally touching it and then recoiling, her eyes twitching as she did so. Her belly barely seemed to move, and a number of times I thought her oxygen flow had ceased. She also looked pale and unresponsive, especially as other pokémon rushed by her before prancing to the other end, where most of the toddlers played. I couldn’t take my eyes off her though... She was so...dull, so devoid of spirit; devoid of life.

I became distracted as rustling sounded and a pale figure emerged from the elongated grove, her slim body darting up to the fence beside me again. “I’m back!” Mynk announced, a half squashed fruit dropping from her mouth and into her upturned paw. She attempted to keep it balanced as she held it over the larvitar’s head. It fell unintentionally from the hopeless surface, and it splattered onto the ground in a heap. However, it wasn’t damaged more than it was in the first place, so the rock and ground type drew up the fruit and began nibbling on it.

“Welcome back,” I replied unenthusiastically and just a little too late. I cringed as I couldn’t help but focus back onto the fire type sitting so woefully on her own...

The linoone must have jumped on my train of thought as she followed where I directed my eyes. “...That’s Libbi.” I detected traces of sorrow and remorse flowing throughout Mynk’s words as she spoke, and I felt the exact same way. “She’s...a troubled pokémon. She, uh...doesn’t like to play with the other pokémon.”

“But...why?”

“She doesn’t let herself get close to anyone...”

“What’s...” I had to search for the right words before coming up with what I could find. “What’s wrong with her?”

Mynk shifted uncomfortably, glazing her tongue over her bottom lip. “She...she suffered a...very serious trauma only a number of months ago. As a result...she’s withdrawn and depressed.”

“Wow... But she’s so...young.”

“Yes...” I watched as the pokémon’s head lifted. “She was brought here by her guardian, a squirtle. The squirtle – Palue – explained to us what had happened to her.” Her head tilted, and soon she was eying the ground. And when she said nothing more, I gave the situation a small push, hoping to hear more.

“...Well...what happened?”

“Um...” began the normal type, meeting me again. “Her brother...drowned in a river right before her eyes.”

Suddenly a rush of needles tingled down my spine and through my legs, as if a gust of wind had just struck my insides. I swallowed my saliva. “W...what? He drowned?”

Mynk’s eyes squeezed tears, and they crept down her face as she tried to smile in the presence of her deemed child. “Yes.”

“Crap,” I breathed, my gaze fitting itself back to the space Libbi was huddled in. “The poor child.” My mind turned as I pictured several things: Luck and Roarake separately falling before they broke the ocean’s surface; my body in the clutches of a controlled armaldo, my lungs desperate for air; the leap of faith from the ship’s edge; coming close to tumbling off that cliff back at the bibarel colony... And finally, a helpless charmander child flailing wildly at the mercy of a ruthless river... I could only prey that he had become unconscious before he inhaled enough water to do the final deed...

“Mummy...you’re crying!” pointed out the larvitar, presenting a curious look as an outstretched paw fit between two beams and touched the linoone’s coat.

Mynk brought the back of a paw to her eyes and cleared them of the salty liquid. “It’s...it’s nothing, dear,” she lied, but I didn’t blame her. Had the small child understood what had been said, well...that would have been beyond awful.

I waited a moment before changing the subject, glancing at the larvitar still finishing off the berry. “So, uhh...” I shook my head, attempting to rid it of awful imagery and certain recent thoughts. “You and that larvitar...”
“Me!” cheered the adorable dual type with eyes full of glorious potential.

“Yes, you,” I giggled, turning back to Mynk. “Is she your...actual...?”

“Oh, n-no. Certainly not,” Mynk laughed, the sadness still raking her voice. She probably knew the larvitar wouldn’t have picked up on what I was getting at, so she seemed fine to talk about it in front of her. However, she rotated her body so she wasn’t talking in her child’s direction. “More than a year ago, a few Usster members were investigating a matter in the mountains,” she began, signalling to a snowy peak not far off. “In one of the more rocky areas...one of my friends found an egg leaning against a boulder. The group brought it back here, and I nursed it until it hatched...” She fit a paw through a gap in the railing, and then stroked the small pupitar pre-evolution’s head. A flicker of a soft smile flashed across the linoone’s face before disappearing. “I couldn’t take my eyes off her,” she reminisced, a sparkling light dancing between her marble-like eyes, “so I did the only thing I was thinking of at the time. I adopted her.”

“Oh,” I responded, thinking that made sense. “But...how could you be sure she didn’t have a mother?”

“Well...we can’t be sure,” the normal type answered. “...I always wondered why she was abandoned. And so recently, too.”

“Wait...what do you mean?”

“Miraculously...the egg was warm when they found her. But there was nobody around who could have owned her. They even waited some minutes to ensure they wouldn’t be unintentionally abducting her, but they knew they couldn’t wait too long at risk of letting the egg cool in the frigid climate.”

“Really?” I questioned, finding that convenient but...odd. “That is weird.”

“It was a major relief,” she corrected, her brow sinking to create a worried look. “If they had found her cold, then...well, th-then...”

“But it wasn’t,” I pressed, dipping my head to catch Mynk’s gaze.

We both said nothing as she gave a meek smile, nodding. “...It wasn’t.”

***

Mynk and I had left the kids with Wynore in charge after asking her to. She had accepted with haste, barely making eye contact and not bothering to share a proper conversation with me or my new linoone friend. After that, Mynk had led me around the other end of the long rows of trees, and we were in the midst of passing the fruit shack when she spoke up.

“She isn’t normally like that...” she explained, and I cocked my head, about to ask who. “Wynore...she’s not usually like that. At least, not when Lakane’s around.” At the mention of the ursaring, something pinched me and I flinched inwardly. “The poor thing... When he returns, she will be back to her normal self again, though,” she reasoned, and again came the source-less pain.

“Y-yeah...” I moaned quietly, feeling completely out of my comfort zone.

“Lakane is Wynore’s mate,” she continued, “but most of us call him Luck.”

“I-I know...” I felt my ears bend as we padded on. The secret was killing me. I didn’t know how much longer I could keep it to myself. I didn’t want to keep it to myself, but more than that, I didn’t want to tell anyone else... Wynore would be this way forever, and their teddiursa would be permanently fatherless.

“Oh? You do?”

“Y-yes... I was on...I was with him when he...when he...” I held back my breathing, unable to complete my sentence.

“When he...disappeared?” asked the linoone.

“Uhh...yeah.”

“Really? I have never seen your face around these parts before,” she mused, looking as if she was searching her mind for memories or some clue as to how that made sense.

“We...knew each other...from places...” I stuttered, unsure of how to put it. She thought I meant when he vanished from the colony’s grounds, and I meant...when he disappeared into the waves and from the Earth’s face.

“Oh.”

“Look, I’ll—I’ll fill you all in later,” I offered, turning away and looking up ahead at the nearing homes.

“Alright,” agreed Mynk, completely satisfied. She didn’t seem inclined in any way to probe me for answers, which suited me fine! “How long are you staying for?”

“Me? Oh... Well...I was offered a place here for as long as I like, I think...”

“Oh! So you aren’t a visitor?”

“N-no. At least, I don’t think so!” I chuckled, trying to remember exactly what Habib had told me.

“Splendid!” she exclaimed enthusiastically. “While you’re here, I can introduce you to the pokémon that live here.”

I nodded half-heartedly. “Sounds good.” And we said not another word to each other before we reached the first house on the right. I remembered who lived there: the raticate and his family.

“A family of raticate live here with their baby rattata,” mentioned Mynk, and I nodded. “Although, I imagine only Gigin is home right now. Taka was one of the rattata at the daycare, and Hyso is probably out hunting.”

‘Hunting?’ I though with confusion. “But...aren’t raticate herbivores?”

Mynk shook her head decisively. “No, they are omnivores.”

“Oh...really? All my life I thought they only ate seeds and vegetables.” I shrugged, figuring it was insignificant anyway.

“Haha, no. They enjoy both, as I imagine you would.”

“Yes...” I shifted my eyes on purpose. “I’m a real veggie lover.”

I smiled as Mynk giggled at my humour, and we entered the home leisurely. As we appeared in a large room, I glanced about. It was unlike what I expected: a large batch of hay that needed replacing lay piled to create a bed in the far right corner, and surprisingly, a human soft-toy lay outstretched in the middle. At some point in the left wall was a square space that held thick rocks with several small, unscathed logs. A removable log could be seen above it, where the ceiling was in the compartment, and I guessed that that was a section where the smoke would be let out through.

There were a few other things that barely interested me, and I payed no attention to them as a bronze figure stepped out from behind a wooden table (which was basically a slab of wood with stumps at all corners). She displayed a toothy grin after a wary expression once she noticed Mynk. “Hello, old friend,” she greeted, scampering on all fours up to us. “And...who are you?” She returned to her hind legs, sitting upright.

“This is Dusty,” the linoone answered for me, and to that Gigin bobbed her head.

“Hi,” I said with deliberate politeness; I was about to take a seat but changed my mind.

She nodded in return, her long tail sitting flat on the minimally padded floor.

“Dusty will be staying with us for a while,” Mynk mentioned, “so I thought I’d show her about.” She appeared happy, and then added, “And you’re first.”

“Well,” Gigin chuckled, “good to have you.” Next she invited us to come in properly and take a seat, and I did so, habitually curling my tail around one side of me.

As the two normal types began chatting, I glanced around the room, focusing on random things. I fiddled with my toes and must have looked cross-eyed as I watched my tuft, folding my brow over my eyes with amusement.

I hardly heard footsteps before I turned around to spot a body in the doorway. Two appendages hung from its head, and its blue body...be-became...visible... “Gigin, I got that hay you—”

The pokémon froze in the instant she saw me, and our expressions were the same as we stared intently. The small hessian sack in her mouth dropped, and she didn’t even flinch as it dropped to the floor. All else was erased from my sight as I kept my eyes in place. I heard the chatter cease, and the only sound became silence. I dared to breathe.

“...Azure?”