The Road To Palantria

What is The Road To Palantria? This is a fantasy fic that I have been working on recently, and was inspiried by a good friend of mine on another forum. I've done plenty of fics before this, both ones that featured Pokemon and many long stories that didn't. There is some violence in this (no blood) and I edited the swearing from the original copy, since the forum censors it out anyway.

With that said, I hope you enjoy reading The Road To Palantria.


June 18, 2007 was indeed the final day of my junior year in high school and the beginning of a summer I was seriously looking forward to. School had been a long and terrible nightmare through the entire year, and now I was finally ready to say to heck with it and start doing the things that I actually wanted to do, rather than spending countless annoying hours learning about protons and neutrons and reading yet another book by Ernest Hemmingway. Indeed this divine day had arrived at last, not to mention that one of my friends already had big things planned for the summer such as going to the shore for a few weeks, and I seriously couldn?t wait until it all started. I had been waiting all freaking year for this day to finally arrive. It sure took its time?

We had spent those long days of mindless test-taking torture at Speedwell High School, home to over a hundred teachers taken from the lowest floors of the abyss itself. Problem was, in the Atlas Region, there were no good high schools for miles. Most of the region had been just highways and interstates leading to more interesting and more important regions. All along these roads were just a few fast food places, cheap hotels, and gas stations, the same kind of places that tourists would just stop by for a few minutes and move along to get to where they really wanted to go. Past all of those crappy locations were the suburbs, with small houses on plots that were an acre each.

We lived in a small town called Speedwell, which didn?t have its gym and only had a single Pok?mon center located on the way outskirts of the town, right near Interstate 47, built for the tourists rather than the citizens of Speedwell itself. Little Speedwell would probably never get its own gym since Speedwell was so tiny and so boring. Because of this, we owned Pok?mon but any real battles were terribly rare. Pok?mon leagues seemed to be a hundred miles away, so most of us didn?t bother trying to sign up for one. Living in small town Speedwell, we sometimes heard of kids setting off on their own to try and become champions, but then we didn?t hear from them again. In Speedwell, if you had a single badge, you were a god. Kids would come from their houses and would beg to lay eyes upon the tiny metal pin like it was the last source of food on the planet.

The only way we had Pok?mon in our town was through the Internet, since there weren?t any Pok?marts around, we had to order everything online. And thanks to FedEx, the truck-shipping company every Pok?mon Trainer in Speedwell hated like crazy, those orders usually took around two months to reach us. Believe me, Pok?mon Trainers in Speedwell were few and far between because of it. Instead, sports were much bigger and parents put far more emphasis into the Speedwell High Football Team, called the Speedwell Storms. While other high schools were more proud of their Pok?mon Trainers, their football teams took a serious and lethal beating from the Storms. But, while we were better than most schools, we never came out on the top. We got close, but never far enough.

As for myself, I owned two Pok?mon, an Umbreon and a Machop. That was it, and to tell the truth, I was mighty proud of my Umbreon, being only one of the very few Pok?mon around the town that actually evolved. As for Machop, the only way we trained was in the basement recreation room, which contained all the exercise equipment. Still, that alone was never going to get him too far. He needed to be in battles to get true experience, and in Speedwell, there wasn?t a single freaking thing here to help him get that far?

However, I didn?t put too much concentration into my Pok?mon considering my situation. The love of my life was music. I loved techno, punk rock, and serious heavy metal, and had enough CDs in my room to cover the walls. I loved to sing along and scream out loud with my favorite artists. Since I lived with only my step-dad, he was often gone and I was usually left alone, usually filling the house with the loud blasting of my music, much to the annoyance of my old and cranky neighbors.

That?s how I was usually able to handle myself. My step-dad, whose name was Frank, always called me son but I knew that wasn?t the truth. Since he didn?t care and I didn?t care, he usually left me alone and it wasn?t rare for him to leave on business trips that would last for months. Since he clearly didn?t want to be around me for the entire summer, he usually made plans to leave around that time, usually for a very long period of time seeming like he just wanted to get away from me. We had such great relationships?

Because of that, I usually hung around one of my closest friends. Kenneth Harris had been a true sports jock, hanging around school and being a great linebacker for the Speedwell Storms. He had blonde hair in the form of a buzz-cut, and he always wore an optimistic smile around friends. He liked showing off his football jerseys with the giant, white ?19? one the back with ?Harris? right above the number in white letters. Kenneth wasn?t the biggest guy on the football team, but he was probably one of the coolest.

And surprisingly, Kenneth owned one Pok?mon himself, a Skarmory he went through a lot of pain to get, or at least he father did. Kenneth?s parents let him do just about anything. If he wanted to leave for a few months, they?d say yes and it was a done deal. Since he wasn?t spoiled as a kid, it seemed like it was payback time. Because of him, the both of us had a great idea to go to the shore for a month and hang out with two of his other friends, Matt Fairfield and Jason Carr. And without much surprise, Matt and Jason were also from Speedwell High, but they knew nothing about Pok?mon. To those two, true companions were those from the opposite sex.

Well, those were the four of us, but among us, we had one serious problem. I spent hundred of bucks on a music budget each month and Kenneth spent every last dime on better football equipment. Meanwhile, Matt had worked another job during last summer just to pay for his maximized MasterCard. And then there was Jason Carr, who blew his entire budget on a car and games for his Playstation 3. When it came to finance, we were a disaster.

But this year, we had found a solution to our problems. Seriously, we had come across mister money himself in the flesh?

Eric Feldman was probably the most picked on junior in our entire school, mainly for the undeniable fact that he used to dress like a complete dork on purpose. Everyday, Eric would have come dressed to school with one of two dress types. One style was dressing up with white flannel shirt and black khaki pants, and the other was dressing with a plaid shirt and pants, as if he was a preppy guy in the middle of a country club golf course. And to tell the truth, Eric?s parents did indeed live a very preppy lifestyle.

Back then, Eric was the guy who kept getting the straight A?s and the kid that teachers loved. He had short black hair and square glasses with a black plastic frame. He liked to smile a lot and even though he was picked on, he just turned around and said to heck with some people. To most people, Eric seemed like the average computer geek that was far more involved with work and study than music, sports and video games. But there was a part of Eric that no one knew about for the longest time?

His father was the Chief Financial Officer of Chrysler, and that?s where Eric?s fat budget came from. No one ever even knew Eric was a walking, talking gold mine until the day we found out about it. It had all started one fateful afternoon?

One day, we had come across a wallet he had lost under the bleachers outside after an outside assembly. When we opened it up, our jaws dropped at the sight of nearly ten freakin? Benjamins in that one little pouch. And since we found a driver?s license with Eric?s name in that same wallet, we knew it was from him. He was loaded beyond our imagination?

I was tempted to spend the money, but thanks to Kenneth, he came up with an even better idea. Instead of spending that $1200 dollars, we decided to give it back to Eric, and upon seeing that we returned his lost wallet, he seriously told us he would be ?forever in our debt.? So after that, we became ?friends.? We didn?t hate Eric after that, since he had a butt-load of cash and in thanks for returning his wallet and being ?pals? with him, he was always there to assist us with every investment we desired. Matt and Jason rolled their eyes at seeing Eric with us at first, but when they realized the truth about him, they also welcomed him in with cheerful smiles.

And as the year passed, we changed that guy for the better. After hanging around with us for the longest time, he wanted to be like us, and fit in more with our gang. He insisted to his father that he would say good riddance with his glasses and insisted on getting laser eye surgery. After that, he never wore those annoying plastic glasses again. And he got even better when one day he helped us curse at our English teacher after she failed our class on a crappy vocabulary test she concocted, and after many days with us, he finally gave up his annoying classical music and we welcomed him with open arms into the world of the new age of music. Eric?s father didn?t like how it changed him, but Eric didn?t care at all. In fact, it seemed like it was his father that did most of the work on making Eric a nerd in the first place.

When June 20th came around, Kenneth, Eric and I had met, and the three of us packed up for road trip that would be a six hour drive from Speedwell to the shore house that Matt and Jason were renting for the month all the way in Gray Banks. I was willing to take my black Ford Explorer all the way down there, since it had enough room for our bags and all the clothes and other crap we where bringing all the way down there. Even while we were packing up the car, we had the radio playing heavy metal. After quite some time, we finally packed everything we needed into the car that was in the middle of the driveway of my house. It had been a nice breezy morning, and we were finally able to say to heck with Speedwell for once and get down south to where we really wanted to be for the summer. I knew that opportunities like this were very rare, so I was willing to enjoy it while it lasted.

Gray Banks was much more populated than Speedwell, with plenty of small houses that were closely knit together and usually came equipped with one garage that almost no one used for cars. We had been there once before, and we had an awesome time, but those times weren?t like the ones we had now.

After packing everything up, including the radio, we got ourselves in the sport utility vehicle. I had been the driver, Kenneth was sitting right next to me in the passenger seat while Eric was in the back. After we were buckled up, I then put the black, leather clutch in reverse and then I backed out of the tiny driveway. After pressing the button to shut the white garage door of my step-dad?s little, white house, I then headed out of the driveway, and then we began our trip toward Gray Banks. I took a few empty and boring local roads before taking the off ramp to get onto Interstate 47 South, and then we joined the rest of the morning traffic. From that point on, it was just highway driving, along with plenty of loud music, Frito Lay chips and two refrigerator packs of Pepsi and A&W Root Beer, as well as a truckload of long and hilarious conversation.

After we had been on Interstate 47 for a long time, the music stopped for a while, and then we began talking. One of the discussions we had was particularly interesting, considering we lived in Speedwell.

?Eric?? Kenneth had said to him, turning around and facing him, ?If you could choose to enter into a Pok?mon League, which one would you choose??

Eric had to think it over, and honestly, I pretty much felt the same way. I barely knew anything about the leagues. Kenneth could have asked me the exact same question and I still wouldn?t know how to answer it.

?Probably Johto?s.? Eric responded, looking at the one Pok?ball he had on his belt, ?But the only Pok?mon I have is Magnemite.?

?Well if you hide it?? Kenneth responded, just snickering about it, ?They actually give you a free one. They even let you choose between three of them.?

Eric couldn?t help but laugh at that.

?What, they actually give you one!?? Eric asked in a humorous tone, ?Are they stupid or something? I thought the people who started new trainers off were brilliant Pok?mon professors. Why are they dumb enough to give free Pok?mon away??

?Well, that?s the way they do things around Johto, Kanto and Hoenn.? Kenneth replied, nearly laughing himself, ?Atlas used to have a league until they later found out the league needed its own marketing department just to get trainers to participate in their tournaments. After that, the whole thing was gone and it never came back.?

Eric?s laughter had died down a bit, and then he turned to look out the window.

?How much are Pok?mon in abundance over there?? Eric asked, glancing at the red Honda Accord that was passing us on our left.

?They?re freakin? all over the place, man?? Kenneth had told him, turning back and looking out the windshield again, ?I?ve seen pictures of it. They can?t go for one day without thinking about ?em.?

I knew that was very different from what we had here. In fact, it was a truly rare occurrence that the three of us were all Pok?mon trainers ourselves, even if it was in a pretty small degree. But the truth was, we barely trained. Even new trainers that had only been training for a week could probably beat the lot of us. It was a good thing that Speedwell wasn?t the move appealing town to move to. Otherwise, if a fresh and seasoned trainer came along, the entire town would be a feast to him?

As we moved on, the traffic started getting lighter and lighter. It had been about two hours since we left, and we were making pretty good time. Meanwhile, Kenneth had been looking at me, and was wondering something.

?How on Earth do you wear that black t-shirt and black jeans in the middle of the summer, Chris?? Kenneth asked me, looking at me in an odd way.

?Heck, as long as it?s comfortable, I really don?t care.? I responded to him, keeping my eyes on the dusty road ahead.

I had been wearing one of my many black t-shirts. The one I was wearing had the logo of a punk rock band that had been one of our favorites, one called Serpent Synthesis. The band?s name was in large, white letters in the form of grunge stencil lettering. Below it was the image of a green snake slithering on top of an electric guitar while both of them were surrounded by a circle of flames. As for the jeans, while most people wore blue, I liked to wear black. That was just my preference.

And soon after that, he started looking at my hands on the wheel. I had a bad feeling we were starting to get bored?

?How did you get that?? He asked, pointing to something on my hand.

?A piece of glass?? I responded to him, thinking his was talking about the scar that was around my wrist, ?I got that scar when I tried to grab a bottle before it broke on the floor. When I didn?t get it, it busted into a million pieces and one of them flew into my hand.?

Kenneth looked away for a bit, but then he looked right back at the hand again.

?Actually, I was talking about that brown spot on your left finger.? Kenneth replied as he stared at it.

?That?? I asked him, looking at the tiny spot on the index finger on my left hand, ?That?s a mole. I?ve had that for a long time, probably since the day I was born.?

I really didn?t see why he was interested in it. I know I should have gotten it removed awhile ago, but I didn?t care enough. Kenneth had a whole lot of interesting scars and scabs on his arms and legs, but he never saw me talking about them. And then there was that nice cut on his forehead that looked pretty fresh. Still, I didn?t care. I wasn?t getting that many thrills myself from watching the road myself.

?Chips anyone?? Eric asked, breaking the silence and grabbing himself a bag.

?Eh, I don?t care?? Kenneth responded, still looking ahead and the one single car that was in front of us.

Since we did seem awfully bored, I suggested to Kenneth to pop into another CD. After I suggested that, he quickly threw one in, and soon after, the music speakers gushed with loud, heavy metal music. That quickly got us in a better mood, and it wasn?t long before we found ourselves alone on the Interstate. I loved it, since it meant I didn?t have to wait for some other moron to cut me off.

Still, despite the music, I couldn?t wait to get to Gray Banks. The drive was taking long enough as it was?

We had been alone for nearly an hour. I found it kind of unusual since it seemed to be more populated down south than it was in the north in places like Speedwell. The Interstate had decreased in two lanes, leaving only three left. There were less exits now, with many miles between them.

It wasn?t long before I checked the gas gauge and found out we were running quite low on gas. I was hoping some highway signs would tell me if there were gas stations at the next exit, but I didn?t get anything, no hotels, no gas stations, or places to eat.

?We badly need gas?? I had told Kenneth, talking above the music.

?Well, check the next exit.? He replied, and then he turned away.

I wasn?t about to argue with that. When we got closer to the exit, I had seen a small, green highway sign on the side of the road come up. A dead tree was slightly blocking it, but from what I could see, it looked like it said, ?Exit 22P? with some town called ?Palantria? below it. I didn?t know what happened to exits 22A-22O, but I didn?t care. I immediately took the small exit and headed off the Interstate. I was hoping Palantria sounded big enough to have its own gas station.

I had driven on a small and dusty road completely alone. It seemed to go on for a pretty long time, and then, something weird happened?

For an instant, I immediately felt like I just woken up from a long sleep. I was still driving the car, but I nearly stopped at the sight. It looked like I had been driving on nothing but tiny pebbles and rocks for a long time, and right in front of us was a forest, which seemed extremely weird. It didn?t even look like we were in the middle of a desert anymore. Then, I just stopped the car. I had turned to my side and back and realized Kenneth and Eric had fallen asleep. After I put the car in park, I opened the door and immediately got out.

I walked past the car and looked at the road behind me. Again, there were more tiny rocks that slowly became a path of grass. Still, from the hill that we were on, I looked for miles behind us, and I saw a few mountains in the distance as well as a long valley with plenty of surrounding forests upon the mountains. I knew for a fact I hadn?t seen those when I took the exit?

?Man,? I growled in anger at myself, ?Where the heck are we??

It looked like we were a million miles away from the Interstate. In fact, I could honestly say we weren?t even in the Atlas region anymore. This place looked so different from anything in that entire region?

But it just didn?t make any sense. With that thought in mind, I headed back to the car. I got back into the driver?s seat, and then quickly checked the gas gauge again. Then, for some freakish reason, it was no different from where we had left off on the Interstate. Yet from what it looked like, I was almost certain I must have driven a hundred miles off the road?

It wasn?t long before Kenneth had woken up, and once he realized the car was stopped, he looked out the windows, thinking we made it to Gray Banks already. Instead, he got a bigger surprise, one that I was already ticked off about.

?Holy?? Kenneth remarked in disbelief, ?Chris, where are we??

I didn?t know the answer, and I was beginning to feel sick about it. I could turn the car around and I still would have no idea where I was or how to get back to Interstate 47. And even so, I knew I wouldn?t have enough gas to even get close considering we were in a massive valley.

?Is this still Palantria or did we drive past it a million miles ago...?? I asked myself, looking at the forest ahead.

?Well how the heck should I know, you were the one driving!? Kenneth shouted in disbelief, ?Chris, how the heck did you fly off the exit and end up all the way over here??

?I was on the onramp, and then the next second, I found myself just before that forest.? I told Kenneth, hoping he would believe me as I pointed to the same forest I had just stopped at seconds ago, ?Man, I don?t know what the happened??

He didn?t seem to be angry with me, since for some reason, there was something about the situation that just didn?t seem right. I didn?t understand anything that was going on.

?Look,? Kenneth told me, looking behind me, ?Just turn around and head in the other direction, completely straight from where you came. I?m sure we?ll be back on Interstate 47 if we do that.?

It seemed highly doubtful since the forests and mountains seemed to go on for many miles, but I decided to listen, and I immediately turned on the ignition. Then, I put the car into drive, and completely turned around and headed in the opposite direction. We then began driving all over the valley of grass before we saw a cliff approach in the distance. When I got close to it, I then stopped the car. Kenneth and I then quietly stepped out of the car, and then we began to approach the cliff. When we looked over the edge, we saw nothing for miles except a large forest among many small mountains. All of it must have been at least five hundred feet below the cliff?

?What the heck!?? Kenneth shouted in shock, ?How did you drive through all that crap and then drive up this cliff??

?I didn?t?? I told Kenneth, looking at the vast wilderness below us, ?There was no way I could have??

Kenneth?s jaw just dropped at the sight. He then looked to me in disbelief, and then he looked toward the valley, thinking I must have driving through that by accident. When he didn?t see any tire marks in the grass for the miles ahead, he then knew I wasn?t kidding?

?How the heck is this even possible?? Kenneth asked himself, looking around with a look of shock on his face, ?What happened, did we just magically appear here for no freaking reason or what!??

I was silent, and I didn?t say anything. Nothing was making sense, and soon after, we had seen Eric jump out of the car.

?Chris? Kenneth?? Eric said to us as he looked around before looking straight at us, ?Where exactly are we??

?We have no idea.? I responded to him, knowing we had just ended up here for no good reason.

And as he looked around, he became bewildered at the thought. Then, he simply turned to us again.

?There?s no way this can be in the Atlas region.? Eric told us, looking around, ?In fact, it doesn?t look like Kanto, Johto, or Hoenn either. None of those regions have this many mountains??

To say the least, that freaked the heck out of us in a very short period of time. We were beyond lost, as if everything that we just went through hadn?t even existed.

?Well, there?s only one way to truly find out where we are.? Kenneth said with assurance to both Eric and I, ?Let me check my cell phone.?

After a few seconds of rummaging through his pocket, he finally pulled out his cell phone, and I suddenly felt relief. With that, Kenneth could call for a location or some idea on how to get back where we wanted to be. After he flipped the cell phone open, he looked at the screen and his jaw dropped?

?What the...!?? Kenneth remarked with a shock of disbelief, ?No signal!? I could be eight floors underground and still get a signal with this thing! We?re out in the middle of an open field and I can?t get anything!??

At first, I thought for a minute that we were saved, until this had happened. I had remembered that Kenneth could get a great signal just about anywhere he went. But this was crazy. He should have gotten at the very least a mediocre signal.

?I guess we?re not under the satellite?s coverage anymore?? Kenneth remarked, finding that very strange.

?Kenneth, your provider should have satellites that cover the entire globe.? Eric had told him, ?If you can?t get a signal in a place like this, simply put, we can?t be on the same planet anymore??

Both Kenneth and I gave a dark glare toward Eric?

?Eric,? Kenneth replied in a dark tone, ?Whatever you do, never say things like that again. There?s no freaking way that could be possible??

But still, as I thought about it, there was no way this could be real. I was beginning to guess that perhaps I fell asleep at the wheel, and this was one really retarded dream. But then, why did it seem so real? I could feel the gust of wind and hear everything around me with perfect clarity. That never happens in dreams?

Then, I just turned toward the car. Sitting here and doing nothing was no going to help us.

?Look, whatever the heck happened,? I told the two of them, ?Let?s just get out of here. I?ll drive through the valley and hopefully we?ll be able to find something??

?Fine, I?m with you on that.? Kenneth replied, looking toward me affirmatively, ?Let?s get back in the car and hopefully we?ll find a way out of this mess??

Then, the three of us headed back into the car, and once we were inside, I got the idea of using the radio. I switched the black round dial from CD to radio, and then we were greeted with static. Kenneth and Eric had looked at what I was doing, and when I pressed the ?seek? button, we watched in horror as the digital numbers scrambled throughout the entire list of possible frequencies and didn?t find a single radio station?

?Oh? my? God?? Kenneth nearly passed out of the sight, ?That? really shouldn?t be happening??

?Kenneth?? Eric told him in a soft voice, ?I think it?s safe to say we?re not on Earth anymore. Every location on Earth can easily pick up at least one radio station. Even in the largest desert??

We were quiet after that. I looked at the compass that was on my dashboard, and the needle was dead. I picked it up and spun it around and around, and the needle followed the motions, and then stopped at nowhere in particular. I then looked to Kenneth, and I realized he had been watching me. I really didn?t like the look on his face?

?I feel like I?m going to vomit?? Kenneth remarked at the sight of the useless compass.

?Let?s? just go? okay?? I asked the two of them in a soft voice, putting the compass back on the dashboard.

I then put the car in drive, and then we moved along the valley, passing by plenty of forests. I saw I had only a quarter of a tank left, and I knew that would be dropping very quickly. Driving all over a bunch of hills wasn?t exactly easy on the car either. After ten minutes of driving, we then came to the top of a hill and then we saw a small town just at the bottom. The three of us just looked at the town, and it looked nothing like what we?ve seen on Earth.

All of the houses were made out of metal, with each of them in a dome shape. There were plenty of metal machines as well along with a lot of metal pipes connected to each house. However, the machines they had were not even half as complex as what we?ve seen. The small streets were made of dirt, which seemed mostly made for foot traffic. I then drove closer, and we could see the buildings were much smaller than we had expected. Then, we finally arrived at the town, and we couldn?t believe our eyes?

?What? the??? Kenneth remarked as we set eyes on the town?s citizens.

To say the least, they were much smaller than we were, only standing around three and a half feet tall. And almost all of them had white beards. Most of them looked like they were heading to work, carrying around large tools and other supplies. Some of them had seen us, and then they began to approach the car. I couldn?t help but open up the window.

?That?s one interesting contraption you have their, sonny!? One of them asked in an annoying happy tone, ?And who might you be??

?The name is Chris Trevor.? I told the little, bearded man in a firm and cold voice, letting him know we truly had nothing in common, ?Where exactly are we??

?Why, this is Arasta.? He told the three of us in his same cheerful tone, ?You don?t seem to be from around here, are you??

We were silent, especially Kenneth. We just looked at each other for a small moment, and then we looked back to them. Then, I just decided to get out of the car. Kenneth just rolled his eyes and then the two of them got out of the Ford Explorer as well. Then, once we gathered together, we heard a strange voice come from out of nowhere.

?What do you think you?re doing!?? I heard a feminine voice shout out, ?Don?t you even know they?re humans!??

Then, we saw a female with dark blue skin and very long black hair appear from behind one of the buildings. Her dark blue skin was very smooth, and the iris of her two eyes was a bright, crimson red. She was wearing a dark red cloak with many strange symbols on it, and when she came toward us and moved the bearded men aside, we swallowed hard.

?What is your business here!?? She snapped at us, looking pretty ticked off, ?I bet you?re after the gnomes, aren?t you!??

?The gnomes!?? I asked in shock, looking at her and then the bearded men, ?Is that what they are!??

?Don?t play stupid with me! You?re probably from the Khans.? She said to us in a threatening voice, ?If you want to be cut to shreds, I?ll give you exactly what you want!?

Then, we saw her reach behind her cloak, and then she pulled out two small black and gray spheres. When she pressed a small button on each of them, they inflated a bit, and then she threw them forward. When the two dark balls had struck the dirt, they burst open with light, and then we saw the light begin to take shape and form.

When the light had died down, we saw the dark-skinned woman had just released two Pok?mon, a Bellossom and a Clefairy. We couldn?t believe our eyes?

?They have Pok?mon too?? Kenneth asked, looking at her two Pok?mon with his eyes wide open, ?What is this...??

Then, we heard something else that probably would have finished Kenneth off with a heart attack?

?What?s your request, Jocasta?? The Bellossom asked her master, ?Rip the bunch of these yahoos to ribbons??

?She can talk!?? Kenneth shouted in complete shock, ?Oh? man??

In a sense, I couldn?t believe it either. But by now, I was more than ready to believe Eric. There was no way we were on Earth anymore. It seemed impossible, but trying to ask how it happened wasn?t going to get us anywhere, especially at a time like this?

?Ha, you have no way to escape, you Khans.? Jocasta said to us with a glare in her eyes.

?We?re not Khans, but if you want to fight, then prepare for the worst!? I shouted at her, grabbing Umbreon?s Pok?ball.

I then pushed the tiny button on the Pok?ball, inflating the ball to the size of a grapefruit. Then, I threw the Pok?ball forward, and it struck the dirt forcefully. When the light burst open, it then quickly began to take shape and form into my Umbreon. Then, Kenneth assisted me and threw forward one of his Pok?balls, releasing his Skarmory. After, the light died down, the dark fox Umbreon and the metal bird Skarmory were staring down their two adversaries.

?Oh boy?? Umbreon remarked as his eyes stared down upon Bellossom and Clefairy, ?Little miss flower and little miss fairy. Do you really think you two scare me!??

Just then, Eric looked at me very strangely. I could already tell what he was thinking. Now I was ready to believe anything?

?Excuse me?? Eric whispered to me, ?But when was the last time Umbreon actually said something besides his name???

?Not? until now?? I replied to him, finding it very odd myself.

Just then, Jocasta suddenly gasped at the sight of Skarmory. Something was really strange about her and this whole battle that was going on?

?That?s a steel Pok?mon!? Jocasta shouted out, pointing toward Kenneth?s Skarmory, ?You lie! You are from the Khans!?

?Excuse me miss?? Kenneth replied with a cynical tone, ?But we don?t even know who the Khans are.?

?You think you can try and fool me again!?? Jocasta shouted out in anger, ?Bellossom, use Magical Leaf attack on that Umbreon! Clefairy, attack that Skarmory with Pound attack!?

At that moment, Bellossom had looked toward my Umbreon with a menacing smile.

?You command, I obey.? Jocasta?s Bellossom replied, glaring at Umbreon with angry eyes.

Then, she jumped into the air and began to spin around, and the green and yellow leaves that were around her waist lifted up and began to spin rapidly like a fan. Just moments later, three shiny leaves had been launched right at Umbreon, inflicting a few cuts. Umbreon wince for a moment expecting a lot of pain, and then looked right back at Jocasta?s Bellossom as soon as it was over.

?Is that all?? Umbreon challenged her, ?Boy are you pathetic??

Meanwhile, Clefairy headed toward Skarmory and tried to ram into him, but it really didn?t do much damage, and Skarmory easily laughed off the tiny ounce of pain.

?Umbreon, strike Bellossom with Faint Attack!? I shouted at him, pointing at Jocasta?s Bellossom.

?You too, Skarmory!? Kenneth commanded, deciding on the same target, ?Attack her with Drill Peck!?

At that moment, Umbreon had vanished, and Skarmory had spread his wings, leapt off the ground and surged toward her just before he had struck Bellossom fiercely in the abdomen with his sharp beak. Skarmory?s powerful attack was strong enough to throw her backwards, sending her flying and screaming, struggling to grab onto something before she struck the ground and landed on her back. Then Umbreon had struck her from behind, throwing her face first into the ground. When Umbreon had come back to my side, we watched as Bellossom struggled to get up, but fell down again and landed face first into the ground yet again, too tired to continue.

?Heh heh, that was sweet.? Skarmory had remarked, looking at the fallen Bellossom.

Then, Jocasta had pulled out her Bellossom?s strange gray and black Pok?ball, pointed the tiny circle on the ball at Bellossom, and made contact with the red beam that she had aimed from the Pok?ball. Suddenly, Bellossom had become a red, translucent light and then was pulled into the Pok?ball. Then, Jocasta placed the Pok?ball back on the belt behind her cloak.

?Enough of this nonsense.? Jocasta remarked, looking toward Clefairy, ?Use your Metronome!?

Just then, Clefairy started dancing softly, and then suddenly, a massive blast of ice and snow had blown past us, striking Skarmory and Umbreon, as well as the rest of us. Once the icy Blizzard attack was over, Umbreon shook the ice and snow off, and then looked toward Clefairy with a dark glare in his eyes.

?Boy, are you dead for that!? Umbreon shouted in vengeful anger.

?Umbreon, attack with Double Edge!? I said to Umbreon in a firm voice, laying my eyes on Clefairy.

?Skarmory, attack her with Steel Wing!? Kenneth shouted out.

Just then, Umbreon leapt toward Clefairy furiously, and slammed hard into the fairy Pok?mon, throwing them both in opposite directions and sending them both tumbling in the dirt. Then, Skarmory had jumped up, taken flight and then soared at the fallen Clefairy with his sharp, metal wings spread. Just when Clefairy got up again, she was struck down forcefully by the powerful Steel Wing attack, forming a long cut across Clefairy?s chest after Skarmory?s blade-like wings had slit across it. Once Skarmory had returned to Kenneth, Clefairy was down for good?

Just then, Jocasta had returned Clefairy to her Pok?ball. Once she did, she looked at the glossy gray and black Pok?ball, and she lowered her eyes.

?Take a nice good rest.? She said in a soft voice, placing the Pok?ball on the belt behind her cloak.

Then, we just looked at her with an odd feeling. After she put the Pok?ball away, she had approached us, and looked at us in the eyes. She didn?t seem quite so angry anymore for some reason.

?Well, you proved your point.? She had told the three of us in a much calmer voice, ?The three of you couldn?t possibly be from the Khans??

Well, I was finally glad we got that out of the way, but I didn?t see how having a Pok?mon battle proved that. And just who was she anyway??

After the battle was over, we just looked at Jocasta with a strange feeling. She didn?t seem too different from a human herself, only she had dark blue skin, red eyes, and bizarre clothing. Still, I was at least glad she didn?t think we were Khans, since she seemed to hate them with a passion, whoever they were anyway?

?Exactly how did a battle prove that?? I asked, looking toward Jocasta with curiosity.

?Come,? She told us, beckoning for us to follow her, ?I?ll tell you everything??

Then, we just shrugged and followed her through the small Gnomish city, passing by many weird metal buildings. Many of the townspeople had stopped to stare at us, and we couldn?t help but stare at them. After all, they probably thought we were weird, and the three of us couldn?t help but feel exactly the same way. Then, when we finally arrived at what seemed to be Jocasta?s house, she threw open the heavy metal door and we stepped inside the small, metal dome.

Like the other buildings, it was a single room with a dome shape, only this one was built for her size. Considering it was a one room house made it quite small, but it did seem comfortable. The walls inside were also metal, but the floor was carpeted and at least some parts of it looked respectable, even though that wasn?t my kind of thing. There was a stove in the corner, a bed with dark red sheets, and a small desk between the stove and the bed, but that was it. And I thought my room was bad?

Kenneth and Eric had sat down on the bed while I kneeled on the floor, since there really wasn?t any room left on the bed. After Jocasta shut the metal door, she pulled up the chair from the desk and sat down. Then, she looked at the three of us with a serious look.

?Since I know you?re not from the Khans, then you probably don?t know who they are.? Jocasta had said to us, looking at us with a firm stare.

?Well, you?re right.? Eric had told her quickly, looking back to her, ?We?ve never heard of them.?

Then, Jocasta was silent. She took some time to gather her thoughts, and then she looked toward us.

?Considering the way you?re dressed, I don?t even think you?re from this same world?? Jocasta had told us, reaching even deeper into our thoughts.

?Well, you?re right there too.? Kenneth had told her, looking into her eyes, ?We don?t know how we ended up here either.?

?In fact, we?ve only just arrived to tell the truth.? Eric continued, looking at Jocasta hoping we would get some sort of answer, ?Somehow we ended up in that valley up on that hill just outside.?

Jocasta had taken some time to piece things together, and when she finally did, she looked up and looked at us seriously.

?In short? you were tricked, one way or another?? Jocasta told us, looking at us with firm eyes, ?The Khans are a group of raiders ****-bent on building machines and weapons of hatred. While some of their ranks consist of humans, the Khans are willing to use the help of other races in their battle against us. They are pillagers, fascists, and criminals to say the least. They have been looking for the seven relic talismans to open the Vault of Supremacy. With this, they hope to use the intense power to take over Palantria and fill the world with their factories and their production lines. In a sense, they?re fighting this war so only their ideals exist. It was them who somehow managed to create one of their portals in your world.?

I found that to be very strange, but considering the very little that we knew, we were going to have to take her word on it, even though I really didn?t know her. I didn?t like the fact that these same humans were causing so much havoc. Still, they couldn?t have been anything like we were, could they?

?The Khans are very sadistic people.? Jocasta had told us, looking at us seriously, ?They use nothing but steel Pok?mon in battle, and they even have a way of turning a normal Pok?mon into a steel one. That?s why they?re nicknamed the ?Metal Raiders.? They also wear their own crude metal armor for protection while they engage in combat.?

?That?s really freakin? weird?? Kenneth had responded, not knowing why someone would want to do that to their Pok?mon, ?Why the **** would they want to do that to their Pok?mon??

?I honestly don?t know?? Jocasta had responded, feeling just as strangely about it.

There was some silence before Jocasta looked up again. I didn?t see the point into using only steel Pok?mon. Still, I much as I didn?t like what the Khans did, I still didn?t think it was any of my business. We didn?t belong here?

?Look, we?re just trying to get back home.? I told Jocasta, hoping she would know of a way, ?We don?t want any trouble??

?I can understand your feelings, but the Khans are the ones who hold all the keys?? Jocasta had replied, looking at me now, ?They created the portals in the first place. That?s how their numbers just constantly increase. Most of the humans who come here usually end up in their hands. Problem is, no one can go home until the Khans are stopped.?

As I thought about it, I didn?t even know what these Khans looked like, or what they were even capable of. All that I knew so far was that they adored steel type Pok?mon more than anything else, even to the point of going overboard, and that most of them wore metal armor. And from what it seemed like, any human that was walking about was eligible to be a Khan. But then again, what about the humans that stayed away from them? Where have they gone? And then there was the presence of even non-humans in their ranks. And would even want to follow these psychos?

?Look, if bringing down these Khans is the only way to save your people and take us home, then I will be willing to help.? I told Jocasta, looking at her seriously.

?Well, if that?s the way you want it, Chris?? Kenneth had told me, looking away for a minute, ?We?ll be as much support to you as possible, Jocasta. It would only make sense for us to be on the same side.?

Weird thing was, Jocasta wasn?t exactly jumping when we told her that. She seemed a bit hesitant, like there was something else that was going that went further than that. For that same reason, I didn?t quite like the look in her eyes.

?The forces that are against the Khans are known as the Emerald Alliance and the Overseer League.? Jocasta had told the three of us, ?The Emerald Alliance covers most of the northern and western region of Artivis and possesses the continent of Obsidian. Meanwhile, the Overseer League dominates most of the southern region of Artivis. At the same time, the Khans possess everything else, the rest of Artivis and the large continent of Severance, taking over the land with their machine cities and industries. If you are serious about joining us, then the three of you would likely be in the Emerald Alliance.?

?Whatever it takes to bring these maniacs down?? Kenneth had told Jocasta, ?I don?t know where these clowns got the idea that we would be joining their junkyard posse just because we?re humans??

Jocasta looked a little better, but still, she just didn?t seem too overly excited yet. I honestly didn?t know why either. We were pretty firm in our decisions to help her out, why wasn?t that enough?

?As much as I appreciate your assistance?? Jocasta told the three of us, looking like there was something she needed to get off of her chest, ?I do have to warn you about something. Most of the members of our forces aren?t humans. In fact, I would say next to none.?

?Well? why is that?? Eric had asked Jocasta, with Kenneth and I feeling the same way, ?I mean, we can?t be the only humans that aren?t against these junkyard freaks. After all, look what they did to us??

After that, Jocasta had sighed, and looked down a bit. I could see in her eyes that the reason for her hesitation was coming from something else.

?Well, we have had many humans join our ranks before, most of them with the same feelings you have.? Jocasta had told the three of us, trying to lay it on easy, ?Problem is, humans have absolutely no resistance to magic. It takes very, very little for them to be affected by our surroundings, often changing their appearance. There are almost millions of different ways for a human to change their race in Palantria, and most of them happen by pure accident. However, even though this happens, they still continue to fight along our side, which I find very remarkable??

?Eh, but then why doesn?t that happen to the human members of the Khans?? Kenneth had asked Jocasta, wondering just as much as the rest of us.

?It still does though, it?s just that the Khans are always getting human replacements, unlike our alliances.? Jocasta responded, looking toward Kenneth, ?They use a lot of magic themselves in battle, very often to cheat. That?s how I know the three of you aren?t from there. The battle you fought with me was perfectly fair??

Well, that certainly made sense. For one thing, the Khans seemed like a bunch of idiots that didn?t know any better. Still, why was the human population on the other side constantly decreasing? Was it nature, fate, or something else? That?s what I didn?t understand?

?The choice is yours.? Jocasta told us in a firm and serious tone, ?The only thing I can promise you is the unexpected. Chances are extremely high you will leave this war very differently than the way you came??

Still, despite the feelings of hesitation we had, we decided to go along with it. I was still hoping there was some chance we wouldn?t be affected by whatever crap was just waiting for us out there, but then again, I?m sure there were some of those before us who were thinking the same things. Despite that, I knew that if we were on our guard, nothing should happen. At least that?s what I kept telling myself?

?The Khans plan on trying to obtain all seven of the Relic Talismans stones so they may unlock the Vault of Supremacy and ultimately accomplish their goal of trying to destroy all of us.? Jocasta said to the three of us, ?They already have three of them. Meanwhile, the Emerald Alliance has two and the Khans have been aggressively trying to get them ever since. As for the other lost two, we have no idea where they are??

?I see?? Kenneth acknowledged, ?So whoever gets all seven first and finds the Vault is basically the one who will win this entire war??

?Precisely.? Jocasta had replied, ?Each of the keys represents something. There is a relic talisman for justice, peace, wisdom, friendship, courage, determination, and inspiration. Meanwhile, the exact location of the Vault is still unknown, but many legends speak of the incredible power it grants to the one who opens the vault using all seven stones.?

I never really was a power hungry person. Still, I did know that those who had it were seriously twisted in the mind, and they could cause a lot of crap to happen. In a way, this was our only possible way of getting home, but still, there was nothing that guaranteed that. But if this was the only way, what choice did we have?

?So where do we go from here?? I asked Jocasta, looking at her, ?We?re really not warriors, and we only have a small handful of Pok?mon??

?We can easily change that.? Jocasta told the three of us, looking much more optimistic, ?All you need to do is head to Ranhasna City, which is in the north. If you?ve sworn allegiance to the Emerald Alliance, then they will be willing to provide you with a few more Pok?mon. They may be able to help you in other areas as well, since only training your Pok?mon isn?t enough when it comes to fighting the Khans. They will lay waste to them and then to you if you don?t fight back with something else??

That certainly didn?t sound good. We didn?t have any weapons on us, and we only had a few Pok?mon. Still, hopefully Ranhasna would be able to give us at least something?

?Are you coming with us?? Eric had asked Jocasta.

?Not until later.? She had responded, ?Not until I find someone who can watch after the rest of the citizens here. Sorry, but there is a reason why I?m here.?

With that said, we simply said goodbye to her and then we left. Honestly, the little town was beginning to freak me out with all the little bearded men who just couldn?t stop staring at us all the time. Plus, it just wasn?t our type of place. Seriously?

Despite the fact we didn?t actually have a working compass, we managed to find a path that had a signpost pointing to Ranhasna. Honestly, the path made of dirt, and one good flood would wipe the whole thing away. Still, the three of us walked along the road, hoping this place wasn?t miles and miles away. The longer we walked, the more we wished we had decided to bring the car along. Problem was, I didn?t think I would be seeing that car anytime soon, if at all. But honestly, it was pretty old. Losing it wouldn?t be such a bad thing, but being stuck here in this place? that wouldn?t be so great?

A few miles further, and we were getting a little tired. The sun was starting to set, and we were hoping we would arrive at this city in time before the night had come. If it did, chances were good we were going to lose sight of the path, and I honestly didn?t want to go wandering off. But after a few miles, we had arrived at the city of Ranhasna. Man, what a sight it was?

The city was huge, with stone buildings that reached up to six stories. Unlike Arasta, this place actually had stone cobbled streets, and they were clean as well. Plus, the streets and buildings carried on farther than we could see. Meanwhile, the entire city was surrounded by a tall stone wall. It somewhat looked a bit like a city from the Middle East, only the buildings were taller and the streets were much wider. However, it seemed most of it was empty, but there were still people walking around. I took a glance at them, and they still looked somewhat human. Their skin was very tan even though the sun wasn?t so severe, and they were wearing long robes.

Still, something was telling me this was just only the start of a long journey?

Bravo! *stands and claps* It was great! Keep up the good work.

Hey, thanks for reading. I know I'm new to the forum and I really haven't made myself too known yet, but I do appreciate the fact you're reading this. Thank you.


We had stood just outside the entrance. Honestly, I didn?t expect for Ranhasna to be such a big city considering the town of Arasta was only just a tiny village compared to it. Still, hopefully we could find some way of obtaining some money here. And honestly, I certainly wasn?t up for begging?

?Bigger than what I had expected?? I had remarked to the other two.

?True, it certainly puts Speedwell to shame.? Kenneth had agreed, looking around, ?Come on, let?s get moving.?

We had then approached the front entrance, and then after a few steps, Kenneth had stopped for some reason. Eric and I just stared at Kenneth, and we had no idea what had just happened.

?Ow, geez?? Kenneth winced, gritting his teeth.

Moments later, he had to sit down, and Eric and I just looked at each other, not have any idea what was wrong. Then, when he brought up his shoe, we immediately saw it?

?Ouch, what the heck is that thing?? Eric had asked, looking at the stone like object sticking in Kenneth?s shoe.?

?I don?t know but it hurts like crazy?? Kenneth replied, trying to look at whatever was causing so much pain.

Just then, he got a look at the object that was sticking in his shoe, and he firmly grabbed it. Then, he slowly pulled it out, wincing during the whole ordeal. For some reason, it looked like a nail or a talon. When Kenneth finally got it out, he could see a little bit of his own blood at the sharp tip. At that moment, he had started looking it over.

?I don?t know what it is.? Kenneth responded, throwing it aside, ?Come on, let?s just keep going.?

After that, he had gotten back up and we then entered the city, while Kenneth was showing a bit of a limp. I?m glad he wasn?t bleeding heavily, but still, it could have been any of us?

Then, while we were standing in the large city, we just looked around at all the buildings, and we had no idea what to do. Honestly, we were completely broke, and none of the cash we had would account for anything.

?Maybe let?s look for a shop?? Eric had suggested, trying to find one in particular, ?Maybe we can? ask them for something??

Kenneth had rolled his eyes, but still, it was better than doing nothing.

?I suppose?? He had responded, looking over to one shop in particular, ?How about that one??

?I was thinking that same one?? Eric had responded, looking in the same direction, ?Come on, let?s go.?

Then, we had made out way toward the three story building. The first floor seemed to be the shop while the upper floors seemed to be used for residential purposes. Rather than having a door, the entrance consisted of long strings with beads on them, somewhat like a fortune teller?s hut. Still, we stepped inside, and we looked around. So far, we were just about the only ones there.

?Hi, come on in.? The smiling shopkeeper had urged us, ?Take a look around.?

I got a good look at him, and he was wearing a white turban with a white beard and a kindly face. He was sitting at a desk in the back of the room, waiting patiently.

Well, it was no Wal-mart, but he did have a lot of cool and? weird stuff. Everything important was in a glass case, while other, less valuable items were in boxes and on the shelves. Some of the stuff I had no idea what on earth it was. Still, I really didn?t try to figure out what everything was. I knew we had nothing to pay for it?

As I moved around, I had caught sight of some of the same black and gray Pok?balls that Jocasta had used. Surprisingly, they looked very much like the ones we used, only the colors were different. Still, right next to them was a tiny label of ?200 Lantals,? which I easily assumed was the cost. And I knew that whatever the heck Lantals looked like, we didn?t have a single one of them. Other items included some really sweet looking swords with a colored crystal center, as well as some other various melee weapons. I didn?t expect a place that was armed with stuff for Pok?mon and humans alike.

Then, Kenneth had approached the store owner, and I looked on, since I knew alone, there was nothing we could buy?

?Hey, we actually recently tied with the Emerald Alliance.? Kenneth had told the store owner, looking somewhat hesitant, ?So we?re pretty much new to this place.?

?I see?? The owner replied, a bit disappointed, ?Well, you do appear to be out of town I suppose. You don?t look like the rest of an An-Kai that are from around here.?

?No, we?re not.? I had joined Kenneth, looking at the shopkeeper, ?In fact, we?re humans.?

He did seem a bit surprised, but still, he didn?t become too overwhelmed at the fact.

?Hmm,? He replied, thinking about it, ?I do purchase things if you have anything I?m interested in. I?m always looking for new stock??

Kenneth had shrugged and then looked through his pockets. Each item he found, he put it on the counter. Everything from loose change, his wallet, his cell phone, and even tickets to a baseball game.

?It?s not much?? Kenneth had told him, looking at his stuff.

The shopkeeper really didn?t care about everything else, but one item had caught his eye. He looked excited as he looked over the cell phone, which honestly, wasn?t really worth anything without service?

?Ah!? He gasped at the sight of the cell phone with a smile on his face, ?I?ve always wanted one of these. They?re so rare??

?Well?? Kenneth had replied, looking at the cell phone, ?The battery will die after a while, and it?s not like you can call anyone anyway??

Then, he looked at Kenneth with a look of surprise. He just couldn?t understand why we didn?t think it was worth anything.

?Ah, but you have to use it correctly?? He told the three of us, ?You?ll be surprised what a little magic can do with these things. I can charge it instantly and use it to contact anyone who has another one of these things!?

?Couldn?t you just use? telepathy?? Eric asked, thinking pretty logically considering our situation.

?Well, that would be great if such a thing existed among the An-Kai.? He responded, looking away for a minute.

I guess we couldn?t expect these people to have everything. Still, if he really wanted it, I don?t think Kenneth was going to argue about it?

?I?ll give you three hundred thousand Lantals for it.? He told Kenneth, looking happy at the cell phone, ?Seriously, I would love to have one of these.?

?Sure, it?s yours.? Kenneth told him, letting him have the phone.

Then, moments later, the shopkeeper placed a big fat cloth bag on the counter, filled with many coins. After Kenneth took the bag, the man thanked us, still overly interested in the cell phone. Then, we just turned around, and left?

As we got out of the store, we just looked at each other with a sense of wonderment.

?Man, that was easy?? Kenneth replied to the two of us, looking at his massive amount of scarlet, hexagon coins, ?Come on, let?s see if there?s anything cool we can spend this stuff on.?

Eric and I had just looked at each other as Kenneth headed to the next store. We just shrugged and followed him to the building directly next to the one we had just been in. We stepped through the passage, and all along the shelves were those same black and gray Pok?balls we had seen before. The only thing was that was all this store was selling.

We had encountered a beautiful young woman with very fine black hair, a warm smile and a beautiful, smooth complexion. In the meantime, Kenneth had approached the young woman behind the desk, and looked at all the Pok?balls.

?I?m assuming you sell Pok?mon, right?? Kenneth had asked, looking at all the Pok?balls.

?That?s right.? The young woman replied, ?Have anything in mind??

Meanwhile, Eric and I had been looking at each Pok?ball, and besides each ball had a price as well as the Pok?mon that was inside. Most of them were familiar names of Pok?mon I had heard of before, but there were a few of them that I had no clue about?

?Yes?? Kenneth had replied, looking at her affirmatively, ?I was wondering if you had any Dragon-type Pok?mon.?

?Well, we only sell the basic evolution forms,? She had responded, hoping she didn?t disappoint him, ?We do have a Trapinch which will evolve into Flygon, a Bagon that evolves into Salamence, a Dratini that evolves into Dragonite, and a Laclaw that evolves into Severgon. But let me warn you though, Dragon Pok?mon are rare and are very expensive??

I had heard of Trapinch, Bagon and Dratini before, but never once did I ever hear of a Laclaw. I could only wonder what it looked like, but hearing its fully evolved form got me even wondering further?

?That?s fine with me.? Kenneth replied to the store owner, ?I?ll take them all.?

Both Eric and I stopped what we were doing and instantly looked at each other like Kenneth had lost his mind. We then looked over to Kenneth, holding his big fat money bag. Now he was acting like a little kid in a toy store after he had stolen his parents? credit cards.

?Well, it?s your choice?? The woman had replied, looking away for a bit looking like there was no way on the planet Kenneth could ever afford all four of them together, ?The total cost ends up being one hundred and fifty thousand Lantals??

Still, Kenneth didn?t hesitate one moment before dumping nearly half the bag of his coins all over the counter. After the both of them counted coins and stacked them into little piles all over the glass counter for nearly fifteen minutes, he finally arrived at the proper amount, with plenty of money to spare.

?To say the least, I?m surprised you even have half that much?? The woman replied, looking a bit astounded, ?But, a deal is a deal. I?ll go get your requested Pok?mon.?

After soon after that, the woman had looked all throughout the shelves, looking through the long lines of Pok?balls for Kenneth?s requested Pok?mon. One by one, she found all of Kenneth?s requests, and then placed them out on the counter.

?Well, here you are.? She replied as she handed the four black and gray Pok?balls the Kenneth, ?Treat them well and take good care of them.?

?Oh, you better believe I will.? Kenneth replied, looking ecstatic about his purchase.

After that, the three of us had left he store, and Kenneth just kept looking at his newly purchased Pok?mon with a big grin on his face.

?Man, do you know how awesome this is!?? Kenneth exclaimed with a wild look in his eyes, ?Dragon Pok?mon are the hottest Pok?mon out there!?

I couldn?t deny the fact that if I had just got four ultra-rare Pok?mon like that, I would be pretty happy about it too, but Kenneth looked like he was ready to jump out of his skin because of it. Dragon Pok?mon are good, I won?t deny that, but they were nothing to lose your mind about?

?You know, Kenneth?? Eric had told him as he was still grinning about his Pok?balls, ?Didn?t Jocasta tell us that we should focus our attention on not just Pok?mon, but other things as well??

?Well, like what??? Kenneth replied, looking at Eric, ?I?m sure Jocasta was talking about everyday Pok?mon. But these guys? man? they can handle anything??

I was pretty certain Jocasta mentioned for us to get weapons as well. And just now, Kenneth had blown half of our budget on his little army of Dragon Pok?mon. We still needed money for weapons and armor, and I wasn?t going to try and guess how much those would cost. And then there was the cost of getting something to eat and finding a place to sleep?

Chapter 4 Continued...

?Kenneth, what about the other things we need, like weapons and armor?? I had asked him, hoping he wouldn?t snap at me.

?We?ll get that in the morning, man.? Kenneth replied, looking at the sky, ?And besides, don?t you have a watch, Chris? Someone around here might want their hands on that.?

I had looked at my watch, and considering it was a digital one, perhaps Kenneth was right. Maybe it would fetch an outrageous price value. I didn?t need it anymore. Still, was it really of any use here? Maybe?

?Come on, it?s really late.? Kenneth had told the two of us, looking at the sky, ?Let?s try and find some sort of place to send the night.?

We had walked around a little bit more, while Kenneth kept limping around due to his injured foot. After walking a few blocks, we saw a sign on one of the buildings, labeled the ?Horizon Inn.? So, we just walked right in, hoping they would have what we wanted.

Once we walked in, we had seen the stone hallways were decorated with many interesting items such as a shield in one corner, an Arabian sword above a small fireplace in the back, and some paintings and hanging pottery. The front lobby was small, with a flight of stone steps leading up to the second floor on the left side of the room, while before us was a small wooden desk. Behind the desk seemed to be a small eating area, but it seemed to have been closed down for the night.

Behind the desk was another man, young and not very enthusiastic about sitting around waiting. He had his chin resting on his hand while his night-black hair was ruffled from a long and boring day. As we stepped in, his expression didn?t change too much.

?Well, you?re from out of town?? He remarked, looking the three of us over, ?You want a room for the night??

?That?s right.? Kenneth had responded affirmatively, ?How much??

?It?s just a hundred Lantals for the three of you.? He replied, making it seem like that was a steal.

Without any hesitation, Kenneth handed over the money that was needed, and in turn, the manager told us what room we had. After that, we headed the stone steps to the second floor, which consisted of a small hallway with four open portals in total. Our room was all the way at the end, which wasn?t that far of a distance to walk. Once we made it there, we walked through the stone passage way and entered the room. It honestly wasn?t what I expected?

?Well, its three beds, but not much else besides that?? I had remarked at the small room with the three beds in it.

Kenneth had looked it over, and he couldn?t believe it. The only things in the stone room were three stone beds with only a small amount of bedding and nothing for pillows. He seemed quite disappointed?

?Man, what the heck is this?? Kenneth had asked, looking around and seeing almost nothing, ?I swear Chris, let?s go back to the car. I honestly don?t see why we left it behind in the first place??

He did have a point there. And after all, I did still have the keys. Plus, not to mention we still had most of our stuff in there?

?But the path might be too hard to see at night.? I told the two of them, ?If we walk off the path, we could end up anywhere??

?Chris, the entire path is surrounded by forest.? Kenneth insisted to me, ?If we walk off, we will know because of the trees.?

I wasn?t about to argue, since I didn?t like the idea of sleeping in a dump like this. Also, if we really needed to get back to Ranhasna, we could always drive there, which would be a million times faster.

?Let?s go then.? I told the two of them, ?I?m not sleeping in a place like this.?

?I?ll second that.? Eric had agreed with the two of us, ?Let?s get out of here.?

With that, we had turned around and headed back toward the stairs. After walking down the stairs, the manager had looked at us, and he simply smiled.

?I don?t blame you.? He replied, looking a bit amused, ?Want your cash back??

?Keep it.? Kenneth insisted, ?Go have some fun. Get out of here once in awhile.?

?Heh, you?re right, you know?? He had replied, smiling back to us.

Then, we had walked out of the inn, and we were back on the streets. It wasn?t long before we had made it outside, and after a little bit of walking, we found ourselves at the entrance. As we looked forward, we could still make out the path.

?Let?s go then.? I told the two of them, heading forward.

It wasn?t long before we had started our long walk back to the small town of Arasta. Walking down that long road a second time wasn?t any real fun either, and was even more tiring the second time around. Halfway through, we had clearly noticed the path ahead was getting darker. We tried to pick up the pace a bit, but Kenneth?s injury was slowing him down a bit. Still, considering how painful that must have been, he was moving along quite well. By the time we could see Arasta in the distance, we felt like we were walking in a void of darkness. Still, we made our way back to the small gnomish town successfully, but just barely?

After we had made our way back to the way we came from, we had arrived back at the front entrance we had come from. Once we managed to find the Ford Explorer after stumbling around in the dark trying to find it, I unlocked the doors, and when I opened the door, the lights in the car came on. Quickly, Kenneth and Eric had made their way into the car, and we could finally relax. After that, we had shut the doors.

?Ugh, that was tough, but I?m glad we did that.? Kenneth told me, finally glad to be able to relax in the cushion chair of the SUV.

?Yeah Chris, thanks.? Eric replied, cracking open a can of A&W root beer we had left behind.

In a way, I was pretty glad about it as well. I had looked at the fuel gauge, and we still had plenty of gas left to make it to Ranhasna City. But after that, I didn?t know where the car would go out?

Regardless, I put my seat in a reclining position, and I closed my eyes. It wasn?t long before I had gone to sleep, pretty tired after walking around so much. In a way, Palantria didn?t seem like such an awful place. Some things about it were a bit weird, but it wasn?t a nightmare?

When I had woken up, I had opened my eyes and I could see the morning sun coming through the windshield. I had looked at my watch, still thinking it would be accurate. It read 8:34, which could have been right, I just didn?t know. After I sat up and looked around, I had realized it wasn?t really a dream after all, though I had pretty much believed that from the very beginning.

After I pulled up the small black lever by the side of the car seat, the chair went back to its original position. I had looked for Kenneth and Eric, and I saw them outside. I had watched them a bit, and then I unlocked the doors and headed outside. When I made my way around the car, I could see they were having a small Pok?mon battle. It had been a fight between Kenneth?s Trapinch against Eric?s Magnemite. So far, it appeared that Magnemite was the one losing?

?Okay, okay?? Eric pleaded, deciding to give up, ?Man, this is the fifth time you?ve beaten him up. Aren?t you satisfied yet??

?Come on man, I really want to see these guys evolve?? Kenneth begged Eric, urging him to continue, ?Five times really isn?t that much??

?To Magnemite it certainly is?? Eric continued, looking at his pummeled electric Pok?mon.

And soon after that, Eric had pulled out Magnemite?s Pok?ball and aimed the red trajectory beam at it, turning his Magnemite into a red, translucent light that was suddenly absorbed into his Pok?mon. It appeared both Eric and his Magnemite had enough?

?Oh come on?? Kenneth replied with annoyance, ?I haven?t even started with Bagon and Dratini??

?You?re going to have to wait?? Eric replied back to him, ?I think you have forgotten that Dragon Pok?mon take a long time to raise. I don?t know how much they were trained before you brought them, but even then, it?s going to be awhile before you get what you want. And don?t expect to get it from beating up Magnemite for the five hundredth time??

As much as Kenneth was disappointed, Eric was right. Kenneth had a lot of training to do if he wanted to get all those Pok?mon to their highest evolution. I guess that?s what he got for getting greedy?

And then, it wasn?t long before he had spotted me, standing right next to the Explorer. He suddenly had a nice big grin on his face, already preparing to battle once again.

?Good morning, Chris?? Kenneth had smiled at me, clutching his Pok?ball, ?Care for a conflict??

?Kenneth, there?s no way you?re going to beat my Umbreon or my Machop with the Pok?mon you just got yesterday?? I had replied to him, knowing my Pok?mon were still pretty tough compared to his, ?But, if you insist??

I had grabbed Umbreon?s Pok?ball, and I had pressed the button to prime it, inflating it to the size of a grapefruit. Then, I threw it forward, and after it struck the ground, the Pok?ball burst open with a flash of light that had soon taken shape and form to become Umbreon. When Umbreon had fully emerged, he glared down at his enemy. Umbreon?s dark red eyes had looked down upon the tiny orange sand crab Pok?mon and its giant pincer. At that moment, Umbreon had turned to me with a hint of disappointment.

?You?re expectations of me have gotten pretty low, haven?t they??? Umbreon remarked, already thinking the battle was his.

?Well, blame Kenneth.? I replied to Umbreon, feeling a bit weird I was actually talking back to him for the first time, ?He?s the one who insisted on this??

Still, despite Umbreon?s remarks, Kenneth still wanted to go through with this. He looked to his Trapinch, and then looked toward Umbreon.

?Use your Crunch attack!? Kenneth had commanded his Trapinch, sending the sand crab Pok?mon forward.

?Confuse Ray please.? I requested Umbreon, hoping this nonsense would be over soon.

?Oh, with pleasure.? Umbreon replied, looking toward Trapinch with a menacing smile.

At that moment, Umbreon?s eyes flared up brightly, and suddenly he was surrounded with a bright, white light. Suddenly, that same bright light appeared over Trapinch, and then there was a bright flash. After the light died down, Kenneth?s Trapinch didn?t know what the heck it was doing. He starting crawling rapidly in every direction, and then threw himself randomly on the ground. Meanwhile, Kenneth wasn?t looking too pleased?

?I suspected as much?? Umbreon said with confidence as he gazed at the confused Trapinch.

?Psychic attack.? I requested, looking at the struggling Trapinch.

?I thought you?d never ask?? Umbreon replied with a confident smile.

Seconds later, Umbreon focused his attention on the squirming Trapinch, and then his eyes glowed an eerie white. Suddenly, Trapinch was crushed from all directions as the blue and purple glow around him was sending pressure upon all points on his body. After the glow died down, suddenly Trapinch went on a fit of rage, and lunched in fury toward Umbreon, clamping down his sharp pincer on Umbreon?s back. Umbreon desperately tried to throw him off, but it wasn?t working?

?Ow. Ow. Ow.? Umbreon shouted, stilling trying to throw off the persistent Trapinch, ?A little help here would be nice...?

Yet, I had no clue what to do. Suddenly, the confusion that been thrown into Trapinch?s mind started taking effect again, and he couldn?t help but release his grasp. After that, Umbreon was finally relieved, and was more than ready to finish the tiny crab off.

?Faint Attack, Umbreon.? I commanded, wanting to end this just as much as Umbreon did.

After that, Umbreon suddenly vanished into a blur, leaving only an unsuspecting Trapinch that was wondering where he went. And then, when he least suspected it, he went flying, spiraling into the air right after Umbreon had appeared and struck him from behind. After Trapinch crashed into the ground up-side down, Kenneth looked quite disappointed?

?Well, take a rest.? He told Trapinch as he recalled him to his Pok?ball, ?You did great considering what you were up against??

And after the tiny crab Pok?mon was sent back into his Pok?ball, Kenneth still wanted to keep going. Umbreon had taken down a seemingly fearless Dratini and determined Bagon before becoming too tired to continue. After Umbreon had become exhausted from all the fighting, Kenneth had started snickering.

?Heh, I knew my Pok?mon could take him down?? Kenneth smiled at Umbreon.

?Kenneth, he?s tried from beating all your Pok?mon up, not from your Pok?mon beating him up?? I corrected him, ready to give Umbreon on break.

?Finally, at least someone here agrees with me?? Umbreon replied, looking back to me with tired eyes.

I then had aimed the Pok?ball?s red beam at Umbreon, and soon after, Umbreon was recalled back to the Pok?ball, ready to take a rest of Kenneth?s seemingly endless onslaught.

?Well, that was certainly a blast.? Kenneth had said, enjoying the massive amount of battling, ?Maybe in ten minutes we can do it again.?

?Ten minutes!?? Eric exclaimed in a freakish horror, ?Kenneth, let your Pok?mon relax for a little while, you?ve been training them hard enough. Maybe sometime in the afternoon will be fine, but not in ten minutes??

After a little bit a haggling, we finally convinced Kenneth to wait on it, and then we got back in the car and headed back to Ranhasna. Like I had expected, the drive was short. Driving on that small dirt road was a heck of a lot faster than walking it. Then, after that short driven, we had finally arrived back in the stone city.

Yet? something seemed quite different about it?

We had stopped at the front entrance, and for some reason, the entrance was heavily guarded. The city was certainly much more active than it was yesterday evening, which was normal. Simply, we stopped the car and headed out. Then, when we tried to enter the city, we were suddenly stopped by the two guarded armed with spears.

?Some people have been talking about you?? One of the guards had told us, not sounding too happy about it, ?Apparently you?re not one of the An-Kai, are you??

?No? we?re not?? Kenneth responded, looking away for a minute, ?We?re humans??

?We?re under the suspicion you?re spies from the Khans.? The guard had told us in a serious voice.

This was crazy. We didn?t look anything like the Khans. Weren?t the Khans dressed in metal armor? We weren?t wearing anything like that at all?

?I believe you?re mistaken.? I told the two guards, trying to plead my case, ?We mean no harm to the people of this city. We?re from the Emerald Alliance??

They were silent, but after a long silence, one of them had spoken up.

?From this point on, if you set foot in our city again, you will be killed.? The guard told us in an angry tone, ?You have been warned??

Nice people. I couldn?t believe the amount of disrespect we just got. I turned right around and went back to the car, and Kenneth and Eric did the same. Then, we just got back in the car, and I prepared to just drive around the city, which wasn?t so easy considering the terrain.

?What the heck did we ever do to them!?? Kenneth complained with the look of disbelief on his face.

?We?re human, that?s why?? I responded, feeling annoyed, ?I guess the An-Kai are just racist.?

I continued driving outside the walls of the city, constantly checking the gas gauge. I only had an eighth of a tank left, which wasn?t too much. And we were going to need some serious food soon. Chips and root beer isn?t exactly the best diet we could get, not to mention the fact we were running out of it?

As time went on, I noticed something strange about Kenneth. He was scratching his back and the sides of his head a whole lot. He also kept rubbing his ears a lot, something I usually didn?t see him do. I thought it might have been the air or something, but if that was the case, I think we would have been feeling it too.

?You okay, Kenneth?? I asked him and I watched him out of the corner of my eye.

And then, he suddenly stopped scratching. He looked to me for a second and then just looked ahead.

?It?s nothing.? He said in a simple tone, just trying to shrug it off, ?It?ll probably go away??

Whatever it was. Soon after that, it wasn?t long before we had passed by the city, and we found ourselves now driving down the road that lead away from Ranhasna. Meanwhile, the gas gauge kept dropping and dropping. Now the tiny, white needle was on ?E,? which meant we could find ourselves stranded any minute now. Still, we kept on going until the inevitable moment arrived. Suddenly, the accelerator just didn?t work anymore, and the Explorer just suddenly came to a stop.

?Why are we stopping?? Eric asked, looking around to see if we were anywhere in particular.

?Eric, unless Palantria has an Exxon station around that patch of forest over there, I don?t think we?re going to get this thing to move.? I replied to him, seeing that the needle was a little even past the ?E? now.

From that point on, we were forced to walk. And to think, we had taken Exit 22P with the intention of getting gas. All we could do now was just open up the trunk and take everything that was useful and that we could carry. Everything else? was just going to have to stay behind.

?Man, what a great summer this has been?? Eric moaned sarcastically, opening the side door and stepping out of the car, ?I put up with nine months of math and geography for this!??

?Eric, please don?t start?? Kenneth told him, stepping out of the car and shutting the door behind him, ?Believe me, we didn?t ask for this either.?

I had also gotten out of the car and saw there was nothing before forest all around us except on the path. But then, I noticed a small trail that led into the forest on the left side of the car. I stepped out and looked further down the trail, but I couldn?t see where it led due to the dense forest. The path was a very small dirt road, sometime covered by shrubs and only wide enough for one person. It looked like it hadn?t been used in a long time?

Kenneth had come around the car, scratching his head again. He also noticed the tiny beat up trail, but it seemed to sway back and forward, leading to a place unknown.

?Where do you think it goes?? I asked Kenneth, squinting to try and see beyond the dense forest.

?How would I know?? Kenneth shrugged, trying to see down the path himself, ?Probably nowhere.?

And soon after, Eric had approached us, wondering what we were looking at. Soon enough, he found the path himself, and he also tried to figure out where it went. After staring at it for a few seconds, he then turned toward the two of us.

?I say we go for it.? Eric urged the two of us, ?Chances are the next city isn?t for miles. I?m more interested to see where this goes.?

?Well, you do have a point there.? I had replied, looking back to the trail, ?But if the trail ends, there?s no way I?m going to wander through a forest with no idea where I?m going.?

?Fine, fine.? Eric replied, being the first to head down the trail.

We then followed Eric down the trail, which kept winding and winding, and sometimes we had to stop and try and find where the trail left off. Usually after looking past a few shrubs we found it again and just continued going. Either that or Eric kicked them aside and we quickly found the trail underneath.

Further and further we went into the forest, for almost an hour. Then, after we continued to go along the trail, the forest had cleared, and then after we had stepped out of the dense forest, we came across one heck of a sight?

?Whoa?? Kenneth remarked after he stepped out of the forest and saw what had been just past the trees.

Before us lay a massive, ancient city, only it appeared to be in slight ruins. We looked down the hill and saw houses and buildings which almost seemed to be in the form of giant seashells in light pastel pink and orange colors and in all kinds of shapes while some other buildings were made of white and beige colored stone. Meanwhile, the narrow streets were made up of a series of white rocks, all laid out flat. Surrounding some of the buildings were clusters of coral that were scattered everywhere, and it somewhat gave the feeling of being underwater when really it was exposed to air. The only water there was were a small amount of water pools scattered around in various places, mostly along the paths and leaking through some of the entrance ways into the buildings.

?Do you think?? Eric asked, looking at each building, ??anyone still lives here??

?Well, the houses don?t look maintained?? Kenneth had replied, looking around, ?I?m guessing this place used to be an underwater city a long time ago??

From the look of it, it seemed like that at first, but then again, if that was the true, whoever or whatever built this place wouldn?t have bothered wasting their time making the white stone pathways if they could swim around. We made our way down the hill and saw the long streets were completely empty. All the buildings looked vacant, and the fact everything was immersed in silence was making it a bit freaky.

We had turned to our left and headed into the first house, which was a pink-colored spiral seashell. There was no door, just a gaping cavity in the side of the shell where the white stone path led to. We walked inside, and entered the first floor of the building.

After we stepped inside, we noticed the only source of light that was coming in was from the giant hole in the ceiling as well as the door, leaving us with only a dim light to see everything. I could see the floor crept upward and to the right as it went on, moving along with the spiral formation of the shell. The floor was made up of many white pebbles, where in one area they were covered by a giant puddle of water. We walked past it and headed upward, where we came across a single room that had been carved out of the shell.

To our surprise, it looked no different from a normal human?s bedroom, complete with a bed, dresser, and a wooden floor. By the bed was a small night table with an oil lamp on it that looked like it hadn?t been used in some time. Meanwhile, the bed was already prepared, and still clean nonetheless. We just stared at it in disbelief.

?Okay, so much for living underwater.? Kenneth remarked, looking around at the bedroom.

?I think the general area was once underwater at one point.? I had told Kenneth, taking the time to think about it, ?That might mean that the water cleared out and left all of these giant shells and coral formations behind. Then I guess somebody moved in and just turned the whole thing into a city.?

?Yeah, I would probably guess that myself.? Eric replied, taking a closer look at the room, ?Some of the buildings aren?t even shells. I guess those are the ones the people here must have built themselves??

But I wondered why the entire place was cleaned out of life while everything that was left behind was still somewhat in order. I had moved toward the drawers, and when I opened them, I had found several shirts and pants in there, all folded up and everything. And then when I pulled one out, it seriously didn?t look anything different than what you?d find at Macy?s or any other place like that back on Earth.

?I swear humans must have lived here.? Eric remarked at the plaid shirt I pulled out, ?But that doesn?t make sense. Didn?t Jocasta tell us humans are few and far between??

?Maybe now they are?? I responded, putting the shirt back and checking the other drawers, ?What about a hundred years ago??

?Chris, if these people lived here that long ago?? Kenneth replied, looking at me, ?The place would have fallen apart by now from old age. It looks like they only moved out just a week ago.?

I didn?t find too much else in the drawers. When I shut the top drawer, I thought about that myself. Everything was still in remarkably good condition. Still, maybe it was just this one house.

?I say we check out some of the others.? I replied to the other two, ?Maybe it?s just this one??

After that, we left the seashell house behind, and moved on to the one next to it, which was one of the stone buildings that looked like it had been crafted with white and beige rocks connected by cement. Unlike the first house, this one actually had a wooden door, with a brass knob no less. The door looked like it was slightly splintering from old age. Instead, Kenneth had just grabbed the door, and opened it. We then just stepped inside.

This one was basically a one room house, just like the last one. However, this had a first floor and a balcony which had two beds. There were two square, glassless windows on either end, and a wooden floor. Again, it had similar furnishings to the first house, only there was nothing electronic. There as a table on the first floor with three chairs in the back right corner of the room, and a sitting area to the left of the door. Still, everything was in good condition. I just didn?t get it.

?Man, it?s just like everyone disappeared?? Kenneth replied at the sight of the room, ?How could there be no one living here??

I was asking the same question myself, and I didn?t know how to answer it. I had made my way up the stone steps that lead to the second floor balcony which held two beds. Besides the first bed, I found an awfully interesting surprise. Right besides it was a leather belt, with two Pok?balls in two of the belt?s leather holders. And yet, the strangest thing was that they were both red and white, the same color as the ones we got back home, and not like the gray and black ones they sold just a city away?

I picked up the leather belt and looked at the two Pok?balls. I could only wonder if there was actually a Pok?mon in there of if they were both empty. I had taken the belt downstairs, and showed it to both Eric and Kenneth.

?Where did you get that!?? Eric asked in wondering excitement.

?It was just upstairs.? I told the both of them, ?And look at the colors. They?re just like ours. They?re not gray and black like the ones you brought, Kenneth.?

?Oh? my? God?? Kenneth remarked in awe, ?Chris, you may not realize this, but only Silph and Devon make red and white Pok?balls. All other colored Pok?balls are created from Appricorns. Simply enough, whoever got those Pok?balls got them from Earth.?

I just looked at the two of them again, and all I could think about was the Pok?mon Trainer that once owned these but ended up here in Palantria, and in this city. And now, all I wanted to know was what happened to them. There were others just like us here. Maybe they didn?t end up here through the Interstate exit we took, but nonetheless, they ended up here for reasons unknown.

?About how long ago do you think they left, Eric?? I asked him, hoping he would know from the condition of things.

?I would guess about three months, maybe sooner.? Eric replied, looking around him, ?After six, animals and insects start breaking their way in and start taking over.?

That probably would have been my estimate as well. I had taken one of the Pok?balls off its leather holder, and then pressed the button to prime it. Just like any of our Pok?balls, it inflated to the size of a grapefruit. I then threw the Pok?ball forward and then a second later, the glossy Pok?ball struck the wooden floor, and then the light had burst from it. Moments later, the light had begun to take shape and form into a Pidgeot.

The giant four foot tall brown and beige bird with its long yellow and pink crest had emerged, and he looked around with his sharp eyes. Then, he had turned toward me, and he didn?t look so lightly upon my presence?

?Well, you?re not my master Gregory.? The Pidgeot told me in a sharp and aggressive tone as he gave me a cold stare, ?Just who are you, anyway??

?My name is Chris.? I had told the Pidgeot, again feeling strange talking to a Pok?mon, ?We only just arrived a few minutes ago to find the entire city is completely empty.?

?Yeah right.? The Pidgeot snapped at me, not believing a word of it.

?Fine, go outside and see for yourself.? I told the Pidgeot, probably expecting for him to not trust me yet.

Just then, the Pidgeot gave me the cold shoulder, and he walked toward the door on his two talons, acting like the three of us weren?t even there. After he kicked the door open, he walked outside and took a look around. Then, I saw what was once bitterness in his eyes had become a look of fright and concern. He looked down the long streets and saw not a single person was moving around. It wasn?t long before he came rushing back in here, looking toward us for help.

?Where did they all go?? He asked, hoping the three of us would know.

?We don?t know?? I had replied to the Pidgeot, having no idea either, ?How long ago has it been since Gregory last let you out of your Pok?ball??

The Pidgeot tried to stop and think. Then, after a few moments of silence, he looked back up toward me.

?I think it was two months ago.? He had replied, making Eric?s prediction even earlier, ?I was wondering why he was keeping me in there for so long. I hope nothing happened to him??

I could only hope for the same. But still, I thought about it logically, and realized that he still should have been safe.

?Look, there aren?t any dead bodies lying around.? I had replied to the Pidgeot, ?That means everyone must have left peacefully, but then again, I don?t think it was under their own will. And I think they must have had to leave in a hurry, since they left so many of their things behind.?

That made the Pidgeot feel a little more comfortable knowing Gregory still should have been safe and unharmed. The only thing I could guess was that it was the doing of the Khans, just wanting more human allies. But then, how would I bring myself to find them?

?Do you know anything about the Khans?? I asked the Pidgeot, looking in his eyes.

?Khans?? The Pidgeot stated, thinking about it, ?No, I don?t think I?ve ever heard anything about them. Why do you ask though??

?I have the feeling it was the Khans who took Gregory away??

I knew that the Khans were willing to trust anyone else that was human like most of them were. Once they probably found this place, they probably convinced or forced everyone out of the city. That?s probably why it was completely abandoned but everything that was left behind was still in good condition.

I had asked the Pidgeot about Gregory, and from what I heard, he once left home for the Hoenn League. After he had gotten his fourth badge, the next thing the Pidgeot remembered was being here. He then told me that Gregory had been living here with another teenager for the last two years, and that the city was filled with people just like them.

Then, I felt it was only right that we told him about what happened to the three of us. I also introduced him to Eric and Kenneth, and how we went on a road trip only to end up here. Then I told him all that we went through until we decided to follow the path in the forest to this city. Slowly, I hadn?t felt so weird talking to a Pidgeot anymore.

?I want to come with you.? The Pidgeot told me, looking into my eyes, ?I want to find out what happened to Gregory and why the rest of the city vanished.?

Well, that was a surprise. A few minutes ago it seemed like he was going to attack us. Still, if he wanted to come with us, I wasn?t going to go against it.

?We?ll help you find Gregory.? I replied to the Pidgeot, hoping it wouldn?t be too long before we found this kid, ?And then the four of us will try to find a way out of this forsaken place.?

It wasn?t long until I had decided to recall Pidgeot back to his Pok?ball, but before I did, I had taken out Gregory?s other Pok?ball and looked and it. If Pidgeot was Gregory?s first Pok?mon, then what was his second?

?It?s his Beautifly.? The Pidgeot remarked as I looked over the glossy red and white Pok?ball, ?We?re the only two Pok?mon that Gregory had with him when we found ourselves here.?

Considering the number of Pok?mon we had was a sickeningly low amount, we were going to need all the help we could get. I took the Pok?ball on the leather belt, and then attached it to mine. Then, I looked over to Pidgeot, and took his Pok?ball.

?We?re going to need to head back?? I told the Pidgeot, looking at him as I prepared to send him back his Pok?ball, ?There?s a trail at the end of the forest, which should take us to the next city.?

?Not the forest that?s up the hill?? Pidgeot corrected, looking away for a bit as he thought to himself, ?There is no way back. Several people claimed that they found a small trail that led to here. For some bizarre reason, the trail disappears when looked at from the south, but even from the north, it?s still a nightmare to try and follow.?

There went that idea out the window. And I certainly didn?t want to risk heading back into the forest completely blind without any idea where we were going. I had remembered following that trail through many curves and twists. Still, it was pretty weird just thinking about it. The only way now was by going forward.

?Looks like there is no turning back.? I had replied to the three of them, ?We need to move forward.?

?There is an underground tunnel that you can use that was built long ago.? The Pidgeot told the three of us, ?Problem is, no one from this city of Lesalas ever used it. Yet, it is the only way out of the city.?

?Then we have no choice but to go there.? I had told the Pidgeot, not afraid of seeing what?s down there, ?We?ve wasted enough time sitting here.?

Then, I had taken Pidgeot?s Pok?ball and aimed the red beam and the giant bird Pok?mon. Once the beam had made contact, Pidgeot had become a red light and was then absorbed into the Pok?ball.

It wasn?t long before the three of us left the small house and looked for signs of this underground tunnel that the Pidgeot had spoken of. As we made our way through the abandoned city of Lesalas, we saw more houses and buildings similar to the ones that we entered, still with all their furnishings intact. Soon after, we had come across a courtyard with a large ordinate stone basin full of sparkling water. Just then, Kenneth had decided to approach the water, almost looking like he was going to drink from it.

?Kenneth?? Eric stopped him, looking unsure at the water, ?Remember what Jocasta told us about changing races? I wouldn?t be drinking from that water if I were you. You don?t know what would happen??

Just then, Kenneth was strangely silent. He looked toward the water, and then looked back at Eric. Then, he slowly looked back at the basin, and stared at the slightly rippling water with a forlorn expression, putting his hands on the side of the stone basin and bending over the small pool of water that was just below his chin.

?I think it?s a little too late for that?? Kenneth replied in a cold, firm voice.

Eric and I were struck silent. I looked over Kenneth, but I couldn?t see anything wrong with him. Kenneth didn?t make a move, and then the two of us just stared at him, wondering what was wrong?

?What? makes you so sure of that?? I had asked, not really certain if I was willing to find out what Kenneth was exactly talking about.

Just then, Kenneth had kept his back toward us, and his grabbed the fabric collar of his t-shirt. Then, he pulled his t-shirt off, and we saw his exposed back. I couldn?t believe my eyes at first. It looked like two dark green claws were sticking out of his back. I slowly approached him to get a slightly better look, but then I stopped.

?Is that why you were scratching your back so much?? Eric asked, assuming that must have been the reason, ?I didn?t think something like this had happened to you already??

?It?s been all that I usually think about?? Kenneth replied, putting his shirt back on, ?You probably think I went nuts that one day buying all those Dragon Pok?mon. I haven?t been saying it, but I?m constantly driven with a passion to train them. And little did I know? I?m slowly becoming just like them??

?Kenneth?? Eric replied softly, not liking what he was hearing.

I couldn?t speak. I looked closely at Kenneth?s ears and they were changing as well. Slowly, they seemed to slightly change from being the recognizable human ear lobe that I?ve seen to slowly becoming that same dragon wing web-like formation that I?ve constantly seen on the sides of a dragon?s head in some of those fantasy books that I?ve read long ago. Already I could see some distinctive differences?

?So?? Kenneth replied, looking away with a look of shame, ?It?s too late for me anyway. I?m just hoping nothing happens to the two of you, but I won?t put money on that. I think it?s only a matter of time??

With that said, he cupped his hands, and dipped them into the water, and then began to sip the sparkling water. I couldn?t help but feel incredibly sick at the moment. I couldn?t imagine what Kenneth would look like in a week?s worth of time here. And I could already feel that it was going to be much longer than a week before we could get out of here, and that was if we got out of here. The thought of being stuck here for the rest of our lives didn?t seem too far off either?

Once Kenneth was done, we then headed through the center of the courtyard, until we had found a marble staircase leading from the path to an underground tunnel. Underground, the entire tunnel was made up of turquoise stones in a brick formation. Most of the stones were clearly very old and were falling apart. However, from our view at the top of the stairs, that was all we could see.

?I?m guessing this is the underground tunnel that Gregory?s Pidgeot was talking about.? I had told Kenneth and Eric as we gazed down the empty staircase, ?If that?s the case, it might be our only way out of here.?

?Yeah?? Kenneth replied, looking down, ?But didn?t he say that no one in the city ever used it before? Why do you think that is??

There was something about that I didn?t like. Yet, I thought it was weird that Pidgeot said it was the only way out of the city. I?m guessing Pidgeot didn?t know of every possible way out of the city. This underground tunnel couldn?t have been the only way?

?Let?s go.? I told the other two, just wanting to continue, ?I don?t want to waste time just thinking about it.?

Shortly after, the three of us had made our way down the marble steps, and soon before us, we saw a long tunnel comprised of nothing but turquoise stones on all the walls. Meanwhile, the floor was made up of turquoise colored tiles that were also cracked and crumbling in multiple areas. Only a few tiles had shown no signs of damage, but there were plenty of them that did. Along the sides of the tunnel were small torches, still flickering with fire. Then, the three of us began to head down the long hallway, hoping we weren?t heading toward a death-trap.

After we reached the end of the hallway, we were then forced to turn right, and then we headed down another empty and crumbling hallway made up of more turquoise stones. By now, everything was only dimly lit as we continued to walk down the crumbling tiles until we had to turn left and head down another hallway.

But then, we saw something that made us stop. It was another hallway, only down the center of it, we saw two moving objects on the floor, one of them was a beige color while the other was an ugly pea-green color, and they were both the size of a Rhyhorn. As I got a better look at them, I saw they were on all fours, somewhat like a frog only their legs were all spiky and their faces were filled with sharp teeth and eyes that were similar to a cat?s.

?Man, what the heck are those things?? Eric asked in disgust as he stared at the two creatures.

?It doesn?t matter what they are.? Kenneth replied, glaring at the two creatures, ?We?re going to have to get through them if we want to get out of here.?

Just then the two creatures quickly turned around, glared at us, and hissed, opening their mouth that was filled with strands of saliva from their tongue to the roof of their mouth. Then, they slowly approached us?

?Foolssss?? The beige creature hissed, ?Obviousssly you?ve never heard of Hanzar and Gretel, have you??

?Is that was the two of you freaks are called?? I asked the two of them, somewhat surprised they could actually talk.

?I am Gretel.? The beige creature hissed with a cold stare, ?And thissss is my brother Hanzar. And itssss been a very long time ssssince we?ve had ssssomething to eat??

I reached for Machop?s Pok?ball, and I pulled it off of the leather holder. Then, I pressed the small button on the Pok?ball, inflating the glossy red and white ball, and then threw it forward like a softball. Seconds later, the Pok?ball struck the tiled floor, and then opened with a flash of light. Then, the white light had formed into my Machop, who seemed a bit unfamiliar with his surroundings at first.

?Go, Laclaw and Dratini!? Kenneth cried out, throwing forward two of his gray and black Pok?balls.

Both Pok?balls had struck the ground, and both of them opened with a flash of light. Out of the first Pok?balls emerged Kenneth?s Dratini, a blue and white snake Pok?mon with bright eyes and two white wing-like formations on the side of his head. Out of the other came his Laclaw, a Pok?mon I had never seen or heard of before. When he fully emerged, he appeared to be a black dragon whelp that stood on his two legs while two dark red bat-like wings were on his back. His eyes were also red and they glared upon Hanzar and Gretel with threatening stare. Meanwhile, at the ends of his four fingers were surgically sharp claws.

?Dratini, use your Wrap Attack on Gretel!? Kenneth commanded, pointing toward the beige creature known as Gretel.

Then, the blue and white dragon snake Pok?mon surged toward Gretel, and wrapped around his neck with his long and flexible body. After Dratini had gotten a good grip on Gretel?s neck, then Kenneth looked toward his Laclaw and then looked back to Gretel, who was screaming and struggling to get Dratini off of his neck.

?Laclaw, strike Gretel with a Slash attack!? Kenneth commanded his dark dragon Pok?mon, ?Aim for his face!?

?Heh,? Laclaw replied, rushing toward Gretel and preparing his claw for a vicious strike, ?I hope this hurts.?

Then, when Laclaw had reached Gretel, he had slashed the hideous creature with a hard and very well timed slash to the face. Gretel screamed as his body was thrown back from the strike. In his anger and rage, he grabbed Dratini?s body firmly, and quickly and fiercely pulled the blue dragon snake off of his neck, and threw Dratini at Laclaw. Dratini was thrown across the room and upon hitting Laclaw, both of them were thrown backward until landing on one of the tiles, smashing the old, stone tile into pieces.

Meanwhile, I had looked toward Hanzar and then pointed at him, pointing at the green creature that was similar to Gretel.

?Attack with Karate Chop, Machop!? I had commanded Machop.

?You got it!? Machop replied, rushing toward Hanzar with his fists clenched and ready.

But then, Hanzar lowered his gaze and then began to focus.

?Darknessss and chaosss, render my enemy helplessss. Ssshadow Bind!? Hanzar cried out in fury.

Just at that moment, a dark red light had surrounded Hanzar, and suddenly a cage of glowing black and red bars had surrounded Machop. My Machop had desperately tried to separate the glowing bars swirling with red and black colors, but they seemed to be too strong for him to pry open.

I had no idea what kind of attack Hanzar had just used, but I knew for sure it was nothing like the attacks Pok?mon had used. But then again, Hanzar and Gretel sure weren?t Pok?mon. I knew for a fact they never came that ugly?

Just then, Eric had decided to call back-up support and he pulled out the Pok?ball that contained his Magnemite. Moments later, he prepared the Pok?ball by pressing the button, and then threw the Pok?ball forward. The red and white ball had spun in the air just before it struck the ground, releasing a flash of light before his Magnemite had appeared. The tiny metal sphere with two white eyes had floated in the air. On its sides were two magnets with red and blue stripes on the ends to indicate positive and negative.

?Magnemite, use your Thundershock attack on Hanzar?s eyes!? Eric had commanded, furiously pointing toward the green creature.

?Acknowledged.? Magnemite had responded, ?Attacking target.?

Then, Magnemite?s two magnets had flared with electricity, and then the metal Pok?mon had directed two streaks of violent forking thunder toward Hanzar. Just a second later, Hanzar was struck in the eyes by both bolts of electricity, stunning him momentarily.

?You will not get away with that!? Hanzar howled, surging toward Magnemite.

Hanzar lunged toward Magnemite, but the metal Pok?mon ascended before Hanzar would reach him. And then, just moments after Hanzar had missed, Machop had torn apart two of the bars out of the cage that Hanzar had summoned to bind him. Then, just as Machop had left the cage, he had taken one of the glowing red and black bars and headed toward Hanzar. Just when Hanzar had his gaze on the floating Magnemite, Machop swung the bar and struck Hanzar in the back of the head, blasting the glowing bar into flaming embers as Hanzar?s head was thrown forward into the ground where it smashing another crumbling tile into pieces, sending chunks and fragments of stone in all directions.

Chapter 6 Continued...

?Use a Low Kick attack against Hanzar!? I commanded him, seeing that Hanzar had already taken serious damage.

?You got it!? Machop responded affirmatively.

Just then, Machop moved toward the wounded Hanzar, then the struck his hideous face with the heel of his foot, sending Hanzar flying backward and then slamming upon the floor, shattering another six tiles when his back struck the floor.

At the same moment, Laclaw had moved Dratini off of his body, and then glared toward Gretel with an angry stare. Just then, Gretel opened his toothy mouth and hissed as his mouth began to salivate.

?Now that?s a face only a mother could love?? Laclaw remarked at the hideous creature.

?Laclaw, attack Gretel with a Slam attack!? Kenneth had commanded the dark dragon Pok?mon.

?With pleasure?? Laclaw smiled as he rushed toward Gretel, ?There?s nothing stopping me now!?

Laclaw then surged toward Gretel with a fit of rage, and upon reaching the hideous beige creature, Laclaw turned and struck Gretel with his shoulder, sending Gretel screaming as he flew backward. But then, Gretel quickly got back up and leapt off the floor, throwing his two front claws and then throwing Laclaw flying backward, just before he fell down upon the tiles and shattered more of them to bits?

?Ohh?? Laclaw moaned from the pain.

?Return Laclaw.? Kenneth stated in a firm tone as he took Laclaw?s Pok?ball and aimed the red beam at the fallen Pok?mon.

Moments later, Laclaw had become a red translucent glow, and then was pulled back into the Pok?ball. Then, Kenneth had pulled out another Pok?ball, and then threw it forward furiously.

?After him, Trapinch!? Kenneth cried as the Pok?ball left his hand and spun through the air.

Then, the Pok?ball had struck the ground hard, and the light had burst from the ball to form into Kenneth?s Trapinch. The orange sand crab Pok?mon had emerged, looking toward Gretel with a vengeance.

?Dratini, attack Gretel with Thunder Wave!? Kenneth had commanded, showing no mercy at all for Gretel, ?Trapinch, strike Gretel with Crunch attack!?

At that moment, Dratini had released a pulsing wave of thunder, stunning both Gretel and Hanzar has forks and sparks of electricity struck them motionless. Then, Trapinch rushed toward the weakened Gretel, and then clamped down his large and sharp jaws on Gretel?s face, making the already hideous complexion of Gretel even worse as more vicious cuts were torn into it.

When Trapinch released his grasp, he stepped back, and suddenly, Gretel began to stumble back before landing on his belly, and then stopped motionless as his arms and legs lay spread out everywhere.

Then, Gretel?s brother Hanzar got back up, but only seconds later, Machop had rushed toward Hanzar with his hands crossed and glowing white, just before he had struck Hanzar with a powerful Cross-Chop attack, sending Hanzar flying backward again. Only seconds later, Hanzar struck the floor forcefully, blasting more fragments of the tiles on the floor in all directions. Then, Hanzar lay on his back, and he didn?t get up once again?

We just looked at the fallen Gretel and Hanzar, and slowly a puddle of strange, green liquid began to pool below their bodies. I had a feeling both of them were dead?

?What a mess?? Eric replied, looking at the fallen Hanzar and Gretel.

Just then, we heard a strange whoosh sound, and then we noticed Kenneth?s Trapinch was glowing white. Suddenly, the white light had begun to change shape. Suddenly, from the light had emerged four diamond wings, with two on both sides, one nearly on top of the other. It had also grown a tail with two diamond shapes on each side. When the light had finally died down, we had realized Kenneth?s Trapinch had evolved into a Vibrava.

Unlike Kenneth?s Trapinch, Vibrava had a light yellow body with four green diamond-shaped wings with a black outline. It also had a yellow tail with two similar diamond shapes at the end. Meanwhile, Vibrava had two shiny green eyes with a black pupil in each eye. Then, under its body it had for T-shaped feet. It definitely looked very different from Trapinch?

?Excellent!? Kenneth exclaimed, ?Man, I?ve been waiting so long for this!?

?Come on.? I told Kenneth, knowing we still needed to continue on, ?We still need to keep moving.?

After that, I had recalled Machop back to his Pok?ball, and Eric had recalled Magnemite. Shortly after, Kenneth recalled both his Dratini and his new Vibrava.

As we walked further down the hallway, I could see our battle had done an extensive amount of damage to the floor, but regardless, we moved on further down the hallway. Then, we had to make another right, and when we turned around the corner, we had come to a fork in the road, and now we could either keep going down the hallway or take a turn to the right.

?Pidgeot never said anything about this?? Eric replied, looking down both hallways.

?Probably because Pidgeot has never been done here before?? I had told Eric, stating the obvious?

After some debate, we had decided to turn to the right and continue down that hallway instead. After taking another right, we had then come across a circular chamber, with a large, circular stone pedestal in the center of the room, while on the back wall just behind the pedestal was a massive stone carving of what appeared to be a wizard with a giant cloak riding upon a powerful stallion. We had approached the pedestal in the center of the room, and looked at the top. Carved into the stone plate were four octagonal pits, one with a maple leaf, one with a snowflake, one with a flower head and another with the image of a sun.

?What the heck is this?? I had asked, having no idea what the purpose of the pedestal.

When I looked at it further, it appeared that something was supposed to fit into the holes in the pedestal. Yet, I had no idea what?

Then, suddenly we heard a low, boom voice surround us. At first I couldn?t tell where it was coming from?

?I don?t know who you are? but I need your help.? The firm, low voice had told us.

I had looked around, and suddenly I realized it had come from the carving of the wizard on the back wall. But that didn?t make sense. How could a carving talk?

?And you are??? Kenneth asked, also realizing that the voice was coming from the stone image.

?My name is Darzaras, Archaic Mage of the Azmaraxe Knights.? The voice had told us, again coming from the stone carving, ?I?ve been imprisoned within this wall for nearly centuries.?

?That?s gotta suck?? Kenneth remarked, ?Who did that to you??

After a short silence, the carving on the wall had spoken up again.

?It was none other than Golgathas, the leader of the Black Angels.? Darzaras had told us, sounding like he wanted revenge, ?Chances are by now he?s long since dead, and I have been forgotten after all these ages. I need your help to release me from this stone prison.?

?And how can we be sure we can trust you?? Kenneth asked, still not quite believing Darzaras.

Then, after another brief silence it had seemed Darzaras had made Kenneth the focus of his attention. The he seemed to have realized something?

?No, you?re not like the other two.? Darzaras had told Kenneth, ?I thought you were human at first, but you?re not. You?re one of the Dracos??

?Dracos??? Kenneth had asked, never hearing it before.

?They?re extremely rare.? Darzaras had told Kenneth, ?In order for a human to become one, they need to be injured by a dragon. Thing is, not a whole lot of humans encounter dragons, and even upon the rare event that they do, the injury done to them is usually fatal. I guess you?re one of the lucky ones??

I didn?t get it. I?ve been with Kenneth the entire time, and never once did we see a dragon. And even then, I don?t remember any of Kenneth?s Dragon Pok?mon ever laying a scratch on him. But it certainly didn?t sound like Darzaras was talking about dragon Pok?mon. It sounded like he was talking more about the real deal?

?I don?t remember ever once seeing a dragon, let alone being injured by it.? Kenneth had told Darzaras, looking up at the stone carving of the mage upon the horse, ?And I own several Dragon Pok?mon, but I don?t remember ever being injured by them either.?

?Dragon Pok?mon are not ones who cause it.? Darzaras replied to Kenneth, ?Though a strong passion to train them upon arriving at the opportunity is usually a result.?

As I continued to think about it, I then suddenly remembered what had happened before all that started. I then recalled the time when Kenneth was injured during his time in Palantria. We didn?t see any dragons, but?

?Kenneth, what was it that you stepped on just outside of Ranhasna?? I had asked Kenneth, looking at his eyes, ?When I saw it, it looked more like a claw than a stone??

Suddenly, Kenneth snapped to attention, and his eyes became wide. He then looked toward me for one second, and then looked back to Darzaras.

?Okay, it could have been a dragon?s claw. I didn?t quite know what it was either.? Kenneth replied, looking a bit worried, ?I really didn?t think anything of it. But how can a single claw cause it? I would think someone would have to be hurt by the dragon itself, not just a piece of it.?

?It doesn?t matter.? Darzaras had told Kenneth, ?Either way, you were injured on a dragon?s behalf, whether it was intentional or not.?

Kenneth was silent. There wasn?t anything he could do about it now. Jocasta was right, it sure didn?t take much for a human?s race to change around here. And like Eric said, we had to be extremely careful whenever we ate or drank anything. I could see in Kenneth?s eyes that he was starting to become very tense.

?So what happens now?? Kenneth asked, looking back up to Darzaras with concern, ?I?m already starting to grow wings.?

?There will several noticeable changes, such as growing wings similar to a dragon?s.? Darzaras had told Kenneth, ?But, you will never completely become a dragon through natural changes. Dracos are half human, and half dragon. Once a human fully transforms into a Draco, they then gain the ability to ascend toward becoming a full dragon and still retain the ability of switching back again. However, there are very few who know this.?

Now that was freaky. I couldn?t imagine Kenneth, the sports jock I had known for so long becoming a massive, gigantic fire-breathing dragon. But seriously, every second, he was becoming less human. At first I thought he was just going nuts for some reason that we really couldn?t explain. Now, Eric and I were more freaked out than ever. I couldn?t imagine what Kenneth would be like in only a few weeks? time.

Kenneth didn?t say anything after that. I didn?t know if he was going to actually use that kind of bizarre power, but sooner or later, he was probably going to have to considering the war against the Khans. Soon after that, the discussion was no longer about Kenneth. Whether he wanted it to happen or not, he was going to become a Draco.

?I need for the three of you to help free me from this stone prison.? Darzaras requested, ?When Golgathas imprisoned me here, he made sure the gems that were needed to break the lock were taken far away and protected. I need for you to obtain those four gems.?

?Well, we?re trying to fight off a group of raiders called the Khans.? I had told Darzaras, feeling like this was a bit out of the way, ?We?ve been looking for the lost talismans that are supposed to unlock the Vault of Supremacy. If we free you, then will you fulfill your end of the deal and help the Emerald Alliance defeat the Khans??

Darzaras was silent for a moment, and then we patiently waited for a response. It was hard to tell what was happening considering we couldn?t actually see him, only an impression of him in the wall.

?I am already on your side.? Darzaras had told the three of us, ?I have been aligned with the Emerald Alliance most of my life. However, there is something else I can offer you.?

?And what?s this?? Eric asked, wondering what Darzaras had in mind.

?I can grant you some of my magical power.? Darzaras had told the three of us, ?No doubt you will need it considering what Golgathas has selected to be the protectors of the gems that I need to break this prison. However, I can?t give you everything. I?m already limited as to what I can do from within these walls.?

This was certainly unexpected. I had some serious disbelief on whether I would actually be able to cast magic spells like some mage. I always pictured the common mage to wear long robes, carry a wooden staff with some bizarre gem on the top while wearing a massive white beard on his chin that even a Gillette Sensor Excel couldn?t shave. Still, if he was willing to give us that, I would trust him.

Then, for some odd reason, a wave of crimson red light had pulsed from the stone image of Darzaras, and then I got the strangest feeling. I felt many hundreds of years worth of knowledge suddenly embed itself into my brain. I had shut my eyes for a moment, just feeling all that power suddenly awaken. When it stopped, I opened my eyes again and looked around. I felt so different.

Almost all of the spells needed the right words and the right mind focus. Sure, anyone could say the words, but without the focus and concentration, it was nothing. The power that Darzaras had given us was amazing, yet still, I knew I would have to see it to believe it. Regardless, despite my feelings of disbelief, I had no idea how Darzaras was able to grant us this?

?Oh man?? Kenneth gasped, shutting his eyes for a moment, ?Darzaras? consider it a deal. We?ll get those stones to get you out of there.?

?That?s not the only thing I have to offer.? Darzaras had replied in a firm voice, ?I can grant you even more upon my release. And also, I have something that you need??

?And what?s that?? Eric asked, looking up at the stone image of Darzaras.

?I carry one of the stone talismans that you seek.? Darzaras had told the three of us, ?The talisman of wisdom. It was also one of the reasons why Golgathas had imprisoned me here.?

That certainly made it clear we had to get Darzaras the heck out of there, not just for his sake, but for the rest of the Emerald Alliance. It didn?t matter how out of the way it was. If he was willing to do all this for us, then it would only be right for us to give him the freedom that he wanted. The last thing I would want was to be stuck in a wall like that?

?There are four gems that are needed for unlocking the prison, the sun gem, the leaf gem, the flower gem and the snow gem.? Darzaras had told the three of us, ?There is a continent in the south called Symarix which is divided into four parts, spring, summer, winter and autumn. Each one of these regions of the continent stays in that season throughout the entire year. The spring region will never have its flowers wilt while the winter region will never once be without its snow.?

What a weird place. Not even Alaska and Siberia had snow on the ground all the time, and I couldn?t think of one place on Earth that was always in autumn weather. That just seemed? awfully strange.

?Each one of these regions contains a temple.? Darzaras explained, ?And in that temple lies the region?s respective gem. I need for the three of you to go to each temple and recover each of the gems. Once you have all four, all you need to do is head back here and place the gems into their respective places on the pedestal. Once all four are in place, it should be able to destroy the stone wall that keeps me bound here.?

It sounded pretty simple, but I couldn?t imagine exactly how we were going to find these temples, and what exactly was inside of them, just waiting for us to enter. Regardless, we needed Darzaras out of there if we were going to have any chance of winning this war against the Khans?

And to have any chance of reaching home?

The first thing I'll say is well done! This fic is truly superb, and I applaud your every effort in it. The plot is gripping, and it's not rushing, which is what a lot of people tend to do when they write fics like these. The action is very good as well. It almost feels real.

However, you do seem to be iffy with the desciption. Many times, you flood the fic with description - which is great. But there were times when I was reading that I could have used a bit more description to picture the scene perfectly. It was parts like those that were spoiling it from being great.

You repeated words an awful lot. Especially in the second chapter when they were running out of petrol, you used the word gas a load of time. This may not be intentional... (it no doubt isn't) but it does feel a bit repetitive and a bit boring to the reader if the author is using the same word several times in a paragraph or sentence.

Well, all I can say is keep up the good work... as this is one superb fic you have here.

Thanks for reading and leaving a review Cat Dog. Yeah, that's not the first time I've been told I repeat words too much, and sometimes I overdo with descrption.


It was then that Darzaras told us of a place called Equinox, the only location in Symarix where all four regions meet. In Symarix, the four regions consisted of Springside, Summerfield, Fallador, and Wintershire. Meanwhile, Darzaras had told us that Equinox was a large monument that represented the balance and unity between the four regions. It was then that he had told us that he would use his magical power to teleport us there, since there was a magical link between him and Equinox. However, he could only bring us there. We were going to have to find a way back to ancient city of Lesalas ourselves, something that was going to be a pain, since we had no idea how to get back there. And honestly, the ancient city of Lesalas didn?t seem like the kind of place that everyone in Palantria knew about.

Regardless, there wasn?t much we could do about it for now. Once we told Darzaras we were ready to depart, we then were surrounded by a blinding, white light, and suddenly I felt like I was floating. I could feel myself being pulled away, as if I was waterskiing in midair. Then, after some time, it finally stopped, and the white light had died down. My feet had touched solid ground again, and I quickly found Eric and Kenneth standing right besides me.

We were in the middle of a large, circular, gray stone plate with several columns on the outside edge. Most of them looked quite old, as well as the rest of the plate itself. I could have guessed all of this must have been here for at least a thousand years.

And then, all around us, past the stone pillars that were holding up absolutely nothing were the four regions. All you had to turn and the scenery switched from winter to spring to summer to fall and around again. The dividing lines between each region were strangely evident. Right next to snowy plains of Wintershire were the bright grassy and flowery fields of Springside. I never thought I would see flowers next to a field of snow, but that was where one region began and the other ended.

?Freakin? weird?? Kenneth remarked, looking at the very different regions around him, ?Never thought I would lay eyes on an environmental freak show like this.?

?Me neither.? Eric replied, smiling at Kenneth?s comment as he was looking around him, ?Bizarre? isn?t it??

Then, after a few moments of looking around, I then turned back to Kenneth. I just wanted to get moving, and hopefully get Darzaras out of his prison soon.

?Which one should we go with first?? I asked Kenneth, looking toward him as he stared toward Fallador.

After some thinking and some looking around, Kenneth had looked toward Eric and me and seemed to have made up his mind.

?Chris, you take care of Springside, I?ll take on Summerfield, and Eric, you take care of Fallador.? Kenneth stated, looking at the both of us, ?Once each of you get the region?s stone, then head to Wintershire and we?ll all meet at the temple.?

?Why do I get Fallador?? Eric asked, not seeing how Kenneth came up with that decision.

?Does it really matter, Eric?? Kenneth asked him logically, ?We?re going to have to get all the stones anyway. It will go faster if we split up and try getting three of them at the same time.?

Couldn?t argue with that. Once I got the stone for Springside, all I would have to do is head over to Wintershire and find the temple. Sure sounded a heck of a lot easier than heading across all four regions.

?I guess you?re right?? Eric replied, not really seeming totally comfortable with that.

?Fine, let?s go.? I told the other two, ?I?ll see you two back at Wintershire.?

?Got it.? Kenneth replied, already walked toward Summerfield, ?Good luck to the both of you.?

With that, I looked toward Springside and walked toward the light green grassy fields that were already blooming with an enormous amount of flowers. I had stepped off the stone plate of Equinox, and then made my way through the field. Immediately I noticed a quick raise in temperature, but it was at least comfortable, and not too hot or cold. Still, after a few minutes of walking, all around me were fields upon fields of flowers. I could still see traces of Wintershire far off to my left and a small section of Summerfield way past the massive field of flowers. Then, after some time, I saw nothing but the fields of Springside, as well as finding myself surrounded in a sea of flowers.

I started singing to myself Dawn of the Ages of Darkness by Serpent Synthesis as I continuously made my way through the masses of tulips, daisies, lilies and nearly a hundred other types of flowers I had no idea what were called. There was practically nothing I could do besides sing that same song I?ve heard a million times as I made my way through the flowery fields. It seemed like there was nothing for many miles, so I thought I might as well entertain myself to pass the time. Meanwhile, during all that walking, I saw no sign of any temple or whatever. Of course I knew it wouldn?t be that easy. Nothing ever was?

After nearly two miles of walking and stepping over a sea of flowers, I finally saw something more interesting in the distance. Past the field was a blue, glistening river, with a forest of trees with many blossoming flowers on the branches just on the other side. There were so many that it turned the whole thing into a pink forest, which was something I didn?t see quite often. And then, just near the river was a large town that had each of its old English type buildings in pastel colors, like it was made for a permanent Easter holiday. After seeing all that, I just thought to myself?

Why did I have to be stuck with the sappiest season of the year?

No wonder Kenneth chose Summerfield for himself. It was the most normal out of the four, and probably the most recognizable. But here, everything was overboard. The entire place was devoured by spring? much to my annoyance. Everything just seemed? way too happy and colorful here?

Despite that, I decided to head to town, trying to prepare for whatever wackiness I could expect from the citizens that actually decided to live in a place like this. I was still singing more songs from Serpent Synthesis, such as Spur Of My Madness and Metal Caliber, seeming as a last method to hold on to my sanity as I entered this bizarre place which was endlessly consumed by the season of spring like no other seasons existed?

The town was quite big, but nothing the size of Ranhasna. Every building was painted in a pastel color, all constructed out of stones that had been painted over. The cobbled stone streets were a pastel pink, much to my shock and disgust, while flower bins on the sides of the streets and hanging from the windows on the second and third floors of the buildings were everywhere. Every tree in the courtyards would never have leaves, only blossoms at the end of every one of its branches. It was pretty weird just thinking about it.

Then there were the citizens, which was more of a freak out to me that the wacky appearance of the city. There were none that were even just halfway human. Some of them looked like fuzzy rabbits that were five feet tall and walked on their hind legs, and yet they were still wearing clothes. Others appeared to be bluebirds about the same size, with blue feathery bodies, two wings on their back and very strange scaly feet with long, black nails. They almost looked like human versions of Tailows, only? there were quite a few differences? Again, most of them wore clothes, only they were adjusted for their size and shape. Meanwhile, there were plenty of others that looked like? they were flowers themselves. I couldn?t believe this was actually real?

After I saw that, I immediately put my back against the pastel blue wall of the building to my left in the alleyway I was in, just to keep out of sight. I couldn?t believe what I had just seen with my own eyes. And I thought the gnomes in Arasta were bad. They were nothing compared to these? freaks?

If I knew that Springside was going to be like this, I would have strangled Kenneth to get my hands on Summerfield. But? it was far too late for that now. I took a deep breath, and just looked past the wall. Again, more weird citizens that I couldn?t even call people. They were everywhere, and there wasn?t a single creature among them that looked a bit human. After that, I became determined to just make my way to the bridge and then get the heck out of here as soon as possible. Obviously the temple wasn?t here, so there was no point in my staying in this town.

Then, just as I was looking to make sure the coast was clear, I felt a tapping on my shoulder. I quickly spun around apprehensively as a result of being so paranoid. Then, stood before me was a green-skinned woman that looked like a Hawaiian hula girl with long pink hair and wearing a grass skirt and a necklace of flowers that appeared? to be a part of her?

?Hello there, and welcome to our city of Lilypetal!? She told me in an excited and overjoyed tone.

I was silent. Already I had gotten my serving of fright for the afternoon?

?What?s your name?? She asked me, still wearing a bright and happy smile.

?Chris?? I replied in a low, cold tone, ?Chris? Trevor??

?You seem to be new here, Chris.? She told me, finding the obvious but still smiling about it, ?You haven?t heard of the weekly Lilypetal City contest, have you??

To put it logically, if I had only just arrived, obviously I wouldn?t know a single thing about it. I barely knew anything about Lilypetal City itself, and the little that I did know was already scaring the heck out of me.

?Nope?? I replied, trying to keep a low frame, ?Never once??

?That?s really sad?? She replied, not really looking like that affected her that much emotionally, ?It?s a simple contest really. The winner gets a free Pok?mon. Problem is, we haven?t gotten that many participants, so I?ve been out all day looking for some.?

Free Pok?mon, huh? Well, I had four, but Pidgeot and Beautifly weren?t really mine. That left me with only Umbreon and Machop, the same two that I had been stuck with all the way back at Speedwell. As I thought about it, I realized another Pok?mon would be helpful, if not necessary. Plus I didn?t know what was ahead at the temple where the flower gem was. I might need another Pok?mon.

?About how many participants do you have at the moment?? I asked, wondering what I might be up against.

?So far? no one?? The Hawaiian girl replied to me, looking pretty downcast.

Well, that didn?t sound good at first, but then again, as I thought about it more, I began to assume maybe the citizens of Lilypetal City were just tired of a weekly contest. I know that even monthly contests back on Earth can get annoying sometimes. But as I thought about it more, I just wanted to get out of here. When I had summed it all down? I didn?t trust the sanity of this city?

?Sorry? I?m not interested?? I replied to her, turning around and looking the other way.

And after that, I thought she was just going to leave me alone and walk in the other direction. That?s exactly what I didn?t get. Instead, I was greeted with the shock of seeing a very sharp blade appear from under my neck. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw she was the one holding the knife. I became very still after seeing that?

?Okay, I?ll be honest with you.? She told me, definitely no longer in her cheery mood, ?Humans are strictly forbidden in Springside, and especially in Lilypetal City. I don?t know how you managed to get all the way over here, but something about this is going to have to change.?

?Fine, I?ll just be on my merry way out of here?? I responded quickly, not at all liking the sight of that surgically sharp knife.

?It?s a bit too late for that.? She told me, not letting me go, ?I don?t like shedding blood, especially in a place that?s supposed to be happy like this, so I?ll give you a break. If you come with me and do as you?re told, I?ll let you live and I?ll give you a Pok?mon out of the deal.?

Did I really have much of a choice now? If I were to die here, no doubt Kenneth and Eric would be waiting at the temple at Wintershire endlessly for me to arrive. And honestly, I couldn?t just walk away. I still needed the flower gem if Darzaras was to have any hope of getting out of that prison.

?Fine, what is it that you want?? I asked her, knowing I still had things to do here.

?Act like this never happened, and that you?re just entered the contest.? She told me in a cold and firm tone, ?When you find out you?re the only one who entered, at least act a little surprised. After that, just follow instructions.?

?Whatever you want?? I told her, knowing she was the one in control now.

Then, she took off, and I followed her through the alleyways, noticing she was trying to keep out of sight. After we passed several blocks of more bright pastel colored buildings, we then arrived in a small, outdoor plaza. The ground was covered with pink tiles that were square and rectangular, and there were several wooden benches and thousands of flower baskets everywhere. Meanwhile, there was almost no one there.

She pulled me toward a large, ordinate wooden table all the way in the back of the plaza, where another strange person that looked like a giant rabbit was sitting. Again, just like the others, the only thing human about him was that he stood on his hind legs, and was actually wearing clothes. He was wearing a dark blue vest with long white kaki pants. Then when that bizarre girl and I were finally at the table, she released her grasp on my hand. I didn?t know what the heck was going on. Both of these odd people looked like something freakish ripped right out of a fairy tale. It was nearly driving me nuts.

?I see you had to bring him here the hard way?? The giant rabbit spoke, putting an ocular lens that was connected to a golden chain right before his left eye, ?But? you did do a very good job keeping him out of sight. I haven?t heard anything of his arrival.?

?Good.? The strange Hawaiian girl responded, ?You take care of the rest, Dimitri.?

And then, just like that, she left. I turned around and watched her run out of the plaza like she hadn't gone to the bathroom in days. Once she was gone, I turned back toward the giant rabbit, who I assumed was the one called Dimitri.

?Well, I suppose you have already realized this isn?t a real contest.? Dimitri told me, looking into my eyes.

?I realized that the moment she pulled out that sick looking knife.? I told him honestly, looking right into his blue eyes, ?Look, just what the heck do you two want!??

Then, after that, Dimitri closed his rabbit eyes for a brief moment and then looked away. After a few moments, he grabbed a tall glass cup and a huge, glass keg filled with water. He placed the two containers on the table, and then he looked up at me.

?Give me your belt.? Dimitri requested, holding out his white, furry hand, ?The one with your Pok?balls on it.?

If that bizarre, green Hawaiian girl had that kind of knife, I didn?t even want to see what kind of weapon mister Peter Rabbit was packing. For all I knew, there could be a twelve gauge shotgun right behind that table. It wasn?t work taking the risk.

Without too much hesitation, I loosened the leather belt by removing the metal prong from the hole in the strap, and then I took off the belt and placed the long, leather belt in his furry, white hand. He looked at the four red and white Pok?balls and then he set aside the belt. Obviously he knew they were a human?s Pok?balls?

?Now what?? I asked, hoping there wasn?t much more too this.

After that, he took the heavy keg of water and filled the tall glass with sparkling, crystal clear water. Then, he put the keg down, and moved the glass closer to the edge of the table, obviously wanting me to do something with it.

?All we want you to do is drink at least one cup of water.? Dimitri told me, looking into my eyes, ?Whether you want more is up to you, but you need to drink at least one glass before you go. After that, we?ll give you a free Pok?mon and we?ll let you free.?

I could have laughed my head off. There was no freaking way on the planet I would trust this guy with anything consumable. And then there was the fact that humans were outlawed in this psycho city. Obviously something was adding up?

?There is no way I?m drinking that crap.? I told Dimitri, right to his furry face, ?Go find some other gullible loser.?

After I said that, Dimitri folded his white, furry paws on the table and looked up at me. He sighed for a minute, and seemed like his patience had just run out. He was giving me a similar stare the way a principal looks after some kid cherry-bombed a toilet in the boys bathroom.

?It?s an open plaza.? Dimitri told me, looking at me seriously, ?Plus the tiles are slick. There?s very little chance of you running away, and us not being able to clean up the mess in time??

I never expected a white, fuzzy rabbit to say something like that?

In a way, he was right. The plaza was pretty open, not leaving a whole lot of places to duck and cover. Obviously he was packing something, and I had no choice but to drink that water. It was certainly not ordinary water either, that I had figured out quite quickly. The only thing I could do if I wanted to get the heck out of here was listen to him, even though I seriously didn?t want to. Then, without much choice, I walked up to the glass, and put my hand around it. The glass was cool to the touch from the cold water that was inside it. I had no idea what this stuff did, and I really didn?t want to know. But, it was either drink this, or die in a bloody mess, and force Kenneth and Eric to be stuck in this rotting hole known as Palantria. There was no way I could do that, for many obvious reasons?

?Just one glass, right?? I asked, Dimitri, hoping I wasn?t hearing things wrong before.

?That?s all.? Dimitri responded, looking up at me and slowly regaining his patience, ?But, if you want more, you can have as much as you want.?

Yeah right. After this one glass, I was going to immediately going to turn around, shut my eyes, hold my breath and just wait for whatever terror to break loose. The last thing I needed to do was make it even worse.

?Fine, have it your way.? I told the stupid, white rabbit.

I took the glass, held it to my lips, and began drinking the water. At first I thought of just guzzling it down, but as the clear water touched my tongue, I couldn?t believe the wild, sweet taste. My eyes were tearing and my knees were becoming weak because the stuff tasted so freaking good. Then, after the glass was finished, I put the glass back down on the wooden table. I couldn?t stop myself after that one glass was done. I was suddenly extremely addicted to that water. I had become a maniac?

I grabbed the water keg myself, and furiously filled the glass with more crystal clear water. Then, as soon as it was full again, I frantically grabbed the glass and began drinking it like I had been in the desert for years without a single thing to drink. I couldn?t believe the outstanding taste of this sweet, delicious water and it once again entered my mouth. But then, the glass was empty again, right as I really got into the taste and the mental high the water was giving me.

After that, I said to heck with the glass. I brushed it aside and it flew right off the wooden table where the only thing left of it was the sharp shattering noise it created before it broke into a million pieces. Then, I took the keg, and started drinking right out of the keg itself. I took special care to make sure not a single drop of the precious water was wasted.

When that continuous stream of sweet water went into my mouth, I suddenly tuned everything out. Nothing else mattered anymore. I felt like I was in a silent paradise, where everything tasted so good all the time. I kept my eyes shut, just enjoying every drop of water that went into my mouth. Soon after, everything but pure comfort and enjoyment ceased to exist. That outrageous feeling continued on for so long before I finally was satisfied. Then, after several minutes, that feeling suddenly stopped.

I had suddenly snapped out of my trance and remembered I was holding that large keg, only it felt so much lighter than before. Then, as I realized what I was doing, I put it back on the wooden table that was before me. I couldn?t believe my eyes after I had set it down upon the table. The whole freaking thing was empty. After that, Dimitri just looked up, and he looked away for a bit as he pulled something out of the pocket in his blue vest. Then, he calmly placed a pastel green and pink Pok?ball on the table, and just stood up in a nonchalant style.

?Humans can never just have one glass?? Dimitri chuckled as he looked at the empty keg and then looked back up at me, ?But you? I?ve never seen anyone drink the whole thing down.?

After that, I had begun to feel strange, feeling like I had done something seriously wrong. I had stepped back a bit, just looking toward the ground and hoping nothing was going to happen. My heart was racing and my hands were becoming jittery. I started breathing harder, and then I just looked up in dismay at the white rabbit who was just smiling at me, looking like he had reigned triumphantly over me. If I didn?t feel so strange and odd, I might have lunged for his throat?

?All I can say now is?? Dimitri told me, turning around and facing the second exit of the plaza, ?Welcome to Lilypetal City. I bid you good day.?

And after that, he simply walked right out of the pink plaza, leaving me all alone. He disappeared into the shade of the pastel colored buildings outside of the plaza, and then all I could look at was the empty glass keg resting upon the table. As I looked at the size of the large glass keg, I realized I must have drunk at least two gallons of that crap, whatever it was. I kept asking myself why I couldn?t stop, but it was far too late?

Those strange feelings of weirdness were getting worse, and then it wasn?t long before I had begun to really see what that stuff could do. I watched in complete speechless silence as the color of my hands had slowly changed to a soft, light green color, and then my fingernails simply fell out like they were never even attached. Every strand of my hair had suddenly become loose, and it was quickly blown away with the slightest gust of wind. The only thing I could do was swear in my mind. I just couldn?t bring myself to speak?

In a sad and sudden horror, my favorite pair of black jeans were ripped to ribbons as a gigantic dress of six gigantic purple and white flower petals shot from right above my waist and sliced right through the black denim like a hot knife through warm butter. Then, another six light blue and white petals shot out and overlapped the purple and white ones. Only a split second later, a third series of pink and white petals came out and covered the first and second series. I looked down and saw my entire body was now surrounded by a giant bell-like dress of flower petals. It just looked so unreal? but it felt real?

Only a few seconds later, a belt of rainbow colored lily flowers the size of baseballs had emerged right above the origin point of the flower petal dress. I couldn?t believe the sight of them when I looked upon them. No flower on Earth could ever be that colorful?

Then, I was struck with a hideous horror. I heard the back of my black Serpent Synthesis t-shirt rip as I suddenly turned around and saw a massive colorful bulb growing out of my back, just above where the lily flower belt had formed. It seemed to inflate like a monstrous balloon before it suddenly burst open, covering the entire back of my body with undoubtedly the hugest lily flower I?ve ever laid eyes on. It covered my back from the back of my knees to the back of my head, and had a million bright rainbow colors splashed upon its eighteen massive petals. The whole thing even managed to cover the back of the already gigantic flower petal dress I was already wearing. I couldn?t believe what I was seeing?

Instantly after that had happened, the entire back of the t-shirt was torn to shreds. I simply turned around and tore it off and threw the shredded rag of a t-shirt away. Yet, as I was doing so, yet another giant rainbow lily flower blossomed over my head like an umbrella. I stopped motionless as I looked up at the sharp tips of the colorful petals that were hanging right in front of me. I was completely paralyzed just looking at it. I couldn?t imagine how much more of my body needed to be covered with giant flowers before this nightmare was over with.

Then, to finish it all off, two armbands of more colorful lily flowers formed around my wrists, which were at least six inches long with many small innocent-looking lily flowers. Only then did all stop.

I couldn?t believe my hideous mistake of drinking all of that tainted water. I looked toward the ground in shame. Not only was I surrounded by flowers in Springside, but I had practically become one myself, and there nothing I could do about it.

I had nothing now. My Ford Explorer was gone, my own clothes were gone. I had no home to go to, and now I just lost my humanity. And for what really? What did I do to deserve this?

Like Kenneth, I too had my humanity stripped in only a few days time, just like Jocasta had warned us. Yet, becoming a half man and half dragon actually sounded like fun compared to becoming a giant lily flower. If I had known this was going to happen, I would have cut myself with that same little claw. Yet? it was too late for that.

I had drunk too much of that water, the result was exceedingly obvious. I looked toward the table, and my eyes now looked upon the empty water jug. I was about to turn around until I noticed the pastel Pok?ball resting upon the table, sitting besides the belt containing my other Pok?mon. I stopped and stared at it for a few dismal moments.

There could have been a freaking Lugia in that Pok?ball, it still wouldn?t have been enough to make this kind of misery worth it. I simply picked up my belt, slipped the new Pok?ball into one of the empty leather straps, and then tried to put the belt on, which wasn?t easy as it used to be. After several moments of struggling, trying to get the leather belt around the giant flowers that all over the place, I managed to get it on, and it rested right above the belt of rainbow lily flowers.

After that, I walked away from the plaza, and headed through the busy streets with only one intention, and that was to get the heck out of Lilypetal City. As I looked at the freakish people that passed me by, I could be somewhat glad that I didn?t turn into one of those fat rabbits or one of those giant Tailow people. It could have been worse, but it could have been a whole lot better too. Why didn?t I trust my instincts and not bother with this stupid place?

I passed by more and more pastel colored houses and buildings as I made my way along the pink cobbled stone streets. There were so many flowers everywhere, it was nearly making me sick. I never realized how much I hated the season of spring before I came here. It now was even worse than fall in my eyes, even considering the fact that the season of fall always reminded me of school.

Still, I didn?t have the flower gem I needed, and I couldn?t leave Springside until I got my hands on it. Only thing I could do was press forward, and try not to think about what just happened only a few minutes ago. However, that was pretty freaking hard considering the crappy reminder of it covered nearly eighty percent of my body?

It wasn?t long before I came across the bridge that connected Lilypetal City to the pink forest behind it. It was a basic wooden bridge in the form of an arc made of wood that was painted a pure white, and was kept ridiculously clean. I had walked toward it, and once I arrived, I crossed the wooden bridge to the other side, and headed into the pink forest and left Lilypetal City behind. Now I was surrounded by even more flowers as the forest floor was covered by them. Meanwhile, millions of pink blossoms on the tip of each branch on every single tree in the forest now surrounded the world above me. By now, I had begun to think it might not be so hard anymore to camouflage with the rest of my surroundings. The only problem was the flowers on me were nearly two hundred times bigger than the ones on the ground. I just wanted to find the temple as soon as possible. I didn?t care if I was forced to take a reminder of Springside with me, I just wanted to get out of here?

After nearly an exhausting hour of walking through nothing but more and more flowers, I had turned to my belt with my Pok?balls. I had decided against letting Umbreon, Machop and Pidgeot know what had become of me. Instead, I had turned to the pastel pink and green Pok?ball I had supposedly ?won,? and I pulled it out. I didn?t know what was inside, but I thought I might as well try and see what it was.

I pressed the small button on the Pok?ball, and the small brightly colored sphere inflated, filling the palm of my hand. Then, I threw it forward into the masses of flowers. Once the light had burst out and filled the forest around the Pok?ball, what came out of that Pok?ball certainly was no surprise to me.

I had come face to face with yet another flower Pok?mon, a Bellossom very much like the one Jocasta used, with a dress of green and yellow petals, a small light green body and two large flowers on the sides of the Pok?mon?s head, each with five red petals and a yellow circular center. What could I have expected from a region that knows nothing but spring??

?Oh, now what?? The Bellossom asked, looking around at the pink colored forest.

Just then the Bellossom had looked up at me, and could guess that I was the obvious owner. All we could do was just stare at each other for a few seconds?

?So, you?re one of the Lilyaras?? The Bellossom realized, looking into my eyes, ?How did you ever get your hands on me??

?I was forced to drink some sweet water, and it turned me into? this?? I had told the Bellossom, feeling strange about it, ?I look like a girl but I?m really a guy??

?Guess I?m not alone?? The Bellossom responded, looking away for a moment, ?Every living being here thinks every single Bellossom is a female, just because we have flowers growing out of the sides of our heads. That shows stupidity right there. I?m one of the few that aren?t.?

Honestly, every time I looked at a Bellossom, I never really considered that some of them were actually males. That was something I forgot quite often. And yet, I didn?t expect for a Bellossom to come out with such snappy comments. I nearly would have never expected one of them to be capable of that.

?I hate it here?? I told the Bellossom, looking at the world around me, ?I?ve only been here for a few minutes and already I?m a flower in the middle of pansy land??

And then, he actually started laughing. After he was done, he simply looked up to me.

?I?ve been here for years?? The Bellossom told me as I looked into his shiny black eyes, ?Seriously, Springside sucks. I hope you have a good reason for actually wanting to come to this annoying, flower infested hellhole??

?I?m looking for some temple that?s supposed to contain some sort of flower gem.? I told him, hoping this would all be worth it, ?Apparently, all four regions are supposed to each contain a gem that I need in order to break the mage Darzaras out of his stone prison.?

Yet, it had looked like the Bellossom had never heard of Darzaras before. Still, considering he was here for the past few years, that didn?t bring too much surprise. I wouldn?t have heard of him either if I had been living here all that time?

?I just don?t get it?? I told him, looking away and looking at the giant flower petal dress that was around me, ?All I did was drink one glass of water, and then I just couldn?t stop. And then, next thing I know? all this started to happen??

?It?s called Sun Water?? The Bellossom informed me, seeming like he knew exactly why that happened, ?And every drop of water that exists in Springside is Sun Water. You could spend one hour or three hours here, you?re bound to drink it if you don?t know what it is. And once you drink the water, you forget about everything that happens and end up in a trance of ecstasy. Some people can?t help it until it?s too late. And from the looks of you, it looked like you drank a whole load of it??

?About two gallons?? I told him, remembering the size of the jug container.

He seemed a little shocked about that, and after looking me over, he could tell that certainly wasn?t a lie. He moved around me, looking over my front and back. Then, when he was done, he simply looked right back up to me.

?You?re the worst case I?ve ever seen?? He admitted, looking up and to the side a bit, ?If you kept going, you might have just turned into one big bulb and exploded into a giant flower that would be enough to cover an entire field??

?Alright, enough of that.? I insisted, not really happy to hear that kind of crap, ?I want to know where all this blasted Sun Water comes from, so I can beat the stuffing out of the person who?s responsible.?

?Well, there?s not much you can do about that?? The Bellossom told me, looking forward, ?In the air all over Springside are tiny pieces of Sun Dust which make contact with the water and dissolve. That?s how you get Sun Water. All those pieces of dust are made up from Sun Stone.?

That certainly sucked. That meant throughout this entire trip through Springside, I would have had to stay away from the water otherwise I would have ended up as a giant lily flower, or Lilyara, as the Bellossom called it. That pretty much meant this whole entire thing was inevitable. But what really made we wonder was the fact that there were actually Sun Stones back on Earth. I never thought of mixing one with water back home, but if I did, would it have the same effect? That got me thinking for quite some time?

?Because of the Sun Dust, you will never, ever see a Gloom or a Vileplume in Springside.? The Bellossom continued, ?If an Oddish evolves in Springside, it will evolve straight into Bellossom because there?s so much Sun Dust floating around.?

?Weird?? I replied, obviously guessing that?s what happened to him.

Shortly after, the two of us had begun walking through the pink forest. Already the sun was starting to set and the light was beginning to fade away. I didn?t want to waste any more time here than what was necessary. Already the small amount of exposure I had was too much?

?So what?s your name anyway?? The Bellossom asked me, looking up as we made our way through the flower forest.

?The name is Chris Trevor.? I replied, looking ahead as I pushed past the lush bunches of flowers that were on the forest floor, ?I used to be a human, and then I found this miserable place.?

?You can call me Tek.? The Bellossom told me, ?And yes, I used to be a very outgoing Oddish before I came to this rot hole and found myself fighting over berries with a Butterfree.?

As we continued on, the forest around us only seemed to be growing darker. And worse yet, I didn?t see the end of the forest anywhere.

?You really fought with a Butterfree?? I had asked Tek as I was shambling through more bushes and patches of flora.

?Yeah, and I beat him up, but it wasn?t easy.? Tek replied, looking forward, nearly buried in the sea of flowers, ?And then it had to happen at the worst of times. Evolving. You don?t think it?s going to happen, and then suddenly, you feel yourself changing. And because of all that Sun Dust polluting the air, I instantly became this.?

Honestly, I didn?t think he really missed out of much not ever becoming a Gloom. If I had been in Tek?s position, I would have rather went straight to Bellossom rather than becoming one of those disgusting, drooling Glooms that constantly looked like they were high on an enormous amount of cocaine. I couldn?t stand those things.

?Would you have rather become a Vileplume instead?? I asked Tek, wondering what he was thinking.

?Heck no.? He quickly replied, ?They can barely walk around with that fifty pound flower on their head. Plus they scream like banshees in the night as they fill the air with even worse, nauseous crap than that Sun Dust.?

It seemed more like he would have rather stayed an Oddish, but it was way too late for that. It wasn?t hard to see that this same Sun Dust had technically screwed both of us up. So there was more that we had in common, rather than just the blatantly obvious?

Only a few minutes later, we found ourselves struggling in the dark. I kept tripping and stumbling trying to walk through the flowers, and soon after, I had just stopped. There wasn?t any way I could continue moving around in this darkness?

?Alright, enough of this crap.? I told Tek, who was only a short distance away, ?I can barely see where I?m going??

?Better than what I?ve had to deal with in the past few hours.? Tek had replied from the darkness, ?Look, there is no way we can continue walking through the Delsara Forest during the night. It?s nearly impossible. We?re better off just calling it a day and hope we just get out of this mess at least by tomorrow morning.?

As much as I didn?t like the idea of sleeping in the middle of nowhere, we weren?t left with much choice. Plus, not only that, but I was tired from the walk and all this misery. And to think I woke up this morning all the way back in Arasta like everything was perfectly normal and perfectly fine. I couldn?t believe how much had changed in a single day.

I then sat down, and quickly became buried by the flowers that were on and around me. I had said goodnight to Tek, and soon after that, we had prepared to sleep. I didn?t know how much longer it was going to take before the two of us found Springside?s temple, but it certainly wasn?t going to be tonight. Already enough had happened for the day, with me losing my car, Kenneth becoming a Draco, the three of us finding Darzaras and then wrapping up the rest of the day with all the crap I found in this little miserable nightmare.

And now I had no idea what tomorrow would bring?

this is amazing. i read the first chapter, and then decided to get a snack and read the rest. absolutely awesome. i can't wait for more. great job man =D

Oh no! The description is perfect. Don't take it out!!!! I meant that you should add more description in the places you are lacking. This mainly applied to some of the early battles and such like but you can't do much about those. Anyways: to review this chapter:

WOW! That chapter turned out to be so funny. Tek especially made my day. Who would have thought that a Bellossom could be that grumpy. Tee hee. I'm still laughing now. Your only real negative points were one grammar mistakes (you said walked instead of walking when Kenneth went to Summerfield), and the fact that you named the regions after seasons... which does seem a bit cliche. But... that's just my opinion.

Well, in my opinion - this is definitely the best chapter yet. And the funniest too... you gotta love those rabbit people. ^_^

Heh, thanks for the comments guys. I'm glad to know it's getting some attention here. Again, thank you and I hope you keep reading it.


I awoke from my slumber, finding my face buried among the same sea of flowers I had slept in during the night. Once I was aware of where the heck I was, I quickly brushed them aside and then got on my knees. Not much had changed during the night, but it least it didn?t get worse. The giant lilies on my body still felt strange having them there, and I had no idea how I would ever get used to it. I was smothered by flowers everywhere, as if their presence was slowly consuming my body and swallowing the little that was left of me.

Small beams of morning sunlight were coming through the gaps in the canopy of the pink blossom trees. It made the forest around me seem like something taken from a dream as patches of the sunlight had shone down upon the many millions of flowers on the forest floor. The whole place was shrouded by complete silence, and nothing was moving. It had almost seemed like the forest was endless, and this vast, pink forest with its sea of flowers would carry on forever. That bizarre feeling only made me want to get out of it even sooner.

After I turned to my right side, I found Tek still sleeping among the flowers that were around him. I then woke him up, just wanting to continue so I could get out of here sooner.

?Man?? Tek had moaned, getting up from the ground, ?What?s the deal with waking me up so early??

?I seriously want to get the heck out of here.? I told Tek strongly, ?After what happened yesterday, I think you can understand.?

After that, Tek pushed himself off the ground and stood up. Then, he looked up at me, and kept wondering what my problem was.

?To put it simple,? Tek had told me, resting his hands on the yellow and green petals that were surrounding him, ?You?re already a Lilyara. That?s not going to change for better or for worse. Second, it could take weeks for us to find that temple that you?re looking for. Springside really isn?t that big, but it can take a while considering this place you?re talking about could be underground.?

Still, even though I knew that all could be true, I didn?t want to sit around here for nothing. Since Tek was up anyway, he had decided to follow me, and the two of us had continued making our way through the flowered forest. After nearly another hour of ceaseless navigation through more and more flora, we had finally reached the end of the forest, and suddenly I felt like I could see again.

The fields of Springside had opened up, and only a short distance away from us was a sparkling river, as well as another town resting by the riverside. This one was not too much different in size compared to Lilypetal, only being a bit smaller. However, the buildings were nothing like the ones I had just seen only yesterday, with most of them constructed through red bricks, not unlike the ones I had seen back at Speedwell. However, every building was done that same way, and was usually limited to being only a single story, with most of the houses and other buildings on the ground level.

?Do you know what that place is?? I had asked Tek, thinking he would know more about it than me.

?Not really.? Tek replied, looking at the city, ?I mostly know the eastern side of Springside.

Whatever this place was, it certainly looked much saner than Lilypetal City. It looked like a simple, quaint little town among a world saturated by the signs of spring. I quickly thought there might be a chance someone there would know where the temple that held the flower gem would be.

As I approached the town, I noticed there was a short stone wall surrounding the buildings, leaving only one entrance on the side I was approaching. I had noticed two female guards by the entrance, both with dark orange skin, long red hair, as well as holding two very nasty looking metal spears and wearing loads of ordinate gold armor. I found it surprising that Lilypetal didn?t care too much for security measures that this little town had prepared for.

Then, when we had come within fifty feet of the entrance, the two guards had turned toward us, very apprehensively. They had already readied their spears as if they already knew we were criminals. I seriously didn?t like the sight of that?

?What is your business here, Lilyara!?? One of the snapped at us, her voice seeming to have a Russian accent, ?Why don?t you leave while you still have the chance!??

?Completely unarmed, huh!?? The other shouted, almost laughing, ?Either you think you?re pretty bold, or you?re pretty stupid.?

?Neither.? I told the two of them, ?What do you have against me anyway??

Then, both of them started laughing slightly, but it wasn?t long before that same laughter quickly bit the dust, and then was briskly replaced with more apprehension.

?Let me guess, you two are part of the Khans, as well as the rest of this city.? I assumed, seeing that they were wearing metal armor.

?We have no association with those maniacs.? The other guard replied in a serious tone, ?The continent of Symarix remains hidden from their view.?

?I?m from the Emerald Alliance.? I told the two of them, thinking the two of them were on the same side, ?I don?t mean any harm??

Then, they just looked at each other, and then really got furious. I had no idea what was wrong with them.

?After him!? One of them shouted, beginning to charge toward me.

And it wasn?t long before the other guard followed her, running toward me with her sharp spear pointing forward. If I was going to get out of this mess, I was going to have to think quickly. I then tried to concentrate, and I held out my hand.

?Swirling bolts of thunder, strike down my enemy! Chain Lighting!? I had shouted, pointing my open hand toward the two charging guards.

Just then, a blast of forking, white thunder had fired from my hand at both of the guards, striking them both in the abdomen and blasting both of them off their feet and sending them landing on their backs. Then, I looked toward one of the guard?s spears.

?Let me touch what would not normally be in my reach. Telekinesis.? I had stated, concentrating on the spear.

Suddenly, the metal spear I had concentrated on had flown off the ground, and headed toward me facing upward. I had quickly grabbed the metal shaft, and then gripped it with both hands, leaving one of the guards unarmed and without a weapon. Then, both of them got back up again, still injured from the chain lighting attack.

?Since when? does a Lilyara know magic?? One of the guards asked, looking at me in disbelief.

Man, if Darzaras hadn?t given us that before we left, I would have found myself with an extra hole in my chest. Just then, Tek had looked up at me, unable to understand it either.

?Yeah, just how did you actually do that?? Tek asked me, wondering the same thing.

But then, before I could even think of an answer, the other guard still armed with her spear didn?t care about what happened, and simply continued her charge toward me. I guess she didn?t have enough, did she?

?Forces of otherworld fire and flame, soar from my hand, strike and return! Ethereal Pyrotechnics!? I shouted, directing my concentration at the armed guard.

After my hand had suddenly become submerged with blazing blue fire, I then had directed the flaming hand toward the charging guard, and then several small fireballs of blue flame had fired from my hand, and fiercely slammed into the guard, this time blasting her backward and forcing her to drop her weapon. Bright blue embers were scattered everywhere as each fireball had struck its target. After that, she had become too weak to continue fighting.

?Who? are you??? She asked, trying to get off the ground.

?First, I want to know why you attacked me.? I told her in a firm voice, pretty ticked off about the whole thing.

?It?s quite simple actually.? The other guard responded, looking toward me with glaring eyes, ?You?re a male Lilyara in a community of female Takisan, both which merit being killed on sight.?

I couldn?t believe it. And to think, only a few miles away was a psycho city that was filled with more Lilyaras. What, they just didn?t want them here or what? And second, how did the Takisan, if that?s what they were called, survive without having children? It didn?t make sense at all?

?You?re a pretty poor assassin.? The same guard laughed, ?If you thought you could take down the mistress Dardinas and her bodyguards like this, you?re about to get a big surprise.?

?I don?t even know who she is?? I had replied, hoping that would tell her I meant no harm.

?Well you?re about to find out!? She shouted, pulling something out one of the slits in her golden metal greaves.

To me, it looked like a tiny, cobalt pistol with a really wide barrel. Just then, she pointed it toward the sky, and moments later, she fired a blast that looked like a red and pink comet. I watched as it soared into the sky, and then exploded like a firework, bright and loud enough for the whole town to hear. I had figured that was her way of calling for backup?

?If you thought we were tough, you?ve seen nothing yet.? She smiled, putting the black pistol away, ?Today you will fall upon the Fields of Unity with your pretty flower petals slashed to pieces.?

Soon after that, the two guards then headed back into town, running as hard as they could despite the pain of their injuries. And then I got the quick shock of seeing their incredibly quick response time. It had only been a minute after the signal was shot before I saw three flying creatures suddenly soar out of the center of the town, and then head toward where the shot was fired. It wasn?t long before I realized what those three creatures were, only I got one heck of a shock at looking at them.

Two of them looked like the blue and white dragon bird Altaria, with its fluffy white wings while the third looked like the legendary blue bird of ice known as Articuno, only for some odd reason, they were twice as big as before. And then, sitting upon them were three gold riders, in very similar armor that the two guards had been wearing. Meanwhile, the rider upon the Articuno was dressed in even more ordinate and fancy armor, with a long scarlet cape on her back that was blowing in the wind. While the other two riders were holding spears that looked similar to the ones the guards at the gate were carrying, she was holding an even bigger one, a forked trident with prongs that were constantly being consumed by a rush of fire. She had looked at me with a hard stare from her sharp and menacing eyes. I could tell she was the one the guards called the mistress Dardinas?

?We?re so dead?? Tek had stated in a cold voice, looking up at the giant birds.

I tried to ignore that comment for now, since I needed to concentrate if we were going to have any hope of taking these clowns out. But I couldn?t do this alone. I was going to need quite a bit of help.

?Well, hello down there!? Dardinas shouted in a sarcastically cheerful voice, looking down upon us as her Articuno kept flapping her wings to keep her afloat, ?I?d have to admit, you are brave for deciding to fight us all alone, but you?re going to realize it?s going to be a costly mistake.?

?You wish.? I shouted back to her in a serious tone.

Then, she just looked at Tek and I, and then smiled. Meanwhile, her Articuno was poised to strike, and her two bodyguards weren?t far off from initiating their attack. I couldn?t believe how reckless they were?

?Rip him to shreds!? Dardinas had shouted to her guard while looking toward me.

Immediately, her two bodyguards soared down upon us, with both Altarias screaming a shrill war cry. I already knew the two of them didn?t know what I was capable of. They thought I would just stand there and wait for them to kill me. Both of them swooped downward with their sharp spears drawn and ready to drive right into me.

?Forces of light and fire, be my guard to protect me. Phoenix Defense Matrix!? I shouted, focusing hard on the area around me.

Suddenly, just as the two body guards flew in to strike, a red orb of fire and light had surrounded Tek and I. Then, as I opened my eyes, I watched as the spears from the body guards made contact to with the fiery orb, and were then shattered into metal splinters, leaving both riders with only a useless metal pole. Then, they flew back up, but even while they couldn?t fight for the life of them, they still had their Altarias in perfect health, and ready to attack. But at least I managed to reduce some of the threat?

Chapter 8 Continued...

?I?m going to need for you to work on a Solarbeam.? I had said to Tek, still keeping a careful eye on the two Altaria riders, ?Try and aim for one of the riders.?

?You've got to be kidding me?? Tek replied, watching the riders at the same time, ?Look how fast they?re moving!?

I couldn?t deny that, but still, I couldn?t be the only one attacking. I couldn?t remain outnumbered like this, otherwise there was no freaking way I was ever going to actually inflict damage on them.

Just as Dardinas prepared to dive down, I had grabbed Pidgeot?s Pok?ball. Quickly, I pressed the button on the glossy white and red ball, and quickly it filled my hand. Then, I threw it forward, where it suddenly struck the ground and then burst open with a flash of bright, white light. Then, the light had formed into the giant beige and brown bird Pok?mon. When he had finally emerged, he suddenly looked at me with a wild look in his eyes.

?What the heck happened to you!?? He asked in complete shock, looking over all the flowers around me, "You look like..."

?No time to explain, I need for you to Hyper Beam that Articuno.? I urged him, having no time for small talk.

?Really, an Articuno??? He asked, not even knowing the giant legendary bird of ice and frost was only a short distance away.

Suddenly, he looked behind him, and was surprised for an instant, not just at the legendary bird?s presence, but at her massive size. Still, he quickly reacted, opened his beak, and suddenly, a bright orange globe of energy had formed. Then, when Pidgeot was ready, he focused his sharp gaze at his target, and suddenly a bright orange and white torrent of energy blasted from his beak and struck the swooping Articuno hard, stunning the glittering blue bird for a few moments. Dardinas had no choice but to pull up and abandon her dive. She didn?t seem quite happy about it either?

?You surprise me, Lilyara?? She stated in a firm tone, ?I didn?t expect for you to be both a sorcerer and a Pok?mon Trainer at the same time. I?ve never seen either within your ranks??

I ignored her, and looked toward Pidgeot, who was panting after the massive attack upon Articuno. Still, Dardinas?s mount looked barely touched, and still ready for plenty of more combat. Meanwhile, Tek was still gathering solar light, and was suddenly becoming brighter and brighter.

Just then, the bodyguards soon attacked with their Altarias, with both Pok?mon releasing a Dragonbreath attack of swirling yellow flames. Only problem now was I didn?t have a spell to create a shield around all three of us at the same time. There was only one thing we could do. Dodge it?

?Run for it!? I shouted, breaking into a run trying to move away from the blast site as much as possible.

However, it was pretty much too late. Both blasts had hit the ground, and then suddenly gushed all around, smothering the area with bright, yellow flames. I then suddenly got a first hand feel of what it feels like to get struck by a Dragonbreath attack. It was stinging all over, as well as feeling like red hot flames had just been seared all over my body?

Pidgeot and Tek had both been struck at the same time, unable to avoid the smothering of the flames. However, they both got up again, still prepared to fight back.

Rather than trying to take them out all at the same time, I was going to have to devastate them one by one. I focused on one of the body guards, and then looked toward their Altaria, who had then prepared to attack yet again, seeing the attack as effective.

?Tek, use your Solarbeam on the left Altaria.? I told the Bellossom, ?Pidgeot, strike the same Altaria with Hyper Beam.?

Then, just as my two Pok?mon had focused their attacks on the same Altaria, I had decided to strike the same one, hoping all three attacks at the same time would bring the giant dragon bird down. I focused on my target, and then prepared my attack?

?Fire and molten stone, destruction from deep inside the earth, strike down my enemy. Lava Burst!? I had commanded, focusing my concentration on the Altaria.

Only a second later, all three of us had attacked the same Altaria at the same time. Tek had released a bright beam of blinding light while Pidgeot had fired yet another blazing torrent of orange and yellow energy. Meanwhile, I had used my arms to direct a fiery surge of flaming lava at the Altaria. Only moments later, all three beams had struck the Altaria in the abdomen, and the dragon bird?s scream was quickly muffled by a sharp and loud explosion that completely shrouded the dragon and her rider from sight. All that was left after the explosion was a rain of flaming embers that slowly descended upon the ground. Now Dardinas was down to only having one bodyguard. However, the three of us were pretty exhausted after that excessive attack?

?You are obviously quite skilled?? Dardinas told the three of us, especially me as she was trying to absorb the fact that one of her bodyguards was gone, ?Yet you will never prevail over me??

?It was never my desire to fight, only yours?? I replied to her, looking into her eyes as she was up in the air, seated upon her Articuno, ?I don?t want to destroy you but you will leave me no choice if you continue this??

And then, she started laughing. I swore she must have been out of her mind. She obviously wasn?t taking this very seriously?

?Sorry, but I hate you and the rest of your miserable kind.? Dardinas had said to me, still with a smile on her face, ?Ever since you set foot here, it was my duty to destroy you.?

Then, she turned toward her Articuno while the legendary bird of ice had glared down upon us.

?Strike them with a Blizzard attack.? Dardinas had commanded her, ?I want to watch them suffer.?

?Yes, mistress?? The Articuno replied with a soft and obedient-sounding tone.

Just then, the Articuno had flapped her massive blue wings, and suddenly we were blasted by a white storm of blinding and biting ice and snow. I couldn?t see a freaking thing as I tired to turn the other way. Every bit of snow was increasingly painful, like a million sharp knives were stabbing me from every direction. Then, when it was finally over, the world around me was covered by a sheet of snow, and I shivered from the cold. I immediately wiped off as much of the stinging snow as I could, trying to see if I could see Tek or Pidgeot. Immediately, I found both of them on the ground, half buried within the white powder snow. They seriously looked completely miserable?

?Get me? outta here?? Tek had moaned, trying to get up but couldn?t.

Meanwhile, Pidgeot had already lost consciousness. Without much choice, I had returned both of them to their Pok?balls, and put both of them back on my belt, leaving me alone against the two of them. Even though I was in pain, I still was pretty ticked off?

?Is that all you?ve got?? Dardinas taunted me, ?You are nothing against me.?

Then, she turned toward her last bodyguard, and then looked toward me. I now hated her more than anything?

?Alacia,? She had addressed the other rider on her Altaria, ?Finish him off??

At that moment, the last bodyguard had taken her Altaria and then swooped down toward me, now ready with a sharp ordinate sword she was going to use instead of the spear I had destroyed. I looked up toward her at her Altaria with deep apprehension.

?Fire of darkness and blinder of light, annihilate my enemy from all directions! Shadow Flare!? I had shouted in dark anger.

Moments later my hand had been plunged with black and gray fire, and then I pointed my flaming fist at the swooping Altaria. Suddenly, the black fire had left my hand, and then Altaria was surrounded by black fiery orbs that quickly closed in on her. Once they had met their target, Altaria was surrounded by another explosion of dark black and gray fire. Immediately, the bodyguard flew off of the flaming Altaria, and then landed violently in the snow-covered field. The gold armored bodyguard was half-buried in the snow after her fall, just before her Altaria had become a black fireball. Moments later, the helpless Altaria had struck the ground furiously, scattering flaming black and gray embers in all directions upon the vicious and fatal impact.

After the bodyguard had gotten up, she pulled out her sharp and long ordinate sword, and then charged after me in a fit of rage. As she ran across the field of snow, she screamed a loud war cry, refusing to admit defeat. As I watched her scream across the field, I then had taken the spear I was carrying, and prepared to attack. When she came within twenty feet, I had hurled the spear forward. The large, metal spear soared through the air like an arrow fried from a bow, just before it struck the bodyguard in the chest. Suddenly, she was violently thrown off her feet, and landed right on her back. She quickly sunk back into the snow, leaving Dardinas as my only adversary now?

As I looked back up at her, I could still feel the stinging snow all around me. Even after both of her bodyguards had been defeated, she still didn?t want to give up. But now, she really didn?t think it was funny anymore. And I could already tell she had lost plenty of her overconfidence. Still, she must have been stupid to think I would go down easily.

I had used another telekinesis spell on the bodyguard?s sword, summoning the sword to come to me. Once it had arrived, I grasped the handle, and held the gold-hilted, ordinate metal sword in my hand.

Now Dardinas was furious. She quickly looked toward Articuno again, and prepared to unleash yet another devastating attack.

?Destroy him with your strongest Ice Beam.? Dardinas commanded her in a hard, aggressive voice, ?Don?t let go until we can be sure he is no more??

Just then, Articuno took a deep breath, and several spheres of cold energy had gathered around the large, glowing blue and cyan colored sphere that was gathering in Articuno?s open beak. Meanwhile, I had prepared to unleash another Lava Burst spell upon her. Just then, Articuno had released her massive and destructive beam of ice, and moments later, my hands had flared up in fire just after I had prepared the spell. Then, I pointed my flaming fists toward the incoming Ice Beam, and fired off the Lava Burst.

The torrent of flaming red molten rock had rushed through the pillar of frost, searing every one of its freezing crystals. Immediately, the lava had rushed up the length of the Ice Beam, melting away the harsh cold with very little difficultly. Then, when it had finally made its way through, the lava had struck Articuno in the mouth, right when it was open. Immediately, Articuno?s head was smothered in molten rock, and Dardinas was instantly thrown off Articuno.

After Articuno had been consumed by the lava and had fallen to the ground, Dardinas had fallen nearly seventy feet from the sky, and landed hard in the snow. Then, I had made my way toward the fallen female warrior, and had taken the sword and put it to her neck, making sure she wouldn?t retaliate.

?How? were you able to? defeat us?? She asked with her eyes half open, exhausted from the battle.

?Your attacks are tough but your defenses are pathetic.? I had told her, looking at her sharp eyes, ?You protected yourself but completely forgot to armor your Pok?mon.?

She had sighed in frustration, obviously showing that she didn?t want to lose and then be at my mercy. Then, she turned toward me, and looked into my eyes.

?What do you want from me?? She asked, hoping I wouldn?t cut her head off, ?I?ll give you anything you want, as long as you spare my life.?

?Tell me where the temple of Springside is?? I had commanded her, knowing someone like her would know, ?That?s the only reason why I entered this hellhole. Where is it??

She looked away for a minute, and I could see in her aggressive eyes that she didn?t want to tell me where it was. Then, after she obtained the courage and realized there was nothing she could do, she then looked toward me and stared fiercely into my eyes.

?It?s to the north, on a small peninsula past Daisy City.? She had told me, speaking aggressively, ?But you?ll never make it out of there alive.?

?Watch me.? I told her with confidence.

I then pulled the sword away from her neck, and then continued walking past her. I left the town in peace, and showed her that I didn?t intend to mean it any harm. Then, I continued north, past the town of Everspring, and once more into the vast fields of flowers.

Another fantastic chapter. Bravo! ^_^

My only real concerns were that the battle seemed like it was a battle from the Game Boy games. The Pokemon attacked on, then attacked the other, then Chris attacked the Articuno. You didn't describe what was happening with other Altaria when the first one got taken down. Was it just flying in mid-air doing nothing? Probably, if this was a real battle, it wouldn't have been.

Also, a tiny error, but you used the word "fancy" when describing the armour - whereas the other words were more sophisticated, when you used fancy - it kinda wrekced the atmostphere you were going for. It made mre think of them in pretty pink dresses. Boy... that would have been funny. ^_^

All in all - another very good chapter from a marvelous author. You deserve all the praise you get. ^_^

Good, another great chapter this might be a good fic of the week, if Niko gets on this weekend.

Again, thanks guys for the feedback you've been giving me. It feels great to be getting a lot of readers, and I'm glad to see you have been reading it. I hope you continue to read and enjoy the story.


I had left the town of Everspring behind me, and walked through the vast fields of flowers completely by myself, still holding on to the sword. The noon day sun had shone down upon the fields from the sky, and was hung above me as I continued my journey through the sea of flora. Despite the amount of trouble I had experienced in Springside, the journey to obtain the flower gem was not over yet, but I could feel I was drawing closer. Knowing that it was almost over kept me going, even though my patience for this place had pretty much ended already.

Even though I was surrounded by them, the very sight of a flower was beginning to make me nauseous. It felt like I was limited to only being able to lay eyes on them for the longest time, and I was not longer interested in them. I didn?t even care that I was a Lilyara, I was hoping by the time I got out of here I wouldn?t even care anymore.

Unlike the east side of Springside, the west side was brimming with much more life. I had seen plenty of Butterfree and Beautifly Pok?mon, and dozens of flower Pok?mon such as Roselia and even more Bellossom easily concealed and hard to find within the vast fields of flowers. However, I really didn?t pay too much attention to them. I only saw the path ahead, and nothing else really mattered.

During the last walk, the amount of silence was starting to get to me, but there really wasn?t much I could do about it. The only thing that prevented me from getting lost was my determination to stay facing the same direction. I could spin around once and with that I would be hopelessly lost, with no idea what direction I was facing. However, I didn?t need to turn to my sides, for I already knew there was nothing there, nothing that I hadn?t seen hundreds of times before.

Trusting Dardinas was my other problem. She hated me, and I obviously couldn?t stand her either. Yet, I had no other leads as to where the Springside temple was, and I couldn?t question myself thinking it would be somewhere else. If I didn?t follow her direction, I would simply be stuck here even longer, trying to search every square inch of this place. I didn?t have the patience for that.

After several hours, I had come across what must have been Daisy City, probably the smallest town out of the three, with small white houses made of wood. However, I paid no mind to it. I didn?t want another conflict like what had happened in Everspring and I didn?t want more madness like what I found in Lilypetal. I simply passed the city by, not caring about what I would be missing out on by not stopping by.

However, I did find the peninsula that Dardinas had been talking about. I kept walking past Daisy City, and kept pressing forward, now seeing that water was on both sides of the land I was walking on. I had to stop for water since I was so thirsty, but I was constantly filled with the fear that my already crapped condition would get worse. At first, I started drinking a little at the time, and then waited to see if anything would change. Yet, even though I could still taste that it was Sun Water, I wasn?t so addicted to it anymore. I drunk the water slowly, and only took what I needed. Then, I realized Tek was right. Despite of how much Sun Water I had now, nothing changed for better or for worse.

After some time, I could see the ocean, and the small piece of land that had been at the end of the long peninsula. It was about fifty acres in size, with more flowers just like before. However, a single, large building that definitely looked like a temple stood among the flowers, with no marking of what it was. I had walked toward it, thinking that this building must have been the temple that Dardinas had told me about, the one that would hold the flower gem that I needed.

When I had approached it, I had seen it was about the size of a church, made up of many violet colored stones and with two heavy oak doors. There wasn?t a single window that could be seen from the outside, so I could imagine things must be pretty dark in there. I had advanced toward the doors, and grabbed the large brass handle of the right door. Then, I opened it, and walked inside.

Right in the middle of the single, large room was a giant staircase leading downward, an obvious sign that there was more to this place than what met the eye. On the sides of the walls were small compartments with wooden altars that each held two candles on both ends and a pot of flowers in the center, the same flowers I had seen outside. Then, past the giant stone staircase was another large altar with more flowers on it. Then, I had laid eyes on the temple?s single window, a massive stained glass window depicting a massive flower with red petals and a yellow center, against a cyan-colored background. Then, the last thing I had noticed was a group of several monks, dressed in large, violet-colored robes with their faces shrouded by the hoods they were wearing. I couldn?t even tell if they were human, which was likely that they weren?t?

As soon as the door closed behind me, they immediately turned around, as if they expected me to come. Then, one of the monks had stepped forward, and had stood only ten feet away from me. I still couldn?t see his face, but I was curious to know what he really looked like.

?What is your business here, Lilyara??? The monk asked with an eerie and hallow-sounding voice, ?You are not welcome here??

?I want the flower gem.? I told the monk, keeping my voice in a serious tone and letting him know I didn?t want any garbage.

He was silent for a few moments, and then I heard him laughing with a deep tone. I stood there, waiting for him to stop shuddering from his own amusement.

?So, Darzaras sent you?? The monk had realized, almost finding it funny, ?But you?re not going to be the one to save him. The flower gem has been under the protection of the Sun Guild and the Rainbow Guardian for centuries to make sure Darzaras will never again rise from his stone prison.?

?And why, may I ask is he being kept in there?? I had asked the monk, assuming he was probably one of the members of the Sun Guild, along with the rest of his cronies that were in the back of the room.

?Funny he never told you.? The monk nearly laughed, ?In short, he was a traitor. Long ago, he used to serve Golgathas as a commander for his army, and then he betrayed his master by joining the Emerald Alliance. Golgathas rightfully imprisoned Darzaras, leaving him stranded forever in his own stone tomb leaving the only way to release him through using the four gems that Golgathas had intended to serve as a key.?

Something here wasn?t making sense. If Golgathas and the rest of his groupies hated this guy, why didn?t they just kill him?

?If that?s the case?? I asked the monk, thinking it over, ?Why keep him alive if you hate him??

?Killing him would be difficult.? The monk had replied, ?Plus he is holding one of the talismans to unlock the Vault of Supremacy. Golgathas wanted to make sure there was a way to get the last talisman out upon the event that the Vault was located. Once the remaining six talismans had been found and where in place, only then would Darzaras be released so he could be destroyed and his talisman could be taken. But for now, we don?t need him to be out and causing problems since the Vault?s location is still unknown...?

?Yeah, well you?re not going to stop me.? I told the monk in a serious tone, speaking right at the darkness under his hood, ?I?m from the Emerald Alliance myself, and if you mess with him then you mess with me.?

?So be it.? The monk growled, ?If you wish to be totally destroyed, then part now we must??

I wasn?t going to wait for this schmuck to strike first. There were ten of them and only one of me, and I wasn?t going to wait for them all to open fire at once?

?Freezing wind, ice sharper than knives and colder than death. Frost Nova!? I had shouted, throwing my fists forward.

Suddenly, a massive rush of sharp ice crystals had burst from my hands, and struck the monk, smothering him with freezing ice. When the blast of ice had cleared and left the room feeling forty degrees colder, the monk had shattered like glass into tiny blue crystals. Now, there were only nine. Still, I was completely outnumbered. My only advantage was the room wasn?t big enough for them all to fight me at once without hitting each other. But then, just as the first monk had been eliminated, a second one had taken his place.

?Storm of sorrow that instills fear into the hearts of souls. Chain Energy!? The second monk had shouted.

Then, he held up his dark colored hands, flaring with sparks of electricity. Then, he threw his hands forward, and immediately a torrent of yellow lightning had surged from his hands and then struck me in the chest, scattering yellow embers and sparks everywhere upon the violent impact.

Instantly, I felt a hideous amount of pain, and I was quickly thrown off my feet. My back had slammed into the heavy oak doors and I was then thrown outside when the doors were pushed aside from the impact. After flying backward nearly twenty feet, I had landed on my back, with the giant lily flower on my back breaking the crash to some degree. Still, it hurt like crazy for a few moments until I was able to shake off the pain. Then, when I had gotten up, I saw the monk standing in the doorway, just looking at me.

I wasn?t going to put up with this crap. I had immediately grabbed Pidgeot?s Pok?ball, ripped it off the belt, quickly primed it, and threw it forward. Then, while the light had burst forward from the Pok?ball, I had got up from off the ground. Once I was back on my feet, I had turned toward Pidgeot, who had already come to my side.

?Man, what the devil are they?? Pidgeot had asked, looking at the dark monks standing in the doorway.

?Man, how the heck would I know?? I replied to Pidgeot, looking back toward the freakish monks, ?Use your Sky Attack on them, and try to go for the center one so hopefully it inflicts some damage on the others. I?ll protect you while you?re charging.?

?Done deal.? Pidgeot replied, looking back toward the advancing monks coming out of the doorway.

Just then, Pidgeot bent down, focused his concentration and then began to pulse with a bright yellow glow. Slowly, it kept getting brighter and brighter.

?Forces of light and fire, be my guard to protect me. Phoenix Defense Matrix!? I had shouted, making Pidgeot the recipient of the protective spell.

Just then, a translucent globe of swirling fire had surrounded Pidgeot, protecting him from any attacks that the monks might use against him. Only problem was that it left me wide open?

I had seen a fireball cast by one of the monks head for Pidgeot, only the fireball was smothered against the shield and did nothing to stop Pidgeot from making his attack. After that, Pidgeot was fully charged, and then leapt off the ground and soared toward the group of monks. He literally became a fireball as a shriek had filled the air. Then, when Pidgeot had made contact with the central monk, the entire group of them was engulfed in an explosion that scattered thousands of tiny bright embers in every direction. Four of the monks were suddenly engulfed in vicious flames, while the other four were thrown from the explosion in every direction.

After the four monks that were on fire had burnt to the ground, and left nothing besides a small pile of ash. Meanwhile, the other four had gotten up, still prepared to attack. Yet only now, they were pretty spread out, and hitting them all at once wasn?t going to be so easy anymore?

?Use your Wing Attack on one of them.? I commanded Pidgeot, ?I?ll try and take care of the others.?

Then, as Pidgeot leapt off the ground and headed toward one of the monks, I focused my concentration on one of the others.

?Forces of otherworld fire and flame, soar from my hand, strike and return. Ethereal Pyrotechnics!? I had shouted, just before my fists were engulfed in a cyan-colored flame.

Then, I threw my hands forward, and then launched an assault of small blue colored fireballs at one of the monks, smothering him with ethereal fire, and burning him toward the ground. At the same time, Pidgeot had sliced through another one of the monks with his glowing wings, ripping the violet robe in half. Then, the cloth simply fell to the ground, as if there had been no one to wear it. To say the least, it was a pretty freaky sight.

The remaining two had struck Pidgeot with another Chain Energy spell, but it certainly wasn?t enough to bring him down. He got back up again, and then I charged after the monks with the sword. I managed to slice one of them in half, again leaving nothing but a pile of fabric behind. Then, just as the remaining one was about to attack me, Pidgeot had struck him from behind with another Wing Attack, catching him completely off guard. After that, the last monk had fallen to the ground, leaving only shredded robes behind.

?Well, that wasn?t so hard.? Pidgeot had told me, feeling pretty confident.

?I have a feeling it?s far from over.? I had replied to Pidgeot, ?Yet, I know we can handle whatever comes out way.?

Soon after, I had returned Pidgeot to his Pok?ball, and then headed back into the temple. After I had set foot on the cold, rounded square tiles, I made my way to the altar, hoping the flower gem would be there. However, it wasn?t. The only things on the altar were just a bunch of candles and some burning incense, along with the flowers that I had seen before. Then, I turned around and realized there was only one place where the flower gem could be. Downstairs?

I then headed down the cold violet stone steps. As I entered the underground hallway, I saw there was very little light except that which was coming from the flaming black braziers that were along the walls. I had realized there was only one hallway, and it led to a pair of double doors. I walked down the violet stone hallway, and then approached the two doors. Both of them were massive, large enough to drive a truck through.

As I approached the doors, I noticed both doors were extremely intricately carved, illustrating another spring-like scene with flowers and a majestic sun. Still, I didn?t care much for it. I grabbed both brass knobs that were the shape of a flower, and threw both doors open. It was then that I came across a very bizarre sight?

The room was huge, almost the size of a small auditorium. In the back of the room was a ledge that was ten feet from the ground. Kneeling upon it was a shadowy dark figure, with night-black skin. Then, I saw upon his back were four enormous butterfly wings, with the two forewings in colors of a bright red, orange and yellow while the two hind wings were colored green, cyan, indigo, blue and violet. When he had noticed me, he stood up on his feet, and I saw he was over ten feet tall. He still appeared to be slightly in the shape of a human, except for the black skin, the two antennae on his head and the giant black abdomen that was behind his two legs. Then, around his body was a dark red robe with black cuffs at the ends of the sleeves and on the bottom end of the robe. Alright, so maybe it was safe to say he wasn?t at all human after all?

?So?? He told me in a serious sounding voice, ?You?ve come to take my place.?

?I?ve come for the flower gem if that?s what you?re thinking?? I told the rainbow butterfly, ?And yes, I?m from the Emerald Alliance. I?ve already torched your friends upstairs, and if you don?t want the same to happen to you, then I would suggest handing it over and not wasting my time.?

?Well aren?t you clever.? The butterfly responded, looking at me in an odd way, ?I don?t think you know who I am. I am Rainbow Butterfly Guardian, the third most powerful Arch-mage in all of Palantria. Not even Darzaras himself could match up against me, so how do you think you could do it??

I?d have to admit, that was a good question. If I only had a fraction of what Darzaras had, then how exactly would I be able to beat this guy? I had grabbed Tek?s Pok?ball, pressed the button, and threw it to my side. With a flash of light, the ball had opened, and suddenly that same light had formed into my Bellossom. Then, after the light had faded, he looked up and saw the butterfly.

?Oh man?? Tek had gasped, ?That?s Arronsal??

?Well, who exactly is this guy?? I asked Tek, thinking that he knew something about him considering his reaction.

?Well, to put it short, he?s the Rainbow Butterfly Guardian, one who lives for nearly a thousand years.? Tek had informed me, obviously knowing something about this guy, ?After the Guardian dies, the next one in line becomes the Rainbow Butterfly Guardian, so technically the Guardian can never die if the powers are passed down. However, Arronsal is nearly nine hundred and fifty years old??

Which meant one of his friends was probably going to come on down to take over his position. At this time, that could only mean that Arronsal was at his maximum potential, and was probably capable of dishing out a lot of pain and misery in very little time. Needless to say, this was going to be one heck of a fight, one where the odds were seriously against me?

Chapter 9 Continued...

?So he only has fifty years to live?? I had replied to Tek, doing the basic math, ?Who is supposed to take his place then??

?I really don?t know?? Tek replied, looking back at me with the look of wonder.

And then, Arronsal had looked over to me, and then stared directly into my eyes.

?It?s you?? Arronsal had said in a low tone.

After I stopped and heard that, I could have laughed. That didn?t make any bit of sense, I wasn?t even from Palantria, so there was no way it could possibly be me. I looked back to the butterfly and stared at him in disbelief.

?How the heck is that even possible?? I asked, knowing that couldn?t be true, ?I?m not even from Palantria, so you obviously have something screwed up.?

?Yeah, he?s right man?? Tek had agreed, looking back toward Arronsal, ?The chances of him bearing the Mark of the Guardian are like nil. Plus he?s already a Lilyara, and that can?t change??

?You?re the one who is mistaken.? Arronsal responded, ?He bares the Mark, I can even see it in his eyes. And it doesn?t matter what he is now, all that matters is what he is to become??

Still, Tek looked at him in disbelief, and I really didn?t believe him either. Then, Tek looked up to me, and looked like he was getting ready to crack up.

?Show me your left hand.? Tek had told me, almost giggling, ?I want to show this guy wrong.?

At that moment, I became a bit hesitant, and then I showed him my hand. Then, when he saw it, he stopped dead cold, and it suddenly wasn?t funny anymore. I didn?t like the way this was turning out. When I looked back at my hand, I realized the Mark they were talking about was the small mole that was on my left index finger. But still, I didn?t understand it. I had grown up all the way back in Atlas. How could the things that had happened there be associated with this place?

?You have got to be kidding me?? Tek remarked in disbelief, ?You said yourself you weren?t from Palantria! Why the heck do you have the Mark if you?re not even a part of this world??

?Destiny works in funny ways, little one.? Arronsal smiled for a moment, ?But then again, I would like to know why you are on the enemy?s side. I don?t want to see the next Rainbow Butterfly Guardian fighting alongside the troops of the Emerald Alliance. Something like that was never meant to be??

?Even if all that was true, that?s too bad?? I had replied to Arronsal, ?I don?t want to see the Khans rip apart everything, and I don?t want to see you and your Sun Guild in control either.?

For a minute, Arronsal was silent, and it seemed like he was thinking something over. Only a few seconds, he then looked up, and it seemed he now had his mind straight.

?Normally, the next Guardian would never fight the previous one, and the current Guardian wouldn?t even dream of fighting the one who is supposed to inherit his powers and continue the line.? Arronsal had told me, not really liking the current situation that he had to face, ?But it would be better if those powers and the bloodline of my ancestors were destroyed rather than passing that power down to the Emerald Alliance and their wretched hordes. If this is the end of the Guardians, then so be it??

Then, he flew up into the air, and started fluttering his rainbow butterfly wings furiously to stay afloat in the air. Then, he raised his hand, and began his first strike.

?Faster and faster.? Arronsal had said, casting his first spell, ?Let me run around my enemy three times before they even know what happened. Critical Haste.?

Suddenly, Arronsal was covered with a bright yellow glow, and now he was even moving faster than before. His fluttering wings had suddenly become a blur. I could already tell that this guy had a heck of a lot more magic than me. Still, there was one thing I had that he didn?t?

I had grabbed Pidgeot?s Pok?ball, and quickly threw it forward. Already, Arronsal was casting another spell, and this time, I couldn?t even understand what the heck he was saying since he was saying it so many times faster.

Suddenly, a globe of frost had fired from Arronsal?s hand, and before I even had the chance to see where it was going, I heard it hit the ground. Then, when I looked around to see where it went, I saw Tek encased in a massive block of ice. He was completed frozen solid, and couldn?t move anywhere?

?Hyper Beam.? I had told my Pidgeot, ?We have no time, and we need to strike now.?

?You got it.? Pidgeot confirmed, looking up at Arronsal with apprehension.

Then, just as Pidgeot had let loose a massive blazing Hyper Beam, Arronsal protected himself with a cyan colored magical shield. Just when the beam struck it, it shattered like glass into a million pieces, but soon after, every piece had disintegrated. Arronsal was completely untouched, but Pidgeot had to catch his breath, and couldn?t attack again until he did so. I didn?t like the looks of this?

?Man, this guy is just too fast?? I had remarked, watching him already casting another spell.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Arronsal had launched another fireball, this time much bigger than the ones I had seen before. Then, after it had struck the ground and exploded, Pidgeot, Tek, and I were surrounded by a rush of biting flames. I had shut my eyes, wincing from the intense pain. After those extremely painful flames had vanished, several of my flower petals were on fire. I then had to stop and douse the flames using a Summon Water spell on myself as well as Pidgeot after I realized his feathers were on fire as well. When it was all done, we had both been struck yet again by two more excessively painful thunderbolts summoned by Arronsal. It almost seemed like he was unstoppable?

The only good thing that arose from Arronsal?s fireball was the ice that was surrounding Tek had melted. However, both Pidgeot and I were in serious pain. I needed to return fire against Arronsal if we were even going to stand a chance against this guy?

?What was yours is now mine. Your body, mind, and now your life. Siphon Soul!? I had shouted, casting one of the most advanced spells that Darzaras had given me.

Suddenly, the fluttering butterfly was then surrounded by a dark violet torrent. Then, the entire room went completely black, and I heard a loud, wailing cry just before an explosion in the dark had rung out. Moments after, my pain was quickly replaced by comfort and health, while Arronsal was suffering from the attack. Just then, the dim light of the room had returned, but Arronsal showed no signs of being slowed down.

?Tek, use your Moonlight on Pidgeot so he can recover.? I had told Tek, still focusing on Arronsal, ?Pidgeot, charge up your Sky Attack.?

?You got it.? Pidgeot had confirmed, concentrating on the rainbow butterfly, ?This should be good??

The light in the room had been darkened once again as Tek performed his Moonlight ability, and soon after, Pidgeot was surrounded by a strong, bright yellow light. Then, after the light had died down, Pidgeot was back in action, and his burns were gone. But then again, Arronsal was still moving faster than we could, and still ready to attack.

I had looked back up at Arronsal, and suddenly, a fork of wicked red lightning had fired from his hand and struck Tek, sending him flying off the ground. Still, Tek persisted to keep going.

?Go for a Solarbeam.? I had urged him, knowing he would still need to charge up for the attack, ?I?ll try and protect you in the meantime.?

?Sure thing.? Tek replied, charging his energy and keeping his focus on Arronsal.

Then, I needed to create a shield wall. Since Arronsal could only attack us from one side due to the shape of the room, a simple, flat barrier would be enough and would be able the shield all of us.

?Barrier of protection, be our light to guard us. Illusionary Wall.? I had stated, focusing on the area in front of us.

Then, an ethereal stone wall had appeared before us, with a bright, white outline of the illusionary stones. Moments later, Arronsal had made the entire room become filled with a bright light, and suddenly, I heard Tek shout out in pain among the blinding white light. When the light had died down and I could see again, I found Tek on the tiled floor, barely able to move?

?Ugh?? Tek moaned, slowly crawling along the floor, ?I? don?t know? what happened??

?It?s okay.? I told him, knowing it was impossible for him to keep going, ?Just take a rest. We?ll handle him.?

I then pulled out his Pok?ball, and aimed the red beam at Tek. Suddenly, the beam had made contact, and then Tek had become a red light and was then absorbed by the Pok?ball.

I didn?t know how Arronsal was able to hit Tek right through the wall, but nonetheless, it worked, and there wasn?t anything I could do to stop it. For now, the wall was useless, and I couldn?t do anything with it.

Slowly, Arronsal?s Critical Haste spell was wearing off, and he was suddenly returning to normal speed. However, with a spell like that, I wouldn?t be surprised if he was going to simply cast it again to move like crazy one more time?

?Sword of lightning, thunder and terror,? Arronsal had stated, focusing upon the two of us, ?Strike down my foes with bitter vengeance. Storm Saber!?

Then, completely out of the blue, a large sword of swirling white thunder and lightning had formed in Arronsal?s hand. Then, he threw it forward, and just when I thought it was going to be stopped by the wall I had created, it smashed right through it and headed right toward me?

Immediately, I was struck in the chest, and felt a hideously painful surge of electricity pulse through my body. I was instantly thrown onto the ground and I slid along the tiles until I stopped at the doors. My chest was burning with pain, and I had to struggle to get back up. Then, just in time, Pidgeot had become a fiery blaze, and flew toward Arronsal. Seconds later, he slammed right into the rainbow butterfly, sending him flying against the wall. After the strike was over, Pidgeot had returned to my side, and Arronsal fell to the ground. Still, he got back up again, but his wings were too damaged to continue flying in the air. However, he wasn?t willing to give up?

?Forces of the heavens?? Arronsal stated, looking toward Pidgeot with an angry vengeance, ?Fall upon my oppressor, and cut him down like hay! Nightmare Lance!?

Only seconds later, the room had become a dark gray, and suddenly a flaming red spear had formed in Arronsal?s hand. Then, he furiously threw it at Pidgeot with incredible speed. Before Pidgeot even had the chance to react, the spear blasted right on his abdomen, sending the giant bird flying into the wall. After he slid down the wall and fell to the ground, I was just happy to realize he wasn?t dead after that kind of vicious attack?

?I can?t? keep going, Chris?? Pidgeot moaned, breathing heavily, ?I?m sorry??

?It?s alright.? I told him, thankful for the support he gave, ?Just take a rest. Everything will be okay.?

After that, I returned him to his Pok?ball, and was then found myself alone against Arronsal. Still, I wasn?t about to risk fighting someone stronger than me completely alone. I quickly took Umbreon?s Pok?ball, and primed it. Then, I threw it by my side, and the Pok?ball burst open with a bright flash. Out of the light emerged Umbreon, only he had a wild look in his eyes when he saw me?

?What in the bloody blue heck happened to you!?? Umbreon exclaimed in shock, ?You look like a walking flower bouquet!?

?There?s no time to explain.? I told Umbreon, not wanting to be reminded of that, ?I need for you to attack that rainbow butterfly with a Confuse Ray.?

Then, Umbreon set his gaze upon Arronsal, and was still shocked upon seeing another completely unworldly sight. Then, he just took a deep breath?

?Well Toto, we sure ain?t in Kansas anymore?? Umbreon remarked, focusing on Arronsal.

Then, the entire room turned black yet again, with a beam of light upon Umbreon. Then, just as the light appeared upon Arronsal, the butterfly attempted to shield himself from the attack, but he didn?t actually know the attack was targeting his mind, and not his body. After the light had died down, Arronsal could barely keep on his feet, as if he had been at the bar for way too long. His shield had done nothing to stop the attack, and now he was paying for it.

?Shadow Ball.? I told Umbreon, clenching my fist and keeping the attacks persistent.

?Man, it looks like you already put this guy through a heck of a lotta misery?? Umbreon had replied, beginning to form a swirling violet and black sphere of dark energy.

Then, he launched the dark sphere at Arronsal, and just as he looked up at the sphere in dismay, it had struck him in the face, and he was immediately thrown right on his back, crushing both of his already broken wings in the process. Then, after he slowly rolled over and crawled to the end of the ledge, he looked at me in dismay, with the last bit of strength he had left. I could tell that last attack had done some serious damage considering where it hit him?

?I wish? I could stop you? from turning against us?? Arronsal told me with a look of sorrow in his eyes, ?But maybe? this is? the way destiny? wanted it??

Then, he became too weak to hold up his own head, and he then rested it upon the stone floor, just staring at me. He had fought as hard as he could, but it was the bunch of us against him, and he was outnumbered. If it was just me against him, I would have been the one on the ground. But even now, I still was holding my chest from the pain he had given me. He certainly didn?t go down easy?

?You fought well?? He said with his last breath, ?But if it is your will to go against? the forces of Symarix? then at least remember us? for it is better to die a miserable death? than be forgotten??

Suddenly, he shut his eyes, and then his body burst into violent flames. Instantly, his remains were quickly consumed, and all that was left was the red robe he had worn with a cloud of rainbow colored dust hovering above it. And soon after, the dust was gone, and had faded into nothing?

After a few seconds had passed, I thought it was over. Then, it wasn?t until I had gotten a sickening jolt in my chest did I realize maybe he wasn?t kidding after all. I stepped back a bit, and watched at the flower petals that were surrounding me simply fall off, and then began to cover the ground. Meanwhile, Umbreon was just watching in shock, completely speechless.

It wasn?t before every single flower and petal had fallen off did I really start getting anxious. I really didn?t think highly of becoming the next Rainbow Butterfly Guardian, but it looked like this time I wasn?t left with much of a choice...

Then, even before I got the chance to run away, the same robe that Arronsal had been wearing had flown off the ground, and made its way toward me. Suddenly, it was wrapped around my body, and I tried to take it off but it stuck like glue?

?What in the world is happening?? Umbreon asked, having no clue what was going on?

?He told me I was the next Guardian?? I told Umbreon, ?That means I?m? becoming just like him??

?You mean??? Umbreon asked, but was interrupted?

And then, just to prove what I was saying was true, my skin had quickly turned a dark black color, and suddenly I found myself quickly becoming taller. After I was standing ten feet tall, I was suddenly surrounded by a rainbow-colored light. Then, those same brightly colored butterfly wings that had once been on Arronsal?s back were now on mine. The four wings had emerged very quickly, and were gigantic, being several times the size of myself. It was only moments later that the two antennae had grown out of my head, and then I had grown the same abdomen that Arronsal once had, feeling almost like a long, thick, black tail. Then, after the rainbow light had faded, I then collapsed to the floor with my massive colorful wings spread out. Moments later, I felt that same feeling I had experienced when Darzaras had taught us the small amount of magic he could give us, only this time, that feeling was far more potent than ever. All the spells and summons that once belonged to Arronsal were now mine as I felt nearly a million years worth of knowledge suddenly become familiar to me in only a few instants.

After it was over, I closed my eyes?