A New World, A New Warby EnderstormChaptersGenesisAnother PlanetWatercolourThe IslandGenesisYou ever get those days where you just do not want to wake up? That you feel like everything will be better off if you just stayed asleep? This was one of those days. More so than others. "No... D'wanna... get up..." I mumbled, still very much half asleep. Unfortunately, the bright blue Arcanine next to me did not agree. "Arrr..." It, Inigo, playfully growled, still nudging me with his wet nose. When I still did not get up, my assailant walked away. I heard a flash from one of my Pokéballs, and I braced myself. Sure enough, a psychic voice yelled in my head. 'GET UP!' That woke me up. "Okay, okay, I'm up. Did anyone ever tell you how loud you are, Sofia?" Sofia is my Medicham. She was with me since I set out on my journey just two years ago. Literally, when I opened my front door, an empty pokéball in hand, a Medicham collapsed on it, drunk as all distortion, and did not resist capture. She giggled in my head again. 'Yes. Plenty of times. Did anyone ever tell you how much you sleep?' "Point taken." I deadpanned. "Let's get moving, before a Ranger finds us or something." The Rangers wanted me for Pokephilia. I tried arguing that we were cold and needed to preserve heat, but they wouldn't have any of it. Most of those Rangers were more stubborn than... well, me. Asleep. "I suppose I'd better let the rest out of their balls." As of right now, I have a total of twelve active balls. It's technically breaking federation rules... but, eh. I am wanted for several crimes already. Besides, it's a feature pokeballs have. Why would Silph design them to override the federation if they didn't want people abus- using that feature? So, out came my team. They're an... interesting sort. First, there was Hoth. He's my Marowak, and more than anything he loves to fight. No sooner than he had been sent out, he immediately had his bone drawn, looking for targets. Next, Arissa, a Liepard. She happened by when a collector with questionable mental stability came along and demanded I give him Inigo. I think he’s still recovering from those Shadow Claws. And then Sass, my Lucario. He and I have been best friends since I hatched him. Technically you could say he was my first Pokémon, since I received the egg before Sofia, but it didn't hatch until later. And then there was Gaia, a Roserade. If there was one thing she loved, it was looking good. I thought about taking her to Hoenn, once, when she was a Roselia, but I also knew she wanted to evolve. I only had enough money for a Dawn Stone or a trip to Hoenn, and she chose the stone. I don't blame her, honestly. There’s too much water there. Next was Spectre, my Gengar. She could definitely do a lot of damage. But the best thing about her isn't her power, it's how friendly she is. She'd take my soul out of my body and we'd go flying through the ghost world together. She'd grab hold of me and use Phantom Force to get us away from Rangers. If Pokephilia wasn't a thing… well… that hasn’t stopped me before. And then Nega, my Minun. That little ball of literal energy always cheered us on, always made us smile no matter what, always made friends out of anyone. But more than that, he loved to run. He and Vex were the best of friends, always racing. Which leads me onto Vex, the Skarmory. Not long after I captured Nega, this Skarmory divebombed me, glaring at me for having 'taken' her friend. I sent Nega out, and let them talk it out. Nega told Vex that he wanted to see the world, and that he wanted her to come along to see it together. I didn't have any objections to that, and she hopped into the ball. And then there is Mitre, a Mightyena. There’s not much can be said about him, save that he loves to protect his friends, and bite his enemies. Him and Inigo constantly fight over 'ownership' of me, but whenever that happens I take out their balls and tell them that if they keep fighting over me, I'll have to remind them who their owners are. The last 'mon of note is Strife, my Absol. There’s not much that can be said about him, either. He doesn't want to do much, except keep watch all night, and he wakes me up if there are rangers nearby. He is the only one who can wake me up in less than a minute, which is quite a feat. I think he just wants to prove himself to me. I wish he wouldn't, I love all my Pokémon. I say the last Pokémon of note, because there is technically another. There is a Yanmega that follows Inigo almost everywhere. When I asked Sofia about it, she told me it either has a very strong psychic defence, or has no memory and thinks Inigo is its master or something, I don't really know. And that is our happy little family, fresh out of their balls. Now, to resume our trek to the Celestial Tower. We resumed our depressing little march over the mountains, through the forest, over the forest, through the mountains, over the mountains, we just kept on walking, only stopping for brief periods to get a snack or a quick drink. We didn't stop until we saw it on the horizon. We'd just arrived at sunset, and I have to say it looked quite magical. Nega looked hopeful when he saw my legs tense. I nodded and he shot off, with me after him. "Let's go!" I yelled, ordering everymon to run after me. And we kept running, except when Inigo stopped short. “What is it?” I asked, sliding to a standstill. He growled in response. ‘Rangers.’ Mentally spat Sofia, pointing into the distance. I could indeed see flashes of red hiding in the bushes. I nodded to Hoth, and he burrowed underground. So I walked calmly forward, right into an ambush. Several Rangers came out of the bushes, as did some police officers, and a short, chubby man in a suit so tight he looked like might asphyxiate. The Ranger started talking first. "Cooper Jacobs. You are wanted for several crimes, including Pokephilia." 'Oh, Arceus.' The Officer Jenny next to her continued. "There have also been reports of underage drinking, and supplying your Pokémon with alcohol." 'Not this again.' The midget concluded. "Not to mention several violations of the Pokémon Federation's rules! Hacking a PC, using more than six Pokémon, assaulting a champion!" He exclaimed, as though he'd never met Alder. "What say you in your defence?" The Jenny asked. I felt a faint rumbling underground and instantly knew that Hoth was ready for a fight. I folded my arms. “Okay, first off? It was cold. Second? My brother died, how was I supposed to cope? Third? It was Alder. Fourth?” I smirked. “Earthquake.” Instantly all distortion broke loose, all present lost their balance, and several tendrils of psychic energy whisked out of the bushes and put several people to sleep. The ones remaining instantly sensed their inevitable fail. "Retreat!" Yelled some Rangers, running away, only to receive a metal-clad bird crash into all of them. At once. The chubby man from before was now seething with rage, and yelled at me. "Do you want me to add misuse of Pokémon to the list?" I glared at him. “Oh, so now you dictate how all Pokémon should act?” He shrieked in blind rage, before composing himself and tossed his own Pokémon into the fray, an Aggron. It hadn't been out for two seconds before receiving a sassy Power-Up Punch to the stomach, sending it crashing through several trees. "You will be brought to justice, one day, criminal scum." He spat, before turning and running away, red with anger, while leaving his injured Pokémon there. Gaia immediately darted over. I scoffed. "Right. Justice. That's all I've gotten from you bastards." The nerve of those... they dare attack me at a cemetery? At my brothers resting place? I utterly despise people who think they're in the right because they have a badge and a piece of paper that says so. "Come for me again, I won't hold back!" I yelled after him. Now, for what I came here for. "Come on, guys. Let's go." I said, walking into the tower. I ignored the dozens of psychics that wanted rematches, and all the Gastlys and Litwicks that wanted to fight me, and I kept walking until I got to the top. I approached my brothers grave, in front of the big bell. I began to tear up. "Stuart, I..." That was all I managed before Strife tackled me, everything became blurry, and the next thing I see is the ground approaching at a rapid pace. And then the voice. “Rest now my children, for when you awake a whole new world shall be your home.” Goggari: A solid chapter to start a story with. Another PlanetSuddenly there was a change. "Unh... My... Ow..." Was all I managed to get out before falling unconscious again. Several hours might have passed before I became aware of a wet nose nudging me. "Are you alright?" I was too in pain to reply. "Come on, Sass. Carry him. We are taking him with us." My brain suddenly froze. Sass? Did I know a Sass? It seemed familiar, alright. "Fine." Came a gruff response. That really sounded like... Sass! "S... Sa... It... It's me..." And then everything went black again. When I came to, again, I wondered what I was laying on that was so soft. And bumpy. And blue. And seemed remarkably like an Arcanine. Did I know a blue Arcanine? Were Arcanines even supposed to be blue? I feel like I should know who this is. "Are you awake back there?" Asked a soft voice laced with a light Scottish accent. "You've been out for quite a while. You must have taken quite a beating." Did I? I think the last thing I remember is falling... Oh! I fell off the Celestial Tower, after I heard that voice and went all woozy. And then I ended up here... in this... place? Everything is still blurry, though there is a lot of green. "...Where... Am I?" I managed to mutter. "I... do not know, my friend. Do not worry, I'm sure we will find our way, sooner or later. Right, Sass?" Came the reply. I was suddenly alerted to a familiar Lucario walking proudly next to us. "Sass..." I said, actually feeling happy, despite the pain. "Of course it's me! Who else would it be?" Came the sassy reply. 'Yep, that's Sass, alright.' Suddenly another thought occurred to me. "How... can I understand you?" I asked, baffled. "You tell me, little Riolu. Cooper." I froze. That name... I think it was... is... my name. I took a look at myself through groggy, blurry eyes. I couldn't see very well, but what I did see was not peach. It was... blue. "Wh..." I once again awoke, this time less comfortably. I think I was in what looked like an old medieval dungeon. I heard what sounded like... hoofsteps. I rubbed the last bit of blurriness out of my eyes. I expected a ponyta to come into view, but apparently not. No, what did appear was some failed experiment to merge a zubat and a rapidash together. And then it spoke, presumably to me. "Creature. What is going to happen is very simple. I am going to ask you questions, and you are going to answer them. In plain Equuish. Understand? Plain. Equuish. You are not going to repeat the same word over and over." He... it leaned in close. "Do I make myself clear?" "Yes? Ri?" I answered, with uncertainty. It just groaned, and muttered something that sounded like 'stupid creatures...' This left me with some time to think. Just what had happened while I was out? Why am I a Riolu? Who was that blue Arcanine? How had Sass known my name? What is even going on here? Minutes later, the same... thing came back, this time with a frightened looking Blitzle... thing on a collar and leash, the same type you'd find on a slave, and threw her in the cell with me. "This lovely lady here is going to spend the next hour with you, and you two are going to find a way to communicate. And if you haven't? I'm just going to leave it hanging there." The thing... the monster... slammed the cell door and walked away, chuckling to itself. "Please don't rape me..." Blitzle-Thing said, in a quiet voice, curling up in a corner. From what I could judge, it was definately female. Pretty young, too. "I'm not going to hurt you. Lo ri ril lourio." I said, in a soft tone. From her scared, yet bewildered expression, I guessed she probably didn't understand me. This was going to be a long hour. After about half an hour of me trying to communicate, I started to smell burning metal and hear screams. That normally wasn't good. From what I could see through my little window, which was significantly harder when you are only about seventy centimetres tall, that blue Arcanine from before was rampaging through the 'town', though it was more like a fortified prison island. As if sensing my confusion, and confusing my confusion for dismay, the Blitzle explained. "We're in Thestralcatraz, a big detention centre off the south coast of Thestralia. Once you're here, the only way out is to die, or to be sold off as a slave. The warden, Nightwing, is a corrupt, 'old world', racist bigot who despises anything not Thestral. And they all despise him back." I winced, this did not sound like a place I wanted to be. The Blitzle carried on. "If you misbehave, you get sent to the barracks. And then they bind you up... and... and... p-pass you around to the guards as a... a…" While my mind went to dirty places I motioned for her to stop. It was obviously a painful memory, and I never push for memories. Not that I could right now, being separated by a language barrier and all. I shook my head, this was no time to get sidetracked. The Blitzle's story just left me with more questions than answers. Where is Thestralia? What is a Thestral? How did I get locked up in a prison? Who is that blue Arcanine? Why could this Blitzle not understand Pokésh? Why can I not remember anything? It... it's too much. Suddenly the guard from before burst in to our cell and looked at me. "You're not worth getting killed over." He snapped his hoof (How does that even work?) and I was out like a light. The land of dreams is a wondrous place. Unfortunately, my head was currently experiencing a nightmare. If there was one thing I hated, and I mean truly hated, it was officers. Guards. Fucking Rangers. People who think they're better than everyone because they have the permission to do so. Call me an anarchist, but I hate democracy. But more than that I hated it when they caught me. Normally I'd have Hoth to use Earthquake, or Spectre to use Night Shade, but this time was different. I was alone, and that's why it was a nightmare. So colour me surprised when the entire crime scene burst into smoke and this blue, winged Rapidash with the night sky leaking out of its hair walked calmly toward me with a disapproving look on its face. "'Tis not right to run from the law." She stated. "Tch. Some 'law' they have." I retorted. She frowned. "And what, pray tell, is wrong with the law 'they' have?" She asked, questioningly. "What isn't wrong? Some of the crimes I'll admit to. Underage drinking, assault, but some others are just Tauroshit." "Wha-" I cut her off. "They made it illegal to love. Illegal. To. Love. If they catch you, they won't stop chasing you. They'll destroy everything you hold dear just to break up your 'abusive' Poképhiliac relationship." "Who-" I cut her off again. "So, no. I'm not turning myself in. I'll keep running until they get tired." Suddenly I was wrapped up in a soft hug. "I am so sorry you had to suffer through such things." Rapidash wings are strong. I couldn't break that hug even if I used Teleport. Which I can't. "Don't be." I stopped to get a good look at her. "What are you, anyway?" She looked at me as though I'd just asked who she was. "You've... never seen an Alicorn before?" I shook my head simply. She looked bewildered, to say the least. "I am Princess Luna of Equestria. I watch over my subject's dreams and ensure there are no nightmares." Princess? Luna? Equestria? What I wouldn't do for someone to answer my questions. "I've never heard of an 'Equestria' region before." Now she looked at me as if I'd just said I had no idea where I am. "It..." She froze. "Someone is trying to wake you up. We will have to resume this at another time. Sweet dreams… By the way, his name is In..." She yelled over the noise, as she was forcibly thrown out of my dream and I was forcibly woken up, in a violent coughing fit. "My friend, are you alright?" Said a voice that I really think I should know. "Who..." I trailed off, suddenly taking in my surroundings. I was in what looked like a hut in the middle of a rainforest. Another Blitzle looking thing entered through the open doorway. "Drink this." He said, handing me a glowing purple potion, that looked exactly like a Potion. It tasted... slightly bitter, almost like a Sitrus Berry. I could feel my insides shifting, and my vocal chords tingling, and suddenly it felt like I could speak a whole new language. "How do you feel?" He asked, slightly hopeful. "Better." I said, and immediately the Blitzle started dancing with joy. "It works! I can understand you! Now your turn, tiger." He said, turning toward the Arcanine, who downed it without question. "Now, I want to ask you some questions." I said. "You're not a normal Blitzle, so what are you, really?" He looked at me as though I'd just asked what species he was. "I'm... a zebra?" I noted it in my mind. "And what of those other creatures? Those zubat-ponytas?" "All I got was 'bat-pony'. They're Thestrals, and they own this island. Not all of them are as bad as Nightwing, before you go killing any you see." He almost looked a bit sick at that. I nodded, before continuing. "Who are you, anyway?" "My name's Xephyr, the tribe's alchemist and the chief's brother. Um... Who, or what, are you?" Asked Xephyr. I racked my amnesia riddled brain for an answer, trying to remember what Riolu's Pokédex entry was. Luckily, the Arcanine spoke up for me. "He is a Riolu, the pre-evolution of Lucario. I am an Arcanine, the evolved form of Growlithe. We are both what is known as 'Pokémon'." Xephyr was scribbling furiously on a notepad he procured out of nowhere, and suddenly he stopped and looked at us skeptically. "Did you say 'evolve'?" The Arcanine nodded, with a look of patience evident on his face. "That's a process that takes thousands of years! How-" "I do not know how it works here, but in our world it takes a matter of seconds to evolve." The Arcanine stated, cutting Xephyr off. But all I heard was 'our world' before I fainted, again. WatercolourAll I believe, and all I've known Are being taken from me, can't get home Yeah, do your worst, when worlds collide Let their fear collapse, bring no surprise Roughly three hours passed before I finally awoke, this time hopefully for an entire day. “My friend, are you finally awake?” A voice asked, and I groaned in response. It paused, and then continued. “I am sorry I made you pass out.” I groaned before struggling to sit up. “It’s not… your fault. I… just… it’s too much. I’m a Pokémon, and I was in prison and there’s new creatures that can’t understand me and I feel like there are holes in my memory and…” The voice revealed itself as a blue Arcanine, that for some reason made my head throb. He had a look of concern on his face. “Holes in your memory? My friend, do you know who I am?” He asked. “I feel like I should…” I replied, a bit woozy from the headache. “Ah. That is my fault also. I am your friend, Inigo. I-“ Anything else he said got cut off by the deafening white noise filling up my ears. The next thing I know, I am on the ground, clutching my skull, vaguely aware of what was happening around me. “My friend, are you alright?” Inigo shouted in concern, rushing over to my collapsed form. A new voice interjected. “Think of it like a computer. His brain is trying to access memories that don’t exist. But just like a computer, his brain can be reverted to a different point in time where those memories do exist.” “Who are you?” Asked Inigo, tilting his head in confusion while still maintaining that same concerned look. The new voice, a Clefairy, replied. “Hiya! I’m a Pokémon! For real, I checked! Call me Bill!” "I've never done this before." Bill muttered. "What was that?" Asked Inigo, a look of panic on his face. "Oh, nothing." Said Bill, perhaps a little too quickly. "It's just... Nevermind. Healing Wish!" Shouts Bill, and nothing happens. Inigo looks at him curiously. "Maybe we should find somemon that has been a Pokémon for longer." Bill shakes his head, which is actually half his body. "No no, I'll bet it didn't work because it's not night." "I am not waiting around until-" Inigo gets cut off as Xephyr re-enters the hut. "Who are you talking t- Oh, aren't you cute!" Xephyr dropped his sack of... whatever and focused on the Fairy Pokémon. "I am not cute, bud. Cleffa fe clefai, ffa." Bill replied, pouting cutely and folding his arms. If I wasn't unconscious, I would have probably laughed. Xephyr suddenly took note of me out cold on the floor and his expression turned right around. He then looked at Inigo. He then looked at Bill. He then looked in a mirror. "Okay... so what are we going to do about..." He trailed off, looking to me once more. Inigo piped up before Bill could. "I am sure Bill here has a good idea, but it would be easier if you were to give him a Potion." Bill suddenly looked worried. "A Potion? I'm not hurt am I? Cleffai ry ffair? Cle farr cli fy?" Inigo chuckled. "Not that kind of Potion. This one lets you speak... What was it, again? Ek-wish?" He looked to Xephyr for clarification. "Equuish. And, here." He said, offering the purple vial to Bill. Bill narrows his eyes as he looks to the offending bottle. "Um, is something wrong?" Xephyr asks, uncertainly. Bill sighs. "No, I was just trying to use Gravity. Fa, cli clry cleffa." He reached out and downed it in one gulp. "Whoa..." Was all Bill could say as he felt his vocal chords tingling. "Testing?" "I can understand you, now, and I have to say I'm sorry for calling you cute earlier. I thought you were, well, female." Xephyr remarks, a light smirk on his face. Inigo butts in. "Enough lollygagging, please. I would like to revive my friend." He says, gesturing to my limp form on the floor. Xephyr looks sheepish and Bill chuckles. "Like I said, unless you could find someone else to restore his memories, we may have to wait until night time. Or unless I could find a moon stone to evolve and possibly give myself a boost in power..." "Focus!" Inigo snapped. "Right, well. What time is it, anyway? I kind of just stumbled in here to get away from the Beedrills I completely didn't anger." Bill says, almost defensively. Xephyr replies, "Oh, it's only about eleven in the morning." "Isn't there any way we can help him?" Inigo shouts at Bill. "We could wake him up, and as long as he doesn't try to remember anything. Or, we could find a Psychic." Bill replies, unphased. "I already sent Sass out to try to find somemon in our team, hopefully Sofia. She is a Psychic type, and she knows Cooper better than anymon." Inigo answers, as Bill's ears twitch and his expression turns from upbeat to worried in a split second. "I- I'm sorry? Cooper? As in, the one with the Liepard and the... Whooo boy. This is awkward." Bill chuckles anxiously as he tries to focus anywhere but the Arcanine in front of him. Inigo's eyes narrow dangerously as he Growls. "How do you know... Oh, Bill. I remember. You tried to take me for your 'collection'. So, how is your backside, Bill? Still recovering from those Shadow Claws?" Xephyr tried to interject before things got too steamy. "So, you two have a bad history I take it? Please, this is the only hut I have, so try not to break into a fight here." Inigo lets loose one more Growl and looks away. "Fine. But I can't say the same for Arissa, if we should bump into her." Bill, his incentive to attack already low before he came in, now completely annihilated from the onslaught of Growls, closed his eyes and focused. "Cosmic Power." He glowed an eerie white colour, as the moonlight, coming from the transparent moon above him, seeped into him, and suddenly he returned to his normal upbeat attitude. "Wow! Eevee used to be my favorite Pokémon, but now I'm having second thoughts!" "Well, you can use a move now, but now that I know who you are... I do not want to let you near Cooper." Inigo says, closing his eyes. Bill ignored this, his eyes now wide open and glowing white. "Healing Wish." Suddenly all of my memories returned. I remembered who I was, where I was, what I was doing, who I was with, it all came back to me as quickly as though all you needed to do was turn me off and back on again. "My friend, are you finally awake?" I didn't answer, I just shot right up out of the bed I was in and dive-tackled Inigo. "Sorry, I kind of forgot, you know?" I replied, half chuckling and half apologising. "Do not even worry about it." Inigo replied, half chuckling as well. "So, how'd we get here? I don't remember much, I was unconscious for most of it, but I remember waking up in a forest, and then we were travelling, and then I was in prison," I pause and shudder slightly at the thought, before continuing, "and then I was here. What happened in between those jump-cuts?" "Well..." POV Inigo "Sass." It was a simple command, and the Lucario responded immediately. "Alright, alright, I'm up. Just don't burn me... or... anything..." Sass trailed off as he takes a quick look at the surrounding area. "We're not in Unova." He states. "Of course not, and that is why I am confused." I explain, hoping the daft 'mon gets my meaning. "Because an hour ago we were?" He asks, almost as though he was guessing a question in a quiz. "Now you are catching on. We are either in a new region or..." I paused to sniff the air. "...definitely a new region. I could smell Castelia from anywhere in Unova, and I can not smell Castelia so we are not in Unova." I finished, hoping that soaked through his partial steel-type brain. He looks at me blankly, before his eyes light up blue. "The Aura isn't there." He states, still looking at me blankly. "The Aura isn't there." He continues, as though he needed to prove to himself that he was not, in fact, dreaming. "The Aura isn't there?" I ask, in mild confusion and in need of some clarification. "The Aura isn't there." He answers, before going silent for a few moments. "THE AURA ISN'T THERE! WHY CAN'T I FEEL THE AURA?!" I notice a trickle of blood running down from the back of his neck. "Could it be because your aura glands are damaged and bleeding?" I offered. He instantly stops shouting and he looks at me with that same blank look. "Probably." He states, yawning and suddenly acting as though nothing ever happened. "We should really get you some medical attention." I say, before I start to sniff for Oran Berries. "Probably." He replies, before climbing in a tree and acting as though he were about to fall asleep. "At the very least, we can at least find some civilization." I half-growl, hoping he gets my meaning. "Probably." He mumbles, half asleep. "Ember." I let loose a tiny flame that inches towards Sass slowly. He has every chance to duck, or move, or something. "Don't say I didn't warn you." "YEEAOW! That hurts, hothead!" Growls Sass, as his fist starts glowing with power before he stops suddenly. "What?" I ask, concerned. Sass doesn't just stop a fight like that unless there is something wrong. He points behind me as I notice the limp form of a Riolu with what looked like a massive concussion. "Unh... My... Ow..." Was all it managed to get out before its eyes closed again. I nudged him with my nose, hoping to get some response. "Come on, Sass. We are taking him with us." "Fine." Said Sass as he hoisted the battered Riolu onto my back. I think I heard it moan out something else. "S... Sa... It... It's me..." It groaned, before it went limp on my back. "I think he knows you." I remark, before setting off toward what I hoped were Oran Berries. An hour later after walking, sniffing and scaring off things that were certainly not Pokémon, we came across a tree with some familiar blue Berries. "Eat up." I commanded. Sass looked at me with unease. "I've been thinking." "Arceus damn us when that happens." I stop and think about the irony of that. "How did that Riolu know me?" He asks, seriously, which is very out of character for him. "Well, eat up and maybe you'll be able to read his aura. And... save one for him." He frowns, before popping one in his mouth. The effect was instant. The bleeding stopped, the bruise faded and all that was left was a faint scar. "How did you even get cut there?" "Probably that Aggron from earlier." Sass says, putting the Oran Berry in the Riolu's mouth. Its concussion starts to fade, the blood lost seeps back into its body, and suddenly it woke up. "Are you awake back there?" I asked, softly. "You have been out for quite a while. You must have taken quite a beating." It looked blankly at nothing for a few moments before it muttered, in a disturbingly familiar voice. "...Where... Are we?" "I..." I would know that voice anywhere. And, now that the blood is gone, I would know that scent anywhere. "...do not know, my friend. Do not worry, I am sure we will find our way sooner or later. Right, Sass?" Sass' eyes glowed blue as he read the Riolu's aura. "Sass..." The little Riolu said, sounding happy. "Of course it's me! Who else would it be?" He replied, quite sassily. "How.. can I understand you?" The Riolu asked, baffled. "You tell me, little Riolu. Cooper." The Riolu paused, and so did I. "Wha..." That was all Cooper managed to get out before falling unconscious again. Suddenly there were unfamiliar smells. Leather and... iron. "HALT!" A thundering voice boomed through the forest. "Rangers? Here?" Asked Sass, powering up a Power Up Punch. "I do not think they are rangers... They might just be calling for someone to stop." I reason, but still readying a Flamethrower. Suddenly some odd looking creatures came bursting out of the bushes. One was what looked like a Rapidash mixed with a Noivern, the others looked like Ponytas mixed with Zubats and one Blitzle looking thing was tied up on a leash next to them. The Rapidash-like one looked to me and spoke. "By order of Warden Nightwing, loyal servant to Her Majesty Queen Nightmare Moon, you are under arrest, creatures. Do not try to resist arrest, we have netters hiding." Sass moved first, his Agility weaving in and out of futile attempts to restrain him until he reached their presumed leader, and glocked him directly in the jaw. Suddenly I found myself in a net. All it took was a quick Ember and it disintegrated. None of us bothered speaking. As much of an instinct it is to call out attacks, Cooper trained us not to. He said that it gave us a disadvantage if we were to call out our strategy like that. Like if he was going to punch you in the face, he wasn't going to tell you that. And as much as I wanted to Extreme Speed pinball off of all these Zubat Ponytas, I had my unconscious best friend on my back. Suddenly I felt a weight removed from my back and I saw a cleverly named 'bat-pony' flying away with Cooper. I called upon Extreme Speed only to get caught in mid air. To my surprise, the Rapidash one survived a Power Up Punch directly to the jaw and was suspending me in mid air with a surprise Psychic attack. And then, arrows, out of nowhere, pierced the skins of all the bat-ponies that Sass didn't knock out. "I do not even know what is happening anymore, but I will try not to think about it and just go with it." "Agreed." Muttered Sass, before trying and failing to launch an Aura Sphere at the flier that made off with Cooper. We were both dropped to the ground, and we found spears instantly pointed at us. When their leader stepped forward and deemed us friendly, he said, "Your friend is being taken to the prison island south of here. Go forth, and when you return, I'll have my brother brew something for the three of you. And when you get back, I want an explanation as to what you creatures are." I nodded and went on my way with murderous intent. POV Cooper "And then everything was a blind rage." Inigo concluded. "Hm." I frowned, and looked around. "So, where did Sass go?" "He said he was going to look for our other teammates. I hope Mr. Dragonfly is alright. He has never been alone for this long before." "Hey, Inigo? What is the story with him?" I ask, still curious. "...Another time, maybe." Inigo replies, uneasily. I look at him. He looks at me back, with a harder gaze. Suddenly an eccentric Clefairy bursts into the room. "Hiya, bud! It looks like you're all better!" "And who are you?" I ask, confused as to who this was. He frowns, before perking up again. "I'm a Pokémon! Call me Bill!" "Bill? Like, PC inventor Bill?" He nods ecstatically while I narrow my eyes. "Or collector Bill?" "Both! But I don't have as much as a Pokémon collection as my twin Bill, who lives up in the old Cerulean Lighthouse, though I will admit to trying to take your Arcanine off you. Sorry." "...Did you help me with my amnesia problem?" He nods fervently. "Fine. I'll forgive you." Xephyr pokes his head through the door. "Guys, the chief wants to see you." The little encampment we were in was actually pretty nice. Minus the humidity, and the angry Beedrills, and the fact that I had to talk with the leader of a group of apparently non electric Blitzles. Or, zebras. Xephyr had assured me over and over that it was okay, but I... I know this isn't a politician, but I just... fears always come back to bite you in the ass. We entered the chief's tent and he looked at us with a stoic expression, before he spoke. "Why have you come here?" That was a simple question, yet so hard to answer "Lord Arceus sent us here." Inigo answered, as though it were the simplest thing in the world. 'Arceus? Wasn't he-' "I thought he was sealed though?" Bill asked, puzzled, cutting off my thoughts. "Um... Excuse me..." I said, stepping outside for a brief moment to mull over this new information. "WHY ARCEUS? WH-" "Attention citizens of Equus, both old and new." That shut me up. The IslandWhen everything is said and done To looking for answers if only one Turn my back the urge has gone Left with no reason we come undone “I am Lord Arceus, creator of the creatures that you have seen over the past few days. I am the one who brought the creatures you see to this world, they are known as Pokémon. I have my reasons for bringing them here, I will be holding a summit with the world's leaders so that they can help inform their citizens the best. For now I issue a warning; Even if some do not appear as such, the Pokémon are just as intelligent as any other creature that calls this world home. Since they are MY subjects I will not tolerate their mistreatment or abuse. Treat them as you would your own neighbor.” I rolled my eyes at that, stunned though I was. ‘So, in the ‘Thestrals’ case, lock us up and torture us? Ha, no thanks.’ It was almost as if Arceus read my mind. “Pokémon who have awoken in this new world, do not seek to harm the natives of this world.” ‘Ha! Fuck that! I’m going to march over there and-’ The Alpha Pokémon continued, oblivious.“To the Pokémon that experienced certain... Changes... when you arrived; You are the ones who proved that not all of your kind deserved vengeful retribution, consider this your reward.” ‘Me? What did I do, that was good in the eyes of god? I’ve been nothing but bad.’ “To live new lives, free of the burdens of the old world, a chance to start anew. As sentient beings of varying intelligence, the laws of the respective countries you now reside in apply to you, and only those laws.” Unluckily for the ‘natives’, I don’t ‘do’ laws. If they cause me or my team harm, or trouble, I will not obey. “That is all for now, the Pokémon are not to be harmed simply out of spite. If you have any qualms with what I have done, I reside in a temple located within the Everfree forest and welcome all who would like to speak, or a pocket dimension outside of the space time continuum, so if any of you wish to face the sheer power of a god, feel free to come by.” ‘Wow, he’s even more full of himself than I am.” I mentally remarked. “Goodbye for now, though I doubt this will be the last you hear of me, and peace to you all.” I casually stroll back into the, slackjawed, Chief’s tent. “Does that answer your questions? Because I doubt Arceus wants to do a repeat.” POV Sass I hate forests. Rainforests in particular. They’re so... hot, which is about twice as worse for a steel type. But, even worse, they are impossible to see in. So when Inigo sent me to look for our team, I don’t know what he expected. “Oh, erm. Excuse me, sir? C-Could you help a Lady out?” Came a quiet, demure, cultured, and somewhat familiar voice from behind me. I whirled around, and sure enough, there was a Lilligant, constricted by weird black and green vine-like tentacles. I don’t know, Taintacles? “How… What even are those things?” They didn’t look ‘mon made, that’s for sure. "I don't know, sir. But could you- NGH! Free me, somehow?" I grab hold of the biggest vine and Force Palmed it into a tree, but that doesn't seem to work, much. So, instead, I grabbed the tree and used a Wood Hammer to slam it into the vine. Or, I would have, if that was a move I could use. Either way, the central vine snaps like so many spines, and the vines entrapping what's-her-name shriveled up and died. "Thank you so much, sir." The Lilligant cheered, sweeping me up into a hug. "It was... nothing." I mumbled, breaking it off. "So, how did you end up here, and like that?" She blushed and stammered. "Well, uhm, hm, I, er... Oh, this stuttering is unbecoming of a Lady. You can do better, Ella! Well, you won't believe this, but, I used to be a human." "So was my brother. Trainer. Friend. Whatever you want to call him, he was human. And then? I dunno. He's a Riolu now. I'm looking for my family. But yeah, I believe you. M'names Sass." "A pleasure to meet you." She even did a little curtsey. "My name is Ella Larone." "Wait, Ella Larone? I think my trainer has mentioned that name before. I don't really remember when or why though." “Oh, and what was your trainer’s name?” I stared at her for a good few seconds, trying to figure out what her game was. Eh, probably chess. That’s pretty hard. “On the off chance you two have met and have a bad history, I won’t tell you right now. As a distraction, that’s a pretty big mountain, huh?” I swear she was glaring at me. "Right. It is. I am going to meet this trainer of yours, aren't I?" Oh, now this was a game I could play. "Well, I don't know, do you want to climb a big wall of rock and help me look for my buddies?" "Well maybe I do." Heh. "Well, alright then." She blinked, probably as she realised what she just agreed to doing. "Wait, I-" I offered her a paw. "C'mon. It's your own fault." Lucky for me, Lucario's have really good hearing. "I'll get you back for this, one day." She mumbled. "Oh, what's that? Now you're saying you are going to be traveling with me?" Her once green leaf form was turning red faster than... Hoth's opponents. "W-well, I guess..." "Well, alright. Up we go, beetroot. Hold on tight and I'll just Agility my way up here. Shouldn't take long." "Wait, I don't know anything like CONSTRIIIIIIIIIIIII- AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Ella shrieked as we almost flew about a kilometre up solid rock, and then I realised that she did not know Vine Whip, and for me to grab on to the cliff, I would have to let go of her. "Oh, shit." And gravity took over. *CLANG* And then stopped as we collided into a Skarmory. "That you, Sass? Only you would be dumb enough to use Agility straight up." Oh. Vex. "S-s-so you two know each other?" Ella shakily queried. "Yep. He's one of my friends. And a massive idiot. He would have died a looooong ago if I wasn't here." Boasted Vex. "Hey, I'm s'posed to be the sassy one!" I retorted, angrily. "Oh, get over it, big guy. Hey, have you seen Nega? Hope he's alright." Vex asked, and I realised that yes, our family was, indeed, completely separated. We might not even all be on the same island. "Nah, you're the first one I've seen, not counting Cooper and Inigo." I replied instantly. "Figures. Can't separate those two. Oh, sorry, what's your name, cabbage?" Vex questioned Ella. "Ella. Ella Larone." She replied, probably not knowing what the fuck was currently happening, and, by the tone of her voice, not caring either. I like this girl. "Familiar. Hm. Well, where do you want me to land?" "In that clearing. S'where Cooper and Inigo are hunkering." I point to the massive clearing with a sizeable village inside. "This dump? It looks worse than Fortree." Vex scoffs. This time Ella butted in. "I'll have you know, I grew up in Fort- TREE!" Ella screamed, pointing to a big tree we were about to collide with. Vex snerked. "Yes, there are trees there, you don't have to emphasise that." "NO THERE'S A TRE-" Oh, too late. Vex connected with the tree with an audible snap, and I suddenly felt all lightheaded, and then I heard a booming voice in my head. “I am Lord Arceus, creator of the creatures that you have seen over the past few days…” "Well, that explains things. And, note to self, don't ride Skarmories anymore." Ella now gets the award for stating the most obvious thing in the world. Though, we have just changed worlds, so is it a bit early to claim that? "Sorry?" Vex offered, still a bit dizzy. "Um, why are all these Blitzles staring at us?" "I'unno. Why are you staring at us?" I asked the... zebras, I think that’s what Inigo called them. "Sass? Are you back? Did you find anyone?" A voice I knew very well cut through the crowd chatter. POV Cooper "Vex? Is that you?" A weak caw was all the confirmation I needed. "Oh, get over it, steel-brain. You'll be fine." She craned her neck up and looked at me. "Huh? Where'd Cooper go? Who's this Riolu?" "I am this Riolu. Didn't you just hear? Some humans got turned into Pokémon." "Oh, uh, yeah I guess. Hey, that reminds me, do you know an Ella Larone?" She asked. "You mean the famous Coordinator Ella Larone?" I ask in return. "Yes, dear." The new addition to the conversation announces. "And you are?" "Oh, I'm, uhh..." I hesitate, should I give her my name? Oh, it's fine, Sass steps in. "My trainer." She, presumably Ella, frowns and crosses her hands… or should it be leaves? "No, your name, dear." Vex just sighs. "Oh, just tell her. We have her outnumbered even if she does react." "Fine. My name is Cooper Jacobs." Oh, her expression turned around really quickly. "You mean that little child who murdered his entire family and fled into the wilderness to avoid justice?" She asked in slack-jawed horror. "I should turn you into the police!" "Just try it, honey." Vex warned. My laugh was more hollow than… I don’t know, a coconut shell? It’s hard to come up with metaphors on the spot, you know. “Oh, that’s what the Rangers said, did they? You do know that that’s not true, right?” "That's exactly what you would say if you did it." She countered. "That's also what you would say if you didn't do it." Vex re-countered. "Hiya, bud!" Bill shrieked, appearing out of nowhere and in my fucking ear. "Gah! Where did you come from?" I demanded, almost pissing myself. "Xephyr's house! Hey, you gotta see what I made!" He paused, actually paused, and noticed Ella. "Hiya! What's your name?" "Ella Lar- wait, are you even aware who you are talking to?" "Oh, sorry, are you famous? Whatever you do, I'm probably not a big fan. Oh, that's right, my names Bill!" Ella, seeming to have forgotten the argument that just happened, frowned in memory. "Never heard of you." Bill suddenly took on a serious, seductive-like tone. "Masaki Sonezaki, charmed." He replied in Kantonese. Ella, despite herself, blushed. "Oh, that Bill. The one that invented the PC and various other appliances?" "Oh, get a room, you two. Didn't you have something to show me, Bill?" I try to steer the conversation back on track. "Right! I managed to reinvent a TM!" He exclaimed, back in his normal over-excited voice, showing me a little magenta tinted crystal ball. "You've been here for like a day! How'd you manage that?" "Well, you know how TM's work? You put it to a Pokémon's head and transfer information, yeah? Turns out, crystals in this world have the same properties! So, I chipped one off some statue and developed a one-use Psychic TM!" "And does it work?" I ask, excited. If I can get Bill to develop more TM's, I won't have to do any work training to be a Pokémon. "I'm about to find out!" He touched the crystal to his head, and psychic energy raced out, grabbed me and Ella, tossed us around a bit, and gently put us back down. "Haha! Oh, I can't believe that worked!" Sass came up behind me and picked me up by my neck. "Don't think this gets you out of training." I ignored him though. "Hey, Bill, do you think you can make more of those?" "I'd want to develop them more, though. That kind of hurt, actually. Plus," He gestured to the now-black crystal in his hands and tossed it away. "They're not reusable." "Huh. Well, good work anyway, Bill! Ella, we'll talk later. Everyone else, to the shack." "Uh.. what's 'the shack'?" Asked Vex. 3RD PERSON, THESTRALCATRAZ "Duskhorn. Have you made any progress with the investigation and capture of these 'Pokémon'?" Inquired Nightwing, rather tiredly. "No, sir. Every creature we have tried to subdue, big or small, always overpowers the squads. It's as if they have the will to live. Not even magic will work on some of them." "Keep trying, Duskhorn. I will not lose my island to these mutants." Nightwing took on a more sadistic smile. "And with how strong and resilient they seem to be, I'm sure they will make excellent slaves." Nightwing's face threatened to split. "If nothing else, we can always sacrifice them!" Unbeknownst to them, two soulless, unblinking red eyes were watching from the shadows. It beeped and relayed its psychic message to its master. "Target: Acquired. Name: Nightwing. Species: ERROR. Directive: Kill. Returning to specified rendezvous point."
GenesisYou ever get those days where you just do not want to wake up? That you feel like everything will be better off if you just stayed asleep? This was one of those days. More so than others. "No... D'wanna... get up..." I mumbled, still very much half asleep. Unfortunately, the bright blue Arcanine next to me did not agree. "Arrr..." It, Inigo, playfully growled, still nudging me with his wet nose. When I still did not get up, my assailant walked away. I heard a flash from one of my Pokéballs, and I braced myself. Sure enough, a psychic voice yelled in my head. 'GET UP!' That woke me up. "Okay, okay, I'm up. Did anyone ever tell you how loud you are, Sofia?" Sofia is my Medicham. She was with me since I set out on my journey just two years ago. Literally, when I opened my front door, an empty pokéball in hand, a Medicham collapsed on it, drunk as all distortion, and did not resist capture. She giggled in my head again. 'Yes. Plenty of times. Did anyone ever tell you how much you sleep?' "Point taken." I deadpanned. "Let's get moving, before a Ranger finds us or something." The Rangers wanted me for Pokephilia. I tried arguing that we were cold and needed to preserve heat, but they wouldn't have any of it. Most of those Rangers were more stubborn than... well, me. Asleep. "I suppose I'd better let the rest out of their balls." As of right now, I have a total of twelve active balls. It's technically breaking federation rules... but, eh. I am wanted for several crimes already. Besides, it's a feature pokeballs have. Why would Silph design them to override the federation if they didn't want people abus- using that feature? So, out came my team. They're an... interesting sort. First, there was Hoth. He's my Marowak, and more than anything he loves to fight. No sooner than he had been sent out, he immediately had his bone drawn, looking for targets. Next, Arissa, a Liepard. She happened by when a collector with questionable mental stability came along and demanded I give him Inigo. I think he’s still recovering from those Shadow Claws. And then Sass, my Lucario. He and I have been best friends since I hatched him. Technically you could say he was my first Pokémon, since I received the egg before Sofia, but it didn't hatch until later. And then there was Gaia, a Roserade. If there was one thing she loved, it was looking good. I thought about taking her to Hoenn, once, when she was a Roselia, but I also knew she wanted to evolve. I only had enough money for a Dawn Stone or a trip to Hoenn, and she chose the stone. I don't blame her, honestly. There’s too much water there. Next was Spectre, my Gengar. She could definitely do a lot of damage. But the best thing about her isn't her power, it's how friendly she is. She'd take my soul out of my body and we'd go flying through the ghost world together. She'd grab hold of me and use Phantom Force to get us away from Rangers. If Pokephilia wasn't a thing… well… that hasn’t stopped me before. And then Nega, my Minun. That little ball of literal energy always cheered us on, always made us smile no matter what, always made friends out of anyone. But more than that, he loved to run. He and Vex were the best of friends, always racing. Which leads me onto Vex, the Skarmory. Not long after I captured Nega, this Skarmory divebombed me, glaring at me for having 'taken' her friend. I sent Nega out, and let them talk it out. Nega told Vex that he wanted to see the world, and that he wanted her to come along to see it together. I didn't have any objections to that, and she hopped into the ball. And then there is Mitre, a Mightyena. There’s not much can be said about him, save that he loves to protect his friends, and bite his enemies. Him and Inigo constantly fight over 'ownership' of me, but whenever that happens I take out their balls and tell them that if they keep fighting over me, I'll have to remind them who their owners are. The last 'mon of note is Strife, my Absol. There’s not much that can be said about him, either. He doesn't want to do much, except keep watch all night, and he wakes me up if there are rangers nearby. He is the only one who can wake me up in less than a minute, which is quite a feat. I think he just wants to prove himself to me. I wish he wouldn't, I love all my Pokémon. I say the last Pokémon of note, because there is technically another. There is a Yanmega that follows Inigo almost everywhere. When I asked Sofia about it, she told me it either has a very strong psychic defence, or has no memory and thinks Inigo is its master or something, I don't really know. And that is our happy little family, fresh out of their balls. Now, to resume our trek to the Celestial Tower. We resumed our depressing little march over the mountains, through the forest, over the forest, through the mountains, over the mountains, we just kept on walking, only stopping for brief periods to get a snack or a quick drink. We didn't stop until we saw it on the horizon. We'd just arrived at sunset, and I have to say it looked quite magical. Nega looked hopeful when he saw my legs tense. I nodded and he shot off, with me after him. "Let's go!" I yelled, ordering everymon to run after me. And we kept running, except when Inigo stopped short. “What is it?” I asked, sliding to a standstill. He growled in response. ‘Rangers.’ Mentally spat Sofia, pointing into the distance. I could indeed see flashes of red hiding in the bushes. I nodded to Hoth, and he burrowed underground. So I walked calmly forward, right into an ambush. Several Rangers came out of the bushes, as did some police officers, and a short, chubby man in a suit so tight he looked like might asphyxiate. The Ranger started talking first. "Cooper Jacobs. You are wanted for several crimes, including Pokephilia." 'Oh, Arceus.' The Officer Jenny next to her continued. "There have also been reports of underage drinking, and supplying your Pokémon with alcohol." 'Not this again.' The midget concluded. "Not to mention several violations of the Pokémon Federation's rules! Hacking a PC, using more than six Pokémon, assaulting a champion!" He exclaimed, as though he'd never met Alder. "What say you in your defence?" The Jenny asked. I felt a faint rumbling underground and instantly knew that Hoth was ready for a fight. I folded my arms. “Okay, first off? It was cold. Second? My brother died, how was I supposed to cope? Third? It was Alder. Fourth?” I smirked. “Earthquake.” Instantly all distortion broke loose, all present lost their balance, and several tendrils of psychic energy whisked out of the bushes and put several people to sleep. The ones remaining instantly sensed their inevitable fail. "Retreat!" Yelled some Rangers, running away, only to receive a metal-clad bird crash into all of them. At once. The chubby man from before was now seething with rage, and yelled at me. "Do you want me to add misuse of Pokémon to the list?" I glared at him. “Oh, so now you dictate how all Pokémon should act?” He shrieked in blind rage, before composing himself and tossed his own Pokémon into the fray, an Aggron. It hadn't been out for two seconds before receiving a sassy Power-Up Punch to the stomach, sending it crashing through several trees. "You will be brought to justice, one day, criminal scum." He spat, before turning and running away, red with anger, while leaving his injured Pokémon there. Gaia immediately darted over. I scoffed. "Right. Justice. That's all I've gotten from you bastards." The nerve of those... they dare attack me at a cemetery? At my brothers resting place? I utterly despise people who think they're in the right because they have a badge and a piece of paper that says so. "Come for me again, I won't hold back!" I yelled after him. Now, for what I came here for. "Come on, guys. Let's go." I said, walking into the tower. I ignored the dozens of psychics that wanted rematches, and all the Gastlys and Litwicks that wanted to fight me, and I kept walking until I got to the top. I approached my brothers grave, in front of the big bell. I began to tear up. "Stuart, I..." That was all I managed before Strife tackled me, everything became blurry, and the next thing I see is the ground approaching at a rapid pace. And then the voice. “Rest now my children, for when you awake a whole new world shall be your home.” Goggari: A solid chapter to start a story with.
Another PlanetSuddenly there was a change. "Unh... My... Ow..." Was all I managed to get out before falling unconscious again. Several hours might have passed before I became aware of a wet nose nudging me. "Are you alright?" I was too in pain to reply. "Come on, Sass. Carry him. We are taking him with us." My brain suddenly froze. Sass? Did I know a Sass? It seemed familiar, alright. "Fine." Came a gruff response. That really sounded like... Sass! "S... Sa... It... It's me..." And then everything went black again. When I came to, again, I wondered what I was laying on that was so soft. And bumpy. And blue. And seemed remarkably like an Arcanine. Did I know a blue Arcanine? Were Arcanines even supposed to be blue? I feel like I should know who this is. "Are you awake back there?" Asked a soft voice laced with a light Scottish accent. "You've been out for quite a while. You must have taken quite a beating." Did I? I think the last thing I remember is falling... Oh! I fell off the Celestial Tower, after I heard that voice and went all woozy. And then I ended up here... in this... place? Everything is still blurry, though there is a lot of green. "...Where... Am I?" I managed to mutter. "I... do not know, my friend. Do not worry, I'm sure we will find our way, sooner or later. Right, Sass?" Came the reply. I was suddenly alerted to a familiar Lucario walking proudly next to us. "Sass..." I said, actually feeling happy, despite the pain. "Of course it's me! Who else would it be?" Came the sassy reply. 'Yep, that's Sass, alright.' Suddenly another thought occurred to me. "How... can I understand you?" I asked, baffled. "You tell me, little Riolu. Cooper." I froze. That name... I think it was... is... my name. I took a look at myself through groggy, blurry eyes. I couldn't see very well, but what I did see was not peach. It was... blue. "Wh..." I once again awoke, this time less comfortably. I think I was in what looked like an old medieval dungeon. I heard what sounded like... hoofsteps. I rubbed the last bit of blurriness out of my eyes. I expected a ponyta to come into view, but apparently not. No, what did appear was some failed experiment to merge a zubat and a rapidash together. And then it spoke, presumably to me. "Creature. What is going to happen is very simple. I am going to ask you questions, and you are going to answer them. In plain Equuish. Understand? Plain. Equuish. You are not going to repeat the same word over and over." He... it leaned in close. "Do I make myself clear?" "Yes? Ri?" I answered, with uncertainty. It just groaned, and muttered something that sounded like 'stupid creatures...' This left me with some time to think. Just what had happened while I was out? Why am I a Riolu? Who was that blue Arcanine? How had Sass known my name? What is even going on here? Minutes later, the same... thing came back, this time with a frightened looking Blitzle... thing on a collar and leash, the same type you'd find on a slave, and threw her in the cell with me. "This lovely lady here is going to spend the next hour with you, and you two are going to find a way to communicate. And if you haven't? I'm just going to leave it hanging there." The thing... the monster... slammed the cell door and walked away, chuckling to itself. "Please don't rape me..." Blitzle-Thing said, in a quiet voice, curling up in a corner. From what I could judge, it was definately female. Pretty young, too. "I'm not going to hurt you. Lo ri ril lourio." I said, in a soft tone. From her scared, yet bewildered expression, I guessed she probably didn't understand me. This was going to be a long hour. After about half an hour of me trying to communicate, I started to smell burning metal and hear screams. That normally wasn't good. From what I could see through my little window, which was significantly harder when you are only about seventy centimetres tall, that blue Arcanine from before was rampaging through the 'town', though it was more like a fortified prison island. As if sensing my confusion, and confusing my confusion for dismay, the Blitzle explained. "We're in Thestralcatraz, a big detention centre off the south coast of Thestralia. Once you're here, the only way out is to die, or to be sold off as a slave. The warden, Nightwing, is a corrupt, 'old world', racist bigot who despises anything not Thestral. And they all despise him back." I winced, this did not sound like a place I wanted to be. The Blitzle carried on. "If you misbehave, you get sent to the barracks. And then they bind you up... and... and... p-pass you around to the guards as a... a…" While my mind went to dirty places I motioned for her to stop. It was obviously a painful memory, and I never push for memories. Not that I could right now, being separated by a language barrier and all. I shook my head, this was no time to get sidetracked. The Blitzle's story just left me with more questions than answers. Where is Thestralia? What is a Thestral? How did I get locked up in a prison? Who is that blue Arcanine? Why could this Blitzle not understand Pokésh? Why can I not remember anything? It... it's too much. Suddenly the guard from before burst in to our cell and looked at me. "You're not worth getting killed over." He snapped his hoof (How does that even work?) and I was out like a light. The land of dreams is a wondrous place. Unfortunately, my head was currently experiencing a nightmare. If there was one thing I hated, and I mean truly hated, it was officers. Guards. Fucking Rangers. People who think they're better than everyone because they have the permission to do so. Call me an anarchist, but I hate democracy. But more than that I hated it when they caught me. Normally I'd have Hoth to use Earthquake, or Spectre to use Night Shade, but this time was different. I was alone, and that's why it was a nightmare. So colour me surprised when the entire crime scene burst into smoke and this blue, winged Rapidash with the night sky leaking out of its hair walked calmly toward me with a disapproving look on its face. "'Tis not right to run from the law." She stated. "Tch. Some 'law' they have." I retorted. She frowned. "And what, pray tell, is wrong with the law 'they' have?" She asked, questioningly. "What isn't wrong? Some of the crimes I'll admit to. Underage drinking, assault, but some others are just Tauroshit." "Wha-" I cut her off. "They made it illegal to love. Illegal. To. Love. If they catch you, they won't stop chasing you. They'll destroy everything you hold dear just to break up your 'abusive' Poképhiliac relationship." "Who-" I cut her off again. "So, no. I'm not turning myself in. I'll keep running until they get tired." Suddenly I was wrapped up in a soft hug. "I am so sorry you had to suffer through such things." Rapidash wings are strong. I couldn't break that hug even if I used Teleport. Which I can't. "Don't be." I stopped to get a good look at her. "What are you, anyway?" She looked at me as though I'd just asked who she was. "You've... never seen an Alicorn before?" I shook my head simply. She looked bewildered, to say the least. "I am Princess Luna of Equestria. I watch over my subject's dreams and ensure there are no nightmares." Princess? Luna? Equestria? What I wouldn't do for someone to answer my questions. "I've never heard of an 'Equestria' region before." Now she looked at me as if I'd just said I had no idea where I am. "It..." She froze. "Someone is trying to wake you up. We will have to resume this at another time. Sweet dreams… By the way, his name is In..." She yelled over the noise, as she was forcibly thrown out of my dream and I was forcibly woken up, in a violent coughing fit. "My friend, are you alright?" Said a voice that I really think I should know. "Who..." I trailed off, suddenly taking in my surroundings. I was in what looked like a hut in the middle of a rainforest. Another Blitzle looking thing entered through the open doorway. "Drink this." He said, handing me a glowing purple potion, that looked exactly like a Potion. It tasted... slightly bitter, almost like a Sitrus Berry. I could feel my insides shifting, and my vocal chords tingling, and suddenly it felt like I could speak a whole new language. "How do you feel?" He asked, slightly hopeful. "Better." I said, and immediately the Blitzle started dancing with joy. "It works! I can understand you! Now your turn, tiger." He said, turning toward the Arcanine, who downed it without question. "Now, I want to ask you some questions." I said. "You're not a normal Blitzle, so what are you, really?" He looked at me as though I'd just asked what species he was. "I'm... a zebra?" I noted it in my mind. "And what of those other creatures? Those zubat-ponytas?" "All I got was 'bat-pony'. They're Thestrals, and they own this island. Not all of them are as bad as Nightwing, before you go killing any you see." He almost looked a bit sick at that. I nodded, before continuing. "Who are you, anyway?" "My name's Xephyr, the tribe's alchemist and the chief's brother. Um... Who, or what, are you?" Asked Xephyr. I racked my amnesia riddled brain for an answer, trying to remember what Riolu's Pokédex entry was. Luckily, the Arcanine spoke up for me. "He is a Riolu, the pre-evolution of Lucario. I am an Arcanine, the evolved form of Growlithe. We are both what is known as 'Pokémon'." Xephyr was scribbling furiously on a notepad he procured out of nowhere, and suddenly he stopped and looked at us skeptically. "Did you say 'evolve'?" The Arcanine nodded, with a look of patience evident on his face. "That's a process that takes thousands of years! How-" "I do not know how it works here, but in our world it takes a matter of seconds to evolve." The Arcanine stated, cutting Xephyr off. But all I heard was 'our world' before I fainted, again.
WatercolourAll I believe, and all I've known Are being taken from me, can't get home Yeah, do your worst, when worlds collide Let their fear collapse, bring no surprise Roughly three hours passed before I finally awoke, this time hopefully for an entire day. “My friend, are you finally awake?” A voice asked, and I groaned in response. It paused, and then continued. “I am sorry I made you pass out.” I groaned before struggling to sit up. “It’s not… your fault. I… just… it’s too much. I’m a Pokémon, and I was in prison and there’s new creatures that can’t understand me and I feel like there are holes in my memory and…” The voice revealed itself as a blue Arcanine, that for some reason made my head throb. He had a look of concern on his face. “Holes in your memory? My friend, do you know who I am?” He asked. “I feel like I should…” I replied, a bit woozy from the headache. “Ah. That is my fault also. I am your friend, Inigo. I-“ Anything else he said got cut off by the deafening white noise filling up my ears. The next thing I know, I am on the ground, clutching my skull, vaguely aware of what was happening around me. “My friend, are you alright?” Inigo shouted in concern, rushing over to my collapsed form. A new voice interjected. “Think of it like a computer. His brain is trying to access memories that don’t exist. But just like a computer, his brain can be reverted to a different point in time where those memories do exist.” “Who are you?” Asked Inigo, tilting his head in confusion while still maintaining that same concerned look. The new voice, a Clefairy, replied. “Hiya! I’m a Pokémon! For real, I checked! Call me Bill!” "I've never done this before." Bill muttered. "What was that?" Asked Inigo, a look of panic on his face. "Oh, nothing." Said Bill, perhaps a little too quickly. "It's just... Nevermind. Healing Wish!" Shouts Bill, and nothing happens. Inigo looks at him curiously. "Maybe we should find somemon that has been a Pokémon for longer." Bill shakes his head, which is actually half his body. "No no, I'll bet it didn't work because it's not night." "I am not waiting around until-" Inigo gets cut off as Xephyr re-enters the hut. "Who are you talking t- Oh, aren't you cute!" Xephyr dropped his sack of... whatever and focused on the Fairy Pokémon. "I am not cute, bud. Cleffa fe clefai, ffa." Bill replied, pouting cutely and folding his arms. If I wasn't unconscious, I would have probably laughed. Xephyr suddenly took note of me out cold on the floor and his expression turned right around. He then looked at Inigo. He then looked at Bill. He then looked in a mirror. "Okay... so what are we going to do about..." He trailed off, looking to me once more. Inigo piped up before Bill could. "I am sure Bill here has a good idea, but it would be easier if you were to give him a Potion." Bill suddenly looked worried. "A Potion? I'm not hurt am I? Cleffai ry ffair? Cle farr cli fy?" Inigo chuckled. "Not that kind of Potion. This one lets you speak... What was it, again? Ek-wish?" He looked to Xephyr for clarification. "Equuish. And, here." He said, offering the purple vial to Bill. Bill narrows his eyes as he looks to the offending bottle. "Um, is something wrong?" Xephyr asks, uncertainly. Bill sighs. "No, I was just trying to use Gravity. Fa, cli clry cleffa." He reached out and downed it in one gulp. "Whoa..." Was all Bill could say as he felt his vocal chords tingling. "Testing?" "I can understand you, now, and I have to say I'm sorry for calling you cute earlier. I thought you were, well, female." Xephyr remarks, a light smirk on his face. Inigo butts in. "Enough lollygagging, please. I would like to revive my friend." He says, gesturing to my limp form on the floor. Xephyr looks sheepish and Bill chuckles. "Like I said, unless you could find someone else to restore his memories, we may have to wait until night time. Or unless I could find a moon stone to evolve and possibly give myself a boost in power..." "Focus!" Inigo snapped. "Right, well. What time is it, anyway? I kind of just stumbled in here to get away from the Beedrills I completely didn't anger." Bill says, almost defensively. Xephyr replies, "Oh, it's only about eleven in the morning." "Isn't there any way we can help him?" Inigo shouts at Bill. "We could wake him up, and as long as he doesn't try to remember anything. Or, we could find a Psychic." Bill replies, unphased. "I already sent Sass out to try to find somemon in our team, hopefully Sofia. She is a Psychic type, and she knows Cooper better than anymon." Inigo answers, as Bill's ears twitch and his expression turns from upbeat to worried in a split second. "I- I'm sorry? Cooper? As in, the one with the Liepard and the... Whooo boy. This is awkward." Bill chuckles anxiously as he tries to focus anywhere but the Arcanine in front of him. Inigo's eyes narrow dangerously as he Growls. "How do you know... Oh, Bill. I remember. You tried to take me for your 'collection'. So, how is your backside, Bill? Still recovering from those Shadow Claws?" Xephyr tried to interject before things got too steamy. "So, you two have a bad history I take it? Please, this is the only hut I have, so try not to break into a fight here." Inigo lets loose one more Growl and looks away. "Fine. But I can't say the same for Arissa, if we should bump into her." Bill, his incentive to attack already low before he came in, now completely annihilated from the onslaught of Growls, closed his eyes and focused. "Cosmic Power." He glowed an eerie white colour, as the moonlight, coming from the transparent moon above him, seeped into him, and suddenly he returned to his normal upbeat attitude. "Wow! Eevee used to be my favorite Pokémon, but now I'm having second thoughts!" "Well, you can use a move now, but now that I know who you are... I do not want to let you near Cooper." Inigo says, closing his eyes. Bill ignored this, his eyes now wide open and glowing white. "Healing Wish." Suddenly all of my memories returned. I remembered who I was, where I was, what I was doing, who I was with, it all came back to me as quickly as though all you needed to do was turn me off and back on again. "My friend, are you finally awake?" I didn't answer, I just shot right up out of the bed I was in and dive-tackled Inigo. "Sorry, I kind of forgot, you know?" I replied, half chuckling and half apologising. "Do not even worry about it." Inigo replied, half chuckling as well. "So, how'd we get here? I don't remember much, I was unconscious for most of it, but I remember waking up in a forest, and then we were travelling, and then I was in prison," I pause and shudder slightly at the thought, before continuing, "and then I was here. What happened in between those jump-cuts?" "Well..." POV Inigo "Sass." It was a simple command, and the Lucario responded immediately. "Alright, alright, I'm up. Just don't burn me... or... anything..." Sass trailed off as he takes a quick look at the surrounding area. "We're not in Unova." He states. "Of course not, and that is why I am confused." I explain, hoping the daft 'mon gets my meaning. "Because an hour ago we were?" He asks, almost as though he was guessing a question in a quiz. "Now you are catching on. We are either in a new region or..." I paused to sniff the air. "...definitely a new region. I could smell Castelia from anywhere in Unova, and I can not smell Castelia so we are not in Unova." I finished, hoping that soaked through his partial steel-type brain. He looks at me blankly, before his eyes light up blue. "The Aura isn't there." He states, still looking at me blankly. "The Aura isn't there." He continues, as though he needed to prove to himself that he was not, in fact, dreaming. "The Aura isn't there?" I ask, in mild confusion and in need of some clarification. "The Aura isn't there." He answers, before going silent for a few moments. "THE AURA ISN'T THERE! WHY CAN'T I FEEL THE AURA?!" I notice a trickle of blood running down from the back of his neck. "Could it be because your aura glands are damaged and bleeding?" I offered. He instantly stops shouting and he looks at me with that same blank look. "Probably." He states, yawning and suddenly acting as though nothing ever happened. "We should really get you some medical attention." I say, before I start to sniff for Oran Berries. "Probably." He replies, before climbing in a tree and acting as though he were about to fall asleep. "At the very least, we can at least find some civilization." I half-growl, hoping he gets my meaning. "Probably." He mumbles, half asleep. "Ember." I let loose a tiny flame that inches towards Sass slowly. He has every chance to duck, or move, or something. "Don't say I didn't warn you." "YEEAOW! That hurts, hothead!" Growls Sass, as his fist starts glowing with power before he stops suddenly. "What?" I ask, concerned. Sass doesn't just stop a fight like that unless there is something wrong. He points behind me as I notice the limp form of a Riolu with what looked like a massive concussion. "Unh... My... Ow..." Was all it managed to get out before its eyes closed again. I nudged him with my nose, hoping to get some response. "Come on, Sass. We are taking him with us." "Fine." Said Sass as he hoisted the battered Riolu onto my back. I think I heard it moan out something else. "S... Sa... It... It's me..." It groaned, before it went limp on my back. "I think he knows you." I remark, before setting off toward what I hoped were Oran Berries. An hour later after walking, sniffing and scaring off things that were certainly not Pokémon, we came across a tree with some familiar blue Berries. "Eat up." I commanded. Sass looked at me with unease. "I've been thinking." "Arceus damn us when that happens." I stop and think about the irony of that. "How did that Riolu know me?" He asks, seriously, which is very out of character for him. "Well, eat up and maybe you'll be able to read his aura. And... save one for him." He frowns, before popping one in his mouth. The effect was instant. The bleeding stopped, the bruise faded and all that was left was a faint scar. "How did you even get cut there?" "Probably that Aggron from earlier." Sass says, putting the Oran Berry in the Riolu's mouth. Its concussion starts to fade, the blood lost seeps back into its body, and suddenly it woke up. "Are you awake back there?" I asked, softly. "You have been out for quite a while. You must have taken quite a beating." It looked blankly at nothing for a few moments before it muttered, in a disturbingly familiar voice. "...Where... Are we?" "I..." I would know that voice anywhere. And, now that the blood is gone, I would know that scent anywhere. "...do not know, my friend. Do not worry, I am sure we will find our way sooner or later. Right, Sass?" Sass' eyes glowed blue as he read the Riolu's aura. "Sass..." The little Riolu said, sounding happy. "Of course it's me! Who else would it be?" He replied, quite sassily. "How.. can I understand you?" The Riolu asked, baffled. "You tell me, little Riolu. Cooper." The Riolu paused, and so did I. "Wha..." That was all Cooper managed to get out before falling unconscious again. Suddenly there were unfamiliar smells. Leather and... iron. "HALT!" A thundering voice boomed through the forest. "Rangers? Here?" Asked Sass, powering up a Power Up Punch. "I do not think they are rangers... They might just be calling for someone to stop." I reason, but still readying a Flamethrower. Suddenly some odd looking creatures came bursting out of the bushes. One was what looked like a Rapidash mixed with a Noivern, the others looked like Ponytas mixed with Zubats and one Blitzle looking thing was tied up on a leash next to them. The Rapidash-like one looked to me and spoke. "By order of Warden Nightwing, loyal servant to Her Majesty Queen Nightmare Moon, you are under arrest, creatures. Do not try to resist arrest, we have netters hiding." Sass moved first, his Agility weaving in and out of futile attempts to restrain him until he reached their presumed leader, and glocked him directly in the jaw. Suddenly I found myself in a net. All it took was a quick Ember and it disintegrated. None of us bothered speaking. As much of an instinct it is to call out attacks, Cooper trained us not to. He said that it gave us a disadvantage if we were to call out our strategy like that. Like if he was going to punch you in the face, he wasn't going to tell you that. And as much as I wanted to Extreme Speed pinball off of all these Zubat Ponytas, I had my unconscious best friend on my back. Suddenly I felt a weight removed from my back and I saw a cleverly named 'bat-pony' flying away with Cooper. I called upon Extreme Speed only to get caught in mid air. To my surprise, the Rapidash one survived a Power Up Punch directly to the jaw and was suspending me in mid air with a surprise Psychic attack. And then, arrows, out of nowhere, pierced the skins of all the bat-ponies that Sass didn't knock out. "I do not even know what is happening anymore, but I will try not to think about it and just go with it." "Agreed." Muttered Sass, before trying and failing to launch an Aura Sphere at the flier that made off with Cooper. We were both dropped to the ground, and we found spears instantly pointed at us. When their leader stepped forward and deemed us friendly, he said, "Your friend is being taken to the prison island south of here. Go forth, and when you return, I'll have my brother brew something for the three of you. And when you get back, I want an explanation as to what you creatures are." I nodded and went on my way with murderous intent. POV Cooper "And then everything was a blind rage." Inigo concluded. "Hm." I frowned, and looked around. "So, where did Sass go?" "He said he was going to look for our other teammates. I hope Mr. Dragonfly is alright. He has never been alone for this long before." "Hey, Inigo? What is the story with him?" I ask, still curious. "...Another time, maybe." Inigo replies, uneasily. I look at him. He looks at me back, with a harder gaze. Suddenly an eccentric Clefairy bursts into the room. "Hiya, bud! It looks like you're all better!" "And who are you?" I ask, confused as to who this was. He frowns, before perking up again. "I'm a Pokémon! Call me Bill!" "Bill? Like, PC inventor Bill?" He nods ecstatically while I narrow my eyes. "Or collector Bill?" "Both! But I don't have as much as a Pokémon collection as my twin Bill, who lives up in the old Cerulean Lighthouse, though I will admit to trying to take your Arcanine off you. Sorry." "...Did you help me with my amnesia problem?" He nods fervently. "Fine. I'll forgive you." Xephyr pokes his head through the door. "Guys, the chief wants to see you." The little encampment we were in was actually pretty nice. Minus the humidity, and the angry Beedrills, and the fact that I had to talk with the leader of a group of apparently non electric Blitzles. Or, zebras. Xephyr had assured me over and over that it was okay, but I... I know this isn't a politician, but I just... fears always come back to bite you in the ass. We entered the chief's tent and he looked at us with a stoic expression, before he spoke. "Why have you come here?" That was a simple question, yet so hard to answer "Lord Arceus sent us here." Inigo answered, as though it were the simplest thing in the world. 'Arceus? Wasn't he-' "I thought he was sealed though?" Bill asked, puzzled, cutting off my thoughts. "Um... Excuse me..." I said, stepping outside for a brief moment to mull over this new information. "WHY ARCEUS? WH-" "Attention citizens of Equus, both old and new." That shut me up.
The IslandWhen everything is said and done To looking for answers if only one Turn my back the urge has gone Left with no reason we come undone “I am Lord Arceus, creator of the creatures that you have seen over the past few days. I am the one who brought the creatures you see to this world, they are known as Pokémon. I have my reasons for bringing them here, I will be holding a summit with the world's leaders so that they can help inform their citizens the best. For now I issue a warning; Even if some do not appear as such, the Pokémon are just as intelligent as any other creature that calls this world home. Since they are MY subjects I will not tolerate their mistreatment or abuse. Treat them as you would your own neighbor.” I rolled my eyes at that, stunned though I was. ‘So, in the ‘Thestrals’ case, lock us up and torture us? Ha, no thanks.’ It was almost as if Arceus read my mind. “Pokémon who have awoken in this new world, do not seek to harm the natives of this world.” ‘Ha! Fuck that! I’m going to march over there and-’ The Alpha Pokémon continued, oblivious.“To the Pokémon that experienced certain... Changes... when you arrived; You are the ones who proved that not all of your kind deserved vengeful retribution, consider this your reward.” ‘Me? What did I do, that was good in the eyes of god? I’ve been nothing but bad.’ “To live new lives, free of the burdens of the old world, a chance to start anew. As sentient beings of varying intelligence, the laws of the respective countries you now reside in apply to you, and only those laws.” Unluckily for the ‘natives’, I don’t ‘do’ laws. If they cause me or my team harm, or trouble, I will not obey. “That is all for now, the Pokémon are not to be harmed simply out of spite. If you have any qualms with what I have done, I reside in a temple located within the Everfree forest and welcome all who would like to speak, or a pocket dimension outside of the space time continuum, so if any of you wish to face the sheer power of a god, feel free to come by.” ‘Wow, he’s even more full of himself than I am.” I mentally remarked. “Goodbye for now, though I doubt this will be the last you hear of me, and peace to you all.” I casually stroll back into the, slackjawed, Chief’s tent. “Does that answer your questions? Because I doubt Arceus wants to do a repeat.” POV Sass I hate forests. Rainforests in particular. They’re so... hot, which is about twice as worse for a steel type. But, even worse, they are impossible to see in. So when Inigo sent me to look for our team, I don’t know what he expected. “Oh, erm. Excuse me, sir? C-Could you help a Lady out?” Came a quiet, demure, cultured, and somewhat familiar voice from behind me. I whirled around, and sure enough, there was a Lilligant, constricted by weird black and green vine-like tentacles. I don’t know, Taintacles? “How… What even are those things?” They didn’t look ‘mon made, that’s for sure. "I don't know, sir. But could you- NGH! Free me, somehow?" I grab hold of the biggest vine and Force Palmed it into a tree, but that doesn't seem to work, much. So, instead, I grabbed the tree and used a Wood Hammer to slam it into the vine. Or, I would have, if that was a move I could use. Either way, the central vine snaps like so many spines, and the vines entrapping what's-her-name shriveled up and died. "Thank you so much, sir." The Lilligant cheered, sweeping me up into a hug. "It was... nothing." I mumbled, breaking it off. "So, how did you end up here, and like that?" She blushed and stammered. "Well, uhm, hm, I, er... Oh, this stuttering is unbecoming of a Lady. You can do better, Ella! Well, you won't believe this, but, I used to be a human." "So was my brother. Trainer. Friend. Whatever you want to call him, he was human. And then? I dunno. He's a Riolu now. I'm looking for my family. But yeah, I believe you. M'names Sass." "A pleasure to meet you." She even did a little curtsey. "My name is Ella Larone." "Wait, Ella Larone? I think my trainer has mentioned that name before. I don't really remember when or why though." “Oh, and what was your trainer’s name?” I stared at her for a good few seconds, trying to figure out what her game was. Eh, probably chess. That’s pretty hard. “On the off chance you two have met and have a bad history, I won’t tell you right now. As a distraction, that’s a pretty big mountain, huh?” I swear she was glaring at me. "Right. It is. I am going to meet this trainer of yours, aren't I?" Oh, now this was a game I could play. "Well, I don't know, do you want to climb a big wall of rock and help me look for my buddies?" "Well maybe I do." Heh. "Well, alright then." She blinked, probably as she realised what she just agreed to doing. "Wait, I-" I offered her a paw. "C'mon. It's your own fault." Lucky for me, Lucario's have really good hearing. "I'll get you back for this, one day." She mumbled. "Oh, what's that? Now you're saying you are going to be traveling with me?" Her once green leaf form was turning red faster than... Hoth's opponents. "W-well, I guess..." "Well, alright. Up we go, beetroot. Hold on tight and I'll just Agility my way up here. Shouldn't take long." "Wait, I don't know anything like CONSTRIIIIIIIIIIIII- AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" Ella shrieked as we almost flew about a kilometre up solid rock, and then I realised that she did not know Vine Whip, and for me to grab on to the cliff, I would have to let go of her. "Oh, shit." And gravity took over. *CLANG* And then stopped as we collided into a Skarmory. "That you, Sass? Only you would be dumb enough to use Agility straight up." Oh. Vex. "S-s-so you two know each other?" Ella shakily queried. "Yep. He's one of my friends. And a massive idiot. He would have died a looooong ago if I wasn't here." Boasted Vex. "Hey, I'm s'posed to be the sassy one!" I retorted, angrily. "Oh, get over it, big guy. Hey, have you seen Nega? Hope he's alright." Vex asked, and I realised that yes, our family was, indeed, completely separated. We might not even all be on the same island. "Nah, you're the first one I've seen, not counting Cooper and Inigo." I replied instantly. "Figures. Can't separate those two. Oh, sorry, what's your name, cabbage?" Vex questioned Ella. "Ella. Ella Larone." She replied, probably not knowing what the fuck was currently happening, and, by the tone of her voice, not caring either. I like this girl. "Familiar. Hm. Well, where do you want me to land?" "In that clearing. S'where Cooper and Inigo are hunkering." I point to the massive clearing with a sizeable village inside. "This dump? It looks worse than Fortree." Vex scoffs. This time Ella butted in. "I'll have you know, I grew up in Fort- TREE!" Ella screamed, pointing to a big tree we were about to collide with. Vex snerked. "Yes, there are trees there, you don't have to emphasise that." "NO THERE'S A TRE-" Oh, too late. Vex connected with the tree with an audible snap, and I suddenly felt all lightheaded, and then I heard a booming voice in my head. “I am Lord Arceus, creator of the creatures that you have seen over the past few days…” "Well, that explains things. And, note to self, don't ride Skarmories anymore." Ella now gets the award for stating the most obvious thing in the world. Though, we have just changed worlds, so is it a bit early to claim that? "Sorry?" Vex offered, still a bit dizzy. "Um, why are all these Blitzles staring at us?" "I'unno. Why are you staring at us?" I asked the... zebras, I think that’s what Inigo called them. "Sass? Are you back? Did you find anyone?" A voice I knew very well cut through the crowd chatter. POV Cooper "Vex? Is that you?" A weak caw was all the confirmation I needed. "Oh, get over it, steel-brain. You'll be fine." She craned her neck up and looked at me. "Huh? Where'd Cooper go? Who's this Riolu?" "I am this Riolu. Didn't you just hear? Some humans got turned into Pokémon." "Oh, uh, yeah I guess. Hey, that reminds me, do you know an Ella Larone?" She asked. "You mean the famous Coordinator Ella Larone?" I ask in return. "Yes, dear." The new addition to the conversation announces. "And you are?" "Oh, I'm, uhh..." I hesitate, should I give her my name? Oh, it's fine, Sass steps in. "My trainer." She, presumably Ella, frowns and crosses her hands… or should it be leaves? "No, your name, dear." Vex just sighs. "Oh, just tell her. We have her outnumbered even if she does react." "Fine. My name is Cooper Jacobs." Oh, her expression turned around really quickly. "You mean that little child who murdered his entire family and fled into the wilderness to avoid justice?" She asked in slack-jawed horror. "I should turn you into the police!" "Just try it, honey." Vex warned. My laugh was more hollow than… I don’t know, a coconut shell? It’s hard to come up with metaphors on the spot, you know. “Oh, that’s what the Rangers said, did they? You do know that that’s not true, right?” "That's exactly what you would say if you did it." She countered. "That's also what you would say if you didn't do it." Vex re-countered. "Hiya, bud!" Bill shrieked, appearing out of nowhere and in my fucking ear. "Gah! Where did you come from?" I demanded, almost pissing myself. "Xephyr's house! Hey, you gotta see what I made!" He paused, actually paused, and noticed Ella. "Hiya! What's your name?" "Ella Lar- wait, are you even aware who you are talking to?" "Oh, sorry, are you famous? Whatever you do, I'm probably not a big fan. Oh, that's right, my names Bill!" Ella, seeming to have forgotten the argument that just happened, frowned in memory. "Never heard of you." Bill suddenly took on a serious, seductive-like tone. "Masaki Sonezaki, charmed." He replied in Kantonese. Ella, despite herself, blushed. "Oh, that Bill. The one that invented the PC and various other appliances?" "Oh, get a room, you two. Didn't you have something to show me, Bill?" I try to steer the conversation back on track. "Right! I managed to reinvent a TM!" He exclaimed, back in his normal over-excited voice, showing me a little magenta tinted crystal ball. "You've been here for like a day! How'd you manage that?" "Well, you know how TM's work? You put it to a Pokémon's head and transfer information, yeah? Turns out, crystals in this world have the same properties! So, I chipped one off some statue and developed a one-use Psychic TM!" "And does it work?" I ask, excited. If I can get Bill to develop more TM's, I won't have to do any work training to be a Pokémon. "I'm about to find out!" He touched the crystal to his head, and psychic energy raced out, grabbed me and Ella, tossed us around a bit, and gently put us back down. "Haha! Oh, I can't believe that worked!" Sass came up behind me and picked me up by my neck. "Don't think this gets you out of training." I ignored him though. "Hey, Bill, do you think you can make more of those?" "I'd want to develop them more, though. That kind of hurt, actually. Plus," He gestured to the now-black crystal in his hands and tossed it away. "They're not reusable." "Huh. Well, good work anyway, Bill! Ella, we'll talk later. Everyone else, to the shack." "Uh.. what's 'the shack'?" Asked Vex. 3RD PERSON, THESTRALCATRAZ "Duskhorn. Have you made any progress with the investigation and capture of these 'Pokémon'?" Inquired Nightwing, rather tiredly. "No, sir. Every creature we have tried to subdue, big or small, always overpowers the squads. It's as if they have the will to live. Not even magic will work on some of them." "Keep trying, Duskhorn. I will not lose my island to these mutants." Nightwing took on a more sadistic smile. "And with how strong and resilient they seem to be, I'm sure they will make excellent slaves." Nightwing's face threatened to split. "If nothing else, we can always sacrifice them!" Unbeknownst to them, two soulless, unblinking red eyes were watching from the shadows. It beeped and relayed its psychic message to its master. "Target: Acquired. Name: Nightwing. Species: ERROR. Directive: Kill. Returning to specified rendezvous point."
