Episode 144 of Pokemon Rejuvenation Bug Mono is here! It's time to finish this Narcissa sidequest! & You won't believe how it ends! Please enjoy!

i,,,, did not even realize that you could fly using the noctowl statues. i'm such a nincompoop tysm for the help!!

If you unlocked the Noctowl statue there you should be able to fly there. Otherwise there is a green boat in Terajuma Shipyard that will take you there. If these do not work you may need to progress the story further first. Also note: Route 6 does not take you to Helojak Island it's only accessible via the Noctowl statue or the boat in Terajuma Shipyard.

hi!! i've heard that you can go back to helojak island after the team xen event to catch an elekid. i've completed that, but there's still a ranger blocking me from entering route 6. is there anything particular i need to do, or should i just be patient and do some more story? thanks :)

If your save file hasn't finished chapter 15, then yes. It is usually recommended to restart anyways, as a majority of the early game has been reworked.

Hi, I'm new to the forum and I am having this same issue. I tried to use the fix but it just deletes the teleporter from the second picture. Is there a way to get back to town since the escapes ropes are disabled?

Episode 143 of Pokemon Rejuvenation Bug Mono is here! It's time to save our friends' bodies! But uhh... The time frame?! You're not gonna believe it! Please enjoy!

Chapter 1: Crossroads of Destiny The Siege of Goldenwood Forest ~~~~~~~(I)~~~~~~~ The battle with Venam had been the hardest one yet. All three of his Pokémon were in need of some serious healing, which meant Will had to settle down and wait while the nurses of Gearen Laboratory performed their magic. Considering how traveling around the city without a Pokémon to protect you wasn't very good for one's health, Will decided to stay put and get some reading done in the meantime. The lab had an abundance of ways to get important information. Apart from the various books and magazines scattered around, the lab offered several computers and organized bundles of old newspapers, sorted by date. Sparing the occasional glance at the healing unit in the corner, Will started reading up Aevium's history and its topography. With the exception of Gearen City, the region's second capital, the majority of the Floria island was small and rural, with many waterways crisscrossing the island. If his mother and him had successfully made it to Gearen together, they would have had to travel to the center of the island, to Goldenleaf Town. From there they'd then make their way through or around a massive mountain smackdab in the middle of the island, before finally getting to Akuwa Town in the north. Will clicked through the page. Something the calamity that befell the region forty years ago, a Calamity so severe that they gave it its own name. Storm-9. Storm-9…the name fit. People assumed Storm-9 had been a natural disaster. Information on the calamity was…scarce, to put it lightly. Even on the internet, nobody could give a clear answer to what actually happened. It was likely that the calamity happened so quickly, so suddenly, that Aevium had been torn asunder before people even realized it. Perhaps a Pokémon had been involved? Who knew. Will studied the map in depth, trying to find any place where Team Xen could have their headquarters. If they could somehow transfer prisoners from a sinking ocean liner to their HQ fast enough to not have to worry about anyone drowning, it had to be somewhere within Aevium. Floria island, the largest… Terrajuma, the smallest…. Terrial…huh. Terrial was actually two islands, and could not be more different from each other. One of them was the nation's capital, sporting its largest major settlements and trade hubs, while the other one was called "The Badlands". And then there was Neverwinter island, but Will wasn't really interested in that one. If he wanted to build a secret base to store dozens upon dozens of kidnapped civilians, he'd definitely not do that anywhere near the capital. Too many prying eyes, too many chances for leaks. Unless…unless Xen was hiding in plain sight, counting on their victims to disregard the capital as a likely spot outright. What if, what if what if… He had to face it. He simply didn't know enough about Team Xen to even make a dumb guess, let alone an educated guess. Back to the drawing board. "Can William retrieve his Pokémon?" An electronic voice echoed through the lab. "It's just Will," he angrily muttered. The computer didn't respond. Perhaps that was for the better. "There you go, all healed up," the overworked nurse told him upon placing his Poke Balls on the counter. "Safe travels. NEXT!" With just another hour to go before he was set to meet up with Melia, Will bought a few healing items at the store and started making his way to the northwest, where he'd find the local train station. Along the way, he let Nidoran walk with him. This newest member of the team had only been with him for literal hours before being forced to fight grueling matches in a thunderous environment. The little guy deserved some time to wind down. …that was only half the truth. Knowing that Team Xen was out there, Will didn't feel comfortable just walking around on his own. Nidoran would hear any danger approaching him from far away, and his ever-rotating ears were a good indicator of where that danger would come from. Unless Xen takes you out from long range. Then you're just as dead. Shut up. Nidoran happily pitter-pattered in front of him, keeping up a steady pace for such a small Pokémon. His ears moved slowly, only really making any sudden moves whenever he heard a loud noise or when someone came too close. The cityscape seemed to suit him just fine. The train station was farther away from the lab than Venam's gym had been. Luckily, it was far easier to find. Will quickly found out that all he had to do was follow the shoreline to the west and ignore all the bridges, walkways and crossings he came…across. Finally, after almost an hour's walk, Will made his way across a pair of train tracks, and knew he'd made it. East Gearen Station was a large, two-story box of a building with plenty of trees and shrubbery planted in the vicinity. A small crowd of people was passing through now that the trains were operable again. "Important place," Will told Nidoran, who looked up with curious eyes. "Let's hope nobody smuggled explosives inside." Nidoran made a barking sound. "Exactly." Nidoran hot on his heels, Will stepped inside of the station. Almost instantly, someone in the crowd singled him out and rapidly approached him. The stab of tension and surge of adrenaline following in its wake lasted only a second before Will realized who it was. "Tesla!" "Oh, Will, there you are!" Tesla said. "We meet again! How are you feeling? Are you okay?" "I'm…" Will hesitated. He didn't actually know how he was feeling. How he should be feeling. Yesterday's victory still happily drifted around in his mind, but so did everything else that happened since Team Xen attacked. "Not really sure." Her face was as warm and reassuring as it was the night she plucked him from the fire and the smoke. "Hey, it's okay to be unsure. You're in a troubling situation." "The others…" Will whispered. "Did you…?" Her expression fell, and his heart sank. "I'm sorry. By the time I got there, the ship was sinking rapidly. "On the upside, we didn't find anybody. No fatalities, either. Everything points to a mass abduction, not…the other thing." Will nodded at that. It wasn't a confirmation – not really – but it gave him something to hold on to. A little piece of flotsam for the mind. "Thank you for looking." She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Just know that you're not alone. I'm here for you, Will." Will averted his gaze, his eyes prickling with moisture. "But please, do not give up hope," Tesla continued. "Even in the most powerful pit of despair, we must press on." It wouldn't be easy. It would be far from easy, and Tesla had to know that as well. But this was too important to give into despair over. I'm going to find her, Tesla. I'm going to find her and free her. It wasn't an idea as much as it was a spark, a tiny spark that had yet to survive the transition to a full flame. He didn't admit it. Couldn't vocalize it yet. Instead, he said, "I will," he said. "I promise." His response came as a relief to her. He saw it in her eyes. "I believe you. Well, anyway, if you're here, that must mean you're going to Goldenwood Forest? In that case, just wait here one moment." Nidoran stared at Tesla as she suddenly turned and walked towards the nearest counter, easily striking up a conversation with the attendee. Whatever she was doing didn't take her longer than a minute, and she happily walked back over to Will when she wrapped things up. "Teehee, everything's taken care of Will," she said with a smirk. "I'm quite a regular customer here, so I told them you're my friend and now, they've given you a lifetime pass!" "…thank you," Will said, at a loss for words. Tesla had shown him such kindness, continued to give him such kindness, and he had nothing in return for her, nothing to show his gratitude with. "Don't worry about it," Tesla said, waving her hand dismissively. "It's the least I could do to help you get your feet off the ground. Do you have enough Potions?" Will took off his backpack and showed the quartet of Potions he'd bought at the store. "I think so?" "Here, take these as well," Tesla said, digging up a pair of expensive-looking healing items. "Goldenwood Forest is a good place to train for beginner trainers. Your Pokémon may become wounded during their training, but these will patch them up in no time." Nidoran wandered over to Tesla's feet and carefully circled around her, his ears constantly rotating. She smiled down at the little Pokémon. "I'm going back to my room at the Chrisola Hotel. If you need a place to stay, I'd be more than glad to help you out again." Chrisola Hotel…he had a score to settle with the moustache who worked there. As a matter of fact, he'd seen a request come through at the Help Center involving the hotel. Maybe he'd pay her a visit. "Thank you," he replied again, and he hated how he had nothing else to say to her. "I don't think that's necessary, but…maybe I can pay you a visit one day?" "I'd like that," she replied. "Good luck in the forest, Will!" With that, Tesla took her leave, and Will and Nidoran hopped on the train to Goldenwood Forest. "One day," Will said, carefully scooping his Poison-type up by his flanks and putting him on the seat next to him. "I will repay her. In full." Nidoran looked up at him, looking puzzled. "I don't know how," Wil admitted. The couple sitting opposite of him looked at him weirdly, before relocating to another seat. Nidoran spared them no attention. It took the train about fifteen minutes to make it to Goldenwood Forest. Will disembarked together with Nidoran, and stepped into a completely different world. Goldenwood Forest was…beautiful. It was as if the entire forest had transitioned into autumn without shedding the majority of its leaves. The trees were bright and healthy, their foliage truly living up to their namesake. The air smelled crisp and healthy and the ocean was mere meters removed from the train stop. The ocean water was as clear as crystal and the most beautiful color of blue. Leaves crunched underneath Will's feet as he stepped off the platform. Melia spotted him before he spotted her, and she leapt up from the seat she'd been waiting in. Nidoran shifted into a defensive position almost immediately, his poisonous spikes jutting up from his back. "Easy boy," Will said as Melia waved him over. "She's good people." "There you are Will! I was beginning to think you actually weren't going to show up…what took ya so long?" Will held out his hands in supplication. "The healing took longer than expected. We were pretty banged up." "Oh, I see," Melia said. "Guess Venam really gave it her all. Heh, whatever! Her loss is not our loss. Come on then! We have a lot of work and ground to cover if we want this field research to go well!" "What are we going to be researching?" Will asked. Melia laughed. "I'll show you along the way. Come!" She led him towards a wide open path underneath the trees, offering them just the right amount of shade. The path was wide enough to ride a car through, but judging by all the small Pokémon, young children and elderly people he saw around, this place didn't get much traffic. "Okay, so here is what's going on," Melia started. "My dad sent me here so that I could finish investigating the ruins back in Goldenwood Cave. But what I'm really interested in doing is investigating the Butterflies of Fate!" Will blinked, unsure if he'd heard her correctly. "Butterflies of Fate?" "Yeah, so there are rumors of Vivillon with translucent crystal blue wings. They're extremely rare and people seldom see them…well, anywhere?" "But you're expecting them here?" "Yeah! There have been reports of sightings in this area!" Melia excitedly said. "I just have to get a picture of them for my scrapbook!" Nodding, Will replied, "Gotcha." "Alright, so we can explore the forest first, or we can head directly into the cave. I've been here numerous times before so I'll leave that up to you, kay?" "Right, no stone unturned!" Will declared. He picked the direction that seemed most promising – that roughly translated to following the road, since the forest seemed to wrap around a lake – and promptly tripped over Nidoran and nearly planted on his face. "Oop, watch your step, Will!" Melia said. "I…am going to pretend that never happened," Will murmured, feeling his face grow red with shame. "Hihihi, I didn't see a thing then." Together, the pair set about exploring the forest. It was a sunny day with little wind, which meant a lot of fishermen had decided to cast their lot at the lake. Most of them were pretty chill, but one of them in particular got so angry when Melia and Will passed by that he leapt up from his seat and challenged them to a double battle on the spot. Still, he was an angry fisherman and Melia and Will were dedicated trainers. His Nidoran and her Bunneary together made short work of the angry fisherman's three recently caught fish. The man took a deep breath through his nose, then promptly sat back down. "Maybe it's time to stop fishing anyway…" "Uhm…maybe?" Melia said. The man turned his gaze to the creek he'd been fishing in, and just…sat there, staring and unmoving. "Right…Will, let's go," Melia quietly said, and the two left. Not every fisherman was so cranky. One of them eagerly waved the pair over and explained that he'd been having some trouble lately. Shane the Friendly Fisherman had been having some trouble catching a certain fish in the lake. He reasoned, perhaps if someone were to offer him three apricorns from around the area, he might be able to turn them into a lure powerful enough to finally hook his prey. Will, guessing that the man was a loon, decided he wanted no part in that. Just as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and turned around, he heard Melia excitedly yell, "Have no fear mister fisherman! We'll get you those apricorns on the double!" "Melia…" Will said. "Really?" She vigorously nodded. "I'm curious to see what he's going to fish up. Come on, there should be some apricorns along the shore to the left." "I…ehm…sure?" If Shane the Friendly Fisherman turned out to be Not-So-Friendly like his brethren, Will reasoned that they could handle him pretty easily, so perhaps it wasn't the biggest deal. "So Will, how did you end up in Gearen City?" Melia asked after a minute of silence. "Did you come here with friends? Family?" Will stopped in his tracks and his thoughts grinded to a halt. Indecision washed over him. He didn't want to talk about it –he'd grown to hate talking about it – but he'd told Tesla he would keep up hope, he'd promised her and Melia seemed so nice, so sincere and – "Will?" She asked again. "I…came here on the S.S. Oceana," he slowly replied, searching for the right words. They'd been having a good day, he didn't want to ruin that, didn't want to stain that. "And I am alone. Now." "The Oceana, wait, didn't that…" The realization seemed to hit Melia like a brick wall. She gasped, her hands clasping across her mouth. "Oh no, Will, I'm so sorry, I didn't realize – " "No, that's okay, I – " "And we've been dragging you across the city all this time," Melia continued, looking shaken. "To the sewers, to Venam – I'm so sorry!" "Please don't," he urged her, chest aching, thoughts jumbling. "Please, keep distracting – look, I'm coping, somewhat, and it's complicated, but so long as I'm busy, I think I can manage, but I don't like talking about it – " he was rambling. He was rambling and didn't know where he was going, where he wanted to go – "Then…did you enjoy yourself, at Venam's gym?" Melia then asked. His thoughts grinded to a halt again, before switching gears. "I did," Will said, and he meant it. She offered him a small smile. "I'm glad to hear that. She can be a handful, but her heart's in the right place. You wanna go find those apricorns?" Will nodded silently, and they went to gather the stuff the fisherman needed. He didn't have a lot of things to talk to Melia about yet, so he mostly just listened to her talk. Melia was a couple of years younger than him; she would turn sixteen this year. She'd moved to Gearen together with her father and she'd been assisting him with his research for as long as she could remember. "Which is when my father suddenly pulled me away from Route 2 and asked me to come here instead," Melia wrapped things up while they made their way back to the other side of the lake, back to the fisherman. "It was a bit weird. Usually he sends me to more local areas to complete my research." "Maybe the local areas ran out," Will offered. "Yeah, maybe…" The fisherman watched them return with eagerness. "Do you have the stuff I asked for?" "Yep," Melia said, rummaging around in her back for the apricorns. "We have all three of them right here…" He eyed the items for a moment, stroking his chin as he appraised them. "Yep, yep…this seems like the right amount. Gimme a moment…" Will and Melia sat back, watching the fisherman tinker around with some equipment, the apricorns and his rod. Then, the man cast his line and started fishing. Fishing, Will quickly learned, was an art that peak concentration, focus and determination. It was also an art that took looooooong to perform. But suddenly, after more than thirty minutes of sitting around watching some dude fish, his line went taut, and nearly pulled him off his feet into the lake. "WHOA! I GOT A BITE!" The fisherman yelled. His struggle began as whatever he caught attempted to reverse the situation to pull him in instead. "Oh, oh! You got this!" Melia excitedly yelped. "C'mon mister fisherman, put your back in it!" The fisherman groaned, the muscles in his arms bulging as he fished for his life. "I think you go it! That lure really is putting in the work!" "I think…I think I've…GOT IT!" With a roar and a mighty heave, the fisherman pulled his line in completely – - and something massive and solid landed with a heavy THUMP in the grass below them. It looked like some sort of quadrupedal Pokémon with a segmented, barbed body and thick, stocky limbs. Six dull, round eyes covered its facial plate, and the entire thing looked completely rusted through. "That's the weirdest fish I've ever seen…" Melia said, sounding somewhat disappointed. It looked more like a Pokémon statue than a fish to Will, but he wasn't a fisherman, so… "I don't think that's a fish," the fisherman grimly said, slowly stepping back. Just as Wil decided that perhaps he was a fisherman after all, sparks erupted from the inert statue's form, and it got to its feet. "Uh, it's getting up," the fisherman said. "Is this some kind of undiscovered Pokémon or something?" Will frowned, reaching for Combusken's Poke Ball. "No…that's a machine," Melia then said. The machine turned towards the three of them. Its eyes lit up, flickered, then began glowing a deep shade of crimson. "A-Ar…" A distorted, mechanical voice emanated from its skull. "It doesn't look very friendly!" "Kids, let's get out of here!" The fisherman yelled. Too late, Will thought. He took two quick steps to the right, putting himself in-between the thing and Melia. "Combusken, take it out!" Combusken darted forwards the thing, her beak opening wide as she spat a storm of Embers at the thing. Bolts of fire slammed into its frame, scorching its hide and blasting tiny gouges wherever its armor was thinner. The machine, unfeeling and unbothered by the heat, continued forwards. It picked up an impressive speed for its bulk and began storming through Combusen's attack. "Rghh…what is this thing's deal?!" Melia exclaimed. "This isn't a Pokémon!" "Arr…" the thing grunted again. Its eyes flashed, and before even Combusken could react, it sprang at Melia and Will with sudden ferocity – Out of nowhere, a bolt of blue energy smashed into its body. It came apart in a flash, metal tearing and crumpling, wires melting and popping. Its bifurcated remains fell to the ground, smoking and faintly glowing. "There, on the bridge," Will called out, and Combusken braced herself for another attack. But it never came. A woman with a purple dress stood on the bridge a rough twenty meters ahead, with a Dusclops standing by her side. "Be wary of your surroundings." She called to them. "Secrets lie in the place where the eye cannot reach." Her message delivered, she calmly turned away and headed in the direction of the cave, never once sparing the three of them another look. "U-um, thank you very much!" Melia weakly said. "You okay?" Will asked. He hadn't seen her get hit with anything, but a piece of shrapnel or something could still have hit her body when that machine burst. "Y-Yeah," Melia said, quickly looking herself over for any sign of an injury. "I'm okay. That was really scary though…I've never seen anything like that. " "In all my years of fishing, I have never, ever seen such a thing," the fisherman said, pale and shaken. "I have to apologize for not being able to protect you guys. I don't even have a Pokémon of my own…" "N-No, it's cool!" Melia quickly said. "It all worked out anyway thanks to that woman. I've seen her in the forest a couple of times before, but I don't know her name." Will stared at the robotic remains, which continued smoldering on the grass. It…looked faintly familiar to him. Had someone modeled it after a Pokémon? And that woman…she must have been watching them the entire time, ready to strike at a moment's notice. Had she worked for Team Xen, those smoldering ruins might have been him, or Melia. It was a sobering reality. He had to do better. "Well, that's enough excitement for today," Melia sighed. "Let's go to the caves next!" Will saw no reason to disagree. The road split into multiple parts up ahead. A turn to the right would eventually take them all the way to Goldenleaf Town, while the turn to the left would lead them to…the wilderness, Will guessed. They'd found a couple of black apricorns there and then they'd turned back. But if they followed the road all the way to the hills up North, they'd end up at Goldenwood Caves, Melia's next research target. "What do you plan on doing after this, if you don't mind me asking?" Melia said as they headed towards the hills. "Are you going to take the League Challenge eventually?" Good question. "Maybe. I have…someone to look for. To find her, I need to become stronger. Gym challenges seem like a good start." "Someone to look for…hey, do you think maybe I could help you out, when we're done here?" Will shot her a look of surprise. "You'd do that?" She shrugged. "Don't see why not? I've been around Aevium. So has dad. We know some people who know other people. We can help you build a bit of a network, if that's what you need? Help you contact the right people." "I would like that," Will replied. First Tesla, now Melia… "Oh, there we are," Melia suddenly said, pointing upwards. "IF we follow the route up there, past those rocks, we'll find the entrance." "I don't see it," Will admitted. "Here, let me show you…" After a few minutes of hiking, the two of them made it to official entrance to the caves. What was once a natural formation had been reinforced and upgraded by people. Wooden bridges connected loose stone platforms, makeshift lanterns illuminated the way forward and improvised signs warned visitors which ways were safe to explore, and which routes were best left alone. "You know, there's something I gotta say," Melia spoke up a few minutes into their spelunking adventure. "It is in your best interest to know that once we get to the ruins…well, we may be there for a little bit." "Okay?" Melia fidgeted a bit. "So…if you have somewhere more important to be today…?" Ah. "I said I'd spent the day with you," Will reassured her. She tried to hide it, but he saw that his response came as a relief to her. "Oh, that's – that's good! I mean, well…" "Is that the mural, down there?" Will asked, helping her along a bit Her brow furrowed in momentary confusion, then she followed his gaze to the far end of the cave, opposite of a wooden walkway that seemed a bit ramshackle. "It is," Melia confirmed. You should be careful though!" "Of what?" Will asked, making his way towards the bridge. "That the bridge is old, and fragile, and…oh, you're just crossing it, huh?" "Shouldn't I?" "It took me minutes to cross it the first time. Everything kept creaking and groaning, wood would start to crack under my feet…I kept thinking I would fall into the water." Will took the last step to the other side, taking a moment to inspect the wooden bridge he'd just casually strolled across. "Sounds like you were overthinking it." "Maybe," Melia replied. "I guess…" She crossed the bridge after him – slowly, stopping occasionally whenever one of the plates creaked a bit too hard. "Do you see that wall, behind the two pillars?" It was hard to miss. The mural was meticulously crafted, all straight lines and neat circles. To Will's inexperienced eye, it looked like an artist's rendition of a big star, or the sun perhaps, with an upside-down triangle in the middle. Every point of the triangle ended in a little circle. "These are the ruins I've been investigating for a few weeks now. It's hard to decipher what it looks like, but currently it has a few interpretations. The blocky bits on the sides resemble buildings, and the circle in the center looks like the sun." Melia walked past Will and approached the mural, placing her hand to emphasize the parts she described. "It has ancient letters from the Garufa civilization scattered across." She glanced at him over her shoulder. "Do you know about the Garufa?" Not taking his eyes off the symbols Melia had described, Will quietly nodded. Karen's disjointed laughter was still fresh in his mind. "The Garufans have long since died out, but they've left their mark on this world. But isn't that what's strange, though? If this mural was made by the Garufans, then these blocky parts can't be buildings…their technology had not given them the opportunity to build such structures." "How certain are we about that?" "I…" Melia frowned. "Reasonably sure. I believe the answer lies in the symbols scattered around the mural though. The text itself is an ancient language and is completely unreadable. Until today, that is!" Will raised an eyebrow at her. "You're kidding." "Nope! My dad took all the pictures I've taken of this place and wrote an algorithm to decode the message. All I need to do is take three new snapshots and upload them to the database." Was it really that simple? Scientists had achieved miraculous things, but deciphering an ancient language using math? A dead language? "Let's get started!" Melia said. She hopped to the left, took a quick picture, then scooted over to the right. As she worked, Will looked at the mural again. Magic is a beautiful thing, isn't it? Even if the language was old and dead, was deciphering it really a good idea? "Say cheese, Will!" Melia suddenly told him, before snapping a picture of him, too. Will was a hundred percent certain he'd blinked when she took that picture. "Did you get my good side?" "Oh yeah, I got your good side. Don't worry about that!" She happily replied. "Well, anyway, I have to upload the pictures to the database and have the algorithm do its thing. So uhm…let's wait for that, then?" As the algorithm did its thing, Melia leant down against one of the pillars and started playing with Hapi, her little Togepi. Will, meanwhile, sent his Pokémon out and took his time exploring the cave. With Poochyena chasing down the Woobats that hung around the area and Nidoran carefully scouting out the edge, Will was free to watch Combusken roam around as well, eyeing her to see how much she had really changed. Being part Fighting-type now, she could augment her flames with powerful kicks and swipes. He still wasn't sure what made her tick, considering how two previous trainers had failed to build up a good friendship with her. She'd made her displeasure for his commands known plenty of times, but if she hadn't obeyed him at a critical moment against Venam, they would have lost. Perhaps that had changed things for her? Combusken stared out across the cave, taking in her new surroundings. Then, she kicked off and leapt across one of the bridges, easily covering half a dozen meters in a single bound. Upon landing, she took a moment to reorient herself, then bounded off again. Will started to see new possibilities for future fights. He took his Cybernav and began taking notes. Meanwhile, the algorithm kept chugging along. After a small half hour, Melia perked up. "It's done decoding the message!" "Break's over guys." Will called out, his voice echoing through the cave. Echo…echo…echo… "I got it," Melia gripped her tablet with both hands, staring at its screen with focused eyes. "Here's what the message says…the light within the belly of Ouroboros shall never cease, lest the flames be doused by the will of the suffering." The two exchanged an uneasy look. "Uhm…I think the ancients need a day off, and maybe some therapy," she said uncomfortably. Behind them, the mural started shaking. Bits of rocks and shards of stone crumbled and fell, before an entire section of the wall collapsed. Revealing a passageway in the process. "A part of the mural collapsed! But why? We didn't even touch it…" "You spoke the magic words," Will said, only half joking. Melia shot him a look of unease. "There's ah, a whole other part of the cave back here. Do you think we just made a huge discovery?" "Combusken, got a light?" Will said. His starter hopped landed next to him, peeked inside of the entry, then happily bounded through. She found something flammable, and a faint light emanated from within the tunnel a couple of moments later. "Oooh, this is so exciting!" Melia said. "Let's investigate right away!" Before Will could warn her, she followed after Combusken and darted inside. "Poochyeana, you're up front. Nidoran, in the rear," Will quietly said. "Let's go." The cave behind the mural felt different. The air was damper and smelled like dirty water. The fire Combusken had lit was nestled atop two makeshift torchlights flanking another mural. It depicted a large Pokémon with a star-shaped crest on its back, but Will couldn't make out its identity. Poochyena led them across another wooden bridge, this one crafted as carefully and meticulously as the mural had been. It sure didn't creak like the others when Will crossed it Melia was a few meters ahead of him, studying one of the murals. "There are even more back here…" she muttered, barely noticing Will's team catch up to her. "But unlike the first one, these are purely visual." She spared him a glance, and her expression was one of concern. "Will, this place keeps me the creeps." Poochyena bounded ahead. He halted past another bridge, looked to the right and remained locked in place. Will squinted his eyes. He thought he saw sunlight creeping through the rocks there. "Looks like an exit." "Let's hurry, then." Poochyena was right on the money. He hadn't just found them a way out of the cave, he'd found them a way into a beautiful little grove nestled between the hills and the forest. Will saw another wooden bridge covering a small pond up ahead, but the path disappeared behind a row of trees. The air felt quiet and calm. Nidoran calmly peeked his head out from between his legs and trotted into the cove, his ears nestled on his neck. "Looks like we're clear," Will said. "Oh…who would have thought a place like this existed all the way back here?" Melia asked. Will wasn't sure if she was being rhetorical, but he answered her nonetheless. "Is this place on any of your maps?" "Not currently, no," Melia said, slowly taking in her surroundings. "If it's true that no one's found this place before, then we just made an amazing discovery!" "Not sure about that," Will said, jabbing his thumb at the bridge below. "Oh! There's a bridge? That means someone's definitely been back here before." Her expression fell. "Aw man, what a bummer. Still, it's not on the map, and as such this place lacks a name. Hm…let's see…what about "The Silent Grove? It's a cute little grove located in secrecy. The person who's been here before has been silent about its existence. Therefore it's a silent grove! Get it?" The Silent Grove…"I think that fits," Will said. That seemed to please her. "Let's take a look around and see what we can find~." Will expected to find maybe another cave, or a herd of sleeping Pokémon or something. What he didn't expect was for Melia and him to turn the literal corner and stumble across what looked like a whole castle. "Whoa," Melia exclaimed. "What did we just stumble onto?" She tried the gate at the main entrance, but it was locked shut. "Could…could this place be an undiscovered castle of some sort?" "A castle for whom?" Will asked. "There were many kingdoms in the past…but all of them eventually fell. I…" A Pokémon emerged from the sky and fluttered down towards them. It was roughly Melia's size, and shaped like a giant, blue butterfly with large, gentle eyes. It curiously flapped around them, but it kept its distance. "Oh? Look, it's a Vivillon – Oh my gosh! Th-The wings on that Vivillon! Translucent crystal blue wings!" Will saw it too. The Butterfly of Fate. "Take a picture, before it leaves," he urged Melia. Too late. The Vivillon fluttered upwards, towards the upper layer of the castle. "No! I have to take a picture before it leaves for good!" She cried. Without hesitation, she ran after it, running up the crumbling and decrepit set of stone stairs to the right. "Melia, careful," he shouted after. "It's not safe! It could collapse!" Will sprinted up the stairs after her. He was taller and fitter than her, and quickly managed to catch up with her at the roof. "Melia, you – " His voice trailed off as she saw what she was looking at. There, amidst four giant pillars of stone and crystal, stood a statue the size of a small house. It rested atop a crest of sorts, divided by four sword-like protrusions in diagonal directions. Two of the translucent Vivillon gently floated in circles around the statue, seemingly oblivious to the human intruders. "This statue…" Melia said, staring up at the massive statue with large eyes. "It's of the Pokémon Arceus. Or, Almighty Sinnoh, as some call it" Arceus, the great creator of the world and all its inhabitants. A literal god – the literal God. "What's a statue of Arceus doing back here?" Melia asked, staring up at the portrayal of Arceus as if hypnotized. "And why is this place crawling with Vivillon that were said to be extremely rare?" "Picture," Will whispered at her, not daring to move another inch for fear of disturbing the Pokémon. "Picture." "I'm going to get a rockin' picture," Melia replied. SNAP. SNAP. Melia double-checked to see if the pictures were any good, then gave him a thumbs-up. "And that's that! We got everything we needed! I guess we can go back home now." She took a few steps towards the stairs, then halted. "Hm…it'd be a waste to not spend some time here, though…" She shot him a curious glance. "Hey Will, are ya hungry?" A couple of minutes later, the two of them had carefully emptied the contents of Melia's bag and built a nice little picnic together. Melia put down a pair of pillows and plopped down in one of them. "Tada!" She said, throwing her hands in the air in victory. "I fixed us up a full dinner! There's no way I can finish all of this so don't hesitate to munch on up!" "Don't mind if I do," Will said, smiling at how extraverted Melia got. "You've been hauling this with you the entire time?" "It's real lightweight," Melia said, grabbing a slice of bread and some jam. "Doesn't weigh more than a few kilos. Its the briefcase that's the heaviest. So uhm…you said you were looking for someone. Can I ask who?" Will took a breath. Melia had been so nice and welcoming to him, not to mention patient. He had no reason not to reciprocate that. "My mother. Team Xen took her. I'm going to find her, and get her back." He brought Melia up to speed about what had happened. He struggled. He tried to be concise and keep the emotions out of his sentences, but even that he found difficult to do. By keeping it simple and objective though, he was able to explain the most important details. "Wow…I can't believe you've been through all that…" Melia said, thoughtfully chewing on a sandwich. She quickly swallowed, then said, "Team Xen is known to cause minor issues, but never anything on that scale. I'm really sorry you've been through that. If there's any silver lining to all of this, it's that you got to meet and hang out with Ren, Venam and I! We're not, like, the most exciting crew ever, but we're to welcome a new friend. Especially one that's in need of some people looking out for them." "I…really appreciate it," Will said. "You three have been so nice to me. I hope I can build up something good here, along the way. Having you three as friends…I'd like that." Melia's smile slowly faded when he said that, a pained look playing across her features. "Well…that offer is only on the table for Venam and Ren," she quietly said. "Today was my last day in East Gearen City." "Your last?" Will asked, concerned. "Why?" "Because tomorrow I'm headed over to Grand Dream City to become the Normal-Type Gym Leader," Melia explained, her expression a mixture of emotions. "All the way to the capital?" "It's true. If I'm honest, I'm not really sure how to feel about this…" She confessed. "It wasn't really my decision to become a Gym Leader. It was my dad's. He's the one who pushed me to get this far." She worked her jaw, frustration becoming evident in her eyes. "I'm about to be thrown into a huge city I know nothing about. Alone." Well, shit. Will couldn't think of anyone who would like something like that, especially not a teenage girl who only had her father to fall back on. Melia would be in for some rough, lonely times. "I'm…I'm scared," Melia admitted. Her voice quivered. She cast a fearful look his way. "Will…if…if you don't know what to do next, would you come with me?" She blurted out. Will thought about that for a moment. "If I had a place to sleep there, I would. If I can search Aevium from Grand Dream City, then…yeah." Melia sprang to her feet. "What am I saying? It's selfish for me to ask you something like that." Frustrated, she added, "Forget I even asked, okay?" Perhaps. Perhaps not. He wasn't sure if it was fair for professor Jenner to take his daughter all the way to a new city, alone, without knowing anyone there. Then again, that's what mom and him were doing too, wasn't it? Except…it wasn't. Not really. Melia had friends she would leave behind. He hadn't had that, had he? Not like her. Melia would be leaving the entirely of her life behind. "Will," Melia then said, facing him again. "Let's fight." He cocked an eyebrow at that. "Uh, not hand-to-hand, of course," she quickly amended. "I don't think I could win a fight like that, but…if I'm going to be gym leader, I'm going to need some practice! Let's fight on top of this castle-structure-thing! A suitable battlefield for us, no?" "Of course," Will quietly replied. ~~~~~~~(II)~~~~~~~ "Squad Four-Four has arrived, ETA four minutes to location. "Squad Three-Eight is in position at the south, ready for your call." The man nodded to himself, waiting for the confirmation of the final squad before he'd move onto his objective. The target was there, alone. This operation would be quick and easy. Nevertheless… He glanced at the serene lake in the midst of the forest. Just in case something went wrong. Just in case someone interfered. He set about preparing CODE:EVO. ~~~~~~~(III)~~~~~~~ Professor Jenner eased himself back into his chair. The morning had flown by. He completed what little work he had left despite the constant anxiety eating away at his stomach. He spent an hour in the starter room, staring at the myriad little Pokémon that the lab had bought, rescued or otherwise acquired in its partnership with the League. The League…bah. Jenner continued his work, trying anything and everything to keep himself distracted from what was about to come. The afternoon crept along. The pain in his stomach grew. Jenner stared at the clock. Four in the afternoon. A cold pit settled in his stomach. He felt like he was about to throw up. Sixteen thirty in the afternoon. Set. It was about to happen. Jenner buried his face in his hands, tears burning behind his eyes. ~~~~~~~(IV)~~~~~~~ "I see," Melia softly said as she recalled Togepi. "So that's how it goes. Looks like I've still got a long way to go. That's okay, isn't it? You can't be the best all the time. I'll take this battle as a lesson." Will hadn't held back. He couldn't have. Holding back against Melia when she was so earnest, so eager to improve, would have hurt her dignity. Had it been the other way around, he would have preferred it that way, too. "I think practice like this is best. To learn to cover your weaknesses, to play to your strengths…" He idly brushed Combusken's fuzzy head. "That's important." "I see…thanks for the battle, and…well, thank you for spending my last day with me!" Melia said. "That really means a lot to me. Should…no, let's go down first, clean up after ourselves." Thankfully their battle hadn't damaged the castle one bit. The Garufan had built their stuff to last. The stairs didn't collapse as they made their way down again, and together, they began cleaning up. "Let's fold the cloth together," Melia said. "You take those corners; hold them out…the other way. Your left…the other hand, yes! Now – " Will's vision swam. A thick, smothering carpet of bluish light descended upon mind, his senses, his being. For a second, the world looked off, wrong, skewed, and his heart slowed to a crawl. His eyes darted to Melia and he knew she experienced the same thing. Frozen in place, eyes wide in fear. The ground trembled, like the aftershock of an earthquake suddenly struck the land in reverse order– KA-BOOM! A tremendous explosion in the distance rattled the ground, and Melia and Will stumbled as the shockwaves buffeted the forest. In the distance, Will could hear what sounded like screams. Adrenaline flooded his system and he spun around. "What was that?" Melia breathed. "Goldenwood Forest," Will replied. "Trouble." "Let's forget the blanket, we have to go back to the forest immediately!" Melia made to sprint past him, but Will held out his hand, stopping her in her tracks. "Let's…be careful," he said, his voice sounding much calmer than he felt." She stared at him in surprise? "Will?" "Just a hunch," he muttered. "Let's not run straight in." It didn't look like she understood, not completely, but she didn't ignore him either. "There could be people hurt. Let's be quick about it, at least!" They hurried back towards the cave entrance. Melia rushed through and Will lingered for a quick moment, before sending Poochyena out. "Stick with her, keep her safe," he ordered. Poochyena uttered a sharp "urf!" and sprinted after Melia. Will performed one more quick scan of his surroundings, then turned to enter the cave as well – - only to come face to face with an Absol perched atop the entrance, mere feet away. It stared at Will with dark, emotionless eyes. An Absol…the herald of disaster, Will thought, his heartbeat quickening. Why - ? "Melia…" Will whispered. The Absol looked in the direction of the explosion, then back at Will. It shrieked, causing Will to flinch and tense up, but then it just turned and bounded up the hills, quickly disappearing from sight. "Melia!" Will broke into a sprint. The damp air of the cave batted at his face as he hurried across the wooden bridges and back towards the broken mural. He heard Poochyena yipping further ahead, not too far away. It can't be. Not here. Not already. He barely registered that some of the wooden planks shattered underneath his feet. He bolted across the bridge, hurrying after Melia towards the entrance. It took him a couple of minutes to make it back to the entrance. He saw Melia's silhouette outlined by the rays of the sun and uttered a sigh of relief. She'd waited for him. "There's people outside," she whispered at him. "Stay close," and be careful, he whispered back. He walked past her and exited the cave, back into Goldenwood Forest. Goons with black uniforms and matching caps. A black truck blocking the route to the west, another one parked across the road to Goldenleaf Village. Will felt sick . "So it's them…" Melia said. "Team Xen is here!" One of the goons crossed her arms over her chest. A large, batlike Pokémon with a large, gaping mouth hovered over her. "Glad you've heard of us. But enough talk. We're here for the girl. Any resistance will result in a firm display of our wrath." The girl.. They're after Melia! Melia gasped. "Me? Why me? What did I do!" Poochyena stood in front of her, his hackles raised. His lips were pulled back, baring his large, sharp canines. "You don't need to know all that," another grunt chimed in, slowly walking up the stone stairs to close the distance. Slowly, Xen was surrounding them. A third of the goons, standing just a dozen meters away from the entrance, sent out his Pokémon. It was a small feline, just a bit larger than Poochyena, its hide a deep, purple hue. "Back away punk," the goon snapped at Will. "This doesn't concern you." "That Meowth…there's something different about it," Melia said. The Xen goon scoffed. "Yeah, Madelis wasn't able to hide its appearance, but you're right. This is what's called a Shadow Pokémon. A Pokémon that has its heart and mind completely close and all its unnecessary emotions stripped. A ruthless fighting machine. It's gonna claw your guts out if you don't back away now." Images of his mother amidst a smoke-filled wreck flooded his mind. Will clenched his fists, then took two steps to the left, stepping in front of Melia. Wordlessly, he retrieved Nidoran's ball and sent him out. Come and get us, he thought, anger pulsing through his body, swiftly washing away the fear and trepidation he felt. No way. There was no way he would let them take Melia after they'd taken his mom, too. For a moment, nobody moved. Melias stared at him. The Xen grunts stared at him, the Meowth and Nidoran glared at each other. For several long seconds, the steady growl emanating from Poochyena's throat and the faint humming of Xen's trucks were the only sources of noise. Then, everything exploded into motion. The Meowth leapt towards Will, hissing, but Nidoran body-checked him off course. The thug on the stairs sprinted towards Melia, ready to tackle her to the ground, and Poochyena flew towards him, sinking his teeth deep into the man's calves. The man stumbled and cursed, then began kicking with his leg to get Poochyena off. "Hey! Someone get this mutt off of me!" The Meowth screeched – an unearthly, feral noise filled with hatred – and Nidoran yelped his own challenge, lowering his head and charging. "Will! Enter the code 6489 into the briefcase!" Melia shouted. "Maybe…maybe something in there will give us a chance! Hurry!" Will spun towards the briefcase and dove for it. Poochyena's snarling and brief whines of pain filled his ears, even as the other grunts began yelling orders at each other. With trembling fingers, he put the code into the little lock. The briefcase snapped open. A prosthesis of sorts lay inside. A heavy glove connected by a thin cable to an oval shoulder-pad. Its metal frame shone faintly in the sunlight, freshly polished. Fifteen Poke Balls surrounded the arm's frame, as if they were made to be used together. "A glove?" Melia said. "Wait a minute…no way…Will, you have to trust me and listen! Put that glove on!" Nidoran and Poochyena were buying what little time they had for them. He hoped Melia knew what she was doing! Will slid his hand into the glove and strapped the device across his arm. The machine pulsated, then somehow, it seemed to fit itself around his arm. Its inner surface felt smooth and cool. "Will, this is going to sound awful, but I need you to catch that Meowth," Melia said. "Impossible," Will replied. "I know!" Melia impatiently said. "Normally! But that device is called a Snag Machine! It gives you the ability to override the command of a trainer's Poke Ball and snag away their Shadow Pokémon. I'll fill you in on the details later, just snag that Meowth from them!" Will didn't hesitate any longer. As Nidoran kept the Meowth back, making good use of its poisonous spikes, Will snatched a Poke Ball from the briefcase and readied it. It felt like the Snag Machine read his intentions. It seamlessly moved along with him, its metallic fingers actually making the movement easier instead of hindering him. When he threw the ball, he felt the machine's circuits and motors interfere with his fingers. It tugged at his ring finger, pushed down on his thumb right as he threw. The ball, which would have otherwise been a miss, hit the Meowth in the middle of an attack. "What!" The thug yelled. The Shadow Pokémon disappeared inside of the ball, which fell to the ground and began shaking. Behind him, he heard Poochyena utter a cry of pain as one of the other Xen grunts finally kicked him off his initial target. Poochyena sailed through the air and landed in a heap on the rocks, blood dripping from its nose and mouth. "Damnit," he thug groaned, holding his mangled leg with trembling hands. Blood seeped from between his fingers. "That fucking mutt, I'l – " Slowly, with pained movements, Poochyena pulled himself back to his feet. He limped towards Melia, nearly collapsed, then bared his bloodied teeth at the grunts again. A burst of white light erupted from Poochyena's chest, before completely overtaking his body and enveloping him in a corona of white energy. His limbs grew longer and stockier, his maw more elongated and pronounced. His short fur became longer and shaggy. The light dissipated, revealing Poochyena's evolved form. The fur running across his spine and paws was as black as the night and his eyes, a deep red with yellow sclera, were set in a wild glare that radiated malice. He was easily three times as large now, his spine coming up to Will's hips. One look at the newly-evolved Dark-type told Will that round two was half a second away. "My Meowth!" The other grunt sputtered. "How – how did you - /" "It worked!" Melia exclaimed. "But why would a Snag Machine be in the briefcase…unless - !" "Nidoran, stick close. Mightyena, break through!" Will ordered. He grabbed Melia's wrist and pulled her along. "We gotta move, let's go!" ~~~~~~~(IV)~~~~~~~ Within the bombed-out, ruined remains of Goldenwood's lake, the man stared at his handiwork. He paid the dozens of flopping, choking Magikarp no mind. His focus was on the swirling mass of energy in front of him, sustaining it, keeping it in shape. It would not be long now. "Z-Zetta, sir?" A scared voice said behind him. Zetta sighed. He'd given specific orders not to be disturbed unless absolutely necessary. "Lemme guess. You're here to tell me you screwed up?" He could practically hear the man behind him swallow nervously. "We failed, sir, yes." Zetta rolled his eyes and turned to confront his grunt. "But of course you did. I didn't expect you to win. This is fine; a good fight is what I need anyway. Go on and get out of here then." But his grunt lingered. "T-There's something else, sir." Seeing his subordinate's hesitation, Zetta wondered if he'd overlooked something. "Out with it." "Melia came here with another trainer." "So?" Zetta replied, not bothering to hide the annoyance in his voice. "This friend of hers is incredibly tough, and they have a…a Snag Machine. They were able to successfully snag away my Meowth…" The urge to punch something nearly overcame Zetta, but he reined in his frustration. "That damn Professor…" He hissed. "Tch. Well, it's not like they can escape. They'll make their way down here eventually. Kill the other one if you can. If not, well, they won't be able to handle me." "Yes sir!" His subordinate called, then turned and ran from there. Zetta sighed again, then turned to his pair of executives. "You two best get ready. I doubt this will go as planned." His personal guard headed towards the crater's entrance, ready to intercept the pair when they inevitably realized that they could not escape. ~~~~~~~(V)~~~~~~~ "Shadow Pokémon," Melia gasped as Will and Mightyena ran ahead of her through the dense forest. "I can't believe they're actually back!" "Don't think about that," Will shot back, his eyes darting from tree to tree to try and spot any other surprises. Two times they'd been jumped by Team Xen members and two times, he'd fought them off. Melia had plenty of healing items that could keep his team going in the short run, but time wasn't on their side. He saw Pokémon moving around them in his periphery. They were going in the opposite direction. Were they fleeing the forest because of that explosion from earlier? Was Team Xen trying to capture them? "This is crazy! The day was going so well, and now this!" "I know," Will replied. He couldn't for the life of him guess what Xen wanted with Melia, but that wasn't important right now. He wasn't going to let them take her. "Come on, I think I see a clearing over there." Mightyena gave a short, warning bark, then melted into the shadow of a tree and froze. Will signaled for Melia to stop, then saw what Mightyena was warning them about. A pair of Xen grunts swept through the forest, coordinating with each other as they searched for their target. "More of them!" Melia said. "Do we hide?" "No time," Will said, wincing as he made up his mind. If they hid, Team Xen would consolidate on top of their location and beat them with overwhelming numbers. "We get through now or we'll be staying in this forest." "That's Melia!" One of the grunts shouted. "Over there, in the treeline!" "Stay put," Will ordered Mightyena. "You flank them." "Don't bother running!" The other goon yelled as they sprinted towards the pair. "It's funny, but meaningless!" Will sent Combusken out, but kept her close, baiting the two closer. They sent out their own Pokémon too. Like the other Grunts, they were outfitted with smaller, inexperienced Pokémon, using them as extra muscle instead of making them their core tactic. Had his own Pokemon been smaller, less trained, that idea would have worked handily. As it was… Will wasn't about to complain. "Mightyena, now!" As the foe Sinistea flowed past the tree to charge up an attack, Mightyena emerged from the shadows, clamping his jaws shut around the floating Ghost-type like a vice. He plucked the Pokemon out of the air and began shaking it wildly. "What!" The closest grunt yelled, jumping back in shock. "Taillow, take him out!" His Taillow came in fast and low, deftly navigating the branches and trees and swooping down with sudden ferocity. Not at Combusken, but at him! Will threw his arms up just in time to catch something hard and sharp impact his face. A searing pain shot through the left part of his face as he felt skin part and blood drip down his neck. That wasn't a miss, but a deliberate attack! This was insane, they were actively targeting him with their Pokémon! Melia cried out his name, and Will threw himself to the ground just in time to avoid another attack. Combusken was on top of him in an instant, spewing bolts of Ember to drive off the attacking Taillow. Just one more Pokémon, he thought in a daze. Gotta keep moving! He pushed himself back to his feet. He caught a glimpse of Mightyena slamming its body against the legs of the Taillow's trainer – the sounds of his leg snapping was audible from meters away – before sprinting away at full speed, darting past Will and Melia like a phantom. "Will, are you alright? Your face!" Melia said, her voice tight with concern. Will brought his hand to his head. It came away sticky with blood. It hurt, but he could still see and his depth perception hadn't changed. A few centimeters higher though and the Taillow would have gouged out his eye. The realization shook him to his core; Team Xen wasn't playing around. "Fine," he mumbled, still shocked by the simplicity of his enemy's tactics. "I'm fine, it's just a cut." It couldn't be much farther now .Will saw light ahead. The shade thinned and vanished because the part of the forest there was gone. The trees had been leveled, blasted to splinters. The lake had been destroyed. At its center floated a whirling mass of black stuff, a ball of coalesced energy or…something. Will didn't know and he wasn't going to stick around to find out. "The lake…they've completely destroyed it!" Melia gasped. Her eyes narrowed as she gazed at the disturbance floating in the air. "That dark ball of energy…I don't like the look of that at all. Can we…can we really do this?" Will wasn't sure if Melia would like his answer. He wasn't sure if he even could answer that. "Doesn't matter, we have to!" He said. She nodded, her expression grim. "You're right Will. We have to win! We can't lose here! Our lives…our lives depend on it! We can do this!" Team Xen had come out in force. They had their vans and cars everywhere, blocking every road, every avenue of approach. This wasn't some ragtag bunch of terrorists, this was like an invasion army! Will felt his head spin. This was what he was up against? This was the group he planned on taking on by himself? It was crazy. Suicidal. Where was the police? Any form of guard units? Surely someone would have called for help? The closer they got to the crater of the lake, the more bodies Will saw. Pokémon, the majority of them Water-types. Magikarp lay everywhere, some of them weakly flapping around, others not even moving. Where were the people? The fishermen, the children, the elderly? What had Xen done to them? Panting and struggling to keep up the rapid pace, Will and Melia made their way to the park's exit, only to see that Xen had blocked it off with their vans. No way out, unless they blasted their way through or scaled the sheer rock walls flanking the exit. They were trapped. "Oh god," Melia muttered, panic creeping into her voice. "Oh no, oh no!" Driven by stubborn adrenaline, Will simply turned around and gazed out across the crater. They were being herded to the center. Blasting their way through would take too much time and – more importantly – firepower and energy. They needed to spare as much as they could. New plan. Find whoever was in charge, knock them on their can and break the attack at its source. At the very least he needed to know who was responsible for this. Maybe then, Team Xen would be disorganized long enough for the police to catch up. "That way," Will said, gesturing to the lake. "That's going back into their arms," Melia protested. "No choice. We stop them here, on our terms, or they hunt us down." Melia visibly hesitated, but she went with him nonetheless. Together, they ran towards the crater's entrance. There, another pair of Xen members came into view. These didn't look like the usual bunch though; they wore no headgear, and they didn't have their Pokémon out yet. The guy on the left had short, black hair that swept down to the left of his face, framing an expression that suggested his mind was miles and miles away. The woman on the right had long, orange hair that reached past her shoulders, and her bored, annoyed expression was a stark contrast to her partner. "Uh-uh…that's as far as you go, you two," she said, rising up from her haunches to face Melia and Will. "Sharly, is this the people we are out for?" Her partner asked. The woman opened her mouth to reply, then scowled and faced him. "Eli, its…Sharon. Not Sharly." "Ah, yes, Sharol!" Eli replied. "Of course!" Looking unsure, Melia cast a puzzled look at Will, who merely shrugged. "Are you two…alright?" She hesitantly asked. The orange-haired woman sighed. "Never better. I just got pulled into a mission I had no desire to commit to. And even worse, I was paired up with a partner that can't even speak my language." She shook her head as if she still couldn't believe her situation. "But considering your position, I'm assuming your afternoon is worse?" Hot anger rose up in Will's throat like bile, but Melia beat him to the punch. "It's your fault it's like this…" Sharon gave her a little half-shrug, acknowledging her point. "Well, I can't beat that logic, but…unfortunately, this is how life is. Isn't it a drag? Let's just get this over with, yeah?" "Can you fight?" Will quietly asked. Melia nodded. "It's been long enough, I think my team is ready." "Then let's take these clowns and get out of here." 'Hey!" Eli shouted. "That's not nice." Will didn't bother replying. Melia and him sent out their Pokémon, and the battle was joined. Strangely enough, the pair only had two Pokémon; a Murkrow and a Misdreavus. Fighting against Melia's Togepi before it could use its Metronome to wreak havoc had been an effort of overwhelming force right out of the gate. To keep the enemy from doing the same, Will ordered his Nidoran to stick close to Togepi and protect it while it set up a solid Metronome. Will knew that he and Melia were fighting for their lives. They gave this fight their everything. But Eli and Sharon, they fought like it didn't matter to them. Especially Sharon; her movements were sluggish, her orders lacked conviction. Nidoran took hit after hit from her Murkrow, which kept hurting itself on his barbs. Misdreavus floated around, firing the occasional blast of dark energy, but Togepi didn't need more than three attempts before his Metronome turned into a sudden burst of water moving at a velocity the Ghost-type simply couldn't dodge. All in all, the battle didn't take much out of Melia and Will. But why? Why would anyone fight like that? "This went exactly as I expected," Sharon sighed, recalling her Murkrow again while Eli stared in confusion at a blank spot on the ground. "No surprises here. Eh, whatever, we're still going to try and capture you." "Yes!" Eli added. "We won't give up!" "Yeah, whatever he said…" They advanced. Without Pokémon, without a reason to fight, they still came after Melia. "D-Don't take another step!" Melia yelled at them. She tried to sound intimidating, but she came across as more scared than anything. "W-We won't hesitate to hurt you!" "I wonder…" Sharon said. "Would you actually do that? You?" "I…" "Our boss is right behind us," Sharon continued. "So what's it gonna be?" Will released Combusken in-between them and the odd pair. A tiny Nidoran and Togepi was one thing, but the meter-tall heavily armed Combusken was a completely different matter. Sharon and Eli hesitated. "Combusken, if they touch Melia, burn them," Will said, forcing the words out. It was intended as a bluff; he would never ask his Pokémon to end the life of another being unless absolutely necessary. But while he might be able to physically overpower Sharon himself, he wasn't sure if he could handle Eli. He definitely couldn't handle both of them at once. Such a fight would be a loss for him either way; the rest of Team Xen would gather at their position and tear them apart anyway. "Oh…that sounds bad," Eli said. "It does, doesn't it?" Sharon sighed. "That's gonna be you, then? You're going to burn people alive right in front of her eyes? Scarring Melia for the rest of her life?" Melia grew paler. She glanced at Will, seeing what his response would be. Gauging what kind person he truly was. Will grit his teeth. Combusken would do it. He knew she would. She would sleep like a baby the very next night. Would he? Would he ever sleep soundly again, knowing he'd brutally murdered someone in the worst way possible? God, what would Tesla say if she found out? What would his mother say? Whatever else she was, Sharon was shrewd. She saw the impact her words had on him. The corners of her mouth rose in a little smile. She stepped closer. Eli looked at her, smiled as well, then followed in her steps. "Combusken…" Will said. Sharon took another step. Melia braced herself for what was about to come…whatever that was. He wouldn't let them take her. He'd been forced to abandon his mother already. He wouldn't let them take her! Something else – he could do something else to break them, to stop them. Their legs, or their arms. If he hurt them badly enough, they wouldn't be able to get Melia. If – Sudden movement drew his eyes to the left, where a large Pokémon rose from the rocks. It uttered a garbling, menacing howl, waving its thick arms around to draw Team Xen's attention. Melia recognized him too. "That's the Garbodor from the sewers!" Sharon's eyes gleamed with an emotion Will couldn't place, and she wasted no time backpedaling away from Melia. "Oh, look, an excus - I mean, Eli, this thing is a threat to our mission. Let's abandon our post and chase it." "D-Do we?" Eli stammered. "Absolutely! Sharon said, her voice dripping with fake resolution. "I mean, it's our JOB to take care of threats. C'mon, let's go." The Gabodor flung a piece of rock at the pair, then slithered off again with the Xen thugs hot in pursuit. Will watched them leave, feeling conflicted and confused. "I'm gonna be honest, I'm not really sure what just happened there," Melia said. "Garbodor helped us out there…I'll repay it for this one day. But first, we gotta get out of here, and there's someone standing in the way of that. Let's give it our best and save this forest!" Together, they made their way deeper into the crater, where a single man stood waiting for them. He wore the same Xen uniform as the others, but he wore an additional gray coat above it. His spiky blonde hair was still wet from the lake he'd demolished. He stared at Will with a contemptuous look, then turned his attention to Melia. "Huh…so you're her," he said. "That's what you look like…yep, things are starting to make sense now. And as for your friend…" Those contemptuous eyes darted back to Will, then suddenly widened with recognition. "Hold up, you're William!" He knew who he was? "Well, isn't this my lucky day," the man laughed. "I'll hit two little birds with one large rock." "Enough nonsense!" Melia shouted. "Why are you attacking this forest just to get to me?" The man scoffed at that. "See, we had no intention of destroying such a beautiful forest. But the people here resisted, so we did what we had to do." "Blowing up a lake is "what we had to do"?" Melia repeated incredulously. "What does that possibly accomplish?!" Will honestly felt like arguing with a psychopath was a waste of time, but any information he could glean from this asshole was a win in his book. "Surely you've noticed the huge ball of energy behind me?" The Xen thug continued. "That's what's called a Dimensional Rift. A collection of dark energy that houses the potential of many things. Right now, they're formless balls of dark energy, but when fused together with something…it can be used to squish idiots who dare stand in their way." "So even if we defeat you, we'll get attacked by that rift?" Melia asked. 'That's just about right," the man replied. "You'll lose either way. And with that, I think I'll just get things started, right? The name's Zetta, and today, none of you will be escaping me!" Zetta and Will moved at the same time. He sent out a Snorunt, but it was all wrong. Its colors were dark and twisted and its eyes an angry mockery of what a normal Pokémon would look like. A Shadow Pokémon, then. Will sent out Nidoran, who he deemed a good counter to a Pokémon who only had hatred left inside of its heart. It would be throwing himself against Nidoran's poisonous spikes. Amidst the crater of dead and dying Magikarp, the two clashed. Snorunt attacked with relentless force and no regard for its own safety. It came at Nidoran again and again, foregoing its elemental attacks in favor of sheer, mindless aggression. Will saw the point of a Shadow Pokemon as a terror weapon. However, he'd had enough of Team Xen's terror tactics, and he wouldn't be scared anymore. He could shut this entire mess down right now if he could take down Zetta here! "You can't win!" Zetta yelled, suddenly sending out a second Pokemon. His Quilava hit the ground running and wasted no time joining the fray. So it's going to be like that, Will thought. But two could play that game! "Combusken! Take out that Quilava!" The battle between two Pokemon became a slugfest between four as the two Fire-types clashed. Amidst the chaos, Will saw a chance, and with his Snag Machine he readied an empty ball. Zetta saw what he was doing, his eyes filled with rage. An impotent rage, as he could do nothing to stop Will from doing what had to be done. With the Snag Machine assisting his aim, he flung the empty ball at the tiring Snorunt, who was unable to break out again. Zetta wasted no time and sent out his remaining two Pokemon, a floating Rock-type that looked somewhat like a meteor and a quadrupedal, chimeric Pokemon that looked like had been bolted together from four different kinds of creatures. Its head was enclosed in a brown helmet with green markings, with a massive jaw-piece that ended in jagged pints curving backwards. A mane of gray fur hung from its neck and covered its chest and its tail, fishlike and blue, seemed even more out place than its cumbersome helmet. "What…" Will breathed, even as he moved to sent Mightyena out. What was that thing? Zetta grinned. "Behold, Type:Null. Zepto, break that annoying little trainer!" The creature made no sound, did nothing to indicate that it heard the command. It simply…obeyed, and with jerky, forced motions, it broke into a light run that quickly turned into a headlong sprint towards Will. "Will, watch out!" Melia yelled. Will's mind raced. Nidoran was too far away. Mighteyna didn't have the momentum or weight to force that thing to a stop. In turn, if he took a direct hit, it would probably blow the shattered remains out ribs out through his back. "Combusken!" He yelled. Panic bubbled at the edge of his thoughts, threatening to overtake his rational mind. Would she disengage for him? Would she know what to do? Would she even be on time? He didn't know – he didn't know what - ! Combusken came out of nowhere, far faster than Will had anticipated. She dug her heel into the ground and spun, driving her other heel into the creature's face with enough force to crack its helmet. Fragments of metal flaked away and crumbled to the ground, revealing a singular eye, wild and unblinking. Her kick gave Will's sluggish body the precious seconds he needed to react. Null's angle slipped several degrees to the left and he leapt, throwing himself at the ground just in time to avoid getting run over. Just in time. Combusken, you're the best! He thought. He looked up, wiping the sand and dust from his face. "Can you handle him?" He asked. Combusken shot him a look. She blinked, then simply turned to face the rampaging Pokemon on her own. Don't know. Don't care. Hah. He could relate. "Zetta, you cheating…jerk!" Melia spat. "Will could have gotten hurt!" She didn't know. Melia hadn't realized yet that Team Xen was actively trying to hurt him. It didn't matter, he had to focus. Retake the initiative. Mightyena growled, flattening his body to the ground to avoid a shard of rock flung at its head by its foe, then charged at the Quilava. "Mightyena, break off and Snarl instead!" Will ordered. The Dark-Type changed his tactic on the dime. He dug his heels into the ground and opened its maw, blasting the Quilava point-blank with a ring of purple energy that collided with the Quilava's own fire attack. The two blasts collided and the resulting explosion kicked up so much dust and sand that Will wasn't able to see what happened next. He shifted his focus to Nidoran. The little guy had no way of getting to his airborne and needed a better matchup. "Mightyena, Nidoran, swatch targets." The chaotic nature of the three-on-three fight made it extremely difficult to keep track of everything that went on. Combusken and Null went back and forth in a fierce close-quarters battle, kicking and slashing and hacking away at each other. Combusken was faster and more agile, but she had only recently evolved and her body didn't have the same raw power as her foe did. Nidoran was slower than Quilava, and didn't have a means of closing the distance between the two. He was no match, and Will realized he'd made a mistake switching them up. "Mightyena, finish up then help Nidoran!" Still, Will felt like he was slowly getting the battle back under control. Mightyena swiftly finished off his opponent and then moved to help Nidoran take care of the Quivala. Together, they were more than a match for the intrepid Fire- type. Combusken, by sheer virtue of being too difficult to pin down or hit, slowly gained the advantage against that chimeric Pokemon. Soon, Zetta found his team overwhelmed. One by one, he was forced to recall them, until at last the Type:Null was too tired to fight. "Stand down, Zepto. Save your strength." And Zetta smiled. They all knew what was about to come. "Well, well. Bravo! I can see how you were able to hold our own thus far. And you even managed to snag away my Snorunt I've been training." Melia knelt down next to Nidoran, spraying his wounds with one of the potions she carried with her. The all-purpose medicinal spray, combining an anesthetic and clotting agent, sealed his bleeding wounds against infection. Soon, his wounds would heal on their own. Will took the moment to quickly spray Mightyena's wounds as well. "So now that we beat you…" Melia said. "Yep," Zetta smirked. "I think it's time we test out the new weapon I got. Look closely, idiots." For a split-second, Will thought about telling Combusken to take Zetta out of the picture, but he decided against it. It wouldn't help them against what was to come. A pulse of energy burst from the Rift. Its colors shifted and changed, and an incredible force began pulling the Magikarp around them in. It happened so fast, neither of them were able to do anything. Within seconds, the Rift had sucked in dozens upon dozens of the fallen Pokemon, and its churning movements stopped. "Now, Dimensional Rift!" Zetta yelled. "Devour William!" "Melia, run!" Will managed to say before something absolutely enormous burst from the Rift. He caught a glimpse of blood-red eyes and a gaping mouth before everything went dark. His body tumbled through a void of blackness and flashing images. He spun, felt his stomach lurch, then slammed to a sudden halt. For a second, Will lay there, stunned. His vision slowly cleared, and he saw that he was no longer in Goldenwood Forest. Slowly, he rolled himself back to his hands and knees and climbed back to his feet. His clothes were ditty and torn - again - but he appeared to still be in one piece. Either the thing that just ate him had one hell of a stomach, or he was somehow inside of the Rift now. Either possibility terrified him. The trees around him were black. The dirt below his feet was red and dusty, and he appeared to have landed at the edge of a lake. Everything out stretched into an infinite void. Maybe this was where Goldenwood's lake had gone? Devoured by the Rift? Screw you, Zetta, he angrily thought. He refused to let that bastard take Melia. He wouldn't allow that. Since his body was still in one piece, he could still move. He began making his way across the lake's shore, where he soon passed underneath an elaborate red gate. And another. And another. His path led him to another grove, though this one was smaller than the Silent one. Inside, he found a little pond and a single Magikarp flopping around. Upon his approach, the Magikarp's dead, glazy eyes shifted towards him. It flopped again, throwing its body into the pond. The water started bubbling. An immense pressure filled the air. A cold, sickening chill crept into his bones as he stared at the little spot where the Magikarp had fallen in, which rapidly grew larger and larger. "Guys," Will stammered, reaching for his Poke Balls. "W-We're not done!" The water exploded outwards as something emerged from its depths. Its body rose and rose and rose, until a beast the size of a small skyscraper had emerged, its hide a blackish shade of blue and its eyes and crest the exact color of blood. "Are you kidding me?" Will yelled as scrambled away. That was a Gyarados! The biggest Gyarados he had ever seen! Shit, that thing couldn't devour him so much as stuff his body somewhere in one of its teeth! It was big enough to inhale him by accident!" There was no way. There was simply no way! Fear rooted Will to the spot, a cold wave of terror tingling through his limbs. The fear was primal, crippling in intensity. And …he heard Melia's voice. "Will, wait! I don't know where you are, or if you can even hear this…But I won't let you face this alone!" Melia? How? The Gyarados roared and everything fell apart, literally. As the massive serpent lowered its head towards him, the pond, the forest and even the ground melted away like acid, swallowed up by a darkness so intense, so oppressing, that it almost felt physical. The darkness is here… Will stood at the edge of the dimension of darkness, facing down the largest abomination he had ever laid eyes on. Melia's voice had lifted the paralyzing terror to some extent, and he was able to move his limbs again. His team spread out, instinctively knowing that they'd move or die against a foe this big. The Gyarados roared and Will felt his bones shake. It swept its blank, crimson gaze across the mottled team assembled before it, then drew its head back. An instant later a torrent of water erupted from its gaping jaws, an onrushing stream thicker than Will's torso. They all scattered as the massive serpent tore its beam of water through the darkness, slicing through the oily ground life a knife through butter. The violence and noise of it all was tremendous. Even covered by the oily darkness, the dimension couldn't hold itself together against an attack of that magnitude. Will ran for it, picking a random direction to put as much distance between himself and the Gyarados. Even as he started sprinting, he knew that there was no chance he could outrun an attack of that scale. He had to interrupt, or distract the thing to get it to stop. The Gyarados suddenly broke off its attack, whipping its head around as if trying to swat at something flying around its head. Will didn't see what it was, but he did see flashes of light erupting all around the Pokemon's head. Melia, he realized. Somehow, Melia was managing an attack through the Rift. Driven mad by its anger, the Gyarados roared again. It gathered a sphere of energy in its mouth and blasted the air around it, but without a clear target to hit, it just seemed like a waste of energy to Will. Nidoran skidded to a halt, pivoted to face the Gyarados and opened its mouth to launch a stream of glowing purple darts. The Poison Sting harmlessly shattered against the Rift being's thick scales. Combusken joined in with a quick burst of Ember flames, but they too did not seem to do any damage to their foe. Pinpricks of light splashed across its face, catching it in its eyes. Enraged, the Gyarados snapped its jaws at some invisible target, then suddenly whipped around to slam its massive head towards the ground in a bid to crush Will. Will barely had the time to react, but something was off about the Gyarados' aim. Its massive head slammed against the ground like a meteor and the sheer force of it all nearly sent Will sprawling to the ground. Whatever surface the darkness had covered simply shattered as the Gyarados impacted. Debris and sand and warped shadows erupted in every direction. A piece of stone bounced up and caught Will in the side of his chest. White-hot pain arced across his ribs as the blow knocked the air out of his lungs. His muscles seized up and he doubled over involuntarily A scream of pain tore itself from his lips. His lungs cramped up - he couldn't breathe - and the Gyarados started pulling its head back up, no doubt to try that again. Mightyena's sleek form materialized from the darkness, He bounded across the oily shadows and lunged for the Gyarados' throat. Darkness wreathed his form as he clamped down on his foe's ghostly neck. His teeth sank deep into the Rift Pokenon's flesh and he clamped down, hard. Will struggled to pull enough air into his lungs to string his words together. He put a trembling hand against his side. It came away slick with blood. That's not good. That's not good. "Not much more now!" Melia's voice echoed again. It sounded distant, like it came from underwater. "Combusken," Will wheezed. "Fire, again! Everything we've got!" Gyarados whipped its head around in a frenzy, but it's thick, segmented scales worked against it. Mightyena didn't let go. His rear paws found a grip against Gyarados' neck and he continued biting down, hard. Pieces of flesh sloughed off Gyarados' form and slumped to the ground. Dead Magikarp. More bursts of energy erupted around Gyarados' head. Melia put in more attacks through her side of the Rift. Will didn't see what did it. It could have been Mighteyna finally digging deep enough with his jaws. It could have been Melia, getting a lucky hit in a critical location. It might have been the Rift running out of gas, or energy or whatever. Whatever it was, the Gyarados drew its head back as its body began to stiffen. Its mouth frozen in a silent roar, its eyes blind and unseeing. Slowly, its gargantuan body began to crumble. Pieces of its hide flaked away and disintegrated in the darkness, as if something invisible slowly began picking it apart. Will sank through his knees and sat down, overcome by exhaustion and relief. Mightyena limped to his side and nudged his arm with his head, before promptly shoving below his arm and against his chest. His head felt warm and fuzzy. "Heh…you did, Will!" He heard Melia's voice echo through the dark space. "You did well!" As Gyarados's body continued to crumble away into nothingness, Will noticed that the darkness around him slowly grew…weaker. The pressure slowly grew less and less severe, and the all-consuming blackness grew paler and blanker. His hands were trembling. The entire left side of his torso burned and throbbed. But they were all alive. "You were amazing," Will muttered to Mightyena. "Couldn't…couldn't have done it without you." The Rift fell apart around him. White light burst through from every direction, before the familiar sensation of being taken away coursed through his body, but then in reverse. The Rift spat him back out again. This time, the landing wasn't as bad; a single moment of sickening freefall before his feet hit solid ground. He collapsed to the ground, Mightyena landing right beside him. "Will!" Melia said. "Are you alright? Can you stand?" "I see. My rift was interrupted, but it wasn't slain," Zetta mused, which sent off all kinds of alarm bells inside Will's head. What did it take to crack one of these things?! "In that case, I still have the advantage here," Zetta continued. "We should run while we still have the chance," Melia whispered. "Please tell me you can move." Will took a deep breath. His body ached and his limbs wouldn't stop trembling. But…he could still stand. He could still think. So he could still fight. "My Pokemon have regained enough strength for round two," Zetta said, his smirk widening to a cruel grin. "Can you say the same?" "Mightyena?" Will hoarsely muttered. His loyal Dark-type gave a reassuring bark. He was still in this. A shrill cry emanated from above. Suddenly, the Garbodor from before dropped down into the crafter and Zetta was forced to leap aside before it could flatten him. "You!" He yelled. "What are those two idiots doing? They were supposed to - ' Garbodor swung at him with one of its arms, before casting Melia a look that almost seemed pleading. :"You want us to run?" Melia exclaimed. "But what about you? I can't just - " The Garbodor stomped on the ground with its trunk-like feet and roared at Melia. "We should go," Will muttered. "Melia…" "I know…I know…Will, let's go!" Pain shot through his chest as he broke into another run and he bit back a cry of pain. "The…the exit…" "The police came right after that Rift swallowed you!" Melia explained. "They…they broke the blockade. There, up ahead, they've set up a checkpoint!" Will kept up a steady pace, but he could feel his lungs starting to burn. A small red blotch slowly spread across his shirt. He hoped it was just a superficial wound; he'd be dead weight if that continued bleeding. "Halt!" One of the officers yelled, and his Growlithe sprang into action. They were so focused on the approaching Mightyena that they didn't even realize that Will and Melia were refugees until they were well within visual sight. "Wait, they're civilians!" "Check for pursuers, give them some cover!" The officers waved them through. A group of Growlithe stood at the ready, while other, larger Pokemon moved towards the front of the checkpoint, ready to counter any Xen aggression. They were so focused on the possible threat that they didn't bother to question or even search them. WIthin minutes, Will and Melia had made it back to the train station all the way in the south. Only a few other people had made it there. "I…can't…believe it…" Melia gasped. She bent over, taking deep breaths. "We…made it…but…whoah…but Garbodor…will he be okay?" "Don't know," Will replied. His mouth tasted coppery, and he realized the wound on his face had started bleeding again. "He risked his life to save us. And you!" Melia suddenly exclaimed, rounding on Will with renewed vigor. "Why did you do that? Why would you put your life at risk for me like that, not once, but several times? You could have gotten killed!" Why? He hadn't bothered to ask himself that question. He felt like the answer was too complicated to summarize. "I couldn't let them take you," Will softly answered. "After they took mom…if I walked away from you as well…" He shook his head; the thought was simply too ridiculous, too impossible. "I couldn't let them take you." Melia looked weary and shaken. it made her look so small, so vulnerable. "You don't even know me," she whispered, a hint of bitterness seeping into her voice. Will averted his eyes. "No. But from what I've seen, I'd like to." "...what about your mother?" Melia urged. "If you…if you had died, then - " "Melia," Will interrupted her, not willing to overthink this too much. "You…and Ren…and even Venam…you guys were good to me. You didn't have to, but you did. And that means something to me." It meant more than just something. It meant the world. But he didn't think he could put that into words. His mind didn't cooperate. He couldn't get the words out. Melia just stared at him. "I don't think I understand." "That's okay. I won't let Team Xen win. And I won't let them take you." it wasn't so much a promise as a declaration. It was a fact. In part, to deny Team Xen whatever it was they wanted. For a larger part, because Melia was his friend. "I promise." The journey back to Gearen Lab was frantic and chaotic. Melia and Will took a spot all the way back in the train and took the opportunity to treat their Pokemon to the best of their ability. Nidoran had taken a serious beating, and even Combusken looked pretty exhausted. Healing items were potent stuff, but they did have limits. "That cut keeps bleeding," Melia said. She retrieved a handkerchief from her bag" C'mere for a sec…" She tenderly placed the piece of clothing against his face, running the worst of the blood and the grime off. "It's going to get ruined," Will muttered. "You really have an odd sense of prioritization…" Despite how delicate she treated him, the side of his face still hurt quite badly. Knowing his luck, he'd have a black eye that stretched out from his jaw to his scalp. Which…would look ridiculous, but it was ten times better than a missing eye. When they'd patched their teammembers up as best they could, the two of them recalled all their Pokemon again and continued riding back to Gearen in silence. It gave Will time to think. Something nagged at him, but he wasn't sure what. He had the sneaking suspicion he'd missed something, something important… Grah, he couldn't recall! It had to have been that Rift, that place hadn't been right for his mind When the train finally got back at Gearen, Will and Melia wasted no time. They hurried back towards Gearen Lab as fast as they could. Melia because she had a ton of vital information to share with her father, Will because he knew that Team Xen wouldn't stop chasing them down because the police were now involved. The ease with which they had besieged the forest told him everything he needed to know. They were way, way over their heads. "Over here," Melia said, waving him over towards the door. "I don't want to imagine how concerned dad must have been…" She stepped through the door - - And immediately darted aside, out of Jenner's view as he conversed with a familiar-looking woman with fiery red hair. "Psst, over here," Melia whispered. "Let's hide for a bit." Will frowned, but did as Melia told him. He slid behind one of the bookcases and slowly reached for Mightyena's Poke Ball, just in case. He'd had enough surprises today. "You know, I don't appreciate being hung up on like that," the woman sternly told Jenner. "It was very rude and I should report you for misconduct." Jenner looked ragged and tired. "People walked into the room, Madelis. What did you want me to do?" "Lock the door?" Madelis replied sharply. "That would have prevented all of this from happening. Not that it matters. Zetta should be picking Melia up really soon." "Yes," Jenner replied. "Why so glum? You knew this would be happening. From the moment we gave you the job of looking after Melia as she grew up, we made it very clear. Melia was only going to be with you temporarily." Fear and pain and a deep sting of betrayal blended together inside of Will's mind. The sensation…it was raw. Painful. It screamed. It was dizzying. Oh god. He's with them. Melia… Will glanced aside. Melia had gone very still. Her lips were parted in a silent O, and her eyes…they were wide and vacant. They were wet with tears. "Once she grew up, you'd have to return her to us," Madelis continued with the air of someone speaking to a particularly naughty child. "I haven't forgotten," Jenner meekly replied. "I've never forgotten." Will couldn't imagine the pain. The horror. The thought that your beloved parent had been grooming you to be abducted by criminals since the day they took you in… He thought about his mother. How she had potentially sacrificed her life for him. Just for his happiness. Just for a chance. An anger he hadn't felt in…ever took a hold of him, knotting within his stomach with such intensity that it made him ill. "Hmm…well, for your sake, I hope that is the case," the woman calmly continued, as if she were talking about the weather instead of someone's life. "I told you that getting attached would ruin you, and it looks like it has." Melia's expression changed. Wil saw something ugly in her eyes, and his heart skipped a beat. Don't do it, he silently pleaded at her. Don't do anything stupid. "Just look at it as a sacrifice," Madelis continued. "We'll have our lives back after this. It'll all be over…in due time." Will could see the exact moment where something within Melia snapped. He saw the emotions play across her face, saw her body tense up. He saw her jolt to her feet. And there was nothing he could do to stop her. "I knew it," Melia hissed through gritted teeth, and she whirled from her cover, striding towards the center of the lab with quick, angry steps. "I knew it!" "M-Melia!" Jenner stammered. "You made it! Thank goodness!" Will stepped out of his cover as well. Even with everything that was at stake, he wouldn't let Melia do this alone. "And William too! I knew it was wise to - " "Jenner, what the hell are you playing at?" Madelis demanded. "Melia is supposed to be at Goldenwood Forest! What is she doing here?" "She - " "Be quiet!" Melia shouted. "Just be quiet! I knew from the moment I found the Snag Machine in the briefcase. You gave it to me today of all days…to punch in a code when things got sour ... .you gave it to me because you knew! You knew this would happen!" Will kept a close eye on this Madelis person. She was one of their head honchos, he was certain of that. She'd have a full team of Pokemon in her possession and unlike him, her Pokemon were fresh and ready for action. If this escalated - oh, who was he kidding, when this escalated - it would turn messy. They never should have returned here. "And yet…you sent me on my way anyway…And you got Will involved too?" Melia shook her head in disbelief. "After all these years…you weren't my real father? You never told me the truth!" "Melia," Jenner pleaded. "Please, list - " "I'm done listening to you!" Melia screamed. "Everything you've done was to set me up!" "Enough of this!" Madelis interrupted. "I don't understand what's going on, but I'm ending it!" "No you're not," Will growled, pulling Mighteya's Poke Ball forth at the same time as Madelis retrieved her own ball. Then he felt Melia's hand on his shoulder. "Will, you can barely stand. Don't think I missed that other wound. I'll take care of this." "Houndoom, come to me!" Madelis sent forth a quadrupedal, canine Pokemon that was even bigger than Mighteyna. It had dark fur, an orange snout and two wicked horns that curved backwards. Its tail, thin and long, ended in a little fork. It looked every bit as menacing as powerful. Clearly, Madelis had come even better prepared than the others. "I'm not afraid of you!" Melia shouted. " Hapi, let's go!" The two did battle in the middle of the lab, just like Ren and Will had before. But unlike that fight, Will could see that this one was, essentially, pointless. It took the strength of all four of Melia's Pokemon to drive off Madelis' Houndoom and even then, it took all their strength to do so, "I must say, Melia, I'm impressed," Madelis said as she recalled her Houndoom. "Whoever taught you how to battle, taught you well. But it wasn't enough. Sometimes, you can't battle your way out of things." "Don't talk down on me!" Melia snapped. "Your Pokemon are all weakened, and I only used one of mine," Madelis continued smugly. "You think you can take the rest of my onslaught? Or, for that matter, when my subordinates join me?" "...Hapi, one last attack!" Melia snapped. "Use Metronome!" Hapi began wagging its fingers in rhythm again, power and potential building up in the air.. "I don't think so," Madelis snapped, but she was just a fraction of a second too late. As she lunged for Melia, her Togepi finished the Metronome and the energy in the air solidified into something only Melia, Togepi's owner, recognized. In a flash, Melia's eyes widened and she threw her arms at Will - - only to disappear as Togepi finished its move - Teleport. They were gone. "You have got to be kidding me…" Madelis groaned. "Oh, fantastic! Fine, it will be like that. If we have to tear this city apart to find her Jenner, we will. You shouldn't have gotten attached, but you did, and now we're all in this mess. It's just business." Madelis ran a hand through her hair, flicking it back across her shoulders. "I'm going to have to report you to her." Jenner's eyes widened in fear and he sagged back in his chair. Next, Madelis turned to Will. She ran her eyes across his body, lingering on the bloody spot on his abdomen. "William, wasn't it? Stay out of this, or the next one will blow your head off. I for one don't like killing my opposition. Too dirty. But…I also don't like second chances." She jabbed a pointy finger at him. "Next time I see you, I'll make you regret it. Understood?" Will remained silent. A dozen thoughts bounced around his head, all of them aimed at Madelis and none of them friendly. What he wanted to say to her, would surely prompt a fight. A fight he'd handily lose. Madelis smirked. "I'll be off then. Ta-ta!" "...it's Will." Madelis stopped. "What?" He didn't bother looking at her. "Not William. Will." "I don't care!" She snapped, before leaving. He guessed as much. That was fine. This thing, this…this mess. It wasn't right. It. Wasn't. Right. When the door closed behind Madelis, Will remained. He leveled a glare at Jenner. The professor must have seen something in Will's gaze that he really, really didn't like. He started talking almost instantly. "Everything that's happened…it wasn't supposed to go this way…If Madelis hadn't come now of all times…Will, I - " "Professor!" Ren burst into the room. "Professor, this is bad! There are Team Xen thugs all over the city! Venam is fighting them off as best she can, but - Will, holy - what happened to your face? What…hey!" Ren put his hands on Will's shoulders, looking him over with great concern in his eyes. "You're bleeding man!" "You two, listen to me very carefully," Jenner urged them. "Team Xen is after Melia. If they find her, it'll be over for all of us! I need you to leave and find her immediately! West Gearen and the forest are off limits, she would have only gone in the direction of Route 2! The railnet east of here will be able to take you to Route 2 without any problem - " "That's enough," a woman's voice cut through Jenner's explanation like a knife, and everybody froze. A Pokemon teleported in-between them and Jenner, and it was hers. Crescent. "Do not be alarmed by the Gothitelle. They're just…a companion." "Who's there?" Ren demanded. "Show yourself." Will put a hand on Ren's shoulder and gave him a tiny shove, urging him to be quiet. Pain twinged through his chest when he moved, but it was far more important that Ren did not antagonize this girl. "Quiet," Crescent's voice lashed out like the crack of a whip. "I have no business with you. Professor Jenner…how irresponsible and horrible to try and send a bunch of teens to clean up a mess you made. It enrages me to even think about what Will went through. How much worse he could've gotten mutilated if I hadn't intervened. In fact, I'm not so sure you understand the severity of this." "No, wait - " Jenner stammered. "So I'm going to place you in time out for a bit. It'll give you a chance to think about what you've done." With that, a swirling portal appeared right behind Jenner. Just like the Rift, it immediately and mercilessly started sucking Jenner inside. Jenner managed to grab a hold of his desk just in time to keep himself from getting sucked into the Rift, but it looked like he could barely hold on. "Professor!" Ren shouted, darting towards Jenner's desk to help him. "Hold on!" But the Gothitelle stepped in his way, physically preventing him from coming to Jenner's aid. "Will!" Ren yelled. "You have to help him!" But Will didn't move. He stared at Jenner, and the man met his eyes. "No. Ren, Will, I know it's selfish of me…b-but please…you have to…" one of his hands came loose off the table, and he very nearly fell into the portal. "You have to save Melia! If not…if not - !" With one last cry of desperation, his other hand slipped loose, and the man plummeted into the depths of Crescent's portal…Rift…thing. "No!" Ren yelled. "As for the rest of you, I implore you not to interfere. If you wish to go after Melia, the only path before you is despair. I won't stop you if you wish to do so, but don't come to me when things don't go your way. You've been warned. Gothitelle! Come to me!' With that, the Gothitelle performed a mocking little curtsy. The next instant, she was gone, and it was as if nothing had ever happened in the lab. "Professor…Will, what the hell is going on!" Ren exclaimed. "What happened?" The only path before you is despair… Will decided that despair was overrated, as far as threats went. Screw Jenner. Screw Madelis. Screw Crescent. He was going to get Melia. "Got some duct tape?" He asked Ren. His throat was hoarse and dry. "Tape? I, yeah, sure, what for?" Ren asked. Will pulled his jacket up, revealing the jagged wound left by Gyarados's shrapnel. "Can you patch me up? I'll fill you in on the way to Route 2." ~~~~~~~(V)~~~~~~~ Author's Note; And that's the entirely of Chapter 1, officially done! A stark turn of events and a foray into Rejuvenation's main conflict. Now, as you might have noticed, I made both characters one year older than in canon. The reason for this is twofold; one, it puts an end to the in-story talk of "children" and "kids" doing these things. These characters are teenagers, or young adults, and only a few characters would call look at them and call them children instead. Second, it gives them a slight physical edge in the challenges and trials to come, adding to the realism of the sheer amount of crap these characters go through without their bodies just giving up on them. Simply put, making some characters just a year older doesn't impact anything negatively, while making things a lot easier - not to mention realistic - for me to work with. Anyway, that was all for this update. Please leave a comment if you like the story, and I'll see you all next time!

^It does work. So to get Galarian Mr. Mime, evolve Mime Jr. with Mimic on Evergreen Island.

What a nice post! Thank you so much and I am really looking forward to reading more and more articles from you. basketball stars

You should enter the Grand Station and go left; Huey will be waiting for the train; I'm not sure if you've already found him. mapquest driving directions

Doing the first pyramid puzzle and Ren's red switch is glitched. It won't activate whenever he steps on it. Help please?

Crap. Does that mean I have to start a new game if I update to current version?

You do know you're playing on an outdated version of the game, right? This puzzle was removed in v13.5

So I think I came across a glitch in the first Eclypsia Pyramid puzzle that won't let me continue. Whenever I'm about to finish the puzzle, I get to the red switch on Ren's side, but whenever he stands on it, nothing happens. So I can't get Aelita to go through and continue the story. The annoying thing is, it was working a couple of times before, but now it's stopped. Help, please?

Check that all the files in the Graphics folder in the rar are in the same places inside your game. The files should have ended up in Graphics/Pictures/Battle and their names all start with mod_ This mods needs those png in the folder or nothing will show.

I'm just copy and paste to the game folder as I do the same thing with other mods, weirdly enough only this mode are not working

I haven't looked into Cherrim a lot, but the Ledian Crest is busted. Full IV, 252 Attack EV, Adamant Ledian is like it had 740 Attack whenever it uses a punch move, git it Iron Fist with the Ability Capsule and it's going to be like it has 888, and does learn Mach Punch. 888 Attack Mach Punch is busted on its own. Then, the crest also makes secondary effects proc twice, and Ledian learns Power-Up Punch, which means it's a mini Mega Kangaskhan but its main move has priority. Survive one turn to land a Power-Up Punch and you're going to have 1776 Attack Mach Punch. On top of that, it has access to Drain Punch for healing, and all the elemental punches for coverage, and U-Turn, which is U-Turn, except it won't hit hard at all.

No

I think I'm stuck somewhere in the beginning of “A Light of Insanity” in the .Karma Files because I left Zeight and wasn't greeted by Ryland's Gliscor as I've seen elsewhere that it's supposed to happen, but, exploring randomly, I got into a fight against Raikou, Entei and Suicune. I'm just really confused about what's going on in my save, and some help would be appreciated. Game.rxdata

I was wondering if taking the boat to Hoenn immediately after the intro mission on the ship will grant renegade route points. For context, the pier opposite of where you start has a salesman trying to push a free trip to Hoenn. Taking it will give you a temporary game over, and place you at your last save. Later in the game, there is another game over, this time that awards you renegade points. If you hand over the diamond to Melanie later in the game, she will destroy your timeline and give you a game over with 10 renegade points automatically applied to your save file. You can then choose to get 10 more by abandoning the survivors, or can choose a 3rd option. Both show the villains winning and the hero removed, before placing you at the last save. I was wondering this because it would be a neat easter egg for replay players, or a pitfall for new players like the time diamond. Otherwise, it would allow players to more easily acquire renegade points without going through the trouble of damaging relationships (time consuming) or killing Karrina (which loses Diancie). Just wondering.

I have zero idea of how joiplay works or why this happens there as I have never used it. I see no reason for this to stop working there at least, though. The overlays work the same way as the original ones for fields, just loading different image files. Most likely the new image files aren't being detected by joiplay, are the new images properly on their places in the Graphics folder?

Episode 142 of Pokemon Rejuvenation Bug Mono is here! Please enjoy!

Shadow Amaura will come with the egg moves Discharge and Aurora Veil, the tutor move Outrage, and finally the move THAT IT ALWAYS SHOULD HAVE HAD. POWER GEM!!!

I uh... don't know if this one counts but Brave Bird is an egg move so... my Zone Zero Skarmory has Brave Bird... TWICE!?