Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Domination and Liberation

Creative Section Literature
1

Welcome! This is the story called “Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Domination and Liberation”. This story is quite relative to Pokemon Conquest since there are seventeen kingdoms with their own typing and there is an evil antagonist trying to rule the land. The difference is that the main character (Lucas) and his partner (Lilly) don’t own a land. They are an exploration team, and they aren’t taking over the lands. Instead, Lucas finds out about these lands and tries to calm the land from a disturbance from the evil villain.

Characters haven"t been assigned yet. I have ideas for the characters of the story, but I haven"t decided if they will be the heroes and villains yet. Characters have been chosen! Information will be rallied in the first chapter in the character sheet below. I plan to have this in less than twenty chapters, but I’m not sure the amount each chapter will give. Planning is being made; plots are being created. Chapters are being made; the story is coming out.

And since this is still in preparation, I"ll take original characters! Just fill out the spoiler sheet! I"ll explain though that there aren"t any rescue or exploration teams in this story besides the main character and his partner, so if you send me a team, I will downgrade them to Pokemon of the land. Also note that I won"t include original legendary Pokemon either (also listed in a spoiler below). If you send me all-powerful Pokemon, I will also downgrade them unless your description of your Pokemon is well-defined. (Note that I might not make them fight at all, but might make them explain more about the land.)

[s][spoilerThe Legendary Pokemon You Cannot Use:1ldns70k][ul]Articuno
Zapdos
Moltres
Mewtwo
Mew
Raikou
Entei
Suicune
Lugia
Ho-oh
Celebi
Regirock
Regice
Registeel
Groudon
Kyogre
Rayquaza
Jirachi
Deoxys
Uxie
Mesprit
Azelf
Dialga
Palkia
Heatran
Regigigas
Giratina
Cresselia
Phione
Manaphy
Darkrai
Shaymin
Arceus
Victini
Cobalion
Terrakion
Virizon
Tornadus
Thundurus
Reshiram
Zekrom
Landorus
Kyurem
Keldeo
Meloetta
Genesect[/ul]

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[s][spoilerOriginal Character Sheet:1ldns70k]Name:
Species (Pokemon):
Moveset:
Personality:
History:
Other:

[/details][/s]

I will not accept anymore Original Characters.

[spoilerCharacter List:1ldns70k]Major Characters

Lucas the Cyndaquil: Leader of the Exploration Team “Team Luminous”, he"s quite calm and friendly. He also is very loyal to his team and his clients, and never says no to anyone in need. This sometimes gets Lucas in trouble since he sometimes helps someone that isn"t so keen to his kindness. Alongside with Lilly the Pikachu, they travel through the lands, expanding their team and making many friends. He also seems to have a little crush on Lilly.

Lilly the Pikachu: Partner of Lucas the Cyndaquil in the Exploration Team “Team Luminous”, she"s always excitable and enthusiastic, especially when it comes to exploring a mystery dungeon. She also is very honest, and she is extremely kind. Alongside with Lucas, they travel through the lands, expanding their team and making many friends. She also seems to have a little crush on Lucas, showing her affection with subtle compliments.

Being of Destruction: An unknown being. Nothing is known except that it is Lord of Sir Salamence and that he is trying to destroy Gerleniam.

Soul the Vulpix: Resident of Fervid Volcano, she is a playful and tricky fox, though she knows when to be serious. She wears a crystal necklace, and she is able to read Unown writing. She roughly trains herself each day for unknown reasons. She is also equipped with Geo Pebbles and Oran Berries.

Adrian the Buizel: Resident of Drenched Lake, he is a calm Buizel and is able to think things through, though is able to think quickly if necessary. Though at times he seems sad, he is always cautious of his surroundings. Equipped with Iron Thorns, he seems to use them rarely, along with his moves.

Minor Characters

Sir Salamence: Sir Salamence is very loyal to the one he claims to be “the hero of Gerleniam”. Not much is known about Sir Salamence, though he is a quick flier.

Rick the Geodude: Resident of Ragged Caverns, he and his Cranidos friend helped Lucas when he fell. He seems to get impatient after a while. He does trust easily, but he also has a little bit of trouble when helping. Not much is known about his power.

Lord (Lady) Rhyperior: Warlord of Ragged Caverns, she is quite rock-headed and enjoys a battle against tough opponents. She also seems to command her army in a defensive position before going into the offensive. But she also is known to take it easy when time comes.

Sandy the Sandshrew: Resident of Even Earth, he seems to have a silent way. He also likes to stay out of trouble, but because of his friend, Lenile, it"s extremely difficult for him. He seems to not care much for friendship, but is also seemingly pulled into random friendships.

Lenile the Larvitar: Resident of Even Earth, he is quite gentle with any Pokemon. Because of his gentleness, he does seem to fear having Pokemon insulted, but because of his friend, Sandy, it"s extremely difficult for him. He also is there for his friends, no matter what the situation is.

Lord Arcanine: Warlord of Fervid Volcano, he is a fierce warrior who is known for his strength and speed. He adopted Soul the Vulpix to be his daughter, in which no one knows about it. He also very generous and loving towards his residents and Pokemon that helped his town.

Dan the Shinx: Resident of Voltland, he is a hasty and stubborn Shinx that sometimes charges into trouble without caution. He has made the effort of slowing down his actions, though it"s too much trouble for him as time goes too slow. He lacks trust in Pokemon even if he is close to them. And from unknown event, he seems to be stronger and more courageous than before.

Lord Walrein: Warlord of Drenched Lake, he is known for being crafty and cunning. He can easily fool anyone to gain information for personal gain. He also seems to feel terrible about his actions, but he continues to be a warlord. His tactics are according to the certain situation, and he has the ability to change the tide of battle to his advantage. It"s a wonder why he hasn"t conquered any lands.

Kandan: Resident of Drenched Lake, this Piplup was extremely kind and caring. She never lied, and she was one Pokémon that was courageous and ready to take thing on. Kandan was killed when protecting Lilly from Metagross"s attack that stabbed through her.

Lord Raichu: Warlord of Voltland, he is one speedy Raichu who uses speed and agility to defeat his foes. He loves to test his strength and also seems to be quite cocky more than confident. His tactics are to quickly strike before the opposing forces can attack.

Metagross: Resident of Psycho"s Lair, this Metagross was programmed to destroy Lucas. When scanning a weakness of Lucas, Metagross changed targets to lower Lucas"s defenses by going after Lilly, in which he was even more aggressive against.

[/details]

[spoilerPM List:1ldns70k]Knightfall, Azurus, Brutaka

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2

An interesting concept you’ve got here. I’ve never played that game, but it certainly sounds great.

Anyways, I figure I might as well provide a character.

Name: Adrian

Species (Pokemon): Buizel

Moveset: Sonicboom, Quick Attack, Water Gun, Swift

Personality: Adrian is a calm and rational Pokemon. He usually thinks through any situation with care before acting, though he is capable of making quick decisions if necessary.

History: Adrian and his many siblings were raised by his parents in the riverbasins of the north(I’m not familar of the geography of the game). As a young kit, he constantly poured over the books and scrolls in the Elder’s home in the nearby town, quickly becoming an avid reader. After seeing his two older brothers set out on their own adventures, the desire to leave his home and his books to see the world swiftly grew within him. After earning some money at some of the various shops in town, he saved up some money and bought supplies. After a (somewhat) teary good-bye with his parents, he set out to parts unknown (to me).

Other: He occasionally gets homesick for his family (as would anyone), but he is able to get over it. He is also a decent shot with Iron Thorns (a common pastime in his town), and he always has a few on his person if for no other reason then to practice with a target. He is very cautious with his moves and only uses them if there is a real need.

Well, I hope that was acceptable. If it isn’t, just tell me and I’ll fix it up. This is my first character submission, so I’m a little new to this. (Oh yeah, this is a version of the Buizel of my old story plan. I figured he deserved to be in a story somewhere)

Knightfall signing off…

3

Sounds interesting…I want to try this out c: But I’m kind of a starter here like Knightfall so…I’ll try what I can c:

Name: Dan
Species (Pokemon): Shinx
Moveset: Thunderbolt, Charge , Thunder Fang , Discharge
Personality: Dan is a very Hasty one. He always want things to finish faster. He always charges through without even listening to any caution or so. He can be stubborn at times. But even though he’s hasty, He tries to understand what is going on before acting. He even tried slowing down…but for him…it feels as if time is counting down before it was too late.
History: Dan was a playful one. He used to play with his childhood friends. They even competed who was the fastest among all of them. Of course, Dan kept winning. But sometimes, because of his hastiness, He often stumbles and jumps at the wrong conclusion. But after a terrible experience when he was child and after what his parents told him before they bid farewell to each other, Dan learned to be more strong and courageous no matter what the situation is.
Other: Dan always carry around his special treasure which is the Time Space orb as a remembrance of his parents. Whenever he sees that, He feels that his parents are right beside him. ALIVE! Which gives him more motivation and power to get the job done(mostly when he is down). Of course…He doesn’t reveal it to anyone.Even if it’s his closest friends. He kinda lacks trust in people but he tries to get to know and understand them.

uhmm i hope I got it right :’: If its like ‘nonsense’ please do tell me.
I’m looking forward for the results tho c:

4

Name: soul
Species (Pokemon): female vulpix
Moveset: ember, flamethrower, Bite and energy ball
Personality: Soul is a happy playful fox, she plays tricks sometimes, but can be dead serious when that is needed.
History: She is a orhpan, never knew her parents, the only thing important to her is her charm, that has a crytsal like figure of fire, she wear around her neck. She trains until she cant anymore train anymore to take her anger/sadness out of her. Also reads some unkown, but has a hard time figuring out what the rest of it means.
Other: Soul carries some oran berrys and 5 geo pebbles.

i think i did it right, if i didnt correct me or tell me what i did wrong please

5

I"m quite pleased with the original characters that have been given to me so far. I noticed that so far, there have been single-type Pokemon. So if you have a dual-type, you can choose which Pokemon Kingdom type they can live in. For example, if you chose Bulbasaur, you can say “Grass land” or “Poison land”. I will then put it in the kingdom you chose.
Names for the Kingdom is still being planned out (the ones in the Minor Characters are Beta and may or may not be used) and the storyline for chapter one is nearly complete! All I"m deciding is where they"ll land in first. So… This is where you can have some fun!
I will allow you to vote on which Pokemon type that you want Team Luminous to land in. It can be any type since there is no map layout either. I"m not going to make it completely based off of Pokemon Conquest"s map, so I"m allowing any type. Have fun voting!

Nobody got to vote.

6

After what seemed an eternity, I have finally started the writing process of the chapter! So, now for the fun part.

I want to have some pre-readers. Even though I’m confident in my writing skills, I would still like pre-readers to pre-read my chapters for any mistakes before I post the chapter. If you would like to help, PM me by clicking the bottom-right button that says “PM”, then message me if you want to help me out! You might also see the work being written while reading, so it may be a lot of fun reading while the writer is writing.

So, this is my message about the story. It is finally being written and I hope to see some people excited.

7

Chapter 1

The morning rays shone through the cliffside as the sun greeted the world with a warming welcome. Light hitting the mouse, Lucas squinted to see the morning rays increase.

Morning already? Lucas thought to himself as he groaned, stretching his back. That rescue lasted pretty long in the night, but I didn’t think it would be that late.

With a yawn, Lucas walked over to the fountain coming from the edge of the cave and splashed water onto his face. He knew that Lilly, an electric mouse and his partner, would wake soon, and he would rather wake up before her enthusiastic waking call. Not that it wasn’t terrible; it actually made a very positive day for him. He just preferred to wake up Lilly because of how adorable she was when waking.

Lucas quickly snapped back into reality. Lucas, focus, he thought, She’s my partner and friend. I don’t think she’s ready for a relationship yet.

Lucas looked back at Lilly and smiled. Though I have to admit she is cute.

Lucas rubbed his face, turned back to the water, and dipped his hands. He splashed more water to wake himself up. As he did that, Lilly slowly glanced at Lucas and smiled as she watched Lucas throwing water all around him.

“You know,” Lilly started, making Lucas jump. “If you wanted to become more resistant to water, you could just take on the Bottomless Sea.”

Lucas turned around, pushing his previous thoughts aside. “I… Uh… Didn’t hear you wake up,” Lucas admitted, earning a smile from Lilly.

Lilly got up from her bed and walked over to Lucas. “You know, I’m usually the one waking you up. You usually don’t get out of bed without my help, lazy bones,” Lilly teased.

Lucas grinned. That’s just like her, Lucas thought, grabbing the rescue bag from across the room. Always so cheerful when waking up. I still wonder how she does it.

Trying to think of a different subject, Lucas said, “So, what are we going to do today?”

Lilly grinned. “We do the same thing every day. I thought you would know that by now.”

Lilly was correct on that part. It has been about six months since the defeat of Darkrai, and they have only done missions of rescuing, arresting, and protecting Pokemon.

“Well, what do you suggest?” Lucas asked.

“What do you mean, ‘suggest’?” Lilly asked, clueless of what Lucas was saying.

“Well,” Lucas started, “Since we do the same thing everyday, why not change it up? You could think of something. You know I’m completely dull without your help,” Lucas added with a grin.

“Oh?” Lilly sounded, questioning Lucas with her expression. “You think that you’re dull? You’re the most entertaining Pokemon I know.”

“Are you crazy?” Lucas asked. “You know that I’m not as entertaining as you.”

Lilly laughed. “Well, I could change it up? How about… We get captured by outlaws and we have to force our way out?”

Lucas laughed. “Well, if you want to,” Lucas said. “Either than that, or I could attempt to activate my Dimensional Scream again.”

Lilly smiled. “That might be more fun actually!” Lilly exclaimed. “We haven’t really had any fun in a while. We’ve only gone to places that we have gone to so many times.” Lilly then thought for a bit and asked, “When was the last time you had a vision anyway?”

Lucas thought for a moment. My last vision? Lucas thought, I haven’t had a vision in a long while. When was the last time I had my Dimensional Scream activate?

Lucas stood there for a while, trying to remember when he had a vision. After a while, Lucas shook his head. “I can’t remember,” Lucas stated.

Lilly frowned. “You can’t remember the last time you had a vision?” Lucas shook his head again, showing his disappointment. Lilly smiled as she spoke, “Then how about we go and put that scream in motion again? Who knows? We might have another adventure again.”

Lucas liked the sound of that. Adventure always had Lilly get excited, and it grew on him as well. Lilly could tell from the smile from Lucas’ face gave the answer.

“Then what are we waiting for?” Lilly asked. “Let’s go and explore!”

Lucas and Lilly then rose a clenched hand into the air, allowing the sun to give a vibrant glow to each of them. Lilly eyes shot open and she covered her nose quickly.

“Now I know why you were splashing water on yourself, Lucas,” Lilly exclaimed, making Lucas grow embarrassed. Lilly smiled and added, “I bet I’m as bad as you though. Let’s clean up before going out.”

Lucas nodded, still glowing red in the cheeks.

“It’s amazing how resilient these Pokemon are.” The mysterious shadow wandered around, seemingly deep in thought. A door swung open and the mysterious shadow looked back.

“My Lord, you have called?” the Pokemon that came through the door asked.

“Ah, you came, Sir Salamence.” The mysterious shadow smirked at the Salamence, or at least it looked like a smirk to Salamence in the darkness. The shadow stood still. “You see,” the shadow continued, “We have been against the warriors of this land for far too long.”

Salamence heard this many times, so he asked, “What do you suggest, my Lord?”

The mysterious shadow explained, “We need some Pokemon to assist us in conquering this land. A Pokemon’s strength that be far greater than ours.”

“My Lord, you are the most powerful Pokemon on this land,” Salamence commented, “There is none greater than thyself.”

“Yes, I am the most powerful on ‘this’ land.” The mysterious shadow grabbed a piece of paper and handed it to Salamence. Salamence took the letter while the shadow walked to a seat.

“Send the letter to another land,” the shadow exclaimed, “See who comes to support us. They may hold enough power to exceed mine. And if not… Destroy them before they reach this land.”

Salamence nodded and took off. Another sneer came across the shadow’s face as it returned to its dark territory.

“Do you see anything, Lucas?” Lilly asked.

After a few moments, Lucas released the rock he held onto and shook his head. “I’m not getting anything.”

“Nothing at all?” Lilly asked. Lucas nodded in affirmation. Lilly sighed. “That’s too bad,” Lilly said.

Lucas looked up into the sky. The sun from the morning moved higher into the sky, pounding its rays into the whole world. A shadow then caught Lucas’s attention. He watched as a Pokemon flying high descended from the clouds, landing further down into Treasure Town.

“Hey, Lilly,” Lucas called.

“Hm?” Lilly asked.

“There’s something coming down into Treasure Town,” Lucas explained. “Let’s go see what’s going on.”

Lilly looked over towards Treasure Town, in which she could more clearly see the Pokemon; a Salamence. Lilly gave a nod before both ran towards the town.

Arriving in town, Lucas and Lilly looked towards the center of town. A Salamence, covered in metallic armor from head to tail, captured the attention of every Pokemon in Treasure Town.

“Hey, who’s this Pokemon, Sunflora?” Lilly asked.

“I don’t know,” Sunflora admitted. “He said something about some Pokemon war in his land or something that makes me go Eeeekk~! But there hasn’t been a Pokemon war in like, forever.”

“That’s… A little strange,” Lilly said, “I wonder what he means by that?”

Loudred shushed from a little further up the crowd. “We’re trying to listen.”

Sunflora attempted to glare at Loudred, but he was focused on Salamence in the center.

“I hope you all listen to my Lord’s invitation,” Salamence shouted, “My Lord will be pleased to have strong warriors come from this land to assist in ending the war in Gerleniam. Allow me to explain the conflict of our land.

“Our land, inhabited by Pokemon, have raged battle against other lands in search of the most powerful Pokemon to grant them unlimited energy. For many years, countless Pokemon have been destroyed, our land has been devastated by the attacks, and the Pokemon live in fear of being one day pulled into the war by force.

“But hear me when I say; there is a solution. My Lord will end the war by conquering all the land and putting an end to this conflict. Sadly, my Lord isn’t powerful enough to fulfill his dream, so he asks for aid in our dream. We shall end the war in Gerleniam with the power of all those that are able to travel to our land. So, who shall volunteer themselves to end destruction in the land of Gerleniam?”

The Pokemon were silent around Salamence. They all looked around each other, questioning who would help or who would not. Finally, a voice came from the crowd.

“We’ll help!”

All Pokemon turned to Lilly, who stood as tall as she could. “We’re an exploration team; Team Luminous! It’s our job to help Pokemon in need. We’ll help in saving Gerleniam!”

The Pokemon talked amongst themselves.

“Team Luminous, warriors?”

“That seems a little odd.”

“They did defeat Darkrai though…”

“They saved the world from being frozen in time, too!”

“Well, we couldn’t stop them, hey.”

“Once they have their mind set to something, they’ll get it done, yup!”

“But should we come too?”

“Nah, Team Luminous has this handled. If there’s any Pokemon that can save a whole land, it’s them for sure!”

“Yeah, we still have to protect our land’s peace!”

The Pokemon cheered for Team Luminous as Lucas and Lilly walked up to Salamence.

“We’re ready to go, Salamence,” Lilly said.

Salamence looked down and nodded. “These will be our heroes. The heroes of Gerleniam!”

The Pokemon gave another cheer as Lucas and Lilly climbed onto Salamence’s armored back. A second later, Salamence pushed down his wings and started flapping. Higher and higher they went; the cheers of the Pokemon becoming more silent. Soon, they were above the clouds, soaring forwards.

“Well, it’s too bad we didn’t get the Dimensional Scream kicking in, but at least we’ve got to go on an adventure,” Lilly said.

Lucas smiled. “I didn’t even get a say in if we should go or not,” Lucas explained. “You just said, ‘we’ll do it’ before I had a chance to say something.”

Lilly grinned. “Well, you’re not saying it’s a bad thing, are you?”

“Of course not!” Lucas exclaimed. “We’re going to have another adventure with each other!”

Lucas rubbed his eyes. As looked up into the sky, he saw that the sun was now setting behind the cloud-filled sky. How long was I sleeping? Lucas thought.

Lucas was about to speak while he looked over to Lilly. Or, where Lilly was. Lucas’s voice caught in his throat as he started looking around Salamence’s back. No Lilly. Lucas started to get nervous.

“Uh, Salamence?”

Salamence said nothing. He continued to fly forward. Lucas then started to search Salamence’s back. After a few moments of searching around, the nervousness became fear.

“Wh-where’s Lilly?”

Salamence grinned, but said nothing. Lucas’s eyes widened.

“You… You didn’t…” Lucas stuttered. Salamence, without warning, flipped around, making Lucas grab his wing to prevent himself from falling off.

“Wh-what are you doing!?” Lucas yelled. Salamence then started spinning, which Lucas continued to hold on tightly. But, to no avail, Lucas slipped off after a few turns.

Lucas looked up at Salamence as he fell. Salamence seemed to be speaking something before flying off. Lucas then spun to the ground to see what he was going to land on. Solid rock. Lucas’s eyes widened as he tried to slow his descent by flapping his arms around. The rocks continued to come closer and closer. Lucas braced himself for the landing by shutting his eyes.
[hr][/hr]
This is Chapter 1 of Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Domination and Liberation. The chapters will not always be this short. They may become longer as the story progresses. Leave a comment if you see any mistakes or if you want to give constructive criticism.

8

Chapter 2 - Lucas

Lucas slowly opened his eyes. With his sight blurry, he could only make out forms of what could be Pokemon. Trying to focus, voices started sounding.

“-fell out the sky.”

“It’s crazy, b- -ink that…”

“-doesn’t look like much…”

Lucas knew that he needed to get up, and so he attempted to move his arm. It didn’t respond. Trying to focus on his arm, a sheer shot of pain shot through, making him dizzy. He must have grunted since the Pokemon turned to him. Lucas could see a little more clearly; a floating rock of some sort and a Pokemon with a blue head.

“Don’t get up!” the blue-headed Pokemon called out, “You’re in no position to stand.”

Vision was much better now, but so were Lucas’s other senses. The pain shot up his arm, causing him to moan. Silently, Lucas asked, “Where am I?”

The blue-headed Pokemon, which Lucas could tell was a Cranidos, said, “You’re in our hands for recovery. We usually don’t like Pokemon from the land of Fervid Volcano, but we wouldn’t dare let a Pokemon suffer from wounds on non-battling territory.”

The floating rock, Geodude, came up from behind Cranidos. “We’ll ask you some questions later,” Geodude explained, “For now, you need to be treated. I’m surprised you survived that fall as well as you did. Only a broken arm.”

Lucas smiled at the Geodude and allowed himself to slip into unconsciousness.

Lucas once again woke up and saw the night sky. Since his vision wasn’t blurry, he could see his surroundings much better. He took back his sight to see an open area carved from a rigged stone. Then it hit him; the memories of what happened previously with Salamence rushed in, how Lilly wasn’t around, the grin on his face…

Before he could recall anything else, a Geodude floated in, having a serious look to his expression. Lucas remembered then that he was saved by this Geodude and a Cranidos.

“So, speak,” Geodude demanded, “What are you doing outside of your territory?”

Lucas sat up, facing the Geodude. “Well,” Lucas started. “I should say first that I don’t belong to this land.”

Geodude glared at Lucas, but Lucas continued. “I live in a place called Treasure Town. We were asked by a Salamence that-”

“Salamence!?” Geodude cried out, “What in Groudon’s name were you affiliating with a high-rank member of the one that wants to destroy Gerleniam!?”

Now it was Lucas’s turn to be surprised. “What do you mean, ‘destroy’?” Lucas exclaimed. “Salamence said that the land was in a war that was already destructive and that-”

“Lies.” Geodude floated over to Lucas. “You were probably thrown out from the commands of his Master,” Geodude said.

“Well… Tell me more about this ‘Master’ of Salamence.”

Geodude gazed over Lucas, as if searching for something. With a sigh, he explained, “This ‘Master’ is mysterious to us all. A Pokemon who’s intent is to destroy the world and rule over all by instilling fear upon everyone.

“Many Pokemon call this Pokemon the Being of Destruction. He has many other names as well, but many Pokemon prefer calling it that. Nobody knows about this being. Pokemon that do attempt to figure out who this being is usually end up being mind-wiped into oblivion… Or worse.”

Lucas widened his eyes, but Geodude continued. “This Pokemon is also rumored to be the most powerful Pokemon in this land that many Pokemon fear coming into contact with it. There are Pokemon that do go against it, but they usually are defeated. The Pokemon of Obscured Forest were the only Pokemon that came close to victory, but even they were defeated.”

“Wait, Obscured Forest?” Lucas asked.

“The forest is actually the kingdom of Dark-type Pokemon,” Geodude answered. “Since you asked that, now I know you aren’t from around here.”

Lucas shrugged. “Like I said, I just got here,” Lucas admitted.

“Then allow me to welcome you to the land of Rock-type Pokemon; Ragged Caverns!” Geodude opened the door to allow a better sight of the cave. Many rock-type Pokemon trudged along the cave, all of them seemingly busy.

“Our cavern is a pretty defensive place,” Geodude continued, “We have great protection against the other kingdoms.”

Lucas then looked over to the cave opening. “Then how-”

“This is one of our outposts,” Geodude interrupted. “We can see when Pokemon are coming, and then we can strike before they do.”

“Well, I have to admit, that’s pretty neat!” Lucas said.

Geodude looked around the cavern. “Listen, Cyndaquil, stay close to me. I need to make sure you can get the clearing from our leader, Lord Rhyperior, to travel around this place without being attacked.”

“Let me guess; more questions?” Lucas asked.

Geodude smirked. “I may trust ya, but who knows what our Lord will say.” Geodude turned to Lucas and said, “Name’s Rick, by the way.”

“Lucas,” Lucas commented.

“Alrighty then, Lucas, let’s go!” Rick called out.

Lucas nodded, then followed Rick to the palace.

“Lord Rhyperior, may I present to you, Lucas,” Rick called out with a bow at the end. Lucas walked up to Rhyperior, looking up at Rhyperior’s stature.

“Nice to be in your presence, Lord Rhyperior,” Lucas said, trying to sound as humble as able.

Lord Rhyperior didn’t look pleased. Rhyperior looked down and said, “You shall not call me Lord Rhyperior. Only my subjects can call me that. You shall address me as Lady Rhyperior.”

Lucas eyes widened. Woah, Lucas thought, didn’t expect Lord Rhyperior to be a girl.

“Now, explain yourself, small Cyndaquil!” Rhyperior continued, “What are you doing in our cavern, away from your land of volcanoes?”

Lucas then explained where he lived, what he did for a living, and how he was brought to Ragged Caverns. Rhyperior nodded, taking in the information.

“I see…” Rhyperior said, “You say you’re from a more distant and peaceful land?”

Lucas nodded. “That is correct, Lady Rhyperior,” Lucas responded.

“And your name. What is it?” Rhyperior asked.

“Uh, I’m Lucas, Lady Rhyperior…” Lucas answered.

“I see…” Rhyperior then got up from her throne, jumping off her tower and smashing into the ground. Rick then ran to hide behind a stone near the back of the room. Lucas took a step back, looking up at Rhyperior.

“Then, Lucas, prove your worth!” Rhyperior screamed, “I challenge you to battle against me!”

Before Lucas could respond, Rhyperior charged up a Rock Wrecker and launched it at Lucas. Lucas jumped to the left, nearly dodging the boulder. Lucas tried to balance himself, but accidentally used his broken arm, causing his collapse.

Lucas cringed in pain from his arm before another rock was launched at him. Lucas then ignored the previous throbbing to focus more on running.

“Running won’t help you, Cyndaquil!” Rhyperior taunted.

Lucas jumped upwards from a racing boulder, then charged at Rhyperior with Flame Wheel. The hit impacting, he tried reaching over to his side. He looked and groaned.

Right, Lilly has the bag, Lucas thought to himself before nearly dodging a slamming fist to the side.

“Your running shall tire you, Cyndaquil!” Rhyperior chanted, “You can’t keep this up forever!”

Another Rock Wrecker was thrown at Lucas, in which Lucas had his back nearly scrapped by the rock. She’s right, Lucas thought, I can’t keep this up forever. But she can’t keep throwing rocks either.

Lucas took a glance at Rhyperior, who did look a little worn out, but making herself hide it. She then launched another Rock Wrecker at Lucas, who rolled out of the way. It’s amazing how strong she is throwing those rocks, but it’s starting to get to her.

Lucas then looked around the arena. Rocks. Rocks everywhere. There were some rocks here and there along the side of the wall that could be hidden behind, but they would be destroyed easily.

Lucas then noticed that another stone was launched at him, but he didn’t have time to avoid. The rock smashed into him, causing him to continue the momentum and slam into the back wall. Lucas then landed on the ground, struggling to retain his energy. A laughter filled the room.

“You cannot defeat me, Cyndaquil! I have the power to end your life!” Rhyperior started charging towards Lucas. Lucas looked upwards to see unstable rocky spikes dangling from the ceiling.

“Be prepared to be defeated!” Rhyperior then pointed her horn at Lucas.

Lucas braced himself to jump. When Rhyperior came close, he jumped onto Rhyperior and ran across his back. Rhyperior didn’t have time to react before slamming into the wall, causing the spikes to fall.

Lucas then ran into the barrage, going into a ball of fire. He hit the spike with full force, aiming at Rhyperior. Rhyperior got her horn out of the wall and turned into a hit of the spike. It broke apart on her body, causing her to step backwards.

Lucas continued to smash into the falling rocks, landing them on Rhyperior. Rhyperior grunted with pain with each rock blow, soon causing her to lose her balance. Soon, Lucas landed and threw himself at the final rock, blowing the final blow at Rhyperior, causing Rhyperior to fall down into fainting.

Rick came from behind the rock, wide-eyed, running towards Rhyperior. “Lord Rhyperior! Lord Rhyperior!”

Lucas ran over to Rhyperior, in which she lifted herself and grinned.

“Looks like I have been defeated,” Rhyperior started.

“Lord Rhyperior…” Rick trailed off.

“Congratulations, Cyndaq-uh, Lucas,” Rhyperior continued, “You have defeated me fair and square. You are the new Warlord of Ragged Caverns!”

“W-Warlord!?” Lucas stuttered. “B-But, I’m not…”

“True, you are not,” Rhyperior stated, “Yet, you have proven your worth. Allow us to help in anyway.”

Rick bowed to Lucas, in which Lucas fell to the ground, unknowing what to say.

“Now, Lucas, you shall go the path to bringing past the peace. Take over the lands of Gerleniam. You will bring these lands to peace and freedom!” Rhyperior spoke the last words before bowing down towards Lucas.

Lucas nodded. “Alright then. I will do what you ask,” Lucas said, “But I must ask you something first.”

Rhyperior grinned. “I will answer then. What shall I answer, Lord Lucas?”

“Why did you start attacking me when I said my name?” Lucas asked.

“It is because I needed to test you,” Rhyperior stated. “I had to make sure that you were the hero of the world. From stories, it is spoken that you and another Pokemon saved the world twice; once from time, once from darkness. If you were that hero, I had to make sure.”

Lucas smiled, nodding in approval. “I see,” Lucas said, “Well, I guess that I better get started then.” Lucas got up to be stopped by a hand of Rhyperior.

“Nay, Lucas, you may not start quite yet,” Rhyperior said. Lucas looked over to Rhyperior in question, in which Rhyperior smirked. “Before you start your liberation, let us to celebrate your victory over your first kingdom.”

“Sir Salamence, did you rid yourself of those two weaklings?” the shadow asked.

Salamence nodded. “It has been done. The Pikachu has been dropped in Even Earth, while the Cyndaquil has landed in Ragged Caverns. They will be destroyed by Lady Rhyperior and Lord Steelix.”

“Excellent,” the shadow spoke, “We shall try once more to get formidable allies, though we cannot return to that peaceful land.”

“What shall you suggest, my Lord?” Salamence asked.

The shadow sat in his chair, thinking. Finally, he said, “Prepare your kingdom. We shall go to battle very soon.”

Salamence bowed and walked away. The shadow smirked in the darkness.

9

Chapter 2 - Lilly

Lilly woke up, attempting to open her eyes. When opening, a sting caused her to shut them quickly. Each attempt of a breath made her choke. Frantically, she started squirming as the want for air increased. Shifting and turning, her mind clouded, making her movements less frequent. Before soon, she found herself slipping back into unconsciousness.

With a sharp intake of breath, Lilly jerked up, causing her to feel a surge of pain. She listened as a cough sounded close to her ears. A moment later, she noticed that she was doing the coughing. Unable to see, her mind made her as timid as the first time she wanted to join the guild. Though frightened, she could hear voices.

“Let me tell you, it’s amazing that she lives,” the first voice sounded.

“Wait, how can you tell this Pikachu’s a she?” the second voice questioned.

Lilly felt a tug at her tail. “Female Pikachu have this dent in their tails,” the first voice answered.

Lilly’s tail then was pulled, causing her to let out a squeak, which lessened the grip. “Oh, that was too hard, wasn’t it?” the second voice asked.

“Yep,” the first voice said.

“I just hope she doesn’t get too angry at me for doing that,” the second voice responded.

Still registering her surroundings, Lilly asked, “Where am I?”

“Hey, she’s talking!” the second voice exclaimed.

“Good,” the first voice said. Clearing his throat, he said, “Welcome to Even Earth, kingdom of the ground-types.”

Lilly slowly opened her eyes. With difficulty, she could see a flat desert. Barely anything else appeared from the desert besides the occasional hill under the sand or the random cactus. Lilly looked over to the Pokemon that were around her. One was a Sandshrew, who looked like he recently been beaten. The other was a Larvitar, not looking any better than the Sandshrew.

“A-Are you two okay?” Lilly asked. “It looks like you’ve just been in a really bad battle…”

Larvitar turned to the Sandshrew. “Can you believe this?” Larvitar asked. “She was stuck under the sand, unconscious, and she asking if we’re alright.”

Sandshrew laughed. Lilly smiled sheepishly, unsure of what to say.

“Anyway, my name is Lenile,” the Larvitar continued. Lenile then turned to Sandshrew. “And this is my friend, Sandy.”

“How do you do, lil’ Pikachu?” Sandy asked.

Lilly sheepish smile grew into a grin. “I’m not that small, am I, Sandy?” Lilly asked. “I mean, aren’t I as tall as you?”

“Uh…” Sandy stuttered.

“Oho! She got ya there, Sands!” Lenile exclaimed.

Lilly got up to her feet, now feeling much better than before. “So, this is the kingdom of Even Desert?”

“Even Earth,” Lenile corrected. “And this isn’t the kingdom. Our kingdom is underground.”

“Underground?” Lilly asked. “How is that?”

“It could be better,” Sandy admitted. With a jerk of his head, he then said, “We really shouldn’t continue speaking like this. You know you’re on our battle territory, and we don’t usually like Voltlanders coming on our land.”

“Voltland?” Lilly asked. “I’m from Treasure Town, not Voltland.”

Lenile and Sandy looked at each other with widened eyes before grabbing Lilly by the arms.

“Don’t say a word,” Sandy whispered, “We need to take you somewhere so we can speak.”

Lilly, a little shocked from being grabbed suddenly, nodded reluctantly.

Sandy looked back and forth from the dugout they hid in. After a few more looks, Sandy gave a wave to Lenile, in which Lenile nodded.

“Okay, we’re sorry if we had to bring you in like that, but we can’t have Pokemon going around saying they aren’t from their land type,” Lenile explained. “It would cause a little unease with the other warriors in our kingdom.”

Lilly nodded. “I kinda understand,” Lilly said, “But I still don’t get why the others would be troubled by me saying that I belonged somewhere else.”

Sandy then entered the dugout before sitting on the sand. “It’s because of it,” Sandy said.

“It?” Lilly asked.

“The Being of Destruction,” Lenile reaffirmed. “It’s because we don’t know if the extremely powerful warrior is a male or female.”

“But…” Lilly started. “What does that have to with me being out of what I should be in?”

Lenile sighed. “Several years ago, a Pokemon that called itself the ultimate warrior came into the war. Many call it the Being of Destruction, as no one ever escaped from his clutches alive.”

“That sounds horrible,” Lilly said.

“It is,” Lenile admitted. “Because of that being, all warriors have been more fortified incase the being decides to strike. That’s why it’s impossible to fight some lands since all the territories are extremely prepared. Even if the attackers had the advantage, the defenders seemingly overcome the attackers.

“It’s because of that being. The Being of Destruction has placed fear in everyone’s hearts. No one will take the chance to battle. Because if they did, all of the warriors in that battle would be destroyed. Defeated… Killed.”

Lilly widened her eyes in horror. “Can’t anyone stand to him!?” she cried.

“The closest any kingdom came to defeating this being was the warriors of Obscured Forest. The warriors of darkness. But even they…” Lenile stopped himself.

“I get it now,” Lilly said.

“Yeah, tough stuff,” Sandy added, “No one is able to battle him.”

“Well, I guess it my turn to fight,” Lilly exclaimed.

“Wh-what!?” Lenile exclaimed.

“You’ve just a Pikachu!” Sandy yelled, “How do you expect to defeat this Pokemon!? You would be destroyed instantly!”

“I have to try,” Lilly explained, “With my partner, I can… Wait, hold on. Did you guys happen to see a Cyndaquil anywhere while helping me?”

Lenile and Sandy looked at each other in confusion. “All we saw was you in the sand,” Sandy explained.

“Yep, only you,” Lenile affirmed, “You should count yourself lucky that we rescued you before dark!”

Lilly sighed. “Well, thanks anyways. I guess I need to-”

“Stop right there!”

Lenile, Sandy, and Lilly turned to see three Hippowdon.

“No Voltlanders shall escape from our watch!” another Hippowdon exclaimed.

“And you two will face the consequences for helping an enemy!” the third Hippowdon exclaimed.

Before they had a chance to run, a Hippowdon used Sand Tomb and captured the three Pokemon. They then carried Lilly, Lenile, and Sandy away.

“So, a Voltlander being helped by two of our trainees.” A Steelix gazed down upon them. “What you say for your defense, Pikachu?” the Steelix commanded.

Lilly looked up at the Steelix. Carefully, Lilly explained, “I landed on your desert by a Salamence dropping me from the sky. I don’t mean to be in your kingdom, but, uh…” Lilly looked over to Lenile and Sandy, who looked away from Steelix. “These two over here… They were taking me in for questioning, not helping me.”

Steelix looked over to Lenile and Sandy, surprise in their expression. “Do you say this to be true, you two?”

“Uh, yes, Lord Steelix!” Sandy exclaimed.

“We were going to bring her to you, but then the guards took us down here before we could… Well, you know,” Lenile said, trying to grin.

Steelix continued to stare at Lenile and Sandy. Lenile and Sandy continued to wear big grins towards Steelix. He then said, “You are lying, Larvitar. And you know what we do to liers.”

Steelix turned to Lilly with a glare. “What say you to lie as well, Pikachu?”

Lilly looked down. “I just… Wanted to protect them…”

“And what reason is that, Pikachu?” Steelix asked, “Why protect them? Are they spies to your land?”

“What? No!” Lilly exclaimed. “I wanted to protect them because that what an Explor…” Lilly trailed off, remembering what Lenile spoke about.

Steelix grinned. “There are no Exploration Teams on this land, young Pikachu,” Steelix explained. “But, if you were by any chance, I suppose that you are the one who dropped this?” Steelix showed a bag slung around the spike on Steelix’s body.

Lilly stared. “H-How did you…” Lilly couldn’t say more. She knew that she was carrying the bag before Lucas, and that the bag fell off while she feel. Her thoughts turned to if Lucas was doing fine, if he was okay. Her thoughts were interrupted by a slam on the ground from Steelix.

“I see you’re in a daze. And since you seemed puzzled, we found this on Station Four,” Steelix added.

“Yes, it is my bag…” Lilly started.

“So you claim that you’re an exploration member?” Steelix said with a smirk.

Lilly nodded. “Yes, I’m part of Team Luminous.” Lilly stood a little taller, then exclaimed, “I am Lilly, member of Team Luminous and a graduate of the Wigglytuff Guild!”

Steelix smirked. “Well, then let’s prove it. You shall come against me in battle!”

Lilly’s ears drooped. Wait, go against Steelix? Lilly thought, I can’t affect him at all!

Though her mind rejected, Lilly said, “I accept your challenge.”

Why did I just accept? Lilly thought, I’m going to be killed…

Lenile and Sandy were brought inside, bounded by chains, being led by Hippowdon. Lilly followed behind, her eyes moving back and forth, looking around the arena. It was just that; an arena. The terrain was flat. Nothing could be launched or thrown. Lilly froze in terror, which seemed to give Steelix delight.

“You know, you could give up,” Steelix taunted, “You can run away and avoid all this humiliation… Or you can stay and let yourself be killed. Either way, punishment will come to you.”

Oh, how much Lilly wished that Lucas was around. Just a glimpse could give Lilly enough courage to be confident. She could run, but she knew she would be imprisoned by the Hippowdon. That only left Lilly with one choice…

“I’m ready,” Lilly said, walking towards the area. A door slammed behind her, but Lilly focused on Steelix. She knew that life or death depended on this battle.

“Do you think Lilly will make it?” Lenile asked.

“I don’t think so,” Sandy responded. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she didn’t last ten minutes inside there.”

“Alright, you make the first move, Pikachu,” Steelix said.

Lilly inhaled and exhaled to calm herself before coming in with a strike with her paw.

“Oh, how powerful! That Slam really hurt!” Steelix exaggerated, putting his tail to his face. “My turn!” He then swooped his tail down onto the ground, causing an Earthquake to shake.

Because of the shifty sand, Lilly fell onto the sand. Before she could recover, an Iron Tail came down onto her. The tail rose again and struck her on the ground, making Lilly sink a little deeper. Laughter rang out in the arena as Steelix’s tail swung up and fell on Lilly some more times. Finally, Steelix made a final blow, striking Lilly harder than the previous strikes.

Lilly struggled to stand, sand shifting beneath her as she attempted to crawl out of the hole. Before Lilly got out, she looked around the hole. Wait a minute… Lilly thought, Maybe, just maybe, I could try something new. Lilly then started to scratch at the dirt, causing her hands to glow. With a smirk, she burrowed her way into another hole.

“What’s the matter, Pikachu?” Steelix roared, “Can’t take an Iron Tail?”

Feeling around, she hoped for the best as she burrowed up. Finally, she smashed her head up, colliding with what was Steelix. Steelix grunted as Lilly landed on the ground, still holding the smirk on her face.

“Oh, a Pikachu that knows Dig?” Steelix asked. “Well, I’m sure you know that Earthquake is more powerful on a Pokemon that’s underground?” Steelix then slammed her tail on the ground, making another quake. Lilly jumped onto Steelix, causing Steelix to swing around.

“Hey, wha-Get off of me, you little rat!” Steelix yelled as he started to thrash about, slamming into the walls of the arena. Lilly continued to jump away as Steelix smashed against the sides. Soon, Steelix burrowed into the sand.

Great, Lilly thought as she jumped off Steelix. Steelix knows Dig. Well, let’s see how good of a digger he is!

Lilly then burrowed under the sand, creating a tunnel for herself. She listened closely to the shifting of the dirt. Luckily, Steelix was a loud burrower, which made it easy for Lilly to pinpoint where he was.

Silently, she dug towards Steelix, hitting him as he burrowed underneath. Lilly did this a few more times before it became silent. Then, the sand started collapsing, which caused Lilly to panic and start digging upwards. She then came out of the ground, in which she was wrapped around by Steelix’s tail.

“You have done enough, Pikachu! It is time for me to end this!” Steelix yelled. He then started to squeeze his tail with Lilly inside.

Lilly grunted at the pain that Steelix caused her. The grip became tighter, causing Lilly to struggle for air. Without thinking, Lilly started to make electricity flow around her, causing a buildup of energy before an explosion caught Lilly and Steelix.

Lilly was launched onto the ground while Steelix was blown back only slightly. Lilly felt the burning pain as she attempted to get up. Her body wasn’t following with her mind. Soon, Steelix came into her vision, causing her to feel fear. She pleaded for Lucas. She wished that Lucas could save her from this tyrant. Soon, her mind entered into a state of unconsciousness.

10

Chapter 3 - Lucas

After resting from the battle with Rhyperior, he turned to see Lilly. Except that there was no Lilly there. Lucas sighed at the memory that Lilly was dropped somewhere unknown to him.

“Good morning, Lord Lucas!” Rick called, coming into the room. “How did you sleep last night?”

Lucas smiled. “It was a restful night,” Lucas said. With a rub on his eyes, Lucas asked, “So, what should I do first?”

Rick grinned. “Follow me to Lady Rhyperior’s place. She has everything prepared.”

Lucas entered into the room where he battled Rhyperior. Surprisingly, they fixed up the place despite all the rock shatterings and the celebration last night.

“Ah, Lucas! Glad you’re here!” Rhyperior called.

Lucas walked over to Rhyperior. “So, what am I going to do next, Lady Rhyperior?”

“Well,” Rhyperior started, pulling out a map of Gerleniam. “First things first. You need to know where you’re going.” A bag was carried out by Graveler’s hand, then handed to Lucas with the map inside.

“I hope this will do fine for you, Lord Lucas,” Rhyperior said, “ Check out your map.”

Lucas unfurled his map. Looking at the map, he saw he was on the edge of the western part of Gerleniam. There were three surrounding kingdoms; Fervid Volcano to the south, Dojo to the east, and Toxic Fields to the north.

“Dojo?” Lucas asked. “That’s what they called their land?”

Rhyperior laughed. “I think every Kingdom has made fun of the Fighting Kingdom for that reason.”

Lucas smirked. “Well, I guess that may be fun to go to, but I think I want to go to the Fervid Volcano first,” Lucas said.

Rhyperior nodded. “Your choice is made up. Then let your quest commence!” Rhyperior exclaimed.

Lucas nodded, waving goodbye to Rick and Rhyperior as they waved back.

Travel to Fervid Volcano was extremely easy for Lucas. No Pokemon went to attack Lucas since he was seen as a Pokemon escaping to his own lands. When entering the land, Fire Pokemon all eyed to him.

A Vulpix came up towards Lucas. “Hey, we haven’t seen you before, Cyndaquil! Name’s Soul!” she exclaimed.

Lucas grinned. “My name is Lucas,” he said.

Other Pokemon then came up to Lucas and greeted him into the land with open arms.

“Nice to meet you!”

“It’s great to see a fire-type Pokemon from a different land!”

“I don’t know where you come from, but I like you already!”

Some Pokemon stared backwards at a Torkoal. “What?” the Torkoal asked. “That’s how everyone is thinking right now!”

Lucas and the Pokemon laughed. “I guess that’s true,” Soul said, “So I’ll be the one to question him then?”

The other Pokemon looked at each other. “Are you sure you can trust him?” one of the Pokemon asked from the crowd.

“I’m positive,” Soul said, winking towards the crowd. “He has this strange aura, and I don’t think he’s a bad Pokemon.”

Without the other Pokemon, Soul said, “Come along, Lucas!”

Lucas nodded and followed Soul while the other Pokemon watched them go by.

Entering a room in a house, Soul asked, “So, what brings you here, Lucas? It’s clear that you don’t live here.”

“Well, you guys may trust me like I am a resident, but I’m not here as a guy passing by,” Lucas explained, “I’m here to challenge the Warlord.”

Soul looked at him questionably, so Lucas added, “I beat Lady Rhyperior, so that-”

“You beat her!?” Soul asked in awe. “But, she’s a rock-type! You’re a fire-type! It shouldn’t work that way!”

“Yeah, I was surprised when I defeated her as well,” Lucas admitted. “Anyways, I guess I want to meet the warlord of Fervid Volcano to-”

“You’re saying you want to battle against our Lord Arcanine?” Soul asked, “He’s one of the most fierce battlers, you know? You would be defeated before you know it!”

“Well then! I guess that will be much more fun to ask him to battle,” Lucas said. “Anyway, thanks for inviting me here, but-”

“Wait!” Soul exclaimed. “Are you sure you want to battle Lord Arcanine right now? I mean, you just got here, so it may be a little more fun to explore the area first before you battle.”

“Well… I guess so,” Lucas said, thinking. “Maybe I can find Lilly on the way,” he whispered to himself.

“Lilly?” Soul asked.

Lucas blinked. “Uh, my partner,” Lucas answered. “She’s missing on this land, so I want to find her.”

“Well, let’s hope she didn’t end up in the eastern territories,” Soul said.

Lucas looked at Soul questionably. “What do you mean? Is there something wrong with the eastern territories?”

Soul nodded. “Yeah, the Eastern territories aren’t as kind to foreigners like you,” Soul explained, “If you’re lucky, they’ll have the mercy to put you in jail.”

“Now I really hope that Lilly didn’t end up there…” Lucas said.

Soul then jumped onto her feet. “So, are you just going to sit here and think? Come on! What are we waiting for?” Soul asked.

“Wha-We? You’re coming with me?” Lucas asked.

“Well, of course! I think it will be fun to travel with you!” Soul admitted, “After all, I never get to stretch my legs.”

“Well, I guess it would be fun to travel with a partner,” Lucas said. “So sure! You can come along!”

“Alright! Let me prepare!” Soul exclaimed before rushing out. Lucas laughed at the enthusiasm of Soul, then thought about Lilly.

I really hope you’re alright Lilly… Lucas thought.

After Soul met up with Lucas, Lucas pressed forward towards a volcanic cavern. Looking up in the sky, he could see that it was already mid-day. He then looked over to Soul, who seemed to be looking down.

“Uh, something the matter?” Lucas asked.

Soul quickly put on a smile. “Oh, nothing!” Soul exclaimed. “I’m just thinking.”

Lucas interest got him. “What are you thinking about?” Lucas asked.

Soul looked back and forth. “Uh…” Soul looked up. “I was, uh… Thinking about the sun! Yeah, the sun!”

Lucas gazed over Soul’s face. He knew Soul was hiding something, but Lucas decided that it wasn’t the time to ask. So instead, Lucas asked, “So, where are we going?”

Soul seemed to be a little tense as she answered, “To the Caverns of Magma.”

Lucas smiled. “Sounds very specific.”

Soul grinned a little sheepishly. “Yeah, specific, heh.”

Lucas looked forward, focusing in front of him. She’s hiding something, Lucas thought, But what?

Before Lucas could speak, a cave opening appeared.

“There it is!” Soul yelled.

Lucas nodded. “Well, let’s go have a fun exploration!” Lucas then turned to grin at Soul.

Soul smiled back, nodding. Saying nothing, she ran towards the cave.

“H-Hey, wait for me!” Lucas yelled, running after Soul.

Usually, Lucas would be comfortable in the heat of the magma. But for some reason, no magma flowed. Crystals were formed in many places of the cave roof, and the cave walls and floor were encased with ice.

“I think you may need to give a different name for these caves,” Lucas joked. He turned to Vulpix, who seemed to be shivering. “Hey, are you okay?” Lucas asked with concern.

“Y-Y-Yeah, I-I’m f-f-fine…” Soul said before falling onto the ground.

Lucas ran over to help her, but she shoved Lucas’s paw and stood up. “L-Let’s k-k-keep moving…” Soul said, continuing to press on. Lucas blinked in confusion.

Something’s going on, and she’s not saying something, Lucas thought, following closely behind.

“Okay, I think you might need to speak now, Soul,” Lucas said, “Something is going wrong, but you’re hiding something…”

Soul shivered. “I-It doesn’t m-matter…” Soul said, fierciousity overtaking the pain on her face. “I m-must get it back… I need to…”

Lucas walked in front of Soul, in which Soul skid to a halt. “What is it that you’re trying to get back?” Lucas asked, glaring at Soul.

Soul moved around Lucas, continuing forward. “Something important!” Soul yelled.

Lucas followed behind Soul. “What is so important about this?” Lucas asked, trying to sound comforting. Soul stopped in her tracks. Lucas continued, “Please, you can trust me.”

“My necklace.”

“Your necklace?” Lucas asked, “Is that why we’re going down this cave?”

“I-I can’t let my memory be taken…” Soul said, her voice cracking a little as she spoke. “That necklace is the only thing I have left… of… them.” Soul’s tears started falling from her face.

Lucas smiled, nodding in acceptance. “We better get moving then,” Lucas said.

Soul looked up at Lucas in shock. “What?” she questioned.

“I’ve been holding us back,” Lucas said with a wink, which made Soul smile a bit. “And anyways, I felt like we’ve been going slower than usual.”

Soul nodded, in which they started walking forward.

“Hey Lucas?” Soul asked.

“Hm?” Lucas questioned.

“Thanks,” Soul said, smiling a more calm smile.

“Heh, no problem,” Lucas said with a wink.

Finally coming to the end of the dungeon, Lucas and Soul looked at a door with two Charizard heads with mouths open and a strange writing on the door. Lucas looked up at the door, glancing here and there.

“Unown!” Soul exclaimed.

“Unown?” Lucas repeated as a question.

“This writing. It’s Unown,” Soul repeated.

“Well, that makes it more difficult,” Lucas said, “If we don’t know it, we can’t progress.”

Soul laughed, which made Lucas look over to her. With a smile, Soul explained, “It’s just called Unown. It’s just a writing created from the alphabet Pokemon.”

“Uh…” Lucas stuttered while Soul looked at it.

“I don’t know much of how to read it, but I can try,” Soul said.

Lucas smiled. “Alright, then what does it say?” Lucas asked.

“Hm…” Soul started. “Not much. It says something about “heat of two”, but I don’t know what that would mean…”

Lucas then gazed over at the two Charizard heads. “Hey, know any fire-type moves?” Lucas asked.

“Of course!” Soul exclaimed. “Why, if I didn’t, that wouldn’t make me a fire-type Princ-uh, I mean, yeah! Of course!”

Lucas looked over at Soul, smiling. “Princess, huh?”

“Uh, yeah…” Soul turned red. “I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you, but I just don’t really think of myself as one…”

Lucas nodded. “Well, let’s focus on the doors first,” Lucas explained, “I think that we should try using our Fire moves into the mouths of these Charizard heads.”

Soul looked back and forth. “Are you sure that’s what the “heat of two” means?” Soul asked.

“I don’t know, but it’s worth a try.” Lucas then stepped in front of the Charizard head while Soul went in front of the other.

“Ready, Soul?” Lucas asked. Soul nodded, and so they both used Flamethrower. A crack was heard, and the doors slowly opened.

“That seemed way too easy!” Soul exclaimed.

“That’s how I feel about my adventure here so far,” Lucas admitted. “But like all adventures, it gets harder from here.”

Soul laughed. “What are you, some kind of guru of some sort?” Soul asked.

Lucas laughed. “Maybe,” Lucas said with a shrug.

Both Lucas and Soul walked through the doorway, Soul’s smile growing.

“Brr! I can’t believe it’s so cold down here!” Soul exclaimed.

Lucas nodded. He had to admit that it was getting cold for him as well. He even had to ignite his back for warmth, but even then, it was chilly.

“I hope we’ll be there soon!” Soul continued. “This cold is making me lose feeling in my very paws!”

Lucas smiled. “Well, Princess, I think that our opponents will be easy,” Lucas said.

Soul looked over to Lucas. “Why’s that?” Soul asked.

“Call it ‘exploration intuition’,” Lucas said, “Because of this cold, I would think that our enemy is going to be an Ice-type, so we’ll have the advantage.”

“Wow, I wouldn’t have thought of that!” Soul admitted, “I just have been thinking of the cold, but-WAH!”

An Ice Beam came from the darkness of the cave, nearly hitting Lucas and Soul.

“Well, here they are,” Lucas said, smirking. “I believe you have something that belongs to my friend!”

A floating ball of ice came from the darkness. “You mean the necklace?” Glalie asked. “Worthless junk. Turns out it wasn’t as expensive as we thought, so we smashed it.”

Soul’s eyes widen. “You… What…”

“But it seems you’re invading our Icy-Lair!” Glalie continued. “So now, prepare to face the consequences!” Glalie then fired a beam of ice at Lucas.

Lucas jumped over the beam and fired a fiery inferno at Glalie. Soul sat there, eyes still widened.

Glalie was hit, which caused him to fall onto the ground. “Gah, you’re strong…” Glalie said.

“What? Giving up after a Flamethrower?” Lucas taunted. “Or are you going to try something sneaky?”

Glalie frowned. “You seem to know what’s going to happen.” Glalie got up and smashed into the ground. Icicles started coming from above.

“Soul, get out of the way!” Lucas yelled. Soul just stood in place, still in a daze.

“Soul!” Lucas yelled. The icicles started crashing down. Soul snapped out of it and looked upwards to see the icicles too close for her to dodge. Instead, she closed her eyes.

Lucas jumped quickly on top of Soul and ignited his flame on his back much larger. The icicles melted and evaporated as Soul opened her eyes. Lucas looked down and smirked.

“Don’t worry, Soul,” Lucas said. “I’m here for you.”

When he finished speaking, he felt something crash onto his head. His mind started beating, his heart racing. Or was it the other way around? Lucas couldn’t tell. He just felt the coldness of the ground. Laughter sounded, in which Lucas groaned.

It’s always the laughter before you faint, isn’t it? Lucas thought.

Lucas struggled to see Soul standing in front of him. She seemed to be yelling something, but Lucas couldn’t quite hear. Soon, he could see nothing but darkness.

With an opening of his eyes, he saw Soul standing in front of his eyes. There seemed to be something surrounding her neck, but she was too close for Lucas to tell.

“Lucas,” Soul asked, “Are you okay?”

With a smirk, Lucas got up. A surge of pain entered his mind, but he attempted to show no trace of it on his face.

“So, this is the Lucas you speak of?” a voice asked.

Lucas looked up to see an Arcanine enter the room. Lucas could tell from his eyes that Soul was correct; he was a fierce fighter.

“Yes, Lord Arcanine!” Soul exclaimed. “This is the new Warlord of Ragged Caverns!”

“I see.” Arcanine walked over to Lucas and grinned.

“You are one brave warrior, young Cyndaquil,” Arcanine stated, “You didn’t just save the kingdom’s defense, but you have also helped my daughter in regaining what she rightly owns. We are highly in your debt, Lord Lucas!”

Lucas blinked. “B-But, what-”

“I explained to Lord Arcanine what you did!” Soul said, “I told him that you were so willing to help me and what you did to save me from being killed!”

Lucas looked at Soul. “What did I do?” Lucas asked.

“You covered me from that icy spike barrage when I was unable to move!” Soul said excitedly, “Seriously, thanks! I don’t know what I would have done if you weren’t there!”

Lucas smiled. “It’s what an exploration member does!” Lucas exclaimed. “I help out any Pokemon in need.”

“And you shall continue to serve your fellow Pokemon by being the ruler of Fervid Volcano!” Arcanine stated.

“Wh-What!?” Lucas yelled, “But, I didn’t do much!”

Arcanine laughed. “Of course you didn’t,” Arcanine admitted. “Though, I have spoken with Lady Rhyperior. She explained to me how you were coming to bring peace unto Gerleniam. And from what I have seen, I believe that you are fit to help us! Lord Lucas, continue your journey with exceeding fiercocity!”

Lucas blinked in confusion, but nodded with a smile. “Of course! I’m ready to help!”

“But do not push yourself, Lucas,” Arcanine said, “You have taken quite a blow to the head. I recommend you rest for at least three days.”

Lucas shook his head. “I shouldn’t take that long to heal,” Lucas said, “I have to make sure that this land is at peace.”

Arcanine nodded. “You have the determination, young Cyndaquil,” Arcanine said, “But you must at least rest for the night.” Arcanine pointed towards the window, in which Lucas saw the outline of the stars and the half-filled moon.

Lucas nodded. “Alright then,” Lucas said.

Arcanine walked to the door. “I have some errands to run. Try to get your rest, Lord Lucas.” And with that, Arcanine left.

Lucas looked back to Soul. “I see you have your necklace back,” Lucas said.

Soul smiled. “Glalie was lying when he said he smashed it,” Soul said. “It’s still just as normal as before.” Soul walked over to Lucas, who noticed the sudden expression change in Soul. “Can I trust you to keep a secret?”

Lucas smiled. “Of course you can, Soul,” Lucas said. “What is it?”

Soul heaved a sigh. “I’m… Well, Arcanine isn’t my dad.”

Lucas looked over at Soul. “What do you mean?” Lucas asked, “Aren’t you the princess?”

Soul shook her head. “I wasn’t a princess before,” Soul stated. “I… I was an orphan.”

Lucas was shocked by what Soul was saying, but she took no notice. She continued, “This necklace is extremely important to me since it’s the only thing I have that could lead me to my real parents…”

Lucas thought for a moment and asked, “But, how did you get adopted by Lord Arcanine?”

Soul shook her head. “I was playing a prank on the kingdom’s castle by… Well, making the guards slip on Geo Pebbles.” Soul chuckled at the thought before continuing, “Long story short, I was captured by the guards, the guards brought to Arcanine, Arcanine asked me questions, and before I knew it, he adopted me.”

“Wow…” Lucas managed to say.

“Yeah…” Soul explained, “Nobody else knows about it. Well, about me being Princess or anything. They still think that I am just a commoner.”

Lucas smiled. “Well, I’m sure Pokemon will be in a surprise when they find out that you’re a princess.”

Soul laughed. “Yeah, that may be one of my greatest jokes yet!” Soul then frowned. “Still, you’re the only Pokemon that knows that I was an orphan, besides some of the guards and Lord Arcanine.” Soul looked into Lucas’s eyes with big eyes. “Please, keep it a secret.”

Lucas smiled. “I promise. I won’t tell anyone.”

Soul smiled. “Well, I better be off then.” Soul put an Oran Berry next to Lucas’s bedside and ran to the door. “I need to get some sleep for tomorrow! Good night, Lucas!” she said before rushing off.

Lucas chuckled. Soul reminded Lucas of Lilly. Thinking of Lilly, he turned to get into his bed.

Lilly… he thought, Please be okay…

“My Lord, we are prepared for battle, just as you commanded,” Salamence said, “We are awaiting your orders.”

The shadow smirked. “Then you shall get back to your kingdom and be prepared for battle.”

“My Lord?” Salamence asked.

“Two kingdoms have been taken by one of the Pokemon you brought with you,” the shadow explained, “He, no doubtingly, was perfect for your choosing.”

“What do you suggest, my Lord?” Salamence asked.

“Have patience,” the shadow said, “If he is to what I believe, then he shall take over the kingdoms for me. When he is finished, I shall come to battle against him… and destroy him!”

Salamence nodded. “Then I shall take my leave, my Lord.” Salamence then flew away.

The shadow tapped on the desk. “Lucas, I shall be ready for you.”

11

Chapter 3 - Lilly

[i]Lilly woke up in a field of grass and flowers. They danced around in the wind blowing across. With a smile, Lilly started running across the field, enjoying the scent of roses and lilies that flowed across. She looked over the field to see Lucas, in which her smile increased.

The Cyndaquil turned to Lilly, saying, “Hey, are you okay?”[/i]

The words echoed as the world transformed into a cell prison, coated in sturdy mud and metallic bars.

Lilly groaned as she got up to see Lenile and Sandy.

“Wh-what happened?” Lilly asked quietly.

Sandy sighed. “In order to make sure you lived, we… Well…” Sandy strayed into silence.

“We made sure that the punishments were… well, slightly less,” Lenile finished.

“Oh… I see…” Lilly said, “So now we’re…”

“We’re in prison, thanks to you,” Sandy said.

Lenile waved both of his hands, but Lilly just sighed.

“I’m sorry…” Lilly spoke, tears starting to fill her eyes.

Lenile sat down. “Don’t take the blame on yourself,” Lenile said, putting a hand to Lilly’s back. “So what if we’re in prison? We still have each other.”

Lilly continued to stare at the wall. “But, weren’t you both warriors?” Lilly asked, “Weren’t you both innocent before this?”

“Well…” Lenile started, “We, uh, we were warriors. We helped our kingdom by defending it.”

“And because… Because of me…” Tears started falling from Lilly’s face.

“Don’t worry about it, Lilly,” Lenile said, “We made the decision to help you.”

Lilly just continued to look at the wall. “I… I still put you in here,” Lilly said silently, “Because of me, your freedom is limited.”

Lenile removed his hand from Lilly. “Stop blaming yourself,” Lenile said, “We know you’ll come through for us.”

Lenile got up and walked away from Lilly, looking down. Lenile turned to Sandy and said, “Come on, let’s give her some time alone.”

Sandy shook his head. “How? We’re stuck in this cell together,” Sandy stated.

Lenile sat down. “You know what I mean, Sandy.”

Sandy sighed and sat in his bed. “To think we will be judged tomorrow…” Sandy said.

Lenile took a seat next to Sandy. “Judgement… It seems I’m getting that a lot lately.”

Lilly looked down. Sand covered a lot of the ground, which Lilly started to swipe it around. Underneath the sand, there was metal. She continued brushing towards herself until she got to underneath the bed. To her surprise, something felt a little off about the sand.

She continued brushing off the sand, which seemed to have no metal underneath. Why would they not put any metal under the bed? Lilly thought. She started shovelling at the dirt until she couldn’t go further in her position.

She knelt next to the bed and started digging under the bed. “Hey, Sandy, Lenile, come over here!” Lilly said.

Sandy looked over to Lilly. “Jeez, what now?” Sandy groaned.

Lenile glared at his friend and walked over to Lilly. “Look! There’s no metal under here!” she exclaimed, digging out more sand.

Lenile looked over Lilly’s hole. “It feels like a trap…” Lenile admitted.

Lilly nodded. “It may be a trap, but it may also be our only chance,” Lilly said, “Let’s try it.”

“They’re expecting you to do something stupid like this,” Sandy called, “If you think you will be fine, think again.”

Lenile shook his head. “Well, if you don’t want to come, then don’t. We’re still going to try though.” Lenile turned to Lilly. “Come on, let’s try this!”

Lilly nodded and started digging. Lenile lifted the bed to make it easier for Lilly to dig underneath before jumping in. Sandy then yelled, “You’re making a huge mistake!”

Ignoring Sandy’s call, Lilly and Lenile continued digging through the underground.

Lilly and Lenile popped out of the ground, surrounded by the desert around them.

“Well, this may be our only chance,” Lenile said, “We need to run now, or we’ll be caught!”

Lilly nodded, then turned to face front of her. “The problem is that I don’t know where to go!” She looked back to Lenile, who was observing the ground.

With a smile, Lenile pointed in a direction opposite of the sun. “This is where we should go,” Lenile said, “This will lead us to another kingdom, where we can hide in. Probability is that we won’t be noticed too much.”

“Is it Voltland?” Lilly asked.

Lenile shook his head. “No, it’s actually the Drenched Lake,” Lenile explained, “Earthlings like us would never go to a place like that, but I’ll be fine if I stick with you.”

Lilly nodded her head. “Alright then,” Lilly said, “Let’s go before they catch us!”

Lenile nodded as they began walking. After they both stepped forward, a voice commanded, “HALT! STAY WHERE YOU ARE!”

Lilly and Lenile looked at each other with widened eyes. “They knew we escaped!?” Lenile exclaimed.

Lilly looked towards the kingdom. Surely enough, Hippowdon were charging towards them.

“Arg, I guess so,” Lilly muttered. She then looked down at the sand. “We’ll just take their route.”

Lenile twitched. “What? But-”

“No time to argue!” Lilly said before scratching at the ground. Lenile looked where the charging Hippowdon were.

Lenile’s eyes widened and he started flailing his arms around. “Go, go, go, go, go, go, go!” Lenile yelled quickly before jumping into the hole.

Lilly continued to swing around her arms, clawing at the sand and clearing the way. Lenile came from behind and started covering the hole with lifting up sand. Soon, both Lilly and Lenile were in darkness. Lenile and Lilly put their tails together while Lilly continued to scratch at the dirt.

After several minutes, Lilly’s pace grew slower. Lenile could feel Lilly’s tail resting on his tail, so Lenile asked, “Are you alright?”

Lilly nodded, though Lenile couldn’t tell since it was pitch-black. “Just fine,” Lilly responded.

Lenile and Lilly walked in silence for a few more minutes before Lilly spoke. “So, tell me, Lenile.”

Lenile questioned with a single hum. Lilly continued, “What was that battle that you were so tired out from when I first met you?”

Lenile seemed to clench harder on Lilly’s tail. “W-Well, let’s just say it was a rough battle…” Lenile said.

Lilly seemed to notice the tension, so she asked, “Do you want to talk about it? You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

Lenile loosed the grip on Lilly’s tail, but still clinging on lightly. “I’m sure that you rather not hear about it…”

This got Lilly’s attention. “Is it that bad?” Lilly asked.

Lenile sighed, then said, “A battle with a friend is always terrible.”

Lilly tried not gasping in surprise. Instead, she said, “It is terrible…”

Lenile tensed up again. “It was unfair though. We usually have fights, but this was personal…”

It was silent for a few moments, besides the shifting of sand from Lilly’s claws.

Finally, Lenile said, “Sandy and I, we were on the battlefield, talking about what we would do if we controlled a kingdom. You know, just playing around with our imaginations. But that was the topic that brought up something… Something that really bothered Sandy. Something I will always regret.

“When I was talking about how how my land would be, all a sudden Sandy started yelling at me. He said it was stupid to have a land in which families could be with each other. I was caught by surprise by this and asked, ‘Why not have families together?’. He then yelled at me that families aren’t supposed to be together, that families is what drives Pokemon to hatred.

“This caused me to get angry as well, so I started yelling at him. I yelled, ‘That’s not true! Families teach about love and sincerity!’ He continued yelling at me, saying that families aren’t at all like that. Th-Then… I…” Lilly could feel the trembling of Lenile’s tail before it slipped away. Lilly stopped digging and came over to Lenile and hugged him, in which Lenile freely cried.

Lenile relaxed from his sad state. In fact, Lenile seemed happier. Both Lilly and Lenile decided it was best to dig upwards since Lilly seemed to be tiring. Once they surfaced, they noticed that the road diverged from a sandy route to a wet dirt road. They saw a tree, so Lilly and Lenile hid behind it.

“Alright, Drench Lake isn’t too far now,” Lenile explained, “We just need to be careful of any water Pokemon that are wandering around.”

Lilly nodded. Lenile peered around and motioned Lilly to follow. Lilly ran past Lenile and spotted a Pokemon roaming around the trees.

“We’ve been seen!” Lilly exclaimed.

“What!?” Lenile shouted before covering his mouth.

But it was too late. Before they knew it, they were being surrounded by Quagsire.

“Drat, my moves won’t do much to these guys,” Lenile cursed.

“I can’t even affect them with my lightning moves,” Lilly cried out.

“Well, what can we do?” Lenile asked.

One Quagsire said, “What an interesting duo.”

A second Quagsire nodded. “You usually don’t see Voltlanders and Earthlings joining together.”

A third Quagsire laughed. “They must have heard about Ragged Caverns and are trying to reach that place!”

The other Quagsire laughed, which caused Lenile and Lilly continued to look around, staying on their guard.

“So, what shall we do to these invaders?” the second Quagsire asked.

The fourth Quagsire looked at Lilly, while the third looked at Lenile. The first Quagsire looked at the two, in which they both nodded.

“Alright then,” the first Quagsire said, “We’ll take these guys to Lord Walrein.”

The Quagsire then grabbed Lilly and Lenile before carrying them off.

“Great, now we’re captured again,” Lenile complained. “What are we supposed to do?”

Lilly looked back and forth. “I don’t know,” Lilly admitted. “Let’s just see Lord Walrein before we do anything reckless.”

The Pokemon in the trees followed from the forest.

“We found these two trespassing on our territory, Lord Walrein,” Quagsire said, throwing them forward.

Lilly stumbled to regain her balance. She looked up at Walrein, who stared back at Lilly with cold eyes. A shiver was sent down Lilly’s back.

“I see. I see…” Walrein rambled before turning to stare at Lenile. “I see…” he repeated a third time.

“Alright!” he shouted. “I see two Pokemon here.”

Quagsire looked towards each other before asking. “What’s their punishment?”

“Punishment?” Walrein asked. “Why would I punish them for being Pokemon?”

The Quagsire groaned while Lilly couldn’t help but to giggle.

“Lord Walrein, they were on our territory!” Quagsire declared, “They are invaders! They came to take over the land!”

“Oh, come now!” Walrein exclaimed. “What makes you think a Larvitar and a Pikachu could take over the land?”

“Well…” Quagsire stuttered.

“What my friend means,” the other Quagsire started, “Is that these two Pokemon entered our land without being, well, invited.”

“Oh, is that it?” Walrein asked. “Well then! Welcome to Drenched Lake, you two!”

Quagsire then put his hand into his face while Lilly couldn’t help but smile.

“Thank you, Lord Walrein!” Lilly exclaimed.

Walrein laughed. “Such a grateful Pikachu,” Walrein said. “Tell me, where do you come from?”

Lilly started, “Well, Lord Walrein, I come from Treas-”

Lenile shushed her, in which she turned to Lenile.

“Don’t just tell him where you live!” Lenile whispered, “You don’t know the wit of Lord Walrein!”

Lilly laughed. “Lord Walrein is just being friendly,” Lilly pointed out.

Walrein nodded. “Young Larvitar, you can learn how to trust from this young lass,” he said, “Now, what were you going to say before being interrupted by your friend?”

Lilly then cleared her throat. “Well, I was going to say that I come from Treasure Town,” she stated. “I am an Exploration Member of Team Luminous.”

“Oh, are you now?” Walrein asked. “You know, I have heard many great things about your team.”

“You have?” Lilly asked.

“Oh yes, I have heard many great things!” Walrein clarified. “Saving so many Pokemon from destruction! It was probably difficult, but you succeeded real well!”

Lilly looked at him with confusion. “Which time are you talking about?” Lilly asked.

“Oh, the better time!” Walrein exclaimed. “A very wonderful time when you saved Pokemon from destruction, yes sirree!”

“Uh, pardon me, Lord Walrein,” Lilly started, “But you really aren’t saying what we did…”

“Well, of course I am!” Walrein stated. “I’m saying it’s a very wonderful time that you saved Pokemon from destruction!”

“Wha-Oh!” Lilly exclaimed. “You’re talking about Temporal Tower, aren’t you?”

Walrein nodded with a grin. “Yes, that wonderful time!” Walrein exclaimed. “Without that wonderful time, we probably wouldn’t have had any time at all!”

“Yeah, it was quite terrifying as well,” Lilly admitted. “Primal Dialga was really difficult to beat, but we managed to get the Time Gears into the tower to save time!”

“Oh, do tell me more!” Walrein exclaimed.

So Lilly did what Walrein commanded. She spoke about Lucas that transformed into a Pokemon, why Grovyle stole Time Gears, how they escaped from the frozen future, even to explaining about Darkrai and his plot to engulf the world into darkness. Even Lenile and Quagsire were pretty involved with what Lilly spoke about.

“Hm, you have quite a legacy!” Walrein exclaimed. “So, where is this Lucas at the moment?”

“Well, he’s on this land, but I really don’t know…” Lilly said. “When Salamence dropped me off at Ragged Caverns, Lucas was still on Salamence…”

“I see then!” Walrein said. “And I’m sure that the Buizel listening behind that pillar sees as well!”

The Quagsire quickly reacted and took a Buizel from behind the pillars. Lilly looked back to see a Buizel, looking calm while being taken.

Buizel was pushed forward, in which he walked forward a few steps to follow the momentum before stopping.

“Okay, I’ll admit it,” the Buizel said. “I was interested.”

“You know, I remember seeing you before,” Walrein said. “Adrian, was it?”

“Yes, Lord Walrein,” Adrian said with a bow.

“M-hm. I do remember you quite well,” Walrein said. “You were brought in for being a trespasser to the kingdom as well, were you not?”

“I wasn’t trespassing,” Adrian said, “I was just exploring new lands, and I just happened to end up here.”

“Well, I see some more exploration in your future, young Buizel,” Walrein said. He then turned to Lilly and said, “You are searching for your friend, are you not?”

“Uh, yes, Lord Walrein!” Lilly said.

“M-hm. So you know what you’re going to do, Adrian,” Walrein said, “You said you wanted to go on an adventure, did you not?”

“I-I did.” Adrian turned to Lilly. “But are you telling me that I’m going to go along with this Pikachu?” he asked.

“It’s not ‘this Pikachu’, young Buizel,” Walrein stated, “This is Lilly, and you shall travel with her to make sure that she doesn’t feel lonely.”

“Wait,” Lenile asked, “What about me?”

“What about you?” Walrein asked.

“Well, Lenile was coming with me,” Lilly stated. “It’s because of him that I got here in the first place!”

“Indeed, young Pikachu,” Walrein said, “But he is a trepasser on our territory.”

Lilly mouth fell. “Wh-what?” she shrieked.

“Oh, don’t worry, we’re not going to imprison him,” Walrein said, “But he does have to pay somehow for his intrusion. And so, I declare that he shall be one of my servants until this kingdom is lost to another.”

Lilly looked down. “B-But…”

“I might lose it tomorrow though,” Walrein continued, “There is a Pokemon going around taking kingdoms freely. Already in the space of one day, one of the most powerful kingdoms fell to him.”

Lilly looked at Walrein in wonder. “How do you know this?” Lilly asked.

“The Psychic Pokemon tell me that it is so,” Walrein answered. “The kingdom of Ragged Cavern have already fell.”

All the surrounding Pokemon looked nervous. “W-Well, I promise that I’m going to put an end to this!” Lilly stated.

“True, you will,” Walrein said, “But you must first find your friend. The Salamence you speak of lives far in the Northeastern part of Gerleniam.”

“Gerleniam?” Lilly asked.

“That is the place we are in right now,” Adrian answered. “Where did you think you were in?”

“Well, I…” Lilly started.

“I can tell you’ve been through a lot, young Pikachu,” Walrein said. “Not just physically, but emotionally as well. I can see why you would be confused. Though, it is my wonder why you still have your positive attitude, but I’m sure that the answer will come later. For now, you must rest yourself.”

“No, really, I’m fine!” Lilly said. “I’ll be ready to travel! And anyway, it’s still bright outside!” Lilly pointed to the sun still shining. “I’m sure we’ll be fine.”

Walrein shook his head. “Young Buizel, please explain some things concerning the Northern territories.”

Adrian nodded and explained, “The territories to the north are known for their ferocity. Any trespasser, even if weak or injured, would be destroyed immediately. The territories most known for having no mercy are Even Earth, Shrouded Forest, Frozen Wasteland, Ghastly Gorge, and Ancient Hills.

“From what is known, Ancient Hills has a connection to the Being of Destruction. As Pokemon rumor, no one knows who it is. It is said that people usually avoid the Ancient Hills for that Pokemon. The Shrouded Forest, Frozen Wasteland, and Ghastly Gorge are the ones that surround the Ancient Hills. Frozen Wasteland to the west, Shrouded Forest to the south, and Ghastly Gorge to the east.

“If you want to get to the Ancient Hills, you’ll have to go through one of those three. Even Earth, for some reason, adopted the merciless ways of those kingdoms, so I suggest we go north to Insect Web. From there, we can decide which way to go next.”

Lilly nodded. “I see, but you missed my point of travelling in the daytime.”

Walrein slid towards Lilly, putting a fin to Lilly’s head and rubbing it. Walrein explained, “The warriors of that Bug Kingdom have two types of warriors that protect the land. The speedy and poisonous ones are in the daytime. The ones who slow you down to poison you are in the nighttime. You might want to decide which ones you want to face as they are equally tough.”

“Oh,” Lilly said, “I guess we might need to think…” Lilly thought for a moment. “Maybe we can go in the daytime. That way, we can be awake and able to fight!”

Adrian nodded. “Alright then,” Adrian said, “I’m going to prepare for tomorrow. You do the same.”

Lilly nodded. “Right.”

Getting a bag and some money from Walrein, Lilly decided to go into town to shop before the sun fully set. She was followed around by two Quagsire for security reasons, but she didn’t mind. For now, she was exploring around the shops, searching for some shop that sold good items. She finally reached a shop that was pretty well known.

“Hello there!” the green Kecleon exclaimed.

“Welcome to our shop!” the purple Kecleon exclaimed.

“Hey Keckleon brothers!” Lilly said. “How did you get here in this water-type place?”

“We’re a well known business!” the green Kecleon explained.

“Every kingdom loves to have our duo!” the purple Kecleon added. “But shouldn’t we ask you the same question?”

“Well, I’m kind of being watched,” Lilly said, pointing to the Quagsire behind her. But, to her surprise, they weren’t there. They seemed to be chasing some Piplup around, which didn’t make much sense, but she figured that the Piplup did something. Lilly turned back to the Kecleon. “Well, I was being watched.”

“Well, we welcome any customer!” the green Kecleon exclaimed.

“Take a look at our fines!” the purple Kecleon added.

There was actually quite more than usual. Iron Thorns were definitely common as it filled one whole shelf on it’s own. There were also some Oran Berries, Pecha Berries, and some Cheri Berries as well.

Lilly, after scanning the shop, asked, “How much for the Oran Berries?”

“They’re only ten Poke today!” the green Kecleon cheered.

“T-Ten?” Lilly asked. “That’s really cheap!”

The Kecleon looked at each other. “Cheap?” they both asked, in which Lilly’s realization hit her.

“O-Oh, n-nothing!” Lilly stuttered. “I-I just, uh, was really rich in Voltland, that’s all!”

The Kecleon turned to Lilly. “And yet you’re here?” the purple Kecleon asked, “What brings you here?”

“Well, I just wandered here…” Lilly admitted.

The Kecleon smirked. “You traveled over two kingdoms over to this lake?” the purple Kecleon asked.

“U-Uh…” Lilly looked back and forth. “Y-Yeah… Kinda strange that I, uh, wasn’t captured in those, uh, two other territories…”

“And which territories did you travel across?” the green Kecleon asked.

“Uh…” Lilly started looking back and forth. “I… don’t know?” she asked.

“You don’t know?” the green Kecleon asked. The two looked over to each other and snickered. They turned back and the green Kecleon asked, “Didn’t you study the maps of Gerleniam? All Pokemon are required to do that.”

The Kecleon brothers had her. She was about to admit herself before a Quagsire yelled, “HALT! THIEF!”

Lilly looked back to see the Piplup running quickly while the Quagsire fell behind.

“That’s my cue,” Lilly said, relief flooding over her. She ran towards the Piplup, who outran the Quagsire. Lilly, though, caught up to Piplup easily.

“Hey,” Lilly called out. “I thought that I could help out these guards, so here I am!”

Piplup looked over to Lilly, then popped out a seed and ate it. Soon, Piplup rushed away in a blink of an eye.

“Wha-Hey!” Lilly yelled. Lilly then used Agility to rush back to Piplup’s side. “That wasn’t nice, you know?”

Piplup seemed to have a little fear in his face, surprised at the Pikachu next to her. “How did-”

“I know Agility,” Lilly said with a wink.

Piplup groaned. “So, what are you going to do?” Piplup asked.

“Easy!” Lilly said, with thunder crackling from her cheeks. Piplup’s eyes widened as she attempted to go faster. Lilly then shot a Thunderbolt at Piplup, who fell immediately after the shock.

Lilly skid to a halt, passing in front of Piplup, and looked at what she stole. To her surprise, it wasn’t any type of rare artifact or anything that could be counted as rare. Instead, it was a type of medicine.

“So, what were you going to do with that medicine anyways?” Lilly asked.

With a sigh, Piplup got up. “I was hoping that I could give this to my mother…” Piplup explained, “My mom is sick with a high fever, so I hoped that I could help…”

Lilly started, “But… Why-”

“Hold it!” Quagsire yelled. The other Quagsire gathered up around Piplup, in which Lilly backed away.

“Return the SecretPotion to us immediately,” one of the Quagsire demanded.

With a sigh, Piplup handed over the potion reluctantly. The Quagsire took it and gave it to another guard.

“Take it to Healer Azumarill’s place,” the Quagsire that gave the potion said to the receiver. The receiving Quagsire nodded and walked off. “You made this easier on yourself to hand it over, but you shall still pay the consequences.”

Piplup looked towards the ground. “C-Can I at least see my mother first before I go?” Piplup asked.

Quagsire took the Piplup and said, “Your mother will get to see you in jail.” Piplup was then carried away by the Quagsire guards. Lilly’s ears drooped as she watched the scene.

“She was only trying to help her mother…” Lilly said silently. Looking towards the Quagsire, she then smiled. “So I’ll continue where she left off!”

Arriving in a strange shop, Lilly smelled and saw many herbs. Azumarill greeted, “Welcome to my healing shop! What do you want?”

Lilly remembered that the name of this medicine was SecretPotion, so she asked, “Do you have a SecretPotion?”

Azumarill nodded, then grabbed the potion from the shelf. “This is eight-thousand Poke,” Azumarill said.

Lilly nodded and took out her bag. She counted the money she had, and noticed that it was enough. “Here,” she said, giving the money to Azumarill.

Azumarill smiled. “I see you’re spending it all,” she said. “Who are you buying this medicine for?”

Lilly smiled. “For a friend,” she said.

“Well then!” Azumarill exclaimed. “I hope he’s a special friend.”

Lilly laughed. “Oh, it not for a guy,” she exclaimed. “It’s for someone’s mother.”

“Is it that Piplup’s mother?” Azumarill asked.

Lilly blinked. “How did you know?” Lilly asked.

Azumarill smiled. “The Piplup that came in was Kandan,” Azumarill explained, “She’s a very wonderful Piplup. I wish I could have her as a child. Sadly…” Azumarill looked over towards the kingdom. “It’s terrible that she was captured like that when she was rushing back home.”

“Wait, what do you mean?” Lilly asked.

“I gave her the potion,” Azumarill said, “She told me about her mother’s ailment, and so I gave her the potion. She said that she would repay me in the best way she could.”

“So… She wasn’t stealing?” Lilly asked.

“Of course not!” Azumarill exclaimed. “She was running because she had to get home quickly. Then those guards came and… Well…”

Lilly nodded in understanding. “Don’t worry, I’ll get the medicine to Kandan’s mother!”

Azumarill nodded. “If I could tell you where Kandan lived, I would definitely tell you where to go,” Azumarill said, “Sadly, all I can give is my blessing that you’ll find her quickly.”

Lilly smiled. “It’s no problem. Thanks!” She started walking out the door.

“Wait!” Azumarill called.

“Hm?” Lilly asked, “What is it?”

“I’m sorry if I’m curious, but might I ask where you come from?” Azumarill asked. “You don’t look like a Voltlander.”

Lilly smiled. “I’m from Treasure Town,” she answered.

“Oh!” Azumarill jumped over the counter and ran up to Lilly. “You couldn’t be Lilly from Team Luminous, right?”

“I am! How did you know?” Lilly asked.

“I have heard rumors going around!” Azumarill said, “It’s so great that we now have a hero to save our land!”

Lilly blinked. “What do you mean?” Lilly asked.

“Oh, you don’t know?” Azumarill asked. “I guess you wouldn’t know since you’re separated from your partner, I assume!”

“You know where Lucas is?” Lilly asked.

“I heard that he has already conquered a kingdom somewhere!” Azumarill exclaimed. “Sadly, I don’t know which one.”

Lilly smiled and looked outside. “Well, at least I know Lucas is doing well.” Lilly turned to Azumarill. “Thanks so much, Azumarill!”

“Oh, no problems, dearie!” Azumarill exclaimed. “Now go find that client of yours!”

Lilly rushed out of the shop, grin on her face.

“Don’t worry about me, Lucas! I’m coming to find you!”

Lilly asked around to know about Kandan’s mother and where she was. It took until the moon shined until Lilly found out where she lived. She knocked and entered into Piplup’s house to see an Empoleon form laying in a bed of hay.

An Empoleon smiled towards Lilly, but then frowned. “Oh… I thought…” Empoleon started.

Lilly smiled. “Piplup sent me to give you this,” she explained, holding out the SecretPotion. “She told me about how you were sick, so I came to help.”

Empoleon shook her head in the dark house. “My daughter… Where is she?” she asked.

Lilly looked down. “She got caught stealing, so she’s…” Lilly shook her head. “Well, she’ll be freed,” Lilly said, “I know it. Your daughter is very kind.”

Empoleon sighed, in which Lilly sat down next to Empoleon. “Here,” she said, giving the medicine to Empoleon.

Empoleon took it into her fin, dropping it in the process. “I’m sorry,” she said, trying to get the bag back into her fin.

“Here, let me help,” Lilly offered, taking the bag and pulling out a pill. She then gave Empoleon the pill, in which she took it before going into a coughing fit.

“Who are you?” Empoleon managed to get out.

“I’m Lilly,” Lilly said with a smile.

“Tell me, Lilly… Did you really see my daughter steal?” Empoleon asked.

Lilly smile faded. “Yes…” Lilly said, “But she wasn’t stealing at all according to the shopkeeper. I’m sure that she’ll be free soon enough.”

Empoleon nodded. “How much did this cost?” she asked.

“Uh, it was eight-thousand Poke…” Lilly answered.

“And you bought it for my daughter and me?” Empoleon asked.

“Of course,” Lilly said, “I hope it was enough.”

Empoleon shifted. “You know, eight-thousand Poke is a lot to spend on one Pokemon…”

Lilly smiled. “I know,” she said, “But it was worth it.”

Empoleon smiled. “You are a very kind Pikachu.” She then grabbed a box and gave it to Lilly. “Here,” Empoleon said, “I know it’s not much, but please, take it.”

Lilly opened the box to see three Oran Berries and a Pecha Berry. Lilly smiled. “Thank you, Empoleon,” she said.

Empoleon smiled a warm smile before drifting into a sleep. Lilly took the items from the box and put it into her bag, leaving the box next to Empoleon. She then left the house back to the kingdom.

“So that’s what happened?” Adrian asked.

“Yeah, that’s basically what happened,” Lilly said, scratching the back of her head. “So I only have three Oran Berries and one Pecha Berry. Not a lot, but still enough for me.”

“Well, you did something I wouldn’t have done,” Adrian said, “I would have checked what the sickness was first before doing something so risky. Spending all that money could have put you in a bad position for this travel.”

Lilly smiled. “But that makes the adventure more fun as well!” Lilly exclaimed.

“Well, that’s just you. I made sure to prepare a sash of Iron Thorns.” Adrian pointed at the leather wrapped around his body. “I usually just have a belt, but I feel that this might be more needed.”

Lilly grinned. “So we’re both prepared?”

Adrian shrugged. “I would have expected more items on your end, but looks like we’ll have to make with what we have tomorrow,” he explained. He then walked towards the doorway. “I hope that you are pretty good. I rather not have to pull us out of situations.”

Lilly nodded. “I don’t think you have to worry much about that,” she admitted. “I am part of an exploration team, you know.”

“That doesn’t prove anything,” Adrian said, “You may be part of an exploration team, but it’s only talk right now. I’ll see what you are able to do tomorrow.” Adrian then walked out.

Lilly then blew out the candles before relaxing in her bed. She smiled as she thought about Lucas standing by her side.

Soon, Lucas, Lilly thought, I’ll be with you.
[hr][/hr]
I will be gone for the next week, so I hope you guys enjoy!

12

Chapter 4 - Lucas

Lucas woke up with a yawn. His head felt a little foggy, but he managed to get up from his charcoal bed. He enjoyed the soothing fire that burned through the night, keeping him warm throughout the night. Somehow, it was strangely made pretty comfortable like a feathered bed instead of a rocky feeling.

“Morning, Lucas!”

Lucas let out a scream, falling backwards back into his bed. He then looked towards the noise to see a Vulpix in the door.

Lucas let out a sigh. “Don’t surprise me like that,” Lucas said.

Soul gave a smile to Lucas. “So, where are you heading to today?” Soul asked, ignoring Lucas’s previous comment.

Lucas quickly scrambled off his bed, walking towards a chair with his bag hanging over the side. Lucas lifted his bag and opened it to reveal a map on the top. Unfurling it, he looked at the surrounding kingdoms. Ragged Caverns was to the North, the Dojo to the Northeast, and Voltland to the East.

“Maybe… I should try that first,” Lucas told himself aloud, causing Soul to walk next to her.

“Hm?” Soul sounded, causing Lucas to look back towards Soul.

“I’m thinking of going over to Voltland first,” Lucas explained, looking back towards the map.

“Voltland?” Soul asked, grinning. “I would love to come!”

“Wait, what?” Lucas asked, looking back towards Soul in confusion. “Are you just wanting to stick with me or something?”

“Well…” Soul trailed off. Soul looked down, still grinning. “There’s someone there I wanted to thank. I just wanted to make sure he’s alright.”

Lucas sat down in the chair, staying quiet. Soul looked at Lucas, who was staring back at her. Soul sighed, losing her grin. “Okay, I’ll talk.” Soul explained, “There’s someone named Dan there. He helped me escape Voltland when I was captured by the Luxio guards.” She sheepishly grinned. “But, he also looked torned when helping me out, so I wanted to know what his problem was. I have to go!”

Lucas nodded, approving of Soul’s explanation. “So you’re going to go with me to see what’s going on with him?” Lucas asked.

“That, and I have something that belongs to him,” Soul said.

Lucas looked at Soul in confusion again. “What do you mean by that?” Lucas asked.

Soul slipped off the bag on her back and held it in her paw. “I kept it safe for a while,” she explained, dropping it on the floor. “He dropped it after helping me escape.”

Lucas smiled. “Alright then, I guess we need to return an item then,” Lucas said, looking at the item in wonder.

Soul grinned, swinging the bag back onto her back. “So I’m going with you?” Soul asked.

Lucas directed his paw towards the kingdom’s castle. “Make sure that Lord Arcanine will allow it,” Lucas stated.

Soul nodded. “I’ll do that then!” Soul exclaimed before running out of the room.

Lucas grabbed his bag and thought, While she’s doing that, I might need to stock up.

Lucas, carrying the bag around his body, looked around the shops of Fervid Volcano. Lucas continued to remind himself that he had only three-thousand money in paw so he wouldn’t overuse the money poorly. Looking around, Lucas saw a familiar Pokémon that was walking around that confused him at first.

“Lady Rhyperior?” Lucas asked, obviously confused.

“Oh, Lucas!” Rhyperior exclaimed. “Isn’t it wonderful in this land? It’s definitely one of the best places to buy the famous ‘Magcargo Lava Cookies’!” Rhyperior gazed over to her head. “Care to join me as you tell your tale of what happened to your head?”

Lucas looked up towards his head. The bandage was still secured on tightly from this morning when the Houndoom guards insisted that Lucas shouldn’t walk without a fresh covering for his head. Lucas walked up next to Rhyperior and grinned. “Sure thing! It’s actually not that much of an exciting tale, but…”

“Is that so? Protecting Lord Arcanine’s daughter?” Rhyperior asked, taking another bite from her cookie.

“Yeah! Well… She protected me, actually,” Lucas admitted. “After that icicle hit my head…” Lucas chuckled. “She ended up defeating Glalie, who was also lowering the defenses of Fervid Volcano.”

“Heh, those Wastelanders really wasted themselves!” Rhyperior joked. Lucas and Rhyperior laughed.

“So,” Lucas said, still chuckling a little, “Why did you come here anyways? Did you actually think I would get the place in one day?”

“Why, certainly not!” Rhyperior explained. “In fact, it was surprising to see what the birds flew in! Lucas, conqueror of Fervid Volcano!”

“Huh?” Lucas asked.

“Don’t you know? Every time a kingdom is taken, the flying and psychic Pokemon of the conquered land send out the message to the nearest land, in which it spreads to every land!”

“Really?” Lucas asked, curiosity taking him. “Why is that set up?”

“Well, it’s a strange story, really. We went to war so we could conquer and control for power. Soon, the Insect Web started taking it as a game, so the bug Pokemon made their Scyther’s send out a letter to all of the other kingdoms when their kingdom is conquered.”

“Really?” Lucas asked, a little amused by the small fact.

“Indeed,” Rhyperior said, “And soon, this spread to other lands. If Pokemon have their land taken, they would send out the message to all surrounding kingdoms.”

“Wow…” Lucas asked.

“But now it’s time to tell you why I’m here, right?” Rhyperior finished off her last cookie bite before putting down the plate with some coin pieces on top, in which a Magmar took it with a smile. “I came to tell you that Voltland is in trouble.”

“What’s the matter with Voltland?” Lucas asked, starting to get a little nervous.

Rhyperior sighed. “I heard that the Psychic land created a machine of some sort that takes away the electricity away from Pokemon,” Rhyperior explained, “They have a switch to turn the machine on at any time. And from what I heard, the Voltlanders cannot move or destroy these machines. That’s why I’m here. I came to give my support in destroying these awful machines.”

Lucas nodded in approval. “I’ll probably need the help. Do you know when they go off?”

“When the sun reaches it’s highest point.” Rhyperior pointed straight up. The sun was still rising from the East, just a little above the hills in the distance.

“Then I should get ready quickly,” Lucas noted.

Rhyperior got up. “I’m already set,” Rhyperior said, “I’ll go ahead to see what we’re dealing with.”

“Thanks, Lady Rhyperior!” Lucas exclaimed. Rhyperior walked off. Lucas got up from his seat and walked away.

Lucas looked back into his bag to see what he placed inside. His bag, in which Arcanine expanded, held many Oran Berries, some Cheri Berries, and even some Hot Flakes, which were grains scorched in fire until crisped. Lucas sealed the bag and swung over the sash over his body.

Lucas started walking on the path towards Voltland before being pounced by an orange fox. Lucas and Soul landed with a thud, in which Soul was laughing. Lucas smirked and looked towards Soul.

“Well, looks like you caught me,” Lucas said. “Now, could you please get off?”

Soul giggled before crawling off of Lucas. Lucas stood up before looking back towards Soul.

“I thought you were trying to go without me,” Soul admitted, still smiling.

“You know, I don’t think that would be possible…” Lucas muttered while Soul skipped over to the path.

“So, are we going now?” Soul questioned with glee, not hearing Lucas’s remark.

Lucas sighed, but smiled back at Soul and said, “Come on. Lady Rhyperior is waiting for us.”

Soul jumped with happiness as she hopped down the path. Lucas had to smirk at the enthusiasm of the Vulpix, but it was also strange as well. No Pokemon should be that excited unless they were… Lucas’s thoughts trailed off as a smirk came to Lucas’s face. Is Soul just going because of this Shinx? I wonder…

Lucas ran up to Soul’s side, trying to look as clueless as possible. Soul continued jumping around with a wide grin plastered on her face.

“So…” Lucas started, thinking of what he would say. “This… ‘Dan’ guy. Is he a good friend of yours?”

Soul continued hopping. “Well, of course! He did rescue me!” Soul exclaimed.

“So, how did he rescue you from the Luxio guards?” Lucas asked, leaning in towards Soul a bit.

“He rescued me by hiding me in a room, then he snuck me out of the castle,” Soul explained. “Nothing more than that.”

Lucas expected a little more of a story, so Lucas continued thinking. Finally, a thought arose. Wait, did she say, ‘nothing more’? Surely…

“Surely there must be more to the story,” Lucas said out loud.

Soul grinned over at Lucas. “You’re surely correct!” Soul exclaimed. “There is more!” Lucas’s interest grew as he leaned forward. “But I’m not going to tell you,” Soul said with a wink, which caused Lucas to collapse on the ground.

Lucas jumped back to his feet and walked next to Soul. “Let me guess; it’s a secret,” Lucas said. Soul nodded, in which Lucas sighed in displeasure.

“Oh, don’t be that way, Lucas. I’m sure you’ll figure out!” Soul said happily as she continued to skip down the path.

Lucas groaned as he ran to keep up with Soul.

Lucas came up towards a ravaged plains. Like Rhyperior said, it was covered in machines bolted into the ground. Soul looked around with confusion as she poked at one of the nearby machines, smashed into bits by a boulder. Lucas looked towards it and smiled.

“Looks like Lady Rhyperior has been working,” Lucas exclaimed. “Looks like it’s our shift now!”

Lucas took a metal piece on the plate and started scorching it with his back. After a little bit, he looked back at it. The metal piece that was solidly structured was now easily bent in Lucas’s hands. Lucas grinned.

“This is strange… These machines are poorly made,” Lucas exclaimed. “They won’t handle the intense heat of our fire, Soul.”

He turned over to look back at Soul, but she disappeared from the place she was before. Lucas turned forward to see Soul already burning the machines, in which Lucas laughed.

“Alright, let’s do this then!” Lucas exclaimed as he ignited his back. Lucas then started running towards a machine in full run, fire building up around him, as he came closer towards the machine. Closer to the machine, Lucas felt the excitement light inside him as he neared the machine.

“Lucas, hold up!”

Lucas skidded towards a stop. He look backwards to see Rhyperior, who held one of the pieces of metal broken from one of the machines.

“Lady Rhyperior? What’s going on?” Lucas asked as his fire burned away around him.

Rhyperior looked over to Soul, then back towards Lucas. “This place is a trickery,” Rhyperior answered, “I thought this place was where the chaos was, but it was made known to me from a certain Shinx that this wasn’t the place.”

Soul popped in front of Rhyperior, hopping up and down and quickly asked, “Did you happen to get this Shinx’s name? Was it Dan? Is he here?” Soul started looking around while Lucas and Rhyperior stared at Soul, wide-eyed.

Rhyperior cleared her voice. “He didn’t tell me his name,” Rhyperior said, causing Soul to deflate a bit. “But!” Soul’s eagerness rose up again. “He told me that the city was in danger, not the plains. Follow me.”

Soul started bouncing behind a walking Rhyperior. Lucas smirked as he started following Soul and Rhyperior.

Lucas, Soul, and Rhyperior came closer to what looked more like a kingdom. Shop stalls lined across the land, with the layout of the kingdom extremely extravagant. Fan-like machines covered the ground, and there were no Pokemon in sight, making Lucas curious.

Some blue and black lions came towards Lucas and studied him and his group carefully. With a nod, they tilted their heads to follow them.

Soul started chuckling under her breath. Lucas looked over to her in confusion, in which she answered, “S-Sorry, they just look so funny when trying to be serious.”

After a while of following the Luxio, they stopped and pointed towards the front. Lucas took a step forward in question, but the answer was given quickly by sight. One of the machines. The machine literally towered above them, nearly reaching the bottom of the clouds.

“We have tried much to destroy these machines,” one of the Luxio guards explained.

“And despite our efforts, we have failed,” the second of the Luxio guards admitted.

The third Luxio guard came up towards Lucas. “From our count, there are three machines that power the electricity stealing machines. If we destroy the three machines, the other machines laid out on our territory can be easily destroyed.”

Lucas looked at the third Luxio in wonder. “How so?” Lucas asked.

Luxio turned back to the others. They nodded their heads, so the third turned back. “Much is unknown to us, but according to Lord Walrein, that is how the machines are set.”

“Lord Walrein?” Rhyperior asked in surprise. “Isn’t that warlord supposed to be part of the enemy territory?”

The Luxio looked to each other in confusion. The second Luxio answered, “For some reason, he said that his heart was grieved heavily. No idea why, but Dan told us to trust Lo-”

Soul jumped towards the second Luxio. “Where is he!? Where’s Dan!?” she asked excitedly.

The Luxio looked towards each other in disbelief. “Uh… Is she always like this?” the first Luxio asked with concern. Lucas shrugged as he pulled Soul away by her tail.

“Anyways, these machines are set in three parts of the kingdom. Lord Raichu is depending on you three to take down these machines,” the first Luxio finished.

“Alright then,” Lucas said. He turned towards Soul and Rhyperior. “Lady Rhyperior, you can handle one on your own. Soul, you’ll be wit-Soul?” Lucas asked, looking back and forth. Rhyperior shrugged.

“Soul will be fine,” Rhyperior assured. “For now, we’ll need to focus on getting the main machines. I’ll take one of them quite easily. You take down one, and we’ll both meet up on the third one.”

Lucas nodded. “Right. Let’s go.”

The Luxio separated their group to lead Rhyperior to her machine. Lucas followed the other group to get to his machine.

Lucas watched as a metallic tower came closer into view as he walked closer towards it. Lucas wondered how a large tower like this could be destroyed. The Luxio broke away from Lucas and motioned him to go forward. Lucas nodded and looked back at the tower. Stepping forward, he knocked onto the metal to see how solid it could be.

The knock echoed inside the tower, so he took a step back and used Flamethrower. The fire brushed against the metal, so Lucas stopped and started thinking again. An idea came to him, and he started running towards the tower. He started getting enveloped in flames as he got closer to the tower. When Lucas hit the side of the tower, he was knocked backwards, tumbling on the ground.

“No good…” Lucas muttered as he thought about the structure of the tower. “It’s hollow on the inside, so the walls shouldn’t be too thick…”

Lucas looked around. It was a flat ground with some dry grass blowing in the breeze. Lucas thought for another moment before seeing a smaller black and blue lion.

“Excuse me,” Lucas called out, in which the Shinx looked over.

The Shinx walked towards Lucas, anger filling his face. “What do you want?” the Shinx asked sourly.

Lucas ignored the Shinx’s anger as he walked towards him. “I was wondering if you wanted to help-”

“No,” the Shinx interrupted, starting to walk away.

“Wait, you didn’t even listen to what I was going to say!” Lucas yelled.

“You’re looking for help in destroying that tower,” the Shinx retorted. “It’s impossible though. It can’t be destroyed.”

Lucas groaned. “Sure it can! All we need is-”

“What? Teamwork?” the Shinx asked, turning back around and starting to walk towards Lucas. “That won’t work. All the electric types have tried. None could penetrate the walls of that generator.”

Lucas sighed. “But now you have even more help,” Lucas stated. “I have an idea that could destroy the generator, but I’ll need your help in this.”

The Shinx glared at Lucas. “You’re that Cyndaquil, aren’t you? Conquerer of Ragged Caverns and Fervid Volcano, and team member of some stupid exploration team.”

Lucas returned the glare at the Shinx. “Okay, just who are you anyways?” Lucas asked, rage starting to fill his voice. “Your kingdom is in chaos, and you’re not even willing to help?”

The Shinx growled. “My kingdom does nothing for me. Why should I-”

“DANNY!”

The Shinx’s anger changed to surprise as Soul pounced him to the ground.

“You found Dan before me, Lucas! Isn’t Dan just the sweetest Pokemon?” Soul cooed.

Lucas just stared in shock. Dan struggled with gritted teeth to get up, but Soul had him pinned on the ground.

“Uh, Soul? This is Dan?” Lucas finally managed to asked.

“Yep! He and I are best friends!” Soul exclaimed as she rubbed her head on Dan’s back.

Dan finally pushed himself upwards, in which Soul fell to the ground. “I only saved you since you were not supposed to be in our land. That doesn’t make me your friend!”

Soul seemed unfazed by his comment as she embraced Dan in a hug. “Aw, don’t be so cranky, Danny! I know you love me.”

Dan’s face fell into horror as he backed away from Soul. “No! Nonononono! I do not love you at all! Heck, I didn’t even like you to begin with!”

Lucas sighed. “This isn’t going to help me destroy the machines…” Lucas muttered as he faced back towards the metal.

“Oh! I know!” Soul exclaimed. “Maybe I need to give you a thank you kiss since I didn’t get to last time!” Soul started running towards Dan, who quickly ran next to Lucas.

“Uh, no, I’m supposed to be, uh, helping him in destroying the machine here!” Dan quickly stammered.

Lucas chuckled. “Why the sudden change of heart?” Lucas asked.

Dan looked up towards the tower. “I’m not wanting to be destroyed by the machines, so we’ll need to put our full attention to trying to destroy this thing!” Dan explained.

Lucas nodded, smirking. “Alright then,” Lucas said, “The first thing we need to do is to figure out a way to penetrate the walls of the tower.”

“Oh! I know!” Soul exclaimed. “How about Dan uses Thunderbolt while Lucas uses Flamethrower to weaken the metal! Then I could use Energy Ball to make a hole in the wall!”

Dan and Lucas looked at each other and nodded. “Okay then,” Dan said. “But no tackling me in the process!”

Lucas, Dan, and Soul gathered around the wall of the machine. Lucas ignited his back as he blew a large flame towards the wall. Dan had electricity sparking around him before the electricity coursed through him and hit the machine. Soul watched the two attack the same spot before gathering energy from her mouth into a green ball. She then launched it at the spot of the machine. Lucas stopped blowing the fire to look at the spot Soul hit.

“Uh, Dan, you can stop with the electricity,” Lucas said, noticing the stream of electricity flowing from Dan. Observing Dan, Lucas noticed that Dan seemed to be in pain. Lucas slapped himself mentally.

Drat, I forgot that these machines take electricity too, Lucas thought to himself.

Lucas looked towards Soul and commanded, “Soul, get Dan away from here.”

Soul looked over towards Dan and acted quickly. She grabbed Dan, getting enveloped in electricity in the process. She slowly walked away from the machine, pulling Dan away in the process. Lucas started running towards Dan, but Soul yelled, “Get the machine. I got Dan!”

Lucas stared at Soul before nodding and running back towards the hole that was created. With a small push, Lucas got through the hole in the wall.

Now inside the structure, he noticed that there were a flight of stairs that he could go up. That confused Lucas a little as to why there were stairs, and why there weren’t any wires of any type hanging around. Lucas sighed as he knew what would happen next. Time for a climb, Lucas thought to himself.

Stairs. Lucas now hated him as he finally reached the final step. He looked around the room, searching for anything suspicious. Seeing as there was nothing, he carefully maneuvered through the room, avoiding traps of any kind.

“Being detected.”

Lucas looked towards the noise. There, a blue, metallic, four-legged metal beast stood in front of Lucas.

“Wh-who are you?” Lucas asked.

The blue being floated towards Lucas, circling around him. “Analyzing being… Being verified. Lucas, warlord of Ragged Caverns and Fervid Volcano. Objective, destruction of Lucas. Now loading to destroy being…”

Lucas’s eyes widened as Metagross rose his arms.

“Destruction system loaded. Now executing system,” he said with a slam towards the ground. The Metagross flew away, leaving Lucas in a building that started to sway and shake. Lucas knew what was happening. The building was going to collapse. Lucas started running towards the stairway, but a long pipe crashed down on top of the exit.

Lucas looked around to find a way to escape. He could feel the floor shifting underneath him, so he knew he had to act quick. He looked out of the window and looked down. The ground was way too far for him to survive if he jumped. He looked back towards the staircase before a clanging noise sounded beneath him. The floor board broke underneath him, causing him to fall with the stone.

He looked towards the stairway that swirled around him. An idea then came to him. He started pushing himself towards the stairway and started enveloping himself in a cloak of fire. He started spiraling downwards down the stairway, flames surrounding him. He quickly rolled down the stairs, until finally reaching the end of the stairway. He then shot forward and crashed through the wall.

He finally started slowing down to a stop far from the building. When reaching a full stop, his fire burned down as he watched the building in front of him start to crumble down. Soul and Dan walked next to Lucas, watching the building crash down.

“Alright, I’ll admit, that was pretty impressive,” Dan admitted.

Lucas smiled. “Yeah. That was also pretty close too…” Lucas said, feeling around his body for his bag. Noticing that there was nothing on him, he sighed in disappointment.

Soul smiled. “So, one more tower to go, Lucas.”

Lucas looked over to Soul, smile returning to him. “So Lady Rhyperior succeeded?”

Dan nodded. “She charged into the tower and made it crumble like sand.”

Lucas looked around. “So, where’s the last tower?” Lucas asked.

Dan pointed towards the sun’s direction, which was nearly towards the top of the sky. “The last tower is easily found in the east.”

Soul hugged Dan, in which Dan pushed her away. Lucas started walking towards the direction and saw the tower in the distance. “Alright, we need to go now,” Lucas said, “We don’t have much time.”

Dan and Soul nodded before following Lucas.

Finally arriving at the other machine tower, Lucas and Dan looked upwards towards the top. Soul looked around before running off.

“Lady Rhyperior!” Soul exclaimed. “You made it!”

Rhyperior nodded. “That last tower couldn’t take my charge,” Rhyperior explained with a flex of her muscle. “So let’s see how this tower takes it!”

Rhyperior started running towards the tower, in which Lucas and Dan watched idly. Rhyperior then came into contact with the tower, in which the tower started shaking. Rhyperior took a few steps backwards and watched the tower crumble down.

“Yay! We did it!” Soul exclaimed.

Dan shook his head. “That just seemed… Too easy,” Dan admitted. “There has to be more than just that!”

Lucas shrugged before walking towards Rhyperior. In the corner of his eye, he could see something falling towards him. Lucas quickly jumped to the side as the blue metal crashed into the ground.

“M-Metagross!” Soul quickly stammered.

Dan grinned. “Sweet!” He jumped to his paws and lowered his head. “Now it’s time to fight!”

The Metagross struggled from the ground and flew upwards, dirt rolling off his body. “Eliminate Lucas,” was his words before his eyes glowed a purple hue. Lucas was picked up by the psychic force, being thrust into the air.

Dan threw an electric force while Soul blew a furious fire, both aimed at the Metagross. The electricity and fire wrapped around the Metagross. Rhyperior started charging at the Metagross and slammed the Metagross onto the ground. Lucas was thrown the way the Metagross fell.

“Execute flight mode!”

Metagross floated upwards, taking Lucas with it. Soul and Dan tried to run to catch Lucas, in which Soul caught a hold on Lucas’s foot with her paws while Dan grabbed Soul’s tail by the teeth, in which Soul winced in pain. Rhyperior started creating a rock in her hands before launching it towards the Metagross. The Metagross flew out of the way, which jerked Lucas, Soul, and Dan. Soul kept hold on Lucas, with Dan doing the same.

Lucas started thinking, Okay, I’m caught in a psychic hold, and I cannot move my body towards that Metagross… But Soul and Dan can move freely… So… I got it!

“Soul!” Lucas yelled out. Soul looked up towards Lucas, as well as Dan. “Aim your Flamethrower to twist me towards that Metagross!”

Soul looked down and clung tighter onto Lucas’s foot. She whispered, “I didn’t know we were so high…”

Metagross stopped in the air, halting the movement of Lucas, Soul, and Dan. “Observing… Range insufficient for rock being’s attacks. Calculating height of which to drop…”

“Hurry!” Lucas yelled.

“I-I can’t!” Soul exclaimed, closing her eyes and shuddering.

Dan groaned and started pawing Soul’s foot. She looked down to see Dan looking up towards Soul. Soul gulped as she glanced back at the ground, then back towards Dan’s pleading eyes. She inhaled as she gripped Lucas’s other foot before letting out a fiery burst. She started twisting around, in which Lucas started moving towards the Metagross.

“Calculation complete. Now exe-Error! Lucas is resisting!” Metagross started to come closer towards Lucas with a glowing fist. Lucas waited until Metagross was close enough to release a fiery blast. Metagross growled in pain, in which a high-pitch squealed emitted through its speakers. Soon, the wind started picking up underneath them. They were starting to fall downwards.

Dan yelled, “Nice plan, genius! Now we’re all dead!” Soul screamed on the top of her lungs. Lucas looked around, trying to find something to break their fall. Before they knew it, a rock formation was coming right towards them. Lucas smiled as Rhyperior came closer to them. She grabbed Lucas, Soul, and Dan and started falling downwards.

They soon crashed into the ground, in which Rhyperior sunk into the ground a bit. Lucas, Soul, and Dan fell out of Rhyperior’s arms and rolled onto the ground. Rhyperior climbed out of the hole and smirked at Lucas. Lucas shook his head and gave a grin back towards Rhyperior.

“A flying rock. That’s a first for me,” Lucas teased.

Rhyperior chuckled. “As it was for me,” Rhyperior admitted, “I didn’t think I would reach you guys like that, but it worked.”

Soul latched onto Dan in a hug, tears flowing. “That was so scary! I thought we wouldn’t make it!” Soul cried, in which Dan sighed with displeasure.

“Well, if it isn’t Lady Rhyperior,” a voice called out.

Everyone turned towards an orange-mouse. Rhyperior grinned. “And if it isn’t Lord Raichu. Your kingdom is saved from destruction, so live peacefully on.”

“Oh, I intend to live in peace,” Raichu walked over to Lucas, who looked up towards Raichu. “But first, I wish to see the worth of our hero. I challenge Lord Lucas to a battle. Is that acceptable, young warrior?”

Lucas nodded. “Sure thing!” he exclaimed.

Raichu nodded. “Then I shall await for you at the battlefield. I will look forward to it.” The Raichu then turned towards the kingdom and said, “Prepare first. I need to tend to my town-Watch out!” Raichu pushed Lucas away from a blast of light passing through.

All the Pokemon faced towards the beam. The Metagross stood there with scorch marks, with eyes glowing red.

“Now observing Lucas. Processing weaknesses…” A red light shined on Lucas, in which Lucas reacted quickly by blasting fire towards the Metagross. A shield protected Metagross, but the red light continued to shine on Lucas.

“Lucas, run!” Soul yelled, in which Lucas followed. He started rushing towards the side of Metagross, fire building around him. Soon, he came to contact the Metagross, in which the shield still protected Lucas.

“Weakness found,” Metagross said, “Now locating… Location found. Now setting course to escape.” Metagross started levitating upwards into the sky and flew off. Lucas looked at the Metagross in confusion as he disappeared from view.

“What was that about?” Dan asked. “It just scans Lucas and leaves.”

Rhyperior shook her head. “The Metagross must just be scouting information,” Rhyperior guessed, “It’s going to reveal the weakness of Lucas to Psycho’s Lair’s warlord.”

Lucas chuckled. “That’s not much of a problem. With all my weaknesses, my friends will cover them easily.”

Raichu nodded in approval. “Well said, hero. Luckily, it’s a neighboring kingdom to our land, so I suggest you go there next, Lord Lucas, just in case. After you fully conquer our land first, of course.”

Lucas nodded. “Alright then, let’s check out your kingdom then, Lord Raichu.”

Lucas followed Raichu as he headed towards the town. Soul and Dan followed behind. Rhyperior just stood there, staring towards the direction Metagross flew off. Rhyperior shook her head and started scratching her head. She then went the direction of the others towards town.

Lucas entered into the arena, unknowing what was to happen. Rhyperior, Soul, Dan, and a bunch of other electric-type Pokemon filled the stands.

“BZZT! Good afternoon everyone!” an announcer yelled, “And welcome to the warlord challenge! Here on our battlefield, we have the fierce, powerful, and electrifyinnnng… Lord Raichu!”

The Pokemon cheered from each side as Raichu entered with a red robe around his back. He swung it off, smirking at Lucas with electricity flowing from his cheeks.

“And also here on our battlefield, we have the peacemaker, the team member of Team Luminious, and he has quite a fiery butt!” The crowd laughed around, in which Lucas looked towards his backside in embarrassment. “We welcommme Lorrrrrd Lucasss!” The crowd gave a cheer as Lucas entered into the arena.

Lucas looked around the arena. There was barely anything besides the circular stone walls. A few stems of dried grass popped here and there, but besides that, the field was dirt-covered. Lucas turned to Raichu with a smile. “Good luck,” Lucas silently said.

“Allow me to wish you the better luck,” Raichu quietly said. Raichu turned to the audience and yelled, “The rules are that the challenger chooses how the fight goes! And as I am the challenger, I choose a fight, mano-a-mano, until one side is defeated. There shall be no items allowed, and the winner becomes the warlord of their territories.”

Lucas looked at Raichu in shock. What!? If I lose, I lose Ragged Caverns and Fervid Volcano. Well, looks like it’s up to me to defend my territories then.

Raichu smirked. “It looks like the challenger is ready. So, as I am the challenger, I get the first hit!” Raichu jumped into the air and fired a bolt of electricity towards Lucas. Lucas dodged quickly, in which he retorted with a blast of fire towards Raichu.

Raichu disappeared in a flash and reappeared on the side of the fire. Raichu charged at Lucas with electricity gathering around him. Lucas looked backwards towards the stone wall and ran towards it, enveloped in flames. He then started following the wall path, circling around the circular arena.

Raichu watched as Lucas circled around the arena before firing electricity in front of Lucas’s path. Lucas ran into the electricity, in which he took with him while wheeling around the arena. Raichu twitched as he knew what would happen next. Lucas bounced off the wall, crashing into Raichu’s back.

Raichu fell over, in which he jumped back to his feet. Raichu continued watching Lucas, bracing himself to catch the fireball. Lucas bounded back towards Raichu, in which Raichu attempted to catch. But, to no avail, he reacted too late, causing the fireball to collide onto his front side. He fell backwards, scowling at the nuisance.

Raichu got up one more time, closing his eyes in the process. Lucas couldn’t tell what the Raichu was doing, so he decided to chance his luck and charge at the Raichu. Raichu open his eyes quickly and punched at the Cyndaquil with electricity in his paw. The paw collided with Lucas’s stomach, in which Lucas flew backwards.

Raichu took advantage of his hit and started firing electricity at Lucas. Lucas could feel the pounding thunder against his body. Lucas quickly ran out of the attack and quickly fired a blast of scorching fire at Raichu. Raichu quickly dodged out of the way with a flash and started firing more electricity at Lucas.

Lucas could feel the static tensing in his body as he tried to move out of the way. He rolled into a ball and rolled away. The ground started churning behind and to the side of him as he rolled towards Raichu. Raichu jumped out of the way, in which he regretted as Lucas went back onto the wall and started rolling to build momentum. Raichu groaned as he watched Lucas rolling around the arena again.

Lucas then charged at Raichu with the built momentum and came towards him. Raichu jumped away, in which Lucas rolled back into the wall and changed his angle towards the airborne Raichu. Raichu’s eyes widened as he attempted to charge electricity. Lucas slammed into Raichu with full force, causing the Raichu to fly backwards onto the ground.

With a slam, the Raichu fell onto the ground. He attempted to get up, but then fell back onto the ground in unconsciousness. The crowd cheered as Lucas got out of his ball form. He looked around and started cheering as well. Lucas then walked over to Raichu, who was still on the ground, grinning. Lucas held out a paw, in which Raichu took it and got up.

“Alright then, Lucas. You’ve won against me. I didn’t have doubt that you wouldn’t succeed in the first place though!” Raichu laughed a hearty laugh before turning to the crowd. “Behold! The new warlord of Voltland!”

The crowd cheered as Lucas waved his arms around towards the Pokemon in the stands.

“So, this is how you got here so quickly!” Lucas exclaimed.

Rhyperior grinned. She pointed towards the Abra. “They finally can do what they wanted to do in a while. They can now teleport you to kingdoms you have conquered.”

“Wow…” Lucas stood, amazed. Soul smiled at the Abra, in which Dan sighed.

“Well, Lucas, I am thinking of heading back to my kingdom now,” Rhyperior said. “Take care!” she waved as the Abra prepared his psychic powers. Lucas waved back towards Rhyperior.

After Rhyperior was out of sight from teleportation, Lucas turned towards Soul and Dan, in which Soul was hugging Dan as usual.

“Well, I conquered Voltland, and it’s still daytime,” Lucas pointed out. “What now?”

Dan looked over towards Lucas. “Nothing,” Dan simply stated. “I don’t think it would be a smart idea to try to conquer two kingdoms in one day.”

Lucas sighed. “Well, I think it’s best to explore my possibilities,” Lucas said, “Maybe I can figure out more about this Walrein. And probably find out where Lilly is.”

Dan shrugged. “Don’t expect anything special. Walrein is a pretty cunning warlord. Trying to get things out of him is exceedingly difficult.”

Lucas nodded. “I’ll take that into mind.” Lucas turned to the Abra. “Mind if I can make contact with the warlord of Drenched Lake?”

Abra nodded, in which he started flowing psychic powers around him. Soon, a voice sounded.

“Ah, so you have called, Lord Raichu?” a voice said.

Lucas looked at the other two in wonder, in which Soul shrugged. Dan showed no concern to Lucas. Lucas then turned back and said, “This is Lord Lucas.”

“Ah! Lord Lucas! Hero of the world! Twice, if I’m not mistaken!” the voice said, sounding extremely friendly.

“Listen, I want to know a little bit about you,” Lucas admitted. “You said that you were grieved and that you said you were sorrowful. Care to explain your act?”

“Oh… Yes…” A cough emitted through the psychic force. “Well, I was pretty sad at first, but I was relieved to hear that she was okay.”

“Who?” Lucas asked, curious of what this Walrein was talking about.

“Well, it’s a friendly Piplup, of course! She was tried for stealing, but a friendly Pokemon appeared and stated her innocence! I was quite relieved that this Piplup was found innocent.”

“Alright… So what was this Piplup doing in the first place?” Lucas asked.

“Ah, yes, this Piplup… Oh, I’m sorry, but I’m not going to call her ‘this Piplup’ anymore. Her name, if I recall correctly, was Kandan. Kandan was borrowing a potion from our Healer’s place, but was thought of as stealing. Sadly, Kandan didn’t get to get the potion for her mother… But her mother is fine, just fine!”

Lucas shrugged. “Okay, so Kandan was thought of as guilty, but proven innocent. So… When did you send the message to Voltland?”

“Oh, this morning, before the trial! And-”

“I can’t believe you, Lord Walrein!” another voice, a little high-pitched, called out through the telepathic force.

Lucas looked at the Abra in confusion. “Uh, hello? Who’s this Pokemon?”

“My servant…” A sigh emitted through telepathy. “Lenile, feel no anger from me. I do what I must to protect my kingdom.”

“So you just were going to kill her for a kingdom!?”

“Calm yourself, young Larvitar. If you must know, the Buizel I sent will probably break down anyways and save her. She’ll probably still be alive.”

“Alright, who’s this girl you guys are talking about?” Lucas asked.

“I’m not going to tell you, whoever you are!”

“Yes, allow yourself to stay out of this. And as for you… Young Larvitar… You must realize that one soul is greater than thousands of souls.”

“But this isn’t right! She is the kindest Pokemon I know! And you’re going to kill her for no reason!?”

“There is a reason to everything, young Larvitar. You shall never under-”

“Of course I understand! You’re just being greedy and selfish!”

Anger started filling the voice of Walrein. “For protecting my kingdom, I spare a soul that wasn’t supposed to be here in the first place to protect my kingdom, and that is greed and selfishness?”

“You’re not protecting your kingdom! Your kingdom just got attacked today, and a Piplup was killed by this invader!”

“What!?” Walrein’s voice now sounded confused. “That’s impossible! My guards should have been there to protect all citizens!”

“Well, apparently, your guards can’t protect your-”

“ENOUGH!” A long pause emitted as heavy breathing sounded through telepathy. “It seems that I will have to break a promise that I have made. For your treason against me, I shall now kill you, here and now!”

A blizzard sound emitted through the psychic force, in which Lucas looked over towards Soul and Dan in shock. Dan and Soul shared Lucas’s fear.

“What are you doing!?” Lucas yelled. The splashing of strong water and the pounding of rocks answered his call.

Soon, the sound faded away. Lucas eyes became wide.

“S-Sandy…” a voice silently muttered through the telepathy.

Instinctively, Lucas yelled, “Listen, Lenile, don’t give up! If you don’t get to her, she may be killed. You need to rescue her, so you need to run, now!”

“Oh, how sweet,” a menacing voice sounded in place of the previous happy tone. “You’re trying to give a pathetic Lavitar hope to survive and protect his friends. And how foolish you-ARG!!” A sound of rock churning on the ground sounded.

The sound of thudding footsteps faded as growling started rising.

“GUARDS! CAPTURE THAT LARVITAR!”

Lucas sighed in relief, but quickly regain his stature. With a serious tone, Lucas said, “Lord Walrein, remember that we all fight for something. But only those with a love for his or her friends will succeed through any cause.”

A scowl sounded. “You sound just like her.” A sigh emitted quickly, and the voice changed back to it’s serious tone. “So, let’s have a game, shall we? We shall wait for my guards to come back. If they have Lenile, then you lose. If they give word that he fled, you win. Simple as that.”

Lucas nodded. “Alright then. But let me ask, what do you mean, ‘I sound just like her’? Do you mean Kandan?”

Walrein stayed silent for a few moments. When Walrein spoke, it sounded quite depressed. “Kandan, she is full of love and generosity. She is also extremely kind to all. And her… She was pretty much the same. Full of love… Full of generosity… Extremely kind… Grah! But, she’s an enemy to us! We cannot have her lurking around our kingdoms! But… She… She just is so trusting… She made me feel just like how Kandan made me feel the first time I met her.

“But, who am I kidding? I placed her in a trap, and I don’t know if that Buizel will be enough to help her. Even that Larvitar… He won’t be able to help her in his current state. I’m surprised he was let out of my grip… I’m starting to become insane, aren’t I, Lucas?”

Lucas thought for a moment. “You’re trying to go against your conscience. Of course you’re going to believe you’re crazy. So, this girl… Is she that important to you?”

Walrein sighed over telepathy. “I hate calling her this girl… But I don’t think I am able to use her name… Not after what I did to her. I gave to her a fortune… She gave it all away to Kandan’s mother. And… She told me her story… Even when I was manipulating her… She allowed herself to fall into my trap so easily.”

Soul walked over to Lucas and stood in front of the sleeping Abra. “Tell me, Walrein. Was she named after a flower?” Lucas looked over to Soul in confusion.

“Ah, so we’re now playing twenty questions with a friend of yours, Lucas. And now, I shall answer my way. Her name matched towards your description, and it is the name you would expect quite easily.”

“Yay! We got our first hint!” Soul cheered, jumping up and down before embracing Dan in a hug. Dan groaned.

“What are you talking about? I mean, it couldn’t be Lilly, would it?” Lucas asked.

“Well, that’s probably the quickest game of twenty questions I have ever played. Congrats! You win!”

Lucas swung his head back towards the Abra. “You can’t be serious! Lilly was in Drenched Lake!?”

“Dear me, looks like I now get to deal with an over-excited Cyndaquil.”

Soul cheered, in which Lucas looked towards Dan and Soul with a huge grin. “So where is she now!?”

“I’m afraid that I cannot tell you. But, I guess I’ll make a point clear. The Pikachu talked about you quite a bit. I sense a relationship, hm?”

Soul giggled as Lucas started turning a bright red. Dan snickered to himself before looking back towards Lucas.

“Well, dear me, this was quick. My guards are here. So, tell me of your recent success.”

“Sir… Uh…”

“Oh, so you have failed, have you not?”

“Lord Walrein, we ask for forgiveness for our incompetence.”

“Oh, well, that’s too bad. Looks like I lost a bet to a certain Cyndaquil.”

“My Lord?”

“It was nice talking to you, Lord Lucas, but it’s high time for me to get off. Until later!”

Abra’s telekinesis soon dispersed. Lucas sighed in relief. “Lilly’s still okay…”

“Uh, have you forgotten?” Dan asked. “There’s still a problemo. Lilly was sent to be killed by that Lord.”

“Right,” Lucas exclaimed. “But knowing Lilly, she will survive. And anyways, we now know that Lilly’s in the eastern territories!”

Soul hopped up and down again. “This is wonderful! Now you can find your love just like I did!”

Lucas blushed again, the red deepening into a crimson. Dan groaned as he left the building. Soul noticed this and quickly ran outside towards him. Lucas looked towards Abra with a smile.

“Don’t worry, Lilly. I’ll keep fighting. You keep fighting too.”

“My Lord, it appears another kingdom has been taken.”

The shadow chuckled in the shadows. “That Walrein is finally losing himself. Because of him, Lucas was able to prosper in protecting the kingdom and conquering it.”

Salamence walked towards the shadow. “My Lord, it also appears that we may have succeeded in finally removing ourselves of the nuisance as well.”

“Ah, so Lord Tyranitar, ruler of Shrouded Forest, has finally met his demise.”

“So, my Lord, what shall we do next?” Salamence asked.

“Finish the problem you have caused in the first place.”

“You mean…”

“Indeed. Now go.”

Salamence bowed his head before flying off. The shadow seemed to smirk in the shadows.

“The pawns are moving swiftly along, just as I anticipated. I see that the two main pawns are finally coming together as well. I shall await these results, and see what occurs.”

A door creaked open again as a light-brown shrew entered.

“Ah, you have arrived. So… Are you ready to take up my small treaty?”

The scaley shrew looked up towards the shadowy figure. “What should I do first?”

13

Chapter 4 - Lilly

“Wake up, sleepy head!” a voice called, in which Lilly followed. She looked up to see Walrein with a big grin, in which Lilly covered herself with her bedsheets with a yelp.

“D-Don’t startle me like that!” Lilly yelled.

The Walrein chuckled as he walked over towards Lilly. Lilly slipped out of bed and grabbed her bag, slinging the bag over her shoulder.

“Ah, you do look like what you say you are!” Walrein exclaimed, putting a flipper to Lilly’s back. “How delightful! You’ll definitely find Lucas!”

Lilly smiled. “Thanks, Lord Walrein.” She looked around. “Uh, where’s Adrian?”

“Oh, he went ahead of you,” Walrein explained, “Said he wanted to search the landscape for any shortcuts and directions to avoid the Beedrill!”

Lilly looked towards the window quickly, which showed the kingdom grounds. “Oh no! He might be ambushed!” She then ran towards the door. “Sorry to leave in a rush, but I have to go! See ya!” Lilly then ran through the hallways, leading towards the outside.

She finally reached the door towards the outside, in which she swung open and ran out of the castle. She then skid to a stop when seeing a Buizel leaning on the wall.

“Jeez, and I thought you weren’t going to come,” Adrian teased. Lilly scratched the back of her head in embarrassment. “Anyways, we’re wasting daylight. We should get moving.”

Lilly nodded before starting to follow the Buizel. Her ear then heard a voice say, “-that Piplup sure is in a load of trouble.”

“I knew that that Kandan was no good,” the second voice said, in which Lilly stopped and turned towards them.

Adrian continued walking before noticing that the Pikachu wasn’t following, so he turned around and yelled, “You coming or what? Lucas is waiting.”

Lilly looked back towards the Buizel, then back towards the two Quagsire guards. She sighed and said, “I need to help someone first.”

Adrian jumped into the air in surprise. “What are you talking about!?” he asked in confusion. “Didn’t you help out enough Pokemon already!?”

“There’s a Piplup that I must help first! Sorry, but I must leave!” Lilly then ran towards the guards, in which the guards walked off towards a building.

Adrian groaned. “I don’t get you at all!” the Buizel yelled as he and Lilly ran after the two Quagsire.

“Alright, order!” the Slowking on the stand called out. The crowd quieted down as Slowking looked towards Kandan. “Today, we are here for the crimes of this Piplup here. She was convicted with thievery yesterday from taking a potion from Healer Azumarill’s place. Kandan, have you say anything in your defense?”

“I-I wasn’t stealing. Healer Azumarill gave it to me to give to my mother!” Kandan protested. The crowd murmured while Slowking gazed over Kandan.

“It’s a shame that Healer Azumarill isn’t here to back up your statement,” Slowking taunted. “As such, there were no witnesses to the scene, so allow yourself to speak the whole truth. You stole from Healer Azumarill.”

“But I didn’t!” Kandan exclaimed, fear building in her eyes. “Healer Azumarill gave it to me to help my mother!”

“Your punishment shall increase if you keep up this lying!” Slowking said, anger slowly creeping to his eyes. “Now confess yourself, or you shall suffer our worst!”

Kandan looked down, fear conquering every part of her. She whispered, “It’s. The. Truth.”

“Speak up!” Slowking demanded, rage entering his voice.

“I’m telling the truth!” Kandan yelled in anger. “I told you that Healer Azumarill gave me the medicine to help my mother, and you’re just not listening to me!” Tears started swelling into Kandan’s eyes, in which she fought back. She then added with a strained voice, “Why don’t you believe me?”

Slowking glowed red as his rage filled him. “Since you don’t tell the truth, your punishment shall be severe! Let your punishment-”

The doors then swung open. A Pikachu and a Buizel ran into the circular court, in which Kandan recognized the Pikachu immediately. It was the Pikachu that stopped her while she was running off.

“And who are you who dares interfere with my court?” the Slowking asked.

The Pikachu inhaled, standing straighter than normal before saying, “My name is Lilly. I was a witness to the guards capturing Kandan.”

The crowd started talking in question as the Slowking called, “Order! Order!!” The crowd became silent again before the Slowking faced down towards the Pikachu. “So you were a witness to Kandan’s thievery of Healer Azumarill’s place?”

The Pikachu looked up towards Slowking. “Kandan isn’t a thief.” The crowd gasped as Slowking glared at the Pikachu. “Healer Azumarill let Kandan have this Secretpotion-” The Pikachu pulled out a bag, in which the crowd gasped. “-and the guards wrongly captured her for no reason. She’s innocent.” The crowd murmured as Slowking continued his icy stare at the Pikachu. Kandan felt a huge wave of relief flood over her.

“This Pikachu isn’t even supposed to be here!” Slowking yelled, “She is a Voltlander! Guards! Cease her!”

The guards surrounded the Pikachu and the Buizel, in which the Buizel glared at the Pikachu. The Pikachu looked around the Quagsire, in which Kandan thought the Pikachu was going to fight against the Quagsire. Before they could start attacking, the door swung open to reveal a Walrein.

“Lilly, I thought you were off to find your friend!” Walrein exclaimed, walking into the room as the Quagsire backed away. “What brings you here?”

“Lord Walrein, I came to help another friend,” Lilly explained, “Kandan was wrongly accused, so I thought I would help!”

“How friendly of you, Lilly! So wonderful of you to go out of your way to help another friend!” Walrein turned towards Kandan. “Kandan, was it?” Kandan could only nod, in which Walrein smiled. “Tell me, Kandan, about what you were doing to be convicted?”

Kandan smiled. She explained, “I got a medicine from Healer Azumarill, but I was captured by the guards because they thought I was stealing.”

Walrein came closer to Kandan. “So, are you a thief, Kandan?” Walrein asked.

“No, I’m not,” Kandan said.

Walrein looked towards Kandan before turning over towards Slowking. Walrein stated, “She’s innocent. Release her immediately.”

The crowd cheered, in which Slowking glared at Kandan. Kandan sighed in relief and walked off the stand. She then gave Lilly a hug, in which the Walrein smirked.

“Thank you…” Kandan whispered, slight tears flowing from her eyes.

Lilly gave a frown to Kandan. “I’m sorry for putting you into this situation.”

Kandan chuckled. “I forgive you, Lilly.” Kandan let go of Lilly, in which Lilly stepped back. “But I must get back home now. Please excuse me.”

Kandan started walking away, in which Lilly walked next to her. “I would like to meet up with her again,” Lilly said, “Mind if I join you?”

“Again?” Kandan asked in confusion, in which Lilly smiled.

“Yep, again.” Lilly pulled out the Secretpotion out of her bag. “What do you think I did the first time with this?”

“Y-You helped her?” Kandan asked, happiness filling her voice. The wave of relief that flooded her now was being overflowed with another tidal wave. “Thank you.”

Lilly grinned. “It wasn’t too much trouble. I’m just happy to help!”

Kandan then looked back towards the bag. “But how did you get that from Healer Azumarill?”

Lilly placed the Secretpotion back into her bag. “I bought it.”

“You bought it!?” Kandan yelled in awe. Kandan looked around in embarrassment as others looked at her. She then asked in her normal tone, “But wasn’t it eight-thousand Poke?”

“It was,” Lilly answered. “I just had enough to buy it.”

If Kandan’s overflow of relief wasn’t enough, now her happiness had added to her emotions. “You’re the bestest friend ever!” Kandan exclaimed, wrapping Lilly into another hug.

The Buizel that Kandan saw next to Lilly showed up next to them. “Ugg, can you just get pass the lovey-dovey part and hurry up?” the Buizel asked exasperated. “We’ve wasted enough time as it is, and you acting like this is making me go crazy!”

Lilly chuckled. “Don’t be so impatient, Adrian. We still have plenty of time!”

Kandan looked over towards the Buizel. “And what do you mean crazy?” Kandan asked, teasing filling her voice. “You mean that you don’t like hugging?”

Adrian sighed. “It’s not that. Look at the sun.” Adrian pointed towards the sun, in which Kandan and Lilly looked up. It was in the center of the sky, stating that it was afternoon. Adrian continued. “If we don’t go soon, the Beedrill will take their break, and you’ll have to handle with the nighttime Pokemon that slow you down.”

Kandan smiled. “Well, a visit to my mother’s house wouldn’t hurt anyone,” Kandan said. “And besides, it will be a short visit for me to gather supplies.”

“Gather supplies?” Adrian asked in shock. “No, you can’t come with us!”

“Hey, Adrian, it’s her decision, not yours,” Lilly retorted. “And anyways, I think Kandan can handle a little danger.”

“A little?” Adrian asked. “How about a lot? She could be in danger just being around you!” Adrian quickly covered his mouth as Lilly and Kandan gasped.

Kandan walked up towards Adrian, facing down at him. “Who do you think you are anyways!? Lilly would never cause danger to anyone on purpose! And besides, I’m ready for any danger!”

Lilly walked towards Adrian as well, in which Buizel faced Lilly in fear. “So she’s coming with us because she made that choice. So we’re going together, Adrian!”

Adrian looked back and forth between Lilly and Kandan. He heaved a sigh before saying, “Fine. She’ll come. But don’t let her get in the way.” Lilly glared at Adrian, in which he tilted backwards. “Okay, okay! I’ll apoligize!” He turned towards Kandan and said, “I am sorry for my insulting words.” He then turned back towards Lilly. “There! Happy now?”

Lilly nodded with a smile, in which Kandan and Lilly gathered around Adrian with a hug. “You’re forgiven,” Kandan said.

Adrian gagged, quickly pushing away the two girls away. “Listen, we should just get moving as soon as possible. You can get your supplies, and I’ll-DUCK!” Adrian then laid on the ground. Lilly and Kandan looked backwards in fear and quickly jumped out of the way from a swinging blue metallic being.

The blue metallic being landed on the ground, scorch marks showing on his armor as he stared at Lilly. “Must exterminate Lilly,” the Metagross called out before firing a beam of light towards Lilly.

Lilly jumped out of the way of the beam, electricity flowing from her cheeks. “Wh-who are you!?” Lilly asked quickly.

“Exterminate!” The Metagross then came towards Lilly with glowing arms, in which Lilly jumped and grabbed hold of Metagross. She then released electric energy into the Metagross, causing it to screech in pain.

“Lilly! Hold on!” Kandan exclaimed as she ran towards the Metagross. She fired a beam of bubbles towards the Metagross, in which the Metagross emitted a high pitched squeal. Lilly, Kandan, and Adrian covered their ears as the Metagross levitated upwards. Lilly tried to jump, but Metagross held on to Lilly with psychic powers.

Kandan tried to place another attack, but the Metagross quickly punched her into the house behind her. Pain shot through her, but not as much emotional pain seeing Lilly struggling in the air for breath.

“Lilly!” Kandan shouted before firing another beam of bubbles towards the Metagross. The Metagross quickly ascended, dodging the bubbles, before grabbing Lilly with his hand and throwing her downwards. Lilly sprawled onto the ground as Kandan saw the pain becoming too much for her to bear.

Metagross then floated back into the air and caused his claws to glow. Metagross then started charging downward. Without thinking, Kandan pushed Lilly away as the Metagross came in. She could only see for a second before a white-hot pain shot through her. Kandan could feel hot liquid pouring down her chest. But then, the feeling disappeared. The world around her turned to white as she heard a voice shouting her name…

“No…” Lilly said silently, tears filling her eyes as she saw Kandan on the ground, lying motionless as the blood left her wound in her chest. She stared back towards the Metagross in horror as he lifted up his claw.

“Incorrect data. Elimination of being now being scanning… Being analysed. Being known as Kandan, daughter of a widowed mother. Incorrect elimination. Extermination of Lilly must be completed.” The Metagross turned towards Lilly. Lilly suddenly felt her heart race with fury and sorrow. Her friend was dead.

“Lilly, get out of there!” Adrian yelled, but Lilly just stood in shock. Metagross then charged a light attack from its mouth.

“Guards, we have an intruder killing our citizens!” a voice sounded. “Call all guards to kill this intruder!”

A Quagsire guard came towards the Metagross and started firing muddy bombs.

“Exterminate!” Metagross yelled as he fired his beam towards the Quagsire. Three other muddy bombs came towards the beam, causing the beam to be destroyed.

Soon, many Quagsire gathered around the Metagross and started pounding it with many muddy bombs from their mouth. The Metagross screeched in pain as the bombs smashed into his armor.

“Must… Eliminate… Must… Exterminate…” Metagross’s voice droned down as the mud broke his armor, allowing the mud to sink into its body. The Metagross laid there, lifeless and motionless, with mud oozing out of its body.

“Guards, take this Metagross away.” Four Quagsire lifted the Metagross and carried it towards the castle. The guard then looked down at the Piplup. “Also, prepare a burial for this Piplup. Let it be known her sacrifice.”

Lilly crawled up towards Kandan. Her friend, who she just made a small while ago, was killed protecting her. Lilly could feel her sorrow well up inside her as her tears fell freely. A paw was placed on Lilly’s back, in which she looked back. Adrian looked at Lilly with sorrowed eyes, in which Lilly grabbed Adrian into a hug and wept.

Adrian led Lilly from the town, leading her across the path towards the Insect Web. Lilly thought about Kandan and her kindness. She couldn’t believe someone so kind was killed so brutally.

Adrian sighed. “Listen, Lilly, Kandan may have departed from us, but I’m sure she’s also watching us at this very moment. And I’m sure that Kandan doesn’t want to see you sad.”

Lilly yelled, “But she sacrificed herself for me! I should have been the one who was killed, not her!” Tears flowed from Lilly’s eyes, causing the Buizel to look away.

“I know that it may be rough to have someone leave you, but it’s more important that her sacrifice wasn’t in vain.”

Lilly looked over towards Adrian. “I-I know…” Adrian looked over towards Lilly in surprise. Lilly continued, “My partner left me for a while to save the world the first time. I was unsure if he would ever come back. I missed him so much… But… He came back…” Her words were choked in her throat. “But Kandan… She’ll never come back… Not like Lucas did…”

Adrian smiled towards Lilly. “But Kandan made sure you lived so you could meet with Lucas again. Kandan may not come back again, but you’ll see her again.”

Lilly looked towards Adrian in confusion. “So you’re talking about the afterlife?” Lilly asked.

“What, are you saying there’s no such thing?” Adrian inquired.

Lilly shook her head. “No, I know the afterlife exists. It’s just… A very long wait until I can see her again…”

Adrian nodded. “True, the wait may be long, but it will be worth it.” Lilly looked over Adrian. Lilly knew that Adrian was trying to comfort her, but he just seemed a little off. Lilly gave a small smile to Adrian, in which he smirked. “There we go! There’s that Lilly I grew to hate!”

“Wait, what?” Lilly asked in confusion.

Adrian started laughing. “Oh dear, I angered the Pikachu! Looks like I’m going to have to make haste!” Adrian then ran in front of Lilly, leaving her behind.

Lilly smirked, in which she ran to catch up towards Adrian. Lilly then tackled Adrian to the ground, causing Adrian to laugh harder.

“Okay, okay! You caught me!” Adrian exclaimed breathlessly, in which Lilly got off of Adrian. Adrian stood up, grin still plastered onto his face.

“Jeez, you’re slow for a Buizel!” Lilly teased.

“Maybe you’re just too quick!” Adrian exclaimed, checking his strap around his body to see if all the iron thorns stayed in place.

“Alright, maybe I am quick,” Lilly admitted, checking her bag. With a nod, Lilly then said, “So, how further until we reach Insect Web.”

“Just a little further, according to my calculations,” Adrian explained. “In fact, we will be seeing the entrance over this hill.”

And as Adrian explained, Lilly could see the entrance from the top of the hill.

“Wow, you’re right!” Lilly exclaimed.

“I know I am,” Adrian beat his chest. “Now, we need to follow a plan so we can deal with the minimal amount of Beedrill and-Hey! Where are you going?”

Lilly ran towards the entrance, electricity flowing from her cheeks as she looked for any Beedrill to shoot her lightning at. The Beedrill then came out of the trees and started to chase her from behind. Hearing the buzzing noise, Lilly then skid to face the Beedrill and shot electricity towards them. The electricity then swung away from the Beedrill, in which Lilly became confused. Then another Beedrill came from the trees with a machine, in which Lilly’s electricity was being flowed to.

Lilly struggled to contain her electricity, but the fan swung around as the electricity from her body was flowing towards the machine. Soon, she could feel herself slipping off her feet. She groaned in pain as she felt the energy from her body being removed from her.

“Wh-what is that thing…” Lilly murmured.

“Oh, it’s quite simple. A device created to flow the electricity from another when an electric type move is used.”

Lilly couldn’t believe her ears as her eyes shot towards Adrian.

“Wh-what?” Lilly asked, gritting her teeth.

“So maybe your wait with seeing Kandan will be shortened,” Adrian said, in which Lilly’s anger grew. “You can personally thank me now.”

“H-How could you…?” Lilly tried to stand on her feet, but quickly slipped back down.

“How could I?” Adrian asked in pretend shock. “Oh, it was quite simple. Lord Walrein told me to dispose of you, so he set up this whole trap to kill you.”

“Lord… Walrein…” Lilly said, weakness starting to overcome her.

“Hmph, but to think you extended your time and cause yourself to feel guilt of someone’s death in your paws. How pitiful.”

“But… You told me…”

“Ah yes, I comforted you.” Adrian rubbed the back of his paw on his chest. “Pretty difficult, but it was worth it.”

“Why…” Lilly could feel the life of hers starting to be drained, the electricity flow from her towards the machine growing smaller.

“Why, you ask? Well…” Adrian thought for a moment. “Uh…” Adrian looked down at Lilly. “I… Uh…”

Lilly looked towards Adrian. Instead of his demeanor from before, it was now replaced with confusion.

“Adrian… I thought… We were friends…”

Adrian looked at Lilly in anger. “I have no friends. I need no friends. All I need are myself and me! Nobody else!”

“But… how do you feel… without friends…?” Lilly asked, struggling to keep consciousness.

“Well, i-it’s quite simple. I feel…” Adrian scorn soon turned to a small frown. Adrian turned away from Lilly, attempting to hide himself. After a little while, he finally admitted, “I feel alone… Like… I felt… When leaving…”

“Please… Don’t betray… Your friends…” Lilly pleaded. She could feel her sight turning black. Soon, she could feel herself apart from her body.

Lilly woke up to see an orange blur with peach and yellow. She could hear something, but it was too fuzzy for her to listen. She turned to see a green blur with some red mix inside. Her vision cleared to see that it was a Larvitar.

“Lenile!” Lilly exclaimed, in which she gave him a hug. Lenile returned the hug with happiness. “I’m so glad to see you!”

“I’m happy to see you still alive!” Lenile cheered, releasing the hug. “When Adrian saved you with that Iron Thorn, it was-”

“Wait? Did… Did you say, Adrian?” Lilly turned back to see a downtrodden Buizel staring at the floor.

“Yep, that’s my name…” Adrian said, enthusiasm lacking as he continued to stare at the ground.

Lilly smiled. “So, what caused you to change your mind and be the hero instead of the villain?”

Adrian sighed. “You. Because of you, you reminded me of my irrational behaviour. And for all my deeds, I wish to apologize. I just…” Adrian came over to Lilly and embraced her in a tight hug. “I’m sorry!” Adrian yelled as tears fell down his cheeks. “I never meant to hurt you like this! I was following orders from Lord Walrein because I thought it would be the right thing! But I was wrong… I nearly lost a great friend because of my foolishness.”

Lilly smiled as she returned the hug to Adrian. “It’s okay… I forgive you.”

Adrian let go of Lilly and stepped back quickly, tears still flowing. “H-How can you forgive me like that!? Because of me, I nearly killed you! I’ve done so many things wrong. How can you be able to forgive me so easily?”

Lilly stood up and walked over towards Adrian, in which he stepped back. Once Lilly reached Adrian, she grabbed his paw and said, “Because you’re my friend.”

Lenile walked up towards Adrian. “And any friend of Lilly is a friend of mine! If she forgives you, then I will too!”

Adrian looked back towards Lenile and Lilly. Adrian, tears still falling, started to chuckle. “You guys are so irrational. Allowing me to be in your friendship so easily… It’s almost like you forgot everything that I did.”

Lilly grinned. “Forget what?” she asked, in which Lenile and Lilly laughed. Adrian smirked as he rubbed his eyes with the back of his paw.

When the laughter calmed, Lilly looked around. “So… Where are we?” Lilly asked.

“In the base of a tree,” Lenile answered, “Adrian said it was the best place to hide since many Pokemon live in trees, so it would make the best spot!”

Lilly nodded. “Nice thinking, Adrian,” Lilly complemented. “But where do we go first?”

Adrian grabbed Lilly’s bag and pulled out the map. “Well, I’ve been hiding the true way towards Lucas.” Adrian sheepishly grinned. “But, from my knowledge, Lucas could be in Voltland trying to find you.”

“Then when should we start?” Lilly asked.

“Well, I believe that if we try to go through Drench Lake, Lord Walrein will try destroying us. So I recommend the Grassy Plains. We should have a path here, but we may be poisoned in the night by the Shroomish guards.”

Lilly opened her bag. “We have Pecha Berries though. That should help, corr-Where are the berries?” Lilly quickly asked.

“That was my fault,” Lenile admitted. “I sorta got poisoned for being slow… Five times…”

“And the Oran Berries were used up too, Lilly,” Adrian claimed. “That means we can’t depend on berries unless we go out and pick some, which wouldn’t be a walk in the park.”

Lilly sighed. “Then what?” Lilly asked.

“Well, we’ll have to leave the forest, and from what Lenile told me, you know Dig. So you’ll make a tunnel towards this destination, since we’ll have to stop and take a break after a while. We can camp at this destination since no Plainiers or Insects will touch this boundary unless going to battle. And the time which this is going to take is…” Adrian dragged his paw across the map and nodded. “Until moonrise if we start now.”

Lilly nodded. “I’m not going to doubt your calculations.” Lilly took the map from Adrian, in which she placed back into her bag. “But, how do you know about this?” Lilly asked, looking at the Buizel in confusion.

“Let’s just say that I planned ahead when I was still a bit rational.” Lilly nodded and started digging at the ground. When the hole was made, Lenile and Adrian hopped inside.

“Alright, we traveled far enough, I think,” Adrian said, gripping on to Lenile’s tail in the darkness.

“Okay then,” Lilly said before digging upwards. Lenile clung onto Lilly’s tail, preparing for the ascent.

Lilly continued to dig upwards, dirt flying down towards Lenile and Adrian as she continued burrowing through the sand. Finally, Lilly broke the surface and landed onto the ground. Lilly pulled up Lenile and Adrian onto the ground.

Lenile grinned. “Even with your electricity taken from you, you’re still able to travel like that?” Lenile asked.

Adrian walked up and explained, “That’s because electric Pokemon can recover their electricity quite quickly, especially when being in mobile situations. Static charges their system quite extensively while they recharge themselves through rest.”

Lenile looked at Adrian blankly, in which Lilly said, “I heal fast.”

“Oh, why didn’t you say so?” Lenile asked, in which Adrian groaned.

Lilly gathered some twigs from fallen trees and placed them on the ground. “We might need a fire. It’s pretty chilly out here.”

Lenile nodded. Adrian shook his head in disdain though. “No way, Lilly,” Adrian refused. “If we make a fire… Well, just look around!”

Lilly then looked around. Adrian was correct; the open area in this forest made it easier for the smoke to float upwards.

“But a fire can’t be the only heat source, can it?” Lenile asked.

Adrian shook his head. “Of course not!” Adrian exclaimed. “We should take some leaves and create beds out of that. That would be much more efficient than using fire.”

“But, how do we see?” Lenile asked, in which Lilly walked next to Lenile.

“Leave that up to me.” Lilly charged some electricity around her, causing light to shine a bit around her.

Adrian then looked upwards and stepped backwards and to the left. He then jumped and let a gust of wind slice through the tree, dropping a full branch of leaves. Lenile caught the branch and started laying them out. Adrian and Lenile continued this until there were three beds made from the leaves.

“Alright, so we’re ready for the night?” Lenile asked.

“Almost…” Adrian said, still laying out the leaves for the third bed. “Annnd… Done!” Adrian nodded towards his craftsmanship, which was then ruined by a falling Larvitar. Adrian sighed before laying on another bed. Lilly also did the same.

“So, Lilly, tomorrow’s the day!” Lenile exclaimed. “Soon, you and Lucas will be together again.”

“Yeah, tomorrow…” Lilly said with a yawn. “But for now, time for sleep.”

Adrian looked towards the starry night. “Well, what do you think?” Adrian asked, “Great view, huh?” Adrian got an answer from a loud snore from Lenile. Lilly chuckled as Adrian sighed. “Heavy sleeper, isn’t he?”

“Apparently,” Lilly agreed. “I wish I could get to sleep that quickly.”

Adrian chuckled. “Wouldn’t we all?” Adrian asked. “I guess that sleeping like a rock.”

Adrian and Lilly giggled. Soon, the silence fell as Lilly fell into a deep slumber.
[hr][/hr]Well, it’s been a while, so have a double post of chapters! Enjoy!

14

I know that I said I wouldn’t take anymore Original Characters, but the person that sent this to me fit one of my scenes perfectly! Look forward to it!

Name: Sara
Species (Pokemon): Ralts
Moveset: Growl, Mean Look, Shadow Ball, Double Team
Personality: Quiet, Shy, and Wary
History: Her mother was a rash and aggressive Gardevoir. Her father was a naughty Duskull of questionable origin. She has two brothers and one sister. They were all aggressive like their mother. Sara, being angered from her lifestyle, ran away from her family in order to survive.
Other: In order to survive, she’d feed off the happiness of Pokemon.