The sharp wall of starkly rising mountains that separated the outer
territories from the inner core of the Ganean kingdom rose in the horizon,
clawing at the sky. Few ever passed those mountains, guarded by the Inner
Core's houses legions of Peacekeepers.
But that, Jan Andarei thought as he turned away to look at the man who had summoned him, was not important - not now. Tossing his long ponytail of brown hair from the shoulder on which it had fallen, the sixteen years old young man looked again at the apothecary of the small town of Kaidan, an elderly man in his seventies with a crown of short white hair and a gray robe.
"I'm glad you could come Jan." The old man finally started talking. "You are one of the best in this village when dealing with pokemon, as are you with the blade."
"I suppose so." Jan shrugged. Why the talk was going toward that, he couldn't fathom.
"No need to be modest. Or rather, no time for it."
The man turned away from the window in which Jan himself had been starring only a few moments earlier. Son of two poor peasants who had died a few years back from a plague, Jan had found himself a part of village life far earlier than most others when it had come time to find him an house. Finally, the local blacksmith, whose wife had died leaving him childless during the plague, had elected to take him under his wing.
"You know, of course, how the Inner Core had long used their Peacekeepers to force us to pay heed to their will."
"Of course." Who, in the Outer territories, didn't know that? The peacekeeperes, using their well-trained flying pokemon, imposed the will of the Ganean council - made of the heads of the eight houses of the Inner Core - upon the territories...and destroyed those who opposed them.
"And you know of the Noble's challenge?"
"Of course." True to a legend of the days of their founding, each of the eight noble houses of Ganea held a challenge for all young men and women to take. Those who, miraculously, could take the challenge and defeat the three champions of the kingdom were granted tremendous power and influence.
"Good. So far, the Territories have been unable to send someone to take the test, due to the Peacekeeper's guards on the mountain pass." Jan nodded again as the old sage went on. "But as it is, we couldn't give a good flying pokemon to those we were planning to send over, because the rules state that each of the trainer must have upon joining the league exactly one elemental pokemon. Outside Charizard, there are entirely too few of those."
Jan nodded again as the well-known details went by. The Ganean Core was an object of hatred to the people of the territories, but they knew it and its customs.
"So then, a few other scholars and I have worked on elemental flux, and managed to alter the evolution of some flying pokemon - or the birth of one - to create species that are flying, yet good elemental pokemon."
"I see." Slowly, Jan nodded yet once more. "And why did you summon me here?"
"To give you this." He took a red and white ball out of his medicine bag. "I want you to take on the Ganean Challenge." He indicated calmly. "You have the skill to do so - more than anyone else I heard of."
Hesitantly, Jan reached to take the ball in his hand. He closed his fingers around it.
"Inside is one of those pokemon we - I suppose you could say - created. We named this one Feonix - it is a Fearow which possess the element of fire." The sage explained. "You'll need this also." He handed Jan a sword bound inside its scabbard. "Your father made it when I obtained his permission to ask you for this. You will need it, as many of the Ganean Masters asks the trainer to join his pokemon in fighting for the challenge."
Jan nodded once more, taking the blade as well.
"That seems to work with me." He smiled. "Is there anything else?"
"Only this." The sage handed him a small brown bag which came with a jingling noise. Money, of course. It would be needed.
"That's all we could find...it is not much, but hopefully it will be enough until you can defeat at least one of the master - they do reward those few who can pass their challenges. I gather from what you are doing and saying that you will do it?"
"You got that right." Finally displaying emotions, Jan let a grin appear on his face. "I was looking for a challenge. Anything else I need to know?"
"There are two others like you. I don't know their names - they will have an ice Pidgeot and a thunder skarmory, that is all I know."
"That's good enough." Jan smiled. "I'll return once the Core's done for." He grinned, shook the old man's hand, a silent goodbye.
There was not much more for goodbyes. His friends were few still alive after the dark days of the plague, and they had never been ones to talk all that much. He gathered some food for the journey in, but even that took little time, and yielded less results. Things were scarce in the villages that made up most of the outer Territories.
"Time to go." He whispered, picking up the pokeball he had been given. He had not yet seen the pokemon inside, and was somewhat eager to finally meet his partner on the task he had been given - the creature he would work with for a long time to come.
"I chose you." He softly whispered, throwing the pokeball down. The shape that appeared from the red energy was that of a fearow, though its crest seemed made of flames, and its feathers were somewhat closer to a golden color.
The beast made no sound appearing, only staring at him with deep ruby eyes, a flash of eagerness in them.
Before he could see more in those eyes, a sudden sounds of shouting and fighting rose in the village. He turned back, watching as armed men entered the apothecary's house.
"Master Cain!" He shouted, watching as they did so. They weren't peacekeepers, or at least bore no visibles signs of being such.
"Flee!" The old man shouted as one of the men reached for him.
"There's the pokemon!" Another yelled, pointing straight at Feonix behind Jan.
Closing his eyes, the young man reached for Feonix, the beautiful pokemon he had been given care of.
"Can you carry me away Feonix?" It was, he realized as he asked, a useless question ; the pokemon had been designed to provide a creature that would be both able to fly yet possess elemental attributes. The pokemon, of course, nodded.
With the men rushing toward him, and a quick prayer that some in his village would survive, Jan jumped on the bird's back. As soon as he had jumped, the wings of the great pokemon clawed at the sky, taking him away from the blades of the incoming pursuers.
"Stop them! They're getting away!" An older man wearing green and brown clothes shouted as they took flight.
They were too late. As they even reached toward him, he was out of their range, and they would not shoot, for fear of harming the pokemon itself - the one thing they had seemed to want.
_____________________
"So, Master Cain, you have betrayed us?" Brushing a strand of grayish hair out of his face, the cloaked man Jan had caught sight off turned toward the now-restrained sage. Deckard Cain did not answer.
"You were supposed to make that pokemon far stronger...as a weapon of destruction."
"I did what I believed to be right, Wallace." Cain snarled.
"How sad you were wrong. Where is the Spirit Stone?" He smiled a wolfish smile, his own eyes narrowing in anger.
"In a safe place. I don't even know where, I trusted a group of others with taking care of it." The man answered.
Cait Wallace, the leader of the rebel group which called itself Blizzard, snarled in frustration.
"We will destroy the Core, whether you like it or not Deckard." He growled, reaching for his blade.
"Sir! If you kill him, we lose our only track!" One of his rebels protested.
"You're right."
He turned around, facing the man who had spoken, drawing his sword on him instead, then paused to consider something he had not thought of before.
"I have a better idea. Pidgeots are faster than any other flying pokemon. Take yours, and go after that young man. Bring back the pokemon."
He smiled as his men broke off, four pidgeots rising in the sky soon in pursuit of the fleeing pokemon and its...companion.
"So Deckard. Let's see how long your attempt at countering me last."
"We'll see." Cain's voice was controled as he replied, seemingly unafraid, even though he had more than likely lost.
____________
Sitting on the back of his Charizard, his long dark hair flying in the wind despite the helmet that covered the upper part of it, Tomas Nalraan scanned the surrounding skies in search of anyone he would have to deal with - most probably, another attempt by outer territories citizens to penetrate the Core.
"Sir! What's that?" The pidgeot trainer at his side suddenly pointed to a group of flying pokemon- pidgeots -coming from the outer territories.
Turning his helmet-covered head toward the pokemon, Tomas, watched them closely, trying to determine what they were doing, and wheter or not they would attempt to penetrate the core. They seemed to be after something...yes, there it was, a fearow-like pokemon.
"You take that pokemon they're after - make sure it doesn't get into the core." He ordered, then turned his own charizard toward the pursuing pidgeots. The people flying them were not Peacekeepers, judging by their now-visible uniforms. He readied his long bow, watching from under his dragon-crested helm.
"Here they come!" His wingman shouted, turning his pokemon to go after the strange Fearow. Tomas did not break his concentration to watch, eyeing the rapidly approaching pidgeot warily, half-expecting a trap meant for his patrol force. He drew two arrows from his quiver, and aimed with both at once, a feat few in the world could duplicate. He turned his eyes back toward the flying pokemon.
Now.
They were in range ; with a blur, he released both arrows as his charizard released a powerful blast of fire. The pokemon had not seen him coming, he felt a short tinge of regret at having to kill them without warning like that, but the trainers had seen - and ignored - him, he knew. It was their mistake.
Three were falling before they even had the time to react, their pokemon brought down in mid flight by the arrows and fireball. The fourth turned to face him, reaching for a sword as the distance between the two narrowed rapidly.
Even so, he was too late. Before he could even finish drawing, the accelerating Charizard had reached him, and Tomas blade fell rapidly, beheading the man before he even had a chance to do anything. The pokemon flew off, unwilling to face the same fate as its siblings, fear of death outweighing loyalty to a now-dead trainer.
He turned back to see his wingman...only to watch in dismay as the strange fearow-like pokemon flew away, now out of his own range...and the sky was left empty, without a trace of his wingman.
"Juusan will have to hear of this." He whispered, before pushing gently his Charizard on the way back, toward the Castle of the Fang, headquarters of the Peacekeepers and home of one of their leader, one of the three champions of Ganea, Juusan Kurimuzon.
But that, Jan Andarei thought as he turned away to look at the man who had summoned him, was not important - not now. Tossing his long ponytail of brown hair from the shoulder on which it had fallen, the sixteen years old young man looked again at the apothecary of the small town of Kaidan, an elderly man in his seventies with a crown of short white hair and a gray robe.
"I'm glad you could come Jan." The old man finally started talking. "You are one of the best in this village when dealing with pokemon, as are you with the blade."
"I suppose so." Jan shrugged. Why the talk was going toward that, he couldn't fathom.
"No need to be modest. Or rather, no time for it."
The man turned away from the window in which Jan himself had been starring only a few moments earlier. Son of two poor peasants who had died a few years back from a plague, Jan had found himself a part of village life far earlier than most others when it had come time to find him an house. Finally, the local blacksmith, whose wife had died leaving him childless during the plague, had elected to take him under his wing.
"You know, of course, how the Inner Core had long used their Peacekeepers to force us to pay heed to their will."
"Of course." Who, in the Outer territories, didn't know that? The peacekeeperes, using their well-trained flying pokemon, imposed the will of the Ganean council - made of the heads of the eight houses of the Inner Core - upon the territories...and destroyed those who opposed them.
"And you know of the Noble's challenge?"
"Of course." True to a legend of the days of their founding, each of the eight noble houses of Ganea held a challenge for all young men and women to take. Those who, miraculously, could take the challenge and defeat the three champions of the kingdom were granted tremendous power and influence.
"Good. So far, the Territories have been unable to send someone to take the test, due to the Peacekeeper's guards on the mountain pass." Jan nodded again as the old sage went on. "But as it is, we couldn't give a good flying pokemon to those we were planning to send over, because the rules state that each of the trainer must have upon joining the league exactly one elemental pokemon. Outside Charizard, there are entirely too few of those."
Jan nodded again as the well-known details went by. The Ganean Core was an object of hatred to the people of the territories, but they knew it and its customs.
"So then, a few other scholars and I have worked on elemental flux, and managed to alter the evolution of some flying pokemon - or the birth of one - to create species that are flying, yet good elemental pokemon."
"I see." Slowly, Jan nodded yet once more. "And why did you summon me here?"
"To give you this." He took a red and white ball out of his medicine bag. "I want you to take on the Ganean Challenge." He indicated calmly. "You have the skill to do so - more than anyone else I heard of."
Hesitantly, Jan reached to take the ball in his hand. He closed his fingers around it.
"Inside is one of those pokemon we - I suppose you could say - created. We named this one Feonix - it is a Fearow which possess the element of fire." The sage explained. "You'll need this also." He handed Jan a sword bound inside its scabbard. "Your father made it when I obtained his permission to ask you for this. You will need it, as many of the Ganean Masters asks the trainer to join his pokemon in fighting for the challenge."
Jan nodded once more, taking the blade as well.
"That seems to work with me." He smiled. "Is there anything else?"
"Only this." The sage handed him a small brown bag which came with a jingling noise. Money, of course. It would be needed.
"That's all we could find...it is not much, but hopefully it will be enough until you can defeat at least one of the master - they do reward those few who can pass their challenges. I gather from what you are doing and saying that you will do it?"
"You got that right." Finally displaying emotions, Jan let a grin appear on his face. "I was looking for a challenge. Anything else I need to know?"
"There are two others like you. I don't know their names - they will have an ice Pidgeot and a thunder skarmory, that is all I know."
"That's good enough." Jan smiled. "I'll return once the Core's done for." He grinned, shook the old man's hand, a silent goodbye.
There was not much more for goodbyes. His friends were few still alive after the dark days of the plague, and they had never been ones to talk all that much. He gathered some food for the journey in, but even that took little time, and yielded less results. Things were scarce in the villages that made up most of the outer Territories.
"Time to go." He whispered, picking up the pokeball he had been given. He had not yet seen the pokemon inside, and was somewhat eager to finally meet his partner on the task he had been given - the creature he would work with for a long time to come.
"I chose you." He softly whispered, throwing the pokeball down. The shape that appeared from the red energy was that of a fearow, though its crest seemed made of flames, and its feathers were somewhat closer to a golden color.
The beast made no sound appearing, only staring at him with deep ruby eyes, a flash of eagerness in them.
Before he could see more in those eyes, a sudden sounds of shouting and fighting rose in the village. He turned back, watching as armed men entered the apothecary's house.
"Master Cain!" He shouted, watching as they did so. They weren't peacekeepers, or at least bore no visibles signs of being such.
"Flee!" The old man shouted as one of the men reached for him.
"There's the pokemon!" Another yelled, pointing straight at Feonix behind Jan.
Closing his eyes, the young man reached for Feonix, the beautiful pokemon he had been given care of.
"Can you carry me away Feonix?" It was, he realized as he asked, a useless question ; the pokemon had been designed to provide a creature that would be both able to fly yet possess elemental attributes. The pokemon, of course, nodded.
With the men rushing toward him, and a quick prayer that some in his village would survive, Jan jumped on the bird's back. As soon as he had jumped, the wings of the great pokemon clawed at the sky, taking him away from the blades of the incoming pursuers.
"Stop them! They're getting away!" An older man wearing green and brown clothes shouted as they took flight.
They were too late. As they even reached toward him, he was out of their range, and they would not shoot, for fear of harming the pokemon itself - the one thing they had seemed to want.
_____________________
"So, Master Cain, you have betrayed us?" Brushing a strand of grayish hair out of his face, the cloaked man Jan had caught sight off turned toward the now-restrained sage. Deckard Cain did not answer.
"You were supposed to make that pokemon far stronger...as a weapon of destruction."
"I did what I believed to be right, Wallace." Cain snarled.
"How sad you were wrong. Where is the Spirit Stone?" He smiled a wolfish smile, his own eyes narrowing in anger.
"In a safe place. I don't even know where, I trusted a group of others with taking care of it." The man answered.
Cait Wallace, the leader of the rebel group which called itself Blizzard, snarled in frustration.
"We will destroy the Core, whether you like it or not Deckard." He growled, reaching for his blade.
"Sir! If you kill him, we lose our only track!" One of his rebels protested.
"You're right."
He turned around, facing the man who had spoken, drawing his sword on him instead, then paused to consider something he had not thought of before.
"I have a better idea. Pidgeots are faster than any other flying pokemon. Take yours, and go after that young man. Bring back the pokemon."
He smiled as his men broke off, four pidgeots rising in the sky soon in pursuit of the fleeing pokemon and its...companion.
"So Deckard. Let's see how long your attempt at countering me last."
"We'll see." Cain's voice was controled as he replied, seemingly unafraid, even though he had more than likely lost.
____________
Sitting on the back of his Charizard, his long dark hair flying in the wind despite the helmet that covered the upper part of it, Tomas Nalraan scanned the surrounding skies in search of anyone he would have to deal with - most probably, another attempt by outer territories citizens to penetrate the Core.
"Sir! What's that?" The pidgeot trainer at his side suddenly pointed to a group of flying pokemon- pidgeots -coming from the outer territories.
Turning his helmet-covered head toward the pokemon, Tomas, watched them closely, trying to determine what they were doing, and wheter or not they would attempt to penetrate the core. They seemed to be after something...yes, there it was, a fearow-like pokemon.
"You take that pokemon they're after - make sure it doesn't get into the core." He ordered, then turned his own charizard toward the pursuing pidgeots. The people flying them were not Peacekeepers, judging by their now-visible uniforms. He readied his long bow, watching from under his dragon-crested helm.
"Here they come!" His wingman shouted, turning his pokemon to go after the strange Fearow. Tomas did not break his concentration to watch, eyeing the rapidly approaching pidgeot warily, half-expecting a trap meant for his patrol force. He drew two arrows from his quiver, and aimed with both at once, a feat few in the world could duplicate. He turned his eyes back toward the flying pokemon.
Now.
They were in range ; with a blur, he released both arrows as his charizard released a powerful blast of fire. The pokemon had not seen him coming, he felt a short tinge of regret at having to kill them without warning like that, but the trainers had seen - and ignored - him, he knew. It was their mistake.
Three were falling before they even had the time to react, their pokemon brought down in mid flight by the arrows and fireball. The fourth turned to face him, reaching for a sword as the distance between the two narrowed rapidly.
Even so, he was too late. Before he could even finish drawing, the accelerating Charizard had reached him, and Tomas blade fell rapidly, beheading the man before he even had a chance to do anything. The pokemon flew off, unwilling to face the same fate as its siblings, fear of death outweighing loyalty to a now-dead trainer.
He turned back to see his wingman...only to watch in dismay as the strange fearow-like pokemon flew away, now out of his own range...and the sky was left empty, without a trace of his wingman.
"Juusan will have to hear of this." He whispered, before pushing gently his Charizard on the way back, toward the Castle of the Fang, headquarters of the Peacekeepers and home of one of their leader, one of the three champions of Ganea, Juusan Kurimuzon.