A/N: Yes, yes, I know the whole Pokémon at war thing is overdone to death (maybe…) but I will try to the best of my ability to make this work. Let's hope I'll keep updating this too since I have another fanfic in the works…but anyway, enjoy my little story! Hope you guys like it!

Wading Through the Shadows

Into the Fray

{How many times…did we lose someone close to us due to meaningless warfare…?}

The battlefield was covered with Pokémon with their claws sharpened, and fangs bared. Most of these Pokémon would fight to the best of their ability to fend off their opponent, yet they would all end up dead after a few hours or so with a fatal attack. Then whoever the victor of the fight was would just move on to the next Pokémon and so on, until somebody either retreats or kills off a Pokémon who was integral to the other side. A few other Pokémon stood on a hill overlooking the battlefield, unscathed. Each looked on into the war, eagerly anticipating…something. A turnaround in their favor, perhaps. "This is disgusting." A Manectric snapped. "I'd rather fight out there than stand around being a coward!"

"Your demeanor regarding to this war is appeasing, Lionel." A Golduck replied. "Yet you're one of our more valuable soldiers, we can't afford to lose you."

"Forget about this mess!" A Jolteon piped up. "I say we just send in the troops!"

"Be patient, Swift." The Golduck hissed. "Look; I already see someone coming towards us."

A Pidgeot slowly descended towards the group, armed with a few bruises that probably came from some of the skyward attacks it had to bear on the flight towards the hill. "Greetings, Miven." It said to the Golduck. "I bring news from Giratina himself."

"Exactly what I was expecting." Miven replied. "What are his orders?"

"Giratina has said to withdraw all the troops."

"What!" Lionel cried. "Did he go nuts!"

"No, he did not." The Pidgeot said solemnly. "It was a hard decision for him too. Arceus has gathered too much power. If we continue, we could lose hundreds, perhaps thousands of soldiers. It will take us too many days to replace that many lost soldiers."

Miven sighed. It was true, Arceus was far more powerful than Giratina…and he is the one who created the Pokémon in the first place. He had their trust, and he compared to Giratina, he could easily recruit far more Pokémon than Giratina can in a single day. "Fine." The Golduck finally said after a minute of silence. "Call them all back, Swift."

"No! I won't!" Swift bellowed. "Even if that damned Arceus can control fate to his own will, we will not fall! Do you hear me!"

"Swift! It's-"

"It's absolutely necessary that we stay! I will not be a coward and withdraw from this fight! There is nothing you can do for me to change my mind!"

The Wild Meadow was streaked with blood, and the rancid scent of it had stained the plains. The wild Pokémon that lived around these parts had migrated away due to the recent war, and some became fresh corpses due to the fact they were killed in the battle. A Togekiss soared around the Wild Meadow for awhile, disgusted in the many lives that were lost in that recent battle; Arceus won that one due to a General's stubbornness, or that's what the Togekiss had heard about. He didn't even care much for the stuff of war; he hated it with a passion. Yet with the recent war going on with the omnipotent Arceus and the all-powerful Giratina, it was hard to remain a pacifist and resist the temptation to fight.

The Togekiss found that the war was quite stupid and unneeded, but maybe that's because nobody was really sure how the war started. Pokémon claiming to be in the blood of Arceus or Giratina came to various towns and informed them of how the duo would go into war, and that whoever should join them would be granted a place among legends as a coveted champion who fought valiantly in the name of the champion. Perhaps some, or even most, would find this as a tempting offer, and being unable to resist the lure of fame, and rewards, would simply join in the war.

A place where war is ravaging the lands, and greed tainting the hearts of many as a result…it was no place for a Togekiss. This was the main reason why he had to leave.

The Togekiss gave one last glance towards the Wild Meadow, before he finally flew off. His wings ached due to the fact he had spent most of his time in flight, yet he remained persistent on the method of flight. If he should walk, then hostile Pokémon would be able to rip him to shreds, since he didn't really know much about battling. Yet his wings ached even more each minute the Togekiss kept pushing himself to fly, to the point they felt like they were going to fall off. He was only a few miles from the Wild Meadow until his wings finally gave out.

The Pokémon slowly made his way to land, able to reach the ground gracefully despite his aching pair of wings taking control over his body. The landscape that the Togekiss landed upon had a spooky air to it; the sun was mostly blocked out by tall branches that seemed to reach out to the sky, making it so that only a few patches of sunlight could light up the darkened clearing. A thin, cold mist hung about in the air, making the Togekiss shiver. The clearing was mostly made up of bare trees that made it much harder to find a way out of this strange, twisted forest. Even in such a darkened place, the Togekiss found the heart to brave his way through the trees and find a way out.

"Hey look guysssssssss! A Pokémon!"

The Togekiss flinched. Exactly what he feared.

"A Pokémon!"

This wasn't going to end well is it? The Togekiss thought.

"Aw, ssssssssweet! A Pokémon!"

The clearing suddenly sprang to life with various Pokémon coming about, forming a small pack that seemed to be mostly made up of Ekans. The little purple snakes looked at the Togekiss in awe as if he was some sort of deity, and seemed much more contented when they found out about his species. The pack started up a chatter of sorts, filling up the silent forest, and some tried to lunge towards him in a fake manner, in a lousy attempt to entertain themselves. "The Bossssssss issssss coming!" A voice shrieked. "The Bossssss issssss coming!"

Then, the air was now made up of the same phrase repeating itself over and over again with different voices. When the Ekans finally formed into straight lines like soldiers, the eerie silence that the Togekiss anticipated took over the woodland once more. Suddenly, the Ekans started jumping and singing about as a Scyther came to view. It had a blank expression on its face as it began to walk over to the Togekiss calmly. To the Scyther, nothing frightened him, especially with that kind of stance. All the Scyther had to do was lift up a blade, for the Ekans to silence their ruckus. "A Scyther leading a pack of ragtag Ekans?" The Togekiss jeered.

"You have no idea what a fight for leadership does to these guys." The Scyther said. "The name's Sclint. You sure have some guts to trespass in our territory."

"Your territory?" The Togekiss asked, wide-eyed. "You don't seem to be king around these parts. More like a smug Pokémon who hides under a calm impression."

"Don't insssult our Bossss!" An Ekans cried out. The rest of the pack joined in, howling, jeering, and booing like a feisty crowd, before they were silenced again by Sclint.

"If you want a way out, then you gotta pass me first." Sclint declared. "Only I get to decide who goes in and who comes out. Unless, of course, you're a scaredy cat, seeing that you're a Togekiss."

The Togekiss grinned and unfolded his wings. Maddening pain continued to course through them, but he found that if he was able to endure a long flight into this weird forest, he should be able to endure a few beatings from someone like Sclint. The Scyther screamed out, dashing towards the Togekiss like a madman, yet his target flew up in the air, causing Sclint to hit a tree with his blades instead. By then, the starting attack had already sent the Ekans pack into a wild frenzy once more.

Despite the pain, the Togekiss folded his wings, giving him a rocket-like formation, and flew towards Sclint, coating him in a white aura. Sclint formed an X-shape with his two blades, giving them a glow of light blue. The two attacks collided, each Pokémon glaring at the other, hoping that one would give up before they could. Once again, the Togekiss felt the same pain that overtook his wings awhile ago, this time, the pain had also overtook his body. Sclint seemed to notice this, a slight smirk forming upon his face with the notice of the pain.

Yet he can't give up.

"Just give in!" Sclint cried out. "You know you can't beat me!"

This wasn't even a war. He wouldn't die in glory or any of the sorts.

The Ekans chanted Sclint's same words, with each chant becoming much more high-pitched with each passing minute.

The Togekiss let loose a piercing scream that shocked the Scyther and the chanting pack. As the pain worsened, the Togekiss found his strength increasing. With each thought of Pokémon dying because of worthless causes, his strength increased. Having cornered Sclint, the Togekiss opened up his mouth, slowly charging a small, turquoise orb. Yet a meek voice whispered through the wind, pierced his ears, and shocked him. "Have mercy…" Sclint rasped.

This smug Pokémon…no, perhaps there is some kind of reason why Sclint didn't use his full power. The Togekiss shouldn't judge Pokémon by means of their display of power…only weaklings did that. The orb slowly disappeared, and he backed away a few inches at the Scyther, allowing himself to become one with the silence that both the forest and the Ekans emanated. "A name…" Sclint panted. "I demand…a name."

A name. The Togekiss certainly didn't think one for himself. He never thought he would come to the point to ask him for a name. Yet what harm did a name even have?

"A name…I guess you can call me…Kiren." The Togekiss replied.

A/N: End of cheepter, guys. How did I do? Tell me in the reviews so I can improve! I will see you guys in the next cheepter! Bye!