Just as I woke up, even before I opened my eyes, I felt that this day would be one of these days where I would get up only to wait until I could sleep again. I felt so lazy that I wanted to do absolutely nothing; however, I couldn't force myself to sleep any longer. The sun's rays were glaring at my eyelids and bothering me even while they were shut tight, but that wasn't enough to make me move, but the water that suddenly started dripping on me did. I opened my eyes and saw that I was on a grassy field, not far from Cera's den. Who, coincidentally, was also standing next to me using her psychic powers on the water hovering above me, rhythmically dropping small blobs on me as if imitating rain. She wasn't looking at me but concentrating on the floating water.
"Could you stop that?" I asked, slowly getting wet. She tensed but listened to my request, and the entire water bubble fell on me all at once. "Hey! What was that for?"
"Uh, I thought I should water you," she spoke after a bit of hesitation.
"Why?"
"You have brown leaves now, like withered plants, so I had the idea that this might help," Cera answered, but it seemed that she wasn't sure of her idea anymore.
"I am not a plant! I don't even bloom," I said irritated. Even if there was sense to her actions, I didn't want to be treated like a plant. It was good that she didn't decide to bury me underground only with my leaves above the ground, I guess. Something to be thankful for there.
I looked back to see my leaves. They were really sickly, maybe not brown like Cera said but yellow, or at least this side, which used to be green. Of course, the bottom was white as always. I felt that they weren't absorbing the sun as well as they used to.
"What happens to the typical plant's leaves when they are yellow?" I stood up and questioned Cera; my weakness from yesterday gone, aside of almost not working leaves.
"Wait wait wait, you are a plant- " I looked at her angrily, "-I mean part-plant, and you don't know what leaves are doing when they turn brown?"
They're yellow!
"They fall off the branch, I know. I was asking what else they do. I doubt that I will suddenly lose my ears and tail," I said sarcastically. "Did you really think that I didn't know a thing like that? I used to speak with the plants, so I learned a few things about them."
"You speak with plants?!" she cried out in shock "You really are crazy!"
"No no, It's not like that, like with you and me. I just don't know what else to call it, it's like learning something from nothing. Like I'll get information that some flower will soon bloom and turn red or some tree will lose it's pinecones." I quickly explained to the surprised espeon, realising that it had to have sounded really silly.
"Okay, but if I ever find you talking to bushes, trees or anything leafy, I will invade your mind and put you back to normal!" she warned me, but calmed herself. "But back to your leaves, I think that they will just turn green with time. Do you feel any different when they are yellow?"
"I can't absorb the sun's rays as easily, as usual, is all," I answered, checking if I could move them normally, which I could. I noticed that from a den a fair distance from us walked out a dark, blue-ringed creature.
"I see that you woke up," greeted Serge as he approached us, speaking in his typical harsh tone which was more fitting for threats and insults than mornings greetings.
"And I see that someone is awake when he should be sleep," I replied, trying to imitate him but I wasn't even close to his tone.
"The more I sleep, the more I snore," he said and sat down on the grass. "And not every umbreon is nocturnal."
"Uh, really?" asked Cera as she looked at Serge with curiosity.
"No, only the newbies who don't know how to change their habits yet," Serge denied and smiled, but that wasn't enough to convince me that he was fine during the day. I saw his squinted and tired eyes, they were slightly red, not as much as normal umbreons but also not his usual bright yellow.
"You won't deceive me, Serge, I can see that you are unhappy during the day," I said calmly; I didn't want to see him like that.
"Fine, you caught an umbreon on a lie. Yes, I hate mornings; it's so fucking bright everywhere. I felt as if the sun was trying to burn my eyes; and without the darkness, I feel so... exposed," admitted said dark-type, giving up on trying to not show his dissatisfaction.
"Heh, is our scary umbreon so shy that he can't stand others seeing him?" taunted Cera as she giggled, but Serge didn't give her any attention, focusing on me.
"I only wanted to check on you, even if Cera says otherwise. It was my position and me that affected you. I can recognise my own abilities, y'know. Sorry about it, how you feel now?"
"I've had better days, but I am fine now, I'll just be different colours for a while," I replied and got a nod from him. "Go to sleep now, Serge."
"I will," he said, standing up and walking back to his den.
"He had another guilt trip?" asked Cera when the blue-ringed umbreon was too far to hear us, even with his much better than any other eeveelution's ears.
"Yep," I affirmed. "Something happened on the hunt, as always. And as always, I don't really understand what it was."
"Umbreons are one giant army of sadness, just wait until some of them turn crazy," stated Cera, surprising me with how she thought about our friend.
"Don't think like that; it is just part of their type. Instead of blaming them for it, we should help them to control it," I advised, looking in Cera's almost blue eyes. "Serge just needs to talk with someone to help him feel better, I bet that there are umbreons around here that have a lot of trouble with cheering up."
"I never feel good when there is an umbreon nearby, the way I sense them with my psychic power gives me a headache. As if I had something heavy on my back," said Cera, and I heard some regret in her voice that she felt like that around our friend, that she was uncomfortable around him. "Maybe you are right."
"Opinions are like asses; everyone has their own," I repeated what Serge said me. Cera's ears tensed, and she looked at me curiously.
"Who said that?" she asked.
"Serge," I answered and actually felt lucky that I didn't have to say that this was mine.
"Yes, that fits him, but you, not so much. Don't learn too much from him, okay?" She warned me and made her way to her den. "Meet me before sunset at the river okay? I have a nice place to show you."
"Sure, I'll be looking forward it," I answered as she gracefully walked out of my view. I was still sitting when it came to me, one, highly important fact which just happened. Did I really just ask her for a date? Or rather she asked me. And I agreed, well that was good, since I wasn't aware of what she meant and I couldn't say something stupid if I didn't know that she was asking me out.
I stood up and with a smile on my face, I started aimlessly wandering through the pack area. Some of the eeveelutions I passed by were cocking their heads, seeing me stupidly smiling to myself, but I couldn't help it, I was just happy.
My happy trance disturbed some other jolteon who instead of just staring, crossed my way.
"Hi, Czar was it? I wanted to thank you for your help yesterday and... weren't you greener?" blabbed fastly female jolteon.
What was her name? She missed mine but it would be nice if I would remember hers.
"Hi, Nevia what you are doing here?" I greeted her making a step back as he walked a little too close to me.
"Well, it's Navia, but anyways I live here! See it's my den right there," she pointed at the nearby dark entrance. "I just wanted to thank you; you really helped me yesterday Czar and I haven't had any occasion to do it before now!"
"Zar," I felt that I could correct her if she corrected me. It was a real surprise to me where her den was, it was almost the centre point of the clearing where our pack was living, how did a one-day old jolteon earn one of the most important places for den? "How did you get this place? It's almost in the centre, and you just evolved yesterday!"
That would mean that I was speaking with the second or maybe third most powerful pokemon here, only Sogot could be more powerful.
"It is my parent's den, as you pointed out, I just evolved so I haven't moved out yet," she said unnaturally fast for everyone but jolteons. More experienced electric types weren't even 'wasting' time for making a sound, instead communicating by sending small discharges. She calmed me a little though, I always felt some pressure when I was talking with other eeveelutions, maybe not stronger than me since it was really hard for me to find someone weaker than me, but with someone who had a 'position' in the pack. Like Cera, I never could force myself to treat her normally, I was always watching my words and behaviour when I was close to her. I just couldn't be fully comfortable with pokemon like them.
"What do you think about going somewhere together in the evening? I can take you to a nice place in return for your help," Navia proposed happily. And I would almost agree but I stopped at just the last moment.
I was already busy, I couldn't miss my meeting with Cera. Not because Navia wasn't attractive, I never truly lied that I prefer jolteons, with their spiked fur, yellow colour and energy... but I knew Cera much longer and even a blind pokemon would see that the espeon was trying something. The problem was that; if I said no to Navia, she might feel bad, and it was a male who was supposed to ask for a date. If female asked first and the male declined, she may think that there was something wrong with her and this could make her miserable. But if I said yes, I couldn't go with Cera and the situation would repeat, maybe she wouldn't even look at me again because I just stood her up. How did this even happen? I am one of the weaker males in the pack and I have to choose between two females! It was against every rule!
Every possible choice was bad, I doubted that any of the 'maybe another day' or 'I am busy today' lines would work, I knew that the pokemon I was talking to wasn't stupid enough to believe such cliché words. Not only because Navia's parents were really powerful and certainly taught their daughter how to be smart, but just the way of her facial expressions, the set of her ears and look of her dark violet eyes. I would also judge her from the movement of her tail but jolteon's tails seemed to vanish. Really, where did a jolteon's tail went? Is it hidden somewhere under their spikes, or did it just disappear? How did she even keep her balance without it? I couldn't understand it since my own was long and broad, allowing me even to stand on only my two back legs for a few seconds.
But back to my problem, I didn't want to hurt Navia in any possible way but at the same time, I didn't want to say anything that could ruin my meeting with Cera. But on the other paw, maybe she wouldn't mean a date but just 'thanks' and saying that I already had a meeting with Cera wouldn't be a bad idea. I noticed lately that Cera wanted me in her environment more, but Navia was just a jolteon I met and I didn't know anything about her. Yet, she was inconceivably attractive. I was so lucky that jolteons aren't psychic and can't read all these thoughts. But what if Cera looked in my mind and found out everything that I was thinking? Nah I was worrying myself too much, she never did that.
"Sooo? Would you go with me?" Navia repeated the question and I panicked, what I was supposed to answer? Yes? NO! Maybe? Maybe I should ask Serge? He is good in internal fights with desires, but he is not HERE! Why can't that blue ass be where I need him?! He just shines his rings randomly in the night, say his problems and disappears until he would need something again!
"ehawaeh," I finally said. It wasn't the brightest thing I've ever said, I would even say that after such a long train of thoughts I expected more from myself than some random sounds. If I remembered how Cera said I sound it, I needed to sound more like 'eofealon' anyways, which made me feel even more stupid, not to mention the idiotic smile I had on my face since I was invited on the date by Cera. Maybe Navia lost already any interest into inviting me anywhere? But even if I was going through a real marathon in my thoughts, it didn't even pass a second as Navia asked me to go with her 'somewhere'. I also noticed how similar her invitation was to Cera's. To go to some interesting place, not mentioning a fact that I knew every interesting place around since I was a leafeon. I noticed both of them had a habit of saying ' I want to spend a few moments with you'.
But maybe she didn't want it at all and it was only my insane imagination telling me 'you have a chance, boy'. Maybe they really did just want to take me to some place because they thought that I never saw anything interesting in my life or that I was some bored plant pokemon and I would enjoy a place filled with other plants. It always made me angry when someone thought about me as some kind of plant. Plants were incredibly stupid and limited. Grow and absorb was all that they ever thought of, occasionally other things appeared like 'grow new leaves' or 'make a cone'. But what did that have in common with me? Was I growing? Creating new leaves, cones, fruits, anything? No! I was an eeveelution just like any other, not popular since I was the only leafeon, but always one of them. But there was still a jolteon before me who still waited another second for the answer and, according to how this type usually worked, she could be already irritated. But her facial expression showed no irritation, but rather a curiosity. She had raised ears.
Is she posing or does she always look so good?
But no matter how good she did look, Cera was what was making me, well, simply said, excited more. Even if an eventual relationship with the newly evolved jolteon had more sense since there was no traditional 'strong for strong, weak for weak' problems, I still wanted to go for the hardest one. I didn't want how to name it, maybe a green desire? Since umbreons had their own dark desire, then I had my green desire, my desire to try my connection with Cera and who knows, maybe build something with sense.
"I already have plans to meet with someone tonight," I said to the jolteon before me and I immediately noticed what I was afraid of. She didn't move at all but she looked as if she shrunk, she didn't look nearly as confident as she had before. Was she already feeling hurt or rejected? Maybe it wasn't just 'showing some places', and she really meant what I didn't want to her to mean. But I couldn't agree to it no matter how bad I would feel and now knowing how she felt I wouldn't enjoy any moment with Cera because I would remember what it had cost for me. What was wrong with this day? I was a walking failure, yet I had choices like this. Maybe it was because I felt like a failure and wanted to help others who felt the same?
"Okay I understand," Navia said putting her invitation aside. "Well, at least, I can wish you a nice evening then."
"Thanks," I said and walked away from her. Her wishes completely didn't make me feel positive about my evening meeting, but what I could do?! Every choice would be bad.
I didn't even move far from the spot where I was speaking with Navia when another familiar voice disturbed my thoughts.
"Hey, do you know Navia?" asked a familiar looking vaporeon who I really couldn't name right now. "I saw you two talking. Could you... help me a little? Since I saw her yesterday at the river, I can't stop thinking about her, could you, maybe, introduce?"
This was already too much for one day.
But maybe I should help him, maybe Navia still has a chance to have an enjoyable evening.
"Okay, I can help. She still should be nearby," I said making a turn but that vaporeon who couldn't swim didn't follow me. "Are you coming?"
"What? No, we can't just go to her!" he said and he sounded as if he was scared. Or nervous maybe?
"Why not? She was sparking yesterday but today she seemed to be safe," I was confused by his behaviour, seeing his flat ears... fins? He really looked as if he was scared. I guessed that because of type disadvantage.
"Sparks? No, it is not that, I got hit yesterday in the river, but no one fished me but... is she, ehm, is she aware that I even exist?" he asked sheepishly.
"I don't quite get what you mean," I informed him, turning to him once again. "You want me to introduce you two or not?"
"Yes, I want to, but could we do it in a different way?" he said starting speaking so quiet that I needed to move closer to still hear him.
"Should I bring her here?" I tried to guess what he wanted from me, and I started to feel that it won't be anything quick. "Whatever you want, I am helping you only until this evening, I am busy later."
"I want you to make her aware of me?" he said, but I still didn't get what he meant.
"So, I have to just say that there is some vaporeon, who doesn't swim. Is it what you want?" I tried to guess one more time. To my greater confusion, I noticed irritation on the water-type's face.
"It would be better if you could say that my name is Struga,"-Oh. so that was his name-" and don't mention that I can't swim. I-I will deal with that by myself."
"Will you learn how to swim?" If he wanted to deal with it he should work hard to learn swimming in just one day.
"No, I will just not bring it up," he contradicted. I didn't like this idea, and I still thought that just introducing them to each other would be a much easier and better way, but if Struga wanted his way then I guess I would just follow along.
"Okay, is it anything more what I should know about you, anything that can work to your advantage? Like your origins, family, some abilities or position in the pack?" I wasn't sure if this was really important, Navia didn't seem to be one of those who wanted to mate only with important male sin the pack, but maybe it would work in Struga's advantage later.
"Well, me I haven't done too much yet, but my father is the fourth elder," he said. I was surprised, being an elder was very high and hard to achieve a role in the pack. A number of elders were not always the same, but always there were at last seven of them, one of each type, but not every region had it own individual elder. I was living in the Middle, the eeveelution who ruled the Middle ruled our whole pack. Sogot was the current leader and first elder, but not only of the Middle but also of all flareons in the pack. The Middle was the most important region since it was where almost one hundred eeveelution lived, and the terrain here allowed every type to live here without any bother, maybe exception were glaceons, it was too hot for them here in the season of the sun. All of these regions like Middle, West, East, North and South were Sogot's idea who wanted to have everything in order; typical eeveelutions didn't used to be split into these groups, and of all this region thing was just names. But elder traditions were around much earlier than Sogot or even the leader before him, they had a purpose, to keep a pack from doing anything that could hurt one of the types. Like melting the ice with a flareon's flames in the mountains, it would make vaporeons happy for the extra water, but it would be bad for the glaceons. So there was always seven elders to keep all eight types in... -wait, seven elders but eight types? I had to have missed something.
"Hey, how many elders we currently have?" I asked Struga.
"Eleven? Yes, eleven, why do you ask?" he answered easily. If his father was one of the elders, then Struga probably knew everything, important or not, about our rulers.
"And how many type-elders?" I precise my question.
"Seven, I still don't know how this can help us get Navia's attention," he answered me once again, hitting the ground with his long tail. It was a sign of curiosity connected to worry, if he would only move his tail up and down it would be only curiosity and if he would hit the ground harder, it would be only worry or even fear. Even if I saw signs like these, I probably missed a lot of other ones but I would need to be vaporeon to understand him perfectly. These signs were out of control and everyone was doing it impulsively, the only way to learn them was to ask some other type for 'translation'. I was much better reading umbreons, where I needed to watch their rings shine, and espeons; in psychic types it was important to pay attention to the split ends of their tail and a lot of psychic stuff too, but all I could see was a tail movement. Funny that I didn't know any signs of leafeons, since every time I tried to focus on my instinctual moves I stopped doing them. All I learned was that it was something connected to my leaves fluttering and curling. I guess I needed to wait until I met another leafeon to learn them, or maybe I would just know them as soon as we met?
"There are seven type-elders, but-but there are eight types! Where is the eighth elder?" I asked, believing that his knowledge allowed him to answer me.
He was thinking for a while; he calculated something on his claws and it was something really big since he needed to use his claws from all four paws.
"Eh, I guess you are not a type then," he spoke finally.
"What you mean?"
"Leafeons don't have an elder, so they are not considered as another type," he tried to explain but it was making me even more confused.
"What do you mean? Am I not another type?" I asked.
"Look, I am not a specialist but do you know what you are? All that everyone knows is that some old vaporeon reminded herself about creatures known as leafeon once, but no one knows your weakness, abilities or type. Could we return to Navia please?" he spoke fastly and repeated his move with his tail but this time he hit the ground harder.
"You were there?!" I squealed as I heard him mentioned the night of my evolution.
"My father always brought me everywhere when something was happening in the pack, he expects me to replace him as elder some day so I was there. But please! I have talked enough of the elder's things," he said, and I decided to let it go. Cera for sure would know more and would be more helpful. Plus if I success into helping him to meet Navia I was sure that Struga will help me too.
"Okay, I am going to her and if you still don't want to go with me then wait here," I said, and as I didn't see that he wanted to go with me, I moved alone back to where I was talking with Navia. As I was walking, I started to think how to even start making her aware of Struga's excitement and not make it sound stupid or forced. Also, the fact that our talk didn't end so happily was making it harder.
Just do it, Zar, the evening will compensate every effort which you do today. Or I hope it will.
I didn't see Navia in the place where I saw her last time, why I even though that she would be still standing here, she probably had something better to do. But now I had to find her, looking for paw steps wasn't a good idea, there was a lot of eeveelutions steps here and I was completely oblivious to anything connected with tracking. Serge was good at it, just like any other umbreon, but he wouldn't be awake in the middle of the day to help. I wasn't sleeping last night because of him so I thought that I could use some of his help and wake him up for the moment. Tracking someone in the pack would be rather easy for him.
Feeling the calling of my mission, I went to umbreon's den, which wasn't that far away. Living in the centre has a lot of advantages but I thought that fact that everything was so close to each other was the most useful. Not that I had a long road to my former den, it was still one and the same clearing.
When I stood before Serge's den, I met another problem. The room I was in last night was just the first room of his den and it was already was so dark that I didn't see anything. But Serge was sleeping much deeper under ground so nothing could disturb him. I didn't know how deep underground dark-type tunnels were or what their configuration was either. I tried once or twice to reach Serge, but going in there alone never worked out, and I always got lost until said umbreon woke up and found me. Not that his den was so big, I was just so blind in the dark that I just needed to go in one dark room to have problems with finding an exit. Screeching back of my left ear with my left, back leg I decided that I wouldn't go in there. I wasn't sure when Serge would wake up and guide me back. And I just reminded that he was still awake in the morning so I would be late to Cera for sure.
Yelling also wouldn't work, I could yell straight in the ear of that umbreon and he would still be asleep. It made me wonder how his hearing worked since he heard much more than I did, but I never missed someone screaming to my ear. I shook my head in discomfort. I even felt a pain in my ears just thinking about that.
I looked around with the hope that I would see any willing to help umbreon but I didn't see any. I was on my own.
Where could a jolteon go?
Not to the river, that for sure. In the centre, I also didn't see her. Maybe she visited some nearby region? It wasn't that far away, I could check two of them before the evening, but to which one I should go? Maybe north and east? It was a more usual place for jolteons than the opposite direction. It was still possible that she went somewhere further since there is more than just middle and four regions around it.
There were a few well-known locations in each region. The Flame's Yards, far at the south where the desert had it beginnings, but because of the temperature there, it was a place only for flareons. Currently, ten maybe eleven flareons lived around. The same with Thunder Crest, farther on the north, populated by jolteons. Thunder Crest actually had no dens around or few jolteons who would live there for long, as it wasn't in their nature to stay in one place for too long. But jolteons from time to time were going there to touch these weird black stones which were pending from the ground. These stones had electrical energy inside, and when there was a storm in the sky, some lighting would always hit these stones, attracted to their energy. All that I knew about it was that I should never ever touch these stones. But jolteons were doing it very willingly and when some of them touched them, they became extremely hyper and "charged", and usually irritating. I did have to admit that some of their lighting bolts sporadically sent into the sky were really impressive, though.
The furthest place where evolutions lived was far in the mountains which isolated us from the world which Serge called the Human's World. On the White Slope, it's part of the mountain where there is always snow, and there in the frozen land lived glaceons. They waited for winter, so they could come back to the main regions and bring their stories with them. White Slope was the only part of the pack which is connected to the rest of world, a place where Glaceons would meeting other species of pokemon and later, in the winter when all other eons were hidden in the warm dens while glaceons took their watch of the pack, they would tell us what weird things they saw. My friend and Serge's mate, Lissandre, she was usually the one who told us what she saw. She evolved one winter later than Serge and just as she returned from her first session of the sun which she spent on White Slope, she was telling how she saw creature walking just on two legs, almost without ears and paws able to grab things. I was still an eevee then, quite young, so I would lie if I said that I wasn't scared as fuck. But wait, if I try to imagine this, then, well, I still am scared. Two-legged monsters, it almost like levitating.
The mountains were two days of walking from the middle, but Glaceons, when it was cold and snowing, could make it in one day. I didn't know how, but they just could.
I caught myself staring at some random tree as I was lost in my thoughts. I also noticed a few eeveelutions and maybe two eevees staring at me weirdly, or maybe was it curiosity? Maybe part-plant eeveelutions which looked at trees seemed to be interesting to others?
Not wanting to be observed, I walked out of their view going to the south region as I hoped that I would find Navia there. In order to get there, I needed to pass the river but as I approached it I saw an espeon at the river bank. The espeon was old, his poor fur wasn't able to cover wrinkles on his backsides and head. He was as slim as a rake, I would almost say that he looked as if he should have died a few seasons ago and he was now only waiting for the end. But maybe with his psychic powers, he would be able to help me in my search.
After a bit of hesitation, I approached him.
"Hello, can I ask you for something?" I said acting friendly and kindly. "If I didn't disturb you obviously."
The espeon jerked and turn his head to me; his short fur on his head had already lost it lavender colour and just as if was cleared by rain, was mostly white.
"Ask then, maybe old Vilastraadat will be helpful for someone today," the espeon answered and it took me a moment to understand that he said about himself in the third person.
That name, though.
Maybe his psychic connection and hearing others mind harmed his own. If that could be true, he couldn't help me to find Navia but I decided to ask anyway. I hope that Struga that in someday you return all this favour which I am doing for him.
"I am looking for a jolteon, she evolved yesterday, she has a little faded yellow colour of her fur and blue eyes. Have you seen her... physically or mentally?" I asked waving a paw in the air trying to show how Navia looked.
"Are you looking for your lover?" he asked and chortled. "I see, your heart is calling for two, are you sure of your choice young eon?"
"What? No, I am not looking for Navia because I chose her!" I denied.
"Males don't remember the colour of female's eyes but the size of her butt until he feels something more than just friendship. But alright then, why you are looking for her? You are already are involved in this world's scheme so why you won't follow the path before you? Will you make a few steps ahead just to turn back and try another path?"
"Pardon? World's scheme? Paths? I am just looking for a friend," I tried to specify what I want but it seemed that Vilastraadat wasn't listening to me at all.
"Everyone of us is involved in repetitive schemes, all that change is just a 'skin'. What matters? The life of an individual? What is a matter of your life? You were brought to this world by your parents to do exactly the same thing they were doing, to feel thirst, hunger and pain, to have desires and unbelievable wishes. To repeat mistakes of earlier generations and to bring new generations who will do exactly the same. Do you want to break the scheme? You can't, no one can. All that you can do is a change of 'skin', the way how things look like, but in a core, it still is the same thing. Look at our pack today, we have regions, elders, a working society. What was different in the past? I will say to you. Nothing. All of that which was changed was only a 'skin'. Leaders can change but the authority would stay the same, the pack can change but it is still for the same purpose, to survive. All of this is just a repetitive scheme. But is it the wrong thing? No. You or I won't notice it, in a thousand or more years a 'skin' can change to something really important. Skin is the world around us and the world which we are changing. By building a den, by digging a hole or just by leaving a shit somewhere in the forest. You will realise it when your life fades away and see how weak the things you left behind are."
"...Ok," was all that I managed to say. I didn't know what he was talking about at all, but he was just an old psychic type, it could be everything in his head. "I think I will be going then," I said and used a shallow area to get through the river. When I was in the middle of the river, I heard espeon again.
"Your will is your greatest strength and your only chain; I wish you luck, you need this. Don't disappoint me. It would be very sad."
Fuck him, the South region was just a few steps from here, this espeon was really crazy. But it motivated me to move faster. When I stood at the opposite bank, I felt the espeon's eyes on my back but when I looked back, he just smiled at me and I quickly looked away from him.
"Crazy espeon," I mumbled and went into the forest. Dens in the south region weren't like in the middle, grouped in one clearing.
There were just randomly placed between trees; it took me a while when I saw the first eeveelution here. It was a female sylveon, I asked her for the way to the centre of this place and she happily answered me. After another few steps, I was in the crowd of eeveelutions. Not as crowded as in the Middle but still some. Everyone here was moving fast, almost in a run. Parents were carrying young eevees in their muzzles, older eevees wouldn't allow anyone to carry them so they were moving through the crowd screaming insults when someone stepped or almost stepped on them, and I was jostled sporadically.
"Hey, what is happening here?!" I asked loudly, not addressing my question to anyone certain in the crowd of chaos.
"Don't you know anything? The storm is coming and this one is huge, Vilastraadat, the elder of all espeons just said it telepathically to everyone in this morning, did you forget?" some random flareon answered me but at the same time, a powerful wind like a wall of air hit me from the side taking away every leaf and dust from the ground. I needed to make a wider stance to keep balance, but luckily my own leaves stayed in place. The flareon wasn't waiting for my response and ran, probably to his den.
Did I really forget about the storm? Wait, I didn't get any message!
In the wave of panic, I kept stepping from paw to paw, not sure what I should do. Then I reminded myself that there was this old espeon on the river bank and he wouldn't manage to get to any den before the storm would arrive. I turned to where I came from and joined everyone around in this chaotic dance. I started running.
Going opposite the earlier direction, I could see a coal-black sky coming out, large and black like a night without stars, with clouds covering most of the sky. Running through the forest full of roots and low branches wasn't an easy task, but to my own surprise, I didn't even stumble in this thicket. It became very dark when I was running in the storm direction and I felt shivers when first thunders came to my ears. There were so many of them, I couldn't even recognise when it was the end of one and the start of another, it was just one loud thunder. When I came to the river, it was already raining and it was too dark to see the opposite bank or it may have been just my blindness in the dark. Without a second thought, I jumped into the river, wanting to be at least in the middle before apogee.
But instead of hitting algae at the bottom of the river I sank completely in the river.
I immediately choked on a mouthful of water and the river's flow pushed took me with it. I was trying to swim instinctively but it was almost impossible in swelling water.
For a moment, I could take a breath, sharp and short. It was raining so heavily that there wasn't much difference if I was underwater or above. I kept trying to swim but I was only swirling with all these waves around. It wasn't long before my limbs become tired and pliable to the waves. My moves became weaker and slower until I almost stopped moving entirely. I needed to fight, but I was too weak, I was trying to force myself to the bigger effort but I couldn't fight a river. I couldn't even keep myself above the water, I had to fight, I need to live, I want to survive!
