Fen hadn't realised at first, but the route Faoz had drawn for them took them back up to Mt. Horizon, effectively a reverse of the way they'd travelled into Sanguin Town. Even with their natural climbing abilities the route up was long and tiring, taking them deep into the evening. He didn't complain when Ryu suggested camping overnight in a rock before moving into Cheri Forest tomorrow. It gave him another chance to admire the view of the grasslands below that the mountain was presumably named after. It was still as breathtaking as he'd remembered it six days ago, albeit slightly diminished by the dim light they were in.

Past the forest they would arrive at Ractyl's Belt, which Faoz had briefly mentioned. Ryu explained that it was a clump of smaller mountain peaks that a lot of mountain-dwelling Pokémon made their habitats in. Hearing him speak with obvious knowledge of the area, a thought occurred to Fen.

"Ryu, does this route take us past where your family lives?" he asked as they sat inside a rock. The ones here were comfortably more spacious than what they'd had to make do with near Hidden Wood.

Ryu seemed to tense up at the question, a half-eaten apple stopping en-route to his mouth. "Yeah… kind of."

His uncharacteristic hesitance surprised Fen. "Are you… planning to visit them?" he prompted when Ryu didn't say anything more.

Ryu looked at him for a moment. "I'll explain when we get there," he said brusquely. "We've got the whole forest to travel first, which'll be at least two days."

Explain what? Fen frowned, unsure why Ryu was so keen to brush the subject under the carpet. Something seems to be bothering him… something to do with his family? I don't remember him mentioning anything bad about them… he said he left home to explore more of the world, and we're certainly doing that now. I thought he'd be pleased to have the chance to see them again; at least that's what I'd think if I…-

The thought of family unexpectedly struck an emotional chord within him, making his chest ache with longing. If I had the chance to see my family… if I even have one now…

He shook his head. No. It's too easy to think about everything I don't know. I've managed so far, and if we're going to achieve anything out here, I can't let myself get dragged down by my own thoughts. This wasn't even about me!

Sensing something, he glanced up to find Ryu looking concernedly at him, wordlessly asking "what's up?" It wasn't the first time he'd noticed Ryu instantly pick up how he was feeling. His instincts, or whatever it is, really are sharp, Fen noted. But… what do I say to him?

"Sometimes I can't help but dwell on what might've happened to me," he said. "Despite me knowing that it's not worth the effort. Feeling bad about it won't help with anything. It's just… always in the back of my mind."

Ryu nodded. "I understand."

Though he appreciated Ryu's empathy, Fen didn't want to leave them on such a sombre note. "Uh… you know these items we have?" he asked, as it was a genuine enquiry he wanted to make.

"Uh-huh?" Ryu said eagerly, the question alone making him brighten up.

"Did Scout ever mention what a leppa berry did? I can't remember…"

"Oh, I've used them once or twice. They're a bit like… so for me, if I use a force palm a lot, after a while the energy I'm using for it decreases until I need either a rest or to use a different technique. It's a bit like being tired, but in a more specific way? A leppa's a bit like an oran in that it heals you, but only for that particular technique."

"So I could use it after breathing a lot of fire?"

"Yeah! You'd find it more useful than me I think, since you don't know as many different techniques. I wouldn't buy 'em normally, but y'know how Scout was giving stuff away, I wasn't gonna turn it down."

"Mm." Another idea entered his thoughts. "With the items in general… I think we should use them sparingly. We don't know how long this journey will be, and I don't want us to waste a good berry or seed too early, if that makes sense."

Ryu considered this momentarily. "Alright," he shrugged, closing any debate. "I was doing some thinking too. D'you remember what Cheri Forest was like when we were here before? Filled with loads of Bugs and Grasses?"

Fen nodded. "Well…," Ryu went on, "I thought you might appreciate some fighting practice! See, I was easy on you last time, since you barely knew how to contract your own claws-"

"Hey, I knew that!" Fen retorted.

Ryu chuckled. "Anyway, I think you should be trying to fight as much as possible, bring your skills up, y'know? While we've still got the chance. We're… not really on the same level in that regard."

"Nice way of putting it," Fen murmured jokingly. "But you're right. I don't want to have to hang onto your coattails this whole journey."

"Hang onto what?" Ryu asked, suddenly bemused.

"Oh, uh… human expression. Doesn't matter. I mean that I don't want to be relying on you, or Savi, in combat like I have been. And like you say, last time there were plenty of wilds here to fight, and I have a type advantage on most of them, so it should be the perfect place to train…"

"Spoken like a true 'mon," Ryu grinned.


Having packed everything the previous day, little time was wasted preparing before beginning the hike through Cheri Forest. The morning light was soon dimmed by the towering, occasionally fruit bearing trees that came to surround them.

Since their starting point was at the forest's highest altitude, the first couple of hours were a relaxed downhill cruise for their feet. The narrow, roughly carved path they walked steered mostly clear of plant life, with occasional patches of brambles or ferns that needed pushing through, but it was hardly possible to see in any other directions due to the glut of plants filling every cavity. It was little wonder the place was crawling with Pokémon.

On Fen's first trip in the forest he'd been too preoccupied with figuring out his own body, amongst many other things, to take much notice of the scenery. Now, even though he supposed he should have some appreciation for the richness of greenery, it just didn't resonate with him. It made the forest feel overly cramped and confined, giving him no desire to remain any longer than they needed to. He guessed his body didn't find it mountainous enough. Ryu must have shared his opinion, judging by the pace of his walking whenever they weren't busy with wilds.

The weather remained clear and sunny, intensely so. They were under the shadows of trees most of the time, but Fen could feel the fierce heat whenever they weren't. He was happy for it though – he never felt too hot in this body, and the sunlight seemed to resonate with his fire-powers in a way he couldn't easily explain. He definitely found it easier to breathe fire than in previous days.

Wild Bug and Grass Pokémon could lurch out from the long grass around them, or drop from nearby trees, or burst out of the ground itself. Fen was pleased to find that he could out-speed the opposing species on almost all occasions. His own body was naturally athletic and agile, well suited to fast movement, in contrast to the feebly slow legs the likes of Seedot or Shroomish possessed, or in the cases of Bugs like Weedle or Caterpie, no legs at all. However, though he was making progress with fire-breathing, he still felt the power of his bursts were lacking. He had seen other Fires produce torrents of flames at a moment's notice, yet his own continued to present itself in small, wisp-like pellets. He didn't know enough about himself to know what he was doing wrong, working mostly off the crash-course Cyan had given him. Ryu had even less of an understanding about how Fire Pokémon worked, though he at least gave Fen some non-Fire related tips as the battles went on.

A few fallen trees still remained from the storm that had hit on their first visit. While they were an inconvenience during the day, Ryu eventually scouted one trunk propped up against a rock that he speculated might be thick enough for them to sleep under, protecting against any adverse weather that they were cautious of. It was somewhat hidden under long grass, about 50 yards from their path, and Ryu had walked half the distance when a slight rustling ahead made both of them freeze.

It sounded like something munching… on plants or grass, Fen assumed. Being the slightly taller of the pair, Ryu craned his neck to try and get a good look at the source, and swiftly ducked a moment later.

"It's seen us," he murmured. "A'you ready Fen?"

"Ready for-" he didn't have time to ask what, or even who the it in question was, as he saw a greenish, two-legged creature careering towards them, its head lowered to reveal a mushroom-like dome on top of it. It dove straight towards Fen headfirst, moving quicker than he would've expected, but he threw himself to the left in time, rolling over so it was easier to jump back up.

On his opposite side he heard Ryu call out: "Breloom are fast Fen, so don't mess about!"

Like I was about to, he thought irritably. But Ryu was right in his cautioning; upon missing its target, instead of momentum taking the Breloom several feet forwards, it dug one of its clawed feet into the ground and swiftly spun to face him again.

His mind raced to strategize in such little time. So… if Breloom are Grass, it'll probably try and hit me with another neutral attack like that headbutt? If it does then I should be able to dodge it again, since I can't see it having any arms…

His heart duly sunk when two short, bulky limbs emerged from the Breloom's waist, previously concealed by the frills just below its neck. With the creature possessing rangier legs than his own, he barely had enough time to spit some fire as it approached. That at least caused the Breloom to recoil as it cried a "KAWW" in pain. Quickly though, it shook itself and hurled an arm towards him. He ducked under the fist, but its other arm followed it up and crunched into his chest, the impact knocking him into a tree a few feet away. The collision hurt less than the attack.

He gasped for a second to regain his breath, slumped against the tree trunk. Jeez, that thing can really punch. Fast, too. A small distance now stood between him and the Breloom, but his opponent didn't let up, charging towards him for another flurry of attacks. Not wanting to blind himself by diving into long grass, Fen looked up. He was pleased to see what he did. There was a branch, hanging low enough for him to reach with a jump, but high enough that the Breloom wouldn't be able to touch him with its fists.

He leaped up just as the Breloom swung again, scrambling his body around the branch. The miss meant that its fist partly collided with the tree itself, which rocked with the impact but thankfully stood strong. The Breloom's eyes darted around the floor in search of him, totally oblivious. Heh, stupid wild, he thought gleefully.

He scurried along the branch until he was far enough to face the Breloom's back; then he breathed in and dropped, exhaling out fire as he fell. It was a close range hit, enough to make his foe shriek again, then whip its tail around as it realised where he was. He leapt backwards to dodge but was caught by the end of its tail, where a round fruit seemed to be growing. One such plant broke as it hit his face, leaving a thick, purple substance on him. He spat viciously as he tried to get the sludge out of his mouth. Whatever it was, it tasted vile.

He dashed to another tree in the packed area of woodland, looking to repeat the same strategy as before. The Breloom followed his trail but knew the trick this time, its gaze following Fen into the branches. It opened its mouth and began shooting a barrage of apple-sized seeds at him, which he was helpless to avoid in his perched position. They exploded upon impact, making him yelp in further surprise.

Despite the shock, the seeds didn't hurt as much as he'd feared. He had enough energy to raise his lower body, performing a makeshift handstand on a branch to avoid one seed. Instead the seed exploded on his raised branch, which swayed briefly before snapping off its roots. He could only fall with it.

With no better ideas, he opened his mouth to breathe more embers, but could only manage it briefly before landing knocked the fire out of him. The Breloom shook itself free of his feeble attempt, raised its arm in attack… then Ryu burst out of the shadows. Though it stood twice his height, he slammed into the Breloom with enough force to knock it flying, akin to how the Grass's punch had battered Fen. It looked wildly at Ryu for a second before scampering away, seemingly deciding to forage for food elsewhere.

That was barely an afterthought to Fen. The moment he had landed, his vision had spun and he became gripped with nausea, making him sway unsteadily. Ryu looked over cheerfully, but his face immediately became concerned as he saw Fen's condition.

"Fen?" he asked nervously. "What's up? Are you confused?"

"No…" Fen murmured. He could still see and hear somewhat clearly, so he knew that wasn't the cause. "I feel… really ill… I don't know why…"

"Uh…" Ryu examined him from where he stood. "Maybe it's poison?"

Fen wasn't able to respond. His vision flicked for a moment, then turned black. He felt himself lose balance, topple forwards, then he surrendered consciousness entirely.


He couldn't tell how long he had been out when he sensed a spiny, thin object brushing against his left cheek. Still feeling woozy, he opened his eyes and found his back propped up against a rock. It was a plant leaf being applied to his face, which Ryu carefully held in one arm.

"Oh, you're back," Ryu said flatly upon seeing him. The situation reminded Fen of how they'd first met in the same forest.

"I… don't like fainting." Fen's words were hoarse, and he winced as he ran his tongue over his parched mouth. His whole body felt limp.

"You've been unlucky," Ryu sighed. "I didn't know those things on the Breloom's tail were some kinda toxic fruits. Pretty sneaky tactic."

Fen nodded, realising from Ryu's description what had happened. So this fever is what it's like to be poisoned. After paralysis and confusion, I'd make this my least favourite ailment so far... "How long was I asleep?"

"Not long," Ryu answered. "I stuck you in the shelter here then looked around for a couple of leaves to clean off your poison with. It's nearly done, but uh…" He paused. "I'm gonna need to douse your face in water for a second."

"Why?" Fen asked. Ryu's foreboding manner plus his own recently acquired attitude to water made him suspect this experience wouldn't be pleasant.

Ryu gave him an irritated look as if he was unaware of an obvious fact. He quickly caught himself. "Poison affects you even when it's just on the skin," he explained. "You recover naturally from it, but it'll be quicker this way."

Once Fen gave him the go-ahead, Ryu took his water flask, screwed off the top, then poured a small amount onto the site of the poisoning. The poison's water exposure and the water itself both stung Fen, but he tried not to recoil as Ryu quickly took another clean leaf, scrubbed his cheek a bit, then turned the leaf over and wiped off the excess water with its dry side.

He passed Fen a firm, bright green berry. "This'll make you feel better, too."

Fen thanked him and took a bite without hesitation. He found the unknown fruit remarkably dull and tasteless, though that might've just been the poison dulling his senses. Once he'd taken a couple of chunks out of it, he sat back and allowed whatever healing processes were happening in his body to take over. He saw they were indeed under the tree shelter Ryu had wandered towards before the Breloom had interrupted them. He was sitting against the rock that the thick trunk had fallen against, casting a shadow over them. Hardly a perfect shelter, but he supposed it was good enough for one night.

After only a few minutes, his grogginess began to subside as he started to feel more like his energetic, Pokémon-self. The speed of healing still surprised him, despite Pokémon constantly subverting his recovery expectations. "That berry works wonders," he remarked to Ryu. He glanced at the two-thirds-eaten fruit beside him. "What kind of…"

Ryu looked quizzically at him as he trailed off. "Hm?"

"Is this… did you give me a lum berry?"

"Yeah?" Ryu shrugged. "Why'd you sound so surprised? That's the one that heals ailments, 'mon."

"But… they're valuable! Remember what I said yesterday about conserving items? We're only a day in and now there's only one of these left."

Ryu puffed out his cheeks. "Sorry that I didn't want to leave a poisoned, unconscious 'mon out in the middle of the forest on his own for an indeterminate amount of time, while I search for pecha berries that might not even be growing within a square Wailord of here. Mew, I'm tryna help you…"

Fen groaned inwardly at the response, equally as frustrated as Ryu. It seemed their disagreements would never cease, no matter how long they travelled together. "Look, I'm really thankful for your help. It's just that I'm worried about the size of the task ahead, and the more items we use the harder it'll be."

Ryu huffed. "You know what? If it makes you feel better, I can look for some pecha berries now before it gets dark. We need food anyway."

"Thank you," Fen said sincerely, ignoring the sarcasm in Ryu's response. He didn't feel like arguing. "Any way I can help in the meantime?"

"Fill up our water," Ryu said without hesitation. He tossed their almost dry flask over to him, then gestured left with his arm. "I'm sure the river's this way through the long grass. There aren't so many trees growing around the stream, so we should probably split up for a while to do both our jobs."

He was about to turn away, then paused. He spoke softer. "Fen… you know that you don't always have to fight, yeah? I wouldn't ever want to run away from a battle, but it is an option. If you wanted to conserve items or anything."

Fen remembered employing a 'get away from here' tactic just two days ago with Savi, having to leg it from the colony of Zubat they'd disturbed. He knew that with his body, he certainly could run. But a part of him worried that while he might flee now, there would surely be occasions in the future where the only path ahead was blocked by a wild. It wasn't a strategy he was keen to perfect. Still, he appreciated the advice from Ryu. "I'll keep it in mind," he said. Ryu simply nodded and started walking away.

He seems a bit subdued, Fen observed. Could just be tiredness. He does carry the bag around all day, which must weigh a ton with a dozen berries and seeds, other food and water, the map and compass, and then the skin of some Pokémon for when it rains. I've never seen him complain about it, though... I guess he likes wearing it?

His path to the river went undisturbed, breaking out into a small clearing as he got closer. He examined Ryu's flask properly for the first time. Despite only being a water container, it had clearly been crafted with care; the cylindrical shape had no irregularities, and little bumps in the top and lid allowed the latter to be screwed on with total precision. It wasn't made of plastic or metal, nor any other material Fen would have expected. The hardness and density of the dull, grey material suggested it had to be rock. Which makes sense if Ryu's family live in the mountains. He smiled to himself. Looks like they have a lot of time on their hands.

He found himself gazing at his own reflection in the water, still quite unused to how he looked; either the Pokémon on Kyunn didn't know how to craft mirrors, or he hadn't happened to pass any… or they just didn't see the need for them. There were still features of his appearance that irked him – the ridiculous proportions of his head and ears to the rest of his body; his strange orange head fluff that would continually stick up despite his efforts to flatten it; plus the general sense of impunity he felt at being, by his rough estimation, about two feet tall.

And yet, these drawbacks could be overlooked. He was small, yes, but the extremely low centre of gravity gave him greater agility and balance than any human he could imagine. He had quickly gotten used to his new body proportions, too. And he wasn't taking for granted the fact that he possessed two sets of limbs and five fingers on each hand – though sadly only three toes. When he thought about some of the species' that he could have been turned into instead of a Chimchar: Bugs that had to slither across the ground, Waters that could only survive beneath the surface, or anything that didn't walk like he was used to doing… he almost wanted to count himself lucky. It could have been far worse.

Once the flask was refilled and secured he moved his legs to stand up, but felt his right suddenly jerked back, making the flask drop from his hands. He whipped his head around then yelped as he found the source of the grip, almost falling backwards in shock.

A four-legged Pokémon, with primarily slate-grey coloured fur and intense turquoise eyes, was standing in front of him. He'd only seen her once before, but the image was burned into his mind. The one who'd ambushed him in Sanguin Town, disguising herself as Savi. The one who'd asked him how he knew about humans. What was she doing here?!

"Hello again, Fire," she said, smiling wickedly.

Fen was already baffled at how she had found him in the depths of a random forest, yet her opening words puzzled him even more. She seemed more assured than when she'd attacked him in the town.

"That's… not how you greeted me the first time," he said nervously, his body awkwardly half-turned in her direction while his leg was held.

She shrugged. "I deduced after our last encounter that you're far weaker than me, so I didn't see the point in pinning you down like that again. Though seeing where we are now, I'd call this an equivalent situation, wouldn't you?"

A fresh injection of panic shot through Fen as he realised what she meant. He was pinned against the bank of a river deeper than himself. He assumed her grip to be too strong for him to pull away from, but if he did try attacking this Pokémon, or even attempt fleeing, it would only take a push from her to send him underwater. Remembering what Cyan had said about the damage full-body exposure to water could do, added to his own experiences of the element… it terrified him. He didn't have Ryu's protection, nor any of the items they carried, and a call for help would surely meet him with the same fate as those previous options.

"H-How did you find me?" he asked.

"I've been following you and your Fighter partner since I saw you leaving that town yesterday," she stated.

Fen's head was bursting with questions. "I don't… why didn't we notice you then?! And how were you just inside Sanguin Town? Taluk was looking for you after you were caught attacking me last time!"

She rolled her eyes. "I can answer both those questions easily. I created an illusion to disguise myself. That's also why the Electric never caught me in the first place."

Fen stared at her wide-eyed. "That's… what you did that time before, when you looked like Savi…? You disguised yourself as a different Pokémon? I've never heard of anything like that…"

"It's irrelevant detail," she snapped, suddenly impatient. "I followed you because I still have unanswered questions. You said you don't have any memories, but you know what humans are, which isn't normal of the 'mon around here. No humans live here, do they?"

Fen was momentarily thrown by the unexpected question. "No…?"

"So how do you know them?"

The question Fen had dreaded. This Pokémon already knew about his memories, so he couldn't see any alternative other than revealing the rest of his identity. He had no idea how she'd respond, but hopefully telling her would lead her to reveal who she was, or at the very least make her stop threatening him. He still harboured hopes that she might be able to help him in some way… though another part of him told him to stop being so naive.

"Once I tell you… you answer the same question for me," he proposed.

The Pokémon's scowl deepened. "I'll decide that once I hear your answer."

Huh. Bargaining was always going to be tricky in this situation. "Look… you have to believe what I tell you is true," he pleaded with her. "No matter how strange it might sound."

She looked at him oddly. "Fine. Just say your piece, Fire."

Fen gulped. Here goes… "You're right - I did wake up some time ago, with practically no memories of my previous life, other than my name. Despite that, I still know concepts of things that I'd presumably learned before. One of those things, one of the only things I can be sure about myself, is that, before I was this," he gestured to his body, "I was a human. Somehow… I've been turned into a Chimchar."

She stared at him for a few moments, eyes quivering in disbelief. Her grip on his leg tightened, making him wince. "That's impossible!" she spat.

"I know!" Fen said, increasingly anxious. His neck ached with the strain of being turned for so long. "I really wish I knew how, and I ask myself that question every day! The fact is that I'm here now, and I have no doubt that I was a human. That's all I can tell you."

She considered this, then suddenly lurched her body forwards at Fen, putting her snout right against his face, making him feel the heat of her breathing. He was still held down, and hardly in a position to back away. "If you're so sure, then I suppose you're just as big a scum as the rest of those two-legged mutts, huh?"

"What?" he yelped. "What do you-"

"You wanted to know why I'm interested in you?" she asked, teeth bared at him. "Well, let me tell you… when I was a child I was captured, beaten, taken away from my home, my family… I lost everything dear to me. Can you guess who was responsible?"

Just then, Fen saw a movement in the corner of his vision. It was only faint at first, but it grew bigger by the millisecond. He recognised the figure immediately.

He'd never heard Ryu voice his own cry before. Such was his calmness and efficiency in battle situations, Fen supposed he'd never needed to use it, or merely chose not to. No semblance of calm emanated from him now as he howled at the grey Pokemon in furious barks. His paws were already raised, eyes blazing with anger as he sprinted towards them. No words were required to grasp his intention.

The grey Pokémon's ears twitched in response, but she didn't shift an inch, remaining intensely focused on Fen. "Can you guess?!" she asked again, words dripping with malice.

"Please…" Fen gasped at her, heart pounding at his impending danger. "I'm on your side… I'm not-"

She spat at his feet. "It was you human bastards!"

She shoved him with the paw holding his leg, and while he scrambled to regain his balance, she loosed a cry as she swung her head into his ribs. The impact threw Fen off his feet, breath knocked out as he fell helplessly towards the water. There was a brief moment when his mind realised what it was faced with, bringing an involuntary scream out of him. Then he hit the surface.

Freezing liquid crashed over his mouth, instantly soaking his fur. The shock of so much exposure at once overwhelmed him. The stabbing pain he'd known from rainwater was magnified a thousand times. His flaming tail especially burned with agony like never before, feeling as if it would shatter into a million fragments. Any conscious thought was masked by pain. He thrashed around, barely in control of himself, just looking for something that would save him. With the water restricting his movement and rapidly draining his energy, those attempts were quickly fading.

The next moments happened in a blur. First there were a couple of muffled splashes nearby, then a pair of arms took hold of his waist firmly, ignoring his continued flailing of limbs. The body swiftly pulled him through the water, and he felt his right side bump against a hard surface. The figure holding him pulled itself up to the bank first, and with an almighty grunt that Fen could make out even in his pain, he too was lifted onto the grass.

The first thing he did was gasp for air, spewing out liquid from his mouth. Simply breathing something other than water was a relief. Then shook his head with all the energy he could muster in an attempt to dry himself.

The sudden return to land was almost as much of a shock as the water. For the first time Fen could remember, he truly felt cold. He was shivering uncontrollably, continually clenching-then-unclenching his fingers and toes in an attempt to force out the chilling numbness that had taken over them. The sensations felt so alien, so wrong for him to be experiencing that they frightened him. He hesitantly reached out with a hand to feel his tail flame. It was lit, only weakly, but knowing that comforted him a little.

Once his lungs were functional, he began to pick up the rest of his senses, and he realised he was lying flat on his stomach. Hearing noises from nearby he lifted his head up… then almost stopped breathing again.

Ryu and the grey Pokémon, both dripping with river water, were fighting each other.


Ryu had been seconds too late.

He'd returned to the shelter where he and Fen had split up, finding himself alone. His quest for food had eventually been successful, but it had taken more effort than he'd expected, especially in finding pecha berries. He finally came across a couple that had fallen from a tree, and though they were bruised and slightly muddied by the ground, he figured they would be good enough.

Since Fen's task seemed unavoidably simple by comparison, Ryu didn't wait long for him before jogging over towards the river. Once he started hearing Fen's faint voice ahead, that jog broke into a run, and when he finally saw him, pinned against the bank with the Dark 'mon that had hurt him in Sanguin Town, it became a mad sprint.

On reflection, he was surprised that merely the sight of Fen being threatened by this 'mon he'd never met produced such a strong reaction in him, but at that moment Ryu's only thought was to protect him. At least that was until the Dark had kicked Fen off the edge of the bank… after that he just wanted to hurt her.

She turned her head and shifted herself as if about to dodge his incoming tackle, but then Ryu did something he hadn't considered before. In mid-sprint, he took a shorter step with his leading foot, using it as a springboard to throw his body forwards. The burst of pace was what he did when using quick attacks, but he'd never practiced it at such high speed. It was faster than he'd ever moved before, too fast for the Dark to react to. He crashed full-bodied into her, the force sending them both flying into the river along with Fen.

That turned out to be a good thing. Ryu had swam a few times before, reaching what he knew to be a competent level, though he'd never considered how he might use that skill to pull out a sinking Fire 'mon. The Chimchar's flailing limbs were impossible to miss, and the river confined enough to only require a few quick strokes to reach him, then some slightly more awkward ones to drag them both back to the surface. Even for a Fighter like him, hauling Fen out of the water had Ryu reach deep into his reserves of strength.

It was to his relief that Fen was breathing – though it was more like gasping – and that he looked unhurt. With him safe, Ryu's attention turned back to the Dark. She too had dragged herself from the river, standing about 10 feet from him now, her scruffy fur dripping with residue. She shook herself furiously, eyes trained on Ryu the whole time. In the dim light of the evening, her greyness camouflaged her well.

Ryu was still seething for how brutal she had been to Fen. Unable to contain his anger, he screamed, "Who the fuck are you? What's your problem with Fen? Do you want to drown him?!"

The Dark scowled back at him. "You don't know who he is," she replied.

Ryu barely considered what the cryptic message might mean. "I know that he's my friend," he said defiantly. She gave a little smirk at that, which angered him even more. "And I know that you'd better explain yourself, you fuckin' feral!"

The Dark had looked composed up to now, but upon hearing his insult she leant forwards and growled angrily, bearing two fangs from her upper jaw. She moved towards him until the two of them were within arms-length, then with a flex of her paw extended her claws, gaining a shadowy aura on the tips of them.

She suddenly lashed out with one, but it was designed to fall just in front of Ryu, missing his face. Reading her feint, he ducked under her intended follow-up scratch before slamming his palm into the black knot of fur just below her head. She let out a squeal of surprise as she rolled over.

She thought I would flinch at her swipe! Ryu thought smugly. Stupid Dark should've known that that's the one thing our species can't do.

Now that the Dark was weakened he was eager to finish her off. As she scrambled back up, he dashed forwards and threw a right hook, only to almost fall over when his arm overextended across his body. No impact was made, only a wisp of greyness where his target should have been.

I… what? I missed? Where… Darting his eyes around, he saw her standing just a step backwards from him, unharmed. He was bewildered as to how she'd moved so quickly, but put it down to mere good luck, or a slight mistake of aim on his part. He stepped forwards and tried again with his left fist, then kicked upwards with his opposite leg. Neither attack inflicted a scratch on the Dark, and she again appeared a step backwards. Even more confusingly, she hadn't made any offensive move of her own since the first attack. She was stony faced, her emotions impossible to read.

Ryu exhaled irritably. Why's she so timid all of a sudden? Is she really too scared to attack again? Fine, if that's how you're gonna be… you can't avoid this forever!

To try and catch her off-guard he sprung off his standing leg to hit her with an unavoidable quick attack, though she still managed to escape with only a glancing blow. Once behind her he threw any conservatism out of the window, punching and kicking as fast as his body would allow. There was only a grey blur in his vision, the Dark continuing to swerve his attacks at a prodigious speed. One leg eventually made a solid whack on her side, which drew another squeal before she jumped backwards. Her lack of a response yet again made Ryu's frustration grow.

The Dark shuffled back until several feet separated them both. Then without explanation, she started walking in a circle around him, taking very precise, practiced sidesteps. Ryu was confused at what her plan was, but he was glad to be given a momentary breather, feeling the strain that his own intensity of attacking had caused him. As she continued her strange walk, he grew impatient and readied himself to strike again, to irrevocably end whatever strange resistance this was. Yet once he tried to focus on her, something odd happened to his vision.

His image of the Dark seemed to be blurring, as if there were multiple copies of her moving at once, each very close to one another. He blinked, unable to comprehend the illusion, but the effect only got worse the longer he tried to locate the real Dark. Quickly there became an army of identical, grey-red tinted 'mon circling him, within which the Dark could be hidden anywhere.

What trickery is this? he thought, starting to panic. He continuously scanned his vision around the circle, looking for any clues that would give the Dark away, but it was a fruitless search, every copy moving as one. Eventually he heard a snarl from behind him. The illusory circle vanished as he whirled his head around to the direction of sound, but his own reactions were a split-second behind what he expected. He gasped in shock at being too slow. The Dark slashed him viciously in the neck with both paws.

He backwards-rolled over with the impact before jumping back up, but staggered, wincing in pain as he felt his neck burn. The hesitation gave the Dark an opportunity to swipe at him again, striking him in the same place. He fell helplessly to the floor. The Dark lurched forwards, biting down onto his right ankle, then immediately yanked her head upwards with it still in her jaws.

The movement sent shockwaves through Ryu's right side, and he screeched a desperate, wordless cry for help. His eyes welled up with pain. He tried to kick at the Dark with his free leg, but couldn't summon the energy. He knew he had lost.

It was his opponent's intention behind her attacks that scared him the most. If his legs weren't especially muscular and strong-boned, by virtue of him being a Fighter, he was certain that her bite would have snapped his ankle. She'd struck him in the neck because it was his body's least protected area, other than maybe his eyes, but they were hard to reach. And an ankle was easier to break than a leg. Her attacks had been carefully calculated, but calculated to cause genuine harm. So whatever this Pokémon was, it couldn't be a normal wild.

"Stop! Please!" he choked through tears, as she held onto him. "You win, 'mon! I surrender!"

She dropped his ankle, but kept a paw on his chest as he spat out the blood she'd produced. But before she could do anything more Ryu saw a sudden flash of white, then a crack as an object broke against her body. The Dark fell backwards from him like a stone.

Ryu looked left to the source. There, damp, shivering, looking on the verge of collapsing, was Fen. He gingerly held their seed pouch in his right hand. Which must mean…

He had broken the stun seed on her.