We follow the vulpix further down the snow path. First it starts snowing lightly, then it starts to come down heavy. I put on my hood as the heavy snow becomes an all-out blizzard. I offer Junior a chance to return to his ball but he shakes his head no and instead chooses to stay on my shoulder. Mutually freezing, we follow the silhouette of the vulpix until we reach a small cavern covered in ice crystals. The vulpix looks back at me and points it's paw into the cave. As I walk into the cave vulpix walks behind me this time around. No doubt it's scared of whatever lies ahead.
Honestly the cave is a thing of beauty. The floor is lightly frosted, the crystals glow a warm blue, faintly lighting the cavern. As we get further inside the cave warms up enough for me to take off my hood. The lightly frosted cave floor is soon replaced by blue wooden tiles and the ceiling gets higher and higher. That's when it dawns on me that this beautiful cave is man-made.
"GYAOOOOO!" A large shriek pierces through the cavern. I run after the source but the cavern seems to go on forever before finally reaching a massive open door. Through it is an open room filled with scrolls, symbols emblazed on its icy walls, and a grand staircase at its center.
Descending the stair case is a woman with short and wild red hair. She wears a grey and black hoody with red lines crossing the front. In her hand is a leash that confines a heavily injured white ninetails that struggles to keep its footing as it's yanked along the stairs. Vulpix begins to cry wildly, the trembling ninetails makes eye contact with the distressed vulpix for a moment before lowering its head once more. It doesn't take much for me to put two and two together. This ninetails is vulpix's mother and that woman is a bad guy.
"Hey you! Let that ninetails go right now!" I yell out sternly and it echoes off the walls. The woman immediately locks eyes with me and, I admit, I flinch immediately. There's a fire in her eyes, like the ominous flames of drifblim's will-o-wisp it's a flame that fills me with dread. Without taking her eyes off me she reaches into her pocket, pulls out a pokeball and gently taps the ninetails' head. "No!" I scream as ninetails is called into the pokeball. Vulpix screeches at the top of her lungs, as helpless as I am while the ball wiggles three times and seals.
"whoops." the woman says in a deadpan tone. Then there's silence. What just happened? Did she really just catch the ninetails to spite me? A stand there, dumbfounded! Junior starts his wings, ready to attack the woman for her action
"release it!" I order. I'd never considered attacking a trainer before, but something about this woman brings out the worst in me. "last warning"
"Do you know what this place is? It's a temple built to house this artifact." She puts the pokeball containing the ninetails into her pocket and pulls out a small blue stone, no bigger than a clementine. "This artifact was protected by a regice and an articuno. So now I pose two questions to you: What do you think I just got done capturing, and do you really want to pit your Dragon/Ground type against them?" She puts the orb back into her pockets and pulls out another pokeball. "Well?" she asks in that same condescending deadpan tone.
She's bluffing! She has to be! I think to myself. There was nothing about a temple or a regice and articuno in this area. She's trying to psych me out so I won't attack her. Well I call her bluff "Junior-" before I can finish my command she drops the pokeball on the ground and surely enough a regice bursts out at her feet. I internally freak out as the unbelievable is happening right before my eyes.
"Do I have to throw out the articuno as well, or do you want to rethink your decision?" She's mocking me. If I had Prancer I could stand a chance but as things stand now, I can't do a thing. I can't save ninetails, I can't stop this evil woman, and I can't even think straight anymore. Junior cries into my ear to try and bring some sense to me but there's nothing he can do either. I look down at the young vulpix which is quivering at my feet. I've failed it. The woman looks down on me without saying a word, like I'm nothing.
Despite me having given up Junior stays riled up. As if he's going to leap off my shoulder and fight the regice himself any minute. As if sensing that these actions may give me even the slightest glimmer of hope the woman speaks the dreaded words, "regice, ice beam" and before I can even process what she had just said the regice shoots a thin blue beam of ice that pierces right through Junior, knocking him off shoulder. My jaw drops as low as it could go.
"w-why?" I say as I turn around, fall to my knees and embrace the injured Junior. He's hurt bad but not fatal. I recall him to his pokeball but I couldn't bring myself to stand. "Why?"
"Two of my grunts said some kid chased them from the perimeter. I didn't want you to get the idea that you could ever defeat us. Whenever you see team stone in the area I want you to think back to this moment and do what a worthless wretch like yourself does best: nothing." This hits me hard. I was just playing hero this whole time, but this, this is far beyond me. She recalls the regice then continues descending the stairs. As she walks past me she looks down on me like I'm nothing one last time and whispers "next time, I'll kill you." Before exiting the temple.
I stay on my knees, bathed in sweat, drowning in my own fear. That's when the vulpix, that had been beside me the entire time walks between my knees lightly licks my hands. Its cold tongue is soothing in a way. I regain my composure; it's not like me to mull around all depressed. "hey little princess, how about you come with me. We're gonna find your mother!" The majestic white vulpix nods her head in agreement and lets out a cry of determination. I pull out a pokeball and tap her head. It wiggles three times and seals. "welcome to the team Princess" I say.
I rise to my feet. I was just humiliated and defeated worse than I even knew was possible, but in a way that only motivates me. Even if it kills me, I resolve to find that woman and beat her. I walked out of that cave with my head held high, the blizzard has subsided and I can see the sun clearly. I return to Hardpoint with my head held high.
Naturally Prancer was pretty upset he missed out on the regice and evil hag. But when I assure him that next time he'll get a run at her he explodes with hype, hot blooded as always. Junior and Princess share in our motivation. I'll get my badges and stop team stone. I may have taken my first steps a while ago, but the real adventure starts now.