I love the positive responses that I'm getting for this story so far, and let me tell you that at the moment, I'm nowhere near done. Kaelen and her friends are just getting started. Basically, keep following and reviewing because it makes me happy that others are reading. (Plus it stokes my slowly growing confidence) Now, I'm not one for giving out spoilers, because half the time even I don't know where my (and your) characters will take me, but I may be in the mood if people keep asking for them
On another note, sorry if I'm being sporadic with updates right now, as I've just started college. My deepest apologies, and a virtual cookie to those who haven't given up on this. I've also gotten into drawing during my free time, and am actually starting to draw some of these characters.
:) –Drachesoul
I woke up nestled in my beat-up bed in the Suicune cabin, hugging my Raikou plushie for all it was worth. I shot up, immediately regretting it when my body protested mightily. Looking out my window to the clouds lazily drifting by, I took a moment to take stock of my various aches.
"Ow, God, I feel like I got run over by a Mamoswine or something," I hissed, reaching behind my head with my arms and working out one of the countless kinks. "What the hell happened last night?"
As if on cue, some switch triggered in my mind and the memories came rushing back in full force. The Champions. Cresselia and the other Legendary Pokemon. Guardians.
Kaelen, you alone will face the darkness in its full force, and you alone will be able to control it.
Rise, my Guardians, rise.
Oh my.
"Kaelen, is that you?" I heard Olivia groan from the bed next to me. She sat up, looking just as worn out as I was, absentmindedly stroking her Suicune plushie. "Can you explain to me what happened last night?"
"I dunno, it seems too unreal."
"I-I heard something in my mind before I must've blacked out, something about Guardians?"
I sighed. "Damn, so it wasn't a dream then." Here I was hoping that the weight of the world hadn't been thrust upon us.
Olivia gasped from beside me, "So it did happen. I'm Suicune's Champion and a Guardian?"
"And I'm Raikou's." As soon as I said it out loud, a shock ran through me and I gasped involuntarily. I could feel, deep down inside, that I had changed. I sensed a foreign power running through my veins, and it felt good. It throbbed for a minute before settling in my left shoulder.
I pulled my sleeves up and to my great surprise, saw a marking there. Circular, with jagged spikes that looked like tiny lightning bolts pointing outwards, an intricate star-shaped design filled the middle.
"Huh." I said, nonplussed, running my fingers over my new tattoo. "That's new."
Looking over to my right, I noticed the clock that was positioned on the dresser between our beds. Its red numbers flashed 11:30. Following my gaze, Olivia glanced at the clock and yelped. I then realized that we were alone in our cabins.
"Kaelen, it's 11:30! Why didn't they wake us up?" I shrugged, still gazing at my newest (read: only) tattoo.
Still running things through in my head, I didn't notice Olivia getting out of bed and getting dressed. I was jolted out of my personal reverie when she let out another squeal. Whirling around to face her, I noticed her looking at her own left shoulder, where a similar marking had been etched.
"When did I get a tattoo?" Throwing back my own covers and slipping into my uniform, I sighed. Lance and the others were going to have a lot of explaining to do.
As I made my way to the hallway stairs, I could hear her murmuring to herself as she did her hair. "It doesn't look half bad…"
XXX
Rise of the Guardians: Chapter 10
XXX
"Where are we going?" Malik asked for the twelfth time. I had to admit that I was curious about where we were being led to.
We had passed the Mountain section of the WildZone a few minutes ago, trudging single-file along a sandy beach. Really, how they had managed to set this entire place up was beyond me. I hadn't gotten a good look at the place the last time I was here, being far too distracted with other things. My best friend shot me a look and I shrugged my shoulders.
"We're heading to what will become your base of operations for the next few weeks." Lance called from the front of the line. "We needed a place where you guys could train, away from the other campers."
"Why would we need a separate training place?" I asked.
"Because you will be learning things that the other Trainers cannot ever know about. Only the Elite Four and Gym Leaders of the five regions know about Guardians, and it is imperative that this knowledge stay within a certain circle. We also have some other Guardians that will eventually trickle in from other camps, and this is where they will stay, until we set them up in a cabin. "
Okay, I got that part, but what about my friends and family? Hell, the rest of my team? My team, who had been an integral part of my journey, was my family. I confided everything in them, perhaps even more than I did with Malik.
Lost in my own thoughts, (that seemed to be happening more and more often as the days wore on) I nearly ran into Zac as he stopped short.
"We're here," Lance stated proudly, facing us and waving his hands in a dramatic manner. I peeked over Zac's shoulder and frowned. What in the hell was he talking about? All I could see was the beach, stretching on for what seemed like miles, the surf lapping up against the shore, Wingull cawing in the distance.
"I don't mean to be rude, but what are you talking about? There's nothing here." Ceara said.
Lance wiggled his finger, "Ah, but have you really looked?" I found myself squinting, but could see nothing. What was he on about? "This will be your first 'challenge' as Guardians, in a way."
"Oh great," Malik grumbled, "A challenge already."
Lance cleared his throat, "The first thing you will learn is how to perceive things that others cannot. As Guardians, you have certain abilities that you will tap into to access the power of your Legendary Pokémon."
One of them is the power of enhanced sight, a voice rumbled in my mind. Raikou. I looked around me and saw the others with similar expressions, they too were receiving messages from their Legendary partners. Focus your energies and will them towards your eyes. If you do it correctly, things that are invisible to others become clear to you. Raikou's voice fell silent, apparently finished with the explanation.
I decided to give it a shot. I closed my eyes and focused my energies to that small core of power that I had detected earlier that morning. It buzzed as I made contact with it, as I connected myself to that bit of strength. It traveled through my body at a warp speed, before settling in my eyes.
I opened my eyes and gasped. Directly behind Lance, where I had once seen nothing but beach, stood a small building, about the size of the Suicune cabin. "Where the hell did that come from?" I asked. Everyone else but Malik let out various sounds of astonishment as the house revealed itself to them.
"What are you talking about?" Malik growled, clearly unable to see. "There's nothing there."
"No." Archer cut in, looking closer. "I see it. It's a beach house." Malik huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Why can't I see it," he complained.
"Try closing your eyes first," Zac said, and my friend complied. "Now, focus your will deep down until you feel a spark. Once you have that, just will the energy toward your eyes, and you should be able to see it."
Malik closed his eyes, still irritated, and stood perfectly still. I smiled, knowing how hard it was for him to stay perfectly still. He wasn't the type to stay put for very long, as he wanted to explore or move around.
Suddenly his eyes jerked open and a wide smile crossed his face, "I can see it, I can see it," he giggled. I couldn't help but laugh at his antics, and the others soon followed, Zac clapping him on the back in congratulations.
Even Lance cracked a grin. "Now that you all have succeeded, we can get on with the show. This house has been blessed with protection from all of the Legendary Pokemon, so as long as you are a Champion, you will be able to enter."
Fantasy raised her hand. "How were you able to see it? You aren't a Guardian…are you?"
"Ah, yes, about that. As your unofficial teacher/ mentor, the Pokemon have granted me access to this house. I am the only non-Guardian that can see this house, and I should stay the only non-Guardian that can see this house." He emphasized the last part, staring directly at me.
"What are you looking at me for?" I growled. "Look at the pretty house instead." Lance grinned, and I knew he was joking with me. I groaned good-naturedly, and rolled my eyes.
"So what is it that we'll be doing here?" Olivia asked, still staring at the house with wide eyes.
"Training, for the most part. There are going to be things you need to learn in order to make the most of your new bonds. When you are not in class, eating or sleeping, you will be expected to be here, working on various things."
Lance motioned for us to follow him as we walked inside our new base of operations. It looked almost exactly the same as the Suicune cabin, save for the walls and doors. The walls had artwork on them that combined all of the cabins that we had come from. High-tech computers lined one wall, while old-fashioned bookshelves filled with various books lined another, creating the image of a classy secret hideout. Oh, wait. It was a secret hideout.
"Damn, I could get used to this," Dante whistled, dropping his backpack on one of the couches and settling down.
I stayed behind with Archer and Olivia as Lance led the rest of my friends on a tour of the rest of the house. "Don't get used to it," I said, "I get the feeling that we won't have much downtime, not if what they said last night is even the slightest bit true."
Everyone came rushing out of one of the back rooms all of a sudden, expressions stricken and on guard. "Whoa, whoa, where's the fire?" Olivia asked, quickly gauging the expressions on everyone's faces.
"See, I told you!" I whispered conspiratorially to Dante, who grimaced a bit, before leaping up off the couch, all ready for action.
"Lance just a call on his phone from one of the lead counselors from the Hoenn camp. They sent a group of campers over here about a day ago, and they were supposed to have arrived by now. Lance said they hadn't arrived and got all worried." Ceara explained, letting her Cinccino out of its ball. "They should be close by though, Lance mentioned that one of the locals spotted a group of about seven teenagers not far from here. And get this, Two of them are Guardians!"
"Well, what are we waiting for?" I asked. "Let's go find them!"
They nodded and ran outside, calling their partner Pokemon. I let Arcanine out of his Pokeball, and he yawned, stretching luxuriously. What is the problem? I explained the issue, and my partner's eyes took on a whole new glow, all sleepiness gone.
Dante had mounted Staraptor and took to the skies, saying he would head up the aerial search. Malik asked Scizor to go along as backup while he rode with me. Zac asked that I lead the ground party, as Arcanine would come in handy with tracking the missing campers.
Lance caught up to us before we left. "Guys, as much as I appreciate the readiness, Kaelen is the only one with Pokemon to ride. For the rest of you guys, "his eyes glinted maniacally, "I have the perfect thing. Does anyone have a driver's license?"
Ceara raised her hand, and Lance took her away from the group. A minute later, I could hear the sound of an engine revving. No freaking way. Ceara drove out from behind our base in a Jeep, grinning wildly and cheering.
"Alright guys, get in!" The rest of my friends eagerly jumped in the jeep, while Malik and I stayed behind.
"Arcanine, can you take two people?" I asked, giving him a pat on the back. He woofled in response and crouched down so we could get on.
Ceara donned a pair of sunglasses (I don't know where she pulled them out from), and called over. "Lance said that the last contact he received from them was from about five miles from here, by Route 221. He's staying behind in case he gets word from the Hoenn camp. He'll call if he hears anything," she said, pulling a cellphone from her pockets.
"That's by the Pal Park, isn't it?" I said, and she gave a thumbs up in return. That's not too bad of a trip. We could easily make it there in about fifteen minutes. "We ready?"
"Ready!" came the enthusiastic response, and Arcanine bounded off, making slight turns as I whispered the directions in his ear. "Let's go save some Campers!"
XXX
Route 221
XXX
"Oh, no," I whispered, sliding off of Arcanine and examining the area. They had definitely been here, and something bad had gone down. Three different tents were splayed around a campfire, still smoldering slightly. "Guys, search the nearby area, maybe we can find a clue as to where they went." They nodded and dispersed, breaking off into groups of two and searching around.
I smell fear, Arcanine said, putting nose to ground and snuffling around. There were a lot more than seven people here though, that is a fact. I knitted my eyebrows together, thinking hard. Who could have possibly known about these seven? Moreover, who had the power to take out seven extremely powerful Trainers?
"Kaelen!" Zac shouted. "We found some of them!" I leaped onto Arcanine and dashed towards his voice. Fantasy and Zac were kneeled over two prone figures.
"Are they okay?" I asked in a rush. I was soon followed by the rest, attracted by Zac's cry for help.
"They're breathing okay," Arcus said, quickly settling down and examining the two teenage boys for injuries. "They've been unconscious, but I think they'll wake up any minute."
"Oh thank goodness," I breathed, fearing the worst. True to Arcus' word, they began stirring. "Guys, are you alright?"
"Dude, what the hell happened," one of them groaned, slowly sitting up and rubbing his head. "Who are you?" He asked suspiciously.
"I'm Kaelen, and you are…"
"Blake. Blake Evans." He still seemed disoriented, so helped him up, supporting him as he swayed unevenly. "Where are my friends? The rest of my group?" I shrugged, telling him that I had no idea. " Where is my partner? Nate!" he yelled, catching a glimpse of his friend as he woke up.
"Nate, are you okay? Where's our counselor?"
"Calm down," Arcus pleaded, as she roused Nate. "You're both hurt and need to get some rest."
"We can't just sit here and wait, we need to find them," Blake said.
"You're in no state to help them right now," Archer stated calmly. "We'll find them, just stay here with us for now." Blake slumped, clearly defeated.
"Okay," he said in a small voice. "Just find them please."
"Zac, can you help Blake?" I asked, and she nodded as I transferred his weight to her. "I'll take Archer, Olivia, Dante and Fantasy to find the others. Arcus can you help Nate…" I turned again to Blake, who looked at me.
"McAden. Nate McAden." I nodded. I touched him briefly before mounting Arcanine again, ready to finish what we started. I felt a spark, and no, not the romantic kind. He must have felt it too because he looked at me strangely. " Are you a Guardian?" he asked, and my mouth dropped.
"How do you know?"
"I felt the same feeling with Nate when I first met him. You're all Guardians, aren't you?"
"Yeah, but right now, I need to go and find the others, so please stay here." Patting Arcanine, and followed by Archer, Fantasy, Olivia and Dante, I dashed off into the woods.
If they had been kidnapped, then there would only be one logical place to take them. "To the Pal Park," I called.
Someone was going to pay for hurting them. I may have just met them, but those two guys were also Guardians, and there was no way in hell that I was going to let down their friends. I'm never going to have a normal day, am I?