Hey there! As you can all guess, my writer's block for Quest to Capture the Shadow Pokemon has returned. While I try desperately to break it, I'll work on updating this story. I've decided to make it an alternate reality of PMD2: Explorations of Time and Darkness. If you've read my journal on my Deviantart page, you'll know how that kind of works.

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. I also down not own Team Yami-Hikari or Team Raptors. They belong to HikariPachi and Twilit King Umbros (formerly known as and Bio Warrior 3000).

Chapter 13: Meeting Horus

Diamonds. Hundreds of big, glittering, beautiful diamonds. That's what the whole upstairs room was filled with. The room was practically glowing with rainbow color! Team Legend looked around in awe.

"It's so beautiful!" Sandra cried.

"How are we going to get all of these back home?" Carlos asked.

"All of what? I can't see, remember?" Lucar said.

"Oh, sorry!" Carlos chuckled. "There are crystals and diamonds and stuff all over the place. It's beautiful, Lucar!"

/That room was the most beautiful thing I ever saw at that point in time. But later on, I would see even more beautiful scenes. Beauty is a part of life and is something everyone has deep down inside of them. Sometimes, you just have to dig deep to find that beauty in a person./

Joy gasped. "Look at this one! We could bring this one back, guys!"

Team Legend followed Joy toward the back of the room and realized what the Raichu meant. At the end of a small path lined with small crystals…was a very large red diamond. Dashing up to it, Carlos nodded.

"All right! Let's try to move it, guys!" the Pikachu said. "Lucar, you're the strongest physically. You go first."

"Sure." Lucar nodded.

The Riolu held his paws out and walked forward, stopping once he touched the giant crystal. Gripping its base, he struggled to pull it out of the ground. After a few seconds of pulling, he backed up and panted.

"I can't!" Lucar gasped. "Too heavy! It's stuck tight, too!"

"Here, let me try!" Carlos said.

"Good luck!" the Riolu said, backing up.

Kneeling down, Carlos grabbed the base of the crystal and heaved upward. It didn't budge an inch. Carlos tried a few more times before he backed up, gasping for breath. He didn't need to speak. The message was clear. He couldn't move it either.

"Hey! Let's all try!" Joy suggested.

"I'll watch Dusk and Michael." Carlos said.

Joy, Lucar, and Sandra all struggled to pull the crystal out of the ground. Carlos sighed and watched Michael try to bite a small crystal by his feet. Dusk was leaned against a large crystal, his head slumped over in unconsciousness. He wouldn't be waking up any time soon…hopefully.

Feeling a bit dizzy, the Pikachu sat down and leaned against a crystal. A flash of light erupted from behind his eyes and the vision began. The same figure that jumped through the waterfall earlier was in the room, struggling to pull the crystal from the ground. Then the figure pushed down on the crystal and the room shook. A giant wave of water exploded from the right wall, carrying the figure away and flooding the room.

"Whoa!" Carlos snapped awake, the vision fresh in his mind. What was…? Could that be why we can't move it? It's a trigger for some kind of trap! We have to make sure not to press down on it!

He looked up in time to see his friends giving up on trying to pull it out of the ground. Lucar and Joy sat on the floor, exhausted. Sandra, on the other hand, noticed something at the base of the crystal: a tiny ring of loose gravel that allowed the crystal to move in some way.

Carlos got up and walked toward them. "Guys, I had another vision. This crystal's impossible to pull out of the ground!" he said.

"Really?" Lucar asked.

"Yeah. It's not even a real crystal." Carlos explained. "It's actually the trigger to a—"

Sandra smiled triumphantly. Maybe if we press down on it, it'll pop out of the ground. Better see if it works! "Hey, guys! I think I found a way to get it out!" she cried. Hopping upright, she placed her front paws on the top of the crystal and pressed down on it.

"Sandra, no!" Carlos cried.

"What?!" Sandra yelped, leaping away from the crystal.

"That's not a real crystal! It's a trigger to a bobby trap!" Carlos cried. "And you just triggered it, Sandra!"

"A trap?" Lucar asked. "What kind of trap?"

"A trap that—Whoa!"

The whole room began to shake heavily, tossing almost everyone off of their feet. Dusk yelped, snapping awake when his head hit a small crystal. Looking around, he glared at his captors…only to look toward the right as a loud rumble echoed from it.

"W-What's h-h-happening?!" Sandra cried.

"Earthquake!" Lucar shouted.

"No! Not an earthquake!" Carlos argued.

Small trickles of water spread along the floor. Michael, being a newborn, instantly started playing in it. With a loud crash, a huge wave of water shot into the room.

"Flood! Run!" Joy screamed, snatching up Michael and running.

It took only seconds for the water to catch up to the fleeing Exploration Team, sweeping them away in its powerful current. Even Dusk was swept away despite his desperate attempt to phase through his bonds to safety. Trapped underwater momentarily, the ground struggled desperately with held breath.

The water suddenly exploded from the top of Waterfall Cave, rocketing them hundreds of feet into the air. The water soon vanished, leaving the group to fall toward the ground far below…

/That was probably the scariest thing I'd ever experienced. Nothing compares to it. I've nearly died several times over, fought amazingly-powerful Pokemon, and held the world on my shoulders twice. All of that is nothing compared to free-falling through the air toward the ground, uncertain whether you'll live or die. Luckily for us, we never exactly hit the ground per say./

Carlos couldn't breath. One moment he was falling, the next he was drowning again. He paddled his paws desperately. I won't die here! I can't!

A pair of paws grabbed his arm, pulling him above the surface. Coughing and sputtering, the Pikachu looked around. He was in a large pool of water with other Pokemon!

"You can stand up, you know. You're okay, right?" a voice asked.

"Huh?" Carlos turned to see Teddiursa standing near him, releasing his arm. "Yeah, I think so. Thanks. Um…where are we?"

Lucar and Joy suddenly surfaced beside him, Michael held above Joy's head. After looking around, the duo voiced the same question. Teddiursa giggled before replying.

"Welcome to the hot springs!" she said.

"Hot springs? How did we get to a hot spring from a cave?" Lucar asked.

"You just dropped out of the sky with no warning whatsoever," an Ursaring explained. "You four and two others. Speaking of them, you better help them up."

Carlos turned to see Sandra floundering helplessly, unaware that she could touch the bottom. She was paddling madly, shouting for help and saying she was drowning. The Pikachu waded over and pulled her up, making sure her feet touched the ground.

"It's okay, Sandra!" he reassured.

"No, I'm not! I'm going to drown!" Sandra complained.

"Just put her on the rocks. I'll get the Banette." Lucar said, wading toward the soaked Ghost-type.

Carlos waded toward the rocks surrounding the edge of the hot spring and shoved the Eevee onto them. Sandra scrambled onto the rock and glared at the water, acting as if it would reach up and drag her back in if she didn't pay attention.

"Sandra, are you scared of water?" Carlos asked.

The Eevee nodded. "Yes," she squeaked. "I hate water. I nearly drowned as a cub back home."

"But it's shallow!" Carlos argued.

"Even shallow water can kill." Sandra said, backing away from the edge of the rock.

Before Carlos could reply, Lucar dropped Dusk onto a nearby rock. The Banette was complaining about how they nearly let him drown and such, calling them crazy. Ignoring him, the Riolu turned to Carlos.

"How do we get home now?" Lucar asked. "We don't know where we are."

"I don't know," Carlos admitted. "But we'll find a way."

"If you youngsters happen to have a map on you, I could point out where you are," a voice said.

Leaving Sandra and Dusk on the rocks, Carlos and the others approached an old Torkoal standing at the edge of the hot spring. "Yeah, we have a map. We're explorers, after all," the Pikachu said.

Pulling out the map, he placed it before the turtle. "You are right here." He pointed to a location on the map that the clouds had recently uncovered. "Now then, where did you youngsters come from?"

"Here," Joy pointed to Waterfall Cave. "We triggered a trap and the room flooded. We got blown out of the mystery dungeon by a jet of water that must've carried us all the way here."

"My, what a long journey!" Torkoal cried. "Well then, why not rest here until you're ready to travel again? I'm sure you're all very tired."

"Sure. Why not?" Carlos shrugged.

Lucar floated on his back near Carlos, who was watching Sandra sadly. He wanted her to enjoy this, too. Wading toward her, he smiled.

"You sure you don't want to come in?" he asked.

"I don't like water." Sandra said.

"You can hang onto me, Sandra. I won't let go of you." Carlos promised.

Sandra looked warily at the water and then back at Carlos. He hasn't broken a promise to me before, she thought. Reluctantly, she crept to the edge of the rock and jumped into the Pikachu's arms. She jumped at first to being lowered into the water, hooking her claws into his shoulders.

"It's okay, Sandra." Carlos said. "You're okay."

"You better not drop me." Sandra hissed.

"I won't. Now relax, okay?" Carlos suggested.

"…Fine."

The Eevee let herself be lowered into the water, keeping her paws firmly on Carlos' shoulders. Spotting a shadow coming toward her, she screamed and jumped out of the water. Michael soon surfaced, giggling as Joy quickly scooped him up.

"It was just Michael, Sandra." Carlos said.

"It could've been something else! Something dangerous!" Sandra cried.

"There's nothing dangerous in a hot spring! I won't let anything hurt you, Sandra." Carlos begged. "I promise."

Sandra whimpered before nodding, letting herself be lowered into the warm water yet again. She stood on her hind legs so the water only reached her chest, keeping her front paws on the Pikachu's shoulders. She relaxed a bit, trusting Carlos to keep her safe.

Laughter sounded from nearby. "Poor kid's scared of the water, eh? You'll have to lose that fear eventually if you want to stay an explorer."

"Huh?" Sandra turned to see a Blaziken seated in the hot spring. "Blake! You big meanie! Where were you this whole time?!"

"Blake?" the Blaziken repeated. "I think you got the wrong guy, miss. The name's Horus, not Blake."

"Oh! Oops…" Sandra whimpered. "Sorry."

"Hey, you're the little sister of that missing team. Team Yami-Hikari, right?" the Blaziken, Horus, asked. "My team and I have been searching for them."

"You're an explorer, too?" Carlos asked.

"Yep. You've probably heard of us." Horus said. "Team Raptors,"

"Team Raptors?! The famous Diamond-ranked Exploration Team?!" Sandra cried. "That means…you must be Horus Blazer, the team leader of Team Raptors!"

"Someone's done their homework." Horus chuckled. "Yeah, that's me. You must be Sandra of Team Legend. Nice to meet you."

"S-Same here!" Sandra nodded.

"I've never heard of you." Carlos said.

"Huh? That's odd." Horus blinked curiously.

"He's a foreigner, that's why! Never heard of Exploration Teams either before we made Team Legend!" Lucar cried, quickly leaping to Carlos' defense.

"Foreigner? We don't get many of them around here." Horus chuckled. "Well, now you've heard of me. Looks like you kids caught yourself that elusive kidnapper, Dusk the Banette."

Carlos turned to look at Dusk, who was glaring at him with hatred. "Yeah, we did. He kidnapped Sandra and tried to get me, too. But we beat him. We're going to turn him in to Sheriff Magnezone once we return to Treasure Town."

"Good. There are far too many bad Pokemon running around these days." Horus said. "But for everyone one criminal we turn in, three more spring up to take their place. It's endless! But we can't jut let them overrun us. We have to keep catching them, no matter how long it takes. That's our job as explorers."

"Yeah," Carlos nodded.

Joy stood up and waded over. "Michael's tired. We should probably head back now, Carlos."

"Probably," Carlos agreed. "Lucar, could you get Dusk?"

"Sure!" The Riolu waded over and grabbed the Banette, dragging him over. "We're leaving?"

"Yeah," Sandra said. "And…Carlos? Thanks…for making me get into the hot spring. It feels…nice."

Carlos smiled. "No problem, Sandra!"

The Eevee blushed and looked away. Maybe water isn't as bad as I thought.

/Water had quite the negative impact on my life before I became an explorer on Team Legend. Bullies like Gengar, Absol, and Manectric used it against me frequently, not to mention when I nearly drowned as a cub. If there was anything that gave me a load of trouble, it was my fear of water. I'm glad I'm free of it now. Life is so much easier without it weighing me down./

"Good luck, you kids!" Horus called. "And tell Guildmaster Wigglytuff I said 'hi'."

"We will, Horus. Thanks!" Carlos said. He held up their badge. "Mission complete!"

In a flash of white light, they were gone. Horus sighed and leaned further back in the water. Something about Carlos reminded him of someone…but who? And why? After a few seconds, he remembered what he was there for at all. I still have to get a birthday present for Garde, he realized.

Wigglytuff's Guild…

Team Legend and Dusk reappeared, tumbling into a pile like usual. Chatot and Wigglytuff were both standing there, Sheriff Magnezone floating nearby as they awaited the Exploration Team's return. After untangling themselves, Carlos shoved the captured Banette forward.

"We caught him, Chatot!" the Pikachu said, turning to face Sheriff Magnezone. "His name is Dusk and he kidnapped my teammate, Kit. We caught him during our mission."

"BZZZT! Congratulations, Team Legend! This is your first time catching a major criminal and you've done it successfully! BZZZT!" Sheriff Magnezone cried. "BZZZT! I will take him into custody immediately! Here is your reward! BZZZT!"

Chatot was quick to snatch the bag of money away before Carlos could even grab it, peeking inside to determine the amount. "My word! 10,000 poke?!" Chatot squawked.

"BZZZT! Dusk the Banette was a highly-elusive criminal with many charged placed against him! BZZZT!" Sheriff Magnezone explained. "BZZZT! His previous bounty was a mere 4000 poke in accordance to his thievery and kidnapping sprees. His bounty jumped after he killed the son of a pair of Manectric serving the Northern Desert kingdom's royal family. BZZZT!"

Dusk hung his head instantly at the mention of the murder. "…If you're going to execute me, do it already," he hissed. "Don't keep those Manectric in suspense."

"BZZZT! Your crime does not warrant execution, as much as those Manectric approved of it. You'll be taken to prison and will carry out your sentence as all criminals do. BZZZT!" Sheriff Magnezone said.

"Whatever," Dusk grumbled. He turned to glare at Carlos. "I'll get you back for this, Carlos. You count on it."

The Pikachu stopped Magnezone just before he dragged the prisoner away. "I just have one question, Dusk. Who wanted to capture me and why?" he demanded.

"I never saw the face of my employer, so I wouldn't know. As for the second, he said something about you being a threat to his master's plans. That's all I know. He kept quiet." Dusk replied.

Could somebody else know about my past? But who? Carlos wondered.

"BZZZT! I will be taking our criminal here back to the station and have him locked up right away! Keep up the good work, Team Legend! BZZZT!" Sheriff Magnezone shoved Dusk forward, climbing up the ladder and leaving Wigglytuff's Guild behind them.

/Oh, don't you worry. We'll be seeing Dusk again in the near future, but his intentions won't be nearly as malicious as they were this time. This whole fiasco took two days out of our week of torture. You'll see what the other five days hold in store for us soon./

"Well now, this mission was worth a good 20 points and has given you 1000 poke as a reward. Congratulations on ascending to Bronze Rank, Team Legend!" Chatot cheered. "Now that you have 15 points, you only need 385 points to reach Silver Rank!"

"Three…hundred?" Sandra squeaked. "But that's so much!"

"Wait until you get near Master Rank." Chatot said. "At least 63,000 points if I remember correctly."

"Sixty three…thousand?!" Sandra yelped. "And Team Moonlight nearly achieved that?!"

"Yep! It took a long time but they almost managed it…well, they would have if they hadn't vanished six years ago." Chatot sighed sadly. Shaking his head, the Flying-type turned back to them. "Well, you've had a long day of exploring. What were the results of the exploration I sent you on, Carlos?"

"There's a cave behind the waterfall, Chatot, along with a mystery dungeon." Carlos explained. "Once you've passed through all eight floors, you arrive at this big room filled with jewels growing from the ground! We tried to bring the biggest one back with us but it triggered a trap and flushed us out of the dungeon."

"Literally," Lucar added. "The room flooded and we were sent flying on a spout of water. We landed in the hot springs and met up with Team Raptors' leader, Horus Blazer."

"My, what an adventure you had! Not only did you take down a tough criminal but you discovered a new place. Splendid!" Chatot cried. "Oh, what until I tell the Guildmaster!"

"Actually…" Carlos started. That shadow in my vision…it had to be.

"Huh? What's the matter, Carlos?" Joy asked.

"I…think Guildmaster Wigglytuff's been there before." Carlos finally said.

"What?! That's impossible!" Chatot argued. "Why would the Guildmaster send you to a place he's already been?"

"Maybe he forgot about it. Just ask him, Chatot." Carlos pleaded.

"Oh…fine. I don't know why you'd want to spoil your own discovery, but…" Chatot entered Wigglytuff's room, closing the door behind him.

Team Legend turned to their leader. "What makes you say that, Carlos?" Sandra asked.

"In my visions at the waterfall, I saw a figure both jump through the waterfall and trigger the trap. That's how I knew those things would happen." Carlos replied. "Lucar, you brought up a good point. My other visions were of the future. If Chatot says what I think he'll say, these visions were of the past."

"So, you can see the past and the future?" Joy asked.

Carlos nodded. "I guess so."

The Guildmaster's door opened and Chatot hopped out, frowning. "I don't know how you knew…but you were right. The Guildmaster thought it over and realized that he indeed had already been there. How did you know, though?"

"Just a gut feeling," Carlos said.

"Well, at least you still get the 1000 poke reward for capturing that Banette." Chatot sighed. "Go eat dinner and then get some rest. You must all be exhausted."

Team Legend nodded, taking the money before heading to dinner. After they ate, the team of five returned to their room for a good night's sleep. Too bad it would be interrupted.

"Hey, wake up!" Chatot nudged Carlos. "The Guildmaster wishes to speak with you. Get up!"

"Ugh…Chatot, we're tired!" Carlos complained, rolling over. "Can't this wait?"

"I'm afraid the Guildmaster won't take 'no' for an answer. Now get up before I bring Loudred in here." Chatot threatened.

"Okay, okay! No need to bring him into this!" Carlos groaned, rubbing his eyes as he sat up.

"Good! Wake your teammates and come to the Guildmaster's chambers." Chatot turned and left, poking his head back in moments later. "If you're not there in five minutes, I'll have Loudred wake you up."

"Okay," Carlos nodded.

Once Chatot left, the Pikachu woke up his four teammates and explained the situation. Half asleep and annoyed at being woken up, Carlos, Lucar, and Sandra left for Wigglytuff's room to see what he wanted. Joy and Michael stayed behind, fast asleep.