Hello everyone and once again welcome back.
I had quite a few difficulties with this chapter, so I was thinking of splitting it in two. And while there were some advantages to that (a semi-cliffhanger, more time for me to complete the rest), I felt it would lessen the impact and opted for making it all one chapter. So what were my troubles, you ask? Well, I think you'll find it, when you read the story.
Credit goes to Shadow Serenity 57 for the OC of Savannah Grace Decaro, who appears in this chapter.
Currently Submitted OC's: 4. Currently Used OC's : 2 (0 planned to occur for the rest of the arc).
Chapter 21 – Ruins of Past Futures
Friday the 23nd of Silversun
07:15, Relyb City Pokémon Center
The day of the group's departure from Relyb City started out overcast. The sun had risen over an hour ago, but was still unable to shine through the cloud cover. Casey looked out of the window as he ate his breakfast, making a mental note to remember to dress warmly. Savannah sat on the bench opposite him, drinking a glass of orange juice. She seemed to have recovered well from her defeat the day before. Mia and Tyson were at the counter, arguing over which kind of breakfast was better.
As Casey sat there, eating his breakfast, watching the first few droplets fall, listening to Tyson and Mia argue in the background, he realized how much had happened since they sat out on their journey only a little over two weeks ago. They had come pretty far in only two weeks, already having two Gym Badges and three Pokémon each. They had met a lot of interesting people too, such as Bruce and Alex, but they had also encountered Vector, a sinister scientist who had wanted to use the protector of the nearby forest to further his own goals. And while he had no proof, he was sure that Vector was behind the events which had transpired at the Diving Cliffs as well.
"I'm telling you, you won't last all day on just white bread!" Mia said hotly, as she practically slammed her tray into the table, jolting both Casey and Savannah.
"And I'm telling you, I'll be just fine!" Tyson replied as he slammed his own tray down on the table. The two sat down and started eating, refusing to even look at each other.
It's incredible how easy you can get used to most things, Casey thought with a smile but quickly turned away before either of the two combatants could ask what he was smiling about.
"Casey, could you tell Tyson that he needs to eat properly?" Mia asked Casey, as if Tyson wasn't sitting in front of her.
"I'm not his mother, Mia," Casey replied neutrally.
"Then could you tell Mia that I'll be alright?" Tyson asked with his mouth full of food.
"I'm not her mother either," Casey sighed.
"You need to eat a proper breakfast!" Mia said, dropping the play-pretend. "I don't want to hear about you being hungry a few hours from now."
"Then stuff your ears," Tyson replied and in an act of utter juvenility, stuck his tongue at her, causing Savannah to giggle.
Yup, just another normal day, Casey thought as he returned to gazing out the window, as Mia and Tyson's silly war continued.
Friday the 23nd of Silversun
10:23, south of route 704
"I'm hungry!" Tyson wailed as he forced himself up another steep rise in the rocky country.
"See!" Mia shouted back to him from further ahead. "This is exactly what I was talking about!" They had left the Pokémon Center at about eight-o-clock, heading east towards Dalemer Town. They had then turned south towards the location of the ruins nearly an hour ago. The ruins were supposedly located at the base of Mt. Modnaid, near an old, yet still working, iron mine, so they were heading in that direction. Then, about 10 minutes ago, the green and soft grass had given way to brown, hard rock and the landscape had started to rise; Mt. Modnaid looming in the distance.
Lost in his thoughts, Casey didn't notice Savannah drawing level with him. "Are they always like this?" Savannah asked with a giggle, over Mia's shouting.
"Huh?" Casey asked, taken aback by Savannah's mood. "Tyson is, sure. He has been like that for as long as I can remember. I don't really know Mia all that well, though. We only met her a week ago, after which she decided to travel with us."
"Must be nice, traveling with friends…" Savannah said softly.
"It is," Casey said. Tyson shouted something unintelligible back to Mia, which only unleashed another tirade from Mia. "The quiet moments are nice too, though," he added with a smile as Mia and Tyson kept up their fight.
"Yes…" Savannah said softly. "Silence is nice…" Casey raised an eyebrow and looked at her, but didn't say anything.
They continued their walk through the rough terrain, only stopping briefly to let Mia and Tyson catch up. The sky was still overcast with clouds, but the soft rain from earlier had stopped before they had even stepped foot outside the Pokémon Center. It wasn't as warm as the last few days had been though, so they were all dressed warmly. Finally, the group crested a final rise and was met with the entrance to the iron mine.
"There's the entrance to the mine," Mia said with a sigh of relief. In front of them, a barren, empty plateau opened up. The area seemed to have been artificially leveled, as it was completely smooth, with not even a single outcropping of rock. A rather large opening in the wall on the other side of the plateau indicated the entrance to the mine. As the group walked over, they saw that the area was not as empty as it first had appeared – a single man was sitting just inside the entrance, sheltered from the elements and hidden by shadow.
"H… H… Hello… s… sir," Savannah said softly as they drew closer, but the man didn't seem to hear her.
"Sir," Mia called when they were almost at the entrance, but the man still didn't react. The group walked the rest of the way and gathered outside the entrance, only a few meters from the man now.
"Excuse me, sir," Casey said. "Is it possible to come in and see the ruins?" The man made no sign that he had heard them.
"Do you think he's okay?" Mia asked concerned.
"Sir?" Casey asked again, softly shaking the man at his shoulder.
"I'm awake! I'm awake!" the man blurted out, shocked by the sudden wake-up call. "The mine is operating smoothly, Mr. Foreman and…" The guard looked at Casey who was still half bent over him, then at the rest of the group. "You aren't no mine Foreman," he said slowly.
"No, we're not, sir," Mia said. "We are interested in seeing the ruins which were discovered nearby. Do you know where they are?"
"Ruins?" the guard said, looking bewildered at them. "Ah, yes, the ruins. Now I remember. Must have dozed off pretty well to forget all about them ruins. The ruins are inside, just follow the trail to the… aren't you kids a little young to walk around in ruins and mines?"
"I assure you, we'll be alright," Casey said. "You were telling us where the ruins were?"
"Ah, yes," the man said. "The ruins. Found them within the mine, we did. Just digging along, when suddenly the pickaxe goes through the wall. Me and the lads gather round and make the hole bigger and soon the whole wall was a big hole. And on the other side was a path, like a corridor. We looked around a little, but the walls seemed to come alive. Scared the living bejesus out of me and the boys, so we left it alone and called in some of them scientist guys. You seem a little young to be scientists…"
"You've already said that," Tyson cut him off. "Now, how do we get to the ruins?"
"Sorry, sorry," the man mumbled. "Mind my own business, I get yer drift. Just go inside and follow the trail to the left, until you get to a big hole in the wall." The man leaned back against the wall again, tugging his cap in front of his eyes. Mia gave Tyson an angry glare, who just shrugged back.
"Thanks for your help, sir," Casey said. The man grunted, as if in a reply, only to continue on to a snore. Casey looked back at the others, shrugging. Slowly, the group entered the mine.
Friday the 23nd of Silversun
10:38, Iron Mine
The group was still walking slowly through the dark mine. They had barely rounded the first corner before they had to find their flashlights. Despite the light sources, the small cones of light did next to nothing to penetrate the darkness of the mine. It was a weird feeling, to be walking around in utter darkness in the middle of the day.
"I thought the mine was operational," Mia said as she looked around on the damp walls.
"I believe they closed it down, when they discovered the ruins," Savannah replied.
"But the miner at the front said…"
"We did just catch him sleeping on the job, remember?" Tyson said. "He was probably just reacting to his dream or some such nonsense."
They continued along in silence. For the third time in only two weeks, Casey found himself imagining being swallowed by a mountain – it was starting to become a really bad habit. They followed the tracks along the ground, heading deeper and deeper into the darkness. "There it is!" Savannah called suddenly, as her cone of light fell on a large hole in the wall. They rushed closer, their previous caution thrown to the wind, and peered through the hole.
The sight that beheld them was utter darkness. Even with all four flashlights pointed through the hole, the group could barely discern the floor on the other side. Warily, they stepped inside and started to explore the unknown. The room, for it was a room and not a corridor as the man had said, was large and spacious. The square layout of the room was paved with a cold, marble floor. The walls which surrounded the room were covered in markings, which looked like ancient signs.
"What is this place?" Tyson asked, as he tried to peer into the darkness that was the other end of the room.
"It's absolutely marvelous!" Savannah sighed, as she detached herself from the group. She walked over to a section of the wall and studied the symbols closer. "I recognize some of these symbols," she said softly, as the teenagers walked over to her. "See this one? It's shaped like an 'O', but the lowest part of the circle is pressed flat, with a line stretching to either side. I've seen it in some of my books."
"Interesting," Casey said, tracing the outline of a symbol with his hand. "Do you know what it means?"
"I believe this one is called 'Omega,'" Savannah said. "It's a letter from an ancient culture. Only…"
"Only what, Savannah?" Mia asked intrigued.
"Only the line shouldn't go all the way through the circle," Savannah replied softly. "Imagine three-fourths of a circle with the missing quarter facing down. Then, a small line, going away from the circle, is traced from both endpoints. But here it goes all the way through."
"Maybe it's just a typo?" Tyson suggested with a grin, causing Mia to sigh.
"No, I think this was done on purpose…" Savannah replied, oblivious to the joke.
"I think I'll take some notes for the Professor," Casey said. "I'm sure he'd be interested in learning about this."
"Have fun," Tyson said indifferently. As Casey sat down to sketch some notes, Savannah continued to mumble softly about more strange characters, which Mia seemed more than happy to talk about. Feeling bored, Tyson sat about exploring the room some more. He started walking down alongside the wall, turned a corner, continued along the next wall and repeated the process. After a few minutes, he passed by the entrance hole, his exploration of the room fruitless.
Ty…
"Who's there?!" Tyson blurted out, spinning around, holding his flashlight out in front of him. The light fell on the bare wall and floor, not giving any indication of what could have made the sound. Tyson moved the flashlight around in ever increasing circles, but there was nothing which stood out to him as a possible cause. Geez, Tyson, now you're imagining things too, he thought to himself and turned around.
"Gah!" he yelped in shock and surprise, as the light of his flashlight fell squarely on Casey's face.
"Hey, point that thing downwards, okay?" Casey asked, shielding his eyes from the cone of light. Tyson mumbled an apology as he pointed the flashlight down. "Are you okay?" Casey asked his friend. "You seem a bit pale."
"I'm fine," Tyson replied, struggling to control his breathing after the scare. "You just surprised me, that's all."
"If you say so," Casey said, dropping the subject. "Savannah and Mia found something interesting. You might want to come see it too." Without waiting for a reply, Casey turned around and ran into the darkness, presumably towards the others.
"Casey, wait!" Tyson called, but there came no reply. He looked into the darkness of the room. For no clear reason, he felt afraid. Something moved in the corner of his eye and he whipped his head, and the flashlight, around to see. But there was nothing there, except… Tyson studied the wall closer. He was no expert in ancient writing, not by a long shot, but something seemed wrong about the wall. Like something had changed. Okay, Tyson, he said to himself, get a grip. It's just the darkness playing tricks on your mind. Tyson took a deep breath and stepped forward, into the darkness, in the direction that Casey had gone.
Friday the 23nd of Silversun
11:01, Iron Mine
"Have you ever seen something like this before?" Mia asked Savannah.
"No, never," came the reply.
"It looks ancient in design," Casey said, as he studied the object on the wall. It was long and slim, mainly colored a brownish-grey. The bottom ended in a soft point, and just above it were three ellipses intertwined, with the top reaching a white diamond-shaped marking. Just above the white marking were three circles, arranged in a triangle, the lower two being white with the topmost a light blue. If one looked closely, it resembled an eerie face. On top of it all, was something that seemed like blue cloth, hanging from a handle.
"It must be," Savannah said, biting her lip. "This place looks like it was sealed up a long time ago. If that's right, then this… thing, must have been here since then."
"There you guys are!" a voice sounded from behind them. The group jumped and turned around, only to point three flashlights right into Tyson's face. "Hey, point those down, will you?" Tyson exclaimed, shielding his eyes with an arm.
"Sorry," the others mumbled and pointed the flashlights away.
"So, Casey," Tyson started, once he could see again, "what was it you wanted me to see?"
"What do you mean?" Casey asked with a frown.
"You know what I mean," Tyson said. "You came over find me not two minutes ago, telling me you guys had found something."
"We did find something…" Mia said slowly. "But, none of us came to fetch you, Tyson."
"Sure you did!" Tyson said. "Casey came over, said you girls had found something and that I should see it. Then he left and I had to run after him. And man, this place is really dark. I lost sight of you even after a few seconds."
"Tyson, listen to me," Casey said. "I never left their side. I never went to find you."
"Then explain what I saw!" Tyson shouted, as his mind started to toy with the possibility. Maybe it wasn't Casey who had fetched him. And there was that sound…
Ty…son…
"Did you hear that?!" Tyson asked, his voice quivering a little, as he spun around, shining his flashlight into the darkness.
"No," Casey replied.
"I didn't hear anything," Mia said.
"Actually…" Savannah started. "I think I heard something too."
"Hmm, I don't like this," Casey said. "I think we should get out of here."
"I think you're right," Mia said, looking around uneasily. "Savannah, have you seen all you needed to see here?"
"I'd love to stay longer, but I will come back once the real scientists get here," she said.
"Then let's go," Casey said and started the walk back towards the hole. As they began to walk, Tyson cast a glance in the direction of whatever the other had wanted to show him.
That's weird, he thought. I passed by that wall only minutes ago and there was nothing there.
"Shouldn't the hole be around here?" Casey asked after a minute of walking. The group had kept their flashlights pointed squarely at the walls, but without seeing any hole.
"Yeah, we should have passed it by now," Mia replied.
"Let's turn around and…"
Casey…
"Did you hear that?" Casey asked, looking around into the darkness.
"You're hearing voices too, now?" Mia asked concerned.
"I heard somebody calling my name…" Casey said slowly.
"Let's try and see if we can find that exit!" Tyson said. The others agreed and they continued along the walls, turning corner after corner without seeing the exit. Eventually, they wound up back at the ornament. Exchanging a few worried looks, the group continued past the ornament. But before the group had taken more than fifteen steps, they found themselves back in front of the ornament again.
"Okay, whatever is going on, I don't like it," Tyson said.
"Me neither," Mia replied.
"Something looks different about the ornament," Savannah said. When they had stopped, she had turned to gaze at it some more, wondering why they were continually brought back to it. "See?" she asked, pointing at the blue-filled circle near the top. "This one was completely blue before – now there's a black line in it." The others looked closer and sure enough, a small black line had appeared in the blue circle. As they looked, something seemed to move at the edge of Mia's vision. She turned her head but didn't see anything. As she was turning her head back towards the ornament, she saw something above it.
"Eik!" she screamed and pointed her flashlight at the wall above the ornament. The rest of the group jumped in fear and looked to where Mia was pointing. Above the ornament, the symbols on the wall had started to glow a soft purple and slowly started moving around.
"The wall has come alive…" Savannah said softly, as they gazed at the symbols rearranging themselves.
"All the more reason to get out of here!" Tyson urged, but not even his own body followed his advice. Suddenly, the symbols stopped moving around, though they continued to glow.
"I think it's a message," Savannah said, all traces of fear gone from her body.
"Can you read it?" Casey asked, though a part of him wondered why that was even important at the time.
"Not quite," Savannah said, straining her eyes. "Something about a resting place… and then something with a sword, no a demon sword…"
"That's it, we're leaving now!" Tyson said. Just then, the blue sphere on the ornament started to pulse with a soft, blue light. The group stared at the light, as if mesmerized, unable to break away.
"I'm starting to feel tired…" Mia yawned, all concerns for her own, and her friends, safety gone.
"Me too," Tyson yawned and slumped to the floor.
"I guess a small nap can't hurt…" Savannah said as she too slumped down, propped against the wall.
"Just a small nap…" Casey said as his eyes slowly drifted together. Just before he fell asleep, he thought he saw the letters come out of the wall. Then all was black and he drifted off to sleep.
The morning sun was shining brightly, with nary a cloud in the skies. A flock of Pidgey flew by overhead, casting but a short and fleeting shadow on the path below; a path rarely walked so early in the morning. A lone Sentret, standing on its tail, were observing the three travelers, two young men and an older one, as they followed the path from the village towards the Forbidden. The Sentret lowered itself and ran closer, only to stop and take another close look. As it watched the group it focused on the old man, a man which the Sentret knew well. That man had been walking these paths regularly since long before the Sentret's birth. The old man had walked the path for so long, that an old Noctowl who lived in the area, could remember seeing the man walk the path, back when it was a small Hoothoot. Making up its mind, the small Sentret fell back on its legs and ran towards the small group. It didn't take long on its fleet feet and it soon popped out of the grass, rising up on its tail, looking expectedly at the old man.
"Hello, Sentret," the old man said as he signaled for his young companions to stop. The Sentret looked at the two other. They appeared to be two children, nowhere near adulthood yet. For a brief moment, Sentret felt disappointed in itself, until it remembered that it was hard to gauge the age of Humans. The two young humans looked the same to Sentret, with the exception of their head-fur. One had an angry red, the other a calm brown like Sentret's own fur.
"Tret," Sentret replied, holding out its small arms.
"I suppose you'll want a treat, right?" the old man asked with a smile, his hand already rummaging through his pocket. The Sentret whiffed the air, scenting the treat in the pocket. "Here you go," the old man said as he kneeled down, holding forward a brown treat. The Sentret took it happily and scurried into the grass before it started munching, keeping an eye on the group.
"Wauw, Professor," one of the two boys, the brown-furred one, said. "That was amazing. How did you talk to it like that?"
"It wasn't talking, at least not the way you or I talk," the old man said. "It was more… Ah, how do I explain this…? It was a connection of feelings, a mutual understanding. It knows me from my repeated visits and I sometimes carry Pokémon food. I guess some of the Pokémon here have come to trust me in a way." The old man looked at the two boys, who were filled with equal parts admiration and confusion. The old man smiled. "You will understand once you become Trainers."
"I just can't wait!" the other child, the red-furred one, said. "I really want to be a Pokémon Trainer."
"All in due time, my young students," the old man said. "All in due time."
What is this…? Casey thought as he looked down on the events which occurred below him. Am I dreaming? On the path below, the group continued their march towards their destination. The two children ran ahead, racing each other to some unknown milestone. It doesn't feel like a dream… A memory? Below, the old man had burst into a run too and quickly overtaken the youngsters, who immediately cried foul. If so, why am I remembering this? Below, the old man had fallen over, panting from exhaustion. The two children had gathered around him, not sure what to do, if anything. Professor Willows… Tyson… The old man finally got up and the small group staggered on, getting ever closer to their destination. Professor…
Suddenly, the world below turned to shades of grey and everything seemed to blur. What's going on? Casey thought, as the world below him started to spin. At first, it spun slowly, but it soon picked up speed, until everything below him was a mass of blurred grey. Then even that disappeared and all was black.
After a while, the darkness slowly lifted, to reveal another world below. The weather was much the same as before – sunny and warm – but the scenery had changed. The previous dirt path through meadow greens had been replaced by a hard-stamped earth path through woods. The forest seemed vast and endless, with lots of shadow. A group of people were walking the trail, picking their way through the forest.
What's going on? he thought to himself, as he peered at the group far below. Is this… another memory?
The group entered a clearing – the end of their journey. In front of them was a small building, like a shed or a shrine. The building was constructed entirely out of wood and resembled a house from the Japanese middle-ages. The outer walls were simplistically decorated with carvings, to obscure to make sense off after all the years they had been exposed to the elements. In front of the house was a small staircase, going up only a few steps to the main porch and door.
I wish I could get a better look, Casey thought and immediately, the world seemed to zoom in around him., until he found himself level with the group. Casey took a single look at the building and immediately realized where he was. That's the Forest Shrine!
The scene changed and a small room with wooden walls replaced the great forest. The walls were carved with intricate symbols, lit up by candles placed alongside the walls, burning with uncanny flames that never seemed to wear the candle down. At the back of the room was a small altar, a single red gemstone lying on it. Vector crashed into the room, breaking the eons of tranquility the place had seen, and rushed towards the gemstone. After him came a young boy.
That's me! Casey gasped as he saw himself tumble into the room in pursuit of Vector. Then this is a memory!
"You're too late, boy" Vector said with a maniacal smile. He raised the ruby and hurled it to the floor, the impact drowning out his last taunt. A red flash burst forth from the gemstone as it cracked open, and a green furred Pokémon with large round antlers appeared. Vector's eyes narrowed as he called out a Pokémon of his own. His Grumpig, the black and purple, bipedal pig-like Pokémon that Casey had seen only once, now reappeared before him, a savage grin on its face. The Grumpig launched its first attack but the Stantler seemed unaffected.
The great green Pokémon cried out, as it charged at Grumpig and Vector. Its hooves thundered against the floor as it approached on swift, powerful legs. Before either Vector or Grumpig could do anything, the Stantler whipped its head, sending both of them flying towards the exit. The pair crashed against the ground, skidding to a stop just in front of the entrance. Vector shook his head and was about to stand up, but Stantler had already traversed the room once more, this time sending them flying away through the entrance with a powerful impact.
Vector… Casey thought as he saw the Stantler turn its attention to the apparition of himself. Just what was he after?
The Stantler slowly approached a curled up Casey. When it had him cornered, the Stantler lowered its muzzle, touching him on the forehead. Then, the green Pokémon turned around and paced over to its broken gemstone. Its antlers started to shimmer softly and ever so slowly, the ruby reassembled itself. Once finished, the Stantler cast a last glance at Casey, before fading away.
That Stantler… Casey thought, as he watched himself leave the room. It didn't seem like Vector was even after the Stantler. I'd completely forgotten that. But then what… Wait a minute! Casey looked around and saw that the room was devoid of life. If this was all but a memory, why am I still here? Then, something on the wall caught his eye. It was a carving, a symbol, but one that he had seen before. Then it struck him – one of the carvings was a glyph which looked like an 'O', only pressed a little flat, with a line stretching to either side. It's the same writing as in the ruins! Casey realized and stared at the writing in shock.
But before he had time to recover, the glyphs seemed to glow softly and the world around him faded away. Just before everything became enveloped in blackness, he thought he saw the glyphs leave the wall once more.
The view from atop of the cliffs was breathtaking. Standing at the edge of the cliffs, one could see the ocean as far as the eye could see. The sun, which had peaked in its orbit and were already slowly descending, could be seen reflected in the water. A soft breeze caused it to ripple, scattering the sun in the water. Turning around, one could see the small forest which stood near the cliffs, as well as an old lighthouse, not too far away. A van was parked nearby. Next to it sat a man, engrossed in his laptop.
What is this? Casey thought, as he looked down on it all. This place seems familiar somehow, but not like a memory…
Just then, a loud rumble could be heard, coming from the water. The surface started to ripple, then rose slightly as a small hill. Then, all of a sudden, the hill burst and a huge, white creature emerged from the deep, something hanging on to its back. The white creature soared into the air, where it began to twist and turn, trying to get rid of whatever was clinging to it. The white creature then angled towards the ground, flying at a breakneck pace. The man on the ground had a worried look on his face and was scurrying to pack up his van, while whatever clung to the white creature held on tight during the descent.
The white creature angled up, only inches above the ground. As it leveled out, whatever had held on tight let go and rolled to the ground, quickly getting back on its feet
That's a person! Casey thought in shock as the drenched man pulled out a Poké Ball.
"Lampent, quick, use Shadow Ball" the man called as he unleashed his Pokémon. The Pokémon looked a lot like an old-fashion lamp as it folded its arms to create a ball of ghostly, dark energy, which it hurled at the white creature, which Casey deduced had to be a Pokémon as well. In the air, the white Pokémon countered by sending a wave of green-colored air back. The two attacks collided and exploded, sending shockwaves through the ground.
Is that Vector? Casey thought, as he studied the young man. No, it's not Vector, Casey decided as the man called out for his Pokémon to attack again. Then who is it?
The Lampent conjured up six small, purple flames and flung them at the white Pokémon. The white Pokémon tried to evade but was hit by the fires. The white Pokémon shrieked in pain and shot a great torrent of water back at the Lampent, which took the attack head on. Both Pokémon prepared to attack again, sending their attacks into a massive clash, which the white Pokémon was slowly, but surely, losing.
This must be the 'Guardian of the Sea,' Casey thought with awe as he watched the battle transpire.
The Lampent gave a final burst of energy and the white Pokémon was pushed back. The man ordered it to follow up with another attack. The Lampent's eyes glowed and the white Pokémon was enveloped in a dark-purple aura. As it tried to counter, the Lampent aborted its attack and flung another dark ball of energy at the Guardian, which returned the attack with yet another green burst of air. The two attacks collided head on and exploded, sending everyone flying. The man and his Pokémon landed together but the Guardian was thrown out to sea.
Just then, the van from before arrived, and a man sprang out and began to help the trainer who had battled the Guardian. The man found his phone and started to make a call, but before Casey could listen in, everything faded to black once more.
Now where am I? Casey wondered as he looked down on the scene beneath him. It was a dense forest, with trees as far as the eye could see to the east. To the west, he spotted a somewhat open plain and to the south Mt. Modnaid could be seen rising from the ground. But there was something different this time. Even though he could easily see the forest, it felt blurred. The great mountain in the distance was hazy, and not just because of the distance. Something's wrong here, Casey thought.
A noise sounded from below, like the dull thump of an explosion. A creaking sound could be heard and all around the base of the sound, trees began to fall. A green blast of air shot from the ground into the air at an angle, felling more trees. It passed through a flock of flying bird Pokémon, some of which fell to the ground, the remainder scattering. Then, something shot up from the ground. It looked like the Guardian, only much too small. The small white Pokémon breathed in, then whipped its head downwards, releasing a pent up force of green air, which cot down several more trees. The Pokémon shrieked again, only to be hit by a small, blue ray from below. The Pokémon gave a final shriek as it struggled against its captors, but to no avail. The beam enveloped the tiny Guardian and it was sucked downwards.
Casey stared at the scene in horror and once more wished he could get a closer look. And just like before, he was drawn closer to the source.
The Pokémon was sucked into a black sphere, with two grey bands which crossed each other like an 'X,' meeting at a small button. Above the button, a golden 'O' decorated the sphere. "Well, well, well," the man who held the sphere said. "I would say our testing was most fruitful." An evil smile flickered over his lips.
Casey shivered as he saw the man. Vector! Just the sight of him was enough to make his blood boil. But at the same time, he felt a twisted wave of evil, making his hairs stand on edge and every instinct in his body telling him to run away.
"Everyone, pack up and let's return to base," Vector said, barking out orders. Then, all but the area destroyed by the tiny guardian faded away, leaving Casey's world an irregular circle of felled trees. Cries of injured Pokémon filled the air. All of them had been hurt by the incident, many of them badly. Casey knew instinctively that many of them would not make it and it filled him with sadness.
When Casey slowly opened his eyes, he thought that he had gone blind. There was nothing to see, only darkness. There was nothing to feel, only cold, hard rock. Am I still dreaming? he wondered, as he tried to make heads and tails of all that happened. A soft groan shook him out of his wondering and he heard someone scramble about. Then he heard a click. Then saw an explosion of light.
"Ugh… my head," Tyson groaned as he slowly sat up, a lit flashlight in hand.
"Tyson, are you okay?" Casey asked as he searched the floor for his own flashlight.
"I think so," Tyson replied, rubbing the side of his head.
"Ugh… what happened?" Mia asked, as she too gained consciousness.
"I don't know," Casey said, rubbing his forehead. "I think we fell asleep."
"Speaking of that, where are we?" Tyson asked, as he looked around the room. The room seemed small and dark, rudely covered in cut stone.
"It looks like some sort of ruins…" Mia replied hesitantly. "But I can't remember why we're here."
"We were here to help someone… I think," Casey said slowly, trying to recall. There was something, something important, at the edge of his memory. Something he felt like he should be able to remember. But the harder he tried, the more elusive the memory became, until it completely vanished.
A loud rumble forced Casey's mind back to reality. "Sorry, that was me," Tyson said. "I guess I'm pretty hungry."
"That's why I told you to…" Mia started then trailed off. "I told you to… I told you something, didn't I?" she asked concerned.
"I say we worry about that once we're out of here," Casey said. The two other teens agreed. They quickly gathered their belongings and headed for a hole in the wall, which they surmised they had entered through. Mia stepped through first, eager to put it all behind her. Tyson followed. Before stepping through, Casey cast a last glance back, feeling like he had forgotten something. But there was nothing left in the room. With a shrug, Casey left the room empty and his worries behind.
How was that? A bit more spooky than some of the last chapters, but I feel like we've been going lightly for a little too long now. For those of you who were missing the whole "mysterious" aspect I advertised in the beginning of the arc, it starts here. This has been planned since about chapter 10, so I hope it's worth the wait.
As I mentioned before, I had some trouble with the latter part of this chapter, the dreams/flashbacks/visions. I knew I wanted them there, I knew what Casey was supposed to see... But I struggled a lot with the format. Should I have italics to describe the scene or not? Should Casey's thinking be in italics? Should I describe what he sees or what occurs? And so on and on. In the end, I did wind up using italics to describe the scenes that happen and normal text when its something regarding Casey, allowing me to keep thoughts in italic. I hope I got away with it well, I like to think I did.
In other news, Pokémon X/Y just came out. And man, that game is big! Huge region, with a regional dex of 400+ Pokémon, with most Pokémon only occurring in one or two places. I've spent about 16 hours on it already, have just under 90 Pokémon registered, I'm on my third box, have done some slight trading and spent a good deal of time doing Core- and Super Training (a fairly easy way of raising EV's). To those out there who haven't gotten it yet, look forward to it. Once the new Dream World is up and running I'll be posting my friend code on the forum, so those who want to join me are welcome.
Speaking of forums, make sure to hop in there and discuss the events of this chapter as well as your theories. And leave a review on the story to let others know what you think. See you all next time.
Party listing:
Casey:
Turtwig; Male; Nickname: Twurt; Type: Grass; Ability: Overgrowth; Current Moves: Tackle - Razor Leaf - Seed Bomb - Absorb
Corphish; Male; Nickname: Ruffer; Type: Water; Ability: Hyper Cutter; Current Moves: ViceGrip - Leer - Harden - Bubble
Joltik; Female; Nickname: Tjoule; Type: Bug/Electric; Ability: Compoundeyes; Current Moves: Spider Web - Thunder Wave - Screech - Electroweb
Tyson:
Torchic; Female; Nickname: Corona; Type: Fire; Ability: Blaze; Current Moves: Peck - Growl - Flame Burst - Ember
Karrablast; Male; Nickname: Clamper; Type: Bug; Ability: Swarm; Current Moves: Peck - Leer - Endure - Fury Cutter
Tynamo; Male; Nickname: Lieel; type: Electric; Ability: Levitate; Current Moves: Tackle - Thunder Wave - Spark - Charge Beam
Mia:
Totodile; Female; Nickname: Jaws; Type: Water; Ability: Torrent; Current Moves: Bite - Water Gun - Ice Fang - Aqua Jet
Horsea; Female; Nickname: Equina; Type: Water; Ability: Sniper; Current Moves: BubbleBeam - SmokeScreen - Water Gun - Focus Energy