Darkness swirled and surrounded a feminine figure as it began to sway back and forth, as many strangely shaped shadows followed it.
Ominous music played throughout the room, echoing out through the cold blackness as the figure suddenly stopped.
"Ah, they're here.." the woman spoke softly as a small, confident smirk creeped up onto her smooth face, "I can't wait to hold that boy's head under my boot."
[Elsewhere... ]
The shining sun hid behind the clouds that were gathering over the city, the blue sky darkening as the afternoon started to fade into the past.
The city itself wasn't too large, but it wasn't small by any means, either. New Kingston had bustling streets with busses and trams making their way down and up its various roads, on top of its buildings which were mostly homes or shops.
Josh sighed as he walked through the gates of the city, smiling warmly towards the city as he stopped suddenly. "Finally, we're here! I haven't seen civilization in so long!"
"It's only been three days, Josh!" Danny protested, the cool air of the evening blowing against his face as he stepped onto a nearby sidewalk while he walked.
Joey snickered, his eyes following Danny. "You know him, he always likes to exaggerate. Ain't that right, Josh?"
"Oh, shut your mouth, Joey!" Josh replied jokingly, making his way onto the sidewalk as well while he looked deeper into the city. "Where's a Pokemon Center when you want one? I hate these big cities.."
"Well, this city isn't really too big," Danny replied, taking the Kirei guidebook out from his shirt pocket before flipping through it, "We could always sleep at a hotel. It'd be a nice to sleep on comfy beds instead of rough hospital beds for once."
"Good idea," Joey praised him, giving him a discreet thumbs up, "Though, I'm sure Josh wants to go battle the gym leader as soon as possible."
"Damn right!" Josh answered enthusiastically, almost appearing to be jittery if it weren't for the fact he looked incredibly determined, it was as if a fire burning in his eyes.
"Well, Joey, could you go get us a hotel? You can call me when you've found one and give me directions, and I'll relay it to Josh! I think I'll go walk around and check out the shops." Danny suggested, nodding as he looked over the two of his friends.
"I'm fine with that. I think I'm going to try and find the gym. So see you guys later!" Josh said, suddenly sprinting away from the two of them in search of the New Kingston gym.
Danny and Joey both nodded at each other before walking opposite directions, both curious as to what the city held for them.
[Ten minutes pass, Joey's point of view]
Joey pushed his way through the door of a five story hotel, the atmosphere of the lobby feeling quite relaxing to his body.
It was what you would expect of a lobby, having white tile floors and white walls, with a ceiling to match. The receptionist sat at her desk, staring at the screen of her laptop, not noticing the young man that had begun to walk over to her.
"Hey, miss? I want to buy three rooms." Joey stated, though the woman didn't seem to budge. He brought his fist up and coughed into it loudly - almost violently - to get her attention.
"Huh? Oh, uh, hello, sir. What is it that you wanted?" The receptionist asked, closing her laptop as she set it to the side.
"I want to buy three rooms, me and my friends will be staying for around a week," Joey stated, pulling out his wallet and slid a few Poke Dollar bills onto the counter, "This should cover this week."
"H-huh?" Flabbergasted, the woman picked up the money and counted. "You're right.. Uh, enjoy your stay at the New Kingston Hotel, sir!"
Joey snatched the keys from her hands before turning around, walking away from the counter. He began to walk down the first hallway, only for a familiar voice to fill his ears.
"Oh, Joey, is that you?" They asked curiously. When Joey turned around, he had managed to see it was Professor Maple.
"Oh, Professor Maple! What are you doing in New Kingston, man?" Joey asked, sliding a hand into one of his pockets, happy to see the professor.
Maple smirked, pleased that the teenager was happy to see him. "Just doing some research on some local species. But, uh, where are the other two?"
"Well, I was just getting rooms for the three of us. Danny is going around town to shop, and Josh should be going to the gym like a reckless dumbass." Joey informed him, putting a hand on his hip as he grumbled quietly.
Maple scratched the hair on his head, replying, "You don't need to be so rude! When you're all done with everything, I want you to come back here. I need to discuss something very important with the three of you."
Joey, curious, tilted his head. "Huh? Uh.. alright, Professor. I'll try to remember to tell them." He agreed, a bit confused by his sudden change in tone.
"Alright, thank you. I'm going to head back to my room to talk to my associate, so I'll see you in a couple of hours." Maple uttered a bit solemnly, turning to walk back to his room as Joey only looked onward, his keys dangling in his left hand.
[Meanwhile... ]
Josh stepped inside one of the trams running through one of the cities, his bag hanging over his shoulder as he looked to the driver. "Where does this tram stop at?"
"New Kingston Gym, home to Dina! Are you a challenger?" The older man asked, his voice weak as he looked at the younger boy.
"I am. Do you got any advice for a youngster like me?" Josh asked, taking the front seat of the tram as he looked out a window.
"Dina uses ghost-type Pokemon, and she's known for being ruthless in her battles! I wish you luck!" The old man replied cheerfully as the tram started to move once more.
Josh felt someone sit in the seat next to him, but he didn't expect what came next when he turned around to see who it was.
"Hey, Josh! You like these fabulous trams, too?!" Isha wondered loudly, throwing an arm around Josh's shoulder excitedly.
Josh, surprised, nearly pushed Isha out of the seat from his pure shock. "Isha, what the hell are you doing here?!"
"I was gonna go to the gym and tell the gym leader her ghost pokemon are so not fabulous! I think her name is.. Dinosaur, right?" Isha asked, putting his index finger on his bottom lip curiously.
"It's Dina, Isha," Josh responded, pinching the bridge of his nose in annoyance, "Don't you have anything better to do?"
"Not really!" Isha exclaimed honestly, moving one of his hands to flip his long, silky dark hair behind his shoulder, "So I'm coming with you, my not so fabulous friend!"
Josh began to grit his teeth, clearly irritated as Isha began to poke and prod at his chest. "Okay, I get it! You can come, as long as you don't get in the way of my battle."
"Yay!" Isha cheered, laying back in the seat as he propped his feet up on top of it, his hands behind his head as he stared ahead.
[A few minutes later... ]
The tram came to a sudden stop, the old man driving it started to stare back at Josh and Isha. "Here's your stop, kids!"
Isha scooted out of his seat and practically danced out of the tram, followed by Josh who had been following rather quickly, visibly eager for the upcoming battle.
Looking forward, the building looked just like any other one. It had a steel door, the building seemingly made out of bricks that had been painted white.
To the left of a door was a sign that read: New Kingston Gym, Home to Dina, the Brutal Ghost Pokemon Master.
Josh smirked, attempting to hide his excitement as he walked closer to the door. "Seems normal, but it's time to expect the unexpected. Come on, Isha!"
Isha ran inside as Josh pushed the door to the side, trying to get a good look at the gym. It seemed fairly normal. It had wooden floors, bleachers to the left and right of him, and there was a woman standing in the middle of the room.
"Welcome, challenger!" The woman shouted. Her hair seemed very thick, it being long and dark brown in appearance as it nearly fell to the middle of her back. With it, she wore a black leather jacket with a black t-shirt under it, as well as a pair of blue jeans and black boots to match the jacket, "I was told to expect your arrival! You're Josh, correct? I'm Dina, the New Kingston gym leader!"
Josh's emerald eyes attempted to scan her. She was confident, that's for sure, and she clearly had a reason for that. "I'm Josh, yeah. Someone told you about me? Guess they're worried about how fast I've been beating you guys."
"Now, don't get cocky, kid." Dina smirked before snickering, taking a pokeball out of her jeans, rolling it around in her hand. "You've had a few slip-ups like everyone else. I'll see to it that I'm the strongest trainer you've fought yet. After all, you've just hit the halfway mark. I've been instructed by Victor himself to give you everything I got, so that's what I'll do."
Josh felt a twinge of fear at the mention of Victor. Was it the Victor he was thinking of? Because he knew the champion of Kirei shared that very same name. Regardless, he couldn't help but shake in his shoes for a second or two.
"Alright.." Josh murmured to himself, his eyes following Isha as he scooted to the bleachers to the left, his hands on his cheeks, "Isha, don't come down here. I have a feeling things are gonna get ugly."
"You have no idea, kid." Dina's smirk suddenly faded as she gave a slight nod towards Josh, her foot suddenly stomping onto the gym floor. "Lights out!"
"Huh?" Josh wondered aloud, clueless as the lights in the gym suddenly shut off, leaving the two of them in utter darkness, though a monitor appeared in front of Isha, showing the two of them.
"Oh, this is wonderful!" Isha commented, laying back as he stared up at the monitor, a growing smile on his pleased face.
"You better be ready, Josh! Go, Doublade!" Dina shouted as she tossed out her pokeball, a dim light growing across the poorly lit room as the pokeball opened up on the floor.
Out from the ball came two sheathed swords attached to one another, both of them stuck to a plaque of some sort. Each had an intricate design on their sheath, and had a singular pink eye with a black iris near the top. From each of the swords came a purple tassle that slowly brightened as it continued, eventually brightening to a pink color.
Doublade, the sword Pokemon. The complex patterns of its two swords are unstoppable, even for an opponent greatly accomplished at swordplay.
"Doublade, huh? Well, go, Pancham!" Josh shouted back, tossing his pokeball onto the hard gym floor as his panda bear partner was released from his ball, his tiny black fingers tipping the half cap on its head.
"Using a fighting type against a ghost type, huh? Kid sure is strange, he must have something up his sleeve.." Dina muttered, keeping a close eye on the panda bear pokemon. "Doublade, use swords dance!"
Doublade started to move throughout the shadows as if it were second nature, the sheathed swords spinning around as Josh started to ball his hand into a fist.
"Pancham, I need you to trust me. Rush Doublade!" Josh ordered, his eyes focusing on the weaving pair of swords as Pancham nodded, dashing towards its enemy.
"The hell? Doublade, hurry and use shadow sneak!" Dina commanded her partner, watching as it departed into the shadows to the right of Pancham.
Pancham suddenly stopped in its tracks, looking both ways in confusion. Suddenly, Doublade came out from the left, striking Pancham in the abdomen heavily with the side of its body.
"Now, aerial ace!" Dina shouted, not letting Josh get an opening in on her. Doublade floated backwards, only to try and bring its sheathed blade onto Pancham's smaller body.
"Pancham, foul play!" Josh managed to yell at the very last moment, a dark Purple energy forming in the panda bear's hand as it reached out, stopping Doublade in its tracks.
Doublade suddenly cried in anguish as what seemed to be dark purple electricity coursed through its metallic body, causing it to fall to the gym floor due to the overload.
"Huh? Oh, I see.. Foul Play takes my Pokemon's attack and turns it against them. Smart kid.." Dina praised him quietly, tossing out another pokeball after returning Doublade to its own, "Golett, I choose you!"
Golett stands at about three feet tall, and seems rather bulky despite its small size. In coloration, it is a mix of a lighter blue and a darker blue. Its body is mainly spherical. It has four brown, seemingly leather straps coming from all four corners of its body, meeting at a blue square with a yellow swirl in the middle.
Golett, the Automaton Pokemon. The energy that burns inside it enables it to move, but no one has yet been able to identify this energy.
"Golett, use shadow punch!" Dina instructed the clay golem, watching as it sank its head into the floor, leaving Josh confused.
"Huh? But.." Josh looked towards the Golett, only to be distracted from it as a disembodied, black hand flew out of the darkness and landed on Pancham's left cheek. "Shit, I'm sorry, Pancham!"
"Pan.." Pancham gave him a thumbs up, turning back to Golett as the fist suddenly stopped in midair, as if it was waiting for Golett's orders.
"Pancham, grass knot!" Josh directed his partner, watching as Pancham extended out his arm as he ran towards Golett.
Golett, as it stared down, began to sweat a little. It watched as two vines slipped out of the ground beneath it, entangling its feet as it suddenly jerked forward, forcing the heavy golem to fall flat on its face.
"Your Pancham knows grass knot? You're a smart kid.. Since Pancham isn't very fast, you sacrificed that for strategy. I like you!" Dina praised him, smiling confidently at Josh as the shadow hand dissipated into the air.
"You flatter me," Josh replied, smirking, "But that won't get you anywhere in this battle. Pancham, charge!"
"Golett, use magnitude, quickly!" Dina decreed, watching as the clay golem put its heavy hands on the floor. It began to vibrate violently, the shakes making their way to Pancham as it started to wobble back and forth.
Pancham suddenly slid as it fell, falling unconscious - though it was the same case for Golett, who also took the heavy hit.
"Return!" The two of them said simultaneously, the red beams from their separate pokeballs taking their partners back into their rightful rest.
"No rest for either of us! Go, Haunter!" Dina yelled excitedly, it was almost as if she was having the time of her life in this battle.
Out from the ball came a Pokemon that was purple in coloration, having a gaseous body as well as it hovered above the floor. On each side of its headed are three jagged protrusions, its eyes being large and triangular with small pupils. Haunter has an obscenely long tongue in its pink mouth, which holds several pointed teeth.
Haunter, the Gas Pokemon. It licks with its gaseous tongue to steal the victim's life force. It lurks in darkness for prey.
"Raichu, go!" Josh cried, his two foot tall electric mouse spiraling out from its pokeball, electricity surrounding its plump body.
The room began to light up from the sheer power that radiated from the electric rat, much to Josh's pleasure. Raichu stared at Haunter with determination on its chubby face.
"Raichu, use wild charge!" Josh ordered as he pointed his finger towards the gaseous ghost, watching as Raichu covered itself in electricity as it dashed on all fours towards Haunter.
"Counter with venoshock, Haunter!" Dina commanded hurriedly, her ghost partner opening its mouth wide as a sickly green glob shot out from its pink mouth.
The glob of poison slapped against Raichu's back, causing it to cry out and wince in pain, though it didn't stop for a second. Raichu slammed its electrified body against Haunter,
Haunter cried out in pain but immediately retaliated as a dark energy surrounded one of its floating hands, its claws suddenly raking against Raichu's side, the pain being enough for Raichu to jump to a safe distance.
"Raichu, can you keep going?" Josh questioned, getting a confident nod in response from his electric rodent. "Alright.. Hit that Haunter with thunder wave!"
A bright, yellow aura surrounded Raichu before it yelled loudly, sending four bolts of electricity from its light yellow cheeks.
Haunter attempted to dodge out of the way, weaving in the air only for the bolts of electricity to bind Haunter's body, one by one.
"Haunter, shadow ball!" Dina commanded, clearly tensing up as a ball of purple energy began to form at its mouth, only for it to dissipate as the gaseous mass flinched.
"Raichu, thunderbolt!" Josh instructed his partner, smirking as Raichu jumped high in the air as it cried loudly, a large bolt of lightning crashing down onto Haunter, smoke beginning to rise from its gaseous body from the sheer power coursing through its body.
Haunter moved left and right weakly, though fell to the ground weakly, unconscious. "You did well, Haunter. Return." Dina murmured, sending Haunter back to its pokeball.
"So is this battle over yet, Dina? I still have three Pokemon left, and you have, what, one?" Josh teased, a poised air surrounding him.
"Don't underestimate your opponent, kid, even when it seems like you're about to win! Go, Trevenant!" Dina shouted assertively, tossing out her final pokeball.
Trevenant is a slender tree with brown bark covering the majority of its body, and it stand on six roots that bend like an arachnid's. Its bark breaks in various places, showing nothing but shadow. On the top of its body is shadow with a menacing red eye in the middle. Its head has two jagged branches protruding out from each side, having a few tiny leaves on each. On top of its head is a smaller jagged branch with a bush behind it. From its sides it has two long arms which form into sharp claws, both having lush bushes before meeting the three fingered claws.
Trevenant, the Elder Tree Pokemon. It can control trees at will. It will trap people who harm the forest, so they can never leave.
"Use horn leech, Trevenant!" Dina yelled, pointing at the rodent. Trevenant's spider-like legs scuttered to Raichu, bending its head down as it grabbed each side of the rodent, stabbing its chest with its middle branch.
"Raichu, break free! Thunderbolt!" Josh shouted worriedly, watching as green orbs of energy flew into Trevenant, despite the lightning coursing through its body.
Raichu murmured for a moment, attempting to swing at the ghost pokemon, but to no avail. It fell flat on its face, its energy drained.
"Damn it," Josh murmured, pointing his pokeball towards Raichu before it sucked it back up, "That's a grass type move.. That means Frogadier won't do much good here and is guaranteed to get knocked out in a single blow.."
"What are you mumbling about, kid? Have you given up?" Dina taunted as Trevenant slid back in front of her, its claws eager to sink into something.
"Far from it," Josh replied, sliding a pokeball out from his pocket, "I only have one shot at beating you, so here it goes! Go, Ponyta!"
The fire horse neighed as it landed on all four, staring straight ahead at the ghostly tree that had been wiggling its three fingered claws.
"Flame wheel, Ponyta!" Josh directed. Ponyta galloped towards Trevenant, its body being slowly engulfed in flames as they began to spin.
"Phantom Force!" Dina cried out, watching as Trevenant suddenly slipped into the shadows, causing the fire horse to suddenly stop, the torrent of flames dissipating.
Suddenly, Trevenant slipped out from below Ponyta and slammed its left claw against its underbelly, though a small bit of fire scorched that limb as its red eye widened from the burning sensation.
"Ponyta, use flame charge!" Josh reacted, smiling brightly as Ponyta caught itself in the air, a shield of flames covering the front of it as it fell back down, slamming against the top of Trevenant's head.
Trevenant growled before one of its claws suddenly gained a green aura in the form of a stump, slamming it upon Ponyta's left side as flames licked at its bark-like skin.
Ponyta, though not affected by the attack much, jumped back and panted heavily. Trevenant did the same, flames still running through its body.
"Trevenant, use Forest's Curse!" Dina cried as purple roots suddenly broke out from the gym floor, wrapping Ponyta's legs up tightly, "Now, phantom force!"
Trevenant suddenly sank into the shadows. Seconds passed as it waited for a perfect opening as Ponyta struggled with the roots holding it back.
"Ponyta.. Use fire spin to light the room up!" Josh shouted in desperation, a cyclone of fire erupting from the steed's mouth as it spun onto the floor, lighting up the room completely, showing that Trevenant was just a few inches away from the fire horse, "Now, blast it with inferno!"
As an eruption of blue fire shot straight at the menacing elder tree, Dina shouted for Trevenant to run away, but to no avail. The fire engulfed Trevenant completely, charring its skin as it fell hard on the cold floor, the blue flames on its body slowly dissipating.
Dina looked down almost formally as the red beam from her pokeball sucked Trevenant back inside as Josh did the same to his Ponyta.
Slowly, she walked over to him, holding something out in her hand as she sighed. She slowly looked up, a wide smile on her face. "You did well, Josh. I present to you the Banshee Badge!"
As Josh took it in his head, he managed to get a good look at it. It was in the shape of a purple figure with two sharp wings stretching out on both sides and two red eyes where its head should be.
Josh smiled warmly as he quickly inserted in his badge case, now taking up half of it. "That was so intense.. I didn't think I would win, but wow. You're a great trainer, Dina, there's no denying that."
"As are you," Dina replied, bowing respectfully to the boy, "I suggest you head to Deliburg City for your next gym battle. Dustin may not seem like much, but he handles fairy-type Pokemon really well."
"I'll keep that in mind! See you!" Josh said before looking up at the bleachers, noticing that Isha was combing his hair absentmindedly, "Hey, we're going!"
"Huh?" Isha wondered, his eyes suddenly focusing in on Josh. "Oh, I was just fixing my fabulous hair! Coming!"
Isha quickly hurried out of the gym right as Josh made his way out, the bright sun hurting his eyes before he was able to cover them.
"Ah, shit.." he murmured, obviously annoyed as he turned from left to right, "I wonder what there is to do now, besides wait for that phone call.."
[Elsewhere…]
Danny wandered through the overflowing streets, almost suffocating if it weren't for the fact that he was determined to get through this.
Suddenly, the crowd he was stuck in stopped as loud, aggressive shouting had begun to echo throughout the city.
Danny attempted to get a good look as he pushed his way through the stagnant crowd, his hazel eyes locking in on the scene.
What he saw was odd, but he was sure it was a pokemon. What appeared before him seemed to be a monkey. Its lower body was a bright red, as well as its top half. Its ears had bright orange circles in them. It had a cream colored belly, its arms sharing the same color. Those stretched into hands that resembled mittens. It had a red swirl atop its head as well as a short tail that resembled an arrowhead.
Pansear, the High Temp Pokemon. Very intelligent, it roasts berries before eating them. It likes to help people.
Danny noticed that it had a brown bag slung over its shoulder, its black eyes staring straight ahead, a tinge of fear on its face. It was so skinny to the point that it looked as if its ribs were about to explode out from its body.
A man stomped out from the shop, having what seemed to be a whip hanging over his shoulder. The Pansear backed up a little, the sack it was holding nearly falling out of its grip.
Danny felt his gut churn as he looked at the ongoing scene, but he suddenly took off, his feet not stopping for anything as he stopped in front of the Pokemon.
"Eh? What are you doin', kid?" The man asked, chewing loudly as his lips smacked, the whip on his shoulder slowly moving. "Mind yer own business."
Danny began to sweat, thinking to himself. I don't need to get into a fight. I just need to pick up this Pansear and run, but I'm sure this guy can catch up to me..
When Danny got a good look at him, the man was built fairly well, having very broad shoulders. "What did this Pansear do to you?" He asked a bit quietly, gritting his teeth.
"It stole a bag of rolls from my shop," the man replied, the smacking of lips infiltrating Danny's ears, irritating him, "So back off. It's a damn thief!"
Danny, without a second to waste, tossed out a pokeball. Suddenly, his enormous bird Pokemon flew out from the ball, hovering in the air as it batted its wings.
"Pidgeotto, carry us away!" Danny told his Pokemon hurriedly, picking up Pansear before hopping onto his trusty partner.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing?!" The man cried out, lashing his whip at Pidgeotto before it suddenly took off, the blast of air knocking the man flat on his rear.
[At the hotel…]
Josh hurried into the hotel, holding up his badge case victoriously, dancing around the lobby as he noticed Joey in the corner of his eye.
"You won the badge, I guess?" Joey asked, giving Josh a confident smirk as he slapped his back, looking both ways. "Uh, where's Danny?"
"Don't know," Josh answered, though he was quickly interrupted as the front doors flew open, "Huh? That could be him."
He looked at the person who had just entered, and it was indeed Danny, holding the Pansear from before in his arms.
"Hi, guys." Danny panted out, though he took a seat on one of the nearby cushioned chairs, staring up at the ceiling. "How did your days go?"
"Are you all here?" A familiar, lush voice asked as someone else stepped out from the hallway, which turned out to be Maple. "Oh, you're all here! Joey didn't even have to call."
"Professor? Why are you here? Danny, why do you have a monkey in your arms?" Josh asked quizzically, looking back from the professor and to Danny.
"You can talk about that later," Maple answered, turning his back on the three of them. "A friend of mine needs help, and I think it's about time you meet him."
The trio remained silent, looking upon Professor Maple to give them some more info as he fell silent, though his mouth opened once more.
"We're going to infiltrate Team Masquerade's base."