PMD: The Dawn of Life

Chapter 23: Seeds of Doubt

"So no Pokemon beyond the checkpoint? You're certain of that?" I asked, "It's almost too easy in that case"

"Well, no VILLAGE Pokemon will be around. I never said anything about wild Pokemon," Nuzleaf shook his head, "They aren't aware of the taboos at all, so they live here as if it was a regular mountain. We'll need to be on our toes"

"Lead the way then. You seem to know more about this place than we do," I offered, "Eden will stand between us as ranged support while I cover our flank"

"Sounds good. Follow me then," Nuzleaf nodded forlornly and took off towards the northern hallway of the dungeon, with me and Eden silently following behind. I didn't hear the cries of any Pokemon around, so the mountain must've been sparsely populated. It was a selfish request, but I was partially miffed at that fact. Fighting was one of the few things that cleared my head the best.

"And only I know that I need that more than ever now," I thought to myself as I summoned my Leaf Blade to my right hand out of instinct and comfort. The feeling of the sword's hilt made me feel safe, "All will be clear by the end of today. So why am I feeling so troubled right now…?"

All things considered, this journey should've made me hopeful. I was finally going to be able to figure out my past and purpose here, after months of agony. Yet with every step I took, the sharper the claws of a shadow dug into my back. Staring at Nuzleaf's back ahead of me only brought panic to my heart.

"Azri," Eden said gently to me, snapping me out of my thoughts, "It's going to be okay. We'll find out the truth at the top of this mountain. Look forward to that"

"Easy for you to say. I'm… just lost in thought. About the lack of Pokemon around here," I lied. I didn't want any of my thoughts being exposed verbally to Nuzleaf, "We've been wandering around the floor for a fair bit right now and nothing has attacked us"

"I reckon not many Pokemon are able to migrate here due to the opposing factions laying claim on the region," Nuzleaf explained without turning back to us, "Serene Village and the Groudon Sect cover both sides of Revelation Mountain"

"Which means the only Pokemon present are ones who arrived before the village or the sect," Eden carefully deduced, "Good for us then. Less opposition"

"Indeed. Though don't let your guard down," Nuzleaf tilted his head towards a chunk of rock nearby, "... Dried Mightyena dung is scattered around here. Hard to tell how old, but that means there's a presence around here"

"As long as we stick to these hallways, we should be alright," I thought aloud, "Forcing them down a chokepoint means we only need to deal with one at a time"

"Not so. While this is a mountainous dungeon, the dungeon layout didn't generate walls in the hallways. Rather, it's just a dirt path forming the dungeon layout," Nuzleaf gestured to the nearby craggy environment, "Meaning we can technically traverse "through the walls", but so can our enemies"

"So we'll be surrounded if we get caught by a Mightyena pack. Got it," Eden bit his lip before reaching into his bag, cautiously pulling out a collection of wands, "I'll keep these on hand then"

"Good idea. You two are becoming excellent dungeon explorers," Nuzleaf had a flash of proud approval in his face before it rapidly faded, "Anyhow our best chance at beating a potential Mightyena pack is to be quick on our feet. Let's keep moving"

We proceeded onward into the second floor, encountering few resistance across the way. The mountain seemed to be home to a couple dragons, as we encountered some Axew, Deino and Noibat throughout. However, they were all quashed fairly easily by Nuzleaf.

"Hrah!" Nuzleaf swiftly dodged a Deino's Dragon Rage, sweeping his legs beneath the blind dragon with Low Sweep and tripping it up before delivering a savage Pound to its head, knocking it out. An Axew charged from Nuzleaf's side with Tackle, but Nuzleaf held back the attack with his own strength, countering by punching the Axew in the ribs with Faint Attack. The dragon went down without a word, "Burdensome…"

"Hngh-yah!" I parried an incoming Slash attack from a Pawninard in front of me before delivering a strike of my own, staggering the Pawninard despite my type disadvantage. Before it could recover, Eden's flames washed over the metal soldier, melting it to death. Another one down,

but something was bothering me.

"Nuzleaf seems to be frustrated. He's taking down enemy Pokemon with such uncanny and ruthless efficiency," My intuition told me as we moved forward, our minor battle earlier scaring some enemy Pokemon away. A Mismagius suddenly flew by, launching a Shadow Ball towards us. Without a word, Nuzleaf shot a burst of darkness from his hand, blanking the attack and then countered, a javelin of shadows piercing the ghostly witch in an instant, "What is up with him now…?"

"Hurry along, you two. The early bird gets the worms," Nuzleaf encouraged, increasing his own speed and forcing us to keep up, "And the faster we can reach the oracle, the better"

"Why the rush? Will the oracle just up and leave if we don't make it in time?" Eden asked innocently, "I mean, I get the Mightyena pack is around us. But that isn't a big reason to get anxious"

"You underestimate them. Mightyena are a ravenous and vicious lot. The moment they show interest in attacking you, they'll pounce in a coordinated force that's impossible to defend against," Nuzleaf shook his head adamantly, "Which is why we need to move quick and nip problems at the bud as we go"

"Huh?" I was confused by the last part until we passed by a duo of Poochyenas sleeping blissfully in the shade nearby. They looked so peacefully and inoffensive I was content with passing them by, but Nuzleaf didn't think so. He manifested a ball of darkness in his hand and prepared to fire, "Nuzleaf! What are you doing?!"

Ignoring me, Nuzleaf whipped his hand in front of him like he was chunking a ball. A spear of dark energy rocketed from his hands towards the sleeping Pokemon. Before they could even cry, the projectile washed them over in darkness, obliterating them despite the type resistance. All that was left were their smoldering forms, wide-eyed and unconscious.

"If they noticed us, they would've scurried off and notified their leaders," Nuzleaf said coldly as we proceeded onward. I flashbacked to the first time I journeyed through a dungeon with Nuzleaf. His first lesson of combat was to sneak up on Pokemon to get the jump on them, using a sleeping Paras as an example.

"I didn't think about it at the time, but now that I've experienced dungeons more…" I muttered before raising my voice, "Nuzleaf, was that really necessary? They were just children, sleeping peacefully. There was no need to kill - murder - them there"

"And how are they any different from the other Pokemon we fought along the way?" Nuzleaf replied with a hint of hostility. His gaze pierced into me, chilling me in an uncomfortable way. The longer we stayed in this dungeon, the more Nuzleaf seemed to change, "They were obstacles to remove in our adventure. Nothing more"

"Only if they attack us first!" I protested, getting a little agitated, "These Pokemon have lives of their own - their own dreams and aspirations! And you just shattered them like it was nothing!"

"Oh and you suddenly grew a morality spine, did you?" Nuzleaf grit his teeth, trying to keep his cool, "Those pups would've been a threat to us if we let them live. For our safety, we had to remove them"

"And there's also the possibility of you know - the Poochyena would continue sleeping!" I snarled, stepping in front of the confused Eden to get in Nuzleaf's face. The poor fox was caught between our fighting, "Look, I'm not preaching that we should stop fighting dungeon Pokemon. If they attack us first, we have no choice but to counterattack. But this?"

I gestured to the dead corpses of the Poochyena far behind us, pointing to them with my sword.

"... This isn't right. It's murder. Child murder at that," I scolded, "We shouldn't kill Pokemon unless it's necessary"

"I'd like to see how far that philosophy takes you in life, Azri," Nuzleaf replied coldly as his steps slowed down and I saw his footsteps etching themselves into the dirt path, as if his anger were being contained in the footfalls, "It's a survival of the fittest world here in the dungeons. The strong survive while the weak kneel. And to become strong, you must go to any measures to survive. All dungeon explorers go by this lesson"

"Then that lesson is bogus. I'm not taking an innocent life like you did," I said defiantly, "And if you are going to continue to do so, then this journey is over. Me and Eden are heading home"

That actually made Nuzleaf stop. He stopped moving within reach of the stairs up ahead, with his back still turned to me. I could still sense the lingering hostility and cold edge however.

"... Even at the cost of knowing more about your past?"

"Yes. Frankly Nuzleaf, I can't be trusting of you anymore. The shady business behind the scenes with the petrification, your hands-off attitude in raising me compared to Carracosta and now this - child murder," I glared at my foster parent, "To that end, how can I trust you? How can I trust that this oracle that nobody else in the village heard about is real?"

"I saved you from the Beheeyem. You'd be dead without my interference," Nuzleaf turned around, an expression of steel marking his face, "I'll fully admit that you don't have much grounds to trust me, but don't pretend you don't owe me a debt"

"And what debt am I repaying here? Allowing me to go see the oracle?" I questioned and Nuzleaf stepped back, biting his lip. He slipped up, "Tell it to me straight, Nuzleaf. What do you really want here?"

"All I want is to uncover your past, as care from a foster parent to their child," Nuzleaf replied carefully, "You're such an enigma that-"

"Don't shift the goal post! Answer my question!"

"Uhh, guys-" Eden tried to say, but Nuzleaf cut him off.

"I'm not revealing that to you"

"Why are you being so secretive Nuzleaf?!"

"GUYS!" Eden cried, interrupting us both, "Stop this! We have company"

"Oh look what you've done…" Nuzleaf grumbled as we turned our attention to our surroundings, where a pack of Poochyena and Mightyena surrounded us on all sides, "Thanks a million, Azri"

"Don't pretend this wasn't your fault," I shot back as we grouped up against one another, back to back, facing the Mightyena pack. They surrounded us in a tight circle with six Mightyena strong, accompanied by ten Poochyenas.

"Each of us take two each. Ignore the Poochyena. Use seeds and wands if you have them," Nuzleaf quickly ordered, "Beware their bites. Try to not get them latched onto you"

"Attack! There's the ones who killed our pups!" One Mightyena snarled and the other hyenas growled in turn, consumed by an angry fury. Two of them at once lunged towards me, fangs bared with Crunch. I blindly swung my Leaf Blade in a wide arc, driving both them and a few Poochyena backwards. Nuzleaf meanwhile went on the offensive, charging towards the Mightyena in front of him and instantly Low Sweeping one, tripping it up. The surrounding Mightyena pounced on Nuzleaf, but he rolled away to dodge before firing a salvo of Razor Leaf from his hands, peppering the two hyenas away.

"Be confused!" Eden cried, activating the powers in his Confuse Wand in an instantaneous flash, affecting two Mightyena around us. They began attacking their own kind in their stupor, distracting them enough for me to leap and behead them. A Poochyena's Headbutt caught me off guard, making me tumble to the ground, but Eden's Flame Burst suddenly washed over it, burning it to a crisp. The outburst of fire scared the remaining Poochyena away, but the four Mightyena left had other plans.

"Grrah!" One Mightyena leapt at Eden, fangs bared while I held back two others. The Fennekin fired another Flame Burst, but the Mightyena caught it in their teeth with Ice Fang, nullifying the move. Eden quickly sidestepped away before the Mightyena could land on him, breathing fire away from the Mightyena's mouth to set their fur on fire, "Yah! Aaahhhh! Aahhhh!"

"Say goodnight!" Eden waved a Stayaway Wand in the burning Mightyena's face and it suddenly teleported away, the threat neutralized. The Poochyena, realizing their elders were being defeated, retreated quickly away, disappearing into the darkness of the dungeon. I parried a Bite attempt from the Mightyena in front of me before suddenly, it slammed into my face with Sucker Punch, bringing me to the ground. Before I could rise, a second Mightyena smacked me with Assurance, making my vision cloudy with pain.

"Get away!" Nuzleaf shouted, a storm of Razor Leaves assaulting the two Mightyena away from me before Eden's Flame Burst exploded onto them, knocking them out. I groggily got up from the ground, shaking off the pain with an Oran Berry. An easy battle all things considered, but not without some struggles.

"We wasted some time thanks to that," Nuzleaf muttered, discontent, "Let's hurry along and try not to engage in more. Follow along"

Nuzleaf went ahead, making us trail behind him. Eden turned to me with a troubled expression, but didn't say a word. He likely held the same distrust for Nuzleaf after my argument with him.

"So we repelled the Mightyena pack. Now what's the rush?" I spoke up as we reached the next floor. The hyena pack gave us a wide berth after the skirmish, more interested in protecting their children than dealing with us. The other wild Pokemon fell with ease, but Nuzleaf didn't target sleeping Pokemon anymore.

"So many questions today," Nuzleaf grumbled without turning to us, "We're moving quickly because the villagers will likely realize we're gone if we linger here too long. Carracosta in particular will go hunting after Eden if we stay past the evening"

"We left at morning," Eden reasoned, "Surely we won't be here for so long that the entire day will pass"

"I'm not sure you noticed before, but time is slightly accelerated inside dungeons," Nuzleaf replied flatly, "I reckon that once we leave this dungeon, it'll be late afternoon at least"

"Huh. You learn something new everyday," Eden murmured. Our journey continued in uneventful silence after that. Me and Nuzleaf kept a tense distance from each other, wary after our earlier argument. I wasn't eager to continue it after the Mightyena interrupted us since it was clear I wasn't squeezing answers out of him.

"If he won't give me the answers I need, perhaps I should seek out somebody else. Somebody outside of the village, since this place never gets any info," I thought to myself, "Eden mentioned wanting to go to Lively Town to join the Expedition Society. Maybe somebody there could help"

The issue was that me and Eden were still seen as children by the villagers. They'll never let us leave and Carracosta especially would be against it. I could sneak out on my own, but that would mean leaving Eden behind and I didn't want to do that.

"Not only that, I want to leave to get away from Nuzleaf. Whatever he's doing, I don't want to be apart of it," I thought to myself as we strolled through the dungeon floors relatively unopposed, passing by the fourth and fifth floors, "And if he's using me to get something then well-"

"Azri, stop," Eden broke me out of my thoughts, pulling me down towards a nearby boulder. I didn't even realize we reached the seventh floor, the checkpoint of Revelation Mountain. Up ahead was a taller gate than the one down at the base of the mountain. It was guarded by Officer Magnezone, two Magneton, a Poliwrath from Poliwrath River, a Beedrill from Nectar Meadow and a Sylveon we once aided. What were they doing here?

"BZZT! KEEP A SHARP EYE OUT! THAT WITCH COULD COME THROUGH HERE AT ANY MOMENT. BZZT!" Officer Magnezone ordered to his surrounding Pokemon, "SYLVEON'S MAGIC SHOULD COUNTER HERS, MEANING THE WITCH CAN'T ESCAPE WITHOUT GOING THROUGH US. BZZT!"

"Damn, I didn't expect more guards here. Somebody must've entered the mountain before us," Nuzleaf cursed under his breath, "To try and move forward would be too troublesome for us. We'll call it off for today"

"Must've been disappointing, for somebody so adamant in this cause," I replied in a mocking tone, still not over the argument from earlier. Nuzleaf simply shot me a withering look before gesturing to Eden to get an Escape Orb out. The fox silently complied, pulling out the crystal ball and shattering it on the ground.

"BZZT! WHO'S THERE?!" Magnezone buzzed, but the field of light already grew and enveloped us, "HALT! STOP RIGHT THERE! BZZT!"

Magnezone and the two Magneton rushed to intercept us, but we were already out of the dungeon. The remaining Pokemon at the gate stared at the lingering light in the air from the Escape Orb while Magnezone simply buzzed in disappointment.

"BZZT! MUST'VE BEEN A DUNGEON POKEMON STUMBLING ON AN ESCAPE ORB BY MISTAKE. BZZT!" Magnezone buzzed, discontent, "BZZT! JUST A REMINDER! WE'LL BE HERE FOR THE NEXT FOUR HOURS UNTIL THE SHIFT OF POKEMON ROTATES. STAY SHARP. BZZT!"

"Oh, I'm afraid that time will be caught a bit short," A new voice suddenly rang out from the other side of the gate, where the entrance to the eighth floor laid.

"BZZT! IT'S YOU!" Magnezone buzzed in surprise as the figure, cloaked in an ebony black robe complete with a shrouding hood, casually strolled towards the fortified gate. In their hands, they twirled a flaming stick, "BZZT! WE'VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU. YOU'RE BEING ARRESTED FOR INVADING THE SACRED GROUNDS OF REVELATION MOUNTAIN! BZZT!"

"Am I now? I wasn't aware my activities attracted so much attention," The figure raised one hand that glowed with mighty psychic power. The gate, which ordinarily took the strength of two Poliwrath to unlock, swung open easily, exposing the guards to the intruder, "But come, try me. I promise not to leave visible marks"

"BZZT! SEIZE HER! SHE'S AN OUTLAW OF THE VILLAGE!" Magnezone commanded and the gate guard Pokemon lunged at the figure, surrounding the cloaked mage instantly in a tight circle. Poliwrath took the first shot by firing a Water Pulse at the figure, but she easily sidestepped it before raising her hand once again, forcing the Poliwrath into the air with Psychic.

"I have something I must do. Therefore I don't have time to waste on any of you," The mage intoned coldly, throwing the Poliwrath with little effort towards the metal gate. The tadpole crashed against it with a sickening crunch and was released, sliding to the ground unconscious. The Beedrill flew at the mage from behind and attempted to stab them with Poison Jab, but a sudden burst of fire erupted from under the mage's feet, repelling the Beedrill away, "Inferno"

Still recovering from their failed attack, the Beedrill watched, stunned, as the flames around the mage's feet danced towards them and erupted into a roaring spire of fire, consuming them in a burning frenzy. When the attack died down, the Beedrill landed to the ground, covered in smoldering and deadly burns. Had Inferno gone on any longer, the Beedrill would certainly be dead.

"BZZT! TRY OUR ALLIANCE ATTACK, WITCH!" One Magneton buzzed as the trio of officers billowed electricity from underneath themselves, preparing to deliver a fatal triple Thunderbolt from the sky. Before they could leap and initiate their alliance attack however, the mage simply thrust their hand towards them and uttered a single phrase:

"Future Sight"

Out of nowhere, reality itself warped in front of the trio of officers, twisting them with such a sudden and powerful psychic force that they were instantly smashed to the ground before they could even blink. The attack crushed reality itself for a second and it was planned from the start.

"BZZT…! WHO… ARE YOU…? BZZT…?!" Magnezone stuttered as the mage strode over to them among the unconscious bodies of the guards, not even winded from the skirmish.

"And why would I do that? No good "outlaw" would be so stupid," The mage replied casually with a hint of amusement, "Now I promised I wouldn't leave permanent damage, so don't come chasing after me"

The three officers weren't even able to reply, as they were too beaten down by Future Sight. The mage briefly turned their attention to a nearby boulder, thrusting out their hand to lift it easily. A quivering Sylveon laid behind it, wide-eyed in fear after watching its comrades get trashed one after the other.

"You might've been responsible for suppressing my teleportation magic," The figure said softly, addressing the stunned Sylveon who couldn't even squeak out of fear, "But you didn't directly attack me. I'm above harming innocents, so run free. Heal your companions"

The Sylveon only delivered a slowly and fearful nod as the mage set down the boulder and began to concentrate, a circle of Escape Orb light emitting under their feet.

"What a discovery I've made on the top of this mountain. Nuzleaf would be interested to hear this…" The mage thought before warping away in a sphere of blue light, disappearing quickly like they were never there. Only the bodies of the Pokemon they defeated remained.

…

We made it to the base of Revelation Mountain unharmed, but our goal to reach the top disturbed. Luckily nobody else decided to check in while Nuzleaf was on "guard duty" so we weren't in any trouble with the village.

"I'll stay here and guard the gate," Nuzleaf decided, "I took the shift from Hippopotas after all. Wouldn't want to sow worry by returning home with you two"

"Sounds good. We'll make the journey home ourselves then," I replied, a little relieved to have some space away from Nuzleaf, "Guess I'll see you home by the evening, yes?"

"Right. Every day, Pokemon from the village take a day-long shift at the base of Revelation Mountain," Nuzleaf nodded, his posture and attitude seemingly more relaxed, "So I reckon I'll be here for a while. Sorry for that, Azri"

"It's fine. I don't mind," I replied flatly before turning my back on Nuzleaf, tugging Eden along with me, "Come on, Eden. Let's head home"

Without word, me and Eden left Nuzleaf behind at the gate, disappearing down the slope that led back to Serene Village through the Foreboding Forest path. As we faded out of sight however, Nuzleaf crossed his arms, standing sturdy and upright in front of the gate. That was then he heard footsteps behind him.

"Been a while since we saw each other face-to-face, Nuzleaf," A soft female voice rang from behind the villager and Nuzleaf turned impassively towards the tall cloaked mage, a faded smile on her face.

"You. Was your mission successful?"

"I'm afraid… there are some complications. The seal on the spring wouldn't respond to anything I tried against it," The mage replied with a hint of irritation in her voice, "Me, of all Pokemon, laid low against something like that…"

"Don't act too disappointed. I uncovered some info on my journey back to Serene Village that'll help," Nuzleaf replied, which caused the mage's eyebrow to raise, "An old scholar who has seen the world's calamities feed me a useful tidbit"

"Which is?"

""Certain magic in this world can only be broken by those brought by destiny"," Nuzleaf quoted, "Which means the seal might only be able to be broken by one person - somebody I know well"

"Who? Who could this person be?"

"... Azri. A former human turned Pokemon"

…

"Well… that was certainly an adventure," Eden said to break the silence as we walked home together. There wasn't a tense air between us or anything, but I was too distracted and conflicted to manage small talk. I had an urge to run away and expand my world beyond Serene Village. I felt like I was only being fed outside information from Nuzleaf and he proved to be uncomfortably unreliable, "But it sucks that we couldn't figure out your past. Right, Azri?"

"Hm?" I blinked, breaking myself out of my thoughts. Once again I was in my own world, trapped by my own thoughts, "Ah, right. Yeah. A little bummed out about that"

"Azri, I can tell you're troubled about Nuzleaf. From what you told me yesterday combined with the argument inside the dungeon…" Eden frowned, "He's clearly hiding something"

"Too many things," I agreed, "It doesn't make me want to trust him, despite him being my foster parent. I envy your relationship with your own father sometimes"

"Trust me, that has its fair share of problems too. When I was younger, I swear I could never go anywhere without Pops looking over my shoulder," Eden chewed his lip, "Only now that you're here with me that I'm able to head out anywhere. That kind of freedom is refreshing"

"Mm, I can see why. Speaking of which however, do you still dislike your father?" I asked and Eden frowned, thinking briefly, "Your relationship with him seems to be a lot smoother than it was a few months ago"

"That's true. I think it's because I understand more of the world now. I understand the dangers Pops was trying to protect me from," The Fennekin replied carefully, "And while I can't condone his overbearing nature, I can understand his overprotectiveness. Too many times I could've lost my life when I was younger and that would've broken his heart"

"And you understand because you found something just as dear to your heart," I deduced and Eden nodded, gazing at me with his soft red eyes, "So you're on more equal ground with your dad now?"

"Yeah, I suppose so. And I think he understands that I'm at the age where I can't be cooped up in one place anymore. I've grown to the point that I can explore the world," Eden said wistfully, "That's what I believe, at any rate. Which is why I'm planning to ask Pops something"

"Permission to leave the village?"

"Exactly. Look at us, we've explored all the dungeons in the nearby regions and proved time and time again we're capable explorers. We braved the Cave of Training, defeated the Poliwrath Brothers, saved Budew from the Beedrill and saved Pancham and Shelmet from the Ancient Barrow," Eden rambled off, "We're more than capable to make the journey to Lively Town and join the Society!"

"Yet you're still a kid"

"Oh posh, who cares about that now? Our experience and talent exceeds our age!" Eden replied confidently, "I don't care if the villagers still think we're kids. I'm tired of being cooped up in Serene Village"

"Actually, I had the same thought. For a different reason," I said and Eden frowned in confusion, "Nuzleaf is my only source of outside information right now and well… he's proven himself secretive and unreliable"

"Uh huh…"

"So I'm thinking of sneaking out of the village at night and heading to Lively Town. Not only to distance myself from Nuzleaf, but to also find other avenues of info. Perhaps somebody there knows of my plight," I told the Fennekin, whose eyes lit up with interest, "And they can advise me"

"Ooo alright. Glad we're thinking of the same thing," Eden grinned, "I don't want Pops to worry too much, so I'll ask him if I can leave the village tonight. You… I guess you have no obligations like that, huh?"

"No. I have no doubt that our argument caused a strain in me and Nuzleaf's relationship," I frowned as we reached the end of the Foreboding Forest path, coming back to Serene Village, "So I'll leave with or without his approval. Though…"

"Though what?"

"I don't want to leave without you, Eden. Going to Lively Town alone would be suicide," I gazed at the ground, a little embarrassed, "I want you by my side for my own safety and peace of mind. So if you can't go, I won't either"

"Azri…" Eden actually stopped to latch onto me, hugging me out of nowhere. The sudden heat against my body surprised me, but I welcomed it, patting the fox on the head, "You know, your situation's a whole lot more serious than mine. If Pops won't let me leave, then I'll sneak out behind his back too. I won't leave your side either"

"Eden…" I embraced the Fennekin back, warmth filling my heart that against all odds, Eden will always be my anchor. Somebody I can always trust as a friend, "Thank you. Then we'll depart at dusk, just before Nuzleaf arrives home from Revelation Mountain. That way, he can't stop me"

"Right. Hopefully Pops approves of my request but if he doesn't…" Eden pulled away from me, a mischievous grin marking his face, "Well at least he'll know I'm leaving. Me and you are going to find a whole new world together"

"Yes… together with you, Eden," I smiled before planting a kiss on the fox's cheek, causing him to giggle. I figured copying his show of affection from before was appropriate and we sat in comfortable tranquility, unaware of the perilous journey that'll await us outside the village gates…

Our team:

- Azri, Snivy: Knowledge Hound

Level 22

Abilities: Overgrow and Contrary

Moves: Leaf Blade, Leaf Tornado, Twister and Attract

- Eden, Fennekin: Passionate Magus

Level 20

Abilities: Blaze and Magician

Moves: Flame Burst, Psybeam, Flame Charge and Psywave