Chapter 12
The Advent of Giants
N watched as Byleth seemed to stare intently at the wall in their room. It was something he would catch her doing from time to time, but today it felt especially odd. It was as if she was speaking to someone who was standing there. She would nod and mutter responses to something. He assumed at first she was talking to Eevee, but even the fluffy creature was as confused as he was.
He looked back towards Byleth, who was still muttering at the wall. Part of him could only guess that she had gone crazy, but he knew her well enough for that to not be the case. He looked towards Zorua, who seemed to ignore the matter entirely. He let out a sigh, he had to figure out what was going on.
"Uh, Byleth, who are you talking to?"
Byleth was broken out of whatever trance she was in with a rapid shake of her head. Her usual monotone expression returning as she turned to face N. She could see the concerned look on his face. She was sure that she was speaking low enough for him not to notice she was talking to Sothis, but her guess was evidently wrong.
"No one," she answered quickly.
N rose an eyebrow, clearly not believing it. He looked to the wall she was talking to and still found nothing. For Byleth, Sothis was floating there, staring back at the green haired teen. She eyed him with curiosity, like she was studying him. If she had any opinions about him, she kept them to herself. Byleth's eyes moved back and forth between the two, no doubt giving N more reason to be worried.
"Something's clearly there as your eyes keep darting between me and it," N said.
Sothis let out an offended gasp. It was evident she was not happy being referred to as an it. She had to mitigate the situation somehow, and only one thing would come to mind.
"I thought I saw a Haunter. I was trying to shoo it away," Byleth replied quickly.
This time Sothis's gasp was for being called a Haunter.
N's eyebrow rose even higher. "Uh-huh. I guess that explains a bit."
Byleth could tell N was not convinced. She wanted to tell him about the voice inside her head, but she was unsure if he would believe her. She wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt as she believed he could speak to the creatures, but for some reason, this felt different.
It's only different because you feel it is, Sothis said.
Byleth sighed, forgetting the two shared thoughts. While she had a point, it still felt strange to tell him she has a voice in her head that was not her conscience. She had to come up with a better excuse.
"I was, uh, going over something in my head. Talking out loud helps me streamline my thoughts," Byleth said.
"And the Haunter thing?"
"That was a lie. I just didn't want to admit I talk to myself," Byleth answered.
N's worried expression softened a bit. She let out a relieved sigh that he had believed that excuse, even if it was partially true.
"That makes more sense than the Haunter thing. Anything I can help with?" N asked.
"Do you remember that canyon we went to?" Byleth asked.
N nodded in response.
"It felt familiar somehow. I can't really explain it," Byleth said.
"You did space out similarly to right now. Though, then it wasn't as obvious that you were talking to yourself," N replied, adding a chuckle at the end of his sentence.
Byleth rolled her eyes at the comment. "I was just thinking about how I wanted to check the place out again. I was thinking about going later today."
"It's still relatively early, so I'd head out soon if you're planning on it," N said.
Byleth nodded in response and quickly began to make a bag. She packed only what was essential for the trip. She did not plan on staying at the canyon, or its ruins long, but one should never underestimate what might happen. It was one of the things Jeralt had taught both her and N.
"Want me to go with you? It might be good to have some backup," N asked.
Byleth shook her head. "I should be fine. I won't be gone long. Plus, I can take care of myself." She punctuated her sentence by tying her sword to her hip.
N nodded in response. He knew that she was a great fighter and could take on several amount of people at once, but part of him could not help but feel worried.
"I got Eevee too," Byleth said, a small smile forming on her face. "It's like you said: our partners are better than any sword."
N chuckled. He had said that on his first day of teaching. He meant it, but someone saying it back to him was bit ironic.
"Let's go, Eevee."
The fluffy creature cried happily as she jumped onto her partner's shoulder.
"Good luck, and stay safe," N said.
Byleth nodded in response. "We'll be back soon."
—-
After getting a few more things she needed, Byleth began her trek towards the canyon. What she did not know, was that Dimitri and Dedue had seen her leave the monastery. Dimitri found it odd she was walking somewhere with so much purpose.
"I wonder where she's off to," Dimitri said, putting a hand on his chin.
"I don't believe we are to meet as a class today," Dedue added.
"Should we follow?" Dimitri asked. "I can't help but worry."
"If you think so, Your Highness," Dedue said.
Dimitri nodded in response. "Dedue, help me round up the others. We shall call this excursion a bit of extra training."
Dedue bowed with his head. "It will be done."
Dedue turned to leave, his Larvitar trailing behind him, with Dimitri staying behind for a moment. He had rarely seen such a determined look in her eye before. Plus, there was the fact that they were assigned to assist the guards during the Rite of Rebirth. Where she could be going that was more important than that was what made the whole situation odd.
At his side, Shinx purred. The blonde looked towards the small lion and smiled. His partner was also concerned for their professor.
"We should ask N where she's off to. He must know, right?"
—
When Byleth arrived back at the ruins, which Sothis had begun to call Zanado, that feeling of familiarity returned. However, she was unsure if it came from her or Sothis. The ruins looked the same compared to when they were first there. She could also hear the groans and grumbling of wild creatures, which kept her on edge. She knew that many wild creatures were very territorial, so one could attack at any moment.
It's coming back to me now. This structure… Sothis mused.
Byleth had gotten used to the hearing Sothis's voice inside her head, but there were times when it still felt strange. Being able to hear her musing was one of those strange moments.
Sothis let out a disappointed sigh. But it's as though my memory is still clouded. The most important pieces are obscured.
"Why's do you think that?" Byleth asked.
I'm not sure. What I do know is that I once called this place home. Of that I am certain, Sothis answered.
"This was your home? Is that the feeling of familiarity I'm feeling?" Byleth asked.
It's the most likely explanation. We do share a mind after all. Sothis's statement ended in chuckle, which garnered an annoyed groan from Byleth.
Byleth continued to walk around, allowing for Sothis to let her mind wander. She seemed to recognize bits and pieces of the ruins, linking them back to her clouded memories. For Byleth, her curiosity for the person inside her head grew. It felt odd to have two sets of memories, even if one of them she could not exactly recall.
As the two continued deeper into the ruins, the sky about them began to change. From the usual blue, it began to turn a reddish-purple hue. Byleth could only guess that something bad was happening and got into a defensive stance. At her side, Eevee looked ready for battle. Something was causing the sky to turn red, and it was not that sunset had arrived.
From behind a boulder, Byleth could hear growling. She turned her attention towards the rock and saw a Rhydon appearing from behind it. It looked like a normal Rhydon, but its eyes glowed red. When it locked gazes with Byleth, it let out a roar and red light enveloped it.
Byleth's eyes went wide in shock at what she was witnessing. Rhydon had grown to a massive size, easily towering over some of the larger stone structures. Above its head swirled red clouds, making it look like it pierced the sky. It let out a low pitched roar and turned its attention towards Byleth and Eevee.
"Could your home do this?" Byleth asked.
How would I know? This is the first time I'm seeing this as well, Sothis retorted.
"Let's go Eevee," Byleth said.
Eevee turned to her partner and saw that she was turning to run. Understanding the situation, the furry creature turned as well. She was about to break into a run, when a low pitched sound caught her attention. Eevee turned to see a small, orange lizard running away from the giant Rhydon. Eevee turned back to her partner and called out to her.
Byleth turned to see that Eevee had not begun to run away, but was gesturing towards the giant creature that lumbered towards them. This was one of those times that she wished she could speak to the creatures like N could. She looked towards the giant Rhydon and saw beneath it what Eevee was gesturing to; the small, orange lizard.
Before she could even consider the risk, she darted towards the lizard. As she got close, she could heard the creatures panicked crying. She scooped up the creature and broke into a sprint, which the giant Rhydon still on her tail.
"Professor!" a familiar voice called out.
Byleth looked ahead and saw her students at the edge of the ruins. Part of her was glad they were there and the other part was a bit frustrated. When she caught up with them, she turned to face the giant Rhydon, it would not let up its pursuit.
"What the hell?! Why is that Rhydon massive?!" Sylvain asked.
"Does it have to do as to why the sky all of a sudden turned red?" Ingrid asked.
"We can ask questions later, right now we have to get out of here," Byleth said.
"That going to be a bit difficult," Ashe replied.
The group turned to see a Steelix emerging from the ground. It was cloaked in the same red energy before growing to a massive size. Steelix was already a large creature, but the rock snake grew even larger than the canyon's cliffs.
"We have not choice but to fight," Felis said.
"How can we take on two giant creatures?" Annette cried out.
"We just have to remember Professor N's teachings. They're still a Steelix and Rhydon, they'll have the same weaknesses," Dimitri said.
Everyone nodded in response. Dimitri's words managed to calm everyone down a bit.
"We'll split into two teams. One team takes on Steelix, the other Rhydon. With any luck, we'll get out of this with our lives," Byleth said.
The group was quick to split up, deciding quickly who had the advantage over the two creatures. The teams ended up being Ashe, Byleth, and Dedue facing Rhydon, while Dimitri, Felix, Sylvain, and Ingrid took on Steelix. Mercedes and Annette focused on support, but knew they had to step in when the time came.
Befoe the battle begun, Byleth set down the orange lizard she was carrying. The lizard was quick to cower behind a rock, but kept an eye on what was going on. Byleth returned to facing the giant Rhydon with her students. They had to take both down in order to escape.
"We'll take them down together," Ashe said.
Dedue and Byleth nodded in response.
"Treecko, use Bullet Seed!"
Ashe's Treecko jumped into action and let out a barrage of glowing seeds from its mouth. The seeds connected with Rhydon, causing it to growl in response. Rhydon readied an attack, but whatever it was planning was taking time.
"Eevee, use Dig!"
Eevee quickly burrowed into the ground, leaving Rhydon's field of view. The creature's giant eyes darted around the ground, trying to find the furry creature. However, it gave up and focused its attention on the other two.
"Larviatar, use Stomping Tantrum!"
Larvitar got in close and began to stomp at Rhydon's feet. The ground around the two creatures began to shake, and loose rocks collided into Rhydon. The giant creature again growled, but this time its attack was ready. Rhydon stomped, causing the ground to shake, but also a giant stone wall erupted from the ground. The three looked up in shock at the size of it. It was easily as tall as Rhydon.
With another stomp, Rhydon caused the wall of stone to fall. The three braced themselves for the incoming hit, however, the wall of stone did not land close to them. It landed on Larvitar and shattered on impact. The dust and debris caused for a sandstorm to kick up, enveloping the battlefield.
As Rhydon recharged for another attack, Byleth took advantage of the moment to have Eevee attack.
"Rise up now Eevee!"
Beneath Rhydon, Eevee appeared and jumped into the air. She collided with the giant creature, causing for it to stumble back. Byleth took it as sign they were getting close. Following Eevee's attack, Eevee and Treecko took a bit of damage from the sandstorm.
"Just how much damage can it take?" Ashe asked.
"We'll just have to keep hitting it. Don't let up," Dedue said.
Ashe nodded and turned back to the battle. "Treecko, Mega Drain!"
Treecko held out his arms and they began to glow green. From them emerged a beam of the same color that hit and enveloped Rhydon. The beam's light then intensified before returning to the green reptile. Rhydon, once again stumbled back.
"Just one more attack! Finish it, Dedue!" Ashe called out.
Dedue nodded in response. He wanted to wrap the battle up quickly and assist Dimitri. "Stomping Tantrum, again!"
Larviatar got in close and repeated the same motions it did before. The ground shook slightly and the debris was what caused Rhydon to take damage. The three were ready for it to fall, but Rhydon remained standing.
"I'll finish it! Eevee, Take Down!"
Eevee cloaked itself in a white energy and broke into a run. As it picked up speed, the energy grew in intensity. Using all that momentum, Eevee collided with Rhydon; pushing the creature back a bit. When Eevee returned to her partner's side, the residual energy shocked her a bit.
The three looked towards Rhydon as it begun to sway. As it did so, red energy slowly began to dissipate. As that happened, Rhydon began to shrink until it was back to its original size. When it did so, the sandstorm teetered out as well. The three let out a relieved breath. Rhydon was defeated and they only took one attack. However, their troubles were not over, there was still a Steelix to contend with. But they first needed to have their partners healed up. Battling a giant creature took a lot more effort than they were anticipating.
Before they could join the others, another roar filled their ears. The three turned, expecting to see the Rhydon wanting to continue to battle. However, a different creature approached them this time.
This time it was an Aggron. It let out a roar and was cloaked in the same red energy. Aggron then grew to a massive size, with red clouds adorning its head, and let out a bellowing roar. The three turned to face the creature. They had to take down Aggron before meeting up with the others.
"Time for round two," Byleth muttered.
—
Against Steelix, the four students battling it were having trouble. Their attacks were connecting and dealing damage, but Steelix did not seem to budge. Three of them were attacking using what Steelix was weak to, but even that was barely doing enough. With each attack Steelix took, it was able to return the favor. If it was not for Annette backing them up, their partners would have been defeated by now.
"This guy just won't go down," Slyvain complained.
"If we keep hitting it, then it'll go down eventually," Ingrid said.
"Remember what Professor N told us, our attacks have a limited number of uses. We can't prolong this battle for too much longer," Dimitri said.
"Then do you have a plan, boar?" Felix asked.
Dimitri did not have one. His Shinx had only one attack that could deal enough damage and that was Double Kick. If Shinx was able to attack with electric type moves then the battle would likely get easier. However, that was impossible. They tried to rely on the fire type attacks from Growlithe and Ponyta to activate the burn status, but they had not been that lucky.
He wished the others were with them as well. If they battled Steelix together then they could have beaten it by now. He wondered if the Rhydon was just as challenging as Steelix. He shook his head to keep himself focused. They had to take down Steelix and his mind should be focused on that.
He turned back to the giant rock snake, who let out a roar. It then jammed its tail into the ground and silver spikes erupted from the ground. The spikes shot towards Shinx and Dimitri called out for the small lion to avoid the attack, but it made contact any way. He was fortunate that the attack was not strong against Shinx, but seeing massive spikes emerge from the ground was a terrifying sight.
"We won't get anywhere at this rate," Dimitri muttered.
"I got it!" Ingrid exclaimed.
"Got what?" Slyvain asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Professor N's most recent lesson. It's the key to winning here," Ingrid answered.
"You mean that stats concept?" Felix asked.
Ingrid nodded. "It's the reason why our attacks aren't dealing enough damage. Steelix must have close to a colossal defense stat for physical attacks. Does anyone have a ranged attack?"
"I do, but its electric type. It won't have any affect, though," Dimitri answered.
"Felix?"
Felix simply shook his head in response.
"Guess I gotta bust out a new attack we've been working on," Slyvain said.
"You've been training?" Ingrid asked.
"But of course. Gotta keep Growlithe strong."
Growlithe barked a response, seeming to agree with his partner. Slyvain looked towards his partner, the orange puppy looked ready to go. Slyvain nodded and smiled.
"Let's show 'em, partner! Use Flamethrower!"
Growlithe opened its mouth, from it a stream of fire erupted from it. The flames collided with Steelix, making the rock snake groan. It remained standing, but the attack did more damage compared to their previous attacks.
"Nice work, Sylvain," Dimitri said.
Slyvain chuckled. "Honestly, it's the first time he produced a flame that big."
Growlithe barked happily in response. The orange puppy was happy to see his new attack work for the first time.
"Keep that up, Slyvain! We'll keeping hitting it too," Ingrid said. "Ponyta, Flame Wheel!"
The fire maned pony covered herself in flames and launched herself towards Steelix. The rock snake's giant eyes looked down as Ponyta collided with it. It appeared mostly unhurt, but it still winced when the attack connected.
"Shinx, Double Kick!"
Shinx got in close and hit Steelix with its two back paws, causing the same effect Ponyta had. With that attack, they had begun to see Steelix begin to where down.
"Just a few more hits! It's your turn Felix!" Dimitri exclaimed.
Felix grunted in response. He did not like being ordered by Dimitri, but in this case he had no other choice. "Honedge, Shadow Sneak!"
The floating sword sunk into its own shadow, and reappeared behind Steelix. The blade glowed and struck Steelix. It took damage, but appeared to be unfazed by it.
It was Steelix's turn to attack now. Its giant jaw opened and flames began to build up within it. The four students prepared for the attack, but knew they had no chance at avoiding it. A blast of fire shot from Steelix's mouth towards Honedge. Everyone looked towards Felix as his eyes went wind. He knew Honedge would be defeated by the attack.
The blast of fire connected and engulfed the sword in its flames. When the flames dissipated, Honedge was on the ground. Just as they had feared, it had fallen. Before they could react, Steelix let out a bellowing roar, kicking up the wind around them. It felt as if the rock snake had gotten stronger.
"Let's finish this, Growlithe! Flamethrower!"
Growlithe sent another stream of fire towards the rock snake. While not as engulfing as Steelix's attack, it still dealt damage. However, Steelix remained standing, but its strength was soon to run out. Ingrid was quick to launch her attack, with flame cloaked Pontya colliding with Steelix.
Steelix let out a roar as it was cloaked in the red energy again. The rock snake then began to shrink, until it was at its normal size. It let out one more roar before digging into the ground.
The four let out a relived sigh that the battle was over, but Felix was still frustrated. His Honedge had fallen in battle. It meant they were still weak.
"Oh, thank the Goddess that's over," Annette said as she rushed to their sides.
"We barely managed to scrape by, but Honedge is a bit worse for wear," Slyvain said.
Annette looked past Slyvain to see Felix kneeling next to his fallen partner. Annette was quick to be get to his side. She had to try to heal Honedge.
"Is Honedge okay?" she asked.
"It'll be fine. We underestimated how strong a Steelix could be," Felix answered. "We just need more training."
Felix picked up his partner as if it were a regular sword and sheathed it.
"I can try healing it," Annette said, her Jigglypuff echoing the sentiment.
"Don't waste your time. I can get it healed back at the monastery," Felix replied.
"Oh, okay then," Annette said, her voice getting dejected.
The two met back up with the other three and looked towards where the others were. The sounds of battle had died down, which meant they finished their battle as well. They waited for a few moments and were joined by their comrades.
Byleth was happy to see her students in one piece, but quickly noticed how frustrated Felix looked. She could only guess that something had happened. Based on the fact that Honedge was not floating the air likely meant that the floating sword was defeated in battle.
As for everyone else, they all looked in one piece. She wondered if they had to face a second adversary as well, but that question would have to wait. They had to escape the ruins.
"We'll catch up later. Let's get out of here!" Byleth said.
The students did not need to be told twice. They quickly turned and began to run. As they did so, Byleth noticed how the sky remained red. She wondered what caused for that to happen. The sky had turned red when the giant Rhydon appeared, so there had to be a connection there. The fact that the sky was still red meant that there was still a giant creature in the ruins. However, she was not inclined to find it.
"Guys, what's that up ahead?" Annette asked.
Byleth looked forward and saw a creature lumbering towards them. It was at the edge of the ruins as well, which meant it was blocking their entrance. As they got closer, the group realized what was in front of them: it was a Tyranitar.
They all grindded to a halt as the creature was cloaked in the same red energy as before. The fear the emanated through all of them as Tyranitar grew to massive size was palpable. They had just beaten three giant creatures that were already strong, a fourth was not going to end in a victory.
"Looks like we don't have a choice. We'll have to fight in order to get out of here," Dimitri said.
"We're pretty banged up. This fight won't be easy," Ashe added.
"We'll just have to give it our all," Mercedes said.
The group got ready for battle, but before they could attack, something landed in front of them. Whatever landed caused a cloud of dust to form and all they could see was a silhouette. They could tell it was not human, which meant it had to be a creature. However, it was not a creature they had seen before.
When the dust settled, they got their answer. It was a Blaziken, but an odd looking one. This Blaziken had black feathers on its legs instead of yellow, its head wings were shorter and pointed up, its shoulder feathers looked more pronounced, and the flames on its wrists were like ropes.
"That's a Blaziken," Ingrid said in awe.
"Are you sure? It doesn't look like any Blaziken I've seen," Slyvain replied.
Blaziken then brought its hands together and a blue energy formed between them. That energy was concentrated into a sphere and with a roar, Blaziken fired the sphere towards the giant Tyranitar.
The sphere made contact and dealt a lot of damage to Tyranitar. It roared as it tried to regain its bearings. Blaziken then turned to the group and began to bellow out sounds. It then pointed past Tyranitar.
"I think it's trying to tell us that it'll distract Tyranitar while we escape," Byleth said.
Blaziken nodded in confirmation and turned back to Tyranitar. It changed another sphere and growled. The group then ran past Blaziken, but caught the attention of the giant Tyranitar. It let out a roar was was prepared to attack, but was hit again by the sphere of energy. Tyranitar turned back to its attacker and focused on it. By keeping Tyranitar distracted, the group was able to escape.
Unbeknownst the group, the lizard that Byleth had saved was following them. It had grown curious towards Byleth as it had watched her fight, but watched from a distance. Its curiosity outweighed its fear and followed the person that had saved it.
—
When sky changed from red back to blue, it meant that the giant Tyranitar had been defeated. The mysterious Blaziken had saved their lives and they were all thankful for it. However, they were all curious as to why it had suddenly appeared. The same went for the sudden appearance of the giant creatures.
Once the group had enough distance between them and the ruins, they decided to stop to catch their breaths. They had passed beneath a giant in battle and that was nerve racking enough. Byleth took the chance to survey everyone. Everyone looked uninjured, but their partners were all battle weary. Taking on three giant creatures would be a challenge for anyone, but the students still gave it their all. She silently thanked N for being a good teacher.
The only creature that had been defeated in battle was Felix's Honedge. Despite hiding it with his permanent scowl, his eyes betrayed that he was concerned for his partner. Byleth dug out an herb from her bag that N had given her. It was supposed to revitalize any creature that had fallen in battle. He said the creature had to smell it, but Honedge was a floating sword. She simply shrugged and decided to try anyway. Honedge was still a creature after all.
She walked over to Felix and held out the herb. The blue haired teen rose an eyebrow and looked between the herb and his professor.
"This should help Honedge get its strength back," Byleth explained.
Felix clicked his tongue in frustration. "I don't need your charity. I'm capable of taking care of my partner."
Byleth rose an eyebrow. "Is that right? Then do you have anything on you to heal it?"
Felix groaned and turned his head away. As he did so, he grabbed the herb out of her hand. Byleth smiled at his expression.
"Crush it a bit and hold it close. It should work like that."
Felix nodded and did as he was told. His crushed the herb as well as he could with his hands and it produced a sharp odor. He held the herb close to Honedge and the eye on its hilt opened. The floating sword shot into the air as its strength returned to it.
"The scent is strong, so Honedge might dislike you for a bit," Byleth said.
"Thanks for the tip," Felix replied, irritated. Hovering around him was Honedge as it repeatedly poked Felix with its sheath.
Byleth chuckled before turning her attention to the other students. She was still surprised they had managed to find her. At the same time, she was slightly disappointed that they were able to. She had not told them about her excursion in case something happened. Something did happen, but she wanted to avoid her students getting too badly hurt. However, she was thankful they had found her as fighting two giant creatures was going to be tough. She decided on not reprimanding them, as in the end they did more good than harm. She was also thankful that none of them were too badly hurt.
She then walked over to Dimitri, who was tending to Shinx. She found it cute that Dimitri was so worried about his partner, when the little lion wanted to remain proud. When he managed to see her out of the corner of his eyes, he looked up towards her.
"So, how did to figure out where I was?"
Dimitri put a hand behind his neck and chuckled nervously. "Professor N told us."
That made sense. He was the only one who knew where she was going. If they found out from anyone it would have been him.
"Sorry if we weren't supposed to come, but-"
"We go worried when you were going somewhere dangerous alone," Annette said, cutting Dimitri off.
"Basically that."
Byleth nodded in response. "Well, thanks for coming. If it weren't for all of you, then I wouldn't have been able to take down both a Rhydon and Steelix."
"I'm just glad we got in just in time," Mercedes said.
Byleth was happy about that as well. She was happy that her students were concerned about her well being. She could not help but smile.
"Sorry to interrupt, but we have a stowaway," Felix said.
Everyone turned to see him pointing at a rock. Everyone got defensive, expecting something to attack them. However, when they saw what it was, they all brought their guards down. The lizard creature that Byleth had rescued from the Rhydon peeked from behind the rock. When it saw that everyone was looking at it, it quickly hid behind the rock again.
"Is that the creature you saved?" Ingrid asked.
Byleth nodded and walked over to the rock. The creature remained hidden behind it, but seemed to noticed Byleth's presence.
"It's okay. You're safe now," Byleth said kindly.
The creature peeked from behind the stone again and locked eyes with Byelth. It saw a kind smile on her face and inched out a bit more.
Byleth now had a better look at the creature. It was definitely reptilian, as it had scales, but its most interesting feature was its flame tipped tail. Byleth had never seen a creature like that before.
Eevee then jumped off of Byleth's shoulder and moved to greet the orange lizard, but it quickly hit behind the rock again.
"You're terrified, aren't you?"
The lizard peeked again, this time only showing Byleth one of its blue eyes.
"You're fine now. We're all friends."
The lizard walked from the rock and got closer to Eevee. The furry creature yipped in greeting, but the lizard recoiled a bit.
"Take it easy, Eevee. It's still scared."
Eevee nodded in understanding. She turned back to the creature and held out one of her paws. Eevee yipped again, wanting the lizard to touch it. The lizard slowly reached out with its small claws and touched Eevee's paw. Eevee yipped happily as she had made a new friend. Byleth smiled and called for Eevee to hop on her shoulder.
She then turned back to the lizard. Once again, she did not know was she was looking at. She had never seen a creature with just a fire tipped tail. She wondered if N knew what it was.
"We have to go now, but stay safe," Byleth said, kindly.
Byelth then waved goodbye to the lizard and Eevee did something similar. However, before she could get far, the lizard cried out and clung to her leg. Byleth looked down to see that the creature was still filled with fear, but she could see something else in its eyes.
"I think it wants to be with you," Dedue said.
Byleth nodded and knelt down next to the lizard. "Do you want to come with me?"
The creature nodded rapidly in response. The look in its eyes must have been it wanting to be with her. She assumed the lizard was young, and wondered where its family was. It had to be from the canyon, but she had seen no other signs of any creature like it. Maybe it did not have a family.
"Then, let's go."
The lizard happily cried out and hugged her leg. Byleth picked it up and put it on her other shoulder. She pet the underside of its chin, which it seemed to like. When she turned to her students, the lizard quickly hid. It was likely afraid of new people.
"Seems it'll take time for it to get used to us," Dimitri said. "Though, I wonder what its name is."
Byleth nodded, but that was a question for another time. Right now she wanted to get farther away from the ruins, as she wanted to put the danger they had faced behind her. Something else that had her curious was that Sothis had gone silent since the battle began. Byleth guessed she had fallen asleep again, but something felt different about the whole event. She made a mental note to ask about it later.
—
From the atop one of the canyon's cliffs, a lone figure watched the group of Officer's Academy students walk away. A pleased smile came to their face. Thier objective was to just get information about the gigantification phenomenon that creatures underwent, but getting to test out their battle strength was an added bonus.
"This couldn't have gone better."
Next to them landed the strange looking Blaziken that had saved the group from the Tyranitar. They had not planned on saving them, but they still had a role to play in the plan. Some more than others, but their elimination would come soon enough.
"Good work, Blaziken. Or should I say, Zoroark."
Blaziken began to cackle as it glowed in a purple light. When the light faded, a Zoroark took the place of Blaziken. However, this Zoroark looked different compared to most. Instead of red fur, it was purple. Its claws were the same color. The black fur was brighter compared to normal and its eyes were gold instead of blue.
"It's a good thing you know Focus Blast. That really sold the illusion," the figure said.
Zoroark replied with another cackle.
"We'll kill 'em next time. We should report what we saw to Colress."
In flash of purple light, the figure and Zoroark disappeared.
AN: MERRY CHRISTMAS! My gift to you is this new chapter! Well, it's the day after, but that's just semantics. I hope you had the best Christmas (or holiday) you could with the world how it is. I hope that this chapter was a good present as well.
As for this chapter specifically, it's an important one. It's one that I've been planning out since I first began planning this story. It serves two functions. One is that this story will have both Dynamax and Mega Evolution. Some ground rules, Megas can't Dynamax as well. The reason for that is because it just seems too OP for both gimmicks to happen on the same Pokemon. Second, I'm changing a bit how Dynamax and Mega Evolution are activated. It'll be explained in the story, so I won't spoil it here. The second is some characters having more than one partner. I know this was established in a previous chapter, but I am making it a certainty here. However, I am capping it at three. Since PokeBalls don't exist yet, having someone have a full team of six might make things difficult for me as a writer and for the characters. I know most figured out that the lizard is a Charmander, but the characters don't know that so that's why I kept it vague.
Also, I'm aware that this paralogue(?) takes place later in the game, but for the plot to move forward, I needed it to happen sooner rather than later. Unrelated, but kinda related. N got added to Pkmn Masters (the gacha game), and he's tall as hell next to Hubert lmao. He's supposed to be 5'11'' , but damn he looks like a giant in that game. For this story he is still 5'11" (1.80 meters).
With all that out of the way, how do you guys feel about Dynamax and Mega Evolution being in the story? I won't be using Z-Moves as I could find a place for them, so that won't be appearing. This is something that I wanted this story to have since I first planned it, so I hope you enjoy the choice.
If you're enjoying the story feel free to follow, favorite, and/or review. And follow me on Twitter, I post story updates and other cool stuff one there. Until next time!