This was my favorite of the trials in Sun and Moon, and I like the inclusions they did in the Ultra games as well. I found this trial to be just the right amount of spoopy without actually diving into a horror game like feeling, though I will admit that the appearance of the totem Pokemon made me jump a bit the first time I played the game.
Thank you to Pikminbosyk and pokemonking0924 for your reviews on Chapter 21, and thanks to Tim the Vocalist for beta-reading as usual!
Wes:
Nayru the Gardevoir (Friend Ball, shiny)
Faye the Ribombee (Level Ball)
Zero the Type: Null (Luxury Ball)
Sakura the Milotic (Lure Ball)
Inigo the Combusken (Permier Ball, shiny)
Blake the Eevee (Moon Ball, shiny)
Rose:
Shelgon (Great Ball)
Brionne (Poke Ball)
Opal the Lycanroc (Fast Ball, Dusk Form)
Maple the Raichu (Love Ball, Alolan Form)
Reiki the Lucario (Ultra Ball)
Salandit (Luxury Ball)
The results of the midterms provided a much needed relief for many of the students of the Pokemon school, and sure enough Rose passed with not only an A, but had answered every question correctly on the test, including the bonus question involving Mega Evolution that Jason had decided to slip in just to make sure the students were paying attention during Kanto-sensei's lesson. She beamed with pride as she looked at her results, with Maple floating directly behind her.
"Wow, I'm impressed… I thought with you so focused on Wes, you would've been distracted enough to at least miss one question", Maple suddenly spoke, catching a few students off guard.
Rose sighed at that. Along with teaching her how to better control her powers, Nayru had also taught Maple her little telepathic speaking trick, and shortly afterwards Maple had learned how to not only communicate telepathically, but also identical to a human, and while it was a nice to have a Pokemon that she could understand and translate for her just like Wes did, Maple did have an annoying habit of saying a bit too much information. "Nayru, I ask again… why?"
"Because I thought it would be both a nice gift, and funny", the embrace Pokemon replied, grinning to herself. "And oh boy was I right!"
"Alright, let's all focus", Jason said, giving Wes his little slip of paper that explained he was excused from the midterm and got an automatic 100 percent for it, which Wes grinned at as Jason walked back to the front of the room. "Your weekend homework is to research the effects of different held items on Pokemon and compile a three-page essay on why it is important to choose the proper held item for battle, due Monday morning!" Several groans emitted from the students at this as they stumbled out of the classroom, and a sigh emitted from Jason as he began to gather his things up. To his surprise, however, Wes walked up to him, a look of confusion on his face.
"Hey, I never got to ask you… those Team Skull grunts at the park were talking about Kukui making a Pokemon League…"
Jason sighed, both at the memory of the time Wes battled against the leader of Team Skull and the fact that the secret was now out there, and he almost wanted to say nothing on the manner, but Rose too was looking at him interested so he caved. "Alright… it was supposed to be a surprise for you two once your final trial was done, but since the Meowth is out of the bag I might as well tell you. Kukui has been toying with the idea of creating a Pokemon League just like the other regions, he got the idea when visiting Kanto a number of years ago and partaking in their Pokemon League. Of course, the idea was never fully implemented until now."
"I did think it was strange that I was given a PokeDex but I guess it make sense now", Rose muttered, thinking out loud.
"Huh?" Wes asked, looking at her confused. "What does your PokeDex have to do with this?"
"You have a PokeDex yourself, you cannot tell me that you aren't aware", Jason bluntly pointed out, but Wes' baffled looked remained so he sighed. "The PokeDex isn't just given to any trainer, you know. You wouldn't find some random Pre-Schooler with one after all. It's only given to certain special trainers, and while some regions handle it a bit differently then others, most of the trainers with a PokeDex have either one of two goals… the first is catching as many Pokemon as possible, and the second is the one that most trainers with a PokeDex have; participating in the Pokemon League."
"Well, that explains why I got mine when I signed up for the Hoenn League", Wes mumbled, taking out the black device before stuffing it back in his pocket.
"We gave Rose hers because of that reason as well", Jason commented. "We figured that once you two completed all your trials, then you would be wanting to participate once we informed you of the Pokemon League's creation."
"Speaking of, when are we doing our next trial?" Wes asked, suddenly grinning at the thought of completing another trial.
"You're kidding me", Rose groaned. "We did one like two weeks ago, and we're going to be here for at least another month! Why the rush to complete the second trial already?"
"Hey, I feel like we're ready now!" Wes replied, grinning and crossing his arms.
"You're just being overconfident, master", Nayru replied, shaking her head.
"Or just trying to impress Rose", Maple suggested, earning the psychic mouse a glare from her trainer.
Jason picked up his bag and laughed a bit, turning to look at them. "Funny… she actually asked me this afternoon if you two would like to participate in your trial tonight."
Wes smiled largely at that, but Rose looked nervously at him before turning back to Jason. "Why does she want the trial to be at night? Wouldn't it be better to do it during the day?"
"Nah, she would rather it be at night to set the tone or whatever", Jason shrugged. "Either way, I can message her right now letting her know that you two would like to take it tonight, if you both agree to it that is… from the looks of it I can see one of you has already agreed to it, but if you both don't agree I can't really just have it be one of you that goes. After all, you two are partners."
Wes frowned at that, looking at Rose with almost a begging stare. Rose looked back at him for a few moments before loudly sighing in defeat. "Fine, fine… We can do the trial tonight. Lord knows I'd rather watch something on Netflix though and relax… my brain has already been on overdrive enough lately."
"Hey, you get your perfect midterm grade and complete a trial", Wes shrugged, shaking his head. "I think that's the perfect day honestly!"
"Says the guy who only got a 100 percent on it because of underestimating one of the most powerful trainers in the world and being too broken to do the midterm", Rose shot back, grinning before turning to Jason, ignoring Wes' paled face. "So, where are we meeting to do this?"
"The Thrifty Megamart Abandoned Site", Jason explained, pointing out the window. "If you take Route 14, it curves into a U shape, and there you'll find the site. You cannot miss it if you follow the signs."
Rose looked confused at that, looking out the window for a moment before shrugging. "Ok… I dunno why we are meeting there, but sure?"
The four hours they had to wait until the sun started going down was agony for Wes, who by the time Rose finally said they were going to head off was pacing his room and almost making scuff marks in the wooden flooring with how much he was moving. Rose almost thought that she would have to restrain Wes from running too far ahead of her as they walked, but surprisingly she and him kept a similar pace all the way towards the Abandoned Thrifty Megamart, which one look told Rose that it was left to rot so hard that it was practically almost ready to collapse into a pile of nothing but rotted wood. Nervously, she approached Jason and the short, purple haired girl wearing a black dress and had to ask. "Er… we aren't doing our trial IN the shop, are we?"
"Yup!" the girl replied to her dismay. "My name is Acerola, and I'm the Trial Captain for your second trial here on Ula'ula Island! This old building is full of lots of Ghost-type Pokemon!"
"G-ghosts!?" Rose gasped, paling and looking nervously at Acerola.
"You two need to find the Totem Pokemon of this site and snap a shot of it!" Acerola explained, giggling. "The totem is a bit of a trickster, and it likes to play hide-and seek and mess around. If you take pictures of the other Ghost-type Pokemon inside, it'll definitely come out to get in on the fun and have its photo taken too! So, if you see something weird happening inside this old place, try and check it out! I bet you'll find a Ghost-type Pokemon causing the mischief, so get its photo before it's gone!"
"G-g-ghosts!?" Rose commented again, this time catching the attention of everyone there.
"You alright, Rose?" Jason asked, thinking he knew the answer already.
"I-I'm fine!" the redhead replied unconvincingly. "I-I just… don't do w-well with g-g-ghosts!"
Wes raised an eyebrow at that. "Really? But you were fine when we battled that Totem Marowak, and you don't seem to have a problem with Jason's Decidueye…"
"There are exceptions to every fear", Jason commented, crossing his arms. "I know a girl who is afraid of bug types, but likes Butterfree for their beauty… well, I didn't count on this… I would like to say that there is another option, or that Wes alone could take the trial, but my hands are tied here… unless Rose completes the trial, she cannot move on."
Wes didn't look too pleased with that, but he remained silent for a moment as he looked at the shaking redhead before he suddenly grinned. "What's the big deal? Did you abandon a doll that turned into a Banette or something?"
"Her fear is nothing to laugh at, Wes", Jason commented, placing a hand on Rose's shoulder as she lunged to strangle him. "Or should I schedule you another lesson in Mega Evolution to remind you that fear is nothing to laugh about?"
Wes paled again at that and muttered the first rule, which Jason only smirked at for a moment before turning to Acerola with a frown. "Well, your trial… you make the call."
"Unfortunately, my hands are tied too", Acerola replied, shaking her head. "Rose needs to complete my trial to move on, but I can have Wes complete it by himself if he wants to… knowing uncle, he won't be ready to give them the Grand Trial until just before you guys are scheduled to go to Poni Island, so she'll have tons of time to complete it!"
"But that means she would have to face it without Wes", Nayru replied. "I get that she's scared and all, but it would probably be wise for her to be with someone so she wouldn't have to face it alone."
"Hey, she has me!" Maple commented boldly. "I'm not afraid of any stupid ghosts!"
"You're weak to ghost types now that you're a psychic type", Nayru pointed out, causing Maple to stagger a bit.
"W-well so are you!" Maple shot back, hovering directly in Nayru's face, who glared back at her.
"Alrght, settle down you two", Jason intervened, petting them both on the head. "But we are at a problem here. On the one hand, Rose does have tons of time to complete this trial, but she would have to do it alone with her Pokemon and without another human present, as I cannot directly be involved in the trial… she would have time to prepare herself for later, however… Rose, it's your call in the end."
"But don't take too long!" Acerola commented, grinning mischievously.
"Do you have to rush my student?"
"Hey, when you said get ready for the trial I did! And the ghosts don't like to wait that long."
Rose took a few deep breaths with her eyes closed, the shaking of her entire body becoming less violent before finally she opened her eyes again. "I-I'll do it."
"You sure?" Jason asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I am", Rose confidently said, stepping forward. "I-It's only pictures… w-what can go wrong?"
"Do not worry, Rose!" Rotom-dex suddenly said, coming from her purse. "I am a ghost type too and I can not only protect you but take the pictures you require as well!"
"You're in a PokeDex, I hardly count you as protection", Wes smugly grinned, earning himself a glare from the device.
"Well… looks like the trial is on!" Acerola cheerfully said. "Lucky you for guys, I already counted on your Rotom-dex. He has a special shooting mode just for this trial. Now, as soon as you enter the building, your trial will begin, so if you wanna make plans just in case any of the ghosts turn hostile, now is the time."
"W-w-whoa!" Rose gasped, suddenly stepping back. "Y-you didn't say anything about battling them!"
"It's a trial, Rose, what did you expect?" Wes sighed, taking out his Moon Ball. "Thankfully, I've been awaiting this moment… Blake, I choose you!" Out of the ball emerged the Shiny Eevee, who let out a cry of glee and rubbed his master's ankle. "Since Blake here is a Normal type, he's immune to Ghost type attacks! We've been secretly practicing his battling, so I am sure he'll do great!"
"Well, that's good defensively, but what about damaging the ghost types?" Acerola pointed out.
"Master made sure he learned Shadow Ball awhile back, so I think we are covered there", Nayru stated, and Blake nodded with confidence, puffing his chest forward a bit with pride.
"W-well if you're using Blake", Rose stuttered, pulling out her PokeBall. "Come forth, Brionne!" The sea lion popped forth from her ball, clapping happily. Acerola nodded at both of them, walking forward and opening the rotten door to the site, causing Rose to jump as the door creaked. Wes, Nayru and Blake walked forward confidently, and with shaky legs, Rose followed after them with Maple and Brionne in tow.
"Wow, this place is a dump!" Wes muttered, looking around and frowning, and once Rose was fully inside, she could see what he was referring to. The floor tiles were all cracked and chipped in various places, and carboard boxes lied abandoned in disorganized fashion, covered in dust and dirt like they had been there for years. Shelves and carts lined the area, making getting around look like it was going to be a miniature maze.
"T-this place gives me the creeps", Rose stuttered, inching herself closer to Wes. "W-why did we h-have to have the trial in h-here?"
"Well, it makes sense for ghost types to take control of an abandoned place like this", Wes said, walking forward a bit with Rose following around, practically glued to his size. Suddenly, they heard a noise, and Rose instantly grabbed onto Wes' arm in fear. Looking around, Wes noticed that a conveyor belt on one of the old checkout lanes stated to move, with no one at the register to control it.
"W-W-Wes", Rose shivered, clenching onto his arm. "W-w-why did that start moving by itself?"
Wes narrowed his eyes, looking at the register before he turned to Nayru, who nodded as if she was sensing something there. Rotom flew forward and his screen turned into a camera, pointed directly at the spot where the cash drawer sat, and there on his screen was a Gastly, floating directly over the register and laughing. Wes smirked and touched Rotom's screen, snapping a picture of the ghost Pokemon, which instantly made itself visible and looked down at them with a devlish grin.
"Blake, Shadow Ball!" Wes commanded. As Gastly flew down to strike (and Rose let out a shriek), Blake rushed forward and formed an orb of darkness in his mouth, before it shot forward and struck Gastly, who was thrown back by the blast and disappeared as quickly as he came.
"See, there's nothing to be afraid of!" Wes commented, looking at Rose, whose eyes were tightly shut as she hugged Wes' arm. "Uh… can you be a bit gentler? You're going to cut off my blood circulation."
Rose blinked suddenly, before blushing heavily and letting go of Wes' arm instantly. "I d-dunno what you're talking about! I w-wasn't doing anything!"
Wes sighed and shook his head, before he heard a bark from Blake. Wes looked where Blake was staring at to see a Pikachu run into view for a split second before it vanished just as quickly as it came. Rose let out a whimper of fear, but Wes was confused. "Why would a Pikachu be here? Come on, let's investigate farther."
"D-do we have to?" Rose asked, looking at Wes with pleading eyes.
"If we want to complete this trial, then yes… and I get the feeling that Pikachu is the key to this whole thing", Wes grabbed her hand and pulled her forward, giving her the courage to walk on. As they walked, the atmosphere of the entire area seemed to get cooler, and before they even got past the cash registers a shopping cart began to tremble violently, the rattling sound echoing off of the rotting wooden structure. Rose hugged Wes' arm again, burying her face into his bicep.
"Brionne, help!" Rose shouted. Brionne leapt forward and shot a jet of water from her mouth, aimed directly at the shopping cart, but whatever was causing the shaking wasn't hit by the water, as the cart not only continued to shake, but an eerie laughter filled the air, as if something was amused by the fear it was causing Rose.
"Hey, don't just attack without warning", Wes muttered, his voice a bit gentle due to how scared his companion was. "We need to reveal it with a picture first, remember?"
"M-maybe I don't wanna see it!" Rose shot back, glaring at Wes from her 'hiding' spot.
"Don't worry, it's probably just another Gastly", Rotom said, flying forward and activating his camera, before his eye blinked. "I was wrong, it's a Haunter." Wes looked into the screen to see that a purple ghost was flying above the cart in a circle, as if it was creating a spiritual tornado that was causing the shaking to occur. Wes simply tapped the screen, and the sound of the picture being taken caused the Haunter to look over at them, appearing into the physical world as well.
"Blake, Shadow Ball once more!" Wes commanded, pointing toward the Haunter.
"Brionne, u-use Bubble Beam!" Rose ordered. Both Blake and Brionne jumped forward, launching their respective attacks towards the Haunter, who danced around the Shadow Ball easily, but was not expecting the Bubble Beam to be as strong as it was, as he got sent flying back just like the Gastly, before disappearing from sight once more, his laugher becoming fainter before disappearing all together.
"Um… Rose?" Wes asked, looking down at her. "It's gone."
Rose began to loosen her grip on Wes' arm, but she made no attempt to let go this time, as she opened her eyes a little bit and found herself seeing something yellow move across the floor. "H-hey, the Pikachu is going t-that way!"
"Then we're going that way too", Wes bravely said, tugging Rose along with him as he began to walk forward, the redhead whimpering again as she reluctantly walked with him. Nayru and Maple gave a bit of a sheepish grin at one another as they watched the two walk so close together, before following after them. Due to the scattered objects in the store, they had to navigate around the back of the left side of the store for a bit before they finally came to a clearing where they saw a Pikachu and Marill doll hovering in the air. The grip that Rose had on Wes' arm tightened once more, Rotom flying forward and revealing that a Gengar was invisible and playing with the dolls, grinning his signature grin as he did so.
"Wow, a Gengar!" Wes gasped, looking in awe as the purple phantom appeared after having his picture taken. "I've always wanted one!"
"P-please don't c-catch it!" Rose shouted at him.
"He can't anyway", Maple reminded her. "We aren't allowed to catch any of the Pokemon here until our trial is complete, remember?"
"Yeah, yeah I know", Wes gave a sigh, pointing forward. "You know what to do, Blake!"
Blake gave a confident nod, rushing forward and firing a Shadow Ball, which hit the Gengar dead on. The ghost retaliated with a Shadow Ball of his own, but Blake jumped directly into the attack, passing through it as if it was nothing but air due to being a normal type.
"Use Bite!" Wes commanded. Blake rushed forward and lashed onto Genger with his teeth, who struggled a bit before vanishing, letting Blake fall harmlessly to the top of the doll rack, where he boldly stood with confidence, before his ear twitched and he looked over to see Pikachu run into a black room and out of sight. "A back room?" Wes asked, looking confused and stepping forward.
"W-w-wait!" Rose suddenly shouted, tugging at Wes. Wes looked confused for a moment before he suddenly saw Acerola standing there, as if she appeared out of nowhere.
"Who are you?" she asked, staring at the back room.
"…Acerola?" Wes asked, stepping forward a bit in confusion.
"Oh… never mind that", she continued to speak, as if she did not hear Wes at all. "Looks like you're done with the trial, right? We should hurry up and leave this place."
"Oh, thank Arceus for that!" Rose said, attempting to leave, but suddenly Wes grabbed her hand again. Rose turned to protest, but could see that Wes was wearing that same look he had given Lillie when he was demanding to know the contents of her bag.
"We aren't done yet", Wes sternly said to her. "That Gengar wasn't the totem Pokemon… now, if you don't mind, move."
"This place is dangerous", Acerola said, this time with a bit more force in her voice. "You should give up on your trial and get out."
"And what about the Totem Pokemon?" Wes asked, before suddenly something seemed to click, and he narrowed his eyes at the girl. "Of course."
"W-what is it?" Rose asked, looking between the Trial Captain and Wes with a mixture of fright and confusion.
Acerola seemed to suddenly panic, as she began to flail and scream. "I told you to get out! Get out! GET OUT!"
"An illusion", Wes shouted, pointing. "Nayru!" Nayru suddenly struck out with Psyshock, causing Rose to scream in panic, but the attack passed through the girl like she wasn't even there, and in an instant, she vanished into nothing. Rose whimpered for the third time, clinging onto Wes harder as the boy stepped forward, pushing the door to the back room open. The back room didn't seem that large and was covered on the walls with pictures of Pikachu. Rose flinched suddenly as the door shut behind them, and even Wes froze as he could sense something was in the room with them.
"G-guys!" Rotom suddenly said, his screen turning into picture mode. "L-look behind you!"
As they slowly turned their heads, Rotom gave a clicking sound indicating that he had snapped a picture. Standing directly behind them was a Pokemon unlike Wes had ever seen before, covered in a rag that was drawn on to look like a Pikachu, with a wooden tail shaped like Pikachu's. Now that Wes could see the creature closely, this is what they had been chasing all along, and only thought it was a Pikachu.
"Seeeeee meeeeee!?" it suddenly screeched, suddenly glowing with an aura of power much like the other Totem Pokemon. Rose jumped back so far that she actually pulled Wes all the way back to the wall and onto the floor, screaming all the way.
"What is that thing?!" Wes asked, pulling out his black PokeDex and holding it up, a picture of the creature appearing on its screen. "Mimikyu, the Disguise Pokemon. Its actual appearance is unknown. A scholar who saw what was under its rag was overwhelmed by terror and died from the shock."
"Oh, that's real great!" Rose screamed, her voice muffled due to her face being buried into Wes' chest. "W-we're facing something that can kill us!"
"The PokeDex exaggerates all the time", Wes told her, pulling her back onto her feet. Rose looked towards the totem Pokemon, giving a small squeak of fear. The rag covered Pokemon let out a sharp cry, and a Banette suddenly appeared into view as well. "Blake, Shadow Ball!" Blake let out a cry as he launched his attack at the Mimikyu, however to Wes' surprise the attack seemed to harmlessly bounce off the creature, though it's head suddenly seemed to slump over a bit. Wes blinked, looking back at the PokeDex and reading some more. "Mimikyu's signature ability, Disguise. Once per battle, the shroud that covers the Pokémon can protect it from an attack."
"Brionne, Bubble Beam!" Rose screamed, and the water type obeyed her command, sending a stream of bubbles that blasted Banette, sending it fleeing. Mimikyu, however, let out a cry as a shadowed hand appeared from its rag, slashing Brionne and sending her flying back and hitting the wall. Despite getting back up, Brionne seemed heavily injured by the attack.
"That was Shadow Claw!" Wes commented, and grinned. "Blake, Shadow Ball once more!" Blake sent out another ball of darkness, which slammed into the Mimikyu and almost seemed to do enough to knock it out instantly, but the Disguise Pokemon shrugged it off like it was nothing, before suddenly charging forward and slamming into Blake with a glow of pink energy. Blake yelled out in pain, landing on the ground and getting up slowly, injured by the attack.
"That was Play Rough!" Nayru informed Wes with wide eyes. "A Fairy type move!"
"Huh?" Wes asked, before looking back at the PokeDex and sighing. "…I should really read this whole thing… it's a Ghost and Fairy type!"
"Whatever type it is, it's still creepy!" Rose cried in terror, pointing wildly with her left hand as she continued to cling to Wes with her right. "Icy Wind, Icy Wind, Icy Wind!" Brionne let out a deep breath, which was covered in snow and ice particles, which hit Mimikyu and began to cover it over in ice. Wes knew that the attack would drop the speed of the creature, but it didn't change the fact that it was still empowered by the aura. Mimikyu's eyes glowed with fury, as it charged forward once again, this time preparing to use a slash attack.
"Look out Brionne!" Wes shouted. Blake suddenly dashed forward, and slammed into Mimikyu's body with a bite attack. As the two parted from the blow, however, Blake began to glow with blue energy. His body began to grow and become more streamline, and his ears and tail began more cylindrical in shape and pointed at the ends. When the glow stopped, Blake's entire body had become black in coloration, with blue rings on his ears, tail, limbs and forehead. He opened his eyes, revealing a yellow coloration had taken them.
"Blake evolved into Umbreon!" Nayru and Maple screamed at the same time.
"This time, allow me, Wes", Rotom said, flying forward and showing a normal colored Umbreon on his PokeDex screen, which had yellow rings and red eyes. "Umbreon, the Moonlight Pokemon. Umbreon evolved as a result of exposure to the moon's waves. It hides silently in darkness and waits for its foes to make a move. The rings on its body glow when it leaps to attack."
"A dark type", Rose commented, her head still buried in Wes' arm. "That means that Mimikyu's fairy attacks will do more damage…"
"But at the same time, Blake's dark type attacks are stronger", Wes pointed out. "Blake, Bite!" Blake leapt forward, getting more air due to his longer legs and slicker body, lashing out at Mimikyu with his sharp teeth. The totem Pokemon attacked Blake with another Play Rough, but despite it being super effective against the now dark type Pokemon, Blake did not seem too bothered by the assault, and landed elegantly a few yards away.
"Umbreon are known for being defensive Pokemon, zzt", Rotom commented, grinning a bit.
"Brionne, slow down Mimikyu some more!" Rose commanded. "Use Icy Wind!" Bironne inhaled again, and let out a stream of icy breath towards Mimikyu, which began to crystalize on his body once again, this time it did not shake it off as easily.
"Blake, Moonlight!" Wes commanded. Blake closed his eyes, focusing as the moon's glow came through the damaged roof and covered his body, healing his injuries. "Now, Foul Play!" Blake's eyes shot open again, and a dark aura overtook his body before he charged forward, slamming into Mimikyu and sending him flying back. For a few seconds, Blake and Mimikyu faced one another, before Mimikyu suddenly vanished, leaving behind nothing in its wake.
"W-w-where did it go?" Rose shivered in fear, looking around wildly.
"Gone", Wes breathed a sigh of relief. "I think we won, Rose."
"Well, that's a relief…" Rose sighed as well, loosening her grip on Wes' arm, but suddenly the lights in the building all turned off, causing a sudden shriek of horror to escape from the redhead.
"Ow! Rose, you're squeezing me!" Wes' voice gasped, struggling for air.
"I hate this place!" Rose cried.
"Calm down!" Nayru called out. "Where are you two?"
"Ouch, that was my tail!" Maple suddenly shouted.
Blue light suddenly shinned in the room, and a hugging Rose and Wes blinked and turned to look at the source. The blue rings on Blake's body were glowing vividly, illuminating the darkness before them. Nayru and Maple also blinked, and Nayru slowly released Maple's tail now that she could see what she had grabbed onto.
"Alright, Blake, lead the way", Wes commanded, letting go of Rose's body, though the redhead still made sure she grabbed his arm. Blake nodded at his trainer and began to guide the party forward until they were stepping out of the building, where Acerola and Jason were standing in waiting. Acerola was grinning ear to ear, while Jason's eyes darted from Rose's hand clinging onto Wes' arm, to the newly evolved Blake.
"Welcome back, you two!" Acerola greeted them, before looking at Rose's hand as well. "You two had fun it looks like!" Immediately, Rose let go to Wes' arm, muttering something to herself. Acerola giggled at this, before reaching up and grabbing onto the Rotom-dex. "Alright, let's see your photos…"
"Hey, easy with the screen taps!" Rotom commented, chuckling a bit as if he was being tickled.
"Yup, you got a picture of Mimikyu alright!" Acerola commented, holding the picture up on the screen with pride. Wes couldn't help but notice it was very fuzzy, and the room around them was impossible to make out. "It's pretty hard to catch it on film, so this is a really great attempt!"
"B-but it wasn't even moving", Rotom commented, hovering back into the air once he was released from the grip of the trial captain. "How did the picture get so blurry?"
"Does it matter?" Rose replied, readjusting herself. "I'm just glad to be done with this place!"
"Well, since you two completed the trial, here you go!" Acerola held out a purple Z-Crystal, which she handed to both Wes and Rose. "The Ghostium Z!"
"Thanks, Acerola!" Wes replied, looking back towards the trial sight. "You know, I might wanna go back in there and catch me a Gastly, Haunter or Gengar so that I can-"
"Don't you dare!" Rose suddenly shouted at him, looking angry. "I had enough of ghosts for the time being! Those weird objects that they were moving, that back room!"
"Back room?" Acerola asked, looking confused. "Oh, cut it out! Don't try and scare me! I know there's no back room here!"
Rose once again showed fear as she looked at Acerola, but even Wes looked at her with a look of shock on his face. "Excuse you?"
"There isn't a back room here", Acerola commented again, this time looking at them seriously. "It collapsed ages ago. Makes sense since it was the weakest part of the entire structure… brrr, I feel like I'm getting chicken skin. I'll catch you guys later, ok!" And with a slight shiver, she walked off, muttering to herself about there being no back room.
"S-she was kidding, right?" Rose commented, looking horrified after her. "S-she can't be serious!"
Wes walked towards the building and peered inside the facility, looking around for a moment before turning back to Rose and Jason, his eyes widened. "Uh… the door to that room is gone."
Nayru, Maple, Brionne and Blake all gasped and rushed forward, looking into the building themselves before turning to Jason and Rose with the same expression Wes donned. Rose blinked once, before turning and walking after Acerola. "Nope, nope, nope! I'm leaving! I'm out! Goodbye weird spooky place!"
Wes walked up to Jason and looked at his teacher with eyes hungry for information. "You know a lot about a lot of thing, care to explain what that was all about?"
Jason looked at Wes for a moment before shrugging, "Not my trial, not my problem. I have to keep some mystery and suspense here."
"Hey you two!" Rose called back, glaring at them. "Hurry up! I don't wanna walk home alone!"
"We're coming!" Jason sighed, shaking his head and following after with Wes and the other Pokemon in tow, unaware that a Mimikyu was peering out at them from the bushes, watching as they left the trial site behind.