Disclaimer: I do not own pokemon.

I also apologize in advance for any Grammar/spelling errors I missed.


Chapter 11

"Hmm?"

Blaze mumbled, slowly opening his eyes. The blurry vision of the desert came into view. He was not sure if he was still awake. He moved his paw, feeling for the ground beneath him and trying to heave himself up on his legs. How long have I been lying here? He thought as he managed to push himself up on his wobbly feet, eyes still on the ground beneath. He could feel the heat of the Sun soaking through his fiery red pelt.

The events of the night before came rushing to his mind, jabbing his senses awake. As fear settled in, Blaze's body tensed and went stiff, his eyes now wildly searching for any pokemon about. There were none. All he could see was the sandy wasteland stretching for miles with desert vegetation dotting the lands. He turned his head around to find himself still by the lake of Aquanesia.

Upon One summer's morning

He twitched up his ears, startled. All five of senses sharpened at the sound of the sweet singing voice. He looked around anxiously, searching for the source.

I carefully did stray

Down by the walls of Wapping where I met a sailor gay

Another sound and he was growing more alert by the minute. Am I hearing voices!? He exclaimed in his head. There wasn't a single pokemon in sight. Then who was singing? He heard a sound of splash and darted his eyes to the lake where he spotted a light blue smudge among deep blue of the lake water. Was that it?

My heart is pierced by Cupid, I disdain old glittering gold

Blaze narrowed his eyes, trying to catch the figure of the pokemon splashing in the lake but in vain. It was light blue with a sort of yellowish structure around its neck and that's all he could grasp. Its fish-like tail was in constant motion, breaking the surface and then disappearing below the waters, making a soothing splash sound and ripples in the lake that gave her voice the perfect tune. The pokemon began to swim closer to the banks, singing softly while Blaze just kept staring, mesmerized by this beauty from the realm of the blue.

There is nothing can console me, but my jolly sailor bold

There is nothing can console me, but my jolly sailor bold

By now, the pokemon had reached the banks of the lake, her eyes carefully studying the Flareon Prince before her. Blaze began to piece it all together. He was at Lake Aquanesia and standing before a gorgeous Vaporeon with the voice that could rival Meloetta, the deity of music.

"Do you have a name?" she asked, placing her paws on the bank. She pulled up to level her head with his but kept her tail in the water below.

"I go by Blaze," He answered. "Your Majesty."

She gasped at how he addressed her, eyes widened at the Flareon who was now smiling softly. She shrank back, swimming back into the water but not quite diving in. This sudden display of defensive behavior signaled to Blaze that some explanation was in order.

"Forgive me," he began. "I find myself at Lake Aquanesia and am greeted by a Vaporeon. There is only one Vaporeon in Aquanesia and that is their Queen, Queen Aquila."

He gave her another reassuring smile and saw her muzzle curl into one as well. She swam closer once more, looking up eagerly at the Flareon Prince. She was scared of him, but curiosity was dominant of the two and was winning her over.

"You have nothing to fear." He added. "I come in peace. And I come alone."

"You know who I am," she said and slipped into the lake water only to resurface closer to the Flareon. "But I do not know you."

Blaze felt his cheeks growing hot from this sudden invasion of personal space. But then, it would have seemed normal for a fire pokemon so he was not worried about her noticing. He looked into her eyes and saw her looking back into his, blinking slowly. Sirenic! He thought. She had to have him under some kind of spell. He never was so easily distracted by females. But Aquila? She had him under a trance.

I have been staring at her! He suddenly realized and quickly moved back a few paces and shook his head, trying to fight the lightheadedness he was feeling. Must have been the long hours of unconsciousness, he told himself, denying the fact that a female could make him feel this way. Aquila giggled a bit at his sudden retreat from her and then moved away from the bank herself, her tail thrashing in front of her.

"You gave me an awful lot of fright last night," She said slowly yet playfully. "You appeared out of nowhere, flames on your muzzle."

"It was you?" Prince Blaze exclaimed, taking a step forward in curiosity.

"Yes," she replied with an apologetic smile. "My question still stands. Who are you?"

"Allow me to introduce myself," he said quickly. "I am Prince Blaze of the Frere Kingdom. Home of the fire type pokemon."

"A Prince?" she said, tilting her head in the lake. "You are royalty, like me."

"So, may I ask what the Queen of the water was doing up on the surface in the middle of the night?" He raised one eyebrow questionably. "You should have been in the safety of your castle."

"It is a bit too early for you to trouble yourself with my safety," Aquila chuckled. "Wouldn't you agree?"

"My question stands," Blaze replied in a challenging tone and a soft smile.

"I was out walking," she said, blinking slowly. "You startled me upon my return so I attacked you. I heard you cry out that you came in peace. I am terribly sorry if I hurt you."

You need not worry!" He smiled at her. "I am willing to forgive and forget if you are willing to do the same."

"What are you doing here, Prince Blaze?" She asked him, swirling in circles in the water to avoid his gaze. By now, she was sure that her curiosity was putting the prince under an uncomfortable position and it was best to give him some space. Blaze looked down, studying his paws.

"Running away I suppose," he said and gave a deep sigh which worried the water queen for a second but it was quickly replaced by another thought.

She turned to look at him again. He was avoiding her gaze, a sign that he was not willing to confide in her just yet. She was reluctant to press for any information in case it offended the Flareon Prince. Instead, she decided to help him to the extend she could. It would be fun to have a royal guest. She thought. The Prince didn't seem to have any previous engagements.

"Come with me to Aquanesia," she offered.

It was rather sudden and blunt and as soon as she said it, Aquila figured she could have phrased it better. Smiling awkwardly now, she hoped for the best. He appeared skeptical at first, as if she had been trying to lure him into a trap. He looked into her eyes and found sincerity in her words. She was being kind, not treacherous. Now, he was sure of it. She was staring back at him and noticed the spark of hope her words had brought to his eyes. It made her feel warm inside for some reason and she couldn't quite place it yet.

"Very well," Blaze replied. "I shall take you up on that offer."

Aquila swam away from the bank and slipped into the lake below. Blaze looked around; hoping that she'd pop out in another place but for a few minutes, there was no sign of her. Then, the water began churching and swirling in circles in the centre of the lake and then, a red snake-like pokemon towered over with Aquila sitting securely on his head. He flapped open his giant fins that gave an impression of wings and then swam over to the bank and lowered his head.

"Who is this!?" Blaze gasped, taking a step back.

His eyes widened at what he witnessed. Its serpent-like body resembled a Gyarados, of that he was sure. The rest, it was new to him. It wasn't even his odd coloring that surprised him. It was his bulkier built and fins, elongated over his neck and falling all the way down its back.

"It is a Gyarados silly!" Aquila giggled, amused at his astonishment. "Though he is a bit special. Do get on his back. He won't harm you."

Prince Blaze stood there for a second, his vision fixed on Gyarados and his jaw hanging in awe. He was able to disregard this for now and jumped onto the pokemon's head next to the queen and sat down.

"This will require you to hold your breath," Aquila informed him. "I don't suppose your kind can breath underwater. But not to worry. It won't take long with Gyarados."

He nodded in acknowledgement.

"Let us be off then," she commanded her subject.

The Gyrados gave a roar and then dived below into the blue. Once underwater, his speed was boosted to an extraordinary rate, faster than a Zebstrika on a mountainous terrain. He extended his large fins, blocking out the view from either sides of Prince Blaze. At several occasions, he caught a glimpse of the Goldeen, Seaking, Remoraid and Magikarp swimming around him. The pressure of holding his breath was getting to him and he found it impossible to hold it longer. And then, he saw it. It appeared to be a crystal chasm and from its transparent wall, an underwater castle and a pokemon kingdom could be observed. This was all so new to the fire pokemon and left him speechless and baffled beyond words.

The Gyarados entered this crystal chasm from a small opening, bring the two royals into the Kingdom of Aquanesia. Aquila was the first to jump off, landing quickly on her paws. She shook her fur free from any moisture, fluffing it up nicely. She then turned around to face her guest from Frere only to see Blaze still holding his breath, his face pale with the lack of oxygen.

"You can breathe now!" She said hastily.

Unsure of what she meant, Blaze exhaled and then sucked in a lungful of air.

"I CAN BREATHE!" He exclaimed. Aquila laughed at this. He clearly wasn't aware of the nature of Aquanesia Kingdom.

"Yes, you can," she said, walking away from the waiting Gyarados and on the route to the castle.

Blaze stood rooted in his spot for a while, taking in the view. The Gyarados snarled at Prince Blaze, snapping him out of his thoughts. He growled back in defense then hurried to follow Aquila.

This was a new world to the pokemon of Frere. He noticed that some pokemon, like marshtomb, Totodile, Kingler, Golduck and Poliwhirl were walking on their feet. While others such as Remoraid, Goldeen, Starmie, Huntail, Wishcash and Gorbyss were swimming easily within the fortifications of the chasm, floating in space. He shifted his gaze to the crystal walls surrounding the kingdom. He could clearly see the world outside the Kingdom of Aquanesia which was immersed deep within the lake. A huge Wailord passed outside the city, giving a loud wail as he swam by, leaving the Prince in a state of awe at the fantastic view of the giant pokemon which was nearly one-fourth the size of the entire kingdom. All this time, Aquila was looking at Blaze, taking in the pleasure of his bewilderment.

The Kingdom was bursting with colors of different seashells, gems, pearls and underwater pokemon swimming swiftly around or grumbling down on the ground and going about the streets of the underwater city which were made purely of pearls and marble. Blaze had never seen so many colors in his life. The castle ahead was encrusted with a thick layer of seashells and rare gems which were rumored to be a childhood collection of Queen Aquila herself when she was a princess. All of this failed to dominate his confusion over the fact that he, a land pokemon, could breathe underwater. Aquila had all the answers. All he had to do was ask.

"I believe explanations are in order," he stated, walking easily in steps with Queen Aquila.

"I can explain alright," she said, walking with him. "You see, we worship Palkia. He is the creator of dimensions and keeps the space stable. In this part of our dimension, he distorted the space, leaving it in this state to allow all pokemon, water or not, to breathe underwater."

It took a while to wrap his head around this strange piece of information but Blaze eventually took her for her words. Palkia had deliberately distorted this part of the dimension to enable pokemon to reside underwater. Incredible! He thought. Legendary pokemon are powerful above all!

By now, the two of them had reached the castle. Entering the castle, Blaze was introduced to a million kinds of vegetations he had never seen. He couldn't help but run over to them and run his paws over the soft petals. It was an amazing sensation to feel something soft after years of living on hard rock. Aquila smiled from behind. This Prince surely belonged to some faraway place that she was dying to learn of. But for now, she'd have to let the prince get used to his surroundings before she could ask any of her questions.

"Follow me," she said alluringly and he was enchanted once again.

She thrashed her tail and took to the water surrounding her and began to swim towards the castle gates. Blaze had to run to keep up and ended up chasing after her till they had reached the throne room. The throne room was a brilliant blue with Sapphire pillars inside it, decorated with the rarest types of pearls from Clamperl and Prussian blue curtains in constant movements with the waves in Aquanesia. Blaze couldn't hide his excitement.

"Your world is so beautiful!" He gasped. Aquila laughed slightly at this statement.

"I'm sure your world is beautiful too." She replied, sitting down on a chaise longue, spreading her tail like a mermaid.

He took the bench opposite to her, blushing a deep red which was not quite visible against his blazing orange pelt. Why do I feel this way, looking at her? He asked himself, looking into Aquila's eyes and watching her stare back into his.

"No, it's not beautiful at all," he grumbled, breaking the eye contact. "It's nothing but rocks and lava."

Aquila sat up, excitement radiating from her face.

'I'd like to hear more!" she exclaimed.

Realizing they were just as fervent to learn about each other world, he smiled and began.

In a desert between Blitz Kingdom and Frere kingdom:
It was quiet. Too quiet. The silence in the desert plain had prolonged for hours and not a single pokemon could be seen. They had all deserted the location because they knew of the events the evening sun would bring upon this desert land. In a matter of few hours, the ground would be soaked with blood and littered with dead pokemon who would die in the name of their king and their legendary. By the time of the night, not a single living creature would be found within a 10 mile radius or so. Indeed, a battle ground is the most dreadful sight, even for the merciless desert wanderers, the sandslash and Geodude who had forsaken their land and were on migrations to find a new place to reside.

The Sun was low, indicating that night was fast approaching. With it, two armies were charging at each other from opposite directions. Two types, two nations, one aim: To do as their legendary commanded.

From the East side, The Blitz army was approaching, led by Prince Volt. The army consisted of many Luxray and Manetric who seemed to be more in number than the others. The remaining were Electrivire, Gorventula and Eelektross. They each had filed up according to their respective species, led by Volt and Pacharisu who walked ahead. The electric pokemon were charging up their powers, running the electrical energy down their bodies, their muscles tensed and hyped for action. The Electrivire were stretching themselves and flexing their arms and legs, ready to squash the first fire pokemon they could get a hold of and then electrocute them to death.

From the west side was the army of Frere approaching. Their army was much larger than that of Blitz kingdom with much tougher looking pokemon. The army was in files of Magmortar, Darmanitan and Ninetales. On the either side of the army, a herd of Rapidash was marching along while holding their heads high, their sharp horns glinting in the setting sun. The King Arcanine and Fennekin walked a little ahead with a diamond-shape formed around them from the male Pyroar walking on all four side of him for the protection of their king. The female Pyroar followed close behind, their claws sharpened to tear any pokemon from limb to limb. The armies arrived close to the battle area and stopped a few meters away from each other. Volt took a good look at his opponent's force, taking in the view of the dangerous looking fire-types and allowing the tension that prevailed in the otherwise lifeless desert to sink in.

"It doesn't matter if they are more in number right?" Pachirisu stated, looking eagerly up at Volt who was breathing heavily, bracing himself.

"No," he replied. "It does not."

Deep inside, he knew he came to lose but beating such a huge army would strengthen the image of the Blitz Kingdom so the Prince had a change of heart. He'd beat the Frere Kingdom. Sapphire's fate had been sealed the moment the army was put under his charge. He would retrieve her, then kill her and blame the Frere Pokemon. It would not matter what would come after that. The dead cannot be brought back and he would have won either way.

Without a warning, Volt raised the cry to begin the battle. "In the name of Zekrom!" He yelled at the top of his lungs which was followed by passionate howls and cries of the electric pokemon who charged up at the Frere pokemon.

They were not unprepared to say in the least. "In the Name of Reshiram!" They shrieked, equally loud. Both the armies merged into a single crowd and began attacking those of the opposing army.

The Ninetales charged up at the Manetric, their jaws tight, holding in the flames that threatened to burst out at any second. They unleashed the move in the form of Flamethrower towards the Manetric. They made use of Quick attack and zigzagged between the flames of the ninetales and tackled them. A few Ninetale foresaw this and jumped in time. Then whirling in the air, they countered with a Flame wheel, hitting several of the Mentric with the move.

The Luxray charged their manes with electricity, making them appear twice their actual size, almost the size of the Pyroar in the opposing army. Their mane was now sharp as daggers with the amount of electricity surging through them. With this, they Wild charged towards the Darmanitan, giving them a painful whack with their heads and then electrocuting them with thunderbolts and discharge before any had a chance to regain their posture. Their heavy weight and small legs were partly to blame for the disadvantage.

Arcanine was advancing fast into the Blitz's area of the battlefield, the Pyroar following him. They used overheat and Fire fang on the Manetric who attempted to stop Arcanine and Fennekin moving ahead. Looking forward, duos of large electrivire were fast approaching.

"Take care of those two!" A male Pyroar ordered four of the female ones.

Without needing any further explanation, they charged at the Electrivire, claws ready for a quick grasp. Pouncing on to their hard bodies, the Pyroar clung to them, making the heavy beasts fall on their backs. Little else was seen as the Pyroar unleashed incinerate and it's obvious that the two were burnt to ashes.

Arcanine himself was holding up a flamethrower, moving it around to attack the Blitz Pokemon. Many fell on the ground and were crushed under the feet of other pokemon, breaking their legs in the process.

In the distance, The Luxray were dashing towards the Radpidash who were galloping towards them with their heads held high, ready to allow their attacked to grab their necks. The Luxray relaxed at this sight as they believed their claws would make a quick work of the worthless Rapidash but as soon as they got close, they realized their folly. The Rapidash lowered their necks and the Luxray went headfirst into the horns. The horns pierced the Luxray straight in the head and they died, dangling from the horns. With a rear and a violent swish of their head and fiery mane, the rapidash disposed off their carcass and charged towards the approaching Manetric. The Manetric however, stopped in mid track. Digging their claws into the ground for a firm grip, they unleashed a heavy dose of thunderbolt with all the electricity they had been holding back, electrocuting nearly half of the Rapidash to death, the rest falling on the desert ground, crippled to death by Darmanitan and Electrivire combating in a fist fight.

The Gorventula were suffering the most at the hands of the Magmortar who would crush the pokemon under their giant feet and fire them with their canon like arms, burning them to bits before they even reached the pokemon. The Frere army was winning so far.

"Your highness!" Pachirisu said, panting for breath as he climbed the prince's head and fired a discharge at a Ninetales in mid air who was going to pounce on the prince with her claws. "We are losing!"

Volt was frustrated. He charged up the electricity in his body one last time and sent thunderbolt in all four directions, hitting plenty of Ninetales and two of the Magmortar. He watched them crumple to the ground lifelessly. A few Manetric were hit but they only benefitted from this using their Lightning rod ability.

"Manetric!" He growled. 'I'm going after their King! Cover me!"

Volt dashed through the battle field with his quick attack, covering ground and zigzagging through the claws and attacks of other Frere Pokemon. A few Magmortar attempted to shoot him with their Fire Blast moves but the attacks missed Volt completely who was nothing but a yellow blur and it went whizzing around the field until few of the Gorventula were badly hit. They fell to the earth in excruciating pain, crying for help from the pokemon who were too ignorant to give any.

"King Arcanine!" The male Pyroar exclaimed, attacking a few approaching Electrivire with their hyperbeam which send them flying half way across the battle field. They were up on their feet in a matter of seconds and turning around, they fired Thunder shock at the King and his guards.

A pyroar was badly hit and he collapsed on the ground, leaving the king with fewer protectors surrounding him. By now, he had lost two of the male Pyroar and three of the female ones who had dispersed in the chaos, fighting the Manetric. This was alarming.

"I'm calling reinforcements!" Arcanine growled.

He stopped dead in his track from running. The Pyroar stood around him, using Flame wheels to keep all the pokemon away. Arcanine dug his claws into the ground below that was now soaked with blood. Closing his eyes, he looked into the sky and howled loudly. The voice could be heard for miles. The Blitz Pokemon stopped, listening for what was coming their way. They heard the ground rumbling, followed by faint growls and grunting and then, above the hillside, they could see a small battalion of Charizard approaching from the air! A last resort had been pulled up.

King Arcanine had this batch waiting in case they needed extra help. The Charizard hovered high in the sky and showered fire using Flamethrowers at the Blitz Pokemon who began to run around for their lives, giving up hope. Volt noticed his army members retreating. Frustrated beyond his temper, he quickly gave orders.

"Eelektross! Electrocute them!"

The Eelektross went on ahead and dodging the fire showers, they unleashed their thunderbolts towards the sky, catching a few Charizard off guard in the mid air. The held up the thunderbolt for a few minutes and when they finally released it, the Charizard crashed to the ground, crushing a few Manetric under their weight. The remaining Charizard were soaring through the air, firing the fire balls whenever they had a chance and flying through the electrical moves fired upwards in their direction from the Eelecktross. The battle that ensued between these two pokemon was the fiercest and neither side showed any sign of diminishing strength, stamina or speed.

Prince Volt gave out an aggravated howl, sending bolts of electricity into the ground around him. A few combatants felt the vibe below their feet and knew that worst was yet to come.

"Pachirisu! Back off now!" he ordered and the pokemon got down from his head, knowing that Volt was going to try something reckless. "And tell the Manetric to advance towards the Pyroar!"

Volt shook his entire body and stretched his paws and closed his eyes. Then he ran an intense amount of electricity through his veins and into his fur, sharpening it into many swords.

When he opened his eyes, he looked murderous. In a flash, he jumped into the sky and dove for the ground below, digging his way down and out of sight of any of the other pokemon. Digging about, he began to feel for the heavy footsteps he would recognize. He knew that Arcanine was surrounded by many Pyroar and their steps would be the loudest combined with those of the Manetric close by, ready for the attack. He was right. In matter of a few minutes, he could almost feel a royal presence above him.

Without wasting another second, he dashed upwards, his back first towards the surface and emerged right below King Arcanine, his sword-like fur slicing into the King's belly and to his heart. The Pyroar gasped as they were caught off guard when their king was attacked and the Manetric seized the opportunity and used thunderbolts on the Pyroar, electrocuting them until they fell down and fainted from the shock.

Arcanine lay on the ground, bleeding and gasping for air. His body was burning with pain but he had known this from the start so he wasn't going to waste his time question his life. He looked up at volt whose fur was stained with his blood.

"W-What did we e-ever do to y-ou?" Arcanine asked through his gasps. Volt smiled down at the dying king.

"Same old questions," he snarled, showing his fangs.

Then he bit the bleeding king in the neck, giving him a sharp slash. Arcanine struggled like a mad dog, thrashing his hind legs and paws wildly in pain for a good 10 minutes, and then his body went limp. Volt released the dead King from his jaws, panting for breath, blood dribbling down from his fangs. He looked down at his accomplishment. Arcanine was lying lifeless at his feet with blood pouring out of his jaws, his eyes closed and his wounds on the belly and neck still bleeding with fresh blood. Volt howled like a victor that he was.

A cry was raised in the Frere army that the king had been killed. Immediately, there was an outbreak of movements as the fire pokemon began to retreat the battle field, running for their lives and leaving behind their injured. The Blitz pokemon stopped their attacks and returned to their camps.

"Your Highness!" Pachirisu said, catching up with Volt. He stopped low on his knees, panting for breath while at the same time, trying to avoid his eyed from the horrible vision of the dead Frere King who died a gruesome death. "Shall we proceed into Frere Volcano?"

"No," Volt said sternly. "If Sapphire indeed is in Frere Kingdom, I do not want her back. We return and inform the king that she was not here after all."

Pachirisu couldn't help but pity the poor King Arcanine who died defending his kingdom while Prince Volt had let the entire battle go in vain, sacrificing the lives of many, all for a want of common sense. He shook his head and followed the Prince like the little royal adviser he was, never to have his own voice.


Thanks for reading. Until next time.