-Chapter Eight-


(Indigo Mountain, Archeological Dig Site, 1968)

The clang of metal picks and shovels against the large rocks echoed throughout the mountains. Several archeologists tore into the boulders, reducing them to crumbling pebbles, in order to get to whatever lay below. Professor Samuel Oak, 25 years of age, stood behind them, his head and face shaded from the sun by a large straw hat. He was fascinated by their work, and on this day, he had a chance to finally watch them work.
"Professor!"
Professor Oak smiled warmly at the young archeologist, Dr. Van Von Kinle, as he approached.
"Please call me Samuel."
Kinle returned the smile.
"Very well, Samuel," he agreed in his thick accent.
He placed his hand on Samuel's shoulder and indicated to an area of dug up rocks and rubble.
"I would like it very much, if you would help me out. That pile over there needs to be thoroughly examined. Would you be interested?"
Samuel nodded eagerly and Kinle led him over to the large pile. They kneeled down on their knees and began to dig and sort through the rocks. Samuel hummed to himself as he searched. A gust of wind blew over the mountains just then, knocking the hat off his head and down to a bottom corner of the clutter. He crawled over to it and picked it up…when something caught his eye. From amongst the dull, dirty rocks, he could see something sparkling.
"Hmm? Say…what's this…?"
He dug away the rocks and found a sparkling jeweled ring. Picking it up, he could see the golden band was rusting and there were several elaborate markings. It looked ancient.
"Dr. Kinle!"
Seconds after Samuel's call, Kinle was by his side.
"What is it, Samuel?"
Samuel handed him the ring. Kinle looked it over in a strange silence. Then he looked at Samuel.
"You found this here? In this pile?"
Samuel nodded and showed him the exact spot. Kinle shook his head in disbelief.
"It's amazing you could actually find this small thing among all this… Well, let's keep digging around here—maybe we'll find some more."
And more they did find. By the time the day was through, Kinle and Samuel had dug up a pendant, a flask, an urn, a chalice, and two spoons. All of them had the same strange markings inscribed beautifully into them. After they cleaned and rinsed them off, they could see that the markings were some sort of ancient text.
"It looks like it might have been older than even the people of ancient Pokemopolis," Kinle observed to Samuel. "This is a very rare discovery indeed."
That night, Samuel phoned a colleague of his, Genesis Morgan. Genesis was a professor that taught at a gym leader-training academy outside Fuchsia City. Samuel and Genesis were both very taken with the idea of ancient civilizations, and Genesis had originally planned on going with Samuel to Indigo Mountain for this particular dig.
"Come now, Genesis. Don't you want to come and see these things? They're so strange."
"What about my boys, Sammy?"
At this time, Genesis was helping two of his students with some in-depth training, along with a young man he had taken in as his assistant. They were all smart boys and they got along very well. All of them really respected Genesis and admired him much more than he ever really knew.
"I don't think they'll mind coming along," Samuel said, smiling. "You remember how we were at that age, don't you? Always ready for the unexpected adventure…"
"It wasn't that long ago, Samuel," Genesis remarked, beginning to smile as well. "But I suppose you're right."
"Of course I am!" Samuel laughed.
And so, Genesis and the boys-Koga, Blaine, and Devon Brown-caught the next plane out to Pallet Town- and from there, into the mountains where they joined Samuel and Kinle, and the rest of the archeological crew.
On the night they arrived there, the three boys stayed awake late in their tent.
"What'd you two think of those things, huh?" Blaine asked them, putting his arms behind his head.
"They're interesting," Devon remarked. "I want to know what that text on them says."
Blaine nodded, smiling.
"Yeah…I'm a little curious about that myself."
Koga closed his eyes.
"Personally, I don't see anything so special about them. People find artifacts all the time, what should make these so unique?"
Devon thought about this. He rolled over on his stomach and propped his chin up with his hand.
"Well…maybe because they're so old."
Koga laughed.
"All artifacts are old, Devon."
"Well, yeah, but…these are really old. Dr. Kinle said that they may have come from a civilization older than Pokemopolis, remember?" He paused. "And there's that writing."
"What about the writing?" Koga asked, his voice monotone.
"No one has been able to decipher it. It could mean anything-all those symbols and pictures."
Koga shrugged and turned on his side.
"It's probably nothing too special."
Devon stared at his back. He sighed and looked back up.
"Maybe."
He jumped alittle when Blaine suddenly leaned over him.
"Don't listen to him. He wouldn't know 'interesting' if it came up and bit him on the a--…"
Koga coughed loudly. Blaine and Devon grinned at each other.
"What's the matter, Koga? You know it's all in fun!"
Koga grumbled something under his breath.
"Goodnight to you too!" Blaine chimed, his head still hovering over Devon's.
Devon laughed and smiled up at him. Blaine winked at him, and in one swift movement, was back in his sleeping bag.
"Good night, Devon."
"Night, Blaine. Sweet dreams."


Kinle pulled back the cloth that hung down in front of the entrance to the tent. He went over to the dug up artifacts to look at them more closely. He had become an expert at reading ancient text, and he was positive he could figure this out. He leaned close and traced his fingers along the symbols on the chalice.
"G…Good…God…Gods. Gods."
He nodded, feeling a light warmth of pride as he read the first word.
"Gods. Give…share…hmm…"
He paused a moment, rubbing his finger over the spot.
"Bring! Gods bring."
He kept going on in this way, until he got one full sentence: Gods bring us salvation from darkness.
Satisfied, he told himself he should go back to bed…but there was still more to be deciphered.
You can finish tomorrow, he told himself. They aren't going anywhere.
But in the end, he decided solving a few more lines couldn't hurt. So he got a chair and settled himself down in front of the chalice.
When the first light of dawn peeked out from over the mountains, Kinle was finished. He leaned back, exhausted, in his chair, fully content with his progress. He touched the chalice lightly and read the words aloud, instinctively filling in the spaces between certain words.
"Gods bring us salvation from darkness. Never break the bonds of his evil Lordship, lest this world be cast into his vile shadow. To thee, Gods, may this prayer go unspoken and forgotten from this day, for if it shall, may the darkness himself rise again…"
His voice trailed off as he read, and he stopped. He had never been a religious person, but that last line played over and over in his mind, making him feel nervous and tense. After several moments, he relaxed and found he had been holding his breath. He picked up the chalice and placed it back where it had been, in the center of a little circle of the other relics.
As he stepped outside, he felt the earth began to tremble. It was so subtle, that he barely noticed it at all, but it was there. He looked above his head and saw massive dark clouds begin forming in the sky, smothering what little sunlight there had been.
He doubled back into the tent, and instantly regretted it. The relics glowed with an amazing aura, the chalice floating in the center. He cursed himself silently, and then aloud.
"Damn me!" He gasped. "Damn me straight to Hell!"
By now, the light tremble had become a harsh quaking, shaking the tents and trucks and such. Inside, their tent, the three boys woke up instantly.
"What is this?" Koga demanded the air. "An earthquake?"
On impulse, Devon reached over to grab his arm.
"Koga, what's going on?"
Koga pushed him away, knocking him back into Blaine's arms.
"If I knew, would I be asking?!" He snapped.
Blaine put an arm protectively across Devon's chest, holding him to him.
"Calm down, Koga. Isn't that what you're trained to do? As a ninja?"
Koga shot him a nasty look, reluctantly realizing he was right.
"I'm calm," he replied, more to himself, than to the others.
"Boys! Boys!" Dr. Kinle's voice shouted from across the campsite.
Koga quickly slipped out of the tent. Blaine stood, bringing Devon with him as he followed.
Samuel, Genesis, and Kinle stood outside, staring up with horror at the sky. The clouds were surrounding everywhere, covering as far as they could see. It felt like they were closing in…cutting off their fresh air with a thick supply of a strange odor unlike any other. One of the young archeologists headed for the tent with the relics, unaware that they had caused this. Kinle saw him and called for him to stop, but the man was already inside. Koga followed him and was greeted by a spurt of blood that splashed on his face and body. The man lay dead before him; several little creatures climbing and clawing out from the ground. One of them stood on the man's stomach, his claws drenched in blood. He leapt at Koga, but the ninja dodged out of the way. When he advanced again, Koga reached out and grabbed the thing by its scrawny neck. His rough hands twisted it until it snapped in his grasp, new blood spilling over him: black blood.
The other demons attacked, but he could only do so much with two hands. He was soon overpowered. Finally, Genesis ran in with a large knife, and proceeded to slash blindly at the mass of creatures. But there was no end to them.
Suddenly, they stopped and stood still for a moment. Then, they all scurried outside, leaving Koga and Genesis breathing heavily and wiping sweat and blood from their faces.

End of Chapter Eight