l

Chapter XXIV - Fire


I couldn't feel my legs.

Part of me was glad. The pads of my paws were undoubtedly torn up. I sneezed again, to top it all off, almost putting out the measly fire before me out entirely.

"Hey, hey! Sneeze away from the fire! It took me thirty minutes to get it going!"

I glared at the human boy sitting across me with everything I could muster. He sent a pouty look of similar caliber right back at me.

He wasn't exaggerating. It'd taken everything I had in me not to muster the strength to stand and finish building the fire for him. He was doing everything wrong, and had only found out how to catch a spark by blind luck.

There'd been extra fuel for the flames in the form of scattered lumber, dry and left behind in the building. Everything had been laid out for him perfectly, but despite being a trainer and having supposedly traveled for a while, he was less than proficient, to say the least.

My patience certainly wasn't helped by the fact I was freezing, soaking, and my head still hurt. Lucky to be alive, on top of it all. Putting aside my own dignity long enough to appeal to a small sense of compassion in the novice trainer had ended up saving my life.

Now, he was just sitting across the fire, trying to get warm. He'd since changed into some dry clothes, making me wish I could do the same. For whatever reason, he hadn't released his remaining Pokémon, whatever they may have been. I wanted to see Misa so I could verify that the human hadn't been lying about capturing her.

As if he'd read my mind, he sighed, finally standing up and walking over towards his bag.

From it he procured a gigantic bag of Pokéfood, easily enough to take up the space of a single backpack pocket on its own. I would have probably burst out into laughter if I wasn't feeling like a ton of bricks was being laid on me.

But, now was the moment of truth. He reached down to his belt and detached four balls, all in pristine condition. Apathetically, he released all of their contents simultaneously.

Misa, not seeming in the least bit uncoordinated after being released, turned towards the human boy and began in a tirade.

"I saw that! What the hell do you think you're doing, attacking my slave?! And capturing me?! Who do you think you are, huh? Some kinda big shot? "Oh, look at me I got Pokéballs so I can do whatever I want." You ain't nothing, you know that?! Nothing!"

"Misa…"

"Nox! Look, I tried getting away, but the human had more Pokémon and they teamed up on me and I couldn't! He put me in a ball and I was really confused and I didn't know what to do and I couldn't get away and I couldn't help you and-"

"Misa, it's alright… Just chill for a second, and act like you can't hear me talking to you."

She took a few seconds to absorb the command, eventually slipping into an act. She took a few, heavy steps forwards before plopping down next to me and crossing her arms, pouting. She mustered up a nasty glare and met the human's nervous expression.

It hurt my head to use Illusions, but I resolved to pull through for just a bit longer. This was necessary.

I got my first look at the rest of the human's team shortly thereafter. It was comprised only of three Pokémon, all of which were staring at Misa with varying expressions.

Two of the Pokémon watched Misa as she sat down with shocked silence. Among them was the Blitzle that I'd come to be decently familiar with. Female, if her voice was any indication, and eventually settling to shift her gaze back and forth between her trainer and me.

A Tepig to her right shared a similar reaction to Misa's outbursts initially, but was quick to get over it and approach tentatively, inciting a harsh glare from Misa. It was quick to back off, head hanging but eyes hopeful.

Are you kidding me? He spent that long trying to build the fire himself when he has a fire-type starter?!

The last Pokémon was obviously a sharp contrast compared to the other two. It was a Mienfoo, and one obviously ticked off if its eyes were any indication. After taking preliminary glances at both Misa and I, it turned towards its trainer and began speaking.

"Really? Just, really? I knew you were low, but a hatchling? The Axew, sure, fine, maybe, but you're actually that much of a coward to go after a kit that couldn't even defend itself?!"

The voice was distinctly female, though lower than I'd expect for a basic-stage evolution. I presumed her as older than any of the other Pokémon present based on that observation alone.

"Novice trainer with at least one unloyal Pokémon," I remarked to Misa, "We can use this."

"Jeez, why're you mad now? We got new teammates! Our team's growing!" the trainer pointed out, at the very least able to pinpoint the Mienfoo's irk. "Quit being such a downer on everything."

The Mienfoo seemed ready to retaliate again, but I inadvertently caught her eye as she took a glance back at me. Her gaze didn't soften in the slightest.

"Do whatever you want," she relented, turning and walking towards the human's side. "Welcome to the team, have fun, yada yada yada. Try not to get killed with this idiot giving you commands."

Before the human could move away, she apathetically pressed a paw against one of the balls the human had since put back on his belt. She was gone a few seconds later, reabsorbed into her ball.

"You aren't hungry?" the boy asked retroactively, given no answer as his Mienfoo disappeared. "Fine, more for everyone else then."

I traded glances with the remaining pair of the boy's Pokémon. The Mienfoo was obviously antagonistic towards the trainer. Did that mean she wouldn't fight for him if it came to that?

"Misa, how do you feel matched up versus these two? You do have the type advantage versus both of them. Sigh if yes and do nothing if no."

She made no outward response to my words, as if she was waiting for the Blitzle and Tepig opposite us to speak first.

The human, as it turned out, was the first to break the silence.

"Well, uh… Welcome to the team, Axew and Zorua. We're all really glad you guys are here."

He didn't sound as enthusiastic as his words let on. I could feel an even greater sense of annoyance at being called 'Zorua'. I had to stop myself from reaching out with Illusions in order to correct him.

The Tepig seemed quick to send an amicable nod in our direction, welcoming us. The Blitzle was a bit more reserved, and couldn't help but avert her eyes whenever I looked at her.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Misa burst out, standing up. "Let's get something straight. Ain't nobody gonna be my trainer except me, got it? You can't keep us here."

"Aw, come on," the Tepig spoke up for the first time, stepping forward with a pleading stare. "You guys don't wanna stay? You just got here!"

This was a male, voice sounding nasally and tight, as I'd expect for this kind of Pokémon.

"I don't care if we just got here," Misa jabbed. "We were just minding our own business before you all came and barged in."

"Weren't you lost? Why were you staying in a place like this?"

"Because it has a roof and it's raining outside? Where we're going is none of your business."

"Okay, okay," the Blitzle finally spoke up. "Let's just… Start with introductions, huh? Make this a bit easier for everyone? We should all try to at least get to know each other a little bit."

No response was given, prompting the Blitzle to continue.

"I'm Blitzle, and I, uh… Nice to meet you guys. I know how hard it is when you first get captured, but it's actually not that bad, you know? Once you get used to everything…"

She's flustered… Maybe regretting having attacked me earlier? It would make sense, she's not making any eye contact at all.

"And I'm Tepig! I'm Jake's first Pokémon, and we've been together for, like…"

The Tepig seemed whimsically pensive for a few moments. I deduced 'Jake' as the human, considering the name hadn't been tossed around before.

"I dunno… A few months now, maybe? He's a really nice guy when you get to know him!"

"Ok, cool. I don't care," Misa put forth bluntly. "We sat through your stupid intros, can we go now?"

"Why?"

"Why? I don't wanna be here, genius."

"Why not?"

Misa snorted frustratedly, crossing her arms and sticking her snout in the air. The Tepig didn't seem to take offense to the gesture in the slightest, instead continuing on a different path.

"Sorry about attacking you and all that earlier. I bet you're cool, but y'know, Jake's my trainer, right?"

He snorted in laughter openly for a few moments, seemingly uncaring for the awkward air about the meager fire. Misa's glare only intensified.

"You didn't do squat. Be glad you had your Mienfoo friend with you, or it woulda ended real bad for you."

"Oh, Mienfoo? Yeah, she's pretty cool," Tepig responded, not having absorbed a single bit of Misa's agitatedness. "She gets mad at Jake a lot, but they're still friends."

Blitzle took the opportunity to step in at that moment, sending an unsatisfied stare in Misa's direction.

"Right. Well, if you two want to leave, I bet you can work that out with Jake. Zorua, you can use Illusions, right?"

"No, I can't," I relayed to Misa. The best escape options relied on these Pokémon not knowing I was capable of Illusions in the slightest.

"No, he can't," Misa said, going the extra, unnecessary mile by stepping in front of me to block the Blitzle's gaze. "And his name's Nox. If you guys go by your species' name, that's your problem. We've got actual names, so use 'em."

"Well, Nox can speak for himself, can't he?" Blitzle countered, growing visibly agitated with Misa's remarks.

"Nope. Kid hasn't said a word in his life, and definitely not to someone lik-"

"Misa, cool it! I've spoken to her, dumbass!"

Misa froze. Even though I couldn't see her face, I could tell she was making everything all too obvious.

"What do you mean? He said a few things outside… Back when… Nevermind, but you get the point."

"Well, uh…"

"We just wanna leave," I said, forced into interrupting the conversation. "When can we go?"

I'd put the question up as innocently as possible to try and shift attention from Misa's screwup. If Misa and I were to effectively escape, the Pokémon in Jake's possession had to harbor as little suspicion as possible. Misa wasn't doing the best of jobs when it came to easing nerves, so that burden rested on my shoulders.

At least the Axew had the werewithal to step out of the way and let me make eye contact with the Blitzle.

"Your name was Nox, wasn't it?"

I nodded.

"And yours?" she asked, hoping to act amicably once more towards Misa.

"Pfft. As if I'd-"

"Misa. Her name's Misa."

I had to resist the urge to roll my eyes at the angry glare Misa shot at me as a result of the information I'd given. Blitzle smiled lightly.

"Well, again, it's very nice to meet you both."

"When can we leave, though?" I reiterated, placing pressure once more before the conversation could die. A spark of uncertainty flashed in Blitzle's eyes.

"Soon, maybe. You're cold and wet though, aren't you? Don't you want to stay by the fire?"

The sound of the rain outside compelled me to nod again, despite how little the fire was providing in terms of warmth.

"You put up a really quick pace, you know that? I had a little bit of trouble keeping up to you."

I forced myself to smile at the amicable remark, trying to shove out of my head the fact that the Blitzle had shocked and paralyzed me just an hour earlier.

"Anyone here hungry?" Jake asked, awkwardly pusing into the conversation from his place on the sideline. He'd been sitting, silent, throughout its entirety. I hadn't forgotten he was there, but his silence was more uncomfortable than anything else, so I had chosen to ignore him.

"We eat, we get warm, and when everyone's asleep and the rain stops, we get out of here. Far away."

"Whatever," Misa huffed, sitting down. I couldn't be distinguished as the words' target.

We both resigned ourselves to eat thereafter. The brand of Pokéfood Jake kept in his bag was considerably cheaper than the kind I'd eaten while under Drayden's care, inevitably leading to a dry taste in my mouth I couldn't get rid of.

Did I really make my team eat this stuff?

I had only lugged around a bag of Pokéfood for maybe a year or two after starting my journey. I'd gotten horribly lost once, after having earned the Fifth Badge. I saw myself as tearing through the Gym Circuit itself and had gotten cocky. One thing had led to another, and our party, consisting then of Vita, Somin, Sierra, Axle, and I were lost in the woods.

We ran out of food after the first week or so, and had to rely entirely on the party's ability to hunt and fish. I couldn't fathom then how efficient it was. I may have had a moral dilemma then about killing feral Pokémon, but living for a month or so entirely off of the food we'd caught was surprisingly uplifting.

If I had known how bland this Pokéfood tasted, though, I would've suggested the switch a lot earlier.

Yet, I ate until I was full. Who knew the next time I would be getting an actual meal?


"Just… Ease up a bit. I'm having a ton of trouble trying to swallow this."

Somin scratched at his head for a few moments, sighing frustratedly.

"Take your time. It was hard for all of us at first."

"I think I'm going to be sick."

Somin perked his head up at Skyla's remark, but was quick to settle back down.

"Try not to do it in the tent. Mew only stole a couple, and she doesn't feel like teleporting back and forth all the time is safe. Y'know, if they can somehow track it."

"I don't want to hear that…"

"I know you don't want to hear it, but that's ho-"

"And you didn't find either of them? Misa or No-... Ray?"

Somin closed his eyes and shook his head.

"I need to take a walk."

The brevity of the statement was only augmented by Skyla's quick motion to get up and leave the tent. She was already outside by the time Somin even understood what she said.

"Skyla, don't. This place is crawling with ferals, and humans aren't even allowed to be here."

Somin huffed, stepping out of the tent and cringing at the intensity of the sun. He was in the tent with Skyla for a while, as it now must have been early afternoon.

After finally getting over the harshness of the light, he could only see Skyla for a moment as she disappeared into a nearby wooded area, apparently in a hurry.

Somin thought it best not to go after her. He was perfectly satisfied with the prospect of speaking to her as sparsely as possible. Either way, a headache was quickly forming.

"Hey Somin?"

The Zoroark, not excited to be faced with a new conversation, turned with half-lidded eyes to stare emotionlessly at Victor as he approached. The Durant stopped a few feet short, seeing the expression on Somin's face.

"I guess she didn't take it well, huh?"

"She wasn't ever someone to just take stuff. I'm tired of using Illusions anyways, so I'm just gonna let her be for a few hours."

"Well, I guess I should introduce myself whenever she does come back, right? Ray called her way back when to say I was part of the team, but we never actually talked."

Somin shrugged.

"Do what you want, man… You seen Mew anywhere?"

His speech grew progressively more and more slurred as his head began to pound. Victor scrutinized Somin for a few moments before giving an answer.

"No… Not for a bit."

"Better not be planning anything without me."

"I don't think she would… You know you can get some rest, right? Axle and I got everything covered around here."

"Not tired," Somin replied, "Sun's just too bright here. I'm out of my element."

"Maybe, but you weren't like this in Lavaridge, and the sun was pretty bright th-"

Somin opened a single eye long enough to deter Victor with a glare, prompting him to step away. Upon recognizing his own sudden, drastic change in demeanor, however, Somin sighed and let his arms hang by his side.

"Sorry. Yeah, I'm tired. Bit cranky."

"No, no, I get it…" Victor replied, lowering his guard. "Like I said, Axle and I already took care of most stuff around here while you guys were gone. Berries on the other side of the tent if you're hungry, and Axle managed to find a freshwater pool like a hundred yards that way."

Victor motioned to his left with his mandibles. Somin looked in that direction indifferently as the Durant continued.

"Go take a load off for a few hours," he concluded, turning and walking back towards the fire pit from the previous night. Vita and I want to go look for Ray too in a little bit, so if you're coming you should rest for a while. Make sure you don't slow us down."

The playful tone behind the Durant's words despite the situation prompted Somin to exhale unamusedly. Despite his disdain, however, Somin sent a quiet thanks in Victor's direction and broke off towards the pool he'd been told about.

Victor let himself relax as soon as Somin was out of sight. The Durant never felt particularly safe around the Zoroark, and right then was no exception. He knew he could rely on his teammate, but Somin was known to be rather rash. They hadn't conflicted with each other too violently in the past, but Victor's mind flashed back to when Somin attacked Jet after they discovered Ray had been transformed.

This was a very high-pressure situation, and Somin had demonstrated that he wasn't exactly the most stable of creatures under pressure. Victor often forgot that the Zoroark was capable of using Flamethrower, which made him even more of a frightening figure. He didn't want to be scared of Somin, his teammate, but he couldn't help it.

"All good?"

The telepathic voice frightened Victor. He calmed down after a few moments, however, as he spotted Mew's pink fur standing out against a nearby tree trunk. She was sprawled out on a branch belly-down, looking at the Durant curiously.

"Yeah… I did what you asked, told him to go rest."

"Thanks for that. I knew he wouldn't accept the advice coming from me, but I need him at his best if we're going back to look for Ray soon."

"Right. About that…"

"You want to come with. I heard what you said to Somin."

Victor chuckled nervously.

"Somethin' up? You look like you're ready to run."

Mew watched indifferently as Victor quickly composed himself, mandibles twitching as he readjusted his footing.

"S-Sorry…"

"Don't be. Not like you're the first one to be scared of me."

"Of you? N-no."

Mew sighed, pushing off her branch and making a slow descent towards the ground on which Victor stood. He took a few subconscious steps back.

She landed just a few feet in front of him, choosing to stand on her hind paws rather than levitate. At her full height, she stood only a few inches taller than Victor.

"Better?"

"Uhh…"

The situation was uncomfortable, to say the least. Victor couldn't discern whether or not he felt even more anxious. The sight of her standing on her own wasn't unnatural, but certainly odd.

"Guess not."

"L-look, I'm sorry if me being nervous is weird, or unusual, or w-whatever, but you're…"

Victor trailed off. He'd since lowered his head to avert his eyes from Mew's soft stare, but looked up for a moment to force out the last word.

"Mew…"

"And?"

"The god of Pokémon."

"And?"

Victor had nothing else to say. He tried grasping at words for a few moments, but came up fruitless.

"Let's pretend I'm not all that. Let's pretend I'm just a regular Pokémon. What would you say to me?"

"Uh… Hi?"

"See? Better, isn't it?"

Victor tried smiling, but what came out was something between a grimace and a pained expression.

"No, it's not weird, to answer your question. Jet and Ray were the exact same way. Vita's just been kinda… Out of it, so it's not like she even notices in the first place, and Somin's Somin. Maybe he would act different if the situation was… Not this."

"Axle?"

The fact Mew choked a question out of the Durant, however stilted, was enough to let her put on a reassuring smile as she answered.

"He didn't know what to do when we spoke for a bit. Just froze up and let me do most of the talking, y'know?"

Victor forced a curt nod, feeling Mew's smile melt away a small portion of his anxiety.

"You'd have to really cross me to get on my bad side," Mew continued in an attempt at humor, chuckling to herself afterwards. "But you guys are cool."

"Right…"

"I don't think it takes a genius to figure out I don't trust Drayden, and it's not like I can just tie him up whenever I leave…"

Her train of thought seemed to derail right there. She looked away for a moment, contemplating something.

"Eh, if it comes to it… Anyways, since everyone wants to come look for Ray, we need to figure out what to do for them, right?"

"Okay."

"Glad we're on the same page. So, to answer your question: yeah, you can come. I actually gotta run and check up on some stuff, but I'll be back in time to take us back to Unova. Guess Drayden won't be a problem, not like he can get away anyways…"

Victor shifted his weight back and forth, uncomfortable with the fact Mew had started talking to herself. Did she remember he was still there?

"So…"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah. Be ready in a few hours, we'll probably leave as soon as I get back."

Victor nodded again, prompting Mew to roll her eyes and take a few steps forward. Alarms rang out in the Durant's head, and he felt himself freeze again as Mew extended an arm and patted him on the back. Her touch was surprisingly soft, contrary to expectation. Who could've guessed one of the strongest creatures in existence could be so gentle?

"Keep your head up. I don't like the looks of this, but we're gonna figure out where Ray is and we're gonna get him back. You're not the only one he's saved."

Victor paused for a few more seconds before sending Mew a curious glance. She closed her eyes and smiled again before taking a step back and disappearing entirely.

She was gone, allowing Victor to sigh in relief as his legs gave out.


Vita raised her head, letting solemn eyes glance over Somin's unkempt fur for a moment before laying back down.

"I saw Skyla storm by about a minute ago… I'm guessing it didn't go well?"

Somin rolled his eyes exhaustedly, continuing his approach. Vita had been sunbathing near the water's edge. He collapsed entirely on Vita's coiled body with a grunt, not even bothering to brace his fall with his arms.

"Ray apparently did a really good job tricking her. Better than I thought he could," he said, voice muffled considering he was laying snout-down. "Maybe too good."

Vita shifted, slowly re-coiling herself around Somin's limp form. Taking advantage of the opportunity, she began licking at a few tangled knots of fur.

"He did well for himself," she said softly. "He can't handle himself, though, not in the wild. Neither can that Axew."

"I should've grabbed him off of Reshiram when we met in the tunnels. Just when I think we're all gonna get back together, he's gone again. What happened, Vita? A few weeks ago we were fighting Gyms and earning badges, and now, because o-"

"I know where you're going with this," Vita interrupted in a stone-cold voice. "I don't care whatever grudge you have against Mew for what she did for Ray. If it weren't for her, you wouldn't be alive right now, Somin."

"What do you mean?"

"You think your recovery after you got injured fighting Drayden was just a coincidence? Don't be blind, Somin. You and I both know that Mew saved your life."

Somin didn't respond, but Vita could feel his breathing as it started to grow labored.

"The UPF would've killed Ray even if Mew hadn't shown up. He would be dead too if it wasn't for her. Do you have any idea what that would've done to the rest of us? If both of you were gone?"

"Stop."

"No, Somin. All I've seen you do is pass off blame on the easiest target for all of this. I love you more than anything on this earth, but you need to stop. How do you think Ray feels? Being forced to choose between satisfying his best friend and helping a Pokémon that needs his support, his friendship, regardless of how powerful she is?"

No response. Somin hadn't even so much as twitched.

"I need you to stop this. Yes, it's mostly her fault, but it seems sometimes that she's the only one that's willing to fix it."

"The hell are you talking about?" Somin exclaimed, head snapping to meet Vita's eyes with fury. "Don't you dare tell me I haven't been trying to fix this! I'd die for Ray, just like he would for me, or you, or anyone else on this team! You think I don't want to fix this?!"

"Then focus on fixing it, instead of wasting so much space in that empty head of yours trying to find who to blame for why it happened. I can easily turn the blame for this whole situation back around on you, and yet I don't."

Somin could feel his claws twitching as his arms were pinned by his sides. He probably could've lashed out if he truly wanted to, but… This was Vita. He couldn't bring himself to retaliate even in the slightest. He didn't want to hear the words that he knew were about to follow, but he couldn't bring himself to escape, or to ignore. He looked away to hide his face as Vita continued.

"You've never admitted it, but I know you coerced Ray into killing his father. You know that's why the UPF wants us dead in the first place, right? Because Ray killed one of their admins? This is just as much your fault as it is Mew's, and I don't see her constantly hating you because of it!"

Somin shut his eyes tight.

"I… I didn't-"

"We need you to focus on the now, Somin. Right now. Our trainer is out there, needing us more than anything else in the world, and if you're too occupied thinking about Mew to even care fully for what's going on. I'll tell her to leave you here while we go look, Somin, if it comes to that."

"I didn't tell him to do anything," Somin choked out, trying to force Vita's recent threat out of mind. "I… I honestly didn't mean to. Ray was feeling down, you know? We were in Black City, it was the day after we visited her grave, and he was just really out of it. I talked to him. We talked for a really, really long time, but the conversation just went south. I don't know if I said it as a joke to try and cheer him up, or something I said under my breath, or what, but it just slipped out."

Somin looked into Vita's eyes pleadingly.

"And you know what? I was angry, too. We were both just so, so angry, and we weren't thinking, and we just did it. Partners. Nobody 'coerced' anybody, but… Gods, I know it was my fault, but I didn't mean it!"

Vita's expression softened as Somin finished venting. After giving the thought a few seconds to sit, she said her final words with forgiving eyes.

"And do you think Mew meant to do what she did to Ray?"

Somin clamped his muzzle shut, speechless. His eyes quickly shot down thereafter as he relaxed, defeated.

"Fine… You got me."

"Don't get yourself down because of it," Vita encouraged. "I just need you to take a long look at yourself the next time you think something mean about Mew. Please? If anything, it'd make me feel a lot better."

"Yeah… Okay. Look, Vita, I-"

"Sh. I'm asleep now. Conversation's over."

Somin held his breath for a moment before exhaling sharply, shifting into a more comfortable position without further words. He caught a glimpse, however, of something green in a divot in the sand nearby. Vita's egg. His egg.

He watched it for a while, even after he felt Vita's breathing begin to smooth as she slipped into unconsciousness.

He eventually sighed, having received all the answers he needed. He could feel a twinge of… Something as he joined Vita in sleep.


"I mean, it's not like I have any badges right now, but I'm trying, you know? I grew up around here, and I need to rack up the prize money from battling random trainers to try and get a plane ticket to Striaton. That's when we can really get serious."

Jake had been talking for quite a while. After he realized his Pokémon, Misa, and I had nothing more to say to each other, he just began rambling to Misa and I both about his journey up until that point. I had initially pegged him as rather awkward and reserved, despite his display of anger against me earlier. I couldn't say it surprised me to learn that he was a complete chatterbox underneath.

I had long since zoned him out and tried to focus on finding a position in which I could make the most of the small fire while being mindful of each and every sore muscle in my system. I wasn't feeling most of my injuries from earlier, when I'd fallen off Reshiram, but my side was absolutely killing me. It was bruised heavily, making it uncomfortable to lay on but not entirely inhibiting of my movement. My paws hurt the most right then, considering there were still small bits of grit stuck in them from when I'd tried escaping the Blitzle.

Misa, oddly enough, actually paid attention to what the boy had to say regarding his journey up until that point. I had gotten that he'd only been on the road for about a month, alternating between wandering the forest outside Opelucid and taking breaks at his home in the city.

Misa was more invested in the concept of the Gym Circuit, which was only natural. She hadn't gotten an incredibly descriptive account of what it was like while we were under the care of Drayden's dragons. Even if she too was obvious in her contempt towards the boy, she took the opportunity to the fullest. She actually seemed relatively intrigued as Jake dove into an explanation of how the Gym Circuit worked.

"Don't get too hopeful," I told her after while. I didn't want her getting too invested, and it certainly looked like she was heading down that path. "Maybe when all this is over we can arrange something, but you wouldn't wanna go into a Gym fight with this dude at the wheel. He doesn't know what he's doing."

She'd since gotten used to acting like she couldn't hear me whenever I used Illusions to speak with her, but the look of disapproval on her face following what I told her was undeniable. As the human drabbled on, Misa caught the attention of the Tepig, who'd since sprawled out near the fire and was apparently half-asleep.

"In these Gym Battles… Does Mr. Genius over here control everything we do?"

"Well, not everything, but Pokémon are supposed to listen to the trainer."

"What? He'd just slow everything down, though!"

"I guess sometimes the trainer sees stuff we can't? I dunno, but it works out fine with him telling me what to do. We win fights together… Sometimes."

Misa huffed, now turned off from the conversation entirely. I thought it for the best, honestly. The Axew wasn't the brightest bulb in the bunch, but I was still determined to stay together. Her having second thoughts was the last thing I needed.

I couldn't help but let out a large yawn, sparking an idea in my mind.

"Okay, we're gonna speed this up. Rain's almost stopped and I'm all dried off now. Act really, really tired. If we all go to sleep, then we can slip away, find us a place to hide."

I really didn't want to have to move, but I knew it to be necessary. I could walk, at least for a while.

Misa exhaled, closing her eyes to confirm that she'd heard me. She waved off the Tepig before yawning forcibly.

Jake, oblivious at first, continued with his rambling about daily life until he noticed Misa as she started to rub her eyes. Playing along, I finally found a decent laying position and let my eyes go half-lidded.

"Oh, I bet you guys are tired, huh? That's okay, we'll get to know each other better tomorrow."

I cared not for the sincerity behind the human's words. Even if he wanted to train Misa and I for more than the fact that we were relatively rare Pokémon, we needed to gather our bearings without having to worried about being held captive once again.

Plus, he ordered an attack on me. Nobody could kick me around and expect me to forget about it.

"Well, come on then. Blitzle, Tepig, you guys know the drill."

The Tepig, in the short time since Misa's conversation with him, had already fallen back asleep and was loudly snoring near the fire. Blitzle, conversely, stood from her crouched position and nodded towards her trainer.

My heart fell as I figured out what this meant. Hell, I'd done it too, back when I was a novice trainer.

He recalled the both of them without further exchange, returning them to their balls in a flash of red light. Misa quickly got what this meant for her and stood up with surprising speed. She took a step back, raising up her arms.

"Uh… Now that I think about it, I'm not that tired. Maybe we can talk for a bit more, yeah?"

Jake, unknowing of and uncaring towards her objections, recalled her as well. She sent a desperate glance in my direction as she disappeared.

I was only snapped out of my thoughts as Jake addressed me directly.

"I guess you gotta sleep out here, since none of my balls would capture you… Well, go ahead and sleep wherever. I'll see you in the morning."

After attaching each of the three balls to his belt, he took it off entirely, laid it out nearby, and slipped into his sleeping bag. As he changed clothes from his hiking gear to his pajamas within the sleeping bag itself, I began to think how I would now go about our escape.

Okay, no more surprises. What did I do when I was his age that could stop us from escaping?

I perused my memories for a few moments.

We're not strong enough to break the failsafe mechanism and smash the ball entirely… Distance lock, though. Damn it. He probably has it enabled, meaning we can only get so far before Misa gets automatically recalled. We'll have to take the ball with us when we leave. That'll be a pain.

Perhaps we would eventually encounter someone that could break it for us. Until then, it would be something Misa would have to carry, considering I physically couldn't. It would be her problem, in the end.

And so, I acted like I simply shut my eyes and went to sleep. I always made sure to keep an eye on Jake and the belt both. It was just about pitch black in the building, and the fire died out within minutes of silence. It was freezing.

I reveled in the fact I could see through the darkness in this instance. There were certainly undeniable perks of this body, such as my vision or my hearing, that'd helped me more than once during dire situations over the past few weeks.

I soon became faced with the problem, however, of figuring out which of the Pokéballs was the one to house Misa. I hadn't had the wherewithal earlier to check and see where he'd put her ball, and quickly found myself in a high-stakes guessing game.

It would make the most sense if hers was one of the ones on the end, but I didn't organize my Pokéballs either when I was this kid's age…

My mouth quickly became dry as I realized I was stumped. Making sure to make no noise, I skimmed over each individual ball with the hopes of finding some identifying factor, but in the end was only able to find one with a special notch on the back signifying it'd been given at a Distribution Center. I could at least rule out the Tepig.

This left me with a one in three chance. The odds were too small. I couldn't release each one to check; the noise would surely wake up the sleeping Jake and attract suspicion towards Misa and me both.

I thought for a moment on whether or not just to give it up, considering the risk of failing was much worse than the penalty of having to wait an extra night. However, I quickly shot down this idea. There was no doubt in my mind that Alder and the UPF were actively searching for me. Jake would be quick to take me right into town and try to figure out why I was so easily able to resist capture. Misa and I needed to stay away from civilization.

Oh, gods… I have to choose one.

My luck sucked. It really did. The Tepig's ball was on the far end of the belt, so maybe Jake did have a way of organizing. With that in mind, I could feel the weight of the world on my shoulders as I set my sights on the other end of the belt, the fourth Pokéball. I stayed still for at least a minute, scrutinizing it as closely as possible before opening my maw and securing it. I made sure my teeth avoided the release button entirely, but even in its shrunken state I was still having trouble holding it steady in my mouth.

Jake shifted in his sleep, frightening me. Figuring it was time to leave, I turned and darted towards the exit, making sure to be quick yet as silent as possible.

I ran with the ball for a few hundred yards before stopping and making sure nobody had followed me. I turned my attention soon thereafter to the ball I'd grabbed.

This really was a one-in-three odds that could either make or break how the rest of my life would pan out. As an extra measure when I readied myself, I ensured that I could maintain control over the ball and retract a wrong decision if necessary.

I closed my eyes tight and said a few words of prayer before tentatively pressing down.

Perhaps a half a second had passed before I felt the ball be forcefully knocked away from my controlling paws. My heart fell soon thereafter as I realized I'd made a wrong choice.

The assailant was on me in an instant, quick to spin me around and push me into the ground with a paw. A quick look at the attacker revealed it to be the Mienfoo I'd seen only briefly earlier. She didn't seem at all happy I'd stolen her ball.

With her free paw she deterred any resistance by keeping it charged in a harsh, orange light. I'd never taken a super-effective attack before, considering my lack of experience with fighting, bug, and fairy types until that moment. I wasn't all too keen on finding out what it felt like to be a dark type on the receiving end of a Force Palm.

I whined pitifully for a moment to try and evoke from her some sense of mercy, but I was left fruitless.

"Why'd you take me here?" she interrogated, silencing me with more pressure on my ribcage. "What do you want?"

"S-Sorry!" I coughed out, closing my eyes. "I didn't mea-"

"Shut up."

I opened my eyes again to find she was looking around cautiously into the night. I froze and shut my mouth as commanded.

"He's such an idiot," the Mienfoo remarked to herself. "Letting a hatchling steal from him, really?"

"I-"

"Zip it. We're going back."

Before I could protest, the same paw she'd used to pin me to the floor harshly had grabbed a fair share of the fur on my chest. She yanked it uncomfortably, eliciting a short yip as I was dragged to my feet.

"W-wait," I said, walking backwards. Even if she never let up on her grip, the Mienfoo paused and turned back towards me with a grimace.

"Look. We don't want to be here," I complained, appealing to the one creature in that instant that could, perhaps, help me. "You don't look like you want to be with this guy either, so can't we just… Work together?"

Her grimace quickly morphed into a scowl as she let go of my fur. However, she took a step towards me, bipedal figure towering over me menacingly.

"You don't understand any of this, so don't try and act like you know what I want."

"Pl-"

"Unless you want to take a crack at killing the human, the first thing you gotta learn about being a captured 'mon is that there's no escape, alright?"

"I… I just need my friend's ball. Please."

"I'm letting this one slip-up be a freebie. But you gotta realize, your friend isn't going anywhere."

She let the notion sit for a few moments, eyes glaring deep into my own.

"She goes a certain distance away from her ball, and boom, she's recalled. She tries taking that ball anywhere she goes, boom, she's tracked. It's almost impossible to destroy, impossible to have her released unless the human does it himself, and the only way around all of this is threatening the kid or killing him, neither of which you guys are able to do. So forget it. You're done. Welcome to the team."

She began walking away soon thereafter, leaving the thought to sit in my head.

"I don't care."

The Mienfoo paused before turning, confused.

"Didn't you hear a word I just said?"

"And I don't care. I know Misa can beat that Tepig, meaning you're the only reason she's locked up in the first place."

I even surprised myself with the boldness of my words. The Mienfoo still had the type advantage, not to mention undoubtedly more combat experience. Even the façade of the baby Zorua disappeared altogether.

"So you're gonna show me which ball is hers, we're gonna leave, and if the human tracks us, you're not gonna fight, meaning we get away. Just a cat and mouse game, all the way until we find our friends and they break the ball for us. Then everyone's on their merry way."

I let the words linger in the air for a few moments. My heart fell, however, when I saw the Mienfoo turn fully towards me and begin walking back. Her fist burst to life in orange energy; she was charging an attack.

I crouched into the best battle position I could muster, now feeling the instinct to shoot an Illusionary connection towards her as a means of preparing to fight. Meanwhile, I directed enough energy into my front claws to prepare a primitive Scratch.

Quick thinking as she picked up her pace led me to push a single word through the connection. I'd since been practicing sending words as if they'd come from a different direction, and I was happy to see it worked.

Right as the Mienfoo thought she'd heard Jake's voice to her right, prompting her to immediately cease her attack and turn, I sprung towards her. I felt satisfaction beyond belief as my Scratch connected, causing her to wince and take a step back.

She was beyond confused, looking around for Jake while processing the fact I'd attacked first. When it dawned on her, however, that the human was nowhere to be found, she turned back towards me with an expression of increasing anger.

She was certainly shocked of my capability to use Illusions, but quickly moved past it, taking another few steps forward and raising her arm to strike.

I found myself now defenseless, having used as much of a trick I could've conjured in the moment. Already I was beginning to feel drained. I braced myself for the incoming impact.

But it never came.

When I tentatively opened my eyes seconds later, the Mienfoo's own eyes were shut, attacking fist still raised and glowing a vibrant orange. Instead, however, she discharged into the air, energy harmlessly running over me as the glow disappeared entirely.

She turned away and rubbed her face vigorously afterwards. I took a step away from her, assuming a regular position.

"I'm not gonna hit you because you want to leave," she simply said, "Hell, that's all I want, too. But I can't say I won't fight you guys if we run into you again."

She began walking away once again, this time in a way that actually made me want to follow her. I proposed a question, however, as I took chase.

"If you don't like the human, why do you fight for him?"

She was silent for a few seconds afterwards, only choosing to answer as we'd almost made our way back into the abandoned structure.

"Experience is experience, and one day, I'm gonna be strong enough to kick his ass so bad he won't ever want to catch another Pokémon."


Mew always hated visiting here.

Of all the places, in all the realities she knew with some semblance of familiarity, the lack of structural integrity in the Distortion World threw her off the most. She felt uneasy with an inability to find sense in everything around her. In her reality, everything made sense: the people, the Pokémon… She knew why the sky was blue, why the trees were green.

And yet the only being that could truly make sense of the Distortion World was nothing more than a mindless husk that'd succeeded in knocking her out not even a full day before.

Mew tried easing the unease brought about in the Distortion World by crossing her arms as she flew. She roughly rubbed her fur the wrong way with every intention of detracting attention from the volatile, purple sky and miles upon miles of what seemed like nothing more than floating debris. Dilapidated buildings, if one could even call them that, were attached to dozens upon dozens of levitating islands, static despite the chaotic sky.

She could imagine a world without most of the Primes currently missing. Yet, she didn't even know an up-to-date quantity as far as the disappearances themselves went. It had seemed, before Mew learned of Giratina's capture, that Darkrai was easily the most influential of the Primes to have been captured. It was an easy explanation for the odd dreams Ray had told her about, but even then she had been reluctant to tell him. She'd never explicitly confirmed or denied the disappearances of her brethren.

For what reason? She was still unsure. She trusted Ray despite his tendency to act rash. Why else would she allow him to hold the title of her 'trainer'? Perhaps it'd just never come to mind to sit him down and simply tell him of her circumstances.

No… She knew why. She was scared of frightening him even further. Frightening him away… Mew knew she was acting selfish, but how would she be able to live with herself if she lost anoth—

She inhaled sharply and straightened up, eyes darting about the chaotic world around her. She wasn't alone, and she had to remember the reason why she'd come. She hadn't previously known of Giratina's capture, raising the question of how the Distortion World remained in balance with reality without its keeper.

Her fur bristled. Was it Alder again? No, she was being paranoid. The human was nothing more than that: a human. Small sounds echoed through the empty space she inhabited. It was everywhere…

She prepared an attack, instantly ready to strike.

"Mew?"

Eyes widening, she whipped her head around and yelled as she preemptively unleashed a Psyshock where she determined the threat to be.

A hasty barrier was thrown up to halt the attack. The target struggled to maintain a Protect long enough for the strike to fizzle out altogether. The sound alone was loud enough to fill much of the otherwise eerily silent world around them with a booming echo.

"Calm yourself," the voice spoke again, considerably scratchy yet distinctly female. "Look at me."

Still on high-alert, Mew charged herself up once again to let off another attack, but paused as the energy from her previous one began to disappear and she got a thorough look at the creature opposite her.

"P-Palky?"

The amount of relief on Palkia's face at Mew's remark was immeasurable.

"I thought for a moment you were one of them… I don't know what I would've done if I was pitted against you."

Mew let her breathing start to slow as she fell back, rubbing her face as if she was trying to wipe the unease off it altogether.

The great dragon floated perhaps a few dozen feet away, but quickly closed in as she let her guard down.

"Never scare me like that again. This place always gives me the creeps, and you're not helping."

Palkia's features softened as she came to rest, towering over Mew's minute figure.

"I'm so glad to see you. It's been so long, and I honestly was starting to get so, incredibly lonely here…"

Mew was quiet as Palkia inhaled deeply.

"But, right to business I suppose… I know why you're here. You saw Giratina, didn't you?"

"Bit more than saw him," Mew responded snarkily, crossing her arms. "Scumbag actually knocked me out… If it weren't for Reshy I wouldn't have gotten away."

"You've seen Reshiram? I knew he was in Unova, but he did quite a job of hiding himself. You as well, though from that mess in Hoenn I figured you'd finally found yourself a human. Where is he now? He has a human too, no?"

"He, uh… Well, it's complicated… There's a lot to catch you up on, I guess… But yeah. I found a human. Whoop-de-doo."

Palkia smiled lightly. "After you so adamantly opposed the consensus? I thought you capable of handling yourself, at the very least, but every other Prime has a human of their own… Even myself. A kind older woman in Sinnoh. It really has been a long time since I've seen her…"

"Palky, the last thing I wanna do is burst your bubble here, but the situation with my human is complicated at best and completely screwed at worst. In any case, Reshy's gone… Like, gone. We ran into Darky, encounter didn't go well, and he… Reshy immolated so I could escape."

"What?"

"Yeah, yesterday wasn't the happiest of days… Now I'm stuck with Reshy's human and-"

"Mew, I really have to ask you stop with the nicknames for right now. I'm having trouble wrapping my head around this."

"Yeah, sure… It's just that everything happened so fast. Reshiram was with the Unovan Dragon freak, and we butted heads… Long story short, the Unovan champion is one of the jerks behind all this. Basically meaning he's got an entire human region behind him. Probably why he's been able to get as far as he has…"

Palkia took a second to absorb this before looking to her left.

"Come. There's something you should see. A… complication surrounding Giratina's capture."

Before Mew could say anything further, the dragon had already begun to float away, leaving her with nothing to do but follow.

"Are your companions situated wherever they are?"

"Yeah, they should be good, but doesn't time work differently in here anyways? Like, I remember Tin-... Giratina telling me about how he'd been working together more with Yveltal to ease the flow of deaths, and he said something like that."

"The Distortion World is nothing more than a gateway, yet one that tethers every reality I myself govern. Time doesn't exist; the souls that pass through here are reincarnated almost instantaneously. Time isn't slowed, or stopped… It just simply doesn't exist in this reality."

"Yeah… Whatever. That's what you're doing here, then? Keeping a watch over this place to make sure it doesn't fall apart while Giratina's gone?"

"As best I can. I may be the ruler of space, but the Distortion World is something else entirely. Something only Giratina truly understood. I've seen Xerneas and Yveltal from time to time, and they've tried helping me, but I quite honestly can only make sure this world doesn't become detached from every other out there. As for its function… Well, that's another issue entirely."

"And Giratina?"

"Giratina's capture will eventually rend unimaginable consequences. I may be able to govern this world, but I surely can't act as Giratina did in his role in the life and death cycle. That's why you're here, isn't it? To find out why everything seems fine despite Giratina's disappearance?"

"I guess."

The duo came upon a landmass. Considerably larger than any around it, a gigantic ridge acted as a border for the basin inside. Palkia began ascending alongside the rock and dirt to reach the top.

A thought crossed Mew's mind. With only a few seconds of thought, it'd expanded to the point she felt sick to her stomach.

"Xerneas and Yveltal are beings of life and death. They decide when and why a life comes into or leaves existence, and lead souls to and from the Reverse World during reincarnation… Giratina, though, he was the one who acted as the balancing factor. The one that passed judgement on each soul and decided its fate. Where it would go, what it would be… Giratina was the gate. Now that he's gone…"

Palkia was silent, having just reached the crest of the landmass. Mew had an inkling of what lied on the other side, and sent Palkia an uneasy glance as she caught up.

She reluctantly rose to the dragon's level and peered out over the basin.

"Oh no…"

She spoke audibly, no longer feeling up to even using her own psychic powers to speak. All it took was a single glance at what looked to be billions of small, multicolored masses of pure energy to completely douse her hopes of anything being right.

"They're just piling up… Time doesn't exist in the Distortion World, but time certainly exists around it. Deaths from every conceivable reality leave souls that have nowhere to go but here."

Mew felt like she was going to be sick. Did the UPF have any idea of what they were meddling in?

"How long has he been gone?"

"It's hard for me to tell. I haven't been able to feel the passage of time while I've been here, but looking at these souls… Long enough, I suppose."

Mew said nothing.

"Manaphy, Victini, Regigigas, Ho-Oh, Zekrom, Jirachi, Darkrai, Giratina, and Arceus. That's eight. Eight disappearances, and now life will begin to finally feel the effects beyond the immediate. Do you know what happens when a child is born without a soul, Mew?"

"Stop…"

"It will cry, it will feed, it will waste, but it won't feel. It won't create memories, or show emotion, or anything of the sort. It's a husk, and only Giratina has the power to facilitate the process of instilling a soul."

"I… I can't… Palkia, there's nothing I can do."

Mew fell back from the ridge and came to rest in the air, hands on her heads and eyes wide open.

"T-they were able to capture Giratina with the technology they have, and they won't stop… I get the human idea now, okay? It's a way to hide, sure, but it doesn't even matter after seeing what we're up against. Everyone has no idea what they're dealing with! The UPF too, they can't have a clue about what they're doing!"

"I'm well aware. Yveltal and Xerneas have been cooperative, and have diminished the flow of life and death to near stagnancy, but it's simply unnatural. Something has to give."

Mew said nothing in response, swallowing her bile and straightening herself out.

"I can sense you found a clan of Shaymin to send you here. I have nothing else to show you, if you'd like to get back to your companions."

"N-not yet," Mew said, finally gathering herself enough to use telepathy once again. "Palkia, we need to talk about what to do about all this. Humans are starting to overpower us. Us. There's only six Primes missing not including burned-to-a-crisp Darkrai, so if we just get enough firepower we c-"

"You fail to realize that there are eight missing including Darkrai. Arceus, even if we don't know for sure whether or not he's been captured, is capable of destroying each and every one of us if he so chooses. You'd have to come at this much more carefully."

"They don't have him. Arceus doesn't have to follow any physical laws or rules like we do. Even then, Reshiram told me that none of the Primes they have captured have any control over anything but their pure ability to fight. If Arceus doesn't have control over reality, I could probably take him."

"You have too much faith."

"Faith's all I got right now. Faith that every captured Prime can be restored to their own selves if we beat the tar out of the guys behind all this. Otherwise… We're so, royally screwed."


And so, after two full acts and hundreds of thousands of words, the true consequences to the conflict is finally revealed.

Do I regret not establishing a true conflict outside of those involving Ray until now? Possibly. I was extremely ambiguous regarding the true, central conflict for this story, the one referenced in the description, which I find now to be incredibly messy.

This fic has truly devolved into two story lines intertwining with one another. Ray's conflict has certainly been the central focus of the story up until just recently, and it will honestly continue to remain this way for quite some time. I'd like to say it right here, right now, however: Ray is not the main protagonist.

Seven and Counting is Mew's story. It tells Mew's story through Ray's perspective as nothing more than a storyteller that has a pivotal, but not as important a role in the grand scheme of things as Mew herself. Even then, the story has, and is planned to tell the story in tandem between both perspectives. Ray's journey, however is much more personal than Mew's.

The sole reason I haven't stopped myself from going on this tangent is because, while both storylines have been separate-yet-related for most of the fic, Act IV finally gives them unity, along with the reason they've both been told in a single piece of literature.

I'm honestly unsure about how cluttered this story has seemingly become. This is the product of months upon months of thought, and I'm ready enough to admit that my thought process was a mess. For what was supposed to be a test run, this story has blown itself way out of proportion. It wasn't originally intended to be a story that invokes thought or include multiple different, overarching plotlines, but that's the product.

And, speaking honestly, this is why this story was intended as a test run.

I now know the consequences of letting my imagination run entirely wild. I need to be setting boundaries in the early stages of the story, rather than leave it up for whatever.

I've been in the works writing a few different fics that I may or may not publish in the future, taking what I've learned from writing SaC and applying it in a more efficient way. I definitely plan to publish at least one of them as soon as SaC is complete; a Mystery Dungeon Fic that I've been visualizing for a couple years now. Perhaps I'll have much more fun writing that than I currently do this…

Bit of a fun fact: I don't like this story that much. It's gotten a bit too complicated even for my tastes, and I've written many, many characters into the ground. Every prominent male character bar Skipp tends to be a chore to write.

None of this means this project is going under. I've already increased time between each upload, but I don't want this to be considered as a means by which I steadily ease off updating until the project dies altogether. I can't say the ending itself is going to be entirely fleshed out as most other parts in the story, but I'm definitely determined to end what has now become more than a three year project (I started planning this stupid thing a year and a half before uploading the first chapter).

Well, with that, I'll see y'all in the next chapter.