As the avalanche settled and the snow scattered across the ground, the once frigid and harsh snowstorm they were once trapped in had mysteriously stopped. Gradually, clear skies began to crawl its way back to visibility with the ominous silence of the forest haunting them for their lost of a friend.

"No, please no." Bea could barely onto Korrina as she attempted to run towards the site of carnage, she locked her arms around the blonde who frantically screamed for Barry's name over and over again. It was a heartbreaking sight as tears began to run down her eyes, her voice strained and in pained as she violently try to get Bea off her.

Korrina could barely hold her own composure together. Her head was dizzy, her mind not accepting what had just happened. She bit her lower lip as she started to broke down, with her tears freely trailing down her cheeks in the process. Her beloved starter tried to comfort her with his stubby paws, but alas the toll of losing Barry was too much for her to handle.

"S-Serena?" Bea hugged the Kalos blonde tight as she didn't cared about maintaining a brave facade, she burrowed her face into her shoulders as the images of Barry falling down into the abyss began to taunt her. She tightened her grip around Serena when she patted her, a forced smile creeping onto Serena's face.

"Barry would be alright Bea, he will survive! I know he will." It was all false and forced optimism at this point. Bea saw the heartbreaking sight of Serena forcing a smile on her pretty face. Her body unfortunately betrayed her as the clenched fists and the dilated eyes of pain and disbelief began to shook her iris.

"Serena." She gently placed her down next to Bea who busy tending to Korrina. She has not come to terms Barry's death, and in all honesty neither was she. This school trip was suppose to be a fun one, yet everything that could have went wrong, went terribly wrong. A flash of fury and anger boiled Bea's blood as she gritted her teeth, she stood up and stomped her way towards Sabrina and Erika who was being tended by Brawly and the teachers.

"You! Why didn't you save him! You could have saved him!" Sabrina flinched from Bea's outburst as she tried to grab her collar. Brawly managed to hold Bea off, but between the mournful cries of despair and desperation from his student, even he was having a hard time to maintain composure.

"Bea-" Fantina tried her best to calm the young girl down as the rest of the students stared at her in an empathetic manner. The lost of their classmate was hard to accept, so they could only imagine what Bea and the other girls were going through. The bitter and dejected expression on Gary's face echoed the class's sentiments as he held his Squirtle tight to him, heartbroken that his friend of a rival just perished like that.

"Abra can only take two." Sabrina spoke softly, eyeing the snowy ground in front of her. She can't bear to look at Barry's friends in the eyes, knowing full well it was her who indirectly killed Barry. Seeing the pained and guilt-ridden expression on her face, Bea shook her head out of frustration and turned her unbridled anger onto the next person she can blame.

"Then you as the teacher should have sacrifice yourself for your students! How could you let a minor, a student to die for your sake!" Erika clenched her fists and bawled her eyes out on Fantina, feeling the waves of prickling guilt hurting her heart. Barry was arguably one of the nicest students she had, diligent and intelligent, he was a kind young man who had a never ending curiosity of the world around him. To know that he died for her sake was too much for her to bear.

"Bea that's enough!" Brawly violently pulled Bea away, giving her a firm glare to assert his authority as a teacher. He was about to shout at her when Sabrina spoke with her Abra sitting in her lap.

"Barry volunteered to sacrificed himself, he begged me and- I'm so sorry." Bea gritted her teeth as Korrina placed her hand on her shoulder, the Galar native leered at her friend who gave a sympathetic smiled at her. She gave a begrudged sigh and stormed off to cool herself down, not wanting her emotions getting the best of her.

"Idiot, such a stupid idiot." The broken tone from Bea was hard to watch, but the teachers couldn't offered any words of comfort or condolences given her agitated state. Wulfric watched the scene unfold before him in complete cold silence before he received a message from his Xtransceiver. He gave a grunt and walked towards the fighting type specialist, with a firm grip placed on his jacket.

"Brawly, with the weather cleared, I already called for search and rescue. They will escort all of us down the mountains and will start to look for Barry." Brawly looked tired, exhausted from all the physical and mental toll on him. The surfing enthusiasts nodded and patted the old man's shoulder in thanks before he paused, leaning towards him for a whisper.

"Tell me realistically Wulfric, how likely it is for Barry to survive the fall?" The normally cold and calm teacher sighed and spoke softly, not being able to hide his pessimism.

"Extremely unlikely, even if he survived the fall, who knows what inside the cavern deep below? We can barely see anything." Jagged ice spikes and rocky terrain, not mention the hungry pokemon that will feast on Barry and Prinplup's warm flesh. The chances of the boy surviving was next to zero given they can't even see what was below them. It was no man's land so to speak.

"He really has a thing for staying back to help others huh." Wulfric and him walked towards the edge of the cliff, looking down at the very icy abyss that swallowed Barry and his starter alive. They were far away from the students, which was good considering they didn't want to mention his name in front of them.

"He was the kid who stayed behind to fight the Braviary that Oak pissed off right?" Brawly gave a simple nod, placing his hands in his pockets as the gust of frigid wind blew past him.

"Yeah." The two man stood in silence before Wulfric spoke in a stern and unyielding tone.

"Brawly, we need to call his parents." He knew that, but how could he faced Barry's mother after all that? He knew that Barry's mom raised him with Palmer, so to break the news to her that her son died because he got swept off by an avalanche into a frozen abyss was so cruel. Worst still, if she knew that Barry was the one who volunteered to sacrifice herself, she would probably pinned all the blame onto Erika and Sabrina, despite Barry's willingness to die for others.

"He's mother has just one son. I can't Wulfric, this- I don't think I can bring myself to break the news to her." Wulfric nodded, he didn't blame him for that. But they have to tell her, to give her some form of closure. There's a very slim chance that Barry might be alive, but the cold temperatures and the fact nightfall would soon approach them seemed to doom what's left of Barry's chances of survival.

'No food, no source of warmth, even if he survive the initial fall, he will freeze and starved to death.' That was a fate worst than death, a fate that Wulfric tried his best not to imagine for the young lad. As the two man stood in silence, a sudden phone call from him made Wulfric smile.

"Yes? The helicopters and riders are inbound? Thank you." Wulfric held his head high and soon heard the sound of the choppers approaching, with the shadows of 8 Staraptors and 4 Corviknight making their way towards them.

"The search and rescuer crew are near, we should get going and recuperate in the inn. The students need rest." Brawly gave a slow nod, not really paying attention to Wulfric's words. He turned to the temple and cursed the fact all this happened because of their persistence on visiting the temple, all of this could have been avoided if only-

'Stop it Brawly, it's too late for that now.' He will beat himself up later, right now he need to steer the reigns of leadership back to him.

"Everyone listen up, a search and rescue team is coming to pick us up, get ready." The students stared at him, with Barry running towards him with a pained expression plastered on his face.

"What about Barry? Are we going to leave him there?" Brawly sighed and nodded, crossing his arms in the process to display authority.

"We will leave it to the rescuers, we are ill equipped to find him." Not able to argue with his logic, Barry felt Tracey's arm around him, pulling him away from doing anything stupid or rash. The rest of the students glanced at the icy abyss where Barry fell, hearing the echoes of Barry crying for help as he fell down to his death.

"I'm not leaving." The sudden shout of determination made everyone turned to Korrina, she held her Riolu in her arms as she started to make her way towards the snowy debris of the avalanche. Such motion made Bea panicked as she grip locked Korrina.

"Korrina-" Bea couldn't bear to see her like this, as she leaned onto her tightly.

"I'm not leaving! Let me go!" She vehemently shouted as the tears started to fall from her eyes again. She wanted to see him again, she wanted to tell him how much she loves him, to hold onto him and never let him go. She would give anything just to see him right in front of her, anything.

"Please, Barry won't want to see you like this." Bea whispered to Korrina, her voice trembling from the emotional toll she was currently experiencing.

"I-I miss him. Why does it have to be him?" The blonde leaned onto Bea and hugged her, sniffling on the nape of her neck as she tighten the hug. The aspiring water type trainer stroke her hair, placing her chin on top of her shoulders as she closed her eyes.

"Please look after her Bea." Brawly spoke in a gentle tone, earning a nod from her. As Korrina witness the scene unfolding before her, she walked towards Sabrina who held her Abra, completely silent and void of any positive emotions.

"Sabrina." The Kalos teen sat next to her, letting her Riolu exchange greetings with her Abra who only waved back out of courtesy, not feeling the mood to socialize or make new friends. The psychic beauty glanced at Korrina and avoided eye contact with her, not being able to look at her in the eyes.

"Korrina, I- I'm so sorry." Korrina smiled and placed her arm around her, pulling her into a side hug. She was the only person other than Erika who comforted her as she knew her classmates blamed her for Barry's death. It was inevitable after all, since she was the one who ordered the command.

"It's alright, Barry was making it easy for you right? By volunteering to sacrifice himself first, it didn't give anyone room to argue back." Everything was happening so fast, there was no doubt that Barry made a split second decision to omit his own life for the sake of others.

"You know him so well." Sabrina spoke softly, leaning onto Korrina's long flowing blonde hair that was now soaked and covered with bits of powdery snow. The roller skating enthusiast smiled and nodded, reminiscing when Barry and her held hands as they skated around the park, smiling and laughing as they skated gleefully.

"Of course, I love him." Sabrina stared at her incredulously, not expecting such bold honesty from her. She felt her eyes watered as she blinked them off, not able to accept that she took away the life of a man that Korrina loved.

"I'm so sorry, I was so scared that if I help my Abra- I could have save all of us." Korrina sighed and pulled her into a full embrace, rubbing her back softly. She didn't blame her, she knew that they were caught in such a horrible situation that self-preservation take precedence over the lives of others.

"There's nothing you could have done Sabrina." Sabrina violently shook her head, she pry Korrina off her and stuttered her words out amidst her crying.

"No, I could have save them! If I wasn't so scared and I calmed my nerves, I could have teleported myself-" Teleport? Right, there was rumours that Sabrina was a psychic seeing that she was able to command her pokemon without needing to speak a single word. But to be able to teleport yourself into anywhere you desire? That seemed far too advanced.

"It's too late to dwell on what could have been different, I just pray and hope that he's okay. I want to believe he's alive, I really do but the chances of him surviving is so low." Korrina didn't bother to hold back her tears as she tried to wipe them off before they can fall, she felt Sabrina leaned onto her, comforting her with her long velvet black hair tangled with Korrina's blonde one.

"Everyone the first chopper is here, get onboard in an orderly manner." Brawly yelled as he placed his hand on his waist, watching the student lining up. He watched as every one of them boarded the chopper with a frown on their face, their initial excitement of this school trip has now been soured. Now, it seemed that there was nothing to look forward to.

Once all the students have boarded the choppers and flying pokemon, Brawly entered the last ride as the chopper began to take off. He surveyed the frozen land beneath him and sighed when he thought about how cold and alone Barry must be, if survive the fall at all.

He shook his head, don't think about that right now. He focused his attention onto the city himself, distracting himself from his failure as a teacher. A.J., Ash, Misty, Dawn, and now Barry. He widened his eyes when the city seemed to be in a blanket of snow with no cars or vehicles in sight. He reached towards one of the rescuer sitting next to him, tugging his arm as he pointed the city in the distance.

"What's going on here?"

"Half an hour ago a complete whiteout engulfed the city, with a violent hailstorm damaging most of the city's infrastructure." That severe? He knew it was bad, but to think that it shut down a city that frequently deals with blizzards and snowstorms, it was unreal.

"That severe?" The man nodded before giving an excited smile.

"Yes and hear this, Lorelei the Elite 4 of Kanto had arrived at the city too." Lorelei? What is she doing here?

"Why is a member of the Kanto Elite 4 doing here?" The man next to him shrugged, not knowing the details himself.

"I don't know, but there are rumours of her conducting an investigation." This was weird, it's unlike for a member of an Elite 4 to conduct investigations unless something serious happened. This can't be good, not like today was a good day anyway.

"Investigation?"

"Yeah." Seeing that the man didn't know the details himself, Brawly stayed silent as he stared at the frozen mountains in the distance. The rescuer glanced at Brawly before sighing, placing a confident arm on his shoulder.

"Hey, my men are on the search already, we will find the boy don't worry." Brawly was surprised by his words, but he gave an appreciative nod.

"Thank you, I hope he's okay." Brawly whispered as he clenched his fists, he dearly hoped his start student managed to survive the elements and come out unscathed, but that was wishful thinking on his part.

The helicopter finally reached the landing zone, a slow but steady descent allowed Brawly to exit the chopper. He gave his thanks before he entered the inn, smiling when he saw most of the students already resting in their room. He gave a tired sigh and make his way towards Erika who was sitting by herself in the main lobby, holding a cup of hot chocolate in her hand.

"Erika you okay?" The Celadon native smiled and nodded, watching her male colleague sitting next to her. They were barely anyone the lobby since most of the occupants are huddling in their room for warmth and comfort.

"I'm fine." The normally charismatic and laid-back teacher scratched the back of his neck, not knowing what to say to her. He sat upright and stared at the glass chandelier above him, speaking in a soft and melancholic tone.

"It's not your fault." Erika placed her mug on the table, eyeing her mug with a forced smile.

"Hard to believe that when everyone else seemed to think so." Brawly could offer no words consolation.

"I was prepared to die you know? But Barry seemed to managed his composure and found an oppurtunity to escape amid the chaos. I failed as a teacher Brawly." This was perhaps the only time she opened up to him and it was incredibly difficult to tell her that it was okay, that it was not her fault when he himself seemed to agree with the students. Even if it was just a little.

"You were facing death itself, not everyone could have maintain calmness under that pressure." It was true, they were trained to deal with students and pokemon battles, not dealing with avalanches and snowstorms.

"He did." Erika added on, taking off her red headband in the process.

"Barry is a special case." He was a great student, but there was something about him that make him unique. Perhaps it was his calm and collected attitude or his selfless nature, either way Barry was someone he was truly proud of. Erika stared at Brawly before she stood up, with the bang of her hairs covering her eyes.

"Brawly, I want to be the one who break the news to his mother." Brawly shook his head and stood next to her, carefully choosing his words.

"Are you sure? You don't have to feel responsible-" She cut him off, giving him a firm look that showed her stubborn nature.

"It is my responsibility, please." She practically pleaded him at his point. He gave off a frustrated sigh and nodded. He couldn't bear to do it himself anyway, and Erika was people's person, so perhaps she can offer some solace and comfort to Barry's mother.

"Alright." He gulped as he watched her dialed Barry's mother number, her contact number was writen by Barry as he listed her as his emergency contact. He looked away when the call went through and Erika forced a smile.

"Mrs Palmer? My name is Erika, Barry's homeroom teacher." He couldn't bear to hear the conversation and excused himself immediately, he stormed outside the inn and tightened his fists, wanting to ulneash his frustration in one loud shout when he saw Wulfric standing next to a cloaked woman. Halting him from screaming to the skies so publicly.

"Wulfric hey, uh who's this." The woman went closer to him and unveiled her cloak, revealing a beautiful woman with red scarlet hair.

"Lorelei?" She gave him a nod and place her finger in front of her lips, implying that he should stay quiet.

"I want to keep a low profile, please lower your voice." Brawly gave a sheepish smile and nodded, right she was here for an investigation.

"Sorry." She nodded before she gave a sympathetic smile, holding her hands together.

"It's alright, Wulfric just informed me what had happened. My deepest condolences." She was utterly shocked when Wulfric told her what happened. It was heart wrenching that mystical and beautiful city she once visited is now under the mercy who ruthless blizzards, the very blizzard that was also responsible for the lost a child. It seemed to mark a ominous start to her quest to find Articuno, very tragic indeed.

"Thank you." Seeing that the mood was soured by him, Brawly decided to change the topic.

"Anyway, what are you doing here? There are rumours saying that you are here for an investigation?" Lorelei nodded with her arms crossed feeling the snowflakes decorating her red hair.

"There are rumours already? Sheesh." Wulfric grinned at Lorelei's unamused expression, giving her a cheek grin.

"Well you are a member of an Elite 4 so you know, you make headlines." She can already see the headline, "Kanto Elite 4 visiting Snowpoint during a whiteout!".

"I suppose I can tell you since you are an acquittance of Wulfric. I am here to find Articuno." Brawly blinked, Articuno? As in the legendary pokemon? Why would Lorelei be searching for her in Sinnoh?

"Articuno? The legendary Kanto pokemon?" She only nodded as she pulled her coat tighter to her.

"That's right, she has disappeared without a trace, I'm here to track her down." A legendary pokemon disappearing without a trace, could this day get any more worse?

"I see but why Snowpoint or even Sinnoh to begin with?"

"The sudden increase of blizzards and fluctuation of snowfall is suspicious, especially with Articuno's ability to conjure snowstorms and violent blizzards at a moment's notice." Given Lorelei's speciality is ice types, it was unsurprising she knew of Articuno's powers and behavior.

"So you suspect she's here because of the irregular and erratic weather?"

"Correct." Wulfric stroke his beard and sighed, that would explain his Njal's inability to predict snowstorms.

"That might explain why my Abomasnow can't sense the blizzards during our trek, the blizzards were made by a legendary pokemon." Despite being a pokemon who are known for sensing snowstorms, Legendary pokemon are essentially higher beings compared to the normal conventional pokemon. It was hard to even fathom that Articuno was responsible for creating these horrendous blizzards in the first place, she's a benevolent being who only create snow during the winter to keep the seasonal balance in check.

"But why is she here? It seemed out of place for her to be here." Lorelei smiled at Brawly's question and enlarged her pokeball, releasing her loyal Lapras who stood next to her in a regal manner.

"That's why I'm here to investigate."


Darkness, that was all he could see. The faint echoes of the abyss beckoned him, taunting him to give in to the pain. He's mind went blank from the agony and the numbing sensation coursing through his body. Was this the end? Is he dead? Maybe, the yellow blur in front of him seem to indicate he was- wait yellow?

"Prinplup." He felt something soft and furry touching his cheeks, poking them every now and then. Barry who was slowly regaining his consciousness started to open his eyes gradually, immediately greeted by the sight of his starter smiling at him adorably. In an instant, all source of pain and torment within him disappeared, instead it was replaced by the ray of hope and the warmth of fierce determination. The avalanche, the heartbroken look of despair, the cold helplessness, everything came back to him in full force.

With a groan, Barry sat upright with his eyes finally fully opened. He paused when he felt the movement of all his limbs, and began to thoroughly inspect them to see if there were any signs of major injuries. To his surprise, the very snow that swept him off also cushioned his fall, absorbing most of the blow and force. Still, the fall did cause a few bruises and a few cuts to his legs, nothing a bandage or an antiseptic can't fix. He was surprised that he managed to survive the fall yet it seemed that fate has taken a pity on him.

"Prinplup, are you alright?" It seemed that his starter was mostly unharmed from the fall, which meant he did a great job on absorbing most of the blow and impact. He patted his starter's head, wincing in pain when the numb feeling of his arm began to bite him. He felt his starter nuzzle his hand before he walked towards his bag that were separated from the fall. It was small sling bag that he brought along the mountain hike that had also an emergency kit, it seems that his paranoia seemed to save him once again.

'I guess everyone thinks I'm dead.' There was no doubt that everyone thinks he died from the fall, a terrible thought considering he saw the look of absolute despair on the girls' face before he made the hasty decision to sacrifice himself. He pulled his knees to him with his arms wrapped around it, he could already see the mournful faces on the girls' faces, crying and breaking down over him.

'I will return to all of you alive, I promise. We will even be together, not as friends but as lovers.' With renewed motivation and strength, Barry was determined to make his way back alive to his loved ones and fully return the girls' feelings to them. No more stalling, he would return to them and date all of them at once, no more holding back his own feelings and dragging this situation any more longer. Life was too short for that, as fate has kindly demonstrated by punishing his indecisiveness.

He forcefully snapped himself back to reality, he could think about the girls later. Right now, he has to focus on surviving. He stared at the sling bag before asking Prinplup to bring the bag to him as his wounds didn't allow him to move freely.

'Thank goodness I brought this.' Prinplup grabbed the bag with his mouth, dragging it across the frozen floor towards him. Barry nodded in thanks and quickly went through his bag, a bright smile creeping onto his face when he felt the familiar shape of the first aid kit in his bag. Without a moment to spare, he took out the life saving kit and began to apply first aid onto his wounds, with the disinfectant and bandages working its magic on his wounds.

As Barry rummage through the rest of his bag, he noticed that a pokeball was in it. He was confused at first before he slapped himself in the face, earning a piercing pain on his injured arms.

"Ouch damn it, Rockruff." He should be careful with any sudden movements for the time being. He slowly took the pokeball out from his bag, feeling sense of guilt and regret stirring up his chest. If only he didn't bring him along, he won't have to be stuck with him in this icy cavern. With a reluctant sigh, he called out the Rock type who instantly barked at him cheerfully, oblivious to the change of environment and mood.

"Hey Rockruff, I'm sorry I didn't let you out earlier, but as you can see, we're kinda stuck down here." The Alolan pokemon began to sniff the air, whimpering when he can't sense anyone familiar aside from his trainer and his starter. Speaking of Prinplup, the electric mouse tilted his head in a curious manner, wondering who is this fellow who popped out from his trainer's bag.

"Ah I forgot to introduce you guys, Prinplup this is Rockruff, the pokemon Korrina and I saved." The electric beamed a smile and nodded, Barry had told him the story of Eterna, but the little mouse has personally never seen a Rockruff before, so this was actually quite exciting. The two exchanged greetings, happy that they finally get to meet with each other.

"Sorry that you two are stuck with me." His two pokemon waved him off, nuzzling his leg as a sign of affection and loyalty. The trainer from Kanto smiled in an emotional manner and hugged the two pokemon in his arms with his eyes closed, feeling blessed to have such loyal friends that would stand by him.

"Thanks guys." Barry let the two go as he began to get his footing straight. He found himself being able to stand upright with minimum resistance coming from his wounds. He slung his bag across his chest once he placed the first aid kit back into the bag, and began to make his way towards the dark caverns.

Frigid, dark and sinister, Barry knew he can't crawl his way back up as he lacked the tools or even the energy to make the strenuous climb. Instead, Barry knew he can only push forward with his two pokemon walking next to him. Despite his ominous and precarious situation, Barry found himself enchanted by the icy cave that had jagged icicles hanging on the ceiling above him, with what little light being refracted by the ice.

"It looks like the ice caves in Hoth." He chuckled to himself, hoping to keep his own spirits and mood up by talking to himself. He dearly hoped he doesn't run into some snow monster or yeti that wants to eat him alive. Abomasnow are herbivores but who knows what other pokemon lurks in these deep caves, where researchers and scientists had not yet discovered or explored.

Pushing himself forward, Barry began to look around the icy caverns that he was trapped in. The structural formation of the cave was peculiar, normally there should be multiple opening or routes in a cavern, but this one seemed linear and straightforward. It was as if someone or something decided to make a path for easy access, and Barry wasn't keen on finding out who was responsible for this.

"Rockruff do you sense anything?" His puppy shook his head as there was no foreign scent aside from just the 3 of them, it gave off a small sneeze as he wasn't used to these frigid temperature. Prinplup smiled and began to share his red scarf with the rock type, wrapping themselves in red in an almost adorable manner.

"Hehe you two." He picked the two pokemon up in his arms, placing Prinplup on his shoulder as always as he held Rockruff in his arms. He didn't mind the extra weight and he would much prefer the body warmth from his pokemon. It was surprising that his arms didn't hurt when picking the two rascals up, maybe it was because he's arms had fully recovered?

'I guess my body is used to pain.' Man it sounded way edgier than he thought.

The trio trudged through the snow, well mainly Barry since the other two were getting a free ride from their trainer. The eerie silence and darkness of the cavern was indeed scary, but Barry found himself more fascinated than scared given the different and amazing ice formation of the cave. Icebergs submerged in freezing waters and weirdly shaped glaciers surrounded him, it was as if someone decorated the ice caves and carved the ice around him.

'Is it getting warmer?' Instead of the freezing cold that would give him hypothermia, Barry was feeling cool rather than cold. Were they close to something warm? They can't be near a surface right since the cold wind from the outside should be blowing in, lowering the temperature of the caves rather than increasing it. So it was perplexing at why temperature of the cave is changing.

'Just how far down did I fall?' He stopped walking when he noticed an alteration of the ice floors beneath him, he knelt down and touched the icy floor, feeling his hand going numb just by touching it. This was odd, there was no sign of powdery snow gathering on top, instead he was standing on a smooth icy surface that had no signs of cracks. Perhaps they weren't alone in this cave, an unsettling thought no doubt.

Barry pushed past those thoughts and began to continue walk forward, halting when he saw something metallic in a distance. He narrowed his eyes and noticed the different rocks and ice outside of the metallic gate. It was huge in size, suitable for vehicles to exit it even. Fortified by reinforced steel, it seemed like an impenetrable fortress from this distance, which made Barry wary that the cave he stumbled upon might not be as simple as it looked.

He cautiously walked behind the icy rocks, peeking at the huge metal door. He analyzed the door and found something protruding next to the gate, with the frozen walls of the gates seemed to host something mechanical. The most logical conclusion was perhaps a security camera. Deciding to test his theory, he placed his two pokemon down and placed his finger in front of his lips, implying that all of them should be as quiet as possible.

"Prinplup, can you sense the electrical energy from the gate?" Electric type pokemon can easily locate and detect power sources, so chances are Prinplup can guess what kind of electrical component that is protruding from the gate. His starter gave a firm military salute and focused on sensing the electrical energy of the gates, within seconds he turned to Barry and had a small worried frown plastered on his face.

"Is it something bad?" Prinplup open his arms widely, which indicated that this gate might just be a small mechanical piece of a larger contraption. Barry frowned before he placed his arm on top of he knee, gathering his thoughts in the process.

"Is that thing there a camera?" His starter nodded vigorously, which confirmed Barry's suspicion that he encounter a base of some sorts that was heavily guarded. He was willing to bet that the people behind the gates wouldn't accept him with open arms, even if he was just a defenseless student. I mean an underground facility under an icy cavern? Sounds like the lair of a supervillain in some generic spy movie.

'We're going to freeze to death if we stay out here much longer.' He didn't bring any food either, it took a lot his energy from trekking through the blizzard and waking through the caves, so he had to take his chances. Given that Prinplup sensed that this base is still operating, Barry wondered if there was anyone was operating this place.

'Trespassing huh.' Without a moment to spare, Barry conjured a plan. He had to sneak pass the camera and reach the gates, but it would be difficult given that the open area in front of the gate made it impossible for him to walk pass the camera undetected. Unless, he uses Prinplup's extremely versatile ability Light Screen.

"Prinplup can you use Water Pulse and bend the light intensity to make it invisible?" The idea behind augmenting Light Screen was to ensure that the 3 of them would appear invisible behind the wall that mirrored the surrounding background. Sort of like a camouflage makes them invisible in front of the camera.

His starter scratched his head over the complicated command but nodded nevertheless, he would have never predicted that learning Water Pulse can be so useful and advantageous, from blocking attacks to saving lives of others, it seemed that he had to thank Riolu again for honing his mental powers. With a glow of his eyes, Prinplup conjured a normal Water Pulse that slowly became transparent. Barry smiled at his starter's effort and encouraged him to keep trying until finally, he couldn't see his starter behind the Water Pulse.

"No way." In an excited manner, Barry walked behind his Prinplup and found him channeling the barrier in front of him. He paced back and forth, not able to see his starter through the barrier as it blended with the surroundings. He grinned and hugged his starter with Rockruff nuzzling him to praise him.

"Good job, let's give it a shot." Prinplup nodded and focused his mental powers again, creating the Camouflage Screen that render them pretty much invisible to anyone who sees them from the front. The trio slowly make their way towards the gate, with Prinplup raising his hands to channel the screen against the camera in the process, perfectly masking them behind the screen. Once they reached a blind spot where the camera can't detect them, Barry gave his starter a thumbs up and Prinplup stop conjuring the barrier, giving a tired sigh in the process.

Now it was his turn to do the work, Barry grazed his hands against the gate, feeling the cold metallic surface on his finger tips. He glanced at the main lock of the gate and furrowed his eyebrows, realizing that he might have to rely on Prinplup again. If he can manually short circuit and hijack the system with his electrical abilities, they can have easy access. But unfortunately, only Rotoms and Magnetons are capable of such hacking.

'Damn, I can't get in.' Barry was running out of options here, he thought he could easily open the door with some secret switch or something. Perhaps the camera has something to do with access, only allowing people with clearance to enter? As Barry browse through his mind to figure out an idea, the door suddenly opened which caused all of them to hide behind the opening door.

"You sure the camera sensed something? There's nothing here." The gruff voice of the two men made Barry gasped. The attire they wore gave him the flashback of the Galactic grunts who attacked Korrina in Eterna, there was no doubt about it, these two individuals before him were members of Team Galactic.

"Yeah the sensors went crazy." The two walked outwards, far way from the door as they stood in front of the rocks where Barry and his pokemon once hid. They glanced around their surroundings in search of anyone who went pass the camera with their pokeballs enlarged in their hands. Seeing the golden oppurtunity, Barry and his pokemon slipped passed the grunts and entered metallic gates, taking the risks that no one else would be behind the door. Their prayers seemed to be answered when Barry found himself in what seemed to be a vehicle bay with multiple snowmobiles displaying in front of him.

As Barry was about to breath a sigh of relief, the distance footsteps from outside started to come closer. His pokemon and him quickly entered a random storage room that had dusty box and shelves, closing the door silently in the process. With that tense moment over, his pokemon and him gave off a much needed sigh as they leaned against each other.

'Team Galactic, this place is run by Team Galactic!' He couldn't believe it, why is his luck so bad today? Does fate love screwing around with him? Its bad enough that he got swept off by an avalanche and fall down to an icy cavern, now he has to infiltrate a terrorist base too? Call him Solid Snake because that's what Barry is feeling right now! He regulated his breathing as he recomposed himself, not wanting to freak out in front of his pokemon. He held the two pokemon and gave them a determined look, which indicated that things were about to get serious.

"I think we ended in a more dangerous situation than we thought." His two pokemon nodded, feeling worried that they might get caught by the Galactics. They can't hide in this store room forever, who knows if a grunt might just casually walk in just to get supplies?

"We have to take risks, I think we should explore this place." Normally Barry would have laid low and wait for a rescue, but given the harsh blizzards and the fact people might thank he was dead, he knew he can't sit around and wait. Besides, he highly doubt anyone would know that Team Galactic had a base of operation here, given that he had to fall down to the icy abyss just to stumble upon them.

"Rockruff, Prinplup, don't hold on back on your attacks alright? Go all out." As much as Barry like to play the stealth game, he knew that he was bound to get caught sooner or later. By security cameras or by grunts who happened to pass by, so Barry was willing to go all out this time, their lives was at stake here. The two pokemon nodded with Prinplup cackling its cheeks while Rockruff brandished its sharp fangs. With the support from his pokemon, Barry looked around him and noted the wooden broomstick next to him. He took off the handle and twirled it around, using it as a makeshift staff for the time being.

"Alright let's do this." He took off his winter coat since the entire base was well insulated and heated, donning his light blue hoodie that Barry packed as his spare clothing. Once he stuffed his winter clothes into his sling bag, Barry took the broom handle and slowly opened the door, slinging the bag across his chest with his two pokemon walking next to him. With the coast cleared from any grunts, Barry and his pokemon quickly run out of the storage room, following the random corridors that lead him to somewhere.

Amidst his running, he began to looked around the entire facility of this place that hosts an impressive amounts of provisions and equipment. He managed to steer clear from any awkward run in with anyone when he suddenly turned around a corner.

"Wait who-" Before the man even had a chance to finish his sentence, Barry swung the staff onto his head with such force that it instantly knock him out. Without a moment to spare, he began to search around his body and attempted to find some place secluded so he can wear the man's clothes and used it as a makeshift disguise. Unfortunately for the young trainer, he realized that the man's clothing were far too large for him. So that plan were threw outside of the window.

But not all hope is lost when Barry saw a keycard hanging on the man's belt, he unhooked the keycard and placed it in his pocket for the time being, seeing that maybe he can gain access to restricted areas. He dragged the man's body to a room that had a locker in it, tossing him inside of it and locking it shut. Hopefully, that someone would eventually find him but right now Barry couldn't careless.

'Alright calm down Barry, calm down.' He felt his nerves crept onto him, this was all real. He was inside Team Galactics' base. He felt his limbs shake from the fear and nervousness when his two pokemon nuzzled his legs, reassuring him that everything would be okay as long they are together.

'That's right, my pokemon is with me.' He doubled down his courage and proceed to walk around the premise in a cautious manner. It was odd that no one had caught him yet since he was sure he passed by the security cameras a dozen of times now. Come to think about it, for being an terrorist base that wants to recreate the world, they sure have a lack of members. Where is everyone?

'Holiday?' Bad guys can have holidays too right? Given that it is the month of August where most companies and schools are off, maybe team Galactic were chilling as well? It sounds ludicrous but they are still humans who needed rest and relaxation, so it wasn't too farfetched to think they are off duty.

He sighed inwardly as he reached for the keycard in his pocket, fidgeting it in his hands. He read the name inscribed onto the card, stating "FROZEN WINGS". It was an odd name for a room name, in fact it sounds more like a name you will give to a secret project you are working on. Deciding that the room Frozen Wings would be a good start to unravel what the hell is going on, Barry managed to navigate the entire facility through the help of the many directory plastered around the walls of the facility. It honestly look liked a large office more so than an terrorist facility, especially when Barry took a few croissants and muffins from the nearby pantry.

'This feels weird.' The once tense and jumpy mood Barry had was now gone. Due to the lack of grunts, Barry found himself navigating through the facility quite smoothly. He avoided most of the main areas such as the resting quarters or barracks, and instead stick to the more quiet areas. The maze like corridors were confusing, but it also gave Barry the edge of not being spotted from afar since they have to turn the corner to spot him. He munched on the last of the pastries, giving some of them to his pokemon who devoured it whole as they too were tired and hungry.

Amidst the resting, Barry heard the multitude of footsteps coming from the hallway, which make him and the rest of his pokemon to hide behind the counter. His two pokemon were ready to jump at anyone who approached them, but Barry steeled their nerves for the time being, they still have the element of surprise and elusiveness by their side.

"So what do you guys think about the Rockets?" Barry could clearly hear their conversation, so he decided to focus his hearing and listen in. By Rockets, Barry assumed the nefarious Team Rocket from Kanto, which was perplexing at why they were mentioning them.

"Ugh bunch of assholes, they think they are better than us."

"I thought some of the girls looked hot." Barry couldn't deny or agree with that, but he did think some of their attire seemed too revealing.

"True, they do have some sexy agents." The lecherous laughs was all he could hear before they spoke in a serious manner.

"But you think that this would last? I mean Charon has make it clear that our goal is to find the creation trio." Charon? Who the hell is that? Seems like someone from the higher up, given that he seemed to be giving out orders.

"Yeah but hey they gave us Articuno though, quite surprised by that." Gave them Articuno? Team Rocket just casually gave Team Galactic the legendary Kanto pokemon Articuno? This was ridiculous yet they didn't sound drunk or intoxicated.

"What do you think they are planning? They won't give us Articuno for nothing." It seems that grunts shared his sentiments.

"It's a mutual offer, but only the higher up knows about it. We're just grunts, we know shit."

"True. Where the hell is Hans? He's supposed to meet us here."

"That prick became a pompous ass since he got promoted, he even has access to the Articuno project."

"Frozen Wings right?" At the mention of the name, Barry glanced down at the Keycard and realized there was name card attached to it, he read it and smiled to himself in amusement when it read "Hans Ferdil". It seemed that the person he knocked out was the one who has recent access to the Articuno project. It was extremely worrying though, given that Barry adored and respected the legendary birds of Kanto, just like any good Kantonese would.

"Yeah." Frozen Wings, that name was so obvious now that Barry thinks about it. He was about to readjust himself when the Public Address system started to blare, surprising Barry as he almost hit his head against the counter.

"All Red Dwarfs members, please report to the main hall immediately. I repeat, all Red Dwarfs members, please report to the main hall immediately." Red Dwarf? Maybe it was a division or a rank in the organisation?

"Damn it, they are going to give the boring ass speech again aren't they."

"Yep, come on, don't want to pissed off Saturn now do we?" He heard the sound of the chairs being lifted as the grunts began to walk off, with their footsteps growing more distant by the second. With the silence setting in, Barry raised his head and peaked at the pantry, relived that the coast was clear. He stood upright and lead his pokemon out in a cautious manner, holding onto the keycard in his hand.

'I need to find out what's this Frozen Wing project is about.' To Barry, saving one of the legendary birds of Kanto shouldn't even be a question. He knew full well the effects of Articuno's absence and how it can devastate the economy and livelihood of Kanto. It was part of his social responsibility to ensure that the once frozen wings, would be freed again.