6/23/21: I had to dig into this one and remove the extra 's' from Froslass's name. For whatever reason, I was convinced it was Frosslass, not Froslass this whole time. Hopefully, I caught all of them.


Jason and Kristine spent the next several days traversing through the Nappalchan Mountains. While making ground in their journey through the notorious yet prestigious range, they came across steep terrain, jagged passages, and breathtaking views. The path kept them elevated, and the air became cold to the point where Kristine started using a green sweater and a pair of black gloves she had in her backpack.

The twins came across the occasional weary trainer who ventured from the east, making their way towards Saint Brandon. None of them appeared willing to have a conversation or even acknowledge Jason and Kristine; they just wanted to get out of the Mountains.

This alerted both Jason and Kristine. Those trainers looked like they went through a lot. One trainer had her right hand wrapped. Another one looked tense, weary, and dirty like he was overdue for a dip in a jacuzzi at the pokemon lodge.

"Quick preview of coming out the eastern end," Jason said to Kristine.

"Yeah…" Kristine muttered in reply.


Later on, Jason and Kristine approached the first ranger outpost, right on schedule. It was a small, one-story wooden structure that acted as a miniature pokemon lodge. All outposts were equipped with food and medical supplies, minimizing the concern for rationing and fears of isolation and attrition. The twins walked right inside, opening the wooden door.

"Hi there," greeted the female pokemon ranger who was in charge. She was sitting behind her desk with her legs up, but she put them down as soon as the twins approached her. "Welcome to Ranger Post Alpha. By the looks of you, you're coming from the west, aren't you?"

"Yep," Kristine confirmed.

"Well, you've made progress," the ranger leaned forward. "It's about a week between here and Ranger Outpost Bravo. I have a room available for you two to spend the night, but I should tell you about the possible dangers ahead."

"Go on," Jason said.

"We've had cold temperatures lately," the ranger continued. "There have been reports of snowfall between here and Post Bravo, but there have been mixed reports as to if it's nature or acted upon by a pokemon."

"Like a pokemon using Hail?" Kristine asked.

"Precisely," the Ranger nodded. "There's a snorunt cave up the trail. You have a lot of snorunt and the occasional glalie, their evolved form. But lately, we believe one of the snorunt may have had a dawn stone and therefore evolved into their alternate ghost form, Frosslass. Trainers have been reporting enchanted singing and a transparent pokemon who follows them for a short time.

"Ghost Pokemon are unpredictable. Some of them are jesters, while others aid trainers along their journey. Yet some will take their jests to the next level and influence trainers against their will."

"Tell me about it," Jason recollected. "When we were in the Cheron Forest, a gastly used Hypnosis on me one night and dragged me deep into the forest. That Gastly among several others didn't like that there was a ralts, whom I befriended, who stood up for me."

"You'll have that," the Ranger replied. "Anyways, do be careful up there. Remember, do everything you can to ignore ghost pokemon unless they are deliberately trying to aid you, of course."

"Thanks for the information," Kristine smiled.

The twins headed to their room down the hall on the right.

"Another ghost pokemon to get by," Jason shuddered at the thought.

"We'll be fine," Kristine assured him.


The next morning, the twins headed out of the ranger outpost en route to the next one. They found a nice, flat area nearby to train their pokemon, surrounded by jagged rocks. Jason found a waterfall and pond nearby to bring out Magikarp in before bringing out everyone else. Kristine brought out her pokemon as well.

The first thing the twins noticed was how Riolu and Machop looked at each other. The two Pokemon approached one another.

"Riolu…" Riolu spoke.

"Machop…" Machop replied.

"We introduced them the other day. What's going on?" Kristine asked.

"Eh," Jason shrugged. "Fighting pokemon."

"Riolu!" Riolu bowed his head.

"Machop!" Machop did the same.

The two pokemon then engaged in hand-to-hand combat, throwing punches back and forth while blocking and dodging one another's attacks.

"Okay then," Kristine was amused by what just happened.

"Let them go at it," Jason suggested. "If it helps them train, then by all means."

All the other pokemon looked on as Riolu and Machop moved back and forth, fighting each other.

"How long do you think they'd last?" Kristine asked.

"For hours," Jason did not doubt it.

"We're going to have to cut it short then," Kristine continued to observe.

"We will," Jason replied.

The twins proceeded with their routines with the rest of their pokemon—all the pokemon trained together with various moves and tactics while Magikarp splashed around.

An hour later, it was time for the twins to move on. They recalled all of their Pokemon, and to no surprise, Riolu and Machop were still fighting.

"Okay, guys," Jason addressed, but neither pokemon paid attention.

"Machop, Riolu, it's time to go!" Kristine added.

Still, the two pokemon were solely focused on each other. They were training to increase their strength and endurance, and there was no better method than training with each other.

"They're never going to stop," Jason sighed before walking towards the two.

He effectively got in between them, which stopped both of them in their tracks.

"Rio?" Riolu looked up at Jason, confused.

"Machop?" Machop did the same.

Jason smiled. "Okay, guys, training is over," he addressed. "As much as I like to stay around here, we have to keep going. I promise we'll have more time to train, even later today."

"Rio…" Riolu seemed disappointed, but he understood.

"Machop," Machop also understood as he walked back to Kristine.

Kristine pulled out her pokeball and recalled him. Jason recalled Riolu as well.

"Let's get going," Jason suggested.

"Right with ya," Kristine agreed.

The two ventured back onto the jagged pass and ventured onwards. Later in the afternoon, the trail followed along a cliff to the right, shadowed by the edge of a mountain on their left.

"So this is why they're so stingy about safety," Kristine said.

"At least there are rails," Jason noticed.

"Right, but we still need to watch our step," Kristine said before letting out a smirk. "Besides, we can't have you go rescuing me again."

Jason smirked back at the comment.


After spending the afternoon trekking up the path that took them through jagged passes and scenic views, the twins made camp that night. They got up the next morning and began training as usual, though Jason could not find a nearby water source for Magikarp. They continued onwards, passing by the occasional trainer while being taken through an uneven series of paths and passages.

For the next few days, it was the same routine: make camp, gather water wherever possible, train, pack up, and move on. The air was getting cold and bitter. Everything seemed to be less colorful and grimmer. Jason and Kristine were feeling weary as a result.

"I could really use a night at an outpost or lodge," Jason remarked.

"We're just a couple of days away from Outpost Bravo," Kristine replied, looking at the handbook. "If we really hike it tomorrow, we can definitely get there on schedule."

"Sounds good to me," Jason said. "And to think, we're just getting started here."

"Yeah…" Kristine gave a slight sigh. "I try not to look at the distance from here to Richland Port."

Jason and Kristine spent another day traversing through the Nappalchan Mountains. In the afternoon, they came across a path that took them upwards on a steep hill. At one point, Kristine put her handbook back in her backpack, solely focused on getting up the hill.

"How high is this going to take us?" Jason asked.

"Beats me," Kristine shrugged.

The two spent what they thought was a very long time getting up the steep path. As dusk settled in, they reached the top of the hill.

"Wow, my legs are burning," Jason tried to catch his breath.

"Same here," Kristine replied.

The two slowed down their pace, trying to recover their energy from the previous hike. Darkness covered the sky rather quickly, Kristine thought. Then suddenly, it became frigid.

"It's like someone cranked the AC all the way down," Kristine said as she shivered.

"We need to be careful," Jason added. "Remember what the –"

The twins could feel a sense of warmth and comfort nearby.

"What the what?" Kristine turned to her brother. He was lured by something straight ahead.

She looked straight ahead as well, and when she did, she no longer cared what her brother tried to remind her about. There was a cabin straight ahead.

"Ranger Outpost Bravo!" Kristine was relieved.

"We're here already," Jason said. "I guess we're making great time!"

"It appears so!" Kristine smiled.

The twins approached the cabin. The door was wide open for them to simply enter. Any suspicious thoughts they might have had simply evaporated to the warm embrace of the cabin.

"It's so nice and toasty in here," Kristine walked around the entrance.

"Welcome to Ranger Outpost Bravo!" said the voice of a female pokemon ranger behind the counter. She had ghostly white hair yet appeared to be in her twenties. "Please, make yourself at home."

"Thanks!" Kristine happily replied.

"Hey," Jason approached the ranger. "Should we book a room or something?"

"Your room is already booked!" the ranger nodded with a smile. "Please proceed down the hall all the way to the end."

"Time to go get cozy and get some sleep!" Kristine trotted past the lobby and proceeded down the hallway.

Jason walked right behind her. The hallway seemed nearly endless to him. He felt awkward traversing through a long hallway with no doors, but that feeling of uncertainty was cast aside when he finally reached the end.

"Oh my gosh, look!" Kristine walked right through the open entrance to their room. It was a large suite, with two queen-sized beds in opposite ends of the room. She went to the one on her left and sat down on it. "It's so comfy!"

"We thought it would be a good idea to have a sense of style and comfort in the middle of the Mountains," said the ranger, who suddenly appeared by the entrance.

"You have a nice setup here," Jason said to her.

The ranger smiled. "Please, make yourself at home."

Certainly, I can't leave my pokemon out of this luxury," Jason began to pull out Jolteon's pokeball.

The ranger looked at the pokeball with uncertainty and looked back at Jason. "I'm sure your pokemon deserve a good rest, do they not? They've been training hard for days. Give them some more time in their pokeballs."

Jason thought the ranger's reaction was suspicious. "You're right," he replied with a straight face. "I think I'm going to relax and watch some television."

"You deserve a good rest," the ranger smiled. "Have a pleasant evening!"

The ranger walked away as Jason approached past the bed where Kristine was already drifting away to sleep with her clothes on. He approached the living room, complete with a massive mounted television screen, two recliners, and a fireplace opposite the television.

Something doesn't seem right here… Jason thought to himself. Oh no.

His fear of coming into direct contact with another ghost pokemon was becoming a reality. He was bothered by the thought. Since his encounter with the gastly in Cheron Forest, he had thoughts of dismay about ghost pokemon in general. He didn't like to admit that; in fact, he kept it to himself. But his encounter with the gastly shook him to the point where he could no longer look at ghost pokemon the same.

He had to calm himself. He knew he had to remain calm about the situation and alert his sister so that the two could get out safely. He walked back to Kristine's bed and gently shook her.

"Hey, sis?" Jason tried to wake her up.

"Yeah…?" Kristine opened her eyes.

"We gotta get out, now," Jason warned her. "This is not what you think it is."

"What do you mean?" Kristine became fully alert.

"I think Froslass is tricking us, just like the ranger from Outpost Alpha warned," Jason spoke in a whisper.

"But…" Kristine wanted to deny the truth. But she knew Jason's concern was feasible. "But it's so warm and comfortable. Are you sure it's a trick and not some generous offer of hospitality?"

"Think about it, sis," Jason replied.

Kristine then became very suspicious. "What should we do, Jason?" she asked. "Wow, I can't believe I fell for this. I'm such an idiot."

"No, you're not, don't say that," Jason sternly spoke. "I fell for it too, until she discouraged me from sending out my pokemon."

"She…"

"Frosslass…"

"How – how could…," Kristine was confused. "How could she take the form of a human like that?"

"She created an illusion just for us," Jason replied. "She used our desires for warmth and shelter and exploited them."

Kristine got up. "Should we confront her?"

Jason reached for his pokeball. "Come on out, Jolteon!"

"Jolt!" Jolteon greeted as he was summoned.

"Let's just keep Jolteon out for now," Jason suggested. "We go quietly."

"Right with you," Kristine nodded.

The two walked out of their room alongside Jolteon and proceeded down the hallway alongside Jolteon. As they ventured forward, the temperature quickly dropped. Jolteon began growling, alerting the twins of possible dangers around them.

What's wrong? Echoed the voice of the ranger all around them. There's only comfort and hospitality here. Please, make yourself at home.

"Frosslass, is that you?" Jason asked. "We just want to talk, that's all."

"Are you sure you want to confront her directly?" Kristine said. "I'm not sure if that's a good idea."

We've made nice, cozy quarters just for you! The voice continued. Why won't you stay with us for a while? You both deserve it!

"We appreciate it!" Kristine kindly replied. "But we would like to know more about it, that's all!"

All there is to know is that this was made just for you! The voice replied before stating once more: "Please, make yourselves at home."

The twins made it to the other end of the hallway, but the door to the lobby was closed.

"Get ready, Jolteon," Jason said to him.

"Jolt!" Jolteon gave a nod.

Jason opened the door, and the twins and Jolteon walked right through. But it wasn't the lobby that they entered.

"It's our room!" Kristine said, starting to become nervous about the situation.

"Now we know her real intentions," Jason said. "She wanted to keep us here for who knows how long."

"Or we insulted her," Kristine added.

Suddenly, the nice, cozy luxury suite slowly evaporated, giving way to a very frozen interior.

Kristine crossed her arms to warm herself up, seeing her own breath before her. "This was never a cabin."

"Just a cabin in the froslass cave," Jason added. He pulled out Riolu's pokeball. "Let's go, Riolu!"

"Rio!" Riolu gave a salute as he was summoned.

"You too, Espeon and Machop!"

"Espeon!" Espeon greeted with grace.

"Machop!" Machop flexed his muscles.

"Okay, everyone," Jason addressed. "Let's get out of here!"

The group walked out of the icy corner of the cavern and proceeded down a long, snaky tunnel.

Froslass, the ghost pokemon's voice echoed. Froslass!

This alerted Jason and Kristine's pokemon. When the group reached the end of the tunnel, they walked into what they thought was the main body of the cavern,

"So this must've been the lobby," Jason said.

"Should that mean we're next to the exit?" Kristine asked. She looked all around to see that several tunnels branched off from here.

"That means we were in here for a while," Jason replied. "We were probably inside here when we thought we were still outside."

"Do you think Froslass set us up at soon as we reached the top of the hill?" Kristine asked her brother, though she knew the answer.

Jason simply gave a nod.

The group could hear noises coming from one of the tunnels, but it wasn't Frosslass. It appeared to be from several pokemon, all of the same species.

"Snorunt!" the twins heard the grunts of the small Pokemon as they entered the main body of the cavern.

Riolu, Machop, Jolteon, and Espeon were on guard, ready to protect their trainers. Jason and Kristine were ready to release their other pokemon as well.

Five small Snorunt approached the twins and their pokemon and greeted them with friendly chants of their name.

"Stand down, everyone," Jason said.

The twins' pokemon seemed to let their guards down.

"Look at them; they're so cute!" Kristine examined the dark, tiny round creatures, covered by a natural triangle-shaped yellow and orange cloak. Their arms and legs were round and stubby and lacked digits.

Jason pulled out his pokedex.

"Snorunt, the Snow Hat Pokemon," the pokedex explained. "Snorunt survives by eating only snow and ice. Old folklore claims that a house visited by this pokémon is sure to prosper for many generations to come."

"Snorunt snorunt!" the group urged the twins and their pokemon to follow them.

Suddenly, a gust of freezing air kicked in.

Froslass, the voice echoed once more.

Then, Froslass herself appeared before the twins, their pokemon, and the group of snorunt.

"Froslass!" the elegant ghost and ice hybrid did not seem pleased with the situation. She possessed a hollow torso that largely resembled a kimono popular in the far east regions such as Johto, with a natural red band extending her waist. She floated in the air, her beauty mesmerizing to the twins, but her displeasure of their desire to depart was anything but.

Froslass's appearance alone sent all but one of the snorunt fleeing down the tunnels for safety.

"Froslass!" Frosslass projected an icy wind at the twins and their pokemon.

"Jolteon, Swift!" Jason commanded.

"Jolt!" Jolteon fired off a volley of stars at Frosslass. The stars managed to stop the ice attack from striking the twins, and they broke through to Frosslass. However, since Swift was a normal type attack, it went right through her.

"Froslass!" Frosslass disappeared.

"Where did she go now?" Kristine wondered.

"Let's try to get out of here now we have the chance!" Jason suggested.

"Snorunt!" Snorunt ran over to one of the tunnels. "Snorunt snorunt!"

"Snorunt's trying to lead the way!" Kristine pointed out.

"Then let's follow it!" Jason replied.

The twins and their pokemon followed Snorunt down the tunnel.

Froslass, the twins heard the voice echo once again. Frosslass.

"She's not very happy," Jason pointed out.

"Duh! We rejected her hospitality!" Kristine replied.

"Considering it was forced hospitality, I don't think we can be blamed!"

The tunnel steeped upwards, giving the twins hope that they're near the entrance to the cavern.

"We should be almost there!" Kristine said.

"Snorunt!" Snorunt affirmed.

The twins approached another body of the cavern, where there were three tunnels, one of them leading upwards.

"Snorunt!" Snorunt led the twins and their pokemon to the tunnel leaning upwards.

"Froslass!" Frosslass suddenly appeared in front of the tunnel, blocking Jason and Kristine from advancing.

Jolteon, Espeon, Riolu, and Machop all stood in front of Jason and Kristine.

"Get ready!" Jason said.

"Hang on a second," Kristine said, not wanting to fight. She walked forward, passing by their pokemon to get face to face with Frosslass.

"Hey," Kristine smiled. "We're sorry if we insulted you. See, we just wanted to be on our way in peace."

Jason had seen Kristine's negotiations with pokemon succeed. He thought there was a chance Frosslass could be convinced to stand down from her aggression.

"Froslass!" Frosslass angrily replied. It was obvious that Kristine's sweet-talking wasn't doing the trick.

Froslass began to inhale, projected a freezing breath that could envelop Kristine.

"Kristine, get down!" Jason yelled.

Kristine ducked her head from Froslass's impending attack.

"Espeon!" Espeon's eyes suddenly glowed purple.

That was when Froslass's eyes turned purple. She was tossed forwards through Espeon's telepathy, flying right over Kristine's head. Frosslass slammed against the wall but was quick to recover from Confusion.

"Let's go, now!" Jason yelled.

He, Kristine, and their pokemon ran up the tunnel with Snorunt in tow.

Froslass, the voice echoed yet again.

"She just doesn't give up, doesn't she?" Jason said.

"Tell me about it," Kristine replied.

A moment later, the group reached the mouth of the cavern. They were relieved to see the night sky, dotted by distant stars and well lit by a full moon.

"Thank goodness we're out of here," Kristine was catching her breath. "Now let's-"

A dark cloud soon hovered over the twins. Then, it began to snow.

"Froslass' Hail," Jason noted. "She's not done with us yet!"

"Froslass!" Froslass appeared before them once more.

"Rio!" Riolu approached Froslass with his fists drawn.

"Froslass!" Froslass looked at Riolu and began to project an icy wind aimed at him.

That was when Snorunt came out of nowhere and charged at Froslass.

"Snorunt!" the small Pokemon jumped up and bit Froslass's right arm.

"Froslass!" Frosslass yelped in pain. She managed to shake off Snorunt.

After tumbling over once, Snorunt got back up and approached Frosslass.

"Froslass?" Froslass seemed to be saddened that Snorunt would do such a thing.

"Snorunt Snorunt!" Snorunt confronted. "Snorunt snorunt snorunt!"

"Froslass…" Frosslass looked down in shame. The twins wondered what they were saying.

Just then, Riolu, along with Jolteon, Espeon, and Machop, all backed down. It appeared that Snorunt got through to Frosslass.

The hail abruptly ended, revealing a cloudless night sky once more.

"I guess Froslass realized she was exploiting her powers for fear more than anything else," Kristine said.

"You got that right," Jason added. "Now, Froslass, can you leave us alone?"

"Froslass…" Froslass faced the twins with regret. She then floated back into the cave.

"Good riddance," Jason muttered to himself.

Kristine walked over to Snorunt and squatted on her knees before him.

"That was brave of you to confront Froslass like that," she said to Snorunt.

"Snorunt!" Snorunt gave a nod to Kristine.

"Well, thank you for helping us!" Kristine smiled.

"Snorunt snorunt!" Snorunt replied.

"I have to ask, though, does she actually live with you all?"

Snorunt nodded.

"I see. And she scares all the snorunt?"

Snorunt nodded again.

"Well, hopefully, she can stop scaring everyone. I heard she recently evolved.

"Snorunt!" Snorunt seemed to confirm Kristine's claim.

"She's probably figuring out how to use her powers," Kristine continued. "She may have gone too far-seeing how powerful she can really be."

"Snorunt!" Snorunt agreed.

"Anyways, thanks again!" Kristine got up. "My brother and I are going to find a nice spot to make camp and get some rest."

"It's pretty late already," Jason added.

"We don't have to get up bright and early," Kristine said. "We can sleep in."

Jason and Kristine began recalling their pokemon before walking past Snorunt and proceeding away from the cave and onto the path ahead. Unknown to them, Snorunt began following them.

"That's another reason why I don't like ghost pokemon," Jason said. "Frosslass deliberately tried to imprison us!"

"Ghost pokemon can't be all that bad," Kristine argued. "I mean, yeah, those gastly were jerks for luring you away like that. But I think Frosslass meant well. She just took it as an insult when we tried to leave."

"If you say so," Jason indirectly disagreed.

"We'll get far away from here," Kristine smiled. "At least we're out of the tunnel."

She successfully got Jason to crack a smile.

About half an hour later, the two found a flat area off the road where they could make camp. Jason helped set the tent up while Kristine began preparing food for themselves and their pokemon. She kneeled before her backpack to reach for some sandwiches. When she looked up, she saw Snorunt in front of her.

"Snorunt?" Kristine was slightly startled. "You've followed us out this far?"

"Snorunt, Snorunt!" Snorunt replied as if it was trying to tell Kristine something. "Snorunt, Snorunt!"

"I can't really understand what you're saying," Kristine said.

"If Snorunt followed us this far, there could only be one thing," Jason chimed in. "Snorunt wants to join you."

"Snorunt!" Snorunt nodded.

"You want to join me?" Kristine asked. "May I ask why?"

Snorunt faced the opposite direction, looking towards the direction of the cavern. It shook its head before turning to Kristine. It then nodded.

"So you don't want to go back there?" Kristine asked.

Snorunt nodded.

"And you want to join us?"

Snorunt nodded again.

"That's a huge commitment," Kristine explained. "You see, there's much more to the world than these mountains. My name is Kristine, by the way. My brother Jason and I are traveling through these mountains in our adventure to compete in the Inventum Cup. Once we get out of here, there's much more to see. We're competing in the Inventum League, which means there will be plenty of pokemon battles.

"If you're interested in joining me, you'll be seeing everything Inventum has to offer. I'll also train you every single day so that you can be the toughest snorunt around. It's going to be a tough challenge, but we'll have a lot of fun along the way. What do you say?"

"Snorunt!" Snorunt jumped once, ready to join Kristine's team without hesitation.

"Very well, then," Kristine pulled out an empty pokeball and presented it to Snorunt.

"This is your pokeball," Kristine continued. "This will keep you safe and sound at night or when there's danger."

"Snorunt," Snorunt gave a nod.

Kristine tapped Snorunt with the pokeball, sending it in. Snorunt became bound to the ball without resistance.

"Alright, Snorunt joins the team!" Kristine cheered.

"Congrats, sis," Jason commended.

"Thanks!" Kristine stood up before pulling out her pokedex to examine the snorunt she just captured.

"Let's see…." Kristine muttered. "Okay," she spoke louder. "Snorunt knows Bite, Icy Wind, Ice Shard, and Double Team."

"He knows Double Team?" Jason seemed intrigued.

"That's what the pokedex says," Kristine replied. "It's also a she."

"A she?" Jason felt goosebumps.

"Yeah. What's up?" Kristine took notice.

"That means Snorunt has the potential to evolve into Froslass," Jason explained.

"Only if I expose her to a dawn stone," Kristine shrugged. "It's not a big deal."

"Just don't tell Team Mystic you have a snorunt," Jason advised. "Or they'll hand you a dawn stone to try to 'bring out her full potential.'"

"Jason, please," Kristine chuckled. "This is a friendly snorunt. Even if she evolves into Frosslass, I'm pretty sure she would still be friendly."

"Okay," Jason seemed to calm down.


The two soon prepared food for themselves and their pokemon, and Snorunt was introduced to the team. They later got some shuteye and had a late morning getting prepared and starting their routines the next day. By midmorning, they ventured out on the road. It wasn't until the day after where they managed to reach Outpost Bravo by the afternoon.

"So this is the real Ranger Outpost Bravo," Kristine said as she and Jason stood before a wooden cabin.

The two opened the door and proceeded inside.

The male Ranger behind the counter looked up at the twins. "Oh, hey," he spoke. "Welcome to Ranger Outpost Bravo."

"Thank goodness," Jason was relieved.

"Which direction are you heading?" the Ranger asked.

"We're heading east," Kristine replied.

"Got a long way to go," the Ranger stretched his legs. "Anyways, you're free to take whatever room you want."

Jason looked down the hallway. It was short, with only two doors on each side.

"This is the real one, all right," Jason said before taking the first door on the right.

"What does he mean by that?" the ranger was curious, asking Kristine.

"Oh, we had trouble with Froslass the other day," Kristine replied.

"You guys too?" the ranger replied. "She's been tricking trainers lately."

"I think we got her to stop it," Kristine said.

"Well, thanks," the ranger gave a nod.

Kristine headed to the room Jason had claimed for both of them. She walked inside to see a perfectly normal studio with twin beds and no television.

"Much better," Kristine looked around with a smile on her face.

"Right?" Jason sat down on one of the beds.

The twins rested for the afternoon and evening, preparing themselves for what's to come ahead. They spent almost two weeks traversing the Nappalchan Mountains, yet they still got a long way to go. With two more ranger outposts to go before reaching the Central Pokemon Lodge, the twins were eager to tackle the challenges ahead.


The next chapter is going to be very emotionally powerful. I feel like I need to give a heads up on this, but yeah, it's going to be a good one.