Alright then, ENOUGH with these blasted cliffhangers!
Hey guys, riolulover97 here! bringing you all anoth-
Eini: GIVE ELI BACK TO US NOW! (grabs a nearby pencil and starts waving it at me while making loud noises.)
Me: WHOA! WHOA! CHILL! I was JUST getting to that okay!?
Eini: (pants for a few moments.) ...Y...Your right...*sigh* sorry its just...j-just...
Me: ..Uh...Eini? You alright?... you're getting pretty teary-
Eini: I CAN'T GO WITHOUT HIM ANY LONGER! (starts crying, slightly.)
Me: ...
Eini: ...
Me: (sigh)
Eini: ...
Me: ...
Eini: 0_0
Me: ...oh boy.
Eini: D-don't get any ideas! I-I just miss him! 0*~*0
Me: SURE you do. -_-
Me: Anyway, back to the chapter.
Eli's Pov: flashback
...
I...still remember that day...
(Together - Peder B. Helland)
It was...afternoon...9:00 I think...
...
The first thing I remember doing was letting out a soft yawn...I looked around the room I was currently in...just...watching.
Heh...yeah, no amount of coffee could compare to what you did on that day... I sware, you lept on me like I was covered in maple syrup...you just cried on my chest saying the same words over and over again.
"... you're alive...you're really alive..."
You whispered those words in my ears over and over again...heh...and all I could do was frantically ask you why you were panicking so much...that was...a bit inconsiderate of me, I suppose.
You...explained all of it to me...how, apparently, I fought back against Iman...how I...saved you guys...and then I just collapsed...being you, you jumped to worst-case scenarios very quickly, thinking that I had been...well let's not dwell on that.
When nurse joy came into the room, we were lucky she didn't blame the mess on us...eh, I like to think that she knew I wouldn't hurt somebody if I didn't have to...she was right of course, but it was nice to KNOW that she knew that about me.
...
The first thing you did after that was...apologize. For everything...I just told you it was fine, you were already forgiven that day...you still felt like it was you to blame for the whole mess...
I blamed myself...not a lot, but still. I shouldn't have made you worry about me like that..you told me it was fine, that I had no control over it...then I told you why were you worried about a simple spook?...I remember...you laughed at that...not your 'i just pulled a prank' snicker but...a real genuine laugh.
There was something...mysterious about that laugh, as I learned that day...there was something...special about it...it felt like...you were breathing new life into me with that laugh...
Is that weird to say? I guess but...the truth IS stranger than fiction.
...
A few minutes later, you were walking down the hallway with me to see everyone...they were all ecstatic to see I was still kicking... I remember how they all congratulated me about kicking that 'mutt's butt' as they called it...I...felt a bit flustered at all the praise.
At that moment, my stomach rumbled audibly...that was...not my greatest moment...one of my stubs reached for the back of my head after hearing that noise... afterward, we all decided that the best course of action would be to get some lunch.
...
We were all sitting around in the same room as before, a plate for each of us...as a treat for all of us, ms joy had made sandwiches for everyone. PB and J, obviously. I for one was relieved at the turn of event because...I'm not really sure how I would fare with...pellets.
After that, you took a moment to thank me...for everything I had done for you guys at this point... I just smiled and told you it was just the thing I should have done...you told me I still deserved something in return, and you'd give it to me once you figured out what it was...
It was sweet of you, that was for sure.
...
But...man though...
Looking back...it all seems so...whimsical.
Like it all just...happened to fall into place.
...
And now?
We're here...we're okay.
(End flashback)
...
I lay alone in the grounds outside the pokemon center, star's glimmering over-head...thinking about all the crazy things that had happened to me over the two weeks I had stayed here...
After that whole fiasco, it seemed like everything at the center had calmed down a bit...without the presence of Iman, everything in the center seemed to calm down. Of course, there were a few of his goons that needed to be dealt with, but our team soon cleared any possible threats of his return through his lackeys.
...
It's funny, he was built up so much during my time at the center as some kind of evil villain, yet he seemed to vanish as soon as he was introduced...it's strange how life works isn't it?
...
I thought back to my family...they have to be worried about me...right? I mean, I've been gone for about two weeks...they had to have been expecting me by now to come home... I thought of their faces...my sis...my mom...my dad...the people I've known my entire life...
I looked back at the center...
...
I had already explained the situation to Eini...she would be okay with it...hopefully.
...
(Flashback: one hour ago)
"..."
She just stared at me...in sadness.
"...So your saying...you have to leave soon?" Eini asked me, sadness tainting her voice.
"...I'm...afraid so..." I answered to her, the same sadness in my voice.
I had explained to her that my family was expecting me to come home soon, and if I stayed any longer here they would start to fear the worst...at this point, she knew how much they meant to me, and I to them.
"...Listen...if I could stay here-"
"No, its fine." she said, cutting me off from saying anything else.
I was taken slightly aback by this. "I...really?"
"...Yeah...I mean...as much as I want you to stay with us...asking you to leave them behind would be...selfish...especially after hearing about how much you all mean to each other." She explained to me, doing her best to put her brain before her feelings.
I wanted to say something...but nothing came to my mind.
"...Can you promise me something though?" she asked me, hoping that I could give an answer.
"What is it?" I asked, willing to do whatever it was to make her feel better about this.
"...I...don't know when it is we'll see each other again...or...if we even WILL...but...if and when we do...could we...stick together?" she breathed out, the question one she had to ask.
"..."
I thought it over in my head.
"...Yes...we will, that much is certain...after all...you've left to much of a mark on me for me to just forget you..."I said to her...we really had come far from that first meeting in the lake.
She smiled at me. "...Then I guess I can rest easy." she said as she turned around to walk away, presumably to tell everyone else about my departure...but before she left, she said one last thing to me...something I hope I never forget.
"...Goodbye Eli...my friend...my best friend...I hope you have a good life with your family."
...
(End flashback)
...
"Her best friend?" I thought to myself. "...Am I really that important to her?"...
I looked again at the center...as sad as it was, I had no other choice...I couldn't just abandon the people I had known my entire life...
It was a grand adventure...but now it was time I said goodbye...
I looked at my stub one last time...before it was covered in a purple glow...I was then staring at the hand I had stared at so many times...
At this point in time, I had finally learned how to use my...let's call them, powers...meaning if I were to return home...no one would know the difference.
I stood once again on my legs...just two of them...it simultaneously felt familiar and different at the same time.
...
Armed with nothing but the simple backpack I had when I first came to the center, I started my voyage to home...where I would put all of this behind me.
(End song)
...
As I walked down the trail that was set in front of me, I kept thinking about how my family would react to seeing me again...they would probably scream in joy to have seen me again, alive and well...I smiled...I couldn't wait to see them again...
...
I came up to a fork in the road, Seemingly innocuous.
On one side of the road, I could see houses in the distance dotting the landscape...a quiet and peaceful neighborhood.
On the other, I could see a forest, filled with life in the form of plants and small creatures that had not yet gone to sleep.
...
At first, I headed to the houses, where my family was...
...
Or...
...
...
...Was it?
(Vanishing grace innocence - The Last Of Us *Or as I like to call it, 'crossroads'*)
...
It came back to me...
That...vison...
My...
...Mom?
...
Was she my mom?...
...
Or...
Maybe I was just dreaming about it?...
...
I looked back at the forest...
It seemed so...inviteing. With its gentle greens and faint breeze, it was as if it was beckoning me to come to it...
...
The same was true for the houses.
With their calming browns and scent of wood, it was as if it was...persuading me to come to it...
...
...
Two roads...
Both equally pleasant...
And yet, I can only go down one...
...
But...
WHICH one?...
...
The houses?
Or the forest?
...
I thought back to the vision I had so long ago...
I...
Remembered them...
So clearly...
...
Almost as if...
They were my own...
...
...
They...
...
HAD. To be my own...
...
I wouldn't remember them this clearly if otherwise...
...
And yet...
...
My memories of my family...
...
Were ALSO my own...
...
...
...
...
What...
Does this mean?
...
How can I remember two different families...
As...
If...
...
They were my own?
...
They can't BOTH be right...
...
Can they?
...
No...
There's no way...
...
...
But then...
...
Which one...
Is right?
...
I walked back to the point where the two roads split...both of them, waiting for someone to walk them...
...
"Which one?" I asked myself.
...
I sat down on the ground...I changed my shape...one more time...
...
As I looked down I saw my stub on one side of me...
...
Who am I?
...
And by proxy...
...
WHAT am I?
...
Am I Eli Ansgar? A zorua born to a zoroark and espeon?
...
I looked to the other side of me and saw my hand.
...
Am I Eli Holand? A human born to a man and woman?
...
Am I the prince of illusion?
...
Am I just a human?
...
Who are my family?
...
Who do I turn to?
...
Where do I go?
...
I took one more look at the two roads ahead of me...they just waited for something...anything...
...
Who am I?
...
Who are my family?
...
...
...
And...that's the end of dual natures everyone...
For now.
Okay so, before anyone starts to panic let me explain. So, this chapter is to be the final part of dual natures...before Eil makes an important decision. Yup, everything I've shown you guys here was actually just a taste of what's to some.
So as you all saw, Eil is now torn between his two lives and doesn't know what to do next. Should he go back to his life of comfort, and everything he knew before as a human?
Or, should he seek out the Zoruark who gave him new memories of a life he doesn't recognize, in order to find the truth as a zorua?
It's a tough call, and one...that would be impossible for Eli to decide on his own...That is where you come in.
Yes, my viewers, I want YOU. To decide where Eli's journey shall take him from here. I want YOU. To determine his path.
But how do you do that? I bet your wondering.
Simple.
Once this chapter goes out, I will organize a poll with two choices. One is to follow the path of the forest...and for Eli to chase after the Zoroark.
The other is to follow the path of the houses...And for Eli to put all of this behind him and pick up where he left off.
After two weeks, whichever choice has more people for it will be the next story I write for this series. And will influence major key events that happen in his journey.
And don't think this choice will be for not too! For if you post a review on the story saying which side you want Eli to follow (It doesn't have to be anything else, just that.) I will give a story of your choosing a shout-out for you to gain more viewers of your own! And while you may THINK that doesn't sound all that helpful, I have a lot more views on this story than you may think. ;)
Until then though, this will be the last you hear of dual natures for some time...that doesn't mean I'll be on hiatus though! It just means I'm going to be prioritizing other stories for now.
And...yeah, I think that's it for now.
This is riolulover97, thanking all of you, for reading this fic...I had a great time making it, and I can't wait to see which side wins.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION FOR PATH'S:
Seek your origin:
This path will feature Eli traveling around the world as a wandering zorua, looking for his pokemon family. This path will show Eli how to survive as a pokemon and return his memories that he has forgotten. This path will also feature scenes set outdoors, as well as tense action and fun adventures.
A majority of Eli's friends will be pokemon, however, he may come in contact with some kind humans if fate wills it.
During this path, Eli will discover the beauty and cruelty of nature, and learn what it truly means to be alive. He will also gain incredible powers, the likes of which no human could obtain.
At the end of this path, Eli will have reunited with his pokemon family and learn of his true self but he will never see his human family again.
Possible drawbacks to picking this path include risks of physical injury, having loved ones put in danger, and chances of death or life-threatening events.
Return to your life:
This path will feature Eli returning home to his human family, keeping this strange adventure of his a secret. This path will show Eil how to make a living as a human and remind him who he is at heart. This path will also feature scenes set in the heart of city's, as well as playful banter and heartwarming moments.
A majority of Eli's friends will be human, however, running into pokemon will be inevitable on his journey and he's bound to befriend some of them.
During this path, Eli will reacquaint himself with civilization and learn why knowledge is power. He will also become an incredible tactician, the likes of which no pokemon could replicate.
At the end of this path, Eli will have returned home to a warm welcome and become a hero to his loved ones, but the thought of what became of his pokemon family will haunt him forever.
Possible drawbacks to picking this path include risks of phycological injury, seeing loved ones hurt, and chances of insanity or mental-health threatening events.
...
So now that you know your choices...
...
Which will it be?
Seek your origin?
Or,
Return to your life?