A/N: Alright I'm back… not much to say other than to read and enjoy, plus I will be including an OC from animemonk, so look out.

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Pokemon franchise, only the story and the OC's, except animemonk's.

Chapter 5: Soul Binding

Extra Notes:

"Normal Speech"

"Telepathic Speech"

Jared and Gem were speeding through the forest. Trees were zipping on by, the world seemed to be at a blur, and Gem did not feel good going at the speed Jared was going. Every turn he makes causes Gem's head to spin, every jump he does is a little bumpier every time. She had to slow down and rest right now or else…

"Hey… Jared?" She asked noxiously.

"What is it?"

"Do you think we can slow down, I feel like I'm gonna throw up…"

Immediately Jared slowed down his pace to a brisk walk.

"Better?" He asked.

"Better."

"Okay good. And I believe we're here."

The two stumbled upon a huge cave entrance on the side of a large cliff. A dark figure was barely visible inside, its breathing was slow and unsteady, and blood was trickling all the way to the entrance. The figure was evidently hurt.

"Jared, we have to help him!" Gem yelled.

The two quickly ran inside to assess the situation at hand. The glow coming off of Jared's necklace gave enough light to see inside the cave. Who they saw was Zach, but they didn't know who he was. He was badly injured; there were deep cuts and large bruises all over his body. His eyes were hazy, indicating that he was unconscious, and a large gash ripped through from his forehead to his chin. It was not a pretty sight to see, Gem nearly fainted from all the blood and wounds.

"You… you think he's ok?" Gem asked in a horrified manner.

"Well I'm no doctor, but he's definitely alive. He's breathing, but barely, we need to patch him up immediately. Gem, I need you to go and gather some berries to help heal up his wounds, I'll bandage up what I can in the meantime."

"O-ok." She ran out of the cave and back into the forest.

"Hey man, you gonna be alright," Jared assured. "Just hope you don't die on me."

Jared started ripping up some of his clothing to make bandages for the wounds.

"Damn, if I knew I'd be doing this, I would have asked for some supplies."

Flashback…

"Are you sure you don't need anything before you leave." Gallade asked.

"Nah, I told you I like doing things myself, keeps me from getting bored." Jared replied.

"Alright, if you say so."

End of Flashback…

"Why did I ever say that?"

As Jared continued to make more bandages, a large roar boomed throughout the caves. Something big was coming, and it did not sound happy. The roar stirred Zach from his unconscious state; he murmured something in a soft tone.

"It's… coming…" Was all he managed to say.

Out of the dark depths of the cave, came out a huge, misshapen steelix. Large chunks were missing from its dark body. Most of its rock spikes were broken off and the tip of its tail had been sharpened into a flat blade. Its face had multiple cracks, but the biggest one ran through its blind right eye.

The steelix attacked without reason, striking using its tail blade. Jared was able to dodge just in time, with only a few millimeters between him and the blade. The steelix struck again, this time aiming for Zach. Jared quickly picked up Zach and ran to the other side of the cave, right behind a stalagmite.

"Stay here bud; I get us out of here alive." Jared whispered. Zach only groaned in response.

Jared just sighed back and found a long, sharp rock to use as a weapon. "Not the best thing but it'll do."

He then jumped out of hiding and sprang into action. The steelix's body was turned away, still searching for the two. Jared ran towards the tail in hopes to climb up to the head. The steelix noticed this and tried to slam Jared using the flat of the blade. Jared quickly rolled out of the way, and rolled back to grab ahold of it. Jared was now hanging on for dear life as the steelix's tail went crazy, swinging Jared around and about. It kept crashing into the walls, floor, and ceiling. Still, Jared held on with all his might, and started climbing its rocky body to the head.

Jared was now on its back, riding on like some sort of cowboy. The steelix bucked and kicked, but still could not get Jared off. The cave rumbled, and stalactites started falling, some almost impaled Zach, Jared knew he had to hurry before the cave collapsed.

He's battered, bruised and his leg may be broken, but he didn't care, he finally got to the head. He brought out the sharp rock he grabbed earlier and commenced beating the steelix with it. Although it seemed to be in vain, Jared stuck the eye. He pushed the rock as deep as he could to make sure the thing would die. It roared in pain… then stopped moving all together, it dropped head first, causing Jared to roll off. Jared got up, dusted himself off, and started limping towards the exit.

Few Minutes Later…

Gem was running back towards the cave with twin piles of berries hovering next to her. The piles were big; there was enough to feed her, Jared, and Zach for about one or two days.

"Hey Jared I'm…" Gem's jaw and berry piles dropped to the scene laid out to her. Jared was injured, and sitting on top of a huge dead steelix that looked like it's been beaten to oblivion. Zach was lying down next to him, but he was awake and well; the two were talking and laughing as if they were old friends.

"What in reverse world (the reverse world is the pokemon version of hell if you didn't know that) is going on here!" Gem screamed.

"Oh hey Gem, nothing much, just chilling with Zach." Jared replied.

"Yo." Zach said.

"What about the dead steelix!"

"What? Oh yeah I nearly forgot," Jared chuckled at this. "Yeah long story short, it was about to kill Zach and me, so I killed it first."

"Okay… so are you guys alright?"

"Just a bit hungry that's all."

Gem sighed. "All right, I'll set up lunch."

After a few minutes of preparation, the three ate some lunch on top of the steelix head. Also, because of the berries' healing properties, Jared and Zach were restored to full health. They soon got to know each other better; Gem and Jared learned about Zach's horrid history, while Zach learned about Jared own life story.

"So you're from a different world?" Zach asked.

"Yep." Jared replied.

"Then you should know about this…" Zach took out a necklace with a dark stone from his thick fur. Jared gasped in surprise at this revelation.

The stones from each necklace started glowing brightly. Strange runes formed underneath the three off them. In a flash they all disappeared into thin air. They've teleported to a large white room with a single staircase leading up to nowhere.

"Oh, not this place again!" Jared yelled.

"Where are we?" Gem asked.

"I think we're at the home of Arceus." Zach announced.

"Arceus!" Gem shouted.

"Yes child," a familiar voice echoed. "This is my home… mostly. Let me teleport you all to my location."

Once again they teleported, this time to the top of the stairs. There they met Arceus in her true form. "Welcome." Arceus said.

Gem and Zach bowed in respected to the god of pokemon. Jared did not; instead he just put his hand behind his head with a bored expression on his face. He asked "So, why are we here?"

"You are here for a, 'special process'." Arceus said.

"A what?"

"Remember? I told you that the necklaces, once put together, will bond the souls of the wearers."

"Oh yeah I remember now. Zach, shall we?" Jared said

"Okay." Zach replied.

Jared and Zach both stared at each other, both ready but unsure for what's to come. They both took the stone of their necklaces, and slowly (and dramatically) put them together. As soon as they were an inch away, electricity started sparking in between. It became increasingly harder to put them together, like trying to stick two magnets together on the same polar end.

But they succeeded. In doing so, a bright light shined on the floor. The light was in the shape of the symbol of Arceus; a circle with two larger semi-circles next to it. The symbol caused the two to float slightly, pure power swirled around them, and then, there was a blinding flash.

When the flash ended everyone, even Arceus, was shocked to see what has happen. On the left where Jared was standing, was a zoroark wearing Jared's torn clothing and bandages. On the right where Zach was standing, was another zoroark, but its fur was different, that of a shiny coloration. The two looked at each other and screamed in surprise.

"Zach!" Yelled the zoroark on the left. Its voice was the same as Jared. "You're a zoroark, a shiny one!"

"And you're a zoroark too!" Yelled the zoroark on the right, believed to be Zach. "What the hell's going on here?!" They yelled in unison.

"Well this was unexpected…" Arceus murmured.

"Well what was supposed to happen?!" Zach asked, freaking out.

"Well, this isn't so bad." Jared interrupted.

"What are you talking about?!" Zach asked, still freaked out.

"Well…" A sly grin spread across Jared's face. Smoke seemed to appear from his feet, it twirled around him, covering his entire body till nothing left was visible. Then the smoke suddenly disappeared, revealing that his form has changed again.

He was a human again. He had on a jet black jacket with a red fur trim, black jean with chains hanging, dark red sneakers and undershirt, and black fingerless gloves. His left eye was still covered by a white bandage that wrapped around his head.

"Well, I get a new look, and you're no longer a mutant." Jared continued.

"I guess it's not that bad… but how did this happen?" Zach said, finally calmed.

"I believe I have the answer," Arceus responded. "Due to the effect of the amulets, your souls have intertwined, causing your powers to intertwine as well. Because of this, you both should share the same powers."

"So that would mean I'm part zoroark, lucario, blaziken, and gallade? And I can use the powers of those pokemon?" Jared assumed.

"I imagine so, yes." Arceus replied.

Jared tried to use any moves he feels his pokemon counterparts can use. So far, he can only use the moves shadow ball, night slash, dark pulse and, for some reason, shadow sneak. Every time he used any other move of another pokemon, it just blew up in his face. A flamethrower attack burnt his tongue, his sense of aura was poor, and any psychic attack gave him a headache. It's going to take time and training before he can use his new powers correctly.

"Well this sucks…" Jared thought, pouting at his inability to use other moves, but smirking a bit at the thought of a challenge.

"Hey Jared, you okay?" Gem asked.

"Oh, yeah I'm alright, just a bit sad that I can only use dark and ghost type moves." Jared said.

"Well, I think I can help you with the psychic type moves, knowing that you're part gallade."

"Thanks Gem, I'll hold you to that promise."

"So is uh… that it or…?" Zach spoke.

"I believe that's it so… I will return you to your original location. Goodbye." Arceus said. Her form shined brightly, the glow quickly filled the room and blinding the three. They soon found themselves back at the cave site, but the steelix body was gone. They ignore this and thought about what will happen next.

"So now that I got cool powers, what happens ne-" Jared's words were cut off by the sounds of a rustling bush. Two individuals came out of the bush wearing suspicious outfits. Their clothing was entirely black; they had on large trench coats, simple pants, and a beret. The suspicious parts were the armored combat boots, bullet-proof vests, night vision goggles, and weird rifles to their sides. The one on the right was holding some sort of device.

"Well look what we have here." Spoke the man with the device. "A trainer with his pokemon. And the pokemon rare to this region."

"You're right," spoke the other. "They could be perfect for The Company's project. Hey kid, hand over your pokemon or else someone gets hurt."

"No way," Jared barked. "You aren't taking away my friends!"

"Fine then, have it your way." One of them took something out of their pockets. Jared thought there was going to be a pokemon battle like in the games, but he was wrong. The man brought out a small pistol and fired in Jared's direction. Jared had no time to dodge the projectile; luckily, it wasn't a bullet but a strange yet small device that had attached itself to his shoulder. The man brought up his arm and pressed a button on his wrist. Suddenly, Jared felt his whole body being shocked with thousands of volts of electricity. He quickly fell to his knees and hands, unable to stand.

"What!" The man gasped in surprise. "That device should have killed you, how can you still be alive!" Jared didn't respond on the account of still being electrocuted.

"Who cares," said the other. "Let's just bag and grab the pokemon and kill the kid later." They both took out their rifles and fired. Out of their guns came two steel nets. Zach and Gem were in their own state of shock (get it?), unable to avoid the nets.

But out of the bushes came out another figure. This person quickly sped into the scene, standing between the nets and Jared's group. He was a young teen, a year younger than Jared, had shabby ash blonde hair and a tie-dye headband holding the hair out of his eyes. His eyes appear to be a vibrant red, yet seemed to flicker with different colors. He wore blue jeans, a black shirt, and brown gloves that are fingerless just before the first knuckle down the finger. On his back, he carried twin katanas that glimmered in the sun light. As he drew one of the blades, time seemed to slow down. The teen swiftly slashed once horizontally through the air at a speed that was untraceable by the naked eye. The nets were still a few feet away, but it didn't matter, because by the time the nets got about an inch close, they fell in a multitude of tiny pieces.

"What the fuck! Who the hell are you and-" Before one of the men could finish his sentence, the teen instantly closed the gap between them and attack with his fists. Blow after blow, the teen fought with an intense speed and agility. His fists were pummeling everywhere they could connect, including the device controlling the thing that was electrocuting Jared.

Jared was finally free from the shock box that paralyzed him. He lay on his back motionless, tired from the constant flow of painful shocks.

"Jared, are you alright?!" Gem cried.

"You know… you could have… removed the thing… off me with… your psychic powers." Jared stated in exhausted breaths.

"Oh…" Gem reddened in embarrassment and guilt.

"It's… fine." Jared got up slowly in a sitting position. He called out to the teen. "Hey buddy, you can stop beating up those thugs now."

The teen turned his head, but continued to punch an unconscious thug in the face. "Hmm, what you say?" He yelled.

"I said you can sto-" Jared then noticed the teen had some headphones on. He could hear the music slightly from his location.

A voice suddenly echoed in Jared's head. "Uhhh, sorry about his behavior; I'll take care of it." It wasn't Gems; Gem's telepathic voice is younger, like a teenager. This voice on the other hand was more womanly and mature.

The teen's shadow contorted and twisted till it took a new shape. The shadow then rose from the ground and became three dimensional with more colors than just black. The shadow turned out to be a darkrai, the pitch-black pokemon. The darkrai slapped the teen in the back of the head, yelled something at him, and ripped his headphones off. It then pointed in Jared's direction and said something about apologizing. The teen stopped his assault and walked off towards Jared.

"I'm sorry for my rudeness." The teen said bowing slightly.

"It's alright," Jared replied. "You did save me and my friend's lives after all, and for that, I am grateful. There's no need to apologize."

"Oh good… does that mean I can get back to my interrogation?"

"Interrogation? You call that interrogation?"

"Yes… oh and by the way the name's Daryl. Daryl Ready." The teen held out his hand for a handshake. His eyes shined a confident shade of blue.

"Strange," Jared thought, "I thought his eyes were red, must have been my imagination."

Jared reached out for Daryl's handshake. "Well my names Jared Deus. These are my friends, Gem and Zach." As soon as Jared grabbed Daryl's hand, Daryl got electrocuted with a few volts of electricity. He recoiled and backed off some.

"Ouch! The hell was that for man!" Daryl yelled.

"Sorry," Jared replied. "Guess I still got some voltage left in me. By the way, is that your darkrai?"

"Hmm? Oh yes, yes she is. Her name's Dark, been my best friend ever since we met."

"Well you're gonna have to tell me that story some time."

"Yeah, anyways, follow me. There's a storm brewing, a big one." He pointed behind them, revealing dark clouds thundering past the forest.

"Well where we going?" Jared asked.

"My place…." Daryl replied. He had a twinkle in his eye, as if something mischievous was taking place in his head of his.

"Well don't just stand there, come on!" Daryl and Dark were already running the opposite way of the cloud's path.

"Man he's fast." Jared thought. He and friends ran towards Daryl, not knowing that their adventure had finally begun. Or has it? Has it?

A/N: Well that's all folks. Hoped you enjoyed the fifth chapter of my story. Please review on what you thought of it. And if you have any questions on the characters or the story itself, or have any ideas for the story, or even OC's you wish to share with me, please PM me on the subject. Have a good night/day, what ever time you're reading this on.