Floaroma's Champion

by LowePlays

While out on a walk a boy from Floaroma finds a menacing beast. Using modern technology, he captures the monster. After it comes to accept the boy, both travel to become the best. For fame and fortune! Both strive to become the best, the Champion. But the path is not as easy as they might think... This story was inspired after MetalDargon's work in Sacrifice and Subjugation.

6. Test of the Gate

For this chapter, I did a bit of research for this. Lots of reading and planning. Of course, that's not saying I actually wrote down the stuff on the site. Which is why I was a bit late in publishing it. Again. But I've tried to make a schedule for myself. I kinda wish this was my job, to be honest.

Thanks, everyone, for writing a review and following the story. It really means a lot to me.

Leave a review and tell me how the chapter was! Thanks!

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A ringing phone woke me from my sleep, forcing me to get it. Picking it up, I heard a woman's voice say something about Pokemon and coming down stairs when I was ready. I agreed anyways, even if I didn't understand it. Until I heard an annoying beeping noise, then I put the phone back.

Yawning, I checked the clock on the nightstand. It was almost nine, but I felt like it was earlier. Looking around the room, I noted it wasn't my own. It was clean and tidy, with a small table and chair. A TV was hung on the wall and a remote below it. With a mini fridge under the table, it looked like an apartment. Really small apartment.

Where was I?

Stretching, I got off the comfy bed. I went to the bathroom by the front door and got myself a cup of water. Looking in the mirror, I noticed my clothes were branded with embroidered Pokeballs. Similar to the Poke Center back in Jubilife. However, a bold number 9 on it. Unlike my own pair, which had a 6.

Was I in the Pokemon Center? I don't really remember changing into their clothes, but I also didn't remember emptying my bag either. half of my bag's contents sat at the foot of the bed, none of it clothes. The bag itself was below the table, apparently thrown across the room. I must have been really tired.

Picking it all up, I couldn't find any of my clothes. The blue blanket Sarah lent to me was also no where to be found, and it wasn't that hard to spot! Just what had I done with all my clothes?

Opening my PokeDex, which I found on the floor beside the bed, I sent Sarah a message.

Do you know where I put all my clothes?

What are you talking about?

I can't find any of my clothes. I can't remember what I did with them, either.

We had them washed. Didn't they call you, too? They told us our Pokemon and clothes were ready to be picked up, and we could come down to get them when we were ready.

Oh... I wasn't really listening when they called.

Obviously.

Well. That explains where my clothes were. But, that didn't quite explain what happened. It was like getting drunk, to be honest, without the hangover. Not that... I knew what getting drunk was like. I couldn't drink for three more years, anyways.

With my bag packed with what I had, it was quite light. And with light grey sweatshirt and sweats, it was like I was an advertisement to become a trainer. It's easy! Just join the League today! We'll take all your freedoms and force you to sign a letter of consent! Yeah...

I yawned again as I opened the door. Sarah's room was down the hall from me, as more trainers were here than Jubilife these days. It was cold, yes, but trainers were still returning from Oreburgh with shiny new badges. Some went straight to Eterna, but the best and quickest route required a bike. Going around Mt. Coronet was the simplest choice.

It reminded me of that one kid that poked fun of me, back in Floaroma. It was that kid with the Luxio. He was one of the trainers who would trek through the Eterna Forest and challenge the Eterna Gym. What was his name?

I walked down the stairs to the main floor of the Poke Center, looking very similar to the one in Jubilfe, but I saw a small set of shrines. I saw the symbols of Arceus, Dialga, Palkia, and Xatu. I noticed a shrine for Giratina was missing.

"Hello, uh, Nurse Joy. Are my Pokemon ready?" I was a little nervous in asking, but I did have a call that said they were ready.

"Yes, may I see your Trainer ID for confirmation?" Pulling out my PokeDex, I opened the ID screen. I handed it to the Nurse and she checked it's validity.

"I see. Yes, your Pokemon are ready. I'll go get them for you." Going into the back, she returned with two Pokeballs. I pocketed both Akuma and Thorn and thanked the Nurse. She bowed to me, but I was interrupted by a man with a box made of fabric. Strange.

"I believe these are yours?" I took the box and opened it. Looking inside, I saw my clothes. So, this is where they were!

"Thanks, sir."

"We'll need you to return the Pokemon Center's clothes, or you could buy them from us." I saw the grey sweats in my box of stuff.

"No, I'm good. I'll go change and return the clothes." Nodding, the man allowed me to go to a separate room, guiding me to it. It was past a lineup of a dozen washers and driers, to two doors. I guessed one was for males, the other for females.

Taking out my own sweatshirt, along with the grey sweats from Jubilife and a black T-shirt, I changed as quickly as I could. Though the clothes were similar to workout clothes, they weren't meant to be high-quality. It was quite obvious, too. Once I was dressed, I exited and handed the clothes, along with the box, to the attendant waiting for me.

"I'll lead you back to the main lobby. Follow me, please?" Being respectful, even if I knew the way back, I followed him back to the entrance. Looking to the front counter, I saw Sarah there picking up her Pokemon. The young man nodded to me and went back into the laundry room.

"Hey, Sarah. Morning." I walked over to her, though she was still in the Pokemon Center's clothes. She took back her Dusk ball and Great Ball from the nurse.

"Good morning." She picked up her large blue backpack from the ground. I wondered how she had fit her clothes in it, along side her tent and the blanket I laid over my own bag. She had went on a bit of a shopping spree back in Jubilife, so it was amazing nothing was broken yet.

I noticed the man who'd given me my clothes walked up to us with two white boxes. He handed them over to Sarah and thanked her, even though I couldn't imagine any circumstances where he'd actually be happy about doing two boxes worth of laundry for free. Sarah accepted them and looked inside.

"Would you like me to show you to out private changing rooms?" The man was nice enough, and I didn't notice any real emotions. A perfect servant.

"Um... One sec." Sarah turned to me. "You should call your parents. I've noticed you haven't talked to them much, so it'd be nice to know you do keep them updated."

"What about you?" I never heard her call her parents. Why should she be exempt from it?

"I PM my parents every night. Now, Mr. Guide. Where were these dressing rooms?" The man nodded and lead her into the back room for her to change. Pulling out my PokeDex, I opened the phone app and looked in my contacts.

It wasn't like I didn't know my home's number by heart. I could probably call my parents in my sleep. But I was nervous to touch the phone icon. If I did, what would they say? Who would pick up? What would I say? Still, what would they say if I didn't call them? Picking up my courage, I called them.

"Hello?" It was my father who answered. What do I say?"

"H-hey Dad. It's me." I backed away from the front desk and moved to the couches.

"Oh. Hey, son. How's it going?" How's.. it going? That didn't sound like him. "Do you need to talk to your Mother? She's been worried for you."

"I-it's fine. I just called to... I called to let you know I'm fine. I'm outside the Oreburgh Gate, so no signal for a few days." I knew caves and electricity didn't really get along very well. It would probably be a week a most, but it's already been half a week since they heard from me.

"That's some good progress. Your Mom took two weeks to get there. Just remember... Take it slow, okay? I'd rather you stayed safe out there. For our sake."

"Thanks. I'll remember that." Slow? If I took it slow, it'd be years before I reached the point even close to a Champion's level. Still, reassuring him would be good in the long run.

"And your Mother and I will be looking on the League's website and channel, so give us a call when your gym match comes up. Okay?"

"Alright. I will. Thanks Dad."

"How about I go get your Mom? Then you can talk to her, okay? I'll go get her."

"No, Dad! It's fine-" But he'd already left. Clicking the button, I hung up and laid back in the sofa. His entire attitude towards me was surprising because he was so against the idea of me leaving. Having Pokemon is his greatest fear, considering his past with Pokemon.

Suddenly, a hand grabbed my shoulder. I jumped and yelped in surprise. Then laughing. I looked behind me to see Sarah in her own clothes, laughing. I grumbled a bit, but I knew it was just a joke. I stood up and grabbed my bag.

"Uh, are you ready to get to the Oreburgh Gate?" I was a bit nervous about going into the cave. Some people said it took three days to cross without a guide, but I didn't think it was quite that long. Not like I could speak from experience...

My bag wasn't that heavy, but I still felt a bit weighed down. I put my PokeDex in my pocket and nodded. Though it was weird and confusing, I did call my parents. Sarah gave me a strange look, but I didn't pay it much attention.

"Well, I don't think Zubats or Geodude are good for dinner. We should buy some food before we go in." Food? I hadn't thought of that! With my call to my Dad, no wonder I forgot.

"Well... Maybe Zubats don't taste that bad?" We didn't exactly have the funds to be tossing around. Still, the thought of having to eat Geodude is gross.

"Right, I'll let you eat Zubat while I'm eating some Miltank Steak or Topo Salad. Then you'll know. Why do you think you never see it in almost any recipe?"

"Because it's bad," I admitted. We walked out of the sliding glass doors of the Pokemon Center, and I immediately regretted getting out of bed this morning. It was cold. Really cold. A layer of frost covered everything, and the people walking around were wearing coats and scarves.

True, I had my own, and I put it on as soon as we exited, but a hoodie is hardly enough to stop the cold. Being inside the cave must be like a freezer in there.

Shivering, we both walked to the local grocery mart. I kind of doubted there to be one in the outpost, but the place was more like a town that a simple resting area. Houses, businesses, and market alike set up shop here. All in the hopes of squeezing a little extra out of Trainers before they entered the Gate. I guess it worked, too.

Inside the grocery mart, it was like any other. Berries, meats, and whatever else they had on sale. Like an electric stove. I would've bought one if I lived here.

"So... What should we get?" I turned to Sarah, expecting an answer. When she just shrugged, I nearly facepalmed. It was her idea! "Fine. We need meat. A lot of meat. And a few berries, like Topo, Cheri, Tamato, and Nanab should be good. Maybe an Oran or Sitrus, too."

Grabbing a small basket, Sarah and I walked down the aisle. I grabbed a few Topo and Cheri berries and put them in the plastic sacks provided. Sarah managed the Tamato and Nanab.

I was thankful for the heating inside, but it also meant I had to carry my scarf and hat with the food. Down the line of fridges, I saw several packages of meat. However, if we took them, they'd rot before we spent a day inside the Gate. But I did find a good deal on a pot. Small, but it was useful. And beside it, there was a stack of water bottles. Sarah had one, but it was nice to have one of my own.

"Hey, look at this! There's a sale on Miltank and Spoink jerky! There's also Bouffalant and Tauros Jerky, but it's a bit more..." I looked at the packages Sarah was looking at. Among the meat jerky, there was also dried berries and mushrooms. I grabbed a dozen or so of them and threw them in the basket. Hopefully it was good, because this would spend, not only the prize money we won yesterday, but also most of my wallet's contents.

Both of us approached the checkout and placed the basket on the conveyor belt. The clerk looked bored as he scanned the items one after another. I nodded to Sarah and she handed me her money. I could tell she was reluctant, but she took off her bag anyways.

I would carry some of the food with me, along with the pot, but since she had a larger pack, Sarah would be carrying most of it.

"Alright, sir. Total is 1176 Poke Dollars." Counting out the money Sarah gave me, I was a little nervous when I reached the end of the stack. The money we both held equaled to approximately 1.3k. And I was about to spend it all. "C'mon, kid. I don't have all day." I handed over the money, regretfully.

Helping to pack up the food, I put half a dozen packs of jerky and dried berries in my bag. Taking out my belt, I lead one end trough the metal handle and sinched it to my bag. I guessed it worked well, but it was heavy being on the outside of the bag.

Sarah was sad when I handed her the hundred bill I'd gotten as change. Still, she didn't complain.

With the food in our bags, I had one stop I wanted to make. Just one, before we entered the cave. Opening my PokeDex, I also pulled on my hat and scarf. My map wasn't the highest detail, but it did have names above the shops. And the Pokemon Guild was quite obvious with the red and white roof.

Similar to the Pokemon Center.

"What're you doing?" Sarah looked over my shoulder. The sign of the Pokemon Guild was clearly visible, but she didn't say anything.

"I had a question about Akuma. They'll probably know the answer. And I would look it up, but no one will explain it." I began walking towards the Guild, with Sarah following.

Across two blocks and around a corner, we reached the other side of the town. I didn't know exactly what to call it now. With the Pokemon Guild in front of us, I lead the way and pushed open the door. I stepped inside and found it was different than the one in Floaroma. At least, it wasn't what I expected.

Instead of it being some happy place for kids to buy Pokemon, it was more of a Hunter's selling point. Skins and heads were hung on the walls and ceiling. Sarah took one look and shook her head.

"I don't really like it in here." The decoration creeped me out as well, but I couldn't bring myself to admit it. I stood straight and calm as I approached the front counter. A fairly well built man was there cleaning his boot with his knife. It was a bit intimidating, but I assumed that was the point.

"Excuse me, sir, but could I ask a question on dragons? I do have something to sell, as well." He glanced up at me, slightly annoyed. But then he put his knife in the holster on his belt.

"Dragons, huh? You planning on catching one? Kinda dangerous for a kid like you." The man's voice was deep and grating. It was like he inhaled something he shouldn't have, for too long.

"No, no. I've already caught one. She's my starter Pokemon. I just had a question about one of her moves." In response, the man raised his head to reveal a set of scars across his face.

"You see these, kid? This is what happens when you underestimate what a Dragon can do. But even if my words and face don't convince you, you can ask away." I noticed he had scars on his arms and hands as well, meaning his run-in with dragons hadn't been good.

"Well... I don't really know much about the move Dragon's Rage. I think that's what that kid called it..."

"You're right, kid. Not many do. Luckily, I might be one of those that can tell you. But you said you had something to sell? I don't give away information for free, you know?" Right. The price of information. Nothing is free in life, was it?

Pulling out the Sentret skin, I had made sure to keep it clean. Some of the fur was a bit bent out of shape, but the majority was good. I handed it over to the man, but I wasn't quite sure how much my question was worth. Nor was I sure how much the skin was worth either.

"This'll cover it. So, you want to know about Dragon's Rage? First, I need you to tell me how far your Dragon has progressed in using the move."

"Well... Her accuracy has improved, but I don't think it's actually gotten any stronger. And that's why I came here to ask you."

"That's exactly what Dragon's Rage is. In order to gain power, a Dragon, or any similar Pokemon, can learn Dragon's Rage. It can use everything it has to use that attack in the beginning. But, as it's been said. Nothing it for free. The cost of this strength is the penalty to never strengthen the move once learned. It's best learned at later stages of the Pokemon, but some can't control what they know."

Akuma... could never improve Dragon's Rage? That meant she'd have a move doing a set amount of damage forever! Would she learn a move that was more powerful? What did she learn in the future?

"Well, if that answers your question, I think you'd better leave. Your girlfriend over there looks like she's going to be sick." I looked behind me and saw Sarah with a sick look. I nodded in thanks to the man before going through the door behind Sarah.

"Let's never go back in there. I don't think I like it in Pokemon Guilds."

"Most aren't like that. Most deal with buying and selling Pokemon. Without many kids around here, it's better to promote hunting or trapping for money." I adjusted my bag's strap as we began to make our way to the mountain.

"I'll never give up Pokemon to one of them. They'll probably just skin it alive and toss it back into the woods." I looked over to her, surprised at how far she just went.

"Just because they deal with skins, that doesn't mean they're only after furs. They're business doesn't involve them doing anything other than ripping people off. That's what earns them money."

"I think the term is 'Haggling', but that doesn't matter. It's still sick." I glanced at the houses around us, and saw a few people looking at us weird. They probably didn't know what we were talking about, but it didn't really matter to me. "I don't think we're going to have enough to hire a guide, though,"

"I never planned to," I replied. "They're just a service, meaning it's not necessary. We'll be fine going through alone." Sarah opened her mouth to respond, but I cut her off. "We also don't have enough money to pay for one."

The mention of low funds was enough to stop her talking. Between us, we might have had 200 Poke Dollars. A guide might have cost anywhere from 1000 to anywhere to 3000. We had nowhere near the cash to pay for one. That was that. Besides, who really needed one? A champion didn't need someone's help.

We were easily on the other side of... whatever this place was, in under fifteen minutes. It wasn't exactly at the base of the mountain, nor the opening of the Gate, but it was visible from here. It took almost half an hour to get up there, but that was only because it was slower to climb.

I looked behind me, seeing just how small the place was. There wasn't much I really remembered of it, but it's not like it really mattered. What did is that I didn't remember. Some memories were faded, but parts were simply gone.

"Hey, Sarah. Why don't I remember anything from last night? I don't get it." Sarah was in front of me, on all fours like me as we crawled up the side of the mountain. It wasn't that steep, but I wanted to be safe. Yeah.

"Well, you did talk to a Psychic last night. I'm not sure what you guys talked about, but it's the closest thing I can think of. You did bump your head, too, but I doubt that was enough to give you amnesia. Besides, you'll probably remember after a while. I think." So, nothing happened. But there was something that disturbed me. If I talked to a Psychic, was it a person or a Pokemon. Well, more important, the removal of memories was illegal in... Everywhere.

"So a Psychic Pokemon stole my memories. Did you noticed anything strange after that?" I'd heard that Memory Extraction was painful. Did I act like a tough guy or something?

"No, right after that, you went up to your room and went to sleep. You'd eaten and stuff already, so it's not really weird. What do you mean?" Then what happened? "Oh, we're here." I glanced up from my thoughts and pulled myself onto the plateau behind Sarah. My previous thoughts vanished at the sight of the cave.

The entrance was huge, shaped like a triangle. It was like two hands were holding open two curtains. In fact, two hands were carved into the mountain, reinforcing the idea. All I could do was look at it with an open mouth, even if the gate was still fifty meters ahead.

"C'mon, Dragon Boy. Better hurry, or it'll be a month before we get to Oreburgh. A whole month before you can eat a Miltank burger." A month? Kinda hard to believe. But for a burger, I'd make sure we got there quickly. I took the first step forward and adjusted my bag. Now or never.

The cave loomed ahead, giving an intimidating feeling to those who approached. I had expected it to be busier than it was, as only two small buildings were near the Gate; a Ranger's Outpost and a small Bathroom.

As we walked towards the cave, the door to the Ranger's Outpost opened and a man dressed in the standard Ranger's uniform stepped out.

"Hello, trainers! Planning to go through the Gate on your own? You are kinda late. Still, you aren't the first one to come around today, so I guess it isn't too weird..." We stepped closer as he talked to us. Someone else already passed today? I guess that wasn't too weird, but who was in front of us?

"Any guide, any maps, anything? I don't want you kids to get hurt or lost by yourselves. That's why I've kept the girl from earlier here." Taking off a radio on his belt, the Ranger spoke into it, telling whoever Jake was to bring out the girl.

When the door opened again, a familiar girl stepped out, along side another Ranger. What was her name again? Her black hair and clothing made her easy to forget, I guessed.

"Here, Winston. Brought the girl. Now I'm going back inside. It's freezing out here." Slamming the door shut, the second Ranger went back into the Outpost.

"Ah, don't mind him. He's kinda moody, but he's a good guy. I think... Anyways, this is July Caspin. I want you two to take her with you. Just in case, you know?" The memory of the girl returned, but it was back in Jubilife, during the test.

"Hey, I know you! You were there when we were taking our tests!" The Ranger Winston looked between us and smirked.

"Looks like you guys know each other. I'll just leave you guys to... Yeah. Have a safe journey!" With a slamming of the door, Winston went back inside and the three of us were left alone.

"So, what happened to you after the first part of the test," Sarah ask, mimicking my own questions.

"Different schedules," July said, short and simple. I could tell she only said what needed to be said.

"I get it. You showed your Pokemon first and then took the written exam. Makes sense. Which Pokemon do you have? Because they've got to be cool." I felt like her own appearance would be a clear sign of which Pokemon she had. It had to be.

"Of course, moron. And I don't feel like showing you my Pokemon. Maybe when we battle, we'll find out what each other has." Uh... I guess she says what she feels like. Wait, when was I a moron!? Cutting me off, Sarah spoke up.

"How old are you? You look a little young to me." I saw a twitch in July's face. I don't think that was the right question to ask.

"I'm almost sixteen! And I'm just a little short, alright!?" She yelled at Sarah, obviously hating her more than me. At least I wasn't being yelled at... Lucky me, huh?

"Now, now. Why don't we just go into the Gate? It'll be better once we're all moving forward, right?" Both glared at me, and I thought they were going to yell at me, but July was the first to speak up.

"Fine. I guess the moron is right. We should get moving so we can get this over as soon as possible."

"Hey! Why am I the moron!?" July simply glared at me, not giving a response, as she shouldered her backpack. I didn't really understand her, but I knew we weren't going to get along well. Still, I didn't really want to be mean. Insulting her because she insulted me didn't seem fair. If there was a reason, I'd gladly do it.

Passing the two hands that held open the entrance for us, I quickly noticed even the curtain effect was carved. The cave quickly narrowed to be less than five meters. Ceiling and walls. It was a bit smaller, but the space was still quite roomy. I pulled out my flashlight and clicked it on. Taking a quick look behind me, I knew it would be a while before I saw the sun again, even if it was cold sunlight.

.

We walked along the path for an hour, the light from the entrance no where to be seen. I'd dropped my flashlight once, and we were bathed in darkness. Sarah squeaked in surprise, but July didn't say anything. She seemed to be fine with the dark, so long as she could see.

Retrieving the light, I received a generous slap to the back of my head. I looked up and saw July walking past me. I grumbled about it, but decided against doing anything. I shined my flashlight down the tunnel and made sure July was still there. Which she was.

The cave was rock, rock, and more rock. Not much else. Our footsteps echoed down the tunnel and made any words said sound like we were shouting. And as we went deeper, the echoing got louder. Being said, we didn't talk much.

I was a bid nervous about letting Akuma out to walk with us, with the echos and July being near us. Yes, she was learning not to attack humans, along with actually recognizing Humans. She still had a bit of trouble recognizing one from a Pokemon. Thorn, she couldn't walk very fast, her small legs only able to waddle.

Sarah was fine with letting Perry out, as he was her light. His orange fur glowed brightly as he scampered along side us or laid on Sarah's head. My flashlight was strong enough to light the way, but it was best to have a redundant light. July didn't have one, mainly because she didn't care. I don't think she cared much about anything.

"What's that noise," I whispered, even if it sounded louder. A sound of shuffling and squeaks could be heard coming down the tunnel. As I listened, it began to grow louder, getting closer to us.

"I think it might be Zubat," July said, looking back towards us. I reached into my pocket and withdrew my two Pokeballs. I looked to Sarah and saw her reach up to Perry. July just pulled out a knife.

"Wait, what? Are you seriously just going to use a cheap knife? It'll be easier to just use your Pokemon!" I tried to be quiet, but it was quite difficult. With the Zubats getting closer, it was harder to hear whispers.

"I'm not going to be showing of my Pokemon, Stupid." That was that. The way she said it, the conversation was over. And why was I stupid again? I was just trying to help...

Shrugging, I had no problem having Thorn and Akuma out. Better these two than my knife. At least they could actually fight. It's been over a year since I did Judo. I was rusty, and using it on Zubats probably didn't work that well. As such, I would resort to my Pokemon. With an audible click, along with two bright flashes, Thorn and Akuma materialized.

"Alright, you two. Hear that? We've got a battle coming up." I patted Akuma on her head and smoothed out her horn. It was a bit more dangerous, but I also made sure to show Thorn I still showed friendship towards her. Until she obeyed me more, I had to make sure not to make her unhappy.

Continuing on, we were cautious of the Zubat jumping us. I shined my light down the tunnel until the light faded out. The sounds were getting louder, so I suspected they were right around the bend I could see. Dark, but there for sure.

"Look! There they are." Sarah said, almost shouting. Akuma spun around and growled at her. I guessed a Deino's ears are meant to be sensitive, so it must have been super loud for her. I laid a hand on her head as I shined my light towards the approaching swarm. And my gut dropped.

There were at least a hundred.

They were all flying straight towards us. I looked towards July and Sarah, making sure they were prepared. Even though we were underground, making electric attacks weaker, Perry had electricity leaking from his cheeks. It flashed as it jumped to the ceiling and walls.

"Ready?"

"'Course, Stupid. Why do you think I have my knife out?" With my hand on Akuma, I stopped her from jumping into action. I'd forgotten to introduce July, making it strange to find out another person was with us. With echoes, it was difficult to differentiate the three of us.

"Calm down, Akuma. She's... I don't really know, but she's with us." Leading Thorn was difficult since she was slow, but she followed me, even if she didn't understand me. I don't know her story before I caught her, but she seemed to trust me.

When the Zubats were closer, I sprung into action with my commands.

"Akuma, Dragon's Rage. But tell Thorn to use Razor Leaf." I noticed Sarah giving an order to Perry, before he ran quickly across the wall towards the Zubat swarm. July... She held her ground with her knife.

As a blue ball was released, it passed Perry and July and exploded against a dozen Zubats. I saw them fall out of the air from the force, but the rest of them resisted since there were so many of them. Two leaves were thrown on Akuma's orders and the sharp blades stuck into the wings of one of the Zubats and it fell too.

Perry brought more damage to the table. By jumping into the center of the mass, he hitched a ride before releasing an arcing burst of electricity. It jumped from Zubat to Zubat, downing them quickly. Some of the power jumped to the ground, rendering it useless. Still, several dropped.

July was fast in action with her knife. It was quite amazing, the way she was able to hit a few of them. But there were still more. Covering my head, I pulled out my own knife in time to receive a set of fangs into my arm. It gave me an easy target at a cost. I swung my knife and cut into the Zubat's wing, releasing my arm.

Sarah screamed as Zubats swarmed us. I was scared of them, but I knew Zubats didn't have any prominent poisons yet. If it was a Golbat, I'd be really scared. Still, poison was poison.

"Don't let them bite you!" It was the only thing I could think of before I bit into a wing. Not on purpose, but a Zubat flew into my face. With a crackling noise, I felt electricity course through my body. Perry was close. I couldn't see very well past the sea of wings, but me swinging my light around didn't help either.

I heard Akuma and Thorn somewhere around me, attacking the Zubat that got too close. I guessed Akuma was biting anything around her, and Thorn was most likely using Stun Spore and Absorb, but it was just a guess.

I felt my hair standing up, after the shock I'd gotten, before I noticed the Zubats continuing past us. We just happened to be in their way. Not their targets. But only a few Zubats still pestered us. I swiped my knife at one and caught it in the tail. It dropped, unable to control itself.

Looking around, Perry dealt with the last Zubat around Sarah, who was crouched on to ground covering her head. And July stabbed her knife into a Zubat, before punching another out of the air. And she had blood on her jacket.

Looking at my own clothes, I saw my grey sweats were dyed with dark red blood in blots. My shirt was luckier than my sweats, but a few drops were there.

Akuma was tearing into one of the downed Zubats and Thorn was sitting on one of the downed as it struggled. I guessed she had poisoned it.

I was breathing heavily. It was one of my most intense battles ever, and the Zubat weren't even trying to attack us. Where ever they were going, they just happened to pass us. And we killed several of them. The thought that we'd just murdered them brought a feeling a hadn't felt in a while.

Nausea and disgust.

My gut twisted and made me feel sick. I laid my hand on Akuma and pulled her away from the Zubat. Thorn's Pokeball was used to return her and I sat against the wall of the cave.

Sarah was doing the same. Most likely because of fear than what I felt. July, she just cleaned her knife against the body of the Zubat and sheathed it.

"C'mon, you babies. We don't have all day. I'm either leaving without you, or you're both coming with me." Sarah looked towards July, before standing up. Myself, I just stood, even though I didn't enjoy the sight of dozens of dead Zubat and blood.

I held my arm and shone my flashlight ahead, following July as she walked down the corridor. I heard Akuma making small noises in the cave, in the strange environment. It'd been months since she was in a cave, so it was no wonder she was curious.

"You're bleeding," I heard Sarah say behind me. I looked down at my arm, while it hurt, I'd assumed it was a small bite. The two fangs of the Zubat had punctured my arm and left two trails dripping off my finger tips. On top of that, I noticed my hand and forearm was numb.

"Here, let me bandage it." Sarah took out some gauze and some spray. It wasn't Blissey or Chancey Egg Extract, but it did help. I tried to help, but my fingertips weren't as responsive as I expected. It was a strange sensation, but at least it was only in my right hand.

July's exasperated breath was audible, even if she was fifteen or so meters ahead. Akuma was nudging me, trying to get me moving again. I guessed she was confused about my injury. I'd never really shown and injuries to her, ask I'd return her if I was. And she'd never been too badly hurt.

Wincing, Sarah tied off the bandage of gauze. Akuma was instantly there, growling at Sarah. I used my functional left hand to catch her black fur and calm her. She looked back at me and sniffed my other arm. Then she sneezed on me.

I wiped my arm off and got up. I thanked Sarah for the bandage and continued down the dark path, following July. She was making leaving motions as I walked up to her. One look at Sarah told me she wasn't on best terms either, rolling her eyes. Steeling myself, I walked behind her, through the Gate.

.

The cave was straight for several hours. Relatively straight. There was only one path, though it curved, bent, rose and fell. The usual. But then I noticed it was getting colder. Much colder. I pulled my hat on tighter and made sure my scarf didn't have anything disturbing it.

Then, I saw the exit. Rushing forward, I signaled for the two girls to hurry. Akuma was happy to keep pace, as she didn't like being around July. She'd kept her distance the whole time, preferring to be ahead. I'd regained enough sensation in my right hand to keep Akuma from racing to the end.

"Doesn't it seem to easy to be the exit," July called. It bothered me too. Was that really the exit? I'd heard the Gate was a labyrinth, not some straight forward path. Was this connected to religion or something, something I wasn't seeing?

We made our ways closer to the bright exterior. It was outside, that much was for sure. That's the only thing that really matters. Closer and closer we got, the more Akuma tried to go faster. It was a bit difficult to keep her back from simply sprinting.

Then we exited the Gate.

It obviously wasn't the exit to the Gate, but it was an exit. Once free from the cave air, I breathed in heavy lungfuls of mountain air. Sweet, yet biting cold mountain air. The sun shone down and showed a grey and brown assortment of... rocks. Akuma was excited about it, but it was pretty boring. Just rocks, maybe some bits of grass coming from the cracks.

"Told you it wasn't the end of the Gate, Stupid." July came up behind me and flicked me in the head. "I'm guessing we're camping here for tonight?" I looked around for anything the resembled a cave entrance, other than the one behind us. With the ridges and rocks around us, it was impossible to find one.

"What are you talking about, camping? We can still go further." Sarah was covering her eyes with her hand, as the sun was still in the sky. After being in a cave, it was difficult to adjust so quickly to the sun again. I myself was squinting in the bright light.

"Well, I don't know about you two, but I'm tired. After fighting a swarm of Zubats, I want to sleep." As she was speaking, she pulled out of her bag a blanket and pillow. She was serious.

"What time... When did you get to the Rangers' Outpost today?" We got up to the cave around ten, so her being there must have meant she was there earlier than us. Just when did she get there and how early did she wake up? She must have been tired, if she woke up that early.

"I usually travel in the afternoon and into the night. I wake up late, but I stayed up long enough to reach the Cave. I thought if I got here, I'd sleep. So, I'm tired, I've been up all night, and I want some sleep." Her eyes were a bit shadowed, but I just assumed it was makeup or style. Now that she was closer, I could tell it was the long night that was showing.

"We can't travel if our party is tired," I decided. I wasn't exactly the leader, but I was making an executive decision. We would be camping near here, considering we had to stick together. It wasn't exactly like we were required to stay with July. I just knew it was what we were supposed to do.

"We can't just camp in the rocks," Sarah said. She sounded a bit grumpy, having her plan refused.

"I'll be able to sleep fine. Don't know about you, Pretty Girl. But I can sleep anywhere." July slung her bag, blanket, and pillow over her shoulder and followed as I began looking for a place to set up camp. What exactly I was looking for, that was a more difficult question.

I shivered as we climbed over rocks and gravel. The ascent wasn't steep, but it wasn't to be taken lightly. You wouldn't fall to your death, like in a movie. It wasn't that much incline, but it would sure scare you if you slipped. Akuma seemed excited, having no troubled with the climb.

"Why should we have to even stay with her? She'll just slow us down." Sarah caught up with me, leaving July to fall behind. I looked at her, before continuing to look around.

"You said it yourself. We have to follow every order given to us. Those Rangers commanded us to stick with her until the end. So, we're going to reach the other side together." Sarah looked insulted that I'd actually used her words against her, choosing to fall behind to pout. It wasn't something I really wanted to do, make her upset with me. But I really didn't want a fine. We didn't have the money to cover those kinds of things.

I was a bit anxious about what we were doing, as we climbed the mountain higher and higher. It looked like a path, but if a Pokemon used this to reach it's den, we might encounter danger. To sate it, I opened a bag of Spoink Jerky. Chewing on it, though it was tough stuff, it helped as I looked around for an entrance to the next cave or campsite.

After hiking for almost an hour, July spotted a tree to camp by. We'd just come around a ridge when she spotted it. Following her finger, I saw it was a bit down hill from the trail and hidden inside some sort of alcove. She climbed over the wall, the one hiding the lower half of the tree, before jumping down. I recalled Akuma, as she wanted to keep going.

My guess was that it wasn't too far of a drop, for July to just take it. Leaning over the edge, I saw the drop was almost 3 meters. It might have even been 4 meters, but I couldn't tell for sure. And July was there, just standing there. She was looking up at us, almost expecting us to follow. How'd she just jump down something like this?

"What're you waiting for," She called up to us. I looked to Sarah, but she was already doing something. Pulling out a length of thin rope, she tied an end to a root extending from the tree we saw in front of us.

"Do you plan to rappel down the side," I asked. It did seem like a great idea, but it was a thin rope. It looked like it could only hold one person and that person had to have a good grip. Still, taking the rope, Sarah swung over the lip of the alcove and dropped down. Looking over the edge, I saw she safely reached the bottom.

"C'mon, slowpoke," July called up to me. She was busy trying to set up a campsite and Sarah released Yami to help. I did as Sarah did, swinging myself over the lip with the rope in my hands. It was sorta scary, falling with only a rope, but I safely landed on my feet. My breath was heavier than when I started, but at least I was safe.

"'Bout time, you pansy." July flicked me in the head before yawning. I looked over to Yami and Sarah, in time to see the Sneasel hacking into the branches of the tree. The severed limbs fell to the base of the tree and were gathered up by Sarah.

I looked over the edge of the alcove to see the more... steeper drop off the mountain. It was a bit unsettling to see the drop, forcing me to step back. I turned back to the two girls and pulled out another strip of jerky.

The two weren't too interested in talking to each other. Sarah, as she had her plans ruined, as much as my own. It was a bit of a let down we couldn't go further. July was simply not interested in talking to Sarah because she was already in her blanket. She wasn't quite asleep, but she was trying.

"Mind helping, Dragon Boy?" I looked over to Sarah, as she tried to get a fire going. But the branches she was sparking were too large and cold to ignite.

"Sure," I said, as I began to walk over. Setting down my bag, I undid my belt and released the pot. I also took out the berries we'd bought earlier. Add a strip or two of jerky, a Topo berry or two, and water over the fire... Stew. A bit plain, but still good all the same. But first we needed a fire.

I didn't have that much to burn, to be honest. Clothes and bottles could be burned to light the fire, but I'd rather not waste them. Not on something like this. Instead, I took my knife out of the sheath. Using the blade, I began to peel the bark from the branches Sarah was trying to light.

Using the bark as tinder, I took the flint and steel from Sarah and sparked them again. It was quick and and well as I could, but the fire didn't catch. I, defeated, handed the flint and steel back to Sarah. She took them and readjusted the branches and bark. With a smug glance to me, she sparked the flint.

Suddenly, smoke began to rose from the bark. In a few seconds, the wood was burning. Small, but growing quickly. Pushing some stones into the fire with a stick, I made a small stand for my small pot. Then, we would wait for the fire to grow hotter. In the mean time, I looked to July. And she was asleep.

"Is she already out of it? I guess she was serious about being able to sleep anywhere!" Sarah agreed with me, giving her a look that said, "Unbelievable" all over it. I shrugged and looked back to the fire. I poured some of my water into the pot, before taking a sip of it myself. Then, hoisting it with my stick, I put it on the fire.

Taking a few strips of jerky, I dropped them in the water before turning to the Topo berries we'd bought. I wasn't the greatest cook, I know. I could barely peel a berry anyways. Still, better to try then to just toss it in whole. As such, I used my knife to try to peel the Topo berry.

It wasn't the smoothest job. And Sarah noticed it too. Still, the skin was removed without entirely destroying the entire thing. I made sure my knife was set and I was about to slice the berry into pieces before Sarah stopped me.

"Let me take it from here. You obviously don't have much experience in the kitchen." She took the knife from me and set the Topo berry in front of her before cutting it. The knife was sharp enough to easily slice through the flesh of the berry, leaving only small bits of it. Then, she swept the diced Topo berry into the pot.

Sitting back, I waited for the contents to boil. There wasn't much use in watching it like a hawk, but I felt impatient. I wanted to do something. I looked around the alcove we had. It wasn't like it was huge, but it was large enough for us three. Seeing as there wasn't an easy way to get out, I decided to release Akuma again.

It wasn't like there was anything for me to really do, but I didn't want to do nothing. While I was at it, I released Thorn as well. While the stew boiled, I guessed the best thing for me to do was to train a bit.

Akuma looked around, sniffing the air and listening before turning to me. She began doing a running in place thing. She was impatient. And she wanted to keep going. While Thorn... Well, she was the same. She just sat there and looked at me. It was a good thing Akuma had some energy, because I was gonna train them both, hard.

"Alright, you two. Time to train. Gotta keep in shape." Giving commands to Akuma, I told her to use her bite on the few branches Yami and Sarah had collected. After she went off the break the branches, I turned to Thorn.

"Thorn. This time, let's try to work on your speed. Just... Try and run around the clearing. Okay?" Standing up, Thorn looked to be prepared to follow my commands. Until she released a cloud of Stun Spore. I backed away quickly before glaring at Thorn. "You do that again and I'll hurt you."

Calling over Akuma, I told her to translate my commands to Thorn. In turn, she growled at Thorn. She knew the small bud Pokemon was disobeying me. She began to make her Deino noises and spoke to Thorn. I guessed it was something along the lines of, "Follow the commands given to you, or else..."

"Thanks, Akuma. Now, tell Thorn to run around the clearing. All the way around. And then you can go back to biting those branches." The blind Deino turned to Thorn to tell her my orders. Before ending with a long growl. I saw the Budew was slightly scared and began her slow run around the alcove's clearing.

Once she had fulfilled my orders, Akuma began looking around for the branches so she could complete my other, my first orders. However, her inability to see made it hard to find them.

"Here," Sarah said, showing the way to the branches. Following the sound of her voice, Akuma carefully sniffed the ground before running over to her. Sarah turned to me after giving Akuma a large branch. She gave me a quick look before turning back to the fire. She must have been deep in thought, because she wasn't really doing anything other than looking at the flames.

While Thorn and Akuma trained, I guessed I should do something as well. There was only a few exercises I knew how to do without machines, but they still worked. It'd been over a year since I went to the gym anyways. Starting on a few sets of pushups and situps, I tried to complete how many I used to be able to do.

I guessed I could do as many as 100 pushups, but once I started on them, I knew that I was way out of shape. Even on situps, I couldn't do even half as many as I thought. When I dropped on my back, my breath was heavy and fast. And I could feel my heart in my ears and hands.

The sky was cloudy when I looked up. It was still cold, but I couldn't really feel it. My arms felt like lead and I felt sweat dripping down my face and neck. With a hoodie on, it felt like it was burning. I knew it was freezing, but my body temperature was hot.

Once I was able to move again, I walked over to the fire. I sat down next to Sarah and took my water bottle. In one gulp, I downed it before turning to Sarah on the other side of the fire.

"You hungry? The soup's about ready about now." Looking into the small pot, I saw a brown liquid boiling there. It seemed to be ready, so it was best to eat while hot. I nodded to Sarah before making a move to stand up.

"What're you doing," she asked.

"Don't we have another companion? She might be hungry after just walking all day. On top of that, she did fight all those Zubats. She's slept an hour, so she can wake up and eat something, before going back to sleep again. It's fine." At the mention of July, Sarah rolled her eyes. I didn't really care if July wanted some food or not, but it was best to check.

Walking over to the sleeping July, I shook her awake. Groaning, she rolled off her pillow. With cold stone under her cheek, she had no choice but to wake up. She wasn't very thrilled about waking up yet, but without a pillow, she was kinda forced to.

"Wha's your problem?" When she saw me, her tired look shifted to annoyed. Her hair was slightly messed up from her pillow, even though it had only been just over an hour. I stepped back, just in case her hand decided to make contact with my check.

"It's... Time for dinner. In case you wanted something to eat." She nodded, after a bit of a pause. She threw off her blanket and went over to her bag. With her apparently awake, I headed back to the fire. Akuma noticed me and ran over to me, sitting next to me near the fire. I pulled out Thorn's Pokeball and returned her.

Sarah had her two plate, the ones for me and her. They weren't bowls, exactly. As the name suggests. But the lip acted as a replacement for a bowl. She carefully removed some of the now soaked and expanded jerky strips with Topo chunks. It was more of boiled meat and Topo berry on the plate.

"Hey," She said, seeing July out of bed. Sarah held out her hand for the bowl July held. I noticed it was a bit small, but it was a bowl all the same.

Once July reluctantly handed it over, Sarah dumped in some of the stew into the bowl and gave it back. A bit sloppily, but still gave July the stew. She accepted the stew and sat down on the other side of the fire. Away from me and Sarah, and we weren't exactly that close together.

All through dinner, July didn't even look up from her soup. She simply ate it. My own stew, it wasn't too bad. It definitely not classified as tasty. Not like my Mom's. But it wasn't that bad.

Sarah didn't really look like she disliked the Stew. But nothing said she liked it. She occasionally glanced at me, but avoided looking at July. It was kinda uncomfortable, eating dinner together. And it wasn't about to get better either.

Once we were finished with dinner, Akuma was patiently waiting for her portion. I knew Thorn could survive off of the sunlight, so she wouldn't need food. Taking a bit of Jerky out of my bag, I gave it to Akuma. She sniffed it before biting into it, nearly getting my fingers. Good thing my reflexes worked well.

"Here," Sarah said, holding out her hand. "I'll clean your plate." Hesitant, I assumed there to be an ulterior motive, but not having to do dishes was fine with me. July was still eating her soup, but she still glanced up at me and Sarah. Once she realized I'd noticed, she turned back to eating.

Akuma rubbed against my leg as I stood up. With the pot off the fire, it'd cooled down to be just a fairly warm temperature. Taking it with bare hands, I dumped the browned water off the edge of our alcove. Looking up to the Sky, I saw the clouds turning a bright red.

With everyone finishing up their meals, there wasn't much to do. Akuma had trained a bit. Thorn probably wouldn't enjoy being out of sunlight, but I wasn't sure. But she'd already trained, too. I could try to talk to Sarah and July, but I wasn't sure how to anymore. Well, for July, I never really did.

Besides, July returned to her bedding and fell asleep. There wasn't much use in talking to someone who's sleeping. Either, one, July beats me. Or, two, July just stays unconscious. For both outcomes, either wasn't very good.

In the end, I just settled on setting up my bedding. The large blue blanket wasn't very comfortable on the stone beneath it, but it was better than flat out stone. Sitting down on it, I felt the hard ground below me. I opened my PokeDex as Akuma came over and laid down next to me. My hand was forcibly laid on her head.

Greedy Deino...

Though it was still bright in the sky, the area was still getting darker. Looking at my PokeDex, I didn't really know what I was doing. There was no internet up here, no service, so I didn't really know what to do.

I did have a game or two on my Dex, but only a few documents. I could read through them, edit some, or just start writing, but nothing really interested me. As such, I just laid back and rubbed Akuma's fur. I took off my sweatshirt as to not I used some of the blanket as a pillow and tried to warm myself up by wrapping the blanket around me.

Slowly, even though I just scrolling through things on my PokeDex, I felt myself begin to fall asleep. Once I noticed I was falling to sleep, I didn't care. And soon, I was already gone into the depths of slumber...

.

A sharp kick to my side woke me up. I could easily tell it was a kick because it definitely a kick because there was a boot behind the kick. Rolling over, I held my gut as I tried to regain my breath.

"It's about time you got up. I've been waiting for hours." July's voice was impatient and kinda annoyed. Glancing over, I saw her glaring at me. Reaching over to Akuma, I put my hand on her head as I began to breathe again. "C'mon! Get outta bed! Let's get going!"

Just how long had she been up? She said hours, saying she woke up in the darkness. I rubbed my eyes and yawned. Lifting her head, Akuma nudged my arm. Glancing around, I saw the sun barely rising over the ridge. Shivering, I grabbed my sweatshirt and slipped it on.

Seeing that I was getting up, July turned to the tent Sarah had set up after I fell asleep. Akuma was still sleepy, but she was waking up quickly. Looking over, I found a familiar and empty package near her. It was the Spoink Jerky. And she'd eaten it all. With a glare, I looked at Akuma before remembering she couldn't see it.

Crumpling up the package, I tossed the trash into my bag. Yawning again, I stood and shivered. My sweatshirt wasn't too effective with temperatures as cold as these. If it snowed, I wouldn't be surprised. But if it rained, that would suck. With the sky being grey, as I looked up, it might not be too unexpected.

Looking over, I saw July trying to knock on the tent. Nicer than when she tried to wake me up. I rubbed my ribs where she'd kicked me. A bruise would most likely form there.

Poking around in my bag, I found a new package of jerky. I popped it open and took a piece of Miltank jerky out. It was different than Spoink jerky, but was tasty enough. Akuma wandered over to me and sniffed at the new bag of jerky. Holding it away from her, she tried to climb up me to get to it.

"No, Akuma! This isn't for you. You've obviously already had yours. Now, down!" Sulking, Akuma dropped down from me and went back to my blanket. Laying down, she waited there.

Hearing a crash, I looked over to Sarah's tent. I saw it as a collapsed mass of fabric. I guessed Sarah would not be happy. July, on the other hand, smirked. The movement under the tent told me Sarah was waking up. I don't think anyone could sleep through having a tent dropped on you.

"Wha... What's going on?" Sarah spoke out in an obviously tired tone. She would no doubt be angry once she knew it was July behind it. It was best to clean up, rather than being associated with July's prank. Besides, I needed to clean up my bedding, too.

"C'mon. Get up. We need to get going. I've been waiting for you to get up for hours." The shifting in the tent stopped for a moment before Sarah emerged from under it.

"You didn't have to just drop the entire tent on me, you know." She rubbed her eyes as I pushed Akuma off the blanket. She was disappointed that I wasn't paying attention to her. I looked back to July and Sarah again, but they just glared at each other. I folded up the blanket and laid it over my bag.

"Alright! Alright! I'm getting up! Just lay off, okay?" Sarah reached into her tent and pulled out Perry and her bag. He rubbed his ears and whiskers. She patted him on the head and he ran up her arm to her hair. It was quite cute, with Perry sitting on her head. I gave a small smile, but it was minimal.

With everything with me, I had everything I owned in my bag. Or, on my bag. The only thing holding us back was Sarah and July. Looking over to the latter's area, she had yet to clean up her blanket and pillow. Sarah... Her tent was still on the ground. She was hardly ready to go, either.

July backed off once Sarah got up, returning to her own stuff. She began to pack up her belongings. I sat down next to Akuma, who immediately perked up once she noticed me. I ruffled her fur and petted her head, messing up her horn. I yawned and rubbed my eyes.

Judging by how low the sun was, it was still pretty early. And my PokeDex confirmed the time. I never liked waking up early, but after I started on my journey, it seemed I was waking up later and later. Now that July forced us to wake up, it was hard to wake up at 8.

I watched Sarah and July pack up their things as I rubbed Akuma's fur. I yawned again.

"Don't you dare fall asleep! I plan to leave as soon as possible!" July kicked my foot and shook me back awake. I snapped up and looked at her. I didn't realize I was falling asleep. Just how long was I sleeping? Looking to Sarah's site, her tent was mostly packed and she was folding it up.

Standing up, I stretched and Akuma reared up on two legs, before dropping down to run in place. She was awake, it seems. Unlike me. Ugh. It was so early.

"C'mon, Sarah. Hurry it up! And you, Stupid! Don't even think about falling back to sleep. We're leaving in a few minutes, and I'm not waking you up again." Groaning, I opened my eyes wider. Falling asleep again would most likely hurt me again. Say, another bruise?

Sarah mumbled stuff as she put her tent back in her pack. Once she had everything put away, she hoisted the giant bag onto her shoulders. With her ready to go, we were all ready. On July's orders, I called to Akuma and we set off.

With the rope we'd used to get down yesterday, we were able to climb out of the alcove. July went up first, then Sarah, and me last. I had to recall Akuma before going up, seeing as she couldn't climb cliffs of rope. I let her out again once I reached the top of the ridge.

"Looks the same as yesterday. Just how are we going to find the next entrance? It's impossible."

"Well it doesn't help to doubt either, Sarah," I said. I couldn't give up hope yet. As the Champion, I couldn't just give up. I had to keep going! Or else I could never be the next Champion.

July just shrugged and followed as I continues up the path we'd left yesterday. Sarah followed too, but she was a little ticked off. It's not like I didn't like her or care for her opinions. It's just that her opinion happened to suck.

The path curved more as we climbed it, turning us away from the submit. Akuma wanted to keep climbing up, but I forced her to follow us. We continued down the path around the mountain, but not much was really interesting. It was all rocks and more rocks. Not much else.

"Wait, what's that up ahead?" I looked up and saw something up ahead. It looked to be an outcropping of rock, but it looked a bit... out of place, even as rock. That must be it! The next enterence!

"Good eye, July! That must be it!" Beginning to run, I rushed towards the rocks. Akuma followed me, careful to follow in my footsteps. She didn't seem to know the way, but she relied on me to show her. It was a sign she was closely dependent on me. Which, I guess was a good thing. She was still young and looked to me as a parent.

Once we reached the outcropping, I saw it was the entrance. The gaping hole also carried a sign over the opening. It said, "Path 3". I'm not entirely sure what other paths there were, but this was obviously the way. Coming up behind me, the two girls stopped in front of the cave.

"So this was the way," Sarah said.

"Do I get an apology," I asked. She did doubt me. The least she could do was say she was sorry.

"For what? I didn't do anything." What?!

"You- But what about earlier? You said we'd already passed the entrance! And argued with me! So, I deserve an apology!"

"Huh... Did I? Well, I guess I'm sorry. Now let's go." Sarah walked into the cave and I looked to July. But she simply tossed her hair and smirked, going into the cave. Seems like only Akuma was on my side... Looking down, Akuma had already ran into the cave. So, I was the only one on my side.

Pulling out my flashlight, I walked into the Gate again.

.

We walked in the dark for hours. It was just like before, like yesterday. Just a tunnel of stone for kilometers. Not to mention Sarah and July not talking to me. Actually, not at all. Neither of them seemed interested in talking to me or each other. Still, there was an excuse that every whisper sounded like regular speech.

The deeper we went, the warmer it was. Not like it was burning like the depths of Hell, but it was warmer than outside. It was probably from the geothermal heat from the rocks.

With Perry's glow and my flashlight, it was easy enough to see. We traveled for almost three hours in the darkness and we only saw grey and brown. The stone was quite boring. Akuma seemed to like it well enough, but it was pretty boring once you saw it. Just a long straight tunnel.

Of course, as soon as I thought that, the path came to a crossroads. The path splint, making 3 separate tunnels. Was that what the Path 3 name meant? Or was it instructions?

"Which one should we choose," July asked, stepping up. All three of the paths looked exactly the same, so it was hard to see which one was the right one.

"I vote to choose number 3. The sign outside did say Path 3. Maybe we should just go with it?" It was the best idea I could come up with, but at least it was reasonable.

"Uh... Oh, screw it. If it isn't the exit, we could just turn back. Fine, we'll pick tunnel number 3. Just remember that it's your fault if we get lost." July walked towards the third tunnel, the one on the right. I scratched my head and shone my light down the tunnel as I followed. Behind me, Sarah was following as well.

"Wait, what's that noise?" I listened and waited, a sound of something pounding against the ground, coming closer. Hearing it, Akuma moved up to the front of the party. Being the man of the party, I decided to move to the front along side my Pokemon.

The sounds moved closer and closer, growing louder and louder as did. Akuma growled and pawed the ground. It was probably a Pokemon that was coming, so I had to be careful. Whatever was making the noise was still obviously out of range of my flashlight. That must mean it was at least the size of the tunnel!

"What's making that noise?" Sarah crept up behind me and peeked over my shoulder. My flashlight wasn't strong enough to show the Pokemon approaching, but it obviously saw us. The sounds stopped suddenly.

"Where'd it go? What's it doing?" Sarah started looking around.

"How should I know," I responded. I looked around too, only noticing July leaning against cave's wall. She obviously didn't care about the approaching Pokemon. Glancing back to the now missing Pokemon, I was expecting it to jump out of the darkness. "Looks like it got scared, I guess."

It's not like I was sure about it, but maybe the Pokemon wasn't gone? Looking back to July and Sarah, I took a cautious step. When nothing happened, we continued into the tunnel. It was silent as we walked into the tunnel.

Suddenly, the ground underneath Akuma broke open and she fell into a hole. As she fell, she struggled to find ground. Without any sight, feeling the ground was everything to her. Jumping out from the ceiling, a Geodude landed just outside the hole. So, this small thing was the source of the noises?

"That little thing was getting us so worried? What's so tough about it?" July tossed a pebble at the small Geodude as she scoffed at it. Which wasn't the right move. Geodude were way denser than normal stone, as well as stronger than a muscle man. Getting hit by one would not feel nice. But that didn't mean it wouldn't be a bad thing. After all, I did have a few Pokeballs with me.

Reaching into the hole, I grabbed Akuma's forelegs and quickly pulled her out. She was slightly spooked by the sudden fall, but she allowed me to hoist her up. I turned to the Geodude with Akuma, just in time for it to start moving toward us with loud thumps. It;s spherical body left cracks in the stone below it as it made it's way around the hole it'd made.

"Alright, Akuma. This time we're gonna give it payback. Attack it!" The slow rock was hardly fast enough to keep up with Akuma as she ran over to Geodude. As it tried to spin around to face my Dragon, Akuma smashed her head into the rock. It's hard surface repelled her, but Geodude was also forced back. Not far, but some. Shaking her head, she recovered and faced the Geodude.

"Use Dragon's Rage on it!" Obeying, she began gathering energy and aimed it carefully at the stomping Geodude. With how loud it was, it was hard to miss. Of course, the rock also had a strategy of it's own. Using it's hardened fists, it punched her in the chest. That sent the ball of energy into the wall, cratering it, but nothing else.

I sighed in relief, because the dangers of cave-ins was something else to be afraid of. I turned back to Akuma as she bared her fangs against Geodude. She tried to bite into the living stone, but it's hard body nearly broke her teeth. It forced her to back off and charge at it.

Using her body, she slammed into the rock and rolled it into the rock wall. It seemed to have some effect, but the Geodude was tougher than I anticipated. This would take longer than I thought it would...

"Get some distance from it, then use your Dragon's Rage on it," I said, loud, but trying to keep it quiet. The echoing was annoying, and even deafening if I shouted, as I was previously. I took a deep breathe and focused my flashlight on the fighting Pokemon.

Backing up towards me, Akuma began gathering the draconic energy in her maw. It glowed bright blue as the grey rock Pokemon got closer. When it was a meter from Akuma, hurrying to reach her in time, she released the energy she held. The ball of Rage smashed into the boulder and I reached into my bag for one of my pokeballs.

To keep it in place, probably unintentionally, Akuma tried to bite it again. As she picked it up, I clicked the button on the ball and enlarged it. The feeling of the smooth apricorn shell running against my skin was still exhilarating. Gripping it tightly, I pulled my arm back and threw the Pokeball.

The smooth and shiny Pokeball smacked into the solid rock Pokemon. In a bright flash of light, the Geodude disappeared. Going around the hole, I quickly looked at the red and green circle there. It was about half way between the two, but green was still overtaking the red.

Then it was gone. The Geodude was caught.

Picking up the Pokeball, I shrunk it down and stored it in my bag. Akuma walked over to me and laid down at my feet, breathing heavily. That fight had hurt her more than usual, but she still looked up at me. I guessed she would still do as I asked, until she dropped.

Sighing, I pulled out her Pokeball and returned her too. She disappeared too, just like the Geodude in my bag. I smirked as I put her next to the other two Pokemon I owned. Looking back, I saw Sarah and July covering their ears. July had her eyes closed, but Sarah just waited for me to stop talking.

"You done," she asked. "Because if you are, let's go. I feel like the entire tunnel is ringing." Picking up her bag from the ground, she slammed her fist against the wall. Feeling it, July opened her eyes. Looking around, she put down her hands and uncovered her ears.

"'Bout time, isn't it? Took you long enough." She adjusted her bag and followed Sarah. Perry looked at me, July, and Sarah below him. His fur still glowed orange, giving the two girls light. My own flashlight was bright enough to light up the entire tunnel, but it was only enough for me.

We continued to walk down the third tunnel for a ways. Just stone, more stone, and even more stone. It was silent the entire time we walked. No Pokemon, no other humans, and even our echos began to get quieter. But the smooth stone walls became more rough. Ridged.

It was almost an entire hour before we reached anything. And at anything, I don't mean the next exit. And it also caused July to be upset.

The end of the third path ended up at an underground lake. The sound of dripping water began to echo down the tunnel and my flashlight started to reflect back. It was the water. At first, I assumed it was something just along the way. I was also getting a bit thirsty, so it wasn't too bad to rush forward.

But as soon as we entered, July instantly reacted. There was no exit from this cavern. My flashlight and Perry lit up the entire lake, due to water bouncing the light around. And once July got a good look around, she glared at me.

"You idiot!" The word 'idiot' echoed around the lake and made me flinch. "You lead us to a dead end! Now, you Bidoof! We've lost several hours of walking, all because of you!" Walking up behind me, July smacked me on the back of my head. This time it was more of a punch, though. Because it really hurt.

"Geez, it's not like I have a map of the place. No one make one. I think it might be illegal, to be honest." I rubbed my head and looked back at July, but she was already marching back into the tunnel, but she suddenly stopped. Glaring back at me, she headed towards the lake anyways.

"She's probably getting a drink to wait for us. She can't see in the pitch dark, so it's kinda pointless to go without us." Sarah's remarks on July seemed to be reasonable, but judging by July's clothing, she could probably see in the dark just fine. Still, no use waiting around. I'd rather have a drink than wait.

Going to the lake, I took out my bottle and dipped it into the water. I filled it and took a drink of it. It tasted a bit like earth, but it also felt fresh. Kinda pure. I refilled it and capped it. I put it in my bag before I felt Akuma's and Thorn's Pokeballs. I did think of my Geodude, but I doubt it'd enjoy being doused in water.

Before I did take them out, I pulled back my sweatshirt's sleeve to check my bandage. The Zubat poison had acted as a numbing drug. It wasn't that strong, but the bite was what I really worried about. Infection and disease would really be something more dangerous than the Pokemon itself. After I ran water over it and dried it off, I rebandaged it and pulled out my Pokemon.

I released Akuma first, being slightly bias. She looked around at the lake's shore, sniffing and listening to her surroundings. Once she realized she was at lake, she willingly jumped into the lake. Once she was in the water, I let Thorn out of her ball as well. She simply sat there, her bud tightly closed. Probably because there was no sun to feed her.

Still, she waddled to the water and dropped into it. Just an inch or two were actually submerged, but it was enough for her to absorb it. Akuma also got a drink, hydrating herself. With a swim, she'd be cleaned as well. It seemed she did enjoy her baths now.

Sarah also took a drink, same as me. She looked a bit dehydrated, so it would probably do us all some good to drink.

Looking back to my Deino, I saw she'd found a small meal. With a bright orange Magikarp in her jaw, she tried to bite into the hard scales of the Magikarp, but the bone of the Magikarp is too large. There was hardly any meat on the fish. Which explained why it was so weak.

Ugh. I guess the entire gate didn't hold a single good meal at all...

.

We spent only a few more minutes at the lake. Mainly due to July's impatience, but also because we didn't really want to capture any of the Magikarp here. Not like I had the patience to train the thing into a mighty Gyarados anyways. Without any purpose with the underground lake, Sarah and I followed July.

The girl in question was quite impatient. She bugged me at the first moment she could, pestering me to hurry it up and called me names. To be honest, it was making it less appealing, abandoning the water. But it's not like I didn't have some place to be as well. Sarah hated to hear July whine, so I was pretty much dragged along anyways.

Going back down the third tunnel, we walked for over an hour. I quickly noticed that it was, with my own vision range shortened, we were now heading upwards. It took longer to reach the hole my Geodude made. Akuma sniffed around it, but July didn't really give her a chance.

Soon enough, due to July's pace, we reached the crossroads. It was still about an hour's journey, but it was faster than when we went down it the first time. It might have been because of when I caught my Geodude, but the time was still quicker.

It also left me breathing heavily. When we entered the room with three separate paths, I was forced to sit down at the mouth of the cave and drink my fresh bottle of water. Akuma didn't have much problem with it, but she didn't really have to deal with it like a Human. She was a Pokemon, built for battle.

"Oh, c'mon you two! We can't stop now. We've barely been walking at all! You can't all be exhausted, can you!?" I looked to Sarah, but she was also taking a drink from her bottle of water. Perry was excited, but that's because he didn't really do anything other than glow.

"How are you so dull of energy? I feel like you're some sort of marathon runner or something!" Sarah tossed her bottle back and forth. Picking myself up, I agreed with Sarah. How was July able to keep going like this?

"It's not my fault you guys are weak! I'm just more conditioned for this than you two! It's obvious we live differently!" For a moment, July looked angry, but something crossed her face and she turned away. I guessed she said something she didn't mean to, but I couldn't figure out what.

"What? Just because we're different doesn't mean you have to get your panties in a twist. Just calm down. We're all going to the same place, so just let us rest up a bit and then we'll be back on track! Just sit on it!" When I slammed my fist on the wall, I realized that I might have taken it a step too far.

"Fine. Five minutes. That's all you guys get." Stomping away, July agreed to let us rest. I sighed and glanced towards Sarah. She nodded towards me, and I guessed it was a thanks. I leaned back against the cave wall I'd hit and rubbed Akuma's fur when she jumped up to me.

In the time we had to rest, I thought of the moment July slipped. She must have a past she didn't want revealed. I didn't blame her, as most teenagers had a past secret or two. I had one or two of my own, after all...

"Hey! Time's up! Let's get moving!" Snapping up, I groaned that the break was already over. Still, deal was a deal. I pushed myself off the wall and followed July and Sarah, heading into the first tunnel. This time, it was a gut feeling that this was the right path.

.

Every kilometer we spent inside the pathway, I felt the air get tense due to July's increasing pace. By the time she was ready to stop, we were basically running down the tunnels. It was a good thing we stopped, because my breath was heavy and sweat was running down my face.

The crossroads we met with wasn't the only one. I'd forgotten they'd called it a labyrinth in here. It literally was. Some paths lead around in circles, to another false fork in the road, or to dead ends. Like a wall or few Zubat.

We battled a few Diglett and a Sandshrew, along with a Zubat or two we disturbed. They were easy to deal with when they were one or two attacking us. Since July refused to reveal her Pokemon, Sarah and I were forced to protect her. Akuma and Thorn had their share of battles, along with Yami and Perry.

Due to the multiple paths we'd taken, most of them wrong, we'd only traveled through three correct paths. It frustrated July, that much I could see. It also explained why my chest and legs burned. But once she said she was ready to sleep, my PokeDex told me it was already four in the afternoon.

I almost dropped right there, when July gave us the signal to stop. She'd been leading us, but held back to stay in the light. Though Sarah sat down like me, July still stood strong. I saw her breath was heavier than before. 'Bout time she broke.

"Is she trying to kill us? And when exactly did she take control of our pace?" Sarah crawled over to me and leaned against the wall with me. "I mean, how can she just brush off the past hour of running with a bit of sweat and being out of breath? I can barely move anymore!"

"Yeah, my legs feel like lead. I don't think they'll be too happy with me in the morning. At least Akuma's alright." The dragon in question was lying by my side, panting burning hot air. It felt like it was burning my leg, but I didn't have the motivation to move her.

July easily set up her camp and bed, just setting down her bag and blanket. Her pillow on top and a few bits around it. I don't know what they were, and it's not like I felt like asking. Besides, after she got into her bed, she ordered us to be quite. I wondered why she was falling asleep now, but she did say she woke up earlier than us and we had been running.

Still, the most she could have been awake for was ten... maybe twelve hours. It was only four in the afternoon, so I didn't feel close to sleeping, but I was still tired. And burning because I was still wearing my sweatshirt. Now that we were resting, I had time to take it off.

"How long do you think we'll be in here? If we have to work with July, I guess it'll take a week." Sarah took a long drink from her water bottle. I followed her example and took a drink as well.

"Maybe half a week is my bet. But it could last a week. The forums say this place is a labyrinth. But it won't be too bad, if you ask me. My Pokemon could use a bit of fighting experience." Akuma, Thorn, and my new Geodude probably didn't have the most experience, probably about equal between them. The amount isn't that great, considering we're going up against the Gym soon.

"Could you give me a piece of jerky?" Together, we sat there chewing on jerky until July stopped shooting evil stares at us and fell asleep. We still whispered, Sarah and I, around our jerky and Akuma nudged my hand for some as well. It was hard to tell her no, so she got a few strips as well.

Talking with Sarah was easy enough, because she held a few of the same interests as me. She liked her Pokemon, wanted to battle, and liked meats. Not as much meat as me, but she commented on what she liked. We also talked about cooking a bit. Not that we could do it now, being in the Gate. Smoke in confined space... Not good.

Her battles back in Snowpoint, they weren't that great from her point of view. Battles against the older kids' Pokemon with her started had given her experience, but only in defeat. It also helped bond her to her Pokemon, even if they were both losers.

After discussing one thing, and another, the topic of training came up. I tried to pry out her training program, but she revealed she only trained in speed, agility, and skill. No power or strength, really. But it did explain Yami and Perry's speed.

And with July asleep, we could train ourselves. Develop new ways of training, do a few exercises. Anything as long as she wasn't disturbed. Deciding on it, we agreed to go a ways away from the sleeping party member, and take out our five Pokeballs.

.

The time we spent away from the camp gave me enough time to get to know my Geodude. I decided on the name 'Stein', which meant Stone. It definitely was a name, for a living rock. Just saying it felt fitting.

Stein couldn't understand me right off the bat, but luckily I had Akuma with me to translate. She didn't exactly intimidate him, but since she beat him, she held some control over him. It made training him a bit easier, similar to training Thorn.

Speaking of which, Thorn began to obey me once Stein was in near. I guessed that she wanted to look as impressive and trained as possible, in an effort to help. Until I had to recall my Geodude in fear of him causing a cave in. Thorn immediately stopped training and dropped down to the ground. She also stopped obeying me.

Sarah trained with Akuma and Yami, trying to increase their speed. Akuma had a difficult time keeping up with Yami, who easily sped past her. Perry also exercised, but by zipping around in zigzags. It was pretty impressive on how fast he could move around, too.

I was left to work with Stein, occasionally using Akuma's translation skill. The movable rock's strength was pretty impressive. Just punching a wall left a small crater and a pile of rocks. Of course, when the punches threatened to kill you, it becomes pretty scary. Which was why I recalled him.

Thorn's performance was nice, using her Razor sharp Leaves. She used the blades to make a combo with Water Sport to weaken rock and ground Pokemon. It was something Sarah suggested and, as I saw it, one of my first strategy. Before this point, I'd said Attack and MOAR ATTACK! Not much else...

But the entire training session lasted until just past six. It was surprising at how fast the time passed during training. And it was crazy how much we did. Of course, we tried to be quiet, but bashing fists against a wall isn't the most silent thing we could have done.

When my Pokemon started to be come tired, Sarah decided to call it. I quickly pointed the lasers and recalled all three of my Pokemon while Sarah returned hers.

We joked about as we returned to July, trying to whisper. Laughing was withheld, but it was really hard at times. Pokepuns are sometimes hard not to laugh at.

Once we returned to the campsite, July glared at us from her bedding. I realized the echos could reach her quite easily, making it seem like we were closer. She chewed us out for a few minutes before letting us go, intimidating for her short height. But once she was done with us, she dropped down onto her pillow and bundled up.

Sarah and I looked at each other before nearly laughing. Of course, with July still awake, I didn't dare make a noise. Quiet, almost mockingly quiet, we crept over to our bags, which we'd left behind, and rolled out our bedding. Sarah couldn't set up her tent, so she simply set down a blanket and pillow. Just like the rest of us.

But rather than go to sleep, we basically just ate jerky and wrote down strategies and plans. Today's training taught me that use of combos and battle plans was much more effective than just attacking head on.

With my Deino, Akuma, I knew that she had a long ways to go. Budew, Thorn, when they evolve for a trainer, they show the bond between them. And then a Geodude, Stein, could be used as a hard-hitting wall. Their defense was meant to be as hard as steel once it evolved.

In all, there was Attack, Defense, and Friendship. Once they developed, my team could have some strength. I just hoped I could do it right. There wasn't time to go back and do it all again. Not until I was Champion.

After a few hours of brainstorming, I announced I was going to sleep and crawled into the depths of my blanket. It only took a few minutes of trying, but soon I felt my sleep overtaking me. Not long after, I was dreaming of sunshine and flying...

.

The next morning was same as the morning before. Rude awakening by July, eating, and getting back on our way. Not much else. Sarah was a bit more docile to July, being woken up easier than me. Still, once July said it was time to go, it was time to go. No arguing, but it's not like I tried.

It only took a few minutes to clean up today. Even with stiff legs and back, it's not like there was much to clean. But once we were ready, we started back on the road. Slow, but as quick as we could manage.

Sarah tried to talk to me a few times, but I didn't really know how to carry on with subjects like makeup and styles. All I knew was stuff like fighting and traveling. And since July and her didn't get along so well, I was really her only person to talk to. Actually, I realized, this was the first time she talked about makeup... Strange.

The Gate continued for several long kilometers. We made good headway, considering our condition.

"Hello," A voice called out, from the darkness. It scared me and made me stop in my tracks. "Is anyone there?"

"Yeah? Who are you?" Coming out of the shadows, a boy stepped out and revealed himself. His blonde hair fell over his face and hid his eyes. It reminded me of the Deino currently growling. My hand on her neck kept her under control.

"H-hey there. My name is Gerad. That Pokemon isn't going to bite me, is it?" The kid was nervous of Akuma, but since she was in the custody of three trainers, it must be safe...

"She's just wary around strangers. She's safe most of the time and is pretty young. I would be careful for now, though." The kid nodded and stepped more towards July.

"Which one of you wants a battle? My Pokemon need some exercise..." He looked around at us, before looking to Sarah. "How about you, miss? You wanna battle?"

"Why not? Not like we're in a hurry." She smirked smugly at July, intentionally pissing her off. Sarah took out her dusk ball from her bag, but sent out Perry from her shoulder. "Let's go."

She sent out the Orange Dedene as Gerad let out a green serpentine Pokemon. It's leafy tail and elegance showed it's high living style. It was a Servine. Not the best match up.

Still, Sarah didn't show much intention to switch out. As such, Perry would face off against a Grass type. This wasn't the best option, because Yami had the upper hand against a Servine.

"Perry! Thunderbolt! Then evade it's attacks!" The small Dedene scurried around, charging up energy. The Servine had a hard time keeping up. Once close enough though, Perry unleashed a large bolt of electricity. It flowed over the targeted Servine and it convulsed slightly.

It had some effect!

But not enough to do real damage. A leafy tail smacked into the small rodent, sending him to the side of the cave. It was like there was no damage done to it. I gasped at how easily the Servine knocked Perry around. Just how experienced was it, being able to resist that Lightning attack?

"Well, this might be easier than I thought. Solaris, let's show them what we mean by business." Releasing a set of vines, the Servine lifted Perry off the ground while he tried to recover. As the vines wrapped around him, a green glow enveloped him and was drawn back to... Solaris, was it?

"Perry! Use your Thunderbolt and escape!" The time it took to charge up the attack, and the green aura around him drained his energy. But once it was ready, the attack surged through the vines back to their owner. It looked like he shocked it, but the vines around Perry didn't loosen.

"That's right, Solaris. Keep a good hold on it and keep taking energy!" The kid, Gerad, looked confident as his smirk grew wider. Was he getting cocky, or was he just confident? I guessed he wasn't just some kid traveling to Oreburgh.

"C'mon, Perry! Try to get out of there!" Wriggling around, the small Dedene inched out of the vines holding him. The Servine tried to adjust it's grip, but Perry escaped before it could. He jumped through the air and landed a bit away. He stood there, but he couldn't fight anymore. His small body was breathing quickly.

"Use your vines and play with the small Rattata of a Dedene." The planty tentacles reached out to Perry and grabbed him by the body. Once he was in the air, the vines began to batter the small thing back and forth. He sqeaked and shrieked for several seconds, but then went silent. Knocked out midair.

"Perry!" Pulling out his Pokeball, Sarah called him back. The thrashing of vines stopped and returned back to Solaris. Round one was a loss. Pulling out her Dusk ball, Sarah prepared for another battle.

"In for another one? Okay, I'm open." Yami appeared and instantly attacked Solaris. A flurry of claws were unleashed. "Wow. That's one feisty Pokemon there. Alright, Solaris! Use Leaf Tornado!" A flurry of movements and whips of it's vines, Solaris released a pile of leaves and created a false air current. The leaves swarmed over Yami, but he simply cut his way through at high speed.

Once out of the storm, Yami encased his claws in something similar to icicles and slashed them against the Servine. They easily cut through the weaker plant body. The coldness of it spread through it's body, showing as blackness. Almost like frostbite was spreading through it.

"Solaris! Get away from it!" Gerad tried to get his Servine out of the way, but Yami's speeding claws had already passed through it's body. And the blackness stopped once they left.

Recovering quickly, the Servine attempted to keep up with Yami as he jumped and dodged any and all attacks. The claws he used were still steaming and covered in ice. It looked like he'd simply charge in and jump the Servine. But instead he stopped. The Servine tried to take advantage of the pause.

Suddenly, a cold white mist enveloped Yami, almost pouring out of his skin. Before it enveloped the Servine and stopped it dead. Not actually dead, but it tried to escape the moment it touched it. It was cold enough to bring the temperature of the tunnel a few degrees. I could only imagine how cold the mist was.

Using a Pokeball Gerad was the one to recall his Pokemon. But he immediately switched out with another Pokemon. A Fletchinder screeched as it spread heat back into the air.

Good strategy. He had a fire type ready to take out an ice type Pokemon.

Even though the Fletchinder was obviously slower right from the beginning, it's very body presented an issue. Flames already jumped out of it's feathers.

And Yami had a fear of getting close to it. From the first attacks, he tried to take advantage of moves I didn't know he had. He sent out a blast of wind from his breath, carrying snowflakes. Another was throwing an icicle that formed on his claw. I'd never seen these techniques used, but Sarah ordered them off in quick succession.

The opposing Fletchinder had no problem breathing flames out in front of it, enveloping itself in fire. The heat protected it from the attacks and quickly retaliated with a dive bomb into Yami when he was standing still. The very force of it was enough to send him across the tunnel and lay on the ground unconscious.

"Ha! No sweat at all. You pre-gym kids are just too weak. You won't make it very far. My Solaris and Ariel both have the type advantage moves on ground and rock, with grass and steel types. You've only got ice. And you, kid," Gerad said, pointing to me. " You've only got that Deino. You said yourself it isn't that strong. If it's newly hatched, you've got no chance in hell of beating Roderick." Roderick... the Oreburgh gym leader?

"So you've already beaten the first gym and expected us to beat you?"

"She agreed and lost. Speaking of which, pay up." He held out his hand and waited for Sarah to hand him a giant stack of cash. When she only put a fifty Poke dollar bill in his hand, he waited and expected more.

"What? That's all I have. Rules are I pay what I have. All I have is a fifty. Now buzz off. You're starting to annoy me." Gerad looked at us before openly laughing, to which July glared at him for. She already didn't like the kid to begin with, so it came as no surprise when she was practically growling at the kid, grating her teeth together.

"C'mon. Don't you wanna know how I got this baby?" Gerad pulled out a small metal pin. His badge. "This Coal Badge was quite the effort to get. Wanna hear the story?" He crept closer to Sarah, trying to pick her up. What a sleazebag.

"Bro, back off. She's not interested. If we want to see your battle, we'll watch it on LeagueLive TV. Now get out of here. Before she tears you to pieces." My thumb pointed back towards July. Anyone, especially a guy, could tell she was pissed as hell. To see this guy try to pick her up, he was a fool. Without any Pokemon, he'd be pawned.

"Sorry, man. I didn't know she was already taken. I'll leave you two to it then. I guess this is our time to part ways. Miss, what's your name? If this guy is any trouble, I'll be watching your battles and make sure to save you." The kid tried to kiss her knuckles, but she almost punched him in the lips, smacking him with her knuckles.

"Yeah, sure. As soon as you lose to me, I'll be sure to make you my servant. Then you can come back for me." Sarah smirked, using words against Gerad, making him angry with her. I guessed since he won his Coal Badge, girls never resisted him. But the more likely story was every girl he tried to pick up wasn't a Pokemon Trainer.

Gathering himself, Gerad bowed his goodbye to Sarah before heading back through the Gate. July basically gasped in relief when he left. I glanced towards her and made an exasperated motion, seconding her opinion of him. Since I learned he only was interested in hooking up with Sarah, my opinion of him instantly dropped.

"Let's get going. We've wasted enough time here. We need to keep a good pace." For the time being, Sarah and July held similar views. The fact that some kid tried to hit on her after beating her and tried to brag on something so minor was something Sarah hated. As such, the two girls almost left me behind.

.

The next four days passed mostly the same. Some days we saw daylight through some vents, others we were in complete darkness. Each morning was an early morning wake up call from July, who kept us all in schedule. Quite forcefully. At least the bruises looked cool. Underneath my shirt...

After going through several tunnels, making a dozen wrong turns, fighting several Pokemon like Dwebble, Diglett, Zubat, and Geodude. It gave us several opportunities to train and strengthen our Pokemon, but July still refused to use her Pokemon. This made combat for her difficult. I lent her my knife to use as a weapon while we battled and trained. Or, our Pokemon did. Akuma showed some growth in her skills and was able use Headbutt and began to spit out small blue flames. The start of a new move.

The time it took to make it outside of the labyrinth of caves was longer than any of us actually expected, but it was still quick for anyone taking their sweet time. We almost ran through it, to be honest. Sarah's pace slowed over the course of the four days while July forced us to keep up.

Once we walked out of the darkness, I had to hold my arm over my face. Light was blinding after being in the dark. The cold air had forced me to put on my hat and hoodie, and I even wanted a coat. The chill in the air was colder than when we went in, no doubts. But I smiled as we stepped out into the eastern part of Sinnoh. We'd passed the second test and we'd made it.

We were still in the mountains, but we'd made it. I looked to Sarah and July, before almost cheering. I had to squint, but I could tell Sarah was also relieved we'd made it. July... Maybe not so much cheering, but she looked better and happier than before.

Now, it was time to advance to the third challenge, the next test. Even though we were required to pass it in 3 months, I wanted to beat the first Gym asap. Starting down the mountain, we prepared ourselves to return to normal human society.

---

Yeah, this wasn't the most productive three weeks...

Every day I decided to write 1k words or more, making it easy to complete a chapter in about a week or two. In reality, I wrote about 1k every 2 or 3 days. Why do I suck so badly?

I don't know if this chapter was very good because it was written over the course of several weeks. Again, sorry for it being late. I write about it at every point I can, like in school, but the details are hard to make when I can't see the rest of the story. Anyways, hope you enjoyed!

Current Pokemon

Trainer: Lorano; SI863FL239A

Pokemon in Possession:

Akuma - Deino

Thorn - Budew

Stein - Geodude

Trainer: Sarah O'Perr; SI772SP8HN

Pokemon in Possession:

Perry - Dedene

Yami - Sneasel

Trainer: July Caspin; SI2033JL46U

Pokemon in Possession:

Unknown