Summary: Human turned Pokémon have suddenly started disappearing without explanation. Their teammates and loved ones are left to scramble about in worry and wonder as to where their missing friends may be. However, the arrival of Celine, a newly human turned Pokémon, suggests that the Pokémon world is in danger once again. As she sets out on her journey, she is blissfully unaware of the darkness that follows her and her team…
-x-x-x-x-
Chapter 5: From the Shadows
"So," came Celine's confused voice, staring at the group of pokémon sitting around the table, "how come we were both able to evolve? I thought that double evolution was impossible."
"Normally it is." Vivian said, nibbling on an oran berry idly. "It's extremely rare – almost unheard of. But it has happened before."
Celine crossed her arms. Despite the food offering, she wasn't hungry. There were a lot of things on her mind. Silver was the next to speak. "They say that evolution comes from the heart. Determination to grow stronger has always been believed to be the solid theory for evolution."
"It varies," Grovyle stated. He opened one of his eyes to examine the group. "It can also be brought on by love for each other. An example of this would be my case with Anna. I remember feeling her desire to win, and it mirrored what I felt. As dumb as it sounds… it felt like…her heart echoed to me, enabling me to evolve."
"A case of echoing hearts?" Silver questioned.
Aiden grumbled under his breath. "That sounds so cheesy."
Celine rolled her eyes with a smile. "It's not cheesy, nor is it corny. I think it's romantic. Then again," she grinned wickedly at Aiden, "you're a typical guy who has a hard time comprehending romance. It's almost unheard of in the males language!"
He was taken aback. "Excuse me? I've heard of romance! I just don't partake in its activities. I don't do that… touchy feely stuff."
"Which is why it's a girl thing," she stuck her tongue out. He huffed and crossed his arms.
Silence hung over the room. Everyone was eating the berries quietly, wondering how the double evolution occurred, or both. Lizette entered the kitchen quietly. Fiddling with her paws, she spoke. "I know a little about double evolution… if you're willing to listen."
She winced under the harsh glares she received from the three males. With a whimper she lowered her head. Vivian, ignoring the angry males, nodded in her direction and encouraged her to continue speaking. Lizette looked to see that Celine was also smiling brightly and nodding. She cleared her throat and began the long explanation.
"Evolution is a process where we obviously become stronger, but the desire to become stronger isn't the only drive that causes an evolution. It has to a deep desire, one that differs from a regular desire. This desire has to be so deep that it motivates the pokémon. This is the essential core that causes a single evolution. Sometimes love and trust does play a key part, but not all the time.
"Double evolutions need two key parts: a deep desire to become stronger, and complete trust or love in their partner. This is what is commonly known as the 'Echoation of Hearts.' In other words, it means the two partners hearts have to mirror each other. It's only ever happened in pairs."
She moved a little closer to Celine. The awkward tension in the air was slowly dissipating for her. It was due to the fact she was in full swing of her explanation and she didn't care too much about the hatred the other's had for her at the moment.
She smiled up at Celine, continuing her explanation. "Let's take the transformation between Aiden and Celine for example. Celine was the first to evolve because of her heart and desire. It became so strong that it became the essential core for the evolution. This desire kept her up and fighting despite the odds. After seeing him get badly injured, something snapped and the barrier preventing her from evolving broke; thus, her next level."
Vivian raised her paw slowly, indicating that she wanted to say something. Lizette nodded. "Why was Aiden able to evolve if the strength was entirely Celine's?"
Lizette smiled brightly. "That's where the process of Echoation of Hearts comes in. His emotions and desire completely mirrored those of Celine. While he didn't snap like Celine, the barrier preventing his evolution broke because of their mirrored hearts. So, before the attack could reach him and fatally injure him, he evolved. Does that make sense?"
"It makes sense," Celine said with a tilt of her head. She furrowed her eyebrows. She hadn't realized that Lizette was that smart. "How did you know so much?"
Lizette blushed, lowering her head, idly kicking at the floor. "Well, I don't just sit at the well all day and wait for juicy gossip. I also spend my spare time at the library. I'm interested in a lot of things. Our world has so many mysteries. They peak my interest."
She flinched when Aiden, his voice like a whip, snorted and said, "So, you claim intelligence? Then where was your intelligence when you told Team Poisonix who Celine was? You're just lucky your little stunt allowed us to evolve! What if we hadn't evolved? Then what? I would be dead, Celine would have been captured, and who knows what kind of danger we'd be in then?"
"I told you that I acted out of jealously and anger!"
"So you were envious and angry enough to risk our lives?" He asked with a snap.
She visibly flinched. "I didn't think it would go that far… I…I didn't know my feelings were strong enough to drive us into…into…"
"Into danger? Into death?" Aiden snarled, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "Because of you and your emotional outburst Celine's true form was revealed. Because of you we got into danger that could have ended a whole lot worse than it had!" He crossed his arms. "If it had been me I would've made sure to keep my emotions in check."
Lizette suddenly slammed her fists down on the table, startling everyone. "And what would you know about emotions? You were my best friend for years, Aiden! Don't you dare sit there and tell me that you didn't see how hurt I was! Don't you dare sit there and claim innocence!"
He snorted, looking away. "I can claim innocence more than you ever could."
Silence hung over the room. She stood there, not trusting herself to say another word. Her form began shaking, tears now falling down her cheek. She sniffled in an attempt to hold back the tears. "And you're Mr. Perfect, aren't you Aiden? I made a horrible mistake. One that I regret deeply, but you don't care… do you? I could get my knees and beg for your forgiveness and you'd still refuse that. If…if I were in your shoes…I would have forgiven you. But you know what? Go ahead and hold that grudge against me. If I could go back in time and stop it… I would! But screw you! Take a page from Celine's book and learn to forgive because no one is perfect!" she screamed and ran out of the house sobbing.
"W-wait! Lizette!" Celine called, getting to her feet to chase after her. Vivian stopped her. Celine looked at her questioningly. Vivian shook her head, soundlessly telling her to let it go for now.
Vivian turned to Aiden, a stern look on her face. "Aiden," she began, "I understand your anger towards her. Her actions did cause you and Celine pain, but think of it this way. No one was hurt, we discovered some of those who are behind the recent troubles, and you two evolved and became stronger for the cause."
"But what if-" he began, only to be cut off. "What if's are done and over with Aiden. Those are in the past now. Everything that was meant to happen has happened. There is nothing more we can do to change that. If you wallow in 'what if's' then you'll never get far in life because you'll always be questioning what could've happened. And sadly… that's something you can't have as an explorer or even as a rescuer. Lizette has apologized countless times. She knows the mistakes that she made. She'll always be haunted by that; do you think it's far to be constantly reminding her and rubbing salt on the wound?"
"No…" he grumbled. "But it still doesn't excuse her."
Vivian let out a sigh. Aiden wasn't getting the point. "Maybe this is something you're not ready to understand."
He shot her a look of surprise. Just what was she saying?
"Love is a powerful weapon and it can be used for good, but it can also be used for evil. Some can be accidents while others are intentional. I believe hers were nothing more than an accident. If you think that she's entirely at fault for what's happened, then you need to look in the mirror because you share just as much blame as she does."
She watched as he jumped to his feet, snarling at her. She remained unmoved and looked at him right in the eyes. His ears went back as he growled and left the room. Celine frowned, having had reached out to him only to be pushed away. Once he was out of the kitchen, she murmured, "This is my fault…"
"It's not," Vivian reassured her with a small smile, "it's just a simple fact of life that we all learn eventually. I hope he doesn't take what I said as an insult."
Celine buried her head in her hands. Everything was happening so fast - her evolution and the hatred between Aiden and Lizette. She could vaguely hear Vivian and the others talking about Team Poisonix and their involvement. She glanced in the direction of Aiden's room.
She was worried about his relationship with Lizette. It bothered her greatly that he hated her so much now. They were childhood friends. They knew each other like the back of their hands.
She could understand why Aiden was so angry. Part of her really couldn't blame him, but at the same time she could understand the logic behind Lizette's motives. They were frail, yes, but they did have meaning behind them. It was clear as day how much Lizette cared for Aiden and how much she regretted her decision.
And no matter which way she looked at it, Lizette had helped them for the better.
She released a sigh, excusing herself from the kitchen. She paused in front of Aiden's bedroom. Should she talk to him? Her hand reached for the knob; he felt betrayed that his best friend had betrayed them, and he needed comfort.
But she stopped herself. Yes, he felt betrayed, but that was only for now. Deep inside she knew that he needed time to heal his wounds.
Settling on her decision, she turned away and entered her bedroom.
She was restless in her bed. The hours ticked by and all she did was toss and turn. Finally, she rested on her back and stared at the wall. Her mind and heart were conflicting. Her heart told her to talk to Aiden, to show that he had someone. But her mind knew that it was a wound that would heal over time. The only thing both her heart and mind could agree on was that Lizette and Aiden shouldn't be fighting each other. There were bigger problems than this little conflict of theirs, and they had years of great memories, which, she knew, surpassed and out-weighed the bad memories.
Celine sat up. It's not just their friendship at sake, she thought. This is something that our enemy can use against us. And this time it could end much worse.
She rested her head in her palms. The answer was as clear as day. Nobody else might agree with it, but she couldn't risk having this drama last longer than necessary. Whether they liked it or not, Celine was going to make those two talk and forgive each other.
With that in mind, she doused off.
x-x-x-x
Icy was in her small office. She stood in front of her desk; her back turned to Team Poisonix as they reported their findings to her. She stared at the wall as the information sank in. When they finished and received no response, they looked at each other nervously.
She was not pleased in the slightest. Well, she was a little, but she was more angry than happy. "So," she said, clearing her throat, "you tell me that there is another human turned pokémon around. She already has a team, and has the partners of the captured pokémon on her side. Not only that, but she has evolved as well as her partner? Is this all correct?"
Gothitelle gulped and nodded. "Y-yes."
Icy turned to her. Gothitelle felt her blood run cold the moment Icy's glare caught her. "Have you made an attempt to restrain said human?"
"W-we have, ma'am, but… just when we had her in our grasp her reinforcements arrived and she evolved. We were hopelessly out matched. As I reported… she has the ninetales, Vivian, an absol, Silver, and Grovyle on her side. All of who are leaders or members of the highly known and praised team: Team PokéStars. They are by no means weak."
Icy arched an eyebrow. Gothitelle continued. "She also has two other friends… well, one is debatable… A riolu, err, I mean lucario, named Aiden and a meowstic named Lizette."
Banette approached Icy. "We do not doubt in our ability to stomp them alone, but when those three get involved… it becomes difficult."
Icy gave them a sideways glance, her eyes narrowed. "I am surprised that you have troubles with such weak pokémon."
"But they're not weak!" Seviper insisted. "Or, at least not Team PokéStars."
"So you are asking me for assistance in your failure?" Icy questioned. Each of them hesitantly nodded. "Then allow me to report this to our Master and see what he believes –"
"NO!" All three suddenly shouted. "N-no, please, ma'am," Gothitelle quickly corrected herself.
Icy narrowed her eyes and sighed. "Very well. I will find someone to help you exterminate our… newest problems. As for the human… do not kill her. There is a reason behind us collecting them and not killing them. Bring her here. As for her other friends?" With her finger she motioned cutting her throat, a devious smirk appearing on her face, "get rid of them."
They shivered and left the room as quickly as they could. Icy rested her hands behind her, staring at the door. Part of her expected this to happen. She looked back to her desk and eyed the object on it. "Hmm, I need a test subject. I might as well check out these new problems myself and adjust the plan accordingly."
x-x-x-x
Lizette sighed as she rested along the side of her small house. She'd hardly gotten any sleep the night before and was exhausted. But even then she still couldn't fall asleep. Nightmares of that terrible mistake constantly replayed in her mind. The guilt was eating her alive.
"Lizzy?" Lizette gazed over towards Celine, a look of surprise appearing on her face. Celine stood in front of her with a small frown.
"What's wrong?" Lizette murmured. "Am I in more trouble?"
Celine shook her head. "No, in fact I want you to follow me." Lizette raised her eyebrow questionably.
"Why?"
"Please?" Celine said. "I just want you to come with me. I want to talk."
Lizette sighed; she could already guess what this conversation was going to be about. Finally, she nodded and got to her feet. She followed Celine as she led Lizette towards Aiden's secret spot.
She found herself wondering why they were here. She looked around nervously. "Celine, why are we here? This is-"
"Okay, I'm here," a familiar voice said behind the pair. Aiden jumped down from the tree. He paused, both him and Lizette staring at each other for a moment. Celine winced and braced herself for what was to come. "WHAT IS SHE DOING HERE?!" he finally screamed, pointing an accusing finger at Lizette.
Lizette's ears flattened and she backed away from Aiden. She was about to make a run for it when Celine grabbed her. "Oh no you don't – I brought both of you here for a reason and neither of you are leaving until we complete that reason. First off," she began, placing her hands on her hips to show she meant business, "this 'fight' of yours has to stop. We shouldn't be fighting each other. We should be fighting together!"
"I can't fight next to someone I can't trust," Aiden scowled, turning to leave. He winced when Celine grabbed him harshly and spun him around. She glared at him right in the eyes.
"Tough," she remarked, "you're just going to have to forgive her then."
"This fighting," Celine continued, looking the two, "is ridiculous. Yes, what she did was a bad thing and did cause some harm, but look at the bigger picture! She helped us evolve and become stronger, she helped bring our suspects come forward, and she even has extensive knowledge."
"She could have killed you!" Aiden protested.
Celine snorted. "Coulda, woulda, shoulda. The final result is still the same. We evolved. We became stronger. And we helped the others get a lead on the missing pokémon. Are you going to hold a grudge against her forever? She made one mistake. Big deal! Everyone makes mistakes. And besides, they were going to find out who I was eventually. So it was better she told them now than wait months for them to put the pieces together. They showed themselves and now we know who to be suspicious of."
Aiden crossed his arms. He was going to continue his argument, but Celine raised a hand to stop him. "No, I don't want to hear it. You're basing everything on a 'what if' theory. What if's don't matter anymore, Aiden. She apologized. What more do you want? She can't go back in time and fix her mistakes."
Silence hung over the trio. Celine tapped her foot impatiently, keeping her eyes locked on both Lizette and Aiden. Lizette had her head lowered. She was kicking a little of the dirt around. Aiden, on the other hand, was glaring at her with his arms crossed. When he saw that Celine was giving him a glare, he sighed and threw his hands up in the air.
"I've known her for years, Celine! I never thought that she would be the type to betray me, or my friends. Can you honestly blame me for feeling betrayed?"
"I wasn't trying to betray you… I just wasn't thinking clearly. I really am sorry for that Aiden…" Lizette murmured.
He glared at her. "And what happens the next time you grow jealous and upset with us?"
"I won't do it again!" Lizette shouted. She looked at him with teary eyes, clenching her sides as tears rolled down her cheeks. "I wasn't thinking! And I'm sorry for hurting you! What else do you want me to say or do?"
"Scolding you is like scolding a child. You should've already known right from wrong! I just don't know if I can trust you after you put our lives in danger like that. Jealousy and anger are one thing, betraying someone and telling people other people's real identities is another thing." He sighed, his shoulders sagging.
"You love her." Lizette said bluntly. Celine's face turned bright red. "That's why you're so angry."
Aiden went stiff. He was ready to protest against the idea, but then he thought about it. Did he love her? Were his feelings for her stronger than he thought? And what if he did? He frowned; he knew that answer. It would mean he was far more protective of her than anyone else. With a sigh, he nodded, acknowledging the feelings.
Celine stood there with her mouth agape. Her face grew redder by the minute.
"So, I do," he finally said, "but that doesn't mean anything in this little debate."
Lizette put her hands on her hips. "It does," she began, sighing. She approached him carefully, not sure if he felt comfortable enough for her to be near him. Aiden kept his eye on her. "It means that you're very sensitive to any type of danger that might come and hurt Celine."
"S-stop!" Celine said, jumping between the two while flailing her arms. Lizette snickered, unable to keep her chuckles contained. Aiden went stiff again. His face turned bright red. He quickly turned away with his head up in the air. He'd totally forgotten that she was there!
"H-how long have you been standing there?" he asked.
"Excuse me?!" she yelled, baffled, "I've been here the whole time!"
Lizette watched the exchange with a smile. She didn't show it, but the pain was gripping her heart. "So," she cleared her throat, "this got awkward awfully quick. But I don't see why you two are so embarrassed!"
Celine continued flailing her arms around wildly, her face growing more crimson with each passing second. The action made Lizette laugh. Celine started stuttering that this wasn't the situation they were supposed to be focused on. Lizette would roll her eyes and tease her.
Aiden was watching the commotion with a smile, but his smile quickly faded. He flickered his eyes in the direction of the woods, closing them a moment later to see what was there.
Both of the girls went silent after seeing his ears rise. Celine automatically knew that something was up, narrowing her eyes and eyeing the spot that Aiden had been. Lizette, curious as to what was going on, moved a little closer to Aiden.
Suddenly, a raichu came flying out from the woods and crashed right into Celine. The impact sent both pokémon flying into the nearby pond. "C-celine!" Lizette gasped.
Celine splashed around in the water. She stopped a second later, blushing when she realized that she was still in shallow water. Her attention went to the raichu who swam over to the shore with a big grin on his face.
"Jaxon!" Aiden and Lizette jumped as an arcanine rushed past them and stood worriedly at the edge of the pond. "Are you alright?!"
The raichu burst out into a fit of laughter. "Dude, that was fun! Let's do that again!"
"No!" the arcanine yelled, her ears flattening against her skull. "You could've been seriously hurt! You went flying past branches and bushes! You should be grateful that you only have a few minor cuts and bruises!"
She paused, noticing Celine for the first time. She looked behind her to see Aiden in a fighting stance with Lizette staring at her curiously. The arcanine dipped her head and groaned. "And apparently you knocked these pokémon's friend into the water! I'm terribly sorry for this."
Jaxon rolled his eyes, grinning as he leaned on the grass. "Oh c'mon!" The arcanine glared at him. He responded by sticking out his tongue, huffing, and looking away like a child.
Celine, now out of the water, shook feverously to shake off the water. Aiden walked over to her slowly while keeping an eye on the strange pokémon. The two continued their childish fight until Jaxon finally caved in and got out of the water. He shook himself off right next to arcanine, purposefully getting her wet in the process.
She snarled at him. "If I hadn't promised Nyla that I wouldn't chew off your head, you'd be mouse food by now!"
He began dancing around her, taunting her. Eventually he stopped and leaned against her. "Aww, love you too Kally."
Her right eye began twitching. "For your information," she began, "my name is Kalista. Kalista." She rolled her eyes and smiled innocently at the trio of pokémon in front of her. "I am terribly sorry for intruding. We're kinda of looking for a friend and we heard rumors that there was a team out here the missing pokémon."
Aiden and Celine exchanged looks. Were they talking about Vivian and Silver?
"We might be able to help you with that," Aiden said slowly, keeping his eye on the raichu as he made faces at his reflection in the pond, "you see, our friends have dedicated themselves in finding those responsible for the pokenapping of human turned pokémon. You might have heard of them. They're widely known as Team PokéStars."
"Team PokéStars?!" Kalista gasped eagerly. "Of course we know about them! It's them that we should be thankful to for stopping the darkness from taking over our worlds!"
"I'm not at all surprised…" Lizette laughed weakly. She looked at Aiden and Celine, both nodding, before she went on to tell Kalista about Vivian and Silver. They were surprised when Kalista explained that they, too, were looking for a friend of theirs who went missing. "Her name is Nyla. She has a heart of gold… that is, if she's not too busy staring at her reflection… then she might ignore us for an hour. I'm not sure if you've heard of us, but we're known as Team Echo Hearts. She's our leader."
Much to everyone's surprise, minus Kalista, Jaxon became serious. "She went missing on her way to one of our friends homes. She told me that she wanted to ask them out on a mission, but she never returned. When I went over to check out where she was, I found out that she never made it there. We've been searching our homeland for her, but nobody saw her. When we filed a missing pokémon case, we learned about the exploration team out here who is leading the charge to find human turned pokémon."
He eyed Celine in particular. "And it would appear a new human is here to help, huh?"
Celine was baffled. Aiden instantly became defensive. Kalista frowned and looked at Jaxon. "What makes you say that?"
"Her scent," he answered simply. His answer caused the feline to blush and instinctively cover herself, feeling partially violated. He later added, "I mean nothing bad of it. But believe it or not, we have come across other human turned pokémon in the past and I've learned that they have a different scent than that of a regular pokémon. Thankfully, nobody else has picked up on this."
Kalista quickly added her own input to settle things down. "We try our best to help them, but by the time we see them, they're already in pairs. Which is a good thing – humans wouldn't last in this world very long on their own. Especially because of the legends and how humans are connected to them. They're targets for those who have evil intentions. Though I must confess… I'm confused as to why human turned pokémon who have completed their duty and saved the world already are being targeted now."
"We shouldn't talk here," Lizette said, scanning the around. Aiden agreed with a nod of his head. "We'll tell you more, but for now we have to leave."
x-x-x-x
A scream woke Annabelle from her slumber. Sill drowsy, she lifted her head to examine her room for the source of the screaming. "N-no! Unhand me, you vile fiends!"
It took her a minute to recognize the voice. It was Nyla! She immediately scanned Nyla's cage, horrified when she saw that she wasn't there. "Eek! Don't touch – oh, don't touch there! You have no idea how long it took me to get my hair like this!"
Her protests continued, but eventually faded out. Annabelle pressed herself against the bars of her cage, straining her ears as she stared down the dark hallway. She backed away from the bars. What happened to Nyla?!
Annabelle frowned inwardly when Icy appeared before her. She was wearing a satisfied smirk. "Why, good evening! How was your sleep?"
"It was wonderful until I heard my friend screaming. What have you done to her?" Annabelle flattened her ears against her skull.
Icy appeared to be pondering on something. "I figure I should let you in on a little something," she began with a cruel smile, "your friends have become quite the nuisance! You practiced very well in the art of annoying others."
"We try very hard to annoy pokémon like you," Annabelle snorted. "We refuse to let you bring this world into darkness."
"That's quite the commitment to a world that you don't belong in." Icy slowly paced in front of her cell, her smirk only growing; Annabelle narrowed her eyes. Something was up and she could sense it. She didn't like the evil grin on the female weaviles face. "I do belong here."
"And that's where your wrong," Icy said as she stopped in her tracks, eyeing the leafeon from the corner of her eye. A chill ran down Annabelle's spine as she backed away instinctively. "You are outsiders who do not belong in our world. You are merely given a little power to make yourselves feel like you are one of us.
"You are not true pokémon, like me, my master, or even those who have deluded themselves into thinking that you are their friend. And pretty soon those who worship humanoids like you will scorn you, wishing away your very existence!"
She chuckled as horror washed over Annabelle's face. Standing next to Icy was Nyla, but something was wrong with her. Her pelt was a darker shade of yellow; the fur around her neck, tail, and ears were now a shade of dark blue. Her eyes remained the same, but at the same time they were different.
Icy began laughing loudly, clearly pleased with the result. She put a hand on her hip, swaying it slightly to the side.
Annabelle continued to back away. All of it – their capture, the reason why they were still in one piece, and the part they played in all of this became perfectly clear. They were captured for the sole purpose of convincing other pokémon that they were dangerous and couldn't be trusted. Then, while the wave of distrust grew, this band of pokémon would rise and 'defeat' the army of human turned pokémon.
"You plan on using us to prove a point…" Annabelle murmured. Her fears were confirmed when Icy nodded.
"Your delusional if you think that plan will work," Annabelle said, her eyes narrowing. "Our friends will find us and rescue us."
"That is," Icy began, examining her fingernails as if they were more interesting than the topic at hand, "if they can find you in time… or if they even survive my next onslaught."
She lifted her gaze. She could almost taste the fear rolling off the trapped leafeon. It was delicious.
Annabelle refused to back down. "What happens after you've supposedly defeated the 'bad guys?'" she asked, catching the weavile off guard. "Sure, they'll celebrate your victory, but it won't be for long. It'll soon pass, like a whisper in the wind. And even then, your ample supply will quickly diminish. Humans – after this world has fallen – would stop coming. So, in other words, your victory wouldn't be ongoing. So what then?"
Icy was speechless. She'd never thought about it. She just thought about getting rid of the human turned pokémon. She fidgeted. "W-well, my master would be well respected! His name would go down in history as the heroic pokémon who saved us from dangerous pokémon such as yourself!"
"And what part of me is seemingly so dangerous?!"
"Do I even really need to say the evils that are pokémon like you?" Icy spat. "At the very least we'll have a leader who will take care of scum like you!"
And that was the final straw. Annabelle snarled as she said, "So you think your master will rule over this world? Do you think the other pokémon will want that?"
Icy huffed and stuck her head in the air, a sense of authority surrounding her. "Of course they would! They wouldn't suffer under his rule; they would prosper! He cares about our world more than anyone! He knows the suffering that your types bring down. Your kind sets off the balance! Once pokémon like you are gone, the balance will be proper once more and our world will grow!"
She spun, pausing a brief second later. She shook with rage. "Your plan to make me falter failed. You better find other ways to convince me!" As she left, nearby guards escorted Nyla back into her cage where she sat. Annabelle stared at her hopelessly.