An old concept made anew: "Overflow"

The Tale of Twin Hearts

(Chapter 1)

Page 3

What's going on…

What is this place…

Ever since Pumpkin came to, he's been tense. Sparks of electricity ripped through the air and along his fur. His pace was as if he was in a hurry as we followed behind him through the forest. I know there's a pokemon up ahead that needs saving, but the way he looked...it was as if he had a vendetta.

Despite it all, I could still see the worry in his eyes, and Miya's too. I don't blame them. We didn't know what we were up against. We didn't know what we got ourselves into...

The bushes...ever so often, you could see eyes glaring from them and it wasn't just one pokemon. Each time we looked, they were different; Each with its own distinctive look. How many pokemon were following us?

Shaking the thought out of my head, we continued. A few times I thought this place would've been like the dungeon at the beach, but it wasn't. It was more like a corridor of trees leading to an open area up ahead. I don't know why, but the further we walked, the more heat we felt. it might not have been phasing the other two too much, but I felt like I was going to melt.

"This place gives me the creeps. How close are we to our destination, Pumpkin?" Miya asked as she continued looking around at all the eyes glaring from the woods.

"We're close, but we have to be careful when we get there."

"Why's that?" I said, fanning myself with my paw. I literally felt like a piece of ice melting on the side of the road.

"The leader of this place, the boss...they aren't normal. I-I can't even describe him…" Pumpkin looked down at the path as we continued. I could hear laughter coming from the bush. It was faint, but there were many voices, all chuckling as they watched us.

"Pumpkin, what exactly did you see back there," Miya asked as she glared back at the eyes hidden in the bushes. "When you touched the tree, you stopped talking and just...stared."

"I...I don't know. When I touched the tree, everything went dark for a moment, but I could still see myself. Before I knew it, my vision returned and I was transparent, standing in a large room. At first, it freaked me out, but then I saw a pokemon tied to a tree in front of me. I couldn't see their face or understand what they were saying since they were covered up, but before I could get any closer, I felt an intense heat coming from behind me. As I slowly turned around, I...I..."

"You...what?" Miya said in anticipation.

He stopped walking. "I saw a monster. I saw him."

Confused, I slowly approached him. "What do you mean 'A monster'?"

Pumpkin started shaking more, his fur crackled with electricity the more he thought about it. I took a page from Miya and stood by him as he continued.
"He was huge. His mane was made of...fire. He had sharp, flaming claws and his body was scarred. His eyes glowed blood-red and lava dripped from his mouth. He snarled, walking up to me. Before I could say anything, he attacked me. That's when I woke up on the ground.

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone went silent, including me. At first, I was ready to tackle what was ahead of us, but after what he described, was starting to regret accepting this mission.

"If what you said is true, what the heck did we get ourselves into..." I said, shaking my head.

"I'm not sure, but like I said before, it's too late to turn back now," Miya sighed. She was worried too, I know it. Regardless, she gave us both a confident smile before looking up ahead.

"We're close. Get ready!"

Entering the main room of the forest, it was becoming obvious that Pumpkin left out a few details. From what I know about trees, they needed water to grow, but, there weren't any. In fact, the river that flowed right through the forest was actually lava; The stuff of nightmares. It was a miracle anything could grow here, much less a forest. The leaves on the trees were red, not a color I'm used to seeing on plants, and the land looked scorched. Straight ahead, the river that flowed towards the area branched off, circling the area, creating something that looked like an arena. I didn't like it one bit.

However, just as Pumpkin described, a pokemon was tied up to a big tree next to the lava river. The tree looked unstable. Honest, I felt like if a strong enough breeze hit it, it would fall over immediately. Dried-up roots anchored it to the ground. The pokemon tied to the tree certainly did have their face covered and I could barely see the rest of their body as the shade over the tree made it impossible to make out what it was. Looking up, the sun was brighter and hotter in this area alone, almost like a Sunny Day, but stronger. Why was it so intense? Never have I felt heat like that in my life. It made me feel weak. I was really hating the place now.

While distracted by the unforgivable sunlight, chilling laughter echoed throughout the area. The amount, though, was alarming.

"The heck. How many are there?" I said, blocking the light from my face.

"I don't know, but we best stay on guard," Miya said, staying close to Pumpkin and I. "Something about this doesn't seem right. Liloxi, could you go and untie the hostage? We'll keep an eye out for the Mightyena?"

I don't remember Miya being the boss, but at the same time, I didn't argue nor did I mind since I hate being the leader of anything.

Nodding, I rushed to the hostage's location. Despite how close I got to them, I still couldn't see what they were as the sun felt like it was getting harsher and harsher by the second. The Pokemon I was trying to reach was tied rope, which was already partially scorched due to being near the lava, but judging by how thick the rope was, it would've taken a while for it to burn. Cautiously I moved closer to them, keeping an eye on the lava as it bubbled next to the tree. If only you knew how terrifying it is to be near lava…

"Liloxi, I don't think we have much time, hurry!" Miya demanded as they kept looking around. The laughter continued to grow.

"I know, I know, but the lava isn't making this any easier! I said, keeping my distance.

Reaching for the rope, the Pokemon tied up started flailing around, attempting to speak. I couldn't tell what they were saying as this went on for a few seconds before suddenly stopping. Confused, I reached for the rope a second time until the pokemon attempted to speak again, and this time, I was able to make out a word that no matter how muffled it would be, anyone would understand: "Run"

Behind the tree, a massive figure leaped out of the lava and tackled me hard enough to send me back to where Pumpkin and Miya were standing. Shocked, they rushed to me, helping me back up.

"Liloxi! Are you ok?" Miya said as she and Pumpkin helped me up. "What hit y-"

Cutting herself off short, she looked towards the tree and then at Pumpkin, who was already trembling miserably. The thing that attacked me was none other than the abomination Pumpkin mentioned to us, and to be honest, the Pokemon was even more horrifying than what he described.

Now, Every detail was there, yes, but...from the missing eye to the ominous marking under his eyes sockets, I could have gone my whole life without seeing this thing. It even has darknesses shrouding it, almost like a black flame. I wouldn't be surprised if it was death itself. This is when I know that this mission was way out of our league.

"That can't be a Pokemon…" Miya said in a horrified tone. Gritting her teeth, she stepped forward. "I-It doesn't matter, we need to get the hostage and get out of here!"

"No one is going anywhere!" The Mightyena said in a loud, heavy tone. At the entrance, Fire shot out of the ground, blocking our only way out.

"Where are the items I requested!"

"We didn't bring them! Miya shouted, standing her ground. Her voice was surprisingly confident, but it didn't hide the fact that her legs were shaking a little. who could blame her? "We came here for the hostage and we intend on leaving with them!"

"You're a cocky little Chikorita. Let's see if that holds up as my 'hostage' takes a swim." The Mightyena proceed to spit fire at the roots of the tree, immediately catching it on fire.

"The hostage!" Pumpkin cried out.

"Don't worry, I got them!" I said as I headed for the tree again.

"Boys, stop him!" On command, Poochyenas sprung bushes, towards me. Cursing my overgrown feet, I was no match for their speed as they started catching up with me. Just as one was about to grab me with its sharp fangs, vines suddenly shot out of the ground and grabbed a few of them, anchoring them to the ground. In a rage, the Mightyena charged after Miya before taking a hit from Pumpkin's Thundershock. Despite doing no damage, the Mightheya turned toward Pumpkin and began walking toward him. Frightened, Pumpkin attempted to use Thundershock again in an effort to stop him from getting any closer, but no dice. Upon seeing this, Miya quickly gets in between them and throws a few Razor Leaves at the Mightyena's face, only for it to bounce off without leaving a mark.

"Out of my way..." Without warning, he backhands Miya, knocking her off to the side with a crash, throwing dirt and ash into the air. Despite putting no effort into it, the damage was great. She was still conscious but unable to move.

Without the strength to hold them down, the Poochyenas quickly broke free from the vines and ran towards me again. The look in their eyes...you would think they were hunting prey, grinning sadistically as they began shortening the distance between them and me. The most unsettling part was the smoke pouring from the sides of their mouths as they ran. I knew I needed to act fast, but how? I didn't have any claws and I certainly didn't have any moves that could put out the fire fast enough. I needed to think outside the box. At a moment's notice, I suddenly had an idea.

Quickly, I held out my paw and formed a sharp piece of Ice. Despite how hot it was, I made it sharp enough that it would be able to cut the rope before it melted. Getting straight to work, I began cutting the rope. Enraged, one of the Poochyenas darted at me, at full speed, and began charging some sort of fire attack from its mouth. Noticing it, I waited until it got close enough to me and kicked it in the chin, causing its jaw to slam shut and the attack to explode in its mouth, knocking it out. The force of the explosion made flames shoot out of its nose, setting the leaves of the tree on fire above. As the fire quickly spread, the mob behind me halted as Large branches dropped in front of them. Light quickly pierced through the leaves and branches, shining on both myself and the hostage; The harshness of it made it feel like my fur tuff was going to burst into flames. Turning away from the light, I looked back at the hostage and...I paused...

My heart started racing as I suddenly realized what-no, who was tied up. Adorned in something that looked like an elegant, pure white dress with frills that went over their eyes like hair and two red horns on opposite ends. It was a Ralts. Stunned, I stood there and looked, forgetting everything that was happening. The burning roots, the leaves catching fire, the crisis Pumpkin was in; everything. But that's when it hit me. What if this wasn't him? There was only one way I could know. Snapping out of it, I grabbed the rope and cut off the very last bit before the ice melted, freeing the Pokemon from the tree as it finally lost its grip on the soil and tumbled into the lava.

Carrying the Ralts, my heart kept fluttering. If only anyone could feel what I was feeling as I held the Ralts in my arm. However, I couldn't get ahead of myself as the Pokemon could be anyone…

Turning around, my heart went from skipping beats to sinking into my stomach as a dozen or so Poochyenas cornered us. Taking a step back, my foot slipped, and almost touched the lava. The sheer pain from the heat emitting from it was enough to cause my foot to propel itself away without enough thinking. Looking over, I saw Miya slowly picking herself back up. A terrible claw mark was imprinted on her face, but fortunately, she wasn't burnt. Her expression was frantic as she forced herself to get up. At first, I didn't know why she was pushing herself so hard to get up until I looked at Pumpkin.

The monster, the so-called, "Mightyena", was looming over Pumpkin as he had him pinned to the ground. Showing his vicious flaming fangs, he snarled with disgust as he itches his face closer to Pumpkin's.

"Pathetic. How could a weakling like you hold such an ability. Dis-gusting." Growling, the Mightyena, chomps at Pumpkin's face, his fangs leaving a scorching scar on Pumpkin's cheek. The Mightyena laughs scornfully.

"You know what I hate more than weaklings? Stupid little FELINES like yourself. Especially Shinxs. Do you think your evolution line is as high and mighty as OURS!? Your whole species disgust me, especially a little PEON LIKE YOU!"

Raising his fiery claws into the air, Miya screamed as she gathered all the strength she had left and ran towards Pumpkin. The moment I saw what he was about to do, a flood of emotions welled up inside me. All I could think about was this monster about to end the lives of Pokemon I first saw as strangers, now seeing them as friends. Closing my eyes, I was unable to control my emotions. I shouted at the top of my lungs, and without any warning, an eruption of light engulfed the area. The shockwave, so powerful, pushed back the mob back and the Mightyena to halt. With all eyes looking in our direction, I looked down and realized that the Ralts in my arms was glowing as well. Unable to wait and oblivious to everyone looking at us, I took the face-covering off. Moving their frill-like hair to the side, it revealed, not just the face of a Ralts...No, it revealed the face of someone I lost 5 years ago as I looked into their bright orange eyes.

"Lave…? Is...Is that you?"

"Took you long enough," He said as he smiled at me.

Despite the sheer happiness that I felt, the ground started shaking violently without warning. Out of nowhere, the ground began splitting in the area, causing some of the Poochyenas to fall in. Panicked, the rest of them ran towards the forest, leaving their Boss behind. As the quake continued, Miya came to her senses and Headbutted the Mighthyena off of Pumpkin, enough to stagger him and knock him into the fissure, only to barely cling to the edge of an already unstable ground. In the midst of the chaos, the flames that trapped us in the main area suddenly blasted away by a gust of wind, sending smoke into the air.

From the smoke, Chatot emerged.

"COME ON! LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!"

Quickly, Miya picked up Pumpkin with her vines and ran towards the exit, with us following closely. Behind us, the voice of the monstrosity Howled in rage as it continued to cling to the edge for dear life. His voice boomed through the nowempty forest.

"THIS ISN'T OVER!

"WE WILL FIND YOU!"

"ALLLLLLLLL OF YOOOOOOOU!"