The caves of Mount Coronet had a different energy to them than Carrie anticipated. It was cold but an earthy cold. Something was Eldritch about how stone surrounded them. The wintry wilderness of routes 217 and 216 were common. Mount Coronet and the extensive cave system were foreign to her.

Esper walked up to a map inside of the cave. Daylight shown behind them into the maw of the beast. In the entrances and exits of the caverns were maps for trainers to help plan their way. After that, it was makeshift signs and trail markers other trainers left behind that served as their guides. Carrie and Esper had maps, but the inside of Mount Coronet had yet to be fully planned out. Just a rudimentary trail was marked on their map and that's what they intended to follow.

"I don't know if I trust this place," Carrie said a bit shakily. Esper turned around to face her.

"It's okay, it seems pretty straight forward. We go straight, then down. Like, all the way down. We pass by Eterna City, why must we go to Hearthome first? That's at the bottom of the mountain range. There's several other cities along the way too. Wouldn't it be imperative to even stop somewhere like Oreburgh City or Celestic Town?" Her Galarian accent got caught on the Sinnoh town names. Carrie thought it was cute.

Carrie walked closer to Esper. She stood next to her, shoulder to shoulder. They stared at the map together.

"The gym leader there is Fantina. She specializes in ghost types. If I can beat her, she can help me understand my fears. Ghosts prey on people's fear, so maybe she'll help me understand what it is I'm afraid of."

"You want her to help you recover memories from your past?"

"More or less," Carrie said quietly. "She can help me heal."

Esper nodded in agreement. "That's good enough for me."

Carrie smiled at her words. It was nice to know they had each others backs. No matter what.

They made their way south in Mount Coronet. A strong mineral smell with a slight dewy scent hung in the air. It almost reminded Carrie of the ruins she discovered outside of Lake Acuity.

"This reminds me of a cave near my home," Esper said.

"Really? I was just thinking the same thing," Carrie said. Their voices reverberated off the cave walls. Some Zubat flew away from them as they went deeper into the cave. The light source from the mouth of the cave grew dimmer as torches soon appeared. Illuminating down the caverns. Carrie felt like Mount Coronet was using its ancient weight to box them in.

"Yes. In Freezington there's two ancient ruins that lead to caves. Someone apparently found what was at the bottom of both of them but he hasn't been seen in town in years. Supposedly he hangs around Hoenn and Kanto."

Dripping water created a small river that they jumped over. Carrie grabbed Esper's hand so she wouldn't fall. A lingering touch that both of them noticed.

"What did he find?"

A Paras scurried away at the sound of their voices.

"Rumor has it that he found a Pokémon! One in both of those old ruins. Ancient records show that there were two titans that lived there. They haven't been seen in almost a thousand years. Humans built the temples to get them to appear at their last known sightings. They never showed."

Carrie felt saddened by that. Lost to time? That sounds terrifying. She kicked a rock that smacked into a Graveler. It unfurled itself and roared at her, using it's arms to launch a rock slide attack at her.

"Shit!" Carrie jumped to the side as Esper went prone.

"Spruce, I need you!" The Snover materialized in front of her. He seemed uninterested until the Gravler hit him with a mega punch.

Carrie got up and dusted herself off. She helped Esper to her feet and began shouting orders.

"Spruce quickly use ice beam!" Spruce complied and launched an ice beam, which hurt the Graveler. The rock type still kept up its assault.

"Dodge, then use seed bomb and ice beam again!"

Spruce jumped out of the way and launched a barrage of explosive seeds. After the barrage, another chilling ray of energy struck Graveler.

"Spruce come back!" Carrie called out. Spruce didn't respond to her demand. Instead, he kept attacking the rock type until it fainted.

"Damn it, Spruce! You need to listen to me!" Carrie called to her Pokémon as she marched towards him. He was triumphantly standing over the Graveler. He shot a glare her way, as if warning her to stay back.

"Return." Was all she said as she returned him to his Pokéball. Esper gingerly approached her companion.

"I don't think he respects me."

"He might be too high of a level. Your other Pokémon listen to you because you've trained them for years or feel that you can make them stronger. He doesn't feel that way."

Carrie sighed and looked at the part of the cave they were in. Areas affected by rocks and ice were shown but no major damage. "At least we didn't cause a cave in. That was a bit too close for comfort."

Esper nodded in agreement. "We should keep moving."

The two continued down the system. It was fairly straight forward. Some minor hills but all in all it wasn't bad. They were still close to Route 216 which meant there were only scratching the surface. The range was very unforgiving to those who weren't expecting it.

"If we ever need to branch off, we can. I…I want to wait until we go to Eterna. I can't go there yet," Carrie said, her voice cracking at the end.

Esper gently squeezed her hand. "It's okay. We'll go when you're ready. I need some time as well." Carrie smiled and squeezed her hand back.

They continued walking straight into the wolf's den. That's what Carrie felt as Mount Coronet continued to swallow them.

The more dark it got, the more it seemed to come alive. More Pokémon got active as the lights dimmed. Only torches illuminated their path now. A couple hours in and they'd stopped a couple times. There were natural lakes in the mountain that were beautiful to the two teens. Some were perfectly still and mirrored the stalactites above. Others were teeming with life.

"This is splendid," Esper said as a small group of Joltik scurried by. A Sableye jumped away from their flashlight beams.

"I agree," Carrie said a little too loud. A Lairon that was eating a rock jumped in fright and dug away from them. They giggled at the antics.

"Can I introduce you to one of my Pokémon?" Esper asked. Carrie could've fainted. She'd been patiently waiting to meet one of her Pokémon.

"Absolutely!"

"I must warn you, she's a bit…reclusive and shy. Something horrible happened to her first trainer. Emerge Sibyl!"

Esper pulled out a Pokéball and in a bright light a Braixen appeared. Carrie's eyes sparkled. The fire typed hid behind her trainer.

"Her previous owner didn't survive where I came from. I took her in and have been working on getting her to heal. She's incredibly powerful and a high level, but her grief holds her back." Esper brushed the fur on Sibyl's face with her hand.

Carrie felt her heart break. That poor Braixen! "Hey there Sibyl," Carrie spoke softly. She kept her distance but made eye contact. "I'm Carrie, I'm a good friend of Esper's. I'm here to help you too whenever you need me."

Sibyl showed the tiniest of smiles before standing behind Esper.

"She's shy but I can tell she likes you. When she evolves into a Delphox I know she'll have healed. Time is what stands in the way. Your affinity to ice types is similar to mine with psychic types."

Carrie felt herself tingle at that. A psychic type specialist? That must be why she seemed to always understand pokemon and have astute observations about…well everything. It's something Carrie liked about her.

'Wait. Do I like her like that? I've never liked anyone!' Esper watched Carrie fight herself with a confused look on her face. She crouched to be eye level with the fire type while Carrie handled herself.

"Sibyl, I'm sorry for not seeing you for several days. I haven't seen the rest of the team either. Eventually I will. I had to see you first. We will get through this." The Braixen smiled before looking sullen. That was the best she was going to get for now.

"Will you walk with us?" Esper asked. Sibyl nodded and got out her magic wand, ready to help defend.

"I can call out-"

"I'm sorry, but for right now it would be best to just have her out by herself. I know Moonya is your shadow but Sibyl…is delicate."

"Understood," was all Carrie said. She felt a little upset by that because she wanted Moonya to see the caves. But she knew how fragile the mind is.

Camping in a cave was much different than she anticipated. Not using tents but still being in a sleeping bag was a new experience for both of them. Snowpoint city was too cold for her to go out stargazing in a sleeping bag at night. Based on what Esper detailed Freezington to be, she could assume the same for her friend.

Nonetheless, a fire was started and food was cooked. Esper had recalled Sibyl and Moonya was now out. The Froslass was enjoying spending time with her trainer. They hadn't spent as much time together lately as they usually did. Esper sat and watched the fire intently as Carrie silently ate food.

The cave was not as silent as they hoped. Distant screams and roars were constant, dripping water, occasional rocks tumbling from time. It was a noisy environment that left Carrie on edge. Esper was equally nervous but kept a better mask on.

"Are you okay?" She asked as Carrie turned her head.

"Y-yeah, I have Moonya and you," she said. The ice type floated behind her protectively.

Unforgiving was often used to describe the range. Monsters from all over prowled the rock that divided Sinnoh. New species of Pokémon had been coming into the region from trainers all over the world. Carrie swore she heard the call of a Kommo-o while they were setting up for camp.

Camping in a cave was different than outside. Predators were much more vicious in Mount Coronet compared to the wintry forests Carrie was familiar with. Thankful for her and Esper's companions, it really felt like they were alone.

Alone, yet surrounded.

Carrie's poketch was the only way they knew how much time they were spending. It had been a few days since entering the range. She estimated they were about halfway to where it split off to Eterna City and Celestic Town. Hearthome was further down when the mountain peaks began to get shorter.

"Did you hear that?" Esper asked quietly.

"Hear what?" Carrie asked as she stopped walking.

"A voice."

Suddenly, another trainer appeared. His golden hair and gray eyes were ones Carrie didn't forget.

"It's you!" She screeched as she went to grab a Pokéball.

"Hey hey hey! Cool it!" The teenager said as he quickly moved closer to the pair.

"What do you want, Skylar?" Carrie's words dropped with venom.

"Hey, I know we got off on the wrong foot earlier, but right now we need to focus on being quiet." He spoke in a low hushed tone.

"Why should we help you?" Carrie asked as she put a hand on her hip.

"Because of that," Esper pointed behind Skylar. The torches on the wall flickered a shadow that took physical form. A monster with clanging scales and incredibly sharp claws.

A Kommo-o.

"Shit!" Skylar said as he ducked away from a dragon pulse. He pulled out a Pokéball and called out that Farfetchd he owned. Carrie pulled out her Pokéball and released Moonya who was ready to go.

"Ice beam!" "Brick break!"

The Kommo-o roared and launched a clanging scales attack that tore through the ice beam and hit Moonya. The fighting Farfetchd managed to land a brick break but seemed to do nothing. Attacks started flying back and forth.

"Esper! If you were gonna help, now's the time!" Carrie called out, dodging another dragon pulse.

"Okay. I can do this. Fay, let's do this!" Esper called out one of her own. The purple crown seeped into the pink body of the Galarian Slowking.

"Fuck yeah!" Carrie said with a smile as she looked at her friend.

"Stop flirting!" Skylar called out. He returned his Farfetchd who fainted from a close combat. "Estelle, help us!" An Espathra appeared.

"Why didn't you call her out earlier?" Carrie yelled over an explosion.

"Stop bickering!" Esper hissed out. "Fay, use psychic terrain." The Galarian Slowking nodded and pink energy swirled around him as the cavern they were in turned a bright pink. Even the torches burned a pink color.

"Now, use toxic." The psychic top nodded and lowered its head, launching a pile of poison from the crown onto the rampaging dragon. It roared as poison seeped through its scales and into its body. It launched a cluster of dragon pulses at the three.

"Moonya use ice beam into shadow ball!"

"Estelle, use psychic then lumina crash!"

Kommo-o used another clanging scales attack to counter their moves. Only lumina crash hit which did a large amount of damage. The Kommo-o roared and wildly struck out with fighting moves that all hit the walls causing a rumble of rocks to fall.

"Moonya stay with me. Use ice punch!" The ice type nodded and floated quickly over to the dragon with an icy fist. The Kommo-o dodged it and struck back with a fire punch. Moonya tumbled down as steam rose from her body.

"Fay, use eerie spell." Esper's voice was icy and direct. The Slowking nodded and struck Kommo-o with a small purple orb that seemed to do an incredible amount of damage.

"Estelle, use psychic!" Skylar called out. The psychic type nodded and sent a wave of pink energy that collided with the dragon.

"Fay; another eerie spell!" Esper ordered. Again, Fay nodded and launched a small purple orb that hit Kommo-o directly in the leg.

"Moonya please get up!" Carrie pleaded. The Froslass struggled but managed to get up. Kommo-o was panting and bloody, but still ready to fight.

"It's on the ropes. Fay, use venoshock!" Esper called out. A wave of poison struck the dragon. Kommo-o roared in pain and use a dragon pulse to dissipate the attack.

"Estelle use psychic!" The wave of energy was met with a clanging scales.

"Ice beam!" The frozen ray of energy struck Kommo-o in the back. Ice crystals began to form on the dragon who shuck them off.

"Carrie, your Froslass is done for. Do you have any others?" Skylar called out.

Carrie cursed at the situation. Moonya was at the end and needed to be recalled. Nox was too frail to take a hit. Spruce wouldn't listen to her.

"Boreas, let's go!" She called out her Type:Null. It nodded at Moonya who nodded back before fainting. The normal type was ready to avenge it's fallen teammate and close friend. It was ready to protect its trainer.

"I'm happy to see it. Let's end this!" Skylar called out. Carrie couldn't help but let a smile show through. Maybe he changed.

"Boreas, don't hold back. Use crush claw!" Carrie called out. Kommo-o had just used an outrage on Fay, which barely withstood the assault. Estelle was launching psychics and lumina crashes left and right to cause damage.

Boreas ran towards the rampaging dragon with a glowing claw and landed on its chest, gripping tightly and crushing down with full weight. Kommo-o fell and it's eyes widened.

"Iron head!" Boreas' head grew shiny and it slammed it's head onto Kommo-o's chest, breaking scales and damaging the dragon further. It roared in pain and hit Boreas with an outrage.

"Fay, one last time use eerie spell!" The Slowking nodded and launched another small purple orb. It hit Kommo-o in the chest where it's scales were broken. It was pummeling Boreas but screamed in pain at the hit.

"Boreas now, use dragon claw!" The Type:Null nodded and slashed Kommo-o with draconic energy. It roared and stumbled back. Eventually it fell with a resounding thud without moving.

The psychic terrain dissipated and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Skylar returned his Espathra and turned to face the two teens who were tending to their Pokémon. Galarian Slowking's cape had been torn and crown smashed while Type:Null's tail was ripped and head cage dented. Blood was seen on both.

"Thank you," he said. "I know we got off rough on the first time we met, and don't think I've forgotten it. But I appreciate you helping me."

Carrie nodded at him as she returned Boreas. "I haven't forgotten either." She paused. "We couldn't have won without your help."

Esper merely nodded. "It shouldn't bother anyone for a while."

They all turned to face the dragon, who had vanished.

Esper cut the tension by speaking. "I have a hunch you two know each other?"

Skylar rolled his eyes. "Yes, we've met before."

Carrie scowled as she walked up to Skylar. "A 'thank you' would be nice."

Esper raised an eyebrow. She felt an explanation would be given later.

"Thank you," Skylar sighed out. He brushed his blond hair back with his hand. He looked rough, as if he hadn't been sleeping.

Carrie huffed but put her pride aside. She took a few steps back. "You're welcome. What did you do to piss off that Kommo-o?"

Skylar shrugged. "It was already mad when I saw it. Something must've set it off."

"Not many Pokémon here that are wild would be able to challenge it. Maybe up the range and near the peaks, but not down here," Carrie responded.

"It must've come down here for…something?" Skylar said.

"Food maybe. Or maybe something stronger claimed territory."

Everyone shuddered at the thought of something stronger than a wild Kommo-o.

"I think we should travel together. Safety in numbers," Esper suggested.

Carrie and Skylar looked at each other then at Esper.

"No way!"

"I can't travel with her!"

"He's such a prick!"

"Have you seen that beast she takes around?"

"Hey! Boreas saved us and kicked ass on that Kommo-o! You should thank them!"

"It might attack me!"

Esper sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose as they bickered back and forth.

"Carrie, I'm sure Skylar is very thankful for you and Boreas' help to defeat Kommo-o. I'm not sure what they are, but nonetheless they're very obedient. Skylar, Carrie's Pokémon are no more dangerous than your own. I know you appreciate our help and deep down you want us all to travel together for the time being." Esper spoke rather diplomatically. The two quieted down and got shy.

"Y-yes, I am thankful and would like to travel together."

"I'm sorry for calling you a prick," Carrie spoke softly.

Esper smiled. "Great! Where do we go from here?"

AN: It's shorter than last chapter but I like how this ended. Skylar is now back in the mix and will be for the next few chapters. Until next time, dear readers!