Whoa. This chapter was released a week after the last one. Crazy. I've also been trying to build the world in the last few chapters. Oh and If you notice something different about this chapter, it's probably because I planned it out. Here's hoping I can continue the streak.

Day 70

The castaways made their way to the lagoon. Under the shade of the forest, the trip was pleasant. It has been a month since Lazuli hatched, so more than enough time for the swarm of krabby to disperse. The little dragon had grown five feet long and barely fit on Daniel's shoulders. She was a curious pokemon. More than once she slunk away to sniff at what lay under the brush, and big brother Wilson would follow. Usually, she found a bug or flowers, but today she found a strange stone. She held it with her teeth and brought it to Daniel. It was red, smooth, and somewhat familiar to Daniel.

One of those gut feelings again. This stone can do something, it's an item from one of the games. I just know it.

Daniel pocketed the stone. Maybe the answer would come to him later. Right now, he had a mission: scout out the lagoon. Daniel felt calm about returning to the place where a hole was punched in his left foot. There was no use in being anxious. If he saw the swarm, he would leave. If there were only a few krabby, Wilson would battle them. Any time Daniel tried to battle wild pokemon, they ran away after the first hit or didn't even engage. So a few little crabs wouldn't deter him. Fish would get stuck in the lagoon between the changing tides, so fishing was easier there. Ever since Lazuli hatched, Daniel was eating less protein. He craved a slab of steak, strips of bacon, or even chicken soup. It was nearly impossible to keep thoughts of food out of his mind. Food he could never have while stuck on this island. Everything here tasted so bland. If he could help it, Daniel would never eat a coconut for the rest of his life. The castaways saw the lagoon in the distance. It was blue, devoid of any crab-like lifeforms, and a sandbar separated it from the sea. Hopefully, there would be fish trapped there. This was good. Now for this mission's secondary objective.

"Alright, Lazuli. It's about time you learned how to go fishing." Daniel met Lazuli's curious gaze.

"I'll be honest, I really want to eat more, and the only way that's going to happen is if you help out You've seen me fishing with a spear many times. You were on my shoulders remember? You even dove into the water trying to catch one. You did your best, but you were still just a baby then. Right now, I think you've grown enough to actually pull it off. And it will be easier to catch fish in the calm water of the lagoon."

Lazuli just stared. Daniel could imagine smoke coming from her ears.

"It'll make more sense when we reach the lagoon." Daniel then leads the group onward.

Soon the group reached the lagoon. Its shallow waters shimmer with a turquoise hue, reflecting brilliant sunlight into Daniel's eyes. The surface of the water is calm and serene, disturbed by the rhythmic movement of fish. Many swam aimlessly in the water. Some were silver and narrow while others were colorful, wide, and flat. Daniel even spotted one as large as his arm.

How the hell did that get stuck in here?

That would be his target for today. As for Lazui...

"Ok, Lazuli. Why don't you go catch some fish and put it in this basket? Please try not... do not eat them until we are done ok?" Lazuli responded with a nod. "Good."

Lazuli slithered into the water, frightening away all the fish. She paused, perhaps surprised, perhaps choosing which fish to chase. She decided on a hand-sized silver fish that would be easy to grab onto. Her head remained still as the rest of her body wiggled, propelling herself forward. The fish dodged erratically, causing Lazuli to miss. She turned and pounced once more. Again the fish managed to dodge. On the third try, Lazuli caught her target. The fish's scales were paper under her teeth. A wave of accomplishment washed over Lazuli. The feeling grew when she placed her prize in the basket near Daniel. He had managed to catch a fish as well.

"Wow! That's great, Lazuli. Keep it up." Daniel resumed walking around the edge of the lagoon.

Lazuli returned to the waters of the lagoon. It seemed that the first fish was beginner's luck. Most of the fish weren't as large as Lazuli's first catch. They were much better at dodging too. They always moved at the last possible second. This started to irritate Lazuli, who began trying to jump out of the water and then onto her targets. This netted about three small fish before they wised up to the ploy. The fish started moving as far away from her as soon as they sensed her. She couldn't get close enough to bite them. Soon Lazuli had exhausted herself and couldn't keep pace with the fish swimming for their lives. Maybe there was another way. She had seen Wilson use his moves, why couldn't she do the same? But his moves "ate" things and Daniel had told her not to eat the fish until they were done. Lazuli searched within herself and found something. It was erratic and wild like the movement of the fish, but infinitely faster. It was nothing like Wilson's destructive moves. This didn't want to eat anything. It wanted to move. It couldn't stop moving. Motion was its entire being. It wanted direction, a path, a vector with which it could indulge its nature. So Lazuli directed it.

Daniel's legs cramped. "Ow", he thought. He managed to keep himself upright in the water by leaning on his fishing spear. Soon the cramps were over and Daniel resumed fishing, but the one he was looking at wasn't moving anymore.

What the hell?

Daniel walked towards the fish. It remained still. He stooped down and picked up the fish with his free hand. It was very tense. As if its entire body were cramped. Daniel looked around. Nothing but the calm lagoon and Lazuli swimming over to the basket with a fish in her mouth.

"Nice job."

Lazuli swam away without acknowledgment. Daniel thought nothing of it then noticed the expression on Wilson's face. He was mildly shocked.

"What is it, Wilson?"

Wilson nodded to the basket of fish, then to Lazuli. Daniel looked at his little dragon, who was already swimming back, then he inspected the basket. The fish she had brought back was perfectly still and had no bite marks or visible blood. Daniel picked it up and found it was tensed up like the one he found after his cramp. Lazuli returned with two fish this time. Now, Daniel was curious.

"Lazuli. How did you catch these fish?"

An arc of electricity ran across the jewel on Lazuli's forehead.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Daniel scrambled out of the water. "Oh. Wow. Ok. You can use pokemon moves now! You used Thunder Wave to paralyze the fish. That's awesome! You're awesome!" Daniel beamed.

Lazuli exalted in the praise.

"This is going to make fishing so much easier. We'll be eating well now!"

Thanks to Lazuli, their basket was filled within the hour.

Kindle Road, One Island

Azalea rode Smoldering at a trot along the paved road. It led to Mount Ember, a popular tourist spot thanks to its hot springs. Azalea wasn't going there today, she was heading to the caves of Mount Ember. The caves are a trainer route, which meant that wild pokemon could be battled and caught there with minimal restrictions. Trainer routes could be dangerous, uncivilized, and wild places where help could take days to reach you. However, Mount Ember was a low-risk route now thanks to the nearby hot springs resort. Academy students get to go on field trips to Mount Ember every year. There they learn how to use and travel on trainer routes. They also get to camp for the weekend. Azalea remembered her first field trip to the route as a freshman. Nicole (and her parents' money) had convinced the teachers to make the camping part optional. Azalea and about half the students decided to camp for the trip while the other half got to stay two nights at the resort courtesy of the Morgan family.

Why did she even go on the trip? Oh right.

After the trip, rumors spread about the wild night a group of students had after sneaking out. Supposedly, they entered a bar, got drunk, did some mixed bathing, and had a wild orgy. Azalea knew the truth. She had pieced it together from Nicole's comments over the years. It was hard to ignore the girl when she roomed with her. Nicole had convinced some girls to sneak out on the second night, but they were caught trying to get alcohol at the hotel restaurant. A very stupid place to try. A male teacher had spotted them and chased them all the way to the women's locker room, where he had to stop. Eventually, the girls had to come out, but as far as Azalea knew, no one was punished.

How the fuck did she get away with that one.

Smoldering reached a fork in the road. Straight ahead was the resort and the gravel path to the right had a sign. It read:

Mount Ember Trainer Route.

Pokemon Level: Yellow

Environment Hazard: Green

Trail Difficulty: Green

NOTICE: Pokemon level increases up the mountain.

REMAIN NEAR THE BASE of the route for your own safety.

Azalea took the gravel path into the forest. Smoldering could handle the pokemon at the base of the route. Those were only rated green. Route signs always showed the highest ratings for the entire route. Smoldering could probably keep Azalea safe from one or two yellow-rated pokemon before needing to be healed. But Azalea wasn't going to climb up the mountain and encounter those. Instead, she rode the gravel path until another fork in the road. Another sign, carved in wood with a knife read:

← mountain

lava tubes →

Azalea took the path to the right. Smoldering had to slow down as the path became more and more untamed. Vines fell from branches as the canopy grew dense. Sunlight touched the forest floor in small patches. Small shrubs and grasses clung to the trail's edges, threatening to cover it. The gravel path morphed into a dirt trail strewn with tree roots and becoming narrow. Eventually, the path ended, the way forward marked by metal poles painted orange. Azalea dismounted Smoldering and returned him to his pokeball. She followed the poles a short distance before she spotted the entrance to the lava tubes. The mouth of the cave was 10 feet tall, round, and smooth. The stone was red like rust and was starkly void of any plants. The darkness within the cave seemed to swallow all traces of light, creating an aura of deep, impenetrable gloom. As Azalea entered the cave, a cool breeze emanated from the depths, chilling her in more ways than one. She stopped a few yards in.

This is hidden enough.

Azalea released Smoldering from his pokeball. The flash of light coalesced into a flaming pony that banished the darkness farther inward.

"Let me know if anyone shows up"

Smoldering nodded, then turned to the mouth of the cave and began watching. Azalea put her bag down and unzipped it. Inside was a white karate gi, pants, and an old belt. The belt was once a pristine white, now it was marred by years of sweat and dirt that colored it grey. Likewise, the gi and pants were well-worn. Each crease and stain was a mark of skill, proof of the work she had done. The lapels were frayed from years of being thrown and the cuffs were wide from hours being dragged. The pants were stained at the knees and shins from kicking the bag. Azalea donned the uniform, putting her casual t-shirt and shorts in the bag. She took off her socks and shoes. The floor felt like dust on top of cold concrete. She sat formally in the seiza position, as she always did before a kata. Then she rose to her feet, adopting a wide stance with two arcing steps. She bellowed a powerful Kiai.

"SEI-YAA!"

Her aura ignited within. The energy, once dormant and still, swirled to life in her core. She willed aura around her body. To her hands, down her legs to her feet, and to her head. Soon her body was protected by a barrier that made her as strong as a pokemon. She continued the kata. Stepping back and forth without crossing her feet, Throwing a punch, exhaling and stepping. Loosing powerful kicks to an imaginary leg. Launching her knee into a clinched opponent. Spinning an elbow right at their chin. The entire time she worked to keep the aura flowing. If it stopped, the barrier protecting her would fail. Azalea began sweating. Her breath hastened. She was almost done with this kata. This next move would be the finale. She adopted a neutral stance and began pulling her hands to her abdomen. She twisted her hips and sank deeper in her stance. She willed aura from within her abdomen outwards into her hands. It swirled into a sphere, glowing a deep blue. She threw her hands forward in a distinct motion, keeping the heels of her hands together as she twisted her hips and launched a mighty Aura Sphere.

"ORA!"

The attack hurdled down the cave like a comet, illuminating the rugged walls deep within once shrouded in darkness. It burst with a thundering crack as it slammed into a cave wall. The sound echoed up and down the cave several times, the darkness seemed to swallow the sound as it quieted. Azalea returned to the first position of the kata and started again.

"Ora-ryu isn't like other martial arts." Grandpa's words echoed in her mind. "I've told you the story before. It was created to protect humans from pokemon, before we started catching and training them. So it is a lethal art if used on another person. That's why we train in secret and that's why you will never use its techniques on another person."

Grandpa had started Azalea's training in earnest when she was ten years old. It was no coincidence that he started after her parents left. Grandpa changed that day. He made fewer jokes, but that was because he was a strict teacher. Azalea hated her parents for a few years. She hated that they left her to exercise with Grandpa. Hated that Mom left without a word. Hated that Dad followed her, leaving only a note that said "Sorry" as if that made it ok. Grandpa would never budge when the topic was brought up. In fact, he made her run laps the first few times she asked. But by now her hatred had boiled down to resentment. She tried not to think about them too much. She refocused herself on the kata. Pouring her emotion into each Aura Sphere which crashed like thunder and burst like fire upon impacting the walls.

All heat and no light. Azalea Thought.

Thank you so much for reading my story! We're almost to 150 favorites and 250 followers! I can't believe those numbers. especially when my upload schedule is so screwed. Do you guys even like Azalea? I don't know how people feel about her taking half the spotlight. This story is advertised as a survival story and yet half of it is a slice of life about a girl who just wants to leave her hometown. I like her because I was getting tired of writing a dude talking to himself all the time. But Azalea ended up being lonely too!

Some of you might be questioning the M rating and frankly, so am I. But, I want to use it for some steamy scenes later on. How much later? Too much later. With whom? Great question. Does comedy come in threes?