~ Stout Canyon, Gullveria ~

"So this is Stout Canyon?" Traximus asked, "This town is sure, uh, barren?"

"The town only has a population of a couple hundred pokemon, so no wonder it's so small." Beruka responded.

Kroto rolled his eyes, "At least it makes it easier to narrow down who we're looking for. Come on, let's find our Larvitar and head back."

Team Nova passed through the town with little effort, managing to get over towards the market in record time. At the dead center of the market, the crew gathered around began pressing their options.

"Alright guys," Traximus opened, "So we're in the market. Let's split up. Kroto, Rico and I will take the west side. Palla, Kruler, Beruka, can you guys take the east side?"

"Okay!" Palla agreed, "Come on guys, let's find this Larvitar!"

Kruler, surprised by Palla's enthusiasm, silently complied with the directions given and began heading east. Palla gleefully followed behind with Beruka not too far off, leaving the three boys behind.

"Which shop do you want to hit up first, Traximus?" Rico asked.

"No clue," Traximus responded, "Let's just start somewhere like…" He pointed to a shop that was selling berries. The Kecleon shopkeep was currently selling some wares to another pokemon. "There. We can ask that guy."

The team approached the shopkeeper after the other pokemon left. Eyeing the group approaching, the shopkeep greeted, "Hello, hello! How may I serve you on this fine day?"

Rico took initiative, "Sir, we're looking for a lost Larvitar. Do you know anything about him?"

"Hmm. I haven't seen any Larvitar around here personally, but I remember that somebody said that there was a Larvitar snooping around the wares."

"I see. Anything else?"

"Nope. That's the last I've heard of one. Do you need anything else?"

Rico tapped his chin. He then looked up to a crate of yellow and orange colored berries on display. Eyeing the inevitable fantasization, Kroto said, "No sir, I believe we're done here. Come on Rico, we're leaving."

"Aw come on! I'm hungry."

"We can eat after."

Kroto had to nearly drag Rico from the stand to prevent him from leaping at the shopkeep. Traximus merely sighed and continued walking with his group.

Meanwhile, Palla was asking around some shoppers. She managed to stop two nidoran who had just bought some TMs from the shop nearby.

"Excuse me! Do you have a moment," The Axew asked.

The male nidoran glanced at her, "Sure, what's up?"

"Have you seen a Larvitar around here recently?"

The male looked to his mate and then back to Palla, "No, I haven't seen anybody like that. Are you an exploration team by chance?"

Palla tilted her head, "Yeah, why?"

The female nidoran looked back and forth before leaning into the earshot of Palla. She then whispered, "If I were you, I'd be suspicious of that stall over there." She led Palla's vision to a shop where a Maschiff was selling some wares. "I heard that the Maschiff that sells things there is into some pretty shady business…"

"Okay," Palla whispered back, "We'll check it out."

Breaking away from the duo, the group of girls huddled around. "Right," Beruka started, "So we investigate this Maschiff, and if he attacks us, we kick his tail. Simple!"

"Sure, but," Kruler turned to Palla, "What's got you so invested? You were a nervous wreck when I first met you."

"I-I thought I could be better if I helped other pokemon," the Axew replied, shuddering, "But I am nervous now… What could that Maschiff be hiding?"

"Only one way to find out," The Totodile began strolling over towards the Maschiff's stall.

With a shrug, the Rillaboom and the Axew joined up with Kruler. The Maschiff, taking notice of the group, began meticulously sniffing down the air around them.

"Smells like… Explorers…" The Maschiff growled at Kruler, "What do you ugly bunch want?"

"That's no way to not arouse suspicion," Kruler snapped back, "We're just here to see what you're selling!"

"Yeah, right!" The Maschiff snarled, "You're probably here to take our hostage back!"

The group of girls went wide-eyed. Realizing his mistake, the Maschiff whimpered and said, "Oopsie! I let it slip!" The puppy pokemon then ran back further into the stall screaming, "Kintaro! E-Exploration team! What do we do?!"

"Take the hostage and run!" A voice from behind the stall ordered, "We'll deal with the Exploration Team!"

At that moment, a scampering Maschiff with a Larvitar in his maw ran out the side of the stall. Coming out the front was a Machoke, two Pawniard, and two Bisharp. The Machoke appeared to be wearing a bandana around his neck that had a dark purple hand with a vortex pattern imprinted on the front.

"Guys!" Kruler screamed at the boys in the back, "They have our target! And they're running away with him!"

That yell got the attention of Kroto, who dropped Rico upon hearing the news. He turned his attention towards the Maschiff sprinting vaguely in his direction, who immediately veered to his right when he noticed Kroto.

"Like hell he is!" Traximus yelled, "Kroto, chase that Maschiff! Rico, with me! We need to help Kruler!"

Kroto did as instructed, sprinting full speed after the dog pokemon. Meanwhile, the Machoke took initiative, launching a bullet punch at the Rillaboom. The sudden attack took Beruka by surprise, knocking her back several feet, and separating her from the rest of the group. The Bisharp and Pawniard surrounded the smaller female pokemon briefly before Traximus arrived with Rico in tow.

"The cavalry has arrived!" Rico declared, launching a water gun at the Bisharp closest to Kruler, knocking it several feet to her left.

The ensuing battle caused civilians to begin scattering. The other shopkeepers began packing up items or taking cover behind their stalls. The shoppers, meanwhile dispersed from the scene, screaming.

"Darn it!" The Bisharp screeched, "That hurt too much for a simple water gun! Who are you, Froakie?!"

"I'm a-"

"Shut up! Fight!" Kruler yelled, charging up a waterfall attack at the Pawniard to her right. The Pawniard dodged the attack, however, hitting her in the back with a Night Slash in retaliation. A shriek followed Kruler sliding to a halt away from the group.

Palla gritted her teeth and braced herself. She charged at the Pawniard to her left with an aqua tail, but missed like Kruler. The Axew managed to dodge the retaliating night slash in time for it to just barely nick her chest, but the attack still stung a bit. A bit of dragon fire from behind the Pawniard, however, gave Palla the breath of fresh air that she needed, as she realized that Traximus had used ember on the Pawniard, knocking it out.

"Thank you!" Palla yelled, then turning to the other Pawniard, "Y-You're cowardly! Taking hostages!"

"Says the one who's stammering over their words," The Pawniard responded, rushing Palla with a night slash.

Rico managed to intercept the attack, launching a water gun attack at it. The Pawniard succumbed to the pressure of the water gun and was launched far into the background. Meanwhile, the other Bisharp was fighting Kruler. Kruler was having trouble keeping up with the Bisharp's defenses and was knocked backwards by an iron head attack.

"Damn it!" Kruler shouted, attempting to recharge her waterfall attack, "I can't lose here!"

"You're finished, Totodile!" The Bisharp yelled, charging another iron head at Kruler, causing her to be thrown back towards Palla.

"No!" The Axew shouted, placing her hand on Kruler's chest. When she confirmed that she was still breathing, Palla turned back to the Bisharp with fear in her eyes.

Kruler barely had the energy to stand up, her legs quivering, her head pounding, her arms sore. The Bisharp was approaching ever closer, and they were still nowhere close to winning this battle. 'If this… creature reaches Palla, what will he do to her?' Kruler shuddered at the possibilities and forced herself back into a battle stance.

'I can't go on much longer like this!' Kruler looked around. Her teammates, Traximus and Rico weren't particularly struggling against the other Bisharp, but they weren't making much progress, either. Meanwhile, Beruka was dealing with the Machoke, and was somehow being pressured.

'My teammates! They're doing well! So why can't I? Ever since Magcargo, I've felt like a drag! They left me out of the fun of the Excadrill Gang! Now this?! No… This is MY fight!'

"I won't lose! You hear me?! I won't lose!"

Kruler began to glow a light blue glow. The glow blinded most of the team and the opposition. Most other parties covered their eyes, and when the lights dimmed, something rushed out and charged at the Bisharp. When it collided, a jet of water launched the Bisharp far out into the distance.

As the other pokemon opened their eyes or stopped covering their faces, they noticed that the Totodile was missing. In its place, a larger pokemon appeared. Its jaw was larger, its body was larger… It's almost like…

"Kruler! You've evolved!" Traximus shouted.

The newly-evolved Croconaw silently rushed the other Bisharp, hitting him with the hardest hitting waterfall attack causing him to fly backwards and skid to halt on his chest. The remaining Pawniard soon turned around and attempted to flee. However, Kruler caught up nearly instantaneously, and charge tackled him, knocking him out.

The Machoke, noticing the obvious turn against him, drew out an orb. "Tch! I won't forget this!" He shattered the orb on the ground, causing a blinding light to be cast over the entire market. After the light faded, the Machoke disappeared, leaving no trace behind.

"Beruka!" Traximus called out, "Where is the Machoke?!"

"No clue! But we can't worry about that now! Where's that Larvitar and Maschiff?!" The Rillaboom shouted.

"Maschiff? Apprehended. Larvitar? Secured."

Kroto suddenly made his appearance, with an unconscious Maschiff in one arm and the Larvitar in the other. "Had to knock out the captor to get to our one in need. Poor little guy… Anyway, what happened to you guys? Are you…"

Kroto glanced at Kruler, "Wow… So you evolved? You look stronger!"

"Thank… You…" Kruler felt her head spin and her vision blurred. As she lost her balance and fell over her weight, she fell to the ground and shut her eyes.

"Hmm… It seems like the battle pressure got to her," Beruka commented, "But nonetheless, let's tie up our criminal and escort our client back to his parent."

"Agreed," Traximus nodded.

~ Northrun, Gullveria ~

Bastian and his crew warped back from Lively Town, warping to a relatively low profile area in the city. When the lights faded, the gleams of the keys they collected remained, providing a set of colorful gleams against the dull shades and hues of the surrounding area.

"So… We now have four keys. And a complete set nonetheless…" Bastian grumbled.

Fafnir stretched his body, "What now, boss? What key do we go after next?"

"I imagine that if our luck is anything like how rare these keys are, then that brat Alcryst has likely deduced our location." Bastian glared at his satchel on his hip, "Perhaps these keys can assist with dealing with that."

"You mean… It's time?" Shasha gasped, "If we release them now, they might not have enough power in the future."

"Now, now Shasha," the Zoroark shook his mane, "These three are for insurance purposes. But I can't release them here, not with all the witnesses around. Let us travel to the outskirts of town. There we will release the slumbering beasts."

Bastian began to file out of the city through some alleyways. The other two followed suit, leading the group to find a forest situated just outside of town. When Fafnir and Shasha had determined the coast was clear, they returned to Bastian.

"Boss, the coast is clear," Fafnir confirmed, "Are we ready to proceed?"

"Yes. Stand back."

Doing as instructed, the Dragapult floated backwards just a bit. The Zoroark placed all three keys in a triangle formation, and began drawing a sigil in paint. Shasha looked on in confusion, even looking back to Fafnir, who looked equally as confused. When Bastian was finished, he stood back and began chanting. After a while, there was a bright white light that emitted from the sigil.

"Mighty Thunder! Valiant Magma! Courageous Wave! I seek your power!" The Zoroark shouted.

A wormhole appeared from above the sigil. Then, from it, a lightning bolt first crashed into the yellow key. Then a pillar of fire appeared from the red key. Lastly, a torrent of water appeared from the blue key.

"You seek our power? One who has collected all three of the beast keys?" A feminine voice bellowed from the waters.

"Yes! I have a goal in mind for you. You need but follow my orders!"

"...Speak them, and it shall be done!" The pillar of fire spoke.

"There is one about, an Alakazam. Has implants in his face. I need the three of you to dispose of him." The Zoroark held up an image of Alcryst, "Here, this should give you a better look…"

A moment of silence passed as the three beasts inspected the image. After a while, the surge of lightning said, "Permission to kill?"

"Permission granted," Bastian responded.

After the last sentence, the trio of pillars vanished, revealing three beasts. One, a yellow pokemon with a purple mane and fangs longer than its maw. Another, brown, regal with a red crest. And the last one, blue with a mane that resembled an aurora borealis and two streamer-like tails.

"Then it shall be done," Raikou grinned, maliciously.

~ Tradneer Outpost ~

"Oh my goodness! You found my son!"

Palla watched as the Larvitar jumped into the arms of Jeralt. She couldn't help but smile, as did most of her teammates. "He was very brave. And he never once complained on the way back, either!"

Jeralt, with tears in his eyes, looked at Palla and said, "Oh, young explorers… How can I repay you?"

Rico, still smiling perked up, "Well, you can-"

"It's on the request." Kroto bumped Rico with his elbow, disdainfully, "He's going to give us 500 coins."

"Oh… Right, right…" Rico sulked.

The Rhydon, noticing the despairing Froakie, responded, "Don't look so glum! In fact, for saving my son so timely, I'll add a bit extra!"

"Huh?!" Kroto backed away, bewildered.

"Right. I'm upping the pay to 1500 coins. Just for you and your team!" Jeralt looked over the group, "From the looks of it, it seems like you're new. I know what it's like to be a newbie at things. Your boss overlooks your presence and underpays you and all that. So here's a jumpstart from me and Kastro here! Say thank you, little buddy!"

"Thank you!" The little Larvitar squeaked, running over to Palla, "When I get big like you, do you think I can become an explorer?"

"Oh! Of course!" Palla responded, "I'm sure that your team will be a grand one!"

"Wow!" Kastro yelled, turning to his father, "Papa! Did you hear?! I'm gonna have a grand team!"

"Ha! Ha! Come back now, little one!" The Rhydon picked up three large sacks of coins and passed it along to Kroto, "Well, here you are, your payment!"

Kroto, thankful, stated, "I appreciate it! Have yourselves a good one!"

"You too! Goodbye!" Jeralt yelled back.

"Bye!" Kastro squeaked at the team.

The team began making their way back to Wayne's guild. A wave of both accomplishment and excitement washed over them. Kruler's evolution, the defeat of their enemies, the payment, the return of the Larvitar, it all did wonders to swell the heart of Palla.

"So, what did you think of your first mission?" Beruka asked.

"Man, it was awesome!" Rico screamed, "We got a ton of money, we kicked butt, and one of our teammates got stronger! What's there not to love?!"

"And that's not all," Traximus pointed out, "We also managed to complete our mission nearly flawlessly. Though that was because we had Beruka helping us out, if I'm being realistic."

"Hehe." Beruka placed her hand on her neck, "I did relatively nothing! My job was to make sure that you did your job right, and you did. Big shocker."

"Hmm," Kroto started, "By the way, Beruka, were you fighting that Sceptile at the Training Grounds yesterday?"

"Yeah? You mean the Sceptile of Team Blade?" Beruka asked.

"Team Blade? Wayne told us that you had a long standing grudge against him. What's the deal with that?"

Beruka's face transitioned from happy to serious in the matter of a split second, putting Kroto on edge, "If you must know, Team Blade is known for taking their job far too seriously. They're a group of pokemon that want to become bounty hunters, but they only accept jobs that permit excessive force, or even lethal force." Beruka then turned her attention forward, "That lead to them becoming edgier than I could ever imagine. One day, I confronted the leader, that Sceptile, as to why he only takes those jobs. That's when he attacked me and left a gnarly scar across my back, which my drum covers up."

Kroto went wide eyed, "An exploration team that specializes in excessive force?! What kind of team is that? A bunch of killers?!"

"Wayne confronted them about it after I was attacked. But ultimately the outcome was that if we had such a problem with each other then we should take it up on the battlefield, and thus became the long-standing rivalry between Team Jungla and Team Blade."

"Oh wow," Traximus commented, "Sounds like quite the battle between teams."

"Well that's what rivals are for. They help keep each other in shape," Beruka's smile returned, "But what about you guys? I've seen you glaring daggers at those Team Pixie fellows. What's up with that?"

"That dates back to the university days," Kruler chided, "They're a bunch of losers that pick on pokemon because of their types. The Meowth is a total dweeb that sucks up to his Kirlia boss, the Hattrem is completely irrelevant, and the Kirlia is the lead dancer in their ballet of stupidity."

"Huh, so not as bad as Team Blade, huh?" Beruka mumbled, "At least you weren't attacked."

Kruler, Palla, Traximus and Kroto all looked between each other, confusing both Rico and Beruka. They then turned to Beruka, and in unison said, "Boy, do we have stories for you!"

~ Inside Neltharios's Mind ~

His job was complete. He could leave his mind right now, but something was off. Those serpentine creatures were still clouding his headspace. What's more is that the larger serpent was still around. Alcryst stood watching the airspace, trying to see if there was anything else he could do.

"What are those things?" Netharios asked, rubbing his eyes, "They look like dratini… but kinda crystal-like. And also…" He gazed at his arms and body, realizing that his body was entirely different, "Did I evolve?!"

"It's as I told you. You underwent an eternarift-induced evolution. You evolved prematurely and your mind was compromised." Alcryst tapped his chin, "Although I never saw what the mind of the compromised looks like."

"So how am I supposed to fight this? Will them away?"

"I don't know if that's possible," Alcryst shrugged, "But there is something I want to try, with your consent, of course."

"Anything that will get this eterna-whatever out of my head!"

"Okay…" Alcryst beamed his looplet. Causing a bright light to shine from it. "If those things come to attack, can I get your word that you'll defend me?"

"Yeah," Neltharios agreed, "Let's see what my evolution can do!"

Alcryst began chanting. He started to swirl his arms around, similar to how he did when he reversed the eternarifts. When he did, there was a distinctive hissing sound coming from above the two pokemon. When Neltharios looked upward, he noticed the serpentine creatures launching themselves in a direct beeline towards Alcryst. Wasting no time, Neltharios jumped into action, hitting fire punch after fire punch on the serpents.

'Your latent power…'

"Huh?" Neltharios got briefly distracted and got hit directly in the right ribcage by one of the serpents, which attached to his being.

"Get off!" He responded with a fire punch, knocking the serpent off him.

'Use the power bestowed upon you…'

"Alcryst! Stop talking to me!" Neltharios screamed.

"What?!" Alcryst yelled back, "I'm busy trying to save you! I have no time to talk!"

"Then who's-"

'You have the power! Command those ferals!'

"Command the ferals?! What ferals?!"

'There's no time! Hurry and save him!'

Neltharios, instinctively, reached deep within himself. A sudden wellspring of power made its way from his stomach to the rest of his body and he felt his body become lighter. In a split second, his eyes gleamed red, and all the serpentine creatures suddenly stopped. The Charmeleon then split his arms outward, dispersing the creatures in opposite directions. When the creatures left the scene, Neltharios doubled over as the latent power dispersed from his body.

'Hmm. Very well done… But this is only the beginning. You must master this power if you want to save yourself, but more importantly, your friends…'

"Wh-Who are you?! And why do you have an interest in me," Neltharios said, to seemingly nobody in particular.

'I…Well my identity doesn't matter for now. Just be sure that you master this power, for your friends above all else…'

"Wait! What do you mean 'Save my friends'?! Traximus! Is he in danger! Answer me! NOW!"

The sky suddenly turned bright blue, with most of the serpentine creatures dissipating by dissolving into dust. Alcryst, seeing his work done, touted, "That's the first time that I've had to treat a pokemon from the inside." He then turned to Neltharios, "Now, what's this about voices? Do you feel unstable at all? Is the eternarift still affecting you?"

"I-I don't know…" Neltharios responded, "There's this voice in my head telling me that my friends are in danger, and it wants me to use my 'latent power'..."

"Latent…Power?" Alcryst repeated.

"Do you think there's something wrong with me?"

"No, but if you would, I want you to come with me. In the material world, of course. I need to compare my notes with something real quick."

"Okay. You're going to get me out of whatever encampment I'm in?" Neltharios asked, eyes gazing downward.

"Of course."