TEEN: Whispers of the End

[Maxite]

Index
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5

Disclaimer
This story is rated T for TEEN due to language, graphic violence, and minor sexual content.

Characters
Barry: The hero. At fifteen years of age, he is now ready to leave on his journey. Like his sister, he strongly favors Grass-type Pokemon.
> Treecko: Barry's starter that he received from Professor Birch. A natural prankster and a partier.
> Ralts: A clairvoyant Pokémon who shows extreme compassion. Her ability to speak in sign language also makes her useful in communicating with other Pokémon.
> Scyther: A gift from Professor Gary Oak, it provides plenty of muscle to Barry's team. It loves almonds.

Gwen: A mysterious girl who is highly antagonistic towards Barry. Though cold towards him, she has an obvious warmth for Pokémon, especially her Snorunt.
> Snorunt: Gwen's lead Pokémon and her favorite, having had it since she was a young girl. It's not a strong battler, but provides excellent support.
> Giratina: Gwen's powerhouse Pokémon.
> Magnemite: Frail defensively, but it offers great attack and support options for Gwen's team.

Lily: The hero's older sister who used to run a Grass-type Gym in town, but closed it down five years ago and hasn't been heard from since.

Sola: A villainous man who wants to bring together the four terrors so he can gain access to their master's power.

Brendan: The hero in the past, who summoned Rayquaza to quell the battle between Kyogre and Groudon. He now serves as the Hoenn Champion.

Pokedex
The following Pokédex lists only fan-made Pokémon. The number of these will be kept to a minimum.

Z094: ??? (Fire/Dark)
Z095: ??? (Steel/Dark)
Z096: ??? (Bug/Dark)
Z097: ??? (Ghost/Dark): Death Pokémon

 

[Maxite]

Prologue
Fifty years ago, Kyogre and Groudon were reawakened and began to battle again. At that time, a young boy named Brendan saved the world by summoning Rayquaza, who calmed the super-ancient beasts and they returned to their slumber. Following that, the people of Hoenn believed that the land would return back to its peaceful ways again. They were terribly wrong.

A mere thirty years later, a worse catastrophe fell upon the land of Hoenn. A giant earthquake ripped through the lands. The volcano of Sootopolis collapsed and sank into the sea, a landslide buried Lavaridge, and a tsunami scoured Dewford. As terrible as the disappearance of those towns and cities was, it paled in comparison to what happened to Mauville.

The same earthquake opened a fissure in the center of Mauville, and four unknown beasts emerged from it. The first beast, cloaked in flame, set the entire town ablaze with its cries. The second beast, clad in iron, demolished the buildings with a thousand spears. The third beast, ravenous as locusts, split up into thousands of clones and devoured all of the plant life in the area, leaving the land barren. The fourth beast, a horrifying gray monster covered with bones, slaughtered all the survivors. With their evil done, the four beasts scattered off in different directions.

In the years that have followed, much of Hoenn has been rebuilt since the disaster. Mauville City still remains in ruins, as many now consider it to be a cursed place. Now the world is in danger of veering towards catastrophe again, as a new team has appeared. It's stated goal is the extermination of the four beasts, which still wander around Hoenn and cause tragedy whereever the appear, but some suspect they have ulterior motives.

Now is the time for another hero to rise up and fight against the evil that exists in the land once more. This is the story of that hero.

Chapter 1: Are you a boy? Or a girl?
It was a bright morning. The sun was shining into my room, my alarm clock was blaring as loud as it could, and I was snugly wrapped in a blanket on my bed completely asleep. I had never been a morning person; in fact, I hated mornings. Still this is a day I should be awake for.

"Barry, wake up. You have a long day ahead of you." Mother called from the doorway, then entered my room. I didn't respond one bit. Mother held out the wooden spoon she had in her hand, and walked over towards me with a sadistic grin on her face.

Five minutes later, I was up and dressed. Mother handed me a Palkia-brand bag and a sandwich and pushed me out of the door. "Stay safe, and don't go wandering into grass without a Pokémon first!" she called out as I removed the kickstand from my bicycle and headed down Route 101.

I had lived in Oldale Town for all of my life, but soon I was going to be a travelling Pokémon trainer. I had no idea what I sought, as I didn't much care for the idea of being a Champion, nor did I have interest in catching them all. I suppose I wanted to find my old sister, Lily, who left the family five years ago without a word. She used to run a Gym in town, but that closed down when she disappeared.

It was thirty minutes and I finally reached Littleroot City. My mother told me that it used to be a town long ago, but now it was a burgeoning city. At its heart was Professor Birch's Pokémon Lab. I remember the old Professor Birch, an old man who always liked to wander around looking at Pokémon in their habitats. Since he passed on, his daughter has taken over his research, and his responsibilities.

I cycled around the city for a while looking for the Lab, but I had no luck. As I rode around looking for the lab, I ran into a girl riding her bicycle around as well. I was thrown from my bike, and I could hear her crash her bike into the ground.

"Watch where you're going, jerk!" the girl screamed. As I picked myself back up, she was working on getting her bicycle off from on top of her. Her pale colored hair shone nicely in the light, and her blue eyes had a very pissed look to them.

"You going to undress me with your eyes, or you going to help me you jackass?" Although I hadn't really contemplated what she'd look like undressed, after she brought it up I did have to realize she does have a nice body. There would be more time for fantasy after I helped her up, which I picked the bicycle up off of her and offered my hand to help her up, which she smacked away.

"God, what the hell is wrong with you?" By now it should be obvious that she wasn't the friendliest of people. Still I had her attention, so I figured it wise to make the best of the situation.

"Excuse me, but do you know where the Pokémon Lab is?" I asked politely.

"Are you retarded? The Lab is a block south of here." She grabbed her bicycle and immediately left. Heeding her advice, I picked my bike up and headed a block south. The Lab was a small structure, especially compared to the large buildings that has been built around it. No wonder why I couldn't find it. I entered the lab, and a wave of stale air greeted me. God good, when was the last time this lab was cleaned? I looked around and there was mountains of papers and books lying around.

"Uh, Professor Birch? Are you here?" I called out. It was fairly dark inside, save for a few flickering fluorescent lights. A Ledyba crawling on the ceiling stopped above me and fluttered its wings. I continued walking deeper into the Lab, hoping to find some signs of human life. I passed a maze of bookshelves, seeing more and more papers lying scattered on the tile floors, but I still couldn't find the Professor, or indeed any assistants. I reached the back of the lab, but still there was no sign of the Professor.

"Mmf! Mmmmf garble!" I heard faint muffled cries from under a pile of books in the corner. I slowly walked over towards the sound, and saw the pile of books moving, along with more muffled cries. Grabbing a broom lying nearby, I poked the pile of books, and it quivered more. "Mff garble garble!" I started throwing books off to the side, and after removing a foot of books from the pile Professor Birch's head popped up from the pile.

"Oh thank goodness you were here. I was beginning to think that nobody would find me. I'm usually buried in my research, but I wasn't thinking of it so literally." the Professor explained as she slowly started squeezing herself out from the pile now that she could move. After fully extricating herself, she handed me a Poké Ball and a Pokédex.

"Huh? Don't I get to choose my starter?" I looked at the Professor with a puzzled look.

"It's a Treecko, just like you'd have wanted. Or you could dig in the pile of books I was buried in to look for the other Pokémon if you want."

"Ah, er... that's okay, thank you." I released the Treecko from the ball, and it waddled around for a bit before slipping on a loose piece of paper on the floor. It picked itself up, then walked over to a half-drank bottle of vodka lying on the floor and starting chugging the booze. Wonderful, I thought to myself, I have an alcoholic Treecko.

I returned Treecko to its Poké Ball and left after thanking Professor Birch. Hopping onto my bicycle, I headed north towards Oldale Town. By now, the sun was starting to set. Just at the entrance to Route 101 I was knocked off my bicycle by a Poké Ball being ricocheted off my skull.

"What the?!" I screamed out, looking for the culprit, and from the shadows the girl from earlier appeared.

"Are you related to Lily?" the girl asked, an evil glare in her eyes.

"Yea, she's my sister." I answer hesitantly, not quite sure what is fully going on. "Why do you ask?"

"Perfect. I will now exact my revenge on you for the shame your sister has brought upon our family." A menacing grin crossed her face as she released a Snorunt from a Poké Ball, and then proceeded to kick me in the stomach as I still laid on the ground.

I grabbed my sole Poké Ball, and called out Treecko. A drunken Treecko stumbled out, and looked at the Snorunt with a look of bemusement.

"Treecko, use Tackle!" As Treecko proceeded with his attack, I scrambled to my feet and backed away from the mysterious girl. "What the hell is your problem?" I yelled at the girl.

"Don't play stupid with me! Snorunt, use Icy Wind!" she barked. The Snorunt started breathing cold air, but luckily my Treecko was able to dodge, and proceed to tackle it again.

"I have no idea what you are talking about. My family hasn't heard from my sister in years!" I yell back, angrily. Treecko dodges another Icy Wind and gives a finishing tackle to the Snorunt.

"Ah? You don't know about your sister? What a horrible brother you must be." Her evil grin got even bigger when she realized I hadn't been in contact with my sister for a long time. "By the way, now that I look at you, are you a boy, or a girl? 'Cause you have the dumbest look ever, and you fight like a girl." Laughing, she took her Snorunt back into her Poké Ball and disappeared into the shadows once more.

I looked up at the rising moon in the sky, pondering the meaning of all of this. Regardless, I now had a purpose that I didn't have when I left home this morning: I now had to find my sister. I had to solve this mystery, of this girl who attacked me, and her motivations for attacking me.

 

[Mr Metagross]

Hm, this is a pretty good piece. I like the beginning. It's very myth-like and sounds like it was taken from an Ancient Greek story. I think it would have been a little better if you DESCRIBED the four monsters a bit more;

The fourth beast, a horrifying monster, slaughtered all the survivors.

I can't really imagine much here. Scary, got that. Beastly, got that. Surely there's something else. Usually myths can be quite vague but this is a little too much.

"You going to undress me with your eyes, or you going to help me you jackass?" Although I hadn't really contemplated what she'd look like undressed, after she brought it up I did have to realize she does have a nice body. There would be more time for fantasy after I helped her up, which I picked the bicycle up off of her and offered my hand to help her up, which she smacked away.

Wonderful, I thought to myself, I have an alcoholic Treecko.

...Lol.

A Ledyba crawling on the ceiling stopped above me and fluttered its wings. I continued walking deeper into the Lab, hoping to find some signs of human life. I passed a maze of bookshelves, but I still couldn't find the Professor, or indeed any assistants. I reached the back of the lab, but still there was no sign of the Professor.

I'm going to say something I say to a lot of authors: seriously, more setting description. If you think about it, when you write something, you have clear image of what it will look like in your mind. The reader doesn't unless you describe every inch of that image. The quote above is an example. I couldn't really think of anything resembling a lab. I eventually came to settle with a hospital. This shouldn't be happening; though it is quite difficult to describe everything since you could probably imagine it in such detail. If you read any good fic, it will usually have good "see-smell-hear-feel" description. You got most of them.

Sorry if I was a bit blunt, but anything except the things I listed were almost perfect. If I haven't said it, keep it up.

Also, you put Chapter 1 and the Prologue as the same thing. Delete one or the other.

Overall:
7/10

 

[Maxite]

Thanks Mr Metagross for your feedback. I will put this out now that the the four beasts are intentionally not described in detail for two reasons:
1) Nobody who saw those beasts lived long enough to take a picture/draw them/write down a description
2) I haven't decided what the beasts fully look like.
As far as Greek mythology, try Christian, specifically the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. I have updated the description of the fourth beast to be a bit more colorful, but how do you describe Death? In Chapter 3, there'll be a much more complete version of the legend given in the prologue.

Setting is important, I will grant you that, and I could have described the Lab in a bit more detail. I have added some more (minor) details to the description of the lab. Just imagine it as a semi-spooky place. ;P

Again, thank you for your insights, I will keep them at heart in future chapters.

 

[Mr Metagross]

Thanks Mr Metagross for your feedback. I will put this out now that the the four beasts are intentionally not described in detail for two reasons:
1) Nobody who saw those beasts lived long enough to take a picture/draw them/write down a description
2) I haven't decided what the beasts fully look like.
As far as Greek mythology, try Christian, specifically the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. I have updated the description of the fourth beast to be a bit more colorful, but how do you describe Death? In Chapter 3, there'll be a much more complete version of the legend given in the prologue.

Setting is important, I will grant you that, and I could have described the Lab in a bit more detail. I have added some more (minor) details to the description of the lab. Just imagine it as a semi-spooky place. ;P

Again, thank you for your insights, I will keep them at heart in future chapters.

Ah, much better. That small addition to the Four Horsemen cameo made a pretty big difference. I wasn't so sure about the rise with the Lab description, but oh well. Again, all the rest of the chapter was really brilliant, especially the part I pointed out that I lol'd at.

 

[Maxite]

Chapter 2: Visions of the Distant Future

I rested up for a week at my home after that crazy day, when I received my first Pokémon, and even discovered I already had a rival who jumped out of the woodwork as soon as I got my Treecko. What the mysterious girl said to me about my sister weighed down heavily on me. I refused to believe that my sister would ever antagonize anyone, but something still was amiss. My sister mysteriously disappeared five years ago, could it be possible that she turned evil? Is it possible she was kidnapped by a group of criminals and forced to do evil, or is she off fighting evil and making enemies that way? In the end, I concluded that I would find my sister my first, and then I'd ask her about the meaning of all of this.

It was a Sunday morning when I left my home to head out on my adventure again. The skies were bright blue, only a few clouds in the sky, and the sun was as brilliant as ever. I headed north into Route 102, which was one of my favorite places. My sister and I had built a treehouse in one of the trees, and decorated it with all sorts of crazy items. A storm had come by in the past year, and the tree our treehouse was in fell over. I hadn't really bothered visiting it since then, but now I figured I should head over to it one more time. I released Treecko from its Poké Ball, and it lifted its nose into the air and gave a big grin. It liked the scent of the plant life that was abundant in Route 102; the trees and bushes, the tall grasses, and also the scent of battles that would await it.

My first wild battle was against a Deerling. I had remembered hearing in school that someone had introduced Deerling to Hoenn long ago, and they'd become an invasive species, destroying ecosystems. I remembered seeing some of the people from Oldale Town going to Route 102 every autumn to hunt for Deerling and Sawsbuck. The venison from an autumn Deerling was at its most tender and juicy. No time to think about that, since its Spring right now.

A few trainer battles later, and I was reaching the old treehouse in a wooded area. I looked up, and could see sun shining through the canopy of many trees in the area, providing a speckled light effect on the ground near the crushed treehouse. Tall grasses had grown around it. I walked around it carefully, looking to see if there was anything intact in the wreckage of the treehouse. Near the back, I noticed that it had remained mostly intact, and I could see an old Bulbasaur doll lying on the ground, along with some books and magazines scattered about. As I walked toward the window to see if I could grab some of the stuff, I felt a tingle on the back of my neck. I turned around to see a Ralts preparing to attack me.

"Oh hello, is something the matter?" I calmly asked the Ralts, but it showed no reaction other than preparing an attack. I looked around for my Treecko, but I couldn't find it. "Hello." I said, and waved my hand. The Ralts immediately halted its attack and mimicked my gesture, waving Hello back at me. It then kept waving, as if inviting me to teach it more.

I had learned sign language long ago when my mother used to look after an elderly couple who were hard of hearing, and she taught my sister and I sign language so we could help her from time to time. When I was learning sign language, I had no idea that I would be using it someday to teach a wild Pokémon to communicate, much less that a Ralts can learn sign language following an exponential growth scale. Thirty minutes of signing later, and it was able to hold a full conversation with me.

"Do not fear me, I mean you no harm." the Ralts signed. "This will only sting for a minute." With that, the Ralts unleashed a Future Sight upon me. The trees, the tree house, the ground, all of it disappeared into a wash of white. Slowly the world came back into view. I was standing in the middle of a field of large flowers. A small white church stood in the middle of the field, the bell at the top of its small bell tower chiming and ringing as a calm breeze washed upon the area, making the flowers dance. A crowd of people was surrounding the door to the church. As I studied harder, I could make out their faces; I could see my sister, my mother, Professor Birch, and even a few people I recognized as Gym Leaders, and the Champion! The doors to the church opened, and the crowd cheered, throwing rice. Out from the doors stepped a bride and a groom. I looked closer at the groom, who was dressed in a nice traditional tuxedo, and I realized that it was me, but it wasn't me. It will be me, as that was my future self. I looked hard at the bride, but I couldn't make much about her features through her veil, but she had long dark hair and was just as tall as I am. The world then immediately snapped to white again.

"As you know, that is your future, or one of your futures. But it is a future that is threatened by evil. A man calling himself Sola has summoned forth the four terrors, in hopes of bringing their master to this world." The Ralts continues to sign, but is becoming visibly fatigued from all the effort. "In order to stop him, you need to save that girl, the girl who you will marry, from joining him. She is the key to stopping him." The Ralts then passed out, and the world returned back to normal. My Treecko who had been absent for all of this appeared and pounded the unconscious Ralts on the head, then gave me a thumbs up.

In the end, I captured the Ralts in a Poké Ball, and finally made my way toward Petalburg City. With much to think about, I knew I had to take a rest, but I could also take some time to do some research at the library in town.

 

[Maxite]

Chapter 3: The Two Kingdoms

Petalburg City, a simple bedroom community to Rustboro City, or it has been ever since the Gym in town closed down long ago and the city lost much of its prominence. The old Gym used to be the one that my sister managed, but it sits locked up, and eerily vacant. The vines of ivy that creeped up the walls of the gym had once been maintained, but now they were overgrown, and the building looked like a giant plant.

I walked over to the entrance of the Gym, and using the key given to me by my mother, I unlocked the doors and stepped inside. The inside reeked of decay as all of the planted shrubbery and trees had long died from lack of care. I walked down the winding path of the Gym, a path that many challengers used to take, and one which I used to dream of following myself to challenge my sister. The only light came from dome skylights in the ceiling, which provided for a natural if dim light. Near the end, the ground rose up a bit to the battle podium where people would challenge the Gym. The once brown floors were now gray with dust. I swept some dust away, and heard an odd sliding sound, like the sound of paper dragged against dirt. I looked down and there was a piece of paper, which I immediately grabbed.

"Dear Lily,
An urgent matter has come up within the Pokémon League, and since you are the most senior of the Gym Leaders it would be of great assistance if you could come down the League and help out." The rest of the letter was missing, but I pocketed what I had. I grabbed an old broom from the corner and swept the battle podium and then left, carefully locking it up again. Someday, this Gym might be mine.

The Library in town is located in the south-western part. I had heard long ago they filled in a pond to expand the town, and a library was one of the buildings they put in the new area. I walked toward the building, its facade covered in elaborate sculptures of Pokémon and people together. Two statues guard the entrance, one of a Starly, and one of a small kid. I entered the library, and was hit by the scent of paper. Worn red carpets cover the floors, and fluorescent lights drop down from the ceiling and illuminate the entire place. I past the front counter, and head towards the back where all the mythology books are at. I start browsing through the shelves of the books, but I can find nothing of use. I haven't any idea of what I am looking for, until an elderly man appears.

"Looking for something in particular?" He asked, smiling earnestly. His eyes were hidden behind spectacles, but I could tell that they were green. He also had crazy gray hair, and work a lab coat.

"I'm looking for details about a legend of four terrors." I answered, and continue my search. Bah, what a creepy old man.

"Oh, that? Sadly the closest library that has a book on that is in Kanto." The man shook his head solemnly, sad that the book was so far away. "But I can tell you about the legend, if you like."

"Ah, er, okay?" I hesistantly answered. I take a seat at a nearby table, and the old man slowly takes a seat as well.

"Perhaps I should introduce myself first. I'm Professor Gary Oak. Normally I'm in Kanto, but right now I'm studying the same legend that you are." He paused for a bit, but then continued with a grave message: "I will warn you of this: If you plan on getting involved in this legend, you best prepare yourself for a world of hurt beyond imagination. This isn't a cute legend of how Groudon and Kyogre shaped the land and seas. This is a very dark legend, once that makes even my own blood turn cold." His face has an extremely seriously look on it, but then immediately he smiles and says "Now, where to begin..."

"Long ago, there were two kingdoms, the Kingdom of the South and the Kingdom of the North. The Southern Kingdom was ruled by a kind and wise king, who cared deeply for the plights of his people. He appointed four knights to not only protect the kingdom, but to make sure that the people were happy. The first knight was humble, and thus treated the citizens as equals. The second knight was a romantic, and thus promoted peace and love amongst the people. The third knight praised charity, and thus donated food to citizens who lacked. The final knight was a medic, and treated the people for all of the ails and ills." the Professor paused for a bit.

"The Northern Kingdom was a direct opposite of that. There the king was cruel and corrupt, and he appointed four knights to expand his territory and terrorize his citizens. The first knight valued conquest, enslaving people in the territories he conquered and forcing them to do his work. The second knight was an expert all sorts of weapons, and thus chose to demolish all foes with his war. The third knight was a glutton, and stole all the food leaving the people hungry and without. The fourth knight loathed all life, and killed indiscriminately." I could tell that this story disturbed the Professor, but he continued.

"Eventually, the two Kingdoms clashed, but neither could claim victory. The two sides waged war, one constantly rebuilding what was lost, the other side constantly demolishing. Eventually, they disturbed the lair of a powerful Pokémon, who awoke from a deep slumber. He turned the eight knights and the two kings into Pokémon themselves, and sealed them deep under the earth before finally returning to rest himself."

"So, the four terrors are the knights of the old Northern Kingdom?" I asked.

"Yes. The part that disturbs me is why they are here in Hoenn. The Northern Kingdom was based in Kanto. Hoenn was the home of the Southern Kingdom, so the four virtues should be located here."

At this point, one of my Poké Balls started wobbling and out popped Ralts, who jumped onto the table.

"You need to return to the Gym!" the Ralts signed. "Great danger! Incredible danger! Unspeakable danger!"

"Oh ho ho, you taught your Ralts sign language? Isn't that impressive. I wonder what sort of danger it is talking about?" the Professer inquired, quite amazed at my Ralts. That would end soon as a loud explosion was heard, shaking the building. Books fell from shelves, adding more to the chaos.

I grabbed Ralts and dashed from the Library. I looked behind to see if Professor Oak was okay, but he was running right beside me. Once outside, I looked and could see smoke rising up from the Gym. The entrance to the Gym had been blown up. People were also heading outside, looking confused and trying to figure out what was going on. I ran towards the Gym, but was stopped.

"Young boy, take this!" the Professor threw a Poké Ball to me. "You go look at the Gym, I'll see to it that the rest of the town remains safe." I nodded and continued to run towards the Gym. Dust and smoke continued to rise up from the demolished portions of the Gym.

"Ralts, teleport me to the roof!" I barely finished that sentence and I was on the roof of the Gym. I ran over towards one of the skylights, and looked down. Standing on the battle podium was the mysterious girl. I needed a way to get down to her.

"Poké Ball, go!" I opened the mysterious Poké Ball that Professor Oak had given me. Out popped a Scyther, its bladed arms gleaming in the sunlight.

"Scyther, remove that domed skylight!" I ordered it. With a single swipe, it cleanly removed the dome skylight and knocked it off to the side. "Ralts, teleport us inside!" Ralts was only too happy to oblige.

We were teleported only a short distance from the mysterious girl, and as I looked at her I noticed she was bleeding profusely from a wound on her leg.

"Fool! Are you trying to get yourself killed?" She pointed into the darkness, and as I looked over towards it I could see a shadow of a beast. I grabbed my Pokédex and aimed it at the shadow, and its response sent my blood chilling.

"Unknown Pokémon. Believed responsible for the disaster in Mauville City many years ago."

 

[Maxite]

Chapter 4: Introductions

The beast stepped out from the shadows. It was quadrupedal, with long black and gray fur that flowed down its body, similar to how the fur on a Zoroark lies. Its large paws housed long, sharp, deadly white claws. Its short snout housed many razor sharp teeth that were haphazardly placed in its mouth, and it had four red slanted eyes.

"Go, Snorunt, Giratina, Magnemite! Snorunt, set up a Light Screen. Magnemite, Thunder Wave! Giratina, Shadow Force!" the mysterious girl responded immediately, unleashing all three of her Pokémon at once.

"Come out, Treecko! Use Leech Seed!" I ordered my last Pokémon out of its ball. An obviously drunk Treecko teetered out of the Poké Ball and walked over towards a nearby tree, and started taking a leak. I could only facepalm at this madness. "Damnit Treecko, use Leech Seed on that!" I yelled and pointed at the dark beast. Treecko just casually looked over to where I was pointing, and when it saw the monster it started taking a leak more violently. Double facepalm time.

As I waited for Treecko to finish his business, I had Scyther support Snorunt and protect both me and the mysterious girl from the beast, but he was busy dealing with attacks from Magnemite and a Giratina. Magnemite managed to strike it with a Thunder Wave, but it showed no ill effects. The beast retaliated by breathing fire onto the Magnemite, turning its metal body white hot, promptly fainting it. Giratina's Shadow Force connected, sending it flying back several feet.

Ralts tugged on my leg. "Save her." Ralts signed frantically. "Use the potion in your bag. Save her."

I didn't have much time to contemplate the efficacy of that plan, as there was a legendary Pokémon in the same building as me with a known history of killing anyone and anything. I grabbed a potion from my bag, and sprayed it on the mysterious girl's leg. She responded immediately by kicking me in the face.

"What're you trying to do? Potions aren't meant for humans!" she yelled. "Giratina, finish off that damned thing with an Earthquake." Giratina roared in compliance, and the entire Gym started shaking. The beast, sensing it was in great danger fled from battle, running past me and the mysterious girl and breaking through the back wall of the Gym, and running into the wilderness behind. As it ran past me, I could have swore that it winked at me.

"Good job, team. Giratina, Magnemite, Snorunt, return!" the mysterious girl called back her Pokémon. "I'd fight you, but my Pokémon have been weakened by this recent battle." Just as she started to walk away, the walls around the Gym started cracking and fracturing.

"Ralts, teleport us out of here!" I yelled, but Ralts just shrugged its shoulders.

"Sorry, I can't teleport two people at once." it quickly signed. Debris started falling from the ceiling, a rain of cement shrapnel falling on our heads. I looked around, but there was no obvious escape. Treecko was hopping around trying to dodge falling debris, so I called him back. The mysterious girl was limping towards the front of the Gym.

"Five." Ralts voice ringed in my head. When did Ralts learn telepathy? No time to think, I started dashing towards the mysterious girl. Even though it was only twenty yards, it seemed like an eternity.

"Four." Four seconds to what? Was the roof really going to fall on our heads? Seventeen yards away, and I could see that she was still trying to limp away. I could hear the ceiling starting to crack and crumple loudly now.

"Three." God, why doesn't the distance seem to close? I could see large chunks of the ceiling started to fall. If any of those landed on me, it'd be game over. No PokéCenter would be able to heal me. The mysterious girl was still hobbling away. I had to stop her. No, it was more than that. Something in my body told me that I needed to stop her. I yelled for her to stop, but I can't tell if she could hear me over the noise.

"Two." I-I'm moving quicker! I quickly looked behind me and saw that my Scyther is carrying me. I hadn't noticed that I had been picked up I had been so focused on catching up to her. I could see a reflection of pink light bouncing off the walls, what was going on behind me? What was Ralts up to?

"One." Two yards away from her. She stopped and has turned around, looking at me. Tears have filled her eyes. Time appeared as if it has almost frozen, as I felt like I was watching everything in slow motion. I saw giant chunks of cement rain down, and between them I could see the blue sky. Scyther let go me, and for a brief moment, I could feel that I was flying.

"Zero." Ooomph! I crashed into her, tackling her to the ground. The ground shook as heavy chunks of concrete hit the floor. I looked to my left and watched in absolute terror as a giant boulder landed just a few inches from my nose, sending dust into my face. The sound was deafening. A giant boulder fell on top of us, but it was held up by some other debris. We were trapped in a void inside the debris. Trapped, lying down, with me on top of her. The loud sounds soon ended, and all that I could hear was the sound of gravel and small debris plinking down, and a scream. An ungodly, terrible scream.

"Are you okay? Is something the matter?" I asked the mysterious girl, a bit panicked by her extreme wailing. She offered no response, and kept on screaming at the top of her lungs. "Is it your leg? Does your leg hurt?" I carefully took of my bag, and grabbed a flashlight from inside of it so I could see better in the darkness. As soon I turned it on, she gradually stopped screaming. Her eyes were dilated with fear, as if she had witnessed something horrific.

"Are you okay?" I asked again, now deeply concerned.

"I, I'm fine." She answered hesitantly, her voice quiet. "I would have been fine if you hadn't shown up and interrupted my confrontation with that repugnant beast!" she returned to her old, bold, and grating self quickly.

"I heard an explosion coming from the Gym, and went to check it out. Why the hell were you in the Gym in the first place?" I retorted.

"I was-- that's none of your business! I find it annoying how such a brat like you keeps interfering in my business!" She yelled.

"Keeps interfering in your business? I first met you a week ago! You're the one who keeps causing problems for me!" I yelled back.

"Oh god, are you bleeding?" Her quick change to a serious tone threw me off. She put her right hand to the back of my head, and when it came down I noticed it was covered in blood. Looking around, I could see a small puddle of my own blood on the ground, which had started to soak into the mysterious girl's clothing.

"Huh? Oh, I didn't really notice." I truly didn't notice, and now that I thought about it, I didn't really feel any pain. I had been concerned about protecting her that I hadn't focused on my own well being.

The mysterious girl just started laughing. It was a small chuckle at first, but soon it was full-on hysterical laughter. "Oh god, we're both injured after confronting a legendary beast, and we're having a silly argument." She convulsed with laughter. I didn't get what was so funny, but I took this as a good way to start over.

"Say, what is your name? My name is Barry."

"Haha! What a stupid name!" she laughed. "My name is Gwen." She paused for a bit, and in a warm tone gave me some information that shocked me. "And I was in this Gym trying to capture the monster, since my family is the one that released them from their prison underground."

As I tried to ask a question, I was teleported out of the void. I had wanted to ask her about a comment she had said earlier, a comment about my sister interfering with her plans. Had my sister tried to prevent her from capturing those Pokémon? The whole world faded to white once again, as I felt myself being lifted onto what I reckoned was a gurney. Before I passed out, I saw something in my dreams.

"Ralts, when'd you evolve into a Gardevoir?"

 

[Maxite]

Yea, this chapter took a while to write, even though it's short. It'll also be awhile until the next chapter comes out, since I'll be gone most of this week and the weekend for an anime convention in Chicago.

Chapter 5: Double Team

I woke up inside an ambulance. The entire world had a haze on it, as I just couldn't focus on anything. A paramedic was checking a monitor.

"My.. my Pokémon..." I muttered. I wasn't even sure if I had spoke coherently.

"Your Pokémon are back in their Poké Balls, don't worry. Can you tell me your name?" the paramedic answered in a very calm yet firm tone.

"My name is Barry." I had to struggle to speak. n had to energy to speak, which is odd because it seemed like only a few minutes ago I was speaking just fine with Gwen. Gwen!

"Where is Gwen?" I asked.

"The girl who was with you is fine. Professor Oak is driving her to the hospital in his convertible." For a reason I couldn't figure out, I felt happy hearing that. I closed my eyes and relaxed, and fell asleep.

I had a dream that night, or at least I think it was a dream. I woke up in a dark room, the sound of machines whirring all around, and medical beeping. I could see an electrocardiogram measuring my heart rhythm from the corner of my eyes. I tried moving my head, but found I couldn't; my head was bolted to the table. I tried moving my arms, my legs, my body, but they too were restrained. It was completely darkness except for the slight illumination of the dials and LEDs of the various machines. From outside my room, I could hear conversation.

"So he's one of them? We found the second, and the last guardian? Question is, which side does he control? Run more tests, I want to know if he's the child of Spoirix or Orrix." It was a muffled voice, and one I had never heard before. It sounded like it belonged to a young man, maybe in his mid-twenties at the latest.

"At once, brother." A familiar voice. Eerily familiar. I felt a cold sensation running up my arm. Was I hooked up to an IV?

"Don't push him too hard. I won't want to risk destabilizing him, like happened with you." His voice sounded even more muffled than usual. I struggled to keep focus on what was going on. I grasped, I clawed for a hold on reality, but ultimately I lost. Before all faded into white again, I saw the door open and watched Gwen enter the room.

I woke up in the morning, truly waking up. I pinched myself, and I felt pain. I wasn't in restraints, and as I looked I didn't see any marks from where I would have been restrained. I felt around my head, but couldn't find anywhere sign of additional injury, just some stitches on the back of my head from a gash I had received from falling debris. It was all just a dream, or so I had hoped. Finally recovered from the terror of such a dream, I looked around and noticed I was in a hospital room. I was wearing a light blue hospital gown on a traditional hospital bed. The room was pretty generic as far as hospital rooms go, with one major addition. Gwen was lying down on the sofa in my room, also wearing a hospital gown. As I looked, I could see a bit of cleavage peeking out from the top of the gown.

"Enjoying the views this morning, are we?" a sly voice entered my ear. I jumped, and turned around to notice Professor Oak standing on the other side of my hospital room. "Yes, she is indeed a nice specimen. Good size, good stats, intelligent, and fairly easy on the eyes." He was obviously ogling her in both his eyes, and his mind.

"What's your specialty again, Professor?" I asked.

"People-Pokémon relationships." His attention didn't shift one bit, he was still ogling Gwen.

"Lie back down in your bed." I heard my Gardevoir's voice inside my head. I decided to heed the advice, and just as I had laid down I heard Gwen get up. I believed she noticed Professor Oak staring at her in a pervy fashion, as the next thing I saw was Gwen flying over my bed tackling the professor to the ground.

"Ah, Gwen, good morning to you. I was just admiring your attributes as a trainer. Have you received your Pokédex yet?" Professor Oak didn't even seem phased by the fact that his face was being smashed into the floor and he was in several joint locks. Were Pokémon Professors always this oblivious to their surroundings?

"Barry, grab your stuff, we're leaving!" Gwen barked, getting off of Professor Oak. Without hesitation I got up and grabbed my bag. As I turned around I noticed that I could see part of Gwen's back through her hospital gown, since those tie in the back. I couldn't help but notice the strange birth mark on her back, which looked like a feather.

"You get changed in here. I'll use the restroom and get changed in there. No peeking!" Gwen stated in no-uncertain-terms, before slamming the door to the bathroom. I heard the audible click of a lock.

"Ah, what a wonderful rival. I remember the rivalry I had with my childhood friend from Pallet Town. Last I heard he had moved in with his friend Brock." the Professor reminisced.